Academic literature on the topic 'Strathclyde (Scotland)'

Discusses the current practices followed by some major libraries in Scotland for providing digital reference services (DRS). Refers to the DRSs provided by three academic libraries, namely Glasgow University Library, the University of Strathclyde Library, and Glasgow Caledonian University Library, and two other premier libraries in Scotland, the Mitchell Library in Glasgow and the National Library of Scotland in Edinburgh. Concludes that digital reference services are effective forms of service delivery in Scotland’s academic, national and public libraries, but that their full potential has not yet been exploited. E‐mail is the major technology used in providing digital reference, although plans are under way to use more sophisticated Internet technologies. Notes that the majority of enquiries handled by the libraries are relatively low‐level rather than concerning specific knowledge domains, and training the users to extract information from the best digital resources still remains a challenge.

Summary Excavation and survey work ahead of the new M74 road development, jointly funded by Historic Scotland and Scottish Office Industry Department (Roads), at an unenclosed platform settlement, with its accompanying field system, has yielded an Early Bronze Age radiocarbon date from a primary hut platform structure. Subsequent re-use of the single excavated platform stance is dated to the Pre-Roman Iron Age.

Summary It will be shown that at the time of Roman conquest, the Damnonii in Strathclyde consisted probably of a decentralised grouping of tribesmen whose political fragmentation is evidenced by their ubiquitous smallscale structures. Some form of hierarchical society is indicated with wealth based on ownership of land and stock and mixed farming the basic element in an embedded economy. Archaeological evidence suggests the Damnonii may have undergone a degree of agricultural revolution in the pre-Roman Iron Age sufficient to meet the demands of an invading and standing army. Roman finds clearly datable to the 1st century AD have been found on only three native sites at the extremities of the area under investigation, their presence suggesting not casual drift from Roman to native, but deliberate Roman policy to control the Damnonii through a few leaders rewarded with Roman patronage. The points of contact are widened in the 2nd century AD. Bearing in mind that Romanization in southern Scotland is different from that of the fully Romanized province of southern Britain and that Roman occupation in Scotland was relatively brief and essentially military, southern Scotland in effect being a frontier zone, it will be shown that the degree of Romanization is not insignificant and Romanization itself may even have gained momentum after the departure of the Roman army. An examination of the finds from Buiston crannog shows elements of continuity as well as discontinuity with Roman culture and technology. Perhaps the clearest expression of Romanization in the longer term, is the emergence of the Romano-British church in the Early Historic period in south-west Scotland.

Abstract The force and coherency with which Margaret Thatcher and her inner circle outlined their vision for ‘enterprise culture’, like so many aspects of Thatcherism, have masked the complexity of its origins and the histories of alternative responses. This article provides a history of an alternative vision for enterprise culture by examining the community business movement in Scotland, the largest experiment of its kind in the UK in the 1980s and a forerunner of social enterprise. Working across Scotland, but with a hub of activity in the Strathclyde region, practitioners worked with local people to find ways to develop their neighbourhood economy while improving their environment, creating jobs, and developing services needed in their area. This article outlines the origins of the movement, the shared values of its founding members, and how their training in community development informed the community business model. It analyses how practitioners put their ideas into practice and the reasons behind the fragmentation of the movement in the 1990s. It argues that although at face value the concept of community business may appear to chime with the dominant political rhetoric of Thatcher’s ‘enterprise culture’, the history of the movement provides a signpost to an alternative, if unrealised, vision for Scotland’s recovery from social and economic depression. Where previous historical research has focused on the political consequences of Thatcher’s policies in Scotland, this research connects this discussion to the transformation of Scotland’s civic society in the wake of deindustrialization.

Crannogs, the artificial island habitations of the Scottish lochs and lakes, are once more a lively field of research. Following our 1993 report on the crannogs of southwest Scotland and their dates, here is news of crannogs on the Isle of Mull, again with striking dates.

