Search Results (369)

Epilepsy is a prevalent neurological disorder where reliable seizure tracking is essential for patient care. Existing documentation often relies on self-reports, which are unreliable, creating a need for objective, wearable-based solutions. Prior work has shown that Electrocardiography (ECG)-based seizure detection is feasible but limited by small datasets. This study addresses this issue by evaluating Matrix Profile, MADRID, and TimeVQVAE-AD on SeizeIT2, the largest open wearable-ECG dataset with 11,640 recording hours and 886 annotated seizures. Using standardized preprocessing and clinically motivated windows, we benchmarked sensitivity, false-alarm rate (FAR), and a Harmonic Mean Score integrating both metrics. Across methods, TimeVQVAE-AD achieved the highest sensitivity, while MADRID produced the lowest FAR, illustrating the trade-off between detecting seizures and minimizing spurious alerts. Our findings show ECG anomaly detection on SeizeIT2 can reach clinically meaningful sensitivity while highlighting the sensitivity–false alarm trade-off. By releasing reproducible benchmarks and code, this work establishes the first open baseline and enables future research on personalization and clinical applicability. Full article

Public institutions are experiencing increased dynamism due to rapid technological development and digitalization, which are creating novel opportunities for innovation. This reality is particularly prevalent in high-accountability contexts, such as financial regulation, where the adoption of Artificial Intelligence (AI) drives new forms of governance. Orchestrating this technological shift can offer a path to enhanced effectiveness; however, it requires new capabilities to sense, seize, and reconfigure opportunities in a complex public-interest environment. However, prior findings lack insights into the specific dynamic capabilities and routines required for responsible AI adoption in the public sector. Therefore, this study investigates how a government institution develops dynamic capabilities to govern AI innovation. Through a single, in-depth case study of a national financial regulator, this study offers insights into the specific micro-routines that underlie the regulator’s sensing, seizing, and reconfiguring capabilities. We develop a capability-based framework that demonstrates that responsible adoption depends on a dual set of capabilities operating at both an internal (organizational) and an ecosystem (market-facing) level. This study’s findings carry implications for the literature on public sector innovation, dynamic capabilities, and platform governance, as well as for leaders managing technological change in governments. Full article

The rapid emergence of novel psychoactive substances (NPSs) after 2020 has created one of the most dynamic analytical challenges in modern forensic science. Hundreds of new synthetic cannabinoids, synthetic cathinones, synthetic opioids, hallucinogens, and dissociatives, appearing as hybrid or structurally modified analogues of conventional drugs, have entered the illicit market, frequently found in complex polydrug mixtures. This review summarizes recent advances in gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) for their detection, structural elucidation, and differentiation between 2020 and 2025 based on the ScienceDirect and Google Scholar databases. Due to its reproducible electron-ionization spectra, established reference libraries, and robustness toward complex matrices, GC-MS remains the primary tool for the separation and identification of emerging NPS. The current literature highlights significant improvements in extraction and pre-concentration procedures, derivatization strategies for thermally unstable analogues, and chromatographic optimization that enable discrimination between positional and stereoisomers. This review covers a wide range of matrices, including powders, herbal materials, vaping liquids, and infused papers, as well as biological specimens such as blood, urine, and hair. Chemometric interpretation of GC-MS data now supports automated classification and prediction of fragmentation pathways, while coupling with complementary spectroscopic techniques strengthens compound confirmation. The review emphasizes how continuous innovation in GC-MS methodology has paralleled the rapid evolution of the NPS landscape, ensuring its enduring role as a reliable, adaptable, and cost-effective platform for monitoring emerging psychoactive substances in seized materials. Full article

Considering the prevalence of migraine and its impact on everyday living, its evolutionary persistence remains puzzling. This essay reviews recent literature and conceptual perspectives that frame migraine attacks as a possible side-effect of prolonged stress and unmet needs. To illustrate this, the article compares the antithetical relationship of triggers and migraine symptoms: During the early phase of the attack, many eat, drink, rest and sleep more and tolerate less nuisance compared to the hours and days before; previously, however, there was too little time to eat, drink, rest, and sleep, and the nuisance had to be tolerated. A relevant characteristic of many migraineurs is that they are prone to stress, e.g., because of a character trait, an impaired adaptation to stress, the lack of habituation to sensory stimuli, and disturbances of the energy supply. In that way, the appearance of the attack during fading stress makes sense: the body seizes the opportunity and communicates its needs when circumstances permit. In this context, the concept of pain as an imperative—a signal designed to enforce behavioural change—provides an insightful framework. Understanding migraine in this way may help reframe its pathophysiology and its clinical and translational significance. Full article

