Research report. A subtropical urban community. Investigating medium to high density residential typologies. Findings and recommendations from the Design Charrette

In June 2009 the Centre for Subtropical Design at the Queensland University of Technology conducted a design charrette to research design concepts for liveable subtropical neighbourhoods characterised by higher-density, mixed-use, family orientated housing. Subsequent analysis of the proposed designs evaluated how well these typologies support economic, environmental and social sustainability. The study was led by Ms Rosemary Kennedy, Director of the Centre for Subtropical Design and QUT School of Design Adjunct Professor Peter Richards, Chair of the Centre for Subtropical Design Board and director of Deicke Richards Architects and Urban Designers.

Constitutional legitimacy : an international ill and gap in the literature?

The central argument of this work is that “democratic constitutional legitimacy”[2] probably does not currently exist in the politics of any country internationally. This inherent problem in constitutionalism is an endemic governance problem most citizenries should be dealing with, only that we are not in a large extent doing so and haven’t been historically. This position was ascertained using a form of Beck and Grande’s (2010) cosmopolitan methodology in my doctoral thesis (which we shall return to). It is argued that every constitution is in need of considerable rethinking so as to bring its statutes in line with the interests of the plurality of individuals it oversees. Finally, this work attempts to show that research in this area of democratic constitutional legitimacy is lacking in the literature as only a few scholars presently engage the issue (namely Simone Chambers).

Content and functionality of alcohol and other drug websites : results of an online survey

Background: There is a growing trend for individuals to seek health information from online sources. Alcohol and other drug (AOD) use is a significant health problem worldwide, but access and use of AOD websites is poorly understood. ----- ----- Objective: To investigate content and functionality preferences for AOD and other health websites. Methods: An anonymous online survey examined general Internet and AOD-specific usage and search behaviors, valued features of AOD and health-related websites (general and interactive website features), indicators of website trustworthiness, valued AOD website tools or functions, and treatment modality preferences. ----- ----- Results: Surveys were obtained from 1214 drug (n = 766) and alcohol website users (n = 448) (mean age 26.2 years, range 16-70). There were no significant differences between alcohol and drug groups on demographic variables, Internet usage, indicators of website trustworthiness, or on preferences for AOD website functionality. A robust website design/navigation, open access, and validated content provision were highly valued by both groups. While attractiveness and pictures or graphics were also valued, high-cost features (videos, animations, games) were minority preferences. Almost half of respondents in both groups were unable to readily access the information they sought. Alcohol website users placed greater importance on several AOD website tools and functions than did those accessing other drug websites: online screening tools (χ²2 = 15.8, P < .001, n = 985); prevention programs (χ²2 = 27.5, P < .001, n = 981); tracking functions (χ²2 = 11.5, P = .003, n = 983); self help treatment programs (χ²2 = 8.3, P = .02, n = 984); downloadable fact sheets for friends (χ²2 = 11.6, P = .003, n = 981); or family (χ²2 = 12.7, P = .002, n = 983). The most preferred online treatment option for both the user groups was an Internet site with email therapist support. Explorations of demographic differences were also performed. While gender did not affect survey responses, younger respondents were more likely to value interactive and social networking features, whereas downloading of credible information was most highly valued by older respondents. ----- ----- Conclusions: Significant deficiencies in the provision of accessible information on AOD websites were identified, an important problem since information seeking was the most common reason for accessing these websites, and, therefore, may be a key avenue for engaging website users in behaviour change. The few differences between AOD website users suggested that both types of websites may have similar features, although alcohol website users may more readily be engaged in screening, prevention and self-help programs, tracking change, and may value fact sheets more highly. While the sociodemographic differences require replication and clarification, these differences support the notion that the design and features of AOD websites should target specific audiences to have maximal impact.

