Search results for: Business context

Authors: I. Benning

Abstract:

Using technology to expand the learning space is critical for a productive mathematical discourse. This is a case study of two teachers who developed and enacted GeoGebra-based mathematics lessons following their engagement in a two-year professional development. The didactical and semiotic affordance of GeoGebra in widening the learning space for a productive mathematical discourse was explored. The approach of thematic analysis was used for lesson artefact, lesson observation, and interview data. The results indicated that constructing tools in GeoGebra provided a didactical milieu where students used them to explore mathematical concepts with little or no support from their teacher. The prompt feedback from the GeoGebra motivated students to practice mathematical concepts repeatedly in which they privately rethink their solutions before comparing their answers with that of their colleagues. The constructing tools enhanced self-discovery, team spirit, and dialogue among students. With regards to the semiotic construct, the tools widened the physical and psychological atmosphere of the classroom by providing animations that served as virtual concrete to enhance the recording, manipulation, testing of a mathematical idea, construction, and interpretation of geometric objects. These findings advance the discussion of widening the classroom for a productive mathematical discourse within the context of the mathematics curriculum of Ghana and similar sub-Saharan African countries.

Keywords: GeoGebra, theory of didactical situation, semiotic mediation, mathematics laboratory, mathematical discussion.

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Authors: A. Selmi

Abstract:

Free vibration analysis of homogenous and axially functionally graded simply supported beams within the context of Euler-Bernoulli beam theory is presented in this paper. The material properties of the beams are assumed to obey the linear law distribution. The effective elastic modulus of the composite was predicted by using the rule of mixture. Here, the complexities which appear in solving differential equation of transverse vibration of composite beams which limit the analytical solution to some special cases are overcome using a relatively new approach called the Differential Transformation Method. This technique is applied for solving differential equation of transverse vibration of axially functionally graded beams. Natural frequencies and corresponding normalized mode shapes are calculated for different Young’s modulus ratios. MATLAB code is designed to solve the transformed differential equation of the beam. Comparison of the present results with the exact solutions proves the effectiveness, the accuracy, the simplicity, and computational stability of the differential transformation method. The effect of the Young’s modulus ratio on the normalized natural frequencies and mode shapes is found to be very important.

Keywords: Differential transformation method, functionally graded material, mode shape, natural frequency.

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Authors: Nataliya Hitsevich

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Article 5(3) of the Brussels I Regulation provides that a person domiciled in a Member State may be sued in another Member State in matters relating to tort, delict or quasi-delict, in the courts for the place where the harmful events occurred or may occur. For a number of years Article 5 (3) of the Brussels I Regulation has been at the centre of the debate regarding the intellectual property rights infringement over the Internet. Nothing has been done to adapt the provisions relating to non-internet cases of infringement of intellectual property rights to the context of the Internet. The author’s findings indicate that in the case of intellectual property rights infringement on the Internet, the plaintiff has the option to sue either: the court of the Member State of the event giving rise to the damage: where the publisher of the newspaper is established; the court of the Member State where the damage occurred: where defamatory article is distributed. However, it must be admitted that whilst infringement over the Internet has some similarity to multi-State defamation by means of newspapers, the position is not entirely analogous due to the cross-border nature of the Internet. A simple example which may appropriately illustrate its contentious nature is a defamatory statement published on a website accessible in different Member States, and available in different languages. Therefore, we need to answer the question: how these traditional jurisdictional rules apply in the case of intellectual property rights infringement over the Internet? Should these traditional jurisdictional rules be modified?

Keywords: Intellectual property rights, infringement, Internet, jurisdiction.

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Authors: Nigina Toktasynova, Sholpan Sagyndykova, Zhanat Kenzhebayeva, Maksat Kalimoldayev, Mariya Ishimova, Irbulat Utepbergenov

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To solve these problems, we investigated the management system of heating enterprise, including strategic planning based on the balanced scorecard (BSC), quality management in accordance with the standards of the Quality Management System (QMS) ISO 9001 and analysis of the system based on expert judgment using fuzzy inference. To carry out our work we used the theory of fuzzy sets, the QMS in accordance with ISO 9001, BSC, method of construction of business processes according to the notation IDEF0, theory of modeling using Matlab software simulation tools and graphical programming LabVIEW. The results of the work are as follows: We determined possibilities of improving the management of heat-supply plant-based on QMS; after the justification and adaptation of software tool it has been used to automate a series of functions for the management and reduction of resources and for the maintenance of the system up to date; an application for the analysis of the QMS based on fuzzy inference has been created with novel organization of communication software with the application enabling the analysis of relevant data of enterprise management system. 

