Search Results (11,597)

This paper presents a computationally efficient two-stage analytical framework for predicting daylight performance in buildings. It is designed to support real-time applications in smart lighting and intelligent building management systems. This approach combines a facade lighting model—driven by solar geometry and atmospheric transmittance—with an interior light distribution module that represents the window as a discretized light source. This formulation provides a lightweight alternative to computationally intensive ray tracing methods. It allows rapid estimation of spatial lighting patterns with minimal input data. The framework is validated using a one-year measurement campaign with class A photometric sensors in three facade orientations. The facade module achieved an average relative error below 15%, while the interior lighting model yielded an RMSE of 83 lx (≈10% error). The integrated system demonstrated an overall average deviation of 18.6% under different sky and season conditions. Owing to its low computational complexity and physically transparent formulation, the proposed method is suitable for deployment in smart building platforms, including daylight-responsive lighting control, embedded energy management systems, and digital twins requiring fast and continuous simulation of daylight availability. Full article

Europe is dealing with environmental problems that require cooperation beyond national and regional borders. Air pollution, water pollution, biodiversity loss, and waste management are the major issues that are not only complex but also cross borders. Therefore, it is necessary to provide collaborative responses that go beyond the capacity of individual countries. This inquiry centers on the question of what the best way is to set up and govern the transnational cooperation in Europe to confront these major environmental challenges. A systematic bibliographic review of the research conducted between 2010 and 2025 forms the basis of this work. The research combines semantic analysis and Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) modeling to study 80 selected publications to find the tenets of the themes discussed. The identified topics are urban climate change adaptation and mitigation, climate policy and management, adaptation and vulnerability frameworks, land use and biodiversity impacts, and future climate projections and assessment. The findings show that there are strong synergies between biodiversity and climate adaptation, resilience, and environmental governance, as well as the great influence of climate change on the water management sector. The study has unveiled the significance of institutional policy frameworks in bringing about environmental cooperation across borders. In addition, it depicts the relationship between local urban projects and supra-regional policy strategies, in which the two can merge and function efficiently as long as they are working towards the common goal of environmental sustainability. This study is meant to shed more light on the area of environmental governance research, discovering areas that need more exploration, and providing some signposts on how to improve environmental involvement in Europe. Full article

Tephritid flies employ visual and chemical cues to locate and assess suitable habitats, food sources, mating sites, and ovipositional resources. Bactrocera dorsalis and Zeugodacus tau are economically significant pests that infest a wide range of fruits and fleshy vegetables. Understanding their visual sensitivity is crucial for developing effective and ecologically friendly management strategies. Thus, in this study, we compare the responses of these two species to various visual stimuli across laboratory, greenhouse, and closed-orchard environments. Our experiments reveal that, across the tested physiological states, both species exhibit a preference for certain wavelengths in the laboratory, particularly 520 nm and 560 nm. In the greenhouse, green and yellow models captured significantly more females of both species. Z. tau females showed greater sensitivity to the yellow model than B. dorsalis females. Additionally, Z. tau showed a higher affinity for both spherical and cylindrical shapes, while B. dorsalis flies were only attracted to the spherical model. In a closed orchard area, traps modified according to the best-performing combination used in the laboratory and greenhouse (shape and light) increased the capture counts of both species over time, with Z. tau exhibiting greater visual attraction sensitivity than B. dorsalis. These findings provide a theoretical and scientific foundation for improving trapping techniques targeting these two species. Full article

Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) is a key biomarker for the early detection of prostate cancer recurrence following surgical treatment. In this study, we present a PSA-responsive, aptamer-based switchable aggregate system, named AS2-US-AuNP-Aggregate, composed of ultrasmall gold nanoparticles (US-AuNPs) linked by (partially) pairing oligomers that selectively disassemble in the presence of PSA. The system was optimised also using a previously developed in silico routine and is designed for enhanced detection capabilities and for supporting in vivo applicability. We measured the sizes of the nanosystems by dynamic light scattering (DLS) and their extinction spectra, also in the presence of PSA in simple buffers, in the presence of DNaseI, and under blood-mimicking conditions (filtered plasma), obtaining a response down to 10 fM PSA in buffers and to 1 pM in filtered plasma. Our findings highlight the potential of aptamer-based nanoparticle aggregates as a basis for user-friendly diagnostic tools. Additionally, we discuss key optimisation strategies to further advance their development for in vivo diagnostic applications. Full article

