Negative space and positive environment : mapping opportunities for urban resilience

Cities have long held a fascination for people – as they grow and develop, there is a desire to know and understand the intricate interplay of elements that makes cities ‘live’. In part, this is a need for even greater efficiency in urban centres, yet the underlying quest is for a sustainable urban form. In order to make sense of the complex entities that we recognise cities to be, they have been compared to buildings, organisms and more recently machines. However the search for better and more elegant urban centres is hardly new, healthier and more efficient settlements were the aim of Modernism’s rational sub-division of functions, which has been translated into horizontal distribution through zoning, or vertical organisation thought highrise developments. However both of these approaches have been found to be unsustainable, as too many resources are required to maintain this kind or urbanisation and social consequences of either horizontal or vertical isolation must also be considered. From being absolute consumers of resources, of energy and of technology, cities need to change, to become sustainable in order to be more resilient and more efficient in supporting culture, society as well as economy. Our urban centres need to be re-imagined, re-conceptualised and re-defined, to match our changing society. One approach is to re-examine the compartmentalised, mono-functional approach of urban Modernism and to begin to investigate cities like ecologies, where every element supports and incorporates another, fulfilling more than just one function. This manner of seeing the city suggests a framework to guide the re-mixing of urban settlements. Beginning to understand the relationships between supporting elements and the nature of the connecting ‘web’ offers an invitation to investigate the often ignored, remnant spaces of cities. This ‘negative space’ is the residual from which space and place are carved out in the Contemporary city, providing the link between elements of urban settlement. Like all successful ecosystems, cities need to evolve and change over time in order to effectively respond to different lifestyles, development in culture and society as well as to meet environmental challenges. This paper seeks to investigate the role that negative space could have in the reorganisation of the re-mixed city. The space ‘in-between’ is analysed as an opportunity for infill development or re-development which provides to the urban settlement the variety that is a pre-requisite for ecosystem resilience. An analysis of the urban form is suggested as an empirical tool to map the opportunities already present in the urban environment and negative space is evaluated as a key element in achieving a positive development able to distribute diverse environmental and social facilities in the city.

Isolation and characterisation of novel microsatellite and mitochondrial DNA markers for the Eastern Water Dragon (Physignathus lesueurii)

Habitat fragmentation as a result of urbanisation is a growing problem for native lizard species. The Eastern Water Dragon (Physignathus lesueurii) is a social arboreal agamid lizard, native to Australia. This species represents an ideal model species to investigate the effect of urbanisation because of their prominent abundance in the urban landscape. Here we describe the isolation and characterisation of a novel set of 74 di-, tri-, and tetramicrosatellites from which 18 were selected and optimised into two multiplexes. The 18 microsatellites generated a total 148 alleles across the two populations. The number of alleles per locus varied from 2 to 18 alleles and measures of Ho and He varied from 0.395 to 0.877 and from 0.441 to 0.880, respectively. We also present primers for four novel mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) markers. The combined length of the four mtDNA marker pairs was 2,528 bp which included 15 nucleotides changes. In comparison to threatened species, which are generally characterised by small population sizes, the Eastern Water Dragon represents an ideal model species to investigate the effect of urbanisation on their behavioural ecology and connectivity patterns among populations.

Influence of medium range transport of particles from nucleation burst on particle number concentration within the urban airshed

An elevated particle number concentration (PNC) observed during nucleation events could play a significant contribution to the total particle load and therefore to the air pollution in the urban environments. Therefore, a field measurement study of PNC was commenced to investigate the temporal and spatial variations of PNC within the urban airshed of Brisbane, Australia. PNC was monitored at urban (QUT), roadside (WOO) and semi-urban (ROC) areas around the Brisbane region during 2009. During the morning traffic peak period, the highest relative fraction of PNC reached about 5% at QUT and WOO on weekdays. PNC peaks were observed around noon, which correlated with the highest solar radiation levels at all three stations, thus suggesting that high PNC levels were likely to be associated with new particle formation caused by photochemical reactions. Wind rose plots showed relatively higher PNC for the NE direction, which was associated with industrial pollution, accounting for 12%, 9% and 14% of overall PNC at QUT, WOO and ROC, respectively. Although there was no significant correlation between PNC at each station, the variation of PNC was well correlated among three stations during regional nucleation events. In addition, PNC at ROC was significantly influenced by upwind urban pollution during the nucleation burst events, with the average enrichment factor of 15.4. This study provides an insight into the influence of regional nucleation events on PNC in the Brisbane region and it the first study to quantify the effect of urban pollution on semi-urban PNC through the nucleation events. © 2012 Author(s).

Vertical particle concentration profiles around urban office buildings

Despite its role in determining both indoor and outdoor human exposure to anthropogenic particles, there is limited information describing vertical profiles of particle concentrations in urban environments, especially for ultrafine particles. Furthermore, the results of the few studies performed have been inconsistent. As such, this study aimed to assess the influence of vehicle emissions and nucleation formation on particle characteristics (particle number size distribution-PNSD and PM 2.5 concentration) at different heights around three urban office buildings located next to busy roads in Brisbane, Australia, and place these results in the broader context of the existing literature. Two sets of instruments were used to simultaneously measure PNSD, particle number (PN) and PM 2.5 concentrations, respectively, for up to three weeks at each building. The results showed that both PNSD and PM 2.5 concentration around building envelopes were influenced by vehicle emissions and new particle formation, and that they exhibited variability across the three different office buildings. During nucleation events, PN concentration in size range of <30 nm and total PN concentration increased (7-65% and 5-46%, respectively), while PM 2.5 concentration decreased (36-52%) with height. This study has shown an under acknowledged role for nucleation in producing particles that can affect large numbers of people, due to the high density and occupancy of urban office buildings and the fact that the vast majority of people's time is spent indoors. These findings highlight important new information related to the previously overlooked role of particle formation in the urban atmosphere and its potential effects on selection of air intake locations and appropriate filter types when designing or upgrading mechanical ventilation systems in urban office buildings. The results also serve to better define particle behaviour and variability around building envelopes, which has implications for studies of both human exposure and particle dynamics. © 2012 Author(s).

Prevalence of hallux valgus in the general population : a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Hallux valgus (HV) is a foot deformity commonly seen in medical practice, often accompanied by significant functional disability and foot pain. Despite frequent mention in a diverse body of literature, a precise estimate of the prevalence of HV is difficult to ascertain. The purpose of this systematic review was to investigate prevalence of HV in the overall population and evaluate the influence of age and gender. METHODS: Electronic databases (Medline, Embase, and CINAHL) and reference lists of included papers were searched to June 2009 for papers on HV prevalence without language restriction. MeSH terms and keywords were used relating to HV or bunions, prevalence and various synonyms. Included studies were surveys reporting original data for prevalence of HV or bunions in healthy populations of any age group. Surveys reporting prevalence data grouped with other foot deformities and in specific disease groups (e.g. rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes) were excluded. Two independent investigators quality rated all included papers on the Epidemiological Appraisal Instrument. Data on raw prevalence, population studied and methodology were extracted. Prevalence proportions and the standard error were calculated, and meta-analysis was performed using a random effects model. RESULTS: A total of 78 papers reporting results of 76 surveys (total 496,957 participants) were included and grouped by study population for meta-analysis. Pooled prevalence estimates for HV were 23% in adults aged 18-65 years (CI: 16.3 to 29.6) and 35.7% in elderly people aged over 65 years (CI: 29.5 to 42.0). Prevalence increased with age and was higher in females [30% (CI: 22 to 38)] compared to males [13% (CI: 9 to 17)]. Potential sources of bias were sampling method, study quality and method of HV diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS: Notwithstanding the wide variation in estimates, it is evident that HV is prevalent; more so in females and with increasing age. Methodological quality issues need to be addressed in interpreting reports in the literature and in future research.

No cure for curiosity: Linking physical and digital urban layers

Although mobile phones are often used in public urban places to interact with one’s geographically dispersed social circle, they can also facilitate interactions with people in the same public urban space. The PlaceTagz study investigates how physical artefacts in public urban places can be utilised and combined with mobile phone technologies to facilitate interactions. Printed on stickers, PlaceTagz are QR codes linking to a digital message board enabling collocated users to interact with each other over time resulting in a place-based digital memory. This exploratory project set out to investigate if and how PlaceTagz are used by urban dwellers in a real world deployment. We present findings from analysing content received through PlaceTagz and interview data from application users. QR codes, which do not contain any contextual information, piqued the curiosity of users wondering about the embedded link’s destination and provoked comments in regards to people, place and technology.

The relationship between cognitive ability, insight and self-regulatory behaviors: Findings from the older driver population

Self-regulation is often promoted as a coping strategy that may allow older drivers to drive safely for longer. Self-regulation depends upon drivers making an accurate assessment of their own ability and having a willingness to practice self-regulatory behaviors to compensate for changes in ability. The current study explored the relationship between older drivers’ cognitive ability, their driving confidence and their use of self-regulation. An additional study aim was to explore the relationship between these factors and older drivers’ interest in driving programs. Seventy Australian drivers aged 65 years and over completed a questionnaire about their driving and a brief screening measure of cognitive ability (an untimed Clock Drawing Test). While all participants reported high levels of confidence regarding their driving ability, and agreed that they would continue driving in the foreseeable future, a notable proportion performed poorly on the Clock Drawing Test. Compared to older drivers who successfully completed the Clock Drawing Test, those who failed the cognitive test were significantly less likely to report driving self-regulation, and showed significantly less interest in being involved in driving programs. Older drivers with declining cognitive abilities may not be self-regulating their driving. This group also appears to be unlikely to self-refer to driving programs.

