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Non peer reviewed

Landfast sea ice (LFSI) is a critical component of the Arctic sea ice cover, and is changing as a result of Arctic amplification of climate change. Located in coastal areas, LFSI is of great significance to the physical and ecological systems of the Arctic shelf and in local indigenous communities. We present an overview of the physics of Arctic LFSI and the associated implications on the cryosphere. LFSI is kept in place by four fasten mechanisms. The evolution of LFSI is mostly determined by thermodynamic processes, and can therefore be used as an indicator of local climate change. We also present the dynamic processes that are active prior to the formation of LFSI, and those that are involved in LFSI freeze-up and breakup. Season length, thickness and extent of Arctic LFSI are decreasing and showing different trends in different seas, and therefore, causing environmental and climatic impacts. An improved coordination of Arctic LFSI observation is needed with a unified and systematic observation network supported by cooperation between scientists and indigenous communities, as well as a better application of remote sensing data to acquire detailed LFSI cryosphere physical parameters, hence revolving both its annual cycle and long-term changes. Integrated investigations combining in situ measurements, satellite remote sensing and numerical modeling are needed to improve our understanding of the physical mechanisms of LFSI seasonal changes and their impacts on the environment and climate. Peer reviewed

The popularity of fruits vinegar (FsV) has been increased recently as a healthy drink wealthy in bioactive compounds that provide several beneficial properties. This review was designed in the frame of valorization of fruits vinegar as a by-product with high value added by providing overall information on its biochemical constituents and beneficial potencies. It contains a cocktail of bioactive ingredients including polyphenolic acids, organic acids, tetramethylperazine, and melanoidins. Acetic acid is the most abundant organic acid and chlorogenic acid is the major phenol in apple vinegar. The administration of fruits vinegar could prevent diabetes, hypercholesterolemia, oxidative stress, cancer, and boost immunity as well as provide a remarkable antioxidant ability. The production techniques influence the quality of vinegar, and consequently, its health benefits.

Background Loneliness and social isolation can have severe effects on human health and well-being. Partial solutions to combat these circumstances in demographically aging societies have been sought from the field of information and communication technology (ICT). Objective This systematic literature review investigates the research conducted on older adults’ loneliness and social isolation, and physical ICTs, namely robots, wearables, and smart homes, in the era of ambient assisted living (AAL). The aim is to gain insight into how technology can help overcome loneliness and social isolation other than by fostering social communication with people and what the main open-ended challenges according to the reviewed studies are. Methods The data were collected from 7 bibliographic databases. A preliminary search resulted in 1271 entries that were screened based on predefined inclusion criteria. The characteristics of the selected studies were coded, and the results were summarized to answer our research questions. Results The final data set consisted of 23 empirical studies. We found out that ICT solutions such as smart homes can help detect and predict loneliness and social isolation, and technologies such as robotic pets and some other social robots can help alleviate loneliness to some extent. The main open-ended challenges across studies relate to the need for more robust study samples and study designs. Further, the reviewed studies report technology- and topic-specific open-ended challenges. Conclusions Technology can help assess older adults’ loneliness and social isolation, and alleviate loneliness without direct interaction with other people. The results are highly relevant in the COVID-19 era, where various social restrictions have been introduced all over the world, and the amount of research literature in this regard has increased recently.