Search Results (300)

As urban regeneration goals shift from physical improvement to pedestrian-level experience and emotional perception, existing assessment methods struggle to describe the emotional responses associated with renewed street environments. This paper proposes a framework for street-level emotional perception inference and analysis within the context of urban regeneration, enabling the automatic semantic recognition based on Street View Images (SVIs) and a Vision-Language Model (VLM). The paper constructs a six-dimensional emotion perceptual framework encompassing Comfort, Vitality, Safety, Oppressiveness, Nostalgia, and Alienation and uses a lightweight domain-adapted Contrastive Language-Image Pre-training (CLIP) model to infer emotional perceptions from SVIs. Building upon this, a dual-axis evaluation framework is introduced to structure and interpret basic spatial experience and regeneration-related perception. Using the Yuyuan Road and Wuding Road areas in Shanghai as a case study, the paper combines emotional perception results with street-level spatial analysis, proposing a scalable and interpretable analytical method for diagnosing urban regeneration outcomes and supporting emotion-informed spatial interventions. Full article

Accurately assessing urban green perception is crucial for sustainable urban development and human well-being, yet conventional approaches often depend on simplistic objective metrics and non-immersive, screen-based subjective surveys, undermining ecological validity. This study develops and validates a multidimensional assessment framework that integrates Large Vision Models (LVMs) and Mixed Reality (MR) to couple objective environmental features with immersive human perception. The framework comprises 30 objective and 6 subjective indicators; state-of-the-art LVMs including DINOv2 and Depth Anything were applied to accurately extract objective features from Street View Imagery (SVI); and the MR device, Meta Quest 3, was utilized for the immersive collection of high-quality subjective data. In an empirical study with 74 volunteers in Shenzhen, China, machine learning models trained on MR-based data achieved 20–50% higher R² for subjective perception than models trained on traditional screen-based data. The validated framework was then applied to 61,131 SVIs citywide to map the spatial distribution of multidimensional green perception and to quantify relationships between objective and subjective indicators. Going beyond technical validation, this study demonstrates how the framework serves as a critical tool for urban planning and landscape upgrading. By diagnosing perceptual deficits where greening quantity does not translate into quality experiences, the framework supports a paradigm shift from quantity-oriented greening to perception-oriented spatial optimization. These findings offer actionable insights for policymakers to prioritize interventions that effectively enhance public health and environmental equity in high-density cities. Full article

Objectives: This study aims to evaluate whether changes in perfusion index (PI) after the first deflation of the blood pressure cuff during remote ischemic conditioning (RIC) are associated with passive leg raising (PLR)-induced changes in stroke volume. In addition, we compared PI changes after cuff deflation during RIC between critically ill patients and healthy controls. Methods: This prospective, single-center study was conducted in a mixed ICU at a tertiary teaching hospital. Patients aged >18 years admitted to the ICU, monitored using calibrated pulse contour analysis, and scheduled for a PLR test as decided by the attending physicians were included. The PI was measured after blood pressure cuff deflations during RIC (3 cycles of brachial cuff inflation to 200 mmHg for 5 min, followed by instantaneous deflation to 0 mmHg for another 5 min) in the supine position after PLR. Preload responsiveness was defined as a ≥10% increase in the stroke volume index (SVI) during PLR. Data were compared with a healthy control group. Results: Thirty-three patients were included (median age 62; 45% in shock; 55% mechanically ventilated). When comparing critically ill patients with healthy volunteers, the maximum PI change (dPImax) and the time to reach it were higher in critically ill patients after the first and second cuff deflations (p < 0.05). However, after the third deflation, the difference was no longer significant. Following the first deflation, dPImax was significantly correlated with SVI changes during PLR (r = 0.63, p < 0.001). After the cuff was first deflated, we detected a PI cutoff with a positive SVI response (≥10%) during PLR, with a sensitivity of 64% and a specificity of 94% (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve 0.752; 95% CI, 0.564–0.940; p = 0.008). Conclusions: The maximum change in perfusion index following brachial blood pressure cuff deflation after five minutes of inflation may serve as a promising noninvasive bedside indicator of preload responsiveness in critically ill patients. Additionally, the observed normalization of PI kinetics during RIC suggests possible acute modulation of vascular reactivity, though further research is needed to confirm an association between PI changes and endothelial function. Full article

