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Alshahrani, Mohammed A. S. "Oral and nasal infectivity and immunogenicity of Plasmodium berghei and yoelii sporozoites and longevity of Plasmodium falciparum trophozoites and schizonts." Thesis, Bangor University, 2017. https://research.bangor.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/oral-and-nasal-infectivity-and-immunogenicity-of-plasmodium-berghei-and-yoelii-sporozoites-and-longevity-of-plasmodium-falciparum-trophozoites-and-schizonts(69df2a18-9a6d-4ee5-922d-bb11332f86f0).html.
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Malaria is one of the most problematic diseases that human being has ever confronted. The quest for an effective, robust vaccine has been going on for more than a century. The whole Plasmodium sporozoites vaccine strategy has proven to be the best approach for eliciting up to 70% protection and for up to 6 months after the last immunization. Most of the robust vaccines that we have nowadays against several microbiological organisms are given by either oral or nasal routes. Infectivity and immunogenicity of Plasmodium berghei ANKA and P. yoelii Nigeriensis sporozoites have never been tested against BALB/c or C57BL/6 mice after being inoculated via oral and nasal routes. Results of this study show that inoculation of sporozoites of the species P. berghei or P. yoelii into BALB/c or C57BL/6 mice are infective and immunogenic. Furthermore, there was a cross-reactivity between the two parasite species when tested against several synthetic peptides. These findings shed light on the importancy of the oral and nasal canal as routes for experimentations of the immunization regime. The large subunit vaccines development concentrated on the erythrocytic stage of malaria parasites has generated disappointing results, Therefore, there is currently a renewed focus on the whole Plasmodium blood stage parasite. In the current study, we aim to assess whether it is possible to obtain a living, whole entity of the blood stage that can be kept alive under minimal conditions and ideally without cryopreservation which could be used in developing countries a live, whole organism blood stage vaccine. we examined the viability as well as the invasiveness potency of Plasmodium falciparum parasites after being isolated from RBCs and incubated at 37˚C and RT. We showed here that the Plasmodium parasites were able to retain their invasiveness for 16 days despite being incubated at far lower temperature (at RT) than the optimal temperature. Also we showed that the Plasmodium falciparum at late trophozoites and early schizonts were capable to remain viable for 10 months (nearly 300 days) outside the RBCs at RT. The diversity of malaria disease in animals is larger ecologically and systematically than we commonly expected. The Plasmodium genus is a member within the order Haemosporidia, is consider one of the largest genus in this order, and currently encompass more than 250 Plasmodium species. Most of these species have only been defined morphologically. Most animals show simultaneous infections with more than one species of Plasmodium and most species descriptions originated from such multiple infections, which prevents the molecular characterization of most Plasmodium species as sequence data cannot be assigned to particular morphospecies. We have successfully developed genus- and species-specific FISH probes based on the small and large ribosomal subunit for Plasmodium falciparum as a proof of concept for the interrogation of animal morphospecies of Plasmodium parasites. This will open up the future for molecular screening of animal malaria, not only in blood samples but also in fecal samples, and might lead to a better understanding of the epidemiology and ecology of malaria parasites in many animal species in temperate and in tropical regions.
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Lalor, Kay. "Uneven encounters and paradoxical rights : embodiment and difference in sexual orientation rights and activism." Thesis, University of Westminster, 2012. https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/item/8z3xv/uneven-encounters-and-paradoxical-rights-embodiment-and-difference-in-sexual-orientation-rights-and-activism.
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My thesis takes the intersection of sexual orientation and human rights and the increased tendency towards the expression of the concerns of sexual minorities in rights based terminology in international law as a Deleuzian ‘problem’ to be explored and unpicked. Sexual orientation is a singular expression of a complex multifaceted virtuality, yet the term -‐ understood as a static and relatively unchanging denotation of a particular identity and mode of action -‐ holds increasing purchase as a human rights issue. I explore the way in which rights shape the expression of sexuality within institutional and activist practices in international arenas and suggest that the complex and contested encounter between sexuality and human rights in international law exposes the problems, limits and temporality of both. By taking seriously the problems inherent to the encounters between sexuality and rights, as they are expressed in different material circumstances, we can explore sexuality as a mutliplicitous and changing flux and rights as a dual sided paradox, acting simultaneously machines of territorialisation and machines of deteritorialisation. Thus, I suggest that in their engagement with questions of 'sexual orientation', rights act as both modes of control, restriction and exclusion and as modes of communication and connection, challenge and escape, depending upon the particular circumstances within which they are expressed. As such, I attempt to engage with the embeddedness of ‘sexuality’ within particular material contexts and through this engagement, explore different potentialities that are implicated within divergent enactments of rights and sexuality in order to critique a mode of action that remains fixed upon abstract discussion of ossified ‘sexualities’ and transcendental rights. Furthermore, my aim is to approach the encounter not only as a means of critique but also as a moment of uncertainty and a site of productive engagement, vitality and becoming. Thus, the key question to be asked of the encounter between sexual orientation and rights is not one of which rights have been violated or of how a perceived violation can be expressed in relation to an already conceived and fixed discourse of rights, but instead, which material circumstances have facilitated the expression of injustice suffered by a sexual minority as a rights violation and in expressing the violation in this way, which possibilities, problematics and discourses are activated, and which others are ignored.
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Barker, Camilla. "Dialogue and dialectic in twelfth- and thirteenth-century Occitan and Old French courtly lyric and narrative." Thesis, King's College London (University of London), 2013. https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/dialogue-and-dialectic-in-twelfth-and-thirteenthcentury-occitan-and-old-french-courtly-lyric-and-narrative(2839fc54-ceff-401f-94f0-592b526079c0).html.
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This thesis considers how dialectic, dialogue and debate contribute to the construction of the courtly subject in twelfth- and thirteenth-century Old French and Occitan lyric and narrative. It considers how debate and dialogue are informed by dialectic, which acts as a structural and thematic frame and gives courtly debate its distinctive oppositional tone. I argue that dialectic underpins debate lyrics; dialogues within narrative texts; and monologues (within lyrics and narratives) which break down into clear internal dialogue, or which use formal structures which are suggestive of dialogue. Chapter one stands as an introduction to the substantial tradition of debate both in Occitan and in Northern French. Chapter two considers a major theme in courtly literature, silence and secrecy, in the context of debate. Chapter three addresses dialogic forms within monologue, whether in single-voiced lyric poems or in monologues delivered by characters in narrative texts. Chapter four examines women’s desire, within the framework of dialogue, asking how dialogue shapes and constructs the feminine voice. Each chapter considers a range of courtly lyrics that are not in dialogue form, but which use the formal properties of dialogue, in addition to contemporary verse narratives. Research questions include what dialogue can tell us about the construction of the speaking voice in courtly literature; how dialogue constructs the feminine voice; and how dialogue inscribes cultural difference.
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Leyva, Rodolfo. "Neoliberalism and the cultural and political dispositions and practices of millennials in London and LA : a socio-cognitive analysis." Thesis, King's College London (University of London), 2013. https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/neoliberalism-and-the-cultural-and-political-dispositions-and-practices-of-millennials-in-london-and-la(1b15ca59-f53d-40b5-8c5d-85eb419c2460).html.
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This thesis explores the everyday experiences and aspirations of young people living in Los Angeles and London, focusing on their cultural and political dispositions, emotions, thoughts and practices, and how these converge with, and diverge from, the dominant neoliberal discourses they are surrounded by. The contemporary literature on youth and youth politics tends to view young people as active and cognizant agents in the reproduction of socio-cultural and political-economic institutions, discourses, and practices. Applying a socio-cognitive approach to the analysis of interview data, ethnographic observations, and media-cultural texts, this thesis contends that these bodies of literature neglect the unconscious dimensions of young people’s practices, and in particular, that insufficient emphasis is placed on how these contribute to the reproduction of neoliberalism. It argues that, if the literature on youth is to adequately conceptualize and represent young people and their roles in social reproduction, then research explorations must attend to these unconscious dimensions. As this thesis will demonstrate, doing so facilitates and enriches analyses of the ways in which different institutional settings influence, constrain, and enable young people, and of some of the ways that young people contest, internalize, and negotiate between the dominant societal discourses presented to them. The thesis also explores some of the lessons that a socio-cognitive approach to youth culture and politics can contribute to the work of critical educators concerned with progressive social change. It argues that critical and progressive educators must incorporate socio-cognitive insights into their practices in order to tackle the potential dispositional barriers which may hinder the realisation of the political objectives of critical and progressive pedagogy.
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Smyth, Nina. "Cortisol secretion in saliva and hair : methodological considerations and relationships with state and trait well-being." Thesis, University of Westminster, 2013. https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/item/8z18y/cortisol-secretion-in-saliva-and-hair-methodological-considerations-and-relationships-with-state-and-trait-well-being.
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Cortisol secretion follows a distinct circadian rhythm characterised by a nadir in early sleep, gradually increasing concentrations during late sleep, peak levels at 30-45 minutes post awakening (the cortisol awakening response: CAR) and a declining pattern thereafter. Salivary cortisol enables determination of the diurnal pattern within the domestic setting, although the measurement presents methodological challenges that need to be addressed. Further, the diurnal pattern of cortisol has been studied in relation to trait and state ill-being, rather than well-being. Consequently the focus of this programme of research was to explore relationships between the diurnal pattern of cortisol secretion and measures of both state and trait well-being and to examine the impact of electronically determined participant adherence to protocol within the domestic setting. In the first instance healthy, psychopathology-free young females were investigated but the work was extended to investigate the impact of aging on associations between cortisol secretion and well-being in healthy older females. Data from healthy female participants demonstrates for the first time that moderate delays (on average 8 minutes) between awakening and the start of saliva sampling (previously considered tolerable) result in erroneous over-estimation of CAR magnitude and earlier timing of the CAR peak. This minimal level of non-adherence was not detected by self-reported awakening time, suggesting that electronic monitoring of awakening is essential in CAR research. The effects of moderate delays on the CAR measurement were explored in a detailed study, the first to sample salivary cortisol secretion at five minute intervals in the immediate post-awakening period. Over-estimation of the CAR magnitude and earlier peak were attributed to an observed approximate ten minute time lag between awakening and the start of the cortisol rise. In contrast non-adherence to the sampling protocol across the day did not impact on measurement of the diurnal cortisol measures when measured at 3-12 hours post-awakening. In healthy young females neither state nor trait well-being/ill-being were associated with the CAR when using data strictly monitored for non-adherence during saliva sampling in the post-awakening period. Additionally, state and trait well-being were not associated with the diurnal decline or mean levels of cortisol across the day. These null findings could be attributed to the age of the sample. Previous associations between well-being and diurnal cortisol patterns have been observed mostly in middle-aged and older adults. The new method of cortisol assessment in hair samples provided a retrospective trait measure of cortisol secretion, without the problems of non-adherence to protocol. No associations between three months hair cortisol secretion with well-being/ill-being were observed in young healthy females, in line with the results reported above using salivary cortisol. However, in the older sample associations between hair cortisol and trait well-being were evident. Higher levels of trait well-being were associated with higher hair cortisol, independently of ill-being, providing support for cortisol as an ‘energiser’ in healthy older female participants. Together these findings provide evidence for the neurotoxicity hypothesis of cortisol secretion; well-being did not exert effects on cortisol secretion in early adulthood but effects were evident in late adulthood in healthy psychopathology-free female samples. The unique contribution of this programme of research lies in its consideration of methodological issues in the measurement of cortisol and well-being and its focus on positive psychology rather than the traditional psychopathology in relation to cortisol.
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Jovic, Maja. "Branding post-conflict cities and nations : theory and cases." Thesis, University of Westminster, 2018. https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/item/q5520/branding-post-conflict-cities-and-nations-theory-and-cases.
