The interface between solid electrolyte (SE) and cathode active material in all-solid-state Li-ion batteries (ASSLIBs) is vulnerable to debonding during charge-discharge because of the different chemo-mechanical responses of the two components. Maintaining its close contact, vital to long-term cycle stability, currently relies mainly on applying extraordinary stacking pressures, which hinders practical applications of ASSLIBs. We herein report the development of free-standing-type composite cathodes containing Ni-rich Li(Ni, Co, Mn)O-2 (NCM; Ni stoichiometries >= 0.83) active materials and Li3InCl6 (LIC) SE with chemically fused robust interfaces that enable long-term cycle stability under a stacking pressure as low as nearly 2 MPa. The strong interface is realized via a novel in-situ recrystallization (ISR) process of LIC, which not only enhances close contact between the two solid components but also induces a chemically bonded interface, as revealed by synchrotron X-ray analyses. The bonded interface, while maintaining Li ion diffusion, exhibits extraordinary mechanical robustness against interfacial debonding even under low operating stacking pressures. A free-standing composite cathode containing LiNi0.88Co0.06Mn0.05Al0.01O2 (NCM88) and LIC, having a high specific capacity of similar to 200 mAh g(-1), is demonstrated to sustain 1500 charge-discharge cycles under similar to 2 MPa. This work points to the new strategy of chemically fused interface for achieving prolonged cycle stability of ASSLIBs under low stacking pressures.

Numerous environmental pollutants exhibit ototoxicity and cause damage to the lateral line structures in fish, including the neuromast and its hair cells. The lateral line is used to detect hydrodynamic changes and is thought to play a significant role in aggressive interactions. Fighting behaviors in fish are crucial for establishing social hierarchy and obtaining limited resources. In this study, we ablated the function of hair cells using a commonly used ototoxin, neomycin, to evaluate the impact of this ototoxic pollutant on fighting behavior through damaging the lateral line. Our results showed that the number of wins and the duration of dyadic fight behavior decreased in zebrafish with lateral line ablation. These zebrafish also exhibited increased anxiety and biting frequencies. On the other hand, social preferences and fitness were not affected in lateral line-ablated zebrafish. In conclusion, the lateral line mechanosensory system is crucial for fish to gather sufficient information and make correct decisions during conflicts and fighting behaviors. Impairment of hair cell function can affect aggressive behaviors and decision-making in fish, subtly altering their behavioral patterns and leading to significant impacts on the aquatic ecosystem.

Herein, we demonstrate a novel and feasible strategy to stabilize the LiNi0.83Co0.12Mn0.05O2 (NCM) structure via the in-situ formation of a superficial spinel layer with potassium (K) doping. While K+ doped NCM is not new, the formation of the protective spinel layer gives surprising results with even a trace amount of doping, which is unique and novel, and nowhere reported. The structural transformation from layered to spinel on the surface region of NCM is achieved with a K-doping level of 0.05 mol% (NCM-0.05K) and the formed spinel layer acted as a protective pillar for stabilizing the host structure, leading to substantially improved electrochemical performance. The X-ray photoelectron spectra demonstrate a large increase in nickel (Ni2+) distribution after cycling for pristine but almost no change for the NCM-0.05K, suggesting a stable preformed spinel layer. The above results reveal that the K+ doping can strongly reduce the Ni4+ to stable Ni2+ under the spinel phase formation and improves cell performances in terms of specific capacity, capacity retention, rate capability, and Li+ diffusivity. The internal micro-cracking of host NCM is also effectively suppressed by the low amount of K doping. Excessive K-doping, in contrast, leads to a reduction in (de)lithiation rate and greater polarization.

