bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Neural Network Modeling for the Reduction of Scattering Grating Lobes of Arrays
Authors: Liu Zhi-Xian , Su Wen-Hao , Zhang Sheng-Jun , Shao Wei
Published: February 2024

The monostatic radar cross-section (RCS) of an array is seriously deteriorated by the scattering grating lobe. In this paper, the scattering grating lobe of an array is suppressed by metal walls around elements. The artificial neural network with Fourier series-based transfer functions is used to accelerate the design process. A 1×8 array with the patch element operating in the range from 9.4 to 10.6 GHz is studied. The monostatic RCS of the array with designed metal walls is compared with that of the array with no metal wall. Simulated results show that the scattering grating lobe of the array with metal walls is suppressed by 5.8 dB at 12 GHz, and the change of radiation performance is acceptable. The design procedure is also available for other arrays with reduced scattering grating lobes.
Parametric Modeling for Curved Slots of Vivaldi Antenna Based on Artificial Neural Network
Authors: Su Wen-Hao , Shao Wei , Ou Haiyan , Zhang Sheng-Jun
Published: February 2024

This paper proposes an artificial neural network (ANN) model based on parametric modeling for curved slots of the Vivaldi antenna. A more effective processing method is achieved by feeding ANN with the point positions that produce curved edges via cubic spline interpolation rather than the picture of metallic patches. The predicted results of ANN, including S-parameter and gain, agree well with those from the full-wave simulation. With the trained model, a Vivaldi antenna with the lower cut-off frequency is optimized by the multi-objective genetic algorithm.
Physics-informed Deep Learning to Solve 2D Electromagnetic Scattering Problems
Authors: Wang Ji-Yuan , Pan Xiao-Min
Published: February 2024

The utilization of physics-informed deep learning (PI-DL) methodologies provides an approach to augment the predictive capabilities of deep learning (DL) models by constraining them with known physical principles. We utilize a PI-DL model called the deep operator network (DeepONet) to solve two-dimensional (2D) electromagnetic (EM) scattering problems. Numerical results demonstrate that the discrepancy between the DeepONet and conventional method of moments (MoM) is small, while maintaining computational efficiency.
Realization of an Optimum Load for Wireless Power Transfer System
Authors: Wang Chaoling , Wu Qi
Published: February 2024

Wireless power transfer (WPT) system has been an integral part of personal living since its regained interest, especially the magnetic resonance (MR) scheme. MR-WPT scheme suffers, however, change of the coil separation distance and various alignment errors. This paper reports a realization of optimum load for MR-WPT system, which can change the loading impedance accordingly for different coupling coefficients between the Tx and Rx coils. A simple varactor circuit is adopted to realize the optimum load curve. Usefulness of this is demonstrated through both the steady and transient analysis. The proposed realization relies on an open-circuit scheme, and hence it is suitable for scenarios with low-cost and small-size requirements.
Antenna Shape Modeling based on Histogram of Oriented Gradients Feature
Authors: Luo Hai-Ying , Su Wen-Hao , Ou Haiyan , Zhang Sheng-Jun , Shao Wei
Published: February 2024

A least square support vector machine (SVM) model is proposed for shape modeling of slot antennas. The slot image is mapped into the electromagnetic response by the SVM model. A modified shape-changing technique is also proposed to describe the antenna geometry by the quadratic uniform B-spline curve and generate the slot images. In the model, the histogram of oriented gradients feature is extracted from the slot images to show the appearance and shape of the slot. The relationship between the histogram of oriented gradient features and the electromagnetic responses is preliminarily built on SVM and the transfer function. Then a radial basis function network is used for error correction. The effectiveness of the proposed model is confirmed with an example of a tri-band microstrip-fed slot antenna. Compared with the convolutional neural network (CNN), the feature extracted by CNN is substituted by the histogram of oriented gradients feature, and the proposed model shows the same accuracy and the improvement of training efficiency.
Wideband Multi-polarization Reconfigurable Antenna based on Non-uniform Polarization Convert AMC Reflector
Authors: Li Long , Liang Jia-Jun , Liu Xiao , Chen Tiejun , Lv Jier , Wu Zhao
Published: February 2024

A novel design of wideband multi-polarization reconfigurable antenna is proposed, based on a non-uniform polarization convert artificial magnetic conductor (AMC) reflector. The proposed antenna consists of a radiator element and an AMC reflector. Firstly, a modified polarization convert AMC reflector is designed. The non-uniform AMC reflector causes an enhancement of 3 dB axial ratio (AR) performance. Secondly, a wideband linearly polarized monopole antenna is presented as the main radiator, utilizing the broadband characteristic of a C-shaped monopole. The polarization reconfigurability of the proposed antenna can be achieved by properly rotating the AMC reflector, which can be switched between linear polarization (LP), left-hand circular polarization (LHCP), and right-hand circular polarization (RHCP). A prototype of the proposed antenna is fabricated and experimented with to validate the theoretical performance. The measured results show a -10 dB impedance bandwidth of 42.7% and 44.4% for LP and CP modes, respectively, and a 3 dB AR bandwidth of 20% for CP modes. In addition, the measured peak gain reaches 8 dBi/dBic. A good agreement is shown between the simulation and measurement, pointing to the good performance of the proposed antenna.
A Compact Low-profile 5G Millimeter-wave Circularly Polarized Antenna Based on LTCC
Authors: Wang Ting , Wang Jun , Ding Chenyu , Miao Zhuowei , Wang Jie , Zhao Lei
Published: February 2024

