1,407 research outputs found
Cycling on the Verge? Exploring the Place of Utility Cycling in Contemporary New Zealand Transport Policy
No full textEfforts to increase cycling as a mode of transport (utility cycling) occur at central, regional and local levels of government through a range of supportive strategies, research, and guidelines. Despite these efforts, utility cycling levels in New Zealand have remained persistently low. This thesis examines the apparent disparity between policy intent and policy result, using a discourse analytical approach. It examines how cycling is positioned in contemporary New Zealand transport policy documents, and explores whose priorities are shaping transport policy with what implications for utility cycling.
This study uses a critical discourse analysis (CDA) approach to analyse the land transport documents from across the institutions of government. The CDA approach, grounded in the work of van Dijk and Fairclough, draws on ideas from the interpretive tradition of discourse analysis, inspired by Foucault’s concepts of knowledge and power. This approach reveals the position of utility cycling by exposing the framing, dominant discourses, and discursive strategies that privilege certain transport objectives and activities over others.
The findings show transport is promoted almost exclusively by central government as an activity to facilitate economic growth and efficiency, despite its potential (and actual) impacts on health and well-being, social justice, and environmental sustainability. The discursive practices of the government privilege private motor vehicle use, helping to both legitimate and maintain that privilege at all levels of government, while positioning utility cycling as a marginalised mode of transport.
This thesis contributes to scholarship on utility cycling and land transport policy in New Zealand by identifying how the discursive strategies of government control the position of utility cycling in New Zealand. This study underscores the need for a central government-led, long-term strategic vision for a genuinely integrated, multi-modal transport system, in order for the benefits of utility cycling to be fully maximised
Studies on French Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) Varieties under Different N, P, K and S Levels for Growth, Yield and Economics
Get PDFFifteen combinations of three French bean varieties viz., Arka Komal (V1), Swaran Priya (V2) and Contender (V3) and five fertilizer levels (F1- 20:40:40:20kg/ha NPKS; F2- 40:40:40:20kg/ha NPKS; F3 - 60:60:60:40kg/ha NPKS; F4 - 80:60:60:40kg/ha NPKS, and F5 -100:80:80:50kg/ha NPKS) were tested in factorial Randomized Block Design, with three replications. Among the varieties, Swaran Priya was superior for growth attributes, yield attributes and yield. Among fertilizer levels, F5 (100:80:80:50kg/ha NPKS) resulted in highest growth parameters, yield parameters and yield of pods. Economic evaluation showed that variety Swaran Priya under F5 (100:80:80:50kg/ha NPKS) resulted in maximum gross returns, net returns and cost:benefit ratio for green pod production
Mikrostruktur Testis, Kualitas dan Kuantitas Spermatozoa Mencit (Mus musculus L.) Diabetes Setelah Pemberian Ekstrak Metanol Daun Pirdot (Saurauia vulcani K.)
No full textThis study aims to determined the effects of pirdot (Saurauia vulcani K.) leaves extract on blood sugar level, testes microstructure, quantity and quality of sperm in alloxan-induced DM mice (Mus musculus L.). The researchhave been well from March until October 2017 at Laboratory of Animal Physiology and Structure, Department of Biology, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, UniversitasSumatera Utara, Medan. The research method was performed using completely randomized design (CRD) with five treatments and five replications. The treatment consist of normal control (without treatment), alloxan control (injection of alloxan as much as 150 mg/kg BW), and treatment of pirdot leaves extract at 150 mg/kg BW, 200 mg/kg BW, and 250 mg/kg BW for eight weeks. The results showed, extract of pirdot leaves decreased mice’s blood sugar level at doses of 200 mg/kg BW per day but increased testes weight, volume, sperm quantity and quality significantly at doses of 200 mg/kg BW and tubule seminiferous’s diameter and germinal ephitelium thick significantly (p<0,05) at doses of 150 mg/kg BW per day.Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui pengaruh ekstrak daun pirdot (Saurauia vulcani K.)terhadap kadar gula darah, mikrostruktur testis, kualitas dan kuantitas spermatozoa mencit (Mus musculus L.) yang diinduksi diabetes dengan aloksan. Penelitian ini telah dilakukan dari Maret hingga Oktober 2017 di Laboratorium Fisiologi Hewan dan Struktur Hewan, Departemen Biologi, Fakultas Matematika dan Ilmu Pengetahuan Alam, Universitas Sumatera Utara, Medan. Percobaan menggunakan rancangan acak lengkap (RAL) dengan lima perlakuan dan lima ulangan. Perlakuan terdiri dari kontrol normal (tanpa perlakuan), kontrol aloksan (diinjeksi aloksan sebanyak 150 mg/kg BB), dan perlakuan pemberian ekstrak daun pirdot dengan dosis bertingkat 150 mg/kg BB, 200 mg/kg BB, dan 250 mg/kg BB selama delapan minggu. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa pemberian ekstrak daun pirdot mampu menurunkan kadar gula darah pada dosis 200 mg/ kg BB namun dapat meningkatkan berat testis, volume testis, kualitas dan kuantitas spermatozoa mencit secara signifikan pada dosis 200 mg/kg BB per hari dan diameter serta tebal epitel germinal tubulus seminiferus testis secara signifikan (p<0,05) pada dosis pemberian 150 mg/kg BB per hari.Skripsi Sarjan
Isolation, Characterisation And Antimicrobial Activity Of Zingiber Zerumbet L.
