Examining Merchants’ Refusal to Adopt Mobile Payment Systems in Spain

Over the past years, traditional company management has been undergoing major changes regarding the adoption, implementation, and development of new technologies. Even if Internet commerce has the potential to revolutionize consumer behavior and the way merchants communicate with their customers, it is true that several activities related to the new technologies are still in the early stages of development or implementation. The main purpose of this study is to assess the determinants of m-payments from the point of view of merchants through an exploratory and qualitative analysis (literature review, focus groups, and in-depth interviews) in order to find the drivers and deterrents influencing the use of mobile payment systems in retail business. In order to properly approach the proposed research, a theoretical review of the actual situation of the different mobile payment systems across the different markets was carried through several personal interviews with merchants in the first place and, secondly, surveying over 151 retail companies in Spain. Conclusions and implications are discussed from the data and results drawn from this research, suggesting strategies to overcome some of the identified barriers and deterrents while also proposing some suggestions for future research opportunities

Rainwater Harvesting for Agricultural Irrigation: An Analysis of Global Research

Within a context of scarce water resources for agriculture, rainwater harvesting constitutes a promising alternative that has been studied by different disciplines in recent years. This article analyses the dynamics of global research on rainwater harvesting for agricultural irrigation over the last two decades. To do this, qualitative systematic analysis and quantitative bibliometric analysis have been carried out. The results reveal that this line of research is becoming increasingly important within research on irrigation. Environmental sciences and agricultural and biological sciences are the most relevant subject areas. Agricultural Water Management, Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, and Irrigation and Drainage are the journals that have published the most articles on the subject. India, China, the United States (USA), South Africa, and the Netherlands are the countries that lead this line of research. Although significant progress has been made in this subject area, it is necessary to increase the number of studies on the capacity of rainwater harvesting systems to cover irrigation needs in different farming contexts, the factors that determine their adoption by farmers, the economic and financial feasibility of their implementation, and their contribution to mitigating global climate change

Criterios de evaluación para la enseñanza de la geografía, la historia y las ciencias sociales, según el modelo de principios científico-didácticos (P.C.D.)

En este artículo los autores nos presentan nuevos criterios de evaluación para la enseñanza de la Geografía, la Historia y las Ciencias Sociales; con el fin de que el alumnado adquiera una formación más integral y completa en la que tienen cabida la dimensión práctica, epistemológica y ético-filosófica. Para ello separan los conceptos de los hechos, porque poseen naturalezas distintas, y añaden los contenidos de carácter reflexivo, que serían los equivalentes a las correlaciones internas de los demás tipos de contenidos de cada tema. El resultado son cinco tipos de criterios: factuales, conceptuales, procedimentales, reflexivos y actitudinales. El fundamento de estos, es el modelo de los Principios Científico-Didácticos, elaborado por los autores en investigaciones anteriores, como forma innovadora y alternativa de aprendizaje.In this article the authors present new evaluation criteria for teaching Geography, History and Social Sciences in order to provide students with a more comprehensive and complete which has dimensions for the practical, epistemological and ethical-philosophical. For this, the authors have separated the concepts of facts, because they have different natures, and add the contents of thoughtfulness, which would be the equivalent to the internal correlations of the other types of contents of each issue. The results are five types of criteria: factual, conceptual, procedural, and attitudinal reflective. The basis of this, is the model of Scientific-Didactic Principles, developed by the authors in several previous research, as an innovative and alternative form

An Analysis of Global Research Trends on Greenhouse Technology: Towards a Sustainable Agriculture

Greenhouse farming is an agricultural management system that has demonstrated its efficiency in intensifying food production. These systems constitute a feasible alternative for ensuring food supply, which is one of the greatest challenges faced by humankind in the twenty-first century. Technology has been able to meet the challenges related to greenhouse farming in both contributing to overcoming its limitations, correcting adverse impacts and ensuring system sustainability. The objective of this article is to analyse the global research trends in greenhouse technology over the last two decades, in order to identify the main driving agents, the most outstanding research lines and possible gaps in the literature. Different methodologies have been used for the analysis; both quantitative and qualitative. The principal results show that there are different relevant lines of research related to different aspects of greenhouse farming: the use of water for irrigation, the design of the optimum structure of the greenhouse, conserving the soil in the best growing conditions, energy consumption of the system as a whole, climate control within the facility and pest control. The research is characterized by the being composed largely of ad hoc studies, which hinders the international collaboration between researchers and institutions. The research approach has shifted from being focused on increasing production and cost savings to aspects related to resource conservation and sustainability

Contribución al conocimiento de la biología floral del género lavándula l. II. Lavandula stoechas l. Subsp. Stoechas

Several aspects of the floral biology of Lavandula stoechas L. subsp. stoechas are studied: pollen germinability, stigmatic receptivity, nectar production, floral longevity, dymanics of floral appearance on the inflorescences as well as fruit and seed set. The taxon is selfcompatible, as demonstrated by controlled pollinations, and shows a marked protandry at both flower and inflorescence. Stigmatic receptivity is anticipated by the visits of pollinators. Nectar secretion rate and fruiting success are maximum for the first opening flowers of the inflorescence. The differences in fruiting success among flowers of an inflorescence are discussed in terms of resource limitations.Se estudian diversos aspectos de la biología floral de Lavandula stoechas L. subsp. stoechas, como la capacidad germinativa del polen, receptividad del estigma, producción de néctar, duración floral, dinámica de apertura floral en la inflorescencia y fructificación. El taxon es autocompatible, como demuestran las polinizaciones controladas, y presenta flores e inflorescencias con marcada protandria. La receptividad estigmática resulta anticipada por la visita de los polinizadores. Las primeras flores de cada inflorescencia producen mayor cantidad de néctar que las restantes y, además, son las que alcanzan un mayor índice de fructificación, lo que se explica por una limitación de la disponibilidad de recursos

Forest Ecosystem Services: An Analysis of Worldwide Research

The relevance of forests to sustain human well-being and the serious threats they face have led to a notable increase of research works on forest ecosystem services during the last few years. This paper analyses the worldwide research dynamics on forest ecosystem services in the period from 1998 to 2017. A bibliometric analysis of 4284 articles was conducted. The results showed that the number of published research articles has especially increased during the last five years. In total, 68.63% of the articles were published in this period. This research line experiences a growing trend superior to the general publishing trend on forest research. In spite of this increase, its relative significance within the forest research is still limited. The most productive subject areas corresponded to Environmental Science, Agricultural and Biological Sciences and Social Sciences Economic topics are understudied. The scientific production is published in a wide range of journals. The three first publishing countries are United States, China and the United Kingdom. The most productive authors are attached to diverse research centres and their contributions are relatively recent. A high level of international cooperation has been observed between countries, institutions and authors. The findings of this study are useful for researchers since they give them an overview of the worldwide research trends on forest ecosystem services

La problemática relación entre estadística y ostrácodos marinos

This paper analyses the possibilities of the statistical techniques in the treatment of marine ostracod populations, with the indication of the commonest problems observed in the different stages (sampling, laboratory procedures, recognition of the biocoenosis). Some additional chapters indicate the most important limitations for the application of bivariate or multivariate techniques. In both cases, results can be considered as a graphic development of the initial database and never as the main support of the conclusions.Junta de AndalucíaUniversidad de Huelv