Search Results (49)

Axial flow fans are widely used in high-speed train cooling and ventilation systems, where both static efficiency and noise reduction are critical performance requirements. In this study, the effects of hub geometry variation on the aerodynamic and acoustic characteristics of an axial flow fan are numerically investigated through three-dimensional simulations. Five fan configurations with different hub angles are analyzed under identical operating conditions. Steady aerodynamic performance is first evaluated using the Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) approach with the k-ω shear stress transport (SST) turbulence model. The unsteady flow field is then resolved using large eddy simulation (LES) to capture the vortex structures and blade surface pressure fluctuations responsible for noise generation. The far-field aerodynamic noise is predicted based on the Ffowcs Williams–Hawkings (FW–H) acoustic analogy, and both tonal and broadband noise characteristics are analyzed using multiple virtual microphones. The results show that reducing the hub angle leads to improved aerodynamic performance at lower volumetric flow rates. Meanwhile, a reduction in tonal noise at the blade-passing frequency (BPF) and broadband noise at higher frequencies is observed. The findings demonstrate that appropriate hub angle design provides an effective approach for the simultaneous improvement of static efficiency and the reduction of aerodynamic noise of axial-flow fans used in high-speed train applications. Full article

Grounded in Social Impact Theory, this study examines the effects of virtual experiences generated by Mere Virtual Presence (MVP), Mere Virtual Presence with Product Experience (MVPE), and pure brand websites on consumers’ brand attitudes and purchase intentions. Additionally, it explores the moderating roles of Consumers’ Need for Uniqueness (CNFU) and product type (search vs. experience products). This study adopts an experimental design with three brand website types (MVP brand communities, MVPE brand communities, and pure brand websites) and two product types to examine the hypothesis. Specifically, a 3 (brand website type) × 2 (product type) experimental design was implemented to examine the influence of brand website types across different scenarios of online marketing. The findings reveal significant insights into consumer brand marketing. Specifically, consumers with low CNFU exhibited higher brand attitudes and purchase intentions compared to those with high CNFU when engaging with search products in MVPE brand communities Furthermore, fan avatars within a virtual brand community can still influence consumer perceptions even without direct interaction. These insights contribute to the growing body of research on personalized marketing and offer practical strategies for leveraging eWOM to enhance consumer engagement and influence decision-making in the digital landscape. Full article

The cooling system is a core component for a vehicle’s powertrains to operate smoothly and maintain a satisfying noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH) performance. However, advances in new energy vehicles bring with them complex requirements for the cooling fan design due to new issues such as increased heat load, dynamic variations, and high-speed vibrations, which demand the optimization of fan dynamics over a wide range of parameters. In this paper, by thoroughly checking the effect of rigid–flexible coupling and the geometrically complex elastic frame of the fan, we propose a combined modeling approach to reduce the computational time of broad-range parameter variation analysis and examine the vibration problem in the cooling fans under various external excitations. First, the complicated frame of the fan is simplified through virtual prototyping based on an experiment. Then, modal transition is applied, reducing the complex kinetic expression, and a time-invariant system model is derived with multi-blade coordinate transformation. Stability and bifurcation analysis are performed regarding different excitation couplings from the rotor, powertrain, and road. The results of the simulation and experiment illustrate that the proposed methodology achieves a substantial reduction in computational time, and all degrees of freedom (DOFs) are divided into two groups including symmetrical and asymmetrical types. The results also imply the great potential for the optimization and control of the high-speed fan’s vibration for new energy cars. Full article

Reservoirs face growing challenges in safety and sustainable management, requiring systematic approaches that integrate monitoring, analysis, and decision support. To address this need, this study develops an integrated information system framework with a four-layer architecture, encompassing “perception,” “data,” “model,” and “application.” The perception layer establishes a multi-platform monitoring network based on fused multi-sensor data. The data layer manages heterogeneous information through correlation mechanisms at the physics, semantics, and application levels. The model layer supports decision-making through a cross-coupled analytical framework for the coordinated management of water safety, resources, environment, and ecology. Finally, the application layer utilizes virtual-physical mapping and dynamic reasoning to implement a closed-loop management system encompassing forecasting, warning, simulation, and planning. This framework was implemented and validated at the Ye Fan Reservoir in Hubei Province, China. By integrating components like “One Map,” flood dispatching, safety monitoring, early warning, video surveillance, and operational supervision, a three-dimensional perception network was constructed. This deployment significantly improved the precision, reliability, and scientific basis of reservoir operation. The integrated monitoring and management system presented in this paper, driven by heterogeneous sensor networks, provides an effective and generalizable solution for modern reservoir management, with the potential for extension to broader water resource and infrastructure systems. Full article

