bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Ballistic Ground Penetrating Radar Equipment for Blast-Exposed Security Applications
Authors: Lombardi Federico , Lualdi Maurizio , Picetti Francesco , Bestagini Paolo , Janszen Gerardus , Di Landro Luca Angelo
Published: February 2020

Among all the forensic applications in which it has become an important exploration tool, ground penetrating radar (GPR) methodology is being increasingly adopted for buried landmine localisation, a framework in which it is expected to improve the operations efficiency, given the high resolution imaging capability and the possibility of detecting both metallic and non-metallic landmines. In this context, this study presents landmine detection equipment based on multi-polarisation: a ground coupled GPR platform, which ensures suitable penetration/resolution performance without affecting the safety of surveys, thanks to the inclusion of a flexible ballistic shielding for supporting eventual blasts. The experimental results have shown that not only can the blanket absorb blast-induced flying fragments impacts, but that it also allows for the acquisition of data with the accuracy required to generate a correct 3D reconstruction of the subsurface. The produced GPR volume is then processed through an automated learning scheme based on a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) capable of detecting buried objects with a high degree of accuracy.
A Dynamic Dashboarding Application for Fleet Monitoring Using Semantic Web of Things Technologies
Authors: Vanden Hautte Sander , Moens Pieter , Van Herwegen Joachim , De Paepe Dieter , Steenwinckel Bram , Verstichel Stijn , Ongenae Femke , Van Hoecke Sofie
Published: February 2020

In industry, dashboards are often used to monitor fleets of assets, such as trains, machines or buildings. In such industrial fleets, the vast amount of sensors evolves continuously, new sensor data exchange protocols and data formats are introduced, new visualization types may need to be introduced and existing dashboard visualizations may need to be updated in terms of displayed sensors. These requirements motivate the development of dynamic dashboarding applications. These, as opposed to fixed-structure dashboard applications, allow users to create visualizations at will and do not have hard-coded sensor bindings. The state-of-the-art in dynamic dashboarding does not cope well with the frequent additions and removals of sensors that must be monitored—these changes must still be configured in the implementation or at runtime by a user. Also, the user is presented with an overload of sensors, aggregations and visualizations to select from, which may sometimes even lead to the creation of dashboard widgets that do not make sense. In this paper, we present a dynamic dashboard that overcomes these problems. Sensors, visualizations and aggregations can be discovered automatically, since they are provided as RESTful Web Things on a Web Thing Model compliant gateway. The gateway also provides semantic annotations of the Web Things, describing what their abilities are. A semantic reasoner can derive visualization suggestions, given the Thing annotations, logic rules and a custom dashboard ontology. The resulting dashboarding application automatically presents the available sensors, visualizations and aggregations that can be used, without requiring sensor configuration, and assists the user in building dashboards that make sense. This way, the user can concentrate on interpreting the sensor data and detecting and solving operational problems early.
Digital Transformation of Agriculture through the Use of an Interoperable Platform
Authors: López-Morales Juan Antonio , Martínez Juan Antonio , Skarmeta Antonio F.
Published: February 2020

The continuous evolution of the agricultural sector justifies the incorporation and adaptation of the latest technologies. Nowadays, managing crops is possible through Internet-based technologies. Their application allows for the exploitation of information and the development of isolated applications, which, although powerful, create challenges for obtaining scalable predictions throughout the useful life of farms. To address this problem, a data model was defined to improve the management of crop plots in irrigation communities and simultaneously monitor crop needs. Consequently, the objective of this study was to create an open and interoperable platform based on standard interfaces and protocols to enable the integration of heterogeneous sources of information, while ensuring interoperability with other third-party solutions for exchanging and exploiting such information. Standard and open interfaces and protocols form the basis of the platform, thereby unifying all information in a single data model, which facilitates the better use and dissemination of information. The system was fully instantiated in a real prototype in an irrigation community; the software improved water irrigation management for the farmers connected to the platform.
Distance Error Correction in Time-of-Flight Cameras Using Asynchronous Integration Time
Authors: Baek Eu-Tteum , Yang Hyung-Jeong , Kim Soo-Hyung , Lee Gueesang , Jeong Hieyong
Published: February 2020

A distance map captured using a time-of-flight (ToF) depth sensor has fundamental problems, such as ambiguous depth information in shiny or dark surfaces, optical noise, and mismatched boundaries. Severe depth errors exist in shiny and dark surfaces owing to excess reflection and excess absorption of light, respectively. Dealing with this problem has been a challenge due to the inherent hardware limitations of ToF, which measures the distance using the number of reflected photons. This study proposes a distance error correction method using three ToF sensors, set to different integration times to address the ambiguity in depth information. First, the three ToF depth sensors are installed horizontally at different integration times to capture distance maps at different integration times. Given the amplitude maps and error regions are estimated based on the amount of light, the estimated error regions are refined by exploiting the accurate depth information from the neighboring depth sensors that use different integration times. Moreover, we propose a new optical noise reduction filter that considers the distribution of the depth information biased toward one side. Experimental results verified that the proposed method overcomes the drawbacks of ToF cameras and provides enhanced distance maps.
Highly Sensitive Photoacoustic Microcavity Gas Sensor for Leak Detection
Authors: Chen Ke , Chen Yewei , Zhang Bo , Mei Liang , Guo Min , Deng Hong , Liu Shuai , Ma Fengxiang , Gong Zhenfeng , Yu Qingxu
Published: February 2020

A highly sensitive photoacoustic (PA) microcavity gas sensor for leak detection is proposed. The miniature and low-cost gas sensor mainly consisted of a micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) microphone and a stainless-steel capillary with two small holes opened on the side wall. Different from traditional PA sensors, the designed low-power sensor had no gas valves and pumps. Gas could diffuse into the stainless-steel PA microcavity from two holes. The volume of the cavity in the sensor was only 7.9 μL. We use a 1650.96 nm distributed feedback (DFB) laser and the second-harmonic wavelength modulation spectroscopy (2f-WMS) method to measure PA signals. The measurement result of diffused methane (CH4) gas shows a response time of 5.8 s and a recovery time of 5.2 s. The detection limit was achieved at 1.7 ppm with a 1-s lock-in integral time. In addition, the calculated normalized noise equivalent absorption (NNEA) coefficient was 1.2 × 10−8 W·cm−1·Hz−1/2. The designed PA microcavity sensor can be used for the early warning of gas leakage.
A Micro Absolute Distance Measurement Method Based on Dispersion Compensated Polarized Low-Coherence Interferometry
Authors: Sun Xun , Feng Kunpeng , Cui Jiwen , Dang Hong , Niu Yizhao , Zhang Xuping
Published: February 2020

Micro absolute distance measurement (MADM) is widely used in industrial and military fields. To achieve high accuracy and frequency response, a polarized low-coherence interferometry (PLCI)-based method for MADM is proposed. The nearly linear relationship between the envelope center and m-order PLCI fringe (PLCIF) peak center is found and verified. Dispersion compensation is achieved by fringe peak position estimation and polynomial fitting to get rid of the dependence on an a priori model and birefringence parameters, and make this method very robust. Meanwhile, the zero-order PLCIF center is estimated and located to demodulate the measured displacement. Then, the measurement accuracy is raised by polynomial fittings. In comparison to conventional methods, the proposed method can effectively avoid jump errors and has a higher accuracy. Experimental results indicate that the measurement accuracy is higher than 19.51 nm, the resolution is better than 2 nm, and its processing data rate can reach 35 kHz.
Design of Quad-Port Ultra-Wideband Multiple-Input-Multiple-Output Antenna with Wide Axial-Ratio Bandwidth
Authors: Kumar Pawan , Urooj Shabana , Malibari Areej
Published: February 2020

This article presents a compact, planar, quad-port ultra-wideband (UWB) multiple-input–multiple-output (MIMO) antenna with wide axial ratio bandwidth (ARBW). The proposed MIMO design consists of four identical square-shaped antenna elements, where each element is made up of a circular slotted ground plane and feed by a 50 Ω microstrip line. The circular polarization is achieved using a protruding hexagonal stub from the ground plane. The four elements of the MIMO antenna are placed orthogonally to each other to obtain high inter-element isolation. FR-4 dielectric substrate of size 45 × 45 × 1.6 mm3 is used for the antenna prototype, and a good agreement is noticed among the simulated and experimental results. The proposed MIMO antenna shows 3-dB ARBW of 52% (3.8–6.5 GHz) and impedance bandwidth (S11 ≤ −10 dB) of 144% (2.2–13.5 GHz).
An Improved Strategy for Detection and Localization of Nodules in Liver Tissues by a 16 MHz Needle Ultrasonic Probe Mounted on a Robotic Platform
Authors: Bulletti Andrea , Mazzoni Marina , Prasanna Sahana , Massari Luca , Menciassi Arianna , Oddo Calogero Maria , Capineri Lorenzo
Published: February 2020

This study presents an improved strategy for the detection and localization of small size nodules (down to few mm) of agar in excised pork liver tissues via pulse-echo ultrasound measurements performed with a 16 MHz needle probe. This work contributes to the development of a new generation of medical instruments to support robotic surgery decision processes that need information about cancerous tissues in a short time (minutes). The developed ultrasonic probe is part of a scanning platform designed for the automation of surgery-associated histological analyses. It was coupled with a force sensor to control the indentation of tissue samples placed on a steel plate. For the detection of nodules, we took advantage of the property of nodules of altering not only the acoustical properties of tissues producing ultrasound attenuation, but also of developing patterns at their boundary that can modify the shape and the amplitude of the received echo signals from the steel plate supporting the tissues. Besides the Correlation Index Amplitude (CIA), which is linked to the overall amplitude changes of the ultrasonic signals, we introduced the Correlation Index Shape (CIS) linked to their shape changes. Furthermore, we applied AND-OR logical operators to these correlation indices. The results were found particularly helpful in the localization of the irregular masses of agar we inserted into some excised liver tissues, and in the individuation of the regions of major interest over which perform the vertical dissections of tissues in an automated analysis finalized to histopathology. We correctly identified up to 89% of inclusions, with an improvement of about 14% with respect to the result obtained (78%) from the analysis performed with the CIA parameter only.
Temperature Gradient Method for Alleviating Bonding-Induced Warpage in a High-Precision Capacitive MEMS Accelerometer
Authors: Liu Dandan , Liu Huafeng , Liu Jinquan , Hu Fangjing , Fan Ji , Wu Wenjie , Tu Liangcheng
Published: February 2020

Capacitive MEMS accelerometers with area-variable periodic-electrode displacement transducers found wide applications in disaster monitoring, resource exploration and inertial navigation. The bonding-induced warpage, due to the difference in the coefficients of thermal expansion of the bonded slices, has a negative influence on the precise control of the interelectrode spacing that is essential to the sensitivity of accelerometers. In this work, we propose the theory, simulation and experiment of a method that can alleviate both the stress and the warpage by applying different bonding temperature on the bonded slices. A quasi-zero warpage is achieved experimentally, proving the feasibility of the method. As a benefit of the flat surface, the spacing of the capacitive displacement transducer can be precisely controlled, improving the self-noise of the accelerometer to 6 ng/√Hz @0.07 Hz, which is about two times lower than that of the accelerometer using a uniform-temperature bonding process.
Inverse Filtering for Frequency Identification of Bridges Using Smartphones in Passing Vehicles: Fundamental Developments and Laboratory Verifications
Authors: Shirzad-Ghaleroudkhani Nima , Gül Mustafa
Published: February 2020

This paper puts forward a novel methodology of employing inverse filtering technique to extract bridge features from acceleration signals recorded on passing vehicles using smartphones. Since the vibration of a vehicle moving on a bridge will be affected by various features related to the vehicle, such as suspension and speed, this study focuses on filtering out these effects to extract bridge frequencies. Hence, an inverse filter is designed by employing the spectrum of vibration data of the vehicle when moving off the bridge to form a filter that will remove the car-related frequency content. Later, when the same car is moving on the bridge, this filter is applied to the spectrum of recorded data to suppress the car-related frequencies and amplify the bridge-related frequencies. The effectiveness of the proposed methodology is evaluated with experiments using a custom-built robot car as the vehicle moving over a lab-scale simply supported bridge. Nine combinations of speed and suspension stiffness of the car have been considered to investigate the robustness of the proposed methodology against car features. The results demonstrate that the inverse filtering method offers significant promise for identifying the fundamental frequency of the bridge. Since this approach considers each data source separately and designs a unique filter for each data collection device within each car, it is robust against device and car features.
Ultrasensitive Gas Refractometer Using Capillary-Based Mach–Zehnder Interferometer
Authors: Chen Haijin , Hu Xuehao , He Meifan , Ren Pengfei , Zhang Chao , Qu Hang
Published: February 2020

In this paper, we report a capillary-based Mach–Zehnder (M–Z) interferometer that could be used for precise detection of variations in refractive indices of gaseous samples. The sensing mechanism is quite straightforward. Cladding and core modes of a capillary are simultaneously excited by coupling coherent laser beams to the capillary cladding and core, respectively. An interferogram would be generated as the light transmitted from the core interferes with the light transmitted from the cladding. Variations in the refractive index of the air filling the core lead to variations in the phase difference between the core and cladding modes, thus shifting the interference fringes. Using a photodiode together with a narrow slit, we could interrogate the fringe shifts. The resolution of the sensor was found to be ~5.7 × 10−8 RIU (refractive index unit), which is comparable to the highest resolution obtained by other interferometric sensors reported in previous studies. Finally, we also analyze the temperature cross sensitivity of the sensor. The main goal of this paper is to demonstrate that the ultra-sensitive sensing of gas refractive index could be realized by simply using a single capillary fiber rather than some complex fiber-optic devices such as photonic crystal fibers or other fiber-optic devices fabricated via tricky fiber processing techniques. This capillary sensor, while featuring an ultrahigh resolution, has many other advantages such as simple structure, ease of fabrication, straightforward sensing principle, and low cost.
Fabric Vest Socket with Embroidered Electrodes for Control of Myoelectric Prosthesis
Authors: Lee Seulah , Jamil Babar , Kim Sunhong , Choi Youngjin
Published: February 2020

