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The aerodynamic differences between the head car (HC) and tail car (TC) of a high-speed maglev train are significant, resulting in control difficulties and safety challenges in operation. The arch structure has a significant effect on the improvement of the aerodynamic lift of the HC and TC of the maglev train. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the effect of a streamlined arch structure on the aerodynamic performance of a 600 km/h maglev train.

Three typical streamlined arch structures for maglev trains are selected, i.e. single-arch, double-arch and triple-arch maglev trains. The vortex structure, pressure of train surface, boundary layer, slipstream and aerodynamic forces of the maglev trains with different arch structures are compared by adopting improved delayed detached eddy simulation numerical calculation method. The effects of the arch structures on the aerodynamic performance of the maglev train are analyzed.

The dynamic topological structure of the wake flow shows that a change in arch structure can reduce the vortex size in the wake region; the vortex size with double-arch and triple-arch maglev trains is reduced by 15.9% and 23%, respectively, compared with a single-arch maglev train. The peak slipstream decreases with an increase in arch structures; double-arch and triple-arch maglev trains reduce it by 8.89% and 16.67%, respectively, compared with a single-arch maglev train. The aerodynamic force indicates that arch structures improve the lift imbalance between the HC and TC of a maglev train; double-arch and triple-arch maglev trains improve it by 22.4% and 36.8%, respectively, compared to a single-arch maglev train.

This study compares the effects of a streamlined arch structure on a maglev train and its surrounding flow field. The results of the study provide data support for the design and safe operation of high-speed maglev trains.

Prefabricated housing has become a boom industry across the world; however, the uptake of offsite construction (OSC) approaches in Australian low-rise buildings is rather low compared with high-rise buildings in other countries. This study aims to investigate and analyse the adoption of different levels of OSC approaches and the selection of different procurement options in Australian low-rise residential buildings.

The research objectives were pursued through a mixed research method. An empirical questionnaire survey was carried out with 35 professionals in the Australian building and construction industry. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 20 interviewees and analysed using thematic analysis method in NVivo software.

The research results found that the most suitable OSC level for Australian low-rise buildings is components-based prefabrication and identified the barriers to OSC uptake for each OSC level. The study also showed that the best option of procuring prefabricated products is from Australian manufacturers, followed by Australian suppliers/dealers and overseas manufacturers. Panelised prefabrication and components-based prefabrication are ranked as the most suitable OSC approaches for Australian manufacturers. Modular prefabrication is regarded as the most suitable for overseas manufacturer, while components-based prefabrication is the most suitable for Australian suppliers/dealers.

The selection of various OSC approaches and different procurement options in the low-rise residential buildings are scarcely explored topic, and thus, this study provides knowledge of interest for both researchers and practitioners.

This study investigated how college students’ pace of life and perceptions of communication technologies shape the choices they make when engaging in mediated communication with their parents.

We conducted 21 interviews to explore how students’ understandings of various communication technologies, the rules and patterns of technology use in their families, and the circumstances surrounding their use of technologies while at college influence the number and type of media they use to communicate with their parents.

We found that perceived busyness and generational differences played a large role in limiting technologies used, with environmental factors, the purpose of communication, and complexity of message also contributing to technology choices.

This study extends media multiplexity theory by investigating media choice and relational tie strength in an intergenerational context.

This study reports on a four-month ethnographic project conducted among young Catholic women in Mumbai, India. Here, the author examines how the media consumption of participants is implicated in reconstituting Indian national identity. Because Hinduism is closely tied to conceptualizations of Indianness and because women continue to be marginalized in Indian society, Catholic women in India are viewed as second-class citizens or “not Indian enough” or “appropriately Indian” by virtue of their gender and religious affiliation. However, through media consumption that emphasizes hybridity, participants destabilize narrow definitions of Indian identity. Specifically, participants cultivate hybridity as central to an Indian identity that is viable in an increasingly global society. Within this formulation of hybridity, markers of their marginalization are reframed as markers of distinction. By centering hybridity in their media consumption, young, middle-class Catholic women (re)imagine their national identity in translocal cosmopolitan terms that subverts marginalization experienced by virtue of their religion and leverages privileges they enjoy by virtue of their middle-class status. Importantly, this version of Indian identity remains elitist in that it remains inaccessible to poor women, including poor women of minority groups.

In this study, superhydrophobic fabric is prepared with a wet-chemical coating technique that uses a coating solution synthesized by the co-hydrolysis and co-condensation of tetraethyl orthosilicate and fluoroalkyl silane (tridecafluorooctyl triethoxysilane) under an alkaline condition. The treated fabric shows stable superhydrophobicity with a water contact angle as high as 171°, and a sliding angle as low as 2°. The coated fabric has higher repellency to saline water, and its repellency increases with increases in the salt content in the solution. The contact angle is reduced with increases in liquid temperature. When the water temperature is 90°C, the contact angle on the superhydrophobic fabric is 153°. The superhydrophobic treatment slightly reduces the air permeability, but increases the water vapor permeability of the fabric. The treatment considerably increases the liquid breakthrough pressure, but has little effect on fabric pore size and thermal conductivity. The air gap membrane distillation process is used to evaluate the desalination performance of the superhydrophobic fabric. When the feed and the condenser are kept at 90°C and 20°C, respectively, the membrane distillation (MD) system with the superhydrophobic fabric yields a permeate flux of water up to 13.8 kg m^-2 hour^-1, which is slightly higher than that with the use of polymer and inorganic MD membranes reported. Superhydrophobic fabrics may thus be considered as effective MD membranes for water desalination applications.

