X. Wang

The existing literature has explored the impact of high-speed rail (HSR) opening on macrolevel environmental performance. However, few studies have validated its effects on microlevel corporate environmental responsibility performance. Therefore, on the basis of data from Chinese A-share listed companies from 2011 to 2020, we examine the relationship between HSR opening and corporate environmental responsibility performance, along with the underlying reasons for this relationship. Our research reveals that HSR opening can significantly improve the corporate environmental responsibility performance. Talent aggregation and supervisory pressure constitute the two main channels that explain the positive relationship. Furthermore, the results of heterogeneity tests indicate that this positive effect is more significant in cities with larger populations and administrative centers, as well as in nonpolluting industries and companies certified through ISO14001 environmental management systems. This paper confirms that HSR opening contributes to generating positive externalities for firms and provides valuable insights into improving and understanding corporate environmental responsibility performance.

Emerging medical biotechnology, with its dual‐use nature, presents both unprecedented opportunities and challenges for human society. As we benefit from technological innovation, it is crucial for Chinese academics and policymakers to effectively identify and address potential risks. However, the current framework for evaluating dual‐use research faces multiple challenges, including difficulties in identifying dual‐use issues, a lack of consideration for broader impacts in assessments, and a lack of consensus on balancing benefits and risks. Furthermore, inadequacies in the review mechanism, such as uneven progress among institutions, insufficient review capabilities, and lacking specialized knowledge among assessment personnel, hamper the effectiveness of evaluation efforts. This article aims to explore these challenges and propose practical recommendations for strengthening the evaluation and governance mechanisms of dual‐use research. By effectively mitigating the risks associated with dual‐use research, it facilitates the promotion of responsible scientific progress in emerging medical biotechnologies in China and internationally.

Despite chatbots’ increasing popularity, firms often fail to fully achieve their benefits because of their underutilization. We argue that ethical concerns dealing with chatbot-related privacy and security may prevent firms from developing a culture of embracing chatbot use and fully integrating chatbots into their workflows. Our research draws upon the stimulus-organism-response theory (SOR) and a study by Floridi et al. (Minds and Machines, 28:689–707, 2018) on the ethical artificial intelligence framework to investigate how chatbot affordances can foster employees’ positive perceptions of privacy protection and security, which may increase perceived ethics in beneficence and ultimately support recommendation intentions. To validate our proposed research model and provide a robust understanding of chatbot-related ethics, we conducted two studies following a mixed-methods design. We used Study 1 as the quantitative phase to collect survey data from full-time marketing employees, and the results provided strong support for our research model based on the relevant theory and literature. We used Study 2 as the qualitative phase to collect interview data to further validate our research model, and the results confirmed Study 1’s quantitative findings and provided complementary insights into the phenomenon of interest. Our studies contribute to the literature by providing initial insights into chatbot-related ethics through the exploration of chatbot affordances, security, and privacy protection as the antecedents and through depictions of how these variables foster employees’ perceived ethics in beneficence and recommendation intention. Our results can inform practitioners how to develop ethics involving chatbots and promote a chatbot-friendly culture such that firms can fully achieve chatbots’ benefits and can thus increase their competitive advantages in emerging chatbot marketing.

Emerging medical biotechnology typically exhibits a ‘dual-use’ nature, which, while promoting human well-being, concurrently presents potential risks of misuse or abuse, thereby posing significant threats. Globally, including in China, emerging medical biotechnology is developing rapidly. To understand the views and perspectives of Chinese scientists on dual-use concerns, this empirical study conducted semistructured qualitative interviews with researchers (n=14) from various specialties within the Chinese medical field, analysing their perspectives and ethical considerations regarding dual-use concerns. The findings of this study reveal a spectrum of attitudes among interviewees towards the exploration and application of emerging medical biotechnology, ranging from aggressive to conservative. This tension reflects the complexity and challenges of seeking a balance between promoting scientific innovation and maintaining ethical boundaries. Furthermore, while there is a consensus among scientists that the development and application of biotechnology encompass both risks and benefits, their stances on weighing these factors differ, reflecting how risk perception is influenced by professional limitations. Moreover, although scientists recognise the indispensability of both self-regulation and external oversight in practice, they also exhibit misunderstandings in ethical cognition and misinterpretations of regulatory measures. In light of these findings, it is imperative for us to urgently fortify national regulatory mechanisms and the construction of legal and ethical frameworks while also enhancing the ethical awareness and risk assessment capabilities of researchers. These measures are crucial for minimising the potential risks associated with dual use and fostering the sustainable and responsible development of emerging medical biotechnology.

