13 research outputs found
Outside the net: Kiribati and the knowledge economy
No full textThe Information and Communications Technologies of the last three decades have revolutionized the way in which societies and economies interact on both a global and a domestic scale, with concomitant impacts on the ways in which business is conducted and people and communities interact. A series of studies undertaken by the World Bank from 1997 to the present suggest that those countries which do not take up to the fullest possible extent the technologies now available and enter what has been termed the 'Knowledge Economy' will be 'left behind' in the same way as the Third World which did not experience the industrial revolution. Two of the distinguishing characteristics of the Knowledge Economy however are that first, unlike the industrial revolution it does not require the same massive injections of capital into physical plant and R&D, and second, that countries may 'leapfrog' into the Knowledge Economy without having gone through industrialization. Many such developing countries (Mauritius is a prime example) have taken that leap and are now functioning effectively in and with cyberspace. However, not all countries are participating equally in this interconnected world and this paper examines one country which has not taken up the challenge of the Knowledge Economy -the Republic of Kiribati which straddles the equator in the heart of the Pacific Ocean. Kiribati is an island nation, and its people are of the sea, with fishing as the mainstay of their subsistence lifestyle. Nets are part of every-day life - but the Net is outside their world. It is suggested that the combination of a conservative culture and a paternalistic form of government -itself a reflection of Micronesian cultural values -combine to create an environment where ITC is not pursued actively - or indeed at all. There are significant cultural and socio-political barriers that inhibit the uptake of ITC and some of these factors are explored in this paper
Information technology & telecommunications implications for tourism field research
No full textThis research note outlines preliminary research and thinking into the knowledge economy and its relevance for tourism research..
Rethinking and reconceptualizing social and cultural issues in Southeast and South Asian tourism development
No full textThe rapid growth of tourism in Asia in recent years has generated concern about the sociocultural, economic and environmental impacts on Asian societies and communities. Until recently, most commentary was from a Western orientation assuming tourism as Caucasian with impacts perceived through Western values. In some Asian destinations, such as Thailand, Malaysia and China, their Asian visitors greatly outnumber Caucasian visitors and domestic tourists greatly outnumber international visitors. In short, tourists are not homogenous yet many analyses are based on Western perceptions of Western tourists impacting upon Asian societies and purport to cover the entire canvass of tourism in Asia, when in fact they will provide only a partial and segmented assessment
Outside the net: Kiribati and the knowledge economy
No full textThe Information and Communications Technologies of the last three decades have revolutionized the way in which societies and economies interact on both a global and a domestic scale, with concomitant impacts on the ways in which business is conducted and people and communities interact. A series of studies undertaken by the World Bank from 1997 to the present suggests that those countries which do not take up to the fullest possible extent the technologies now available and enter what has been termed the ‘Knowledge Economy’ will be ‘left behind’ in the same way as the Third World, which did not experience the industrial revolution. Two of the distinguishing characteristics of the Knowledge Economy, however, are that first, unlike the industrial revolution it does not require the same massive injections of capital into physical plant and R&D, and second, that countries may ‘leapfrog’ into the Knowledge Economy without having gone through industrialization. Many such developing countries (Mauritius is a prime example) have taken that leap and are now functioning effectively in and with cyberspace. However, not all countries are participating equally in this interconnected world and this paper examines one country which has not taken up the challenge of the Knowledge Economy - the Republic of Kiribati which straddles the equator in the heart of the Pacific Ocean. Kiribati is an island nation, and its people are of the sea, with fishing as the mainstay of their subsistence lifestyle. Nets are part of every-day life - but the Net is outside their world. It is suggested that a conservative culture and a paternalistic form of government - itself a reflection of Micronesian cultural values - combine to create an environment where ITC is not pursued actively - or indeed at all. There are significant cultural and socio-political barriers that inhibit the uptake of ITC and some of these factors are explored in this paper
Tourism development and cultural policies in China
No full textAs China actively pursues modernization, the tensions among a rigid application of socialism, the conservatism of tradition, and the demands of economic development threaten to destabilize the nation. All three elemental forces have contradictory objectives and the Chinese Communist Party expends significant effort in attempts to reconcile those differences. Tourism has emerged as an effective vehicle for synthesizing some of the differences through its contribution to the modernization process, its utilization of heritage for product development, and its role in meeting some socialist objectives. Tourism in China has thus exerted a centripetal influence, lessening to some extent tensions among the three opposing forces
