Search Results (489)

Existing readiness indices for Connected and Automated Vehicles (CAVs) produce a single composite score per city. This conflates use cases with very different territorial requirements and, being compensatory, allows strong performance on one criterion to mask a deficiency that is, in practice, a hard prerequisite. This paper proposes and demonstrates an assessment framework with four elements. First, the verdict is stratified by Operational Design Domain (ODD) profile, so that one territory yields one verdict per use case. Second, each profile is assessed only on its eligible service area, the roads on which the corresponding service could actually operate. Third, a non-compensatory veto layer is overlaid on a compensatory segment-level score, which separates the readiness score from the fit share, the proportion of network length that satisfies every critical threshold. Fourth, the diagnosis is extended to specific corridors through a readiness-aware routing formulation. The framework is demonstrated on the Versailles, Satory, and Velizy perimeter of about 92 square kilometes, using a real OpenStreetMap network of 4834 nodes and 733 kilometres, combined with an explicitly illustrative synthetic indicator calibration. Restricting each profile to its service area changes one verdict outright. The campus shuttle and urban robotaxi profiles obtain near-identical scores, both close to 0.51, but fit shares differing seven-fold, a distinction that a single score cannot express. Readiness-aware routing reroutes up to 42 percent of origin and destination pairs onto better-equipped itineraries for about 1 percent additional travel length. Monte Carlo analysis and cross-method tests using TOPSIS and PROMETHEE-II leave all verdicts unchanged. We position the work as a methodological demonstration rather than a validated deployment tool: the indicator values are synthetic, and empirical calibration, expert weight elicitation, and field validation remain prerequisites for operational use. Full article

Lithium–sulfur (Li–S) batteries are promising next-generation energy-storage systems but are severely hindered by polysulfide shuttling, sluggish sulfur redox kinetics, and unstable Li₂S nucleation/growth behavior. Herein, a multifunctional MXene/carbon nanotube/poly(ethylene oxide) (MX/CNT/PEO)-modified separator is developed to regulate polysulfide behavior and improve interfacial electrochemical stability. In this composite architecture, MXene provides polar sites for lithium polysulfide adsorption, while carbon nanotubes construct interconnected conductive networks and suppress MXene restacking. The incorporation of poly(ethylene oxide) improves interfacial continuity and introduces additional oxygen-containing functionalities within the composite framework. Benefiting from the integrated effects of polar adsorption, conductive pathways, and structural integration, the MX/CNT/PEO-modified separator effectively suppresses polysulfide diffusion, reduces charge-transfer resistance, and promotes more favorable Li₂S nucleation/growth behavior. Electrochemical analysis shows that the charge-transfer resistance decreases from 175.9 Ω for pristine PP to 15.7 Ω for the MX/CNT/PEO@PP separator, corresponding to a 91.1% reduction. Potentiostatic Li₂S deposition analysis further supports favorable Li₂S nucleation/growth behavior on the MX/CNT/PEO-modified interface, after background subtraction. As a result, the Li–S cell with the MX/CNT/PEO@PP separator delivers a high initial discharge capacity of 1613 mAh g⁻¹ at 0.1 C and maintains average capacities of 1331.1 and 803.1 mAh g⁻¹ at 0.1 and 2 C during rate testing, respectively. During long-term cycling at 2 C, the cell retains 319.3 mAh g⁻¹ after 1000 cycles, with an average capacity decay rate of 0.064% per cycle. This work provides a rational composite-interlayer design strategy for multifunctional separator materials in high-performance Li–S batteries. Full article

