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City Centre (city + centre)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Humanities and Social Sciences	36%
Engineering	36%
Earth and Environmental Science	18%

Selected Abstracts

Re-imaging the City Centre for the Middle Classes: Regeneration, Gentrification and Symbolic Policies in ,Loser Cities'

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF URBAN AND REGIONAL RESEARCH, Issue 3 2009
MAX ROUSSEAU
Abstract This article aims to show how the governments of two industrial cities in France and the UK have now come to the view that middle-class reinvestment in the city centre offers a solution to urban economic decline, and so have encouraged the middle class to move in by implementing ,symbolic policies'. Their objective is to transform the image of the post-industrial city through cultural and urban planning policy, in order to adapt it to the supposed taste of potential gentrifiers. This development in strategy results from both external constraints and internal political changes in these cities. The failure of earlier redevelopment strategies is also a factor in explaining this paradoxical phenomenon, in which a social group that is, in fact, almost absent from the central spaces of these cities has now been accorded the status of ,systematic winners'. Résumé Cet article a pour objectif de montrer comment les gouvernements de deux villes industrielles, en France et en Grande-Bretagne, considèrent désormais que le réinvestissement du centre-ville par les classes moyennes constitue une solution au déclin économique urbain, et en viennent ainsi à favoriser leur arrivée par la mise en oeuvre de «politiques symboliques»: par des actions sur la culture et l'urbanisme, l'objectif est de transformer l'image de la ville postindustrielle pour l'adapter au goût supposé des gentrifieurs potentiels. Cette évolution stratégique est tout à la fois le résultat de contraintes externes et de transformations politiques internes aux villes. L'échec des précédentes stratégies de re-développement est également un facteur explicatif de ce phénomène paradoxal qui rend «systématiquement gagnant» depuis peu un groupe social pourtant quasiment absent de l'espace central de ces villes. [source]

Transformationsraum Fotografie: Berlin-Hellersdorf am Übergang von DDR Zu BRD

GERMAN LIFE AND LETTERS, Issue 4 2010
Svea Bräunert
ABSTRACT Built between 1979 and 1991, the housing complex Berlin-Hellersdorf was one of the last and most ambitious construction projects of the GDR. Located at the interstice between East and West Germany, Hellersdorf can thus be seen as a space conducive to thinking about the 1990s post-socialist transformations. The 1998 interdisciplinary project,Peripherie als Ort. Das Hellersdorf Projekt,picks up on this idea. Focusing on the works of Ulrich Wüst and Helga Paris, who have contributed to the,Hellersdorf Project, the following essay analyses the role photography and architecture play as indices of socio-political and spatial transitions. Entering into a dialogue with photography, East German prefab housing, commonly referred to as ,Platte', becomes a mnemonic space whose parallactic perspectives are materially bound to the past without denying the changing present. As such, Hellersdorf presents itself as a complex space outside Berlin's city centre that invites reflections about the transformations that have taken place since German unification. Die zwischen 1979 und 1991 errichtete Großsiedlung Berlin-Hellersdorf war eines der letzten und ehrgeizigsten Wohnungsbauprojekte der DDR. Solcherart am direkten Übergang von DDR zu BRD lokalisiert, kann Hellersdorf als Denkraum verstanden werden, anhand dessen sich die postsozialistischen Transformationsprozesse der 1990er-Jahre exemplarisch nachvollziehen und problematisieren lassen. An diesen Gedanken anknüpfend, entstand 1998 das interdisziplinäre Vorhaben,Peripherie als Ort. Das Hellersdorf Projekt, an dem sich unter anderem die Fotograf/innen Ulrich Wüst und Helga Paris beteiligten. Von ihren Arbeiten ausgehend, untersucht der vorliegende Essay die Bedeutung von Fotografie und Architektur als Indizes des Übergangs. Im Dialog mit der Fotografie wird der Plattenbau zum parallaktischen Erinnerungsraum, der in einer materiellen Verbindung mit der Vergangenheit steht, ohne jedoch die Veränderungen der Gegenwart leugnen zu können. Damit bietet Hellersdorf einen komplexen Raum abseits des Berliner Zentrums, der zum Nachdenken über die Transformationsprozesse seit der deutschen Vereinigung einlädt. [source]

