Itinerant Architecture: Global Politics and World Building in the Work of Minoru Yamasaki and Associates, 1951-86

The office of Minoru Yamasaki and Associates (MYA) was an important actor in twentieth century American architectural production, yet Yamasaki himself appears as an ambiguous figure in postwar architecture. Until recently, practicing architects and historians alike have largely overlooked MYA’s many contributions, dismissing them as overly corporate or without significant formal innovation. At the same time, Yamasaki’s status as a Japanese-American growing up during WWII has been largely overlooked. Reconsidering MYA’s projects through the thematic lens of itinerancy and displacement, the dissertation explores connections between architecture and Cold War diplomacy, international travel, and global economic development. Over the course of four chapters, I examine the firm’s designs for airports, hotels, apartment, and governmental buildings as emblematic of global capitalism—but also as constitutive of new forms of global political and economic relations. Each building-centered case study discloses important partnerships constituted among architects, city planners, developers, private corporations, and foreign governments that influenced the production of American-designed buildings on a range of global sites. Looking beyond the World Trade Center and the Pruitt-Igoe public housing project, the dissertation reveals how MYA constructed postwar America in a global setting—at home and abroad—even as the figure of Yamasaki himself ambiguously reflects the costs of U.S. hegemony.PHDArchitectureUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/147694/1/jossk_1.pd

Can the ability to adapt to exercise be considered a talent-and if so, can we test for it?

Talent identification (TI) is a popular and hugely important topic within sports performance, with an ever-increasing amount of resources dedicated to unveiling the next sporting star. However, at present, most TI processes appear to select high-performing individuals at the present point in time, as opposed to identifying those individuals with the greatest capacity to improve. This represents a potential inefficiency within the TI process, reducing its effectiveness. In this article, we discuss whether the ability to adapt favorably, and with a large magnitude, to physical training can be considered a talent, testing it against proposed criteria. We also discuss whether, if such an ability can be considered a talent, being able to test for it as part of the TI process would be advantageous. Given that such a capacity is partially heritable, driven by genetic variation between individuals that mediate the adaptive response, we also explore whether the information gained from genetic profiling can be used to identify those with the greatest capacity to improve. Although there are some ethical hurdles which must be considered, the use of genetic information to identify those individuals with the greatest capacity appears to hold promise and may improve both the efficiency and effectiveness of contemporary TI programmes

Small Business Enterprise and Development: Consultation Modes

By  means  of four   illustrative  case studies,  consultation  interventions  in small  and  medium sized  (SMEs)  enterprises  are  explored     Recognized  consultation  intervention  modes  of 'expert ',  'doctor-patient' and  'process  consultation'  are found  to fluctuate  rapidly  within each case st11dy, making apparent the need for  consultants to be flexible  and adopt an appropriate stance for  client and contingencies of the situation.  The permeability  of the boundaries between content and process issues, with diagnosis and intervention inter-woven, is also apparent. The article concludes with a consideration of the conditions for success for different consultation modes with small businesses and implications for small businesses and enterprise development in their use of consultants

Current trends in pension fund real estate investment

Thesis (M.S. in Real Estate)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning, 1997 [first author]; and, (M.S. in Real Estate)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1997 [second author].Includes bibliographical references (leaves 54-56).by Derek Johnson and John Kiely.M.S.in Real Estat

Can Countermovement Jump Neuromuscular Performance Qualities Differentiate Maximal Horizontal Deceleration Ability in Team Sport Athletes?

This investigation aimed to determine the countermovement jump (CMJ) neuromuscular performance (NMP) qualities that differentiate between athletes with high or low horizontal deceleration ability. Twenty-seven male university team sport athletes performed a CMJ on vertical axis force plates and a maximal horizontal deceleration following a 20 m maximal horizontal sprint acceleration. The instantaneous velocity throughout the maximal horizontal deceleration test was measured using a radar device. The deceleration ability was evaluated using the average deceleration (HDEC, m·s−2) and change in momentum—referred to as the horizontal braking impulse (HBI, N·s·kg−1). Participants were dichotomised into high and low HDEC and HBI according to a median-split analysis, and CMJ variables calculated for the overall eccentric, eccentric-deceleration and concentric phases. When horizontal deceleration ability was defined by HDEC, the CMJ concentric (effect size (ES) = 0.95) and eccentric (ES = 0.72) peak forces were the variables with the largest difference between groups. However, when defined using HBI, the largest difference was the concentric (ES = 1.15) and eccentric (ES = −1.00) peak velocities. Only the concentric mean power was significantly different between the high and low groups for both HDEC (ES = 0.85) and HBI (ES = 0.96). These findings show that specific eccentric and concentric NMP qualities may underpin the horizontal deceleration abilities characterised by HDEC and HBI. Specific NMP training interventions may be beneficial to target improvements in either of these measures of horizontal deceleration abilities

Are low doses of caffeine as ergogenic as higher doses? A critical review highlighting the need for comparison with current best practice in caffeine research

Caffeine is a popular and widely consumed sporting ergogenic aid. Over the years, the effects of different caffeine doses have been researched, with the general consensus being that 3 to 6 mg/kg of caffeine represents the optimal dose for most people. Recently, there has been increased attention placed on lower (≤3 mg/kg) caffeine doses, with some research suggesting these doses are also ergogenic. However, a critical consideration for athletes is not merely whether caffeine is ergogenic at a given dose, but whether the consumed dose provides an optimized performance benefit. Following this logic, the aim of this review was to identify a potential oversight in the current research relating to the efficacy of lower caffeine doses. Although low caffeine doses do appear to bestow ergogenic effects, these effects have not been adequately compared with the currently accepted best practice dose of 3 to 6 mg/kg. This methodological oversight limits the practical conclusions we can extract from the research into the efficacy of lower doses of caffeine, as the relative ergogenic benefits between low and recommended doses remains unclear. Here, we examine existing research with a critical eye, and provide recommendations both for those looking to use caffeine to enhance their performance, and those conducting research into caffeine and sport. [Abstract copyright: Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.