bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Z-Transform-Based FDTD Implementations of Biaxial Anisotropy for Radar Target Scattering Problems
Authors: Zhang Yuxian , Feng Naixing , Zhu Jinfeng , Xie Guoda , Yang Lixia , Huang Zhixiang
Published: May 2022

In this article, an efficient Z-transform-based finite-difference time-domain (Z-FDTD) is developed to implement and analyze electromagnetic scatterings in the 3D biaxial anisotropy. In terms of the Z-transform technique, we first discuss the conversion relationship between time- or frequency-domain derivative operators and the corresponding Z-domain operator, then build up the Z-transform-based iteration from the electric flux D converted to the electric field E based on dielectric tensor ε (and from the magnetic flux B converted to the magnetic field H in line with permeability tensor μ) by combining the constitutive formulations about the biaxial anisotropy. As a result, the iterative process about the Z-FDTD implementation can be smoothly carried out by means of combining with the Maxwell’s equations. To our knowledge, it is inevitably necessary for the absorbing boundary condition (ABC) to be considered in the electromagnetic scattering; hence, we utilize the unsplit-field complex-frequency-shifted perfectly matched layer (CFS-PML) to truncate the Z-FDTD’s physical region, and then capture time- and frequency-domain radiation with the electric dipole. In the 3D simulations, we select two different biaxial anisotropic models to validate the proposed formulations by using the popular commercial software COMSOL. Moreover, it is certain that those results are effective and available for electromagnetic scattering problems under the oblique incidence executed by the Z-FDTD method.
Heatwaves Significantly Slow the Vegetation Growth Rate on the Tibetan Plateau
Authors: Dong Caixia , Wang Xufeng , Ran Youhua , Nawaz Zain
Published: May 2022

In recent years, heatwaves have been reported frequently by literature and the media on the Tibetan Plateau. However, it is unclear how alpine vegetation responds to the heatwaves on the Tibetan Plateau. This study aimed to identify the heatwaves using long-term meteorological data and examine the impact of heatwaves on vegetation growth rate with remote sensing data. The results indicated that heatwaves frequently occur in June, July, and August on the Tibetan Plateau. The average frequency of heatwaves had no statistically significant trends from 2000 to 2020 for the entire Tibetan Plateau. On a monthly scale, the average frequency of heatwaves increased significantly (p < 0.1) in August, while no significant trends were in June and July. The intensity of heatwaves indicated a negative correlation with the vegetation growth rate anomaly (ΔVGR) calculated from the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) (r = −0.74, p < 0.05) and the enhanced vegetation index (EVI) (r = −0.61, p < 0.1) on the Tibetan Plateau, respectively. Both NDVI and EVI consistently demonstrate that the heatwaves slow the vegetation growth rate. This study outlines the importance of heatwaves to vegetation growth to enrich our understanding of alpine vegetation response to increasing extreme weather events under the background of climate change.
Cropping Patterns of Annual Crops: A Remote Sensing Review
Authors: Mahlayeye Mbali , Darvishzadeh Roshanak , Nelson Andrew
Published: May 2022

Cropping patterns are defined as the sequence and spatial arrangement of annual crops on a piece of land. Knowledge of cropping patterns is crucial for crop production and land-use intensity. While cropping patterns are related to crop production and land use intensity, they are rarely reported in agricultural statistics, especially those relating to small farms in developing countries. Remote sensing has enabled mapping cropping patterns by monitoring crops’ spatial and temporal dynamics. In this paper, we reviewed remote sensing studies of single, sequential and intercropping patterns of annual crops practiced at local and regional scales. A total of 90 studies were selected from 753 publications based on their cropping pattern types and relevance to the scope of this review. The review found that despite the increase in single cropping pattern studies due to the Sentinel missions, studies on intercropping patterns are rare, suggesting that mapping intercropping is still challenging. More so, microwave remote sensing for mapping intercropping has not been fully explored. Given the complexities in mapping intercropping, our review highlights how less frequently used vegetation indices (VIs) that benefit from red-edge and SWIR spectral bands may improve intercropping mapping.
CAA-YOLO: Combined-Attention-Augmented YOLO for Infrared Ocean Ships Detection
Authors: Ye Jing , Yuan Zhaoyu , Qian Cheng , Li Xiaoqiong
Published: May 2022

Infrared ocean ships detection still faces great challenges due to the low signal-to-noise ratio and low spatial resolution resulting in a severe lack of texture details for small infrared targets, as well as the distribution of the extremely multiscale ships. In this paper, we propose a CAA-YOLO to alleviate the problems. In this study, to highlight and preserve features of small targets, we apply a high-resolution feature layer (P2) to better use shallow details and the location information. In order to suppress the shallow noise of the P2 layer and further enhance the feature extraction capability, we introduce a TA module into the backbone. Moreover, we design a new feature fusion method to capture the long-range contextual information of small targets and propose a combined attention mechanism to enhance the ability of the feature fusion while suppressing the noise interference caused by the shallow feature layers. We conduct a detailed study of the algorithm based on a marine infrared dataset to verify the effectiveness of our algorithm, in which the AP and AR of small targets increase by 5.63% and 9.01%, respectively, and the mAP increases by 3.4% compared to that of YOLOv5.
A Real-Time GNSS-R System for Monitoring Sea Surface Wind Speed and Significant Wave Height
Authors: Xing Jin , Yu Baoguo , Yang Dongkai , Li Jie , Shi Zhejia , Zhang Guodong , Wang Feng
Published: May 2022

