The broad aim of this thesis is to investigate whether the regulatory environment in an urban setting can be utilized to nurture appropriate urban forms. The word 'form' here includes both physical characteristics, and the use of the resultant urban artifacts and spaces by people. The thesis argues that appropriateness and 'good fit' in urban form can be best addressed through an understanding of the common denominator which organizes urban life, i.e. urban meaning perceived as a shared sensibility. In search of this elusive and somewhat nebulous sensibility, a redefinition of the word 'vernacular' has been broached and developed as the pivotal theoretical construct. Consequently, the conception of a contemporary urban vernacular has formed a daunting preoccupation, and this has been further expanded to include the delineation of urban 'types' which evolve, mature, and differentiate, influenced greatly by the processes of control and change. As Nelson Goodman notes,'. . .knowing cannot be exclusively or even primarily a matter of determining what is true. Discovery often amounts to finding a fit.' He goes on to add that this fit is a result not of belief but of the advancement of understanding. 2 This thesis will attempt to develop an understanding of peoples' relationship with their city environment, with the eventual object of enhancing the fit between urban vernacular 'types' and control mechanisms which regulate them. In almost any city, especially those of the third world, urban form is an outcome of processes, both within and outside of institutionalized regulatory mechanisms. This is, in turn, a result of the complex interplay of social, economic and political forces. It is beyond the scope of this thesis to address these issues comprehensively. Therefore the focus will be on developing an approach which relates urban vernacular types, to the issues of attitude and lifestyle, the mechanics of control, the articulation of roles and tasks within society, as they are expressed through the built form. I have tried to illustrate some of the arguments developed in the first part of this thesis through a case analysis of an urban vernacular type in Delhi, the capital of India. An initial foray has also been made to develop a method for field research in urban vernaculars. The hypothesis forwarded is that by understanding the nature of socio-politico-administrative control, i.e. the formal regulatory framework, the informal processes and tacit conventions and vernacular types (people and places), as well as the relationship between the two, it is possible to arrive at an effective orientation for regulation which could nurture appropriate urban forms that would be supportive crucibles for living. Thesis Supervisor: John deMonchaux Title: Dean, School of Architecture and Planning. 1 'regulatory environment', as it is used here, includes the assemblage of governmental action and other measures taken by public institutions, which are either restrictive or enabling, to define the establishment's perception of appropriateness in urban form. 2 Goodman, Indianapolis 1978.

Interpreting a contemporary urban vernacular for cities : --the case of Delhi

The question of whether a plausible case for native title in radio spectrum exists in Australia is not yet fully understood. The relevant literature is lacking in both breadth and depth. To date, no case has been developed and tested in the courts. Subsequently this thesis examined whether a plausible case could be constructed that demonstrates native title in radio spectrum in Australia. This thesis proposed that native title exists in radio spectrum, but is yet to be proven in Australian law; particularly when considerations are given to impediments as represented by the current government and by the current structure of native title legislation and its processes. Since there was a scarcity of available literature on the concept of native title in radio spectrum, and the fact that there was no relevant precedent that existed in Australian law, a comparative study of Maori rights in radio spectrum in New Zealand was undertaken to a) provide both an initial reference point for Indigenous Australians to consider if they were to pursue native title in radio spectrum, and b) to gauge the applicability of the Maori experience to the legislative conditions currently facing Indigenous Australians who might wish to express native title rights in radio spectrum. Eventually, the findings of this thesis support the existence of native title in radio spectrum; however, this cannot be expressed at the present time. Consequently, Indigenous Australians are strongly encouraged to pursue this issue with an enduring view to achieve economic and wider parity enjoyed by other Australians.

Claiming thin air: is there a case for native title in radio spectrum?

Experience, advice and ideas, all useful and confirmed by actual examples, can be found in each chapter. Thus we can regard it as a text-book for surgeons, physicians, social workers and others who work with the crippled and help to solve their problems. All this makes the book worth reading. Its humaneness and the strength of man’s will revealed in it can help the reader and encourage him in his work.

J. Riby-Williams

Papers

SOCIAL CHANGE: THE COLONIAL SITUATION edited by Immanuel Wellerstein. Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1966. Pp. 674. $9.50: