Sport as a vehicle for development: The influence of rugby league in/on the Pacific.

In the field of development the relationship between development and sport has for the most part been ignored (Beacom 2007, Levermore 2008). When it has been discussed it occurs in a way whereby ‘sport is seen as a by-product of development not as an engine’ (United Nations 2006 cited in Levermore 2008:184). While conceptualisations of the sport and development relationship have begun to emerge, as noted in recent United Nations documents (also see AusAid 2008), an argument persists that the use of sport for development remains unproven (World Bank 2006). In keeping with post-development thinking which seeks to explore differing visions and expressions of development and by taking a strengths-based approach to the sport and development nexus, this paper considers critically the notion of sport as an engine of development. We will focus specifically on the role of rugby league, the NRL, and the Pacific region in relation to community development, youth development and crime prevention, health promotion and prevention, in particular HIV/AIDS and family violence, and economic opportunities and poverty alleviation

Attributing scientific and technical progress: the case of holography

Holography, the three-dimensional imaging technology, was portrayed widely as a paradigm of progress during its decade of explosive expansion 1964–73, and during its subsequent consolidation for commercial and artistic uses up to the mid 1980s. An unusually seductive and prolific subject, holography successively spawned scientific insights, putative applications and new constituencies of practitioners and consumers. Waves of forecasts, associated with different sponsors and user communities, cast holography as a field on the verge of success—but with the dimensions of success repeatedly refashioned. This retargeting of the subject represented a degree of cynical marketeering, but was underpinned by implicit confidence in philosophical positivism and faith in technological progressivism. Each of its communities defined success in terms of expansion, and anticipated continual progressive increase. This paper discusses the contrasting definitions of progress in holography, and how they were fashioned in changing contexts. Focusing equally on reputed ‘failures’ of some aspects of the subject, it explores the varied attributes by which success and failure were linked with progress by different technical communities. This important case illuminates the peculiar post-World War II environment that melded the military, commercial and popular engagement with scientific and technological subjects, and the competing criteria by which they assessed the products of science

Damage Tracking in Laboratory Reinforced Concrete Bridge Columns Under Reverse-cyclic Loading Using Fusion-based Imaging

Fusion-based imaging using ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and ultrasonic echo array (UEA) was employed to track damage progression in the columns of two full-scale reinforced concrete (RC) bridge column-footing subassembly laboratory specimens. The specimens had different lap-splice detailing and were subjected to reverse-cyclic lateral loading simulating a subduction zone earthquake. GPR and UEA scans were performed on the east and west faces of the columns at select ductility levels. Reconstructed images were obtained using the extended total focusing method (XTFM) and fused using a wavelet-based technique. Composite images of each column\u27s interior were created by merging the images from both sides. A quantitative analysis based on the structural similarity (SSIM) index accurately captured damage progression. A backwall analysis using the amplitude of the backwall reflector was also performed. Changes as early as in the first measurement (μ = 0.5 displacement ductility level) could be detected. Damage variation along the column height was observed, consistent with greater damage at the base. The proposed analyses distinguished the structural behavior differences between the two specimens. In summary, the SSIM metric provides a valuable tool for detecting changes, while the backwall analysis offers simple yet informative insights into damage progression and distribution in full-scale RC members