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This article analyzes how serious games can be used to understand the future spatio-temporal dynamics of territorial systems in the context of environmental and territorial transition. The selected games are territorial planning games. They share a forward-looking approach that encourages actors/participants, together in a workshop, to collectively project themselves into the future and imagine possible developments for their territory over the long term. The first part illustrates the value of including a serious game in a territorial project by using four examples of games that are representative of operational methods, tailored to a specific audience and project phase. The second part focuses on serious games integrated into research aimed at anticipating future spatial changes resulting from climate change adaptation measures. Two games based on the geoprospective method are presented. The third part centers on one of these two games, explaining its role in the research, the game phases, and the lessons learned from feedback.

Financial performance has become a trending concept in corporate finance and strategic management in recent times especially in the aftermath of the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) of 2007–2009. As an antidote to charter value erosion caused by stiff competition from incumbents in traditional banking activities, banks venture into non-core banking activities as a diversification and survival strategy. The purpose of the study is to determine the optimal threshold levels of non-interest income that stimulate financial performance of ten Zimbabwean commercial banks using non-interest income disaggregates over 2009–2020. Unfortunately, studies that examine the non-interest-income-financial performance nexus of banks involved in intermediation are scant and inconclusive. Furthermore, the use of threshold models to crack this puzzle are conspicuous. The study employed Fully Modified Ordinary Least Squares and Threshold difference Generalized Methods of Moment nonlinear threshold approaches. The aggregated and disentangled non-interest income dynamic optimal thresholds found are 26 %, 17 % and 10 % whereas the average static ones are 35 %, 28 % and 17 %. Compared to aggregated non-interest income, the study reveals that the disaggregates pose a greater positive impact on financial performance of banks in the upper regime than their counterparts in the lower regime. In addition, more banks were found to be operating below the required minimum thresholds. To avert episodes of bank failures and hedging against banking sector fragility, commercial bank managers should come up with well-diversified portfolios of income-generating ventures. Also, central bank regulations must promote non-interest activities, competition, growth and reduce leverage of commercial banks.

This study focuses on the uses of digital technology during teaching and learning. The preparedness, adoption, and use of virtual learning are inquired. Technology cannot enhance learning unless adopted, embraced, and effectively used. Three hundred and one (301) online questionnaires were administered to Higher and Tertiary institutions (HTEIs) students. The data were analyzed using the Structural Equation Model (SEM). Performance Expectancy (PE), Effort Expectancy (EE), and Social Influence (SI) were confirmed to be positive predictors of the Behavioural Intention (BI) to use technology. Facilitating Conditions (FC) is a non-significant construct to BI to use technology. Thus, irrespective of the availability of Information Communication Technologies (ICT) infrastructure and support needed to use virtual learning, students are forced to use virtual technology due to COVID-19. Pandemics such as COVID-19 force students and lecturers to use virtual learning irrespective of factors surrounding them. Pandemics are an anchor for the full embracement of virtual learning. Pandemic 'like' elements applied in the education system foster education. Google Classroom and its features prove to improve the teaching and learning processes. Chatbots and contextualized virtual Educational Humanoid robots enhance learning through interactivity. Pandemics need to be tested if they are a perfect fit as a new Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model construct. In addition, a model for effective blended learning during and post COVID-19 must be developed.

Crop abandonment is when farmers decide not to harvest their previously planted crop. There is limited but emerging literature on crop abandonment or failure predominantly examining weather and crop failure rates. Consistent with these existing scant studies, it is not immediately clear to what extent historical relationships can be extrapolated in the long run under climate change. This paper seeks to improve our understanding of determinants of crop abandonment decisions in Zambia for maize production at subnational level. We find that crop abandonment (harvesting) is positively (negatively) related to fertiliser use, rainfall and temperature and negatively (positively) related to cost of living, price of maize, index-based insurance cover, town and random shocks. Therefore, fertiliser, rainfall and temperature increase the likelihood of crop abandonment in Zambia whereas increasing cost of living, maize price, insurance participation, town specific and random shock reduce it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

En los últimos años, la continua evolución tecnológica ha dado lugar al desarrollo de complejos argumentos ficcionales en nuevos medios potencialmente narrativos, como los videojuegos, con características connaturales muy distintas a las de otros medios narrativos tradicionales, como el literario o el cinematográfico. La principal característica definitoria de los videojuegos es la interactividad. El objetivo de este trabajo es estudiar, a través de la lingüística textual, cómo afecta el componente interactivo al desarrollo de la narración en el videojuego y de qué manera propicia nuevas experiencias narrativas inalcanzables para la literatura o el cine.

