bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Loose Space Lexicon: Design Tactics for Facilitating Appropriation in Urban Gaps
Authors:   , Bangs Matthew
Published: November 2021

Wellington has an underlying network of ‘leftover’ (Cupers and Miessen) spaces awaiting activation. Their potential is masked by the deterministic view cast upon them by the wider architectural discipline. However, there has been a recent shift in thinking from a ‘top-down’ approach to one that realises the potential of what exists already – ‘from the ground up’ (Kahn). This thesis explores a tactical application of ‘Loose Space’ qualities in an effort to engage in and increase the appropriability of the individual gap. Ultimately, a set of tactics will be developed that have the potential to be applied to gaps within various contexts.
The independence of trustees
Authors:   , Cope Hannah Marie
Published: November 2021

This paper considers the concept of independence and how it applies to various types of trustees in an effort to assist more trustees to avoid the risks involved in being a trustee. There is also a practical aspect to this paper to offer assistance to professional trustees to achieve higher levels of independence.
The role of dopamine D₂ receptor mechanisms in the development of MDMA sensitisation
Authors:   , van de Wetering Ross
Published: November 2021

Rationale. ±3, 4-methelynedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is the primary psychoactive ingredient of the increasingly popular recreational street drug, ecstasy. As with other drugs of abuse, repeated intermitted exposure to MDMA can lead to an increase in the subsequent behavioural effects of the drug. This phenomenon, termed behavioural sensitisation, has been attributed to sensitisation of central DAergic mechanisms considered to underlie several aspects of addiction.  Objectives. The purpose of the present research was to investigate the role of DA D₂ receptor mechanisms in the development of MDMA sensitisation and the acquisition of MDMA self-administration in rats.  Methods. Rats received daily i.p. injections of the selective D₂ antagonist, eticlopride (0.0, 0.05, 0.3 mg/kg), prior to injections of MDMA (0.0, 10.0 mg/kg) for five days. Two days following the final pre-treatment session, the locomotor activating effects of MDMA (5 mg/kg, i.p.) were determined. Another group of rats were surgically implanted with i.v. jugular catheters before undergoing the same pre-treatment regimen. Two days following the final pre-treatment session, these rats were subsequently tested for acquisition of MDMA self-administration. The locomotor activating effects of MDMA (5 mg/kg i.p.) were determined two days following the last self-administration session.  Results. Pre-treatment with MDMA enhanced the locomotor activating effects of MDMA and facilitated the acquisition of MDMA self-administration, as evidenced by an increased likelihood to meet an acquisition criterion. Co-administration of eticlopride during pre-treatment completely blocked the development of sensitisation to MDMA-produced hyperactivity but failed to significantly attenuate the facilitation of MDMA self-administration. Interestingly, pre-treatment with eticlopride alone also facilitated the acquisition of self-administration. MDMA self-administration failed to alter MDMA-produced locomotor hyperactivity.  Conclusions. These findings suggest that repeated activation of DA D₂ receptors is required for the development of sensitisation to MDMA-produced hyperactivity but not for the development of sensitisation to MDMA-produced reinforcement. D₂ receptor mechanisms evidently play some role, however, because repeated exposure to eticlopride also facilitated MDMA self-administration. It is suggested that both sensitised DAergic mechanisms and desensitised 5-HTergic mechanisms contribute to the acquisition of MDMA self-administration.
The effect of binge-like ethanol exposure on adolescent performance in non-spatial and spatial forms of the novel object recognition paradigm
Authors:   , Collins Miriam
Published: November 2021

Previous research has demonstrated that ethanol produces differential effects on non-spatial or recognition memory and spatial memory; spatial memory deficits were consistently found to be more persistent than non-spatial memory deficits. Ethanol-produced deficits have also been found to be dependent on age at exposure, and exposure during adolescence produced more persistent deficits than when exposure was experienced by older subjects.  The current study investigated the effects of a “binge-like’ 5 day episode of ethanol exposure (1.0g/kg x 5) on performance in non-spatial and spatial forms of the novel object recognition (NOR) task. Subjects were exposed either during adolescence or following maturity. Tests were conducted 2 or 9 days following exposure. NOR was tested following inter-trial intervals of 1, 3, or 5 minutes. Data from mature rats could not be obtained or analysed due to procedural issues that precluded NOR measurement. Control rats failed to demonstrate NOR at any of the time intervals. Reasons for these negative findings are discussed.
Water Dependency and Livelihoods of Rice Farmers in Doung Khpos commune, Cambodia
Authors:   , Cheng Chansereiyut
Published: November 2021

