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Digital data protection is crucial to prevent unauthorized modifications and tampering. A secure, reliable, and efficient encryption technique is needed to safeguard digital images. This paper proposes a novel MS Circle Map-based image encryption algorithm, integrating chaotic dynamics for enhanced security. The encryption process begins by transforming the plain image matrix into a row vector. A secret key is then used as the initial condition for the MS Circle Map to generate a chaotic keystream. The encryption is performed through pixel diffusion using an XOR operation between the pixel intensity vector and the keystream, ensuring high randomness. The proposed method features a large key space, high key sensitivity, and strong resistance to brute force, statistical, and differential attacks. Performance evaluation through key space analysis, initial value sensitivity, entropy, correlation coefficient, NPCR, and UACI shows that the encrypted image using MS Circle Map has strong security properties. Meanwhile, the quality test results based on MSE and PSNR values confirm that the decrypted image is exactly the same as the original image.

Agriculture productivity is regularly affected by floods and droughts, and the severity is likely to increase in the future. Even if significant efforts are spent on water development projects, ineffective project planning often means that they continue to occur or are only partly mitigated, for example, in the Mun River Basin, Thailand, where 1000s of water projects have been implemented. Despite this, the basin regularly experiences floods and droughts. In this study, an analysis of the adverse impacts of basin-scale floods and droughts on rice cultivation in the Mun River Basin is conducted, and an estimation of the coping capacity of existing measures. The results demonstrate that while the total storage capacity of in-situ and ongoing projects would be sufficient to tackle both hazards, it can only be achieved if the projects are effectively utilised. Based on this, proposed solutions for the region include small farm ponds, a subsurface floodwater harvesting system, and oxbow lake reconnections. The suggested measures are practicable, economical, environmentally low-impact, and their implementation (if executed with appropriate care) would reduce flood and drought problems in the basin. Notably, the measures and calculation methods proposed for this basin can also be applied to other crops and regions.

Due to their biocompatibility, biodegradability, and non-toxicity, lignocellulosic-derived nanoparticles are very potential materials for drug carriers in drug delivery applications. There are three main lignocellulosic-derived nanoparticles discussed in this review. First, lignin nanoparticles (LNPs) are an amphiphilic nanoparticle which has versatile interactions toward hydrophilic or hydrophobic drugs. The synthesis methods of LNPs play an important role in this amphiphilic characteristic. Second, xylan nanoparticles (XNPs) are a hemicellulose-derived nanoparticle, where additional pretreatment is needed to obtain a high purity xylan before the synthesis of XNPs. This process is quite long and challenging, but XNPs have a lot of potential as a drug carrier due to their stronger interactions with various drugs. Third, cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) are a widely exploited nanoparticle, especially in drug delivery applications. CNCs have low cytotoxicity, therefore they are suitable for use as a drug carrier. The research possibilities for these three nanoparticles are still wide and there is potential in drug delivery applications, especially for enhancing their characteristics with further surface modifications adjusted to the drugs.

Chaos based cryptography has becoming an interesting topic lately, as it utilizes chaotic systems properties for secure key concealment. Many chaotic functions are discovered, constructed, and used time over time for this purpose, which will be our main aim here. Two well known maps that has been known for exhibiting chaotic behaviors are the Gauss Map and the Circle Map, where the Circle Map has unlimited chaos potential, while the Gauss Map's is much weaker and limited. In this paper, we investigate computationally using Python whether the Gauss Map can be improved by combining it with the Circle Map, allowing exploitation of greater chaotic behaviors. For this purpose, an improved version of the Gauss map is constructed, from which, we plot its bifurcation diagrams and Lyapunov exponents graphics, and show that it has a good potential to be a random number generator (RNG) using the NIST test, as these are the three main aspects of chaotic maps utilized in chaos based cryptography. The results obtained from this observation shows that composing the Circle Map into the Gauss Map, along with several manipulations, generates a significantly improved version of the Gauss Map, as it has a bifurcation diagram with much higher density, much higher Lyapunov exponents, and mostly better P-Values from the NIST tests, although it is still not fully suitable for a RNG. The manipulations done here, which aims to conserve the maps ranges to stay within the chaotic intervals and position the Circle Map to be the \"variable\" of the Gauss Map, allows the chaotic behaviors from the original maps to be bequeathed and strengthened in the new map.

This paper presents knowledge gaps and critiques on the water–energy–food (WEF) nexus that have emerged since the concept of the WEF nexus was proposed by the World Economic Forum and the Bonn 2011 Conference. Furthermore, this study analyses current innovations on the WEF nexus concept, applications, and impacts during the period of 2012–2020. This begins by reviewing ten WEF nexus frameworks developed by international organizations and researchers. On this basis, several gaps and omissions in nexus frameworks are obvious in almost all developed frameworks. Studies that start to address some of these gaps are analysed, but they are relatively few and do not address all gaps. Several proposed improvements to nexus frameworks are identified to narrow the gaps and put the concept into practical implementation in WEF resources management and governance. Four principles and the perspective of “from local to global” for future WEF nexus framework development and analysis are suggested to ensure that the security of water, energy, and food resources can be achieved sustainably in local communities. This will improve the impact of national and global ambitions on WEF security.

