Qualitative accounts of urban commuter cycling

Purpose ‐ The purpose of this paper is to explore the live experiences of urban commuter cycling (UCC). Design/methodology/approach ‐ In semi-structured interviews, participants described day-to-day experiences of UCC in a single English city. Verbatim transcripts were coded using the themes of time, space, body and human relations, and interpreted through the principles of hermeneutic phenomenology. Findings ‐ The nine participants (seven males, two females) were aged 27 to 54. Each regularly commuted by bicycle at least three times per week for "18 months" to "27 years". Strong influences on commuter cycling included the weather, daily tasks, cycling infrastructure, driver behaviour and the value of cycling for physical and mental well being. The contest for space was central to the UCC experience, with UCCs sensing they lacked respect despite feeling that they were "embodying citizenship" by enacting public policy. Due to their regular negative experiences, many UCCs were now willing to quit cycling and commute by car. Research limitations/implications ‐ Findings are limited to regular commuter cyclists and do little to describe the passage into regular cycling. Practical applications ‐ This paper highlights that cycle promoters and health educators may profit from focusing on road user interactions during the rush hour. Originality/value ‐ This paper addresses the untold day-to-day experiences of UCCs

Women's Agency in Upper Canada: Prescott's Board of Police Record, 1834-1850

The Prescott Board of Police was established in 1834 to resolve disputes brought forward by local citizens under the town’s bylaws. The cases recorded in the Minute Book of the Board of Police for Prescott thus constitute an unparalleled source of information on many aspects of Upper Canadian life, recording standards for acceptable community behaviour on such matters as control of livestock, health regulations, road maintenance, keeping the sabbath, licensing alcohol and entertainment, and the type of language permitted in public space. In the early years, since only small fines resulted from charges brought to the Board, it was commonly used by lower-class women for settling personal disputes or avenging insults to their reputation. By 1850 fines had become severe and prosecutions for sexual immorality and drunkenness more common, and the Prescott Board of Police transformed from a forum for lower-class women’s agency into an institution used by the town fathers to enforce a new, middle-class, gendered moral code.Le bureau des dossiers judiciaires de Prescott a vu le jour en 1834 pour résoudre les différends dont les citoyens de l’endroit le saisissaient en vertu des arrêtés municipaux. Les affaires inscrites au registre d’audience du bureau de police de Prescott sont de ce fait une source inégalée d’information sur une foule d’aspects de la vie au Haut-Canada puisqu’on y a consigné les normes pour un comportement collectif acceptable sur des choses telles que le contrôle du bétail, les règles d’hygiène, l’entretien des routes, le respect du sabbat, les permis d’alcool et de divertissement ainsi que le langage permis dans les lieux publics. Les premières années, comme les accusations portées devant le bureau n’entraînaient que de petites amendes, celui-ci était communément utilisé par les femmes de la classe inférieure pour régler leurs disputes personnelles ou se venger d’insultes à leur réputation. En 1850, les amendes étaient devenues lourdes et les poursuites pour immoralité sexuelle et ivresse, plus fréquentes, et le bureau de police de Prescott s’était transformé d’une tribune pour l’agence des femmes de la classe inférieure en une institution utilisée par les pères de la ville pour instituer un nouveau code moral de la classe moyenne, d’application différente selon le sexe

“My own character is thank God above suspicion”: Soldier’s Wives with The Royal Canadian Rifle Regiment and Social Values in Mid-Nineteenth-Century British North America

British military records provide an unexpected source of information on the lives of ordinary women of the popular classes in the mid-nineteenth-century. This article focuses on the women of the Royal Canadian Rifle Regiment, which served in small garrisons across British North America from 1841 to 1870 and included an unusually large number of families. The increasing regulation of the activities and morals of working-class women was characteristic of this era of middle-class reform. Women’s residence in open barrack rooms with soldiers was a cause of great concern, and led to close monitoring of their behaviour.Les archives militaires britanniques constituent une source inattendue de renseignements à propos de la vie de femmes ordinaires des classes populaires au milieu du XIXe siècle. Le présent article porte sur les femmes du Royal Canadian Rifle Regiment, qui a été affecté dans de petites garnisons d’un bout à l’autre de l’Amérique du Nord britannique de 1841 à 1870 et qui comprenait un nombre inhabituellement élevé de familles. La réglementation croissante des activités et de la moralité des femmes de la classe ouvrière était caractéristique de cette époque de réforme de la classe moyenne. Le fait que les femmes résidaient avec les soldats dans des pièces ouvertes de baraques était une source de grande inquiétude; aussi a-t-il mené à une surveillance étroite de leur comportement

Reaching older people with PA delivered in football clubs: the reach, adoption and implementation characteristics of the Extra Time Programme.

