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Although scholars have noted the detrimental nature of the various changes in higher education prompted by neoliberalism, its impact on the experiences of international Higher Degree by Research (HDR) students has yet to be adequately studied. Informed by Bourdieu's concepts of "doxa," field, habitus, and capital, this paper examines the ways in which neoliberalism as "doxa" in the Australian higher education field has "colonised" the perception and practice of Chinese international HDR students whilst some students were able to demonstrate resilience to the pervasive neoliberal practices. The paper draws on a larger qualitative research project including interviews with 18 Chinese HDR students from four Australian universities. Data suggest that Chinese HDR research students gradually developed intensified dispositions of self-reliance and self-exploitation in response to neoliberal academic practices whilst others were enculturated into a "floating habitus" (or vulnerable position) in relation to academic publishing as they attempted to negotiate the tensions across fields and over time. Data further reveal that some participants demonstrated resilience to neoliberalism when empowered by their supervisors with less utilitarian and more critically reflexive supervisory practices. The paper argues that the embrace of neoliberalism in the Australian higher education field has become widespread yet controversial, and that thinking and enacting resilience sociologically may de-neoliberalise the higher education field in Australia and beyond.

Although scholars have noted the detrimental nature of the various changes in higher education prompted by neoliberalism, its impact on the experiences of international Higher Degree by Research (HDR) students has yet to be adequately studied. Informed by Bourdieu's concepts of doxa, field, habitus, and capital, this paper examines the ways in which neoliberalism as doxa in the Australian higher education field has colonised the perception and practice of Chinese international HDR students whilst some students were able to demonstrate resilience to the pervasive neoliberal practices. The paper draws on a larger qualitative research project including interviews with 18 Chinese HDR students from four Australian universities. Data suggest that Chinese HDR research students gradually developed intensified dispositions of self-reliance and self-exploitation in response to neoliberal academic practices whilst others were enculturated into a floating habitus (or vulnerable position) in relation to academic publishing as they attempted to negotiate the tensions across fields and over time. Data further reveal that some participants demonstrated resilience to neoliberalism when empowered by their supervisors with less utilitarian and more critically reflexive supervisory practices. The paper argues that the embrace of neoliberalism in the Australian higher education field has become widespread yet controversial, and that thinking and enacting resilience sociologically may de-neoliberalise the higher education field in Australia and beyond., Author(s): Congcong Xing [sup.1] , Guanglun Michael Mu [sup.1] , Deborah Henderson [sup.1] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.1024.7, 0000000089150953, School of Teacher Education & Leadership, Queensland University of Technology, , Victoria [...]

