Search results for: virtual reality benefits

Authors: Barbara Behre, Verolien Cauberghe, Dieneke Van de Sompel

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Sustainable consumption is on the rise, yet it has still not entered the mainstream in several industries, such as the fashion industry. In online fashion contexts, sustainability cues have been used to signal the sustainable benefits of certain garments to promote sustainable consumption. These sustainable cues may focus on the ecological or social dimension of sustainability. Since sustainability, in general, relates to distant, abstract benefits, the current study aims to examine if and how psychological distance may mediate the effects of exposure to different sustainability cues on consumption outcomes. Following the framework of Construal Level Theory of Psychological Distance, reduced psychological distance renders the construal level more concrete, which may influence attitudes and subsequent behavior in situations like fashion shopping. Most studies investigated sustainability as a composite, failing to differentiate between ecological and societal aspects of sustainability. The few studies examining sustainability more in detail uncovered that environmental sustainability is rather perceived in abstract cognitive construal, whereas social sustainability is linked to concrete construal. However, the construal level affiliation of the sustainability dimensions likely is not universally applicable to different domains and stages of consumption, which further suggest a need to clarify the relationships between environmental and social sustainability dimensions and the construal level of psychological distance within fashion brand consumption. While psychological distance and construal level have been examined in the context of sustainability, these studies yielded mixed results. The inconsistent findings of past studies might be due to the context-dependence of psychological distance as inducing construal differently in diverse situations. Especially in a hedonic consumption context like online fashion shopping, the role of visual processing of information could determine behavioural outcomes as linked to situational construal. Given the influence of the mode of processing on psychological distance and construal level, the current study examines the moderating role of verbal versus non-verbal presentation of the sustainability cues. In a 3 (environmental sustainability vs. social sustainability vs. control) x 2 (non-verbal message vs. verbal message) between subjects experiment, the present study thus examines how consumers evaluate sustainable brands in online shopping contexts in terms of psychological distance and construal level, as well as the impact on brand attitudes and buying intentions. The results among 246 participants verify the differential impact of the sustainability dimensions on fashion brand purchase intent as mediated by construal level and perceived psychological distance. The ecological sustainability cue is perceived as more concrete, which might be explained by consumer bias induced by the predominance of pro-environmental sustainability messages. The verbal versus non-verbal presentation of the sustainability cue neither had a significant influence on distance perceptions and construal level nor on buying intentions. This study offers valuable contributions to the sustainable consumption literature, as well as a theoretical basis for construal-level framing as applied in sustainable fashion branding.

Keywords: construal level theory, environmental vs social sustainability, online fashion shopping, sustainable fashion

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Authors: Yuval Sinai

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As part of the historical, religious and cultural heritage of the Jewish people, Jewish law is part of the legal system in Israel, which is a Jewish and democratic state. The proper degree of use of Jewish law in judicial decisions is an issue that crops up in Israeli law from time to time. This was a burning question in the 1980s in the wake of the enactment of the Foundations of Law Act 1980, which declared Jewish heritage a supplementary legal method to Israeli law. The enactment of the Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty 1992, which decreed that the basic Israeli legal principles must be interpreted in light of the values of a Jewish and democratic state, marks a significant change in the impact of Judaism in the law created and applied by the courts. Both of these legislative developments revived the initiative to grant a central status to Jewish law within the state law. How should Jewish law be applied in Israel’s secular courts? This is not a simple question. It is not merely a question of identifying the relevant rule of Jewish law or tracing its development from the Talmud to modern times. Nor is it the same as asking how a rabbinic court would handle the issue. It is a matter of delicate judgment to distill out of the often conflicting Jewish law sources a rule that will fit into the existing framework of Israeli law so as to advance a policy that will best promote the interests of Israel’s society. We shall point out the occasional tensions between Jewish religious law and secular law, and introduce opinions as to how reconciliation of the two can best be achieved in light of Jewish legal tradition and in light of the reality in the modern State of Israel.

Keywords: law and politics, law and religion, comparative law, law and society

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Authors: Erica Lima

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In Brazil, considering the (little) age of translation studies, it can be argued that the University of Campinas is traditionally an important place for graduate studies in translation. The story is told from the accreditation for the Masters, in 1987, and the Doctoral program, in 1993, within the Graduate Program in Applied Linguistics. Since the beginning, the program boasted cutting-edge research, with theoretical reflections on various aspects, and with different methodological trends. However, on the one hand, the graduate studies development was continuously growing, but on the other, it is not what was observed in the undergraduate degree program. Currently, there are only a few disciplines of Translation Theory and Practice, which does not seem to respond to student aspirations. The objective of this paper is to present the characteristics of the university’s graduate program as something profitable, considering the concern in relating the research to the historical moment in which we are living, with research conducted in a socially compromised environment and committed to the impact that it will cause ethically and socially, as well as to question the undergraduate program paths. The objective is also to discuss and propose changes, considering the limited scope currently achieved. In light of the information age, in which we have an avalanche of information, we believe that the training of translators in the undergraduate degree should be reviewed, with the goal of retracing current paths and following others that are consistent with our historical period, marked by virtual and real, by the shuffling of borders and languages, the need for new language policies, greater inclusion, and more acceptance of others. We conclude that we need new proposals for the development of the translator in an undergraduate program, and also present suggestions to be implemented in the graduate program.

