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Universities play a crucial role in the creation and promotion of academic spin-offs, which is why public funding programmes are implemented to improve start-up support there. So far, however, there has been little robust evidence as to whether such programmes actually improve start-up support mechanisms at universities. Against this backdrop, the present study makes a contribution by examining the effects of a large German university funding programme entitled 'EXIST—Potentials' on the start-up support of the funded universities. Using an indicator that measures start-up support at universities very broadly and employing a before-and-after comparison group design, reliable results on the effectiveness of the programme are presented. The findings suggest that the programme is effective in improving start-up support mechanisms at universities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The internet of things (IoT) is a network of connected devices, enabling the exchange and collection of data from various environments. The routing protocol for low power and lossy networks (RPL) is a protocol for routing IPv6 over low-power wireless personal area networks, commonly used in IoT applications. However, RPL has several security and privacy issues that make it vulnerable to various attacks, including rank attacks (RA), which can lead to denial-of-service (DoS) scenarios. This research aims to address the impact of RA on RPL networks by conducting simulations using the Contiki/Cooja simulator with two topology types, random and grid, along with three RA scenarios and a normal network scenario. The study compares the performance of RPL network OF0 and MRHOF in terms of throughput, packet delivery ratio (PDR), hop count (HC) and delay. The results demonstrate that RA significantly degrades network performance and reduces network lifetime, thus draining its limited resources. Some possible solutions are also suggested to mitigate these attacks by focusing on core components of the network like objective function (OF) and node behavior. Future work will focus on studying security mechanisms for RPL against RA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Watershed development initiatives have emerged as key tools for achieving sustainable rural development, especially in countries experiencing environmental degradation and resource constraints. Despite the increasing acknowledgment of the significance of watershed development interventions, there remains a dearth of comprehensive frameworks for evaluating their effects on the socioeconomic progress of communities, particularly concerning rural livelihoods and household food security outcomes. Hence, this study addresses this gap by developing a comprehensive impact analysis conceptual framework tailored to assess the impact of watershed development on socioeconomic aspects. This study designed the framework by incorporating existing theoretical perspectives (the sustainable livelihoods framework, political ecology, theory of change, and community-based natural resource management) and making essential adjustments. This novel conceptual framework offers a multifaceted approach to assess the socioeconomic impacts of watershed development projects, particularly on rural livelihoods and household food security. Employing a mixed methods approach, the framework sheds light on how interventions affect the livelihood assets and strategies of rural communities, ultimately influencing their food security and well-being. Furthermore, it examines how community involvement and national policy affect these efforts. By providing a holistic understanding of watershed development dynamics, this framework allows researchers and practitioners to assess impacts, identify trade-offs, and evaluate interventions. This informs policymakers about evidence-based interventions to promote sustainable socioeconomic development in rural communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The unprecedented 2021 Heat Dome caused wide-ranging and long-lasting impacts in western Canada, including 619 confirmed heat-related deaths in British Columbia, a doubling of emergency medical calls, increased hospitalisations, infrastructure failures and stress on plants and animals. However, such varied socio-economic consequences of extreme heat can be challenging to capture using a single post-event analysis method. Therefore, there is a need to explore alternative approaches and data sources. Using the 2021 Heat Dome as a case study, a post-event analysis using online news media articles (n = 2909) from 5 subscription news databases and a grey literature search was conducted to identify the socio-economic impacts of the extreme heat event in Canada. The articles reported a wide range of effects to the natural environment (n = 1366), social infrastructure and services (n = 1121), human health (n = 1074), critical infrastructure (n = 988) and the private sector (n = 165). The media-based post-event analysis captured various impacts, some of which have not been identified through other data sources and approaches. Overall, we show that media analysis can complement traditional post-event analysis methods and provide additional perspectives to governments and public health and safety officials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores the impact of varying rim widths on the structural integrity and impact resistance of plastic cup lids sealed with laminate film. Employing a quantitative approach, Finite Element Method (FEM) simulations and empirical drop tests were conducted to address a notable gap in the field of packaging engineering. The research findings reveal that decreasing the rim width from 5 mm to 2 mm significantly lowers the threshold for damage from a drop height of 1.55 meters to approximately 1.30 meters, underscoring a direct relationship between rim width and lid durability under transportation stresses. The study highlights that narrower rims lead to heightened stress concentrations at lower drop heights, thus increasing the likelihood of structural failure. Integrating water hammer theory helped elucidate the dynamic responses within the cup structure during impact, providing a detailed analysis of how stress distribution and failure modes are influenced by changes in rim width. Practical implications of this research are substantial, offering actionable insights for the packaging industry on designing more robust and resource-efficient packaging solutions. By reducing rim width, manufacturers can achieve cost savings and environmental benefits through decreased material usage while maintaining product integrity. Future research directions proposed include applying these insights to a broader range of packaging materials and enhancing the environmental scope of the models to increase their applicability and predictive accuracy in real-world scenarios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the impact dynamics of pile-soil interactions, focusing on the mechanisms of kinetic energy dissipation within these systems during vehicular impacts. The study aimed to quantitatively evaluate the force-displacement and energy-displacement responses of piles embedded in crushed limestone material through dynamic bogie testing. A three-dimensional, large-deformation, nonlinear finite element model was developed to enhance the analysis. The computational model integrated a damage-based, elastoviscoplastic soil model with an elastoplastic steel pile model, incorporating strain rate effects. A continuum, damage-based element-erosion