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This special section on field methods in authoritarian states and places aims to move beyond the normative language of the liberal/illiberal binary by foregrounding the ways in which closure can be an authoritarian act. Illustrating the variety of scales and places at which these practices unfold, the contributors are concerned with what implications they have for conducting geographic fieldwork. The main questions raised by this set of papers are: how is research in 'closed contexts' different from (or similar to) more 'open' settings? Does it raise unique ethical and methodological dilemmas? In what ways are field methods themselves informed by particular notions of power, agency, and freedom, and how might these differ between more- or less-closed settings? This article first provides some theoretical contextualization, before then introducing how each author variably highlights these themes through a critical reflection on their own experiences of conducting fieldwork in closed contexts, ranging from Vietnam to Kazakhstan, Mozambique, and the United States.

Rice is a staple food and known to accumulate inorganic arsenic (iAs), which is a class 1 carcinogen to humans. Arsenic field-deployable method kits, designed for water testing, are able to screen iAs in rice, to assure food safety and quick decision-making without the need for laboratory analysis. For the arsenic extraction within the field method, nitric acid is used. To make the field method on-site safer, cost-effective and easier to handle, the method was adapted using a Cola in the extraction process. The adapted field-deployable method was tested by screening a total of 30 rice and rice products from the Austrian market. To verify the results obtained by the Cola extraction field-deployable method, the obtained iAs concentration was compared to HPLC-ICP-MS results. The Cola extraction field method obtained an LOD of 39 µg iAs kg−1 rice, and with an average reproducibility of 14% RSD, the method was capable of recording no false-negative but 7% false-positive values at the 2023 updated European Commission (EC) limits for rice. All, but one, screened rice samples were within the EU limits for iAs in rice and rice products.

Wire arc additive manufacturing achieves high efficiency and low costs by using a melting wire for directional depositions. Thermal analyses and the finite element method have been applied to predict residual stress and the deformation of fabricated parts. For Ni-based alloy production, a method for predicting solidification microstructure evolution with segregation is needed in order to design precise heat treatment procedures. In this study, a multi-phase field method coupled with a CALPHAD database is developed to simulate the solidification microstructure evolution of a practical Ni-based alloy. Thermal analyses of a wire arc additive manufacturing model were performed by the process modeling of multi-pass depositions with a running cyclic arc. Solidification microstructure evolution was obtained using the temperature profile in each deposited layer by the multi-phase field method. These predicted microstructures are compared with experimental measurements. It is confirmed that the multi-phase field method coupled with the CALPHAD database is effective for predicting solidification microstructure and segregation in the engineering of Ni-based alloys.

Using the density functional theory and finite field method, nonlinear optical properties of nine triarylamine-α-cyanocinnamic acid derivatives were investigated at the M06-2X/6–311++ G(d,p) and ωB97X-D/6–311++ G(d,p) levels of theory. Except for ( E )-2-cyano-3-(4-(di([1,1′-biphenyl]-4-yl)amino)phenyl)acrylic acid ( a ), which had a D-π-A electronic structure, all the other eight derivatives had an A-π-D-π-A structure. The results suggest that the lowest energy transition of the nine triarylamine derivatives was the π–π* transition from the HOMO to LUMO. The absorption maxima of the derivatives in their ethanol solution were redshifted with respect to those in the gas phase. The introduction of conjugated C = C or C≡C bonds between the biphenyl unit of molecule a had a minor effect on the second-order nonlinear optical properties of the molecule. However, the introduction of C = C bond into the parent molecule improved the third-order nonlinear optical properties. The introduction of a heterocyclic ring (furan ring or thiophene ring) between the triarylamine moiety and the branched chain containing the cyanocinnamic acid group enhanced the second- and third-order nonlinear optical properties; especially, the second- and third-order polarisabilities of molecules b3 and c3 , which were obtained by introducing a thiophene ring, were the highest. The second- and third-order polarisabilities of b3 were 0.13 × 10 5 and 27.13 × 10 5 a.u., respectively, while those of c3 were 0.14 × 10 5 and 28.10 × 10 5 a.u., respectively. This suggests that b3 and c3 have desirable second- and third-order nonlinear optical properties and can be used for designing efficient second- and third-order nonlinear optical materials. Graphical abstract

In an effort to simulate the involved thermal physical effects that occur in Directed Energy Deposition (DED) a thermodynamically consistent phase-field method is developed. Two state parameters, characterizing phase change and consolidation, are used to allocate the proper material properties to each phase. The numerical transient solution is obtained via a finite element analysis. A set of experiments for single-track scanning were carried out to provide dimensional data of the deposited cladding lines. By relying on a regression analytical formulation to establish the link between process parameters and geometries of deposited layers from experiments, an activation of passive elements in the finite element discretization is considered. The single-track cladding of Inconel 625 powder on tempered steel 42CrMo4 was printed with different power, scanning speed, and feed rate to assess their effect on the morphology of the melt pool and the solidification cooling rate. The forecast capability of the developed model is assessed by comparison of the predicted dimensions of melt pools with experiments reported in the literature. In addition, this research correlated the used process parameter in the modeling of localized transient thermal with solidification parameters, namely, the thermal gradient ( G ) and the solidification rate ( R ). The numerical results report an inverse relationship between R with G , and microstructure transition from the planar to dendrite by moving from the boundary to the interior of melt pool, which agree well with experimental measurements.