Keywords: graduate Brazilian program, undergraduate Brazilian program, translator’s education, Unicamp

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Authors: Che Z. Zulkifli, Nursyahida M. Noor, Siti N. Semunab, Shafawati A. Malek

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Wireless sensors, also known as wireless sensor nodes, have been making a significant impact on human daily life. The Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) and Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) are two complementary technologies; hence, an integrated implementation of these technologies expands the overall functionality in obtaining long-range and real-time information on the location and properties of objects and people. An approach for integrating ZigBee and RFID networks is proposed in this paper, to create an energy-efficient network improved by the benefits of combining ZigBee and RFID architecture. Furthermore, the compatibility and requirements of the ZigBee device and communication links in the typical RFID system which is presented with the real world experiment on the capabilities of the proposed RFID system.

Keywords: mesh network, RFID, wireless sensor network, zigbee

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Authors: Arunas Burinskas, Manuela Tvaronavičienė

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Although the new trade theories, unlike the theories of an industrial organisation, see the structure of the market and competition between enterprises through their heterogeneity according to various parameters, they do not pay any particular attention to the analysis of the market structure and its development. In this article, although we relied mainly on models developed by the scholars of new trade theory, we proposed a different approach. In our simulation model, we model market demand according to normal distribution function, while on the supply side (as it is in the new trade theory models), productivity is modeled with the Pareto distribution function. The results of the simulation show that companies with higher productivity (lower marginal costs) do not pass on all the benefits of such economies to buyers. However, even with higher marginal costs, firms can choose to offer higher value-added goods to stay in the market. In general, the structure of the market is formed quickly enough and depends on the skills available to firms.

Keywords: market, structure, simulation, heterogenous firms

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Authors: Shang-Hua Wu, Rong-Chi Chang, Horng–Twu Liaw

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Nowadays, competencies of e-learning project personnel are very important in assisting them in offering courses, serving students in an effective way, leveraging advantages, strengthen their relationships with potential students, etc. among e-learning platforms, MOOCs has recently attracted increasing focuses in distance education since it can be conducted for a large numbers of virtual learners. Nonetheless, since MOOCs is a relatively new e-learning platform, top concerns have been paid to what competencies are important for e-learning personnel to consider. Taking this need, this research aimed to carry out an in-depth exploration of competency requirements of MOOCs (e-learning) project personnel in Taiwan vocational schools. Data were collected through thorough literature reviews and discussions and competency analysis was carried out using Delphi technique questionnaires. The results show that that MOOCs (e-learning) project personnel’ professional competency lie in three main dimensions, among which ‘demand analysis competency’ (i.e., containing 10 major competences and 48 subordinate capabilities) is the most important competency, followed by ‘project management competency’ (i.e., comprising 6 major competences and 31 secondary capabilities), and finally ‘digital content production competency’ (i.e., including 12 major competences and 79 secondary capabilities). As such, in Taiwan context with different organizational scales and market sizes, the e-learning competency items and unique experience/ achievements throughout the promotion process obtained in this research will provide useful references for academic institutions in promoting e-learning.

Keywords: competency analysis, Delphi technique questionnaire, e-learning, massive open online courses

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Authors: Assel Jaxylykova, Alexnder Pak

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This study utilized a Self-Organizing Map (SOM) for unsupervised learning on the CONLL-2003 dataset for Named Entity Recognition (NER). The process involved encoding words into 300-dimensional vectors using FastText. These vectors were input into a SOM grid, where training adjusted node weights to minimize distances. The SOM provided a topological representation for identifying and clustering named entities, demonstrating its efficacy without labeled examples. Results showed an F1-measure of 0.86, highlighting SOM's viability. Although some methods achieve higher F1 measures, SOM eliminates the need for labeled data, offering a scalable and efficient alternative. The SOM's ability to uncover hidden patterns provides insights that could enhance existing supervised methods. Further investigation into potential limitations and optimization strategies is suggested to maximize benefits.

