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The objectives of this research are to study: (i) the history and development of knowledge of Yiwulv Mountain Manchu paper-cutting art, and (ii) the process of designing and developing digital media for learning about cultural heritage. This research used qualitative research methods. By studying documents and collecting field data by surveys, interviews, observations, group discussions, and workshops. The data was elicited from a group of 40 participants. The analysis was based on the objectives and the results were presented in a descriptive analytical manner. The results are as follows: (i) The art of paper-cutting is related to history and culture. There is a unique cultural identity of the Manchus on Yiwulv Mountain. The way of conveying knowledge is told orally. Currently, there is a problem due to the age of paper-cutting artists and lack of inheritance. Therefore, it is necessary to find ways to protect them as well as transfer them to youth and those who are interested. (ii) The art of paper-cutting is applied with 3D animation technology to inherit and learn the art of Yiwulv Mountain Manchu paper-cutting. The teaching materials created can be explained in detail from the perspective and content. The design combines virtual tour technology to make it interesting. Learners study through digital media and computer systems, which makes it convenient to access information.

We examined how a group of Chinese undergraduate students understood paraphrasing and source use conventions for research paper writing in English. Prior scholarship has generated valuable insights about novice second language (L2) writers' unconventional source use practices, but little is known about how these writers interpret and understand source use expectations for English academic writing. We followed a group of nine Chinese undergraduate students for an academic term as they learned to paraphrase and write with sources for their research paper assignments. Drafts of students' papers were collected and rounds of text-based interviews were conducted where students were asked to explain their source use decisions. Findings showed that the students actively and constantly referenced their source use knowledge of Chinese essay writing to help make sense of source use expectations for English academic writing, although their understanding of English academic source use as well as their rendition of culture may likely be viewed by expert academic writers as 'insufficient' or 'inadequate'. We conclude by highlighting the importance of foregrounding learner voice and acknowledging the legitimacy of the interpretations of novice L2 writers as intercultural informants in the teaching of English academic source use.

Xuan paper is one of the most famous handmade papers in China and is an important paper for conservation. However, the evenness of Xuan paper has not yet received much attention. In this study, the distribution of the in-plane grammage and mechanical properties of Xuan paper are measured. It is found that the distribution of the in-plane grammage and mechanical properties of Xuan paper is uneven. In the handmade direction, the grammage and mechanical properties of Xuan paper are overall largest in the lower area, followed by the upper and middle areas. The sheet forming process of Xuan paper has an important effect on the distribution of in-plane grammage, mechanical properties, and fiber orientation of Xuan paper. The folded state has a negative effect on the mechanical properties of the folded area of Xuan paper. This study will help raise awareness of the unevenness in physical properties of Xuan paper, which is important in both conservation and research applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper constructs the money demand function including the variable of electronic payments while adopting the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) bounds testing approach to investigate the relationship between electronic payments and money demand in China. The empirical results show that there is the cointegration among the variables in the constructed function with stability, and the e-payment variable is negatively correlated with the demand for money. According to the findings of this paper, in the long run, for every 1 percent increase in the e-payment variable, the demand for M1 will decrease by approximately 0.01 percent. In addition, the money demand function that contains the e-payment variable performs better than the one that does not in the forecast evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During attempts to prevent and control the COVID-19 pandemic in China, higher education programs shifted their traditional educational models to online models. This paper aimed to explore how Chinese universities organized online teaching and learning during the pandemic. It investigated the factors affecting the implementation of online teaching and provided policy recommendations for improving the quality of education in the post-pandemic period. The primary data for this study came from in-depth interviews with nine students and five teaching and administrative staff at eight major universities in mainland China. Literature was obtained in both English and Chinese from January 2020 to September 2021. Peer-reviewed journals, policy reports, and university documents regarding online education in Chinese universities were reviewed, and their challenges and countermeasures were investigated. The paper found that the implementation of online education was affected by various sources, including technologies, teachers' teaching skills, network information literacy, and students' learning motivations and self-directed learning skills. Based on the insiders' views, the paper suggested that to promote the quality of online education in the post-COVID-19 pandemic, higher education institutes and programs could develop their infrastructure construction, improve teachers' quality of teaching, and focus on students' learning motivations.

