Academic literature on the topic 'Degree Discipline: Economics'

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to measure the degree of interdisciplinary collaboration in Big Data research based on the co-occurrences of subject categories using Stirling’s diversity index and specialization index. Design/methodology/approach Interdisciplinarity was measured utilizing the descriptive statistics of disciplines, network indicators showing relationships between disciplines and within individual disciplines, interdisciplinary communities, Stirling’s diversity index and specialization index, and a strategic diagram revealing the development status and trends of discipline communities. Findings Comprehensively considering all results, the degree of interdisciplinarity of Big Data research is increasing over time, particularly, after 2013. There is a high level of interdisciplinarity in Big Data research involving a large number of disciplines, but it is unbalanced in distribution. The interdisciplinary collaborations are not intensive on the whole; most disciplines are aggregated into a few distinct communities with computer science, business and economics, mathematics, and biotechnology and applied microbiology as the core. Four major discipline communities in Big Data research represent different directions with different development statuses and trends. Community 1, with computer science as the core, is the most mature and central to the whole interdisciplinary network. Accounting for all network indicators, computer science, engineering, business and economics, social sciences, and mathematics are the most important disciplines in Big Data research. Originality/value This study deepens our understanding of the degree and trend of interdisciplinary collaboration in Big Data research through a longitudinal study and quantitative measures based on two indexes. It has practical implications to study and reveal the interdisciplinary phenomenon and characteristics of related developments of a specific research area, or to conduct comparative studies between different research areas.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to test whether financial crises themselves provide some degree of ex post discipline. In other words, is there learning from the mistakes associated with crises? The authors test this hypothesis on credit growth, a frequent contributor to banking crises. Design/methodology/approach The study uses statistical tests (comparison of means) on a sample of 72 banking crises, the onset of which occurred between 1980 and 2008. Tests for significance of the difference are conducted using Kolmogorov–Smirnov equality in distribution tests. Findings The results show that real credit growth fell substantially (relative to average) by about 8 per cent points from pre- to post-crisis periods, and that average banking regulation and supervision strengthens after a crisis. Originality/value This paper provides empirical support for the proposition that while financial markets may fail to give sufficient warning signals before a financial crisis, they may discipline governments to undertake reforms in the aftermath of a crisis.

Health Economics has reached a significant degree of maturity in recent times, which allows it to have generated sufficient knowledge (both theoretical and empirical evidence) to be able to transcend the results obtained to the application of health policies. All these reasons are more than enough for the discipline of Health Economics to be present in the editors of Studies in Applied Economics. The compilation of articles contained in this issue, whose coordination we gladly accept at the invitation of the editors of this Journal, therefore represents a current review of many of the main aspects of the discipline and a good example of its concerns, not only from the point of view of the public powers but of the population in general.

AbstractMorale and faculty development are closely related. The agricultural economics profession must decide what it is about. There is room to practice the principle of comparative advantage and allow a degree of specialization in teaching, extension, and research. To continue in the role of an applied discipline, there must also be an opportunity for the young professional to establish rapport with, and understanding of, the private sector and the policy-making arena. If that is to happen, there must be encouragement in the institutional setting and by faculty colleagues who respect the importance of investment in building rapport and in establishing credibility. If that environment is present, morale should be good and faculty development will occur.

We compared the wages of economics degree holders with of those in 49 other fields of study using data from the 2006 Canadian population census. At the undergraduate level, economics majors earned the sixth highest average wage in 2005. When demographic controls were applied, they ranked ninth on the salary scale. When we compared the wages in 15 fields that require students to take math courses, economists ranked in the middle, as they also did when working as managers and professionals. When working as business and finance professionals, economists had wages surpassed only by finance majors. At the graduate level, economics majors had a greater wage advantage over all of the other fields except for business majors. These results are useful for Canadian university economics departments that have been experiencing declining enrolments over the past few years. In addition, we hope they will enable students to make more informed choices regarding their academic discipline. The results also highlight the need to direct greater policy attention towards developing mathematical skills among incoming university students as a prerequisite for them to build analytical skills, the demand for which in the labour market has been demonstrated in some Canadian and US studies.

The article is devoted to the evolution of scientific schools of the Department of Economic Theory, Regional Economics, and State and Municipal Management of South Ural State University (National Research University), which celebrates the 70th anniversary since its formation this year. During its development, it has gone from a service department (teaching the “Political Economy” discipline) to the department combining the functions of a service (teaching the “Economics” discipline) and a graduate one (Bachelor's and Master's degree programs) in the “State and Municipal Administration” field of training. Various research has been conducted at the department. Initially it studied the “Macro- and microeconomical problems of the evolution of socio-economic problems”. Later it engaged in the “Study of the nature of transformation processes in the Russian economy during the transition to the market period”. Today it conducts active research on the problems of the regional economy and municipal management. Many of the department’s teaching staff members participate in the regional expert community of Chelyabinsk and the Chelyabinsk Region. In connection with the strategic scientific projects of the Priority 2030 Program, the following fields have become the focus of scientific research: “Analyzing the promising specializations in the region's industrial space”, “Research and evaluation of the agglomeration effects in the economic space of the subjects of the Russian Federation”.

