Search Results (158)

Industry 4.0 represents a significant transformation in industrial systems through digital integration, presenting both opportunities and challenges for aligning the workforce, especially in emerging economies like Thailand. This study adopts a sequential exploratory mixed-method approach to investigate how strategic human resource development (HRD) contributes to sustainable transformation, defined as the enduring alignment between workforce capabilities and technological advancement. The qualitative phase involved case studies of five Thai manufacturing firms at varying levels of Industry 4.0 adoption, utilizing semi-structured interviews with executives and HR leaders. Thematic findings informed the development of a structured survey, distributed to 144 firms. Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS SEM) was used to test the hypothesized relationships among business pressures, leadership support, HRD preparedness, and technological readiness. The analysis reveals that business pressures significantly influence leadership and HRD, which in turn facilitate technological readiness. However, business pressures alone do not directly enhance readiness without the support of intermediaries. These results underscore the critical role of integrated HRD and leadership frameworks in enabling sustainable digital transformation. This study contributes to theoretical perspectives by integrating HRD, leadership, and technological readiness, offering practical guidance for firms aiming to navigate the complexities of Industry 4.0. Full article

As an important direction in industrial evolution, the synergistic agglomeration of manufacturing and productive service industries has become a key path to promote the green transformation of the economy. Based on China’s provincial panel data, this study utilizes a variety of econometric methods to explore in depth the mechanisms, spatial effects and regional differences in the impact of the synergistic agglomeration of manufacturing and productive service industries on the green, low-carbon and recycling development of the economy. The empirical results show that the synergistic agglomeration of manufacturing and productive services not only directly promotes the green, low-carbon and recycling development of the economy, but also generates an indirect impact through the intermediary channel and exhibits significant spillover characteristics in the spatial dimension. This conclusion holds firm after a series of robustness tests. In addition, environmental regulations and the level of regional industrialization play a moderating role on the impact of industrial synergistic agglomeration and green, low-carbon and recycling development of the economy, and the effect of the role varies across regions and levels of economic development. This paper provides a decision-making reference for further optimizing the regional layout of China’s industries and enhancing the green, low-carbon and recycling development of the economy in each province. Full article

This paper proposes an incentive scheme based on a public–private partnership (PPP) to encourage low-carbon travel behavior by inducing the mode choice shift from private cars to public transit. The scheme involves three key entities: travelers, the government, and the private sector. Travelers can choose between private cars and public transit, producing different emissions. As the leader, the government aims to reduce total emission to a certain level with limited budgets. The private sector, as an intermediary, invests subsidies in low-carbon rewards to attract green travelers and benefits from a larger user pool. A two-layer multi-objective optimization model is proposed, which includes travel time, monetary cost, and emission. The objective of the upper level is to maximize the utilities of the private sector and minimize social costs to the government. The lower layer is the user equilibrium of the travelers. The numerical results obtained through heuristic algorithms demonstrate that the proposed scheme can achieve a triple-win situation, where all stakeholders benefit. Moreover, sensitivity analysis finds that prioritizing pollution control strategies will be beneficial to the government only if the unit pollution control cost coefficient is below a low threshold. Contrary to intuition, larger government subsidies do not necessarily lead to better promotion of low-carbon travel. Full article

Due to its persistence and potential negative effects on ecosystems and human health, microplastic pollution in aquatic environments has become a major worldwide concern. Photocatalytic degradation is a sustainable manner to degrade microplastics to non-toxic by-products. In this review, comprehensive discussion focuses on the synergistic effects of various photocatalytic materials including TiO₂, ZnO, WO₃, graphene oxide, and metal–organic frameworks for producing heterojunctions and involving multidimensional nanostructures. Such mechanisms can include the generation of reactive oxygen species and polymer chain scission, which can lead to microplastic breakdown and mineralization. The advancements of material modifications in the (nano)structure of photocatalysts, doping, and heterojunction formation methods to promote UV and visible light-driven photocatalytic activity is discussed in this paper. Reactor designs, operational parameters, and scalability for practical applications are also reviewed. Photocatalytic systems have shown a lot of development but are hampered by shortcomings which include a lack of complete mineralization and production of intermediary secondary products; variability in performance due to the fluctuation in the intensity of solar light, limited UV light, and environmental conditions such as weather and the diurnal cycle. Future research involving multifunctional, environmentally benign photocatalytic techniques—e.g., doped composites or composite-based catalysts that involve adsorption, photocatalysis, and magnetic retrieval—are proposed to focus on the mechanism of utilizing light effectively and the environmental safety, which are necessary for successful operational and industrial-scale remediation. Full article

