Transitional Space Research Articles

A study of transition spaces in traditional houses of Tamil Nadu

A study of transition spaces in traditional houses of Tamil Nadu

Assessing the association between overcrowding and human physiological stress response in different urban contexts: a case study in Salzburg, Austria

Overcrowding in densely populated urban areas is increasingly becoming an issue for mental health disorders. Yet, only few studies have examined the association between overcrowding in cities and physiological stress responses. Thus, this study employed wearable sensors (a wearable camera, an Empatica E4 wristband and a smartphone-based GPS) to assess the association between overcrowding and human physiological stress response in four types of urban contexts (green space, transit space, commercial space, and blue space). A case study with 26 participants was conducted in Salzburg, Austria. We used Mask R-CNN to detect elements related to overcrowding such as human crowds, sitting facilities, vehicles and bikes from first-person video data collected by wearable cameras, and calculated a change score (CS) to assess human physiological stress response based on galvanic skin response (GSR) and skin temperature from the physiological data collected by the wristband, then this study used statistical and spatial analysis to assess the association between the change score and the above elements. The results demonstrate the feasibility of using sensor-based measurement and quantitative analysis to investigate the relationship between human stress and overcrowding in relation to different urban elements. The findings of this study indicate the importance of considering human crowds, sitting facilities, vehicles and bikes to assess the impact of overcrowding on human stress at street level.

Anticipating Identity Management Decision-Making Process: The Case of Hijab Disclosure to Managers Through the Study of Time and Space

This article explores how time and space influence the decision-making process (DMP) that hijabis (Muslim women who wear a headscarf or hijab) undergo when deciding whether to disclose their hijab to their manager. Drawing on 40 interviews with hijabis, whose identity is a source of significant stigmatization and discrimination in France, we show that, rather than being constrained by time and space, hijabis take advantage of these elements to foster their own agency. Three contributions to the literature emerge from our findings. First, the decision-making process can be broken down into three phases: conceptualization, planning, and actualization. Over the course of these three phases, specific steps are taken depending on whether or not hijabis wish to include their manager in their DMP. This is how hijabis take control of their disclosure decision, which must take the manager’s reaction into account. Second, we demonstrate that hijabis focus on the temporal dimension when selecting the most appropriate point at which to share their decision. For the spatial dimension, we introduce the concept of transition space to convey the way hijabis construct a secure environment in which to make their decision. This space has four key characteristics: It is secluded and offers protection, it is flexible, it is essential, and it is a space of psychological distress. Finally, we show that identity management (IM) decisions incur material costs.

Observed Mask Use in Kindergarten Through Grade 12 Schools in Georgia-Fall, 2021.

Universal masking, with additional layered prevention strategies, was an essential tool for limiting the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 and ensuring a safe return to in-person learning for kindergarten through 12th grade (K-12) students and staff. Few studies have examined mask adherence in this setting and none have described types of masks worn or locations of mask adherence. This project sought to assess mask adherence, types worn, and location of mask adherence in K-12 settings. This study used direct in-person observations to measure the proportion of persons wearing masks correctly; type of masks worn; and location of mask adherence in 19 K-12 schools in Georgia. A total of 16,222 observations were conducted. Among those observed, 85.2% wore masks, with 80.3% wearing the mask correctly. Persons in high school were less likely to wear masks correctly. Correct mask use was most often observed among persons wearing N95-type masks. The prevalence of persons wearing masks correctly in transitional spaces was 5% higher than in congregate spaces. In K-12 schools with a universal masking policy, correct mask adherence was high among individuals. Examining adherence to recommended prevention measures can provide K-12 schools feedback to inform targeted messaging and policies during future disease outbreaks.

Well-Being as an Effective Aspect in the Perception of Vital In-between Spaces within Art and Architecture Faculties

