Bioactive materials are those that cause a number of interactions at the biomaterial-living tissue inter-face that result in the evolution of a mechanically strong association between them. For this reason, an implantable material’s bioactive behavior is highly advantageous. Silicate glasses are encouraged to be used as bioactive glasses due to their great biocompatibility and beneficial biological effects. The sol-gel method is the most effective for preparing silicate glasses because it increases the material’s bioactivity by creating pores. Glass densities are altered by the internal network connectivity between network formers and network modifiers. The increase in the composition of alkali or alkaline oxides reduces the number of bridging oxygens and increases the number of non-bridging oxygens by retaining the overall charge neutrality between the alkali or alkaline cation and oxygen anion. Higher drying temperatures increase pore densities, while the melt-quenching approach encourages the creation of higher density glasses. Band assignments for the BAG structure can be explained in detail using Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) and Raman spectroscopic investigations. Raman spectroscopy makes it simple to measure the concentration of the non-bridging oxygens in the silica matrix.

This study addresses the crucial question of the macroeconomic impact of investing in railroad infrastructure in Portugal. The aim is to shed light on the immediate and long-term effects of such investments on economic output, employment, and private investment, specifically focusing on interindustry variations. We employ a Vector Autoregressive (VAR) model and utilize industry-level data to estimate elasticities and marginal products on these three economic indicators. Our findings reveal a compelling positive long-term spillover effect of these investments. Specifically, every €1 million in capital spending results in a €20.84 million increase in GDP, a €17.78 million boost in private investment, and 72 new net permanent jobs. However, these gains are not immediate, as only 14.5% of the output increase and 38.8% of the investment surge occur in the first year. In contrast, job creation is nearly instantaneous, with 93% of new jobs materializing within the first year. A short-term negative impact on the trade balance is expected as new capital goods are imported. Upon industry-level analysis, the most pronounced output increases are witnessed in the real estate, construction, and wholesale and retail trade industries. The most substantial net job creation occurs in the construction, professional services, and hospitality industries. This study enriches the empirical literature by uncovering industry-specific impacts and temporal macroeconomic effects of railroad infrastructure investments. This underscores their dual advantage in bolstering long-term economic performance and counteracting job losses during downturns, thus offering valuable public policy implications. Notably, these benefits are not evenly distributed across all industries, necessitating strategic sectoral planning and awareness of employment agencies to optimize spending programs and adapt to industry shifts.

Social media has become one of the primary sources of communication, information, entertainment, and learning for users. Children gain several benefits as social media helps them acquire formal and informal learning opportunities. This research also examined the effect of social media on formal and informal learning among school-level children in Ajman, United Arab Emirates (UAE), moderated by social integrative and personal integrative needs. Data was gathered by using structured questionnaires, which were distributed among a sample of 364 children. Results revealed that social media significantly affects Informal and formal learning among children, indicating its usefulness in child education and development. The results also indicated a significant moderation of social integrative needs on social media’s direct effect on informal learning, indicating the relevant needs as an important motivating factor. However, the moderation of personal integrative needs on social media’s direct effect on formal learning remained insignificant. Overall, this research highlighted the role of social media in providing learning opportunities for children in the UAE. It is concluded that children actively seek gratifications from social media, shaping their learning within structured educational contexts in their daily lives. Through the lens of UGT, certain needs play a critical role in strengthening the gratification process, affecting how children derive learning advantages from their interactions on social media platforms. Finally, implications and limitations are discussed accordingly.

This paper investigates and studies the quality of life of primary school students, and the results show that the quality of life of primary school students in Chongchuan District of Nantong is generally at the upper middle level, and it shows a downward trend with age. There were significant differences between 8-year-old boys and girls in “teacher-student relationship”, “learning ability and attitude”, “self-concept relationship”, “peer relationship” and “homework attitude”, and girls were better than boys. There were significant differences between 10-year-old boys and girls in the scores of “teacher-student relationship” and “self-satisfaction relationship”, and girls were better than boys; There were significant differences between 11-year-old boys and girls in the two factors of “activity opportunity” and “athletic ability”, and boys were better than girls. There was no difference in the remaining ages by factor. Improving the quality of life of primary school students requires the active cooperation of schools, teachers and parents, as well as special attention to the differences between boys and girls aged 8, 10 and 11.

The state delivery of affordable and sustainable housing continues to be a complicated challenge in Africa, and there is a need to encourage private sector participation. As a result, this study examines the risks associated with private sector participation in affordable housing and supporting infrastructure investment and the strategies towards mitigating the risks from an Afrocentric perspective. The evidence from a systematic literature review was coupled with the opinion of an international expert panel to address the paper’s aim and provide recommendations for developing improved housing and supporting infrastructure in Sub-Saharan Africa. The review outcomes and the qualitative data from the panel discussion were analysed using thematic analysis. The results revealed that market dynamics, land supply and acquisition constraints, cost of construction materials, unsupportive policies, and technical and financial factors constitute risks to affordable housing in the region. Mitigation strategies include leveraging joint efforts, strengths, and resource bases, increasing access to land and finance for private sector participation, developing a supportive government framework to promote an enabling environment for easy access to land acquisition and development finance, local production of building materials, research and technology adoption. In line with the United Nations (UN) Agenda 2030 targets and principles, reforms are required across the housing value chain, involving the private sector and community. Application of the study’s recommendations could minimise the risks of affordable housing delivery and enhance private sector participation.