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Rational time accompanies the onslaught of hyper-globalization. The Inuit of Arviat, Nunavut, paradoxically use rational time to resist rational time, setting aside temporal zones to protect Western cultural paradigms from impinging on their lives all of the time. Additionally, because temporal norms indicate membership in a group, doing time differently is one of the most effective ways in which to say “I’m not a part of your group!” While resisting rational clock-time, for example by walking off the job each day promptly at 4:59 pm, the Inuit of Arviat nevertheless have a myriad of clocks in their homes. This chapter explores their temporal resistance and the riddle of “why so many clocks in Arviat?”

As the strategy of 5G new infrastructure is deployed and advanced, 5G-R becomes the primary technical system for future mobile communication of China’s railway. V2V communication is also an important application scenario of 5G communication systems on high-speed railways, so time synchronization between vehicles is critical for train control systems to be real-time and safe. How to improve the time synchronization performance in V2V communication is crucial to ensure the operational safety and efficiency of high-speed railways.

This paper proposed a time synchronization method based on model predictive control (MPC) for V2V communication. Firstly, a synchronous clock for V2V communication was modeled based on the fifth generation mobile communication-railway (5G-R) system. Secondly, an observation equation was introduced according to the phase and frequency offsets between synchronous clocks of two adjacent vehicles to construct an MPC-based space model of clock states of the adjacent vehicles. Finally, the optimal clock offset was solved through multistep prediction, rolling optimization and other control methods, and time synchronization in different V2V communication scenarios based on the 5G-R system was realized through negative feedback correction.

The results of simulation tests conducted with and without a repeater, respectively, show that the proposed method can realize time synchronization of V2V communication in both scenarios. Compared with other methods, the proposed method has faster convergence speed and higher synchronization precision regardless of whether there is a repeater or not.

This paper proposed an MPC-based time synchronization method for V2V communication under 5G-R. Through the construction of MPC controllers for clocks of adjacent vehicles, time synchronization was realized for V2V communication under 5G-R by using control means such as multistep prediction, rolling optimization, and feedback correction. In view of the problems of low synchronization precision and slow convergence speed caused by packet loss with existing synchronization methods, the observer equation was introduced to estimate the clock state of the adjacent vehicles in case of packet loss, which reduces the impact of clock error caused by packet loss in the synchronization process and improves the synchronization precision of V2V communication. The research results provide some theoretical references for V2V synchronous wireless communication under 5G-R technology.

Many synchronization approaches are based on low-level time capturing, causing a tight integration with the Media Access Control (MAC) layer. Alternatively, this study aims to present a hybrid approach combining both receiver–receiver and sender–receiver schemes to reduce the variation of two-way message exchange durations, in heavy-load networks. To achieve network-wide synchronization, a variant of Prim’s algorithm (Cormen et al., 2009) is used to build a spanning tree, guaranteeing the minimum number of ancestors and limited error propagation. The simulation results show that the proposed approach is very competitive with a set of the most-cited synchronization protocols. In addition, a new synchronization simulator SynSim was developed using C++ language

To achieve network-wide synchronization, a variant of Prim's algorithm (Cormen et al., 2009) is used to build a spanning tree, guaranteeing the minimum number of ancestors and limited error propagation.

Simulation results show that the proposed approach is very competitive with a set of the most-cited synchronization protocols. In addition, a new synchronization simulator SynSim was developed using in C++ language.

It can be concluded from the experiments that MDSP is suitable for WSNs especially if MAC layer timestamping is not possible. So, the mean delays synchronization protocol (MSDP) is suitable to achieve time synchronization in single-hop and multi-hop networks without the MAC layer timestamping in large wireless sensor network (WSN) deployments.

A future enhancement of MDSP could be switching between the traditional timestamping and the new proposed timestamping based on a given threshold, which is the number of nodes in the neighborhood and the load of the network. It will be also interesting to test it in a prototype. The proposed solution can be used in practice to implement the Time-division multiple access (TDMA) protocol in a WSN. In addition, the proposed simulator can be used in a computer network synchronization protocols course.

