Exploring the Role of Female Empowerment in Sustainable Rural Tourism Development: an Exploratory Sequential Mixed-Method Study

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the empowerment of rural women in the context of sustainable tourism development, identify the factors that influence their empowerment, examine the impact of women's empowerment on sustainable tourism development, and explore innovative approaches to empower rural women.   Theoretical Framework: This study combines four factors that influence women's empowerment, namely women's entrepreneurship, education, social capital, and human capital, to form a theoretical framework based on empowerment theory, and uses the empowerment of women as a mediator to explore the elements that impact the sustainable growth of rural tourism.   Design/Methodology/Approach: A mixed research method was employed, starting with qualitative research, where 11 relevant interviews were conducted to gain a preliminary understanding of the factors affecting women's empowerment and the sustainability of rural tourism. Subsequently, a 68-item survey questionnaire was used in the quantitative research stage. A total of 340 responses were collected. The reliability of the questionnaire was tested using Cronbach's alpha, and validation factor analysis was used to assess its validity. Structural analysis and equation modeling (SEM) techniques were used to test the hypotheses of the study.   Findings: The study shows that women's entrepreneurship, education, human and social capital have a positive impact on women's empowerment and sustainable growth of rural tourism. Women's empowerment mediates the relationship between these factors and sustainable development of rural tourism, which also positively impacts sustainable community, economic, environmental, and cultural development. Therefore, promoting women's empowerment and enhancing their access to education and resources are essential for achieving sustainable growth of rural tourism and community development.   Research, Practical & Social implications: This study proposes a new theoretical framework that includes female entrepreneurship, education, social capital, and human capital to fill the gap in knowledge. The development of women in rural tourism is also crucial for society's progress towards civilization, and policies and incentives should be implemented to encourage their participation and ensure their effective involvement. This will contribute to the growth and sustainable development of China's rural tourism industry.   Originality/value: This research provides valuable insights into the role of women's empowerment, education, human capital, and social capital in driving sustainable rural tourism development.Furthermore, this research has a significant impact on how Chinese farmers participate in rural tourism in the future, providing insights into rural revitalization efforts. This study underscores the importance of innovative research in driving perspectives on rural tourism and empowering women, which are essential elements for the sustainable development of rural communities

Effet de projection de pellettes bioxycarbonées sur la qualité de revêtements élaborés par la projection thermique