Keywords: named entity recognition, natural language processing, self-organizing map, CONLL-2003, semantics

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Authors: Mohammad A. Alolayan, John S. Evans, James K. Hammitt

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The value of statistical life has been estimated for a middle eastern country with high economical subsidization system. In this study, in-person interviews were conducted on a stratified random sample to estimate the value of mortality risk. Double-bounded dichotomous choice questions followed by open-ended question were used in the interview to investigate the willingness to pay of the respondent for mortality risk reduction. High willingness to pay was found to be associated with high income and education. Also, females were found to have lower willingness to pay than males. The estimated value of statistical life is larger than the ones estimated for western countries where taxation system exists. This estimate provides a baseline for monetizing the health benefits for proposed policy or program to the decision makers in an eastern country. Also, the value of statistical life for a country in the region can be extrapolated from this this estimate by using the benefit transfer method.

Keywords: mortality, risk, VSL, willingness-to-pay

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Authors: Zahra Karimi

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Money is not the only medium of economic exchanges, but also affects the national identity of citizens and national sovereignty of the government. Hence, money can be used as a tool to strengthen the national and political identity of nations. In other words, the value of the national currency can be affecting citizen’s view to the economic situation of their country and national identity. Government with the maintenance of the value of the national currency must increase the confidence of its citizens into national currency and prevents that "currency substitution phenomenon" occurred and people turn to foreign currencies. Hence, this article intends to explain the zeros elimination from the national currency and study of experience of other countries and discussion history analyzed benefits and harms of zeroes elimination from the national currency, And then to evaluate the effect or lack of effect of removing of zeros from the national currency on inflation answer the question whether it is appropriate and on time to delete three zeros from the Riyal of Iran is or not?

Keywords: zeros elimination from the national currency, value of the national currency, Riyal, inflation, Iran, money, government

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Authors: Najeebah Almahmeed

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Risk Management is an evolving subject among organizations that include corporations, governments, non-governmental organizations, and not-for-profit corporations. In order to enhance awareness around the importance of Risk Management and make sure everyone is using it in their day-to-day job, the Risk Culture topic has emerged and gained importance not only in the Finance Sector but also in the National Oil Companies in Kuwait. Risk Culture can be defined as the shared beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors within a company that guide its approach to managing risks. It acts as a connecting force that links policies, procedures, and individuals, influencing how risks are understood and tackled through activities. In this research, benefits of Risk Culture are shared, guidelines are presented to promote a risk aware culture, and fully embed and enforce Risk-based processes and procedures. Moreover, this research demonstrates methodologies of measuring the Risk Culture using specific dimensions and clusters.

Keywords: clusters, dimensions, national oil companies, risk culture, risk management

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Authors: Nusrat Ali, Muhammad Saleem Khan

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Education is the process of bringing individuals aware of their own reality in a manner that leads them to the effective adjustment with the environment. Females’ participation is vital to reducing hunger and poverty and promoting the family welfare. Education is the right of men and women both. Female education is more needed rural areas as compared to urban areas. Without educating the women of the country we cannot think of developing our nation. It is a fact that women are the first teachers of their children. Hence, if mothers are well educated, they can play an important role in shaping and molding of their sons and daughters. The main purpose of study was to identify the barriers of female education and the attitude among the parents. The present study researchers selected a quantitative study to explore the highlighting problem in the particular areas. Through the stratified random sampling selected a sample size from each stratum and generalized whole population. Chi-square test was used to test the validity of the data. The conclusion shows attitudes of parents somehow influence their daughters’ education, particularly those who are living in countryside. Another a big challenge of female education is co-education system in our society is higher which directly subjected to parents unfavorable attitude towards their daughters’ education. In this modern era various organizations are working for female education in rural areas where females are considered as house working ladies, now it’s time to work more to change parent’s attitude towards their daughter’s education.

Keywords: parental attitude, professional education, daughter, unfavorable attitude

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Authors: Serdal AKYUZ

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The smart power is the use of soft and hard power together in consideration of existing circumstances. Soft power can be defined as the capability of changing perception of any target mass by employing policies based on legality. The hard power, generally, uses military and economic instruments which are the concrete indicator of general power comprehension. More than providing a balance between soft and hard power, smart power creates a proactive combination by assessing existing resources. Military targeting process (MTP), as stated in smart power methodology, benefits from a wide scope of lethal and non-lethal weapons to reach intended end state. The Smart powers components can be used in military targeting process similar to using of lethal or non-lethal weapons. This paper investigates the current use of Smart power concept, MTP and presents a new approach to MTP from smart power concept point of view.

