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China’s culture is one of the oldest and most complex in the world, with a history that spans thousands of years. Rooted in Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism, Chinese culture emphasizes harmony, respect for tradition, and the importance of family. These philosophies have profoundly influenced the social values, customs, and daily life of the Chinese people. This study aimed to identify 10 different dimensions and the perception of quality amongst tourists based on the rural tourism experience. Perceived value and tourism satisfaction are seen as two constructs that bridge the gulf between these quality perceptions and the tourists’ future behavior — that is, the intent of tourists to revisit, spread positive word-of-mouth, and their propensity to splurge on unique rural products. Furthermore, we also examined the respondents’ areas where they lived in urban or rural areas which would affect their perceptions and behaviors. The analysis was identified using data from 650 respondents’ four key quality dimensions: tourism environment and transportation, companionship and learning, culture and local items, and rural environment as perceived by the tourists. Indeed, the findings lend considerable empirical support to the relationship of perceived quality with perceived value, satisfaction, and the dimensions of the behavioral intentions of tourists. Interestingly, the study showed residents — the urban and rural residents of tourists — as a very important moderator of these relationships. These are important insights that would be invaluable in explaining the driving factors of tourists’ intentions and the imperative for the sustainable growth of rural tourism in China.

We discuss the role that synchrotron light sources, such as SESAME, could play in improving the socioeconomic conditions in developing countries. After providing a brief description of a synchrotron light source, we discuss the important role that they played in the development of several economically emerging countries. Then we describe the state of synchrotron science in South Africa and that country’s leadership role in founding the African Light Source initiative. Next, we highlight a new initiative called Lightsources for Africa, the Americas & Middle East Project, which is a global initiative led by the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics and the International Union of Crystallography, with initial funding provided by the International Council for Science. Finally, we comment on a new technology called the multibend achromat that has launched a new paradigm for the design of synchrotron light sources that should be attractive for construction in developing countries.

Content-based Image Retrieval (CBIR) has been an active area of research for retrieving similar images from large repositories, without the prerequisite of manual labeling. Most current CBIR algorithms can faithfully return a list of images that matches the visual perspective of their inventors, who might decide to use a certain combination of image features like edges, colors and textures of regions as well as their spatial distribution during processing. In practice, however, the retrieved images rarely correspond exactly to the results expected by the users, a problem that has come to be known as the semantic gap. In this paper, we propose a novel and extensible multidimensional approach called matrix of visual perspectives as a solution for addressing this semantic gap. Our approach exploits the dynamic cross-interaction (in other words, mix-and-match) of image features and similarity metrics to produce results that attempt to mimic the mental visual picture of the user. Experimental results on retrieving similar Japanese cultural heritage symbols called kamons by a prototype system confirm that the interaction of visual perspectives in the user can be effectively captured and reflected. The benefits of this approach are broader. They can be equally applicable to the development of CBIR systems for other types of images, whether cultural or noncultural, by adapting to different sets of application specific image features.

In order to analyze the feasibility of integrating Sunan music into children’s music teaching through research, a knowledge-based system for children’s music teaching strategies based on case-based reasoning is proposed. The system can collect sufficient data and information, the exact orientation of piano learning, and the exact choice of teaching modes by questionnaires. Research data show that the vast majority of children like music teaching, and they like 76% more than they do not like, and more parents who express an indifferent attitude to music are 84% more than those who feel important. This experimental study shows that most teachers hold a positive attitude toward the development and use of folk music education resources in kindergartens, and parents do not have enough knowledge about folk music. The infiltration of excellent local culture in children’s music activities can improve students’ cultural literacy, let the new generation understand the tradition and the classics, and let children understand the local culture of southern Jiangsu and inherit the excellent culture of the Chinese nation through the understanding, feeling, and understanding of the local culture of southern Jiangsu. This is the new idea of local cultural heritage in southern Jiangsu and also the responsibility of kindergarten education.

North-West Europe has a rich cultural heritage which is increasingly prone to impacts from development activities. This paper reports the findings of the "Planarch" study funded by the European Regional Development Fund Interreg IIIB programme. Overall, whilst there are examples of good practice, cultural heritage has a relatively low profile in EIA in the countries studied. Nevertheless, cultural heritage is important and makes wider contributions to society beyond its intrinsic value. Therefore, the profile of cultural heritage needs to be raised both within the planning process and EIA, and also in the minds of decision-makers, other specialists and the wider public. Ten guiding principles provide a first step in promoting the assessment of cultural heritage in EIA, and also to build the consideration of cultural heritage into more strategic planning decisions through SEA.

