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Topic Review
Methods for Reducing Water Absorption of Composite Materials
Plant fiber reinforced polymer matrix composites have attracted much attention in many industries due to their abundant resources, low cost, biodegradability, and lightweight properties. Compared with synthetic fibers, various plant fibers are easy to obtain and have different characteristics, making them a substitute for synthetic fiber composite materials. In order to address the adverse effects of natural fiber moisture absorption on the mechanical properties and dimensional stability of composite materials, researchers have modified fibers through various chemical and physical methods. The various methods to reduce the water absorption of composite materials such as fiber surface chemical treatment, the use of compatibilizers, fiber mixing, nanofillers, and polymer coatings.
  • 2.7K
  • 27 Oct 2023
Topic Review
Carbon Nanomaterials
Being a member of nanofamily, carbon nanomaterials exhibit specific properties that mostly arise from their small size. They have proved as very promising for the application in the technical and biomedical fields. A wide spectrum of use implies the inevitable presence of carbon nanomaterials in the environment, thus potentially endangering the whole nature. Although scientists worldwide have conducted researches investigating the impact of these materials, it is evident that there are still significant gaps concerning the knowledge of their mechanisms, as well as prolonged and chronic exposure and effects. Thinking small can greatly help us improve our lives, but also obliges us to deeply and comprehensively investigate all the possible consequences that could arise from our pure-hearted scientific ambitions and work.
  • 2.7K
  • 07 Aug 2020
Topic Review
Depression of 1920–21
The Depression of 1920–21 was a sharp deflationary recession in the United States and other countries, beginning 14 months after the end of World War I. It lasted from January 1920 to July 1921. The extent of the deflation was not only large, but large relative to the accompanying decline in real product. There was a two-year post–World War I recession immediately following the end of the war, complicating the absorption of millions of veterans into the economy. The economy started to grow, but it had not yet completed all the adjustments in shifting from a wartime to a peacetime economy. Factors identified as contributing to the downturn include returning troops, which created a surge in the civilian labor force and problems in absorbing the veterans; a decline in labor union strife; changes in fiscal and monetary policy; and changes in price expectations. Following the end of the depression, the Roaring Twenties brought a period of economic prosperity.
  • 2.7K
  • 18 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Hotel Food and Beverage Department Engagement with Sustainability
In the hospitality sector, particularly in the food and beverage department, pollution and consumption of scarce resources remain issues. The hotel industry has increasingly recognized the importance of addressing sustainability issues, particularly in the food and beverage (F&B) department. However, while environmental problems remain pressing, sustainability is a complex concept that is often subject to varying interpretations and lacks a clear, consistent definition.
  • 2.7K
  • 29 Jun 2023
Topic Review
Probiotics in Aquaculture
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations and the World Health Organization (WHO) define probiotics as “Live microorganisms that, when administered in adequate amounts, confer a health benefit on the host”. Possible action modes of probiotics in aquaculture include the regulation of amino and fatty acid metabolisms, the excretion of digestive enzymes and vitamins or cofactors, the production of antagonistic compounds that inhibit bacteria, the enhancement of immune responses, the disruption of the quorum-sensing processes of pathogenic organisms, stress improvement, and heavy-metal detoxification.
  • 2.7K
  • 13 Dec 2023
Topic Review
Human Remains Detection Dogs
Human remains detection dogs (HRDDs) are powerful police assets to locate a corpse. However, methods used to select and train them are as diverse as the number of countries with such a canine brigade. First, a survey was sent to human remains searching brigades (N Countries = 10; N Brigades = 16; N Handlers = 50; N questions = 9), to collect their working habits. It confirmed the lack of optimized selection and training procedures. Second, a literature review was performed in order to outline the strengths and shortcomings of HRDDs training. A comparison between the scientific knowledge and common practices used by HRDDs brigade was then conducted focusing on HRDDs selection and training procedures. We highlighted that HRDD handlers explained to select their dogs by focusing on behavioral traits while neglecting anatomical features, which have shown their importance. Most HRDD handlers reported to use a reward-based training, which is in accordance with training literature for dogs. Olfactory training aids should be representative of the odor target to allow a dog to reach optimal performances. The survey highlighted the wide diversity of homemade olfactory training aids, and the need to optimize their composition. In the present document, key research topics to improve HRDD works are also provided.
