Search Results (1,605)

Suspension docking systems offer significant application potential in autonomous underwater docking operations because of their deployment and recovery convenience. This study investigated the interaction between an axisymmetric, underactuated autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) and a suspended guiding hood docking device (DOCK). The effects of collision velocity, collision location, collision angle, mass, and moment of inertia on the post-collision kinematic states of both bodies are analyzed. Previous studies have typically determined AUV parameters using empirical formulas, whereas few have clearly described the calibration procedure for the hydrodynamic drag coefficients of a suspended guiding hood DOCK. In this study, the hydrodynamic coefficients of both the AUV and the DOCK were determined using STAR-CCM+ and embedded into the ADAMS built-in functions to construct a physically more realistic simulation model. Subsequently, water tank experiments were conducted for suspension docking collisions. The validity of the simulation model was verified by comparing the kinematic states of the DOCK and AUV observed from the simulations and experiments. Based on the established model, the docking dynamics under various operating conditions were simulated. The simulation results indicate that the AUV mass should not exceed twice the mass of the DOCK, and the moment of inertia of the DOCK should be maximized. The risk of suspension docking failure increases significantly when the mooring line length exceeds 40 m, and the negative buoyancy of the DOCK should be at least 300 N. These findings provide critical guidance for improving the success rate of suspension docking operations. Full article

The present study aims to analyze the development of achievement motivation and self-efficacy belief in the context of elite sports schools. A total of 658 athletes (349 female, 309 male) from Year 5 onwards participated in the central trials and performance assessments in track and field for elite sports schools between 2016 and 2025. In addition to the analysis of physical and athletic performance, the following aspects were also documented: achievement motivation, need for achievement motives and general self-efficacy beliefs. Firstly, differences between the genders were measured in terms of fear of failure and confidence, exhibiting a small effect size ranging from 0.175 to 0.25 and a significance of 0.001 and 0.026. A subsequent analysis of the Kruskal–Wallis test, pertaining to the various groups with differing performance levels, revealed significant disparities in self-discipline (p = 0.010), goal setting (p = 0.013) and confidence (p = 0.029). The effect sizes for these differences ranged from 0.08 to 0.14, indicating a modest magnitude of impact. The psychological profile of the top athletes, which is based on the psychological determinants of the study, differs significantly from that of the other groups of athletes at time t₁ (p = 0.001). It is recommended that appropriate training and guidance from coaches and sports psychologists be provided, given that confidence and self-efficacy expectations are key predictors of physical and athletic performance. Full article

To address the complex mechanical properties of coastal clay encountered during artificial ground freezing construction in coastal regions, this study investigates coastal clay by conducting mechanical tests under various freezing temperatures and confining pressures. The variations in peak strength, elastic modulus, and shear strength parameters of the frozen coastal clay were systematically analyzed. The results indicate that the peak strength and elastic modulus of the coastal clay exhibit a clear upward trend with approximately linear increases in confining pressure and temperature. A damage constitutive model for frozen soil was established, accounting for the coupled effects of temperature and confining pressure. Furthermore, a Physics-Informed Neural Network (PINN), incorporating the constitutive equations as physical constraints, was introduced to achieve the inversion and prediction of model parameters. The results demonstrate that the PINN model exhibits excellent predictive accuracy, with the coefficient of determination (R²) reaching 0.8513 under uniaxial compression and 0.9689 under triaxial compression. Compared with traditional empirical models, the PINN model reduces the prediction error of the elastic modulus to 8.96% (at 0 MPa) and 4.79% (at 0.8 MPa), demonstrating superior generalization capability. This study provides a reliable theoretical basis and parameter guidance for frozen soil construction in coastal regions. Full article

