Self-Supporting Robust Lattice Optimization for Material Extrusion Additive Manufacturing

A lattice optimization procedure is proposed that enables the fabrication of self-supporting topologies via additive manufacturing, while accounting for uncertainties introduced during additive manufacturing through a two-step optimization process. The first step is lattice layout optimization, which removes the strut members with near-zero diameters from an initial topology generated using a newly introduced lattice cell configuration for the purpose of supporting each strut. A support algorithm is developed that identifies strut joints requiring support in the optimized topology. The struts removed from the topology are selectively reintroduced at joints where support is needed to ensure self-supporting structure fabrication. Unlike existing lattice optimization procedures that typically account for uncertainties related to material properties or loading conditions, the proposed procedure also incorporates uncertainties in design variables, specifically, the diameters of struts, into a robust optimization process in the second step. Robust optimization is performed using neural networks trained to predict the as-fabricated strut diameters and material properties based on deterministic design variables. The applicability of the proposed procedure was demonstrated for the material extrusion technique using benchmark examples. The optimized designs were fabricated and tested to verify the effectiveness of the proposed procedure in producing self-supporting structures with improved prediction accuracy under fabrication-induced uncertainties.Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkiye (TUBITAK) [118M715]This work was supported by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkiye (TUBITAK) with project 118M715

Sağlık Ekonomisi Üzerine Makaleler

This thesis consists of three empirical chapters investigating the impact of education policies, stressful life events (SLEs), and pronatalist rhetoric on individuals' health behaviors and fertility preferences. The chapters rely on three distinct data sources: the Turkish Health Survey (THS), the German TwinLife, and the Turkish Demographic and Health Surveys (TDHS). Employing a range of empirical strategies, including fuzzy regression discontinuity design (RDD), conditional (fixed-effects) logistic regression, and Difference-in-Differences (DiD), the thesis provides novel evidence in research areas that have not been previously addressed in the literature. The first chapter investigates the causal impact of Türkiye's 2012 compulsory schooling reform, which extended mandatory education from 8 to 12 years, on smoking behavior. Using nationally representative data from the THS for 2019 and 2022, the chapter exploits the exogenous variation in educational attainment induced by the reform and employs a fuzzy RDD. The second chapter explores the association between SLEs and risky health behaviors, including smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, and drug use, using a twin-based research design. Although some studies emphasize the role of genetic and familial factors in shaping such behaviors, many cross-sectional approaches fail to control for these unobserved confounders. This chapter addresses this limitation by using data from the German TwinLife, which includes monozygotic and dizygotic same-sex twin pairs. The third chapter investigates the causal effect of the Prime Minister's pronatalist rhetoric on fertility preferences in Türkiye. Using data from the TDHS of 2008 and 2013, and cohort-based variation in exposure to the rhetoric as an identification strategy, the chapter employs a DiD approach.Bu tez, eğitim politikalarının, stresli yaşam olaylarının ve doğum yanlısı söylemlerin bireylerin sağlık davranışları ve doğurganlık tercihleri üzerindeki etkisini inceleyen üç ampirik bölümden oluşmaktadır. Bölümler, Türkiye Sağlık Araştırması (TSA), German Twin Family Panel (TwinLife) ve Türkiye Nüfus ve Sağlık Araştırmaları (TNSA) olmak üzere üç farklı veri setine dayanmaktadır. Bulanık regresyon süreksizlik tasarımı, koşullu sabit etkiler lojistik regresyon modeli ve Farkların Farkı gibi çeşitli ekonometrik yöntemlerin kullanıldığı tez, literatürde daha önce ele alınmamış alanlara özgün katkılar sunmaktadır. Birinci bölüm, Türkiye'de zorunlu eğitimin süresini 8 yıldan 12 yıla çıkaran 2012 eğitim reformunun sigara kullanımı üzerindeki nedensel etkisini incelemektedir. 2019 ve 2022 yıllarına ait TSA verileri kullanılarak, reformdan kaynaklanan eğitim süresi farklılıkları incelenmiş ve bulanık regresyon süreksizlik yöntemi uygulanmıştır. İkinci bölüm, stresli yaşam olayları ile sigara kullanımı, aşırı alkol tüketimi ve uyuşturucu madde kullanımı gibi riskli sağlık davranışları arasındaki ilişkiyi, ikiz temelli bir tasarım kullanarak incelemektedir. Bu bölüm, aynı cinsiyetteki tek ve çift yumurta ikizlerini içeren Alman TwinLife verisini kullanarak kesitsel yaklaşıma dayalı çalışmaların göz ardı ettiği gözlemlenemeyen genetik ve ailesel faktörleri dikkate almaktadır. Üçüncü bölüm, dönemin başbakanının doğum yanlısı söyleminin Türkiye'deki doğurganlık tercihleri üzerindeki nedensel etkisini incelemektedir. Çalışmada, 2008 ve 2013 yıllarına ait TNSA verileri kullanılarak; söyleme maruz kalma düzeyinde, doğum yılına bağlı farklılıklar dikkate alınarak Farkların Farkı yöntemi uygulanmaktadır

