Maritime activity in the High North : current and estimated level up to 2025 : MARPART Project Report 1

This report analyzes the current commercial and governmental activity in the sea regions north of the Polar Circle from the Northern Sea Route to the North West Passage. The study embraces sea and coastal areas of the North West of Russia, Northern Norway and around Svalbard, Iceland and Greenland. It includes an overview of types of vessels and other objects involved in different activities, and the volume of traffic connected to different types of activities, such as fisheries, petroleum, tourism, navy and research. Furthermore, this report estimates the maritime activity level in the area the next ten years, or until 2025, and the potential development of the regional preparedness system

PC Games, Financial Gains and Consumers: An Issue of Control

This paper addresses the problems faced by a struggling PC game industry and discusses how the level of control affects the ability of users to add value to the industry. In addition, the paper views reasons for why control is required, how it is currently being executed and where it fares poorly. The research question is: “Can firms increase profits by reducing control?” and is split into sub-questions which are answered throughout the paper. Chapter 1 explains the current state of the computer game industry, highlights the economic reasons for why companies desire control and details the problem of distinguishing between pirates and legitimate customers. Chapter 2 presents the video game value chain, and discusses each level of the chain in sequence, covering the capital & investment, design & creativity, distribution and hardware & complementary software levels. Each level adds financial value to video games, and each level presents control issues where the level of control that is currently maintained has possible negative effects on financial gains. Chapter 3 discusses business models where control is reduced in some way to the benefit of companies that use the models. These models are all in use by successful companies, and are therefore tried and tested models with proven benefits. In chapter 4, the conclusions are presented, showing that certain levels of the value chain can benefit greatly from reduced control, mainly due to the increased input of users and company-community interaction resulting from that reduction in control. The limitations of the study and recommendations for further research are also presented in this chapter

The making of future entrepreneurs. The relationship between Fablabs and entrepreneurial intentions of students in upper secondary school

This study provides a snapshot of the relationship between use of a fabrication laboratory (Fablab) and the entrepreneurial intentions of students at the upper-secondary school in the Westman Islands (FíV) in Iceland. The context of the study is established by reviewing relevant academic literature about entrepreneurship, entrepreneurial intentions, the role of education for entrepreneurship and the role of specific entrepreneurship education. Academic literature regarding Fablabs is also reviewed. A two-part qualitative study provides insight into the goals and intentions of local leaders (Headmistress of the school and Project manager of Fablabs in Iceland) regarding the Fablab, as well as the differences in entrepreneurial intentions of students who have used the Fablab and students who have not. The findings show that all the students in question had fairly high entrepreneurial intentions when using the Theory of Planned Behavior. Those who had interacted with the Fablab displayed more confidence and actual entrepreneurial skills, as well as a higher propensity to act, which is a part of Shapero’s model of entrepreneurial events. Finally, the study provides a discussion on the findings, how to apply the information gained to educational initiatives, social policies and further research. The conclusion is that the Fablab program is a useful tool for entrepreneurship education, while its influence on entrepreneurial intentions requires further research.Þessi rannsókn varpar ljósi á tengslin milli notkunar nemenda Framhaldsskólans í Vestmannaeyjum (FíV) á Fablab (e. fabrication laboratory) og frumkvöðlahneigð þeirra. Fræðileg umræða um frumkvöðlastarfssemi og frumkvöðlahæfni, hlutverk menntunar í sköpun frumkvöðla og hlutverk frumkvöðlamenntunar sérstaklega, er grundvöllur rannsóknarinnar. Fræðileg rit um Fablab eru einnig til umræðu, til að gefa lesendum betri skilning á Fablab í heild sinni. Tvískipt eigindleg rannsókn varpar ljósi á markmið og áætlanir þeirra einstaklinga sem hafa mest áhrif á stefnu Fablab í Vestmannaeyjum (skólameistara FíV og verkefnastjóra Fablab), sem og muninn á frumkvöðlahneigð nemenda sem nota Fablab og nemenda sem ekki nota Fablab. Rannsóknin sýnir að allir nemendur sem tóku þátt eru með jafn háa frumkvöðlahneigð þegar horft er á kenninguna um áætlaða hegðun (e. Theory of Planned Behavior). Hinsvegar voru nemendur sem hafa notað Fablab með meiri tilhneigingu til framkvæmda (e. Propensity to act) heldur en þeir sem hafa ekki notað Fablab. Tilhneiging til framkvæmda er hluti af módeli Shapero um frumkvöðlahæfni (Shapero’s model of entrepreneurial events). Notendur Fablab sýndu einnig fram á meiri frumkvöðlahæfni en hinir þátttakendurnir. Í lokin er umræða um niðurstöður rannsóknarinnar og ábendingar til stefnumótunaraðila, skóla og samfélags um hvernig má nýta þær til viðmiðunar í framtíðinni. Niðurstaðan er sú, að Fablab er hentugt verkfæri fyrir frumkvöðlamenntun þó svo að áhrif þess á frumkvöðlahneigð þarfnist ítarlegri rannsókna