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The paper describes results to date of an ongoing monitoring study of coastal ‘soft cliff’ recession at the British Geological Survey (BGS)’s ‘Coastal Landslide Observatory’ (CLO) on the east coast of England at Aldbrough, East Riding of Yorkshire, UK. The cliffed site, part of the 50 km long Holderness coast, consists of glacial deposits, and is one of the most rapidly eroding coastlines in Europe. This rapid rate of erosion provides an ideal opportunity for observation and process understanding because it facilitates the collection of data over periods of time encompassing significant new landslide events at the same location. The results of two approaches are reported: firstly terrestrial LiDAR surveying (TLS) and secondly the installation of instrumented boreholes. The aim of the research is to combine these to investigate the role of landslides and their pre-conditioning factors and the influence of geology, geotechnics, topography and environmental factors on cliff recession. To date, an average recession rate of 1.8 m per year and a maximum rate of 3.4 m per year have been recorded for the site. The establishment of the CLO and its conceptual geological / geotechnical model are described in a related article (Hobbs et al. 2019a).

The paper describes the establishment of the British Geological Survey (BGS)’s field-based ‘Coastal Landslide Observatory’, designed for the study of coastal ‘soft cliff’ recession on the east coast of England at Aldbrough, East Riding of Yorkshire. The cliffed site is part of the 50 km long Holderness coast which is one of the most rapidly eroding coastlines in Europe. The site features a 16–17 m high sea-cliff formed by Late Devensian (18–13 ka) glacial deposits dominated by tills. The aim of the research is to investigate the role of landslides and their pre-conditioning factors, including geology, geotechnics and topography, in cliff recession with a view to developing coastal landslide forecasting capability. Two research approaches are encompassed in the observatory: firstly, terrestrial LiDAR surveying, from 2001 to present, to create digital elevation models of the cliff and, secondly, installation of instrumented boreholes from 2012. The design, methods, conceptual ground model, implementation of the observatory and geotechnical laboratory test results are described in this article. The interpretation of results and the final ground model are presented in a related article in this volume.

Although it is recognized in the early stages of cancer recovery that changes in lifestyle including increases in physical activity improves physical function, there are no clear findings whether low versus moderate intensity activity or home or gym exercise offer optimal benefit. Isometric-resistance exercises can be carried out with very little equipment and space and can be performed while patients are bed-bound in hospital or at home. This embedded qualitative study, based in an English hospital trust providing specialist cancer care, was undertaken as a component of a feasibility trial to evaluate the acceptability and feasibility of an isometric-resistance exercise program and explore the suitability of functional assessments by drawing from the experiences of abdominal cancer patients following surgery. Telephone interviews were undertaken with 7 participants in the intervention group, and 8 interviews with the usual care group (n = 15). The gender composition consisted of 11 females and 4 males. Participants’ ages ranged from 27 to 84 (M = 60.07, SD = 15.40). Interviews were conducted between August 2017 and May 2018, with audio files digitally recorded and data coded using thematic framework analysis. Our results show that blinding to intervention or usual care was a challenge, participants felt the intervention was safe and suitable aided by the assistance of a research nurse, yet, found the self-completion questionnaire tools hard to complete. Our study provides an insight of trial processes, participants’ adherence and completion of exercise interventions, and informs the design and conduct of larger RCTs based on the experiences of abdominal cancer surgery patients.

This paper represents the result of the IAEG C35 Commission “Monitoring methods and approaches in engineering geology applications” workgroup aimed to describe a general overview of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and their potentiality in several engineering geology applications. The use of UAV has progressively increased in the last decade and nowadays started to be considered a standard research instrument for the acquisition of images and other information on demand over an area of interest. UAV represents a cheap and fast solution for the on-demand acquisition of detailed images of an area of interest and the creation of detailed 3D models and orthophoto. The use of these systems required a good background of data processing and a good drone pilot ability for the management of the flight mission in particular in a complex environment.