Keywords: Balanced scorecard, heat supply, quality management system, the theory of fuzzy sets.

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Authors: Kuyucu Helvacioglu Asli Deniz, Tektas Arzu

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European Union candidate status provides a strong motivation for decision-making in the candidate countries in shaping the regional development policy where there is an envisioned transfer of power from center to the periphery. The process of Europeanization anticipates the candidate countries configure their regional institutional templates in the context of the requirements of the European Union policies and introduces new instruments of incentive framework of enlargement to be employed in regional development schemes. It is observed that the contribution of the local actors to the decision making in the design of the allocation architectures enhances the efficiency of the funds and increases the positive effects of the projects funded under the regional development objectives. This study aims at exploring the performances of the three regional development grant schemes in Turkey, established and allocated under the pre-accession process with a special emphasis given to the roles of the national and local actors in decision-making for regional development. Efficiency analyses have been conducted using the DEA methodology which has proved to be a superior method in comparative efficiency and benchmarking measurements. The findings of this study as parallel to similar international studies, provides that the participation of the local actors to the decision-making in funding contributes both to the quality and the efficiency of the projects funded under the EU schemes.

Keywords: Efficiency, European Union Funds, RegionalDevelopment, Turkey

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Authors: Mohd Nuri Al-Amin Endut, Wan Suhaimi Wan Abdullah, Zulqarnain Abu Bakar

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The element of justice or al-‘adl in the context of Islamic critical thinking deals with the notion of justice in a thinking process which critically rationalizes the truth in a fair and objective manner with no irrelevant interference that can jeopardize a sound judgment. This Islamic axiological element is vital in technological decision making as it addresses the issues of religious values and ethics that are primarily set to fulfill the purpose of human life on earth. The main objective of this study was to examine and analyze the perception of Muslim engineering students in Malaysian higher education institutions towards the concept of al-‘adl as an essential element of Islamic critical thinking. The study employed mixed methods approach that comprises data collection from the questionnaire survey and the interview responses. A total of 557 Muslim engineering undergraduates from six Malaysian universities participated in the study. The study generally indicated that Muslim engineering undergraduates in the higher institutions have rather good comprehension and consciousness for al-‘adl with a slight awareness on the importance of objective thinking. Nonetheless there were a few items on the concept that have implied a comparatively low perception on the rational justice in Islam as the means to grasp the ultimate truth.

Keywords: Engineering education, Islamic critical thinking, rational justice, perception, tertiary education.

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Authors: Sevgi Birsel Nemlioğlu, Hasan Atak

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Aggression is a behavior that cannot be approved by the society. Vandalism which is aggression towards objects is an action that tends to damage public or personal property. The behaviors that are described as vandalism can often be observed in the schools as well. According to Zwier and Vaughan (1) previous research about the reasons of and precautionary measures for vandalism in schools can be grouped in three tendency categories: conservative, liberal and radical. In this context, the main aim of this study is to discover which ideological tendency of the reasons of school vandalism is adopted by the teachers and what are their physical, environmental, school system and societal solutions for vandalism. A total of 200 teachers participated in this study, and the mean age was 34.20 years (SD = 6.54). The sample was made up of 109 females and 91 males. For the analysis of the data, SPSS 15.00, frequency, percentage, and t-test were used. The research showed that the teachers have tendencies in the order of conservative, liberal and radical for the reasons of vandalism. The research also showed that the teachers do not have any tendency for eliminating vandalism physically and general solutions on the level of society; on the other hand they mostly adopt a conservative tendency in terms of precautions against vandalism in the school system. Second most, they adopt the liberal tendency in terms of precautions against vandalism in the school system. . It is observed that the findings of this study are comparable to the existing literature on the subject. Future studies should be conducted with multiple variants and bigger sampling.

Keywords: Vandalism, School, Vandal, Turkey, Teacher, Tendency.

