Ethyl (2E,4Z)-5-diethyl­amino-2-(phenyl­sulfon­yl)penta-2,4-dienoate

In the title compound, C17H23NO4S, the penta­diene group adopts a planar conformation, with an r.m.s. deviation of 0.0410 (14) Å. The phenyl ring makes a dihedral angle of 85.73 (11)° with the penta­diene group, while the penta­diene group makes dihedral angles of 11.38 (11) and 14.08 (10)°, respectively, with the amino and ester groups. In the crystal, molecules are linked via pairs of C—H⋯O inter­actions, forming inversion dimers

Environmental, social and governance transparency and firm value

We investigate whether ESG transparency, the extent of ESG disclosure, has an impact on firm value. Reducing investors’ information symmetry and agency costs is the mechanism by which better ESG transparency potentially impacts firm value. Using the Bloomberg ESG disclosure scores to assess a firm’s ESG transparency, we look at a sample of 1996 large cap companies across 47 developed and emerging countries and territories. Our empirical analyses suggest that the benefits from ESG disclosure outweigh their costs for the average listed firm. We find supporting evidence for greater disclosure of ESG issues boosting firm valuation measures, such as Tobin’s Q. Furthermore, our results suggest that firms with greater asset size, better liquidity, higher R&D intensity, fewer insider holdings, good past financial performance will be more transparent in ESG issues

NEURAL NETWORK USED FOR THE PREDICTION OF JOINT TORQUE FROM GROUND REACTION FORCE DURING COUNTER·MOVEMENT JUMP AND SQUAT JUMP

The purpose of this study was to develop an artificial neural network (ANN) for predicting the joint torque of lower limb using solely the ground reaction force (GRF) parameters for counter-movement jump (CMJ) and squat jump (SJ). Ten sport students performed CMJ and SJ on force plate, meanwhile the kinematic data were recorded and the joint torque were calculated as experimental data by inverse dynamics. We used a fully-connected, feed-forward network comprised of one input layer, one hidden layer and one output layer trained by back propagation using Steepest Descent Method. The input parameters of ANN were relevant time variables of GRF measurement and the output parameters were joint torque. The results revealed that the ANN model fitted the experimental data well indicating that the model developed in this study is feasible in the assessment of joint torque for CMJ and SJ

Thermal-Mechanical Properties of Polyurethane-Clay Shape Memory Polymer Nanocomposites

Shape memory nanocomposites of polyurethane (PU)-clay were fabricated by melt mixing of PU and nano-clay. Based on nano-indentation and microhardness tests, the strength of the nanocomposites increased dramatically as a function of clay content, which is attributed to the enhanced nanoclay–polymer interactions. Thermal mechanical experiments demonstrated good mechanical and shape memory effects of the nanocomposites. Full shape memory recovery was displayed by both the pure PU and PU-clay nanocomposites.

Effects of epidural compression on stellate neurons and thalamocortical afferent fibers in the rat primary somatosensory cortex

A number of neurological disorders such as epidural hematoma can cause compression of cerebral cortex. We here tested the hypothesis that sustained compression of primary somatosensory cortex may affect stellate neurons and thalamocortical afferent (TCA) fibers. A rat model with barrel cortex subjected to bead epidural compression was used. Golgi‑Cox staining analyses showed the shrinkage of dendritic arbors and the stripping of dendritic spines of stellate neurons for at least 3 months post‑lesion. Anterograde tracing analyses exhibited a progressive decline of TCA fiber density in barrel field for 6 months post‑lesion. Due to the abrupt decrease of TCA fiber density at 3 days after compression, we further used electron microscopy to investigate the ultrastructure of TCA fibers at this time. Some TCA fiber terminal profiles with dissolved or darkened mitochondria and fewer synaptic vesicles were distorted and broken. Furthermore, the disruption of mitochondria and myelin sheath was observed in some myelinated TCA fibers. In addition, expressions of oxidative markers 3‑nitrotyrosine and 4‑hydroxynonenal were elevated in barrel field post‑lesion. Treatment of antioxidant ascorbic acid or apocynin was able to reverse the increase of oxidative stress and the decline of TCA fiber density, rather than the shrinkage of dendrites and the stripping of dendritic spines of stellate neurons post‑lesion. Together, these results indicate that sustained epidural compression of primary somatosensory cortex affects the TCA fibers and the dendrites of stellate neurons for a prolonged period. In addition, oxidative stress is responsible for the reduction of TCA fiber density in barrels rather than the shrinkage of dendrites and the stripping of dendritic spines of stellate neurons