scholarly journals The efficiency assessment of food safety in China’s agriculture: a case study of the rice sector

2008 ◽  
Vol 54 (No. 11) ◽  
pp. 521-528 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhang Tao
Keyword(s):  
Food Safety ◽  
Stochastic Frontier ◽  
Analytical Framework ◽  
Environmental Efficiency ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Managerial Efficiency ◽  
Explanatory Variables ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Impact

Rice is the main food in China’s home consumption and plays an important role in its food security. But, how is the status of food safety and environmental efficiency in China’s agriculture? Obviously, an incorrect manner of pesticide application will hold negative effects on human health and environment. In this article, we develop an analytical framework based on the Luenberger DEA method to calculate the output technical efficiency and input environmental efficiency simultaneously. In the second-stage analysis, the stochastic frontier model is used to estimate the impact of explanatory variables and managerial efficiency on efficiency. We apply the methodology in the empirical case study of China’s rice production for measuring the food safety performance of China’s rice sector.

scholarly journals ‘I’m not being paid for this conversation’: Uncovering the challenges of artist–academic collaborations in the neoliberal institution

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 317-333
Author(s):  
Alena Pfoser ◽  
Sara de Jong
Keyword(s):  
Collaborative Work ◽  
Knowledge Exchange ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
The Political ◽  
Institutional Pressures ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Collective Response ◽  
And Shifts ◽  
The Impact

Artist–academic collaborations are fuelled by increasing institutional pressures to show the impact of academic research. This article departs from the celebratory accounts of collaborative work and pragmatic toolkits for successful partnerships, which are dominant in existing scholarship, arguing for the need to critically interrogate the structural conditions under which collaborations take place. Based on a reflexive case study of a project developed in the context of Tate Exchange, one of the UK’s highest-profile platforms for knowledge exchange, we reveal three sets of (unequal) pressures, which mark artist–academic collaborations in the contemporary neoliberal academy: asymmetric funding and remuneration structures; uneven pressures of audit cultures; acceleration and temporal asymmetries. Innovations at the level of individual projects or partners can only mitigate the negative effects to a limited extent. Instead this article offers a systemic critique of the political economy of artist–academic collaborations and shifts the research agenda to developing a collective response.

Reliability-based covariate analysis for complex systems in heterogeneous environment: Case study of mining equipment

2018 ◽  
Vol 233 (4) ◽  
pp. 593-604
Author(s):  
Amin Moniri-Morad ◽  
Mohammad Pourgol-Mohammad ◽  
Hamid Aghababaei ◽  
Javad Sattarvand
Keyword(s):  
Complex Systems ◽  
Cox Regression ◽  
Reliability Evaluation ◽  
Distribution Functions ◽  
Heterogeneous Environment ◽  
Mining Equipment ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Explanatory Variables ◽  
The Impact

Operational heterogeneity and harsh environment lead to major variations in production system performance and safety. Traditional probabilistic model is dealt with time-to-event data analysis, which does not have the capability of quantifying and simulation of these types of complexities. This research proposes an integrated methodology for analyzing the impact of dominant explanatory variables on the complex system reliability. A flexible parametric proportional hazards model is developed by focusing on standard parametric Cox regression model for reliability evaluation in complex systems. To achieve this, natural cubic splines are utilized to create a smooth and flexible baseline hazards function where the standard parametric distribution functions do not fit into the failure data set. A real case study is considered to evaluate the reliability for multi-component mechanical systems such as mining equipment. Different operational and environmental explanatory variables are chosen for the analysis process. Research findings revealed that precise estimation of the baseline hazards function is a major part of the reliability evaluation in heterogeneous environment. It is concluded that an appropriate maintenance strategy potentially mitigate the equipment failure intensity.

scholarly journals The Impact of COVID-19 on Tourism: A Case Study of Lumbini, Nepal

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-43
Author(s):  
Bhim Bahadur Kunwar
Keyword(s):  
Tourism Industry ◽  
World Health ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Daily Lives ◽  
Tourism Sector ◽  
The World ◽  
Global Tourism ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
The Impact

This research aims to discover and present the impacts of COVID-19 in tourism in the context of Lumbini and its premises. As COVID-19 spread globally, it has created many challenges in health and security, daily lives, the national economy, and the global tourism industry. The COVID-19 outbreak has been considered as the most challenging tragedy that occurred in the world after the 2nd world war. The World Health Organization (WHO) had listed Nepal also as a country with a high-risk zone of COVID-19.The travel restriction and nationwide lock-down implemented by many countries including Nepal have resulted in a stranded traveler’s movement. As the consequences ticket reservation, flight services, transportation, hotel, and restaurants were closed and several job losses were registered in the tourism sector. The negative effects like fear, threat, frustration, and losing the confidence of tourism entrepreneurs appeared. This has brought changes in the tourists’ behavior and their motivation to travel for the next few years. In Lumbini businesses like lodges, hotels, restaurants, and travel offices were also severely affected by the pandemic. Thus, the tourism sector has been facing serious threats due to the prolonged lockdown and closing of tourism activities than the terror of COVID-19 itself.