algorithm is also employed to accurately simulate large soil deformations, representing a significant advancement in simulation capabilities. The proposed model was validated against physical impact test data, demonstrating a strong correlation with measured force-displacement and energy-displacement results. This model was subsequently utilized to investigate the effects of impact velocity and soil strength on the energy dissipation capacity of pile-soil systems during lateral vehicular impacts. Additionally, this study critically examined the limitations of conventional simulation methods, such as the Updated Lagrangian Finite Element Method (UL-FEM), in capturing the dynamic pile-soil interactions and large soil deformations involved in laterally-impacted pile-soil systems. The research provided fundamental insights into the mechanics of dynamic soil-structure interactions under impact loading, contributing significantly to the geotechnical design and analysis of soil-embedded vehicle barrier systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to clarify the differences between the previously reported mechanisms of sports-related concussion (SRC) injuries without a loss of consciousness in contact and collision sports and the mechanisms of SRC injuries in our cases. Based on two videos of SRC injuries occurring during a men's rhythmic gymnastics competition (three people were injured), the risk of SRC occurrence was estimated from various parameters using a multibody analysis and eight brain injury evaluation criteria. In the present study, the three SRC impacts that occurred in men's rhythmic gymnastics showed significant characteristics in duration compared to previously reported cases in the contact sports. This suggests that the occurrence of SRC may have been caused by a different type of impact from that which causes SRC in contact sports (e.g., tackling). In addition, calculation of the strain indicating the rate of brain deformation suggested a risk of nerve swelling in all cases involving type 2 axonal injuries. Therefore, when reexamining sports-related head injuries, it is important to recognize the characteristics and mechanisms of SRC that occur in each different sport, as well as the symptoms and course of SRC after injury. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study develops a Finite Element Method (FEM) model to evaluate motorcyclist helmet performance, with a focus on stress distribution in the temporal bone region and its impact on brain protection. The model includes an ISI 4151 rated helmet coupled with equivalent head foam mass. Results show that Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS) shells reduce cortical bone impact by 97% through lateral load distribution, while Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) foam absorbs and protects the head. The study also incorporates lateral falls on flat and hemispherical anvils to assess helmet performance in real-life scenarios. These findings contribute to improved helmet design and safety for motorcyclists, enhancing overall rider protection. The analysis highlights the importance of ABS shells in minimising impact on cortical bones and the role of EPS foam in absorbing and mitigating head injury risks. The study's insights inform the development of advanced helmet materials and designs for enhanced safety in motorcycle riding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Composite armoring materials are generally fabricated using multiple layers of metallic and non-metallic materials such as titanium, steel, aluminum, ceramics, epoxy, resins, etc. Building these armor materials in the first place aims to withstand high-velocity bullets. Aluminum alloys are the best choice to offer increased mobility and excellent properties like a high strength-to-weight ratio, fracture toughness, and corrosion resistance. In this research, Forrestal and Warren scaling law techniques were employed to determine the optimal aluminum armor plate thickness to withstand 500 m/s velocity 7.62 mm projectile releasing from the pistol . FEA package Ansys was utilized for numerical simulations of bullet penetration, validating the results obtained from the scaling laws. After that, friction-assisted additive manufacturing (FAAM) was explored to build an AA6061/AA7075 laminated aluminum metal matrix composite (AMMC) for armor. Considering the plate thickness, the FAAM tool was designed with an optimum shoulder length, shoulder diameter, pin length, and pin diameter. Then the optimized process parameters were utilized to build the multi-stack armor plate using dissimilar aluminum alloys. Microstructural, and mechanical characterizations were conducted to assess the feasibility of the FAAM-built multi-stack armor plate. The findings of the work revealed better-refined grain’s microstructural profile in comparison with base materials and resulted in higher tensile and micro-hardness results. FAAM build improved the mechanical strength and yield strength of the base alloy AA6061 by roughly 25% and 31%, respectively.

Gemäß Nationalem Krebsplan sollen alle an Krebs erkranken Personen eine qualitativ hochwertige Versorgung entsprechend evidenzbasierten Behandlungsleitlinien in einheitlich qualifizierten Zentren erhalten. Die WiZen-Studie konnte für alle 11 untersuchten Krebsarten relevante Überlebensvorteile bei Erstbehandlung in einem durch die Deutsche Krebsgesellschaft (DKG) zertifizierten Zentrum gegenüber nicht zertifizierten Krankenhäusern zeigen. Dennoch wird ein hoher Anteil an Krebserkrankten in nicht-zertifizierten Krankenhäusern behandelt. Das Krankenhausversorgungsverbesserungsgesetz (KHVVG) sieht für den Bereich der onkologischen Chirurgie eine Konzentration vor; dabei sollen die die Krankenhausstandorte, die bei einer Krebsentität zusammen die wenigsten und zusammen 15% der Fälle mit entsprechenden onkochirugischen Leistungen erbringen, von der Vergütung ausgenommen werden. Wir untersuchten mittels einer Auswirkungsanalyse basierend auf Daten nach § 21 KHEntgG des Jahres 2022, inwieweit die vorgesehene Leistungskonzentration zur Umsetzung des Nationalen Krebsplans und der Ergebnisse der WiZen-Studie führt. Betrachtet wurden die Entitäten Mammakarzinom, Pankreaskarzinom, Bronchialkarzinom, Kolonkarzinom, Rektumkarzinom, Magenkarzinom und Ösophaguskarzinom. Von den Standorten, die die Kriterien des KHVVG erfüllen würden, sind zwischen 17,9% (Mammakarzinom) und 85,5% (Magenkarzinom) nicht gemäß den Kriterien der DKG zertifiziert. Somit würde bei Umsetzung des § 40 KHG (neu) ein beträchtlicher Anteil an Patientinnen und Patienten weiterhin außerhalb zertifizierter Zentren behandelt werden und entsprechende Qualitätspotenziale ungehoben bleiben. Dazu kommt, dass durch die vorgesehene Neuregelung nur die operativen Eingriffe pro (Karzinom)Entität adressiert wird – und damit alle nicht onkochirurgischen Krebsbehandlungen von der qualitätsbasierten Leistungskonzentration ausnehmen. Insgesamt erscheint es zur Erreichung des Ziels der Krankenhausreform, nämlich Morbidität und Mortalität von Patientinnen und Patienten mit einer Krebserkrankung zu verbessern, wesentlich zielführender, die onkologische Versorgung wie im Nationalen Krebsplan vorgesehen exklusiv auf diejenigen Einrichtungen zu begrenzen, die den Zertifizierungsbedingungen der Deutschen Krebsgesellschaft entsprechen und damit nachweislich eine leitlinienkonforme, evidenzbasierte Versorgung von Krebserkrankten sicherstellen. Entsprechend einer Analyse der Regierungskommission würde dadurch die Erreichbarkeit für die Bevölkerung nicht in relevantem Maße eingeschränkt werden.

