Effects of virtual agents on interaction efficiency and environmental immersion in MR environments

Background Physical entity interactions in mixed reality(MR)environments aim to harness human capabilities in manipulating physical objects,thereby enhancing virtual environment(VEs)functionality.In MR,a common strategy is to use virtual agents as substitutes for physical entities,balancing interaction efficiency with environmental immersion.However,the impact of virtual agent size and form on interaction performance remains unclear.Methods Two experiments were conducted to explore how virtual agent size and form affect interaction performance,immersion,and preference in MR environments.The first experiment assessed five virtual agent sizes(25%,50%,75%,100%,and 125%of physical size).The second experiment tested four types of frames(no frame,consistent frame,half frame,and surrounding frame)across all agent sizes.Participants,utilizing a head mounted display,performed tasks involving moving cups,typing words,and using a mouse.They completed questionnaires assessing aspects such as the virtual environment effects,interaction effects,collision concerns,and preferences.Results Results from the first experiment revealed that agents matching physical object size produced the best overall performance.The second experiment demonstrated that consistent framing notably enhances interaction accuracy and speed but reduces immersion.To balance efficiency and immersion,frameless agents matching physical object sizes were deemed optimal.Conclusions Virtual agents matching physical entity sizes enhance user experience and interaction performance.Conversely,familiar frames from 2D interfaces detrimentally affect interaction and immersion in virtual spaces.This study provides valuable insights for the future development of MR systems.

Application of immersion B-scan ultrasonography in diagnosis of complex retinal detachment,persistent hyperplastic primary vitreous and intraocular tumors

AIM:To evaluate the diagnostic value of panoramic immersion B-scan ultrasonography(Pano-immersion B-scan,PIB)in complex retinal detachment(RD),persistent hyperplastic primary vitreous(PHPV)and intraocular tumors.METHODS:The clinical data of 44 patients collected from May 2012 to December 2019 in Chinese PLA General Hospital was retrospectively studied.All of these patients underwent PIB of the eye,because it was difficult to diagnose by routine ocular fundus examination,conventional ultrasound or/and ultrasonic biomicroscope(UBM)due to opacity of refractive media,pupillary occlusion,large involvement or special location of the lesion.The imaging features of difficult cases in PIB were analyzed.The diagnosis accuracy rating of PIB were evaluated and contrasted with conventional ultrasound or UBM by the standard of intraoperative diagnosis or/and pathological results.RESULTS:According to intraoperative diagnosis or pathological results as gold standard,among the 44 cases,there were 19 cases missed diagnosis,misdiagnosed or difficult-to-diagnose by conventional ultrasound or UBM,including 4 cases of long-standing RD difficult to diagnose,4 cases misdiagnosed,and 11 cases incompletely observed or miss diagnosed.The diagnostic accuracy rate of PIB and conventional ultrasound or UBM were 100%(44/44)and 56.82%(25/44),and the sensitivity of them were 100%and 56.82%.All the patients underwent PIB and were diagnosed as RD(15 cases),retinal and choroidal detachment(4 cases),subchoroidal hematocele(1 case),vitreous opacity and/or organic membrane formation(4 cases),PHPV(12 cases),iris and/or ciliary body tumors(3 cases),and choroidal tumors(6 cases).According to the intraoperative diagnosis or pathological results,the diagnostic coincidence rate of PIB was 100%,which was significantly higher than conventional ultrasound and UBM.CONCLUSION:PIB can help to accurately diagnose complex RD,PHPV,and intraocular masses with special location or/and excessive size.It has important diagnostic value for patients with equivocal findings at conventional ultrasound examination.

