bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Role of Outer-Membrane Vesicles in Intercellular Communication in Pseudomonas Aeruginosa
Authors:   , Russell Euan
Published: November 2021

Gram-negative bacteria produce outer-membrane vesicles (OMVs) that have biological roles ranging from biofilm formation, modulation of host-cell interactions & delivery of virulence factors. Several studies have shown a role for OMVs to act as intracellular signals to co-ordinate the behaviour of bacteria. This study showed OMVs generated at sub-lethal ciprofloxacin concentrations were capable of programming naïve P. aeruginosa cultures resulting in premature entry into stationary-phase and a significantly lower final culture density reached after 14 hrs. Pyoverdine production was also initiated after 6 hrs in cultures treated with OMVs.  Heat-inactivation of OMVs failed to impede OMV-mediated growth inhibition & pyoverdine production. Chloroform-disruption of OMVs prevented OMV-mediated growth inhibition but did not inhibit OMV-induced pyoverdine production. It is likely that these effects are mediated by multiple signals as opposed to a single mechanism. This suggests that a protein is not responsible for OMV-mediated growth inhibition and an intact OMV lipid bilayer is required. Induction of pyoverdine production is likely due to a lipid (such as a homo-serine lactone) or small molecule present within OMVs.  Preincubation with OMVs for 2-4 hrs resulted in a substantial decrease in the final culture density from cultures that were exposed to OMVs during the course of growth. This suggests that OMV fusion is capable of programming naïve bacteria to set a predetermined division limit on subsequent daughter cells. We coin this as the ‘Dayflick’ limit due to the similarities of the Hayflick limit in eukaryotic cells.  This shows that OMVs act as intercellular messaging vehicles between bacteria that communicate and program naïve bacteria to adapt to the environment under which they were generated in, aiding survival in harsh environments. Further study is needed to determine what OMV components are responsible for initiating these responses and to determine how long the programming is stable.
Engineering and Characterisation of Bacterial Phosphopantetheinyl Transferases and their Peptide Substrates
Authors:   , Sissons Jack Alexander
Published: November 2021

Throughout all domains of life, phosphopantetheinyl transferase (PPTase) enzymes catalyse a post-translational modification that is important in both primary and secondary metabolism; the transfer of a phosphopantetheine (PPant) group derived from Coenzyme A to specific protein domains within large, multi-modular biosynthetic enzymes, thereby activating each module for biosynthesis. The short peptide motif of the protein to which this group is attached is known as a ‘tag’, and can be fused to other proteins, making them also substrates for post-translational modification by a PPTase. Additionally, it has been demonstrated that PPTases can utilise a diverse range of CoA analogues, such as biotin-linked or click-chemistry capable CoA derivatives, as substrates for tag attachment. Together, these characteristics make post-translational modification by PPTases an attractive system for many different biotechnological applications. Perhaps the most significant application is in vivo and in vitro site-specific labelling of proteins, for which current technologies are hindered by cumbersome fusion protein requirements, toxicity of the process, or limited reporter groups that can be attached. Confoundingly, most PPTases exhibit a high degree of substrate promiscuity which limits the number of PPTase-tag pairs that can be used simultaneously, and therefore the number of protein targets that can be simultaneously labelled. To address this, directed evolution at a single gene level was used in an attempt to generate multiple PPTase variants that have non-overlapping tag specificity which have applications in orthogonal labelling. Furthermore, assays for the rapid identification, characterisation and evolution of short, novel peptide motifs that are recognised by PPTases has further diversified the labelling toolkit. These developments have enhanced the utility of the PPTase system and potentially have a wide range of applications in a number of fields.
“At least I have a house to live in”: Māori and Pacific young people’s hopes and fears about the future
Authors:   , Funaki Hine
Published: November 2021

Young people are often represented as the leaders of the next generation and much attention is given to the need for them to become more active participants in shaping the nation’s future. Over the years, education policy makers, health officials, government representatives in the criminal justice and welfare systems have sought ways of involving New Zealand’s youth more closely in civic society as they grapple with a daunting range of problems, many of which are likely to significantly worsen in the coming years. Despite these efforts, the views of some of the most economically and politically marginalised indigenous and/or racialized young people continue to be elusive and as a result a less nuanced understanding is available about how young people think about their lives in times ahead.  This study explores the hopes and fears that marginalised urban Māori and Pacific youth hold about the future and how they establish a sometimes fragile sense of belonging in precarious and uncertain times. In this project, Māori and Pacific young people were invited to discuss their aspirations and anxieties about the future and how these ideas are influenced by their everyday local ‘places’ in the present. Two participant groups were involved in the project; one included Māori youth in an urban centre where there were few opportunities for unemployed young people while the other group included Pacific youth living in a city area where many families experience high levels of economic hardship. The research tracks their views about who they are now as young people growing up in a complex and increasingly divided society and who they might become in the years ahead. Taking a place-based approach, focus groups and walk-along interviews were conducted in two New Zealand cities. As the study progressed, the participants began to talk about the significance of hope, and lack of hope, in their everyday lives. Drawing on the work of Paulo Freire, it is argued that informed hope can be a powerful humanizing force in young people’s lives and the study suggests that when youth have a strong foundation of hope and belonging, they are often capable of becoming active agents of social change.
New relationships between spherical and spheroidal harmonics and applications
Authors:   , Majic Matt
Published: November 2021