In this paper, a circularly polarized millimeter-wave L-shaped dipole antenna based on low temperature cofired ceramic (LTCC) technology is proposed, which realizes compact size and low-profile performance. The designed antenna consists of radiation patches and the grounded coplanar waveguide-substrate integrated waveguide (GCPW-SIW) feeding structure, which connects each other by two via holes. The radiation patches include a pair of L-shaped patches and four parasitic patches. The simulated results show that the proposed antenna operates from 26.5 to 29.5 GHz for |S11|<−10 dB and AR<3 dB with a peak gain of 6.7 dBic. The antenna element size is only 0.58λ0×0.58λ0×0.056λ0, where λ0 is free-space wavelength at the center frequency of 28 GHz. A sample of the antenna is fabricated and measured to verify the proposed design, which has a good agreement with the simulated ones, indicating that the antenna has potential applications for the fifth generation (5G) mm-Wave n257 (26.5 - 29.5 GHz) frequency band communications and satellite communication systems.
Design of Multilayer Wideband Microwave Absorbers using Improved Grey Wolf Optimizer
Authors: Zhang Hao Nan , Zhang Zhi Fei , Du Yi , Kong Wei Bin , Yang Xiao Fang , Fang Zhong Qing
Published: February 2024

In this paper, an improved heuristic algorithm based on the disturbance and somersault foraging grey wolf optimizer (IDSFGWO) is proposed to optimize the design of multilayer wideband microwave absorbers for normal incidence. The multilayer absorber is designed to reduce maximum reflection coefficient by choosing suitable layers of materials from a predefined database. Three improvement strategies are given to enhance the performance of GWO, including tent map, nonlinear perturbation, and somersault foraging. The optimization results show that the reflection coefficients optimized by IDSFGWO are better than those of other algorithms for multilayer absorber design.
Design of a Pulse Transformer for X-band Klystron
Authors: Liu Yongfang , Wu Yonghua , Zhou Xiaoxuan , Tong Jin
Published: February 2024

Future linear accelerators require klystrons with higher radio frequency (RF) to drive higher gradient accelerating structure. An x-band accelerator structure was used to accelerate electrons at the Shanghai Soft X-ray Free Electron Laser Facility (SXFEL) in Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences (SARI-CAS). A pulse transformer is a crucial device in an RF system. This study presents a high-voltage pulse transformer used for a 50 MW x-band pulsed klystron in SXFEL. Typical specifications of the pulse transformer are peak pulse voltage 420 kV, peak pulse current 300 A, 50 Hz repetition rate and 1.5 μs flat-top pulse width. Design and optimization of pulse transformer are achieved by using equivalent circuit analytic methods and computational aided simulation. The relevant experiments show that this pulse transformer can meet the requirements of 50MW x-band klystron.
Gender-transformative action, social norms and economic empowerment
Authors: Cookson Tara Patricia , Carlitz Ruth , Berryhill Alex , Fuentes Lorena
Published: February 2024

Feminist advocacy for ‘gender transformative’ approaches to development, public policy and humanitarian action that account for social norms has surged in recent years. This article intervenes in the debate around norms and implications for transformative approaches. We draw on a unique set of quantitative, global ‘gender data’ collected in 2020 and 2021 and examine how social norms inform women’s experiences of economic empowerment, as well as how these relationships map onto the current debates around interventions to address social norms and the form these interventions ought to take. Our data show that social norms matter for access to and control over resources; in addition, they illustrate that an individual belief in gender equality is fairly common around the world but that such individual beliefs frequently do not coincide with what people think their neighbours believe. These findings suggest a need for consideration of factors beyond individual attitudes towards and beliefs in gender-transformative interventions for women’s economic empowerment.
Wage theft and the contours of accumulation
Authors: Burnett Jon , Chebe Fidelis
Published: February 2024

This article examines the theft of migrant workers’ wages in England by their employers, drawing from original accounts and testimonies of a sample of workers employed between 2018 and 2023. It builds on and establishes new conceptual understandings of wage theft by examining it as a violent form of accumulation, with a range of logics and functions including those which are connected to labour processes and the management of labour forces. In making this argument, the article situates the theft of migrant workers’ wages – in this context at least – at the apex of at least three convergent dynamics: namely, the contours of immigration control and attacks on migrants’ rights, a reworking and undermining of regulatory structures relating to labour protections, and ongoing forms of labour market restructuring. As such, it suggests that these dynamics are structural; and furthermore, at a point where each of these policy trajectories is being aggressively pursued, they are intensifying. In dominant narratives wage theft is frequently depicted as something carried out by ‘rogue’ employers, at the margins of labour markets. But in contrast, this article suggests it must be understood as a structurally-situated component of contemporary political economy. Indeed, it is a core contention of the analysis that follows that movements to resist and tackle wage theft must acknowledge these broader connections and the broader political economy of which they are a part.
Theoretical and experimental studies on channel impulse response of short-range non-line-of-sight ultraviolet communications
Authors: Cao Tian , Chen Shihan , Wang Mingyang , Wu Tianfeng , Zhang Hongming , Pan Changyong , Wang Ping , Wang Kaile , Song Jian
Published: February 2024