La technologie de projection plasma atmosphérique (APS) est largement utilisée pour des applications industrielles. Les revêtements élaborés par APS présentent généralement certains défauts. Les travaux effectués dans cette étude ont consisté à étudier et à développer un nouveau moyen pour assurer à la fois un refroidissement efficace au cours de procédé de projection APS et une adaptation des conditions superficielles en vue d élaborer des revêtements de haute qualité. Ce moyen consiste à la projection de glace carbonique (glace sèche ou dioxyde de carbone solide) en association avec la projection plasma. Des simulations numériques ont été réalisées, qui ont permis de constater que les dimensions de la buse de projection de glace carbonique, la pression du gaz propulsif, et les propriétés des pellets de CO2 influencent sensiblement la vitesse des pellets de CO2. A partir de ces éléments, des dimensions optimales ont été évaluées. Afin d examiner l effet de la projection de glace carbonique sur les revêtements réalisés par projection thermique, plusieurs types de matériaux ont été considérés, trois métalliques (acier, CoNiCrAlY et aluminium pur) et trois céramiques (Al2O3, Cr2O3 et ZrO2-Y2O3). Les microstructures des revêtements metalliques réalisés avec projection de glace sèche présentent moins d'oxydes et moins de porosité par rapport à ceux déposés par APS classique. Dans certains cas l adhérence peut aussi être améliorée. Pour les revêtements céramiques, une réduction de la porosité ainsi qu une amélioration significative de l adhérence des revêtements ont été constatés. Pour le dépôt de ZrO2-Y2O3, la résistance aux chocs thermiques a été améliorée en utilisant des paramètres spécifiques. La projection de CO2 peut légèrement déformer la surface des substrats de faible dureté, et nettoyer les pollutions superficielles sur le substrat et conduire à une contrainte de compression plus élevée et à un refroidissement efficace. Il est à noter toutefois qu un problème de condensation de la vapeur d eau peut intervenir en cas de refroidissement du substrat trop important.The technology of atmospheric plasma spraying (APS) is widely used for industrial applications. The coatings produced by APS generally show defects. The work was conducted to investigate and develop a new method to ensure both an effective cooling during the APS process and the adaptation of the surface condition in order to develop high quality coatings. This solution is dry ice (CO2) blasting in combination with thermal spraying. Firstly, numerical simulations were carried out, which revealed that the nozzle size of dry ice blasting, the propellant pressure and the properties of CO2 pellets, significantly affect the velocity of CO2 pellets. From these elements, the optimal dimensions were evaluated. To examine the effects of dry ice blasting on the coatings produced by thermal spraying, several types of materials were considered, three metals (steel, CoNiCrAlY and pure aluminum) and three ceramics (Al2O3, Cr2O3 and ZrO2-Y2O3). The microstructure of metal coatings produced with dry ice blasting show fewer oxides and less porosity compared to those deposited by conventional APS. In some cases the adhesion can be improved. Regarding ceramic coatings, a reduction in porosity and a significant improvement in the coating adhesion were observed. For the deposition of ZrO2-Y2O3, an improvement in thermal shock resistance was achieved using specific parameters. Dry-ice blasting may slightly impact the surface of the substrates with low hardness and could clean the surface pollutions on the substrate and lead to a higher compressive stress and an effective cooling. However, it is noted that the problem of the condensation of water vapor can occur in case of intense cooling of the substrate.BELFORT-UTBM-SEVENANS (900942101) / SudocSudocFranceF

Vascular risk factors for idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus: a systematic review and meta-analysis

ObjectiveIdiopathic normal-pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH) is a treatable cause of dementia; however, its etiology and pathogenesis remain poorly understood. The objective of this study was to investigate the prevalence and impact of vascular risk factors in patients with iNPH compared to a control cohort to better understand the potential mechanisms and preventive measures.MethodsWe systematically searched PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, and the Cochrane Library (from inception to December 20, 2022) for studies reporting vascular risk factors for the development of iNPH. Pooled odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated using random-effects models.ResultsAfter screening 1,462 articles, 11 case-control studies comprising 1,048 patients with iNPH and 79,668 cognitively unimpaired controls were included in the meta-analysis. Our data showed that hypertension (N = 991, OR = 2.30, 95% CI 1.64 to 3.23, I2= 64.0%), diabetes mellitus (DM) (N = 985, OR = 3.12, 95% CI 2.29 to 4.27, I2= 44.0%), coronary heart disease (CHD; N = 880, OR = 2.34, 95% CI 1.33 to 4.12, I2= 83.1%), and peripheral vascular disease (N = 172, OR = 2.77, 95% CI 1.50 to 5.13, I2= 0.0%) increased the risk for iNPH, while overweight was a possible factor (N = 225, OR = 2.01, 95% CI 1.34 to 3.04, I2= 0.0%) based on the sensitivity analysis. Smoking and alcohol consumption were not associated with iNPH.ConclusionsOur study suggested that hypertension, DM, CHD, peripheral vascular disease, and overweight were associated with iNPH. These factors might be involved in the pathophysiological mechanisms promoting iNPH. These findings require further investigation in future studies.Systematic review registrationhttps://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/, CRD42022383004

Clinicopathological characteristics of gastric cancer patients with dermatomyositis and analysis of perioperative management: a case series study

