Search Results (3,185)

Short-form video (SFV) platforms have become a central part of older adults’ digital lives, yet their psychological implications remain theoretically contested. Drawing on social empowerment theory, Self-Determination Theory, attachment theory, and the displacement hypothesis, this study examined whether different sources of social support—family, peer, and community—exert differential effects on life satisfaction through SFV engagement and social connectedness. Survey data were collected from 385 community-dwelling Chinese older adults (mean age = 70.6 years) and analyzed using bootstrapped serial mediation models with 5000 resamples. The results revealed clear source differentiation, as family support most strongly predicted SFV engagement and showed the largest total association with life satisfaction, consistent with a social empowerment mechanism. Community participation showed a weaker but still positive association with engagement, whereas peer support was unrelated to engagement. Across pathways, higher SFV engagement was associated with lower social connectedness, while greater social connectedness was associated with higher life satisfaction. However, none of the chained indirect effects reached significance, suggesting that social support influenced life satisfaction primarily through direct rather than serially mediated pathways. These findings demonstrate the importance of disaggregating social support by source and contribute to a more precise framework for understanding older adults’ digital well-being. Full article

Background/Objectives: Grounded in Self-Determination Theory, this study aimed to translate and validate the Basic Psychological Need Satisfaction and Frustration Scale (BPNSFS), including the Novelty dimension, within the Portuguese exercise context. Given the emerging evidence of novelty as a potential candidate for a basic psychological need, this research examined the psychometric properties and temporal stability. Furthermore, this study explored the nomological validity of these constructs regarding exercise enjoyment and satisfaction with life. Methods: The sample comprised 500 gym-goers (263 females; 237 males), aged between 18 and 65 years (M = 33.76; SD = 12.94). Confirmatory Factor Analysis and Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling were employed to compare the factor structure. Temporal stability was assessed through a test–retest procedure with a four-week interval (n = 50). Results: Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling provided a superior fit to the data (CFI = 0.98; TLI = 0.97; RMSEA = 0.04) compared to Confirmatory factor Analysis, supporting the distinctiveness of the eight dimensions. The instrument demonstrated strong internal consistency (composite reliability ranging from 0.78 to 0.90) and adequate discriminant validity. Path analysis revealed that novelty satisfaction was significantly associated with enjoyment and satisfaction with life. In reverse, novelty frustration was negatively associated with these well-being indicators. Intraclass correlation coefficients (0.75 to 0.83) confirmed robust temporal stability. Conclusions: These findings provide evidence that the Portuguese version of the BPNSFS, including the novelty dimension, is a psychometrically comprehensive instrument for the exercise context. The results support the inclusion of novelty as a relevant psychological need within Self-Determination Theory. Full article

To address the issues that carbon trading fails to cover the full life cycle and that traditional demand response achieves poor emission reduction due to a lack of accurate carbon-intensity feedback in park integrated energy systems (PIESs) during low-carbon transition, this study proposes a two-layer optimal scheduling method synergizing life-cycle stepwise carbon trading and low-carbon demand response (LCDR) to balance low-carbon performance and economic efficiency. Firstly, based on life cycle theory, embodied carbon from new energy equipment manufacturing and transportation is incorporated into accounting, with a stepwise carbon trading mechanism designed. Secondly, corrected dynamic carbon emission factors for power and heating networks are constructed to quantify real-time carbon intensity. A dual-driven LCDR model (electricity price and carbon factor) is established to coordinate shiftable and sheddable electric-thermal loads and is combined with a two-layer scheduling model (pre-scheduling and re-scheduling) targeting the minimal total operation cost. Simulation results of a South China park show that life-cycle stepwise carbon trading reduces emissions by 16.7%, and LCDR further cuts 4.05%. Their synergy achieves significant carbon reduction with a slight cost increase, while supplementary sensitivity analyses further confirm the scalability and robustness of the proposed framework under varying load levels and demand response capabilities. Full article

