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Soft actuators produce the mechanical force needed for the functional movements of soft robots, but they suffer from critical drawbacks since previously reported soft actuators often rely on electrical wires or pneumatic tubes for the power supply, which would limit the potential usage of soft robots in various practical applications. In this article, we review the new types of untethered soft actuators that represent breakthroughs and discuss the future perspective of soft actuators. We discuss the functional materials and innovative strategies that gave rise to untethered soft actuators and deliver our perspective on challenges and opportunities for future-generation soft actuators. Untethered soft robots offer numerous advantages in terms of mobility, versatility, and autonomy, making them increasingly valuable for a wide range of applications. Jung et al. review the new types of untethered soft actuators that represent breakthroughs and discuss the future perspective of soft actuators.

The fluctuation theorem for information exchange, originally established by Sagawa and Ueda, provides a fundamental framework for understanding the role of correlations in coupled classical stochastic systems. Building upon this foundation, Jinwoo demonstrated that the pointwise mutual information between correlated subsystems captures entropy production as a state function during coupling processes. In this study, we investigate the robustness of this information-theoretic fluctuation theorem under coarse-graining in coupled classical fluctuating systems. We rigorously prove that the fluctuation theorem remains invariant under arbitrary coarse-graining transformations and derive hierarchical relationships between information measures across different scales, thereby establishing its fundamental character as independent of the level of system description. Our results demonstrate that the relationship between information exchange and entropy production is preserved across different scales of observation, providing deeper insights into the thermodynamic foundations of information processing in classical stochastic systems.

Radiative cooling is a passive cooling technology without any energy consumption, compared to conventional cooling technologies that require power sources and dump waste heat into the surroundings. For decades, many radiative cooling studies have been introduced but its applications are mostly restricted to nighttime use only. Recently, the emergence of photonic technologies to achieves daytime radiative cooling overcome the performance limitations. For example, broadband and selective emissions in mid-IR and high reflectance in the solar spectral range have already been demonstrated. This review article discusses the fundamentals of thermodynamic heat transfer that motivates radiative cooling. Several photonic structures such as multilayer, periodical, random; derived from nature, and associated design procedures were thoroughly discussed. Photonic integration with new functionality significantly enhances the efficiency of radiative cooling technologies such as colored, transparent, and switchable radiative cooling applications has been developed. The commercial applications such as reducing cooling loads in vehicles, increasing the power generation of solar cells, generating electricity, saving water, and personal thermal regulation are also summarized. Lastly, perspectives on radiative cooling and emerging issues with potential solution strategies are discussed.

Nanomaterials-based biomimetic catalysts with multiple functions are necessary to address challenges in artificial enzymes mimicking physiological processes. Here we report a metal-free nanozyme of modified graphitic carbon nitride and demonstrate its bifunctional enzyme-mimicking roles. With oxidase mimicking, hydrogen peroxide is generated from the coupled photocatalysis of glucose oxidation and dioxygen reduction under visible-light irradiation with a near 100% apparent quantum efficiency. Then, the in situ generated hydrogen peroxide serves for the subsequent peroxidase-mimicking reaction that oxidises a chromogenic substrate on the same catalysts in dark to complete the bifunctional oxidase-peroxidase for biomimetic detection of glucose. The bifunctional cascade catalysis is successfully demonstrated in microfluidics for the real-time colorimetric detection of glucose with a low detection limit of 0.8 μM within 30 s. The artificial nanozymes with physiological functions provide the feasible strategies for mimicking the natural enzymes and realizing the biomedical diagnostics with a smart and miniature device. Glucose oxidase (GOx) and horseradish peroxidase (HRP) are used as an enzymatic cascade for blood glucose monitoring. Here, the authors developed a metal-free, graphitic carbon nitride-based nanozyme with GOx- and HRP-like activities and combine it with a microfluidic reactor for real-time glucose monitoring.

The impacts of transit-oriented development (TOD) on travel behavior have been extensively studied, with a predominant focus on cross-sectional analyses that provide a static evaluation at a specific point in time by comparing TODs and non-TODs. Longitudinal assessments that capture changes in behavior over time remain relatively uncommon, and the literature tends to overlook differences in evaluating TOD effects across cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses. Additionally, the role of trip purpose as a significant but unexplored variable influencing the degree of TOD effects is often disregarded. To address these gaps, this systematic review examines 48 quantitative studies, comparing the effects of TOD on travel behavior from cross-sectional and longitudinal perspectives, restructuring indicators of effects into transit use, nonmotorized travel, vehicle dependence, and vehicle ownership, and differentiating the effects by trip purpose. A metric has been introduced to quantitatively assess the impact of TOD on travel behavior. The pooled results indicate that private vehicle usage remains high in TOD areas, particularly for non-commuting trips, and that the longitudinal effects of TOD are limited and potentially influenced by individual travel attitudes, residential self-selection, and long-term travel habit change. Furthermore, the methodological differences between cross-sectional and longitudinal studies may lead to divergent conclusions regarding the effects of TOD on travel behavior. Our analysis sheds light on the importance of carefully selecting an appropriate method for a given research question to maximize the accuracy and relevance of the findings. Combining TOD and shared mobility can create a more efficient multi-model transport network that meets the diverse needs of city residents and improves accessibility for all. Overall, this review provides new insights into the impacts of TOD on travel behavior and supports the potential for a paradigm shift toward multimodal transport through the integration of TOD and shared mobility.

