Luminescence studies : Part I. Lanthanide nanoGUMBOS Part II. Near infrared photothermal nanoGUMBOS

Group of Uniform Materials Based on Organic Salts (GUMBOS) are a class of molten salts that have been focused to be specifically tailored towards applications. Primitively, from Davy to Walden molten salts were desirable for organic synthesis due to the properties. GUMBOS have been synthesized into nanoparticles (nanoGUMBOS) by various methods to be used for lanthanide luminescence and hyperthermal cancer therapeutics. Lanthanide photochemistry has been frequently studied for its high luminescence intensity, narrow emission band, and stable luminescent lifetime decay. Aerosol-derived europium nanoGUMBOS were characterized using electron microscopy (39.5 ± 8.4 nm), XPS, and spectroscopic techniques. Spectroscopic measurements indicated intense and steady luminescence, which suggests a multitude of possible applications for lanthanide-based GUMBOS, especially in sensory and photovoltaic devices. Several near infrared (NIR) nanoparticles of GUMBOS composed of cationic dyes coupled with biocompatible anions were investigated for their photothermal properties. These nanoparticles were synthesized using a reprecipitation method performed at increasing pH values. The cations for the nanoGUMBOS, [1048] and [1061], have absorbance maxima at wavelengths overlapping with human soft tissue absorbance minima. NIR nanoGUMBOS excited with a 1064 nm continuous laser led to heat generation (20.4 ± 2.7 °C) after five minutes. While the [1061][Deoxycholate] nanoGUMBOS generated the highest temperature increase (23.7 ± 2.4 °C), it was the least photothermally efficient compound (13.0%) due to its relatively large energy band gap of 0.892 eV. The energy band gap is a measurement of the HOMO and LUMO distance, and predictor of photothermal efficiency. The more photothermally efficient compound, [1048][Ascorbate] (64.4%), had a smaller energy band gap of 0.861 eV provided an average photothermal temperature increase of 21.0 ± 2.1 °C. Hyperthermal therapeutics originating from hot pokers has evolved into facilitation of NIR nanomaterials photothermal response. NanoGUMBOS can employ a variety of curative techniques by pairing fluorescent and biocompatible ions. NanoGUMBOS, [1048][Folate] and [1061][Folate], were evaluated using electron microscopy, spectroscopic, thermal imaging, and fluorescent assays. In order to generate highly responsive nanomaterials for NIR-laser-triggered hyperthermia, optimization of nanoparticle size, shape, and uniformity were investigated

How are nature-based solutions contributing to priority societal challenges surrounding human well-being in the United Kingdom: a systematic map

Background: The concept of nature-based solutions (NBS) has evolved as an umbrella concept to describe approaches to learning from and using nature to create sustainable socio-ecological systems. Furthermore, NBS often address multiple societal challenges that humans are facing in the medium to long-term and as such can enhance human well-being (HWB). This study was commissioned to fulfil the need for a targeted systematic evidence map on the linkage between NBS and HWB to support focused research going forward that addresses the key knowledge needs of policy makers in the UK and beyond. Methods: A consultation with policy makers and government agency staff (n = 46), in the four component parts of the UK (England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland) was conducted in spring 2019. This identified four key societal challenges of operational experience lacking a scientific evidence base. Three of these challenges related to management issues: NBS cost-efficacy, governance in planning, environmental justice. The fourth challenge related to the acoustic environment (soundscape). Using systematic methods, this study searched for and identified studies that assessed NBS on HWB with regard to these four selected societal challenges. Review findings: A total of 7287 articles were returned from the systematic search and screened for suitability at the level of title and abstract. A total of 610 articles passed screening criteria to warrant full text screening. Of these, 115 studies met the full text criteria for eligibility in the final systematic map database. Included studies were coded for twelve NBS interventions and ten HWB related outcome categories. Most of the evidence reviewed referred to natural, blue or green infrastructure in the urban environment and focused on economic, material and health aspects of HWB. Less than 2% of studies identified in the searches robustly reported the role of NBS actions or interventions on HWB compared with non-NBS actions or interventions. Conclusion: This systematic map found the evidence base is growing on NBS-HWB linkages, but significant biases persist in the existing literature. There was a bias in favour of the urban environment and restoration studies focused on conservation aspects, with only a few studies investigating the full suite of advantages to HWB that can be delivered from NBS actions and interventions. The soundscape was the least studied of the societal challenges identified as being of key importance by policy makers, with cost-efficiency the most reported. There was a lack of robust long-term studies to clearly test the potential of NBS regarding the HWB outcomes compared with non-NBS alternatives. This lack of robust primary knowledge, covering all four key societal challenges identified, confirms that the knowledge gaps identified by the policy makers persist, and highlights a clear research need for long-term, transdisciplinary studies that focus on comparisons between NBS and non-NBS alternatives

The Effects of Sport Specific, Governed, and Non-Controllable Focal Point on Female Vertical Jump Performance

Graduate Applie

Assessing the Relationship between Body Composition and 50-km Running Performance

Graduate Applie

MemOpLight: Leveraging application feedback to improve container memory consolidation

International audienceThe container mechanism amortizes costs by consolidating several servers onto the same machine, while keeping them mutually isolated.Specifically, to ensure performance isolation, Linux relies on memory limits.These limits are static, despite the fact that application needs are dynamic; this results in poor performance.To solve this issue, MemOpLight uses dynamic application feedback to rebalance physical memory allocation between containers focusing on under-performing ones.This paper presents the issues, explains the design of MemOpLight, and validates it experimentally.Our approach increases total satisfaction by 13% compared to the default

Highlighting the Container Memory Consolidation Problems in Linux

International audienceThe container mechanism supports server consolidation ; to ensure memory performance isolation, Linux relies on static memory limits. However, this results in poor performance, because an application needs are dynamic. In this article we will show current problems with memory consolidation for containers in Linux

Associations between Traffic-Related Air Pollution and Cognitive Function in Australian Urban Settings: The Moderating Role of Diabetes Status

Traffic-related air pollution (TRAP) is associated with lower cognitive function and diabetes in older adults, but little is known about whether diabetes status moderates the impact of TRAP on older adult cognitive function. We analysed cross-sectional data from 4141 adults who participated in the Australian Diabetes, Obesity and Lifestyle (AusDiab) study in 2011–2012. TRAP exposure was estimated using major and minor road density within multiple residential buffers. Cognitive function was assessed with validated psychometric scales, including: California Verbal Learning Test (memory) and Symbol–Digit Modalities Test (processing speed). Diabetes status was measured using oral glucose tolerance tests. We observed positive associations of some total road density measures with memory but not processing speed. Minor road density was not associated with cognitive function, while major road density showed positive associations with memory and processing speed among larger buffers. Within a 300 m buffer, the relationship between TRAP and memory tended to be positive in controls (β = 0.005; p = 0.062), but negative in people with diabetes (β = −0.013; p = 0.026) and negatively associated with processing speed in people with diabetes only (β = −0.047; p = 0.059). Increased TRAP exposure may be positively associated with cognitive function among urban-dwelling people, but this benefit may not extend to those with diabetes