Showing papers by "Tainan University of Technology published in 2021"
TL;DR: This paper uses a rolling-window testing strategy to calculate accuracy metrics and shows that even though all models have comparable accuracy, the forecasts produced vary significantly according to the training data set, a finding that should be alarming to researchers.
250 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors characterized polylactic acid (PLA) and polyethylene terephthalate glycol (PETG) materials of FDM under four loading conditions (tension, compression, bending, and thermal deformation), in order to obtain data regarding different printing temperatures and speeds.
Abstract: Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) can be used to manufacture any complex geometry and internal structures, and it has been widely applied in many industries, such as the biomedical, manufacturing, aerospace, automobile, industrial, and building industries. The purpose of this research is to characterize the polylactic acid (PLA) and polyethylene terephthalate glycol (PETG) materials of FDM under four loading conditions (tension, compression, bending, and thermal deformation), in order to obtain data regarding different printing temperatures and speeds. The results indicated that PLA and PETG materials exhibit an obvious tensile and compression asymmetry. It was observed that the mechanical properties (tension, compression, and bending) of PLA and PETG are increased at higher printing temperatures, and that the effect of speed on PLA and PETG shows different results. In addition, the mechanical properties of PLA are greater than those of PETG, but the thermal deformation is the opposite. The above results will be a great help for researchers who are working with polymers and FDM technology to achieve sustainability.
53 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a study was conducted to understand a guest's decision to stay at a green hotel by using the theory of planned behavior (TPB) developed by Ajzen (1991) and found that perceived behavioral control has a slightly higher impact on behavioral intention than attitude.
44 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the effect of the ultraviolet (UV) curing process on PLA materials was investigated and the results showed that the printing and raster angles have a high impact on the tensile properties of PLA materials.
Abstract: In order to optimize the efficiency of the Fused deposition modeling (FDM) process, this study used polylactic acid (PLA) material under different parameters (the printing angle and the raster angle) to fabricate specimens and to explore its tensile properties. The effect of the ultraviolet (UV) curing process on PLA materials was also investigated. The results showed that the printing and raster angles have a high impact on the tensile properties of PLA materials. The UV curing process enhanced the brittleness and reduced the elongation of PLA material. Different effects were observed on tensile strength and modulus of specimens printed with different parameters after UV curing. The above results will be a great help for researchers who are working to achieve sustainability of PLA materials and FDM technology.
29 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors studied the relationship between servicescape and the intention to use self-service technology (SST) using core service and employee service as the moderators and attitude as mediator.
27 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigate the diffusion of smartness in hospitality and furthermore the assimilation of smart technologies in hotel business units, and propose aggregate dimensions for achieving assimilation in hotels highlight the importance of organizational sustained learning and smart networks synergism.
24 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors presented a study on 3D printing based on FDM by changing two printing parameters, namely the printing temperature and filling percentage, and analyzed the produced polylactic acid (PLA) material through tensile and Shore D hardness tests and the differences in mechanical properties before and after the UV curing process.
Abstract: Additive manufacturing (AM) has the advantages of providing materials with lightweight microporous structures and customized features, and being environmentally safe. It is widely used in medical sciences, the aerospace industry, biological research, engineering applications, and other fields. Among the many additive manufacturing methods, fused deposition modeling (FDM) is relatively low-cost, wastes less raw material and has a lower technical threshold. This paper presents a study on 3D printing based on FDM by changing two printing parameters, namely the printing temperature and filling percentage. The produced polylactic acid (PLA) material was analyzed through tensile and Shore D hardness tests and the differences in mechanical properties before and after the UV curing process were analyzed. The results show that increasing the filling percentage or increasing the printing temperature can effectively improve the tensile Young’s modulus, ultimate tensile strength, elongation, and Shore hardness of the material. The UV curing process could enhance the rigidity and hardness of the material significantly but reduced the strength and toughness of the material. These findings could benefit researchers studying FDM with the goal of achieving sustainable manufactured materials.