Deep learning methods have been applied to randomly generate images, such as in fashion, furniture design. To date, consideration of human aspects which play a vital role in a design process has not been given significant attention in deep learning approaches. In this paper, results are reported from a human- in-the-loop design method where brain EEG signals are used to capture preferable design features. In the framework developed, an encoder extracting EEG features from raw signals recorded from subjects when viewing images from ImageNet are learned. Secondly, a GAN model is trained conditioned on the encoded EEG features to generate design images. Thirdly, the trained model is used to generate design images from a person's EEG measured brain activity in the cognitive process of thinking about a design. To verify the proposed method, a case study is presented following the proposed approach. The results indicate that the method can generate preferred designs styles guided by the preference related brain signals. In addition, this method could also help improve communication between designers and clients where clients might not be able to express design requests clearly.

The integration of machine learning algorithms into the legal recommendation system marks a burgeoning area of research, with a particular focus on enhancing the accuracy and efficiency of judicial decision-making processes. The application of Bayesian Network (BN) emerges as a potent tool in this context, promising to address the inherent complexities and unique nuances of legal texts and individual case subtleties. However, the challenge of achieving high accuracy in BN parameter learning, especially under conditions of limited data, remains a significant hurdle. This study proposes an Enhanced Maximum Parameter Learning (EMPL) algorithm, tailored for BN parameter optimization in scenarios characterized by small sample sizes. The EMPL algorithm, innovatively incorporating the Synthetic Minority Over-sampling Technique (SMOTE), begins with the formulation of inequality constraints derived from domain expertise. It establishes a minimal dataset threshold necessary for effective parameter learning. Through the introduction of an index weighting factor function that dynamically adjusts according to the sample size, the algorithm facilitates the derivation of refined BN parameters. The core innovation of the EMPL algorithm lies in its use of an exponentially weighted factor function, designed to be responsive to variations in sample size, and its capacity to expand the parameter space using SMOTE to align with qualitative constraints from expert insights. This approach enables the integration of data-derived parameters with those obtained through expert experience in an exponentially weighted manner, culminating in the optimization of BN parameters. Comparative analysis reveals that the EMPL algorithm achieves superior learning accuracy over traditional Maximum Likelihood Estimation (MLE) and qualitative maximum a posteriori (QMAP) approach, particularly in contexts of sparse data. Furthermore, it demonstrates enhanced performance relative to variable weight learning algorithms, underscoring its potential to significantly improve decision-making processes in the legal domain through advanced BN parameter learning.

As the autonomous vehicles technology gradually enters the public eye, understanding consumers' psychological motivations for accepting autonomous vehicles is critical for the development of autonomous vehicles and society. Previously, researchers have explored the determinants of fully autonomous vehicles but the relevant research is far from enough. Moreover, the relationship between anthropomorphism and users' behavior has been ignored to a large extent. Therefore, this study aim to fill the gap by using anthropomorphism and the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology to explore how system attributes and UTAUT attributes influence consumers' acceptance behavior. The data were collected via questionnaire survey conducted in Beijing, China, which can be a promising early adopter of AVs. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the data. The results reveal that perceived anthropomorphism and perceived intelligence have a direct positive influence on the adoption of AVs; performance expectancy, effort expectancy, and facilitating conditions have an indirect positive influence on intention to adopt AVs. Also, this research contributes to the literature by enriching studies on psychological determinants of autonomous vehicles' adoption by taking an initial step to highlight anthropomorphism perceptions. This can provide managerial implications for policy-makers and businesses on how to effectively allocate resources to enhance autonomous vehicle adoption.

