Still seeking the audience

The changing capacities to connect generated through contemporary media have implications for an understanding of the idea of ‘audience’. This paper begins a new search for an understanding of the contemporary audience and seeks this through an engagement with a few key ideas that sign-post a reconsideration of my own understanding of what an audience might become. Massumi’s idea of intensity, Bennett’s use of assemblage and the focus on event to emphasize the dynamic nature of an audience help to guide my trajectory. Finally I attempt to apply these ideas to a personal experience of becoming an audience to see how useful they might be as I continue to question my own habituated conceptualisations

Who laughs? A moment of laughter in Shortbus

In his essay On Laughter, first published in France in 1900, Henri Bergson suggested that “our laughter is always the laughter of the group” (2003:5). With this observation in mind, I have to ask: who laughs when we watch a movie? Who is it that we hear when laughter fills the theatre even if momentarily

Use of scanned detection in optical position encoders

Published versio

Beyond denomination: The relationship between religion and family planning in rural Malawi

Despite the centrality of religion and fertility to life in rural Africa, the relationship between the two remains poorly understood. The study presented here uses unique integrated individual- and congregational-level data from rural Malawi to examine religious influences on contraceptive use. In this religiously diverse population, we find evidence that the particular characteristics of a congregation—leader’s positive attitudes toward family planning and discussion of sexual morality, which do not fall along broad denominational lines—are more relevant than denominational categories for predicting women’s contraceptive use. We further find evidence for a relationship between religious socialization and contraceptive behavior.family planning, fertility, religion, social interaction, Sub-Saharan Africa

Design and simulation of zipping variable capacitors

Variable capacitors are essential for building tunable RF systems. We present here the design and simulation of novel zipping variable capacitors with a high permittivity dielectric layer. Two modelling techniques are presented: finite element simulation and variational analysis. A capacitance ratio greater than 40 can be obtained for a 100µm x 25µm device which has a high permittivity dielectric layer (εr = 200). By shaping either the top electrode beam or the bottom electrode, continuously variable capacitance is achieved at low bias voltages

Surface plasmon applications - microscopy and spatial light modulation

Imperial Users onl

Acoustic energy transmission in cast iron pipelines

In this paper we propose acoustic power transfer as a method for the remote powering of pipeline sensor nodes. A theoretical framework of acoustic power propagation in the ceramic transducers and the metal structures is drawn, based on the Mason equivalent circuit. The effect of mounting on the electrical response of piezoelectric transducers is studied experimentally. Using two identical transducer structures, power transmission of 0.33 mW through a 1 m long, 118 mm diameter cast iron pipe, with 8 mm wall thickness is demonstrated, at 1 V received voltage amplitude. A near-linear relationship between input and output voltage is observed. These results show that it is possible to deliver significant power to sensor nodes through acoustic waves in solid structures. The proposed method may enable the implementation of acoustic - powered wireless sensor nodes for structural and operation monitoring of pipeline infrastructure

Food labelling and its influences on food choices

Policy issue In 2002, it became mandatory for food producers in Australia to provide a Nutrition Information Panel (NIP) on the back of food packages. However, research has shown that consumers often misinterpret NIPs or do not use them at all. Health advocates have begun to consider one form of NIPs - Front-of-Pack labelling (FoPL) - as a means of supporting healthy food choices. There are more than 20 FoPL formats in use worldwide. The information they provide varies considerably (for example summaries of key ingredients or detailed information about them), as do the strategies underpinning their use. Three FoPL format s are commonly used in the Australian market – National Heart Foundation (NHF) Tick, The Daily Intake Guide (%DI), and Glycaemic Index (GI) Symbol. Each of them have a different logo, which may cause confusion among consumers. To prevent this, the Australian Government accepts that an easily understood, uniform FoPL system is needed. The recent Government-funded review of food labelling (led by federal former health minister, Dr Neal Blewett AC) recommended that the Traffic Light System (TLS) be adopted. The Government did not support this as the preferred option. The food industry has also been reluctant to adopt it. With the prevalence of obesity still rising, and the Government still debating the possible benefits of uniform FoPL, food labelling to support healthy food decisions has become a contentious issue

Micro-Engineered Devices for Motion Energy Harvesting

Published versio