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The purpose of this paper is to investigate the extent to which interdisciplinary (HASS, i.e. non-STEM) factors—in particular, accounting, stakeholder management and accountability—enable, influence and motivate large human exploration ventures, principally in maritime and space fields, utilizing Columbus’s and Chinese explorations of the 1400s as the primary setting.

The study analyzes archival data from narrative and interpretational history, including both academic and non-academic sources, that relate to two global historical events, the Columbus and Ming Chinese exploration eras (c. 1400–1500), as a parallel to the modern “Space Race”. Existing studies on pertinent HASS (Humanities and Social Sciences) and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) enablers, influencers and motivators are utilized in the analysis. The authors draw upon the concepts of stakeholder theory and the construct of accountability in their analysis.

Findings suggest that non-STEM considerations—politics, finance, accountability, culture, theology and others—played crucial roles in enabling Western Europe (Columbus) to reach the Americas before China or other global powers, demonstrating the pivotal importance of HASS factors in human advancements and exploration.

In seeking to answer those questions, this study identifies only those factors (HASS or STEM) that may support the success or failure in execution of the exploration and development of a region such as the New World or Space. Moreover, the study has the following limitation. Relative successes, failures, drivers and enablers of exploratory ventures are drawn almost exclusively from the documented historical records of the nations, entities and individuals (China and Europe) who conducted those ventures. A paucity of objective sources in some fields, and the need to set appropriate boundaries for the study, also necessitate such limitation.

It is observable that many of those HASS factors also appear to have been influencers in modern era Space projects. For Apollo and Soyuz, success factors such as the relative economics of USA and USSR, their political ideologies, accountabilities and organizational priorities have clear echoes. What the successful voyages of Columbus and Apollo also have in common is an appetite to take risks for an uncertain return, whether as sponsor or voyager; an understanding of financial management and benefits measurement, and a leadership (Isabella I, John F. Kennedy) possessing a vision, ideology and governmental apparatus to further the venture’s goals.

Whilst various historical studies have examined influences behind the oceangoing explorations of the 1400s and the colonization of the “New World”, this article takes an original approach of analyzing those motivations and other factors collectively, in interdisciplinary terms (HASS and STEM). This approach also has the potential to provide a novel method of examining accountability and performance in modern exploratory ventures, such as crewed space missions.

This paper aims to examine the effect of new product launch actions and firm reputation on firm performance in the Chinese auto industry.

This analysis adopts empirical data from 66 auto firms in China’s auto market from 2007 to 2012 to explore how new product launch actions undertaken by a firm can contribute to achieving superior performance and to investigate the relationships between new product launch actions and firm performance. Moreover, how firm reputation interacts with new product launch actions to affect firm performance is also investigated. Fixed effects regression model following the Hausman specification test was used to quantitatively examine the relationship.

It was concluded that the focal firm’s new product launch actions, including new product launch breadth, complexity and heterogeneity of its new repertoire of product launch actions, and firm reputation can impact its performance. Firm reputation can impact the signaling process and the capability of firms to enhance their performance via new product launch movements.

This research contributes to new product launch research by providing a more comprehensive view of competitive dynamic actions by which a firm’s performance is strengthened by examining the effects of two factors that affect performance. These factors are as follows: the characteristics in terms of breadth, complexity, and heterogeneity of new product launch actions undertaken by a firm and the characteristic of firm reputation.

The study discovers a crisis of authority and administration in Catholic mission of Taiwan during 1910 and 1920s. It aims to discover the reasons and the significance of the problem.

The author works on the reports and correspondence of Jean de Guébriant, apostolic visitor of China missions in 1919–1920. He received some reports from the Dominican Prefect Apostolic of Formosa, Clemente Fernandez.

The author discovers a severe problem of authority brought about some conflicts between the Prefect Apostolic Clemente Fernandez, o.p. and some Dominican missionaries in the mission, conflicts reflecting ambiguous status of this prefecture apostolic with regard to not only the Dominican Provincia del Santo Rosario, headquarters of Dominican missions in East Asia, but also the Dominican apostolic vicariate of Southern Fujian in China, and even the Japanese Catholic church, because Taiwan had been conceded to the Japanese empire since 1895 until 1945.

The author has not yet consulted the archives in Propaganda Fide in Vatican circle and in Dominican archives. Still, some questions remain unanswered for lack of related archives. This study calls for further works in the future.

Very few relevant studies are found on the Dominican mission in Taiwan during 1860–1949. This study reveals a serious problem on the structure of Catholic mission due to an unclear status of Taiwan. It reflects, in fact, the delicate situation in ecclesial and political aspects between China, Japan and Spanish missions in Manila, Philippines.

The purpose of this paper is to develop a facile method to synthesise nitrogen‐doped carbon aerogels to increase the capacity of supercapacitors.

Nitrogen‐doped carbon aerogels are prepared as electrode materials through sol‐gel method, using resorcinol, formaldehyde and aniline as raw materials. A series of symmetric supercapacitors are assembled by putting Ni‐MH battery separator between two carbon aerogels electrodes. The electrochemical performances of carbon aerogels and supercapacitors are studied.

The results show that the optimal molar percentage of aniline in the total molar ratio of resorcinol and aniline is 15 per cent, the mass specific capacitance of which is supposed to be about three times that of RF carbon aerogels. This result could be attributed to the pseudocapacitive effect of nitrogen heteroatoms. Moreover, the nitrogen‐doped carbon aerogels are found to exhibit lower charge transfer resistance at the electrolyte/carbon aerogels interface and lower Warburg impedance.

The supercapacitors can be used in the field of automobile and can solve the problems of energy shortage and environmental pollutions.

For the first time, nitrogen‐doped carbon aerogels are prepared through sol‐gel method, using resorcinol, formaldehyde and aniline as raw materials.