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A cornerstone of the management and conservation of archaeological sites is recording their physical characteristics. Documenting and describing the site is an essential step that allows for delineating the components of the site and for collecting and synthesizing information and documentation (Demas, 2012). The information produced by such work assists in the decision-making process for custodians, site managers, public officials, conservators, and other related experts. Rigorous documentation may also serve a broader purpose: over time, it becomes the primary archival and monitoring record. Both scholars and the public use this information and interpret the site, and they can serve as a posterity record in the event of catastrophic or gradual loss of the heritage asset. In May 2018 the Getty Conservation Institute and the Department of Antiquities of Cyprus collaborated with the Carleton Immersive Media Studio in undertaking the documentation of Nea Paphos, a World Heritage site with very important mosaic pavements in the eastern Mediterranean. This contribution outlines the critical components of the documentation project: field study, field measurements, data processing, validation, GIS, and integration of external data. The paper summarizes the digital workflows and procedures used to produce the deliverables, as well as the equipment and technology employed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fossil organic trace of an argonaut shell from the Pakhna Formation (Serravillian, Middle Miocene) of southern Cyprus is described. The new find represents one of only a very few argonaut egg cases reported from the fossil record of the Tethyan region and is the first to be reported from the eastern Mediterranean. It is assigned to a new species of Argonauta as A. absyrtus sp. nov. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cyprus with its rich cultural heritage has been the showcase of ornamentation throughout history with a rich variety of materials, details, and narratives. Integrating ornamentation with its body architecture can be seen as one of the storytellers of these narratives through design elements. After the mid-1990s when casinos had been banned in Turkey, five-star casino hotels became one of the main investment areas in North Cyprus. Together with this new building type and new users' expectations with a new understanding of holidays, the 21st century brought the changing use of ornamentation in hotel interiors and, hence, decoration came to the fore more than before. Hotel lobbies welcoming the users to their second homes and introducing the hotels' identities have always been seen as the most important area of hotels by investors, designers, and hotel managers. Sometimes the reception areas were perceived as the living room of the hotel customers where they feel attached culturally, socially, or economically, and sometimes it could be a place where they can feel themselves as one of the characters of ancient history, a king or a queen for a while. Hence, hotel interiors, in general, and hotel lobbies, in particular, acted as a cultural representative, a social status symbol, and a political image of the story told. The aim of this paper is to examine five-star hotel lobbies within the framework of ornamentation through a reading model created with the concepts used by theoreticians. Together with the site visits and visual recordings, the analysis conducted in this paper is based on qualitative data incorporated by a rich theoretical background on ornamentation. The paper tries to highlight the representational value of ornamentation that can help to understand and interpret the spatial transformation of hotel interiors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the Bronze Age, the inhabitants of regions of Crete, mainland Greece, and Cyprus inscribed their languages using, among other scripts, a writing system called Linear A. These symbols, mainly characterized by combinations of lines, have, since their discovery, remained a mystery. Not only is the corpus very small, but it is challenging to link Minoan, the language behind Linear A, to any known language. Most decipherment attempts involve using the phonetic values of Linear B, a grammatological offspring of Linear A, to 'read' Linear A. However, this yields meaningless words. Recently, novel approaches to deciphering the script have emerged which involve a computational component. In this paper, two such approaches are combined to account for the biases involved in provisionally assigning Linear B phonetic values to Linear A and to shed more light on the possible connections of Linear A with other scripts and languages from the region. Additionally, the limitations inherent in such approaches are discussed. Firstly, a feature-based similarity measure is used to compare Linear A with the Carian Alphabet and the Cypriot Syllabary. A few Linear A symbols are matched with symbols from the Carian Alphabet and the Cypriot Syllabary. Finally, using the derived phonetic values, Linear A is compared with Ancient Egyptian, Luwian, Hittite, Proto-Celtic, and Uralic using a consonantal approach. Some possible word matches are identified from each language. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a review of the history of human bioarchaeological research in Cyprus through the examination of published literature. We survey and discuss past and current trends, indicate gaps, highlight developments within recent years, propose future directions and provide an up-to-date literature review. While scholarly studies of ancient Cypriot human remains had already begun to emerge towards the end of the 19th century, continuing intermittently throughout the 1900s, significant changes took place during the 1980s. This later flourishing of human bioarchaeology in Cyprus, in contrast to conventional archaeological research, which had been making significant contributions to the investigation of ancient Cyprus since the early 20th century, is aligned with international developments. During the last two decades of the 20th century, human bioarchaeology in Cyprus sees a significant development towards a more scientific orientation in contrast to previous years. To date, 201 publications on Cypriot archaeological human remains have been found in journals, bulletins, books, monographs, proceedings and postgraduate research theses. The 1980s mark the beginning of a new era within human bioarchaeology in Cyprus. The number of problem-oriented human bioarchaeological studies focusing on archaeological questions as well as the number of studies drawing on scientific techniques beyond the standard morphological and metric approaches have increased significantly within the last decades. The number of researchers focusing on human bioarchaeology in Cyprus has also increased. Recent years have seen state-of-the-art approaches increasingly applied to the investigation and analysis of human remains, taking place within an interdisciplinary archaeological framework. These developments and the introduction of further cutting-edge methods and techniques are contributing towards key interpretations about the ancient inhabitants of the island and their lifeways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Evolution is a unifying theme in biology and its understanding is essential to address sustainability problems. However, many people across the world do not understand evolution. Textbooks are among the most widely used educational resources and the way they depict evolution may greatly impact students' scientific literacy in evolution. In this paper we investigate which evolution concepts are addressed in European science textbooks, from the 1st to the 9th grade. A content analysis using the 'Framework for the Assessment of school Curricula on the presence of Evolutionary concepts", was performed on textbooks from eight European countries: Belgium, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Greece, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal and Slovenia. At least two experienced coders per country independently analysed the texts, images and activities, discussed the results and reached a final consensus. Results: Our results show that textbooks lack or rarely address concepts considered important for evolution understanding, notably the processes driving evolution and their daily life implications, limiting opportunities for education for sustainability. Conclusions: We recommend that science textbooks emphasize evolution and its processes since the first school years. This recommendation is particularly relevant for the analysed textbooks from Cyprus and Belgium, that cover less than 45% of the concepts important to evolution literacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Linear Fresnel reflectors are a versatile solar concentration technology, suitable for a wide range of industrial processes and thermal conditioning applications. Such collectors entail a certain footprint, generating shading on the surface where they are installed. This effect is rarely quantified but may play an indirect role on the surface below. When installed on a roof, the solar radiation heats the building less. In places where the annual heating demand is higher than the cooling demand, this constitutes an asset. However, this becomes a disadvantage when the cooling demand is higher annually than the heating demand. Essentially, the reduced solar radiation allows for the growth of plants that would not grow without the shade provided by the collector. The present paper is a quantitative analysis of such shading based on the linear Fresnel reflector of the Cyprus Institute. The work was conducted using the Tonatiuh++ ray-tracing software to determine the annual radiation blocking. A total of four years of actual meteorological measurements were applied directly to the ray-tracing model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fusion of geomatic techniques with different accuracy and resolution has been used in recent years to applications of geometrical documentation for several archaeological sites. In this research article, the case of the Roman Baths of Amathus in Limassol, Cyprus was investigated.Aerial photogrammetry and Terrestrial Laser Scanning (TLS) techniques were used to produce the final product. The photogrammetric data were based on Post-Processed Kinematic (PPK) imagery while the TLS georeference was based on targets.The main research objective of this paper is to examine the reliability of PPK photogrammetric data without the use of Ground Control Points (GCPs) and how well they can be integrated with TLS data. Also, the two acquisition techniques were compared and indicated that 0.005 m Ground Sampling Distance (GSD) resolution aerial images and 0.0061/10 m resolution scans can be qualitatively fused.The research paper will present the entire methodology up to the generation of the final 3D photorealistic product. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper assesses how Cyprus' economy coped with the Covid-19 pandemic by generating two series of forecasts with wavelet analysis: forecasts using data including the pandemic (from Q4 1997 to Q2 2022) and not including the pandemic (from Q4 1997 to Q3 2019). The difference of their averages is an indicator of the resilience of the economy during the pandemic, the greater the difference, the more resilient the economy. Eurozone and Germany are used as benchmarks: subtracting the Q3 2022 to Q4 2050 GDP growth rate (quarterly and annualized) average forecast of Cyprus obtained with the Q4 1997-Q2 2022 data, +1.62%, by the one obtained with the Q4 1997-Q3 2019 data, +1.47%, the difference is +0.15% whereas with Eurozone the difference is +0.11%, [+0.68% - (+0.57%)] and with Germany the difference is -0.12% [+0.89% - (+1.01%)]. Thus, Cyprus' economy shows a slightly higher resilience (+0.15%) than the Eurozone's (+0.11%) based on Q3 2022-Q4 2050 forecasts and a stronger resilience than Germany's (-0.12%). Moreover, the average of the Q3 2022-Q4 2050 quarterly (annualized) growth rate forecasts of Cyprus is expected to be +1.62% with the Q4 1997-Q2 2022 data whereas it is expected to be only +0.68% for the Eurozone and +0.89% for Germany. Cyprus' economy shows better prospects than the Eurozone's and Germany's economies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the assembly of an updated dataset of detrital zircon geochronology and Lu–Hf isotopes for Turkey, Cyprus and Greek peninsula. This first version of the dataset documented 286 samples with detrital zircon U–Pb data and 70 samples with zircon Lu–Hf isotopes from 42 published articles. These samples are mainly distributed in seven geologic‐tectonic units in the Eastern Mediterranean Tethyan region. The compilation of dataset will be periodically accessed in the Deep‐Time Digital Earth repository, containing more updated raw data of (un)published scientific research. We believe that the construction of such a dataset is fundamental to studies of clastic strata and also to understanding of crustal evolution in the Eastern Mediterranean region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rational management of water, which is determined by the Framework Directive 2000/60/EC of the EU, is a contractual obligation of the Agricultural Sector of Cyprus, both towards the European Union and the next generations of Cypriot citizens. To make decisions about sustainable water use and improve water use, it is necessary to understand the water use of crops in different water-use areas. Especially in large water projects in Cyprus, there must be a good way to determine the water use of crops so that the correct use of crops can be ensured, thus eliminating problems such as a lack of new information about the crop area and agricultural evaporation, Demand, and water. In most projects, water is managed and supplied based on historical data, and current information is available to determine water demand and availability for large areas. This paper also adds, apart from the clear positive effect of remote sensing and new technologies in crop irrigation, to the emerging need for advisory services for the diffusion of innovation to Cypriot farmers since the estimation of crop water requirements is part of estimating the carbon footprint under the project CARBONICA (EU Funded) for carbon farming. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cross-industry clusters are essential for the economic prosperity of a region. However, studies do not address competitive clusters among the airline and tourism industries. Thus, this paper considers the case of both industries in terms of the clusters and synergies formed. This research aim is to provide an understanding of both industries' protagonists' involvement in contributing to insights into the establishment of synergies or clusters among the two industries. Cyprus is highly dependent on tourism and airlines because they facilitate connectivity. The research comprises semi-structured interviews with the leading players and organizations of the airline and tourism industries (government bodies, airports, airlines, tour operators and hotels). The results indicate that in a small geographical context, the notion of clusters involves a synergetic relationship among tourism stakeholders. The airlines' role is essential and affects all stakeholders involved in tourism. Additionally, the research provides new insights into the role of Destination Management Organisations (DMOs) in providing applicable tourism policies that can positively impact effective cooperation among industry partners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Earthen