Search

A systematic-study is conducted using an innovative technology for paper drying by applying ultrasound mechanism. The advantages include greater energy efficiency, lower drying time and temperature, improvement of the product quality, and it is considered a green technology. The effects of initial moisture content, thickness, and refining condition are studied for different types of pulps (hardwood and softwood) using 23 factorial design of experiments. Analysis of Variance show that in the range of the studied parameters, thickness has the maximum effect on ultrasonic drying time followed by the initial moisture content. In addition, using a linear regression model, a relationships for the total time of drying is provided. The results confirmed that ultrasonic drying is more efficient at higher moisture content and higher thickness of the sample. These results are related to the structural characteristic of the samples such as porosity, pore distribution, and surface roughness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Catalonia is experiencing a significant wave of innovation in its schools. After decades of little change, since 2015 there has been a systemic surge of innovation in education that includes hundreds of primary and secondary schools. Almost at the same time, in 2015, the Catalan government enacted a new inclusive school framework based on the Salamanca Statement and subsequent developments (Ainscow, Booth, Slee, Stainback or Pujolàs, among others). This position paper analyses exploratory what is occurring in schools regarding the intersectionality between innovation and inclusion. The preliminary results show that, inclusion often competes and clashes with innovation in concrete school perspectives and practices. Our appraisal is that some schools tend to prioritise innovative practices over inclusive ones and present them as a 'school brand' in order to compete for white middle-class families. At the same time, some (head) teachers avoid implementing inclusive practices because they feel they are related to having more Special Educational Needs (SEN) students and a more complex and less 'competitive' school. The paper concludes by critiquing the setback to inclusive practices due to intersectionality with innovation, and by outlining some recommendations to generate positive synergies between the movements of innovation and inclusion [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From Longing to Belonging: A Practical Guide to Including People with Disabilities and Mental Health Conditions in Your Faith Community: Shelly Christensen, ed. (Inclusion Innovations, 2018). xix + 312 pp. Christensen uses her own experiences, research, and disability literature to explore facets of inclusion and exclusion in faith communities. Christensen writes, " I We all have good intentions to be the kind of inclusive community where people with disabilities and mental health conditions feel that they belong. [Extracted from the article]

Rollins reveals neuroscientists' promises to be more branding than substance, a defensive crouch aimed at heading off controversy rather than tackling the immensely complicated interactions between the biological and the social. This conviction has solidified into what Rollins deems the "violent brain model" - an assumption that the brain is locus of violence and criminality. Part I unpacks the research program, specifically the research assumptions and conventions by which neuroscientists squeeze the complexity of crime and violence into the violent brain model. [Extracted from the article]

PurposeMethodology/approachFindingsResearch implicationsPractical implicationsOriginality/value/contribution of the paperThere is no doubt that technology impacts organizational processes and key performance. However, the success of an organization is influenced by the openness and willingness of staff to accept a specific technology. This study focuses on B2B marketing employees and aims to determine employee readiness and acceptance of new technology based on the impact of technology characteristics on employee perceptions with an ensuing effect on technology readiness and technology acceptance.This study employed the Stimulus-Organism-Response theory, and made use of views pertaining to Technology Readiness Index (TRI), Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), and Task-Technology Fit (TTF). Thus, the study investigated the impact of functionality, reliability, compatibility, and innovative features on perceived technological usefulness, task-technology fit, and trust in technology, and, further, their influence on technology readiness and technology acceptance. An online questionnaire was employed to collect data from B2B marketing employees in China working in companies that introduced at least one new technology for work purposes in the last 24 months. Based on a convenience sampling method, 450 valid questionnaires were collected. PLS-SEM was used to analyze the data.Functionality, reliability, compatibility, and innovative features had significant positive effects on perceived technological usefulness and task-technology fit. Functionality, reliability, and compatibility had significant positive effects on trust in technology. Among the four technology characteristics, the strongest influence was recorded in the case of compatibility on task-technology fit, while innovative features represented the only variable that displayed a non-significant relationship with an employee perception and trust in technology. Task-technology fit had significant positive impacts on perceived technological usefulness, trust in technology, technology readiness, and technology acceptance. Perceived technological usefulness and trust in technology displayed significant positive effects on technology readiness and technology acceptance. Among the three B2B marketing employee perceptions, the strongest relationship was the one between task-technology fit and trust in technology. Technology readiness had a significant positive influence on technology acceptance. Mediating effects were also computed, with indirect effects complementing the direct ones. Task-technology fit partially mediated the effects of functionality, reliability, compatibility, and innovative features on trust in technology. Trust in technology partially mediated the effects of task-technology fit on technology readiness and technology acceptance. Technology readiness partially mediated the effects of perceived technological usefulness and trust in technology on technology readiness. Innovative features, displaying a non-significant effect on trust in technology, had an indirect effect on it through task-technology fit.This study proposes a new research vein on B2B marketing employee technology adoption by investigating technology readiness and technology acceptance as dependent variables, as well as the impact of the former on the latter. Moreover, this research defined B2B marketing employee perceptions as perceived technological usefulness, task-technology fit, and trust in technology by combining two theories, TAM and TTF and arguing the importance of trust in technology in explaining employee behavior regarding technology usage. Trust in technology could compensate for lack of technology and build positive expectations about the effects of technology use, thus, acting as a trigger to adopt technology. Additionally, the selection of the characteristics of technology had as roots user perceptions, thus, integrating the two research streams on the impact of technology found in the literature, the user-centered and the technology-centered.B2B marketing managers can make use of the research findings by making sure that an implemented technology renders benefits connected to functionality, reliability, compatibility, and innovative features, as all of them were perceived by B2B marketing employees to be useful, supportive in meeting job requirements and being prerequisites of trust in technology. Managers should emphasize the matching between job requirements and technology features as compatibility, task-technology fit, and trust in technology showed the strongest connections. If employees understand that technology helps them in doing their jobs, they will build trust in technology and will be open to engage with technology and adopt it.The paper proposes a new avenue of exploring technology usage behavior. To this aim, the paper presents a model built on SOR, adding to the literature a different perspective. The stimuli (S) were technology characteristics built from the literature to match the four independent variables of TRI, namely optimism, innovativeness, discomfort, and insecurity. The organism variables (O) were drawn from TAM, adapting perceived usefulness from the model perceived, from TTF making use of task-technology fit, and adding trust in technology to these two in order to form employee perceptions on new technology. TAM and TTF were combined to document the appropriateness to use task-technology fit over perceived ease of use, moving the focus from the effort entailed to use the technology onto the matching between a job requirement and the technology. As responses (R), technology readiness and technology acceptance were used, combining dependent variables used in TRI and TAM. It is probably for the first time that these two variables are investigated so comprehensively in the same model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What constitutes good intelligence is best understood by practitioners but has not been explored through empirical analysis and in the context of a digital age. This paper presents the first research inside all the agencies that form the Australian National Intelligence Community exploring how they are impacted by big data. Intelligence is often opaque to outsiders, yet understanding the characteristics of good intelligence is important to societies that rely on intelligence agencies for national security. This paper reflects the previously unheard perspectives of members of the agencies that form the Australian National Intelligence Community – where there is a significant empirical gap. Semi-structured interviews with 47 participants explored the impact of big data on intelligence and decision-making in Australia. This paper finds that intelligence must meet the following characteristics, many established in historical literature, in order to be considered good intelligence; (i) timely, (ii) purposeful, (iii) actionable, (iv) accurate, (v) provides value-add for an intended audience, and, (vi) is unbiased. This article explores and unpacks each of these characteristics of good intelligence and finds they remain critical in a big data era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper aims to critically analyse the development dichotomies and socio-ecological concerns inherent in a controversial megaproject in Kerala – the Semi High-Speed Rail Corridor, also known as the Silverline Project – through a political ecology lens. The mainstream discourses of development in an extractivist political economy focus on economic growth and technological advancement without a critical social and ecological security assessment. Megaprojects are presented as dream projects and symbols of modernity, even when fragmentation and degradation of socio-ecological systems are apparent. The paper explores the multiple strategies used by the State to legitimising the project, which includes overriding or diluting the regulatory framework for conservation, greenwashing, manipulative reductionism etc. It argues that an inclusive development discourse should go beyond perceiving environment and development as a binary opposition and thrive for a critical and reflexive conceptualisation and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy security is among the top security concerns of the 21st century requiring technological answers. However, the technological innovations adopted often not only serve to ensure adequate energy access and stable flow of energy, but also foster specific visions of socio-economic and techno-political orders and security. This paper tweaks the analytical lens of sociotechnical imaginaries, in which desired futures are connected to social and technical elements in concrete cases by adding a focus on identity formation and ontological security to the analytical model. Zooming in on the Baltic Sea Region, the paper traces sociotechnical imaginaries tied to the desired future of energy sovereignty through coal and nuclear energy in Poland and the bright future of energy independence through a liquified natural gas terminal in Lithuania. Nationally embedded understandings of how (in)security can be managed through technological innovation and how the desired national energy visions can be attained in the process highlight the importance of ontological security concerns. In tracing those themes, the paper combines a historical view with developments since the mid-2010s in Polish and Lithuanian energy discourse and analyzes the mainstream energy security imaginaries as envisioned by political elites. The study draws on speeches of key political figures, official documents concerning energy planning as well as semi-structured interviews. The analysis highlights how the study of energy innovation in the Baltic Sea Region can contribute to the conversation between critical security studies and science and technology studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

McIntyre traces how the particular set of strategies and techniques he terms "obstructive direct action" emerged, diffused and were refined and developed in three national contexts - Australia, the USA, and Canada - from 1979 to 1990. Environmental Blockades: Obstructive Direct Action and the History of the Environmental Movement: By Iain McIntyre. McIntyre reveals that Australia has punched above its weight in the world of obstructive direct action, with Australian blockades proving both inspirational and instructive for later North American protesters. [Extracted from the article]

In the past years, human computer interaction (HCI) research and innovation have developed substantially, leading to a number of fruitful research topics. In this paper, we surveyed the HCI research and innovation in China from a 10-year perspective. We analyzed the popular research methodology and topics among Chinese researchers, including human modeling, user interface techniques, context awareness, user acceptance and performance, user experience design, human-AI interaction, HCI applications and social influences. We also conducted a bibliography analysis on the published papers in top-tier conferences and journals, which revealed a significant rising trend, and a generally broad distribution of research types. Moreover, we described typical applications and the industry influence of the research outcomes. We concluded with implications and reflections for HCI researchers across the world and shared the future research trends envisioned by Chinese researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ecological civilization construction is an important dimension to achieve high-quality economic development. This paper evaluates the eco-efficiency improvement effect of China's ecological civilization pilot zone policy utilizing the synthetic control method (SCM) differences-in-differences method (DID) and examines the influence mechanism of ecological civilization pilot zones on eco-efficiency in the light of the environmental pollution penalty, green technological innovation, and environmental publicity and education. The study results indicate that the construction of the ecological civilization pilot zone policy has substantially boosted eco-efficiency in the pilot areas, with the strongest boosting effect on eco-efficiency in Fujian province, followed by Guizhou province, and not significantly on eco-efficiency in Jiangxi province. Further, this paper also reveals that the construction of ecological civilization pilot zones has effectively contributed to eco-efficiency through channels such as strengthening the environmental pollution penalty, stimulating green technological innovation, and broadening environmental publicity