Preparing the Boys for War Compulsion or Coercion? Physical Education and Training, 1919-1939
Post 1919 saw an emerging organisation of national resources as anticipation of a potential second major war became more widespread. One prime resource was the youth of the nation – and much was achieved through massive investment in physical activity. This paper demonstrates how – through the mechanisms of sport, physical education and outdoor activities – such changing perceptions initiated major developments in schools from curricula to the establishment of school medical services. Evidence is collated from academic research, personal testimonies and records of schools. In the past the widespread view was that fascist and communist states coerced their young men, whilst UK developments were purely voluntary. This paper seeks to challenge that, demonstrating that whilst UK changes might not have been overly directed by law, the full machinery of the state was extensively and actively involved in changing attitudes, beliefs and pursuits.
Building a British Superman: Physical Culture in Interwar Britain
The celebration of the 'body beautiful' in the 1920s and 1930s is commonly associated with fascist Italy or nazi Germany. Focusing on the physical culture movement, this article argues that the endeavour to build a 'superman' was not confined to fascist dictatorships or Britain's small fascist parties. The physical culture movement played an important role in cementing the link between manliness, physical fitness and patriotism in interwar Britain. Stimulated by the Edwardian 'national efficiency' campaign, physical culturalists represented physical fitness as an obligation of citizenship and a patriotic response to the needs of the British Empire. This aspiration acquired a renewed sense of urgency after the first world war. Despite a penchant for rituals and displays which some might read as fascist, the relationship between fascism and the physical culture movement was complex and contested. During the early 1930s, some physical culturalists championed fascist leaders and ideology and parts of the physical culture press moved to the extreme right. The effort to align British physical culturalists with fascism was unsuccessful, however, and in the late 1930s the physical culture press backed the centre-right National Government which launched a National Fitness Campaign in the face of a growing threat from nazi Germany.
Frequency distributions of the mixing height over an urban area from SODAR data
The height of the mixing-layer (MLH) is an important parameter in the assessment of the dilution of primarily emitted or secondarily formed air pollutants in the atmospheric boundary-layer. A continuous measurement of MLH is possible only by remote sensing. Here, 17 months of SODAR data have been analysed automatically to derive the MLH over the city of Hannover in Northern Germany. In contrast to earlier studies the MLH has been determined from vertical profiles of the acoustic backscatter intensity and from the variance of the vertical velocity component. The results are presented in form of monthly frequency distributions and mean daily courses of MLH. These statistical evaluations of MLH show a clear annual course and interannual variability. The study shows the possibility to derive meaningful climatological information from long-term SODAR measurements for air quality issues.