This study analyzed the relationships among objectively monitored physical activity, motor competence, and physical fitness in primary-school children. It examined whether physical activity predicts motor competence and cardiorespiratory fitness. A total of 164 children participated (86 boys; aged 6.42–10.36 years). Physical activity was assessed with waist-worn ActiGraph wGT3X-BT accelerometers on five consecutive school days. It was quantified as the daily time in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity accumulated within a common school-hours window (09:00–17:00; school-hours MVPA). Motor competence was assessed with the Motor Competence Assessment (MCA). Cardiorespiratory fitness was assessed with the 20 m shuttle-run (Luc Léger) test of the PréFITescola^® platform, and body mass index (BMI) was computed. Pearson correlations were computed, and two multiple linear regression models with heteroscedasticity-robust standard errors were estimated. Physical activity was the focal predictor; sex, age, BMI, and recorded time within the window were covariates. School-hours MVPA (M = 55.8 min/day) was positively associated with motor competence (r = 0.16; p = 0.041). In the fully adjusted model, the estimate remained positive but was attenuated (β = 0.15; p = 0.077). MVPA did not predict cardiorespiratory fitness (β = 0.03; p = 0.765). BMI was the strongest predictor of motor competence (β = −0.31; p < 0.001). Measured with independent instruments, motor competence and cardiorespiratory fitness were only weakly associated (r = 0.19; p = 0.019). Weight status, rather than the volume of school-hours activity, emerges as the strongest correlate of motor competence at these ages. Full article

Background: Recovery between repeated high-intensity efforts is essential to limit fatigue and performance decline in soccer. This study examined the effects of cold water immersion (CWI), foam rolling (FR), and passive recovery during a 15 min interval between two 5 m shuttle run tests (5mSRTs) on physical performance, perceptual responses, and biochemical markers of muscle damage and inflammation. Methods: Fifteen soccer players (age: 22.6 ± 2.03 years) completed passive recovery, FR, and lower-body CWI at 15 °C in a randomized crossover design. Creatine kinase (CK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), C-reactive protein (CRP), aspartate transaminase (AST), delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS), and belief questionnaire scores were assessed before the first 5mSRT and immediately after, and then 24 h, 48 h, and 72 h after the second 5mSRT. Results: Between the first and the second 5mSRT, TD remained unchanged following CWI (p = 0.21), whereas significant decreases were observed following passive recovery (p = 0.025) and FR (p = 0.028). Also, BD decreased after passive recovery (p = 0.03). At 48 h, CWI elicited lower CK (p = 0.01) and LDH (p = 0.003) than passive recovery, whereas FR resulted in lower AST concentrations (p = 0.01). Participants reported higher belief scores following CWI and FR than passive recovery throughout the recovery period (p < 0.05). No between-condition differences were observed for FI, PD, RPE, DOMS, or CRP (all p > 0.05). Conclusions: CWI may help preserve repeated-running performance and attenuate selected markers of muscle damage following repeated high-intensity intermittent exercise in soccer players, whereas FR demonstrated only limited physiological effects. Full article

Background: Rugby sevens demands distinct physical profiles across positions. This study investigated anthropometric and physical fitness characteristics of Chinese national team male rugby sevens players. Methods: Twenty-one players (forwards: n = 10, backs: n = 11) completed anthropometric measurements, linear sprints (10 m, 40 m, 50 m, and 60 m), agility tests (T-test, Illinois, 20 shuttle run), Wingate anaerobic test, Yo-Yo intermittent recovery test level 2, goalpost shuttle run, vital capacity, and VO₂peak. Players were split into fast/slow groups by median 40 m time. Results: Forwards were significantly taller (adjusted p = 0.0022, d = 2.78), heavier (adjusted p = 0.0073, d = 1.76), and had greater muscle mass (adjusted p = 0.027, d = 1.47) with large effect sizes compared with backs. Backs showed significantly better agility with large effect sizes (Illinois: adjusted p = 0.018, d = 2.00). When players were classified into fast and slow sprint groups by median 40 m time, the fast group exhibited significantly better 10 m (adjusted p = 0.04, d = −2.00), 50 m (adjusted p = 0.017, d = −1.98), and 60 m (adjusted p = 0.017, d = −1.71) performance. Conclusion: Playing positions in Chinese rugby sevens present significantly different body size and agility profiles. When grouped by sprint speed, faster players possess superior multi-distance sprinting capacities. Both positional and sprint capabilities should guide training and selection. Full article

