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There is a longstanding literature on the unequal geographical distribution of welfare. In this paper we argue that increasingly geography is becoming the basis for rationing access to some forms of welfare. Focusing on access to secondary schools in East London, England, where the demand for places at the more popular schools generally far exceeds the number of places available, we show how distance from school has now become the primary means of allocating places. Rather than educational resources attempting to compensate for geographical disadvantage, geography (in the form of distance from school) has become the rationale by which those living in advantaged areas continue to have privileged access to educational resources. Whereas previously the role of the state was to compensate for the unfairness of such geographical inequalities, geography (via distance to school) is now used to justify the unequal allocation of scarce school places. The paper demonstrates that not only does the near universal adoption of distance-based allocation policies in East London lead to the reproduction of social advantage and disadvantage, but also it is creating new hierarchies of school popularity and more important unpopularity which are not always clearly related to issues of school attainment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers the relations between practice, knowledge and context in design consultancies. It uses a case study of design consultancies in London based on in-depth interviews with designers working in design agencies in the city. The paper argues that the relations between design knowledge and context have been conceived in two ways. The first account emphasises the sharing of tacit knowledge in a design community marked by relatively strong and durable social ties. The second approach argues instead that design is a creative collectivity with much weaker social ties and a broader range of types of knowledge. It is argued that while both of these approaches illuminate parts of situated learning and context in design consultancies, these are actually more complex and mixed than either account recognises. Both accounts overlook the crucial importance of what are termed medium-strength ties between designers and their clients that combine market contracts with personal regard and friendship. The paper concludes by suggesting that such medium ties are increasingly important in design-based innovation systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Compared with the attention paid to written texts, geographers and others have neglected the spoken word in its many forms, particularly in investigations of the power relations of colonialism and imperialism. This paper argues that considering orality as a series of embodied, situated enunciations, declarations and conversations can provide a basis for historical geographies of the spoken word that engage with representation as practice. Using evidence from the domain of law within the context of Britain's plantation colonies in the Caribbean - particularly Barbados and Jamaica - this paper argues for the significance of the oral culture of empire. This was evident in the ways in which the power of speech - through the rules on oath-taking and evidence-giving - was part of the making of imperial and colonial identities and relationships dividing white and non-white, free and unfree, both within the spaces of plantation societies and in the broader British Atlantic world. The fragility of the identities and relationships made through the spoken word is also demonstrated through a series of moments when changes in the regulation of speech in courts of law were suggested and contested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing from debates in economic geography on relational and organisational proximity as a substitute for geographical proximity, the paper explores characteristics of knowledge transfer in London's recorded music industry through an examination of organisational connections on local and global scales. The paper demonstrates that knowledge transfer within the industry occurs simultaneously across multiple geographical scales, with certain organisational connections facilitating the transfer of tacit knowledge across organisational boundaries. However, the paper argues that these connections do not offer the same scope for trust as is afforded by frequent face-to-face contact and therefore offer only a partial substitute for geographical proximity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the second of two papers (Paper I, Geogrl J. 157(1)) the motive forces driving current development of the Central London economy are set against possible constraints on its ability to grow in the future. It is concluded that, while growth in finance and business service activity which has been the prime dynamic force within the local economy over the recent past is likely to continue, the rate of this growth depends crucially on London maintaining its position as an international financial centre in the face of competition from other European cities. Labour shortages arising from the demographic structure of its population are identified as a source of difficulty but one that can be moderated by the smooth timing of growth and an effective rail system. It is clear, however, that investment in new rail facilities will be hampered if their financing is related too closely to current revenues which are exposed to short-run variations in property values rather than to the pursuit of a longer term strategy for the development of Central London. It is argued that such a long-term strategy might include the encouragement of less essential employment to move away from Central London in order to allow greater investment in road, rail and air connections outside the central area to improve London's international accessibility. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