No full textThis Dissertation / Report is the outcome of investigation carried out by the creator(s) / author(s) at the department/division of Central Food Technological Research Institute (CFTRI), Mysore mentioned below in this page
No-hole λ-L (k, k – 1, …, 2,1)-labeling for square grid
No full textMotivated by a frequency assignment problem, we demonstrate, for a fixed positive integer k, how to label an infinite square grid with a possibly small number of integer labels, ranging from 0 to λ −1, in such a way that labels of adjacent vertices differ by at least k, vertices connected by a path of length two receive values which differ by at least k − 1, and so on. The vertices which are at least k + 1 distance apart may receive the same label. By finding a lower bound for λ, we prove that the solution is close to optimal, with approximation ratio at most 9/8. The labeling presented is a no-hole one, i.e., it uses each of the allowed labels at least once
Promoting growth in Sri Lanka : lessons from East Asia
Get PDFSri Lanka's weak economic performance, although compounded by the civil war and budgetary imbalance, largely reflects the following: 1) a stop-and-go pattern of policy reform, because of political constraints - even though the results of reform were generally positive; 2) weak economic management, resulting in high inflation and a high fiscal and balance of payments deficit; 3) poor management of public spending; 4) mixed performance in exchange-rate management, with periods of substantial overvaluation; 5) financial policies that (despite recent improvements) hamper efficient financial intermediation; 6) prolonged trade protection, followed by selective trade liberalization; 7) continued distortion in agricultural policies; 8) inflexible labor markets and, despite Sri Lanka's outstanding track record on human development, problems with the quality of the labor force. To address a substantially unfinished policy agenda, Sri Lanka needs to intensify efforts to peacefully resolve civil conflict. There is also a need to squarely address its macroeconomic imbalances, involving a sharp reduction in the fiscal deficit, a cutback on public spending and redefinition of spending priorities, improvement of cost recovery for public services, and continuing to improve the management of the exchange rate. In trade policy, eliminate most quanitative restrictions, further reduce tariff protection, simplify the tariff structure, and, possibly, reform customs (to reduce leakage and abuse). Rationalize employment, exit, and bankruptcy regulations and procedures. The authors recommend improvement in communications between government and the private sector. It is necessary for the financial sector to become more competitive by legislating banking reform, giving state-owned banks more autonomy and putting private commercial banks on an equal footing with the two state banks, with the ultimate goal of privatizing the state banks, and also strengthen the supervision of banking. Also in the financial sector the authors have identified a need for privatization in insurance and pension funds to strengthen the capital market. Several aspects of the agricultural sector need to be revamped. Primarily, privatization of the estate plantations, perhaps through long-term management contracts and the gradual sale of share in assets; reduced trade protection; implementation of land reform; strengthen agricultural support; and possibly support rural financing institutions. Lastly, the authors suggest an end to government controls on hiring, firing, and wage setting as well as rationalization in civil service employment decisions.Labor Policies,Economic Theory&Research,Environmental Economics&Policies,Decentralization,Banks&Banking Reform,Banks&Banking Reform,Economic Theory&Research,Environmental Economics&Policies,Achieving Shared Growth,Inequality
Minimum Consistent Subset in Trees and Interval Graphs
Get PDFIn the Minimum Consistent Subset (MCS) problem, we are presented with a connected simple undirected graph G, consisting of a vertex set V(G) of size n and an edge set E(G). Each vertex in V(G) is assigned a color from the set {1,2,…, c}. The objective is to determine a subset V' ⊆ V(G) with minimum possible cardinality, such that for every vertex v ∈ V(G), at least one of its nearest neighbors in V' (measured in terms of the hop distance) shares the same color as v. The decision problem, indicating whether there exists a subset V' of cardinality at most l for some positive integer l, is known to be NP-complete even for planar graphs.
