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Light pollution has increased globally, with 80% of the total population now living under light-polluted skies. In this Review, we elucidate the scope and importance of light pollution and discuss techniques to monitor it. In urban areas, light emissions from sources such as street lights lead to a zenith radiance 40 times larger than that of an unpolluted night sky. Non-urban areas account for over 50% of the total night-time light observed by satellites, with contributions from sources such as transportation networks and resource extraction. Artificial light can disturb the migratory and reproductive behaviours of animals even at the low illuminances from diffuse skyglow. Additionally, lighting (indoor and outdoor) accounts for 20% of global electricity consumption and 6% of CO2 emissions, leading to indirect environmental impacts and a financial cost. However, existing monitoring techniques can only perform a limited number of measurements throughout the night and lack spectral and spatial resolution. Therefore, satellites with improved spectral and spatial resolution are needed to enable time series analysis of light pollution trends throughout the night.
This study examines the impact of Artificial Light at Night (ALAN) on two coral species, Acropora eurystoma and Pocillopora damicornis, in the Gulf of Aqaba/Eilat Red Sea, assessing their natural isotopic responses to highlight changes in energy and nutrient sourcing due to sensory light pollution. Our findings indicate significant disturbances in photosynthetic processes in Acropora eurystoma, as evidenced by shifts in δ13C values under ALAN, pointing to alterations in carbon distribution or utilization. In Pocillopora damicornis, similar trends were observed, with changes in δ13C and δ15N values suggesting a disruption in its nitrogen cycle and feeding strategies.
The study also uncovers species-specific variations in heterotrophic feeding, a crucial factor in coral resilience under environmental stress, contributing to the corals' fixed carbon budget. Light measurements across the Gulf demonstrated a gradient of light pollution which possess the potential of affecting marine biology in the region. ALAN was found to disrupt natural diurnal tentacle behaviors in both coral species, crucial for prey capture and nutrient acquisition, thereby impacting their isotopic composition and health.
Echoing previous research, our study underscores the need to consider each species' ecological and physiological contexts when assessing the impacts of anthropogenic changes. The findings offer important insights into the complexities of marine ecosystems under environmental stress and highlight the urgency of developing effective mitigation strategies.
This research paper examines the potential consequences of AI technology on democratic systems. The study focuses on two main areas: the weakening of the media and the emergence of "smart dictatorship." The paper examines the ways in which AI can be used to supervise, manipulate, and frustrate the media, thereby weakening its role as a check on government and corporate power. The study also explores how AI technology can be used to create an "omnidirectional monitoring" society, where individuals are constantly monitored and controlled through the use of "panopticon" techniques and "social bots". This can lead to the emergence of a "postdemocratic" society, characterized by growing inequality, dehumanization, and the
manipulation of information on online media platforms. The research methodology adopted in the study is qualitative, using expert interviews with three experts who
discussed the overall use of AI and its disruptive effects on democracy, such as the creation of fake news, filter bubbles, and algorithm bias. In conclusion, this research highlights the need for increased awareness and regulation of AI technology to ensure its responsible use and to protect democratic values.
Zusammenfassung
Intrauterin wachstumsretardierte Neugeborene konnten ihr genetisches Wachstumspotential aufgrund einer intrauterinen Mangelversorgung nicht realisieren und werden deshalb zu klein oder zu leicht geboren. Das Merkmal „zu leicht” wird mit Hilfe von Gewichtsperzentilen quantifiziert. Kinder mit einem Gewicht< 10. Perzentile werden als „small for gestational age” (SGA) bezeichnet. Diese Einteilung berücksichtigt jedoch nicht die Proportionen eines Neugeborenen, so daß vor allem asymmetrisch retardierte Neugeborene, deren Gewicht zwar die 10. Perzentile noch überschreitet, die jedoch für ihre Körpergröße untergewichtig sind, nicht erfaßt werden. Der Ponderal Index (PI) dagegen berücksichtigt sowohl Gewicht als auch Länge des Neugeborenen. Kinder mit einem PI < 10. Perzentile werden als „low Ponderal Index” (LPI) klassifiziert. Aus pädiatrischen Studien ist bekannt, daß LPI-Kinder vermehrt durch Hypoglykämien, Hypothermien, Hypokalzämien und Mekoniumaspirationen/Aspirationspneumonien gefährdet sind. Langzeiterhebungen zeigten eine verzögerte körperliche Entwicklung und gehäuft motorische oder neurologische Verhaltensauffälligkeiten sowie schulische Probleme.