Improving resolution of superlens based on solid immersion mechanism

Super-resolution imaging with superlens has been one of the fundamental research topics. Unfortunately, the resolution of superlens is inevitably restrained by material loss. To address the problem, we introduce the solid immersion mechanism into the slab superlens and the cylindrical superlens. The proposed solid immersion slab superlens(SISSL) and the solid immersion cylindrical superlens(SICSL) can improve the resolution by converting evanescent wave to propagating wave using high refractive index materials. From the perspective of applications, the cylindrical superlens with finite cross section and the ability of magnification or demagnification has more advantages than the slab superlens. Therefore,we focus on demonstrating analytically the super-resolution imaging of SICSL. Due to the impedance mismatching caused by solid immersion mechanism, the whispering gallery modes(WGMs) are excited between SICSL and the air interface.We clarify the excitation conditions of WGMs and analyze their influence on the imaging quality of SICSL. The SISSL and SICSL may pave a way to apply in lithography technique and real-time biomolecular imaging in future.

An MPI parallel DEM-IMB-LBM framework for simulating fluid-solid interaction problems

The high-resolution DEM-IMB-LBM model can accurately describe pore-scale fluid-solid interactions,but its potential for use in geotechnical engineering analysis has not been fully unleashed due to its prohibitive computational costs.To overcome this limitation,a message passing interface(MPI)parallel DEM-IMB-LBM framework is proposed aimed at enhancing computation efficiency.This framework utilises a static domain decomposition scheme,with the entire computation domain being decomposed into multiple subdomains according to predefined processors.A detailed parallel strategy is employed for both contact detection and hydrodynamic force calculation.In particular,a particle ID re-numbering scheme is proposed to handle particle transitions across sub-domain interfaces.Two benchmarks are conducted to validate the accuracy and overall performance of the proposed framework.Subsequently,the framework is applied to simulate scenarios involving multi-particle sedimentation and submarine landslides.The numerical examples effectively demonstrate the robustness and applicability of the MPI parallel DEM-IMB-LBM framework.

The Combination of Achnatherum inebrians Extracts and Soil Microorganisms Inhibited Seed Germination and Seedling Growth in Elymus nutans

In a greenhouse experiment,the effects of soil microorganisms and extracts of Achnatherum inebrians on the seed germination and seedling growth of Elymus nutans were studied.The results showed that both the extracts from aboveground and belowground parts of A.inebrians significantly inhibited the germination rate,germination potential,germination index,vigor index,seedling height,root length,and fresh weight of E.nutans,but increased malondialdehyde content,catalase,peroxidase and superoxide dismutase activity of E.nutans seedlings(p<0.05).The allelopathy of aqueous extracts of the aboveground parts of A.inebrians was stronger than that of the pre-cipitates.Aqueous extracts of the aboveground parts of A.inebrians decreased seed germination rate,germination potential,germination index,vigor index,seedling length,root length,and seedling fresh weight by 10.45%-74.63%,24.18%-32.50%,19.03%-73.36%,37.83%-88.41%,21.42%-53.14%,2.65%-40.21%,and 20.45%-61.36%,respectively,and malondialdehyde content,peroxidase,catalase,and superoxide dismutase activity increased by 8.09%-62.24%,27.83%-86.47%,22.90%-93.17%,and 11.15%-75.91%,respectively.The above indexes were higher in live soil than in sterilized soil.Soil microorganisms increased the allelopathy of A.inebrians.The seed germination rate,germination potential,germination index,vigor index,seedling length,and seedling fresh weight of E.nutans planted in live soil decreased by 8.22%-48.48%,10.00%-51.85%,8.19%-53.26%,16.43%-60.03%,12.91%-28.81%,and 9.09%-22.86%compared with sterilized soil,respectively.Malondialdehyde content,peroxidase,catalase,and superoxide dismutase activity of E.nutans planted in live soil increased by 53.91%-81.06%,15.71%-57.34%,33.33%-86.31%,and 9.78%-52.51%compared with sterilized soil,respectively.The existence of soil microorganisms enhanced the allelopathy of the secondary metabolites of A.inebrians.A combination of microorganisms and aqueous extracts from the aboveground parts of A.inebrians had the strongest allelopathic effect on E.nutans.

Comparative Analysis of ARIMA and LSTM Model-Based Anomaly Detection for Unannotated Structural Health Monitoring Data in an Immersed Tunnel

Structural Health Monitoring(SHM)systems have become a crucial tool for the operational management of long tunnels.For immersed tunnels exposed to both traffic loads and the effects of the marine environment,efficiently identifying abnormal conditions from the extensive unannotated SHM data presents a significant challenge.This study proposed amodel-based approach for anomaly detection and conducted validation and comparative analysis of two distinct temporal predictive models using SHM data from a real immersed tunnel.Firstly,a dynamic predictive model-based anomaly detectionmethod is proposed,which utilizes a rolling time window for modeling to achieve dynamic prediction.Leveraging the assumption of temporal data similarity,an interval prediction value deviation was employed to determine the abnormality of the data.Subsequently,dynamic predictive models were constructed based on the Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average(ARIMA)and Long Short-Term Memory(LSTM)models.The hyperparameters of these models were optimized and selected using monitoring data from the immersed tunnel,yielding viable static and dynamic predictive models.Finally,the models were applied within the same segment of SHM data,to validate the effectiveness of the anomaly detection approach based on dynamic predictive modeling.A detailed comparative analysis discusses the discrepancies in temporal anomaly detection between the ARIMA-and LSTM-based models.The results demonstrated that the dynamic predictive modelbased anomaly detection approach was effective for dealing with unannotated SHM data.In a comparison between ARIMA and LSTM,it was found that ARIMA demonstrated higher modeling efficiency,rendering it suitable for short-term predictions.In contrast,the LSTM model exhibited greater capacity to capture long-term performance trends and enhanced early warning capabilities,thereby resulting in superior overall performance.

Study of Immersion in Augmented Reality Through Analysis of Immersion Elements in Museums

With the advent of the information age,augmented reality technology can enhance the sense of reality in the virtual world and immerse people in the real and virtual world.People have always been interested in virtual space or augmented reality technology,especially in the face of historical development trends.Museums have always been open to the public,they are not just a collection,but also an exhibition for the public.Through analyzing different museums,it is found that museums with augmented reality technology exhibitions are non-profit museums for the purpose of emotional experience.In order to find out the immersion factors of virtual reality in museums,on the basis of previous research,this paper divides immersion in augmented reality into story immersion,five-sense experience immersion,and spatial interaction immersion.Through the analysis of different museums,it is found that immersion through five-sense experience is the most commonly used method when all display media are included.This method provides educational content for museum visitors and projects virtual presentations through monitors and portable IT devices,thereby increasing visitors’viewing pleasure.

Performance Analysis of Plant Shells/PVC Composites under Corrosion and Aging Conditions

To make full use of plant shellfibers(rice husk,walnut shell,chestnut shell),three kinds of wood-plastic com-posites of plant shellfibers and polyvinyl chloride(PVC)were prepared.X-ray diffraction analysis was carried out on three kinds of plant shellfibers to test their crystallinity.The aging process of the composites was conducted under 2 different conditions.One was artificial seawater immersion and xenon lamp irradiation,and the other one was deionized water spray and xenon lamp irradiation.The mechanical properties(tensile strength,flexural strength,impact strength),changes in color,water absorption,Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy(FTIR),and microstructures of the composites before and after the two aging experiments were analyzed.The results showed that the chestnut shell had the highest crystallinity,which was 42%.The chestnut shell/PVC composites had the strongest interface bonding,the least internal defects,and the best general mechanical properties among the three composites.Its tensile strength,bending strength and impact strength were 23.81 MPa,34.12 MPa,and 4.32 KJ·m^(-2),respectively.Comparing the two aging conditions,artificial seawater immersion and xenon lamp irradiation destroyed the quality of the combination of plant shellfibers and PVC,making the internal defects of the composites increase.This made the water absorption ability and changes in the color of the composites more obvious and led to a great decrease in the mechanical properties.The general mechanical properties of the chestnut shell/PVC composites were the best,but their water absorption ability changed more obviously.

Simulation of wave scattering over a floating platform in the ocean with a coupled CFD-IBM model

A numerical study of linear wave scattering over a floating platform has been simulated by an efficient numericalmodel in this letter.The non-hydrostatic model is used to simulate the free surface and the uneven bottom.For thesolid body modelling,the immersed boundary method(IBM)is implemented by introducing a virtual boundaryforce into the momentum equations to emulate the boundary conditions.This implementation enhances theability of the model to simulate interactions between waves and floating structures.A numerical case involvingwave interactions with a floating platform is studied to validate the numerical model.By simulating the wavepropagation,the numerical model captures the variation of the wave scattering very well,which verifies theperformance of the numerical model and the robust strategy of the IBM.

A High-Accuracy Curve Boundary Recognition Method Based on the Lattice Boltzmann Method and Immersed Moving Boundary Method

Applying numerical simulation technology to investigate fluid-solid interaction involving complex curved bound-aries is vital in aircraft design,ocean,and construction engineering.However,current methods such as Lattice Boltzmann(LBM)and the immersion boundary method based on solid ratio(IMB)have limitations in identifying custom curved boundaries.Meanwhile,IBM based on velocity correction(IBM-VC)suffers from inaccuracies and numerical instability.Therefore,this study introduces a high-accuracy curve boundary recognition method(IMB-CB),which identifies boundary nodes by moving the search box,and corrects the weighting function in LBM by calculating the solid ratio of the boundary nodes,achieving accurate recognition of custom curve boundaries.In addition,curve boundary image and dot methods are utilized to verify IMB-CB.The findings revealed that IMB-CB can accurately identify the boundary,showing an error of less than 1.8%with 500 lattices.Also,the flow in the custom curve boundary and aerodynamic characteristics of the NACA0012 airfoil are calculated and compared to IBM-VC.Results showed that IMB-CB yields lower lift and drag coefficient errors than IBM-VC,with a 1.45%drag coefficient error.In addition,the characteristic curve of IMB-CB is very stable,whereas that of IBM-VC is not.For the moving boundary problem,LBM-IMB-CB with discrete element method(DEM)is capable of accurately simulating the physical phenomena of multi-moving particle flow in complex curved pipelines.This research proposes a new curve boundary recognition method,which can significantly promote the stability and accuracy of fluid-solid interaction simulations and thus has huge applications in engineering.

A Computational Framework for Parachute Inflation Based on Immersed Boundary/Finite Element Approach

A computational framework for parachute inflation is developed based on the immersed boundary/finite element approach within the open-source IBAMR library.The fluid motion is solved by Peskin's diffuse-interface immersed boundary(IB)method,which is attractive for simulating moving-boundary flows with large deformations.The adaptive mesh refinement technique is employed to reduce the computational cost while retain the desired resolution.The dynamic response of the parachute is solved with the finite element approach.The canopy and cables of the parachute system are modeled with the hyperelastic material.A tether force is introduced to impose rigidity constraints for the parachute system.The accuracy and reliability of the present framework is validated by simulating inflation of a constrained square plate.Application of the present framework on several canonical cases further demonstrates its versatility for simulation of parachute inflation.

Numerical Sensitivity Studies on Effects of Ice Nucleating Processes on Electrification in Thunderstorms

This study employed numerical simulations to explore the impact of varying ice nucleation processes on the microphysics and electrification within thunderstorm clouds.A two-dimensional cumulus model,incorporating both noninductive and inductive charge separation schemes,was utilized.The findings revealed that the freezing nucleation mechanism significantly influenced the microphysical development,electrification,and charge structure of thunderstorms.Homogeneous freezing generated a large quantity of small ice crystals near the cloud tops,which were primarily responsible for the development of positive charge regions through a non-inductive charging process.Conversely,heterogeneous freezing resulted in larger ice crystals,enhancing graupel formation and leading to a more rapid and intense charge separation rate of around-15°C.Ice crystals formed heterogeneously and charged negatively during the development stage,resulting in an inverted dipole charge structure.When both immersion and homogeneous freezing processes were considered,the competition between these two distinct freezing processes resulted in reduced cloud water content and weaker electrification.Under conditions of low cloud water content at lower storm levels,graupel particles were negatively charged through non-inductive charging,causing the charge structure to quickly revert to a normal dipole structure.

Parallelization strategies for resolved simulations of fluid-structure-particle interactions

Fluid-structure-particle interactions in three spatial dimensions happen in many environmental and engineering flows.This paper presents the parallel algorithms for the hybrid diffuse and sharp interface immersed boundary(IB)method developed in our previous work.For the moving structure modeled using the sharp interface IB method,a recursive box method is developed for efficiently classifying the background grid nodes.For the particles modeled using the diffuse interface IB method,a‘master-slave’approach is adopted.For the particle-particle interaction(PPI)and particle-structure interaction(PSI),a fast algorithm for classifying the active and inactive Lagrangian points,which discretize the particle surface,is developed for the‘dry’contact approach.The results show that the proposed recursive box method can reduce the classifying time from 52seconds to 0.3 seconds.Acceptable parallel efficiency is obtained for cases with different particle concentrations.Furthermore,the lubrication model is utilized when a particle approaches a wall,enabling an accurate simulation of the rebounding phenomena in the benchmark particle-wall collision problem.At last,the capability of the proposed computational framework is demonstrated by simulating particle-laden turbulent channel flows with rough walls.

Integrating Chinese Culture Into Language Curriculum:Teaching Chinese Culture to International Students in China

This paper explores the integration of Chinese culture into language education for German students at the University of Shanghai for Science and Technology(USST).Focusing on USST’s Chinese curriculum and pedagogical strategies,the study emphasizes the importance of cultural immersion,experiential learning,and authentic materials.Drawing on Byram’s Intercultural Communicative Competence(ICC)model,the Cultural Studies Approach,and Task-Based Language Teaching(TBLT),the paper presents a case study on incorporating Chinese calligraphy into regular classes.This hands-on approach not only enriches cultural understanding but also enhances language skills.The findings stress the need for tailored,multifaceted pedagogical approaches to prepare international students for cross-cultural interactions in a globalized context.

A Letter from Tibetan Language School of Sichuan Province

Dear Readers,Howare things going?I hope this letter finds you well and adds a touch of warmth and joy to your busy lives,whether you are immersed in learning or advancing in your career.I represent the Tibetan Language School,located in the Kangding City of the Garze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan Province.This vibrant place is where students engage not only with their teachers and the community but also explore their interests and discover the world around them.I am delighted to introduce our school to you.

Application of Immersive Media Technology in Ideological and Political Theory Courses Instruction at Shandong Vocational Colleges

This paper describes how virtual classrooms and out-of-classroom instruction can be used to help students in ideological and political theory courses strengthen their identities and improve the efficiency of their assignments.By using immersive media technology,the course is turned into a form of entertainment,enriched with content,and combined with methods such as digital video editing and manipulation to meet the needs of students in university ideological and political theory courses.Virtual reality technology can create realistic virtual environments created by computers,enabling students to perceive and manipulate a variety of virtual objects,interact with them,and create a sense of immersion in the virtual environment.Research has shown the potential benefits of using immersive media technologies and augmented reality in education.The potential of virtual reality in education has been increasingly emphasized and has been widely researched and applied.

Isometric Immersions of Lightlike Warped Product Manifolds

In this paper, we deal with isommetric immersions of globally null warped product manifolds into Lorentzian manifolds with constant curvature c in codimension k≥3. Under the assumptions that the globally null warped product manifold has no points with the same constant sectional curvature c as the Lorentzian ambient, we show that such isometric immersion splits into warped product of isometric immersions.

Effect of immersion Ni plating on interface microstructure and mechanical properties of Al/Cu bimetal

A nickel-based coating was deposited on the pure Al substrate by immersion plating,and the Al/Cu bimetals were prepared by diffusion bonding in the temperature range of 450-550 ℃.The interce microstructure and fracture surface of Al/Cu joints were studied by scanning electron microscopy（SEM） and X-ray diffraction（XRD）.The mechanical properties of the Al/Cu bimetals were measured by tensile shear and microhardness tests.The results show that the Ni interiayer can effectively eliminate the formation of Al-Cu intermetallic compounds.The Al/Ni interface consists of the Al3Ni and Al3Ni2 phases,while it is Ni-Cu solid solution at the Ni/Cu interce.The tensile shear strength of the joints is improved by the addition of Ni interiayer.The joint with Ni interiayer annealed at 500 ℃ exhibits a maximum value of tensile shear strength of 34.7 MPa.

SLANT IMMERSIONS OF COMPLEX SPACE FORMS AND CHEN'S INEQUALITY

A submanifold in a complex space form is called slant if it has constant Wirtinger angles. B. Y. Chen and Y. Tazawa proved that there do not exist minimal proper slant surfaces in CP2 and CH2. So it seems that the slant immersion has some interesting properties. The authors have great interest to consider slant immersions satisfying some additional conditions, such as unfull first normal bundles or Chen’s equality holding. They prove that there do not exist n-dimensional Kaehlerian slant immersions in CPn and CHn with unfull first normal bundles. Next, it is seen that every Kaehlerian slant submanifold satisfying an equality of Chen is minimal which is similar to that of Lagrangian immersions. But in contrast, it is shown that a large class of slant immersions do not exist thoroughly. Finally, they give an application of Chen’s inequality to general slant immersions in a complex projective space, which generalizes a result of Chen.

Accuracy of axial length measurements from immersion B-scan ultrasonography in highly myopic eyes

AIM:To evaluate the accuracy of axial length(AL)measurements obtained from immersion B-scan ultrasonography(immersion B-scan)for intraocular lens(IOL)power calculation in patients with high myopia and cataracts.METHODS:Immersion B-scan,contact A-scan ultrasonography(contact A-scan),and the IOLMaster were used to preoperatively measure the AL in 102 eyes from 102 patients who underwent phacoemulsification and IOL implantation.Patients were divided into two groups according to the AL:one containing patients with22 mm≤AL【26 mm(group A)and the other containing patients with AL≥26 mm(group B).The mean error(ME)was calculated from the difference between the AL measurement methods predicted refractive error and the actual postoperative refractive error.RESULTS:Ingroup A,ALs measured byimmersion Bscan(23.48±1.15)didn’t differ significantly from those measured by the IOLMaster(23.52±1.17)or from those by contact A-scan(23.38±1.20).In the same group,the standard deviation(SD)of the mean error(ME)of immersion B-scan(-0.090±0.397 D)didn’t differ significantly from those of IOLMaster(-0.095±0.411 D)and contact A-scan(-0.099±0.425 D).In group B,ALs measured by immersion B-scan(27.97±2.21 mm)didn’t differ significantly from those of the IOLMaster(27.86±2.18 mm),but longer than those measured by Contact A-scan(27.75±2.23 mm,P=0.009).In the same group,the standard deviation(SD)of the mean error(ME)of immersion B-scan(-0.635±0.157 D)didn’t differ significantly from those of the IOLMaster(-0.679±0.359 D),but differed significantly from those of contact A-scan(-0.953±1.713 D,P=0.028).CONCLUSION:ImmersionB-scanexhibitsmeasurement accuracy comparable to that of the IOLMaster,and is thus a good alternative in measuring AL in eyes with high myopia when the IOLMaster can’t be used,and it is more accurate than the contact A-scan.