Production Space Research Articles

The Relationship Characteristics and Multi-Gradient Differentiation Between Rural Population and Agricultural Production Space in Typical Ecologically Fragile Areas of China

The Relationship Characteristics and Multi-Gradient Differentiation Between Rural Population and Agricultural Production Space in Typical Ecologically Fragile Areas of China

Spatiotemporal Evolution of Territorial Spaces and Its Effect on Carbon Emissions in Qingdao City, China

Land use change has always been a significant factor affecting global carbon emissions. Dissecting the characteristics of territorial space evolution and its impact on carbon emissions is crucial for developing low-carbon-oriented territorial space optimization and governance strategies. This paper calculates the carbon emissions associated with territorial spaces in Qingdao from 2000 to 2020, utilizing land use data alongside various statistical data. Based on the accounting results, the evolution characteristics of territorial spaces and their corresponding carbon emissions, as well as the carbon transition dynamics resulting from space transfer, are analyzed. A carbon transition decomposition formula is then proposed to quantify the differential and spatially heterogeneous impacts of changes in space types and socio-economic development on emissions. The results indicate that: (1) the evolution of territorial spaces in Qingdao during 2000–2020 is characterized by an expansion of living space and a contraction of production and ecological spaces; (2) net carbon emissions rose from 313.98 × 104 tons to 1068.58 × 104 tons, with urban production space contributing the most (69.96% in 2020) due to its significantly high emission density. The spatial distribution of carbon emissions exhibited a stable “northwest–southeast” pattern, with increased dispersion and weakened directionality; (3) the transformation of territorial spaces promoted carbon emissions in Qingdao, with the conversion of urban production space to other uses yielding the most favorable carbon transitions, while the expropriation of agricultural production spaces for urban production and residents’ living has resulted in the most detrimental carbon transitions; (4) socio-economic development shapes the overarching pattern of regional emission density changes, whereas space transfers account for local variations. This paper also identifies priorities for spatial optimization and key sectors for emission reduction. The findings contribute to a deeper understanding of the carbon emission consequences of territorial space transformation in Qingdao, thereby providing valuable insights for regional spatial planning and optimization aimed at promoting low-carbon development.

Study on the Coupling Coordination Degree and Driving Mechanism of “Production-Living-Ecological” Space in Ecologically Fragile Areas: A Case Study of the Turpan–Hami Basin

One of the key conditions for achieving superior regional growth is ensuring the harmonious development of both the layout and functions of territorial space. Territorial space, which includes production space, living space, and ecological space, serves as a critical system and venue for economic, cultural, and social activities in a region. The harmonized growth of production–living–ecological space (PLES) is essential for attaining sustainable development goals. Research on PLES offers a fresh perspective on promoting sustainable development of the spatial domain and the sustainable use of resources. However, studies on PLE functions in ecologically fragile areas are lacking. Therefore, in this study, which adopts a PLES perspective, land-use data are used to classify land according to the dominant functions of production, ecology, and living. Integration of point-of-interest (POI) data with socio-economic data was established to spatially describe indicators at the grid level and create a scoring system for PLES indicators in ecologically fragile areas. Finally, the entropy weight method, holistic assessment methods, coupling coordination degree model (CCDM), and geodetector were employed to explore the coupling coordination relationships and factors influencing PLESs in the Turpan–Hami Basin from 2010 to 2020. The results indicate that the Turpan–Hami Basin consists predominantly of potential ecological space, mainly in the central and northern regions, which are characterized by the Gobi Desert and bare rock landforms. Over the past decade, the PLES framework has seen a notable rise in the allocation of residential and ecological areas, whereas the portion dedicated to production spaces has diminished. The overall coupling coordination degree (CCD) of PLES in the Turpan–Hami Basin is at a coordinated level and gradually increasing. The most significant impact on the degree of PLES coupling coordination is exerted by population and natural factors. The research findings provide theoretical support for the sustainable utilization of resources in the Turpan–Hami Basin and other ecologically fragile areas while also offering scientific evidence to promote the coupling coordination of PLES, thereby contributing to high-quality regional development.

