Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Effects of Extreme Heat Adaptation Strategies under Different Climate Change Mitigation Scenarios in Seoul, Korea

The impacts of extreme heat in Seoul, Korea, are expected to increase in frequency and magnitude in response to global warming, necessitating certain adaptation strategies. However, there is a lack of knowledge of adaptation strategies that would be able to reduce the impacts of extreme heat to cope with an uncertain future, especially on the local scale. In this study, we aimed to determine the effect of adaptation strategies to reduce the mortality risk under two climate change mitigation scenarios, using Representative Concentration Pathways (RCP) 2.6 and 8.5. We selected four street-level adaptation strategies: Green walls, sidewalk greenways, reduced-albedo sidewalks and street trees. As an extreme heat assessment criterion, we used a pedestrian mean radiant temperature threshold, which was strongly related to heat mortality. The results, projected to the 2050s, showed that green walls, greenways and reduced-albedo sidewalks could adequately reduce the extreme heat impacts under RCP2.6; however, only street trees could reduce the extreme heat impacts under RCP8.5 in the 2050s. This implies that required adaptation strategies can vary depending on the targeted scenario. This study was conducted using one street in Seoul, but the methodology can be expanded to include other adaptation strategies, and applied to various locations to help stakeholders decide on effective adaptation options and make local climate change adaptation plans.
High Frequency Analysis on Jumps and Long Memory Volatility in Commodity Futures Prices

We concern the high frequency returns of 15 minute commodity futures prices. The basic FIGARCH model with the usual normality assumption is found to be inappropriate in representing the high frequency commodity futures returns and the rejection appears to be due to the jumps which are occurred in the high frequency returns. Hence, this paper relies on the generalized FIGARCH model combined with the Bernoulli distribution that allows for jumps in the high frequency commodity futures returns. This paper shows that the generalized FIGARCH-Bernoulli distribution model performs quite well and that the jumps spuriously increase the long memory persistence in the volatility process of the high frequency commodity futures returns.
Sources of value co-destruction: Uber customer perspectives

Purpose This study aims to explore the antecedents that generate value co-destruction, the negative outcomes resulting from interactive value formation, in the sharing economy context, particularly taxi services. The focus of the study is on customers’ Uber reviews that are written in English and posted online. Three keywords, “bad”, “terrible” and “awful”, were used to capture online narratives linked to customers’ negative experiences with Uber. Out of the 758 online reviews, 75 negative reviews were analysed in this study. Design/methodology/approach A grounded theory approach was used for data analysis. Findings Two distinct themes resulted in value co-destruction: Uber drivers’ bad behaviour and poor customer service. The managerial implications include that Uber clearly should invest more resources to minimise the negative experiences of its customers by clearly defining the taxi drivers’ tasks and responsibilities. In addition, when customers report their dissatisfaction, they should be dealt with promptly and effectively through good customer service. Research limitations/implications First, the netnography study, by its nature, was restricted to those customers who shared their reviews online. The study did not consider those customers who have not posted their reviews online. Second, the focus of the study was on customer reviews that were written in English. Third, only three keywords (“bad”, “terrible” and “awful”) were used in the data selection process, limiting the number of review posts (75) that were analysed in this study. In addition, even if this study does not produce statistically generalizable findings, the findings are valuable in an analytical sense. Practical implications From a managerial perspective, Uber clearly should invest more in resources to minimise the negative experiences of its customers (both domestic customers and tourists) by clearly defining the taxi drivers’ tasks and responsibilities. If the drivers’ tasks are unclear, then customers cannot be served in an effective manner and with consistent service quality. The taxi drivers, regardless of their full-time or part-time work shifts, should ensure that quality services are offered to customers. Providing high-quality service might reduce the number of complaints and result in positive comments and compliments. Originality/value This study addresses the gap in previous literature by examining customers’ negative experiences during the overall service encounter and antecedents of value co-destruction in the context of Uber. This study contributes to a better understanding of value co-destruction within the sharing economy.
Preservice Teacher Perceptions of the Role of an Agriculture Teacher during Their Early Field Experience.