Background Older adults (OA) represent a core priority group for physical activity and Public Health policy. As a result, significant interest is placed on how to optimise adherence to interventions promoting these approaches. Extra Time (ET) is an example of a national programme of physical activity interventions delivered in professional football clubs for OA aged 55+ years. This paper aims to examine the outcomes from ET, and unpick the processes by which these outcomes were achieved. Methods This paper represents a secondary analysis of data collected during the evaluation of ET. From the 985 OA reached by ET, n=486 adopted the programme and completed post-intervention surveys (typically 12 weeks). We also draw on interview data with 18 ET participants, and 7 staff who delivered the programme. Data were subject to thematic analysis to generate overarching and sub themes. Results Of the 486 participants, the majority 95%, (n= 462) were White British and 59.7% (n=290) were female. Most adopters (65.4%/n=318) had not participated in previous interventions in the host clubs. Social interaction was the most frequently reported benefit of participation (77.2%, n=375). While the reach of the club badge was important in letting people know about the programme, further work enhanced adoption and satisfaction. These factors included (i) listening to participants, (ii) delivering a flexible age-appropriate programme of diverse physical and social activities, (iii) offering activities which satisfy energy drives and needs for learning and (iv) extensive opportunities for social engagement. Conclusions Findings emerging from this study indicate that physical activity and health interventions delivered through professional football clubs can be effective for engaging OA

Movement patterns of cheetahs ( Acinonyx jubatus ) in farmlands in Botswana

Botswana has the second highest population of cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) with most living outside protected areas. As a result, many cheetahs are found in farming areas which occasionally results in human-wildlife conflict. This study aimed to look at movement patterns of cheetahs in farming environments to determine whether cheetahs have adapted their movements in these human-dominated landscapes. We fitted high-time resolution GPS collars to cheetahs in the Ghanzi farmlands of Botswana. GPS locations were used to calculate home range sizes as well as number and duration of visits to landscape features using a time-based local convex hull method. Cheetahs had medium-sized home ranges compared to previously studied cheetah in similar farming environments. Results showed that cheetahs actively visited scent marking trees and avoided visiting homesteads. A slight preference for visiting game farms over cattle farms was found, but there was no difference in duration of visits between farm types. We conclude that cheetahs selected for areas that are important for their dietary and social needs and prefer to avoid human-occupied areas. Improved knowledge of how cheetahs use farmlands can allow farmers to make informed decisions when developing management practices and can be an important tool for reducing human-wildlife conflict

The Effect of Variability in the Powder/Liquid Ratio on the Strength of Zinc Phosphate Cement

Aim. To investigate (a) variability in powder/liquid proportioning and (b) effect of variability on diametral tensile strength (DTS), in a zinc phosphate cement. Statistical analyses (α = 0.05) were by Student's t-test in the case of powder/liquid ratio and one-way ANOVA and Tukey HSD for pair-wise comparisons of mean DTS. The Null hypotheses were that (a) the powder-liquid mixing ratios would not differ from the manufacturer's recommended ratio (b) DTS of the set cement samples using the extreme powder/liquid ratios would not differ from those made using the recommended ratio. Methodology. 34 dental students dispensed the components according to the manufacturer's instructions. The maximum and minimum powder/liquid ratios, together with the manufacturer's recommended ratio, were used to prepare samples for DTS testing. Results. Powder/liquid ratios ranged from 2.386 to 1.018. The mean ratio (1.644) was not significantly different from the recommended value of 1.718 (P = 0.189). DTS values for the maximum and minimum ratios were both significantly different from each other (P < 0.001) and from the mean value obtained from the recommended ratio (P < 0.001). Conclusions. Variability exists in powder/liquid ratio for hand dispensed zinc phosphate cement. This variability can affect the DTS of the set material

Mapping the Evolution of Optically-Generated Rotational Wavepackets in a Room Temperature Ensemble of D2_2

A coherent superposition of rotational states in D$_2$ has been excited by nonresonant ultrafast (12 femtosecond) intense (2 $\times$ 10$^{14}$ Wcm$^{-2}$) 800 nm laser pulses leading to impulsive dynamic alignment. Field-free evolution of this rotational wavepacket has been mapped to high temporal resolution by a time-delayed pulse, initiating rapid double ionization, which is highly sensitive to the angle of orientation of the molecular axis with respect to the polarization direction, $\theta$. The detailed fractional revivals of the neutral D$_2$ wavepacket as a function of $\theta$ and evolution time have been observed and modelled theoretically.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures. Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev. A. Full reference to follow.