R. Hillier, D. Kirk and S. Soltani
The current interest in hypersonic flows is leading to significanteffort both to develop CFD methods and also to provide experimentaldata for their evaluation. In our research we…
Abstract
The current interest in hypersonic flows is leading to significant effort both to develop CFD methods and also to provide experimental data for their evaluation. In our research we attempt to integrateCFD and experiments as closely as possible so much so that most of our experimental model designs are based upon preliminary flow field computations in order to identify likely regions of importance and distribute instrumentation as efficiently as possible. The experiments must also have the CFD requirements clearly in mind. In particular we consider it important to separate evaluation on the numerics (essentially the algorithm) from modelling of the physics (which includes the uncertainties of turbulence modelling) to this end our experiments include laminar studies, for both attached and separated flows, for which the physical equations are known exactly, as well as turbulent flow studies. This paper concentrates mainly on our CFD efforts and presents details of a high resolution solver for viscous flows together with their predictions for a range of problems which are the subject of our current and planned experiments.
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Velina Mirincheva, Florian Wiedmann and Ashraf M. Salama
Recent efforts to formulate strategies that will turn Qatar's capital city into a global hub have given rise to a debate about the morphological and functional composition of one…
Abstract
Recent efforts to formulate strategies that will turn Qatar's capital city into a global hub have given rise to a debate about the morphological and functional composition of one of Doha's most prominent areas - West Bay. At the end of the 20th century West Bay, also known as Diplomatic Quarter, was chosen by public initiatives to become the new Central Business District of Doha. Today, the appeal of West Bay as a business hub is contested by other emerging urban centres – such as the highly integrated Al Sadd area, which has attracted a wide range of advanced producer service sectors. It is therefore the objective of this paper to investigate the spatial configuration of Doha's West Bay, which arguably lays the foundations for the socio-economic interdependencies necessary for its vitality and sustenance. In order to quantify its intrinsic urban complexities, Bill Hillier's space syntax methodology is applied, which elucidates, in various scales, global and local grid conditions, and thus can be used for assessments regarding the distribution of land use patterns and infrastructural networks.
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Onur Güngör and Ebru Harman Aslan
Legibility, intelligibility, mental images and cognitive and syntactical mapping are significant issues that help expose the spatial knowledge necessary for effective urban…
Abstract
Purpose
Legibility, intelligibility, mental images and cognitive and syntactical mapping are significant issues that help expose the spatial knowledge necessary for effective urban design. They also help us understand how a city’s new image is forming. This paper aims to present a new holistic approach to define urban design strategies that improve a city’s imageability through cognitive and syntactic concepts.
Design/methodology/approach
The study establishes a coherent framework by including residents’ mental images and space syntax theory’s descriptors to understand how residents perceive their physical environment. Using a mixed-methods research design, the authors studied the Iskenderun city center’s image and spatial design. First, the authors used descriptive analysis techniques (questionnaires, verbal interviews and cognitive mapping) and consulted 110 Iskenderun residents. Second, the authors used analytical analysis techniques to investigate the structural relations among city elements with the help of space syntax descriptors.
Findings
The results demonstrated the importance of applying combined descriptive and analytic techniques to provide an understanding of the city’s image. The authors also offered a proposal including the appropriate urban design strategies to promote Iskenderun city center’s imageability.
Originality/value
Applying this new coherent framework can support design decision-making for redesigning cities at the micro level and for planning new cityscapes at the macro level.
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Karen Munro and David Grierson
The world’s urban population is rapidly growing, now exceeding its rural population, and is expected to reach 70% of the world’s total by 2050. Research in environmental…
Abstract
The world’s urban population is rapidly growing, now exceeding its rural population, and is expected to reach 70% of the world’s total by 2050. Research in environmental psychology increasingly supports the Biophilia Hypothesis which holds that our connection with Nature is innate. Thus, how do we maintain a human connection to Nature in an increasingly urbanising world? This paper is based on current research work and explores the boundary between built and natural environments, specifically how visual connectivity to Nature affects how people use social spaces, compared to spatial connectivity. Case study work is being undertaken at Arcosanti urban laboratory in the Arizona desert. Arcosanti construction began in 1970 to test Paolo Soleri’s Arcology Theory which proposes, in opposition to sprawling cities, a new form of urban setting which is compact with tightly restricted horizontal growth, leaving the surrounding natural environment as undeveloped “wilderness”. Through development of a Space/Nature Syntax methodology applied within a uniquely compact urban form, this research attempts to understand how designing to maintain the instinctive bond with Nature can affect social interaction and inform future design choices within built environments. This paper describes the development of, and basis for, the Space/Nature Syntax methodology, presents initial findings achieved through its recent application at Arcosanti, and outlines future work. Initial analysis indicates that visual connectivity to Nature is a significant influence on certain types of social interactions when compared to spatial connectivity, although more research is needed to verify the level of significance.
