[Review] Massimo Rospocher, ed. (2012) Beyond the public sphere: opinions, publics, spaces in early modern Europe

Beyond the Public Sphere is a collection of fourteen essays that have originated from two colloquia: a workshop entitled ‘Public Sphere and Public Opinion: Historical Paradigms?’ held in 2008 and a 2010 international conference in Trento, ‘Beyond the Public Sphere’. The collection delineates current thought on the public sphere debate while evaluating the continued relevance of Jürgen Habermas's seminal text Strukturwandel der Öffentlichkeit (1962) to modern conceptions. For Habermas, the bourgeois public sphere allowed private men to discourse, debate and thereby regulate the general rules of society particularly those governing the ‘publicly relevant sphere of commodity exchange and social labour’, (Section 2, Chapter 4). In his introduction to Beyond the Public Sphere, Massimo Rospocher states that despite recent vociferous attacks on Habermas's highly influential model of the public sphere the work still has much value, especially for the early modern historian. Moreover, his ideas retain a wider significance due to the ‘persistence and cyclical return to Habermas's theory today’ (24) within a global community shaped by communication technologies. A central aspiration of the collection is to expose a paradigmatic shift presently occurring through 'historiographical transition' (27), moving beyond Habermas's deficiencies on the public sphere to create new interpretations

The usefulness of Visitor Expectations Type Scales (VETS) for tourist segmentation : the case of cathedral visitors

This study applies Jungian psychological type theory to assess and to interpret the expectations of cathedral visitors. The Visitor Expectations Type Scales were developed among 35 individuals trained and qualified as type practitioners and then tested among a sample of 157 visitors who also completed the Francis Psychological Type Scales. The data demonstrated: the coherence and internal consistency reliability of the Visitor Expectations Type Scales; the particular emphases placed by cathedral visitors on introverted expectations, feeling expectations, and perceiving expectations; and the complex relationship between visitor expectations (conceptualised in psychological type categories) and their personal psychological type profile. The Visitor Expectations Type Scales are commended as providing a more valid assessment of the psychographic segmentation of cathedral visitors than could be provided simply by the administration of a recognised measure of psychological type. Such assessment has implications for the marketing and management of cathedrals within the tourism industry

The Chevalier Andrew Michael Ramsay’s Essay de politique: Fénelon and Jacobitism

Andrew Michael Ramsay‟s Essay de Politique (1719) and the revised second edition, the Essay philosophique sur le gouvernement civil (1721) claimed to promulgate the political principles of the Archbishop Fénelon author of Télémaque (1699). The assumed relationship between Fénelon and Ramsay augmented by Ramsay‟s Vie de Fénelon (1723) meant that subsequent biographers of both men have believed the Essay to be a faithful depiction of the prelate‟s political ideas. However this work, aided by the Vie de Fénelon was used by Ramsay to promote the Jacobite cause of James Stuart (the 'Pretender'). The Essay was used by Ramsay to set out a theoretical system of government that would prevent an 'excess of liberty' in the people and thereby prevent the possibility of Revolution against a king. Ramsay's second edition augmented this idea with a more focused attack on the contract theorists and apologists for the 1689 Revolution. Ramsay deliberately manipulated the political legacy of Fénelon and focused on a corrupted view of Fénelon's early (children's) educational works in his promotion of Jacobitism. In doing so, he disregarded the important later reform plans for the French state under the potential reign of (an adult) Duke of Burgundy which were later influential in Regency France. Moreover, Ramsay manipulated the name and reputation of Fénelon to disguise the real influence of his Essay, Fénelon's nemesis Bossuet. The reliance of the Essay upon the seventeenth century absolutist theory of Bossuet at a time when eighteenth century Britain and Regency France had rejected absolutism in favour of reform led to its failure. The aim of the Thesis is therefore to examine the extent of Ramsay's Jacobitism, his impact on the political legacy of Fénelon in his attempt to create a work of Jacobite propaganda, and the true influences on the Essay de Politique

The first Earl of Shaftesbury's resolute conscience and aristocratic constitutionalism

This article provides a reappraisal of the first earl of Shaftesbury (1621-83) and challenges his reputation as an unprincipled politician. Conversely, it is argued that Shaftesbury's opposition to both Cromwell during the Protectorate and Charles II in the Restoration was guided by a resolute 'conscience'. While there was certainly elasticity in his conduct, Shaftesbury was very much the product of a political education framed during the Civil War and Commonwealth eras. The article explicitly demonstrates through an exposition of his activity and thought in the 1650s and 1670s that four guiding values remained consistent in his career. Both periods were shaped by concerns over political and religious tyranny by an overbearing executive and a threat to 'lives, liberty, and property' from the ruler, the church, and the army. Shaftesbury's significance lies in the aristocratic constitutionalism he believed offered a restraint to encroachment by the executive and the people in government. Relying upon long-established traditions that positioned the nobility as an independent bridle against arbitrary government, Shaftesbury suggested a forward-thinking vision of elite rule supported by the people. In clarifying Shaftesbury's values, the article rejects interpretations of him as a republican, Neo-Harringtonian, or a believer in popular government (democracy)

