Search results

The purpose of this paper is threefold: to classify wildcards into three particular types sharing similar characteristics; use the Fuzzy TOPSIS as a new method in foresight to turn qualitative ideas into quantitative ones; and apply a combination of Fuzzy TOPSIS and a panel of experts to prioritize weak signals.

In this paper, the authors classify wildcards into three particular types which share similar character: natural wildcards, artificial wildcards (Degree 1) and artificial wildcards (Degree 2). Wildcards point to unexpected and surprising events including important results that can form watershed in the development of a specific trend. In addition, the authors present a Fuzzy TOPSIS model which can be used in various cases to prioritize a number of weak signals and put them in order, so that the most important ones are likely to yield the wildcard in the future

The authors presented a classification of wildcards with the same characteristics being natural wildcards, artificial wildcards (Degree 1) and artificial wildcards (Degree 2). The authors also prioritized the weak signals to deal with the most important ones and take appropriate action in advance so as to minimize possible damages and maximize the benefits of potential wildcards in an uncertain environment.

In this paper, the authors report on the prioritizing of weak signals by applying Fuzzy TOPSIS and classify wildcards. This is significant because, by identifying the most important weak signals, appropriate actions can be taken in the future if necessary. The paper should be of interest to readers in the area of participatory foresight.

Various theoretical studies were carried out which attempted to identify impacting factors of cultural changes; however, these studies ignored the correlation among other affecting factors all together. In this paper, the authors aim not only to discuss the hidden layers that trigger the cultural changes but also to answer the questions of how to identify the main factors in each layer based on casual layered analysis (CLA), which could have a strong impact in shaping other layers’ factors? What are the dominant metaphors and worldviews that human beings are telling themselves about our universe that influences the future cultural changes?

To answer the questions of “how to identify the main factors in each layer,” the CLA methodology was used to investigate the underlying reasons. CLA takes into account four layers (litany, social systems, dominant discourse and worldviews and metaphors), which could be a tremendous help in identifying the mentioned factors.

The analysis shows that there are some contributing factors such as economy, technology, politics, society, environment, mass media, globalization and migration at the second layer – “social systems layer” – which may trigger cultural changes in first layer “litany”; in addition, in the third and deeper layer two dominant worldviews – materialist/secular and religious affecting the contributing factors in the second layer – were identified. Such worldviews are, in turn, supported by metaphors or perfect stories/myths of the deepest layer.

It can be concluded that because the cultural changes as a reality is composed of different layers, it is important to dig into different layers of reality to comprehend the significant shaping factors of that reality to visualize and make the better future.

By harnessing technology developments such as Internet-of-Things (IoT)-enabled intelligent sensors and immersive virtual reality (VR) experiences, facility managers can access real-time, precise information on thermal comfort-related indicators through virtual facility models. While prior research studies have developed key technologies for improving the understanding of thermal comfort and its impact on the occupants’ well-being and productivity, there remain areas yet to be explored, especially in relation to integrating both real-time data from multimodal IoT-enabled smart sensors and VR technologies. Hence, this study demonstrates the potential of integrating IoT and VR technologies for real-time thermal comfort assessment and visualization as well as user interaction with HVAC systems to enhance thermal comfort.

To develop the proposed integrated analytical framework in this paper, various steps were implemented. First, four multimodal IoT-enabled sensing stations were created and installed to collect real-time thermal comfort-related data (i.e. temperature and relative humidity). Second, a VR environment was developed using the Unity engine to offer an immersive experience. Third, the real-time data from the IoT-enabled sensing stations was integrated into the VR environment by transmitting it to the cloud via the MQTT protocol server, and various programming scripts were developed to provide multiple functionalities to the users, including visualizing the thermal comfort along the entire indoor space as well as interacting with and controlling the cooling and heating HVAC systems. Fourth, the applicability and effectiveness of the developed framework was validated and evaluated by 92 participants using a survey questionnaire.

