Nothing Great Is Easy

A solo exhibition of 13 pieces of art work. Nothing Great is Easy is an exhibition of sculpture, film, drawing and photography that proposes reconstructed narratives using the sport of swimming and in particular the collective interaction and identity of the channel swimmer. The work utilises the processes, rituals/rules, language and the apparatus of sport. “Nothing great is easy” are the words on the memorial to Captain Matthew Webb who was the first man to swim the English channel in 1875

Internship design and its impact on intrinsic motivation and student career choice.

This study examines the role experiential education, in the form of internships, plays in the professional development of Hospitality and Tourism Management students. Through an appraisal of the literature, it outlines the many benefits available to direct and indirect stakeholders through the facilitation of a structured, work based learning experience. In particular, it analyses the internship through an evaluation of job design by applying both Hackman and Oldham’s (1975a) Job Characteristics Model (JCM) and developing a proposed intern’s version of that model. The outcomes demonstrate that dimensions of the work undertaken do contribute significantly to an individual’s satisfaction and intrinsic motivation with the proposed intern’s model offering improved R2 coefficients, over the original JCM, by using different predictive variables. The study further sub-divides the sample by examining the findings by cohort and emphasis area. This affords the opportunity to identify specific recommendations on internship design that provides maximum utility to the student participant and the facilitators of the work experience. To this end, the results offer a series of recommended job dimensions for various service industry destinations including the need for increased task significance and feedback from agents for tourism students, opportunities for an autonomous work environment for event planners, exposure to a variety of skills for lodging professionals and feedback from the job for food and beverage students. By designing internships in this way, opportunities for enriched work are created for students at the case-study university. The study also examines the role classroom education plays in underpinning the internship experience and finds that while this assists students in observing many of the topics and theories discussed in a theoretical setting, the experiential component of the learning enhances their education through the development of new skills and competencies not previously taught. Overall, this study offers a unique contribution to the existing body of knowledge on experiential education and its impact on worker/job satisfaction and intrinsic motivation

The Archive of Unrealised Devices

Google Patents is an eight-year-old virtual searchable database containing the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and the European Patent Office (EPO) patents, with US patent applications dating back to 1790. This searchable online archive of invention, novelty and innovation is a valuable tool for designers and researchers. As a point of departure for recent art-based research, Google Patents online database is mined by me as a creative practitioner. As an artist-hacker, the found material used in my research arises from patent searches for fantastical machines and devices developed to assist with swimming, dating from the 1870s to the early twentieth century. The retrieved patent, etched drawings and information evidence an understanding of a new sport at particular moments in time. However, almost all of these patents remained ‘unrealized’, only contained within the drawing and text of the patent itself. These patents are used as the visual and conceptual basis for The Swimming Machine Archive (2014), a growing body of collages featuring fictional devices for moving through water

The Acousmatic Musical Performance: An Ontological Investigation

This investigation provides an answer to the following ontological question: what is an acousmatic musical performance? Chapter 1 discusses acousmatic sound – a fundamental constituent of the acousmatic musical performance – and considers ways in which acousmatic sounds are determined in advance of, and during, a performance. Chapter 2 presents the acousmatic performance as an agent-centred, skilful enterprise that serves both composers and listeners through intentional communicative acts. Chapter 3 examines the nature of, and relations that hold between, acousmatic performances and acousmatic works. Chapter 4 considers interpretations of works and highlights some of the various ways in which interpretations are formulated, regulated and executed. Chapter 5 focuses upon the notion of performance authenticity and questions whether it is possible for an acousmatic performance to be considered inauthentic. Taken as a whole, these five chapters highlight the central constituents of the acousmatic musical performance, unravel the collective input of composers, performers, listeners and technologies, and explicate the complex network of relations that coalesce within the performance environment. The methods employed within this thesis relate to the practice of musical ontology, and have been significantly influenced by Richard Wollheim’s realist account of type and tokens (Wollheim 1980) and Stephen Davies’ notion of thick and thin musical works (Davies 2004). These ontological theories provided a method for identifying and discussing the relations that hold between acousmatic performances and acousmatic works, and were ultimately fundamental to the formulation of a bespoke type-theory that serves music of the acousmatic tradition. Accordingly, the research serves two distinct communities. On the one hand, it serves the ontological community; acousmatic music has received very little ontological attention and, as a result, this research broadens the investigative scope of the discipline whilst considering how existing theories may be applied to music of the acousmatic tradition. On the other hand, it serves the acousmatic community; by abstracting and explaining the central constituents of the acousmatic musical performance, this investigation clarifies the roles of composers, performers and listeners, and demonstrates how understanding of these roles may inform creative practice. A portfolio consisting of six original acousmatic compositions has been produced. This compositional research allowed theoretical ideas to be tested, and works in the portfolio are cited to contextualise key points

Fields of Vision: Arts and Sport Communities and Methods of Practice

The disciplines of arts and sport are usually divided in education, research, professional practice and cultural policy, even though in the UK they both lie within a single department of Government (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport). In the UK the relationship between arts and sports can sometimes appear awkward, with the two disciplines often only bought together for large international mega sporting events. However, links between the arts and sport can enhance strategies to increase participation in each and promote cultural citizenship, stimulate experimentation, innovation and tackle challenging topics. This paper takes The Fields of Vision Project and the associated Fields of Vision Manifesto as a departure point to propose pioneering modes of practice that cross the discipline boundaries of sports and art, whereby a dialogue and community of practice develops that encourages audience diversity, community engagement and hybrid forms of practice. Utilising precedents from contemporary visual art, propositions are expressed for new experiences and opportunities for practitioners, producers and audiences that might offer impact and legacy beyond the mega sporting event. Keywords: Art, Community, Culture, Olympics, Sport

Keys to success in social media marketing (SMM): prospects for the German airline industry.

