Enhancing 2D Growth of Organic Semiconductor Thin Films with Macroporous Structures via a Small-Molecule Heterointerface

The physical structure of an organic solid is strongly affected by the surface of the underlying substrate. Controlling this interface is an important issue to improve device performance in the organic electronics community. Here we report an approach that utilizes an organic heterointerface to improve the crystallinity and control the morphology of an organic thin film. Pentacene is used as an active layer above, and m-bis(triphenylsilyl) benzene is used as the bottom layer. Sequential evaporations of these materials result in extraordinary morphology with far fewer grain boundaries and myriad nanometre-sized pores. These peculiar structures are formed by difference in molecular interactions between the organic layers and the substrate surface. The pentacene film exhibits high mobility up to 6.3 cm(2)V(-1)s(-1), and the pore-rich structure improves the sensitivity of organic-transistor-based chemical sensors. Our approach opens a new way for the fabrication of nanostructured semiconducting layers towards high-performance organic electronics.X116049Nsciescopu

Effect of blood pressure and glycemic control on the plasma cell-free DNA in hemodialysis patients

AbstractBackgroundThe plasma levels of cell-free DNA (cfDNA) are known to be elevated under inflammatory or apoptotic conditions. Increased cfDNA levels have been reported in hemodialysis (HD) patients. The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical significance of cfDNA in HD patients.MethodsA total of 95 patients on HD were enrolled. We measured their predialysis cfDNA levels using real-time EIF2C1 gene sequence amplification and analyzed its association with certain clinical parameters.ResultsThe mean plasma cfDNA level in the HD patients was 3,884 ± 407 GE/mL, and the mean plasma cfDNA level in the control group was 1,420 ± 121 GE/mL (P < 0.05). Diabetic patients showed higher plasma cfDNA levels compared with nondiabetic patients (P < 0.01). Patients with cardiovascular complications also showed higher plasma cfDNA levels compared with those without cardiovascular complication (P < 0.05). In univariable analysis, the cfDNA level was associated with 3-month mean systolic blood pressure (SBP), white blood cell, serum albumin, creatinine (Cr), normalized protein catabolic rate in HD patients. In diabetic patients, it was significantly correlated with SBP, hemoglobin A1c, and serum albumin. In multivariate analysis, SBP was the independent determinant for the cfDNA level. In diabetic patients, cfDNA level was independently associated with hemoglobin A1c and SBP.ConclusionsIn patients with HD, cfDNA is elevated in diabetic patients and patients with cardiovascular diseases. Uncontrolled hypertension and poor glycemic control are independent determinants for the elevated cfDNA. Our data suggest that cfDNA might be a marker of vascular injury rather than proinflammatory condition in HD patients

A Wearable Wrist Band-Type System for Multimodal Biometrics Integrated with Multispectral Skin Photomatrix and Electrocardiogram Sensors

Multimodal biometrics are promising for providing a strong security level for personal authentication, yet the implementation of a multimodal biometric system for practical usage need to meet such criteria that multimodal biometric signals should be easy to acquire but not easily compromised. We developed a wearable wrist band integrated with multispectral skin photomatrix (MSP) and electrocardiogram (ECG) sensors to improve the issues of collectability, performance and circumvention of multimodal biometric authentication. The band was designed to ensure collectability by sensing both MSP and ECG easily and to achieve high authentication performance with low computation, efficient memory usage, and relatively fast response. Acquisition of MSP and ECG using contact-based sensors could also prevent remote access to personal data. Personal authentication with multimodal biometrics using the integrated wearable wrist band was evaluated in 150 subjects and resulted in 0.2% equal error rate ( EER ) and 100% detection probability at 1% FAR (false acceptance rate) ( PD.1 ), which is comparable to other state-of-the-art multimodal biometrics. An additional investigation with a separate MSP sensor, which enhanced contact with the skin, along with ECG reached 0.1% EER and 100% PD.1 , showing a great potential of our in-house wearable band for practical applications. The results of this study demonstrate that our newly developed wearable wrist band may provide a reliable and easy-to-use multimodal biometric solution for personal authentication

Fractionating Selection History: Dissociable Components of Experience-Driven Attention

The classical view of attentional control suggests that attentional selection is guided by physical salience and task goals. Selection history, which refers to attentional selection of stimuli an observer has previously interacted with, has challenged the dichotomised view and advocates attentional selection independent of physical salience and task goals. Research to date has identified different components of selection history, including (1) reward history (2) punishment history and (3) history as a repeated target, but how these components relate and influence attentional selection remains unclear. Across five experiments, we demonstrate that although these components of selection history share a similar behavioural profile, they rely on distinct learning and neural mechanisms. Specifically, reward and punishment history are shaped by a common associative learning mechanism and recruit the dopaminergic midbrain structures, supporting the motivational salience account which suggests that attention prioritises relevance-for-survival regardless of a particular emotional valence. In contrast, history as a repeated target develops via an instrumental learning mechanism and the corresponding attentional priority is afforded by enhanced representations in the visual areas. Such dissociation between reward and punishment history on one hand and history as a repeated target on the other provides compelling evidence that the three components of selection history comprise unique sources of attentional bias that independently influences the attentional system

Modeling of Urban Freight Deliveries; Operational Performance at the Final 50 Feet

