The evolution of mass tourism destinations: new approaches beyond deterministic models in Benidorm (Spain)

Although deterministic models of the evolution of mass tourism coastal resorts predict an almost inevitable decline over time, theoretical frameworks of the evolution and restructuring policies of mature destinations should be revised to reflect the complex and dynamic way in which these destinations evolve and interact with the tourism market and global socio-economic environment. The present study examines Benidorm because its urban and tourism model and large-scale tourism supply and demand make it one of the most unique destinations on the Mediterranean coast. The investigation reveals the need to adopt theories and models that are not purely deterministic. The dialectic interplay between external factors and the internal factors inherent in this destination simultaneously reveals a complex and diverse stage of maturity and the ability of destinations to create their own future.

Deterministic mathematical morphology for CAD/CAM

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a new geometric model based on the mathematical morphology paradigm, specialized to provide determinism to the classic morphological operations. The determinism is needed to model dynamic processes that require an order of application, as is the case for designing and manufacturing objects in CAD/CAM environments. Design/methodology/approach – The basic trajectory-based operation is the basis of the proposed morphological specialization. This operation allows the definition of morphological operators that obtain sequentially ordered sets of points from the boundary of the target objects, inexistent determinism in the classical morphological paradigm. From this basic operation, the complete set of morphological operators is redefined, incorporating the concept of boundary and determinism: trajectory-based erosion and dilation, and other morphological filtering operations. Findings – This new morphological framework allows the definition of complex three-dimensional objects, providing arithmetical support to generating machining trajectories, one of the most complex problems currently occurring in CAD/CAM. Originality/value – The model proposes the integration of the processes of design and manufacture, so that it avoids the problems of accuracy and integrity that present other classic geometric models that divide these processes in two phases. Furthermore, the morphological operative is based on points sets, so the geometric data structures and the operations are intrinsically simple and efficient. Another important value that no excessive computational resources are needed, because only the points in the boundary are processed.