The Highest and Best Use of Agricultural Land in a Multifunctional Land Market, Evidence from South Africa

Agricultural land has conventionally been perceived primarily as a production factor. For this reason the highest and best use （HBU） of such land was considered to be agricultural production for income purposes. The transition towards a multifunctional agricultural land market, where alternative uses--such as for lifestyle purposes--is evident, has challenged this view. Lifestyle buyers of farms often focus on a variety of characteristics of agricultural land which are not necessarily related to income but usually more intangible and subjective, which pose a measurement problem for valuers. The continued use of familiar traditional farming characteristics when valuing agricultural properties where lifestyle motivations are present, and the exclusion of less measurable characteristics, means that the market sales comparison method cannot be executed accurately. This study used a mixed methods research strategy to determine whether valuers use characteristics mainly related to agricultural production as HBU in valuations of agricultural properties bought for lifestyle purposes, and to identify the value attributes of farms that attract lifestyle buyers （and whether these differ from production oriented buyers）. This was done in an intensive and extensive agricultural area within the Western Cape Province of South Africa. Results indicate that valuers use familiar production related characteristics when valuing farms bought for lifestyle purposes, while lifestyle and production oriented buyers also interpret the value attributes of agricultural properties differently. For this reason a multiple perspective approach to agricultural land valuations where the HBU is uncertain is proposed.

Forest use suitability:Towards decision-making-oriented sustainable management of forest ecosystem services

Management of forest lands considering multi-functional approaches is the basis to sustain or enhance the provi-sion of specific benefits,while minimizing negative impacts to the environment.Defining a desired management itinerary to a forest depends on a variety of factors,including the forest type,its ecological characteristics,and the social and economic needs of local communities.A strategic assessment of the forest use suitability(FUS)(namely productive,protective,conservation-oriented,social and multi-functional)at regional level,based on the provision of forest ecosystem services and trade-offs between FUS alternatives,can be used to develop management strategies that are tailored to the specific needs and conditions of the forest.The present study assesses the provision of multiple forest ecosystem services and employs a decision model to identify the FUS that sup-ports the most present and productive ecosystem services in each stand in Catalonia.For this purpose,we apply the latest version of the Ecosystem Management Decision Support(EMDS)system,a spatially oriented decision support system that provides accurate results for multi-criteria management.We evaluate 32 metrics and 12 as-sociated ecosystem services indicators to represent the spatial reality of the region.According to the results,the dominant primary use suitability is social,followed by protective and productive.Nevertheless,final assignment of uses is not straightforward and requires an exhaustive analysis of trade-offs between all alternative options,in many cases identifying flexible outcomes,and increasing the representativeness of multi-functional use.The assignment of forest use suitability aims to significantly improve the definition of the most adequate management strategy to be applied.

On the direct use of recovered scrap copper and saving copper with aluminum in the Chinese cable industry

The copper consumption by the Chinese cable industry amounted to 354×104 t in 2006, taking over 70 % of the total copper consumption in China in that year. At present, making copper rod directly from recovered scrap copper and saving copper with aluminum have become topics of general interests in the Chinese cable industry. The quality of the copper conductors in the industry is declining, resulting in sharp decrease in the rate of qualified wire and cable products. More and more copper wires are drawn from the rods made directly from scrap copper. The manufacturers know well some of the wires or rods are unqualified products though, they continue to use or produce products not complying with standards in order to make profits. Now the consumption of copper-clad-aluminum and copper-clad-steel is growing gradually. In 2006, the consumption of copper-clad-aluminum in China amounted to ca. 5×104 t. But in some applications, neither the common understanding between buyer and supplier nor the results of feasibility study are achieved in the product orientation and technical/economic feasibility in terms of saving copper with aluminum. This paper presents the status-quo, problems arisen and suggestions in terms of making copper rod directly from recovered scrap copper and saving copper with aluminum, in a view to promote these two topics of general interests to go toward a virtuous circle.

Opinion: the use of natural hazard modeling for decision making under uncertainty

Decision making to mitigate the effects of natural hazards is a complex undertaking fraught with uncertainty. Models to describe risks associated with natural hazards have proliferated in recent years. Concurrently, there is a growing body of work focused on developing best practices for natural hazard modeling and to create structured evaluation criteria for complex environmental models. However, to our knowledge there has been less focus on the conditions where decision makers can confidently rely on results from these models. In this review we propose a preliminary set of conditions necessary for the appropriate application of modeled results to natural hazard decision making and provide relevant examples within US wildfire management programs.