This paper presents a monitoring system based on Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) reflected signals to provide real-time observations of sea conditions. Instead of a computer, the system uses a custom-built hardware platform that incorporates Radio Frequency (RF), Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), Digital Signal Processing (DSP), and Raspberry Pi for real-time signal processing. The suggested structure completes the navigation signal’s positioning as well as the reflected signal’s feature extraction. Field tests are conducted to confirm the effectiveness of the system and the retrieval algorithm described in this research. The entire system collects and analyzes signals at a coastal site in the field experiment, producing sea surface wind speed and significant wave height (SWH) that are compared to local weather station data, demonstrating the system’s practicality. The system can allow the centralized monitoring of many sites, as well as field experiments and real-time early warning at sea.
Three-Dimensional Imaging of Circular Array Synthetic Aperture Sonar for Unmanned Surface Vehicle
Authors: Zeng Sai , Fan Wei , Du Xuanmin
Published: May 2022

Synthetic aperture sonar (SAS) and interferometric synthetic aperture sonar (InSAS) have a range layover phenomenon during underwater observation, the AUV-mounted circular synthetic aperture sonar (CSAS) system, that insonifies targets using multiple circular scans that vary in height and can eliminate the layover phenomenon. However, this observation method is time-consuming and difficult to compensate. To solve this problem, the circular array synthetic aperture sonar (CASAS) based on the equivalent phase center was established for unmanned surface vehicles. Corresponding to the echo signal model of circular array synthetic aperture sonar, a novel three-dimensional imaging algorithm was derived. Firstly, the echo datacube was processed by signal calibration with near-field to far-field transformation and grid interpolation. Then, the sparse recover method was adopted to achieve the scattering coefficient in the height direction by sparse Bayesian learning. Thirdly, the Fourier slice theorem was adopted to obtain the 2D image of the ground plane. After the reconstruction of all height slice cells was accomplished, the final 3D image was obtained. Numerical simulations and experiments using the USV-mounted CASAS system were performed. The imaging results verify the effectiveness of the 3D imaging algorithm for the proposed model and validate the feasibility of CASAS applied in underwater target imaging and detection.
A 24-to-30 GHz Ultra-High-Linearity Down-Conversion Mixer for 5G Applications Using a New Linearization Method
Authors: Yang Shenghui , Hu Kejie , Fu Haipeng , Ma Kaixue , Lu Min
Published: May 2022

The linearity of active mixers is usually determined by the input transistors, and many works have been proposed to improve it by modified input stages at the cost of a more complex structure or more power consumption. A new linearization method of active mixers is proposed in this paper; the input 1 dB compression point (IP1dB) and output 1 dB compression point (OP1dB) are greatly improved by exploiting the “reverse uplift” phenomenon. Compared with other linearization methods, the proposed one is simpler, more efficient, and sacrifices less conversion gain. Using this method, an ultra-high-linearity double-balanced down-conversion mixer with wide IF bandwidth is designed and fabricated in a 130 nm SiGe BiCMOS process. The proposed mixer includes a Gilbert-cell, a pair of phase-adjusting inductors, and a Marchand-balun-based output network. Under a 1.6 V supply voltage, the measurement results show that the mixer exhibits an excellent IP1dB of +7.2~+10.1 dBm, an average OP1dB of +5.4 dBm, which is the state-of-the-art linearity performance in mixers under a silicon-based process, whether active or passive. Moreover, a wide IF bandwidth of 8 GHz from 3 GHz to 11 GHz was achieved. The circuit consumes 19.8 mW and occupies 0.48 mm2, including all pads. The use of the "reverse uplift" allows us to implement high-linearity circuits more efficiently, which is helpful for the design of 5G high-speed communication transceivers.
Numerical Simulation of Dense Solid-Liquid Mixing in Stirred Vessel with Improved Dual Axial Impeller
Authors: Xiong Xia , Liu Zuohua , Tao Changyuan , Wang Yundong , Cheng Fangqin
Published: May 2022

