PurposeThis research examines the structure of financial markets by integrating game theory and fuzzy logic. The objective is to develop a differential game model that analyzes competition among financial firms within a specific industry.Design/methodology/approachThis study employs a differential game model, where players set service prices, dynamically influencing market shares and profits over time. The model incorporates two fuzzy criteria—market power (price-variable cost ratio) and product differentiation (Herfindahl-Hirschman index)—to assess market structure. These criteria are applied to data from Tehran Stock Exchange (TSE) industries, specifically banking, insurance, and e-commerce, to evaluate their respective market structures.FindingsThe results indicate that financial industries tend to be closer to perfect competition compared to other market structures. Additionally, a comparative analysis of the status of these industries in relation to each other reveals that the banking and the e-commerce industries exhibit characteristics of monopolistic competition, whereas the insurance industry aligns more closely with perfect competition. This study provides useful insights into player behavior and its implications for financial policy, aiding in market analysis and forecasting.Originality/valueThis research offers a novel approach by integrating game theory and fuzzy logic to analyze the structure of financial markets.
The transformation to Industry 4.0 has significantly revolutionized manufacturing and production processes, raising important questions about their impact on sustainability. This study aims to explore the interplay between Industry 4.0 and the economic, social, and environmental dimensions of sustainability. The methodological approach includes advanced text-mining, sentiment analysis, and association rule-mining techniques to examine 6,759 abstracts from the Scopus database. The text mining highlighted frequent keywords related to Industry 4.0 and the three sustainability dimensions, characterized by “economic growth,” “circular economy,” “social responsibility,” “education 4.0,” “energy efficiency,” and “waste management.” Sentiment analysis revealed a predominantly positive perspective, with 2,608 positive sentiments out of 2,761 in the economic dimension, 1,604 out of 1,728 in the social dimension, and 1,352 out of 1,527 in the environmental dimension. The association rule mining uncovered the associations between Industry 4.0 and each sustainability dimension. The highest support was observed between Industry 4.0 and economic sustainability, with a support value of 0.444, confidence of 0.855, and a lift of 1.060. These findings highlight the role of Industry 4.0 in promoting resource efficiency and reducing waste through circular economy principles and advanced manufacturing technologies. For the social dimension, the analysis revealed a strong association with Industry 4.0 (support: 0.430, confidence: 0.831, lift: 1.030), emphasizing its role in enhancing worker safety and job satisfaction by automating hazardous tasks and creating new high-tech job opportunities. In the environmental dimension, a significant association was found (support: 0.380, confidence: 0.827, lift: 1.024), showing Industry 4.0′s contribution to sustainability through optimized energy consumption and emissions reduction as the integration of big data and IoT enables real-time monitoring of environmental impacts. The rule combining economic and social aspects with Industry 4.0 (support: 0.219, confidence: 0.87, lift: 1.078) highlights the interconnected nature of these dimensions, suggesting many studies consider economic and social dimensions together in the Industry 4.0 context.
Digitization and innovation supported by various innovation systems have become key factors in the sustainable development of companies, countries (including UE countries), and the economy as a whole. The primary objective of this study is to explore the interconnections between the perspectives of the Quintuple Helix model and digitalization as a comprehensive innovation system supporting digitalization in EU countries. The study is grounded in the innovation systems theory, specifically employing the Quintuple Helix Model as a comprehensive framework, and addresses the challenge of digital divide across the EU. The research was conducted using K-means cluster analysis to identify homogeneous groups of countries within the EU. Subsequently, correlation analysis was applied to identify statistically significant relationships between the individual variables examined within the Quintuple Helix model and digitization within EU countries. Based on the results, we identified four distinct clusters of EU countries characterized by different degrees of digitization, governance, and intellectual Capital. It was found that countries with the highest level of digitization are also characterized by the highest levels of governance and intellectual Capital. Correlation analysis confirmed a strong interconnection between the examined perspectives of the Quintuple Helix model and their relationship with digitization.
Clarin Hayes, Fahrul Nurkolis, Dewa Ayu Agus Sri Laksemi
et al.
Coffee became a beverage that was in demand in the world and consequently produced millions of tons of coffee byproducts namely coffee silverskin (CS). Unutilized CS will be waste and cause environmental pollution such as greenhouse gas emissions, landfill waste, and groundwater contamination. This is a research concern at this time, although many studies have been conducted to find newer applications of CS, exploration of its benefits in the health sector is still limited. Therefore, exploring the benefits of CS to prevent or delay aging will be very interesting to develop in functional food industry technology. Therefore, this study aims to report profiling metabolites or phytochemicals, biological activities in terms of antioxidant activity, and potential anti-aging of CS via molecular docking simulation and in vitro modulation of the mTOR/AMPK/SIRT1 pathway. Something new has been obtained from this work, the profile of phytocompounds, and biological activities both in molecular docking simulation and in vitro studies. Some of the compounds observed in Robusta CS extract (rCSE) such as Epicatechin, Kaempferol, and Quercitrin, and Arabica CS extract (aCSE) such as (+)-Catechin dan Naringin have promising potential as inhibitors of iNOS, mTOR, and HIF-1α via molecular docking simulation. Interestingly, the in vitro biological activity assay of antioxidant and anti-aging activity, rCSE showed the same promising potential as the results of a molecular docking simulation. More interestingly, AMPK/SIRT1/mTOR expressions are well modulated by rCSE compared to aCSE significantly (<i>p</i> < 0.05). This makes the rCSE have promising biological activity as a candidate for functional food development and/or treatment agent in combating free radicals that cause the aging process. In vivo studies and human trials are certainly needed to see the further efficacy of the rCSE in the future.
Elvis Pantaleão Ferreira, Geovana Carla Girondi Delaqua, Gabriela Nunes Sales Barreto
et al.
This study examines the potential of adding grape skins to red ceramics to evaluate its effect on the physical and mechanical properties of the clayey body. Five compositions were prepared with different percentages of biomass incorporation: 0%, 2.5%, 5%, 7.5%, and 10%. The specimens were conformed using vacuum extrusion in a laboratory extruder, with dimensions of 120 mm in length and a straight section of 30 × 15 mm. After drying, the pieces were sintered in a laboratory muffle furnace at 700 °C, 800 °C, 900 °C and 1000 °C. Chemical, mineralogical, thermal, physical, morphological, and microscopy tests were conducted on the clayey raw materials. An acceptable formulation was achieved by incorporating up to 5% biomass, fired at 900 °C. For water absorption, the incorporation of up to 5% of biomass fired at 700 °C satisfies the normative limits to produce structural blocks and sealing blocks. From 900 °C onwards, it meets the parameter intended for making roof tiles. The linear shrinkage of the pieces fired up to 900 °C is slightly altered by the incorporation of up to 5% of biomass fired under 800 °C are below 2%. The bending strength, at 700 °C there was an increase in mechanical strength directly proportional to the increase in biomass. However, at 800 and 900 °C, there was a gradual decrease in the bending strength. In turn, at 1000 °C, there was a sudden reduction in bending strenght for all formulations with biomass incorporation.