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Ella Guangxin Xu, Chris Graves, Yuan George Shan and Joey W. Yang
The paper aims to examine the effect of corporate governance (CG) on innovation investment, with consideration of ownership types and legal jurisdictions.
Abstract
Purpose
The paper aims to examine the effect of corporate governance (CG) on innovation investment, with consideration of ownership types and legal jurisdictions.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors' empirical analysis is based on a sample of publicly listed family businesses (FBs) from the top-500-list that matched worldwide with non-family counterparts from 2009 to 2018. The study uses a holistic measure of CG to mitigate the conflicting impact of individual CG components found in prior studies. This measure is applied to examine the moderating role of firm ownership type and legal jurisdiction.
Findings
The authors' results demonstrate that CG positively influences innovation investment. This positive relationship is more pronounced in FBs than in non-family businesses (NFBs) and is more prevalent in civil law economies than in common law economies.
Originality/value
The study holistically examines the effect of CG, capturing the combination of all individual governance mechanisms and their influence on innovation investment. The study further shows that comprehensive CG has diverse impacts on innovation investment when considering family control and legal jurisdiction.
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Linda Wiper and David Longbottom
INTRODUCTION With the increasing importance of capital investment selection in modern business the field has attracted a large body of interest in the literature of the last two…
Abstract
INTRODUCTION With the increasing importance of capital investment selection in modern business the field has attracted a large body of interest in the literature of the last two decades. It is the purpose of the survey to trace this development from the use of simple financial criteria for assessing investments to the use of more sophisticated financial measures, techniques for assessing risk in investments and finally complex models for selecting portfolios of investments.
Adejimi Alli Adebayo, Paul Greenhalgh and Kevin Muldoon-Smith
The retail property market is constantly adopting to the continuous demand of retailers and their consumers. This paper aims to investigate retail property market dynamics through…
Abstract
Purpose
The retail property market is constantly adopting to the continuous demand of retailers and their consumers. This paper aims to investigate retail property market dynamics through spatial accessibility measures of the City of York street network. It explores how spatial accessibility metrics (SAM) explain retail market dynamics (RMD) through changes in the city’s retail rental values and stock.
Design/methodology/approach
Valuation office agency (VOA) data sets (aspatial) and ordnance survey map (spatial) data form the empirical foundation for this investigation. Changes in rental value and retail stock between 2010 and 2017 VOA data sets represent the RMD variables. While, the configured street network measures of Space Syntax, namely, global integration, local integration, global choice and normalised angular choice form the SAM variables. The relationship between these variables is analysed through geo-visualisation and statistical testing using GIS and SPSS tools.
Findings
The study reveals that there has been an overall negative changes of 15 and 22% in rental value and retail stock, respectively, even though some locations within the sampled city (York, North Yorkshire, England) indicated positive changes. The study further indicated that changes in retail rental value and stock have occurred within locations with good accessibility index. It also verifies that there are spatial and statistical relationship between variables and 22% of RMD variability was jointly accounted for by SAM.
Originality/value
This research is first to investigates changes in retail property market variables through spatial accessibility measures of space syntax. It contributes to the burgeoning research field of real estate and Space Syntax.
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“Coliving” is a rapidly developing cohousing typology, characterised by high-density private micro-units integrated with shared, mixed-use amenity spaces. This research examines…
Abstract
Purpose
“Coliving” is a rapidly developing cohousing typology, characterised by high-density private micro-units integrated with shared, mixed-use amenity spaces. This research examines the interrelationship between spatial configuration, space typologies and the frequency and intensity of copresence within a large coliving building-also known as large-scale purpose-built shared living (LSPBSL).
Design/methodology/approach
Using a UK-based case study, quantitative methods drawn from space syntax theory-namely, visibility graph analysis (VGA) and systematically structured ethnographic observations-were adopted to measure visual integration (HH) and copresence.