Computational fluid dynamics (CFDs) were adopted in order to investigate the solid suspending process in a dense solid–liquid system (with a solid volume fraction of 30%), agitated by a traditional dual axial impeller and a modified dual axial impeller, otherwise known as a dual triple blade impeller (DTBI) and a dual rigid-flexible triple blade impeller (DRFTBI), respectively. The effects of rotational speed, connection strap length/width, and off-bottom clearance on the solid distribution were investigated. The results show that the proportion of solid concentration larger than 0.4 in the DTBI system was 26.56 times of that in the DRFTBI system. This indicates that the DRFTBI system can strengthen the solid suspension and decrease the solid accumulation in the bottom of the tank. Furthermore, the velocity and turbulent kinetic energy in the DRFTBI system were promoted. In addition, for an optimal selection, the optimum length of connection strap was 1.2 H1, the optimum range of connection strap width was D/7–D/8, and the off-bottom clearance selected as T/4 was better.
Zombification and Industry 4.0—Directional Financialisation against Doomed Industrial Revolution
Authors: Kovács Olivér
Published: May 2022

This contribution addresses the puzzle of whether Industry 4.0 is able to autochthonously bring back the real economy (non-financial corporate sector) into the consciousness of the financial sector. It is all the more important since the conventional wisdom over financialisation says that it cannot be reversed without re-establishing the command of the social and collective over the private and individual for the modern era. Our paper argues that a healthy diffusion of Industry 4.0 is doomed unless some directionality is set within the financialisation process. To this end, by building on the relevant lessons of complexity science, it investigates the complex nexus among financialisation, zombification and Industry 4.0 development, an aspect which is not even sporadically examined in the literature. After presenting a short stock take on excessive financialisation, the paper deciphers the main systemic channels of zombification affecting negatively the outlooks of Industry 4.0. Some important policy recommendations are drawn as well.
Smartphone Moves: How Changes in Embodied Configuration with One’s Smartphone Adjust Conversational Engagement
Authors: Mantere Eerik
Published: May 2022

Smartphones are often spontaneously used for personal purposes and during face-to-face gatherings. New terms like “phubbing” and “technoference” describe negative consequences of this behavior, but analysis of the actual everyday social situations where smartphones feature has largely been neglected. This article shows how simultaneous smartphone and conversational engagements are shaped by participants’ embodied conduct. A naturally occurring three-party conversation in a Finnish café is analyzed in detail to show how changes in embodied user–smartphone configuration impact ongoing conversation. User–smartphone configuration consists of the smartphone’s location, its physical relation to its user’s hands, and its screen direction in relation to the user’s head. User-smartphone configuration can manifest a change in an interactive footing in conversation, function as a turn-holding device, and organize a change in the conversational state. New methods and concepts for studying smartphone use in social situations are introduced. “Smartphone positions” refers to the embodied user–smartphone configurations that are oriented as manifestations of degrees of user–device engagement. “Smartphone moves” are the changes in smartphone positions, and they carry sequential relevance. Increased smartphone engagement is seen as decreased conversational engagement and vice versa. Making interactive resources available for one engagement manifests as an accountable event of disengagement from another. Engagement and disengagement are argued to be a continuum rather than a contrast pair.
The Acute Effects of Heavy Sled Towing on Acceleration Performance and Sprint Mechanical and Kinematic Characteristics
Authors: Zisi Maria , Stavridis Ioannis , Agilara Georgia-Olanemi , Economou Theodosia , Paradisis Giorgos
Published: May 2022

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of heavy sled towing using a load corresponding to a 50% reduction of the individual theoretical maximal velocity (ranged 57–73% body mass) on subsequent 30 m sprint performance, velocity, mechanical variables (theoretical maximal horizontal force, theoretical maximal horizontal velocity, maximal mechanical power output, slope of the linear force–velocity relationship, maximal ratio of horizontal to total force and decrease in the ratio of horizontal to total force) and kinematics (step length and rate, contact and flight time). Twelve (n = 5 males and n = 7 females) junior running sprinters performed an exercise under two intervention conditions in random order. The experimental condition (EXP) consisted of two repetitions of 20 m resisted sprints, while in the control condition (CON), an active recovery was performed. Before (baseline) and after (post) the interventions, the 30 m sprint tests were analyzed. Participants showed faster 30 m sprint times following sled towing (p = 0.005). Running velocity was significantly higher in EXP at 5–10 m (p = 0.032), 10–15 m (p = 0.006), 15–20 m (p = 0.004), 20–25 m (p = 0.015) and 25–30 m (p = 0.014). No significant changes in sprint mechanical variables and kinematics were observed. Heavy sled towing appeared to be an effective post-activation potentiation stimulus to acutely enhance sprint acceleration performance with no effect on the athlete’s running technique.
Research on the Relationship between Digital Transformation and Performance of SMEs
Authors: Teng Xiaoyan , Wu Zhong , Yang Feng
Published: May 2022