22 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present results of studies analyzing the differences between children's mathematical performance in Asia and Europe or America with a focus on early childhood education, where pairwise similarities allow to clarify relations between differences in early mathematics education and the cultural background on the one hand and early education education education and institutional frame conditions or the teachers' professional knowledge on the other hand.
Abstract: Results of international comparison studies show substantially better mathematics performance of the investigated Asian than European students from the early years on. A Taiwanese-German Research Program (TaiGer) engages in exploring differences and similarities in the educational system, in teachers’ knowledge and beliefs and in teaching or learning practice in Taiwan and Germany. Embedded in this Research Program, this contribution focuses on early mathematics education. As mathematics is often seen as an internationally more or less homogeneous discipline, it could be assumed that differences in the educational outcomes could be explained by, e.g. cultural-societal factors, curriculum or instruction practice. This contribution gives an overview about results of studies analyzing the differences between children’s mathematical performance in Asia and Europe or America with a focus on early childhood education. For a sound comparison between countries aiming to analyze if cultural differences or other aspects (e.g. teaching practice or structural differences) are responsible for differences, basic conditions concerning teaching and learning should be controlled. At first sight, it could be recognized that, next to the cultural background, Germany and Taiwan differ extremely in basic frame conditions (e.g. preservice training) concerning early mathematics education. For this reason, this contribution analyzed if, with a third well-considered European country, a comparative design for ongoing research could be possible, where pairwise similarities allow to clarify relations between differences in early mathematics education and the cultural background on the one hand and early mathematics education and institutional frame conditions or the teachers’ professional knowledge on the other hand.
14 citations
TL;DR: Wang et al. as mentioned in this paper analyzed the de-stigmatization process to the occupation of tour guides based on the Behaviors from Intergroup Affect and Stereotypes Map (BIAS Map) model and found that tour guides' service quality can significantly enhance tourists' pro-tour guide tendency and tour guide stigma judgment.
14 citations
TL;DR: This study presents the design of a multimodal ubiquitous learning application (MULA) with different augmenting effects for enhancing English as a Foreign Language (EFL) academic writing instruction and identified seven affordances that made MULA a potential tool for enhancing writing instruction in EFL settings.
Abstract: This study presents the design of a multimodal ubiquitous learning application (MULA) with different augmenting effects for enhancing English as a Foreign Language (EFL) academic writing instructio...
12 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a lightweight anonymous authentication and secure communication scheme is proposed and it only used secure one-way hash function and bitwise XOR operations when cloud, fog and user mutually authenticate each other.
Abstract: Fog-driven IoT architecture located between IoT devices and the centralized cloud infrastructure is introduced to extend computing, storage and network services to the edge of the Internet and therefore resources and services of the fog nodes are available and are closer to the end user and end device for providing mobility, low latency and location awareness. However, the paradigm of fog computing due to its inherited properties from cloud as inherits its security and privacy concerns such as spoofing, message replay, impersonation, man-in-the middle and physical capturing of IoT devices etc. To address these concerns in fog computing services, in this paper, a lightweight anonymous authentication and secure communication scheme is proposed and it only used secure one-way hash function and bitwise XOR operations when cloud, fog and user mutually authenticate each other. After the successful authentication, both fog-based participants can agree on a session key to encrypt the subsequent communication messages. The security can be ensured during authentication process by using the Burrows-Abadi-Needham (BAN) logic and the performance comparisons with existing schemes demonstrate that the proposed scheme is secure and highly efficient.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors developed a theoretical framework to identify and decompose the contributions of spatial agglomeration to the productivity of hotel and catering enterprises using Chinese firm-level data for the hotel industry from China's Second National Economic Census in 2008 and Chinese Tax Census and 2009-2014 China Key Tax Source Survey.
TL;DR: Zhang et al. as discussed by the authors explored the co-creation experience of virtual tourist community members based on value cocreation and social capital theory, which can help us determine the antecedents of cocreation experiences, as well as the internal mechanism of members' behaviors that are beneficial to the community.