Relict glacial and periglacial environments are widespread, and the deposits that they are associated with mean it is inevitable that the design and construction of many projects will be influenced by their presence and nature. Tills and other glaciogenic deposits prove to be particularly challenging in this context for reasons that include: the spatial variability of the nature of the deposits; the wide range of particle sizes often included within a given soil, including large-sized particles; spatial variation in soil type and properties; variation in depth to rockhead and variable degrees of weathering and alteration; the presence of groundwater, that is misinterpreted as perched water, as well as sub-artesian and artesian conditions; the presence of solution features and fissures, partly or completely infilled with soft or loose material; and the presence of (often shallow) shear surfaces at residual strength. In this chapter, some of the more common problems and associated solutions associated with earthworks and man-made slopes, tunnels and underground structures, dams and reservoirs, foundations, and offshore engineering and installations are reviewed. It is important that great care is taken in addressing the influences of variability, complexity and uncertainty inherent in glacial/periglacial soil formations at all stages of the construction process, from feasibility to end-of-project activities, such as preparation of the as-built drawings.

The shrinkage limit is one of the Atterberg limits and is a fundamental geotechnical parameter used to assess the settlement of engineering soils containing clays, yet is rarely tested for as part of ground investigation. This paper describes shrinkage limit test results on a variety of soils from Britain and overseas obtained using an improved laboratory testing procedure developed at the British Geological Survey (BGS). The co-relationships with the other Atterberg limits and with density are explored. In particular, the coincidence of the shrinkage limit with the water content at the peak bulk density achieved in the test is examined. The shrinkage behaviour for undisturbed and remoulded states and a 3-way relationship between water content, density and suction are demonstrated. Some tropical residual and highly smectitic soils show a very wide range of shrinkage behaviour, albeit for a small dataset, when compared with the larger dataset of temperate soils tested. Consideration is given to limitations of the new and existing test methods.

In situ measurements of near-saturated hydraulic conductivity in fine-grained soils have been made at six exemplar UK transport earthwork sites: three embankment and three cutting slopes. This paper reports 143 individual measurements and considers the factors that influence the spatial and temporal variability obtained. The test methods employed produce near-saturated conditions and flow under constant head. Full saturation is probably not achieved owing to preferential and bypass flow occurring in these desiccated soils. For an embankment, hydraulic conductivity was found to vary by five orders of magnitude in the slope near-surface (0–0.3 m depth), decreasing by four orders of magnitude between 0.3 and 1.2 m depth. This extremely high variability is in part due to seasonal temporal changes controlled by soil moisture content, which can account for up to 1.5 orders of magnitude of this variability. Measurements of hydraulic conductivity at a cutting also indicated a four orders of magnitude range of hydraulic conductivity for the near-surface, with strong depth dependence of a two orders of magnitude decrease from 0.2 to 0.6 m depth. The main factor controlling the large range is found to be spatial variability in the soil macrostructure generated by wetting–drying cycle driven desiccation and roots. The measurements of hydraulic conductivity reported in this paper were undertaken to inform and provide a benchmark for the hydraulic parameters used in numerical models of groundwater flow. This is an influential parameter in simulations incorporating the combined weather–vegetation–infiltration–soil interaction mechanisms that are required to assess the performance and deterioration of earthwork slopes in a changing climate. Infrastructure slopes are complex structures made up of a composite of soil, water, air and vegetation. The mechanical and hydraulic properties of the in situ (cuttings) and compacted (embankments) materials play a controlling role in the stability of earthwork slopes (O'Brien 2013). The UK experiences infrastructure slope failures that have primarily been triggered by changes in soil hydrology owing to rainfall (e.g. Springman et al. 2003; Xue & Gavin 2007; Hughes et al. 2009; Glendinning et al. 2014; Briggs et al. 2017). Slope instability causes significant disruption to the UK's road (Anderson & Kneale 1980; Garrett & Wale 1985) and rail (Birch & Dewar 2002; Ridley et al. 2004; Loveridge et al. 2010) networks. Large numbers of slope failures were recorded during periods of high precipitation in the winters of 2000, 2001, 2007 and 2014 and the summer of 2012. Cyclic seasonal effects, potentially influenced by a changing climate, also affect slope structures. Dry summer periods remove water, leading to shrinkage and cracking; prolonged and intense rainfall events cause swelling and increased porewater pressures (Hughes et al. 2009; Loveridge et al. 2010; Smethurst et al. 2012; Briggs et al. 2013; O'Brien 2013; Glendinning et al. 2014). Repeated shrink–swell cycles can lead to accumulation of shear strains resulting in strain softening and progressive failure (O'Brien et al. 2004; Vaughan et al. 2004; Loveridge et al. 2010; Take & Bolton 2011; O'Brien 2013). The spatial and temporal distribution of hydraulic conductivity of the soil (this term has been used with the same meaning as coefficient of permeability) governs the distribution, magnitude and rate of change of porewater pressures within a slope. The size and distribution of these porewater pressure cycles, and hence effective stress cycles, control the progressive failure mechanism. For example, soil with higher hydraulic conductivity, although still low compared with coarse-grained soils, can lead to more rapid and larger changes in porewater pressure and effective stress at depth (Nyambayo et al. 2004; O'Brien et al. 2004; O'Brien 2013), promoting progressive failure of a slope, often after many years of stability (Briggs et al. 2017). Knowledge of hydraulic conductivity and how it varies with depth and over time is therefore needed if the movement of water and its influence on slope stability is to be quantified.

