High in the mountains of Bhutan, the wind doesn't just blow - it carries voices. In remote villages, along empty roads, and inside centuries-old temples, strange things still happen.Ghost Stories from Bhutan gathers stories from across the country, told with the quiet dread of people who vanished, of things that still wait, and of places best left alone.Whether it's a blessing gone wrong in The Annual Blessing, the echoes of The Singing Nun of Animo Gonpa, or the woman who ...

She was only a Daughter of Concubine of the Prime Minister's Estate. Her elder sister didn't want to, because of the man they all liked. She was the replacement woman. How lucky she was! She smiled sadly and entered the carriage. There was no longer any nostalgia for her home …

Considering Asian cities ranging from Taipei, Hong Kong and Bangkok to Hanoi, Nanjing and Seoul, this collection discusses the socio-political processes of how neoliberalization entwines with local political economies and legacies of ‘developmental’ or ‘socialist’ statism to produce urban contestations centered on housing. The book takes housing as a key entry point, given its prime position in the making of social and economic policies as well as the political legitimacy of Asian states. ...

David R. Maines (1940-2021), one of the most important sociological scholars of the 20th and 21st centuries, constructed a vast area of research to advance the field of symbolic interactionism during his career. Highlighting the significance of Maines’ works in symbolic interactionism, Festschrift in Honor of David R. Maines documents his most celebrated areas of scholarship, including social structure, narrative sociology, social interaction, dialectic perspective, temporality, a...

As key links in transportation and supply chains, the effect of climate change on seaports has broad implications for the development prospects of the global economy. However, the picture is very uncertain because the impacts of climate change will be felt very differently around the world, both positively and negatively. This book addresses the need for quality theoretical analysis, highly innovative assessment methodologies, and insightful empirical global experiences so as to identify t...

Building Sexual Misconduct Cases Against Powerful Men presents a fine-grained analysis of how the rhetorical and social aspects of rape culture and patriarchy lead to a pattern of sexual misconduct. Contributors discuss the causes of the pattern, the obstacles to overcoming it, and potential solutions through a radical feminist lens. Scholars of media, legal, gender, and women's studies will find this volume particularly useful.

Legal and Ethical Issues of Live Streaming explores the potential legal and ethical issues of using live streaming technology, citing that although live streaming has a broadcasting capability, it is not regulated by the Federal Communications Commission, unlike other broadcasting media such as radio or television. Without this regulation, live streaming is opened up for broad use and misuse, including broadcasts of horrifying incidents such as the mass shootings at mosques in Christchurch...

A cluster of Asian states are well-known for their authoritarian legality while having been able to achieve remarkable economic growth. Why would an authoritarian regime seek or tolerate a significant degree of legality and how has such type of legality been made possible in Asia? Would a transition towards a liberal, democratic system eventually take place and, if so, what kind of post-transition struggles are likely to be experienced? This book compares the past and current experiences o...

Multimedia and its rich semantics are profligate in today’s digital environment. Databases and content management systems serve as essential tools to ensure that the endless supply of multimedia content are indexed and remain accessible to end users. Methods and Innovations for Multimedia Database Content Management highlights original research on new theories, algorithms, technologies, system design, and implementation in multimedia data engineering and management with an emphasis on auto...

Device-to-Device (D2D) communication will become a key feature supported by next generation cellular networks, a topic of enormous importance to modern communication. Currently, D2D serves as an underlay to the cellular network as a means to increase spectral efficiency. Although D2D communication brings large benefits in terms of system capacity, it also causes interference as well as increased computation complexity to cellular networks as a result of spectrum sharing. Thus, efficient re...

Unlike other economies, family businesses in China are greatly affected by the derived Confucian culture, excessive marketization, as well as the seemingly endless institutional supervision by a transitional Chinese government. China has a strong historical legacy, devoted to patriarchal values and strong family-centered traditions.This volume explores the social foundations and historical legacies of families, business families, and family businesses in China. It begins with an ov...

In a world dominated by economic metrics, Gross National Happiness (GNH) offers a radical yet deeply human question: What is development truly for?Originating in Bhutan, GNH reframes progress by prioritizing holistic well-being over material accumulation alone. Far more than an idealistic concept, it is a comprehensive framework integrating ethical governance, cultural vitality, environmental sustainability, economic sufficiency, and psychological well-bei...