Technical advances, innovation and challenges of developing high-speed rail in China

After little more than a decade of development, China’s 29 000 km high-speed railway network is by far the largest in the world. This paper describes the technological advances and innovations regarding trains, stations, ballastless track, automatic train operation and signalling that made such rapid development possible, as well as setting new global standards for safety, efficiency and reliability. The engineering challenges of building and operating high-speed railways in diverse environments are also discussed, including areas with high winds, low temperatures, underground caverns and debris flows.

Application of RFID Technology in Olusegun Oke Library, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso: Challenges and Future Prospects

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) offers tracking capability to locate equipment, supplies and people in real time, and provides efficient and accurate access to library transactions such as book search, security, inventory, borrowing and book return. The paper studied many aspects of the RFID application such as budgeting, purchase process, advantages and limitation of RFID technology, documentation and financial implication, challenges faced in initial stage and remedies. A structured questionnaire using descriptive survey method was designed to collect data. The study employed the method of quantitative research to gather an in-depth understanding of the nature of usage of RFID system among users of Olusegun Oke Library. The findings of the study revealed that RFID is functional and useful in such areas as speedy circulation, easy book identification, security of library materials and other value added services while the major problem to implementation include technological limitations, interference concerns, prohibitive costs and lack of global standards. The study concluded that orientation programme for all users for the RFID enabled is very much important.

Assessment of the quality of sexual and reproductive health services delivered to adolescents at Ujala clinics: A qualitative study in Rajasthan, India

The Adolescent Friendly Health Clinic (AFHCs), a key component of the Government of India’s National Adolescent Health Programme a.k.a. Rashtriya Kishor Swasthya Karyakram (RKSK), aims to increase the accessibility and utilization of sexual-reproductive health services by adolescents and youth. However, low quality of care provided at AFHCs by counsellors calls for attention. We, thus, explore both the clients’ and providers’ perspectives using the World Health Organization’s (WHO) global standards for quality health-care services for adolescents to assess the quality of the sexual reproductive health service delivery at AFHCs in Rajasthan, India. We conducted a qualitative study, comprising observation of the service delivery using mystery clients (MCs) (n = 12) and in-depth interviews with the counsellors (n = 4) in four AFHCs. Interviews were transcribed in local language and were translated in English. The transcripts were coded thematically. Our study, using five of the eight WHO global standards for quality health-care services for adolescents highlighted several gaps in the quality-of-service delivery at AFHCs. We unearth various intricacies related to the quality of the services provided at the AFHCs by referring to the relevant input, process, and the output criteria of WHO global standards I, III, IV, V and VI. Our study calls for efforts to improve- (i) the counsellors’ competencies to increase adolescents’ health literacy on sensitive topics, (ii) the facilities at the clinic to ensure privacy, comfort and confidentiality of the adolescents seeking services, (iii) the referrals to improve appropriate package of services, and (iv) an overall environment to ensure an equity and non-discrimination for all the adolescents. Our findings unearth the barriers that both the service providers and the adolescents face at the AFHCs and underscore the need for regular monitoring and evaluation of the AFHCs to strengthen the facility-based intervention of the RKSK programme.

Metastructuring for Standards

This chapter focusses on the appearance and implementation of process standards in software development organizations. The authors are interested in the way organizations handle the plurality of process standards. Organizations respond by metastructuring to the increasing demand for standardizing their development processes. Standards metastructuring summarizes all organizational mechanisms for facilitating the ongoing adaption of global standards to the organizational context. Based on an in-depth single case study of a software developing organization in the automotive technology sector, the authors found four areas of metastructuring, four roles for standard mediation, and four types of metastructuring activities. With the case study, they encourage further research that proves standards in use and how organizations respond to the challenges of standardization.

Article 37: Prohibition of Torture, Capital Punishment, and Arbitrary Deprivation of Liberty

Article 37 is inspired by the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). However, it extends the ICCPR’s provisions to the protection of the children by: (1) imposing the prohibition of life imprisonment for children without the possibility of release; (2) demanding that detention of a child shall be used as a measure of last resort and be imposed for the shortest period of time; and (3) providing to children deprived of liberty the right to maintain contacts with their family members. Article 37 imposes a child-centred understanding of its provisions and rights. These rights extend beyond the ambit of child justice administration to all situations where children may be deprived of liberty, including, for example, child protection settings, health care settings, and immigration settings. This chapter analyses Article 37 rights in accordance with four essential attributes, as enumerated in its four constituent paragraphs: (1) the prohibition in paragraph (a) on torture or ill-treatment, specifically ruling out capital punishment and life imprisonment without parole for minors; (2) the prohibition in paragraph (b) of unlawful and arbitrary deprivations of liberty, insisting that such sanctions are a measure of last resort that must only be imposed for the shortest appropriate period; (3) the limitations on the deprivation of liberty, including the core commitment in paragraph (c) to upholding the child’s inherent dignity and right to be treated with humanity in such circumstances; and (4) the right, in paragraph (d), to minimal due process guarantees which must accompany any child’s deprivation of liberty. While youth criminal justice practice varies greatly from state to state, Articles 37 and 40 have emerged as a codification of global standards set out in the Beijing Rules and a summary prompt to the adoption of guidelines and minimum rules for the protection of children deprived of liberty and the prevention of youth crime. Article 37 should therefore be applied consistently with the recent General Comment no. 24 (2019) on Children’s Rights in the Child Justice System.

