An international comparison of technology adoption : Testing the UTAUT model

We examined the relationships of the constructs in the UTAUT model to determine how they are affected by culture. In our study, we used data from Korea and the U.S. to examine two technologies: the MP3 player and Internet banking. Results showed that the UTAUT model fits our data well. The comparison of Korea and the U.S. revealed that the effects of effort expectancy on behavioral intention and the effects of behavioral intention on use behavior were greater in the U.S. sample. The implications of this are discussed.     

Posttreatment of powder aerosol deposited oxide ceramic films by high power LED

The powder aerosol deposition (PAD) method is becoming increasingly important as an energetically advantageous coating method compared to classic ceramic technologies. However, due to the process-related lattice deformation, ceramic coatings often exhibit reduced functional properties in the as-deposited state. A thermal posttreatment at temperatures well below the sintering temperature can significantly reduce the lattice deformation and the stress within the film to restore the functional film properties close to sintered bulk samples. In this work, the optothermal posttreatment of PAD films using three different high-power light emitting diodes (HP-LED) with different wavelengths within the visible light spectrum is investigated as an alternative to time-consuming furnace or energy-intensive laser processes on the example of thermoelectric CuFe_0.98Sn_0.02O₂ films. We demonstrate that the space-saving LED-based posttreatment not only restores the film properties but also significantly reduces the required processing time to a few seconds.     

Dimensions of effective government pandemic-crisis communication in the context of COVID-19: A public-centric perspective

Drawing on two representative online surveys in Hong Kong (HK) and the United States (US) during the COVID-19 pandemic, this study investigates, from a public-centric perspective, public expectations of effective government pandemic-crisis communication. The study looks specifically at what the publics want to be communicated in times of a global pandemic and how. In each region, the findings identify four significant dimensions. Three are culturally universal dimensions—basic responsibility, locus of pandemic-crisis responsibility, and disfavour of promotional tone. The fourth is culture-specific—personal relevance for HK and frequency for the US. Among the significant dimensions, the most highly expected is what people consider to be the government's basic responsibility in pandemic communication, that is, a basic responsibility dimension. This includes providing instructing and adjusting information and securing accuracy, timeliness, and transparency in pandemic communication. In both regions, respondents preferred by far traditional media and nongovernmental sources to social media and governmental sources.     

柔性轧制及其实现方法

介绍了柔性轧制的概念，将柔性轧制分为几何形状尺寸的柔性调控和产品性能柔性控制两种类型，分别介绍了两类柔性轧制的实现方法和相关技术。在形状尺寸柔性调控中，利用对轧辊辊缝及孔型的灵活控制，获得具有形状尺寸优化、负载能力增强的产品，满足一些特定需求，实现节材减重、节能减排；在轧制中对组织性能进行柔性控制方面，介绍了从早期一钢多能、一钢多用，到用同一种化学成分生产不同晶粒尺寸的产品，获得不同力学性能的状况，再到近期提出的UniSteel概念，以单一化学成分取代已有的繁多汽车用钢品种；最后对柔性轧制技术的发展进行了展望。     

Existence and stability of impulsive stochastic coupled systems in infinite dimensions

This paper considers the exponential stability of a class of infinite-dimensional impulsive stochastic coupled systems. With the help of generalized Itô's formula for the mild solution of infinite-dimensional systems, we avoid limiting the domain of the mild solution. Then we use the combination of the Lyapunov function and graph theory to construct the Lyapunov function of the systems; the criteria of $p$-th moment exponential stability are obtained, which is related to the average impulsive interval $T_a$ and the connectivity of impulsive stochastic systems. In addition, noting that the existence may be affected by impulsive effects and stochastic perturbations, using the graph theory and the principle of contraction mapping, we get the condition that guarantees the existence and uniqueness, which is also related to the structure of the networks. Finally, we consider the stability of impulsive stochastic coupled heat equations and neural networks with reaction diffusion and give some numerical simulations to verify the theoretical results.     

