Input Technology Research Articles

Uso de las TIC en Arquitectura: experiencia de un programa tecnólogo de la Universidad del Atlántico, Barranquilla, Colombia

Analizar los procesos de enseñanza basados en el uso de las Tecnologías de la Información y Comunicaciones (TIC) de los docentes del programa Tecnología en Gestión de la Construcción de Proyectos Arquitectónicos y su incidencia en el desempeño académico y prácticas profesionales de los estudiantes en el semestre 2019-2 en la Universidad del Atlántico sede Suán. Estudio de paradigma hermenéutico, enfoque cualitativo y de tipo descriptivo y documental. Se trabajó con docentes, estudiantes y egresados del programa Tecnología en Gestión de la Construcción de Proyectos Arquitectónicos, como también evaluadores de prácticas profesionales por medio de entrevista semiestructurada. El testimonio de los participantes dio cuenta de falencias en materia del uso de las TIC en el proceso de enseñanza/aprendizaje, que han incidido en el desempeño académico y en sus prácticas profesionales negativamente. Las dificultades en materia de uso de tic se asocian a la falta de acceso a dichos insumos tecnológicos, el manejo básico de herramientas de ofimática y softwares de uso común en el desarrollo de su carrera tecnóloga y en la vida laboral. Es preciso pensar que, para los modelos de enseñanza/aprendizaje, el uso de las TIC se hace necesario en aras de estimular el desarrollo cognitivo, fortaleciendo los procesos de formación e incidiendo asertivamente en el rendimiento académico de los estudiantes.

Technological progress in the Brazilian agriculture

We analyze technical progress in the Brazilian agriculture in the period 1976–2016. Output is production value and inputs are expenses on land, labor, and other inputs. Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) measures are used to capture technological progress via efficiency analysis. Filtering the data with a moving average and fractional regression we identify four periods with distinct behavior of technical efficiency under constant or decreasing returns to scale. From 1976 to 1988 and from 1996 to 2007 technical efficiency decreases at statistically significant rates of −1.74% and −0.26% respectively. From 1989 to 1995 and from 2008 to 2016 efficiency increases at statistically significant rates of 1.53% and 1.75% respectively. Efficiency of input use varies in these periods and is computed as a byproduct of the DEA analysis. We observe a more efficient usage of land and other inputs. A parametric fit using adjusted efficient inputs indicate the relative elasticities of 40.5%, 38.5% and 21.0% for other inputs, land and labor, respectively. Technological progress increases 3.73% in the period 1976–1988, decreases 1,58% between 1989 and 1995, increases 0.17% in the period 1996–2007 and increases 1.01% between 2008 and 2016. Technological inputs are statistically significantly influential on total factor productivity as indicated by an infinite distributed lag model. The long run elasticity effect is 39.5%. The effect of investments (public) in agricultural research has a significant elasticity of 0.835.

Scientific and technological power and international cooperation in the field of natural hazards: a bibliometric analysis

Research on natural hazards has become a focus due to the serious threat to human life and property. Based on the Science Citation Index Expanded and the Social Sciences Citation Index in the Web of Science spanning 2000–2017, we analyze the characteristics, cooperating countries and research trends of existing articles in the field of natural hazards using a bibliometric method. And the findings provide meaningful data and references for the allocation of science and technology inputs in the fields of natural hazards research. The results show the following: The USA has made the largest contribution to the natural hazards literature and has been in the leading position during the period of research; three of the ten most influential institutions are American institutions, and six out of ten of the most-cited articles are American articles; furthermore, the USA is the country that has the highest degree of cooperation with other countries; Chinese publications rank in second place, and China is the country with the highest average annual growth rate (22.63%), and the Chinese Academy of Sciences is one of the most productive research institutions (2098) but with a low international influence. We also analyze the changes in the research on natural hazards in two time periods as well as the similarities and differences between disaster occurrences and research hotspots. We found that “earthquakes,” “landslides,” and “climate change” are frequently used keywords in natural disaster science. The frequency of the keywords “climate change,” “vulnerability,” and “adaptability” has significantly increased. In addition, the frequency of the keywords used in various countries is significantly affected by the geographical location and there is a discrepancy between the research hotspots and the actual disaster occurrences. It is recommended that countries need to adjust their research directions in natural hazards research, strengthen international cooperation and exchange, and promote the establishment and improvement of a global disaster prevention and reduction system.

