Malcolm Parry

SKIN TEMPERATURE AND MOTORCYCLISTS' BRAKING PERFORMANCE

16 male and 12 female students who had previous experience with hand-operated lever-braking systems performed braking tests with their hands at normal temperatures (mean hand temperatures 27.8°C) and with their hands cooled to give finger temperatures of 6°C and back of hand temperatures of 14°C. Tasks required subjects, in response to a visual stimulus of a red light, to extend their digits to grip a motorcycle brake and pull it on. Reduced times were measured for (a) responding to the stimulus by grabbing the brake lever and pulling it to full braking pressure in the hydraulic system, (b) extending the digits, and (c) flexing the digits and pulling on the brake. In each case conditions produced a significant decrement in performance. This effect may occur when riding a motorcycle with cold hands, a common occurrence in Northern Europe.

The Surrey Research Park: A Case Study of Strategic Planning for Economic Development

The development of the Surrey Research Park by the University of Surrey is an addition to a number of existing strategies to collaborate with industry that it has developed over its 120-year history. The potential to undertake this development was based on owning a substantial land holding that the University acquired when the Borough Council for the town of Guildford invited the University to relocate from Battersea in London to its new location in 1966. Initial plans for the Park in 1979 were accelerated in 1981 in response to plans by the government to reduce funding for Higher Education in the UK. Beyond a broad master plan for the site that was based on topography and access to the site the plans that were developed were based on a survey of 100 companies that were deemed to be in the target market for the site and a review of the other seven science parks that were being developed in the UK in 1981. The findings from this proved to be important in developing the master plan for the site. Another important influence on the project were the objectives that were defined for the three stakeholders in the project. Those for the University included commercial potential, knowledge transfer and image and reputation; those for the town primarily related to economic development and the plan was to help tenants gain a competitive advantage by locating on the site. In addition a number of success indicators were defined for the project against which to measure performance and have remained as a useful set of parameters on which to base the assessment of the performance of the site. The chapter sets details about the history of the park and covers the success indicators and factors and reviews these in the context of the original objectives for the site.

The Role of Science Parks in the Process of Innovation

There has been a wide public debate on the international stage about the importance of innovation in wealth creation and maintaining a competitive edge in the global market. Those that have participated in this debate in the UK include the initiative Business in the Community, The Government Department of Trade and Industry, (the DTI), such organisations as the Royal Society, The Committee of Vice Chancellors and Principals and my own University, The University of Surrey that in its own right has created an annual public lecture on Innovation.