and education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The evolution of digital technologies has frequently been hailed as a 'game-changer' in education. However, like previous technological innovations, such as television, these recent developments have failed thus far to demonstrate any significant large-scale improvement in the quality of educational provision or in educational outcomes. The papers in this special issue suggest that there is potential to change this scenario. Digital platforms such as Binogi have been able to exploit technological advances such as vastly improved crosslinguistic machine translation ushered in by artificial intelligence to make curriculum content much more accessible to multilingual students. Drawing on the papers in this special issue, I highlight three dimensions of digital learning environments that have demonstrated pedagogical credibility to enhance multilingual learners' development of literacy and their acquisition of academic content in the target language: (a) they provide extensive access to and promote engagement with written (and oral) input in the target language, (b) they provide instructional scaffolds within the digital environment to promote both awareness of how language works and intentional learning of academic concepts and subject matter content, and (c) they encourage and enable students to become autonomous learners who are capable of self-regulating and evaluating their own learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the phenomenon of intra-industry Business Model (BM) imitation through the concept of BM configurations and sheds light on how it relates to BM innovation. The analysis focuses on similarities and deviations of BM configurations among 80 companies operating in the industry sector related to Phantom Limb Pain (PLP). Leveraging a questionnaire-based mapping tool, the results show that companies operating within the area of PLP treatment apply relatively similar BM configurations. This indicates that companies mostly imitate the successful BMs of their main competitors in the industry as a whole and in their specific sub-groups, thus potentially ignoring the opportunity to also compete on a BM level. The contribution brought by the paper is twofold. First, it adds to the research stream on BM configurations by showing that this concept can be used not only to analyze and foster cross-industry BM imitation, but also to explore and examine intra-industry BM imitation (or differentiation). Second, the article contributes to the research stream on intra-industry BM imitation by going beyond prior anecdotal evidence and empirically testing the existence of the phenomenon of intra-industry BM imitation and hence, the potential innovation space on a BM level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasing attention is being paid towards the influence of regional contexts on innovation activities within regional development studies. Some of the literature in economic geography tends to consider the various peripheral areas as being homogenous and partly characterized by their remote location, weak innovation inputs and lack of knowledge exchange. This paper questions this approach by examining the role of innovation activities in peripheral regions. We offer a detailed and multifaceted taxonomy of the Norwegian economic regions. From an empirical viewpoint, the adoption of cluster analysis and a broad set of innovation, economic and territorial indicators allowed us to provide a nuanced picture of the current fabric of Norwegian innovation and economic-production. With the benefit of insights from relevant strands of literature (e.g. regional development, innovation systems and multi-scalar innovation networks), the case of Norway presented in our paper contributes to the scholarly debate on the role of structural preconditions for the innovation of firms in diverse peripheral areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Renewable energy is now in high demand due to the deterioration of the global climate and the depletion of conventional sources. Renewable energy sources (RES) such as wind and solar are extremely intermittent, making it impossible to sustain system reliability with an unacceptably high proportion of renewable energy injection. An intrinsic attribute common to all renewable power plants is that the production of energy relies on environmental conditions such as temperature, pressure, wind speed, humidity, clouds, etc. Therefore, the power from RES cannot be completely regulated or pre-planned. It is important to forecast the amount of electricity that can be produced in a power grid for future demand. Machine learning (ML) is an emerging technology and used in all fields nowadays to perform different tasks. In this paper, the applications of machine learning in renewable energy sources are discussed. These ML techniques are mainly used to predict the power from renewable energy sources like wind, solar, hydro, biomass, tidal, and geothermal. Fault detection is a significant aspect in renewable energy systems to reduce the operation and maintenance cost and to deliver the continuous power to the loads. This paper also focusses on the use of ML techniques in predicting the faults before it occurs, early detection of faults and also to diagnose the faults in renewable energy systems. Along with the above-mentioned applications, these ML techniques used in RES for different purposes are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper uses knowledge base as an intermediary variable and takes Chinese A-share manufacturing listed companies from 2010 to 2018 as the research object to examine the impact of technological mergers and acquisitions on corporate innovation performance. The study found that: (1) Technology acquisition plays a significant role in promoting the innovation performance of enterprises, indicating that for every 1% increase, the technological innovation of manufacturing enterprises will increase significantly by about 0.44%. Using different core variable metrics, different regression samples, and different estimation methods, the results still exist, indicating that this finding is robust. (2) The nature of enterprise property rights, the level of economic development, and the level of technological development have led to the heterogeneity of technological mergers and acquisitions in driving enterprise innovation. (3) The scale of the knowledge base is the key intermediary variable. The findings of this paper are helpful to understand the internal dynamic mechanism of Chinese innovation-driven strategy, and pro-vide policy inspiration for the transformation of high-quality economic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A previous paper on RIS3 assessed its potential to influence growth strategies and their delivery. It held that significant further investment work was needed in tools and techniques, data and intelligence, and innovation in leadership capacity and capabilities. It further asserted that such investment was needed to be part of a commitment to a long-run learning and evaluation process. This paper considers synergies and dissonances between these national approaches to development in England. In particular, it explores how far RIS represents a step change from previous approaches to innovation-led growth. Alternatively, is it more accurately an incremental facelift and rebranding of previous orthodoxies? Does it add value to or detract from national policy for England? What roles might the approach play in the so-called ‘devolution revolution’? Can the (small scale, ‘light touch’) Advisory Hub approach support and promote those roles? What, if anything, might the England experience have for other nations and regions of Europe? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on the innovation in paper making in the Netherlands during 1750 to 1850. Citation of the technological innovation in the Dutch paper making industry; Effect of international competition on Dutch paper making industry; Barriers to the introduction of paper making machines in Netherlands.