Design of a model-generated repository as a service for USDL

SAP and its research partners have been developing a lan- guage for describing details of Services from various view- points called the Unified Service Description Language (USDL). At the time of writing, version 3.0 describes technical implementation aspects of services, as well as stakeholders, pricing, lifecycle, and availability. Work is also underway to address other business and legal aspects of services. This language is designed to be used in service portfolio management, with a repository of service descriptions being available to various stakeholders in an organisation to allow for service prioritisation, development, deployment and lifecycle management. The structure of the USDL metadata is specified using an object-oriented metamodel that conforms to UML, MOF and EMF Ecore. As such it is amenable to code gener-ation for implementations of repositories that store service description instances. Although Web services toolkits can be used to make these programming language objects available as a set of Web services, the practicalities of writing dis- tributed clients against over one hundred class definitions, containing several hundred attributes, will make for very large WSDL interfaces and highly inefficient “chatty” implementations. This paper gives the high-level design for a completely model-generated repository for any version of USDL (or any other data-only metamodel), which uses the Eclipse Modelling Framework’s Java code generation, along with several open source plugins to create a robust, transactional repository running in a Java application with a relational datastore. However, the repository exposes a generated WSDL interface at a coarse granularity, suitable for distributed client code and user-interface creation. It uses heuristics to drive code generation to bridge between the Web service and EMF granularities.

A subtropical urban community : medium to high density residential typologies - case study 4

On the case study site, using these strategies, the site density achieved was approximately 180 dwellings per hectare. According to ASK consulting engineers‟ acoustic report (in Ecolateral‟s report) the design gives solid consideration to the environmental noise issues associated with the site. The subject structure not only provides significant shielding of transport corridor noise to the suburb, it also minimises the potential for adverse impact on residential amenity within the building itself...

The development of urban river corridors in Malaysia

Malaysian urban river corridors are facing major physical transformations in the 21st century. The effects of rapid development exacerbated by the competition between two key industry sectors, commercial base and tourism development in conjunction with urbanisation and industrialisation, have posted a high demand for the uses of these spaces. The political scenario and lack on consideration of ecological principles in its design solution have sparked stiff environmental and cultural constraint towards its landscape character as well as the ecological system. Therefore, a holistic approach towards improving the landscape design processes is extremely necessary to protect values of these places. Limited research has been carried out and further has created an urgent need to explore better ways to improve the landscape design processes of Malaysian urban river corridor developments that encompass the needs and aspirations of its multi-ethnic society without making any drastic changes to the landscape character of the rivers. This paper provides a brief introduction to address this significant gap and hence serves to contribute to the literature review.

Narrative on a doctoral narrative : reflections on postgraduate study and pedagogy

This paper explores the stages of one student’s intellectual journey through a Doctor of Philosophy program of study in an Australian university. It outlines the theoretical and methodological insights made as she came to understand that data was discourse, entailing a politics and position of power that ran contrary to the aims of the study that the student was undertaking in and on her own community. The article is a reflective narrative produced from the experience of having to come to terms with some of the personal and professional tensions and contradictions that postgraduate study can, and maybe should, engender if it is to be any of real value.

Development of an autonomous helicopter for aerial powerline inspections

Autonomous mini-helicopters have been seen as a viable option for aerial-based powerline inspections, however there are numerous research and engineering challenges in developing a system capable of achieving this task in a dependable manner. We have developed an autonomous helicopter as a research platform which will allow us to demonstrate proof-of-concept capabilities for powerline inspections. Through numerous development cycles and from flight test experience we have gained insights into the key challenges in this area. We discuss these insights, describe the helicopter platform and present our research progress in the area of obstacle avoidance for mini-helicopters.

Asset renewal decision modelling with application to the water utility industry

Reliable infrastructure assets impact significantly on quality of life and provide a stable foundation for economic growth and competitiveness. Decisions about the way assets are managed are of utmost importance in achieving this. Timely renewal of infrastructure assets supports reliability and maximum utilisation of infrastructure and enables business and community to grow and prosper. This research initially examined a framework for asset management decisions and then focused on asset renewal optimisation and renewal engineering optimisation in depth. This study had four primary objectives. The first was to develop a new Asset Management Decision Framework (AMDF) for identifying and classifying asset management decisions. The AMDF was developed by applying multi-criteria decision theory, classical management theory and life cycle management. The AMDF is an original and innovative contribution to asset management in that: · it is the first framework to provide guidance for developing asset management decision criteria based on fundamental business objectives; · it is the first framework to provide a decision context identification and analysis process for asset management decisions; and · it is the only comprehensive listing of asset management decision types developed from first principles. The second objective of this research was to develop a novel multi-attribute Asset Renewal Decision Model (ARDM) that takes account of financial, customer service, health and safety, environmental and socio-economic objectives. The unique feature of this ARDM is that it is the only model to optimise timing of asset renewal with respect to fundamental business objectives. The third objective of this research was to develop a novel Renewal Engineering Decision Model (REDM) that uses multiple criteria to determine the optimal timing for renewal engineering. The unique features of this model are that: · it is a novel extension to existing real options valuation models in that it uses overall utility rather than present value of cash flows to model engineering value; and · it is the only REDM that optimises timing of renewal engineering with respect to fundamental business objectives; The final objective was to develop and validate an Asset Renewal Engineering Philosophy (AREP) consisting of three principles of asset renewal engineering. The principles were validated using a novel application of real options theory. The AREP is the only renewal engineering philosophy in existence. The original contributions of this research are expected to enrich the body of knowledge in asset management through effectively addressing the need for an asset management decision framework, asset renewal and renewal engineering optimisation based on fundamental business objectives and a novel renewal engineering philosophy.