Objective: Through an empirical analysis of the performance of SMEs undergoing digital transformation, this study attempts to identify the influencing factors that determine their sustainable development to provide reference for academic researchers and industrial decision makers. Method: This study first uses an interview method to investigate the impact of SMEs’ three main resources on digital transformation: digital technology, employee digital skills, and digital transformation strategy. Second, we assess the impact of digital transformation on financial performance. Using the structural equation model, 335 valid questionnaires were recovered through the questionnaire method, and the key factors were identified using SPSS and SPSSAU tools. Results: In the Chinese context, digital transformation affects SME performance, and the three resources mentioned above are positively correlated with SMEs’ digital transformation. Digital transformation is positively correlated with performance, and it is the mediator of the impact of digital transformation strategies on performance. Conclusion: For SMEs, focusing on investing in digital technologies, employee digital skills, and digital transformation strategies are three key factors that are beneficial for digital transformation, thus helping to improve performance and maintain their sustainable development.
Sustainable Insights for Energy Big Data Governance in China: Full Life Cycle Curation from the Ecosystem Perspective
Authors: Zeng Ming , Xu Yanbin , Wu Haoyu , Ma Jiaxin , Gao Jianwei
Published: May 2022

With the development of the Energy Internet and the Internet of Things, diversified social production activities are making the interactions between energy, business, and information flow among physical, social, and information systems increasingly complex. As the carrier of information and the hub between physical and social systems, the effective management of energy big data has attracted the attention of scholars. This work indicates that China’s energy companies have carried out a series of activities that are centered on energy big data collection, as well as development and exchange, and that the energy big data ecosystem has begun to take shape. However, the research on and the application of energy big data are mainly limited to micro-level fields, and the development of energy big data in China remains disordered because the corresponding macro-level instructive governance frameworks are lacking. In this work, to facilitate the sustainable development of the energy big data ecosystem and to solve existing problems, such as the difficult-to-determine governance boundaries and the difficult-to-coordinate interests, and to analyze the structure and mechanism of the energy big data ecosystem, data curation is introduced into energy big data governance, and a paradigm is constructed for sustainable energy big data curation that encompasses its full life cycle, including the planning, integration, application, and maintenance stages. Key paradigmatic issues are analyzed in-depth, including data rights, fusion, security, and transactions.
Market-Driven Rural Construction—A Case Study of Fuhong Town, Chengdu
Authors: Zhou Yujun , Liu Jingming , Kang Xiang
Published: May 2022

Although local government has played an important role in rural China’s development, some disadvantages of government-led rural construction have gradually emerged with changes in socioeconomic structure, which have negative impacts on rural development. To solve the problems of the traditional rural construction pattern, the introduction of market mechanisms into rural construction became the consensus in theory and in practice. Extant studies emphasize the importance of a market-driven rural construction pattern; however, they do not discuss how to practice this pattern in detail. Thus, this paper uses a case study and comparative analysis to illustrate the background, implementation process and outcomes of the market-driven pattern, aiming to identify the intrinsic dynamics among the local government, market capital and villagers in the market-driven pattern. We argue that although the transformation from a government-led to market-driven pattern is a gradual process, the market-driven pattern is an alternative to the traditional pattern and can better fulfill villagers’ interests and enhance sustainable rural development.
A School-Based Multilevel Intervention to Increase Physical Activity of Adolescents in Pakistan: From a Social-Ecological Perspective
Authors: Kiyani Tayyaba , Kayani Sumaira , Kayani Saima , Qi Si , Biasutti Michele
Published: May 2022

This study aimed to develop an intervention strategy based on the social-ecological model’s individual, interpersonal, and organizational levels for increasing adolescents’ physical activity in Pakistan. Based on the social-ecological model, an 8-week intervention was conducted for 618 school students in Rawalpindi, Pakistan. A quantitative method with a quasi-experimental design was adopted, administering self-report measures before and after the intervention. Intervention materials were delivered by leaflet once a week to the intervention group. Repeated measure analysis of variance was applied to verify the intervention effects at pre- and post-test conditions. The results show that a significant intervention effect was identified from the repeated measure analysis of variance for the intervention group’s physical activity participation compared to the control group from baseline (M = 12.01, SD = 0.136) to the 8-week post-test (M = 16.30, SD = 0.125). The intervention based on the social-ecological model has sufficiently and effectively improved physical activity among school adolescents in Pakistan.
LCA to Estimate the Environmental Impact of Dairy Farms: A Case Study
Authors: Zanni Sara , Roccaro Mariana , Bocedi Federica , Peli Angelo , Bonoli Alessandra
Published: May 2022

Intensive farming is responsible for extreme environmental impacts under different aspects, among which global warming represents a major reason of concern. This is a quantitative problem linked to the farm size and a qualitative one, depending on farming methods and land management. The dairy sector is particularly relevant in terms of environmental impact, and new approaches to meeting sustainability goals at a global scale while meeting society’s needs are necessary. The present study was carried out to assess the environmental impact of dairy cattle farms based on a life cycle assessment (LCA) model applied to a case study. These preliminary results show the possibility of identifying the most relevant impacts in terms of supplied products, such as animal feed and plastic packaging, accounting for 19% and 15% of impacts, respectively, and processes, in terms of energy and fuel consumption, accounting for 53% of impacts overall. In particular, the local consumption of fossil fuels for operations within the farm represents the most relevant item of impact, with a small margin for improvement. On the other hand, remarkable opportunities to reduce the impact can be outlined from the perspective of stronger partnerships with suppliers to promote the circularity of packaging and the sourcing of animal feed. Future studies may include the impact of drug administration and the analysis of social aspects of LCA.
Field Study and Chemical Analysis of Plant Waste in the Fez-Meknes Region, Morocco
Authors: Bendaoud Ahmed , Lahkimi Amal , Kara Mohammed , Moubchir Tarik , Assouguem Amine , Belkhiri Abdelkhalek , Allali Aimad , Hmamou Anouar , Almeer Rafa , Sayed Amany A. , Peluso Ilaria , Eloutassi Noureddine
Published: May 2022