structures made of adobe bricks are complex systems that making the identification of their behavior difficult, especially when they have to sustain lateral forces such as seismic forces. This paper presents a numerical investigation for the assessment of the structural response of unreinforced adobe masonry structures and how the installation of wooden ring beams contributes to their overall resistance. In the framework of the numerical investigation, finite element models were created to simulate the response of an adobe building with and without the presence of wooden ring beams. The test building is located in Cyprus, in the South Eastern Mediterranean region which is a seismic area. The material properties used in this study were found in the literature and were based on experimental data for local materials. The models were subjected to earthquake loads, performing time history analyses for the calculation of pertinent displacements and stresses. The findings indicate that integrating wooden ring beams reduces the fundamental period by 6% and modifies the building's seismic behavior. This modification is evident not just in the magnitude of the stresses but also in their distribution, leading to a stratified stress profile. Peak stresses are primarily concentrated around the ring beams. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Potato cultivation is a significant agricultural activity worldwide. As a staple food in many countries, potatoes provide essential nutrients and are a significant source of income for farmers. This paper investigates current and future net irrigation requirements for potatoes in combination with LCA (life cycle assessment) to assess the GHG emissions due to irrigation. Potato cultivation in Cyprus is used as a model for insular environments, which are often neglected from such studies. The models suggest that an increase in net irrigation requirements is expected but there is a large variability among locations and between years. The increase in rainfall that some of the models predict does not mean that this water will be effectively stored in the soil (and reduce irrigation requirements). The GHG emissions due to potato irrigation in Cyprus are estimated to be 1369.41 tons CO2eq and expected to decrease after 2030 by 35%, mainly due to changes in the electricity mix (from heavy fuel to renewable energy). Further research including other important (irrigated) crops in the island will support the development of strategies towards sustainable resources management under climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current paper explores language contact between two Greek varieties, Pontic Greek and Cypriot Greek, in the northern part of Cyprus. After the de facto partition of Cyprus in 1974, several Pontic Greek-speaking communities were transplanted from their homeland in Trabzon to the peninsula of Karpasia in northern Cyprus. These "newcomers" or "immigrants" or "settlers" were brought from Turkey after the displacement of the Greek Cypriot population living in the north. Hence, from 1976 another Greek linguistic variety emerged in the area, Pontic Greek or Romeyka or Rumca, which was the home variety of the newcomers. Although Greek Cypriots were forced to leave the area, Cypriot Greek retained a strong presence in Karpasia, spoken by Turkish Cypriot Romeika speakers and by Greek Cypriots who remained "enclaved" in some villages of the peninsula. Hence, a dynamic and multifacet sociolinguistic context has been created where two main non-standard varieties of the Greek language, Cypriot Greek and Pontic Greek, are in contact and are spoken by different groups of speakers and where Turkish remains the dominant and official language. Within this context, the current paper explores instances of language contact between Pontic Greek and Cypriot Greek, focusing on the narratives produced by Pontic Greek speakers. The paper employs ethnographic methods for approaching these communities and for understanding issues of language use and language values within a heavily politicized context. The theoretical constructs of space and border are used to interpret the data and provide a deeper understanding of language contact, daily practices, and wider ideologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The decision-making process during system planning of power systems is something that requires integrated tools that evaluate technical parameters, environmental impact, and overall costs and benefits with various performance indicators (i.e., key performance indicators KPIs). Several cost–benefit analysis approaches have been presented worldwide, providing analytic procedures to quantify the impact and practical effects of specific electricity projects. The implementation of innovation technology into the electricity networks play a critical role to optimizing overall costs. The targets set by the Clean Energy Package have been the main driver for the disruption occurring in the electricity sector, setting electrification of sectors and digitalization as additional emerging challenges. In the present paper, an evaluation approach for the flexibility benefits of smart grid innovations will be presented, as it has