FOUND IN SPACE: A CROSS-LINGUISTIC ANALYSIS OF SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNERS IN ENGLISH MAP TASK PERFORMANCE

Understanding the relationship between first and second language use in the area of spatial language has broader implications for our understanding of language learning and consequences for the construction of bilingual assessment instruments for second language learners. This study shows that observing and interpreting the task of map drawing and the related behavior of explaining maps can be a way to explore the linguistic emergence of the conceptualization of spatial language (at a moment of simultaneous and synchronized incarnation). Altogether, 50 dyads (pairs) participated in the New Mexico Map Task Project; the project included native speakers of English, Russian, Japanese, Navajo, and Spanish. In an examination of how the grammatical constructions used for spatial descriptions in a speaker\u27s first language carry over into the usage of this speaker\u27s second language, new observations include the intra-subject comparison of dyadic map task performances. Each non-native English-speaking dyad participates in two map task performances: one in their native language and one in their second language, English. Evidence was generated through morphosyntactic, phonological, and pragmatic analyses performed on the sound files of the transcripts. This evidence confirms the connection between the participants\u27 productions of tokens of selected landmark names both in their native language and their second language. Combining the results of linguistic analyses with educational assessment frameworks predicts the development of an instrument for use with immigrant and refugee students from areas of conflict

The Slightest Attachment: When Psychiatric Spaces Enact Affinities

While the disciplinary architecture of hospitals has long prevailed in psychiatry, many care teams now work in smaller structures, within communities. The author explores one of these places: Drawing on fieldwork in a psychiatric day center for teenagers, she traces how spatial arrangements matter in the care practice. From a corner in which one can withdraw, to a kitchen inviting to hang around, or displayed artworks that pique one's curiosity, caregivers use the material environment to stir up the slightest affinity from teenagers. This study thus expands our idea of what attachment is, and makes us more able to recognize the subtle dynamics between care, things, and spaces. With a preface by Jeannette Pols

Complex Adaptive Systems & Urban Morphogenesis:

This thesis looks at how cities operate as Complex Adaptive Systems (CAS). It focuses on how certain characteristics of urban form can support an urban environment's capacity to self-organize, enabling emergent features to appear that, while unplanned, remain highly functional. The research is predicated on the notion that CAS processes operate across diverse domains: that they are ‘generalized' or ‘universal'. The goal of the dissertation is then to determine how such generalized principles might ‘play out' within the urban fabric. The main thrust of the work is to unpack how elements of the urban fabric might be considered as elements of a complex system and then identify how one might design these elements in a more deliberate manner, such that they hold a greater embedded capacity to respond to changing urban forces. The research is further predicated on the notion that, while such responses are both imbricated with, and stewarded by human actors, the specificities of the material characteristics themselves matter. Some forms of material environments hold greater intrinsic physical capacities (or affordances) to enact the kinds of dynamic processes observed in complex systems than others (and can, therefore, be designed with these affordances in mind). The primary research question is thus:   What physical and morphological conditions need to be in place within an urban environment in order for Complex Adaptive Systems dynamics arise - such that the physical components (or ‘building blocks') of the urban environment have an enhanced capacity to discover functional configurations in space and time as a response to unfolding contextual conditions?   To answer this question, the dissertation unfolds in a series of parts. It begins by attempting to distill the fundamental dynamics of a Complex Adaptive System. It does so by means of an extensive literature review that examines a variety of highly cited ‘defining principles' or ‘key attributes' of CAS. These are cross-referenced so as to extract common features and distilled down into six major principles that are considered as the generalized features of any complex system, regardless of domain. In addition, this section considers previous urban research that engages complexity principles in order to better position the distinctive perspective of this thesis. This rests primarily on the dissertation's focus on complex urban processes that occur by means of materially enabled in situ processes. Such processes have, it is argued, remained largely under-theorized. The opening section presents introductory examples of what might be meant by a ‘materially enabling' environment.   The core section of the research then undertakes a more detailed unpacking of how complex processes can be understood as having a morphological dimension. This section begins by discussing, in broad terms, the potential ‘phase space' of a physical environment and how this can be expanded or limited according to a variety of factors. Drawing insights from related inquiries in the field of Evolutionary Economic Geography, the research argues that, while emergent capacity is often explored in social, economic, or political terms, it is under-theorized in terms of the concrete physical sub-strata that can also act to ‘carry' or ‘moor' CAS dynamics. This theme is advanced in the next article, where a general framework for speaking about CAS within urban environments is introduced. This framework borrows from the terms for ‘imageability' that were popularized by Kevin Lynch: paths, edges, districts, landmarks, and nodes. These terms are typically associated with physical or ‘object-like features' of the urban environment – that is to say, their image. The terminology is then co-opted such that it makes reference not simply to physical attributes, but rather to the complex processes these attributes enable. To advance this argument, the article contrasts the static and ‘imageable' qualities of New Urbanism projects with the ‘unfolding' and dynamic qualities of complex systems - critiquing NU proponents as failing to appreciate the underlying forces that generate the environments they wish to emulate. Following this, the efficacy of the re-purposed ‘Lynchian' framework is tested using the case study of Istanbul's Grand Bazaar. Here, specific elements of the Bazaar's urban fabric are positioned as holding material agency that enables particular emergent spatial phenomena to manifest. In addition, comparisons are drawn between physical dynamics unfolding within the Bazaar's morphological setting (leading to emergent merchant districts) and parallel dynamics explored within Evolutionary Economic Geography).   The last section of the research extends this research to consider digitally augmented urban elements that hold an enhanced ability to receive and convey information. A series of speculative thought-experiments highlight how augmented urban entities could employ CAS dynamics to ‘solve for' different kinds of urban optimization scenarios, leading these material entities to self-organize (with their users) and discover fit regimes. The final paper flips the perspective, considering how, not only material agency, but also human agency is being augmented by new information processing technologies (smartphones), and how this can lead to new dances of agency that in turn generate novel emergent outcomes.   The dissertation is based on a compilation of articles that have, for the most part, been published in academic journals and all the research has been presented at peer-reviewed academic conferences. An introduction, conclusion, and explanatory transitions between sections are provided in order to clarify the narrative thread between the sections and the articles. Finally, a brief ‘coda' on the spatial dynamics afforded by Turkish Tea Gardens is offered