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Positive images have helped cities and nations attract investments, visitors, residents and talent. In contrast, a number of places are struggling with unfamiliarity and image problems based on inaccurate information or stereotypes. In other cases, a turbulent past, political instability, natural disasters, violence and economic downturns are to blame. Brand management is here particularly challenging but needed for many emerging, newly industrialised and transitional nations. A strong sense of national identity has the power to be a productive and enabling force in a society, providing positive social capital – improved cooperation within society, information flows, resilience and better functioning institutions. This thesis develops an understanding of how the process of branding may be used to help recreate an image of a post-conflict city or nation. It evaluates the potential, context and rationale of models designed to aid the branding process in environments defined by war residue. To do so, an interdisciplinary approach has been developed to identify the relations between the effect of national image and nationalism on brands, the built environment, and the image as a destination. The thesis draws on topics, experiences and questions from four different themes: conflict, tourism, marketing and architecture. Overall, it contributes to ongoing debates about branding and expands on them by exploring the unique post-conflict setting of Serbia, where discourses around urbanism, cosmopolitanism, the rural and local, as well as tensions between neighbouring countries are played out. The thesis examines the data relating to the case study of Serbia through a critical discourse analysis of printed media and interviews with key experts from the region. The research acknowledges literature on political or destination branding of other post-conflict countries, however, these are usually considered from a singular aspect – political science, implementation of a social programme or destination marketing. The thesis’ contributions are exploring the role of residents in a post-conflict environment and identifying it as a most important factor to consider when creating a branding strategy. It argues cities cannot carry the weight of a country’s brand, even though this is often an “ad hoc” solution, nor can national identity be interchangeable with the brand. The thesis argues First World branding models largely overlook the question of whether a place is post-conflict at all, and what form the conflict has taken. It provides a theoretical framework to analyse the construction of post-conflict national identities by drawing upon tourism, architecture, theories of national identity, and brand management.
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Wood, David Michael John. "Revolution and pachakuti : political and indigenous cinema in Bolivia and Colombia." Thesis, King's College London (University of London), 2005. https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/revolution-and-pachakuti--political-and-indigenous-cinema-in-bolivia-and-colombia(37111910-1bbe-4177-87e3-53ec4930e53f).html.
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This thesis focuses on cinema and video made by and about indigenous or subaltern people and communities in Bolivia and Colombia, and discusses the interaction between different cultural notions of social change and of aesthetic representation. It centres on the productions of Jorge Sanjines' Bolivian Ukamau Group, and of Marta Rodriguez's Fundaci6n Cine Documental in Colombia. Previous studies of these filmmaking collectives have tended to view them under the banner of either national cinematic traditions; the artistic and political avant-garde often termed as the 'New Latin American Cinema'; or a longer history of indigenous film and media. This thesis is bound by none of these categories, but asks how they overlap, mutually inform and alter one another. By combining close textual analysis with wider contextual and historical accounts of the films' production and distribution, it examines the linkages between aesthetic form, cultural memory and political action. It thus begins with an account of the national and international circulation of militant avant-garde indigenista and revolutionary cinema in the 1960s and 1970s, showing how these groups inserted their work into existing and nascent political and cultural movements, infrastructures and networks. It discusses how the film collectives' early works converted existing national tropes of the primitive into potential subjects of continental revolution. It argues that methodological and textual innovations have increasingly opened films up to the cultural and political expressions of their participants, and converted them into fields of intercultural dialogue and debate. It proposes that even videos made by indigenous people themselves are inevitably mediated by aesthetic, technological and institutional structures, and considers some of the strategies that indigenous intellectuals and video-makers have employed in response. This thesis concludes that the most effective political cinemas have been those that have acknowledged and gained strength from their own status as mediations between different political, cultural and ideological spheres; between European-derived notions of social change (revolution) and Andean ones (pachakuti).
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Roesch, Anne Dorothée. "Investigating the comprehension and production of 'Wh'-questions in monolingual and bilingual German and French children with and without SLI." Thesis, Bangor University, 2014. https://research.bangor.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/investigating-the-comprehension-and-production-of-whquestions-in-monolingual-and-bilingual-german-and-french-children-with-and-without-sli(9545b17c-4dde-409f-a125-3a175b1a3997).html.
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Newton, Paul. "Comparing and contrasting healthcare professionals' and patients' perceptions, understanding and experiences of Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) and its management : a qualitative study." Thesis, King's College London (University of London), 2014. https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/comparing-and-contrasting-healthcare-professionals-and-patients-perceptions-understanding-and-experiences-of-type-2-diabetes-t2d-and-its-management(cbb4933c-87ff-4983-bca0-c25a2f771c2c).html.
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Background: The increased prevalence of Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) in the UK has seen the adoption of empowerment models of T2D management. Research exists which contrasts patients’ and healthcare professionals’ perspectives of T2D management. However, no studies explicitly contrast healthcare professionals’ and patients’ perspectives within the empowerment approach. The overall aim of this study was to explore healthcare professionals’ and patients’ perspectives of managing T2D in a context where empowerment is the prevailing health paradigm. The three research questions informing the aim sought to explore: 1) What are patients’ and healthcare professionals’ perceptions, understanding and experiences of successful and unsuccessful (un/successful) T2D management? 2) What barriers and enablers do patients and healthcare professionals perceive, understand and experience in relation to managing T2D on a day-to-day basis? and 3) What similarities and differences emerge in patients’ and professionals’ perceptions, understanding and experiences of managing T2D on a day-to-day basis? Methods: This is cross-sectional, qualitative research using maximum-variation sampling with healthcare professional and patient participants in an empowerment-based T2D patient participation group. Semi-structured interviews (N = 25 patients / N=10 healthcare professionals), focus groups (3 x N = 12 patients) and open-ended questionnaires (N = 6 patients) were used. Data were analysed thematically using framework analysis. Findings: Patient management of T2D developed from factors in their personal and social contexts. T2D affected patients in differing ways across the course of the illness (i.e. diagnosis, adaption and eventual self-management) and patients had different resources available in their social contexts with which to manage these effects. Diagnosis was shaped largely by the different types of uncertainty patient participants experienced on their diagnostic route, and the progession of the illness prior to detection and diagnosis which shaped the barriers and enablers they experienced. Healthcare professionals, on the other hand saw diagnosis as a springboard to self-management and tended to interpret patients’ experiences of uncertainty as ‘resistance’. Therefore, barriers to responding to diagnosis were seen as largely patient-related. Patient participants reported adapting to living with T2D as an ongoing process of adjusting their personal (and wider) relationships, as well as social activities, to ensure their T2D-related needs were met. Conversely, although healthcare professionals saw adaption as important, it was seen as a brief adjustment period after diagnosis and before full self-management. This highlighted another area where healthcare professionals and patients gauged successful management differently, and saw different barriers and enablers. Patients also experienced varied barriers and enablers and evaluated successful management using diverse criteria, largely shaped by factors in their social context. Healthcare professionals expected patients to ‘own their illness’ which was seen to reduce pressure on finite health resources, and that clinical advice would create behaviour change. Healthcare professionals’ perspectives on successful self-management revolved around clinical evidence, the healthcare system and socio-contextual constraints, and portrayed barriers and enablers to managing T2D largely as patient or healthcare system related. Discussion: Similarities and differences in healthcare professionals’ and patients’ perspectives of T2D management were seen. These occurred as a result of the fit between patients’ styles of self-management and healthcare professionals’ expectations surrounding behaviour change and health resources management. These differences were also evident during the diagnosis and adaption stages of the illness. Conclusion: Management of T2D was seen and experienced differently by healthcare professionals and patients where empowerment of the patient to self-manage was the prevailing paradigm. The lack of fit develops largely due to the different evaluative contexts and criteria which healthcare professionals and patients use to manage T2D, and the different expectations that healthcare professionals and patients have of one another.
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Ureta, Ivan. "Diplomatic and political entrepreneurs and brokers designing and managing euro-Mediterranean politics : the Franco-Spanish paradigm." Thesis, King's College London (University of London), 2014. https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/diplomatic-and-political-entrepreneurs-and-brokers-designing-and-managing-euromediterranean-politics(27fafed9-6d00-4b00-beca-b4a2dc54ac04).html.
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This thesis analyses how Spain as a raising power in the Mediterranean, has developed its diplomatic strategies and mechanisms to gain diplomatic influence, international recognition and power. On the other side, it also analyses how France as a competing and rival power reacted to those diplomatic offenses and to what extent they became collaborators or competitors. Geopolitical interests, domestic politics, historical and contextual pre-conditions architected their diplomatic strategy. Political communication and lobbying strategies deployed by them as political entrepreneurs and brokers, were defined to construct a new socio-political imaginary and to gather political and public opinion’ consensus in order to achieve planned aims and objectives. This thesis focuses on the evaluation of the policies propelled by these political brokers and entrepreneurs. In order to propose a valid evaluation system the thesis has implemented a wide number of methodological tools that will allow the researcher to understand –and explain and demonstrate – complex scenarios and dynamics, avoiding generalizations and speculation in the process. In order to do so the researcher has adopted a long-term, multivariable –quantitative and qualitative analysis- that allows a better understanding of political, diplomatic and socio-economic trends, mechanisms and processes. The thesis avoids also a Eurocentric approach and has developed a symmetric discourse aiming at placing European and southern Mediterranean interests at the same level. This thesis concludes demonstrating that Western leaders, political entrepreneurs and brokers, have been trying to find and support cooperative and collaborative regimes. In parallel, leaders from Southern Mediterranean countries have been playing that game in order to consolidate their leadership. Despite the number of Euro-Mediterranean initiatives, projects and mechanisms European partners did not show a commitment to choosing the right objectives and expectations for the challenges they faced. Therefore, at a managerial level, these policies have been ambiguous and scarcely productive.
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Newbould, Melanie. "Medicine and intersex : legal and ethical issues surrounding genital and gonadal surgery." Thesis, University of Manchester, 2016. https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/medicine-and-intersex-legal-and-ethical-issues-surrounding-genital-and-gonadal-surgery(156d3572-18bb-4a37-808d-9c821dcecfbf).html.
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This thesis deals with some of the legal and ethical issues that arise when an individual’s genital and gonadal anatomy does not match what is perceived to be the biological (or sometimes culturally determined) norm. I focus on intersex individuals, particularly infants, who may undergo genital surgery, to ‘normalise’ genital anatomy. I compare this type of surgery to other forms of genital cutting on those too young to consent, male circumcision and female genital mutilation (FGM). I discuss how sex is complex and not yet fully understood; intersex challenges the idea that sex is a simple binary entity and the history of ‘sex testing’ in sport illustrates that there are, rarely, individuals for whom categorisation as biologically male or female is impossible. Gender is also a complex entity, but institutions such as medicine and the law still endorse a simple bipolar model of sex and gender. I argue that the assumptions on which medical practice in intersex is based are based on these simplistic gender norms. I argue that one form of intersex surgery, refashioning the clitoris, continues to be seen as a valid treatment option despite the paucity of outcome data and is not treatment for an illness but for an anatomical difference. At least some individuals who have had this procedure perceive that they have been harmed by it. Therefore I argue that the current medical and surgical approach to anatomical genital variation in intersex is ethically questionable. Furthermore it is possible to construct an argument that it is not in the best interests of the young child to undergo this procedure and that it therefore may be unlawful, even when carried out with parental consent. I also argue that, if FGM is unlawful, as it is, then other analogous procedures, such as clitoral surgery for intersex and male circumcision for non-medical reasons should similarly be unlawful. Male circumcision is held to be lawful in England at present, but the English courts have not considered genital surgery in intersex infants. If they did, then the logical conclusion ought to be to proscribe it. I argue that documents such as driving licences and passports should permit a neutral gender and that birth certification ought to permit registration without specifying sex for intersex infants. It is possible that at least some of this may come about in the future, since a recently published report from the House of Commons Women and Equalities Committee on Transgender Equality has suggested change in the current situation, one indication of the current rapid pace of change in this area of Law. I argue that education about intersex and sex and gender diversity is important for healthcare professionals and for everyone.
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Gray, Clarabella. "Individual and interpersonal risk and resiliency factors in primary and secondary trauma." Thesis, Bangor University, 2018. https://research.bangor.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/individual-and-interpersonal-risk-and-resiliency-factors-in-primary-and-secondary-trauma(c158861f-b20c-40b2-9795-1194b3bb367f).html.
