13553 research outputs found
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Audio observation of a Wellington Tree Wētā <i>Hemideina crassidens</i> defense stridulation
No full textWellington Tree Wētā Hemideina crassidens are known to produce a stridulating sound during defense (Field 1982). No papers that I could find have presented publicly available audio files which include this sound. Here, I describe one such call, and encourage others to upload their observations to community science websites.</p
The final journey
No full textDeath. The inevitable.The hospice environment supports individuals navigating the final stages of life. However, many end-of-life facilities often mirror clinical hospital settings—functional but impersonal, lacking the warmth and familiarity of home. This detachment can heighten feelings of isolation during one of life’s most vulnerable moments. This thesis explores the research question: How can architecture for end-of-life care evoke meaningful moments while creating a sense of homeliness and comfort for those facing loss?Palliative care encompasses more than medical treatment; it emphasises holistic physical, emotional, social, and spiritual well-being. Hospice architecture must align with this philosophy to adopt a more emotionally supportive approach. Through a qualitative lens, this research acknowledges the experiences of patients and families, exploring design through an emotive and physical lens and focusing on curating meaningful final moments. This thesis challenges the conventional focus on functionality, advocating for a new hospice typology prioritising warmth and humanity over sterility. These spaces should offer opportunities for reflection and connection, creating an environment where individuals can create cherished memories with their loved ones in their final days. A hospice is not only the last space a dying patient will experience but also the place where families will form their final, lasting memories of their loved one. By designing for the most sensitive user group, the dying, we can create better design outcomes for the living.</p
The Power Station
No full textFrom 1925-1986 a series of 8 hydro-electric dams with power stations were constructed from Lake Tekapo down the Waitaki River. During the period of construction, entire hydro-towns were built to house the workers and their families. They included schools, shops, medical facilities, pubs, and churches. Once the construction of a dam and its power station was completed, the towns were abandoned and the workers moved onto the site of the next dam. The architecture of the Power Station has a unique story to tell, presenting the Power Station’s identity in ways that do not always align with its architecture, or functions. This design-led thesis investigation proposes that New Zealand’s Power Stations are of heritage significance, and the stories they have to tell need to be safeguarded, even if the hydro-towns responsible for their construction no longer exist.The research site for this investigation is the abandoned settlement of Waitaki Village. As a design-led investigation, the thesis proposes to engage new architectural constructs within the abandoned site that act as architectural narrators of the site’s stories. To achieve this, the thesis proposes to embed this new architecture into an allegorical architectural project that enables their stories to come to light.This thesis investigation asks: How can an essential story of New Zealand Heritage, represented by one of New Zealand’s hydro-electric Power Stations, be safeguarded by representing its story as an allegorical architectural project?</p
Sensing Retreat: Wabi-sabi-inspired retreat design for comfort and wellness
No full textThe wellness retreat industry is rapidly growing, driven by rising stress levels, a desire for digital detox, and an increased focus on holistic health. Wellness retreats are designed to offer an escape from these daily stresses and provide a comfortable place to engage with programmes that relax, rejuvenate and revitalise guests. However, achieving ‘comfort’ in such a space varies from person to person, so how can a retreat be designed to achieve a level of ‘comfort’ that will appeal to a luxury-seeking guest?This thesis explores how a luxury wellness retreat can be designed to evoke comfort through the integration of the Japanese principle wabi-sabi - a concept that emphasises aesthetics, spiritual well-being, and sensory experience. Wabi-sabi is rooted in ancient Japanese culture, refined by the influence of Zen Buddhism and the Japanese tea ceremony (chadō). While Western interpretations often go no further than wabi-sabi’s material aesthetic of ‘imperfection’ and ‘impermanence’, this research delves into its philosophical foundations, and connection to Japanese tradition.Through literature research, case study analysis, and first-hand experience in Japan, valuable design insights are gained to inform the interior architecture of a wellness retreat on Waiheke Island. The design methods of photography, painting, drawing, and digital collage are used to express the wabi-sabi concept. This process informs the digitally modelled retreat facilities - a lobby, guestroom and spa. The visualisation of these spaces guides the reader on a journey through the retreat, capturing interior moments that exemplify the sensorial and material qualities of wabi-sabi inspired interiors in a wellness-focused environment.Drawing on the wabi-sabi philosophy of humility, ritual, and natural value, this design response crafts interiors that seamlessly blend understated luxury with profound comfort. By embracing these principles, the project redefines opulence as an experience rooted in authenticity and tranquillity. This research contributes to the field of interior architecture by presenting a wellness-focused design methodology, offering a framework that prioritises harmony, mindfulness, and the inherent beauty of simplicity in creating restorative spaces.</p