In recent years, well-being has become an increasingly important consideration integrated with functional aspects in the design of educational spaces due to its significant impact on the built environment. Although the features of educational spaces have been explored in a myriad of studies, the potential of in-between spaces has not been well explored. This paper reveals the significance of in-between spaces in educational buildings beyond their functional use as the fundamental circulation within a building, indicating that they also play a dynamic role through their design as elastic gathering spaces that encourage informal interactions and link users psychologically and visually, which affects their well-being. However, the potential of these spaces is often overlooked compared to the main educational spaces. Additionally, during the design process, there seems to be a tendency to reduce these spaces to a bare minimum, in favor of exploiting larger spaces, which shows that they are regarded as merely connecting points or transitional spaces. The research problem addressed here is the lack of a clear, adequate understanding of the effect of designing in-between spaces on the productivity and well-being of users, as there are no criteria regarding in-between space designs to enhance well-being. The current paper aims to evaluate the reality of the in-between space design within the art and architecture faculties of Jordanian universities according to the perception of faculty members and students based on well-being requirements. Accordingly, a survey was designed to address the 11 key criteria identified in the literature, including (1) physical features and visual appearance; (2) size and design of in-between spaces; (3) circulation and movement space zoning; (4) ergonomics and furnishing; (5) lighting; (6) colors and finishing; (7) acoustics; (8) heating, ventilation, and air conditioning; (9) visual communication and instructional tools; (10) social and cultural spaces; and (11) accessories. The paper utilizes a mixed approach through survey and observation, where the findings are analyzed from three case studies to reveal the dimensions that need to be taken into account and developed to meet the needs of users. The results of the study demonstrate that the specific dimensions of circulation and movement, ergonomics and furnishings, colors and finishing, and accessories must be taken into account to create an interactive environment that advances the educational process and therefore enhances productivity.

Exploring the use of turn-taking and overlap resolution strategies among Vietnamese non-English major students

Based on Sacks et al.'s (1978) turn-taking model, the research aims to determine how Vietnamese students managed their discourse. Two Vietnamese students were conveniently selected for the study, and their conversations were recorded, transcribed, and coded in the style of conversation analysis and deductive content analysis. The results show that in one-at-a-time talks, the male student used more devices and strategies than the female in taking turns. Also, both employed latching to reduce transition space most of the time. In overlapping talks, in most cases, the male student tended to employ repair strategies more frequently than the female. Nevertheless, the female student used more strategies in simultaneous talks than in one-at-a-time talks. The findings shed light on Vietnamese students' turn-taking styles, a great boon to English educators who should provide students with necessary interactional resources and rethink speaking assessments, including turn-taking strategies as a linguistic competency.

Technology as enabling interface within transition spaces for the smart Heritage

The current and increasingly intensive technocratic drift recognises the indiscriminate power of techniques in solving several problems, including the struggle against climate change and its impact on cities. One of the future challenges concerns the effective and conscious application of KETs for the creation of smart environments in historical heritage, which plays a strategic role for its conservative values, but also in the broader strategy for limiting greenhouse gas emissions. The proposed paper reports some preliminary results of a research aimed at investigating and acknowledging these technologies as an enabling medium to undertake more informed deterministic choices in the field of CH.

Between Virtual Space and Real Space: Transition Spaces

The space that is virtual in the planning processes is the one that is not experienced physically. With unlimited changes in virtual space 2/3 dimensional sketches/drawings, the desired location is reached in a short time. The structures which are implemented, after the planning process had finished, space is now a real space that can be experienced physically, its boundaries are defined and transformed. However, unlike virtual space, it may require serious cost and time for changes caused by small errors, revisions, or needs that will occur. Starting from this point, decoupling between the transitional spaces in the virtual and real space are described in the study. The main emphasis of the study is to explain how to transition spaces are separated from virtual and real spaces and what are their advantages and disadvantages during use with selected examples. The empirical method, which is one of the quantitative research types, was used. First of all, the meaning pattern of the concept of space was examined within the framework of the concept definitions of virtuality, reality, and transitivity. Virtual, real, and transitional spaces are explained by literature surveys. The transition locations were analyzed with selected samples. As a result, when the characteristics of the spaces are compared, it is seen that the transition spaces, with their flexibility, easy changeability, limitlessness, and timelessness, can analyze the spaces needed before building new buildings. It has been seen that the transition from the physical being space to another space and the space in which the transition is made can be experienced mentally.