Fragestellung: Ziel der vorliegenden Arbeit war die Frage, ob Mangelgeborene, insbesondere LPI-Neugeborene, auch intrapartum einer erhöhten Gefährdung ausgesetzt sind.
Methoden: Hierzu wurden 3687 Neugeborene retrospektiv erfaßt, die anhand von Perzentilenkurven des betrachteten Kollektivs als SGA, LPI, SGA/LPI oder Vergleichskollektiv klassifiziert wurden.
Ergebnisse: Unterschiede im Geburtsmodus zwischen SGA- bzw. LPI-Mangelgeborenen und eutrophen Neugeborenen waren schwach ausgeprägt. Demgegenüber unterschied sich die Indikation, aufgrund deren ein geburtshilflicher Eingriff vorgenommen werden mußte deutlich. Bei 31 % aller operativ entbundenen LPI-Neugeborenen, 47 % der SGA-Neugeborenen und 52 % der SGA/LPI-Kinder erfolgte die operative Entbindung aus fetaler Indikation, im Vergleich zu 16 % des Normalkollektivs. Bezüglich des „fetal outcome”, das die Merkmale neonataler Säure-Basen-Status, Apgar-Wert, Verlegung in die Kinderklinik und perinatale Mortalität einbezog, verhielten sich die Gruppen SGA, LPI und SGA/LPI in gleicher Weise schlechter gegenüber dem Vergleichskollektiv. Die Unterschiede zwischen proportionierten (SGA) und dysproportionierten (LPI) Mangelgeborenen waren weniger deutlich.
Schlußfolgerungen: Es zeigte sich, daß das gegenwärtige engmaschige, geburtshilfliche Management mit nahezu permanenter CTG-Überwachung sub partu Probleme rechtzeitig erkennen und beherrschen ließ. Die Erfassung des niedrigen Ponderal Index war zur Erkennung und Vermeidung subpartaler geburtshilflicher Risikofaktoren nicht entscheidend.
Cis-diammine dichloro platinum (II) (CDDP), is a highly potent antineoplastic agent that is used in the treatment of ovarian cancer. However, the clinical use of CDDP is restricted by its severe side effects. In order to reduce these side effects and to enhance its therapeutic efficacy, we developed specific immunoconjugates consisting of the murine monoclonal antibody OC125 and CDDP, using diethylene triamine pentaacetic acid (DTPA) as a linker.
The coupling efficiencies of the different preparations synthesized, varied between 1.10±0.42 and 2.65±1.60 mol of CDDP per mol of antibody protein. Despite the chemical modification of the antibody molecule, specific binding activity of the OC125-CDDP conjugates toward the CA125 antigen was maintained as was demonstrated by means of immunohisto-/cytochemical staining of frozen sections of ovarian cancer tissue, amniotic epithelium, and the CA125 positive ovarian cancer cell line NIH:OVCAR 3.
The antiproliferative activity of the immunoconjugates was tested against the human ovarian cancer cell lines NIH:OVCAR3 and SKOV 3, applying a kinetic crystal violet microassay.
Despite the promising results obtained with the specific immuno-staining of the target cells, no significant antiproliferative activity of our immunoconjugates against the cell lines tested was observed.
One possible explanation for the lack of antitumor activity could be the fact that CA125 is released in large amounts by the NIH:OVCAR 3 cells. This may have prevented an efficient immunotargeting of the cancer cells by the formation of soluble immune complexes.
Identification of insulin and insulin-like growth factor I (IGF I) receptors in ovarian cancer
(1994)
Abstract
The objective of this study was to test if specific insulin and insulin-like growth factor I (IGF I) receptors are expressed in ovarian cancer tissue. Thirteen tissue specimens from primary ovarian cancers, 1 specimen from a primary peritoneal carcinoma, 10 specimens from metastatic lesions of ovarian carcinomas, and 4 specimens from recurrent ovarian cancers together with 13 normal ovaries were tested for their content of insulin and IGF-I receptors, by the application of specific insulin and IGF-I receptor radioimmunoassays. The insulin receptor (IR) and IGF-I receptor (IGF R) content in the primary tumors varied between 23.8-321.4 and 16.4-554.2 ng/0.1 mg DNA, respectively. Metastatic lesions contained between 12.3 and 226.7 ng IR/0.1 mg DNA and between 7.5 and 459.4 ng IGF R/0.1 mg DNA. In recurrent tumors the receptor concentrations were in the range of 41.5-79.8 and 48.9-160.9 ng/0.1 mg DNA for insulin and IGF-I receptors, respectively. Normal ovarian tissue contained between 12.2 and 150.1 ng IR and between 21.4 and 420.1 ng IGF R per 0.1 mg DNA, respectively. As both insulin and IGF-I receptors are present in ovarian cancer tissue, the effects of insulin and IGF-I as potential growth factors in ovarian cancer should be further investigated.