been developed and implemented in the context of the Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation project FLEXITRANSTORE. Flexibility is a prerequisite in an effort to achieve an electrical system of low CO2 emissions. Moreover, flexibility contributes to the increase of renewable energy sources penetration, to the network investments deferral and to the enhancement of the efficiency of the system operation, avoiding generation capacity oversizing. Thus, flexibility has been the scope of many projects lately. FLEXITRANSTORE pilot projects are implemented in various sites across Europe and are briefly presented and the respective technologies are propagated on system level approach, evaluating the respective benefits on a specific use case for the power system of Cyprus, where the one of the pilots is located. The paper tries to show the big picture of the project and presents system study use case to highlight the system impacts of the technologies. To this direction, the installation of a BESS to the Cypriot power system is studied, in an effort to examine its impact to the enhancement of the system's flexibility, considering IRRE as an indicator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper compares the daily sunshine duration (SD) measured by the Campbell–Stokes sunshine recorder (CS) with three automatic instruments (Kipp & Zonen pyranometers (CM6 B), pyrheliometer (CHP1) and CSD3 sunshine recorders). The comparisons are essential, since recently, automatic sunshine duration sensors have been replacing the manual measurements, affecting, therefore, the continuity of the CS time series. The comparisons were applied to the daily SD data of three synoptic stations (Larnaca A/P, Pafos A/P and Athalassa) where parallel measurements of manual and automatic instruments are carried out during the periods 2009–2012 and 2012–2015. The CSD3 measurements were obtained from two automatic weather stations (AWSs) which are close to the synoptic station of Larnaca A/P. The comparisons referred to the daily and monthly sums of sunshine duration, as well as to their statistical distributions and their relationships. The daily differences in the pairs of sunshine recorders installed at the same location are mostly within the range of −1.0 to +1.0 h. At Larnaca, in the period 2009–2012, the pyranometric method's (Gl) values were higher than the CS in the summer months. Pafos and Athalassa showed higher values of CS compared to Gl and the pyrheliometric method (Pr), respectively, almost throughout the year. Generally, the annual average daily differences between the different pairs range between 0.3 and 0.5 h. Regression equations were determined allowing the estimation of daily SD under different sky conditions. The coefficient of determination (R2) reached the values of 0.91 and 0.96 under 'all sky' conditions, and between 0.80 and 0.91 under 'clear' sky conditions at the three locations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Small fishing harbours substantially contribute to coastal economies as they support not only fishing but also tourism activities. They are located at the land–sea interface and are considered vulnerable infrastructure affected by the increased human activities but also by the impacts of climate change, including rising sea levels and extreme weather events. In this paper, the 16 existing fishing shelters of Cyprus are used as a case study to develop a complex vulnerability index for assessing the shelters' vulnerability. The index incorporates physical, environmental, technical and socioeconomic variables, which are quantified and scored to denote the current state of vulnerability. The results are validated through on-site visits, questionnaires answered by local fishermen and targeted interviews with representatives of the port authorities. Furthermore, climate change projections are taken into account for the physical variables to evaluate the impact of climate change on vulnerability changes. The study highlights the complex interactions between a variety of factors characterising the fishing shelters and driving vulnerability. The proposed index can assist decisionmakers with prioritising interventions, allocating funding and designing adaptation pathways that reduce the shelters' vulnerability while increasing their resilience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper which comes under the theme of macro-historical perspectives and Mediterranean history I shall discuss the exchange of gifts in three sections: first between the Lusignan kings of Cyprus and the sultans of Mamluk Egypt and Syria, between the Lusignan kings and the Turkish emirs of Anatolia, and thirdly between the Venetian rulers of Cyprus, including Queen Catherine Cornaro, and the Mamluk sultans for the period postdating 1473. Many of these exchanges of gifts took place during times of war, sometimes during the prelude to hostilities and sometimes immediately after their end. In addition, exchanges of gifts between Christian and Muslim rulers occasionally took place at times of peace. The reasons why gifts were exchanged, the type of gifts exchanged when these are described, not an invariable occurrence, and the symbolism underlying these exchanges of