Bücher veröffentlicht von Mdpi AG

The aim of this second Eng Special Issue is to collect experimental and theoretical re-search relating to engineering science and technology. The general topics of Eng are as follows: electrical, electronic and information engineering; chemical and materials engineering; energy engineering; mechanical and automotive engineering; industrial and manufacturing engineering; civil and structural engineering; aerospace engineering; biomedical engineering; geotechnical engineering and engineering geology; and ocean and environmental engineering. Therefore, the following editorial is a selection of representative works of these topics.

At present, the digital economy is creating a new approach to sustainable development. In particular, this relates to the transformation of the traditional economy via the influence of digitalization on finance management processes. The digital economy is affecting changes in resource management processes. Dynamic digital transformation processes are currently taking place and exerting influence on the shaping of new business models. Existing business models are changing, particularly in the context of their life cycle. The new economic model is rendered social factors more important in terms of creating value for people and the natural environment. Trust in financial institutions, which is also a factor in sustainable business models, is an important criterion for business research. Economic model based on the irresponsible use of natural resources have been heavily criticized for years, and societies have begun to reject business models that negatively impact the environment. The aim of this Special Issue is to present the results of research on the current trends and challenges related to the digital revolution in financial management for sustainable development, an issue that requires extensive research and analysis.

Transcriptional regulation is a critical biological process that allows the cell or an organism to respond to a variety of intra- and extracellular signals, to define cell identity during development, to maintain it throughout its lifetime, and to coordinate cellular activity. This control involves multiple temporal and functional steps as well as innumerable molecules including transcription factors, cofactors, and chromatin regulators. It is well known that many human disorders are characterized by global transcriptional dysregulation because most of the signaling pathways ultimately target transcription machinery. Indeed, many syndromes and genetic and complex diseases-cancer, autoimmunity, neurological and developmental disorders, and metabolic and cardiovascular diseases-can be caused by mutations/alterations in regulatory sequences, transcription factors, splicing regulators, cofactors, chromatin regulators, ncRNAs, and other components of transcription apparatus. It is worth noting that advances in our understanding of molecules and mechanisms involved in the transcriptional circuitry and apparatus lead to new insights into the pathogenetic mechanisms of various human diseases and disorders. Thus, this Special Issue is focused on molecular genetics and genomics studies exploring the effects of transcriptional misregulation on human diseases.

Rapid advances in modelling research have created new challenges and opportunities for statisticians. Statistical inference in observational studies and many other emerging fields have motivated statisticians worldwide to develop cutting-edge methods and analytical strategies.The aim of this book is to showcase the applications and methodological research in all fields of computational statistics. This book will provide a forum for computer scientists, mathematicians, and statisticians working in a variety of areas in statistics, including biometrics, econometrics, data analysis, graphics, and simulation.

Existing competitiveness between companies in the global market requires a high degree of proactivity, with an aim of reducing costs, increasing quality, and providing the market with innovative products that are in line with the natural evolution of customer demands. The concepts of the Toyota Production System, which have led to the adoption of lean manufacturing, have helped industrial managers to implement tools and practices that eliminate or substantially reduce wastes that normally exist in conventional production lines. However, the need for successive increase in flexibility necessitates a more favorable evolution with technological advancements in the programming of equipment and devices, along with the use of robotics and the integration of information throughout the product manufacturing cycle using the IoT or powerful networks. This concept, usually referred to as Industry 4.0, is in line with the principles of lean manufacturing, although it can only be supported by a true technological revolution involving remote programming of machines, integration of manufacturing processes, and real-time control of the work performed through an entire production cycle. This Special Issue showcases important contributions in the area of lean manufacturing and Industry 4.0, with innovative concepts that will certainly enthuse and strengthen readers' knowledge.

Growing evidence supports the important role of nutrition in health and performance. Nutritional interventions, alone or in combination with physical exercise, have proven effective for reducing the incidence of different chronic diseases and their associated risk factors (e.g., obesity, diabetes, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia). A healthy diet also seems to prevent many of the detrimental consequences of aging, notably sarcopenia and frailty. On the other hand, diet has been reported to influence physical performance, with nutrition, including nutritional supplements, being a cornerstone in the armamentarium of athletes. The role of nutrition seems, therefore, wide; however, although research is rapidly growing, controversy and debate still exists as to the optimal nutritional strategies for disease prevention and sports performance enhancement. The present Special Issue aimed to report recent findings on the role of nutrition in disease prevention and sports performance enhancement, as well as to summarize current evidence on these topics.