BackgroundIndividuals with mind-wandering experience their attention decoupling from their main task at hand while others with flow experience fully engage in their task with the optimum experience. There seems to be a negative relationship between mind-wandering and flow. However, it remains unclear to what extent mind-wandering exerts an impact on flow. And it is also elusive whether physical activity and mindfulness, which are as important factors that affected individuals’ attentional control and psychological health, are beneficial in explaining the association between mind-wandering and flow. The current study investigated the relationship between mind-wandering and flow, and the potential mediation effects of physical activity and mindfulness in this association.MethodsA cross-sectional exploratory study design, including multiple scales such as the Mind-Wandering Questionnaire, the International Physical Activity Questionnaire Short Form, Mindfulness Attention and Awareness Scale, and the Short Dispositional Flow Scale was applied. Descriptive statistics and bivariate correlation coefficients were applied in the analysis of these data. A multiple mediation model was used to examine the relationships between mind-wandering, flow, physical activity, and mindfulness.ResultsMind-wandering was inversely associated with physical activity, mindfulness and flow, respectively; and flow was positively related to physical activity and mindfulness, respectively. Moreover, multiple mediation results demonstrated that physical activity and mindfulness, respectively, mediated the relationship between mind-wandering and flow.ConclusionThese findings are helpful to understand how our minds attend to the present moment, and the crucial roles of physical activity and mindfulness in the association between mind-wandering and flow. An implication of these is the possibility that the effective strategies aimed at enhancing both the levels of physical activity and mindfulness are needed to reduce the negative impact of mind-wandering on flow.

In Horton’s All or Nothing Problem, the agent has three options: a permissible act that saves no one, a wrongful act that saves only one child, or a supererogatory act that saves two children. Some may argue that if the agent is not going to save two children, she should save none rather than just one. However, this conclusion is counterintuitive. Although there are many proposed solutions to this problem, none of them provides a fully satisfactory answer. In this article, I argue that it is plausible to accept the Individualist Obligation Principle according to which, the agent is morally permitted to fulfill a prima facie obligation to save an individual in grave peril, provided that doing so demonstrates a substantial engagement with the individualized obligations to each individual involved.

Introduction: Few studies are available on the prevalence and sleep-related factors of dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) in Chinese older adults, aiming to explore the associations between sleep characteristics and DLB.Methods: A cross-sectional study with 7,528 individuals aged ≥65 years in 106 communities in Northern China was conducted from April 2019 to January 2020. Questionaries (including demographic characteristics, comorbidities, lifestyles, and sleep characteristics) were administered, and neuropsychological assessments and physical examination were conducted in phase I; screening for probable DLB was done in phase II. Logistic regressions were used to assess associations.Results: A total of 919 (12.2%, 919/7,528) participants had dementia, and 101 (1.3%, 101/7,528) participants were diagnosed with DLB. The prevalence of dementia and DLB were slightly higher or equal in women, increased with age, and roughly decreased with nighttime sleep duration. Of the 101 participants, all of them (100.0%) had cognitive impairment, 46 (44.54%) displayed fluctuating cognition, 72 (71.29%) of them showed visual hallucination, 22 (21.78%) individuals reported RBD, and 27.71% showed Parkinsonism. Sleeping for 8 h had combined diagnostic value for DLB (AUC = 0.783, 95%CI: 0.734–0.831, p < 0.001).Conclusions: The current prevalence of DLB is 1.3% in Northern China. Short or long nighttime sleep duration is independently associated with the occurrence of dementia and DLB.