This paper reviews the basic research means for oilfield development and also the researches and tests of enhanced oil recovery (EOR) methods for mature oilfields and continental shale oil development, analyzes the problems of EOR methods, and proposes the relevant research prospects. The basic research means for oilfield development include in-situ acquisition of formation rock/fluid samples and non-destructive testing. The EOR methods for conventional and shale oil development are classified as improved water flooding (e.g. nano-water flooding), chemical flooding (e.g. low-concentration middle-phase micro- emulsion flooding), gas flooding (e.g. micro/nano bubble flooding), thermal recovery (e.g. air injection thermal-aided miscible flooding), and multi-cluster uniform fracturing/water-free fracturing, which are discussed in this paper for their mechanisms, approaches, and key technique researches and field tests. These methods have been studied with remarkable progress, and some achieved ideal results in field tests. Nonetheless, some problems still exist, such as inadequate research on mechanisms, imperfect matching technologies, and incomplete industrial chains. It is proposed to further strengthen the basic researches and expand the field tests, thereby driving the formation, promotion and application of new technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on an elaboration of the resource potential and annual production of tight sandstone gas and shale gas in the United States and China, this paper reviews the researches on the distribution of tight sandstone gas and shale gas reservoirs, and analyzes the distribution characteristics and genetic types of tight sandstone gas reservoirs. In the United States, the proportion of tight sandstone gas in the total gas production declined from 20%--35% in 2008 to about 8% in 2023, and the shale gas production was 8 310x108 m3 in 2023, about 80% of the total gas production, in contrast to the range of 5%--17% during 2000--2008. In China, the proportion of tight sandstone gas in the total gas production increased from 16% in 2010 to 28% or higher in 2023. China began to produce shale gas in 2012, with the production reaching 250x108 m3 in 2023, about 11% of the total gas production of the country. The distribution of shale gas reservoirs is continuous. According to the fault presence, fault displacement and gas layer thickness, the continuous shale gas reservoirs can be divided into two types: continuity and intermittency. Most previous studies believed that both tight sandstone gas reservoirs and shale gas reservoirs are continuous, but this paper holds that the distribution of tight sandstone gas reservoirs is not continuous. According to the trap types, tight sandstone gas reservoirs can be divided into lithologic, anticlinal, and synclinal reservoirs. The tight sandstone gas is coal-derived in typical basins in China and Egypt, but oil-type gas in typical basins in the United States and Oman. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, great breakthroughs have been made in the exploration and development of natural gas in deep coal-rock reservoirs in Junggar, Ordos and other basins in China. In view of the inconsistency between the industrial and academic circles on this new type of unconventional natural gas, this paper defines the concept of "coal-rock gas" on the basis of previous studies, and systematically analyzes its characteristics of occurrence state, transport and storage form, differential accumulation, and development law. Coal-rock gas, geologically unlike coalbed methane in the traditional sense, occurs in both free and adsorbed states, with free state in abundance. It is generated and stored in the same set of rocks through short distance migration, occasionally with the accumulation from other sources. Moreover, coal rock develops cleat fractures, and the free gas accumulates differentially. The coal-rock gas reservoirs deeper than 2 000 m are high in pressure, temperature, gas content, gas saturation, and free-gas content. In terms of development, similar to shale gas and tight gas, coal-rock gas can be exploited by natural formation energy after the reservoirs connectivity is improved artificially, that is, the adsorbed gas is desorbed due to pressure drop after the high-potential free gas is recovered, so that the free gas and adsorbed gas are produced in succession for a long term without water drainage for pressure drop. According to buried depth, coal rank, pressure coefficient, reserves scale, reserves abundance and gas well production, the classification criteria and reserves/resources estimation method of coal-rock gas are presented. It is preliminarily estimated that the coal-rock gas in place deeper than 2 000 m in China exceeds 30x1012 m3, indicating an important strategic resource for the country. The Ordos, Sichuan, Junggar and Bohai Bay basins are favorable areas for large-scale enrichment of coal-rock gas. The paper summarizes the technical and management challenges and points out the research directions, laying a foundation for the management, exploration, and development of coal-rock gas in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper critically reviews the lessons learnt from the testing of China's digital currency, the e-CNY. Using a theory-based case study, it looks at the e-CNY testing through the lens of the academic literature on Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs). The controlled field experiments by the Peoples Bank of China tested the technology, consumer usage and transaction robustness of the e-CNY. The results of this testing are collated, and the paper compares the transactions per second with other digital money offerings. It also investigates the results in the context of privacy and monetary policy. It is observed that several lessons can be learnt. These are that (1) CBDC testing needs to be phased and incorporate techniques, approaches, tools, and frameworks; (2) retail CBDCs compete with private forms of digital money for share of wallet; (3) the hybrid co-development model allows for a robust CBDC offering: and (4) privacy concerns and digital literacy impact user uptake. It is concluded that there is a role for retail CBDCs and that those central banks that are exploring the possibility should develop a testing regime. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Order distribution and routing optimization of takeout delivery is a challenging research topic in the field of e-commerce. In this paper, we propose a drone–rider joint delivery mode with multi-distribution center collaboration for the problems of limited-service range, unreasonable distribution, high delivery cost, and tight time windows in the takeout delivery process. The model is constructed with the minimum delivery cost and the overall maximum customer satisfaction as the objective function, and a two-stage heuristic algorithm is designed to solve the model. In the first stage, Euclidean distance is used to classify customers into the regions belonging to different distribution centers, and the affinity propagation (AP) clustering algorithm is applied to allocate orders from different distribution centers. The second stage uses an improved tabu search algorithm for route optimization based on specifying the number of rider and drone calls. This paper takes China's Ele.me and Meituan takeout as the reference object and uses the Solomon data set for research. The experimental results show that compared with the traditional rider delivery mode, the drone–rider joint delivery mode with multiple distribution center collaboration can effectively reduce the number of riders used, lower the delivery cost, and improve the overall customer satisfaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Designed a micro-governance framework of multi-government environmental regulation (ER) synergy. • Developed a synergistic-based measure to quantify the degree of heterogeneous multi-government ER synergy. • Heterogeneous multi-government ER synergy has dissimilar impacts on corporate environmental responsibility (CER). • Financing constraints and executives' attention to CER play mediating roles in the mechanism. • The impact of multi-government ER synergy is heterogeneous among different types of firms. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) calls for enhanced global efforts to achieve the 17 sustainable development goals by 2030, highlighting the crucial role of corporate environmental responsibility (CER) in advancing global sustainability. As a significant participant, China is leveraging its government-led environmental regulation (ER) system, which has a multi-level and multi-sectoral structure, to effectively combat climate change. However, the effect of this ER system, especially collaborative efforts among multiple government subjects, on CER remains unknown. Thus, this paper is the first attempt to investigate the effect and underlying mechanisms of multi-government ER synergy on CER from the perspective of government subject synergy. Using a dataset of Chinese A-share listed manufacturing firms from 2010 to 2021, this study finds the following. First, multi-government ER synergy boosts CER. Direct ER synergy, stemming from joint policy-making across departments, encourages CER in end-of-pipe governance. Indirect ER synergy, arising from administrative hierarchy constraints among multi-level governments, fosters CER in front-end governance. Second, financing constraints and executives' attention to CER are two key channels through which multi-government ER synergy influences CER. Third, firms with political connections, those in heavily polluting industries, or those located in central and western regions adopt more proactive CER strategies under multi-government ER synergy. This paper expands research on government collaborative governance from the regional macro-perspective to the micro-firm level, providing valuable insights for countries worldwide, particularly emerging economies that share similar characteristics with China, to contain rapidly growing environmental challenges and advance global sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to analyze the impact of justice reform on entrepreneurship in China, utilizing a staggered difference-in-differences model. The research reveals that the implementation of justice reform has a sizable positive effect on entrepreneurship, both statistically and economically significant. The influence is more pronounced in areas with higher trust, lower legal environment, and in rural areas. Government quality and innovation are two possible mechanisms. This paper emphasizes the significant role of the justice environment in fostering business innovation and entrepreneurship, and highlights the economic significance of government quality, providing a new perspective for encouraging entrepreneurship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the second populous country in the world, China is confronted with the significant and rapid challenge of population ageing. The household savings rate is inevitably impacted by population ageing. Most existing research has been conducted using macro data from 31 provinces in China. However, most of them lacks consideration of urban-rural differences. Furthermore, there are concerns regarding the applicability of using macro data to study household-level microeconomic issues. Against this backdrop, the objectives of this paper are twofold: first, to investigate the effect of population ageing on the savings rates of urban and rural households in China. Second, this work examines whether urban–rural heterogeneity is evident in the impact of population ageing on household savings in China. This paper conducts a regression analysis on pseudo-panel data from 2010 to 2018 in China using micro-level household data from China Family Panel Studies and employing a Feasible Generalized Least Squares model. The key contribution of this paper is converting cross-sectional microdata into pseudo-panel data, enabling regression analysis within a logical and rigorous theoretical framework. It addresses limitations on existing literature, which predominantly relies on macro data. Additionally, the study takes into account heterogeneity, individual differences, and multicollinearity in regression model selection, thereby remedying the shortcomings of model selection in the majority of the existing literature based on pseudo-panel data. The findings reveal the heterogeneity of household savings rates in urban and rural China, as well as the heterogeneity of the impact of population ageing on the savings rates of urban and rural households in China. Specifically, population ageing significantly reduces household savings rates in both China and rural areas, but significantly increases the savings rates of urban households. Moreover, in the context of population ageing, urban household savings rates are significantly lower than those in rural areas. Policymakers should strengthen urbanization efforts to reduce the urban-rural disparity. In addition, to mitigate the impact of population ageing on savings rates, policymakers should encourage fertility in order to improve household demographics. They should also strengthen investment in education to reduce the burden of household expenditure on education. In addition, policymakers should promote entrepreneurship, provide job training in order to increase household incomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As an emerging industry in the convergence of finance and technology, Digital Inclusive Finance (DIF) has gradually become a fundamental driving factor in increasing Common Prosperity (COPRO). However, the potential influence of DIF on COPRO across counties has yet to be clarified. As a result, we explore the impact, heterogeneous characteristics, and pathways of DIF on COPRO using Chinese county-level panel data from 2014 to 2021. The key findings of this paper are as follows: (1) The COPRO in China's counties has shown a steady upward trend, but there are significant differences in regional development levels. (2) DIF can significantly boost the counties' COPRO, and the above conclusion still holds after multiple robustness tests. (3) The coverage and digitalization of DIF contribute more to COPRO than usage. Furthermore, DIF can contribute to COPRO in central and western, highly urbanized, and internet-enabled counties. (4) DIF can encourage COPRO by easing financial constraints and promoting enterprise cultivation. Drawing from the findings above, this paper offers feasible financial solutions and paths for China and developing countries to promote COPRO. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is posited that solving the problem of relative poverty (RP) first requires the identification of its cause. We use data from China Family Panel Studies to examine the impact of risk preference on RP of urban and rural families in China and the underlying mechanism. This paper contributes to the existing body of evidence on the determinants of RP. The results show that a high degree of risk preference is conducive to alleviating families' RP. The effect is still significant after dealing with potential endogeneity through instrumental variables. Furthermore, the effect is more obvious among health insurance participation families, endowment insurance participation families, families with low life satisfaction, non-poor families, especially middle-income families, urban families, male-headed families and families in the West in China. Further analysis suggests that risk preference affects RP by promoting entrepreneurship and credit in urban and rural families. Families with a higher risk preference are more likely to engage in entrepreneurship and utilize credit, which in turn helps alleviate their RP. Overall, this paper provides new empirical evidence for understanding the mechanism of risk preference influencing RP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