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This thesis explores individual and interpersonal risk and resiliency factors in primary and secondary trauma across three individual papers. The first paper is a systematic review examining the role of social cognition in the relationship between attachment style and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The review synthesises the findings of six studies that met the inclusion criteria. Collectively, the results indicate that social cognition has a mediating role. The review suggests that insecure attachment style is a risk factor and secure attachment is a resiliency factor in PTSD. However, it was not possible to draw firm conclusions due to the small number of heterogeneous studies reviewed. The clear need for future research is discussed. Suggestions are made for the use of attachment and social cognition approaches in the psychosocial treatment of PTSD. The second paper is an empirical study investigating individual characteristics, secondary trauma, and burnout in police sexual and violent offending teams. The study used a sample of specialist police staff (N=78) who completed an online questionnaire survey. The results indicate that coping self-efficacy, dispositional mindfulness, and psychological flexibility are resiliency factors and insecure attachment style is a risk factor for secondary trauma, burnout, and mental ill-health. Suggestions are made for the use of mindfulness, acceptance and commitment therapy, and attachment approaches in promoting a resilient police work force. The final chapter expansively discusses the implications of both papers for future research, theory development, and clinical practice. Collectively, the findings suggest that attachment style may serve as an individual and interpersonal risk or resiliency factor in primary and secondary trauma. The socio-interpersonal model of PTSD is referenced as encapsulating the thesis findings in the wider trauma literature.
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Walker, Samantha Dawn. "Environmental risk assessment and human pharmaceuticals : limitations and future improvements." Thesis, University of Westminster, 2012. https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/item/8z9vw/environmental-risk-assessment-and-human-pharmaceuticals-limitations-and-future-improvements.
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A cocktail of human pharmaceuticals contaminate surface waters worldwide in the ng-μgl-1 range. Adverse effects on non target organisms including endocrine disruption and alterations in behaviour and growth have been reported. All new pharmaceuticals require an environmental risk assessment (ERA) prior to market authorisation. The aims for this research were to (1) assess the limitations of the current ERA by comparing crude and refined predicted environmental concentrations (PECs) used in ERAs with measured environmental concentrations (MECs) from the literature; (2) interview key people working in the field of risk assessment and ecotoxicology of pharmaceuticals in order to establish expert opinion in the area; (3) to establish whether bioinformatics databases can be used as a potential tool to aid ecotoxicological tests for use in ERAs. The scientific literature was data mined for environmental concentration data and compared with calculated PECs for ten pharmaceuticals carbamazepine, diclofenac, 17α ethinyl estradiol, fluoxetine, gemfibrozil, ibuprofen, paracetamol, propranolol, tamoxifen and Trimethoprim. An engagement exercise through questionnaire based interviews with representatives of regulatory bodies, water companies and pharmaceutical companies as well as academics involved in ecotoxicology was undertaken to establish experts’ views on pharmaceutical risk assessment and management. A genomic search for human drug target homologues in aquatic species for the ten selected pharmaceuticals was undertaken. Molecular docking experiments on two pharmaceuticals, diclofenac and ibuprofen were carried out for human drug target homologues in Daphnia pulex, (water flea) Oncorhynchus mykiss (rainbow trout), Salmo salar (Atlantic salmon) and Danio rerio (zebra fish). The current environmental risk assessment may be insufficient to protect the aquatic environment. PECs can underestimate MECs due to the simplicity of the calculations and the assumptions underpinning them. The interviewees regarded the exposure assessment of the ERA including the PEC calculation as inaccurate and recommended using exposure modelling computer software as a potential solution. The bulk of the scientific literature had substantial deficiencies in the reporting of environmental data; setting reporting standards for peer reviewed journals may make such data more useful for regulators and policy makers. Interviewees felt that the current ecotoxicity tests would benefit from a more intelligent approach incorporating the mode of action of the drug. The bioinformatics results show that protein drug targets are highly conserved in some aquatic organisms but not others. The molecular docking results indicate that the cyclooxygenase (COX 2) primary drug target homologues are probably functional in O.mykiss, S.salar and D.rerio but not D.pulex. It appears from this data that bioinformatics and molecular docking indeed may be a useful tool to aid ecotoxicology tests by informing choice on relevant chronic test endpoints and directing sensitive species selection. Such techniques might contribute to more appropriately targeted ecotoxicity testing. Interviewees felt that the 10 ngl-1 action limit was an inappropriate mechanism to trigger ecotoxicological tests. The pharmaceuticals data analysis shows that many existing pharmaceuticals regularly exceed the 10 ngl-1 action limit for ecotoxicological assessment. A system of prioritisation is required to assess the need for retrospective risk assessment of these medicines. This thesis provides an original analysis of the current environmental risk assessment of human pharmaceuticals and makes recommendations for improvements. A novel application of molecular docking utilizing the mode of action of the pharmaceutical has the potential to aid and direct ecotoxicological tests.
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Chuah, Jason. "The context and construct of international commercial and maritime law." Thesis, University of Westminster, 2006. https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/item/924q7/the-context-and-construct-of-international-commercial-and-maritime-law.
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Inoue, Allison. "Educational psychology and dyslexia : an investigation into current thinking and practice." Thesis, University of Manchester, 2016. https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/educational-psychology-and-dyslexia-an-investigation-into-current-thinking-and-practice(d6972ab8-e34a-4d27-b6f0-1fbfe9e0f188).html.
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Paper 1: This first of three papers identified current areas of educational psychologist (EP) scholarship across key publications read by a sample of 13 EPs working in three different models of service delivery in England on the topic of developmental dyslexia (henceforth, dyslexia). Findings imply that the EPs sampled do not access high quality scientific research literature on dyslexia; most of the literature accessed appears to be non-peer reviewed and there is little information to support the development of EP practice for assessment and intervention, understanding the link between literacy failure and mental health, or how all this contributes to a consultation method of service delivery. Paper 2: The focus of the empirical paper was to describe and analyse how EPs currently conceptualise dyslexia and delineate what they do with regard to assessment and intervention. Furthermore, it explored how EPs' beliefs about dyslexia, and the wider social context, impact on practice. Findings suggest that dyslexia remains an area of significant confusion and contradiction for the EPs interviewed. Most continue to rely on the British Psychological Society's (BPS, 1999) definition but this appears to add to their confusion rather than clarify their thinking which, in turn, seems to reinforce their beliefs or 'world view' about dyslexia. A very narrow range of actual practice in terms of assessment and intervention was described by the participants. Paper 3: The final paper discussed evidence-based practice (EBP), effective dissemination strategies to promote and measure outcomes, and the impact of such research. To conclude, some thought is given to ways in which the current research contributes to EBP and possible media for dissemination.
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Taki, Maha. "Bloggers and the Blogosphere in Lebanon & Syria : meanings and activities." Thesis, University of Westminster, 2010. https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/item/9082q/bloggers-and-the-blogosphere-in-lebanon-syria-meanings-and-activities.
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The use of blogging and its potential effects on society and politics have been widely debated but the meanings and understandings that bloggers themselves hold about the activity have not been sufficiently explored; indeed in Lebanon and Syria they have barely been investigated at all. Through interviews with bloggers, ISPs, Internet café owners and others, as well as informal online participant observation and an online questionnaire, this thesis explores the structural and cultural variables that have allowed Lebanese and Syrian bloggers to understand and use blogs in their own specific ways. The study not only recounts what bloggers say about themselves but investigates the structural variables that surround them, including government and institutional policy, censorship, impediments to Internet access, historical conditions under which blogging emerged, attitudes to the Internet, changing events and new entrants to blogging. By its comparative nature, the project reveals how the meanings that bloggers attach to their blogging activities and to their socialization with other bloggers are situated in the social and historical conditions under which blogging is practiced. The changing meanings blogging acquired for bloggers during the course of this research illustrated its shifting and relational attributes. Thus an unexpectedly complex array of interrelated factors is shown to contribute to the tool acquiring certain meanings and being used in specific ways. The research uncovers differing reasons between Lebanese and Syrian bloggers as to why they blog, what socialisation with other bloggers means to them, and what marks of differentiation such as anonymity and choice of language they use to distinguish the activity of one blogger from another. Both the Lebanese and Syrian bloggers at this point belong to a collective effort of other bloggers in their own countries, but the thesis also shows the meanings of socialisation online and how it is regarded change over time.
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Terrisse, Marc. "Les transformations des équipements culturels en milieu urbain: inscription dans un projet de développement territorial, approche pluridisciplinaire et gouvernance locale." Centre for Local Government, 2008. http://clg-cgl.politics-and-society.ca/.
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Tanchoux, Philippe. "Heurs et malheurs de l'administration chargée de la protection des monuments historiques en France; 1830-1848." Centre for Local Government, 2008. http://clg-cgl.politics-and-society.ca/.
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Gigot, Mathieu. "Les zones de protection du patrimoine architectural, urbain et paysager (ZPPAUP), une forme de gouvernance patrimoniale ?" Centre for Local Government, 2008. http://clg-cgl.politics-and-society.ca/.
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Gueguen, Catherine. "L'investissement des associations chinoises dans leur environnement urbain : le cas de Metro-Manila, Philippines." Centre for Local Government, 2008. http://clg-cgl.politics-and-society.ca/.
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Lusso, Bruno. "Les politiques culturelles à Roubaix, à la croisée de l'urbain et du social." Centre for Local Government, 2008. http://clg-cgl.politics-and-society.ca/.
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Reynolds, Thomas William. "A study of music and liturgy : choirs and organs in monastic and secular foundations in Wales and the Borderlands, 1485-1645." Thesis, Bangor University, 2002. https://research.bangor.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/a-study-of-music-and-liturgy--choirs-and-organs-in-monastic-and-secular-foundations-in-wales-and-the-borderlands-14851645(7d84e8de-005e-49e2-a6a4-2d64b028c137).html.
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The Battle of Bosworth in 1485 marked the start of the Tudor dynasty. It had an added significance for Wales as it marked the start of a period of greater political stability, further strengthened by the Act of Union between England and Wales, 1536/43. Stability was far from reality for the Church, however, with fundamental changes in church governance emanating from Henry VIII's break with Rome in 1534. This thesis investigates the changing demands placed upon the church musician and provision for music in the liturgy in a variety of Welsh and borderland ecclesiastical institutions. The geographical area is extended beyond Wales to include (as a means of a comparison) those towns of the counties of Cheshire, Shropshire and Herefordshire which lie either on or west of the main north-south thoroughfare, namely Chester, Oswestry, Shrewsbury, Ludlow, Leominster and Hereford. The scope of the thesis is naturally broad ranging. It advances our knowledge of church music in the region by drawing together and reconciling the fragmentary research of other historians and musicologists in addition to much original research. Important historical features of medieval Wales and its Church are presented to provide a background for the subsequent analysis of the liturgical and musical specifics of the immediate pre-Reformation period. The remaining chapters look in detail at the postReformation situation. Comparisons are drawn and any regional characteristics noted, especially with regard to the choral repertoire and the use of the organ. The final date, 1645, is a convenient point at which to end this study since officially this was when public worship from the Book of Common Prayer was outlawed, choral services eventually brought to a standstill until the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660.
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Elali, Wajeeh. "EVA and shareholder value creation : an empirical study." Thesis, University of Westminster, 2007. https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/item/91xv0/eva-and-shareholder-value-creation-an-empirical-study.
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In recent years, a variant of residual income often called Economic Value Added (EVA)' or Economic Income (EI) has become a popular concern in academia and business communities. This study investigates the general hypothesis that EVA is more highly associated with shareholder wealth and firm values than are traditional performance measures. Two commonly used value-based performance metrics namely, Total Shareholder Return (TSR) and Tobin's Q are also considered to highlight the valuerelevance of EVA vis-a-vis these measures in predicting shareholder wealth. Using a sample of panel data of around 12,000 firm-year observations taken from the Stem Stewart 1000 EVA/MVA database and the DATASTREAM file over the period 1991-2002, this study finds compelling evidence that shareholder value is a function of EVA. This study also provides evidence consistent with the notion that EVA outperforms other traditional performance measures in explaining shareholder wealth. Valuerelevance tests reveal EVA to be more highly associated with shareholder wealth than TSR and Tobin's Q. The incremental tests also suggest that EVA possesses the largest explanatory power (or information usefulness) over TSR and Tobin's Q. These results conclusively support the claims made by EVA proponents and further support the potential usefulness of the EVA metric for internal and external performance.
