Climate Change: Scottish Implications Scoping Study

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Hex Player—a virtual musical controller

In this paper, we describe a playable musical interface for tablets and multi-touch tables. The interface is a generalized keyboard, inspired by the Thummer, and consists of an array of virtual buttons. On a generalized keyboard, any given interval always has the same shape (and therefore fingering); furthermore, the fingering is consistent over a broad range of tunings. Compared to a physical generalized keyboard, a virtual version has some advantages—notably, that the spatial location of the buttons can be transformed by shears and rotations, and their colouring can be changed to reflect their musical function in different scales. We exploit these flexibilities to facilitate the playing not just of conventional Western scales but also a wide variety of microtonal generalized diatonic scales known as moment of symmetry, or well-formed, scales. A user can choose such a scale, and the buttons are automatically arranged so their spatial height corresponds to their pitch, and buttons an octave apart are always vertically above each other. Furthermore, the most numerous scale steps run along rows, while buttons within the scale are light-coloured, and those outside are dark or removed. These features can aid beginners; for example, the chosen scale might be the diatonic, in which case the piano’s familiar white and black colouring of the seven diatonic and five chromatic notes is used, but only one scale fingering need ever be learned (unlike a piano where every key needs a different fingering). Alternatively, it can assist advanced composers and musicians seeking to explore the universe of unfamiliar microtonal scales

Authenticating eco-cultural tourism in Kazakhstan: a supply side perspective

The country of Kazakhstan is not a well-known tourism destination, either globally or within Central Asia. Although the number of inbound tourists remains relatively small, Kazakhstan possesses numerous tourism attractions based on its past Soviet times, nomadic culture and a variety of unique landscapes. This paper presents the findings that focus on the perceptions of authenticity of tourism providers involved in the development of two Kazakhstani eco-cultural tours. Empirical research is based on in-depth semi-structured interviews conducted between August 2011 and May 2012 which were carried out with community members, policymakers and tourism developers. Using a qualitative case study research approach, the analysis of data identifies tourism providers’ authentication positions on various themes and indicators of authenticity for Kazakhstani eco-cultural tourism. Several topic areas including the geographical imagination (nomadic cultural landscapes), crafts purchased by tourists (nomadic ethnic art), and performative spaces (nomadic home-stays and nomadic food) are identified as sources of authentic tourism experiences for visitors. For each topic area, various stakeholders’ perceptions of authenticity are presented. The article examines various aspects of the commodification of nomadic culture in a post-Soviet heritage and details the role authenticity plays in the planning and development of Kazakhstani tourism and local community participation and empowerment

Niue’s destination image: A perspective from the travel experiences of international visitors

The purpose of this paper is to explore the image of Niue as a destination from the international visitors’ perspective. This current research is part of the Niue International Visitor Survey project at the New Zealand Tourism Research Institute. The data in this research were drawn from 1,446 participants between Oct 2017 and Sep 2018. The open-ended questions about international visitors’ perceptions towards Niue were analyzed thematically by coding with the facilitation of NVivo. Data analysis demonstrated that visitors perceived Niue as a destination with beautiful and clean nature environment, good water-based activities, friendly local people, and laid-back atmosphere, while poor facilities and infrastructure, food and beverage, and animal-related issues were least attractive for visitors. The paper concludes with implications for Niue destination marketing organizers

Performance and visitors' perception of authenticity in eco-cultural tourism

With the increasing commodification of cultural heritage induced by tourism development, the perception of a ‘real’ travel experience often depends on what is defined as authentic, original and local. Visitors are becoming increasingly concerned about the authenticity of eco-cultural tourism practices when they visit culturally and environmentally remote regions. The purpose of this study is to examine the role performance plays in visitors' perception of authenticity of eco-cultural tourism experiences. Various theoretical foundations and aspects of visitors' perceptions of authenticity in cultural heritage tourism are considered. A grounded theory approach based on in-depth semi-structured interviews with several categories of visitors including 25 clients from two eco-tours in South and Central Kazakhstan and 29 Free Independent Travellers (FITs) was adopted to identify visitors' perception of authenticity of various aspects of their tourism experiences and the attributes of the visitors' performative aspects of their travels. Results reveal that the performative aspects contributing to the perceived authenticity of the visitors' eco-cultural experiences are spontaneous, existential and reciprocal relationships with their hosts in intimate tourism encounters. The findings contribute to literature regarding authenticity and cultural heritage tourism by exploring new directions in which to apply the concept of authenticity in eco-cultural tourism experiences and by theorising the link between performance-based touristic space and the perception of authenticity. This space becomes a basis for interaction and social exchange within the host–guest relationship

