Authenticity: The state-of-the-art in Tourism Geographies

A leading concept in the field of tourism studies, authenticity has a unique relationship with tourism geographies. This state-of-the-art review focuses on this relationship. First, we identity key themes of authenticity research in tourism geographies: place and cultural heritage; place-based experiences; place and community identity. Next, we investigate these themes to consider avenues that tourism geographies can advances the conceptualization of authenticity, particularly through a focus on the production of space, co-creation practices, anti-tourism movements, and inclusivity

Potential smoke-free dividend across local areas in England: A cross-sectional analysis

BackgroundThe value that might be added to local economies each year through the money that people who smoke tobacco would save if everyone quit smoking is called the “smoke-free dividend”. This study aimed to estimate the value of the smoke-free dividend across local areas in England, and how it relates to the average income in those areas.MethodsThe study was a cross-sectional descriptive analysis of tobacco expenditure from the Smoking Toolkit Study (STS) matched to income and smoking prevalence data for English local authorities. The STS sample was from 2014–2020 and comprised 18,721 adults who smoke cigarettes. Self-reported expenditure estimates from the STS were adjusted for under-reporting. This adjustment aimed to align the total expenditure estimate with figures derived from government tax receipts and national estimates of illicit tobacco use. The smoke-free dividend is calculated as 93% of spending on legal tobacco, which is the percentage estimated to leave the local economy, plus 100% of spending on illicit tobacco.ResultsThe total dividend in England is estimated to be £10.9 billion each year, which equates to£1,776 per person who smokes or £246 per adult regardless of smoking status. The estimated dividend is greater in areas with lower average income, with a correlation coefficient of -0.521(95% Confidence Interval: -0.629, -0.392) between the average income of local areas and the dividend per adult.ConclusionsThis study has estimated that local economies could gain a substantial dividend if everybody stopped smoking, which is larger in lower-income areas, meaning that geographic economic inequalities could be reduced

Responsible Generative AI for SMEs in UK and Africa Case Study Cocreation Workshop Report

The University of Nottingham hosted a co-creational workshop from 29th to 31st January at the Jubilee Hotel & Conference facilities, bringing together participants from the RAISE project’s case studies across the UK and Africa. The workshop focused on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) utilising generative AI for their products and services that form part of the RAISE case studies. The aim was to explore the challenges of integrating responsible research and innovation (RRI) practices into AI applications and to get feedback on current Responsible Artificial Intelligence (RAI) guidelines including the first draft of the RAISE guidelines.The workshop also evaluated tools for assessing AI’s responsible use, including the UK Government’s AI Management Essentials, ALTAI, and Microsoft’s Responsible AI Impact Assessment Tool. While these tools were considered useful, participants highlighted issues with their formatting and suggested improvements, such as the ability to save progress and revisit answers. Feedback on the RAISE guidelines emphasised the need for adaptable, SME-focused frameworks and a maturity scoring system to prioritise RRI elements at various stages of development. The workshop highlighted the challenges SMEs face in adopting responsible AI practices and will inform updates to the RAISE guidelines to better support SMEs in integrating responsible AI strategie

Blockchain in the pharmaceutical sector: empirical evidence on the associated challenges and countermeasures

The pharmaceutical sector is experiencing rapid growth in global medicine usage and spending. As the sector expands, so do risks. Blockchain technology promises significant benefits for addressing key issues in the pharmaceutical supply chains, such as enhancing traceability, preventing counterfeit drugs, and securing sensitive data. However, its adoption is not without criticism, facing challenges such as high implementation costs, regulatory uncertainties, and even skepticism about its purported benefits. This study provides the first empirical analysis of blockchain adoption challenges and countermeasures in the pharmaceutical industry. The research aims to identify key challenges and propose effective solutions to support broader implementation. A three-step methodology was employed: a systematic literature review to identify challenges, followed by a Delphi study to assess their relevance, and finally, a questionnaire collecting practical countermeasures. Seventeen major challenges and eight sets of countermeasures were identified and prioritized, with "IT security" being ranked as the most critical challenge and "Education and training" as the most effective countermeasure as it tackles more pressing challenges. The results were then analyzed using the Technology-Organization-Environment (TOE) framework and the Stakeholder Theory. The use of these complementary frameworks allowed to shed light on how different stakeholders can address the different challenges based on their roles, emphasizing the importance of their collective and collaborative efforts. This integration of theoretical frameworks provides valuable practical insights for addressing blockchain-related challenges and accelerating its adoption. Moreover, this research compares the pharmaceutical sector with other application areas, extending insights into blockchain adoption across industries

New Year as a Moment of Change in Pro-Environmental Product Consumption: evaluating the habit discontinuity and self-activation hypotheses using a large UK retail dataset

Introduction: The New Year, and the New Year’s Resolution tradition, may establish January as a moment of personal change: when there could be a temporal landmark for making a “fresh start,” a habit discontinuity, and value activation. As such, January may afford opportunities for personal pro-environmental lifestyle changes, such as by changing product choices.Method: To investigate this empirically, we analyzed existing data from a 2016 survey of retail customers (N = 12,968) linked to 35 months of their sales data (2012–2015) provided by a leading healthcare retailer in the United Kingdom. We compared sales in January to those in other months, focusing on sales of green product varieties and overall product sales (as a dematerialization indicator), and sales of two self-enhancing health product types (nicotine replacement therapy products and weight reduction products) for comparison.Results: Our results confirmed that sales of self-enhancing health products were greater in January than in other months, but we found limited evidence for pro-environmental consumption in January, and no evidence to support the habit discontinuity or value activation hypotheses.Discussion: We discuss these results with respect to behavior change intervention potential and moments of change theory

