Land use change in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta: Long-term impacts of drought and salinity intrusion using satellite and monitoring data.

Drought and salinity intrusion (DSI) increasingly threaten agriculture and aquaculture in coastal regions. Focusing on the Vietnamese Mekong Delta (VMD), we examined how DSI from 2000 to 2020 influences rice cropping, aquaculture area, and rice yield across seven coastal provinces. discharge and salinity monitoring, combined with satellite-derived land use data and yield validation, revealed the highest DSI impacts during the 2010-2011, 2015-2016, and 2019-2020 dry seasons.

Enhanced In-Home Human Activity Recognition Using Multimodal Sensing and Spatiotemporal Machine Learning Architecture.

In this research, we present an enhanced human activity recognition (HAR) framework using advanced machine learning models incorporating temporal dynamics, leveraging multimodal sensor data. Data from wearable wristbands and real-time location systems (RTLS) were used to detect human activities within a home environment. A key advancement is the development of a spatiotemporal machine learning model combining convolutional neural networks (CNN), bidirectional long short-term memory (BiLSTM), and neural structured learning (NSL), which significantly surpasses traditional machine learning baseline models like RF, SVM.

Optimal Head-mounted IMU Placement for Heart Rate Detection Using Ballistography.

Continuous and accurate heart rate monitoring is pivotal for the early detection of cardiovascular conditions. Traditional heart rate sensing methods, such as the use of adhesive electrocardiogram (ECG) electrodes, often fall short in terms of comfort and convenience for everyday wear and continuous monitoring. Ballistocardiography (BCG), a non-invasive alternative, offers a promising solution by measuring the body's mechanical reactions to the ejected blood by the heart during cardiac cycles.

Environmental pressures on livelihood transformation in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta: Implications and adaptive pathways.

Environmental pressures have significantly impacted agricultural land use in deltas worldwide, leading to transformative changes in livelihoods. The Vietnamese Mekong Delta (VMD) is a vital region for national food security and global agricultural markets but is threatened by climate change, hydropower dams, sand mining, and excessive groundwater extraction. These pressures challenge the VMD's agricultural productivity and sustainability in the Anthropocene era.

The competing controls of glaciers, precipitation, and vegetation on high-mountain fluvial sediment yields.

Investigating erosion and river sediment yield in high-mountain areas is crucial for understanding landscape and biogeochemical responses to environmental change. We compile data on contemporary fluvial suspended sediment yield (SSY) and 12 environmental proxies from 151 rivers in High Mountain Asia surrounding the Tibetan Plateau. We demonstrate that glaciers exert a first-order control on fluvial SSYs, with high precipitation nonlinearly amplifying their role, especially in high-glacier cover basins.

Advancing sustainable rice production in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta insights from ecological farming systems in An Giang Province.

Rice serves as a crucial staple food crop for half of the world's population. In the Vietnamese Mekong Delta (VMD), rice production plays a vital role in national food security. However, the majority of the existing intensified rice cultivation schemes in the VMD, which are typically traditional, have rendered many farmers' livelihoods unsustainable due to issues such as land degradation, water pollution, health risks, and low profitability.

Recurrence interval of riverbed sand mining hotspots in the Mekong delta: Potential indications of unsustainable replenishment rates.

Rampant and illegal river sand mining in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta (VMD) has led to substantial sediment losses and bank erosion. However, regulation of this issue remains a significant challenge due to insufficient monitoring and enforcement efforts, partly attributed to limited data and technology. To support an improved monitoring system in the VMD, this study investigates the spatiotemporal changes in sand mining hotspots and their underlying drivers.

Nature-based solutions for improving food security: A systematic global review.

Nature-based solutions (NBS) have been promoted as a holistic way to solve a variety of societal issues while benefiting biodiversity at the same time. To date, applications of NBS approaches that help ensure food security have yet been systematically reviewed. In this paper, we critically review the specific NBS for food security, highlighting their limitations, to provide recommendations that promote their applications for improving global food security.

Nonlinear Heart Rate Variability Analysis for Sleep Stage Classification Using Integration of Ballistocardiogram and Apple Watch.

Purpose: Wearable or non-contact, non-intrusive devices present a practical alternative to traditional polysomnography (PSG) for daily assessment of sleep quality. Physiological signals have been known to be nonlinear and nonstationary as the body adapts to states of rest or activity. By integrating more sophisticated nonlinear methodologies, the accuracy of sleep stage identification using such devices can be improved.

Sand mining in the Mekong Delta: Extent and compounded impacts.

Sand mining has accelerated in recent years primarily due to population increase and rapid urbanization. To meet demand, the rate of sand extraction often exceeds the rate of natural replenishment with serious environmental consequences. In this review paper, the Vietnamese Mekong Delta (VMD), a global hotspot for sand mining with a prolonged history of intensive riverbed extraction, is used as a representative case study to highlight the extent and compounded impacts of this activity.

Soil salinization in agriculture: Mitigation and adaptation strategies combining nature-based solutions and bioengineering.

Soil salinization is among the most critical threats to agriculture and food security. Excess of salts adversely affects soil structure and fertility, plant growth, crop yield, and microorganisms. It is caused by natural processes, such as dry climates and low precipitations, high evaporation rate, poor waterlogging, and human factors, such as inappropriate irrigation practices, poor drainage systems, and excessive use of fertilizers.

Apple Watch Sleep and Physiological Tracking Compared to Clinically Validated Actigraphy, Ballistocardiography and Polysomnography.

This paper investigates the performance of the latest Apple Watch (Series 8, released September 2022) in comparison with research grade devices. The Apple Watch was compared to wrist worn actigraphy, non-contact ballistocardiography (BCG) placed in the bed and evaluated with polysomnography (PSG) as a reference system. Sleep analysis and individual cardiorespiratory parameters were measured from the Apple Watch.