Research on the Evaluation of the Input and Output Efficiency of Three Industries in Qinghai Province

Since the western development, the investment in science and technology in Qinghai Province, the input of scientific and technological personnel, and the expenditure on new product development of large and medium-sized enterprises have continued to increase; the amount of patent output and the turnover of technology contracts in the output of science and technology have steadily increased, and new product sales Income fluctuations have risen, but there is a clear gap with Shaanxi and Gansu in the west. An analysis of the three industrial capital inputs and scientific and technological personnel inputs in Qinghai Province, and an evaluation of the efficiency of scientific and technological input and output, found that there are the following aspects of the technological input and output efficiency of various industries in Qinghai. Problems: insufficient scientific and technological input; lack of scientific and technological talents and inefficient coexistence of talent output; co-existence of growth in three industrial inputs and decline in scientific and technological output; misalignment of scientific and technological resource allocation and low level of scientific and technological management. Proposed the establishment of a stable growth mechanism for scientific and technological inputs; Strengthening the introduction of talents and improving the mechanism of selecting, educating and employing people; optimizing the combination of scientific and technological investment structure and adjusting and optimizing the industrial structure; accelerating the transformation of scientific and technological achievements to realistic productivity and other measures to promote the efficiency of scientific and technological innovation and achieve high-quality development in Qinghai Province.

Evaluation Index System of Green Surface Mining in China

The concept of green mining is to improve the mining industry in a holistic way so that it is safe, efficient, and environmentally sustainable. The purpose of this study was to develop an evaluation index system of green surface mining based on the theory of green grades. The evaluation model is comprised of three attributes (safety, efficiency, and environment), nine criteria, and 35 indicators. The fuzzy comprehensive evaluation method was used to determine the weights of indicators by taking into consideration degree centrality, closeness centrality, and betweenness centrality. Findings indicate that the environment is the most critical aspect of green surface mining, followed by efficiency and safety. The top five ranked green mining success indicators were the application of new technology, starting-off-rate of equipment, science and technology input to total investment, the number of accidents (decreased), and the production (increased). It was observed that more improvements are needed to overcome water, air, waste, and sound pollution. Attention should also be paid to land reclamation and post-mining land uses, which are key factors in green mining. The proposed model can be applied to evaluate and improve the level of green surface mining in other regions. This study provides a tool for decision-makers that can offer technical assistance to green mining.

Examining environmental regulation efficiency of haze control and driving mechanism: evidence from China.

The problem of haze pollution in China is still serious, and it is an important issue how to measure and improve environmental regulation efficiency of haze control (EREHC) in China. To explore the spatial evolution characteristics and influencing factors of EREHC in each province in China, this paper builds an evaluation system for EREHC in China and calculates EREHC values in 30 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities in China from 2003 to 2015 through the super-efficiency slacks-based measure (SE-SBM) model. Moreover, the influencing factors and the driving mechanism of EREHC in China are examined by using the Theil index, Moran's I index, and the geographically and temporally weighted regression (GTWR) model. The results are as follows. (1) During the sample period, EREHC in each province in China is mostly favorable, and the average efficiency value is approximately 0.5. EREHC has been declining only in some regions in China. (2) EREHC in eastern China is the best, followed by western China, and EREHC in central China is the lowest. The inter-regional difference in EREHC has been declining over time. (3) EREHC is positively correlated with economic level, the industrial upgrading, and the opening to the outside world, but negatively correlated with energy mix and labor force quality. The positive and negative effects of the level of scientific and technological input are different among the three economic regions. The results indicate that EREHC in China is generally at low level, which presents the spatial difference characteristic of "High East and Low West." It will help improve regional EREHC to raise the level of regional economic development, deepen industrial upgrading, and open to the outside world.

A Dynamic Representation Solution for Machine Learning-Aided Performance Technology.

This paper illuminates some root causes of confusion about dynamic representation in music technology and introduces a system that addresses this problem to provide context-dependent dynamics for machine learning-aided performance. While terms used for dynamic representations like forte and mezzo-forte have been extant for centuries, the canon gives us no straight answer on how these terms must be applied to literal decibel ranges. The common conception that dynamic terms should be understood as context-dependent is ubiquitous and reasonably simple for most human musicians to grasp. This logic breaks down when applied to digital music technologies. At a fundamental level, these technologies define all musical parameters using discrete numbers, rather than with continuous data, making it impossible for these technologies to make context-dependent decisions. The authors give examples in which this lack of contextual inputs in music technology often leads musicians, composers, and producers to ignore dynamics altogether as a concern in their given practice. The authors then present a system that uses an adaptive process to maximize its ability to hear relevant audio events, and which establishes its own definition for context-dependent dynamics for situations involving music technologies. The authors also describe a generative program that uses these context-dependent dynamic systems in conjunction with a Markov model culled from a living performer–composer as a choice engine for new music improvisations.

