Virtual Representations of the American Far West in 20th Century French Theater

The American Far West is, perhaps, one of the foremost images of the United States, one that has influenced many authors, especially during the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. It is a place of vast, empty spaces, of adventure and danger, of heroes and villains. It is a space that excites the imagination in its grandeur and possibility. Writers such as Jean Baudrillard and Umberto Eco have written of this grandeur, of the space of the American Dream. There they find the hyperreality of America, the constant drive to re-create aspects of European history and culture to fill the cultural void. Yet it is a place that promises the fulfillment of one’s dreams, and this is what makes the space so alluring. Between 1965 and 2003 five plays written in French attempted to place this cinematic space on the stage: Obaldia’s Du vent dans les branches de sassafras, Arrabal’s Sur le fil ou ballade du train fantôme, Fenwick’s Calamity Jane, Duparfait’s Idylle à Oklahoma: Une offre d’emploi, and Anne’s Le Bonheur du vent. In these five plays the American Far West is presented, not on the stage, but in the virtual space—the space of the imagination, beyond the confines of the stage. This is done in part because the Far West is difficult to represent in the theater due to the sheer size associated with it; it is a cinematographic space. However, America itself is an imagined space, a space that not only physically overwhelming, but also one that is void of culture as the French perceive it. These five plays, in a variety of styles, portray the hyperreality and emptiness of the virtual space that is America

THE FIRST GRADE PRIVATE SCHOOL SECTOR: TAXONOMY, CHOICE, AND ACHIEVEMENT

Studies focusing on Catholic schools as a proxy for all private education or all private religious education miss important variances within the private school sector, especially at the first grade level. The implication of this is that the vast majority of secondary school choice studies are incomplete; the elementary schooling decision of the parents should be included for all secondary school choice analyses. I augment the scope of a households first grade schooling choice by offering a rich model that includes the public schooling option and the most detailed typology of private schools to date: Catholic, Evangelical or Fundamental Protestant, Mainline Protestant or Other Faith, and Secular. Upon selecting a school type, I evaluate a students performance within this selected sector. While critics argue that selection and omitted variable biases generate test score gains for students rather than private school superiority, I include a childs fall kindergarten reading, math, and general knowledge test scores to control for a students knowledge acquired prior to kindergarten enrollment. I examine whether higher first grade test scores are the result of selection into the private sector or preeminence of the private sector. I find kindergarten test performance, household income, and parental education are significant and positive factors in selecting a school. Additionally, household religiosity and the denominational composition in the households home county are also significant determinants of schooling choice. Results from voucher simulations indicate that an increase in private school attendance does not translate to uniform enrollment increases at all types of private schools. White and Hispanic girls display similar patterns for Catholic and Protestant schools while African-American and white girls select Evangelical schools in analogous trends. Findings suggest that, while a students ability is the driving force behind first grade achievement, the type of school attended in first grade does affect a childs test score for all three tests. First grade private school enrollment makes below average achievers in kindergarten into better students in the first grade. Private schools offer no significant benefit for first grade enrollment to high achieving kindergarten students

Innovative strategies for the renewal of older neighbourhoods

165 p. : ill., map ; 28 cm. Seminar organized by the Institute of Urban Studies and held April 6th and 7th, 1977.Seminar on the Development of Innovative Strategies for the Renewal of Older Neighbourhoods, University of Winnipeg, 1977

Revitalizing the downtown core : the role of an urban development corporation

Report : 38, 3 leave

Supply chain integration in the UK bioenergy industry:findings from a pilot study

Interest in bioenergy as a viable alternative to fossil fuels is increasing. This emergent sector is subject to a range of ambitious initiatives promoted by National Governments to generate energy from renewable sources. Transition to energy production from biomass still lacks a feasible infrastructure particularly from a supply chain and business perspective. Supply chain integration has not been studied widely providing a deficit in the literature and in practice. This paper presents results from a pilot study designed to identify attributes that helps optimise such supply chains. To consider this challenge it is important to identify those characteristics that integrate bioenergy supply chains and ascertain if they are distinct from those found in conventional energy models. In general terms the supply chain is defined by upstream at the point of origin of raw materials and downstream at the point of distribution to final customer. It remains to be seen if this is the case for bioenergy supply chains as there is an imbalance between knowledge and practice, even understanding the terminology. The initial pilot study results presented in the paper facilitates understanding the gap between general supply chain knowledge and what is practiced within bioenergy organisations

The Concept of Integration: A Conceptual Critique of Issues Relating to Curriculum, Policy, Planning & Provision for Pupils with Special Educational Needs