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Llibre, Rodriguez Juan. "Prevalence and incidence of dementia and interaction between genetic admixture, apoe genotype, lipids and dementia in an admixed Cuban population." Thesis, King's College London (University of London), 2012. https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/prevalence-and-incidence-of-dementia-and-interaction-between-genetic-admixture-apoe-genotype-lipids-and-dementia-in-an-admixed-cuban-population(3cd5bdde-1468-4a04-8b8b-1d0b3bf7e534).html.
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Background: There is a high frequency of the risk-conferring APOE e4 allele in African populations, but in some studies, the risk of dementia is less than in Caucasians in Europe and North America. In an admixed population of older Cubans I estimate the prevalence, incidence, correlates and impact of dementia among older Cubans; I assess the effects of reported ethnicity, admixture and apolipoprotein E genotype on dementia prevalence and estimate the association between cardiovascular risk factors and dementia incidence. -- Methods: I undertook a one phase survey (baseline) of all over 65 year old residents of seven catchment areas in Cuba (n=2944) during 2003 to 2007. Dementia diagnosis was established according to DSM-IV and 10/66 criteria. APOE genotype was determined in 2520 participants, and genetic admixture in 235 dementia cases and 349 controls. Baseline data was used to estimate prevalence, impact, and the effect of ethinicity, and apolipoprotein E genotype on dementia prevalence. The case control study was used to test the hypothesis that the effect of APOE genotype on dementia is modified by ethnic group. An incidence wave was conducted 4.5 years after cohort inception in order to estimate incidence and cardiovascular risk factors associations -- Results: The prevalence of DSM-IV dementia was 6.4% and 10.8% according to the 10/66. Both dementia outcomes were associated with older age, less education, a family history of dementia, shorter leg length and smaller skull circumference. Dementia, rather than physical health problems or depression, was the main contributor to needs for care and caregiver cutting back on work. The incidence rate of 10/66 dementia was 20.5 per 1000/pyear (95% Cl, 17.6-23.5). African admixture was linearly related to number of APOE e4 alleles, but was not associated with the prevalence of dementia.
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Shobeiri, S. "The relationship between human beings and nature in an urban context : Tehran and the natural structures of seven river-valleys : a design and planning case study." Thesis, University of Westminster, 2016. https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/item/9yxv9/the-relationship-between-human-beings-and-nature-in-an-urban-context-tehran-and-the-natural-structures-of-seven-river-valleys-a-design-and-planning-case-study.
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This research investigates the relationship between human beings and nature in an urban context through the enhancement and improvement of the existing natural structures of the city. Although, in the past, the city was mostly characterised as a place of ‘non-nature’, nowadays the landscape is acknowledged to be the context from which the city has developed. In this research study, Tehran, its natural structures of seven river-valleys and Tehranian residents have been selected as the case study in order to investigate the human-nature relationship in an urban context. This design-based research studies a process of realising sustainable large-scale strategies and objectives in the design and planning of the river-valleys in Tehran. The applied methodology in this process includes a combination of the review of related literature, direct appraisal, interviews and design practice. The design and planning part of this research focuses on one river-valley in Tehran, Darband, which is thirty-three kilometres in length and traverses both urban and peri-urban areas. The design and planning strategies and objectives bring about a new way of looking at river-valleys as natural urban structures that contribute to the identity of the city and citizens. The research has an interdisciplinary approach integrating the environmental and cultural aspects of sustainability. However, the main focus of this thesis is on cultural aspect. To this end, sustainable largescale design strategies and objectives were devised to be responsive to the present and future needs of Tehranian residents and to the natural structures of Tehran’s river-valleys. It was found to be critical to define the strategies in a way that is compatible with the characteristics and potentials of both the rivervalleys and Tehranian citizens. Furthermore, the influences that establish the relationship between human beings and nature in an Iranian-Tehranian context and background are found to be highly significant. The strategies and objectives are therefore based on the effective aspects of these influences in order to achieve a cultural aspect of sustainability. The cultural aspect in this research refers to three features: the quotidian of Tehranian residents; rituals, cultural customs and traditions associated with specific days; and a ‘disappearing’ history in the Persian culture and context. In a summarised statement, this research investigates how the cultural, historical and environmental aspects of river-valleys in the context of Tehran can be integrated in design and planning strategies that address the needs and potentials of both river-valleys and Tehranian users. This research primarily studies the cultural aspect, and the environmental aspect is studied as an affiliated and interdependent aspect. Furthermore, the process of study revealed that the cultural and historical aspects, and social attitudes have significant levels of overlapping and hence, in this research, the cultural aspect and social attitudes are defined as an integrated whole.
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Kraishan, Majed R. "Sex and the (hetero) erotic in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales and Troilus and Criseyde." Thesis, Bangor University, 2013. https://research.bangor.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/sex-and-the-hetero-erotic-in-chaucers-canterbury-tales-and-troilus-and-criseyde(e2adc604-4531-4f3e-970e-fe7f1840d7aa).html.
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Soliman, Ashraf. "Study of growth and bone mineral density and factors affecting them in children and adolescents with thalassaemia major and sickle cell disease." Thesis, University of South Wales, 1998. https://pure.southwales.ac.uk/en/studentthesis/study-of-growth-and-bone-mineral-density-and-factors-affecting-them-in-children-and-adolescents-with-thalassaemia-major-and-sickle-cell-disease(9cd79851-b7a7-4df7-bb2d-65e71e48d6c4).html.
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Thalassaemia and sickle cell disease (SCD) are the most widely distributed blood genetic disorders that occur at a high frequency in some populations including the Mediterranean region, parts of the Middle East, South East Asia and the Indian subcontinent. It is estimated that thalassaemia major affects 100,000 newborn every year world-wide. The high incidence of these chronic haemolytic diseases in developing countries poses a high load on the national economy because of the expensive treatment protocols and the considerably high morbidity rates of these patients. Repeated blood transfusion to keep haemoglobin above an acceptable level requires well-equipped blood banks with expensive facilities to screen, store and manipulate blood and blood products. Iron chelation therapy is an essential part of treatment to avoid or delay the deleterious effects of iron overload on different organs including the liver, heart, pancreas and endocrine glands. This inquires injecting deferoxamine subcutaneously for 12 hours daily with a special pump. Both deferoxamine and pumps are expensive and therefore not accessible for all patients. In developing countries, the majority of transfusion-dependent patients with chronic haemolytic anaemia (thalassaemia and SCD) suffer from the consequences of sub-optimal treatment. The mortality rate is still high and usually patients die before the age of 30 years. They also suffer from chronic multi-organ damage including cardiac failure, liver cirrhosis, insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus, growth and pubertal failure and many skeletal abnormalities and fractures. In developed countries the introduction of high transfusion regimes and efficient chelation therapy improved survival rates and prevented cardiac and hepatic damage. However, a majority of thalassaemic patients still have significant growth and pubertal abnormalities, bone disease and multiple endocrine disorders. In Egypt the incidence of thalassaemia major ranges between 0.1 - 0.2% which gives very high patient load on the medical services. In our University of Alexandria Children's Hospital, Alexandria, Egypt. The Haematology clinic has an average of 150 thalassaemic children registered. The same problem is encountered by me in the Royal Hospital, Muscat, Oman, with high prevalence of SCD and thalassaemia and suboptimal treatment. Because of the restricted economic resources, both hospitals adopt a low transfusion therapy (to keep haemoglobin above 9 g/dl) with IM chelation 3 times per week. With this form of sub-optimal treatment we observed that a large number of our thalassaemic children have severe growth and pubertal failure/delay, beside other hepatic, cardiac and skeletal abnormalities. In fact they constitute 40% of patients attending our Endocrinology clinic. This stimulated me to perform an extensive study to survey growth and pubertal development in theses patients (study-1) and investigate the different factors that might affect their growth and pubertal development (studies 4 through 10) a \veU as bone mass density (studies > 1,12). The frequent involvement of the liver in these patients led us to study some hepatic functions and the prevalence of transfusion-associated hepatitis B surface antigenaemia and hepatitis-C virus antibody scropositivity in relation to their linear growth (studies 2,3). We studied the nutritional intake of these patients, their intestinal absorption of D-Xylosc and 48-h stool fat content in relation to their body mass index, subcutaneous 'at thickness and mid-arm circumference (studies 4,5,9). Their defective linear growth urged us to investigate their growth hormone (GH) secretion (spontaneous nocturnal as well as after provocation) and insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) and IGK-binding protein-3 (IGKBl'3) concentrations. Our findings demonstrated high prevalence of defective GH secretion in these children that necessitated imaging of their hypothalamic pituitary area. Imaging studies revealed original data about structural abnormalities in the anterior pituitary gland, different degrees of pituitary atrophy and empty sella and infiltration the gland as well as the mid-brain by hacniosidrin in thalassaemic children, the mechanism of these findings was explained (studies 4-6,10). Because of their slow growth, the presence of abnormal GH/IGF-I/BP3 axis, and structural abnormalities of the pituitary gland, the next step dealt with the response of IGF-I to exogenous GH and the clinical response of their linear growth to GH therapy for a year or more (studies 4,9). Based on the fact that these patients have high prevalence of bone pains and osteoporosis during late childhood and have high risk of spontaneous fracture thereafter, we measured their bone mass density to investigate the relation between the former and the degree of iron load, growth parameters, and different anabolic hormone concentrations in these patients (studies 11,12).
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Al-Saffar, Ali. "An investigation into the project scope of work role and characteristics, and its development process enablers and barriers in the Oil and Gas Sector : a comparative case study, Saudi Arabia." Thesis, University of Manchester, 2018. https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/an-investigation-into-the-project-scope-of-work-role-and-characteristics-and-its-development-process-enablers-and-barriers-in-the-oil-and-gas-sector-a-comparative-case-study-saudi-arabia(4bf3c4d8-cfc8-4061-b9e5-f95fb45b5ee3).html.
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A critical issue that faces the Saudi Arabia Oil and Gas Sector (OGS)'s projects is the high level of uncertainty in the successful delivery of those projects. That high level of uncertainty makes it vital to monitor and control project performance for limiting financial losses, avoiding cost overruns, and improving predictability. One of the fundamental tools that sets the framework for project performance is the project Scope of Work (SOW). Having an effective project SOW at the front end the project is challenging for project practitioners and is an issue that needs to be addressed; as its development process and output can significantly affect the later stages of the project life cycle. The aim of this study was to develop a clearer understanding of the project SOW role in a project development and to make practical recommendations for its improvement by investigating project team members' perceptions of the SOW development process in two Saudi Arabian Oil and Gas companies. This research adopts a qualitative approach, a case study strategy and focus group discussions to collect primary data. The results suggested that the project SOW development process is the foundation for another twelve key project management processes that need to be considered in order to successfully complete a project On Scope, On Time, On Cost and On Strategy. To be considered effective, the project SOW should have the following four characteristics of: formality, usefulness, effective content elements and effective language quality. In addition, the project SOW should support effective decision making, risk management, project planning and project monitoring and control. The results show that the project SOW in Saudi Arabia OGS is developed in several phases as part of Front-End Loading (FEL) development and final project SOW is developed and approved at the end of the 2nd phase of FEL (FEL-2). It was found that there are eleven key enablers, such as clear vision, targets, and objectives; effective stakeholders' engagement; and effective assurance review process, for producing an effective project SOW. While eleven key barriers for producing an effective SOW were identified such as: absence of reward system; insufficient training programs; and insufficient budget. Therefore, enhancing the key enablers and overcoming the barriers may facilitated improvements in the project SOW development process. This study recommends that companies need to pay closer attention to the design of the temporary organisation and accordingly set their strategy, structure, process, rewards and people. The researcher details some implications, acknowledges some limitations and provides recommendations for future research in this area.
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Awan, F. "Occupied childhoods : discourses and politics of childhood and their place in Palestinian and Pan-Arab screen content for children." Thesis, University of Westminster, 2016. https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/item/9ywxw/occupied-childhoods-discourses-and-politics-of-childhood-and-their-place-in-palestinian-and-pan-arab-screen-content-for-children.