The obtained survey results validated the importance and effectiveness of the developed framework on various aspects including graphical satisfaction, spatial presence, involvement, experienced realism, low-to-no cybersickness and overall application satisfaction, among others. More specifically, the findings reflected that the participants’ average scores for graphical satisfaction, sense of spatial presence, involvement and experienced realism were 4.69, 4.61, 4.71 and 4.53 out of 5, respectively. Hence, the results showed that the visualization capabilities of the developed framework serve as a powerful feature that enables a comprehensive visualization of thermal comfort variations across the entire room/office space. Also, the results showed that there were no statistically significant differences between the responses of participants with prior VR experience with those from participants with limited-to-no prior VR experience, thus further highlighting the usefulness of the proposed technology not only for experienced users but also for users from different skills and background.

This research has the potential to revolutionize the way built environments are managed and interacted with, where facility managers can monitor, assess and visualize thermal comfort in real-time as well as interact with the HVAC systems and control multimodal IoT devices in the real-world from a distance through virtual facility models. The proposed framework’s ability to provide dynamic and continuously updated assessments of thermal conditions in real-time positions it as a valuable tool for prompt adjustments to optimize occupants’ comfort levels. Ultimately, the proposed framework provides an intuitive and immersive platform to manage thermal comfort, thus promoting healthier, more productive and eco-friendly indoor environments.

The main objective of this study is to propose a model to study the impact of radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology on organizational performance of the Library of the Academy of Arts in Iran. The Specialized Library at the Iranian Academy of the Arts (IAA) as one of the biggest national Iranian libraries has implemented and exploited RFID technology. This research aims to present a pattern for studying the effect of RFID on organizational performance at the Specialized Library at IAA from an employee’s perspective.

The statistical population includes 91 library staffs and managers of IAA. The data were collected through a questionnaire. The research literature was studied first, and the following four components were determined as research variables: service provision, costs, customer satisfaction and response time. The Cronbach’s alpha was calculated to test the questionnaire reliability, which resulted in an acceptable level of 0.829. The structural equation modelling method through SPSS and SmartPLS was applied to analyse the data.

The results indicate that there is a positive relationship between technology usage at the IAA library with an improved service provision, enhanced customer satisfaction and reduced response time; however, the hypothesis related to RFID usage and reduced costs was not supported.

As this study is limited to one library, it is recommended that to provide a suitable ground for benchmarking purposes and to facilitate successful implementation of RFID technology in other sectors of the country, future studies should be focused on various industries.

To the best knowledge of the authors, no comprehensive model has been developed to present a pattern for studying the effect of RFID on organizational performance, particularly in the context of Iran.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the mediating role of corruption in the relationship between entrepreneurship and institutional quality in a sample of 90 countries from all around the world.

The data were collected from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, which developed a model where Corruption Perception Index as a proxy for corruption mediates the relationship between the variable rule of law as a proxy for institutional quality and opportunity entrepreneurship as a proxy for productive entrepreneurship. Correlation, Baron and Kenny approach (causal steps approach) and PROCESS Macro (normal test theory) developed by Hayes were used to find out the direct and indirect effects of institutional quality between corruption and entrepreneurship.

The bootstrap mediation results indicated that institutional quality was a significant predictor of corruption and corruption was a significant predictor of entrepreneurship. These findings support the mediation hypothesis. In addition, findings showed that there is a negative relation between corruption and productive entrepreneurship and a positive relation between institutional quality and productive entrepreneurship.

The current study only considered the single proxy for institutional quality, i.e. rule of law; therefore, some other proxies for institutional quality such as government effectiveness and doing business can be used for future studies. Moreover, the proposed model does not control for the country differences like GDP or development stages of countries.

The findings of this study indicate that the total association between institutional quality and entrepreneurship is not only direct but also that rule of law contributes to levels of entrepreneurship through reduced levels of corruption. As a result, countries with higher levels of rule of law tended to experience corruption at lower levels, which in turn contributed to the emergence of increased levels of entrepreneurship. Furthermore, these results may be beneficial for organizations fighting against corruption, because entrepreneurial activity can be add to the group of economical drivers constrained by corruption. It is also beneficial for policy makers who focus on promoting entrepreneurship, since one way to increase entrepreneurial activity is to lower the existing corruption level.