Objectives: This study aimed to examine the effects of three different warm-up protocols on performance, physiological, and perceptual responses in high-level water polo players. Methods: Ten international-level athletes (Tier 4; mean ± SD: age 22.4 ± 3.53 years; height 1.78 ± 0.06 m; body mass 75.83 ± 6.44 kg) completed three experimental conditions in a randomized, counterbalanced design: dryland, in-water, and combined warm-up. Following each warm-up condition, participants performed the Water Polo Intermittent Shuttle Test (WIST), while performance (distance covered and average speed), blood lactate concentration ([La⁻]), heart rate (HR), tympanic temperature, and rating of perceived exertion (RPE) were assessed. Statistical significance was set at p ≤ 0.05. Results: Players covered greater distances following the in-water (331.5 ± 151.24 m) and combined (358.5 ± 134.06 m) warm-ups compared to dryland (226.5 ± 129.51 m; p < 0.01; ES = 2.00 and 1.53, respectively), with no significant differences between in-water and combined conditions (p = 0.381; ES = 0.29). Physiological responses following the WIST were largely similar between conditions, although [La⁻] was higher in the dryland condition (12.46 ± 4.46 mmol·L⁻¹) compared to the combined condition at 10 min post-exercise (8.66 ± 2.47 mmol·L⁻¹; p = 0.03; ES = 0.80). No differences were found for HR, tympanic temperature, or RPE. Conclusions: These findings suggest that warm-up protocols including an in-water component are more effective than dryland-only routines for optimizing intermittent performance in water polo players. However, combining dryland and in-water exercises does not appear to provide additional benefits compared to in-water warm-up alone. Full article

This study aimed to identify the variables that best explain the performance of young male kayakers over 200 and 500 m across two categories, U14 and U16, and to determine whether stroke rate (SR), as described for senior athletes, is also a determining factor in performance in these categories. Twenty-four young Iberian kayakers (Portuguese and Spanish), 13.63 ± 1.50 years, distributed in two competitive categories, U14 (12.67 ± 0.47 years) and U16 (15.57 ± 0.73 years), were evaluated in terms of training, maturity, anthropometry, limb volumes, body composition, equipment, physical fitness, balance, and performance. Water/shoulder distance correlated significantly at both race distances in both age categories. The observed differences between U14 and U16 may reflect the influence of kayaking experience and maturity-related factors, which are likely to affect several performance-related variables. These results suggest the need to produce a specific evaluation battery for U14 that includes the water/shoulder distance, the 20 m shuttle run test, and the BESS test. Another one for U16 consists of the water/shoulder distance test, the pull-up test, and the sit-up test. This study also highlights the importance of designing training programs that enable young kayakers to perform the paddle technique with maximum efficiency at a high SR. Full article

Background/Objectives: Self-reported physical activity is widely used in non-communicable disease (NCD) surveillance, yet its individual-level agreement with field-based markers of cardiorespiratory fitness remains poorly characterised in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) populations. This study examined the association, agreement, and directional discordance between self-reported physical activity (IPAQ Short Form, IPAQ-SF) and field-assessed functional capacity (Incremental Shuttle Walk Test, ISWT) among university students in Kuwait. Methods: In 389 students (76.3% female; mean age 20.2 ± 2.3 years) in Kuwait, IPAQ-SF activity was classified as low, moderate, or high and ISWT distance into sample-derived tertiles. Spearman correlations, Kruskal–Wallis tests with Dunn pairwise comparisons, cross-tabulation, and unweighted, linear-weighted, and quadratic-weighted Cohen’s kappa were used. Results: IPAQ activity showed a weak but significant correlation with ISWT distance (ρ = 0.209, p < 0.001). ISWT performance did not differ between the low- and moderate-IPAQ categories (Bonferroni-adjusted Dunn p = 0.162). Agreement was slight across all kappa estimates (unweighted κ = 0.083; linear-weighted κ = 0.137; quadratic-weighted κ = 0.192), with matching category assignment in only 38.8% of participants; lower-than-tertile IPAQ classification occurred in 42.9% and higher-than-tertile in 18.3%. Directional discordance differed significantly by sex (p < 0.001). A rank-based partial correlation adjusting for BMI, age, and sex was attenuated but remained significant (r = 0.144, p = 0.004). Conclusions: IPAQ-SF categories showed poor individual-level agreement with sample-derived ISWT functional-capacity tertiles among university students in Kuwait. Self-reported physical activity and field-based functional capacity should therefore be interpreted as complementary rather than interchangeable measures. Larger multi-university studies across the GCC are needed to confirm these findings. Full article