This study demonstrates the use of Multi-channel Analysis of Surface Waves (MASW) to measure changes in Rayleigh wave velocity relating to both the initial trench construction and subsequent simulated failures (water leaks) of a buried water-pipe. The MASW field trials were undertaken in conjunction with a wider suite of geophysical monitoring techniques at a site in South-west England, within an area of clayey sandy SILT. The Rayleigh wave velocity through a soil approximately equals the shear wave velocity, which in turn is predominantly dependant on the shear modulus of the soil (G) and this can be inferred to give a measure of the relative strength of a soil. It is proposed that the time-lapse measurement of Rayleigh wave velocity may be used to monitor ongoing changes in soil strength and therefore the MASW technique could perform a significant role in monitoring the initiation/progression of any internal processes within a geotechnical asset, before they would otherwise be identified through visual inspection alone.

The Jurassic Escarpment in the North York Moors in Northern Britain has a high density of deep-seated relict landslides but their regional hazard is poorly understood due to a lack of detailed case studies. Investigation of a typical relict landslide at Great Fryup Dale suggests that the crop of the Whitby Mudstone Formation is highly susceptible to landslide hazards. The mudstone lithologies along the Escarpment form large multiple rotational failures which break down at an accelerated rate during wetter climates and degrade into extensive frontal mudflows. Geomorphological mapping, high resolution LiDAR imagery, boreholes, and geophysical ERT surveys are deployed in a combined approach to delimit internal architecture of the landslide. Cross-sections developed from these data indicate that the main movement displaced a bedrock volume of c. 1 × 107 m3 with a maximum depth of rupture of c. 50 m. The mode of failure is strongly controlled by lithology, bedding, joint pattern, and rate of lateral unloading. Dating of buried peats using the AMS method suggests that the 10 m thick frontal mudflow complex was last active in the Late Holocene, after c. 2270 ± 30 calendar years BP. Geomorphic mapping and dating work indicates that the landslide is dormant, but slope stability modelling suggests that the slope is less stable than previously assumed; implying that this and other similar landslides in Britain may become more susceptible to reactivation or extension during future wetter climatic phases. This study shows the value of a multi-technique approach for landslide hazard assessment and to enhance national landslide inventories.

A new apparatus for the determination of shrinkage limit is described. Two versions have been produced: a manually operated prototype ‘version1' followed by an automated version named SHRINKiT. Test results using the former for British and overseas clay soils are described and comparisons made with the British Standards preferred method. A further set of test results is described for SHRINKiT. However, it was not possible to compare these with the BS 1377 method owing to the introduction of a ban on the use of mercury in the British Geological Survey's geotechnical laboratories. The new method is set in the context of the huge cost of shrink/swell-related subsidence damage in Britain and the relative disuse of both BS 1377 methods for shrinkage limit, for reasons of safety. The shrinkage behaviour of different soils types and sample states is discussed, in addition to the advantages and disadvantages of the new method.