Evaluation of Blended Irrigation Schemes: A Micro-Level Decadal Study of Shrigonda Tahsil in Drought Prone Western Maharashtra, India

The qualitative parameters of development of a quantitatively increasing population for a resource stressed country like India, is dependent on the sustainability of food availability. Agriculture remains to be a backbone of the economy and food supply. Agriculture, however, in many parts of India, even today, remains to be rain-fed. Recent efforts at the government level, Centre and State, have helped to bring a significant amount of land, initially under rain-fed agriculture, to under irrigation of various types. These varied types of irrigation change regionally; on various agro-factors. Source of water resources to be used for irrigation in the respective climatic sub-regions and the subsequent crop cultivated in the respective region are just a few primary factors controlling the effectivity of the type of irrigation method used. Irrigation requires technological inputs, which, in turn, requires financial expenses that need to be under the significant agro-factors mentioned above. Governments at the Centre and State levels; have been continuously making efforts to support irrigation practices through direct and indirect supportive schemes. These schemes have their positive, and at times, negative impact on the local agriculture at a micro-level. Agriculture is a state subject in India. The Centre does provide finance for various agricultural projects as well. Micro-irrigation has been and will play an essential role in the future in India. Ever since 1992, the government has been taking initiatives in micro-irrigation. These have eventually transpired into schemes, i.e., Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS) in 2006, later upgraded to the National Mission on Micro Irrigation (NMMI) implemented since 2013-14 and subsequently National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture. The present study is an attempt to evaluate such 'State' (Central and State Governments)sponsored irrigation programs on agricultural practices at a micro level, over a decade (2005-2016). The study area identified for the same is a tahsil in the Ahmednagar district of Western Maharashtra. What is significant is that, the said tahsil Shrigonda; lies in the drought-prone region and that there have been cyclic variations in the rainfall, and the various agriculture crops cultivated through the last decade. State Government-sponsored schemes are seen to have been blended with Central Government schemes by the local farmers to achieve sustainability of crops. The effects of the same, on the cycle of products, is worth an observation.Human factors also play an equally important role while using the developing Technology of micro-irrigation. Farmers try-and-test various crops with the respective Micro-irrigation technique, in the respective agro-climatic regions, particularly when the source of water is not assured in the drought-prone area. Subsequent allied government schemes (farm ponds), the market value of the product, and perishability or shelf-life of the products also play a significant role in the choice of crop. The success of the micro-irrigation schemes will, however, be dependent on the effective delivery mechanism through close coordination among all the tiers of government and capacity building of beneficiaries.

A thematic exploration of social media analytics in marketing research and an agenda for future inquiry

ABSTRACT This paper aims to present the current social media analytics in marketing research. A bottom-up thematic content analysis of 123 academic papers from 38 top Marketing and Information Systems journals was conducted. Types of social media platform, data, and analytics; marketing themes; and fields of study that are involved in social media analytics research are identified. The match between technological inputs and marketing outputs is presented. The findings reveal the current status of social media analytics in marketing research and identify various untapped areas for further research. This paper proposes that the impact of social media analytics is not restricted as a marketing research method; it fosters or amplifies changes in marketing approach, and structure and culture in organisations. To maximise its benefits, this paper suggests that firms could strategically build a technological knowledge base of social media analytics, and strategically manage and support its use by facilitating IT-marketing and IT-organisation alignments.

Ограничение производства для обеспечения продовольственной безопасности в Китае

Being over-dependent on imports, China has been faced with the problem of food insufficiency in recent years. This paper, with the adoption of the indicators of agricultural development and relevant models, aims to explore factors affecting food security in China, in particular, technological elements. The findings demonstrate that technology plays a vital role in improving food production. It is recommended to increase the input of science and technology and improve agricultural mechanization.

Aquaculture Production and Its Environmental Sustainability in Thailand: Challenges and Potential Solutions

Though aquaculture plays an important role in providing foods and healthy diets, there are concerns regarding the environmental sustainability of prevailing practices. This study examines the trends and changes in fisheries originating from aquaculture production in Thailand and provides insights into such production’s environmental impacts and sustainability. Together with an extensive literature review, we investigated a time series of Thai aquaculture production data from 1995 to 2015. Overall, Thai aquaculture production has significantly increased during the last few decades and significantly contributed to socio-economic development. Estimates of total aquaculture production in Thailand have gradually grown from around 0.6 to 0.9 million tons over the last twenty years. Farmed shrimp is the main animal aquatic product, accounting for an estimated 40% of total yields of aquaculture production, closely followed by fish (38%) and mollusk (22%). Estimates over the past decades indicate that around 199470 ha of land is used for aquaculture farming. Out of the total area, 61% is used for freshwater farms, and 39% is used for coastal farms. However, this industry has contributed to environmental degradation, such as habitat destruction, water pollution, and ecological effects. Effective management strategies are urgently needed to minimize the environmental impacts of aquaculture and to ensure it maximally contributes to planetary health. Innovative and practical solutions that rely on diverse technology inputs and smart market-based management approaches that are designed for environmentally friendly aquaculture farming can be the basis for viable long-term solutions for the future.

Patent Aggregation in Europe: The Spotlight on Patent Licensing by Patent Aggregators

Patent aggregation involves the use of patents as assets rather than as technology inputs or technology-transfer instruments. This paper investigates patent licensing as a prominent patent aggregation activity from both legal and empirical stances. After examining the European legal institutions, good-faith negotiation framework and main contractual elements of patent licenses, the paper maps the scattered available data on patent licensing, which notoriously remain confidential. Subsequently, it analyses the licensing business of patent aggregators from a qualitative perspective. A multiple-case study of four patent aggregators, namely Sisvel, France Brevets, Fractus and Qualcomm is presented based on multiple triangulated direct and secondary data sources. Overall, the paper provides transparency on the otherwise stealthy patent aggregators’ licensing activities and feeds data into the academic and innovation policy debates over patent aggregation.

Labor market trends and the changing value of time

During the past two decades, households experienced increases in their average wages and expenditures alongside with divergent trends in their wages, expenditures, and time allocation. We develop a model with incomplete asset markets and household heterogeneity in market and home technologies and preferences to account for these labor market trends and assess their welfare consequences. Using micro data on expenditures and time use, we identify the sources of heterogeneity across households, document how these sources have changed over time, and perform counterfactual analyses. Given the observed increase in leisure expenditures relative to leisure time and the complementarity of these inputs in leisure technology, we infer a significant increase in the average productivity of time spent on leisure. The increasing productivity of leisure time generates significant welfare gains for the average household and moderates negative welfare effects from the rising dispersion of expenditures and time allocation across households.

How does patent transfer affect innovation of firms?

The growth of the market for patents has drawn the attention of innovation management scholars and policymakers, especially regarding the impact this market may have on innovation. One of their prominent questions is whether firms exploit the market for patents to obtain strategic benefits over their market rivals rather than compete through the acquisition of technologies, which may aggravate ex-post patent holdup and increase the cost of innovation.This study examines how a firm's acquisition of external patents affects its rival firms’ innovation activity when a patent can be strategically utilized by the patent purchasing firm. Through our review of patent holdup literature and firms’ strategic utilization of patents, we derive a hypothesis stating that a firm's patent purchase deters its rival firm's development of relevant technologies to that patent if the patent covers crucial technological input for its rival's market operation.Our analysis uses Nortel's patent auction in 2011 and finds supportive evidence for the stated hypothesis. This paper discusses the differences between the nature of the market for patents from the market for technology and how we must incorporate such differences to formulate better innovation policies.

The Nuclear Fuel Cycle and the Proliferation “Danger Zone”

ABSTRACT Horizontal nuclear proliferation presents what is sometimes referred to as the “Nth country problem,” or identifying which state could be next to acquire nuclear weapons. Nuclear fuel cycle technologies can contribute to both nuclear power generation and weapons development. Consequently, observers often view civilian nuclear programs with suspicion even as research on nuclear latency and the technological inputs of proliferation has added nuance to these discussions. To contribute to this debate, I put forth a simple theoretical proposition: En route to developing a civilian nuclear infrastructure and mastering the fuel cycle, states pass through a proliferation “danger zone.” States with fuel cycle capabilities below a certain threshold will likely be unable to proliferate. States that pass through the “danger zone” without proliferating will be unlikely to do so in the future. I support this proposition by introducing preliminary analysis from the Nuclear Fuel Cycle (NFC) Index, a new heuristic tool to complement political assessments of the connection between civilian nuclear energy development and nuclear weapons proliferation. I conclude with policy implications for contemporary Iran, Saudi Arabia, Japan, and South Korea. Taken together, this article calls for increased policymaker interaction with historical cases and more sophisticated academic engagement with the nuclear fuel cycle.

