3D Nanoconductive Network Based on the Microstructure of Latex Foam for Superior Performance Piezoresistive Sensors

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wang Zhang ◽  
Liwei Lin ◽  
Ligong Zhang ◽  
Yuping Wang ◽  
Yu Zhuang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Superior Performance ◽  
Piezoresistive Sensors

In situ TEM Studies of agglomeration of sub-nanometer Ru layers in Ru/C multilayers

1992 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 256-257
Author(s):  
Tai D. Nguyen ◽  
Ronald Gronsky ◽  
Jeffrey B. Kortright
Keyword(s):  
Layered Structure ◽  
Driving Force ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Superior Performance ◽  
In Situ Tem ◽  
Rayleigh Instability ◽  
Practical Applications ◽  
Transmission Electron ◽  
Diffraction Patterns

Nanometer period Ru/C multilayers are one of the prime candidates for normal incident reflecting mirrors at wavelengths < 10 nm. Superior performance, which requires uniform layers and smooth interfaces, and high stability of the layered structure under thermal loadings are some of the demands in practical applications. Previous studies however show that the Ru layers in the 2 nm period Ru/C multilayer agglomerate upon moderate annealing, and the layered structure is no longer retained. This agglomeration and crystallization of the Ru layers upon annealing to form almost spherical crystallites is a result of the reduction of surface or interfacial energy from die amorphous high energy non-equilibrium state of the as-prepared sample dirough diffusive arrangements of the atoms. Proposed models for mechanism of thin film agglomeration include one analogous to Rayleigh instability, and grain boundary grooving in polycrystalline films. These models however are not necessarily appropriate to explain for the agglomeration in the sub-nanometer amorphous Ru layers in Ru/C multilayers. The Ru-C phase diagram shows a wide miscible gap, which indicates the preference of phase separation between these two materials and provides an additional driving force for agglomeration. In this paper, we study the evolution of the microstructures and layered structure via in-situ Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), and attempt to determine the order of occurence of agglomeration and crystallization in the Ru layers by observing the diffraction patterns.

Ambulatory Activity Monitoring

2009 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 142-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johannes B.J. Bussmann ◽  
Ulrich W. Ebner-Priemer ◽  
Jochen Fahrenberg
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Activity Monitoring ◽  
Main Stream ◽  
Computer Algorithms ◽  
Ambulatory Activity ◽  
Physiological Variables ◽  
Piezoresistive Sensors ◽  
Self Reports ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Objectively Measured

Behavior is central to psychology in almost any definition. Although observable activity is a core aspect of behavior, assessment strategies have tended to focus on emotional, cognitive, or physiological responses. When physical activity is assessed, it is done so mostly with questionnaires. Converging evidence of only a moderate association between self-reports of physical activity and objectively measured physical activity does raise questions about the validity of these self-reports. Ambulatory activity monitoring, defined as the measurement strategy to assess physical activity, posture, and movement patterns continuously in everyday life, has made major advances over the last decade and has considerable potential for further application in the assessment of observable activity, a core aspect of behavior. With new piezoresistive sensors and advanced computer algorithms, the objective measurement of physical activity, posture, and movement is much more easily achieved and measurement precision has improved tremendously. With this overview, we introduce to the reader some recent developments in ambulatory activity monitoring. We will elucidate the discrepancies between objective and subjective reports of activity, outline recent methodological developments, and offer the reader a framework for developing insight into the state of the art in ambulatory activity-monitoring technology, discuss methodological aspects of time-based design and psychometric properties, and demonstrate recent applications. Although not yet main stream, ambulatory activity monitoring – especially in combination with the simultaneous assessment of emotions, mood, or physiological variables – provides a comprehensive methodology for psychology because of its suitability for explaining behavior in context.

We're So Bad It's Funny - Effects of Using Humour in the Marketing Communication of Low-Quality Service Providers

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 84-99
Author(s):  
Ilias Danatzis ◽  
Jana Möller ◽  
Christine Mathies
Keyword(s):  
Service Quality ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Purchase Intentions ◽  
Service Performance ◽  
Superior Performance ◽  
Service Research ◽  
Marketing Communication ◽  
Quality Service ◽  
Customer Expectations ◽  
Service Outcomes

Low-quality service providers who are unable or unwilling to compete through superior performance increasingly use humour in their marketing communication to generate positive service outcomes. Yet it remains unclear whether using humour to communicate poor service quality is indeed effective. Based on an online experiment in the context of budget hotels, this study finds that using humour to deliberately communicate poor service quality leads to higher purchase intentions and service quality evaluations by reducing both technical and functional service quality expectations. Theoretically, this study extends humour and service research by providing first empirical evidence for the viability of using humour as an effective tool for leveraging customer expectations of service quality rather than improving service performance. Managerially, these insights highlight how reducing customer expectations is an alternative strategy for attracting new customers and for achieving superior quality evaluations.

