In similarity-based constrained clustering, there have been various approaches on how to define the similarity between documents to guide the grouping of similar documents together. This paper presents an approach to use term-distribution statistics extracted from a small number of cue instances with their known classes, for term weightings as indirect distance constraint. As for distribution-based term weighting, three types of term-oriented standard deviations are exploited: distribution of a term in a collection (SD), average distribution of a term in a class (ACSD), and average distribution of a term among classes (CSD). These term weightings are explored with the consideration of symmetry concepts by varying the magnitude to positive and negative for promoting and demoting effects of three standard deviations. In k-means, followed the symmetry concept, both seeded and unseeded centroid initializations are investigated and compared to the centroid-based classification. Our experiment is conducted using five English text collections and one Thai text collection, i.e., Amazon, DI, WebKB1, WebKB2, and 20Newsgroup, as well as TR, a collection of Thai reform-related opinions. Compared to the conventional TFIDF, the distribution-based term weighting improves the centroid-based method, seeded k-means, and k-means with the error reduction rate of 22.45%, 31.13%, and 58.96%. Full article

Because permanent-magnet synchronous linear motors (SLM) still exhibit nonlinear friction, ending effects and time-varying dynamic uncertainties, better control performances cannot be achieved by using common linear controllers. We propose a backstepping approach with three adaptive laws and a beating function to control the motion of permanent-magnet SLM drive systems that enhance the robustness of the system. In order to reduce greater vibration in situations with uncertainty actions in the aforementioned control systems, we propose an adaptive modified recurrent Rogers–Szego polynomials neural network backstepping (AMRRSPNNB) control system with three adaptive laws and reimbursed controller with decorated gray wolf optimization (DGWO), in order to handle external bunched force uncertainty, including nonlinear friction, ending effects and time-varying dynamic uncertainties, as well as to reimburse the minimal rebuild error of the reckoned law. In accordance with the Lyapunov stability, online parameter training method of the modified recurrent Rogers–Szego polynomials neural network (MRRSPNN) can be derived by utilizing an adaptive law. Furthermore, to help reduce error and better obtain learning fulfillment, the DGWO algorithm was used to change the two learning rates in the weights of the MRRSPNN. Finally, the usefulness of the proposed control system is validated by tested results. Full article

Engaging in prosocial behavior is considered an effective way to increase happiness in a sustainable manner. However, there is insufficient knowledge about the conditions under which such a happiness effect occurs. From a person-activity congruence perspective, we proposed that an individual’s eudaimonic orientation moderates the effect of prosocial behavior on happiness, whereas hedonic orientation does not. For this purpose, 128 participants were assigned to play a game in which half of them were explained the benevolence impact of playing the game (the benevolence condition), and the other half played the same game without this knowledge (the control condition). Participants’ eudaimonic and hedonic orientations were assessed before the game, and their post-task happiness were measured after the game. The results showed that participants in the benevolence condition reported higher post-task positive affect than those in the control condition. Furthermore, this happiness effect was moderated by participants’ eudaimonic orientation—participants with high eudaimonic orientation reaped greater benefits from benevolence, and their hedonic orientation did not moderate the relationship between benevolence and happiness. The importance of the effect of person-activity congruence on happiness is discussed, along with the implications of these findings for sustainably pursuing happiness. Full article

In the acceptation of Wu Kun, the Philosophy of Information is a metaphilosophy incorporating informational-philosophical stances on major epistemological and ontological questions. Examples of Brenner’s contributions to previous Philosophy of Information conferences include work on personal identity, symmetry, semiotics, social competence and responsibility, as well as, together with Wu, the informational revolution in philosophy itself. In this approach, the necessity of a non-standard logic of real processes was demonstrated. In this paper, Brenner and Igamberdiev analyze the dialectics and logic underlying the application of Informational Philosophy. The utility of their approach is further demonstrated in the areas of meaning and semiotics, as well as information itself and communication. A new characterization of dynamic units of thought, and hence of information processes, is suggested in advance of a planned, more detailed treatment. Full article

