Strong Competition Research Articles

Hyperplane-Assisted Multi-objective Particle Swarm Optimization with Twofold Proportional Assignment Strategy

In the simultaneous optimization of multiple objectives, how to balance convergence promotion and diversity preservation in the evolutionary process is a key and challenging problem. In this research, a hyperplane-assisted multi-objective particle swarm optimization with a twofold proportional assignment strategy (tpahaMOPSO) is suggested to ameliorate the optimization performance of MOPSO. First, the external archive is maintained in combination with hyperplane-based convergence evaluation and shift-based density estimation to retain high-quality candidate solutions. Second, a twofold proportional assignment scheme is designed to search the surrounding region of candidate solutions with better potential to emphasize convergence and diversity, respectively. Third, the domination relationship and convergence difference are combined to select a more reasonable individual historical best and reduce the risk of particle aggregation. Finally, the proposed tpahaMOPSO was compared with ten representative and advanced multi-objective optimization algorithms on 22 widely used test functions with different characteristics. The simulation results present that the developed tpahaMOPSO got the best result in 11 benchmark functions for both IGD and HV criteria. Concurrently, the Friedman test was applied for ranking analysis and the proposed algorithm also obtained excellent statistical analysis results. The promising performance and strong competitiveness of the proposed tpahaMOPSO have been verified by different experimental studies.

A Specific Component in the US Banking System: The State of Ohio

Deregulation of the US banking system in the 1980s and 1990s led to profound changes not only in the operating conditions of credit corporations but also in the territorial structure of the industry. A particularly important role was played by the gradual lifting of the historical ban on creating interstate branch networks, which allowed the most successful banking holding companies to expand into other regions and partially displace local businesses. Among the centers from which such commercial expansion took place were Columbus, Cleveland, and other cities in Ohio, which had significant economic foundations and human resources. Ohio's share of national totals, measured by the assets of bank holding companies, rose almost continuously until 2002–2003, but then began to decline under pressure from even stronger competitors. Meanwhile, in the early 2000s, as advancements in telecommunications increasingly enabled the remote distribution of internal corporate administrative functions, Ohio became a strategic hub for holdings from other states – primarily JPMorgan Chase from New York. To this day, Ohio reflects a dual, albeit uneven, success: the state holds a significant position in its own holdings’ assets (sixth or seventh place in the US), while also maintaining a leading role in the strategic presence (at the level of key subordinate banks) of holdings from other parts of the country. For Ohio, an old industrial state that had been struggling since the 1960s with the rise of new competitors with more advanced manufacturing, the growth of the banking sector (in both aspects noted) became a key part of the state's economic restructuring and an important source of job creation.

Belarusian-Lithuanian Relations: How Politics Beats the Economy

The article analyses the dynamics of Belarusian-Lithuanian relations in the post-Soviet period. The historical, cultural and political-economic aspects of the relationship between the two countries are considered. It is noted that Lithuania is the second most active European player in Belarus after Poland. The author emphasises the historical aspect of the relationship between the two countries and demonstrates how different interpretations of the heritage of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania affect the modern relationship between the two states and their peoples. We are talking primarily about the heritage of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Lithuanian myth generates competition between the two countries, but at the same time forms an idea of the common space of their historical destinies, which fuels Westernising and pro-European sentiments among a part of Belarusian society. The author notes that Lithuania’s foreign policy towards Belarus is dominated by an ideological approach. Lithuania tries to play the role of an operator of democratic changes and the Western geopolitical turn of its eastern neighbor. In this niche a strong competition with Poland and the traditional xenophobia of Lithuanian society towards the Slavs limit the possibilities of Lithuanian influence on Belarus. For its part, Minsk was focused on pragmatic cooperation with Lithuania in the economic sphere and put issues of politics and ideology aside. In particular, Belarus had high hopes for cooperation in the field of energy and transit. The discrepancy between these approaches determines the tense and conflict nature of relations between the two countries.