  • 2.7K
  • 26 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Machine-Vision-Based Leather Surface Defect Inspection
Machine-vision-based surface defect inspection is one of the key technologies to realize intelligent manufacturing. Leather products are regarded as the most traded products all over the world. Automatic detection, location, and recognition of leather surface defects are very important for the intelligent manufacturing of leather products, and are challenging but noteworthy tasks. Machine-learning-based defect inspection methods include three main links in industrial applications: data annotation, model training, and model inference. Real-time performance in real industrial applications focuses more on this part of model inference.
  • 2.7K
  • 12 Aug 2022
Topic Review
Y RNA
Y RNA are a class of small non-coding RNA that are largely conserved. Although their discovery was almost 40 years ago, their function is still under investigation. This is evident in cancer biology, where their role was first studied just a dozen years ago. Since then, only a few contributions were published, mostly scattered across different tumor types and, in some cases, also suffering from methodological limitations. Nonetheless, these sparse data may be used to make some estimations and suggest routes to better understand the role of Y RNA in cancer formation and characterization.
  • 2.7K
  • 30 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Benign Migratory Glossitis
Geographic tongue, also known by several other terms, is a condition of the mucous membrane of the tongue, usually on the dorsal surface. It is a common condition, affecting approximately 2–3% of the general population. It is characterized by areas of smooth, red depapillation (loss of lingual papillae) which migrate over time. The name comes from the map-like appearance of the tongue, with the patches resembling the islands of an archipelago. The cause is unknown, but the condition is entirely benign (importantly, it does not represent oral cancer), and there is no curative treatment. Uncommonly, geographic tongue may cause a burning sensation on the tongue, for which various treatments have been described with little formal evidence of efficacy.
  • 2.7K
  • 27 Sep 2022
Topic Review
Earth Sheltering
Earth sheltering is the architectural practice of using earth against building walls for external thermal mass, to reduce heat loss, and to easily maintain a steady indoor air temperature. Earth sheltering has become relatively more popular in modern times, especially among environmentalists and advocates of passive solar and sustainable architecture. However, the practice has been around for nearly as long as humans have been constructing their own shelters.
  • 2.7K
  • 27 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Point of Sale
The point of sale (POS) or point of purchase (POP) is the time and place where a retail transaction is completed. At the point of sale, the merchant calculates the amount owed by the customer, indicates that amount, may prepare an invoice for the customer (which may be a cash register printout), and indicates the options for the customer to make payment. It is also the point at which a customer makes a payment to the merchant in exchange for goods or after provision of a service. After receiving payment, the merchant may issue a receipt for the transaction, which is usually printed but is increasingly being dispensed with or sent electronically. To calculate the amount owed by a customer, the merchant may use various devices such as weighing scales, barcode scanners, and cash registers. To make a payment, payment terminals, touch screens, and other hardware and software options are available. The point of sale is often referred to as the point of service because it is not just a point of sale but also a point of return or customer order. POS terminal software may also include features for additional functionality, such as inventory management, CRM, financials, or warehousing. Businesses are increasingly adopting POS systems, and one of the most obvious and compelling reasons is that a POS system does away with the need for price tags. Selling prices are linked to the product code of an item when adding stock, so the cashier merely needs to scan this code to process a sale. If there is a price change, this can also be easily done through the inventory window. Other advantages include the ability to implement various types of discounts, a loyalty scheme for customers, and more efficient stock control.
  • 2.7K
  • 08 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Antifungal Therapy
Antifungals (also referred to as antimycotics) are the type of antibiotics used to treat fungal infections. In contrast to bacteria, fungi are eukaryotic organisms; thus fungal cells are very similar to our own cells. Because of this there is a limited number of selective targets and the current arsenal of antifungal drugs is very limited, which contributes to high mortality rates. In addition, development of resistance against current antifungals poses additional challenges. Clearly, new antifungal agents are urgently needed. 
  • 2.7K
  • 22 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Cultural Heritage
For urban development worldwide, the revitalisation of cultural heritage and historical buildings is regarded as a strategy for creating jobs, increasing residents’ access to local culture, improving their quality of life, and developing the urban economy. The key factor in the revitalisation of cultural heritage and historical buildings is a strategy for developing the urban economy.
