Climate change is an important factor that must be considered by designers of large infrastructure projects, with its effects anticipated throughout the infrastructure’s useful life. This paper discusses how engineers can address climate change adaptation in design holistically and sustainably. It offers a framework for adaptation in engineering design, focusing on risk evaluation over the entire life cycle. This approach avoids the extremes of inaction and designing for worst-case impacts that may not occur for several decades. The research reviews case studies and best practices from different parts of the world to demonstrate effective design solutions and adjustment measures that contribute to the sustainability and performance of infrastructure. The study highlights the need for interdisciplinary cooperation, sophisticated modeling approaches, and policy interventions for developing robust infrastructure systems.

Building cooling load depends on heat gains from the outside environment. Appropriate orientation and masonry materials play vital roles in the reduction of overall thermal loads buildings. A net-zero energy building performance has been analyzed in order to ascertain the optimum orientation and wall material properties, under the climatic conditions of Owerri, Nigeria. Standard cooling load estimation techniques were employed for the determination of the diurnal interior load variations in a building incorporating renewable energy as the major energy source, and compared with the situation in a conventionally powered building. The results show a 19.28% reduction in the building’s cooling load when brick masonry was used for the wall construction. It was observed that a higher heat gain occurred when the building faced the East-West direction than when it was oriented in the North-South direction. Significant diurnal cooling loads variation as a result of radiation through the windows was also observed, with the east facing windows contributing significantly higher loads during the morning hours while the west facing windows contributed higher amounts in the evening. The economic analysis of the net-zero energy building showed an 11.63% reduction in energy cost compared to the conventional building, with a 7-year payback period for the use of Solar PV systems. Therefore, the concept of net-zero energy building will not only help in energy conservation, but also in cost savings, and the reduction of carbon footprint in the built environment.

The article's proposed engineering uses are based on theories presented in the reviewed research articles and on findings from online investigations into companies that claim to use nanoengineering in their wares. Several pre-existing online consumer inventories and nanotechnology news were examined as part of the internet inquiry. The data about the nanoparticles (NP), or nanostructure, used in commercially available products comes from the remarks made by the manufacturer. Nanoengineered coating agents and textile additives are examples of commercial items developed for industrial clients that fall under the aforementioned uses.

A significant cohort of Southeast Asian women in Taiwan, having married locals, constitutes a disadvantaged group entangled in the issues of gender, marriage migration, and social class. The lack of human capital, social discrimination and urgent personal economic demands have caused immigrant women in Taiwan to become a source of inexpensive labor in the labor market, they usually prioritize vocational training for employment. Furthermore, the rapidly growing elderly population has resulted in a severe shortage of quality care services in Taiwan. Despite Taiwanese government training for immigrant women, diverse sociocultural factors hinder them from pursuing caregiving professions. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the effects of care service attendant (CSA) training based on culturally responsive pedagogy (CRP) and design thinking (DT) for immigrant women in Taiwan. Nine Vietnamese and Indonesian immigrant women in Taiwan attended and completed the training. The CSA training comprised core academic modules and practicum modules and was conducted in groups for 170 h over 5 weeks. This study employed a qualitative research approach, gathering data through interviews, observation, and document analysis. The results revealed that CSA training based on CRP and DT was effective in improving immigrant women’s satisfaction with training and their rate of employment as CSAs. Specifically, in addition to basic care service professionalism, the female immigrant trainees developed proactive attitudes toward problem-solving. Moreover, the integration of Taiwanese culture and frequent communication in the training facilitated the self-confidence of these trainees. In the workplace, these female immigrant CSAs’ commitment to meeting clients’ needs and innovating their service boosted the clients’ appreciation and their own cultural competency and empowerment. Overall, this study suggests that the application of CRP and DT in CSA training is a promising way of enhancing the workforce capacity of female immigrant CSAs and has value for low-skilled adult trainees. However, structuring the learning processes clearly and involving instructors with multicultural education and DT education competency are critical to implementing such vocational training.

Heat removal has become an increasingly crucial issue for microelectronic chips due to increasingly high speed and high performance. One solution is to increase the thermal conductivity of the corresponding dielectrics. However, traditional approach to adding solid heat conductive nanoparticles to polymer dielectrics led to a significant weight increase. Here we propose a dielectric polymer filled with heat conductive hollow nanoparticles to mitigate the weight gain. Our mesoscale simulation of heat conduction through this dielectric polymer composite microstructure using the phase-field spectral iterative perturbation method demonstrates the simultaneous achievement of enhanced effective thermal conductivity and the low density. It is shown that additional heat conductivity enhancement can be achieved by wrapping the hollow nanoparticles with graphene layers. The underlying mesoscale mechanism of such a microstructure design and the quantitative effect of interfacial thermal resistance will be discussed. This work is expected to stimulate future efforts to develop light-weight thermal conductive polymer nanocomposites.

The incorporation of artificial intelligence (AI) into language education has created new opportunities for improving the instruction and acquisition of Chinese characters. Nevertheless, the cognitive difficulties linked to the acquisition of Chinese characters, such as their intricate visual features and lack of clear meaning, necessitate thoughtful deliberation when developing AI-supported learning interventions. The objective of this project is to explore the capacity of a collaborative method between humans and machines in teaching Chinese characters, utilising the advantages of both human expertise and AI technology. We specifically investigate the utilisation of ChatGPT, a substantial language model, for the creation of instructional materials and evaluation methods aimed at teaching Chinese characters to individuals who are not native speakers. The study utilises a mixed-methods approach, which involves both qualitative examination of lesson plans created by ChatGPT and quantitative evaluation of student learning outcomes. The results indicate that the suggested framework for human-machine collaboration can successfully tackle the cognitive difficulties associated with learning Chinese characters, resulting in enhanced learner involvement and performance. Nevertheless, the research also emphasises the constraints of AI-generated material and the significance of human involvement in guaranteeing the accuracy and dependability of educational interventions. This research adds to the expanding collection of literature on AI-assisted language learning and offers practical insights for educators and instructional designers who aim to use AI tools into Chinese language curriculum. The results emphasise the necessity of employing a multi-disciplinary strategy in AI-supported language learning, incorporating knowledge from cognitive psychology, educational technology, and second language acquisition.