The technological growth in the automation of manufacturing processes, as seen in Industry 4.0, is characterized by a constant revolution and evolution in small- and medium-sized factories. As basic and advanced technologies from the pillars of Industry 4.0 are gradually incorporated into their value chain, these factories can achieve adaptive technological transformation. This article presents a practical solution for companies seeking to evolve their production processes during the expansion phase of their manufacturing, starting from a base architecture with Industry 4.0 features which then integrate and implement specific tools that facilitate the duplication of installed capacity; this creates a situation that allows for the development of manufacturing execution systems (MESs) for each production line and a fog computing node, which is responsible for optimizing the load balance of order requests coming from the cloud and also acts as an intermediary between MESs and the cloud. On the other hand, legacy Machine Learning (ML) inference acceleration modules were integrated into the single-board computers of MESs to improve workflow across the new architecture. These improvements and integrations enabled the value chain of this expanded architecture to have lower latency, greater scalability, optimized resource utilization, and improved resistance to network service failures compared to the initial one. Full article

Specialized and special new “little giant” enterprises are characterized by specialization, refinement, uniqueness, and innovation. They have relatively strong innovation capabilities and enterprise vitality. However, they also face problems such as high innovation costs, long investment recovery cycles, and high risks of investment returns, which lead to information asymmetry and financing difficulties. Government venture capital is a policy fund provided by the government and established with the participation of local governments, financial institutions, and private capital. They can utilize fiscal policies to attract market funds and support the development of key industries. Therefore, in this study, the first through sixth batches of specialized and special new “little giant” enterprises listed on the A-share and New Third Board from 2013 to 2023 were taken as samples, and their investment behavior and investment effects were empirically studied using the multiple linear regression method. The investment behavior of government venture capital tends to target strategic emerging industries. The intervention of government venture capital can enhance the innovation of “little giant” enterprises and has an impact through the intermediary mechanism of R&D investment. This paper draws conclusions and puts forward relevant policy suggestions for supporting the development of “little giant” enterprises. Full article

This paper addresses the challenges of multicasting in Mobile Ad Hoc Networks (MANETs), where communication relies exclusively on direct interactions between mobile nodes without the support of fixed infrastructure. In such networks, efficient information dissemination is critical, particularly in scenarios where an event detected by one node must be reliably communicated to a designated subset of nodes. The highly dynamic nature of MANET, characterized by frequent topology changes and unpredictable connectivity, poses significant challenges to stable and efficient multicasting. To address these issues, we adopt a Publish/Subscribe (Pub/Sub) model that utilizes brokers as intermediaries for information dissemination. However, ensuring the robustness of broker-based multicasting in a highly mobile environment requires novel strategies to mitigate the effects of frequent disconnections and mobility-induced disruptions. To this end, we propose a framework based on three key principles: (1) leveraging the Disruption-Tolerant Networking Implementations of the Bundle Protocol 7 (DTN7) at the network layer to sustain message delivery even in the presence of intermittent connectivity and high node mobility; (2) dynamically generating broker replicas to ensure that broker functionality persists despite sudden node failures or disconnections; and (3) enabling brokers and their replicas to periodically broadcast advertisement packets to maintain communication paths and facilitate efficient data forwarding, drawing inspiration from Named Data Networking (NDN) techniques. To evaluate the effectiveness of our approach, we conduct extensive simulations using ns-3, examining its impact on message delivery reliability, latency, and overall network throughput. The results demonstrate that our method significantly reduces message delivery delays while improving delivery rates, particularly in high-mobility scenarios. Additionally, the integration of DTN7 at the bundle layer proves effective in mitigating performance degradation in environments where nodes frequently change their positions. Our findings highlight the potential of our approach in enhancing the resilience and efficiency of broker-assisted multicasting in MANET, making it a promising solution for real-world applications such as disaster response, military operations, and decentralized IoT networks. Full article