Background Road traffic crash (RTC) injuries affect 20 to 50 million people worldwide every year, causing premature death or disability as well as incurring large costs to individuals and society. In the UK, the number of RTC casualties is underestimated if based solely on police records, as many casualties are unreported to the police. “Safety” (speed and red light) cameras have shown to be an effective way of combating RTCs and in 2000 a national scheme was rolled out in the UK. Aim and objectives The overall aim of the study was: To investigate the epidemiology, cost and prevention of RTC injuries in the Strathclyde police region of Scotland. The specific objectives of the study were: 1. To establish the overall epidemiology and accuracy of reporting of RTC injuries in Strathclyde. 2. To determine the epidemiology of RTC injuries and the effectiveness of safety cameras at the camera sites in Strathclyde with special reference to different road users, RTC types and severity, before and after camera installation. 3. To estimate the economic burden of hospital admissions due to RTC injuries in Strathclyde and at the camera sites before and after installation. Methods Nine years (1997 to 2005) of police road casualty records (STATS19) and National Health Service hospitalisation records (SMR01) from the Strathclyde region were linked. The linkage resulted in nearly 11,000 police casualty records relating to approximately 30,000 hospital and death records. Unlinked RTC hospital and police casualties (nearly 9,000 and 70,000 respectively) were also utilised in the analysis. The study employed a range of epidemiological and economic methods. These included descriptive epidemiology (evaluating distributions of linked and unlinked records, length of stay and cost analysis), analytical epidemiology (examining associations using chi square and logistic regression models) and interventional epidemiology (before and after study). The economic evaluation utilised weighted mean costs. The focus of analysis was threefold: 1. Epidemiology of RTC, injuries and accuracy of police recording, 2. Epidemiological impact of safety cameras, 3. Cost of road traffic crashes a) in Strathclyde and b) at safety camera sites. Results Epidemiology of RTC injuries in Strathclyde: Older age and less protected road users (i.e. pedestrians and two-wheeled vehicle users) had a higher risk of a more severe outcome in RTCs. Head injuries were more common among pedestrians and pedal cyclists, while car occupants more often suffered injuries to the thorax and abdomen/lower back/lumbar spine. Accuracy of police reporting: 45% of RTC hospital admissions were not recorded by police. Casualty characteristics significantly associated with underreporting were: no third party involvement, older age, casualties from early in the study period, type of road user (especially pedal cyclist), hospitalisation as a day case and female gender. Seriously injured casualties recorded by police (STATS19) declined in frequency more than the RTC hospitalised injuries (SMR01) (38% and 21% respectively). Linked SMR01 casualties that were coded “slight” by the police increased by 5% over time, while linked SMR01 casualties coded “serious” declined by 27%. Safety camera impact: Compared to the rest of Strathclyde, there was a significantly greater downward linear time trend of RTC incidence at the camera sites. The impact of cameras on RTCs over time appeared stable. Cameras seemed to be effective in reducing the incidence of serious or fatal RTC injuries, as well as injuries associated with multiple-vehicle and non-junction RTCs. Cost of RTC casualties in Strathclyde: Total inpatient costs were conservatively estimated at £7.3 million yearly (linked records). Head and lower extremity injuries incurred the highest total costs (28% and 34% respectively). Pedestrian injuries, constituting 36% of the total, incurred 44% of total costs. Casualties from deprived areas, and pedestrians in particular, incurred higher hospital costs than other road user groups. Cost of RTCs at safety camera sites: 17% of all injured before safety camera installation were hospitalised, while 13% of casualties after installation were hospitalised. The mean costs of (surviving) casualties admitted to hospital declined by 24% after installation and the mean daily cost declined by 55%. Conclusions RTC injury incidence in Strathclyde declined over the study period, which is in line with expectations of developed countries. Young and elderly people as well as unprotected road users carry a disproportionately great RTC injury burden. Many hospitalised RTC casualties were not recorded by police and there appears to have been an increasing tendency over time for police officers to report injuries as slight rather than serious. National (UK) statistics of RTCs should be interpreted with caution in the light of these findings and routinely linking police and hospital data would enhance the quality of RTC casualty statistics. Linking police and hospital RTC records provide a more comprehensive source for road traffic analysis than any of the sources separately. Routine data linkage would also facilitate the evaluation of time trends in relation to national road casualty reduction targets. The study indicates that the most costly RTCs occur in areas with high levels of deprivation, a history of pedestrian RTCs, elderly and child casualties, roads with many non-junction RTCs and 30 mph speed limits. The evaluation of safety cameras strongly suggests that they are effective in reducing both road casualty incidence and severity and that the reduction in incidence is sustained over time. Additionally, safety cameras in Strathclyde may have contributed to a saving of over £5 million. Cameras thus fulfil an important public health, as well as law enforcement, function and should continue to play a central role in traffic calming. This study has demonstrated the value of utilising multiple data sources in the road traffic injury field.