İnsansız Helikopter Hava Aracının Platform Seviyesi Güvenilirlik Analizi

Fazlı görev güvenilirliği analizi, teknolojik sistemlerin artan karmaşıklığı ve birden fazla fazı içeren görevlere olan ihtiyaç nedeniyle önem kazanmıştır. 1970'li yıllardan itibaren başta havacılık olmak üzere birçok alanda fazlı görev güvenilirliği çalışmaları ön plana çıkmaktadır. Bu tez çalışmasında, insansız helikopter platformunun fazlı görev güvenilirliği analizine yönelik bir model geliştirilmiştir. Çalışma yürütülürken platformun görevi fazlara bölünmüş ve her bir fazın motor, yakıt, iniş takımı ve seyrüsefer sistemlerinin hata türleri belirlenmiştir. Her bir faz ve alt sistemlere ait hata türleri Hata Türleri ve Etkileri Analizi (HTEA) ile değerlendirilmiş ve Hata Ağacı Analizi (FTA) yöntemi kullanılarak hata olasılıkları hesaplanmıştır. Analiz sürecinde, PTC Windchill yazılımı kullanılarak sistemlerin hata oranları hesaplanmış ve fazlara göre değişen güvenilirlik seviyeleri ortaya konmuştur. Üç farklı görev fazı (kalkış, seyir, iniş) boyunca hata senaryoları oluşturulmuş ve bu senaryolara bağlı olarak faz güvenilirlik değerleri elde edilmiştir. Her bir sistemin kendine özgü hata türleri belirlenerek, faz güvenilirlik değerleri birleştirilmiş ve platformun genel güvenilirliği hesaplanmıştır. Bu çalışma, fazlı görev güvenilirliği kavramının insansız hava araçları özelinde nasıl uygulanabileceğini ortaya koymakta ve hata analizi yöntemlerinin bu tür sistemlerde nasıl kullanılabileceğini göstermektedir. Sonuç olarak, insansız hava araçlarının sistem güvenilirliğini artırmak için faz bazlı analizlerin önemini vurgulayan bu çalışma, mühendislik projelerinde uygulanabilir yöntemler sunmaktadır.Phase mission reliability analysis has gained significance due to the increasing complexity of technological systems and the need for missions involving multiple phases. Since 1970s, phase mission reliability studies have been at the forefront, particularly in the aviation industry. This thesis develops a phase mission reliability analysis model for an unmanned helicopter platform. The mission is divided into phases, and the failure modes of the engine, fuel, landing gear, and navigation systems for each phase are identified. These failure modes are evaluated using Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA) and analyzed using the Fault Tree Analysis (FTA) method to calculate failure probabilities. During the analysis process, PTC Windchill software is employed to compute system failure rates and determine reliability levels across different phases. Failure scenarios are created for three distinct mission phases (takeoff, cruise, and landing), and reliability values are obtained accordingly. The unique failure modes of each system are identified, phase-specific reliability values are aggregated, and the overall reliability of the platform is determined. This study demonstrates how phase mission reliability can be applied specifically to unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and illustrates how failure analysis methods can be effectively utilized for such systems. Ultimately, this research highlights the importance of phase-based analysis in enhancing the reliability of UAV systems and provides practical methodologies applicable to engineering project