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This thesis explores changing discourses of childhood and the ways in which power relations intersect with socio-cultural norms to shape screen-based media for Palestinian children. Situated within the interdisciplinary study of childhood, the research is an institutional and textual analysis that includes discursive and micro-level analysis of the socio-political circumstances within which children consume media in present-day Palestine. The thesis takes a social constructionist view, arguing that ‘childhood’ is not a fixed universal concept and that discourses of childhood are produced at specific historical moments as an effect of power. The study has a three-part research agenda. The first section uses secondary literature to explore theories and philosophies relating to definitions of childhood in Arab societies. The second employs participant observation and semi-structured interviews to understand the history and politics of children’s media in the West Bank. The final part of the research activity focuses on the impact that definitions of childhood and the politics of children’s media have on broadcasting outcomes through an analysis of (a) discourses on children’s media that circulate in Palestinian society, and (b) local and pan-Arab cultural texts consumed by Palestinian children. The analysis demonstrates that complex ideological and political factors are at play, which has led to the marginalisation, politicisation and internationalisation of local production for children. Due to the lack of alternatives, local producers often rely on international funding, and are hence forced to negotiate competing definitions of childhood, which while fitting with an international agenda of normalising the Israeli occupation, conflict culturally and politically with local conceptions of childhood and hopes for the Palestinian nation. While the Palestinian community appreciates the positive potential of local production, discourses and strategies around children’s media show that Palestinian children are constructed as vulnerable, incomplete and in constant need of guidance. Pan-Arab content presents a slightly less didactic approach and in certain cases presents childhood as a dynamic space of empowerment. However, by constructing children as ‘consumercitizens’, it alienates Arab (and Palestinian) children from disadvantaged backgrounds,as the preferred audience is middle-class children living in oil-rich countries of the Gulf.
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Omidvar, Tehrani Omid. "Collaboration for research and development : understanding absorptive capacity and learning in R&D consortia across phases, levels, and boundaries." Thesis, University of Manchester, 2013. https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/collaboration-for-research-and-development-understanding-absorptive-capacity-and-learning-in-r-and-d-consortia-across-phases-levels-and-boundaries(8ab9543c-87f7-44d5-b462-e5118d5f2428).html.
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Over the past two decades, the literature on Absorptive Capacity (AC) research has been burgeoning with enormous empirical and theoretical contributions to the field. Yet, there is not much advancement in understanding the internal dynamics of AC and the concept remains a black box in a large body of research. This study aims at contributing to this body of knowledge by examining the development of AC throughout the lifecycle of R&D consortia. In particular, it examines the pre-conditions of AC across its three dimensions corresponding with the phases of consortia: exploratory, transformative and exploitative learning, and investigates the role of disciplinary, organisational, and intra-organisational boundaries in the development of AC.Utilising a case study research strategy, the thesis analyses AC in three R&D consortia in the alternative materials, pharmaceuticals, and aerospace industries and embraces qualitative methods with interviews and documents as its main sources of data. The collected data is analysed through template analysis technique assisted by the NVivo 8 software package. The theoretical contributions of the thesis are fourfold. First, findings indicate that AC is not an exclusively organisational or dyadic capability, but a three-level concept unfolding at the consortium, interface (between consortia and organisations), and organisational levels, and in exploratory, transformative and exploitative phases throughout the consortium lifetime. On that basis, a model for AC in R&D consortia is developed and its underlying learning mechanisms and conditions across levels and phases are discussed in detail. Second, the thesis contends that the development of a shared space which provides the opportunities for participation and development of shared meaning across organisational and disciplinary boundaries in R&D consortia serves a critical role in the development of AC. The characteristics of the shared space and the conditions for its development are specified. Third, by integrating adaptation mechanisms to the formulation of AC, the thesis contributes to understanding of AC as a dynamic capability-a higher order capability to change operating routines and processes. This finding feeds into the argument that AC is both path-dependent, by storing knowledge in routines, processes and artefacts through exploitative learning, and path-breaking, by modifying and changing prevailing processes and structures through exploratory and transformative learning. Finally, the thesis argues that understanding learning in R&D consortia necessitates taking into consideration the effects of disciplinary and organisational boundaries simultaneously. It is argued that organisational boundaries can influence the transfer of knowledge even within disciplinary domains, which challenges the excessive focus of practice-based research on disciplinary boundaries in cross-disciplinary collaborations, calling for further exploration of the role of organisational boundaries within a given disciplinary domain. These theoretical contributions are accompanied by a set of managerial implications for the formation and governance of R&D consortia, as well as policy implications for evaluation of policy interventions in collaborative research schemes.
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Tsocheva, Ivelina. "An exploration of anxiety and depression among adolescents and adults in Bulgaria." Thesis, University of Roehampton, 2015. https://pure.roehampton.ac.uk/portal/en/studentthesis/an-exploration-of-anxiety-and-depression-among-adolescents-and-adults-in-bulgaria(e217f0a8-2ed6-417e-bda8-d7629a543bf8).html.
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Anxiety and depression are among the most prevalent psychological disorders affecting a large number of people across different cultures. At present, these conditions have not been examined among the general population of Bulgaria. This thesis is a large-scale project involving Bulgarian adolescents aged 13-17 and Bulgarian adults aged 35-58. The main aims are: 1/ to investigate the prevalence and correlates of anxiety and depression in Bulgarian adolescents and adults because this population has been underresearched on these topics 2/ to assess mental health literacy about depression in these two groups. Research indicates that mental health literacy rates vary in adolescents and adults across countries and cultures and are influences by a number of factors such as: healthcare system, social attitudes and expectations, education and social support. 3/ to study the personal experience of anxiety through qualitative methods. The purpose of this analysis is to get the individual point of view. A significant overlap in symptoms exist between depression and anxiety but anxiety has many different forms and aspects (panic attacks, social phobia, generalised anxiety disorder, etc.) that are worthy of qualitative investigation. The two age groups were chosen because: A) their life experiences were very different from a cultural point of view: the adolescents grew in a global, modern and democratic Bulgaria and the adults used to live under the isolation and restrictions of the Communist rule. B) adolescence and adulthood are two distinctive life stages characterised by: social/ emotional changes, changes in health attitudes/behaviour and transition between concrete/ abstract thinking. Three studies were carried out in Bulgaria: Study 1 and Study 2 were quantitative, cross-sectional and Study 3 was qualitative. For Study 1 and Study 2 adolescents (n=700) were randomly recruited from public schools and adults (n=250) were recruited from employment companies. Study 3 applied interpretative phenomenological analysis to unstructured interviews conducted with adolescents (n=10) and adults (n=10) recruited from a sub-sample of Study 1. Results from Study 1 suggested that adolescents and adults had marked differences in specific sub-types of anxiety with adults scoring higher on social phobia, physical injury anxiety and panic agoraphobia. Anxiety and depression correlated strongly in adults. Significant gender differences were observed with females having higher prevalence rates of anxiety and depression in both age groups. Adults also scored higher on interdependency, indicating a collectivist mind set associated with Communism. Results from Study 2 indicated that both age groups had low levels of mental health literacy. However, adults appeared to be more affected by stigma associated with psychological illnesses. Qualitative results from Study 3 highlighted personal experiences and identified additional risk factors associated with onset and persistence of anxiety. Some of these factors were prevalent across both age groups and others were age specific. Further research work needs to focus on identifying helpful strategies in prevention, diagnosis and treatment of these conditions in adolescents and adults. Improving health education across different age groups and reducing stigma towards psychological illness are of particular importance.
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Qin, Hao. "Design knowledge capture and reuse in an integrated and collaborative working environment." Thesis, University of Portsmouth, 2016. https://researchportal.port.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/design-knowledge-capture-and-reuse-in-an-integrated-and-collaborative-working-environment(f2a2c8c0-2475-401b-b475-e089aa3f5a89).html.
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Capturing engineering designers’ knowledge and experience on the design of an artefact is important as this knowledge can explain why the artefact has been designed as it is, how key decisions have been made and what important issues have been considered. This tacit design knowledge enables designers to make informed decisions and improve efficiency in similar projects in the future. However, the capture and reuse of this kind of knowledge reminds to be great challenge, as it often exists in designers’ brains and is difficult to codify. Previous research is predominantly focused on the explicit knowledge of design objects that can be codified rather than the underlying tacit knowledge which explains the problem-solving strategies and decision-making processes. Additionally, engineering design is increasingly conducted in a collaborative working environment enable by the state-of-the-art information technologies. This trend has highly influenced the ways of knowledge capture and reuse, while is not well addressed by existing research. To fill these gaps, this research aims to explore new systematic methods and knowledge models for the capture and reuse of design knowledge as well as for the development of the next-generation knowledge management systems for engineering design. The development and application of these systematic methods and knowledge models requires a good understanding of the new requirements of knowledge management for engineering design, involving interdisciplinary research work across engineering and computing science. Thus, a comprehensive methodology is employed in this research, which consists of three parts. Firstly, a requirement analysis is undertaken through a literature review and a survey study to identify designers’ information needs and information-seeking behaviours within the new context. Secondly, the characteristics of engineering design knowledge are analysed, and on this basis a knowledge framework and a knowledge representation model are developed to support knowledge categorisation and representation. Thirdly, a methodology for applying these methods is analysed in order to design and develop a prototype system for implementation. Through the evaluation of both the proposed methods and system in a number of engineering design projects, the models have been proved to be capable and efficient in capturing design knowledge for better reuse, while the system not only proves the feasibility of the proposed methods but also provides the prototype of the next-generation collaborative knowledge management system.
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Pollard, Ingrid. "Home and away : home, migrancy, and belonging through landscape photographic practice." Thesis, University of Westminster, 2016. https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/item/q56vq/home-and-away-home-migrancy-and-belonging-through-landscape-photographic-practice.
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The thesis consists of six bodies of photographic visual works: the exhibitions Self Evident, Regarding the Frame, and Oceans Apart, the publication Hidden in a Public Place, an artist-curator project, TradeWinds-LandFall and the video Belonging in Britain. The works are primarily lens-based practice and have been published and exhibited during the last ten years. The overall field of enquiry across the six works is concerned with the issues of Place, situated within the key themes of Home, Migrancy, and Belonging. The accompanying text details the development of the works through multiple readings of the relationship between material practices and ideas of landscape, Britishness and race. By taking a historical, but not chronological examination of the works the chapters examine aspects of the visual politics of landscape aligned with cultural experience and explore how these are expressed across a range of media and theoretical strands. The vital discussion of visual and material practice within the commentary is indicated and accompanied by extensive Supplementary Evidence, Appendix A (page 99). This appendix includes exhibition catalogues, research publications, and audio, music CD and DVD video extracts. This evidence positions the theoretical concepts within the parameters of the practice based research. The thesis also assigns authority to ‘other voices’ for a more nuanced response to the complexity of archive work. The thesis challenges and complicates ideas of rootedness to examine the possibilities of meaningful immersions and interactions within communities related to personal biography, history and diaspora as a practice method. In this sense the work locates ways, through practice, which have challenged conventional thinking about identity that limit the discourse and communication around race with the historical classification of ‘black arts’.
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McKeown, Aisling. "The migrant in contemporary Irish literature and film : representations and perspectives." Thesis, University of Westminster, 2013. https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/item/8z0x4/the-migrant-in-contemporary-irish-literature-and-film-representations-and-perspectives.
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The transition from the twentieth to the twenty-first century saw Ireland transformed from a homogeneous emigrant nation into a multi-cultural society. A growing body of contemporary Irish literature and film is engaging with the reality of multi-cultural Ireland and representing the challenges of migrant life from a variety of perspectives. At the same time, these narratives reflect the contradictions, confusions and concerns that define Irish attitudes towards their new migrant communities. The central argument of this thesis is that this new cultural production, whilst interrogating paradigms of national identity, is also adding different perspectives to the Irish literary and cinematic canon. I have chosen to focus on the novel, short story and film genres for their accessibility and potentially wide reach, as well as their tangible and permanent forms. Within my chosen genres, I have selected texts and films by both Irish and migrant writers and filmmakers that represent as diverse a range of perspectives as possible. My close textual analysis of the novels, short stories and films draws on historic Irish literary tradition and in the case of migrant writers, those of their countries of origin, to examine key themes, narrative style and form. More broadly, the research is informed by postcolonial, globalisation and transnational theory, reflecting its anthropological and sociological dimensions. My thesis reveals the impact of migrants on new Irish writing as producers of and protagonists within texts. It outlines changes to the notion of Irish identity, culture and writing as a consequence of immigration. Finally, as a study of a range of narratives that represent the experience of first-generation migrants in twenty-first century Ireland, it constitutes an original contribution to knowledge and provides a benchmark for further research into migrant writing and film of the future.
