Assessing Seismic Behavior of a Masonry Historic Building considering Soil-Foundation-Structure Interaction (Case Study of Arge-Tabriz)

ABSTRACT

Historic heritage buildings are a part of historic basis of each society and an economic resource. Therefore, preserving and maintenance of these buildings are cultural, economic and social demand. This research investigates the seismic performance of a historical building named Arg of Tabriz (Arge Alishah) that dates back to 14th century and is located at the city center of Tabriz (NW of Iran). Static, modal, and finally nonlinear dynamic (time history) analysis were performed by both “Considering Soil-Structure Interaction (SSI)” and “fixed base (ignoring SSI)” Cases.

It is found from the results that, SSI extremely affects mode shapes and their frequencies and depending on the frequency content of the records, can has an incremental or decremental effect on structural responses. As expected, the building of Arg could carry gravity loads easily and despite its stability against earthquake loading in fixed base case, showed a weakness (especially in eastern and western walls direction) and overturned when it was analyzed in SSI case because of yielding of the surrounding soil.     

Performance and visitors’ perception of authenticity in eco-cultural tourism

ABSTRACT

With the increasing commodification of cultural heritage induced by tourism development, the perception of a ‘real’ travel experience often depends on what is defined as authentic, original and local. Visitors are becoming increasingly concerned about the authenticity of eco-cultural tourism practices when they visit culturally and environmentally remote regions. The purpose of this study is to examine the role performance plays in visitors' perception of authenticity of eco-cultural tourism experiences. Various theoretical foundations and aspects of visitors' perceptions of authenticity in cultural heritage tourism are considered. A grounded theory approach based on in-depth semi-structured interviews with several categories of visitors including 25 clients from two eco-tours in South and Central Kazakhstan and 29 Free Independent Travellers (FITs) was adopted to identify visitors' perception of authenticity of various aspects of their tourism experiences and the attributes of the visitors' performative aspects of their travels. Results reveal that the performative aspects contributing to the perceived authenticity of the visitors' eco-cultural experiences are spontaneous, existential and reciprocal relationships with their hosts in intimate tourism encounters. The findings contribute to literature regarding authenticity and cultural heritage tourism by exploring new directions in which to apply the concept of authenticity in eco-cultural tourism experiences and by theorising the link between performance-based touristic space and the perception of authenticity. This space becomes a basis for interaction and social exchange within the host–guest relationship.     

Indigenous Exceptionalism under Fire: Assessing Indigenous Soldiers in Combat with the Australian,Canadian, New Zealand and American Armies during the Second World War

The literature on Indigenous participation in the Second World War from Canada, the United States, Australia and New Zealand has tended to portray Indigenous soldiers as exceptionally able and courageous in battle. While heart-warmingly laudatory and an understandable product of genuine evidentiary challenges in researching this subject, the image constructed is partial and unrealistic. At best it is misleading; at worst it conflates indigeneity and combat proficiency in ways that reinforce racial stereotypes of Indigenous people as ‘natural’ warriors prevalent during the war. This article argues that we discard the exceptionalism enshrouding Indigenous combat performance in favour of a more culturally nuanced approach.     

A Model for Assessing the Reuse of an Ancient Place of Performance: The Bouleuterion of Teos

Ancient places of performance are often considered for reuse as a means of promoting archaeological sites. Therefore, local authorities and decision makers have a difficult task of balancing the conservation and management of the sites with the carrying capacity. In this paper, the bouleuterion, a ‘rediscovered’ structure, at the Teos archaeological site, in Turkey is evaluated and presented as a preliminary case study with the hopes that these issues will be taken into consideration by the managing body in the creation of a management plan for the site. The evaluation is made by assessing socio-economic and intangible heritage significance, policies guiding changes at the site, a qualitative survey at the site and by defining the structure’s carrying capacity. The site’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats are used to create criteria and make proposals for its reuse. The study concludes that the bouleuterion cannot be reused as a venue in its present condition and makes recommendations for future use.     

Conceptualising Australia's tradition of pragmatic federalism

This article reviews existing scholarly debates about Australia's pragmatic federalism and seeks to refine it conceptually. It does so against the background of burgeoning international governance literature informed by insights from philosophical pragmatism, as well as in the context of disjuncture in Australian inter-governmental experiences. Pragmatic federalism is posed not merely as a one-dimensional notion referencing a series of ad hoc inter-governmental arrangements over time. Rather, it is conceptualised as multi-dimensional and encapsulating a confined range of institutional designs and postures that can (potentially) be observed across different policy fields and over time. An initial demonstration of the utility of the heuristic to recent empirical experience and change is presented. The consequence is more serious engagement with both the formal and informal features that characterise inter-governmental arrangements at different levels of government, and attention to the degrees to which dialogue and practices are connected.

本文考察了有关澳大利亚实用联邦制的学术辩论,并试图将其概念精炼。本文写作背景包含了开始出现的国际治理文献、哲学实用主义以及澳大利益政府间关系的裂变。实用主义联邦制并非仅仅是参考了一系列政府间安排的单面观念。它是一个多面的、包括一系列制度方案和姿态,而这些在不同政策领域内,在很长时间内都是可以观察到的。本文对近年的实证经验及变化的阐释功用做了初步的说明。最后是对于不同政府级别上的政府间正式及非正式特征更为严肃的介入,对于对话与实践关联程度的关注。     

Soweto nights: making black queer space in post-apartheid South Africa

In this article, I examine black queer nightlife in Soweto and its relationship with the making of black queer space in South Africa. Through an in-depth examination of the microgeographies of a Soweto stokvel party, I reveal the complexities of post-apartheid formations of race, class, gender, and sexuality. Employing the idea of usable space, I highlight quotidian practices of leisure as an important site for understanding cultural creativity within the marginalized spaces occupied by black South African queers. Performance and performativity are central to organizing nightlife spaces and reveal both the possibilities and limits encountered by black queers as they try to construct livable lives.     

‘It is where blokes can be blokes’: making places in a New Zealand rugby club

Using the case study of a New Zealand rugby club, in this article, we highlight the role of gender and performance in place attachment. We discuss various performances that contribute to achieving a sense of attachment of club members to the (imagined) community of the rugby club and the different physical spaces of its home ground. Even though performances are played out and read against the backdrop of a popular discourse of New Zealand rugby masculinity, we did not observe characteristics of stereotypical ‘rugby masculinity’ in all rugby places, nor were performances the same throughout one day. Instead, variations were found depending on whether performance was ‘front stage’ or ‘backstage’.     

“The play is set in the theatre”: Conor McPherson and the late-modern humanism of the theatrical event

The plays of Conor McPherson emphasise a sociality of story, language, and theatre. His theatre demands both that a storyteller be heard and that storytellers acknowledge the reality of their words existing in a social space. Meaning-making in McPherson's monologues must thus be social, shared either between the monologists and the theatrical audience, or between a storyteller and the in-play audience. This essay argues that the dynamic of storytelling in McPherson's theatre epitomises a late-modern humanist pursuit. We encounter his characters on loosely defined linguistic journeys of ontological becoming, and are called upon as audience to become interlocutors, supporting and advancing this humanist process. Ultimately, McPherson's work suggests that dramatic characters and theatrical audience exist in a reciprocal relationship of soliciting and supporting a becoming from one another.