High-quality Research Work Research Articles

Preface

Dear Readers, I am pleased to announce the successful conclusion of the 2023 International Congress on Ultrasonics in Beijing (the 2023 ICU BEIJING), organized and hosted by the International Congress on Ultrasonics (ICU), the Institute of Acoustics in the Chinese Academy of Sciences (IACAS), and the Acoustical Society of China (ASC) in September 2023. The 2023 ICU Beijing aimed to bring together professionals and experts from academia and industry across all disciplines of ultrasonics, encompassing fundamental science and applications such as engineering material characterization and quality inspection, chemical and biological US-based monitoring, medical imaging, and therapy, among others. This congress offered more than 830 presentations covering various domains of ultrasonics and their applications. The program included 7 keynote presentations from world experts, 63 invited lectures, 547 oral contributions, and around 220 posters. For further information, please visit https://www.2021icu.org.cn/. As usual, there will be a proceeding of the 2023 ICU BEIJING after the congress. Through collaborations with the International Organization Committee and the Scientific Committee of the 2023 ICU Beijing, etc., we have selected 800 peer-reviewed abstracts that were presented at the congress. These presentations reflected the state-of-the-art scientific advancements and technological progress in ultrasonic scientific research and applications in recent years. Due to the impact of COVID-19, there is still much high-quality research work not included. After the completion of the congress, we selected 202 submitted papers by our peer reviewers and scientific committee which will be published in the Journal of Physics Conference Series (JPCS) as the proceeding of the 2023 ICU BEIJING. On behalf of the Organizing Committee, the Scientific Committee of the 2023 ICU BEIJING, and the ICU Board Members, I would like to extend my heartfelt appreciation to our Session Organizers, Plenary speakers, Session invited speakers, peer reviewers, IOP Publishers of the JPCS, as well as all those who have contributed to this proceeding. It is your participation and support that make the proceeding available. Yours sincerely, Xiuming Wang President of the 2023 ICU BEIJING Chair of the International Congress on Ultrasonics List of Scientific Committee Members of the Proceeding of 2023 ICU BEIJING are available in this Pdf.

Laser-spot lock-in thermography with a non-research-grade thermal camera: From thermal diffusivity measurements to visualizing free convection

The widespread use of Lock-in Thermography (LIT) has been hindered by the high cost of the thermographic cameras available for such applications. We show that a low-cost thermographic camera (we used the QIANLI MEGA-IDEA Super iR Cam 2S) can be straightforwardly used in advanced applications, particularly for measuring the thermal diffusivity of solids using the Laser Spot LIT Technique and the Slope Method. The results of measurements performed in test samples were compared with those obtained using the FLIR SC5000 research-grade camera, whose usefulness for this kind of application has been demonstrated before. The Super iR Cam 2S is almost two orders of magnitude cheaper than the FLIR SC5000 but has an inferior performance. However, a good agreement between the thermal diffusivities of materials, with values between 10 and 100 mm2/s, obtained using both cameras and those reported in the literature demonstrates inexpensive instrumentation usefulness for conducting high-quality research work. The visualization of cracks between samples with different diffusivities was demonstrated too. For the first time, we also show the possibility of using Laser Spot LIT to directly observe a convective effect in a fluid layer closest to the sample’s surface.

Understanding the Role of Stack Overflow in Supporting Software Development Tasks: A Research Perspective

Stack Overflow is a Q&A website that is popular among developers and extensively used in software engineering (SE) research. A significant body of research has examined how Stack Overflow can assist with software development tasks, such as recommending APIs. However, while researchers have recognized the importance of Stack Overflow in SE research related to software development tasks, the specific ways in which it is utilized and the reasons for its widespread usage in research have not been thoroughly explored. To address these knowledge gaps, we conducted the first study to understand the role of Stack Overflow in assisting with SE research regarding software development tasks by systematically examining relevant and high-quality research works. Meanwhile, we carried out a qualitative survey to gain insight into why researchers choose to utilize Stack Overflow in SE research and to solicit suggestions for the better use of Stack Overflow in research. The study identifies trends in the research area, prominent researchers and organizations, and the types of tasks that utilize Stack Overflow in research, with coding and debugging being the most common. Moreover, it examines how Stack Overflow data is utilized in SE research regarding software development tasks, including searching, training models, and mining associations. Our qualitative survey of researchers indicates that the popularity of Stack Overflow stems from its comprehensive explanations of technical topics that are often not found in documentation or manuals. The findings provide a comprehensive understanding of the role of Stack Overflow in SE research regarding software development tasks, and offer actionable implications for both researchers and stakeholders of Stack Overflow to facilitate future research and improvements.