Background: Prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) is markedly overexpressed in prostate cancer (PCa), and there is growing evidence to support its usefulness in initial diagnostic assessments. This study compares the diagnostic performance of PSMA positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (mpMRI) in evaluating seminal vesicle invasion (SVI), extraprostatic extension (EPE), and pelvic lymph node involvement before radical prostatectomy. Methods: A retrospective, single-institution analysis was performed. From a cohort of 325 patients who underwent radical prostatectomy between June 2022 to November 2024, 85 had undergone preoperative PSMA PET/CT for intermediate- and high-risk disease at biopsy, forming our study group. Two blinded specialists, one in radiology and one in nuclear medicine, independently interpreted the scans, using histopathological results as the reference standard. The primary outcome was diagnostic accuracy for T- and N-stage classification, while the secondary outcomes included the correct identification of the index lesion and comparative performance for each modality. Results: The study cohort comprised patients with intermediate-to-high-risk prostate cancer (median age: 66 years; median PSA level: 11.6 ng/mL; median PSA density: 0.3 ng/mL/cm³). Forty-eight patients presented with an ISUP grade of 3 or higher on biopsy. PSMA PET/CT was more sensitive than MRI for detecting EPE (72.2% vs. 46.9%) and nodal metastases (91.7% vs. 8.3%). Furthermore, PSMA PET/CT demonstrated significantly higher concordance with histopathological findings in index tumor localization (76.5% vs. 67.9%, p < 0.001). An exploratory analysis revealed a potential age-dependent pattern, but this requires confirmation in larger studies. Conclusions: In this select cohort, PSMA PET/CT demonstrated greater accuracy than MRI for locoregional staging in patients with intermediate-to-high-risk prostate cancer (PCa). However, the generalizability of these findings is limited by the retrospective design and potential selection bias. These results suggest that PSMA PET/CT may have a valuable role in the initial staging workflow, but this needs to be confirmed in larger, prospective studies. An exploratory analysis suggested a potential age-dependent pattern, but this requires confirmation in larger studies. Full article

With rapid urbanization, urban renewal has become increasingly important. Traditional research has relied on expert assessments and objective indicators, lacking scalable frameworks that effectively translate street-level conditions into actionable renewal strategies. This study proposes a Vision–Language Model (VLM)-based framework to address these gaps, using the Hongshan Central District of Urumqi, China, as a case study. Specifically, we collected 4215 street-view images (SVIs) and employed VLMs to assess six perceptual dimensions (i.e., safety, liveliness, beauty, wealthiness, depressiveness, and boringness), together with textual descriptions. The best-performing model, selected by a 500-respondent perception survey validation, was used to conduct spatial pattern and text mining analyses to inform targeted urban renewal strategies. Results show that (1) VLMs have a high consistency with humans in evaluating the spatial perception of six dimensions; (2) spatial clustering analysis successfully delineated four distinct renewal priority tiers, confirming the method’s capability in translating perceptual data into actionable spatial strategies; and (3) textual mining of the VLM’s rationales revealed that areas with lower perceptual scores are predominantly characterized by deficiencies in foundational infrastructure and street-level order, thereby providing explanatory evidence directly linked to the generated renewal priorities. This study provides a generative artificial intelligence (GAI)-driven and interpretable evaluation framework for urban renewal decision-making, facilitating precision-oriented and intelligent urban regeneration. Full article

Reducing nitrous oxide (N₂O) emissions from biological wastewater treatment is critical for achieving low-carbon environmental goals. In this study, a Chlamydomonas reinhardtii -driven algal–bacterial granular sludge system was successfully established in a photo-sequencing batch reactor to enhance nitrogen removal while suppressing N₂O generation. Compact granules formed within 48 days, exhibiting good settling ability (SVI₅/SVI₃₀ = 1.0), an average diameter of 0.5 mm, and a mixed-liquor suspended solid concentration of 2.1 g/L. Algal enrichment was confirmed by an increase in chlorophyll-a to 6.6 mg/g-VSS and substantial accumulation of protein-rich extracellular polymeric substances, which improved granule stability and mass transfer. The system achieved efficient pollutant removal when treating synthetic municipal wastewater, maintaining a chemical oxygen demand removal efficiency of approximately 90% and total nitrogen removal of up to 69.4%, with effluent NH₄⁺-N consistently below 1.6 mg/L. Notably, the N₂O emission factor decreased from 4.2 to 0.4 g N₂O-N/kg N-removed, which is lower than that of conventional activated sludge processes. These results demonstrate the potential of microalgae-driven granulation as a promising low-carbon biotechnology for sustainable wastewater treatment. Full article