scholarly journals Multilingualism in Linguistic Landscape of Prishtina (Kosovo)

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 101-106
Author(s):  
Shkumbin Munishi Prishtina
Keyword(s):  
Language Policy ◽  
Public Space ◽  
Public Perception ◽  
Field Research ◽  
Time Span ◽  
Linguistic Landscape ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City

Abstract Language relations as manifestations of the phenomenon of multilingualism are also expressed in the area of the so-called linguistic landscape. Undoubtedly, the linguistic landscape not only reflects the use of languages in public space but at the same time reveals the depth of public perception of different languages, depending on their function and prestige. In this paper, I will treat Albanian, English and Serbian rapports through their coverage in the Pristina linguistic landscape, focusing on the use of these languages in advertising space in the city of Prishtina and in other tables that perform semiotic functions of indexes in this city. Likewise, within the reflection of the status planning of languages in Prishtina linguistic landscape, the use of Serbian in the official tables will be treated. This case study will also reflect the features of language policy and the impact of the globalization phenomenon in different languages. The results presented in this paper will reflect on the field research within a certain time span. The research has shown that in the Pristina linguistic landscape, in addition to the Albanian language, English has a dense use, while the use of Serbian is mostly limited to official charts i.e. names of the streets of the city and is not found in private advertisements tables.

scholarly journals Intangible assets and the efficiency of manufacturing firms in the age of digitalisation: the Russian case

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-26
Author(s):  
Yulia Turovets
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Intangible Assets ◽  
Developing Economies ◽  
Stochastic Frontier ◽  
Analytical Framework ◽  
Structural Features ◽  
Manufacturing Firms ◽  
High Tech ◽  
Long Run ◽  
The Impact

Abstract A wide consensus exists on the role of intangible assets in both developed and developing economies, especially now, with the new generation of information and communication technologies. Emerging economies generally demonstrate lower endowment with intangibles (Dutz et al., 2012), but follow the same positive patterns for long-run development. In Russia, the contribution of intangibles to growth is still modest, and its capacity to foster productivity has not been achieved. As previous studies showed, efficiency represents one of the main channels of total factor productivity growth. This paper studies the effects of intangibles on the efficiency of Russian manufacturing firms in 2009–2018. Considering the heterogeneity of sectors and firms, the stochastic frontier model is applied. In general, the impact of intangibles is positive but small and influenced by external shocks and structural features. The paper provides evidence on different contributions of intangibles to efficiency for high-tech and low-tech firms and its change over time. It contributes to the strand of literature regarding the technical efficiency measurement on the microlevel. On the practical side, the paper suggests an analytical framework for differentiated policy mechanisms to drive investments in intangibles, which are essential for current digital transformation.

Spurious effects in variational corpus linguistics

2014 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 478-504 ◽  
Author(s):  
José Tummers ◽  
Dirk Speelman ◽  
Dirk Geeraerts
Keyword(s):  
Corpus Linguistics ◽  
Multiple Correspondence Analysis ◽  
Multivariate Model ◽  
Data Matrix ◽  
Response Variable ◽  
Explanatory Variables ◽  
Confounding Variables ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Attributive Adjectives

As repositories of spontaneously realized language, corpora generally have an uncontrolled and unbalanced structure where all variables operate simultaneously. Consequently, a variable’s real effect can be concealed when studied in isolation because of the exclusion of the impact of other potentially confounding variables. Analyzing a variational case study, the alternation between inflected and uninflected attributive adjectives in Dutch, it will be demonstrated how confounding variables alter the impact of explanatory variables on the response variable, resulting in spurious effects in the bivariate analyses. Multiple Correspondence Analysis will be used as a heuristic tool to unveil the association patterns between explanatory variables in the data matrix which induce the spurious effects. Based on these findings, we will argue for a thorough analysis of the database patterns to gain insight in the underlying associations between explanatory variables before modeling their real impact on the response variable in a multivariate model.