Machine vision-based automated earthquake-induced drift ratio quantification for reinforced concrete columns

This paper presents a novel method for estimating the seismic peak interstory drift ratio (IDR) in reinforced concrete (RC) columns after an earthquake using surface crack image analysis. The quantitative representation of the complexity and irregularity of crack images in damaged RC columns is obtained through the consideration of the generalized fractal dimensions. The authors have compiled a comprehensive database consisting of 445 crack maps obtained from cyclic experiments conducted on 110 rectangular RC column specimens exhibiting double-curvature deformation mode. This database is utilized by the authors to develop and validate the proposed procedure. The research database contains a wide range of structural and geometric features. Five closed-form equations are developed with the objective of estimating the peak IDR experienced by the RC columns during a seismic event. The predictive equations are derived through the utilization of symbolic regression technique, with the input parameters varying according to the availability of columns characteristic parameters. Results reveal that generalized fractal dimensions, especially D₋₁, are strong vision-based indicator of damage in RC columns having correlation coefficients with IDR ranging from 0.82 to 0.92 across the considered plans. The seismic peak IDR obtained through the empirical equations can serve as the input engineering demand parameter (EDP) in the seismic loss estimation frameworks. This allows for the determination of the probability of exceeding damage states for structural and nonstructural components of concrete buildings. Finally, the practical implementation of the methodology is examined by its application to an actual case of a damaged column during the Kermanshah earthquake of magnitude 7.3 that occurred in 2017.     

Measurement Uncertainty Analysis of the Rotary-scan Method for the Measurable Dimension of Cylindrical Workpieces

The measurement uncertainty analysis is carried out to investigate the measurable dimensions of cylindrical workpieces by the rotary-scan method in this paper. Due to the difficult alignment of the workpiece with a diameter of less than 3 mm by the rotary scan method, the measurement uncertainty of the cylindrical workpiece with a diameter of 3 mm and length of 50 mm which is measured by a roundness measuring machine, is evaluated according to GUM (Guide to the Expression of Uncertainty in Measurement) as an example. Since the uncertainty caused by the eccentricity of the measured workpiece is different with the dimension changing, the measurement uncertainty of cylindrical workpieces with other dimensions can be evaluated the same as the diameter of 3 mm but with different eccentricity. Measurement uncertainty caused by different eccentricities concerning the dimension of the measured cylindrical workpiece is set to simulate the evaluations. Compared to the target value of the measurement uncertainty of 0.1μm, the measurable dimensions of the cylindrical workpiece can be obtained. Experiments and analysis are presented to quantitatively evaluate the reliability of the rotary-scan method for the roundness measurement of cylindrical workpieces.     

新世纪中国粮食储藏科技发展新脉络的梳理与展望

本世纪以来，中国在粮食储藏领域的科学理论、研究方法、应用技术研发都得到加速发展。在简要回顾上世纪中国粮食储藏科技发展过程的基础上，对本世纪以来粮食科技取得的新发展进行了归纳，从微观、宏观、信息化与人工智能三个维度对粮食科技发展新脉络进行梳理和展望。微观维度的发展是指粮堆生物体的微观机理研究的进展。从粮食基础参数研究起步，介绍了在分子生物学、基因工程学、蛋白组学、代谢组学等生命科学理论和方法支持下，对粮食籽粒、储粮害虫和微生物的微观参数、特征、代谢和品质变化规律、以及真菌毒素防控技术等研究取得的新成果。宏观维度的发展是指在储粮生态理论的基础上，从宏观层面研究粮食储藏中环境生态因子之间的互相影响。介绍了在粮堆生物场和物理场等多场耦合理论支持下取得的新成果。在信息化与人工智能维度的发展方面，介绍了我国粮食领域人工智能（AI）的发展过程，在机理驱动AI和数据驱动AI相结合的“机理+数据”双驱动AI的新理念指导下取得的新成果。通过对发展新脉络的梳理，提出展望：一是在发展战略层面，要通过科技提升粮食流通系统管理能力，包括粮食储备安全的监管技术、全产业链质量控制和追溯、提升粮食产业可持续发展能力等等，仍然要继续开展重大粮食科技难题和“卡脖子”问题的行业攻关。二是在科学理论和技术方法层面，运用好粮食领域“技术平移”优势和交叉学科突破优势，推进理论创新和技术迭代，加快步入中国粮食储藏科技发展的高速路。