Myoelectric prostheses assist users to live their daily lives. However, the majority of users are primarily confined to forearm amputees because the surface electromyography (sEMG) that understands the motion intents should be acquired from a residual limb for control of the myoelectric prosthesis. This study proposes a novel fabric vest socket that includes embroidered electrodes suitable for a high-level upper amputee, especially for shoulder disarticulation. The fabric vest socket consists of rigid support and a fabric vest with embroidered electrodes. Several experiments were conducted to verify the practicality of the developed vest socket with embroidered electrodes. The sEMG signals were measured using commercial Ag/AgCl electrodes for a comparison to verify the performance of the embroidered electrodes in terms of signal amplitudes, the skin-electrode impedance, and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). These results showed that the embroidered electrodes were as effective as the commercial electrodes. Then, posture classification was carried out by able-bodied subjects for the usability of the developed vest socket. The average classification accuracy for each subject reached 97.92%, and for all the subjects it was 93.2%. In other words, the fabric vest socket with the embroidered electrodes could measure sEMG signals with high accuracy. Therefore, it is expected that it can be readily worn by high-level amputees to control their myoelectric prostheses, as well as it is cost effective for fabrication as compared with the traditional socket.
Differences in Facial Expressions between Spontaneous and Posed Smiles: Automated Method by Action Units and Three-Dimensional Facial Landmarks
Authors: Park Seho , Lee Kunyoung , Lim Jae-A , Ko Hyunwoong , Kim Taehoon , Lee Jung-In , Kim Hakrim , Han Seong-Jae , Kim Jeong-Shim , Park Soowon , Lee Jun-Young , Lee Eui Chul
Published: February 2020

Research on emotion recognition from facial expressions has found evidence of different muscle movements between genuine and posed smiles. To further confirm discrete movement intensities of each facial segment, we explored differences in facial expressions between spontaneous and posed smiles with three-dimensional facial landmarks. Advanced machine analysis was adopted to measure changes in the dynamics of 68 segmented facial regions. A total of 57 normal adults (19 men, 38 women) who displayed adequate posed and spontaneous facial expressions for happiness were included in the analyses. The results indicate that spontaneous smiles have higher intensities for upper face than lower face. On the other hand, posed smiles showed higher intensities in the lower part of the face. Furthermore, the 3D facial landmark technique revealed that the left eyebrow displayed stronger intensity during spontaneous smiles than the right eyebrow. These findings suggest a potential application of landmark based emotion recognition that spontaneous smiles can be distinguished from posed smiles via measuring relative intensities between the upper and lower face with a focus on left-sided asymmetry in the upper region.
Exploring the Key Driving Forces of the Sustainable Intergenerational Evolution of the Industrial Alliance Innovation Ecosystem: Evidence from a Case Study of China’s TDIA
Authors: Huang Jing , Wang Hongqi , Wu Jianlong , Yang Zhongji , Hu Xiaobo , Bao Mengmeng
Published: February 2020

Why does an industrial alliance upgrade sometimes quickly and sometimes very slowly? The answer to this question can scientifically reveal the key driving forces of the sustainable intergenerational evolution of industrial alliance innovation ecosystems. From the perspective of structural evolution, we analyzed and compared the key driving forces using a longitudinal case study from the 2G to 3G, and then to the 4G innovation ecosystems of China’s Time Division Industrial Alliance (TDIA). The findings showed that the internal key driving forces influencing the intergenerational evolution of the industrial alliance innovation ecosystem include the superiority of the new innovation ecosystem, the sustainability of the old ecosystem, and inheritance between the new and old ecosystems. Market demand and government policy indirectly affect the intergenerational evolution by shaping the environment in which the innovation ecosystems are embedded. This research will support industrial alliances and core members in making strategic innovation ecosystem decisions and support governments in designing related policies with scientific theoretical guidance and decision-making references. In particular, this study aimed to offer inspiration for the promotion of the successful sustainable evolution of China’s TDIA towards 5G.
Influential Factors on Injury Severity for Drivers of Light Trucks and Vans with Machine Learning Methods
Authors: Pillajo-Quijia Giovanny , Arenas-Ramírez Blanca , González-Fernández Camino , Aparicio-Izquierdo Francisco
Published: February 2020