This study aims to document plant species used to fight several diseases related to mild COVID‐19 symptoms such as cough, colds, fever, dizziness and diarrhoea in Gorontalo Province, eastern Indonesia. Data were collected from 105 local residents using semistructured questionnaires, open interviews and field surveys. Ethnobotanical indices including use reports (UR), relative frequency of citation (RFC) and fidelity level (FL) were used to analyse the data. A total of 82 plant species from 40 families were recorded. Plectranthus scutellarioides (L.) R.Br. is predominantly used to treat cough, Zingiber officinale Roscoe to treat colds, Bryophyllum pinnatum (Lam.) Oken to treat fever, Allium sativum L. to treat dizziness and Psidium guajava L. to treat diarrhoea. The current research reveals that P. guajava L. is the most popular plant species with a high index value (RFC 0.62, FL 62%). Leaves (46.46%) are the most widely used part of the plant for some of these diseases. Boiling (31.70%) is the main method in preparing medicinal plants, most of which are given orally (77.73%). In addition, no serious side effects caused by the consumption of these medicinal plants in the treatment of several diseases related to mild COVID‐19 symptoms have been reported. Current studies reveal the wealth and wide use of plant species to manage cough, colds, fever, dizziness and diarrhoea in the study area. Traditional knowledge of medicinal plants used by local residents of Gorontalo Province may help in the treatment of several diseases related to mild COVID‐19 symptoms. Further research on preclinical studies needs to be conducted to provide scientific evidence of this result.

Purpose The acceleration of digital transformation in the public sector has encouraged governments to adopt e-government systems to improve efficiency, transparency, and service quality. In Indonesia, this agenda is formalised through the Electronic-Based Government System (SPBE) under Presidential Regulation No. 95 of 2018. This study aims to analyse how SPBE is implemented in the Ministry of Manpower of the Republic of Indonesia as a central agency and in the Manpower Office of Banten Province as a regional agency, and to explain the dynamics and consequences of this implementation using public policy implementation theory. Methodology A qualitative case study design is employed, combining in-depth interviews with policymakers, implementers, and users. Findings The findings show that SPBE has driven the adoption of various digital applications and has begun to change work patterns from manual to digital in both central and regional offices. However, implementation is still characterised by fragmented systems, limited interoperability between central and local platforms, rigid digital procedures, uneven socialisation, and the persistence of manual routines. These patterns reveal gaps between formal policy standards and actual performance. Conclusion The study implies that strengthening SPBE requires better integration between central and regional systems, design digital services that are simple and user-friendly, improve coordination and digital skills, and manage SPBE by involving many actors, not just through top-down instructions.

This paper discusses implementation of Gauss-Circle Map (GCM) in cryptography and steganography process simultaneously. Cryptography is used for securing data confidentiality, while steganography is used to protect the existence of data. The objects that used in this thesis are digital text and digital images. This research was conducted by designing algorithms for encryption and embedding simultaneously, as well as extraction and decryption simultaneously then implement it with python programming. Results obtained from the observation shows that GCM had randomness level 100% using NIST test with chosen parameter x 0 (1) = x 0 (2) = 0, α (1) = α (2) = 9, β (1) = β (2) = 0.481, K (1) = K (2) = 1000000, and Ω (1) = Ω (2) = 0.5. Algorithm that have been designed have varying degrees of sensitivity according to different parameters, and high key spaces that reaches 2.6244 × 10 1269 . Encrypted image is uniformly distributed since it passes goodness of fit test. Correlation coefficient values of the stego image are at interval [0.89,1] and very close to correlation coefficient values of the cover image. However, Peak Signal to Noise Ratio (PSNR) of the stego image did not meet standard (above 40 dB). Here, the extracted-decrypted stego image have perfect similarity with the original image.

The energy transition is progressing slowly in the ten member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). To achieve ASEAN’s target of 23% renewables in the primary energy supply by 2025, the region would need to invest USD 27 billion in renewable energy every year. However, the ASEAN countries attracted no more than USD 8 billion annually from 2016 to 2021. Through a comparative review of three key factors for attracting investment—renewable energy legislation, energy governance reform, and general conditions for investors—this study examines why the region’s renewable energy sector has not attracted more capital. The contribution of the article is threefold. First, it develops a new review model for assessing the business climate for renewable energy in any country. Second, it offers an update on the state of renewable energy deployment in the ASEAN countries. Third, taking into account international best practices, it identifies the obstacles and solutions to attracting investment in renewable energy in Southeast Asia. The article finds that carbon lock-in is pervasive, regulatory practices have been copy-pasted from the fossil-fuel sector to the renewables sector, and, except for Malaysia and Vietnam, no ASEAN country has implemented a major pro-renewable energy governance reform. Certain advanced renewable energy measures, such as auctions and feed-in tariffs, have been adopted in some member states, but the institutional capacity to implement them is limited. The share of renewables in the energy governance system needs to be increased.