Outlook for Sustainable Utilization of Agricultural Waste and Biomass Fuel and Materials Production

The reasonable and effective treatment and utilization of agricultural production waste is an effective way to deal with energy depletion and climate change. Agricultural waste, including crop straw, livestock manure, agricultural film, pesticide packaging, the waste if improperly handled, can lead to soil, water and air pollution, like remains in agricultural land contains various chemical elements of crop straw and livestock manure, if improperly handled will cause irreversible of soil erosion and pollution. Through resource utilization, these wastes can be converted into organic fertilizers, bioenergy, feed or other valuable products, thus reducing environmental pollution, improving the efficiency of resource utilization, and promoting the sustainable development of agriculture. This study will discuss the technical progress of the treatment mode of agricultural waste in the current technical field, and find out the shortcomings and challenges of the existing technology. China, India, America, Japan, Thailand and many other countries are stepping up their research on biomass energy. The development and utilization of agricultural biomass have a strong competitiveness in the energy market.

Prediction of Air Quality Index Based on Support Vector Machine and Improved Butterfly Optimization Algorithm

Air pollution is an increasingly serious problem. Air pollution has been become a main cause of environmental degradation and health effects. Accurate prediction of air quality can help improve environmental quality and human living conditions. The traditional methods for predicting the air quality index have the problem of low accuracy and efficiency. To solve this problem, this paper proposes a novel support vector machine prediction model based on improved butterfly optimization algorithm, which is called IBOA-SVM model. In the improved butterfly optimization algorithm, the sigmoid function is used to optimize the update of the parameter c, which increases the search diversity and improves the convergence speed. The performance of the improved butterfly optimization algorithm is verified using eight benchmark functions. Compared with performances of the traditional butterfly optimization algorithm and the particle swarm optimization algorithm, the improved butterfly optimization algorithm has strong competitiveness in accuracy and stability. We establish the IBOA-SVM prediction model for forecasting air quality based on the improved butterfly optimization algorithm. The performance of our proposed model is compared with other predicting models. The experimental results show that our proposed model has higher accuracy and efficiency in predicting the air quality index of four cities in southern China.

An Analysis on the Valuation of Listed Companies: A Case Study of Luzhou Laojiao

With the rapid growth of the capital market, assessing the value of listed companies has become crucial for investors, business operators, and academia. Accurate valuation aids investors in making informed decisions and supports strategic planning for business operators. This paper uses Luzhou Laojiao as a case study to explore corporate value assessment methods for listed companies. It focuses on quantitatively evaluating Luzhou Laojiao's corporate value by analyzing financial data, market performance, and industry status. The study begins by detailing Luzhou Laojiao's operations, market positioning, competitive advantages, and disadvantages. It then employs various evaluation methods, including the DFC model, CAPM model, and WACC model, to comprehensively assess Luzhou Laojiao's corporate value. The findings indicate that Luzhou Laojiao, a leading enterprise in the liquor industry, possesses strong market competitiveness and profitability. By predicting future cash flow and growth rates, the study estimates Luzhou Laojiao's corporate value and identifies the key driving factors. The evolving capital market will continue to influence corporate value assessment methods. The research methods and conclusions of this paper not only serve as a decision-making reference for investors but also provide a framework for valuing other listed companies.

Teaching the Arabic Language between the Challenges of Globalization and the Enhancement of National Identity

The focus of this research is to examine the duality of language and identity within contemporary Arab culture, particularly in terms of their civilizational interrelation and their influence by emerging social and cultural phenomena. This analysis is situated within a global context where cultural boundaries between societies have become increasingly blurred. Although the history of the Arabic language demonstrates its effective dialogue with surrounding elements and its capacity to assimilate various scientific and intellectual activities over an extended period, including the Abbasid and Andalusian eras, observations indicate that contemporary Arabic is no longer capable of meeting the cognitive needs of its speakers. This is especially evident in its diminished role in scientific advancement and its reduced prevalence in everyday speech. Numerous indicators highlight this trend, such as the declining presence of Arabic in academic research, the widespread use of colloquial dialects, and their strong competition with Modern Standard Arabic (Fusha) in fields like art and education. Considering that the Arabic language, like other languages, serves as a vessel for elements of Arab identity, there is no doubt that the decline of its presence in the domains of communication and scientific research has a direct impact on the formation of that identity. This situation urgently calls for careful management of our relationship with our language. In this regard, what we observe is the necessity to enhance the presence of Arabic in our daily and scientific lives. This is achievable by diversifying Arabic teaching methodologies for both native and non-native speakers to ensure that it keeps pace with all current and future scientific developments.

