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\"Advances in Hydrology and Climate Change: Historical Trends and New Approaches in Water Resources Management highlights recent trends in the water sector that employ a variety of different innovative management and conservation approaches. The volume provides an informative overview of the issues and challenges in water resources affected by climate change conditions, such as drought, flooding, glacier changes, and overbuilt-up urban areas. Focusing on surface and groundwater related issues and sustainable solutions, the chapters present a variety of methods, including morphometric assessment, parameter estimation, long-term trend analysis, sustainability indexes, storm water management models (SWMM), entropy-based measurement of long-term precipitation, etc. The volume focuses on providing a better understanding of climatic uncertainty through hydrometeorological data sets and their application in hydrological modeling. These analyses help to serve as the basis for the design of flood-control and water-usage management policies. The chapters discuss climatic variability that depends on several factors, i.e., its erratic distribution, topography, seasonal variation, land-use change, anthropogenic activities, etc., demonstrating the overall interconnection between different parameters of hydrological cycles to design modeling approaches that include using soft-computing applications, remote sensing and GIS-based techniques, artificial neural networks, and more. This book will be a standard reference work for disciplines in water resources, soil and water engineering, engineering hydrology, groundwater hydrology, climate change, agrometeorology, agriculture, lohani, anil ecology and environmental science, leading to a way forward for strategy formulation for combating hydrology and climate change\"-- Provided by publisher.

The antagonism between strength and resistance to hydrogen embrittlement in metallic materials is an intrinsic obstacle to the design of lightweight yet reliable structural components operated in hydrogen-containing environments. Economical and scalable microstructural solutions to this challenge must be found. Here, we introduce a counterintuitive strategy to exploit the typically undesired chemical heterogeneity within the material’s microstructure that enables local enhancement of crack resistance and local hydrogen trapping. We use this approach in a manganese-containing high-strength steel and produce a high dispersion of manganese-rich zones within the microstructure. These solute-rich buffer regions allow for local micro-tuning of the phase stability, arresting hydrogen-induced microcracks and thus interrupting the percolation of hydrogen-assisted damage. This results in a superior hydrogen embrittlement resistance (better by a factor of two) without sacrificing the material’s strength and ductility. The strategy of exploiting chemical heterogeneities, rather than avoiding them, broadens the horizon for microstructure engineering via advanced thermomechanical processing. Typically undesired chemically heterogeneous microstructures are shown to enhance the resistance of high-strength steel against hydrogen embrittlement, with no loss in strength or ductility.

Single crystal Ni-based superalloys have long been an essential material for gas turbines in aero engines and power plants due to their outstanding high temperature creep, fatigue and oxidation resistance. A turning point was the addition of only 3 wt.% Re in the second generation of single crystal Ni-based superalloys which almost doubled the creep lifetime. Despite the significance of this improvement, the mechanisms underlying the so-called “Re effect” have remained controversial. Here, we provide direct evidence of Re enrichment to crystalline defects formed during creep deformation, using combined transmission electron microscopy, atom probe tomography and phase field modelling. We reveal that Re enriches to partial dislocations and imposes a drag effect on dislocation movement, thus reducing the creep strain rate and thereby improving creep properties. These insights can guide design of better superalloys, a quest which is key to reducing CO 2 emissions in air-traffic. Adding minute amounts of rhenium to Ni-based single crystal superalloys extends their high temperature performance in engines, but the reasons behind that are still unclear. Here, the authors combine high resolution imaging and modelling to show that rhenium enriches and slows down partial dislocations to improve creep performance.

The research highlights the importance of exploring endophytic microbiomes of medicinal plants to uncover their potential for secondary metabolite production and their role in the biosynthesis of host-derived compounds. This study was aimed to isolate leaf endophytic bacteria of Rauvolfia serpentina , investigate their antibacterial, antioxidant potentials and detect host-origin compound reserpine using Reverse Phase High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (RPHPLC). Untargeted analysis via Ultra High-Performance Liquid Chromatography-High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry (UHPLC-HRMS/MS) was conducted for profiling main phytochemicals in the leaves and to explore potential bioactive compounds in bacterial extracts. Nine bacterial isolates were obtained from R. serpentina leaves. These isolates exhibited positive results in various biochemical tests including indole production, methyl red, Voges-Proskauer, citrate utilization, catalase and oxidase production, nitrate reduction, oxidative fermentation, and citrate reduction tests. Endophytic isolates RSLB3 and RSLB18 exhibited most potential antibacterial activity against tested human pathogenic bacteria and were identified as Bacillus sp. The extract of RSLB3 and RSLB18 also showed significant antioxidant activity compared to leaf extract. The total phenol content was similar in both these isolates while flavonoids content and DPPH scavenging activity was higher in isolate RSLB3. RPHPLC analysis confirmed the presence of reserpine in bacterial metabolites when compared to a standard reference. UHPLC-HRMS profiling unveiled a diverse range of host-derived compounds and reaction intermediates with known and unknown bioactive properties in leaf extract, RSLB3, and RSLB18. To our knowledge, this is the first study to achieve a comprehensive profiling.