A theoretical channel impulse response (CIR) model of short-range non-line-of-sight (NLOS) ultraviolet communications (UVC) in noncoplanar geometry under the single-scatter condition is proposed. Simulation results obtained from the widely accepted Monte-Carlo (MC)-based channel model of NLOS UVC are provided to verify corresponding theoretical results obtained from the proposed theoretical single-scatter CIR model. Additionally, an outdoor experiment with a light-emitting diode (LED) as the light source is first designed to measure the channel step response of NLOS UVC and to further validate the proposed theoretical single-scatter CIR model. By varying the different parameters of the transmitter and the receiver, such as the baseline range, the inclination angle, the azimuth angle, the beam divergence angle, and the field-of-view angle, the results of the proposed theoretical single-scatter CIR model and the MC-based channel model are exhibited and further analyzed in detail. Results indicate that the computational time cost by the proposed theoretical single-scatter CIR model is decreased to less than 0.6% of the MC-based one with comparable accuracy in assessing the temporal characteristics of NLOS UVC channels. Additionally, theoretical results obtained from the proposed theoretical single-scatter CIR model manifest satisfactory agreement with corresponding experimental measurements.
Dissipative Kerr soliton generation at 2μm in a silicon nitride microresonator
Authors: Karunakaran Anamika Nair , Clementi Marco , Lafforgue Christian , Yakar Ozan , Stroganov Anton , Varming Poul , Pu Minhao , Yvind Kresten , Montague Patrick , Brès Camille-Sophie
Published: February 2024

Chip-scale optical frequency combs enable the generation of highly-coherent pulsed light at gigahertz-level repetition rates, with potential technological impact ranging from telecommunications to sensing and spectroscopy. In combination with techniques such as dual-comb spectroscopy, their utilization would be particularly beneficial for sensing of molecular species in the mid-infrared spectrum, in an integrated fashion. However, few demonstrations of direct microcomb generation within this spectral region have been showcased so far. In this work, we report the generation of Kerr soliton microcombs in silicon nitride integrated photonics. Leveraging a high-Q silicon nitride microresonator, our device achieves soliton generation under milliwatt-level pumping at 1.97 µm, with a generated spectrum encompassing a 422 nm bandwidth and extending up to 2.25 µm. The use of a dual pumping scheme allows reliable access to several comb states, including primary combs, modulation instability combs, as well as multi- and single-soliton states, the latter exhibiting high stability and low phase noise. Our work extends the domain of silicon nitride based Kerr microcombs towards the mid-infrared using accessible factory-grade technology and lays the foundations for the realization of fully integrated mid-infrared comb sources.
Design of ultrahigh-Q silicon microring resonators based on free-form curves
Authors: Han Zhe , Qi Yan , Wang Yu , Wang Yanwei , Fan Yuanyuan , Yan Boxia , Zhou Mi , Wang Qian
Published: February 2024

A design method for ultrahigh-Q microring resonators (MRRs) based on Bezier free-form curves was proposed and demonstrated. An MRR consisting of a specially designed 180° waveguide bend, a directional coupler, and two low-loss multi-mode strip waveguides was designed. The free-form curves were used to increase the degree of freedom in the design, shaping the waveguide bend with a gradient width and curvature. This design effectively reduced the propagation loss caused by the roughness of waveguide sidewalls and the mode mismatch loss caused by the excitation of high order modes. The small effective radius of only 20µm enabled the MRR to have a large free spectral range (FSR) and a compact and flexible structure. The MRR was manufactured using a standard process provided by foundry and measured to have an ultrahigh loaded Q factor of 1.86 × 106 and a FSR of about 1 nm.
Mid-infrared tunable absorber based on an Ag/SiO2/VO2/Ag/VO2 multilayer structure and its molecular sensing capability
Authors: Huang Jiawei , Li Rui , Zhang Hengchang , Wu Ying , Wang Yunxia , Yan Changchun , Han Caiqin
Published: February 2024

We present a design of middle-infrared modulation absorbers based on vanadium dioxide (VO2). By using the electron beam evaporation technique, the Ag/SiO2/VO2/Ag/VO2 multilayer structure can achieve double band strong absorption in the mid-infrared, and dynamically adjust the absorption performance through VO2. The simulation results demonstrate a remarkable absorption rate of 91.8% and 98.9% at 9.09 µm and 10.25 µm, respectively. The high absorption is elucidated by analyzing the field strength distribution in each layer. Meanwhile, based on the phase change characteristics of VO2, the absorber has exceptional thermal regulation, with a remarkable 78% heat regulation range in the mid-infrared band. The size altering of the absorbing layer is effective in enhancing and optimizing the structure's absorption performance. The structure is used to characterize probe molecules of CV and R6 G by mid-infrared spectroscopy, which illustrates an impressive limit of detection (LOD) of 10−7 M for both substances. These results provide valuable insights for designing future high-performance tunable optical devices.
Stable Q-switched and femtosecond mode-locked erbium-doped fiber laser based on a CuSe nanosheets saturable absorber
Authors: Xu Chongyang , He Yunze , Chen Yifan , Zhang Kun , Lv Xinjie , Ning Jian , Zhao Gang , Zhu Shining
Published: February 2024