The central theme of this session is the changing relationship between “orthodox” (i.e., mainstream, neoclassical) and “heterodox” economics, especially in the USA, during the past two or three decades. Economics is such a large and heterogeneous discipline that it cannot be characterized both briefly and accurately. Alongside the growth of formalization and mathematization, and the high degree of uniformity in the undergraduate and graduate curricula and in the leading textbooks, there are also within the subject a number of dissenting or deviant doctrinal schools, rival methodological approaches, and innovative developments designed to remedy its defects and/or overcome its limitations. Moreover, many of the outspoken criticisms of the status quo, proposed remedies, and innovations, originate with or are endorsed by prominent economists with impeccable professional credentials. Indeed, in some cases their contributions threaten the discipline's foundations and can, therefore, be considered a species of “orthodox subversion.”

This article discusses the definition of teaching methods as a science, its object and subject, and features. The main components of the connection between the methodology of teaching computer science as a science and the main concepts of the educational process are also identified. The main focus is on generalizing the experience of teaching the discipline "Informatics" to students of humanitarian universities and highlighting interdisciplinary connections. The purpose of the article is to describe the intermediate results obtained during the study of the effective use of information technologies in the course of teaching students of a humanitarian university in the discipline "Informatics". The structure of the e-course in the self-study support system is presented. The place of the discipline "Informatics" in the training programs of students of the 1st year of the bachelor's degree in the areas of "Economics" is highlighted, the types of tasks for independent work of students are described, and an example of the design of educational materials for the case in the discipline "Informatics" is given. The main directions of improving the methodology of teaching the discipline "Informatics" are also outlined.

This paper investigates the impact of fiscal policy on foreign direct investment (PDI) in South Africa during the past 30 years. Casual empirical analysis reveals a definite linkage between FDI flows and variables such as the deficit/GDP ratio, representing fiscal discipline, and the tax burden on foreign investors. This relationship is substantiated by econometric analysis. Given the economy's large degree of dependence on foreign capital, the government may contribute to an investor-friendly environment by adjusting fiscal policy. Some inroads have been made in this regard with the government's Medium-term Expenditure Framework (MTEF), which projects a policy of strict fiscal discipline in years to come. However, the tax burden is still relatively high and, due to its impact on foreign direct capital flows, requires urgent attention.

ABSTRACTThis paper is divided into three parts. Taken together, the three parts intend to provide the reader with an overview of the first 101 years of financial economics, with particular attention on those developments that are of special interest to actuaries. In Section 1, S.F. Whelan attempts to capture the flavour of the subject and, in particular, to give an overview or road map of this discipline, highlighting actuarial input. In Section 2, D.C. Bowie gives a concise and self-contained overview of the Modigliani and Miller insights (or MM Theorems, as they are often known). In Section 3, A.J. Hibbert considers the novel option pricing method proposed by Black, Merton, and Scholes. These two insights are highlights of this newscience, and, in both cases, contradict our intuition.T.S. Elliot, the mathematically trained poet, described the darkness that intercedes between the idea and the action as the ‘shadow’. There is a shadow to be considered between these insights and their application. The demonstration of the results requires, of course, some idealised circumstances, and therefore the extent and degree of their applicability to the non- idealised problems encountered by actuaries requires some delicate considerations. An attempt is made to outline these further considerations.

Due to an intensified climate change discourse, renewable energy technologies find higher attention within the energy system and increasingly compete with traditional energy conversion systems. Electricity is progressively being generated through renewable electricity generation technologies (REGT) which harness naturally existing energy fluxes (wind, tide, heat, sun) and convert it to electricity. High investments are currently being made into well-developed REGT using explored energy sources such as wind, hydro or solar. In order to increase cost- and energy efficiency of REGTs, university research projects are developing new REGTs that harvest underexplored energy sources such as the marine energy source. These capital-intensive marine energy research projects are entering the market through university spin-off firms but are often confronted with funding gaps, for the current or future operations. Capital rich investors could provide these funds but are often investing in well explored energy sources rather than into underexplored but more cost- and energy-efficient energy sources. Utilizing a qualitative, grounded theory-influenced approach and combining empirical material of semi-structured interviews, data from a participant observation of an innovation system workshop attendance and data from continuous meetings with an academic REGT spin-off from Uppsala University, this study investigates 1) the drivers and barriers within the funding ecosystem for academic REGT spin-offs in Sweden, 2) the limited access of high capital to underexplored energy sources on the specific case of the marine energy source and 3) a potential common ground for investors with high capital and academic REGT spin-offs in order to allow an accelerated diffusion of the marine energy source. The results indicate that the physical properties of the underexplored marine source should not be accounted for as driver but rather as the foundation of an academic REGT spin-off. This frame allows to bridge practitioners of both the investment field and the academic field of REGT spin-offs through the degree of utilization. An inversion of relations, where not only entrepreneurs increasingly link their field of study to economy and business, but also investors adapt cross-disciplinary knowledge towards academia and natural sciences via the degree of utilization, could be beneficial for an accelerated diffusion of academic REGTs. Bridging practitioners of both fields through the degree of utilization and other means might together with a full commercial application and proof of marine REGTs reduce the funding gap of academic spin-offs in the marine sector and allow access to investors with high capital.

