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Space Tourism Value Chain: When East Meets West (Contributions to Management Science)
by Kang-Lin Peng IokTeng Esther Kou Hong ChenThis book benefits those interested in space tourism for doing business, conducting research, and teaching space services. The value chain analysis approach is applied to construct the knowledge system of the space industry from suppliers, consumers, agents, and related stakeholders. Space tourism has made a breakthrough in travel boundaries beyond Kármán line and impacted human living in many aspects, especially a vision of Mars immigration. The tourism industry has extended its reach to outer space. Space education has been popular in many countries because of human capital to serve in the new field. Researchers have developed unique methodologies to study space economic behaviors. The advancements in space technology and commercialization have formed a new market to drive a new era of space economics. Individuals can now venture beyond the Kármán line and fulfill their desire for space exploration through space tourism. This form of tourism offers a unique opportunity for individuals to explore the origins and limitations of human beings. This book provides an overview of the current state of global space tourism development, including its characteristics, direct and indirect stakeholders, and existing challenges. The successful implementation of space tourism cases by private enterprises in Europe and the USA offers valuable insights into China's space tourism endeavors. Given China's leading position in global space technology, space tourism represents a promising commercial development field that can benefit the country and its citizens.
The Space Value of Money: Rethinking Finance Beyond Risk & Time
by Armen V. PapazianThe Space Value of Money introduces a fresh and innovative perspective on sustainability and finance. It expands our financial value framework, heretofore built around risk and time, by factoring in space, as an analytical dimension and our physical context. The proposed principle and metrics entrench our responsibility for space impact into our value equations, making finance inherently sustainable and acting as a theoretical bridge between core finance theory and the growing field of sustainable finance or ESG integration. The book offers a novel approach to value design, measurement, and creation, discussing the theoretical, mathematical, institutional, technological and data elements of the transformation.The Space Value of Money principle and metrics offer us the opportunity to adjust our financial value framework and transform human productivity in line with our sustainability targets. They also enable the design and engineering of the financial instruments that can help us address our evolutionary challenges/investment, like the transition to Net Zero.“Every once in a while, a book comes along that makes a fundamental contribution that is both profound and practical. A book that every member of the National Space Council, including the NASA Administrator and the Space Force chief of space operations should read. The Space Value of Money will be of interest to ESG and impact investors, government regulators, financial theorists, and outer space enthusiasts.” —Lt Col Peter Garretson, Senior Fellow in Defense Studies at the American Foreign Policy Council“No doubt, the pressing environmental challenges we face make the concept of the space impact of investments even more compelling.” —Dr. Pascal Blanqué, Chairman of Amundi Institute, Former Group CIO of Amundi Asset Management“The Space Value of Money brings much needed conceptual rigour, whilst further advocating the case for a new paradigm shift in financial valuation. This work gives us the lasting frameworks that aggregate impact across all spatial dimensions. Dr. Papazian culminates over ten years of research in this rich book, providing the springboard for further innovation and system implementation in this area.” —Domenico Del Re, Director, Sustainability and Climate Change, PwC“Enthralling and captivating. Papazian offers a clear, thorough, and comprehensive discussion. The Space Value of Money gives us an opportunity to reframe our thinking and to explore what is possible. A great read!” —Daud Vicary, Founding Trustee of the Responsible Finance and Investment Foundation“Armen has developed a novel way to create financial models that are better suited to dealing with the many parameters required if we are to properly consider environmental factors and sustainability in economics and finance. I have found this engaging and look forward to seeing its future use.” —Dr. Keith Carne, First Bursar, King’s College, Cambridge University
Spaceport America, Public Sector Risk-taking, and Political Accountability (A)
by Matthew C. Weinzierl Angela Acocella Dava Newman Rebecca BrowderSitting quietly in the heart of the New Mexico desert in the summer of 2014, Spaceport America (SA) housed little of the activity its supporters anticipated when opening its hangar doors in 2011. Despite $1 million in annual rent from Virgin Galactic, British billionaire Richard Branson's space tourism company and SA's anchor tenant, the spaceport was still heavily reliant on government funds. Flight delays and a crash on Halloween of 2014 that left one pilot dead and stalled Virgin Galactic's testing and development meant that the New Mexico Spaceport Authority (NMSA) was not receiving critical user fees to run spaceport operations. As a result, state and local taxpayers were bearing much of the cost of the underutilized spaceport, even after having invested $218 million from local and state funds. With the 2015 session of New Mexico's congress looming, the fate of the world's first "purpose-built" spaceport was in question.