This Special Issue on the "Dynamic Behavior of Materials" collected recent research findings on the dynamic behavior of various materials. A collection of fifteen peer-reviewed research articles were included in this Special Issue. The main topics covered include processing technology, state-of-the-art characterization, testing, theoretic modeling, and simulation. We hope that this Special Issue will be interesting for the academic community, and also hope that it will shed light on future research activities in this field.

This special issue focuses on energy and the environment, including the latest research results and prospects. The special issue contains eleven original articles and two review articles. Most of the works focused on the synthesis and related mechanisms of photocatalytic nanomaterials. Photocatalysis technology has great potential to solve energy shortages and environmental pollution. Improving the sunlight utilization efficiency and catalytic activity of photocatalytic nanomaterials is the key problem that restricts the large-scale application of photocatalytic technology. This special issue details the internal mechanism of enhancing photocatalytic activity from element doping, constructing composite heterogeneous structures, introducing organic photosensitive materials, morphology control, and so on. These contributions provide various approaches to designing and establishing efficient photocatalytic nanomaterials.

Concrete, one of the most often-used building materials today, is the cornerstone of modern buildings all over the world, being used for foundations, pavements, building walls, architectural structures, highways, bridges, overpasses, and so on. Because of its adaptability, concrete may be found in practically every construction, in some form or another. Yet, the diverse nature of its components, their combinations, and their doses result in a very wide range of concrete kinds with varying properties. As a result, concrete is a material that is always evolving and is popular even now, especially when it comes to circular economy.Other ways of concrete manufacturing are now being researched to lessen or remove the limits of this material, which are connected to its brittleness and poor environmental effects. As a result, the development of engineering cementitious composites has resulted in a significant reduction in flexibility issues, while the introduction of new additives and the optimization of the manufacturing process has resulted in a significant reduction in the negative effects of virgin raw material exploitation. In-depth research is still required to optimize and increase the sustainability of these advanced engineering cementitious composites or alternative concretes.In this Special Issue (SI), state-of-the-art research and review articles on the emerging material systems for AM are collected, with a focus on the process-structure-properties relationships. In total, eleven research papers and six reviews have been collected.

There is growing evidence that among persons with disordered eating behavior, the identification of an "addictive-like eating" phenotype for some persons could be relevant and improve our ability to design better tailored interventions. This "addictive-like eating behavior" phenotype encompasses different terms or concepts, including "food addiction", "eating addiction", "compulsive eating behavior", and "food craving", but also applies to some persons with binge eating disorder, bulimia nervosa, anorexia nervosa, or binge eating symptoms. Although these terms may theoretically refer to different underlying causes or conceptualizations of addictive-like eating, all agree on the complex and multifaceted public health problem it represents and on the similarities it shares with other addictive disorders in terms of etiology, epidemiology, and treatment.Addictive-like eating behavior can deleteriously impact the patient's outcome and may lead to poorer weight loss evolution, increased prevalence of co-occurring medical and/or psychiatric disorders, and/or lower quality of life. One of the key challenges for the present and future research is to better identify this subpopulation of patients exhibiting this addictive-like eating phenotype, and to identify the psychological/psychiatric factors and biological mechanisms underlying this increased vulnerability to addictive-like eating. Such preliminary knowledge is crucial for enabling the development of interventions targeting these vulnerability risk factors and, ultimately, improving patient outcomes.

The present reprint contains the 11 papers that were accepted and published in the Special Issue "Applied and Computational Mathematics for Digital Environments" of the MDPI Mathematics journal. The topics of interest include, among others, scientific research, applied tasks, and problems in the following areas:The construction of mathematical and information models of intelligent computer systems for monitoring and controlling the parameters of digital environments;The development of intelligent optimization algorithms that search for optimal parameter values of mathematical and information models in digital environments;Software and mathematical technologies in the implementation of intelligent monitoring and computer control of the parameters of digital environments;The development and application of mathematical and information models, machine learning methods, and artificial intelligence for the analysis and processing of big data in digital environments.I hope that this reprint will be useful to those who are interested in the real-world applications of applied and computational mathematics for digital environments in terms of solving actual, practical problems in all spheres of human life and activity.

