Regional technology policy and factors shaping local innovation networks in small German cities1

Local innovation networks are considered to be important to innovation and technological change and to growth prospects of regions and cities in Germany. When analysing the local (or regional) innovation system, one should consequently not only investigate horizontal and vertical relations among firms but also the contacts with universities and other research institutions. Furthermore, the role of government agencies and interest groups that provide financial support as well as commercial and technical information should also be taken into account. However, the review of relevant theoretical and empirical investigations related to the German experience shows that such innovation and R&D cooperation networks appear to be less significant than expected. In general various regional technology policy measures adopted in German states (the provision of research infrastructure, establishment of technology centres, innovative small and medium sized enterprises support programmes, etc.) have been more successful in economically better-off large cities than in the rural areas. Apart from offering a critical review of relevant theoretical and empirical research, this study introduces the present regional technology and R&D promotion policies in German states and examines the local innovation systems, taking Landshut as an example.     

Regional urbanization and the selective growth of towns in North American regions

Despite the extensive discussion of urbanization in the North American past, the processes of selective growth among the various towns and cities, which comprise a regional urban system, remain obscured by the use of oversimplified explanations that neglect either functional and locational variations among the centres or the changing conditions of regional development. A generalized model of selective urban growth in newly settling regions is proposed which distinguishes three periods of development by characteristics of circulation and export activity. It emphasizes the changing implications of town locations (their nodality) as settlement expands and the bases of urban growth shift from commercial and local services to increasingly manufacturing. Discussion of the literature on regional urbanization, organized under five categories of traditional and more recent explanations of selective growth, not only points to the temporal and locational deficiencies which the model addresses, but also reveals the need for closer examination within a developmental framework of both the interdependencies of central place and mercantile bases of urban growth and the relationships between the emergence of manufacturing and city sizes.     

抢救古城

2003年8月,香格里拉老城区抢救性改造即将开始,据说这在藏区也已经是难得一见的老城了.古城的保护和利用这对孪生兄弟,让人欢喜让人忧.     

略论城市民族关系问题

随着我国改革开放的深入和社会主义市场经济体制的建立与完善,各民族交往日益频繁,城市中民族关系矛盾倾向于增多,协调好城市民族关系问题,是新时期我国民族工作的重要内容。     

在城市中行走

<正>经历了南北方异曲同工漫长的雨季,9月的海水有了秋意,空气豁然清朗,天高云淡。蔚蓝色的苍穹下,人们进出往来于城市中。城市有面孔,有表情,有声音,有性格,有灵魂。我们行走其中,感受它,用自己的眼光融入它,不同的眼中,便有了不同的故事。有些人眼中的城市,繁华似锦;     

古城保护中的街道问题

古城保护保护些什么?物古迹是看得见、摸的着的硬件,受到各方的关注理所当然。但是,古城的保护不应该单单局限于此。罗哲先生在中国当代古建学人第三届“兰亭”叙谈会上,又特意提出了历史化传统的保护问题,他说：北京如果只有长城、十三陵,而没有烤鸭、京戏;镇江只有金山、焦山、北国山,     

地方志与城市化推进中的文化记忆抢救工程

在今后相当长的一个时期,地方志工作需要致力于“文化记忆抢救工程”这样一个领域,这个工作是各地建设文化大省的重要内容。在我国城市化高潮来临的情况下,建设与保护是一对共生的矛盾,“文化记忆抢救工程”的急迫性在某种程度上就是要与社会经济发展抢速度。     

Bridging prehistory and history in the archaeology of cities

Abstract

Archaeology is ideally suited for examining the deep roots of urbanism, its materialization and physicality, and the commonalities and variability in urban experiences cross-culturally and temporally. We propose that the significant advances archaeologists have made in situating the discipline within broader urban studies could be furthered through increased dialog between scholars working on urbanism during prehistoric and historical periods, as a means of bridging concerns in the study of the past and present. We review some major themes in urban studies by presenting archaeological cases from two areas of the Americas: central Mexico and Atlantic North America. Our cases span premodern and early modern periods, and three of the four covered in greatest depth live on as cities of today. Comparison of the cases highlights the complementarity of their primary datasets: the long developmental trajectories and relatively intact urban plans offered by many prehistoric cities, and the rich documentary sources offered by historic cities.     