Walkable urban environments are increasingly recognized as essential for sustainable mobility, public health, and social well-being. While macro-scale indicators of walkability are widely used, growing evidence highlights the importance of street-level physical conditions experienced at eye level. Advances in computer vision and street view imagery (SVI) offer new opportunities to quantify such streetscape characteristics, yet the applicability of existing semantic segmentation models in developing urban contexts remains underexplored. This study evaluates the suitability of five state-of-the-art semantic segmentation models for streetscape analysis using crowdsourced SVI from Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Through a comparative analysis, Oneformer was identified as the most suitable semantic segmentation model, uniquely successful in identifying street vendors through surrogate semantic class (base) and street furniture. A rigorous quantitative validation using manually annotated images confirmed the model’s reliability, achieving an mIoU of 65.7% within the complex urban fabric of Phnom Penh. This performance stems from OneFormer’s unified task-conditioned framework, which integrates semantic, instance, and panoptic information within a single query. Such an architecture ensures enhanced boundary stability and semantic coherence by consolidating visual noise into meaningful units, making it particularly robust for processing the irregular street elements typical of Southeast Asian cities. Applying the selected model revealed pronounced spatial variation in streetscape composition across three neighborhoods, reflecting distinct development stages and levels of informality. These findings suggest that carefully selected pretrained models can yield analytically useful representations of streetscape conditions in data-constrained settings, supporting more context-sensitive and inclusive urban analysis in rapidly developing cities. Full article

Low salinity tolerance during germination and early seedling establishment limits large-scale cultivation of halophytes for forage, food, restoration, and conservation purposes. This study evaluates the potential of redox priming to enhance salt tolerance in the perennial C₄ halophyte grass Urochondra setulosa, which could be used as a revegetation and phytoremediation crop for coastal saline lands. Fresh seeds were found to be non-dormant with ~90% mean final germination (MFG) in distilled water. Redox priming, including hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂), melatonin (MT), sodium nitroprusside (SNP; a nitric oxide donor), and ascorbic acid (AsA), significantly accelerated the germination rate index (GRI) and reduced mean germination time (MGT) without altering MFG under non-saline conditions. Salinity severely suppressed germination, as unprimed seeds reached only ~1% MFG with ~99% germination reduction (GR) and near-zero germination stress tolerance index (GSTI) at 200 mM NaCl. All priming treatments significantly improved MFG, GRI, and GSTI and decreased GR, with H₂O₂ priming showing the highest amelioration. Ungerminated seeds from all treatments recovered ~90% germination capacity in water, indicating enforced dormancy owing to osmotic constraints. Salinity did not impair growth in unprimed seedlings. However, MT priming uniquely enhanced total length, leaf area, and seedling vigor index (SVI) at 200 mM NaCl, while MT and SNP priming resulted in the highest chlorophyll and carotenoid contents. Multivariate analyses confirmed MT’s consistent superiority across traits under stress. Thus, H₂O₂ priming optimizes germination, while MT priming improves seedling vigor and offers a practical, targeted strategy to improve early-stage salinity tolerance in U. setulosa for coastal revegetation and sustainable saline agriculture. Full article

Sludge management is one of the most costly and technically challenging components of municipal wastewater treatment, highlighting the need for sustainable and low-cost stabilization technologies. This study evaluated a pilot-scale vermifiltration system for municipal sewage sludge stabilization under varying hydraulic and organic loading conditions. Three vermifilter pilots incorporating Eisenia andrei earthworms were operated using lightweight expanded clay aggregate (LECA), high-density polyethylene (HDPE) plastic media, and mineral pumice. The systems were tested at hydraulic loading rates (HLRs) of 150, 300, and 450 L/m²·d. Performance was assessed using chemical oxygen demand (COD), total solids (TS), volatile solids (VS), VS/TS ratio, sludge volume index (SVI), and sludge dewaterability indicators, including specific resistance to filtration (SRF) and time to filtration (TTF). Optimal performance occurred at an HLR of 150 L/m²·d, achieving maximum reductions of 49% in COD, 30% in TS, and 40% in VS, along with an SVI reduction of up to 78%. Increasing HLR significantly reduced treatment efficiency due to shorter retention times and biofilm washout. A regression analysis showed the strongest association between COD removal and organic loading rate (R² = 0.63) under the coupled HLR–OLR conditions tested, while weaker correlations were observed for SVI and VS/TS. Dewaterability improved markedly after vermifiltration, particularly in the LECA-based system. Although filter media type did not significantly affect COD or SVI removal, pumice and plastic media provided greater hydraulic stability at higher loadings. These results demonstrate that vermifiltration is an effective and environmentally sustainable option for municipal sludge stabilization when operated under controlled hydraulic conditions. Full article

