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A more accurate comprehension of data elements and the exploration of new laws governing contemporary data in both theoretical and practical domains constitute a significant research topic.

Based on the perspective of evolutionary economics, this paper re-examines economic history and existing literature to study the following: changes in the “connotation of production factors” in economics caused by the evolution of production factors; the economic paradoxes formed by data in the context of social production processes and business models, which traditional theoretical frameworks fail to solve; the disruptive innovation of classical theory of value by multiple theories of value determination and the conflicts between the data market monopoly as well as the resulting distribution of value and the real economic society. The research indicates that contemporary advancements in data have catalyzed transformative innovation within the field of economics.

The research indicates that contemporary advancements in data have catalyzed disruptive innovation in the field of economics.

This paper, grounded in academic research, identifies four novel issues arising from contemporary data that cannot be adequately addressed within the confines of the classical economic theoretical framework.

Flexible materials are used extensively in a wide range of industrial applications including the manufacture and assembly of garment and footwear products, the packaging industry and aircraft manufacturing. These applications are often extremely labour intensive requiring fast and accurate manipulation of materials by skilled human operators. This has resulted in numerous international research and development efforts to automate certain handling and manipulation processes involving flexible materials. Much of the research has been inspired by real industrial problems, and thus has been mainly sponsored by industry. A variety of innovative techniques and methods have emerged either addressing specific industrial problems, or suggesting a number of generic solutions. This paper closely examines the international research effort of automatic manipulation of flexible materials through a classification of workpieces in terms of their broad geometric shape, industrial applications, and individual processes.

The Chinese population is rapidly ageing before they are rich. The purpose of this paper is to describe healthcare seeking behaviour and the critical factors associated with healthcare seeking behaviour.

Using a purposive sampling method, the authors recruited 44 adults aged 60 years or older from three provinces, representing the developed (Shanghai), undeveloped (Ningxia) regions and the regions in between (Hubei). From July to September 2008, using a semi-structured guide, the authors interviewed participants in focus group discussions.

The healthcare needs for chronic and catastrophic diseases were high; however, the healthcare demands were low and healthcare utilizations were even lower owing to the limited accessibility to healthcare services, particularly, in underdeveloped rural areas. “Too expensive to see a doctor” was a prime complaint, explaining substantial discrepancies between healthcare needs, demands and use. Care seeking behaviour varied depending on insurance availability, perceived performance, particularly hospital services, and prescription medications. Participants consistently rated increasing healthcare accessibility as a high priority, including offering financial aid, and improving service convenience. Improving social security fairness was the first on the elderly’s wish list.

Healthcare demand and use were lower than needs, and were influenced by multiple factors, primarily, service affordability and efficiency, perceived performance and hospital service quality.

This study aims to explain the existing adaptation practices in an urbanized sub-region in the lower Chao Phraya River basin (CPRB) across different scales and dimensions. It offers an overview of water hazards in urban areas along the river basin to discover ways to deal with and recover from hazards via understanding the implications of existing and potential practice for the mitigation of hydrological hazards.

First, this study collected current adaptation strategies and measures from interview, focus group discussion, workshop organization, etc. to get the current adaptation strategies/measures for the whole CPRB and each specific area. Second, this study identified a set of criteria for evaluation from review of current publications and official reports. Then, the current adaptation strategies/measures were examined through a set of criteria to obtain the current situation of existing practices. Finally, analysis of key challenges and opportunities was done to propose supporting guidelines to reduce hydrological risks and incorporate further adaptation measures needed to boost resilience in the area.

Adaptation methods should focus on mixed adaptation, which integrates structural, social, organizational and natural adaptation, and to develop multi-dimensional collaboration. The adaption strategy has restricted the usage of some technologies and technical know-how, particularly in the area of climate change. As a result, intentional adaptation to become more inventive is required, to reduce hazards and improve disaster-response capacity. The various adaptation measures should be more integrated or more adaptive and to achieve greater cohesion and mutual benefit of individual measures, such as community-based adaptation or community-driven slum upgrading.

Hydrological risks are wreaking havoc on social, economic and environmental elements, particularly river flood, flash flood and drought in the Asia-Pacific region. Twenty-two existing adaptation options were evaluated with evaluation criteria such as scales of risks/impacts reduction, benefits of environmental and socio-economic and institutional aspects. The findings highlight the current situation of existing practices, key challenges and opportunities, which emphasized on natural-based solutions, raising knowledge and awareness and lessons learned on adaptation of hydrological risks. The existing adaptation measures will be suggested as supporting guidelines and master plans to minimize the hydrological risks.

