STORIES FROM THE OLD WEST END OF BOSTON: AN ANALYSIS OF EVALUATIVE DEVICES IN ORAL NARRATIVE

The following presents an overview of various evaluative devices found in a series of oral narratives from former residents of the West End of Boston, Massachusetts. In working with an archivist at the West End Museum, I was able to read through interviews, each conducted with residents that were displaced from the West End after the urban renewal project of the late 1950s. These interviews were recorded for the purpose of collecting each resident’s experience growing up in the neighborhood. After reading through each interview I found several instances of narrative speech. I conducted a narrative analysis, based on Labov and Waletsky (1967) method to explore the linguistic devices that narrators used to evaluate their experiences. Each device was defined linguistically and analyzed to determine its implications for the narrator. An overarching theme was discovered such that narrators use these devices to cast themselves in a protagonist role in an idealized community. The narrators’ use of language perpetuates this transformation of experience and their nostalgia of the West End

Strain localization driven by thermal decomposition during seismic shear

Field and laboratory observations show that shear deformation is often extremely localized at seismic slip rates, with a typical deforming zone width on the order of a few tens of microns. This extreme localization can be understood in terms of thermally driven weakening mechanisms. A zone of initially high strain rate will experience more shear heating and thus weaken faster, making it more likely to accommodate subsequent deformation. Fault zones often contain thermally unstable minerals such as clays or carbonates, which devolatilize at the high temperatures attained during seismic slip. In this paper, we investigate how these thermal decomposition reactions drive strain localization when coupled to a model for thermal pressurization of in situ groundwater. Building on Rice et al. (2014), we use a linear stability analysis to predict a localized zone thickness that depends on a combination of hydraulic, frictional, and thermochemical properties of the deforming fault rock. Numerical simulations show that the onset of thermal decomposition drives additional strain localization when compared with thermal pressurization alone and predict localized zone thicknesses of ∼7 and ∼13 μm for lizardite and calcite, respectively. Finally we show how thermal diffusion and the endothermic reaction combine to limit the peak temperature of the fault and that the pore fluid released by the reaction provides additional weakening of ∼20–40% of the initial strength

Perceived characteristics of the environment associated with active travel: development and testing of a new scale

Background Environmental characteristics may be associated with patterns of physical activity. However, the development of instruments to measure perceived characteristics of the local environment is still at a comparatively early stage, and published instruments are not necessarily suitable for application in all settings. We therefore developed and established the test-retest reliability of a new scale for use in a study of the correlates of active travel and overall physical activity in deprived urban neighbourhoods in Glasgow, Scotland. Methods We developed and piloted a 14-item scale based on seven constructs identified from the literature (aesthetics, green space, access to amenities, convenience of routes, traffic, road safety and personal safety). We administered the scale to all participants in a random postal survey (n = 1322) and readministered the scale to a subset of original respondents (n = 125) six months later. We used principal components analysis and Varimax rotation to identify three principal components (factors) and derived summary scores for subscales based on these factors. We examined the internal consistency of these subscales using Cronbach's alpha and examined the test-retest reliability of the individual items, the subscale summary scores and an overall summary neighbourhood score using a combination of correlation coefficients and Cohen's kappa with and without weighting. Results Public transport and proximity to shops were the items most likely to be rated positively, whereas traffic volume, traffic noise and road safety for cyclists were most likely to be rated negatively. Three principal components – 'safe and pleasant surroundings', 'low traffic' and 'convenience for walking' – together explained 45% of the total variance. The test-retest reliability of individual items was comparable with that of items in other published scales (intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) 0.34–0.70; weighted Cohen's kappa 0.24–0.59). The overall summary neighbourhood score had acceptable internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha 0.72) and test-retest reliability (ICC 0.73). Conclusion This new scale contributes to the development of a growing set of tools for investigating the role of perceived environmental characteristics in explaining or mediating patterns of active travel and physical activity

Evaluating health effects of transport interventions: methodologic case study

Background: There is little evidence about the effects of environmental interventions on population levels of physical activity. Major transport projects may promote or discourage physical activity in the form of walking and cycling, but researching the health effects of such “natural experiments” in transport policy or infrastructure is challenging. Methods: Case study of attempts in 2004–2005 to evaluate the effects of two major transport projects in Scotland: an urban congestion charging scheme in Edinburgh, and a new urban motorway (freeway) in Glasgow. Results: These interventions are typical of many major transport projects. They are unique to their context. They cannot easily be separated from the other components of the wider policies within which they occur. When, where, and how they are implemented are political decisions over which researchers have no control. Baseline data collection required for longitudinal studies may need to be planned before the intervention is certain to take place. There is no simple way of defining a population or area exposed to the intervention or of defining control groups. Changes in quantitative measures of health-related behavior may be difficult to detect. Conclusions: Major transport projects have clear potential to influence population health, but it is difficult to define the interventions, categorize exposure, or measure outcomes in ways that are likely to be seen as credible in the field of public health intervention research. A final study design is proposed in which multiple methods and spatial levels of analysis are combined in a longitudinal quasi-experimental study

Differences between European birthweight standards: impact on classification of ‘small for gestational age’