Stable Q-switched and femtosecond mode-locked erbium-doped fiber laser (EDFL) have been achieved using CuSe nanosheets as novel saturable absorber (SA), where the CuSe nanosheets were prepared by a hydrothermal method. The nonlinear optical properties of CuSe nanosheets were measured using an Z-scan setup, revealing nonlinear absorption coefficients of -3.67 ± 0.22 cm GW-1 at 1560 nm. The prepared CuSe nanosheets were mixed with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) to obtain a CuSe-PVA SA with a modulation depth of 3.8 ± 0.13%, and it was utilized to realize a Q-switched EDFL, obtaining the narrowest pulse duration of 1.29 µs and the maximum output power of 5.96 mW, which corresponds to a pulse energy of up to 103.7 nJ. In addition, CuSe nanosheets were deposited on a D-shaped fiber (DSF) to fabricate a CuSe-DSF SA with a modulation depth of 5.6 ± 0.17%, and it was utilized to realize a mode-locked EDFL. The mode-locked EDFL demonstrated a low threshold of only 42 mW, a pulse duration of 740 fs, and a maximum output power of 9.7 mW. Meanwhile, it exhibited a high signal-to-noise ratio of 72 dB. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time of CuSe nanosheets as SA in EDFL. The results demonstrate that CuSe nanosheets are a highly promising nonlinear optical material with great potential for applications in ultrafast photonics.
Silicon integrated Bi2TbFe5O12 thin films for O-band nonreciprocal photonic device applications
Authors: Zhang Tianchi , Yang Yucong , Wu Di , Wang Junxian , Wei Zixuan , Yan Wei , Bi Lei
Published: February 2024

Silicon photonics for data communication requires key components in the O-band (1260 nm−1310 nm). However, very few studies report silicon integrated magneto-optical thin films operating at this wavelength range. In this study, we report a method to fabricate polycrystalline Bi2Tb1Fe5O12 thin films on silicon substrates for O-band nonreciprocal photonic device applications. The films are fabricated by magnetron sputtering at room temperature followed by rapid thermal annealing for crystallization. Pure garnet phase is stabilized by a Y3Fe5O12 seed layer on silicon. The film deposited on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) waveguides showed saturation Faraday rotation of −3300 ± 183 deg/cm, propagation loss of 53.3 ± 0.3 dB/cm and a high figure of merit of 61.9 ± 3.8 deg/dB at 1310 nm wavelength, demonstrating promising potential for O-band integrated nonreciprocal photonic devices.
Discursive construction of identities for older people in news: A critical discourse analysis of Malaysian newspapers
Authors: Imran Muhammad Asim , Budarick John
Published: February 2024

This article examines how Malaysian journalists discursively construct identities for older people through the manipulation of language, reporting styles and the prioritization of certain news actors and their voices over others. Based on a critical discourse analysis of newspaper articles published between 2011 and 2021, this study reveals the social, cultural, journalistic and economic forces that affect how the media construct ‘older’ people. We demonstrate that newspapers in Malaysia construct identities through familial discourses, which indicates that the dependence of older people on family plays a significant role in the way they are perceived and constructed by the media. Journalists construct and propagate narratives that place the responsibility for caring for elderly Malaysians on family members. These narratives appear to absolve the government of responsibility for this role.
‘No time to think’: Overloaded journalists trim practices to save time
Authors: James-Garrod Caroline
Published: February 2024

Australian journalists suffer time poverty in under-resourced workplaces, with most indicating that they skip reporting practices to save time. This article argues that convergence of factors including the industry’s biggest workforce cut in history, global technological changes, economic losses during the 2012–20 period and unforeseen COVID-19 workforce stressors have caused chronic journalist time stresses, which in turn often undermine ethical practice. Study of 288 surveys and interviews of Australian journalists contributes a small body of valuable research on the commonality of time poverty experienced by professional journalists, and the tactics used by sufferers when there is not enough time to do all ideal work-time tasks. Analysis of collected qualitative data informs critical discussion of how time poverty can undermine journalism method. In conclusion, this article finds an overworked, underpaid and insufficiently resourced labour force remains an under-recognized legacy of journalism’s mass job-cuts era.
Pandemedia: How COVID Changed Journalism, Tracey Kirkland and Gavin Fang (eds) (2023)
Authors: Bonfiglioli Catriona
Published: February 2024

Review of: Pandemedia: How COVID Changed Journalism, Tracey Kirkland and Gavin Fang (eds) (2023)

Clayton: Monash University Publishing, 320 pp.,

ISBN 978-1-92263-381-1, p/bk, USD 34.99
The Ten Rules of Reporting, Alan Sunderland (2022)
Authors: Murray Richard
Published: February 2024

Review of: The Ten Rules of Reporting, Alan Sunderland (2022)