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Authors: Dimitrios E. Kontaxis, George Litainas, Dimitrios P. Ptochos, Vaggelis P. Ptochos, Sotirios P. Ptochos, Dimitrios Beletsis, Konstantinos Kritikakis, Milan Sunaric

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Real-time monitoring of the supply chain conditions and procedures is a critical element for the optimal coordination and safety of the deliveries, as well as for the minimization of the delivery time and cost. Real time monitoring requires IoT data streams, which are related to the conditions of the products and the means of transport (e.g., location, temperature/humidity conditions, kinematic state, ambient light conditions, etc.). These streams are generated by battery-based IoT tracking devices, equipped with appropriate sensors, and are transmitted to a cloud-based back-end system. Proper handling and processing of the IoT data streams, using predictive and artificial intelligence algorithms, can provide significant and useful results, which can be exploited by the supply chain stakeholders in order to enhance their financial benefits, as well as the efficiency, security, transparency, coordination and sustainability of the supply chain procedures. The technology, the features and the characteristics of a complete, proprietary system, including hardware, firmware and software tools - developed in the context of a co-funded R&D program - are addressed and presented in this paper. 

Keywords: IoT embedded electronics, real-time monitoring, tracking device, sensor platform

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Authors: Mathias Rossi, Silna Borter, Marie Sansonnens

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Entrepreneurs are important for national labour markets and economies in that they contribute significantly to economic growth as well as provide the majority of jobs and create new ones. According to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor’s “Report on Women and Entrepreneurship”, investment in women’s entrepreneurship is an important way to exponentially increase the impact of new venture creation finding ways to empower women’s participation and success in entrepreneurship are critical for more sustainable and successful economic development. Our results confirm that they are still differences between men and women entrepreneurs The reasons seems to be the lack of specific business skills, the less extensive social network, and the lack of identification patterns among women. Those differences can be explained by the fact that women still have fewer opportunities to make a career. If this is correct, we can predict an increasing proportion of women among entrepreneurs in the next years. Concerning the development of a favorable environment for developing and enhancing women entrepreneurship activities, our results show the insertion in a network and the role of a model doubtless represent elements determining in the choice to launch an entrepreneurship activity, as well as a precious resource for the success of her company.

Keywords: Women entrepreneurship, entrepreneurship motivation, entrepreneurial behavior.

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Authors: C. Murat, T. Elifnaz

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Today, with globalization, human mobility has increased the interaction between countries significantly, and this contact has also increased the possibility of epidemics, although this contact has moved societies forward in terms of civilization. The coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic, which caused the most loss of life from these epidemics, quickly swept the whole world with the effect of globalization. The coronavirus epidemic has affected the world economically as well as health problems. While some businesses around the world experienced an extraordinary increase in demand, some businesses temporarily stopped their activities or were forced to do so. Businesses affected by the crisis had to adapt to new legal regulations but had to make changes in matters such as working styles, human resources practices, and policies. One of the measures considered is the reduction of the workforce. The current COVID-19 crisis has created serious challenges for many organizations and has led to an unprecedented wave of termination notices. In this study, examples of companies that were affected by the pandemic process and changed their working policies after the pandemic were examined. This study aims to reveal the impact of the global COVID-19 epidemic on human resources policies and employees and how these situations will affect businesses in the future.

Keywords: COVID-19, human resource management, crisis management, business function.

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Authors: Fariba Shavakhi Zavareh, Hadi Fotoohabadi, Reza Sedaghati

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Due to the continuous increment of the load demand, identification of weaker buses, improvement of voltage profile and power losses in the context of the voltage stability problems has become one of the major concerns for the larger, complex, interconnected power systems. The objective of this paper is to review the impact of Flexible AC Transmission System (FACTS) controller in Wind generators connected electrical network for maintaining voltage stability. Wind energy could be the growing renewable energy due to several advantages. The influence of wind generators on power quality is a significant issue; non uniform power production causes variations in system voltage and frequency. Therefore, wind farm requires high reactive power compensation; the advances in high power semiconducting devices have led to the development of FACTS. The FACTS devices such as for example SVC inject reactive power into the system which helps in maintaining a better voltage profile. The performance is evaluated on an IEEE 14 bus system, two wind generators are connected at low voltage buses to meet the increased load demand and SVC devices are integrated at the buses with wind generators to keep voltage stability. Power flows, nodal voltage magnitudes and angles of the power network are obtained by iterative solutions using MIPOWER.

