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Abstract: Recently, Chinese carriers entered the Australia–Europe route, a market currently served by several established airlines. The paper aims to explore and identify the contextual factors affecting the choice of China-based carriers for long-haul travel. The paper's innovation is in the way it uses the online comments made by readers of an aviation news article. In doing so, the paper highlights the advantages and limitations of such a data source and the full range of positive and negative perceptions about Chinese airlines as recorded by potential and actual travelers. This study highlights that in order to understand flight choice, it is worthwhile to consider the conventional itinerary choice factors in the context of the socio-cultural and historical influences. For researchers, the paper provides some evidence that air travelers apply compensatory decision rule in making airline choices. This supports the validity of the assumption of random-utility based choice models used in the study of air travel behavior. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Highlights: [•] The literature on ranking tools for prioritising HSR corridors is practically non-existent, even in Europe. [•] The only methodology was developed in the US, but has yet to be validated using a real case. [•] The main objective of this paper is to analyse, validate and improve this ranking tool using data from the Spanish HSR network. [•] Results show that the model is consistent and may be useful as a preliminary approach for selecting the top city pairs, but also reveals some deficiencies that are described in the paper and need future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Age-specific fertility rates can be smoothed using parametric models or splines. Alternatively a relational model can be used which relates the age profile to be fitted or projected to a standard age schedule. This paper introduces TOPALS (tool for projecting age patterns using linear splines), a new relational method that is less dependent on the choice of the standard age schedule than previous methods. TOPALS models the relationship between the age-specific fertility rates to be fitted and the standard age schedule by a linear spline. This paper uses TOPALS for smoothing fertility age profiles for 30 European countries. The use of TOPALS to create scenarios of the future level and age pattern of fertility is illustrated by applying the method to project future fertility rates for six European countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A major bottleneck for data-based policy making is that data sources are collected, managed, and distributed by different institutions, residing in different locations, resulting in conceptual and practical problems. The use of dispersed data for agricultural systems research requires the integration of data sources, which means to ensure consistency in data interpretations, units, spatial and temporal scales, to respect legal regulations of privacy, ownership and copyright, and to enable easy dissemination of data. This paper describes the SEAMLESS integrated database on European agricultural systems. It contains data on cropping patterns, production, farm structural data, soil and climate conditions, current agricultural management and policy information. To arrive at one integrated database, a shared ontology was developed according to a collaborative process, which facilitates interdisciplinary research. The paper details this process, which can be re-used in other research projects for integrating data sources. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In this paper we investigate economies of scale and specialization of European universities. The proposed approach builds on the notion that university production is a multi-input multi-output process different than standard production activity. The analyses are based on an interesting database which integrates the main European universities data on inputs and outputs with bibliometric data on publications, impact and collaborations. We pursue a cross-country perspective; we include subject mix and introduce a robust modeling of production trade-offs. Finally we test the statistical significance of scale and specialization and find that they both have a significant impact on the efficiency of the Humboldt model. Nevertheless, confirming previous findings, specialization has not a significant impact on the efficiency of the research model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An alternative approach for computing exposure indices, such as AOT40 of the ground-level ozone, is considered in this paper. The aim of the study is to compare it with the traditional way of calculating the exposure indices in order to discover possible weaknesses or strengths of both approaches. The problem under consideration is of great importance when modelling results, obtained after running large-scale air pollution models, have to be compared with experimental data. Usually the data are received in a form of mesh-function. At the same time, accumulated effects have to be considered as integrals of smooth (at least continuous) functions. Cubic spline interpolation over data of ozone concentrations is considered as a tool for computing accumulated effects. Practical computations include estimations for measurements of several stations over Europe for two different years. The results obtained with the proposed procedure are compared with those achieved from the calculations according to the classical definition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Criteria and indicators (C & I) to evaluate the sustainability of forest management have been proposed by the Ministerial Conference on the Protection of Forests in Europe. Although primarily defined at the national scale, these C & I also have implications at scales ranging from forest stands to the forest management unit. In this paper, we review existing forest growth and ecosystem models from the point of view of applicability to prediction of indicators of sustainable management, focusing on stand scale models and management. To do this, we first present a conceptual framework for understanding the role of models in assessing forest management at the stand level in the context of sustainability criteria and indicators. We classify the criteria into those predictable using models operating at the stand scale, and those derivable either through scaling up or as solutions of a multi-objective management optimisation problem. We conclude that to date, no comprehensive models exist that could be used to predict all the indicators simultaneously. The most promising approach seems to be a modular system where different models are combined and run simultaneously, with shared inputs and well defined mutual links. More modelling efforts are needed especially regarding the state of the soil, including carbon, nitrogen and water balances and physical effects. Models also need development in their ability to deal with heterogeneous stand structures and with non-woody forest products such as berries, mushrooms or cork. The outputs of the models need to be developed in a direction where they can be interpreted in terms of the recreational or biodiversity value of the forest. Data requirements are most pronounced on the same issues as the gaps in model availability. It would be important to consider amending the national forest inventories and other similar standard data collection protocols with variables required for sustainability assessment. Importantly, combining different models in a modular system and with variable data sources requires advanced model parameterisation and evaluation methods and assessment of parameter and model uncertainty. The probabilistic, Bayesian approaches hold a lot of promise in this respect. Predictions using several different models or model systems, with systematic analysis of e.g. inter-model variability, could also be considered. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The Black-Scholes model is a renowned pricing method for European options. Weather derivatives are a financial product at the convergence of the insurance and stock markets that are at the present of a high level of interest. This product can hedge and be a profitable investment at the same time, and can be used on its own or as part of a portfolio. In this paper we wish to analyze if and how the Black-Scholes model applies to Weather derivatives. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper describes a decision-making model for estimating the value of airport slots for airlines. Assuming that an airline wants to improve its flight schedule by adding new slots to its portfolio the model would enable it to investigate if such a purchase of slots in the secondary market would be profitable. The model outputs are the new flight schedule, the years necessary to recoup the initial outlay in buying the new slots, and the number of potential connections that the airline could realize if the new slots are introduced. The solutions are feasible from the aspect of aircraft availability for new flights, the realized profit for an airline, and finally, an acceptable pay-off period for the purchased slots. The model is tested on real data from a mid-sized European airline. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

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Abstract: In this paper we describe the privacy concerns, risks and protection mechanisms within the i-Tour project. The role of legislation for privacy in Europe and other global sectors is examined to describe a privacy protection model that complies with the immediate target of European deployment but that also looks forward to the re-use of the approach across a wider global territory and technical deployment range. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The European Environmental Noise Directive END requires harmonized prediction methods for the major environmental noise sources. Currently two potential candidates are discussed for the modelling of aircraft noise: the 3rd edition of ECAC Doc.29 was published in 2005 describing a recommended method for the prediction of aircraft noise around civil airports. The German AzB model published in 2008 was developed as a tool for the enforcement of the revised German Act for Protection against Aircraft Noise that came into force in 2007. This paper gives a comparative overview on both methods, the underlying acoustic and aircraft performance models and their usability for different fields of application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper is an introduction to a special section on inventory based methods to assess the European forest carbon balance. The five papers cover ground based as well as remote sensing based methods, and their combinations and novel modeling efforts for the whole of European forests and forest soils. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper summarizes the results of the investigations within task MA3-2 carried out by the European Topic Centre on Air Quality. The main aim of this task is to describe the state of the art of air pollution models, with special emphasis on needs for model application and trends in model development. From the results it can be inferred to what extent the needs are met by available models and what data are required as input and for evaluation purposes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]