Diversification through ‘fun in the farm’: analyzing structural factors affecting agritourism in Tennessee

With recent development, agritourism – visiting a working agricultural setting such as farm and ranch for leisure, recreation, or educational purposes – is gaining popularity in the US. Agritourism can be considered as a viable alternative agricultural enterprise to enhance income and sustainability of farms. This study maps agritourism locations and analyzes the structural factors affecting agritourism location and establishments. Using zip-code level location information, county-level data from Tennessee and spatial regression models, we found significant effects of rural factors, demographics, and educational-, economic-, and cultural- capital factors and their interactions on the location and establishment of agritourism farms. The counties lagging behind in agritourism can focus on educational and capital related factors to enable farms to participate in agritourism activities. Rural areas can capitalize the recreational and natural aspects of agriculture complementing it with agritourism activities. Additionally, our significant spatial terms and tests suggest for the need to test and account for potential spatial effects on studies focused on structural factors and location decision models.

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GIS-based spatial modeling to identify factors affecting COVID-19 incidence rates in Bangladesh

10.1101/2020.08.16.20175976 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Md. Hamidu Rahman ◽

Niaz Mahmud Zafri ◽

Fajle Rabbi Ashik ◽

Md Waliullah

Keyword(s):

Health Workers ◽

Disease Incidence ◽

Spatial Regression ◽

Ordinary Least Squares ◽

Incidence Rates ◽

Related Factors ◽

Spatial Error ◽

Factors Affecting ◽

Spatial Lag Model ◽

Lag Model

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented shock throughout the world which leads to generate a massive social, human, and economic crisis. However, there is a lack of research on geographic modeling of COVID-19 as well as identification of contributory factors affecting the COVID-19 in the context of developing countries. To fulfill the gap, this study aimed to identify the potential factors affecting the COVID-19 incidence rates at the district-level in Bangladesh using spatial regression model (SRM). Therefore, data related to 32 demographic, economic, weather, built environment, health, and facilities related factors were collected and analyzed to explain the spatial variability of this disease incidence. Three global (Ordinary least squares (OLS), spatial lag model (SLM) and spatial error model (SEM)) and one local (geographically weighted regression (GWR)) SRMs were developed in this study. The results of the models showed that four factors significantly affected the COVID-19 incidence rates in Bangladesh. Those four factors are urban population percentage, monthly consumption, number of health workers, and distance from the capital. Among the four developed models, the GWR model performed the best in explaining the variation of COVID-19 incidence rates across Bangladesh with a R square value of 78.6%. Findings from this research offer a better insight into the COVID-19 situation and would help to develop policies aimed to prevent the future epidemic crisis.

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SMEs and their bank choices: trust-related factors or economic calculations?

International Journal of Emerging Markets ◽

10.1108/ijoem-11-2019-0928 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽

Author(s):

Krzysztof Jackowicz ◽

Łukasz Kozłowski ◽

Adrian Strucinski

Keyword(s):

Selection Process ◽

Local Environment ◽

Financial Statements ◽

Related Factors ◽

Content Type ◽

Factors Affecting ◽

Level Data ◽

Practical Implications ◽

Detailed Picture

PurposeThe authors investigate the factors affecting the decision of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to do business with either small local banks or large commercial banks.Design/methodology/approachWe combine various data sources on Polish SMEs, including their financial statements, county-level data on SMEs' local environment, information about bank branch locations, as well as a new survey on the specificity of bank–firm relationships. We employ the logit and Tobit models.FindingsSMEs' bank choices and the length of a bank–firm relationship are more strongly associated with trust-related factors, rather than transactional ones. SME managers motivated by trust-related factors are more likely to choose local lenders and maintain long-term relationships with them. However, as firms grow and mature, SME managers lean toward banks adopting transaction-oriented policies.Research limitations/implicationsWe could have drawn a more detailed picture of the bank selection process had we been able to compare the traits of a firm's current and previous banks.Practical implicationsThe study shows that the features of a bank's offer, including product prices, have limited potential in shaping long-term relationships between banks and SMEs.Originality/valueThe topic of bank selection by SMEs has not been thoroughly investigated in the case of Central European countries. We address this gap by comparing two types of potential drivers of bank selection: trust-related factors and a set of purely economic (transactional) motives.

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The 1968 Influenza Pandemic and COVID-19 Outcomes

10.1101/2021.10.23.21265403 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Charles A Taylor ◽

Christopher Boulos ◽

Matthew J Memoli

Keyword(s):

Influenza Pandemic ◽

Population Level ◽

Related Factors ◽

Death Rates ◽

Individual Level ◽

Age Cohorts ◽

Differential Outcomes ◽

Level Data ◽

The Us ◽

Before And After

Past pandemic experience at an individual or population level may affect health outcomes in future pandemics. In this study, we focus on how the influenza pandemic of 1968 (H3N2), which killed up to 100,000 people in the US, may have produced differential COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) outcomes. Our analysis finds that areas with high influenza-related mortality in 1968 experienced 1-2% lower COVID-19 death rates. We employ an identification strategy that isolates variation in COVID-19 rates across age cohorts born before and after 1968. Locales in the US with high 1968 influenza mortality have lower COVID-19 death rates among older cohorts relative to younger ones. The relationship holds using county-level and patient-level data, as well as data from hospitals and nursing homes. Results do not appear to be driven by systemic or policy-related factors that would affect a population, but instead suggest a potential individual-level response to prior influenza pandemic exposure. The findings merit substantial further investigation into potential biological, immunological, or other mechanisms that can account for these differential outcomes.