Gaddafi and Libya : a case for just intervention?

Full militaristic intervention cannot be justified on the grounds that this is a ‘just war’. We are then left with the option to intervene militarily in a smaller way or not to intervene militarily at all.

The Brisbane Cordon scheme : part B - investigation into feasibility and effects

As detailed in Whitehead, Bunker and Chung (2011), a congestion-charging scheme provides a mechanism to combat congestion whilst simultaneously generating revenue to improve both the road and public transport networks. The aim of this paper is to assess the feasibility of implementing a congestion-charging scheme in the city of Brisbane in Australia and determine the potential effects of this initiative. In order to so, a congestion-charging scheme was designed for Brisbane and modelled using the Brisbane Strategic Transport Model with a base line year of 2026. This paper argues that the implementation of this initiative would prove to be effective in reducing the cities road congestion and increasing the overall sustainability of the region.

An interview with sound artist Guy Webster by Jillian Hamilton and Jeremy Yuille

Guy Webster is a sound artist who has been featured in numerous festivals, galleries, conferences and theatres in Australia, Japan, UK and Europe. As part of the Transmute Collective he developed the immersive soundscape of Intimate Transactions. On 2nd November, 2005 Jilliann Hamilton and Jeremy Yuille met with Guy Webster to discuss his approach to immersion in soundsapes.

Intimate transactions : art, exhibition and interaction within distributed network environments

The broad research questions of the book are: How can successful, interdisciplinary collaboration contribute to research innovation through Practice-led research? What contributes to the design, production and curation of successful new media art? What are the implications of exhibiting it across dual sites for artists, curators and participant audiences? Is it possible to create an 'intimate transaction' between people who are separated by vast distances but joined by interfaces and distributed networks? Centred on a new media work of the same name by the Transmute Collective (led by Keith Armstrong), this book provides insights from multidisciplinary perspectives. Visual, sound and performance artists, furniture designers, spatial architects, technology systems designers, and curators who collaborated in the production of Intimate Transactions discuss their design philosophies, working processes and resolution of this major new media work. Analytical and philosophical essays by international writers complement these writings on production. They consider how new media art, like Intimate Transactions, challenges traditional understandings of art, curatorial installation and exhibition experience because of the need to take into account interaction, the reconfiguration of space, co-presence, performativity and inter-site collaboration.

Attach the correct warning statement

Practitioners will be aware that s 366 (1) of the Property Agents and Motor Dealers Act 2000 provides that a relevant contract must have attached, as its first or top sheet, a warning statement in the approved form. A failure to attach a warning statement in the prescribed manner triggers a right of termination in the buyer. The factual circumstances in Devine Ltd v Timbs [2004] QSC 24 are indicative of the problems that may arise in the construction of this statutory provision. The application concerned put and call option agreements entered into concerning 4 lots. The agreements, in identical terms, were signed before the applicant seller had completed a proposed residential apartment building. In each case the option agreement provided that the agreement was not binding on the seller until and unless the purchaser returned to the seller, amongst other things, two copies of the warning statement under the Property Agents and Motor Dealers Ac 2000 signed by the purchaser and two copies of the contract document signed by the purchaser. The seller was required to hold the contract documentation in escrow and was forbidden to sign it until and unless either option was exercised.