A unique, versatile, and material-independent approach to manipulate contactlessly and merge two chemically distinct droplets suspended in an acoustic levitator is reported. Large-amplitude axial oscillations are induced in the top droplet by low-frequency amplitude modulation of the ultrasonic carrier wave, which causes the top sample to merge with the sample in the pressure minimum below. The levitator is enclosed within a pressure-compatible process chamber to enable control of the environmental conditions. Erastin The merging technique permits precise control of the substances affecting the chemical reactions, the sample temperature, the volumes of the liquid reactants down to the picoliter range, and the mixing locations in space and time. The performance of this approach is demonstrated by merging droplets of water (H2O) and ethanol (C2H5OH), conducting an acid-base reaction between aqueous droplets of sodium hydroxycarbonate (NaHCO3) and acetic acid (CH3COOH), the hypergolic explosion produced via merging a droplet of an ionic liquid with nitric acid (HNO3), and the coalescence of a solid particle (CuSO4·5H2O) and a water droplet followed by dehydration using a carbon dioxide laser. The physical and chemical changes produced by the merging are traced in real time via complementary Raman, Fourier-transform infrared, and ultraviolet-visible spectroscopies. The concept of the contactless manipulation of liquid droplets and solid particles may fundamentally change how scientists control and study chemical reactions relevant to, for example, combustion systems, material sciences, medicinal chemistry, planetary sciences, and biochemistry.Hurricanes that damage lives and property can also impact pollutant sources and trigger poor water quality. Yet, these water quality impacts that affect both human and natural communities are difficult to quantify. We developed an operational remote sensing-based hurricane flood extent mapping method, examined potential water quality implications of two “500-year” hurricanes in 2016 and 2018, and identified options to increase social-ecological resilience in North Carolina. Flooding detected with synthetic aperture radar (>91% accuracy) extended beyond state-mapped hazard zones. Furthermore, the legal floodplain underestimated impacts for communities with higher proportions of older adults, disabilities, unemployment, and mobile homes, as well as for headwater streams with restricted elevation gradients. Pollution sources were repeatedly affected, including ∼55% of wastewater treatment plant capacity and swine operations that generate ∼500 M tons/y manure. We identified ∼4.8 million km2 for possible forest and wetland conservation and ∼1.7 million km2 for restoration or altered management opportunities. The results suggest that current hazard mapping is inadequate for resilience planning; increased storm frequency and intensity necessitate modification of design standards, land-use policies, and infrastructure operation. Implementation of interventions can be guided by a greater understanding of social-ecological vulnerabilities within hazard and exposure areas.The nanoscale morphology of polymer blends is a key parameter to reach high efficiency in bulk heterojunction solar cells. Thereby, research typically focusing on optimal blend morphologies while studying nonoptimized blends may give insight into blend designs that can prove more robust against morphology defects. Here, we focus on the direct correlation of morphology and device performance of thieno[3,4-b]-thiophene-alt-benzodithiophene (PTB7)[6,6]phenyl C71 butyric acid methyl ester (PC71BM) bulk heterojunction (BHJ) blends processed without additives in different donor/acceptor weight ratios. We show that while blends of a 11.5 ratio are composed of large donor-enriched and fullerene domains beyond the exciton diffusion length, reducing the ratio below 10.5 leads to blends composed purely of polymer-enriched domains. Importantly, the photocurrent density in such blends can reach values between 45 and 60% of those reached for fully optimized blends using additives. We provide here direct visual evidence thats such as donor-enriched domains exceeding the exciton diffusion length.A complex alkali and alkaline-earth metal borate Li4Ca2B8O16 has been synthesized successfully via the high-temperature solution method. Li4Ca2B8O16 crystallizes into the space group P1̅ (No. 2) of the triclinic crystal system. The crystal structure exhibits a three-dimensional framework consisting of the [B8O16]∞ chains connected by the [LiOn] (n = 3, 4, 6) and [CaO7] polyhedra. The fundamental building block [B8O18] differs from those of other anhydrous octa-borates, which can be identified as a unique one. Furthermore, Li4Ca2B8O16 shows three different Li-O units, which is unique among all non-disordered anhydrous borates. It shows a short UV cutoff edge less than 190 nm. To better study the relationships between the crystal structure and properties, the DFT calculations were used for the evaluations of the optical band gap and birefringence.Our early studies demonstrated an impressive chemopreventive efficacy of dihydromethysticin (DHM), unique in kava, against tobacco carcinogen 4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanone (NNK)-induced lung tumorigenesis in A/J mice in which DHM was supplemented in the diet. The current work was carried out to validate the efficacy, optimize the dosing schedule, and further elucidate the mechanisms using oral bolus dosing of DHM. The results demonstrated a dose-dependent chemopreventive efficacy of DHM (orally administered 1 h before each of the two NNK intraperitoneal injections, 1 week apart) against NNK-induced lung adenoma formation. Temporally, DHM at 0.8 mg per dose (∼32 mg per kg body weight) exhibited 100% lung adenoma inhibition when given 3 and 8 h before each NNK injection and attained >93% inhibition when dosed at either 1 or 16 h before each NNK injection. The simultaneous treatment (0 h) or 40 h pretreatment (-40 h) decreased lung adenoma burden by 49.8% and 52.1%, respectively. However, post-NNK administration of DHM (1-8 h after each NNK injection) was ineffective against lung tumor formation. In short-term experiments for mechanistic exploration, DHM treatment reduced the formation of NNK-induced O6-methylguanine (O6-mG, a carcinogenic DNA adduct in A/J mice) in the target lung tissue and increased the urinary excretion of NNK detoxification metabolites as judged by the ratio of urinary NNAL-O-gluc to free NNAL, generally in synchrony with the tumor prevention efficacy outcomes in the dose scheduling time-course experiment. Overall, these results suggest DHM as a potential chemopreventive agent against lung tumorigenesis in smokers, with O6-mG and NNAL detoxification as possible surrogate biomarkers.