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1 – 6 of 6Eman Salim, Wael S. Mohamed and Rasha Sadek
Paper aims to evaluate the efficiency of traditional chitosan, nano chitosan, and chitosan nanocomposites for consolidating aged papyrus samples. Cellulose-based materials, such…
Abstract
Purpose
Paper aims to evaluate the efficiency of traditional chitosan, nano chitosan, and chitosan nanocomposites for consolidating aged papyrus samples. Cellulose-based materials, such as papyrus sheets and paper, which are the most common types of writing supports for works of art in many museums and archive. They are subjected to different types of deterioration factors that may lead to many conservation problems. Consolidation treatment is one of the most common conservation treatments, which should have perform after much testing to select the appropriate consolidants.
Design/methodology/approach
This research paper aims to evaluate the resistance of traditional chitosan, nanochitosan and chitosan/zinc oxide nanocomposite as an eco-friendly papyrus strengthening. Untreated and treated papyrus was thermally aged and characterized via scanning electron microscope (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Antimicrobial activity of the papyrus specimens was also determined against four tested pathogenic bacteria by disc diffusion method: MRSA, Staphylococcus aureus, E. coli and P. aeruginosa.
Findings
The results revealed that chitosan nanocomposite showed a remarkable enhancement of papyrus tensile properties and presence of ZnO prevents the effects of biodeterioration.
Originality/value
Zinc oxide nanoparticles enhance the optical properties and increase the chemical reactions between the consolidating material and the treated papyrus.
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Although the Singapore model of ethnic integration through its public housing programme is well known, the formula for replicating its success elsewhere remains underexplored…
Abstract
Purpose
Although the Singapore model of ethnic integration through its public housing programme is well known, the formula for replicating its success elsewhere remains underexplored. This study aims to identify the criteria for successful transplantation, specifically by identifying the housing tenure types that are most amenable to the implementation of the Singapore model.
Design/methodology/approach
Through a comparative study of two common law jurisdictions – Singapore and England – this article highlights the differences in their housing landscapes and how such differences impact upon the adoption of ethnic integration policies through housing. The article also unpacks, through a cross-disciplinary lens, the concepts of public housing and housing tenures, drawing heavily on socio-legal and housing literature.
Findings
The authors observe that the implementation of ethnic integration policies is best justified and most easily achieved in leasehold estates that exhibit a strong tenurial relationship with the state retaining a more than notional role. Public housing in Singapore being an exemplar of this model, the implementation of its ethnic integration policy is relatively straightforward. By contrast, the shrinking public housing sector in England means that adoption of a similar policy would have limited reach. Even then, the political–legal environment in England that promotes home ownership is potentially hostile to the adoption of such policy as it may be seen as an infringement of private property right.
Originality/value
The cross-jurisdiction comparison is supplemented by an interdisciplinary analysis that seeks to bridge differences in the categorisation of tenure in housing and law literatures so as to promote cross-disciplinary dialogue.
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Priya Garg and Shivarama Rao K.
This paper aims to discuss the process of building a 24×7 reference platform for facilitating the farmers with the easy access of information at any time from any location. It…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to discuss the process of building a 24×7 reference platform for facilitating the farmers with the easy access of information at any time from any location. It takes the text string as input and process it to respond with the desired result to the user.
Design/methodology/approach
An interactive Web-based chatbot named as AgriRef was developed using free version of Dialogflow. The intents were defined based on the conversation flow diagram. Furthermore, the application was integrated with website on local server and telegram application.
Findings
With this chatbot application, the farmers will able to get answers of their queries. It provides the human-like conversational interface to the farmers. It will also be useful for librarians of agricultural libraries to save time in answering common queries.
Originality/value
This paper describes the various steps involved in developing the chatbot application using Dialogflow.
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Anna-Therése Järvenpää, Johan Larsson and Per Erik Eriksson
This paper aims to identify how a public client’s use of control systems (process, output and social control) affect innovation possibilities in construction projects.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to identify how a public client’s use of control systems (process, output and social control) affect innovation possibilities in construction projects.