Keywords: future security environment, hard power, military targeting process, soft power, smart power

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Authors: Oluwatobiloba Moody

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On October 12, 2014, the Nagoya Protocol, negotiated by Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), entered into force. The Protocol was negotiated to implement the third objective of the CBD which relates to the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources (GRs). The Protocol aims to ‘protect’ GRs and traditional knowledge (TK) associated with GRs from ‘biopiracy’, through the establishment of a binding international regime on access and benefit sharing (ABS). In reflecting on the question of ‘effectiveness’ in the Protocol’s implementation, this paper argues that the underlying problem of ‘biopiracy’, which the Protocol seeks to address, is one which goes beyond the ABS regime. It rather thrives due to indispensable factors emanating from the global intellectual property (IP) regime. It contends that biopiracy therefore constitutes an international problem of ‘borders’ as much as of ‘regimes’ and, therefore, while the implementation of the Protocol may effectively address the ‘trans-border’ issues which have hitherto troubled African provider countries in their establishment of regulatory mechanisms, it remains unable to address the ‘trans-regime’ issues related to the eradication of biopiracy, especially those issues which involve the IP regime. This is due to the glaring incoherence in the Nagoya Protocol’s implementation and the existing global IP system. In arriving at conclusions, the paper examines the ongoing related discussions within the IP regime, specifically those within the WIPO Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore (IGC) and the WTO TRIPS Council. It concludes that the Protocol’s effectiveness in protecting TK associated with GRs is conditional on the attainment of outcomes, within the ongoing negotiations of the IP regime, which could be implemented in a coherent manner with the Nagoya Protocol. It proposes specific ways to achieve this coherence. Three main methodological steps have been incorporated in the paper’s development. First, a review of data accumulated over a two year period arising from the coordination of six important negotiating sessions of the WIPO Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore. In this respect, the research benefits from reflections on the political, institutional and substantive nuances which have coloured the IP negotiations and which provide both the context and subtext to emerging texts. Second, a desktop review of the history, nature and significance of the Nagoya Protocol, using relevant primary and secondary literature from international and national sources. Third, a comparative analysis of selected biopiracy cases is undertaken for the purpose of establishing the inseparability of the IP regime and the ABS regime in the conceptualization and development of solutions to biopiracy. A comparative analysis of select African regulatory mechanisms (Kenya, South Africa and Ethiopia and the ARIPO Swakopmund Protocol) for the protection of TK is also undertaken.

Keywords: biopiracy, intellectual property, Nagoya protocol, traditional knowledge

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Authors: Carlos Roberto Valêncio, Fábio Renato de Almeida, Thatiane Kawabata, Leandro Alves Neves, Julio Cesar Momente, Mario Luiz Tronco, Angelo Cesar Colombini

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By running transactions under the Snapshot isolation we can achieve a good level of concurrency, specially in databases with high-intensive read workloads. However, Snapshot is not immune to all the problems that arise from competing transactions and therefore no serialization warranty exists. We propose in this paper a technique to obtain data consistency with Snapshot by using some special triggers that we named Daemon Triggers. Besides keeping the benefits of the Snapshot isolation, the technique is specially useful for those database systems that do not have an isolation level that ensures serializability, like Firebird and Oracle. We describe all the anomalies that might arise when using the Snapshot isolation and show how to preclude them with Daemon Triggers. Based on the methodology presented here, it is also proposed the creation of a new isolation level: Daemon Snapshot.

Keywords: data consistency, serialization, snapshot, isolation

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Authors: Hanane Sarnou, Sabri Koç

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In this paper, the interconnection between curriculum development for basic education and the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in the classroom referring to the Licence, Master's and Doctorate (LMD) benefits under such link will be presented and analysed. This study seeks to achieve to what extent LMD, competency-based approach (CBA) and ICTs use are interrelated. Likewise, the data collected from the responses of our teachers and learners who are concerned with LMD impact on their learning and teaching through interviews will be discussed, analysed, and classified. This paper is divided into two sections. The first section is about the curriculum development for basic education and its relation with higher education under the LMD and its link with ICTs in the university while the second section is about the classification of learners’ and teachers’ positive/negative responses concerning their positive or negative attitudes towards the ICT integration. The focus will be on the positive aspects of students’ expectations, opinions and assumptions regarding the integration of ICTs into the classroom under LMD and CBA.

Keywords: LMD system, CBA approach, curriculum development, ICT

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Authors: Eric Wilson Santos Cabral, Marta Monteiro Da Costa Cruz, Fabio Luis Maciel Machado, Henrique Andrade, Rodrigo Pirola Pestana, Vivian Andrea Parreira

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The large variation in the price of diesel in Brazil directly affects the variable cost of companies operating in the transportation sector. In rail transport, the great challenge is to overcome the annual budget, cargo and ore transported with cost reduction in relation to previous years, becoming more efficient every year. Some effective measures are necessary to achieve the reduction of the liter ratio consumed by KTKB (Gross Ton per Kilometer multiplied by thousand). This acronym represents the indicator of energy efficiency of some railroads in the world. This study is divided into two parts: the first, to identify using statistical tools, part of the controlled variables in the railways, which have a correlation with the energy efficiency indicator, seeking to aid decision-making. The second, with the use of the train dynamics simulator, within scenarios defined in the operational reality of a railroad, seeks to optimize the train formations and the train stop model for the change of train drivers. With the completion of the study, companies in the rail sector are expected to be able to reduce some of their transportation costs.

Keywords: railway transport, railway simulation, energy efficiency, fuel consumption

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Authors: Astrid de Leeuw, Pierre Valois

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Environmental education is the key to enhancing or changing students’ ways of thinking and acting in order to create an environmentally robust future for all. The present study investigates the beliefs of 812 primary school students, which merit consideration when developing educational interventions. Results of multiple regression analyses reveal that educational interventions should focus on promoting students’ feelings of control over pro-environmental behaviors (PEB). For example, schools could provide recycling bins on the premises. Furthermore, it is critical to develop positive attitudes in students by stressing the various benefits of PEB for keeping our planet clean and protecting wildlife. Unfortunately, our results indicate that students believe that PEB is boring and annoying. Suggestions are offered for making PEB more interesting and relevant. Further research is needed to test the effectiveness of interventions based on the present results.

Keywords: pro-environmental behavior, primary school students, theory of planned behavior, beliefs, educational interventions

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Authors: Carolina Rezende, Julio Cesar Neves Monteiro

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Traditionally, History and fiction are considered to be opposing fields of study. While one is linked to the study of facts, things that have happened within the limits of ‘reality’, the other explores a made-up world, originated from imagination and fantasy. However, despite their apparent discrepancies, there is a fundamental trait that brings them closer. Historical narratives, similarly to fiction ones, are produced based on multiple interpretations of an event, which are transmitted in a rather subjective way by language. It is within this perspective of history and fiction intertwined that this paper aims to discuss the translation of historical facts in the graphic novel Angola Janga, by Marcelo D’Salete, as well as presenting it as a historical document. The novel, which is divided into 11 short stories, narrates the rebellions that took place in Serra da Barriga, between the 16th and 17th centuries, that resulted in the Guerra dos Palmares. The graphic novel in question is a result of the author’s 11-year historical and bibliographical research, which combines history and fiction in order to shed a light of the confrontation that history seems to overlook. Also, the book includes a foreword, glossary, chronological line of Guerra dos Palmares, as well as maps and references used by the author during his research. For that, a few segments from the book will be selected and translated in order to show such connection between history and fiction, and the discussion resulted from it will be based on the works of Southgate (2009), Pym (2001) and D’hulst (2001).

Keywords: graphic novel, history, fiction, Palmares

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Authors: M. Peña Aguilar Juan, Ríos Hernández Ezequiel, R. Valencia Luis

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For certification, certain goods of public interest, such as medicines and food, it is required the preparation and delivery of a dossier. For its elaboration, legal and administrative knowledge must be taken, as well as organization of the documents of the process, and an order that allows the file verification. Therefore, a virtual platform was developed to support the process of management and elaboration of the dossier, providing accessibility to the information and interfaces that allow the user to know the status of projects. The development of dossier system on the cloud allows the inclusion of the technical requirements for the software management, including the validation and the manufacturing in the field industry. The platform guides and facilitates the dossier elaboration (report, file or history), considering Mexican legislation and regulations, it also has auxiliary tools for its management. This technological alternative provides organization support for documents and accessibility to the information required to specify the successful development of a dossier. The platform divides into the following modules: System control, catalog, dossier and enterprise management. The modules are designed per the structure required in a dossier in those areas. However, the structure allows for flexibility, as its goal is to become a tool that facilitates and does not obstruct processes. The architecture and development of the software allows flexibility for future work expansion to other fields, this would imply feeding the system with new regulations.

Keywords: electronic dossier, cloud management software, pharmaceutical industry, sanitary registration

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Authors: Raúl González Muñoz, Essam Shehab, Martin Weinitzke, Chris Fowler, Paul Baguley

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Software applications have become crucial for the aerospace industry, providing a wide range of functionalities and capabilities. However, due to the considerable time difference between aircraft and software life cycles, obsolescence has turned into a major challenge for industry in last decades. This paper aims to provide a view on the different causes of software obsolescence within aerospace industry, as well as a perception on the importance of each of them. The key research question addressed is what drives software obsolescence in the aerospace industry, managing large software application portfolios. This question has been addressed by conducting firstly an in depth review of current literature and secondly by arranging an industry workshop with professionals from aerospace and consulting companies. The result is a set of drivers of software obsolescence, distributed among three different environments and several domains. By incorporating monitoring methodologies to assess those software obsolescence drivers, benefits in maintenance efforts and operations disruption avoidance are expected.

Keywords: aerospace industry, obsolescence drivers, software lifecycle, software obsolescence

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Authors: Tesfaye Fentaw Nigatu, Alexander Trupp, Teh Pek Yen

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Research on museums and the experiences of visitors has flourished in recent years, especially after museums became centers of edutainment beyond preserving heritage resources. This paper aims to comprehensively understand the changes, continuities, and future research development directions of museum visitors’ experiences. To identify current research trends, the paper summarizes and analyses research article publications from 1986 to 2023 on museum visitors' experiences. Bibliometric analysis software VOSviewer and Harzing POP (Publish or Perish) were used to analyze 407 academic articles. The articles were generated from the Scopus database. The study attempted to map new insights for future scholars and academics to expand the scope of museum visitors’ experience studies by analyzing keywords, citation patterns, influential articles in the field, publication trends, collaborations between authors, institutions, and clusters of highly cited articles. Accessibility to museums, social media usage within museums, aesthetics in museum settings, mixed reality experiences, sustainability issues, and emotions have emerged as key research areas in the study of museum visitors' experiences. The results benefit stakeholders and researchers in advancing the collective progress of considering recent research trends to stay informed about the latest developments and breakthroughs in the global academic landscape and visitors’ experiences development in the museum.

Keywords: bibliometric analysis, museum, network analysis, visitors’ experiences, visual analysis

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Authors: Ramanjaneyulu Mogili, G.V.R.K. Acharyulu

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Indian organized retail sector is growing at a faster pace and gaining popularity. Indian Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF) reveals that the current market size of Indian retail industry is about US$ 520 billion with for growth rate 14 to 15 percent annually by 2018 the Indian retail sector is likely to grow at a CAGR of 13% to reach a size of US$ 950 billion. Developments in Information Technology have enabled online Retail sector that empowers customers to order products, conduct transactions without the need to interact physically with the retailers. In recent years, the online shopping industry has gained popularity to the point where certain categories of customers would consider buying electronic products online rather than visiting the stores. Conventionally the physical location of a store is seen as a source of competitive advantage. Online Retailing service sites provide virtual shopping space to the customers. Online Retail services are gaining momentum in India, with internet penetration improving in the country and smartphones becoming affordable along with changing lifestyles and preferences of customers. Although online shoppers prefer the convenience and choice available in online shopping, certain issues raised due to the occurrence of service failure. The proposed study attempts to measure the service recovery and failure process of electronic goods in Indian retail channels.

Keywords: service recovery, customer satisfaction, e-shopping, service failure

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Authors: Z. Soleymani, M. Amirzadeh

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Quality Function Deployment (QFD) was developed in 1960 in Japan and introduced in 1983 in America and Europe. The paper presents a real application of this technique in a way that the method of applying QFD in design and production aero fuel pumps has been considered. While designing a product and in order to apply system engineering process, the first step is identification customer needs then its transition to engineering parameters. Since each change in deign after production process leads to extra human costs and also increase in products quality risk, QFD can make benefits in sale by meeting customer expectations. Since the needs identified as well, the use of QFD tool can lead to increase in communications and less deviation in design and production phases, finally it leads to produce the products with defined technical attributes.

Keywords: customer voice, engineering parameters, gear pump, QFD

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Authors: Jonathon Smith, Alba Agostino

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Autism, also referred to as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), is commonly associated with difficulties in social and communication skills. Other characteristics common to autistic individuals include repetitive behaviours, difficulties adhering to routine, as well as paying attention. Recent findings indicate that autism is the fastest-growing neurodevelopmental disorder in North America, yet programming aimed at improving the quality of autistic individual’s real-world social interactions is limited. Although there are social skills programs for autistic youth, participation appears to improve social knowledge, but that knowledge does not improve social competence or transfer to the participant’s daily social interactions. Peers are less likely to interact with autistic people based thin slice judgements, meaning that even when an autistic youth has successfully completed a social skills program, they most likely will still be rejected by peers and not have a social group to participate in. Recently, many researchers are exploring therapeutic interventions using Dungeon and Dragons (D&D) for conditions such as social anxiety, loneliness, and identity exploration. D&D is a table-top role-playing game (TTRPG) based on social play experience where the players must communicate, plan, negotiate, and compromise with other players to achieve a shared goal. The game encourages players to assume the role of their character and act out their play within the rules of the game with the guidance of the games dungeon master. The popularity Dungeons and Dragons has increased at a rapid rate, and many suggest that there social-emotional benefits of joining and participating in these types of gaming experiences, however this is an under researched topic and studies examining the benefits of such games is lacking in the field. The main purpose of this exploratory study is to examine the autistic youth’s experiences of participating in a D&D club. Participants of this study were four high functioning autistic youth between the ages of 14-18 (average age – 16) enrolled in a D&D Club that was specifically designed for neurodiverse youth. The youth participation with the club ranged from 4 months to 8 months. All participants completed a 30–40-minute semi-structured interview where they were able to express their perceptions as participants of the D&D club. Preliminary findings suggest that the game provided a place for the youth to engage in authentic social interactions. Additionally, preliminary results suggest that the youth report being in a positive space with other neurodivergent youth created an atmosphere where they felt confident and could connect with others. The findings from this study will aid clinicians, researchers, and educators in developing programming aimed at improving social interactions and connections for autistic youth.