Cross-border e-commerce (CBEC) involves online transactions between sellers and consumers across national borders. Despite increasing volatility in international trade, the CBEC market continues to grow, making it critical to understand how firms manage logistics uncertainty. This study investigates how internal and external uncertainties differently influence logistics service flexibility (LSF) and logistics information system (LIS) utilization. Using survey data from 214 CBEC professionals primarily located in Korea, structural equation modeling (SEM) reveals divergent patterns: (1) external uncertainties enhance logistics flexibility, whereas internal uncertainties show no significant direct effect; (2) internal uncertainties negatively affect LIS utilization, while external uncertainties show a marginally positive relationship; and (3) LIS utilization mediates the negative pathway from internal uncertainty to flexibility. These findings indicate that firms respond asymmetrically to uncertainty sources, challenging the view that uncertainty universally promotes digital adaptation. Framing LSF (reconfiguration) and LIS use (sensing/seizing) as distinct dynamic capabilities, our results show source-contingent activation: external turbulence catalyzes reconfiguration, whereas internal frictions dampen sensing/seizing, indirectly suppressing flexibility. By identifying an indirect-only (negative) pathway from internal uncertainty via LIS, we refine dynamic capability theory in CBEC logistics and delineate boundary conditions under which uncertainty does not automatically induce digital adaptation. Full article

While pH possesses inherent chemical significance and potential forensic value in Scotch whisky authentication, it has previously lacked a statistically rigorous exclusionary standard. This study addressed this gap by performing statistical distribution fitting analysis on the pH of 32 authentic single malt and 33 authentic blended Scotch whiskies, utilizing the three-parameter lognormal distribution to establish the 99.7% authentic pH ranges for the first time: 3.47–4.46 for single malt and 3.73–4.67 for blended whisky. Validation using seized counterfeit samples confirmed that an abnormally elevated pH serves as critical evidence of adulteration. Consequently, this research proposes the chemically fundamental pH threshold as a rapid, non-destructive, and cost-effective forensic exclusionary criterion. Although the pH value feature alone is insufficient to confirm authenticity, its high operational applicability significantly enhances the efficiency of rapid field screening for counterfeit whisky, strongly supporting law enforcement and food safety efforts in Taiwan. Full article

This study presents the results of a multi-technique forensic investigation of suspicious soft capsules seized by law enforcement during a criminal case. The unlabeled samples, sold as therapeutic and “regenerative” food supplements, were examined using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy with attenuated total reflection (ATR-FTIR), chemiluminescence, and brightfield/confocal microscopy. These complementary analytical approaches revealed that the capsules contained biological material of unknown origin, including blood-derived compounds, lipid constituents, and cellular structures. The findings indicate biological adulteration, possibly due to deliberate falsification or severe contamination. To place these results in a broader biomedical context, a scoping review of literature on blood- and tissue-derived materials used in biomedical and nutraceutical applications was conducted. This review underscores how such products are developed, promoted, and regulated, highlighting the potential health and biosafety risks associated with unregulated biologically themed supplements. Overall, this study demonstrates a transferable analytical workflow suitable for forensic laboratories and emphasizes the need for continued regulatory vigilance to protect public health. Given the evidentiary constraints typical of forensic casework—specifically, the small amount of seized material—the workflow was optimized to maximize information yield through minimally destructive, orthogonal, non-genetic screening methods, with LC-MS/MS reserved for final molecular confirmation. DNA typing was not performed because, after confirmatory analyses, the remaining material was insufficient for reliable genotyping. Full article

Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly positioned as an enabler of strategic renewal and competitiveness for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in emerging economies. However, its adoption remains limited and uneven, constrained by shortages of skilled talent, weak data infrastructures, and financial barriers. This study examines Ecuadorian SMEs as a representative case within this broader context, analyzing survey data from 385 firms to diagnose AI adoption patterns and validate a structural model linking AI adoption, dynamic capabilities, and strategic innovation performance. Results from Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) confirm that AI adoption enhances innovation and competitiveness both directly and indirectly through dynamic capabilities, specifically firms’ abilities to sense opportunities, seize them through innovation, and reconfigure resources. The model explains 41% of the variance in strategic innovation performance, providing robust empirical support for the proposed AI-Driven Dynamic Capabilities Framework for Strategic Innovation and Competitiveness. The study clarifies how perceptual and contextual enablers of adoption (TAM/TOE) interact with capability-building mechanisms (RBV/DCT), offering a more integrated understanding of how SMEs assimilate AI under resource constraints. These findings demonstrate how SMEs translate early adoption into strategic advantage under conditions of uncertainty. The study also offers actionable guidance by showing that the most effective interventions for SMEs focus on strengthening foundational data and organizational capabilities rather than promoting complex AI systems beyond current readiness levels. Full article