Cammeray: Simon & Schuster Australia, 160 pp.,

ISBN 978-1-76110-823-5, p/bk, AUD 24.99

ISBN 978-1-76110-824-2, e-book, AUD 14.99
Who Needs the ABC? Why Taking It for Granted Is No Longer an Option (2022), Matthew Ricketson and Patrick Mullins
Authors: Murray Richard
Published: February 2024

Review of: Who Needs the ABC? Why Taking It for Granted Is No Longer an Option (2022), Matthew Ricketson and Patrick Mullins

Brunswick: Scribe Books, 256 pp.,

ISBN 978-1-92231-092-7, p/bk, AUD 29.99

ISBN 978-1-92258-649-0, e-book, AUD 16.43
Seeking Truth in International TV News: China, CGTN and the BBC, Vivien Marsh (2023)
Authors: Josephi Beate
Published: February 2024

Review of: Seeking Truth in International TV News: China, CGTN and the BBC, Vivien Marsh (2023)

Abingdon: Routledge, 232 pp.,

ISBN 978-0-36755-852-9, h/bk, USD 226.80

ISBN 978-1-00309-543-9, e-book, USD 63.90
Localizing diasporic digital media practices: Social stratification and community making among Somali women living in Rome
Authors: Minchilli Claudia
Published: February 2024

In this article, I inquire into the relationship between digital media practices, community making and forms of social stratification among Somali women living in Rome. Drawing on a critical approach to the study of ‘digital diaspora’, I use theories of ‘field’ and ‘capitals’ as analytical tools to examine the impact of different positionings assumed by Somali women within the local community on forms of diasporic networking through digital means. The relationality between offline and online reality is exposed, unpacking women’s positioning and roles through an intersectional approach sensitive to age, class, literacy and gender dynamics. This reveals internal fractures or forms of solidarity shaping the landscape of the local field of Somali digital diaspora.
On dependencies and opportunities: Examining networks of scholars in exile
Authors: Richter Carola
Published: February 2024

We present a qualitative network analysis (QNA) of fourteen scholars from Turkey, Syria and Yemen in exile in Germany. The QNA examined the strength and importance of the exiled scholars’ networks on their careers and modes of communication. While international mobility is typical in an academic career, an analysis of the networks of exiled scientists revealed major ruptures and changes in the networks of the investigated scholars due to their forced relocation. The analyses showed strong dependency of the researchers on the host nation, leading many to feel marginalized in their host country while having to sever relations with their home country, concurrently. Nonetheless, others were able to strengthen their position in their host nation by exploiting their previously built transnational and newly formed connections. We explore the vulnerability of the scholars’ networks in exile.
Sondheim’s generative geniality
Authors: Young Harvey
Published: February 2024

Stephen Sondheim’s kindness and enthusiasm for the emergent artistry of others made him musical theatre’s ‘encourager-in-chief’. This article spotlights Sondheim’s distinctive generative geniality. It centres this aspect of Sondheim by looking at the ways in which people remember his role as a mentor who often wrote positive notes of support. It also spotlights his appearance (or representation) in two films – Camp and Tick, Tick…Boom!, alongside an episode of the The Simpsons – as himself to highlight his generosity of spirit and willingness to help (and be an inspiration for) others.
Queer Sundays
Authors: Anderson Patrick
Published: February 2024

This article reflects on the allegorical queerness of one of Stephen Sondheim’s most popular and celebrated musicals, Sunday in the Park with George. The author recalls his first experience of the musical – the televised version of the original Broadway production in the mid-1980s – at a moment when his own adolescent queerness was beginning to find voice, and examines Sondheim’s subtle and typically unmarked incorporation of queerness into his work. Against popular commentaries that have criticized Sondheim’s lack of explicitly articulated queer content in his work (and in his public life), the author argues that Sondheim invites and invokes space within his musicals for queerness that can thrive without necessarily being named.
If it happened, he was there
Authors: Varhola Kim
Published: February 2024

The Asian American Broadway musical continues to be a limited category in which many of its most commercially successful titles have histories mired in stereotype, mockery and erasure. Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman’s Pacific Overtures, however, stands apart from most other Broadway musicals written about the Asian and Asian American experience. The positioning of an Asian narrative in a serious and legitimate manner, the effort to incorporate Japanese aesthetic authenticity and the resolve to cast all Asian American talent were central to the creation of Pacific Overtures and were historical firsts for the Broadway stage. Stamped with Sondheim’s incomparable quality seal, Pacific Overtures initiated a new and necessary step towards Asian American Broadway inclusivity. But the show’s original Broadway run in 1976 was unsuccessful, both critically and commercially, and closed after 193 regular performances. In 2004, a highly anticipated Broadway revival gave the New York theatre world a chance to revisit Pacific Overtures. The revival production also offered a company of Asian American actors, whose community had historically been sidelined on Broadway, the opportunity to deliver a high-profile show about the Asian experience that resisted clichéd gestures of Asian-ness. In this article, I share my personal recollections of my time with Pacific Overtures as a cast member of the 2004 Broadway revival and reflect upon the production as it pertains to a grander collective memory of the Asian American Broadway experience. Cautiously optimistic about the critical and commercial outcome of this new production, our 2004 Pacific Overtures cast took great comfort in an ever-present Sondheim, whose constant proximity and participation during the run of the show served as a reminder that even this lesser-known Sondheim piece is still a Sondheim masterpiece.
‘I’m the witch, you’re the world’: Monstrosity and ‘Othering’ in Into the Woods
Authors: Salter Destiny
Published: February 2024