This thesis deals with solutions to Laplace's equation in 3D, finding new relationships between solutions, manipulating these to find new approaches to physical problems, and proposing a new class of solutions. We mainly consider spherical and prolate spheroidal geometry and their corresponding solutions - spherical and spheroidal solid harmonics. We first present new relationships between these, expressing for example spherical harmonics as a series of spheroidal harmonics. Similar relationships are known but we work with the spherical and spheroidal coordinate systems being offset from each other. We also propose a new class of solutions which we call logopoles which have many links with spherical and spheroidal harmonics, and are related to the potential created by simple finite line charge distributions. Through the logopoles we find another relationship between the spheroidal harmonics and the often discarded alternate spherical harmonics. Then we apply one of the new spherical-spheroidal harmonic relationships to problems involving a point charge/dipole outside a dielectric sphere. We find new solutions where the potential is expanded as a series of spheroidal harmonics instead of the standard spherical ones, and we show that the convergence is much faster. We also solve these problems with logopoles and the solutions converge even faster, although they are more complicated as they involve a combination of logopoles and spherical harmonics.
Training for volunteers - A multiple case study investigating the relationship between volunteer motivations and required training programmes
Authors:   , Daly Philip Ronald
Published: November 2021

This thesis reports on a multiple case study exploring the impact of required training programmes upon the motivations of new volunteers. The core research question is: How are the primary motivations of volunteers affected by the initial training that they are required to complete? Previous research has investigated the motivations of volunteers, and sought to measure the efficacy of volunteer training programmes. However there is little research investigating how volunteer motivations and volunteer training programmes influence each other.  Volunteers from two contrasting volunteer organisations were interviewed about their motivations to volunteer, experiences of the volunteer training, and any subsequent changes in motivation. Prior to these interviews the volunteers were given the Volunteers Function Inventory (VFI) questionnaire which measures volunteer motivations. The interview data was analysed using a six phase process of thematic analysis, and the motivational themes from this analysis were checked against the results of the VFI Questionnaire. The study found little difference in the overall motivations of volunteers between the two organisations, though there were differences in how these motivations were expressed within each organisation. Both sets of volunteers displayed high levels of altruistic and knowledge-based motivations, with the career motivation being the most variable, and age and stage of life appearing as a key moderator for the motivations. Volunteers appreciated training that they perceived as being relevant, and that utilised peer-learning, but both training programmes lacked the flexibility required to have a high level of relevance to a wide range of learning needs and motivations. Ultimately the motivations of the volunteers were improved by the training when they found that it either helped them to be more effective in their volunteer roles, or related well to their motivations for volunteering.
Courage, commitment and collaboration : notions of leadership in the New Zealand ECE 'Centres of Innovation'
Authors:   , Thornton Kate
Published: November 2021

Historically there has been a lack of recognition for, and research into, leadership in the New Zealand early childhood education sector. The Centres of Innovation (COI) programme provides a unique opportunity for research into effective leadership in quality services that can contribute to our knowledge and understanding of leadership in the sector as a whole. This study, exploring how leadership is defined and enacted in the COI, found that although not all educators were comfortable with being identified as leaders, individuals and the centres as a whole were demonstrating leadership in ways that fitted their service contexts. Leadership across the COI was characterised by courage, commitment and collaboration. The innovative approaches of the COI appear to be due in no small part to the collaborative centre cultures in which innovation is encouraged, educators feel valued and supported, and there is regular reflection and a commitment to continuous improvement . Those in leadership positions in the COI have promoted these collaborative cultures and through their example teacher leadership has been encouraged. The COI not only provide case studies of educative leadership (Meade, 2003a) but also case studies of learning communities. These learning communities include researchers and members of the wider community as well as the educators. Leadership as defined and enacted in the COI is a shared endeavour and this model of working collaboratively in a learning community towards a shared vision is one that the rest of the sector can learn from.
Situated literacy : a study of family literacy in Aotearoa/New Zealand
Authors:   , Smith Juliet Suzanne
Published: November 2021