Sensitivity study of the urban heat island intensity to urban characteristics

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CLIMATOLOGY, Issue 7 2008
R. Hamdi
Abstract A detailed urban surface exchange parameterization, implemented in a meso-scale atmospheric model, has been used to study the urban heat island (UHI) intensity during a summer period in the city of Basel, Switzerland. In this urban parameterization, the city is represented as a combination of three urban classes (road, roof and wall), characterized by the size of the street canyon and the building and is thus able to take into account the momentum sink over the entire height of the building, as well as the shadowing and the radiation trapping effects. A control experiment including all the urban parameters describing the city centre of Basel produced a canyon air temperature that compared well with observations. A series of experiments was then conducted in which successively each of the urban parameters characterizing the city centre was changed providing the basis for an assessment of its effect on UHI mitigation. Copyright © 2007 Royal Meteorological Society [source]

Providing multimedia communications services from high altitude platforms

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SATELLITE COMMUNICATIONS AND NETWORKING, Issue 6 2001
D. Grace
Abstract System level design considerations for high altitude platforms operating in the mm-wave bands are examined. Propagation effects in these bands are outlined, followed by a brief introduction to different platform scenarios. Ground-based and platform-based fixed wireless access scenarios are considered, and it is shown that using a platform, a single base station can supply a much larger coverage area than a terrestrial base station. The effects on performance of platform displacement from its desired location with both fixed and steerable antennas are also examined. It is shown that steerable antennas are of most use when fixed stations are immediately below the platform, with no benefit for fixed stations on the edge of coverage. The bandwidths required to serve several traffic distributions (suburbs and city centre based) are evaluated using the Shannon equation. It is shown that capacity can be constrained when users are located in the city centres, despite longer line of sight paths to users out in the suburbs. The effects of temporal changes in the spatial traffic distribution are investigated. It is shown that bandwith requirements can be reduced if the platform moves to track these changes. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Re-imaging the City Centre for the Middle Classes: Regeneration, Gentrification and Symbolic Policies in ,Loser Cities'

Modelling the impact of high-rise buildings in urban areas on precipitation initiation

METEOROLOGICAL APPLICATIONS, Issue 2 2007
M. G. D. Carraça
Abstract The impact of urban areas upon precipitation distribution has been studied for many years. However, the relative importance of the distribution and type of surface morphology and urban heating remains unclear. A simple model of the surface sensible heat flux is used to explore the impact of urban heterogeneity. Sensitivity experiments are carried out to test the validity of the model, and experiments with a schematic urban morphology are used to investigate the impact of different types of building arrays. It is found that high-rise buildings over relatively small areas may have just as much impact as somewhat lower buildings covering a much larger area. The urban area produces considerable spatial variation in surface sensible heat flux. Data from a C-band radar located to the north of Greater Manchester provides evidence that convective cells may be initiated by the sensible heat flux input generated by the high-rise buildings in the city centre when the atmospheric boundary layer is unstable. Copyright © 2007 Royal Meteorological Society [source]

,You'll never walk alone': CCTV surveillance, order and neo-liberal rule in Liverpool city centre1

THE BRITISH JOURNAL OF SOCIOLOGY, Issue 4 2000
Roy Coleman
ABSTRACT This paper is concerned to chart the establishment and uses of CCTV within the location of Liverpool city centre. In doing this the paper seeks to contextualize CCTV within contemporary ,partnership' approaches to regeneration which are reshaping the material and discursive form of the city. Thus CCTV schemes along with other security initiatives are understood as social ordering strategies emanating from within locally powerful networks which are seeking to define and enact orderly regeneration projects. In focusing on the normative aspects of CCTV, the paper raises questions concerning the efficacy of understanding contemporary forms of ,social ordering practices' primarily in terms of technical rationalities while neglecting other, more material and ideological processes involved in the construction of social order. [source]

Microbial and nutrient pollution in the coastal bathing waters of Dar es Salaam

AQUATIC CONSERVATION: MARINE AND FRESHWATER ECOSYSTEMS, Issue S1 2009
Thomas J. Lyimo
Abstract 1.The objective of the present study was to assess the microbial and nutrient quality of coastal beach waters used for bathing in the city of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Concentrations of traditional and alternative microbial indicators of faecal pollution and nutrients were assessed over a 1 year period (August 2005 to August 2006) using standard methods and the results were compared with the WHO water quality guidelines. 2.Faecal indicator bacteria values varied in a consistent fashion and correlated significantly with eachother, reflecting the presumed human faecal pollution. 3.The maximum counts (MPN per 100,mL) were observed on the site close to the city centre (Ocean Road) throughout the sampling period where values ranged from 1700 to>240 000 total coliform (TC), 200 to 92000 faecal coliform (FC) and 11 to 4900 enterococci (ENT). Other sites showed less predictable results with a range of values from 0,920, 0,540 and 0,46 for TC, FC and ENT, respectively. Furthermore, the faecal indicator bacteria concentration varied significantly with sampling time (P<0.05) and between sampling points (P<0.05). 4.Similarly, nutrients were significantly higher (P<0.05) at Ocean Road where concentration (µmolL,1) ranges were 0.2,54 (NO3), 0.0,20 (NO2) and 0.3,45 (PO4). 5.The levels of faecal indicator bacteria and nutrients were higher during the rainy seasons than the dry seasons, showing the inclusion of rain run-off as a source of contamination. The faecal indicator bacteria correlated positively with nutrients in both 1 year and daily data sets (P<0.01). Positive relationships were also observed among faecal indicators. This strongly suggests that an important role is played by sewage contamination in the extent of microbial pollution at the studied urbanized coastal beaches. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Francis-Jones Morehen Thorp (FJMT)

ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN, Issue 2 2010
Fleur Watson
Abstract The output of FJMT varies greatly in scale and location. The practice has completed community schemes in Sydney's suburbs as well as accommodation for prestigious institutions in the city centre. It has adapted existing structures on heritage sites as well as producing high-tech newbuilds. As Fleur Watson and Martyn Hook explain, what FJMT's projects have in common is an unwavering commitment to the enhancement of the public realm. The firm embraces the full responsibility of building in the sensitive urban and topographic context of this harbour city with its ridges and coastal inlets. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Die "Highlight Munich Business Towers" in München , Tragwerksplanung und statische Nachweise

BAUTECHNIK, Issue 4 2006
Werner Sobek Prof. Dr.-Ing.
Die "Highlight Munich Business Towers" liegen am Anbindepunkt der A 9 an den Mittleren Ring in München, nur wenige Kilometer vom Olympiazentrum entfernt. Die Bauwerke sind Teil des "Gewerbeparks München-Schwabing", der mit diesen Neubauten weiter an Attraktivität gewinnt, insbesondere auch deshalb, weil der Komplex durch eine neue U-Bahnhaltestelle erschlossen werden wird. Die Highlight Towers gingen aus einem Architekturwettbewerb im Jahr 2000 hervor, den das Planungsteam aus den Architekten Murphy/Jahn, den Tragwerksplanern Werner Sobek Ingenieure und den Energieingenieuren Transsolar gewinnen konnte. Das Team betreute das Projekt bis zu seiner Fertigstellung. Das Bauvorhaben stellt einen wichtigen Beitrag zur Entwicklung des Hochhausbaus dar, da zum einen die Leistungsfähigkeit der Stahl-Stahlbetonverbundbauweise bis an die Grenzen des technisch Machbaren ausgenutzt wurde und zum anderen auf die sonst üblichen Stahlbetonkerne vollständig verzichtet wurde. Die daraus resultierende Transparenz ist atemberaubend: Sie erlaubt praktisch in allen Bereichen des Gebäudes eine vollständige Durchsicht. Die Entwurfsgedanken der Transparenz und der Entmaterialisierung wurden konsequent auf alle Baukörper und die zugehörigen Bauwerksteile wie Aufzugskonstruktionen und Verbindungsbrücken übertragen. Insbesondere die vollverglasten Verbindungsbrücken in bis zu 80 m Höhe bieten den Nutzern ein unvergeßliches Erlebnis. (© 2006 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim) The Highlight Munich Business Towers in Munich. The Highlight Munich Business Towers are located in the northeast of Munich, where highway A 9 from Nuremberg is connected to the middle ring road, just a few miles from Munich's Olympia Center. The buildings are part of the ,Industrial Park Munich-Schwabing', which thus becomes even more attractive, not least because the buildings will have an ideal connection to the city centre by a new subway station. The project goes back to an architectural competition in the year 2000. The planning team of architects Murphy/Jahn, structural engineers Werner Sobek Ingenieure und climate engineers Transsolar was victorious against strong international competitors and managed the project until its completion. The building project is a special landmark in the history of highrise structures in Germany because it does completely without the concrete cores that are commonly used to stiffen a building. The resulting transparency is unique. The idea of transparency and dematerialisation lying behind the design was consequently applied to all parts of the structure and to all components, like elevators and bridges connecting the two buildings. Especially these totally glazed bridges at a height of up to 240 feet will certainly make a lasting impression on visitors. [source]