Spaceport America, Public Sector Risk-Taking, and Political Accountability (B)
by Angela Acocella Dava Newman Matthew C. Weinzierl Rebecca BrowderB case to case 723011 Sitting quietly in the heart of the New Mexico desert in the summer of 2014, Spaceport America (SA) housed little of the activity its supporters anticipated when opening its hangar doors in 2011. Despite $1 million in annual rent from Virgin Galactic, British billionaire Richard Branson's space tourism company and SA's anchor tenant, the spaceport was still heavily reliant on government funds. Flight delays and a crash on Halloween of 2014 that left one pilot dead and stalled Virgin Galactic's testing and development meant that the New Mexico Spaceport Authority (NMSA) was not receiving critical user fees to run spaceport operations. As a result, state and local taxpayers were bearing much of the cost of the underutilized spaceport, even after having invested $218 million from local and state funds. With the 2015 session of New Mexico's congress looming, the fate of the world's first "purpose-built" spaceport was in question.
Spaces and Places in Central and Eastern Europe: Historical Trends and Perspectives (Regions and Cities)
by Gyula HorváthAcross Europe there is a rapidly changing context for undertaking regional development. In the 20th century, development of the former planned economies (Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia), was defined by these countries differences, rather than their common ideological roots. These disparities altered over time and were marked by changing social structures. However, the ranking of regions has remained the same as core areas have strengthened their positions while the structural obstacles to the modernisation of peripheral areas have remained due to a lack of coherent regional policy. This book examines the specific regional development paths of Central and Eastern European countries and evaluates the effects of the determining factors of this process. Through analysis of the system of objectives, instruments and institutions used in different eras, and case studies of Hungary, East Germany and Germany, development models are established and compared with Western European patterns. The book summarises the experiences of Central and Eastern European regional cooperation and examines the basic nature of the cohesion problems of the Carpathian Basin trans-national macro region. It confirms by comparative historical analyses that the transformation was indeed unique. This book will make a welcome addition to the literature for students and academics interested in the broader picture of Central and Eastern European politics, future integration within the European Union and the history of regional development processes.
Spaces of Global Capitalism: A Theory of Uneven Geographical Development
by David HarveyFiscal crises have cascaded across much of the developing world with devastating results, from Mexico to Indonesia, Russia and Argentina. The extreme volatility in contemporary political economic fortunes seems to mock our best efforts to understand the forces that drive development in the world economy.David Harvey is the single most important geographer writing today and a leading social theorist of our age, offering a comprehensive critique of contemporary capitalism. In this fascinating book, he shows the way forward for just such an understanding, enlarging upon the key themes in his recent work: the development of neoliberalism, the spread of inequalities across the globe, and ‘space’ as a key theoretical concept.Both a major declaration of a new research programme and a concise introduction to David Harvey’s central concerns, this book will be essential reading for scholars and students across the humanities and social sciences.
Spaces of International Economy and Management
by Rolf D. Schlunze Nathaniel O. Agola William W. BaberA structural overview of the new field of management geography including globalization, embeddedness of MNEs, networking, hybridization, regional economies, technology, acculturation, internationalization, IHRM and implications for management and government.
Space–Time Design of the Public City
by Benjamin Könecke Dietrich Henckel Stefano Stabilini Roberto Zedda Susanne ThomaierTime has become an increasingly important topic in urban studies and urban planning. The spatial-temporal interplay is not only of relevance for the theory of urban development and urban politics, but also for urban planning and governance. The space-time approach focuses on the human being with its various habits and routines in the city. Understanding and taking those habits into account in urban planning and public policies offers a new way to improve the quality of life in our cities. Adapting the supply and accessibility of public spaces and services to the inhabitants' space-time needs calls for an integrated approach to the physical design of urban space and to the organization of cities. In the last two decades the body of practical and theoretical work on urban space-time topics has grown substantially. The book offers a state of the art overview of the theoretical reasoning, the development of new analytical tools, and practical experience of the space-time design of public cities in major European countries. The contributions were written by academics and practitioners from various fields exploring space-time research and planning.
SpaceX: Starship to Mars – The First 20 Years (Springer Praxis Books)
by Erik SeedhouseLearn about commercial spaceflight’s most successful startup in this fully updated book, which follows the extraordinary feats of engineering and human achievement that have placed SpaceX at the forefront of the launch industry and positioned it as the most likely candidate for transporting humans to Mars. This second edition emphasizes SpaceX's much-hyped manned mission to the Red Planet. With a plethora of new material gathered from 2013 to the present, the text offers the most up-to-date portrait of the maverick band of scientists and engineers producing some of the most spectacular aviation triumphs of the 21st century. Topics covered in this book include: all CRS flights, the challenges of developing retro-propulsion, and the pathway towards realizing the Falcon Heavy and BFR. In addition, the chapters describe SpaceX’s emphasis on simplicity, low-cost, and reliability, and the methods the company employs to reduce its costs while speeding up decision-making and delivery. Detailing the Falcon 1, Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launch vehicles, the book shows how SpaceX is able to offer a full spectrum of light, medium, and heavy lift launch capabilities to its customers and how it is able to deliver spacecraft into any inclination and altitude, from low Earth orbit to geosynchronous orbit to planetary missions. This book is the perfect go-to guide on SpaceX for anybody working or interested in the commercial space arena.
SpaceX, economies of scale, and a revolution in space access
by Matthew C. Weinzierl Kylie Lucas Mehak SarangFrom the time he transformed the world of online banking, Elon Musk had established himself as a bold innovator eager to challenge the status quo in hopes of, as he put it, advancing human society. After selling X.com to PayPal in 2002, he founded a series of start-ups in pursuit of that dream, starting with Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX). Hoping to "make human life multiplanetary", Musk aimed to establish the first Mars civilization, but was unable to procure rockets that would be cheap or reliable enough to make the journey. Over the course of the next decade, SpaceX would develop a line of revolutionary rockets that transformed the commercial space launch industry. Using reusable rockets to exploit the benefits of economies of scale, SpaceX cut costs to orbit by a factor of 18 and captured a large percentage of the global launch market, once thought to be inaccessible to newcomers in the industry. But after a remarkable decade, Musk's original goal to reach Mars seemed both within reach and impossibly optimistic. SpaceX had proven technologies that would be critical in supporting a crewed mission to Mars, but the cost to get there was estimated to be well above $200 billion dollars in 2014. While revenues from the launch services market were impressive, they were nowhere near the $200 billion needed to develop a Mars civilization. Would there be enough demand for launch services to make Elon Musk's vision a possibility, or would SpaceX have to find other ways to get there?
Spacious Lawns and Long Commutes: The Irrationality of Choosing to Live in the Suburbs
by Peter A. UbelSocial scientists have discovered in the last couple of decades that people's decisions are often biased by an inability to predict what will make them happy. Many economists, however, have overlooked or underemphasized the importance of people's emotional lives in their decision-making processes. Standard economic theory, for instance, holds that if commuting is a source of unhappiness, people will choose long commutes only if they believe such commutes will raise their happiness in other ways, like bringing them higher pay or better living conditions. However, studies conducted in Germany and the U.S. have found that the longer people commute each day, the less satisfied they are with their overall lives. In this chapter, behavioral scientist Peter Ubel, explores the failure of the market to give us the neighborhoods and the commutes that we deserve. This chapter is excerpted from "Free Market Madness: Why Human Nature Is at Odds with Economics--and Why It Matters."
