Directory of Open Access Books (DOAB)
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Consumer Collective Redress in EU Law
No full textThis book provides critical insights into the framework of consumer collective redress within EU law, including recent changes introduced by the Representative Actions Directive (EU) 2020/1828. The focus is on Poland, where group proceedings have been operating since 2009. The exploration of Poland’s 15-year time-span experience constitutes a comprehensive case study, offering valuable examples and recommendations. The study examines whether, collective redress mechanisms can ensure effective enforcement of consumer rights and, at the same time, guarantee a high level of consumer protection. The discussion is composed of three fundamental parts. The first chapter explores the nature of collective redress from the perspective of EU law. In the second chapter, the book addresses the various legal mechanisms operating in the Member States and the UK that serve consumers as means of collective redress. The final chapter focuses on Poland, discussing the legislative framework and functioning of group proceedings in practice. The discussion is enriched with specific solutions for the further development of collective redress in the EU. This book covers issues that will be of interest to researchers investigating EU consumer law, collective redress, class actions and law enforcement more in general. It will be of relevance to consumers and practicioners, including attorneys and consumer organisations aiming to bring representative actions in one of the EU Member States
Public Procurement Pathways: Sustainability Edition
No full textPublic Procurement Pathways inaugurates a new research-based series on public procurement. The volume brings together an introduction and five peer-reviewed chapters that examine how Norwegian contracting authorities deploy procurement to achieve environmental and social sustainability goals. Contributions range from a conceptual update of Khi V. Thai’s procurement system model to empirical analyses of green, low-carbon and socially oriented purchasing at national and local levels. The authors explore competence requirements, market responses to environmental criteria and practical obstacles such as limited capacity and risk aversion. Collectively, the chapters offer an integrated view of the challenges and opportunities that arise when procurement is treated as a strategic policy instrument. The book targets students, practitioners and policymakers and is published with the support of the Norwegian Public Procurement Academy, which promotes evidence-informed public procurement through research, education and knowledge sharing.Public Procurement Pathways er første bind i en ny forskningsbasert skriftserie om offentlige anskaffelser. Boken samler en innledning og fem fagfellevurderte kapitler som belyser hvordan innkjøpsfunksjonen kan støtte miljømessig og sosial bærekraft i norsk offentlig sektor. Kapitlene spenner fra en konseptuell revisjon av Khi V. Thais klassiske modell til empiriske studier av grønne, lavutslipps- og sosiale anskaffelser i stat og kommune. Forfatterne diskuterer kompetansebehov, markedseffekter av miljøkrav og praktiske barrierer som begrenset kapasitet og risikoaversjon. Til sammen gir bidragene et helhetlig bilde av utfordringer og muligheter når offentlige innkjøp brukes som strategisk virkemiddel. Boken er ment for studenter, praktikere og beslutningstakere og er utviklet i samarbeid med Anskaffelsesakademiet, som arbeider for kunnskapsbaserte anskaffelser gjennom forskning, undervisning og erfaringsdeling
Game Production Studies
No full textVideo games have entered the cultural mainstream and now rival established forms of entertainment such as film or television in terms of economic profits. As careers in video game development become more common, so do the stories about precarious working conditions and structural inequalities within the industry. In Game Production Studies, an international group of researchers takes a closer look at the everyday realities of video game production, ranging from commercial studios to independent creators. Across sixteen chapters, the authors deal with issues related to labour, production routines, or monetization, as well as local specificities. As the first edited collection dedicated solely to video game production, this volume provides a timely resource for anyone interested in how games are made and at what cost. The contributors present case studies from Canada, China, Finland, France, Germany, Poland, and the US among other countries. Considering how fast the video game production networks are evolving, the collection provides both timely discussion of new trends and phenomena such as boutique publishers, in-game monetization regulation, or game jam natives and also historical probes into particular industries, which address the wider socio-historical context of these changes
Effects of Light Quantity and Quality on Horticultural Crops
No full textThere is a growing need to control light intensity and spectral distribution in horticulture to optimize crop yield and nutritional traits. The ten publications in this Special Issue cover several light control methods, ranging from applying shading nets, to greenhouse supplementary lighting, to using LEDs as a sole light source during cultivation. This Reprint covers various horticultural crops, including lettuce, Ethiopian kale, Chinese cabbage, pepper, pea, tomato, basil, and blueberry. The contributions provide a snapshot of current research in horticultural lighting
Stochastic Processes and Their Applications
