The rise of internet-based pharmacies has transformed the healthcare sector, giving patients access to medications, information, and direct interaction with pharmacists. While online pharmacies have become popular around the world, there are challenges hindering their widespread use in developing countries due to a limited understanding of the factors affecting their acceptance and usage. To bridge this knowledge gap, a study utilized a model combining the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT 2) with the technology acceptance model (TAM) to explore the drivers behind online pharmacy usage in Oman. Through this framework, twelve hypotheses were. A survey involving 378 individuals familiar with online pharmacies was conducted. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was applied to analyze the data and test these hypotheses. The results indicate that factors such as perceived expectancy effort expectancy and facilitating conditions hedonic motivation, habit perceived risk, technology trust, and technology awareness play roles in influencing the adoption of online pharmacies in Oman. The findings suggest that personal innovation plays a moderating role in the connection between perceived risk and behavioral intention, while it has a negative moderating influence on the relationship between technology trust and behavioral intention. Word of mouth was identified as a moderator in enhancing the correlation between behavioral intention and online pharmacy adoption. This research emphasizes the moderating relationship of personal innovation and word of mouth on shaping consumer attitudes towards online pharmacies and their acceptance. In summary, these results add to the existing knowledge on pharmacy adoption and in developed areas such as provide practical insights for online pharmacy providers to improve their offerings and attract a larger customer base.

In this review are developed insights from the current research work to develop the concept of functional materials. This is understood as real modified substrates for varied applications. So, functional and modified substrates focused on nanoarchitectures, microcapsules, and devices for new nanotechnologies highlighting life sciences applications were revised. In this context, different types of concepts to proofs of concepts of new materials are shown to develop desired functions. Thus, it was shown that varied chemicals, emitters, pharmacophores, and controlled nano-chemistry were used for the design of nanoplatforms to further increase the sizes of materials. In this regard, the prototyping of materials was discussed, affording how to afford the challenge in the design and fabrication of new materials. Thus, the concept of optical active materials and the generation of a targeted signal through the substrate were developed. Moreover, advanced concepts were introduced, such as the multimodal energy approach by tuning optical coupling from molecules to the nanoscale within complex matter composites. These approaches were based on the confinement of specific optical matter, considering molecular spectroscopics and nano-optics, from where the new concept nominated as metamaterials was generated. In this manner, fundamental and applied research by the design of hierarchical bottom-up materials, controlling molecules towards nanoplatforms and modified substrates, was proposed. Therefore, varied accurate length scales and dimensions were controlled. Finally, it showed proofs of concepts and applications of implantable, portable, and wearable devices from cutting-edge knowledge to the next generation of devices and miniaturized instrumentation.

In Côte d’Ivoire, the government and its development partners have implemented a national strategy to promote agroforestry and reforestation systems as a means to combat deforestation, primarily driven by agricultural expansion, and to increase national forest cover to 20% by 2045. However, the assessment of these systems through traditional field-based methods remains labor-intensive and time-consuming, particularly for the measurement of dendrometric parameters such as tree height. This study introduces a remote sensing approach combining drone-based Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS) with ground-based measurements to enhance the efficiency and accuracy of tree height estimation in agroforestry and reforestation contexts. The methodology involved two main stages: first, the collection of floristic and dendrometric data, including tree height measured with a laser rangefinder, across eight (8) agroforestry and reforestation plots; second, the acquisition of ALS data using Mavic 3E and Matrice 300 drones equipped with LiDAR sensors to generate digital canopy models for tree height estimation and associated error analysis. Floristic analysis identified 506 individual trees belonging to 27 genera and 18 families. Tree height measurements indicated that reforestation plots hosted the tallest trees (ranging from 8 to 16 m on average), while cocoa-based agroforestry plots featured shorter trees, with average heights between 4 and 7 m. A comparative analysis between ground-based and LiDAR-derived tree heights showed a strong correlation (R² = 0.71; r = 0.84; RMSE = 2.24 m; MAE = 1.67 m; RMSE = 2.2430 m and MAE = 1.6722 m). However, a stratified analysis revealed substantial variation in estimation accuracy, with higher performance observed in agroforestry plots (R² = 0.82; RMSE = 2.21 m and MAE = 1.43 m). These findings underscore the potential of Airborne Laser Scanning as an effective tool for the rapid and reliable estimation of tree height in heterogeneous agroforestry and reforestation systems.

