Airport ground transportation policies and the future of rail connections at US airports

Airports are currently being pressured to operate in a more environmentally-sensitive manner; as a response, airports have integrated environmental policies into their operations. However, environmental concerns regarding automobile traffic and related emissions have yet to be addressed. While the automobile is the dominant air passenger ground transportation mode at US airports, services facilitating automobile usage including public parking and car rentals are a major airport revenue source. Less than 20 US hub airports have direct access to rail-based transportation modes. New rail transportation projects serving additional airports are either being consideration or under construction. Regardless of whether an airport has direct access to rail-based transportation modes, the air passenger ground transportation modal split at US airports remain low in comparison to those in Asia and Europe. The high cost of providing additional US airports with direct rail connections in an era of severe governmental budgetary cutbacks is making the “build it and they will come” mindset untenable. Governmental policies are but one factor determining whether programs increasing transit usage results in automobile traffic reductions and related emissions. This study reveals that a significant percentage of the busiest US airports do not have policies fostering increases in the air passenger ground transportation modal split. A case study of one US airport is presented that has successfully adopted a transit first policy to achieve a high air passenger ground transportation modal split and facilitate the availability of rail-based transportation services.

The future of Australian e-learning : it’s all about access

This article clarifies the interdependence between high-speed broadband and e-Learning. It does this by identifying the importance of the internet for Australia’s education future and the importance of education for the future of the internet. It concludes by confirming the role the NBN will play as an enabler of both; and the need to ensure access for all to appropriate skills, as well as to services.

The Best interests duty in the future of financial advice reforms : striking a balance between certainty and flexibility

Presentation delivered to the Australian and New Zealand Consumer Law Roundtable held at the University of Melbourne Law School on Friday, 16 November 2012. The paper covers the background to the 'Future of Financial Advice' reforms and their context. In addition to this the scope of best interests duty is discussed. The paper concludes with an assessment of the likely effectives of best interest duty as a consumer protection measure.

The Future of the World's Forests

Forest regulation is never far from the headlines. The recent COP 18 negotiations held in Doha towards the end of 2012 were criticized by observers for slowing the development of the ‘REDD+’ initiative and for marking the end of ‘Forest Day’, whilst in the last month controversy has arisen following reports that the World Bank’s investment in forestry-related projects has failed to address poverty or benefit local communities. Dr Rowena Maguire’s research focuses on international climate and forest regulation and indigenous and community groups rights and responsibilities in connection with environmental management. Her new book, Global Forest Governance, identifies the fundamental legal principles and governance requirements of Sustainable Forest Management, an introduction to which is provided in her article below.

Future of the Haze Agreement : is the glass half empty or half full?

"In 1997–98, the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) region suffered an unprecedented health and environmental catastrophe due to choking haze created by a massive forest !re in Indonesia. It is estimated that the total losses from the fire could be US$5–6 billion after taking into account the loss of trees and other natural resources as well as the long-term impact on human health. This unprecedented anthropogenic disaster not only created a severe health and environmental hazard but also raised a question mark about the credibility and effectiveness of the ASEAN regional grouping. Against this background, ASEAN took a number of regional initiatives to try and solve the problem and finally adopted a new treaty for regional cooperation to combat forest fire and haze in 2002. This paper assesses the future success of this agreement from the perspectives of the legal, institutional and geopolitical reality of the region. Since numerous studies have examined state responsibility for transboundary environmental harm under international law and its implications on the ASEAN haze problem, this article will not touch upon that general debate nor the remedies that are possibly available to victim states. Rather, it will focus on the ASEAN regional legal and institutional initiatives to combat the haze pollution and compare them with a similar European regional agreement. Regarding the following analysis, it is important to recognise the uncertainty arising from Indonesia’s status (presently a non-party to the Agreement). A primary indication of the future effectiveness of this agreement can be drawn from an analysis of the principles involved in this agreement, bearing in mind the inherent difficulty of enforcing norms in the international environmental legal system as a whole, and the geopolitical reality of the region."

The getting of wisdom : the future of PM university education in Australia

The dynamic and complex nature of project management (PM) in Australia provides exciting opportunities for universities to that are willing to actively engage with their corporate partners and other key stakeholders to develop program and course offerings that simultaneously address the needs of students, employers, and other stakeholders and further the current body of PM knowledge and research. This article identifies key challenges and opportunities for the future direction of PM university education. This draws on descriptions of successful program models, examining teaching on PM skills on generic business and engineering degrees, dedicated graduate masters programs in PM, doctoral research programs in PM, and forms of effective collaboration between industry and academia.

The future of power in the network era

This article asks questions about the futures of power in the network era. Two critical emerging issues are at work with uncertain outcomes. The first is the emergence of the collaborative economy, while the second is the emergence of surveillance capabilities from both civic, state and commercial sources. While both of these emerging issues are expected by many to play an important role in the future development of our societies, it is still unclear whose values and whose purposes will be furthered. This article argues that the futures of these emerging issues depend on contests for power. As such, four scenarios are developed for the futures of power in the network era using the double variable scenario approach.

Motion capture and the future of virtual production

Motion capture continues to be adopted across a range of creative fields including, animation, games, visual effects, dance, live theatre and the visual arts. This panel will discuss and showcase the use of motion capture across these creative fields and consider the future of virtual production in the creative industries.

