Pride, shame, and the civic imaginary : Hull as UK City of Culture and Brexit

This thesis investigates how civic pride and shame have shaped the political cultures and cultural behaviours of Kingston Upon Hull between 2010-2020. In 2016, Hull voted ‘overwhelmingly’ to leave the European Union - a decision interpreted by many as inward looking and protectionist (eg. Bevington, 2018). In 2017, Hull hosted the UK City of Culture (UKCoC), an event promoted by policy makers as signifying the openness and cosmopolitanism of the host city. For some, a ‘Brexit’ city hosting UKCoC was paradoxical (Clavane, 2017), and that Hull’s political and cultural behaviours have been somehow contradictory. Through the conceptual and methodological framework of the civic imaginary, this study investigates that assumed paradox to develop multi-perspective views of Hull and its changing sense of self in response to Brexit and UKCoC.Taking a multidimensional, mixed methods – though primarily ethnographic - approach, this interdisciplinary project analyses Hull’s civic imaginaries in relation to the wider political cultures and cultural behaviours locally and nationally. Discussion is also drawn from the critical analysis of key Hull2017 events and the critical discourse analysis of materials such as speeches, interviews and reports produced by Hull2017 decision makers and by key local and national figures in the Brexit debates. It examines how civic pride and civic shame are entwined within the Hull civic imaginary, furthering understandings of how these feelings, key to our sense of place and belonging, are felt, mobilised and put to work through multiple policy realms, modes and levels of governance, and ultimately, how they are lived and enacted through everyday political cultures.I argue that Hull’s recent history has been marked by diverse, and diversely formulated modes of emotional governance that have influenced, and at times exploited local political cultures and feelings. Such strategies have contributed to the sometimes problematic re-imagining of residents’ senses of place and belonging. The thesis makes new observations about the role of civic pride and shame in the contemporary political culture and cultural behaviours of Hull, a relatively unresearched and under-represented city. It develops new understandings of Brexit at the scale of the city and nuances existing understandings of localised identities and political behaviours in ‘left-behind’ places. It presents new insights into the processes of production and reception of a UKCoC in a dynamic period of political change – finding that Hull’s status as both ‘Brexit’ city and UK City of Culture were not so paradoxical at all

A study of the role of physico-chemical factors in the control of the distribution of invertebrates in the Aln estuary, N. E. England

The role of physico-chemical factors in controlling the distribution of invertebrates was investigated at Aln estuary, Alnmouth, North East England. A general account is given of the intertidal benthic macrofauna at twelve stations along a 2.4 km tidal stretch of the Aln estuary from the open coast inland. Species distribution was interpreted in relation to selected physico-chemical factors. Salinity was the factor to which all species had to respond to. However, it was found that not one, but several interrelated factors were operative in limiting the distribution of each species. A detailed study was made of Corophium volutator and Haustorius arenarius. It was found that salinity and sediment characteristics were the most important factors influencing the distribution of these two species. Although not enough time was available to quantify biological factors, the interrelationship between physico- chemical factors and biological factors was not dismissed, and the potential role of biological factors in determining the distribution of the intertidal benthic macrofauna was emphasized

English for science and technology: a computer corpus-based analysis of English science and technology texts for application in higher education