  • 2.7K
  • 25 May 2022
Topic Review
Iperius Backup
Iperius Backup is a backup software for Windows PCs and Servers, databases and virtual machines. It allows to make automatic backups of files and folders on many devices: external USB hard drives, RDX drives, NAS, LTO tape drives, networked computers, Cloud storage, Amazon S3, Google Drive and FTP servers. Iperius Backup includes drive imaging capabilities, backup of SQL Server, MySQL, PostgreSQL, Oracle databases, backup of Microsoft Exchange servers, backup and replication of VMware ESXi, vCenter, ESXi Free and Hyper-V virtual machines.
  • 2.7K
  • 30 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Z4 (Computer)
The Z4 was arguably the world's first commercial digital computer. It was designed, and manufactured by early computer scientist Konrad Zuse's company Zuse Apparatebau, for an order placed by Henschel & Son, in 1942; though only partially assembled in Berlin, then completed in Göttingen, and not delivered by the defeat of Nazi Germany, in 1945. The Z4 was Zuse's final target for the Z3 design. Like the earlier Z2, it comprised a combination of mechanical memory and electromechanical logic, so was not a true electronic computer.
  • 2.7K
  • 08 Nov 2022
Topic Review
The Firefighter Problem
The firefighter problem defines a discrete-time process where a fire starts at a designated subset of the vertices of a graph G. At each subsequent discrete time unit, the fire propagates from each burnt vertex to all of its neighbors unless they are defended by a firefighter that can move between any pair of vertices in a single time unit. Once a vertex is burnt or defended, it remains in that state, and the process terminates when the fire can no longer spread.
  • 2.7K
  • 21 Jul 2023
Topic Review
Application of Maturity-Models in Universities
A maturity model is a widely used tool in software engineering and has mostly been extended to domains such as education, health, energy, finance, government, and general use. It is valuable for evaluations and continuous improvement of business processes or certain aspects of organizations, as it represents a more organized and systematic way of doing business.  We present a Systematic Literature Review study of the elements and purposes of the maturity models applied to universities. Obtaining results that show the intention to evaluating the maturity of only some areas of the universities and not the whole, creating some gaps that do not allow to measure the desired level. It also shows how information technologies help its implementation in the field. 
  • 2.7K
  • 04 Jun 2021
Topic Review
Human-Centered Smart Homes Supporting Mental Health Aging-in-Place
Smart home technologies (SHTs) hold promises for supporting older adults by enabling early detection and intervention in mental health challenges such as depression, anxiety, and cognitive decline. However, adoption remains limited due to usability, accessibility, and privacy concerns. Our findings reveal that interface complexity, cognitive overload, high costs, and privacy concerns are significant barriers to adoption. Accessibility challenges, including physical and sensory impairments, further reduce engagement and inclusivity. Key facilitators for user acceptance include user-centric design, personalization, participatory co-development, and cultural adaptations. SHTs incorporating AI-driven features, such as behavioral monitoring, medication reminders, and social engagement tools, demonstrate significant potential for early mental health interventions. Based on these findings, we propose a holistic framework integrating technical innovation with human-centered design to address these challenges and optimize SHTs for mental health care. 
  • 2.7K
  • 26 Jan 2025
Topic Review
Antimicrobial-resistance genes in human gut
Antibiotic-resistance has long been associated with the use and abuse of antibiotics. However, increasing evidence is suggesting that antibiotic-resistance is in fact a phenomenon that has been occurring in natural environments for thousands and possibly millions of years. With the expansion of the microbiome field, it is now possible to characterize antibiotic-resistance genes altogether in different samples, including the human gut. This has also enabled the characterization of ancient human gut microbiomes, which also include antibiotic-resistance genes. Mummified gut remains represent a unique opportunity to characterize the microbiome and antibiotic-resistance genes prior the antibiotic-therapy era. Surprisingly, mummies from the Inca and Italian nobility cultures showed to possess antibiotic-resistance-like genes similar to modern-day antibiotic-resistance genes conferring resistance to beta-lactams, sulfa, quinolones and vancomycin, just to mention a few examples. This is intriguing as it further supports that antibiotic-resistance began in the environment and was transferred to the human gut by means that remain to be investigated and are a matter of ongoing speculation.
  • 2.7K
  • 29 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Social Physique Anxiety Scale
Social physique anxiety (SPA) is the anxiety experienced when a person believes they are being observed or judged on their appearance; it is considered to be a subtype of social anxiety.
  • 2.7K
  • 21 Oct 2021
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