Indonesia is one of the archipelago countries located in Asia and it has diverse cultures. In modern society, Indonesian traditional houses have become rare and need to be preserved. This research is conducted to build a digital collection and to develop an image-based automatic recognition system for Indonesian traditional houses. In this paper, the traditional house images are collected in several ways: on-site image captures, receiving images from volunteers, and collecting public images from Google. The dataset is limited to the collection of building shape images, excluding the interior design. The authors implement Convolutional Neural Networks (ConvNets) to build a model for an automatic recognition system. The experiments run some deep network models: VGG, DenseNet, Inception, Xception, MobileNetV2, NasNetMobile, and EfficientNet. The experiments involve 1526 images of 16 classes. EfficientNet-Lite0 outperforms other models and produces the average F1-score and accuracy of 90.1% and 91.8%, respectively. ConvNets also outperform conventional classifiers.

A major problem in developing interactive interfaces is how to guide users with respect to which queries they can ask. This is because users need to know what is possible to ask in a particular domain. This paper explores these issues in the context of cultural heritage (CH) environments. The effective presentation of CH information requires the application of sophisticated techniques from different areas, mainly human-computer interaction and knowledge management. In this kind of interactive applications users should adopt different accessing strategies independently of how the information is organized in the repositories. Thus, if the information domain is spread in different sources the user has to be able to operate in a transparent way independently of the data-structures of the archives. Moreover, the user would not be taken aback by a huge amount of data available, but the information has to be tailored according to the real user's interests. The proposed approach is based on the definition of relationships between the information cultural domain fitting the conceptual model of the cultural experts (represented by an appropriate knowledge base) and an information domain which can be understood by the machine (modeled by a domain ontology). The final system's infrastructure filters the richness of the data-sources to comply with the users' needs, tailoring the information according to their context of use. In this way the user can properly navigate through the heritage and create their own personalized thematic tour through a large number of information trails.

X-ray Computed Tomography (CT) is a powerful non-destructive technique that can yield interesting structural information not discernible through visual examination only. This paper presents the results of the CT scans of four objects belonging to the Romanian cultural heritage attributed to the Vinča, Cucuteni and Cruceni-Belegiš cultures. The study was performed with an X-ray tomographic device developed at the Department for Applied Nuclear Physics from Horia Hulubei National Institute for Nuclear Physics and Engineering in Măgurele, Romania. This apparatus was specially designed for archaeometric studies of low-Z artifacts: ceramic, wood, bone. The tomographic investigations revealed the internal configuration of the objects and provided information about the degree to which the previous manipulations affected the archaeological items. Based on the X-ray images resulting from the CT scans, hints about the techniques used in the manufacturing of the artifacts were obtained, as well as some indications useful for conservation/restoration purposes.

How to apply digital archive in the preservation of cultural heritage and the use of sustainable management is a major issue. This study provides a solution for cultural tourism and sustainable development through Location-Based Augmented Reality (LBAR) technology, which is an approach of the design, development, and application of the LBAR game for cultural tourism. The main purpose of research is to improve people’s motivation for exploring cultural heritage, and to understand the effectiveness of LBAR in enhancing people’s awareness of cultural heritage.

First of all, the pilot study was undertaken as a closed experimental field at the 228 Peace Memorial Park, then a LBAR game “Explore Memory in Reality” was developed to analyze self-assessment of field historical knowledge, Attention, Relevance, Confidence, and Satisfaction (ARCS) learning motivation scale and system log. The results indicated that LBAR had a significant impact on awareness improvement. Thus, a well-designed LBAR experience would not only enhance the motivation of exploring and learning cultural heritage but also effectively improve awareness.

Secondly, an open field experiment based on the results of the pilot study was conducted by, using the Wanhua District of Taipei as the experimental field. We developed a LBAR game “Memory Mender” to measure the player’s awareness improvement using the pre- and post-test method. We performed an analysis by using the Player Experience of Need Satisfaction (PENS) scale, Place Attachment (PA) scale and system log. The total number of subjects tested was 77, of which 50 were valid as completing all game levels. The results suggested that the LBAR game had a significant effect on the awareness improvement of cultural heritage knowledge. In addition, if the PENS provided by the LBAR game was improved, so was the PA. This is consistent with the arguments presented in this study.

This study has verified the feasibility of LBAR in cultural heritage application, which provides a good reference for the digital preservation and management of cultural heritage, and valuable suggestions for future research.