Low temperature is one of the most common abiotic stresses for aquatic ectotherms. Ambient low temperatures reduce the metabolic rate of teleosts, therefore, teleosts have developed strategies to modulate their physiological status for energy saving in response to cold stress, including behaviors, circulatory system, respiratory function, and metabolic adjustments. Many teleosts are social animals and they can live in large schools to serve a variety of functions, including predator avoidance, foraging efficiency, and reproduction. However, the impacts of acute cold stress on social behaviors of fish remain unclear. In the present study, we test the hypothesis that zebrafish alter their social behaviors for energy saving as a strategy in response to acute cold stress. We found that acute cold stress increased shoaling behavior that reflected a save-energy strategy for fish to forage and escape from the predators under cold stress. The aggressive levels measured by fighting behavior tests and mirror fighting tests were reduced by cold treatment. In addition, we also found that acute cold stress impaired the learning ability but did not affect memory. Our findings provided evidence that acute cold stress alters the social behaviors of aquatic ectotherms for energy saving; knowledge of their responses to cold is essential for their conservation and management.

BackgroundWhile the challenges of COVID-19 are still unfolding, the enhancement of protective behavior remains a top priority in global health care. However, current behavior-promoting strategies may be inefficient without first identifying the individuals with lower engagement in protective behavior and the associating factors. ObjectiveThis study aimed to identify individuals with and potential contributing factors to low engagement in protective behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic. MethodsThis is a causal-comparative study. A theory-based web-based survey was used to investigate individuals’ protective behavior and potential associating factors. During June 2020, the distribution of the survey was targeted to 3 areas: Taiwan, Japan, and North America. Based on the theory of the health belief model (HBM), the survey collected participants’ various perceptions toward COVID-19 and a collection of protective behaviors. In addition to the descriptive analysis, cluster analysis, ANOVA, and Fisher exact and chi-square tests were used. ResultsA total of 384 responses were analyzed. More than half of the respondents lived in Taiwan, followed by Japan, then North America. The respondents were grouped into 3 clusters according to their engagement level in all protective behaviors. These 3 clusters were significantly different from each other in terms of the participants’ sex, residency, perceived barriers, self-efficacy, and cues of action. ConclusionsThis study used an HBM-based questionnaire to assess protective behaviors against COVID-19 and the associated factors across multiple countries. The findings indicate significant differences in various HBM concepts among individuals with varying levels of behavioral engagement.

Objectives: Informed by the dual process theory of supportive message, the aim of this study is to systemati-cally describe symptom communication, including its relationship with patient outcomes. Data Sources: This is a mixed-methods study with an exploratory design. By examining symptom communi-cation that occurred in oncology and hospice outpatient clinics, the qualitative phase employed conversation analysis to validate a typology of interaction patterns. The subsequent quantitative phase examined the rela-tionship between interaction patterns and patient outcomes. Conclusion: A total of 52 cancer patients' outpatient communications with their health care providers were included in the analysis. Ten unique interaction patterns were identified and defined. Among the 10 interac-tion patterns, some patterns are significantly associated with critical patient outcomes, including satisfaction, health communication self-efficacy, and symptom agreement between patients and their health care pro-viders. This study represents one of the few mixed-methods studies to examine the patterns of real outpa-tient symptom communications and link them to concrete patient outcomes. Implications for Nursing Practice: Our results present various interaction patterns that are commonly used in medical encounters and suggest that using some patterns affects critical patient outcomes. & COPY; 2022 Published by Elsevier Inc.

The development of high-energy-density Li-ion batteries (LIBs) to meet the demand for electric vehicles and sustainable energy storage applications simultaneously brings about more safety issues. On the anode side, graphite has been a major anode material for high-energy LIBs and is anticipated to continuously play an important role even for the high-capacity Si-graphite (Si-Gr) composite anodes in the near future. The low lithiation electrochemical potential of graphite enables a lower anode potential allowing higher energy for a full cell but is vulnerable to the plating of metallic Li dendrite, which could easily arise from either over-lithiation, due to heterogeneity in the negative electrode, or fast charging. Li dendritic deposits could penetrate through the separator to trigger cell short-circuit and eventually thermal runaway. On the cathode side, the high surface reactivity and low oxygen lattice stability of the Ni-rich layered oxide cathodes lower the thermal stability. This study focuses on enhancing the safety of LIB full-cells by modifying the properties and stability of the solid-electrolyte interphases (SEIs) respectively on the anode and cathode electrodes. A polymeric artificial SEI for the anode is developed not only to improve the electrode performance but also effectively suppress SEI and Li dendrite formation. Meanwhile, a composite coating for the cathode is derived to simultaneously enhance the cycle stability and thermal stability, due to the altered thermal decomposition pathway, of an NCM811 cathode. The overall enhanced safety of the full cells is illustrated with the nail penetration test, and the safety-enhancing mechanisms are revealed by conducting post-mortem and synchrotron-based operando studies.