In and around the 870s, Britain was transformed dramatically by the campaigns and settlements of the Great Army and its allies. Some pre-existing political communities suffered less than others, and in hindsight the process helped Scotland and England achieve their later positions. By the twelfth century, the rulers of these countries had partitioned the former kingdom of Northumbria. This thesis is about what happened in the intervening period, the fate of Northumbria's political structures, and how the settlement that defined Britain for the remainder of the Middle Ages came about. Modern reconstructions of the era have tended to be limited in scope and based on unreliable post-1100 sources. The aim is to use contemporary material to overcome such limitations, and reach positive conclusions that will make more sense of the evidence and make the region easier to understand for a wider audience, particularly in regard to its shadowy polities and ecclesiastical structures. After an overview of the most important evidence, two chapters will review Northumbria's alleged dissolution, testing existing historiographic beliefs (based largely on Anglo-Norman-era evidence) about the fate of the monarchy, political community, and episcopate. The impact and nature of ‘Southenglish' hegemony on the region's political communities will be the focus of the fourth chapter, while the fifth will look at evidence for the expansion of Scottish political power. The sixth chapter will try to draw positive conclusions about the episcopate, leaving the final chapter to look in more detail at the institutions that produced the final settlement.

This chapter traces developments of the ninth century. We examine the Viking raids, and subsequent Norse occupation and settlement in some parts of the country. This process happened in different ways in different places, and archaeology, place-names and historical sources can help us to see some of the finer detail. An argument is made for a mid-ninth century turn to Christianity by some Norse settlers, along with their Gaelicisation in some areas and their alliances with native rulers in Scotland and Ireland. Other Norse polities – in Scotland, Ireland and northern England – remained a serious threat. Following destruction of the British kingdom of Alclud (Dumbarton) by the Dublin Norse, the re-location of Strathclyde power to Govan may witness a new British-Norse cohabitation and possible alliance. Meanwhile, the Gaelicisation of Pictland continued throughout the Viking period, until by the end of the ninth century ‘Pictland’ had become the Gaelic-speaking kingdom of Alba/Scotia – a re-branding exercise rather than a conquest. The implications of this new Gaelic identity are discussed through new readings of the sources for the ninth century (especially Pictish king lists and the Chronicle of the Kings of Alba).

A 2nd generation, contra-rotating marine current turbine has been developed by the Energy Systems Research Unit at the University of Strathclyde. This system can be tuned to extract energy over a wide range of water depths by “flying” a neutrally-buoyant device from a flexible, tensioned mooring. After successful proof of concept turbine trials, the development programme has moved on to investigate the performance of a scaled prototype system comprising of a dual rotor, contra-rotating turbine directly coupled to a submersible contra-rotating generator; and held on station via a gravity based tensioned mooring system. The turbine/generator assembly was initially tested in a towing tank, before the entire system underwent sea trials initially at the Kyles of Bute in the River Clyde Estuary before being deployed in eth Sound of Islay of eth West Coast of Scotland. An investigation into turbine wake development (an area in which it is hoped that the contra-rotating turbine will have uniquely beneficial properties) has recently begun. Small single-rotor model turbines have been deployed in a flume. Trends observed so far are in accordance with those observed by other researchers.