An initial investigation on the potential applicability of Acoustic Emission to rail track fault detection.

In light of recent accidents in the rail industry, the assessment of the mechanical integrity of rail-track is of vital importance. This encompasses the integrity of the track due to rolling contact fatigue and surface wear. Whilst numerous techniques are employed for crack detection, several defects have clearly been missed. In Europe, more than 100 rails are broken each year and rail maintenance costs within the European Union is estimated at 300-million Euros annually [Inst Mech Engrs 216 (2001) 249]. The derailment of a train at Hatfield in October 2000 is a tragic example of a fractured rail going undetected. This paper presents an experimental study on the applicability of Acoustic Emissions (AE) for rail-track defect diagnosis. An experimental test- rig was employed for this programme. This allowed for a surface defect to be seeded onto the test-rig. The investigation presented is part of an on-going attempt to develop the non-destructive technique of AE for assessing the surface integrity of rail-track. The AE technique is not new but the application in this particular instance is unique. It is concluded that the AE technique offers a complementary tool for rail track defect detection

The architecture of the mendicant orders in the Middle Ages: an overview of recent literature

L’étude de l’architecture mendiante représente une nouvelle approche de l’espace sacré, espace qui fut intimement lié à une structure économique fondée sur la participation de donateurs. De nombreux­ travaux récents consacrés à des sites ou à des aires géographiques précis ont révélé à quel point les pratiques de construction des ordres mendiants ont transformé les lieux de rencontre entre clergé et laïcs. Comme l’ont fait remarquer leurs détracteurs, les frères ont également mené une politique offensive de travail de proximité, y compris par la prédication en plein air et par des visites chez les fidèles. L’examen des publications récentes suggère que l’analyse de l’architecture mendiante pourrait bénéficier d’une plus grande considération du rôle des frères dans les espaces publics urbains comme dans le cadre domestique du foyer.Mendicant architecture represented a new approach to sacred space, one that was intimately tied to an economic structure based on donations and offerings from patrons. A number of important recent studies on specific sites and geographical areas provide evidence of the extent to which mendicant building practice transformed the spaces for encounters between clergy and the laity. As their critics noted, however, friars also engaged in aggressive public “outreach,” which included outdoor preaching and visiting the homes of the faithful. A survey of recent literature suggests that the analysis of mendicant architecture might usefully expand into a consideration of the roles of the friars in the public spaces of cities and in the privacy the home.Die Erforschung der Bettelarchitektur stellt eine neue Herangehensweise an den Kultraum dar, der aufs Engste an die ökonomische Struktur der Stifter­beteiligung gebunden war. Zahlreiche neue Studien, die sich konkreten Stätten und Geographien widmen, haben aufgezeigt, wie sehr die Baupraxis der Bettelorden die Orte der Begegnung zwischen Klerus und Volk verändert hat. Wie es bereits ihre Gegner unterstrichen haben, verfolgten die Ordensbrüder eine aktive Politik der Arbeit vor Ort, indem sie unter anderem unter freiem Himmel predigten und die Gläubigen zu Hause aufsuchten. Die Unter­suchung der aktuellen Publikationen schlägt vor, dass die Analyse der Bettelarchitektur stärker von der Auseinandersetzung mit der Rolle der Glaubensbrüder im öffentlichen Raum der Städte und in der privaten Sphäre der Wohnräume profitieren könnte.Lo studio dell’architettura degli ordini mendicanti costituisce un nuovo approccio dello spazio sacro – spazio che fu intimamente legato ad una struttura economica fondata sulla partecipazione di donatori. Numerose indagini recenti dedicate a siti o aree geografiche puntuali hanno rivelato a che punto le pratiche di costruzione degli ordini mendicanti trasformarono gli spazi di incontro tra chierici e laici. Come fecero notare i loro stessi detrattori, i frati condussero inoltre una politica attiva di lavoro di prossimità, anche attraverso la predicazione all’aperto e le visite presso i fedeli. L’analisi delle pubblicazioni recenti suggerisce che lo studio dell’architettura degli ordini mendicanti potrebbe trarre beneficio da una maggiore considerazione del ruolo dei frati negli spazi urbani pubblici e nel contesto domestico della casa.El estudio de la arquitectura mendicante representa un nuevo enfoque del espacio sagrado, muy vinculado con una estructura económica basada en la participación de los donantes. Numerosos trabajos recientes dedicados a sitios o espacios geográficos concretos han revelado hasta qué punto las prácticas constructivas de las órdenes mendicantes llegaron a transformar los espacios de encuentro entre clero y laicos. Tal como lo recalcaron sus detractores, los frailes también llevaron una política militante de trabajo cercano a la gente, incluido mediante la predicación al raso y las visitas a los fieles. Las publicaciones recientes sugieren que el análisis de la arquitectura mendicante podría beneficiar de una mayor consideración del papel de los frailes en los espacios públicos urbanos así como en el marco doméstico del hogar

The Mekong River Commission: Does It Work, and How Does the Mekong Basin’s Geography Influence Its Effectiveness?