COVID-19 has seriously impacted China's real economy and directly threatened the survival and healthy development of enterprises. Based on the data of Chinese A-share listed enterprises in Shanghai and Shenzhen from 2017 to 2021, this paper empirically examines the impact and mechanism of COVID-19 on enterprises financial distress. The findings are as follows: (1) The impact of COVID-19 significantly increases the risk of enterprises financial distress. (2) There are differences in the effect of COVID-19 on the financial situation of enterprises with different characteristics, with significant negative impacts on enterprises in industries such as mining and manufacturing, as well as smaller enterprises and those located in the central and western regions. (3) Digital transformation and government subsidies can alleviate the negative effects of COVID-19 on enterprises financial distress. The paper provides a basis for enterprises to recover from financial difficulties as soon as possible, enhance competitiveness, and realize sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This paper provides an overview of the trade in artists' materials in Canton between 1750 and 1842. Through an investigation of China's foreign trade archives and records, this study gives a picture of international trade in artists' materials, particularly pigments, during this period in Canton. Furthermore, it reveals a close trade in Western modern pigments between the West and China. The results of this research may be helpful to conservators and conservation scientists conducting treatments or technical studies on Chinese export paintings of this period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the application of intergenerational theory as its analytical framework, this paper seeks to provide new insights into the social construction of sugar-sweetened food and food practices in the context of contemporary urban China, drawing on 16 months' in-depth qualitative research in the city of Chongqing. From an intergenerational perspective, it argues that although adults and children both typically construct sugar-sweetened food as "bad" for health based on the logic of its biological meaning, there are more generational differences in the understandings of sociocultural meanings associated with these foods, which are the main reasons may lead to intergenerational conflict. Caregivers tend to regard their control of children's sugar-sweetened food intake as a means to discipline their children's bodies and develop food moralities. However, children themselves are likely to perform sugar-sweetened food practices as a way of socializing and sometimes resisting the control of caregivers. Based on this, this paper further shows that these diverse views are rooted in the tension between caregivers' anxiety about the transmission of food moralities through intensive parenting practices and children's agency in food consumption in contemporary urban China. These findings enhance intergenerational-theoretical research and highlight the need to move beyond the analytical framework of "behaviour change" in related food and health studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As humanity reaches the 5.0 industrial revolution, education plays a critical role in boosting the quality of human resources. This paper reports bibliometric research on emerging TiP during 1993-2022 in the educational field to analyse its development on any level of education during the last three decades. This study employed a Scopus database. The findings are that the trend of TiP publication in educational fields has tended to increase every year during the past three decades and conference paper became the most published document type, the USA is the country which produces the most publications; "Students" being the most occurrences keyword and total link strength. The publication of the TiP is ranked to the Quartile 1, which implies that a publication with the cited performance is a publication with credibility because the publisher has a good reputation. Researchers can find the topics most relevant to other metadata sources such as Web of Science, Publish, and Perish.

The present study aims to identify the most productive countries, journals, authors, institutions and the most used keywords in the field of special education during 2011-2020, based on the WoS database. The widespread effects of the papers and how they are related were analyzed with the bibliometric analysis method. The findings of the study showed that the USA is inarguably the most productive country, followed by England and Australia. On the other hand, there was a very strong positive correlation (r = 0.929) between the number of papers published by countries and their h-index, a similar finding was also found to be present between the countries' h-index and GDP per capita (r = 0.790). Moreover, it was found that the journals with the highest quartile (Q1 and Q2) in the field of special education published significantly more papers than the journals with the lowest quartile (Q3 and Q4). Matson, JL (USA), Sigafoos, J (New Zealand) and Lancioni, GE (Italy) were determined as the most prolific authors, respectively. Autism, intellectual disability, and Down syndrome were the phrases most frequently used as keywords. Our findings provide key information regarding the developments that the research direction of special education field has recently taken. This study also serves a potential roadmap for future studies.

The practice of Corrective Feedback (CF), which is situated within a Second Language Acquisition (SLA) Paradigm, is currently positioned towards an accuracy-orientated delivery based on native speaker norms. This is despite the recognition in different areas of linguistic research that there is considerable variation in the way that English is spoken around the world. This paper argues that the epistemological assumptions and methodological approaches to investigate CF within an SLA paradigm have various underlying weaknesses that undermine research findings. These findings purport to provide support for an accuracy-orientated CF in the English classroom. However, it is suggested in this paper that a meaning-orientated CF would be more reflective and beneficial for students given the transformative changes that have occurred to English over the past 30 years. This perspective is discussed in relation to one teacher's approach to CF who participated in a larger project which examined CF conducted in a British-Sino University.