Copyright © 1994 Academic Press. All rights reserved.
BACKGROUND
Despite radical surgery and the introduction of novel chemotherapeutic agents, the prognosis of ovarian cancer remains poor. Since in the past the potential role of gonadotropins in the induction and progression of ovarian cancer has been discussed, we conjugated doxorubicin to human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) in order to specifically target ovarian cancer cells.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Doxorubicin was conjugated to hCG via glutaraldehyde. 48 hours post seeding, NIH:OVCAR 3 cells were treated with various concentrations of hCG-conjugated and non-conjugated doxorubicin for 2 hours. Cells were cultured for a total of 168 hours. Cell growth was monitored by a crystal violet assay.
RESULTS
Conjugating doxorubicin to hCG resulted in an average specific uptake of 22 mol doxorubicin per mol protein (range 3.0-43.3 mol). Incubating NIH:OVCAR 3 cells for 2 hours with the conjugate led to a more than 8 fold increase of the IC50 values compared to non-conjugated doxorubicin (0.55 microM versus 4.43 microM). The antiproliferative activity of both conjugated and free doxorubicin was detectable up to 168 hours post treatment.
CONCLUSIONS
The present experiments clearly demonstrate a more than 8-fold increase in cytotoxicity of the conjugates compared to free doxorubicin. It was also shown that this effect was not restricted to an acute toxic event but that it resulted in a prolonged antiproliferative activity.
The single most common cause leading to the diagnosis of endometrial cancer is postmenopausal bleeding. Although most patients with early-stage disease (FIGO stage I and II) can be cured, prognosis worsens considerably with increasing stage. While serum CA 125 levels are elevated only in a significant proportion of patients with advanced disease, recently a new serum marker (OVX1) for the detection of early-stage endometrial cancer was reported. Serum OVX1 levels were measured using an OVX1 radioimmunoassay (RIA) or enzyme immunoassay (EIA) in 192 patients with endometrial cancer. CA 125 levels were measured in 112 patients using the CIS ELSA CA 125 kit. Apparently healthy females had mean serum OVX1 levels measured with the OVX1–EIA of 1.34 ± 0.74 U/ml, while patients with endometriosis had mean OVX1 serum levels of 3.15 ± 2.45 U/ml. The mean OVX1 serum level for endometrial cancer patients was 2.00 ± 1.32 U/ml. These values were 2.76 ± 1.62, 6.10 ± 4.66, and 5.37 ± 3.49, respectively, using the OVX1–RIA assay. Applying a cutoff value of 2.8 U/ml, serum OVX1–EIA levels in endometrial cancer patients were increased in 25 of 127 patients (19.7%) with stage I disease, 5 of 17 patients with stage II (29.4%), 5 of 22 patients (22.7%) with stage III, and 4 of 11 patients (36.4%) with stage IV disease. Using the OVX1–RIA and a cutoff of 7.2 U/ml, serum levels were increased in 22 of 127 (17.3%) stage I, 6 of 17 (35.3%) stage II, 5 of 22 (22.7%) stage III, and 6 of 11 (54.5%) stage IV patients. Serum CA 125 levels, determined in a total of 112 patients, were elevated above 35 U/ml in 12 of 79 patients (15.2%) with stage I, 4 of 12 patients (33.3%) with stage II, 8 of 13 patients (61.5%) with stage III, and all of 8 patients (100%) with stage IV disease. While a good correlation between serum CA 125 levels and the clinical stage of the disease was found, no correlation could be detected for OVX1 and stage.
Methods and solutions for joining plates made from different metals using voltaic arc welding
(2009)
For some years now, the light engineering sector has been in search of welding and/or joining technologies allowing high-speed processing at low temperatures. This way, damage to galvanized coating, for example in the case of steels, could be avoided or significantly reduced.
Damage to the galvanized coating represents an outwardly visible phenomenon that can have a negative impact on the component's corrosion resistance.