TL;DR: Experimental results show that the feasibility of the proposed method to achieve unconstrained face detection with high-efficiency and cost-effectiveness is indicated, indicating the method is more attractive for the video surveillance system as compared to other approaches, especially in the high computational complexity-based methods.
Abstract: This paper is dedicated to developing high-efficiency face detection and tracking method for big dynamic crowds or numerous pedestrians. Three modules constitute the proposed method, i.e., face candidate generation, face candidate verification, and face target tracking. In this work, face candidates are localized using the features of the face area, edge information, and skin color. Non-face parts in the face candidates are further verified by the C-SVM learning model and then removed, by which the face targets can be generated with lower computation-complexity and satisfactory accuracy than other approaches. Finally, the face targets are tracked by an efficient and reliable searching scheme for improving the effective face detection rate. Experimental results show that the average face detection rate (FDR) of 85%, average effective FDR of 95%, a frame rate of 28–66 frames per second (fps), and about 30 faces detected per frame are obtained from various test videos with big dynamic crowds or numerous pedestrians, indicating the feasibility of the proposed method to achieve unconstrained face detection with high-efficiency and cost-effectiveness. This result makes the proposed method more attractive for the video surveillance system as compared to other approaches, especially in the high computational complexity-based methods.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated whether hippocampal Arc expression is impaired by DEHP exposure and examined the protective role of exercise in the prenatally DEHP-exposed male rats.
01 Jul 2021
TL;DR: The results showed that all two learning approaches can significantly improve students’ knowledge of air pollution, and in terms of learning satisfaction, there was no significant difference between the VR and IoT groups.
Abstract: Suspended particles are a major component of outdoor air pollution, and cause great harm to human health. Children should be aware of environmental pollution issues and know how to protect themselves. This study developed two kinds of learning aids, augmented reality (AR) and the Internet of things (IoT), for environmental education. A total of 90 students participated in this experiment. The experiment time was 120 minutes. The results of the study showed that all two learning approaches can significantly improve students’ knowledge of air pollution. In terms of learning satisfaction, there was no significant difference between the VR and IoT groups.
TL;DR: The authors investigated the effects of an 8-week horticultural activity intervention on attitudes toward aging, sense of hope, and hand-eye coordination in 88 older adults in residential care facilities.
Abstract: This study investigated the effects of an 8-week horticultural activity intervention on attitudes toward aging, sense of hope, and hand–eye coordination in 88 older adults in residential care facilities. In the experimental group, the mean score for “attitudes toward aging” increased from 3.81 before the intervention to 4.74 points after the intervention (standard deviation SD = 0.24 and 0.27, respectively), and the control group dropped from 3.75 to 3.70 (standard deviations, respectively SD = 0.27 and 0.28). The mean score for “sense of hope” increased from 3.28 before the intervention to 3.81 points after the intervention (SD = 0.49 and 0.26, respectively). In contrast to the control group, the mean score gradually declined from 3.26 to 3.16 points (standard deviation SD = 0.54 and 0.48, respectively). In the test of hand–eye coordination, the time required to complete the cup stacking test significantly decreased from 33.56 to 25.38 s in the experimental group but did not significantly change in the control group. Generalized estimating equation analysis revealed a significant interaction between group and time (p < 0.001). The data trends revealed significant differences in outcomes between the experimental group and the control group. At 3 months after the end of the study, the effect size in the experimental group remained higher than that in the control group.
TL;DR: The authors investigated the relationship among tourists' perceived sustainability, aesthetic experience, and behavioral intention toward reused heritage buildings by employing stimulus-organism-resilience (SINR) for reuse.
Abstract: This study investigated the relationship among tourists’ perceived sustainability, aesthetic experience, and behavioral intention toward reused heritage buildings by employing stimulus–organism–res...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explored the relationship between omnipresent fear of death and consumers' willingness to pay for carbon emissions, and found that mortality salience is positively associated with materialism whereas self-esteem tends to decrease it.
TL;DR: In this article, the mediated relations between medical providers and patients are explored for increasing patient loyalty through improved health care quality and patient-provider relationships becomes the key factor in medical providers' success.
