City centre sidewalks: Improving pedestrian experience through design

Sidewalks are integral features of city centres. They provide the channels through which activities and interactions evolve and in turn these interactions cause the sidewalks to evolve. They help to articulate the builtform and open spaces in tying together. However, historically sidewalks have received less attention relative to urban squares and civic spaces. Owing to the concept of walkable cities, sidewalks are gaining importance. This paper provides a critical overview on the apparent ‘amnesia’ in urban design and planning theories and visits a popular sidewalk in Belfast city centre to examine the paradox and perspectives.

Letter, Lancaster City, PA, to sister, Chesterfield, SC, c. 1800

This letter is from Allie Grafft to her sister.

Pollen Allergy in Cordoba City: Frequency of Sensitization and Relation with Antihistamine Sales

The occurrence of symptoms in pollen allergy patients in urban areas may be affected by local environmental factors such as sources of pollution, natural and ornamental vegetation, local architecture impeding dispersion, etc. The aim of this study was to analyse the frequency of sensitization in pollen allergy patients and the relationship with antihistamine sales. For this study, a large number of clinical records, together with pharmaceutical and pollen data, were collected between 1999 and 2001 in the city of Córdoba, in the south of the Iberian Peninsula. Differences were observed in the symptoms suffered by pollen allergy patients in different areas of the city due to varying local emission of both biological and non-biological particles. Temporal distribution of symptoms over the three study years was influenced by meteorological factors, especially rainfall patterns; higher water supply to plants was associated with increased airborne pollen concentrations. Air pollution might be one of the main factors affecting the distribution of pollen allergy patients within the city. Recent years have seen a worsening of symptoms and increased sensitization to urban species such as plane-trees.