An Analysis of Migration Streams for the Canadian Regional System, 1952–1983 1. Migration Probabilities

This is part one of a two-part series that seeks to specify the factors and processes contributing to aggregate change in the Canadian population distribution over the recent past. In part one, we use a model of migration probabilities to identify socioeconomic factors that explain the observed interregional migration flows. In part two, we use an adjustment process for our regional population system to calculate equilibrium population distributions. The estimated migration probabilities of part one are essential for this calculation, thus linking equilibria with the socioeconomic factors previously identified. Disequilibrium, defined as the difference between observed and equilibrium population distributions, is then used to infer relative growth and decline tendencies in the system. We examine and justify our results in the larger context of contemporary Canadian history.     

An Analysis of Migration Streams for the Canadian Regional System, 1952–1983: 2. Disequilibrium

This is part two of a two-part series that seeks to specify the factors and processes contributing to aggregate change in the Canadian population distribution over the recent past. In part one, we use a model of migration probabilities to identify socioeconomic factors that explain the observed interregional migration flows. In part two, we use an adjustment process for our regional population system to calculate equilibrium population distributions. The estimated migration probabilities of part one are essential for this calculation, thus linking equilibria with the socioeconomic factors previously identified. Disequilibrium, defined as the difference between observed and equilibrium population distributions, is then used to infer relative growth and decline tendencies in the system. We examine and justify our results in the larger context of contemporary Canadian history.     

Medium-sized cities in urban regions

A research project of the German Federal Office for Building and Regional Planning focussed on the role and the perspectives of medium-sized cities in urban regions. Quantitative and qualitative research approaches were combined. The main results concretize the development, the functions and the perspectives of medium-sized cities. Simultaneously, the role of medium-sized cities was investigated in the regional context, considering that in urban regions the hierarchy of large, medium-sized and small cities is overlapped by network structures.     

On the number and size of cities

We study the effects of a decrease in inter-city transport costson the spatial distribution of population in a multi-regionaleconomy, when a rise in the regional population generates higherurban costs. Holding the number of cities constant, as transportcosts are reduced gradually from a very high level to a verylow level, there is a first phase in which large cities growwhile small cities shrink, a second phase in which both largeand small cities grow while medium size cities shrink, and athird phase in which large cities shrink while small citiesgrow. Furthermore, when the number of cities is allowed to varyas transport costs are reduced from large to small values, itfirst decreases and then increases.     

Cross-Cultural Interpretation Planning in the Canadian Arctic

Facilities that interpret local cultures to tourists can promote positive host-guest relations. However, developing these facilities can be challenging because of the cross-cultural context in which the planning must take place. A participatory approach to planning must be used so that the local residents can determine how their culture is to be portrayed to visitors. However, the planner should be familiar with both the cultures of the hosts and the guests so that the local culture is authentically presented, in a way which is appropriate for visiting tourists. Often interpretation planners from "western" cultures are brought in to coordinate the development of such facilities. These planners, as well as the agencies which sponser them, must be committed to working closely with residents of the community over long periods of time to develop the necessary understanding of the host culture, as well as to cultivate an atmosphere of cooperation.     

Children and playgrounds in Mediterranean cities

This paper presents the first results of a case study on the ways in which playgrounds are constructed and experienced in children's daily lives in two medium sized Mediterranean Catalan cities. The research is based on qualitative methodology through participant observation and interviews with institutional actors. Our research suggests that playgrounds are organised around age as the central category; nevertheless, gender is important in the use and activities developed as children get older. Specific aspects from Mediterranean and medium-sized cities are raised such as a positive perception and an intense use of public space by both adults and children. Specific childhood policies in city planning and a stronger gender awareness among institutional actors would improve the social role of playgrounds as participatory, socialising and inclusive spaces.