Encyclopedia, Volume 4, Issue 2 (June 2024) – 12 articles

This paper explores the notion of strategic intelligence, namely with respect to leadership and business-oriented areas. Strategic intelligence is a researched concept that primarily concerns the collection and analysis of intelligence for policy and military planning, mainly at national and international levels, whereas this study of management and organizational decision-making application is an extension of that. This article’s subject is the necessity for strategic intelligence, a crucial competence for leaders, managers, and companies striving to remain competitive, to be utilized and best leveraged in today’s volatile and dynamic business contexts. This study follows a research design that includes a thorough literature review and bibliometric research, executed via VoSViewer, illustrating the concept of strategic intelligence from a leadership point of view as a driver of competitive advantage, enhanced by knowledge dynamics. Furthermore, this article points out that the limitations are acknowledged because the literature on the matter is limited, as strategic intelligence is relatively new to the business sector; moreover, more research is required to fully understand and use the potential of strategic intelligence in business growth. Overcoming these limitations and continuing to study the strategic intelligence concept could, on the one hand, use multiple platforms, such as scholarly articles or encyclopedias, and, on the other hand, support businesses in gaining a competitive edge and making informed decisions that can fuel their success in an ever-evolving market. Full article

The concept of nature positive has recently emerged from the widespread recognition of the global scale at which nature is being lost and the threat this poses to the collective survival of the human race. Much of the interest in nature positive reflects the initial commitment to it by conservation organisations and by a number of international political initiatives. However, the pursuit of nature positive approaches by businesses has received little attention in the business and management literature. Building upon an analysis of secondary sources, this entry paper first examines how three international organisations suggest a nature positive strategy could be pursued. This paper then focuses on two multinational companies and how they plan to pursue a nature positive approach to their business activities. This article identifies a number of critical factors in developing a nature positive strategy: incorporating suppliers in this strategy, assessing corporate dependencies and impacts on nature, and reporting on nature positive initiatives and outcomes. At the same time, this article raises concerns that nature positive approaches could be driven more by business imperatives rather than fundamental corporate concerns about biodiversity and that many business commitments to nature positive could be seen as mainly aspirational. Full article

Clinical reasoning is an essential competence of veterinary graduands. It is a complex competence with cognitive, metacognitive, social, and situational activities. The literature on clinical reasoning in veterinary medical education is relatively scarce or focused on theoretical rather than practical applications. In this review, we address the practicality of teaching clinical reasoning to veterinary learners utilizing a practical example of a cow with allergic rhinitis. Learners should be guided through all the domains of clinical reasoning, including concepts, data collection and analysis, take action, and reflection on an encounter. Each of these domains needs to be clearly but concisely explained and practiced repeatedly by learners throughout the veterinary curricula. The teaching of clinical reasoning should start as early in the curriculum as possible, preferably in the pre-clinical years, with a gradual scaffolding and building of complexity before work-based learning begins, with an increase in demanding for advanced clinical reasoning competence. The teaching of clinical reasoning is best performed in specialized sessions and continued as a horizontally and vertically integrated activity. Full article

Personal development refers to the process of increasing one’s self-awareness, associated increases of self-esteem, increasing skills, and fulfilling one’s aspirations. The current paper reflects on these elements within the doctoral journey, for PhD students within the UK Higher Education system. The paper makes particular reference to frameworks to encourage and capture personal development needs and supervision or coaching styles that may be used to encourage a continual reflection of personal development throughout the doctorate. Full article

Originated during the 1970s by psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, the theory of work-related flow has the following features: (1) the goals pursued are clear; (2) each action taken results in instantaneous feedback; (3) the skills required are equal to the challenges presented; (4) awareness and action for how to proceed are integrated; (5) consciousness is focused while distractions are ignored; (6) failure is not considered an option; (7) self-consciousness is non-existent; (8) time awareness is distorted; and (9) the engaged activity is the end in itself. According to research findings, it is the optimal work-related experience to sustain careers. Full article

The article provides a narrative review of the social and cultural interpretation of pesticides in contemporary society. In so doing, it highlights the main fields of exploration investigated by social scientists concerning the perception and role played by these products among farmers and consumers. Following the WHO definition, pesticides are chemical compounds used to kill pests, including insects, rodents, fungi, and unwanted plants. They are contemporary cultural artefacts that social sciences explore in synergy with other disciplines to highlight their socio-cultural connections at both local and global levels. Specifically, the use of these products is connected with power relations, which are embedded in and reflect imbalances and inequalities in access to rights and resources, as well as specific articulation of the perception of risk arising from environmental contamination in terms of individual and collective psychophysical health. Furthermore, pesticides fit into various environmental conceptions and multiple local knowledge systems, representing the intersection of different cultural heritages, worldviews, and rationales that make the tradition–modernity dichotomy complex and dynamic. In this respect, therefore, pesticides can be understood not just as mere tools for agricultural practice but as vital windows through which to investigate multiple layers of meaning to support transitions towards sustainable pest management systems, both environmentally and socio-culturally. Full article