Greening Hotels and Fair Labour Practices

In recent years, a number of labour union strategic initiatives have been developed which seek to leverage consumer preference against employers in the accommodation services sector. These programs largely focus on rating and certifying hotels based upon environmentally and socially responsible behaviour and labour friendly practices. In part, the campaigns are a response to the perceived 'green-washing' of hotels through voluntary, self-reporting rating systems. This paper examines three union campaigns that recommend hotels according to social and environmental criteria: The Fair Hotels campaign (Ireland); the First Star program (Australia); and INMEX (United States and Canada). We find that limitations are related to the geographic scale of the campaigns and their inability to advocate for any significant shift toward a more socially and environmentally sustainable accommodation services sector.Work in a Warming World (W3

Shining new light on mammalian diving physiology using wearable near-infrared spectroscopy

Investigation of marine mammal dive-by-dive blood distribution and oxygenation has been limited by a lack of non-invasive technology for use in freely diving animals. Here, we developed a non-invasive near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) device to measure relative changes in blood volume and haemoglobin oxygenation continuously in the blubber and brain of voluntarily diving harbour seals. Our results show that seals routinely exhibit preparatory peripheral vasoconstriction accompanied by increased cerebral blood volume approximately 15 s before submersion. These anticipatory adjustments confirm that blood redistribution in seals is under some degree of cognitive control that precedes the mammalian dive response. Seals also routinely increase cerebral oxygenation at a consistent time during each dive, despite a lack of access to ambient air. We suggest that this frequent and reproducible reoxygenation pattern, without access to ambient air, is underpinned by previously unrecognised changes in cerebral drainage. The ability to track blood volume and oxygenation in different tissues using NIRS will facilitate a more accurate understanding of physiological plasticity in diving animals in an increasingly disturbed and exploited environment

Authenticity and disorientation in the tourism experience

It is argued that some travellers seek unique, exotic and authentic tourism encounters that correspond to a search for the experience of difference, foreignness and disorientation. Despite the growing number of studies researching the concept of authenticity in the tourism experience, there is a relative lack of academic work looking at stakeholder perceptions of authenticity in relation to disorientation and the tourism experience. Using a grounded theory methodology drawing on interviews with various stakeholders involved in Kazakhstani eco-cultural tourism, the study reveals that experiences of disorientation can be encouraged by tourism suppliers and influence visitors' perception of authenticity across various dimensions of cultural heritage tourism. By travelling outside of their usual comfort zones, visitors experience disorientation that increases their level of emotions, understanding and interaction with foreign environments and makes their tourism experience more ‘authentic’. Integrating potentially ‘disorientating activities’ such as wandering in steppe landscapes or exploring culinary traditions into future tourism experiences has implications for future tourism development whereby business and government can reinforce tourism experiences being offered and create unique selling points. Such an approach enables a greater diversification of the types of tourism development supported by the Kazakhstani government

Above‐ and below‐ground assessment of carabid community responses to crop type and tillage

Carabid beetles are major predators in agro‐ecosystems. The composition of their communities within crop environments governs the pest control services they provide. An understudied aspect is the distribution of predacious carabid larvae in the soil. We used novel subterranean trapping with standard pitfall trapping, within a multi‐crop rotation experiment, to assess the responses of above‐ and below‐ground carabid communities to management practices. Crop and trap type significantly affected pooled carabid abundance with an interaction of the two, the highest numbers of carabids were caught in subterranean traps in barley under sown with grass. Trap type accounted for the most variance observed in carabid community composition, followed by crop. Tillage responses were only apparent at the species level for three of the eight species modelled. Responses to crop type varied by species. Most species had higher abundance in under‐sown barley, than grass, wheat and barley. Crop differences were greater in the subterranean trap data. For predaceous larvae, standard pitfalls showed lowest abundances in under‐sown barley, yet subterranean traps revealed abundances to be highest in this crop. Comprehensive estimation of ecosystem services should incorporate both above‐ and below‐ground community appraisal, to inform appropriate management

A MIDI sequencer that widens access to the compositional possibilities of novel tunings

We present a new Dynamic Tonality MIDI sequencer, Hex, that aims to make sequencing music in and across a large variety of novel tunings as straightforward as sequencing in twelve-tone equal temperament. It replaces the piano roll used in conventional MIDI sequencers with a two-dimensional lattice roll in order to enable the intuitive visualization and dynamic manipulation of tuning. In conventional piano roll sequencers, a piano keyboard is displayed on the left side of the window, and white and black note lanes extend horizontally to the right, into which a user can draw a sequence of notes. Similarly, in Hex, a button lattice is displayed in its own pane on the left side of the window, and horizontal lines are drawn from the center of each note to the right. These lines function as generalized note lanes, just like in piano roll sequencers, but with the added benefit that each note lane's height is always proportional to its pitch, even if the user changes the tuning. The presence of the button lattice on the left side of the window illustrates exactly which buttons a performer would play in order to replicate the sequence when playing a physical button lattice instrument