Although the livelihoods of the households in Doung Khpos commune are encompassed of different strategies, the dominant one is rice farming. The main water sources for rice farming in Doung Khpos commune are rainwater and canals, both of which are constrained by either seasonality or functionality. With unreliable water supplies for rice farming and frequent drought, water dependent livelihoods are exposed to higher threats.  Due to the non-availability and unpredictability of rainwater, the lack of water in the canals or the water commodification, some rice farmers were not able to grow rice all year round. The household income was reported to decrease; meanwhile some households had to borrow money to cover the household expenses. Some rice farmers coped with the household financial shortages by reducing the amount of food intake or asked the children to help with income generating activities which inevitably force them to skip or quit school. The growth and development of children could be impacted owing to the household economic insufficiency.  The majority of the rice farmers did not have solutions to cope with the water challenges for rice farming. With limited coping mechanism or capacity to deal with frequent flood and drought, in conjunction with no support in relation to water for rice farming from any stakeholders, the vulnerability of the rice farmers in Doung Khpos commune is high.  Improved water management, capacity building to the local community on climate change adaptation and disaster preparedness and water governance, are believed to enhance the livelihoods of the rice farmers in Doung Khpos commune.
A Sordid Chronicle of Outer Suburbia
Authors:   , Dooley Ashton
Published: November 2021

A reflection on worldly trends arouses the question as to what new attributes our Earth will manifest in the next 85 years by 2100. What effects have we wrought in a lifetime of procreation, consumption and production? With the continual expansion of our population, the sprawling and polluting, reports are depicting a negative future as the climate continues to alter. The effects of this change is most critical for those bound by coastal edges as the sea rises to claim what is now usable land. This thesis looks at one such area, Wellington, New Zealand. The city is dictated by the sea and sprawl inland is not a resolute solution.  This thesis proposes that a sea-based kinetic suburb can improve upon the sordid living conditions predicted for 2100 through adaptive and responsive design. By exploring a vision of the year 2100 that has been defined by the implications of excessive suburban sprawl, in alignment with extreme environmental conditions, this thesis proposes how coastal bound communities can survive in anthropogenic aftermath. It argues that with mobile apartment towers suited to the ocean, socialisation and connectivity within a suburban area can be increased whilst still resisting new climatic demands. This research offers informed insight into the future evolution of living in considering both past and present trends; defining a new chapter for suburbia and a typology that is more flexible and convivial.
Autonomous Operation and Human-Robot Interaction on an Indoor Mobile Robot
Authors:   , Robinson Callum
Published: November 2021

MARVIN (Mobile Autonomous Robotic Vehicle for Indoor Navigation) was once the flagship of Victoria University’s mobile robotic fleet. However, over the years MARVIN has become obsolete. This thesis continues the redevelopment of MARVIN, transforming it into a fully autonomous research platform for human-robot interaction (HRI). MARVIN utilises a Segway RMP, a self balancing mobility platform. This provides agile locomotion, but increases sensor processing complexity due to its dynamic pitch. MARVIN’s existing sensing systems (including a laser rangefinder and ultrasonic sensors) are augmented with tactile sensors and a Microsoft Kinect v2 RGB-D camera for 3D sensing. This allows the detection of the obstacles often found in MARVIN’s unmodified office-like operating environment. These sensors are processed using novel techniques to account for the Segway’s dynamic pitch. A newly developed navigation stack takes the processed sensor data to facilitate localisation, obstacle detection and motion planning. MARVIN’s inherited humanoid robotic torso is augmented with a touch screen and voice interface, enabling HRI. MARVIN’s HRI capabilities are demonstrated by implementing it as a robotic guide. This implementation is evaluated through a usability study and found to be successful. Through evaluations of MARVIN’s locomotion, sensing, localisation and motion planning systems, in addition to the usability study, MARVIN is found to be capable of both autonomous navigation and engaging HRI. These developed features open a diverse range of research directions and HRI tasks that MARVIN can be used to explore.
Studies in New Zealand Oligocene and Miocene Plant Macrofossils
Authors:   , Holden Aline Mary
Published: November 2021

