The study of solidarity and the social theory of Alain Touraine

This chapter is a critical assessment of the study of Solidarity carried out by Alain Touraine and his research team in 1981 and first published in French in 1982 and in English in 1983. The book (Touraine et al. 1983) has drawn a mixed response from critics. Some have tended to regard the study as providing rich, detailed and important insights into the early history of the movement (Bauman 1985; Kennedy 1991; Law 1984; terry 1984; Watson 1984). Others – especially those whose principle concern has been to evaluate Touraine’s wider social theory – have seen Solidarity as manifesting the contradictions, inconsistency and opacity said to be characteristic of his work (Goldfarb 1989; Scott 1991). What is curious, given both the historical significance of Solidarity and the controversy surrounding Touraine’s work, is that there has been no previous attempt - in English at least – to make the Solidarity study itself the central object of investigation. We will begin by locating the study and outlining its central findings. Then we will analyze the extent to which the study fulfils its internal objectives and how it relates to concepts and categories found in Touraine’s work. We will argue that Solidarity is a comprehensive, illuminating and important piece of work and that some criticisms have been misdirected. There are, though, problems in the study caused by instances of both continuity and discontinuity between the Solidarity study and Touraine’s wider social theory. In particular there is an unresolved tension between the findings in respect of the evolutionary development of Solidarity and Touraine’s understanding of a social movement; and, as a result of a eliance on preconceived categories in the sociological ntervention, Touraine et al. fail to account properly for the potential development of neo-liberal and reactionary nationalist currents in Solidarit

Alarm initiated activities: Matching formats to tasks

This paper addresses the selection of visual alarm formats for different 'alarm initiated activities'. The activities under examination were alarm handling tasks. Seven such tasks have been identified, namely: observe, accept, analyse, investigate, correct, monitor and reset. One of the most important stages is the initial analysis of the alarm information as this determines the subsequent manner in which the information is processed. It was hypothesised that the format in which the information is presented will determine the success of the alarm handling task, hence the proposal to match formats to tasks. The findings suggest that text-based formats are best suited to tasks requiring time-based reasoning, mimic formats are best suited to tasks requiring spatial location and annunciator formats are best suited to tasks requiring recognition of spatial patterns. The importance of considering both reaction time and accuracy of response in consideration of task match was also noted. In summary, it is suggested that care needs to be taken to determine the appropriateness of the medium for any given task and the demands it places on the human operator

Sexual health in adolescents

“Saved sex” and parental involvement are key to improving outcome

Brain death

Sections on Questions of death... and life; Defining death; A brief history of brain death; Clinical criticisms of brain death; Theological reflections of brainstem deat

The evolution of autonomy

There can be little doubt, at least in the Western world, that autonomy is the ruling principle in contemporary bioethics. In spite of its ‘triumph’ however, the dominance of the utilitarian concept of autonomy is being increasingly questioned. In this paper, I explore the nature of autonomy, how it came to displace the Hippocratic tradition in medicine and how different concepts of autonomy have evolved. I argue that the reduction of autonomy to ‘the exercise of personal choice’ in medicine has led to a ‘tyranny of autonomy’ which can be inimical to ethical medical practice rather than conducive to it. I take the case of Kerrie Wooltorton as an illustration of how misplaced adherence to respect for patient autonomy can lead to tragic consequences. An analysis of autonomy based on the work of Rachel Haliburton is described and applied to the role of autonomy in a recent bioethical debate — that arising from Savulescu’s proposal that conscientious objection by health-care professionals should not be permitted in the NHS. In conclusion, I suggest Kukla’s concept of conscientious autonomy as one promising pathway to circumvent both the limitations and adverse effects of the dominance of current (mis)understandings of autonomy in biomedical ethics

Coal Seam Gas: Issues for Consideration in the Illawarra Region, NSW, Australia

Coal seam gas (CSG) is a naturally occurring gas, predominantly methane (CH4) that can be used as a fuel to generate electricity. It is found within the pores and fractures of all sub-surface coal seams, typically at a depth of 300 to 1000 metres. Advances in drilling technology have made CSG extraction more economical, leading to a significant expansion in development, particularly in the eastern coal basins of Australia and parts of the US. This rapid expansion in development has created significant concern as to possible impacts on the environment, particularly issues relating to agriculture, groundwater, and water catchments. The main environmental issues relating to CSG extraction are outlined in this thesis by analysing a range of literature relating to CSG development in the Illawarra region, south of Sydney, a region that has been extensively mined over the past 150 years and is an important water catchment for the Sydney metropolitan area. In addition to discussing exploration and production techniques such as hydraulic fracturing, an analysis of the geology and hydrogeology of the Southern Coalfield is undertaken, with particular reference to the potential impacts on groundwater and water catchments. The study also reviews the legislative framework, and looks at the global and domestic economic conditions currently driving CSG development in this country. This thesis forms an important basis for understanding the current issues relating to CSG in Australia, as well as proving local context for assessing potential impacts in the Illawarra region

Old French and new money: Jews and the aesthetics of the Old Regime in transnational perspective, c.1860–1910

At the dawn of the twentieth century, styles synonymous with the French Old Regime were hailed as the epitome of good taste. French fashions from the reigns of Louis XIV, Louis XV, and Louis XVI were an international luxury brand, the proliferation of which seemed to announce the rise of “new money” and transatlantic alliances. This was a defiantly cosmopolitan and opulent mode of building and decorating, which was often dissonant with its immediate surroundings. Taking the example of Oldway Mansion in Devon – created by the American entrepreneur Isaac Merritt Singer in the 1870s and transformed by his son Paris Eugène Singer in the 1890s into a the “Versailles of the West Country” – this article reflects on the elusive but pervasive contribution of Jews to the popularity of French revivalism in the fin-de-siècle. It argues for the entanglement of Jewishness with other national and class identities and insists on considering not just the identity of the patron or the architect, but the wider network of artists, decorators and art dealers who specialized in recreating the elegance of the Old Regime. It explores what role Jewish patrons and art professionals played in disseminating French historicist styles among a dynamic, global elite