This study investigated the impact and non-impact of tuned energy density (ED) on sinterability and other physicochemical characteristics of a sintered 3D-printed material tableting structure. The selected SLS 3D printer enables the alteration of direct ED values, which aids in analyzing the impact and non-impact of the overall process parameters, including hatch spacing (HS), laser scanning speed (LSS), layer thickness (LT), and laser power (LP). The progressively enhanced ED from 200 J/cm3 to 350 J/cm3 and 500 J/cm3 was impacted by the increased weight, hardness, and amorphization of the rifampicin (RIF) in the sintered 3D-printed material tableting structure. In the case of the surface morphology of sintered 3D-printed material tableting structure, inter-particle spaces were reduced, which increased neck formation and ultimately, increased consolidation. An increase in the ED decreased the average surface roughness of the sintered 3D-printed material tableting structure. The in vitro release of RIF diminished over 12 h as the ED progressively increased from 200 J/cm3 to 350 J/cm3 and 500 J/cm3. In addition, tuning the progressively enhanced ED had no impact on the printing yield, average thickness of the sintered layers, or thermal analysis of the 3D printed material tablet structures. The ultimate finding of this study is that it is necessary to optimize the ED and other sintering parameters according to the desired features of the sintered 3D printed material tableting structure. In addition, the utilization of SLS and incorporation of the co-processed polymer Eudragit L 100–55 in the printing process resulted in the release of RIF above physiological pH-5.5. This strategy effectively reduces the degradation of RIF under acidic conditions. Subsequently, the sintered 3D printed material tableting structures can be subjected to an in vivo pharmacokinetic study to confirm the obtained results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Companies in the nuclear power sector are constantly being challenged to improve their safety and reliability due to increasing complexity arise from evolving safety regulations, long production life, interdisciplinary collaboration, and the need for analyzing the impact of the changes in an operational life cycle. Recognizing these challenges, the paper proposes a transition to Model‐Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) as a transformative solution to improve the management of such complex systems. With this objective, this paper presents a workflow implementation that demonstrates the MBSE methodologies to define a concept model, system architecture, impact analysis, safety and reliability analysis, and operational decision‐making of Nuclear Power Plants (NPP). The paper concludes that MBSE provides a potent approach to managing NPP by employing graphical models to develop interrelated systems that has strong adaptability to heterogeneous environments and regulatory changes. The simulation results demonstrated an NPP life cycle, impact analysis, and a test case for model‐based safety and reliability analysis for regulatory compliance, operational efficiency, balance safety, and informed decision‐making in NPP. The study also leads to a number of interesting directions of future work such as synchronization through Product Lifecycle Management, integration with Building Information Modeling, Model‐Based Commissioning/Decommissioning, and Model‐Based Cyber System Security tailored for nuclear power systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aims to assess the impact on two main aspects: profitability performance and solvency performance of construction state-owned enterprises (BUMNs). It evaluates changes in net profit and related profitability indicators, as well as changes in the debt-to-equity ratio and other solvency indicators during the assignment period. By examining these aspects, the research aims to provide a scientific perspective on how the assignment of national strategic projects affects the financial health of the assigned companies. The study utilizes a case study approach with a descriptive method, focusing on financial data extracted from the annual reports of three BUMNs: PT Waskita Karya (Persero), PT Hutama Karya (Persero), and PT Adhi Karya (Persero). These companies have been tasked with executing National Strategic Projects (PSNs) since 2015. The scope of the study spans from one year prior to the assignment in 2014 to the performance year of 2022. The sample selection is based on the significant roles of these companies in implementing PSNs in Indonesia. The research data includes elements from the companies' financial statements, such as the balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow statement, gathered from annual financial reports accessible through official websites or financial databases. Financial analysis techniques, including Common Size Analysis, Ratio Analysis, Z-Score Analysis, Economic Value Added (EVA), and Du Pont Analysis, will be applied to analyze and compare the financial performance of the three BUMNs throughout the study period. The research findings suggest that PSN assignments had a significant impact on the profitability of PT Hutama Karya (Persero), PT Waskita Karya (Persero), and PT Adhi Karya (Persero). All three companies faced increased financial pressure due to interest burdens, indicating internal financial strains affecting profits. While PT Hutama Karya experienced increased interest burdens, PT Waskita Karya showed limited revenue growth, and PT Adhi Karya witnessed a decline in net income. Solvency varied among the companies, with PT Adhi Karya and PT Hutama Karya demonstrating good short-term liquidity, whereas PT Waskita Karya experienced decreased liquidity. Economic value added decreased for all three companies, reflecting challenges in generating returns equivalent to capital and debt utilized. PT Adhi Karya and PT Hutama Karya improved capital structure, while PT Waskita Karya showed limited improvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a load-sharing performance analysis method of the planetary gear system is proposed considering the coupling effects of double-helical gear and journal bearing. Firstly, the coupling effects between the meshing characteristics of the double-helical gear pair and the dynamic characteristics of journal bearing under the actual operation state are studied, the dynamic model of the double-helical gear planetary transmission system is established, and the load sharing coefficient before and after considering the coupling effects are calculated; secondly, the load sharing characteristic test rig of planetary transmission system is built, and the load sharing coefficient of gear system under the test condition is measured to verify the accuracy of the proposed method; finally, the effects of operating parameters and structural parameters on the load sharing characteristic of gear system are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of research and development (R&D) tax incentives in generating additional business R&D expenditures in Turkey by applying propensity score matching (PSM) to correct any selection bias and to estimate the average treatment effect on the treated (ATT). Since the empirical literature lacks measurement of the effectiveness of these incentives in Turkey and partially touches upon global cases, this study contributes to fill this gap in the literature. For this purpose, the hypothesis that "R&D tax incentives increase business sector R&D intensity (the ratio of firm's net R&D expenditures to total turnover)" is tested, and the effectiveness of R&D tax incentives is examined in the context of input additionality. The questions of whether R&D tax incentives are effective in increasing business sector R&D intensity and to what extent R&D tax incentives produce additional R&D intensity are answered. According to the results, R&D tax incentives have a positive effect on business sector R&D intensity. However, the additionality impact is limited since the R&D tax incentive multiplier is between 0 and 1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Confronted with China's burgeoning population and finite arable land resources, the enhancement of sustainable arable land efficiency is of paramount importance. This study, grounded in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), introduces a robust framework for assessing sustainable arable land use. Utilizing the Sustainable Utilization of Arable Land (SUA) indicator system, the DGA–Super-SBM model, the Malmquist–Luenberger production index, and the TO–Fisher–OSM algorithm, we evaluated the efficiency of sustainable utilization of arable land (ESUA) in 52 prefecture-level cities within China's major grain-producing regions of the Yellow and Huaihai Seas. We analyzed the cropland utilization patterns from 2010 to 2020, examining the influence of these patterns on sustainable utilization efficiency. Our findings indicate that between 2010 and 2020, the arable land usage in these regions exhibited minimal transformation, primarily shifting towards construction land and conversely from grassland and water systems. Notably, the ESUA of arable land demonstrated an upward trend, characterized by pronounced spatial clustering, enduring high efficiency in the northern regions, and a significant surge in the southern sectors. The declining ESUA (D-ESUA) trend was general but increased in half of the cities. The change in the center of gravity of ESUA correlated with the north–south movement of the proportion of cultivated land area, the turn-in rate, and the turn-out rate, yet moved in the opposite direction to that of cultivated land density and yield per unit area. Variables such as the replanting index, cropland density, yield per unit area, and cropland turn-in rate significantly affected ESUA. These findings offer a scientific basis and decision-making support for optimizing the utilization pattern of arable land and achieving a rational allocation of arable land resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Being the largest consumer of sugar, India had relied on sugar imports during the first decade of twenty-first century. However, advent of wonder varieties developed by Sugarcane Breeding Institute of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR-SBI) has revolutionized sugar production since 2010, and the country has turned into a sugar exporter since 2016. The objective of the study is to analyse the impact of such wonder varieties on sugar production, consumption and prices. Here, sugar prices were compared with the WPI of primary articles and analysed for a possible difference in the prices with and without adjusting for inflation. It was found that, sugar prices were lesser than the inflation adjusted sugar price during the study period (2010–2022), depicting the impact of production surplus in meeting the rise in consumption demand. Although domestic sugar prices were over and above the global sugar prices, the prices remained stable with no short-term spike in the sugar prices. It is therefore evident that the wonder varieties have not only created production surplus but also stabilized sugar prices during the study period. Using the historic time series data, ARIMA results revealed that the demand for sugar would be around 341.64 lakh tonnes by 2032–33, which is expected to grow at an annual average rate of 1.55 per cent per annum. The study suggests a sustained sugarcane and sugar production in the country to protect the domestic market from global price shocks taking into account the fuel ethanol production for EBP (ethanol blended petroleum) programme. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The total primary embodied energy (EE) and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions (ECO2e) of geopolymer concrete (GPC) in high-rise (60 m height) residential buildings located at Chennai city, India, were carefully examined in this study. The buildings were analysed and designed with the same aspect ratio and loading with two structural systems; Reinforced concrete (RC) framed and Shear wall type. The computation was performed for floor area, building volume, and concrete quantity. The results show that for the same grade of concrete, compared with conventional concrete (CC), GPC's EE is reduced by 46%, ECO2e is reduced by 42%, and the cost is reduced by 7%. The primary energy consumption (EET) and CO2 emissions (ECO2eT) towards material transportation in GPC shear wall and framed structures are 8% lower and associated cost is 22% cheaper than CC buildings. Compared to CC, the total primary EE and ECO2e of GPC RC shear wall and framed buildings are 46 and 55% lower, respectively. From the study, it has been observed that GPC is more environmentally beneficial than that of using CC in high-rise structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We estimate the community-level impact of foreign aid projects on women's empowerment in the country with the most complete recent record of geo-coded aid project placement, Malawi. Our estimates can thus be interpreted as the average impact of aid from many different donors and diverse projects. We find that aid in general has a positive impact, in particular on an index of female agency and women's sexual and fertility preferences. Gender-targeted aid has a further positive impact on women's sexual and fertility preferences, and more tentatively on an index focusing on gender-based violence. However, the positive impact of gender-targeted aid disappears in patrilineal communities, and men's attitudes towards female agency in the areas of sexuality and fertility are even negatively affected. This suggests that donors need to consider that the impact of aid on female empowerment can depend on the community context when they decide on aid project design and placement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High specific impact strength and stiffness are demanded in various applications, leading to the widespread utilization of fiber‐reinforced polymers. Synthetic fiber‐reinforced polymers have been used to meet these engineering requirements. However, the current popularity of biocomposites arises from their environmental friendliness, ease of availability, and affordability, making them a favored alternative to synthetic‐based fiber‐reinforced polymers. An assessment must be conducted to determine whether biocomposites can replace their synthetic fiber counterparts, necessitating a thorough investigation into their impact behavior. This study aims to unveil the impact performance of hybrid biocomposites made from unidirectional prepregs comprising flax/polypropylene fibers and nonwoven mats composed of hemp/polypropylene fibers. The impact performance of hybrid biocomposites has also been studied concerning the number of layers and stacking sequence. Eight different designs of biocomposite plates are manufactured through compression molding and subsequently subjected to high‐velocity impact tests. Additionally, numerical simulation using the FEM is utilized to model and analyze the impact behavior of one specimen. The test results indicate that each design possesses unique characteristics and impact behaviors differ. Highlights: Adding prepreg significantly improved mechanical performance in the biocomposites.Performance enhancement varies depending on the