Super-resolution provided by the arbitrarily strong superlinearity of the blackbody radiation

Blackbody radiation is a fundamental phenomenon in nature, and its explanation by Planck marks a cornerstone in the history of Physics. In this theoretical work, we show that the spectral radiance given by Planck's law is strongly superlinear with temperature, with an arbitrarily large local exponent for decreasing wavelengths. From that scaling analysis, we propose a new concept of super-resolved detection and imaging: if a focused beam of energy is scanned over an object that absorbs and linearly converts that energy into heat, a highly nonlinear thermal radiation response is generated, and its point spread function can be made arbitrarily smaller than the excitation beam focus. Based on a few practical scenarios, we propose to extend the notion of super-resolution beyond its current niche in microscopy to various kinds of excitation beams, a wide range of spatial scales, and a broader diversity of target objects

Photoelectric Emission from Interstellar Dust: Grain Charging and Gas Heating

We model the photoelectric emission from and charging of interstellar dust and obtain photoelectric gas heating efficiencies as a function of grain size and the relevant ambient conditions. Using realistic grain size distributions, we evaluate the net gas heating rate for various interstellar environments, and find less heating for dense regions characterized by R_V=5.5 than for diffuse regions with R_V=3.1. We provide fitting functions which reproduce our numerical results for photoelectric heating and recombination cooling for a wide range of interstellar conditions. In a separate paper we will examine the implications of these results for the thermal structure of the interstellar medium. Finally, we investigate the potential importance of photoelectric heating in H II regions, including the warm ionized medium. We find that photoelectric heating could be comparable to or exceed heating due to photoionization of H for high ratios of the radiation intensity to the gas density. We also find that photoelectric heating by dust can account for the observed variation of temperature with distance from the galactic midplane in the warm ionized medium.Comment: 50 pages, including 18 figures; corrected title and abstract field

Two-scale asymptotic homogenization in a MEMS auxetic structure for over etch identification

The development and optimization of Micro electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) devices, due to their small size scale, require testing and precise characterization. As an example, over etch, which is the deviation between the designed masks and the effective dimensions of the suspended parts, strongly influences the performances of MEMS; therefore, to predict the correct functioning of the device its actual value must be carefully identified. In this work, we propose an efficient, time-saving tool to identify fabrication imperfections in MEMS devices. In particular, we replace the complex geometry of a MEMS mechanical filter with an equivalent homogeneous medium, whose linear-elastic effective properties are evaluated employing two-scale asymptotic homogenization and we identify the over etch by minimizing the relative error between experimental data and corresponding predictions obtained for different combinations of over etch

A NEW SHORT VERSION OF INTERNET GAMING DISORDER-20: AN EXPLORATORY STRUCTURAL EQUATION MODELING

Objective: The purpose of this paper was to contribute to the psychometric properties and dimensionality of the IGD-20. Method: An online survey was completed by 392 Italian online gamers (Mage = 29.2, SD = 11.3; 45.2% males). A battery of self-report questionnaires was administered to assess internet gaming disorder, internet addiction, loneliness, anxiety, depression, stress, social-interaction anxiety, self-esteem, and perceived social support. To test the factor structure of IGD-20, both traditional (i.e., EFA and CFA) and innovative (i.e., ESEM) techniques were applied. Convergent, concurrent, discriminant, and criterion-related validity were evaluated. Results: Our study revealed the outperforming 3-factor ESEM model (χ2=39.951, p = 0.0021; RMSEA = 0.056, 90% C.I. [0.032 - 0.079]; CFI = 0.986; TLI = 0.965; and SRMR = 0.017; ω = .76, .77, and .79, respectively) as a new short version (IGD- 10SV) for the IGD-20. The validity of the IGD-10SV was supported by significant associations with theoretically related measures. Conclusions: The current findings support the adoption of the analytic ESEM approach for complex multidimensional measures and the use of the IGD-10SV for the assessment of internet gaming disorder

Italian adaptation of the Workplace Ostracism Scale: A psychometric analysis based on item response theory

Introduction: The term Workplace Ostracism (WO) refers to a specific form of social exclusion, involving the perception of being ignored and/or excluded by colleagues or supervisors at the workplace. Given the harmful consequences of WO on both individual and organizational outcomes, the assessment of this phenomenon is crucial. The current study aims to examine the psychometric properties of the Workplace Ostracism Scale (WOS), the most commonly used tool for WO evaluation. Methods: A sample of 441 Italian employees (53.3% males; Mage = 35, SD = 9.98) was recruited via the Prolific Academic platform. We conducted analyses using an Item Response Theory (IRT) framework. Results: Our results confirmed the unidimensionality of the scale [χ2 (34) = 68.962, p < .001, CFI = .963, TLI = .951, RMSEA = .048 (.032 - 065), SRMR = .035] and suggested that the instrument was more informative at higher levels of the trait. The negative associations between WOS θ scores and outcomes, including job satisfaction, job engagement, organizational citizenship behavior, and life satisfaction, supported the validity of the scale. Differential Item Functioning (DIF) analyses indicated that the WOS showed minimal gender non-invariance and was invariant across age groups. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that the WOS is a robust measure for assessing acute cases of workplace ostracism, which enhances its utility in high-risk settings

Does Non-Moral Ignorance Exculpate? Situational Awareness and Attributions of Blame and Forgiveness

In this paper, we set out to test empirically an idea that many philosophers find intuitive, namely that non-moral ignorance can exculpate. Many philosophers find it intuitive that moral agents are responsible only if they know the particular facts surrounding their action. Our results show that whether moral agents are aware of the facts surrounding their action does have an effect on people’s attributions of blame, regardless of the consequences or side effects of the agent’s actions. In general, it was more likely that a situationally aware agent will be blamed for failing to perform the obligatory action than a situationally unaware agent. We also tested attributions of forgiveness in addition to attributions of blame. In general, it was less likely that a situationally aware agent will be forgiven for failing to perform the obligatory action than a situationally unaware agent. When the agent is situationally unaware, it is more likely that the agent will be forgiven than blamed. We argue that these results provide some empirical support for the hypothesis that there is something intuitive about the idea that non-moral ignorance can exculpate