The writing process has traditionally been seen ‘as a lonely journey’ to typify the lack of support that students experience for writing outside the classroom. This paper examines an attempt of The Writing Portal (TWP), a supplementary online writing platform, to support students’ writing needs throughout the five stages of the writing process, viz., planning, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing. Social constructivist principles underpin TWP, which was designed to engender collaboration amongst its student participants. Not only does TWP provide links to evaluated Internet resources and a writing portfolio, but it also features collaboration tools such as the Group Forum, chat, a writing portfolio, a private messaging system, and a comment function for pages or articles created. Thus, it is very much akin to a ‘one-stop centre’ for academic writing within a flexible and supportive environment. In this qualitative case study, 16 third-year TESL pre-service teachers at a Malaysian Teacher Education Institute embarked on a 12-week writing course using TWP. Qualitative data in the form of students’ online discourses, task reflections, log files, and digital artefacts were captured to explore how TWP's affordances supported students’ writing needs. In addition, Soller's collaborative learning conversation skills (CLCS) taxonomy was used as an analytical framework to investigate the collaborative learning engendered in the online environment. The findings indicate that TWP served its purpose by addressing students’ writing needs at all stages of the writing process as they accomplished multiple writing tasks. Additionally, evidence of collaborative learning is evident in three functions of TWP: the Group Forum, chat, and the comments for pages/articles. However, there are differences between the frequencies of the specific skills used for each function. To conclude, TWP appears to be a successful tool at supporting students at all stages of the writing process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The participating teams have developed Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGV) and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) with new technologies and tried to solve the complex problems of the missions using the above core technologies. In this issue, we will compile articles to introduce the state-of-the-art technologies of the disaster response robots of the Disaster category. We are pleased to announce the special issue on Disaster Response Robot - selected papers from the World Robot Summit 2020. [Extracted from the article]

In late nineteenth-century USA, technological developments in paper production—a shift from a reliance on scarce cotton rag to plentiful wood—drastically reduced the price of newsprint. That decline helped overturn the reigning economics of the daily newspaper and resulted in the rise of new cheap papers with vastly expanded circulation. This novel mass press encompassed almost all Americans in the public sphere as represented by its pages. Focusing on newspapers in Detroit, this study examines the manifold consequences this shift had for the press's economics, its news agenda, and the implicit identity of the audience it addressed. The rise of a mass press in the late nineteenth century, however, was not specific to Detroit or the USA. As comparative historians have highlighted, the emergence of a mass press in Europe and elsewhere was a turning point that deeply marked the historical evolution of press systems around the globe. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Technological change has brought a new dimension to the interaction between civic protest and policing in post-Soviet societies. Social media has had a revolutionary impact on protests during the last decade, mobilising citizens to resist state corruption and despotism, notably in states like Armenia, the Republic of Moldova and Belarus. Enhanced surveillance techniques and new communication channels have, at the same time, changed policing techniques and the modes of interaction between citizens and the police. This article examines the dynamics of transformed protest and policing practices, particularly of public order police, in the context of digitisation and social/political protest and change. It sheds light on the transformation of citizen-police relations and, ultimately, on the repercussions this has on the respective polities. The principal findings of the paper reveal that digital technology has been an important element in the evolution of practices of policing and police reform across the region. Yet, it is only one aspect of many in the somewhat divergent development of citizen-police relations. So far, it has produced rather negative effects instead of having been conducive to the mentality and ethos of the police. The disconnect between people and the police remains large in societies across the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A large number of ancient mosaics are no longer available to us because they have been destroyed by erosion, earthquakes, looting, or even used as materials in newer construction. To make things worse, among the small fraction of mosaics that have been recovered, many are damaged or incomplete. Therefore, it is of interest to explore how the mosaics may have appeared originally by using virtual reconstruction. This has traditionally been done manually and more recently using computer graphics programs but always by humans. In the last few years, artificial intelligence (AI) has made impressive progress in the generation of images from text descriptions and reference images. State-of-the-art AI tools such as DALL-E2 can generate high-quality images from text prompts and can take a reference image to guide the process. In August 2022, DALL-E2 launched a new feature called outpainting that takes as input an incomplete image and a text prompt and then generates a complete image filling in the missing parts. In this paper, we explore whether this innovative technology can be used to perform virtual reconstruction of mosaics with missing parts. Hence, a set of ancient mosaics have been selected and DALL-E2 has been used to create virtual reconstructions; the results are promising, showing that AI is able to interpret the key features of the mosaics and is able to produce virtual reconstructions that capture the essence of the scene. However, in some cases AI does not reproduce some details or geometric forms or introduces elements that are not consistent with the rest of the mosaic. This suggests that when AI image generation technology matures in the next few years, it could be a valuable tool to create virtual reconstructions of mosaics in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the era of open innovation, it is of great significance to analyse strategic trade-offs for enterprises' technology acquisition between external and internal. This paper considers the relative pay-offs amongst two manufacturers' selection for their respective scarce technology of the Internet of Things, using game theory models and numerical analysis. In addition to self-innovation relying on internal resources, enterprises can obtain technology from external sources, including technology imported from a third party or cross-licensing with its competitor. Unlike empirical analysis, this study focuses on the strategic firms' interactions at the micro-level study and operational considerations, such as the factors influencing the mode of enterprise technology acquisition, firm competition and cooperation behaviour mechanism, and the selection of innovation initiators. The findings provide implications for competitive enterprises in high-tech industries to acquire complementary technologies