Ergonomic DHM systems - limitations and trends – a systematic literature review focused on the ‘future of ergonomics’

Digital Human Models (DHM) have been used for over 25 years. They have evolved from simple drawing templates, which are nowadays still used in architecture, to complex and Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) integrated design and analysis tools for various ergonomic tasks. DHM are most frequently used for applications in product design and production planning, with many successful implementations documented. DHM from other domains, as for example computer user interfaces, artificial intelligence, training and education, or the entertainment industry show that there is also an ongoing development towards a comprehensive understanding and holistic modeling of human behavior. While the development of DHM for the game sector has seen significant progress in recent years, advances of DHM in the area of ergonomics have been comparatively modest. As a consequence, we need to question if current DHM systems are fit for the design of future mobile work systems. So far it appears that DHM in Ergonomics are rather limited to some traditional applications. According to Dul et al. (2012), future characteristics of Human Factors and Ergonomics (HFE) can be assigned to six main trends: (1) global change of work systems, (2) cultural diversity, (3) ageing, (4) information and communication technology (ICT), (5) enhanced competiveness and the need for innovation, and; (6) sustainability and corporate social responsibility. Based on a literature review, we systematically investigate the capabilities of current ergonomic DHM systems versus the ‘Future of Ergonomics’ requirements. It is found that DHMs already provide broad functionality in support of trends (1) and (2), and more limited options in regards to trend (3). Today’s DHM provide access to a broad range of national and international databases for correct differentiation and characterization of anthropometry for global populations. Some DHM explicitly address social and cultural modeling of groups of people. In comparison, the trends of growing importance of ICT (4), the need for innovation (5) and sustainability (6) are addressed primarily from a hardware-oriented and engineering perspective and not reflected in DHM. This reflects a persistent separation between hardware design (engineering) and software design (information technology) in the view of DHM – a disconnection which needs to be urgently overcome in the era of software defined user interfaces and mobile devices. The design of a mobile ICT-device is discussed to exemplify the need for a comprehensive future DHM solution. Designing such mobile devices requires an approach that includes organizational aspects as well as technical and cognitive ergonomics. Multiple interrelationships between the different aspects result in a challenging setting for future DHM. In conclusion, the ‘Future of Ergonomics’ pose particular challenges for DHM in regards to the design of mobile work systems, and moreover mobile information access.

The future of the music industry in an age of digital distribution

This is an invited public lecture. The talk will cover how the music industry has changed due to digital technologies. During the talk I will look at how the changing balance between live music, music licensing and recorded music. I will also discuss online music subscription services and whether they might be a future for music distribution in China and elsewhere in the world. It will also look at how music artists and composers are affected by this change.

Future of arthroplasty : registries and outcome measures

Since the inception of the first Joint Registry in Sweden in 1979, many countries including Finland, Norway, Denmark, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Scotland, England and Wales now have more than 10 years experience and data, and are collecting data on more than 90% of the procedures performed nationally. There are also Joint Registries in Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Croatia, Hungary, France, Germany, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Italy, Austria and Portugal, and work is ongoing to develop a Joint Registry in the US...

Fair use and the future of copyright

The Australian Law Reform Commission’s Final Report, Copyright and the Digital Economy, recommends the introduction of a flexible fair use provision. In doing so, it has sought to develop a technology-neutral approach to copyright that is adaptive to new technologies and which promotes innovation.

Experimenting with the future of journalism : social capital as a desideratum for networked journalism research

The aim of this article is to position social capital as a theoretical framework for investigating online communities, specifically pro-am operations. It will review pertinent literature on social capital and the future of journalism in this context, and detail how the broader field of Sociology and this dynamic field of Journalism converge to produce a unique opportunity for pro-am research. Currently, much concern has been expressed regarding the future of journalism institutions in society, and while journalism itself is seen as a cornerstone of democracy, the form of structures that facilitate such practice has been questioned. Compounding this problem is a lack of research that produces data suitable for meta-analysis. For example, case-study data of start-up operations in this volatile field do not provide sufficient grounds for conclusions that could result in evidence-based policy. In response to these dynamics, this article will propose experimentation as a method of research for pro-am start-ups.

Navigating the future of roads – considering potential impacts of environmental and social trends on road infrastructure

Providing mobility corridors for communities, enabling freight networks to transport goods and services, and a pathway for emergency services and disaster relief operations, roads are a vital component of our societal system. In the coming decades, a number of modern issues will face road agencies as a result of climate change, resource scarcity and energy related challenges that will have implications for society. To date, these issues have been discussed on a case by case basis, leading to a fragmented approach by state and federal agencies in considering the future of roads – with potentially significant cost and risk implications. Within this context, this paper summarises part of a research project undertaken within the ‘Greening the Built Environment’ program of the Sustainable Built Environment National Research Centre (SBEnrc, Australia), which identified key factors or ‘trends’ affecting the future of roads and key strategies to ensure that road agencies can continue to deliver road infrastructure that meets societal needs in an environmentally appropriate manner. The research was conducted over two years, including a review of academic and state agency literature, four stakeholder workshops in Western Australia and Queensland, and industry consultation. The project was supported financially and through peer review and contribution, by Main Roads Western Australia, QLD Department of Transport and Main Roads, Parsons Brinckerhoff, John Holland Group, and the Australian Green Infrastructure Council (AGIC). The project highlighted several potential trends that are expected to affect road agencies in the future, including predicted resource and materials shortages, increases in energy and natural resources prices, increased costs related to greenhouse gas emissions, changing use and expectations of roads, and changes in the frequency and intensity of weather events. Exploring the implications of these potential futures, the study then developed a number of strategies in order to prepare transport agencies for the associated risks that such trends may present. An unintended outcome of the project was the development of a process for enquiring into future scenarios, which will be explored further in Stage 2 of the project (2013-2014). The study concluded that regardless of the type and scale of response by the agency, strategies must be holistic in approach, and remain dynamic and flexible.