Against the backdrop of great power strategic games, countries around the world have been continuously intensifying their control over the trade of critical metals, including tungsten, in order to seize the commanding heights of scientific, technological, and economic development, which has led to increasingly fierce competition in the global tungsten industry chain and supply chain. Although China is endowed with abundant tungsten ore reserves, its tungsten industry chain remains dominated by mid-to-low-end products, with low added value and limited pricing power in the international market. Therefore, it is of great significance to clarify the export competitiveness level of China in each link of the tungsten industry chain and to identify the influencing factors for improving the overall competitiveness of the industrial chain, which will enhance China’s international status and assist in formulating sustainable tungsten resource management strategies. Based on the industrial chain perspective and the trade data of typical products at various stages of the tungsten industry chain from 2008 to 2022, this study first selects the World Market Share Index, Trade Competitive Advantage Index, and Revealed Comparative Advantage Index to quantitatively depict the export competitiveness of the overall, upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors of China’s tungsten industry chain, and a horizontal comparison is conducted with major global tungsten resource trading countries. Secondly, the entropy weight method is adopted to further comprehensively evaluate the competitiveness level of various countries. Finally, the potential influencing factors of the overall export competitiveness of the tungsten industry chain are explored in accordance with Porter’s Diamond Model, and a fixed-effect model is used to perform regression analysis on the panel data. The research findings show that China has strong export competitiveness in the midstream and downstream sectors of the tungsten industry chain, while its export competitiveness in the upstream tungsten ore sector is relatively weak. The level of education, human capital, educational expenditure, gross national product, and trade openness all have a significant positive impact on the export competitiveness of tungsten resources. Greater efforts should be made in China to cultivate high-end talents in the tungsten industry. Moreover, innovation in green technologies and products should be encouraged, and international cooperation should be deepened, to improve the efficiency of the entire industrial chain so that stable and green long-term competitiveness in the tungsten industry can be achieved. Full article

As one of the most technically and managerially complex types of construction projects, super-high-rise buildings require deep multidisciplinary integration and intensive collaboration throughout their lifecycle. Conventional stage-based delivery models, such as the EPC, are often inadequate for handling this complexity. In recent years, the integrated Financing–Engineering, Procurement and Construction–Operation (F+EPC+O) model has emerged to address lifecycle governance challenges in building projects. This study explores how an investment-led F+EPC+O model builds dynamic capabilities to enable lifecycle collaboration in complex projects. It is based on a case study of the Xiamen Hemei Center and employs a qualitative case study approach to examine the operation of an internal F+EPC+O in the project. Drawing on multi-source data, including internal archives, BIM/CIM logs, and interviews, the findings identify three elements—lifecycle incentive alignment, internal power symmetry, and extended operation duration—that shape the Sensing–Seizing–Reconfiguring (SSR) capabilities of the approach. Specifically, Sensing is achieved through NPV-based decision frameworks and cross-stage trade-off lists; Seizing is achieved through BIM/CIM issue closure and joint rapid-cycle decision-making; and Reconfiguring is achieved through performance feedback and institutionalized knowledge repositories. The findings indicate that the SSR dynamic cycle transforms institutional integration into value co-creation, turning project complexity into a source of collaborative advantage. Full article

Background: In the era of longevity, many low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) still lack a comprehensive understanding of health deficits among older adults and the care burden associated with “unhealthy longevity”. This study aims to reveal future changes in care needs and pressure in China from 2030 to 2100. Method: This study develops a multistate demographic forecasting framework by integrating a Markov-based health state transition model with the conceptual logic of an age-shift algorithm. Transition probability matrices by age and gender are estimated using nationally representative microdata from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS). Baseline population data from the National Bureau of Statistics and WPP 2024 are then used to simulate the evolution of health status among older adults in China from 2030 to 2100. Finally, person-years with disability (PYD) are calculated to evaluate the projected magnitude, structure, and gender disparities of long-term care needs over time. Results: Between 2030 and 2100, the number of disabled older adults in China is projected to follow an inverted U-shaped trend—peaking at 160 million in 2070 and remaining above 115 million by 2100. The share of disabled individuals among older adults rises steadily, from 39.75% to 45.28%. Person-years with disability (PYD) show sustained growth, especially among the oldest-old and women. By 2100, adults aged 95 and older contribute over 20 million PYD—eight times the 2030 level. Gender disparities widen: in 2100, women aged 85–94 account for 53.94 million severe-disability PYD, exceeding men by 8.22 million. These trends reflect mounting structural pressures on China’s long-term care system, increasingly driven by age- and gender-specific disability burdens. Conclusions: If the current disability trend continues unchecked, health risks for older adults will grow over time. In the near future, China will face an extremely heavy care burden and pressure, which will severely impact its economic and social systems. Seizing this critical window for policy action and system improvement is crucial to reducing risks in the longevity era. Full article