by identifying what conditions lead to win-win outcomes. In particular, firms can adjust their licensing levels under certain conditions to adapt to the disparities in each other's development capabilities, thus achieving cross-licensing agreements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digital Storytelling as a pedagogical tool in higher education is still an emerging technology with great potential for growth and innovation. While there has been a growing interest in the pedagogies of storytelling, its adaptation in digital classrooms is not yet fully realized. This paper reports on a current project developed within the social work program that focuses on applying programmatic approach to assessment and curriculum design using digital storytelling. The project was designed to create safe and supported learning environment for students that encourages the development of practice skills while exploring sensitive topics and issues pertinent to working with children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given that eco-innovations and the associated renewal of regional economic structures are pivotal in addressing environmental challenges, regional research is increasingly focusing on their spatio-temporal dynamics. While green technological and industrial path developments in specific regions have received considerable attention, little effort has been made to derive general patterns of environmental inventive activities across regions. Drawing on unique data capturing both green incumbent and green start-up activities in the 401 German NUTS-3 regions over the period 1997–2018, this paper sheds light on how eco-innovation activities unfold in different regional contexts. For this purpose, we introduce sequence analysis methods into the research toolkit of research on regional development. These novel methods allow us to understand to what extent regions engage in eco-innovation activities, how these activities change over time and to what extent similar or unique eco-innovation trajectories (co)evolve. Based on this empirical approach, we distinguish different types of regional eco-innovation trajectories and find a strong persistence and path dependency in green regional development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we investigate the role of brokers in the regional innovation network and its influence on innovative and collaborative outcomes. For this purpose, we make use of data from the European Patent Office and Eurostat in the period 1986–2015. We first build the regional collaboration network based on co-inventorship ties, and then we identify the brokerage roles played by each region, using the original taxonomy proposed by Gould and Fernandez (1989), to disentangle their impact on innovation and collaboration. Finally, we investigate regional collaboration intensity and how it interacts with brokerage roles, highlighting its mediating effect. Our findings indicate that brokerage roles contribute to the extension of collaboration networks, but also that they are not efficient for the creation of innovation. Collaboration intensity, on the other hand, enhances both innovation and collaborative outcomes and shows how a region can benefit from being a broker. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Geographers have long been interested in popular culture, exploring everything from music and film, to fashion and sport. However, there remain some gaps in the field with some of the biggest and most widely consumed genres of popular culture suffering from neglect. Given the pace of technological change, geographers have been noticeably slow to come to grips with new digital popular media. This special issue presents work that interrogates popular culture ranging from the new to the old for its role as a vector for, or entry point into, encounters with places and people, and as a producer of spatiality and social relations. This editorial uses the concept of (em)placement to identify the complex overlaps, imbrications, and interlockings between social, cultural, and technological actors/actants. (Em)placement is also deployed to expand the space for popular culture as an object of study in geography in order to foster more diverse engagements, and the freedom to engage, with popular culture in the discipline. In doing so, we highlight contributions to cultural geography, bringing into focus the ways in which popular culture has been redefined in a time of heightened digital and deterritorialized engagement alongside restrictions on physical interaction enforced during the COVID-19 lockdowns. Finally, the editorial introduces the seven papers in this special issue, drawing attention to workaday and active engagements with popular culture, and how such engagement can facilitate encounters as [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the knowledge-based view (KBV), we investigate how and under what conditions knowledge search, including problemistic and slack searches, affects radical and incremental innovation. Using a data set composed of 247 Chinese firms, this study finds that slack search promotes radical and incremental innovation directly while problemistic search can positively affect radical and incremental innovation by the mediating role of knowledge integration capability (KIC). In addition, learning inertia strengthens the positive effect of problemistic search on KIC. This paper primarily contributes to innovation literature by clarifying and verifying how problemistic and slack searches affect radical and incremental innovation from the combined perspective of knowledge inertia and KIC. It also creates a foundation for further empirical investigation by explaining why existing studies have different views on the impacts of knowledge search on firm innovation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using the panel data of Chinese A-share listed companies from 2010 to 2019, this paper empirically tests the impact of intellectual property protection and religious culture on enterprise dynamic capabilities. It is found that intellectual property protection and religious culture have a significant promoting effect on the dynamic capabilities of enterprises. And there is a substitution effect between intellectual property protection and religious culture. After the robustness test, the benchmark research conclusion is still valid. Heterogeneity analysis shows that intellectual property protection and religious culture have heterogeneous effects on firms with different financing constraints. Further analysis shows that intellectual property protection can improve the innovation level of enterprises by improving dynamic capabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Innovations in the formal sector are by and large motivated by extrinsic rewards. However, such motives are not explored much in the informal sector innovations. Using effectance motivation theories, some previous research on grassroot innovators in India has found that much of these innovations are initially driven by 'intrinsic motivations', while the motivations shift to extrinsic factors during the innovation process. Thus, the primary objective of the paper is to understand the nature and determinants of grassroot innovators' motivations and their shifts, using econometric modelling. This research is exploratory in nature and based on primary data. It first identifies a set of socio-economic, demographic and psychological factors, which drive grassroot innovations in India. Furthermore, it explores how these factors explain the shifts in motivations from 'intrinsic' to 'extrinsic' in the course of the innovation process. The empirical results show that the socio-economic factors of innovators affect the grassroots