Search Results (79)

The increasing integration of 3D technologies and machine learning is fundamentally reshaping mineral sciences and cultural heritage, establishing the foundation for an emerging “Mineralogy 4.0” framework. However, public engagement with digital 3D collections is often limited by complex or costly interfaces, such as VR/AR systems and traditional touchscreen kiosks, creating a clear need for more intuitive, accessible, and more engaging and inclusive solutions. This paper presents PETRA, an open-source, gesture-controlled system for exploring 3D rocks and minerals. Developed in the TouchDesigner environment, PETRA utilizes a standard webcam and the MediaPipe framework to translate natural hand movements into real-time manipulation of digital specimens, requiring no specialized hardware. The system provides a customizable, node-based framework for creating touchless, interactive exhibits. Successfully evaluated during a “Long Night of Museums” public event with 550 visitors, direct qualitative observations confirmed high user engagement, rapid instruction-free learnability across diverse age groups, and robust system stability in a continuous-use setting. As a practical case study, PETRA demonstrates that low-cost, webcam-based gesture control is a viable solution for creating accessible and immersive learning experiences. This work offers a significant contribution to the fields of digital mineralogy, human–machine interaction, and cultural heritage by providing a hygienic, scalable, and socially engaging method for interacting with geological collections. This research confirms that as digital archives grow, the development of human-centered interfaces is paramount in unlocking their full scientific and educational potential. Full article

European Researchers’ Night 2023 was developed at the National Museum of Natural History and Science of Lisbon, Portugal, with the motto “Science for Everyone (SCIEVER)—Inclusion and Sustainability”. The event promotes the relevance of science and research by focusing on the social, economic, and environmental dimensions of sustainability and inclusion and bridging the gap between scientists, students, and civil society. Our study aims to understand the impact of the event on 30 students from a degree in Basic Education, who completed a questionnaire before and after the event. Data collection was focused on the audience’s expectations and engagement with the activities and the perceived value of such events. The students attended the event as a group, and the individual experiences described were similar: the importance of the European Researchers’ Night in raising awareness of science in initial teacher training. The findings may have implications in terms of curricula revision, education research, and education policies. Full article

Hypoglossal nerve stimulation (HGNS) has emerged as an effective treatment for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Identifying baseline characteristics that prospectively could predict treatment outcomes even better is crucial for optimizing patient selection and improving therapeutic success in the future. A systematic review was conducted following PRISMA guidelines. Literature searches in Medline, Web of Science, and Cochrane databases identified studies assessing baseline characteristics associated with HGNS treatment outcomes. Inclusion criteria focused on studies with adult patients diagnosed with OSA, treated with HGNS, and assessed using full-night efficacy sleep studies. Risk of bias was evaluated using the NICE tool. Twenty-six studies met the inclusion criteria. Commonly reported baseline characteristics with predictive potential included BMI, site of collapse, and various pathophysiological endotypes. Most studies used the original Sher criteria to define treatment response, though variations were noted. Results suggested that lower BMI, absence of complete concentric collapse at the palatal level, and specific pathophysiological traits were associated with better HGNS outcomes. This review identified several baseline characteristics associated with HGNS outcomes, which may guide future patient selection. Importantly, patients were already preselected for HGNS. Standardizing response criteria is recommended to enhance the evaluation and effectiveness of HGNS therapy in OSA patients. Full article