The results indicated that the direct effect of institutional quality on the entrepreneurship remained significant when controlling for corruption, thus suggesting partial mediation. In other words, corruption only mediates part of the effect of institutional quality on entrepreneurship, that is, the intervention (institutional quality) has some residual direct effect even after the mediator (corruption) was introduced into the model.

This paper aims to present the design and implementation of VirSense, a novel six-DOF haptic interface system, with an emphasis on its gravity compensation and fixed-base motors.

In this paper, the design and manufacture of the VirSense robot and its comparison with the existing haptic devices are presented. The kinematic analysis of the robot, design of the components, and manufacturing of the robot are explained as well.

The proposed system is employed to generate a Virtual Sense (VirSense) with fixed-base motors and a spring compensation system for counterbalancing the torques generated by the weight of the links. The fixed bases of the motors reduce the system's effective mass and inertia, which is an important factor in haptic interface systems. A novel cabling system is used to transmit the motor torques to the end-effector. The spring-based gravity compensation system causes more reduction in the effective mass and inertia.

This paper provides the details of the VirSense haptic device, its gravity compensation system, and a novel cabling power transmission.

This study aims to minimize the cost and time of blood delivery in the whole blood supply chain network (BSCN) in disaster conditions. In other words, integrating all strategic, tactical and operational decisions of three levels of blood collection, processing and distribution leads to satisfying the demand at the right time.

This paper proposes an integrated BSCN in disaster conditions to consider four categories of facilities, including temporary blood collection centers, field hospitals, main blood processing centers and medical centers, to optimize demand response time appropriately. The proposed model applies the location of all permanent and emergency facilities in three levels: blood collection, processing and distribution. Other essential decisions, including multipurpose facilities, emergency transportation, inventory and allocation, were also used in the model. The LP metric method is applied to solve the proposed bi-objective mathematical model for the BSCN.

The findings show that this model clarifies its efficiency in the total cost and blood delivery time reduction, which results in a low carbon transmission of the blood supply chain.

The researchers proposed an integrated BSCN in disaster conditions to minimize the cost and time of blood delivery. They considered multipurpose capabilities for facilities (e.g. field hospitals are responsible for the three purposes of blood collection, processing and distribution), and so locating permanent and emergency facilities at three levels of blood collection, processing and distribution, support facilities, emergency transportation and traffic on the route with pollution were used to present a new model.

The present study aims to investigate the reasons for the gap between academic education and the required skills of the labor market in Iran.

For this purpose, the authors adopted a thematic analysis method. The participants in the study were connoisseurs from universities and research institutes in Iran, who were selected with purposeful sampling methods of snowball type. To collect the data, the authors used a semi-structured interview and performed a thematic analysis for data analysis.

The findings showed that the views and perceptions of the connoisseurs participating in the study about the reasons for the gap between academic education and the skills required in the labor market in Iran can be classified into four main themes including lack of attention to labor market needs in the academic curricula, lack of attention to practical and entrepreneurial skills in the academic curricula, the weak link between universities and industry and society, and shortage of academic resources and equipment in some academic disciplines.

The present study had three implications. First, the human capital theory, the social closure theory, the positional conflict theory and the labor market segmentation theory are more compatible with the labor market of Iranian graduates, compared to other theories of the labor market. Second, the lack of coordination between academic education and the required skills in the labor market has weakened the Iranian economy. Third, the absence of practical and entrepreneurial skills in academic graduates has led to increased unemployment in Iranian society.

The purpose of this paper is to identify the barriers and challenges to international interactions of the faculty members in Iran.

To achieve the purpose, a qualitative phenomenological approach was used. The research population was all experts in the field of higher education in Iran, it included 17 experts who were selected through purposeful sampling by snowball method and based on theoretical saturation. To collect the data, a semi-structured interview was used and for the data analysis, an inductive content analysis was applied.

The findings showed that the barriers and challenges to faculty members’ international interactions can be defined through three main barriers: inside university barriers, outside university barriers, and individual barriers.

This research identified the barriers and challenges of faculty members’ international interactions in Iran. The method of this study can be applied in other applied fields as well.

This study adds to the authors’ knowledge about international interactions of the faculty members and also the barriers and challenges of these interactions, so to have more interactions of faculty members at the international level, universities should make an effort to identify barriers and eliminate them, more than ever.