Placing Research: 'City Publics' and the 'Public Sociologist'

This article raises questions about who becomes the proper subject for (non)academic attention in a time when 'city publics' might be positioned as democratising and open or, conversely, as curtailed and shaped through specific and pre-determined economies of value and use. The use of the city and its residents are echoed in regeneration politics and objectives, attached to and brought forward by specific 'regenerative' subjects, now deemed 'resilient' and capacitated. Such rhetorics of inclusion and measurable impact are echoed within ideas of a 'public sociology', which the engaged researcher should practice as she re-engages differently located spaces and subjects. Here, questions are raised about the place of a 'public sociology' as part of a 'city publics', where understanding local disseminations and disparities is important in considering where different users, interviewees and indeed researchers are coming from. Having situated the fieldwork site, we initially focus on the expert advisory group and their constructions of the project's 'use-value'. We then consider the background 'shadows' in and out of 'expert' space, as a trailing presence of research intentions and trajectories. Ideas of public sociology – as with an open 'city publics' often assumes that all users are interested, willing to hear and appear as equal members of a 'community'. In contrast, the experience of engaging a user group may involve dis-engaging the research-researcher-researched and here we provide disruptions to a straightforward 'travelling through' research space as we walk through our research methodologies. This article presents professional and personal reflections on research experience as well as interpretative accounts of navigating fieldwork and city space.Public Sociology, Use, Impact, City Publics, Class, Gender

Nonadiabatic transition paths from quantum jump trajectories

We present a means of studying rare reactive pathways in open quantum systems using Transition Path Theory and ensembles of quantum jump trajectories. This approach allows for elucidation of reactive paths for dissipative, nonadiabatic dynamics when the system is embedded in a Markovian environment. We detail the dominant pathways and rates of thermally activated processes, as well as the relaxation pathways and photoyields following vertical excitation in a minimal model of a conical intersection. We find that the geometry of the conical intersection affects the electronic character of the transition state, as defined through a generalization of a committor function for a thermal barrier crossing event. Similarly, the geometry changes the mechanism of relaxation following a vertical excitation. Relaxation in models resulting from small diabatic coupling proceed through pathways dominated by pure dephasing, while those with large diabatic coupling proceed through pathways limited by dissipation. The perspective introduced here for the nonadiabatic dynamics of open quantum systems generalizes classical notions of reactive paths to fundamentally quantum mechanical processes.Comment: 15 pages, 15 figures, small revisions throughou

Engineering Instruction, Inclusion, and Comics: Reflections from a Student Illustrator and an Instructor

This paper presents the opportunity gap for comics in engineering education, through reflections from a team redesigning a mechanical engineering syllabi using illustrations. To increase a sense of belonging among diverse students, the authors of this paper propose a graphic narrative focused on the curriculum of the mechanical engineering department at a large public university in Western United States. We hope that this paper addresses the underutilized and largely missed opportunity to add engagement, better conceptual understanding, and improve inclusion in engineering classrooms through incorporating visual illustrations

Multiple co-benefits of Indigenous land and sea management programs across northern Australia: final report

Our aim is to generate information that can be used to help design, monitor, and/or select ILSMPs to help meet the goals of key stakeholders. We focus on goals above and beyond environmental goals – i.e. those that can be considered to be co-benefits. These diverse goals include seeking to enhance individual wellbeing, help communities meet their aspirations, support the development of Indigenous businesses and/or promote regional economic development. When determining what an ‘Indigenous land and sea management program’ is, we visualise a Venn diagram with intersecting sets. • Set one: There are innumerable traditional Indigenous land and sea management activities or practices that have been going on for tens of thousands of years – these include, but are not limited to getting out on country, looking after waterholes, hunting and burning (Section 2.1.1). • Set two: Government and non-government organisations fund a variety of different programs, some of which support Indigenous people and some of which support land management (Section 2.1.2). Not all land mangagement programs facilitate Indigenous practices, and not all Indigenous programs facilitate land management. For the purposes of this project, we focus on the intersection of those two sets, defining an ILSMP as a program that funds or supports traditional Indigenous land management activities

Using measures of wellbeing for impact evaluation: proof of concept developed with an Indigenous community undertaking land management programs in northern Australia

Combining insights from literature on the Theory of Change, Impact Evaluation, and Wellbeing, we develop a novel approach to assessing impacts. Intended beneficiaries identify and rate factors that are important to their wellbeing, their satisfaction with those factors now, and before an intervention. Qualitative responses to questions about perceived changes and causes of change are linked to quantitative data to draw inferences about the existence and/or importance of impact(s). We use data from 67 Ewamian people, in a case study relating to Indigenous land management, to provide proof of concept. 'Knowing that country is being looked after' and 'Having legal right/access to the country' were identified as important to wellbeing, with perceptions that Native Title determination, declared Indigenous Protected Area and associated land management programs have had a significant and positive impact on them. Further method testing might determine the utility of this approach in a wide range of settings

