Lehigh University

Kagome lattice bilayers offer unique opportunities for engineering electronic properties through interlayer stacking and strain. We report a comprehensive first-principles study of Pd 3 O 2 Cl 2 kagome bilayers, examining four stacking configurations (AA, AA ′ , AB, AB ′ ). Our calculations reveal dramatic stacking-dependent band gap modulation from 0.08 to 0.76 eV, with the AB ′ configuration being the most thermodynamically stable. All stackings exhibit robust mechanical stability with Young’s moduli of 54.82–61.97 N/m and ductile behavior suitable for flexible electronics. Carrier effective masses show significant stacking dependence, ranging from 2.39–6.35 m 0 for electrons and 0.67–1.55 m 0 for holes. Strain engineering of the AB ′ bilayer demonstrates non-monotonic band gap tuning and asymmetric modulation of carrier masses, with hole effective masses showing stronger strain sensitivity. These results establish Pd 3 O 2 Cl 2 bilayers as a promising platform for strain-engineered kagome-based quantum devices, where stacking order and mechanical deformation provide complementary control over electronic transport.

Environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding can rapidly characterise biodiversity, yet its accuracy and effectiveness are limited by incomplete DNA barcode reference databases. We evaluated how comprehensive reference databases that include sequence variation within genomes (intragenomic) and across individuals and species (intergenomic) improve eDNA-based biodiversity assessments. We collected coral tissue and water samples at deep sites offshore Puerto Rico for reference barcoding and eDNA metabarcoding. Genome skimming coral specimens yielded 28S barcodes for 314 of 346 samples (90.8%) and revealed divergent intragenomic 28S lineages in multiple octocoral families. Incorporating local reference barcodes substantially changed ASV taxonomic classifications: 22 ASVs (8.9%) gained genus-level resolution, 19 ASVs (7.7%) were reassigned to different genera, and 14 ASVs (5.7%) lost incorrect genus-level classifications. Thus, incomplete reference databases produce not only unclassified ASVs but also false positive detections and ecologically meaningful misclassifications. When intragenomic 28S lineages were excluded from the reference database, 18 ASVs (7.4%) could not be classified to family or genus, demonstrating that unrecognised intragenomic variation can be mistaken for unsampled taxa. Integrating reference genome skimming and eDNA metabarcoding expanded known coral family richness by 36% at depths shallower than 1000 m and by 181% at depths greater than 1000 m. eDNA also detected two coral families previously unknown off Puerto Rico and nearby islands, underscoring its potential for biodiversity discovery.

Teachers enter increasingly linguistically diverse classrooms, and report being ill-prepared to support the learning of multilingual learners of English (MLEs) in the early grades. This study explored the potential of a dual-pathway approach where paired in-service mentors and pre-service mentees are provided with aligned and synchronized professional development (PD) content on effective practice for MLEs. The efficacy of this approach was explored with 14 pre-service teachers and 14 matched in-service mentor teachers at four schools and contrasted with eight in-service teachers at four demographically matched schools not receiving PD and their 680 students. Results showed statistically significant growth and differences on evidence-based language and literacy strategies for teachers receiving the PD compared to teachers not receiving the PD as well as statistically significant growth in student performance for classrooms with PD receiving teachers. The current study provides promise for the potential of this approach and promotes porousness in university–school partnerships.

The human visual system adapts to statistical regularities in the environment to facilitate visual processing. While laboratory-based tasks make clear distinctions between how task-relevant and task-irrelevant visual information can guide this adaptation, such discretization is rarely available in the real world. As such, it remains unclear exactly what information the visual system tracks to flexibly adapt to a given task. The current study used a massive visual search dataset from the mobile game Airport Scanner. Effects of exposure over a range of more task-relevant (e.g., target presence) to less task-relevant (e.g., background context) features were analyzed in an omnibus model to predict response times in both target-present and target-absent trials. As in previous work (Kramer et al., Journal of Experimental Psychology: General,151 (8), 1854, 2022), increased exposure to target-present trials significantly sped up the detection of targets and slowed the rejection of target-absent trials. Exposure to salient distractors reduced response times for target-present trials, potentially as a result of learned distractor suppression (Gaspelin & Luck, Trends in cognitive sciences,22 (1), 79-92, 2018) or increased familiarity (Mruczek & Sheinberg, Perception & psychophysics,67 (6), 1016-1031, 2005), but had no effect on target-absent trials. Exposure to background information decreased response times in both target-present and target-absent trials, with notable interactions between target and background exposure. Specifically, the effect of background information was more pronounced when target exposure was low, suggesting that less task-relevant context information is more likely to be tracked in the absence of more task-relevant information, namely, the presentation of targets. The findings highlight the importance of considering multiple sources of exposure in visual search tasks and demonstrate the value of large datasets in quantifying their complex interactions.

Abstract Using high‐resolution 3D tomography and a relocated 2010–2022 earthquake catalog, we identify a seamount at 20–25 km depth beneath the Mompiche–Cojimíes region in the coastal forearc of Ecuador. This provides a rare, well‐resolved example of seamount preservation at these depths. The seamount coincides with a low interseismic‐coupling corridor and shows persistent seismicity along its flanks. Rupture of the 2016 Mw 7.8 Pedernales earthquake initiated on the southern flank of the seamount. The rupture propagated south, but northward propagation was arrested near the decoupled, aseismic crest, illustrating the dual mechanical behavior of the seamount. After the megathrust earthquake, seismicity migrated downdip, particularly along the eastern margin. These results show the influence of subducted topography on coupling, seismicity, and rupture segmentation in megathrust systems.