Background/Objectives: Postural stability is considered a key component of motor development during early childhood; however, its specific association with different components of physical fitness in preschool children remains insufficiently explored. This study aimed to evaluate the association between postural stability and physical fitness components in preschool children. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in 134 preschool children. Physical fitness was assessed through lower-limb muscular strength (standing long jump), speed/agility (4 × 10 m shuttle run), cardiorespiratory fitness (20 m shuttle run), and flexibility (sit-and-reach test). Object-control skills and postural stability were evaluated using selected tasks from the Movement Assessment Battery for Children-2. Composite indices were created for object-control skills and postural stability. Multiple linear regression analyses were performed adjusting for age, sex, body mass index (BMI), and object-control skills. Additional analyses included ANCOVA by postural stability tertiles and sensitivity analyses using HC3 robust standard errors, exclusion of influential observations, and bootstrap resampling. Results: Greater postural stability was independently associated with better lower-limb muscular strength (B = 9.49; 95% CI: 4.39–14.60; p ≤ 0.001) and cardiorespiratory fitness (B = 0.27; 95% CI: 0.06–0.49; p = 0.014). An association with speed/agility was observed in the primary model but lost statistical significance in sensitivity analyses. No significant association was found with flexibility. ANCOVA analyses confirmed significant differences across postural stability tertiles for lower-limb muscular strength (p = 0.033) and cardiorespiratory fitness (p = 0.011). Sensitivity analyses supported the robustness of the associations for lower-limb muscular strength and cardiorespiratory fitness. Conclusions: Greater postural stability was consistently associated with better lower-limb muscular strength and cardiorespiratory fitness in preschool children. These findings suggest that postural stability is associated with selected components of physical fitness during early childhood. Longitudinal and intervention studies are needed to clarify the direction and potential implications of these associations. Full article

Objectives: Effective operational functioning within the tactical domain requires a high integration of physical and psychological capacities under stressful conditions. This study investigated the impact of physical exertion at varying intensities (anaerobic and aerobic running) on subsequent change-of-direction speed (CODS) performance among police students, while evaluating the role of mental toughness (MT) and biological sex. Methods: Thirty police students (36.7% female) completed running protocols at different intensities (300-yard shuttle run and 2.4 km Cooper test), immediately followed by the Illinois Agility Test (IAT) to assess CODS performance. Mental toughness was evaluated using the Mental Toughness Index (MTI). Repeated-measures ANOVA and ANCOVA were used to analyze the main and interaction effects. Results: Initial repeated-measures ANOVA revealed that increasing running intensities significantly degraded CODS performance, demonstrating large main effects for both the anaerobic (F = 56.70, p < 0.001, η²_p = 0.661) and aerobic (F = 47.50, p < 0.001, η²_p = 0.621) protocols. After introducing mean-centered MT as a covariate, the main effect of Running Speed remained highly significant in both the anaerobic (F = 57.52, p < 0.001, η²_p = 0.673) and aerobic (F = 46.01, p < 0.001, η²_p = 0.622) models, with no significant univariate interaction effects involving MT or sex on the rate of decline. Mixed ANCOVA showed a significant main effect of sex on absolute IAT times under both anaerobic and aerobic conditions, with males consistently outperforming females. No significant differences in baseline MT scores were observed between sexes (p = 0.507). Conclusions: The findings demonstrate that physical fatigue robustly impairs CODS performance at a parallel rate for both male and female police students. Mental toughness does not neutralize the physiological rate of performance decline under acute fatigue. Practical training programs should integrate physical and psychological conditioning scenarios, while workload management protocols can be uniformly applied across biological sexes. Full article