Response Monitoring and Analysis in Deep Foundation Pit Excavation: A Case Study in Soft Soil at Subway Tunnel Intersections

With the rapid development of urban rail transit and underground space development, the occurrence of excavation near existing tunnels is becoming more common. This excavation and unloading will inevitably cause soil deformation outside the pit and the tunnel buried therein. This paper presents an investigation into the entire excavation process and the deformation effects on the adjacent subway structure under complex construction environments, including soft soil foundations and adjacent subway intersections, based on measured data of pit construction. The horizontal and vertical displacements of deep soils in two pits were analyzed along with safety management measures to determine the horizontal displacement curve pattern and the lateral displacement development distribution law of deep soils. The analysis of subway deformation data shows that after excavation, the subway tunnel undergoes “lateral expansion” and “vertical compression” type deformation, accompanied by “in-pit” horizontal displacement and “settlement” vertical displacement. Furthermore, a correlation analysis reveals a clear linear relationship between pit deformation and subway structure deformation, which can be used as a prediction method for adjacent structure deformation. Finally, a comparative analysis of existing relevant influence zone models and tunnel deformation prediction formulas is carried out based on the monitoring. The results of this study have significant guiding implications for the excavation construction of soft soil foundations in the vicinity of subway crossings.

Lived rhythms as a ground for togetherness and learning in hybrid workspace

Using Maurice Merleau-Ponty’s theory of the flesh as rhythm, this article examines how lived dynamics between embodiment and space construct distinct modes of togetherness and learning in working life. Workspaces are becoming increasingly hybrid collections of various physical and virtual spaces. Contemporary workspace ideals embrace openness and a collective ‘buzz’, but this can also be disorientating. This article examines how different spaces could be combined to create spatial rhythms that balance collective working and learning with more silent types of understanding and reflexivity. The article suggests that we need both intimate and open spaces, as well as transitional spaces in between, to nurture learning and togetherness. First, spatial withdrawal can help people to connect with their earlier work history and dreams, sustaining openness of perception. Second, rhythmic movements between different spaces create a transitional experience of different worlds overlapping and a fertile condition for immediate communities. The article suggests that both approaches to space can assist in opening personal registers that are often suppressed: imagination and lived past. This article illuminates how reflexively created hybrid spaces can support personal grounding, spur learning opportunities and actualise novel modes of being together.

Size matters: action space for sustainability transition among planners in Swedish municipalities

ABSTRACT We analyse the action space for strategic planning and sustainability transition among planners in Swedish municipalities. We use qualitative and quantitative materials from 103 survey responses obtained from Swedish municipal planners. Our analysis shows that the size and type (e.g. population and density) of the municipality where the planners work are connected to their perceived action space, where policies for densely populated cities are less relevant for rural municipalities. Even if size matters for the action space for sustainability transition, this action space can be modified (e.g. access to resources and participation in networks) and continuously constructed.

Changes in a Neotropical insectivorous bat community associated with artificial clearing of the forest in a geothermal project

SummaryThe energy needs of the human population inevitably affect natural environments, but the effects on wildlife of human modifications of habitat specifically for geothermal projects are scarcely known. Through acoustic monitoring, we quantified at Proyecto Geotérmico Las Pailas II, Guanacaste, Costa Rica, the impact of forest openings on the diversity and community composition of aerial insectivorous bats. Our data revealed that artificial clearing causes a border effect, an environment where the diversity of species and activity levels of insectivorous bats increase with respect to other habitats analysed. We discuss that, due to the combination of environmental properties and resource availability variables of the border habitats, in addition to the acoustic abilities of the bat species detected, borders represent transitional spaces where species adapted to uncluttered and background-cluttered spaces can easily commute and forage. The artificial clearings created by the geothermal project had a positive effect on aerial insectivorous bat species; however, this pattern cannot be assumed for other organisms within the area. Therefore, we highlight the importance of quantifying the influence of energy-extracting projects on biodiversity metrics and the use of this information to make informed decisions regarding managing and conserving natural resources.

Can southern Europe lead an urban energy transition? Insights from the Energy Transition Roundtable in Valencia, Spain

Multi-stakeholder engagement spaces are important instruments for transition governance. Due to their nature they require acute consciousness of the local context and place they are based in. The research presented in this paper adds to the body of literature on how to govern the energy transition at a local level, and contributes to filling the gap on the role of multi-stakeholder engagement groups in the energy transition process within a southern European context. Empirical evidence is drawn from the city of Valencia, Spain, where innovative formulas are being developed. One such innovation, the Mesa de Transición Energética (MTE – Energy Round Table), emerges as a multi-stakeholder, participatory and inclusive mechanism to define the roadmap towards achieving the energy transition and urban sustainability. This new experience in the city led to the discovery and exploration of the challenges, barriers, benefits and opportunities the city had to face, as well as clarifying how such multi-stakeholder engagement spaces can facilitate the energy transition path. The research evidenced that while participants and organizers were very satisfied with the development of the stakeholder group and the resulting demonstration projects used to enhance experimentation in the city, they signaled various difficulties. Such difficulties were rooted in the context and included dealing with an uneven vision of the transition, the vulnerability of the group due to the predominant role of the local administration, and a perceived lack of action. Nevertheless, the multi-stakeholder engagement space for the energy transition in Valencia can be seen as an important driver of change for the city. It can also be seen as an experimental model to be replicated in other Spanish or southern European cities.