Although a tainted outside director’s social status may serve as a buffer against devaluation owing to an affiliate firm’s corporate financial misconduct, the extent of this buffer effect is unclear. We propose a threshold approach by introducing the expectancy violation perspective, which generates a theoretical tension from the network-embeddedness perspective, to clarify the following question: From which perspective does the buffer effect of social status become more salient? Specifically, we propose an inverted U–shaped relationship between the directors’ social status and the departure of tainted outside directors from host firms. We theorize that when directors’ social status exceeds a certain threshold, the network-embeddedness perspective is more dominant than the expectancy violation perspective. Moreover, a host firm’s external stakeholder attention and board social status moderate the inverted-U effect such that its turning point shifts to the right because such contingencies increase the threshold for the buffer. Using a sample of tainted outside directors penalized for associated firms’ financial misconduct, we find evidence that supports our predictions. Our study helps clarify the boundary between the competing theoretical perspectives of expectancy violation and network embeddedness to explain the phenomenon of tainted director departure.

BackgroundLittle previous research has been conducted outside of major cities in China to examine how physicians currently perceive palliative care, and to identify specific goals for training as palliative care access expands. This study explored physicians’ perceptions of palliative care integration for advanced cancer patients in Changsha, China.MethodsWe conducted semi-structured qualitative interviews with physicians (n = 24) specializing in hematology or oncology at a tertiary hospital.ResultsMost physicians viewed palliative care as equivalent to end-of-life care, while a minority considered it possible to integrate palliative care with active treatment. Almost all physicians maintained separate conversations about palliative care with family members and patients, communicating more directly with family members than with patients about prognosis and goals of care. Physicians described experiencing ethical tension between the desire of family members to protect the patient from knowing they have advanced cancer, and the patient’s “right to decide” about palliative treatment. Physicians varied overall regarding perceptions of the role they should have in discussions about goals of care.ConclusionsAs palliative care access expands in China, medical training should encourage earlier integration of palliative care for advanced cancer, address ethical issues faced by physicians communicating about palliative care, and establish guidance on the role of the physician in discussions about goals of care.

Corporate debt default risk poses significant challenges in the business world, requiring a multifaceted approach for effective mitigation. This study, grounded in an ethical decision-making framework, investigates the influence of Confucian culture on shaping ethical corporate culture and managers’ moral capacity and its subsequent impact on corporate debt default risk. Our findings indicate that companies deeply influenced by Confucian culture tend to exhibit lower debt default risks. Specifically, companies that embrace Confucian values demonstrate an enhanced ethical corporate culture and heightened individual moral capacity. These factors play crucial roles in the ethical decision-making process, thereby reducing the likelihood of engaging in risky financial behaviors. Further analysis reveals that the inhibitory effect of Confucian culture on debt default risk is particularly pronounced in enterprises operating within regions characterized by poor integrity environments and weak product market competition. This inhibitory effect can lead to a reduction in the cost of corporate debt financing and the risk of stock price crashes. Overall, this study contributes to the understanding of the interplay between culture, business ethics, and corporate risk management.

Using a combination of co-citation and co-word analysis, this paper reviewed the intellectual structure of the sales ethics research domain and its development over time. This multi-method bibliometric analysis included 183 sales ethics articles published between 1990 and 2020. Using co-citation analysis, we identified intellectual clusters within the research domain and explored the evolution of these clusters across three decades. We further leveraged co-word analysis to identify core themes (keywords) and delineated the field’s changing landscape. The evolutionary trends and keyword network disconnections (i.e., structural holes) suggest promising areas for future research. In particular, our analyses identified potentially fruitful opportunities related to topics such as compensation, relationship marketing outcomes, salesperson job attitudes and well-being, training, sales force control, and sales technology.

Hui medicine is originated from Muslim medicine through Silk Road. This medicine is a unique Chinese traditional medicine system formed by the integration of traditional Islamic Arabia medicine and traditional Chinese medicine. This ethnic medicine is Sinicization of Islamic culture. It is also the cream of ancient Eastern and Western traditional medicine of China. Religion is very important for the Islamic faith population such as Hui nationality. Although Halal food, restaurants and schools are everywhere in Qinghai Xining city, there are not reports about the medical practice in the Muslim faith population. In this article, the in-patients are from Qinghai Kangle Hospital which is Hui medicine special hospital located in Hui majorities area in Qinghai Chengdong area. The data had been collected from January 1, 2020 to June 30, 2023 of COVID-19 period. This hospital served both Muslim and non-Muslim patients, and the medical doctors nurses and staffs are also come from Muslim and non-Muslim background, the education background is Western medicine and Traditional Chinese Medicine. Our results showed that there are no significant difference between the Muslim-believers and non Muslim-believers in their medical practice. The religion may not be important among the inpatients who served with Chinese Hui Medicine in Kangle Hospital.