Data and the city – accessibility and openness. a cybersalon paper on open data

This paper showcases examples of bottom–up open data and smart city applications and identifies lessons for future such efforts. Examples include Changify, a neighbourhood-based platform for residents, businesses, and companies; Open Sensors, which provides APIs to help businesses, startups, and individuals develop applications for the Internet of Things; and Cybersalon’s Hackney Treasures. a location-based mobile app that uses Wikipedia entries geolocated in Hackney borough to map notable local residents. Other experiments with sensors and open data by Cybersalon members include Ilze Black and Nanda Khaorapapong's The Breather, a "breathing" balloon that uses high-end, sophisticated sensors to make air quality visible; and James Moulding's AirPublic, which measures pollution levels. Based on Cybersalon's experience to date, getting data to the people is difficult, circuitous, and slow, requiring an intricate process of leadership, public relations, and perseverance. Although there are myriad tools and initiatives, there is no one solution for the actual transfer of that data

Secret Spaces and Human Traces: Border-Crosser Architecture in the Sonoran Borderlands

This dissertation contributes to the discourse of informal and temporary architecture through its investigation of the small structures constructed by unauthorized border-crossers (UBCs) in the U.S.-Mexico borderlands. Scholarship tends to frame self-built environments as a cultural phenomenon (as traditional vernacular architecture), a by-product or response to capitalism (as marginal spaces of resistance such as ‘slums’), or an artistic endeavor (such as pop-up architecture or guerilla urbanism). I argue that UBC structures, in their response to extreme situations, constitute illustrative microcosms through which we can view the larger relationship among the realms of architecture, politics, experience, and environment. During the early 2010s, the Tucson sector of the U.S.-Mexico border was the most highly trafficked area with UBC annual apprehension rates of around 120,000. This condition was a result of late 1990’s policy initiatives legislated by the United States government that fortified urban points of entry and strategically funneled UBCs into brutal desert terrain. Now, to cross the border, UBCs have to walk an average of three to five days through the Sonoran Desert, facing violence, harmful plants and animals, relentless terrain and climate, as well as Border Patrol surveillance. During their journey, some UBCs build small structures out of available materials such as mesquite branches, grasses, and rocks. This research project analyzes these seemingly simple structures and identifies three ways in which they negotiate the complexity of the border-crossing context. In order to elucidate the relationship between this architecture and the everyday experiences of border-crossers within this hostile natural and political landscape, the research is framed theoretically by three schools of thought: structuralism, phenomenology, and critical theory. First, through structuralism, I identify the ways in which often-shifting social roles and rules impact the siting and form of the architecture border-crossers build. The nature these structures underscores the ambiguity within this landscape, including how border-crossers must adapt their identities, bend rules, and reorder priorities. Second, I employ phenomenological theory to highlight the extent to which the structures provide physical and existential shelter from the traumatic context of border-crossing, revealing that while architecture can provide some respite, complete refuge is impossible to achieve. Thus notions of place and dwelling are enmeshed with struggle and survival. Finally, I deploy critical theory to identify the modes through which UBC architecture resists the militarized landscape, engaging direct strategies such as counter-surveillance and cloaking as well as indirect tactics of persisting and haunting what is intended to be a no man’s land. To investigate these dynamics, I completed two seasons of fieldwork in 2012 and 2013 on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border. Incorporating inter-disciplinary methods from architecture, archaeology, and anthropology, I gathered and analyzed over 30 exemplars of border-crosser architecture, several hundred of their associated artifacts (such as discarded clothing and food containers), and over 40 in-depth interviews with UBCs. The aim of this work is to bring UBC structures out of the realm of anonymous cultural artifact or thoughtless construction and instead to reveal the intricacy, intimacy, and individuality of each structure as it responds to and shapes the border-crossing process.PHDArchitectureUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/146100/1/grabowss_1.pd

