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A large, uneven settlement that is unfavourable to dam safety can occur between a concrete cut-off wall and the high-plasticity clay of earth core dam built on alluviums. This issue has been often studied using the small-strain finite element (FE) method in previous research. This paper aims to research the interaction behaviour between a concrete cut-off wall and high-plasticity clay using large-deformation FE analyses.

The re-meshing and interpolation technique with a small-strain (RITSS) method was performed using an independently developed program and adopted for large-deformation FE analyses, and a suitable element size for the high-plasticity clay region was suggested. The layered construction process of an earth core dam built on thick alluviums was simulated using the RITSS method incorporating a hyperbolic model for soil.

The RITSS method is an effective technique for simulating the soil–structure interaction during dam construction. The RITSS analysis predicted a higher maximum principle stress of the concrete cut-off wall and higher stress levels in the high-plasticity clay region than small-strain FE analysis.

A practical method for large-deformation FE analysis was advised and was used for the first time to study the interaction between a concrete cut-off wall and high-plasticity clay in dam engineering. Large deformation in the high-plasticity clay was handled using the RITSS method. Moreover, the penetration process of the concrete cut-off wall into the high-plasticity clay was captured using a favourable element shape and mesh density.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of various decision-making approaches and government subsidies on supply chain performance, aiming to enhance the profits of disposal firms and retailers as well as to improve social welfare.

In this paper, a two-echelon biomass supply chain composed of a disposal firm and a retailer is developed. Firstly, considering the effects of government subsidies, we analyze biofuels prices, corporate social responsibility levels, social welfare and supply chain profitability under centralized and decentralized decision-making scenarios, respectively. Furthermore, we assess how subsidies influence pricing, market participation, profitability and social welfare. Secondly, we propose a revenue sharing–cost sharing contract to enhance the profits of the disposal firm and retailer. Thirdly, we extend the supply chain to a disposal firm and two retailers and explore the impact of competition intensity on corporate decision-making behavior. Finally, numerical analysis is conducted by taking one biomass energy firm as an example to support the results.

Our research finds that (1) Equilibrium strategies under the centralized decision-making scenario are greater than those under the decentralized decision-making scenario. Centralized decision-making can increase market demand and consumer surplus. (2) Government subsidies can promote corporate social responsibility levels, despite causing a slight increase in retail price for biofuels. When market competition intensifies, companies usually reduce their investment in CSR, and this trend is particularly pronounced in the absence of subsidies. (3) In both the decentralized and the centralized decision-making scenarios, increasing conversion rates and the CSR coefficient can significantly increase the overall profitability and social welfare.

A three-echelon biomass supply chain involving collection station, disposal firm and retailer can be studied in the future.

By examining the effects of subsidies on CSR engagement and market outcomes, our study contributes valuable insights into policy design for promoting sustainable practices in biomass industries.

The purpose of the present study was to examine the effect of corporate social responsibility (CSR) on sport spectator's decision-making using extended model of goal-directed behavior (EMGB).

An on-site survey was conducted for individuals (N = 408) who attended professional baseball games held in Taiwan.

Structural equation modeling indicated that the proposed EMGB offered a comprehensive perspective on the complicated decision-making process of sporting event spectators, which increased the explanatory power for predicting future game attending intentions. Specifically, positive anticipated emotion, subjective norm, past behavior, perceived behavioral control and attitude were important determinants of desire, which in turn influenced behavioral intention. The perception of CSR initiatives also played a role in the development of both desire and behavioral intention.

Based on the findings, sport managers should consider integrating CSR actions into management and marketing strategies to enhance individuals' desire and intention to attend games. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first attempt to use MGB to study sport spectating, hence extending theoretical development of MGB.

Man has been seeking an ideal existence for a very long time. In this existence, justice, love, and peace are no longer words, but actual experiences. How ever, with the American preemptive invasion and occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq and the subsequent prisoner abuse, such an existence seems to be farther and farther away from reality. The purpose of this work is to stop this dangerous trend by promoting justice, love, and peace through a change of the paradigm that is inconsistent with justice, love, and peace. The strong paradigm that created the strong nation like the U.S. and the strong man like George W. Bush have been the culprit, rather than the contributor, of the above three universal ideals. Thus, rather than justice, love, and peace, the strong paradigm resulted in in justice, hatred, and violence. In order to remove these three and related evils, what the world needs in the beginning of the third millenium is the weak paradigm. Through the acceptance of the latter paradigm, the golden mean or middle paradigm can be formulated, which is a synergy of the weak and the strong paradigm. In order to understand properly the meaning of these paradigms, however, some digression appears necessary.

This paper aims to investigate the moderating effects of employee commitment, customer loyalty and corporate reputation on the relationship between family influence and international expansion.