innovation process significantly. Their effect on motivation varies at different stages of innovation. To the extent, roughly speaking, 'intrinsic' and 'extrinsic' motivations draw parallel with 'pro-social' and 'pro-market' motivations, respectively. These results may contribute to the growing body of policy research on the informal sector innovations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the wave of the digital era, Building Information Modelling (BIM) has emerged as the primary tool for intelligent construction and digital transformation in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry. China's focus on policy guidance for the dissemination and application of BIM technology has promoted high-quality development and technological innovation in the AEC industry. However, few studies have described the multi-dimensional evolution picture of BIM technology policy in China, and lack of effective grasp and prediction of policy evolution law and future direction. An improved policy quantitative analysis framework is built using natural language processing (NLP) based on deep learning in this paper. The dynamic characteristics of 242 Chinese BIM technology policy documents from 1998 to 2022 in the PKULAW database are quantitatively analyzed by the framework, and the four-stage integrated evolution of Chinese BIM technology policy is quantitatively mapped in a visual form through network analysis and dynamic topic model (DTM). Furthermore, this research conducts a comprehensive discussion from three dimensions, providing valuable insights for policy makers and industry participants in China. The findings contribute to the deep integration of policy optimization and the construction industry, while also aiming to share China's experience in BIM technology governance with other countries and regions. Ultimately, this study seeks to support the global AEC industry in its digital transformation and development by offering valuable knowledge and perspectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Building information modeling (BIM) is a disruptive information technology tool in the construction sector. Although this technology had a significant impact on the manufacturing industries, it, like any other technology, encountered several challenges when applied to the construction sector. Conversely, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in developing economies often face significant impediments when using innovative technologies. Thus, this paper seeks to determine and investigate the perceived barriers to applying BIM in construction SMEs based in Iran. Three rounds of Delphi surveys were carried out with 15 BIM experts engaged in construction SMEs to identify the key barriers to BIM implementation in SMEs. An empirical survey questionnaire comprising these identified barriers was subsequently designed and disseminated to the invited experts. Altogether, 56 valid survey responses were received and analyzed. The study's findings revealed SMEs management's hesitancy to adopt BIM, stakeholders' reluctance to change their established methods, and a lack of technical understanding as the critical impediments to BIM adoption in construction SMEs. Also, the study identified four barrier dimensions – technology, legal, management, and financial. These BIM implementation barrier dimensions can be employed to better allocate resources and financing for BIM deployment and construction innovation in SMEs. The study will assist major project stakeholders and SMEs make better-informed BIM adoption decisions, particularly in developing nations like Iran. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The brushless direct current motors have gained popularity among the emerging technologies due to their increased efficiency, speed of operation, and density of flux. This paper presents a novel technique for controlling the speed of the brushless direct current motor by using hybrid algorithms. The Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) algorithm is combined with the Takagi Sugeno adaptive fuzzy interference system and gravitational search algorithms to analyze the speed control of the brushless DC electric motor (BLDC) motors. The proposed model has designed multiple outputs prototype for BLDC motor with Takagi Sugeno fuzzy logic. Since the adaptive fuzzy logic system has three outputs, the final output is evaluated as the average value of all the outputs using the LMS algorithm. The speed control of the Brushless DC motor has also been analyzed using a combination of the gravitational search algorithm and the PSO algorithm. The motor parameters taken under consideration for the analysis have been tabulated. The different results obtained at the end of this study have been demonstrated through graphs and tables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Progress in Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) can make a real difference in the quality-of-life of persons with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) by acting on several aspects, from customized software for communication, to emotion recognition, to social behavior and also to provide systems for the observation of the wide spectrum of manifestations, to ease the diagnosis, to support the therapy, and to monitor the improvement and the growth of children with ASD. This has been achieved by the introduction of a large number of innovative technologies, spanning from Internet of Things, to robotics, virtual and augmented reality, etc. Differently from other surveys on the same research area, we focus this survey on innovative technologies used in this field, and we organize a classification of the papers based on three different but strictly crossed axis, namely the triad of impairment (either communication, social interaction, or social behaviors), research purpose (either diagnosis or therapy), and system activity (either monitoring or intervention). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we explore what campesino [peasant] livelihoods in the rural Andean mountains of Colombia offer to understandings of more-than-human co-existence and care. For, while new conservation paradigms promise to transform economic and social horizons, being "paramuno" [resident of the "paramo," or high moorlands] in the small community of Monquentiva is already characterized by becoming-with-other-beings-and-practices; a disposition toward incorporation of elements that are at-hand, and an ethics of care toward other beings in the landscape. We draw on ethnographic data to present this case study, emphasizing the forms of social organization and persistence that have enabled the emergence of economically and ecologically sustainable livelihoods. We explore these processes in terms of what we call world-making practices, showing how relationships with Indigeneity and collectivity are being renegotiated, and arguing for modes of conservation that engage with existing forms of peasant innovation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite a growing number of research on the impact of open CEOs on organisational outcomes, their role in shaping corporate innovation strategies has received little scholarly attention. This paper uses a large sample of panel data from Chinese knowledge-intensive high-tech listed companies to investigate how CEOs affect innovation ambidexterity when they possess open tendencies, and how managerial discretion, influenced by firm and environment-level factors, affects such relationship. The results show that open CEOs exhibit attributes of broad interests, divergent thinking, and creativity that positively affect innovation ambidexterity, and this relationship tends to be stronger when working context give them greater managerial