Ornament and craft:Digital design and the profession

The separation of ornament from Modern architecture declared famously in Adolf Loos’ essay “Ornament and Crime” placed space as the primary concern of architecture, with evidence of craftsmanship and symbolism removed from the canonical and conventional public buildings of the past century. Yet, Harvard Graduate School of Design’s historian Professor Antoine Picon notes the widespread return of ornamental expression in architecture today is “inseparable from the massive diffusion of the computer” and furthered by a “weakening in the tectonic approach and the increased importance attached to surface.” In Cellular Tessellation (CT)—a project developed for Vivid Sydney 2014, an 18-day festival of light, music and ideas – this contemporary problem of the separation of surface from structure was addressed as a core area of interest, as were ornament and the expressive potential of architecture through digitally enabled craftsmanship

ASSESSING THE EFFECTS OF REPETITIVE MILD TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY ON RISK/REWARD DECISION MAKING AND CATECHOLAMINE ASSOCIATED PROTEINS

Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) disrupts cognitive processes that influence risk taking behavior; however, the effects of repetitive mild injury (rmTBI) or whether these outcomes are sex specific are unknown. Risk/reward decision making is mediated by the prefrontal cortex (PFC), which is densely innervated by catecholaminergic fibers. Aberrant PFC catecholamine activity has been documented following TBI and may underlie TBI-induced risky behavior. Here, we exposed rats to sham (no injury), single, or three closed-head controlled cortical impact (CH-CCI) injuries to characterize the effects of rmTBI on 1) risk/reward decision making behavior using a probabilistic discounting task (PDT) and 2) levels of catecholamine regulatory proteins within subregions of the PFC using Western blot analysis. Mild TBI transiently increased risky choice preference, more prominently in females. Additionally, rmTBI produced delayed effects on response speed in males only. Mild TBI increased tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) levels in females only, but reduced norepinephrine transporter (NET) levels in both sexes within the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), indicating this subregion is susceptible to catecholamine instability after mTBI. Overall, the CH-CCI model of mTBI has revealed time-dependent and sex-specific changes in risk/reward decision making and catecholamine regulation following mild head injuries

A Thoreauvian Account of Prudential Value

This article develops and defends an account of prudential value and disvalue that is constructed out of ideas found in Thoreau’s Walden. The core claim is that prudential value consists in responding appropriately to those things that make the world better, and that prudential disvalue consists in encountering those things that make it worse. The core argument is that responding appropriately to objective value and avoiding objective disvalue are our aims in so far as we are evaluative creatures, and that our evaluative nature is fundamental in the context of inquiring into our own good. I conclude by discussing respects in which the Thoreauvian account improves upon some alternative accounts of well-being

Comparative Pride

Comparative pride – that is, pride in how one compares to others in some respect – is often thought to be warranted. In this paper, I argue that this common position is mistaken. The paper begins with an analysis of how things seem when a person feels pride. Pride, I claim, presents some aspect of the self with which one identifies as being worthy. Moreover, in some cases, it presents this aspect of the self as something one is responsible for. I then go on to argue that when the focus of one’s pride is comparative, things are never as pride makes them seem. The core problem is that if the performance in which one takes pride is really valuable, the fact that it is superior to the performance of others does nothing to contribute to that value. I conclude with a discussion of why so many are inclined to validate comparative pride and a response to those who claim that comparisons are essential to pride because they must be used to set standards of excellence

Trading Quality for Quantity

This paper deals with problems that vagueness raises for choices involving evaluative tradeoffs. I focus on a species of such choices, which I call ‘qualitative barrier cases.’ These are cases in which a qualitatively significant tradeoff in one evaluative dimension for a given improvement in another dimension could not make an option better all things considered, but a merely quantitative tradeoff for the given improvement might. Trouble arises, however, when one of the options constitutes a borderline case of an evaluative kind. I argue that in such cases we can neither affirm nor deny that trading off losses in one evaluative dimension for gains in another yields a better outcome. Theoretically, this result provides a way to defuse an argument that has been presented by both Larry Temkin and Stuart Rachels that purports to show that the ‘better than’ relation is intransitive. Practically, it allows us to undermine the claim that rational agents are better off withholding their contribution to a public good in certain instances of the free-rider problem, and thus to take an important step towards solving these problems

Nonconsequentialist Precaution

How cautious should regulators be? A standard answer is consequentialist: regulators should be just cautious enough to maximize expected social value. This paper charts the prospects of a nonconsequentialist - and more precautionary - alternative. More specifically, it argues that a contractualism focused on ex ante consent can motivate the following regulatory criterion: regulators should permit a socially beneficial risky activity only if no one can be expected to be made worse off by it. Broadly speaking, there are two strategies regulators can use to help risky activities satisfy this criterion: regulators can mandate strict safety standards that protect those who would otherwise stand to lose, and they can require that some of the benefits of the activity be redirected to them. In developing these themes, the paper aims to provide a theoretical grounding for those who oppose using risk-cost-benefit analysis as the primary regulatory standard, and in particular, for advocates of the precautionary principle

Redefining Roles, Responsibilities, and Authority of School Leaders

Addresses the core challenges faced by principals and other school leaders faced with high expectations and accountability and inconsistent or limited support, based on current research literature in the field

Cellular tessellation

Historically, pavilions have been a profitable territory for research and innovation in architecture. Cellular Tessellation is a research pavilion developed and implemented for a site at Sydney Harbor in 2014. This project embodied the refinement of techniques to computationally design and fabricate integrated structural and skin envelopes through a file-to-fabrication process, culminating in the production of doubly curved project geometry via panelized construction. The project addresses multiple concerns (gravity, bracing, affect, etc.) with a minimum of assembly. This work is invested in extending the possibilities of architectural practice. The speculative impact of the work advances emerging practice techniques through the output of augmented spatial experiences

Strategic Analysis of SMEs' Early Internationalisation Process

Purpose- This study focuses on the main driving factors influencing the path (i.e. the decision-making process) of SMEs to internationalise and explains reasons for choosing different entry modes as strategy. The paper aims to gain a closer understanding of characteristics and challenges that SMEs experience in the early phase of internationalisation, and how its internationalisation practices – strategies – contribute to their competitiveness. Design/methodology/approach- A theoretical framework based on a literature review is developed. Empirical results were gained from a qualitative approach based on case studies and cross-case analy-sis of three Tyrolean SMEs. Findings- Aspects that have been investigated by this study are key motivating drivers to internation-alise and strategies applied. The paper highlights different approaches why and how SMEs undertake the process of internationalisation. Practical implications- An understanding of drivers and strategies to internationalisation offers en-trepreneurs and small business managers the opportunity to shape and reflect on the development of their company. Outcome of this study reveals the importance of managers in understanding the changes in the business environment and in identifying key internal factors. Results provide practical mentoring to SMEs in similar situations in understanding the nature of the processes of an interna-tional expansion strategy. Originality/value- Internationalisation strategies are usually viewed in relation to large enterprises. This study considers SMEs in their approach to develop international strategies and market presence. Research Paper Reference to this paper should be made as follows: Knapp, J.L, and Kronenberg, C. (2013). “Strate-gic Analysis of SMEs' Early Internationalisation Process”, Journal of Entrepreneurship, Business and Economics, Vol. 1 No. 1/2, pp. 35–71