This study investigated the family as a site for literacy. The theoretical approach is that all literacy is situated in a social context. Eleven parents were interviewed about literacy use and practices both in their families of origin and in their present families. The parents were from India, Sri Lanka, Tonga, Britain and Aotearoa/New Zealand. The study explored generational differences as well as aspects of diversity among the families. While there were similarities in the uses of literacy across the generations, diversity was evident in the differences in purpose between the Pakeha families and the others. For the Pakeha the purpose of reading was for pleasure while the other parents stressed the importance of reading for moral messages and guides to behaviour. Parents spoke more often about reading than about writing, they recalled favourite books, especially those by Enid Blyton, and reported stories they told their own children. It is suggested that teachers might explore their own literacy experiences to better understand the issues of both literacy and diversity.
Programme evaluation and educational policy development : an exploration
Authors:   , Jackman Patricia Helen
Published: November 2021

Programme evaluation in education began as a form of public inquiry and has developed into a tool for informing policy development. This process has accompanied the government's focus on outcomes rather than outputs and the current global demand for accountability. In recent years there has been an increase in the letting of contracts by the New Zealand Ministry of Education for the production of evidence to support educational policy and this has included the evaluation of programmes designed to improve teaching and raise student achievement.  The study reports the historical development of programme evaluation and the different schools of thought which have evolved. It outlines the management of formative programme evaluation within the Ministry of Education's Research Division and describes Rist's approach to policy making, used in the Numeracy Development Project. Two large-scale programmes, the Strengthening Education in Mangere/Otara (SEMO) Project and the Numeracy Development Project, are discussed as examples of initiatives involving programme evaluation. The results of both have informed policy and have been extended more widely. The relationship between research and programme evaluation is discussed with reference to the Performance-Based Research Fund.
The Clinical Utility of Genetic Risk Scores Following Myocardial Infarction
Authors:   , Northcott Hadley
Published: November 2021

Current risk assessment for the development of coronary artery disease (CAD) in an individual relies on a combination of clinical characteristics. These well-established CAD risk factors include consideration of age, gender, hypertension, dyslipidemia, diabetes, smoking and obesity. However there are a proportion of patients that experience an acute coronary syndrome (ACS) event despite being deemed as low risk based on the current New Zealand risk model. These patients present with an absence of the traditional risk factors, or they fall below the age threshold where CAD screening is initiated.  The lack of association with disease development and presence of the traditional risk factors in these patients has led to the hypothesis that genetics play a significant role in the etiology of their disease. The conduction of family-based hereditary studies has supported the hypothesis that CAD risk is associated with genetic markers. A method of analyzing this genetic risk has been developed in the form of calculating a genetic risk score (GRS). The GRS is comprised of a panel of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) discovered through genome wide association studies in CAD patients. Currently, there is controversy in the clinical utility of different GRS calculation methods, and as yet, there has been no research conducted on the potential benefits of a GRS in a New Zealand setting.  Our study measured genetic risk through a weighted GRS calculated from a 27 SNP panel in 420 patients in a New Zealand based population. In looking at whether we could determine a difference in GRS values between premature (young) MI patients and older control patients, we found that the mean GRS was not significantly elevated in the premature MI cohort (p = 0.156). However, in assessing GRS differences between ethnicities and in relation to specific risk factors we saw that mean GRS was higher in patients with a family history of coronary disease (p = 0.003), in Māori patients (p = 0.013) and in patients with fewer than 2 traditional risk features (p = 0.001). GRS was not associated with individual traditional risk factors, including dyslipidaemia, hypertension, diabetes, obesity or gender. Our results showed that genetic risk for CAD is identifiable with this GRS, and indicates that further research into ethnic differences and identifying genetic risk in young CAD patients with low traditional risk would provide interesting insights.
A New Zealand study of association between crime and the state of the economy
Authors:   , Xu Shuhan
Published: November 2021