Model Predictive Control of a High-Turn-Ratio Dual Active Bridge Converter Considering Interlinking Inductances

Within a more-electric aircraft (MEA) dc power distribution system, dual active bridge (DAB) converters are employed to manage power transfer between different dc buses, or power transfer from/to the energy storage devices, for example, batteries. However, due to the relatively high current slew rate and large current amplitude in the low-voltage (LV) H-bridge, the interlinking inductance between the LV board and the transformer becomes non-negligible, as it introduces a noticeable voltage drop across the transformer secondary side, potentially leading to inaccurate power control. To address this issue, this paper develops a comprehensive mathematical model of DAB converters for a moving discretized control set model predictive control (MDCS-MPC) approach to minimize steady-state errors. The proposed model explicitly incorporates the effect of interlinking inductance and further investigates the relationship between the transferred power and the resulting voltage drop on the LV side. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed model and MDCS-MPC method is validated through experimental results on a 1000W DAB prototype, with transient performance comparisons against other conventional control strategies

An analysis of the effect of employee tenure on WACC

No international accounting policy exists to mandate that firms must report employee/workforce-level human capital information on a structured basis. Thus, the link between employee/workforce human capital and firm risk is not demonstrated in the literature. South Korea is a rare instance where human capital information, such as employee tenure is disclosed on Annual Reports as a rule. Therefore, we invoke resource-based theory, a human resource policy assertion, and a business ethics/sustainability inference to show whether capital providers differentiate between firms that are able/unable to retain employees, thus adjusting WACC accordingly. Using OLS regression analysis, from 2011-2020, empirical results show that firms with the ability to retain employees enjoy economically significantly lower levels of WACC. The results infer that equity/debt providers associate workforce tenure and firm risk/returns expectations. Empirical results also show that capital providers are nuanced when impounding employment information into risk/return assessments, based on incrementally different associations for investment-grade/non-investment-grade firms. The study contributes to the literature by providing evidence that management should develop strategies to retain employees to enjoy economic advantages. Because structured employee/workforce human capital information is rare internationally, the study has important practical implications for legislators, management, employees and the public

Loss, Thermal and Mechanical Responses of Rotor in Marine Generators Under SISC Degree and Load Variation

The electric power supply on marine ships depends on the generator. Once the generator fails, it affects the operation of the marine ships. Stator interturn short circuit (SISC) is a common electrical fault in generators. In the case of a short circuit fault, the generator will be in the reinforced exciting current (REC) mode. At present, most research results mainly focus on fault detection methods, rarely concentrating on rotor temperature properties. In this article, the air gap magnetic flux density (MFD) model in the combination of different loads and SISC degrees is established, and the characteristics of the terminal voltage are presented. Moreover, the change rule of the stator current, MFD, and the loss of rotor are comprehensively investigated while considering REC mode. To reveal the law of the rotor thermal response and the biggest value of the deformation/stress/strain at the rotor core acted by temperature, the multiphysics field analysis model with electromagnetic-temperature-structure coupling is established. Experiments are carried out to verify the theoretical and finite element analysis (FEA) correctness by a 5 kW prototype generator

The effect of Mn on the structural stability of Y0.88Ni3-xMnx hydrogen storage materials: A combined experimental and computational study

In the ever-evolving field of hydrogen storage technologies, metal hydrides, especially those derived from intermetallic compounds, stand out as promising solutions for safe, efficient, and reliable hydrogen storage. Among these, AB3 compounds are noteworthy for exhibiting interesting characteristics such as high storage capacity. In this study, we investigate the Y0.88Ni3-xMnx system (x = 0.1; 0.2; 0.3; 0.4; 0.8 and 1) due to its low density and fundamental interest. The compounds were synthesised by arc-melting followed by annealing at 1173 K for 3 days. X-ray diffraction revealed that the lattice parameters of the AB3 phase do not vary linearly with Mn content, suggesting a non-random distribution of Mn atoms. Given the limited scattering contrast between Mn and Ni in X-ray diffraction, neutron diffraction was employed to determine Mn occupancy. Joint refinement of synchrotron X-ray and neutron diffraction patterns showed that for Mn contents up to x = 0.3, Mn occupies both Y-sites within the [A2B4] subunits and Ni-sites within the [AB5] subunits. At higher Mn concentrations, Mn also occupies Ni-sites at the boundary between [A2B4] and [AB5] subunits. The evolution of lattice parameters strongly correlates with these variations in Mn occupancy. Notably, Y0.88Ni2.7Mn0.3 and Y0.88Ni2.6Mn0.4 exhibit nearly equal [AB5] and [A2B4] subunit volumes, making them strong candidates for reversible hydrogen. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations were performed to complement experimental results and reveal thermodynamic mechanism behind the dual-site substitution of Mn and Mn site occupancy behaviour with respect to Mn content across different sites