Assemblages of fossil leaves ranging in age from Upper Oligocene to Upper Miocene or Lower Pliocene have been examined from localities in Southland, Central Otago, the Dunedin area, the Buller region and Great Barrier Island. Nearly 200 form taxa have been recognized so far; of these 52 are figured and described and the remainder are included in an illustrated catalogue. Conifers, Casuarinaceae and Nothofagus spp. are discussed in detail.  Thirteen new species are named and described: Gleichenia southlandica, Hypolepis maruiensis, Blechnum maruiense, Dacrydium (Lagarostrobos) franklinoides, Microcachrys imbricata, Phyllocladus strictus, Libocedrus compressa, Nothofagus southlandica, Gymnostoma stellata, Gymnostoma crassa, Casuarina avenacea, Metrosideros diffusoides and ? Eucalyptus roxburghiensis. Six new species are described but not named as more detailed study is still proceeding. A further ten new form taxa are identified to genus level only.  The fossil flora from the Kaikorai Valley, Dunedin, originally described by Oliver (1936) is revised and Blechnum proceroides, Nothofagus pinnata, N. australis, N. kaikoraiensis and Ripogonum latipetiolatum are new names arising from this revision.  The fossil assemblages from Southland and Central Otago are derived from heath, swamp and forest communities developed on an early to mid Tertiary peneplain. In contrast the fossil floras of the Buller region reflect predominantly forest vegetation developed on young soils of a prograding coastal floodplain backed by rapidly rising fault block ranges, while the fossil floras of Dunedin and Great Barrier Island reflect vegetation periodically affected by volcanic activity. Late Oligocene and Miocene climates throughout New Zealand appear to have been humid and at least as warn as Auckland today, although conditions on the east coast of the South Island may have been cooler and drier than on the west.  The sediment containing the Landslip Hill fossil flora is interpreted as a silcrete and resembles similar deposits in Australia. The uncompressed state of the fossils and the preservation of turgid cell structures indicates early silica cementation in a surface or near-surface environment, probably as a result of direct precipitation of silica from ground water.  The present-day New Zealand flora appears to be derived in part from the late Cretaceous flora of coastal eastern Gondwanaland. Other south-west Pacific floras may stare a similar origin, and may also have contributed to the New Zealand flora following fragmentation of the continental margin.  The distribution of New Zealand Tertiary plants, as far as it is known, is consistent with my inferred paleogeography.
Case Examination of Teacher-Tailored Student Evaluation of Teaching Augmented with Peer Observation of Teaching in a Vietnamese University
Authors:   , Nguyen Phuong
Published: November 2021

This study explored how teacher-tailored student evaluation of teaching (TT-SET) augmented with peer observation of teaching (POT) impacted on academics’ pedagogical reasoning in a Vietnamese university. The qualitative case study within the constructivist paradigm used multiple data collection methods. Detailed analysis developed findings through descriptions of individual academics’ experience of the intervention and analysis across participants (using thematic analysis).  The intervention encouraged academics to reflect on their practice. This reflection promoted changes in their understandings of practice, actions to refine practice, future plans, and other outcomes (e.g., enhanced confidence, self-efficacy, sense of autonomy, and collegiality). However, there were several challenges which varied among the participants, including perceiving TT-SET as lacking reliability and validity, limited learning from junior peers, disagreement with feedback and lack of sensitivity, and limited time for POT and changes. The findings also suggested that among other factors, the nature of the peer relationship, which is under the impact of the Vietnamese Confucian collectivist culture, was important to successful implementation of the intervention. The theoretical framework developed for this study helps explain the changes in academics’ pedagogical reasoning, particularly reflection.  The study contributes to the area of tertiary teacher development, both theoretically and practically. It offers insights into how such an approach may be effective, particularly in the context of Vietnamese higher education, and provides guidance for both practice and policies. It identifies what needs to be done to improve the implementation of the intervention. It also offers ideas for leaders to make institutional policies to support academics’ professional learning and development. Its findings contribute to understanding how the intervention works, and why it works in the Vietnamese context and also of academics’ reflection and reflective practice.  The study includes recommendations for the use of TT-SET augmented with POT for promoting teacher reflection that may lead to changes in practice by addressing necessary conditions for the intervention to be effective. Further research is recommended into the nature of the peer relationship and the characteristics of the peer for POT (e.g., in terms of age, experience, gender, and discipline), the impact of contextual factors, the role of leaders in creating the culture of the learning community, the timing of the intervention, and the use of students’ learning outcomes to evaluate the effectiveness of changes.
Paths to the Market: Distribution Channels for Community-Based Tourism. A Case Study of Banteay Chhmar CBT, Cambodia
Authors:   , Nhem Sochea
Published: November 2021

This study is to investigate the structure of distribution channels for community-based tourism (CBT) in Banteay Chhmar commune. It explores the factors influencing the distribution channel structure and then examines and discusses the implications of these factors as a means to help improve CBT sales. This study takes both the demand and supply side perspectives into account in order to understand the issues being investigated more comprehensively. Taking a case study approach, this study is based on in-depth interviews with the community and other relevant key channel members, and a survey is employed to collect information from visitors to the community.   The examination of the distribution channel structure for CBT reveals considerable channel diversity. The Banteay Chhmar community is found to utilize a distribution mix which includes a wide range of both direct and indirect channels to enable them to reach broader markets. The findings suggest that the CBT direct distribution channel is relatively short and straightforward while the indirect distribution channels are rather diverse and lengthy. Given the diversity of intermediaries involved, indirect distribution channels for the CBT are complex and often multi-levelled. The majority of visitors who travel to the community purchase their packages through ground travel operators making indirect distribution more prevalent in the CBT distribution structure.   The study also reveals that there is very limited connection among local channel members, such as, accommodation providers, transportation service providers and souvenir shops. This limitation inhibits CBT product sales. Regarding the domestic market, (mainly school groups), the findings show that the direct channel is more prevalent.  There are a number of factors that influence the structure of the distribution channels for CBT. These include commissionable products, product characteristics and market access, information communication and technology, partnership issues and the nature of the operators, capacity issues, and lastly, but most importantly market trends.   This study identifies several implications for the Banteay Chhmar community. However, growth (increased sales volume), looks promising if the community develop sound distribution strategies and implement them accordingly; essentially bringing the community and the market together. In addition, the strategies could also help the community to have more control over the development process and opportunity to minimize adverse impacts.
Identifying Human Host Cell Protein Targets of the Bartonella Effector Protein (Bep) Fic Domains
Authors:   , Trounson Vaughan
Published: November 2021