Throughout the entire world, the biomass plant remains an important source of renewable energy. However, in Morocco, the energy recovery of this biomass is little or badly exploited compared to other solar, hydraulic, and wind resources. The aim of this study is to know the extent to which Moroccan companies are involved in the valorization of green waste and to identify among the latter those that have great energy and industrial value. The field investigation was carried out with the use of a questionnaire to different sectors of activity. The chemical analyses of the waste samples were carried out by different methods: Van Soest to investigate the fiber content, dinitrosalicylic acid and phenol-sulfuric acid to determine sugars, while the Folin–Ciocalteu method was employed for the determination of phenolic compounds. These are the ASTM standard methods to determine elemental, proximate composition, and calorific value (CV). The results of this survey showed that solid vegetable waste is diverse and represents 68.4% of the total green waste, of which 98% is not treated. Moreover, the chemical analysis displayed that forestry waste (FW), extracted parts wastes (EPW), and unused parts wastes (UPW) of medicinal and aromatic plants have high contents of cellulose (respectively 34.75, 48.44, and 54.19%) and hemicelluloses (28.44, 27.19 and 28.50%) and containing low amounts of lignin and phenolic compounds compared to olive waste (OW), olive pomace (OP), and household waste (HW). Almost all biomass wastes, except HW, have a low moisture (<12%), ash content less than 5.1%, a significant percentage of C and H, and CV between 14.5 and 21.6 MJ/Kg. The PCA analysis showed a discrepancy in terms of components between the set formed by FW, UPW, and EPW with other solid waste. In conclusion, FW, UPW, and EPW, specially can be potentially energetic biomass and valorized together in the form of a mixture.
The Impact of Globalization on Renewable Energy Development in the Countries along the Belt and Road Based on the Moderating Effect of the Digital Economy
Authors: Zhang Yu , Su Le , Jin Warren , Yang Yunan
Published: May 2022

Within the context of globalization, the development of renewable energy is critical for attaining sustainable development, and the digital economy is also a critical driver for achieving it. This article incorporates globalization, renewable energy development, and the digital economy into its research framework, investigates the relationship between globalization and renewable energy development, and explores the moderating effect of the digital economy, using panel data from countries along the Belt and Road (B&R) from 2001 to 2018. It is found that globalization facilitates the development of renewable energy. The 1% increase in globalization results in a 1.06% increase in renewable energy development; the level of globalization has a significant effect on renewable energy development in high-income countries, upper-middle-income countries, and low-income countries, but not in lower-middle-income countries; the digital economy has a moderating effect on the impact of globalization on renewable energy development in countries along the B&R. Simultaneously, the effect of globalization on renewable energy development in B&R countries is influenced by the digital economy’s single threshold effect, and the effect of globalization on renewable energy development is more pronounced when the level of digital economy development is less than the threshold of 0.061. The conclusions of this article have significant implications for the B&R countries’ sustainable development in the contexts of globalization and the digital economy.
Corporate Social Responsibility and Firm-Based Brand Equity: The Moderating Effect of Marketing Communication and Brand Identity
Authors: Alakkas Abdullah A. , Vivek  , Paul Mohinder , Nabi Mohammed Kamalun , Khan Mohammed Arshad
Published: May 2022

To examine how the CSR activities facilitate a company’s brand-building process and useful in building its Brand Equity i.e., Firm-Based Brand Equity (FBBE). Methodology: For the present study, responses have been elicited from a sample of 69 company executives. Multi-stage sampling (method of random sampling) is used in the present study to select the sample executives. The collected sample dataset is analyzed through SPSS (version 25) and AMOS (version 24) software. Cronbach’s Alpha technique is used to measure how closely related a set of items are as a group. This is considered to be a measure of scale reliability. The Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) statistical method is used to uncover the underlying structure of a relatively large set of variables. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) is conducted in the study in order to test the statistical hypotheses formulated for the study and to examine the effect of CSR on Brand Equity with the moderating effect of Marketing Communication and Brand Identity. Findings: The outcomes of the study revealed that Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), Marketing Communication, Brand Identity and Brand Equity are positively associated. Thus, it can be surmised that CSR affects Brand Equity with the mediating effect of Marketing Communication and Brand Identity. Originality: The present study is based on original research that facilitates new insight instead of summarizing what is already known in a new form. Though many studies on CSR have been conducted in the past, but studies on the relationship between Corporate Social Responsibility and Firm-Based Brand Equity with the moderating effect of Marketing Communication and Brand Identity are few and far between. Implications: The outcome of the study will cast new light on the impact of Corporate Social Responsibility on Corporate Brand Image and also facilitate future research endeavors on CSR. The results of the study will help corporate houses in building a strong brand image. As a matter of fact, the CSR activities implemented by the companies offer a better brand recognition, resulting in greater brand awareness among customers and society at large. Such awareness is related to CSR initiatives of the companies brings brand trust and loyalty. Consequently, the trust and loyalty so developed enhances the Brand Image and strengthens the Brand Equity.
Research on Cooperative Innovation Network Structure and Evolution Characteristics of Electric Vehicle Industry
Authors: Wu Liping , Xu Man
Published: May 2022

