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Substitution among hotels and P2P accommodation in the COVID era: A spatial dynamic panel data model at the listing level
No full textThis paper studies the demand of the Airbnb’s listings in the Canary Islands analysing not only whether peer-to-peer (P2P) accommodation substitutes or complement the traditional accommodation, but also the spatial correlation between listings. Moreover, we analyse the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis in this lodging industry. To do this, we use a spatial dynamic panel data demand model for occupancy rates related to prices of Airbnb listings, prices of competitors (hotels and apartments) and the income. Results indicate that there is positive autocorrelation between occupancy rates, own-price elasticities are inelastic and positive cross-price elasticities, indicating that they are substitute goods. Income elasticity is lower than one and not statistically significant indicating that the demand for tourism in the Canary Islands is insensitive to the economic situation in the origin countries. COVID-19 effects are an increase of the elasticity and the substitution effect of hotels
Food experience conviviality: Do tourists value food sharing?
No full textThis study empirically examines the impact of food sharing on tourists’ interpersonal relationship development, sense of authenticity, and subjective wellbeing using two experimental studies. The two experiments showed that tourist food sharing improves interpersonal relationships, tourist perceptions of experience authenticity, and wellbeing. Two culturally divergent tourist groups were compared: US tourists and Chinese tourists. The results show that U.S. tourists evaluated food sharing higher regarding its impact on authenticity and wellbeing than their Chinese counterparts. this study contributes to the theoretical delineation of conviviality as a phenomenon, with specific reference to the identification of its impacts on tourist experiences
Instagram travel influencers coping with covid-19 travel disruption
Get PDFA significant portion of today’s marketing is done through social media influencers, that is, through bloggers with established online credibility in a certain area who are recognized and followed by a sizable online audience. In the travel and hospitality industry, the influencer marketing is primarily done through Instagram due to its emphasis on visual images rather than texts. Covid-19 related travel restrictions and shrinking social media advertisement in travel industry have heavily impacted travel influencers, reducing their income and forcing many out of business. We present the outcomes of a study of the top 150 online travel influencers. The analysis is based on 11,000 photographs and texts published in two time periods before and during COVID-19 epidemics. We found that COVID-19 has induced transformative changes in the influencers’ online behavior reflected in changes in their posting frequency, themes, and expressed emotions
WASTE TREATMENT FACILITY LOCATION FOR HOTEL CHAINS
Get PDFTourism generates huge amounts of waste. About half of the waste generated by hotels is food and garden bio-waste. This bio-waste can be used to make compost and pellets. In turn, pellets can be used as an absorbent material in composters and as an energy source. We consider the problem of locating composting and pellet-making facilities so that the bio-waste generated by a chain of hotels can be managed at or close to the generation points. An optimization model is applied to locate the facilities and allocate the waste and products, and several scenarios are analysed. The study shows that, depending on the transportation, treatment waste and production management costs, the installation of facilities is profitable for the hotel chain
Learning Based Food Image Analysis - Detection, Recognition and Segmentation
No full textAdvances of mobile and wearable technologies have enabled a wide range of new methods for dietary assessment and monitoring, such as active or passive capturing of food images of an eating scene. Compared to traditional methods, these approaches are less burdensome and can reduce biased measurements. Food image analysis, consists of food region detection, food category classification, and food segmentation, can benefit subsequent nutrient analysis. However, due to the different complexity levels of food images and inter-class similarity of food categories, it is challenging for an image-based food analysis system to achieve high performance outside of a lab setting.In this thesis, we investigate four research topics related to image-based dietary assessment: (1) construction of the VIPER-FoodNet dataset, (2) food recognition, (3) nutrient integrated hierarchy food classification, and (4) weakly supervised segmentation. For topic (1), we developed a learning-based method to automatically remove non-food images for dataset construction. For topic (2), we proposed a novel two-step food recognition system that consists of food localization and hierarchical food classification. For topic (3), we developed a cross-domain food classification framework that integrates nutrition information to help the classification system make better mistakes. Finally, for topic (4), a weaklysupervised segmentation system is developed which only requires image-level supervision during training.In addition, we developed a high-quality Photoplethysmography (PPG) signal selection method for a wearable device when subjects are undergoing daily life activities, which could be used to inform the health status of the individual
