bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Understanding Spiritual Care—Perspectives from Healthcare Professionals in a Norwegian Nursing Home
Authors: Morland Marianne , McSherry Wilfred , Rykkje Linda
Published: March 2022

Nursing home professionals have reported that spiritual care is an unclear concept, and research suggests that healthcare professionals have a limited understanding of this dimension of care. The provision of spiritual care is well-investigated internationally, but research is sparse within Norway’s secularized society. This study investigated healthcare professionals’ understanding of spiritual care in one nursing home. Methods: Data were collected from individual interviews (N = 8) and one focus group (N = 5) of nursing home personnel; the study used qualitative content analysis and a hermeneutic methodology. Results: One central question emerged during the data analysis: what is spiritual care versus good care? This starting point resulted in four themes (1) caring for the whole person, (2) having a personal touch, (3) seeing the person behind the diagnosis, and (4) more than religiousness. Some healthcare professionals had not heard of spiritual care, and many were not aware of this in their daily work with older patients. Nevertheless, they facilitated and cared for the patient’s spiritual needs, but they did not address it as spiritual care. Other participants were familiar with the concept and understood spiritual care as an essential part of daily care. Conclusion: healthcare professionals’ understanding of spiritual care is broad and varied, including practical and non-verbal aspects. The results indicated a need for an open dialogue about spiritual needs and resources in clinical practice and the teaching of personnel about how to facilitate older people’s spirituality. Moreover, there is a need for more research into spiritual care and how it differs from the concept of good fundamental care.
Beyond the Sacred Text: Examining the Confusion, Conflicts and Complications at the Intersection of Religion and Law in Zimbabwe
Authors: Manyonganise Molly , Mhuru Lillian
Published: March 2022

There is a widespread tendency in modern, secular society to view law and religion as unrelated except insofar as they may, from time to time, come into conflict. However, intimate relations between the two have been constituted and constantly changed throughout history. Law and religion are two great interconnecting values and belief structures with their own normative, authoritative sources and mechanisms, as well as their own legislation and amendment processes and steps. However, at the practical level, the relationship between the two has not often been smooth sailing. This paper seeks to untangle the confusion, conflicts and complications that have arisen, especially in the Zimbabwean context, when legal statutes have appeared to be in opposition with religious beliefs and practices. The major question arising from such a scenario is: How are communities of faith across the religious divide supposed to react when laws demand that they act in ways that conflict with either their sacred text whether written or oral? The focus of this paper, therefore, is to simultaneously examine the place of religion in the public sphere as well as explore the impact of enacted laws on religion in Zimbabwe. This paper made use of public discourse, as presented in a WhatsApp group chat of a Bible Challenge Group which took place on 21 February 2021. Secondary sources were utilised in informing this paper’s conceptualisation of religion and the law.
Winter–Spring Prediction of Snow Avalanche Susceptibility Using Optimisation Multi-Source Heterogeneous Factors in the Western Tianshan Mountains, China
Authors: Yang Jinming , He Qing , Liu Yang
Published: March 2022

Data-driven methods are commonly applied in avalanche hazard evaluation. However, few studies have tapped into the relationship between the explanatory variables and avalanche hazard in arid–frigid areas, and the seasonal dynamics of avalanche hazard and its attribution has not been discussed. Therefore, to fill the gap in the hazard assessment of a dry–cold snow avalanche, quantify the dynamic driving process of seasonal nonlinear explanatory variables on avalanche hazard, and improve the reliability of the assessments, this study used Support Vector Machine (SVM), Random Forest (RF) and K-Nearest Neighbour (KNN) algorithms to construct three assessment models; these were used and verified in the western Tianshan Mountains, China. The following results were obtained: The causative factors of avalanches varied based on the season. In winter, terrain and snow depth played a major role, whereas spring was mainly influenced by snow depth and meteorological factors. The dynamic process of avalanche hazard was mainly governed by the seasonality of snow depth and temperature. The seasonal changes in avalanche hazard increased from low to high. The performance of all models was consistent for season and more reliable than the inter-annual evaluations. Among them, the RF model had the best prediction accuracy, with AUC values of 0.88, 0.91 and 0.78 in winter, spring and the control group, respectively. The overall accuracy of the model with multi-source heterogeneous factors was 0.212–0.444 higher than that of exclusive terrain factors. In general, the optimised model could accurately describe the complex nonlinear collaborative relationship between avalanche hazard and its explanatory variables, coupled with a more accurate evaluation. Moreover, free from inter-annual scale, the seasonal avalanche hazard assessment tweaked the model to the best performance.
Stray Light Correction Algorithm for High Performance Optical Instruments: The Case of Metop-3MI
Authors: Clermont Lionel , Michel Céline , Stockman Yvan
Published: March 2022

