Temporal modelling of short-term rainfall using Cox processes

We study two marked point process models based on the Cox process. These models are used to describe the probabilistic structure of the rainfall intensity process. Mathematical formulation of the models is described and some second-moment characteristics of the rainfall depth, and aggregated processes are considered. The derived second-order properties of the accumulated rainfall amounts at different levels of aggregation are used in order to examine the model fit. A brief data analysis is presented. Copyright © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Heuristics for short route job shop scheduling problems

We consider two “minimum”NP-hard job shop scheduling problems to minimize the makespan. In one of the problems every job has to be processed on at most two out of three available machines. In the other problem there are two machines, and a job may visit one of the machines twice. For each problem, we define a class of heuristic schedules in which certain subsets of operations are kept as blocks on the corresponding machines. We show that for each problem the value of the makespan of the best schedule in that class cannot be less than 3/2 times the optimal value, and present algorithms that guarantee a worst-case ratio of 3/2.

C. G. Jung and literary theory: the challenge from fiction

C.G. Jung and Literary Theory remedies a significant omission in literary studies by doing for Jung and poststructuralist literary theories what has been done extensively for Freud, Lacan and post-Freudian psychoanalysis. This work represents a complete departure from traditional Jungian literary criticism. Instead, radically new Jungian literary theories are developed of deconstruction, feminist theory, gender and psyche, the body and sexuality, spirituality, postcolonialism, historicism and reader-response. As well as linking Jung to the work of Derrida, Kristeva and Irigaray, the book traces contentious occult, cultural and political narratives in Jung's career. It contains a chapter on Jung and fascism in a literary context. [From the Publisher]

From Agatha Christie to Ruth Rendell: British women writers in detective and crime fiction

This work considers, seriously, the hugely popular and influential works of Agatha Christie, Dorothy L.Sayers, Margery Allingham, Ngaio Marsh, P.D. James and Ruth Rendell/Barbara Vine. Providing studies of 42 key novels, it introduces these authors for students and the general reader within the contexts of their lives, and critical debates on gender, colonialism, psychoanalysis, the Gothic, and feminism. It includes interviews with P.D. James and Ruth Rendell/Barbara Vine. [From the Publisher]

Using EMGs and kinematics data to study the take-off technique of experts and novices for a pole vaulting short run-up educational exercise

This study attempts to characterise the electromyographic activity and kinematics exhibited during the performance of take-off for a pole vaulting short run-up educational exercise, for different expertise levels. Two groups (experts and novices) participated in this study. Both groups were asked to execute their take-off technique for that specific exercise. Among the kinematics variables studied, the knee, hip and ankle angles and the hip and knee angular velocities were significantly different. There were also significant differences in the EMG variables, especially in terms of (i) biceps femoris and gastrocnemius lateralis activity at touchdown and (ii) vastus lateralis and gastrocnemius lateralis activity during take-off. During touchdown, the experts tended to increase the stiffness of the take-off leg to decrease braking. Novices exhibited less stiffness in the take-off leg due to their tendency to maintain a tighter knee angle. Novices also transferred less energy forward during take-off due to lack of contraction in the vastus lateralis, which is known to contribute to forward energy transfers. This study highlights the differences in both groups in terms of muscular and angular control according to the studied variables. Such studies of pole vaulting could be useful to help novices to learn expert's technique.

Fact, fiction and nostalgia: an assessment of heritage interpretation at living museums

This paper aims to explore and discuss the role of nostalgia (a concept that is inherently grounded within a psychological framework) in heritage interpretation from both provider and consumer perspectives. Whilst many cultural practitioners recognise the relationship between sentimentality and authenticity, particularly within a folk-heritage context, few have sought to examine the effect this has on the visitor experience. This paper questions visitors’ ability to objectively assess objects and experiences at heritage sites, and the role of practitioners in presenting often blurred views of social history that may sometimes negate historical fact. Drawing on case study research at two UK living museums, Blists Hill Victorian Town in Shropshire, England, and the Big Pit: National Coal Museum in Wales, notions of reminiscence, authenticity, myth and intangibility are considered within the framework of the interpretive experience. Findings suggest that the visitor experience is inherently subjective, highly individual and that the concept of intangibility is integral to an understanding of the nostalgia-authenticity debate.

Fostering 'habits of reflection, independent study and free inquiry': an analysis of the short-lived phenomenon of General/Liberal Studies in English vocational education and training

In 1957, 12 years after the end of World War II, the Ministry of Education issued Circular 323 to promote the development of an element of ‘liberal studies’ in courses offered by technical and further education (FE) colleges in England. This was perceived to be in some ways a peculiar or uncharacteristic development. However, it lasted over 20 years, during which time most students on courses in FE colleges participated in what were termed General or Liberal Studies classes that complemented and/or contrasted with the technical content of their vocational programmes. By the end of the 1970s, these classes had changed in character, moving away from the concept of a ‘liberal education’ towards a prescribed diet of ‘communication studies’. The steady decline in apprenticeship numbers from the late 1960s onwards accelerated in the late 1970s, resulting in a new type of student (the state-funded ‘trainee’) into colleges whose curriculum would be prescribed by the Manpower Services Commission. This paper examines the Ministry’s thinking and charts the rise and fall of a curriculum phenomenon that became immortalised in the ‘Wilt’ novels of Tom Sharpe. The paper argues that the Ministry of Education’s concerns half a century ago are still relevant now, particularly as fresh calls are being made to raise the leaving age from compulsory education to 18, and in light of attempts in England to develop new vocational diplomas for full-time students in schools and colleges.