The textbook describes the main sections of the discipline "Modeling of economics", read by students in the master's program in the direction of training 38.04.05 "Business Informatics". The presentation of theoretical information is illustrated by a detailed analysis of specific numerical examples. The textbook contains the tasks of a comprehensive test in the discipline "Modeling of the economy". Meets the requirements of the federal state educational standards of higher education of the latest generation. For students of higher educational institutions studying for a master's degree in the direction of training 38.04.05 "Business Informatics".

The textbook reveals the role of control in ensuring the effective operation of a commercial organization, and sets its purpose and objectives. The main directions of external and internal control of the activities of a commercial organization are defined and the characteristics of the functions performed by them are given. The basic principles of external and internal audit are formulated, their purpose is defined, and the procedure for regulatory and legal regulation of audit activities in the Russian Federation is considered. The features of control over the activities of a commercial organization in management accounting are revealed, and the need for its further development in modern business conditions is justified. To consolidate the theoretical material, the practical and methodological support of the discipline is provided. Meets the requirements of the federal state educational standards of higher education of the latest generation. It is intended for students in the bachelor's degree program 38.03.01 " Economics "(profile "Accounting, Analysis and Audit") and teachers of economic specialties, students of the postgraduate education system, practitioners related to external and internal control and audit of the activities of commercial organizations.

The textbook outlines the theoretical and applied aspects of the organization and accounting features, which allow assessing the effectiveness of its management with a proper degree of completeness and reliability. The latest legislative changes have been taken into account. All the material is distributed on topics between theoretical, practical and seminar classes, as well as independent work of students in the form of discussions, presentations, situational tasks, test tasks. The use of methodological materials will allow students to rationally allocate their time while studying the discipline, get a sufficiently adequate aggregate score and rating assessment and form professional skills. Meets the requirements of the federal state educational standards of higher education of the latest generation. The textbook contains a set of developments for the preparation of bachelors in the field of accounting that meet the requirements of the educational program in the field of training 38.03.01 "Economics".

The textbook discusses the issues of managing the competitiveness of organizations and territories, including the theory of competition, its role in the economy, types and strategies of competition. Meets the requirements of the federal state educational standards of higher education of the latest generation. It is intended for university students studying in bachelor's and master's degrees in the areas of training "Management", "Economics", "State and Municipal Management", "Housing and communal infrastructure", "Trade", "Quality Management", as well as in engineering and technological areas and specialties studying disciplines of economic, organizational and managerial cycles; for graduate students, students of business schools and advanced training and retraining courses. It can be useful for university teachers, employees of research and consulting firms, business structures, managers and specialists of enterprises.

The textbook considers the most popular object management systems in business, providing the possibility of collective work of users united by common business processes, goals and objectives of production activities. It contains a description of management systems of various classes, embedded information systems, their structure, features of application and implementation in the activities of enterprises. The information about the state of the market of such systems in Russia is given, as well as descriptions of the most popular systems in each class are given. The manual is based on the materials of lectures on the disciplines "Tools for supporting collective work" and "Information Systems in marketing", which are studied in the bachelor's degree of the National Research University "Higher School of Economics" at the Faculty of Business and Management. Meets the requirements of the federal state educational standards of higher education of the latest generation. For students of higher educational institutions studying in the areas of training 09.03.02 "Information systems and technologies", 38.03.02 "Management", as well as for students in other economic specialties and specialists in this field.

The textbook is the basis for a number of courses taught at the Faculty of Economics of the Lomonosov Moscow State University and at the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation. The textbook reflects the main requirements of international standards for both financial reporting and auditing. Meets the requirements of the federal state educational standards of higher education of the latest generation. It is intended for undergraduates and postgraduates studying the disciplines "International Audit", "Practice of external and internal audit", "International Financial Reporting Standards", "International Financial Reporting Standards: advanced course", "Consolidated reporting: practice of application", "Corporate reporting: Practice of application". It can be used when teaching the course "Audit" in the bachelor's degree, as well as by students of the postgraduate education system who apply for the auditor's qualification certificate and the accountant's qualification certificate, since it meets all the relevant requirements. It will be useful for practical workers — auditors, accountants, financial managers, business leaders, financial consultants and experts.

The textbook considers the subject and tasks of the discipline, highlights the medical and biological foundations of ensuring human security in the conditions of natural, man-made and biological-social emergencies, as well as when using modern weapons of destruction by a probable enemy. Briefly, but quite informative, the structure of the human body and the basics of its functioning are described. The specificity and mechanism of the toxic effect of harmful substances on a person, the energy effect and the combined effect of the main damaging factors of the sources of emergency situations of peacetime and wartime are shown. The article highlights the medical and biological aspects of ensuring the safe life of people in adverse environmental conditions, including in regions with hot and cold climates (the Arctic). The methods of forecasting and assessing the medical situation in emergency zones and lesions are presented. The means and methods of medical and biological protection and first aid to the affected are shown. The main tasks and organizational structure of formations and institutions of the medical rescue service of the GO, the All-Russian Service of Disaster Medicine and medical formations of the EMERCOM of Russia are considered. Organizational issues of medical and biological protection in emergency situations are highlighted. The features of the organization of medical support for those affected by terrorist attacks are considered. It is intended for students and cadets of educational institutions of higher education studying under the bachelor's degree program in the following areas of training: "Technosphere security", "Infocommunication technologies and communication systems", "Information systems and technologies", "State and municipal management", "Economics", "Mechatronics and robotics", "Operation of transport and technological machines and complexes", "Informatics and computer engineering", "Air Navigation", "System analysis and management". It can also be useful for researchers and a wide range of specialists engaged in practical work on planning and organizing medical and biological protection of the population.