Keywords: autism, social connection, dungeons and dragons, neurodivergent affirming space

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Authors: Hebberly Ahatlan

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The process of digitizing energy systems involves transforming traditional energy infrastructure into interconnected, data-driven systems that enhance efficiency, sustainability, and responsiveness. As smart grids become increasingly integral to the efficient distribution and management of electricity from both fossil and renewable energy sources, the energy industry faces strategic challenges associated with digitalization and interoperability — particularly in the context of modern energy business models, such as virtual power plants (VPPs). The critical challenge in modern smart grids is to seamlessly integrate diverse technologies and systems, including virtualization, grid computing and service-oriented architecture (SOA), across the entire energy ecosystem. Achieving this requires addressing issues like semantic interoperability, IT/OT convergence, and digital asset scalability, all while ensuring security and risk management. This paper proposes a four-layer digitalization framework to tackle these challenges, encompassing persistent data protection, trusted key management, secure messaging, and authentication of IoT resources. Data assets generated through this framework enable AI systems to derive insights for improving smart grid operations, security, and revenue generation. Furthermore, this paper also proposes a Trusted Energy Interoperability Alliance as a universal guiding standard in the development of this digitalization framework to support more dynamic and interoperable energy markets.

Keywords: digitalization, IT/OT convergence, semantic interoperability, VPP, energy blockchain

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Authors: Abimbola A. Adebayo, Kikelomo I. Adebayo

Abstract:

Green buildings provide serious challenges for governments all over the world with regard to achieving energy efficiency in buildings. Energy efficient buildings are needed to keep up with minimal impacts on the environment throughout their cycle and to enhance sustainable development. The lack of awareness and benefits of energy efficient buildings have given rise to NGO’s playing important role in filling data gaps, publicizing information, and undertaking awareness raising and policy engagement activities. However, these roles are countered by concerns about subsidies for evaluations, incentives to facilitate data-sharing, and incentives to finance independent research. On the basis of literature review on experiences with NGO’s involvement in energy efficient buildings, this article identifies governance strategies that stimulate the harmonization of NGO’s roles in green buildings with the objective to increase energy efficiency in buildings.

Keywords: energy efficiency, green buildings, NGOs, sustainable development

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Authors: Pauli P.Y. Lai

Abstract:

Students with Special Education Needs (SEN) face many challenges in learning. Various challenges include difficulty in handwriting, slow understanding and assimilation, difficulty in paying attention during class, and lack of communication skills. To engage students with Special Education Needs in class with general students, Blackboard Collaborate is used as a teaching and learning tool to deliver a lecture with interactive activities. Blackboard Collaborate provides a good platform to create and enhance active, collaborative and interactive learning experience whereby the SEN students can easily interact with their general peers and the instructor by using the features of drawing on a virtual whiteboard, file sharing, classroom chatter, breakout room, hand-raising feature, polling, etc. By integrating a blended learning approach with Blackboard Collaborate, the students with Special Education Needs could engage in interactive activities with ease in class. Our research aims at exploring and discovering the use of Blackboard Collaborate for inclusive education based on a qualitative design with in-depth interviews. Being served in a general education environment, three university students with different kinds of learning disabilities have participated in our study. All participants agreed that functions provided by Blackboard Collaborate have enhanced their learning experiences and helped them learn better. Their academic performances also showed that SEN students could perform well with the help of technology. This research studies different aspects of using Blackboard Collaborate to create an inclusive learning environment for SEN students.

Keywords: blackboard collaborate, enhanced learning experience, inclusive education, special education needs

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Authors: Guanhao Tong, Li Li, Ben David

Abstract:

This study aims to provide an explanatory account of how the leisure tourist experience emerges from tourists and their surroundings through a critical realist lens. This was achieved by applying Archer’s realist social theory as the underlying theoretical ground to unpack the interplays between the external (tourism system or structure) and the internal (tourists or agency). This theory argues that social phenomena can be analyzed in three domains - structure, agency, and culture (SAC), and along three phases – structure conditioning, sociocultural interactions, and structure elaboration. From the realist perspective, the world is an open system; events and discourses are irreducible to present individuals and collectivities. Therefore, identifying the processes or mechanisms is key to help researchers understand how social reality is brought about. Based on the contextual nature of the tourist experience, the research focuses on Chinese tourists (from mainland China) to London as a destination and British culture conveyed through the concept of the destination image. This study uses an intensive approach based on Archer’s M/M approach to discover the mechanisms/processes of the emergence of the tourist experience. Individual interviews were conducted to reveal the underlying causes of lived experiences of the tourists. Secondary data was also collected to understand how British destinations are portrayed to Chinese tourists.