The study of road accidents and the adoption of measures to reduce them is one of the most important targets of the Sustainable Development Goals for 2030. To further progress in the improvement of road safety, it is necessary to focus studies on specific groups, such as light trucks and vans. Since 2013 in Spain, there has been an upturn in accidents in these two categories of vehicles and a renewed interest to deepen our understanding of the causes that encourage this behavior. This paper focuses on using machine learning methods to explain driver-injury severity in run-off-roadway and rollover types of accidents. A Random Forest (RF)-classification tree (CART) approach is used to select the relevant categorical variables (driver, vehicle, infrastructure, and environmental factors) to obtain models that classify, explain, and predict the severity of such accidents with good accuracy. A support vector machine and binomial logit models were applied in order to contrast the variable importance ranking and the performance analysis, and the results are convergent with the RF+CART approach (more than 70% accuracy). The resulting models highlight the importance of using safety belts, as well as psychophysical conditions (alcohol, drugs, or sleep deprivation) and injury localization for the two accident types.
Digitalization of Agri-Cooperatives in the Smart Agriculture Context. Proposal of a Digital Diagnosis Tool
Authors: Ciruela-Lorenzo Antonio Manuel , Del-Aguila-Obra Ana Rosa , Padilla-Meléndez Antonio , Plaza-Angulo Juan José
Published: February 2020

The use of digital technologies has been recognized as one of the great challenges for businesses of the 21st century. This digitalization is characterized by the intensive use of information technologies in the different stages of the value chain of a sector. In this context, smart agriculture is transforming the agricultural sector in terms of economic, social, and environmental sustainability. In some countries, cooperatives, as the most common legal form of the incumbent companies, in this rather traditional low-intensive technology sector, are going to develop a relevant role in the process of adoption of these technologies. In this context, this paper provides, first, a review of the evolution of the main digital technologies, such as Internet of Things, robots, Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, and Blockchain, among others. Second, a description of the digital innovation process in agri-cooperatives in order to help them in the decision-making process, and third, a digital diagnosis tool for measuring cooperatives’ digital innovation. This tool is initially applied to two cases of agri-cooperatives in Spain. All of this contributes to a better understanding of digitalization of agri-cooperatives in the context of smart agriculture.
Analysis of Early Warning Spatial and Temporal Differences of Tourism Carrying Capacity in China’s Island Cities
Authors: Ye Fang , Park Jaepil , Wang Fen , Hu Xihua
Published: February 2020

Tourism is the leading industry of island cities and the tourism carrying capacity is of great significance to the sustainable development of cities. This paper adopts the state-space model to construct an early warning indicator system for tourism carrying capacity from three aspects: nature, economy, and society, explores the early warning status, and spatial and temporal differences of tourism carrying capacity in Chinese island cities, and makes use of the BP(Back Propagation) neural network model to predict the development trend of early warnings. The results show that (1) from 2012 to 2018, the early warning status of China’s island cities’ tourism carrying capacity is generally on the rise, the natural carrying capacity system’s early warning situation has deteriorated, which is in a state of severe warning interval. The economic carrying capacity and social carrying capacity are on the rise, and the warning degree is from the super warning interval to the severe warning interval and then to the moderate warning degree. The forecast of the overall tourism carrying capacity early warning index from 2019 to 2021 presents an upward trend and is in the moderate warning interval. (2) The tourism carrying capacity early warning in China’s island cities shows a large spatial and temporal difference and the early warning values of each island city are different. The early warning value of Putuo tourism carrying capacity always ranks first, and Changdao has the worst performance. (3) In accordance with the contribution status of the subsystem to the total system, the Chinese island cities show regional differences in the northern, central, and southern area, showing two forms of pressure cities and pressure-carrying cities. The government can adopt different policies and measures in accordance with different characteristics of human environmental activities.
A Multi-Criteria Assessment Procedure for Outdoor Lighting at the Design Stage
Authors: Pracki Piotr , Skarżyński Krzysztof
Published: February 2020

This paper presents an attempt at a unified approach for the assessment of outdoor lighting solutions at the design stage. First of all, the lighting criteria for different types of outdoor lighting installations have been carefully described. Despite the differences in criteria, it is possible to find a common ground for the assessment of lighting solutions at the design stage. This is based on the need for the assessment of lighting solutions to be included in the requirements for the luminous environment, light pollution, and energy efficiency. The review and analysis of the standards and reports allows an experimental procedure to be created, the main aim of which is to find the best and most sustainable lighting solution for any outdoor situation. The procedure was tested by the example of an analysis of parking lot lighting solutions. In the case analyzed, 120 solutions were considered. It appeared that, in only 65 cases were the requirements referring to both lighting condition and light pollution met. Finally, based on the lighting energy efficiency assessment, ten solutions were selected as the most suitable. Furthermore, only one solution out of the ten was the most beneficial, taking into account the extra criterion of basic economic cost. The case study confirms that the assessment procedure allows the most beneficial solution to be selected, taking into account the luminous environment, as well as light pollution and energy efficiency criteria. The proposed multi-criteria assessment procedure may be used as a valuable tool by lighting designers to select the most beneficial solution in order to meet the needs of safety, visual efficiency, and comfort, as well as taking into account light pollution and energy efficiency restrictions.
Bundling or Unbundling? Pricing Strategy for Complementary Products in a Green Supply Chain
Authors: Shan Haiyan , Zhang Chen , Wei Guo
Published: February 2020