Accelerating Optimal Synthesis of Atomically Thin MoS2: A Constrained Bayesian Optimization Guided Brachistochrone Approach

AbstractA machine learning (ML) guided approach is presented for the accelerated optimization of chemical vapor deposition (CVD) synthesis of 2D materials toward the highest quality, starting from low‐quality or unsuccessful synthesis conditions. Using 26 sets of these synthesis conditions as the initial training dataset, our method systematically guides experimental synthesis towards optoelectronic‐grade monolayer MoS2 flakes. A‐exciton linewidth (σA) as narrow as 38 meV could be achieved in 2D MoS2 flakes after only an additional 35 trials (reflecting 15% of the full factorial design dataset for training purposes). In practical terms, this reflects a decrease of the possible experimental time to optimize the parameters from up to one year to about two months. This remarkable efficiency was achieved by formulating a constrained sequencing optimization problem solved via a combination of constraint learning and Bayesian Optimization with the narrowness of σA as the single target metric. By employing graph‐based semi‐supervised learning with data acquired through a multi‐criteria sampling method, the constraint model effectively delineates and refines the feasible design space for monolayer flake production. Additionally, the Gaussian Process regression effectively captures the relationships between synthesis parameters and outcomes, offering high predictive capability along with a measure of prediction uncertainty. This method is scalable to a higher number of synthesis parameters and target metrics and is transferrable to other materials and types of reactors. This study envisions that this method will be fundamental for CVD and similar techniques in the future.

Promoting coordinated spatial governance of mega-cities in China via spatial organization of metropolitan areas

Super large-sized cities and very large-sized cities (“mega-cities” for short) have become the backbone of China's socio-economic development, but they also face outstanding challenges of "urban diseases" due to their high concentration. In comparison to their foreign counterparts, China's mega-cities possess unique characteristics such as rapid growth, high population density, and large numbers of residents. They naturally have the attributes of metropolitan areas due to an administrative management system of an urban system within city territory. Promoting coordinated spatial governance of mega-cities via spatial organization of metropolitan areas not only helps mega-cities better allocate resources at a larger scope and helps expedite the transformation of development patterns, but is also crucial for better implementing new-type urbanization strategies. In response to the issues in China’s previous research and practices related to mega-cities and metropolitan areas, leveraging the “Critical Technology for Spatial Optimization of Metropolitan Areas of City Clusters” of the national key R&D plan in the “14th Five-year Plan” period, we have employed a scientific approach that combines data and models to propose spatial governance strategies. These strategies encompass both the overall metropolitan area level and the cross-border regional level. Our primary focus lies in optimizing the spatial layout of the “three domains” – ecological space, production space, and living space, facilitating functional dispersal, enhancing spatial patterns, adjusting land use structures and spatial resource allocation, coordinating rail transit and the organization of functions along transit lines, and innovating service management for improvement of administrative efficiency. Through the implementation of these diverse measures, we aim to establish a comprehensive composite collaborative system.

‘Grand designs?’ Investigating the cultural and spatial logics of Channel 4’s media hub workspaces in Leeds, Bristol and Glasgow

This article explores the evolving spatiality of media production through an analysis of recent developments in UK broadcaster Channel 4’s move to a multi-site operating model. Historically, media buildings have served as landmarks of power and influence, embodying the aspirations and identities of media organisations and, as such, offer a fruitful lens for the specific exploration of the spaces of contemporary media production. Through a detailed analysis of Channel 4’s decision-making process, site selections and the significance of the chosen buildings within areas with an urban regeneration focus, the study investigates the complex interplay between media industry dynamics, regional development policies, and wider political and economic forces. Drawing on a range of academic literature and evidence from media, industry and policy reporting, the article highlights the strategic motivations behind Channel 4’s decentralisation efforts, positioned by the organisation as an effort to address diversity in terms of nations and regions representation but significantly shaped by political factors. However, it also raises critical questions about the long-term sustainability, economic viability and cultural impact of these relocation decisions. The article discusses how Channel 4’s regional media spaces and decentralisation reflect the impermanence and crisis facing Public Service Media, emphasising the shifting power dynamics within the media landscape and the need for adaptive strategies in an increasingly volatile industry environment. By examining the evolving investment in media buildings, this research contributes to a growing body of research seeking to understand the complex dynamics shaping contemporary media landscapes and urban environments.