stacking sequence.Adding multiple layers of UD prepregs enhances mat impact performance.Numerical simulations validate the Tsai‐Wu criterion for impact testing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Memorandum on Lifelong Learning was launched in October 2000 by the European Commission and has been debated ever since in all member states of the European Union, leading to the publication of a follow-up document in 2001 which promoted a "European area of lifelong learning". The Memorandum was a unique document in terms of both form and content, and its outcome and immediate impact were remarkable. But what is the long-term effect of this document, considering policymaking processes and scholarly debates in various EU member states and beyond? The authors of this article aim to answer this question by highlighting the Memorandum's "key messages" and analysing how it is referenced in academic papers and publications. Their main findings confirm the Memorandum's significant impact, including a long-term one, particularly in raising awareness of the importance of adult education in the political debate. Despite a decrease in explicit references to the document in policy papers over the past ten years, other more recent references to the Memorandum can still be identified in the latest policy documents and academic debates. Scholarly papers are particularly interested in critical content analysis, pointing out the strengths and limitations of the Memorandum and its follow-up document. During the past decade, the academic debate has become more active than in the first ten years since the Memorandum's publication, demonstrating its long-term impact on various sectors in the field of lifelong learning, even outside Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Neue Kriminalpolitik is the property of Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In 2021, Manggarai Regency had 20 schools targeted for BAN S/M NTT accreditation. This accreditation process evaluates school services based on key components such as the quality of graduates, the learning process, teacher quality, and school management, utilizing 36 core assessment points. Our research centers on understanding the intricate relationship between teacher quality components and the learning process. Employing a cross-analysis and a concise descriptive approach, we identified both positive and negative impacts within each component, either directly or indirectly. Utilizing a descriptive-qualitative method, we scrutinized accreditation results documents and conducted cross-cutting analyses to discern these impacts. Our findings revealed a significant connection between the components of teacher quality and the learning process. Specifically, the subpar performance of teachers in points 22 and 21 directly influenced the students' activeness, ability, and skills during the learning process (as evident in points 12 and 15). The primary objective of this research is to delve into this relationship between accreditation components and offer strategic solutions to address the identified negative impacts. In adhering to the research objectives, we maintain brevity in presenting the methods and results, prioritizing a focused exploration of the relationship between teacher quality components and the learning process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we analyze how European Union Politics has evolved over the last 25 years. Our analysis demonstrates that the goals the editorial team has pursued over this quarter century have only partly been reached. While the journal has helped to consolidate EU studies as a field of research in its own rights, several problems of representation persist in the journal and the social sciences in general. We identify besides the well-known gender gap that especially authors from the (European) South and East continue to be underrepresented in submitted and published articles. While less represented and successful at the submission stage, our results show that female scholars are more likely than male author teams to publish high-impact articles. Our findings indicate that studies of political behavior, broadly conceived, and articles using quantitative methods are well-represented. The article concludes with some remarks on how the journal might help to further professionalize the study of the EU in the coming years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Agricultural Outlook (1673-3908) is the property of Institute of Agricultural Information, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Many business entities in Slovakia felt the pressure of government restrictions during the Covid-19 pandemic, especially entities from SK NACE I: accommodation and food services activities. The main objective of this article is to analyse the return on equity, assets and sales in selected sectors in Slovakia and find out if the Covid-19 pandemic has an effect on these profitability ratios. Firstly, we use ex-post financial analyses and then Friedman's nonparametric test to find those groups of years between which there are differences. The study period 2016-2021 includes comparisons before the Covid-19 period, as well as dealing with the pandemic era. Our investigation concerns 321 business entities from SK NACE I, especially from Division 56: Food and beverage service activities. The findings showed the impact of the pandemic on profitability indicators such as total assets, equity, and sales. Therefore, it was feasible to establish that these are the indicators most affected by the pandemic, such as the economic outcome after taxes, assets, equity, and sales. Additionally, significant differences in indicators were confirmed in the pairs of years 2019–2020 and 2019–2021. Significant changes were confirmed between the years provided, which may most likely be attributed to the outbreak of the pandemic of the viral disease Covid-19. This study and its results may have added value for the management of business entities and the government of the Slovak Republic by stimulating the negative impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on firms in these sectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to analyze the impact of variations of drought-related agro-climatic indices including cumulative precipitation, cumulative potential evapotranspiration, cumulative actual evapotranspiration, cumulative crop evapotranspiration, cumulative water stress, and cumulative water deficit during nine consecutive phenological stages (emergence to physiological maturity) on wheat yield in arid, semi-arid, and sub-humid regions of Iran during 1999–2018. Principal component analysis was used to recognize the main components that largely explained the variations of agro-climatic indices during different stages of the crop growing period. Then, the relationships between the major components, retrieved from principal component analysis, and the crop yield were assessed. Wheat irrigation requirements were also calculated to investigate the regional water supply–demand patterns during the crop growing period. The findings highlighted increasing impacts of cumulative precipitation, cumulative potential evapotranspiration, cumulative crop evapotranspiration, and cumulative actual evapotranspiration and decreasing impacts of cumulative water stress and deficit on wheat yield, particularly in arid and semi-arid regions. The crop yield was more affected by variations of the agro-climatic indices during the reproductive phase than the vegetative phase. Accordingly, booting to flowering in the arid region, flowering in the sub-humid region, and stem elongation to booting in the semi-arid region were the most sensitive periods of wheat to agro-climatic indices variations. Wheat irrigation requirements in arid and semi-arid regions started earlier than in the sub-humid region. From the findings, it was concluded that adjusting the irrigation schedule based on wheat irrigation requirements during the wheat growing period could help farmers to achieve a favorable wheat yield. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the deepening of the research on corporate social responsibility (CSR), CSR has become increasingly important to enterprises. It can affect consumers' willingness to purchase enterprise products. Corporate social responsibility activities are used by many multinational corporations as a competitive business strategy to build a favorable corporate image in the eyes of consumers. Social media, made possible by developments in web and mobile technology, ushered in a new era of advertising on digital platforms. In this context, it has become an important topic to study the relationship between the authenticity of online CSR communication messages and consumers' purchase intentions. This work proposes an algorithm based on PSO-1DCNN joint optimization to analyze the impact of online CSR information authenticity on consumers' purchase intention in social media on the Internet platform. First, this work uses one-dimensional convolutional neural network (1DCNN) to model the relationship between the two. This model uses multichannel convolution feature, BN and Dropout strategy to promote performance for the model. Secondly, this work designs optimization measures from inertia weight and learning factor to build an improved particle swarm optimization algorithm (IPSO). Third, this work uses IPSO to optimize the initial network parameters of 1DCNN to build IPSO-1DCNN. The model has stronger convergence ability and convergence speed, in addition, it also has stronger global optimization ability. Fourthly, systematic experiments are carried out for the IPSO-1DCNN designed in this work, and the experimental data verify the superiority of this method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the 1970s, Brazil has carried out the most successful world program of commercial biomass for use and production of energy by stimulating its sugarcane industry and promoting the large-scale production of ethanol nationwide in response to the first oil shock. Today, the technologies behind ethanol production are well established. Brazil is the world's largest sugarcane supplier, producing its ethanol at a competitive price. If other sugarcane producing countries decided to join Brazil's move toward the production of this biofuel, what impacts might there be for each country's economy and employment? This is what we investigate in this paper. Prime candidates for ethanol production include Australia, China, Colombia, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Pakistan, the Philippines, Thailand, and the United States of America. We evaluated the potential socioeconomic impacts of developing this promising industry by using an input–output approach. More specifically, we adapted the Brazilian method of producing ethanol to these countries' distinct economies. We augmented the input–output table of each country, inserting a new ethanol industry based on the Brazilian ethanol production model. We also augmented their new ethanol industry's sales following a hypothetical hydrous and anhydrous ethanol consumption scenario. Thereafter, we reconcile the national accounts, concluding our analysis by quantifying and comparing the different net effects of this new industry for each of the assessed countries for the year of 2009. We demonstrate which industries would be expected to be positively or negatively impacted by this substitution in each country; and find that not all of the countries we assessed would experience positive socioeconomic results from emulating Brazil's production of ethanol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Covid-19 pandemic spurred an unprecedented shift towards digitalization, prompting a surge in telehealth practices. This paper explores the impact of the pandemic on telemedicine through a comprehensive analysis of scientific publications. Utilizing a bibliometric approach, the study examines trends in telemedicine research before and after the onset of Covid-19. The systematic search in PubMed yielded 8,454 pre-Covid-19 publications (2016-2019) and 16,633 post-Covid-19 publications (2020-2023). A total of 21,989 distinct keywords were extracted. Co-occurrence maps reveal evolving thematic clusters, with "mhealth" and "ehealth" dominating pre-Covid-19, while "Covid-19" emerges as a top keyword post-pandemic. The Top-10 keywords shift post-Covid-19, reflecting dynamic research priorities. The bibliometric approach illuminates a heightened exploration of telehealth solutions post-pandemic, emphasizing the enduring impact of the crisis on academic discourse. Changes in key terms and shifts in key term ranking indicate dynamic research priorities and a broader consideration of multidimensional healthcare challenges. Acknowledging study limitations, the analysis offers a high-level perspective, focusing on authors' keywords. Despite challenges, the study provides a systematic overview, revealing the emergence of new telemedicine application domains and the need for further in-depth analyses. Future research directions may explore the ecological impact of telemedicine applications and other intriguing aspects, contributing to a comprehensive understanding of telemedicine's scholarly trajectory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Geopolymer concrete (GPC) is a relatively new, innovative and sustainable green civil engineering material, which has many advantages similar to ordinary Portland Cement (OPC). Through the investigations and analyses of published literature, this review paper summarizes the state-of-the-art research progress with respect to the carbonization performances of GPC from the following aspects. First of all, the advantages, carbonization mechanism, and carbonization identification methods of GPC are introduced. Second, the carbonization properties between GPC and OPC are compared, as well as the influences of different factors on the carbonization performance of GPC are analyzed, such as admixtures, additives, environment, etc. Finally, a series of models to evaluate the degree of carbonization are listed, and the future prospect of GPC carbonization research is also put forward. Based on the literature summaries, existing researchers still have great controversy about the research results on the anti-carbonization properties of geopolymer gelling materials, mainly because of the diversity of raw materials in the geopolymer system, resulting in large differences in the hydration products and microstructure of various geopolymer pulps, so there are differences in their anti-carbon performance. It is significant that the influential factors will be of great importance to determine the carbonization performances of GPC, which can also be extended to the anti-carbonization properties of GPC, such as the filling effect of nanoparticles, changing the proportion of silicon and aluminum substances, and improving the mechanical properties and durability of GPC. In addition, more types of numerical models for the carbonization of GPC should be established, considering more impact factors, to ensure the applicability and accuracy, and the integration of the models needs be more strengthened to serve for the complex engineering practices. Overall, the carbonization model establishment will contribute to analyzing the durability of GPC and provide some clues for prolonging its life.

The construction of large-scale infrastructure projects like dams can substantially alter local hydrological systems, prompting concerns about their impacts on river water levels and discharge. This study was undertaken in response to the compelling need to investigate and analyze the potential implications of water scarcity, particularly within the framework of the Bisalpur Dam located on the Banas River. This study uses non-parametric trend analysis tests - Mann-Kendall (MK) and Modified Mann-Kendall (MMK) for river discharge and water level trend analysis, and Sen's Slope and Pettit's test for detecting changes or trends. Significant shifts in these parameters were identified post-construction. From 1960 to 2011, the Dam's construction led to a marked decrease in peak discharge (MK/MMK statistics Zc = −3.24; Pc = 0.001), with a Sen's slope of −21.51 MCM/year. Before the Dam's construction, the peak discharge reached a maximum of 7680 MCM in 1981–82. The gauge station's water level significantly decreased (MK/MMK statistics Zc = −3.46; Pc = 0.001) at an annual rate of −0.035 m/year. This level, peaking at 201.59 m in 1981–82, declined from an average of 196.04 m–194.5 m post-construction. The findings underscore the extensive impact of dam construction on local hydrological parameters. These results hold significant implications for future infrastructure projects, emphasizing the critical need for comprehensive environmental impact assessments to be conducted before project implementation. This understanding can aid in designing interventions with reduced environmental impacts, leading to more sustainable infrastructure development.

With the trend of multiple energies or flexible demand in power systems, binary variables appear in system-wide constraints, which are the foundation of marginal pricing currently in markets. An appropriate pricing method incentivizes compliance of market participants; otherwise, compliance can be incentivized by paying discriminatory uplift payments which jeopardize transparency of markets. This paper proposes two theorems to examine whether the binary variables brought by multiple energies and flexible demand will impact compliance under marginal pricing. The first theorem shows sufficient conditions with which marginal pricing with fixed binary variables incentivizes compliance, while the second theorem shows sufficient conditions to require uplift payments. To improve transparency by reducing uplift payments under cases which fall into the second theorem, this paper further proposes a pricing method by combining 1) designed constraints to price binary variables in system-wide constraints, and 2) convex hull pricing to price binary variables in private constraints. Effectiveness of the proposed theorems and pricing method is verified in an electricity-gas case (consisting of the IEEE 30-bus system and the NGS 10-node system) and the IEEE 118-bus test system.

This study aimed to clarify the differences between the previously reported mechanisms of sports-related concussion (SRC) injuries without a loss of consciousness in contact and collision sports and the mechanisms of SRC injuries in our cases. Based on two videos of SRC injuries occurring during a men’s rhythmic gymnastics competition (three people were injured), the risk of SRC occurrence was estimated from various parameters using a multibody analysis and eight brain injury evaluation criteria. In the present study, the three SRC impacts that occurred in men’s rhythmic gymnastics showed significant characteristics in duration compared to previously reported cases in the contact sports. This suggests that the occurrence of SRC may have been caused by a different type of impact from that which causes SRC in contact sports (e.g., tackling). In addition, calculation of the strain indicating the rate of brain deformation suggested a risk of nerve swelling in all cases involving type 2 axonal injuries. Therefore, when reexamining sports-related head injuries, it is important to recognize the characteristics and mechanisms of SRC that occur in each different sport, as well as the symptoms and course of SRC after injury.

The present world is badly affected by novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Using medical kits to identify the coronavirus affected persons are very slow. What happens in the next, nobody knows. The world is facing erratic problem and don't know what will happen in near future. This paper is trying to make prognosis of the coronavirus recovery cases using LSTM(Long Short Term Memory). This work exploited data of 258 regions, their latitude and longitude and the number of death of 403 days ranging from 22-01-2020 to 27-02-2021. Specifically, advanced deep learning-based algorithms known as the LSTM, play a great effect on extracting highly essential features for time series data (TSD) analysis.There are lots of methods which already use to analyze propagation prediction. The main task of this paper culminates in analyzing the spreading of Coronavirus across worldwide recovery cases using LSTM deep learning-based architectures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Autonomous vehicles have the potential to significantly improve modes of transportation, and many businesses and research facilities are developing such systems. Although there are studies on the social implementation of autonomous vehicles, these studies are based on limited conditions such as predetermined driving environments. Therefore, in this study, we target urban areas and rural areas, and we simulate a behavioral algorithm for autonomous vehicles being developed and owned by Kanazawa University. In this study, a traffic flow simulation system (Aimsun) was constructed to reproduce the current situation of traffic flow in the city during normal times, using data from a person-trip survey conducted by the local government. In addition, we varied the mixing rate of automated vehicles and evaluated its effect on the delay time between ODs. We assume the gradual replacement of existing vehicles by autonomous vehicles on actual road networks and for realistic traffic volumes, and we investigate their impact on traffic flow. We vary the mixing rate of autonomous vehicles into actual traffic environments, and we measure the delay in the origin-destination (OD) interval to evaluate the impact of autonomous vehicles on traffic flow. The results obtained show that as the mixing rate of autonomous vehicles increases, the delay between OD intervals increases. Then, once the mixing rate exceeds a certain value, the delay between OD intervals gradually decreased. The delay time for all vehicles slightly increases as the mixing rate of autonomous vehicles increased from 10 to 45%. When the mixing rate increased from 45 to 50%, the delay time for all vehicles decreased notably, and when the mixing rate was 50 to 100%, it remained constant. Analytical results showed that when socially implementing autonomous vehicles, their mixing rate impacts the traffic flow; thus, there is a need to determine appropriate distribution scenarios and areas for implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cultivated land is the most basic element of food production. Currently, there is a prominent contradiction between the expansion of food demand and the regional shortage of food production. It is of great significance to seek a more reasonable pattern of cultivated land utilization to improve the total factor productivity of food. Based on remote sensing monitoring data of land use/land cover change（LUCC）, this paper applied GIS software to extract the relevant data of cultivated land use patterns in 2000, 2005, 2010, and 2015. At the same time, data envelopment analysis model was used to estimate the total factor productivity of grain in three provinces and cities in