School-based agriculture teachers (SBAE) hold many roles inside and outside of the school. Identifying and understanding the many roles an agriculture teacher may have in their career is an important part of an early field experience (EFE). In this study, EFE students (n = 18) submitted written reflections focused on the role of an agriculture teacher. Open coding of the preservice teacher reflections revealed five themes including work-life balance, public relations, role of an FFA advisor, student success, and school responsibilities. Codes within these five themes indicate a student-centered approach among agriculture teachers. Additionally, EFE students described many school responsibilities outside of the agriculture program that may contribute to a work-life imbalance among agriculture teachers. It is recommended that teacher education programs have current practicing teachers be engaged as part of the preparation process for pre-service students to learn about agriculture teacher roles. Consideration needs to be taken when selecting EFE sites to ensure students are receiving a quality experience, which reinforces the teacher preparation program objectives.
Forecasting electricity prices in the Czech spot market

This master thesis is focused on analysis and forecasting of hourly and daily electricity price on the deregulated Czech daily electricity market. The methods used for estimating and forecasting hourly and daily prices are picked from the ARIMA-GARCH family of models and Neural Networks. For daily price data, the Redundant Haar Wavelet Transform decomposition of the time series is used in combination with ARIMA and Neural Networks models for forecasting. For hourly data, ARIMA and Neural Network models are considered. The forecasting results of daily data indicate that simpler models such as seasonal ARIMA outperform all other methods. Also the wavelet decomposition of the daily series didn’t prove useful in enhancing the forecast precision. For hourly data, the Multilayer Perceptron architecture of the neural network outperformed the ARIMA forecast. JEL Classification C20, C22, C45, C53, C65
Modeling and Forecasting Realized Portfolio Diversification Benefits

For a financial portfolio, we suggest a realized measure of diversification benefits, which is based on intraday high-frequency returns. Our measure quantifies volatility reduction, which could be achieved by including an additional asset in the portfolio. In order to make our approach feasible for investors, we also provide time series modeling of both the realized diversification measure and realized portfolio weight. The performance of our approach is evaluated in-sample and out-of-sample. We find out that our approach is helpful for the purpose of portfolio variance minimization.
Performance measurement and management within construction firms in Saint Lucia

The dynamic and competitive business environment has motivated and compelled construction firms to implement contemporary performance measurement and management (CPMM) systems and frameworks to generate comprehensive information on their performance, and for benchmarking. The information from the CPMM framework is essential for the effective management of construction firms. The aim of this study, therefore, is to investigate performance measurement and management (PMM) within construction firms in Saint Lucia to develop a PMM conceptual framework to better measure and evaluate their business performance. The methodology of this research is based on a comprehensive literature review of PMM in general, and in construction, questionnaire survey and case study. The literature review identifies key variables of PMM, in particular the salient components of the proposed conceptual framework. The questionnaire survey was conducted among 47 construction firms in Saint Lucia to gather the quantitative data. The study uses a multi-case study of two Saint Lucian construction firms involving semi-structured interviews and document analysis to gather the qualitative data. The quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics analysis and factorial analysis, whilst qualitative data were analysed using thematic analysis. Furthermore, the study applies structures and semi-structured interviews for the validation of the framework. One of the main findings emerging from this study is the development of a conceptual framework, based on the Balanced Scorecard for construction firms to evaluate and manage their performance. The proposed framework contains both financial and non-financial performance measures used by Saint Lucian construction firms. Moreover, the findings reveal that Saint Lucian construction firms are using their performance measures for many different purposes such as measuring and monitoring performance, strategy management and managing risk. Furthermore, the findings provide considerable insight into the barriers to the implementation of a CPMM framework within construction firms. Having identify the barriers, the study further identifies key strategies to overcome the barriers to the successful implementation of a CPMM framework. To date, there are few studies investigating the practices of PMM in developing countries like Saint Lucia. This exploratory study contributes to filling this gap through the development of the conceptual framework for Saint Lucian construction firms to better measuring and evaluating their performance. The Study further provides a systematic understanding of the importance of PMM practice in construction firms within the context of Saint Lucia.
Market concentration and profitability: the empirical evidence from Serbian manufacturing industry

The impact of market concentration on profitability is a controversial question in industrial organization without a clear answer. The aim of the research is to investigate this prospective impact in the context of Serbian manufacturing industry. The main hypothesis of the research is that the increase in market concentration increases the profitability in the markets, due to the collusion of the dominant companies. We test this hypothesis by defining, estimating and testing the model describing the impact of structural and other control variables on market profitability by using secondary panel data for 122 markets, observed in 2015 and 2017. We obtained the data from 30 037 financial reports of the manufacturing industry companies. The model was estimated by using an error component two stage least squares estimator (EC2SLS). The results indicate a statistically significant positive impact of market concentration on profitability, empirically supporting the traditional market power hypothesis.
Shaping Individual Preferences for Social Protection: The Case of Platform Workers