Top 100 cited papers in Information and Library science: A Brief Analysis

High number of citations of research publications expresses its intellectual and cognitive impact. Papers with high citations are considered as a landmark in relevant research field as these express trends and emerging research areas as well as set future course of research. The objective of this study is to conduct bibliometric analysis of the top 100 most cited studies in the discipline of Information Science and Library Science. The data for the study was obtained from “Information Science and Library Science” category of Web of Science, as indexed in the last twenty-one years (2000-2021). The outcome of bibliometric analysis included progressive growth in citation over time, annual citation density, name of journal with its impact factor, which published these papers, year of publication, type of article i.e. articles, proceedings, book reviews, reviews and poetry etc; nature of access i.e. subscribed or open access, and country of origin. Number of citations of these papers as reported by Web of Science were cross checked with numbers of citations reported by Google Scholar to understand which one provided higher number of citations for the same paper. The number of citations in the top 100 cited papers ranged from 699 to 14,273. The large numbers of the top 100 cited papers were published in MIS Quarterly. There were 40 publications authored by two, while 13 other papers were authored by more than four authors. This research is valuable for scholars in the discipline of library science and information science in identifying highly cited papers in the last 21 years, frequently pursued research areas, and names of journals publishing high quality research work in library Science discipline. The study of frequently cited papers will also guide in designing of objectives and methodology of future research studies. Journals have been charging very high subscription fee. This study will also help librarian in identifying journals which are making valuable contributions in the discipline of Information and Library Science.

Untangling Computer-Aided Diagnostic System for Screening Diabetic Retinopathy Based on Deep Learning Techniques.

Diabetic Retinopathy (DR) is a predominant cause of visual impairment and loss. Approximately 285 million worldwide population is affected with diabetes, and one-third of these patients have symptoms of DR. Specifically, it tends to affect the patients with 20 years or more with diabetes, but it can be reduced by early detection and proper treatment. Diagnosis of DR by using manual methods is a time-consuming and expensive task which involves trained ophthalmologists to observe and evaluate DR using digital fundus images of the retina. This study aims to systematically find and analyze high-quality research work for the diagnosis of DR using deep learning approaches. This research comprehends the DR grading, staging protocols and also presents the DR taxonomy. Furthermore, identifies, compares, and investigates the deep learning-based algorithms, techniques, and, methods for classifying DR stages. Various publicly available dataset used for deep learning have also been analyzed and dispensed for descriptive and empirical understanding for real-time DR applications. Our in-depth study shows that in the last few years there has been an increasing inclination towards deep learning approaches. 35% of the studies have used Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs), 26% implemented the Ensemble CNN (ECNN) and, 13% Deep Neural Networks (DNN) are amongst the most used algorithms for the DR classification. Thus using the deep learning algorithms for DR diagnostics have future research potential for DR early detection and prevention based solution.

From Editor's Desk

From Editor's Desk

The Importance of Environmental Certificates for Green Hotel: Bibliometric and Network Analysis

Abstract Environmental problem has become a popular research area. Efforts are being made at an international level for creating a sustainable environment. Hospitality industry is considered to be one of the main industries of a country. It makes contributions in the development of sustainable environment. Hospitality industry is adopting environmental certifications and green hotels concept rapidly. In this research, we performed bibliometric analysis of 49 articles on the topic of importance of environmental certificates for green hotels. Results indicate that majority of the journals have articles with a large number of citations, which indicates that they are high-quality journals. The results indicate that Cornell University, Polytechnic University of Valencia, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and George Washington University are the institutes producing high-quality research work, as 28% of the researchers cited the articles published by the researchers of these universities. Results indicate that universities of Spain and USA are the largest contributors, as they have published 52% the total articles in the area under this study. USA and Spain are considered to be the world superpowers; their interest in this area of research unveils the importance of the topic. The authors Verma, Chan, and Rivera are the core researchers of this area, as they published 20% of the overall articles discussed in this study, which makes them the gurus of the research area.