This investigation aimed to assess the effectiveness of different classification models in diagnosing prostate cancer using a screening dataset obtained from the National Cancer Institute’s Cancer Data Access System. The dataset was first reduced using the PCLDA method, which combines Principal Component Analysis and Linear Discriminant Analysis. Two classifiers, Support Vector Machine (SVM) and k-Nearest Neighbour (KNN), were then applied to compare their performance. The results showed that the PCLDA-SVM model achieved an impressive accuracy rate of 97.99%, with a precision of 0.92, sensitivity of 92.83%, specificity of 97.65%, and F1 score of 0.93. Additionally, it demonstrated a low error rate of 0.016 and a Matthews Correlation Coefficient (MCC) and Kappa coefficient of 0.946. On the other hand, the PCLDA-KNN model also performed well, achieving an accuracy of 97.8%, precision of 0.93, sensitivity of 93.39%, specificity of 97.86%, an F1 score of 0.92, a high MCC and Kappa coefficient of 0.98, and an error rate of 0.006. In conclusion, the PCLDA-SVM method exhibited improved efficacy in diagnosing prostate cancer compared to the PCLDA-KNN model. Both models, however, showed promising results, suggesting the potential of these classifiers in prostate cancer diagnosis.

To assess whether different cervical spine immobilisation strategies (full immobilisation, movement minimisation or no immobilisation), impact neurological and/or other outcomes for patients with suspected cervical spinal injury in the pre-hospital and emergency department setting. Systematic review following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, Cochrane Library and two research registers were searched until September 2023. All comparative studies (prospective or retrospective) that examined the potential benefits and/or harms of immobilisation practices during pre-hospital and emergency care of patients with a potential cervical spine injury (pre-imaging) following blunt trauma. Two authors independently selected and extracted data. Risk of bias was appraised using the Cochrane ROBINS-I tool for non-randomised studies. Data were synthesised without meta-analysis. Six observational studies met the inclusion criteria. The methodological quality was variable, with most studies having serious or critical risk of bias. The effect of cervical spine immobilisation practices such as full immobilisation or movement minimisation during pre-hospital and emergency care did not show clear evidence of benefit for the prevention of neurological deterioration, spinal injuries and death compared with no immobilisation. However, increased pain, discomfort and anatomical complications were associated with collar application during immobilisation. Despite the limited evidence, weak designs and limited generalisability, the available data suggest that pre-hospital cervical spine immobilisation (full immobilisation or movement minimisation) was of uncertain value due to the lack of demonstrable benefit and may lead to potential complications and adverse outcomes. High-quality randomised comparative studies are required to address this important question. PROSPERO REGISTRATION Fiona Lecky, Abdullah Pandor, Munira Essat, Anthea Sutton, Carl Marincowitz, Gordon Fuller, Stuart Reid, Jason Smith. A systematic review of cervical spine immobilisation following blunt trauma in pre-hospital and emergency care. PROSPERO 2022 CRD42022349600 Available from: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?ID=CRD42022349600.