Thai eggplant (Solanum melongena L. cv. Chao Phraya), a widely cultivated vegetable with increasing global demand, is highly susceptible to salinity stress, which can severely impair seed germination and early seedling development. This study investigated the effects of sodium nitroprusside (SNP), a nitric oxide (NO) donor, on seed germination and seedling growth under salt stress conditions. Seeds were pre-treated with SNP at concentrations of 0, 0.05, 0.1, and 0.2 mM for 24 h and subsequently germinated under saline conditions with NaCl solutions (0, 100, and 200 mM). SNP pre-treatment, particularly at 0.05 and 0.1 mM, significantly improved germination percentage and germination rate in seeds exposed to 200 mM NaCl compared to untreated controls. Increased NaCl concentrations induced oxidative stress in seedlings, as evidenced by elevated hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) accumulation, which in turn caused lipid peroxidation, reflected by higher malondialdehyde (MDA) levels. Salt stress significantly increased ascorbate peroxidase (APX) activity, whereas catalase (CAT) activity showed no significant change across treatments. Correlation analysis revealed that APX activity was positively correlated with oxidative stress markers (H₂O₂) and delayed germination (T₅₀/MGT), whereas CAT activity showed no significant correlation with these parameters. In contrast, elevated APX activity was strongly and negatively correlated with overall seedling growth and vigor (SVI/GI), indicating that the underlying stress condition had a detrimental effect on plant performance. Overall, SNP pre-treatment, particularly at 0.05 and 0.1 mM, significantly enhanced salt tolerance by promoting germination (increasing GP and reducing T₅₀/MGT) and improving seedling growth (SL and RL). This protective effect is associated with improved redox regulation and partial mitigation of oxidative damage, as reflected by changes in H₂O₂, MDA, and APX; however, excessive SNP concentrations may exert phytotoxic effects, highlighting the importance of optimal dosing. Full article

Soil salinization, characterized by complex ionic compositions, threatens global wheat production. Current research often focuses on single salts, leaving a gap in systematic comparisons of specific salt effects. This study comprehensively evaluated six prevalent salts (NaCl, Na₂SO₄, KCl, NaHCO₃, MgSO₄, and MgCl₂) across concentrations (10–200 mmol/L) during wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) germination. By integrating ten physiological indicators with principal component analysis (PCA), membership function evaluation, and median lethal concentration (LC₅₀) calculation, we identified distinct salt-specific toxicities. Results established a clear toxicity hierarchy: MgCl₂ was consistently most toxic (LC₅₀ = 32.92 mmol/L), indicating Mg²⁺/Cl⁻ synergy, while KCl was least inhibitory (LC₅₀ = 159.66 mmol/L). PCA simplified the 10-trait dataset, extracting 1 principal component (PC, 89.29–92.35% contribution) for most salts (fresh weight as key loading, reflecting growth) and 2 PCs (95.65% cumulative contribution) for MgSO₄ (separating root-growth and germination-vigor responses), thus identifying salt-specific key evaluation traits. Building on this PCA-derived trait screening, this analysis further revealed fresh weight (FW), germination rate (GR), shoot length (SL), and simple vigor index (SVI) as core evaluation indicators, and identified distinct mechanistic pathways: while most salts caused a generalized growth inhibition reflected in biomass reduction, MgCl₂ exerted a more specific and severe inhibitory effect on shoot elongation. MgSO₄ uniquely employed dual pathways, separately affecting root and germination traits. An innovative aspect of this work is the synergistic application of three synergistic evaluation methodologies with multi-physiological parameters, which allows for the rigorous quantitative characterization of distinct salt-specific effects on both early germination and seedling growth in wheat. This laboratory-based study provides a theoretical framework and practical indicators for salt damage risk assessment and preliminary screening of salt-tolerant wheat germplasm and lays a foundation for field validation and targeted management strategies for specific saline–alkali soils. Full article

Objective crime risk and perceived safety constitute distinct yet interrelated dimensions of urban security, whose spatial discrepancies may lead to misaligned policy interventions. This study develops a street-level analytical framework to examine the (mis)match between perceived safety and crime risk in Chaoyang District, Beijing. An enhanced Street-view imagery (SVI) segmentation model with object detection was applied to extract streetscape elements and estimate perceived safety scores, which were then standardized and compared with street-level crime data, yielding two types of matches and two types of mismatches. Three conditions were analyzed using multinomial logit regression: (1) objective unsafety with low perceived safety, (2) objective safety with low perceived safety, and (3) objective unsafety with high perceived safety. Findings demonstrate how visual and social environmental factors jointly shape discrepancies between perceived and actual safety and identify potential determinants to mitigate such (mis)matches. Full article