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Washington, 2021The demand for goods and services is rapidly increasing in cities, in part due to the rise in online shopping and more varied delivery options. Cities around the world are experiencing an influx of goods pickup and delivery activities. The movement of goods within urban areas can be very constraining with high levels of congestion and insufficient curb spaces. Pick-up and delivery activities, specifically those that are out of vehicle activities, encompass a significant portion of urban goods movement and inefficient operations can negatively impact the already highly congested areas and truck dwell times. This dissertation aims to provide insights and data-driven approaches to support freight plans in various cities around the globe with a focus on urban freight deliveries. To accomplish this goal, this dissertation first proposes to discover the current delivery process at the final 50 feet by creating value stream maps that summarize the flow of delivery activities and times, time variations between activities. The map will be based on the data collected from five freight-attracting buildings in downtown Seattle. Secondly, this research explores contributing factors associated with dwell time for commercial vehicles by building regression models. Dwell time, in this study, is defined as the time that delivery workers spend performing out-of-vehicle activities while their vehicle is parked. Finally, this dissertation predicts total time spent at the final 50 feet of delivery, including dwell times and parking-related times through discrete event simulations for various "what if" delivery scenarios. Multi-objective simulation-based optimization algorithms were further used to discover the optimal numbers of parking and building resources (e.g. number of on and off-street parking capacity, number of security guards or receptionists). This aims to better understand how increased deliveries in urban cities can impact the cost distributions between city planners, building managers, and delivery workers. This will also identify the areas for improvement in terms of infrastructure and resources to better prepare for the future delivery demands based on various scenarios

Relating Attentional Biases for Stimuli Associated with Social Reward and Punishment to Autistic Traits

Evidence for impaired attention to social stimuli in autism has been mixed. The role of social feedback in shaping attention to other, non-social stimuli that are predictive of such feedback has not been examined in the context of autism. In the present study, participants searched for a color-defined target during a training phase, with the color of the target predicting the emotional reaction of a face that appeared after each trial. Then, participants performed visual search for a shape-defined target while trying to ignore the color of stimuli. On a subset of trials, one of the non-targets was rendered in the color of a former target from training. Autistic traits were measured for each participant using the Autism Quotient (AQ). Our findings replicate robust attentional capture by stimuli learned to predict valenced social feedback. There was no evidence that autistic traits are associated with blunted attention to predictors of social outcomes. Consistent with an emerging body of literature, our findings cast doubt on strong versions of the claim that autistic traits can be explained by a blunted influence of social information on the attention system. We extend these findings to non-social stimuli that predict socially relevant information

Association of Stress Management with Success of Smoking Cessation in Korean Female Emotional Labor Workers for Service and Sales

Emotional labor is paid work that involves managing and regulating one’s emotions during the job including evoking and suppressing one’s feelings. This study examined the factors associated with successful smoking cessation through tailored smoking cessation counseling including stress management among female emotional labor workers. The study was conducted from 1 September 2015 to 31 December 2017. A total of 2674 women registered in the Comprehensive Smoking Cessation Service System and were grouped as either emotional labor workers for service and sales (1002) or other occupations (1672) for analysis. The participants received nine sessions of face-to-face and telephone smoking cessation counseling over 6 months, and follow-up assessments were conducted 4, 6, 12, and 24 weeks after counseling. Smoking cessation counseling involved a stress management program comprising stress tests, depression tests, color therapy, and a buddy program including peer support. Factors associated with successful smoking cessation included the number of counseling sessions, motivation rulers (Importance, Confidence, Readiness), average daily smoking amount, expired carbon monoxide (CO), and nicotine dependence. The most associated factor was the number of counseling sessions. Since counseling focused on stress management, it was the most important factor in smoking cessation, and continuous counseling could help those wanting to quit smoking

On the Relationship between Value- and Threat-Driven Attentional Capture and Approach-Avoidance Biases

Reward learning and aversive conditioning have consequences for attentional selection, such that stimuli that come to signal reward and threat bias attention regardless of their valence. Appetitive and aversive stimuli have distinctive influences on response selection, such that they activate an approach and an avoidance response, respectively. However, whether the involuntary influence of reward- and threat-history-laden stimuli extends to the manner in which a response is directed remains unclear. Using a feedback-joystick task and a manikin task, which are common paradigms for examining valence-action bias, we demonstrate that reward- and threat-signalling stimuli do not modulate response selection. Stimuli that came to signal reward and threat via training biased attention and invigorated action in general, but they did not facilitate an approach and avoidance response, respectively. We conclude that attention can be biased towards a stimulus as a function of its prior association with reward or aversive outcomes without necessarily influencing approach vs. avoidance tendencies, such that the mechanisms underlying the involuntary control of attention and behaviour evoked by valent stimuli can be decoupled

Final 50 Feet of the Urban Goods Delivery System: Pilot Test of an Innovative Improvement Strategy

data link: https://doi.org/10.7910/DVN/UHYGAWThe “Final 50 Feet of the Urban Goods Delivery System: Pilot Testing Innovative Improvement Strategies” project will provide new data-based knowledge and insights about the effects of truck parking strategies proposed in the City of Seattle, before they are broadly implemented. Goals of the project are reduction in dwell time, the time a truck is parked in a load/unload space. There are both public and private benefits to reaching this goal. As well as a reduction in failed first deliveries. Several Urban Freight Lab members told the research team that 8-10% of first delivery attempts in urban areas across the country fail. A study conducted in the UK reported that the cost of failed first deliveries was 771 billion euros in 2014.Pacific Northwest Transportation Consortium Seattle Department of Transportatio