Abstract: Increasing patient loyalty through improved health care quality and patient–provider relationships becomes the key factor in medical providers’ successes This study explored the mediated relations
TL;DR: Despite the beneficial effect in the postural control in the frontal plane, the use of AB might constrain the distal joint motion which might lead to an extended knee landing posture resulting in secondary injuries to the knee joint, so theUse of AB in conjunction with an additional training of landing strategy might be recommended from the injury prevention perspective.
Abstract: Background: An unstable ankle along with plantar flexor muscle fatigue may exacerbate landing performance. External support may be an option to control the ankle motion and protect joints from injuries. Research goal: To investigate the immediate changes in the joint motion of a lower extremity under ankle plantar flexors fatigue conditions in athletes with unstable ankles using different external supports. Methods: A total of 44 participants were allocated to a control (Cn) group, an ankle brace (AB) group, and a kinesio tape (KT) group, and were asked to perform a lateral drop landing before and after a fatigue protocol. The outcome measures were fatigue-induced changes in the maximal joint angle and changes in the angle ranges of the hip, knee, and ankle. Results: Smaller changes in the maximal hip abduction were found in the AB group (p = 0.025), and the KT group exhibited smaller changes in the maximal ankle dorsiflexion (p = 0.009). The AB group landed with a smaller change in the range of hip flexion and knee flexion (p = 0.008 and 0.006). The Cn group had greater fatigue-induced changes in the COM range than AB and KT group (p = 0.002 and 0.028). Significance: Despite the beneficial effect in the postural control in the frontal plane, the use of AB might constrain the distal joint motion which might lead to an extended knee landing posture resulting in secondary injuries to the knee joint. Therefore, the use of AB in conjunction with an additional training of landing strategy might be recommended from the injury prevention perspective.
TL;DR: The findings suggest that the transmission of knowledge achieved via video lectures before class as students are able to internalize knowledge and the in-class practice can supplement more individual reflective learning time and the flipped classroom approach is likely to assist and produce students’ intrinsic motivation.
Abstract: Procedural knowledge learning focuses on integrating theory with practice; however, time and pace are the main critical issues. In response, this study proposes a flipped classroom approach...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explore the mechanism of the cohesion between tourists and local residents from the viewpoint of leisure literacy and recreationist-environment fit, as well as the moderating effects of tourists' self-image congruity in the said mechanism.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated OP and BPA sorption constants, log KCOC, with three size-fractioned dissolved organic matter (DOM) fractions: low molecular weight DOM (LDOM, <1 kDa), middle molecular weightDOM (MDOM, 1-10 kDa) and high molecular-weight DOM (HDOM, 10 kDa-0.45 μm).
Abstract: Dissolved organic matter (DOM) is a complex and heterogeneous mixture ubiquitously present in aquatic systems. DOM affects octylphenol (OP) and bisphenol A (BPA) distribution, transport, bioavailability, and toxicity. This study investigated OP and BPA sorption constants, log KCOC, with three size-fractioned DOM. The molecular weights of the sized fractions were low molecular weight DOM (LDOM, <1 kDa), middle molecular weight DOM (MDOM, 1-10 kDa), and high molecular weight DOM (HDOM, 10 kDa-0.45 μm). The log KCOC ranged from 5.34 to 6.14 L/kg-C for OP and from 5.59 to 6.04 L/kg-C for BPA. The OP and BPA log KCOC values were insignificantly different (p = 0.37) and had a strong positive correlation (r = 0.85, p < 0.001). The OP and BPA LDOM log KCOC was significantly higher than the HDOM and MDOM log KCOC (p = 0.012 for BPA, p = 0.023 for OP). The average specific ultraviolet absorption (SUVA254) values were 32.0 ± 5.4, 13.8 ± 1.0, and 17.9 ± 2.8 L/mg-C/m for LDOM, MDOM, and HDOM, respectively. The log KCOC values for both OP and BPA had a moderately positive correlation with the SUVA254 values (r = 0.79-0.84, p < 0.002), which suggested the aromatic group content in the DOM had a positive impact on sorption behavior.