Discover the complexities of pediatric orthopedics in this comprehensive reprint book. Pediatric orthopedics present unique challenges in diagnosis and treatment, necessitating the expertise of skilled specialists. Congenital, developmental, and acquired orthopedic issues, including infectious, neuromuscular, nutritional, neoplastic, psychogenic, and traumatic conditions, are explored. With a focus on evidence-based recommendations, this book addresses the management of orthopedic deformities in children by considering different clinical scenarios. From upper and lower limb injuries to severe trauma, readers will gain insights into decision-making processes for reconstruction or amputation. As a valuable resource for orthopedic surgeons, pediatricians, and healthcare professionals, this reprint fills knowledge gaps to optimize patient care.

Toll-like receptors (TLRs) represent a powerful system for the recognition and elimination of pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) from bacteria, viruses, and other pathogens and damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) released from dying cells. Typical PAMPs include bacterial cell wall components, viral pathogens, or pathogenic nucleic acids, including viral RNA and DNA. Activation of TLRs leads to the production of proinflammatory cytokines and type I interferons which are important for the induction of the host immune response against bacterial and viral infections. However, dysregulation and overstimulation can be detrimental, leading to hyper-inflammation, sepsis, and loss of tissue integrity. The involvement of TLRs in inflammation and bacterial infection has been recognized for a long time. There is an increasing number of reports demonstrating the involvement of TLR activation in a variety of viral infections, associated with protective immunity, but also immune hyper activation and even viral replication. Recent data show the involvement of TLR activation in various acute respiratory viral infections, including SARS-CoV-2 and indicate an essential role in COVID-19 pathology. It aimed to gather newest data and hypotheses regarding molecular and cellular mechanisms of TLR triggering and activation and their downstream signaling pathways by viral infections, and their correlation to immunology and pathophysiology of the associated diseases, to facilitate translational research resulting in new targets for the treatment of viral infectious diseases including COVID-19.

Fatigue and fracture are important design criteria for marine structures subjected to static and cyclic loading. In particular, the ability to ensure structural integrity under all design conditions is of the utmost importance for the safety of humans and the environment. Many efforts have been made to develop fatigue and fracture mechanics methods in recent decades; however, discrepancies between predicted and actual strength remain due to various reasons. Hence, this Special Issue aims to collect descriptions of fatigue and fracture mechanical behaviour of marine structures. Studies demonstrating novel methods (either analytical, empirical or numerical), as well as presentations of case studies or innovative test studies, were invited. This includes considerations of parameters which have a large influence on fatigue and fracture behaviour of materials, welded joints or structural components, such as loading conditions, scale effects, etc.

Arthritis has a high prevalence globally and includes over 100 types, the most common of which are rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, psoriatic arthritis, and inflammatory arthritis. All types of arthritis share common features of the disease, including monocyte infiltration, inflammation, synovial swelling, pannus formation, stiffness in the joints, and articular cartilage destruction. The exact etiology of arthritis remains unclear, and no cure exists as of yet. Anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs and corticosteroids) are commonly used in the treatment of arthritis. However, these drugs are associated with significant side effects, such as gastric bleeding and an increased risk of heart attack and other cardiovascular problems. It is therefore crucial that we continue to research the pathogenesis of arthritis and seek to discover novel modes of therapy. This book summarizes the themes of the 29 articles published in our Special Issue "Research of Pathogenesis and Novel Therapeutics in Arthritis 2.0". This book details important novel research discoveries that contribute to our current understanding of arthritis.

The ongoing twin transition of the wood-based panel industry towards a green, digital, and more resilient bioeconomy is essential for a successful transformation to decarbonize the sector and implement a circular development model, transforming linear industrial value chains to minimize pollution and waste generation, and providing more sustainable growth and jobs. This green transition represents an opportunity to place the wood-based panel industry on a new path of more sustainable and inclusive growth, tackling climate change and reducing its dependence on fossil-derived raw materials, thus improving the industry's resource efficiency and security. It provides examples of the most recent advances and technological developments in the design, production, characteristics, and current and future applications of sustainable, eco-friendly wood and wood-based composites with enhanced properties and a reduced carbon footprint. It is intended for material scientists, wood scientists, environmental scientists, graduate and postgraduate students in Wood Science and Technology, as well as wood-based panel industry professionals. In addition, the content is relevant to government authorities and stakeholders working in the domain of sustainable wood value chains, aimed at achieving Sustainable Development Goals and enhanced contribution of the forest-based sector to long-term climate change mitigation.

"Soft Computing and Machine Learning in Dam Engineering" is a comprehensive, edited Special Issue that explores the latest advances in the application of soft computing and machine learning techniques to dam engineering. This reprint covers a range of topics, including dam design, construction, monitoring, and maintenance, and provides readers with a deep understanding of the theoretical foundations and practical applications of these techniques.Featuring contributions from leading experts in the field, the reprint presents a collection of 11 papers that offer insights into state-of-the-art approaches in dam engineering. The chapters cover topics such as fuzzy logic, genetic algorithms, artificial neural networks, and support vector machines, and provide practical examples of how these techniques can be applied to solve real-world dam engineering problems.Whether you are a researcher, engineer, or student in the field of dam engineering, "Soft Computing and Machine Learning in Dam Engineering" provides a valuable resource for staying up-to-date with the latest techniques and approaches in the field.

This reprint aims to present research on Socio-Economic Functions Across Sustainable Farming Systems, specifically on environmental conservation agriculture/climate-smart agriculture, which boosts nature-positive production, raises the welfare of producers; agricultural biotechnology, which contributes to economic and environmental sustainability; community-based extension and marketing of farm produce, which ensures the livelihood of producers and access to safe and nutritious food; and building a society resilient to all kinds of crises and hazards/disasters.This reprint reveals: 1) Drivers and dynamics of environmental conservation agriculture, the sustainable farming systems in Japan to address climate change, biodiversity conservation, sustainable production, welfare of producers and leveraging their participation in Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems. 2) Biotech crops in the Philippines can coexist with the practice of climate resilient environmental conservation agriculture. 3) Community-based extension services, such as farmer field school, disaster management practices, such as flood adaptation strategy, and marketing strategy of farm products enhance the welfare of rural population in Bangladesh.Identification of socio-economic characteristics associated with farming practices, food safety, food security and their constraints in South Africa and Senegal. 4) Benefit of financing agricultural cooperatives to enhance sustainable production in Romania.

The correct management of territory and its planning based on scientific criteria in the face of the anthropogenic impacts of human activities is one of the main challenges in the 21st century. This publication includes some of the latest advancements in environmental planning and spatial analysis related to the ecological management of territory from a multidisciplinary perspective. The research papers from different researchers, scholars and experts in this field included in this collection were published by the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health after undergoing a rigorous anonymous peer review process.

Earth observation (EO), remote sensing (RS), and geoinformation (GI) technologies play a critical role in the study of Svalbard's environment, providing insights into the region's changes and supporting decision-making processes. This book presents a comprehensive overview of the applications of EO and RS technologies in Svalbard, covering a wide range of topics related to the environment. It includes contributions from leading experts in the field, providing insights into the current state of the art and future directions for research. The book starts by introducing the status of EO and RS in Svalbard, providing a solid foundation for readers new to the field. It then delves into specific applications of these technologies, including the monitoring of glaciers, snow cover, and permafrost using ground-, space-, and air-based RS platforms. Overall, this book aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the applications of EO and RS technologies in Svalbard, highlighting their importance in understanding and addressing the challenges faced by the region. It will be a valuable resource for researchers, students, policymakers, and practitioners in the fields of environmental science, geography, and remote sensing.

This reprint focusses on Smartness, a multidisciplinary topic, which is examined from four perspectives: Sensors, IoT, and Data Generation; Data and Information Processing; Actuation; and Digital Systems and Infrastructure. We see smartness in the way sensing is embedded in a system, the way data and information are processed, how a system interacts internally and with its environment, and whether a system is ubiquitous or limited by space (cloud-based or edge-enabled). This reprint contains a total of 14 chapters, which are grouped according to their areas of application: mobility and transportation, healthcare, industrial environments, and other urban infrastructures. This book covers a range of topics, including mobility; healthcare; image analysis; permeable pavements; solid-waste management; sensor node and gateway architectures; cloud, fog, and edge computing; air-quality monitoring; thermal anomalies and smart helmets in industrial environments; smart airports; smart districts; smart travel choices; sensor cities; artificially intelligent cities; platform urbanism; and more.

Streams and rivers are subject to considerable hydrodynamic loads. Flow interactions with natural or man-made structures in open channels lead to the development of complex dynamic processes, requiring further studies to comprehend fully. This Special Issue has been conceived to facilitate improvement or propose new approaches, summarize the most important findings of previous studies, and encourage the development of further knowledge in the field of open-channel flows. Various topics are addressed in this SI, including flow interaction with hydraulic structures, flow dynamics in estuaries, flow-vegetation interactions, bed sediment effects on flow structures, and the effect of channel curvature on flow behaviors and sediment transport. The studies published in this Special Issue certainly help readers understand the turbulent flow involved in open channels and apply that understanding to the design and practice of hydraulic engineering and river management.

Taxonomy, floristic studies, biosystematics, classical taxonomy, and modern taxonomic advances; phylogenomics, phylogenetics, and biogeography, including phylogeography; and the description of well-documented new taxonomic taxa, monographs, and taxonomic revisions. It incorporates data from classical morphology (including both macro and micro morphology), molecular study, anatomy and ecology, distribution, molecular evolution, evolutionary development, population biology, conservation biology, evolutionary ecology, paleobiology, and related methods and theories in recent development in systematics and floristic studies.

"Material Analysis in Cultural Heritage" describes the application of modern analytical techniques in the studies of selected historical materials, their properties, and processes they undergo. The topics include glass and ceramics, metal preservation, functionality and testing of historic and modern building materials, origins of specific stones, decomposition of painting pigments, and the construction of historic violins.

This book focuses on information and coding theoretic metrics, analyses, and methods applied to future communication and computation systems. Analyses of learning algorithms and information security problems are studied in detail. The main themes addressed are multiple access channels, interference channels, and delay-Doppler domain analysis, as well as secure and private compression, matrix multiplication, and transmission methods.

The use of educational games and gamification in teaching has been a global trend in educational research, and this reprint focuses on research related to the use of game-based learning or gamification in teaching. This reprint contains empirical studies and systematic reviews regarding the use of games in teaching, spanning many subject areas. It includes various gamification mechanisms, escape room educational games, the evaluation of various digital educational games, and other topics.

Machine learning and computational intelligence have been applied to various areas and witnessed many successes. The research in this publication explorse many intelligent algorithms which are characterized by computational adaptability, robustness, and high performance. These algorithms facilitate intelligent behavior in complex and dynamic environments and the development of technology that enables machines to think, behave, or act in a more humanesque fashion. This reprint aims to present and discuss the most recent innovations, trends, concerns, challenges, solutions, and application fields in the areas of machine learning and computational intelligence.

Recently, Chinese researchers have made significant progress in animal venom research in comprehending the diversity and complexity of these molecules and their potential applications in medicine, biotechnology, and as research tools. Advancements in 'omics' technologies such as proteomics, genomics, and transcriptomics have empowered Chinese researchers to identify and analyze venom-coded genes and proteins, revealing a kaleidoscope of novel peptide toxins with diverse functions and activities. The reprint focus on the perspective on some of the most recent and dynamic contributions of animal toxins research by Chinese researchers. The purpose of this reprint is to provide the latest work by Chinese researchers on the discovery of animal toxins, the mechanism underlining their actions, the mining of drug leads from peptide toxins, and the diagnosis and treatment of bites or stings by venomous animals.

This book captures recent advancements in the introduction, usage, and adoption of smart and digital disruptive technologies in the built environment. It consists of 17 chapters covering a range of topics and article types. The key topics include the adoption of smart technologies, automation, and disruption in the built environment, such as wearable devices and augmented reality in construction safety, electronic process monitoring for construction tasks, digital capture of buildings through point clouds, UAVs, and LIDAR, BIM for a learning environment, underground works and wood construction, collaborative information management technologies in construction, techniques for structural health monitoring and evaluation, construction risk management, inclusive walking communities, smart spin models for cities, landfill and waste management in cities, and circular economy in construction for sustainable development.

The present reprint aimed to present original research articles and reviews concerning the following:Access: affordability, allocation, and preference of food;Availability: the production, distribution, and exchange of food;Circularity in food systems at local, regional, or global levels;The development, impact, and ethics of novel and data-driven technologies in food systems;Food security and policy, governance, institutions, and trade;Influencing food consumption and demand regarding the food environment;The stability and dynamics of food security aspects;Sustainable food systems and agro-ecological food production;Utilization: the nutritional value, social value, and safety of food.