AC Loss Research on HTS Coil Windings in Ferromagnetic Environments
No full textEmploying high-temperature superconductors in power devices provides an alternative approach to achieving high efficiency, low energy loss, and compact size. AC loss is one of the critical issues for high-temperature superconducting (HTS) power devices, as it is the main heat load that must be dissipated from the cryogenic environment, significantly influencing the performance and efficiency of the power devices. To enable efficient energy transfer between coil windings in practical HTS equipment, a strong mutual magnetic flux is desired. Iron cores with high magnetic permeability are typically used as conduits to carry the flux between coils. However, the presence of iron cores changes the surrounding magnetic field around HTS coil windings and greatly affects their AC loss behaviours. To reduce AC loss in HTS coil windings, exploiting magnetic flux diverters to suppress the perpendicular component of the magnetic field has been recognized as a proven method. Up to now, the influence of these ferromagnetic components on the AC loss characteristics of HTS coil windings has not been systematically investigated at the coil level and remains unclear for real HTS applications.This thesis aims to conduct numerical and experimental research on AC loss in HTS coil windings within ferromagnetic environments, focusing on HTS transformers and rapid-cycling synchrotrons, both of which have iron cores and HTS coil windings. In order to obtain a better understanding of AC loss behaviours in HTS coil windings within ferromagnetic environments and to provide insights for the design of practical HTS applications, the following research questions are addressed: how does the iron core influence the AC loss of HTS coil windings carrying AC current with and without DC offsets; how to accurately measure the transport AC loss of HTS coil windings coupled with an iron core; what is the role of flux diverters in reducing the AC loss of HTS coil windings coupled with an iron core; how the iron core affects the AC loss of transformer windings; and what kind of methods can effectively reduce AC loss in transformer windings?At first, systematic three-dimensional (3D) AC loss simulations of HTS coil assemblies coupled with a two-limb rectangular iron core are presented to explore the influence of the iron core on the AC loss of HTS coil windings. The simulated results show that the AC loss of a REBCO eight-double-pancake coil (8DPC) assembly coupled with an iron core is more than an order of magnitude larger than the loss value without the iron core. This is because the presence of the iron core causes strong perpendicular magnetic field penetration not only in the end DPCs but also in the middle DPCs of the 8DPC assembly. Increasing the distance between the iron core and HTS coil assemblies can effectively weaken the influence of the iron core, thereby reducing the coil AC losses. Compared to an iron core with a high saturation magnetic field, HTS coil assemblies coupled with an iron core that has a low saturation magnetic field exhibit lower AC loss. When a DC offset is applied, the AC loss of a 1DPC assembly without the iron core significantly increases as long as the total transport current exceeds the critical current of the coil, which is due to the flux flow. With the inclusion of the iron core, the AC loss of the 1DPC assembly further increases compared to the corresponding case without the iron core at a given AC current and DC offset.Then, a simulation-guided experimental method is proposed to measure the net transport AC loss of HTS coil assemblies when coupled with an iron core. The simulations are conducted to make a comparison of the local magnetic flux density distributions in the iron core generated by the HTS coil assembly and a copper test coil. It is necessary to introduce a copper coil to provide a field which closely matches the field of the HTS coil and in which the intra coil losses can be simply calculated. By matching the distributions between these two configurations, the error in the indirect iron loss estimation caused by different local magnetic flux density distributions within the iron core can be avoided, thereby ensuring an accurate transport AC loss measurement for the HTS coil assembly coupled with an iron core. The experimental results prove that the iron core greatly increases the transport AC loss of HTS coil assemblies. In addition, an obvious frequency dependence is observed in the transport loss results of HTS coil assemblies coupled with the iron core, which is attributed to the eddy current generated in the iron core.Next, AC loss reduction methods for HTS coil assemblies coupled with a two-limb rectangular iron core using flux diverters are investigated. Employing flux diverters can provide substantial AC loss reduction for HTS coil assemblies coupled with the iron core by aligning the magnetic flux lines more parallel to the end discs of the coil assemblies. The