Canopy configuration affects crop yields by optimizing radiation interception and/or use efficiency in greenhouses. Although tomato metrics have been reported, the effects of row spacing on growth, yield and radiation for different cultivars are not well documented. Here, we examined tomato growth, yield, radiation interception and use efficiency in a greenhouse with four row spacing patterns (T1: 50 cm, T2: 60 cm, T3: 70 cm and T4: 80 cm) and two tomato cultivars (Aomeila1618 and Zhefen202) over a two-year period. A constructed intermediate model was used to simulate tomato radiation interception. Although there were great differences in the genotypes between the two selected cultivars, 50 cm (T1) was the optimal row spacing to produce a larger leaf area per unit of land area, intercept more radiation and ultimately achieve higher yield than the other three row spacing patterns (T2, T3 and T4). The mean total radiation interception across years and cultivars was 559.43 MJ m⁻² in T1, 2.8–3.8% higher than in the other three row spacing patterns. Despite similar dry matter and RUE to Aomeila1618, Zhefen202 in the narrow strip used light more efficiently. These results will help to optimize canopy structures by taking cultivar-specific responses in RUE and growth traits into consideration for high-efficiency tomato production in greenhouses. Full article

Protein phosphatase 2Cs (PP2Cs) constitute a widespread family of signaling regulators in plants and play central roles in abscisic acid (ABA)-mediated stress signaling; however, the PP2C gene family has not yet been systematically identified and characterized in pea (Pisum sativum), a salt-sensitive legume crop. In this study, we identified 89 PsPP2C genes based on domain features and sequence homology. These genes are unevenly distributed across seven chromosomes and classified into ten subfamilies, providing a comparative framework for evaluating structural and regulatory diversification within the PsPP2C family. The encoded proteins vary substantially in length, physicochemical properties, and predicted subcellular localization, while most members contain the conserved PP2Cc catalytic domain. Intra- and interspecies homology analyses identified 19 duplicated gene pairs in pea and numerous orthologous relationships with several model plants; all reliable gene pairs exhibited Ka/Ks < 1, indicating pervasive purifying selection. PsPP2C genes also showed broad variation in exon number and intron phase, and their promoter regions contained diverse light-, hormone-, and stress-related cis-elements with heterogeneous positional patterns. Expression profiling across 11 tissues revealed pronounced tissue-specific differences, with generally higher transcript abundance in roots and seeds than in other tissues. Under salt treatment, approximately 20% of PsPP2C genes displayed concentration- or time-dependent transcriptional changes. Among them, PsPP2C67 and PsPP2C82—both belonging to the clade A PP2C subfamily—exhibited the most pronounced induction under high salinity and at early stress stages. Functional annotation indicated that these two genes are involved in ABA-related processes, including regulation of abscisic acid-activated signaling pathway, plant hormone signal transduction, and MAPK signaling pathway-plant. Collectively, this study provides a systematic characterization of the PsPP2C gene family, including its structural features, evolutionary patterns, and transcriptional responses to salt stress, thereby establishing a foundation for future functional investigations. Full article