The Whitby Mudstone Formation has one of the highest landslide densities in the UK with 42 landslides per 100 km 2 . Landsliding at Hollin Hill in North Yorkshire, UK is complex and continuing, and includes shallow, retrogressive rotational failure on the upper slope, translation, and flow from the base of the Whitby Mudstone Formation over the scarp slope of the Staithes Sandstone Formation. Surface observations augmented by information relating to lithological, moisture and strength variation with depth allowed rapid initial interpretation of the masses affected by movement. These were provided by a single person operating portable probes providing depth logs of cone penetration resistance and soil moisture based upon dielectric property measurements in conjunction with a sampling auger. The gathered information was used to guide the design of further invasive site investigation and the configuration of permanent systems to monitor changes in dynamic moisture distribution and direct movement. At Hollin Hill, the near-surface materials in the upper 5 m interval are distinctly weathered or destructured, predominantly comprising silty clay in the Whitby Mudstone Formation, and fine silty, clayey sand and silty clay in the Staithes Sandstone Formation. Direct and secondary evidence was observed showing high moisture variation to be related to narrow intervals within the upper 5 m. Cyclic variation in moisture has played a key role in the movement and break-up of sliding materials, especially within the prograding lobes resulting from flow over the Staithes Sandstone Formation. Since these observations, permanent monitoring systems have been installed, including electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) arrays, which have successfully mapped the distribution of the Whitby Mudstone and the Staithes Sandstone, but will also be used in time lapse mode to image the near-surface moisture movement driving the landsliding processes. ERT array installations included a large area, low spatial resolution grid designed to investigate the potential coupling between the upper and lower slope hydrogeological processes and a small area, high spatial resolution grid designed to investigate the hydrogeological processes driving the earth flow.

The British Geological Survey (BGS) has developed a multi-stage methodology for landslide mapping by augmenting traditional mapping techniques with new geospatial technologies. This allows better characterisation and understanding of the country’s landslides: an essential requirement for landslide susceptibility modelling, risk assessment and resilient infrastructure planning. The BGS methodology has most recently been applied to the North York Moors National Park in northern England, UK: an area with steep slopes, landslide-prone lithologies and an exposed coastal section but few recorded landslide events. Over 550 landslides have now been identified and data on the characteristics and mechanisms of these have been used to inform hazard assessments and susceptibility modelling research including the National Landslide Database, the National Landslide Domains Map and the National Geohazard Assessment.

The Tale of the Sarnia Nose is one of three comic book chapters that appear in Chemical Intimacies and Toxic Publics, Hobbs' 2016 dissertation. This text mixes archival research, ethnography, and comic book drawings to produce a creative hybrid: part political critique, part environmental activism, and part artist publication...Find full piece in .pdf below.

A geoelectrical investigation of a slow moving earth slide–earth flow in Lower Jurassic Lias Group rocks of the Cleveland Basin, UK, is described. These mudrock slopes are particularly prone to failure and are a major source of lowland landslides in the UK, but few attempts have been made to spatially or volumetrically characterise the subsurface form of these slides. The primary aim of this study was to consider the efficacy of fully three-dimensional geoelectrical imaging for landslide investigation with reference to a geological setting typical of Lias Group escarpments. The approach described here included a reconnaissance survey phase using two-dimensional electrical resistivity tomography (ERT), resistivity mapping, self-potential (SP) profiling and mapping, followed by a detailed investigation of an area of the landslide using three-dimensional (3D) ERT and self-potential tomography (SPT). Interpretation of the geophysical data sets was supported by surface observations (aerial LiDAR and differential GPS geomorphological surveys) and intrusive investigations (boreholes and auger holes). The initial phase of the study revealed the existence of a strong SP signature at the site consistent with a streaming potential source and established the relationships between the main geological units, the geomorphologic expression of the landslide, and the resistivity of the materials in and around the study area. The 3D SPT model generated during the second phase of the study indicated drainage patterns across the landslide and preferential flow from the low permeability mud rocks into the underlying more permeable sandstone formation. Because of favourable resistivity contrasts between the clay-rich Whitby Mudstone Formation landslide material and the underlying Staithes Sandstone Formation, the volumetric 3D ERT image allowed a number of surface and subsurface landslide features to be identified and spatially located. These included the lateral extent of slipped material and zones of depletion and accumulation; the surface of separation and the thickness of individual earth flow lobes; and the dipping in situ geological boundary between the Whitby Mudstone and Staithes Sandstone bedrock formations.