Measurements of WH and ZH Production with Higgs Boson Decays into Bottom Quarks and Direct Constraints on the Charm Yukawa Coupling in 13 TeV pp Collisions with the ATLAS Detector

Rompotis, Nikolaos/0000-0003-2577-1875A study of the Higgs boson decaying into bottom quarks (H -> b (b) over bar) and charm quarks (H -> c (c) over bar) is performed, in the associated production channel of the Higgs boson with a W or Z boson, using 140 fb(-1) of proton-proton collision data at root s = 13 TeV collected by the ATLAS detector. The individual production of WH and ZH with H -> b (b) over bar is established with observed (expected) significances of 5.3 (5.5) and 4.9 (5.6) standard deviations, respectively. Differential cross-section measurements of the gauge boson transverse momentum within the simplified template cross-section framework are performed in a total of 13 kinematical fiducial regions. The search for the H -> c (c) over bar decay yields an observed (expected) upper limit at 95% confidence level of 11.5 (10.6) times the Standard Model prediction. The results are also used to set constraints on the charm coupling modifier, resulting in vertical bar kappa(c)vertical bar 4.2 at 95% confidence level. Combining the H -> b(b)over bar> and H -> c (c) over bar measurements constrains the absolute value of the ratio of Higgs-charm and Higgs-bottom coupling modifiers (vertical bar kappa(c)/kappa(b)vertical bar) to be less than 3.6 at 95% confidence level.ANPCyT, Argentina; YerPhI, Armenia; ARC, Australia; BMWFW; FWF, Austria; ANAS; CNPq; FAPESP, Brazil; NSERC; CFI, Canada; NSFC, China; MEYS CR, Czech Republic; DNRF; DNSRC, Denmark; IN2P3-CNRS; CEA-DRF/IRFU, France; BMBF; MPG, Germany; RGC and Hong Kong SAR, China; ISF; Benoziyo Center, Israel; INFN, Italy; MEXT; JSPS, Japan; CNRST, Morocco; NWO, Netherlands; RCN, Norway; MNiSW, Poland; FCT, Portugal; MNE/IFA, Romania; MSSR, Slovakia; SRC; Wallenberg Foundation, Sweden; SNSF and Cantons of Bern and Geneva, Switzerland; NSTC, Taipei; STFC/UKRI, United Kingdom; DOE; NSF, United States of America; BCKDF; CANARIE; CRC; DRAC, Canada; FORTE; PRIMUS, Czech Republic; ERC; ERDF; Marie Skodowska-Curie Actions, European Union; Investissements d'Avenir Labex, Investissements d'Avenir Idex; ANR, France; DFG; AvH Foundation, Germany - EU-ESF; Greek NSRF, Greece; BSF-NSF; NCN; La Caixa Banking Foundation; CERCA Programme Generalitat de Catalunya; PROMETEO [CIDEGENT/2019/027]; Generalitat Valenciana, Spain; Goran Gustafssons Stiftelse, Sweden; Royal Society [NIF-R1-231091, ECA DE-AC02-76SF00515]; Leverhulme Trust, United Kingdom; Armenia: Yerevan Physics Institute (FAPERJ); CERN: European Organization for Nuclear Research; Chile: Agencia Nacional de Investigacion y Desarrollo (FONDECYT) [1230812]; FONDECYT [1240864]; China: Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology [MOST-2023YFA1605700, MOST-2023YFA1609300]; National Natural Science Foundation of China [NSFC - 12175119, NSFC 12275265, NSFC-12075060]; Czech Republic: Czech Science Foundation [GACR - 24-11373S]; Ministry of Education Youth and Sports [FORTE CZ.02.01.01/00/22_008/0004632]; PRIMUS Research Programme [PRIMUS/21/SCI/017]; EU [ERC - 101002463]; European