Understanding a learner’s resources as a system of interacting components, the success of a learning process is determined by the effectiveness of their interactions. Theoretical assumptions and empirical findings clearly show the importance of resource availability in learning systems but do not sufficiently consider the individuality or the temporal and situational aspects of resource regulation. Therefore, the current study addresses the complex interplay between learning resources (educational and learning capitals) in an individual learner (N = 1) by utilizing multivariate time series data of a 50-day vocabulary learning process with daily assessments of learning resource availability, performance, learning duration, and stress. We draw on methods of psychometric network analysis, modeling all variables in simultaneous interaction and allowing predictions between all variables from measuring point to measuring point (temporal dynamics). Specifically, using a Graphical Vector Autoregressive (graphicalVAR) model, yielding a contemporaneous and a temporal dynamics network model, we identified pivotal resources in regulating the student’s learning processes and outcomes, including resources with strong connections to other variables, intermediary resources, and resources maintaining the system’s homeostasis. This innovative approach has possible applications as a diagnostic tool that lays the foundation for tailored interventions. Full article

The Ring Oscillator Physical Unclonable Function (RO-PUF) is a hardware security innovation that creates a secure and distinct identifier by utilizing the special physical properties of ring oscillators. Their unique response, low hardware overhead, and difficulty of reproduction are some of the security benefits that make them valuable in safe authentication systems. Numerous developments, such as temperature adjustment methods, aging mitigation, and better architecture and layout, have been created to increase its security, dependability, and efficiency. However, achieving the sacrifice metric makes it challenging to implement with additional complex circuits. This work focuses on stability improvement in terms of the reliability of the RO-PUF in enhanced challenge and response (CRP) by exploiting existing on-chip hard processors. This work establishes only ROs and their counters inside the chip. The built-in microprocessor performs the remaining process using the intermediary process of a Q factor and new frequency mapping. As a result, the reliability improves significantly to 95.8% compared to previous methods. The proper use of resources due to the limitation of on-chip resources has been emphasized by considering that a hard processor exists inside the new FPGA chip. Full article

In the context of global warming and the clean energy transition, the rapid development of the digital economy, a highly technology-intensive economic form, has an important impact on the clean energy transition. Examining how the growth of the digital economy has affected the renewable energy transition has broad implications for the creation of national policies, business planning and design, and everyday human behavior. The paper uses a two-way fixed-effect model to empirically investigate the impact of the development of the digital economy on the clean energy transition based on Chinese municipal panel data from 2013 to 2022. It also sorts out the intrinsic mechanism of the digital economy affecting the clean energy transition from a theoretical level. Finally, it tests the indirect effects of technological innovation and upgrading industrial structure using endogeneity analysis and a robustness test. The study finds that (1) digital economy development effectively promotes clean energy transition; (2) the digital economy influences the transformation of renewable energy through two intermediary channels: technological innovation and upgrading of industrial structures; (3) there is geographical variation in how the digital economy affects the growth of the clean energy transformation. Lastly, policy recommendations are provided for boosting investment in digital infrastructure, strengthening the digital technology base, and deepening and broadening the interaction of the digital and real economies. Full article

Carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) represents a vital technological strategy for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions and facilitating sustainable development. Supercritical CO₂ (SC-CO₂) pipeline transportation serves as an essential intermediary step towards attaining the “Dual Carbon Goals” and CCUS, representing the optimal and most cost-effective solution for ultra-long distance transport. In the CO₂ capture process, trace amounts of impurities, such as H₂O, O₂, H₂S, NO_x and SO_x, are inevitable. These gases react to form acidic compounds, thereby accelerating pipeline corrosion. With the progression of CCUS initiatives, corrosion within supercritical CO₂ pipeline transportation has become a critical challenge that significantly affects the safety and integrity of pipeline infrastructure. This review paper provides an in-depth analysis of the corrosion behavior of pipeline materials in a supercritical CO₂ environment, with particular attention to the effects of impurity, temperature, and pressure on corrosion rates, corrosion products, and corrosion morphology. Furthermore, an analysis of the corrosive behavior of welded joints in supercritical CO₂ transport pipelines is performed to provide valuable reference data for research and construction projects related to these pipelines. Full article