I have always been intrigued by and enamoured of fairy tales. However, no Black person can ever have an uncomplicated relationship to these stories, which, due in large part to Disney, now are almost entirely identified with Western Europe. Fairy tales – highly adaptable and designed to speak to fundamental concerns – reflect, reinscribe and sometimes create societal ideals. As a Black girl, fairy tales are at once a reminder of everything you are told you are not by wider society – beautiful, desirable, worthy of status, admiration and often supernatural blessing. They also reinforce our notions of purity and justify dehumanization, and this is why James Lapine and Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods has always been particularly fascinating to me. Sondheim and Lapine take the fairy tale as a text and dissect it – taking a variety of tales in their older, darker iterations as retold by the Brothers Grimm and showing the way they navigate complicated dynamics of purity and corruption. The first time I watched Into the Woods, I found, rather surprisingly, that I identified most closely with the Witch and the Giantess, the villains of the story and those categorically revolted and feared as ‘Other’. Whereas the other characters in the musical – the ones who are attached to the notion that they are, in fact, good – ignore or justify their own terrible (and very human) behaviour in the name of righting injustices and obtaining their desires, the Giantess and the Witch are not accorded the same humanity.
‘Anyone can whistle’ Sondheim: The intellectual autobiography of a Sondheim studies scholar
Authors: Glover Eric M.
Published: February 2024

This piece of autoethnographic writing analyses its author’s coming of age as a scholar and connects anecdotes to the history of Black actors in Sondheim’s musicals. From Reri Grist and Elizabeth Taylor in West Side Story (Winter Garden Theatre, New York City, 1957) to Francois Batiste, Adante Carter and Amber Gray in Here We Are (The Shed, New York City, 2023), Black actors co-create Sondheim’s musicals on and off official theatrical stages even as Sondheim studies as a field erases their labour. By building on Brent Staples’s experience of racism and Claude M. Steele’s theory of stereotype threat, the offensive mechanisms visited on Black men and boys are considered alongside Sondheim’s notable works throughout. Attention is also paid to what musical theatre studies scholars can learn about epistemology and historiography from Black people’s experiential knowledge and lived experience.
Bank accounts, bank concentration and mobile money innovations
Authors: Asongu Simplice A. , Odhiambo Nicholas M.
Published: February 2024

The present study investigates how increasing bank accounts and bank concentration affect mobile money innovations in 148 countries. It builds on scholarly and policy concerns in the literature that increasing bank accounts may not be having the desired effects on financial inclusion on the one hand and on the other, that bank concentration which is a proxy for market power is a relevant mobile money innovation demand factor. The empirical evidence is based on Tobit regressions. From the findings, it is apparent that boosting bank accounts is positively related to the three mobile money innovations (i.e. mobile bank accounts and the mobile phone used to send money). Moreover, some critical levels of bank account penetration require complementary policies in order to maintain the positive relationship between boosting bank accounts and positive outcomes in terms of money mobile innovations. Conversely, financial inclusion in terms of the three mobile money innovations is not significantly apparent upon enhancing bank concentration. Policy implications are discussed in the light of the provided thresholds for complementary policies.
Challenges in Connecting The Elements of Sectoral System of Innovation for Developing Electric Vehicle Industry in Indonesia
Authors: Ariyani Luthfina , Dinaseviani Anggini , Rosadi Asep Husni Yasin , Febrianda Rendi , Hermawati Wati , Aminullah Erman
Published: February 2024

This article discusses industrial development on EV di Indonesia, viewed from Sectoral system of innovation (SSI) perspective. The objective of this study is to map challenges in connecting the elements of SSI for developing EV industry. The method of study is a desk research, where the information input relies on secondary sources, consisting of statistical data, official documents and scientific references. This study found eight challenges to develop EV industry. The institutional challenges include: i. fiscal programs are still less effective to promote industrial  collaboration on EV innovation with universities and R&D institutions; ii. Local content target is still difficult to fulfill; iii.  unreadiness of local industry to be involved in the EV supply chain; and iv. Slow consumer response towards EV program incentives. On the knowledge and technology challenges are: i) the quality and standards of EVs from domestic R&D are still inadequate for commercial scale; and ii.  potential investors have not shown adequate interest  in local EV development. The demand challenges are: i. the plan to make Indonesia as EV hub in ASEAN region is far from reality due to lack of investors; and ii. the lack of ECS accessibility is a barrier to the domestic EV market.