Retailers usually sell complementary products jointly with a discounted price to attract more consumers. However, the difference of complementary degree between products leads to the diversity of pricing. In parallel, with the development of green supply chains, the extra cost of manufacturers to conduct ecological product design makes the pricing of complementary products further complicated. Thus, it is important to clarify the pricing strategy for complementary products in a green supply chain. Based on the Stackelberg games between two manufacturers and a retailer, this paper constructs three pricing models to simultaneously analyze the changes in the optimal profits of supply chain members and the optimal green manufacturing degree of complementary products. The results demonstrate that: (i) In most cases, two manufacturers prefer the pure bundling pricing strategy, but the strategy preference of the retailer is complex. (ii) The green manufacturing is mutually beneficial for complementary manufacturers and worth advocating. (iii) The increasing sensitivity of consumers to the green manufacturing level of one product will also be detrimental to the improvement of the optimal green manufacturing level of its complementary products.
Decision-Maker-Oriented VS. Collaboration: China’s Public Participation in Environmental Decision-Making
Authors: Feng Lu , Wu Qimei , Wu Weijun , Liao Wenjie
Published: February 2020

Public participation in environmental decision-making (EDM) has been broadly discussed. However, few recent studies in English have focused on the participation subject, scope, ways, and procedure in the EDM of developing countries such as China in the worldwide governance transformation. This study aims to provide an overview of public participation in EDM in China, thus elucidating both the legislation and practice of public participation in EDM in China to a broader audience, as such an overview has not yet been provided. At the beginning of this article, we clarify the key definitions of EDM, public participation and the public, and establish an analytical framework for analyzing public participation in EDM in China. We analyze the scope of the public, the participation scope, ways of participating, and participation procedure in EDM in legislation and practice, through document analysis and empirical survey. We then comment on challenges for public participation in EDM in China—including low public participation in EDM, narrow scope of participation, unbalanced ways of participation, and unreasonable participation procedure. In conclusion, we draw wider implications for public participation in EDM in China, arguing for a transformation from a decision-maker-oriented mode to a collaboration mode.
Clean Technology Transfer and Innovation in Social Housing Production in Brazil and Colombia. A Framework from a Systematic Review
Authors: Cubillos-González Rolando-Arturo , Tiberio Cardoso Grace
Published: February 2020

Over recent years in Brazil and Colombia, the social housing programs of these two countries have increasingly become directly related to the concept of green construction and seek to integrate with their respective laws. For example, a series of technological strategies allows bought countries to guarantee a reduction of the environmental impact of traditional construction technologies. Therefore, these actions try to answer the problems in the design of dwellings in Latin America. However, the construction sector reduced productivity and limited innovation in business. Some of the technological management processes in the social housing construction sector only consider the implementation of clean technologies tangentially. This situation is mainly because of general policies since they do not consider different local contexts. It is then worth asking: What impact do the processes of transfer of clean technologies have on social housing in Brazil and Colombia? This systematic review was carried out on scientific papers indexed by the science database from 2013 to 2019. The PRISMA method was applied to this review with an aim to propose a conceptual model for the transfer of clean technology in the production of social housing in Brazil and Colombia. Finally, we identify that the impact of clean technologies transfer on social housing is very low in these two countries.
Corporate-Run Society: The Practice of the Danwei System in Beijing during the Planned Economy Period
Authors: Xiao Zuopeng , Liu Tianbao , Chai Yanwei , Zhang Mengke
Published: February 2020

The danwei system is one of the most important institutional arrangements in the Chinese planned economy era (1950s–1970s). It also offers a clue to understanding China’s urban transformation since the economic reform. This paper aims to explore the spatial prototype of the danwei system and understand the internal logic for the operation of this system by conducting a case study of the danwei compound of the Beijing No. 2 Textile Factory. Focusing on the obligation of the factory to run social welfare services, the danwei system formed a so-called “corporate-run society”. A sustainable mechanism for production and reproduction is conceptually portrayed. The institutional practice of the danwei system is understood as a process that is in accordance with socialist constructions, the public ownership system, and state socialism. This paper argues that it is necessary to reconfigure the legacies of the danwei system and explore its implications for contemporary Chinese society.
Integrating Insights from Social-Ecological Interactions into Sustainable Land Use Change Scenarios for Small Islands in the Western Indian Ocean
Authors: Newman Rebecca Jo Stormes , Capitani Claudia , Courtney-Mustaphi Colin , Thorn Jessica Paula Rose , Kariuki Rebecca , Enns Charis , Marchant Robert
Published: February 2020