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Analyzing the Factors Affecting the COVID-19 Risk Level in the US Counties

10.20944/preprints202104.0132.v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Samira Ziyadidegan ◽

Moein Razavi ◽

Homa Pesarakli ◽

Amir Hossein Javid

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Rural Areas ◽

Pearson Correlation ◽

The United States ◽

Positive Case ◽

Risk Level ◽

Classification Models ◽

Factors Affecting ◽

The Us ◽

Us Counties

The COVID-19 disease spreads swiftly, and nearly three months after the first positive case was confirmed in China, Coronavirus started to spread all over the United States. Some states and counties reported an extremely high number of positive cases and deaths, while some reported too few COVID-19 related cases and mortality. In this paper, the factors that could affect the transmission of COVID-19 and its risk level in different counties have been determined and analyzed. Using Pearson Correlation, K-means clustering, and several classification models, the most critical ones were determined. Results showed that mean temperature, percent of people below poverty, percent of adults with obesity, air pressure, percentage of rural areas, and percent of uninsured people in each county were the most significant and effective attributes.

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Changes in Land Plot Morphology Resulting from the Construction of a Bypass: The Example of a Polish City

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su11102987 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (10) ◽

pp. 2987 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Cezary Kowalczyk ◽

Jacek Kil ◽

Krystyna Kurowska

Keyword(s):

Rural Areas ◽

Shape Factor ◽

Morphological Analysis ◽

Design Stage ◽

Spatial Effects ◽

Factors Affecting ◽

Road Development ◽

Spatial Policy ◽

Urban And Rural Areas ◽

The City

Road development projects are expansive and they exert a significant impact on the environment, landscape, spatial planning, and land management. In this study, we developed a research hypothesis that analysis of the shape factor of plots can be the basis for determining the factors affecting the level of urbanization. This article evaluates changes in the spatial structure of plots resulting from the construction of a city bypass. The proposed method is based on a morphological analysis of plots located in the vicinity of the motorway lane. In the next steps, lines located at a distance of 400 m and 800 m from the beltway were determined and then shape indicators were determined for the plots cut by these lines. The analysis confirmed the change in the shape of the plots, along with the distance from the beltway. Plots located further from the bypass of the city had smaller areas and the aspect ratio was similar for plots intended for development. The proposed method allows us to identify spatial effects occurring after entering a suburban road. The method should be used at the design stage of the beltway and not at the stage of impact assessment after its construction. This will allow for maintenance of a coherent spatial policy at the interface between urban and rural areas. At the same time, the study of changes in the morphology of plots allows earlier identification of urban processes.

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Factors Affecting Secondhand Smoke Avoidance Behavior of Vietnamese Adolescents

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph15081632 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 15 (8) ◽

pp. 1632 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Ja-yin Lee ◽

Hyunmi Ahn ◽

Hyeonkyeong Lee

Keyword(s):

Logistic Regression ◽

Middle Schools ◽

Rural Areas ◽

Secondhand Smoke ◽

Avoidance Behavior ◽

Self Efficacy ◽

Ordinal Logistic Regression ◽

Education Programs ◽

Related Factors ◽

Factors Affecting

The purpose of this study was to examine the stage of secondhand smoke avoidance behavior of adolescents in rural areas of Vietnam and the related factors affecting such behavior. The participants were recruited from two middle schools located in Hai Thuong and Trieu Trach commune, Vietnam. Data were collected in January 2016 by distributing and collecting a self-administrated questionnaire. The collected data were analyzed (n = 166) using SPSS 21.0 for frequency, percentage, and ordinal logistic regression. The largest proportion of secondhand smoke avoidance behavior was classified in maintenance (41.6%), followed by action (19.9%), preparation (15.1%), pre-contemplation (13.3%), and contemplation (10.2%) stages. The factors related to higher secondhand smoke avoidance behavior were higher self-efficacy (p = 0.003) and more frequent discussion with parents about dangers of smoking (p = 0.001). The findings indicated that self-efficacy of avoiding secondhand smoke and discussion with parents were associated with secondhand smoke avoidance behavior of adolescents. These findings can be used for developing education programs to prevent secondhand smoke for adolescents in Vietnam.

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Experiences of City Heliport Operations

The Aeronautical Journal ◽

10.1017/s0001924000084554 ◽

1968 ◽

Vol 72 (690) ◽

pp. 549-555

Author(s):

Robert B. Meyersburg

Keyword(s):

New York ◽

Los Angeles ◽

Traffic Control ◽

Ground Level ◽

Operational Experience ◽

Wall Street ◽

Related Factors ◽

Factors Affecting ◽

Obstacle Clearance ◽

The Us

This paper describes seven city heliports in the US, considering first their physical features and associated operating factors and, second, the possible application of the operational experience gained with these heliports to future heliport design. Three of the seven heliports are in New York City—the Pan American Building rooftop, Wall Street Pier near the confluence of the Hudson and East Rivers, and the World's Fair Heliport. One is in Chicago, at Midway Airport. The remaining three are in California; Los Angeles International Airport, Anaheim / Disneyland, and Oakland. Taken collectively, the seven heliports are representative of city heliport operation in the US today. Taken individually, they represent considerable variation in the significant factors affecting their operation, such as noise, height above ground level, traffic control towers, interface with other modes of transportation, both air and surface, lighting, instrument operation, obstacle clearance, turbulence, and related factors.

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