Context-Driven Proactive Decision Support for Hybrid Teams

AI Magazine ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (3) ◽  
pp. 41-57
Author(s):  
Manisha Mishra ◽  
Pujitha Mannaru ◽  
David Sidoti ◽  
Adam Bienkowski ◽  
Lingyi Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Decision Support ◽  
Situational Awareness ◽  
Feature Space ◽  
Human Interaction ◽  
Superior Performance ◽  
Uncertain Environments ◽  
Cognitive States ◽  
Contextual Elements ◽  
Human Operators ◽  
Smart Machine

A synergy between AI and the Internet of Things (IoT) will significantly improve sense-making, situational awareness, proactivity, and collaboration. However, the key challenge is to identify the underlying context within which humans interact with smart machines. Knowledge of the context facilitates proactive allocation among members of a human–smart machine (agent) collective that balances auto­nomy with human interaction, without displacing humans from their supervisory role of ensuring that the system goals are achievable. In this article, we address four research questions as a means of advancing toward proactive autonomy: how to represent the interdependencies among the key elements of a hybrid team; how to rapidly identify and characterize critical contextual elements that require adaptation over time; how to allocate system tasks among machines and agents for superior performance; and how to enhance the performance of machine counterparts to provide intelligent and proactive courses of action while considering the cognitive states of human operators. The answers to these four questions help us to illustrate the integration of AI and IoT applied to the maritime domain, where we define context as an evolving multidimensional feature space for heterogeneous search, routing, and resource allocation in uncertain environments via proactive decision support systems.

Identification of managerial competencies of the organizational leaders of the Passifloraceae production sector in the Huila Department

2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (67) ◽  
pp. 61-78
Author(s):  
Hernando Gil Tovar ◽  
Derly Cibelly Lara Figueroa
Keyword(s):  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Superior Performance ◽  
Organizational Leaders ◽  
Management Skills ◽  
Generational Change ◽  
Production Sector ◽  
Managerial Competencies ◽  
Conducting Research ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Small Producers

Managerial competencies, defined as the “underlying characteristics of an individual that have a causal relationship with effective or superior performance in the job” (Boyatzis, 1982, p. 12), are key to achievement of productive purposes in the Huila department, in Colombia. The present article, as an investigative result, seeks to identify those managerial competencies, both current and required, of the organizational leaders in the Passifloraceae productive sector in the Huila department, in Colombia. The epistemological paradigm used in this article is that of interpretivism. The reasoning method is deductive, and the methodological approach is mixed. The unit of analysis for this study consists of the directors of the associative organizations of Passifloraceae producers in the productive chain, where two types of players are identified: thirteen (13) leaders of organizations producing passion fruit, and five (5) representatives of institutions in the Huila department that influence the sector. The study concludes with the definition of the map of current managerial competences of organizations in the passionfruit productive sector, and is then contrasted with the map of competences required from these. It also highlights the importance of associativity for small producers, the need to continue conducting research in the sector, and the need to intervene through social outreach projects, so as to generate appropriation and training processes for a set of managerial competencies identified herein, which will strengthen management skills and competitiveness in this type of organization, and ensure, over time, generational change within the sector.

Mechanisms of Drug Solubilization by Polar Lipids in Biorelevant Media

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vladimir Katev ◽  
Zahari Vinarov ◽  
Slavka S. Tcholakova
Keyword(s):  
Chain Length ◽  
Acyl Chain ◽  
Polar Lipids ◽  
Superior Performance ◽  
Head Group ◽  
Formulation Development ◽  
Biorelevant Media ◽  
Drug Solubilization ◽  
Colloidal Aggregates ◽  
Class 1

