Teenage housing tenure and neighbourhoods and the links with adult outcomes: evidence from the 1970 cohort study

This study is one of a pair funded by the Homes and Communities Agency and the Tenant Services Authority. The other report can be found at http://sticerd.lse.ac.uk/case/. This pair of studies develops the findings of two previous reports on the relationship between housing and life chances (Feinstein et al, 2008, Lupton et al, 2009). These previous reports examined housing circumstances in childhood for those born in 1946, 1958, 1970 and 2000, and the relationship between childhood housing and adult outcomes across a range of measures for those born in 1946, 1958 and 1970. They found as yet unexplained connections between being ‘ever’ in social housing in childhood and worse adult outcomes on an overall measure of deprivation and a range of individual measures for those born in 1958 and in 1970 (but not for those born in 1946) (Feinstein et al, 2008, Lupton et al, 2009). Statistically significant associations remained after using a very large set of more than 50 controls for family and individual characteristics, for many outcomes and many ages, although the size of all of the associations was substantially reduced

Analysis of Hexabromocyclododecane (HBCDD) in Environmental Samples by Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometry

Hexabromocyclododecane (HBCDD) is a brominated flame retardant that has been identified as a priority substance within the European Water Framework Directive and must be monitored in the environment by regulatory bodies such as Natural Resources Wales. This project investigated the extraction and analysis of the three main isomers of HBCDD in different matrices including freshwater, saline and biota, exploring different compound extraction techniques to find the optimal procedure for each matrix investigated and finding the optimal parameters for analysis. A method for analysis of aqueous saline and freshwater matrices was developed and validated involving an extraction procedure using hydrophilic-lipophilic balance (HLB) solid phase extraction (SPE) disks, elution into methanol and a x1000 concentration of the sample extract. Analysis was conducted via liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry with a quadrupole mass spectrometer operating in negative electrospray ionisation mode. The target limit of quantitation values for each isomer of 75 pg/L and 150 pg/L for saline and freshwater matrices respectively was achieved in both matrices, with % accuracies for both matrices ranging from 97.3 – 102.7% and every isomer in both saline and freshwater fell below the precision target of <15% RSD. Initial method development on biota matrix involved research of QuEChERS (Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged, Safe) kits with alternative dispersive SPE kits tested, and investigation into homogenisation techniques of the biota matrix. The result of this project was implementation of a fully validated method for extraction and analysis of HBCDD in saline and freshwater matrices as a routine monitoring test of HBCDD abundance in the environment. Further work will need to be conducted on the analysis of HBCDD in biota matrix

Consumption in the everyday imagination: how consumer culture gives shape to everyday thinking .

This research focuses on consumption in the everyday imagination in order to develop a contextualised understanding of how different aspects of consumption sit in relation to other concerns of everyday life. I consider how the imagination has been approached in consumer research in comparison to other fields concerned with its study and note a rather narrow approach that conceptualises and studies the imagination in terms of pleasurable, future orientated, desire-based daydreams created around consumer goods and experiences, where such goods are considered central to, and key resources in, the creation of imagined scenarios. I argue that the methodological framing of this dominant approach may restrict a broader understanding of the imagination and the role of consumption within it. Drawing from phenomenological interviews with 20 individuals about their everyday experiences of imagining I suggest a reframing of the imagination in consumer research, in which I present a taxonomy of imagination that helps to define and distinguish forms of imagining according to a number of characteristics, specifically the; degree of abstraction; temporal location; level of elaboration; and emotion. It also accounts for different levels of presence for consumption practices, consumer goods and services, and consumer culture, as well as a number of precursors and outcomes for imagining. I further note a number of complexities with regard to imaginative practices and the relationship between the imagination and material reality, including the journey of dream pursuit and actualisation. I consider the imagination as a place where we manage our emotions and outcomes for material reality, but that is also managed by material reality as we think about and imagine in-line with what is likely to transpire so as to prevent disappointment in material reality. And far from a private and individualised sphere, the imagination emerges as a highly social domain. In developing this contextualised understanding I argue that in the imagination we are able to avoid the prominence of consumption practices and consumer goods and services in daily life as we experience a transient autonomy that is conditional on imagining remaining ideal. This autonomy enables us to focus on more warmly human scripts and concerns, yet the pervasiveness of the broader consumer culture continues to provide a compelling narrative to our imagined scenarios, and once attempts at actualisation are made this autonomy is lost

Growing Up in Social Housing in the New Millennium: Housing, Neighbourhoods, and Early Outcomes for Children Born in 2000

This study draws on the Millennium Cohort Study to explore the housing and neighbourhood circumstances of children born in England in 2000 at the age of 5 in 2006. The majority of children experienced good housing conditions. Those in social rented homes, and to a lesser extent in private rented homes too, were markedly disadvantaged in terms of family circumstances and neighbourhood deprivation, while housing conditions and other neighbourhood characteristics also varied somewhat between tenures. Links were found between children's housing tenure and test scores. These were largely explained by a combination of family characteristics and neighbourhood deprivation.Millennium Cohort Study, housing conditions, neighbourhood conditions, housing tenure effects, neighbourhood effects

Transportation to a world of fantasy: Consumer experiences of fictional brands becoming real

This paper explores the relatively new and understudied area of reverse product placement. It focuses on the experiences of consumers who purchase and use fictional brands and products – those that first appear in fiction and are later produced and sold for actual consumption. Phenomenological interviews were used to capture what individuals experience when they purchase, use and own fictional brands. Three themes related to the notion of connection emerged. Fictional brands and products connect individuals to a different world, allowing them to experience and indulge in their fantasies through a tangible object. The objects also connect individuals to memories and emotions, acting as a portal to other aspects of their lives, and fictional brands and products also connect to the self and to others. The findings help us to explore issues of fantasy and reality within consumption, noting particularly how fictional products and brands can provide tangible links between the two realms, and sheds further light on the role of fantasy within everyday life

Conceptualizing consumption in the imagination: Relationships and movements between imaginative forms and the marketplace

In this article we extend theory relating to the imagination and markets by reviewing explicit and implicit work in marketing, consumer research and sociology, drawing on a broader literature that provides a more comprehensive characterization of imagining. We map consumption in the imagination in order to better define the concept and to differentiate forms of imagining according to a number of characteristics that are identified in the literature. These are as follows: (1) temporal location, (2) range of emotions, (3) degree of elaboration, (4) level of abstraction (5) purpose, and (6) prompts. We also consider the role of consumption in terms of its level of presence and absence in the imagination. We then present a trajectory of consumption in the imagination that seeks to account for the relationships and movements between forms of imagining and the marketplace, noting the importance of the imagination in terms of implications for macro-level market structures and individual consumption practice

CLIPS application user interface for the PC

The majority of applications that utilize expert system development programs for their knowledge representation and inferencing capability require some form of interface with the end user. This interface is more than likely an interaction through the computer screen. When building an application the user interface can prove to be the most difficult and time consuming aspect to program. Commercial products currently exist which address this issue. To keep pace C Language Integrated Production System (CLIPS) will need to find a solution for their lack of an easy to use Application User Interface (AUI). This paper represents a survey of the DoD CLIPS' user community and provides the backbone of a possible solution