Two-scale asymptotic homogenization in a MEMS auxetic structure for over etch identification

The development and optimization of Micro electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) devices, due to their small size scale, require testing and precise characterization. As an example, over etch, which is the deviation between the designed masks and the effective dimensions of the suspended parts, strongly influences the performances of MEMS; therefore, to predict the correct functioning of the device its actual value must be carefully identified. In this work, we propose an efficient, time-saving tool to identify fabrication imperfections in MEMS devices. In particular, we replace the complex geometry of a MEMS mechanical filter with an equivalent homogeneous medium, whose linear-elastic effective properties are evaluated employing two-scale asymptotic homogenization and we identify the over etch by minimizing the relative error between experimental data and corresponding predictions obtained for different combinations of over etch

Angular correlation of scattered annihilation photons, to test the possibility of hidden variables in quantum theory

Angular correlations of the annihilation photons, Compton scattered by plastic scintillators and detected by means of NaI (T1) crystals, have been measured in order to test the possibility of deviations of the experimental results from the predictions of the quantum theory

A NEW SHORT VERSION OF INTERNET GAMING DISORDER-20: AN EXPLORATORY STRUCTURAL EQUATION MODELING

Objective: The purpose of this paper was to contribute to the psychometric properties and dimensionality of the IGD-20. Method: An online survey was completed by 392 Italian online gamers (Mage = 29.2, SD = 11.3; 45.2% males). A battery of self-report questionnaires was administered to assess internet gaming disorder, internet addiction, loneliness, anxiety, depression, stress, social-interaction anxiety, self-esteem, and perceived social support. To test the factor structure of IGD-20, both traditional (i.e., EFA and CFA) and innovative (i.e., ESEM) techniques were applied. Convergent, concurrent, discriminant, and criterion-related validity were evaluated. Results: Our study revealed the outperforming 3-factor ESEM model (χ2=39.951, p = 0.0021; RMSEA = 0.056, 90% C.I. [0.032 - 0.079]; CFI = 0.986; TLI = 0.965; and SRMR = 0.017; ω = .76, .77, and .79, respectively) as a new short version (IGD- 10SV) for the IGD-20. The validity of the IGD-10SV was supported by significant associations with theoretically related measures. Conclusions: The current findings support the adoption of the analytic ESEM approach for complex multidimensional measures and the use of the IGD-10SV for the assessment of internet gaming disorder

Super-resolution provided by the arbitrarily strong superlinearity of the blackbody radiation

Blackbody radiation is a fundamental phenomenon in nature, and its explanation by Planck marks a cornerstone in the history of Physics. In this theoretical work, we show that the spectral radiance given by Planck's law is strongly superlinear with temperature, with an arbitrarily large local exponent for decreasing wavelengths. From that scaling analysis, we propose a new concept of super-resolved detection and imaging: if a focused beam of energy is scanned over an object that absorbs and linearly converts that energy into heat, a highly nonlinear thermal radiation response is generated, and its point spread function can be made arbitrarily smaller than the excitation beam focus. Based on a few practical scenarios, we propose to extend the notion of super-resolution beyond its current niche in microscopy to various kinds of excitation beams, a wide range of spatial scales, and a broader diversity of target objects

Fear of flying assessment: A contribution to the Italian validation of two self-report measures

The present study describes the psychometric properties of the Italian adaptation of two self-report scales for fear of flying assessment: the Flight Anxiety Situations questionnaire (FAS), which measures anxiety related to specific flying phases, and the Flight Anxiety Modality questionnaire (FAM), which focuses on somatic and cognitive modalities occurring in air travel situations. Although both questionnaires have been translated in various languages and tailored to several local frameworks, this is the only study that provides an evaluation of the adapted instruments’ validity and reliability. Validation procedures were done on 259 participants, including patients who experienced fear of flying as well as a group of non-clinical subjects. Exploratory factor analysis was used to investigate the optimal design for the dimensional structure of both instruments. Confirmatory analyses showed that the envisaged models provided an acceptable fit for the available data. A three-factor solution for FAS and a two-factor solution for FAM were therefore detected. Construct validity was supported by convergent and criterion-related data, internal consistency was satisfactory for all subscales, and both instruments revealed a high level of sensitivity to change. Overall, psychometric quality of both measures showed to be fairly good and comparable to those found in the original study, thus suggesting their application in treatment programs for non-English speakers

U-Sleep's resilience to AASM guidelines

AASM guidelines are the result of decades of efforts aiming at standardizing sleep scoring procedure, with the final goal of sharing a worldwide common methodology. The guidelines cover several aspects from the technical/digital specifications,e.g., recommended EEG derivations, to detailed sleep scoring rules accordingly to age. Automated sleep scoring systems have always largely exploited the standards as fundamental guidelines. In this context, deep learning has demonstrated better performance compared to classical machine learning. Our present work shows that a deep learning based sleep scoring algorithm may not need to fully exploit the clinical knowledge or to strictly adhere to the AASM guidelines. Specifically, we demonstrate that U-Sleep, a state-of-the-art sleep scoring algorithm, can be strong enough to solve the scoring task even using clinically non-recommended or non-conventional derivations, and with no need to exploit information about the chronological age of the subjects. We finally strengthen a well-known finding that using data from multiple data centers always results in a better performing model compared with training on a single cohort. Indeed, we show that this latter statement is still valid even by increasing the size and the heterogeneity of the single data cohort. In all our experiments we used 28528 polysomnography studies from 13 different clinical studies

Quantum Mechanics and Leggett's Inequalities

We show that when the proper description of the behaviour of individual photons or spin 1/2 particles in a spherically symmetric entangled pair is done through the use of the density matrix, the Leggett's inequality is not violated by quantum mechanics.Comment: 7 pages, no figures. A missing global sign in the r.h.s. of eq. (4.10) in section 4 of version 1 (v1) invalidates the conclusion of that particular section, which is then suppressed in the present version (v2