Workers who perform their occupations through platforms are becoming an increasing share of the labour force. The debate is polarized between those arguing for platforms as an instrument to increase flexibility and labor force participation, and those who see it as a further mechanism to increase Non Standard Work (NSW). This debate is policy relevant because in either case, platform participation is associated to a difference in terms of willingness to contribute to the social security system. Nevertheless, the evidence is scant because we lack reliable data sources. In this contribution, we use a dedicated survey to estimate Willingness to Pay (WTP) for social security and estimate the causal impact of platform participation using a selection on observable strategy. We found that platform workers are less disposed to contribute to social security, although perception of accessibility and adequacy are not affected. Results are robust to specifications and multiple hypotheses testing.
Overcoming Issues in Occupational Safety and Health Compliance among Contractors in Paddy and Rice Industry

Issues related to occupational safety and health (OSH) in the agriculture sector is gaining extra attention, especially accidents that occur at workplace. This study is focusing in Selangor, Malaysia where the state shows the highest number of fatality accident rate in 2014 for this sector. The aim of this study was to propose strategies for improvement of OSH compliance among contractors in paddy and rice industry based on their main problems. A set of questionnaire was distributed to 40 registered and active contractors’ company in paddy and rice industry with a response rate was 100%. Total of 10 interview sessions were conducted in order to collect information on their issues and opinions into details. The result shows that the lack of attitude of workers towards OSH; inappropriate and inadequate of OSH training among workers; and lack of effective communication between the company and its employees were the three main problems faced by these contractors. The study was then successful in identifying the 10 main necessary steps to be taken in improving the level of OSH based on the three main problems faced by these contractors.
Customer delight and outrage in theme parks: A roller coaster of emotions

ABSTRACT The present study explored the key drivers of customer delight and outrage in North American theme parks. Following content analysis of TripAdvisor postings, the authors revealed the most frequently used codes for delight including rides, travel advice, fun, physical environment, positive food and beverage experience, and well-managed lines. The most frequently used codes for outrage included: pricing, wait times, poor service, malfunctioning attractions, lack of variety, low quality of food, and lack of updates. These codes revealed five key constructs of theme park experiential consumption: core products, customer service, affective individual experience, management philosophy and practice, and pricing.
Camera calibration: estimation, validation and software

The software tele2 3.1 allows, in particular, to measure the intrinsic parameters of a camera. Nevertheless, a single measure do not allow to characterize the distribution associated to a parameter. Moreover, if the way to obtain measures is incorrect, these measures may be outliers.Also, this document is made up of a method to measure the intrinsic parameters thanks to the software tele2 3.1, and to quantify the quality of the obtained values.An analysis of the experimental data is provided as well, allowing to validate the given method.
Does Land Tenure Systems Affect Sustainable Agricultural Development?

The current study aims to investigate the agricultural investment differences among three kinds of land lease agreements and their effect on farmers’ decisions regarding sustainable growth in terms of soil conservation and wheat productivity, using cross-sectional data from rural households in Punjab, Pakistan. The “multivariate Tobit model” was used for the empirical analysis because it considers the possible substitution of investment choices and the tenancy status’ endogeneity. Compared to agricultural lands on lease contracts, landowners involved in agribusiness are more likely to invest in measures to improve soil and increase productivity. Moreover, the present study has also identified that the yield per hectare is much higher for landowners than sharecroppers, and thus, the Marshall’s assumption of low efficiency of tenants under sharecroppers is supported.
Intellectual Capital, Profitability, and Productivity: Evidence from Pakistani Financial Institutions

The idiosyncratic and knowledge-intense nature of the financial institutions requires them to rely more on intangible than on tangible resources. Over the past two decades, researchers have been motivated to embark on the relationship between intellectual capital (IC) and performance of financial institutions. Considering the knowledge-based intellect as a critical skill of this era, the current study examines the impact of IC on the performance of 111 Pakistani financial institutions (PFIs) over the period 2007–2018. Two IC measures, i.e., value-added intellectual coefficient (VAIC) and modified value-added intellectual coefficient (MVAIC), were applied to examine the impact of IC on profitability and productivity. Robust results from the fixed effect regression and generalized method of momentum affirm the inverted U-shaped relationship between IC and performance, suggesting that the increase in IC performance of PFIs increases their profitability and productivity up to a certain level, and after that, a further increase in IC performance decreases profitability and productivity. The results further suggest that human capital is the most influencing intellectual resource which produces higher intellectual efficiencies and increases the performance significantly. The results of this study are likely to be helpful for management, regulators, policy makers, and academics and provide insights into the importance of IC and suggest that the investment in the IC improves the sustainable performance to a certain extent.
What goes up must come down: an evaluation of a zoo conservation-education program for balloon litter on visitor understanding, attitudes, and behaviour

