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British Military Medicine during the New Zealand Wars 1845-1866.
No full textThe New Zealand Wars were a series of conflicts between the British Imperial Forces (and, latterly, New Zealand’s colonial forces) and the indigenous Māori people of Aotearoa / New Zealand. They spanned approximately 27 years between 1845 and 1872, although most of the British infantry forces left in 1866, leaving the last years of the conflict to the New Zealand colonial forces with limited support from a small remainder of infantry and artillery, engineering and hospital units. It would be incorrect to think that there was conflict for the entire time. The war is more accurately described as a series of discrete but sometimes overlapping campaigns, fought in separate geographical locations against different Māori groups for subtly different reasons, but against the same overarching background issues – land and sovereignty.While the New Zealand Wars have been extensively studied and their place in New Zealand history reconsidered in recent decades, there has been limited examination of the associated military medicine. Each subsequent war New Zealand has been involved with (from the Boer War to Vietnam) has benefited from a detailed official or unofficial published history detailing the medical aspects of the campaigns and a clinical overview of the medicine practised, and a reflection on its place in New Zealand’s military medical history. But this is not the case for the New Zealand Wars. There has been very little scholarly interest in the medical care provided during the New Zealand Wars. The two seminal multi- volume works examining the histories of the British Army Medical Department and Royal Navy make scant reference to the New Zealand wars – with the former devoting three out of nearly 1800 pages to the New Zealand Wars and the latter, nothing.In this thesis, I will investigate the practice of military medicine in the British units engaged in the New Zealand Wars. How the medical services were organised, the critical medical events of the conflict, the wounds, injuries and deaths from combat, and the significant burden of non-combat illness, injuries and fatalities. I will also examine the concept of sanitation as being essential to the health of the troops, which was a new concept within the Imperial forces, with the New Zealand Wars being the first conflict where Sanitation Officers were appointed to the force. In addition, I will examine where the New Zealand conflicts sit within the wider history of British military medicine in the early to mid-19th century, particularly the differing nature of the conflict in New Zealand compared with other conflicts.</p
Breaking the Barrier: A Design Exploration of the Evans Bay Edge
No full textWith the increasing rate of urban development in coastal environments and the growing challenges posed by coastal erosion, landscape architects are becoming increasingly involved in the redesign and reinforcement of urban coastlines to safeguard infrastructure. This often results in the creation of highly engineered structures designed primarily to protect coastal areas against erosion. Such approaches frequently overlook the experiential and ecological attributes of coastal environments, leading to a loss of engaging experiences and the displacement of intertidal habitats. Through field research and design experimentation, this thesis investigates the potential of enhancing constructed coastal edges by integrating both functional and experiential elements. It addresses the gap in landscape architecture where traditional designs focus predominantly on erosion control, often at the expense of ecological and experiential quality. The proposed system of islands, pathways, pools, and materials is designed to promote a dynamic range of interactions and intertidal habitat which fortifies the coastal edge and enriches the experiential and ecological conditions of these urban interfaces. This research advocates for a shift in coastal design practices towards multifunctional solutions to enrich and diversify coastal spaces.</p
Haitian and Okinawan Political Satire in the 1970s and 1980s
No full textDuring the 1970s and 1980s, Haiti and Okinawa underwent significant political change. Haitians protested against Jean-Claude Duvalier, who was dictator at the time, forcing him out of the country, while control of Okinawa was handed over from America to Japan. During this period, one of the key ways in which Haitians and Okinawans were able to express themselves was through the medium of political satire, as it was a way for them to speak out against those that controlled them.This thesis aims to comparatively analyse satirical works from these two rarely compared places, in order to see how Haitians and Okinawans performed their political agency as (post)-colonial subjects against intentional cultural misrepresentation. Through the analysis of four texts, two of them being plays and the other two being written, this thesis explores the portrayal of themes such as diaspora, sexuality, and the legacy of key historical moments, all in the context of the political landscape at the time. The developing use of language is also revealed within the political satire at the time, as both Haiti and Okinawa shifted from utilising non-native languages (French and Japanese respectively) to utilising their