In this manuscript we develop a deep learning algorithm to improve estimation of rates of progression and prediction of future patterns of visual field loss in glaucoma. A generalized variational auto-encoder (VAE) was trained to learn a low-dimensional representation of standard automated perimetry (SAP) visual fields using 29,161 fields from 3,832 patients. The VAE was trained on a 90% sample of the data, with randomization at the patient level. Using the remaining 10%, rates of progression and predictions were generated, with comparisons to SAP mean deviation (MD) rates and point-wise (PW) regression predictions, respectively. The longitudinal rate of change through the VAE latent space (e.g., with eight dimensions) detected a significantly higher proportion of progression than MD at two (25% vs. 9%) and four (35% vs 15%) years from baseline. Early on, VAE improved prediction over PW, with significantly smaller mean absolute error in predicting the 4 th , 6 th and 8 th visits from the first three (e.g., visit eight: VAE8: 5.14 dB vs. PW: 8.07 dB; P < 0.001). A deep VAE can be used for assessing both rates and trajectories of progression in glaucoma, with the additional benefit of being a generative technique capable of predicting future patterns of visual field damage.

Fractional non-relativistic field equations with the derivatives of non-integer order are considered. A connection of these equations with microscopic (lattice) models is discussed. The considered equations contain non-linear terms and fractional Laplacian in the Riesz form. Using the background field method and the mean field method, we obtain corrections to linear solution and equilibrium solution caused by the weak non-linearity.

This dictionary provides a synthesis of information currently available but only in a diverse array of sources.Through judicious choice and careful scrutiny, the author has gathered together a very handy ready-reference in the same style as his companion volumes, Dictionary of Energy and Fuels and Dictionary of Fire Protection.

This study compared between TEMPO, a new binocular perimeter, with the Humphrey Field Analyzer (HFA). Patients were tested with both TEMPO 24–2 Ambient Interactive Zippy Estimated by Sequential Testing (AIZE)-Rapid and HFA 24–2 Swedish Interactive Threshold Algorithm (SITA)-Fast in a randomized sequence on the same day. Using a mixed-effects model, visual field (VF) parameters and reliability indices were compared. Retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness was measured using Cirrus optical coherence tomography (OCT), and coefficient of determinations for VF and OCT parameters were calculated and compared using Akaike information criteria. 740 eyes (including 68 healthy, 262 glaucoma suspects, and 410 glaucoma) of 370 participants were evaluated. No significant differences were seen in mean deviation and visual field index between the two perimeters (P > 0.05). A stronger association between VF mean sensitivity (dB or 1/L) and circumpapillary RNFL was found for TEMPO (adjusted R 2  = 0.25; Akaike information criteria [AIC] = 5235.5 for dB, and adjusted R 2  = 0.29; AIC = 5200.8 for 1/L, respectively) compared to HFA (adjusted R 2  = 0.22; AIC = 5263.9 for dB, and adjusted R 2  = 0.22; AIC = 5262.7 for 1/L, respectively). Measurement time was faster for TEMPO compared to HFA (261 s vs. 429 s, P < 0.001). Further investigations are needed to assess the long-term monitoring potential of this binocular VF test.

Postmenopausal osteoporosis (PMOP) is the most common type of osteoporosis. Numerous studies have shown that static magnetic fields (SMFs) can inhibit bone loss by regulating bone remodeling. However, there are currently no clinical studies on the treatment of osteoporosis with SMFs. This study aims to investigate the clinical therapeutic effects of moderate static magnetic fields (MMFs) on PMOP. In this paper, we constructed MMF device using neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) materials. At the animal level, the effect of MMF exposure for 8 weeks on estrogen deficiency-induced bone loss was investigated by evaluating bone microstructure, mechanical properties, and bone conversion using ovariectomized (OVX) mice. Clinically, a single-blind randomized controlled study in patients with PMOP was designed. PMOP patients aged 55-70 years were recruited and randomized into the control and MMF treatment groups. Clinical assessments of bone mineral density (BMD), bone turnover markers (BTMs) and VAS scores were performed at baseline and day 90, respectively. The results showed that MMF exposure significantly improved BMD, bone mineral content (BMC), bone microarchitecture and bone strength in OVX mice. For bone turnover, MMF increased the number of osteoblasts on the bone surface of OVX mice as well as the level of serum bone formation marker P1NP, while decreasing the number of osteoclasts and the level of serum bone resorption marker β-CTX. The clinical trial's results showed that MMF treatment had a positive effect on the improvement of BMD in the lumbar spine and increased serum P1NP levels while decreased β-CTX levels. In addition, MMF treatment decreased participants' VAS scores for low back pain. The results of both animal and clinical studies demonstrated that MMF treatment improved bone turnover and have a positive effect on BMD improvement, as well as alleviated low back pain in PMOP patients. This study will promote the translational research and clinical application of SMF treatment for osteoporosis. Intervention study of moderate static magnetic field on osteoporosis and iron metabolism in postmenopausal women, ChiCTR2100048604.