The impact of a dysfunctional leader on the workplace: a new challenge for HRM

2019 ◽  
Vol 49 (4) ◽  
pp. 1039-1052
Author(s):  
Peter Holland
Keyword(s):  
Leadership Style ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
Depth Analysis ◽  
Emerging Issues ◽  
Limited Application ◽  
The Impact

Purpose Whilst several studies investigate the attributes of dysfunctional leaders exhibiting corporate psychopathic traits, there is a paucity of longitudinal data exploring the way these leaders damage employees and the organisation. The purpose of this paper is to address this gap in the literature and provide a focus for HR to address these emerging issues within organisations. Design/methodology/approach A longitudinal and in-depth case study approach is taken to explore the impact on a workplace of a dysfunctional leader exhibiting the traits of a corporate psychopath. A framework is used to analyse the nuances of the behaviours, in particular bullying behaviours and the impact of this leadership style on the workforce over a five-year period. Findings The long-term negative effects of this type of leadership are identified through a detailed analysis of a trait commonly associated with this toxic style of leader, bullying behaviours and their consequences. Research limitations/implications Whilst a single case study allows for in-depth analysis, it may be seen as atypical and of limited application. However, the longitudinal approach is ideal to investigate the nuance of how a highly dysfunctional leader operates within and through the multiple layers of an organisation. Practical implications The paper identifies the traits and effects of a dysfunctional leader on an organisation to enable the organisation primarily through human resources to deal with them and their behaviours. Social implications The finding of this study adds to the knowledge of identifying and dealing with toxic behaviours in the workplace. Originality/value The longitudinal nature of the study provides a unique insight into the behaviours and damage of a dysfunctional leader within the workplace.

An emerging “Islandian” sovereignty of non-self-governing islands

2017 ◽  
Vol 72 (1) ◽  
pp. 56-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gerard Prinsen ◽  
Séverine Blaise
Keyword(s):  
New Caledonia ◽  
Analytical Framework ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Comparative Analyses ◽  
Development Indicators ◽  
Political Independence ◽  
The Status ◽  
New Form ◽  
Global Research

Comparative analyses have found that non-self-governing islands tend to have much better development indicators than sovereign islands. Perhaps unsurprisingly, since 1983 no non-self-governing island has acquired political independence. This paper argues that rather than merely maintaining the status quo with their colonial metropoles, non-self-governing islands are actively creating a new form of sovereignty. This creation of an “Islandian” sovereignty takes place against the backdrop of debates on the relevance of classic Westphalian sovereignty and emerging practices of Indigenous sovereignty. This paper reviews global research on the sovereignty of islands and from this review, develops an analytical framework of five mechanisms that drive the emerging Islandian sovereignty. This framework is tested and illustrated with a case study of the negotiations about sovereignty between New Caledonia and its colonial metropole, France.

scholarly journals Investigation of petroleum hydrocarbon pollution along the coastline of South Attica, Greece, after the sinking of the Agia Zoni ΙΙ oil tanker

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Konstantinos Kapsalis ◽  
Maria Kavvalou ◽  
Ioanna Damikouka ◽  
Olga Cavoura
Keyword(s):  
Marine Environment ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Natural Weathering ◽  
Total Petroleum Hydrocarbons ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Hydrocarbon Pollution ◽  
Weathering Processes ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Oil Tanker

AbstractOil spills at sea pose risks to the marine environment and to the economy of many nations. Marine ecosystems are very vulnerable and precious as producers of oxygen and as regulators of climate. Therefore, their protection and preservation are necessary. In the event of an oil spill, anthropogenic clean-up activities and natural weathering processes can minimize the negative effects on marine organisms, and the marine environment in general. The target of this study was to investigate the status of the sea along the coastline of the Saronic Gulf, Greece, a year after the sinking of the Agia Zoni II oil tanker. Seawater samples from 15 sampling locations from Phlisvos coast to Anavissos, an area easily approached by bathers with recreational interest, were collected and analysed for total petroleum hydrocarbons. Concentrations up to a maximum of 56.6 μg/L were detected. Despite the large extent of the initial hydrocarbon pollution, the immediate clean-up operations and natural weathering and/or sorption processes have reduced the impact of the spill on surface waters.

Anxiety in academic speaking situations among EFL majors: a case study

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 115-132
Author(s):  
Biljana Radić-Bojanić ◽  
Jagoda Topalov
Keyword(s):  
English Language ◽  
Language Skills ◽  
The Self ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Speaking Anxiety ◽  
Response Variable ◽  
Explanatory Variables ◽  
Perceived Difficulty ◽  
Language And Literature

Abstract In the study reported a total of 145 students pursuing the academic title of a BA in English language and literature were tested with the aim of establishing which explanatory variables have the independent power to explain the level of English language speaking anxiety. The instrument used in the study was taken from Yaikhong et al. (2012) and adapted for the purposes of the current investigation. The response variable in the study was the average level of anxiety measured by means of the questionnaire, whereas the explanatory variables included gender, the year of study, the number of presentations students gave during the course of their studies, the grade in language skills, the expected grade, the self-perceived proficiency and the perceived difficulty of the English language. The results reveal that gender, the expected grade and the self-perceived proficiency can account for the variation in the levels of anxiety among students. The paper ends with suggestions of interventions for helping students cope with the negative effects of anxiety on their speaking performance and learning experiences.

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