gifts will also be analyzed where possible. Furthermore, occasions when the recipient refused to accept the gift and why it was rejected shall also be examined. Where possible, comparisons with the exchange of gifts taking place in other societies and countries of the Eastern Mediterranean will be alluded to and discussed. In terms of source materials, the Cypriot chronicles of the fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries will form the principal source but reference shall also be made to diplomatic correspondence of the period under discussion. The exchanges of gifts normally took place within a diplomatic setting, this being the arrival of embassies, and gifts were sent sometimes to the close advisers of a ruler who could influence his policy and decision-making. On certain occasions, however, the exchanges of gifts could take place outside of this diplomatic context, for example as an expression of gratitude for assistance received. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on data from ethnographic fieldwork, this study focuses on an icon known as Panagia Amirou kept at the Amirou Monastery in Cyprus. Instead of analyzing its unusual form, consisting of two icons from different times inserted one into another, this paper uses the concept of "religious heritage complex" to understand the special status of the icon, the complexity of the assemblages it has joined over time, and the relationships between religion and heritage. The Panagia Amirou icon has become the symbol of the monastery and appears to be crucial for the creation of a shared identity by giving the community the feeling of a connection to the past and continuity of monastic tradition, for as they believe, the icon and the monastery are from the same time. Particular attention is paid to the process of authenticating the icon's special status. The legend recounts not only the icon's old age but also its miraculous appearance and the healing power inherent in it from the very beginning, so it authenticates, together with processions, not only the alleged connection of the icon with the beginning of the monastery but also the status of the icon as being miracle-working. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examine how time-series volatility of book-to-market (UNC) is priced in equity returns and the relative contributions of its book volatility (variations in earnings and book value) and market volatility components (shocks in required return). UNC captures valuation risk, so stocks with high valuation risk earn higher return. An investment strategy long in high-UNC firms and short in low-UNC firms generates 8.5% annual risk-adjusted return. UNC valuation risk premium is driven by outperformance of high-UNC firms facing higher information risk and is not explained by established risk factors and firm characteristics. This paper was accepted by Agostino Capponi, finance. Funding: The authors acknowledge financial support from Spain's Ministry of Education [Grant EC02011-24928], Generalitat de Catalonia [Grant 2014-SGR-1079], Banc Sabadell, the Bank of Cyprus, and the European Social Fund. M. El Hefnawy acknowledges financial support from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation [Grant PID2021-128994NA-I00]. Supplemental Material: The data files and online appendix are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2023.4888. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Kyrenia Ship, found off the north coast of Cyprus, is a key vessel in the history of scientific underwater excavations and in the history of Greek shipbuilding. The first volume of the site's final publication appeared in 2023 and provides detailed archaeological information tightly constraining the dating of the ship. A very specific date range is proposed: ca. 294–290 BCE, but is based on a less than certain reading of one coin recovered from the ship. While there is clear benefit to finding high-precision dates for the Kyrenia Ship and its rich assemblage using independent scientific dating (combined with Bayesian chronological modeling), efforts to do so proved more challenging and complex than initially anticipated. Strikingly, extensive radiocarbon dating on both wooden materials from the ship and on short-lived contents from the final use of the ship fail to offer dates using the IntCal20 calibration curve—the current Northern Hemisphere radiocarbon calibration curve at the time of writing—that correspond with the archaeological constraints. The issue rests with a segment of IntCal20 ca. 350–250 BCE reliant on legacy pre-AMS radiocarbon data. We therefore measured new known-age tree-ring samples 350–250 BCE, and, integrating another series of new known-age tree-ring data, we obtained a redefined and more accurate calibration record for the period 433–250 BCE. These new data permit a satisfactory dating solution for the ship and may even indicate a date that is a (very) few years more recent than current estimations. These new data in addition confirm and only very slightly modify the dating recently published for the Mazotos ship, another Greek merchant ship from the southern coast of Cyprus. Our work further investigated whether ship wood samples impregnated with a common preservative, polyethylene glycol (PEG), can be cleaned successfully, including a known-age test. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Businesses affected by the pandemic have realized the importance of incorporating digital transformation into their operations. However, as a result of the market lockdown, they realized that they needed to digitalize their firms immediately and make greater attempts to enhance their economic situation by integrating a greater number of technological components. While there have been numerous studies conducted on the adoption of digital transformation in small–medium enterprises, there has been no research carried out on the implementation of digital transformation in the specific industry of driving schools. This paper investigates the significance of digital transformation, as well as the potential for its application in this industry's business setting and the ways in which it can be utilized to improve innovation capabilities and performance. The data for this study came from 300 driving instructors in Greece and Cyprus. Multivariate regression analysis was used to analyze the data. The outcomes suggest that driving schools have a generally positive reaction to and acknowledgement of the increasing speed of digital transformation. The results also give driving school owners useful information that helps them show how important digital transformation is to their businesses. Using the findings of this study, driving schools will be able to improve their operational capabilities and accelerate their development in the post-COVID era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The paper presents tableware (TW) from a Hellenistic deposit found in Well S.50 located in the Agora of Nea Paphos, a city situated on the southwest coast of Cyprus. Based on TW pottery, this closed deposit is dated from approximately the mid- 2nd century to 30 BC. The data obtained permitted to observe a three-stage process of backfilling the well in the Hellenistic period. In the second phase, it probably served as a burial place, as human remains intentionally deposited in the well may attest. The TW pottery was examined using a macroscopic method based on fabric characteristics and typology. The assemblage was divided into groups according to function, ware, and macroscopic characteristics. In addition, statistical analysis was applied to calculate the Minimum Number of Vessels (MNV) and the Estimated Vessel Equivalent (EVE), and the CReAPatrimoine web application was used for estimating the capacity of selected vessels. The results suggest a dominant role of local Color-coated Ware (CCW) produced in the Paphos region. The recurrence of forms, the quantitative share of specific shapes within functional categories, and the capacity measurements form a basis for preliminary observations concerning the eating and drinking habits in the Hellenistic city. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Lebanon has started with huge efforts to explore its offshore regional areas in the Mediterranean Sea such as Egypt, Cyprus, Greek, and Israel. All exerted efforts are to find oil or natural gas. This is considered as a new place to do these kinds of activities in Lebanon. Furthermore, the need for knowing and evaluating the environmental conditions and terms, and field properties has become inevitable. Therefore, the main objective of this paper is to evaluate environmental impacts and do risk assessment for the region of block IV where the first offshore and exploratory well is drilled. Drilling and environmental issue are reviewed and analyzed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increase in renewable energy sources (RESs) in distribution grids is a major driver for achieving green energy goals worldwide. However, RES power inverters affect power quality, increase power losses, and, in certain cases, may cause power interruptions due to harmonics, deterioration of the rate of change of frequency, and inability to rapidly react in grid faults. Today, phasor measurement units (PMUs) are the ultimate tools for real-time monitoring of distribution grids' health, and they enable several data-driven added-value services such as fast and automated fault detection, isolation, and recovery; state estimation; power quality monitoring; dynamic events analysis, etc. The present paper proposes an open hardware and software PMU platform, which is low cost, high performance, expandable, and, in general, suitable for research and innovation activities. The system is based on two processor modules (a digital signal processor from Texas Instruments TMS320c5517, and a microprocessor System-in-Package from Octavo Systems OSD3358), two local databases of 64 Gbytes each, GPS module, 5G modem interface, as well as analog and signal conditioning circuits to interface three-phase power voltage and current signals. The entire hardware design, schematics, and instrumentation components, as well as all firmware and software functions are completely open source. Pilot operation of the prototype design has been installed in three medium-/low-voltage substations in Cyprus, as well as twelve substations in Spain and Italy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]