I conducted an integrative literature review by utilizing theoretical and methodological elements of critical realism (i.e., the distinction between ontology and epistemology) to evaluate the significance of triple-helix intermediaries. This review involved examining all published research on smart cities in “elite” ABS (Chartered Association of Business Schools) journals (4, 4*). My findings indicate that the philosophical foundations of the examined literature are predominantly grounded on “positivism”, “postmodernism”, “interpretivism”, and “pragmatism”, without delving into the ontological reinforcement of capitalist institutions through innovation creation and diffusion—a central concern of critical realism. I argue that this oversight stems from the prevailing “paradigm” within these “elite” journals, which often excludes historical and critical perspectives. In response, I propose a reoriented intermediary, the Triple-Helix Business Clinic, grounded in critical-realist assumptions. This new theoretical framework can guide practical policy development aimed at reinforcing business innovation and driving broader socioeconomic progress. Full article

The global food system confronts critical challenges, including food insecurity, small-scale producer vulnerability, and environmental degradation. While locally led initiatives emerge as potential solutions, they face obstacles, such as participant bias and scaling limitations. This study analyzes 157 international and 91 Japanese locally led food initiatives to understand their contributions to food system sustainability. Our findings reveal that these initiatives address key issues, including food security, environmental sustainability, community revitalization, and poverty reduction, reflecting various manifestations of problems within the modern global food system despite differing contexts. These initiatives operate across the food supply chain, emphasizing cross-group collaboration, knowledge sharing, resource utilization, and shortened supply chains. Significant differences exist between high-income and low- to middle-income approaches; lower-income regions prioritize resource access and skill development, while high-income areas focus on collaboration and leveraging existing resources. Many initiatives aim to empower marginalized groups, indicating a trend towards inclusivity. Although individual local initiatives may have limited impact, their collective action in fostering collaboration and empowerment is vital for transforming food systems. Networking and intermediary support emerge as essential components for scaling these initiatives to achieve meaningful systemic change. Full article

The use of mobile phones in teaching processes, in the context of technological convergence, involves considering educational intention, pedagogical tactics, and the capacity of digital media for learning. The utilization of mobile phones in the classroom gives the students instant access to a wide range of educational resources, including educational applications, specialized websites, and multimedia material. Learning to use mobile devices responsibly and productively is essential in today’s digital age, as it prepares them for future technological interactions. The present study examines the intermediary function of a mobile education application, conceived under the problem-based learning approach, in the field of mathematics. This research was carried out with a descriptive approach. A pretest, a post-test, and a survey were created and administered for the collection of numerical data, along with an observation grid for qualitative information. The results highlight the contribution of mobile devices and problem-based learning in the development of skills for collaborative work, decision-making, and problem-solving through systems of linear equations using four techniques. The conclusions highlight the potential of mobile devices in the educational field since they are a resource that provides access to information without time or location limitations. However, it is necessary to focus on the design of pedagogical strategies to carry out a pedagogical and planned use of this resource. Full article

Habitat quality (HQ) is crucial for assessing biodiversity and serves as a key indicator of ecosystem services and health. However, the spatial and temporal evolution of HQ under varying human activity intensities remains poorly understood. We employed the integrated valuation of ecosystem services and trade-offs model to analyze the spatiotemporal distribution and evolutionary characteristics of HQ in Jiawang District (JWD), an area experiencing resource extraction, depletion, and urban expansion. We utilized Pearson correlation analysis, partial least squares-path modeling, the generalized additive model, and patch-generating land use simulation to explore the impact of human activity on HQ and the mechanisms of multifactorial interactions. Our findings revealed the following: (1) From 2000 to 2030, HQ in JWD generally declined, with high- and low-quality areas in the north and east and the west and south, respectively. (2) The land use intensity index and population density were significantly correlated with HQ, emphasizing the role of human-driven land use changes. (3) Topographic factors were positively correlated with HQ but influenced it indirectly through land use. (4) Land use emerged as a critical intermediary influencing HQ, with climate, topography, population, and economy exerting indirect effects. These results provide insights for biodiversity conservation and sustainable urban development. Full article