 
Keywords: electric vehicle, sectoral system of innovation, institutions, knowledge and technology, demand
Realised genetic gains from past Finnish silver birch seed orchards
Authors: Haapanen Matti
Published: February 2024

Genetic gains realised through silver birch (Betula pendula Roth) seed orchards were studied using data from common-garden trials established at 34 sites in southern and central Finland. The test materials include seedlots representing 19 commercial seed orchards that operated between 1972 and 2009, and 21 natural stands. All the trials were assessed for several growth and quality traits between the ages of 9 and 24. Realised gains were estimated based on univariate linear mixed models with corrections for latitudinal seed transfer effects. Overall, seed orchard materials outperformed unimproved reference materials in all the traits but results for individual seed orchards varied substantially. Stem volume gains ranged from 1.0% to 31.1%. Improved trees had, on average, 6.8% (up to 26.7%) fewer ramicorn branches and 16.2% (up to 57.6%) fewer forks than unimproved trees. Branch and overall quality showed consistently positive gains. More recently established seed orchards performed better than older ones, and seed orchards with fewer clones outperformed those with dozens of clones. "JR-1" and "JR-2" bi-clonal seed orchards fared differently, with "JR-1" showing modest genetic gains and "JR-2" emerging as the top overall performer across all seed orchards. An alternative statistical concept, the D-value, was utilised to assess the magnitude of genetic gain for different scaled, normally distributed traits. Average D-values implied a similar level of improvement for stem volume, branch quality, and forking, and a smaller gain for stem slenderness and the number of ramicorn branches. The results for individual seed orchards suggest a slight trade-off between stem volume growth and branch quality.
Nos 85 anos do Estado Novo: a consolidação do autoritarismo
Authors: Almeida Gomes Vianna Marly de
Published: February 2024

Para entender a consolidação do autoritarismo no primeiro período Vargas é preciso entender o significado de liberalismo e democracia na Primeira República, e o papel dos agentes sociais que se destacaram em 1930. Em especial os militares e a classe operária, aqueles com permanente participação política desde a Proclamação da República (1889) e esta com destacado papel social. Foi a primeira vez na história do país que o movimento operário deixou de ser um caso de polícia.
SOME PROBLEMS OF THE BOW RESEARCH IN THE RUSSIAN WEAPON STUDIES
Authors:   Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography SB RAS, R. Kharitonov
Published: February 2024

The article is devoted to the analysis of the problems issue of studying bows in Russian science. The theme has been developed since the end of the 19th century, received further development as a result of the formation of the weapons science direction in the middle of the 20th century. The main interest of specialists so far has been concentrated on the study of bows of the peoples of antiquity, the evolution of their design and modification, which led to the specifics of the source base and the methods used: the main conclusions were made on the basis of the classification of individual parts and not the study of entire structures. This caused the appearance of a large number of heterogeneous contradictory reconstructions, and also created a number of methodological problems. In the works of different specialists, different, contradictory terminology was used, which could not be disclosed in the course of the study. Unity was not achieved in the understanding of individual elements and functional areas, as well as their relationship with specific details. Many schemes for the primary systematization of material were created, in most cases not included in the main classification hierarchy. In addition, when describing the material, questions of the materials used could be omitted. All this could not affect the results of the studies, however, it significantly complicates the understanding of the published material and limits further research. Based on the analysis of the problems, solutions are proposed based on a comprehensive study of the bows of the population of the Baikal region of the 12th–20th centuries, based on the involvement of both archaeological and ethnographic materials. The author’s system of primary systematization reflects the major stages of modifying the design of bows, representing modification by combining materials and creating end levers. The allocation of a new functional area — the transition zone is substantiated. A variant of solving the classification problem is represented by a consistent hierarchical division of type — a set of overlays, variant — their material and design features. Also indicated are the most important points in the study of entire structures, which were not previously considered by specialists, but which are of fundamental importance for understanding objects — metric and morphological indicators, general geometry.
DICE FOUND AT THE EXCAVATIONS IN THE PODYMALOVO-1 SETTLEMENT, BASHKIR CIS-URALS (BASED ON THE EXCAVATIONS IN 2022)
Authors:   R.G. Kuzeev Institute for Ethnological Studies, Subdivision of the Ufa Federal Research Centre of the Russian Academy of Sciences, A. TUZBEKOV , E. BERSENEV ,   R.G. Kuzeev Institute for Ethnological Studies, Subdivision of the Ufa Federal Research Centre of the Russian Academy of Sciences, G. SHAGAPOVA ,   Bashkir State Pedagogical University. M. Akmulla
Published: February 2024

The article presents the results of the research of astragali (talus bones) excavated in 2022 at the Golden Horde Podymalovo-1 (XIV). Settlement. The collection of animal astragals was studied with use-wear analysis. The obtained data were compared with the results of studies of similar artefacts made of talus bones which had been discovered at the ethnographic expedition in 2019 in the village of Nyzhnebaltachevo, the Tatyshlinsky district, in the Republic of Bashkortostan. Those objects were used in the game known as “loedyiga” (a kind of game similar to “fi ve stones/bones”). The analysis of two collections revealed identical processing traces which had been left when the bones had been extracted from the limbs of animals. However, the wear marks differed in their character. The use of use-wear analysis and comparative methods in the study of the talus bones of animals discovered at the village of Podymalovo-1 made it possible to classify them as dice (“chips” and “bits”). It was concluded that the astragals could have been used in a version of the game different from the game“five stones/bones”.
Fee-Free Educational Policy for Social Development: Examining the Conditions and the Social Benefits of Cost Elimination at the Upper-Secondary Level in Sub-Saharan Africa
Authors:   , Asante Gabriel
Published: February 2024

