title: Low-temperature thermochronology and thermokinematic modeling of deformation, exhumation, and development of topography in the central Southern Alps, New Zealand

authors: Herman, Frederic

subjects: thermokinematic modelling

abstract: Apatite and zircon (U-Th)/He and fission track ages were obtained from ridge transects across the central Southern Alps, New Zealand. Interpretation of local profiles is difficult because relationships between ages and topography or local faults are complex and the data contain large uncertainties, with poor reproducibility between sample duplicates. Data do form regional patterns, however, consistent with theoretical systematics and corroborating previous observations: young Neogene ages occur immediately southeast of the Alpine Fault (the main plate boundary structure on which rocks are exhumed); partially reset ages occur in the central Southern Alps; and older Mesozoic ages occur further toward the southeast. Zircon apparent ages are older than apatite apparent ages for the equivalent method. Three-dimensional thermokinematic modeling of plate convergence incorporates advection of the upper Pacific plate along a low-angle detachment then up an Alpine Fault ramp, adopting a generally accepted tectonic scenario for the Southern Alps. The modeling incorporates heat flow, evolving topography, and the detailed kinetics of different thermochronometric systems and explains both complex local variations and regional patterns. Inclusion of the effects of radiation damage on He diffusion in detrital apatite is shown to have dramatic effects on results. Geometric and velocity parameters are tuned to fit model ages to observed data. Best fit is achieved at 9 mm a−1 plate convergence, with Pacific plate delamination on a gentle 10°SE dipping detachment and more rapid uplift on a 45–60° dipping Alpine Fault ramp from 15 km depth. Thermokinematic modeling suggests dip-slip motion on reverse faults within the Southern Alps should be highest ∼22 km from the Alpine Fault and much lower toward the southeast.

text: Low-temperature thermochronology and thermokinematic modeling of deformation, exhumation, and development of topography in the central Southern Alps, New Zealand Apatite and zircon (U-Th)/He and fission track ages were obtained from ridge transects across the central Southern Alps, New Zealand. Interpretation of local profiles is difficult because relationships between ages and topography or local faults are complex and the data contain large uncertainties, with poor reproducibility between sample duplicates. Data do form regional patterns, however, consistent with theoretical systematics and corroborating previous observations: young Neogene ages occur immediately southeast of the Alpine Fault (the main plate boundary structure on which rocks are exhumed); partially reset ages occur in the central Southern Alps; and older Mesozoic ages occur further toward the southeast. Zircon apparent ages are older than apatite apparent ages for the equivalent method. Three-dimensional thermokinematic modeling of plate convergence incorporates advection of the upper Pacific plate along a low-angle detachment then up an Alpine Fault ramp, adopting a generally accepted tectonic scenario for the Southern Alps. The modeling incorporates heat flow, evolving topography, and the detailed kinetics of different thermochronometric systems and explains both complex local variations and regional patterns. Inclusion of the effects of radiation damage on He diffusion in detrital apatite is shown to have dramatic effects on results. Geometric and velocity parameters are tuned to fit model ages to observed data. Best fit is achieved at 9 mm a−1 plate convergence, with Pacific plate delamination on a gentle 10°SE dipping detachment and more rapid uplift on a 45–60° dipping Alpine Fault ramp from 15 km depth. Thermokinematic modeling suggests dip-slip motion on reverse faults within the Southern Alps should be highest ∼22 km from the Alpine Fault and much lower toward the southeast.

year: 2009

title: Posthumous documentary theatre: Re-presenting historical documentary material on stage

authors: Mooney, Miriam (Missy)

subjects: documentary theatre

abstract: A practice predicated upon the verbatim re-presentation of non-fiction documents, interviews, personal writings, and other historical source materials on stage, documentary theatre frequently claims to produce theatrical experiences that represent ‘reality’ and ‘truth’. Yet, the symbiosis of real-world source material and a dynamic dramaturgy can be an intricate balancing act, as the theatre maker is often faced with the challenge of how to best navigate the tension between accurately representing ‘the real’ on stage and producing a dynamic theatre experience.  

Much of the scholarship engaging with documentary theatre has addressed the complex ethical-political process of speaking for others and the risk of misrepresentation that comes with making a real person into a documentary character. Consequently, theatre makers often strive to not only represent their documentary subjects accurately but also aim to increase their agency in the documentary theatre process by facilitating opportunities for dialogue, connection, and collaboration. Yet what happens when the theatre maker is unable to communicate with their subjects or extend a collaborative hand? Posthumous Documentary Theatre: Re-presenting Historical Documentary Material on Stage addresses a gap in the documentary theatre discourse and explores how the potential ethical considerations associated with the form may be further complicated when the documentary subjects are no longer living.  

This research takes the form of a PhD with a creative practice component that involved the creation of What Remains: The Love and Letters of Vita Sackville-West & Harold Nicolson. An original documentary play constructed primarily from posthumously published letters and personal writings; What Remains enabled a practical exploration of how theatre makers' ethical considerations for their deceased documentary subjects might influence their dramaturgical processes. Synthesising critical reflection on that creative process with existing documentary theatre theories and practices, this thesis offers findings that aim to be practically useful to others navigating the intersecting ethical and dramaturgical demands of representing the dead on stage in documentary theatre.

text: Posthumous documentary theatre: Re-presenting historical documentary material on stage A practice predicated upon the verbatim re-presentation of non-fiction documents, interviews, personal writings, and other historical source materials on stage, documentary theatre frequently claims to produce theatrical experiences that represent ‘reality’ and ‘truth’. Yet, the symbiosis of real-world source material and a dynamic dramaturgy can be an intricate balancing act, as the theatre maker is often faced with the challenge of how to best navigate the tension between accurately representing ‘the real’ on stage and producing a dynamic theatre experience.  

Much of the scholarship engaging with documentary theatre has addressed the complex ethical-political process of speaking for others and the risk of misrepresentation that comes with making a real person into a documentary character. Consequently, theatre makers often strive to not only represent their documentary subjects accurately but also aim to increase their agency in the documentary theatre process by facilitating opportunities for dialogue, connection, and collaboration. Yet what happens when the theatre maker is unable to communicate with their subjects or extend a collaborative hand? Posthumous Documentary Theatre: Re-presenting Historical Documentary Material on Stage addresses a gap in the documentary theatre discourse and explores how the potential ethical considerations associated with the form may be further complicated when the documentary subjects are no longer living.  

This research takes the form of a PhD with a creative practice component that involved the creation of What Remains: The Love and Letters of Vita Sackville-West & Harold Nicolson. An original documentary play constructed primarily from posthumously published letters and personal writings; What Remains enabled a practical exploration of how theatre makers' ethical considerations for their deceased documentary subjects might influence their dramaturgical processes. Synthesising critical reflection on that creative process with existing documentary theatre theories and practices, this thesis offers findings that aim to be practically useful to others navigating the intersecting ethical and dramaturgical demands of representing the dead on stage in documentary theatre.

year: 2024

title: In defence of mātauranga Māori: A response to the 'seven academics'

authors: Waitoki, Waikaremoana

abstract: On 28 July 2021, a group of academics from the University of Auckland published a letter in the Listener, a well-known, non-academic magazine. The letter writers expressed their moral outrage that the Government’s NCEA curriculum working group proposed that science would be taught to Māori students along with its colonising history.

text: In defence of mātauranga Māori: A response to the 'seven academics' On 28 July 2021, a group of academics from the University of Auckland published a letter in the Listener, a well-known, non-academic magazine. The letter writers expressed their moral outrage that the Government’s NCEA curriculum working group proposed that science would be taught to Māori students along with its colonising history.

year: 2022-04-01