ROLE OF STUDENTS’ RESEARCH ACTIITY IN FOSTERING PROFESSIONAL COMPETENCE AT THE DEPARTMENT OF PATHOPHYSIOLOGY OF POLTAVA STATE MEDICAL UNIVERSITY

Student research activity is one of the most important forms of the education and the driving force of quality assurance activities. Ukraine has developed a regulatory and legal framework that ensures high-quality research work, which should meet the needs of future specialists in intellectual and professional development and increase their professional competence. The involvement in research work requires, first of all, gaining deep theoretical and practical knowledge in medicine, well-designed extra-curricular activities to guide students in their mastering methodology of scientific research and developing research skills, and university promotion. The experience of Poltava State Medical University convincingly proves that the most effective means of improving the quality of training is the regular active involvement of students in research activity. The role of scientific knowledge in higher education is decisive, since the active participation of the teaching staff in fostering research skills makes it possible to demonstrate the latest scientific achievements and their practical application. Structured research activities, woven into the medical school curriculum provide an opportunity to evince the intellectual potential of both students and educators, to contribute to deeper investigation of medical problems, to master the methods of scientific investigation, and to realize the importance of such activity in increasing one's competitiveness in the labour market. This approach also contributes to better comprehension of professional information, to develop mindset associated with high professionalism.
 Pathophysiology as a discipline is at the junction of theoretical and clinical disciplines that serves as a wide background to meet the diversity of students’ scientific demands and interests. Involving students into structured research activities not only promotes gaining special knowledge, but also builds up ethical and deontological foundations of future successful medical research career; enhances team spirit and cooperation between students and educators. This interaction enables in clearly stating their focus and research question, engaging in an adequate critical discussion of the strengths and weaknesses of the study methods, and offering conclusions that are properly qualified in the scope given the evidence gathered and analyzed. This department is proud to maintain a high university rank on student research results performance among the non-clinical departments. The culmination of knowledge in this developmental trajectory can reinforced and extend other aspects of high quality training.

SPE Polymers is the newest member to join our family of SPE archival peer‐reviewed scientific journals

Our previous three journals were born in three different decades. The oldest of our journals, Polymer Engineering Science, currently in its 60th year of publication, was first published in January 1961 as SPE Transactions by editor Melvyn A. Kohudic, a research chemist. The Journal of Vinyl and Additive Technology was first published as the Journal of Vinyl Technology in 1979 by editor Elliot L. Weinberg, a Fellow of SPE and an industrial research chemist known for his work on tin-stabilized polyvinylchloride. Polymer Composites was born in September 1980 with Roger S. Porter serving as its first editor. I am honored to join this distinguished list of scholars as the first editor of the fourth journal in the family SPE Polymers. Forty years have elapsed since our last journal was started. Why is now the right time to launch a new journal? The publishing world has changed substantially since 1980. Scientists living in China contributed very little to our journals in 1980 but are now one of the largest contributors to our SPE family of journals. Africa and the Middle East, other important locations for contributions to SPE journals, also had almost no contributions in 1980. For those of us like myself who are old enough, I remember making a list throughout the week of papers that I would like to peruse and having to go every Saturday to the library to look for them in the print journals; I have not set foot in the library to look for an article in many years. In keeping with these trends, SPE Polymers will be an online-only publication; the ability to eliminate printing is one reason why this is a good time to start a journal. Open access, that is, articles where the authors own the copyright and are freely available to read, share, and download, is something else that is relatively new and is another reason to start a journal. Finally, and most importantly, most papers submitted to our current three journals, many of good quality, receive reject decisions because of the increased contributions from all over the world. Our intent is to provide a publication home to these high-quality manuscripts that otherwise find places outside the SPE family of journals. So what will SPE Polymers publish? Research articles are solicited in polymer synthesis, structure–property relationships, mathematical modeling of all aspects of polymer science, polymer composites, smart polymers, polymer processing and applications of polymers. You can submit a new manuscript through our ScholarOne site: https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/pls2. Review articles are of particular interest; for review articles, please contact me in advance. We welcome special issues; in fact, we already have a special issue planned for mid-2021, entitled “Soft materials for biological and energy applications,” which is part of the Fourth International Conference on Soft Materials to be held virtually later this year. SPE Polymers will only publish high-quality research work; thus, all manuscripts will be subjected to a rigorous peer-review process. We have assembled an excellent Editorial Board to ensure that we maintain quality in all aspects; I encourage you to look at the website for a full list of names of the editorial board. We solicited participation of scholars of the highest quality from all corners of the globe in recognition of the global reach of SPE Polymers. We are committed to publishing your work quickly. We promise a streamlined review process by expert reviewers and a quick turnaround time to first decision. Production quality and speed to Early View will be on par with our other three subscription-based journals. We strongly believe that SPE Polymers will quickly be a high-quality peer-reviewed journal that our readers and authors will look forward to every time an issue is published. I would love to hear from you at bpgrady@ou.edu about a new idea, a proposal for a special issue, or a review article.