discretion. Specifically, state ownership has a negative moderating effect, while the intensity of market competition enhances the positive relationship between CEO openness and innovation ambidexterity, and simultaneously mitigates the negative effect of state ownership. By examining the impact of this important CEO personality trait on corporate innovation strategies, we extend the literature on the upper echelon theory (UET) and ambidextrous innovation (AI), which is also a response to emphasising that more attention should be paid to the micro-foundation of organisational innovation in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates to what extent non-R&D activities individually and jointly drive innovation processes in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). We argue that non-R&D-performing and R&D-performing SMEs (non-R&D vs R&D performers) differ with respect to the separate and combined effects of non-R&D activities on technological innovations (product vs process). Drawing on a sample of 1392 Chinese manufacturing SMEs, our empirical results paint a complex and comprehensive picture of innovation processes in SMEs based on a set of non-R&D activities. We find that non-R&D performers rely primarily on embodied knowledge to develop innovations, and that R&D performers can access external networking in which customers and scientific sources drive product innovation and suppliers affect process innovation. We also find that the existence of substitutability between internal and external innovation sourcing strategies composed of non-R&D activities is limited to product innovation for non-R&D performers and process innovation for R&D performers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Planning Support Systems (PSS) research has explored ways to improve PSS use and embeddedness. However, there is little knowledge of how unplanned changes during implementation impact outcomes. This paper answers the question, 'How can drift influence PSS implementation and use?' It applies the concept of drift (changes in new technology, user behaviour, and/or existing practice during ICT implementation) to explain how PSS users (GIS specialists, planners) initiate unplanned changes during implementation and use. Following a qualitative approach, we investigate a PSS implementation case study in Rwanda – the Spatial Development Framework (SDF) methodology – to establish the role of drift in PSS use and embeddedness. Our study reveals that a) user understanding and perception of PSS can initiate drift during implementation and use, and b) drift can influence outcomes of PSS use or embeddedness. This study confirms the role of drift in PSS use and embeddedness in Rwanda's spatial planning process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although complex coacervation could improve the water solubility, thermal stability, bioavailability, antioxidant activity and antibacterial activity of essential oils (EOs). However, some wall materials (such as proteins and polysaccharides) with water solubility and hydrophobic nature limited their application in complex coacervation. In order to improve the properties of EO complex coacervates, some efficient physical field technology was proposed. This paper summarizes the application and functional properties of EOs in complex coacervates, formation and controlled-release mechanism, as well as functions of EO complex coacervates. In particular, efficient physical field technology as innovative technology, such as high pressure, ultrasound, cold plasma, pulsed electric fields, electrohydrodynamic atomization and microwave technology improved efficient and quality attributes of EO complex coacervates are reviewed. The physical fields could modify the gelling, structural, textural, emulsifying, rheological properties, solubility of wall material (proteins and polysaccharides), which improve the properties of EO complex coacervates. Overall, EOs complex coacervates possess great potential to be used in the food industry, including high bioavailability, excellent antioxidant capacity and gut microbiota in vivo, masking the sensation of off-taste or flavor, favorable antimicrobial capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 'neuropunk revolution' represents an innovative approach focused on the integration of human–machine interfaces through nerve and neural pathways. This cutting-edge concept seeks to push the boundaries of human–machine interaction by exploring the intricate connections between the human nervous system and artificial technologies. Neuropunk delves into the realm of cyborg technologies, blurring the lines between humans and machines and opening up new possibilities for augmenting human capabilities. By tapping into nerve and neural pathways, neuropunk envisions a future where individuals can seamlessly interface with technology, leading to enhanced sensory perception, cognitive abilities, and physical performance. This concept encapsulates a rebellious and unconventional spirit, challenging traditional notions of the human body and its relationship with technology. This paper discusses the challenges and potential of neuropunk, exploring the fusion of scientific exploration, technological innovation, and a punk-inspired ethos in advancing human–machine integration. It highlights the emergence of real-time neurosimulations and neuromorphic computing as key tools to achieve these aspirations. Additionally, the integration of neurological and hormonal bioinspiration is examined as a promising approach to the design of neural interfaces, fostering more efficient and effective technologies that align better with the human body. Finally, the paper addresses ethical considerations and research tasks to responsibly navigate the neuropunk revolution, ensuring a future that maximizes the benefits of neural interfaces while mitigating potential risks and promoting ethical principles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dual embeddedness of inventors' cooperative networks influences firm innovation. This paper explores the mechanism of synergy between network structural embeddedness (network centrality and structural hole) and relational embeddedness (relational strength) on firm innovation using data from Chinese listed automobile companies. This paper further explores the mediating role of exploitative learning and exploratory learning between the synergy of cooperative network dual embeddedness and innovation. The results show that the synergy of network centrality and relational strength hinders innovation, while the synergy of the structural hole and relational strength promotes innovation. The synergy of centrality and relational strength hinders exploitative learning, while the synergy of the structural hole and relational strength promotes exploitative learning. Exploitative learning plays a mediating role between synergy of structure and relational embeddedness and innovation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to analyse the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) and its potential to unleash the development of women in Africa. The envisaged benefits of the AfCFTA include increased trade diversification, regional integration, enhanced human security, increased foreign direct investment and technological advancement. Despite optimism about the prospects of the agreement as a local innovation spearheaded by the African Union, pessimists raise questions about the extent of stakeholder engagement. The agreement must be gender-responsive to enhance outcomes for women cross-border traders. The paper concludes that the lack of gender sensitivity confirms the need to address the specific needs of African women, especially those involved in informal