A boron-nitride based dispersive composite coating, developed using a rapid low-temperature post-calcination process, has been shown to significantly improve the cycle stability and safety of Ni-rich layered cathodes.

The electric vehicle (EV) market has grown tremendously in recent years, and is driving the development of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) for energy storage. To meet the demand for high-energy-density and low-cost LIBs, Co-free and Ni-rich cathodes (e.g., LiNiO2; LNO) and Si anodes are being investigated. However, drawbacks of LNO, such as cation mixing, processing challenges, and safety risks significantly limit its commercialization. Increasing the oxygen partial pressure (p(O2)) during calcination of LNO has been shown to maintain its structural order and electrochemical performance. However, the mechanism by this observation is not well understood. In this research, three p(O2) conditions were applied during the calcination of LNO cathodes. The calcination p(O2) affects the sub-surface of LNO rather than the bulk region. Synchrotron spectroscopy and in-situ pressure analysis confirmed that Ni2+ and excess Li are present on the sub-surface of the LNO processed at the lowest p(O2). Increasing the p(O2) decreases the off-stoichiometry of LNO by providing additional oxygen to compensate for oxygen loss, especially at the sub-surface. A detailed mechanism by which the calcination p(O2) affects LNO is proposed. An LIB with the LNO cathode calcined at the highest p(O2) had a high initial capacity of 239.8 mA h g(-1) (93.4 %), excellent fast charging cycle retention of half-cell and full cell at 55 degrees C, little gas evolution during cycling, and almost no weight change during storage in air. This calcining strategy prevents the cation mixing limitation of LNO, taking it one step closer to future EV application.

Due to the continuously aggravating global warming crisis, the aim of reducing CO2 emissions by replacing fossil fuels with clean energy sources has raised the demand for electric vehicles (EVs) and driven research in pursuing high-energy rechargeable lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). For the cathode component, Ni-rich cathode materials such as LiNixCoyMn1-x-yO2 (NCM) have been widely adopted in commercial EVs due to their high specific capacity (~200 mAh/g) and high operating voltage (~ 4V vs. Li/Li+). However, Ni-rich cathode materials are still confronting challenges such as poor cycle stability and safety issues. To tackle these problems, a boron-based surface modification of Ni-rich cathode material (NCM) is achieved via a low-temperature process in this work. The coated NCM shows comparable rate capability but with substantially improved cycle stability. In terms of safety issues (thermal runaway process), the onset temperature of the thermal runaway process in presence of electrolyte is delayed by 40°C while the total heat release and the maximum heat flow are both decreased by over 40%. Post mortem and in situ X-ray characterizations using synchrotron radiation further illustrate the reasons of the enhanced cycle stability and safety. Results show that the boron-based composite coating is able to decrease the extent of reaction between NCM and the electrolyte during both cycling and the thermal runaway process. Our results demonstrate the use of a low-temperature boron-based composite coating as an effective surface modification method of Ni-rich cathode materials to achieve long-life and high-safety lithium-ion batteries.