This study examines how Zero-Waste Management (ZWM) and Green Innovative Supply Chain Management (GISCM) influence environmental and operational performance through the mediating role of Green Dynamic Capabilities (GDCs). Building on the Resource-Based View (RBV) and Dynamic Capabilities Theory (DCT), the study develops a model that explains how firms translate green practices into superior performance outcomes. Using survey data from 132 manufacturing firms in Oman and covariance-based structural equation modeling (CB-SEM), the results demonstrate that both ZWM and GISCM significantly enhance sustainable performance, with GISCM exerting the stronger overall effect. Moreover, GDC fully mediates the relationship between ZWM and operational performance and partially mediates the GISCM–performance links. These findings highlight that sustainability-driven outcomes depend on firms’ abilities to sense, seize, and reconfigure resources for continuous environmental innovation. The study advances theory by integrating RBV and DCT within the green operations context and provides practical insights for managers in emerging economies on developing dynamic and learning-based capabilities to achieve sustainable manufacturing competitiveness. Full article

Market volatility and resource constraints pose significant resilience challenges to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Although AI-agent automation, agile marketing, and customer relationship management (CRM) offer powerful individual solutions, their synergistic impact on SME resilience remains critically underexplored. This review bridges this gap by proposing an integrated, AI-driven resilience framework designed to enhance the adaptive capacity of smaller firms. Through a systematic analysis of 35 peer-reviewed articles, our study explicitly maps AI-agent automation, agile marketing, and CRM to the dynamic capabilities of sensing, seizing, and reconfiguring, clarifying the causal pathways to SME resilience. The framework defines key inputs (e.g., multi-channel customer data), processes (e.g., iterative sprints), and outputs (e.g., enhanced market responsiveness). We identify APIs and SaaS platforms as the critical technological backbone for implementation. The central finding is that this integrated model empowers SMEs to build dynamic resilience and achieve competitive parity through data-driven, automated workflows. Actionable recommendations include adopting API-first strategies, investing in workforce training, and prioritizing data security. Full article

Supply chain digitalization (SCD) plays a critical role in accelerating corporate green innovation, reducing carbon emissions, and enhancing corporate green transformation performance (CGTP). Drawing on the practice-based view, this study examines how SCD influences CGTP and through which mechanisms, using data from Chinese A-share listed firms spanning 2013 to 2021. Applying a double machine learning approach, the results demonstrate that SCD significantly enhances CGTP. Further, heterogeneity tests reveal that this positive effect is more pronounced in firms exposed to higher technological uncertainty, led by executives with stronger green cognition, and operating in less competitive markets. Mechanism tests suggest that SCD enhances firms’ sensing, seizing, and reconfiguring capabilities, thereby facilitating CGTP. The findings enrich the understanding of digital transformation and sustainability linkages and provide practical insights for managers and policymakers seeking to leverage SCD-driven strategies to promote corporate green transformation and sustainable development. Full article

This conceptual paper analyzes the effects of Donald Trump’s 2025 authoritarian regime on refugees, the US Refugee Admissions Program, and resettlement. The second Trump presidency resumed his first term’s attempt (2017–2021) at seizing power. This time, his regime launched a more sophisticated authoritarian plan to destroy the US. His 2025 term is consolidating power in the president to target all forms of migration to the US, including dismantling the US Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) through executive overreach, circumventing statutory refugee procedures, violating human and civil rights, and disregarding judicial constraints. On 20 January 2025, he used Executive Order 14163, “Realigning the United States Refugee Admissions Program,” to indefinitely suspend the admission and resettlement of refugees for 90 days. Exceptions are made on a case-by-case basis, with national interest and plans for a white nationalist state driving the decision. Refugees at any phase of the vetting process will be denied entry. Simultaneously, Executive Order 14169, “Reevaluating and Realigning United States Foreign Aid,” was signed on 20 January 2025, to pause the US dissemination of foreign aid for 90 days. Resumption would depend on a review determining foreign assistance alignment with national interests. The implementation of Executive Order 14169 further dismantled the USRAP infrastructure by stripping federal agencies of personnel and budgets that support resettled refugees through a “stop work order” issued by the Department of State’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) on 24 January 2025. Refugee resettlement agencies, non-profits, and faith-based organizations are vital to welcoming and assisting refugees as they adjust to their new lives. These critical organizations are now struggling to provide services to resettled refugees. Additionally, escalated, arbitrary, racially profiled deportations of alleged criminal undocumented immigrants have increased anxiety and fear among resettled refugee communities. Subsequently, the Trump administration’s indefinite suspension of the USRAP, effective from 2025 to 2028 and beyond, will impact refugees, their families, and the resettlement network. Truly, the survival of the USRAP depends on an administration that upholds the Constitution, democratic values, and the significance of US diplomatic global leadership, replacing this regime. Full article