The Aral Sea in Central Asia plays an essential role in the socio-economic development of the region. During the last six decades, there has been remarkable changes observed in the water level and areal extent of the Aral Sea Basin; however, the causes behind these changes are unclear. This study quantifies the impacts of climatic and anthropogenic drivers on Aral Sea and the contributions made by these drivers to the variations observed in the Aral Sea Basin. The spatial and temporal seasonal variations in groundwater budget have been analyzed using the total water storage (TWS) of the basin from 2002 to 2015. The results from this study revealed significant increases in the the mean air temperature, precipitation, and potential evapotranspiration rate from 1960 to 2015 in the Aral Sea Basin. The TWS time-series shows a statistically significant declining trend of about 2 to 4 cm per year presented by the surface water storage. Based on the average monthly values of TWS, March 2005 presented the highest anomaly ~7.85 cm, while October 2008 showed the lowest anomaly ~8.22 cm between 2002 to 2015. The groundwater level indicates a small increasing trend of approximately 0.05 cm/year during the study period. Furthermore, the negative relationship between water level, climatic, and anthropogenic factors showed that these factors projected critical impact on the water level fluctuations within the Aral Sea Basin. Full article

The European Union (EU) is highly dependent on external natural gas supplies and has experienced severe gas cuts in the past, mainly driven by the technical complexity of the high-pressure natural gas system and political instability in some of the supplier countries. Declining indigenous natural gas production and growing demand for gas in the EU has encouraged investments in cross-border transmission capacity to increase the sharing of resources between the member states, particularly in the aftermath of the Russia–Ukraine gas crisis in January 2009. This article models the EU interconnected natural gas system to assess the impact of investments in the gas transmission network by comparing the performance of the system for scenarios of 2009 and 2017, using a mathematical optimization approach. The model uses the technical data of the infrastructures, such as production, storage, regasification, and exchange capacity through cross-border pipelines, and proposes an optimal collaborative strategy which ensures the best possible coverage of overall demand. The actual peak demand situations of the extreme cases of 2009 and 2017 are analyzed under hypothetical supply crises caused by geopolitical or commercial disputes. The application of the proposed methodology leads to results which show that the investments made in this system do not decongest the cross-border pipeline network but improve the demand coverage. Countries such as Spain and Italy experience a lower impact on gas supply due to the variety of mechanisms available to cover their demand. Furthermore, the findings prove that cooperation facilitates the supply of demand in crisis situations. Full article

Marx looked at the word “metabolism” as the law which can be found in the natural science field, rather than as the thought of an individual. Marx used this word in three different contexts within three areas of study focused on the relations among nature, humans and society. With the development of science and technology, information transformation is a well-known concept and has receives considerable interest. Thus, in the information age, besides metabolism, information transformation plays an important role in the relations among nature, humans and society. Full article

In this paper, fly ash is used to inhibit the alkali-carbonate reaction (ACR). The experimental results suggest that when the alkali equivalent (equivalent Na₂Oeq) of the cement is 1.0%, the adding of 30% fly ash can significantly inhibit the expansion in low-reactivity aggregates. For moderately reactive aggregates, the expansion rate can also be reduced by adding 30% of fly ash. According to a polarizing microscope analysis, the cracks are expansion cracks mainly due to the ACR. The main mechanisms of fly ash inhibiting the ACR are that it refines the pore structure of the cement paste, and that the alkali migration rate in the curing solution to the interior of the concrete microbars is reduced. As the content of fly ash increases, the concentrations of K⁺ and Na⁺ and the pH value in the pore solution gradually decrease. This makes the ACR in the rocks slower, such that the cracks are reduced, and the expansion due to the ACR is inhibited. Full article