Current Socio-Economic Challenges. Approaching Sustainability and Social Economy

Starting with 2015, The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (United Nations, 2015), the global new plan of action for people, planet, and prosperity has raised debates in the academic and research environments, and not only. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is a broad and universal policy agenda, with 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with 169 associated targets that are integrated and indivisible. Building on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the 2030 Agenda seeks to guide the Member States to transform their approach to achieve inclusive, people-centered, and sustainable development with no one left behind. This Agenda is recognizing that eradicating poverty in all its forms and dimensions, including extreme poverty, is the most significant global challenge and a requirement for sustainable development. We are still facing and debating on many economic, social, and environmental challenges. For example, in 2020, at the end of the Europe 2020 strategy, we still discuss in Europe about some dimensions of the Horizon 2020 societal challenges such as health, demographic change, and wellbeing; sustainable agriculture and forestry, marine and maritime and inland water research, and the bioeconomy; secure, clean and efficient energy; smart, green and integrated transport; climate action, environment, resource efficiency, and raw materials; Europe in a changing world - inclusive, innovative and reflective societies, or secure societies… Trying to respond to such challenges and not only, Europe is implementing Circular Economy Package, and at the same time is strengthening the social economy sector, which can have a substantial contribution to economic development, social inclusion, as well as green and digital transitions. Consequently, approaching Sustainability, Sustainable Development concept, and (or) Social Economy and various types of social economy entities, is becoming more and more imperative and frequently met in academia. This Special Issue of the Management Dynamics and Knowledge Economy journal on the topic of " Current socio-economic challenges. Approaching Sustainability and Social Economy ” provides a venue for high-quality research works of academics and researchers in these actual challenging topics.

Comprehensive review on the optimal integration of distributed generation in distribution systems

An ever-increasing demand of electricity and the advent of clean renewable energy along with the limitations of conventional sources of energy are the prime driving force for the planners to incorporate distributed generation in electric power systems at the distribution side. The main objective of the Optimal Integration of Distributed Generation (OIDG) in distribution systems is to optimize the operation and planning of such systems. In the last two decades, significant research efforts have been devoted to formulating and solving the OIDG problem in distribution systems. The main aim of this work is to present a review describing the majority of high quality research work pertaining to OIDG in distribution systems.

The management of locally advanced cervical cancer.

Cervical cancer is still a major cause of morbidity and mortality among women worldwide. Surgery and chemoradiation are widely utilized treatments for cervical cancer. Despite the available standard treatment of choice, outcome is suboptimal among patients with LACC. It is vital to integrate the evidence generated from high-quality research work for effective management of these cases. This review intends to critically evaluate the latest evidence supporting the available treatment modalities and to provide a comprehensive overview of recent advances and ongoing research in the management of LACC. Research advances in imaging and radiotherapy technologies, incorporating imaging into brachytherapy planning, use of newer targeted agents, chemotherapy intensification and immunotherapy are some of the new therapeutic options that have been in the forefront of research to improve the outcome of patients with LACC. Advanced imaging modalities are increasingly being utilized to tailor treatments. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by surgery does not improve outcomes in FIGO Stage IB2-IIB. Although cisplatin-based concurrent chemoradiation is the standard of care, more aggressive systemic therapies (neoadjuvant or adjuvant chemotherapy and chemoradiation) and use of newer agents, still remains investigational.