Testing of Decision Making Tools for Village Land Use Planning and Natural Resources Management in Kilimanjaro Region

This paper focuses on participatory testing of decision making tools (DMTs) at village level to assist in development of land use plans (LUPs) for sustainable land management (SLM) in Kilimanjaro Region, Tanzania. Data were collected using conditional surveys through key informant interviews with the project’s district stakeholders in each district, focused group discussions with selected villagers and participatory mapping of natural resources. Soil health, land degradation, carbon stock, and hydrological conditions were assessed in the seven pilot villages in all seven districts using DMTs as part of testing and validation. Results indicated soils of poor to medium health, and land degradation as portrayed by gullies and wind erosion in lowlands and better in uplands. Carbon and forest disturbance status could not be assessed using one-year data but hydrological analysis revealed that water resources were relatively good in uplands and poor in the lowlands. Challenges with regard to land use include increased gully erosion, decreased stream flow, reduced vegetation cover due to shifting from coffee with tree sheds to annual crops farming, cultivation near water sources, and overgrazing. Empowering the community with decision making tools at village level is essential to ensure that village land uses are planned in a participatory manner for sustainable land and natural resources management in Kilimanjaro and other regions in Tanzania.

Land Suitability Evaluation to Determine the Appropriate Areas of Development: A Case Study of Hormuz Island

One of the basic prerequisites for the development of spatial programs and policies is evaluating the land suitability for future land uses based on the principals of ecological sustainability. This analysis is critical in islands due to special characteristics such as limited natural resources, interdependent and more complex ecosystems, high vulnerability to natural hazards, climate change and economic vulnerability. Accordingly, this paper based on the ecological approach and using Geographic Information System software package and Analytic Hierarchy Process and developing appropriate criteria has analyzed the land suitability of Hormuz Island. The findings clearly show the land suitability to develop industrial, agriculture, tourism land uses and can be the basis for planning the future development of the island based on the ecological sustainability.

The Applicability of the Maximum Global Utility Method in the Activity of the Real Estate Consulting Service

The real estate sector is vital for ensuring human needs for living and activity. This fact conditioned the formation of a legal, normative and methodological framework specific to real estate, but also the investment attractiveness of the field. Thus, the real estate consultant often solves technical, economic, legal, organizational problems, but the biggest responsibility rests with investment consulting. The applied methodologies, focused on evaluating the efficiency of investments, are not sufficient to propose to the investor a reasoned conclusion regarding the investment priority. In this article, the authors propose a useful tool for real estate consultants in order to reason the decision regarding the investment of funds in commercial real estate for the purpose of renting it out—the Maximum Global Utility (MGU) method. It is proposed to include in the analysis and the way of calculating the indicator “importance level of the real estate” which reflects the criterion of the best use. This indicator ensures the flexibility of the decision depending on the quality characteristics of the real estate.

Enterprises in Fuzhou—Making Good Use of Foreign Funds

In developing an export-oriented economy, Fuzhou city has negotiated for and made use of foreign investment funds to improve old enterprises. Forty six percent of the city’s enterprises in industry and communications have set up 68 joint or cooperative ventures through various forms of negotiation. These enterprises have improved production and operation and have had a higher

Speeding Up Tianjin's Municipal Highway Construction By Making Full Use of Foreign Capital

To introduce foreign capital for the municipal highway construction is a great measure to meet the development of the socialist market economy and to reform the investment system for the municipal highway construction. The aim of the reform lies in taking the construction and management of the municipal highway facilities as an industry to operate, widening the investment channel of the municipal highway construction and gradually forming a benign cycle of investment-construc-

CHINA'S SERVICE TRADE MAKING USE OF FOREIGN INVESTMENT

At the initial stage of the economic reform and opening drive, the Chinese government encouraged foreign businessmen to invest in the industrial field, strictly confining foreign investment to the service trade. For a long period of time, China’s service trade has lagged far behind other developed countries, with such long existing problems

A study of making use of computer-aided projection fringe system to measure breast dimension

To measure breast basic dimension by using computer-aided projection fringe system.Methods A system has been developed for measuring breast basic dimension based on computer-aided projection fringe measurement and programming software.Plastic manikins breast’s SN-N (sternal notch to nipple distance),N-ML (nipple to midline distance),N-N (internipple distance),MBW (base width of breast) and N-IMF (nipple to inframammary fold distance) are measured with this system.At the same time,these items are also measured with routine ruler.Results This study indicate that the system has some merits:① non-touching measurement;② it is very rapid,the patient measured need hold his breath only 0.5 second,and all the time it takes is about 2.5 minutes;③ the measurement’s sensitivity is as high as to 0.6 mm,which meets the clinic requirement entirely;④ the measurement’s accuracy of the system is not significantly when comparing to the routine ruler’s.Conclusion Computer-adided projection fringe system for measuring breast basic dimension is feasible and advanced.14 refs,1 fig.