The pandemic caused by the new coronavirus has placed national health systems of different countries in difficulty, and has demonstrated the need for many types of personal protective equipment (PPE). Thanks to the advent of new three-dimensional printing technologies, it was possible to share print files (using stereolithography (stl)) quickly and easily, improve them cooperatively, and allow anyone who possessed the materials, a suitable 3D printer and these files, to print. The possibility of being able to print three-dimensional supports, or complete personal protective equipment has been of incredible help in the management of COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019). The times and the relatively low costs have allowed a wide diffusion of these devices, especially for the structures that needed them, mainly healthcare facilities. 3D printing, now includes different fields of application, and represents, thanks to the evolution of methods and printers, an important step towards the “digital world”. Full article

Nonlinear dissipative phenomena are common features of many dynamical systems and engineering applications, and their experimental characterization has always been a challenge among the research community. Within the wide range of nonlinear damping mechanisms, friction is surely one of the most common, and with a high impact on the dynamical behavior of structures. In this paper, the nonlinear identification of friction in a negative stiffness oscillator is pursued. The structure exhibits a strong nonlinear behavior, mainly due to its polynomial elastic restoring force with a negative stiffness region. This leads to an asymmetric double-well potential with two stable equilibrium positions, and the possibility of switching between them in a chaotic way. Friction plays a crucial role in this context, as it derives from the continuous sliding between the central guide and the moving mass. The system is driven through harmonic tests with several input amplitudes, in order to estimate the variations in the energy dissipated per cycle. The identification of the frictional behavior is then pursed by minimizing the errors between the experimental measurements and the model predictions, using the harmonic balance method in conjunction with a continuation technique on the forcing amplitudes. Full article

Fire is increasingly being recognised as an important evolutionary driver in fire-prone environments. Biochemical traits such as terpene (volatile isoprenoid) concentration are assumed to influence plant flammability but have often been overlooked as fire adaptations. We have measured the leaf-level flammability and terpene content of a selection of Pinus species native to environments with differing fire regimes (crown fire, surface fire and no fire). We demonstrate that this biochemical trait is associated with leaf-level flammability which likely links to fire-proneness and we suggest that this contributes to post-fire seedling survival. We find that surface-fire species have the highest terpene abundance and are intrinsically the most flammable, compared to crown-fire species. We suggest that the biochemical traits of surface fire species may have been under selective pressure to modify the fire environment at the leaf and litter scale to moderate fire spread and intensity. We indicate that litter flammability is driven not only by packing ratios and bulk density, but also by terpene content. Full article

Soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections are common in the tropical and subtropical countries. The burden of disease is highest in endemic areas with limited access to good quality water supply and poor sanitary conditions. Major approaches to control and reduce morbidity caused by worm infections include the periodic deworming of pre-school and school-aged children with anthelminthic drugs. Population-based studies and individual patient management including interventional studies can only be successful when accurate diagnostic techniques are used. The lack of appropriate diagnostic tools providing accurate results concerning both infectious status and intensity of infection—as these two factors vary in regions of low infection intensities—is a major challenge. Currently, available techniques show limited sensitivity and specificity and as such, a combination of several techniques is usually used to diagnose the large variety of parasite species. The objective of this review was to describe the advantages and disadvantages of the different available techniques for the diagnosis of STH infections and to highlight their use in control programs. Full article

Orujo is a recognized traditional grape marc distillate from Galicia (NW of Spain). It is also employed as an alcohol base to elaborate coffee and herbal liqueurs and spirits. In this manuscript, quantitative descriptive analysis was applied to obtain the most important sensory terms that describe these traditional beverages. Thirteen trained panelists developed a complete sensory lexicon. Sixteen sensory descriptors (four in appearance, five in aroma, four in mouth, and three in aftertaste) were defined, valuated, and scored with the corresponding references, after elimination of hedonic, synonymous, and non-pertinent attributes according to statistical methods. The panelists evaluated a total of 464 samples in order to define their sensory profile. Panel performance was investigated showing good discriminatory ability, repeatability, and reproducibility. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was also applied to identify the sensory descriptors that better discriminate the samples. The results obtained showed the importance of including new terms (orujo, chocolate-cocoa, floral, bitter, and astringent) in the tasting sheet, mainly in the case of coffee liqueurs to improve their sensory profile. The results of this study were useful for the development and implementation of an important tool for the corresponding regulating council in the sensory characterization and qualification of Galician liqueurs. Full article