The genus Bartonellae represents an increasing number of emerging bacterial pathogens that utilises an unusual infection strategy, parasitising the red blood cells of their mammalian host. The most common species to infect humans are B. henselae and B. quintana. B. henselae is transmitted between cats by the cat flea, although occasionally infects humans via cat scratches or bites, causing cat-scratch disease (CSD). CSD is characterised by enlarged tender lymph nodes and fever. B. henselae also infects the endothelial cells of both its hosts; likely a factor in disease progression. B. quintana, the cause of trench fever during WWI, is spread people by the body louse. Trench fever is characterised by relapsing fever, headache, and bone pain. B. quintana is also able to infect human endothelial cells. These bacteria secrete a range of Bartonella effector proteins (Beps) via a Type IV secretion system, directly into endothelial cells, subverting host cell processes and resulting in internalisation of the bacteria.  Beps have a range of functions, many of which are not fully characterised. B. henselae secretes three Beps (BepA-C) that contain a filamentation induced by cAMP (Fic) domain and a Bartonella Intracellular Delivery (BID) domain, with BepA being the best studied. BepA’s BID domain is responsible for intracellular delivery as well as inhibition of apoptosis by the host cell, however the exact function of the Fic domain remains unknown. Fic-containing bacterial toxins catalyse the transfer of an AMP moiety from ATP onto a host cell protein. This AMPylation frequently inactivates these proteins resulting in disrupted host cell processes and cytotoxicity. BepA has previously been shown to possess AMPylation activity, although the host target protein(s) are unknown. Evidence suggests that these proteins are novel targets.  The aim of this study was to create protein constructs containing these Fic domains, and to develop techniques to identify the host cell target proteins post AMPylation. To this end, both a fluorescent ATP analogue and a fluorescent click chemistry based approach were utilised. While no target protein was identified, a basic methodology was developed for protein production and target protein identification that could be further developed.
State of Flux: Rescuing Nelson's Waterfront
Authors:   , Macquet Jason
Published: November 2021

The neglected coastal edge of the port landscape has left behind unreceptive scars on the city’s urban fabric. These prominent locations are pivotal links between coastal towns and the sea; they are currently in very poor condition.¹ This thesis explores a site with these characteristics, Nelson, nestled between the Southern Alps at the top of New Zealand’s South Island. The compact and intimate geography of the Nelson region is surrounded by the ocean; with the city growing central to its port. Due to the once thriving local exports and industrial trade the port hastily expanded, the inevitable decline of the industrial era has resulted in a landscape of disregard which has distanced the city from the water. These neglected waterfront locations now taint the pristine image of the Nelson Haven.  This thesis examines how a carefully considered architectural design can reintegrate this pivotal location back into the city’s urban fabric while reinforcing the relationship between the people of Nelson and the water. This design-led research utilises the sport of rowing with its link to the water as the catalyst to reconnect the people of Nelson to the waterfront and the water itself.  This design-led thesis employs the ideologies of atmospheric experiences to materialise the importance of water to sense of place. This is achieved by exploiting the atmospheric experiences of material, space and time through an architectural dialogue with the water’s duality. The Nelson Haven experiences vast tidal movements which forms the foundations for the experience observed at the interface of architecture and water. This thesis further argues that this framework of architectural experience has the potential to serve as a catalyst project to rejuvenate and reintegrate the city of Nelson with its prime waterfront location.  ¹ “Rutherford & Trafalgar Parks & Maitai Walkway” Nelson City Council. accessed July 15, 2015. http://nelson.govt.nz/assets/Leisure/Downloads/R-and-T-parks-redevelopment.pdf.
The Evolution of Evolutionary Explanations of Culture: How and Why Can a Critical Evaluation of Costly Signalling Theory Enhance Our Understanding of Cultural Practices?
Authors:   , Searfoss Amy Elizabeth Robertson
Published: November 2021