Stray light is a critical aspect for high performance optical instruments. When stray light control by design is insufficient to reach the performance requirement, correction by post-processing must be considered. This situation is encountered, for example, in the case of the Earth observation instrument 3MI, whose stray light properties are complex due to the presence of many ghosts distributed on the detector array. We implement an iterative correction method and discuss its convergence properties. Spatial and field binning can be employed to reduce the computation time but at the cost of a decreased performance. Interpolation of the stray light properties is required to achieve high performance correction. For that, two methods are proposed and tested. The first interpolate the stray light in the field domain while the second applies a scaling operation based on a local symmetry assumption. Ultimately, the scaling method is selected and a stray light reduction by a factor of 58 is obtained at 2σ (129 at 1σ) for an extended scene illumination.
Assessing the Potential of Downscaled Far Red Solar-Induced Chlorophyll Fluorescence from the Canopy to Leaf Level for Drought Monitoring in Winter Wheat
Authors: Lin Jingyu , Shen Qiu , Wu Jianjun , Zhao Wenhui , Liu Leizhen
Published: March 2022

Solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF) from ground, airborne, and satellite-based observations has been increasingly used in drought monitoring recently due to its close relationship with photosynthesis. SIF emissions respond rapidly to droughts, relative to the widely used vegetation indices (VIs), thus indicating their potential for early drought monitoring. The response of SIF to droughts can be attributed to the confounding effects of both the physiology and canopy structure. In order to reduce the reabsorption and scattering effects, the total emitted SIF (SIFtot) was proposed and served as a better tool to estimate GPP compared with the top-of-canopy SIF (SIFtoc). However, the response time and response magnitude of SIFtot to droughts and its relationships with the environmental parameters and soil moisture (SM) (i.e., the knowledge of drought monitoring using SIFtot) remains unclear. Here, the continuous ground data of F760toc (SIFtoc at 760 nm) from a nadir view that was downscaled to F760tot (SIFtot at 760 nm), NIRv, and the NDVI, SM, meteorological, and crop growth parameters were measured from four winter wheat plots with different intensities of drought (well-watered, moderate drought, severe drought, and extreme drought) over 2 months. The results indicated that F760tot was more closely correlated with the SM than the VIs at short time lags but weaker at longer time lags. The daily mean values of F760tot and NIRv were able to distinguish the differences between different drought levels, and F760tot responded quickly to the onset of drought, especially for the moderate drought intensity. These findings demonstrated that F760tot has potential for early drought monitoring and may contribute to mitigating the risk of agricultural drought.
SDTGAN: Generation Adversarial Network for Spectral Domain Translation of Remote Sensing Images of the Earth Background Based on Shared Latent Domain
Authors: Wang Biao , Zhu Lingxuan , Guo Xing , Wang Xiaobing , Wu Jiaji
Published: March 2022

The synthesis of spectral remote sensing images of the Earth’s background is affected by various factors such as the atmosphere, illumination and terrain, which makes it difficult to simulate random disturbance and real textures. Based on the shared latent domain hypothesis and generation adversarial network, this paper proposes the SDTGAN method to mine the correlation between the spectrum and directly generate target spectral remote sensing images of the Earth’s background according to the source spectral images. The introduction of shared latent domain allows multi-spectral domains connect to each other without the need to build a one-to-one model. Meanwhile, additional feature maps are introduced to fill in the lack of information in the spectrum and improve the geographic accuracy. Through supervised training with a paired dataset, cycle consistency loss, and perceptual loss, the uniqueness of the output result is guaranteed. Finally, the experiments on the Fengyun satellite observation data show that the proposed SDTGAN method performs better than the baseline models in remote sensing image spectrum translation.
Permittivity-Based Water Content Calibration Measurement in Wood-Based Cultural Heritage: A Preliminary Study
Authors: D’Alvia Livio , Piuzzi Emanuele , Cataldo Andrea , Del Prete Zaccaria
Published: March 2022

In this work, the dielectric permittivity of four kinds of wood (Fir, Poplar, Oak, and Beech Tree), used in Italian Artworks and structures, was characterized at different humidity levels. Measurements were carried out using three different probes connected to a bench vector network analyzer: a standard WR90 X-band waveguide, a WR430 waveguide, and an open-ended coaxial probe. In particular, we investigated the dispersion model for the four wood species, showing how a log-fit model of the open-ended data presents a determination coefficient R2 > 0.990 in the 1–12 GHz frequency range. This result has proven helpful to fill the frequency gap between the measurements obtained at different water contents with the two waveguide probes showing an R2 > 0.93. Furthermore, correlating the log-fit vertical shift with the water content, it was possible to find a calibration curve with a linear characteristic. These experimental results will be helpful for on-site non-invasive water monitoring of wooden artworks or structures. Moreover, the final results show how the open-ended coaxial probe, with a measurement deviation lower than 7% from the waveguide measurements, may be used directly as a non-invasive sensor for on-site measurements.
An Anti-Disturbance Resilience Enhanced Algorithm for UAV 3D Route Planning
Authors: Xu Zhining , Zhang Long , Ma Xiaoshan , Liu Yang , Yang Lin , Yang Feng
Published: March 2022