Bitterness in almonds is controlled by a single gene (Sk dominant for sweet kernel, sk recessive for bitter kernel) and the proportions of the offspring genotypes (SkSk, Sksk, sksk) depend on the progenitors’ genotype. Currently, the latter is deduced after crossing by recording the phenotype of their descendants through kernel tasting. Chemical markers to early identify parental genotypes related to bitter traits can significantly enhance the efficiency of almond breeding programs. On this basis, volatile metabolites related to almond bitterness were investigated by Solid Phase Microextraction-Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry coupled to univariate and multivariate statistics on 244 homo- and heterozygous samples from 42 different cultivars. This study evidenced the association between sweet almonds’ genotype and some volatile metabolites, in particular benzaldehyde, and provided for the first time chemical markers to discriminate between homo- and heterozygous sweet almond genotypes. Furthermore, a multivariate approach based on independent variables was developed to increase the reliability of almond classification. The Partial Least Square-Discriminant Analysis classification model built with selected volatile metabolites that showed discrimination capacity allowed a 98.0% correct classification. The metabolites identified, in particular benzaldehyde, become suitable markers for the early genotype identification in almonds, while a DNA molecular marker is not yet available. Full article

Due to the exhaustion of fossil energy, the utilization of renewable energy resources is developing quickly. Due to the intermittent nature of the renewable energy resources, the energy storage devices are usually adopted in renewable power generation system to enhance the system reliability. In this paper, the photovoltaic-based DC microgrid (PVDCM) system is designed, which is composed of a solar power system and a battery connected to the common bus via a boost converter and a bidirectional buck/boost converter, respectively. As the photovoltaic (PV) panels might operate in a maximum power point tracking (MPPT) mode or constant voltage mode, meanwhile, the power can flow between the battery and the load bidirectionally. Therefore, for the sake of optimizing power utilization in the PVDCM system, a control strategy making the system able to switch from one operating mode to another smoothly and automatically is proposed in this paper. Moreover, the small-signal modeling method based on averaged state-space is no more applicable in this study, thus the nonlinear analysis method with discrete-time mapping model is adopted for stability analysis. Based on the stability analysis, the closed-loop parameters are designed to make sure the whole system can operate properly in all operating modes. The control strategy and stability analysis based on the nonlinear analysis method in the closed-loop design are verified by experiment results. Full article

This paper exploits an effective approach to overcome the breakdown limitations of traditional galvanic isolators based on chip-scale isolation barriers, thus achieving a very high isolation rating (i.e., compliant with the reinforced isolation requirements). Such an approach is based on radio frequency (RF) planar coupling between two side-by-side co-packaged chips. Standard packaging along with proper assembling techniques can be profitably used to go beyond 20-kV surge voltage without using expensive or exotic isolation components. As a proof of concept, a bidirectional data transfer system based on RF planar coupling able to withstand an isolation rating as high as 25 kV has been designed in a low-cost standard 0.35-µm CMOS technology. Experimental measurements demonstrated a maximum data rate of 40 Mbit/s using a carrier frequency of about 1 GHz. The adopted approach also guarantees a common mode transient immunity (CMTI) of 250 kV/µs, which is a firstrate performance in view of next generation galvanic isolators for wide-bandgap power semiconductor devices, such as gallium nitride high-electron mobility transistors (GaN HEMTs) and silicon carbide (SiC) MOSFETs. Full article