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The rise of the Internet has facilitated net activism among many virtual gay communities in Taiwan. The communication role that the Internet plays is in particular vital, because homosexuality is still considered a taboo in Taiwan's society. Cyberspace created by the Internet forms a unique “space” where local homosexuals can share their experience of being gays with each other. The purposes of this chapter are intended to examine how the Internet facilitated the formation, promotion, and success of gay rights movements among homosexual communities in Taiwan. This chapter uses the Chang-Der Street Police Harassment Incident as a case study to elaborate the Internet's communication role in mobilizing local gay populations to pursue their gay rights. It also investigates the Internet's strategic role as a communication medium in gay rights movements. The case analysis and in-depth interviews help identify several key functions that the Internet can play: to exchange and share information, to organize and coordinate gay rights movements, to record and store historical information, and to lead social and value changes in the future. This chapter explores the potential of the Internet in online community mobilization, an early look at virtual community and net activism.

The purposes of this study are to examine internet users' perception of potential harm among a list of products available on internet auction sites, to discuss the influence of the third‐person effect on internet users' pro‐regulatory attitudes, and to investigate the effects of users' characteristics and perceived harm on their attitudes toward regulation of online auction industry.

An online questionnaire survey was designed and employed to collect information about internet users' third‐person effect perception, pro‐regulatory attitudes toward internet auction sites, and control variables such as demographics, internet usage, and innovative characteristics. A convenience sample of 592 internet users was recruited to take part in this study.

Internet users' perceptual differences are statistically significant between the estimated influence on self, teenagers, and other adults for each product. Perceived harm to self consistently predicts internet users' pro‐regulatory attitudes, but not for teenagers and other adults. Perceived harm to self also predicts pro‐regulatory attitudes toward these web sites, even after controlling for potential confounding variables.

The study is limited by its convenient sampling method and measurement of internet users' actual and intended behavior. Nevertheless, because internet users play a complex role of buyers, sellers, and possible victims on auction sites, it is important to examine perceptions and motivations underlying their support for regulating online auction industry.

The integrated approach of mass communication, electronic commerce activities, and public policy‐making perspectives ensures that future regulatory proposal of online auction industry will be comprehensive.

With the growth of worldwide e‐commerce, companies are increasingly targeting foreign online consumers. However, there is a dearth of evidence as to whether global consumers prefer to browse and buy from standardized global web sites or web sites adapted to their local cultures. This study provides evidence from five different countries as to whether global consumers prefer local web content or standardized web content. The study also measures how the degree of cultural adaptation on the web affects consumer perception of site effectiveness.

David L. Altheide is Emeritus Regents’ Professor in the School of Justice and Social Inquiry at Arizona State University. Using qualitative methodology, his work has focused on the role of mass media and information technology for social control. His two most recent books are: Terrorism and the Politics of Fear (Alta Mira, 2006) and Terror Post 9/11 and the Media (Lang, 2009). The former work as well as Creating Fear: News and the Construction of Crisis (Aldine/Transaction, 2002) received the Cooley Award as the best books for the year in the tradition of symbolic interaction, from the Society for the Study of Symbolic Interaction. Dr. Altheide also won this award in 1986 for his book Media Power, and he is the 2005 George Herbert Mead Award recipient for lifetime contributions from the Society for the Study of Symbolic Interaction.

The Studies in Communications book series presents contemporary scholarship on the central dynamic of society – communications. Theoretically grounded empirical studies drawn from the social sciences focus on the institutional patterns, media, and the dynamic process of meaning construction. Incorporating communications, mass media and communications, sociological and critical theories, comparative and historical analysis, with combinations of qualitative and quantitative research provide compelling themes for each volume of the series. Volume 6 develops the “Human Rights and Media” theme. The collective rights associated with age, class, gender, race, ethnicity, nationality, and disability are framed by the media. The studies in this volume explore the connections and discourse of media and human rights, through media production, social policies and responsibilities, human rights violation and the social, institutional, and global contexts of social movements for human rights protections and about human rights violations.

Motivation theory in the 20^th century has evolved to meet the changing social, political, and economic environment. The purpose of this paper is to examine the developmental path of modern motivation theory from the perspective of the Tao and the cyclical nature of Yin and Yang. We review motivation theory from the Industrial Revolution to the present. The developmental path during the past 100 years consists of seven distinct stages, each stage representing a significant shift in theory as well as a shift in the social, political, and economic environment in the United States. The dominant theme that emerges from the analysis is the discourse between science and humanity, and the revolving cycle of these fundamental theories throughout the century.

The coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) and modulus of elasticity (ME) values of mortar and stone from room temperature to cryogenic temperatures provide an experimental basis for the design of liquefied natural gas (LNG) storage tanks.

The CTE and ME of mortar and limestone were measured by resistance strain gauge testing technology at cryogenic temperatures.

The test results showed that CTE values of mortar and stone decreased with the decrease of temperature and CTE values of mortar was greater than that of stone from 0 °C to −165 °C. The ME values of mortar increased significantly at cryogenic temperatures, and less change in stone.

The material at cryogenic temperatures may continue to work in the elastic phase due to the continuous increase of elastic modulus. Therefore, the study of material in the elastic stage may be more important than in the ultimate bearing capacity stage, and it is necessary to carry out further study surrounding the deformation properties of materials at cryogenic temperatures. The CTE and ME values of mortar and stone from room temperature to cryogenic temperatures provide an experimental basis for the design of LNG storage tanks.