Small islands are vulnerable to the synergistic effects of climate change and anthropogenic disturbances due to the fact of their small area, geographical isolation, responsive ecologies, rapidly growing and developing populations and exposure to sea level and climate change. These changes exert pressures on ecosystem services, such as the provisioning of resources, and therefore threaten the sustainability of livelihoods. We reviewed key sustainability and livelihoods literature to bring together concepts of environmental livelihood resilience and stability across temporal and spatial scales and integrated them to produce a new conceptual framework for dynamic environmental livelihood sustainability (DESL). This framework aims to facilitate the incorporation of local community perspectives into water, energy and food nexus thinking about sustainable land use to support local livelihoods. Finally, we provide insights from this case study to evaluate the effectiveness of the DESL framework in addressing gaps in existing frameworks. We suggest this framing provides a mechanism for enhancing the agency of communities to produce more cohesive and inclusive land use management plans that can lead to enhanced environmental sustainability pathways.
Monetary Assessment of Restored Habitats as a Support Tool for Sustainable Landscape Management in Lowland Cultural Landscapes
Authors: Brus Jan , Deutscher Jan , Bajer Aleš , Kupec Petr , Olišarová Lucie
Published: February 2020

Surfaces directly influenced by mining and post-mining have risen to prominence in the field of restoration ecology. It is important to gain a better understanding of sustainable landscape management in lowland European cultural landscapes. Sand and gravel-pit areas were selected as study sites, where mining activities have been the main factor in land use over recent decades. The post-mining restoration of each area disturbed by mining processes was planned according to legally enforced technical and biological restoration protocols, as well as a specific document entitled the Biological Action Plan (BAP). The financial costs of BAPs for individual study sites were compared with the monetary value of habitats over three time periods. The economic evaluation was based on the assessment method of ecological harm to habitats carried out in Hesse (Germany). The results show that the restoration of target habitats after mining will establish and gradually develop new natural habitats with a higher monetary value than before mining, which become refuges of biodiversity in cultural landscapes. The results also indicate that the ecological restoration of post-mining areas can result in a higher monetary value of the restored natural habitats in comparison to the original habitats which were destroyed by mining.
Towards Cleaner Production: Certified Seed Adoption and Its Effect on Technical Efficiency
Authors: Baglan Muratbek , Mwalupaso Gershom Endelani , Zhou Xue , Geng Xianhui
Published: February 2020

The implementation of new agricultural technologies has become a driving force for cleaner production on smallholder farms. Particularly, identifying technologies could enhance the efficiency and sustainability of agricultural production, both of which are serious challenges. In this context, evaluating the adoption of certified seed and its impact on efficiency gains and waste reduction is highly fundamental for sustainable smallholder food production. This perspective was not always considered in previous studies. We address this research gap using cross-sectional data from wheat farmers in northern Kazakhstan. A multi-stage sampling procedure is employed while the sample-selection stochastic production frontier (SPF) is applied for a robust estimation. Results reveal that increased crop income, access to credit and education positively influence the adoption of certified seed while membership in cooperatives and distance from the market are negative determinants. We also find that adopters are 10.3% “cleaner in production” than non-adopters. A comparison was made between the conventional SPF and the sample-selection SPF to evaluate the credibility of the estimation. It was found that the estimates from the conventional SPF were biased by 10%. This study provides insights into two policy and scholarly questions, namely, how effective the adoption of certified seeds is in promoting cleaner production among wheat farmers and how it can be promoted among wheat farmers. Therefore, our study presents substantial empirical evidence to encourage investment in or to promote certified seed adoption in wheat production.
Paradigm Shift in Business Education: A Competence-Based Approach
Authors: Bratianu Constantin , Hadad Shahrazad , Bejinaru Ruxandra
Published: February 2020

The fast and unpredictable changes in the business environment lead to significant changes in the future job market. For current business students, the future will offer many new opportunities for their employment but, at the same time, it will also create many threats disguised in the disappearing jobs. Business education centered mainly on knowledge transmission is challenged to switch towards a competence-based approach which includes knowledge, skills, and attitudes. The present research focuses on the need to change the paradigm of business education by creating a new learning environment centered on business competencies, and on a new knowledge ecosystem dynamics. The approach uses both qualitative and quantitative methods. In the first phase the research is focused on a critical literature review, and extraction of ideas for the next phase based on quantitative methods. In order to evaluate the students’ perception on the need of competence-based business education, a questionnaire has been designed and applied to undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in business and management programs. Data is processed by using SPSS and deriving six logistic regressions based on the conceptual model designed similar to a hierarchy Findings coming from students show a significant awareness for the need of paradigm shift in business education, from knowledge transfer to business competence development.
Research on the Spatial Structure of County Greenway Network Based on Gravitation-Resistance Measurement—A Case Study of Ning’an in China
Authors: Jiang Xue , Zhao Tianyu
Published: February 2020