Considering that the actual operating environment of UAV is complex and easily disturbed by the space environment of urban buildings, the RoutE Planning Algorithm of Resilience Enhancement (REPARE) for UAV 3D route planning based on the A* algorithm and artificial potential fields algorithm is carried out in a targeted manner. First of all, in order to ensure the safety of the UAV design, we focus on the capabilities of the UAV body and build a risk identification, assessment, and modeling method such that the mission control parameters of the UAV can be determined. Then, the three-dimensional route planning algorithm based on the artificial potential fields algorithm is used to ensure the safe operation of the UAV online and in real time. At the same time, by adjusting the discriminant coefficient of potential risks in real time to deal with time-varying random disturbance encountered by the UAV, the resilience of the UAV 3D flight route planning can be improved. Finally, the effectiveness of the algorithm is verified by the simulation. The simulation results show that the REPARE algorithm can effectively solve the traditional route planning algorithm’s insufficiency in anti-disturbance. It is safer than a traditional A* route planning algorithm, and its running time is shorter than that of the traditional artificial potential field route planning algorithm. It solves the problems of local optimization, enhances the UAV’s ability to tolerate general uncertain disturbances, and eventually improves resilience of the system.
Stokes Dynamic Polarimeter for Non-Organic and Organic Samples Characterization
Authors: Almanza-Ojeda Dora-Luz , Rodriguez-Sotelo Daniela , Castro-Sanchez Rogelio , Martinez-Celorio Rene , Ibarra-Manzano Mario-Alberto
Published: March 2022

The light polarization properties provide relevant information about linear–optical media quality and condition. The Stokes–Mueller formalism is commonly used to represent the polarization properties of the incident light over sample tests. Currently, different Stokes Polarimeters are mainly defined by resolution, acquisition rate, and light to carry out accurate and fast measurements. This work presents the implementation of an automatic Stokes dynamic polarimeter to characterize non-biological and biological material samples. The proposed system is configured to work in the He-Ne laser beam’s reflection or transmission mode to calculate the Mueller matrix. The instrumentation stage includes two asynchronous photoelastic modulators, two nano-stepper motors, and an acquisition data card at 2% of accuracy. The Mueller matrix is numerically calculated by software using the 36 measures method without requiring image processing. Experiments show the efficiency of the proposed optical array to calculate the Mueller matrix in reflection and transmission mode for different samples. The mean squared error is calculated for each element of the obtained matrix using referenced values of the air and a mirror. A comparison with similar works in the literature validates the proposed optical array.
Influence of Label Design and Country of Origin Information in Wines on Consumers’ Visual, Sensory, and Emotional Responses
Authors: Liu Chang , Sharma Chetan , Xu Qiqi , Gonzalez Viejo Claudia , Fuentes Sigfredo , Torrico Damir D.
Published: March 2022

This study aimed to evaluate the influence of origin information on Pinot Noir wine labels using eye-tracking and its associations with purchase intent, and hedonic and subconscious emotional responses. Two studies were carried out on untrained university staff and students aged 20–60 years old. Study 1 was conducted to assess consumers’ (n = 55; 55% males, and 45% females) self-reported and subconscious responses towards four design labels (with and without New Zealand origin name/script or origin logo) using eye-tracking and video analysis to evaluate emotions of participants. In study 2, participants (n = 72, 56% males, and 44% females) blind-tasted the same wine sample from different labels while recording their self-reported responses. In study 1, no significant differences were found in fixations between origin name/script and origin logo. However, participants paid more attention to the image and the brand name on the wine labels. In study 2, no significant effects on emotional responses were found with or without the origin name/script or logo. Nonetheless, a multiple factor analysis showed either negative or no associations between the baseline (wine with no label) and the samples showing the different labels, even though the taste of the wine samples was the same, which confirmed an influence of the label on the wine appreciation. Among results from studies 1 and 2, origin information affected the purchase intent and hedonic responses marginally. These findings can be used to design wine labels for e-commerce.
A Comprehensive Study of Event Detection in WPCN Networks with Noisy Measurements
Authors: Koutsioumpos Michael , Zervas Evangelos , Hadjiefthymiades Efstathios , Merakos Lazaros
Published: March 2022