Despite the widespread use of lipid excipients in both academic research and oral formulation development, rational selection guidelines are still missing. In the current study, we aimed to establish a link between the molecular structure of commonly used polar lipids and drug solubilization in biorelevant media. We studied the effect of 26 polar lipids of the fatty acid, phospholipid or monoglyceride type on the solubilization of fenofibrate in a two-stage <i>in vitro</i> GI tract model. The main trends were checked also with progesterone and danazol.<br>Based on their fenofibrate solubilization efficiency, the polar lipids can be grouped in 3 main classes. Class 1 substances (n = 5) provide biggest enhancement of drug solubilization (>10-fold) and are composed only by unsaturated compounds. Class 2 materials (n = 10) have an intermediate effect (3-10 fold increase) and are composed primarily (80 %) of saturated compounds. Class 3 materials (n = 11) have very low or no effect on drug solubilization and are entirely composed of saturated compounds.<br>The observed behaviour of the polar lipids was rationalized by using two classical physicochemical parameters: the acyl chain phase transition temperature (<i>T</i><sub>m</sub>) and the critical micellar concentration (CMC). Hence, the superior performance of class 1 polar lipids was explained by the double bonds in their acyl chains, which: (1) significantly decrease <i>T</i><sub>m</sub>, allowing these C18 lipids to form colloidal aggregates and (2) prevent tight packing of the molecules in the aggregates, resulting in bigger volume available for drug solubilization. Long-chain (C18) saturated polar lipids had no significant effect on drug solubilization because their <i>T</i><sub>m</sub> was much higher than the temperature of the experiment (<i>T</i> = 37 C) and, therefore, their association in colloidal aggregates was limited. On the other end of the spectrum, the short chain octanoic acid manifested a high CMC (50 mM), which had to be exceeded in order to enhance drug solubilization. When these two parameters were satisfied (C > CMC, <i>T</i><sub>m</sub> < <i>T</i><sub>exp</sub>), the increase of the polar lipid chain length increased the drug solubilization capacity (similarly to classical surfactants), due to the decreased CMC and bigger volume available for solubilization.<br>The hydrophilic head group also has a dramatic impact on the drug solubilization enhancement, with polar lipids performance decreasing in the order: choline phospholipids > monoglycerides > fatty acids.<br>As both the acyl chain length and the head group type are structural features of the polar lipids, and not of the solubilized drugs, the impact of <i>T</i><sub>m</sub> and CMC on solubilization by polar lipids should hold true for a wide variety of hydrophobic molecules. The obtained mechanistic insights can guide rational drug formulation development and thus support modern drug discovery pipelines.<br>

Mechanisms of Drug Solubilization by Polar Lipids in Biorelevant Media

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vladimir Katev ◽  
Zahari Vinarov ◽  
Slavka S. Tcholakova
Keyword(s):  
Chain Length ◽  
Acyl Chain ◽  
Polar Lipids ◽  
Superior Performance ◽  
Head Group ◽  
Formulation Development ◽  
Biorelevant Media ◽  
Drug Solubilization ◽  
Colloidal Aggregates ◽  
Class 1

Despite the widespread use of lipid excipients in both academic research and oral formulation development, rational selection guidelines are still missing. In the current study, we aimed to establish a link between the molecular structure of commonly used polar lipids and drug solubilization in biorelevant media. We studied the effect of 26 polar lipids of the fatty acid, phospholipid or monoglyceride type on the solubilization of fenofibrate in a two-stage <i>in vitro</i> GI tract model. The main trends were checked also with progesterone and danazol.<br>Based on their fenofibrate solubilization efficiency, the polar lipids can be grouped in 3 main classes. Class 1 substances (n = 5) provide biggest enhancement of drug solubilization (>10-fold) and are composed only by unsaturated compounds. Class 2 materials (n = 10) have an intermediate effect (3-10 fold increase) and are composed primarily (80 %) of saturated compounds. Class 3 materials (n = 11) have very low or no effect on drug solubilization and are entirely composed of saturated compounds.<br>The observed behaviour of the polar lipids was rationalized by using two classical physicochemical parameters: the acyl chain phase transition temperature (<i>T</i><sub>m</sub>) and the critical micellar concentration (CMC). Hence, the superior performance of class 1 polar lipids was explained by the double bonds in their acyl chains, which: (1) significantly decrease <i>T</i><sub>m</sub>, allowing these C18 lipids to form colloidal aggregates and (2) prevent tight packing of the molecules in the aggregates, resulting in bigger volume available for drug solubilization. Long-chain (C18) saturated polar lipids had no significant effect on drug solubilization because their <i>T</i><sub>m</sub> was much higher than the temperature of the experiment (<i>T</i> = 37 C) and, therefore, their association in colloidal aggregates was limited. On the other end of the spectrum, the short chain octanoic acid manifested a high CMC (50 mM), which had to be exceeded in order to enhance drug solubilization. When these two parameters were satisfied (C > CMC, <i>T</i><sub>m</sub> < <i>T</i><sub>exp</sub>), the increase of the polar lipid chain length increased the drug solubilization capacity (similarly to classical surfactants), due to the decreased CMC and bigger volume available for solubilization.<br>The hydrophilic head group also has a dramatic impact on the drug solubilization enhancement, with polar lipids performance decreasing in the order: choline phospholipids > monoglycerides > fatty acids.<br>As both the acyl chain length and the head group type are structural features of the polar lipids, and not of the solubilized drugs, the impact of <i>T</i><sub>m</sub> and CMC on solubilization by polar lipids should hold true for a wide variety of hydrophobic molecules. The obtained mechanistic insights can guide rational drug formulation development and thus support modern drug discovery pipelines.<br>

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