Ice Memory

With global change and its amplified impact at high altitudes or in certain regions of the world, mountain glaciers are particularly sensitive to warming. These same glaciers, which have been studied for several decades, have made it possible to reconstruct, through the study of ice cores, unique information on the evolution of the climate or the environment on a regional and global scale since they are located closer to the main regions and sources of aerosol emissions. Unfortunately, these archives are in the process of being altered and are disappearing. It is in this context that the international project ICE MEMORY was initiated in 2015. ICE MEMORY is built on four pillars : 1) Identify, select glacier and extract several complete ice cores, at least two, from sites that have already demonstrated their high scientific potential before they are altered, 2) Analyse one of the cores in order to extract the maximum parameters of information using all currently available technologies and make this data available to the scientific community of today and tomorrow, 3) Store the remaining cores in a naturally adapted site such as the French-Italien Concordia station in Antarctica so that they can be preserved and donated to future generations of scientists, and 4) to set up a sustainable governance system based on an accredited international organization in charge of managing these ice and data archives in the future.This presentation will highlight all the operations, analyses and organization already achieved as well as the future vision and development of ICE MEMORY.

Download Full-text

Can Bitcoin be the Future of Digital Payments?

Journal of Business and Economics ◽

10.15341/jbe(2155-7950)/06.10.2019/001 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 10 (6) ◽

pp. 489-500

Author(s):

Andrea Valente ◽

◽

David Atkinson ◽

Keyword(s):

Price Volatility ◽

Global Scale ◽

White Paper ◽

Innovative Technology ◽

Policy Makers ◽

The Future ◽

Key Drivers ◽

Digital Payments ◽

Robust Regulation ◽

Stakeholder Acceptance

This study aimed to investigate the conditions in which Bitcoin has developed as a leading cryptocurrency and, according to Nakamoto (2008), could become an instrument for everyday payments around the world. In comparison to other digital payment solutions, Bitcoin is based on a peer-to-peer electronic cash system using “the blockchain”. This innovative technology allows for decentralised storage and movement of currency in a fully anonymous way, introducing advantageous methods for encrypted security and faster transactions (Hagiu & Beach, 2014). Scepticism regards Bitcoin’s foundation, energy consumption and price volatility, however, did not take long to arise (Holthaus, 2017). Ten years from its white paper release, Bitcoin is further supported by the same drivers which could sustain its growth as the future of digital payments (Russo, 2018). In order to investigate the key drivers and feasibility of acceptance, a London based survey was used to understand the desirability of Bitcoin as a day-to-day tool for digital payments. Additionally, this research analysed Bitcoin’s stakeholders and forecast drivers of sustainability for its application to become the future of the payment industry. A space which relies on policies that involve multiple layers of society, governments, regulators and tech-firms, all on a global scale. The findings confirmed how the increasing lack of trust of political and financial institutions, coupled with the increasing cases of data-breaches by tech-firms, encouraged over 70% of respondents to consider more decentralised and anonymous methods for their day-to-day actions; like payments. Policy makers need to cope with societies increasingly separating politically but gathering together digitally (LBS, 2017). For Bitcoin to truly establish itself as a global digital payment solution, key stakeholder acceptance must converge alongside the introduction of more robust regulation.

Download Full-text

Developing capital accounting practices in the integrated reporting system of agricultural organizations

International Accounting ◽

10.24891/ia.23.8.906 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 23 (8) ◽

pp. 906-921

Author(s):

R.A. Alborov ◽

S.M. Kontsevaya ◽

S.V. Kozmenkova

Keyword(s):

Original Method ◽

Theory And Practice ◽

Integrated Reporting ◽

Governance System ◽

Analysis And Synthesis ◽

Agricultural Organizations ◽

Set Up ◽

Definition Of ◽

Methodological Aspects ◽

Agricultural Organization

Subject. This article deals with the theory-and practice-relevant issues of classification and content definition of different types of capital used as sources of operations financing, and recommendations for developing their accounting in agricultural organizations. Objectives. The article aims to substantiate the organizational and methodological aspects of capital accounting development to generate information on value reserve and creation of value as new in the organization's integrated reporting. The article also aims to define the classification and content of capital types as sources of financing for the organization's activities and develop recommendations for developing the accounting of the availability, increase, reduction or transformation of the relevant types of capital in the organization's business activities. Methods. For the study, we used the methods of analysis and synthesis, induction and deduction, analogy, and comparison. The scientific works of domestic specialists and regulations, including the International Standard on Integrated Reporting (IR) are the methodological basis of this work. Results. The article defines conceptual provisions and offers practical recommendations on the set-up and development of capital flow accounting in the corporate governance system of the agricultural organization. It clarifies the classification and economic content of capital as a source of funding for the organization's reproduction activities. The article also offers an original method of accounting for the value reserve (balances) and capital changes. Conclusions and Relevance. The practical application of the developed recommendations for value accounting and capital changes will help generate all the necessary information in the integrated reporting of the agricultural organization to assess its reserves of value, create value as new, economic, environmental, and social efficiency of the organization's activities. The results of the study can be used to develop the theory, methodology and techniques of accounting of capital types as sources of financing of value creation as a result of the agricultural organization's business activities.

Download Full-text

Een Duits netwerk bij de voorbereiding van de Militärverwaltung in België (1939-1940)

WT. Tijdschrift over de geschiedenis van de Vlaamse beweging ◽

10.21825/wt.v69i4.12342 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 69 (4) ◽

pp. 289-305

Author(s):

Etienne Verhoeyen

Keyword(s):

Study Groups ◽

Study Group ◽

Student Group ◽

German Army ◽

The Future ◽

French Speaking ◽

The Government ◽

Set Up ◽

First World ◽

Preparatory Work

Nadat Hitler in oktober 1939 beslist had een aanval in het Westen te ondernemen, werden in Keulen twee studiegroepen opgericht, die het toekomstig bezettingsregime van België en Nederland moesten voorbereiden. Er was een studiecommissie die geleid werd door de toekomstige leider van het Duits Militair Bestuur in België, Regierungspräsident Reeder, en daarnaast bestond een geheime studiegroep die de Sondergruppe Student werd genoemd. Deze bijdrage belicht het voorbereidend werk van de leden van deze studiegroep op het gebied van handel, industrie, recht, Volkstum en cultuur in België. De groep legde een grote belangstelling voor de Flamenfrage aan de dag en trok daarbij lessen uit de ervaringen met de bezetting van België tijdens de Eerste Wereldoorlog. Ofschoon er van diverse zijden in Duitsland werd op aangestuurd, hebben zowel de 'commissie Reeder' als de Sondergruppe de wederinvoering van de bestuurlijke scheiding van het Vlaams en Franstalig landsgedeelte, één van de 'verworvenheden' van het Vlaams activisme uit 1914-18, beslist afgewezen. De bijdrage laat ook de tegenstellingen zien die in Duitsland bestonden op het gebied van de beïnvloeding (ten voordele van Duitsland) in de te bezetten gebieden. ________ A German network in the preparation of the Militärverwaltung (Army administration) in Belgium (1939-1940)After Hitler had decided in October 1939 to carry out an attack on the West, two study groups were set up in Cologne in order to prepare the future occupational regime of Belgium and the Netherlands. The future leader of the German Army Administration in Belgium, President of the Government Reeder chaired the study group, and in addition there was a secret study group called the Sondergruppe Student (Special Student Group).This contribution illuminates the preparatory work of the members of this study group in the area of trade, industry, law, Volkstum (nationality) and culture in Belgium. The group demonstrated a lot of interest in the Flamenfrage (Flemish question) and in doing so drew lessons from the experience of the occupation of Belgium during the First World War.Although people from various quarters in Germany aimed for the reintroduction of the governmental separation between the Flemish and French speaking parts of the country, one of the 'achievements' of Flemish activism from the period of 1914-1918, both the 'Reeder committee' and the 'Sondergruppe' definitely dismissed it. This contribution also demonstrates the contradictions present in Germany in the area of influencing the territories to be occupied (in favour of Germany).

Download Full-text

Nudge Versus Boost: Agency Dynamics Under Libertarian Paternalism

The Economic Journal ◽

10.1093/ej/uez054 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 130 (629) ◽

pp. 1384-1415 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ralph Hertwig ◽

Michael D Ryall

Keyword(s):

Cognitive Biases ◽

Policy Implications ◽

Best Interests ◽

Libertarian Paternalism ◽

The Future ◽

Set Up ◽

The Individual

ABSTRACT Thaler and Sunstein (2008) advance the concept of ‘nudge’ policies—non-regulatory and non-fiscal mechanisms designed to enlist people's cognitive biases or motivational deficits so as to guide their behaviour in a desired direction. A core assumption of this approach is that policymakers make artful use of people's cognitive biases and motivational deficits in ways that serve the ultimate interests of the nudged individual. We analyse a model of dynamic policymaking in which the policymaker's preferences are not always aligned with those of the individual. One novelty of our set-up is that the policymaker has the option to implement a ‘boost’ policy, equipping the individual with the competence to overcome the nudge-enabling bias once and for all. Our main result identifies conditions under which the policymaker chooses not to boost in order to preserve the option of using the nudge (and its associated bias) in the future—even though boosting is in the immediate best interests of both the policymaker and the individual. We extend our analysis to situations in which the policymaker can be removed (e.g., through an election) and in which the policymaker is similarly prone to bias. We conclude with a discussion of some policy implications of these findings.

