bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Same but Different: Chaos and TV Drama Narratives
Authors:   , McLachlan Alison 
Published: December 2021

<p>Complexity is a term that is now commonly used when discussing TV serial dramas and the way that, in recent years, creators and producers of this narrative form have embraced innovative and challenging strategies to tell their stories. As a result, it is also often argued that all TV serial dramas are strikingly different from one another; one of the few things that contemporary TV serial dramas have in common is their employment of complex narrative strategies. However, in this thesis, I argue that—while serial dramas are different from one another in many ways—they are also all the same at a fundamental level. In order to examine the fundamental narrative components that all serial dramas employ, I use chaos as a framework. Chaos is a branch of mathematics and science which examines systems that display unpredictable behaviour that is actually determined by deep structures of order and stability. At its most basic level, chaos corresponds with the way in which serial dramas are both complex and simple at the same time; beneath the complexity of serial dramas are fundamental building blocks that are used to generate innovative, challenging and unpredictable narratives. I apply the findings from my critical examination of chaos and TV drama narratives to the creation of my own TV projects, which employ the inherent structures and patterns of TV drama narratives in a way that produces innovative and complex stories. In doing so, I intend to highlight the potential of serial dramas to be endlessly creative yet consistently the same.</p>
The time in which nothing happened: A memorial to the Battle of Verdun considered through the theoretical discourse of Paul Virilio and his accusations about the violent phenomena of speed
Authors:   , Dickson Henry 
Published: December 2021

<p>Architecture is under attack! Where it could once be understood as a medium of communication which helped society to situate their existential role within society. Today it can be increasingly understood as little more than a spatial device necessitated by humanities inert vulnerability to the exterior landscape. In the face of the post-modern phenomenon of speed, architecture is becoming a tectonic of interference. Cars to pass around it, communications pierce through it and for the people whom exist within it, it increasingly disappears. While the problems that stem from this remain unclear. Through investigating the work of French intellectual and humanist Paul Virilio, the accidents that this may cause, become slowly exposed. Manifesting themselves beyond just the physical accidents which occur as a direct result of technological progress. But equally as accidental shifts of human consciousness leading to permanent alteration in the ways in which reality is informed. Due to the fact that, perception, which must be understood as filtered and subconsciously reformatted, is a learned response to the otherwise overwhelming stimulation of both physical and virtual speed. Virilio proposes that what this will lead to is a profound disconnection between the individuals who experience the speed of hypermodernity and the objective world. A world which is informed by both by the unrelenting passing of time but also the historical events which slowly play out over time. The problem with this, Virilio would argue, is that the ability to react appropriately to the events and accidents which make up this contemporary existence, is contingent upon this connection. Therefore it would appear that this problem becomes self-perpetuating. The more speed disconnects individuals from the world around them, the harder it becomes to react to the accidents caused by speed, because these accidents increasingly become perceived, or rather not perceived, as time in which nothing happened. In direct opposition to this, the fading memory of the battle of Verdun is forced up against this paradigm, providing the necessary groundwork for Virilio’s work to be explored. Through this dialogue, design conclusions will be reached through the process of designing a memorial architecture, which will be positioned on the site of the battlefield. A process that explores architectures role in returning a collective consciousness back to the battle of Verdun. Whilst simultaneously reconsidering the nature of this responsibility in the contemporary landscape that society has found itself within, only a 100 years after the final shots were fired.</p>
Exploring the side effect profile of 16-Ethynyl Salvinorin A
Authors:   , Mathew Stephen George 
Published: December 2021