Spain: Can the House Resist the Storm?
by Diego CominOn September 16, 2008, President Rodriguez Zapatero recognized the severity of Spain's macroeconomic situation and clearly pointed to the culprit in front of the Spanish Congress: "Let nobody doubt it; there is already a wide consensus about the origin of the crisis: [It is] in the U.S. and its subprime mortgages." During the last eight years, Spain had gone through a phenomenal expansion that has had many important ingredients: immigration, housing boom, banking and financial market regulation, current account deficit, and productivity growth. This case analyzes how they interacted during the period 2000-2007 and what drove the Spanish recession in 2008.
Spain: Converging with the European Community
by Michel Galy Gonzalo Pastor Thierry PujolSpain's participation in European integration has strengthened its policymaking credibility and created an enviroment conducive to sustainable economic growth. Over the last decade, Spain has seen improvements in inflation, output, employment, and its balance of payments, and it has substantially reformed its product, labor, and financial markets. This paper reviews Spain's past economic performance and sees good prospects for further rises in living standards
Spain: 2001 Article IV Consultation--Staff Report; Staff Supplement; and Public Information Notice on the Executive Board Discussion
by International Monetary FundA report from the International Monetary Fund.
Spain: Financial Sector Assessment Program--Detailed Assessment of the IMF Code of Good Practices on Transparency in Monetary and Financial Policies--Financial Policies
by International Monetary FundA report from the International Monetary Fund.
Spain: Selected Issues
by International Monetary FundA report from the International Monetary Fund.
Spain - Culture Smart!
by Marian MeaneyCulture Smart! provides essential information on attitudes, beliefs and behavior in different countries, ensuring that you arrive at your destination aware of basic manners, common courtesies, and sensitive issues. These concise guides tell you what to expect, how to behave, and how to establish a rapport with your hosts. This inside knowledge will enable you to steer clear of embarrassing gaffes and mistakes, feel confident in unfamiliar situations, and develop trust, friendships, and successful business relationships.Culture Smart! offers illuminating insights into the culture and society of a particular country. It will help you to turn your visit-whether on business or for pleasure-into a memorable and enriching experience. Contents include* customs, values, and traditions* historical, religious, and political background* life at home* leisure, social, and cultural life* eating and drinking* do's, don'ts, and taboos* business practices* communication, spoken and unspoken"Culture Smart has come to the rescue of hapless travellers." Sunday Times Travel"... the perfect introduction to the weird, wonderful and downright odd quirks and customs of various countries." Global Travel"...full of fascinating-as well as common-sense-tips to help you avoid embarrassing faux pas." Observer"...as useful as they are entertaining." Easyjet Magazine"...offer glimpses into the psyche of a faraway world." New York Times
Spain on Screen
by Ann DaviesA collection of original essays from leading scholars in the field exploringthe contemporary debates, concerns and controversies ongoing in Spanish film industry, culture and scholarship. The essays reveal the far-reaching shifts that have occurred in the Spanish film scene, making essential reading for all interested in European cinema. "
Spain’s Photovoltaic Revolution: The Energy Return on Investment
by Charles A. Hall Pedro A. PrietoThe Energy Return on Energy Invested (EROI or EROEI) is the amount of energy acquired from a particular energy source divided by the energy expended, or invested, in obtaining that energy. EROI is an essential and seemingly simple measure of the usable energy or "energy profit" from the exploitation of an energy source, but it is not so easy to determine all of the energy expenditures that should be included in the calculation. Because EROI values are generally low for renewable energy sources, differences in these estimates can lead to sharply divergent conclusions about the viability of these energy technologies. This book presents the first complete energy analysis of a large-scale, real-world deployment of photovoltaic (PV) collection systems representing 3.5 GW of installed, grid-connected solar plants in Spain. The analysis includes all of the factors that limit and adjust the real electricity output through one full-year cycle, and all of the fossil fuel inputs required to achieve these results. The authors' comprehensive analysis of energy inputs, which assigns energy cost estimates to all financial expenditures, yields EROI values that are less than half of those claimed by other investigators and by the solar industry. Sensitivity analysis is used to test various assumptions in deriving these EROI estimates. The results imply that the EROI of current, large-scale PV systems may be too low to seamlessly support an energy and economic transition away from fossil fuels. Given the pervasiveness of fossil fuel subsidies in the modern economy, a key conclusion is that all components of the system that brings solar power to the consumer, from manufacturing to product maintenance and life cycle, must be improved in terms of energy efficiency. The materials science of solar conversion efficiency is only one such component. Sunny Spain represented an ideal case study as the country had the highest penetration of solar PV energy at 2.3 percent of total national demand as well as state-of-the-art expertise in solar power including grid management of intermittent, modern renewable systems. This book, written by a uniquely qualified author team consisting of the chief engineer for several major photovoltaic projects in Spain and the world's leading expert on the concept and application of EROI, provides a comprehensive understanding of the net energy available to society from energy sources in general and from functioning PV installations under real-world conditions in particular. The authors provide critical insight into the capacity of renewable energy sources to fill the foreseeable gap between world energy demand and depletion rates for fossil fuels. · Presents the first comprehensive study of the EROI of large-scale solar PV systems in a developed country · Uses real-world operational data rather than laboratory approximations and extrapolations · Describes the dependence of one alternative energy source on the goods and services of a fossil-fueled economy · Has global implications for the potential of renewable energy sources to replace dwindling reserves of fossil fuels · Written with the first-hand knowledge of the chief, on-site engineer for many solar installations in Spain together with the leader in the development and application of the concept of EROI
Spam Nation: The Inside Story of Organized Cybercrime—from Global Epidemic to Your Front Door
by Brian KrebsA New York Times bestseller and winner of a 2015 Prose Award!There is a threat lurking online. A secret war with the power to destroy your finances, steal your personal data, and endanger your life.In Spam Nation, investigative journalist and cybersecurity expert Brian Krebs unmasks the criminal masterminds driving some of the biggest spam and hacker operations targeting Americans and their bank accounts. Tracing the rise, fall, and alarming resurrection of the digital mafia behind the two largest spam pharmacies—and countless viruses, phishing, and spyware attacks—he delivers the first definitive narrative of the global spam problem and its threat to consumers everywhere.Blending cutting-edge research, investigative reporting, and firsthand interviews, this terrifying true story reveals how we unwittingly invite these digital thieves into our lives every day. From unassuming computer programmers right next door to digital mobsters like "Cosma"—who unleashed a massive malware attack that has stolen thousands of Americans' logins and passwords—Krebs uncovers the shocking lengths to which these people will go to profit from our data and our wallets.Not only are hundreds of thousands of Americans exposing themselves to fraud and dangerously toxic products from rogue online pharmacies, but even those who never open junk messages are at risk. As Krebs notes, spammers can—and do—hack into accounts through these emails, harvest personal information like usernames and passwords, and sell them on the digital black market. The fallout from this global epidemic doesn't just cost consumers and companies billions, it costs lives too.Fast-paced and utterly gripping, Spam Nation ultimately proposes concrete solutions for protecting ourselves online and stemming this tidal wave of cybercrime—before it's too late."Krebs's talent for exposing the weaknesses in online security has earned him respect in the IT business and loathing among cybercriminals… His track record of scoops...has helped him become the rare blogger who supports himself on the strength of his reputation for hard-nosed reporting." —Bloomberg Businessweek
Spanish at Work
by Nuria Lorenzo-DusSpanish at Work is the first book examining the discourse practices of institutions in the Spanish-speaking world. It focuses on three 'umbrella' institutions (the mass-media, politics and the workplace), each of which are explored through a discrete theme. Within the mass media, chapters focus on the relationship between language and identity; within the political domain, persuasion and performance are investigated; and within the workplace, chapters explore the negotiation of interpersonal relations in work-related activity types. Spanish at Work delves into a varied selection of countries and settings in which Spanish is spoken variously as one of several official languages, as the official language, as a 'minority' language, and even as a second language or one of a number of other languages. Spanish at Work will be essential reading for upper-level undergraduates and graduates in Spanish linguistics and discourse analysis, as well as for practitioners in these fields.