The study aims to determine the relationship between financial development and economic growth with respect to the state of institutional quality on 27 Sub-Saharan Africa countries using a five-year averaged dataset over the period 1982-2016. The findings established evidence of a U-shaped relationship between financial development and growth which entails that more (less) finance drives (retards) growth in the region. The turning point beyond which financial development begins to contribute positively on economic growth ranges between 33% and 37%. Even though the connection is not strong, the selected institutional variables also showed both a direct and an indirect positive impact on economic growth. Financial development is positive and significant when embedded in selected well-developed institutions, which implies a complementary relationship of institutions and financial development on growth. It is therefore recommended that policy makers and responsible authorities take stringent measures to ensure the development of institutions and the financial sector for sustainable economic growth in the region.

The problem of revenue leakages through transfer pricing remains unabated, and an examination of possible causes is a continuum. This study provides a nuanced examination of the interaction between MNCs and the tax consultants (TCs) which is treated with mixed views in the existing literature. The role of TCs in aiding and abetting taxpayers into abusive transfer pricing (TP) has implications for policy especially in situations where the tax administration systems are porous. Based on a theoretical review (deductive theorising) the study moves from exploring broad and general aspects of the game theory to applying them to tax forestalling through TP by Multinational Corporations (MNCs). The study critiques the assumptions of game theory and explores the influence of TCs in TP decision making processes by MNCs. It gives a theoretical explanation (interpretive phenomenology) on game theory attempting to promote a deeper understanding of TP by MNCs. The study contributes to knowledge by exploring a confluence of three TP-related aspects which have been treated in isolation in existing literature. The findings show that the tacit collusion between TCs and MNCs sanitise the abusive TP activities by minimising the chances of the MNCs shenanigans being recognised by the tax authority due to information asymmetry. Further, the mediating role of TCs is polarised and benefits the TCs and the MNCs who will share the spoils at the expense of the tax authority.

Spurious (nonsensical) regressions with independent random walks or even with stationary series are well known. However, how their spuriosity is affected by nonlinearity in series has been scantly addressed. In this study, we examine, using Monte Carlo analysis, the effect of autoregressive conditional Heteroskedasticity (ARCH) on nonsensical regressions and we find that ARCH can neutralize most of spuriosity. Specifically, our analysis of finite sample behavior of the t-ratio in a spurious regression framework where ARCH effects are included in a Data Generating Process (DGP) model and Monte Carlo experiments show that large ARCH effects somehow weaken the degree of spuriosity. This will have implications for unit root and cointegration analysis. Our simulations suggest that many of the regressions in the literature, based on individual predictor variables, may be spurious.

The study aims to determine the relationship between financial development and economic growth with respect to the state of institutional quality on 27 Sub-Saharan Africa countries using a five-year averaged dataset over the period 1982-2016. The findings established evidence of a U-shaped relationship between financial development and growth which entails that more (less) finance drives (retards) growth in the region. The turning point beyond which financial development begins to contribute positively on economic growth ranges between 33% and 37%. Even though the connection is not strong, the selected institutional variables also showed both a direct and an indirect positive impact on economic growth. Financial development is positive and significant when embedded in selected well-developed institutions, which implies a complementary relationship of institutions and financial development on growth. It is therefore recommended that policy makers and responsible authorities take stringent measures to ensure the development of institutions and the financial sector for sustainable economic growth in the region. JEL codes: G20, O43

Reseña de Literatura y ficción. La ruptura de la lógica ficcional, obra publicada en 2015 en la que Alfonso Martín Jiménez plantea una nueva perspectiva teórica a través de la que reorganizar y reformular la tripartición clásica de los géneros literarios.

This paper presents a mapping of land use and land cover of Santa Catarina Island, in southern Brazil, based on high-resolution aerial photography and vectorization of aerophotogrammetric digital mapping at 1:2.000 scale produced by Urban Planning Institute of Florianopolis. The methodology adopted the visual analysis and interpretation of an aerial photogrammetric mosaic and the mapping method of land use patterns was organized into 17 classes. The results show the predominance of vegetation classes and urban areas. The patterns of urban areas are divided into continuous, discontinuous and diffuse categories, revealing punctual density and the presence of large urban areas only in the first settlements, real estate ventures or urban development projects.

Conducted by the ESPACE French laboratory with the Ressource research consultancy and the Tour du Valat, the CAMPLAN research program on the integrated management of the Camargue and Plan-du-Bourg hydro-system, is based on the observation made by several managers of natural areas of this territory: an increasing inability of the water governance to maintain the adaptive capacity of the hydraulic system faced with global change, and most particularly with sea level rise. In this research program, our goal was to combine the knowledge produced by the multidisciplinary research team in order to identify the elements which, in the functioning of the territorial system, are favourable and unfavourable to its adaptation. The complexity and the breadth of the gathered knowledge have required a systemic approach. The analysis of the structure of the constitutive relationships of the Camargue system brought to light two ways to adapt, from which the levers and brakes to the adaptability of the Camargue area were examined.