<p>Introduction: Drug addiction is a chronic and relapsing disorder that has widespread socioeconomic and health consequences. Globally, there are over 29.5 million people who are drug dependent, and New Zealand has one of the highest rates of drug use rates in the developed world. Currently, there are no Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved pharmacotherapies that target psychostimulant addiction. Kappa opioid receptor (KOPr) agonists are being studied as a potential pharmacotherapy as it utilizes the brain’s own mechanism for controlling reward, however, KOPr agonists have unwanted side effects such as dysphoria and sedation. This thesis explores the KOPr agonists Salvinorin A (Sal A), a naturally-occurring, highly potent and short-acting non-nitrogenous KOPr agonist and a structural analogue, 16-Ethynyl Salvinorin A (16-Ethy). KOPr agonists, such as Sal A have known preclinical anti-addictive and anti-reward effects, therefore, this thesis focuses on evaluating Sal A and 16-Ethy in preclinical tests of reward and side effects. Methods: Male Sprague-Dawley rats were used in preclinical tests to evaluate common KOPr-mediated side-effects including anxiety (elevated plus maze), depression (forced swim test) sedation (locomotor activity) and aversion (conditioned place aversion). The anti-cocaine effects were also examined using self-administration, dose-response and drug-behavioural sensitisation tests. 16-Ethy was tested at 2 mg/kg in all experiments. Results: Acute pre-treatment of 16-Ethy induced sedative effects in non-habituated locomotor activity but when rats were habituated prior to administration, no sedation was observed. In contrast, Sal A (2 mg/kg) had sedative effects in habituated, but not in non-habituated locomotor activity (p = 0.0037). Compared to vehicle-treated rats, 16-Ethy and Sal A did not display pro-depressive effects in the forced swim test, show anxiogenic or aversive properties or modulate behavioural sensitisation to cocaine. Cocaine self-administration and dose-response tests were not successfully completed. Conclusion: At 2 mg/kg, 16-Ethy was found to display sedative effects in non-habituated locomotor activity but not in a habituated paradigm. Compared to vehicle-treated rats, 16-Ethy did not display pro-depressive effects in the forced swim test, or display anxiogenic or aversive properties and did not show significant cocaine sensitisation. Cocaine self-administration and dose-response tests were not successfully completed and will need to be repeated to ascertain the effects of 16-Ethy on them. However, 16-Ethy has shown glimpses of promise as a potential pharmacotherapy against addiction.</p>
Community decision-making and privatised spaces: A case study of suburban shopping malls in the Wellington Region
Authors:   , Mawer Chantal 
Published: December 2021

<p>Shopping malls are a widely disparaged urban form, particularly when these have been built in favour of traditional public spaces. Critiques have ranged from their aesthetic to the impact they have on civic life and broader democracy. However, despite being in private ownership, they have been found to play crucial community functions. This is particularly true in suburban communities which often lack alternative forms of community infrastructure. Concurrently, across the globe, a number of malls are in decline and some communities are losing the only form of community space available to them. Moreover, they are often unable to contribute to decision-making regarding these spaces due to their private ownership. This thesis examines the role that suburban shopping malls, in Aotearoa New Zealand can, and do play as community spaces. It assesses decision-making mechanisms, questioning how communities can participate in the development of what they conceive of as their community spaces. Two cases of declining malls in the Wellington Region– the Johnsonville Shopping Centre and the Wainuiomata Mall were selected and 12 semi-structured interviews and three focus groups were conducted. This research found that these malls played an important role as spaces where communities were built and members socially engaged in often ad-hoc, but significant ways. However, due to the private nature of these spaces, community members often felt powerless and unable to participate in decisions relating to this space. This thesis demonstrates the ways in which the legal binary of public and private fails to encapsulate the nature of modern spaces, which in reality, typically exist as a socially constructed hybrid of both. It challenges the existing framework of property rights based on this binary, and subsequent wider community exclusion from decision-making. In response, this thesis offers policy recommendations around community decision-making in order to stimulate vital suburban community space into the future.</p>
Enabling the potential of Mission-led Research in New Zealand: Conceptualisations, Structures, and Relationships in the National Science Challenges
Authors:   , Brathwaite James 
Published: December 2021

<p>Addressing the Grand Challenges of the world requires a mode of research that can mirror their scale and complexity. Traditional investigator- and industry-led research frameworks, although useful in their own right, fail to capture the collaborative, transdisciplinary approach that can both generate the necessary knowledge and apply research outcomes on the scale needed to resolve the ‘big picture’ problems. Mission-led research provides a framework that attempts to strike that balance of knowledge generation and application; and New Zealand’s National Science Challenges (NSCs) provide a representation of missionled research that may exemplify the relationships and processes needed to enact it. This thesis aims to understand how the relationships and processes designed to facilitate mission-led research in the NSCs impacts their ability to achieve their missions. Research was undertaken through semi-structured interviews with participants from two NSCs, representing four of the key stakeholder perspectives: Management, Researchers, Industry, and Māori. These interviews sought to understand how different stakeholder groups conceptualised mission-led research itself, the processes within it, and their relationships with other stakeholder groups. The results demonstrated that stakeholders perceived mission-led research in four interdependent ways, driven by a core concept of ‘Big Picture’ problems. These problems were seen to necessitate ‘Transdisciplinarity’ in their resolution, that research would be ‘Long-term/Strategic’, and that research outcomes would have a ‘Collective Benefit’. Alignment between conceptualisations of mission-led research and how closely processes and stakeholder groups adhered to those conceptualisations was central to positive engagement and collaboration. Alignment between stakeholders was seen to occur through three modes: Conceptual, Structural, and Relational. Conceptual alignment promoted a common understanding of the mission; Structural alignment ensured research practices reflected mission-led values; and Relational alignment improved stakeholder understanding of diverse expectations and motivations amongst other worldviews. Successful NSCs used the three modes of alignment to improve transdisciplinary collaboration while maintaining diversity of worldviews and skillsets, enabling them to more effectively address their missions.</p>
New Zealand nurses use of humour in surgical nursing practice
Authors:   , Van der Krogt Shelley Rose 
Published: December 2021