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Momen, Heravi F. "Exosomes and miRNAs in disease pathogenesis and opportunities for molecular targeting." Thesis, University of Westminster, 2016. https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/item/9yz51/exosomes-and-mirnas-in-disease-pathogenesis-and-opportunities-for-molecular-targeting.
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Exosomes/extracellular vesicles (EVs) are cell-derived mixed-populations of vesicles released by almost all cells into the intercellular microenvironment, ending up in the circulation. Exosomes contain proteins, RNAs and lipid molecules reflecting the status of the parental cell at the time of release, making them promising candidates for biomarker discovery. The contents of exosomes are protected by a lipid bilayer, leading to better stability of bio-macromolecules. Recent evidence suggests a novel role for exosomes as conveyors of information among cells and across tissues, through horizontal transfer of proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids. Exosomes have been the subject of numerous research in recent years; however, their roles still have to be identified in the pathogenesis of different diseases. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small (18-25 nucleotide long) non-coding RNAs which play pivotal roles in the gene expression process and it is estimated that about one third of the human genome is controlled by miRNAs. miRNA regulatory processes have been found to influence many essential biological pathways, such as cellular development, proliferation, apoptosis, and cellular signaling. A great proportion of miRNAs has been reported to be associated with the exosome function of different biofluids. The aim of this research was to elucidate the role of exosomes/EVs as well as miRNAs in the pathogenesis of different diseases, including alcoholic liver disease, hepatitis C, and cancer. This knowledge may lead to the development of novel molecular diagnostic approaches, as well as innovative drug delivery modalities for small RNA-targeted therapy. My research resulted in a) the establishment of new methods and approaches to the study of exosomes/EVs, as well as comparative literature on the efficacy of several isolation and characterization techniques. b) identification of the role of exosomes and miRNA-122 in the cross talk between hepatocytes and immune cells in alcoholic liver disease c) identification of the role of exosomes in HCV pathogenesis, including the potential of molecular therapies based on miRNA and exosome targeting in vitro and in vivo d) understanding the bio-distribution of exosomes and miRNA in an in vivo murine model and f) exploring the utility of miRNA and exosomes in biofluids in cancer biomarker discovery.
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Nancheva, Nevena. "Transforming identities in Europe : Bulgaria and Macedonia between nationalism and Europeanization." Thesis, University of Westminster, 2012. https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/item/8z866/transforming-identities-in-europe-bulgaria-and-macedonia-between-nationalism-and-europeanization.
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This dissertation offers an investigation of the discursive function of national identity in the project of European integration. Its focus is the discursive dynamics created in the context of European Union Enlargement to the former communist states, and its geographical locus is the Balkan region. Exploring the transformations of national identity narratives in two Balkan states – Bulgaria and Macedonia – the analysis aims to uncover the discursive mechanisms of accommodating national identity in the process of empowering Europeanization. In the theoretical and meta-theoretical frame of poststructuralist discourse theory and within the structure of a small-number comparative case study, the investigation selects six narrative groups. They are centred around key elements in the narration of national identity: nationhood, territory, purpose, statehood, language, minorities. Traditionally interpreted within the hegemony of nationalism, these elements are identifiable in the national identity constructs of both of the studied states. Using qualitative methodology based on discourse analysis, the empirical study traces variations in these narratives in the course of the democratic transition and the preparation for EU membership at the macro level – the state. The purpose of the investigation is to reveal the logic of reading national identity within the empowering discourse of Europeanization. The findings demonstrate that the discursive space of the European project upholds a positive, emancipatory, optimistic vision of national subjectivity. Marginalizing antagonistic interpretations of national identity narrated in the discourse of nationalism, Europeanization reveals the potential to significantly increase the credibility of national identity as a source of collective self-iden tification at the level of the state. This can stabilize the discursive space of European integration and ensure the political relevance of the European project. Where nationalist readings of identity succeed in challenging the hegemony of Europeanization, national identity appears more antagonistic and less compatible with the progress of integration in Europe. In this sense reading national identity emerges as the touchstone of the integration project.
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Gray, Tallyn. "Justice and transition in Cambodia 1979-2014 : process, meaning and narrative." Thesis, University of Westminster, 2014. https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/item/8yqqy/justice-and-transition-in-cambodia-1979-2014-process-meaning-and-narrative.
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The Cambodian genocide and its aftermath are unique in that key leaders are on trial thirty years after their regime fell. This creates particular problems : the UNbacked trials (ECCC) assume the normative aims of the transitional justice paradigm, but exist in context of multiple ‘transitions’ preceding or running concurrent to them, creating complex competing and complementary ideas about what constitutes ‘justice.’ Over the previous thirty years transition was a social process; alongside legalistic input it included (and still includes) religious discourse, ceremony, ritual and modes of expression not employed or recognised in courts. This thesis concerns the many and dynamic ways in which the concept of justice is discussed, narrated and manifested both inside and outside formal mechanisms. The thesis concludes that the meaning of justice resides in a nexus of memory, time and imagination emergent from the act of telling the story, in a way that effectively lodges it within intergenerational cultural memory. Justice is a process without fixed ends. Justice necessarily involves narrative; the way the past is narrated is key to the application and realisation of justice. Expanding on Lyotard’s theory of Grand Narratives, I contend that justice narrates itself through ‘phrase regimes’ which I explore within three legalistic processes : the People’s Revolutionary Tribunal , the trial of Pol Pot , and the narrative streams emerging from the hybrid United Nations/ Royal Government of Cambodia Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) . I contend each of these demands narrative conformity to ideological and political templates (Marxism, Liberalism). I further contend that these grand narratives collapse in Cambodia. Their limitations are exposed on encounter with what Ricoeur calls ‘the small voices of history.’ In ‘small’ narrations, via socio-cultural processes such as religious ritual, legalistic narratives of justice may overlap, but the individual voices often transgress, or are marginalised by, the grand narratives. The latter part of the thesis goes on to explore transition and justice from ‘outside’ legalistic mechanisms, and discusses ideas of justice arising from within the society in whose interests these mechanisms allegedly act. Through observing and attending numerous religious ceremonies and personally collecting 59 ethnographic interviews with monks, former KR cadres, witnesses, civil parties, historical and cultural figures from multiple communities in 10 provinces in the country I have established some basis for situating individual voices into a specifically Cambodian intellectual context.
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D'Andreta, Daniela. "Urban cohesion and resident social networks : an analysis of spatial, structural and ideational forms of interaction and consequences for deprived neighbourhoods." Thesis, University of Manchester, 2012. https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/urban-cohesion-and-resident-social-networks-an-analysis-of-spatial-structural-and-ideational-forms-of-interaction-and-consequences-for-deprived-neighbourhoods(81224fab-855f-4131-bf4b-d286cf542603).html.
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Most studies of 'cohesion' between urban residents focus separately on either social network structure or ideations with very little attention given to the intersection between spatial, structural and ideational dimensions of networks. This is problematic on two levels: firstly because attitudes and practices are formed in the context of personal social networks; and secondly because social interactions between residents are physically embodied and therefore spatially constrained. This thesis explores empirically the relationship between spatial cohesion (the extent to which a network is geographically localised or dispersed), structural cohesion (the extent to which a network is tight-knit or fragmented) and ideational cohesion (the extent to which residents have similar attitudes and practices). The social networks, attitudes and practices of white-British residents living in deprived urban localities of North Manchester are studied (survey, n=409; interview, n=53). Variances in forms of cohesion were found to have consequences for residents and localities. At the individual level, the spatial and structural shape of a resident's network was linked to their attitudes and behaviours. Attitudes and practices were 'framed' in the context of personal network structure exhibited through a set of resident 'roles'. This matters for urban cohesion because a person's social network structure influenced whether they liked their neighbourhood, trusted other residents, felt a sense of community or had found jobs through contacts. Previous studies have argued that contemporary urban networks have become fluid, dynamic and spatially dispersed. Yet this research found that although some people had networks that were geographically spread, most resident networks were made of localised, tight-knit, stable, long-term relations. Moreover, people with these cohesive, localised networks framed their experiences of urban cohesion differently to those with geographically spread and/or disconnected social networks. Particularly because the attitudes and practices of residents with localised, cohesive networks were very often habitual and socially reproduced. Social networks focus people's activities in such a way that not only constrains or enables current attitudes and practices but can also affect an individual's ability to change their future behaviour. At the locality level, the type of 'deprived' locality seemed to influence network structure. The structural, spatial and ideational distribution of cohesion at locality level provided neighbourhoods with different portfolios of social capital. Qualitative differences were observed between homogeneous-deprived (very low income, white areas) and socially mixed-deprived (white deprived areas with some class/ethnic mix) localities. People living in deprived-homogenous localities concentrated their networks within the local area and had few ties to residents of bordering areas, a sign of social distance. Conversely, residents of socially mixed-deprived localities had more potential to bridge ties to other neighbourhoods because their networks were not overly focused within the local area. Given that attitudes and practices are framed in the context of social network structure, it was argued that residents of deprived-homogeneous and socially mixed-deprived areas may experience and interpret urban cohesion differently and this has implications for universal policies of cohesion in deprived neighbourhoods. The thesis illustrates the interplay between spatial, structural and ideational forms of cohesion and highlights consequences for individual action and the generation of neighbourhood social capital. The originality of analysis and data synthesis are used to advance a relational and contextualised theory of urban cohesion and contribute to wider academic and policy debates on urban social networks and neighbourhood deprivation.
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Wepfer, Elvira. "Living 'free and real' : an eco-project's endeavours within and against late capitalism." Thesis, University of Manchester, 2018. https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/living-free-and-real-an-ecoprojects-endeavours-within-and-against-late-capitalism(c960d572-e391-4500-9bfc-184adbc98c42).html.
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At the northern edge of Greece's second-largest island Evia, a fluctuating group of people under the name Free&Real aim to build up a school for self-sufficiency and sustainability. In response to late capitalist relations, which they perceive to be exploitative, depleting, and alienating, they pose their project as a learning ground in which to recreate human-environment relations towards regenerative ends. Their environmental, political-economic, and social critique resonates with contemporary civil society initiatives in Europe and North America, where a growing number of eco-projects propose alternatives to the dominant paradigm of profit through exploitation via holistic and non-harmful socio-environmental relations. My thesis depicts, analyses, and contextualises these endeavours of social change, paying attention to the ways in which Free&Real creatively critique contemporary society from within and against late capitalism. They do so through reconfiguring their ethics and practices that aim to re-establish relations with self and other - both human and non-human. Through this, they aim to create alternative futures within the present through practice, and through this prefiguration to transform the present towards more ecologically ethical practices. Through six chapters, I follow the group's aspirations to situate human existence firmly within the natural environment, to transform their selves towards ethical ideals, and to recreate economic relations outside the formal economy. I further trace their grappling with contemporary expressions of modernity, the limits of altruism, and the complexities of authority. As the group occupy themselves with transformative, educational, and outreach goals, they reproduce some of the very epistemologies and relations they attempt to overcome, while at the same time proposing novel readings of and engagements with others. Through this creative remix, Free&Real generate innovative local responses to some of the pressing issues of contemporary times. Examining these, my thesis contributes to discussions of social change, environmentalism, the anthropology of Greece and Europe, and critique of capitalist relations.
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Milligan, Gemma. "Fitness standards for the Maritime and Coastguard Agency and the oil and gas industry." Thesis, University of Portsmouth, 2013. https://researchportal.port.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/fitness-standards-for-the-maritime-and-coastguard-agency-and-the-oil-and-gas-industry(7c9bd4fa-fdd5-4e6f-9299-6769189decd9).html.
