剖线强度梯度变化的作物软硬变化区精确划分

[目的]软硬变化区的划分是进行遥感变化检测技术识别农作物的基础。为解决人工判读方法中存在人为主观因素影响以及自动判别和交互式判别方法对不同研究区的适用性问题,该文提出基于剖线梯度变化(Profile based Gradient Change Magnitude,PGCM)进行软硬变化区划分的方法。[方法]该研究选择破碎农业景观种植区域为研究区,计算拔节期Quick Bird影像和播种期模拟影像两个时相的变化强度,从作物地块内部向外绘制剖线,利用剖线强度的梯度变化确定硬变化区(Hard change region,HCR)、软变化区(Soft change region,SCR)和未变化区(Non change region,NCR)3者间的划分阈值。[结果]从识别结果来看,PGCM能够有效在地块边界处探测到软变化像元,进而确定HCR、SCR。像元分辨率在5~60 m不同尺度下,识别HCR区混入比例为11%~16%,混入比例随着分辨率下降而降低;NCR区混入比例为3%~4%,受分辨率尺度影响不大;SCR区识别比例为74%~86%,识别精度较高,识别结果与冬小麦空间分布结果保持一致。[结论]PGCM方法能够自动、便捷地确定阈值,摆脱人工判定的主观性,有效地划分出HCR、SCR和NCR 3个区域,为进一步HCR、SCR区内的作物识别提供基础。     

Testing for unit roots in time series models with non-stationary volatility

Many of the key macro-economic and financial variables in developed economies are characterized by permanent volatility shifts. It is known that conventional unit root tests are potentially unreliable in the presence of such behaviour, depending on a particular function (the variance profile) of the underlying volatility process. Somewhat surprisingly then, very little work has been undertaken to develop unit root tests which are robust to the presence of permanent volatility shifts. In this paper we fill this gap in the literature by proposing tests which are valid in the presence of a quite general class of permanent variance changes which includes single and multiple (abrupt and smooth-transition) volatility change processes as special cases. Our solution uses numerical methods to simulate the asymptotic null distribution of the statistics based on a consistent estimate of the variance profile which we also develop. The practitioner is not required to specify a parametric model for volatility. An empirical illustration using producer price inflation series from the Stock–Watson database is reported.     

LADM-based profile for farmland Tripartite Entitlement System in China

Since the beginning of the 21st century, China has undergone a promotion of industrialisation, urbanisation and agricultural modernisation. This promotion has triggered the mass migration of rural labour forces into cities, leading to the virtual situation of the separation of farmland contract and operation rights. To respond to this issue, the central government proposed a strategy of farmland reform in China. Such reform aims to transform the former ‘Bipartite Entitlement System’ into a ‘Tripartite Entitlement System (TES)’.¹ Land registration provides the means for recognising formalised property rights and regulating the characteristics and transfer of land-related rights. As for farmland registration in China, it serves as a basis to explore effective forms of collective farmland ownership by implementing collective farmland ownership, stabilising farmers’ contract rights and liberalising farmland operation rights. Thus, in this study, on the basis of the farmland tripartite entitlement (hereinafter referred to as ‘FTE’) reform in China, we develop a Land Administration Domain Model (LADM)-based TES model that will serve as the basis of subsequent system development. Specifically, first, we summarise the evolution process of China’s farmland rights system since the foundation of new China. Second, we propose a farmland rights system after the FTE reform. Then, the corresponding TES model is developed based on the LADM standard and some instance-level diagrams for farmland administration activities. The new functionality of the model includes improved structuring of farmland rights and restrictions (and related source documents) and improved expansion of the land information infrastructure to rural areas.     

Adoption of precision farming tools: A context-related analysis

This paper deals with precision farming tools (PFTs), a way of farming which relies on specialized equipment, software and information technologies services, whose importance is underlined in recent documents of the European Union. Precision farming is an integrated and sustainable farm management system making use of modern technologies to increase farm’s profitability, by reducing environmental impact. In this paper we explore the complex mechanisms that affect PFT’s adoption by Italian farmers. More precisely, we try to analyse the context-related factors affecting adoption of PFTs in the Italian farms.Little research has been carried out in Italy on this topic, therefore our paper tries to fill a gap in literature. In order to investigate the process of technology adoption related to precision agriculture, a questionnaire was submitted to a sample of Italian farms. The questionnaire has been structured in order to apply the AKAP (Awareness, Knowledge, Adoption, Product) sequence. Our analysis underlines that context-related factors are fundamental dimensions to be explored in order to specify uptake of PFTs. Therefore, the paper has relevant policy implications, within the context of a new participatory approach to agricultural innovation characterized by bottom-up processes boosted by farmers, which has informed the recent policies of agricultural innovation at the EU level.     