In the last two decades, evolutionary explanations of cultural practice have become prevalent within the social sciences and humanities, including religious studies. This thesis is a critical analysis and recension of one of these applications of evolutionary theory to cultural practice. Specifically, I analyse a secondary case study to investigate the explanatory power and politico-ethical considerations that arise from the application of costly signalling theory to Māori tā moko. Utilising primary and secondary source materials, this research was conducted within an interpretivist and inductive qualitative framework with the aim of offering a reflexive critique of the explanatory power that costly signalling theory carries for tā moko and, more broadly, of the illustrative efficacy of evolutionary explanations when applied to indigenous cultural practices.  In a critique of the Cisco case study, I identify some of the more general, global deficiencies of evolutionary explanations of culture and explore the rich, indigenous narrative complexes which shape understandings of Māori tā moko. I maintain that the argument for moko as a costly signal, based, in part, upon Māori warfare is a reiteration of mythologised aspects of Māori culture which divorces tā moko from its ontological and epistemological underpinnings. In separating it from its Māori context, the reflexivity of tā moko is denied and Westernised and colonised conceptions of tā moko which etically view Māori cultural practice through a veil of alterity are perpetuated.  In response to the concerns the application of costly signalling theory to tā moko generates, I propose an alternative model: transmissive assemblage. Drawing from actor-network theory, indigenous ontological perspectivism, and Kaupapa Māori, the transmissive assemblage model provides a symmetrical and decolonised framework which both challenges and enhances the dominant Western scientific paradigms used to explain indigenous practices. By focussing on the interactions between agents and the associations which circulate between them, rather than on the agents themselves, this integrative model makes an original contribution to scholarship in allowing the emergence of heteroglossia and by providing a balanced platform for indigenous voices and emic perspectives to be represented in the context of Western scientific research. In doing so, I argue that integrative, reflexive, and decolonised approaches to indigenous cultural practice which focus on process, as opposed to agency, enhance the explanatory power of evolutionary explanations by affording indigenous groups the opportunity to assert their own agency within the paradigm of Western science.
Eye-Movement does not reduce ratings of vividness and emotionality or the number of intrusive thoughts of unpleasant memories: Implications for Eye-Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR)
Authors:   , Arnott-Steel Nicholas
Published: November 2021

Eye-Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a psychotherapy that incorporates the use of saccadic Eye-Movements (EM) to alleviate distress caused by traumatic memories. Although EMDR is recognised as a front-line treatment for individuals suffering from Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), the mechanisms underlying the efficacy of the EM component remain a point of contention. The aim of the current research was to investigate first, whether EM reduced ratings of memory vividness and emotionality by taxing Working Memory (WM) capacity, and second, to examine whether EM lowered the number of intrusive thoughts under two opposing suppression conditions. In two experiments, 244 non-clinical participants were asked to recall an unpleasant memory while simultaneously engaging in fast-EM, slow-EM or a no-EM control. Participants then received an instruction to intentionally avoid thinking about the memory, or to think about whatever came to mind. Relative to no-EM, fast-EM and slow-EM had no significant effect on vividness and emotionality ratings, nor did they influence the number of intrusive thoughts. In addition, the level of suppression intent had no impact on memory outcomes. Overall, the results from these two experiments oppose earlier findings in support of WM theory, and a significant body of research that has demonstrated the efficacy of the EM component. Implications for the EM component in EMDR are discussed, and an alternative explanation for EM is offered.
Investigating the modulation of methylphenidate’s effects on impulsivity by fluoxetine
Authors:   , Chittenden Rosemary
Published: November 2021

The co-prescribing of methylphenidate (MPH) and a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor for patients presenting co-morbidly with both attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder and depression or anxiety is in some cases recommended. Little research has been conducted on the specific cognitive and behavioural outcomes of this. Studies with rats have shown that SSRI’s potentiate MPH-induced dopamine release in the pre-frontal cortex, hippocampus and nucleus accumbens, as well as enhancing MPH-induced hyper-locomotion (Borycz, Zapata, Quiroz, Volkow, & Ferré, 2008; Weikop, Yoshitake, & Kehr, 2007b). Impulsivity is a behavioural construct with dissociable sub-types, of which one, ‘action restraint’, has been consistently shown to be associated with increased dopamine activity in the mesolimbic system, including the nucleus accumbens. It was hypothesised that rats would make more ‘no-go’ errors in a Go/No-Go task, indicative of an increase in ‘action restraint’ type impulsivity, when co-administered fluoxetine (FLX) and MPH compared to either drug administered alone. Although this was not shown in the current study, tentative evidence was found to suggest that the combination of these drugs may negatively impact on attention, based on a decrease in ‘go’ accuracy. A second subtype of impulsivity, “action cancellation”, was tested using a new variant of the Stop-Signal Reaction Time (SSRT) task that we have developed for rats. Studies show that this subtype of impulsivity seems to be unaffected by changes in dopamine activity, but is improved by increases in norepinephrine. In the Weikop study mentioned above, the SSRI citalopram enhanced not only MPH-induced dopamine release, but also norepinephrine release in the nucleus accumbens. Thus it was hypothesised that FLX may potentiate MPH’s impulsivity-reducing effects as measured by stopping latency in the SSRT. We were not able to show this in the current study, however the demonstration that lower doses of MPH reduced stopping latency, consistent with previous versions of the SSRT, validated the new version developed for the current study. A final experiment revealed a rapid, short-term increase in locomotor activity when rats were co-administered FLX and MPH, an effect not present when either drug was administered singly. This synergistic effect replicates previous findings, and indicates a potentiation of dopamine release in the nucleus accumbens, as was found in previous studies. Although FLX was not found to moderate MPH’s effects on impulsivity in the current study, synergistic effects of the two drugs were effects were found on motor activity and potentially on attention also. This is an indication of the value of further research into specific behavioural and cognitive process that may be affected by co-administration of MPH and an SSRI.
Clustering and Classification in Fisheries
Authors:   , Fujita Yuki
Published: November 2021

