In order to diversify a portfolio, find prices, and manage risk, derivatives products are now necessary. There is a lack of understanding of the true influence of derivatives on the behavior of the underlying assets, their volatility consequences, and their pricing as complex instruments. There is a dearth of empirical research on how these instruments impact company risk exposures and inconsistent findings. This study examines corporate derivatives’ impact on stock price exposure and systematic risk in South African non-financial firms. Using a dataset of listed firms from 2013 to 2023, we employ Generalized Autoregressive Conditional Heteroscedasticity (GARCH) models to assess the effect of derivatives on return volatility and beta, a measure of systematic risk. Additionally, we apply the Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) to address potential endogeneity between firm characteristics and derivatives use. Our findings suggest that firms using derivatives experience lower overall volatility and reduced systematic risk compared to non-users. The results are robust to various control factors, including firm size, leverage, and macroeconomic conditions. This study fills a gap in the literature by focusing on an underrepresented emerging market and provides insights relevant to global risk management practices.

Uncontrolled economic development often leads to land degradation, a decline in ecosystem services, and negative impacts on community welfare. This study employs water yield (WY) modeling as a method for environmental management, aiming to provide a comprehensive understanding of the relationship between Land Use Land Cover (LULC), Land Use Intensity (LUI), and WY to support sustainable natural resource management in the Cisadane Watershed, Indonesia. The objectives include: (1) analyzing changes in WY for 2010, 2015, and 2021; (2) predicting WY for 2030 and 2050 under two scenarios—Business as Usual (BAU) and Protected Forest Area (PFA); (3) assessing the impacts of LULC and climate change on WY; and (4) exploring the relationship between LUI and WY. The Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Trade-offs (InVEST) model calculates actual and predicted WY conditions, while the Coupling Coordination Degree (CCD) analyzes the LULC-WY relationship. Results indicate that the annual WY in 2021 was 215.8 × 108 m³, reflecting a 30.42% increase from 2010. Predictions show an increasing trend in WY under both scenarios for 2030 and 2050 with different magnitudes. Rainfall contributes 88.99% more dominantly to WY than LULC. Additionally, around 50% of districts exhibited unbalanced coordination between LUI and WY in 2010 and 2020. This study reveals the importance of ESs in sustainable watershed management amidst increasing demand for natural resources due to population growth.

Increasing levels of everyday cycling has many benefits for both individuals and for cities. Reduced traffic congestion, improved air quality and safer spaces for all vulnerable road users are among the significant benefits for urban developments. Despite this, public opposition to cycling infrastructure is common, particularly when it involves reprioritising road space for cycles instead of vehicles. The purpose of the research was to examine various stakeholders’ perspectives on proposed cycle infrastructure projects. This study utilised an innovative data collection approach through detailed content analysis of 322 public consultation submissions on a proposed active travel scheme in Limerick City, Ireland. By categorising submissions into support, opposition, and proposals, the study reveals the nuanced public perceptions that influence behavioural adaptation and acceptance of sustainable transport infrastructure. Supportive submissions, which outnumbered opposition-related submissions by approximately 2:1, emphasised the need for dedicated cycling infrastructure, enhanced cyclist safety, and potential improvements in environmental conditions. In contrast, opposition submissions focused on concerns over car parking removal, decreased accessibility for residents, and safety issues for vulnerable populations, particularly the elderly. Proposal submissions suggested design modifications, including enhanced safety features, provisions for convenient car parking, and alternative cycle routes. This paper highlights the value of structured public consultation data in uncovering behavioural determinants and barriers to cycling infrastructure adoption, offering policymakers essential insights into managing public opposition and fostering support. The methodology demonstrates how qualitative data from consultations can be effectively used to inform policy by capturing community-specific needs and enhancing the design of sustainable urban mobility systems. These findings underscore the need for innovative, inclusive data collection methods that reveal public sentiment, facilitating evidence-based transport policies that support climate-neutral mobility.

This study fills a significant need in the literature by exploring the efficacy of wearable technologies as helpful aids for special needs students in Saudi Arabia. This 12-month quantitative study used a purposive sample of 150 kids representing a range of disability classifications. This study examines the effects of wearable technology, such as smartwatches and augmented reality goggles, on students’ concentration and performance in the classroom. Wearable technology offers great promise, as descriptive statistics show that the experimental group had better involvement and academic achievement. The experimental and control groups vary significantly in terms of academic performance and engagement, as shown by independent samples t-tests. Wearable technology’s distinct benefits are further shown by regression analysis, which shows a favorable correlation with academic achievement after the intervention. According to the results, wearable tech has great promise for inclusive education in Saudi Arabia. Strategic integration, teacher professional development, ongoing research, better accessibility, and wearable gadget customization are some of the suggestions. Stakeholders may use these recommendations as a road map to build a welcoming and technologically sophisticated classroom. This study adds to the growing body of knowledge on assistive technology, especially in Saudi Arabia, and has important implications for academics, politicians, and educators.

Our main objective in this research is to affirm that philosophy, in its true essence and depth, has never been inherently opposed to religion. Rather, the turn toward atheism within philosophy represents isolated, personal stances, often reactionary in nature, and not rooted in genuine intellectual reflection, which the Qur’an encourages and calls people to adhere to. Our endeavor is to show that the call to atheism is foreign to reason, understood as a sound faculty or a sense linked to the pursuit of truth, as previously demonstrated by Descartes in his focus on the principles and methods of philosophical inquiry. To facilitate the achievement of these goals, we have employed several methodologies, primarily the structural method, which helps us analyze selected texts, this methodology enables the understanding of the elements within the studied positions, the relationships that link them, and the underlying implications upon which they are based. We will apply this method practically when analyzing conceptions that reject religion, uncovering the framework underpinning each conception. This approach facilitates comprehension by examining the rational foundations that support each interpretation of religion and later pave the way for its denial or transcendence. the historical method, which allows us to trace the development and dissemination of atheism, this approach is based on the premise that every sensory or intellectual phenomenon has an origin defined by time and place, evolving through transformations and additions over time. By employing this method, we can trace the development of various interpretations of religion and understand the intellectual accumulations shaped by successive historical periods, and the deconstructionist method, through which we identify the contradictions and flawed principles underlying atheistic arguments, this method allows for in-depth critique of the foundations, developmental trajectories, and final outcomes of phenomena. It also provides a means to establish new perspectives—whether by modifying the existing model, recontextualizing it, or replacing it with an entirely new framework. The importance of re-examining the relationship between philosophy and atheism stems from the profound influence of certain philosophical positions and their negative views on religion within various atheistic currents, especially contemporary ones. Contemporary atheism today poses a threat to religion as a symbolic human system, rich in a value-laden framework that upholds the essence of humanity in an era dominated by materialism and the absence of values. The central question of this research is: Can the human being truly achieve existence independently? Or can one live in this world isolated from all influential forces, including the creative and divine force?