Keywords: Voltage Profile, FACTS Device, SVC, Distributed Generation.

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Authors: Barry Ardley, Abi Hunt, Nick Taylor

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As a theoretical and practical framework this study uses the student as producer approach to learning in higher education, as adopted by the Lincoln International Business School, University of Lincoln, UK. Student as producer positions learners as skilled and capable agents, able to participate as partners with tutors in live research projects. To illuminate the nature of this approach to learning and to highlight its critical issues, the authors report on two guided student consultancy projects. These were set up with the assistance of two local organisations in the city of Lincoln UK. Using the student as producer model to deliver the projects enabled learners to acquire and develop a range of key skills and knowledge, not easily accessible in more traditional educational settings. This paper presents a systematic case study analysis of the eight organising principles of the student as producer model, as adopted by university tutors. The experience of tutors implementing student as producer suggests that the model can be widely applied to benefit not only the learning and teaching experiences of higher education students, and staff, but additionally, a university’s research programme and its community partners.

Keywords: Experiential learning, consultancy clients, student as producer.

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Authors: Klio Monokrousou, Maria Giannopoulou

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Urban areas, as they have been developed and operate today, are areas of accumulation of a significant amount of people and a large number of activities that generate desires and reasons for traveling. The territorial expansion of the cities as well as the need to preserve the importance of the central city areas lead to the continuous increase of transportation needs which in the limited urban space results in creating serious traffic and operational problems. The modern perception of urban planning is directed towards more holistic approaches and integrated policies that make it economically competitive, socially just and more environmentally friendly. Over the last 25 years, the goal of sustainable transport development has been central to the agenda of any plan or policy for the city. The modern planning of urban space takes into account the economic and social aspects of the city and the importance of the environment to sustainable urban development. In this context, the European Union promotes direct or indirect related interventions according to the cohesion and environmental policies; many countries even had the chance to actually test them. This paper explores the methods and processes that have been developed towards this direction and presents a review and systematic presentation of this work. The ultimate purpose of this research is to effectively use this review to create a decision making methodological framework which can be the basis of a useful operational tool for sustainable urban planning.

Keywords: Sustainable urban development, urban mobility, urban regeneration methods.

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Authors: Leon Pan

Abstract:

The first programming course within post-secondary education has long been recognized as a challenging endeavor for both educators and students alike. Historically, these courses have exhibited high failure rates and a notable number of dropouts. Instructors often lament students' lack of effort on their coursework, and students often express frustration that the teaching methods employed are not effective. Drawing inspiration from the successful principles of Extreme Programming, this study introduces an approach—the Extremes-based teaching model—aimed at enhancing the teaching of introductory programming courses. To empirically determine the effectiveness of the model, a comparison was made between a section taught using the extreme-based model and another utilizing traditional teaching methods. Notably, the extreme-based teaching class required students to work collaboratively on projects, while also demanding continuous assessment and performance enhancement within groups. This paper details the application of the extreme-based model within the post-secondary online classroom context and presents the compelling results that emphasize its effectiveness in advancing the teaching and learning experiences. The extreme-based model led to a significant increase of 13.46 points in the weighted total average and a commendable 10% reduction in the failure rate.

Keywords: Extreme-based teaching model, innovative pedagogical methods, project-based learning, team-based learning.

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Authors: Ayşe Nihan Avcı, İpek Memikoğlu

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Lighting systems in interior architecture need to be designed according to the function of the space, the type of task within the space, user comfort and needs. Desired and comfortable lighting levels increase task efficiency. When natural lighting is inadequate in a space, artificial lighting is additionally used to support the level of light. With the technological developments, the characteristics of light are being researched comprehensively and several business segments have focused on its qualitative and quantitative characteristics. These studies have increased awareness and usage of artificial lighting systems and researchers have investigated the effects of lighting on physical and psychological aspects of human in various ways. The aim of this study is to research the effects of illuminance levels of LED lighting on user visual comfort. Eighty participants from the Department of Interior Architecture of Çankaya University participated in three lighting scenarios consisting of 200 lux, 500 lux and 800 lux that are created with LED lighting. Each lighting scenario is evaluated according to six visual comfort criteria in which a reading task is performed. The results of the study indicated that LED lighting with three different illuminance levels affect visual comfort in different ways. The results are limited to the participants and questions that are attended and used in this study.

