The purpose of this research is to better understand what factors influence on households’ waste sorting behavior at source in Mongolia. To accomplish the goal, this study conducted online survey with self-report questionnaire method and the 353 participants’ data were collected through Facebook groups and pages related to house owners’ associations and waste recycling related non-profit organizations. The results show that the underlying factors determining the intention of waste sorting at source are (1) motivational bases such as prior beliefs and social norms; (2) and an ability/knowledge about the waste sorting at source. Furthermore, the intention is crucial predictor of the real behavior of waste sorting at source, but the most important one is an opportunity to do so. The conclusions and the recommendations are provided.

Improvisation is an important firm competence in product innovation as firms increasingly face inherent uncertainty in new product development (NPD) process and frequent jolts in the external environment. While there is some empirical and conceptual work on the value of improvisation for several new product outcomes, there is lack of empirical research on the antecedents of improvisation in innovation studies. We attempt to address this gap by studying the role of team variation and team convergence traits in the occurrence of improvisation in a sample of 118 NPD teams from manufacturing firms.

The use of artificial intelligence (AI) service robots is on the rise. With service frontlines gradually shifting to human–robot interactions, the question of whether AI robots should be humanlike or machinelike has emerged. While many firms use robots that resemble humans in their appearance and actions, others use machinelike robots, assuming that very humanlike robots may lead to uncanny valley effects. There is no consensus on whether the anthropomorphism of service robots facilitates or constrains consumers’ experiences. To fill this gap, this article examines when and how service companies should use anthropomorphic AI service robots.

In recent years, with its amazing online interactive promotion ability, e-commerce live streaming has attracted the attention of theoretical scholars and practical experts. This study takes “co-presence (CP) ” and “social presence (SP) ”, which are the prominent features of e-commerce live streaming, as the breakthrough point to explore the mechanism of the influence of co-presence and social presence on purchase intention. In this study, consumers with e-commerce live streaming watching experience are taken as participants, and the method of structural equation modeling is used. It is found that: presence significantly impacts flow experience and consumer purchase intention, while the impact of the two kinds of presence (SP, CP) is variable. the promotion effect of the two kinds of presence (SP, CP) on consumer purchase intention is completely mediated by flow experience. The mediating effect of co-presence on consumer purchase intention through flow experience is regulated by e-commerce live streaming topicality, but social presence doesn’t.

Augmented reality (AR) is a technology that overlays user surroundings with computer-generated images (Baek et al., 2016). It provides users with an enhanced view of their environment with digital content such as text, pictures, videos, three-dimensional (3D) objects, and even tactile and olfactory experiences (Du et al., 2022). This technology has significant potential for use in advertising, enabling realistic product visualisations and virtual product try-ons via social media (Baek et al., 2016).

The GMT-Consortium Large Earth Finder (G-CLEF) is the first instrument for the Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT). G-CLEF is a fiber feed, optical band echelle spectrograph that is capable of extremely precise radial velocity measurement. G-CLEF Flexure Control Camera (FCC) is included as a part in G-CLEF Front End Assembly (GCFEA), which monitors the field images focused on a fiber mirror to control the flexure and the focus errors within GCFEA. FCC consists of an optical bench on which five optical components are installed. The order of the optical train is: a collimator, neutral density filters, a focus analyzer, a reimager and a detector (Andor iKon-L 936 CCD camera). The collimator consists of a triplet lens and receives the beam reflected by a fiber mirror. The neutral density filters make it possible a broad range star brightness as a target or a guide. The focus analyzer is used to measure a focus offset. The reimager focuses the beam from the collimator onto the CCD detector focal plane. The detector module includes a linear translator and a field de-rotator. We performed thermoelastic stress analysis for lenses and their mounts to confirm the physical safety of the lens materials. We also conducted the global structure analysis for various gravitational orientations to verify the image stability requirement during the operation of the telescope and the instrument. In this article, we present the opto-mechanical detailed design of G-CLEF FCC and describe the consequence of the numerical finite element analyses for the design.

The development of functional carbon materials using waste biomass as raw materials is one of the research hotspots of lithium-sulfur batteries in recent years. In this work, used a natural high-quality carbon source—coffee grounds, which contain more than 58% carbon and less than 1% ash. Honeycomb-like S and N dual-doped graded porous carbon (SNHPC) was successfully prepared by hydrothermal carbonization and chemical activation, and the amount of thiourea used in the activation process was investigated. The prepared SNHPC showed excellent electrochemical energy storage characteristics. For example, SNHPC-2 has a large pore volume (1.85 cm3·g− 1), a high mesoporous ratio (36.76%), and a synergistic effect (S, N interaction). As the cathode material of lithium-sulfur batteries, SNHPC-2/S (sulfur content is 71.61%) has the highest specific capacity. Its initial discharge-specific capacity at 0.2 C is 1106.7 mAh·g−1, and its discharge-specific capacity after 200 cycles is still as high as 636.5 mAh·g−1.