Species with Indicative Values for the Management of the Mountain Grasslands

The evaluation of grasslands is a current challenge of the agricultural policies in Romania. In the developed European countries this evaluation mode has been working for several years. To implement this initiative, it is necessary to elaborate a list of species with indicator value for the intensity of the applied management. The purpose of our research is to draw up a list of indicator species for the degree of fertilization intensity. The research activity was carried out in the Apuseni Mountains, as part of long-term experiences started in 2001. The technological inputs were applied annually. Within this paper, the data for 3 years was processed. Species with indicator value were identified using the “Indicator Species Analysis” (PC ORD) package. Following the application of fertilizers (organic and mineral), significant changes have been found at the level of vegetation cover. Based on the analysis of the indicator species, two lists of species with indicator value were produced. The evaluation of the grassland, according to the results, can be made based on the lists of indicator species elaborated within this study. These lists can provide support for beneficiaries of environmental and climate measures to self-assess agricultural practices on the farm and support for officials from institutions involved in verifying compliance with commitments.

LOW-CARBON MANUFACTURING DECISIONS CONSIDERING CARBON EMISSION TRADING AND GREEN TECHNOLOGY INPUT

From the perspective of Micro-Low-Carbon Economy, this paper studies the low-carbon manufacturing decision model of manufacturing enterprises considering carbon emission trading and green technology input under the carbon cap. The paper shows that the manufacturing enterprises have optimal output and this is unique under the carbon cap. The low-carbon manufacturing decision is addressed under three situations: carbon emission trading, green technology input and joint decision. The research shows that carbon emission trading brings more flexibility to manufacturing enterprises and enables enterprises to increase their profits, however, the maximum expected profit of manufacturing enterprises in carbon emission trading (higher than, equal to, or lower than the profit without carbon cap constraint) mainly depends on the carbon cap that initially granted by the government. The marginal cost per unit of carbon emission is the best evidence that manufacturing enterprise carries on carbon emission reduction technology, obtained after green technology input is lower than the price per unit of carbon emission in the market. The good effects of green technology input on reducing carbon emission per unit product is illustrated in more carbon dioxide reduction, so that the profits of enterprises will increase. Therefore, the enterprises will be more interested to input in carbon emission reduction technology.

Analysis of panel design experiments in advanced longwall mines

Panel design and its geometry affects the productivity, strata control and operational costs of longwall mining. Selection the suitable panel size is a critical stage which needs a wide range of geological, technological and economical inputs. Seam height and overburden are two uncontrollable factors which play an important role in longwall mine design. Panel width, panel length and layout of whole mine are main design parameters which are selected based on uncontrollable factors and technological restrictions. In this paper the geometrical characteristics of 61 longwall panels in 46 operating mines of USA have been applied for statistical analysis and extracting some experimental design benchmarks. The analysis shows that average seam height, panel overburden, panel width and panel length are 2.26, 200, 361.5 and 3455 respectively. Average panel width to depth ratio is 1.53 and panel length to width ratio is 9.55. The 3D data analysis reveals that overburden is more important than seam height in enlargement of longwall panels and maximum of the panel area (panel length multiplied by panel width) occurs when the overburden is between 150 to 250 meters and seam height is from 1.5 to 2.5 meters. Also, 50 percent of the studied advanced longwall panels the width to depth ratio varies from one to two. It confirms that even in shallow panels the designers have selected larger panel dimensions to enhance the productivity by considering some subsidence problems and high caving pressures.

Technological innovation and strategic financial performance: the case of Jordan

This research aimed at investigating the level of technological innovation in industrial and service companies in Jordan and the impact of technological innovation on corporate financial performance of these companies. It also aimed at exploring whether size, age and structural complexity of the firm have moderating effects on the relationship between technological innovation and financial performance of these firms. The study sampled 113 industrial and service companies out of 125 listed companies on Amman Stock Exchange. The researchers utilised a quantitative approach in examining the relationship using Lev's model to measure technological innovation inputs, and financial ratios to measure strategic financial performance. Inferential analysis was conducted afterward. Results of the study showed low levels of technological innovation in the sampled companies, and a statistically insignificant relationship was found between technological innovation and financial performance. Slight positive moderation effects were found for organisational size, age and structural complexity on the relationship between technological innovation and performance, yet the relationship remained insignificant. An attempt was made to interpret the results and come up with some recommendations in light of the findings.

What impact does environmental regulation have on technological innovation?

The research on the relationship between environmental regulation and technological innovation has a long history, and so far no conclusion has been reached. This article uses 2008-2017 China’s statistical data for empirical research, uses technology input to measure technological innovation level, and uses innocuous treatment of domestic waste and sulfur dioxide emissions as explanatory variables to perform regression. The empirical results have obtained the positive impact of environmental regulation intensity on the level of technological innovation, indicating that environmental regulation promotes technological innovation.