The ecological value, cultural value, economic value and industrial value of the county space, where a variety of human activities and natural ecological processes are carried out, act as the key elements considered in county spatial planning. However, there is a lack of carrying space for integrating these values in the actual Chinese county construction. In this article, the construction of a county greenway network is based on multiple needs, such as ecological protection, characteristic landscape, leisure and recreation. The ecological, cultural and economic values of resources are taken as the basis of identifying a greenway network. We establish the gravitation-resistance model to measure network flow based on the attraction and resistance between resources. In particular, by means of network flow analysis and the geographic information system (GIS), the resistance and gravity are assigned to the resources and landscapes, respectively. The attraction between elements is then measured using the gravitation-resistance model. The distribution of resources and the trend of integration are analyzed by the combination of the centrality of resources and the ratio of supply to demand. Based on the analysis results of network flow, the paper puts forward a strategy for developing a county greenway network, and improves the scientific evaluation of the spatial resource. It provides a new perspective for the construction of a county greenway network.
Optimization of Food Waste and Biochar In-Vessel Co-Composting
Authors: Chaher Nour El Houda , Chakchouk Mehrez , Engler Nils , Nassour Abdallah , Nelles Michael , Hamdi Moktar
Published: February 2020

As bulking agents (BA) affect the composting process, this work examined the impact of combinations of different organic components in order to obtain an efficient co-substrate for food waste (FW) in-vessel composting. To boost the occurrence of microorganisms inhabiting the compost, mature compost was firstly coupled with wheat straw, added to FW, and considered as a control (BC0). Then, two trials (BC10, BC20) including 10% and 20% of biochar were monitored. The results indicated that the temperature of the amended bioreactors was notably increased compared to the unamended one. Thermophilic temperatures were achieved at 14, 34, and 78 h after the experimental setup for BC20, BC10, and BC0, which lasted for 14, 17, and 12 days, respectively. When it came to an assessment of maturity and stability, the quality of the compost was evaluated against several indicators and compared with the compost quality standards of the UK, France, Canada, the USA, Poland, and Germany. BC10 illustrated a high-quality product in relation to the heavy metal concentration, a C:N ratio which reached 14.97, an AT4 which was lower than 6 (4.36 mg O2/g TS), and a nitrification index of 2.61 (<3). Consequently, the addition of 10% of biochar as a co-substrate showed an improvement of the process evolution and the characteristics of the biofertilizer produced.
How Do Configuration Shifts in Fragmented Energy Governance Affect Policy Output? A Case Study of Changing Biogas Regimes in Indonesia
Authors: Budiman Ibnu , Smits Mattijs
Published: February 2020

Biogas technology to support rural livelihoods and low-carbon development has been developed in different projects and programs in the Global South over the last few decades. However, the existence of multiple projects, actors and designs involved may lead to so-called fragmentation in governance. This research addresses the fragmented governance amongst the biogas programmes in Indonesia to study their impact on the implementation; the numbers of biodigesters disseminated and knowledge transferred. Drawing on concepts of fragmentation, regime effectiveness, and policy output, the research uses data from interviews with relevant actors, supplemented with documents review. Findings show that the governance architecture of biogas regime in Indonesia consists of different types of biogas programmes championed by different types of actors pursuing different objectives. There had been patterns and periodical shifts of configuration within the Indonesian biogas regime, i.e., from administrative fragmentation (2007–2009), to conflictive fragmentation (2010–2012), to cooperative fragmentation (2013–2016), and reduced fragmentation (2017). Shifting from administrative to cooperative fragmentation resonates with the increase of the number of biodigesters dissemination more than fourfold in ten years, from 800 in 2007, to 37,999 in 2016. The distribution of power within the governance architecture among government bodies, NGOs, and the private sector influenced the speed of implementation and innovation of the biogas programs. This suggests that a higher degree of distribution of power and cooperation within a governance architecture contribute to increasing policy output of the regime complex of renewable energy.
Does Education Background Affect Digital Equal Opportunity and the Political Participation of Sustainable Digital Citizens? A Taiwan Case
Authors: Chen Chia-Hui , Liu Chao-Lung , Hui Bryant Pui Hung , Chung Ming-Lun
Published: February 2020

The purpose of this article is to examine the level of digital equity and political participation in Taiwan. In this study, we argue that high digital literacy and active civic participation facilitate the formation of sustainable digital citizenship. We review the development of digital education policy in Taiwan since the 1990s. Based on the nationwide survey dataset prepared by Taiwan’s National Development Council in 2018, we examine the relations between digital literacy, digital social life, the digitalized acquisition of government information, and the political participation of digital citizens. We adopt a structural equation modeling approach and perform the multi-group analysis to validate our proposed model of digital equal opportunity. The results show that there are significantly positive relations between the four digital latent variables, but no statistically significant differences between interviewees with high and low education backgrounds in the relations with these variables. In addition, our findings reveal that the digital social life of digital citizens indirectly affects their political participation through their digitalized acquisition of government information. This paper also discusses the implications of digital education policy and the formation of sustainable digital citizenship.