Urbanheart surgery - a logic of design alternatives

In 1972 Sir Leslie Martin in his essay “The Grid as Generator”, advocated “a strong theoretical basis for [planning and] urban design” (Carolin P, 2000, p4) by methodically shifting design parameters regarding the way “in which buildings [could be] placed on the land” Martin was able to demonstrate how the generation of alternatives could “allow wider scope for decisions and objectives” to be considered and discussed (Carmona M, & Tiesdell S 2007, p81). Operating within a conventional design studio yet drawing of Sir Leslie Martin’s logic, ie developing an informed understanding of a problem by identifying a finite world of design ‘alternatives’, the following paper outlines a studio based program at the School of Architecture and Building, Deakin University, referred to as the ‘UrbanHeart Surgery’. While most atelier-based courses operate largely on an ad-hoc basis where students often work within self imposed competitive isolation, Urbanheart adopts a more open yet structured approach where students work in design collaboratives to generate a matrix of alternative design scenarios. The program actively integrates postgraduate students from Architecture, Urban Design and Planning into a design research culture and allows them to engage in critical discourse by working on strategic design projects in three areas significant to the future development of the state of Victoria: Metropolitan Urbanism, Urbanism on the Periphery and Regional Urbanism

The Effects of Coworker Relationships, Involvement, and Supportiveness on Job Satisfaction and Performance

Past research has indicated that relationships, involvement, and supportiveness have an effect on job satisfaction and performance. A study was done on Gettysburg College students who have had experience with group work. Sixty-four (29 males, 35 females) Gettysburg College students were used as participants in the study. The study was split fairly evenly between sophomores, juniors, and seniors. To start, the survey included two demographic questions: gender and class year. Participants completed an online survey about the relationships among group mates, group involvement, and group support experience. Questions about the overall satisfaction and performance were also included. A correlational design was used to analyze the data. The results of this study concluded that there was significant association between positive relationships and involvement and job satisfaction and group performance in a group scenario. There was a significant association between group support and job satisfaction, but not performance

Shining From Within: The Effect of Group Counseling on the Self-esteem of Students in Individualized Education Programs

The intent of this study was to ascertain if group counseling would be an effective intervention in raising the self-esteem levels of middle school students in Individualized Education Programs. A literature review is presented, which discusses the definition of disability as well as the accommodations and programs available to students diagnosed as having a disability. Further, the definition of self-esteem and self-concept are discussed and various self-concept domains are examined and evaluated. Relatedly, this study explores methods that have been utilized within the school environment to increase a student’s self-esteem, including the employment of group counseling. Within this study, 14 students diagnosed as having a disability, volunteered to participate in a 12 week long counseling program. Group members were chosen as they were all Individualized Education Program (IEP) students participating in an existing counseling group that taught an existing group counseling curriculum as the primary intervention. The participants completed The Piers-Harris Children’s Self-Concept Scale as a pre-test and post-test, which was used to quantify changes in their self-esteem levels as a result of intervention. Results are discussed, as well as the implications that this study may have on forthcoming school counselors and potential studies related to students in Individualized Education Programs and their self-esteem

An Evaluation of Swimming Abilities of the Freshman Men of Utah State Agricultural College

The purpose of this study is to attempt to determine and evaluate the swimming abilities of the male freshman students of the Utah State Agricultural College. A method of classification will be used to determine and evaluate the swimming abilities of these students. It is assumed that a check list can be used to determine swimming abilities. The method of determining the swimming abilities will be of value as a quick way of classifying entering students. The classifications will be valuable as bases for swimming instruction

The Feasibility of Applying Solar Industrial Process Heat to Paper Machine Dryer Sections

Fossil fuel deficiencies and escalating costs are presented. The application of solar industrial process heat (SIPH) to the paper industry is examined with focus on cylinder dryer sections located at the dry end of a paper machine in a non-integrated mill. Drying theory, as it relates to SIPH, is discussed in detail. Very high steam temperatures are deemed unnecessary for good dryer efficiency. Factors favoring application are listed, as are those U.S. installations similar to the type investigated. A fabric drying facility, using SIPH, is described with respect to the paper drying facility, using SIPH, is described with respect to the paper drying process. Inserted steam system configurations including instrumentation and process control features are described. The use of the SERI online Models Library, its components and applications are given. An experiment using a parabolic through prototype collector was performed and limited data made available. Results showed that the collector extraction efficiency was poor (8.5% at average peak noon), so calculation methods for thermal losses explained. A life-cycle economic analysis is performed with the conclusion drawn that SIPH in this form is not economically feasible, and its other positive aspects do not outweigh its high initial capital cost. The likelihood of using SIPH in other forms for other paper industry divisions, including bleaching, is examined

Study for evaluation of incineration and microwave treatment of human fecal matter for spacecraft operation

Incineration and microwave treatment of human fecal matter to determine concentration ranges and identities of liquid, gaseous, and solid product

South west Victoria 2012-2050 : are the settlements sustainable?