Context. Exploring the congruence of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) evaluation provides valuable information regarding whether proxies can accurately reflect patient perceptions and the quality of symptom communication. It is particularly important in advanced cancer population who experience poor HRQOL and have deteriorated ability to express their feelings. Objectives. The aims of this study were to investigate the congruence of HRQOL reports between patient-physician and patient-caregiver dyads and to determine the association of variables, if any, with the congruence between dyads. Methods. This correlational study with a cross-sectional design first approached physicians who provided care for patients with advanced cancer at the participating institution. Then, participating physicians’ patients and their caregivers were recruited. All participants were required to independently fill out an HRQOL questionnaire during their outpatient visits. Descriptive statistics, weighted kappa, Wilcoxon signed-rank test, and linear regression were employed for data analysis. Results. A total of 52 patient-physician and 27 patient-caregiver dyads were examined. Patients suffered from considerable problems in all three HRQOL domains: symptom, functioning, and overall HRQOL. The patients’ level of agreement was moderate with the caregivers and fair with the physicians. A significant relationship was found between several patient-related variables and disagreement. Conclusion. These patients with advanced cancer experienced a compromised HRQOL, warranting immediate attention. When there are barriers to obtaining a patient’s self-report, clinicians may consider caregivers as a reasonable source. Patients with special characteristics need additional attention because their problems may be at a greater risk of being overlooked.

To slow the spread of infectious disease, it is crucial to understand the engagement of protective behavior among individuals. The purpose of this study was to systematically examine individuals’ protective behaviors and the associated factors across countries during COVID - 19. This causal-comparative study used a self-developed online survey to assess individuals’ level of engagement with six protective behaviors. Analysis of variance and McNemar’s test were employed for data analysis. Three hundred and eighty-four responses were analyzed. The majority of participants lived in three areas: Taiwan, Japan, and North America. Overall, the participants reported a high level of engagement in protective behaviors. However, engagement levels varied according to several demographic variables. Hand hygiene and cleaning/ventilation are two independent behaviors that differ from almost all other protective behaviors. There is a need to target the population at risk, which demonstrates low compliance. Different strategies are needed to promote specific protective behaviors.

An exclusive room-temperature synthesis process is developed for producing cubic spinel LiMn2O4 (CLMO), a lowcost, environmentally friendly, and fast-charging cathode material for Li-ion batteries. CLMO is synthesized using an electrochemical ion-exchange (ECIE) process in an aqueous electrolyte, starting from Mn3O4 nanocrystallites that are obtained based on facile solution reduction chemistry. In the ECIE process, Mn2+ from the Mn3O4 tetrahedral site is exchanged by Li+ from the electrolyte by applying a cyclic voltammetry (CV) routine. The ECIE mechanism is clearly revealed by the combination of CV profile evolution and in situ/operando synchrotron X-ray diffraction and X-ray absorption spectroscopy analyses. The resulting CLMO electrode presents a typical battery behavior with promising high-rate characteristics, showing, for instance, 62% of the full capacity at a charging-discharging (C-D) rate of 8C in an aqueous electrolyte together with a capacity retention of 80% over 500 cycles with a C-D current density of 1 A g(-1). The electrochemical ion-exchange process may offer the opportunity to prepare other high-performance electrode materials for Li-ion battery applications.

Internet services such as email and video streaming are daily necessity for many of us. To scale to the demand of service quality and continuity, major services today operate on server clusters. Growingly large, long-lasting, and dynamic, these server clusters are pretty much ecosystems themselves. Drawing from the observation, we see a window of opportunity applying techniques in ecology, e.g., Capture-Mark-Recapture (i.e., CMR) for server population estimation, a problem fundamental to cluster monitoring.

Recent preclinical studies have shown the potential benefits of short-term calorie reduction (SCR) on cancer treatment. In this integrative review, we aimed to identify and synthesize current evidence regarding the feasibility, process, and effects of SCR in cancer patients receiving chemotherapy. PubMed, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Ovid Medline, PsychINFO, and Embase were searched for original research articles using various combinations of Medical Subject Heading terms. Among the 311 articles identified, seven studies met the inclusion criteria. The majority of the reviewed studies were small randomized controlled trials or cohort study with fair quality. The results suggest that SCR is safe and feasible. SCR is typically arranged around the chemotherapy, with the duration ranging from 24 to 96 h. Most studies examined the protective effects of SCR on normal cells during chemotherapy. The evidence supports that SCR had the potential to enhance both the physical and psychological wellbeing of patients during chemotherapy. SCR is a cost-effective intervention with great potential. Future well-controlled studies with sufficient sample sizes are needed to examine the full and long-term effects of SCR and its mechanism of action.