In diaspora and post-colonial communities, ethnic Chinese people tend to adopt names that are common in majority English-speaking countries. Compared to these communities, less attention has been paid to mainland Chinese, where the practice of adopting an English name is in the process of becoming normalised among the current generation of fifteen to thirty-five-year-olds. This paper is part of a wider project to examine the English naming practices of Chinese students from mainland China. It focuses specifically on name choices and the reasons for these choices. A 44-item questionnaire was completed by 357 mainland Chinese students, and this paper reports the quantitative data relevant to name choices and the reasons behind them. The results display an array of preferred English names and suggest that one of the key aspects of name choice is the uniqueness of the name, which served multiple purposes: distinguishing themselves from the peers, enabling them to be remembered, and expressing their identity. Additionally, Chinese students demonstrated a high degree of agency in their name choices, which was evident in the creative approaches used in name selection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides a brief introduction to Chinese posthumous names. This name system is based on the opposition between positive and negative evaluations of the deceased. It was employed as a means for negotiating legitimacy and shaping the historical record. This article also provides information on the "Order of Posthumous Names Explained", a chapter of the Neglected Zhou Scriptures. This chapter is a canonical source for the study of Chinese posthumous names. It is commonly seen by scholars as an ancient onomasticon used to assign posthumous names. This paper argues that, in its present form, this chapter is a complex medieval compilation of multiple earlier sources. This paper counters the narrow interpretation of onomasticons of Chinese posthumous names as manuals for assigning names to the deceased. Instead, it postulates that onomasticons of posthumous names were also used as aids in the interpretation of history. They provided meaningful moralistic interpretations for the posthumous names attested in historical sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

'The Exhibition of Archaeological Finds of the People's Republic of China' was unveiled at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. in December 1974. It was the first exhibition of Chinese archaeological relics organised by the People's Republic of China (PRC) in the United States. This occasion marked a significant moment in Sino-American relations and cultural exchange during the Cold War. This paper explores the intricacies of the planning, organisation, and curation of the exhibition, highlighting the strategic use of cultural diplomacy by China to promote its state ideology on an international scale. This paper argues that the exhibition had far-reaching implications for US-China relationship at the time. On one hand, it represented a significant step towards cultural engagement and rapprochement between the two nations. On the other hand, it served to disrupt the relationship further by exposing ideological differences and triggering contentions. Thus, the exhibition's impact on US-China relations was complex and multifaceted, reflecting the delicate act of cultural diplomacy in the context of Cold War politics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on seafarers and the Internet so far has focused primarily on Internet access onboard ships. It frames Internet access as a welfare issue concerning seafarers' communication with their families. This paper expands the focus to examine how seafarers use the Internet and social media to build and extend their social networks for reciprocal support and solidarity. Taking a case study approach, this paper examines two cases of Chinese seafarers protecting their rights online. The data were collected from relevant Internet and social media sites in 2022. The two cases demonstrate that the Internet and social media provide social spaces for Chinese seafarers to expand their social networks and form online professional communities, which afford them new resources to defend their rights and protect their interests. In the context that the Chinese seafarers' union does not function to represent and help seafarers in labor and employment matters, these resources are particularly salient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of mobile technology has facilitated the widespread adoption of digital currency worldwide. An important application of mobile technology is digital currency, which has gained global popularity due to its blockchain and peer-to-peer mobile payment mechanisms. The emergence of private digital currencies, such as Bitcoin, poses a challenge to the monetary policy of governments. To address this threat, many central banks are developing their own central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) with legal support. China's CBDC, e-CNY (electronic China Yuan), is one of the most advanced examples of this innovation. However, the adoption and usage of e-CNY by residents is still limited and requires improvement. This paper aims to identify and analyze the factors that influence residents' willingness to use e-CNY, based on a literature review and a logistic regression model. The results indicate that residents' awareness, convenience, cost, promotional activities, and the involvement of relevant parties (merchants, commercial banks, payment institutions, and the People's Bank of China (PBC)) significantly influence their willingness to use e-CNY. This paper presents implications and suggestions for promoting and implementing e-CNY in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Semi-natural habitats (SNHs) surrounding agricultural fields contribute significantly to biodiversity in agricultural landscapes. SNHs can be divided into large habitat patches such as contiguous patches of forests, and smaller, interspersed linear habitat types such as grassy field margins. Traditional small-holder agricultural farmlands in China, replete with rich linear habitats, are notably beneficial for biodiversity. However, as these farmlands undergo consolidation to enhance the efficiency of machinery, linear habitats are being removed, a process that could adversely affect biodiversity. Appropriate agri-environmental measures (AEM), such as the restoration of field margins via strategic planting, could serve as an effective countermeasure to maintain biodiversity in consolidated land. This paper discusses how biodiversity monitoring can aid in evaluating the impact of land consolidation and the efficacy of AEM in China, from species richness and species composition perspectives. The paper also discusses the function of linear habitats and how they interact with large habitat patches in promoting biodiversity, while noting that outcomes are likely to vary among taxa. Long-term, multiple-taxa and comprehensive assessments are recommended in further studies, and a collaborative approach that involves multiple stakeholders is essential to ensure a success implication of AEM in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Problem-based learning teaching models is a student-centered teaching model. This paper searched China's largest database, China Knowledge Network, using the Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines method to search and screen prospective studies on the teaching effectiveness of the PBL teaching model published from 2013 to 2023, and based on the pre-set inclusion/exclusion criteria, a total of 30 papers were selected. The results show that the PBL teaching model effectively improves Chinese undergraduate students' achievement and critical thinking, and therefore, PBL can be implemented in Chinese undergraduate education. However, the use of the PBL teaching model is narrow due to its late start in China, and a more rigorous methodology and mixed-methods design of the studies are needed to improve the transferability of the results. Keywords: problem-based learning teaching model, achievement, critical thinking skill, Chinese undergraduate [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the ideology of monolingualism prevails in traditional English language classroom teaching, it is gradually failing to meet the current dynamic landscape of socio-linguistic and socio-cultural diversity. Translanguaging has created more spaces for students to use their varied linguistic and multimodal repertoires to express themselves and enhance learning in actual classroom practices. This paper aims to explore students' perceptions and practices of translanguaging at a university located in southeast China. Data were collected via semistructured interviews and reflective journals. The study employed qualitative content analysis to investigate the ways in which the establishment of a translanguaging space might facilitate students' access to linguistic and epistemic equity. The paper ends with suggestions and implications regarding the importance of raising students' awareness of translanguaging as a means to embrace all languages, meaning-making resources, and previous knowledge for equitable English language education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The aim of this paper is to investigate the factors influencing citizens' willingness to participate in the development of smart cities. Design/methodology/approach: Citizens drawn from 30 second-tier cities in China were chosen as the research object for this empirical research. Based on citizenship behavior theory, research hypotheses were tested and analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM). Findings: The results indicated that information publicity has a direct and positive effect on residents' participation behavior. Perceived benefits, personal responsibility and subjective norms are positively associated with residents' citizenship. Additionally, citizenship was found to affect residents' participation intention positively. Finally, the moderating effect of information credibility in this context was also verified. Originality/value: As one of the first empirical studies on this topic, this paper offers important guidance for future research regarding residents' participation in the development of smart cities. On this basis, the implications of this research with respect to policies that aim to encourage residents to participate in the construction of smart cities are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper provides a rationale and historical review of higher vocational education (HVE) globally and in China. The expansion of HVE is driven by dominant themes in policy, such as the encouragement of academics' societal engagement (ASE) for economic development and the need to address social problems like youth unemployment and poverty. The paper examines the development of HVE in China, which has faced challenges related to the degree of connection with high school curriculum and social stigma. The government has implemented the policies to elevate the social status and acceptance of HVE, enhancing its quality and relevance, and reinforcing its governance and management structures. Method: The paper also analyses the prominent research directions and development trends of HVE in China from 2000 to 2023, using the VOS viewer mapping tool and Web of Science. Findings: The result shows that key words like "study," "student," "education," and "vocational college," indicate key themes and focal points in the discourse. In addition, the terms "quality" and "management" being prominent in the analysis reveal concerns for maintaining and improving the quality of higher vocational education. In this way, understanding the mediating effects of "management" can provide possible solutions. While desk-based reviews using VOS viewer as an analysis tool offer valuable insights, they may lack the depth of contextual understanding that can be gained through qualitative analysis. Future Research: This paper calls for future study in the management of faculty deans in HVE institutions and the mediating effect of teachers on improving general teaching quality and student achievement, with an aim of improving the international standards of the vocational education and offering a significant intuition on the development of HVE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A standalone literature review was conducted to ascertain the extent and status of research on the practical inclusion of Chinese music in Western educational contexts. The study identified a body of journal articles and postgraduate theses on the topic. The papers were analysed to discern what might constitute best practice classroom approaches to teaching and learning Chinese music. Based on the review's criteria for inclusion -- papers were in English, praxis-oriented, peer-reviewed and published over the past three decades -- the study found that the number of publications was limited (19) and that in terms of established pedagogical approaches they engaged, some gaps existed, certain pedagogies were minimally represented and some were perhaps too recent to have been trialled. Even so, the study concluded that while best practice is an elusive notion, Chinese music forms and styles appear to be compatible with a range of educational settings and Western-oriented music teaching and learning approaches.

Super oil and gas basins provide the energy foundation for social progress and human development. In the context of climate change and carbon peak and carbon neutrality goals, constructing an integrated energy and carbon neutrality system that balances energy production and carbon reduction becomes crucial for the transformation of such basins. Under the framework of a green and intelligent energy system primarily based on "four news", new energy, new electricity, new energy storage, and new intelligence, integrating a "super energy system" composed of a huge amount of underground resources of coal, oil, gas and heat highly overlapping with abundant wind and solar energy resources above ground, and a regional intelligent energy consumption system with coordinated development and utilization of fossil energy and new energy, with a carbon neutrality system centered around carbon cycling is essential. This paper aims to select the traditional oil and gas basins as "super energy basins" with the conditions to build world-class energy production and demonstration bases for carbon neutrality. The Ordos Basin has unique regional advantages, including abundant fossil fuel and new energy resources, as well as matching CO2 sources and sinks, position it as a carbon neutrality "super energy basin" which explores the path of transformation of traditional oil and gas basins. Under the integrated development concept and mode of "coal + oil + gas + new energy + carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS)/carbon capture and storage (CCS)", the carbon neutrality in super energy basin is basically achieved, which enhance energy supply and contribute to the carbon peak and carbon neutrality goals, establish a modern energy industry and promote regional green and sustainable development. The pioneering construction of the world-class carbon neutrality "super energy system" demonstration basin in China represented by the Ordos Basin will reshape the new concept and new mode of exploration and development of super energy basins, which is of great significance to the global energy revolution under carbon neutrality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper expounds the basic principles and structures of the whole petroleum system to reveal the pattern of conventional oil/gas -- tight oil/gas -- shale oil/gas sequential accumulation and the hydrocarbon accumulation models and mechanisms of the whole petroleum system. It delineates the geological model, flow model, and production mechanism of shale and tight reservoirs, and proposes future research orientations. The main structure of the whole petroleum system includes three fluid dynamic fields, three types of oil and gas reservoirs/resources, and two types of reservoir-forming processes. Conventional oil/gas, tight oil/gas, and shale oil/gas are orderly in generation time and spatial distribution, and sequentially rational in genetic mechanism, showing the pattern of