Spanish Central America: A Socioeconomic History, 1520-1720
by Murdo J. MacleodThe seventeenth century has been characterized as "Latin America's forgotten century. " This landmark work, originally published in 1973, attempted to fill the vacuum in knowledge by providing an account of the first great colonial cycle in Spanish Central America. The colonial Spanish society of the sixteenth century was very different from that described in the eighteenth century. What happened in the Latin American colonies between the first conquests, the seizure of long-accumulated Indian wealth, the first silver booms, and the period of modern raw material supply? How did Latin America move from one stage to the other? What were these intermediate economic stages, and what effect did they have on the peoples living in Latin America? These questions continue to resonate in Latin American studies today, making this updated edition of Murdo J. MacLeod's original work more relevant than ever. Colonial Central America was a large, populous, and always strategically significant stretch of land. With the Yucatán, it was home of the Maya, one of the great pre-Columbian cultures. MacLeod examines the long-term process it underwent of relative prosperity, depression, and then recovery, citing comparative sources on Europe to describe Central America's great economic, demographic, and social cycles. With an updated historiographical and bibliographical introduction, this fascinating study should appeal to historians, anthropologists, and all who are interested in the colonial experience of Latin America.
Spanish Economic Growth, 1850–2015
by Leandro Prados de la EscosuraThis book is open access under a CC BY 4. 0 license. This text offers a comprehensive and nuanced view of the economic development of Spain since 1850. It provides a new set of historical GDP estimates for Spain from the demand and supply sides, and presents a reconstruction of production and expenditure series for the century prior to the introduction of modern national accounts. The author splices available national accounts sets over the period 1958-2015 through interpolation, as an alternative to conventional retropolation. The resulting national accounts series are linked to the historical estimates providing yearly series for GDP and its components since 1850. On the basis of new population estimates, the author derives GDP per head, decomposed into labour productivity and the amount of work per person, and placed into international perspective. With theoretical reasoning and historiographical implications, Prados de la Escosura provides a useful methodological reference work for anyone interested in national accounting. 'This book stands among the classics for the Kuznetian paradigm in empirical economics. This is the definitive study of Spain's transition to a modern economy. ' --Patrick Karl O'Brien, Emeritus Fellow at St. Antony's College, the University of Oxford, UK, and Professor Emeritus of Global Economic History at the London School of Economics and Political Science, UK 'The definitive account of Spanish economic growth since 1850, based firmly on a magisterial reconstruction of that country's national accounts and an unrivalled knowledge of both Spanish and global economic history of the period. ' --Stephen Broadberry, Professor of Economic History at Nuffield College, the University of Oxford, UK
The Spanish Economy
by José E. Boscá Rafael Doménech Javier Ferri Juan VarelaThis book examines the pattern of growth of the Spanish economy in the last few decades, and studies the causes of its labour productivity, and the special features characterising business cycles in Spain.
The Spanish Economy in the 1990s
by Prof H ScobieThis volume provides a detailed and comprehensive assessment of the performance of the Spanish economy in the 1990s and examines Spain's future prospects versus European Economic and Monetary Union. It analyses recent structural changes in the Spanish economy and macro-economic performance, as well as developments in government policy. The book als