The pervasive use of anthropogenic light at night has significantly increased the brightness of the night sky, which negatively affects human wellbeing, the ecology of plants and animals, night sky aesthetics, and astronomical observations. However, public awareness of light pollution remains limited. This study evaluates the effectiveness of an ‘eco-art installation’ in raising awareness about the impacts of anthropogenic light at night (ALAN). The installation, ‘Scope’, used light as a medium to convey the adverse effects of anthropogenic light at the Te Ramaroa festival in Nelson, New Zealand, which is held to celebrate light in the depths of winter. An online survey assessed the awareness of Nelson region residents, comparing responses between those who experienced the installation and those who did not, and assessing the self-reported knowledge increase after engagement with the installation. The findings indicated that eco-art installations can significantly enhance the public’s understanding of ALAN’s environmental and health impacts. The installation successfully increased self-reported specific knowledge about ALAN, with 92% of visitors reporting learning something new; however, overarching knowledge and levels of concern were largely similar between the groups. Emotional engagement was high, with 62% of viewers stating that the installation invoked an emotional response. While the study did not measure beha-vioural changes, 94% of festival participants found it at least ‘somewhat appropriate’ and 64% found it ‘very’ or ‘entirely appropriate’ to raise awareness of these issues at such events, suggesting a potential foundation for future action. This research underscores the promise of art–science collaborations in environmental education and public engagement. Full article

The presence of artificial light at night has emerged as an anthropogenic stressor in recent years. Various sources of light pollution have been shown to affect circadian physiology with serious consequences for metabolic pathways, possibly disrupting pineal melatonin production with multiple adverse health effects. The suppression of melatonin at night may also affect human mental health and contribute to the development or exacerbation of psychiatric disorders in vulnerable individuals. Due to the high burden of circadian disruption in affective disorders, it has been hypothesized that light pollution impacts mental health, mainly affecting mood regulation. Hence, the aim of this review was to critically summarize the evidence on the effects of light pollution on mood symptoms, with a particular focus on the role of circadian rhythms in mediating this relationship. We conducted a narrative review of the literature in the PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science datasets. After the screening process, eighteen papers were eligible for inclusion. The results clearly indicate a link between light pollution and the development of affective symptoms, with a central role of sleep disturbances in the emergence of mood alterations. Risk perception also represents a crucial topic, possibly modulating the development of affective symptoms in response to light pollution. The results of this review should encourage a multidisciplinary approach to the design of healthier environments, including lighting conditions among the key determinants of human mental health. Full article

Sleep is a fundamental biological process that plays a pivotal role in the health and performance of physically active individuals (PAI). Sleep deprivation or poor sleep quality can negatively impact recovery capacity, concentration, coordination, and muscular strength, thereby compromising physical performance and increasing the risk of injuries. Objectives: This narrative literature review aims to examine the scientific evidence on the importance of sleep hygiene for the health and performance of PAI. A search was conducted for studies published on PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. Studies that investigated the effect of sleep hygiene on health and performance variables in athletes were included. The literature analysis highlighted that good sleep hygiene, adequate sleep duration (7–9 h per night), high sleep quality, and a regular sleep routine are associated with a range of benefits for the health and performance of PAI, including: (1) improved post-training recovery; (2) reduced risk of injuries; (3) enhanced concentration and attention; (4) improved coordination and muscle strength; (5) better mood and mental well-being; (6) reduced risk of chronic diseases. Sleep hygiene is a key factor for the health and performance of PAI. Implementing a comprehensive and personalized sleep hygiene routine can lead to significant improvements in the quality and quantity of sleep, with positive effects on physical and mental health, and overall well-being of PAI. Full article

Background: Emerging interest surrounds the role of environmental factors, notably exposure to light at night (LAN), as a potential cause of cancer. The aim of this study was to conduct a systematic review and, if possible, meta-analysis of observational studies on LAN and cancer risk of multiple types. Methods: A systematic literature search in PubMed, Web of Science, and Embase, spanning from inception to May 2023, was conducted. Studies focusing on the association between LAN exposure and cancer risk in adult populations were included. We used random effects models to calculate pooled risk estimates (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). We assessed study quality using the Risk of Bias in Non-randomized Studies of Interventions. Results: Among 8492 initially identified studies, 26 met the inclusion criteria (13 were case–control and 13 were cohort studies). These studies were published from 2001 to 2023 and assessed diverse cancer types in North America, Asia, Europe, and Australia. Except for breast cancer, there was a paucity of site-specific cancer studies. In the meta-analysis of 19 breast cancer studies, higher exposure to indoor (summary RR, 1.08; 95% CI 1.01–1.15) and outdoor (summary RR, 1.10; 95% CI, 1.04–1.15) LAN were associated with increased risk. After excluding one low-quality study, the results were unchanged. Conclusions: We found a positive association between LAN exposure and breast cancer risk in women. However, data are lacking for other cancer types, and further studies are required to better understand the role of LAN on cancer. Full article