Metal halide perovskite (MHP)-based heterojunctions have become a forefront area in the research of optoelectronic functional materials due to their unique layered crystal structure, tunable band gaps, and exceptional optoelectronic properties. Recent studies have demonstrated that interface charge transfer is a crucial factor in determining the optoelectronic performance of the heterojunction devices. By constructing heterojunctions between MHPs and two-dimensional (2D) materials such as graphene, MoS₂, and WS₂, efficient electron–hole separation and transport can be achieved, significantly extending carrier lifetimes and suppressing non-radiative recombination. This results in enhanced response speed and energy conversion efficiency in photodetectors, photovoltaic devices, and light-emitting devices (LEDs). In these heterojunctions, the thickness of the MHP layer, interface defect density, and band alignment significantly influence carrier dynamics. Furthermore, techniques such as interface engineering, molecular passivation, and band engineering can effectively optimize charge separation efficiency and improve device stability. The integration of multilayer heterojunctions and flexible designs also presents new opportunities for expanding the functionality of high-performance optoelectronic devices. In this review, we systematically summarize the charge transfer mechanisms in MHP-based heterojunctions and highlight recent advances in their optoelectronic applications. Particular emphasis is placed on the influence of interfacial coupling on carrier generation, transport, and recombination dynamics. Furthermore, the ultrafast dynamic behaviors and band-engineering strategies in representative heterojunctions are elaborated, together with key factors and approaches for enhancing charge transfer efficiency. Finally, the potential of MHP heterojunctions for high-performance optoelectronic devices and emerging photonic systems is discussed. This review aims to provide a comprehensive theoretical and experimental reference for future research and to offer new insights into the rational design and application of flexible optoelectronics, photovoltaics, light-emitting devices, and quantum photonic technologies. Full article

Structural coloration arising from nanoscale light–matter interactions has emerged as a key research area in nanophotonics. Among the various materials investigated, noble metals—particularly gold—play a central role due to their well-defined plasmonic response and chemical stability, but their structural coloring typically requires complex and highly engineered nanostructures. However, modern photonic technologies demand scalable approaches to produce structural colors that can be finely tuned. In this contribution, we experimentally and numerically demonstrate the fine tunability of structural color in gold-based one-dimensional hyperbolic metamaterials (1D-HMMs) by varying their structural parameters: number of layers (N), period (T), and filling fraction (p). Our results show that variations in N lead to changes in luminance with minimal shifts in chromaticity, while variations in T introduce moderate color shifts without affecting luminance. In contrast, changes in p produce the largest modifications in chromaticity, though the trend is non-monotonic and less predictable. These findings highlight the potential of 1D-HMMs for achieving finely controlled gold-based coloration for advanced photonic technologies. Full article

Aeschynomene indica L. has become a problematic weed in the upland direct-seeding rice fields of the lower Yangtze River region, China, leading to substantial yield reductions. A comprehensive understanding of its seed germination ecology and response to herbicides is crucial for developing effective control strategies. This study examined the effects of major environmental factors including temperature, light, pH, salt stress, osmotic potential, and burial depth on seed germination of A. indica and assessed the efficacy of 20 commonly used herbicides in rice under controlled conditions. Results revealed that germination was highly sensitive to temperature, with optimum constant and alternating temperatures of 35 °C and 40/30 °C (day/night), respectively, both achieving germination rates above 90%. The seeds were non-photoblastic, maintaining a high germination rate of 83.33% under complete darkness. Germination remained consistently high across a broad pH range from 4 to 9, with rates ranging from 83.33% to 96.67%. Salt and osmotic stresses markedly suppressed germination, with EC₅₀ values of 195.08 mmol·L⁻¹ NaCl and −0.43 MPa, respectively. Seedling emergence decreased significantly with increasing burial depth, with no emergence occurring at depths greater than 7 cm. The EC₅₀ for emergence was 4.21 cm. Among the herbicides screened, saflufenacil and mesotrione were the most effective pre-emergence treatments, with GR₅₀ values of 5.38 and 12.02 g ai ha⁻¹, respectively. Florpyrauxifen-benzyl and fluroxypyr-meptyl exhibited the highest post-emergence activity, with GR₅₀ values of 0.20 and 19.69 g ai ha⁻¹, respectively. These results underscore the high ecological adaptability of A. indica to paddy fields conditions and provide a scientific foundation for integrating chemical control with cultural practices such as deep tillage into sustainable weed management systems for paddy fields. Full article