The aim of this thesis is to investigate whether there are associations between economically motivated crimes and macroeconomic variables. Economically motivated crimes include burglary, fraud and theft. Non-traffic offences are used as the measurement of overall crime levels, and an association between non-traffic offences and macroeconomic variables is analysed as well. Forecasting the number of people charged with burglary, fraud, theft and non-traffic offences is another objective of this thesis. Association between economically motivated crimes and the unemployment rate is also analysed at a regional level.  Methods used in this thesis include Vector Autoregressive (VAR) models, Vector Error Correction Models (VECM) and Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) models. VECM and VAR models are used to produce Granger-Causality tests and impulse responses in order to summarise the associations between crimes and macroeconomic variables. All modelling methods are used to generate forecasts.  The conclusion from this thesis is that there are associations between crime and some macroeconomic variables at a national level. The biggest impact on crime is its own value in the past. The impact of macroeconomic variables is minor, and this makes the sign of the impact less important. In fact, the sign of the impact is hard to conclude because it moves between positive and negative in different periods. At a national level, the growth rate of unemployment causes the growth rate of burglary, theft and non-traffic charges. The association between unemployment and crime becomes insignificant once all macroeconomic variables are included. Overall, the growth rate of personal weekly average income or household debt and disposable income ratio (both measuring personal or household financial condition) causes an increase in the growth rate of burglary, theft and non-traffic charges. Movement of inflation causes an increase in the growth rate of fraud charges. At a regional level, growth in the unemployment rate causes an increase in theft charges in Auckland and Northland. In Nelson/Marlborough/West Coast, growth in the unemployment rate causes growth in burglary charges and vice versa. Growth in the unemployment rate causes growth in the rate of fraud charges, but this is found in Northland only. Forecasts produced by this study suggest that the number of people charged with burglary, theft, fraud and non-traffic offences will continue to decrease up until 2019, but at a lower rate of reduction.
Deliver Us From Evil: Morality's Ability to Divide and Conquer
Authors:   , Weinberg Elizabeth
Published: November 2021

At one point there was consensus that morality was solely based on matters of harm and justice. However, with advances in cultural and anthropological research, Haidt and Joseph (2004) proposed a more expansive approach to morality, known as the Moral Foundations Theory. This theory highlights five foundations: Harm/Care and Fairness/Equality (Individualizing foundations) and Ingroup/Loyalty, Authority/Respect, and Purity/Sanctity (Binding foundations). Established links between the five foundations and political ideologies have been made, as well as broad links with religious affiliation in a US context. Considerably less research has been conducted on these foundations outside of an American context. Due to New Zealand’s particular ethnic composition, multi-party electoral politics and electoral system, and relatively secular climate, it makes for an ideal setting to investigate moral foundations in the context of political and religious ideology. I sampled 354 New Zealand participants (a mixture of general population and students: 39.5% male, 57.1% females, 3.4% other) on moral foundations, political self-identification, religious ideology, and individual-level individualism and collectivism. Political identification and religious ideologies were correlated with morality as predicted, with more conservative political and religious ideology being associated more strongly with the Binding foundations and more liberal political ideology being associated more strongly with the Individualizing. Furthermore, results raise speculation that the vertical dimension of individual-level cultural affiliation may be a strong predictor of morality endorsement alongside collectivism. This study replicates the connection between political and religious ideology, and morality but also adds additional insight into these relationships.
The Wishbone Ridge at the Chatham Rise Intersection: Structural Characteristics and Tectonic Implications
Authors:   , Barrett Rachel
Published: November 2021

Geophysical data show that the West Wishbone Ridge, offshore of eastern New Zealand, is best described as having previously been a crustal transform fault, which first propagated along the eastern margin of the Hikurangi Plateau as subduction along the New Zealand sector of the Gondwana margin began to slow and reorientate between 105 and 101 Ma. Variation in the strike of the West Wishbone Ridge has resulted in contrasting compressional and extensional zones along the ridge. These regimes reflect the direction of strike offset from the direction of fault propagation, and constrain the sense of motion along the West Wishbone Ridge as having been dextral.  We find evidence that Cretaceous subduction along the Chatham Rise margin extended east of the margin offset at 174°W that marks the edge of Hikurangi Plateau subduction beneath the margin. Rotation of the Chatham Rise margin between 105 and 101 Ma was accommodated by westward broadening of the extensional zone of deformation associated with the West Wishbone Ridge near its intersection with the Chatham Rise. The amount of offset along the ridge indicates that significant transform motion along the West Wishbone Ridge south of ~40.5°S ceased ca. 101 Ma, coeval with the cessation of spreading of the Osbourn Trough, and of subduction of the Hikurangi Plateau.  Additionally, we find anomalously thick oceanic crust adjacent to the WWR and north of the Hikurangi Plateau (>12 km thick). This is attributed to the proximity of this crust to the Hikurangi Plateau Large Igneous Province.  The results of this study are based on seismic reflection and magnetic data recently collected during the 2016 R/V Sonne survey SO-246, as well as previously collected seismic reflection profiles and satellite gravity data.
A life cycle analysis of living: Measuring behaviour and the impact of dwelling rather than the dwelling alone
Authors:   , Bakshi Nilesh
Published: November 2021