Participatory music-making is any music-making activity in which individuals engage for the sake of the activity itself. It can be contrasted with presentational music-making, which takes the production of a performance or recording for consumption by an audience as a principal objective. During the COVID-19 pandemic, participatory musicians adopted a variety of technological means by which to make music together online. While virtual activities allowed these individuals to sustain their communities and grow as musicians, they did not satisfy all the needs met by in-person music-making. Additionally, online music-making increased access for some but posed barriers to access for others. Virtual participatory music-making remains relevant following the relaxation of pandemic restrictions, and it will likely grow in significance as communications technologies and internet access improve. Full article

Some of the earliest known engravings are described, analyzed, and interpreted, following their microscopic examination. They are of significance in exploring the cognitive evolution of hominins several hundred thousand years ago and have not been described together before. The Steinrinne site near Bilzingsleben, north of Weimar, Germany, is one of Europe’s most important Lower Paleolithic occupation sites. Its extensive human habitation floor, excavated over 1000 square meters, comprises some of the world’s oldest evidence of dwellings, broadly matching or exceeding the age of examples proposed in Africa, India, and France. It has yielded numerous hominin remains, many wooden artefacts, other exquisitely preserved organic remains, and more portable engravings than any other Middle Pleistocene site. The latter are reviewed here, presenting the results of a detailed microscopic examination of the main finds. Bilzingsleben has so far produced the largest number of engraved Lower Paleolithic objects reported, which are particularly important to exploring the cognitive developments of hominins. Full article

The Pandemic Equation describes multiple pandemic waves and has been applied to describe the COVID-19 pandemic. Using the generalized approaches of solid-state physics, we derive the Pandemic Equation, which accounts for the effects of pandemic mitigation measures and multiple pandemic waves. The Pandemic Equation uses slow and fast time scales for “curve flattening” and describing vaccination and mitigation measures and the Scaled Fermi–Dirac distribution functions for describing transitions between pandemic waves. The Pandemic Equation parameters extracted from the pandemic curves can be used for comparing different scenarios of the pandemic evolution and for extrapolating the pandemic evolution curves for the periods of time on the order of the instantaneous Pandemic Equation characteristic time constant. The parameter extraction for multiple locations could also allow for uncertainty quantification for such pandemic evolution predictions. Full article

Game-based learning refers to an educational approach where games (digital or analogue) are used in order to engage students in interactive and immersive experiences designed to teach specific concepts, skills or subjects. Gamification refers to the application of game design elements, such as point systems, rewards, narratives, and competition, to non-game contexts. Game elements, mechanics and structures, when incorporated into the learning process, can enhance student understanding and increase engagement, motivation and retention of educational content. Teaching Biology can present challenges mainly due to the complexity of the subject matter, the different scales of biological organisation, and because it often includes challenging and counterintuitive concepts that may contradict students’ preconceived notions. Integrating gaming into the high school Biology curriculum not only tackles the challenges of teaching complex concepts but can also promote student engagement. Customising gaming experiences to Biology intricacies enhances critical thinking and creates a dynamic learning environment tailored to the demands of high school biological education. This entry explores the integration of gaming and gamification in high school Biology education to overcome challenges in sustaining student interest. Additionally, the article highlights the diverse applications of games in education, showcasing their versatility in enriching the educational process. Future research should evaluate specific games, explore design principles, and consider challenges associated with implementation. In conclusion, using games in Biology education promises to enhance engagement, promote active learning, and deepen understanding, contributing to narrowing the gap in biological literacy. Full article

The Second Quantum Revolution refers to a contemporary wave of advancements and breakthroughs in the field of quantum physics that extends beyond the early developments of Quantum Mechanics that occurred in the 20th century. One crucial aspect of this revolution is the deeper exploration and practical application of quantum entanglement. Entanglement serves as a cornerstone in the ongoing revolution, contributing to quantum computing, communication, fundamental physics experiments, and advanced sensing technologies. Here, we present and discuss some of the recent applications of entanglement, exploring its philosophical implications and non-locality beyond Bell’s theorem, thereby critically examining the foundations of Quantum Mechanics. Additionally, we propose educational activities that introduce high school students to Quantum Mechanics by emphasizing entanglement as an essential concept to understand in order to become informed participants in the Second Quantum Revolution. Furthermore, we present the state-of-art developments of a largely unexplored and promising realization of real qubits, namely the molecular spin qubits. We review the available and suggested device architectures to host and use molecular spins. Moreover, we summarize the experimental findings on solid-state spin qubit devices based on magnetic molecules. Finally, we discuss how the Second Quantum Revolution might significantly transform law enforcement by offering specific examples and methodologies to address the evolving challenges in public safety and security. Full article

Integrated Fabry–Perot cavities (IFPCs), often referred to as nanobeams due to their form factor and size, have profoundly modified the landscape of integrated photonics as a new building block for classical and quantum engineering. In this entry, the main properties of IFPCs will be summarized from the classical and quantum point of view. The classical will provide some of the main results obtained in the last decade, whereas the quantum point of view will explore cavity quantum electrodynamics (CQED), which promises to revolutionize the future “quantum internet”. Full article