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http://nyc.metblogs.com/2007/06/13/belmont-steaks/
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Belmont Steaks???
By nyc_noah
June 13th, 2007 @ 9:02 AM Uncategorized
This past weekend, I went with some buddies to the third event of the Triple Crown, the Belmont Stakes. It started out as a total bomb. My buddy Richie was supposed to pick me up at 12:30, but didn’t end up getting there until 2:15. Plus, he had his kid with him! So, we almost had to bring a grumpy 5 year old with us to a known haven of booze, smoking, and degenerate gambling. Luckily, one of my other buddies convinced the kid that he was in fact scared of horses, which I admit is both soulless and horrible, but totally worth it in the short term.
So, once we got there, we tried to plug our electric grill into the cigarette lighter of the car and grill up some wonderful snacks (hence the cheesy pun title). Unfortunately, the fuse blew and we were shit outta luck. So, in an effort to try to make the best of the situation, I took our cooler over to a few other grillers, and asked if we can share their grill space, and we would gladly share our food. They were uninterested. In fact, at the last one I tried, someone threw a hamburger bun at me. So we finally got into the place, hungry, angry, and late, and placed a few bets. Though some of my friends knew what they were doing, this was literally my first visit to a horse race. I had absolutely no clue what I was doing. I quickly bombed on my first three races. But, I miraculously hit on the final two races, the last of which was the actual main race. I ended up walking out of the building up about $25, which I was quite thrilled with. It ended up being a really cool time! Read after the jump to see some things I noticed while at the Belmont.
– In typical NY fashion, the Belmont is really hard to get to. As mentioned, we ended up driving, but at first, we were exploring the idea of taking the LIRR. It seemed pretty ridiculous. The train schedule was rigid and tough, and the cars would have been absolutely PACKED! The NY area has a habit of making things that everyone would want to go to difficult to get to. The most appropriate example is the Javits Center. It was as if there was a meeting, where some local representative deuschebag stood up and said “I have a great idea! Let’s build a massive convention center in a place that won’t allow affordable parking, and not connect it to public transportation! Also, let’s be sure that it is in a really unsafe neighborhood. And, let’s make sure that it is a LONG walk to the nearest subway. We can throw a couple dinky shuttle bus routes over there and that will handle the millions of visitors.
– The mix of people was really funny. First, there were the top-shelf, fancy-dressed rich people. The generally sat in reserved seating. This group very much fit the stereotype… Canes, fancy drinks, summery dresses and lots of linen… Throw in a monocle, and you have yourself Mr. Peanut. The next group was the meatheads that seem to permeate every sporting event in the tri-state area. These are the guys who inevitably drink too much and try to start fights for no reason (or throw hamburger buns at people to look tough in front of their meathead friends). They are loud and obnoxious, and are probably compensating for steroidally shrunken genitalia. Lastly, there are the degenerates. These are the slimy guys who clearly are addicted. They always think they have a leg up on the races, and know something that nobody else does, but alas, they usually if not always lose their proverbial shirts.
– The food at Belmont somehow managed to be worse and more expensive than at a Jets game or a Mets game. Two cheeseburgers, a hot dog, and a small order of fries cost me $31. As Jerry Seinfeld says, it’s like they have their own little country over there. Do the people at Belmont have any idea what things cost EVERYWHERE ELSE IN THE WORLD?
– There actually exists a Barbaro Memorial Fund… They seriously created a fund for a dead horse. Not only that! I learned this weekend that a track in Florida has been renamed in his honor, and additionally, there is an ongoing debate about where to spread his ashes! For the love of god, Gerald Ford’s death didn’t get this much fanfare! I understand that this horse meant a lot to people and there was some sort of genuine fascination when he broke his leg, but let’s move on. He was a freaking race horse! Aren’t there enough problems on the human side, or are we really ready to give up on AIDS, Cancer, ALS, MS, and the millions of other problems with society and donate money to eradicate a horse foot problem?
– The more I live in NYC, the more I see that driving here is one of the worst experiences possible, regardless of whether or not the congestion pricing ever takes effect. If you have to drive around in the five boroughs, just kill yourself and be done with it.
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nyc.metblogs.com
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http://www.environmentportal.in/content/466751/order-of-the-national-green-tribunal-regarding-felling-of-trees-for-construction-of-wind-farms-sangnara-village-kutch-gujarat-29012020/?page=
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Order of the National Green Tribunal regarding felling of trees for construction of wind farms, Sangnara village, Kutch, Gujarat, 29/01/2020
Order of the National Green Tribunal in the matter of Shankarlal Gopalbhai Patel Vs Union of India & Others dated 29/01/2020 regarding damage caused to the flora, fauna and ecology of the Kutch region particularly in Sangnara village, due to alleged rampant illegal felling of trees for construction of wind farms by M/s. Green Infra Wind Energy Limited, and seven wind energy companies.
The NGT directed the Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (HoFF), Gujarat to conduct an inspection of the area concerned, verify on the factual aspects and submit a report before the next date. The District Magistrate, Bhuj, Gujarat shall also assist the PCCF (HoFF) in carrying out the task.
Kuchchh
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www.environmentportal.in
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http://www.friendswithoutborders.org.uk/news/portsmouth-to-get-its-own-city-app-to-help-the-homeless
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Portsmouth to get its own city app to help the homeless
Phone by Ozzy Delaney
A new phone app tdesigned to help homeless people get the help they need will be launched in Portsmouth next week.
The Street Support Network, who developed the app, say that its mission is to make it easier for people to collaborate, co-ordinate and provide better support for people experiencing homelessness, and make it easier for citizens and business to do something to help.
The app is already used in Manchester, Leeds and Bournemouth and on Tuesday at 11:30 am Portsmouth will get its own. The app will be officially launched in the John Pounds Centre, 23 Queen St, Portsmouth, PO1 3HN.
After it is launched, the app will be available from the Apple App Store and Google Play.
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www.friendswithoutborders.org.uk
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http://www.summarycrime.com/2010/05/
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Privilege and self-incrimination
The Judicial College of Victoria added commentary regarding the law of privilege to its Uniform Evidence Manual yesterday. It discusses Divisions 1 -4 of Part 3.10 of the Evidence Act 2008.
All practitioners in the summary jurisdiction (and elsewhere) need to become familiar with the operation of immunity certificates under s 128, a major change from the Evidence Act 1958. The interplay of these provisions with other sections of the Evidence Act 2008 such as ss 18 and 38 probably isn't fully understood.
The Criminal Charge Book has also added new chapters.
Labels: evidence, law reform, privilege
Verdins revisited: linking cause and effect
at 6:06 pm Posted by Dr Manhattan
Further Edit: The paedophilia and paraphilia 'exception' discussed in DPP v OJA [2007] VSCA 129, where the High Court's majority view in Ryan v R (2001) 206 CLR 267 was said to take precedence over Verdins principles, has recently been approved by the Victorian Court of Appeal in WCB v The Queen [2010] VSCA 230.
Edit: I've received some feedback about this post querying how much of a discount Verdins principles afford. I'm going to dodge the question and take refuge in Hayne J's remarks in AB v The Queen (1999) 198 CLR 111 [at 115] where an argument that a particular scenario merited a discrete discount was rejected.
There are several flaws in the argument.
First, it assumes that sentencing an offender is some mechanical or mathematical process. It is not. Nobody can identify, let alone define, some precise relationship between the complex and infinitely various elements that bear upon what sentence is to be imposed on an offender such as this appellant. No calculus will reveal some mathematical relationship between this appellant's remorse, the harm he has inflicted on his victims and society's denunciation of what he did to them. A sentencing judge can do no more than weigh these and the many other factors (such as retribution and deterrence) that bear upon the question and express the result as several terms of imprisonment to be served, wholly or partly concurrently or consecutively. Remorse, harm, denunciation, retribution and deterrence - in the end, all these and more must be expressed by a sentencing judge in units of time. That is a discretionary judgment. It is not a task that is to be performed by calculation. Resort to metaphors such as "discount" or "allowance" must not be taken as suggesting that it can be.
The Court of Appeal found in Londrigan v R [2010] VSCA 81 that a diagnosis of Attention Defecit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) did not merit a lesser sentence than had been awarded by the sentencing judge.
The appellant sought to attract the application of Verdins principles in mitigation. (It's not correct to say that Verdins only applies in some cases and not in others. Where the issue of the mental state of the offender and its connection to sentence arises (see Weinberg J's sentencing remarks in R v Wahani [2009] VSC 319 at 33), the principles in Verdins always apply. But the application of these principles is simply one part of the sentencing synthesis, and has no pre-determined impact on the resulting penalty).
Since Londrigan, a differently-composed Court of Appeal handed down Leeder v R [2010] VSCA 98. There, an offender was resentenced after the Court found the sentencing judge had failed to take appropriate account of the offender's intellectual disability.
The Court in Leeder, comprised of Maxwell P and Buchanan JA (two of the three judges in Verdins case), adopted the reasoning of pre-Verdins cases in R v Yaldiz [1998] 2 VR 376 and Kirby J's judgment in Champion (1992) 64 A Crim R 244 at 254.
Buchanan JA [at 34, Maxwell P expressly agreeing in his own reasons]:
34 Moral culpability and general deterrence apart, the appellant’s disability attracted the operation of Principle 5 in R v Verdins. That is, imprisonment imposes a greater burden on someone who is functioning with the brain power of an eight year old. That aspect does not appear to have been taken into account on sentence, although it was adverted to on the plea.
A review of cases decided since R v Verdins [2007] VSCA 102 might be useful. What follows isn't an exhaustive list, but does provide a thumbnail sketch of the Court of Appeal's approach to a variety of mental issues. I haven't included reference to any pre-R v Verdins cases; many helpful statements of general principle are available in the JCV's Sentencing Manual and there's also more information on the NSW Judicial Commission's website.
Verdins principles
In R v Verdins [2007] VSCA 102 the Court of Appeal laid out the now famous restatement of considerations applicable to sentencing offenders with what the law referred to in previous generations as, 'abnormalities of the mind'.
Maxwell P, Buchanan and Vincent JJA [at 32]:
32 Impaired mental functioning, whether temporary or permanent ("the condition"), is relevant to sentencing in at least the following six ways:
1. The condition may reduce the moral culpability of the offending conduct, as distinct from the offender’s legal responsibility. Where that is so, the condition affects the punishment that is just in all the circumstances; and denunciation is less likely to be a relevant sentencing objective.
2. The condition may have a bearing on the kind of sentence that is imposed and the conditions in which it should be served.
3. Whether general deterrence should be moderated or eliminated as a sentencing consideration depends upon the nature and severity of the symptoms exhibited by the offender, and the effect of the condition on the mental capacity of the offender, whether at the time of the offending or at the date of sentence or both.
4. Whether specific deterrence should be moderated or eliminated as a sentencing consideration likewise depends upon the nature and severity of the symptoms of the condition as exhibited by the offender, and the effect of the condition on the mental capacity of the offender, whether at the time of the offending or at the date of the sentence or both.
5. The existence of the condition at the date of sentencing (or its foreseeable recurrence) may mean that a given sentence will weigh more heavily on the offender than it would on a person in normal health.
6. Where there is a serious risk of imprisonment having a significant adverse effect on the offender’s mental health, this will be a factor tending to mitigate punishment.
Applying Verdins
The Court was at pains to make clear that the condition would only be considered mitigatory under points 1, 3 and 4 if a causal link could be established between the condition and the actual offending. If no causal link is established, focus then shifts to considerations 3, 5 and 6. if the condition exists at the time of sentencing or will exist wile the offender is undergoing sentence.
The principles of Verdins do not dictate the automatic mitigation of sentence in an offender simply because he or she has suffered or is suffering from a mental illness, however severe. Rather, Verdins requires scrutiny and assessment, based on cogent evidence, of the relationship between the mental disorder and the offending and other relevant matters: Dodds-Streeton JA in R v Zander [2009] VSCA 10. Although helpfully enumerated in many cases, the relevant considerations do not constitute a rigid code and it is unnecessary to apply them to each of the considerations as if completing a check list: R v McIntosh [2008] VSCA 242.
Causal link established
Some mental conditions have been treated as potentially mitigating: R v Howell [2007] VSCA 119 where a schoolteacher who sexualy abused one of her students was found to suffer from a mitigatory depressive illness, DPP v Richardson [2007] VSC 221 where a murder accessory's penalty was mitigated by her 'fragile emotional state'; R v Atik [2007] VSC 299 where sub-normal intelligence and psychosis mitigated the period of imprisonment imposed for terrorism offences; a serious depressive illness in the context of rape and false imprisonment (R v Parton [2007] VSCA 268); a solicitor whose depression mitigated his theft from a trust account (R v Slattery [2008] VSC 81, and also R v Bernstein [2008] VSC 254); acquired brain injury and alcoholism as mitigation for rape (R v Finlayson [2008] VSCA 50); R v Iadonmwonyi [2008] VSCA 135 where the principles of Verdins were applied to the hospital detention order the court imposed, but a balancing process between Verdins and 'community protection' was deemed necessary; murder (R v Rattya [2008] VSCA 149); attempted suicide in which the person did not die but instead committed culpable driving (R v Clark [2008] VSC 633); and of course most recently in the case of an intellectually disabled offender who assaulted and attempted to rape women unknown to him in public, and who was described as having the IQ and maturity of 'an 8 year old' (Leeder). In R v Ephstein [2011] VSC 8 suicide attempts and eating disorders coupled with the senseless nature of trhe murder attracted both limbs of mitigation.
Link not established
In other decisions, courts have applied Verdins but been left unsatisfied of such a causal connection. Examples include pathological gambling (notably in R v Grossi [2008] VSCA 51, but previously in R v Do [2007] VSCA 308 and subsequently in R v MacNeil-Brown [2008] VSCA 190); battered wife syndrome leading to thefts from an employer (R v Elias [2007] VSCA 125); paedophilia and paraphilia (DPP v OJA [2007] VSCA 129, where the High Court's majority view in Ryan v R (2001) 206 CLR 267 was said to take precedence over Verdins principles); personality or mood disorder as motivation for elaborate tax fraud (DPP (Cth.) v Rowson [2007] VSCA 176); Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) as a mitigatory feature of the rape of an elderly woman by a 15 year old male (R v JED [2007] VSC 348) and ADHD to explain drug trafficking and stolen property (Londrigan v The Queen [2010] VSCA 81); mild depression and prescription drug addiction of a police officer where the officer had supplied confidential information to a drug dealer (R v Bunning [2007] VSCA 205); a diagnosis of bi-polar disorder where the offender had previously denied played any role in the offending, an aggracated burglary (R v Christopher [2007] VSCA 290); self-induced drug psychosis (R v Martin [2007] VSCA 291) discussed here last year; sexual abuse as a child offered and rejected as causitive influence in culpable driving (R v Audino [2007] VSCA 318); alcohol and drug-use as mitigation for repeated violent attacks in public (R v Chong [2008] VSCA 119); aquired brain injury due to carbon monoxide posioning as the result of a suicide attempt (DPP v Glascott [2008] VSC 236); depression at the time of the murder (R v Fitchett [2008] VSC 258) though it should be noted that depression as mitigation at the time of sentencing was uncontentious and accepted as mitigation in regard to point 5 and 6 of the Verdins considerations - and that the offender in this case will be resentenced as a result of the re-trial concluded recently; depression as a motivating factor in a string of burglaries R v Buckley [2007] VSCA 107) heard together with Verdins, the Court of Appeal concluded amphetamine use and addiction, not mental illness, was productive of the offending; and R v Vo [2007] VSCA 107, also heard with Verdins where the principles were applied but did not affect the outcome. In Wassef v The Queen [2011] VSCA 30 the connection between an 'adjustment disorder' and dangerous driving was 'very vague' and insufficient to deserve more than limited mitigation. In Bowen v The Queen [2011] VSCA 67 the oral testimony of psychologist Jeffrey Cummins about the depression of a young man was insufficiently connected to the premeditated rape of a stranger. In Melham v Regina [2011] NSWCCA 121 an obsessive-complusive disorder was rejected as the causal motivation for child pornography offences.
An inconsistent approach?
It's possible to dismiss the two branches of decisions as the inconsistency of differently composed courts. However, judges sitting on one case which applied Verdins in mitigation also sat on other cases where it was found not to apply. While the diversity of cases seem to offer few common elements, the cases where Verdins principles were mitigatory were usually where the causal link was established. Where this link was not established, mitigation did not follow.
These judgments are a reflection of the case-by-case approach preferred in Verdins, where Maxwell P, Buchanan and Vincent JJA said [at 13],
Where a diagnostic label is applied to an offender, as usually occurs in reports from psychiatrists and psychologists, this should be treated as the beginning, not the end, of the inquiry. As we have sought to emphasise, the sentencing court needs to direct its attention to how the particular condition (is likely to have) affected the mental functioning of the particular offender in the particular circumstances – that is, at the time of the offending or in the lead up to it – or is likely to affect him/her in the future.
It would be unwise to treat any of the cases above as standing for the proposition that a particular category of condition described above cannot properly be considered mitigatory Verdins principles (with the possible exception of psychosexual dysfunction). In some of these cases the mitigation was not accepted or rejected on the basis of whether a particular category of condition fitted under the Verdins umbrella, but merely whether the condition had been proved (or the causal link established) on the evidence available in that particular case.
Maxwell P revisited his earlier remarks and stressed the importance of treating each case on its merits (specifically in relation to the issue of intellectual disability) again in Leeder when saying [at 39]:
39 Finally on the issue of intellectual disability, it seems to me important to ensure that this species of mental impairment is addressed with the same rigour and specificity as necessary in relation to the more familiar area of mental illness. The use of labels such as ‘mild’ or ‘moderate’ or ‘severe’ intellectual disability does not assist the sentencing court in deciding whether, and if so to what extent, sentencing considerations are affected by the condition of the particular person. What the Court needs to know is how the disability (is likely to have) affected the mental functioning of the particular offender at the time of the offending (or in the lead-up to it) and/or how it is likely to affect him/her in the future. As with mental illness, so with intellectual disability, there is scope for considerable refinement of expert opinion, and therefore of argument before sentencing courts, about how these matters are to be taken into account.
Labels: appeals, commentary, legal research, mental impairment, precedent, sentencing
Speed and evidence-to-the-contrary
Section 79(1) of the Road Safety Act provides a prima facie provision for evidence of speed:
79. Evidence of speed
(1) If in any criminal proceedings the speed at which a motor vehicle or trailer travelled on any occasion is relevant, evidence of the speed of the motor vehicle or trailer as indicated or determined on that occasion by a prescribed road safety camera or prescribed speed detector when tested, sealed and used in the prescribed manner is, without prejudice to any other mode of proof and in the absence of evidence to the contrary, proof of the speed of the motor vehicle or trailer on that occasion.
The prescribed devices and testing, sealing and use requirements are contained in Part 3 of the Road Safety (General) Regulations 2009.