local languages instead (Haitian Creole and Okinawan respectively). The period that is focused on is not only the 1970s and 1980s, but also the period in which Haiti and Okinawa both underwent periods of American occupation, being 1915 to 1934, and 1945 to 1972 respectively. These periods of occupation deeply impacted not only the content of the political satire that Haiti and Okinawa produced, but also the way in which it was written, especially regarding thematic focuses. Ultimately this research has revealed that within Haiti and Okinawa, political satire was not solely a means of speaking up against political institutions. Political satire was also a way for citizens of each place to establish their identity on a global level, by satirizing, and thus counteracting, prevalent notions and stereotypes about their homelands.</p
RNA interference as a control strategy for the honey bee parasite, Varroa destructor, and the pathogen it vectors, Deformed wing virus
No full textVarroa destructor mites (varroa hereafter) are devastating ectoparasites of the European honey bee (Apis mellifera) and can vector several viral pathogens to bees while feeding. Varroa is most closely associated with the honey bee pathogen Deformed wing virus (DWV). Together, varroa and DWV have detrimental and multifaceted effects on honey bee health and are considered one of the leading causes of colony losses around the world. Currently, beekeepers rely on a few chemical-based pesticides for controlling varroa infestations in their beehives and mitigating the negative effects of DWV. However, some varroa pesticides can have negative effects on bees and reports of resistance to some available pesticides have been increasing among varroa populations. Therefore, development of effective, specific and sustainable treatments for controlling varroa and DWV is important for improving honey bee health as well as providing beekeepers with alternative management strategies.RNA interference is a highly conserved intracellular mechanism of gene regulation and antiviral defence in eukaryotes, which has widely been proposed as a promising strategy to control pests and pathogens through administration of specific double stranded RNA (dsRNA) sequences. This thesis focuses on investigating the effectiveness of RNAi as a novel control method for varroa and DWV using pest and pathogen-specific dsRNA sequences.To test effects of DWV-specific dsRNA on DWV loads and symptoms in parasitised and non-parasitised honey bees reared from larvae I conducted laboratory experiments with mini-hives consisting of adult bees, larvae and varroa mites. Bees parasitised during their development had significantly higher DWV loads compared to non-parasitised bees (PERMANOVA, p GreenLight Bioscience Inc. (Medford, MA, USA) has recently developed a dsRNA product specific in sequence to a V. destructor mRNA encoding the calcium signalling protein calmodulin (VdCaM-dsRNA) as a potential biopesticide for varroa. Testing this product in field trials conducted in the U.S reduced varroa mite infestation in honey bee colonies. Here, I used laboratory mini-hives of bees and varroa mites to test the effects of two concentrations of VdCaM-dsRNA on varroa reproduction, survival and gene expression. Varroa were sampled from brood cells of developing pupae either 5 days after cell capping or just prior to bees emerging from brood cells, as a measure for time since mite exposure to VdCaM-dsRNA. While VdCaM-dsRNA did not have a significant effect on survival of adult female varroa mites, varroa reproduction was significantly and substantially reduced in high and low dose VdCaM-dsRNA treated mini-hives (PERMANOVA, p Results from this thesis show that VdCaM-dsRNA is a highly promising biopesticide for controlling varroa mite infestation levels by significantly reducing mite reproduction in honey bee hives. Moreover, using RNA-seq to investigate the underlying molecular mechanism of VdCaM-dsRNA provided a deeper understanding to molecular pathways important for varroa reproduction and suggests that calmodulin-mediated calcium signalling plays an important role in regulating embryo developmental processes. On the other hand, using DWV-dsRNA to control DWV loads in bees and varroa mites was less successful possibly due to sequence divergence between the DWV-dsRNA sequences used and the DWV variants circulating in New Zealand honey bees and varroa. Possible DWV-dsRNA targets specific to New Zealand DWV variants are suggested, which will be useful for testing this hypothesis and better understanding the role of RNAi as a potential DWV control strategy.</p
Revitalisation of a Suburban Community: Enhancing the Social Community through Place-Specific Community Infrastructures