As one of the greatest thinkers in ancient China, Zhu Xi was renowned for his philosophy but his achievements in historiography occupied an important position in traditional China as well. However, Zhu Xi’s historiography were only implied, but has not been discussed enough yet in comparison to his various works on philosophy. This thesis would like to focus on Zhu Xi’s historiography as a core topic to certify that Zhu Xi’s achievement on this field not only played an irreplaceable role among the grand system of his philosophy, but also on behalf of a special and significant historiographical sample in Chinese historiography that can be called “Neo-Confucian philosophy of history”. To achieve this aim, the thesis is divided into three parts. Their titles are “The Substance of Zhu Xi’s Historiography”, “The Functions of Zhu Xi’s Historiography ” and “The Functions of Zhu Xi’s Historiography ”. Zhu Xi’s historiography inherited “Three generations” and Confucius’ classics, and formed his philosophy on history, so it is the substance. Zhu Xi’s historiography also has many functions and expressions such as elucidate the way of running the state, establish the system and views on talents, which make his conception on history comes true, and really have positive effects on the society, so there are called the functions. More importantly, Zhu Xi’s great insight on history can be directly expressed via his writings and discussions, all of which were embodied in his works and discourses of historiography. In these three parts, the contents and spirits of Zhu Xi’s historiography can be described deeply and entirely, also seem to be more methodic.

Managerial myopia occurs when executives value short-term benefits to the extent that firm long-run development will be obstructed. Recent studies have shown that the locality effect plays an important role in managerial myopia—local United States chief executive officers who work near their home states are less likely to behave myopically because of more effective monitoring and greater reputation concern. In an emerging market, government policies play a more important role in the strategic planning enterprises. A local CEO may have better understanding of local government’s policies thus makes less short-term decisions. This article adds to this literature by testing whether local-province CEOs in China, i.e., the CEO’s native place or birthplace is in the same province as her company’s headquarters, are also far-sighted. Using data on 470 publicly listed non-state-owned Chinese firms from 2014 to 2018, supportive evidence has been found that non-local-province CEOs in China tend to cut R&D expenses for beating analyst forecasts, reversing earnings decline, or pursuing higher returns. This article also confirms social capital as one mechanism of Chinese local-province CEOs behaving less myopically. This investigation also adds to the literature by revealing a new mechanism that CEO locality in China has a positive and direct bearing on how governments support corporate innovation.

Optimization for vertical vibration performance of a rail-train coupling system is investigated in this paper with the introduction of inerters for both primary and secondary suspensions. A model of a typical Chinese passenger train that travels on a traditional rail with track, sleepers, and ballast is simulated. The goal is to improve the ride quality for the train and vibration attenuation for the rail system in response to track irregularities. Optimizations for only inertance and all suspension parameters are carried out by the particle swarm algorithm. Performance benefits for both the train and the rail system are demonstrated and suspension layouts with inerters connected in parallel and series are compared with the traditional one in both time domain and frequency domain.

In this paper, a repetitive control scheme of a 2-DOF robotic manipulator based on the improved cubic B-spline curve is proposed. Firstly, a repetitive controller for robotic manipulator is designed, which is composed of an iterative controller and disturbance observer. Then, an improved B-spline optimization scheme is introduced to divide the task of the robotic manipulator into three intervals. A correction function is added to each interval of cubic spline interpolation. Finally, a variety of cases are designed and simulated by MATLAB. The experimental results show that, compared with the conventional B-spline, the improved B-spline has better performance in tracking accuracy and smoothness of motion trajectory. By changing the mechanism of the manipulator, the cases of different weights and lengths are designed. The experimental results in these cases show that the proposed scheme can be applied to most of the 2-DOF robotic manipulator control systems.