This article employs the theoretical framework of religious mediatization and a philosophical–anthropological lens to examine how various religious traditions utilize audiovisual media in the digital age to disseminate their faith and transform the religious experience. By comparing representative film and television cases from Christianity, Islam, and Eastern religions, the study analyzes how digital media reconstruct religious narratives, ritual practices, and identity, and facilitate cross-cultural faith exchange in online spaces. The findings indicate that audiovisual media have become a key arena for contemporary religious practice: they reinforce believers’ identity within their tradition while enabling different faith communities to encounter each other’s narratives, generating new understanding and spiritual experiences. Meanwhile, digital media have fostered virtual religious communities and a fan culture reminiscent of “implicit religion” (secular activities imbued with religious-like devotion), challenging traditional religious authority. Finally, from an interdisciplinary perspective, this article reflects on the opportunities and challenges of religious mediatization in the digital era, highlighting how media shape humanity’s quest for meaning and transcendence in a “liquid modernity” context. It also calls for deeper research into interreligious digital communication. Full article

Background/Objectives: Orbital reconstruction remains one of the most demanding procedures in maxillofacial surgery. It requires not only precise anatomical knowledge but also poses multiple intraoperative challenges. Limited surgical visibility—especially in transconjunctival or transcaruncular approaches—demands exceptional precision from the surgeon. At the same time, the complex anatomical structure of the orbit, its rich vascularization and innervation, and the risk of severe postoperative complications—such as diplopia, sensory deficits, impaired ocular mobility, or in the most serious cases, post-traumatic blindness due to nerve injury or orbital compartment syndrome—necessitate the highest level of surgical accuracy. In this context, patient-specific implants (PSIs), commonly fabricated from zirconium oxide or ultra-high-density polyethylene, have become invaluable. Within CAD-based reconstructive planning, especially for orbital implants, critical factors include the implant’s anatomical fit, passive stabilization on intact bony structures, and non-interference with orbital soft tissues. Above all, precise replication of the orbital dimensions is essential for optimal clinical outcomes. This study compares the morphological accuracy of orbital structures based on anthropometric measurements from 3D models generated from fan-beam computed tomography (FBCT) and cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT). Methods: A cohort group of 500 Caucasian patients aged 8 to 88 years was analyzed. 3D models of the orbits were generated from FBCT and CBCT scans. Anthropometric measurements were taken to evaluate the morphological accuracy of the orbital structures. The assessed parameters included orbital depth, orbital width, the distance from the infraorbital rim to the infraorbital foramen, the distance between the piriform aperture and the infraorbital foramen, and the distance from the zygomatico-orbital foramen to the infraorbital rim. Results: Statistically significant differences were observed between virtual models derived from FBCT and those based on CBCT in several key parameters. Discrepancies were particularly evident in measurements of orbital depth, orbital width, the distance from the infraorbital rim to the infraorbital foramen, the distance between the piriform aperture and the infraorbital foramen, and the distance from the zygomatico-orbital foramen to the infraorbital rim. Conclusions: The statistically significant discrepancies in selected orbital dimensions—particularly in regions of so-called thin bone—demonstrate that FBCT remains the gold standard in the planning and design of CAD/CAM patient-specific orbital implants. Despite its advantages, including greater accessibility and lower radiation dose, CBCT shows limited reliability in the context of orbital and infraorbital reconstruction planning. Full article

Thanks to Pompeii’s burial under Vesuvio’s 79 AD eruption deposits, the ballistic imprints on its northern defensive perimeter are uniquely attributable to Sulla’s siege of 89 BC. These impact marks were digitally documented using integrated survey techniques and custom pipelines. The virtual casts generated—dimensionally accurate, high-resolution surface replicas—serve as key inputs for the reverse-modeling of damage craters, supporting terminal ballistics analyses. Two case studies—a stone projectile cavity and fan-shaped dart impressions—were 3D-printed at 1:1 scale. Prototype casting thus emerges as a cultural asset and rapidly updatable component of a dynamic data ecosystem, inclusive of users with disabilities. Full article

This study examines the first systematic documentation of a series of small impact marks on the northern walls of Pompeii, interpreted as the result of Roman metal dart projectiles launched during the Sullan siege in 89 BC. Using high-resolution, reality-based 3D models, comparative analysis, and reverse modeling techniques, the research explores the hypothesis that a distinctive fan-shaped configuration of quadrangular indentations may have been produced by a repeating catapult, known as the polybolos. The integration of close-range photogrammetry, laser scanning, and digital reconstruction tools demonstrates how virtual casts and comparative modeling can contribute to archaeological interpretations of ancient projectile weaponry. Full article