This research addresses the need for a more sustainable way of living by arguing that the current approach to green architecture, limited by the current criteria, needs to be refined in response to the needs of the finite world. In comparison with earlier ways of living, modern society has a large dependence on technology. This dependence only further reinforces the overall detrimental environmental impacts of human behaviour. The original contribution to knowledge this thesis contributes is to establish the effect of behaviour on the total impact of a dwelling by measuring behaviour in the act of dwelling in New Zealand households.  The thesis maps human behaviour; first looking at global practices and raw materials extraction: and second New Zealand's interaction with the global market. The inherent relationship between manufacturing nations and countries like New Zealand entails an indirect link revealing how international policies can be influenced by the average New Zealand household.  By means of an in-depth life cycle assessment, approximately 400 households are examined to identify the embodied energy in the act of dwelling, including ownership of the various household items that use finite raw materials in both operation and manufacture. This research identifies the existence of crucial "Hidden Emissions" that are currently not considered in national and international CO₂ accounting methods. This research also identifies the links between appliance ownership, its usage and how these vary for different types of appliances.  The outcome of this research posits, first, a theoretical framework for establishing impact as a result of behaviour, dubbed the “Effect on Operation” formulae, making it possible to measure behaviour in total emissions and how this impacts climate change. Second, this work identifies key changes in both the energy generation sector and in household behaviour to meet current emissions reduction targets. The hypothetical reduction scenarios presented in this thesis identify the possibility of a prospective change in the relative importance of embodied energy when compared to the impact of operational energy. This reveals a possible future in which embodied energy may well account for over sixty per cent of total emissions associated with household behaviour, suggesting several avenues for further research.
Capture and Activation of Carbon Dioxide Using Guanidine Superbases
Authors:   , Bomann Grace
Published: November 2021

Due to its abundance and low-cost, carbon dioxide is a desirable C₁-building block within organic transformations. However, the thermodynamic and kinetic stability of CO₂ often necessitates preliminary activation before it can be inserted into organic molecules. This prompts the need for compounds that can effectively promote the activation of CO₂. This research investigates the capture and activation of carbon dioxide using a class of superbases that incorporate the bicyclic guanidine unit, 1,3,4,6,7,8-hexahydro-2H-pyrimido[1,2-a]-pyrimidine (hppH, 1). A series of compounds containing multiple hpp-units assembled around a phenyl ring scaffold were synthesized and investigated in the functionalization of CO₂. The work presented in this study has demonstrated the ability of protonated superbasic hppH derivatives to efficiently and effectively capture and activate carbon dioxide from ambient air to form the corresponding guanidinium bicarbonate salts. A series of optimization reactions was carried out, and showed that addition of substoichiometric concentrations of a proton source activates these guanidine compounds to their fully protonated cationic forms, and results in CO₂ capture through bicarbonate formation.  A series of protonation studies were employed to fully characterize the cationic species. The tetraphenylborate and hydrochloride guanidinium salts were synthesized, isolated, and characterized by ¹H NMR and ¹³C NMR spectroscopic analysis. Molecular structures of relevant crystals were obtained through single crystal X-ray diffraction. These structures revealed a complex hydrogen-bonding network within these ionic species, and showed efficient delocalization of the formal positive charge within the protonated guanidinium units.  The guanidine superbases were implemented in a series of reactions attempting the functionalization of CO₂ and an alcohol to form corresponding alkylcarbonate products. However, the synthesis of these carbonate products was not achieved under the reaction conditions employed. This lack of success has been attributed to the hygroscopic nature of this class of compounds, resulting in the preferential capture of ambient water.
Seeing Things Differently: The use of mobile app interpretation and its effect on visitor experience at two heritage sites in Aotearoa New Zealand
Authors:   , Aitken Jessica
Published: November 2021

The practice of contemporary heritage interpretation has seen increased investment in digital technologies and more recently in mobile applications. However, few empirical studies assess how effective mobile apps are to the visitor experience of heritage sites. What kind of visitor experience do mobile apps provide? How do mobile apps deliver on the aims of interpretation for heritage sites? What types of apps work best? What are the challenges for developers and heritage professionals?  A qualitative research approach is used to examine two case studies; High Street Stories: the life and times of Christchurch’s High Street Precinct and IPENZ Engineering Tours: Wellington Heritage Walking Tour. These case studies ask what kind of experience mobile apps offer as an interpretation tool at these heritage sites. To investigate the topic, email interviews were carried out with heritage professionals and digital developers; together with qualitative interviews with visitors recruited to visit the case study sites using the mobile applications.   This study explores two current examples of mobile app technology in the heritage sector in a New Zealand context. The results of this study aim to augment current literature on the topic of digital interpretation. This study seeks to offer heritage managers and interpreters some key factors to consider when making decisions regarding the methods used to present and interpret heritage sites to visitors and in developing new interpretation and digital strategies that include mobile applications. Although each scenario presents its particular set of considerations and all heritage sites are different, it is hoped these recommendations can be applied and offer working models and strategies.
Strengthening the Relational Trust between a Professional Leader and the Team
Authors:   , Alamani Brigitte
Published: November 2021