Various aspects of the detection of events in wireless powered communication networks (WPCN) are studied and analyzed under the assumption of highly noisy sensor measurements. In WPCN, networks sensor nodes’ stored energy is a scarce resource and must be treated sparingly. Frequent false alarm detections force superfluous transmissions, thus depleting nodes’ energy storage. This has an adverse effect on the probability of successful transmission of the information message and its delay in case of a true positive detection. In this work, the detection problem is approached using an optimal stopping framework, where the involved likelihoods are highly unstable due to the noisy measurements. A classical AR filter is adopted in order to smooth the posterior likelihoods prior to their usage in the detection phase and its performance is contrasted to that of a novel Beta Particle Filter smoother. The effects of the smoothing filters on the achieved false alarm rate and detection delay are examined using numerical and simulation results. Moreover, the assessment of the detection process takes into account critical WPCN parameters, such as the charging efficiency and the location of the sensors, thus aiding the system design.
Measurement-Based Black-Box Harmonic Stability Analysis of Commercial Single-Phase Inverters in Public Low-Voltage Networks
Authors: Kaufhold Elias , Meyer Jan , Schegner Peter
Published: March 2022

This paper presents a measurement-based stability analysis of commercially available single-phase inverters in public low-voltage networks. In practice, manufacturers typically do not disclose the parameters of the inverter design, although interactions with the low-voltage network need to be assessed and predicted. State-of-the-art modeling methods require knowledge about the internal parameters. The method proposed in the paper is based on measurements in the laboratory and does not require detailed knowledge about the specific inverter design for the identification of the black-box linear time-periodic representation. The gained information is used for the black-box stability analysis in the frequency range up to 2 kHz, which covers the bandwidth of the control of the inverters. The method is validated for a commercially available photovoltaic inverter in the laboratory. An instability that leads to a shutdown of the inverter is demonstrated, while the critical frequency range is predicted accurately.
Optimization of the Preparation of Activated Carbon from Prickly Pear Seed Cake for the Removal of Lead and Cadmium Ions from Aqueous Solution
Authors: Dhahri Rimene , Yılmaz Murat , Mechi Lassaad , Alsukaibi Abdulmohsen Khalaf Dhahi , Alimi Fathi , ben Salem Ridha , Moussaoui Younes
Published: March 2022

In this study, we evaluated the use of prickly pear seed cake, a by-product of prickly pear seed oil extraction, as a new precursor for producing activated carbon by phosphoric acid activation, and the obtained carbon’s capacity for heavy metal removal from aqueous solution. Response surface methodology based on the full factorial design at two levels (24) was developed to reduce the number of experiments and reach optimal preparation conditions for the removal of cadmium and lead ions from aqueous solutions. Design Expert 11.1.2.0 Trial software was used for generating the statistical experimental design and analyzing the observed data. Factors influencing the activation process, such as carbonization temperature, activation temperature, activation time, and impregnation ratio, were studied. Responses were studied in depth with an analysis of variance to estimate their significance. Each response was outlined by a first-order regression equation demonstrating satisfactory correspondence between the predicted and experimental results as the adjusted coefficients of correlation. Based on the statistical data, the best conditions for the removal of heavy metals from aqueous solution by the obtained activated carbon were indicated. The maximum iodine number and methylene blue index were 2527.3 mg g−1 and 396.5 mg g−1, respectively, using activated carbon obtained at the following conditions: Tc = 500 °C, Ta = 500 °C, impregnation ratio = 2:1 (g H3PO4: g carbon), and activation time of two hours. The maximum adsorption reached 170.2 mg g−1 and 158.4 mg g−1 for Cd2+ and Pb2+, respectively, using activated carbon obtained at the following conditions: Tc = 600 °C, Ta = 400 °C, impregnation ratio = 2:1 (g H3PO4: g carbon), and activation time of one hour. The activated carbon obtained was characterized by Boehm titration, pH of point of zero charge (pHPZC), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller surface area (SBET), and scanning electron microscopy. Adsorption was performed according to different parameters: pH solution, adsorbent dosage, temperature, contact time, and initial concentration. Regeneration experiments proved that the obtained activated carbon still had a high removal capacity for Cd2+ and Pb2+ after five regeneration cycles.
Multi-Level Prioritization Analysis of Water Governance Components to Improve Agricultural Water-Saving Policy: A Case Study from Korea
Authors: Lee Seul-gi , Adelodun Bashir , Ahmad Mirza Junaid , Choi Kyung Sook
Published: March 2022