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The studies presented in this thesis were conducted to develop two minimum fitness standards, one for the Maritime and Coastguard Agency and the second for the Oil and Gas Industry. This provided the opportunity to compare across the essential tasks and resultant standards. The following stages were used for both the Maritime and Coastguard Agency and Oil and Gas Industry: a. Review the tasks requiring a significant physical fitness component (Task Analysis); b. Determine the importance of the physically demanding tasks and identify those which are critical for success and safe work (Task Assessment); c. Establish the method of best practice (Technique) for undertaking the essential tasks; d. Establish and agree the minimum performance standard for the essential tasks (Task Performance) when performed using the method of best practice; e. Assess the physical and physiological demands of these tasks (Task Quantification); f. Design and validate a simple-to-administer minimum fitness standard. The essential tasks and fitness requirements of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency fell into three groups, these were: Group 1 (All Operations): achieve a maximum aerobic score of at least 31 mL.kg-¹.min-¹ based on the aerobic demand of 21.8 mL.kg-¹.min-¹ required to carry a stretcher at the head-end 200 m at a speed of 3.2 km.h-¹; continuously lift a 3 kg sledge hammer 10 times above shoulder height, based on hammering a stake into the ground; pull a rope, with a resistance of 35 kg, and maintain this load for 15 s based on manning a main rescue-line; carry a 19 kg hand-held load 200 m in 3 min 45 s allow 3 min 45 s rest, then carry a 25.5 kg hand held load, 200 m in 3 min 45 s, based on the ability to carry a stretcher (89 kg) as part of a four person team. Group 2 (Rope Technicians) should complete all the tasks as Group 1, plus pass all the technical competencies currently in place for Rope Technicians. Group 3 (Mud Technicians) as Group 1, plus achieve a predicted maximum aerobic score of at least 39 mL.kg- ¹.min-¹ based on the aerobic demand of 27.4 mL.kg-¹.min-¹ required to pull a stretcher across the mud at 0.8 km.h-¹, (this equates to covering 200 m in 15 minutes), prior to performing a simulated mud rescue. The essential tasks and the minimum fitness requirements of the Oil and Gas Industry were: Stair and Ladder-Climbing, achieve a predicted maximum aerobic score of at least 31 mL.kg-¹.min-¹ based on the aerobic demand of 23.4 mL.kg- ¹.min-¹ required to climb a flight of stairs at a rate of 80 steps.min-¹ and 23.6 mL.kg- ¹.min-¹ to climb a ladder at 24 rungs.min-¹; Manual Handling, based on the requirement to climb a flight of stairs at a rate of 80 steps.min-¹ for a minute carrying a load of 10 kg, 20 kg or 25 kg; Valve Turning, based on the requirement to continuously turn a medium size valve (25.4 cm diameter) set at a torque of 8.3 N.m, for 5 min; Emergency Response Team, achieve a predicted maximum aerobic score of at least 41 mL.kg-¹.min ¹, based on the aerobic demand of 30.7 mL.kg-¹.min-¹ required to pull a trailer/foam monitor at a speed of 5 km.h-¹. If trailer/foam monitors are not used achieve a predicted maximum aerobic score of at least 39 mL.kg-¹.min-¹ based on the aerobic demand of 28.9 mL.kg-¹.min-¹ required to climb a ladder at 34.5 rungs.min-¹. Stretcher carry 89 kg either in a two or four person lift (dependant on the facility), rope haul the heaviest anticipated load (10 kg first aid kit) up 10 m gantry, roll out a 23 m fire hose. There were no time constraints recommended for hauling kit and rolling out a hose. For those essential tasks that could not be assessed by a direct task measurement or a direct task simulation, a Predictive selection test was recommended and validated. Prediction intervals were used to take into account the inherent error between the predictive tests and the direct measurements, to determine “Pass”, “Borderline” and “Fail” categories. As a result of this work a modular approach was adopted in which individuals only undertake those test applicable to their job, with a combination of direct task measurements, direct task simulations, and Predictive selection tests recommended. It is suggested that, where possible, the use of a direct task measurement or simulation should either be progressive e.g. stretcher-carrying, or performed after a Predictive selection test, in order to reduce the risk of injury when the individuals proceed to undertake the direct task measurement or simulation e.g. manual handling. This approach has meant that consideration is given to the health and safety of the individuals undertaking the fitness standard whilst maintaining a high level of face validity.
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Bicudo, Junior Edison. "Globalization and ideology : ethics committees and global clinical trials in South Africa and Brazil." Thesis, King's College London (University of London), 2012. https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/globalization-and-ideology-ethics-committees-and-global-clinical-trials-in-south-africa-and-brazil(ab94b2ce-b023-4ab3-9dd4-93616db5c455).html.
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This study aims to explore the ideological implications of globalization, asking whether the global diffusion of guidelines and economic schemes leads to a parallel diffusion of interpretations, hopes and ideologies. I focus on the globalization of clinical trials sponsored by pharmaceutical companies to assess the efficacy and safety of new therapeutic compounds. I analyze the ways in which this globalization has been framed by the members of ethics committees, which are bodies responsible for assessing clinical research proposals submitted by both multinational companies and local researchers. I focus on the situations of South Africa and Brazil, two countries that have witnessed an important expansion in the number of global clinical studies conducted in their territories. My theoretical framework is the theory of communicative action proposed by German sociologist Jürgen Habermas. According to this theory, social actors can be either self-oriented and frame the social context as an instrument (instrumental rationality), or take other actors into account and search for intercomprehension (communicational rationality). Even though the presence of these two rationalities was detected in my study, it was seen that rationalities are composed by sub-groups, specks of rationalities, which I propose to name mentalities. The description and interpretation of the seven mentalities identified in my study (pragmatic, bioethical, technical, healing, communitarian, analytical and critical) is the main task undertaken in this thesis. Interpreting mentalities is important to understand the political debates taking place in South Africa and Brazil (and, potentially, other countries). To engage in debates, social actors frequently mobilize claims and ideas gleaned from different mentalities. Over the last decades, the bioethical, technical and healing mentalities have acquired an important force and legitimacy. However, discordant discourses continue to be voiced, drawing on the ideological tools provided by the analytical and critical mentalities. Thus, ethics committees can be seen as a political arena, reproducing broad social debates.
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Solomon, Sophia Astero. "Allyl and pentadienyl carbanion complexes of alkali metals : metal- and functionality-directed structure and bonding." Thesis, University of Manchester, 2011. https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/allyl-and-pentadienyl-carbanion-complexes-of-alkali-metals-metal-and-functionalitydirected-structure-and-bonding(a88c30ae-8e8c-49e5-86d7-cc95569aab72).html.
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Five ansa-tris(allyl) complexes [(PhSi{C3H3(SiMe3)}3)(Li?tmeda)3] (2.1), [(MeSi{C3H3(SiMe3)}3)(Li?pmdeta)3] (2.2), [(MeSi{C3H3(SiMe3)}3)-(Na.tmeda)3] (2.3), [(PhSi{C3H3(SiMe3)}3)(Na?tmeda)2Na]2 [2.4]2 and [(MeSi-{C3H3(SiMe3)}3)(K?OEt2)2(KLi{OtBu})]2 [2.5]2 have been synthesised, and studied by X-ray crystallography and NMR spectroscopy. A collaboration was undertaken to study some of the complexes by DFT. Crystallographic studies have shown that the overall structure of the complex is dependent on a combination of several factors: the metal cation; the substituent on the central silicon atom for the ansa-tris(allyl) ligands; and the co-ligand, tmeda or pmdeta. (tmeda = N,N,N?,N?¬-tetramethylethylenediamine and pmdeta = N,N,N?,N?,N??-pentamethyldiethylene-triamine). Solution studies of the ansa-tris(allyl) complexes showed that the solid-state structures are maintained in solution. The first examples of donor-functionalised allyl pro-ligands have been synthesised and coordinated to a variety of s-block metals; [Li{(SiMe3)2C3H2(1-CH2C4H7O)}]2 [4.1]2, [Li{(SiMe3)2C3H2(1-CH2CH2OCH3)}]2 [4.2]2, [(thf)K{(SiMe3)2C3H2(1-CH2C4H7O)}]2 [4.5]? and [Mg{(SiMe3)2C3H2(1-CH2C4H7O)}2] (4.6). As with the ansa-tris(allyl) complexes, both X-ray crystallographic and NMR spectroscopy studies have been undertaken, and the structures of the donor-functionalised allyl complexes were found to be dependent on the metal cation, with each cation coordinated in a different manner by the allyl ligand. For the potassium allyl complex 4.5 there is complete delocalisation of the allyl negative charge, and it is ?3-coordinated in a polymeric structure. However for lithium complexes, [4.1]2 and [4.2]2, the donor-functionalised allyl ligand is ?2-coordinated, and the negative charge is only partially delocalised. The magnesium complex 4.6 has the allyl ligand coordinated via a ?-bond to the metal and the allyl has localised single and double bonds.Finally, the synthesis of the first two donor-functionalised pentadienyl ligands and their lithium complexes are reported. Complexes [(tmeda)Li{1,5-(SiMe3)2C5H4(CH2C4H7O)}] (6.1) and [(tmeda)Li{1,5-(SiMe3)2C5H4(CH2CH2OCH3)}] (6.2) are the first structurally characterised lithium pentadienyl complexes, and are the first donor-functionalised pentadienyl complex of any metal. As well as structural characterisation, complexes 6.1 and 6.2 have been investigated by NMR spectroscopy and collaborative DFT studies. X-ray crystallography revealed that both complexes have the W-conformation of the pentadienyl ligand ?2-coordinated to the lithium cation, as well as the ether oxygen atom and the tmeda nitrogen atoms. DFT studies showed that the most stable gas-phase structure of the 1,5-bis(trimethylsilyl)-pentadienyl anion is the W-conformation, but its lithium complex is most stable in the U-conformation. The [Li{1,5-(SiMe3)2C5H4(CH2CH2OCH3)}]? anion has the W-conformation and the U-conformation is isoenergetic, but the addition of tmeda gives the W-conformation as the most stable in both the gas-phase and in toluene. Finally NMR spectroscopy studies showed that in solution complexes 6.1 and 6.2 are either in the symmetrical U-conformation or in fluxional process with a very low activation energy.
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Hackman, Terri Lee. "Twenty-nine short stories and threat, invasion and dread : the short story and the home." Thesis, Bangor University, 2012. https://research.bangor.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/twentynine-short-stories-and-threat-invasion-and-dread--the-short-story-and-the-home(3a051e07-ce93-456b-a8eb-323eb27d694a).html.
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The first section of this thesis consists of a collect of original short fictions which encompass a variety of themes and modes. Amongst other concerns, these stories probe ideas of safety, threat and invasion originating from both outside and inside of the home thereby questioning assumptions of the home as a secure and safe place. A criticism in the second section examines five short stories, from a variety of influential writers, to compare and demonstrate the development of states of high anxiety through the use of the reader's knowledge and experiences of cultural or community identity and the home. Impressions of the uncanny are invariably involved.
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Scannell, Paddy. "Broadcasting and time." Thesis, University of Westminster, 2006. https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/item/9273v/broadcasting-and-time.
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This thesis brings together work I have published in the last five years in academic journals and edited book collections. All the material presented in the thesis, much of it substantially rewritten, will appear in the trilogy I have been working on since my last published book, Radio, Television and Modern Life (Blackwell 1996). The organising structure of the thesis and its substantive concerns corresponds with that of the three books that will come out of it. The form and content of the thesis, and its relation to the books, is discussed in some detail in its introduction. Its fundamental concern is with human time which I have explored in all my writings since I began research thirty years ago, with my late friend and colleague David Cardiff, into the early history of the British Broadcasting Corporation. The medium of radio is time. Historiography deals with past time. The academic work of writing history on the other, and the temporality of radio and television on the one hand, are the first two themes of this thesis which shows that the orders of time in which they work are divergent rather than convergent. The third section of the thesis attempts their reconciliation through the recovery of meaningful time.
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Darke, Sacha. "Crime and disorder." Thesis, University of Westminster, 2007. https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/item/91x70/crime-and-disorder.
