bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Rethinking 'Progress': an Evaluation of the Wellington Region Genuine Progress Index
Authors:   , Packard Aaron Geoffrey 
Published: November 2021

<p>There is widespread and long-running discontent with the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as a measure of progress for society. A number of alternative measures have been proposed, including the Genuine Progress Index (GPI). A GPI has been developed by local government in the Wellington region (New Zealand) to facilitate a rethinking of conventional notions of 'progress'. The Wellington Region GPI (WRGPI) is modelled upon the Nova Scotia GPI, which is a pluralistic index consisting of environmental, social, economic and cultural indicators with either physical or monetary values. The study explores a 'good practice' approach to public participation in the development of the GPI, and provides an overview of the context within which it fits. A synergistic link was found between the Nova Scotia GPI framework and the framework provided by the Local Government Act community outcomes process. Despite this synergy, and the commitment to the GPI on the part of local authorities, a number of challenges emerged from the context. These include the poor integration of the existing community outcomes into institutional decision-making, a weak institutional commitment to the economic valuation procedure of the GPI, and the desire on the part of the present local government minister to reduce the scope of local government. In light of these challenges, a 'good practice' approach has been developed with a normative component: deliberation, influence & inclusion, and a methodological component: purpose, process & context. Deliberation was stressed as a particularly important tool to facilitate institutional and social learning around the WRGPI and to build the value case and a constituency for the WRGPI across the local authorities and community, and therefore increasing the likelihood that conventional notions of 'progress' will be replaced with more holistic ones. While this case study provides insights into the challenge of integrating a GPI into local governance, it is still too early to judge whether the initiative will emerge as a viable alternative to the GDP for the Wellington region.</p>
The Ordering of Medical Things: Medical Practices and Complexity
Authors:   , Gardner John 
Published: November 2021

<p>This project is an investigation into medicine in action. The aim is to understand how medical interactions generate order via the diagnosis of disease; how the patient, the body, and illness are made intelligible, and how particular courses of action are decided upon as a result. Using video and audio data supplied by the Applied Research on Communication in Health (ARCH) research team, this project follows Simon, a middle aged, Caucasian male with chest pain, as he participates in consultations with his GP and cardiologist, and as he undergoes a cardio treadmill-stress test. This project argues for adopting an Actor-Network theory (ANT) based approach to studying interactions. Unlike more traditional sociology approaches, this project considers the role of non-human objects in interaction. Non-human objects are often key actors in the interactions that provide the world with a sense of order. I will provide an epistemological justification for ANT's key premises and outline the method that these premises entail. Following three interactions, this project illustrates that the principal actors involved in producing intelligibility varies. In the GP consultation, the GP and Simon were principal actors in rendering chest pain intelligible. In the treadmill stress test, the material instrumentation, carefully aligned with the Simon's body by the cardiologist, was vital to ensuring a particular account of the heart was produced. Simon was little more than a compliant body in this interaction. In the final interaction, the cardiologist was the principal actor in making sense of these accounts of chest pain and the potentially conflicting picture of the "healthy" heart. The cardiologist suggests that the account of the heart produced by the treadmill-stress test may be flawed, and encourages Simon to self-monitor and self-regulate. I will argue that the uncertainty generated by conflicting accounts is common to medical practices. Medical professionals respond to this by encouraging individuals to monitor and reduce risk. By adopting the ANT approach, I found that the patient and his body are sometimes intelligible as somatic entities, sometimes as an expressive, accounting agent, and sometimes as a self-responsible individual. These various renditions hold together as a being a single individual "Simon".</p>
Gold Nanoparticles: A Novel Dye for Synthetic Fabrics
Authors:   , Watson Amy 
Published: November 2021

<p>Fabric has always been prominent throughout history. In the last 70 years new synthetic fabrics have been developed which mimic the natural fibres but have increased strength, durability and stretchability. Common fibres include Polyester, Nylon and Lycra(R). These fibres can be blended to incorporate the properties of both the individual fibre types. Gold nanoparticles have been found to give the stable deep red colour found in stained glass but the science was not understood until the quantum mechanical work of Mie in 1908 on the interaction of electromagnetic radiation (visible light) with fine particles of matter. It is proposed that gold nanoparticles can be used as stable colourants bound to synthetic fibres and other textiles due to its chemical unreactivity. The most common formation method is the use of a reductant such as poly(ethylene imine), sodium citrate or tannic acid. This thesis reports the research and development of new, novel hybrid materials created by combining the interesting properties of both the synthetic fabrics and gold nanoparticles. Twenty five different methods (broken down into four general categories - pre-made colloids, in-situ reduction, use of external reductant after uptake of gold solution and growth of seed particles) were attempted resulting in fabrics that were a variety of shades and colours including pink, purple, tan and gold. The synthetic fabric-gold nanoparticle hybrid samples were analysed by scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy, infrared spectroscopy, ultraviolet/visible reflectance spectroscopy, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, fluorescence spectroscopy and ColourQuest measurements. A sample was also subjected to industry standard "abrasion" and colourfastness tests in which it gained the highest mark possible, showing no staining of other fabrics under dry rub conditions. Atomic absorption measurements were performed on solutions after the fabric was removed in order to confirm the amount of gold uptake by the fabric samples. Analysis showed that a range of nanoparticle sizes and shapes were produced which influenced the visual colour of the fabric. The purple samples produced are caused by small particles (<100nm) that have aggregated together. Samples that appear tan or gold in colour have mainly large particles (>500nm) that are either made up of small spheres fused together or are large plates (trigonal, hexagonal); therefore, Mie's laws do not appear to apply. Light coloured samples generally have a few small particles (<100nm) that are spaced out over the fibre surface.</p>
Testing the Assumption of Behavioural Consistency in a New Zealand Sample of Serial Rapists
Authors:   , Tapper Sarah 
Published: November 2021

<p>One of the assumptions that underlies the profiling process is that criminals are behaviourally consistent from one offence to another. To date, however, this is an assumption that has not been scientifically validated. The present study therefore tested the assumption of behavioural consistency in serial rape offences. The author collected dichotomous data on 30 behavioural variables for a total of 439 offences committed by 121 serial rapists in New Zealand. There were two main research aims of the study. The first aim was to test the behavioural consistency of a range of individual behaviours. It was hypothesised that higher consistency would be found for behaviours that reflected a degree of planning or that prioritised control of the victim and the offence environment, because these behaviours might be less affected by environmental factors. In contrast, many sexual behaviours arise directly out of offender-victim interactions and therefore are most affected by environmental factors such as victim resistance. It was therefore also hypothesised that sexual behaviours would display lower consistency. A consistency measure was used that compared behaviour in consecutive offences. Consistency for each behaviour was defined as present-present or absent-absent matches of that behaviour in consecutive offences. The degree of consistency for any behaviour will be reflected in the consistency score received by that variable based on the number of matches for that behaviour across the offence series. The consistency analysis found moderate to high levels of consistency for the majority of individual behaviours. As predicted, higher consistency was exhibited for behaviours that prioritised control of the victim and the offence environment, and lower consistency was exhibited for the sexual behaviours. The second research aim was that if behavioural consistency was found in the results of the consistency analysis, to explore whether there were any underlying patterns to the consistency of offending behaviour. A factor analysis of the consistency scores established that there are clear patterns to the behavioural consistency of offenders consistent with previous analysis of offence characteristics. The factor analysis resulted in three themes or domains to behaviour: hostility, involvement and control. These findings have theoretical implications for the assumption of behavioural consistency in serial rapists, for the concepts of modus operandi and signature in offence behaviour, and for the theoretical understanding of the profiling process. The findings also have practical implications for the practice of profiling and case linkage in New Zealand, and raise possibilities for future directions in research.</p>
The Improvisation of Tubby Hayes in 'The New York Sessions'
Authors:   , Alton-Lee Amity Rose 
Published: November 2021

<p>Tubby (Edward Brian) Hayes; prodigious self taught multi-instrumentalist and virtuoso tenor saxophone player has been proclaimed by some to be the best saxophonist that Britain has ever produced: "Indisputably the most accomplished and characterful British jazzman of his generation." His career, although cut short (he died undergoing treatment for a heart condition in June 1973, aged 38) was perpetually intense, incredibly prolific, and non-stop from his debut at the age of fifteen until his premature death. Hayes was proficient on many instruments; all saxophones, clarinet, flute, violin and vibraphone as well as being an accomplished bandleader and arranger. However it was his virtuoso tenor saxophone playing that found him acclaim. Although well known in his time and widely renowned for his ability, Hayes until recently has been little studied. It is only in the last few years that many critics and students of jazz have attempted to gain an understanding of Hayes' improvisational concept, which has been both praised as genius and criticised as directionless: Tubby Hayes has often been lionized as the greatest saxophonist Britain ever produced. He is a fascinating but problematical player. Having put together a big, rumbustious tone and a delivery that features sixteenth notes spilling impetuously out of the horn, Hayes often left a solo full of brilliant loose ends and ingenious runs that led nowhere in particular... However, Hayes, his legacy, and his inimitable style of tenor saxophone playing would truly leave their mark on the British Jazz community for generations to come. Dave Gelly summed up Hayes by saying that Tubby "played Cockney tenor - garrulous, pugnacious, never at a loss for a word and completely unstoppable."</p>
Polynomial Invariants of the Euclidean Group Action on Multiple Screws
Authors:   , Crook Deborah 
Published: November 2021

<p>In this work, we examine the polynomial invariants of the special Euclidean group in three dimensions, SE(3), in its action on multiple screw systems. We look at the problem of finding generating sets for these invariant subalgebras, and also briefly describe the invariants for the standard actions on R^n of both SE(3) and SO(3). The problem of the screw system action is then approached using SAGBI basis techniques, which are used to find invariants for the translational subaction of SE(3), including a full basis in the one and two-screw cases. These are then compared to the known invariants of the rotational subaction. In the one and two-screw cases, we successfully derive a full basis for the SE(3) invariants, while in the three-screw case, we suggest some possible lines of approach.</p>
Enhancing Performance-Based Regulation: Lessons from New Zealand's Building Control System
Authors:   , Mumford Peter John 
Published: November 2021

<p>Performance-based regulation establishes mandatory goals rather than enforcing prescriptive standards. Performance-based regulation has become popular over the past two decades as an alternative to prescriptive regulation, as it holds out the promise of simultaneously achieving health, safety and environmental outcomes while facilitating innovation and reducing regulatory costs. In the early 1990s New Zealand adopted a performance-based building control regime. This demonstrably failed and was replaced in 2004 with a new regime, still performance-based but more conservative. Using legal determinations, adjudications and court cases, and reviews of the failures, contributing factors have been identified. An assessment has been made of the extent to which these factors can be attributed to the performance philosophy and features of the regime. Strategies to addresses the weaknesses of performance-based regulation have been explored. The change from a standards-based regulatory regime, where technology shifts are on the margin and occur through a process of incremental trial-and-error, to a performance-based regime, displaced traditional institutions for aggregating knowledge required for risk-based decision-making. At the same time, the new performance-based regime was permissive of greater technology shifts, which demands more of decision-makers who are operating in an environment of inevitable uncertainty. The significance of the regime change was not well understood and new institutions did not evolve. Reverting to traditional institutions is not an option as they are inherently conservative and therefore innovation as one of the normative benefits of performance-based regulation is likely to be constrained. New institutions are required to aggregate knowledge, but also permit decisions that enable the technology threshold to be pushed out in situations where it is not possible to measure accurately how a novel technology will perform in all of the circumstances of its use, and failure in the field is a possibility. This requires knowledge that is both technical and evaluative. Technical knowledge is more than science, but increasingly knowledge in other domains such as psychology, economics, and both domestic and international law. Evaluative knowledge is that which is required to assess risks and consequences. This study explores two strategies for resolving the challenges of decision-making in a permissive performance-based regulatory environment: improving the predicative capability of decision-making systems through the better application of the intuitive judgment associated with expertise and wisdom, and treating novel technologies as explicit experiments. Both strategies show promise, but may be difficult to implement. If the conditions for materially pushing out the thresholds of technology while managing the risks cannot be met, it may be necessary to revert to incremental trial-and-error in high-risk areas. This does not preclude innovation, but it will be at a slower rate.</p>
The Chemical Genetic Interactions of Statin Drugs with Their Target Genes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae
Authors:   , Busby Bede P 
Published: November 2021

<p>Statins, competitive inhibitors of the rate limiting cholesterol/ergosterol enzymes HMG-CoA reductase (HMG1 and HMG2), are the most widely prescribed human therapeutic drugs. They are effective in lowering cholesterol levels in atherosclerosis and related syndromes. However, statins exhibit a range of pleiotropic side effects whose mechanisms are poorly understood. This study investigates statin pleiotropy by analysis of genetic interaction networks in yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, which shows high homology to mammalian pathways affected by statins. Synthetic genetic array (SGA) analysis allows elucidation of functional genetic networks of genes of interest ("query genes") by measurement of genetic epistasis in double mutants of the query gene with the genome - wide deletion mutant array of ~4800 non-essential strains. Chemicalgenetic profiling is similar where a SMP may effectively replace the query gene in genome wide epistatic analysis. The genetic interaction networks resulting from use of HMG1 and HMG2 as query genes for SGA analysis were compared to the chemical-genetic profiles of atorvastatin, cerivastatin and lovastatin. The genes ARV1, BTS1, OPI3 displaying phenotypic enhancements (i.e. their deletion caused major growth inhibition) with statins became essential in the presence of all the statins. Two mitochondrial genes, COX17 and MMM1, showed phenotypic suppressions (i.e. their deletion allowed better growth) in common to all three statin drugs. An attractive hypothesis is that major pleiotropic effects of statins could be due to variation in function or expression of these enhancing or suppressing genes. Other processes compensating statin use were also elucidated. For example, when HMG1 and its epistatically interacting genes are shut down by deletion coupled with inhibition of HMG2 with statin, there is strong evidence that the cell attempts to maintain membrane/lipid homeostasis via anterograde and retrograde transport mechanisms, including the mobilisation of lipid storage droplets. To aid refinement of genetic analysis in this and future studies, a more direct phenotypic assay was developed for quantifying ergosterol. Such an assay may be used as a phenotype to map the effect of up - and downstream - genes, or network genes affecting ergosterol levels. This assay was used to quantify ergosterol in a drug - resistant mutant developed by others aiding confirmation of the drug target.</p>
Impact Evaluation of a 'Brief Intervention Program' for Clients who Deliberately Self-Harm
Authors:   , Aquin Edward Herman 
Published: November 2021