We describe a quantitative and comparative review of a selection of European birthweight standards for gestational age for singletons, to enable appropriate choices to be made for clinical and research use. Differences between median values at term across standards in 10 regions and misclassification of ‘small for gestational age’ (SGA), were studied. Sex and parity differences, exclusion criteria, and methods of construction were considered. There was wide variation between countries in exclusion criteria, methods of calculating standards, and median birthweight at term. The lightest standards (e.g. France's medians are 255g lower than Norway's medians) were associated with fewer exclusion criteria. Up to 20% of the population used in the construction of the Scottish standard would be classified as SGA using the Norwegian standard. Substantial misclassification of SGA is possible. Assumptions about variation used in the construction of some standards were not justified. It is not possible to conclude that there are real differences in birthweight standards between European countries. Country-based standards control for some population features but add misclassification due to the differing ways in which standards are derived. Standards should be chosen to reflect clinical or research need. If standards stratified by sex or parity are not available, adjustments should be made. In multinational studies, comparisons should be made between results using both a common standard and country-based standards

Time dependence in perpendicular media with a soft underlayer

In this paper we describe measurements of magnetic viscosity or time dependence in magnetic thin films suitable for use as perpendicular recording media. Generally, such effects cannot be measured using conventional magnetometry techniques due to the presence of a thin (0.1 mum) soft underlayer (SUL) in the media necessary to focus the head field. To achieve our results we have developed an ultrastable MOKE magnetometer, the construction of which is described. This has enabled us to measure nominally identical films with and without the presence of the SUL. We find that the presence of the SUL narrows the energy barrier distribution in the perpendicular film increasing the nucleation field (H-n), reducing the coercivity (H-c) and results in an increase in the squareness of the loop. This in turn results in an increase in the magnitude of the viscosity in the region of the H-c but that the range of fields over which the viscosity occurs is reduced

An investigation of chaotic Kolmogorov flows

A two dimensional flow governed by the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations with a steady spatially periodic forcing (known as the Kolmogorov flow) is numerically simulated. The behavior of the flow and its transition states as the Reynolds number (Re) varies is investigated in detail, as well as a number of the flow features. A sequence of bifurcations is shown to take place in the flow as Re varied. Two main regimes of the flow were observed: small and large scale structure regimes corresponding to different ranges of Re. Each of the regimes includes a number of quasiperiodic, chaotic, and relaminarization windows. In addition, each range contains a chaotic window with non-ergodic chaotic attractors. Spatially disordered, but temporally steady states were discovered in large scale structure regime. Features of the diverse cases are displayed in terms of the temporal power spectrum, Poincare sections and, where possible, Lyapunov exponents and Kaplan-Yorke dimension

A forward solution for RF impedance tomography in wood

Both integral equation and differential equation methods enable modelling current and hence impedance of wood, to provide the forward solution for impedance tomography that in turn provides a measure of its internal moisture distribution. Previously, we have used a series impedance model and successfully demonstrated measurement of internal moisture distribution. Here we describe the adaptation of our integral equation method for this application. This has required an alternative calculation to model the impressed field from the segmented electrodes used in the measurements to date, and we demonstrate distortion of the anomalous field due to the presence of a wood dielectric, and the field magnitude. Further work will be required to translate the resulting field distribution from our model, to complex current and hence impedance readings, to allow completion of tomographic reconstruction using this approach

Bulk de novo mitogenome assembly from pooled total DNA elucidates the phylogeny of weevils (Coleoptera: Curculionoidea)

Complete mitochondrial genomes have been shown to be reliable markers for phylogeny reconstruction among diverse animal groups. However, the relative difficulty and high cost associated with obtaining de novo full mitogenomes have frequently led to conspicuously low taxon sampling in ensuing studies. Here, we report the successful use of an economical and accessible method for assembling complete or near-complete mitogenomes through shot-gun next-generation sequencing of a single library made from pooled total DNA extracts of numerous target species. To avoid the use of separate indexed libraries for each specimen, and an associated increase in cost, we incorporate standard polymerase chain reaction-based “bait” sequences to identify the assembled mitogenomes. The method was applied to study the higher level phylogenetic relationships in the weevils (Coleoptera: Curculionoidea), producing 92 newly assembled mitogenomes obtained in a single Illumina MiSeq run. The analysis supported a separate origin of wood-boring behavior by the subfamilies Scolytinae, Platypodinae, and Cossoninae. This finding contradicts morphological hypotheses proposing a close relationship between the first two of these but is congruent with previous molecular studies, reinforcing the utility of mitogenomes in phylogeny reconstruction. Our methodology provides a technically simple procedure for generating densely sampled trees from whole mitogenomes and is widely applicable to groups of animals for which bait sequences are the only required prior genome knowledge

Reading between the LINEs to see into the past

Transposable elements (TEs) are an important source of genome diversity and play a crucial role in genome evolution. A recent study by Zhao et al. describes novel patterns of TE diversification in the genome of the extinct mammoth Mammuthus primigenius. Analysis of Mammuthus has provided a unique genome landscape, a pivotal species for understanding TEs and genome evolution and hints at the diversity we verge on discovering by expanding our taxonomic sampling among genomes. Strategies based on this work might also revolutionize investigations of the interface between TE dynamics and genome diversity. © 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved