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The purpose of this paper is to summarize the status and characteristics of rail technology of high-speed railway in China, and point out the development direction of rail technology of high-speed railway.

This study reviews the evolution of high-speed rail standards in China, comparing their chemical composition, mechanical attributes and geometric specifications with EN standards. It delves into the status of rail production technology, shifts in key performance indicators and the quality characteristics of rails. The analysis further examines the interplay between wheels and rails, the implementation of grinding technology and the techniques for inspecting rail service conditions. It encapsulates the salient features of rail operation and maintenance within the high-speed railway ecosystem. The paper concludes with an insightful prognosis of high-speed railway technology development in China.

The rail standards of high-speed railway in China are scientific and advanced, highly operational and in line with international standards. The quality and performance of rail in China have reached the world’s advanced level. The 60N profile guarantees the operation quality of wheel–rail interaction effectively. The rail grinding technology system scientifically guarantees the long-term good service performance of the rail. The rail service state detection technology is scientific and efficient. The rail technology will take “more intelligent” and “higher speed” as the development direction to meet the future needs of high-speed railway in China.

The development direction of rail technology for high-speed railway in China is defined, which will promote the continuous innovation and breakthrough of rail technology.

This paper describes a new method designed for a quartz tuning‐fork temperature sensor. This sensor is designed with a new cut ZYtw(115°/15°) and it is shown that this worked best in flexural vibration mode. The way for raising signal to noise ratio and reducing equivalent resistor of the sensor were analyzed in theory. A manufacturing method has been determined to form and adjust the precise frequency, which could improve sensitivity and reduce non‐linearity.

The shape of a product plays a crucial role in shaping consumer behavior. Despite the voluminous research on factors influencing consumers’ shape preferences, there remains a limited understanding of how the busy mindset, a mentality increasingly emphasized by marketing campaigns, works. This study aims to fill this gap by exploring the relationship between a busy mindset and the preference for angular-shaped versus circular-shaped products and brand logos.

This research consists of seven experimental studies using various shape stimuli, distinct manipulations of busy mindset, different assessments of shape preference and samples drawn from multiple countries.

The findings reveal that a busy mindset leads to a preference for angular shapes over circular ones by amplifying the need for uniqueness. In addition, these effects are attenuated when products are scarce.

This research represents one of the pioneering efforts to study the role of a busy mindset on consumers’ aesthetic preferences. Beyond yielding insights for practitioners into visual marketing, this research contributes to the theories on the busy mindset and shape preference.

This study aims to examine how loneliness, romantic relationship status (single/non-single) and romantic attachment factors (sociosexual orientation index (SOI), satisfaction with current relationship) interactively affect conspicuous consumption.

Five quasi-experimental studies were conducted with different measures of conspicuous consumption across a variety of samples (N = 1189).

Study 1 shows that loneliness increased singles’ but not non-singles’ conspicuous consumption. Study 2A further shows the mediating role of the mating motive amongst singles. Study 2B compared conspicuous and inconspicuous consumption and showed no interaction effect between loneliness and romantic relationship status in the domain of inconspicuous consumption. Studies 3 and 4 tested whether the effects of loneliness on non-singles’ conspicuous consumption were moderated by SOI and satisfaction with current relationship, respectively. Specifically, lonely non-singles with high SOI or low satisfaction with current relationship sought conspicuous consumption, but those with low SOI or high satisfaction with the current relationship avoided conspicuous consumption.

This study did not specifically consider different roots of loneliness (lack of romantic love, friendship or family attachment) between singles and non-singles, which future research should explore.

The findings have implications for both marketers and policymakers regarding marketing campaigns for conspicuous products, support programmes satisfying the specific social attachment needs of different lonely people, etc.

This study identifies a specific social attachment desire of the lonely, namely, romantic motive, by which loneliness influences singles’ and non-singles’ conspicuous consumption in different ways. The findings suggest the value of distinguishing types of loneliness.

As value co-creation has become a critical strategy for companies to gain competitive advantage, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the degree of the uncertain reward (DUR) and its impact on customer engagement (CE), particularly in the promotion stage, which has not been sufficiently explored. Further, optimistic estimation (OE) is examined as an underlying mechanism of the uncertain reward effect, as well as the impact of combining this with other marketing strategies: the controllable lottery and the delayed reward.

Three studies were conducted to examine the influence of DUR on CE, which included online experiments and a laboratory experiment. In total, 337 participants were recruited from China and the USA to enhance the study’s reliability and validity.

The research demonstrated that a high-degree uncertain reward led to less OE than a low-degree uncertain reward (LDUR), which subsequently decreased CE (Study 1). However, when other marketing strategies were combined – the controllable lottery (Study 2) and time-delay reward strategy (Study 3) – the uncertain reward effect was reversed (Study 2) or attenuated (Study 3).

The current research only presents two possible reward amounts and independently explores the influence of two popular marketing strategies. Future research can explore customers’ responses to engagement when they face multiple rewards and thoroughly investigate the influence of other social or psychological factors.

Firms could apply an LDUR to enhance CE effects. Furthermore, this could be done at a low cost by empowering customers’ controllability. Nonetheless, firms should be cautious with trade-offs when using time-delay reward strategies.

The research contributes to establishing networks of customer–company and interpersonal relationships, as well as fostering closer social ties and social harmony.

This research offers not only initial research on CE in the promotion stage, but also a novel psychological perspective in CE literature. Meanwhile, the study provides substantial value in guiding managers to effectively transform customers into value co-creators.

The purpose of this study is to develop a transient wheel–rail rolling contact model to primarily investigate the rail damage under wet condition when the train passes through the welded joints.

The impact force induced by welded joints is obtained through vehicle–track coupling dynamics. The normal and tangential wheel–rail contact pressures were solved by elastohydrodynamic lubrication (EHL) theory and simplified third-body layer theory, respectively. Then, the obtained tangential pressure and normal pressure were applied to the finite element model as moving loads, simulating cyclic loading. Finally, the shakedown map and critical plane method were used to predict rolling contact fatigue (RCF) and the initiation of fatigue cracks.

The results indicate that RCF will occur and fatigue cracks are more prone to appear on the subsurface of the rail, specifically around 2.7 mm below the rail surface in the vicinity of the welded joint and its heat-affected zone.

The cosimulation of numerical model and finite element model was implemented. The influence of surface roughness and fluids was considered. In this model, the normal and tangential wheel–rail contact pressure, the stress and strain and the rail fatigue cracks were obtained under a rail-welded joint excitation.

The paper seeks to report data on cigarette smoking, anti‐smoking practices, physicians' receipt of anti‐smoking training, and the association between receipt of the training and anti‐smoking practice among physicians in Wuhan, China.

Participants were selected through the stratified random sampling method. The questionnaires were completed by the sampled physicians and the response rate of the survey was 98.1 percent.

Among the total sample, 11 percent were current smokers. Significantly more male physicians than female physicians were current smokers (31.6 vs 0.9 percent, p<0.001). In total, 41 percent of physicians always or often asked patients about smoking habits, and 61 percent of them often advised patients to quit. Receiving anti‐tobacco training significantly increased the likelihood for physicians to ask patients about smoking (odd ratio=2.55, p<0.001) and to advise patients against smoking (odd ratio=4.05, p<0.001) with and without controlling gender, age, education, type of hospital and medical services specialty.

More effort should be devoted to training for physicians with focus on anti‐smoking practice and smoking cessation counseling in addition to assist physicians themselves to quit smoking.

The findings of this study update the data regarding cigarette smoking among physicians in Wuhan, China, and their practice of anti‐tobacco counseling. It indicates that it is very important to provide the training regarding anti‐smoking counseling among physicians.

This paper aims to compare the electronic properties of perylene diimide derivatives (DFPDI) and its anion radical (DFPDI.^-k.⁺) thin film by drop-coating of organic molecules on the interdigitated electrodes.

The authors compared the electronic properties of perylene diimide derivatives and its anion radical by drop-coating of organic molecules on interdigitated electrodes. Significantly, the current of perylene diimide derivatives anion radical increased by 2∼3 orders of magnitude compared to perylene diimide derivatives under a bias of 5 V, and the maximal current of anion radical that from tetrahydrofuran solution can reach 3.6 mA. Furthermore, DFPDI.^-k.⁺ thin film showed time-resistance sensitivity for acetic acid. When DFPDI.^-k.⁺ thin film was placed in acetic acid of 3.1 × 105 ppm, the current was decreased 46 times under a bias of 6 V after 8 min.

We developed the new method to prepare ambient stable perylene diimide derivatives anion radical, which shows sensitivity of absorption spectra to acid.

Perylene diimide derivatives anion radical thin film showed time-resistance sensitivity for acetic acid, suggesting potential application of perylene diimide derivatives anion radical as acid sensor.

The aim of this paper was to clarify the influence of tensile stress on the electrochemical behavior of X80 steel in a simulated acid soil solution and attempt to understand mechanistic aspects of the corrosion behaviors of X80 under these conditions.

The electrochemical behavior of X80 steel at various tensile stresses was investigated in a simulated acid soil solution using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, potentiodynamic scan measurements and surface analysis techniques.

The results show that as tensile stress was increased, the open-circuit potential decreased, the reaction activity increase, the reaction resistance (Rct)value became smaller by degrees, the corrosion product film resistance (Rf) first decreased and then increased and polarization current densities changed conversely. The corrosion product film was compact and continuous under the low stress, whereas it was relatively loose under high-stress conditions. Tensile stress promotes the movement of dislocations, which become active points when they move to the steel surface. The increase in the number of active points enhances the anodic dissolution rate and promotes the formation of corrosion product film whose blocking effect can decrease the dissolution rate. The corrosion rate of the specimen is determined by these two effects.

This research provides an essential insight into the mechanism of the electrochemical behavior of X80 steel in acid soil environments.