This study assessed workers’ exposure to vehicle exhaust emissions and its health effects at the Lebombo Port of Entry. A quantitative cross-sectional design was adopted, and a structured questionnaire was administered on 209 adult workers to measure their knowledge on vehicle exhaust emissions exposures. Air samples were also collected from the participants using air sampling pumps. Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences, version 27. Logistic regression was performed to examine the association between dependent variables and some sociodemographic factors. Vocational certificates and associate degrees were attributed to workers in the South African Police Services and those in Agriculture: (Odds Ratio) = 2.83%, Confidence Interval (1.41–5.65) and (Odds Ratio) = 4.58%, Confidence Interval (2.10–9.99), respectively. Divorced males had a high level of knowledge and awareness of vehicle exhaust emission and their health effects: (Adjusted Odds Ratio) = 5.31%, Confidence Interval (1.08–26.14). Males had better knowledge of vehicle exhaust emission with carcinogenic effects: (Adjusted Odds Ratio) = 3.28%, Confidence Interval (1.11–9.67). Having an associate’s degree as the highest level of education and irritation of nose and eyes were associated with lower awareness of vehicle exhaust emissions: (Adjusted Odds Ratio) = 0.42%, Confidence Interval (0.19–0.97) and (Adjusted Odds Ratio) = 0.31%, Confidence Interval (0.13–0.76), respectively. The diesel particulate matter concentration was higher during day shifts (0.027 mg/m³) compared to night shifts (0.021 mg/m³), p = 0.001. Seventy-one workers (34%) reported experiencing acute headaches often, and fewer workers (n = 31, 14.8%) reported to have never suffered from an acute headache. A majority of workers (71 (34%)) experienced acute irritation of nose and eyes often compared to a few (33 (16%)) workers who experienced the same less often. In addition, a majority of workers (84 (40.2%)) experienced acute fatigue and nausea often, while fewer workers (37 (17.7%)) experienced fatigue and nausea very often. The majority of workers (n = 116, 55.5%) suffered cough and sneezing more often compared to others. There is an urgent need for improved and effective controls to reduce workers’ exposure to vehicle exhaust emissions. Full article

Background/Objectives: The effectiveness of night braces alone or in combination with other treatments for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis remains unclear. This systematic review study aimed to review and analyze the available literature to determine whether night braces are an effective treatment for idiopathic scoliosis. Methods: A total of 162 databases, including Cochrane Library (reviews, protocols, trials), Web of Science, PubMed, Medline, Scopus, PEDro, CINAHL (EBSCO), Ovid and Google Scholar, were searched for published articles from inception to February 2024. The available literature was screened by the following terms: “scoliosis and night-time brace”, “scoliosis and night brace”, “scoliosis and part-time bracing”, “scoliosis and Providence” and “scoliosis and Charleston”. Results: Twenty studies were included; only one study was a randomized controlled trial, and most of the studies were retrospectively designed. Providence, Charleston and Boston braces were used as night braces. The Cobb angle was evaluated in all studies, and Cobb angle change after treatment and surgical treatment rates were the parameters that were evaluated the most. In one study, the angle of trunk rotation, quality of life, perception of spinal appearance, and physical activity level were measured. In one study, sagittal plane assessments were performed in addition to the Cobb angle. Conclusions: The results of this review suggest that there is no evidence to support the use of night braces in the treatment of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis. Randomized controlled trials with a well-designed methodology are needed to determine the efficacy of night braces. Full article

