Net Neutrality: Fight for the Survival of the Free Internet

The Internet is often thought of as a tool that allows for the free flow of information. Today, as a vessel of free speech, the Internet threatens to become a vestige of its original self. Increasingly, Internet Service Providers (ISPs) claim the power to regulate content and arbitrarily increase the price for customers to access certain information and have the ability to make customers financially support content that they disagree with. In these ways, ISPs have gained increased control over the flow of Internet information, while the citizen of cyberspace has increasingly lost his freedom to control his choices online. This poses an even more important problem for American democracy, which demands educated citizens, who are threatened by censorship. Only a libertarian approach to this problem, which sustains the original ideals of the Internet as a tool of unfiltered communication, will continue freedom of information. The best implementations of the libertarian approach are net neutrality laws, which ensure that all users are treated equally. This paper argues to support both the need for net neutrality laws to protect against economically driven encroachment upon the freedom of the Internet and the importance of libertarian ideas to the maintenance and strengthening of democracy

Flash@Hebburn Urban Art in the New Century

The publication of Flash@Hebburn, explores the creation of the public art installation Flash@Hebburn featuring light and electricity, by Charles Quick, on the banks of the River Tyne at Hebburn Riverside Park in South Tyneside, which spanned a period of seven and a half years and was inaugurated on March 9th 2009. It extensively documents the testing, making and installing of a public art installation that resembles a technical functional placement, which serves to evoke a largely post-industrial site without resorting to nostalgia, while strongly relating to the community where it is placed. Jonthan Vickery’s essay, Infrastructures: Creating Flash@Hebburn, places the work not only in its context of site and its relation to the audience but also in the development of an art world discourse on new urban arts. This is supported by an interview with the artist by Dr John Wood, Henry Moore Institute which discusses the project as a piece of art work in relationship to other contemporary works the artist and others have carried out

Sense of place at a British coastal resort: Exploring ‘seasideness’ in Morecambe

This paper considers the tourist’s sense of place as experienced at Morecambe, Lancashire; it is concerned with emotional connections and reactions to place. This struggling traditional British seaside resort has seen the ebb and flow of visitors over the years and more recently regeneration. The qualitative research that underpins this paper consisted interviews with 55-74 year old repeat visitors from the North of England, reflecting the resort’s visitor demographics. This paper therefore reflects a perspective rather than the views of a wider population. The interviews reveal the important role of the sea and seascape to these visitors, this coastal environment lies at the heart of their sense of place. It facilitated a distinctive experience which centred around the inter-related themes of nostalgia, wellness and spirituality. Exposure to the open space of the seafront allowed a connection to something more substantial and enduring than themselves; this was considered thought provoking, uplifting and even spiritual. The respondents valued their seaside visits and percieved them as enjoyable, beneficial and a part of their identity. The tradition of seaside visits was part of their childhood, family narrative and something to be shared with children and grandchildren now and into the future. Their attachment to Morecambe fed into a positive sense of place, referred to here as seasideness, which relied on the distinctive socio-cultural and physical elements of the resort

Sense of place at a British coastal resort: Exploring ‘seasideness’ in Morecambe

This paper considers the tourist’s sense of place as experienced at Morecambe, Lancashire; it is concerned with emotional connections and reactions to place. This struggling traditional British seaside resort has seen the ebb and flow of visitors over the years and more recently regeneration. The qualitative research that underpins this paper consisted interviews with 55-74 year old repeat visitors from the North of England, reflecting the resort’s visitor demographics. This paper therefore reflects a perspective rather than the views of a wider population. The interviews reveal the important role of the sea and seascape to these visitors, this coastal environment lies at the heart of their sense of place. It facilitated a distinctive experience which centred around the inter-related themes of nostalgia, wellness and spirituality. Exposure to the open space of the seafront allowed a connection to something more substantial and enduring than themselves; this was considered thought provoking, uplifting and even spiritual. The respondents valued their seaside visits and percieved them as enjoyable, beneficial and a part of their identity. The tradition of seaside visits was part of their childhood, family narrative and something to be shared with children and grandchildren now and into the future. Their attachment to Morecambe fed into a positive sense of place, referred to here as seasideness, which relied on the distinctive socio-cultural and physical elements of the resort

Teaching Computers to Think: Analysis of Artificial Intelligence and Connect Four

Connect Four is a classic two person, zero-sum game in which players utilize their wits and gravity to connect four of their own pieces in a horizontal, vertical, or diagonal row while blocking their opponent’s attempt to do the same. We have constructed a simulation of this game which we have used as a base for the implementation and testing of varying Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems. Early strategies worked according to simple strategic methods, while more advanced heuristics employed a Min-Max Tree in tandem with methods to determine how advantageous a certain board would be. This Min-Max Tree goes beyond a simple strategy, as it allows for the computer to look many moves ahead, thus picking the move that optimizes its chances of winning. The collection of statistics for the various strategies has allowed for the analysis and improvement of the AI structures

Net Neutrality: Fight for the Survival of the Free Internet

The Internet is often thought of as a tool that allows for the free flow of information. Today, as a vessel of free speech, the Internet threatens to become a vestige of its original self. Increasingly, Internet Service Providers (ISPs) claim the power to regulate content and arbitrarily increase the price for customers to access certain information and have the ability to make customers financially support content that they disagree with. In these ways, ISPs have gained increased control over the flow of Internet information, while the citizen of cyberspace has increasingly lost his freedom to control his choices online. This poses an even more important problem for American democracy, which demands educated citizens, who are threatened by censorship. Only a libertarian approach to this problem, which sustains the original ideals of the Internet as a tool of unfiltered communication, will continue freedom of information. The best implementations of the libertarian approach are net neutrality laws, which ensure that all users are treated equally. This paper argues to support both the need for net neutrality laws to protect against economically driven encroachment upon the freedom of the Internet and the importance of libertarian ideas to the maintenance and strengthening of democracy

The Evaluation of Conservative Treatments and Surgical Interventions on Return to Play Outcomes in Shoulder Labrum Tears in Athletes: A Critically Appraised Topic

Clinical Scenario: Historically, superior labral tears anterior to posterior (SLAP) of the shoulder have been widely viewed as uncommon; however, current literature supports a rise in surgical repair of these lesions. Treatment for SLAP tears in athletes through surgical or conservative methods often produces a low return to play (RTP) rate. However, the most effective treatment to increase RTP rates at the previous level of activity has yet to be determined. Clinical Question: In athletes who have SLAP tears of the shoulder, how do arthroscopic surgery and biceps tenodesis compare with conservative treatments in return to play efficiency? Summary of Key Findings: A thorough literature search returned 204 possible studies; 4 studies met the inclusion criteria and were included. Current evidence supports the use of conservative treatments before surgery is attempted. When considering whether to pursue surgical interventions or continue nonoperatively, conservative treatments produced relatively similar results as surgical interventions; however, overhead athletes showed a lower return to previous play (RTPP) rates than regular athletes. Clinical Bottom Line: There were consistent findings from multiple low-quality studies that indicate there is no clear difference in the use of conservative treatments compared with surgical interventions when comparing RTP rates in physically active athletes. Strength of Recommendation: Grade C evidence exists that conservative treatments and surgical interventions equally minimally improve RTP rates

An exploration of webcam-travel: connecting to place and nature through webcams during the COVID-19 lockdown of 2020

During the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdown of 2020, freedom to travel was restricted but there was a remarkable increase in webcam-travel, which can be defined as visiting place-based webcams online. Media commentators suggested that this technology was being used to connect with places and nature; an observation mirrored by webcam hosting organisations. This study examines the surge in popularity of these webcams which reflect a wide range of sites – often natural environments. It goes on to explore the attributes of webcam-travel to explain its rise during lockdown, primarily by employing an online questionnaire. It reveals that this experience is marked by feelings of freedom, nostalgia, and connection – each of which offers potential wellness benefits. Respondents exercised their freedom through these virtual portals to connect to nature, the outdoors, and places that they associated with happy memories pre-lockdown. This article also suggests that webcam-travel links to an increased likelihood to physically visit these sites in the future. Therefore, this research may be relevant to both academics and practitioners with an interest in the experience economy