Keywords: Chinese tourists, destination image, M/M approach, realist social theory, social mechanisms, tourist experience

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Authors: Massimiliano Panella, Sara Bortoluzzi, Sophia Russotto, Daniele Nicolini, Carmela Rinaldi

Abstract:

Osteoporosis affects more than 200 million people worldwide. About 75% of osteoporosis cases are undiagnosed or diagnosed only when a bone fracture occurs. Since osteoporosis related fractures are significant determinants of the burden of disease and health and social costs of aging populations, we believe that this is the early identification and treatment of high-risk patients should be a priority in actual healthcare systems. Screening for osteoporosis by dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) is not cost-effective for general population. An alternative is pulse-echo ultrasound (PEUS) because of the minor costs. To this end, we developed an early detection program for osteoporosis with PEUS, and we evaluated is possible impact and sustainability. We conducted a cross-sectional study including 1,050 people in Italy. Subjects with >1 major or >2 minor risk factors for osteoporosis were invited to PEUS bone mass density (BMD) measurement at the proximal tibia. Based on BMD values, subjects were classified as healthy subjects (BMD>0.783 g/cm²) and pathological including subjects with suspected osteopenia (0.783≤BMD>0.719 g/cm²) or osteoporosis (BMD ≤ 0.719 g/cm²). The responder rate was 60.4% (634/1050). According to the risk, PEUS scan was recommended to 436 people, of whom 300 (mean age 45.2, 81% women) accepted to participate. We identified 240 (80%) healthy and 60 (20%) pathological subjects (47 osteopenic and 13 osteoporotic). We observed a significant association between high risk people and reduced bone density (p=0.043) with increased risks for female gender, older ages, and menopause (p<0.01). The yearly cost of the screening program was 8,242 euros. With actual Italian fracture incidence rates in osteoporotic patients, we can reasonably expect in 20 years that at least 6 fractures will occur in our sample. If we consider that the mean costs per fracture in Italy is today 16,785 euros, we can estimate a theoretical cost of 100,710 euros. According to literature, we can assume that the early treatment of osteoporosis could avoid 24,170 euros of such costs. If we add the actual yearly cost of the treatments to the cost of our program and we compare this final amount of 11,682 euros to the avoidable costs of fractures (24,170 euros) we can measure a possible positive benefits/costs ratio of 2.07. As a major outcome, our study let us to early identify 60 people with a significant bone loss that were not aware of their condition. This diagnostic anticipation constitutes an important element of value for the project, both for the patients, for the preventable negative outcomes caused by the fractures, and for the society in general, because of the related avoidable costs. Therefore, based on our finding, we believe that the PEUS based screening performed could be a cost-effective approach to early identify osteoporosis. However, our study has some major limitations. In fact, in our study the economic analysis is based on theoretical scenarios, thus specific studies are needed for a better estimation of the possible benefits and costs of our program.

Keywords: osteoporosis, prevention, public health, screening

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Authors: J. S. Rudas, J. M. Gutiérrez Cabeza, A. Corz Rodríguez, L. M. Gómez, A. O. Toro

Abstract:

The prediction of the wear rate of rubbing pairs has attracted the interest of many researchers for years. It has been recently proposed that the sliding wear rate can be inferred from the calculation of the energy rate dissipated by the tribological pair. In this paper some of the dissipative mechanisms present in a pin-on-disc configuration are discussed and both analytical and numerical calculations are carried out. Three dissipative mechanisms were studied: First, the energy release due to temperature gradients within the solid; second, the heat flow from the solid to the environment, and third, the energy loss due to abrasive damage of the surface. The Finite Element Method was used to calculate the dynamics of heat transfer within the solid, with the aid of commercial software. Validation the FEM model was assisted by virtual and laboratory experimentation using different operating points (sliding velocity and geometry contact). The materials for the experiments were Ti6Al4V alloy and Tungsten Carbide (WC-Co). The results showed that the sliding wear rate has a linear relationship with the energy dissipation flow. It was also found that energy loss due to micro-cutting is relevant for the system. This mechanism changes if the sliding velocity and pin geometry are modified though the degradation coefficient continues to present a linear behavior. We found that the less relevant dissipation mechanism for all the cases studied is the energy release by temperature gradients in the solid.

Keywords: degradation, dissipative mechanism, dry sliding, entropy, friction, wear

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