Statistical Analysis and Several Estimation Methods of New Alpha Power-Transformed Pareto Model with Applications in Insurance

This article defines a new distribution using a novel alpha power-transformed method extension. The model obtained has three parameters and is quite effective in modeling skewed, complex, symmetric, and asymmetric datasets. The new approach has one additional parameter for the model. Certain distributional and mathematical properties are investigated, notably reliability, quartile, moments, skewness, kurtosis, and order statistics, and several approaches of estimation, notably the maximum likelihood, least square, weighted least square, maximum product spacing, Cramer-Von Mises, and Anderson Darling estimators of the model parameters were obtained. A Monte Carlo simulation study was conducted to evaluate the performance of the proposed techniques of estimation of the model parameters. The actuarial measures are computed for our recommended model. At the end of the paper, two insurance applications are illustrated to check the potential and utility of the suggested distribution. Evaluation using four selection criteria indicates that our recommended model is the most appropriate probability model for modeling insurance datasets.

Crypto/Space: Computational parasitism, virtual land grabs, and the production of Web3 Exit zones

This paper explores how so-called ‘Web3’ blockchain projects are materially and socially constituted. A blockchain is an append-only distributed database. The technology is being hyped as applicable for a whole range of industries, social service provisions, and as a fix for economic disparities in communities left behind by mainstream financial systems. Drawing on case studies from our ongoing research we explain how, despite being virtual, Web3 projects are dependent on clearly defined spaces of production from which they derive their speculative value. We conceptualise this relationship as Crypto/Space, where space and blockchain software are mutually constituted. We consider how Crypto/Spaces are produced in three ways: 1) how project developers are adopting a parasitic relationship with host locations to appropriate energy, infrastructure, and local resources; 2) how projects enable ‘virtual land grabs’ where developers are engaging in land acquisitions, and associated displacement of local people, with no real intention to use the land for the declared purpose; and 3) how blockchain technology and speculative finance imaginaries are inspiring new anarcho-capitalist crypto-utopian ‘Exit zones’, often in the Global South. Far from being a zero-sum virtual game world, we argue that cryptocurrency projects are parasitic, often requiring predation on poor and otherwise marginalised communities to appropriate resources, onboard new users and enable favourable regulation.

Landscape ecological risk assessment and driving factor analysis in southwest china.

Landscape ecological risk assessment and ecological network construction are of great significance for optimizing territorial functions and reducing regional ecological risks. Based on the production-living-ecological space perspective, this study evaluated the spatiotemporal differentiation characteristics of landscape ecological risk and its driving mechanism in Southwest China and constructed a landscape ecological network. The results showed that the proportions of ecological space, production space and living space to the total space in 2020 were 74.35%, 24.55% and 1.10%, respectively. The industrial production space had the highest growth rate, increasing by 9.8 times from 2000 to 2020. During the study period, the average value of the ecological risk index ranged from 0.2 to 0.21 for the whole landscape. The geographical distribution of ecological risk zones showed significant differences, with risk zones showing a transition from high-risk and low-risk to medium-risk zones. A total of 105 ecological corridors and 156 ecological nodes have been constructed in the 2020 ecological network. The northeastern part of the study area needs better landscape connectivity and should be focused on ecological protection. Random Forest (RF) and Geodetector modeling showed that anthropogenic disturbance and land use levels have strong explanatory power for the evolution of ecological risk in the landscape. The interactions between anthropogenic disturbance, natural climate and regional economy are essential factors in the spatiotemporal differentiation of ecological risk. This study provides scientific references for ecological risk research and the promotion of high-quality development in Southwest China.

Evolutionary characteristics of production, living, and ecological spaces and related environmental effects in Urumqi, Northwest China

Evolutionary characteristics of production, living, and ecological spaces and related environmental effects in Urumqi, Northwest China

Simulation of the future evolution track of “production–living–ecological” space in coastal cities based on multimodel coupling and wetland protection scenarios