Children of imprisoned parents, who are often described as ‘orphans of justice’, suffer a multitude of disadvantages when a parent is sent to prison. Whilst their experiences of loss, stigma, and social exclusion are well documented, one area that remains critically under-examined is how court reporting processes may further exacerbate these harms. This study explores the lived experience of children 11–17 yrs (n = 6) who had experienced parental imprisonment, and non-offending adults (parents, caregivers, and adult children of offenders/n = 6) in relation to their experiences of parental crime reported in the press. This study also integrates views from individual interviews conducted with journalists and press regulators (n = 5), as well as data from a content analysis of three regional and two national newspapers across a three-week period. Findings indicate that current court reporting practices can be, for some children and family members, a contributing factor to their difficulties. Participating children and family members assert that publishing partial home addresses and references to family relationships heightens their visibility in the community, which they say contributes to community backlash and negatively affects their physical and mental wellbeing. The content analysis (n = 186 custody related news reports) showed selective disclosure of offenders’ personal and family details. Interviewed journalists strongly defended the principle of open justice and felt legally unable to add the wider context families often wished to share. However, they expressed genuine sympathy for the children, and while resistant to new legal restrictions, were open to developing voluntary guidance to help reduce harm where possible. This study proposes an integrated framework to strengthen ethical journalism and better protect children impacted by parental imprisonment, calling for improved public information, trauma-informed education, participatory research and practitioner tools that centre children’s rights. It argues that open justice must be balanced with relational accountability, ensuring open justice does not come at the expense of children’s wellbeing. Full article

Objectives: This study was conducted to develop and evaluate a personalized, home-based metronome-cued walking mHealth system, tailored to individual exercise capacity, and assess its effects on physical activity and quality of life in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Methods: A single-center prospective study was conducted in 40 patients with stable COPD, who were assigned to an intervention group (IG, n = 28) and a control group (CG, n = 12). The IG received a 12-week metronome-cued walking training through the mobile health system. The initial walking intensity was set at 70% of the patient’s baseline level, as determined by the 6 min walking distance (6MWD) and cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET). The duration of the training was adjusted according to the Borg scale score and was conducted at least three times per week. The CG received standard care, including lifestyle advice, medications and dietary guidance. Outcomes, including the 6MWD, the COPD Assessment Test (CAT), the Clinical COPD Questionnaire (CCQ), the modified Medical Research Council (mMRC) dyspnea scale, and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), were recorded at baseline and week 12. Results: Among 40 enrolled patients, the IG showed improvements compared with the CG. The mean 6MWD increased by 35.32 m (95% CI: 27.84–42.80, p < 0.001) in the IG, with 68% of participants achieving the minimum clinically important difference (MCID) of +35 m. The CAT, the CCQ, the mMRC dyspnea scale, and the HADS also improved in the IG. These findings suggest that the intervention may improve exercise capacity, dyspnea, health-related quality of life and psychological well-being in this patient population. No intervention-related adverse events were observed during the study period. Conclusions: In this small, non-randomized pilot study, a personalized, home-based metronome-cued walking program supported by mHealth technology was feasible and showed preliminary signals of benefit for exercise capacity, dyspnea, quality of life and psychological well-being in patients with COPD. Full article

UAV-assisted communication is widely regarded as a key component of next-generation Space-Air-Ground Integrated Networks (SAGINs), where integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) further drives the demand for accurate and reliable channel modeling. Terahertz (THz) communications are particularly attractive for UAV platforms, offering ultra-high data rates and physically secure transmission. However, the physical heterogeneity between reflection and scattering mechanisms in THz UAV channels poses significant modeling challenges, as conventional unified approaches tend to introduce energy distribution distortion and non-stationary prediction errors. To address this, we propose a 3D non-stationary geometry-based stochastic model (GBSM) based on an ellipse-sphere hierarchical geometric framework, where reflection paths are confined to ground-plane ellipses and scattering paths are distributed over spatial spheres. The model accounts for atmospheric molecular absorption, multipath fading, and non-stationarity induced by random 3D UAV trajectories. A cluster birth-death mechanism is introduced to capture the time-varying evolution of scattering clusters. Key statistical properties, including the temporal auto-correlation function (T-ACF), spatial cross-correlation function (S-CCF), and Doppler power spectral density (DPSD), are derived and analyzed. Simulation results agree well with theoretical derivations, validating the proposed model and providing practical guidance for THz UAV-ISAC system design. Full article