The paper describes recent applications by the British Geological Survey (BGS) of the technique of mobile terrestrial Light Detection And Ranging (LiDAR) surveying to monitor various geomorphological changes on English coasts and estuaries. These include cliff recession, landslides and flood defences, and are usually sited at remote locations undergoing dynamic processes with no fixed reference points. Advantages, disadvantages and some practical problems are discussed. The role of GPS in laser scanning is described.

PurposeThis paper aims to explore the steps that need to be taken in developing a measure of global performance for direct real estate.Design/methodology/approachThe paper starts by reviewing the major considerations concerning the available real estate performance series across the world. The paper explains the steps that work through the obstacles of deriving an aggregate performance measure for each of the three regions and then combining them to get a global property returns series. Back‐casting series and weighting assumptions are also covered.FindingsBased on the preliminary results, the paper explores the correlations in the results between different countries, and the performance of “global” property relative to other major asset classes. The paper concludes by drawing out the research issues and implications, and the steps for further research.Practical implicationsMany challenges are involved in the construction of a global index of direct real estate market performance. On the one hand these are associated with the nature of real estate, which tends to be relatively illiquid and immature as an asset class. On the other, there are significant variations in the quality of data availability across countries. IPD has played a huge role in generating consistent data series across countries, and this increases the ability to move towards a “global index” of direct market performance.Originality/valueThe study examines the increasing need for a global performance benchmark for direct real estate and the way a practitioner approaches the limitations and challenges involved in constructing one.

In the 90’s the real estate investment environment, when most of the real estate indexes in Europe started, differed a lot from the current environment. Asset owners were often in full control of all the different real estate investment activities sometimes from portfolio management up to the property management at that time. The separation into different organizations (portfolio management to asset management) could result in agency problems. In parallel those indexes have shifted from (peer group) market indicators for transparency to independent financial benchmarks. Also asset owners and management houses often operate globally what wasn’t the case a couple of decades ago and both have to show their value added. This paper will look more in detail in the developments in the Netherlands and in particular of the IPD Netherlands index. Besides describing those trends some results will highlight the performance differences within that index, like spread of returns, segment returns and attribution analyses.

Through a combination of investor and regulatory pressure, one of the most enduring implications of the global financial crisis has been the drive for greater transparency of the real estate investment process. This has particularly been the case for commingled funds that had traditionally been shrouded in opaqueness justified by their ‘private’ nature. The real estate industry has responded to this pressure with greater attention being placed to the building of robust benchmarks of that provide for increasingly granular analysis of the drivers of real estate performance and risk. It is in this context, that the paper explores a series of dimensions related to the benchmarking and risk analysis of commingled funds, with specific focus on the 174 funds contained within the SFIX (IPD/BVI SFIX vierteljahrlicher) and the 90 funds in the IPD GPFI (the MSCI Global Property Fund Index). The paper explores the considerations associated with building meaningful benchmarks for private commingled funds, the increasing regulatory and investor pressure for such benchmarks, and the insights being provided by more granular analysis, including the reconciliation of asset and fund level performance.

Railway cuttings, like that at Roade, near Northampton in the English East Midlands, can provide a wealth of geological information, but for safety reasons they remain off-limits to the majority of geologists. Even when access can be achieved, observations are often limited by the extent of vegetation cover. However, a new programme of engineering works at Roade has allowed Natural England and the British Geological Survey (BGS) to explore new ways of capturing the geological and topographical data from railway cuttings that could eventually allow everyone to make a virtual reality visit to otherwise inaccessible sites.

At the dynamic coastal fringe, numerous processes interact with local morphology. In soft-cliff environments, this can often lead to the occurrence of coastal geohazards. These can pose a major threat to property and cultural heritage, and an effective monitoring strategy is therefore essential. While contemporary monitoring techniques have been applied, these are often unsuitable in isolation. This paper presents an integrated approach, with the development of weighted surface matching software enabling reliable dataset fusion and multi-temporal change detection, even where significant surface differences exist. Evaluation of this approach is presented and discussed.