Australians are embracing new forms of digital finance products and services, which includes purchasing cryptocurrencies and non‐fungible tokens (NFTs). There has been an increase in investment scams associated with cryptocurrencies. In this article, we sought to understand from cryptocurrency and NFT investors, who is vulnerable and what vulnerabilities exist. We surveyed 745 Australians aged 18 and over who have purchased cryptocurrencies or NFTs. We used sociological perspectives of consumer vulnerability that focus on internal and external factors to analyse our findings. We found that both socioeconomic advantaged and disadvantaged Australians are vulnerable. The vulnerabilities include concerns over security, unsolicited advice, limited options for learning, and insufficient financial and IT literacy. The findings suggest that online financial education is needed from trusted independent sources to help combat scams and to keep Australians and their crypto assets safe. We recommend that more opportunities to educate individuals about alternative forms of financial products are offered in compulsory, vocational and higher education settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The demand for high‐performance materials in thermoelectric (TE) technology has driven continuous efforts to enhance the performance of commercialized Bi2Te3‐based thermoelectric materials. Here, we report success in achieving significant performance improvements in n‐type Bi2Te2.8Se0.2S0.01 through the implementation of a hot extrusion manufacturing process. This tailored manufacturing process has yielded a desired microstructure characterized by grain growth and preferred orientations. The resulting enlarged grain‐based microstructure exhibits reduced dislocations and defects that originated from plastic deformation during extrusion and post annealing. As such, the charge carrier mobility is significantly enhanced, leading to an ultrahigh power factor of approximately 51 μW cm−1 K−2 at ambient temperature. Consequently, a maximum figure of merit (zT) of 1.12 is achieved at 348 K in the combination of extrusion and annealing procedures. Using the synthesized n‐type Bi2Te2.8Se0.2S0.01 material, full‐scale cooling modules have been fabricated. These modules demonstrate record cooling performance, with a maximum temperature difference (ΔT) of 73.9 K at a hot‐side temperature of 300 K and a maximum cooling power density of 2.2 W cm−2. The cooling performance of these TE devices surpasses that of commercially available devices, establishing their potential for next‐generation TE cooling applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The South China Sea (SCS) is the result of several major tectonic plates' interaction, and a more detailed density structure is essential to study the tectonic evolution of the marginal seas. In the past decades, density studies in the SCS have focused more on profiles, and the lateral density structure has been less mentioned by scholars. Previously, gravity data have been used many times to study the SCS; this can satisfy the demands of large-scale lateral studies, but a point that cannot be ignored is that the gravity method has certain deficiencies in vertical resolution. Therefore, this paper applies a gravity multiscale analysis method to isolate the Bouguer gravity anomaly signal in the SCS, and then uses the power spectrum method to estimate the mean field source depth, which corresponds to the decomposed gravity anomaly signal. On this basis, we modeled stratified crustal and upper mantle structures in the SCS to determine the lateral density distribution at different depths. The results show the following: (1) There are two large high-density materials in the SCS. The first one is located near the Yinggehai Basin, where the depth ranges from 42.4 km to 71.2 km, with a diameter of nearly 220 km; the second one is located near the northwest sub-basin, where the depth ranges from 106.8 km to 128.8 km, which is probably part of the Paleo-Pacific remnant in the SCS. (2) The proto South China Sea subduction zone is located in the northwestern part of the Sulu Sea and has a northeast–southwest trend. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transitional metal oxides have attracted increasing attention as the most promising anode material for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). However, due to the poor ionic conductivity and great structural changes in the process of Li+ insertion and extraction, the performance of the pristine materials in batteries still has a far way to go to satisfy requirements. In this article, using spherical ZIF-12 as a pyrolysis precursor, two Co3O4 hollow core-shell carbon nanocomposites (CHS@C and CHS@CG) were fabricated via a molecular precursor pyrolysis strategy. The synergistic effect of the yolk-shell hollow nanosphere structure shortens the diffusion path of ions, increases the contact area between the electrode and electrolyte, and provides a buffer space for the volume change in the electrochemical reaction. Both materials have excellent structural stability and good electrical conductivity. In comparison, the performance of CHS@CG is better, and the reversible specific capacity reaches 831 mAh·g−1 at 0.2 C after 400 cycles. In the galvanostatic charge–discharge process, the Coulombic efficiency reaches nearly 100%, exhibiting a good reversible cycle. The synthesis method of these electrode materials can provide a reference for making other energy storage equipments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electrochromic smart windows (ESWs) offer an attractive option for regulating indoor lighting conditions. Electrochromic materials based on ion insertion/desertion mechanisms also present the possibility for energy storage, thereby increasing overall energy efficiency and adding value to the system. However, current electrochromic electrodes suffer from performance degradation, long response time, and low coloration efficiency. This work aims to produce defect-engineered brookite titanium dioxide (TiO 2 ) nanorods (NRs) with different lengths and investigate their electrochromic performance as potential energy storage materials. The controllable synthesis of TiO 2 NRs with inherent defects, along with smaller impedance and higher carrier concentrations, significantly enhances their electrochromic performance, including improved resistance to degradation, shorter response times, and enhanced coloration efficiency. The electrochromic performance of TiO 2 NRs, particularly longer ones, is characterized by fast switching speeds (20 s for coloration and 12 s for bleaching), high coloration efficiency (84.96 cm 2  C -1 at a 600 nm wavelength), and good stability, highlighting their potential for advanced electrochromic smart window applications based on Li + ion intercalation., (© 2023 The Authors. Small published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

Cu 2- x S and Cu 2- x Se have recently been reported as promising thermoelectric (TE) materials for medium-temperature applications. In contrast, Cu 2- x Te, another member of the copper chalcogenide family, typically exhibits low Seebeck coefficients that limit its potential to achieve a superior thermoelectric figure of merit, zT , particularly in the low-temperature range where this material could be effective. To address this, we investigated the TE performance of Cu 1.5- x Te-Cu 2 Se nanocomposites by consolidating surface-engineered Cu 1.5 Te nanocrystals. This surface engineering strategy allows for precise adjustment of Cu/Te ratios and results in a reversible phase transition at around 600 K in Cu 1.5- x Te-Cu 2 Se nanocomposites, as systematically confirmed by in situ high-temperature X-ray diffraction combined with differential scanning calorimetry analysis. The phase transition leads to a conversion from metallic-like to semiconducting-like TE properties. Additionally, a layer of Cu 2 Se generated around Cu 1.5- x Te nanoparticles effectively inhibits Cu 1.5- x Te grain growth, minimizing thermal conductivity and decreasing hole concentration. These properties indicate that copper telluride based compounds have a promising thermoelectric potential, translated into a high dimensionless zT of 1.3 at 560 K.