Physical activity can help people manage their epilepsy, yet young people with epilepsy are less active than their peers. Behaviour change interventions are needed. Behavioural science offers a range of theories, concepts and tools that increase the likelihood that such interventions will be effective. This scoping review assessed the extent to which physical activity behaviour change interventions for young people with epilepsy have been designed and evaluated using behavioural science tools. Systematic electronic database searches (last updated 3 December 2025) identified seven publications, reporting six distinct intervention trials. Intervention reports were coded to identify how behaviour change science had been drawn on. Interventions were also coded for evidence of effectiveness. None were identified as showing convergent evidence of effectiveness. For three interventions, there was limited evidence of effectiveness based on within-group increases in physical activity or quality of life, and for three, there was no evidence of effectiveness for physical activity or quality of life. Interventions using goal-setting, guidance on performance or information on health consequences were more commonly found in interventions showing some evidence of effectiveness than those showing no such evidence. Limited evidence was found of explicit behavioural science use in published reports of physical activity promotion interventions for young people with epilepsy. We recommend ways in which intervention developers can draw more on behavioural science theory, evidence and tools when developing, evaluating and reporting interventions, and therefore increase realisation of the benefits of physical activity interventions for this population. Full article

Flexible robotic fish are emerging as a promising class of deep-sea exploration platforms because they combine compliant bodies, low-disturbance fish-like propulsion, and the potential for distributed sensing and autonomy. Unlike conventional biomimetic robotic fish developed mainly for shallow or moderate-depth environments, deep-sea flexible robotic fish must simultaneously address high hydrostatic pressure, low temperature, darkness, limited communication, constrained power supply, and complex near-bottom terrain. This review synthesizes research at the intersection of deep-sea soft robotics, bio-inspired robotic fish, smart-material actuation, pressure-adaptive packaging, multimodal sensing, and autonomous control. The literature is organized around a system-level design chain: biological mechanisms that inspire pressure adaptation and perception, body architectures that distribute pressure and protect electronics, soft actuators that generate fish-like propulsion, and control strategies that enable near-bottom and long-duration tasks. The review highlights that the central challenge is not any single actuator or material, but the co-design of pressure-adaptive bodies, hybrid soft actuation, reliable interfaces, multimodal perception, energy management, and autonomy. To strengthen engineering translation, this revised review further adds design-principle abstraction, actuator-selection guidance, prototype-level comparison, failure-mode analysis, and a computational design workflow. Future research should prioritize long-term reliability tests, standardized deep-sea evaluation protocols, physics-informed modeling, and integrated prototype demonstrations under realistic mission conditions. Full article

Background/Objectives: Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is a clinically important state associated with an increased risk of future cognitive decline and dementia. Behaviour change interventions may support risk reduction and self-management in cognitively vulnerable adults. However, the extent to which the transtheoretical model (TTM) has been used in this population has not been clearly mapped. This scoping review examined TTM-based, TTM-informed, and TTM-congruent behaviour change interventions for adults with MCI, subjective cognitive concerns, or elevated dementia risk. Methods: This scoping review followed Joanna Briggs Institute guidance and was reported in accordance with PRISMA-ScR. The protocol was prospectively registered on the Open Science Framework. PubMed, PsycINFO, ScienceDirect, Scopus, Web of Science, CENTRAL, ProQuest Dissertations, and medRxiv were searched from inception to 30 September 2025. Eligible studies included randomised, nonrandomised, quasi-experimental, and qualitative designs. Data were charted using a piloted extraction form and were synthesised narratively. Results: Eight unique studies, represented across nine publications, were included. Only one trial explicitly operationalised the TTM in a clinically defined MCI cohort; most studies were more appropriately classified as TTM-informed or TTM-congruent. Recurrent intervention components included readiness alignment, goal setting, self-monitoring, personalised feedback, prompts and cues, problem solving, reinforcement, and relational support. Behavioural outcomes were more consistently favourable than cognitive outcomes, particularly for adherence, self-management, diet, and sustained physical activity engagement. Cognitive findings were heterogeneous: some smaller studies reported short-term improvements, whereas the largest rigorous trial found no significant cognitive benefit. Conclusions: Current evidence does not support strong claims regarding TTM-specific cognitive efficacy in MCI. Instead, it suggests that TTM-informed and TTM-congruent interventions may be useful for strengthening behavioural regulation, risk reduction, and maintenance of health-related routines in cognitively vulnerable adults. More rigorous studies are needed to test the TTM constructs prospectively and to determine whether proximal behavioural change translates into durable cognitive or functional benefit. Full article