Identification of the nitrate and nitrite content in leafy vegetables from the city of Zliten: تحديد محتوى النترات والنتريت في الخضار الورقية من مدينة زليتن

The study identifies the nitrate (NO3) and nitrite (NO2) content in leafy vegetables (parsley, chard, coriander) in three agricultural areas in Zliten (Azdo, Dafniya, Madjer) using the colorimeter dr / 980 device, and assesses whether the content is within the comparatively with allowable concentrations. The results obtained from this study show that the nitrate concentrations in all samples examined are within the global standards, with the highest level of 5.5 ppm found in chard samples collected from the area of Azdo. As for nitrite, the concentrations found in the studied samples are higher than nitrate concentrations. Overall, the nitrate and nitrite content are found to be within the permitted concentrations based on international standards, where the highest concentration of nitrite of 60 ppm is recorded in parsley samples from the Dafniya area.

Covid-19 and ISO9001 practices in air cargo transportation

Air cargo transportation in international trade stands out with its speed, reliability, safety, interaction with other transportation types, intensive use of information technologies, and global standards. During the Covid-19 pandemic, various negativities have emerged in air cargo transportation, as in many sectors. In this study, the difficulties caused by the Covid-19 pandemic in air cargo transportation business processes are evaluated within the scope of the ISO9001 Quality Management System standard so that they do not adversely affect the service quality. In this context, a case study was conducted on the implementation of the ISO 9001 Quality Management System standard in dealing with the difficulties arising from the pandemic in the cargo operations of an air transportation company. As a result of the implementation, the cargo ecosystem has been expanded, the carrying capacity has been increased, and the storage and cargo transportation efficiency has been increased by making use of information and communication technologies. Thus, it was easier to overcome the difficulties arising from the pandemic in the business processes of the company, and it was seen that sustainability in line with commercial expectations was ensured by rising to fifth place in world air cargo transportation in 2020.

Can India’s Higher Education Improve Through Better Management of Human Resources: A Comparative Study of India and the United States

This study investigates human resource management (HRM) practices in higher education institutions (HEIs) based on a comparative analysis of India and the US. Although higher education in India has grown over the decades, its quality, in general, has not kept up with global standards. On the other hand, many US universities have performed consistently well in international university rankings. Based on qualitative research collected from principal stakeholders of HEIs in India and the US, HRM practices and policies followed by them are presented and discussed. Data collection for the research study was through web interviews during the period August–October 2020. The study reveals that Indian public HEIs do not have professional HRM teams. Also, they are in a formative stage in autonomous and private institutions. On the other hand, many HEIs in the US have developed mature HRM systems. This difference resonates in attributes such as structure of HRM, recruitment and selection processes, training and development programmes, performance management, career progression and talent retention.

Presence and Characterization of Microplastics in Coastal Fish around the Eastern Coast of Thailand

Marine microplastic has been in the limelight recently. This study aimed to describe microplastic types ingested by 274 fish from Thailand’s eastern coast in 2020 and to compare the microplastic content among different feeding traits. The microplastics in the gastrointestinal tracts and gills were extracted, analyzed, and identified using FT-IR spectroscopy. Approximately 13.14% of the total specimen ingested microplastics, with an average of 0.14 items per individual. The detection frequency of microplastics was relatively high compared with other regions in Thailand but relatively low compared to global standards. Of the microplastic contaminated specimens, 56.41% had at least one piece of microplastic in their gastrointestinal tract. Pelagic (14.47%) species were found to have ingested more microplastics than the demersal (12.63%) group. Dominant aspects found included PET (as in polymers), fiber (as in shape), and black (as in color). However, microplastic numbers fluctuated with the size, weight, and feeding behavior of fish. This result suggested that the pelagic has a higher exposure risk and microplastic ingestion in relatively small quantities in a range of fish species. Our results indicated that the occurrence of microplastics in fish is not influenced by organism habitat or trophic level, although the characteristics of pelagic fish might significantly increase the chance of exposure to microplastics in pelagic species.

Biopharmaceutical Industry Capability Building in India: Report from a Symposium

The biopharmaceutical industry is evolving with a shift in focus from recombinant proteins and antibodies towards more complex cell and gene therapies. To be competitive globally, biomanufacturers need to focus on aligning with global standards with regard to drug quality, reducing manufacturing failures and delivering drugs to market quickly. Building these capabilities requires a multifaceted approach that includes improvements in operations, quality compliance, and control strategies. To address these needs, the US Pharmacopeia (USP), the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) India, and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) held a symposium to discuss the requirements and gaps in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical sectors in India and other developing countries. A panel of experts from academia, manufacturing, and governmental agencies identified several drivers needed for capability building, including a skilled workforce, public–private partnerships, advanced manufacturing technologies, novel biologics, and favorable policies. This article summarizes the recommendations put forward by this panel.