This paper addresses the challenge of integrated optimization for storage space allocation and crane scheduling in Automated Storage and Retrieval Systems (AS/RSs) under the complex constraints of dual I/O ports and Shared Storage strategies. The scheduling of multi-shuttle cranes in such environments constitutes a highly coupled NP-hard combinatorial optimization problem, where task assignment, sequencing, and dynamic storage location allocation must be solved simultaneously. To tackle this, this paper proposes an Elite-Driven Synchronized-Repair Memetic Algorithm (ED-SRMA) based on a sensor-informed total-travel-time objective formulated from horizontal and vertical crane displacements that can be measured by the crane drive sensors. The method combines a dual-layer representation, cross-layer synchronization, a problem-specific feasibility-repair operator, elite preservation, and budgeted local refinement. Numerical experiments were conducted on seven problem scales using 30 paired independent runs and a fixed evaluation budget. Compared with the corresponding dual-I/O operating mode without immediate location reuse, the shared-storage RS mode reduced the mean total travel time by 4.57–14.89%. ED-SRMA reduced the mean objective value by 5.48–39.59% relative to Base-GA and by 3.99–28.82% relative to PSO. For the representative $120\times 5$ instance, the fitness-evaluation-based convergence analysis further shows an earlier objective-value reduction and continued improvement under the common evaluation budget. These results demonstrate the effectiveness, statistical significance, and consistency under the tested conditions of ED-SRMA for the investigated dual-I/O shared-storage scheduling problem. Full article

Background: Physical Fitness (PF) is an important health marker that should be regularly monitored with simple, time-efficient test batteries such as Diagnoform^® Kid. However, its validity remains insufficiently evaluated. Therefore, this cross-sectional study examined its concurrent and construct validity against a battery of established reference tests. Methods: 184 children were grouped by age (6–7, 8–9 and 10–11 years). The Diagnoform^® and reference batteries assessed identical PF components using the following tests: 6-min shuttle run-walk vs. reduced Cooper for cardiorespiratory fitness, hopscotch vs. quadrant jump for agility, standing broad jump with vs. without execution instructions for power, 5-s sprint vs. 20-m sprint for speed, and simplified fingertip-to-floor vs. sit-and-reach for flexibility. Concurrent validity was examined using bivariate correlations, and construct validity through responsiveness to age and sex. Results: Corresponding tests were significantly correlated for all PF components (p < 0.001), except for agility at 10–11 years (p = 0.094). Agility showed moderate correlations in the younger groups (r = −0.45 to −0.67). Correlations were strong for cardiorespiratory fitness and flexibility (r ≥ 0.70). For power and speed, correlations ranged from moderate (power: r ≥ 0.61 at 6–7 and 8–9 years; speed: r = 0.58 at 6–7 years) to strong (power: r ≥ 0.83 at 10–11 years; speed: r ≥ 0.70 at 8–9 and 10–11 years). Age and sex influenced performances in both batteries, except for agility (no sex effect observed) and flexibility (sex effect observed in both batteries, whereas an age effect was found only for boys on the reference test). Conclusions: Despite slightly lower responsiveness of the simplified fingertip-to-floor test to age, findings support the concurrent and construct validity of the Diagnoform^® Kid tests. Full article