No full textNew Zealand suburbs are socially oriented to a core public space often consisting of a local mall or community centre. The core public space works cooperatively with other supporting components scattered around the suburb, such as educational facilities, health care facilities, and recreational spaces. This research challenges the suburban built environment by reinterpreting the community network and acknowledging the informal community components within a social community. The study approaches this problem by questioning the importance of place identity and place-specific requirements of a community.Waitangirua is a culturally rich suburb with a predominantly youthful community located in Eastern Porirua. The new residential developments and the Transmission Gully establishment have created an opportunity for suburban development. Therefore, exploration of suburban community architecture is crucial for forming a solid foundation for the direction of the built environment revitalisation. The historical patterns of community development in the suburb and existing data collected by ‘Kainga Ora’ and ‘Porirua Development’ in 2017-2020 will be the foundation for reflecting the community’s voice and shaping the research direction.The research aims to develop and test a place-specific community network along with an architectural design implementing the social traits and place-specific characteristics inherent to the existing community. The existing community is investigated at a macro-scale to identify the informal community network and its emergent qualities. The study is significant, as it seeks to form a solid foundation for the direction of built environment revitalization in Waitangirua and other developing small-scale suburbs in New Zealand.</p
Painted Parlours: New Classical Interiors Re-Imagined Through AI as a Fictional Hotel
No full textVery quickly, artificial intelligence (AI) has surged in influence, though its roots trace back to the integration of AI into Computer-Aided Design (CAD) programs in the 1970s (Mazzone and Elgammal). A contemporary challenge faced by creative industries is the arrival of text-to-image technology, which is perceived as a potential threat to creative industries. The concern revolves around the fear of losing control, as there is a prevailing belief that AI could eventually render certain design jobs obsolete. However, at this stage in AI’s evolution this idea of control is still reachable.In the methodology, an integrated approach is adopted, utilizing methods such as description, bricolage, and watercolour to offer users a heightened sense of control. Description emerges as a requirement in the process, guiding the text-image software. It is imperative that the language used in the description be both clear and concise to effectively convey the envisioned ideas, to attempt a seamless translation into an image. The decision to employ New Classical architectural language as a testing ground for the AI’s capabilities stems from the languages and aspects of the style, establishing a foundation for the project.Bricolage, a creative act involving the construction of something from a diverse range of elements, is strategically applied in the context of AI (Roberts, 2018). This method is to take specific areas of the images generated by the AI and transform them into customized elements shaped by creative input. By integrating bricolage, a sense of control is given to the creative process as well as a sense of ownership over the AI-generated content.Watercolour is used as a presentation tool, utilising its ability to smooth out potential inconsistencies in the AI-generated visuals. This medium not only serves a practical purpose in refining the output but also contributes to humanising the results. By infusing the project with a watercolour aesthetic, a sense of atmosphere and emotion is involved with subjective qualities inherent in human creativity. Through this fusion of methods, the research strives to not only harness AI as a tool but also to facilitate a collaboration between artificial intelligence and human imagination within the design field.The many tests and results from the chosen methodology have showed the capabilities and the weaknesses of AI. Issues surfaced that stemmed from the lack of knowledge the software has of spatial awareness. There were problems with perspective and spatial grandeur that were simply lacking in the resulting images. Certain language and terminology that the technology didn’t register for example the bathroom, after many attempts to leave out a bath by using different terminologies and simply saying ‘no bath’, the results still maintained baths. After experimenting with the technology across different rooms of the hotel, the lobby had the most potential for showcasing its capabilities. The decision to focus on the lobby was driven by its attributes, with a specific interest in highlighting certain components within the space. Acknowledging AI’s limited awareness of materiality, an intentional effort was made to single out elements within the room. This approach aimed to examine how these components could be crafted, addressing the challenges posed by the AI’s lack of contextual understanding. The goal was to ensure a more refined and accurate representation of the hotel’s design in this project.Despite encountering challenges with both the quality and certain aspects of the images produced by the text-image software, its potential as a valuable tool remains significant. The methodology outlined in this study represents just one among numerous ways in which this software could complement and enhance the work of designers, rather than acting as a threat. As a relatively promising tool, the text-image software is expected to undergo continuous evolution. This prompts a crucial question about the trajectory of the design industry and its willingness to evolve alongside this emerging technology.</p
Captive trials of a potential predator exclusion device for kea (Nestor notabilis) burrows and analysis of burrow monitoring footage.