Carbon/carbon composites are widely used in re-entry engineering applications thanks to their excellent mechanical properties at high temperatures, but they are easily oxidized in the oxygenated atmosphere. It is important to research their residual mechanical properties influenced by oxidation behaviour, in order to ensure the in-service safety. A microscale degradation model is proposed to predict the oxidation behavior based on the mass conservation and diffusion equations, the derived equivalent steady recession rate of composite is employed to evaluate the residual mechanical properties of the oxidized composite theoretically. A numerical strategy is proposed to investigate the oxidation mechanism of this composite. The differences in the degradation rate between the fiber and the matrix resulted in the steady state and an unchanged shape of the front. Residual mechanical properties of composite with three different domains of oxidation were simulated with a multiscale coupled model. The numerical results demonstrated that the mechanical properties of this composite decreased by 24–32% after oxidation for 30 min at 850 °C. Oxidation also caused the stress redistribution inside components, with the stress concentration diminishing their load-bearing capacity. The local areas of increased stress in the pyrocarbon matrix provided new ways for diffusion of oxygen into the pyrocarbon matrix and fibers.

This study investigated durian (Durio zibethinus) peels to produce powdered activated carbon (DPAC). The influence of process variables such as carbonization temperature, activation time, contact time, CO2 flow rate, and adsorption dosage was optimized using response surface methodology (RSM). A six-factor and two levels Box–Behnken design (BBD) was used to optimize the parameters. The independent variables were activation temperature (°C), duration (min), CO2 flow rate during the activation process (L/min), irradiation of adsorbent (kGy), irradiation duration (min), and adsorbent dosage (g) while phenol removal (mg/L) was the dependent variable (response). Following the observed correlation coefficient values, the design was fitted to a quadratic model (R2 = 0.9896). The optimal removal efficiency (97.25%) was observed at an activation temperature of 900 °C, activation time of 30 min, CO2 flow rate of 0.05 L/min, irradiation dose of 100 kGy, contact time of 35 min and adsorption dosage of 0.75 g. The optimal DPAC showed a BET surface of 281.33 m2/ g. The removal efficiency was later compared with a commercially available activated carbon which shows a 98.56% phenol removal. The results show that the durian peel could be an effective precursor for making activated carbon for phenol removal, and irradiation can significantly enhance surface activation.

Medicinal plant-derived carbon dots are eco-friendly and possess therapeutic properties. Among the medicinal plants studied throughout the world, Centella asiatica (L.) Urb. is known for its medicinal values, especially its neuroceutical and cogniceutical properties. This work discusses the green synthesis of carbon dots (CDs) using C. asiatica leaves as the carbon source via fast and cost-effective microwave-assisted method, and its physico-chemical characterization via UV–visible, fluorescence and FTIR spectrometry, XRD, SEM, AFM, TEM, SAED, EDX and zeta potential analyses. The study revealed quasi-spherical CDs having size ~ 3–6 nm, polycrystalline nature, and presence of various functional groups like –COOH, –H, =CH2 and C–O–C with UV absorption peaks at 213 and 322 nm. Interestingly, the C. asiatica-derived CDs exhibited blue fluorescence under UV with maximum emission wavelength of 460 nm when excited at 400 nm. Further, these CDs were evaluated for their biological applications, which uncovered their potential in therapeutics such as antimicrobial properties against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria at a dose of 10 μg, strong antioxidant activity with IC50 values of 165.28 and 128.48 μg mL− 1 in DPPH and H2O2 assays, respectively, and profound anti-inflammatory activity with IC50 value of 106.20 μg mL− 1 in protein denaturation assay. The CDs were also assessed for cytotoxicity using whole blood cells and were found to be safe for in vitro administration. Thus, the C. asiatica-derived CDs can be exploited for their potent biomedicinal properties. Fluorescent carbon dots (CDs) were prepared by microwave-assisted pyrolysis of Centella asiatica leaf extract and purification. The as synthesized CDs were subjected to various physico-chemical characterization and biomedical assays to understand its properties.