基于多准则决策方法的作战方案优选方法

作战方案评估优选的过程往往存在主观性过强和忽略指标间内部关联关系等问题,这些问题会对作战决策的结果产生一定影响。针对作战决策中作战方案优选的问题,通过结合最优最劣法(BWM)、基于指标相关性的指标权重(CRITIC)确定法、多准则优化妥协决策(VIKOR)和梯形模糊数,提出一种用于作战方案评估优选的决策方法。首先,根据作战方案核心要素构建评估指标体系。然后,综合运用模糊BWM和基于距离相关系数的CRITIC为评估指标综合赋权,根据指标的组合权重信息和评价信息通过VIKOR法对各候选方案进行优选排序。最后,应用该方法解决了防御作战方案优选的实际问题,并通过对比分析和讨论,验证了该文所提作战方案优选决策方法的有效性。

3D矢量空间和最优最劣法在绿色产品设计决策方法中的应用

为了解决目前绿色产品设计方案中产品基础属性考虑欠缺,以及缺乏可视化比较方法的问题,提出一种基于3D矢量空间和最优最劣法(Best worst method,BWM)的绿色产品设计多属性决策方法。通过功能、外观和可持续3个维度为绿色产品设计的基础属性构建3D矢量空间,并对每个维度扩充其包含的下级属性;利用间隔方法优化的BWM获得三个维度及各维度下级属性的权重分配;通过3D矢量空间求得各备选方案的总体评价得分,实现客观科学的绿色产品设计多属性决策。以电动汽车的绿色产品设计方案为例,验证了所提方法的可行性和有效性。

中国古代服饰中“物尽其用”观念的探究

中国古代服饰文化历史悠久、灿烂辉煌,其呈现形式伴随人类历史的发展而演进,“物尽其用”观念在古代服饰文化中不仅是一种实用的生活理念,更具有一种深厚的文化内涵。围绕“物尽其用”观念探究中国古代服饰中“惜物、节用”的态度,围绕古人裁制穿戴衣物过程中习惯性的“尽用”、主动性的“善用”、创造性的“巧用”这3个方面,发掘传统造物的思想源泉,学习和传承古人的智慧,深化对古代服饰文化的理解,同时为现代服饰的发展提供有益的启示。

基于FBWM-TOPSIS的配电网检修关键线路识别方法

在有限的资源和时间背景下,设备检修是保持系统稳定运行的有效方法。为了高效地分配检修资源,应该首先确定系统中最关键的设备,即那些发生故障会造成较大后果的设备。首先提出了一种新的多准则决策方案来识别配电网中的关键线路,与以往基于层次分析法不同,采用最优-最劣法,根据专家的知识和判断求得系统可靠性指标的权重。此外,在传统最优-最劣法中引入模糊理论克服专家判断和决策中普遍存在的不确定性。最后,利用逼近理想解排序法对IEEE14节点配电网线路进行检修优先排序。所提的方法可以更快、更准确地确定系统检修的优先顺序。

传统“物尽其用”观念在现代服饰配件设计中的转译与应用研究

中国传统“物尽其用”观念强调资源的高效利用以及发挥物品的最高价值。在服饰配件日新月异的今天,传统观念为现代设计提供了深厚的文化基础和实践指导。文章围绕传统“物尽其用”观念的内涵与发展,结合现代服饰配件的特点,提出了“尽用—整体性设计”“节用—循环再用设计”“巧用—变化性设计”3种转译路径,同时分析了服饰配件在款型、材料、工艺技术方面的应用策略,通过探究传统“物尽其用”观念在现代服饰配件设计中的转译与应用,为设计师提供有益的参考与启示,助力时尚行业可持续发展目标的实现。

HOW TO MAKE USE OF ENGLISH NEWSPAPERS AND MAGAZINES AROUND US IN THE EXTENSIVE READING CLASSROOM

What can be conveniently and effectively used as readingmaterials in our extensive reading classroom(ERC)?Now thatthey are living in an information era,students need to absorb allsorts of knowledge and information within the shortest possibletime.Compared with other reading materials,newspapers andmagazines published in China have their own unique advantagesto be recommended as a main reading source.This paperillustrates this idea in four parts:introduction,merits ofemploying English newspapers and magazines in the ERC,waysof making use of English newspapers and magazines at hand toorganize communicative activities,conclusion.

Beijing Makes Breakthroughs in Using Foreign Capital

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The best of Jiangxi to make the world drunk Highlights of the Jiangxi Global Promotion activities

Green represents vitality;blue symbolizes opening.Magnificence blooms when'Jiangxi green'encounters'diplomacy blue'.In Sept 8,the Global Promotion of Jiangxi was held in the Blue Hall of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Beijing.This was the 10th Global Promotion for provinces held by the ministry.Ten represents perfection in Chinese culture.It is everybody’s expectation.

中医治疗中的共享决策机制探讨

中医治疗模式丰富且独具特色,患者主导型决策、医生主导型决策、医患平等型决策均有,但医生主导型决策较为常见。中医医患共享决策内涵丰富,不仅包括医患信息的顺畅流动、鼓励支持患者平等参与,还包括基于中医特点的整体观念,对影响健康的饮食、运动、情志、起居和生理、心理、社会、自然诸方面问题的探讨。将“共享决策”融入中医的治疗过程,可按照“诊断治疗”的过程分为四个步骤。中医共享决策有优势,也受限,需要医患双方都满足一定的客观条件,中医治疗中也有不能运用共享决策的特殊情况。多种途径提升医患的决策能力、科学的评估和匹配治疗方案,开发辅助决策的工具、畅通信息传递的渠道均可提升医患的共享决策能力。