The development of an adaptive and reactive interface system for lower limb prosthetic application

Deep tissue injury (DTI) is a known problem correlating to the use of a prosthetic by a transtibial amputee (TTA), causing ulcer-like wounds on the residual limb caused by stress-induced cell necrosis. The magnitude of these stresses at the bone tissue interface has been identified computationally, far exceeding those measured at the skin's surface. Limited technology is available to directly target and reduce such cellular loading and actively reduce the risk of DTI from below-knee use. The primary aim of this project was to identify whether a bespoke prosthetic socket system could actively stiffen the tissues of the lower limb. Stabilising the residual tibia during ambulation and reducing stress concentrations on the cells. To achieve this, a proof-of-concept device was designed and manufactured, a system that allowed the change in displacement of a magnet to be responded to by counterbalancing load. The device was evaluated through experimentation on an able-bodied subject wearing an orthotic device designed to replicate the environment of a prosthetic socket. The chosen sensor effector system was validated against vector data generated by the Motek Medical Computer Assisted Rehabilitation Environment (CAREN.) The project explored a new concept of reactive loading of a below-knee prosthesis to reduce tibial/socket oscillation. The evaluation of the device indicated that external loading of the residual limb in such a manner could reduce the magnitude of rotation about the tibia and therefore minimise the conditions by which DTIs are known to occur. Efforts were made to move the design to the next iteration, focusing on implementing the target demographic.Deep tissue injury (DTI) is a known problem correlating to the use of a prosthetic by a transtibial amputee (TTA), causing ulcer-like wounds on the residual limb caused by stress-induced cell necrosis. The magnitude of these stresses at the bone tissue interface has been identified computationally, far exceeding those measured at the skin's surface. Limited technology is available to directly target and reduce such cellular loading and actively reduce the risk of DTI from below-knee use. The primary aim of this project was to identify whether a bespoke prosthetic socket system could actively stiffen the tissues of the lower limb. Stabilising the residual tibia during ambulation and reducing stress concentrations on the cells. To achieve this, a proof-of-concept device was designed and manufactured, a system that allowed the change in displacement of a magnet to be responded to by counterbalancing load. The device was evaluated through experimentation on an able-bodied subject wearing an orthotic device designed to replicate the environment of a prosthetic socket. The chosen sensor effector system was validated against vector data generated by the Motek Medical Computer Assisted Rehabilitation Environment (CAREN.) The project explored a new concept of reactive loading of a below-knee prosthesis to reduce tibial/socket oscillation. The evaluation of the device indicated that external loading of the residual limb in such a manner could reduce the magnitude of rotation about the tibia and therefore minimise the conditions by which DTIs are known to occur. Efforts were made to move the design to the next iteration, focusing on implementing the target demographic

Visual Impairment and Blindness

Blindness and vision impairment affect at least 2.2 billion people worldwide with most individuals having a preventable vision impairment. The majority of people with vision impairment are older than 50 years, however, vision loss can affect people of all ages. Reduced eyesight can have major and long-lasting effects on all aspects of life, including daily personal activities, interacting with the community, school and work opportunities, and the ability to access public services. This book provides an overview of the effects of blindness and visual impairment in the context of the most common causes of blindness in older adults as well as children, including retinal disorders, cataracts, glaucoma, and macular or corneal degeneration

Social conditioning versus biological determinism : a study of the women characters in the 'minor' novels of Thomas Hardy

The popular and critical consensus with regard to the novels of Thomas Hardy is that they exemplify a fatalistic or pessimistic philosophy consequent upon their author's early contact with evolutionary thought. One of the functions of this thesis is to demonstrate that, whilst accepting that the life and development of the individual was necessarily determined by certain biological laws, Hardy's novels examine the operation of another shaping force on human existence: namely the social process created and perpetrated by humanity itself.Hardy's literary career spans the period during which the emergent feminist movement constituted one of the major challenges to the status quo. By documenting Hardy's eventual active support of the women's suffrage campaign, this thesis seeks to reveal the extent to which he located the potential and need for social change in women's frustrations, and their rebellion against the confines of those laws, conventions and value structures which directly pertained to them. Whilst Hardy's novels offer few, if any, feminist solutions, by focussing upon women as the victims of the social process they reveal, through implication, those areas where enlightened social reform is both necessary and of potential benefit to all sections of humanity.The minor novels have been chosen to illustrate this thesis because they, more clearly than the undisputed classics, bear witness to those aspects of Hardy's prose vision which do not fit the popular and critical stereotype. Moreover, the minor novels constitute a considerable portion of Hardy's prose output which has failed to attract the critical attention it deserves. This thesis seeks to redress the balance in that respect.Whilst the methodology adopted by this study is essentially text-centred, the intellectual background to these novels is amplified in the early sections by a selective discussion of their author's life and times