sequential accumulation. The whole petroleum system involves two categories of hydrocarbon accumulation models: hydrocarbon accumulation in the detrital basin and hydrocarbon accumulation in the carbonate basin/formation. The accumulation of unconventional oil/gas is self-containment, which is microscopically driven by the intermolecular force (van der Waals force). The unconventional oil/gas production has proved that the geological model, flow model, and production mechanism of shale and tight reservoirs represent a new and complex field that needs further study. Shale oil/gas must be the most important resource replacement for oil and gas resources of China. Future research efforts include: (1) the characteristics of the whole petroleum system in carbonate basins and the source-reservoir coupling patterns in the evolution of composite basins; (2) flow mechanisms in migration, accumulation, and production of shale oil/gas and tight oil/gas; (3) geological characteristics and enrichment of deep and ultra-deep shale oil/gas, tight oil/gas and coalbed methane; (4) resource evaluation and new generation of basin simulation technology of the whole petroleum system; (5) research on earth system -- earth organic rock and fossil fuel system -- whole petroleum system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Enhancing student motivation to manage their learning process and attain selftransformation in Oral English learning presents a notable challenge. This study emerged from a Role Play Oral English Course (RPOEC) which utilizes English cartoon film clips to enhance primary students' oral English skills through role play, facilitating meaningful language input and output. Implemented in a Chinese context where English language exposure is limited, this qualitative case study, combined with action research, explores how autonomous learning is fostered through RPOEC. The study engaged a Grade Six class of 30 students (25 girls and 5 boys) in northern China, investigating strategies to trigger learners' interests and form their independent learner identities autonomously, empower learners in their educational journey, encourage reflective practices in oral English learning, and involve learners in evaluative processes. Data, collected through a combination of observations, focus group discussions, and document analysis for three months, were thematically analyzed across four intertwined perspectives: situated learning, interactive communication, cooperative learning, and evaluative discussions. The paper posits that the outlined curricular approach can be tailored to educators' needs aiming to cultivate students' oral English skills within a situated, interactive, and collaborative learning environment, pushing learners towards autonomous engagement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The number of international schools hit the 6,000-mark in 2012, and the 13,000-mark in 2022. In spite of continuous growth and diversity of provision, paradoxically some literature continues to paint a largely negative sociological imagination, associating the arena with micro-politics, high turnover, and increasing precarity. At the same time, the social reality of working in the arena remains under-reported and under-theorised. The largest number of international schools are now in China, where two-thirds are of the 'non-traditional' type. Our paper focuses on the experiences of two expatriate teachers in that relatively new field. In order to address the questions of 'how do teachers cope?', and 'what strategies do they adopt?', our paper delves into the under-reported social reality of 'cliques'. By adopting a 'positive sociology' lens of inquiry, we begin to address the role that cliques-formation might have in dealing with precarity and insecurity, especially that of 'friendship precarity' caused by constant transitions and short-term contracts. It can be seen that cliques offer a natural, quick, and practical solution to addressing precarity, helping over time to create resilience, and should not be viewed solely within a negative sociological imagination.

Chinese has a rich and diverse vocabulary of terms, especially verbs, expressing power relationships. This paper selected 25 power relationship terms from the Chinese Proficiency Scale for International Chinese Education, and used a true-false format to test the differences in acquisition between international students from Confucian cultural circles and those from non-Confucian cultural circles. The study found that: (1) The acquisition levels of both groups are generally behind that of ordinary vocabulary; (2) There is a significant difference in the acquisition levels between the two groups, with the former performing better than the latter; and (3) There is a significant difference in the acquisition of these terms in administrative and family settings between the two groups, with the former performing better than the latter, but there is no significant difference in the acquisition of terms in other settings such as education. In response to these findings, the paper used interview data to provide mutual confirmation, and applied theories related to learning input, language transfer, and cultural circles to analyze and interpret the results. Finally, the paper made targeted suggestions for the teaching of power relationship terms.

One specific phenomenon in the Spring Festival travel rush in China is that purchasing a train ticket becomes tough as the train tickets could be sold out extremely soon. Therefore, the current paper presents an analysis of college students' trip ticket purchasing strategies for homecoming trips during Chinese Spring Festival using a sequential stated adaptation experiment, based on which three different choice models were applied and the results show that 1) college students would keep purchasing the ticket of planned train trip and this willingness would decrease with the increasing of the times they fail to get the ticket; 2) if college students decide to give up the conventional train trip they have planned, they have a tendency to choose other conventional train trips, but it is not the case regarding high-speed train trips; 3) air itinerary trips are attractive alternatives to trains trips, especially to high-speed train trips. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates how political connections affect the relationship between trade policy uncertainty and corporate investment by utilizing Chinese non-financial firm-level data from 2003 to 2022. We find that trade policy uncertainty inhibits corporate investment by decreasing expected cash flows, increasing cash flow uncertainty, and lowering investment returns. Political connections mitigate the adverse impact of trade policy uncertainty on corporate investment by increasing government subsidies, alleviating financing constraints, and improving investment inefficiency for firms. The results are robust to changing variables measurements, alternating econometric model settings, and addressing endogeneity concerns. We also find the adverse impact of trade policy uncertainty on corporate investment is more pronounced for non-state-owned firms and small-sized firms, and the positive role of political connections benefits firms with higher financing constraints, lacking bank-firm relationships, and regions with lower institutional quality. Our findings highlight that optimizing the business environment and strengthening the communication between firms and governments are crucial for coping with unexpected policy uncertainty shocks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the impact of environmental information disclosure on firm pollution behavior by leveraging an exogenous shock which allow Chinese environmental non-governmental organizations (ENGOs) to disclose pollution information. Using a difference-in-differences approach comparing firms in disclosed cities versus undisclosed cities, we find ENGO information disclosure significantly reduces manufacturing firm COD emissions. We explore several potential mechanisms and find that the reduction effect was primarily driven by "higher-level government supervision" rather than "public supervision." Heterogeneous analysis reveals significant effects only for firms facing high reduction pressure, low governance costs, weak local protection, and in heavy-polluting industries. Our findings provide insights into supplementing inadequate regulations with informal institutions to achieve environmental aims within a decentralized economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amidst pressing global needs for environmental protection and sustainable development, the international community expects corporations to play a vital role, balancing profit pursuits with environmental responsibility. As the world's second-largest economy and a manufacturing giant, China's environmental governance and corporate models become a research centerpiece. Using the panel data of Chinese A-share heavy polluting industry listed companies from 2013 to 2020, and adopting the Linear-In-Means Model, this paper proposes for the first time that the corporate environmental financial integration is significantly influenced by the peer enterprises. Further research finds that: 1) Peer effect is more significant in private enterprises than state-owned enterprises. 