Findings
A positive correlation (rs = 0.43, p = 0.07) and no statistically significant difference in distribution (V = 76, p = 0.70) was identified between macro- and micro-level visual integration (HH), indicating that “fractality” exists in the building. Positive correlations were also identified between visual (HH) and spatial (1/RRA) integration (rs = 0.62, p < 0.01); visual integration and copresence frequency (rs = 0.55, p = 0.12); copresence frequency and intensity (rs = 0.63, p < 0.01) and copresence intensity (CI) and frequencies of large group interactions.
Originality/value
No existing research examines the relationship between spatial configurations and the frequencies, intensities and patterns of copresence within coliving buildings. Thus, this article contributes to spatial theory by (1) identifying correlations between these variables within an uncharted spatial context, and (2) introducing a novel syntactic concept – “fractality” – alongside a method for its calculation. By identifying the space typologies and spatial configurations that facilitate the greatest opportunities for social encounter, this study also contributes towards our knowledge of shared living environments.
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Alaa Alsherfawi Aljazaerly, Seth Asare Okyere, Md. Nawrose Fatemi, Louis Kusi Frimpong and Michihiro Kita
This paper analyses changes in the activity pattern of Damascus city from late modern era (late Ottoman rule) to the contemporary era. The research objective is to explore the…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper analyses changes in the activity pattern of Damascus city from late modern era (late Ottoman rule) to the contemporary era. The research objective is to explore the impact of the socio-historical process on the evolving morphological structure of the urban core and to draw implications for post-war reconstruction.
Design/methodology/approach
Space Syntax methodology was employed to trace the historical and morphological changes in the urban core of Damascus. The timeframe was divided into five periods covering the city's socio-political transformation and five maps depicting these periods. Local and global integration measures were used to analyse the changes in the urban core across each period. Normalised angular choice (NACH) measure was used to identify the changes in the city planning system.
Findings
The results revealed that the urban core corresponded to the main streets, which had socio-economic importance across history. However, introducing a new planning system influenced by Western planning ideals led to the creation of multi-morphological patterns. At the city level, the study found that the urban core was more accessible in the preplanned areas, while the organic expansion of the informal settlements was exclusive of the core area. At the local level, some informal settlements showed an intense core. Intelligibility analysis revealed that earlier periods showed considerably higher values, implying declines in the ease of navigation of the city over time.
Research limitations
This study did not account for the political, economic and cultural factors that could shape morphological changes in Damascus. In addition, the study adopted historical reference points to understand the morphological changes, as high-quality geospatial data was not available to monitor the recent post-war situation.
Practical implications
The research findings give a foundation for a more contextualised historical understanding of spatial structure and changes, which can contribute to the post-war reconstruction and redevelopment of Damascus city.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is the first to trace historical spatial changes in Damascus from a space syntax approach, weaving together socio-historical and configurational studies. In doing so, it shows how historically informed and spatially aware urban planning and design policies can support policymakers and built environment professionals in planning and redevelopment.
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Mishari Alnahedh and Abdullatif Alrashdan
How does corporate downsizing contribute to a firm’s long-term value? While the extant empirical findings on this relationship are inconclusive, contradictory and equivocal, the…
Abstract
Purpose
How does corporate downsizing contribute to a firm’s long-term value? While the extant empirical findings on this relationship are inconclusive, contradictory and equivocal, the answers to this question remain particularly important in today’s business environment. Considering that downsizing is often directed toward long-term growth and survival, the authors posit that scholars should account for the temporal nature of this strategic decision to understand its economic impact on the firm’s operations. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to provide a more rigorous empirical examination of how a firm’s decision to downsize its workforce affects that firm’s long-term value.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors used Wibbens and Siggelkow’s (2020) measure of long-term investor value appropriation (LIVA) to directly observe the effects of corporate downsizing on firm long-term value and growth. Using a sample of 3,149 US publicly traded manufacturing firms that operated between 2002 and 2018, the authors tested the main effect of downsizing on LIVA and three boundary condition hypotheses.
Findings
The authors found a positive relationship between corporate downsizing and a firm’s long-term value. Interestingly, this positive relationship is stronger among firms that had high human resource slack and R&D intensity. Contrary to our expectations, the authors did not find support for the moderation effect of the proximity to bankruptcy on the relationship between corporate downsizing and a firm’s long-term value.
Originality/value
With these findings, this paper sheds light on the long-term implications of a firm’s decision to downsize its workforce.