Union: European Research Council [ERC - 948254, 101089007, MUCCA - CHIST-ERA-19-XAI-00]; European Union [FAIR-NextGenerationEU PE00000013]; France: Agence Nationale de la Recherche [ANR-20-CE31-0013, ANR-21-CE31-0013, ANR-21-CE31-0022, ANR-22-EDIR-0002]; Investissements d'Avenir Labex; Germany: Baden-Wurttemberg Stiftung; Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft [DFG - 469666862]; Ministero dell'Universita e della Ricerca [20223N7F8K - PNRR M4.C2.1.1]; Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS KAKENHI) [JP22H01227, JP22H04944, JP22KK0227, RCN-314472, 9722]; Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange [PPN/PPO/2020/1/00002/U/00001]; Polish National Science Centre [NCN 2021/42/E/ST2/00350]; NCN OPUS [2022/47/B/ST2/03059, UMO-2020/37/B/ST2/01043, UMO-2021/40/C/ST2/00187, UMO-2022/47/O/ST2/00148, UMO-2023/49/B/ST2/04085, UMO-2023/51/B/ST2/00920]; Slovenian Research Agency [J1-3010]; Spain: Generalitat Valenciana; FEDER [IDIFEDER/2018/048, NextGenEU PCI2022-135018-2]; MICIN FEDER [PID2021-125273NB, RYC2019-028510-I, RYC2020-030254-I, RYC2021-031273-I, RYC2022-038164-I]; Swedish Research Council (Swedish Research Council) [2023-04654, VR 2018-00482, VR 2022-03845, VR 2022-04683, VR 2023-03403]; VR [2021-03651]; Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation [KAW 2018.0157, KAW 2018.0458, KAW 2019.0447, SNSF - PCEFP2_194658]; United Kingdom: Leverhulme Trust (Leverhulme Trust) [RPG-2020-004]; Neubauer Family FoundationWe gratefully acknowledge the support of ANPCyT, Argentina; YerPhI, Armenia; ARC, Australia; BMWFW and FWF, Austria; ANAS, Azerbaijan; CNPq and FAPESP, Brazil; NSERC, NRC and CFI, Canada; CERN; ANID, Chile; CAS, MOST and NSFC, China; Minciencias, Colombia; MEYS CR, Czech Republic; DNRF and DNSRC, Denmark; IN2P3-CNRS and CEA-DRF/IRFU, France; SRNSFG, Georgia; BMBF, HGF and MPG, Germany; GSRI, Greece; RGC and Hong Kong SAR, China; ISF and Benoziyo Center, Israel; INFN, Italy; MEXT and JSPS, Japan; CNRST, Morocco; NWO, Netherlands; RCN, Norway; MNiSW, Poland; FCT, Portugal; MNE/IFA, Romania; MSTDI, Serbia; MSSR, Slovakia; ARIS and MVZI, Slovenia; DSI/NRF, South Africa; MICIU/AEI, Spain; SRC and Wallenberg Foundation, Sweden; SERI, SNSF and Cantons of Bern and Geneva, Switzerland; NSTC, Taipei; TENMAK, Turkiye; STFC/UKRI, United Kingdom; DOE and NSF, United States of America. Individual groups and members have received support from BCKDF, CANARIE, CRC and DRAC, Canada; CERN-CZ, FORTE and PRIMUS, Czech Republic; COST, ERC, ERDF, Horizon 2020, ICSC-NextGenerationEU and Marie Skodowska-Curie Actions, European Union; Investissements d'Avenir Labex, Investissements d'Avenir Idex and ANR, France; DFG and AvH Foundation, Germany; Herakleitos, Thales and Aristeia programmes co-financed by EU-ESF and the Greek NSRF, Greece; BSF-NSF and MINERVA, Israel; NCN and NAWA, Poland; La Caixa Banking Foundation, CERCA Programme Generalitat de Catalunya and PROMETEO and GenT Programmes Generalitat Valenciana, Spain; Goran Gustafssons Stiftelse, Sweden; The Royal Society and Leverhulme Trust, United Kingdom. In addition, individual members wish to acknowledge support from Armenia: Yerevan Physics Institute (FAPERJ); CERN: European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN PJAS); Chile: Agencia Nacional de Investigacion y Desarrollo (FONDECYT 1230812, FONDECYT 1230987, FONDECYT 1240864); China: Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST-2023YFA1605700, MOST-2023YFA1609300), National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC - 12175119, NSFC 12275265, NSFC-12075060); Czech Republic: Czech Science Foundation (GACR - 24-11373S), Ministry of Education Youth and Sports (FORTE CZ.02.01.01/00/22_008/0004632), PRIMUS Research Programme (PRIMUS/21/SCI/017); EU: H2020 European Research Council (ERC - 101002463); European Union: European Research Council (ERC - 948254, ERC 101089007), Horizon 2020 Framework Programme (MUCCA - CHIST-ERA-19-XAI-00), European Union, Future Artificial Intelligence Research (FAIR-NextGenerationEU PE00000013), Italian Center for High Performance Computing, Big Data and Quantum Computing (ICSC, NextGenerationEU); France: Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR-20-CE31-0013, ANR-21-CE31-0013, ANR-21-CE31-0022, ANR-22-EDIR-0002), Investissements d'Avenir Labex (ANR-11-LABX-0012); Germany: Baden-Wurttemberg Stiftung (BW Stiftung-Postdoc Eliteprogramme), Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG - 469666862, DFG - CR 312/5-2); Italy: Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (ICSC, NextGenerationEU), Ministero dell'Universita e della Ricerca (PRIN - 20223N7F8K - PNRR M4.C2.1.1); Japan: Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS KAKENHI JP22H01227, JSPS KAKENHI JP22H04944, JSPS KAKENHI JP22KK0227, JSPS KAKENHI JP23KK0245); Netherlands: Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO Veni 2020 - VI.Veni.202.179); Norway: Research Council of Norway (RCN-314472); Poland: Ministry of Science and Higher Education (IDUB AGH, POB8, D4 no 9722), Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange (PPN/PPO/2020/1/00002/U/00001), Polish National Science Centre (NCN 2021/42/E/ST2/00350, NCN OPUS nr 2022/47/B/ST2/03059, NCN UMO-2019/34/E/ST2/00393, NCN ; H2020 MSCA 945339, UMO-2020/37/B/ST2/01043, UMO-2021/40/C/ST2/00187, UMO-2022/47/O/ST2/00148, UMO-2023/49/B/ST2/04085, UMO-2023/51/B/ST2/00920); Slovenia: Slovenian Research Agency (ARIS grant J1-3010); Spain: Generalitat Valenciana (Artemisa, FEDER, IDIFEDER/2018/048), Ministry of Science and Innovation (MCIN ; NextGenEU PCI2022-135018-2, MICIN ; FEDER PID2021-125273NB, RYC2019-028510-I, RYC2020-030254-I, RYC2021-031273-I, RYC2022-038164-I), PROMETEO and GenT Programmes Generalitat Valenciana (CIDEGENT/2019/027); Sweden: Carl Trygger Foundation (Carl Trygger Foundation CTS 22:2312), Swedish Research Council (Swedish Research Council 2023-04654, VR 2018-00482, VR 2022-03845, VR 2022-04683, VR 2023-03403, VR grant 2021-03651), Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation (KAW 2018.0157, KAW 2018.0458, KAW 2019.0447, KAW 2022.0358); Switzerland: Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF - PCEFP2_194658); United Kingdom: Leverhulme Trust (Leverhulme Trust RPG-2020-004), Royal Society (NIF-R1-231091); United States of America: U.S. Department of Energy (ECA DE-AC02-76SF00515), Neubauer Family Foundation