Mapping the vulnerability of irrigation sand traps in a tropical volcanic basin, Indonesia.

Sand traps in irrigation networks are typically used in mitigating canal sedimentation. In irrigation networks located in basins of high sediment yield due to the presence of volcanoes, it is essential to assess the vulnerability of sand traps. Using sediment yield at irrigation scheme inlets, sand trap vulnerability can be evaluated.

Uncovering the lack of awareness of sand mining impacts on riverbank erosion among Mekong Delta residents: insights from a comprehensive survey.

Global sand demand due to infrastructure construction has intensified sand mining activities in many rivers, with current rates of sand extraction exceeding natural replenishment. This has created many environmental problems, particularly concerning riverbank stability, which adversely affects the livelihoods of people in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta (VMD). However, sand mining's social impacts in the region remain inadequately understood.

Adaptive capacity of high- and low dyke farmers to hydrological changes in the Vietnamese Mekong delta.

This research assesses the adaptive capacity of farmers in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta's floodplains (VMD) with respect to hydrological changes. Currently, climate change and socio-economic developments induce extreme- and diminishing floods, which in turn increase farmers' vulnerability. This research assesses farmers' adaptive capacity to hydrological changes using two prevalent farming systems: high dykes featuring triple-crop rice farming and low dykes where fields are left fallow during the flood season.

Mutations Define a Distinct Subgroup in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

Purpose: In head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), mutation is a new actionable oncogene driver. We aimed to evaluate mutational variants, comutation profile, and survival outcomes of this molecularly defined population.

Methods: We leveraged four deidentified patient data sets with -mutant HNSCC, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Kura Oncology, Inc trial, Foundation Medicine, and American Association for Cancer Research GENIE v.

Rapid identification of Staphylococcus aureus based on a fluorescence imaging/detection platform that combines loop mediated isothermal amplification assay and the smartphone-based system.

Food associated diseases pose significant public health threat in the United States. Health risks associated with food-borne pathogens drive the need for constant monitoring of food products. An efficient method that can diagnose food-borne pathogens rapidly will be invaluable and in high demand.

Dorsal Root Ganglion Stimulation for the Management of Phantom Limb Pain: A Scoping Review.

Background: Amputees commonly feel an intermittent tingling, piercing, or burning sensation in the region of the missing portion of the amputated limb, a phenomenon known as phantom limb pain. Current treatment modalities include medications, mirror therapy, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation, and more recently neuromodulation through spinal cord stimulation and dorsal root ganglion (DRG) stimulation.

Objectives: The aim of this review is to examine the existing literature to identify and analyze evidence for the use of DRG stimulation as a pain relief modality for phantom limb pain.

Spatial-social evaluations of ecosystem services of adaptive aquaculture models using SAR and multivariate analyses: a case in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta.

The presented study is conducted to investigate the efficiency of two important aquaculture models of the Vietnamese Mekong Delta (VMD)'s Soc Trang province via quantifying and mapping the supporting ecosystem services (ES). The study targets the two most prevalent rearing practices, intensive and semi-intensive, covering four rural districts: My Xuyen, Tran De, Cu Lao Dung, and Vinh Chau. A mixed-method approach was applied, combining remote sensing, grass-root social survey, and multivariate statistical analyses.

Inhibition of gastric acid secretion with omeprazole affects fish specific dynamic action and growth rate: Implications for the development of phenotypic stomach loss.

An acid-secreting stomach provides many selective advantages to fish and other vertebrates; however, phenotypic stomach loss has occurred independently multiple times and is linked to loss of expression of both the gastric proton pump and the protease pepsin. Reasons underpinning stomach loss remain uncertain. Understanding the importance of gastric acid-secretion to the metabolic costs of digestion and growth will provide information about the metabolic expense of acid-production and performance.

Decoding Brain Signals to Classify Gait Direction Anticipation.

The use of brain-computer interface (BCI) technology has emerged as a promising rehabilitation approach for patients with motor function and motor-related disorders. BCIs provide an augmentative communication platform for controlling advanced assistive robots such as a lower-limb exoskeleton. Brain recordings collected by an electroencephalography (EEG) system have been employed in the BCI platform to command the exoskeleton.

Overprescription of opioid analgesia is common following ambulatory Otolaryngology-Head and Neck surgery procedures: A multicenter study.

Background: The rise in the use of prescription opioids for postoperative analgesia within surgery has mirrored an increased trend of opioid-related morbidity within Canada and the United States. This study prospectively studied daily pain levels and medication requirements postoperatively in patients undergoing elective Otolaryngology-Head and Neck surgery procedures.

Methods: Patients were asked to prospectively document their pain level and medication use daily for 7 days postoperatively.

Increased chlorophyll-a concentration in Barra Bonita reservoir during extreme drought periods.

Climate projections models indicate that longer periods of droughts are expected within the next 100 years in various parts of South America. To understand the effects of longer periods of droughts on aquatic environments, we investigated the response of chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) concentration to recent severe drought events in the Barra Bonita Hydroelectric Reservoir (BBHR) in São Paulo State, Brazil. We used satellite imagery to estimate the Chl-a concentration from 2014 to 2020 using the Slope Index (NRMSE of 18.

Increased burned area in the Pantanal over the past two decades.

Wildfires are behaving differently now compared to other time in history in relation to frequency, intensity and affected ecosystems. In Brazil, unprecedented fires are being experienced in the last decade. Thus, to prevent and minimize similar disasters, we must better understand the natural and human drivers of such extreme events.