Doutoramento em LinguísticaThis thesis presents two analyses: first the analysis of computer corpora from undergraduate textbooks to isolate the (American) English language of science and technology they present; secondly an analysis of the English language competence of undergraduates starting their university studies in science and technology. These two analyses are contrasted in order to apply the results to the design of an English language syllabus for first year undergraduates. A frequency and range word list was produced using a large baseline corpus to contrast with the main corpora taken from physics and chemistry textbooks on the students’ bibliographies as a resource for syllabus design. Secondly, four corpora, two main and two sub-corpora produced from the physics and chemistry textbooks on the bibliographies of the undergraduates were analysed using Biber’s (1988) algorithms and functions for variation across speech and writing. The student intake was tested over five years and the results of those tests analysed. It was found that there was considerable variation in the students’ levels of language competence. However, there was a close correlation between the students’ competence and the number of years they had studied English in secondary school. Nevertheless there were students with extremely advanced competence and some with little or no competence in English amongst the undergraduates. Comprehension of scientific texts was generally found to correlate with more advanced competence and more years of study. The frequency and range word list showed the contexts which are appropriate for materials to be used with these students and demonstrated variation from many of the accepted views of the language of science and technology. The computer corpora analyses varied from Biber’s academic prose category. The sub-corpora demonstrated greatest variation which is believed to be as a result of specific cultural and/or literary material in the analogies used in the textbooks. The heavy load of cultural background knowledge which the reader would need in order to work with the textbooks adequately was also found in the exercises the students were supposed to use for practice on the topic presented in the chapter. This and the interpretation of visuals in the textbooks were considered to be two principle factors that needed to be emphasised in a syllabus for first year undergraduates. However, given the time constraints on language teaching for science and technology students, a methodology which would lead to greater student autonomy is suggested using computer corpus-based studies - data- viii driven learning and computer-supported distance communications and learning.Esta tese apresenta duas análises: primeiro uma análise de corpora computadorizados, criados a partir de livros dos estudantes de licenciaturas, para isolar a linguagem Inglesa (Americana) das ciências e tecnologias que apresentam; segundo uma análise dos conhecimentos da língua Inglesa que estes alunos apresentam ao iniciar os seus estudos universitários em ciências e tecnologias. Estas duas análises são postas em contraste para se aplicar os resultados obtidos ao desenho de um programa de língua Inglesa para os alunos do primeiro ano. Foi criada uma lista com a abrangência e a frequência das palavras de um corpus de larga base, para ser contrastada com os principais corpora compilados dos livros de física e química constantes das bibliografias dos estudantes, como uma fonte para o desenho de programas. Seguidamente, quatro corpora, dois principais e dois subordinados, produzidos a partir dos livros de física e química referidos nas bibliografias dos estudantes, foram analisados usando os algoritmos e funções de Biber (1988) para variações entre linguagem falada e escrita. Durante cinco anos, à entrada para a Universidade, os estudantes foram submetidos a testes e os resultados analisados. Constatou-se que havia variações consideráveis no nível de conhecimentos da língua por parte dos estudantes. Contudo, havia uma correlação apertada entre as competências dos estudantes e o número de anos que tinham estudado Inglês nas escolas secundárias. Todavia, havia estudantes com competências extremamente avançadas e outros com competências reduzidas, ou quase nulas, em Inglês. A compreensão de textos científicos estava geralmente correlacionada com os níveis mais avançados de competências e maior número de anos de estudo. A lista com a abrangência e a frequência das palavras mostrou os contextos apropriados dos materiais a utilizar com estes estudantes e demonstrou que havia diferenças em relação a muitos dos pontos de vista aceites em relação à linguagem das ciências e tecnologias. A análise dos corpora computadorizados varia das categorias da linguagem da prosa académica de Biber. Os corpora subordinados mostram uma maior variação, que se julga ser devida a materiais específicos, culturais e/ou literário, usados nas analogias dos livros de estudo. O grande peso dos conhecimentos de fundo de que os estudantes necessitam para trabalhar adequadamente com os livros de estudo foi, também, encontrado nos exercícios que necessitam de fazer para praticarem o que está referido nos tópicos dos capítulos. Isto, juntamente com a interpretação das imagens dos livros, foram considerados os dois principais factores a precisarem de ser relevados no programa para o primeiro ano dos estudantes. Contudo, atendendo às restrições de tempo x para o ensino de línguas a estudante de ciências e tecnologias, a metodologia que conduziria a maior autonomia dos alunos será baseada na utilização de corpora computadorizados (data-driven learning) e aprendizagem à distância assistida por computador

Competing Dichotomies in IS Research and Possible Strategies for Resolution

The debate between “hard” positivist and “soft” interpretivist research approaches has been the subject of much discussion in the IS field. Typically, the debate is framed in issues central to the philosophy of science, an area where relatively few IS researchers are truly competent. This paper attempts to illuminate the issue, particularly for students and researchers not entirely familiar with the arguments. The opposing positions are caricatured in two anecdotes which illustrate the futility of research conducted at the cul de sac extremes of each approach. The main dichotomies characteristic of each research tradition are then summarized and categorized according to various levels, namely, paradigmatic, ontological, epistemologi- cal, methodological, and axiological. Finally, the paper considers a number of strategies for resolving the debate

An Ethnographic Study of IS Investment Appraisal

Both academics and practitioners have invested considerably in the information systems evaluation arena, yet rewards remain elusive. The aim of this paper is to provide rich insights into the process of IS evaluation by examining some particular political and social aspects of evaluation processes. An ethnographic study of a large, international financial institution is used to compare the experience of observed practice with the rhetoric of company policy, and also to contrast these observations with the process of IS evaluation as portrayed within the literature. Our study shows that despite increasing acknowledgement within the IS evaluation literature of the limitations and flaws of the positivist approach, this shift in focus towards interpretivist understanding has had little impact on organizational practice. In addition, our observations within the research site reveal that the assumed rationality of formalised evaluation processes merely obscures issues of power and politics that are enmeshed within these processes

The Politics of IS Evaluation: A Social Shaping Perspective

A considerable amount of research has already been conducted in the IT/IS evaluation arena, yet rewards remain elusive. This has been variously explained and in this paper we aim to realize two objectives: first, to examine some particular political and social aspects of evaluation processes in organizations and, second, to show the potential contribution of a social shaping approach to information systems research. A social shaping approach is attractive because it emphasizes a view of technological development as a social process as well as providing a framework for understanding the context in which technologies are displaced. Social shaping approaches encourage a concentration on the social and political processes through which terms such as failure, disaster, benefits, or successes come to be ascribed to technological systems. By highlighting the subjective element of evaluation procedures that produce such terms, we hope to contribute to the evaluation literature. A case study approach is used to illustrate the process and role of IS evaluations and emphasizes the dual exercise of evaluations for the purpose of user enrolment and to justify decisions in hindsight

A Study of User Involvement in Packaged Software Selection

This paper is concerned with the decision-making processes surrounding the adoption of packaged software in organizations. We begin by looking at its increasing utilization and consider some of the strengths and limi- tations of employing a standardized approach, particularly in relation to its consideration of end-user requirements. We note the highly problematic nature of installing a global standardized product in the local environment. Using a field study concerning the adoption of a customer relationship management package in a small organization, we go on to illustrate the limited amount of end-user involvement in the selection and procurement of the product. We argue that the art of salesmanship by the third party vendor and project team, which focuses on the interests of senior management, ultimately secures the selection and procurement of the software package