eastern and northern China in 2000, 2005, 2010, and 2015. Based on the analysis of the changes in cultivated land use patterns and the measurement of the total factor productivity of grain, a panel data model was constructed using indicators selected from the perspective of changes in cultivated land use patterns to quantitatively analyze their impact on the total factor productivity of grain. The results showed that, first, the four period averages of the total factor productivity of grain in the cities of three northeastern provinces were 0.81, 0.78, 0.82, and 0.83, respectively. The spatial distribution of the total factor productivity of grain changed from relatively uniform at the beginning to local agglomeration. Second, there was a negative correlation between the cultivated land transfer rate and cultivated land patch fragmentation degree and the total factor productivity of grain, while there was a positive correlation between the cultivated land area ratio, cultivated land transfer rate, and cultivated land patch aggregation degree and the total factor productivity of grain. Third, the increase in the total factor productivity of grain in the three northeastern provinces mainly stemmed from the increase in the area of cultivated land, the transfer of forest land and unused land to cultivated land, and the aggregation of cultivated land in river basins. The decrease in the total factor productivity of grain mainly stemmed from the reduction in the transfer of cultivated land and the occupation of cultivated land by construction land. This research shows that the pattern of arable land use should be strictly planned, land consolidation should continue, and the degree of aggregation of arable land should be improved in order to ensure the effective quantity of arable land, improve the agglomeration and rationality of arable land use patterns, and promote the improvement of the total factor productivity of food. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main objective of the study is to find the impact of the e-resources consortium on the research output of the publications of Centrally Funded Technical Institutes in India (CFTIs) using the scientometric analysis. A total of fifty-seven institutes were taken for analysis for the period of three decades from 1991 to 2020. A total of 401171 publication records were extracted from the Scopus bibliographic database using the affiliations search. The research publications of CFTIs increased 14 times in 2015-2020 compared to 1991-1995, and the trend continuously increases. In a decade-wise comparison of the publications per institute in 1991-2000 versus 2011-2020, it grew 4.72 times. The correlation of research publications and research output analysis using the compound annual growth rate of CFTIs in 1991-2001 was 4.38 %, whereas 11.82 % in 2002-2020. The preferred publication sources are largely journals 71.61 %, and conference proceedings 22.08 %. Positive correlation was found between the accessibility of scholarly journals and the research output of CFTIs after the INDEST-AICTE Consortium. The increase in publications of IISc, IITs and NITs are 2.63 times, 8.09 times, and 55.57 times respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of Kölner Zeitschrift für Soziologie und Sozialpsychologie ( KZfSS) is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Objective Theory-based research of social and behavioral determinants of health (SBDH) found SBDH-related patterns in interventions and outcomes for pregnant/birthing people. The objectives of this study were to replicate the theory-based SBDH study with a new sample, and to compare these findings to a data-driven SBDH study. Materials and Methods Using deidentified public health nurse-generated Omaha System data, 2 SBDH indices were computed separately to create groups based on SBDH (0–5+ signs/symptoms). The data-driven SBDH index used multiple linear regression with backward elimination to identify SBDH factors. Changes in Knowledge, Behavior, and Status (KBS) outcomes, numbers of interventions, and adjusted R-squared statistics were computed for both models. Results There were 4109 clients ages 13–40 years. Outcome patterns aligned with the original research: KBS increased from admission to discharge with Knowledge improving the most; discharge KBS decreased as SBDH increased; and interventions increased as SBDH increased. Slopes of the data-driven model were steeper, showing clearer KBS trends for data-driven SBDH groups. The theory-based model adjusted R-squared was 0.54 (SE = 0.38) versus 0.61 (SE = 0.35) for the data-driven model with an entirely different set of SBDH factors. Conclusions The theory-based approach provided a framework to identity patterns and relationships and may be applied consistently across studies and populations. In contrast, the data-driven approach can provide insights based on novel patterns for a given dataset and reveal insights and relationships not predicted by existing theories. Data-driven methods may be an advantage if there is sufficiently comprehensive SBDH data upon which to create the data-driven models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many business entities in Slovakia felt the pressure of government restrictions during the Covid-19 pandemic, especially entities from SK NACE I: accommodation and food services activities. The main objective of this article is to analyse the return on equity, assets and sales in selected sectors in Slovakia and find out if the Covid-19 pandemic has an effect on these profitability ratios. Firstly, we use ex-post financial analyses and then Friedman's nonparametric test to find those groups of years between which there are differences. The study period 2016-2021 includes comparisons before the Covid-19 period, as well as dealing with the pandemic era. Our investigation concerns 321 business entities from SK NACE I, especially from Division 56: Food and beverage service activities. The findings showed the impact of the pandemic on profitability indicators such as total assets, equity, and sales. Therefore, it was feasible to establish that these are the indicators most affected by the pandemic, such as the economic outcome after taxes, assets, equity, and sales. Additionally, significant differences in indicators were confirmed in the pairs of years 2019–2020 and 2019–2021. Significant changes were confirmed between the years provided, which may most likely be attributed to the outbreak of the pandemic of the viral disease Covid-19. This study and its results may have added value for the management of business entities and the government of the Slovak Republic by stimulating the negative impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on firms in these sectors.

Institutional structure––or the rules and laws (both formal and informal) in use informing human interaction––is often held separate from mainstream economic research and analysis. The Legal Economic Performance (LEP) Framework, as developed and utilized by the author (with Eric Scorsones) in real-world extension work, centers on the analysis of human interdependence and its key legal components to consider the impacts of proposed or past changes to institutions. A language of legal relations—Hohfeldian analysis—is used to break down and describe the situation. Through this process, the key issue or issues of interdependence are identified, enabling the analyst to identify the structural options available to address it. Finally, the structural components of the institution, the distributional outcomes they give rise to, and assumptions about human conduct or behavior are considered. This paper introduces the LEP model and its uses by the wider heterodox community, with special attention to its application in the domain of housing rights and roadway congestion management.