The result of this provision is that if the police use a radar or laser speed measuring device to accuse a person of speeding, the reading on the device is accepted as the driver's actual speed unless the driver adduces ‘evidence to the contrary’ to overcome the prima facie effect of the legislation.
The South Australian Supreme Court recently handed down a judgment showing how that might occur.
In Police v Hicks [2010] SASC 136, Mr Hicks was charged with speeding at 81 kph in a 60 kph zone. The police used a laser, which enjoys a similar statutory presumption to those in Victoria. The Traffic Act 1961 (SA) s 175 relevantly provides:
175. Evidence
(3) In proceedings for an offence against this Act—
(ba) a document produced by the prosecution and purporting to be signed by the Commissioner of Police, or by any other police officer of or above the rank of inspector, and purporting to certify that a specified traffic speed analyser had been tested on a specified day and was shown by the test to be accurate to the extent indicated in the document constitutes, in the absence of proof to the contrary, proof of the facts certified and that the traffic speed analyser was accurate to that extent on the day on which it was so tested and, for the purpose of measuring the speed of any motor vehicle—
(i) in the case of a traffic speed analyser that was, at the time of measurement, mounted in a fixed housing—during the period of 27 days immediately following that day; or
(ii) in any other case—on the day following that day, whether or not the speed measured differed from the speed in relation to which the analyser was tested or the circumstances of the measurement differed in any other respect from the circumstances of the test;
The accused driver said in evidence he wasn't speeding:
[5] The respondent gave evidence in his defence and called his wife; she was a passenger in the vehicle at the relevant time. Both gave evidence that the vehicle was not travelling as fast as 81 kilometres per hour at that time. The respondent himself said that shortly after leaving the roundabout he saw Senior Constable Turner and saw his flashing lights go on. He immediately looked down at his speedometer and saw that he was travelling at 50 kilometres per hour...
The Magistrate dismissed the charge. The police appealed to the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court dismissed the appeal, noting at [8] that the accused driver didn't dispute the accuracy of the device but instead relied on the result of providing ‘evidence to the contrary’ of the speed shown by the laser.
I'm actually a little surprised at this result. Although the legal analysis is sound, from the facts as they appear in the judgment it seems the driver checked his speed some time after the police officer pinged him. This is the common problem for most drivers who want to rebut the prima facie provision, because they're often not able to swear precisely what their speed was at the exact time and place the police saw them. And it's often compounded by concealed or unmarked police cars.
There's quite a few cases that make this point. In Madgen v Ashe (1992) 17 MVR 219 the West Australian Supreme Court said evidence from a driver that he wasn't speeding wasn't competent or cogent evidence that displaced the prima facie evidence of the prosecution cases. There, the driver admitted to only estimating his speed without looking at his speedo, and was wrong about his speed and location estimates.
That case was cited in Davis v Armstrong (1993) 17 MVR 190, another West Australian case that explained the point neatly at 192:
The burden then fell upon the applicant to adduce evidence capable of displacing the prima facie effect of the prosecution evidence: Madgen v Ashe (1992) 17 MVR 218. In other words the onus was thrown upon the applicant to prove on the balance of probabilities that his speed did not exceed the limit at the relevant time. He could do that by displacing the prima facie evidentiary effect of the speed measuring device by throwing doubt on its accuracy by establishing that it had not been properly tested, or that the circumstances were such that it might not have operated accurately exclusively with respect to the applicant's vehicle, or he could seek to displace the prima facie evidentiary effect of the speed measuring equipment by persuading the court of trial to accept evidence, either his evidence or that of other witnesses, to the effect that he was not exceeding the speed limit: Cazzol v Fuss (1988) 6 MVR 350.
In that case, the driver lost his appeal because he challenged the accuracy of the speed camera rather than trying to displace the prima facie effect of the evidence. Cazzol v Fuss (1988) 6 MVR 350, cited in that case, succictly made the point at 352 about overcoming the prima facie provision:
[A] defendant and other witnesses may give evidence on oath that they are able to assert positively that the speed of the vehicle was 60 km/h or less. If that evidence is accepted then the defendant would have discharge the onus that has been placed upon him.
Perkins v Pohla-Murray (1983) 1 MVR 165 and Hizaji v Orr (1997) 26 MVR 266 are ACT judgments along the same vein.
The difficulty for a court determining these contests is when a credible witness gives cogent evidence to say "I wasn't speeding" (or, "I wasn't going that fast") and the prosecution adduces cogent evidence to say the accused was speeding. What then?
I haven't found any cases precisely on this point, but I think it's resolved the same way as any conflict between competing events, applying a Liberato direction from Liberato v The Queen (1985) 159 CLR 507 (and also R v Calides (1983) 34 SASR 355). The Judicial College's Criminal Charge Book provides a nice summary of this at 1.7.1 - Bench Notes: Onus and Standard of Proof:
76. While it is not necessary to give a Liberato direction in every case where the jury is invited to decide whether the prosecution witnesses or the defence witnesses should be believed, it is desirable as a matter of prudence to give such a direction whenever there is a conflict between the prosecution and accused’s evidence (Salmon v R [2001] WASCA 270; R v Chen, Siregar & Isman (2002) 130 A Crim R 300).
77. In such circumstances, it may be of assistance to tell the jury that:
If they believe the evidence of the accused, they must acquit;
If they have difficulty in accepting the evidence of the accused, but think that it might be true, they must acquit — because they will have a reasonable doubt about the prosecution’s case; and
If they do not believe the accused, they should put his or her testimony to one side, and determine, upon the basis of the evidence they do accept, whether the prosecution has proved the accused’s guilt beyond reasonable doubt (R v RP Anderson [2001] NSWCCA 488).
Labels: evidence, road safety act
Gul v Creed & Anor [2010] VSC 185: indecent language is all about context
Stephen Warne is justifiably fond of this legal submission charting the usage and development of the word 'fuck' in the English language. It was prepared by a Colorado public defender to persuade a judge that use of the word by a teen to his high school principal was protected by the US First Amendment.
In Bill of Rights-less Victoria it's well-established that what constitutes indecency for the purposes of s 17 of the Summary Offences Act 1966 falls to be determined by reference to contemporary standards.
Gaynor J fined Lyudmila Gul for use of indecent language for directing the invective fucking bitch toward a staff member of a variety store. Ms Gul had been confronted over an alleged stolen easter egg. Her evidence in the contested hearings was that she couldn't recall whether she had used the words or not, but in any event she did not consider them indecent. The charge was proven in the Magistrates' Court and again on a de novo hearing in the County Court.
Ms Gul took Gaynor J's decision before the Supreme Court for judicial review. This case is Gul v Creed & Anor [2010] VSC 185. Beach J didn't rule that the epithet fucking bitch would always be indecent but found that it could be.
Beach J [at 16, citations inserted]:
16 There are undoubtedly many occasions when a person might say the words “fucking bitch” in a public place or within the hearing of a person in a public place without committing any offence. Authorities in this area abound: See for example E (a child) v Staats (1994) 13 WAR 1; 76 ACrimR 343 where it was held that the use of the word “fuck” in the circumstances of that case was not obscene. However, in my view, it was open to her Honour to conclude that if Ms Gul called Ms Vanderlijn a fucking bitch in the circumstances described by Ms Vanderlijn, then this was a use of indecent language contrary to s 17(1)(c) of the Summary Offences Act. More specifically, the plaintiff has not persuaded me that it was not open for her Honour to so conclude. The fact that the words “fucking bitch” (or the word “fuck”) might be capable of being used in a public place without those words being held to be indecent does not tell against a finding that the use of such words is indecent in particular circumstances. As was said in Hortin v Rowbottom (1993) 68 ACrimR 381 at 385: “... [I]t is equally erroneous to hold that the common four letter words are necessarily indecent in every context, and to hold that they can never be indecent in any context at all.”
The County Court's finding was upheld.
Labels: charges, high court, i.o.t.s., indecent, iots
Tsolacis v The Department of Transport [2010] VSC 183: 'substantially proved' is not 'beyond reasonable doubt'
Tsolacis v The Department of Transport [2010] VSC 183 highlights the desirability of magistrates expressing themselves unequivocally in the terminology appropriate to the application of criminal law, and stating detailed reasons as best they can when making findings of fact.
In Tsolacis, a confrontation between authorised officers of the Department of Transport and the accused lead to charges of unauthorised tram travel and assault. The accused defended himself in the contested hearing in the Magistrates' Court but was found guilty of the charges he faced. The magistrate described the charges as 'substantially proved'.
This finding was one of a number of challenges on the appeal from the Magistrates' Court. It was argued on behalf of the Department of Transport that the expression 'substantially proved' should be equated to 'beyond reasonable doubt'. This submission was rejected.
Beach J [beginning at 11]:
11 Further, there may be cases where one could look at the whole of the judgment and say that whilst the Magistrate has referred to charges being “substantially proved”, it is clear that reasons have been given for finding each element of each charge established proven beyond reasonable doubt. Again, that is not this case. The reference to the charges being “substantially proved” is, in my view, exacerbated by the statement in her Honour’s reasons that whilst the appellant highlighted some inconsistencies in the evidence of the authorised officers, “the weight of the evidence was against him”. The use of this language suggests that her Honour may have engaged in a balancing exercise, rather than asking herself whether each element of each charge had been established beyond reasonable doubt. It is regrettable that in giving her reasons her Honour did not identify the elements of each charge she found “substantially proved”.
12 Counsel for the respondent submitted that a reading of the whole of her Honour’s reasons discloses that her Honour in fact found matters proved beyond reasonable doubt. It was put that the findings of fact made by her Honour disclosed that matters had been proved beyond reasonable doubt. I disagree. The language of the findings made by her Honour was, in my view, equally apposite to a case where the burden of proof was something less than beyond reasonable doubt. It was language of a kind that is often used in the resolution of civil disputes. That is, where the standard of proof is on the balance of probabilities.
13 The short point is that the language of her Honour’s reasons suggest that the appellant was found guilty on a standard different from, and lower than, beyond reasonable doubt. For this reason alone, the appeal must succeed. Whilst an attempt was made by counsel for the respondent to equate “substantially proved” with “beyond reasonable doubt”, this attempt failed for the reasons given by the High Court in Green v The Queen. As was said by Dixon CJ in Dawson v The Queen, “it is a mistake to depart from the time honoured formula [beyond reasonable doubt]”.
(Beach J observed that Dixon CJ had been referring to instructions to juries, but considered the comments equally applicable in this context).
It's a fool's errand to search for a definitive explanation of 'beyond reasonable doubt'. Beach J was particularly critical of the magistrate's use of terminology because of the lack of comprehensive reasons given why the magistrate accepted the evidence of the prosecution and rejected the account of the accused and his witness.
In Shu Zhang v West Sands Pty Ltd [2010] VSC 36, a breach of contract claim, Byrne J vitiated the magistrate's orders and remitted the matter to be reheard based on the absence of stated satisfactory reasons alone.
Byrne J [at 15]:
15 It has been said again and again that the duty of a judicial officer is to provide adequate reasons for the orders made. This is particularly the case where the orders are made following a contested trial. This was a relatively long contested trial of substantial claims. What may be adequate reasons in a given case will depend upon the circumstances, having regard to the purposes for the giving of reasons. These purposes are to inform the parties why and how the result was arrived at and to inform any appeal court what were the contentions of the parties, what were the facts as found, what were the principles of law relied upon and how these principles were applied. A further reason is the fact that it is often useful for the judicial officer to set out his or her reasoning process as a discipline to ensure that this process was in fact undertaken and that it was intellectually satisfactory.
16 The reasons for the Magistrate in this case, regrettably, do not address these objectives. His Honour says nothing about the facts which he found or about the documentary evidence which suggested the vendor was operating the business as manager rather than as owner. His Honour may have been perfectly correct in his assessment of the competing witnesses and in the conclusions of fact which he reached. It may be that there was evidence which supported these conclusions. The difficulty which I face is that I cannot from the reasons of the Magistrate form any view upon this.
The necessity for magistrates to clearly state their reasons could not have been more earnestly emphasised.
(Refshauge J expressed similar sentiments in Moh v Pine [2010] ACTSC 27. Due to language barriers and other issues it was not clear that the accused understood the sentence imposed and the reasons for it (one of a series of errors held to have infected the sentence).
Labels: appeals, charges, evidence, judgments, standard of proof
Foot in-step with Mastwyk
I blogged about Mastwyk v DPP yesterday, but didn't get to write about the other similar appeal delivered straight after.
DPP v Foot [2010] VSCA 112 was referred to the Court of Appeal to be heard with Mastwyk's case because it dealt with very similar issues.
In this case, the Court of Appeal allowed the prosecution appeal and remitted the case to the Magistrates' Court.
In Foot, the police administered a preliminary breath-test to Mr Foot and then asked him to accompany them back to a police station for a breath test. He agreed. He got in the back of the divvy van, and the police closed the door.
We now know that wasn't imprisonment: Mastwyk at [82].
There was some dispute about what happened next, but it seems Mr Foot then decided he wanted out when he saw the police arrest a woman who was with him in the car. It seems the police didn't realise that...presumably because they were otherwise engaged arresting the woman.
The Court of Appeal considered that could not amount to imprisonment. Only if the police refused to release Mr Foot would he have been imprisoned. And if they didn't know he wanted out, they couldn't refuse his request...
That was enough to dispose of the appeal.
But the Court also went on to consider if the requirement to accompany had to be objectively reasonable before the police could establish an offence contrary to Road Safety Act s 49(1)(f) for exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol within 3 hours of driving.
They said that was wrong, applying DPP v Foster [1999] 2 VR 643 at [49] – [50]: the reasonableness of any request or requirement is only relevant when the motorist refuses a police request and the police then rely on their statutory powers to compel the motorist.
This means the ‘objective reasonableness’ requirement articulated in Mastwyk is confined to refuse-to-accompany cases contrary to s 49(1)(e) and doesn't apply to exceed-prescribed-concentration-cases contary to s 49(1)(f) (and probably 49(1)(b)).
Labels: appeals, judgments, road safety act
Mastwyk v DPP: reasonable to go home in the back of a divvy van
The Court of Appeal today delivered its judgment in Mastwyk v DPP [2010] VSCA 111.
It's a bit of an involved read. The short result is:
the police can require motorists to accompany them in the back of divvy vans to a police station for a breath test
but, if a motorist refuses, and is charged with refusing and defends the charge by claiming the requirement was unreasonable, the police must prove that the mode of transport was objectively reasonable
reasonableness will be shown using the test set down by Kyrou J in DPP v Mastwyk (2008) 185 A Crim R 285; [2008] VSC 192
If the police don't do that, the requirement to accompany will be invalid...and the accused should be acquitted.
A very quick refresher...
On 10 June 2005 at Wattle Bank the police asked Ms Mastwyk to go back to a police station for a breath test. In a divvy van. In the cage at the back. She baulked at going in the van.
The police charged her with refusing to accompany them for a breath test, contrary to Road Safety Act s 49(1)(e). She contested the charge. The magistrate dismissed it, deciding that transport in a divvy van amounted to imprisonment. And it was unreasonable for the police to require her imprisonment someone when the Road Safety Act didn't provide that power. The magistrate relied on an old unreported judgment of the County Court — Salton v Wigg.
The police appealed: DPP v Mastwyk (2008) 185 A Crim R 285; [2008] VSC 192. The Supreme Court overturned the Magistrates' decision, deciding that the police must act reasonably when they requiring someone to accompany them for a breath test. In Ms Mastwyk's case, so long as she was able to communicate with the police at any time to say something like, "I want to get out", it was reasonable. (See [61] – [62].)
Ms Mastwyk appealed to the Court of Appeal.
The Court unanimously dismissed her appeal.
Court of Appeal's decision
All three members of the Court agreed that Road Safety Act s 55(1) does not authorise the arrest or detention of a motorist. (Hardly a revelation to anyone who deals with these provisions regularly, but nice to have a Court of Appeal opinion on the point.)
Nettle and Redlich JJA delivered separate judgments, but agreed the police may only require a motorist to accompany them in a way that is, objectively, reasonable.
Nettle JA said:
[38] Accordingly, I would limit the basis for decision in this case to saying that, where a driver is otherwise willing to comply with a requirement that he or she accompany a police officer to a designated place to undergo a breath test, but the police officer directs the driver to accompany the police officer to that place by means of travel which are objectively unreasonable, a refusal by the driver so to travel is not without more a contravention of s 55(1).
(Redlich JA agreed with that, at [54].)
At [46] Nettle JA said if the accused's defence is that the requirement to accompany was by an unreasonable method, the prosecution must establish the mode of transport was objectively reasonable. He didn't specify the standard of proof, but it's almost certainly beyond a reasonable doubt: Evidence Act s 141; Woolmington v DPP [1935] AC 462.
His Honour also dealt with the resources-argument raised on the appeal:
Police resources
[51] Finally, a fair amount was made in the course of argument of the difficulty which police would face if they had to provide reasonable means of transport in all cases of requiring a driver to accompany them to a designated place for testing. In my view that is not persuasive. Practical difficulties of the kind to which reference were made are the product of executive budgetary decisions. Absent an express or otherwise clear statutory indication that they were regarded by Parliament as informing the scope of a power, they are irrelevant to the amplitude of the power. The solution is to furnish the police with the resources required to carry out their duties in the manner that Parliament intended or to have Parliament amend the legislation to make clear that it intends to authorise requirements which are unreasonable.
At [74] Redlich JA said the prosecution does not have to establish as a separate element of the offence that a requirement to accompany under s 55(1) is reasonable. But, if an accused defends a refuse-to-accompany charge contrary to s 49(1)(e) by claiming the requirement was unreasonable, then objective reasonableness is “relevant to the question whether the prosecution has discharged its burden of proving a refusal.”
I think that's the same point raised by Nettle JA at [46], but differently worded. It makes more sense, too, when I look back at [39] where Nettle JA highlights the point from Hyrsikos v Mansfield about the difference between failing and refusing to accompany. The old ‘fail’ offences are long since repealed; only ‘refuse’ remains — and that requires a mental element of unwillingness...perhaps it's wilfulness?
His Honour went on:
[75] I consider that the section should be construed so that the requirement must be one that is objectively reasonable in the circumstances. My conclusion rests upon the premise that Parliament would not have intended that the refusal of an objectively unreasonable requirement would constitute an offence. It is an implication that is derived from the accepted presumption of statutory interpretation that Parliament will not, without clear words to the contrary, be taken to have intended a restriction on individual liberty that goes beyond what is necessary to meet the purposes of the section and the Act. The elements of the offence should, therefore, be read to reflect the intention. Accordingly, where a driver does not comply with a requirement to accompany the police officer because the proposed manner of compliance is objectively unreasonable, the prosecution will fail to establish the element of ‘refusal’ by the driver.
Put another way, if the police prove that the ‘proposed manner of compliance’ is objectively reasonable, they will establish the refusal offence.
Last, at [79] Redlich JA affirmed Kyrou J's disagreement with the part of Salton v Wigg that said putting a motorist in the back of a divvy van will always equate to imprisonment.
