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Enhancing the quantum efficiency of a silicon solar cell using one dimensional thin film interferometry

Ahuja et al. | May 03, 2024

Enhancing the quantum efficiency of a silicon solar cell using one dimensional thin film interferometry
Image credit: American Public Power Association

Here, recognizing the need to improve the efficiency of the conversion of solar energy to electrical energy, the authors used MATLAB to mathematically simulate a multi-layered thin film with an without an antireflective coating. They found that the use of alternating ZnO-SiO2 multilayers enhanced the transmission of light into the solar cell, increasing its efficiency and reducing the reflectivity of the Si-Air interface.

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A multi-dimensional analysis of NFL red zone efficiency

Kim et al. | Mar 16, 2026

A multi-dimensional analysis of NFL red zone efficiency
Image credit: Ben Hershey

Here the authors investigated the relationship between offensive play-calling styles and scoring success within the NFL's red zone by analyzing play-by-play data and expected points metrics. Their findings suggest that a conservative approach to play design and execution is more strongly associated with maximizing efficiency and point-value gains than aggressive strategies.

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Assessing machine learning model efficacy for brain tumor MRI classification: a multi-model approach

Dhingra et al. | Mar 14, 2026

Assessing machine learning model efficacy for brain tumor MRI classification: a multi-model approach
Image credit: Dhingra and Dhingra

This manuscript explores the performance of five different machine learning models in classifying brain tumors from a dataset of MRI scans. The authors find that several of the models showed >90% accuracy. Thus, the authors suggest that machine learning models demonstrate potential for effective implementation in clinical settings, including as a diagnostic tool that can be used to complement the expertise of neuroradiologists.

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LawCrypt: Secret Sharing for Attorney-Client Data in a Multi-Provider Cloud Architecture

Zhang et al. | Jul 19, 2020

LawCrypt: Secret Sharing for Attorney-Client Data in a Multi-Provider Cloud Architecture

In this study, the authors develop an architecture to implement in a cloud-based database used by law firms to ensure confidentiality, availability, and integrity of attorney documents while maintaining greater efficiency than traditional encryption algorithms. They assessed whether the architecture satisfies necessary criteria and tested the overall file sizes the architecture could process. The authors found that their system was able to handle larger file sizes and fit engineering criteria. This study presents a valuable new tool that can be used to ensure law firms have adequate security as they shift to using cloud-based storage systems for their files.

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Investigating KNOX Gene Expression in Aquilegia Petal Spur Development

Hossain et al. | Feb 03, 2014

Investigating KNOX Gene Expression in Aquilegia Petal Spur Development

Plants, and all other multi-cellular organisms, develop through the coordinated action of many sets of genes. The authors here investigate the genes, in a class named KNOX, potentially responsible for organizing a certain part of Aquilegia (columbine) flowers called petal spurs. Through the technique Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR), they find that certain KNOX genes are expressed non-uniformly in petal spurs, suggesting that they may be involved, perhaps in a cell-specific manner. This research will help guide future efforts toward understanding how many beautiful flowers develop their unique shapes.

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Enhancing activity of antibiotics against Staphylococcus aureus with Shuang-Huang-Lian

Liu et al. | Sep 29, 2022

Enhancing activity of antibiotics against Staphylococcus aureus with Shuang-Huang-Lian

Staphylococcus aureus is a major pathogen in both hospitals and the community and can cause systemic infections such as pneumonia. Multi-drug resistant strains, such as Methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) are particularly worrisome. In order to reduce the development of bacterial resistance, we hypothesized that two selected traditional Chinese medicines, Shuang-Huang-Lian (SHL) and Lan-Qin, would be effective against S. aureus. The results showed that SHL had a synergistic effect with gentamicin as well as additive effects with penicillin and cefazolin against S. aureus compared with using antibiotics alone.

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Using DNA Barcodes to Evaluate Ecosystem Health in the SWRCMS Reserve

Horton et al. | Sep 27, 2018

Using DNA Barcodes to Evaluate Ecosystem Health in the SWRCMS Reserve

Although the United States maintains millions of square kilometers of nature reserves to protect the biodiversity of the specimens living there, little is known about how confining these species within designated protected lands influences the genetic variation required for a healthy population. In this study, the authors sequenced genetic barcodes of insects from a recently established nature reserve, the Southwestern Riverside County Multi-Species Reserve (SWRCMSR), and a non-protected area, the Mt. San Jacinto College (MSJC) Menifee campus, to compare the genetic variation between the two populations. Their results demonstrated that the midge fly population from the SWRCMSR had fewer unique DNA barcode sequence changes than the MSJC population, indicating that the comparatively younger nature reserve's population had likely not yet established its own unique genetic drift changes.

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Innovative fake health news detection: Integrating emotional features into graph neural networks

Wang et al. | Jul 03, 2026

Innovative fake health news detection: Integrating emotional features into graph neural networks
Image credit: Wang and Wang

This manuscript tackles a major social issue in the health news sector, with social media being one of the primary sources of information and a prime spot to propagate fake news. The author proposes X-HND , which is a unique architecture that combines emotional and contextual analysis in a Graph Neural Network to accurately detect fake news. This was a multi-step process which involved the creation of a custom health news dataset (HNDataset), and an emotional variant that uses RoBERTa to extract emotion. These dataset were then used to prove the hypothesis that accuracy increases when the custom dataset is used to train the model and that with the integration of emotion capture, the detection accuracy increases further.

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Machine learning predictions of additively manufactured alloy crack susceptibilities

Gowda et al. | Nov 12, 2024

Machine learning predictions of additively manufactured alloy crack susceptibilities

Additive manufacturing (AM) is transforming the production of complex metal parts, but challenges like internal cracking can arise, particularly in critical sectors such as aerospace and automotive. Traditional methods to assess cracking susceptibility are costly and time-consuming, prompting the use of machine learning (ML) for more efficient predictions. This study developed a multi-model ML pipeline that predicts solidification cracking susceptibility (SCS) more accurately by considering secondary alloy properties alongside composition, with Random Forest models showing the best performance, highlighting a promising direction for future research into SCS quantification.

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