Urban science plays a pivotal role in understanding the complex interactions between fireworks, air quality, and urban environments. Dense firework smoke worsens air quality and poses a health hazard to the public. In this study, we show a situation where extremely foggy meteorological conditions coincided with intense anthropogenic emissions, including fireworks, in an urban area. For the first time, the chemical composition and sources of non-refractory submicron aerosol (NR-PM₁) in outdoor and indoor air were characterized in Vilnius (Lithuania) using an aerosol chemical speciation monitor (ACSM) and Positive Matrix Factorization for the period before the fireworks, on New Year’s Eve, and after the fireworks in 2020/2021; thus, typical changes were assessed. Due to stagnant weather conditions and increased traffic, the highest concentrations of black carbon (BC) (13.8 μg/m³) were observed before the fireworks display. The contribution of organic (Org) fraction to the total NR-PM₁ mass concentration, in the comparison of the values of a typical night and New Year’s Eve (from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.), increased from 43% to 70% and from 47% to 60% in outdoor and indoor air, respectively. Biomass-burning organic aerosol (BBOA, 48% (44%)) and hydrocarbon-like organic aerosol (HOA, 35% (21%)) dominated the organic fraction indoors and outdoors, respectively. HOA was likely linked to increased traffic during the event, while BBOA may have been related to domestic heating and fireworks. Full article

Anthropogenic light impacts both wildlife and human well-being, and national parks are some of the only remaining large swaths of land where natural dark skies remain. Over the past two decades, a significant amount of science has contributed both to our understanding of these impacts and to engineering advances to reduce negative lighting effects. This has resulted in changes to lighting infrastructure in some national parks, and growth in Dark Sky Certification for many protected areas globally. To date, changing infrastructure, such as street and parking lot lighting, to less intrusive hues and intensities or removing lights altogether have been some of the sustainable changes made in these areas. This study advances our understanding of lighting issues by examining national park visitors’ perceptions of personal lighting use (e.g., headlamps). Specifically, this study explores camper and mountaineer perceptions of personal lighting devices and their impact on social and ecological systems in Grand Teton National Park, USA. During peak visitation in the summer of 2023, 17 mountaineer interviews and 16 general camper interviews took place in the park at night. Results indicate that campers and mountaineers are largely unaware of anthropogenic light impacts on wildlife and humans. However, once informed, they are willing to change their behaviors and reduce the use of personal lighting devices and use more wildlife-friendly lighting with amber or red settings (which, to date, are just emerging and available for general consumers by several companies). These results provide insights for developing educational strategies and personal lighting engineering designs that will ultimately lead to more sustainable normative shifts capable of reducing anthropogenic lighting impacts in parks and beyond. Full article

Nowadays, high-pressure hydrogen storage is the most commercially used technology owing to its high hydrogen purity, rapid charging/discharging of hydrogen, and low-cost manufacturing. Despite numerous reviews on hydrogen storage technologies, there is a relative scarcity of comprehensive examinations specifically focused on high-pressure gaseous hydrogen storage and its associated materials. This article systematically presents the manufacturing processes and materials used for a variety of high-pressure hydrogen storage containers, including metal cylinders, carbon fiber composite cylinders, and emerging glass material-based hydrogen storage containers. Furthermore, it introduces the relevant principles and theoretical studies, showcasing their advantages and disadvantages compared to conventional high-pressure hydrogen storage containers. Finally, this article provides an outlook on the future development of high-pressure hydrogen storage containers. Full article

The increasing proportion of night consumption in the total daily consumption means the night economy has become an indispensable part of national economic development. However, early social science research on alcohol in the night economy and social science research on the night leisure industry dominated our understanding of the night city. Few researchers have built effective mathematical statistical models to explore the spatio-temporal distribution and regional interactions of the night economy. This paper presents a method to analyze the spatial and temporal distribution pattern of the night economy based on multi-source data. Firstly, K-Means++ and DBSCAN were used to cluster OD points to identify the gathering areas of night activities. Then, the local L-function in “flow space” was used to extract the aggregated flow of each aggregation area and analyze the regional interactions. Finally, the correlation between night activity and night service facilities was calculated by using geographic detector, and night activity and lighting were coupled by the profit and loss value. The research shows that this method can identify the main areas of night activity, dig out the interrelationships at the community level, and find the new night activity gathering points and night economic growth areas in the future. This study extends the current situation that the night economy is limited to theoretical research and research in central urban areas, provides the temporal and spatial distribution of night activities and night lighting supplies from the perspective of big data, and provides a basis for future night economy research, urban planning, and relevant policy issuance. Full article