Dual atom catalysts, bridging single atom and metal/alloy nanoparticle catalysts, offer more opportunities to enhance the kinetics and multifunctional performance of oxygen reduction/evolution and hydrogen evolution reactions. However, the rational design of efficient multifunctional dual atom catalysts remains a blind area and is challenging. In this study, we achieved controllable regulation from Co nanoparticles to CoN 4 single atoms to Co 2 N 5 dual atoms using an atomization and sintering strategy via an N-stripping and thermal-migrating process. More importantly, this strategy could be extended to the fabrication of 22 distinct dual atom catalysts. In particular, the Co 2 N 5 dual atom with tailored spin states could achieve ideally balanced adsorption/desorption of intermediates, thus realizing superior multifunctional activity. In addition, it endows Zn-air batteries with long-term stability for 800 h, allows water splitting to continuously operate for 1000 h, and can enable solar-powered water splitting systems with uninterrupted large-scale hydrogen production throughout day and night. This universal and scalable strategy provides opportunities for the controlled design of efficient multifunctional dual atom catalysts in energy conversion technologies. This work developed a class of dual atom materials that can act as efficient and stable catalysts for multifunctional catalytic reactions in an uninterrupted water splitting system.

Apoptosis and necroptosis are two regulated cell death mechanisms; however, the interaction between these cell death pathways in vivo is unclear. Here we used cerebral ischemia/reperfusion as a model to investigate the interaction between apoptosis and necroptosis. We show that the activation of RIPK1 sequentially promotes necroptosis followed by apoptosis in a temporally specific manner. Cerebral ischemia/reperfusion insult rapidly activates necroptosis to promote cerebral hemorrhage and neuroinflammation. Ripk3 deficiency reduces cerebral hemorrhage and delays the onset of neural damage mediated by inflammation. Reduced cerebral perfusion resulting from arterial occlusion promotes the degradation of TAK1, a suppressor of RIPK1, and the transition from necroptosis to apoptosis. Conditional knockout of TAK1 in microglial/infiltrated macrophages and neuronal lineages sensitizes to ischemic infarction by promoting apoptosis. Taken together, our results demonstrate the critical role of necroptosis in mediating neurovascular damage and hypoperfusion-induced TAK1 loss, which subsequently promotes apoptosis and cerebral pathology in stroke and neurodegeneration.

HighlightsThis article systematically reviews the thermal management wearables with a specific emphasis on materials and strategies to regulate the human body temperature.Thermal management wearables are subdivided into the active and passive thermal managing methods.The strength and weakness of each thermal regulatory wearables are discussed in details from the view point of practical usage in real-life.Thermal management is essential in our body as it affects various bodily functions, ranging from thermal discomfort to serious organ failures, as an example of the worst-case scenario. There have been extensive studies about wearable materials and devices that augment thermoregulatory functionalities in our body, employing diverse materials and systematic approaches to attaining thermal homeostasis. This paper reviews the recent progress of functional materials and devices that contribute to thermoregulatory wearables, particularly emphasizing the strategic methodology to regulate body temperature. There exist several methods to promote personal thermal management in a wearable form. For instance, we can impede heat transfer using a thermally insulating material with extremely low thermal conductivity or directly cool and heat the skin surface. Thus, we classify many studies into two branches, passive and active thermal management modes, which are further subdivided into specific strategies. Apart from discussing the strategies and their mechanisms, we also identify the weaknesses of each strategy and scrutinize its potential direction that studies should follow to make substantial contributions to future thermal regulatory wearable industries.

This study explores the relationship between the spatial distribution of relative transfer location (i.e., the location of the transfer point in relation to the trip origin and destination points) and the attractiveness of the transit service using smart card data. Transfer is an essential component of the transit trip that allows people to reach more destinations, but it is also the main factor that deters the smartness of the public transit. The literature quantifies the inconvenience of transfer in terms of extra travel time or cost incurred during transfer. Unlike this conventional approach, the new “transfer location” variable is formulated by mapping the spatial distribution of relative transfer locations on a homogeneous geocoordinate system. The clustering of transfer points is then quantified using grid-based hierarchical clustering. The transfer location factor is formulated as a new explanatory variable for mode choice modelling. This new variable is found to be statistically significant, and no correlation is observed with other explanatory variables, including transit travel time. These results imply that smart transit users may perceive the travel direction (to transfer) as important, in addition to the travel time factor, which would influence their mode choice. Travellers may disfavour even adjacent transfer locations depending on their relative location. The findings of this study will contribute to improving the understanding of transit user behaviour and impact of the smartness of transfer, assist smart transport planning and designing of new transit routes and services to enhance the transfer performance.

Within the breath lie numerous health indicators, encompassing respiratory patterns and biomarkers extending beyond respiratory conditions to cardiovascular health. Recently, the emergence of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has not only underscored the necessity of on-the-spot breath analysis but has also normalized the use of masks in everyday life. Simultaneously, the rapid evolution of wearable technology has given rise to innovative healthcare monitoring tools, with a specific emphasis on wearable breath sensors. This review explores current research trends in utilizing wearable breathing sensors to detect diverse respiratory biomarkers and monitor respiratory parameters, including airflow, temperature, and humidity. Additionally, it explores diverse applications, ranging from recognizing breathing patterns to swiftly detecting diseases. Integrating the Internet of Things and machine learning technologies into these applications highlights their potential to offer a personalized, accurate, and efficient healthcare solution.Human breath contains a vast amount of information that might be used to indicate respiratory and cardiovascular health. This Review summarizes and discusses recent advances in wearable breath sensors for monitoring breath temperature, humidity and airflow, as well as biomarker presence.