The chapter provides an overarching perspective on the diverse aspects concerned with social science research (SSR) infrastructure in the Indian universities. The research infrastructure that is relevant for SSR include both physical and academic infrastructure. It covers the number of departments, number of sanctioned posts in the departments, filled posts, vacant posts, books in the department library, computers in the department, etc. The study indicates that highest numbers of departments are in disciplines like economics, education, law, and history. Disciplines like national security, population studies, and strategic studies are least popular disciplines with very few departments and chairs. Discipline-wise distribution of various social science courses shows that economics dominates in offering PhD degrees.

Abstract During the last two decades, the interrelationship between water and energy has become recognized. Likewise, the couplings to food and agriculture are getting increasingly obvious and alarming. In the last year, a record number of extreme weather events have been reported from most parts of the world. This is a visible demonstration how consequences of climate change must be understood and alleviated. The impacts of economics, lifestyle, and alarming inequalities are becoming increasingly recognisable. If the wealthy part of the world is not willing not make radical changes it does not matter what the less wealthy half of the global population will do to meet the climate and resource crisis. The purpose of the book is to demonstrate and describe how climate change, water, energy, food, and lifestyle are closely depending on each other. It is not sufficient to handle one discipline isolated from the others. This is the traditional “component view”. The book defines and describes a systems view. The communications and relationships between the “components” have to be described and recognized. Consequently, the development of one discipline must be approached from a systems perspective. At the same time, the success of the systems perspective depends on the degree of knowledge of the individual parts or disciplines. The catchphrase of systems thinking has been caught in the phrase, “The whole is more than the sum of its parts”. The idea is not new: the origin of this phrase is to be found already in Aristotle's Metaphysics more than 2300 years ago. The text may serve as an academic text (in engineering, economics, and environmental science) to introduce senior undergraduate and graduate students into systems thinking. Too often education encourages a “silo” thinking. Current global challenges can't be solved in isolation; they depend on each other. For example, water professionals should have a basic understanding of energy issues. Energy professionals ought to understand the dependency on water. Economic students should learn more how economy depends on natural resources like energy and water. Economics must include the environmental impact and ecological ceiling of economic activities. ISBN: 9781789062892 (print) ISBN: 9781789062908 (eBook) ISBN: 9781789062915 (ePUB)

This chapter contrasts the way that the political settlement in both countries shaped the pattern of redistribution, reform, and corruption within public finance and the implications that this had for economic transformation. Differences in the impact of corruption on economic transformation can be explained by the way that their political settlements generated distinct patterns of competition and collaboration between economic and political actors. In Vietnam corrupt activities led to investments that were frequently not productive; however, the greater financial discipline imposed by lower-level organizations led to a higher degree of investment overall in Vietnam that supported a more rapid economic transformation under liberalization than in Tanzania. Individuals or small factional networks within the VCP at the local level were, therefore, probably less able to engage in forms of corruption that simply led to capital flight as happened in Tanzania, where local level organizations were significantly weaker.

Behavioural economics is an established field. Still it carries the premises that the actions of corporate players are only to a minor degree led by self-interest, rationality, and self-discipline. Bias portrayed throughout behavioural economics offers an alternative to rational-theoretical standard theory as it allows predictions about the systematic deviation from the prognosis of the homo economicus’ actions. The reception of the findings of systematic research on the basis of human behaviour in modern psychology, neurology, or behavioural economics in corporate and capital market law enables its continuing development. The intention is to assume that non-legal arguments, complying with the standard of their respective scientific field, can be adopted for the development of corporate law. Therefore, the core of the chapter addresses the question of how the development of corporate law will occur under the consideration of findings from adjacent research fields such as behavioural economics.

This chapter divides the scientific status of the discipline into two empirical questions concerning the degree to which finance is scientific and the kind of science financial economists pursue. Focusing on articles published in the Journal of Finance between 1950 and 2000, the chapter investigates the forms and practices financial economists came to rely on to communicate their results to one another. It also documents the ways in which financial economics changed as mathematics and statistics became dominant, and how mathematics and statistics changed the affective dispositions of financial economists. The chapter analyzes how financial scholars used specific communicative practices and inscription devices as a function of how they conceptualized expertise. It draws the more general lesson that techniques of quantitative analysis are no substitute for relationships of trust among knowledge producers, while pointing to the limited role numbers play in the construction of social knowledge when they are not backed by social relationships.

The Cambridge Economics Tripos (an honours degree) was created in 1903 by detaching the teaching of economics in Cambridge from the Moral Sciences Tripos, a broad degree including logic, psychology, and politics and ethics. To understand why Alfred Marshall sought to detach the teaching of economics in this way we need to understand both the nature of this undergraduate programme of study, as well as the model that he sought to emulate: the Mathematical Tripos. This had been until mid-century the primary Cambridge qualification, and rather than a training in mathematics per se, its examination sought to foster a particular intellectual discipline. Students were trained in groups, usually by non-college private ‘coaches’, who drilled students in techniques with whose aid they might solve the questions put to them during several days of examinations. Good students became adept at the speedy selection of the appropriate technique and its application to a given problem. By contrast, the Moral Sciences Tripos was organised around the interpretation of set (canonical) books, and so did not foster this problem-solving approach.