Facial landmarks, as direct and reliable biometric features, are widely utilized in various fields, including information security, public safety, virtual reality, and augmented reality. Facial landmarks, which are discrete key points on the face, preserve expression features and maintain the topological structure between facial organs. Fast and accurate facial landmark prediction is essential in solving computer vision problems involving facial analysis, particularly in occlusion scenarios. This research proposes a lightweight facial landmark prediction network for occluded faces using an improved depthwise separable convolutional neural network architecture. The model is trained using 30,000 images from the CelebA-HQ dataset. The model is then tested under different occlusion ratios, including 10–20%, 30–40%, 40–50%, and 50–60% random occlusion, as well as 25% center occlusion. Using 68 facial landmarks for occlusion prediction, the proposed method always achieved significant improvements. Experimental results show that the proposed lightweight facial landmark prediction method is 1.97 times faster than FAN* and 1.67 times faster than ESR*, while still achieving better prediction results with lower NMSE values across all tested occlusion ratios for both frontal and profile faces. Full article

The global VTuber market is experiencing rapid growth, with VTubers extending beyond mere content creators to be utilized in various fields such as social interaction, public relations, and health. VTubers have the potential to expand the existing content market and contribute to increasing economic and public value. This study aims to investigate the perception of VTubers in South Korea and to provide insights that can contribute to the global activation of the VTuber entertainment industry. For this purpose, unstructured data on VTubers from the past three years, during which interest in VTubers has significantly grown in South Korea, was collected. A total of 57,891 samples were gathered from Naver, Daum, and Google, of which 50 highly relevant data points between VTubers and users were selected for analysis. First, key terms such as ‘Broadcast’, ‘YouTube’, ‘Live’, ‘Game’, ‘Youtuber’, ‘Japan’, ‘Character’, ‘Video’, ‘Sing’, ‘Virtual’, ‘Woowakgood’, ‘Fan’, ‘Idol’, ‘Korea’, ‘Twitch’, ‘IsegyeIdol’, ‘Communication’, ‘Worldview’, ‘VTuberIndustry’, ‘Contents’, ‘AfricaTV’, ‘Nijisanji’, and ‘Streamer’ were extracted. Second, CONCOR analysis revealed four clusters: ‘Famous VTubers’, ‘Features of VTubers’, ‘VTuber Industry’, and ‘VTuber Platforms’. Based on these findings, the study offers various academic and practical implications regarding VTubers in South Korea and explores the potential for global growth in the VTuber industry. Full article

The shelf-edge trajectory is comprehensively controlled by tectonics, sediment supply, sea level, and climate fluctuations; its migration and evolution have a strong influence on what happens in the deep-water depositional system during the Quaternary. The shelf-edge trajectory pattern, sediment-budget partitioning into deep-water areas, and reservoir evaluations are focused topics in international geosciences. In this paper, the Qiongdongnan Basin (QDNB) in the northern South China Sea is taken as an example to study how shelf-edge trajectory migration patterns can influence the types of deep-water gravity flow which are triggered there. Through quantitatively delineating the Quaternary shelf-edge trajectory in the QDNB, four types of shelf-edge trajectory are identified, including low angle slow rising type, medium angle rising type, high angle sharp rising type, and retrogradation-slump type. A new sequence stratigraphic framework based on the migration pattern of shelf-edge trajectory is established. There are four (third-order) sequences in the Quaternary, and several systems tracts named lowstand systems tract (LST), transgressive systems tract (TST), and highstand system tract (HST) are identified. This study indicates that the type of deep-water gravity flow can be dominated by the shelf-edge trajectory migration patterns. When the shelf-edge trajectory angle (α) ranged between 0° and 4°, the continental canyons were mostly small-scaled and shallowly incised, with multiple large-scale sandy submarine fan deposits with few MTDs found in the deep-water area. When the angle (α) ranged from 4° < α < 35°, the size and incision depth of the continental slope canyons increased, relating to frequently interbedded sandy submarine fan deposits and MTDs. When angle (α) ranged from 35° < α < 90°, only a few deeply-incised canyons were present in the continental slope; in this condition, large-scaled and long-distance MTDs frequently developed, with fewer submarine fans deposits. When angle (α) ranged from 90° < α < 150°, the valley in the slope area was virtually undeveloped, sediments in the deep-sea plain area consisted mainly of large mass transport deposits, and submarine fan development was minimal. Since the Quaternary, the temperature has been decreasing, the sea level has shown a downward trend, and the East Asian winter monsoon has significantly enhanced, resulting in an overall increase in sediment supply in the study area. However, due to the numerous rivers and rich provenance systems in the west of Hainan Island, a growing continental shelf-edge slope has developed. In the eastern part of Hainan Island, due to fewer rivers, weak provenance sources, strong tectonic activity, and the subsidence center, a type of destructive shelf-edge slope has developed. The above results have certain theoretical significance for the study of shelf-edge systems and the prediction of deep-water gravity flow deposition type. Full article

