Concept Of Distance Research Articles

Technological Distance: A New Way of Conceptualizing the “Distance” in Distance Learning

This paper presents the concept of technological distance, which describes a gap between technologies (broadly defined to include methods, tools, principles, and processes) available for a learner to learn, and those needed to complete that learning. This gap is a measure of both the participation and autonomy of learners in the process. Available technologies may include those provided by teachers and institutions as well as from many others, most notably including the learners themselves. The technologies that make up the assembly—pedagogies and regulations as much as digital devices or classrooms—are only components, however. What matters most is how learners fill the gaps between them to achieve their learning goals. These are fundamentally situated, idiosyncratic, and human. Technological distance provides new insights into other models that use spatial metaphors, such as the presences of communities of inquiry and transactional distance.

Straight enough: Deriving imprecise interpretations of maximum standard absolute adjectives

While maximum standard absolute adjectives (such as straight) typically have a precise meaning (e.g., ‘perfectly straight’), they are also regularly used imprecisely (e.g., to mean ‘straight enough’). The current study investigates how contextual expectations of precision and a visual referent’s conceptual distance from an ideal maximum standard influence the processing effort of precise and imprecise interpretations of these adjectives. In three experiments, we showed native speakers of English images depicting objects that could be referred to precisely or imprecisely via an absolute adjective and asked them to select the image that best matched the written sentence (Experiments 1 and 2) or to read sentences containing maximum standard absolute adjectives (Experiment 3). Experiment 1 presented no discourse context, and participants accepted, on average, only a small degree of imprecision; and when they did, they took longer, relative to cases in which the same adjectives were used precisely, which is in line with existing empirical findings. Experiment 2 contrasted two kinds of discourse contexts (raising high or low expectations of precision) before the presentation of the test sentences. When expectations of precision were high, participants tolerated only a small degree of imprecision, and when they did, it came at a cost, as in Experiment 1. When expectations of precision were low, much larger degrees of imprecision were tolerated but, critically, participants were still, overall, faster to reach precise, relative to imprecise, interpretations in supporting contexts, suggesting that accessing the precise meaning is less effortful. Experiment 3 supported these findings by showing how the cost of understanding imprecision is also present in a self-paced reading task. Our results lend support to the view that maximum standards are part of the encoded meaning of these adjectives.

Exploring the co-creation-innovativeness paradox: distance as an ecosystem characteristic of university spin-offs

Through empirical investigations into university spin-offs (USOs), we discovered innovativeness benefits derived from maintaining both academia and business partners at a distance. Distance should not be misconstrued as isolation; rather, it emphasises specific attributes where partners are maintained at arm’s length, affecting co-creation. Consequently, this paper explores how distance impacts the co-creation and innovativeness of USOs. It presents a longitudinal case study of a Swedish USO and conceptualises various types of distances, including actor-type, industry, supply-chain, geographical and knowledge-related distances. We explore the interplay between these different distance types as antecedents to USOs’ innovativeness and co-creation activities. The paper contributes to the existing literature by introducing the concept of distance as a critical characteristic affecting innovativeness and co-creation. By delineating various types of distances, it refines previous research on the characteristics of firm connections within university and business ecosystems.

Spread efficiency of energy demand in the industrial chain: a perspective from economic distance

This paper investigates the spread efficiency of energy demand in the industrial chain based on the input-output method. The concept of intersectoral economic distance and spread efficiency was introduced to formulate the energy demand spread functions. Then, an empirical study was conducted based on China's 2017 input-output data and nearly 3,500 companies were listed in the Chinese A-share market. The results show that the sectoral average spread time is 32.75 days. Manufacturing plays a central role in the spread of energy demand. In the short term, the logistics sector has the greatest pulling effect on energy demand, while the electric power sector has the greatest impact on energy demand in the long term. Energy demand caused by exports is greater than consumption and investment. Finally, sectoral economic distances and actual spread functions for 9 main energy sources are provided to help us better predict energy demand.

Feeling the distance: The relationship between emotion regulation and spatial ability in childhood.

Research has shown experimentallythat if children are taught to use language to create distance (socially, physically, and temporarily) when they revisit a potentially traumatic experience they reduce the intensity of their emotions. Building on this, this study was carried out to explore whether children with better spatial skills are better at such downregulation because of their very aptitude in understanding the concept of distance. Using data from a general-population birth cohort in the UK, the study examined the bidirectional association between emotional dysregulation and spatial ability among children aged 5 and 7 years. The findings reveal a significant reciprocal relationship even after adjusting for family, contextual, and individual confounders including verbal ability: spatial skills at age 5 years were inversely related to emotional dysregulation at age 7 years, and conversely, greater emotional dysregulation at age 5 years was associated with poorer spatial ability at age 7 years. The two paths were equally strong and there was no evidence of differences between them on the basis of sex. Our results suggest that enhancing spatial abilities could be a potential avenue for supporting emotion regulation in middle childhood.

Integration of multiple observations for validation of mechanisms of earthquake-triggered groundwater level Anomalies: 2016 Taiwan Meinong earthquake

This study analyzes multi-depth groundwater level data and integrated observation data to validate the previously proposed mechanisms of hydrological anomalies triggered by the 2016 M6.4 Meinong earthquake in Taiwan. The main influence area was northwest of the epicenter, which may be due to the blind fault rupture, intensity distribution, and hydrogeological properties. The step changes in groundwater level do not fit the concept of epicentral distance, static stress–strain theory, or the focal mechanism. The distribution of step changes in groundwater level have a pattern similar to that of horizontal peak ground velocity. The results imply that these changes may be driven by dynamic stress–strain, instead of static stress–strain. The minimum horizontal peak ground velocity and acceleration of the Meinong earthquake, which induced obvious step changes in groundwater level and soil liquefaction, are provided. The pressure dissipation ability of an aquifer (e.g., transmissivity) may affect the persistence of groundwater responses. Four wells located near the surface rupture area, which has cemented or partial cemented geological material, showed an obvious step decrease in the groundwater level at a deep depth and all wells showed an increase in the groundwater level at a shallow depth. These decreases and increases of the groundwater level at different depths have different mechanisms, which are discussed in this study. The integrated observations made during the Meinong earthquake show that ground motion and the hydraulic properties might be important factors in hydrological anomalies. The results of this study are an important reference for further studies on earthquake hydrology.

The Critical Role of Hydrological Distance in Shaping Nutrient Dynamics Along the Watershed‐Lake Continuum

AbstractTerrestrial hydrological and nutrient cycles are subjected to major disturbances by agricultural operations and urbanization that profoundly influence freshwater resources. Non‐point source pollution is one of the primary causes for water quality deterioration, and thus an emerging imperative in limnology is establishing empirical models that connect watershed attributes and hydrological drivers with lake nutrient dynamics. Here, we compiled three nation‐wide nutrient, meteorological, and watershed‐landscape data sets, to develop Generalized Linear Models that predict lake phosphorus and nitrogen concentrations as a function of the surrounding watershed characteristics within various hydrological distances across 104 Chinese lakes and reservoirs. Our national‐scale investigation revealed that lake nutrient concentrations can be satisfactorily predicted by proxies of natural drivers and anthropogenic activities, reflecting the properties of the surrounding watershed. Counter to previous studies, we found that China's lake nutrient concentrations strongly depend on watershed characteristics within a hydrological distance of less than 45 km rather than the entire watershed. Furthermore, extensive human activities in watersheds not only compromise our predictive capacity, but also increase the hydrological distance that is relevant to predict lake nutrients. This national‐scale characterization can inform one of the most contentious issues in the context of China's lake management, that is, the determination of the extent of the nearshore area, where nutrient control should be prioritized. As far as we know, our study represents the first attempt to apply the concept of hydrological distance and establish statistical models that can delineate the critical spatial domain primarily responsible for the nutrient conditions along the watershed‐lake continuum.

Survey of encoding techniques for quantum machine learning

Quantum computing is a field of computation that processes information in a fundamentally different way compared to classical computers. Quantum computing is a rapidly expanding research field with ongoing investigations regarding applications of quantum computing in widespread domains such as cryptography, artificial intelligence, communications, etc. The core focus of this paper is quantum encoding which is a crucial branch of quantum computing. Quantum encoding involves mapping classical data into quantum states. This paper provides an in-depth analysis of prominent quantum encoding techniques with their strengths and weaknesses. Furthermore, this paper suggests development of hybrid encoding methods capable of emulating the concept of Euclidean distance by integrating amplitude and angle encoding.

The journey to LDL-C goal in the era of combination lipid lowering therapy and why it matters for ASCVD patients: a UK perspective

Objective We aim to explore the concept of distance and journey to goal, and consideration of these 2 elements a priori when choosing LLT. Methods Modelling of expected % LDL-C reductions was carried out on a range of hypothetical patients’ baseline LDL-C values prior to any LLT being commenced. Therapies were then added in a stepwise manner based on the pathway demonstrated in current national guidance and compared with goal achievement on a novel LLT optimization pathway implemented in Morecambe Bay NHS Trust. Results Modelling of a stepwise lipid management pathway shows that high-intensity statin monotherapy is not sufficient in most modelled baseline LDL-C scenarios to achieve guideline-recommended goals. Furthermore, ezetimibe second line may preclude 3rd line injectable prescribing and lead to “ezetimibe limbo” where the patient is now below the reimbursement threshold for injectable prescribing but still not achieving their LDL-C target. Overall goal achievement is poor across the spectrum of modelled LDL-C levels. In contrast, by following the Morecambe Bay pathway all patients on statin for the range of hypothetical baseline LDL-C levels can reach an LDL-C target of < 1.8 mmol/L. Conclusions This study identifies a therapeutic gap when following a stepwise approach highlighted by recent national guidance. Our proposal of a novel pathway highlights that the order in which drugs are added is important in the context of national reimbursement thresholds and allows LDL-C goal to be reached in a timely manner, regardless of the starting baseline LDL-C level.

Identifying interaction boundary of inverter-based generation in assessing system strength of power grids using relative electrical distance concept

The increasing use of inverter-based generation (IBG) in power grids raises concern about system strength. This is partly due to the inherent interactions among multiple IBGs in close proximity to one another. This paper proposes an approach to identifying the existential boundary of interaction in a network using the relative electrical distance (RED) concept. The mathematical formulation of the RED concept to address the interaction problem among the IBGs involved utilising the power system network’s admittance matrix to capture its structural characteristics. An interaction matrix derived from the RED values of all IBG pairs was then developed to identify the interacting IBG groups. The proposed approach was demonstrated using the IEEE 39-bus system and a practical 72-bus Nigerian power grid. Results showed that RED values effectively group interacting IBGs, with values closer to 0 signifying higher interaction levels, values closer to 1 indicating lower interaction, and a value of 1 denoting no interaction. Time-domain simulations confirmed the accuracy of the approach, demonstrating that the effect of control interaction propagates proportionally to neighbouring IBGs based on RED values. However, fault currents can influence the impact of control interactions. This approach, which requires less computational effort, provides a quick identification tool for potential areas of concern based on the degree of interaction, enhancing the reliability of power grids with high IBG penetration.

How to Protect of Reader Preference Privacy in Mobile Book Information Services: A Technical Method

Along with the wide popularization of mobile terminal devices such as smart phones, mobile libraries, which provide mobile book information services as the core business, have become an important part of people’s daily life. However, with the rapid development of emerging network technologies such as cloud computing, the server side of a mobile library has become more and more untrusted, and the problem of reader preference privacy associated with mobile book information services has become increasingly prominent. To this end, this paper proposes to construct a group of false requests of mobile book information service at a trusted client of a mobile library, which are then submitted to the untrusted server side together with a true request, so as to confuse the reader book preference privacy. Firstly, we define a theoretical model for the protection of reader preference privacy. It measures the confusion effect of false requests on a true request by introducing the concepts of book information entropy, location information entropy, and book location joint entropy. It measures the concealment effect of false requests on readers’ mobile book preferences by introducing the concepts of book category distance and location region distance. Secondly, we present a specific implementation algorithm of the theoretical model to generate a group of ideal false requests that meet the privacy constraints for readers’ true requests. Finally, theoretical analysis and experimental evaluation demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method, i.e., it can effectively improve the security of readers’ mobile book preference privacy on the untrusted server side, without compromising the availability of a mobile book information service.

Temperature profile during endourological laser activation: introducing the thermal safety distance concept.

To examine temporal-spatial distribution of heat generated upon laser activation in a bench model of renal calyx. To establish reference values for a safety distance between the laser fiber and healthy tissue during laser lithotripsy. We developed an in-vitro experimental setup employing a glass pipette and laser activation under various intra-operative parameters, such as power and presence of irrigation. A thermal camera was used to monitor both temporal and spatial temperature changes during uninterrupted 60-second laser activation. We computed the thermal dose according to Sapareto and Dewey's formula at different distances from the laser fiber tip, in order to determine a safety distance. A positive correlation was observed between average power and the highest recorded temperature (Spearman's coefficient 0.94, p < 0.001). Irrigation was found to reduce the highest recorded temperature, with a maximum average reduction of 9.4°C at 40W (p = 0.002). A positive correlation existed between average power and safety distance values (Spearman's coefficient 0.86, p = 0.001). A thermal dose indicative of tissue damage was observed at 20W without irrigation (safety distance 0.93±0.11mm). While at 40W, irrigation led to slight reduction in mean safety distance (4.47±0.85 vs. 5.22±0.09mm, p = 0.08). Laser settings with an average power greater than 10W deliver a thermal dose indicative of tissue damage, which increases with higher average power values. According to safety distance values from this study, a maximum of 10W should be used in the ureter, and a maximum of 20W should be used in kidney in presence of irrigation.

Fuzzy C-Means Algorithm Modification Based on Distance Measurement for River Water Quality

River water quality could be determined by understanding the capacity of pollutants in a water body. Fuzzy C-Means (FCM) is one of the fuzzy clustering methods for determining river water quality by measuring water quality parameters, that is, dissolved oxygen (DO) and total dissolved solids (TDS). The FCM algorithm is an effective fuzzy clustering algorithm for grouping data but often produces local and inconsistent optimal solutions due to the partition matrix's random initialisation process. Therefore, this study proposes to modify the FCM algorithm to be precise in the partition matrix initialisation process using several distance concepts. The purpose of the proposed algorithm modification is to get more consistent FCM clustering results and minimise stop iterations. The validation process for the clustering results uses the FCM algorithm, and the FCM modification algorithm uses three parameters, namely the Partition Coefficient Index (PCI), Partition Entropy Index (PEI) and Silhouette Score (SS). The experiments were conducted with three replications and using various distance concepts. The results showed that the number of iterations stopped in the FCM algorithm has different values for PCI, PEI, SS, and stop iterations and objective functions in each trial. On the contrary, the FCM modification algorithm has consistent PCI, PEI, and SS values, and the number of iterations stops with fewer iterations. Therefore, the modified algorithm for initialising the partition matrix can be used in the fuzzy C-means clustering algorithm.

Resistance distance and sharp bounds of two-mode electrical networks

Electrical networks are ubiquitous in our daily lives, ranging from small integrated circuits to large-scale power systems. These networks can be easily represented as graphs, where edges represent connections and vertices represent electric nodes. The concept of resistance distance originates from electrical networks, with this term used because of its physical interpretation, where every edge in a graph G is assumed to have a unit resistor. The applications of resistance distance extend to various fields such as electrical engineering, physics, and computer science. It is particularly useful in investigating the flow of electrical current in a network and determining the shortest path between two vertices. In this work, we have investigated seven different resistance distance-based indices of bipartite networks and derived general formulae for them; the sharp bounds with respect to these resistance distance indices are also identified. Additionally, we introduced a novel resistance distance topological index, the Multiplicative Eccentric Resistance Harary Index, and derived general formula for it. The sharp bounds with respect to this newly introduced index are also identified for bipartite networks.

Evaluation of Teacher-Student Interaction

Driving Taiwan's digital revolution, the DIGI Plus 2017-2025 policy, a cornerstone of the Smart Nation 2025 initiative (Executive Yuan, 2021), prioritized rural empowerment in education amidst COVID-19 challenges. In this study, the authors explored the impact of teacher-student relationships in remote teaching, emphasizing the critical role of high-quality connections transcending geographical boundaries. The authors identified factors influencing these relationships, such as interaction levels and student autonomy, and discussed the concept of transactional distance, a psychological gap due to spatial separation. Proposing face-to-face interaction activities, the authors conducted a survey involving 175 university students (e-tutors), revealing positive changes in teacher-student interaction post face-to-face activities. The authors' recommendations include continued activities, alignment with school calendars, and comprehensive e-tutor training for improved relationships.

Addressing High Nursing Turnover: Analysis of Theoretical Concepts and Case Study

The article contains a systematic review of the scientific literature on the nurse turnover problem. It is analysed from two perspectives. Firstly, the topic of employees is discussed (increased workload, inconsistency of salary with the amount of work performed, standards for the number of patients assigned to one nurse, job dissatisfaction, limited opportunities for career growth and professional development, professional burnout, unregulated rest time between shifts, etc.). Secondly, medical institution is described (shortage of medical staff leads to a decrease in patient satisfaction, loss of care quality, increased waiting time for services, review of safety and patient care protocols, reduction in the number of patients who can receive medical care or consultation, which causes a decrease in hospital revenue, hinders organisational growth, raises the cost of additional recruitment, leads to medical errors that turn into lawsuits in future, etc.). In addition to personal and financial reasons, the medical staff turnover is often caused by purely organisational imbalances (in particular, the lack of a teamwork atmosphere in the hospital, an ineffective leadership model, an imperfect and stressful working environment, poor working conditions, poor relations between doctors and nurses, etc.). The article represents mechanisms for applying provisions of a number of theories and models to address the nurse turnover problem. Among examples, there are leadership models – the contingency theory (concepts of adaptation, equivalence, effectiveness and congruence), the organisational culture theory like Hofstede’s corporate culture theory (concepts of power distance, uncertainty avoidance, male / female values, collectivism / individualism, long-term / short-term orientation, indulgence / restraint), the change management theory like the Plan-Do-Study-Act cycle theory. Tenet Healthcare, Inc. was selected as a case study. One of the well-known and largest healthcare organisations in the United States, it has been experiencing significant problems with the nurse turnover since 2006, which is currently over 50% and higher than the industry average. Given the size of this organisation and its leading position in the US healthcare market, this problem poses a significant threat to the market as a whole, and Tenet Healthcare, Inc. is in immediate need of a comprehensive plan to address it.

Local-manifold-distance-based regression: an estimation method for quantifying dynamic biological interactions with empirical time series.

Quantifying species interactions based on empirical observations is crucial for ecological studies. Advancements in nonlinear time-series analyses, particularly S-maps, are promising for high-dimensional and non-equilibrium ecosystems. S-maps sequentially perform a local linear model fitting to the time evolution of neighbouring points on the reconstructed attractor manifold, and the coefficients can approximate the Jacobian elements corresponding to interaction effects. However, despite that the advantages in nonlinear forecasting with noise-contaminated data, these methodologies have a limitation in the Jacobian estimation accuracy owing to non-equidistantly stretched local manifolds in the state space. Herein, we therefore introduced a local manifold distance (LMD) concept, a non-equidistant measure based on the multi-faceted state dependency. By integrating LMD with advanced computation techniques, we presented a robust and efficient analytical method, LMD-based regression (LMDr). To validate its advantages in prediction and Jacobian estimation, we analysed synthetic time series of model ecosystems with different noise levels and applied it to an experimental protozoan predator-prey system with established biological information. The robustness to noise was the highest for LMDr, which also showed a better correspondence to expected predator-prey interactions in the protozoan system. Thus, LMDr can be applied to study complex ecological networks under dynamic conditions.

Pre-Symmetric w-Cone Distances and Characterization of TVS-Cone Metric Completeness

Motivated by two definitions of distance, “pre-symmetric w-distance” and “w-cone distance”, we define the concept of a pre-symmetric w-cone distance in a TVS-CMS and introduce its properties and examples. Also, we discuss the TVS-cone version of the recent results obtained by Romaguera and Tirado. Meanwhile, using Minkowski functionals, we show the equivalency between some consequences concerning a pre-symmetric w-distance in a usual metric space and a pre-symmetric w-cone distance in a TVS-CMS. Then, some types of various w-cone-contractions and the relations among them are investigated. Finally, as an application, a characterization of the completeness of TVS-cone metric regarding pre-symmetric concept is performed, which differentiates our results from former characterizations.

Comparing Analogy-Based Methods-Bio-Inspiration and Engineering-Domain Inspiration for Domain Selection and Novelty.

This study aims to support designers in developing transformative solutions in the engineering discipline using the Design-by-Analogy ideation method. Design-by-Analogy involves drawing inspiration from the source domain and applying it to the target domain. Based on the conceptual distance between the two domains, analogies are classified as biological-(natural), cross-(distant-engineering), and within-(near-engineering) domain analogies. Real-world scenarios involve designers selecting analogies after seeking them across multiple domains. These selected analogies significantly influence the produced designs. However, the selection criteria of the analogy domain are unexplored in design research. We address this gap by investigating: (a) the influence of analogy domains on their selection frequency; and (b) the relationship between the frequency of selecting analogies from specific domains and the novelty of designs. The experiment involved twenty-six teams of novice product designers, who solved design problems aided by one analogical source from each domain. The results showed that biological analogies were frequently selected. While biological-domain analogies significantly increased the novelty of designs compared to the within-domain ones; no significant difference was found between the biological- and cross-domain analogies, suggesting that middle-domain analogies can be as effective as far-domain ones. The findings can support technological innovation by aiding the development of analogy search databases.

Editorial / Éditorial Volume 49 Issue 3

Welcome to volume 49, issue 3 of The Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology (CJLT). CJLT is a decades-old peer-reviewed journal that invites English or French submissions on the research and practice of education, technology, and learning. This bilingual journal is free-of-charge to anyone with access to the Internet, is multi-indexed, and presented in accessible formats. There are no article submission/publication fees or access charges. CJLT’s history dates back to where distance education was an innovation characterized by portable print-based material and non-digital technologies. This issue’s Notes section is presented by Dr. Olaf Zwacki-Richter. Here, he reviews the history of distance education with a view to current pressures on teaching and learning. The Origins of the Term Distance Education and the Roots of Digital Teaching and Learning is both articulate and accurate. It provides an inspiring view of new ways to define and use concepts of Open, Distance, and Digital Education (ODDE), based on historical education milestones. This prepares readers with a lens to the research articles which follow.