The purpose of this paper is to provide the historical background of genealogical records and analyze the value of Chinese genealogical research through the study of names and genealogical resources.

The paper examines the historical evolution and value of Chinese genealogical records, with the focus on researching the Islamic Chinese names used by the people living in Guilin. The highlight of this paper includes the analysis and evolution of the Islamic Chinese names commonly adopted by the local people in Guilin. It concludes with the recommendations on emphasizing and making the best use of genealogical records to enhance the research value of Chinese overseas studies.

The paper covers the history of Islam and describes how the religion was introduced into China, as well as Muslims' ethnicity and identity. It also places focus on the importance of building a research collection in Asian history and Chinese genealogy.

This research study has a strong subject focus on Chinese genealogy, Asian history, and Islamic Chinese surnames. It is a narrow field that few researchers have delved into.

The results of this study will assist students, researchers, and the general public in tracing the origin of their surnames and developing their interest in the social and historical value of Chinese local history and genealogies.

The study of Chinese surnames is, by itself, a particular field for researching the social and political implications of contemporary Chinese society during the time the family members lived.

Very little research has been done in the area of Chinese local history and genealogy. The paper would be of value to researchers such as historians, sociologists, ethnologists and archaeologists, as well as students and anyone interested in researching a surname origin, its history and evolution.

E-recruiting has been a powerful tool for reaching the majority of job applicants around the world. Even though, previous literature has scarcely shed light on the factors responsible for the adoption of e-recruitment among job candidates. Originated from the technology acceptance model (TAM), this study aims to empirically examine the influence of online word-of-mouth in shaping job-seekers’ intentions for using e-recruitment websites.

A Google Docs-based online questionnaire was distributed via social media, LinkedIn and email to 740 participants, out of which 397 final responses were received. The partial least squares structural equation modeling using SmartPLS 3 was applied for evaluating the theoretical model.

This study empirically indicated that electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) has a significant impact on perceived usefulness (PU), perceived ease of use (PEOU) and attitude. Whereas, PU and attitude fully mediate the relationship between eWOM and behavioral intentions (BI) of job-seekers towards e-recruitment.

This research contributes to the understanding of the relevance of eWOM in e-recruitment adoption. eWOM provides job-related information that plays a significant role in the usage of online recruitment systems such as LinkedIn, job portals and company websites. This study offered a valuable contribution to the existing body of literature on e-recruitment, developers and Web-based hiring service providers.

This investigation was the first attempt in the e-recruitment literature to explore the influence of eWOM on job-seekers’ intentions to adopt online recruitment platforms, including the mediating role of PU, PEOU and attitude in the association between eWOM and BI.

Photochromic surface coating on textiles may create new fashion opportunities. It also enhances the ultraviolet (UV) protection ability of the coated products. In this study, a spirooxazine dye and a silane that bears a long alkyl chain have been used to produce hybrid photochromic silica coatings on wool fabrics. Four stabilisers are added separately to the photochromic silica coatings to examine their influence on photostability and photochromic behaviour. It is found that the addition of UV stabilisers slightly reduces the photochromic response speed and photochromic absorption. However, the addition of UV stabilisers to the photochromic coating considerably improves the photochromic lifetime. Among the four UV stabilisers studied, the quencher results in the best improvement to photostability with the lowest reduction in photochromic absorption.

As the virtual reference service (VRS) is becoming a standard service of the digital library, efficient collaboration among virtual reference services is also becoming more and more important for information exchange and sharing. This paper seeks to examine existing collaborative VRS systems with a view to achieving collaboration.

This paper studies existing collaborative VRS (CVRS) systems and analyzes their structures, methods and functions for achieving collaboration.

Three collaborative structure models are proposed and basic collaborative methods and collaborative functions are concluded. A CVRS reference model is depicted.

Since the study is not based on an exhaustive list of CVRS systems and technologies are always developing, the collaborative structure models, methods and functions presented in this paper are possibly not complete and may need to be adjusted and amended. There is also urgent work to be done to advance and establish related standards and protocols for CVRS.

The study is intended to help libraries to identify quickly the necessary elements and mechanisms for the design of a proper degree of CVRS or to develop or evaluate VRS systems.

This paper proposes and concludes collaborative structure models, methods, functions and a reference model of CVRS. It should prove helpful for libraries wishing to provide CVRS, as well as for further research on CVRS.

The control of weld penetration in gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW) is required for a “teach and playback” robot to overcome the gap variation in the welding process. This paper aims to investigate this subject.

This paper presents a robotic system based on the real‐time vision measurement. The primary objective has been to demonstrate the feasibility of using vision‐based image processing to measure the seam gap in real‐time and adjust welding current and wire‐feed rate to realize the penetration control during the robot‐welding process.

The paper finds that vision‐based measurement of the seam gap can be used in the welding robot, in real‐time, to control weld penetration. It helps the “teach and playback” robot to adjust the welding procedures according to the gap variation.

The system requires that the seam edges can be accurately identified using a correlation method.

The system is applicable to storage tank welding of a rocket.

The control algorithm based on the knowledge base has been set up for continuous GTAW. A novel visual image analysis method has been developed in the study for a welding robot.