Researching Architecture and Urban Inequality: Towards Engaged Ethics

This paper reflects on approaches to conducting “ethical research” on architecture and urban (in)equality in cities in the global south. It focuses on two themes: the formalization of institutional ethics procedures and protocols for conducting such research, and the need to move away from ethical frameworks that emerge from western structures for knowledge production. The paper will question whether ethical principles are universal or specific, and how they affect the possibility of knowledge co-production and its potential to generate pathways to urban equality. These questions arise from the history of contemporary research ethics procedures, which are rooted in the social norms of western modernity that views researchers and research participants as “autonomous individuals.” The paper will suggest that exploring the relation of the individual to the collective and understanding social existence as relationality, is fundamental in formulating an alternative type of ethics methodology

Long Range Car Alarm Notification Using SMS

In traditional method of car security, simple door locks were used to deter thieves from breaking into the car. This traditional method is considered insufficient for the safety of the vehicle and its contents. Hence, the came the introduction of the car alarm system first invented in the beginning of the 20th century. The usage of car alarm systems is considered sufficient until today but a few underlying problem remain, such as informing the vehicle owner when the car alarm is ringing or wailing. Therefore the project would focus on developing a prototype that can remotely monitor the car alarm system. The objective of the project is to implement a long range car alarm remote monitoring system using SMS. The system will have a mechanism to alert vehicle owners regarding the alarm siren activation when the alarm system detects an intrusion so that early precautionary steps can be taken. The vehicle owner can then proceed to check the vehicle and deactivate the siren to prevent the scenario of having a depleted car battery that will cause the car to not be able start. Hypothetical-Deductive method will be used as development methodology for this project. In order to complete development of this project, this method was chosen because it serves as the typical method in other successful researches conducted. Several test will be conducted in order to prove the viability of the system. Test results indicate the reliability of the system in propagating information directly to the vehicle owners in various conditions. Information received has been recorded in graceful latency under various circumstances. With the development of Long Range Car Alarm Notification System, it is hoped that it will ease vehicle owners in monitoring their vehicles by applying new technological innovation. The system was developed to cater novice user through user friendly graphical user interface, hence incorporated with Short Messaging Services (SMS) taking into consideration, low cost production and reliable operability

MICROWAVE IRRADIATED GREEN BIGINELLI REACTION†EMPLOYING APPLE, POMEGRANATE AND GRAPE JUICE AS ECO-FRIENDLY REACTION MEDIUM

Objective: The main objective of this work is to explore the utility of apple, pomegranate and grape juice as an eco-friendly reaction medium for microwave assisted green Biginelli reaction.Methods: A series of Biginelli reactions were carried out in various fruit juice medium by employing an equimolar mixture of urea, ethyl acetoacetate and aromatic aldehyde as reactants. All the reactions were performed with the help of microwave irradiation. After successful completion of the reactions, the crude products were isolated, and the pure products were obtained after recrystallization of the crude product from hot ethanol.Results: It was worth to note that all the reactions were completed successfully within few minutes of duration. Pure apple, pomegranate and grape juices were proved to be fruitful as eco-friendly reaction medium for performing microwave-assisted green Biginelli reaction.Conclusion: A green, eco-friendly and cost-effective method was developed for microwave assisted green Biginelli reaction†in apple, pomegranate and grape juice medium. This new method will further motivate the researchers to use more of common fruit juices instead of toxic solvents as reaction medium for multi-component condensation reactions.Keywords: Green synthesis, Fruit Juice, Biginelli reaction, Microwav

Researching with care: ethical dilemmas in co-designing focus group discussions

This paper reflects on the ethics of research and knowledge co-production aimed at addressing urban inequality. It draws on work within the Knowledge in Action for Urban Equality (KNOW) programme, which aimed to co-produce knowledge to activate transformation. We employ a lens of feminist care ethics to examine ethical challenges in research partnerships, which derive from interrelated layers of power asymmetry and inequality. We focus on ethical dilemmas that emerged during the planning stage of research work led by the NGO Centre for Community Initiatives (CCI), Tanzania, in collaboration with University College London’s Institute for Global Prosperity (IGP). We argue that contextualizing the value of knowledge co-production in generating transformation in the long term reveals a necessity for simultaneously addressing the immediate needs of intersectionally marginalized research participants. We suggest that ethical awareness of both long- and short-term modes of “caring for” could better support initiatives for addressing urban inequalities in context

A method for estimating constitutive properties of a C/C-SiC composite materials based on a Brazilian disc specimen

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