Keywords: Illuminance levels, LED lighting, reading task, visual comfort criteria.

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Authors: Ghassan H. Halasa

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Elementary particles are created in pairs of equal and opposite momentums at a reference frame at the speed of light. The speed of light reference frame is viewed as a point in space as observed by observer at rest. This point in space is the bang location of the big bang theory. The bang in the big bang theory is not more than sustained flow of pairs of positive and negative elementary particles. Electrons and negative charged elementary particles are ejected from this point in space at velocities faster than light, while protons and positively charged particles obtain velocities lower than light. Subsonic masses are found to have real and positive charge, while supersonic masses are found to be negative and imaginary indicating that the two masses are of different entities. The electron-s super-sonic speed, as viewed by rest observer was calculated and found to be less than the speed of light and is little higher than the electron speed in Bohr-s orbit. The newly formed hydrogen gas temperature was found to be in agreement with temperatures found on newly formed stars. Universe expansion was found to be in agreement. Partial mass and charge elementary particles and particles with momentum only were explained in the context of this theoretical approach.

Keywords: Evolution of Matter, Multidimensional spaces, relativity, Big Bang Theory

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Authors: S. Abed, S. O’Neill

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This research explored ward nurses’ views about the characteristics of effective nurse leaders in the context of Iraq as a developing country, where the delivery of health care continues to face disruption and change. It is well established that the provision of modern health care requires effective nurse leaders, but in countries such as Iraq the lack of effective nurse leaders is noted as a major challenge. In a descriptive quantitative study, a survey questionnaire was administered to 210 ward nurses working in two public hospitals in a major city in the north of Iraq. The participating nurses were of the opinion that the effectiveness of their nurse leaders was evident in their ability to demonstrate: good clinical knowledge, effective communication and managerial skills. They also viewed their leaders as needing to hold high-level nursing qualifications, though this was not necessarily the case in practice. Additionally, they viewed nurse leaders’ personal qualities as important, which included politeness, ethical behaviour, and trustworthiness. When considered against the issues raised in interviews with a smaller group (20) of senior nurse leaders, representative of the various occupational levels, implications identify the need for professional development that focuses on how the underpinning competencies relate to leadership and how transformational leadership is evidenced in practice.

Keywords: Health care, nurse education, nurse leadership, nursing in Iraq, transformational leadership.

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Authors: Anchana Sooksomchitra

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This study aims to explore and compare the current condition of community radio stations in Phutthamonthon district, Nakhon Pathom province, Thailand, as well as the challenges they are facing. Qualitative research tools including in-depth interviews; documentary analysis; focus group interviews; and observation, are used to examine the content, programming, and management structure of three community radio stations currently in operation within the district. Research findings indicate that the management and operational approaches adopted by the two non-profit stations included in the study, Salaya Pattana and Voice of Dhamma, are more structured and effective than that of the for-profit Tune Radio. Salaya Pattana – backed by the Faculty of Engineering, Mahidol University, and the charity-funded Voice of Dhamma, are comparatively free from political and commercial influence, and able to provide more relevant and consistent community-oriented content to meet the real demand of the audience. Tune Radio, on the other hand, has to rely solely on financial support from political factions and business groups, which heavily influence its content.

Keywords: Radio broadcasting, programming, management, community radio, Thailand.

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Authors: Christos Bouras, Eirini Stergiou, Charitini Karakostaki, Vasileios Tzanos, Vasileios Kokkinos

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Wind power represents a major pathway to curtailing greenhouse gas emissions and thus reducing the rate of climate change. A wind turbine runs practically emission-free for 20 years, representing one of the most environmentally sustainable sources of energy. Nevertheless, environmental and biodiversity concerns can often slow down or halt the deployment of wind farms due to local public opposition. This opposition is often fuelled by poor relationships between wind energy stakeholders and civil society, which in many cases led to conflictual protests and property damage. In this context, addressing these concerns is essential in order to facilitate the proliferation of wind farms in Europe and the phase-out of fossil fuels from the energy mix. The aim of this study is to identify a number of good practices and cases to avoid increasing biodiversity protection at all stages of wind farms’ lifecycle in three participating countries, namely Greece, Latvia, and Poland. The results indicate that although available technological solutions are already being exploited worldwide, in these countries, there is still room for improvement. To address this gap, a set of policy recommendations is proposed to accomplish the wind energy targets in the near future while simultaneously mitigating the pertinent biodiversity risks.

Keywords: Biodiversity protection, environmental impact, social acceptance, wind energy.

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Authors: Göksel Şimşek

Abstract:

Celebrities are admired, appreciated and imitated all over the world. As a natural result of this, today many brands choose to work with celebrities for their advertisements. It can be said that the more the brands include celebrities in their marketing communication strategies, the tougher the competition in this field becomes and they allocate a large portion of their marketing budget to this. Brands invest in celebrities who will represent them in order to build the image they want to create.

This study aimed to bring under spotlight the perceptions of Turkish customers regarding the use of celebrities in advertisements and marketing communication and try to understand their possible effects on subsequent purchasing decisions. In addition, consumers’ reactions and perceptions were investigated in the context of the product-celebrity match, to what extent the celebrity conforms to the concept of the advertisement and the celebrity-target audience match.

In  order  to  achieve  this  purpose, a  quantitative research  was conducted  as a case  study concerning  Mavi Jeans  (textile company). Information was obtained through survey. The results from this case study are supported by relevant theories concerning the main subject. The most valuable result would be that instead of creating an advertisement around a celebrity in demand at the time, using a celebrity that fits the concept of the advertisement and feeds the concept rather than replaces it, that is celebrity endorsement, will lead to more striking and positive results.

Keywords: Celebrity endorsement, product-celebrity match, advertising.

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Authors: Vasiliki Vlachou, Christos Kontzinos, Ourania Markaki, Panagiotis Kokkinakos, Vagelis Karakolis, John Psarras

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Higher Education is resisting the pull of technology, especially as this concerns the issuance and verification of degrees and certificates. It is widely known that education certificates are largely produced in paper form making them vulnerable to damage while holders of such certificates are dependent on the universities and other issuing organisations. QualiChain is an EU Horizon 2020 (H2020) research project aiming to transform and revolutionise the domain of public education and its ties with the job market by leveraging blockchain, analytics and decision support to develop a platform for the verification and sharing of education certificates. Blockchain plays an integral part in the QualiChain solution in providing a trustworthy environment to store, share and manage such accreditations. Under the context of this paper, three prominent blockchain platforms (Ethereum, Hyperledger Fabric, Hyperledger Iroha) were considered as a means of experimentation for creating a system with the basic functionalities that will be needed for trustworthy degree verification. The methodology and respective system developed and presented in this paper used Hyperledger Iroha and proved that this specific platform can be used to easily develop decentralize applications. Future papers will attempt to further experiment with other blockchain platforms and assess which has the best potential.

Keywords: Blockchain, degree verification, higher education certificates, Hyperledger Iroha.

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Authors: Teyana S. Sapula, Damian D. Haule

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In online context, the design and implementation of effective remote laboratories environment is highly challenging on account of hardware and software needs. This paper presents the remote laboratory software framework modified from ilab shared architecture (ISA). The ISA is a framework which enables students to remotely acccess and control experimental hardware using internet infrastructure. The need for remote laboratories came after experiencing problems imposed by traditional laboratories. Among them are: the high cost of laboratory equipment, scarcity of space, scarcity of technical personnel along with the restricted university budget creates a significant bottleneck on building required laboratory experiments. The solution to these problems is to build web-accessible laboratories. Remote laboratories allow students and educators to interact with real laboratory equipment located anywhere in the world at anytime. Recently, many universities and other educational institutions especially in third world countries rely on simulations because they do not afford the experimental equipment they require to their students. Remote laboratories enable users to get real data from real-time hand-on experiments. To implement many remote laboratories, the system architecture should be flexible, understandable and easy to implement, so that different laboratories with different hardware can be deployed easily. The modifications were made to enable developers to add more equipment in ISA framework and to attract the new developers to develop many online laboratories.

Keywords: Batched, ISA, labserver, servicebroker.