Expansion Direction Selection of the Coal-to-Olefin Industrial Chain in Inner Mongolia from the Value Chain Perspective

Inner Mongolia is a key region for China’s clean energy production and a demonstration base for modern coal chemical industry production. However, modern coal chemical industry development in this region faces many problems, such as complex downstream product structures, low value-added products, and severe environmental pollution. With limited future coal allowance in the coal chemical industry, the scarce available coal will likely be allocated to fields with strong product competitiveness to enhance industrial chain value. Given this, the Inner Mongolia coal-to-olefin industrial chain is selected to explore its strategic expansion directions. An improved value chain accounting method is proposed to account for the value of each segment of the coal-to-olefin industrial chain in Inner Mongolia from 2011 to 2022. The improved value chain accounting method is then combined with system dynamics to construct a model for selecting the expansion directions of the coal-to-olefin industrial chain based on the value chain perspective. Finally, the differences in the value of each future expansion direction are analyzed through scenario simulation and comparison. The most important result is that the higher the extension of the coal-to-olefin industry chain in Inner Mongolia, the higher the value of the industry chain. Carbon punishment is the most important factor affecting the value of the industry chain, and enterprises and governments should increase investment in innovation and renewable energy. Accordingly, this study provides a decision-making method for selecting the optimal expansion direction of the modern coal chemical industrial chain in Inner Mongolia.

Neem (Azadirachta indica A. Juss; Meliaceae) as the source for plant-based pesticides as an effective and sustainable biocontrol alternative

The neem tree has strengths such as effective and environmentally friendly active compounds, as well as the ability to improve the quality and productivity of plants organically. However, the use of botanical pesticides has several challenges, such as potentially lower effectiveness compared to chemical insecticides, high production costs, and requiring specific knowledge in formulation and application. Botanical pesticides are readily available tools for insect pest management and are eco-friendly. The research results show that a neem formula at a concentration of 20 ml.l-1 water can cause mortality of brown planthopper is 48.75 - 70%, while mortality in the synthetic insecticide (positive control) at a concentration of 2 ml.l-1 water (as recommended) resulted in 45% mortality. It is obvious that there is a need to develop biological control as alternatives for eco-friendly and sustainable for pests’ control in insect’s pest management strategies. This research study has both qualitative and quantitative approach, data collection strategies were desk review of information and will be based on empirical data and literature. For the desk study, relevant internet web pages were browsed to have an overview of the key concepts of the research issue, problem of pests and diseases control and benefit of neem tree as botanical pesticides. Nevertheless, the use of botanical pesticides can provide long-term benefits to the environment and human health and support more sustainable agriculture. There is a great opportunity for the development of more effective and affordable technology for botanical pesticide production for farmers, but there are also threats such as strong competition from synthetic pesticides. The objective this study aims to determine the potential of neem (Azadirachta indica A.Juss) as a plant producing botanical pesticides as an effective and sustainable biological control alternative.

Carcass Density, Size and Visibility Do Not Significantly Differ Between Areas With and Without Spotted‐Hyaenas (Crocuta crocuta), With Implications for Threatened Vultures

ABSTRACTChanges in predator guild composition can affect obligate scavengers through facilitation and competition dynamics. In Namibia, declines of spotted‐hyaenas (Crocuta crocuta) may influence threatened vultures, either positively, via provisioning carcasses, or negatively, as dominant scavengers competing for carcasses. To examine potential mechanisms of influence of spotted‐hyaenas on vultures, we compared carcass densities, carcass size (live weight estimated by species, age class and sex), and potential visibility of carcasses to vultures between sites with and without spotted‐hyaenas across Namibia. We sampled thirteen private protected areas (PPAs), six with spotted‐hyaenas present and seven where they were absent. Carcass densities were estimated for each PPA using line‐transect sampling, recording a total of fifty‐four carcasses. There were no significant differences in carcass density, carcass size or carcass distance to cover, as a proxy for visibility, between areas with and without spotted‐hyaenas. These results do not indicate mechanisms of either strong facilitation or strong competition with vultures, suggesting that spotted‐hyaena activity on these Namibian reserves is not detrimental to vultures, but equally may not result in increased carcass availability.