Due to the nature of construction work projects that must be executed outside regardless of the weather, and because it rains most of the time in the UK, the workforce will need dry clothing to work in the best conditions for their health and productivity. This study aims to identify the energy currently used in a drying room at the Everton site in Liverpool, based on which improvements will be made to optimise the drying system and garment hanging arrangement to reduce the energy bill and carbon (CO₂) emissions to the environment. A thermal model using IESVE 2023 (Integrated Environmental Solutions Virtual Environment) software was developed to predict the energy consumption in the current intensive energy drying room to know the baseline energy use before implementing energy savings by constructing a test drying room composed of a heater to raise the temperature, an air circulation fan to circulate air in the room, and a dehumidifier to reduce humidity. Moisture content in the garments to dry was monitored hourly from the 25th of April to the 2nd of May for seven hours, and the results show that the best drying system in terms of energy consumption to adopt is the combination of a dehumidifier and an air mover, saving about 60%. However, adding a low-energy heater to that will still realise the same savings—58%—and the drying process will be faster in this case. Based on this fact, it can be concluded that the impact of low humidity, good air velocity, and high temperature have a great impact on reducing energy consumption, drying time, and carbon emissions. Full article

The optimization of the geometry of a centrifugal fan is performed at maximum power and high-efficiency design points (DPs) to improve impeller efficiency. Two design variables defining the shape of fan blade are selected for the optimization. The optimal values of the geometry parameters of the impeller blades are identified by employing virtual flow simulations. The results of virtual experiments indicate the influence of the parameters of the blade geometry on its efficiency. With the optimization of impeller blade geometry, the efficiency of the fan is improved with respect to the reference model, as confirmed by comparing the performance curves. Herein, we discuss the results obtained in virtual tests by identifying the influence of DPs on the performance characteristics of centrifugal fans. Full article

As network structure of virtual communities related to suicide and school shooting still remains unaddressed in scientific literature, we employed basic demographics analysis and social network analysis (SNA) to show common features, as well as distinct facets in the communities’ structure and their followers’ network. Open and publicly accessible data of over 16,000 user accounts were collected with a social media monitoring system. Results showed that adolescents and young adults were the main audience of suicide-related and school shooting fan communities. List of blocked virtual groups related to school shooting was more extensive than that of suicide, which indicates a high radicalization degree of school shooting virtual groups. The homogeneity of followers’ interests was more typical for subscribers of suicide-related communities. A social network analysis showed that followers of school shooting virtual groups were closely interconnected with their peers, and their network was monolithic, while followers of suicide-related virtual groups were fragmented into numerous communities, so presence of a giant connected component in their network can be questioned. We consider our results highly relevant for better understanding the network aspects of virtual information existence, harmful information spreading, and its potential impact on society. Full article

In response to the trend of information technology development, religions in China are undergoing a process of mediatization. This study takes the popular Chinese animated films Ne Zha: Birth of the Demon Child (哪吒之魔童降世) (2019) and New Gods: Yang Jian (新神榜: 杨戬) (2022) as research cases of mediatization of religion and conducts a focused study of the respective protagonists Ne Zha (哪吒) and Yang Jian (杨戬), both prominent figures in Chinese religious and folk traditions. Through text analysis and empirical research on the two movies and their fans, this study examines how religion is being mediatized in contemporary China in the transformation to Religion 2.0 or a type of amalgamation of real- and virtual-world practices that enact a relationship with the divine, and how this shapes identity formation for fans, who are mostly young individuals in their teens and twenties. This research argues that to obtain permission for dissemination in mainstream media and thrive in the cultural context of China, religion chooses to assume the form of media products that can bypass scrutiny that forbids “supernatural phenomena” and aligns with the mainstream ideology. It has to be a “contributory religion” that contributes to the “revitalization” of national spirit and inherited Chinese culture, not a potential “superstitious” threat to the Marxist orthodoxy. In the context of official promotion of atheism and the regulation of public discourse, animated films with themes adapted from traditional mythological and religious stories, such as Ne Zha: Birth of the Demon Child and New Gods: Yang Jian, have become a major cultural form through which people in China engage with religious symbols and narratives. The enormous success of the two movies resulted in a large population of young fans. Influenced by these films, their fans have developed an egoistic religious perspective rather than assimilating the religious or cultural messages contained in the movies. These fans may experience solace and a call to faith to some extent in their consumption of the movies, but they selectively enhance religious literacy that only meets their personal needs. Interest in divine individuals far outweighs interest in or loyalty to the religious doctrine or sect itself. Pilgrimages are undertaken to fulfill personal fantasies, and the promotion of the divine is aimed at vying for influence within fan communities. The second part of this study examines the activities of the fans that I argue are characteristic of the age of Religion 2.0. Full article