Recent trends in high-income countries indicate a shift in the causes of major trauma, with low-energy transfer mechanisms, particularly falls from less than two meters, becoming increasingly prevalent. This study aimed to compare the demographics, care processes, and outcomes of major trauma patients injured by low and high-energy transfer mechanisms. This comparative cohort study utilized anonymized data from adult patients recorded in the Trauma Audit and Research Network in 2019. Patients were categorized into low-energy (falls less than 2 meters) and high-energy (other mechanisms) groups. The study focused on patients with an Injury Severity Score (ISS) greater than 15. Data from up to 179 English and Welsh hospitals were included. In 2019, 53.6% (n = 16,087) of major trauma patients were injured by low-energy falls. When compared to the high-energy cohort, these affected older patients (median age 80 vs. 47 years; p < 0.001), with a higher prevalence of pre-existing comorbidities (90.4% [95%CI 89.9-90.8] vs. 56.2% [95%CI 55.4-57.0]; p < 0.001) and traumatic brain injuries (74.0% [95%CI 73.3-74.7] vs. 49.8% [95%CI 48.9-50.6]; p < 0.001). Low-energy fall patients were more likely to be initially treated in Trauma Units rather than Major Trauma Centres and received fewer interventions such as surgery and critical care admission. Low-energy falls patients had a higher in-hospital mortality rate (14.0% [95%CI 13.5% - 14.6%] vs. 10.3% [95%CI 9.8% - 10.8%]; p < 0.0001). The increasing burden of major trauma from low-energy falls necessitates a re-evaluation of current trauma care systems and injury prevention strategies to better serve this distinct and growing patient population. Future research should focus on optimizing care pathways, defining patient orientated outcomes and improving outcomes for patients injured by low-energy falls.

Objective: To compare the safety and efficacy of glimepiride and vildagliptin as add-on therapy to metformin in newly diagnosed patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Methods: This 24-week, prospective, comparative, observational study was conducted among newly diagnosed patients with T2DM. The primary endpoint was a change in fasting plasma glucose (FPG), postpradinal glucose (PPG), and HbA1c from the baseline to week 24. The key secondary endpoints were monitoring treatment-emergent adverse events such as hypoglycemia, overall gastrointestinal symptoms and weight gain, and electrocardiogram (ECG) findings. Results: A total of 100 eligible patients were divided into two groups: group A (n = 50) received vildagliptin plus metformin and group B (n = 50) received glimepiride plus metformin. The mean age of the patients was 49.98 years and 52.12 years in group A and group B, respectively. Electrocardiographic findings were within normal limits in all the patients from group A, whereas 47 patients from group B showed normal ECG findings. A significant decrease in HbA1c, fasting and post-prandial plasma glucose was observed with group A and group B from the baseline to week-24. However, at week-24, reduction in HbA1c and blood glucose parameters were comparable between the groups. Safety outcomes did not show any events of hypoglycemia with vildagliptin. Mild hypoglycemia was reported with glimepiride in five patients. Conclusion: Vildagliptin-metformin appeared to be equally effective to glimepiride-metformin in reducing HbA1c level and blood glucose parameters, however, resulted in better adverse event profiles with lower risks of hypoglycemia.

The increasing global dependence on fossil fuels for energy has prompted researchers to explore alternative power generation sources that offer higher efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and low environmental impact. Developed countries have been making continuous efforts to reduce their reliance on depleting fossil fuel sources to curb carbon emissions. As a result, hydrogen has gained significant attention among researchers as a potential future fuel that meets all the necessary criteria. Many countries aiming for a hydrogen economy have invested in research on fuel cells. Among various fuel cells, the solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) has emerged as a commercially viable power source at a small scale. This paper provides an extensive review of the components, materials, design, operation, and integration strategies of SOFCs with existing thermal-based power plants. The performance and prospects of various SOFCs in standalone and hybrid modes are summarized, along with the limitations. Additionally, the research and commercialization efforts that can enhance the potential applications of SOFCs as a sustainable and reliable system in the long term are outlined.

Image stitching is a technique that is often employed in image processing and computer vision applications. The feature points in an image provide a significant amount of key information. Image stitching requires accurate extraction of these features since it may decrease misalignment flaws in the final stitched image. In recent years, a variety of feature detectors and descriptors that may be utilized for image stitching have been presented. However, the computational cost and correctness of feature matching restrict the utilization of these techniques. To date, no work compared feature detectors and descriptors for image stitching applications, i.e., no one has considered the effect of detectors and descriptors on the generated final stitched image. This paper presents a detailed comparative analysis of commonly used feature detectors and descriptors proposed previously. This study gives various contributions to the development of a general comparison of feature detectors and descriptors for image stitching applications. These detectors and descriptors are compared in terms of number of matched points, time taken and quality of stitched image. After analyzing the obtained results, it was observed that the combination of AKAZE with AKAZE can be preferable almost in all possible situations.