Relational trust is defined by Bryk and Schneider as the “connective tissue that binds individuals together to advance the education and welfare of students” (2003, p.44). It is the Professional Leader’s role to consciously look for ways to cultivate closeness within the team, as it is this trusting relationship with each other that provides the impetus for teachers to strive for optimal performance individually and collectively (Bloom, 2003). The aim of this research was to discover what leadership conceptual understandings and practices would help strengthen the relational trust between a Professional Leader and the team. This research took form of a case study within an interpretive paradigm. Data were collected from four different sources – two online surveys, professional conversations, four observations and anecdotes from a personal journal. Findings revealed five key attributes that were important for a Professional Leader to have in order to strengthen their relational trust with the team. These are: communication, active listening, availability/approachability, accountability and consistency. Several recommendations for three stakeholders arise from this study – for centre owners/managers, for the Ministry of Education and the Education Council, and finally, for researchers.
Megarons and Minoan Hall Systems: A Comparison of the Large Hall Systems in Minoan and Mycenaean Architecture
Authors:   , Teahan Melanie
Published: November 2021

Scholarship comparing the Minoan Hall System with the Mycenaean ‘megaron’ has in general emphasized either the similarities or differences between the two types of suite. Early archaeological literature tends to equate the two suites, with scholars such as Joseph Hazzidakis (Hazzidakis 1934:16-17) suggesting that the differences between the two can be explained by differences in climate between Crete and mainland Greece. On the other hand, in more recent scholarship, the two forms are distanced from one another, in effect polarizing the two architectural forms. Comparisons such as these tend to imply that the form of both types of hall system is very regular, with each suite likely hosting the same function as the next.  In order to study the similarities and differences between the Minoan Hall System and Mycenaean ‘megaron’, 27 Minoan hall systems and 15 megaron-units have been analysed and compared. These hall systems will be compared in their form, in the way they were incorporated into the surrounding building, and in the features they incorporate. To discuss how the hall systems were incorporated into buildings, Space Syntax Analysis will be used alongside a typology of access and circulation developed by Miriam Clinton (2013) for Minoan architecture. The climate-controlling features of open-air spaces, pier and door partitions and hearths will also be discussed.  A close examination of a wide variety of Minoan Hall Systems and Mycenaean ‘megarons’ shows that both forms differed considerably from site to site. Within each architectural form are examples of vastly different sizes, which are incorporated into buildings in very different ways. It is likely, therefore, that these buildings would have functioned in different ways. With this wide variation, it is unsurprising, therefore, that in comparison while some Minoan Hall Systems and Mycenaean ‘megarons’ are very different, others are very similar. It is likely that the functions of some of these more standard hall systems may have overlapped. An examination of the climate-controlling features of open-air spaces, pier and door partitions and hearths reveals that Minoan Hall Systems and Mycenaean ‘megarons’ likely did not differ primarily based on differences in climate. Though these features would have certainly been used for climate control, it will be shown that they likely had some other significance. Finally, from this comparison some tentative and broad conclusions about the possible functions of the two types of hall system have been drawn.
"Where the Nightmares End and Real-Life Begins": Radical Unreliability in Sydney Bridge Upside Down
Authors:   , Clayton Hamish
Published: November 2021

The unreliable narrator is one of the most contested concepts in narrative theory. While critical debates have been heated, they have tended to foreground that the problem of the unreliable narrator is epistemological rather than ontological: it is agreed that narrators can be unreliable in their accounts, but not how the unreliable narrator ought to be defined, nor even how readers can be expected in all certainty to find a narration unreliable. As the wider critical discourse has looked to tighten its collective understanding of what constitutes unreliability and how readers understand and negotiate unreliable narration, previously divided views have begun to be reconciled on the understanding that, rather than deferring to either an implied author or reader, textual signals themselves might be better understood as the most fundamental markers of unreliability. Consequently, taxonomies of unreliable narration based on exacting textual evidence have been developed and are now widely held as indispensable.   This thesis argues that while such taxonomies do indeed bring greater interpretive clarity to instances of unreliable narration, they also risk the assumption that with the right critical apparatus in place, even the most challenging unreliable narrators can, in the end, be reliably read. Countering the assumption are rare but telling examples of narrators whose reliability the reader might have reason to suspect, but whose unreliability cannot be reliably or precisely ascertained. With recourse to David Ballantyne’s Sydney Bridge Upside Down, this thesis proposes new terminological distinctions to account for instances of such radical unreliability: namely the ‘unsecured narrator’, whose account is therefore an ‘insecure narration’.  Ballantyne’s novel, published in 1968, has not received sustained critical attention to date, though it has been acclaimed by a small number of influential critics and writers in Ballantyne’s native New Zealand. This thesis argues that the novel’s long history of neglect is tied to the complexities of its radically unreliable narration. With social realism the dominant mode in New Zealand literature from the 1930s to the 60s, the obligation of the writer to accurately render—and critique—local conditions with mimetic accuracy was considered paramount. Even those critics to have argued the novel’s importance often maintain, largely or in part, a social realist view of the book’s significance. Doing so, however, fundamentally elides the complexity of the novel’s narrative machinery and to deeply ironic ends: for, this thesis argues, Sydney Bridge Upside Down deploys its insecure narration as a complaint against the limits of social realism practised in New Zealand. Its unsecured narrator, Harry Baird, slyly overhauls realist reference points with overtly Gothic markers and cunning temporal dislocations to thus turn social realism’s desire for social critique back on itself via radical unreliability.
Living in the 'liveable' city: Housing, Neighbourhood, and Transport Preferences in New Zealand cities
Authors:   , Holmes Frederick
Published: November 2021

This thesis investigates preferences for housing, neighbourhoods, and transport in Auckland, New Zealand, supplemented by a comparison with similar research in Wellington and Hamilton. The topic is significant for New Zealand as there is an increasingly urban population, and the interconnected areas of urban form and transport can help the country reduce carbon emissions and provide a healthier, more enjoyable lifestyle for its people. The influence of residents’ preferences and their relationship with urban form on achieving compact city development is investigated.  Historical and current planning rules and policies provide context for an analysis of how urban planning, preferences, and location and travel choices interact. Auckland’s housing and transport policies show a pattern of path dependency: decisions favouring greenfield development, sprawling low-density suburbs, and car-centred transport have driven subsequent investments and influenced the ease of using alternative transport modes. Such rules have also reduced the availability of housing in accessible, medium- to high-density neighbourhoods and may have contributed to the rising costs of this type of housing.  A stated choice survey of 3,285 Auckland households was conducted to investigate the extent to which there is an unmet demand for compact development and alternatives to car travel.  Using the survey results, a multinomial latent class model was developed to examine the preferences of households and the trade-offs they may be willing to make when choosing where to live. This type of model allows for identification of preference groups as a means of understanding the heterogeneity of preferences across the population. There was an unmet demand for accessible, medium-density housing, with some households willing to trade off dwelling size and neighbourhood type for higher accessibility or lower prices. The study also found that more people currently drive than would prefer to, with long journey times, safety concerns, unreliable services, and a lack of infrastructure acting as barriers to active and public transport. Households preferring low density are more likely to occupy their preferred dwelling type and be able to use their preferred transport mode. In contrast, those preferring high accessibility or driven by price are more likely to experience a mismatch between their preferred and current dwelling type, and are less likely to be able to use their preferred transport mode.
Making Meaning Together: Heritage site management and new approaches to meaning-making
Authors:   , Jemmett Cindy
Published: November 2021

This dissertation looks at how those who manage and interpret heritage sites are incorporating into their practice, new thinking about the way visitors make meaning. Recent research has emphasised visitors' agency, and drawn attention to the cultural and political work of heritage performance. The ways visitors use emotion and imagination has also received greater attention. Rather than heritage value as intrinsic to sites, and best identified by the professional, recent theoretical understandings position visitors as active co-creators of heritage. How these new ideas might be applied in practice, and how organisations could most productively share authority for meaning-making, has not been sufficiently addressed. This research positions itself in that gap, and seeks to contribute to a conversation about how theory translates to practice.  The Department of Conservation (DOC) was selected as an information-rich case study. At the time of research, the Department was in its third and final phase of new policy work that places greater emphasis on working in collaboration with others. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with four DOC staff from across a range of roles. A further three interviews were undertaken with DOC partners and a contractor connected with sites discussed by DOC interviewees.  The findings show that while heritage managers accept that visitors will make a variety of meanings at a site, they do not currently have a robust understanding of the meanings their visitors are making; of what they think and feel, and what a visit to the site really means to them. Only recently has getting this knowledge really appeared a priority, and organisations are still working out how best to collect this data, and how it could then inform their practice. This lack of understanding has inhibited practitioners' ability to respond to visitors, and to recognise the cultural work they do. When it came to partnerships, organisations were more invested in both understanding and responding to the other party. In some cases, they were willing to add to or modify their own ideas about what the value of the heritage was, or what stories it could be used to tell. A flexible and reflexive practice is advocated, in which organisations are clear about their own goals, recognise and engage with the meanings visitors and partners make, and are open to the possibility of being changed themselves in the process.
Death, A Notion
Authors:   , Loft Holly
Published: November 2021

Contemporary Western society has all but abolished the need for a formal grieving process with death becoming an avoided, feared, and shameful topic. In a brutal revolution from the omnipresent death of the past, death is now unfamiliar and displaced. An all-consuming society rushing to beat mortality by finding new ways to extend one’s lifespan, becoming increasingly secularised and refusing to permit the ugliness of death within the collective happiness of today’s society. This results in places for remembrance and acceptance becoming scarce, with silence and stillness becoming confused and conflicted with the noise of cars and footsteps. Therefore the void between life and death grows larger, increasing in depth and stature as awareness fades.  This thesis raises the question of interior design and architecture as a key participant in the discussion of death in contemporary western society. The fractured relationship between death, bereavement and society is analysed in order to establish how societal attitudes and the perception of death has shifted. More precisely the research explores the specificity of an interior spatial design needed to assist the grieving process associated with the loss of a loved one, both at an individual level, and as a collective experience thereby seeking to create a plane of resonance between the land of the living and the obverse, the land of the dead.
Masterton Playscapes - Connecting children with landscapes through interventions and design processes
Authors:   , Erasmus Emma
Published: November 2021

This thesis investigates the importance of connecting children to the landscape through creating child led designs. It explores the process undertaken when designing with children and shows how unconventional spaces called playscapes can benefit a child further than a standard playground. This thesis is taking place as research shows that too many children are spending time indoors, away from their outside environment. The disconnect has led to obvious developmental deficiencies within younger children which have, in turn, led to educational, social and physical problems as the child grows. The problem not only affects the household but the whole community as these children grow.  For this thesis, the research context situated in Masterton, Wairarapa, two hours from Wellington City, due to the increasing growth within the Wairarapa region. Masterton has already recognised the issues surrounding under-developed children however there has been no move in creating a playscape specifically for them.  The main theory is to show a process where children are directly involved in the design and how their input can pave the way for a beneficial playscape, giving another dimension to the designed space as adult’s imagination becomes warped with the constructs of reality and the sense of play diminishes. This process will use several workshops to understand how a child works and invite them to create spaces and interventions that reflect their idea of play. Combined with design, these spaces became a collaboration of the children’s outcomes as well as a space that can create connections between the past, present and future generations.  Throughout this thesis, a link to children will establish itself with the aim to create a landscape that children can relate to and grow through advancing their development. Through the environmental connection, the design will bring the children back to their ancestry and understand the relationship to the landscape that their ancestors had whether Maori or European.
Moving forward: Future proofing stilt home interiors while incorporating cultural identity
Authors:   , Meng Vety
Published: November 2021

Kampong Cham is a province in Cambodia that is prone to annual flooding. This affects many families and causes damage and displacement of households every year. This research aims to offer a design solution that enables families to prepare for, endure and mitigate damage during the rainy season while incorporating traditional and cultural features.  A site visit was undertaken to allow for qualitative and quantitative data to be gathered, as was ongoing investigation into Cambodia’s traditions and culture in order to understand what is important to the families in this province.  An iterative design process was pursued and a final design concept that seeks solutions and has considered the many issues is presented. The design endeavours to mitigate flood damage and provide a living environment to which families can relate. In addition, it aims to improve the living standards within Cambodia through cost-effective design and materials.
Convex Optimization for Distributed Acoustic Beamforming
Authors:   , Jellyman Dayle Raymond
Published: November 2021

Beamforming filter optimization can be performed over a distributed wireless sensor network, but the output calculation remains either centralized or linked in time to the weights optimization. We propose a distributed method for calculating the beamformer output which is independent of the filter optimization. The new method trades a small decrease in signal to noise performance for a large decrease in transmission power. Background is given on distributed convex optimization and acoustic beamforming. The new model is described with analysis of its behaviour under independent noise. Simulation results demonstrate the desirable properties of the new model in comparison with centralized output computation.