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Authors: Zainah Abdullah, Aznur Hajar Abdullah

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This paper examines the impact of information and communication technology (ICT) usage, internal relationship, supplier-retailer relationship, logistics services and inventory management on convenience store suppliers- performance. Data was collected from 275 convenience store managers in Malaysia using a set of questionnaire. The multiple linear regression results indicate that inventory management, supplier-retailer relationship, logistics services and internal relationship are predictors of supplier performance as perceived by convenience store managers. However, ICT usage is not a predictor of supplier performance. The study focuses only on convenience stores and petrol station convenience stores and concentrates only on managers. The results provide insights to suppliers who serve convenience stores and possibly similar retail format on factors to consider in improving their service to retailers. The results also provide insights to government in its aspiration to improve business operations of convenience store to consider ways to enhance the adoption of ICT by retailers and suppliers.

Keywords: Information and communication technology (ICT), internal relationship, inventory management, logistics services, supplier performance, supplier-retailer relationship.

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Authors: Sze Wai Veera Fung, Peter W. Ferretto

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Similar to most ethnic groups in China, men of the Dong minority hold the primary position in policymaking, moral authority, social values, and the control of the property. As the spatial embodiment of the patriarchal ideals, the house plays a significant role in producing and reproducing the distinctive gender status within the Dong society. Nevertheless, Dong women do not see their home as a cage of confinement, nor do they see themselves as a victim of oppression. For these women with reference to their productive identity, a house is a dwelling place with manifold meanings, including a proof of identity, an economic instrument, and a public resource operating on the community level. This paper examines the role of the house as a central site for identity construction and maintenance for the southern dialect Dong minority women in Hunan, China. Drawing on recent interviews with the Dong women, this study argues that women as productive individuals have a strong influence on the form of their house and the immediate environment, regardless of the male-dominated social construct of the Dong society. The aim of this study is not to produce a definitive relationship between women, house, and identity. Rather, it seeks to offer an alternative lens into the complexity and diversity of gender dynamics operating in and beyond the boundary of the house in the context of contemporary rural China.

Keywords: Conception of home, Dong minority, house, rural China, woman’s identity.

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Authors: M. Bevilacqua, F. E. Ciarapica, G. Marcucci

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Supply Chain Resilience has been broadly studied during the last decade, focusing the research on many aspects of Supply Chain performance. Consequently, different definitions of Supply Chain Resilience have been developed by the research community, drawing inspiration also from other fields of study such as ecology, sociology, psychology, economy et al. This way, the definitions so far developed in the extant literature are therefore very heterogeneous, and many authors have pointed out a lack of consensus in this field of analysis. The aim of this research is to find common points between these definitions, through the development of a framework of study: the Resilience Triangle. The Resilience Triangle is a tool developed in the field of civil engineering, with the objective of modeling the loss of resilience of a given structure during and after the occurrence of a disruption such as an earthquake. The Resilience Triangle is a simple yet powerful tool: in our opinion, it can summarize all the features that authors have captured in the Supply Chain Resilience definitions over the years. This research intends to recapitulate within this framework all these heterogeneities in Supply Chain Resilience research. After collecting a various number of Supply Chain Resilience definitions present in the extant literature, the methodology approach provides a taxonomy step with the scope of collecting and analyzing all the data gathered. The next step provides the comparison of the data obtained with the plotting of a disruption profile, in order to contextualize the Resilience Triangle in the Supply Chain context. The tool and the results developed in this research will allow to lay the foundation for future Supply Chain Resilience modeling and measurement work.

Keywords: Supply chain resilience, resilience definition, supply chain resilience triangle.

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Authors: Vladimir Simovic, Matija Varga, Tonco Marusic

Abstract:

This research paper shows matrix technology models and examples of information systems in education (in the Republic of Croatia and in the Germany) in support of business, education (when learning and teaching) and e-learning. Here we researched and described the aims and objectives of the main process in education and technology, with main matrix classes of data. In this paper, we have example of matrix technology with detailed description of processes related to specific data classes in the processes of education and an example module that is support for the process: ‘Filling in the directory and the diary of work’ and ‘evaluation’. Also, on the lower level of the processes, we researched and described all activities which take place within the lower process in education. We researched and described the characteristics and functioning of modules: ‘Fill the directory and the diary of work’ and ‘evaluation’. For the analysis of the affinity between the aforementioned processes and/or sub-process we used our application model created in Visual Basic, which was based on the algorithm for analyzing the affinity between the observed processes and/or sub-processes.