The challenge of unstainable agricultural water usage in Korea has continued interminably despite persisting climate change impacts; thus, necessitating urgent actions to forestall future water crises. However, achieving this goal requires the involvement of stakeholders to develop an effective governance policy concerning water saving. This study investigates the components of water governance following existing water policy gaps. A multi-level Delphi-AHP technique was used to identify and prioritize the essential components of agricultural water governance that can specifically enhance water-saving policy in Korea. The analysis of twenty-nine formulated components (six main and twenty-three sub-components) based on the OECD water policy gaps was conducted. A Delphi-AHP technique with process evaluation of the agricultural water experts’ opinions under pairwise comparisons was used to arrive at the relative order of importance of the components. The order of main components based on the consolidated weight follows core actors (0.316), law, policies, and systems (0.069), budget support (0.135), information sharing and communication (0.099), mutual learning (0.142), and external experts (0.239), while village representatives (0.353), legislation (0.358), central government (0.311), policy committee (0.309), education course (0.374), and facilitator (0.402) were considered as priorities, respectively, for the sub-components of water governance. The findings indicate that strengthening the informal institution could address the water governance gaps in the agricultural sector to achieve water-saving policies. This study recommends a bottom-up approach to water governance that could promote the active participation of core actors such as farmers and villagers in the design of policy and management of agricultural water resources.
Spatio-Temporal Solar–Wind Complementarity Assessment in the Province of Kalinga-Apayao, Philippines Using Canonical Correlation Analysis
Authors: Pilario Karl Ezra S. , Ibañez Jessa A. , Penisa Xaviery N. , Obra Johndel B. , Odulio Carl Michael F. , Ocon Joey D.
Published: March 2022

Increased utilization of renewable energy (RE) resources is critical in achieving key climate goals by 2050. The intermittent nature of RE, especially solar and wind, however, poses reliability concerns to the utility grid. One way to address this problem is to harmonize the RE resources using spatio-temporal complementarity analysis. Two RE resources are said to be complementary if the lack of one is balanced by the abundance of the other, and vice versa. In this work, solar–wind complementarity was analyzed across the provinces of Kalinga and Apayao, Philippines, which are potential locations for harvesting RE as suggested by the Philippine Department of Energy. Global horizontal irradiance (GHI) and wind speed data sets were obtained from the NASA POWER database and then studied using canonical correlation analysis (CCA), a multivariate statistical technique that finds maximum correlations between time series data. We modified the standard CCA to identify pairs of locations within the region of study with the highest solar–wind complementarity. Results show that the two RE resources exhibit balancing in the resulting locations. By identifying these locations, solar and wind resources in the Philippine islands can be integrated optimally and sustainably, leading to a more stable power and increased utility grid reliability.
Sustainable Design Masters: Increasing the Sustainability Literacy of Designers
Authors: Micklethwaite Paul
Published: March 2022

This paper examines student learning in the Master of Arts in Sustainable Design course at Kingston School of Art, Kingston University London. It considers what designers learn, how they learn and where they learn, in a postgraduate course that seeks to enable them to direct their practice towards sustainability by increasing their sustainability literacy. The paper reviews the learning experiences of students, and the curriculum structures and approaches used to serve those experiences. The story of the course is told here by the course leader of ten years, using student outputs to illustrate the argument made for a sustainable design pedagogy. The key principles of this pedagogy are (1) sustainability is a social, not just an environmental, agenda; (2) sustainability presents us with ‘wicked problems’, which have no right or wrong answers; (3) sustainability-directed design practice arises from the sustainability literacy of the designer; (4) sustainability derives from mindsets and worldviews, not just methods and materials; and (5) sustainability is an emergent property of systems, not a quality of products. This combination has generated a distinctive model of postgraduate sustainable design education, which seeks to equip students with a ‘mastery’ of how to put into practice their own visions of sustainable design.
Developing a Framework for Closed-Loop Supply Chain and Its Impact on Sustainability in the Petrochemicals Industry
Authors: El-Sheikh Lubna , Kovačič Lukman Rebeka
Published: March 2022

Companies rely on formulating, implementing, and monitoring strategies in social, environmental and economic aspects to ensure that they achieve their goals and keep abreast of developments related to sustainability requirements. Therefore, our study develops a system to integrate the closed-loop supply chain approach in the petrochemical sector. The research follows the quantitative-based approach by collecting data through a questionnaire directed to employees in the supply chain departments, including 230 questionnaires that were collected. Correlation and structural equation models (SEM) were used. This technique consists of multiple regression analysis and factor analysis and analyses the structural relationship between the underlying structures and the measured variables. The results indicated a significant relationship between the supply chains that have a loop from the following perspectives: economic motivations, customer awareness, environmental legislation, and sustainability. By increasing financial reasons, customer awareness and environmental legislation, sustainability will increase as they all move in the same direction. Therefore, the overall effect of a closed-loop supply chain is positive and significant.
A Novel Intelligent Inversion Method of Hydrogeological Parameters Based on the Disturbance-Inspired Equilibrium Optimizer
Authors: Wang W. Y. , Kang J. T. , Li Kai , Fan Y. H. , Lin P.
Published: March 2022