Background: Laser Speckle Flowgraphy (LSFG) is a non-invasive imaging technology that quantitatively evaluates retinal and choroidal blood flow by analyzing speckle patterns generated by laser light scattering. This systematic review summarizes the application of LSFG in two major degenerative retinal diseases: age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and diabetic retinopathy (DR). Methods: A comprehensive literature search (2010–2025) was conducted in PubMed, Cochrane Library and EMBASE according to PRISMA guidelines. Twenty-three studies including a total of 974 eyes (191 AMD, 783 DR) were analyzed. Results: In AMD, LSFG detected baseline reductions in choroidal and retinal perfusion in non-exudative disease, often extending beyond atrophic regions. Anti-VEGF injections produced acute reductions in MBR, particularly with brolucizumab, with partial recovery over time; drug-specific differences suggest a potential impact on geographic atrophy progression. In DR, LSFG revealed early microvascular dysfunction even in asymptomatic eyes. Retinal and choroidal MBR and blowout score correlated with HbA1c, DR severity, and inflammatory mediators. Intravitreal anti-VEGF therapy consistently reduced retinal and choroidal MBR and RFV, while conventional panretinal photocoagulation decreased choroidal flow and vascular caliber more robustly than patterned laser, reflecting oxygenation-driven VEGF modulation. Low baseline MBR predicted higher central macular thickness and reduced therapeutic response in diabetic macular edema. Conclusions: LSFG provides reproducible, rapid, and non-invasive quantitative insights into ocular hemodynamics across degenerative retinal diseases. Its integration into multimodal imaging may facilitate early diagnosis, support personalized management, and assist in the prognostic assessment of retinal and choroidal vascular disorders. Full article

While there is a consensus that the cytochrome b₆f complex (cytb₆f) in algae and plants is involved in the regulatory mechanism of oxygenic photosynthesis known as light-induced state transitions (STs), no such consensus exists for cyanobacteria. Here, we provide the first direct functional evidence for cytb₆f using single-point mutation data. We introduced a PetD-Phe124Ala substitution in the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 to test the key predictions of the hydrophobic-mismatch (HMM) model for cytb₆f-driven STs in all oxygenic photosynthetic species. These predictions concern the role of the Phe/Tyr124^fg-loop-PetD and the extent and kinetic characteristics of STs. The effects of PetD-F124A mutation on STs were monitored using 77K and Pulse-Amplitude-Modulated (PAM) fluorescence. For comparison, we employed a phycobilisome (PBS)-less Synechocystis mutant and wild-type (WT) strain, as well as the stn7 mutant and WT of Arabidopsis plant. The PetD-F124A mutation reduced the extent of STs and selectively affected the two-exponential kinetics components of the transitions. Under State 1 conditions, the mutant exhibited ~60% less energetic decoupling of PBS from photosystem I (PSI) compared to the WT. It is explainable by the HMM model with the inability of the PetD-F124A mutant, during the induction phase of the State 2→State 1 transition to adopt the cytb₆f conformation with minimal hydrophobic thickness. PAM-derived parameters indicated that PSII electron transport function is not inhibited, and no detectable effect on cyclic electron transport around PSI was observed under low-light conditions. Circular dichroism and differential scanning calorimetry confirmed that both the PSI trimer/monomer ratio and the structural integrity of the PBSs are preserved in the mutant. The compensatory response to the mutation includes decreased PSI content and an increase in PBS rod size. In conclusion, (1) cytb₆f is involved in cyanobacterial STs; (2) evidence is provided supporting the HMM model; (3) the electron transfer and signal transduction functions of cytb₆f are separated into distinct domains; and (4) the signaling pathway regulating STs and pigment-protein composition in Synechocystis involves PetD-Phe124. Full article

The effect of Mn-doped zinc ferrite nanoparticles at a low volume concentration (1 × 10⁻⁴) on structural changes in the nematic liquid crystals 6CHBT and 5CB, induced by weak magnetic fields, was investigated using surface acoustic wave (SAW) and light transmission (LT) techniques. Structural changes caused by the applied magnetic field, in both increasing and decreasing modes, as well as after pulsed changes, were examined by measuring the responses of SAW attenuation and LT using a linearly polarized laser beam. The influence of nanoparticle shape (rods, needles, and clusters) and temperature on the structural changes was investigated. A shift in the threshold field and the transition temperature was observed. In addition, the magnetic properties of the individual samples in powder form were examined using M–H curves, M–T curves, and XRD patterns. The results obtained from all measurements are compared, and the effectiveness of each technique, considering the influence of nanoparticle shape and suspension stability, was evaluated. Full article