Historical methodology and sustainability: An 800-year-old festival From China
No full textWhile much has been written in tourism literature about what is tourism as sustainable development, particularly in the context of planning, management and best practice, there has been little focus on methodologies designed to assess that sustainability. It is suggested that too often we are presented with a snapshot of a given situation at a particular point in time which does not reveal the processes at work over time; and a judgement about sustainability in the absence of the historical perspective and/or a longitudinal study must therefore be treated with caution. This paper examines the value of historical methodology for determining the sustainability of tourism development. It then applies this approach to an examination of a festival which has survived in China for about 800 years. The dynamics and interrelationships between political, sociocultural and economic forces, essential to an understanding of tourism in a holistic way, may thus be related to the sustainability of a tourism development
Deposition of high density tailings on beaches
No full textOne of the biggest uncertainties affecting the operations of mine and land reclamation activities is related to tailings / slurry management, for which the processes of beach deposition play a critical role. Deposited tailings produce both sheet and channelised flow, causing varying velocity profiles which lead to differential settlement. This is impacting slurry management operations (e.g. fines capture, capacity of a storage facility) as well as the mine closure and/or reclamation planning (e.g. strength of the deposit, differential consolidation, total settlement and reclamation topography). Even though critical, little is known about the physics of non-Newtonian slurry flow over beaches. In order to improve this knowledge, Deltares initiated a research program. This program starts with large scale experiments, aiming to mimic and understand the flow behavior observed in practice. This study is based on the large scale experiments at Deltares and consists of a literature survey, experiments and numerical modeling. In the experiments a mixture of clay, silt, sand and salty water is discharged over a 2% slope in which the composition is varying during the experiments. In the subsequent experiments water is added to the initial mixture causing a decrease in strength. Along with decreasing strength, the flow behavior changes from robust sheet flow to more dynamic channel flow. The change in flow behavior corresponds to a change in observed surface shear-profile. During (slow) sheet-flow, perpendicular and abrubt shear planes are observed wheras smooth and parabolic shear planes were observed during (fast) channel flow. Accompanying the change of strength, flow behaviour and shear mechanism, a shift from non-segregating to segregating slurry is observed. A hypothesis formulated in this thesis states that the observed surface shear profile is similar to the vertical shear profile, this could explain why the slurry is segregating or not. Rheology measurements were conducted with mixture used in the flume experiments. The measurements reveal rheopectic behavior with cumulative shear, after a certain time (added shear) the rheology reaches an equilibrium state (i.e. constant flowcurve). From these measurements an empirical function was developed relating the flow-curve to the mixture composition. Shear stress calculations based on these rheology measurements in combination with observations show a great agreement with the equilibrium bottom shear stress during the last part of the experiments. However during the first part the dynamic shear stress was exceeding the equilibrium bottom shear stress of the inclined flow, this is most likely caused by the developing rheology which was not yet at the equilibrium flow curve in the beginning of the experiments. After channel formation, cores were taken in both flowing and stagnant (or very slow flowing) parts. These cores were analysed on water content and particle size distribution. In addition vane (strength) measurements were conducted at nearby locations. A comparison between flowing and stagnant parts reveal no significant difference in water content, particle size distribution and strength. Though an equivalent variation (increasing strength and particle size, decreasing water content) was found (from top to bottom) over the height of the mud layer due to settling and consolidation of solids. From bathymetry measurements it was observed that the overall slope of the mud-line was steeper at the location of the flowing part than at the stagnant part. In addition the equilibrium slope was decreasing during the experiments caused by a decreasing strength. In previous research on flowing tailings, an analytical model(1DV) was developed aiming to predict the deposition of sand. The ingenuity of this model is a rheology-based viscosity profile which lead to a settling-velocity distribution over the height of the flowing layer. The 1DV model developed in this study assumes a similar (and constant) settling-velocity profile, however the problem is solved numerically. Hence it is possible to include more aspects like hindered settling, a multi-sized particle size distribution and morphological development. The input for the model is generated by flume-measurements in combination with the developed rheology function. The model predicts the average sedimentation measured during the flume experiments reasonably well. The experimental data was also compared with the original model (without hindered settling and with a mono-sized particle size distribution (d=2d50), it was found that the developed model performs slightly better than the original model.Dredging EngineeringMaritime and Transportation TechnologyMechanical, Maritime and Materials Engineerin