Accurate and quick acquisition of hydrogeological parameters is the critical issue for groundwater numerical simulation and sustainability of the water sources. A novel intelligent inversion method of hydrogeological parameter, based on the global optimization algorithm called the disturbance-inspired equilibrium optimizer (DIEO), is developed. Firstly, the mathematical model and the framework of DIEO are reported. Several types of mathematical benchmark functions are used to test the performance of the DIEO. Furthermore, the intelligent inversion of hydrogeological parameters of pumping tests is transformed into the global optimization problem, which can be solved by meta-heuristic algorithms. The objective function for hydrogeological parameter inversion is constructed, and the novel inversion method based on DIEO is finally proposed. To further validate the competitiveness and efficiency of the proposed intelligent inversion method, three types of case studies are carried out. The results show that the proposed intelligent inversion method is reliable for obtaining the hydrogeological parameters accurately and quickly, providing a reference for the inversion of parameters in other fields.
Implementation of Circular Economy Strategies within the Electronics Sector: Insights from Finnish Companies
Authors: Deviatkin Ivan , Rousu Sanna , Ghoreishi Malahat , Naji Nassajfar Mohammad , Horttanainen Mika , Leminen Ville
Published: March 2022

There is an increasing call for products following circular economy principles. Despite growing pressure, understanding of the current situation and development vectors is largely missing. In this study, circular economy workshops were arranged for six industrial companies manufacturing electronics and operating in Finland to obtain an empirical understanding of the current state of circular economy implementation. During the workshops, each company assessed the state of the circular economy for a chosen product using a set of 51 circular economy strategies, i.e., the circularity deck. The results indicated that circular economy principles were implemented in only 25% of the cases. This is mostly related to the production of smaller, thinner, and lighter products. The results also indicate a large improvement potential of 36% for the participating companies. This is the share of cases that are planned for implementation. Those strategies mostly relate to the use of recycled inputs, the development of products made of a single material, and the design of products suitable for primary recycling. The least relevant or even irrelevant strategies were those related to the use of information technologies and artificial intelligence, despite electronic products being the enablers of such strategies for the other companies. Therefore, to further increase the circularity of electronic products and to meet the demands and interests of the manufacturing industry, research work on the technologies and services enabling the use of waste as raw materials should be emphasized to close the loops. Finally, the results imply the necessity for a more widespread assessment of circular economy strategies among companies, with consequent development of action plans for their implementation.
Teaching in Secondary Education Teacher Training with a Hybrid Model: Students’ Perceptions
Authors: Martín-Núñez José Luis , Bravo-Ramos Juan Luis , Sastre-Merino Susana , Pablo-Lerchundi Iciar , Caravantes Redondo Arturo , Núñez-del-Río Cristina
Published: March 2022

The exceptional situation experienced on the planet during the last two academic years has forced teachers to adapt their teaching. They had to pass their face-to-face teaching methodologies to online teaching. This study analyzed the perceptions of students in a master’s degree in secondary school teacher training, who have experienced the transition to bimodal teaching during the 2020–21 and 2021–22 academic years carried out by professors with high digital teaching competence. Data from two academic years are available, with a total of 207 students. The results indicate that the experience has been positive, and no significant differences were found in the follow-up of the contents when the class was followed online. However, the feeling of belonging to the group is lower in online classes than in face-to-face classes, and the perception of online teaching is more favorable in the academic year immediately developed after the COVID crisis. The bimodal modality has become a useful solution as long as the conditions of the equipment and networks are guaranteed as well as the training of teachers in digital teaching competence. In addition, the students’ perception of this modality is that it can continue once the exceptionality of the pandemic has been overcome.
Resilience Analysis of Australian Electricity and Gas Transmission Networks
Authors: Kumar Shriram Ashok , Tasnim Maliha , Basnyat Zohvin Singh , Karimi Faezeh , Khalilpour Kaveh
Published: March 2022

Given they are two critical infrastructure areas, the security of electricity and gas networks is highly important due to potential multifaceted social and economic impacts. Unexpected errors or sabotage can lead to blackouts, causing a significant loss for the public, businesses, and governments. Climate change and an increasing number of consequent natural disasters (e.g., bushfires and floods) are other emerging network resilience challenges. In this paper, we used network science to examine the topological resilience of national energy networks with two case studies of Australian gas and electricity networks. To measure the fragility and resilience of these energy networks, we assessed various topological features and theories of percolation. We found that both networks follow the degree distribution of power-law and the characteristics of a scale-free network. Then, using these models, we conducted node and edge removal experiments. The analysis identified the most critical nodes that can trigger cascading failure within the network upon a fault. The analysis results can be used by the network operators to improve network resilience through various mitigation strategies implemented on the identified critical nodes.
Integrated Reporting and Integrated Thinking: Proposing a Reporting Model That Induces More Responsible Use of Corporate Power
Authors: Aras Guler , Williams Paul F.
Published: March 2022