Background/Objectives. Increasing evidence suggests that nutrition and sport participation may positively influence cognitive functioning, readiness for learning, and academic achievement during adolescence. However, limited research has investigated the combined effects of structured breakfast programs and cognitively oriented sport-based interventions implemented in real school settings. The present study aimed to examine the associations between participation in an integrated school-based program consisting of structured breakfast and morning sport sessions and executive functions, physiological well-being, school engagement, and academic achievement in adolescent students. Methods. A 16-week quasi-experimental pre–post study with class-based allocation was conducted in a secondary school in Southern Italy. A total of 110 students aged 14–16 years participated in the study. The experimental group, comprising 55 students, participated in a structured breakfast program combined with cognitively oriented morning sport-based sessions conducted three times per week for 40 min before regular lessons, whereas the control group continued ordinary school activities. Cognitive assessment included the Stroop Color and Word Test and the Digit Span Test in both forward and backward conditions. Physiological measures included body mass index, resting heart rate, and the 20 m shuttle run test. Nutritional habits, school engagement, and academic achievement were also evaluated through questionnaires and school records. Results. Compared with the control group, students participating in the integrated program showed more favorable changes in selective attention, inhibitory control, working memory performance, cardiorespiratory fitness, breakfast habits, and school engagement over the study period. Moderate positive changes in academic achievement were also observed, whereas no substantial anthropometric changes emerged during the study period. Conclusions. The findings suggest that participation in an integrated school-based program combining structured nutrition and cognitively oriented sport activities was associated with improvements in cognitive functioning, healthy habits, and academic outcomes during adolescence. These findings highlight the potential value of multidimensional educational approaches integrating health promotion and learning processes within school environments. Full article

The aim of this study was to examine the relative contribution of physical performance, executive functions, and competitive anxiety to competitive success in junior tennis players. A total of 39 national-level junior athletes (20 males, 19 females) participated in the study. Physical performance was assessed using a standardized test battery including a 20 m sprint, standing long jump, agility test, and shuttle run. Executive functions were measured using the Adult Executive Functioning Inventory (ADEXI), while competitive anxiety was assessed with the Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2 (CSAI-2). Competitive success was operationalized using ranking points. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis was conducted using log-transformed ranking points as the dependent variable. Age and sex explained 71.3% of the variance in LogRanking (R² = 0.713, p < 0.001). The addition of physical performance variables provided a modest, non-significant increase in explained variance (ΔR² = 0.068, p = 0.064). Executive functions (ΔR² = 0.006, p = 0.645) and competitive anxiety (ΔR² = 0.008, p = 0.801) did not provide additional explanatory power. In the final model, age and standing long jump were significant predictors of LogRanking. These findings suggest that ranking-based competitive success in junior tennis is strongly influenced by age-related and competition-exposure factors. Physical performance showed a limited additional contribution, while executive functions and competitive anxiety did not explain further variance in this sample. Full article

Psilocybin, a psychedelic drug with reported anxiolytic and antidepressant potential, is rapidly metabolized to its active metabolite psilocin. However, a lack of adequate toxicity studies and tissue distribution studies currently restricts its development and application. This study combined behavioral assays in zebrafish with desorption electrospray ionization mass spectrometry imaging (DESI-MSI) to systematically evaluate the acute neurotoxicity of psilocybin and characterize the in vivo spatial distribution of its active metabolite, psilocin. The novel tank test was used to evaluate zebrafish following a 4 h exposure to psilocybin at three different doses (20, 40, and 80 μM; n = 6 per group). Statistical analysis of the data was performed using ANOVA. Behavioral analyses revealed that exposure to psilocybin induced pronounced neurobehavioral alterations, including hyperactivity and disrupted swimming patterns, as evidenced by significant increases in the number of zone transitions and shuttle frequency. We established a DESI-MSI-based method for quantitative mapping and visualization of psilocin in zebrafish tissues. Methodological validation indicated that a linear relationship between ion intensity, spotted amount (R² = 0.9947), and reproducibility (RSD < 15%) is suitable for quantitative analysis of psilocin in zebrafish tissues. Spatial distribution maps showed that following continuous exposure for 4 h, psilocin was widely distributed across multiple tissues, such as the eye, brain, heart, liver, and kidney, with marked accumulation in the brain and the periportal regions of the liver. Relative psilocin signal intensity revealed a dose-dependent increase in tissue drug levels. The dose-dependent increase in both behavioral hyperactivity and brain psilocin levels points to a consistent relationship, in line with a central site of action. Collectively, these findings demonstrate that DESI-MSI provides a visual and efficient strategy for studying drug distribution in biological tissues from exposed animals. The neurobehavioral toxicity phenotypes and distinct tissue distribution patterns of psilocin uncovered in this study offer critical insights into the biological effects and potential risks of this psychoactive substance. Full article