2)The peer effect of environmental pollution integration of heavily polluting enterprises is sticky, mainly reflected in the effect of focus enterprises following peer enterprises to reduce their own environmental financial integration is stronger than the effect of following peer enterprises to upgrade synchronously. And this kind of stickiness is more significant in private enterprises. 3) The institutional pressure has a role in promoting the peer effect of enterprise environmental financial integration, and more significant in state-owned enterprises. Delving into the dynamics of Chinese enterprises in environmental management and financial strategies serves not only to excavate lessons from China's experience but also contributes to the global reservoir of wisdom on environmental protection and green development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Green Financial Reform and Innovation (GFRI) policy not only serves as a crucial tool for facilitating a comprehensive transition towards sustainable practices in economic and social development but also has a significant influence on the operational activities of companies. However, there is limited research on whether the GFRI policy can affect companies' overcapacity. To address this gap, we use data from the China Stock Market & Accounting Research Database and the Chinese Research Data Services Platform to evaluate the impact of green finance on companies' overcapacity. The results show that the GFRI policy can effectively alleviate companies' overcapacity. Moreover, the GFRI policy can alleviate companies' overcapacity by strengthening market competition, enhancing financing constraints, and promoting innovation. Further, the GFRI policy exerts a more pronounced effect on alleviating overcapacity in non-labor-intensive companies, companies in heavily polluting industries, and companies in regions with weak environmental supervision. This paper not only supplements the relevant literature on alleviating overcapacity but also provides more theoretical support for promoting a national green financial system in practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pollution reduction and low-carbon development are two specific but intertwined goals of addressing climate change and sustainable development of the United Nations in 2030, and the effective use of digital financial inclusion is imperative for driving technical innovation, upgrading industrial structure, and addressing climate change. Therefore, this paper investigates the impact of digital financial inclusion on the coupling coordination between pollution reduction and low-carbon development using a panel dataset of 30 China's provinces from 2011 to 2020. The results show that the coupling coordination between pollution reduction and low-carbon development in China improves significantly during the sample period. The synergistic effect of different economic zones and provinces varies greatly in space and time. In addition, digital financial inclusion has a promoting effect on the coupling coordination of pollution and carbon emission reduction. A mechanism analysis also reveals that technological innovation, industrial structure and energy consumption are the core transmission channels through which digital financial inclusion influences the synergistic effect of pollution and carbon emission reduction. This suggests that the need of coordinated governance by policymakers is warranted, and digital financial inclusion is an important way to this coordinated governance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Chinese government aims to balance employment stabilization and emissions reduction when it initiates an emissions trading scheme (ETS) to control carbon emissions. However, the policymakers should not neglect the role of imperfectly competitive market structure and market power from incumbent firms. In view of this, classical framework of Berman and Bui's (2001) is extended in this paper to clarify the theoretical mechanism of employment effect of the ETS considering firm-level market power. In addition, based on the firm-level panel data from 2008 to 2019 of China, the employment effect of each pilot ETS is measured with the method of difference-in-difference-in-differences. Then a moderating effect model is established to verify the role of firm-level market power on the heterogeneous employment effect among the pilot ETSs. Moreover, the employment effect is further decomposed to evaluate the influential mechanism from the perspective of firms' strategic behavior. It is found that there is negative employment effect of China's ETS policy, due to the significant moderating role of firm-level market power. This decrease in labor demand is mainly dominated by a negative output effect rather than a positive substitution effect because strategic allowance sellers with stronger market power tend to hire fewer employees to reduce carbon emissions by controlling production scale. However, the heterogeneity of policy effects resulted by market structure is also identified in different pilot regions. Employment dividend has been found in Beijing and Tianjin where strategic allowance buyers manipulate the carbon market and hire more employees to consolidate their market power. Therefore, policymakers should improve the design of the ETS to overcome the adverse employment effect duo to the region-specific market structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the context of significant environmental changes, the urgency of adopting green innovation has become increasingly apparent as a central mechanism for adjusting industrial structures in China. This transition serves not only as a crucial way to address pressing environmental challenges, but also as a fundamental strategy to improve the ecological efficiency of urban areas. Existing research mainly keeps a close eye on the unidirectional relationship between variables such as technological innovation and environmental protection. There is less relevant literature that has researched the cointegration relationship among green innovation, industrial structure, and eco-efficiency of cities. The essential role of green innovation and industrial structure in reaching a higher eco-efficiency of city are discussed in this research and the relationship among these three variables are analyzed by the evidence from cities in China from 2011 to 2019. The fact that the variables are cointegrated in the long run is evidenced by the results for the full sample. The sub-sample results report that in the eastern region, green innovation, industrial structure upgrading, and industrial structure rationalization could improve urban eco-efficiency. However, in Midwest regions where economic development is relatively backward, green innovation's effect on urban eco-efficiency is not in a significant positive way. The results obtained in this paper have implications for different cities in China to formulate corresponding policies on green innovation, industrial structure, and urban eco-efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]