The effects of international travel on the tourist: seeing and clearing methodological roadblocks

Measuring change such as the effects of the travel experience on the tourist requires the collection of before and after data and the analysis of the difference between the two. To do so for an overseas tourist segment is a relatively difficult, time-consuming and expensive undertaking, and as a result has been done in very few studies. This paper presents methodological procedures used to obtain pre- and post-trip measures of and therefore change in the destination perceptions and attitudes of a Japanese tourist segment. The study's methodological considerations included scope (e.g. number and choice of methods; longitudinality), experimental design (e.g. control of extraneous variables), instrument design and pre-test (e.g.generation of destination attributes; construct validity), data collection procedures (e.g. the setting and timing of survey administration), data analysis procedures (e.g. requirements of statistical tests), and the cross-cultural context (e.g. language barriers; cultural attributes). Suggestions for replication and modification of the methodology for future research on tourist perception and attitude change are given. Other methods and approaches of value in measuring the quantitative and qualitative effects of travel are outlined.     

Embeddedness in Practice,Numbers in Context: The Politics of Knowing and Doing*

In this paper, I argue that feminist geographers need to scrutinize the claims being made by the three identifiable epistemological orientations in feminist geography regarding the use of numbers, for each offers a different view of objectivity and a different way to count. I go on to pursue a refinement of a critical feminist epistemology grounded in a mediated objectivity, one located in the embeddedness of everyday life. Within this framework, I suggest that numbers are useful, but only in context.     

The saturation of galactic dynamos

We summarize the current state of the long term discussion about the saturation mechanisms associated with rapid growth of small‐scale magnetic field, that operate in large‐scale galactic dynamos, and related problems with magnetic helicity conservation. Our general conclusion is that, taking into account magnetic helicity fluxes, large‐scale magnetic field can be amplified up to about the equipartition level. In contrast, models without helicity fluxes give an initial temporal magnetic field growth, but then decay. In our opinion, it is more appropriate to refer to the situation as a “potentially catastrophic scenario” rather than as “catastrophic α‐quenching” (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Temperature effects on the embryo development and hatching of the spiny lobster Sagmariasus verreauxi

Factors affecting the development of the embryos and production of larvae of the spiny lobster Sagmariasus verreauxi were investigated. Mature lobsters were collected from the fishery in New Zealand and held in captivity until they moulted, mated, and extruded eggs. For females, moulting took place in winter (July/August) and mating occurred 58–88 days later in early spring. The ovigerous females were then held at three temperatures and embryo development monitored at approximately weekly intervals. Mean times to hatch were 55, 75, and 130 days at 20°C, 17°C, and 13°C respectively. The total number of larvae that hatched from each female ranged from 0.97 to 1.4 million. The theoretical temperature at which embryo development ceases (a biological zero) for S. verreauxi, of 9.4°C, was calculated from data on the appearance of the median eye, the eyes and the chromatophores, and the time to hatch. An eye index formula was also derived to allow prediction of time to hatch at a range of temperatures using the cumulative difference between the rearing temperature and the biological zero. First instar phyllosomas from embryos reared at 20°C were significantly smaller than those from 17°C and 13°C but there was no significant difference in fitness. This study shows that hatching can be spread over a number of months, without significantly affecting larval quality, simply by manipulating holding temperature.     

The motion of magnetic fronts in spiral galaxies

Abstract

We study the nonlinear asymptotic thin disc approximation to the mean field dynamo equations, as applicable to spiral galaxies. The circumstances in which sharp magnetic field structures (fronts) can propagate radially are investigated, and an expression for the speed of propagation derived. We find that the speed of an interior front is proportional to η//R _? (where η is the diffusivity and R_t the galactic radius), whereas an exterior front moves with speed of order , where γ is the local growth rate of the dynamo. Numerical simulations are presented, that agree well with our asymptotic results. Further, we perform numerical experiments using the 'no-z' approximation for thin disc dynamos, and show that the propagation of magnetic fronts in this approximation can also be understood in terms of our asymptotic results.     

Nonlinear galactic dynamos

Abstract

We present trial calculations for a simple nonlinear ‘‘thick disk'’ galaxy dynamo. The nonlinearity is a simple α-quenching. Our strictly axisymmetric solution demonstrates the possibility of a nonlinear interaction between modes of opposite parity. We suggest that a three dimensional model might exhibit a similar persistent interaction between axisymmetric and non-axisymmetric modes.