Coastal cities hold a special position in the fields of production, living, and ecological research because of their unique wetland resource advantages. However, with global urbanization and rapid economic development, conflicts among production, living and ecological land are prevalent in coastal cities in the process of maintaining sustainable wetland resources and further developing the social economy. By establishing an SD-PLUS-CCD coupling model, this paper analysed the evolution characteristics and driving mechanism of the production–living–ecological space (PLES) and the effects of wetland protection (WLP) on promoting or inhibiting the coordinated development of the PLES in Dongying city during 2005–2060. The results show that (1) from 2005 to 2020, the increase in urban population resulted in a significant transfer of arable land and a reduction of 914 km2 in production space (PS); (2) from 2020 to 2060, under the WLP scenario, the conversion of wetland ecological space will reduce the PS and living space (LS) by 193.92 km2 and 107.14 km2, respectively, and increase the ecological space (ES) by 327.52 km2; and (3) wetland protection has an inhibitory effect on the coordinated development of PLES in the study area, and the total proportion of noncoordinated areas of PE and living–ecological space will continue to increase during the simulation period. This paper provides a solid theoretical support for the sustainable management and protection of wetlands in coastal cities and possible PLES conflict patterns and provides a scientific basis for future territorial spatial planning and policy balance analysis.

Exploring residents’ expectations and designers’ perspectives towards post-earthquake permanent housing: A case study in Antakya

Post-disaster permanent housing is the backbone of the recovery efforts after destructive events. It holds great potential to adopt new technological innovations and to provide improved conditions for these everyday spaces. However, previous investigations suggest that these housing projects lack consideration of the inhabitants' expectations, needs, and values due to environmental, cultural, and social factors, resulting in a dissatisfactory built environment. Following the Kahramanmaraş earthquake on February 6, 2023, this research aims to explore the expectations of affected residents in the historic district of Antakya. We expect to contribute to decision-makers, designers, and the technology industry to develop more user-centered housing recovery efforts in the aftermath of these devastating events. The findings revealed four implications from the expectations for post-earthquake homes: (1) designing for togetherness, (2) valuing community efforts and traditional work, (3) including productional activities, and lastly, (4) preserving and reminiscing heritage values. Additionally, we discussed these four implications with multi-disciplinary designers to expand the discussion space for designing post-earthquake permanent homes in Antakya. Overall, these implications suggest some future architectural changes in homes as their residents' expectations, including the creation of new heritage and production spaces using digital, physical, and mixed reality technologies, as well as the emergence of new social gathering spaces. By conducting a case study in Antakya, our research highlights the potential for the further development of post-disaster permanent homes that not only provide shelter and safety but also enhance the overall quality of life for the residents, both for Antakya and the other relevant cases worldwide.

WIMP Dark Matter in bulk viscous non-standard cosmologies

In this paper, we explore an extension of the classical non-standard cosmological scenario in which the new field, ϕ, which interacts with the radiation component in the early universe, experiences dissipative processes in the form of a bulk viscosity. Assuming an interaction term given by Γ ϕ ρ ϕ , where Γ ϕ accounts for the decay rate of the field and ρ ϕ corresponds to its energy density, and a bulk viscosity according to the expression ξ=ξ 0 ρ ϕ ϕ1/2 in the framework of Eckart's theory, we apply this novel non-standard cosmology to study the parameters space for WIMPs Dark Matter candidate production. This parameter space shows deviations from the classical non-standard cosmological scenario, obtaining new regions to search for this candidate. In particular, for certain combinations of the free parameters, we found large regions in which the model can establish the DM and reproduce the current observable relic density.

Exploring urban and agricultural land use planning

Socio-economic development has accelerated urban expansion, leading to the encroachment of urban space into agricultural space land and seriously undermining the stability of ecosystems. Scientifically optimizing the layout of urban-agricultural space can guarantee China's food security, promote urban development and maintain ecological stability. In this study, we focused on the rapidly growing city of Nankang. We used land, ecological and geographic location data to calculate land suitability, predicted future urban space through the GeoSOS-FLUS model, and finally optimized the agricultural-urban space conflict. The results show that: the areas of farmland with quality evaluation results for grades 1-4 were 7783.13 hm2, 9411.01 hm2, 8738.99 hm2 and 3032.73 hm2, and the areas suitable for construction, more suitable for construction, unsuitable for construction and prohibited from construction accounted for 12.19%, 16.23%, 41.34% and 30.24%, respectively. Combining the FLUS model with the land suitability evaluation results, we found that there is a conflict area of 1841.96 hm2 in the delineation scheme. Adjusting their layout according to the principle of conflict coordination, the optimized area of agricultural-urban space is 28429.34 hm2 and 8968.23 hm2 respectively, accounting for 16.32% and 5.15% of the study area. The result of spatial contradiction optimization satisfies the balance between production and residential space, promotes urban development, protects ecological security, and can provide scientific reference for regional urban ecological environment construction.

An urban agricultural block construction method based on low-carbon concepts: A case study of the Beijing-Tianjin area in China

With the ongoing progress of urbanization, various issues such as resource scarcity, climate change, and carbon emissions overload have gradually emerged. Urban agriculture (UA) is recognized as a pivotal strategy to promote sustainable urban development. In this context, the study proposes a spatial scale hierarchy, encompassing “single building - building cluster - urban block," to formulate spatial strategies for the theoretical model of urban agricultural blocks. The theoretical model integrates production spaces, production methods, and spatial systems based on relevant design principles and the needs of residents. Nankai District's Qingfeng Road East Block in Tianjin is used as the site for applying and simulating the theoretical model. The results of the study show that UA in a 500m × 500m block can ideally eliminate the need for external food inputs by 100% for starchy vegetables, legumes and fruits, and meat/poultry, while achieving a 254.73% self-sufficiency rate for fungi. Additionally, it can reduce energy inputs by 28.33%, water inputs by 38.13%, and completely eliminate waste output for 8754 people. Carbon emission analysis indicates that the urban agricultural block can reduce approximately 2250.01t CO2 emissions from buildings and waste, with greater carbon-neutral potential in transportation and agriculture, forestry, and other land uses (AFOLU). This is significant for tackling various urban challenges and enhancing future development.

Temporary Immersion Bioreactor (TIB) System for Large-Scale Micropropagation of Musa sp. cv Kluai Numwa Pakchong 50

Conventional in vitro propagation using semisolid Murashige and Skoog (MS) culture systems is costly, labor-intensive, and requires substantial space for large-scale plant production. This study investigated the application of a temporary immersion bioreactor (TIB) system for the micropropagation of the banana cultivar Kluai Numwa Pakchong 50, as a promising platform for economical commercial production. The cultivation parameters affecting plantlet multiplication, including plant growth regulator (PGR) use, explant density, and immersion frequency, were examined. Additionally, the ex vitro acclimatization of well-developed in vitro plantlets was also evaluated. Using liquid MS medium supplemented with 7.5 mg/L 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP) in the TIB system yielded significantly better results than the conventional semisolid MS control system, producing more shoots (5.60 shoots/explant) and leaves (2.80 leaves/explant) with longer shoot length (2.19 cm). Optimal conditions in the TIB system included an inoculum density of five explants per culture vessel and an immersion frequency of once every 6 or 8 h for 2 min. For root induction, 0.5 mg/L indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) proved more effective than 1-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA). After 30 days of ex vitro acclimatization, plantlets regenerated from the TIB system demonstrated high survival rates, vegetative growth performance, and root formation efficiency comparable to those from the semisolid culture system. These findings establish the TIB system as a promising platform for the mass propagation of the Kluai Numwa Pakchong 50 banana. The protocol developed in this study could potentially be adapted for large-scale production of other banana varieties.

Exploring China's food security evolution from a local perspective

Local food self-sufficiency is a feasible path to make up for supply chain dependence caused by food system globalization. However, despite policies advocating food localization, China's current trends, such as the imbalance between food supply and nutritional demand and the mismatch between production space and consumption space, gradually restrict the sustainability of food security. This study analyzes China's local food security from 2000 to 2020 around the multi-dimensionality of supply, acquisition, and demand. Results show that regional differentiation of China's staple food self-sufficiency has become more significant. As a result, food supply capacity in rapidly urbanizing areas has weakened, and mountainous and underdeveloped areas are difficult to be self-sufficient. Fortunately, staple foods in China are highly accessible, and urban with a population of less than 50,000 have the best food transportation security. Overall, aging and scale management greatly affect China's food system, which currently can resist sudden natural disasters. In the future, decision-makers should focus on urban resources integration and rural land consolidation and realize sustainable food system transition by optimizing the local supply-demand structure through central planning based on popular science and healthy diet structure.

