by Alicia Stapp  , Madalyn Falkenheiner  and Kenya Wolff

Received: 15 November 2021;  Published: 13 January 2022;  doi: 10.21926/rpn.2201001

It is recommended that children ages 3-5 receive 180 minutes of physical activity a day, with at least 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. Despite these recommendations, a majority of preschoolers are not provided opportunities in the early childhood education setting to meet these daily recommendations through either structured or unstructured physical activity. Accordingly, the number of young children identified as overweight or obese over the past couple of decades has increased. Critical to a [...]

by Madalina Neacsu  , Susan E. Anderson  , Pola Verschoor  , Nicholas J. Vaughan  , Graham W. Horgan  , Toine Hulshof  , Sylvia H. Duncan  , Susan Duthie  and Wendy R. Russell

Received: 08 October 2021;  Published: 17 December 2021;  doi: 10.21926/rpn.2104002

Wheat bran cereals are an important source of dietary fibre. The aim of the study was to investigate if a high intake (120 g) of fibre rich breakfast cereal (which delivers the UK Government guidelines for fibre intake in one serving but is three-fold higher than the manufacturers recommended serving) has additional potential health benefits compared to the recommended serving (40 g, containing 11 g of dietary fibre). To assess this, the study determined the short chain fatty acid (SCFA) profiles in human faecal, u [...]

by Alex T. Von Schulze  , Marie van der Merwe  , Chad D. Touchberry  and Richard J. Bloomer

Received: 03 August 2021;  Published: 15 October 2021;  doi: 10.21926/rpn.2104001

Poor dietary habits can lead to obesity and insulin resistance—both of which can impair basal heat shock protein (HSP) expression and the HSP stress response in skeletal muscle. It remains unclear if impairments in HSP expression occur during the early stages of diet-induced obesity and metabolic dysfunction. We determined if basal HSP expression (HSP70, HSP60, HSP25) was impaired in sedentary or exercised rats following the onset of diet-induced obesity. Male Long-Evans rats (N=6-7/group) were assigned to a [...]

by Recent Progress in Materials Editorial Office

Received: 04 January 2026;  Published: 04 January 2026;  doi: 10.21926/rpm.2601001

The editors of Recent Progress in Materials would like to express their sincere gratitude to the following reviewers for assessing manuscripts in 2025. We greatly appreciate the contribution of expert reviewers, which is crucial to the journal's editorial process. We aim to recognize reviewer contributions through several mechanisms, of which the annual publication of reviewer names is one. Reviewers can download a certificate of recognition directly from our submission system. Additionally, reviewers can sign up t [...]

by Jude Alhaddad  , Hawra Alkhadad  , Fatima AlHannan  , Fryad Henari  and G. Roshan Deen

Received: 16 June 2025;  Published: 17 November 2025;  doi: 10.21926/rpm.2504017

The study focuses on the rapid green synthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) and alginate-silver nanocomposite (Alg-AgNc) beads using sweet basil or Mashmoom (Ocimum basilicum), a common household medicinal herb in Bahrain. The aqueous extract of mashmoom was used as a reducing and stabilizing agent in the reduction of the precursor salt, silver nitrate, and formation of stable AgNPs. The Alg-AgNc beads were prepared by ionotropic gelation of sodium alginate-AgNPs solution in calcium chloride. A strong surface pl [...]

by Junesh Gautam  , Praneel Acharya  and Zhong Hu

Received: 15 July 2025;  Published: 24 October 2025;  doi: 10.21926/rpm.2504016

This paper investigates data-driven strain energy prediction for heterogeneous elastic materials using the Mechanical MNIST benchmark dataset (60,000 28 × 28 stiffness maps by precomputed finite-element results). The results by classical regression models (linear regression, random forest, and gradient boosting) using hand-crafted features were compared with the results by the deep learning models (Convolutional neural network (CNN) and residual network (ResNet)) trained end-to-end on images. In held-out tests, CNN [...]

by Duc Duy Huynh  , Hoang Phuc Nguyen  , Tran Quoc Thang Nguyen  , Thi Hong Nga Pham  , Quan Anh Pham  , Thi Van Anh Duong  , Van Huong Hoang  , Xuan Tien Vo  and Vinh Tien Nguyen

Received: 29 May 2025;  Published: 24 September 2025;  doi: 10.21926/rpm.2503015

Beverage bottle caps are usually made from two primary materials: PP and HDPE. In this study, the evaluation criteria were the unnotched impact toughness and the microstructure of PP/HDPE/EVA samples produced by injection molding. The samples were tested according to ASTM D256. PP/HDPE/EVA blends were prepared with various ratios: 47.5/47.5/5, 45/45/10, 42.5/42.5/15, 40/40/20, and 37.5/37.5/25. The results showed that adding EVA to the PP/HDPE blend significantly increased the unnotched impact toughness: from 84.03 [...]

by Yasmin Cherni  , Ridha Elleuch  , Cristian Botta  , Luca Cocolin  , Amjed Kallal  , Ismail Trabelsi  and Lobna Elleuch

Received: 09 November 2023;  Published: 16 September 2025;  doi: 10.21926/rpm.2503014

The sustainable management of water resources is increasingly recognized as a critical component of environmental conservation and socio-economic development. Among the most challenging aspects of wastewater treatment is the effective remediation of landfill leachate, a complex and highly polluted effluent characterized by high levels of organic matter, ammonia, turbidity, and heavy metals. This study investigates an integrated treatment approach that combines chemical coagulation using aluminum sulfate with a subs [...]

by Taofiq O. Mohammed  , Mohammad Zunaied Bin Harun  , Jian Liu  and Ebenezer O. Fanijo

Received: 04 June 2025;  Published: 04 September 2025;  doi: 10.21926/rpm.2503013

The high carbon footprint of cement production and the cost and environmental impact of steel reinforcement make conventional concrete unsustainable for long-term use. Reducing cement consumption and identifying sustainable, cost-effective alternatives to steel are critical for lowering construction’s ecological and economic burden. Bio-based supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs), such as rice husk ash (RHA), and natural plant fibers show promise, but prior studies have mostly tested them separately or with v [...]

by Mahyar Vefaghi  , Hediyeh Rezaei Sedehi  and Omid Ashkani

Received: 09 April 2025;  Published: 03 August 2025;  doi: 10.21926/rpm.2503012

Nowadays, the development of advanced processors plays a key role in the progress of humanity and the discovery of new sciences, and quantum computers play an essential role in this regard. In this regard, the development of new generation processors is necessary for the development of quantum computers. Quantum diamonds, with their astonishing properties, especially the presence of nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in their crystalline structure, are among the most advanced emerging technologies in the field of quantu [...]