Abstract Balloons used outdoors can fly away, posing ingestion and entanglement hazards to wildlife. “When Balloons Fly” (WBF) conservation-education program seeks to educate zoo visitors about these threats and encourage the use of wildlife-friendly bubbles at outdoor events. We examined the effect of WBF on visitor knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours (intentions and actions) over 6 months (N = 624). We compared outcomes among visitors who viewed a presentation and exhibit, to viewing the exhibit-only, and investigated the priming influence of completing a survey before entering the exhibit (pre-survey). Visitors had greater depth of understanding about the impact of balloons immediately following the visit, but post-visit message recall was low. General Linear Models revealed that over 6 months WBF significantly (p < .05) influenced positive attitudes concerning balloon use, increased likelihood to use bubbles, and reduced likelihood to use balloons. Completion of a pre-survey significantly influenced positive attitudes and reduced likelihood to use balloons. WBF is promoting conservation behaviour, with two-thirds of the follow-up sample reporting that behaviours they changed while hosting or attending an outdoor event since their visit were influenced by the zoo experience. Future work can investigate materials that might mimic a priming effect (e.g., worksheets).
Monitoring Spatial Changes in Manufacturing Firms in Seoul Metropolitan Area Using Firm Life Cycle and Locational Factors

This paper diagnoses the development of the manufacturing industry in the Seoul Metropolitan Area (SMA) using portfolio and regression analyses. Following the life-cycle perspective, four types of spatial changes of firms have been identified, namely firm formation, inflow, outflow, and dissolution, which are applied to analyze the manufacturing development in SMA. For portfolio analysis, we propose the Net Formation Index and Net Inflow Index to measure the spatial changes of firms at the city level. The two indices facilitate horizontal comparison among cities in SMA in terms of firm growth from new opening and relocation. Using spatial regression analysis, we identify significant location factors that contribute to firm change patterns. Our tests show that a high level of industrial specialization (measured by location quotient) has a dual effect. On the one hand, high level specialization attracts new or inflow firms, particularly in the light and high-tech manufacturing industries. On the other hand, it leads to an increased number of closed or outflow firms, plausibly due to increased competition among local firms. The proposed methods can be applied to diagnose industrial development in clusters of inter-connected cities and design policy tools to boost the local industry.
Revisiting Real Exchange Rate Fundamentals

Real exchange rate (RER) differs from its nominal variant in that it measures relative changes in the real value of two currencies. Hence, it is not only a powerful resource allocator forcing resource movement between sectors, it also represents a potent influence on the growth of international trade. A decline in RER is usually interpreted in terms of real appreciation squeezing the tradable goods sector (via relative competitiveness) and vice versa. Further, the somewhat omnibus influence of RER on other relative prices supplies an additional boost to its resource allocation attribute. Other things given, whenever the RER is in equilibrium, there results simultaneous occurrence of internal and external equilibria. Hence, RER movements have implications for inflation, unemployment and balance of payments that are important foci of stabilization policy objectives in all open economies.
The Passivhaus Standard in the Spanish Mediterranean: Evaluation of a House’s Thermal Behaviour of Enclosures and Airtightness

Few houses have been built in the Spanish Mediterranean in accordance with the Passivhaus (PH) standard. This standard is adapted to the continental climates of Central Europe and thorough studies are necessary to apply this standard in Spain, especially in the summer. High relative air humidity levels in coastal areas and solar radiation levels of west-facing façades require adapted architectural designs, as well as greater control of air renewal and dehumidification. A priori, energy consumptions undergo big variations. In this study, the construction of a single-family house in the Spanish Levante was analysed. All enclosure layers were monitored using sensors of surface temperature, solar radiation, indoor and outdoor air temperature, relative humidity, and air speed. The thermal behaviour of the façade enclosure and air infiltration through the enclosure were examined using the blower door test and impacts on annual energy demand were quantified. Using simulation tools, improvements are proposed, and the results are compared with examples of PH housing in other geographical areas. The annual energy demand of PH housing was 69.19% below the usual value for buildings in the Mediterranean region. Very thick thermal insulation and low values of airtightness could be applied to the envelope, which would work very well in the winter. These technique solutions could provide optimal comfort conditions with a well-designed air conditioning system in summer and low energy consumption.