Destructive and Constructive RIS Beamforming in an ISAC Multi-User MIMO Network

IEEE Communications Society; IEEE Montreal Section; IEEE Ottawa SectionIntegrated sensing and communication (ISAC) has already established itself as a promising solution to the spectrum scarcity problem, even more so when paired with a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS), as RISs can shape the propagation environment by adjusting their phase-shift coefficients. Albeit the potential performance gain, a RIS is also a potential security threat to the system. In this paper, we explore both the positive and negative sides of having a RIS in a multi-user multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) ISAC network. We first develop an alternating optimization algorithm, obtaining the active and passive beamforming vectors that maximize the sensing signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) under minimum signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR) constraints for the communication users and finite power budget. We also investigate the destructive potential of the RIS by devising a RIS phase-shift optimization algorithm that minimizes the sensing SNR while preserving the same minimum communication SINR previously guaranteed by the system. We further investigate the impact of the RIS's individual element failures on the system performance. The simulation results show that the RIS performance-boosting potential is as good as its destructive one and that both of our optimization strategies are hindered by the investigated impairments. © 2025 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved

Shap-Based Identification of Potential Acoustic Biomarkers in Patients With Post-Thyroidectomy Voice Disorder

Objective: The objective of this study was to identify potential robust acoustic biomarkers for functional post-thyroidectomy voice disorder (PTVD) that may support early diagnosis and personalized treatment strategies, using acoustic analysis and explainable machine learning methods. Methods: Spectral and cepstral features were extracted from /a/ and /i/ voice recordings collected preoperatively and 4-6 weeks postoperatively from a total of 126 patients. Various Support Vector Machine (SVM) and Boosting models were trained. SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) analysis was applied to enhance interpretability. SHAP values from training and test sets were compared via scatter plots to identify stable candidate biomarkers with high consistency. Results: GentleBoost (AUC = 0.85) and LogitBoost (AUC = 0.81) demonstrated the highest classification performance. Performance metrics across all models were evaluated for statistical significance. DeLong's test was conducted to assess differences between ROC curves. The features iCPP, aCPP, and aHNR were identified as stable candidate biomarkers, exhibiting consistent SHAP distributions in both training and test sets in terms of direction and magnitude. These features showed statistically significant correlations with PTVD (p 0.05) and demonstrated strong effect sizes (Cohen's d = -2.95, -1.13, -0.60). Their diagnostic relevance was further supported by post hoc power analyses (iCPP: 1.00; aCPP: 0.998). Conclusions: SHAP-supported machine learning models offer an objective and clinically meaningful approach for evaluating PTVD. The identified features may serve as potential biomarkers to guide individualized voice therapy decisions during the early postoperative period

Measurement of W±-Boson Differential Cross-Sections in Proton–Proton Collisions with Low Pile-Up Data at s=5.02 TeV and 13 TeV with the ATLAS Detector

High precision single-differential W±-boson production cross-sections as a function of electron or muon transverse momentum pT or their pseudorapity η, as well as double-differential cross-sections as functions of these variables, are measured in proton–proton collisions at centre-of-mass energies s=5.02 TeV and 13 TeV. The W-boson charge asymmetry as a function of lepton η is also measured. The data, collected in dedicated runs at reduced instantaneous luminosity with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider, correspond to integrated luminosities of 255 pb-1 at 5.02 TeV and 338 pb-1 at 13 TeV. The measurements are in agreement with Standard-Model predictions calculated at next-to-next-to-leading-order in the strong coupling constant αs including transverse-momentum resummation at next-to-next-to-leading logarithmic accuracy using several parton distribution functions. The impact of the measured differential cross-sections as a function of lepton η on the determination of these functions is studied using a profiling technique. © 2025 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved

A Polyphenol-Based Hydrogel for Enabling Enhanced Metal Ion Sorption, Antimicrobial Activity, and Water Remediation

