A failsafe network design recovering from the stressed condition against a massive supply disruption is generally useful for various applications. Water flow in plants under a tension is inherently vulnerable to an embolism, a water supply cut off, causing a death. However, the function of the network structures of leaf veins and xylem stems effectively reduces the embolism-induced failure. In this study, water transport in plants under the pressurized conditions compared to the normal physiological conditions is observed by X-ray imaing. By examining embolism-induced water supply limits in the architecturally diverse leaf and stem networks, a progressive hydraulic rule has been found: the limited flows in the selected parts of the network structures against a total fail. For a scientific explanation on nanoscale water flow dynamics occurring in plants, temporal meniscus development in the nanomembrane model system is investigated. The pressure-driven hydrodynamic transport phenomena can be explained to follow network dynamics of the modified imbibition typically occuring in nanostrutcures. This study contributes to a variety of design technologies of networked materials against the spread of flow damages under the stressed conditions.
The Intellectual Property (IP) chapter of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) is recognized for its extensive coverage, encompassing a broad range of innovation areas such as patents, trademarks, geographical indications, and copyright. This chapter sets a new global benchmark for IP protection, posing significant challenges to the existing legal frameworks of member countries and necessitating rapid adaptation, particularly for developing members like Vietnam, Malaysia, and Mexico. These nations have undertaken comprehensive revisions to their IP laws to align with the international standards established by the CPTPP. Despite their unique national contexts, the legal amendments reflect distinct strategies and methodologies in meeting international standards. This paper conducts a qualitative analysis of Vietnam, Malaysia, and Mexico, comparing their law amendment strategies, contents, and techniques across three dimensions. It highlights the distinctive characteristics and impacts of their legal revisions, offering valuable insights for other prospective developing members within the CPTPP framework on the practice of IP law reform.
This study seeks to explore the information value of free cash flow (FCF) on corporate sustainability and investigate the moderating effects of board gender diversity and firm size on the association between FCF and corporate sustainability of Thai listed companies. The dataset consists of companies listed on the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) in 2022. Multivariate regression analysis is executed in this study. Subsequently, PROCESS macro served to evaluate the proposed hypotheses. This study found that FCF has a significant positive relationship with corporate sustainability. As well, board gender diversity and firm size both moderate the relationship between FCF and corporate sustainability, such that the positive effect of FCF on corporate sustainability is stronger when the proportion of female boards diminishes, while firm size is smaller. However, when firms have a larger proportion of females on the boards of directors for all levels of firm size, free cash flow indicates that there is no statistically significant effect on corporate sustainability. This study contributes to FCF and sustainability literature by understanding the extent of corporate sustainability.
This article explores ethnomedicine or traditional medication written in palm-leaf manuscripts in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara. Most of the manuscripts in Lombok are written on palm leaf or lontar. One genre of palm-leaf manuscripts is USADA or traditional medication. These USADA manuscripts, serving as guides for traditional healers (dukun and balian), contain valuable information on diseases, treatments, herbal remedies, and incantations. The study reveals that ethnomedicine remains a relevant and respected practice in Lombok, often considered on par with modern medicine. Many residents rely on traditional healers for healthcare, particularly for minor illnesses. The research also highlights the living nature of the manuscript tradition, with continued recitation, copying, and teaching of these texts to younger generations. However, challenges persist in preserving these manuscripts and promoting wider appreciation for this unique cultural heritage.
Urban infrastructures and services—such as public transportation, innovation bodies and environmental services—are important drivers for the sustainable development of our society. How effectively citizens, institutions and enterprises interact, how quickly technological innovations are implemented and how carefully new policies are pursued, synergically determine development. In this work, data related to urban infrastructure features such as patents and recycled waste referred to 106 province areas in Italy are investigated over a period of twenty years (2001–2020). Scaling laws with exponents characterizing the above mentioned features are observed and adopted to scrutinize whether and how multiple interactions within a population have amplification effects on the recycling and innovation performance. The study shows that there is a multiplication effect of the population size on the innovation performance of territories, meaning that the dynamic interactions among the elements of the innovation eco-systems in a territory increase its innovation performance. We discuss how to use such approach and the related indexes for understanding metropolitan development policy.
Sustainable ocean tourism is required to establish a balance between the environmental, economic, social and cultural aspects of ocean tourism development. Sustainable ocean tourism also contributes to local and national economies, enhancing the quality of social life and protecting the ecology. Sustainable ocean tourism expands the positive contribution of tourism to biodiversity conservation and poverty reduction and aims to attain the common goals of sustainable developments for ocean tourism. Sustainable ocean tourism is possible due to the roles of regulators and private and government institutions. Government policies, regulations and guidelines play vital roles towards achieving the sustainability of ocean tourism. However, the role of institutions also cannot be ignored, which provide support in the innovation of technologies and the implementation of policies. The paper targets to investigate the roles of regulations, policies and institutions in the sustainability of ocean tourism. A primary online survey on the perception of tourism experts was conducted for this study using Google Forms. The tourism experts were invited from all over the world to participate in the survey. The study received a total of 33 responses, out of which only 30 valid responses were considered. Using the Tobit regression model, the study found that, while regulations in India relative to foreign countries significantly boost the sustainability of ocean tourism, government policies and public institutions in India relative to foreign countries remain insignificant in predicting the sustainability of ocean tourism. Therefore, government policies and public institutions in India need to be revised and reformulated to make them important drivers of the sustainability of ocean tourism.
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