No full textKea (Nestor notabilis) are a declining endemic New Zealand parrot. Most estimates place their current population at around 6,000. This thesis focuses on three aims to inform future kea conservation: 1) Investigating the potential of installing flaps on wild kea burrow entrances to exclude predators, 2) Developing and detailing methods to efficiently process kea burrow monitoring footage, 3) Using the processed data to characterize the activity of kea and their predators at burrows.For Aim 1, trials were conducted with captive kea to establish whether they could pull open a flap to gain access to a space containing rewards. Captive kea interactions with flaps set to open outwards only were observed and analysed. Two kea were able to pass through already open flaps and pull closed flaps open. However, neither passed through flaps after they themselves pulled them open, which appeared to be due to an aversion to having the flap rest on their back when passing through. These observations suggest that flap designs similar to those used as pet doors are unlikely to be suitable for predator exclusion from wild kea nests. Interactions of predators with a flap in a wetland were also investigated.For Aim 2, footage obtained over six breeding years at seven nesting locations was provided by the New Zealand Department of Conservation (DOC) the Kea Conservation Trust and community groups. This dataset comprised 1,585,044 images. I developed a new approach to streamline image tagging, which grouped images into sessions of animal activity, so that only a single image from each session required manual tagging to identify the species present. This approach resulted in a 97.77% reduction in the number of images needing manual tagging, with a corresponding estimated loss of only 3.29% of the total occurrences of animal activity.Using this dataset for Aim 3, I found that the most common predator species captured on the monitoring footage were possums (196 sessions) and weka (165 sessions). Activity of weka, rats, stoats and possums increased at the start of kea nesting in July. All predators were largely nocturnal except stoats and cats. Predator visits outside as well as inside burrows were generally short (less than 30 seconds). Stoats in particular rarely stayed longer than this. The majority of burrow predation appears to have been of eggs, with only six of 24 chicks seen in nests likely not to have fledged. Overall nesting success from the 19 burrow seasons of monitoring was low, with an estimated 18 chicks fledging.The data highlight the need to maintain current efforts to reduce the impact of predators on kea and develop improved methods of protecting kea burrows</p
Genero-city: Imagining an architecture of generosity through co-design with the Wellington Free Store
No full textTe Whanganui-a-Tara, Wellington is experiencing urban intensification as high density housing is built in the city centre. As the city intensifies, public space plays an increasingly important role in its social and community function, as it needs to offer space for connection, socialisation and sharing, beyond the private realm. Public spaces in Wellington can offer more in this regard. There is great potential to expand the social capacity of Wellington's public spaces to become spaces a sharing, connection, and creativity. Shifting public space in this way could be of significant value to those living in smaller, urban dwellings, such as communities living in the multiple social housing complexes on the urban fringe of Wellington. This research aims to address the social capacity of public space by exploring an architecture practice that is generous, collective and social in itself - an architecture of generosity. I have volunteered as The Wellington Free Store (a community of food redistribution) for six years, whilst studying architecture. This practice-research brings together these two dimensions of my life, to explore the value of bringing the community into my architecture practice, and bringing my architecture practice into the community, to collectively reimagine and re-shape public space with community members from the Wellington Free Store. This research uses an expanded architectural practice through co-design with the aim to foreground the voices of underserved groups through creative collaboration. This challenges traditional architect centred processes, by offering alternative ways of practicing architecture; and ultimately reimagining a genero-city that helps to facilitate a cultural shift towards shared living in generous public spaces.This research uses a creative practice research methodology, in the context of an expanded approach to architecture that explore beyond building. This draws on ways Muf and Spatial Agency explore other ways of practicing architecture, and is informed by the theory of The Care Manifesto by the Care Collective (2022) and Beyond Sticky Notes: Co-Design for real by