Steel plate defect detection is confronted with problems such as weak features of small defects, disconnection between physical priors and detection tasks, and semantic inconsistency of multi-scale fusion, which can easily lead to the misdetection of small defects. To solve these problems, this paper proposes a detection method named PG-SalDETR. Firstly, this paper proposes a physics-guided saliency perception mechanism (PGSPM), which transforms physical priors into learnable guidance signals and directly embeds them into the detection network for joint optimization. Secondly, this paper proposes the token sequence saliency perception network (TSSP-Net), which is designed to help improve the perception and representation of small defect features through an asymmetric dual-branch architecture, adaptive fusion, and residual fusion. Thirdly, a two-stage query refinement mechanism (TSQRM) is proposed. Through physically guided offset correction and adaptive multi-scale feature aggregation, it optimizes the query while preserving fine-grained defect details. Finally, the dynamic cross-scale fusion module (LCASF) is proposed. Through the dynamic cross-scale fusion strategy, the semantic inconsistency problem of small defect features in multi-scale fusion is alleviated. Experimental results demonstrate improvements. Compared to Salience DETR, PG-SalDETR achieves an AP increase of 3.8% and 2.6%, and an AP_S increase of 2.8% and 3.9% on the NEU-DET and GC10-DET datasets, respectively. These results indicate the effectiveness of the proposed method for small defect detection on steel plate surfaces. Full article

To support offline process-parameter screening for Czochralski (CZ) silicon single crystal growth, this paper proposes a surrogate-assisted optimization framework based on an improved Langevin evolutionary algorithm. First, a multi-variable constrained optimization model is established, with the LSA-Transformer-predicted solid–liquid interface deformation used as the objective evaluation and with process-smoothness and physical-feasibility constraints considered. Six key process parameters–heater power, pulling rate, argon flow rate, crystal rotation speed, crucible rotation speed, and magnetic field strength–are selected as decision variables. Second, building on the classical Langevin algorithm, an adaptive inertia weight mechanism, a diversity promoter (DP) operator, and a local escaping operator (LEO) are introduced to improve global exploration and local optima escape in complex search spaces. Verification on 23 classical benchmark functions indicates that the ILEE algorithm shows competitive overall performance and achieves better or comparable results on many functions when compared with particle swarm optimization (PSO), grey wolf optimization (GWO), the original Langevin evolutionary algorithm (LEE), and other baseline algorithms. The proposed framework is then used for offline candidate recipe generation during the crystal equal-diameter growth stage (200 mm, 400 mm, 600 mm, 800 mm, and 1000 mm). The optimized candidate parameter combinations yield lower surrogate-predicted interface deformation under the given LSA-Transformer model and physical constraints. Because these values are not independent CFD or experimental measurements, the results should be interpreted as process-parameter guidance for future physical validation. This work provides a feasible surrogate-assisted offline screening framework for CZ silicon single crystal growth. Full article

This study focuses on the 130QJ25–33 multi-stage submersible well pump to resolve low efficiency and flow instability under low-flow conditions by redesigning tandem space guide vanes. CFD simulations and physical experiments are carried out for validation. A grid independence analysis is completed to determine the optimal grid scheme with 9.413 million cells. The relative error of hydraulic performance between numerical simulation and the experiment is less than 10%, which verifies the accuracy of the numerical model. An orthogonal experiment is adopted to optimize three key geometric parameters: wrap angle, installation angle and axial position. Under the operating range of 0.6 Qd–1.1 Qd, the optimized tandem guide vane structure raises the pump head by 12.4% and improves efficiency by up to 8.7%. These data are derived from the comparative external characteristic tests of the original model and the optimized model. The optimized structure effectively suppresses flow separation and vortices, homogenizes flow and pressure distribution, reduces hydraulic loss, balances blade loading, and improves operational stability. The results provide theoretical and engineering guidance for high-efficiency guide vane design of well submersible pumps. The structure can effectively reduce the hydraulic loss in the pump, improve the flow efficiency, and significantly improve the hydraulic matching performance of the guide vane. Full article