Caryl Phillips's interstitial poetics

ABSTRACT The “spatial turn” in literary studies has challenged the perception that time is the fundamental organising principle of fiction and has drawn attention to the ways in which writers create literary cartographies. In a similar vein, postcolonial critics have foregrounded the role of “contact zones” and investigated the “third space” in between cultures as productive sites of interconnectedness, while also simultaneously laying bare the “labour of translation” that takes place in the territories reconfigured by the colonial domination. This article highlights the centrality of space in Caryl Phillips’s novels on transatlantic slavery and argues how, through a meticulous exploration of multiple spaces of transit and of the characters who inhabit them, the author suggestively lays out an interstitial poetics. Within Phillips’s composite oeuvre, the investigation of transatlantic slavery and its legacy is a pivotal, recurring theme. In his works, Phillips dwells on the liminal spaces that emerged in the context of the Middle Passage and the institution of slavery. As this article will argue, by reimagining the Black Atlantic as contiguous to the imperial centre, Phillips complicates the geography of colonial and imperial Britain.

Exilic Roots and Paths of Marronage: Breaching Walls of Space and Memory in the Historical Poetics of Dénètem Touam Bona

Afropean anthropologist, philosopher, and art curator Dénètem Touam Bona is an original “border thinker” and “crosser” of geographic and conceptual boundaries working within a tradition of Caribbean historical poetics, notably represented by Édouard Glissant. He explores ideas of “fugue” and “refuge” in light of the experience of maroons or escaped slaves, key actors of the simultaneous expansion of freedom and industrial-scale chattel slavery in the Americas. In “Freedom as Marronage” (2015), Neill Roberts defines freedom itself as perpetual flight, and locates its very origins in the liminal and transitional spaces of slave escape, offering a perspective on modernity that gives voice to hunted fugitives, defiant of its ecology, enclosures, and definition, and who were ultimately excised from its archive. Touam Bona’s “cosmo-poetics” excavates marronage as a mode of invention, subterfuge and utopian projection that revisits its history and representation; sacred, musical, ecological, and corporeal idioms; and alternative forms of community, while also inviting contemporary parallels with the “captives” of the global border regime, namely fugitives, nomads, refugees, and asylum seekers who perpetually evade norms, controls, and domestication. He deploys the metaphor of the liana, a long-stemmed tropical vine that climbs and twines through dense forests, weaving relation in defiance of predation, to evoke colonized and displaced peoples’ subterranean evasion of commodification, classification, control, cultural erasure, and ecological annihilation. This article frames his work within an Afro-diasporic history and transnational cultural criticism that envisions fugitivity and exilic spaces as dissonant forms of resistance to the coloniality of power, and their relevance to understanding racialization, representations of the past, and narratives of freedom and belonging across borders.

Weak Stabilization of Boolean Networks Under State-Flipped Control.

In this brief, stabilization of Boolean networks (BNs) by flipping a subset of nodes is considered, here we call such action state-flipped control. The state-flipped control implies that the logical variables of certain nodes are flipped from 1 to 0 or 0 to 1 as time flows. Under state-flipped control on certain nodes, a state-flipped-transition matrix is defined to describe the impact on the state transition space. Weak stabilization is first defined and then some criteria are presented to judge the same. An algorithm is proposed to find a stabilizing kernel such that BNs can achieve weak stabilization to the desired state with in-degree more than 0. By defining a reachable set, another approach is proposed to verify weak stabilization, and an algorithm is given to obtain a flip sequence steering an initial state to a given target state. Subsequently, the issue of finding flip sequences to steer BNs from weak stabilization to global stabilization is addressed. In addition, a model-free reinforcement algorithm, namely the Q -learning ( [Formula: see text]) algorithm, is developed to find flip sequences to achieve global stabilization. Finally, several numerical examples are given to illustrate the obtained theoretical results.