The Sustainable Development Science Satellite 1 (SDGSAT-1) satellite, launched in November 2021, is dedicated to providing data detailing the “traces of human activities” for the implementation of the United Union’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and global scientific research. The glimmer imager (GI) that is equipped on SDGSAT-1 can provide nighttime light (NL) data with a 10 m panchromatic (PAN) band and red, green, and blue (RGB) bands of 40 m resolution, which can be used for a wide range of applications, such as in urban expansion, population studies of cities, and economics of cities, as well as nighttime aerosol thickness monitoring. The 10 m PAN band can be fused with the 40 m RGB bands to obtain a 10 m RGB NL image, which can be used to identify the intensity and type of night lights and the spatial distribution of road networks and to improve the monitoring accuracy of sustainable development goal (SDG) indicators related to city developments. Existing remote sensing image fusion algorithms are mainly developed for daytime optical remote sensing images. Compared with daytime optical remote sensing images, NL images are characterized by a large amount of dark (low-value) pixels and high background noises. To investigate whether daytime optical image fusion algorithms are suitable for the fusion of GI NL images and which image fusion algorithms are the best choice for GI images, this study conducted a comprehensive evaluation of thirteen state-of-the-art pansharpening algorithms in terms of quantitative indicators and visual inspection using four GI NL datasets. The results showed that PanNet, GLP_HPM, GSA, and HR outperformed the other methods and provided stable performances among the four datasets. Specifically, PanNet offered UIQI values ranging from 0.907 to 0.952 for the four datasets, whereas GSA, HR, and GLP_HPM provided UIQI values ranging from 0.770 to 0.856. The three methods based on convolutional neural networks achieved more robust and better visual effects than the methods using multiresolution analysis at the original scale. According to the experimental results, PanNet shows great potential in the fusion of SDGSAT-1 GI imagery due to its robust performance and relatively short training time. The quality metrics generated at the degraded scale were highly consistent with visual inspection, but those used at the original scale were inconsistent with visual inspection. Full article

Background: International prenatal care guidelines set a standard for clinicians to discuss gestational weight gain with their patients along with the complications associated with prepregnancy obesity and excessive gestational weight gain. Clinicians often lack evidence-based eating, nutrition, and activity strategies to share with patients. Methods: This systematic review aimed to find eating patterns and behaviors that could be used safely during pregnancy to limit excessive gestational weight gain. PubMed, MEDLINE, and Web of Science were searched for research or systematic reviews performed in the United States or Canada and published in English from 2013 to 2023. Keyword search terms included weight, manage, behavior, strategy, strategies, gestational weight gain, and nutrition. Excluded research used pediatric or adolescent populations, restrictive diets, such as no carbohydrate or no fat diets, fasting, bariatric surgery, weight loss medications, private industry or profit-earning programs using food brands, or specific diet programs. Results: A total of 844 abstracts were retrieved, with 103 full-text studies reviewed. Behaviors had to be useful for maintaining a healthy gestational weight gain and had to be safe for use during pregnancy. Behaviors useful during pregnancy included meal planning, home meal preparation, portion control, using diets such as the Mediterranean diet, the low-glycemic index diet, and the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension diet (DASH), regular physical activity, sleeping 6–7 h a night, mindful eating, intuitive eating, and regular seif-weighing. Conclusion: The evidence-based strategies outlined in this review are safe for use during pregnancy and can assist patients in avoiding excessive gestational weight gain while maintaining the nutrition needed for healthy fetal growth. Full article