combined method of increasing the distance between the iron core and the coil assemblies, along with applying flux diverters, can lead to further loss reduction. Moreover, decreasing the vertical gap between the flux diverters and the coil assemblies can also achieve a pronounced reduction in loss. In fact, enlarging the distance between the iron core and the coil assemblies leads to increased wire consumption. Therefore, the aforementioned methods for reducing AC loss in HTS coil assemblies coupled with an iron core are evaluated with careful consideration of the actual wire usage.Finally, 3D AC loss simulations of a 3-phase 1 MVA HTS transformer coupled with a three-limb iron core are presented to assess the impact of the iron core on transformer windings. Unexpectedly, the iron core only leads to a 1 W (1.2%) AC loss increase for a single phase of the transformer windings at the rated current. This slight difference is attributed to the non-inductive winding structure of the transformer, where a strong magnetic field generated in the space between the low-voltage (LV) and high-voltage (HV) windings effectively shields the influence of the iron core. Based on this conclusion, the combined impact of asymmetric critical current and flux diverters on AC loss of a 6.5 MVA/25 kV HTS traction transformer is discussed without the consideration of the iron core. At the rated current and 65 K, employing the flux diverters with a square-shape cross-section, the total AC loss is decreased by 73.7% and an extra 150 W loss reduction is also obtained. Moreover, an additional reduction of 37 W is realized upon utilizing the asymmetric Ic(B, θ) characteristic. The reduced 187 W in AC loss at 65 K corresponds to a reduction in ambient power requirement of over 5.6 kW.The simulation and experimental results presented in this thesis provide useful information to help understand the AC loss generation mechanisms of HTS coil windings in ferromagnetic environments. Furthermore, the influence of the iron core on transformer windings, as revealed in this thesis, contributes to the design of HTS transformers. The AC loss reduction methods summarized and proposed in this thesis also provide valuable insights for minimizing AC loss in HTS power devices.</p
The Artificial Memory Palace - Social Media Made Tangible
No full textHaving a smart phone in our pockets has fundamentally changed the way we perceive, interact with, and remember the world and each other. The swipe of a finger unlocks limitless potential within the digital world, providing opportunity for new knowledge, connection to others, self-expression and escape. And yet, paradoxically, we are seeing increasing consumption of meaningless content; heightened feelings of loneliness and lack of connection; curation that can mask authentic experiences; algorithms that create a sea of sameness; and intense escapism that potentially draws us too far from the real world. We spend so much of our time in this digital world, social media specifically, that our engagement with the tangible world is shifting. Our buildings used to be “memory palaces” carrying tangible traces of life, snippets of stories embedded in the world around us. Now our phones carry these fragments of our lives, the digital world has become our memory palaces, social media the archive of our experiences. The built environment is no longer a reminder of who we are, but rather, is comprised of predominantly uninspiring straight, grey lines designed for efficiency over humanity. This thesis discovered how we can merge the benefits of the digital and physical world, bringing the virtual, transient dynamism of the digital into the real world where we truly connect to each other and our surroundings. This concept was explored through an urban intervention that provides a place of community and speculates on the idea of creating a tangible space that provides what we seek from social media. What would happen if we created a living, breathing social media, an artificial memory palace?</p
<i>Helobdella serendipitous</i> Saglam et al., 2018 is the available name (Annelida: Hirudinida)
No full textA short correction of a name according to the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature.</p
Transport and Wellbeing of Public Housing Tenants—A Scoping Review
No full textThe role of public housing in improving wellbeing for tenants and society is an important public policy issue. Public housing tenants in Aotearoa New Zealand have constrained incomes and their mode of transport has implications for their budgets, their wellbeing, and carbon emissions. Tenants’ daily life choices and wellbeing are influenced by the set of transport options available to them and the constraints and opportunities these options entail. What is important for wellbeing is also dependent on culture. Little is known, however, about the specific influences of transport on the wellbeing of public housing tenants and how that is mediated by the culture of particular groups, particularly Māori and Pacific people, who make up the majority of people in public housing in Aotearoa. In this article we review the literature on public housing, transport, and wellbeing, to establish what is known about how transport, and the access it affords, influence the wellbeing of public housing tenants. We searched Scopus and Web of Science for academic journal articles, published in English and available online, about public housing tenant wellbeing with regard to the transportation and location characteristics of public housing. We found that creating highly accessible public housing developments with options of various modes of travel is important for the wellbeing of tenants. We also found that understanding the specific needs and preferences of tenants, ensuring tenants have agency over how they travel, and engaging with tenants during transport decision-making are particularly important and often under-recognised for people in public housing. Finally, we identified substantial gaps in the literature around understanding transport needs and experiences from Māori and Pacific perspectives, emphasising the importance of including indigenous and ethnic minority views in future research
