Direction road signs: a new factor in our relationship to territory (1 tabl., 5 fig.)
Direction road signs have become a significant junction between contemporary motorisation and the evolution of our territorial perceptions. The occurrence of place names, their association with each other on direction signs, and the location of these signs on the ground contribute to the subliminal shaping of new mental maps. This creates an original dynamic based on two superimposed levels of perception: the objective structure on the ground and road users experiences. The focus is on the different toponymic relationship experienced by a motorist depending on whether he drives on an ordinary road or a motorway to complete the same journey.
keywords: CAR USE, ROAD SIGNS, MENTAL MAPS, TERRITORY
Aircraft noise, a factor in the revelation and construction of territories (1 tabl., 1 fig.)
By exerting zonal pressure, aircraft noise can distort the living space of whole communities and local dynamics. During the evaluation of the social cost of aircraft noise near Orly airport, we looked at the role of specific territorial features in the way the neighbouring communities experience this noise, and then in the spatial perceptions and practices that ensue from this specific experience. A methodological procedure was organised in three stages: in-depth interviews, a survey and focus groups with residents near the airport. The results show the influence of a sense of belonging to a particular place on the demarcation of the geographical perimeter of noise pollution. They also show how the experience of aircraft noise could in turn, by shaping practices and perceptions of the space, foster local identity in tension with the symbolism of territorial, social and political otherness conveyed by the object «aircraft noise».
keywords: INTERDISCIPLINARY, NOISE, PERCEPTIONS, PRACTICES, SENSE OF BELONGING, TERRITORY
Cécile TANNIER. Three models for improving knowledge of urban retail location dynamics (5 fig.)
Three models are proposed to offer a better understanding of urban retail location dynamics. Each corresponds to one step in a methodological progression, the presentation of which is the central concern of this paper. The first step consists in modelling the general processes behind urban retail location patterns. The second step identifies the main retail location rules and defines the structure of the third model. Whereas the results of the two first steps are mainly conceptual, the mathematical nature of the last model allows for simulations.
keywords: LOCATION, MODELLING, RETAIL, SIMULATION, URBAN DYNAMICS
From working-class to trendy: Oberkampf or the emergence of a centrality of leisure in Paris (3 fig., 4 photos)
The rue Oberkampf is in east Paris (11th arrondissement). Once a working-class district, it is now a lively street whose name extends beyond the areas it polarises: in a decade, Oberkampf has become a fashionable area that attracts large numbers of young Parisians. The streetscape is as composite as the social practices played out there, between proximity and centrality of leisure. Through these different dimensions of the street and their evolution, it is interesting to consider both the recomposition of centrality and the meaning of places in a large city today.
keywords: CENTRALITY, INTRA-URBAN, LEISURE, PERCEPTION, PLACE, PUBLIC SPACE, STREET, URBAN PRACTICE
Jean-Louis MAIGROT. Rural depopulation, farm management and evolution of ecosystems. The example of the Langres and Châtillon plateaux (1 tabl., 3 fig., 3 photos)
In France, the contrast between the repellent «isolated» rural world and the rest of the country is sharpening. In villages that are shrinking to hamlets, farmers are becoming fewer in number and more isolated, precisely when they are being called on in addition to producing food to maintain the physical environment. Paradoxically, it is where population densities are the lowest that the cultivated ecosystem seems to be the best kept. As a consequence, the «isolated» rural space can be likened to a desert, but a farming desert. Put in perspective over several centuries, these increasingly stark demographic contrasts and the accompanying territorial fragmentation in fact reflect profound transformation on a similar scale to the High Middle Ages. Travelling over the plateaux of eastern France, we observe the local effects of this general change: redefinition of natural aptitudes and appearance of new «fragile» environments; homogenisation of the physical environment at its lowest cultivated level and «geometrisation» of the landscape; change in the contact between ager and sylva (farm and forest ecosystems) and disappearance of saltus (grazing land).
keywords: FRAGMENTATION, INTERSTITIAL SPACE, ISOLATED RURAL AREAS, SALTUS
Cédric GAUCHEREL. Use of indicators for characterising catchment areas (2 tabl., 6 fig.)
The concept of indicator can often be a way around the difficulty of measuring a physical parameter and is extremely useful for the spatial characterisation of catchment areas. A review of the indicators used to date has led to an arbitrary classification based on the four spatio-temporal dimensions of this geographical object. Indicators are particularly useful for modelling a catchment area, assessing the risk of flooding, determining water quality or simply characterising the catchment area for a later comparison. This paper presents an example of the catchment areas of the Guyana Plateau and concludes with methodological recommendations for expanding the use of these indicators, on the interface between hydrology, geography and remote sensing.
keywords: CATCHMENT AREA, CHARACTERISATION, INDICATOR, RIVER SYSTEM
Book reviews
In this issue of l’Espace géographique, you will find critical reviews of the following books
AURÉGAN P. (2001). Des récits et des hommes, Terre humaine: un autre regard sur les sciences de lhomme.Paris: Plon/Nathan Université, coll. «Terre humaine». (Claude Bataillon)
CAMBRÉZY Luc (2001). Réfugiés et exilés, crises des sociétés, crise des territoires. Yverdon-les- Nains: Éditions des archives contemporaines, 216 p. (Benoît Antheaume)
CARO Patrice, DARD Olivier et DUMAS Jean-Claude, dir. (2002). La Politique daménagement du territoire. Racines, logiques et résultats. Rennes: Presses universitaires de Rennes, coll. «Espace et territoires», 360 p. (Antoine Bailly)
ROSEMBERG M. (2000). Le Marketing urbain en question. Paris: Anthropos, collection «Villes». (Bernard Debarbieux)
PRÉVÔT-SCHAPIRA M.-F., RIVIÈRE DARC H., dir. (2001). Les Territoires de lÉtat-nation en Amérique latine. À Claude Bataillon. Paris: IHEAL éditions. (Sébastien Velut)
Cédérom SA Explorer, Municipal Demarcation Board (2002), site Internet www.demarcation.org.za (Céline Vacchiani-Marcuzzo)
L’espace géographique 2/03
L’espace géographique 4/03
For subscribe or buy this issue: BELIN
L’Espace géographique: contents
Last modified: September 30, 2003