Bitter gourd (Momordica charantia) as a rich source of bioactive components to combat cancer naturally: Are we on the right track to fully unlock its potential as inhibitor of deregulated signaling pathways

Research over decades has progressively explored pharmacological actions of bitter gourd (Momordica charantia). Biologically and pharmacologically active molecules isolated from M. charantia have shown significant anti-cancer activity in cancer cell lines and xenografted mice. In this review spotlight was set on the bioactive compounds isolated from M. charantia that effectively inhibited cancer development and progression via regulation of protein network in cancer cells. We summarize most recent high-quality research work in cancer cell lines and xenografted mice related to tumor suppressive role-play of M. charantia and its bioactive compounds. Although M. charantia mediated health promoting, anti-diabetic, hepatoprotective, anti-inflammatory effects have been extensively investigated, there is insufficient information related to regulation of signaling networks by bioactive molecules obtained from M. charantia in different cancers. M. charantia has been shown to modulate AKT/mTOR/p70S6K signaling, p38MAPK-MAPKAPK-2/HSP-27 pathway, cell cycle regulatory proteins and apoptosis-associated proteins in different cancers. However, still there are visible knowledge gaps related to the drug targets in different cancers because we have not yet developed comprehensive understanding of the M. charantia mediated regulation of signal transduction pathways. To explore these questions, experimental platforms are needed that can prove to be helpful in getting a step closer to personalized medicine.

PROFESSIONAL GROWTH OF A YOUNG SCIENTIST: SCARCE SUPPORT RESOURCES

This article conceptually comprehends and describes new approaches to the resources of professional growth of a young scientist on the basis of analysis of scientific research trends in Russia and the world. In the paper, the problem of professional growth of young scientists is studied, related to the lack of professional guidelines and critical resources for its high-quality research work. In the article this problem is considered in three components: a) the scarcity of declared clear research policies in Russian universities as a standardized strategic element; b) underdevelopment of effective organizational forms of research, such as research networks; c) the lack of the qualitative analytics in the field of research activities. The paper describes the essence of the research policy in the international experience of university management and the prospects for its strengthening for Russian universities in general and young scientists in particular. Next, key characteristics of network and collaborative forms of research, their role in intensification of research activities and development of young scientists are considered. The article examines the role which international professional associations can play in forming research competencies of a young scientist and in building his or her academic career. In the final part of the work, modern tools and methods of analytics are considered for scientometric work and management of scientific activity, contributing to the effective professional growth of young scientists and the intensification of the research activities of scientific groups. The work is based on the study and analysis of theoretical material, as well as the results of the work of the «research policy group» within the cycle of strategic sessions of the NR TSU (2015-2016) under the direction of the Moscow School of Management «Skolkovo».

Developmental Social Robotics: An Applied Perspective

For robots to coexist with us in harmony and be our companion, they should be able to explicitly reason about humans, their presence, the social and human-centered environment, and the social-cultural norms, to behave in socially expected and accepted manner. To develop such capabilities, from psychology, child developmental and human behavioral research, we can identify some of the key ingredients, such as the abilities to distinguish between self and others, and to reason about affordance, perspective taking, shared spaces, social signals, emotions, theory of mind, social situation, etc., and the capability to develop social intelligence through the process of social learning. Researchers across the world are working to equip robots with some of these aspects from diverse perspectives and developing various interesting and innovative applications. This special issue is intended to reflect some of those high-quality research works, results and potential applications. From the point of view of understanding the fundamentals of developmental process of children, interesting aspects

Paired Cytometry Publications ‐ from mathematical theory towards clinical applications

This month I am very pleased to feature and publish work in our Clinical Cytometry Journal that will have a simultaneously published companion article in Cytometry Part A. The two distinct papers represent both the more ‘technical / theoretical’ 1 and ‘clinical / applied’ 2 application of a mathematical probability state model that describes normal human B-cell differentiation. I feel strongly that the application of this software model that has already shown its practical utility within our journal pages [3–5] will likewise serve to further our understanding of normal B-cell maturation and time forward minimal residual disease detection in hematopoietic malignancies. While each paper clearly and easily stands on its own, the Editors of both Journals felt that the overlap between them was palpable and merited such a novel publication scheme. Thus, we sincerely hope the readership of each journal will find these two exciting papers of collective interest. Finally, I welcome any suggestions for further examples of ‘cross-pollination’ between our sister publication for any other topics that might be similarly shared in an analogous fashion between our journals. I hope you all will feel free to contact me for any such suggested topics that might be of similar overlapping interest. Of course I always ask you to kindly consider our journal for all your high quality research work consistent with our publication policies. Sincerely Frederic Preffer Ph.D. Massachusetts General Hospital Harvard Medical School Boston, Massachusetts USA

The correlations between article citation and references' impact measures: What can we learn?