The electric vehicle industry involves various technological cooperative innovations, meaning that electric vehicle companies must not only cooperate and innovate with similar enterprises in the same industry, but also collaborate with enterprises across the industry and research institutions (RIs). This paper empirically analyzed the structure and evolution characteristics of cooperative innovation networks, based on the patent application data in the field of electric vehicles from 2006 to 2021. It was found that the firm–firm intra-industry and inter-industry cooperative innovation networks, and firm–RI cooperative innovation networks have the characteristics of phased evolution in structure, and the network structure in the evolution process has similarities and differences. Furthermore, during the industrial formation period, inter-industry cooperative innovation focuses on the cooperation between the midstream and downstream industries of the industrial chain; but in the industrial growth period, inter-industry cooperative innovation has been widely extended to multiple industries in the upper, middle and lower reaches of the industrial chain. While the scale of intra-industry and industry–research institution cooperative innovation continues to expand with the development of the industry, the collaboration is concentrated in the five industries in the middle and downstream of the industrial chain. The research conclusion can provide a reference for different cooperative innovation partners of electric vehicles and other emerging industries to formulate differentiated policies.
Are Smart Cities Too Expensive in the Long Term? Analyzing the Effects of ICT Infrastructure on Municipal Financial Sustainability
Authors: Puron-Cid Gabriel , Gil-Garcia J. Ramon
Published: May 2022

Cities around the world are attempting to become smarter by using data and technology to improve internal operations, make better decisions, and increase the quality of life. This technology-intensive use frequently comes with large investments in the ICT infrastructure necessary for smart city initiatives, which may not be financially viable in the long term. Financial sustainability (FS) is a useful framework for assessing how governments meet their financial obligations, using different indicators of financial performance over time by controlling for contextual factors. This study examines 1723 municipal governments; only 89 of these explicitly conducted smart-city initiatives in Mexico over three time points (2014, 2016, and 2018). Panel data techniques were applied to compare the effects of the investments in ICT infrastructure across municipalities with or without smart-city initiatives on five indicators related to the financial condition within the FS framework (i.e., cash solvency, budget solvency, long-term solvency, service-level solvency for revenues and expenses). The results show an association between ICT infrastructure and some dimensions of FS. The main findings suggest the importance of adequate financial analysis for long-term capital and budgeting decisions, to create a more solid smart city financial strategy for the long term. Specific recommendations for city managers are also discussed.
Wave Climate and the Effect of Induced Currents over the Barrier Reef of the Cays of Alburquerque Island, Colombia
Authors: Lonin Serguei , Andrade Carlos Alberto , Monroy Julio
Published: May 2022

The Alburquerque Cay Islands belong to a group of western Caribbean atolls, with a barrier reef of coral that is more than 8 km in diameter. An understanding of the reef ocean dynamics and its direct relationship to the functioning of the ecosystem is important since the significant energies that are involved should play a fundamental role in the coral and fish distributions in the coral reef, which are fundamental for its sustainability. The microtidal regime and the predominance of the trade winds produces coastal circulation, which is induced by waves breaking against the barrier. The study of the water dynamics that are described in this paper was carried out by using a stationary model that is based on the shallow-water equations theory, with consideration to the radiation stress gradients in the waves, whose patterns were evaluated with the pseudo-data of a reanalysis of a virtual buoy in front of the atoll and were propagated in the domain of interest by using the simulating waves nearshore (SWAN) spectral model. The results demonstrate the bi-modal behavior of the currents of water jets, with the occurrence of extreme waves with velocities greater than 1 m/s along the barrier. For the mean wave regime, circulation occurred around the coral mounds. This circulation suggests that the reef, the orientation of which coincides with the direction of the predominant waves, was formed under these average conditions. The wave climate is primordial to the reef environment, and climate change may affect the coral health.
The Cost of Caring: Compassion Fatigue Is a Special Form of Teacher Burnout
Authors: Yu Xiajun , Sun Changkang , Sun Binghai , Yuan Xuhui , Ding Fujun , Zhang Mengxie
Published: May 2022