Global climate change necessitates urgent carbon reduction, with the building sector being a major contributor. This study conducts a comprehensive life cycle carbon emission analysis of a nearly zero-energy office building in Shenyang, China, using the LCA theory and the carbon emission factor method. The calculation covers the production and transportation of building materials, construction, operation, and demolition stages. The results show that the building’s average annual carbon emission intensity is 56.36 kgCO₂e/(m²·a). The operation stage contributes the largest share, with an intensity of 37.83 kgCO₂e/(m²·a), primarily due to HVAC energy consumption. The material production and transportation stage follows, accounting for 31.67% of total emissions. Compared to conventional buildings, the proportion of operational emissions in this nearly zero-energy building is relatively lower, while the share from material production is significantly higher due to the use of high-performance insulation and components. Based on these findings, targeted carbon reduction strategies are proposed for each life cycle stage, emphasizing low-carbon material selection, renewable energy utilization, and efficient design. This study provides a quantitative reference for achieving carbon reduction goals in the building sector. Full article

Parental identity, the extent to which individuals integrate parenting roles into their self-concept, is associated with subjective well-being (SWB). However, research has largely focused on current parents, with limited attention to those with alternative caregiving roles. Companion dogs often act as caregiving figures, but their role in shaping identity and well-being processes has not been fully explored. This cross-sectional, survey-based study examined whether parental identity is associated with SWB, regardless of parental status, and whether the human–dog bond moderates any association in older women. Women dog owners aged 40 years and over (N = 296, M age = 51.6) completed an online survey including the Parental Identity and Enjoyment Scale, the Dog Owner Relationship Scale, the Satisfaction With Life Scale, and the Flourishing Scale. Parental identity was positively associated with life satisfaction, r = 0.38, p < 0.001, and flourishing, r = 0.23, p < 0.001, and moderated regression models were significant for both (p < 0.001). However, interaction effects between parental identity and the human–dog bond were not significant. These findings extend identity theory, demonstrating that parental identity predicts SWB across diverse pathways and independently of parental status. The results contribute to emerging research on caregiving identities and highlight the importance of considering identity processes, rather than parental status alone, when examining well-being in older women. Full article

Post-harvest losses of fruits and vegetables are an important bottleneck in food systems of countries around the world, with 30–50% of perishable food items lost between farm and consumer, smallholder farmers in low-and-middle income countries (LMICs) with poor cold chain infrastructures facing a disproportionate burden. Evaporative cooling (EC) is a low-cost and energy-efficient alternative to mechanical refrigeration; however, traditional systems are operated in one position and are dependent on climate, which restricts its performance. The combination of Internet of Things (IoT) sensing, machine learning (ML), and the advanced control theory has made intelligent evaporative cooling systems (IECS) adaptive, data-driven platforms that can regulate the environment in real-time and optimise autonomously. This is a systematic literature review that was carried out according to PRISMA 2020, summarising 94 peer-reviewed articles published in 2018–2025 to map the technological landscape, performance indicators, and research directions of the field of post-harvest fruit and vegetable preservation using IECS. Findings indicate that IECS can considerably lower the storage temperatures, increase the shelf life by 50–200%, and reduce energy consumption by 75–90% compared to traditional refrigeration, and the payback period is as short as 1.2 years. In arid conditions, ML models are accurate in prediction with an R² of 0.98. The gaps in the research identified are a lack of validation in wet climatic conditions, non-existent standardised Ag-IoT protocols, inadequate Food–Energy–Water (FEW) nexus calculation, and no explainable AI (XAI) interfaces. An example of a conceptual framework of four layers synthesised is proposed to direct next-generation research and implementation of the IECS. Full article