<p>Humour is a tool that can build rapport, establish communication and enable a therapeutic relationship: all of which are essential skills for nurses. For nurses to use humour in their practice they need to know when it is appropriate and when it could be beneficial for patients. However, much of the literature on nursing humour focusses on when not to use humour or provides contradictory messages about the use of humour. This is problematic as with little guidance, nurses may be hesitant to deploy humour with patients, potentially missing important opportunities to deliver more effective care. The lack of evidence-based guidance about use of humour for nurses was a key driver for this study. Furthermore, with even less research in the surgical care setting, a stressful environment for patients and staff, the need to explore how and when humour is used in surgical nursing practice was important. A qualitative descriptive methodology was used to explore how registered nursing working in a surgical environment decide when and how to use humour within nurse-patient interactions, and the use of humour during nurse-patient communication is assessed. Data collection was carried out in two surgical wards within a single site tertiary hospital in New Zealand. Nine registered nurses participated in group or individual interviews that were conducted using an interview guide incorporating semi-structured questions. Data were analysed thematically. Findings demonstrate the humour is a significant feature of practice for surgical nurses with its use being purposeful and undertaken after careful consideration and assessment. Within three themes (assessing openness, building a connection, protection against vulnerability), humour was described as enabling nurses to quickly connect with patients and establish a therapeutic relationship. Humour facilitates communication, even under difficult circumstances, and provides an outlet for the perceived physical and emotional vulnerability experienced by both patients and nurses within the surgical environment. Humour forms an integral part of surgical nursing practice. This thesis challenges surgical nurses to place an emphasis on raising the profile of humour in practice and develop skills to assess when to use, and when not to use humour. This will require the development of specific educational and professional strategies.</p>
Sulfidation of Zero-valent Iron Nanoparticles for Environmental Remediation
Authors:   , Berger Amanda 
Published: December 2021

<p>The ability of nano-sized zero-valent iron (nZVI) to remove environmental contaminants, from heavy metals to polyhalogenated hydrocarbons, has been well established. However, the reactivity of nZVI towards contaminants is hampered due to competing for side reactions with oxygen and water. Sulfidemodified nZVI (S-nZVI) has become a viable option as S-nZVI has been shown to reduce organic compounds such as trichloroethylene faster than nZVI while also maintaining an increased resistance to oxidation by water. The Fulton group has established that nZVI supported on a naturally occurring microsilicate (Microsilica600, or “misi”), from a Rotorua geothermal deposit, is capable of removing nitrates from water. This material, or nZVI@misi, minimises the potential bioaccumulation path that nZVI has, and is easier to handle than unsupported nZVI. This research investigated the effect of sulfidation of nZVI@misi (or S-nZVI@misi) on the reactivity towards the degradation of a variety of different potential contaminants. S-nZVI@misi was synthesised using sodium thiosulfate for sulfidation. Increasing the concentration of the reagent and sulfidation time from 3 hours to 24 hours resulted in high percentages of sulfur-to-iron (S/Fe) for each material. This increase in S/Fe had a significant impact on the removal of cadmium and chromium as with higher the percentage of S/Fe, the faster the removal of these species occurred. Compared to pristine nZVI@misi, S-nZVI@misi was significantly faster at removing both cadmium and chromium. However, sulfidation of nZVI@misi proved to reduce the rate of 4-nitrophenol reduction and prevent nitrate reduction from occurring. Experimental analysis also showed that cadmium removal was faster with S-nZVI supported by FeOOH-coated microsilica, compared to material supported by un-coated microsilica. Therefore, we have synthesised supported S-nZVI that quickly removes cadmium and chromium from solution compared to standard supported nZVI.</p>
The diffusion of renewable electricity technologies in Small Island Developing States: The case of the Maldives
Authors:   , Azwar Ali 
Published: December 2021