Maxwell P disagreed with Nettle and Redlich JJA. He considered that Ms Mastwyk was making a collateral challenge to the power to require a motorist to accompany police. At [15] – [17] he considered administrative law principles about challenges to exercising statutory powers, and concluded at [32] ff that Wednesbury unreasonableness must be argued before a court must consider the reasonableness of a request to accompany.
Redlich JA disagreed with that. At [70] he raised the real problems with trying to deal with Wednesbury unreasonableness in summary hearings in busy Magistrates' Courts, and said policy considerations weighed against it.
Some gratuitous observations
First, I think the requirement of reasonableness is understandable, and probably almost predictable. (Easy to say with hindsight!) Cases like Trobridge v Hardy (1955) 94 CLR 147 and DPP v Foster (1999) 2 VR 643 speak of reasonableness when police exercise statutory powers. We've only got to think of extreme examples to illustrate the point: a demand to accompany in the back of a brawler or prison van would be unreasonable. A demand to accompany by getting in the boot of a police car, or hanging on the roof rack, would be unreasonable. Of course no offence would occur if such a requirement were made.
But a requirement to accompany in the back of a divvy van...subject to the sorts of considerations discussed by Kyrou J in the Supreme Court decision...that's probably reasonable.
I expect we'll see a fair bit of litigation on that point as a factual argument in Magistrates' Courts. And it might make life a bit harder for police, because the test is objective reasonableness — determined by the courts, many months after the event. It won't always be easy for them to know at the time if they are right or wrong, if they think their requirement is reasonable while the motorist thinks it's not. But, that's a fact of policing.
Second, there were no Charter arguments in this case because the alleged offending was on 10 June 2005. 38. The Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006 commenced, in part, on 1 January 2007; the balance commenced on 1 January 2008. In R v Williams (2007) 16 VR 168 at [48] the Supreme Court held that the Charter had no application to proceedings commenced before the Charter commenced operation.
It's not likely this point will come up again any time soon: after all, it took ten years before Salton v Wigg was argued at appellate level. But, there is still the possibility it might be revisited with a Charter angle! Stay tuned...?
Police reading statements in evidence-in-chief
at 6:30 am Posted by Kyle
Section 33 of the Evidence Act 2008 allows police officers to give evidence by reading or being led through a previous written statement, subject to certain conditions.
I know the police were generally pretty keen on this provision: it meant the end of rote-learning statements before court cases, and provided a real incentive to take detailed and contemporaneous notes. (I've mentioned before that the Courts encourage police to go beyond mere pen and paper and jump into the 21st century with portable recording devices.)
Section 33 provides that police may give evidence by reading their statement. Can they just launch into reading from their statements, or do they need the tribunal's okay first?
Odgers points out that ALRC38 (the report that resulted in the Evidence Act 1995 in NSW and the Commonwealth, which in turn is the predecessor of Victoria's Evidence Act 2008) didn't propose s 33. (It doesn't get a mention in ALRC102 either.)
Instead, the provision came from s 418 of the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW). That section was considered in Orchard v Spooner (1992) 28 NSWLR 114; (1992) 62 A Crim R 184, cited by Odgers in his text. That case deals mainly with the contemporaneity requirements of the provision, but provides some insight into its purpose.
On 14 November 1990, when introducing the Bill which led to s 418 of the Crimes Act being constituted in its present form, the Attorney-General of the day said (Hansard, 14 November 1990 at 9660):
“...Mr Speaker, you know only too well the farce of an officer exhausting his memory, referring to the statement, giving more evidence, exhausting his memory again, and again referring to the statement. It is beyond intellectual capacity to tolerate that. Police are permitted to refer to their statements to refresh their memories. They must continue to give their evidence with further reference to the statement until their memories are again exhausted. This procedure cannot be permitted to continue. It is defective for two main reasons.
The first is that police must spend time memorising their statements word for word. I remember one case in which a policeman told me he had spent several weeks of his own time and several weeks of departmental time memorising a 40-page statement, and was in the witness box for only 20 minutes. In many cases a contemporaneously prepared statement is more accurate than a police officer's memory, unassisted by any written document and possibly clouded by time and intervening events.
The second defect in the current situation is that during evidence in chief the impression gained by a jury is that the police have an actual independent recollection of what happened. The jury should be made aware of the truth; that is, that the police officer recorded what was said at the time and has used that written record to give evidence. The Bill therefore provides that police called for the prosecution may give their evidence by being led through or reading from a statement prepared at the time of or soon after the events to which the statement relates. In jury cases a trial judge may then give a direction as to the reason police give their evidence in a different manner from the way in which other witnesses give theirs. I expect that in many cases the statement would merely be tendered and the officer would not be taken through it.”
Ex facie, the procedural reform encapsulated in s 418 is a useful one. By allowing police officers to read statements, the farce enacted by an officer attempting to remember a statement off by heart is a matter with which our system of justice can well do without: Orchard v Spooner at 116 - 117.
The point about accurate recollection was considered by Victoria's Full Court in R v Baffigo [1957] VR 303. Pietro Baffigo appealed his conviction at General Sessions (what is now the County Court) because a former police officer was allowed to refresh his memory from his contemporaneous notes.
Smith J said at 304:
The witness here who was allowed to refresh his memory, had, as I follow the position, sworn during the course of the evidence that he gave without the aid of the document, first that he could not be sure of the precise phrasing used, and secondly that as to quite a number of the particular questions that he referred to, he could not recall what was said. He could recall the question but not the answer, or there was some particular part of the answer that he could not recall. And lastly, at the end of the part of the evidence given without the aid of the document, he said that he remembered that there was more said, but he could not remember what it was. Whatever may be the position in other circumstances, it appears to me to be plain that in those circumstances it was proper to allow the witness to refresh his recollection by looking at his notes of the whole of the interrogation that he was attempting to narrate, and the objection that he should have been confined to the particular parts of the notes which bore directly on specific matters that he had forgotten, does not appear to me to be sustainable.
Cross on Evidence at [17170] discusses the importance of orality in Australian trials — courts hearing witnesses give oral evidence — which gives courts the opportunity to assess those witnesses' credibility and reliability.
When police merely memorise their statements and give a psittacine recitation of their evidence, the court is really just hearing a human dictation machine and might just as well read the document itself.
The only case I can find directly on s 33 seems to recognise this. In Chisari v The Queen (No 2) [2006] NSWCCA 352 the Court said:
[28] It is apparent that the provision exists to recognize the reality that police officers frequently are required to testify long after events have occurred and that in the intervening period they may be likely to have been involved in a multiplicity of incidents about which they may also be required at some future time to testify. A practice of reciting statements which have been learned by heart — a recognized past practice — represented more a test of recall of the recitation than a recall of events and s 33 provides a transparent practice of evidencing matters which would be fresh in the memory at the time of making the statement.
[29] It is relatively infrequent that the police officer would be speaking of matters which concerned that officer so directly as a victim although, as Mr Dawe QC for the Crown in the appeal observed, there are no doubt other such cases when, for example, officers are the victims of assault or resisting arrest, the situation would be similar.
[30] The provision vests a discretion and his Honour exercised it by declining to permit the reading of the statement. He indicated a preference that the constable be led through the statement, subject to the exclusions which he had ruled on an individual basis and it was observed that much of the evidence was in fact adduced by non leading questions. There is nothing to support a conclusion that the appellant was treated with any unfairness in this regard.
But that case muddies the water because it suggests that section 33 is a discretionary provision and a judge or magistrate might refuse permission for a police officer to read or be led through their statement.
In Uniform Evidence Law, John Anderson and Peter Bayne state there is no leave requirement under s 33 — but don't cite any authority to support their statement.
But I think they're probably right. The leave provision in s 192 certainly applies to s 32, about witnesses generally referring to documents in court to revive their memory.
But s 33 starts off with the qualifier Despite section 32..., and does not refer to a leave requirement. The principal of statutory interpretation expressio unius est exclusio alterius — express reference to one matter indicates other matters are excluded — adds weight to the argument that s 33 is not subject to the leave requirement.
I think that means the police can just launch in to reading their statements — if they so desire. But the risk they might run is criticism of the type raised in McKinney v The Queen (1991) 171 CLR 468; [1991] HCA 6 and R v Williams [2001] 1 Qd R 212; [1999] QCA 324 (see my post here). And that in turn might leave them open to suggestions of unreliability under s 165. Alternatively, it might be suggested that if they need to read all of their statement it's because they have no memory of the incident — in which case they can't dispute anything outside the scope of those notes.
My experience is most prosecutors encourage police officers to recall as much as they can, and turn to s 33 only for significant parts of evidence or those where accuracy is critical — such as conversation with an accused person. (Though that might also be covered by s 139 and perhaps s 86.)
What are your thoughts and experiences?
Labels: criminal procedure, evidence
Legislation Watch: JRs across the court system
Judicial Registrars have been operating now in the Magistrates' Court for 5 years.
The Courts Legislation Miscellaneous Amendments Act 2010 will bring JRs into the County, Supreme, Coroner's and Childrens' Courts. As with the Magistrates' Court, the appointment of a Judicial Registrar will be for a maximum five year term.
In blurring the lines between two previously well-established callings with discrete roles and functions, the office of Judicial Registrar follows similar experiments with nurse practitioners and Australian lawyers. Given the current overload of work across jurisdictions, judicial officers might well welcome the appointment of JRs to help ease their load.
The Explanatory Memorandum can be found here. The provisions will come in on 1 January 2011, or earlier if proclaimed.
Labels: court, judicial registrar, law reform
I appear for the alpaca, Your Honour
Melbourne Law School is teaching animal law to undergraduate students for the first time this year.
The head of the Barristers Animal Welfare Panel, Graeme McEwen, will be intimately involved with the course's delivery. Areas covered include constitutional issues affecting animal welfare, administrative law remedies and consideration of the rights of protesters.
The Subject Overview reads,
The subject examines Australian law which aims to protect the welfare of animals. The subject has three main components. First, the subject explores the history of the law of protecting animals generally. Second, the subject will explore ethical and theoretical justifications of animal welfare law. Finally, the subject examines current Australian state and federal legislation, regulations and general law which seeks to protect the welfare of companion animals and farm animals including those animals being exported for sale. The subject will also examine how such law has been invoked by protestors of animal cruelty in defence of charges brought against them. Included in the examination of Australian legislation is a consideration of, and to what extent, if any, the law in Australia requires reform.
The full course outline can be found here.
Labels: advocacy, animal rights
Markovic v The Queen; Pantelic v The Queen [2010] VSCA 105: the role of mercy in sentencing
at 12:05 am Posted by Dr Manhattan
Markovic pled guilty to 11 counts of deception in the County Court. In a separate hearing, Pantelic pled guilty to three charges relating to child pornography. Both men were sentenced to terms of imprisonment, and sought leave to appeal their sentences.
In Markovic v The Queen; Pantelic v The Queen [2010] VSCA 105, the Court of Appeal convened as a bench of five justices to hear these two appeals, originating from very different cases but unified by a common argument; that the impact on their family of the sentence imposed on the offender in each case could (and each counsel asserted, should) give rise to the exercise of a 'residual discretion of mercy'.
The established precedent has been that exceptional circumstances would need to be shown in order for a court to discount a sentence on account of the hardship imprisonment would cause to the offender's family.
Maxwell P, Nettle, Neave, Redlich and Weinberg JJA [at 5]:
5 We have concluded that the established common law position should be reaffirmed. Our reasons may be summarised as follows:
1. Reliance on family hardship – that is, hardship which imprisonment creates for persons other than the offender – is itself an appeal for mercy.
2. Properly understood, therefore, the purpose and effect of the ‘exceptional circumstances’ test is to limit the availability of the court’s discretion to exercise mercy on that ground.
3. Accordingly, there can be no ‘residual discretion’ to exercise mercy on grounds of family hardship where the relevant circumstances are not shown to be exceptional.
4. The effect on the offender of hardship caused to family members by his/her imprisonment raises different considerations, to which the ‘exceptional circumstances’ test has no application.
The Court distinguished between taking into account the impact of the sentence on family, and taking into account the impact on family members has on the offender [at 20]:
20 The effect on the offender of hardship caused to family members by his/her imprisonment is a quite separate matter. An offender’s anguish at being unable to care for a family member can properly be taken into account as a mitigating factor – for example, if the court is satisfied that this will make the experience of imprisonment more burdensome or that it materially affects the assessment of the need for specific deterrence or of the offender’s prospects of rehabilitation.[25] These are conventional issues of mitigation, and they are not subject to the ‘exceptional circumstances’ limitation.
The original sentencing courts had found that exceptional circumstances did not apply, and applied mitigation to the extent that they considered appropriate. These rulings were left undisturbed by the Court of Appeal, and both applications were refused.
Labels: appeals, child pornography, common law, judgments, sentencing
90% preparation, 10% inspiration
Given the criticism I gave them last year over the way their change in editorship was handled, it's time I gave the Bar News some credit before its current issue disappears from the website and becomes difficult to find.
In particular, the article by George Golvan QC is a gem. His message - that trials are won by the most thoroughly prepared advocate - may not be new but seems to be something that needs to be re-discovered over and over.
The book that Golvan references, the Advocacy Manual by Hampel, is available from the LIV.
Labels: advocacy, news, website
Licence suspensions
In 2006, through the introduction of the Infringements Act 2006, a discrete offence of driving with a suspended licence was inserted at s 30AA of the Road Safety Act 1986.
The offence relates solely to licence suspensions as a result of the Infringements Act, and reads,
30AA Offence to drive while licence suspended under Infringements Act 2006
A person must not drive a motor vehicle on a highway while that person's driver licence or permit is suspended in accordance with Part 8 of the Infringements Act 2006.
Prior to the new Act licence suspension was still available to the State as an enforcement option, but the process didn't seem to be used much. The provision was intended as one of a number of sticks the State can use to persuade citizens to pay the millions of dollars of fines outstanding. Under the Infringements Act, sheriffs have the ability to serve notices on fine defaulters which suspend their driver's licence until they enter into an arrangement to pay the money owing. The differences between the two offences was discussed by Osborne J in Hoe v Vella & Anor [2009] VSC 600.
The offence of driving in defiance of a court-ordered or demerit point suspension is found at s 30 and is punishable by,
Penalty: For a first offence, 30 penalty units or imprisonment for 4 months;
For a subsequent offence, imprisonment for not less than 1 month and not more
than 2 years.
The offence of driving while under a period of licence suspension under the Infringements Act is punishable by a maximum 10 penalty units, or around $1160. A court may exercise its general discretion under s 28 to interfere with an offender's licence, but it does not have to and there are no additional penalties for subsequent offences.
I do not know whether an accused who fronts court and pleads guilty to a charge under s 30, and has a prior finding of an offence under s 30AA, would be considered to have committed a subsequent offence that requires imprisonment. The Explanatory Memorandum and the Second Reading speech are of no assistance on this point. I've asked prosecutors about this and they don't seem to know, either.
As a matter of basic statutory interpretation it would seem that a prior finding of guilt on a different charge would not make a s 30 finding a subsequent offence. If this is so, this will cause problems for the prosecution as the s 84 certificates produced by VicRoads that detail an accused person's prior traffic convictions do not appear to disclose the reason why a licence was suspended when detailing a prior finding of guilt.
I recall there was a similar issue a number of years ago where information from the Roads Corporation was insufficient to establish whether prior convictions were of a relevant type. This concerned offences under Part 6A of the Road Safety Act 1986, but I cannot remember if or how that issue was eventually addressed. I haven't been able to find any cases on point.
Labels: infringements, law reform, Magistrates' Court, road safety act
Speed interlocks?
Further Edit: The Regulations which amend the Road Safety (Driver) Regs to make this trial scheme operate are now in effect. You can see them here. The terminology repeat speeders seems to be what they are going with.
The trial runs from last month until the end of 2011.
Edit: On 14 May the Sentencing Advisory Council released this press release. It said in part:
Professor Arie Freiberg, Chair of the Sentencing Advisory Council said, “Victoria’s prison population is growing steadily. More people are going to gaol and for longer periods. However, there are some cases where immediate imprisonment is not the most appropriate option. The Council believes the reason courts are not decreasing their use of suspended sentences in line with Parliament’s direction in such cases is because they do not have adequate sanctions to take the place of suspended sentences.”
Legislation has been introduced to Parliament broadening the scope of home detention orders. There is now talk in the newspaper of some kind of 'super-ICO'. (Details are sketchy, but perhaps a part-time imprisonment program). Suspended sentences will be phased out over time, beginning with the most serious offences and the coming down the scale. The proposals being talked about now do not touch the Magistrates' Court.
Over time the number of suspended sentences will decline. It is more likely that they will be replaced with offender programs in the community than with immediate imprisonment.
On the subject of licence suspensions and mandatory imprisonment (see the post on Licence suspensions, above) I haven't heard much about further reform to the system since posting on the topic last year. It became a political football for a couple of days at the start of 2010, but the story died off without reaching a resolution.
The government seem to have decided to get rid of the mandatory imprisonment that follows a second disqualified or suspended offence, but haven't finalised what to replace it with. If suspended sentences were removed as a sentencing option before this happened, the government has expressed concern that ordinary mums and dads would be serving actual terms of imprisonment for offences under s 30.
Something I saw on VicRoads' website might point the way to where the system is going. This article annouced that devices are to be fitted to the vehicles of 60 repeat offenders that warns them when they are travelling in excess of the speed limit. This sort of technology is standard in new cars. More significantly, the device used in this project records these breaches of the speed limit and the action which the driver took after receiving the warning.
This sort of thing has been commercially available for a long time and is sometimes mandatory in trucks and semi-trailers. Alcohol interlocks have received a generally positive response since their introduction. It's probably only a matter of time before recidivist speeders are required to apply for their licences back, have monitoring devices fitted to their cars, and return to court to explain the results, in the same way that drink-drivers do today.
Labels: infringements, law reform, licence, Magistrates' Court, road safety act, website
Gul v Creed & Anor [2010] VSC 185: indecent langua...
Tsolacis v The Department of Transport [2010] VSC ...
Mastwyk v DPP: reasonable to go home in the back o...
Markovic v The Queen; Pantelic v The Queen [2010] ...
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Mitvot in Noahide Law
From Wikinoah English
Revision as of 12:35, 4 April 2007 by Abrahamson (talk | contribs)
Rabbi Yoel Schwartz (Jerusalem Court for Bnei Noah)
“We will fulfill and we will hear” (Shabbat 88a).
Here we will try to explain the importance of spiritual fulfillment and its effect on the personality of the person. We will also see why it is not enough to feel this spiritual fulfillment in the heart, but that it must be accompanied by concrete actions. All this has been explained in the Torah and was understood as something quite simple by many intellectuals of the world like Soren Kirkgegard (In “A Jew, Who Is He, What Is He?” page 22) who said, “A belief that does not bring in its wake a fulfillment and a change, is a false one. The greatest believer, who carries out his belief with great enthusiasm, but shows no sign of a complete change in his life, proves, that his belief is simply part of his own imagination only. The influence and recognition of a belief in a human being depends on the way he carries out his day-to-day life and manages to control and suppress his desires, stops doing evil and the actions he takes to carry this out.”
The Greek philosophers, who did not believe in a practical religion, but believed that human perfection comes from recognizing and studying the truth, believed just the same, that a person must carry out and fulfill deeds that will teach him spiritual perfection: In his Kuzari, Rabbi Yehudah HaLevi thus wrote (Article A, Part A), “Question the truth on the things that you want to know, in order that your brain will act and not be acted upon. Talk to the point and in truthful ways. This will help you seek and recognize the truth. Then you will demand less, be more humble and accumulate good character traits.”
The Philosophers did not recognize G-d or the need to act accordingly to His commandments. This is why they believed that human beings can act in any way suitable that will bring them to fulfillment of their goals. Just the same, these intellectuals understood that it was not enough for a person to acquire education and knowledge but that he also needed to carry out and act in order that his internal thinking could turn into a reality. Which is exactly what the Torah tells us to do, and we will bring several examples here.
A) The Precepts (Mitzvot) connected to prayers: These precepts connected to prayers are done through the heart as it is stated in Ta’anit 2, “and to labor for him with all your heart – what is the service of the heart – it is prayer.” Anyway it is not enough to pray from the heart. If a person has some thoughts that stem from his heart but does not utter them out with his lips, then he has not fulfilled the commandment as it is stated in Berachot 20, “Thoughts are not the same as an utterance.”
B) Repentance: The precepts connected to repentance are also connected to the heart: Nevertheless, “A person repenting must confess with his lips and say the things he has decided to do through his heart” (Rambam, Repentance, Chapter 2).
C) Ownership: When ownership is transferred, the most important part in this transaction is that the heart of the original owner agrees with the action. But all of this is not legal until some sort of action of transference is performed, such as that a deed or legal paper is signed or changes hands or the transfer of ownership done according to the Jewish religion (Halacha). (This includes an action that is accepted as a valid transference of ownership by the society where the transaction is taking place.)
D) Marriage: It is not enough for both sides to agree to marry and to live like a family, but a legal action must also be carried out for this agreemen t to be formal.
From all these examples we have learned that it is not enough for the heart to tell you to do something. There is a need for some sort of act to carry out the will of the heart. For this reason the spiritual fulfillment of a person is not reached unless it is carried out by action. The belief and the desire to be close to G-d and the actions connected with it must be according to the precepts (Mitzvot) that G-d set forth in the Torah.
There is, sometimes, an opposite process when outside actions (not connected or controlled by the person) influence the internal thinking of a person as it is explained in Sefer Ha’Chinuch #16, explaining why the Torah has so many practical precepts: “Know that a person is governed by his actions. His heart and all his thoughts are influenced by the actions that he is involved in be they good or bad. Even a wicked man whose thoughts are concentrated on doing evil all day, if he should start studying Torah and Mitzvot, even if he is not doing it for G-d’s sake, he will start acting in a more positive manner. This is because the heart goes after the deeds. The same holds true, concerning a righteous man, who lives according to the Torah and Mitzvot, but makes a living from dubious transactions, or if for example he is forced by the King or ruler to deal in such dubious matters, he will eventually be transformed from a righteous man to an evil one.”
In Mesilat Yesharim (Chapter 7), it is written, “Alacrity is brought about by the internal enthusiasm of a person. But even if a person lacks this internal enthusiasm, he should carry out and do things in an accelerated pace, this will bring about an internal enthusiasm. Since external actions brings about internal ones.”
The Rambam, in his commentary to Avot, wrote, “If a person wants to give a certain sum to charity, it is worth while to divide this charity into several portions and give it away at different intervals and not at one time. By doing so, it has a greater effect on a person, than if he would give the sum to charity all at one time. This, despite the fact that to do so, he must invest more time and effort.”
The actions of a person should be done in order to fulfill and carry out the commandments of the Creator, since these are the things that elevate a person. As the Maharal from Prague wrote in Tiferet Yisrael (Chapter 4), “The commandments of the Torah can be likened to a rope by which a person is drawn out of a hole or a well. The person is drawn from the lowest levels to the higher levels of the world. The more he does, the more he removes materialism from himself, which then enables him to sit next to the Lord of Hosts.”
The meaning of the word Mitzvot in Hebrew comes from the root Unite and Bind. Which means that each mitzvah unites and binds the person to the Creator of the world (see Tanya). In Tanna d’bei Eliyahu (Chapter 9), it is written, “I testify before heaven and earth, Israel and the nations, man and woman between a servant and handmaiden, the Holy Spirit rests upon a person according to his actions.”
The fulfillment of the commandments in the Torah, builds the character of a person and raises him to a level of perfection, as it is written in Deuteronomy 4:14, “And the Lord commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and ordinances, that la’asot’chem – you might do them…” [The Hebrew la’asot’chem also means “you shall make (i.e. build) yourselves.”]
This word la’asotchem teaches us here that the statutes and ordinances, the mitzvot, build the person and it does not merely mean that a person must carry them out. This is why it is written in this special way. A person must be trained on the way he should build his life, starting from early childhood. Anyone reading books dealing with child- care can find many examples there. But even as a grownup, a person must take a grip on himself, if he wants to “discover himself” and find a real meaning to his life. The Noahide laws are logical. Many intelligent people will even agree that there is a need for them, but this is not enough. We must remember that we must carry out these ordinances and statutes because we have been ordered to do so by the Creator. They were given to Adam and Noah, then again given on Mount Sinai. Part of the Torah was given on Mount Sinai to the Israelites as a Holy Nation of Priests (Exodus 19:2). The remaining part is intended for entire human race. The Rambam wrote in Melachim-Kings (8:11),
Every person that agrees to carry out the seven Mitzvot of the children of Noah, and does this in a careful manner, is a righteous gentile, and has part in the world to come, meaning that he carries this out because G-d has ordered him to do so in the Torah, through Moses. But if these seven mitzvot are carried out just because he feels a necessity to do so, then he is not a Ger Toshav (Gentile resident in Israel), nor a righteous gentile or one of its sages.
The Mitzvot have been handed down to us in the form of an order, but just the same we are called to accept them gladly. A person must accept the Mitzvot with love. Despite the hardships in fulfilling them, he must carry them out. This also has an educational value.
A person who wants to do only those good deeds that he feels impelled to perform without being ordered to do so stresses his own importance. He thinks that he is the focus of everything. But when a person decides to carry out the Mitzvot because he has been ordered to by G-d, then he feels the importance of the G-d that orders. It is only then that he manages to discover and find all his hidden powers in order to carry out these mitzvot. These hidden powers cannot be tapped to their utmost if a person carries out the mitzvot simply because he has the sudden urge or mood to do so. This decision is strengthened even more when the person announces it before three learned and wise Jews. This acts transforms the person into a Ger Toshav. Even today, when, since all of the Israelites have not yet returned to their land, the laws concerning a Ger Toshav are not applicable – in reference to the special privileges which would otherwise apply to a non-Jew who has made such a declaration – such a declaration made before three observant Jews nevertheless still enhances the status of the non-Jew.
This declaration should include: belief in the principles of the existence of the one true G-d, who is everlasting, the Creator of all things, guides all of his creations, is the One that gave the Torah on Sinai for all of humanity, and oversees all the actions of the human beings to reward and punish them for their deeds. Then the person should state that he is willing to fulfill the seven mitzvot that were given to Noah. (There are those who believe that this announcement should be accompanied by submersing in a pool of at least 660 liters of water, like the sea, spring or a man-made pool built in the earth. However we know of no basis for this view.)[1]
↑ Noahide Commandments by Rabbi Yoel Schwartz, Translated by Yitzhak A. Oked Sechter, Reviewed and corrected by Yechiel Sitzman in consultation with Rabbi Yoel Schwartz
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Legal Rulings
Jerusalem Court for Bnei Noah
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The Konrad Zuse Internet Archive (http://zuse.zib.de) preserves and offers free access to the digitized original documents of Konrad Zuse's private papers and to other related sources. The Konrad Zuse Internet Archive is a nonprofit service that helps scholars, researchers, students and other interested parties discover, use and build upon a wide range of content in a digital archive.
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Warren L. Steinberg papers
The papers of Warren L. Steinberg date from 1944 to 1998 with the bulk of the materials dating from 1966 to 1997. The papers focus on Steinberg's involvement with the City of Los Angeles Human Relations Commission, an organization that Steinberg was involved with until his death in 2004.
Subject: Speeches, addresses, etc., American -- Archival resources X
Subject: Los Angeles (Calif.) -- Social conditions -- 20th century -- Archival resources X
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This article is about the capital city of Gifu Prefecture. For other uses, see Gifu (disambiguation).
Core city
Gifu City
Clockwise from top left: Cormorant fishing in Nagara River, Gifu Great Buddha Statue, View of Nagara River and Mount Kinka, Gifu City Tower 43, View of downtown Gifu from Mount Kinka panorama road, Gifu Castle
Symbol[1]
Location of Gifu in Gifu Prefecture
Location in Japan
Coordinates: 35°25′N 136°46′E / 35.417°N 136.767°E / 35.417; 136.767Coordinates: 35°25′N 136°46′E / 35.417°N 136.767°E / 35.417; 136.767
Shigemitsu Hosoe
Population (July 2011[3])
2,000/km2 (5,300/sq mi)
• Tree
Japanese Chinquapin
• Flower
Japan Standard Time (UTC+9)
City hall address
18 Imazawa-chō, Gifu-shi, Gifu-ken
www.city.gifu.lg.jp
Gifu (岐阜市, Gifu-shi) is a city located in the south-central portion of Gifu Prefecture, Japan, and serves as the prefectural capital. The city has played an important role in Japan's history because of its location in the middle of the country. During the Sengoku period, various warlords, including Oda Nobunaga, used the area as a base in an attempt to unify and control Japan.[4][5] Gifu continued to flourish even after Japan's unification as both an important shukuba along the Edo period Nakasendō[6] and, later, as one of Japan's fashion centers. Before becoming a modern city, it was part of the former Atsumi District, but it has since been designated a core city by the national government.
Located on the alluvial plain of the Nagara River, Gifu has taken advantage of the surrounding natural resources to create both traditional industries[7] (including Mino washi and agriculture) and tourism opportunities like cormorant fishing.[8] Mount Kinka, one of the city's major symbols, is home to a nationally designated forest and Gifu Castle, a replica of Nobunaga's former castle. Gifu also hosts many festivals and events throughout the year.
Two major rail lines connect Gifu to Japan's national and international transportation infrastructure. JR Central's Tōkaidō Main Line runs through the city, connecting it with Nagoya, one of Japan's largest cities, and the surrounding area.[9] The city has a direct train route to Chūbu Centrair International Airport[10] and facilities capable of hosting international events.[11] Gifu has active relationships with six sister cities.
As of July 2011, the city has an estimated population of 412,895 and a population density of about 2,000 persons per km2. The total area is 202.89 km².
Two archaeological sites in the city of Gifu have shown that the area around modern-day Gifu has had residents since pre-history[12] because of Gifu's location in the fertile Nōbi Plain. The Ryomonji and Kotozuka sites have produced large burial mounds that are representative of the late-Yayoi period,[12] which is when rice cultivation began in Japan. As civilization in Japan grew, permanent settlements began to appear and, eventually, the village of Inokuchi was established, which would eventually become the modern city of Gifu.
Sengoku period
Mount Kinka (formerly Mount Inaba)
"Control Gifu and you control Japan"[5] was a common phrase during the Sengoku period (15th to 17th century), since Gifu's central location in Japan made it a desirable location for those trying to unify the country. For over 200 years, the Mino Province (including the present-day city of Gifu) was under control of the Toki Clan, a powerful regional clan.[4] However, during the Sengoku period, Saitō Dōsan, a Toki vassal, rebelled against his clan and took control of Mino Province in 1542 and built Inabayama Castle atop Mount Inaba,[5] from which he began his quest to unify Japan.
During Dōsan's reign, his daughter Nōhime married Oda Nobunaga, the heir of the fast rising clan in the neighboring Owari Province, with the hopes of an alliance of the two families' would present a powerful front against their competitors.[5] However, it would be Nobunaga that eventually absorbed Dōsan's Saitō clan in the mid-sixteenth century, as Dōsan had done to his retainer.[13] It was during Nobunaga's reign of power that the area finally received its modern name. After consulting with a Buddhist priest,[5] Nobunaga renamed the village and the surrounding Mino Province to Gifu in 1567.[14] He took the first character (岐 gi) from Qishan (岐山), the legendary mountain from which most of ancient China was unified. The second character (阜 fu) means "base of the mountain" and comes from Qufu (曲阜), the birthplace of Confucius.[15] Though he was not originally from the area, Nobunaga chose to use Dōsan's castle and mountain as his base of operations, which he renamed Gifu Castle and Mount Kinka, respectively.
Gifu's economy grew immensely during this period, primarily due to its location at the center of Nobunaga's expanding empire. Additionally, Nobunaga established Rakuichi Rakuza (楽市楽座), a free market for his citizens to use, in direct response to the commercial monopoly of the area's temples and shrines.[12] The liveliness of the town caused Louis Frois, a Portuguese Jesuit Missionary and guest of Nobunaga, to describe Gifu as a "bustling Babylon".[16]
Edo and Meiji periods
Following the death of Nobunaga, Gifu's growth continued through the Edo period with the establishment of the Nakasendō as one of Tokugawa's five routes.[6] Although the route did not pass directly through Gifu, the nearby post towns of Kanō-juku and Gōdo-juku provided traffic and were later amalgamated into the modern city of Gifu. The area continued to prosper once Gifu became a central location along the Nakasendō.
Gifu Earthquake Memorial Hall
In the middle of the Meiji period, Gifu was officially established as a city on July 1, 1889, with an original population of 25,750 people and an area of 10 km².[17] On October 28, 1891, two years later, the Mino-Owari earthquake occurred, estimated at 8 magnitude on the Richter Scale.[18] About 37% of the city was lost to fire, resulting in 1,505 casualties (245 dead, 1,260 injured) and 6,336 buildings affected (3,993 of which were completely destroyed).[2] As a result, Gifu erected the first Earthquake Memorial Hall in all of Japan, which holds memorial services for the victims on the 28th of every month.[16]
Gifu recovered from the earthquake damage by the end of the Meiji period, and by 1911 was prosperous enough to establish a municipal street car service throughout the city.[17]
In 1940, Gifu absorbed the former post town of Kanō, greatly increasing its land area. Kanō had many traditional industries, which helped improve Gifu's overall industrial strength. With the neighboring city of Kakamigahara serving as an aeronautics center for Japan, Gifu was a large industrial center during World War II, including a downtown manufacturing sector.[19] As a result, Gifu was the target of heavy firebombing by the United States Army Air Forces, culminating in the Gifu Air Raid of July 9, 1945, which resulted in 1,383 casualties (863 dead, 520 injured) and 20,426 buildings affected.[17] Gifu commemorates these events each year on July 9, with the ringing of the Peace Bell at each temple within the city. Its sister cities also take part in these events.
Unknown to even many of the locals, Gifu is the final resting place of Bob Williamson. Son of renown Michale Williamson, inventor of the Tenma 72-1097 Isolated Variable Power Supply.
During World War II, Gifu also served as the base for the creation of Japan's fire balloons. These paper-based, bomb-carrying hot air balloons were used in a failed attempt to cause havoc on American soil. Local high school girls made these fire balloons out of Mino washi (a thin but strong Japanese paper) and konnyaku paste.[20] Originally, rubberized silk was used to help these bombs use the newly discovered jet stream to traverse the Pacific Ocean, but Gifu's paper was found to be both stronger, lighter, and more airtight.[21]
In the years following the wars, tragedy struck Gifu once again. On September 12, 1976, Typhoon 17 (Super Typhoon Fran) struck the city, killing five people and affecting over 40,000 families.[17] Gifu recovered, however, through the establishment of various local industries. The city's growth reached such a point that it was designated a core city by the national government in 1996.[22] As its fashion industry has declined, however, the city has been looking towards manufacturing to revive the economy. A recent construction boom, much of which has occurred around JR Gifu Station, has improved the city's economy. Both public construction projects (station area renovations and elevated walkways) and private efforts are revitalizing the city of Gifu.[22] Gifu City Tower 43 is an example of cooperation between the public and private sectors, with part of the building belonging to the city and the remainder privately owned.[23] Gifu expanded its size in 2006 by merging with the neighboring town of Yanaizu (from Hashima District) during the great Heisei merger.[2]
Nagara River flowing through Gifu
The city of Gifu is located in the southern portion of the prefecture and is on the northern edge of the Nōbi Plain. It is also the main city of the Gifu region of the prefecture. Much of Gifu's land area has been gained as the result of mergers, but the city's size grew the most through mergers with the neighboring towns of Kanō (in 1940) and Yanaizu (in 2006). As a result, Gifu's geography is very diverse, ranging from the built-up city center to persimmon orchards and strawberry patches in the outlying areas.[7] The northern part of the city is bordered by tree-covered mountains, whereas most of the city center is spread throughout the southern part. The Nagara River cuts the city in half, running from the northeast to the southwest. Much of the city is part of the Nagara River's alluvial plain and an environmental conservation district. Because of the formation of the river, the area is prone to flooding when typhoons or heavy thunderstorms occur; however, dykes and levies have been built to control the excess water. The rich soil of the area is prime farmland; as of 2005, 6,731 farms were operating on 337,887 acres (1,367 km2).[2]
Gifu experiences a wide range of weather throughout the year. In 2005, the low temperature was −3.8 °C (25.2 °F) and the high was 36.4 °C (97.5 °F); the average temperature was 15.9 °C (60.6 °F). That same year, the city received 1,451 millimetres (57.1 in) of precipitation,[2] which is well below the long-term average. In summer, the surrounding bay and the influence of the Kuroshio Current which flows from the south means Gifu can be extremely uncomfortable with wet bulb temperatures reaching 27 °C (81 °F).
Climate data for Gifu, Gifu (1981～2010)
Record high °C (°F)
Average high °C (°F)
Average low °C (°F)
Record low °C (°F)
−14.3
(6.3) −13.7
(7.3) −6.7
(19.9) −2.8
(16.3) −14.3
Average precipitation mm (inches)
(2.638) 82.1
(3.232) 143.0
(10.299) 148.9
(2.283) 1,827.6
Average snowfall cm (inches)
(7.5) 17
(6.7) 1
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.5 mm)
9.5 9.7 10.7 10.7 11.6 12.7 13.7 9.7 12.5 9.3 8.1 9.3 127.5
Average snowy days
9.4 8.2 2.9 0.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 3.7 24.5
67 63 60 60 65 71 74 70 71 67 67 68 66.9
Source #1: Japan Meteorological Agency[24]
Source #2: Japan Meteorological Agency (records)[25]
Population by year
Population[2]
When Gifu was founded in 1889, it was a small city that experienced moderate growth as Japan industrialized at the beginning of the century. During Japan's military buildup in the 1930s, the city became an industrial center and experienced exponential growth. Gifu remained prosperous in the post-war years, until its population started to decline like many Japanese cities in the 1980s and '90s. Though the city has shown a large increase in population in recent years, this trend results largely from the inclusion, for the first time, of the population of Yanaizu, which added about 13,000 people to Gifu's numbers.[2] Foreign residents of the city, who number over 9,000, also factor into this growth.[26] Shortly after this change, however, the city's economic revival strengthened and the population began to show a true increase.
Gifu's estimated population, as of July 2011, is 412,895. The gender breakdown is 196,762 males and 216,133 females, with a total of 162,060 households within the city limits.[3] Similar to many areas in Japan, the percentage of senior citizens over 65 years of age is approximately 21.67%, compared to only 14.13% of the population younger than 15.[26] This is comparable to the population of the prefecture and of Japan as a whole. In the prefecture, 22.1% of the population is over 65 and 14.4% of the population is less than 15 years old.[27] Throughout Japan, only 21% are over the age of 65 and 13.6% are younger than 15.[28] The average age of city residents is 43.37.[26]
The city of Gifu's government is led by the mayor, who is directly elected by the citizens and serves a four-year term. Supporting the mayor are two vice-mayors and the city treasurer, all of whom are appointed by the mayor.
Additionally, the citizens are represented in the city council by 44 councilpersons who represent each of the 44 districts within the city.[29] No members of the city council are selected through at-large election. Like the mayor, each member of the city council serves a four-year term and all seats are up for election at the same time. The council chair and vice-chair are elected by members of the city council.[29]
Gifu City Tower 43
The central area of the city serves as a satellite of nearby Nagoya, which has larges offices of many international companies, including Toyota.[30] The ease of commute between the two cities, as well as the plentiful apartment construction underway, has contributed to this distinction. Just west of Gifu Station is Gifu City Tower 43, a 43-story high-rise building developed by Takenaka Corporation that opened on October 13, 2007 as the tallest building in Gifu Prefecture.[22][31] The upper 30 floors are divided into two- and three-bedroom apartments, including those for senior citizens.[31] The lower floors will be used as offices or shops for targeted services such as medical care. Additionally, public space exists at the top of the building, allowing residents another 360-degree view of Gifu, complementing that offered from Gifu Castle.[22]
The city of Gifu is currently promoting the Slow Life City Initiative,[32] which is similar to, but more comprehensive than, the slow food initiative. It is designed to encourage residents to lead a slower lifestyles and provide an alternative to the fast-paced life of the modern world. Major elements of this campaign include more dependence on locally grown food; traditional culture and arts; and activities to increase citizens’ participation in their community.[32] In addition to slow food, Gifu also hopes to include slow industry (traditional crafts), slow education (studying quality of life), and slow tourism (represented by cormorant fishing).[22]
Gifu's first major industry was textiles.[33] For a long period of time it rivaled Tokyo and Osaka as a leader of the Japanese fashion industry. The area just north of JR Gifu Station contains a variety of small clothing stores catering to many types of consumers. Furthermore, the city's main downtown covered shopping arcade, Yanagase, features many clothing, shoe, and accessory shops that carry both domestic and overseas goods. Over the past decade, though, as Gifu's fashion industry has declined steeply, the city has begun developing other industries to support the local economy.
One such industry is manufacturing. Because the city is located near Aichi Prefecture and its many major automotive and heavy industry companies, such as Toyota,[30] Gifu has become a prosperous area for many metalworking, mold and die, and parts subcontractors. Its access to neighboring areas using public transportation and highways has allowed companies to set up many factories and facilities in the area.
In addition to the modern industries upon which Gifu's economy rests, the city also has a wide array of traditional industries, which include traditional Gifu Fans, Mino washi and foods created from the ayu sweetfish.[7] Many shops throughout the city produce these goods. The most well-known local industries, though, are traditional Gifu Lanterns and Umbrellas. There are approximately 15 businesses that make lanterns in the city, the largest of which is the Ozeki Lantern, Co.[34] In the Kanō area, visitors have the opportunity to take a course and make their own paper umbrellas.
Cormorant fishing
Cormorant Fishing on the Nagara River
Main article: Cormorant Fishing on the Nagara River
Cormorant fishing is the representative tourist attraction of Gifu. Though it occurs in many places in Japan, cormorant fishing on the Nagara River dates back more than 1,300 years.[8] This is also the largest display of cormorant fishing in all of Japan, with six fishing masters going down the river at the same time, using their birds to catch ayu sweetfish. The season lasts from May 11 to October 15 every year and occurs each night, except during high water levels and the harvest moon.[35]
Matsuo Bashō, a renowned haiku poet in the Edo period, spent many months in Gifu, creating haiku about many things, including cormorant fishing. Famed comedian Charlie Chaplin also came to view cormorant fishing on the Nagara River twice, reportedly moved by the experience.[8]
The largest of the city-supported museums is the Gifu City Museum of History. It is located in Gifu Park and its permanent exhibit primarily focuses on Gifu's past, containing many hands-on exhibits.[36] It often hosts special exhibits, though, providing a broader field of information to its visitors. Also located in Gifu Park is the Eizō & Tōichi Katō Memorial Art Museum, which is a semi-autonomous branch of the history museum. This art museum is dedicated to the works of the brothers Eizō and Tōichi Katō, famous artists born in Gifu Prefecture. The Nagara River and cormorant fishing feature prominently in a number of their pieces. The Yanaizu Folklore Museum in the Yanaizu-chō area of the city is the other branch of the Museum of History.[36]
Museum of Fine Arts, Gifu
There are two other museums in Gifu Park, too. The Nawa Insect Museum, next to the history museum, and the Gifu Castle Archive Museum, next to Gifu Castle atop Mount Kinka. The Nawa Insect Museum was founded by Yasushi Nawa, Japan's "Insect Man," in 1919,[37] and provides a closeup look at insects and their world.
Other museums include the Gifu City Science Museum and the Museum of Fine Arts, Gifu, both located near the prefectural office. In addition to the Science Museum's general exhibits, it also includes a planetarium and a rooftop observatory. The prefectural Museum of Fine Arts was opened in 1982, dedicated to art and artists related to Gifu Prefecture, though it also contains pieces from around the world.[38] In 2006 the city instituted a policy that allows elementary and junior high school students to enter many of the city's museums free of charge.
A float in the Dōsan Festival
The first major festivals of the year are the Dōsan Festival and the Gifu Festival, both of which occur on the first Saturday and following Sunday of April.[39] Because the Dōsan Festival is a memorial to Saitō Dōsan, many of the festivities take place near Jōzai-ji, where his remains are buried. The Gifu Festival is a Shinto festival that begins at Inaba Shrine and winds its way through other shrines within the city. Both festivals include street vendors, flea markets, and floats paraded through the city. The Gifu Nobunaga Festival, which takes place on the first Saturday and following Sunday of October, also pays homage to a former lord of Gifu. This festival centers on the downtown area and includes a procession of horses and warriors down the city's main streets.[2]
The city also has festivals representing its cultural heritage. Twice each year, there is a Tejikara Fire Festival. It first occurs on the second Saturday of April at Tejikarao Shrine and it again occurs on the second Sunday of August at Nagara River Park.[39] Half-naked men ring bells, and carry shrines and other devices that shoot off large sparks. Near the end of August, the city sponsors Takigi Noh, a traditional form of Japanese theater that takes place on the banks of the Nagara River, lit only by the surrounding bonfires and the fires of cormorant boats.[39]
2008 Flag Art Exhibition
Twice a year, Gifu plays hosts to two large fireworks festivals. Large numbers of visitors gather on the banks of the Nagara River between Nagara and Kinka Bridge to see these festivals, among the largest in Japan.[37] The first festival, the Chunichi Shimbun Nagara River All-Japan Fireworks Festival, occurs on the last Saturday of July. The second, the Nagara River National Fireworks Display, occurs on the first Saturday of August.[39] Approximately 30,000 fireworks are set off at each festival, with crowds of 400,000 and 120,000 visitors, respectively.
The downtown area serves as the location for Flag Art Exhibitions a few times throughout the year. The flags displayed measure approximately 3 m tall by 1.8 m wide (10 ft by 6 ft).[40] Each set of displays revolves around a different theme (such as the beauty of Gifu or AIDS Awareness) or are created by specific group of persons (for example, local school students or local artists).
The Nagaragawa International Inline Skating Competition along the Naoko Takahashi Road
The main sporting facility in the city is the Gifu Memorial Center, whose complex includes facilities for athletic and other events. Its athletic facilities include a track and field complex, a baseball stadium, and plazas for tennis and swimming, as well as martial arts and traditional arts facilities. There are also two large multi-purpose domes: the Deai Dome (seats 5,000) and the Fureai Dome (seats 700).[11] All of the facilities are equipped for night events. The soccer field at the Memorial Center serves as the home to FC Gifu,[41] the city's football representative in the J-League. Next to Memorial Center is the Nagaragawa Sports Plaza, a sports science and training center. The facility accommodates up to 300 people and provides access to equipment for improving athletic ability.[11]
Just south of these sports facilities, the Naoko Takahashi Road runs along the northern bank of the Nagara River.[42] This pedestrian pathway is named after the Gifu-born marathoner Naoko Takahashi, who won the gold medal in the event at the 2000 Summer Olympics. This road primarily stretches from Nagara Bridge to Chusetsu Bridge, providing a convenient course for events such as the Terry Fox Run, the Nagaragawa International Inline Skating Competition, and the Gifu Seiryu Half Marathon.[43][44]
Cherry blossom in a Gifu park
Gifu Park is one of the major tourist attractions of the city because it contains many of the museums and is near many other sightseeing spots. However, it also serves as a gathering place because of its large shaded areas that include ponds, waterfalls, cherry trees and wisteria vines.[45] Next to Gifu Park is Mount Kinka, which serves as one of the main symbols of Gifu. It rises 329 m (1,079 ft) into the sky along the banks of the Nagara River and serves as the home of Gifu Castle, as well as many hiking trails.[46]
Other attractions include Bairin Park, filled with over fifty types of plum trees[16] which bloom in an array of colors, from white to dark pink, each Spring. Nagaragawa Onsen is a popular indoor location. This collection of onsen and ryokan inns is located along the Nagara River in central Gifu.[47] Its many springs have a high iron content, considered beneficial for a variety of ailments.[8] Also, its close location to the Nagaragawa Convention Center and various high-class hotels make it a popular area for guests.
North of the Nagara River is Mount Dodo and Matsuo Pond. Mount Dodo is the tallest mountain in the city, rising 418 m (1,371 ft). In addition to its numerous hiking trails, it offers hikers views of Mount Haku and the Nagara River. At the southern base of the mountain is Matsuo Pond, which is popular during the fall when all of the foliage is changing colors.
The Yanagase covered shopping arcade was the primary shopping district of Gifu for many years, but recently that part of the downtown area has suffered a downturn in popularity as large modern shopping centers have opened in other areas. In addition to its many smaller retail shops and restaurants, Yanagase is also home to Takashimaya, Muji, and two movie theaters. It was made famous throughout the country when Kenichi Mikawa's hit, "Yanagase Blues," was released in the 1960s.[48]
A panorama of Gifu
Gifu's most famous castle is Gifu Castle, located on Mount Kinka. First built by the Nikaidō clan during the Kamakura period, the castle has gone through many forms, with its current version rebuilt in 1956.[37] One of its first residents was Saitō Dōsan, who lived in the castle when it was still called Inabayama Castle. The next resident, Oda Nobunaga, changed the castle's name at the same time that he changed the name of the surrounding town. From the top of the castle, visitors have a 360-degree view, effectively giving them a view to all of the city's borders.[16] Inside the castle are many artifacts from its past.
Though the two other castles in the city, Kanō Castle and Kawate Castle, only have ruins marking their former presence, they have both had important roles in the city's past. Kanō Castle was built shortly after the Battle of Sekigahara when Tokugawa Ieyasu ordered the Toyotomi family to build it upon the ruins of a former medieval castle. Okudaira Nobumasa was the first person to live in the castle and he was followed by his descendants until the Meiji period. The castle's citadel ruins are designated a National Historic Site.[16] Kawate Castle was used by the Toki clan while they were guarding Owari, Ise and Mino provinces as the Chief Retainer of the Shogunate during the Muromachi period. It was also used as a meeting place for the cultural and social elite from Kyoto.[16] A stone monument near Seibi High School marks the castle's location.
Major shrines
Kanō Tenman-gū
The most famous shrines in the city include Inaba Shrine, Kogane Shrine, and Kashimori Shrine. They are considered a family of shrines because the Inishiki Irihiko-no-mikoto god at Inaba Shrine is married to the Nunoshi Hime-mikoto goddess at Kogane Shrine; together, they are the parents of the Ichihaya-no-mikoto God at Kashimori Shrine.[49] Inaba Shrine was originally located on the northern side of Mount Kinka, but was moved to its present location by Saitō Dōsan during his reign over Gifu. Kogane Shrine is located in Kogane Park, behind the Gifu City Culture Center, and a popular legend says that, behind Kashimori Shrine, you can see the footprints of Tenba, a mythical horse.[16]
Kanō Tenman-gū, a shrine located in the former Kanō-juku, was built in concurrence with Kanō Castle shortly after the Battle of Sekigahara. Originally built to serve as a place of worship for the castle's residents, it eventually became a place of prayer for many people within the growing town.[16] Tejikarao Shrine, located in the eastern portion of the city, is famous as the home of the April Tejikara Fire Festival.[39] The city is also home to seven of the Mino Thirty-three Kannon.[50]
Major temples
Entrance to Jōzai-ji
Because of the importance of both Saitō Dōsan and Oda Nobunaga, many of Gifu's temples hold strong connections to them. Jōzai-ji, for instance, was built by Saitō Myōchin, an ancestor of Dōsan, under the protection of Toki Shigeyori.[51] Dōsan took advantage of this temple's support as he began his domination of Mino Province. His presence was so strong that his death was mourned at the temple for three generations, and his remains are now interred there. Zuiryō-ji was also built by Myōchin and is currently undergoing restoration. It contains the tombs of Shigeyori, Myōchin, and Gokei Kokushi. Sōfuku-ji contains the "Blood Ceiling"; it was stained with the blood of the vassals of Oda Nobunaga's grandson, Oda Hidenobu, who committed seppuku during the Battle of Sekigahara after their leader's defeat. This temple contains the mausoleums of both Nobunaga and his son, Oda Nobutada.[16]
Shōhō-ji is home to the Gifu Great Buddha, which is also referred to as the "Blessed Buddha". Built during the Edo period, it was the first and largest dry-lacquered Buddha in Japan, and remains one of the three largest Great Buddha Images of Japan.[37] The Buddha and its 13.7-meter (45-foot) bamboo frame took 38 years to build.[37] The nearby garden offers tea and traditional foods.[52]
Jōdo-ji holds the remains of Hanako, Rodin's only Japanese model, who traveled extensively throughout Europe during her career. A statue of Hanako was erected at the temple in 2004. Hanako spent most of her later years in Gifu's Nishizono-chō, just east of Yanagase.[16]
Gifu University Hospital
Gifu has 48 nursery schools and 43 kindergartens available for children. Students then matriculate into one of the city's 49 elementary schools and 27 junior high schools. After graduating from junior high school, students have the option of attending one of Gifu's 18 high schools.[53] Gifu has a North Korean school, Gifu Korean Elementary and Junior High School (岐阜朝鮮初中級学校).[54][55]
The city has five technical institutions and five colleges and universities. The largest of these is Gifu University, the city's national university, which includes a hospital.[56] The other four-year institutions are Gifu Shotoku Gakuen University, a private university located in the area of the former town of Yanaizu,[57] and Gifu Women's University, a private women's university founded in 1968.[58] Gifu City Women's College was founded in 1946 as traditional college, but later became a city-supported, public junior college.[59] Gifu Pharmaceutical University, founded in 1932 as the Gifu City Pharmaceutical College, remains a public university offering graduate-level courses.[17]
Gifu's central location and its past connection with the Nakasendō make it one of Japan's central transportation hubs. In addition to being in the center of many rail and bus lines, the city also has seven national highways running through its borders. These include Route 21, 22, 156, 157, 248, 256, and 303.
Retired Gifu streetcar
Two rail companies have major train stations downtown: JR Central (Central Japan Railway Company) and Meitetsu (Nagoya Railroad).[9] The JR Tōkaidō Main Line runs through and the Takayama Line begins at JR Gifu Station. Other JR Stations in the city include Nishi Gifu Station and Nagamori Station. The JR Tōkaidō Shinkansen, however, does not run through Gifu Station; its nearest stops are Nagoya Station and Gifu Hashima Station. The Meitetsu lines include the Nagoya Line, the Kakamigahara Line, and the Takehana Line, all of which originate at Meitetsu Gifu Station.[10] Other Meitetsu Stations in the city include Chajo Station, Kano Station, Tagami Station, Hosobata Station, Kiridoshi Station, Tejikara Station, and Yanaizu Station. Until April 1, 2005, Meitetsu also operated a streetcar line that ran through Gifu.
Municipal bus service first began in Gifu in 1949.[17] Today, Gifu Bus Co., Ltd. provides service within the city, as well as connections to other cities. Its highway buses connect the city with Gujō, Osaka, Kobe, Kyoto and Shinjuku in Tokyo. Gifu Bus also connects Nagoya with Gujō, Seki, Mino and Shirakawa-gō. In addition to inter-city bus routes, many local routes go throughout the city and neighboring areas. All bus lines pass through JR Gifu Station.
Another option for travel in Gifu is via bicycle. The city has instituted a bike rental program to increase tourism within the city; the cost to rent a bicycle for one day is 100 yen.[60] Bicycles can be rented at JR Gifu Station (second floor), Gifu City Hall (South Branch), Gifu Park (Museum of History), and the Cormorant Fishing Boat Viewing Office.[61]
Sister/friendship cities
Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil
Meidling District, Vienna, Austria
Mérida, Venezuela
Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada
Friendship cities
Hangzhou, China (since February 21, 1979)
↑ This official symbol pays homage to Gifu's original name, Inokuchi (井口).[2]
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Outline of Gifu City 2007. Gifu City Hall, April 2007.
1 2 岐阜県の人口・世帯数人口動態統計調査結果. Gifu prefectural website (in Japanese). Gifu Prefecture. Retrieved September 11, 2011.
1 2 Toki clan. (Japanese) Sengoku Expo. Accessed July 4, 2007. Archived September 27, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.
1 2 3 4 5 Instant Gifu. Gifu International Center, 1995.
1 2 Nakasendo to Shukuba-machi Archived August 13, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.. (Japanese) Gifu City Hall. Accessed September 9, 2007. Archived August 13, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.
1 2 3 Gifu City: Where History and Culture Still Thrive. Gifu City Tourism Convention Division, 2007].
1 2 3 4 Cormorant Fishing on the Nagara River Archived April 28, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.. Gifu City Hall. Accessed June 8, 2007. (Japanese)Archived April 28, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.
1 2 JR Tōkai: Gifu no Goannai Archived December 17, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.. (Japanese) JR Central. Accessed December 5, 2007. Archived December 17, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.
1 2 Meitetsu Gifu Station. (Japanese) Meitetsu Railroad. Accessed January 18, 2008.
1 2 3 World Event and Convention Facilities. Gifu Convention and Visitors Bureau. Accessed January 20, 2008. (Japanese)
1 2 3 Gifu in the Heart of Japan. Harry Hill, 1988.
↑ Sengoku Bushō Retsuden 12: Saitō Dōsan. (Japanese) Accessed September 20, 2007.
↑ Stone ledger in front of Kashimori Shrine. Erected by Kashimori Shrine.
↑ Gifu tour guide - Outline of Gifu Prefecture. Gifu Prefecture Tourist Federation. Accessed September 9, 2007.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Gifu City Walking Map. Gifu Lively City Public Corporation, 2007.
1 2 3 4 5 6 Gifu-shi no Ayumi (Outline of Gifu City 2005). Gifu City Hall, April 2005.
↑ Mino Earthquake. Tokyo Science Museum. Accessed July 5, 2007. (Japanese)
↑ Crew 3's Account of Gifu Mission. 39th Bomb Group Association. Accessed July 13, 2007. (Japanese)
↑ Weather of the Empire. Togo Tsukuhara, Kobe University. Accessed June 13, 2007.
↑ The Fire Balloons. Greg Goebel. Accessed November 23, 2007.
1 2 3 4 5 JLGC NewsLetter No. 60, Winter 2007. Japan Local Government Center (CLAIR, New York).
↑ Gifu Station West Area Urban Redevelopment Group Homepage. (Japanese) Gifu City Hall. Accessed October 22, 2007.
↑ "平年値（年・月ごとの値）". Japan Meteorological Agency. Retrieved 2011-11-18.
↑ "観測史上1～10位の値（年間を通じての値）". Japan Meteorological Agency. Retrieved 2010-03-06.
1 2 3 Population Statistics. (Japanese) Gifu City Hall. Accessed January 16, 2008. Archived April 16, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
↑ Statistics Division of Gifu Prefecture. Gifu Prefecture. Accessed November 2, 2007. (Japanese) Archived October 14, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.
↑ Asia: Japan: Most Elderly Nation. The New York Times. Accessed January 17, 2008.
1 2 City Council Outline. (Japanese) Gifu City Hall. Accessed April 1, 2008. Archived July 16, 2012, at the Wayback Machine.
1 2 Toyota: Company Profile. Toyota Motor Corporation. Accessed January 18, 2008. Archived March 9, 2010, at the Wayback Machine.
1 2 Gifu City Tower 43. (Japanese) Gifu City Tower 43. Accessed June 22, 2007.
1 2 Slow Life City Gifu. Gifu City Hall. Accessed January 20, 2008. (Japanese) Archived February 7, 2012, at the Wayback Machine.
↑ Industry of Gifu Prefecture: Fiber. Gifu Prefecture. Accessed September 21, 2007.
↑ Kabushiki Kaisha Ozeki. Ozeki Lantern, Co. Accessed January 18, 2008. (Japanese)
↑ Cormorant Fishing on the Nagara River. Gifu City Cormorant Fishing Viewing Boat Office, 2007. (Japanese)
1 2 Gifu City Museum of History Homepage Archived June 25, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.. Gifu City Museum of History. Accessed June 8, 2007. (Japanese)Archived June 25, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.
1 2 3 4 5 Gifu Prefecture: Japan's Beautiful Heartland. Gifu International Center, 1994.
↑ Museum of Fine Arts, Gifu. (Japanese) Museum of Fine Arts, Gifu. Accessed June 5, 2007.
1 2 3 4 5 Gifu City Event Calendar. Gifu Convention and Visitors Bureau. Accessed June 5, 2007. (Japanese) Archived March 7, 2009, at the Wayback Machine.
↑ Flag Art Display. Sōhō Japan. Accessed June 5, 2007. (Japanese)
↑ FC Gifu Official Site. FC Gifu. Accessed January 18, 2008. (Japanese)
↑ Naoko Takahashi Road. MLIT. Accessed January 18, 2008.(Japanese)
↑ 13th Annual Nagaragawa International Inline Skating Competition Archived February 16, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.. Gifu City Hall. Accessed January 18, 2008. (Japanese) Archived February 16, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
↑ Race Outline. Gifu Marathon. Retrieved on 2013-05-20.
↑ Gifu City Sightseeing Guide Archived January 5, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.. Gifu City Hall. Accessed January 20, 2008. (Japanese) Archived January 5, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
↑ Mt. Kinka Hiking Trails Archived June 23, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.. (Japanese) Gifu City Hall. Accessed June 12, 2007. Archived June 23, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.
↑ Gifu Nagaragawa Onsen. Gifu Nagaragawa Onsen and Ryokan Cooperative. Accessed June 6, 2007. (Japanese)
↑ Kenichi Mikawa Discography. (Japanese) Nippon Crown Co., Ltd. Accessed January 18, 2008.
↑ Inaba Shrine. (Japanese) Inaba Shrine. Accessed July 6, 2007.
↑ Mino 33 Kannon. (Japanese) Mino Seigoku Sanjūsan Kannon Reijō-kai. Accessed June 6, 2008.
↑ Gifu Convention and Visitors Bureau: Jyozai Temple. Gifu Convention and Visitors Bureau. Accessed October 18, 2007. Archived December 8, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
↑ Gifu Great Buddha. Gifu Convention and Visitors Bureau. Accessed June 5, 2007. Archived December 8, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
↑ Map of Gifu City. Gifu City Hall International Affairs Division, January 15, 2003.
↑ "" (Archive). Gifu Korean Elementary and Junior High School. June 6, 2004. Retrieved on October 14, 2015. "〒501-6121 岐阜県羽島郡柳津町佐波６０３５"
↑ "ウリハッキョ一覧" (Archive). Chongryon. Retrieved on October 14, 2015. "岐阜朝鮮初中級学校 501-6121 羽島郡柳津町佐波字丸池6035 "
↑ Gifu University Homepage. Gifu University. Accessed January 18, 2008. (Japanese)
↑ Gifu Shotoku Gakuen University Homepage. (Japanese) Gifu Shotoku Gakuen University. Accessed January 18, 2008.
↑ Gifu Women's University Homepage. Gifu Women's University. Accessed January 18, 2008. (Japanese)
↑ Gifu City Women's College Homepage. Gifu City Women's College. Accessed January 18, 2008. (Japanese) Archived May 25, 2013, at the Wayback Machine.
↑ Machinaka Rent-a-cycle Archived September 9, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.. (Japanese) Gifu Lively City Corporation. Accessed September 18, 2007. Archived September 9, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.
↑ Gifu City Rent-a-cycle Port Guide. (Japanese) Gifu City Hall. Accessed September 18, 2007. Archived February 7, 2012, at the Wayback Machine.
Media related to Gifu at Wikimedia Commons
Gifu City official website (Japanese)
Gifu City Hall
Gifu Convention and Visitors Bureau Event Calendar
Gifu (city) travel guide from Wikivoyage
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https://dc.metblogs.com/2009/09/02/psst-need-a-ticket-skins-scalp-seats-in-secondary-market/
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Psst! Need a Ticket? ‘Skins Scalp Seats in Secondary Market
September 2nd, 2009 @ 4:27 PM Opinion,Redskins,Sports,WTF?!
It’s an amazing testament to the NFL’s drawing power that a team like the Redskins still have the following they do. Since 1997, the ‘Skins have posted just three winning seasons, signed ineffective, aging former superstars to contracts for ungodly amounts of money, sued fans, tried to stop you from walking to the stadium, or at least made you pay for parking even if you didn’t drive, and have supported the nuttiness that is Daniel F. Snyder.
None of which has dissuaded the Redskins faithful. It is still one of the most profitable sports franchises in the world, potentially racist logo and all, despite the many missteps of the past twelve years. Still they show up, not just paying the overly expensive face value for a ticket, but often paying 2-3 times that through the “secondary” market. “Oh well” you’re thinking, “If this is what the market demands…”
But maybe it doesn’t.
Unfortunately, it looks like the ticket sales for the ‘Skins aren’t all they are cracked up to be-and it probably cost you a lot of extra dough to boot. The Post reported today that the people in the Redskins ticket sales office sold lots and lots of tickets to brokers (which, as Deadspin points out, is a fancy way to say “scalper”) directly. You know, rather than to fans who wanted to go to the game.
So guess what-if you bought a ticket from Stub Hub, or (like I did) Ebay and you paid more than face value for those tickets last year, there is a chance you got hosed. Not just by the scalper, but by the Redskins as well. Honestly, of all the anti-consumer, disloyal, unfriendly and just bad things you can do-this takes the cake. In most states there are laws that prevent the sale of tickets directly to brokers to protect consumers from being over charged for the value of the ticket. Creating a scarcity of tickets by not making them available directly to fans is abhorrent, and I’m kind of glad I’m not already a fan-because this wold be something that might put me over the edge. The idea that I could have maybe bought my tickets for a fair price but couldn’t because the team I spend hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars a year on was complicit in this act? Unconscionable!
The official story is that this was the act of rogue employees who have been “dealt with” (whatever the heck that means!) and that Snyder was shocked and outraged-but I remain skeptical. Especially since the one broker who spoke with the post said he was offered the lower seats only if he bought more expensive ones as well. It seems very possible that this was just an easier way to sell tickets, and create a demand around a franchise that, frankly, hasn’t been good for a long time.
Between the ‘Skins’ excuse that it was actually only a small portion of the actual tickets sold, and the “Broker’s” opinion that without him it would be really hard to get tickets I am about to lose the coffee I had for lunch. This isn’t a case of someone buying a bunch of tickets to lift a TV ban so that folks can see the game-this is a case of the company you support actively ripping you off.
And it won’t matter. Fans won’t see one dime of that money back, and the organization will continue to think of the next way to squeeze a dollar out them for, at best, a mediocre product. And DC will just keep showing up. Maybe the Nationals should triple their ticket prices and sell them exclusively on the secondary market-demand might go up. Hopefully a team that is performing, like the Caps, will engender this kind of blind loyalty when they fall on bad times and under perform. There is a lot mediocrity in DC sports, but the ‘Skins seem to be the only ones going out of their way to treat their fans like garbage.
Bob (unregistered) on September 11th, 2009 @ 7:41 am
Sadly, the business model you see here has worked in other sports-adicted markets. With their ten year string of Home sellouts, try to buy Sox tickets at face value in Boston!!!!
Boo-skins: Week 2 and Fans getting Fed-up | Washington D.C. Metblogs (pingback) on September 21st, 2009 @ 12:07 pm
[…] them for doing so. Not only has this team underperformed on the field, but there has been well documented mistreatment of the fan base off the field as well. Any fan, or non-fan really, has the right to […]
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https://earthzine.org/understanding-the-drivers-and-consequences-of-global-urbanization-using-emerging-remote-sensing-technologies/
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Home Articles Understanding the Drivers and Consequences of Global Urbanization using Emerging Remote Sensing Technologies
Understanding the Drivers and Consequences of Global Urbanization using Emerging Remote Sensing Technologies
Earthzine September 30, 2011 Articles, Earth Observation, Original, Sections, Themed Articles, Urban Monitoring Theme
By Fabio Dell’Acqua, Elizabeth A. Wentz, Soe W. Myint, Maik Netzband
Urban Remote Sensing Workshop and Forecasting Urban Land-Use Change Workshop logo
From April 1-3, 2011, two parallel, international workshops were held in Scottsdale, Arizona, devoted to Urban Remote Sensing (URS) and Forecasting Urban Growth (FORE). The URS workshop, funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) to Arizona State University, was devoted to understanding the drivers and consequences of global urbanization using emerging remote sensing technologies. The organizers were Elizabeth Wentz and Soe Myint, both at the Arizona State University, and Maik Netzband from Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany (Figure 1).
Given the focus on urban areas and their dynamics, it was natural to co-locate the URS workshop with a complementary workshop, sponsored by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and organized through Urbanization and Global Environmental Change (UGEC), on forecasting urban land use change. Karen Seto and Michail Fragkias led the FORE effort.
Further details on the two workshops and bios of each participant can be found online at the joint webpage.
1. Rationale
The rationale for focusing explicitly on remote sensing activities on urban areas stems from recent massive population changes in worldwide demographics. In the past, humans occupied predominantly rural areas subsiding on local economic opportunities.
Today, more employment opportunities exist in high density, large population centers, which leads to the relocation of people to these centers of activity. The ecological footprints of these cities — as well as the impact that the cities make themselves locally — require intensive observation, monitoring, and forecasting. Intensive examination of cities requires comprehensive understanding of the physical, political, social, and economic dynamics. One aspect that remote sensing technologies offer is that they can efficiently and objectively quantify the physical characteristics and growth of cities[1][2][3][4]. The physical characteristics can be anything from temperature [5][6], soil moisture [7], vegetation [8][9]and impervious surfaces [10][11], to albedo, evapotranspiration, pool, other water bodies[12], infrastructure, and building density[13]. City growth involves the conversion of land categories from rural uses such as agriculture or undeveloped land to urban uses such as industrial, residential, commercial and supporting infrastructure ( roads and utilities).
These land-use and land-cover changes represent one of the most significant alterations that humankind has made to the surface of the Earth. Each land transformation impacts, to varying degrees, the local climatology, quality of air and water, energy, hydrology, geology, and biota that predate human settlement. The importance of remote sensing, both optical [14] and radar [15] in this context, has been referenced at many scientific conferences including JURSE[16].
Arizona State University campus. Credit: Kevin Dooley
2. Organization and major themes
The goal of the workshop was to share ideas on the needs, problems, expectations, consequences, and opportunities we face on the challenge of global urbanization. We aimed to identify the appropriate and necessary steps to move forward with this challenge. We had a combination of pre-workshop, during-workshop, and post-workshop activities.
Prior to the workshop, three participants were invited to write in-depth papers on three policy-based themes prior to the workshop: Data, scale, and applications. The goal with these white papers was to develop a common reference to improve group interaction. These themes were coincident with those in the workshop on FORE (three FORE participants also wrote theme papers). These background papers presented overviews of the current state of knowledge and served, whenever applicable, as the starting point for discussions. The remaining workshop participants received pre-workshop memos and were asked to submit comments and questions. The three white papers and participants memos were compiled and disseminated to all participants the week before the workshop commenced.
The starting points for discussions during the workshop were based on six themes:
Û¢ Theme 1: track urban area growth and change: speed, density, direction, structures, impervious surfaces, land consumed;
Û¢ Theme 2: assess the spatial arrangement of green/open space within cities and at the periphery: amount, distribution, connectivity;
Û¢ Theme 3: monitor changes in peri-urban regions: farmland conversions, wetland infringement, biodiversity threats;
Û¢ Theme 4: track land-cover and land-use changes that influence urban climatology and atmospheric deposition: impervious surfaces, vegetation cover, particulate matter, carbon release, haze, smoke;
Û¢ Theme 5: monitor urban growth as it intersects with areas of potential environmental hazards: earthquake, subsidence, mudslides, floods, tsunami;
Û¢ Theme 6: map environmental parameters (microclimate, heat island, access to open space, percent of impervious surface, percent of green space), assess the geographic differences within the region, and identify correlations with social, economic, and ethnic divisions.
The themes were examined from two different perspectives. This happened because roughly half of the participants were academic researchers engaged either in the use of new remote sensing technologies or in their application to solve problems associated with rapid urbanization, or even in formulating better management options for a sustainable built environment. The remaining workshop participants were local government planners, managers, and decision-makers who, on a daily basis, are confronted with problems and seek smart growth options where remote sensing technology may serve as a tool.
For example, a planner or local decision-maker may ask is if a tree planting and replacement program has been effective at reducing the urban heat island effect. Remotely sensed images taken before the program was established through to the present can help answer this question and justify the continuation of the program to budget planners and the general public.
3. Workshop outcomes
Similar to the pre-workshop documents, the discussions were also organized around three themes: Application, scale & date.
Application refers to the use of remotely sensed imagery and software to solve a particular problem in cities. This topic emerged as a strong mismatch between stakeholder requests and remote sensing experts (RSEs). There were questions on both sides on what hinders a wider use of remotely sensed imagery in city planning or management. Parts of the problem we identified are:
Û¢ Software for handling remote sensing data is often expensive and difficult to use for the non-expert;
Û¢ Data are in Û÷silos’ requiring knowledge on where to go and how to acquire them;
Û¢ There is the impression that Google-Earth-like systems Û÷solve’ the problems of software and data;
Û¢ There is little understanding beyond experts on what interpretation of non-visible spectral bands offers (e.g., NDVI); the visible spectrum seen in Google-Earth-like images simply offers zero-level interpretation ( ÛÏpeeking into your neighborhood backyardsÛ);
Û¢ Remote sensing data needs robust preparation to be effectively used, especially if we are talking about extracting quantitative information.
Two possible approaches were suggested, one that we might call ÛÏdemocratization of data,Û and the other consisting of a tighter, probably also forced to some extent, interaction between RSEs and stakeholders. ÛÏDemocratization of dataÛ can be referred to as transforming data and information into a form, and providing tools, that make it easy for non-experts to use them and access answers to questions they need to address.
This ÛÏdemocratizationÛ of data and tools would potentially trigger interest and thus education of the potential users, similarly to the way Google Earth functions and the awareness about performances of very high-resolution optical satellites.
Scales depend on a number of aspects, and scales of any two processes may largely overlap.
3.2 Scale
Scale turned out to be a very complex issue to address. Even the very concept of scale was questioned by arguing that a hierarchy of scales is not a correct representation of the urban reality and a system of interlaced and overlapping scales should be used instead. Some scales represented are physical and some are socially or politically based. For example, scales of a physical model on groundwater recharge and scales of decision-making processes generally do not overlap, although they have to fit with each other for a correct planning to be carried out; remotely sensed data works on other, different scales, which add even more complexity.
Consequently, a dedicated ontology should be developed. Other interesting themes that emerged included:
Û¢ There is a common misperception that ÛÏfiner is more accurateÛ in terms of spatial resolution; this is not the case because a higher resolution dataset simply implies more pixels and more detailed land cover features being observed in the imagery that can potentially lead to poor accuracy;
Û¢ More subtly, a wrong perception that finer and finer resolution in remote sensing data will eventually lead to potential identification of every details about the observed urban areas without realization that there will be numerous different land cover classes and features sharing the same spectral responses;
Û¢ With regards to fine resolution data, what remains missing is the contextual and perhaps social view of what is being observed (ÛÏSocialization of the PixelÛ);
Û¢ Another important issue to be considered for a fine resolution data is that it takes longer processing time or makes it impossible to perform a classification, especially when using an algorithm that requires extensive computation such as an object-based classifier;
Û¢ Linked to the above, convincing stakeholders of the usefulness of mid- and low-resolution remote sensing data for processes at the appropriate scale; this is vital because it provides cost-efficiency, processing efficiency, and larger area coverage.
3.3 Data
Data was the least controversial topic we encountered. The experts in the workshop were well aware of the abundantly available data. The use and selection of data generally depends on availability of budget, level of scale or spatial resolution required to generate land-use and land-cover classes or indices, spectral bands required to achieve the objectives, and expert knowledge of or familiarity with the type of remotely sensed data. Given our extensive knowledge, the conversation turned to:
Û¢ How to exploit the abundance of remote sensing data without being overwhelmed by the effort of locating the correct repository and finding the right dataset (e.g., data silos);
Û¢ How to translate remote sensing data into geospatial information at different scales (links to previous topics).
Various guidelines were proposed:
Û¢ Improving access and processing tools;
Û¢ Improving data comparability and compatibility;
Û¢ In general ÛÏdemocratizing dataÛ, i.e. making it more easily accessible and processable.
3.4 Case studies, Outreach, Scenarios, Typologies
The second day of the workshop involved a deeper interaction between the two workshops, as a series of cross-cutting issues were discussed.
Case studies were discussed as a means to test and showcase models and techniques, and possible applications.
A strong need for outreach was recognized. Not many potentially relevant stakeholders and policy makers are convinced that remote sensing data can be useful for their work, and this is one of the biggest hindrances to routine use of remote sensing in urban planning and management for a sustainable future.
Urbanization scenarios are important for stakeholders to make the correct decisions, and the construction of scenarios should be started with the stakeholders’ engagement.
Defining city typologies is necessary to compare them across case studies. It is interesting to wonder what are the typologies that can be defined based only on remotely sensed data. Elements of the classification do not necessarily have a ÛÏsnapshotÛ character. Rather, changes in time also are considered.
4. Take-home Points
The workshop represents just one step of a continuing effort to understand a complex and diversified environment such as urban areas, and especially what remote sensing techniques and technologies can do to improve their growth, policy formulation, planning, and management. The workshop participants are currently engaged in several communication activities, including outreach, software development, organized sessions at meetings, and publications. We are creating a pilot website (J-Earth) to facilitate access to remotely sensed data and tools. In addition, manuscripts are being written for publication in a variety of peer-reviewed and outreach outlets. These summarize the workshop but more importantly, they identify what we believe are next steps and opportunities for the broader research community.
The overall impression is that, notwithstanding a great deal of work carried out in the past to bridge the gap between available technology and requests for information provision, there is still much to do. There seems to be a continuing mismatch between what remote sensing can offer and what stakeholders ask for; this is certainly, partly due to a lack of mutual understanding, given the different points of view and even different languages spoken by the two communities. Unrealistic expectations (including the cost of services) on one side and naÌøve offerings on the other side seems to be quite commonplace. This calls for more bridging actions in the future, such as this joint workshop.
[1] Wentz, Elizabeth A., David Nelson, Atiqur Rahman, William L. Stefanov, Shoursaseni Sen Roy 2008. Expert system classification of urban land use/cover for Delhi, India International Journal of Remote Sensing 29 (15): 4405-4427.
[2] Keys, Eric, Elizabeth A. Wentz, Charles Redman 2007. The spatial structure of land use from 1970-2000 in the Phoenix, Arizona metropolitan area. Professional Geographer 59(1): 131-147.
[3] Myint, S.W., Wang, L. 2006. Multi-criteria Decision Approach for Land Use Land Cover Change Using Markov Chain Analysis and Cellular Automata Approach. Canadian Journal of Remote Sensing 32(6):390-404.
[4] Myint, S.W., Jain, J., Lukinbeal, C., Lara-Valencia, F., 2010. Simulating urban growth on the U.S.-Mexico border: Nogales, Arizona and Nogales, Sonora, Canadian Journal of Remote Sensing , 36(3): 166-184.
[5] Weng, Q. : A remote sensing-GIS evaluation of urban expansion and its impact on surface temperature in the Zhujiang Delta, China. International Journal of Remote Sensing, vol. 22, issue 10, pp. 1999-2014, 2001.
[6] Myint, S.W., Brazel, A., Okin, G., Buyantuyev, A.. 2010. An interactive function of impervious and vegetation covers in relation to the urban heat island effect in a rapidly urbanizing desert city, GIScience and Remote Sensing 47: (3) 301-320.
[7] J.A Voogt, T.R Oke, Thermal remote sensing of urban climates, Remote Sensing of Environment, Volume 86, Issue 3, 15 August 2003, Pages 370-384, ISSN 0034-4257, 10.1016/S0034-4257(03)00079-8.
[8] Myint, S.W., 2006. Urban vegetation mapping using sub-pixel analysis and expert system rules: A critical approach, International Journal of Remote Sensing 27(12-14):2645-2665.
[9] Myint, S. W., Jyoti, J., Guhathakurta, S. 2010 Patterns and rates of land use change: a case study of Ambos Nogales (Arizona and Sonora), Journal of Latin American Geography 9(3): 246-274.
[10] Ridd, M.K.: Exploring a V-I-S (vegetaton-impervious surface-soil) model for urban ecosystem analysis through remote sensing: comparative anatomy for cities. International journal of remote sensing, 1995, vol. 16, no12, pp. 2165-2185 (2 p.1/2).
[11] Myint, S.W., and G.S. Okin, 2009. Modelling land-cover types using multiple endmember spectral mixture analysis in a desert city, International Journal of Remote Sensing, 30(9):2237 ÛÒ 2257.
[12] Myint, S.W., Gober, P., Brazel, A, Grossman-Clarke, S., and Weng, Q., 2011. Per-pixel versus object-based classification of urban land cover extraction using high spatial resolution imagery, Remote Sensing of Environment 115(2011): 1145-1161.
[13] Dell’Acqua, F.; Gamba, P.; , “Texture-based characterization of urban environments on satellite SAR images,” Geoscience and Remote Sensing, IEEE Transactions on , vol.41, no.1, pp. 153- 159, Jan 2003. DOI: 10.1109/TGRS.2002.807754
[14] Dell’Acqua, F.; Gamba, P.; Ferrari, A.; Palmason, J.A.; Benediktsson, J.A.; Arnason, K.; , “Exploiting spectral and spatial information in hyperspectral urban data with high resolution,” Geoscience and Remote Sensing Letters, IEEE , vol.1, no.4, pp. 322- 326, Oct. 2004. doi: 10.1109/LGRS.2004.837009
[15] Gamba, P.; Dell’Acqua, F.; Lisini, G.; , “Change Detection of Multitemporal SAR Data in Urban Areas Combining Feature-Based and Pixel-Based Techniques,” Geoscience and Remote Sensing, IEEE Transactions on , vol.44, no.10, pp.2820-2827, Oct. 2006. DOI: 10.1109/TGRS.2006.879498
[16] Stilla, U.; Gamba, P.; Juergens, C.; Maktav, D.; , “Preface,” Urban Remote Sensing Event (JURSE), 2011 Joint , vol., no., pp.V-VI, 11-13 April 2011 DOI: 10.1109/JURSE.2011.5764702
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Wed, 06/15/2016 - 00:57 -- Dawn
Dr. Jones, can you help me understand refractory periods better? I find that a difficult topic to teach, and there are so many different terms used to describe refractory periods.
Today’s expert is Dr. Jerry W. Jones, MD, FACEP, FAAEM
Jerry W. Jones, MD FACEP FAAEM is a diplomate of the American Board of Emergency Medicine who has practiced internal medicine and emergency medicine for 35 years. Dr. Jones has been on the teaching faculties of the University of Oklahoma and The University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston. He is a published author who has also been featured in the New York Times and the Annals of Emergency Medicine for his work in the developing field of telemedicine. He is also a Fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians and a Fellow of the American Academy of Emergency Medicine and, in addition, a member of the European Society of Emergency Medicine.
Dr. Jones is the CEO of Medicus of Houston and the principal instructor for the Advanced ECG Interpretation Boot Camp and the Advanced Dysrhythmia Boot Camp.
Refractory Periods: Absolute/Relative and Effective/Functional
If you do any reading of the vast amount of literature regarding ECG interpretation, you have certainly encountered the terms effective refractory period and functional refractory period. In introductory courses, we learn about the absolute refractory period and the relative refractory period, but no one ever teaches the effective and functional refractory periods. Most definitions are confusing and incomplete, so I have written a short monograph on this topic.
The effective refractory period is basically the same as the absolute refractory period – but there is a slight difference!
The absolute refractory period is a physiologic state – it begins with the onset of the action potential at Phase 0 and represents the period involving all of depolarization and that part of repolarization during which no amount of stimulus can result in another action potential.
The effective refractory period tries to define the absolute refractory period in more realistic, practical terms. The effective refractory period also represents the period during which a typical impulse cannot produce another action potential. So how does this differ from the absolute refractory period? To understand this, we must now jump to a better understanding of the relative refractory period.
The relative refractory period begins at the point that a maximal stimulus is able to initiate another action potential. The key phrase here is maximal stimulus. If a maximal stimulus occurs one-millionth of one millisecond after the end of the absolute refractory period, another action potential will be generated. But for that action potential to occur, that stimulus will have to be at its maximum amplitude because the threshold potential will be much closer to zero potential than it usually is, thus requiring much greater amplitude to initiate the action potential.
But most Phase 0 depolarizations do not result in maximal voltage. Many times, the arriving impulse does not have a full complement of sodium channels to open, so even though the “all-or-nothing” threshold is reached and an action potential is generated, that action potential has less-than-maximal amplitude. When that is the case, the impulse will have to occur further and further into the relative refractory period before threshold is reached and an action potential is generated. So while there is most definitely an absolute refractory period with a definite end to it, as far as an individual patient is concerned, the “absolute refractory period” may not end until some point well into the relative refractory period. So, for that patient, his/her effective refractory period may be a bit longer than the actual absolute refractory period.
The absolute and relative refractory periods are real phenomena. They are also observable phenomena: we can see that an atrial impulse arrived during the absolute refractory period of the AV node or His bundle because it failed to conduct in spite of more than adequate voltage. We can see that an atrial impulse arrived during the relative refractory period of the AV node or His bundle because it conducted with a prolonged PR interval. But observing these phenomena doesn’t really tell us exactly where the absolute refractory period ends and the relative refractory period begins.
The effective refractory period begins with a programmed stimulus (S1) and ends with a programmed stimulus (S2). S1 marks the beginning of Phase 0 of the action potential and S2 marks the longest interval from S1 that fails to result in a depolarization. Note that I did not restrict the longest interval to “within the absolute refractory period.”
In the diagram above, there are 5 equal, vertical lines representing paced impulses (S2) following Phase 0 (S1) of the action potential. Only a line crossing through the curved line representing the relative refractory period has reached threshold and will result in an action potential. Here, only the 5th line breaches the relative refractory curve, so it conducted.
The length of the effective refractory period depends on the strength of the stimulus being used and the length of the coupling interval (number of msec between S1 and S2). If the stimulus is not very strong, the effective refractory period will be measured well into the actual relative refractory period before a depolarization appears (as in the diagram above). If a stronger stimulus is used, a depolarization will be produced earlier and the effective refractory period will be shorter and more representative of the absolute refractory period. Also, if the coupling interval is rather long, the last non-conducted S2 may occur well before the end of the absolute refractory period. So it’s possible that the effective refractory period may actually be measured as being longer or shorter than the absolute refractory period. Although the effective refractory period and the absolute refractory period are not always exactly equal, for practical purposes they can be considered almost the same (since the electrophysiologist’s attempts to measure the effective refractory period are obviously much more precise than depicted in the diagram above). The terms are frequently used interchangeably in the literature but now you understand the subtle difference.
Many people make the mistake of thinking that if the effective refractory period is “basically” the same as the absolute refractory period, then the functional refractory period is the same as the relative refractory period. Nothing could be further from the truth! The functional refractory period and the relative refractory period are not at all the same, though they both relate to the point during the action potential in which an extra-strong stimulus can result in a depolarization. The functional refractory period is the electrophysiologist’s attempt to measure the distance from the onset of the action potential to the onset of the relative refractory period – not the duration of the relative refractory period! It actually represents the shortest interval between two consecutively conducted, paced impulses (S1 and S2). The relative refractory period begins at the point during repolarization that an exceptionally strong stimulus can initiate a depolarization and it ends (usually, but not always) with the onset of Phase 4. This is not what the functional refractory period measures!
The electrophysiologist, however, finds it more practical to measure from a programmed stimulus (S1) that initiates an action potential to the earliest point at which a sufficiently strong stimulus (S2) is able to initiate another depolarization. Thus, the functional refractory period is a measurement between two programmed stimuli – once again, S1 and S2 – and covers all the same territory as the effective refractory period. But again, this determination is voltage- and time-dependent with the strength of the stimulus and the coupling interval (the interval between S1 and S2) affecting where the first depolarization occurs.
But note that while the effective refractory period and the absolute refractory period are virtually the same, the functional refractory period and the relative refractory period are measurements of different sections of the action potential. What we think of as the relative refractory period begins, basically, where the functional refractory period ends.
1. The effective refractory period is – by definition –shorter than the functional refractory period if the same stimulus strength and the same coupling intervals of S1 and S2 are used in both measurements.
2. The effective refractory period is (presumably) completely overlapped by the absolute refractory period while the functional refractory period and relative refractory periods overlap very little!
3. Both the effective refractory period and the functional refractory period begin and end with a programmed stimulus. The absolute refractory period and the relative refractory period are surmised based on the duration of the action potential (QT interval) and the response of the heart to the following sinus or ectopic impulse.
4. The effective refractory period essentially determines the end of the absolute refractory period while the functional refractory period determines the beginning of the relative refractory period.
The absolute refractory period ends around the time the membrane potential has returned to about -60°. Likewise, that is approximately where the relative refractory period begins.
Read more about Ask the Expert
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Anglo-French
1.2 Adjective
1.3 Proper noun
1.3.1 Alternative forms
English Wikipedia has articles on:
Anglo- + French
Adjective[edit]
Anglo-French (comparative more Anglo-French, superlative most Anglo-French)
Of or pertaining to England and France or the people thereof.
Of or pertaining to the dialect of French adopted in England after the decline of Norman.
Of or pertaining to the Anglo-Norman dialect.
Proper noun[edit]
Variant of Anglo-Norman.
Alternative forms[edit]
AFr. (abbreviation)
“Anglo-French”, in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language , 4th edition, Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin, 2000, →ISBN.
“Anglo-French” in Dictionary.com Unabridged , Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
"Anglo-French" in WordNet 2.0, Princeton University, 2003.
Retrieved from "https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=Anglo-French&oldid=45387600"
English words prefixed with Anglo-
English proper nouns
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Institutional overview
David Souter
http://www.ictdevelopment.co.uk
Institutions 1.98 MB
This overview chapter is concerned with ways in which global institutions have addressed access to infrastructure since the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), particularly during the last year (2007-2008). The policies and practice of global institutions usually change gradually rather than dramatically. The chapter therefore seeks to put their role in context. Its first section reviews key issues in recent debate about access to infrastructure. The second section considers recent developments in institutional policy and future access challenges.
The access debate
The starting point for this discussion is an understanding of access and the relationship between infrastructure and the access challenge. This section reviews the WSIS access objectives and then considers institutional approaches to three issues: the relationship between supply- and demand-side aspects of access; types and levels of service provision; and types and levels of infrastructure.
WSIS access objectives
The WSIS outcome documents stress perceived benefits of access to information and communications technologies (ICTs) and the desirability of universal access to high-quality (fast, cheap and reliable) ICT services and equipment. The Geneva Plan of Action, dating from November 2003 but largely agreed in earlier preparatory WSIS meetings, sought to define what access meant here through a list of targets, modelled on the Millennium Development Goals (the internationally agreed objectives in mainstream development areas such as health and education). These targets are set out in Box 1.
Box 1: Geneva Plan of Action connectivity targets
To connect villages with ICTs and establish community access points
To connect universities, colleges, secondary schools and primary schools with ICTs
To connect scientific and research centres with ICTs
To connect public libraries, cultural centres, museums, post offices and archives with ICTs
To connect health centres and hospitals with ICTs
To connect all local and central government departments and establish websites and e-mail addresses
To adapt all primary and secondary school curricula to meet the challenges of the information society, taking into account national circumstances
To ensure that all of the world's population have access to television and radio services
To encourage the development of content and to put in place technical conditions in order to facilitate the presence and use of all world languages on the internet
To ensure that more than half the world’s inhabitants have access to ICTs within their reach.
Source: WSIS Geneva Plan of Action, para. 6: www.itu.int/wsis/docs/geneva/official/poa.html
The targets present two analytical challenges:
Firstly, they are imprecise. It is unclear what level of access/connectivity is intended (from a single telephone per village to widespread broadband deployment). This leaves them, effectively, non-measurable.
Secondly, they are of their time. The pace of change in ICT technology and usage is such that targets need regular revision to retain contemporary meaning. Recent mobile telephone access targets, for example, have been rapidly exceeded and required revision everywhere.
The institutional framework established by WSIS to monitor progress towards its targets has also been weak:
Action line meetings to review WSIS outcomes are held in Geneva each May. One session, coordinated by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), is concerned with “information and communication infrastructure: an essential foundation for an inclusive information society”. However, in practice, this enables information exchange rather than coordination of policy or implementation plans.
Overall review of WSIS implementation is undertaken by the UN Commission on Science and Technology for Development (CSTD). This also lacks any strategic role on infrastructure plans.
“Access” is a key theme of the annual Internet Governance Forum (IGF), established on the recommendation of WSIS. This meets annually, most recently in Rio de Janeiro in November 2007. It provides a forum for multi-stakeholder discussion about internet issues, including access, but has no decision-making powers.
The WSIS follow-up framework, in short, merely provides discussion fora. Global institutional activity in relation to access and connectivity is largely developed, as before WSIS, within individual institutions rather than in global fora, though there has been some increased coordination (see examples below).
Supply- and demand-side approaches to access
Much literature about access to ICTs, particularly from development banks and international financial institutions (IFIs), focuses on the supply side – especially the supply of large-scale infrastructure. This top-down approach reflects approaches in other infrastructure sectors such as power, transport and water. IFIs particularly emphasise the value of infrastructure in enabling economic growth at a macro-economic level.
Infrastructure is essential for access: without it, people cannot use the services that networks make available. However, meaningful access – at community or individual level – requires more than infrastructure. People also need the funds to afford access, the skills required to make use of services and equipment, and the availability of content which is of value to them. Broader understandings of access – more commonly found in literature from development agencies such as the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Canadian International Development Research Centre (IDRC) – stress demand-side factors which focus on enabling communities and empowering citizens.