Over the past few decades coastal cities around the world have grown at an incredible rate. With this growth have come major challenges relating to land use planning, social relationships, economic development, bio diversity and the ecological footprint. The following paper selects three regional coastal towns (Warrnambool, Portland and Port Fairy) situated in the Australian state of Victoria, and addresses the issues of: increasing population and population density, open space requirements, residential density issues, public transport coverage, employment and employment density, a shifting economic climate, environment and climate change, water quality issues and building energy consumption with subsequent C02 emissions. Through a series of simulations the nine issues for each of the three cities will be examined from 2012 through to 2030. The goal is to highlight the current and simulated future impacts of the selected issues and propose solutions that could mitigate those impacts

Cheilanthoid Ferns (Pteridaceae: Cheilanthoideae) in the Southwestern United States and Adjacent Mexico-A Molecular Phylogenetic Reassessment of Generic Lines

Cheilanthoids are the most commonly encountered fern species of the arid southwest and other xeric habitats throughout the world. Cheilanthes, Notholaena, Pellaea, and Bommeria are the best known southwestern genera, but some authors recognize segregate genera such as Argyrochosma, Aspidotis, Astrolepis, and Pentagramma. Others reject distinctions among some of these genera as artificial, leaving cheilanthoid generic concepts in a state of flux. This unsettled taxonomy is often attributed to morphological homoplasy associated with adaptation to xeric habitats, suggesting the need for new analyses that do not depend on potentially misleading morphology. Nucleotide sequences of the maternally inherited, chloroplast-encoded rbcL gene from 57 species that bear on the relationships of the cheilanthoids of the southwest were cladistically analyzed under the optimality criterion of maximum parsimony. The results provide new insights into phylogenetic relationships and generic circumscriptions of these ferns. Mexican Llavea cordifolia is rejected from the cheilanthoids, traditional Cheilanthes, Notholaena, and Pellaea are polyphyletic, and the segregations of Argyrochosma, Aspidotis, Astrolepis, and Pentagramma are supported. To assess confidence in these conclusions, results of the rbcL-based analysis are compared with those based on ITS sequences of biparentally inherited nuclear ribosomal DNA (nrDNA) for a subset of cheilanthoid taxa. These two data sets yield remarkably congruent topologies at shallower phylogenetic levels, suggesting that previous taxonomic problems in this group may indeed be attributable to difficulties in interpreting the taxonomic significance of morphological characters. Disagreement at deeper levels of the topologies suggests the need to incorporate data from less rapidly evolving nrDNA regions

Glider observations of thermohaline staircases in the tropical North Atlantic using an automated classifier

Thermohaline staircases are stepped structures of alternating thick mixed layers and thin high-gradient interfaces. These structures can be up to several tens of metres thick and are associated with double-diffusive mixing. Thermohaline staircases occur across broad swathes of the Arctic and tropical and subtropical oceans and can increase rates of diapycnal mixing by up to 5 times the background rate, driving substantial nutrient fluxes to the upper ocean. In this study, we present an improved classification algorithm to detect thermohaline staircases in ocean glider profiles. We use a dataset of 1162 glider profiles from the tropical North Atlantic collected in early 2020 at the edge of a known thermohaline staircase region. The algorithm identifies thermohaline staircases in 97.7 % of profiles that extend deeper than 300 m. We validate our algorithm against previous results obtained from algorithmic classification of Argo float profiles. Using fine-resolution temperature data from a fast-response thermistor on one of the gliders, we explore the effect of varying vertical bin sizes on detected thermohaline staircases. Our algorithm builds on previous work by adding improved flexibility and the ability to classify staircases from profiles with noisy salinity data. Using our results, we propose that the incidence of thermohaline staircases is limited by strong background vertical gradients in conservative temperature and absolute salinity.</p

Federally funded aged care provision in regional Victoria : Examining current provision and estimating future infrastructure requirements using existing population-based benchmarks

The following paper examines federally accredited and funded aged care provision in regional Victoria. Benchmarks that have been set by the Australian Department of Health and Ageing, are used to measure and compare the relative number of high and low level aged care positions and Community Aged Care Packages in six regional Victorian centres.Using population forecasts, the additional aged care positions that each centre will require to meet the provision benchmarks in the year 2021 have been estimated. These figures are then translated into infrastructure requirements for the regional Victorian city of Greater Bendigo. This is done by surveying Greater Bendigo&rsquo;s existing residential aged care facilities. Strategies for the provision of additional high and low level residential aged care infrastructure are explored using a matrix governed by size and configuration. Variations in these two aspects are shown to affect the location options for future facilities in Greater Bendigo. The implications of the benchmarks are also investigated in terms of facilities for the provision of Community Aged Care Packages.The research is funded by a double ARC APAI grant between the Built Environment Research Group at Deakin University, The Centre for Sustainable Regional Centres at La Trobe University, the City of Greater Bendigo and the City of Warrnambool.<br /