Heparin and Heparan Sulfate Mimetics Towards Anti-cancer Applications
No full textHeparan sulfate (HS) and heparin are structurally related sulfated glycosaminoglycans produced within the human body, with HS expressed by virtually every human cell. The structural intricacy and negatively-charged nature of HS facilitate its interaction with hundreds of naturally occurring proteins. These interactions, and its ubiquitous presence, mean that HS plays numerous roles in physiological processes. Furthermore, HS–protein interactions have been implicated in a number of pathologies including viral infection, neurodegenerative diseases and numerous types of cancer. Many of these pathologies have been linked to aberrant expression of HS and HS binding proteins, alongside the dysregulation of HS biosynthesis. As such, protein–HS interactions have come to be considered valid and interesting therapeutic targets for a range of pathologies. This thesis is focused on designing, synthesising and assessing HS mimetics toward potential application as cancer therapeutics. While investigating HS–protein interactions, compounds have been designed that effectively mimic the structure of HS and heparin, such compounds are commonly called HS or heparin mimetics. The multivalent nature of HS–protein interactions and the complex synthesis of native HS has led to numerous classes of compounds being investigated as mimetics, including unique dendritic compounds designed at the Ferrier Research Institute. Therefore, this thesis includes chemical, biochemical and biological research to improve upon the previously reported dendritic HS mimetics. The mimetics synthesised in this thesis include a library of ten sulfated glycolipid dendritic mimetics designed to improve bioavailability and investigate a structural simplification of the previously reported compounds. The glycolipid mimetics showed similar properties to the previous lead compound in in vitro studies; however, an in vivo colon adenocarcinoma model indicated that glycolipid mimetics were statistically insignificant from the negative control in inhibiting tumour growth. Applying the information gained from the biological evaluation of the glycolipids, a new design of mimetics was conceived which included redesigning the dendritic core in order to incorporate a fluorescent label. The approach was successful and led to the synthesis of numerous mimetics, including a fluorescently labelled mimetic that was synthesised to allow for ongoing cellular and in vivo localisation to take place. In addition to the synthesis of new mimetics, an investigation into the synthetic methodology applicable to sulfated compounds was conducted through the investigation of "post-sulfation conjugation" reactions. Such conjugations are rare due to the difficulties associated with the chemical synthesis of sulfated species, and it was envisioned that the development of a conjugation method would allow for improved structural diversity in future generations of HS mimetics. Separately from the synthetic work, three distinct in vitro assays were set up and optimised to assess the HS mimetics’ interaction with the enzyme heparanase, anti-angiogenic effect and migration-influencing properties. Through successful synthetic and biological investigations the research described herein has resulted in structural optimisation of the dendritic HS mimetics, improved the understanding of their mechanism of action and assisted in providing conjugation methods for future compound development.</p
Community-based tourism homestays' capacity to advance the Sustainable Development Goals: A holistic sustainable livelihood perspective
No full textCommunity-based tourism is an approach to tourism presumed to achieve progress on SDG1 No Poverty and SDG11 Sustainable Cities and Communities. In rural communities, homestays are a critical CBT component given tourists need lodging and the capacity to involve many village families. As a result, h h homestays appear to make a positive contribution to lifting whole families out of poverty while retaining decision-making within the community. However, it is not clear what the true capacity is of homestays' to advance these SDGs when examining them from a holistic sustainable livelihood perspective. This research adopts the Sustainable Livelihood Framework to critically examine both livelihood benefits and costs of operating a homestay. Taking a case-study approach, semi-structured interviews, observation notes and secondary sources were combined to study homestay operators in a CBT destination in Laos. Findings highlight that operating homestays offers significant capacity to advance SDG1 and 11, however, extensive costs requiring collective planning and management were also uncovered.</p
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