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The seismic vulnerability assessment of historical buildings is usually a very complex task because of the large number of uncertainties in the characterization of their structural behaviour. The unique structural configurations, the adoption of old construction techniques and the presence of stratified structural modifications occurred over the centuries make the definition of an appropriate and reliable numerical model very challenging. The available analysis approaches distinguish the local response of selected macro elements from the global response of the structure. The problem of discriminating if the investigated structure shows a global behaviour or a local response has been often reported in the literature. However, the definition of a quantitative measure to discriminate the global modes from the local ones and, in the latter case, the associated macro elements, is currently missing. The Modal Assurance Criterion is a vector correlation index frequently used in experimental dynamics to quantify the similarity of mode shapes. In the present paper, it is used to define an original and quantitative approach to the discrimination between local and global modes. Results of application of the proposed procedure to an explanatory case study are reported, pointing out how the proposed method can guide towards the selection of the most appropriate analysis method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Across the years numerous scholars have manifested an avid interest in local church life. Hundreds of books at test to the breadth and depth of this continuing academic interest. The particular focus of this article, however, is quite narrow and specialized, bringing into critical review a segment of the literature. The paper concerns itself mainly with the variety of churches appearing in the urban environment. Several impressions arise from this brief survey of literature on urban church typology. Most scholars acknowledge the ethnic heterogeneity of the city environment and the difficulties inherent for religious work. Indeed some writers actually utilize the ethnic factor as a basis for church types. Moreover, there is a general recognition of urban heterogeneity in economic and cultural characteristics. Several authors utilize economic levels as a basis for church differentiation. Experts agree that different types of Church work actually do exist in the city. Hence, undoubtedly a typology of some kind is necessary and inevitable.

In certain Christian denominations in North America, as church officials cope with shrinking and aging congregations, opportunities to repurpose church properties have come to the fore. Understood within an urban planning context, churches provide solutions to challenges faced by municipal sustainability planners, infill developers, and social housing providers. The following commentary focuses on Anglican and United Church activists in Ottawa, Ontario and their accomplishments in drawing attention to the possibilities for simultaneously rejuvenating churches, congregations and neighbourhoods. This paper spotlights an emerging social phenomenon: faith-based redevelopment of urban church properties, a topic not yet fully explored in the academic literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The global surface temperature shows an increment of 0.5±0.1°C per decade and 1.05±0.3°C per century from 1880-2014 with greater increases in cities than non-urban areas. Global communities are shifting towards urbanization due to various factors. Urbanization has caused lack of stable condition for dwellers due to environmental and anthropogenic factors such as land cover changes. Urban temperature rising is the main factors hindering urban dwellers at global level due to insufficient green areas. Social institutions are playing important role in urban greening and urban climate regulation. Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church has long history in indigenous trees biodiversity conservation that plays largely greening role in urban and rural parts of the country. However, there is a research gap in Ethiopia regarding the role of urban green area in the church yards in regulating urban temperature and microclimate change. Therefore, the study evaluated the role of church managed forests in Addis Ababa in regulating surface temperature. Surface temperature inside four church forests at a buffer radius of 0-50 m, 50-100 m, 100-200 m and 200-500 m estimated using Landsat image thermal band 6 of 1986, 2000 and 2010 and ground measurement by ambient thermometer at 10:00 am, 12:30 am and 3:00 pm local time. The ground measurement was done in order to validate satellite image analysis. Plant species diversity, DBH, H, HC, BH and BA was measured. There were 1167 trees in the four studied churches. The mean temperatures of the studied sites were 22.5±0.1, 23.25±0.2, 24±0.6, 24.6±1.1 and 25.5±2.2°C on site,0-50 m, 50-100 m, 100-200m and 200-500 m respectively for 1986 images; 23.2±0.5, 23.3±1.0, 24.3±2.1, 24.8±2.2 and 25.5±1.8°C on site, 0-50 m, 50-100 m, 100-200 m and 200-500 m respectively for 2000 images and 23.2±0.3, 23.27±0.2, 23.7±1.6, 24±1.4 and 24.7±1.3°C on site, 0-50 m, 50-100 m, 100-200 m and 200-500 m respectively for 2010 images. The result illustrated a significant influence of green area on urban temperature in the buffering radius and implies the possibility of regulating urban temperature by planning urban green area in appropriate radius intervals. The study indicated that church forests in particular, social institution and urban green area in general have significant role in urban temperature regulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents information on articles and dissertations related to sociology of urban churches, published in different issues of the journal "Review of Religious Research." A topic concentrating on religion and revolutionary beliefs, entitled "Religion and Revolutionary Beliefs: Sociological and Historical Dimensions in Max Weber's Work," distinguishes between Weber's developmental theory of modern revolutionary beliefs and his sociology of ideological virtuosi and of social marginality. Another article "The Sociology of Urban Protestantism According to Harlan Paul Douglass," is delimited to urban Protestantism. It explores a segment of the corpus in terms of themes involving church-community research, a typology of urban churches, and the Protestant church as a social institution. Another topic examines the theology of salvation implicit within the evangelistic message of Billy Graham. By stressing soteriology, adequate weight can be given Graham's self-understanding as an evangelist.

The article investigates on the hypothesis that religious ritual performs different functions for different classes within an urban American Negro population, while at the same time performing a function common to the entire class and one that is also common to all members of the particular denomination or sect with which the individual church is identified. In attempting to determine the relation of ritual and general church behavior in urban Negro churches to the part of the society in which these churches function, primarily exploration has been conducted for the church's function in the social adjustment of groups of persons. Sermons, prayers, songs and behavior have been used in studying ceremonials and beliefs of types of communicants representing class and economic differences in urban Negro life. Forty churches in Chicago which had the densest Negro population were selected for the study; the selection being made so as to give the necessary distribution as to location, size, denomination, type of ritual, and social class of communicant.