Introduction: Culture, trade, services

Ben Goldsmith and Christina Spurgeon introduce the special 'Culture, trade, services' issue of Media International Australia.

Field-of-view, detection range, and false alarm trade-offs in vision-based aircraft detection

This paper presents a survey of previously presented vision based aircraft detection flight test, and then presents new flight test results examining the impact of camera field-of view choice on the detection range and false alarm rate characteristics of a vision-based aircraft detection technique. Using data collected from approaching aircraft, we examine the impact of camera fieldof-view choice and confirm that, when aiming for similar levels of detection confidence, an improvement in detection range can be obtained by choosing a smaller effective field-of-view (in terms of degrees per pixel).

The influence of service quality and trade show effectiveness on post-show purchase intention

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to develop and test an integrative services framework to investigate the role of perceived trade show effectiveness on overall trade show service outcome, conceptualised as the intention to purchase a related product after, rather than during, a show. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on the services marketing and trade show literature, the authors test a model of trade show effectiveness with data collected from 592 attendees at a major automotive trade show in a large metropolitan centre. Findings Results show that improving trade show visitors' perceived service quality positively affects visitor perceptions of trade show effectiveness. Furthermore, both trade show effectiveness and service quality directly influence future purchase intention. Research limitations/implications Employing a services theoretical framework to evaluate trade show visitor experiences provides an alternative to the traditional marketing communications approach. By viewing such visits as service encounters, managers must inevitably consider the effects of service quality and service outcomes in determining the likely success of their shows. The study primarily focuses on one large consumer show and therefore does not constitute a complete, nor necessarily representative, sample of the trade show industry. Originality/value The original contribution of the paper stems from the paucity of research conceptualising trade shows as services and the comparative lack of emphasis placed on visitors rather than exhibitors in the literature. The research not only has utility for trade show organisers but also provides necessary theory-based research in the trade show domain.

UK Design as a Global Industry : International Trade and Intellectual Property

The importance of design to the UK economy is widely recognised. It is one of the key pillars of the knowledge economy, it plays an important role in the innovation process, and it is one of a number of specialisms that help to set the UK apart from global competition. But despite this importance, the nature of design-intensive industries – the businesses that practice and sell design – is remarkably hard to pin down. This uncertainty renders it hard to analyse, and makes it difficult to develop clear, consistent policies to support the designers. The Hargreaves Review recommended that more research was needed to develop a clear evidence base for improving the intellectual property system for design. This report forms part of that evidence base. It examines how UK design figures in the global economy, and considers how the intellectual property system can best support its growth.

UK Design as a global industry : international trade and intellectual property Executive Summary

This is an independent report comissioned by the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) and supported by the Design Council.

Malay Kingship in Kedah : Religion, Trade, and Society

The book probes and examines traditional sources of royal power and control, as well as indigenous socio-political systems in the Malay world. It is focused on the north-western Malaysian Sultanate of Kedah which is acknowledged as the oldest unbroken independent kingship line in the ‘Malay and Islamic world’ with 1,000 years of history. Little scholarly attention has been paid to its pre-modern history, society, religion, system of government and unique geographic situation, potentially controlling both land and sea lines of communication into the remainder of Southeast Asia. It will thus provide the first comprehensive treatment in English, or other languages, on Kedah’s pre-modern and nineteenth century historiography and can provide a foundation for comparative studies of the various Malay states which is presently lacking. The proposed book also sheds much needed light on a range of important topics in Malay history including: Kedah and the northern Melaka Straits history, colonial expansion and rivalry, Southeast Asian history and politics, interregional migration and the influence of the sea peoples or orang laut, traditional Malay socio-political and economic life, Islamic influences and the course of Thai-Malay relations. The book attempts to offer a new understanding, not only of Kedah, but of the political and cultural development of the entire Malay world and of its relationships with the broader forces in both its continental and maritime settings. It argues that Kedah does not seem to follow, and in fact, often seems to contradict what has been commonly been accepted as the “typical model” of the traditional Malay state. Thus it concludes that the ruling dynasty has historically exploited a wide range of unique environmental conditions, local traditions, global spiritual trends and economic forces to preserve and strengthen its political position. The scope and theme of book The Kedah Sultanate is the oldest unbroken independent kingship lines in the “Malay world” with 1,000 years of history, and arguably one of the oldest in the Islamic world. In this study I examine key geopolitical and spiritual attributes of Malay kingship that have traditionally cemented the ruler, the peoples, and the environment. Brief description of the primary audience for the book: There is little written in English or Malay on Kedah’s pre twentieth century history. The available sources only look at certain aspects of Kedah’s history, are outdated or are confined to a specific period often outside the scope of the book. It is therefore anticipated that the readership and market for the book includes: • Scholars of Southeast Asian history, Islam, kingship, trade. • Academics & Historians (including: Asian, Thai history, Islamic, Maritime, Persian, South Asian, Southeast Asian and Colonial) • Libraries • Students, particularly those in Malaysia (especially the states of Kedah, Perlis and Penang), Thailand and Singapore. • Universities • Scholars and students in Political Science & International Relations

Compact arrays for mobile platforms : trade-off between size and performance for SDMA and MIMO applications

Smart antenna receiver and transmitter systems consist of multi-port arrays with an individual receiver channel (including ADC) and an individual transmitter channel (including DAC)at every of the M antenna ports, respectively. By means of digital beamforming, an unlimited number of simultaneous complex-valued vector radiation patterns with M-1 degrees of freedom can be formed. Applications of smart antennas in communication systems include space-division multiple access. If both stations of a communication link are equipped with smart antennas (multiple-input-multiple-output, MIMO). multiple independent channels can be formed in a "multi-path-rich" environment. In this article, it will be shown that under certain circumstances, the correlation between signals from adjacent ports of a dense array (M + ΔM elements) can be kept as low as the correlation between signals from adjacent ports of a conventional array (M elements and half-wavelength pacing). This attractive feature is attained by means of a novel approach which employs a RF decoupling network at the array ports in order to form new ports which are decoupled and associated with mutually orthogonal (de-correlated) radiation patterns.

A new legal avenue for pricing GHG emissions? To trade or to tax?

In a September 2010 media release the Prime Minister of Australia presented the terms of reference for the newly established Multi-Party Climate Change Committee. Although the Committee is charged with considering climate change mitigation measures in general, specifically the Committee must consider an appropriate mechanism for the establishment of a carbon price. The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of the mechanisms to be considered by the Climate Change Committee, including the use of emissions trading and carbon levies in other jurisdictions. This article argues that for any effective investigation of a carbon price for Australia to occur, a thorough knowledge of other jurisdictions’ methods for carbon pricing is essential.

Chemical variability of groundwater samples collected from a Coal Seam Gas exploration well, Maramarua, New Zealand

A pilot study has produced 31 groundwater samples from a coal seam gas (CSG) exploration well located in Maramarua, New Zealand. This paper describes sources of CSG water chemistry variations, and makes sampling and analytical recommendations to minimize these variations. The hydrochemical character of these samples is studied using factor analysis, geochemical modelling, and a sparging experiment. Factor analysis unveils carbon dioxide (CO2) degassing as the principal cause of sample variation (about 33%). Geochemical modelling corroborates these results and identifies minor precipitation of carbonate minerals with degassing. The sparging experiment confirms the effect of CO2 degassing by showing a steady rise in pH while maintaining constant alkalinity. Factor analysis correlates variations in the major ion composition (about 17%) to changes in the pumping regime and to aquifer chemistry variations due to cation exchange reactions with argillaceous minerals. An effective CSG water sampling program can be put into practice by measuring pH at the well head and alkalinity at the laboratory; these data can later be used to calculate the carbonate speciation at the time the sample was collected. In addition, TDS variations can be reduced considerably if a correct drying temperature of 180°C is consistently implemented.