<p>Globally, the production of electricity has been heavily reliant on non-renewable resources. The situation in Small Island Developing States (SIDS) is no exception. Most SIDS, such as the Maldives, are highly dependent on imported oil for electricity production. However, renewable electricity technologies (RETs) have the potential to decrease the cost of electricity, reduce vulnerability to external economic shocks, improve access to electricity in remote areas, increase energy security, and decrease greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The existing literature fails to explain adequately the mechanisms through which the diffusion of RETs takes place, not least in SIDS. This study aims to improve our understanding of diffusion processes and thus explain why the diffusion of RETs in SIDS, such as the Maldives, has been so slow. The study draws on, and adapts, a systems approach, namely the technological innovation system (TIS) approach, in order to better understand the process of diffusion of RETs in SIDS. This study focuses on the Maldives. It applies a mixed methods approach and draws on qualitative and quantitative data from semi-structured interviews and a self-administered survey questionnaire. A six-step analytical process using the adapted TIS framework was applied to analyse the research findings. The study reveals five main findings. Firstly, the distinct features of the Maldives impede their capacity for energy transformation. These include the geographical dispersion of islands over a large area, and the limited space available to install some of the mature RETs, such as solar PV and onshore wind turbines. Moreover, the lack of a renewable resource base, also contribute to these challenges. Secondly, the government and international development partners have been the most significant actors driving the diffusion of RETs in the Maldives. Thirdly, it is political and economic factors that mainly contribute to the slow diffusion of RETs in the Maldives, rather than technical constraints. There are too few policy measures in place to support the diffusion of RETs. Fourthly, the lack of information about the economic feasibility of RETs continues to be a barrier to the diffusion of RETs in the Maldives. Fifthly, the study improved the understanding of the dynamics of TIS functions in the Maldives.</p>
A Paradoxical Convergence: National Identity and Gender in 'The Topp Twins' Exhibition and the New Zealand Rugby Museum
Authors:   , Torrance Chelsea 
Published: December 2021

<p>In May 2017, there was a strange convergence inside Palmerston North’s Te Manawa museum. As visitors arrived on the first floor, they were left with two options. Turn left for the New Zealand Rugby Museum, or turn right for an exhibition on Jools and Lynda Topp. Left for masculinist rugby history. Right for radical activist lesbians. While both exhibitions have very different subject matter, themes of gender and national identity are prevalent within them both. Using this convergence as an entry point, this thesis considers the ways national identity and gender are put on display within the permanent exhibition at the New Zealand Rugby Museum and The Topp Twins exhibition. Using data from interviews with key people involved with the two exhibitions, documentary research, and analysis of the two exhibitions, this thesis asks how New Zealand national identity and gender are narrated and displayed within The Topp Twins and the New Zealand Rugby Museum, and considers what this means for museum practice. In so doing, the thesis begins with an overview of key literature looking at nation, discourse and gender in museum and heritage scholarship. It also considers literature of New Zealand identity formation and gender. The intellectual foundation of this thesis resides in the idea that gender, nation and museums are intimately bound. In the second part of the thesis, an investigation into the historical and contemporary context of the two exhibitions is conducted. This section provides an overview of the content and design of the exhibits. In combining both the context and content of the exhibitions, the thesis is able to consider intentions as well as the outcomes of the two. The final part of the thesis considers the ways national identity and gender have been presented within The Topp Twins exhibition and the New Zealand Rugby Museum. This chapter shows that while gender is presented in very different ways, the museums have a very similar narrative about ‘New Zealandness’.</p>
Regenerational Residence
Authors:   , Mackie Ben 
Published: December 2021

<p>New Zealand has an ageing population whose dwelling options for retirement are largely inappropriate. Retirement homes and villages are increasing throughout the country yet these often cause a decline in functional ability. Accordingly, demands on public healthcare have increased, necessitating a shift in recommendations towards homecare and ‘ageing in place.’ Ideally, aged-care should take place within extended families, yet this requires specific accommodation. Historically, standalone housing such as ‘granny flats’ or moving in with the extended family has been the solution. However, these have drawbacks such as inefficiency and distance from the wider community. There remains potential for a denser, economic housing solution within walking distance to local amenities. There is also a growing interest in developing medium-density housing (MDH) in New Zealand. However, this typology has shortfalls when it comes to multigenerational families such as small living rooms and limited outdoor areas. Further, the multi-storey nature of MDH promotes stairs, being particularly restrictive for ageing residents. Is it possible for MDH to be designed to accommodate ageing in place effectively within New Zealand? The needs associated with ageing are important to consider for long-term living. For effective aged-care, the literature advocates designing for both health improvements and accommodating dysfunctions. These two needs are addressed respectively in architecture through regenerative and intergenerational design. A personal and relational lens further investigates both of these terms. Regenerative elements involve personal wellness and relational reciprocity, whereas intergenerational elements include personal autonomy and relational interconnectivity. For each of these elements, the design methods draw qualitatively from existing precedents, indicating potential generators to inform an iterative, site-specific model. A suitable site and program provide relative design parameters. The chosen context is Nelson because the ageing population is straining healthcare while there is also significant potential for MDH. The generators and parameters drove the preliminary design process, ultimately integrating these drivers within a developed design proposal. This exegesis proposes that MDH can effectively accommodate ageing in place by overlapping such drivers through iterative modelling to create specific design principles.</p>