Economic and Environmental Analysis of Photovoltaic-Thermal Systems Integrated with Shea Butter as a Phase Change Material in Nigeria

The literature documents the economic and environmental evaluations of conventional phase change materials (PCMs), such as paraffin wax, used in photovoltaic-thermal (PV-T) systems. Nonetheless, there is limited evidence of bio-based PCM applications within PV-T systems. This study investigates the economic and environmental aspects of employing shea butter as a bio-based PCM in a PV-T setup. The photovoltaic-thermal system integrated with shea butter was designed using the Transient Simulation System (TRNSYS). The shea butter system showed superior economic performance, with a levelized cost of energy (LCOE) of US$0.131/kWh, compared with US$0.146/kWh for the paraffin wax system. Its energy costs were also lower than those of the grid and diesel generation in Nigeria. However, the payback period was longer than that of traditional PV systems. Environmentally, shea butter has a global warming potential (GWP) of 0.615 kg CO₂e, significantly lower than that of paraffin wax (3.75 kg CO₂e).

Research on the Mooring System of Fishery-Photovoltaic Complementary Integrated Structure Under Wave Action

The influence of mooring system parameters on the hydrodynamic characteristics of waves of the Fishery-Photovoltaic complementary integrated platform formed by installing aquaculture cages on the Huaneng ‘Huanghai No.1’ floating photovoltaic platform is studied. It systematically investigates the influence of mooring system parameters on the wave-induced hydrodynamic performance of the integrated platform. A fully coupled numerical model for the integrated platform-mooring system is established using the OrcaFlex11.4c software. The reliability of the proposed numerical method is validated against the Cylindrical Floating Production, Storage and Offloading (CFPSO) wave basin model test and the net cage flume test. Through 17 simulation cases with gradient mooring radius settings, this study elucidates the response pattern of the mooring system as it transitions from a catenary configuration to a taut configuration. The results indicate that a relative mooring length of approximately 0.73 corresponds to the critical threshold. At this threshold, mooring stiffness rises abruptly, platform motion responses are markedly suppressed, cage volume variation is mitigated, and mooring line tensions remain within a controllable range. This mooring radius achieves an optimal trade-off among platform motion performance, mooring tension safety, and aquaculture stability. Further increasing the mooring radius yields only marginal improvements in motion response and cage volume performance, while causing a notable rise in mooring tension and a sharp decline in system cost-effectiveness. This study provides a theoretical foundation for the design of mooring systems for deep-sea fishery-photovoltaic complementary integrated platforms.

Elucidation of Diatom Impregnated with Iron Nanoparticles as a Bio-Stimulator in Early Growth and Development of Rice

Merging nanotechnology with biology, diatoms reveal an extraordinary capacity to fabricate iron nanoparticles (INPs) while simultaneously acting as nutrient carriers for crops. The marine diatom Halamphora subturgida was employed for the first time to synthesize INPs and evaluate their application as a nanophycofertilizer (NPF) for rice (Oryza sativa L.). The diatom facilitated both intra- and extracellular formation of spindle-shaped nanoparticles (70–100 nm) as confirmed by UV–Vis, DLS, TEM, SEM-EDAX, FTIR, and fluorescence analyses. Biochemical profiling revealed dynamic metabolic shifts during nanoparticle synthesis, with transient increases in pigments, proteins, and lipids followed by their decline, while iron and carbon content rose steadily. Antioxidant enzyme assays indicated early oxidative stress followed by metabolic adaptation, underscoring the diatom’s resilience as a biofactory. When applied to rice seedlings, the INP-loaded diatoms significantly outperformed diatoms or nanoparticles alone, increasing shoot length by approximately 45%, root length by 50%, fresh biomass by 18%, chlorophyll content by 42%, iron accumulation by nearly twofold, and silica uptake by about 43% compared with the untreated control. These synergistic effects highlight the dual role of diatoms as both stabilizers and nutrient carriers, delivering iron in a highly bioavailable form while simultaneously contributing silica for structural strength. The findings position diatom-mediated nanofertilizers as sustainable alternatives to chemical fertilizers, offering a multifaceted strategy to boost crop vigor, nutrient density, and early-stage resilience in rice.

What Do Indigenous Perspectives from the Americas on Nonhuman Beings Tell Us Considering Artificial Intelligence, Humanoid Robots, and Synthetic Life Forms?