Static, free vibration, and buckling analysis of functionally graded plates using the dual mesh control domain method

In this paper, the Dual Mesh Control Domain Method (DMCDM) put forward by Reddy is applied to solve linear static, free vibration, and buckling problems of functionally graded plates modeled using the First-Order Shear Deformation Theory (FSDT). The material properties are assumed to vary continuously through the thickness of the plate according to a power-law. Formulations are presented for linear triangular (3-noded) and bilinear quadrilateral (4-noded) primal elements of arbitrary shape. The influence of the power-law exponents, length to thickness ratio, boundary conditions, and plate skewness on the numerical solution is systematically analyzed. Additionally, the numerical solutions using the DMCDM are compared against those from the Finite Element Method (FEM) to demonstrate the robustness of the DMCDM as a strong competitor to well-established numerical techniques such as the FEM.

Metabarcoding Reveals Meiofaunal Diversity in Rhodolith Beds From SE Brazil

ABSTRACTRhodolith beds (RBs) are known to increase the seabed complexity and act as a hotspot, supporting a unique biodiversity. This increased structural complexity due to the presence of rhodolith nodules is expected to influence benthic diversity at a local scale. To investigate this further, we tested the hypothesis that high‐density rhodolith beds hold higher meiofaunal diversity than low‐density beds. We used metabarcoding (V9 hypervariable region from 18S SSU rRNA) on sediment samples from a region with extensive rhodolith beds in the Eastern Brazil Marine Ecoregion, with distinct areas covered by high‐ and low‐density beds. The sediment underneath high‐density beds showed higher food availability (biopolymeric carbon) and organic matter quality (protein content and protein‐to‐carbohydrate ratio); however, meiofaunal composition and phylogenetic diversity was similar among all rhodolith beds sampled in the study area. Shannon's diversity was lower in high‐density beds, which may be attributed to the higher organic matter content and quality supporting strong competitors, such as crustaceans and annelids that may dominate and suppress the presence of other meiofaunal taxa. Our results showed that rhodolith beds host a number of meiofaunal zoobenthos that are rarely sampled with traditional morphology‐based methods, and we suggest that metabarcoding may become an important complementary method to study rhodolith beds globally. As assessing biodiversity is a prerequisite for any conservation measures, this study can provide insights when managing valuable marine habitats.

NExpR: Neural Explicit Representation for fast arbitrary-scale medical image super-resolution

Medical images often require rescaling to various spatial resolutions to ensure interpretations at different levels. Conventional deep learning-based image super-resolution (SR) enhances the fixed-scale resolution. Implicit neural representation (INR) is a promising way of achieving arbitrary-scale image SR. However, existing INR-based methods require the repeated execution of the neural network (NN), which is slow and inefficient. In this paper, we present Neural Explicit Representation (NExpR) for fast arbitrary-scale medical image SR. Our algorithm represents an image with an explicit analytical function, whose input is the low-resolution image and output is the parameterization of the analytical function. After obtaining the analytical representation through a single NN inference, SR images of arbitrary scales can be derived by evaluating the explicit functions at desired coordinates. Because of the analytical explicit representation, NExpR is significantly faster than INR-based methods. In addition to speed, our method achieves on-par or better image quality than other strong competitors. Extensive experiments on Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) datasets, including ProstateX, fastMRI, and our in-house clinical prostate dataset, as well as the Computerized Tomography (CT) dataset, specifically the Medical Segmentation Decathlon (MSD) liver dataset, demonstrate the superiority of our method. Our method reduces the rescaling time from the order of 1 ms to the order of 0.01 ms, achieving an over 100× speedup without losing the image quality. Code is available at https://github.com/Calvin-Pang/NExpR.