The continuous growth and economic contribution of Germany's commercial aviation industry are directly linked to the implementation of new marketing practices. Especially in light of challenging market conditions and fierce competition within a highly segmented industry, new marketing paradigms assist airlines to overcome difficulties in order to promote their brands, products and services more effectively and in a circulated manner. In this regard, Social Media Marketing provides German airlines with a powerful set of marketing tools and multiple platforms to digitally gather, communicate, collaborate and share content with its customers. Despite a growing public awareness, an extensive review of current and relevant literature revealed that consumer perceptions on German airline organisations' Social Media practices have not been examined. This paper aims to address this

Development and evaluation of Peer Assisted Learning (PAL) in the veterinary curriculum: a foundation for a new undergraduate certificate in veterinary medical education

A definition of Peer Assisted Learning (PAL) widely accepted with in the published literature is: ‘people from similar social groupings, who are not professional teachers, helping each other to learn and learning themselves by teaching’ (Topping 1996). PAL has been used informally as a teaching methodology in medical education for many years, but has grown in popularity in more recent times due to the general acceptance among the medical profession that teaching students is an essential part of a junior doctor’s job description. This view has been formally recognised in the UK by the General Medical Council (GMC) (GMC 2003). PAL has been used as a teaching methodology at the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies over a number of years in a range of contexts, both informally and formally as part of the veterinary undergraduate curriculum. The aim of this project was three fold; 1) To evaluate the perceived effectiveness and popularity of PAL as a methodology for teaching equine and canine clinical examination skills among veterinary undergraduates using qualitative post-intervention feedback data. 2) To quantitatively analyse the results of a multiple choice question (MCQ) study designed to test whether experiencing PAL improved the knowledge of veterinary undergraduates relating to canine clinical examination. 3) To introduce and test the concept of an Undergraduate Certificate in Veterinary Medical Education (UCVME) amongst potential stakeholders and evaluate the programme at the end of the first year. Qualitative feedback data relating to the equine and canine clinical examination skills PAL intervention has been collated annually since 2010/11. This project came into being in part because analysis of this large body of data was considered to be a valuable addition to the current published literature pertaining to PAL. Analysis of the post-intervention feedback data obtained from 1st year/Graduate Entry Programme (GEP) tutees and 4th year tutors showed that PAL was perceived as a valuable teaching methodology. The results also suggested that the PAL clinical skills course provided a valuable opportunity for tutors and tutees to enhance their examination and tutoring skills and knowledge. Tutee feedback also suggested that, at the point of execution, 4th year tutors were perceived by their tutees to have the skills required to deliver effective PAL interventions. The MCQ study, devised as an attempt to quantify any improvements in the student’s knowledge as a result of experiencing the PAL intervention, was implemented to build on the analysis of the qualitative feedback data. The body of published literature describing attempts to quantify the benefits of PAL in relation to the academic performance of students, is considerably smaller than that relating to the qualitative benefits of PAL and therefore the results of the MCQ study had the potential to be an important addition to the literature. The MCQ study comprised a crossover study design that incorporated a control group. 1st year/GEP tutees and 4th year tutors were asked to complete one set of multiple choice questions before the canine clinical skills PAL session and a different set of questions immediately after the intervention. The results from the study were inconclusive with regard to demonstrating a change in knowledge, but did highlight several areas for future research. While the importance of developing teaching skills in undergraduate medical students has been formally recognised, the number of published articles describing formal teacher training programmes run by medical schools, while growing, is still small. There is also large variation in the format, content and duration of the programmes that have been described. The concept of the UCVME was introduced to provide a structured teacher training programme and formally recognise development of teaching skills in the undergraduate veterinary curriculum. The hope of the R(D)SVS, if the UCVME is successful, is that the veterinary governing bodies will, like their human medical colleagues, formally recognise the importance of developing teaching skills in veterinary undergraduates. A needs analysis was undertaken with veterinary undergraduates and members of the veterinary profession to inform the content, design and perceived value of the UCVME. This indicated that the concept of the programme would be well received and considered a worthwhile exercise across all the cohorts surveyed. Uptake levels amongst eligible students, combined with the positive feedback received from students who have completed the first year of the programme, supported the findings of the pre-UCVME survey. Evaluation results identified suggestions for minor changes and modifications to the UCVME, however overall, feedback from candidates suggested that the design and implementation of the UCVME had been well received

The motivations and experiences of community garden participants in Edinburgh, Scotland

** From Crossref via Jisc Publications Router.This paper presents the perspectives of participants from three Community Gardens in Edinburgh, Scotland and investigates the role that food growing plays in their recreation and leisure activities, personal development, the development of their children and the impact on their communities. Thirty-eight participants were interviewed using qualitative, semi-structured questions to explore their motivations and experiences from their involvement with community gardens. Participant observation was used to better understand the importance of the gardens in their lives. The participants felt the gardens were places that fostered neighbourly engagement, increased leisure opportunities, social support, community health, connectedness, and community diversity. They were also places that promoted knowledge exchange inside the garden and in to the homes of the people and the community itself. Anxieties over land use and land reform highlighted how community gardens symbolised empowerment but also showed resistance to the hegemonic structure of local council and government. In effect, the research suggests that community gardens grow much more than just food, they grow community.div_BaM5pub5159pub