On the other hand, from the metallurgical viewpoint, controlling heat input represents an important way to solve the problems associated with heat joining of metals with incomplete solid-state solubility. The formation of fragile intermetallic phases during cooling, for example, occurs with aluminium/steel or aluminium/titanium. The process and the correct choice of filler materials are key points for the success of the joining method. In the case of the combination of aluminium and steel, zinc represents a suitable filler material, for example for brazing. The melting temperature is around 420°C and the wettability, with regard to galvanized steel, is favoured by the zinc layer, while on the aluminium part, it is possible to avoid the use of flux, thanks to the activating action of the voltaic arc. However, the low melting and vaporization temperatures of zinc make even ‘short arc’ processing rather difficult.
Only new developments in electrical sources for welding, and in particular new processes, offer the possibility of reducing the heat input by modifying the ‘short arc’ process. The difficulties described are also valid for the combination of titanium and aluminium, and are associated with the formation of phases such as Ti x A1 y . Again in this case, this paper will present a strategy for joining sheets less than 2 mm thick.
In the past years, an increasing number of strategies to join zinc-coated steels can be observed. Brazing represents a profitable way to join zinc-coated steels at low temperatures, reducing or avoiding zinc evaporation.
In order to completely avoid damaging zinc coating, the set of ZnAl-fìllers was already investigated for laser brazing of zinc-coated steels as well as for joining steel with aluminium.
Furthermore, thanks to new developments in arc wire technology, ZnAl-electrodes can be used for MIG-brazing as well. In this case, the conventional short arc, which normally does not allow brazing with zinc wires as eruption-like evaporation occurs, is modified and controlled. The drop formation on the wire tip, the metal transfer, and the heat input can be controlled and modified very precisely, so that processing of filler material can be performed easily for thin sheets (till 0.8–1.5 mm) and at low-processing speed, below 0.3–0.4 m/min. The control of the heat input occurs due to abruptly reducing the current after short arc.
The disadvantages connected with a lower heat input in the base material are a restricted wetting behaviour of the zinc pool on the base material and the low-brazing speed due to a very high cooling rate. The focus of the presented investigation is the development of strategies, in order to enhance process conditions for brazing sheets of zinc-coated steels and aluminium.
Beschreibung finiter plastischer Deformationen von Einkristallen mittels materieller Isomorphismen
(1995)
Anordnung des HmbBfDI gegen Facebook - Dringlichkeitsanordnung statt Zusammenarbeit und Kohärenz?
(2021)
Selbstbestimmte Identitäten
(2021)
Zur Umsetzung ihres "digitalen Kompass 2030" hat die Kommission zwei weitere Rechtsakte vorgeschlagen. Die mehr als 30 Jahre alte Produkthaftungsrichtlinie soll revidiert und eine neue Richtlinie über die Haftung für künstliche Intelligenz erlassen werden. Damit soll die politisch gewünschte Etablierung von KI in der EU für Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft auch haftungsrechtlich abgesichert werden. Der Beitrag analysiert die Richtlinie über die Haftung für künstliche Intelligenz in ihrem Verhältnis zum Gesetz über künstliche Intelligenz und zur Produkthaftungsrichtlinie.
Resistance spot welding is the dominant process in the present mass production of steel constructions without sealing requirements with single sheet thicknesses up to 3 mm. Two of the main applications of resistance spot welding are the automobile and the railway vehicle manufacturing industry. The majority of these connections has safety-related character and therefore they must not fall below a certain weld diameter. Since resistance spot welding has been established, this weld diameter has been usually used as the gold standard. Despite intensive efforts, there has not been found yet a reliable method to detect this connection quality non-destructively. Considerable amounts of money and steel sheets are wasted on making sure that the process does not result in faulty joints. The indication of the weld diameter by in-process monitoring in a reliable way would allow the quality documentation of joints during the welding process and additionally lead through demand-actuated milling cycles to a substantial decrease of electrode consumption. An annual, estimated reduction in the seven- to nine-figure range could be achieved. It has an important impact, because the economics of the process is essentially characterized by the electrode caps (Klages 24). We propose a simple and straightforward approach using data mining techniques to accurately predict the weld diameter from recorded data during the welding process. In this paper, we describe the methods used during data preprocessing and segmentation, feature extraction and selection, and model creation and validation. We achieve promising results during an analysis of more than 3000 classified welds using a model tree as a predictor with a success rate of 93 %. In the future, we hope to validate our model with unseen welding data and implement it in a real world application.
Eisenbahnschienen können unter Betriebsbedingungen brechen. Mit Hilfe der Bruchmechanik lassen sich das Risswachstums- und Bruchverhalten der Schienen untersuchen. Um dieses Verhalten z.B. im Hinblick auf die zerstörungsfreie Prüfung der Schienen im Gleis analysieren zu können, müssen die folgenden Einzelheiten bekannt sein:
Betriebs- und Bruchbedingungen (Schienentyp, Radkräfte, Biegemomente, Temperaturen, Normalkräfte und Eigenspannungen),
die bruchmechanischen Eigenschaften des Schienenstahls unter Betriebsbedingungen,
die Form der Risse und die entsprechenden Spannungsintensitätsfaktoren.
Für Schienen des Typs R65 sind die Spannungsintensitätsfaktoren für Querrisse, die von der Fahrfläche ausgehen, mit dem FEM-Programm ANSYS berechnet worden für die radkraftbedingte Biegung, für Temperatur-Normalkräfte sowie für die Längseigenspannungen.
Im Bereich des Querschnittsübergangs der Federstelle bilden sich unter ungünstigen Umständen im Fuß von Zungenschienen Ermüdungsrisse, die letztlich den Bruch der Schiene verursachen können. Zur Qualifizierung der Bewertungskriterien, d.h. des Prüfzyklusses der zerstörungsfreien Prüfung der Zungenschienen, wird die bruchmechanische Analyse als Monte-Carlo-Simulation gestaltet. Aus dem ungünstigsten Risswachstumsverhalten wird für die zerstörungsfrei ermittelte Rissgröße der erforderliche Prüfzyklus in Abhängigkeit von der Betriebsbelastung abgeleitet.
Bei dem zu beobachtenden Altern der Bevölkerung stellt sich die Frage nach der künftigen Wettbewerbsfähigkeit des Industriestandorts Deutschland, der mit gealterten Belegschaften am Weltmarkt bestehen muss. Besonders akzentuiert könnte die Problemlage bei innovationsintensiven Tätigkeitsfeldern sein, in denen die hohen Anforderungen an aktuelles Wissen, Belastbarkeit und Kreativität nach dem „Defizit-Modell“ des Alterns eher mit Jugend assoziiert werden. Folglich müssten Unternehmen besonders in innovationsnahen Tätigkeiten der Industrie eine rapide Verjüngung anstreben. Eine Untersuchung der westdeutschen Industrie zwischen 1990 und 1996 zeigt jedoch, dass es bei „Innovatoren“ (Ingenieure, Techniker) keinen überdurchschnittlichen altersselektiven Personalabbau gegeben hat. Vielmehr ist die allgemeine „Verjüngung“ der Industriebelegschaften auf den deutlichen Personalabbau in der Großindustrie, der im Wesentlichen über Altersabgänge geregelt wurde, zurückzuführen. In der Entwicklung der industriellen Personalstruktur findet sich also kein Beleg für die These vom Alter als spezifisches Innovationsproblem.
1. Introduction
(2023)
On approximation by ⊕-OBDDs
(2007)
Rail defects: an overview
(2003)
For about 150 years, the steel rail has been at the very heart of the world's railway systems. The rail works in a harsh environment and, as part of the track structure, it has little redundancy; thus, its failure may lead to catastrophic derailment of vehicles, the consequences of which can include death, injury, costs and loss of public confidence. These can have devastating and long-lasting effects on the industry. Despite the advances being made in railway permanent way engineering, inspection and rail-making technology, continually increasing service demands have resulted in rail failure continuing to be a substantial economic burden and a threat to the safe operation of virtually every railway in the world. This paper presents an overview of rail defects and their consequences from the earliest days of railways to the present day.
Finding an optimal balance between risk and returns in investment portfolios is a central challenge in quantitative finance, often addressed through Markowitz portfolio theory (MPT). While traditional portfolio optimization is carried out in a continuous fashion, as if stocks could be bought in fractional increments, practical implementations often resort to approximations, as fractional stocks are typically not tradeable. While these approximations are effective for large investment budgets, they deteriorate as budgets decrease. To alleviate this issue, a discrete Markowitz portfolio theory (DMPT) with finite budgets and integer stock weights can be formulated, but results in a non-polynomial (NP)-hard problem. Recent progress in quantum processing units (QPUs), including quantum annealers, makes solving DMPT problems feasible. Our study explores portfolio optimization on quantum annealers, establishing a mapping between continuous and discrete Markowitz portfolio theories. We find that correctly normalized discrete portfolios converge to continuous solutions as budgets increase. Our DMPT implementation provides efficient frontier solutions, outperforming traditional rounding methods, even for moderate budgets. Responding to the demand for environmentally and socially responsible investments, we enhance our discrete portfolio optimization with ESG (environmental, social, governance) ratings for EURO STOXX 50 index stocks. We introduce a utility function incorporating ESG ratings to balance risk, return and ESG friendliness, and discuss implications for ESG-aware investors.