This essay examines the understanding of artificial intelligence, humanoid robots, and biohybrid systems—or synthetic life forms—from an indigenous perspective in the Americas. Building on a critical examination of the ontological turn, this essay explores the significance of relationality for indigenous peoples beyond concepts such as animism or new animism. The ontological turn does not establish substantive connections to the modern world regarding these entities. However, techno-animism seems to suggest an ontological approach to artificial intelligence, though it does not explain how ontology develops in practice for humans and nonhumans alike. Based on reflections on indigenous perspectives in the Americas, this essay attempts to develop an alternative foundation for ontology regarding artificial intelligence, humanoid robots, and biohybrid systems or synthetic life forms—entities that are more than just tools or machines.

How Does the Mechanical Structure of a Dexterous Hand Drive Embodied Intelligence

Robotic dexterous hands, as the primary end-effectors through which embodied agents interact with the physical world, directly determine grasp stability, manipulation accuracy, environmental adaptability, and human–robot interaction safety. Research on dexterous hand mechanical structures has expanded rapidly and become increasingly interdisciplinary, so conventional narrative reviews can no longer capture its knowledge base, research drivers, and the evolution of hotspots. A systematic framework that combines bibliometric quantification with mechanism-oriented synthesis is therefore needed. This study presents a bibliometric review of dexterous hand mechanical structures based on Web of Science Core Collection publications from 2016 to 2025, combining bibliometric statistics, collaboration-network analysis, keyword co-occurrence, cluster analysis, and trend synthesis to reveal the field’s research landscape, intellectual structure, and technological evolution. Publications increased steadily, rising from 64 in 2016 to 252 in 2025, with marked acceleration after 2022. China leads in publication volume, whereas the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom show strong citation impact and international collaboration. Core journals concentrate on robotics, mechatronics, sensing, soft robotics, and rehabilitation engineering, and keyword evolution shows a shift from prosthetic hands and basic mechanism design toward compliant structures, soft actuation, tactile perception, and dexterous manipulation. Based on keyword clustering, three principal research streams are identified: body configuration and degree-of-freedom (DoF) evolution, drive and transmission structure design, and soft/compliant structure expansion. The central challenge of dexterous hand design is no longer the accumulation of DoFs but the coordinated optimization of DoF allocation, actuation mapping, contact stability, and compliant adaptation under strict constraints of space, energy, and reliability. Tendon-driven, internally integrated, and underactuated architectures emphasize lightweight dexterity, precision control, and adaptive grasping, respectively, while soft continuum, rigid–soft hybrid, and variable-stiffness structures are reshaping dexterous hands from rigid execution mechanisms into physically intelligent interaction systems. Overall, the field has entered a stage of interdisciplinary system integration, with its core mission shifting from building complex mechanical hands to constructing perceptive, adaptive, and controllable end-effectors. Future work should strengthen task-oriented structural optimization, hybrid actuation, rigid–soft coupling, integrated flexible sensing and closed-loop control, and unified performance evaluation, accelerating the transition from laboratory prototypes to standardized assessment and large-scale deployment.

Responses of Riparian Vegetation in Cascade Reservoirs to Contrasting Flow Regulation Types

(I) Large dams alter flow regimes and water-level fluctuations, reshaping riparian disturbance regimes and shoreline habitat conditions, with important implications for vegetation recovery, biodiversity maintenance, non-native species establishment, and reservoir shoreline management. However, how these effects vary among flow regulation types and water-level fluctuation (WLF) zonation remains insufficiently understood in cascade reservoir systems. We asked: (1) how species richness, alpha diversity, beta diversity, and the proportion of non-native species vary among flow regulation types and WLF zonation; (2) which plant species indicate different regulation types and WLF zonation; and (3) which biotic or abiotic factors best explain variation in riparian species composition. (II) WLF zonation of nine cascade reservoirs along the Wujiang River, central China. (III) We surveyed 573 quadrats across 72 sites in inundation, transitional, and unflooded zones of reservoirs with daily, weekly, seasonal, or yearly regulation. Vegetation composition and local environmental variables were recorded. ANCOVA was used to test differences in vegetation diversity and non-native species proportion among regulation types and WLF zonation. Redundancy analysis and variation partitioning were used to assess the relative effects of dam properties, hydrological alteration, and local environmental factors on species composition. (IV) Riparian vegetation differed clearly among regulation types and WLF zonation. Seasonally regulated reservoirs supported the highest herbaceous species richness in the inundation zone, followed by daily and weekly reservoirs, and then the yearly regulated reservoir. Daily reservoirs had the highest beta diversity, whereas the yearly reservoir had the lowest. Annual species were mainly associated with yearly regulated shorelines, while perennial species dominated daily and weekly reservoirs. Non-native species also varied among regulation types and WLF zonation, with Alternanthera philoxeroides and Erigeron canadensis associated with weekly and seasonally reservoirs, respectively. Indicator species differed among regulation types and WLF zonation, suggesting distinct vegetation assemblages under contrasting regulation regimes. Dam properties were the strongest predictors of riparian species composition, while hydrological alteration and local environmental conditions also contributed. (V) Riparian vegetation composition in cascade reservoirs reflects the cumulative effects of contrasting long-term flow regulation regimes, WLF zonation, and associated environmental filtering. Regulation type was linked to differences in plant diversity, annual-perennial dominance, non-native species occurrence, and community composition. These findings highlight the need to consider long-term hydrological regulation and invasion risk when managing and restoring reservoir WLF zonation.