London’s skyline is changing significantly with a new generation of iconic buildings, of which the Swiss-Re Tower is the most well known. Despite the fact that many of these buildings are located in the City (London’s financial heart), little attention has been paid to the relationship between the transformation of London’s skyline and the recent institutional reconfiguration of the Corporation of London, the authority that runs the City. Focusing empirically on the City’s iconic architecture, and foregrounding a period of institutional crisis for the Corporation (1970–1990), the paper: first, departs from the standard analysis of iconic buildings as signifiers of economic success, and sketches a framework for examining the role of iconic architecture during moments of crisis and, second, offers a new approach to understanding the City’s iconic commissions: not as signifiers of London’s international economic power, but as symptoms of changes in the institutions and élites that promote the City’s new urbanity. The article details how the internationalisation of London’s economy after the 1970s challenged the Corporation’s insular character. The Corporation’s resistance to the ‘invasion’ of foreign companies, people and architectural styles in the City in the midst of a rapid expansion of London’s economy and growing inter-urban competition, led to open threats from the government for the abolition of the Corporation. Responding to these threats, the Corporation reinvented itself with an institutional reform and re-branded its identity in the early 2000s as an outward-looking institution, open to London’s new transnational élites. The 2002 Unitary Development Plan that introduced a new architectural language in the City corresponds to the same need to construct a new imaginary identity for a re-branded Corporation. Towering over the City’s traditional signifiers, the City’s new buildings constitute an ode to the Corporation’s new identity and a visual coup d’état against its time-old heritage-oriented planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has been a plethora of literature in the last few years attempting to conceptualise how the (international) firm operates in the notion of what has been termed ‘buzz’. In this paper, we aim to highlight how the use of social network analysis (SNA) can provide a nuanced view of ‘buzz’, through a focus on London's advertising industry. In this case study, we use the data on interlocking board members of the advertising companies in London, and visualise their network maps through sociograms. This method of analysis, under-utilised in the economic geography literature, highlights the intensity of connections between companies and particular individuals. It shows the paths of knowledge flow within the industry, and can highlight the key ‘gatekeepers’ within what is already known to be a highly networked and socialised industry. This is a specific conceptualisation of interaction and provides a quantitative conception of what has hitherto been largely evaluated through qualitative means. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we explore the impacts of the training programmes offered to lone mothers with young children on the Government's ‘New Deal for Lone Parents’ in one local labour market: West London. Our research suggests that regulatory workfare policies are (re)producing and reinforcing gendered inequalities in the labour market by encouraging lone mothers to undertake training in feminised occupational areas such as childcare. We will argue that in a local economy such as West London where more childcare workers are desperately needed to enable other more highly skilled workers to take up employment opportunities, such training programmes may be doing little more than exacerbating the already gendered and class-based polarisation of the labour market – embedding low-skilled, poorly qualified lone mothers into low-paid jobs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information about several papers discussed at the conference titled "Re-imagining Culture in the Russo-Japanese War" held in London, England in March 2004 is presented. Topics focus on the impact of the Russo-Japanese war on society. The conference featured several writers including Naoko Shimazu, Rosamund Bartlett, and David Crowley.

The relationship between gentrification and globalisation has recently become a significant concern for gentrification scholars. This has involved developing an understanding of how gentrification has become a place-based strategy of class (re)formation during an era in which globalisation has changed sociological structures and challenged previously established indicators of social distinction. This paper offers an alternative reading of the relationship between gentrification and globalisation through examining the results of a mixed method research project which looked at new-build gentrification along the River Thames, London, UK. This research finds gentrification not to be distinguished by the gentrifer-performed practice of habitus within a ‘global context’. Rather, the responsibility for gentrification, and the relationship between globalisation and gentrification, is found to originate with capital actors working within the context of a neoliberal global city. In order to critically conceptualise this form of gentrification, and understand the role of globalisation within the process, the urban theory of Lefebvre is drawn upon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we argue that a process of super-gentrification, similar to that first identified by Lees (2003 Urban Studies 40 2487–509) in Brooklyn Heights, New York City, is occurring in the already gentrified, inner London neighbourhood of Barnsbury. A new group of super wealthy professionals working in the City of London is slowly imposing its mark on this inner London housing market in a way that differentiates it and them both from traditional gentrifiers and from the traditional urban upper classes. We suggest that there is a close interaction between work in the newly globalizing industries of the financial services economy, elite forms of education, particularly Oxbridge, and residence in Barnsbury which is very different from other areas of gentrified inner London. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The international prominence of Young British art (YBa) in the 1990s gave London a contemporary art movement to match its role as one of the world's key centres of art exchange. Examining the rise of YBa in retrospect, this paper is concerned with the difference place makes in helping to shape the (hi)story of art. It is argued that London's established role as an international art centre was crucial in providing the density of networks, associations and facilities necessary to sustain an international art movement. At the same time, YBa's success can be linked to London's changing status as a cultural capital, as well as profound changes in the business of contemporary art. Attention is drawn to the ways in which the international art world is dominated by networks formed within and across a limited number of world art cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public access to environmental information received much attention in the last decade. Recent developments promote access to this information through public telecommunication networks. This paper describes a Web-based survey that explored the requirements and needs of likely users of public environmental information systems for London: educated middle-class members of the public, with high interest in environmental issues and computer literacy. The survey demonstrated current information consumption patterns and the reasons to gather and use such information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Considerable debate has occurred over whether ‘global cities’ are witnessing polarization of their labour forces into highly paid professionals and low paid personal service workers. This paper offers evidence on paid domestic labour in London, some of which occurs in the informal sector, and considers its potential significance for the polarization debate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the building that presently houses the Imperial War Museum, investigating the transformation of the archetypal ‘mad space’ of the Bethlem Royal Hospital into what has been described as the ‘biggest boy’s bedroom in London’. Following recent concerns in human geography with Imperial cities, it highlights the differing ways in which this transformation embodies a number of themes of degeneration and regeneration in early twentieth-century Britain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the results from exploratory research which set out to investigate London children's perceptions and uses of river environments. Mainly qualitative, multi-method research was carried out in four primary schools with children aged 9-11, focusing on two rivers near to the schools. Rivers were found to be marginal to the children's everyday lives and outdoor play, being perceived as polluted, neglected, and initially dangerous places. However, when experienced on visits observed as part of the research, some of these perceptions changed and rivers were also found to afford many special activities and experiences for the children. The visits were generally seen to have a positive effect on the children's perceptions of rivers, at least in the short term. This suggests that, if managed appropriately, rivers could be potentially rewarding play areas for children. Moreover, children could provide valuable input for river managers in suggesting ways of improving suitable local rivers for increased recreational uses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights papers presented at the April 2000 meeting of the British Society for Matrix Biology (BSMB), held in London, England. Conference's focus on the theme 'Molecular Cell Biology of the Synovial Joint'; Stages of mammalian tendon development; Work on the changes in cell populations and the extracellular matrix of patients with chronic tendon pathology.