Compassion fatigue is a unique form of burnout that can seriously negatively impact both teachers’ development and students’ growth. A questionnaire survey was carried out among 1558 primary and secondary school teachers from 28 provincial administrative regions by using the Professional Quality of Life Scale (Pro QOL-5), and the results showed that: (1) the quality of professional life of primary and secondary school teachers in China is at the medium level, and compassion fatigue above the mild level is widespread; (2) there are individual differences in teachers’ compassion satisfaction and burnout. Teachers with more than 20 years of teaching experience at the senior title or above and college degree or below have higher levels of compassion satisfaction and lower levels of burnout. The level of compassion satisfaction is relatively high among teachers who are at school-level leadership or above and who are primary school teachers. The level of secondary trauma is relatively high among teachers in secondary schools and secondary vocational schools; (3) position (headteacher and class teachers), title (primary), and school type (secondary) have a significant influence on the degree of compassion fatigue. The findings suggest that compassion fatigue among primary and secondary school teachers needs urgent attention. By helping teachers identify compassion fatigue, learn self-care, adjust self-cognition, and clarify the boundaries of their professional competence, teachers’ compassion fatigue can be prevented and alleviated.
Barriers and Drivers to the Implementation of Onshore Power Supply—A Literature Review
Authors: Williamsson Jon , Costa Nicole , Santén Vendela , Rogerson Sara
Published: May 2022

Onshore power supply (OPS) reduces emissions from vessels docked in port. Historically, the uptake of OPS has been low, and research indicates that potential OPS adopters face multiple complex barriers. Based on a systematic literature review, this paper presents a framework for categorizing barriers and drivers to the implementation of OPS and identifies potential areas for future research. The review indicates that research on barriers to OPS was limited until 2019, when interest increased considerably, coinciding with mounting stakeholder concerns and regulatory pressure. The suggested framework divides barriers and drivers divided into four key categories: (i) technology and operations, (ii) institutional elements, (iii) economic elements, and (iv) stakeholder elements. The framework then superimposes those categories on three main areas of concern: port, transmission, and vessel. Research has identified potential solutions to specific barriers, but the complexity of OPS highlights the need for a collaborative approach to OPS. Additionally, as regulatory pressure is rising, more research is needed on the systemic implications of OPS as well as the potential use of incentives, pricing, and business models to tackle the high cost of implementation.
Does Counter-Cyclical Monetary Policy Promote Enterprise R&D Investment in a Recession? Empirical Evidence from China
Authors: Wang Tingxi , Zhang Hui
Published: May 2022

Using the continuous difference-in-difference (DID) model, this paper analyzes the Chinese listed companies’ panel data from 2013 to 2019 by taking the rapid monetary policy easing in mid-2015 as the policy shocks to test the impact of loose monetary policy on enterprise R&D investment. The results show that loose monetary policy significantly weakened the negative impact of high leverage on enterprise R&D investment. After considering the heterogeneity and fixed effects of enterprise and industry characteristics, loose monetary policy still significantly improved highly leveraged enterprises’ R&D investment and showed a greater innovation-driving role in a competitive market environment. Based on this, this paper believes that The People’s Bank of China should continue to guide the decrease of medium- and long-term interest rates and promote benign competition among enterprises to improve the effectiveness of the monetary policy.
Mapping the Spatial Heterogeneity of Anthropogenic Soil Nitrogen Net Replenishment Based on Soil Loss: A Coastal Case in the Yellow River Delta, China
Authors: Wang Youxiao , Huang Chong , Liu Gaohuan , Zhao Zhonghe , Li He , Liu Qingsheng
Published: May 2022

To explore the spatial heterogeneity of nitrogen supply from human activities to soil in coastal areas, we established a soil nitrogen net replenishment index (A-SNNRI). We applied the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) model for soil loss risk calculation and geostatistical analysis for process simulation. A case study in the Yellow River Delta (YRD) showed that the A-SNNRI worked well. During the summer crop-growing season, population and land use presented significant influences on the soil total nitrogen (STN) status. Urban villages and arable land both had the largest summary STN and variety. There was a negative correlation between STN change and soil loss. The east coast held both the largest A-SNNRIs and soil loss risks. There were significant positive correlations between A-SNNRIs and population and GDP. Therefore, to control and reduce soil-source nitrogen exports in the YRD, we need to reduce nitrogen emissions from urban villages, agriculture, industry, and aquaculture and determine the main risk locations along the east coast and in the main city.
A Novel Intelligent Leakage Monitoring-Warning System for Sustainable Rural Drinking Water Supply
Authors: Li Xiaoqin , Wu Xiaomei , Sun Mingzhuang , Yang Shengqiao , Song Weikun
Published: May 2022