Drone-Assisted Vision for Offshore Wind Turbine Inspection and Maintenance: A Systematic Review

Offshore wind turbines are exposed to harsh marine conditions that accelerate degradation and make inspection costly, hazardous, and weather-dependent. Early fault detection is needed to reduce downtime and prevent structural failure. This review investigates offshore wind turbine failure mechanisms, inspection technologies, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and robotic systems, computer-vision-based defect detection, infrared thermography, and drone-assisted maintenance. A structured literature review methodology was used to synthesise studies across offshore engineering, robotics, sensing, and machine learning. The findings show that autonomous offshore fault detection remains limited by a lack of real-world experimentation and data. UAV inspection systems offer strong remote inspection capability but often lack real-time perception and adaptive autonomy, while deep learning models remain highly dependent on controlled datasets and are vulnerable to offshore environmental noise. The literature is disconnected, with few studies integrating autonomous navigation, multimodal sensing, and onboard intelligence into a unified offshore inspection framework. These findings demonstrate the need for robust drone-based systems capable of reliable visual and thermal fault detection in real offshore environments.

Optimization Design and Characteristics Research of Linear Generator Based on Harmonic Analysis

In the superconducting electrodynamics suspension (EDS) maglev, using the harmonic magnetic field of the 8-shaped coil to generate power is an effective way to address the vehicle power supply problem. This article proposes an analytical calculation model that comprehensively accounts for the magnetic field coupling among superconducting coils, 8-shaped coils, and collector coils in the topology of linear generators for EDS maglev. Firstly, by introducing the pole distance ratio k between the superconducting coil and the 8-shaped coil, the magnetic flux density distributions of the superconducting coil and the 8-shaped coil were obtained using harmonic analysis. Secondly, the mathematical expression for the maximum output power of the linear generator was derived. Furthermore, based on the principle of virtual work, an analytical model for the suspension and guiding forces of the EDS maglev, accounting for the influence of the linear generator, is constructed. Finally, linear generators corresponding to different 8-shaped coil structures were established, and the air-gap magnetic field distribution, power-generation characteristics, and dynamic performance of the EDS maglev were compared and analyzed. The analytical model proposed in this article can provide theoretical support for parameter optimization and system dynamic design of linear generators in EDS maglev.

In Search of Evidence for Impact on De-Institutionalization: A Systematic Review of the Current Status, Gaps and Future Directions of Translatable Mental Health Research on Alternative Care

The transition from institutionalized care to alternative family-based care arrangements for children and youth without available parents is an important policy aim around the world. To document evidence on de-institutionalization (DI) and identify gaps that are stalling the translation of DI findings into policy or practice, we conducted a systematic scoping review of studies on de-institutionalization published in the last five years. Our systematic search identified 221 pertinent studies covering 67 countries across most continents. The majority of the studies were qualitative, used some type of ‘convenience’ sampling, and had a modest number of participants (but with a broad range, 1–5351). Remarkably few studies included children under 6 years of age. Despite small samples and relatively weak designs, the majority of the studies suggested policy implications of their results. We discuss the gaps in DI research, stressing the need for transparency and replicability, paying attention to the specific circumstances of performing DI research. To overcome these gaps, we suggt that DI studies create more replicable evidence with translatable impact for governments, policymakers, sponsors, and practitioners. Vulnerable children and their (alternative) parents deserve family-based DI reform that is sustainable and successful in improving their lives.

Control of Infectious Disease Outbreaks and Pandemics: Aligning Scientific Innovation, Regulatory Agility, and Manufacturing Capacity