Objective The measurement of health-related quality of life (HRQL) has become increasingly common in health services research. Whilst useful, its focus on behaviour, capacities and activities means that it remains relatively specific. This paper explores the possibility of extending the evaluation of health by considering the concept of patients’ expectations. Design In-depth and semi-structured interviews were used to explore the concept of expectations from the patients’ perspective. Patients’ expectations were then used in the construction of a two-part questionnaire. Settings and participants Expectations were explored with a group of 33 cardiac patients. The resulting questionnaire was given to 400 cardiac patients in a large teaching hospital in London. Results Patients identified a range of expectations which related to their health and seemed to represent the desired results of their hospital stay. Comparison of the content of patient expectations with a commonly used generic measure of HRQL, the Short-Form 36 (SF-36), found some overlap but indicated that patients seemed to adopt a broader approach to their health. Expectations that patients identified were used to construct two scales to measure expectations and their evaluation. The internal consistency of these scales was 0.82 and 0.88, respectively. Conclusion The study indicates the potential complexity of the concept of expectations and the need for further exploration. It also demonstrates the feasibility of constructing standardized scales to measure patient expectations. Whilst conceptually different from HRQL such standardized expectations scales could provide a useful adjunct to HRQL measurement and provide a meaningful context for the interpretation of HRQL data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Inebriate Act passed in 1898 enabled local authorities to set up State and Certified Reformatories to treat habitual drunkards over a two to three year period as an alternative to a short prison sentence. A large proportion of offenders sentenced under this Act were women. This development has been a somewhat neglected area of social policy, perhaps because it was a short-lived experiment and few local authorities chose to take up the option; although institutional treatment was enthusiastically supported by members of the Society for the Study of Inebriety who campaigned tirelessly to extend the powers of the Act. This legislation is an interesting subject both because of the regimes that were developed to treat inebriety and also because it was one of the few attempts that were actually put into practice to impose an institutional solution on the problem of the 'undeserving' poor. This paper looks at the methods of treatment to be found in the reformatories and the way in which the campaign was proselytised in the Society's journal. We examine the records of one female reformatory run by the London County Council in an attempt to illustrate the characteristics and social backgrounds of women found in the reformatories. Finally, we make some tentative suggestions which might account for the fact that, although more men than women were prosecuted under the Act, the institutional solution was used predominantly for women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information about several papers discussed at a meeting entitled "Imaging Membrane Dynamics" held at Royal Holloway in London, England on September 14 to 17, 2006 is presented. The meeting was collaborated by the British Society for Cell Biology and Royal Microscopical Society and it was attended by 130 participants. Some of the speakers of the event includes Catherine Rabouille, Ben Glick, David Owen, and Jennifer Lippincott-Schwartz.

Many governments have introduced policies aimed at improving social mix, particularly in urban areas. In this article we develop a model of moving and location decisions, which demonstrates how cumulative processes of growth, decline and segregation occur that conflict with the aims of policies aimed at improving social mix. A nested multinomial logit model is estimated, using a micro data set for London and South East England to illustrate the likely outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on the mandatory Public Access Policies introduced by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the British agency Wellcome Trust for all research papers. The NIH policy requires all investigators funded by the National Library of Medicine's PubMed Central (PMC) to submit an electronic version of their final manuscripts. The Wellcome Trust policy mandates electronic copies of any research papers accepted for publication to be made available through PMC.

Highlights the papers presented at the Medicines Regulation and Clinical Pharmacology in the 21st Century symposium, held in London, England. Formation and work of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency and the National Institute for Clinical Excellence; Important aspects of practical drug development; Example of typical and atypical antipsychotic drugs.