Enhanced antifouling PSE hollow fiber membrane via zwitterionic copolymer segregation

Blending hydrophilic additives is an effective method to improve the surface hydrophilcility and antifouling property of ultrafiltration membranes. In this study, we prepared a series of polysulfate (PSE) hollow fiber membranes (HFMs) containing a zwitterion-based copolymer, poly(4-vinylpyridine-co-methylacryloxyethyl phosphocholine), with varying monomer ratios and blending quantities. The relationship between cast solution properties and phase separation behavior was investigated, as well as the impacts of copolymer composition and amount on the separation performances and antifouling abilities of the membranes. A higher hydrophilic monomer ratio and more copolymer addition of zwitterionic copolymer would facilitate surface segregation, increasing the hydrophilicity of membrane surface and generating a dense hydration layer. This layer can resist macromolecule contaminants and promote water molecular transport. Furthermore, a more compacted skin layer improves separation ability. The optimized PSE HFMs had water fluxes around 140 L m−2 h−1, BSA rejections over 97 %, and flux recovery rates over 92 % during operation. Moreover, the membrane demonstrated ultra-low flux-sacrifice when applied to protein solutions while maintaining a high rejection rate, which indicates the distinctive and strong competitiveness of PSE/P(4VP-co-MPC) HFMs.

Enhancing Sales Volume to Optimized Retail Marketing Strategy: Case Study on MSMEs Retail in Bantul, Yogyakart

The retail industry in Indonesia has experienced significant growth, particularly with the increasing presence of modern retail chains that challenge the sustainability of local Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). MSMEs in the retail sector, especially in regions like Bantul, Indonesia, face mounting competition from these larger and better-funded players. This study investigates how MSMEs can enhance their sales volume by adopting more effective retail marketing strategies. Grounded in marketing theory, specifically the principles of modern merchandising, category management, pricing, promotion, and supplier relationship management, this research aims to determine the strategies that are most impactful for MSME retailers in a competitive market. Using a qualitative case study methodology, data were collected from interviews with MSME owners, direct observations, and sales data analysis of selected retailers in Bantul. The findings reveal that MSMEs implementing modern marketing techniques, such as improved merchandising displays, competitive pricing strategies, and strategic supplier negotiations, were able to increase their sales volumes despite facing strong competition from established retail chains. Furthermore, businesses that incorporated digital tools for promotions and customer engagement saw a noticeable improvement in customer loyalty and sales growth. In the discussion, the study emphasizes that while the adoption of modern retail strategies is critical, MSMEs still face challenges such as limited financial and technological resources, which hinder their ability to fully compete with larger retailers. Nonetheless, the findings demonstrate that targeted marketing strategies, particularly in supplier relationships and pricing techniques, offer MSMEs a sustainable path to growth. The study concludes that for MSMEs to thrive in the competitive retail environment, they must adopt a hybrid approach that combines traditional retail techniques with modern marketing innovations. Future research should focus on the role of digital transformation in further enhancing the competitiveness of MSMEs in the retail sector. Keywords: Sales Volume, Retail Marketing, MSMEs

Engineering Topological and Chemical Disorder in Pd Sites for Record-Breaking Formic Acid Electrocatalytic Oxidation.

Designing palladium-based formic acid oxidation reaction (FAOR) catalysts to achieve significant breakthroughs in catalytic activity, pathway selectivity, and toxicity resistance is both urgent and challenging. Here, these challenges are addressed by pioneering a novel catalyst design that incorporates both topological and chemical disorder, developing a new class of PdCuLaYMnW high-entropy amorphous alloys with a porous network (Net-Pd-HEAA) as a highly active, selective, and stable FAOR electrocatalyst. This novel Net-Pd-HEAA demonstrates record-breaking FAOR performance, achieving the mass and specific activities of 5.94 A mgPd -1 and 8.94mA cm-2, respectively, surpassing all previously reported Pd-based catalysts and showing strong competitiveness against advanced Pt-based catalysts. Simulataneously, Net-Pd-HEAA exhibits extraordinary stability in accelerated durability tests (ADT) and chronoamperometry (CA) tests. Advanced characterization and in situ, spectral analysis reveal that the extremely disordered atomic structure effectively regulates the geometric and electronic structure of the Pd sites, enhancing active intermediate coverage, facilitating dehydrogenation pathway, and inhibiting the production/adsorption of CO. Furthermore, when employed as the anode catalyst in proton exchange membrane water electrolysis (PEMWE), Net-Pd-HEAA only requires a potential of 1.28V to obtain a current density of 1 A cm-2, and operates stably in a highly corrosive electrolyte for over 100 h.

