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The most traditional sites for electrodermal activity (EDA) data collection, palmar locations such as fingers or palms, are not usually recommended for ambulatory monitoring given that subjects have to use their hands regularly during their daily activities, and therefore, alternative sites are often sought for EDA data collection. In this study, we collected EDA signals (n = 23 subjects, 19 male) from four measurement sites (forehead, back of neck, finger, and inner edge of foot) during cognitive stress and induction of mild motion artifacts by walking and one-handed weightlifting. Furthermore, we computed several EDA indices from the EDA signals obtained from different sites and evaluated their efficiency to classify cognitive stress from the baseline state. We found a high within-subject correlation between the EDA signals obtained from the finger and the feet. Consistently high correlation was also found between the finger and the foot EDA in both the phasic and tonic components. Statistically significant differences were obtained between the baseline and cognitive stress stage only for the EDA indices computed from the finger and the foot EDA. Moreover, the receiver operating characteristic curve for cognitive stress detection showed a higher area-under-the-curve for the EDA indices computed from the finger and foot EDA. We also evaluated the robustness of the different body sites against motion artifacts and found that the foot EDA location was the best alternative to other sites.

Cryptocurrency investment in India has quickly become a mainstream financial activity, but it is still highly prone to psychological factors that impact the decision-making of retail investors. This study examines the effect of personality traits on cryptocurrency investment behavior using the mediating variable of behavioral biases. Based on the Big Five Personality Model and the theory of Behavioral Finance, data were gathered from 716 Indian retail investors using a structured questionnaire. Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) was conducted to analyze the relationships among the variables. Results show that Openness to experience and Agreeableness significantly predict Availability Bias, whereas Extraversion and Agreeableness affect the Disposition Effect. The theoretical framework shows how bias-driven investment behavior in volatile markets such as cryptocurrency is triggered by personality-based predispositions. The study adds to the behavioral finance literature by taking psychological profiling outside the realms of traditional investment contexts into digital asset investing and provides practical insights for regulators, fintech platforms, and investment advisors to design interventions to mitigate bias and enhance investor education.

The escalating threat of climate change has placed carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions at the forefront of global environmental policy. The relationship between carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and information technology (IT) is crucial in shaping international climate change strategies. This study investigates the impact of information technology, trade globalisation (TG), and economic complexity (EC) on CO2 emissions in BRICS countries using panel data from 1996 to 2018. The analysis applies the CUP-FM estimator to assess long-run relationships and the Dumitrescu-Hurlin panel causality test to evaluate directionality. The results show that information technology significantly reduces CO2 emissions. This effect is primarily driven by the promotion of the service sector, reduced material use, and improved energy efficiency. In contrast, trade globalisation has an inconsistent impact. While it can lower emissions through technology diffusion and efficiency gains, it can also increase them due to Scale Effects and the relocation of polluting industries. This study also identifies a U-shaped relationship between economic complexity and CO2 emissions, indicating that emissions initially rise with complexity but decline as innovation and clean production practices improve. These findings suggest that developing digital infrastructure and green technologies and trade Globalisation can promote sustainable development in BRICS economies. Therefore, policymakers should prioritise strengthening the IT environment, fostering international trade partnerships, and integrating clean technologies to balance economic growth with environmental protection.

This study examines how economic growth, travel, global connection, and changes in population impact the environmental footprint in seven countries, including Russia, the US, China, France, the UK, Pakistan, and India, from 1995 to 2023. The results show a significant link between Granger’s environmental impact and some economic, non-economic, and population factors in these countries. According to the study, environmental impacts result primarily from economic expansion and tourism revenue generation. The essential activities in economic development frequently result in significant ecological deficits through natural resource depletion, land alterations, and environmental releases. Business enlargement and tourism income commonly bring about deforestation while causing both pollution and habitat damage, thus showing why sustainable practices must exist to protect nature during economic development. We also have to consider factors other than economics, such as total income from natural resources and using nuclear power early. Additionally, how many people live in a particular area and the number of children born contribute to these footprints. Also, this study shows how economic, non-economic and demographic issues can indicate what harm the environment might face later. This is especially important in countries that use nuclear energy extensively. The report suggests different ways to solve this problem. These include advocating for sustainable tourism practices, directing research efforts towards nuclear energy, supporting renewable energy initiatives, promoting family planning and education, and raising public awareness. The aim is to reduce the environmental harm caused by nuclear energy and promote a more sustainable future.

The study’s central theme is sustainability practice. It aims to measure the impact of sustainability practices on market performance. The study is quantitative, and data was obtained through a structured questionnaire using a five-point Likert scale. Different firms, such as manufacturing, non-manufacturing, and service support, run the survey by sharing the data (n=200). Data were analysed through Smart PLS version 4.1.0.0, employing a structural equation model (SEM) technique to measure the impact of exogenous variables. All three variables (Employee engagement in sustainability, corporate social responsibility, and environmental concern) positively and significantly impact sustainability practice. Thus, the study’s central finding is that sustainability practice positively influences the market performance of the firms, and the association is also significant. Companies that adopt sustainable practices can differentiate themselves in the market, potentially improving their competitiveness. Companies can exploit the notion that sustainability is a highly efficient technique for stimulating growth. Integrating sustainable principles can lead to long-lasting economic advantages. The novelty of this work is that it considers sustainability practices to determine the impact on market performance. Future work can be conducted on the specification of market performance, such as sales growth, return on investment (ROI), return on assets (ROA), and earnings per share (EPS).