Leakage occurs in rural water supply pipelines very often and its locating is quite demanding even for specialists, which could result in a poor operation efficiency of rural water supply projects and thus a low rural water supply guarantee rate. In view of this problem, the detection of leakage, as well as its prediction, is of great significance for the operation, maintenance, and administration of rural water supply projects. The traditional monitoring-warning systems for urban water distribution networks cannot be applied to rural water distribution networks, due to various limitations. Meanwhile, as with the traditional models, most new approaches based on machine learning such as the artificial neural network (ANN), probabilistic neural network (PNN), and statistical learning theory (SLT) do not fit rural water distribution networks much better, being unable to converge and force high-accuracy results with small sample sizes, which is a crucial demand to meet when dealing with rural water supply pipelines. Extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost), a model that specializes in small sample sizes and has a high generalization ability, was applied to a rural water supply project in Ningxia, China. In this study, a monitoring-warning system featuring both leakage locating and quantity estimation was established based on XGBoost. The accuracy and F1-score of the leakage locating model were 95% and 93%, respectively, while those of the leakage quantity model reached 96% and 97%, respectively. Furthermore, the pressure of monitoring stations could be obtained through the feature importance analysis enabled by XGBoost, which is essential for leakage warning. These results indicate that this system based on XGBoost could be a promising solution to the leakage issue in rural water supply projects, as a great inspiration for future developments in intelligent monitoring-warning systems, thus providing reliable approaches for the sustainable development of rural drinking water supply projects.
Sustainable Network by Enhancing Attribute-Based Selection Mechanism Using Lagrange Interpolation
Authors: Monga Chetna , Gupta Deepali , Prasad Devendra , Juneja Sapna , Muhammad Ghulam , Ali Zulfiqar
Published: May 2022

The security framework in Ad-hoc Networks (ANET) continues to attract the attention of researchers, although significant work has been accomplished already. Researchers in the last couple of years have shown quite an improvement in Identity Dependent Cryptography (IDC). Security in ANET is hard to attain due to the vulnerability of links (Wireless). IDC encompasses Polynomial Interpolations (PI) such as Lagrange, curve-fitting, and spline to provide security by implementing Integrated Key Management (IKM). The PI structure trusts all the available nodes in the network and randomly picks nodes for the security key generation. This paper presents a solution to the trust issues raised in Lagrange’s-PI (LI) utilizing an artificial neural network and attribute-based tree structure. The proposed structure not only improves the trust factor but also enhances the accuracy measures of LI to provide a sustainable network system. Throughput, PDR, noise, and latency have been increased by 47%, 50%, 34%, and 30%, respectively, by using LI and incorporating the aforementioned techniques.
The Analysis of the Conceptual Framework of Green Port Implementation in Indonesia Using Circular Economy: The Case Study of Benoa Public and Fishing Terminals
Authors: Gurning Raja Oloan Saut , Tangkau Daniel Imanuel
Published: May 2022

Several public seaports and fishing terminals are located in the same port complex but have different fragmented operations such as waste management. It is possible to provide a new initiative to ensure sustainability for all entities in the surrounding port ecosystem through the application of Green Port using the circular economy approach and mixed linear programming model. Therefore, this study aims to explore the collaborative management of waste generated from different port activities such as the operators of the public seaport, fishing terminal, and a city authority in Bali–Indonesia using circular economy principles. It was discovered that the integration model has the potential to generate new energy by recycling waste from all related entities in the production of a few main fishing products such as tuna, sardine, and squid, as well as vessel traffic, facilities, and cargo flow interactions in addition to other port operations.
The Impacts of COVID-19 on Technological and Polytechnic University Students in Mexico
Authors: Vital López Lourdes , Zamora-Antuñano Marco Antonio , Cruz-Pérez Miguel Angel , Rodríguez Reséndíz Juvenal , Fuentes Ramírez Fabiola , Paredes García Wilfrido Jacobo , Rodríguez Reséndiz Hugo , Cruz Ramírez Marisela , García García Raul
Published: May 2022

The contingency measures put in place by the government during COVID-19 exposed the students to a new condition to which they must adapt. To understand how the students perceive and cope during the unplanned, changed learning mode, we conducted a study using an evaluation tool which seeks to understand the effect of the contingency measures associated with the emergence of the COVID-19 virus on the students. By assigning a data collection instrument to students who are part of 15 technological universities (TUs) and 7 polytechnic universities (PUs), we determined how they were affected by COVID-19. The questions intended to evaluate the social, economic, academic, emotional, and health effects experienced. A total of 6596 students were assessed in the study representing an appropriate percentage of the Mexican students. The outcome of the study showed that 12% of the students agreed with the online approach to learn adopted because of the contingency. A total of 39% reported that they have a good environmental space for online learning, 32% reported that they mostly take their classes via their mobile phones, and 3% said they lacked access to an internet facility and as such could not take their classes. A total of 14% reported that they have little access to the internet, while 42% reported that they regularly have internet, and both complained that internet fluctuation significantly affects their academic performance. Comparing the different modes of teaching, 52% believe an in-person class is the best approach to learning, but 22% agreed that a hybrid system will be effective. Through a multiple correspondence analysis (MCA) it was determined that, in the effects, there was no significant difference in relation to gender. The effects that most impacted the students were economic, connectivity, and a lack of physical activity.