Mitigating anxiety: The role of strategic leadership groups during radical organisational change

This article examines the role of strategic leadership groups in radical organisational change. Previous research has focused on how ‘heroic’ individual leaders guide change. In contrast, we argue that strategic leadership groups are indispensable to understanding and supporting radical organisational change. Building on a longitudinal study in a global European company, our research identifies four phases of ‘negotiated order’ that shape group and organisational responses to change. Our findings reveal that strategic leadership groups help manage emotions and understand the shifting authority relations that inevitably arise during periods of change. Drawing upon the psychoanalytic concept of ‘projective identification’, we develop a theoretical framework for understanding the tensions of change. The model shows how emotional coalitions that develop in strategic leadership groups afford a source of political and psychological containment against the anxieties of radical organisational change. These formations offer transitional spaces for change, providing opportunities for progress. The advantage of this new perspective on radical change is that it helps to move the organisation beyond periods of ambivalence and conflict, with positive implications for leadership practice.

The Impacts and Significance of Yum Cha for the Cantonese Diaspora

Across the Cantonese diaspora, dim sum establishments have been a critical cultural hubfor immigrant communities. Dim sum are the foods that are consumed during yum cha, a popularCantonese brunch meal with shareable dishes and tea. Dumplings, buns, noodles, stews, desserts,fried delectables, and other dim sum come in a variety of flavor profiles, textures, and shapes,making the yum cha process one filled with joy and plentitude. Popularized in Southern China,yum cha became a staple morning cuisine for the working class by the mid-20th century. Itspopularity and other restaurant innovations elevated dim sum from street food to indoor diningfood. Labor migrations within the last century have brought Cantonese cuisine to the rest of theworld, including Southeast Asia, Australia, the United Kingdom, and North America. ForChinese communities overseas, the establishment, performance, and preservation of native foodsbecomes a process of recreating home and belonging in the resettlement society. In particular,yum cha comes with a formal set of etiquette and customs which emulate cultural values, oralhistories, and social hierarchies. From the distribution of tea to the festive dining ambiance, yumcha provides a collective culinary citizenship and communal space for immigrant communities.More than a physical recreation of home, yum cha becomes a socio-cultural transitory space forthe Cantonese diaspora to actively practice cultural traditions and teach future generations.

Politics in Transitional Spaces: Direct and Indirect Political Participation.

This paper seeks to build on Carriere's (2022) work on the complex, pervasive, and dialogical nature of politics and extend this treatment to examine the politics of the transitional, liminal, and "in-between spaces." In particular, we analyze the theatrical nature of politics by examining how roads and streets become a "dynamic stage" (Valsiner, 2004, p. 2) where private and public policies enter into dynamic dialogical relationships. We distinguish between direct, direct but distanced, and indirect peripheral political participation and explore how roads and streets enable redundant and dramatic communicative processes that feed into the internalization/externalization meaning-making processes (Valsiner, 2014). Finally, we analyze the process of the emergence of roads and streets as a result of complex interactions between public policies, ordinances, and values. We extend this exploration to an illustrative case in Oahu,Hawai'i to demonstrate how streets become constructed and organized to provide affective guidance. We conclude by arguing that the absence of political messages or overt political actions does not mean the absence of politics - power dynamics are still at play in the liminal and transitional zones of human living.

Measuring the Impact of Bedroom Privacy on Social Networks in a Long-Term Care Facility for Hong Kong Older Adults: A Spatio-Social Network Analysis Approach

This study aims to measure the impact of bedroom privacy on residents' social networks in a long-term care (LTC) facility for older adults. Little is known about how the architectural design of bedrooms affects residents' social networks in compact LTC facilities. Five design factors affecting privacy were examined: bedroom occupancy, visual privacy, visibility, bedroom adjacency, and transitional space. We present a spatio-social network analysis approach to analyse the social network structures of 48 residents. Results show that residents with the highest bedroom privacy had comparatively smaller yet stronger groups of network partners in their own bedrooms. Further, residents who lived along short corridors interacted frequently with non-roommates in one another's bedrooms. In contrast, residents who had the least privacy had relatively diverse network partners, however, with weak social ties. Clustering analyses also identified five distinct social clusters among residents of different bedrooms, ranging from diverse to restricted. Multiple regressions showed that these architectural factors are significantly associated with residents' network structures. The findings have methodological implications for the study of physical environment and social networks which are useful for LTC service providers. We argue that our findings could inform current policies to develop LTC facilities aimed at improving residents' well-being.