THE CHINESE ARE COMING – AN ANALYSIS OF THE PREFERENCES OF CHINESE HOLIDAY MAKERS AT HOME AND ABROAD
No full textWe analyse the destination choice of Chinese tourists in China and abroad. Abroad, Chinese tourists prefer to travel to large and rich countries, and are little deterred by distance. Climate, coast, culture and political stability are irrelevant. Chinese tourists travel disproportionally to “approved destinations”, but this is being eroded as more countries acquire this status. The model predicts that Southeast Asian countries are harmed most by the extension of the ADS system, while North America suffers most from being excluded. Domestically, Chinese tourists prefer rich and densely population areas, but dislike cities. They value easy access by road and rail, and are attracted by nature. Cultural attractions are less important, and may even reduce tourist numbers. Although potential tourist numbers are large, tourist operators should not assume that Chinese tourists behave like other tourists.International tourism, domestic tourism, China, destination choice
Use of response surface methodology (Rsm) for the identification of the best extraction conditions for headspace solid-phase micro extraction (hs-spme) of the volatile profile of cv. arbequina extra-virgin olive oil
No full textThe effect of the experimental conditions on assessing the global volatile profile of extra virgin olive oils (EVOO) by headspace solid-phase micro-extraction/gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HS-SPME/GC–MS) is studied to obtain maximization of the total peak areas of the compounds. Response Surface Methodology (RSM) is applied to Arbequina EVOO, and the influence of oil quantity, extraction time, and extraction temperature on the total area and extraction of the major desirable compounds is analyzed. The experimental data are adequately fitted into second-order polynomial models with non-significant lack of fit (p > 0.05) and coefficients of determination (R and R -adjusted) higher than 0.88 and 0.78, respectively. A strong similarity is found between the predicted and experimental values. Furthermore, the surface plots show that the extraction of the volatile compounds is favored with increasing extraction temperature, time, and oil quantity. The extraction conditions to obtain the maximum response of “green” volatile compounds from Arbequina olive oil by HS-SPME placed in 50 mL vials are 4.6 g of oil, 43 min, and 59 C. Practical Applications: The findings of the present work show that specific conditions of HS-SPME/GC–MS affect the extraction of volatile compounds from cv. Arbequina olive oil and establish the optimum extraction parameters to more efficiently determine the global profile of this fraction, taking into account the organoleptic characteristics of the cultivar. The results also contribute to the knowledge of the volatile profile of the monovarietal olive oil cv. Arbequina, which is one of most cultivated and consumed types of olive oil worldwide.The authors are grateful to the CAPES Foundation − Ministry of Education, Brazil for the scholarship support provided to the first author. This work is part of the doctoral thesis of T.H.B., Ph.D. student from the Official Doctoral Program “Nutrition and Food Sciences” of the Granada University. The authors are also grateful to the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal) and FEDER under Program PT2020 for financial support to CIMO (UID/AGR/00690/2013). The authors dedicate this work to the memory of Carmen Cabrera Vique.Peer Reviewe
The influence of tourism on the sustaining of vernacular architechtural tradition embodied in the Bai and Naxi dwellings in Yunnan, China.
No full textYunnan is an economically underdeveloped region in south-western China, in which many ethnic settlements are preserved well. Within the last two decades, many ethnic communities at a grass-roots social level have been conducting a series of tourism-related developments of Bai and Naxi dwellings in Yunnan. They are altering, restoring, rebuilding, refurbishing and renewing ordinary Bai or Naxi dwellings into multi-function dwellings, which are not only the residential homes of families, but are also capable of providing an exotic cultural experience for tourists‘ consumption. Nevertheless, Bai and Naxi dwellings are representations of a living culture, embodying a complex set of vernacular architectural traditions which have been transmitted for many generations. When the Bai and Naxi dwellings are involved in tourism development, the transmission and adaptation of these vernacular architectural traditions are changed, and the manner in which such traditions aresustained in new circumstances becomes an interesting problem. This study explores the influence of tourism development on sustaining the vernacular architectural tradition embodied in Bai and Naxi dwellings in Yunnan, China. The researcher has conducted three rounds of fieldwork, choosing 30 Bai and Naxi dwellings involved in tourism development, from four ethnic minority settlements in Yunnan, for investigation. Observation, interview and questionnaire have been applied to collect data, and template analysis has been used to analyse the data. The results of the analysis show that if tourism development is conducted mainly at a community level, itcan enhance the sustaining of the vernacular architectural tradition embodied in Bai and Naxi dwellings. In summary, the sustaining of vernacular architectural tradition is not simply influenced by the nature of tourism, but is highly dependent on the social level of the developers, the construction pattern they choose, and the socio-cultural interaction they produce