Beyond Deadly Sins and Virgin Impairments: Medieval Bodies in Disability Studies
No full textWhile the medieval lexicon did not include a comprehensive term for disability as we understand it today, images of impaired and disabled bodies proliferate in Middle English texts. This dissertation investigates textual representations of the material body across some of the most popular genres of the later Middle Ages (religious exempla, confessional literature, and hagiography) to demonstrate how medieval authors implement impaired bodies in service of spiritual exploration. I show how impaired medieval bodies that are often excluded from discussions of disability—for instance, personified sins, aging bodies, and martyrs’ bodies—are represented in distinctly material terms, drawing attention to medieval authors’ complex and nuanced explorations of bodily difference. Through sustained close readings and attention to medieval authors’ engagement with their source texts, I find that the impaired body operates as a generative site for engagement with significant ontological questions of the period —and that these textual depictions ultimately reveal the body’s resistance to easy or straightforward categorization. Moreover, my research demonstrates the utility of a more nuanced disability studies approach to medieval literature, intervening in current discussions about the ethics of applying the lens of disability to historical texts
Emergent Bilinguals’ Participation in Multilingual Engineering Learning Ecologies
Get PDFStudents classified as English language learners (ELLs), many of whom are also Hispanic/Latine´/x, are at times excluded from opportunities to engage in engineering design experiences due to the emphasis on learning English. In dual language bilingual education, however, language policies that allow for the use and development of more than one language afford opportunities for ELLs that are not available in monolingual environments. We draw on a multilingual learning ecology theoretical framework to analyze data gathered from a two-year ethnographic study. During approximately 200 hours of field work, we gathered multiple forms of data through ethnographic methods, to include field notes from participant observation, interviews, photographs, and audio and video recordings. We show that participants enacted a multilingual learning ecology in which there was a space for both English and Spanish, but also hybrid language practices. Translanguaging, by either groups or individuals, mediated engineering design activities. The multilingual learning ecology also allowed students, many of whom were classified as ELLs, to agentively stretch their repertoire to engage in engineering biliteracy practices. These included identifying problems, proposing engineering solutions, building and testing a model, and communicating their findings
Building strategic partnerships to support research impact & discovery in Canadian Research Libraries
Get PDFThis paper will update the international community on how Canadian research libraries are moving from supporting to taking a strong leadership role in key components of the University’s digital research support infrastructure and, in doing so, expanding the campus’ understanding of what good research libraries can and should do. The research will include real-world examples of research libraries leading campus implementations of Research Information Management Systems (RIMs) or Campus Research Information Management Systems (CRISs) to help document the institution’s research output; to partnering or leading the introduction of Bibliometrics services as a strategy for quantifying research impact; and to overseeing campus planning for research data management. The paper will outline some of the technology solutions being used across the country, but will focus most of the emphasis on the strategic relationships, service philosophies and project management expertise libraries are bringing to the table. The paper will also seek to flag the new competencies required to be successful in this new and rapidly changing environment
Impact of COVID-19 on Service Dog Organizations
Get PDFThe 2019 coronavirus pandemic led to federal, state, and local measures that paralyzed businesses across the nation. Among them were behavioral and mental health nonprofit organizations. The purpose of this study was to understand the impact of the pandemic on nonprofit programs that train and place service dogs with veterans/service members. Six service dog managers completed eight reflection probe questionnaires and participated in three focus groups. This study found that facility shutdown, businesses shutdown, and social distancing resulted in a training bottleneck for both canines and humans. These primary challenges created secondary and tertiary challenges that mirror and lend support to themes found in other studies, namely funding, welfare, and space. In addition to these challenges, managers found opportunities in the face of adversity, namely partnerships, flexibility, and innovation. This study also adds 45 specific opportunities as a practical guide for animal-assisted activities managers. The authors hope that this guide will introduce innovative solutions to improve normal operations and help mitigate the consequences of future crises