cross-border trade. Hence, for AfCFTA, the policy focus should be on ensuring the formalisation of women who participate in informal trade, thus helping increase access to markets, information and growth opportunities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The economy of the nation is significantly influenced by pavement management systems. The use of cutting-edge techniques and technology in various pavement management system applications, as well as research into these topics, are particularly important today. To reduce human errors in data collection, advances in technology and automated surveillance should be used. The most recent methods used in modern equipment for the automatic evaluation of pavement deterioration are reviewed in this paper. To identify trending tools, research gaps, emerging technologies, challenges and limitations of using computer vision for pavement distress and condition assessment, papers collected using UAV (Unmanned Ariel Vehicle) data collection and the application of machine learning methods are investigated. The review comes to the conclusion that the application of machine learning techniques is the general trend in evaluating the condition of pavements, despite some limitations not only in the detection of a small number of pavement distresses with complex patterns but also in the indication of the severity and density of distresses, opening up possibilities for further study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores to what extent and under what conditions resilience can be developed to cope with radical innovations in the industrial district context. Based on a comparative analysis of an Italian and Spanish cluster, this paper provides and in-depth examination of the transformation at the firm and cluster levels at the introduction, development, and diffusion of disruptive technologies, that enable clusters to cope with it and thrive. Our findings identify cluster attributes that support resilience and propose different measures of district resilience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper critically and empirically explores how planning professionals understand a digital engagement tool and its use in effective and meaningful public participation. Through a series of focus groups where planners engaged with a Digital Participation Model (DPM), the research studied the functionality of this digital tool in relation to key communicative principles such as communication, comprehension and transparency. In doing so, this paper contributes to critical literature on the implications and politics of generalised technology developments for planning participation. Additionally, it offers a conceptual lens to critically guide application of digital engagement tools with the aim of reducing the risk that new technology dictates how we understand participatory engagement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The level of defence industrial innovation success has been modest in Malaysia, despite continuous investment into research and development (R&D). The authors use the Defence Research and Development Stakeholder Engagement Framework (DRDSEF) to argue that strategic collaborative engagement between stakeholders is critical for successful industrial and technological innovation. This paper has two aims: to describe the role of the stakeholders in managing defence R&D funding and to evaluate the challenges faced by these stakeholders in managing government defence R&D allocation for industrial and technological innovation. This is an exploratory case study using a combination of interpretivist and pragmatist philosophical approaches. Analysed data consists of secondary resources and primary resources included surveys in the form of open-ended semi-structured interviews and participatory observation. This paper concludes that successful defence R&D stakeholder engagement requires an open and independent platform, enhanced industry-academia cross-sector fertilisation and collaborative data analytics management tools to share information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exchange of information through the web took place inside a trusted environment and thus user privacy was assured by default. Nowadays, ensuring user privacy is becoming one of the most desirable features of new technology, and Blockchain is not an exception. The Blockchain is a decentralized technology, open, and public platform where all transactions are stored and viewed from nodes, an approach known as "Web of Trust." Although these transactions tend to be anonymous but in the case of the banking sector, user privacy requires special attention. In centralized systems, the implementation of privacy is no longer a challenge, using a hierarchical approach such as Public Key Infrastructure. This paper presents a broad landscape and state of art of user transaction privacy in Blockchain technology using the Web of Trust approach. Furthermore, we present a novel approach using the Public Key Infrastructure for assuring user privacy adding an optionally encrypted field in blocks in transactions. We have used Bithomp, as a free and open-source tool with the Testnet platform, and Ripple as the best known in the implementation of the payment system to implement the proposed approach. The paper concludes with the strengths and limitations of the proposed approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the amount of public money invested in science, technology and innovation (STI) projects have been increasing, the debate continues about the best strategies for evaluating the impacts of STI projects in society. Consequently, it is crucial to ascertain what benefits society gains in return for the invested public resources. This paper presents a systematic literature review about the ex-post evaluation of STI projects to identify the relevant methodologies adopted to analyse with accuracy the direct/indirect results and the further deployment of impacts of STI projects, given that such impacts are difficult to foresee in the project objectives. Findings show that the majority of ex-post methodologies are complex to be applied for practitioners. Findings show that those that are meant to evaluate the direct and indirect impacts of STI projects are suitable, although only partially, for evaluating single or a few types of impacts, or they are oriented for specific contexts. The paper offers a better comprehension of the systemic relationship between STI projects' objectives, results, and impacts. Furthermore, a novel conceptual framework supporting policymakers, scholars, and practitioners to evaluate the interactions between the objectives, results and impacts in STI projects is drawn from the findings extending the theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies whether and how IURAs affect corporate technological diversification. Taking the ChiNext-listed companies that are both active in IURAs and innovation activities as our research objects, we analyzed the mechanisms of IURAs and their effect on corporate technological diversification based on the International Patent Classification information of new inventions. Our results, using propensity score matching and difference-in-differences regressions, show that IURAs can promote corporate technological diversification. Moreover, such effects are further proved using a dynamic analysis model. Furthermore, the absorptive capacity of the firm has a moderating effect on technological diversification after participating in the IURAs. This paper empirically advances our understanding of IURAs in the emerging markets and has meaningful policy implications for how governments and firms can deepen innovation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]