This book explored a range of theories, concepts, models and ideas that shape how we think about tourism, the way we do. In doing so, it revealed that tourism is a true multi-discipline. It is informed by such core disciplines as geography, anthropology, sociology, psychology, economics, leisure and demography, as well as by a multitude of other disciplines and fields of study as identified in Chapter 2. Historically, though, tourism studies has been beset by a high degree of silofication – a varied field of study examined strictly within the confines of individual disciplinary silos. Even when attempts have been made to be multi- disciplinary, the results have often been less than satisfactory, for usually one school of thought dominates, while others are placed in subservient roles. Add to this the force field of tourism, and it is not surprising that tourism studies have been labelled as fragmented and disjointed, typified by multiple communities of discourse with historically little cross-fertilization between communities.

The ‘modern university’—research-based, in which teaching and research are pursued by academic specialists organised departmentally—was created in the United States in the later nineteenth century in a productive misunderstanding of the organisation of knowledge and teaching in contemporary German universities. While the latter enjoyed international recognition, academic careers remained in thrall to an apprenticeship structure in which senior staff represented their entire discipline, supported by their juniors. The American structure, fostered by endowments and grants, presumed that departments would be composed of specialists who advanced their careers by developing their specialism. This was decisive for the disciplinary development of universities around the world. In London, the university was a federal, administrative body whose degree courses could be followed both within Britain and in the wider Empire. As a component part of this structure, the London School of Economics shared in this reach, and so came to dominate the teaching of the social sciences in Britain and the Empire.

Within the global business environment there is a critical need for a diverse pool of employees with higher education degrees in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Unfortunately, in the United States, graduation statistics suggest marginalized groups are underrepresented in the awarding of STEM degrees. This chapter explains why diversity in STEM careers is reported to be a critical need for U.S. economic sustainability and competitiveness in the global business arena. It highlights the major challenges and barriers in STEM education related to instructional design that severely limit student engagement and derail degree attainment in STEM disciplines, especially for marginalized groups. The chapter also explains how Universal Design for Learning (UDL) acts a template for improved instructional design and introduce the LEVEL instructional model, which was created based on the principles of UDL and, when utilized in higher education coursework, promotes active learning and support for diverse learning styles.

Since 2008, the world has faced the economic crisis that has had devastating effects on many regions to various degrees. How regions respond to economic shock depends on regional economic structure and performance, administrative capacity, resources, human capital, social capital, and other factors, were perceived as resilience. Resilience has recently risen to prominence in several disciplines, has also entered policy discourse, and is one of the future strategic goals for the European Union. The aim of the chapter is to introduce a methodology for assessing the resilience of EU28 NUTS 2 regions based on a construction of composite weighted index derived from EU Regional Competitiveness Index database of indicators using Factor analysis and their classification by Cluster analysis. Construction of composite indicators includes several steps that have to be made and corresponding methods have to be chosen to handle different aspects of economic issues including features of EU resilience.

Abstract America again re-engaged in foreign legal reform after 1945 in Germany, Japan, and Korea, dependent upon the social, political, economic, and military situation. During the 1950s, the communist Cold War ideological threat to capitalism and liberal democracy pushed the United States to demonstrate its ability to foster economic and social progress among its allies and non-aligned nations. Comparatists in the ABA and the newly formed American Association for the Comparative Study of Law devoted substantial effort to international unification of commercial and trade law and later law projects to promote modernization among developing countries, such as agrarian reform, judicial independence, and active instruction in legal education. By the 1970s, unsatisfactory results for most of these action programs shifted concern to scholarly inquiry about the relationship between law and social change. Furthermore, comparative lawyers began to take a greater interest in the amorphous concepts of rule of law and human rights. The postwar period marked a steady rise in comparative law academic quality, stimulated by the AACSL, its meetings, journal, and participation in international congresses. Comparatists developed expertise in subfields, namely, unification of law, private international law, and comparative legal sociology. Law schools saw more comparative law courses and coursebooks; some specialized in Soviet, Japanese, or Latin American law, or in fields such as comparative constitutional law or European Community law. Comparative law journals proliferated, as did degree programs for foreign students. By 1990, the AACSL had instituted a democratic system of election, which put it on a path toward further growth.