The obligations of corporations to members of society have been problematic since the corporate form came into existence. Under different rubrics, reporting firms’ socially responsible behavior has been extensively debated, and researched, for at least the past half century. The latest incarnation of corporate social reporting is labeled integrated reporting—the blending of the traditional financial report with a report on the firms’ achievements as socially responsible beings. In this paper, we provide a brief history of corporate social reporting to provide sufficient context for our discussion of a model of integrative reporting that provides for a better representation of just how socially responsible firms are. Progress so far in achieving meaningful integrated reporting that produces more socially responsible corporate citizens is disappointing. The structured narrative of financial performance still dominates the unstructured narrative about social performance. We argue this is partially attributable to two intellectual constraints limiting our ability to imagine systems that could produce better social outcomes from corporate behavior. One constraint is the dominance of “decision usefulness” as the purpose of accounting. The second intellectual constraint is the reluctance to seriously consider that the problem of corporate social responsibility (CSR) lies in the corporate form itself. Thus far, the integration of these reports to give equal status to financial and social performance is not close to achievement. We propose that a first step to developing an integrated report is to adopt a governmental reporting model for corporations. If the six capitals model proposed by IIRC is to be a movement toward more ethical corporate behavior, then the six capitals must be deemed as equally valuable ends and certainly not subservient to only financial ends. The current financial reporting model strongly mitigates against this happening. We argue that each of the capitals is analogous to what in governmental parlance is a “program” or “function,” which require the commitment of financial resources for accomplishment. Thus, a truly integrated report will disclose to all stakeholders what resources are committed to enhancing each of the six capitals as ends in themselves.
The Tripping Point–Minimum Planting Widths for Small-Stature Trees in Dense Urban Developments
Authors: Koeser Andrew K. , Hauer Richard J. , Hilbert Deborah R. , Northrop Robert J. , Thorn Hunter , McLean Drew C. , Salisbury Allyson B.
Published: March 2022

As urban development increases in density, the space to grow urban trees becomes more constrained. In heavily developed areas, small stature trees can be planted to reduce both above- and below-ground conflicts with infrastructure elements. However, even these species can interfere with pavement when placed in extremely confining conditions. In this study, we build on past work to determine the minimum planting space widths of small stature urban trees. Species, stem diameter, and the height at which stem diameter measurements occurred were all strong predictors of trunk flare (i.e., the interface region between large structural roots and the trunk) diameter (adjusted R2 of 0.843). Additionally, we modelled the relationship between planting space and the presence or absence of pavement conflicts using the predictions derived from this effort to project the potential cost savings in two United States cities. Study results provide a guideline to create sufficient space for urban trees and minimize infrastructure damage and associated cost savings.
Superconductors and Gravity
Authors: Gallerati Antonio , Ummarino Giovanni Alberto
Published: March 2022

We review and discuss some recent developments on the unconventional interaction between superconducting systems and the local gravitational field. While it is known that gravitational perturbations (such as gravitational waves) can affect supercondensates and supercurrents dynamics, we want to focus here on the more subtle superfluid back-reaction acting on the surrounding gravitational field, analysing some specific favourable situations. To this end, we will consider suitable quantum macrosystems in a coherent state, immersed in the static weak Earth’s gravitational field, investigating possible slight local alterations of the latter not explained in terms of classical physics.
Cytogeography of the East Asian Tulips (Amana, Liliaceae)
Authors: Wu Jing , Wang Meizhen , Zhu Zhangshichang , Cai Minqi , Lee Joongku , Li Pan
Published: March 2022

Amana Honda (Liliaceae), known as ‘east Asian tulips’, is a spring ephemeral genus endemic to Sino-Japanese Floristic Subregion, mainly distributed in eastern and central China, Japan and the Korean peninsula. Chromosome numbers are reported here for the first time from 89 populations of Amana (representing all seven accepted species, two new species about to be published, and two suspected new species). Three ploidy levels are found in this genus. These are diploid (2n = 2x = 24) and tetraploid (2n = 4x = 48) in the widespread A. edulis, while all the narrow endemics are diploid, except for one population of A. tianmuensis, which is triploid (2n = 3x = 36). The northernmost and southernmost populations of A. edulis are diploid and tetraploid, respectively, while diploids and tetraploids coexist in between, with gradual transition to diploids as the latitude increases. This may indicate polyploids have an advantage in tolerance of environmental stress and are more adaptable to high-temperature environment in subtropical regions than diploids. The species and cytotype distributions in Amana are complex, and these results provide hypotheses about the origins of the genus and the polyploid cytotypes.
Soundscape Assessment of Green and Blue Infrastructures
Authors: Yildirim Yalcin , Dilman Merve , Muftuoglu Volkan , Demir Sara
Published: March 2022