Changes in subjective ratings of impulsive steering wheel vibration due to changes in noise level: a cross-modal interaction

Cross-modal effects occur when subjective opinions of stimuli from one sense (e.g., tactile at steering wheel) are influenced by simultaneous stimuli in another sense (auditory). A steering wheel rig was used to provide specified vibration stimuli to participants' hands, and a recording of vehicle sound was played in accordance with the vibrations. Participants were subjected to test conditions with vibration values between 10 m s and 20 m s, and auditory stimuli between 88 dB(A) and 98 dB(A) peak. Participants were neither informed of nor asked about any changes in the noise level: thus the purpose of the experiment was withheld from them. The results show that as noise level increased, subjective ratings of steering wheel vibration increased. Therefore, car cabin noise could be used to enhance the feel of the vibration at the steering wheel

Experimental Study of Synthesis Gas Combustion Chemistry and Ignition Behaviors.

The development of synthesis gas (syngas) fuel is of interest, as it can enable a transition from fossil to renewable energy sources while reducing the emissions associated with both. Historical research has focused on basic syngas formulations (H2 & CO) in homogeneous environments, providing a baseline for consideration of more realistic mixtures and devices. Recent research and industrial experience for syngas fueled combustors indicate the effects of common disturbances can be dramatic and are not well-understood, with particular concern regarding the occurrence of uncontrolled inhomogeneous auto-ignition and its effect on the accuracy of common homogeneous reactor modeling. This dissertation represents an experimental investigation of syngas combustion, aimed at comprehensively understanding the effects of specific chemical and physical disturbances at high-pressure low-temperature conditions. Experiments were conducted in the University of Michigan-Rapid Compression Facility. The auto-ignition behaviors of syngas were investigated, revealing the existence of both homogeneous and inhomogeneous characteristics depending strongly on the initial unburned thermodynamic state. The behaviors were mapped over a wide range of conditions revealing consistent patterns. It was discovered that the Sankaran Criterion, a previously proposed relationship between chemical kinetics, transport properties, and known thermal disturbances, could predict the location of inhomogeneous behavior on these maps with remarkable accuracy. This provides evidence that commonly ignored thermal disturbances can cause uncontrolled inhomogeneous auto-ignition in syngas and also provides a straightforward method to predict such behavior. As expected, inhomogeneous auto-ignition behavior was well correlated to error in homogeneous reactor modeling for higher energy content mixtures. The effects of chemical impurities on the combustion of syngas were investigated, focusing on CH4, a common component of syngas, and trimethylsilanol (TMS), an unstudied impurity related to those common to landfill-based syngas. The impact of CH4 was to inhibit ignition, evidenced by auto-ignition delay time increases by up to a factor of 3. Conversely the impact of TMS was to promote ignition, causing drastic reductions in auto-ignition delay time up to 70%. These large promotion effects have significant safety implications, as pronounced early auto-ignition can lead to catastrophic failures and concentrations of similar Si containing species are expected to increase in the future.PhDMechanical EngineeringUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/110478/1/amansfld_1.pd

Situation Awareness: its proficiency amongst older and younger drivers, and its usefulness for perceiving hazards.

The two studies reported here sought to measure and compare the Situation Awareness (SA) of younger and older driver groups whilst driving (Study 1), and watching video footage of actual car journeys (Study 2). In both studies this was achieved by recording a participant’s commentary on what s/he felt was of relevance to the driving task. The narratives produced were analysed by computer software that could abstract main concepts and calculate scores indicative of Situation Awareness. In Study 2, these scores were related to others for hazard perception proficiency (also derived from participant commentaries). It was found that the older drivers matched and often exceeded the younger drivers when their SA scores were compared individually, but not when assessed as a group. However, the younger drivers out-performed their older counterparts in hazard perception ability, and this was shown to be related to their Situation Awareness score. When the results from participants who undertook both studies were compared, it was found that Situation Awareness performance was significantly higher when commenting on video footage (Study 2) than whilst actually driving (Study 1)

A study investigating the comparative situation awareness of older and younger drivers when driving a route with extended periods of cognitive taxation

This study sought to measure and compare the Situation Awareness (SA) of a younger group of 11 drivers (average age 28.2 years) to that of an older group of 10 drivers (average age 77.2 years), as they traversed a route that included many cognitively taxing elements. This was achieved by recording a participant’s continual commentary of what s/he felt to be of relevance during the drive. These recordings were then transcribed and assessed by computer software capable of abstracting the main concepts from each individual’s or group’s narrative, and calculating scores indicative of Situation Awareness. It was found that the younger drivers scored significantly higher (p < 0.024) than their older counterparts. Furthermore, when the results from the participants who undertook both this and previous studies in the series were compared (see Key, Morris, & Mansfield, 2016), it was found that SA scoring could be importantly influenced by perceptions of a task’s difficulty, rather than its actual difficulty. It was also indicative from the narratives, that the younger driving group had demonstrated a better 360-degree awareness, and enunciated more safety-related concepts