No full textMathematics is publishing a Special Issue to honor Prof. Sally McClean on the occasion of her semi-retirement and in recognition of her important research contributions. Sally Ida McClean was born in Belfast and received her first degree, an M.A. in Mathematics, from the University of Oxford in 1970. She earned an M.Sc. in Mathematical Statistics and Operations Research from Cardiff University in 1972, and completed her Ph.D. in 1976 at Ulster University at Coleraine. Her contribution to mathematical modeling in healthcare planning is enormous, and, in particular, her studies on improving the wellbeing of the elderly are greatly respected amongst her peers. She is currently a Professor of Mathematics at Ulster University. Her main research interests are in Stochastic Modeling and Optimization for Healthcare Planning and Computer Science. Stochastic processes are some of the most important tools in many areas of science, such as biology, operational research, the social sciences, stochastic finance, etc. Important characteristics in these areas evolve with time in a relatively random way, and since stochastic processes are mainly sequences or families of random variables, in which their index represents time, they are the natural tool to use. The theory and applications of stochastic processes emerged in the genesis of one of the richest ones, that is, Brownian motion. This was rather unexpected since Brownian motion is a beautiful object which is at the same time a martingale, a Gaussian process, a diffusion, a Levy process, a Markov process, etc.—concepts that were discovered quite latter in the evolution of time
Women, Work and the Everyday Politics of Welfare
No full textThe restructuring of the welfare state in the UK has marked a significant change in the way contemporary society is ordered and understood. This research monograph explores the implications of this restructuring for women and their attachments to unpaid care, paid work and activism over time. Drawing on longitudinal research involving ethnographic and narrative inquiry in the south Wales Valleys, the contribution attends to the everyday politics of welfare through its rhetorical imaginings, the practices of street level workers and across the interactions of women themselves. Immersive and critical, the account provides valuable insights for our understanding of welfare restructuring and the future development of the welfare state
pH Sensors, Biosensors and Systems
No full textThis Topical Collection Reprint has gathered the latest findings in sensors, biosensors, and technologies, with a special attention systems where the pH plays a prominent role. The pH value is crucial for many living systems and chemical reactions in nature. Biology and microbiology (e.g., monitoring of bacteria, DNA, enzymes, aminoacids, and cells), environmental protection (e.g., characterization of waste and sea water), food and beverage quality control (e.g., monitoring of fermentation processes and the characterization of fruit, drinking water, and vegetables), pharmaceutics, cosmetics (quality control of creams, gels, and shampoos), medicine (e.g., monitoring and analysis of culture media, cancer, blood, and cytoplasm), and industry (e.g., chemical baths for paints and plating) are some of the fields where pH sensors have been extensively used to understand the nature of chemical processes, as well as to monitor quality and control safety. Although paper test strips and glass electrodes are the most common pH sensors, many studies have focused on developing less fragile, miniaturized, and biocompatible sensors with higher sensitivity. The pH value can be measured through various approaches and materials, including electrochemical and optical sensors, ion-selective field effect transistors (ISFETs), quantum dots, 2D materials, and organic compounds
Like Dust on the Silk Road
No full text"How did the Tocharians reach China?" "Who did they meet on the way?” are some of the most intriguing questions in Indo-European studies. This book is zooming in on a specific part of the question: on their way to China, Tocharians were in contact with an Iranian people living in the south Siberian Steppes, and with a people related to the Oxus Civilization (BMAC). This Iranian people spoke a specific language, called here “Old Steppe Iranian”. They gave Tocharians many words, such as mañiye ‘servant’, etswe ‘burden-carrying horse’ or ‘mule’, pāke ‘portion, share’. The BMAC-related people gave the Tocharians other words such as etre ‘hero’ and kercapo ‘donkey’. This book reconstructs features of the language of both these peoples, and examines how they influenced the Tocharians. Based on the latest archaeological findings, it also suggests a reconstruction of the chronology and the way the Tocharians followed before entering the Tarim Basin. Winner of the 2nd prize for the best dissertation of the Indogermanische Gesellschaft prize for the best Indo-European studies dissertation
Handbook on Corruption in Higher Education
No full textThis insightful Handbook provides an overview of corruption within the context of higher education. Through a variety of international case studies, theoretical frameworks and methodologies, it examines the underlying issues involved in corruption as well as the damaging impact on scholarly cultures and the academic enterprise.Publishe
Orizzonti della filologia digitale. L’Antologia Greca per ripensare formati, paradigmi e collaborazione
No full textWhat are the implications of the encounter between ancient texts and complex digital environments? How should we handle the data generated by Digital Classics projects? How can we structure them to makethem accessible, valuable and reusable? This volume addresses these questions by bringing together theoutcomes of a collective reflection on projects dedicated to the edition and study of the classics in the digital age. This reflection developed from the case of the Anthologia Graeca, within the framework of the three-day conference entitled “Horizons of Digital Philology. The Greek Anthology for Rethinking Formats, Paradigms, and Collaboration”, held from April 16 to 18, 2024 (University of Naples Federico II & University of Montreal).PublishedQuali sono le implicazioni dell’incontro tra testi antichi e ambienti digitali complessi? Come gestire i datigenerati dai progetti di Digital Classics? Come strutturarli per renderli accessibili, valorizzarli e riutilizzarli? Il presente volume affronta questi interrogativi raccogliendo gli esiti di una riflessione collettiva sui progetti di edizione e studio dei classici nell’era digitale. Tale riflessione si è sviluppata apartire dal caso dell’Anthologia Graeca, nel contesto delle tre giornate di studio intitolate “Orizzonti della filologia digitale. L’Antologia Greca per ripensare formati, paradigmi e collaborazione”, tenutesi tra il 16 e il 18 aprile 2024 (Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II & Université de Montréal)