To the best of authors’ knowledge, this study’s contribution is original. In addition, the authors implemented a new synchronization simulator

This chapter presents some basic concepts on time studies and discusses what a temporal approach can offer for higher education research. Being an invariable constituent of life, time structures and organizes activities and processes in higher education, covering all of its levels and functions. Furthermore, the current policy agenda that emphasizes the need for higher education to accelerate innovation flows, and to speed up the production of new knowledge and workers, accentuates the importance of the temporal perspective. The chapter examines the dominant, taken-for-granted conception of time – clock time – which involves a linear, quantitative, cumulative, homogenized, abstract and decontextualized conception of time. The core features of clock time are described by the four Cs put forward by Barbara Adam: creation, commodification, colonization and control of time. It is argued that, in the current digital, post-modern era, social acceleration reshapes and transforms the nature of clock time, which results in compression of time, shrinking future and extended present, all manifest in the overall speeding-up of life. In addition, a temporal lens for analysing higher education is presented, with examples from empirical studies on time and temporalities in academic work and identity building.

Whilst clocking in and out has been a feature of factory life for nearly 100 years it is now being abolished by an increasing number of employers. The authors discuss the pros and cons of the system and argue that it is likely to disappear altogether for several reasons.

In industrial distributed control environments for automation technology, Ethernet network based solutions are gaining prominence in the traditional fieldbus application areas with the promise of standardised solutions that can support real‐time operation to a resolution of less than 1 μm. However, there are no formal standards for a real‐time Industrial Ethernet. This paper looks at some of the emerging de facto solutions and describes a novel project where clusters of real‐time transducer networks are developed and the control is tightly synchronised using the IEEE 1588 clock synchronisation standard, realising a “Time‐triggered Ethernet” solution.

This paper uses a cognitive analytics management approach to analyze, understand and solve the problems facing the implementation of information systems and help management do the needed changes to enhance such a critical process; the emergency management system in the health industry is analyzed as a case study.

Cognitive analytics management (CAM) framework (Osman and Anouz, 2014) is used. Cognitive process: The right questions are asked to understand the behavior of every process and the flow of its corresponding data; critical data variables were identified, guidelines for identifying data sources were set. Analytics process: Techniques of data analytics were applied to the selected data sets, problems were identified in user–system interaction and in the system design. The analysis process helped the management in the management process to make right decisions for the right change.

Using the CAM framework, the analysis to the Lebanese Red Cross case study identified system user-behavior problems and also system design problems. It identified cases where distributed subsystems are vulnerable to time keeping errors and helped the management make knowledgeable decisions to overcome major obstacles by implementing several changes related to hardware design, software implementation, human resource training, operational and human-technology changes. CAM is a novel and feasible software engineering approach for handling system failures.

The paper uses CAM framework as an approach to overcome system failures and help management do the needed changes to enhance such a critical process. This work contributes to the software engineering literature by introducing CAM as a new agile methodology to be used when dealing with system failures. Furthermore, this study is an action research that validated the CAM theoretical framework in a health emergency context in Lebanon.

We expand the concept of time in the workplace by examining the different ways that time is discussed and the different meanings attached to time. Drawing upon observation, informal discussions, and focus groups, we examine worker discourse about clock time, work time, and family time, and argue that the meaning attached to each is related to workers’ ability to exercise some control over time. Using survey data collected from shift workers, we illustrate the connection between time and control by examining the predictors of job satisfaction and work–family conflict.

This text proposes that time is essentially related to one's visual metabolic rate. Metabolic rate is regulated by the speed of the intake of energy, the rate of the production of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) to the visual areas. The author's working hypothesis is that the visual area of the brain known as human V5, the region involved in motion detection, may be the region most responsible for time perception. Our time sense from all the senses is, thus, compiled in the visual region, the speed of the human perception of reality. Time is the relationship of the human perception of reality and the rate that the reality itself is taking place (given by light waves in the environment). Hence, vision (and the visual cortex area V5) may be the vitally important aspects in answering the question: what is time? When we are not looking at a clock, time may be governed by our rate of metabolism; rate of the production of ATP by the mitochondria in V5. For example, when general human metabolism (and V5) is fast, time runs slow. When metabolic rate is relatively slow, time runs relatively faster. Many factors enter into the speed of metabolism such as age, sex, drug effects, velocity compared to speed c, states of boredom or excitement, darkness or light and mental states such as sleep. The relationship between time and space is discussed with the metabolic rate of V5 in mind. Because the uncertainty principle and the quantum picture of reality are adopted, this model qualitatively quantizes space and time, showing why they must forever be connected i.e. space‐time. This idea is discussed in relation to Zeno's paradox, which suggests that space and time are indeed quantized. Events, instants and entropy are defined. Reality can be understood in terms of the speed of the processing of instants. The arrow of time is pictured as caused by long‐term potentiation of synaptic neurons within the brain. Minkowski‐Einstein space‐time is analyzed and compared with the visual metabolic rate. The probable consequences of this model are proposed.