Understanding outdoor thermal environments at fine spatial scales is essential for developing climate-responsive urban and building design strategies. This study investigates the determinants of local air temperature deviations in Seoul, Korea, using high-resolution in situ sensor data integrated with multi-source urban and building information. Hourly temperature records from 436 road-embedded sensors (March 2024–February 2025) were transformed into relative metrics representing deviations from the network-wide mean and were combined with semantic indicators derived from street-view imagery—Green View Index (GVI), Road View Index (RVI), Building View Index (BVI), Sky View Index (SVI), and Street Enclosure Index (SEI)—along with land-cover and building attributes such as impervious surface area (ISA), gross floor area (GFA), building coverage ratio (BCR), and floor area ratio (FAR). Employing an eXtreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost)–Shapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) framework, the study quantifies nonlinear and interactive relationships among morphological, environmental, and visual factors. SEI, BVI, and ISA emerged as dominant contributors to localized heating, while RVI, GVI, and SVI enhanced cooling potential. Seasonal contrasts reveal that built enclosure and vegetation visibility jointly shape micro-scale heat dynamics. The findings demonstrate how high-resolution, observation-based data can guide climate-responsive design strategies and support thermally adaptive urban planning. Full article

Background/Objectives: This study aimed to develop and evaluate an automated fluid infusion management system for preventing hypotension during general anesthesia. Methods: This study was a single-blind, randomized, non-inferiority, clinical trial. Seventy-nine patients undergoing surgery under general anesthesia were randomly assigned to either an automatic group or a manual group. In the automatic group, the infusion rate was automatically adjusted based on stroke volume (SV) and effective arterial elastance (Ea), whereas in the manual group, the attending anesthesiologist manually adjusted the infusion rate according to the Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) protocol. The primary endpoint was the proportion of time during anesthesia that mean arterial pressure (Pm) was maintained at ≥65 mmHg. Secondary endpoints included the proportion of time the estimated stroke volume index (esSVI) was below the threshold, total fluid volume administered, total phenylephrine dose, urine output, blood loss, and average estimated stroke volume variation (esSVV). Results: The results demonstrated non-inferiority of the automatic group to the manual group in maintaining Pm ≥ 65 mmHg (automatic group: 82.0 ± 12.7%, manual group: 79.9 ± 15.7%; difference [automatic group−manual group]: 2.0 percentage points; one-sided 97.5% CI lower limit: −4.7%; non-inferiority margin: −5%). There were no significant differences between the groups in total fluid volume, phenylephrine dose, urine output, or blood loss. No severe adverse events or device-related adverse events were observed. Conclusions: The automated system maintained intraoperative blood pressure safely and effectively. Full article

Contemporary seed gene bank management emphasizes the importance of understanding seed storage behaviour to maximize the preservation of genetic material. In this context, the patterns of naturally occurring ageing-related changes in physiological and biochemical markers were evaluated by comparing the performance of freshly regenerated seed samples (control) to samples kept under cold storage (CS) for 37 years (original, CS1 samples) and five years (CS2 samples). A significant decline in seed viability and physiological quality—initial seedling development—was directly associated with the duration of cold storage, leading to a marked reduction in seedling vigour index (SVI) performance. Key biochemical markers influencing early seedling growth and vigour included total protein, the glutelins protein fraction, fructose, sucrose, both insoluble-bound and soluble-free phenolics—including phenolic acids, and β-carotene. The CS2 samples, which experienced severe water deficit during the post-zygotic phase, exhibited increased sucrose, insoluble-bound p-coumaric acid (p-CouA), insoluble-bound ferulic acid (FA), and α-tocopherol contents. Conversely, glutelins and glucose contents decreased, while genotype-specific variations were observed in albumins, globulins, fructose, maltose, insoluble-bound caffeic acid, and soluble-free p-CouA, as well as in β+γ- and δ-tocopherol contents. Given the consistent pattern of natural ageing-related changes, β-carotene, lutein+zeaxanthin, insoluble-bound FA, and particularly soluble-free FA emerge as relevant biomarkers for improved monitoring of ageing processes under ex situ conservation. Full article