The requirement for quantitative thermal property data in assessing the performance of an engineered repository is identified. Experimental methods for the measurement of thermal conductivity, thermal expansivity and heat capacity are outlined and typical test results are presented for two rock-types of interest in relation to the Sellafield site. The controls on the thermal properties are discussed and a series of corrections from the rock material to the rock mass properties are presented. Finally, a correction scheme that accounts for the effect of scale is followed.

Edinburgh Castle is one of Scotland’s most important heritage sites. It was built on a classic ‘crag and tail’ structure where the crag consists of columnar jointed basalt and the tail of sediments protected from glacial erosion by the ‘crag’. In 1997 apparent instability was observed on the southern side of the ‘tail’. A shallow slope failure was proved to have taken place within saturated, layered, cohesive to non-cohesive, loose to dense heterogeneous fill on a slope of 44°. The date of the initial failure is not known, but is likely to have taken place over a period of many years, since at least the 1950s. Remediation works were subsequently undertaken to stabilise the slope, consisting mainly of the installation of soil nails, a bi-axial geo-grid and minor filling to mitigate the effects of the ground movements and to facilitate repair of the retaining wall.

The rice–wheat cropping system, occupying 24 million hectares of the productive area in South Asia and China, is important for food security. Monitoring long-term changes in crop yields and identifying the factors associated with such changes are essential to maintain and/or improve crop productivity. Long-term experiments (LTE) provide these opportunities. We analyzed 33 rice–wheat LTE in the Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP) of South Asia, non-IGP in India, and China to investigate the extent of yield stagnation or decline and identify possible causes of yield decline. In treatments where recommended rates of N, P and K were applied, yields of rice and wheat stagnated in 72 and 85% of the LTE, respectively, while 22 and 6% of the LTE showed a significant (P

Despite ongoing political, economic, and financial uncertainties, the long-term trend of financial market “globalization” continues. This trend has been driven by equity and bond investments, but cross-border real estate investment has increased in recent years. Recent disaffection with stock performance means real estate is at the forefront of many investors9 thinking and, increasingly, they are considering real estate as a global asset class. This article seeks to help measure and explain the relative risks of global real estate markets by providing a simple, objective measure of real estate risk based on three components: country, structural real estate, and cyclical real estate risks. Together these measures capture the key dimensions of risk and provide important insights for global real estate strategies. An investor9s tolerance for various types of risk varies according to investment strategy. The authors conclude by showing how different combinations of types of risk provide different insights according to the perspective of the investor, whether they are “opportunistic,” “core,” or “debt focused.”

Recently developed effective stress-controlled geophysical property models are used in passive-margin slope instability analyses including simulated earthquake motion. The pressure–temperature (P–T) history of sediment-hosted gas hydrate may significantly alter the geophysical property profile of the sediment column (e.g. metastable cement or increased pore pressures). This can result in significant amplification of earthquake ground motion, and thus seabed instability, where hydrates are present. Published studies suggest destabilization of these high-pressure/low-temperature sediment-hosted hydrates could trigger catastrophic slope failures with consequent liberation of ‘greenhouse’ gases and significant effects on global climate. To provide improved ground models for slope instability analyses we are investigating the influence of P–T history on hydrate distribution in sediments through the development of laboratory techniques to enable geophysical quantification of hydrate morphology and fabric on hydrate stability.

The permeation rates of constituent components of toluene and methanol mixtures through surface fluorinated, fluoroxidized and unmodified HDPE was measured using a new flow through chamber, GC-based technique. The polymer systems demonstrated assisted permeation wherein the presence of one component increased the permeation rate of a second minor component. The presence of 1000 ppm of methanol in the solvent mixture increased the permeation rate through the fluoroxidized composite by over an order of magnitude. For the unmodified HDPE, the activity adjusted toluene permeability (Ptoluene) remained virtually constant, independent of the methanol concentration. Swelling due to the presence of toluene in the plastic for the unmodified HDPE case increased the methanol permeability by three orders of magnitude. The Ptoluene for the surface fluoroxidized composite was determined to be 1.5±0.4×10−7 cm2 s−1 (cm Hg)−1 and the Ptoluene for the surface fluoroxidized layer was found to be 1.1±0.4×10−9 cm2 s−1 (cm Hg)−1, an 850-fold decrease in permeability relative to the untreated HDPE. The long term Ptoluene for the fluorinated composite was found to be 0.6±0.3×10−7 cm2 s−1 (cm Hg)−1.

