Cultural reflections on furniture

Culture is the social behaviours in human being’s society, but it can also influence designers and their works. If Nordic design is considered popular, can the design methodology duplicate to reflect East Asian culture? Can a design language be refined from the carrier of culture, such as architectures? By knowing more about Nordic design and East Asian culture, A good design with East Asian culture and Nordic minimalism can be made. It is a test of blending design methodology with another culture so that a successful experience can be referred and design can also become a tool to help communicate between different cultures. The starting point is different from traditional design process which comes from structure or user cases, but from a culture. History of Scandinavian design is analysed to receive the clue of the design philosophy. As a good cultural carrier, traditional architecture in East Asia can stably reflect local culture. The design language can refined from these architecture to reflect the culture. Torii, as an example, is selected. Many researches on structure and shapes are done for next form exploration. Using sketches and mockups, these elements can be transferred into a chair to reflect its inherent culture. There are relatively certain elements that can represent a certain culture in architecture. These traditional architectures provide a timeline to trace the evolution of a culture. In the meanwhile, these elements can be refined and reused. Furthermore, with the help of simple and minimalistic design philosophy, these elements are also suitable to show in a design to tell a cultural story. Even though the elements and character are different and from East Asian culture, with the same Nordic design methodology, it can still be self-adapted, natural and elegant. By expressing Asian culture in Nordic language, there could be more possible potential products designed. Thereby, design can be a new carrier or tool to modernise the old traditional culture and make these culture universally useful and attractive again. Moreover, as the same principle, this method can also be spread to other cultures and more well-designed products in accordance with local culture and living habits can appear

Dynamic change of electrostatic field in TMEM16F permeation pathway shifts its ion selectivity.

TMEM16F is activated by elevated intracellular Ca2+, and functions as a small-conductance ion channel and as a phospholipid scramblase. In contrast to its paralogs, the TMEM16A/B calcium-activated chloride channels, mouse TMEM16F has been reported as a cation-, anion-, or non-selective ion channel, without a definite conclusion. Starting with the Q559K mutant that shows no current rundown and less outward rectification in excised patch, we found that the channel shifted its ion selectivity in response to the change of intracellular Ca2+ concentration, with an increased permeability ratio of Cl- to Na+ (PCl-/PNa+) at a higher Ca2+ level. The gradual shift of relative ion permeability did not correlate with the channel activation state. Instead, it was indicative of an alteration of electrostatic field in the permeation pathway. The dynamic change of ion selectivity suggests a charge-screening mechanism for TMEM16F ion conduction, and it provides hints to further studies of TMEM16F physiological functions

Visitors’ willingness to pay for interpretive services in Alberta parks

Interpretive services provided at protected areas can add value to visitors’ experiences. They can also serve as conservation management tool in mitigating negative behaviours and inspiring pro-environmental action through educational and entertaining content and delivery. With shrinking investment in conservation from public coffers, protected area managers are increasingly forced to charge for specific services such as interpretation. While some research has examined visitor’s willingness to pay park fees, far fewer have examined WTP for interpretation. A sample of 730 visitors to four Alberta, Canada World Heritage sites was used to investigate visitors’ willingness to pay for park interpretation services. In-person delivery and specialized content garnered higher levels of WTP for park interpretation services. Wealthier visitors were more willing to pay fees, as were those who had already invested time (i.e., involvement) to learn about cultural and natural heritage (i.e., WH experts). Unexpectedly, education, travel with kids, and travel motives related to learning about cultural and natural heritage, were not significantly related to WTP for park interpretation services

Relationship between sleep quality and subjective well-being: resilience as a mediator and belief in a just world as a moderator

Background/PurposeSleep quality significantly impacts subjective well-being, yet its underlying mechanisms remain largely unknown from a scholarly perspective. Existing research has inadequately addressed the relationship between sleep quality and the subjective well-being of College students. This study primarily investigates the influence of sleep quality on the subjective well-being of College students and explores the mediating role of resilience and the moderating role of belief in a just world.MethodsThe study sample comprises 3349 enrolled College students. Measures include the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, the Subjective Well-being Scale, resilience scale, and belief in a just world scale. A moderated mediation model is employed to verify the mediating role of resilience and the moderating role of belief in a just world.Results(1) Sleep quality among College students is significantly positively correlated with resilience, belief in a just world, and subjective well-being. (2) Sleep quality positively predicts subjective well-being among College students. Resilience among College students serves as a mediator between sleep quality and subjective well-being, while belief in a just world moderates the influence of resilience on subjective well-being.ConclusionThe results suggest that sleep quality can directly enhance the subjective well-being of College students and can also indirectly affect it through resilience. Additionally, belief in a just world can enhance the promoting effect of resilience on the subjective well-being of College students. These findings may contribute to understanding the impact of sleep quality on the subjective well-being of College students and its pathways. These research findings can serve as a reference for improving the subjective well-being of College students