ObjectiveTo assess the contribution of partners in the introduction of two new vaccines concurrently: pneumococcal 10-valent conjugate vaccine (PCV-10) and inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) into the routine Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) in Bangladesh.DesignWe conducted a prospective process evaluation that included the theory of change development, root cause analysis and in-depth investigation. As part of process tracking, we reviewed relevant documents, observed trainers’ and vaccinators’ training and key stakeholder meetings. We analysed the data thematically.SettingWe purposively selected eight Upazila (subdistrict) and one city corporation covering nine districts and seven administrative divisions of Bangladesh.ParticipantsNineteen national key informants were interviewed and 16 frontline health workers were invited to the group discussions considering their involvement in the vaccine introduction process.ResultsThe EPI experienced several challenges during the joint introduction of PCV-10 and IPV, such as frequent changes in the vaccine introduction schedule, delays in budget allocation, vaccine supply shortage and higher wastage rates of IPV. EPI addressed these challenges in collaboration with its partners, that is, the World Health Organization (WHO) and United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), who provided technical assistance to develop a training curriculum and communication materials and enhanced demand generation at the community level. In addition, the WHO conducted a country readiness assessment for PCV-10, and UNICEF supported vaccine shipment. Other government ministries, City Corporations and municipalities also supported the EPI.ConclusionsThe partnership among the EPI stakeholders effectively addressed various operational challenges during the joint introduction of PCV-10 and IPV helped strengthen Bangladesh’s immunisation systems. These accomplishments are attributed to several factors that should be supported and strengthened for future vaccine introductions in Bangladesh and other low and-middle countries.

The most prominent form of human communication and interaction is speech. It plays an indispensable role for expressing emotions, motivating, guiding, and cheering. An ill-intentioned speech can mislead people, societies, and even a nation. A misguided speech can trigger social controversy and can result in violent activities. Every day, there are a lot of speeches being delivered around the world, which are quite impractical to inspect manually. In order to prevent any vicious action resulting from any misguided speech, the development of an automatic system that can efficiently detect suspicious speech has become imperative. In this study, we have presented a framework for acquisition of speech along with the location of the speaker, converting the speeches into texts and, finally, we have proposed a system based on long short-term memory (LSTM) which is a variant of recurrent neural network (RNN) to classify speeches into suspicious and nonsuspicious. We have considered speeches of Bangla language and developed our own dataset that contains about 5000 suspicious and nonsuspicious samples for training and validating our model. A comparative analysis of accuracy among other machine learning algorithms such as logistic regression, SVM, KNN, Naive Bayes, and decision tree is performed in order to evaluate the effectiveness of the system. The experimental results show that our proposed deep learning-based model provides the highest accuracy compared to other algorithms.

This study aims to empirically analyse the critical success factors affecting e-Commerce adoption by SMEs in Bangladesh. It identifies the benefits of e-Commerce adoption realized by these SMEs and investigates the relationships among those factors. In developing countries, previous studies were consulted to formulate the adoption in their parent countries, but the observations regarding e-Commerce remain on upstream. They focused on major issues rather than minor ones. This study examines the four main critical success factors (technological, organizational, environmental and strategical) in Bangladesh. 500 Respondents of 210 SMEs were given questionnaires. The Results were analyzed using the SPSS version 25. The analysis result will be helpful for future researchers and policy makers to promote the B2C e Commerce adoption as predictors of SMEs.

The service industry in China faces significant challenges in achieving environmental sustainability, with sustainable marketing emerging as a critical solution. This study aims to develop a comprehensive model combining the Stimulus–Organism–Response (SOR) theory and the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) theory to analyze the mediating roles of big data applications and marketing innovation in fostering sustainable marketing practices. Using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) on a sample of 319 service industry professionals in China, this study examines key factors such as environmental responsibility, consumer engagement, and organizational capabilities. The findings reveal that environmental responsibility and consumer engagement have a significant positive impact on sustainable marketing practices, with big data applications and marketing innovation serving as crucial mediators. This research provides valuable insights for service managers in China to align technological advancements and innovative approaches with sustainability objectives. Future research is encouraged to explore other industry-specific factors and extend the findings to different regions.

The coronavirus has created significant disruptions and exposed supply chain (SC) vulnerabilities. This crisis started a discussion about SC sustainability and performance. Therefore, the implementation of advanced technologies and supply chain collaboration could mitigate this disruption with the help of government support and policies. Considering this situation, this paper examines how COVID-19 influences advanced technologies (Artificial Intelligence, the Internet of Things, Blockchain, Digital twins, and Big Data Analytics) and supply chain collaboration (SCC) with a moderating role of government support and policies (GSP) in Pakistan. The study encompasses a comprehensive assessment carried out via structural equation modeling and data collected from Pakistani companies engaged in SCM or those operating within the SC divisions of manufacturing enterprises. According to the empirical findings, it is evident that COVID-19 outbreaks have a significant influence on SSCP; However, they do not show a similar impact on advanced technologies (AI, IoT, Blockchain, DT, and BDA) and supply chain collaboration, the influence of COVID-19 on SSCP was effectively mediated through advance technologies (AI, IoT, Blockchain, DT, and BDA) and supply chain collaboration. This research contributes to the existing literature on SSCP by emphasizing the importance of the resource-based view, dynamic capability view, and institutional theories. SC and logistics managers can apply the theoretical framework proposed in this study to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic or disruptions in logistics and SC operations, thereby improving profitability in the context of an epidemic.