<p>Deliberate self harm (DSH) and suicide rates are recognised internationally, nationally and locally as an increasing trend. The financial and emotional cost to society highlights the need for providing services that aim to reduce the likelihood of further deliberate self harm. The emergency department (ED) is often the entry point for service provision to clients who deliberate self harm. A reduction in re-presentations for acts of DSH to the ED would greatly reduce the strain on this essential part of the public healthcare system. It is vital that the services developed to address DSH are evaluated to facilitate informed decisions regarding program sustainability or improvement. Study aim: This study aims to evaluate a 'brief intervention program' (BIP) designed to address the needs of clients who presented with or were at risk of engaging in act(s) of deliberate self harm. The intention of the program was to reduce repetitive acts of DSH and to assist the clients in developing better coping strategies. Study design: This study uses a pluralistic evaluation research design to conduct a program evaluation. The 'line of enquiry' is guided by the Impact Evaluation framework by Owen (2006).The seven steps of the framework were used to organise, categorise, analyse and discuss the program's outcomes in this study. The pluralistic or mixed design used pre-existing quantitative client file data and qualitative data collected from a staff questionnaire. A total number of 40 client files were examined for the data analysis. Six out of the ten staff members agreed to participate in a survey that sought information about the program's implementation. Findings: Results from the quantitative data analysis found that 82.1% of clients did not re-present to the ED with a repeated act of DSH for a period of six months following initial referral and treatment. The mean average of days to follow up was 5.54. Outcome measurements via pre and post PANSI scores found an improvement in the client's resiliency. Results from the repeated measures t-test: p< .05. Qualitative data analysis found that by expanding the referral base that stakeholders perceived it was more difficult for clients to be followed up within five days from their referral date. Other suggestions pertained to increasing the resources of the program for sustainability. Contribution: The use of program evaluation strategies compliments current trends in healthcare to employ pluralistic or mixed method designs. Broader lines of enquiry lead to more informed decisions regarding program sustainability or improvement.</p>
A Cost Benefit Analysis of Secondary Glazing as a Retrofit Alternative for New Zealand Homes
Authors:   , Smith Nick 
Published: November 2021

<p>Homes with single glazing represent a large majority of the New Zealand housing stock. With the recent changes to the NZ Building Code Clause H1 Energy Efficiency, new homes require higher glazing thermal performance. This will lead to an increased need for cost effective methods to improve window thermal performance in existing single glazed homes without completely replacing the windows, which includes 'secondary' glazing. There are several secondary glazing options available including 'stick-on' plastic glazing as well as aluminium framed glass solutions that are installed inside the existing joinery. Secondary glazing is marketed as a cost effective alternative to insulated glazing units, providing both improved acoustic and thermal insulation to existing windows. There is little information regarding the in-use performance and cost benefits of secondary glazing in New Zealand. This thesis explores the efficacy of the secondary glazing products when installed in existing single pane frames. A guarded hotbox was used to make thermal resistance measurements on a typical single glazed aluminium window with timber reveal liner. Four common secondary glazing systems were retrofitted into the window - (1) thin plastic film; (2) magnetically-attached acrylic sheet; (3) aluminium framed secondary glazing; and (4) aluminium framed low emissivity (low-E) secondary glazing. Models of 'typical' New Zealand homes created in the ALF building thermal simulation programme were used to explore the heating energy savings and cost benefits provided by the different secondary glazing systems in a range of locations. Of the tested products, the low-E secondary glazing produces the largest cost-benefits. At current energy and material costs, secondary glazing was found to not be a financially viable solution in warmer climates such as Auckland. In cooler climates such as Christchurch and Dunedin, secondary glazing was found to be a cost effective retrofit alternative for existing single glazed homes</p>