Gives an in depth view of the strategies pursued by the world’s leading chief executive officers in an attempt to provide guidance to new chief executives of today. Considers the marketing strategies employed, together with the organizational structures used and looks at the universal concepts that can be applied to any product. Uses anecdotal evidence to formulate a number of theories which can be used to compare your company with the best in the world. Presents initial survival strategies and then looks at ways companies can broaden their boundaries through manipulation and choice. Covers a huge variety of case studies and examples together with a substantial question and answer section.

Presents over sixty abstracts summarising the 1999 Employment Research Unit annual conference held at the University of Cardiff. Explores the multiple impacts of globalization on work and employment in contemporary organizations. Covers the human resource management implications of organizational responses to globalization. Examines the theoretical, methodological, empirical and comparative issues pertaining to competitiveness and the management of human resources, the impact of organisational strategies and international production on the workplace, the organization of labour markets, human resource development, cultural change in organisations, trade union responses, and trans‐national corporations. Cites many case studies showing how globalization has brought a lot of opportunities together with much change both to the employee and the employer. Considers the threats to existing cultures, structures and systems.

Outlines Hong Kong’s financial system during the pre‐unification era. Looks at recent issues, regulatory changes and its development as an international financial centre. Considers banking, the stock market, the bond & futures market, the gold market, regulatory bodies and monetary and currency policies. Contrasts these with the pre‐unification system in China. Outlines the way that these two systems propose to exist together, looking at the potential benefits and problems this may bring.

Movement of people from one retail trade area to another in search of better options and deals has been studied across the world owing to its large impact on trade flow. Studies have been done in various rural and urban settings. However, almost all except one fails to provide a comprehensive model of outshopping which has its own limitations with regard to its applicability’s across cultures and in various settings. Nonetheless findings from the literature provides necessary inputs to start studies in various other cultures and settings. Results are presented in form of various definitions, various types, methodologies used, factors identified (individual characteristics, market characteristics, product related variables and accessibility factors) and patterns across continents. Attempts have also been made to explain their applicability to Indian conditions along with various limitations and gaps.

The purpose of this paper is to analyse how fish farmers manage climate-related risks and explore possible ways to strengthen risk management under current and future climate.

In total, 662 fish farmers in sites across Northern Thailand were interviewed about risks to the profitability of their fish farms and ways such risks were managed. Nonlinear canonical correlation analysis was used to relate risk factors to management practices at farm and river levels. In total, 68 in-depth interviews with farmers and other stakeholders provided additional information on climate risk management practices.

Farmers use a combination of adjustments to rearing practices, cropping calendars and financial and social measures to manage those risks, which they perceive as being manageable. Many risks are season, river and place specific; implying that the risk profiles of individual farms can vary substantially. Individual risks are often addressed through multiple practices and strategies; conversely, a particular management practice can have a bearing on several different risks. Farmers recognize that risks must be managed at farm and higher spatial and administrative scales. Social relations and information play critical roles in managing these complex combinations of risks.

This is one of the first papers to report in detail on how inland fish farmers manage climate-related risks. It underlines the need to consider multiple spatial and temporal scales and that farmers do not manage individual climate-related risks in isolation from other risks.

Globalisation is generally defined as the “denationalisation of clusters of political, economic, and social activities” that destabilize the ability of the sovereign State to control activities on its territory, due to the rising need to find solutions for universal problems, like the pollution of the environment, on an international level. Globalisation is a complex, forceful legal and social process that take place within an integrated whole with out regard to geographical boundaries. Globalisation thus differs from international activities, which arise between and among States, and it differs from multinational activities that occur in more than one nation‐State. This does not mean that countries are not involved in the sociolegal dynamics that those transboundary process trigger. In a sense, the movements triggered by global processes promote greater economic interdependence among countries. Globalisation can be traced back to the depression preceding World War II and globalisation at that time included spreading of the capitalist economic system as a means of getting access to extended markets. The first step was to create sufficient export surplus to maintain full employment in the capitalist world and secondly establishing a globalized economy where the planet would be united in peace and wealth. The idea of interdependence among quite separate and distinct countries is a very important part of talks on globalisation and a significant side of today’s global political economy.