Ischemic stroke causes brain damage and neuronal cell death by depriving oxygen and nutrients and releasing excessive levels of glutamate and intracellular calcium. Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) is a polyphenolic compound present in green tea. It has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and neuroprotective effects. Hippocalcin is a calcium binding protein that regulates calcium concentration, neuronal differentiation, neuronal excitability, and neuronal cell death. In this study, we investigated whether EGCG regulates the expression of hippocalcin in neurons and astrocytes after focal cerebral ischemia. Cerebral ischemia was induced by meddle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). EGCG (50 mg/kg) or PBS was injected into the abdominal cavity just before MCAO surgery. Neurobehavioral tests were performed to evaluate the effect of EGCG on neurological behavioral deficits 24 h after MCAO surgery. Immunofluorescence staining was performed to evaluate the positive response to hippocalcin in the cerebral cortex after MCAO surgery. We also detected the positive reactions of neuronal nuclear protein (NeuN) and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) as markers of neuron and astrocyte, respectively. MCAO caused severe neurological impairment and EGCG treatment attenuated these impairments. MCAO damage reduced the number of NeuN-positive cells and increased the number of GFAP-positive cells. This result indicates a decrease in neurons and an increase in astrocytes. However, EGCG alleviated these changes caused by MCAO damage. MCAO reduced the number of hippocalcin-positive cells in neurons and astrocytes, and EGCG treatment attenuated these reductions. Hippocalcin exerts neuroprotective effect through regulating intracellular calcium concentration. In conclusion, EGCG regulates the expression of hippocalcin in neurons and astrocytes and has neuroprotective effects in focal cerebral ischemia.

본 연구에서는 컴퓨터 교육에 참여하는 대학생들의 학습 참 여 동기와 진로의사 결정 성향이 진로준비행동에 미치는 영향 및 진로의사 결정 성향의 매개효과를 규명하는 데 있었다. 아 울러 연구결과를 바탕으로 대학생의 진로준비행동 증진 향상을 위해 방향을 제시하고자 하였다. 본 논문의 연구대상은 중국 랴오닝성 S시(遼寧省S市)에 소재학습참여한 대학생이며, 설문 조사를 실시하였다. 수집한 설문지 응답 자료는 SPSS 21.0 프 로그램을 사용하여 기술 통계분석, 빈도분석, 신뢰도와 타당도 요인분석, 다중회귀 분석, 상관관계 분석 등을 실시하였다. 연구결과는 다음과 같다. 학습 참여 동기가 진로준비행동에 정(+)의 영향을 미치는 것으로 나타났다. 둘째, 학습 참여 동기 가 진로의사 결정 성향에 정(+)의 영향을 미치는 것으로 확인 되었다. 셋째, 진로의사 결정 성향은 진로준비행동에 정(+)의 영향을 미치는 것으로 나타났다. 넷째, 학습 참여 동기와 진로 준비행동의 관계에서 진로의사 결정 성향의 매개효과가 전체적 으로 나타났으며, 진로의사 결정 성향은 부분 매개 작용을 하 는 것으로 밝혀져 채택되었다. 이와 같은 연구결과는 대학생들 의 학습 참여 동기 및 진로의사 결정 성향는 진로준비행동에 중요하다는 것을 알 수 있다.

In this study, a bipolar visible light responsive photocatalytic fuel cell (PFC) was constructed by loading a Z-scheme g-C3N4/ carbon black/BiOBr and a Ti3C2/ MoS2 Schottky heterojunction on the carbon brush to prepare the photoanode and photocathode, respectively. It greatly improved the electron transfer and achieved efficient degradation of organic pollutants such as antibiotics and dyes simultaneously in two chambers of the PFC system. The Z-scheme g-C3N4/carbon black/BiOBr formed by adding highly conductive carbon black to g-C3N4/BiOBr not only effectively separates the photogenerated carriers, but also simultaneously retains the high reduction of the conduction band of g-C3N4 and the high oxidation of the valence band of BiOBr, improving the photocatalytic performance. The exceptional performance of Ti3C2/ MoS2 Schottky heterojunction originated from the superior electrical conductivity of Ti3C2 MXene, which facilitated the separation of photogenerated electron–hole pairs. Meanwhile, the synergistic effect of the two photoelectrodes further improved the photocatalytic performance of the PFC system, with degradation rates of 90.9% and 99.9% for 50 mg L− 1 tetracycline hydrochloride (TCH) and 50 mg L− 1 rhodamine-B (RhB), respectively, within 180 min. In addition, it was found that the PFC also exhibited excellent pollutant degradation rates under dark conditions (79.7%, TCH and 97.9%, RhB). This novel pollutant degradation system is expected to provide a new idea for efficient degradation of multiple pollutant simultaneously even in the dark.