This is a portion of a roundtable discussion on queer ecologies held on 11 September 2014. The roundtable is also available as a podcast and was produced in collaboration with CoHearence, an initiative of graduate students in the Faculty of Environmental Studies suppored by NiCHE (Network in Canadian History and Environment).

This is a portion of a roundtable discussion on queer ecologies held on 11 September 2014. The roundtable is also available as a podcast and was produced in collaboration with CoHearence, an initiative of graduate students in the Faculty of Environmental Studies suppored by NiCHE (Network in Canadian History and Environment).

This is a portion of a roundtable discussion on queer ecologies held on 11 September 2014. The roundtable is also available as a podcast and was produced in collaboration with CoHearence, an initiative of graduate students in the Faculty of Environmental Studies suppored by NiCHE (Network in Canadian History and Environment).

This is a portion of a roundtable discussion on queer ecologies held on 11 September 2014. The roundtable is also available as a podcast and was produced in collaboration with CoHearence, an initiative of graduate students in the Faculty of Environmental Studies suppored by NiCHE (Network in Canadian History and Environment).

During the final quarter of 2013, IPD conducted a survey into the asset allocation processes of institutional asset owners, with a particularly close examination of their real estate exposures. This paper provides a detailed analysis of the real estate element of the survey, with a particular focus on risk management through the investment process.The results are based on a desk-based analysis of 138 asset owners, in-person interviews with 40 investors and a literature review. The focus is on Pension Funds and Sovereign Wealth Funds, providing in-depth coverage of these institutions across 28 countries. The research provides a comprehensive review of the role of the $700bn of real estate equity in asset owner portfolios, including their allocations to different investment styles, their geographic exposures and their approaches to execution. The more innovative aspects of the research relate to the approach of asset owners to real estate risk management, explaining the potential for misalignment at various stages of the investment process. This includes alignment between strategic asset allocation and actual real estate exposures, the use of appropriate benchmarks, and the link between portfolio and asset-specific monitoring and the strategic asset allocation process. The final section of the paper draws out some of the implications of the research including a categorization of different types of asset owner and the steps beginning to be taken by a series of ’global leaders‘ seeking to strengthen risk management through the investment process.

In this study we describe the development of an integrated geophysical/geotechnical sensor network for monitoring an active inland landslide near Malton, North Yorkshire, UK. The network is based around an automated time-lapse electrical resistivity tomography (ALERT) monitoring system, which has been expanded to incorporate geotechnical sensor arrays. The system can be interrogated remotely using wireless telemetry to enable the near-real-time measurement of geoelectric, geotechnical and hydrologic properties.

When creating an electrical earth for a transformer with vertically driven earthing rods, problems can arise either because the ground is too hard or because the ground is too resistive to achieve the required earthing resistance. To assist in the planning of earthing installations a geographic information system (GIS) layer has been created. In its simplest form it consists of a colour coded map that indicates the most likely earthing installation: a single vertically driven rod (indicated by dark green); multiple vertically driven rods (indicated by light green); a horizontal trench, where a rod installation is unlikely (indicated by yellow); for difficult ground, a specialist installation (i.e. drilling; indicated by red). However, the GIS can be interrogated to provide site-specific information such as site conditions, likely depth of installation and quantity of earthing materials required. The GIS was created from a spatial model constructed from soil, superficial and bedrock geology that has been attributed with engineering strength and resistivity values. Calculations of expected earthing rod resistance, rod or trench length, and all possible combinations of ground conditions have been compared with the ‘likely’ conditions required for each of the four proposed installation scenarios to generate the GIS layer. The analysis has been applied to the electrical network distribution regions of Western Power Distribution, in the English Midlands, and UK Power Networks, which covers East Anglia, London and the SE of England. Because the spatial model that underlies the GIS has been constructed from national databases the analyses can be extended to other regions of the UK.