The enabling policy and regulatory framework for communications is of concern to both IFIs and social development institutions. Strategies concerned with liberalisation and interconnection, for example, affect both the pace and nature of infrastructure deployment and the price and quality of services to end-users. Meaningful analysis of access therefore needs to consider both supply- and demand-side factorsandthe enabling framework which is created by governments and business. Since the 1980s, global institutions have emphasised this enabling framework while leaving financial investment largely to the private sector.
There is ongoing debate amongst global institutions about the relative importance of access to basic telephony and internet/broadband services in developing countries. The context for this debate has shifted significantly this past year, because of technological and market change.
The availability of voice telephony has been transformed during the last decade by the advent of mass mobile cellular markets. Until the late 1990s, there was a large and growing gap in access to voice telephony between industrial and developing countries. Fixed-line teledensity in highly industrial countries had reached over 90% of households, while in least developed countries (LDCs) it languished below 1%. Most telephone companies believed they could not recover fixed-network deployment costs in low-income communities, particularly in rural areas, and so networks were concentrated on urban areas and inter-urban routes.
The advent of mobile networks has changed the economics of communications infrastructure. Wireless networks are cheaper to deploy and have a lower proportion of fixed costs – making it possible to recover investment costs more quickly. Mobile voice networks have therefore been widely deployed in low-income countries, through private investment. Teledensities in much of Africa have now reached 25% or more. The GSM Association (GSMA) – the leading association of cellular mobile companies – believes mobile networks can cover 95% of the global population on commercial terms. The World Bank, too, expects 90% of Africans to be provided with telephony by commercial networks. The “digital divide” in voice telephony is therefore narrowing rapidly, with little financial involvement by IFIs or development agencies.
Global institutions disagree about the sufficiency of this rapid growth in voice telephony. Some have argued that rapid growth in access to telephony – which requires few skills for use and delivers rapid benefits to all – should be prioritised, and that internet access will develop organically from this. Others argue that the important “digital divide” between societies and communities depends on access to the internet and broadband networks, which offer greater economic and empowerment value and which should therefore be prioritised.
This institutional debate is important because it affects decisions about the need for financial investment, particularly the use of public or IFI/development agency funds, and the need for fixed as well as wireless access networks. The debate is also changing as technology and markets evolve:
On the supply side, past assumptions that expensive fixed networks are required to provide broadband access are being challenged by new wireless technologies like Wi-Fi and WiMAX.
On the demand side, the prevalence of mobile phone access vis-à-visfixed broadband networks suggests that most users in LDCs will gain internet experience through upgraded (third generation) mobile devices rather than fixed lines.
ICT businesses have responded more quickly to these technological and market changes than global institutions. Many businesses are now planning on the assumption that mass access to broadband in low-income countries will develop first through wireless, not fixed infrastructure. Global institutions are beginning to follow, but there is a need for sharper dialogue between ICT, funding agency and development professionals.
Infrastructure tiers
There are many ways of illustrating layers of ICT supply. Many readers will be familiar with the distinction commonly made between transport, services, terminal and content layers. Here, we are concerned with tiers within the transport (transmission or infrastructure) layer, of which three are particularly significant:
International infrastructure
Regional or national infrastructure
The local access network.
All three tiers are required for access to global telephony or internet to be available in a community.
Thequalityof access, in particular its bandwidth, will be primarily determined by the lowest quality amongst these tiers. For example, a high-bandwidth local access network which accesses the internet through low-bandwidth international infrastructure will provide low-bandwidth access to end-users.
Thecostof access, meanwhile, will depend on cumulative costs incurred. High-quality, affordable internet access will only be available to end-users if cheap, high-quality infrastructure is available in all three tiers. Data from 2006, for example, suggest that the average retail price for (generally lower quality) broadband access in sub-Saharan Africa was USD 366 per month, compared with between USD 6 and USD 44 for (generally higher quality) access in India (Williams, 2008).
Each tier poses different access and infrastructure challenges to policymakers in governments and global institutions. Some of the key issues are as follows.
The availability of international infrastructure varies greatly by geography. Very high traffic volumes can be conveyed by highly competitive submarine cable networks linking North America, Europe and the Pacific Rim, resulting in very low transit costs. Where submarine cables are non-competitive or non-existent (as in West and East Africa respectively), they offer much more limited (and so much slower) connectivity at much higher prices. Landlocked countries are also affected by the additional cost of cross-border connectivity to reach international cables, or the high cost and low capacity of satellite infrastructure.
The availability, cost and quality of regional and national “backbones” –high-capacity infrastructure between local access and international networks – also varies substantially. In industrial countries, there is typically competition between backbones owned by fixed and mobile service providers and other carriers selling wholesale network capacity. These backbones usually rely on fibre-optic cable, which offers high capacity, but whose deployment involves significant fixed costs which can only be recovered rapidly where there is high demand. In low-income countries, there is usually much less competition, resulting in higher costs to users. In some areas, especially Africa, lower-capacity microwave links provide much backbone infrastructure. In addition, regulations often require other service providers to use the incumbent operator’s backbone network or restrict the resale of capacity on mobile operators’ backbone networks.
In the past, telephone companies in developing countries assumed that demand in rural areas was insufficient to make (fixed) local access networks viable without subsidy. Recent private investment in (mobile cellular) networks suggests that only the remotest rural areas are commercially unviable, and universal access subsidies are now rarely needed for basic voice telephony. The economics of broadband networks are more challenging. There is therefore discussion in institutions about whether subsidies are required to facilitate higher-capacity fixed networks, and about the implications of possible broadband network monopolies.
The response of global institutions
The issues above raise questions for global institutions in two main areas:
The technology and financing of infrastructure deployment, which primarily determine theavailabilityof access.
The regulation of infrastructure and markets, which primarily determine theaffordabilityof access.
Since the early 1980s, global institutions have considered a willing private sector the primary source of investment for communications infrastructure, releasing IFI funds for more difficult infrastructure funding challenges like transport, power and water. This approach has seemed increasingly appropriate to them as wireless networks have been deployed, reaching much larger geographic areas and populations. Institutions have therefore focused on influencing policy and regulatory frameworks in order to encourage private investment and promote competition – in particular through liberalisation, the opening of markets to foreign investment and the removal of restrictions on the use of infrastructure and technology.
The scale of investment in ICT infrastructure in recent years is impressive. Between 1996 and 2006, some USD 23 billion was invested in telecommunications infrastructure in sub-Saharan Africa alone, the large majority by private sector telecommunications businesses. The geographic reach of telephone networks (in terms of the proportion of citizens enjoying access, public or private) has risen to 75% or more in many countries. The comparable 2006 figure for electric power – which has seen much greater public investment by IFIs and development agencies – was 40% or less.[1]Even higher levels of private investment are anticipated for the future. At the ITU’s Connect Africa conference (Rwanda, October 2007), the GSMA “committed” its members to investing a further USD 50 billion between 2007 and 2012, entirely on commercial terms (ITU, 2007).
IFIs will not normally invest where private investment is available. However, as noted above, recent years have seen debate about the relative economics and developmental value of basic telephony and internet/broadband services and networks. Two issues have been prominent:
While voice telephony may be commercially viable in almost all contexts, there will be some remote rural areas and small islands where it is not and where access infrastructure will require public investment or subsidy.
The range of areas in which internet/broadband access may not be commercially viable is likely to be higher than that for voice telephony, and will include many more low-income rural areas. This is especially so if fixed infrastructure is required for broadband.
This debate focused during WSIS on the work of a Task Force on Financial Mechanisms (TFFM). Key conclusions of the Task Force, which were adopted by WSIS, included agreement amongst global institutions that:
Investment in ICTs should come primarily from the private sector. Regulatory reform – including the promotion of liberalisation and open communications markets – should continue to be the foundation for institutional engagement with the sector.
Nevertheless, there was scope for more public-private partnerships and the creative use of short-term public funding for capital investment where commercial viability was uncertain or unlikely. This might include both remote rural areasandthe more general deployment of higher-capacity networks.
There might also be scope for public participation, alongside the private sector, in major infrastructure investments such as regional backbones.
Existing institutional funding mechanisms were sufficient to enable this additional investment. No new mechanisms were required.
The approach set out by the TFFM continues to provide the framework in which global institutions address access infrastructure. Their primary focus is on policy and regulatory reform.
However, some institutions also provide investment support where private finance is not sufficiently forthcoming. Since WSIS, this has led to some loosening of constraints on financial support for major infrastructure investments – for example, the International Finance Corporation’s support for the Eastern Africa Submarine Cable System (EASSy) cable and agreements between African nations and the European Union (EU) on future infrastructure investment. There has also been some cooperation between funding institutions. While institutional interventions are usually piecemeal and do not form part of a global strategy for access development or for the use of infrastructure in development, the following paragraphs briefly illustrate examples of current interventions.
The best-known instance concerns the deployment of fibre-optic cable along Africa’s east coast, the last major stretch of coastline without submarine cable access. For years before 2008, proposals to lay the EASSy cable, linking East African countries with South Africa and the Middle East (and thereby global cable networks), were mired in controversy. Amongst other things, there were fears that without appropriate regulatory intervention, EASSy’s owners (mostly state-owned fixed network operators) would charge monopoly prices for cable capacity to their competitors. The World Bank Group offered financial support for EASSy on condition that it adopted open access principles (see below). By the time EASSy resolved structural and management disputes in 2008, at least two competing private-sector-led initiatives were underway to lay alternative cables linking East Africa to global networks. These reflected new assessments of commercial viability and suggested that competition rather than institutional investment would stimulate new infrastructure.
The New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) initially saw EASSy as part of an institutionally led ICT Broadband Infrastructure Network for Africa. NEPAD’s e-Africa Commission has promoted this large-scale programme, which envisages undersea cables along the East African coast and beyond Africa as well as new cross-border regional backbone infrastructure designed to address capacity problems within the continent. Broadband infrastructure is treated as a “public good” in this proposal, with ownership of infrastructure separated from use and also subject to open access principles. NEPAD believes that a comprehensive approach like this will attract the best mix of institutional and private funding. However, the complex design, financial and management arrangements required have caused problems, including the loss of EASSy from the project.
Another poorly served region with a major infrastructure renewal plan is the Pacific, where small low-income populations are dispersed over very large areas of ocean. Here, a regionally agreed Pacific Plan Digital Strategy aims to address the access challenge by improving local access to ICTs, particularly in remote and rural areas; increasing international bandwidth; reducing costs; removing inappropriate regulation; and strengthening capacity to make use of ICTs (thereby increasing demand). The strategy includes both new international submarine infrastructure (to reduce international transit costs) and an Australian-funded satellite network to improve local access in remoter islands.
These examples involve institutional participation within mixed (public/private) funding structures. Although there has been some shift in international institutions’ thinking about financial engagement with ICT infrastructure, their primary approach continues to emphasise policy and regulatory reform. An important example of new thinking in this area can be found in a paper concerned with regional and national backbones, which was published by the World Bank and the associated ICT for development agencyinfoDev in August (Williams, 2008).
Wireless networks, which have low fixed costs and are readily scalable, are generally cheaper in the short and medium term where demand is relatively low. Fixed networks, with higher fixed costs, are generally cheaper in the medium and longer term where demand is high. This is as true of backbone networks as it is of local access networks. In most countries, core backbones have been implemented by fixed network incumbents, which have predominantly installed fixed (cable) infrastructure. In Africa, however, fixed networks were much less pervasive before the “mobile revolution”, and so most backbone capacity is owned by mobile operators rather than incumbents. Much of this mobile network backbone is made up of microwave rather than cable infrastructure.
The World Bank paper is consistent with established institutional thinking about access infrastructure in that its policy prescriptions rest on two complementary components: creating an enabling environment for competition, and stimulating roll-out in underserved areas. The Bank thinks it “likely” that some rural areas will continue to require public funding – through subsidies, shared infrastructure or incentives – but envisages most access challenges being addressed through measures to promote investment, stimulate downstream (service) competition, and reduce political and commercial risks.
The continued emphasis on policy and regulatory reform, and the relationship between ICTs and other infrastructure, are also well illustrated by the EU-Africa Infrastructure Trust Fund, agreed between the European and African Unions in 2007. This aims to support infrastructure development in energy, transport, water and communications. In the ICT context, it aims to “develop connections with continental and regional networks while opening up the telecommunications sector to competition for efficient and low-cost provision of ICT services.” In its first year, the Fund allocated EUR 109 million to initiatives, but only 5% of this, concerned with regulatory reform, addressed communications.
A final word in this context about community networks. There is interest in some development agencies in the possibility of building access outwards from remote or marginal communities, rather than relying on established national networks to overcome the access challenge. A number of examples of community networks have emerged, in both urban and rural areas, sponsored by local authorities or development agencies. Some of these are using new technologies such as Wi-Fi. Many have leveraged other funding sources, such as development finance for other infrastructure and/or volunteer labour, to reduce costs and so enable cost-effectiveness. Further research is needed on these initiatives, but they may provide a way of facilitating higher-quality affordable access in remote communities before this is likely to be offered by the mainstream communications sector.
Regulatory issues
The influence of regulatory choice on infrastructure deployment is considerable and much debated within global institutions, including the World Bank and ITU. Rapid changes in technology and markets mean that regulatory choices are inherently obsolescent. International institutions are exploring the regulatory opportunities of new technologies and network types (notably Wi-Fi and WiMAX), and of changing market demand, as part of their overall thinking about the industry.
Open access is one regulatory approach which has been backed, amongst others, by both the World Bank and by APC. Open access requires infrastructure owners to make downstream access to their networks available to competitors on non-discriminatory terms. It is particularly relevant where there are only one or two available routes which downstream network and service providers can use to connect customers to global networks, and where there is therefore a risk that owners of “bottleneck” facilities will extract monopoly prices which raise the cost of access to end-users. It has been an important issue in the debates about African submarine cable infrastructure.
Another example of regulatory impact on access and access prices arises from restrictions which some governments place on the wholesale market for backbone infrastructure. Where fixed networks are limited in geographical extent, the majority of national backbone infrastructure is likely to belong to mobile cellular companies. Regulations designed to protect fixed network incumbents sometimes prevent mobile operators from reselling capacity on their backbones. There may be similar constraints on the communications infrastructure owned by other utilities, such as electricity or rail operators (co-called “alternative infrastructure providers”). This not only results in underutilisation of infrastructure, but also acts as a disincentive to new network investment. Companies that cannot sell surplus capacity will tend to install less in the first place.
On the whole, global institutions believe that they can have greater impact on access outcomes by addressing regulatory constraints like these, and otherwise enabling competition – so unlocking private investment – than they can by investing funds directly in new communications infrastructure.
It is worth drawing attention, finally, to three new issues which are beginning to emerge.
The first concerns the interaction between different tiers of infrastructure, and the relationship between infrastructure and other factors influencing “real access” (such as user incomes and capabilities). The large majority of interventions by global institutions address only specific tiers of infrastructure (e.g., international connectivity or local networks) or particular aspects of the access challenge (such as the problem of high international bandwidth costs). Assumptions are often made about the relationship between different tiers of infrastructure (e.g., that lower international bandwidth prices will enable greater and more equitable local access). Likewise, assumptions are often made about the relationship between communications access and development outcomes which pay too little attention to the non-communications constraints in development contexts. At present, there is little holistic thinking in institutions’ approach to the communications market as a whole, or about the interactions between it and development.
The second issue concerns the integration of communications access with access to other infrastructure-based resources. Communities in developing countries which lack affordable communications access also typically lack affordable (or any) access to other network infrastructures (such as transport, clean water and electric power). Such communities are thereby multiply disadvantaged. Surprisingly, however, almost no country has structured its response to such infrastructural deficits by integrating different infrastructure deployments and so leveraging economies of scope and scale.[2]IFIs and other funders have been reluctant to take an integrated network approach, preferring to deal with funding proposals at a sectoral or programme, even project level. There is a growing sense among some observers that, here too, a lack of holistic thinking may be curtailing investment and costing synergies.
The third issue beginning to emerge in institutional thinking relates ICT access to climate change. This has two facets. On the one hand, the ITU and others argue that the use of ICTs – to manage productive processes, transport networks, etc. – will reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs). These potential carbon savings, however, require large-scale deployments of high-level technology in strategic locations such as factories and power plants. They will result, if they are achieved at all, from decisions taken within energy and industrial sectors other than communications. Increased access to ICTs itself, meanwhile, will substantially increase ICTs’ overall contribution to GHGs, from 0.83 gigatonnes per annum in 2007 to an estimated 1.43 gigatonnes per annum in 2020 – an increase of 6% a year – with emissions from developing countries rising from 0.38 to 0.80 gigatonnes per annum (GeSI, 2008). The environmental impact of increased ICT access was not significantly discussed before the 2007 Internet Governance Forum. Recent discussion – in publications by the ITU and the (industry-funded) Global e-Sustainability Initiative – is largely couched in terms of trade-offs between emissions due to increased access and carbon savings resulting from potential ICT use in other sectors. This seems likely to become a more important factor in global institutional thinking about ICTs as concern continues to mount about climate change.
Access to ICT services depends on a number of factors, including infrastructure, which are constrained in most developing countries. Global institutions continue to focus on policy and regulatory change, rather than direct investment, in addressing communications infrastructure deficits. Private sector investment remains high and is expected to continue to grow, with mobile communications businesses seeming increasingly likely to lead the provision of broadband access in low-income countries, as they previously led the provision of telephony.
There are important infrastructural challenges at international, national and local levels. Global institutions have shown somewhat more interest, since WSIS, in supporting and leveraging investment in areas which are difficult to serve (such as remote areas) or require high levels of capital investment (such as international cables and regional/national backbones), though their primary focus remains on policy and regulatory change. However, there is still relatively little thought given to the integration of different tiers of access infrastructure, to the integration of communications with other infrastructure, and to the relationship between infrastructure and development. More holistic understanding of access and more attention to the demand side of access supply – in particular, to usage requirements and experience – would help institutions play a more dynamic role in this area.
GeSI (Global e-Sustainability Initiative) and The Climate Group (2008)
SMART 2020: Enabling the Low Carbon Economy in the Information Age. Available at:www.gesi.org
ITU (International Telecommunication Union) (2003)WSIS Plan of Action.
Available at: www.itu.int/wsis/docs/geneva/official/poa.html
ITU (2007)Connect Africa Summit: Outcomes Report. Available at:www.itu.int/ITU-D/connect/africa/2007/finalreport.pdf
Williams, M. (2008)Broadband for Africa:Policy for Promoting the Development of Backbone Networks. World Bank andinfoDev.
Available at:www.infodev.org/en/Publication.526.html
World Bank (2007)Clean Energy for Development Investment Framework: The World Bank Group Action Plan.
Available at:siteresources.worldbank.org/DEVCOMMINT/Documentation/21289621/DC2007-0002(E)-CleanEnergy.pdf
[1]2 The World Bank (2007) says that only 25% of African households have “access to modern energy”.
[2]Mauritania is one of the few countries that have introduced an integrated universal access agency (APAUS), which seeks to integrate ICT investment with other rural needs.
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