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Abstract: The emergence of Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) has been recognised with many initiatives during the last 20 years. In Europe, the “ITS Action Plan” identifies a number of applications as key elements contributing to the efficient co-ordination of the overall transport chain. The context and experience surrounding the recent widespread development of technological tools and ICT platforms to support the emergence of ITS are notable for the way in which they permeate the transport and logistics chain. But a key question remains: to what extent is the public transport sector able to exploit the wider benefits of ITS? This paper provides a comparative analysis of ITS policy between Europe and Australia. With a focus on the applications and methods adopted in the use of ITS in the public transport sector in Australia the paper critiques their effectiveness in enhancing passenger experience, operator effectiveness and the likely effect on patronage. The relatively low incidence of the use of ITS in the public transport system in Australia, as compared to Europe, is discussed in the context of technology trends/pathways and impediments to deployment in the public transport sector. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Flexible transport services (FTS) are an emerging term in passenger transport which covers a range of mobility offers where services are flexible in one or more of the dimensions of route, vehicle allocation, vehicle operator, type of payment and passenger category. Research in New South Wales (NSW), Australia identified a number of barriers to the implementation of FTS and this paper explores the extent to which these barriers have been encountered and tackled in the USA and Europe where flexible transport services have been used increasingly as part of the public transport mix in areas where demand is too low to support conventional public transport. Barriers include institutional frameworks such as policy and regulation; economic issues of funding and fares; operational issues of fleet and vehicles; as well as operator and community attitudes; and information and education. The paper makes recommendations to enable and encourage greater use of flexible transport services by transport service planners and providers through the sharing of best practice and information on overcoming barriers to implementation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A key environmental concern is pollution loads released from human activity, since excessive pollutant loads can cause significant public health and/or environmental impacts. A principal objective of environmental regulation is therefore to minimise pollutant releases. The most common approach to assessing and monitoring pollutant loads is through pollutant release databases, with such systems now operating throughout Europe, North America and Australia. This paper has compiled and analysed an extensive data set on Australian coal mining and associated pollutant emissions reported through the National Pollutant Inventory (NPI). In Australia, the coal industry has been growing rapidly over recent decades, and this is causing significant community concerns over cumulative environmental impacts. The pollutant loads and intensities from coal mining are analysed in conjunction with production data. The trends identified in this paper provide an important basis to understand the value of pollutant release and transfer registers, such as the NPI, and demonstrate the critical need to integrate such data with ongoing trends in industry and environmental management initiatives. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Neighborhood sustainability assessment tools have become widespread since the turn of 21st century and many communities, mainly in the developed world, are utilizing these tools to measure their success in approaching sustainable development goals. In this study, seven tools from Australia, Europe, Japan, and the United States are selected and analyzed with the aim of providing insights into the current situations; highlighting the strengths, weaknesses, successes, and failures; and making recommendations for future improvements. Using a content analysis, the issues of sustainability coverage, pre-requisites, local adaptability, scoring and weighting, participation, reporting, and applicability are discussed in this paper. The results of this study indicate that most of the tools are not doing well regarding the coverage of social, economic, and institutional aspects of sustainability; there are ambiguities and shortcomings in the weighting, scoring, and rating; in most cases, there is no mechanism for local adaptability and participation; and, only those tools which are embedded within the broader planning framework are doing well with regard to applicability. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Europe, North America, Australia and other individual countries have certification and testing procedures for solar thermal equipment designed to support innovation and product development and to protect consumers from poor performance and unsafe designs. For the first time, as a result of the international coll aboration under the IEA-SHC Task 43 umbrella and the working groups of Solar Keymark Network, SRCC, ISO/TC180 and CEN/TC312, it has been possible to develop a common international standard draft for solar thermal collector testing. This paper describes in detail the new ISO/DIS 9806 standard and the relevant topics which clarify and refine existing test procedures or extend their scope: including solar air heating collector testing and tracking/concentrating collector testing. The new ISO/DIS 9806 standard opens the door to a global certification scheme for solar thermal collectors, thereby helping to overcome problems resulting from many different regional certification schemes. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The terms of stock option contracts are adjusted in the event of unexpected corporate actions, and the nature of the adjustments may result in windfall gains or losses to open option positions. This paper evaluates the fairness of the two different procedures used for special cash dividends. We show that, while neither procedure is technically correct, the absolute adjustment used in the U.S. and Canada minimizes the windfall change in option value when the dividend is announced. In addition, the proportional adjustment used in Australia and Europe depends on stock price and is therefore vulnerable to temporary aberrations in the stock market. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The continent of Australia had a number of appellations up until the early 19th century. The most enigmatic of these was Ulimaroa. This name was bestowed by the Swedish geographer Daniel Djurberg and subsequently used by a number of other European cartographers. In this paper, it is our intention to elucidate the origin, meaning, development, and possible original referent of this name. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, more specifically, its enormous popularity in the United States, Western Europe and Australia, and the absence of any reaction to the series in Serbia. By compari ng themes regarded as important in western societies to the current situation in Serbia, the analysis shows that Buffy the Vampire Slayer is a series that could not have gained popularity in Serbia because it uses the language of fantasy to speak about reality and pose unpleasant questions, which the Serbian public does not wish to hear. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Predischarge occupational therapy home assessments are routinely performed with older adults in Europe, Australia and North America. Their primary aim is to facilitate a timely and safe discharge from hospital. However, there is a lack of published research on this topic, especially studies exploring occupational therapists' perceptions of home assessments. The paper aims to redress this by describing occupational therapists' perceptions of predischarge occupational therapy home assessments with older adults in acute care. All occupational therapists who undertook home assessments in an acute care hospital with older adults during the duration of the study period were invited to complete a reflective diary. In total, 15 reflective diaries were completed by six therapists. The data were analysed using thematic content analysis. The findings suggest that home assessments were carried out because of mobility or environmental concerns. Satisfaction and dissatisfaction with the outcome of the home assessment were related to the incidents that occurred during the assessment. Some of the occupational therapists' anxieties were related to the older adults' level of functioning or ill health, and the older adults' own concerns did have an impact upon the therapists' expectations of the home assessment process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Washington Accord was first signed in 1989 by US, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and Canada. It applies to the accreditation of engineering education programs. Hong Kong signed in 1995, South Africa in 1995 and Japan in 2005. This paper is an account of the corresponding author's experience in the developments of the engineering education in Singapore (in the 1990's) and Malaysia (in the 2000's) who are provisional members to the Washington accord. It hopes to support the admission of Malaysia as a full member. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]