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Computing seepage discharge in earth dams involves inherent complexities and challenges that require the use of probabilistic algorithms to accurately capture their uncertain characteristics and identify optimal solutions. This study aims to investigate the impact of uncertainty in seepage flow estimation using a novel hybrid approach, combining the analysis of Laplacian equations with the probabilistic finite element method (PFEM) and a metaheuristic algorithm.

To achieve this purpose, a finite element-based FORTRAN program was developed to model the problem using the Galerkin finite element method, which was validated using laboratory findings. Subsequently, Monte Carlo loops were incorporated into each model, consisting of 2000 iterations and the probability distribution function and cumulative distribution function were computed for each sub-model. A total of 138 earth dams were analysed to investigate the influence of different characteristics on seepage, including variations in dam geometry, soil permeability and water levels (both downstream and upstream). Effective seepage flow (ESF), was introduced in both deterministic and probabilistic models.

The findings indicated that the downstream slope has a more significant impact on ESF than the upstream slope, with a difference of 1.29%. Additionally, the ratio of dam height to bottom width (H/B) directly affects the ESF, resulting in a 20% increase in ESF for every 16% increase in H/B.

This study introduces a novel hybrid approach for estimating seepage flow in earth dams by integrating the Unlike traditional deterministic models, which often overlook the inherent .PFEM with a metaheuristic algorithman advanced uncertainties in seepage characteristics, this research effectively captures these uncertainties throughprobabilistic framework.

The theoretical landscape surrounding the contribution of digital transformation to sustainability in higher education institutions is lacking in literature. Blended learning has gained popularity and poises for further growth as a sustainable and inclusive mode of learning that will shape the future of education. This study aims to investigate the organizational critical success factors that ensure high-quality blended learning opportunities.

Data was collected through an online student survey and semistructured interviews with academic leaders and faculty members.

Exploratory factor analysis and multiple linear regression revealed five main contributing factors to a successful overall hybrid experience, namely, faculty support, cognitive flexibility, learner self-actualization, student engagement and sense of belonging. In the results, students were satisfied with their gained skills, knowledge and engagement, and have succeeded in developing cognitive flexibility, self-actualization and sense of belonging. Faculty support was the strongest determinant. The presence of certain organizational dynamics, comprising management support of those with sustainability mindset, effective communication, blended leadership qualities and adequate faculty personality traits, presents as a major predictor to quality learning opportunities.

The theoretical landscape surrounding the contribution of digital transformation to sustainability in higher education institutions is lacking in literature, which emphasizes the novel aspects of this study. In particular, it contributes by determining the overall level of research on the subject, theoretical stances in this area and potential avenues for further investigation.

We developed the Goal Achievement Scale in Colleges of Education (GASCE) to address the lack of context-specific assessment tools for evaluating goal achievement in Nigerian colleges of education. Existing instruments fail to capture the unique challenges of these institutions, making a reliable and valid scale essential for assessing educational success.

Using a descriptive survey research design, we developed and validated the GASCE through expert review, pilot testing, and statistical analyses. Our sample of 450 respondents from Nigerian colleges of education participated in exploratory factor analysis (EFA), graded response modeling (GRM-IRT), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and multiple group confirmatory factor analysis (MG-CFA). We assessed reliability using composite reliability and validated construct and criterion-related validity through correlations with external goal achievement measures.

CFA confirmed a six-factor structure – critical thinking, committed teaching, high motivation, intellectual fitness, professional fitness and social fitness – with strong model fit indices. Reliability testing showed high internal consistency (Omega alpha: 0.845–0.919). MG-CFA confirmed measurement invariance across academic and non-academic staff (Δcomparative fit index < 0.015, Δroot mean square error of approximation < 0.010), while criterion-related validity was supported by significant correlations with external measures.

While the sample size supports validation, it may not fully represent all Nigerian colleges of education. Future research should expand the sample and incorporate objective performance data for further validation.

The GASCE provides policymakers, educators and administrators with a robust tool to assess and improve educational performance, facilitating targeted interventions and efficient resource allocation.

The GASCE fills a critical gap in educational assessment by offering a reliable, context-specific tool for Nigerian colleges of education. It enables comprehensive evaluation of goal achievement, supporting continuous improvement in teacher education programs across Nigeria.

Data quality assurance (DQA) is essential for enabling the sharing and reuse of research data, especially given the increasing focus on data transparency, reproducibility, credibility and validity in research. Although the literature on research data curation is vast, there remains a lack of theory-guided exploration of DQA modeling in research data repositories (RDRs).

This study addresses this gap by examining 12 distinct cases of DQA-related knowledge organization tools, including four metadata vocabularies, three metadata schemas, one ontology and four standards used to guide DQA work in RDRs.

The study analyzed the cases utilizing a theoretical framework based on activity theory and data quality literature and synthesized a model and a knowledge artifact, a DQA ontology (DQAO, Lee et al., 2024), that encodes a DQA theory for RDRs. The ontology includes 127 classes, 44 object properties, 7 data properties and 18 instances. The article also uses problem scenarios to illustrate how the DQAO can be integrated into the FAIR ecosystem.

The study provides valuable insights into DQA theory and practice in RDRs and offers a DQA ontology for designing, evaluating and integrating DQA workflows within RDRs.

Binder jetting of 17-4PH martensitic stainless steel is of great interest to several industries that could exploit the higher degree of geometrical complexity granted by 3D printing, thus this paper aims at providing a comprehensive description of the material development throughout the multiple manufacturing stages and treatments.

In this work, insight into the as-sintered 17-4PH microstructure and the manufacturing process effects on the copper precipitation is provided. Furthermore, conventional ageing treatments were applied to the specimens starting from either the as-sintered or the solution-annealed state and studied with particular attention to the microstructure and the resulting mechanical properties.

The analysis of the as-sintered microstructure revealed a continuous δ ferrite network along martensitic grains, with Cu-rich phases within the ferritic phase. Solution annealing was able to redistribute the alloying elements within the matrix and limit the continuity of the ferritic network leading to an enhancement in ductility. On the contrary, the direct ageing treatments performed on the as-sintered microstructure lead to overageing of the Cu-precipitates and impairing of the tensile properties compared to those starting from solution annealed condition. Nonetheless, hardness remains comparable independently from the ageing temperature and the ferritic network retains its morphology and distribution.

A stepwise description of the microstructural development throughout thermal treatments is provided granting the chance to design the most convenient post-processing route to achieve the required mechanical properties with a minimisation of energy and cost consumption.

Evaluating emergency preparedness exercises is crucial for assessing enhanced knowledge, facilitating learning and implementing knowledge in organizations. The cognitive process of motivation for action is a precursor for action, coping behavior and individual learning. This study aims to focus on how guided evaluation of emergency preparedness exercises can enhance cognitive motivation and influence the mental readiness of exercise participants.

This is a conceptual paper with a model approach design. The main conceptual contribution is suggesting a model for guided evaluation in emergency preparedness exercises. We present a theoretical background for understanding the increase in motivation based on social cognitive learning theory. In particular, this study discusses how different evaluation steps contribute to enhanced motivation and learning for exercise participants.

Increased motivation and enhanced personal performance standards could be achieved through using processes that lead to self-efficacy in guided exercise evaluation. Specifically, sources of enhanced motivation, such as repeated coping experiences, self-regulation processes, mastery motivation and performance motivation, would proliferate the readiness of individual crisis managers and teams.

This article suggests an evaluation model for use in emergency preparedness exercises. This approach combines bottom-up and top-down processes for debriefing, reflection and feedback, both individually and in teams. This approach aims to enhance exercise participants’ motivation and utilize exercise evaluation for organizational learning.

The conceptual discussion leads to developing implications for evaluation practice, suggesting how to structure evaluation and why. This study is novel for its explanation of how to use evaluation in the learning process.

The construction industry is notorious for high risks and accident rates, prompting professionals to adopt emerging technologies for improved construction workers’ health and safety (CWHS). Despite the recognized benefits, the practical implementation of these technologies in safety management within the Construction 4.0 era remains nascent. This study aims to investigate the mechanisms influencing the implementation of Construction 4.0 technologies (C4.0TeIm) to enhance CWHS in construction organizations.

Drawing upon integrated institutional theory, the contingency resource-based view of firms and the theory of planned behavior, this study developed and tested an integrated C4.0TeIm-CWHS framework. The framework captures the interactions among key factors driving C4.0TeIm to enhance CWHS within construction organizations. Data were collected via a questionnaire survey among 91 construction organizations and analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling to test the hypothesized relationships.

The results reveal that: (1) key C4.0TeIm areas are integrative and centralized around four areas, such as artificial intelligence and 3D printing, Internet of Things and extended reality; and (2) external coercive and normative forces, internal resource and capability, business strategy, technology competency and management (BST), organizational culture and use intention (UI) of C4.0 technologies, collectively influence C4.0TeIm-CWHS. The findings confirm the pivotal roles of BST and UI as mediators fostering positive organizational behaviors related to C4.0TeIm-CWHS.

Practically, it offers actionable insights for policymakers to optimize technology integration in construction firms, promoting industrial advancement while enhancing workforce well-being.

The novel C4.0TeIm-CWHS framework contributes to the theoretical discourses on safety management within the C4.0 paradigm by offering insights into internal strategic deployment and compliance challenges in construction organizations.

This study aims to develop and validate an integrated extrusion bioprinting system that produces planar and non-planar scaffolds with embedded living material (bacteria or mammalian cells), overcoming the limitation of traditional extrusion bioprinting, where the material is deposited and cultured in planar layers.

The bioprinting device was constructed by modifying a fused deposition modelling 3D printer, adapting the extrusion holder for hydrogel-bioinks, going from an 8-bit architecture to a 32-bit one andad hoc updating the firmware, increasing the processing capacity and enabling accurate deposition of material. The device performance was assessed in hydrogel 3D planar and non-planar extrusion, considering different radius of curvature to form porous scaffolds, evaluating their ability to retain the designed curved geometry and the cell viability maintaining in bacterial and mammalian cells bioinks.

The viability (up to 99%) and growth of bacteria and mammalian cells embedded in the scaffolds was confirmed by confocal microscopy. The suggested bioprinting platform and procedure integrates an efficient strategy for producing hydrogel-based scaffolds, obtaining 98% resolution in planar deposition. For non-planar scaffolds, it was found that they are capable of maintaining the designed curvature even after being removed from the support, with an 88% of resolution.

It is reported a novel and advanced 3D extrusion bioprinting strategy for producing curved and complex scaffolds, preserving resolution and sterile conditions, introducing in addition a methodology for direct design and generation of a g-code with continuous and smooth paths, pioneering on the 3D bioprinting of bacterial bioinks.

This study introduces a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of the foreign direct investment (FDI) literature by multinational corporations (MNCs) focusing on emerging economies to identify the most influential authors, journals and articles in FDI research and reveals the fields' conceptual and intellectual structures. The purpose of this paper is to address these issues.

The study analyzed 533 articles published between 1974 and 2020 in 226 academic journals indexed in the Web of Science (WoS) and Scopus databases. We used the R language for statistical computing to map author collaboration, co-word and develop a conceptual and intellectual map of the field.

The results show that, although the FDI literature has many authors, few dominate the field. The International Business Review (IBR) and International Journal of Emerging Markets (IJoEM) are the main sources of the publications. Moreover, bibliometric laws show that our dataset follows the Lotka law of scientific productivity and Bradford law of scattering, identifying the core journals. Finally, FDI by MNCs in emerging economies research is divided into four sub-research themes related to (1) FDI determinants, (2) entry mode, (3) MNCs and FDI performance and (4) the internationalization process.

The current article provides several starting points for practitioners and researchers investigating FDI. It contributes to broadening the vision of the field and offers recommendations for future studies.

This paper explores current teaching and learning practices, benefits and challenges in the implementation of Internationalization at Home (IaH) in higher education.

The study follows a systematic review (SR) protocol in accordance with the PRISMA Statement, covering published research from 2018 to 2022. Through this process, we identified 58 peer-reviewed manuscripts meeting our inclusion criteria. We examined disciplines, locations of IaH, objectives pursued, modality of the IaH implementation, activities and resources used. Benefits and challenges were also analysed.

The SR reveals a growing adoption of IaH, employing various technologies and interdisciplinary methods to foster cross-cultural competence. It emphasizes diverse teaching activities and resources, aligning with digitalization trends. While IaH brings benefits like improved intercultural sensitivity, collaboration and skills development, it also faces challenges in language, technical, personal, pedagogical and organizational aspects, highlighting its complexity.

Our search focused on research from 2018 to 2022, potentially missing earlier trends, and excluded grey literature due to quality concerns. The SR emphasizes online collaborative efforts in IaH, signalling a shift to digital internationalization. Institutions should invest in supporting such practices aided by strategic university alliances. A critical approach to “Global-North” collaborations is urged, promoting geographically inclusive IaH initiatives.

This study responds to the call for critical analysis on concrete examples of IaH. Through a systematic review, it explores recent teaching and learning practices, with a particular focus on the latest technological advancements. The study specifies learning objectives and identifies relevant tools for implementing IaH initiatives.