In this chapter, we examine how history and cultural heritage are used when telling stories for marketing purposes and how companies, in turn, make cultural heritage in their storytelling. We will focus on four Finnish companies and their ways of representing “Finnish culture” and “Finnishness” in their webpages. In them, history and cultural heritage are visible as symbolic resources. There is an interesting suspense in the way the companies balance between tradition and future orientation and between uniqueness and shared cultural meanings.

When reading and analyzing our material, we have understood the texts and pictures as discourses that simultaneously reflect and construct reality, i.e., we look at heritage as a discursive practice and analyze what kinds of ideas and ideologies can be read behind the ways the past is represented. In our close reading of the company stories we discovered two dichotomies — individuality vs. collectivity and modernism vs. traditionalism — as something that is visible in all of the stories. Although the companies produce products that are very tangible, it is the intangible aspects that are highlighted in the stories, namely values and ways of doing. This interwovenness of past and present is very much a feature of company storytelling.

X-ray emission techniques play important role in the cultural heritage area. They provide information about chemical composition of an object upon bombardment of its surface with electrons, ions, or electromagnetic radiation. Their useful features include non-destructiveness, multielemental capability, and high sensitivity for inorganic components. Especially widely used is the X-ray fluorescence technique. It utilizes electromagnetic radiation generated by X-ray tubes or radioisotope sources. X-ray fluorescence equipment is relatively simple as compared to the charged particle-based spectrometers which are combined with scanning electron microscope or ion beam accelerator. X-ray fluorescence technique can be easily adapted for in situ measurements. A portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometer has been constructed utilizing commercially available, ready made components. The construction details of the spectrometer and examples of its application are given. The key features of the portable system are the use of polycapillary X-ray optics and a vacuum chamber attachment to enhance detection of low atomic number elements such as Mg, Al, Si, P, S, and Cl. The spectrometer was applied for chemical composition analysis of archaeological artifacts and works of arts from the collections of the Museum of Fine Arts (Kunsthistorisches Museum), Vienna, Austria. The investigated objects included ancient bronzes, coins, samples of pigments, and famous goldsmith work "Saliera" by Benvenuto Cellini (1500-1571). This work highlights also other projects related to the applications of nuclear analytical techniques in support of study and preservation of cultural heritage objects supported by the International Atomic Energy Agency and carried out in the Agency's Member States.

This paper presents a semantic approach in the development of a metadata conceptual model for the development of a metadata scheme to represent palm leaf manuscripts (PLMs). The approach is based on the requirements of users, of collection management, and of PLMs characteristics to facilitate their retrieval in digital collections. Then, the IFLA's Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR) was adapted to extract the appropriate metadata elements and its relationship. The FRBR model uses a structured, four-level hierarchy to represent an intellectual work with multiple titles, editions or formats. Because FRBR focuses on representation of the conceptual work rather than the physical entity, it must be modified for representation of PLMs. In this modified model, the level of work applies to the physical PLM rather than its conceptual content; expression applies to the scripts, languages, and literary styles in which the PLM occurs; manifestation applies to the formats in which each expression is available; and item applies to individual copies of a single format of reproduction. The modified model has been used to devise a metadata schema where each level has its own set of elements.

Arunachal Pradesh, the eastern most state of India, is one of the ‘hotspots’ of global biodiversity. This state is a micro-hotspot within the larger Eastern Himalayas hotspot. Based on satellite imagery, the forest area in this state constitutes around 81.91% of its total area, which is one of the highest of any state in India. The conflict between development process and protecting the rich biodiversity of Arunachal Pradesh is becoming increasingly apparent. Arunachal Pradesh has a unique opportunity to map out a development path that is sustainable and ecologically sound. Despite being rich in its natural resource endowment, the state is one of the most backward states of India. In these circumstances, the promotion of tourism appears to be one of the best ways of generating internal revenue, employment, income and accelerating the pace of development in this state. In addition, the promotion of nature-based and ecotourism can play an important role in the State's strategy for conserving its rich forest resources as well as its cultural heritage. Hence, the present chapter deals with the opportunities and challenges of developing tourism in this remote state of India.

This paper discusses the methodology and data collection technique used to gather data for the researcher's master thesis study on smartphone applications. The aims of the study were to describe current usage patterns of smartphone applications, to determine users' desired specifications for smartphone applications showcasing cultural heritage collections, and to carry out a user study of the Musée du Louvre iPhone application as a model for the development of a new cultural heritage application for smartphones. An online survey tool, QuestBack, was used to collect both quantitative and qualitative data. For the quantitative data, analysis was performed using tools offered by QuestBack, while for the qualitative data, the researcher performed the coding and analysis.