Download Full-text

Patients’ Perceived Satisfaction Through Telephone-Assisted Tele-Consultation During the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic Period: Observational Single-Centre Study at a Tertiary-Referral Colorectal Surgery Department

Surgical Innovation ◽

10.1177/15533506211008053 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 155335062110080

Author(s):

Lara Blanco Terés ◽

Carlos Cerdán Santacruz ◽

Javier García Septiem ◽

Rocío Maqueda González ◽

José María Lopesino González ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Categorical Variables ◽

Average Score ◽

Job Status ◽

Perceived Satisfaction ◽

The Future ◽

Chi Squared ◽

Single Centre Study ◽

Set Up ◽

Almost All ◽

Surgery Department

Introduction: The pandemic produced by SARS-CoV-2 has obliged us to set up the tele-assistance to offer a continuity of care. This implies an innovation, being the degree of satisfaction of patients unknown. Methods: A telephonic survey was conducted with the validated in the Spanish tool Telehealth Usability Questionnaire (Telehealth Usability Questionnaire; rating from 1-7) of all candidate patients assisted consecutively in the Coloproctology Unit. We included demographic variables, education level, job status, diagnosis and consultation type. A descriptive study was done. The relationship between the willingness of consultation model in the future (telemedicine vs traditional) and the categorical variables was analysed through the chi-squared test. Results: A total of 115 patients were included. The average age was 59.9 years, being 60% women. The average score in each of the survey items was higher than 6 in all the questions but 1. 26.1% of the surveyed patients confessed being advocated to tele-assistance in the future. The only factors related to greater willingness to tele-assistance were male gender (37% vs 18.8%; P = .03) and a higher academic preparation level in favour of higher technical studies (35.9%) and university studies (32.4%) opposite to the rest ( P = .043). The rest of variables studied, job status, labour regimen, diagnostic group and consultation type did not show any relationship. Conclusions: A vast majority of patients answered favourably to almost all the items of the survey. However, only 26.1% of them would choose a model of tele-assistance without restrictions.

Download Full-text

Stay at Home! Governance Quality and Effectiveness of Lockdown

Social Indicators Research ◽

10.1007/s11205-021-02742-3 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Vincenzo Alfano ◽

Salvatore Ercolano

Keyword(s):

Rule Of Law ◽

Global Scale ◽

Considerable Time ◽

Government Effectiveness ◽

Governance Indicators ◽

Regulatory Quality ◽

Governance Quality ◽

World Governance Indicators ◽

Set Up ◽

First Time

AbstractIn order to control the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, during the first wave of the pandemic numerous countries decided to adopt lockdown policies. It had been a considerable time since such measures were last introduced, and the first time that they were implemented on such a global scale in a contemporary, information intensive society. The effectiveness of such measures may depend on how citizens perceive the capacity of government to set up and implement sound policies. Indeed, lockdown and confinement policies in general are binding measures that people are not used to, and which raise serious concerns among the population. For this reason governance quality could affect the perception of the benefits related to the government’s choice to impose lockdown, making citizens more inclined to accept it and restrict their movements. In the present paper we empirically investigate the relation between the efficacy of lockdown and governance quality (measured through World Governance Indicators). Our results suggest that countries with higher levels of government effectiveness, rule of law and regulatory quality reach better results in adopting lockdown measures.

Download Full-text

Elite attitudes and the future of global governance

International Affairs ◽

10.1093/ia/iiab034 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Jan Aart Scholte ◽

Soetkin Verhaegen ◽

Jonas Tallberg

Keyword(s):

Global Governance ◽

The United States ◽

Global Scale ◽

The Philippines ◽

Global Institutions ◽

The Future ◽

Medium Level ◽

Government Bureaucracy ◽

Governance Institutions ◽

Problem Solvers

Abstract This article examines what contemporary elites think about global governance and what these attitudes might bode for the future of global institutions. Evidence comes from a unique survey conducted in 2017–19 across six elite sectors (business, civil society, government bureaucracy, media, political parties, research) in six countries (Brazil, Germany, the Philippines, Russia, South Africa, the United States) and a global group. Bearing in mind some notable variation between countries, elite types, issue-areas and institutions, three main interconnected findings emerge. First, in principle, contemporary leaders in politics and society hold considerable readiness to pursue global-scale governance. Today's elites are not generally in a nationalist-protectionist-sovereigntist mood. Second, in practice, these elites on average hold medium-level confidence towards fourteen current global governance institutions. This evidence suggests that, while there is at present no legitimacy crisis of global governance among elites (as might encourage its decline), neither is there a legitimacy boom (as could spur its expansion). Third, if we probe what elites prioritize when they evaluate global governance, the surveyed leaders generally most underline democracy in the procedures of these bodies and effectiveness in their performance. This finding suggests that, to raise elites' future confidence in global governance, the institutions would do well to become more transparent in their operations and more impactful problem-solvers in their outcomes.