Design/methodology/approach
Semi-structured interviews about six infrastructure projects were conducted to identify respondents’ views on innovation possibilities. These possibilities were then analyzed from an organizational control perspective within principal–agent relationships between the Swedish Transport Administration (STA) and their contractors.
Findings
How the client uses control systems affects innovation possibilities. Relying on process control could negatively affect innovation opportunities, whereas output control could have a positive influence. In addition, social control seems to have a weak effect, as the STA appears not to use social control to facilitate joint innovation. Public clients must comply with the Public Procurement Act and, therefore, retain the requirements specified in the tendering documents. Much of the steering of the execution is connected to the ex ante phase (before signing the contract), which affects innovation possibilities in the design and execution phases for the contractor.
Research limitations/implications
This study was conducted with only one client, thus limiting its generalizability. However, the findings provide an important stepping stone to further investigation into balancing control systems and creating innovation possibilities in a principal–agent relationship.
Originality/value
Although public procurement has increasingly been emphasized as a major potential source of innovation, studying how a public client’s use of organizational control systems affects innovation possibilities in the construction sector has received scant attention.
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Martin Gutmann, Erik Jentges and Douglas MacKevett
The purpose of this paper is to describe an innovative approach to overcoming a common dilemma in designing negotiation simulations – that of situating a simulation in a real-life…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to describe an innovative approach to overcoming a common dilemma in designing negotiation simulations – that of situating a simulation in a real-life or fictitious context. This binary choice, which the authors call the negotiation designer’s dilemma, has profound implications for the types of learning activities and outcomes that can be integrated into the overall learning experience. As a way of overcoming the trade-offs inherent in this dilemma, the authors developed what they term hybrid simulations, which blend elements of fact and fiction in its contextual design in a particular way.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors were part of a negotiation simulation design team that used Design Thinking to understand the negotiation designer’s dilemma and to prototype and test a corresponding solution.
Findings
This paper demonstrates the benefits, potential applications and the how-to of hybrid simulations within the context of two such simulations the authors have designed at two different Swiss business schools. This paper concludes by discussing the potential and limitations for the application of hybrid simulations, as well as areas of potential further development.
Originality/value
The concept of a hybrid negotiation is a novel design trick that can be used in a variety of negotiation simulation contexts.
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Yarong Zhang and Meng Hu
The susceptible-infectious-susceptible (SIS) infectious disease models without spatial heterogeneity have limited applications, and the numerical simulation without considering…
Abstract
Purpose
The susceptible-infectious-susceptible (SIS) infectious disease models without spatial heterogeneity have limited applications, and the numerical simulation without considering models’ global existence and uniqueness of classical solutions might converge to an impractical solution. This paper aims to develop a robust and reliable numerical approach to the SIS epidemic model with spatial heterogeneity, which characterizes the horizontal and vertical transmission of the disease.
Design/methodology/approach
This study used stability analysis methods from nonlinear dynamics to evaluate the stability of SIS epidemic models. Additionally, the authors applied numerical solution methods from diffusion equations and heat conduction equations in fluid mechanics to infectious disease transmission models with spatial heterogeneity, which can guarantee a robustly stable and highly reliable numerical process. The findings revealed that this interdisciplinary approach not only provides a more comprehensive understanding of the propagation patterns of infectious diseases across various spatial environments but also offers new application directions in the fields of fluid mechanics and heat flow. The results of this study are highly significant for developing effective control strategies against infectious diseases while offering new ideas and methods for related fields of research.
Findings
Through theoretical analysis and numerical simulation, the distribution of infected persons in heterogeneous environments is closely related to the location parameters. The finding is suitable for clinical use.
Originality/value
The theoretical analysis of the stability theorem and the threshold dynamics guarantee robust stability and fast convergence of the numerical solution. It opens up a new window for a robust and reliable numerical study.
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