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This thesis investigates growing use of civil and public law orders as tools of crime control by crime prevention partnerships. This development has been little explored in criminology. The proliferation of crime prevention partnerships is viewed by many criminologists as forming part of a bifurcation in criminal policy between serious crime and anti-social behaviour, in which the 'enforcement approach' of the criminal justice system is being focused upon the former and a non-legal 'partnership approach' advanced for the control of the latter. It is argued that the 'partnership approach' runs a risk of becoming an extension of and not an alternative to the 'enforcement approach' of the criminal justice system. In investigating this risk, it is intended that this thesis should contribute to criminology in two ways. The first contribution is an investigation of the theoretical potential for the local to become a site of authoritarian crime control. The second is an investigation of the extent this potential is being realised in England and Wales. Empirical research centred on the development of crime prevention strategies in implementing the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. Fieldwork focused on the development of metropolitan borough s trategies in twenty-one London boroughs, and a police sector and two social housing estate strategies in the borough of Westminster. Resort to civil and publicilaw orders was found to be significant to the approach taken by the majority of London boroughs studied, including Westminster. One of the estate strategies at Westminster was found to be as authoritarian as the borough strategy, but the other estate strategy and the police sector strategy were not. Punitive views were not encountered among local practitioners on any of the three sites. Punitive views were encountered among local residents on the police sector, but not on either of the estates. Once the peculiarities of the institutions and areas studied were taken into account, it was concluded that there is a significant risk that crime prevention partnerships will take an authoritarian approach to crime control unless they are located in areas where there is a strong sense of geographical community, and their policies are shaped by local practitioners and local residents.
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Morrison, Paul D. "Cannabinoids and psychosis : cause and treatment." Thesis, King's College London (University of London), 2012. https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/cannabinoids-and-psychosis--cause-and-treatment(8866b980-8ef1-49d8-ae76-e340b9d8c57f).html.
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Epidemiological studies suggest that cannabis is a risk factor for psychotic illness. The main active ingredient is Δ-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). In healthy humans, the acute administration of THC can elicit transient psychotic symptoms and cognitive impairment. THC stimulates the endocanabinoid CB1 receptor (CB1R). However, beyond CB1Rs, the mechanism underlying the pro-psychotic effects of THC is unknown. The ecploration of candidate mechanisms was the first major theme in this thesis. In Study 1 the pro-psychotic properties of intravenous (IV) THC were confirmed. Thereafter, studies 2and 3 explored whether the pro-psychotic effects were related to excess striatal dopamine release or abnormal neural oscillations respectively. The cannabis plant contains over sixty cannabinoid molecules, one of which, Cannabidiol (CBD) can antagonise some of the pharmacological effects of THC. It has been suggested that the absence of CBD in modern, 'high-potency' forms of cannabis (sinsemilla or 'skunk') underlies the risk of such preparations for mental health. However, the evidence for this is sparse. Characterising the effect of CBD on THC-elicited responses was the second major theme in this thesis. Studies 4 and 5 tested whether CBD inhibited acute THC elicited psychosis. In study 1 the psychotomimetic effects of acute IV THC were confirmed. THC-elicited positive symptoms were distinct from anxiety, and negative symptoms were distinct from sedation. Cognitive performance was impaired under THC conditions. In study 2, THC had no significant effect on striatal dopamine release despite inducing robust positive psychotic symptoms. In study 3, THC-elicited positive psychotic symptoms were related to reduced bi-frontal coherence in the theta (4-8Hz) band. Studies 4 and 5 both showed that CBD pre-treatment inhibits acute THC-elicited psychosis. Overall two major findings emerged. 1. The pro-psychotic effects of THC were related to abnormal neural oscillations, but not to striatal dopamine release; 2. Cannabidiol inhibits acute THC psychosis.
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Thorpe, Maria Anastasia. "Deformation and buckling of isolated and interacting thin shells in an elastic medium." Thesis, University of Manchester, 2016. https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/deformation-and-buckling-of-isolated-and-interacting-thin-shells-in-an-elastic-medium(14b4172d-e302-4cf7-9ab2-9718e9aa182f).html.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis aims to model the effects of interaction and buckling upon pairs of micro-shells embedded within an elastic medium under far field hydrostatic pressure. This analysis is motivated by the role shell buckling plays in the nonlinear nature of the pressure relative volume curve of elastomers containing micro-shells. Current models of the effective properties of these types of composites assume shells are in a dilute distribution within the host medium, and as such assume shells will buckle at the pressure of the associated isolated embedded shell model. For composites with a high volume fraction of micro-shells, or in poorly mixed composites, the dilute distribution model may provide a first approximation to the effective properties of the composite, however, interaction between shells must be considered to find a more accurate model. We begin the process of modelling the buckling of interacting embedded shells by considering the buckling of an isolated embedded thin spherical shell. For a host medium undergoing far field hydrostatic pressure we demonstrate the parameter ranges in which Jones et al. thin shell buckling theory agrees with the thin shell buckling theory of Fok and Allwright. We then use scalings to increase the range of validity of the thin shell approximation used in the Jones et al. theory to include composites with a high contrast between medium and shell materials. This enables more accurate predictions of buckling pressures of embedded shells under far field axially symmetric pressures to also be found, as is demonstrated for an embedded shell under far field axial compression. We model the linear elastic deformation of pairs of embedded micro-shells using the Boussinesq-Papkovich stress function method, before employing the thin shell linear analysis method developed in previous chapters to calculate the critical buckling pressure and buckling patterns of the pair of embedded shells.
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Hartmann, Maren. "Technologies and Utopias : the cyberflâneur and the experience of being online." Thesis, University of Westminster, 2004. https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/item/932qz/technologies-and-utopias-the-cyberfl-neur-and-the-experience-of-being-online.
Full textAbstract:
The thesis examines the historical moment of the transition of the Internet from a technology to a cultural form with widespread social use. It is a moment that contains traces of the utopian dreams of the early users of the Internet at the point when it became a widely available, accessible everyday resource. I examine this moment of transition in terms of a vocabulary of use that sought to give expression to the then novel experience of being online. These conceptualisation of use are called user types and usually appear as metaphors. The first two chapters begin with metaphor, presented both in theory and in practice. This is followed by an introduction to cybercultural studies and cyberferninism, approaches which provide both inspiration and counterargument to the here presented approach. This framework is expanded in the fourth chapter, in which existing methodologies are outlined to introduce the virtual archaeology. This approach is inspired by the most important theoretical reference point for the thesis: Benjamin and his Arcades Project (and within that: cyberflAnerie). Benjamin's project emphasises the analysis of fragments, which are juxtaposed to illuminate an otherwise invisible meaning. Similar structures are seen to exist online. These shape the particularity of the creation of meaning. Another important aspect of Benjamin is his emphasis on the city and the radical shift of modernity. Each user type is seen to similarly express a reaction to the shock of the new, expressing particular utopian moments in Internet history. User types tell us something of the formation of discourses that complete the transformation of a technology from the technical into recognisable social and cultural identities. The user types analysed in detail are: the cyberflAneur, cyberfldneuse, webgrrl, cyberpunk, netizen, cybernaut and surfer. Their detailed analysis provides the second part of the thesis. The aspects referred to in the first part are all part of these analyses. Final reflections about the user types' role as specific communication tools, which shape the cultural form of the new medium, conclude the thesis.
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Kitsune, Viryanaga. "An investigation of cognitive-electrophysiological biomarkers and symptom profile in ADHD and bipolar disorder." Thesis, King's College London (University of London), 2018. https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/an-investigation-of-cognitiveelectrophysiological-biomarkers-and-symptom-profile-in-adhd-and-bipolar-disorder(b04f2a98-1054-4dbe-ab5c-c95342daa444).html.
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The first part of this thesis aimed to examine the stability and validity of potential cognitive- electrophysiological biomarkers in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in a large sample of adolescents and young adults. In part two, this thesis proceeded to a cross-disorder comparison with Bipolar Disorder (BD) in a novel sample of adult women, beginning by investigating symptom overlap between the two disorders and testing the efficacy of standard clinical instruments to delineate ADHD from euthymic BD. The next two chapters then went on to investigate the ability of cognitive-electrophysiological markers to delineate ADHD from BD in this cross-disorder sample, both through re-examining event-related potential (ERP) components which were investigated in part one, and by exploring additional ERP components. Presented herein are data which demonstrate that ADHD-control differences are sensitive to differences in experimental context, such as recording duration, as well as sample characteristics and certain methodological factors such as electrode selection. This research identified possible candidate biomarkers for both ADHD and BD; including two disorder-specific cognitive-electrophysiological markers which dissociated ADHD from BD. A further comparison of symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity, mania, depression and emotional lability (EL) in ADHD and BD using typical diagnostic measures indicated that depression, mania and EL measures were not able to distinguish ADHD from euthymic BD. Conversely, ADHD measures had good discrimination potential, and may currently be the best available method of delineating ADHD from BD in clinical contexts. This thesis recommended further research to confirm if the potential cognitive-electrophysiological biomarkers highlighted here are reliable indicators for either ADHD or BD. Further work is also needed to clarify the effects of methodological and samples differences on reported findings in these disorders across lifespan.
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Serrano, Vincenz. "'Eskinita' and other poems, and, Form, historiography, and nation in Nick Joaquin's 'Almanac for Manileños'." Thesis, University of Manchester, 2011. https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/eskinita-and-other-poems-and-form-historiography-and-nation-in-nick-joaquins-almanac-for-manilenos(0e55ceea-e7ad-4075-b4a5-3a9a9ace1729).html.
Full textAbstract:
Eskinita and Other Poems Eskinita and Other Poems is a collection of poems and sequences with Manila as its context and the city walker as its key figure. An eskinita - a Tagalog diminution of the Spanish word esquina, which means "corner" - is a term used to refer to sidestreet so narrow that even a car would find it hard to maneuver there; an eskinita that leads to a dead end, moreover, is called an interior. Grounded in, yet taking flight from, the language and imagery of Manila, the manuscript draws on the city's history and its present moment as it juxtaposes personal experiences and scholarly sources to portray a city whose development - considered in works like Nick Joaquin's Manila, My Manila, Manuel Caoili's The Origins of Metropolitan Manila, and Robert Reed's Colonial Manila - is bound up with political, social, economic, and postcolonial structures. Through this space goes the city walker, a figure considered in literary and theoretical texts like Walter Benjamin's study on the flâneur, Michel de Certeau's analysis of walking, and psychogeographic writings of the Situationists. The poems are concerned with formal strategies that take their cues from Anglo-American Modernism - collages of texts in lyric and prose, serial structures, and line splicings - and aim to express the complex experience of walking in Manila, of writing Manila: juxtapositions and interpenetrations between interior and exterior, scholarly and demotic language, past and present. The long poem Eskinita extends the use of these devices: apart from prose and verse combinations, it incorporates quotation, parataxis, and photography. Although the overt aim is to offer, using the aesthetic resources of poetry, multiple and refracted views of Manila, Eskinita nevertheless endeavours to express - by constraining words, lines, and page layout - a sense of containment and limit. By counterpointing multiple textual and visual modes - and including various sources and formal devices - Eskinita and Other Poems explores and sometimes rejoices in the tensions between polyphonic and disjunctive elements, and the way their structures generate resonance and dialogue between unlikely familiars. Form, Historiography, and Nation in Nick Joaquin's Almanac for Manileños This thesis argues that the Almanac - when contextualised within the long-standing tradition of the almanac genre, and examined using the theoretical underpinnings of Mikhail Bakhtin's notion of heteroglossia, Walter Benjamin's views of fragmentary historiography, and intertwining aspects of literary form and nation formation - expresses the multiple, not singular, temporalities that constitute and complicate the Filipino nation. Produced in 1979, during Martial Law in the Philippines, the Almanac's formal strategy - demonstrated by the accommodation of discrepant genres, compression and correspondence in the calendars, and fragmentation in the essays - is a kind of non-linear historical emplotment. Such an aesthetic - derived in part from Modernism - is distinct from, and critically interrogates, fixed and linear articulations of national history. The focus of the analysis is a reading of the Almanac's calendars and essays. The distinctions and interactions between these subgenres result in a text that is both cohesive and stratified: calendrical entries which are comprised of national and religious elements and have past and future orientations inhabit the same space as temporally disjunctive essays. Despite fragmentation, the Almanac is nevertheless held together by correspondences and associations. The Almanac's oblique and tangential strategy of representing Philippine history - when seen in the light of the obsolescence of a now-moribund but then-vital genre - critiques linear historiography. By accommodating accounts of missed chances and foregrounding seemingly irrelevant details, Joaquin's Almanac interrogates historical narratives which, in the name of progress, fail to incorporate materials that are aberrant and inconsequential.