Towards a comprehensive and integrated knowledge-based urban development model : status quo and directions

Incorporating knowledge based urban development (KBUD) strategies in the urban planning and development process is a challenging and complex task due to the fragmented and incoherent nature of the existing KBUD models. This paper scrutinizes and compares these KBUD models with an aim of identifying key and common features that help in developing a new comprehensive and integrated KBUD model. The features and characteristics of the existing KBUD models are determined through a thorough literature review and the analysis reveals that while these models are invaluable and useful in some cases, lack of a comprehensive perspective and absence of full integration of all necessary development domains render them incomplete as a generic model. The proposed KBUD model considers all central elements of urban development and sets an effective platform for planners and developers to achieve more holistic development outcomes. The proposed model, when developed further, has a high potential to support researchers, practitioners and particularly city and state administrations that are aiming to a knowledge-based development.

Comparing: knowledge-based urban development of Vancouver, Melbourne, Manchester and Boston

The research reported in this paper introduces a knowledge-based urban development assessment framework, which is constructed in order to evaluate and assist in the (re)formulation of local and regional policy frameworks and applications necessary in knowledge city transformations. The paper also reports the findings of an application of this framework in a comparative study of Boston, Vancouver, Melbourne and Manchester. The paper with its assessment framework: demonstrates an innovative way of examining the knowledge-based development capacity of cities by scrutinising their economic, socio-cultural, enviro-urban and institutional development mechanisms and capabilities; presents some of the generic indicators used to evaluate knowledge-based development performance of cities; reveals how a city can benchmark its development level against that of other cities, and; provides insights for achieving a more sustainable and knowledge-based development.

Health status and use of health services among recently arrived men with refugee backgrounds: A comparative analysis of urban and regional settlement in South-east Queensland

Approximately one-third of refugee and humanitarian entrants to Australia are adult men. Many of these men and their families settle in regional areas. Little is known about the health status of refugee men and the use of health services, and whether or not there are differences between those living in urban and regional areas. This paper reports on the cross-sectional differences in health status and use of health services among a group of 233 recently arrived refugee men living in urban and regional areas of South-east Queensland. Overall, participants reported good levels of subjective health status, moderate to good levels of well-being, and low prevalence of mental illness. Men living in urban areas were more likely to have a longstanding illness and report poorer health status than those settled in regional areas. In contrast, men living in regional areas reported poorer levels of well-being in the environment domain and were more likely to visit hospital emergency departments. Targeted health promotion programs will ensure that refugee men remain healthy and develop their full potential as members of the Australian community. Programs that facilitate refugees’ access to primary health care in regional areas may promote more appropriate use of hospital emergency departments by these communities.

The Working After Cancer Study (WACS): a population-based study of middle-aged workers diagnosed with colorectal cancer and their return to work experiences

Background The number of middle-aged working individuals being diagnosed with cancer is increasing and so too will disruptions to their employment. The aim of the Working After Cancer Study is to examine the changes to work participation in the 12 months following a diagnosis of primary colorectal cancer. The study will identify barriers to work resumption, describe limitations on workforce participation, and evaluate the influence of these factors on health-related quality of life. Methods/Design An observational population-based study has been designed involving 260 adults newly-diagnosed with colorectal cancer between January 2010 and September 2011 and who were in paid employment at the time they were diagnosed. These cancer cases will be compared to a nationally representative comparison group of 520 adults with no history of cancer from the general population. Eligible cases will have a histologically confirmed diagnosis of colorectal cancer and will be identified through the Queensland Cancer Registry. Data on the comparison group will be drawn from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey. Data collection for the cancer group will occur at 6 and 12 months after diagnosis, with work questions also asked about the time of diagnosis, while retrospective data on the comparison group will be come from HILDA Waves 2009 and 2010. Using validated instruments administered via telephone and postal surveys, data will be collected on socio-demographic factors, work status and circumstances, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) for both groups while the cases will have additional data collected on cancer treatment and symptoms, work productivity and cancer-related HRQoL. Primary outcomes include change in work participation at 12 months, time to work re-entry, work limitations and change in HRQoL status. Discussion This study will address the reasons for work cessation after cancer, the mechanisms people use to remain working and existing workplace support structures and the implications for individuals, families and workplaces. It may also provide key information for governments on productivity losses.