BackgroundThis study aimed to investigate the clinical characteristics of gastric cancer (GC) patients with dermatomyositis (DM) and summarize the perioperative outcomes.MethodsThe clinical and pathological data of five patients diagnosed with co-occurring DM and GC (DM-GC group) were retrospectively analyzed, who were admitted to the Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery at Ren ji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, between January 2012 and April 2023. Their data were compared with 618 GC patients (GC-1 group) from September 2016 to August 2017 and 35 GC patients who were meticulously screened from 14,580 GC cases from January 2012 and April 2023. The matching criteria included identical gender, age, tumor location, TNM stage, and surgical procedure (7 GC patients were matched for each DM-GC patient).ResultsAnalysis indicated that the DM-GC group comprised four female and one male patient. The female proportion was significantly higher (P = 0.032) than that of GC-1 group. In DM-GC group, four DM patients were diagnosed as GC within 12 months. One DM patients was diagnosed as GC within 15 months. Among them, four patients presented with varying degrees of skin rashes, muscle weakness while one patient had elevated CK levels as the typical symptom. Similarly, the preoperative tumor markers (CA-199 and CA-125) in the DM-GC group were significantly higher than normal levels (CA-199: 100 vs. 28.6%, P = 0.002; CA-125: 40 vs. 2.9%, P = 0.003) compared to GC-2 group. Moreover, postoperative complication incidence and the length of hospital stay were significantly higher in the DM-GC than GC-2 group [complication rate: 40 vs. 8.6%, P = 0.047; hospital stay: 15 days (range: 9–28) vs. 9 days (range: 8–10), P = 0.021].ConclusionGC Patients with dermatomyositis are more prone to experience postoperative complications and longer hospital stay

An enhanced tilted-angle acoustic tweezer for mechanical phenotyping of cancer cells

Acoustofluidic devices becomes one of the emerging and versatile tools for many biomedical applications. Most of the previous acoustofluidic devices are used for cells manipulation, and the few devices for cell phenotyping with a limitation in throughput. In this study, an enhanced tilted-angle (ETA) acoustofluidic device is developed and applied for mechanophenotyping of live cells. The ETA Device consists of an interdigital transducer which is positioned along a microfluidic channel. An inclination angle of 5° is introduced between the interdigital transducer and the liquid flow direction. The pressure nodes formed inside the acoustofluidic field in the channel deflect the biological cells from their original course in accordance with their mechanical properties, including volume, compressibility, and density. The threshold power for fully converging the cells to the pressure node is used to calculate the acoustic contrast factor. To demonstrate the ETA device in cell mechanophenotyping, and distinguishing between different cell types, further experimentation is carried out by using A549 (lung cancer cells), MDB-MA-231 (breast cancer cells), and leukocytes. The resulting acoustic contrast factors for the lung and breast cancer cells are different from that of the leukocytes by 27.9% and 21.5%, respectively. These results suggest this methodology can successfully distinguish and phenotype different cell types based on the acoustic contrast factor

A Reconfigurable and Portable Acoustofluidic System Based on Flexible Printed Circuit Board for the Manipulation of Microspheres

Acoustofluidic devices based on surface acoustic waves (SAWs) have been widely applied in biomedical research for the manipulation and separation of cells. In this work, we develop an accessible manufacturing process to fabricate an acoustofluidic device consisting of a SAW interdigital transducer (IDT) and a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microchannel. The IDT is manufactured using a flexible printed circuit board (FPCB) pre-patterned with interdigital electrodes (IDEs) that is mechanically coupled with a piezoelectric substrate. A new microchannel moulding technique is realised by 3D printing on glass slides and is demonstrated by constructing the microchannel for the acoustofluidic device. The flexible clamping mechanism, used to construct the device, allows the reconfigurable binding between the IDT and the microchannel. This unique construction makes the acoustofluidic device capable of adjusting the angle between the microchannel and the SAW propagation, without refabrication, via either rotating the IDT or the microchannel. The angle adjustment is demonstrated by setting the polystyrene microsphere aggregation angle to -5°, 0°, 6°, and 15°. Acoustic energy density measurements demonstrate the velocity of microsphere aggregation in the device can be accurately controlled by the input power. The manufacturing process has the advantages of reconfigurability and rapid-prototyping to facilitate preparing acoustofluidic devices for wider applications