A new extension of Burr-Hatke exponential distribution with engineering and biomedical applications

In this study, the Topp-Leone family of distribution approach was used to modify the Burr Hatke Exponential distribution to provide adequate fits for some engineering and health data which previous existing distributions in the family of Burr Hatke Exponential have failed to do. The new distribution improves the robustness of Burr Hatke Exponential distribution by making it capable of modeling emerging new world complex data with varying features, possesses greater capacity and flexibility to model lifetime data, has better goodness of fit. Some mathematical properties of the derived distribution such as quantile function, moments, order statistics, entropies, etc were obtained and discussed. Some non-Bayesian estimation approaches like maximum likelihood estimation (ML), maximum Product spacing estimation (MPSE), Least squares estimation (LS), weighted least squares estimation (WLS), Cramer-von-Mises estimation (CVM), Anderson-Darling estimation (AD), and right-tailed Anderson Darling estimation (RTAD), as well as Bayesian method under independent gamma priors were adopted to estimate the parameters of the model and the various methods proved efficient. From the simulation results, the bias and root mean squared error for the parameters are relatively small and the become smaller as the sample size becomes larger. This shows convenience and improved estimation accuracy. We further constructed a regression model using the proposed distribution. Extensive simulation studies were used to determine the efficiency of the method in both the estimation of its parameters and that of the regression model. The TL-BHE regression was fitted on censored CD4 count data of HIV/AIDs patients. The competitiveness, applicability, and usefulness of the model were demonstrated using datasets and the results validate the theoretical findings. The results indicate that the TL-BHE distribution achieved better results than the baseline distribution and other variants of the classical distributions.

Islanding as a vernacular creative response to crisis: Emotional geographies of pandemic musicianship

Emotional geographies of creativity during disruptive crises have received scant attention yet are deeply entwined with unfolding spatial reconfigurations. Drawing upon ethnographic research on the shifting geographies of creative work in the post-pandemic city, we highlight and discuss one distinctive emotional-geographic experience: what Wakefield (2021) calls ‘islanding’, a ‘retreat’ among creative workers to home spaces, consolidating activities and finding ways to inhabit upheaval. Describing the case of four male musicians who play together regularly in Sydney, Australia, we show how, in response to forced lockdowns, collaboration shifted from dispersed networks to home spaces of rehearsal, composition, production and performance. Within these reworked home spaces, creativity and sociality were reassembled. The emotional dimensions of music-making, support from family and friends, gender nuances, and bonds of collective creativity, acquired heightened significance. Pandemic upheaval afforded unforeseen opportunities to experiment, while ‘islanded’ spaces proved vital, socially, as the musicians faced multiple health, employment, and psychological challenges. Transcending masculine tropes, gathering at home to play music proved an avenue to perform care work, share the joys of music, express love and admit vulnerability. We conclude that emotional, gendered, and spatial dimensions must figure more prominently within analyses of creative responses to crisis, including post-pandemic discussions of the creative sectors.

Constant Stress-Partially Accelerated Life Tests of Vtub-Shaped Lifetime Distribution under Progressive Type II Censoring

In lifetime tests, the waiting time for items to fail may be long under usual use conditions, particularly when the products have high reliability. To reduce the cost of testing without sacrificing the quality of the data obtained, the products are exposed to higher stress levels than normal, which quickly causes early failures. Therefore, accelerated life testing is essential since it saves costs and time. This paper considers constant stress-partially accelerated life tests under progressive Type II censored samples. This is realized under the claim that the lifetime of products under usual use conditions follows Vtub-shaped lifetime distribution, which is also known as log-log distribution. The log–log distribution is highly significant and has several real-world applications since it has distinct shapes of its probability density function and hazard rate function. A graphical description of the log–log distribution is exhibited, including plots of the probability density function and hazard rate. The log–log density has different shapes, such as decreasing, unimodal, and approximately symmetric. Several mathematical properties, such as quantiles, probability weighted moments, incomplete moments, moments of residual life, and reversed residual life functions, and entropy of the log–log distribution, are discussed. In addition, the maximum likelihood and maximum product spacing methods are used to obtain the interval and point estimators of the acceleration factor, as well as the model parameters. A simulation study is employed to assess the implementation of the estimation approaches under censoring schemes and different sample sizes. Finally, to demonstrate the viability of the various approaches, two real data sets are investigated.