Download Full-text

Excavations at Fishbourne, 1963. Third Interim Report

The Antiquaries Journal ◽

10.1017/s0003581500062454 ◽

1964 ◽

Vol 44 (1) ◽

pp. 1-8

Keyword(s):

Interim Report ◽

The West ◽

Civic Society ◽

North West ◽

The Third ◽

North East ◽

The North ◽

The Future ◽

Set Up

Early in 1963 much of the land occupied by the Roman building at Fishbourne was purchased by Mr. I. D. Margary, M.A., F.S.A., and was given to the Sussex Archaeological Trust. The Fishbourne Committee of the trust was set up to administer the future of the site. The third season's excavation, carried out at the desire of this committee, was again organized by the Chichester Civic Society.1 About fifty volunteers a day were employed from 24th July to 3rd September. Excavation concentrated upon three main areas; the orchard south of the east wing excavated in 1962, the west end of the north wing, and the west wing. In addition, trial trenches were dug at the north-east and north-west extremities of the building and in the area to the north of the north wing. The work of supervision was carried out by Miss F. Pierce, M.A., Mr. B. Morley, Mr. A. B. Norton, B.A., and Mr. J. P. Wild, B.A. Photography was organized by Mr. D. B. Baker and Mrs. F. A. Cunliffe took charge of the pottery and finds.

Download Full-text

The Mitigation of the French Nuclear Option: New Industrial Realism and Technical Democracy

Energy & Environment ◽

10.1260/0958305021501209 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 13 (2) ◽

pp. 263-279 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Dominique Finon

Keyword(s):

Waste Management ◽

Electricity Markets ◽

Social Preferences ◽

Public Inquiry ◽

The Future ◽

Parliamentary Committee ◽

Set Up ◽

The Stability ◽

The Cost ◽

Phase Out

Nuclear phase-out policies and the European obligation to liberalise electricity markets could put the French nuclear option dramatically at risk by influencing social preferences or by constraining power producers' investment choices in the future. So far, the particular institutional set-up which has allowed the efficient build-up and operation of several series of standardised reactors preserves the stability of the main elements of the option. However, important adaptations to the evolving industrial and political environment occur and contribute to changing the option. Some institutional changes (such as local public inquiry, creation of a Parliamentary committee, independence of safety authorities) and divergence between industrial interests already allow debates on internal options such as reprocessing, type of waste management deposits, ordering of an advanced PWR. These changes improve the cost transparency, even if internalisation of nuclear externalities (cost of insurance, provisions for waste management) is still incomplete. However, when effective, this internalisation would not affect definitively the competitive position of the nuclear production because of the parallel internalisation of CO2 externalities from fossil fuel power generation in the official rationale. Consequently the real issue for the future of the nuclear option in France remains the preservation of social acceptability in the perception of nuclear risks.

Download Full-text

Future changes in Beijing haze events under different shared socioeconomic pathways

10.5194/egusphere-egu21-5787 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Liang Guo ◽

Laura Wilcox ◽

Massimo Bollasina ◽

Steven Turnock ◽

Marianne Lund ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Air Pollution ◽

Global Warming ◽

Greenhouse Gases ◽

Weather Patterns ◽

Greenhouse Gases Emissions ◽

Wide Range ◽

The Future ◽

Aerosol Emissions

The occurrence of severe haze events remains a serious problem in Beijing. Previous studies suggested that the frequency of weather patterns conducive to haze may increase with global warming. The new Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs) cover a wide range of uncertainties in aerosol and greenhouse gases emissions. Global and Chinese aerosol emissions are projected to decrease in most SSPs, while increases in greenhouse gases and global warming will continue for the rest of the century. The future, therefore, remains unclear.We quantified the air pollution over Beijing and associated weather patterns using multiple indices calculated from the SSPsWe show that the occurrence of weather patterns conducive to the formation of haze significantly increases by the end of the century due to increases in greenhouse gases. Aerosol reductions also cause an increase in their occurrence, but reduce the severity of haze, and overall reducing aerosol emissions will be beneficial.

Download Full-text