A cross-national research design was conducted using both survey and secondary data of 119 firms taken from the top 1,000 Taiwanese enterprises.

This study found moderating effects in the positive impact of family influence on international expansion. Specifically, the study found the relationship between family influence and international expansion stronger for companies with greater relational support from employees, customers and the public.

Multi-level data collection and a longitudinal research design in future research could help in further understanding the relationships between the variables in this study.

This paper suggests that family business should establish enduring relationship with their employees and customers and have a plan to improve family reputation that will benefit international market expansion.

This study draws on the relational perspective to investigate how family influence results in different international expansion.

This paper aims to figure out the relationship between energy consumption flow from a new perspective of embodied energy inventory index (EEII) and regional economic growth.

The input-output approach has been applied to calculate embodied energy inventory (EEI) and EEII using the data of 25 economies. Meanwhile, cluster analysis and panel data modeling were applied to carry out detailed research.

The results of cluster analysis show that there is a roughly negative relationship between EEII and gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, although there are some exceptions, such as Russia and Taiwan (Province of China). Panel data model results provide further evidence that there is a negative relationship between EEII and GDP per capita. Population is an important productive factor in the regional economic development. The study showed a positive relationship between EEII and population. Therefore, energy consumption flow is closely related to regional economic development.

The value of this paper is to use EEI and EEII to comprehensively clarify the energy consumption flow. The advantage of EEII is that it can reflect the energy embodied in fixed assets and infrastructure.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the extent at which electricity consumption (EC) has contributed to real sector performance, to identify energy-dependent sectors of the economy for appropriate sector-specific policy interventions and to avoid energy conservation policies that may retard the growth of the real sector and economic growth in general.

This paper used time series data, covering the period between 1981 and 2015. Various time series econometric analyses such as unit root test for stationarity and vector autoregressive and vector error correction models were used to establish the long-run and short-run co-integration relationship among the variables.

This study finds that EC displays a little and insignificant impact on manufacturing sector output, as well as agriculture and service outputs. The empirical result from causality test suggests a unidirectional causality running from agriculture to EC, as well as service sector to EC, whereas bidirectional causality runs between EC and manufacturing sector. This study therefore recommends adequate power supply to the manufacturing sector, while energy efficiency policy and regulatory reform should address agriculture and service sectors.

Few studies have examined the impact of EC on disaggregated gross domestic product. This research gap has strong policy implications on Nigerian economy as the output of real sector plays vital role in driving the economy. Given the pressing needs for Nigeria to boost real sector output and be among the world’s 20 largest economies by 2030, it becomes imperative for this sector-specific research to be conducted to ensure that sectoral purpose-driven energy interventions are formulated to address power supply challenges in the real sector.

The purpose of this paper is to find potential causality and comparative relationships between electric power consumption, foreign direct investment and economic growth for India and Pakistan.

Granger causality tests have been employed for estimating the short and long run relationships between the variables, along with the adoption of co‐integration and error correction mechanism.

Empirical evidence for India covering a period of 1975‐2008 indicates long run causalities for electric power consumption and foreign direct investment boosting economic growth, electric power consumption and economic growth impacting foreign direct investment. For Pakistan, causality was established for foreign direct investment and economic growth inducing electric power consumption in the long run.

For India, there is a strong need of policy that would guarantee secure and continued supply of electricity, as enhanced electric consumption is expected to boost foreign direct investment and economic growth. Pakistan should aim for cost‐effective, stable and environment friendly alternate to fossil fuels as the main source of its electric power generation.

Literature on the electricity consumption‐FDI‐economic growth nexus is scarce. The present study adds to this strand of literature. Also for the first time, in this scenario, this paper uses two economies (India and Pakistan), provides a comparative analysis of the empirical results and presents prospective explanations for the observed causality differences between the two economies.

This chapter examines the limit properties of information criteria (such as AIC, BIC, and HQIC) for distinguishing between the unit-root (UR) model and the various kinds of explosive models. The explosive models include the local-to-unit-root model from the explosive side the mildly explosive (ME) model, and the regular explosive model. Initial conditions with different orders of magnitude are considered. Both the OLS estimator and the indirect inference estimator are studied. It is found that BIC and HQIC, but not AIC, consistently select the UR model when data come from the UR model. When data come from the local-to-unit-root model from the explosive side, both BIC and HQIC select the wrong model with probability approaching 1 while AIC has a positive probability of selecting the right model in the limit. When data come from the regular explosive model or from the ME model in the form of 1 + n^α/n with α ∈ (0, 1), all three information criteria consistently select the true model. Indirect inference estimation can increase or decrease the probability for information criteria to select the right model asymptotically relative to OLS, depending on the information criteria and the true model. Simulation results confirm our asymptotic results in finite sample.