Keywords: Designing, education management, information systems, matrix technology, process affinity.

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Authors: Shi Zhang

Abstract:

This paper aims to introduce the allopatry of national college entrance examination which allow migrant students enter senior high schools and take college entrance exam where they live, identifies the reasons affect the implementation of this policy in the Chinese context. Most of China’s provinces and municipalities recently have announced new policies regarding national college entrance exams for non-local students. The paper conducts SWOT analysis reveals the opportunities, strength, weakness and challenges of the scheme, so as to discuss the implementation strategies from the perspectives of idea and institution. The research findings imply that the government should take a more positive attitude toward relaxing the allopatry of NCEE policy restrictions, and promote the reform household registration policy and NCEE policy with synchronous operations. Higher education institutions should explore the diversification of enrollment model; the government should issue the authority of universities and colleges to select elite migrant students beyond the restrictions of NCEE. To suit reform policies to local conditions, the big cities such as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou should publish related compensate measures for children of migrant workers access to higher vocational colleges with tuition fee waivered. 

Keywords: College entrance examination, higher education, education policy, education equality.

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Authors: Sophie Huck, Knut Linke

Abstract:

This study will examine how IT practitioners can be motivated for IT studies and which kind of support they need during their occupational studies. Within this research project, the challenge of supporting students being engaged in business for several years arose. Here, it is especially important to successfully guide them through their studies. The problem of this group is that they finished their school education years ago. In order to gather first experiences, preliminary e-learning courses were introduced and tested with a group of users studying General Management. They had to work with these courses and have been questioned later on about their approach to the different methods. Moreover, a second group of potential students was interviewed with the help of online questionnaires to give information about their expectations regarding extra occupational studies. We also want to present best practices and cases in e-education in the subarea of mathematics and distance learning. Within these cases and practices, we use state of the art systems and technologies in e-education to find a way to increase teaching quality and the success of students. Our research indicated that the first group of enrolled students appreciated the new preliminary e-learning courses. The second group of potential students was convinced of this way of learning as a significant component of extra occupational studies. It can be concluded that this part of the project clarified the acceptance of the e-learning strategy by both groups and led to satisfactory results with the enrolled students.

Keywords: E-learning evaluation, self-learning, virtual classroom, virtual learning environments.

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Authors: Boonlert Watjatrakul

Abstract:

Mobile marketing through mobile messaging service has highly impressive growth as it enables e-business firms to communicate with their customers effectively. Educational institutions hence start using this service to enhance communication with their students. Previous studies, however, have limited understanding of applying mobile messaging service in education. This study proposes a theoretical model to understand the drivers of students- intentions to use the university-s mobile messaging service. The model indicates that social influence, perceived control and attitudes affect students- intention to use the university-s mobile messaging service. It also provides five antecedents of students- attitudes–perceived utility (information utility, entertainment utility, and social utility), innovativeness, information seeking, transaction specificity (content specificity, sender specificity, and time specificity) and privacy concern. The proposed model enables universities to understand what students concern about the use of a mobile messaging service in universities and handle the service more effectively. The paper discusses the model development and concludes with limitations and implications of the proposed model.

Keywords: education, intention, mobile marketing, mobile messaging.

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Authors: G. Erkomaishvili

Abstract:

The paper discusses mineral water consumer market and development policy in Georgia, the tools and measures, which will contribute to production of mineral waters and increase its export. The paper studies and analyses current situation in mineral water production sector as well as the factors affecting increase and reduction of its export. It’s noted that in order to gain and maintain competitive advantage, it’s necessary to provide continuous supply of high quality goods with modern design, open new distribution channels to enter new markets, carry out broad promotional activities, organize e-commerce. Economic policy plays an important role in protecting markets from counterfeit goods. The state also plays an important role in attracting foreign direct investments. Stable business environment and export oriented strategy is the basis for the country’s economic growth. Based on the research, the paper suggests the strategy for improving competitiveness of Georgian mineral waters; relevant conclusions and recommendations are provided.

Keywords: Mineral waters, consumer market for mineral waters, export of mineral waters, mineral water development policy in Georgia.

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