Databases serve as critical repositories of digital evidence in criminal investigations, and the recoverability of deleted data is a key determinant of forensic success. Microsoft SQL Server, one of the most widely deployed relational database management systems, has been the subject of multiple forensic studies examining how deleted records persist in physical database files across different acquisition methods. A previous study established a reference baseline using SQL Server 2008 and 2017, demonstrating that the Database Shrink operation causes version-specific and method-specific behavior: under logical collection with Shrink applied in SQL Server 2017, unallocated deleted data becomes fully initialized, rendering recovery impossible—a pattern not observed in SQL Server 2008 or under physical collection in either version. With the release of SQL Server 2025, the most significant architectural update to the platform in a decade, it remained unknown whether these forensic behaviors persist in the latest version. This study replicates the experimental design of in a controlled SQL Server 2025 environment, applying the same deletion scenario (DELETE command without conditions), the same two acquisition methods (logical and physical collection), and the same Shrink condition. The results demonstrate that SQL Server 2025 does not reproduce the version-specific initialization behavior observed in SQL Server 2017: across all four experimental conditions, deleted data residue in unallocated page space remains recoverable, indicating a fundamental change in the interaction between the Shrink operation and the logical collection mechanism. This recoverability is a double-edged property: while it benefits forensic investigators by preserving deleted evidence, it simultaneously represents a data-sanitization risk from a security and privacy standpoint, as deleted records are not reliably erased. These findings provide updated forensic guidance for digital investigators operating in contemporary SQL Server environments. Specifically, the results inform acquisition-method selection in real-world investigations where a suspect may have deleted records and where only a logical backup (.bak) is available to investigators. Full article

Under the growing threat of urban heat stress, street canyons play a critical role in shaping the pedestrian thermal environment. While street greenery is an effective mitigation strategy, its performance varies substantially with physical characteristics—such as aspect ratio, street width, and sidewalk width—highlighting the need for spatially adaptive design. This study evaluates the effects of sidewalk width, street orientation, and planting structure on thermal conditions in a humid subtropical climate in Daegu Metropolitan City, Republic of Korea. The analysis focuses on open low-aspect-ratio street canyons (H/W = 0.86 for E–W and 0.43 for N–S orientations). Using a validated ENVI-met (Version 5.6.1) model based on field measurements from Daegu, Republic of Korea, 56 street-greening scenarios were simulated by systematically varying sidewalk width, street orientation, planting rows, spacing, and planting structure. Results show that multi-row planting served as the primary structural framework governing thermal performance. Optimal configurations varied with sidewalk width, with two-row planting for 6 m sidewalks and three-row planting for 10 m sidewalks providing the most effective cooling. The greatest cooling (−2.02 °C) was achieved when optimized multi-row configurations were combined with multi-layer planting. Once optimal multi-row configurations were established, the presence of understory vegetation had a greater influence on thermal improvement than its specific composition, allowing flexibility in understory design. Clear spatial asymmetries were identified, with the highest thermal stress occurring on the north-side sidewalk in E–W streets and the west-side sidewalk in N–S streets. Targeted planting in these locations produced greater cooling benefits than uniform strategies. These findings provide a spatially grounded framework for climate-responsive street greenery and offer practical design guidance, highlighting the need for context-specific, optimized multi-row planting strategies adapted to local urban and climatic conditions. Full article

Scanning acoustic microscopy is a useful non-destructive imaging technique for semiconductor inspection, providing acoustic contrast without physical sectioning. However, the selection of an ultrasound transducer for high-quality imaging is not determined by the operating center frequency alone. The focusing condition, represented by the F-number, also plays a critical role in determining the lateral resolution. In this study, the combined effects of the center frequency and F-number on lateral resolution were investigated using wafer-based test samples. Focused ultrasound transducers with different center frequencies were used to image a striped resolution target for quantitative lateral resolution analysis. In addition, a custom-fabricated silicon wafer containing void-mimicking patterns was also imaged for qualitative evaluation. The results show that a higher frequency does not necessarily guarantee better lateral resolution. In fact, a lower-frequency transducer with tighter focusing showed greater image quality compared to a higher-frequency transducer with a larger F-number. These findings indicate that both frequency and F-number should be jointly considered when selecting ultrasound transducers for semiconductor inspection. This wafer-based evaluation provides practical guidance for optimizing imaging conditions in scanning acoustic microscopy, according to target feature size and inspection requirements. Full article