Point Cloud Registration Method Based on Improved TLBO for Landing Gear Components Measurement

When using point cloud technology to measure the dimension and geometric error of aircraft landing gear components, the point cloud data obtained after scanning may have certain differences because of the sophistication and diversity of the components that make up the landing gear. However, when using traditional point cloud registration algorithms, if the initial pose between point clouds is poor, it can lead to significant errors in the final registration results or even registration failure. Furthermore, the significant difference in registration results between point clouds can affect the final measurement results. Adopting Teaching-Learning-Based Optimization (TLBO) to solve some optimization problems has unique advantages such as high accuracy and good stability. This study integrates TLBO with point cloud registration. To increase the probability of using TLBO for point cloud registration to search for the global optimal solution, adaptive learning weights are first introduced during the learner phase of the basic TLBO. Secondly, an additional tutoring phase has been designed based on the symmetry and unimodality of the normal distribution to improve the accuracy of the solution results. In order to evaluate the performance of the proposed algorithm, it was first used to solve the CEC2017 test function. The comparison results with other metaheuristics showed that the improved TLBO has excellent comprehensive performance. Then, registration experiments were conducted using the open point cloud dataset and the landing gear point cloud dataset, respectively. The registration results showed that the point cloud registration method proposed in this paper has strong competitiveness.

From local farms to global markets: an analysis of Indonesian tea competitiveness

Abstract Tea consumption is one of the most important needs of the people in Pakistan. Over the last 20 years, the number of tea exports to Pakistan has experienced an increasing trend. However, in contrast, the trade value of tea exports from Indonesia shows a declining trend. Therefore, this study aims to analyse the competitiveness of Indonesian tea in the Pakistani market compared to other exporting countries. The study used secondary data from the trade map in the form of tea export value data (Code HS: 0902) of four exporting countries to Pakistan in 2013-2022. The data were processed using revealed comparative advantage (RCA) and dynamic revealed comparative advantage (DRCA) analysis. The results show that Kenya and Vietnam have strong competitiveness in the Pakistan tea market, and Kenya dominates the Pakistan tea market. Indonesia and China have weak competitiveness in the Pakistan tea market, and in the two study periods, both countries were in a lost opportunity position.

The international empirics of management

A country's national income broadly depends on the quantity and quality of workers and capital. But how well these factors are managed within and between firms may be a key determinant of a country's productivity and its GDP. Although social scientists have long studied the role of management practices in shaping business performance, their primary tool has been individual case studies. While useful for theory-building, such qualitative work is hard to scale and quantify. We present a large, scalable dataset measuring structured management practices at the business level across multiple countries. We measure practices related to performance monitoring, target-setting, and human resources. We document a set of key stylized facts, which we label "the international empirics of management". In all countries, firms with more structured practices tend to also have superior economic performance: they are larger in scale, are more profitable, have higher labor productivity and are more likely to export. This consistency was not obvious ex-ante, and being able to quantify these relationships is valuable. We also document significant variation in practices across and within countries, which is important in explaining differences in the wealth of nations. The positive relationship between firm size and structured management practices is stronger in countries with more open and free markets, suggesting that stronger competition may allow firms with more structured management practices to grow larger, thereby potentially raising aggregate national income.

Implementasi Kurikulum Merdeka di Pesantren Fathurrobbaaniy Cisoka: Membentuk Generasi Berkarakter dan Kompetitif dalam Pendidikan Islam

The implementation of the Independent Curriculum at Pesantren Fathurrobbaaniy Cisoka aims to shape a generation that is both character-driven and competitive within Islamic education. This study examines how the flexible and contextual approach of the Independent Curriculum can be applied in a pesantren environment to address the challenges of globalization and modernization. Using qualitative methods including interviews, observations, and documentation, this research explores the strategies employed by the teaching staff in integrating this new curriculum. The results indicate that the Independent Curriculum provides flexibility in designing learning programs that are more relevant to local needs and the potential of the students. Pesantren Fathurrobbaaniy successfully integrates moral values and 21st-century skills into the learning process, enhancing student participation and interest in both academic and non-academic activities. Challenges in adapting traditional teaching methods and improving parental understanding were addressed through comprehensive socialization and training. The implementation of the Independent Curriculum at this pesantren shows significant positive impacts on improving the quality of education and shaping students with strong moral character and high competitiveness.