Golder, Animes Kumar/0000-0001-8144-5316Naturally derived, highly functional, and widely accessible materials represent enabling technologies for sustainable development. However, current bio-derived materials often present a trade-off between sustainability potential and functional performance. Sorbents that can remove potentially toxic elements (PTEs) and inhibit bacterial growth to enable water remediation exemplify this dilemma. Conventional plant-based biopolymer materials are attractive for their low cost and environmental compatibility, but many require additional specialized synthetic components to impart the requisite performance. We now report an approach for preparing majority plant polyphenol hydrogels composed of the widely available tannic acid (TA) at an unprecedented 75% content. A minority seaweed alginate (Alg) matrix is used to bind TA into conveniently handled beads. Convenient application is also demonstrated by conducting all experiments with dried beads rehydrated directly during use. Multifold enhancements in water swelling, sorption of a suite of PTEs, and antimicrobial activity are found with increasing TA content. Moreover, we report a novel additional enhancement of antimicrobial activity based on TA-induced iron incorporation, as characterized by XPS, SEM, TGA, and EDX. Further enhancement of sorption for a PTE in this Alg-TA-Fe matrix is also demonstrated. Our hydrogels can be produced at room temperature in low resource settings and exhibit performance generally superior to other biopolymer sorbents and on par with those combining synthetic functionalities. A qualitative evaluation of our polyphenol hydrogels' sustainability potential is performed based on their novel functionalities, greenhouse gas emissions, environmental compatibility, material abundance, and potential for localized production.A.J. acknowledges support of a Commonwealth Split-site PhD scholarship (INCN-2019-204). K.H.A.L., A.K.G., and L.M.P. thank the U.K. India Education Research Initiative and the Department of Science and Technology, India, for a Research Partnership Grant (DST-UKIERI 2017 18-009). C.M.D. and K.H.A.L. acknowledge the University of Strathclyde for AR's Global Research Scholarship. The authors also thank Drs. J.R. Bame and G.J. Anderson for assistance with ICP-MS at Strathclyde's Pure and Applied Chemistry Mass Spectrometry Facility.University of Strathclyde [INCN-2019-204]; Commonwealth Split-site PhD scholarship; U.K. India Education Research Initiative [DST-UKIERI 2017 18-009]; Department of Science and Technology, India; University of Strathclyd

Loyalty To Amateur Sellers in the Online Second-Hand Market

PurposeThis study develops a scale to measure loyalty to second-hand sellers in online markets. The potential marketing outcomes are discussed based on the tested model.Design/methodology/approachA scale measuring loyalty to unprofessional second-hand sellers was developed in five stages. An experimental model was also developed using data from four different countries, where the level of product information was manipulated to observe its effects on loyalty dimensions.FindingsThe developed scale has two sub-dimensions: purchase loyalty and person loyalty. The results validate the use of a loyalty scale and conclude that a second-hand seller should provide sufficient information about the product, which would increase loyalty and generate repurchase intention.Practical implicationsIt is recommended that second-hand sellers follow potentially profitable customers and provide sufficient product information to enhance loyalty sales. Consumers may be able to establish regular streams of income through online second-hand sales.Social implicationsThe system potentially enables the creation of a consistent and systematic used-product and revenue cycle, maintaining an environment-friendly circulation of second-hand items.Originality/valueMost studies have focused on buyer behavior, largely ignoring the amateur seller's perspective. The absence of deliberate branding by second-hand sellers creates an interesting research opportunity to investigate the factors contributing to buyer loyalty.Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkiye (TUBITAK) [221K112]This project was financially supported by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkiye (TUBITAK) (No: 221K112)

An Investigation of Otosclerotic Foci in Stapes Superstructure and Evaluation of Results Using Audiometric Data

Akincioglu, Egemen/0000-0003-1973-1279; Akin Ocal, F Ceyda/0000-0001-7212-2208Objectives To investigate the stapes superstructure removed during surgical procedure under a light microscope, see whether the stapes superstructure was directly or indirectly affected by otosclerosis, and evaluate the results using the audiometric data.Methods Histologic section of the stapes superstructures of 30 patients operated for otosclerosis were retrospectively analysed.Results There were no obvious active/inactive otosclerotic foci in the investigated stapes superstructures. Nevertheless, stapes superstructures had certain histopathologic findings that were not normally expected. Patients with otosclerotic alterations (Group 1) and without otosclerotic alterations (Group 2) were compared by pre-operative and post-operative air conduction, bone conduction, and air-bone gap.Conclusion The stapes superstructure contained degenerative findings similar to osteoarthritis of long bones and histopathologic changes that might be considered significant in terms of otosclerosis. Nevertheless, these changes did not significantly affect pre-operative and post-operative pure tone audiometry data. This is the first study known to us that investigated the stapes superstructure from the otosclerosis perspective, and the cases were assessed in combination with audiometric data