This thesis sets out to investigate the concept of integration, with a view to identifying to what degree conceptual misunderstandings, and a lack of clarity about the concept itself and those concepts which underpin it, have led to an exacerbation, a continuation and a legitimation of inferior educational opportunities for those pupils identified as having Special Educational Needs (SEN), in England and Wales. The first part of this work is, therefore, devoted to a critical analysis of the key concepts involved; models of disability; entitlement and empowerment; models of curriculum and the concept of integration itself. The second part of the thesis is concerned with a critical review of recent and current educational policy in education, in the light of this conceptual critique. The Warnock Report (DES 1978) and subsequent policy are critically discussed and evaluated, and current policy is addressed in the form of the 1988 Education Act and its wider implications, and the Code of Practice for SEN introduced in the 1993 Education Act. Finally the issue of teacher education, and in particular current policy in that area, is critically discussed with a view to identifying its potential to address some of the issues raised by the preceding discussion. The underlying rationale for this thesis is that empirical research without a sound conceptual underpinning has proved not only inadequate but often counterproductive in education in general, and in special needs education in particular. Hence the style of the research is largely conceptual, and, while it has been necessary in the critique of current policies and practices to move to a more empirical mode, this has been done to contextualise the discussion by demonstrating the practical inadequacies which have resulted from the lack of conceptual clarity which the research reveals. The major theme which emerges from the thesis is that problems, inequalities and disadvantage in practice in the area of SEN can be seen to be attributable to a lack of any clear understanding or Sound critique of the major concepts which underpin current educational policy in the area

Supply chain integration in the UK bioenergy industry

This study is an investigation on supply chain integration in bioenergy. It takes a different approach from many contemporary studies found in the literature because most research in bioenergy treats technological performance, characteristics of feedstock, impact on energy consumption in relation to the carbon footprint as distinct and separate entities. None of these examples consider bioenergy from supply chain integration and thus, a business performance perspective. The study proposes that bioenergy is defined from the biomass-to-bioenergy, which is from the point of origin to the point of conversion, and that it is a developing industry. It was found that stakeholders play a prominent role throughout the various phases from planning approval to project implementation and are also involved during operational phases of a bioenergy business. In the study this is referred to as stakeholder integration. During handover phases process integration dominates operational activities within the bioenergy firm. By dividing characteristics in a bioenergy business as stakeholder and process integration it is possible to identify constructs that are applicable to bioenergy. These were investigated through secondary research as well as primary research approaches. Inherent within the configuration of bioenergy supply chains are issues and challenges that were different from established energy systems and factors peculiar to conventional supply chain approaches. The research finds bioenergy supply chains tend to be horizontally integrated from B2C, and as yet lack vertical integration, B2B found in mature supply chains. Contributions resulting from this factor, coupled with the research approaches, particularly by using qualitative methods extended knowledge and practice in operations management research as well identifying best practice in a novel and emergent industry

The case for non-profits in the preservation and provision of urban housing

8 leaves ; 28 cm

The alcohol improvement programme: evaluation of an initiative to address alcohol-related health harm in England

Aims: The evaluation aimed to assess the impact of The Alcohol Improvement Programme (AIP). This was a UK Department of Health initiative (April 2008–March 2011) aiming to contribute to the reduction of alcohol-related harm as measured by a reduction in the rate of increase in alcohol-related hospital admissions (ARHAs). Methods: The evaluation (March 2010–September 2011) used a mix of qualitative and quantitative methods to assess the impact of the AIP on ARHAs, to describe and assess the process of implementation, and to identify elements of the programme which might serve as a ‘legacy’ for the future. Results: There was no evidence that the AIP had an impact on reducing the rise in the rate of ARHAs. The AIP was successfully delivered, increased the priority given to alcohol-related harm on local policy agendas and strengthened the infrastructure for the delivery of interventions. Conclusion: Although there was no measurable short-term impact on the rise in the rate of ARHAs, the AIP helped to set up a strategic response and a delivery infrastructure as a first, necessary step in working towards that goal. There are a number of valuable elements in the AIP which should be retained and repackaged to fit into new policy contexts

Rethinking Sterilization Practices: Evidence for Event‐Related Outdating

A prospective study was conducted during a 2‐year period to evaluate the effectiveness of event‐related outdating. Hospitalprepared sterilized items (n = 152) were shelved in wards and every 3 months, several articles were retrieved and microbiologically tested. During the 2‐year period, all of the items tested were sterile