Diabetic Bladder Disease (DBD), a common urological complication of diabetes mellitus, severely compromises the quality of life of affected patients. Mitochondria, the primary energy-producing organelles in cells, are closely correlated with the pathogenesis and progression of DBD. As an emerging therapeutic modality, mitochondrial transplantation exhibits substantial potential for the management of DBD. This paper presents a comprehensive review of mitochondrial transplantation, with a focus on its fundamental theories, application conditions, safety profiles, and mitochondrial sources. Subsequently, we explore the association between mitochondrial dysfunction and the pathological mechanisms underlying DBD, analyze the disparities between mitochondrial transplantation and conventional therapeutic approaches, and discuss the prospects of combined and personalized treatment regimens. Finally, this review summarizes the ethical controversies surrounding this therapeutic strategy and outlines future research trends, aiming to lay a theoretical foundation for the development of novel therapeutic modalities against DBD. Full article

Resilient wheels are widely employed in metro vehicles to mitigate vibration and noise, in which rubber damping components play a critical role in load transmission and fatigue resistance. However, stress concentration and cyclic loading can significantly compromise their durability and service life. In this study, the structural optimization and fatigue life of rubber damping components in resilient wheels are systematically investigated based on finite element analysis and in-service metro operational data. A three-dimensional finite element model incorporating hyperelastic material behavior is developed to evaluate stress distributions under three representative conditions: press-fit assembly, straight-line operation, and curved-track operation. Based on the resulting stress fields, critical high-stress regions within the rubber component are identified and selected as targets for structural optimization. The Design of Experiments (DOE) methodology, integrated with the Isight 2022 optimization platform, is employed to determine the optimal geometric parameters that minimize the von Mises equivalent stress. Furthermore, a fatigue life prediction framework is established using actual metro service mileage data. Fatigue performance is assessed using Fe-safe 2022 software in conjunction with rubber fatigue crack propagation theory, and the results before and after optimization are systematically compared. This study demonstrates that stress concentrations in resilient wheel rubber damping components predominantly occur at fillet transition regions, governed by load transfer characteristics under press-fitting and service conditions. Through DOE-based structural optimization, the critical geometric parameters are effectively refined, leading to a significant reduction in stress levels in key regions. As a result, the proposed approach markedly improves fatigue performance, extending the minimum fatigue life from 1300 days to 24,322 days, thereby substantially enhancing the durability and reliability of the resilient wheel system. Full article

Joel Robbins wishes to renew anthropological theory from a transformative dialogue with theology. There, he looks for actors’ categories which may assist him in anthropologically interpreting his ethnographical data on Christian life. One of these categories is the notion of interruption which he borrows, among others from my theological work, in order to describe the radical conversion of the Urapmin and, more broadly, radical change in religion. In my contribution, I first examine how Robbins uses the category of interruption to enrich his anthropological theory. In a second and third part, I explain how I have conceived of interruption in my theological work and, afterwards, how that concept itself has gained significance from a transformative dialogue with philosophy. Finally, I evaluate Robbins’ use of the category of interruption and engage in conversation with him again about how the interaction between theology and anthropology can be mutually interruptive. The twofold lesson to be drawn from this interdisciplinary dialogue appears to be (a) that our categories, vocabularies and approaches are caught up in a ceaseless game of borrowing and reinterpretation between disciplines and language games and (b) that we—each in our own discipline—have every interest in allowing our own theory formation to be interrupted by dialogue with other disciplines. Full article

This essay explores Mary Shelley’s contribution to the political philosophy of children’s rights and its connection to duties-based justice by establishing a dialogue between Frankenstein and The Rights of Infants (1797). A little-studied treatise by Thomas Spence, Rights of Infants advances a proto-feminist stance that is not unlike Godwin’s and Wollstonecraft’s model in that it foregrounds duties from which rights can be extrapolated. Two points made by Spence inform this reading of Frankenstein. First, Spence’s text spotlights a neglected line of thought during the French Revolution, which, contrary to social contract theory, posits the child as the paradigmatic recipient of justice and familial life as the cornerstone for deliberations on justice. Second, Spence identified acts of conquest camouflaged as a fabled, non-existent consent between people and government by social contract theorists like Hobbes and Locke. Shelley’s novel dramatizes these two points by taking infancy as the ground zero on which to think of justice, and then, incrementally exposing a logic of conquest through the concatenated deaths of William and Justine and the destruction of the inanimate female creature. The essay concludes that the novel stages a far-reaching interrogation of rights-based justice, thus extending a view of justice that has gained prominence in critiques of neoliberalism over the last half-century. Full article

Castrate-resistant prostate cancer (PCa) is a critical situation in which many patients will relapse. Hormonal androgen deprivation therapy (HADT) is the gold standard of care when a patient relapses, following primary surgical or radiation therapy. Usually, the benefits from HADT are poor and recurrent disease after HADT treatment is termed castrate-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC), which is in most cases fatal. The therapeutic regimens for CRPC include chemotherapy with docetaxel, immunotherapy agent sipuleucel-T, the taxane cabazitaxel, the CYP17 inhibitor abiraterone acetate and the androgen receptor (AR) antagonist enzalutamide. Thus, it is imperative to study the inherent property of prostate cancer cells, to resist therapy and reconsider the therapeutic protocols (continuous v’s intermittent). We make use of a hybrid mathematical model which consists of an extension of a very potent ordinary differential equation (ODE) Baez–Kuang model, combined with two Game Theory components: the Minority Game for adaptive behavior and the Axelrod model for heterogeneity behavior. Our study suggests that increasing tumor adaptability, through Minority Game dynamics, improves short-term prostatic-specific antigen (PSA) control and stabilizes therapy cycles. However, this comes at the cost of driving the tumor to a homogeneous, androgen-independent (AI) state, which is therapy-resistant. Conversely, maintaining heterogeneity, via Axelrod dynamics, sustains a mixed population, with androgen-dependent (AD) cells persisting longer and potentially delaying resistance emergence. Full article

At present, most of the research methods for vibration fatigue of welded structures mainly focus on uniaxial stress, ignoring the influence of shear stress. To this end, by combining the ASME structural stress method with the random and vibration analysis theory outlined in the IEC 61373 standard, a new method for evaluating the fatigue life of multi-axis random vibration problems in the frequency domain has been proposed. This method extends the structural stress method to multi-axis scenarios to accurately extract the local multi-axis structural stress state at the weld toe. Its advantage lies in the fact that it not only accounts for the influence of load frequency distribution and structural modal vibrations on fatigue life, but also incorporates the effect of local multiaxial stress conditions in the weld on fatigue life. Additionally, it includes corrections for non-proportional multiaxial stress conditions, resulting in fatigue assessment results that more closely reflect actual conditions. It was validated by comparing the local multiaxial stress, phase difference between shear and normal stress, and equivalent structural stress power spectrum of 0° and 30° fillet welded specimens with test results. Subsequently, it was applied to a multiaxial random vibration fatigue assessment of a vehicle-mounted electrical cabinet with experimental verification. The results indicate that fatigue life estimates based on a multi-axis stress state are lower than those obtained using a uniaxial method. Compared to traditional uniaxial methods, the multi-axis fatigue life estimates show a significant reduction ranging from 4.20% to 88.35%, effectively accounting for damage caused by shear stress. The fatigue assessment results are more closely aligned with experimental data, thereby validating the effectiveness of the proposed new method. The frequency-domain multiaxial random vibration fatigue assessment method proposed in this article provides a new technology for the design and evaluation of welded structures of vehicle-mounted equipment in rail vehicles. This method reduces costs during the design phase of rail vehicles, offering positive economic implications. Full article

The expansion of digital connectivity has reshaped contemporary work environments, increasing flexibility while simultaneously blurring the boundaries between work and personal life. In such contexts, employees may experience difficulties in psychologically detaching from work during off-job time. Drawing on the Effort–Recovery model and Conservation of Resources theory, this study examined whether affective work-related rumination indirectly explained the association between Fear of Missing Out (FoMO) and psychological detachment. A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 228 employees from diverse occupational sectors who completed validated measures of FoMO, affective rumination, and psychological detachment. Indirect effect analyses using bootstrapping procedures indicated that FoMO was positively associated with affective rumination, and affective rumination was negatively associated with psychological detachment. The indirect effect was significant, whereas the direct association between FoMO and detachment was not. These findings are consistent with an indirect association pattern whereby FoMO is related to lower psychological detachment through higher levels of affective rumination. However, given the cross-sectional design, the results should be interpreted as correlational evidence rather than as demonstrating a causal mediation process. The model accounted for approximately 10% of the variance in psychological detachment. Overall, the findings suggest that FoMO may be indirectly related to reduced recovery experiences via emotionally charged repetitive thinking that sustains cognitive activation beyond working hours. Addressing rumination and supporting healthier digital boundary management may therefore represent promising avenues for supporting occupational mental health in increasingly connected work environments. Full article

This article re-examines Islamic ethics of war and peace by returning to the formative Meccan–Medinan trajectory of the Prophet Muḥammad’s life, where early Islamic moral reasoning developed amid persecution, migration, diplomacy, and armed conflict. Contemporary debates frequently portray Islam either as a tradition that sacralizes violence through jihad or as one that reduces peace to purely inward spirituality. Both perspectives obscure the historically grounded ethical discourse that emerged within the early Muslim community. This study argues that the Qurʾān—understood within the Islamic tradition as the authoritative source of ethical guidance—together with prophetic practice articulated a coherent moral framework governing the use of force, the pursuit of peace, and the restoration of social order after conflict. Drawing on Qurʾānic discourse, canonical ḥadīth, classical tafsīr and sīrah literature, and modern scholarship in Islamic studies, religious ethics, and conflict resolution theory, the article reconstructs how early Islamic sources represent the ethical regulation of violence. The analysis identifies a threefold trajectory in prophetic practice: a Meccan phase characterized by nonviolent endurance and moral witness under persecution; a Medinan phase marked by constitutional governance, plural coexistence, and tightly regulated defensive warfare; and a culminating ethic of negotiated peace and post-conflict reconciliation exemplified in the Treaty of Ḥudaybiyyah and the Conquest of Mecca. Taken together, these stages reveal an integrated moral vision in which force is neither celebrated nor treated as a default instrument of political expansion, but permitted only under strict ethical constraints shaped by justice (ʿadl), mercy (raḥma), proportionality, and the protection of communal life. By reconstructing this early prophetic framework, the article demonstrates that Islamic sources contain significant internal resources for limiting violence, regulating warfare, and prioritizing reconciliation. In doing so, it contributes to contemporary scholarship on Islamic ethics and situates the prophetic model within broader global debates on the moral regulation of war, peacebuilding, and post-conflict justice. Full article

International students at English-medium universities in Australia whose first language is not English often struggle with language learning due to challenges sustaining motivation and managing anxiety, while simultaneously needing to strengthen their English skills to succeed academically and fully engage in university life. Although serious games are increasingly used in second-language education, many are not explicitly grounded in established pedagogical strategy frameworks, and grammar-focused serious board games remain underrepresented. In response, this study designed a strategy-embedded serious board game (The Pyramid of Time) that integrates Oxford’s indirect Language Learning Strategies to support grammar-focused practice. Following a Design Thinking process informed by desk-based evidence and refined through two rounds of playtesting, the final prototype was evaluated in a single-session, between-subjects quasi-experiment with 64 international L2 English students studying in Australian English-medium universities, comparing a collaborative board-game condition with an individual textbook self-study condition. Outcomes were assessed using pre- and post-measures of grammar test performance, language learning motivation, and grammar-learning anxiety. The strategy-embedded, collaborative game-based condition showed larger short-term gains in grammar test performance and more favourable changes in motivation and anxiety than the individual textbook self-study condition. An exploratory bootstrapped mediation analysis was consistent with an indirect pattern in which anxiety reduction related to grammar gains primarily via increased motivation, although evidence was modest. Findings provide initial support for theory-informed, strategy-embedded game-based instruction as a promising approach for grammar-focused practice that also improves learners’ short-term motivational and affective experiences. These results should be interpreted in light of differences in instructional format, collaborative structure, and time-on-task across conditions. Full article