Two-dimensional hexagonal boron nitride nanosheets (h-BNNS) were synthesized on silver (Ag) substrates via a scalable, room-temperature atmospheric pressure plasma (APP) technique, employing borazine as a precursor. This approach overcomes the limitations of conventional chemical vapor deposition (CVD), which requires high temperatures (>800 °C) and low pressures (10⁻² Pa). The h-BNNS were characterized using FT-IR spectroscopy, confirming the presence of BN functional groups (805 cm⁻¹ and 1632 cm⁻¹), while FESEM/EDS revealed uniform nanosheet morphology with reduced particle size (80.66 nm at 20 min plasma exposure) and pore size (28.6 nm). XRD analysis demonstrated high crystallinity, with prominent h-BN (002) and h-BN (100) peaks, and Scherrer calculations indicated a crystallite size of ~15 nm. The coatings exhibited minimal disruption to UV-VIS reflectivity, maintaining Ag’s optical properties. Crucially, Vickers hardness tests showed a 39% improvement (38.3 HV vs. 27.6 HV for pristine Ag) due to plasma-induced cross-linking and interfacial adhesion. This work establishes APP as a cost-effective, eco-friendly alternative for growing h-BNNS on temperature-sensitive substrates, with applications in optical mirrors, corrosion-resistant coatings, energy devices and gas sensing.

Cobalt-based sulfides have emerged as promising candidates for next-generation high-performance anode materials for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) due to their high theoretical specific capacity and reversible conversion reaction mechanisms. However, their practical application is hindered by volume expansion effects and relatively low rate performance. Guided by theoretical principles, this study synthesizes nanoscale Bi/CoS-C and Bi/Co₄S₃-C (denoted as Bi/CS-C) composite materials using Co and Bi₂S₃ as precursors via a solid-state ball milling method. The electrochemical properties of these materials were systematically investigated. When employed as anodes for LIBs, Bi/CoS-C and Bi/CS-C exhibit excellent rate capabilities. At current densities of 0.1, 0.5, 1, 4, and 10 A/g, the reversible capacities of Bi/CoS-C were 939.2, 730.7, 655.6, 508.1, and 319 mAh/g, respectively. In contrast, Bi/CS-C exhibited reversible capacities of 760.4, 637.6, 591.9, 484.3, and 295.4 mAh/g, respectively. Moreover, Co₄S₃, as an active component, enables superior long-cycle performance compared to CoS. After 300 cycles at 0.2 A/g, the Bi/CoS-C and Bi/CS-C electrodes retained capacities of 193.1 and 788.8 mAh/g, respectively. This study demonstrates that nanostructure design and carbon-based composite materials can effectively mitigate the volume expansion issue of cobalt-based sulfides, thereby enhancing their rate performance and cycling stability. This strategy provides new insights for the development of high-performance anode materials for lithium-ion batteries and is expected to accelerate their practical application in next-generation energy storage devices.

This study examined the impact of aluminium doping on the structural, electrical, and magnetic properties of Li_(0.5)Co_(0.75)Al_xFe_(2−x)O₄ spinel ferrites (x =0.15 to 0.60). The samples were synthesised using the sol-gel auto-combustion technique, and they were examined using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), dielectric measurements, and vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM). All samples possessed a single-phase cubic spinel structure with Fd-3m space group, according to XRD analyses. SEM images showed the creation of homogeneous particles with an average size of about 21 nm. All samples had spinel ferrite phases, confirmed from FTIR spectra. DC electrical conductivity studies showed that the conductivity increased with increasing aluminium content up to x = 0.45 before dropping at x = 0.60. The maximum saturation magnetization value was found at x = 0.45, according to VSM measurements, which demonstrated that the magnetic characteristics were strongly correlated with the amount of aluminium.