Research and development strategy for fishery technology innovation for sustainable fishery resource management in north-east Asia

The development of fishery technologies supports food sustainability to achieve a steady supply of fish and fishery products. However, the priorities for research and development (R&D) in fishery technologies vary by region due to differences in fish resource availability, environmental concerns, and consumer preferences for fishery products. This study examines trends in fishery technology innovations using data on patents granted as an indicator of changing R&D priorities. To clarify changes in R&D priorities, we apply a decomposition analysis framework that classifies fishery technologies into three types: harvesting, aquaculture, and new products. This study mainly focuses on China, Japan, and Korea as the major fishing countries in the north-east Asia region. The results show that the number of fishery technology patents granted increased between 1993 and 2015; in particular, the number of aquaculture patents granted has grown rapidly since 2012. However, the trend in Japan was the opposite, as the apparent priority given to aquaculture technology innovation decreased between 1993 and 2015. The trends and priority changes for fishery technology inventions vary by country and technology group. This implies that an international policy framework for fishery technology development should recognize that R&D priorities need to reflect diverse characteristics across countries and the technologies employed

Active Exploration based on Information Gain by Particle Filter for Efficient Spatial Concept Formation

Autonomous robots are required to actively and adaptively learn the categories and words of various places by exploring the surrounding environment and interacting with users. In semantic mapping and spatial language acquisition conducted using robots, it is costly and labor-intensive to prepare training datasets that contain linguistic instructions from users. Therefore, we aimed to enable mobile robots to learn spatial concepts through autonomous active exploration. This study is characterized by interpreting the `action' of the robot that asks the user the question `What kind of place is this?' in the context of active inference. We propose an active inference method, spatial concept formation with information gain-based active exploration (SpCoAE), that combines sequential Bayesian inference by particle filters and position determination based on information gain in a probabilistic generative model. Our experiment shows that the proposed method can efficiently determine a position to form appropriate spatial concepts in home environments. In particular, it is important to conduct efficient exploration that leads to appropriate concept formation and quickly covers the environment without adopting a haphazard exploration strategy

Quantum gapped state in a spin-1/2 distorted honeycomb-based lattice with frustration

We successfully synthesized ($p$-Py-V)[Cu(hfac)$_2$], a verdazyl-based complex. Molecular orbital calculations revealed five types of intermolecular interactions between the radical spins and two types of intramolecular interactions between the radical and the Cu spins, resulting in a spin-1/2 distorted honeycomb-based lattice. Additionally, competing ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic (AF) interactions induce frustration. The magnetization curve displayed a multistage increase, including a zero-field energy gap. Considering the stronger AF interactions that form dimers and tetramers, the magnetic susceptibility and magnetization curves were qualitatively explained. These findings demonstrated that the quantum state, based on the dominant AF interactions, was stabilized due to the effects of frustration in the lattice. Hence, the exchange interactions forming two-dimensional couplings decoupled, reducing energy loss caused by frustration and leading to frustration-induced dimensional reduction.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figure

Field-induced quantum phase in a frustrated zigzag-square lattice

This study presents the experimental realization of a spin-1/2 zigzag-square lattice in a verdazyl-based complex, namely ($m$-Py-V-2,6-F$_2$)$[$Cu(hfac)$_2]$. Molecular orbital calculations suggest the presence of five types of frustrated exchange couplings. Our observations reveal an incremental increase in the magnetization curve beyond a critical field, signifying a phase transition from the antiferromagnetic ordered state to a quantum state characterized by a 1/2 plateau. This intriguing behavior arises from the effective stabilization of a zigzag chain by the external fields. These results provide evidence for field-induced dimensional reduction in a zigzag-square lattice attributed to the effects of frustration.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure

Heuristic model for configurable polymer wire synaptic devices

Recently, there has been considerable research on nonvolatile analog devices for artificial intelligence (AI); however, it focuses on all-coupled neural networks. In contrast, polymer wire-type synaptic devices, which can be expected to be arbitrarily wired similar to a biological neural network, have already been proposed and demonstrated. In this study, we model a polymer wire synaptic device based on the results of previous research, and demonstrate an example of applying simple perceptron (AI) to the model. The results of our study show that it is possible to predict effective methods of using polymer wire synaptic elements in AI

A Longitudinal Study of Subjective Daytime Sleepiness Changes in Elementary School Children Following a Temporary School Closure Due to COVID-19

Excessive daytime sleepiness is increasingly being recognized as a major global health concern. However, there have been few studies related to sleepiness and its associated factors in elementary school children. In Japan, all schools were closed from February to May 2020 to prevent coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreaks. The aim of this study was to identify changes in the subjective sleepiness of pupils during the 1.5-year period and to elucidate factors associated with changes in sleepiness. Questionnaire surveys about pupils’ sleep habits and the Japanese version of the Pediatric Daytime Sleepiness Scale (PDSS-J) were conducted longitudinally at one elementary school in June 2019, January 2020, and June 2020. The average ∆PDSS score was 0.94 ± 5.51 (mean ± standard deviation) from June 2019 to January 2020 and −1.65 ± 5.71 (t[498] = 6.13, p p = 0.02) during the school closure. A less restrictive school schedule secondary to a COVID-19-related school closure decreased sleepiness in children and was associated with decreasing social jetlag

Analysis of aquaporin 9 expression in human epidermis and cultured keratinocytes

Aquaporin 9 (AQP9) is a member of the aquaglyceroporin family that transports glycerol, urea and other small solutes as well as water. Compared to the expression and function in epidermal keratinocytes of AQP3, another aquaglyceroporin, our knowledge of epidermal AQP9 remains elusive. In this study, we investigated the expression of AQP9 in the human epidermis and cultured keratinocytes. Immunofluorescence studies revealed that AQP9 expression is highly restricted to the stratum granulosum of the human epidermis, where occludin is also expressed at the tight junctions. Interestingly, the AQP3 staining decreased sharply below the cell layers in which AQP9 is expressed. In cultured normal human epidermal keratinocytes (NHEK), knock-down of AQP9 expression in the differentiated cells induced by RNA interference reduced glycerol uptake, which was not as pronounced as was the case with AQP3 knock-down cells. In contrast, similar reduction of urea uptake was detected in AQP9 and AQP3 knock-down cells. These findings suggested that AQP9 expression in NHEK facilitates at least the transport of glycerol and urea. Finally, we analyzed the effect of retinoic acid (RA), a potent stimulator of keratinocyte proliferation, on AQP3 and AQP9 mRNA expression in differentiated NHEK. Stimulation with RA at 1 μM for 24 h augmented AQP3 expression and down-regulated AQP9 expression. Collectively, these results indicate that AQP9 expression in epidermal keratinocytes is regulated in a different manner from that of AQP3