Rice and wheat are grown in rotation on about 12 million hectares in South Asia. Yields in this rotation have increased over time, but evidence indicates that factor productivity may be declining. Recently, multidisciplinary teams of agricultural scientists conducted diagnostic surveys in several rice-wheat areas in South Asia. This paper reviews rice-wheat system problems and longer-term issues of sustainability identified through the surveys (near-term problems affecting rice and wheat yields are discussed less fully). System problems include poor wheat populations caused by the poor soil structure and plow pan formed for puddled rice, late wheat planting resulting from late rice harvesting, and losses to grassy weeds encouraged by continuous rice-wheat cultivation. Sustainability issues include soil nutrient depletion and possible buildup of insects, weeds, and diseases.

The traditional method of estimating the weight of multiple objects is to obtain the weight of each object individually. We demonstrate that the precision and accuracy of these estimates can be improved by using a weighing scheme in which multiple objects are simultaneously on the balance. The resulting system of linear equations is solved to yield the weight estimates for the objects. Precision and accuracy improvements can be made by using a weighing scheme without requiring any more weighings than the number of objects when a total of at least six objects are to be weighed. It is also necessary that multiple objects can be weighed with about the same precision as that obtained with a single object, and the scale bias remains relatively constant over the set of weighings. Simulated and empirical examples are given for a system of eight objects in which up to five objects can be weighed simultaneously. A modified Plackett-Burman weighing scheme yields a 25% improvement in precision over the traditional method and implicitly removes the scale bias from seven of the eight objects. Applications of this novel use of experimental design techniques are shown to have potential commercial importance for quality control methods that rely on the mass change rate of an object.

The orphan nuclear receptor estrogen-related receptor alpha (ERRalpha) has been implicated in the development of various human malignancies, including breast, prostate, ovary, and colon cancer. ERRalpha, bound to a co-activator protein (e.g., peroxisome proliferator receptor gamma co-activator-1alpha, PGC-1alpha), regulates cellular energy metabolism by activating transcription of genes involved in various metabolic processes, such as mitochondrial genesis, oxidative phosphorylation, and fatty acid oxidation. Accumulating evidence suggests that ERRalpha is a novel target for solid tumor therapy, conceivably through effects on the regulation of tumor cell energy metabolism associated with energy stress within solid tumor microenvironments. This report describes a novel steroidal antiestrogen (SR16388) that binds selectively to ERRalpha, but not to ERRbeta or ERRgamma, as determined using a time-resolved fluorescence resonance energy transfer assay. SR16388 potently inhibits ERRalpha's transcriptional activity in reporter gene assays, and prevents endogenous PGC-1alpha and ERRalpha from being recruited to the promoters or enhancers of target genes. Representative in vivo results show that SR16388 inhibited the growth of human prostate tumor xenografts in nude mice as a single agent at 30mg/kg given once daily and 100mg/kg given once weekly. In a combination study, SR16388 (10mg/kg, once daily) and paclitaxel (7.5mg/kg, twice weekly) inhibited the growth of prostate tumor xenografts in nude mice by 61% compared to untreated xenograft tumors. SR16388 also inhibited the proliferation of diverse human tumor cell lines after a 24-h exposure to the compound. SR16388 thus has utility both as an experimental antitumor agent and as a chemical probe of ERRalpha biology.

Acknowledgements. Town planning responses to economic change. Interpreting town planning responses to economic change. A post-war economic history of British town planning. The economic determinants of post-war town planning in Coventry. The economic determinants of post-war town planning in Basingstoke. Conclusions. Bibliography.

Volterra is a delightful, vibrant medieval hill‐top town, situated at 550 m, on a narrow plateau, midway between Pisa and Siena, and 40 km from the coast (⇓Fig. 1). Originally, Volterra was a leading member of the 12‐city Etruscan federation, under the name Velathri. The town came under Greek cultural influence in the eighth century BC and subsequently under the Romans in third century BC. Important Roman remains include an amphitheatre. Major architectural features within the splendid walls date from the 13th century and include palaces and a cathedral. The town has been famous since Etruscan times for its fine alabaster, which is mined nearby. Fig. 1. Fig. 1. Location map. Remains of part of the Etruscan town are situated on a narrow spur of the plateau, about 0.5 km to the NW of the medieval town (⇓Fig. 2), called Le Balze (meaning ‘steps’, derived from the step‐like multiple slumps). This is the location of a spectacular active …