The effectiveness of psychosocial interventions at reducing the frequency of alcohol and drug use in parents: findings of a Cochrane review and meta‐analyses

Background and aim Parental substance use is a major public health and safeguarding concern. There have been a number of trials examining interventions targeting this risk factor. We aimed to estimate the effectiveness of psychosocial interventions at reducing parental substance use. Design We used systematic methods to identify trials; pooling data using a random-effects model. Moderator analyses examined influence of parent gender, presence of child in treatment, and intervention type. Setting No restrictions on setting. Participants Substance using parents of children below the age of 21 years. Interventions Psychosocial interventions including those that targeted drug and alcohol use only, and drug and alcohol use in combination with associated issues. Measurements Frequency of alcohol use and frequency of drug use. Findings We included 8 unique studies with a total of 703 participants. Psychosocial interventions were more effective at reducing the frequency of parental alcohol use than comparison conditions at 6 month (SMD - 0.32, 95% CI -0.51 to -0.13, P = 0.001) and 12-month follow-up (SMD -0.25, 95% CI -0.47 to -0.03, P = 0.02), and frequency of parental drug use at 12 months only (SMD-0.21, 95% CI -0.41 to -0.01, P = 0.04). Integrated interventions which combined both parenting and substance use targeted components were effective at reducing the frequency of alcohol use (6 months: SMD -0.56, 95% CI -0.96 to -0.016, P = 0.006; 12 months: SMD -0.42, 95% CI -0.82 to -0.03, P = 0.04) and drug use (6 months: SMD -0.39, 95% CI -0.75 to -0.03, P = 0.04; 12 months: SMD -0.43, 95% CI -0.80 to -0.07, P = 0.02). Interventions targeting only substance use or parenting skills were not effective at reducing frequency of alcohol or drug use at either time point. Conclusion Psychosocial interventions should target both parenting and substance use in an integrated intervention

Exploring Pathways into and out of Amphetamine Type Stimulant use at Critical Turning Points: A Qualitative Interview Study

Amphetamine Type Stimulants (ATS) are increasingly used drugs globally. There is limited evidence about what shapes ATS use at critical turning points located within drug using pathways. Using turning point theory, as part of a life course approach, the ATTUNE study aimed to understand which social, economic and individual factors shape pathways into and out of ATS use. Qualitative, semi-structured interviews (n=70) were undertaken with individuals who had used ATS, or who had been exposed to them at least once in their lifetime. Our findings show that turning points for initiation were linked to pleasure, curiosity, boredom and declining mental health; increased use was linked to positive effects experienced at initiation and multiple life-stressors, often leading to more intense use. Decreased use was prompted by pivotal events (e.g. imprisonment) and sustained through continued wellbeing, day-to-day structure, and non-using social networks. We argue that the heterogeneity of these individuals challenges stereotypes of stimulant use allied to nightclubs and ‘hedonism’. Further, even at critical turning points for recovery, the use of services for problematic ATS consumption was low because users prioritised their alcohol or opioid use when seeking help. There is a need to develop service provision, training, and better outreach to individuals who need support at critical turning points

Exploring the intersections between Novel Psychoactive Substances (NPS) and other substance use in a police custody suite setting in the North East of England

Aims: Novel psychoactive substances (NPS), a range of plant-based/synthetic substances that mimic effects of other illicit substances (e.g. cannabis), are now illegal in the United Kingdom (May 2016) to produce/supply. Negative behavioural consequences of NPS use mean that users frequently transgress the law are arrested and detained in police custody suites. Evidence shows a link between traditional substance use and offending behaviour, with significant police time spent on alcohol-related incidents. We explore the intersections between NPS and other substances with police staff and users in custody; specifically the similarities and differences in treatment, management and policing of these substances. Methods: A qualitative study using semistructured interviews and thematic analysis. We recruited 15 police staff (4 women/11 men) and 25 NPS users (9 women/16 men). Results: Police staff perceived NPS users to be extremely volatile in custody and reported feeling less knowledgeable about how to manage and respond to their needs compared to other substance users (e.g. alcohol, heroin). Users rarely took NPS in isolation and often compared them to other illicit substances, balancing effects versus costs. Conclusion: NPS use has a striking effect on custody work, primarily because of unpredictable user behaviour, adding further pressure to already overstretched police staff