Nighttime tourism has become a key driver of urban nighttime economic development. The nighttime tourism experiencescape (NTE)—comprising elements such as atmospheric lighting landscapes, culturally distinctive night markets, and diverse entertainment formats—creates an environment markedly distinct from daytime settings. This NTE significantly influences tourist experiences and contributes critically to the sustainable development of urban destinations. Grounded in the Stimulus–Organism–Response framework, this study investigates how the NTE shapes tourist loyalty. Empirical results indicate that the effect of the NTE on tourist loyalty is primarily mediated by place attachment, with place dependence demonstrating a stronger mediating effect than place identity. In the direct pathway, only the socio-symbolic dimension of the NTE exerts a significant positive impact on tourist loyalty. The study offers both theoretical and practical contributions: it reveals the mechanisms that influence tourist loyalty in nocturnal contexts and offers actionable insights into the sustainable management of nighttime tourism in urban destinations. Full article

Optoelectronic synapses based on transition metal dichalcogenides have received much attention as artificial synapses due to their good stability in the air and excellent photoelectric properties; however, they suffer from ultraviolet light-triggered synapses due to the ultraviolet insensitivity of transition metal dichalcogenides. In this paper, an ultraviolet-enhanced artificial synapse was achieved on WSe₂ combined with SrAl₂O₄: 6% Eu²⁺, 4% Dy³⁺ phosphor. The strong ultraviolet absorption of SrAl₂O₄: 6% Eu²⁺, 4% Dy³⁺ phosphor and radiation reabsorption are responsible for the ultraviolet-enhanced response of the WSe₂-SrAl₂O₄ synapse. The excitatory post-synaptic current of the WSe₂-SrAl₂O₄ synapse triggered by a single pulse at 365 nm was enhanced 4 times more than that from 2D WSe₂, while the decay time of the post-synaptic current was 9.7 times longer than those from the WSe₂ device. The excellent ultraviolet sensitivity and decay time promoted the good regulation of the synaptic plasticity of the WSe₂-SrAl₂O₄ device in terms of power densities, pulse widths, pulse intervals, and pulse numbers. Furthermore, outstanding learning behavior was simulated successfully with a forgetting time of 25 s. Handwritten digit recognition was realized with 96.39% accuracy, based on the synaptic weight of the WSe₂-SrAl₂O₄ synapse. This work provides a new pathway for ultraviolet photoelectric synapse and brain-inspired computing. Full article

Photo-induced bond linkage isomerization (BLI) in metal–nitrosyl compounds provides a molecular mechanism for controlling light-induced changes in refractive index and phase modulation. In this study, the ground and metastable states of a series of Ru–NO complexes and their Au₂₀, Ag₂₀, and mixed Au₁₀Ag₁₀ nanocluster hybrids were investigated by DFT and TDDFT calculations. The photochemical rearrangement between the linear, side-on, and O-bound forms of Ru–NO was examined together with their electronic transitions, oscillator strengths, and characteristic vibrational shifts. From these data, parameters describing radiative efficiency, non-radiative coupling, and metastable-state stability were derived to identify compounds with favorable properties for holography and photonic applications. Particular attention was given to the [(Salen)Ru(NO)(HS)@Au₂₀] complex, which shows a strong red-to-NIR response and balanced stability among its linkage isomers. Frequency-dependent polarizabilities α(ω) were calculated for its ground and metastable states and compared with those of the classical holographic material [Fe(CN)₅NO]²⁻ (nitroprusside). The refractive-index changes derived from α(ω) reveal that the Au₂₀–salen hybrid produces a much larger and more strongly wavelength-dependent Δn(λ) than nitroprusside. At 635 nm, the modulation reaches approximately 0.06 for the hybrid, compared with 0.02 for nitroprusside. This enhancement reflects the cooperative effect of the Ru–NO chromophore and the Au₂₀ nanocluster, which amplifies both polarizability and optical dispersion. The results demonstrate that coupling molecular photo-linkage isomerism with nanoplasmonic environments can significantly improve the performance of molecular systems for holography and optical-phase applications. Full article