Regulation of land access for resource development: A coal seam gas case study from Queensland

A number of regulatory statutes provide for agreements with landowners which are given extended effect, that is, are binding upon the landowner’s successors (‘statutory agreements’). Several Queensland statutes require a project proponent to enter into a statutory agreement with a landowner before a resource development activity can be carried out on private land or by accessing private land. Provisions of Queensland’s Petroleum and Gas (Production and Safety) Act 2004 make certain types of statutory agreements binding upon successors and assigns of the landowner, but do not clearly prescribe the nature and contents of an agreement, nor require that the agreement be recorded on the land title or petroleum register. If statutory agreements are to be used for such purposes, their purpose and content should be more clearly defined by statute and they should be recorded on a searchable register.

Output and productivity comparisons of the Singapore and Hong Kong wholesale and retail trade sectors, 2001–2008

This paper employs the industry of origin approach to compare value-added and labour productivity of Singapore and Hong Kong’s wholesale and retail sectors for the period 2001–08. The direct comparison between these two economies was motivated by the statement of the Singapore Government that its services sector, especially the retail sector, lagged behind Hong Kong’s productivity levels. The results show that since 2005, Singapore’s wholesale and retail sector performance in terms of labour productivity has been below Hong Kong’s level, largely due to the poor performance of its retail sector arising from an influx of foreign workers. Results from total factor productivity analysis of these two economies also suggest that Hong Kong’s better performance (since 2005) was largely due to its ability to employ more educated and trained workers with limited use of capital. The results suggest that polices that have worked in Hong Kong may not work in Singapore because its population is more diverse, which poses a challenge to policymakers in raising its productivity level.

Coal seam gas waters - their geochemical signature and potential environmental implications

Coal Seam Gas (CSG) is a form of natural gas (mainly methane) sorbed in underground coal beds. To mine this gas, wells are drilled directly into an underground coal seam and groundwater (CSG water) is pumped out to the surface. This lowers the downhole piezometric pressure and enables gas desporption from the coal matrix. In the United States, this gas has been extracted commercially since the 1980s. The economic success of US CSG projects has inspired exploration and development in Australia and New Zealand. In Australia, Queensland’s Bowen and Surat basins have been the subject of increased CSG development over the last decade. CSG growth in other Australian basins has not matured to the same level but exploration and development are taking place at an accelerated pace in the Sydney Basin (Illawarra and the Hunter Valley, NSW) and in the Gunnedah Basin. Similarly, CSG exploration in New Zealand has focused in the Waikato region (Maramarua and Huntly), in the West Coast region (Buller, Reefton, and Greymouth), and in Southland (Kaitangata, Mataura, and Ohai). Figure 1 shows a Shcoeller diagram with CSG samples from selected basins in Australia, New Zealand, and the USA. CSG water from all of these basins exhibit the same geochemical signature – low calcium, low magnesium, high bicarbonate, low sulphate and, sometimes, high chloride. This water quality is a direct result of specific biological and geological processes that have taken part in the formation of CSG. In general, these processes include the weathering of rocks (carbonates, dolomite, and halite), cation exchange with clays (responsible for enhanced sodium and depleted calcium and magnesium), and biogenic processes (accounting for the presence of high bicarbonate concentrations). The salinity of CSG waters tends to be brackish (TDS < 30000 mg/l) with a fairly neutral pH. These particular characteristics need to be taken into consideration when assessing water management and disposal alternatives. Environmental issues associated with CSG water disposal have been prominent in developed basins such as the Powder River Basin (PRB) in the United States. When disposed on the land or used for irrigation, water having a high dissolved salts content may reduce water availability to crops thus affecting crop yield. In addition, the high sodium, low calcium and low magnesium concentrations increase the potential to disperse soils and significantly reduce the water infiltration rate. Therefore, CSG waters need to be properly characterised, treated, and disposed to safeguard the environment without compromising other natural resources.