This goal of this research is to investigate associations between presences of fish species, space, and time in a selected set of areas in New Zealand waters. In particular we use fish abundance indices on the Chatham Rise from scientific surveys in 2002, 2011, 2012, and 2013. The data are collected in annual bottom trawl surveys carried out by the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA). This research applies clustering via finite mixture models that gives a likelihood-based foundation for the analysis. We use the methods developed by Pledger and Arnold (2014) to cluster species into common groups, conditional on the measured covariates (body size, depth, and water temperature). The project for the first time applies these methods incorporating covariates, and we use simple binary presence/absence data rather than abundances. The models are fitted using the Expectation-Maximization (EM) algorithm. The performance of the models is evaluated by a simulation study. We discuss the advantages and the disadvantages of the EM algorithm. We then introduce a newly developed function clustglm (Pledger et al., 2015) in R, which implements this clustering methodology, and perform our analysis using this function on the real-life presence/absence data. The results are analysed and interpreted from a biological point of view. We present a variety of visualisations of the models to assist in their interpretation. We found that depth is the most important factor to explain the data.
Palaeomagnetic secular variation recorded by lavas from the Taupo Volcanic Zone, New Zealand
Authors:   , Greve Annika
Published: November 2021

In order to understand the origin, temporal behaviour and spatial characteristics of Earth’s magnetic field, globally distributed records of the palaeomagnetic direction and absolute palaeointensity are required. However a paucity of data from the southern hemisphere significantly limits the resolution of global field models, particularly on short time-scales.  In this thesis new, high quality palaeomagnetic data from volcanic materials sampled within the Taupo Volcanic Zone, New Zealand are presented, with a focus on the Tongariro and Okataina Volcanic Centre.  New palaeomagnetic directions were obtained from 19 andesitic or rhyolitic lavas, of which 10 also produced successful palaeointensity results. Palaeointensity experiments were conducted using a combination of traditional Thellier-type thermal, and microwave techniques. Detailed magneto-mineralogical investigations carried out alongside these experiments helped to characterise the primary remanence carriers and to justify the reliability of the results.  The study also revises the age controls and results from earlier palaeomagnetic studies on Holocene volcanic materials from the area. All new or revised data are summarized into a new data compilation for New Zealand, which includes 24 directions and ten palaeointensities dated between 1886 AD and 15,000 yrs BP.  The new directional data reproduces the features of the most recently published continuous record from Lake Mavora (Fiordland, New Zealand), although with directions ranging in their extremes from 321° (west) to 26° (east) declination and -82 to -49° in inclination, the discrete dataset describes somewhat larger amplitude swings.  With few exceptions, the new palaeointensity dataset describes a steady increase in the palaeointensity throughout the Holocene, from 37.0 ± 5.7 μT obtained from a pre-8 ka lava to 70.6 ± 4.1 μT from the youngest (≤ 500 yrs BP) flows sampled. A similar trend is also predicted by the latest global field model pfm9k. Furthermore, the data falls within the range of palaeointensity variation suggested by the Mavora record. The dataset roughly agrees with a global VADM reconstruction in the early Holocene (> 5000 yrs BP), but yields values significantly above the global trend in the late Holocene (< 1000 yrs BP) which supports the presence of significant non-dipolar components over the SW Pacific region in the time period, visible in global field models and from continuous PSV records.  A comparison of the directional records with the Mavora Curve provided refinement of age estimates of five lava flows from the Tongariro Volcanic Centre, from uncertainties in the range of 2-3000 years. The new palaeomagnetic emplacement age estimates for these flows have age brackets as short as 500 years and thus highlight different phases of the young cone building eruptive activity on Ruapehu volcano.
EEG evidence for the effective proactive control of emotional distraction
Authors:   , Murphy Justin
Published: November 2021