This article assesses the effectiveness of the Mekong River Commission, its impact on the policies of its members, Thailand, Lao PDR, Cambodia and Viet Nam, and their engagement with the Commission. It also seeks to account for China’s influence on their cooperation, as China, the strongest upstream riparian state, is not a member of this cooperation scheme for the Mekong River basin. This is achieved using a model for explaining regime effectiveness which rests on the two main variables of problem malignancy and problem-solving capacity. Furthermore, the level of engagement of the riparians is accounted for by mainly two geographical variables: position on the river (upstream/downstream), and size of fraction of territory within the basin.Der vorliegende Beitrag untersucht die Effektivität der Mekong River Commission (MRC), ihre Auswirkung auf die Politik der Mitgliedsstaaten Thailand, Laos, Kambodscha und Vietnam sowie das Engagement dieser Länder in der Kommission. Darüber hinaus wird der Einfluss des mächtigen Anrainerstaates Chinas, das zwar kein Mitglied ist, jedoch Beobachterstatus hat, analysiert. Um die Effektivität der MRC zu messen, wird ein Modell aus der Regimetheorie herangezogen, das auf den Variablen Malignität und Problemlösungskapazität basiert. Das Hauptargument der Studie lautet, dass das Engagement der Anrainerstaaten in der Mekong River Commission primär durch zwei geografische Bestimmungsfaktoren erklärt werden kann: erstens durch die Lage der Länder (stromaufwärts, stromabwärts), zweitens durch den Umfang ihres Territoriums im Mekong-Becken

Extended solidarity? the social consequences of covid-19 for marginalised migrant groups in Germany

The Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in sweeping changes across European societies. But what has it meant for the most vulnerable? Cecilia Bruzelius and Nora Ratzmann present an assessment on the impact on marginalised groups of migrants in Germany and identify some potential long-term trends that may result from the crisis

Towards an understanding of mobility in social policy research

Over recent years, there has been increasing attention to migration in social policy research. Uniting this research has been a focus on cross-national migration, and predominantly immigration. In the meantime, the relationship between human mobility and social policy at other scales and sites has gained much less attention. This is in spite of the salience of multiple forms of mobility and measures for restricting, facilitating or promoting mobility not confined to the territorial borders of the nation-state. This article proposes an alternative mobility perspective for social policy research that moves us beyond the limitations of current migration approaches. To do so, we draw on interdisciplinary mobilities theory and research. Empirically, we apply a mobility perspective to examine how systems of social provision are shaped by and shape mobility and immobility, in restricting, facilitating or promoting the movement of people. We argue that such an approach allows us to frame and address questions that place mobility and immobility as central to the social relations of welfare, advancing understanding of how social policies can reduce or reinforce the inequalities of mobility

The Living Syllabus: Rethinking the Introductory Course to Art History with Interactive Visualization

This essay describes an experiment in adopting mapping and timeline technologies in the Introduction to Art History course taught at Duke University. The creation of an interactive, “living,” syllabus in Neatline and Omeka allowed us to embed maps, course powerpoints, links to museum websites, news articles, videos, and clips from movies. In this article, we describe how the integration of mapping tools and multimedia transformed our approach to the discipline of Art History, enabling us to engage with trade and exchange networks for raw materials, artistic ideas and motifs, and the art market

The case for a European minimum income scheme for jobseekers

On 13 December, the European Commission put forward a proposal to change the way EU citizens can access social benefits in other EU countries. Cecilia Bruzelius and Martin Seeleib-Kaiser argue that the proposal fails to address key weaknesses in the existing system and should be complemented by a European Minimum Income Scheme that is available to all mobile jobseekers

Delegating migration control to local welfare actors: reporting obligations in practice

Most research on the social policy–migration control link focuses on indirect control, that is, denying access to welfare. This article instead draws attention to how welfare institutions are made directly involved in migration control through duties to report certain categories of migrants to migration authorities. We ask how these obligations are put into practice and how local governments shape this process. In so doing, we place special emphasis on local organisational fields – that is, the close horizontal connection between public and non-public actors involved in basic needs provision. The article builds on exploratory research across four German cities, drawing on 61 interviews conducted in 2019–2020 with welfare actors catering to basic needs (housing/shelter, healthcare, social assistance, social counselling) and document research. Based on this, we, first, explore patterns of reporting practices and provide a typology of different responses, ranging from elaborate circumvention strategies to over-compliance. Second, we analyse the domino effects of reporting obligations, namely how welfare actors that are exempted from reporting adopt their practices too, with consequences both for migrants' welfare access and for other authorities' ability to report. Finally, we discuss how local governments can shape reporting practices, demonstrating how some cities actively sanction circumvention strategies. The last part identifies venues for further research