Knowledge of climate impacts is necessarily embedded in multifaceted, multiscaled contexts. The many facets include physical, ecological, and biological factors—as well as social, political, and economic ones—interacting on a spectrum of scales ranging from the individual to the household, the community, the region, the nation, and the world. Such complexities encompass natural as well as cultural aspects. Therefore, assessing the role of climate requires a comprehensive, integrated approach. Various methods and models have been proposed or developed to aid understanding of the relationships between agriculture and climate variability (and more specifically, ENSO) in regions around the world. Relevant methods include socioeconomic research techniques such as interviews and surveys; statistical analyses of climate and agronomic data; spatial analysis of remote-sensing observations; climate-scenario development with global and regional climate models and weather generators; and cropmodel simulations. Here we describe conceptual models that guide regional analysis, a framework of methods for regional studies, and examples of research in several agricultural regions that experience varying degrees of ENSO effects. Conceptual models are important because they can guide research and application projects and help physical, biological, and social scientists work together effectively within a common context. Equally important is the role of conceptual models in promoting effective interactions between researchers and agricultural practitioners. An early conceptual model for enhancing the usefulness of seasonal climate forecasts has been called the “end-to-end” approach (figure 5.1a). This model consists of a linear unidirectional trajectory in which El Niño events precipitate climate phenomena that, in turn, induce agronomic responses, with ensuing economic consequences. In disciplinary terms, the end-to-end trajectory begins with the physical sciences, proceeds to agronomy, and then to social science—primarily economics. The end-to-end model quickly evolved into an “end-to-multiple-ends” approach (figure 5.1b) because social science consists of many disciplines besides economics. Outcomes and insights regarding the use of seasonal climate forecasts differ, depending on whether the disciplines of economics, anthropology, political science, or sociology are involved. However, a weakness of these conceptual models is the absence of agricultural practitioners (e.g., farmers, planners, input providers, and insurers) in the research process.

The Madison Engineering Department was founded on the recognition that engineers are no longer constrained to disciplinary boundaries, and instead, must work across disciplines as members of global communities and multidisciplinary teams. The program offers a single undergraduate engineering degree that focuses on sustainable design and systems thinking. Since the inaugural class started in 2008, the faculty has been striving to integrate environmental, social, economic, and technical contexts of sustainable design and systems thinking as common curricular threads. This chapter discusses courses taken by students freshman through senior year to illustrate how content integration, developmental instruction, and a problem-based learning framework are used in Madison Engineering Department to purposefully transition students through Bloom's levels from knowing and thinking to simulating and doing to quantifying and applying with the goal of training students able to understand systems holistically, describe and analyze tradeoffs, understand resultant perturbations, and design effective, sustainable solutions.

There are presented the essence, basic terminology, methodology and scientific perimeter of the discipline "Ethno-cultural landscape studies". By use of a brief historic overview, there is traced the development of the cultural landscape as a scientific notion from its onset to present times. Regulatory postulates of UNESCO are taken into consideration, which explain the meaning of the terms "tradition", "intangible cultural heritage" and "cultural landscape". There are also summed up the practical and applied benefits from studying the discipline: a model for making an ethno-cultural landscape profile of the tourist site as a ground for creating unique tourist products based on traditional culture and turning folklore rituality into a generator of touristic plots.

The paper investigates the impact of fiscal policy on economic growth, foreign direct investment and employment in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The focus of research is fiscal policy, which as a lever of economic policy that affects economic growth and development. The aim of the research is to determine the impact of fiscal policy on the economy of Bosnia and Herzegovina and propose solutions for higher growth and development, a higher degree of foreign direct investment and reducing the unemployment rate. The results of the research show that the fiscal policy for the years that are the subject of the research, has affected the public debt of the state. High taxes and contributions have contributed to the spread of the gray economy, fiscal discipline is at a low level due to the management in this way of this lever of economic policy. Public financial management should be one of the key macroeconomic goals, with special emphasis on fiscal policy. The research went in the direction of analyzing current trends and proposals for improving the situation. The research aims to show the current statistical impact of variables on gross domestic product, on growth and development and the impact after the application of expansionary fiscal policy on the same variables. It is recommended that economic policy be conducted in the direction of releasing additional funds through the redistribution of taxes in favor of workers, in the direction of capital investments that will repay themselves, to reduce the rate of taxes and contributions on wages and with incentives for investors, to go towards stimulating production and tax reliefs for export-oriented activities with an effort to try to produce products whose production is possible in our conditions, and all this is mostly possible with the implementation of an expansive fiscal policy.

The contamination between design and theory of systems as a field of development of new design processes is nowadays consolidated. However, the issue concerning the methodology to apply in teaching systemic design remains an open question. The approach adopted in the Master Degree in Systemic Design at Politecnico di Torino is based on the assumption that the teaching method must itself be systemic. Alongside designers, the degree course has involved from the very beginning experts of different disciplines (i.e. chemistry, physics, mechanics, history, economy and management) as teachers, in order to create a multidisciplinary environment for the development of projects. Born as master degree in academic year 2002-03 at Politecnico di Torino (Italy) from the close collaboration with Gunter Pauli, the course has changed name and form but not the content, until it reached the current title (a.y. 2015-16): master degree “Aurelio Peccei” in Systemic Design. The Open Systems course has enabled students, in previous years, to experiment the design of production processes. This was the case of the systemic project done with NN Europe, a company engaged in manufacturing ball bearings, in which the output management allows a positive economic impact. Over the years the course has shifted its focus from the production process of a product to the wider company context. In 2010, the approach has been applied to the agricultural enterprise Ortofruit: starting from agricultural production, the students have defined the production system and the relationships with the market. Systemic Design, during this course, has experienced the transition from the design of industrial processes that are closely linked to the territory, and then enhance local resources, to the design of the whole territorial system. The work done by the students of the course in recent years has led to the definition of scenarios about fields usually distant from the traditional design world. For example, the definition of the economic model, the corporate model that is built around relationships on cooperation with different disciplines.This transition, from the product to the entire territorial system, allows the exploration of new contexts, but it also puts the designer in a complex and challenging position in according with complex theories.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4995/IFDP.2016.3353