Recent behavioural studies using an emotional flanker task have found that task-irrelevent emotional images are more distracting than neutral images under infrequent, but not frequent, distractor conditions.It has been proposed the effective control of distraction in the high distractor frequency condition may be due to a shift to a proactive control strategy, whereby a potential distraction is anticipated and minimised in advance. However, although it is well established that proactive control is effective at reducingneutral distraction, it is not yet clear whether emotional distraction can be effectively proactively controlled. In this thesis, I used EEG to measure pre-stimulus indices of proactive control in order to determine whether proactive control is responsible for the effective control of emotional and neutral distraction in the high distractor frequency condition, as well asto examine whether proactive control differs according whether a neutral or emotional distraction is anticipated.In addition to replicating the previous behavioural findings, posterior EEG alpha was found to be tonically suppressed in the high compared to low distractor frequency condition, strongly supporting the hypothesis that proactive control was engaged in the high distractor frequency condition. By contrast, there was no difference in phasic alpha suppression (i.e., the drop in alpha in response to fixation onset) between conditions, indicating that the more effective control of distraction in the high frequency distractor conditions was due to a sustained proactive control strategy, rather than greater trial-by-trial preparation to attend to the target. In addition, no alpha lateralisation was found, indicating the mechanisms by which distraction was proactively controlled did not include the preparatory suppression of expected distractor locations. Finally, tonic alpha did not differ according to the expected distractor valence, but phasic alpha suppression was more pronounced when negative, compared to neutral or positive, distractors were expected, independent of distractor frequency condition. This suggests proactive control was also used to some extent in the low distractor frequency condition, but more importantly also provides initial evidence that the proactive control of negative distraction may be unique. Taken together, my findings provide compelling evidence that emotional distraction can be effectively proactively controlled. Future research is needed to determine the mechanisms by which this occurs, and whether the proactive control of emotional distraction is particularly effortful.
Communicating a Culture of Peace in Aotearoa New Zealand: The vision of Peace through Unity
Authors:   , Paterson Meredith
Published: November 2021

Narrative politics reframes how we cultivate knowledge in the academy, foregrounding the voices of research subjects and their relationships with researchers to re-embed scholars in the social world. Narrative affects the reader’s emotional capacities and fosters empathic understanding, encouraging a more human engagement with figures that have been made threatening, as Elizabeth Dauphinée explores in The Politics of Exile and Richard Jackson in Confessions of a Terrorist. Narrative politics is concerned with the question of how academics respond to the violence of war and whether the analytical tools of the social sciences are an adequate response to the human horror of war.  The narratives of peace people are particularly compelling in the way they challenge the assertions of the dominant culture of wider society and the discipline of IR. Aotearoa New Zealand has a rich history of grassroots peace movements and activities that have influenced wider society. However, their stories are not well recorded in the dominant narrative of state institutions or academia. Peace Activist Elsie Locke published Peace People, a broad historical survey of peace activism from pre-European Maori to 1975. Maire Leadbeater brings the account up to 2013 in Peace, Power and Politics. All accounts emphasise that ordinary people were at the heart of activities, organisations and movements for peace.   One of these ‘ordinary’ people left out of Locke and Leadbeater’s accounts is Gita Brooke, co-founder of the Whanganui-based charitable trust, Peace through Unity [PTU]. As a self-identified ‘peace person,’ Brooke has written much about their work and been involved in peace activities in Aotearoa NZ since the 1980s. Narrative politics provides a lens in IR to explore the story of Gita Brooke as co-founder of PTU. I show the contribution PTU has made and continues to make to a culture of peace in Aotearoa New Zealand and as a worldwide network, explored through the themes of education for global citizenship, transformation through thought-work, and responsibility for local action. It examines how PTU’s vision of a culture of peace has been communicated through the organisation’s newsletter, Many to Many, through its involvement with the United Nations as an accredited NGO, and through its local activities. Using archival sources, data from interviews and a content analysis of the newsletter, and complemented by the lens of and insights from the discourse of narrative politics, this study suggests that PTU provides a space for critical self-reflection in the pursuit of peace that challenges the thought/action binary of institutionalised NGOs. The deterritorialised publication, Many to Many, connects peace people through a networked area of mutual agreement that is inclusive, educative and transformative.
Revitalising the Heart: Addressing the vacant CBD of Rotorua
Authors:   , Dittmer Zakary
Published: November 2021

The issue of abandoned retail stores is one that is evident throughout the country and at different scales throughout the world. The appearance leaves main streets and central business districts’ looking tired and run down and does little to benefit the local economy. The rise and demand of international retail corporations in provincial cities, has transformed inner city infrastructure. This combined with suburban sprawl has resulted in high building vacancies and poor community moral.  Looking to new theories around Urban Interior Architecture, this research explores the boundary between internal and external design methods and pushes for a merger of the design disciplines to create a coherent spatial context. In order to repopulate the city, human focused design methods are explored to encourage social interactions, commercial activity and habitation of the many vacant sites.  Through the use of site-specific design, Rotorua will be investigated to understand the reasoning for the abandoned stores and will look to the urban context to identify potential remedies to solve the neglect. The identity of Rotorua its Placemaking and Cultural Heritage of its people will inform the design response to bring the community back into the heart of the central city.
Dynamic Risk Factors and their Utilisation in Case Formulation: A New Conceptual Framework
Authors:   , Palmer Lauren
Published: November 2021

The social pressure on policy makers and clinicians working with sexual offenders to reduce recidivism is extreme. A result of this pressure is the amount of research investigating risk-related features that has surged over the last few decades. Risk assessment has progressed from unstructured clinical judgement to development of risk factors that correlate with recidivism to predict levels of risk, and more recently, to forensic case formulation. This thesis concentrates on two key issues with forensic case formulation that has been largely neglected thus far. First, forensic case formulations rely heavily on the use of dynamic risk factors as causes of offending. The concern is that dynamic risk factors are composite constructs not causal mechanisms. Second, forensic case formulation models do not explain how to use an offender’s information and their risk factors to hypothesise about the cause of their offending leading to issues of reliability. To address these issues, the RECFM consists of five phases that guides clinicians on how to appropriately use forensic case formulation. The Risk Etiology Case Formulation Model (RECFM) aims to incorporate a reconceptualised version of dynamic risk factors using an Agency Model to identify the interaction of agent and context that causes offending behaviour. By using the RECFM, treatment can be targeted to the individual and their specific causes of offending, which will lead to better results in reducing recidivism. The aim of this thesis is to provide a forensic case formulation model is comprehensible for clinicians and that targets the causes of offending.
How does a music therapy student work to facilitate reminiscence and memory in dementia patients
Authors:   , Sun I-Chen
Published: November 2021

This study was prompted in response to increased interest in, and demand for, music therapy provision in improving quality of care for dementia patients. It is an exploration of the strategies to facilitate memory and reminiscence in persons with dementia, and considers the need for those preparing for end of life to recall identities, connect with family and others, and express feelings. This research is a qualitative study involving secondary analysis of clinical data from my clinical practice and identifies the strategies, techniques and procedures that I applied in my clinical work to stimulate preserved memory ‘islands’. The findings show that familiarity is central in enabling a remembering process, and music can have unique ways of accessing memory in people with limited cognitive and social abilities. Eight core categories of music therapy strategies were found to be helpful in enabling memory and reminiscence. This study includes examples of both individual and group music therapy. The objective of this study was to examine my music therapy practice, and potentially provide some beneficial ideas and insights to other music therapists working on memory and reminiscence with dementia patients.
Development of a career and competency framework for Occupational Health Nurses working in New Zealand using participatory action research
Authors:   , Howard Stella Mary
Published: November 2021

This participatory action research (PAR) study was undertaken to review the New Zealand Competencies for Practising as an Occupational and Environmental Health Nurse (2004) document and develop an integrated career and competency framework for nurses working in the field of occupational health. The 2004 competency document needed to be reviewed to ensure Occupational Health Nurses (OHNs) have up-to-date guidelines for the skills and knowledge required by businesses to support and promote the health and wellbeing of the workforce, as well as enabling OHNs to identify their training requirements and career planning.  Eight OHNs (including myself) from Christchurch over a 10-month period applied a PAR approach to this qualitative study. The nurses actively engaged in the project from research design to dissemination so linking theory and practice. Achieving the aims and objectives required collaboration, democratic participation, joint decision making, sharing resources, gaining knowledge, and empowerment. The study had six phases. Recruitment of the OHNs occurred during the first phase and in the second phase information was collected through a questionnaire gaining awareness of the OHNs role within the workplace. This information stimulated the first action cycle inquiry. During the third phase data was collected from transcripts of the PAR group meetings. The fourth phase was reflection of the PAR theoretical process of the study. This reflection included understanding what occurred leading to the turning points and what sustained the PAR group. From this phase, evolved phase five, formation of a sub-PAR group, and phase six of the study when the original PAR group reconvened and four subsequent meetings were held concluding the study in May 2015. The study provides contribution to PAR by showing importance of the time commitment of homogenous co-researchers, and role of primary researcher.  A number of areas were identified by the nurses as important skills and knowledge areas for occupational health nursing. Areas include fitness for work, health promotion, risk assessment, legislation and standards, leadership and management skills, research and professionalism. These skills and knowledge topics were then expanded and applied into the career framework from competent to expert nurse. The final participatory cycle involved distributing the framework to the New Zealand Occupational Health Nurses Association to complete the review. The outcome of this research is an integrated occupational health nursing competency and career framework which has been disseminated nationally to New Zealand OHNs waiting for feedback. It is expected that the framework will raise the profile of OHNs within New Zealand, and the vital contribution they make to the public health strategy and supporting businesses to apply employment legislation.