Panoramic-reconstruction temporal imaging for seamless measurements of slowly-evolved femtosecond pulse dynamics

Single-shot real-time characterization of optical waveforms with sub-picosecond resolution is essential for investigating various ultrafast optical dynamics. However, the finite temporal recording length of current techniques hinders comprehensive understanding of many intriguing ultrafast optical phenomena that evolve over a time scale much longer than their fine temporal details. Inspired by the space-time duality and by stitching of multiple microscopic images to achieve a larger field of view in the spatial domain, here a panoramic-reconstruction temporal imaging (PARTI) system is devised to scale up the temporal recording length without sacrificing the resolution. As a proof-of-concept demonstration, the PARTI system is applied to study the dynamic waveforms of slowly-evolved dissipative Kerr solitons in an ultrahigh-Q microresonator. Two 1.5-ns-long comprehensive evolution portraits are reconstructed with 740-fs resolution and dissipative Kerr soliton transition dynamics, in which a multiplet soliton state evolves into stable singlet soliton state, are depicted

Catalytic Performance of Commercial Zeolites Y as Catalyst for Ethylene Production from Ethanol Dehydration

Catalytic dehydration of ethanol into ethylene was studied over commercial Zeolites-Y with different Si:Al ratios between 5.1:1 and 80:1, and temperature from 573 K to 773 K. The physicochemical properties of fresh and spent catalyst of Zeolite Y Si:Al 80:1 (best performing catalyst) were investigated using N2-physisorption, TGA, SEM-EDX, NH3-TPD, FTIR and XRD. Results showed that catalysts with higher Si:Al ratios exhibit better catalytic performance in terms of higher ethanol conversion and higher selectivity to ethylene. Indeed, zeolites-Y with Si:Al ratio 5.1:1 and 12:1 demonstrated low catalytic activity with ethanol conversion of 34% and 2%, respectively. However, ethylene selectivity of NH3-Y (5) was 84%, which was considerably higher than NH3-Y (12) which was 26%, indicated that this catalyst was not promoting the formation of other hydrocarbons i.e. methane and ethane. Albeit all of the catalysts namely H-Y (30), H-Y (60) and H-Y (80) showed favorable performance in ethanol dehydration, H-Y (80) attained almost total selectivity to ethylene and highest conversion of 73.0% among all the tested catalysts

Aging and loss decision making: increased risk aversion and decreased use of maximizing information, with correlated rationality and value maximization

Frontiers in Human Neuroscience9May1-1

Success Factors of Small and Medium-Sized International Enterprises in the Chinese Market from the Perspective of Polish Direct Investment (Cultural Approach)

Globalization has resulted in increasing transfer of firms operations, regardless of their size, to other countries. The recent dynamic emergence of China in the global economy, connecting with the vast inflows of foreign direct investment in their territory and common adjustments problems of many Western companies, has resulted in growing interest for best suitable business practices to this culturally and socially different environment. In this article, the key factors critical to the success of international companies in this region are introduced, with particular consideration to indigenous cultural elements and specific operation requirements of small and medium-sized enterprises in Business-to-Business sectors. The presented information are based on the broad literature review, five years of direct observation and thirty eight interviews conducted with Polish managers directly residing in China. In addition, some practical recommendations for managers and further research are given.Globalizacja wymusza na firmach, niezależnie od ich wielkości, coraz częstsze przenoszenie operacji do innych krajów. Dynamiczne pojawienie się Chin w światowej gospodarce i szeroki napł;yw zagranicznych inwestycji bezpośrednich na ich teren oraz problemy adaptacyjne wielu zachodnich przedsiębiorstw, spowodował;y zainteresowanie najlepszymi praktykami biznesowymi dostosowanymi do tego odmiennego kulturowo i społ;ecznie otocznia. W artykule zaprezentowane został;y najważniejsze czynnik mające wpł;yw na osiągnięcie sukcesu przez firmy międzynarodowe na tym obszarze, ze szczególnym uwzględnieniem aspektów kulturowych i specyfiki dział;ania mał;ych i średnich podmiotów na rynkach B2B. Prezentowane informacje są oparte na przeglądzie literatury, pięcioletnich obserwacjach bezpośrednich oraz trzydziestu ośmiu wywiadach przeprowadzonych z menadżerami polskich przedsiębiorstw odpowiedzialnymi za operacje w Chinach. Dodatkowo wskazano kilka praktycznych rekomendacji menadżerskich oraz możliwości dalszych badań

Image-guided Radiotherapy to Manage Respiratory Motion: Lung and Liver.

Organ motion as a result of respiratory and cardiac motion poses significant challenges for the accurate delivery of radiotherapy to both the thorax and the upper abdomen. Modern imaging techniques during radiotherapy simulation and delivery now permit better quantification of organ motion, which in turn reduces tumour and organ at risk position uncertainty. These imaging advances, coupled with respiratory correlated radiotherapy delivery techniques, have led to the development of a range of approaches to manage respiratory motion. This review summarises the key strategies of image-guided respiratory motion management with a focus on lung and liver radiotherapy

Electrospun nanofiber membranes as ultrathin flexible supercapacitors

A highly flexible electrochemical supercapacitor electrode was developed with a novel metal oxide-reinforced nanofiber electrode by utilizing a solution-based electrospinning technique. The facile fabrication steps involved the introduction of metal precursors into a polymeric solution, which was subjected to an in situ electrospinning process. The electrospun polymeric web with metallic ingredients was then subjected to an oxidative stabilization process that induced the formation of metal oxide nanoparticles within the polymer structure. Finally, the metal oxide nanoparticles incorporated with nanofibers were obtained using a carbonization process, thus converting the polymer backbones into a carbon-rich conductive nanofiber structure. The fabricated nanofibers were decorated and implanted with metal oxide nanoparticles that had a surface-decorated structure morphology due to the solubility of the precursors in the reaction solution. The electrochemical performance of the fabricated metal oxide reinforced with nanofiber electrodes was investigated as an electrochemical system, and the novel morphology significantly improved the specific capacitance compared to a pristine carbon nanofiber membrane. As a result of the uniform dispersion of metal oxide nanoparticles throughout the surface of the nanofibers, the overall capacitive behavior of the membrane was enhanced. Furthermore, a fabricated free-standing flexible device that utilized the optimized nanofiber electrode demonstrated high stability even after it was subjected to various bending operations and curvatures. These promising results showed the potential applications of these lightweight, conductive nanofiber electrodes in flexible and versatile electronic devices

Effects of a group-based lifestyle medicine for depression : a pilot randomized controlled trial

Given the growing evidence that a range of lifestyle factors are involved in the etiology of depression, a ‘lifestyle medicine’ approach can be potentially safe and cost-effective to prevent or treat depression. To examine the effects and acceptability of a group-based, integrative lifestyle medicine intervention as a standalone treatment for managing depressive symptoms, a pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) was conducted in a Chinese adult population in 2018. Participants (n = 31) with PHQ-9 score above the cut-off of ≥ 10, which was indicative of moderate to severe depression, were recruited from the general community in Hong Kong and randomly assigned to lifestyle medicine group (LM group) or care-as-usual group (CAU group) in a ratio of 1:1. Participants in the LM group received 2-hour group sessions once per week for six consecutive weeks, which covered diet, exercise, mindfulness, psychoeducation, and sleep management. Linear mixed-effects model analyses showed that the LM group had a significant reduction in PHQ-9 scores compared to the CAU group at immediate posttreatment and 12-week posttreatment follow-up (d = 0.69 and 0.73, respectively). Moreover, there were significantly greater improvements in anxiety, stress, and insomnia symptoms (measured by DASS-21 and ISI) at all time points in the LM group (d = 0.42–1.16). The results suggests that our 6-week group-based, integrative lifestyle intervention program is effective in lowering depressive, anxiety, stress, and insomnia symptoms in the Chinese population. Further studies in clinical populations with a larger sample size and longer follow-up are warranted

Dissolved heavy metals and water quality in the surface waters of rivers and drainages of the West Peninsular Malaysia

The dissolved concentrations of metals (Cd, Cu, Pb, Ni, Fe and Zn), temperature, total dissolved solids, pH, dissolved oxygen, salinity and conductivity were determined in the surface waters of 24 geographical sampling sites including city and urban drainages and rivers, from the west Peninsular Malaysia, collected in January to April 2005. From these sampling sites, the ranges (min-max) of dissolved metal concentrations (mg/L) were Cd: 0.001-0.055, Cu: 0.001-0.1773, Pb: 0.001-1.523, Ni: 0.001-0.246, Fe: 0.001-35.67 and Zn: 0.0001-0.609 while for the water quality are pH: 4.96-9.81, dissolved oxygen (0.39-7.26 mg/L), total dissolved solids (0.002-10.02 mg/L), salinity (0.00-8.93 ppt), conductivity (3.33-17423 μS/cm) and temperature (27.8-35.3�). Some sites with elevated dissolved concentrations of heavy metals and poor water quality indicated the anthropogenic inputs of industrial and urban wastes. Regular monitoring of water quality in all drainage waters is recommended

Symmetric Hyperbolic System in the Self-dual Teleparallel Gravity

In order to discuss the well-posed initial value formulation of the teleparallel gravity and apply it to numerical relativity a symmetric hyperbolic system in the self-dual teleparallel gravity which is equivalent to the Ashtekar formulation is posed. This system is different from the ones in other works by that the reality condition of the spatial metric is included in the symmetric hyperbolicity and then is no longer an independent condition. In addition the constraint equations of this system are rather simpler than the ones in other works.Comment: 8 pages, no figure