Visitors’ acceptance of negative ecological impacts in national parks: comparing the explanatory power of psychographic scales in a Norwegian mountain setting

Even in protected areas, it is inevitable that any human use will produce some impact on natural resources. This study identifies visitors’ tolerance of potential negative ecological impacts from tourism activities and facilities in a Norwegian national park context, based on park visitors’ expressed degree of acceptance of negative effects on particular species of wildlife (wild reindeer and raptors) and on vegetation. Attitudes were analysed using psychographic scales, reflecting respondents’ nature orientations, their specific facility desires, their preferences in a wilderness setting and their concerns about human interaction with the natural environment. Fourteen research hypotheses were tested. Findings demonstrated that the psychographic scales explained more variation in attitudes than most social background and trip characteristics. Higher levels of education among visitors were strongly associated with increased ecological concern; age and gender were not. There was generally strong ecological awareness and eco-centrism among park visitors in general, with a small proportion of wilderness purists. Better trail conditions, signposting and interpretation were sought. But park visitors were also found to possess a complex mixture of needs and drivers. The study found significant potential for strategic alliances between tourism and conservation interests, and key value issues for park governance systems.     

Visitor Motivational Factors and Level of Satisfaction in Wellness Tourism: Comparison Between First-Time Visitors and Repeat Visitors

This study aims to examine the differences between visitor motivations and satisfaction between first-time visitors and return visitors to a recreation wellness tourist attraction site in South Korea. Data were collected using a questionnaire at a national arboretum and 573 samples were used for analysis. The study discovered that first-time visitor motivations were composed of four factors: “relaxation and rest”, “novelty”, “self-exploration”, and “accessibility”. The return visitor motivations were “sightseeing and experience”, “convenience for touring”, “self-exploration”, and “accessibility”. The desired outcomes motivating the visitation and level of satisfaction were different between first-time and return visitors. The results contribute practical information to managers and marketers not only of the arboretum, but also of wellness tourist attractions to improve strategic visitor management in Korea and beyond. The study strategically applies the arboretum as a competitive resource in a wellness tourism industry with strategic segmentation of visitors.     

Perceived Restorativeness of Visits to Cultural Heritage Sites

This study aimed to examine whether a causal relationship exists between perceived restorativeness and emotional healing, visitor satisfaction, and intention to revisit with respect to a visit to the Seooreung Shrine in South Korea. Attention restorativeness theory claims that four factors (being away, fascination, extent, and compatibility) induce a restorative environment. The results of the conducted survey support the four factors of attention restorativeness theory. Two distinct groups were identified and differences were discovered between the groups with respect to satisfaction and perceived restorativeness. Emotional healing exerted more influence on intention to revisit than visitor satisfaction. This study delivers a significant outcome as pioneer research on healing tourism by discovering emotional healing as a precedent variable to visitor satisfaction and intention to revisit in the area of cultural heritage tourism.     

The managerial implications of an analysis of tourist profiles and international hotel employee service attitude

Numerous studies indicate that customer satisfaction is closely related to hotel employees’ service attitude, and that distinct segments of a target tourist market require distinct customer service emphases. The enclosed study finds, for example, that Taiwanese tourists generally appreciate friendliness and enthusiasm, Japanese tourists admire courteousness and propriety, and American tourists value immediacy and efficiency. Marketers and personnel managers are therefore well advised to develop training strategies emphasizing empathy, gracious problem solving, and prompt individual attention for Taiwanese, Japanese, and American tourists, respectively. Importance–performance analysis (IPA) can be used to identify crucial aspects of appropriate service and recommend managerial strategies to support their implementation.     

Coverage area expansion, customer switching, and household profiles in the Japanese broadband access market

This paper examines the diffusion process of Internet broadband access in Japan by modeling the household choice of access modes. Estimates reveal that the characteristics of users, rather than those of the access modes, play a significant role in demand substitution across the modes. Simulation exercises indicate that had optic fibers (fiber-to-the-home; FTTH) been made available to the whole country in 2005, only 10% of households would have switched to that mode. This result implies that once chosen, the household choice of access mode persists, and that indirect network effects are an important element in decisions to adopt the new technology of broadband. Finally, policy implications are discussed.