AbstractWe examined the correlations between an article's citation count (as an indicator of the article's quality) and different impact measures regarding the article's references (as indicators of the quality of the authors' information seeking while producing the article). Two research questions of interest were studied. First, do authors' information seeking and use affect the quality of their research output? Second, if yes, which metrics can better identify those references that may inspire researchers to produce high quality research work (so that we can recommend these references to others)? We found that the impact measures for the references have a slight or moderate correlation with article citations. Among these measures, references' article level impact measures calculated based on altmetrics data sources have a consistently stronger correlation with high quality research output, which may serve to identify helpful articles for researchers.

Introduction to the IEEE International Symposium on Applications of Ferroelectrics and International Symposium on Piezoresponse Force Microscopy and Nanoscale Phenomena in Polar Materials

The 20th IEEE International Symposium on Applications of Ferroelectrics (ISAF) was held on July 24-27, 2011, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, jointly with the International Symposium on Piezoresponse Force Microscopy and Nanoscale Phenomena in Polar Materials (PFM). Over a period of four days, approximately 400 scientists, engineers, and students from around the world presented their work and discussed the latest developments in the field of ferroelectrics, related materials, and their applications. It is particularly encouraging to see that a large number of students (115) were attracted to the joint conference and presented high-quality research works. This trend is not only important to this conference series, but more importantly, it is vital to the future of the ferroelectrics field.

Intelligent Materials for Solar Cells

Globally, the growth rate of the human population is increasing; therefore, there is a huge demand of energy to fulfill their requirements like vehicles, TVs, computers, ACs, and so forth. This causes global warming. Therefore, CO2-free energy is an emergent issue. In this context, solar energy is an alternate of fossil fuels. Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), organic thin-film solar cells, quantum dot solar cells, schottky solar cells, inorganic-organic heterojunction solar cells, and many others have been developed as an efficient, lowcost technology during the last years. In dye-sensitized solar cells, the sensitizer is one of the key components for high power conversion efficiency. Among various organic/inorganic dyes, the most successful charge transfer sensitizers should be credited to black dye, N3 dye, and N719 dye. Dye-sensitized solar cells based on ruthenium complexes have broad absorption spectra extending into the near-IR region and produce solar-to-electrical energy conversion efficiencies of up to 11%under AM 1.5 irradiation. In order to improve the performance of solar cells, the sensitizer should absorb photons in the near-IR region as well as over the entire visible region of the solar spectrum, and longterm stability is another serious issue. To further improve the efficiency of dye-sensitized solar cells device, our main focus lies in the development of new sensitizers with a good spectral match with the solar emission. This special issue contained high-quality research work addressing the latest innovations in nanomaterials research focused on solar cells, and synthetic nanomaterials considering the importance of light-harvestingmaterials in the design of novel generation of solar cells and smart nanomaterials. We hope that this collection of papers will be a source of ideas and motivation for scientists across different fields in academia and industry to continue further research on organic solar cells.

Special Issue - Papers from International Session, JAST Tribology Conference, Fukui, September 2010

The Japanese Society of Tribologists organized the international session as one of the sessions held in JAST Tribology Conference, Fukui, September 2010. One part of the boundary lubrication session organized by Professor Shigeyuki Mori from Iwate University and Professor Masabumi Masuko from Tokyo Institute of Technology also joined with the international session.After the opening remarks, Professor Nicholas D. Spencer from Swiss Federal Institute of Technology gave an invited lecture. Fourteen general presentations followed by two invited speeches by Professor Teruo Murakami from Kyushu University and Dr. Rowena Crockett from Swiss Federal Institute for Materials Research and Technology were contributed in this session. In order to distribute their high-quality research work, JAST invited fourteen presenters who made the general speech to submit their contributions to Tribology Online as peer reviewed papers. the papers submitted subsequently underwent the normal peer review process by multiple reviewers. Among the papers submitted, four papers were selected for publication in this special issue.The organizing committee wishes to express their sincere appreciation to all the authors and participants at the international session. The guest editor also would like to express his acknowledgement to all the reviewers.Guest EditorTomoaki Iwai