In this paper, we establish that the MCS problem is NP-complete on trees. We also provide a fixed-parameter tractable (FPT) algorithm for MCS on trees parameterized by the number of colors (c) running in O(2^{6c} n^6) time, significantly improving the currently best-known algorithm whose running time is O(2^{4c} n^{2c+3}). In an effort to comprehensively understand the computational complexity of the MCS problem across different graph classes, we extend our investigation to interval graphs. We show that it remains NP-complete for interval graphs, thus enriching graph classes where MCS remains intractable
Luxury as a Driver for New Urban Identities in Milan: Geographies, Spatial Practices, and Open Questions
Get PDFIn contemporary cities, the role of capital and private investors who finance interventions in the field of urban regeneration has become an increasingly important catalyst for the physical and social impacts of these transformations. This paper aims to point out the role of urban projects developed by luxury companies or stakeholders in consolidated urban regions. Starting by analysing the spatial distribution of luxury firms in Milan and composing a tentative classification system based on a variety of case studies, the author proposes a mental map of spaces shaped, occupied, transformed and infected by the sector within the contemporary metropolis. The resulting network of urban places sprawls out not only across centralized areas, but also in peripheral neighbourhoods, which interact with existing contexts, spatial and economic relationships as well as evident and hidden flows. From this basis, the contribution reflects on a set of luxury-driven practices and their impacts on urban identities. The reflection includes the role played by media technologies in these transformations and in the study of their development. The conclusions then discuss the role of luxury; whether it transforms the physical form of our city (its shape and patterns) or rather influences processes of transformation
An Evaluation of Public Participation in the Environmental Impact Assessment Process of the Maldives
No full textEnvironmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is a proactive tool that assesses and addresses the environmental and social impacts of development projects. It has been identified as a process that can potentially deliver the goal of sustainable development. Public participation is an important aspect of both EIA and sustainable development. In many countries EIA provides the only opportunity for the public to participate in decision-making processes. Nevertheless, research reveals that meaningful public participation in EIA in most countries remains a false promise, with consultations undertaken only as an administrative necessity and with the public having no real power to influence the decisions. It is argued here that, in order for public participation in the EIA process to be effective and promote sustainable development, the process needs to follow participatory principles promoted by deliberative democracy.
This research investigates the EIA process of the Maldives, a developing island nation in the Indian Ocean. The low-lying nature of the country makes it extremely vulnerable to environmental change and, therefore, sustainable development is high on the agenda for the Maldives. It is a worthwhile case to study as the political context of the country is changing with the Maldives’ recent embracing of democracy. Moreover, the EIA regulations of the country were recently amended in an attempt to make the process more robust. These changes provide an interesting context for the research. In addition, there is very little prior literature on EIA in the Maldives and hence this research is an opportunity to contribute to a still limited body of scholarship.
An interpretive phenomenological research paradigm was adopted in designing the research. A multimethod qualitative research design was selected, with documents and semi-structured interview being the primary data sources. A conceptual framework based on the reviewed literature was developed and used to direct the research design. In this respect, four aspects that ensure a deliberative participatory process were investigated: fairness, competence, willingness, and capacity.
The findings reveal that the participatory procedure in the Maldives is neither fair nor competent. Moreover, several socioeconomic barriers that affect the capacity and willingness of the actors to participate were identified: namely, political influence, a lack of human and financial capacity, gender gap, a loss of community spirit, and a lack of environmental and procedural awareness.
This thesis contributes to the scholarship on public participation in the EIA process. It specifically helps to identify key challenges for effective public participation in the Maldives EIA process. In this regard, both procedural and socioeconomic barriers were identified. The recommendations proposed are based on the findings of the research, and, if adopted, can lead to more meaningful public participation and thus potentially help to achieve the goal of sustainable development through the EIA process
The First Syzygy of Hibi Rings Associated with Planar distributive lattices
Get PDFLet be a finite distributive lattice and be a polynomial ring over a field and an ideal of . In this article
we describe the first syzygy of the Hibi ring , for a
planar distributive lattice . We also derive an exact formula for
the first Betti number of a planar distributive lattice. We give a
characterization of planar distributive lattices for which the first syzygy is
linear.Comment: 22 pages, 13 figure
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