Geographies of Production I: Relationality revisited and the ‘practice shift’ in economic geography

This report considers recent developments and ongoing debates around relational economic geography, and a growing body work that has focused on economic practices as a means to better understand production processes and economic development. In particular it examines the critical reaction to relational thinking within the sub-discipline, and the nature of the debate about the degree to which relational work is - and needs to be - regarded as distinct from more traditional approaches to economic geography. It then considers how relational economic geography has become inflected towards an epistemological and methodological focus on practice. It argues that this engagement with economic practices provides the basis to respond to some of the limitations identified with earlier work, and opens up fruitful new potential for theorizing the nature of agency in the space economy

Tolerance of Soybean Rhizobia to Soil Acidity 1

Some nodule bacteria do not tolerate acid soils. A study was initiated to determine if Rhizobium japonicum could adapt to soil acidity and therefore become more effective N z-fixers in association with soybeans (Glycine max L. Merr.) grown in acidic soils. Nodules were obtained from soybeans grown in fields where the crop had been planted for at least 5 years in soil with pH near 5, 6 or 7. The nodular material was used for inoculation of soybeans in a factorial experiment grown in methyl bromide fumigated soil obtained from the same fields as the inoculum. Nitrogenase activity (C zH z - C zH 4reduction) and plant weight were usedfor evaluating the treatment effects. The results seem to indicate that the nodular bacteria did not adapt to a given soil pH. Soybeans grown in soil at pH 6 grew best regardless of whether inoculum was from plants grown at pH 5, 6 or 7. In acid soil, inoculum from soils at pH 5 was no better than those from pH 6 or 7

Criminal law as a security project

This paper asks how criminal might be understood as a security project. Following Valverde’s lead, it does this not by trying to define the concept of security, but by looking at the operation of the temporal and spatial logics of the criminal law. It looks first at the basic logics of time and space in conceptions of criminal liability and jurisdiction, before reviewing some recent developments which challenge these practices and what these might mean for criminal law as a security project

Turning points: the personal and professional circumstances that lead academics to become middle managers

In the current higher education climate, there is a growing perception that the pressures associated with being an academic middle manager outweigh the perceived rewards of the position. This article investigates the personal and professional circumstances that lead academics to become middle managers by drawing on data from life history interviews undertaken with 17 male and female department heads from a range of disciplines, in a post-1992 UK university. The data suggests that experiencing conflict between personal and professional identities, manifested through different socialization experiences over time, can lead to a ‘turning point’ and a decision that affects a person’s career trajectory. Although the results of this study cannot be generalized, the findings may help other individuals and institutions move towards a firmer understanding of the academic who becomes head of department—in relation to theory, practice and research

Interacting for the environment:Engaging Goffman in pro-environmental action

Whilst there are profound disagreements about how more sustainable forms of living might be achieved, most research on pro-environmental action recognises it as a fundamentally social challenge – demanding shifts not merely in individuals’ attitudes and behaviours, but also in social norms, contexts and practices. Despite the social nature of the challenge, perhaps the most fundamental social medium – social interaction - remains under-theorised in this area. To address this gap, this paper applies Erving Goffman’s understandings of social interaction to an ethnographic case study of a pro- environmental change initiative called Environment Champions. The analysis shows that social interaction plays a crucially important role in shaping responses to pro-environmental change processes that has the potential to both help and hinder the spread of pro-environmental action. The paper concludes by exploring how Goffman’s ideas develop and extend current debates about pro- environmental behaviour change

Interaction between clients and physiotherapists in group exercise classes in geriatric rehabilitation

The aim of this paper is to explore how older people construct their interaction in group exercise classes in geriatric rehabilitation and what is their contribution to the interaction. Discourse analysis was employed and data, consisting of seven videotaped group-based exercise sessions, were collected from 52 older people (aged 66–93 years) and nine rehabilitation professionals in seven rehabilitation centres. Four discourse categories were found. In “taciturn exercising”, older people remained verbally silent but physically active. In “submissive disagreeing”, older people opposed the professionals’ agenda by displaying reluctant consent to proposals. In “resilient endeavouring”, older adults persisted on their course of action, regardless of the disapproval of the professionals. In “lay helping”, older people initiated spontaneous encouragement, but also gave verbal and physical assistance to their peers. Older people's meaningful contribution to interaction, whilst it may challenge the institutional flow of activities, can constitute an integral part of the re-ablement process of rehabilitation

Exploring trends and challenges in sociological research

This is the first e-special issue for the journal Sociology and its chosen focus is the article ‘The coming crisis of empirical sociology’ by Savage and Burrows (2007). This article challenged sociologists with a variety of questions about the role, relevance and methodological opportunities for sociological research in the 21st century. On publication it stoked the already charged debates on a public sociology (Burawoy, 2004), the role of publicly funded research (ESRC, 2009) and relevance of sociological research in an age of burgeoning social media (Brewer and Hunter, 2006). This e-special provides a reprise of these debates and explores relevant papers in Sociology, as well as alerting readers to recurring themes and new directions on the topic of methods and social research

Religious education in the experience of young people from mixed-faith families

On the basis of recent ethnographic study at the University of Warwick of the religious identity formation of young people in ‘mixed-faith’ families, this article focuses on their (and their parents’) experiences and perceptions of religious education (RE) and of religious nurture in the community. The young people’s experience of RE differed between primary and secondary school and only a few were engaged in supplementary classes. We highlight the complementarity between school and home in young people’s religious learning and draw out implications for RE

Little angels: The mediation of parenting

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