Green and blue infrastructures provide economic, environmental, and social benefits to urban life. Various areas that are passing through such infrastructures have implications for those benefits. For instance, urban, rural, agricultural, and industrial zones extend the services and disservices of green and blue infrastructures. Such extensions also have various implications on the environment and public health. Sound is one of those under-examined aspects of aggregated effects of green and blue infrastructures. This study aims to contribute to whether soundscape is affected by three pillars of urban, industrial, and rural areas among green and blue infrastructures. The study result shows no significant difference among those zones; however, urbanized areas include the highest sound levels. Industrial and rural zones show similar patterns. The study also identified that green infrastructure has more effects on the soundscape paradigm. The results also imply that green and blue infrastructures should be designated in harmony to produce a more sound-friendly environment considering the current major uses of the areas.
The Impact of Ethical Leadership, Commitment and Healthy/Safe Workplace Practices toward Employee Attitude to COVID-19 Vaccination/Implantation in the Banking Sector in Lebanon
Authors: Kabbani Samira , Karkoulian Silva , Balozian Puzant , Rizk Sandra
Published: March 2022

This study investigates the effect of ethical leadership, commitment and healthy/safe workplace practices toward employee COVID-19 vaccination. In addition, this study examines the perception of employees from technological intrusive vaccination of chips or quantum dot. In our research, we adopted the social exchange theory as its theoretical framework. Moreover, an online questionnaire was distributed to employees working in the banking sector in Lebanon during the COVID-19 pandemic. In total, 244 bankers completed the survey. Data was analyzed by SPSS statistical software version 26 and SmartPLS to test the relationship between the variables. The results generated showed a positive relationship between ethical leadership, commitment, and safety influencing employees to accept vaccination but not necessarily technological intrusive vaccination (chip or quantum dot). We suggest that organizations should influence leaders to enhance proper behaviors and attitudes to create a healthy, safe, and ethical culture that consequently increases employees’ commitment. Finally, this study recommends future researchers to investigate the topic of COVID-19 vaccination and test other employees’ perception from different industries and countries.
Medium-to-Long-Term Immunogenicity of BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine: A Retrospective Cohort Study
Authors: Bianchi Francesco Paolo , Stefanizzi Pasquale , Germinario Cinzia Annatea , Migliore Giovanni , Vimercati Luigi , Martinelli Andrea , Lobifaro Annamaria , Diella Giusy , Larocca Angela Maria Vittoria ,   Control Room Working Group, Tafuri Silvio
Published: March 2022

To deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, a mass vaccination campaign was started in European countries on 27 December 2020. The first vaccine available to immunize healthcare workers (HCWs) was the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine. While many studies have shown a high antibody response after the second vaccine dose, antibody persistence over the medium-to-long term has yet to be evaluated. The medium-to-long-term persistence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies was determined in a sample of fully vaccinated HCWs at Bari Policlinico General Hospital, Italy. This is a observational cohort study. HCWs who completed the immunization basal cycle were screened for anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG on days 15, 30, 60, 90, and 120 after the second vaccine dose. At each time point, >99% of the screened HCWs were seroprotected. While the geometric mean titer initially declined over time, by 60 days the titer had stabilized. Older subjects seem to lose IgG faster than younger ones. The immunogenicity conferred by the vaccine provides further evidence that it is an essential weapon in efforts to bring the COVID-19 pandemic under control. Accordingly, strict measures should be implemented, ranging from the mandatory vaccination of HCWs to strong incentives aimed at achieving vaccination of the large majority of the overall population.
Leveraging Beneficial Off-Target Effects of Live-Attenuated Rotavirus Vaccines
Authors: Benedicto-Matambo Prisca , Bines Julie E. , Malamba-Banda Chikondi , Shawa Isaac T. , Barnes Kayla , Kamng’ona Arox W. , Hungerford Daniel , Jambo Kondwani C. , Iturriza-Gomara Miren , Cunliffe Nigel A. , Flanagan Katie L. , Jere Khuzwayo C.
Published: March 2022

Following the introduction of live-attenuated rotavirus vaccines in many countries, a notable reduction in deaths and hospitalisations associated with diarrhoea in children <5 years of age has been reported. There is growing evidence to suggest that live-attenuated vaccines also provide protection against other infections beyond the vaccine-targeted pathogens. These so called off-target effects of vaccination have been associated with the tuberculosis vaccine Bacille Calmette Guérin (BCG), measles, oral polio and recently salmonella vaccines, and are thought to be mediated by modified innate and possibly adaptive immunity. Indeed, rotavirus vaccines have been reported to provide greater than expected reductions in acute gastroenteritis caused by other enteropathogens, that have mostly been attributed to herd protection and prior underestimation of rotavirus disease. Whether rotavirus vaccines also alter the immune system to reduce non targeted gastrointestinal infections has not been studied directly. Here we review the current understanding of the mechanisms underlying off-target effects of vaccines and propose a mechanism by which the live-attenuated neonatal rotavirus vaccine, RV3-BB, could promote protection beyond the targeted pathogen. Finally, we consider how vaccine developers may leverage these properties to improve health outcomes in children, particularly those in low-income countries where disease burden and mortality is disproportionately high relative to developed countries.