This study examines the simultaneity of the conditions necessary and sufficient for adopting cost-elimination policies, commonly known as fee-free educational policies, at the upper-secondary level, and the social benefits of these policies in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Some conclusions are reached subject to a review of the theoretical and empirical literature related to these subjects. 1) That there is no consensus about the socio-political factors that drive the adoption of expansionary social policies such as fee-free education; 2) that despite the related challenges and criticisms, the adoption of cost-elimination policies has a significant positive effect on access to education at the basic level in SSA; and, 3) that Western sociology and economics literature identifies educational policies that increase access to education as having a positive externality in terms of crime reduction. However, the understanding of the education crime nexus in SSA and the role of educational policies is virtually non-existent. Again, the effects of fee-free policies on upper-secondary school enrolment have received very little attention across the region. Another critical area yet to be understood is the mechanisms that drive the adoption of fee-free policy changes. Based on these gaps, the study aimed to explore, understand, and explain the necessary and sufficient conditions that drive the adoption of fee-free policies in SSA through a case study design that uses qualitative comparative analysis to achieve the first research objective. Subsequently, the study examined the effect of fee-free policies on upper-secondary school enrolment rates. Last, the study investigated the impact of the macro-level rate of school enrolment on crime rates. The main components of the empirical analysis of the last two research objectives consist of panel data analysis of SSA countries from 2003 to 2018. Overall, the results of the three articles that comprise the article-based dissertation make the following theoretical contribution: the manifestations of fee-free policies on the agenda and their subsequent formulation and adoption are strongly embedded in political parties’ striving for political power through competitive electoral politics. The results challenge some core explanations of social policy provision, such as the partisan theory of policy outcomes and the economy. Notwithstanding this, fee-free policies have the utility of positively impacting social variables. These include the intended effect of increasing the rate of school enrolment to improve human capital development, and the unintended effect of reducing the property-related crime rate in society. Therefore, the study suggests that for achieving the desired fee-free policy outcome and its impact, these policies should be encouraged within broader national social-policy-development planning.
Oxidative Stress: Mechanisms, Quantification and its role in human aging
Authors: Krishnamurthy Hari , Pereira Michelle , R Imbaasree , Jayaraman Vasanth , Krishna Karthik , Wang Tianhao , Bei Kang , Rajasekaran John J.
Published: February 2024

Oxidative stress refers to the imbalance between the production of oxidant species and the body’s ability to quench them using antioxidants, favoring the rise in oxidant levels. This leads to the damage of cellular macromolecules such as lipids, DNA, RNA, and proteins. The body’s ability to manage oxidative stress and maintain it at an optimum level is crucial for overall health. Oxidative damage, if left unmitigated, contributes to the aging process characterized by the progressive deterioration of physiological functions and cellular structures. Understanding the mechanisms of oxidative stress along with its reliable quantification can enable consistency and comparability in clinical practice across diseases. While direct quantification of oxidant species in the body would be ideal for assessing oxidative stress, it is not feasible owing to their high reactivity, short half-life, and quantification challenges using conventional techniques. Quantifying oxidative damage products and antioxidants pose as appropriate markers, indicating the degree of oxidative stress in the body. This review comprehensively discusses the mechanism of generation of key oxidant species, their sources, the beneficial roles played by them at low levels and the detrimental effects exerted by their elevated levels. The review also provides insights into the effective quantification techniques for damage products of lipids nucleic acids, and proteins along with the endogenous and exogenous antioxidant markers. Effective quantification of oxidative stress may improve our understanding on the phenomenon which may aid in maintaining cellular integrity, preventing age-associated diseases, and thereby promoting optimal well-being and longevity.
Agency costs and conditional conservatism of public companies in the Brazilian electric industry
Authors: Souza de Souza Paulo Vitor , Bezerra Morais Henrique Carvalho
Published: February 2024

Introduction / objective: In organisations, conflicts of interest give rise to agency costs aimed at mitigating agent opportunism. High-quality accounting information reduces these conflicts by minimising information asymmetry. Consequently, this study aims to investigate the relationship between agency costs and conditional conservatism in Brazilian electric power industry companies listed on the B3. Methodology: Data from 21 Brazilian electric power industry companies for the period 2012 to 2020 were utilised. Twenty-four attributes associated with agency costs were analysed, and Ball and Shivakumar’s (2005) conditional conservatism model was employed as a measure of accounting information quality. Panel data regression models were used to obtain the results. Results: According to the central conditional conservatism model, companies tend to exhibit optimism rather than conservatism, anticipating gains instead of losses. Results, assessed across five dimensions, revealed that factors such as board composition, variable compensation, and agreements with shareholders reduce optimism, while qualified audits, longer tenures, and the presence of a permanent audit committee increase optimism. Therefore, attributes that influence optimism, accounting information neutrality, and consequently, financial reporting quality, are identified. Conclusions: This study benefits various users of accounting information. Investors can pinpoint governance policies that align interests, regulators can enhance oversight, and organisation members can adopt policies that encourage the alignment of interests between principals and agents.