Large three-dimensional metallic parts can be printed layer-by-layer using gas metal arc directed energy deposition (GMA-DED) process at a high deposition rate and with little or no material wastage. Fast responsive real-time monitoring of GMA-DED process signatures and their transient variations is required for printing of dimensionally accurate and structurally sound parts. A systematic experimental investigation is presented here on multi-layer GMA-DED with two different scanning strategies using a high strength low alloy (HSLA) filler wire. The dynamic metal transfer, melt pool temperature field and its longitudinal cross-section, and arc voltage and current are monitored synchronously. The transient arc heat input and the melt pool solidification cooling rate are estimated from the monitored signals. The layer-wise variations of the melt pool dimension, surface temperature profile, thermal cycles, and solidification cooling rate are examined for different scanning strategies. It is comprehended that the part defects can be minimized, and the mass production of zero-defect parts can be achieved in GMA-DED process with synchronized monitoring and assessment of the real-time process signatures.
Koronen sind farbige Ringsysteme um Sonne oder Mond. Sie entstehen in der Atmosphäre durch Beugung des Lichts an Wassertropfen in Wolken oder anderen kleinen Teilchen. Wichtig ist dabei, dass die Wolken optisch dünn sind. Dann streut das Licht auf seinem Weg von der Lichtquelle ins Auge des Beobachters nur an einem einzigen Tropfen. Außerdem sollten die streuenden Teilchen eine möglichst enge Größenverteilung haben. Erst dann wird die Korona in voller Ausprägung mit zentraler Aureole und mehreren farbigen Ringen sichtbar. Ihre grundlegenden physikalischen Eigenschaften lassen sich durch Beugung an einer einfachen Kreisblende verstehen. Genaue Resultate liefert die Mie-Theorie. Koronen können mit Computersimulationen und einfachen Experimenten gut im Unterricht behandelt werden. Aus den Abmessungen einer Korona lässt sich die Tröpfchengröße ermitteln.
360-degree image and movie content has gained popularity over the media and the MICE (Meeting, Incentive, Conventions, and Exhibitions) industry in the last few years. There are three main reasons for this development. First, on the one hand, it is the immersive character of this media form, and, on the other hand, the development of recording and presentation technology has made significant progress in terms of resolution and quality. Third, after a decade of dynamic rising, the MICE Industry focuses on a disruptive change for more digital-based solutions. 360-degree panoramas are particularly widespread in VR and AR technology. However, despite the high immersive potential, these forms of presentation have the disadvantage that the users are isolated and have no social contact during the performance. Therefore, efforts have been made to project 360-degree content in specially equipped rooms or planetariums to enable a shared experience for the audience. One application area for 360-degree panoramas and films is conference rooms in hotels, conference centers, and any other venues that create an immersive environment for their clients to stimulate creativity. This work aims to overview the various application scenarios and usability possibilities for such conference rooms. In particular, we consider applications in construction, control, tourism, medicine, art exhibition, architecture, music performance, education, partying, organizing and carrying out events, and video conferencing. These applications and use scenarios were successfully tested, implemented, and evaluated in the 360-degree conference room “Dortmund” in the Hotel Park Soltau in Soltau, Germany. Finally, the advantages, challenges, and limitations of the proposed method are described.
The attraction of insects to artificial light is a global environmental problem with far-reaching implications for ecosystems. Since light pollution is rarely integrated into conservation approaches, effective mitigation strategies towards environmentally friendly lighting that drastically reduce insect attraction are urgently needed. Here, we tested novel luminaires in two experiments (i) at a controlled experimental field site and (ii) on streets within three municipalities. The luminaires are individually tailored to only emit light onto the target area and to reduce spill light. In addition, a customized shielding renders the light source nearly invisible beyond the lit area. We show that these novel luminaires significantly reduce the attraction effect on flying insects compared to different conventional luminaires with the same illuminance on the ground. This underlines the huge potential of spatially optimized lighting to help to bend the curve of global insect decline without compromising human safety aspects. A customized light distribution should therefore be part of sustainable future lighting concepts, most relevant in the vicinity of protected areas.