Abstract The study emphasized on a collaborative work across various domains to improve reserve estimation utilizing integrated analysis from geological understanding, seismic interpretation, petrophysical log to sampled pressure and production data. A cross-disciplined approach was tailored for this complex marginal field and it included a fast loop full-field reservoir modeling and simulation to delineate the reservoir characteristics in a timely manner. The study improves the confidence level in reserve estimation of the field with a range of 30-35% primary recovery factor interpreted across different sands which is in line with other publications that in a typical Gulf of Thailand oil reservoir, in the presence of a strong water drive, the most likely primary recovery factor is between 18-40%, depending on the thickness of the oil column, bottom water versus edge water and the presence of a gas cap. The study helps to drive real field decision making for upcoming drilling campaigns to further improve the economic life of the field. This paper presents a fit-for-purpose reservoir modeling while drilling approach demonstrating how the company used newly drilled well data to validate the reservoir model and to drive new decisions for field development planning. The industry has limited published case studies on medium to heavy oil (19 to 25 degree API) with strong aquifer support in the region of onshore Thailand. This case study presents an approach in addressing multiple challenges faced to unlock the high oil potential of the region. In summary, a cross-disciplined, fit-for-purpose and practical approach using latest available commercial technology enabled real-field decisions being made timely and accurately. Similar approach will be undertaken in other fields of the company in the region.

The starting point of the research project was the hypothesis that the "principle of proportionality", which is fundamental to law, is related to the "economic principle". The resulting methodological similarities were intended to enable a cross-disciplinary bridge to be built, which would allow the findings of economic analysis to be made fruitful for legal issues. This was practically tested in three study areas in order to be able to better classify the performance of the analytical tools. The foundations for interdisciplinary bridge building are found in the rational-choice paradigm. In both disciplines, this paradigm calls for an examination of the relationship between the purpose-means-relations: among the design options under consideration, the one must be selected that is expected to be as (freedom- or resource-) sparing as possible, in other words, the most "waste-free" solution to the control problem.The results of the economic analysis can thus be "translated" in such a way that, within the framework of "necessity", they support the search for control instruments that are equivalent to the objective but less disruptive. supports. The core of the positive economic analysis is the motivational situation of those actors whose behavior is to be influenced by a changed legal framework. In this context, the classical behavioral model of economics proved to be too limited. It therefore had to be developed further in line with the findings of research in institutional economics into homo oeconomicus institutionalis. This behavioral model takes into account not only the consequentialist, strictly situational utility orientation of the model person, but also other factors influencing behavior, including above all those that are institutionally mediated. If one takes the motivational situation of the actors as the starting point for policy-advising design recommendations, it becomes apparent that an understanding of governance dominated by imperative behavioral specifications leads to less favorable results, both in terms of the degree to which goals are achieved and in terms of the freedom-impairing effects, than a mixed-instrument approach oriented toward the model of "responsive regulation." According to this model, the law can no longer simply assume that those subject to the law will "obediently" execute the legal commands. It must ask itself what other factors determine behavior and under what boundary conditions changes can be expected in the direction of the desired behavior. For this reason, too, it must engage with the cognitive program of the behavioral sciences. This linkage opens up new perspectives for interdisciplinary research on the consequences of laws.

This report maps the African landscape of Open Science – with a focus on Open Data as a sub-set of Open Science. Data to inform the landscape study were collected through a variety of methods, including surveys, desk research, engagement with a community of practice, networking with stakeholders, participation in conferences, case study presentations, and workshops hosted. Although the majority of African countries (35 of 54) demonstrates commitment to science through its investment in research and development (R&D), academies of science, ministries of science and technology, policies, recognition of research, and participation in the Science Granting Councils Initiative (SGCI), the following countries demonstrate the highest commitment and political willingness to invest in science: Botswana, Ethiopia, Kenya, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, and Uganda. In addition to existing policies in Science, Technology and Innovation (STI), the following countries have made progress towards Open Data policies: Botswana, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, South Africa and Uganda. Only two African countries (Kenya and South Africa) at this stage contribute 0.8% of its GDP (Gross Domestic Product) to R&D (Research and Development), which is the closest to the AU’s (African Union’s) suggested 1%. Countries such as Lesotho and Madagascar ranked as 0%, while the R&D expenditure for 24 African countries is unknown. In addition to this, science globally has become fully dependent on stable ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) infrastructure, which includes connectivity/bandwidth, high performance computing facilities and data services. This is especially applicable since countries globally are finding themselves in the midst of the 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR), which is not only “about” data, but which “is” data. According to an article1 by Alan Marcus (2015) (Senior Director, Head of Information Technology and Telecommunications Industries, World Economic Forum), “At its core, data represents a post-industrial opportunity. Its uses have unprecedented complexity, velocity and global reach. As digital communications become ubiquitous, data will rule in a world where nearly everyone and everything is connected in real time. That will require a highly reliable, secure and available infrastructure at its core, and innovation at the edge.” Every industry is affected as part of this revolution – also science. An important component of the digital transformation is “trust” – people must be able to trust that governments and all other industries (including the science sector), adequately handle and protect their data. This requires accountability on a global level, and digital industries must embrace the change and go for a higher standard of protection. “This will reassure consumers and citizens, benefitting the whole digital economy”, says Marcus. A stable and secure information and communication technologies (ICT) infrastructure – currently provided by the National Research and Education Networks (NRENs) – is key to advance collaboration in science. The AfricaConnect2 project (AfricaConnect (2012–2014) and AfricaConnect2 (2016–2018)) through establishing connectivity between National Research and Education Networks (NRENs), is planning to roll out AfricaConnect3 by the end of 2019. The concern however is that selected African governments (with the exception of a few countries such as South Africa, Mozambique, Ethiopia and others) have low awareness of the impact the Internet has today on all societal levels, how much ICT (and the 4th Industrial Revolution) have affected research, and the added value an NREN can bring to higher education and research in addressing the respective needs, which is far more complex than simply providing connectivity. Apart from more commitment and investment in R&D, African governments – to become and remain part of the 4th Industrial Revolution – have no option other than to acknowledge and commit to the role NRENs play in advancing science towards addressing the SDG (Sustainable Development Goals). For successful collaboration and direction, it is fundamental that policies within one country are aligned with one another. Alignment on continental level is crucial for the future Pan-African African Open Science Platform to be successful. Both the HIPSSA ((Harmonization of ICT Policies in Sub-Saharan Africa)3 project and WATRA (the West Africa Telecommunications Regulators Assembly)4, have made progress towards the regulation of the telecom sector, and in particular of bottlenecks which curb the development of competition among ISPs. A study under HIPSSA identified potential bottlenecks in access at an affordable price to the international capacity of submarine cables and suggested means and tools used by regulators to remedy them. Work on the recommended measures and making them operational continues in collaboration with WATRA. In addition to sufficient bandwidth and connectivity, high-performance computing facilities and services in support of data sharing are also required. The South African National Integrated Cyberinfrastructure System5 (NICIS) has made great progress in planning and setting up a cyberinfrastructure ecosystem in support of collaborative science and data sharing. The regional Southern African Development Community6 (SADC) Cyber-infrastructure Framework provides a valuable roadmap towards high-speed Internet, developing human capacity and skills in ICT technologies, high- performance computing and more. The following countries have been identified as having high-performance computing facilities, some as a result of the Square Kilometre Array7 (SKA) partnership: Botswana, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Mozambique, Mauritius, Namibia, South Africa, Tunisia, and Zambia. More and more NRENs – especially the Level 6 NRENs 8 (Algeria, Egypt, Kenya, South Africa, and recently Zambia) – are exploring offering additional services; also in support of data sharing and transfer. The following NRENs already allow for running data-intensive applications and sharing of high-end computing assets, bio-modelling and computation on high-performance/ supercomputers: KENET (Kenya), TENET (South Africa), RENU (Uganda), ZAMREN (Zambia), EUN (Egypt) and ARN (Algeria). Fifteen higher education training institutions from eight African countries (Botswana, Benin, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Sudan, and Tanzania) have been identified as offering formal courses on data science. In addition to formal degrees, a number of international short courses have been developed and free international online courses are also available as an option to build capacity and integrate as part of curricula. The small number of higher education or research intensive institutions offering data science is however insufficient, and there is a desperate need for more training in data science. The CODATA-RDA Schools of Research Data Science aim at addressing the continental need for foundational data skills across all disciplines, along with training conducted by The Carpentries 9 programme (specifically Data Carpentry 10 ). Thus far, CODATA-RDA schools in collaboration with AOSP, integrating content from Data Carpentry, were presented in Rwanda (in 2018), and during17-29 June 2019, in Ethiopia. Awareness regarding Open Science (including Open Data) is evident through the 12 Open Science-related Open Access/Open Data/Open Science declarations and agreements endorsed or signed by African governments; 200 Open Access journals from Africa registered on the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ); 174 Open Access institutional research repositories registered on openDOAR (Directory of Open Access Repositories); 33 Open Access/Open Science policies registered on ROARMAP (Registry of Open Access Repository Mandates and Policies); 24 data repositories registered with the Registry of Data Repositories (re3data.org) (although the pilot project identified 66 research data repositories); and one data repository assigned the CoreTrustSeal. Although this is a start, far more needs to be done to align African data curation and research practices with global standards. Funding to conduct research remains a challenge. African researchers mostly fund their own research, and there are little incentives for them to make their research and accompanying data sets openly accessible. Funding and peer recognition, along with an enabling research environment conducive for research, are regarded as major incentives. The landscape report concludes with a number of concerns towards sharing research data openly, as well as challenges in terms of Open Data policy, ICT infrastructure supportive of data sharing, capacity building, lack of skills, and the need for incentives. Although great progress has been made in terms of Open Science and Open Data practices, more awareness needs to be created and further advocacy efforts are required for buy-in from African governments. A federated African Open Science Platform (AOSP) will not only encourage more collaboration among researchers in addressing the SDGs, but it will also benefit the many stakeholders identified as part of the pilot phase. The time is now, for governments in Africa, to acknowledge the important role of science in general, but specifically Open Science and Open Data, through developing and aligning the relevant policies, investing in an ICT infrastructure conducive for data sharing through committing funding to making NRENs financially sustainable, incentivising open research practices by scientists, and creating opportunities for more scientists and stakeholders across all disciplines to be trained in data management.