TL;DR: Based on a systematic literature review of value co-destruction in tourism industry and on the analysis of person-environment fit theory, the authors constructs a conceptual model of surface-level f...
Abstract: Based on a systematic literature review of value co-destruction in tourism industry and on the analysis of person-environment fit theory, this paper constructs a conceptual model of surface-level f...
TL;DR: Zhang et al. as mentioned in this paper found that knowledge sharing is positively and directly correlated with entrepreneurial orientation, and knowledge sharing positively affects entrepreneurial orientation through motivation, creativity, and human capital.
TL;DR: In this article, the effects of prenatal exposure to di-(2-ethylhexyl)-phthalate (DEHP) and the beneficial effects of physical exercise on brain functions have been reported.
Abstract: Both the detrimental effect of prenatal exposure to di-(2-ethylhexyl)-phthalate (DEHP) and the beneficial effects of physical exercise on brain functions have been reported. The oxytocin pathway has been implicated in the onset of maternal behaviors. Epigenetic modification of the oxytocin receptor gene (OXTR) through DNA methylation has been associated with the pathogenesis of neuropsychiatric disorders. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of prenatal DEHP exposure on oxytocin-regulated maternal behaviors and to examine the protective effect of exercise. Pregnant rats (F0) were fed with vehicle or DEHP during gestation and the offspring females (F1) were assessed for their maternal behaviors by pup retrieval test at postpartum. The results showed that reduced pup retrieval activities without significant alteration of stress responses were observed in the prenatally DEHP-exposed females. Prenatal DEHP exposure decreased the expressions of oxytocin, Oxtr mRNA, and oxytocin receptor, and increased Oxtr methylation in the hypothalamus of postpartum female rats. There were no significant effects of exercise on behavioral, biochemical, and epigenetic measurements. These results suggest that prenatal DEHP exposure has a long-term adverse effect on maternal behaviors; Oxtr hyper-methylation may be a potential epigenetic mechanism for this alteration, which cannot be prevented by physical exercise during childhood.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors propose a broad concept of mathematical competence to encounter the challenges under globalisation and the ubiquity of digital technology, which is an important goal of education.
Abstract: Possessing the mathematical competence to encounter the challenges under globalisation and the ubiquity of digital technology is an important goal of education. Herein, we propose a broad conceptua...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors reviewed the relevant literature to elucidate the clinical characteristics, treatment, complications, and outcomes of blunt traumatic retropharyngeal hematoma (RH) with respiratory symptoms.
Abstract: Background. In patients with blunt trauma, particularly geriatric patients and those with minor trauma, an insidious retropharyngeal hematoma (RH) may deteriorate and have lethal consequences. We review the relevant literature to elucidate the clinical characteristics, treatment, complications, and outcomes of blunt traumatic RH with respiratory symptoms. Data Resources. We reviewed 57 case reports and added one case from our hospital for data analysis. A total of 68 cases were included in this review. Results. The ages of patients ranged from 13 to 94 years, and geriatric patients (age >66 years) constituted 61.2% of the reviewed patients. Falls (54.4%) and traffic accidents (35.3%) were the major trauma mechanisms. Most patients’ symptoms developed within 24 hours of blunt trauma (95.2%), and 73.5% of patients with RH had at least one associated injury. Many patients underwent conservative treatment for RH (63.2%). Surgical treatment (23.5%) and transarterial embolization (8.8%) were used to control retropharyngeal hemorrhage. Twelve patients died; RH and cervical spinal injury were the direct causes of death in 5 patients, whereas the other 7 patients died because of cardiac, pulmonary, or gastrointestinal causes or withdrawal of life support. Conclusions. Geriatric patients constituted the largest proportion of patients with RH, and minor trauma was adequate to result in RH in elderly people. The cornerstone of RH management is airway management. Surgery and transarterial embolization are commonly used to control active bleeding in patients with RH. The long-term outcome depends on patients’ associated injuries and in-hospital complications.