K.A. McKercher (2020). This informed a series of three interconnected projects: Tēpu (table), exploring furniture as a device for collective participation; Uhitēpu (wallpaper), investigating sharing power with underserved groups; and Pātaka kai (community pantry), imagining shared spaces of manaakitanga (generosity) through co-design and food sharing. This involved methods of co-design, co-mapping, and co-creation activities with The Wellington Free Store community as creative partners. These methods acknowledge the injustice of colonisation in Aotearoa, and the implications of architecture practice as a tangata Tiriti (a person of the Treaty of Waitangi) on land with contested ownership. Architects wield significant influence through their capacity to design environments that can bring about shifts in cultural attitudes, in this case, towards shared life in urban spaces.Through this research I have learnt about the value of shifting from a lens of lack to a lens of possibility; the uniqueness of the deep knowledge of public spaces held by community members; and the many possibilities for an architecture of generosity.</p
Public Spaces for Older People: A Review of the Relationship between Public Space to Quality of Life
No full textThis paper investigates the relationship between public spaces and quality of life (QoL) for older adults, aiming to identify knowledge gaps within the context of population ageing and urbanisation. Recognising the growing importance of sustainable urban development, the research explores how cities can foster active ageing and improve QoL through accessible and inclusive public spaces. A scoping literature review identifies five key QoL domains for older adults: autonomy, meaningful activities, positive social relationships, leisure opportunities, and health. To identify knowledge gaps, a review of the literature was conducted for each of the highlighted themes. The review highlights areas requiring further investigation, including the interplay between environmental design and social connections, intergenerational perspectives on public space liveliness, the influence of context on QoL and the built environment, and the value of qualitative research in this field. By contributing to the understanding of QoL in relation to public spaces through the lens of person–environment fit theory, this study aims to inform urban design, landscape architecture, and policymaking in the creation of age-friendly communities with inclusive public spaces
Investigation of the CtrA cell cycle master regulator in Bartonella quintana
No full textThis research project aimed to address the gaps in knowledge surrounding Bartonella quintana, with a specific focus on understanding its cell cycle dynamics and the mechanisms underlying its virulence. B. quintana is an intriguing pathogen due to its ability to persist for long periods within the human vascular and intraerythrocytic environment. Specifically, for B. quintana to reside inside erythrocytes without causing lysis, tight regulation of the cell cycle is required to limit its replication within this niche.CtrA is known as a master regulatory protein controlling the cell cycle in multiple alpha-proteobacteria, including C. crescentus. This study aimed to shed light on how this protein influences the cell cycle or morphology of B. quintana. The primary objective was to investigate the role of CtrA as a transcription factor within B. quintana and to evaluate the impact of CtrA overexpression on the bacterium.I first used a bioinformatics approach to identify B. quintana promoters that contained putative CtrA binding motifs. I then used a beta-galactosidase assay to investigate the impact of heterologous CtrA protein expression on the activity of two identified promoters, ftsH and ftsK. The ftsH homologue gene in C. crescentus encodes a zinc metalloprotease that is required for the stress response and that plays a role in cell division. The ftsK homologue encodes an essential protein that coordinates cell division and chromosomal segregation. The results suggested a potential repressive role of CtrA on the ftsH gene within B. quintana. Expression from the ftsK promoter, however, was not detected, either with or without CtrA.Because CtrA is an essential protein in most alpha-proteobacteria, I attempted to construct a conditional mutant. Although this strain could not be achieved in this project, the strain carrying the complementation plasmid was used to study the effects of CtrA overexpression in B. quintana. Distinct outcomes were noted in terms of viability and chromosome content between the wildtype B. quintana and those carrying the inducible ctrA plasmid. Differences in morphology were not noted, but this could be due to the lack of time available to optimise microscopy protocols.The alteration in viability and chromosomal contents observed, when ctrA expression was induced on a plasmid, suggests a potential role for CtrA in the cell cycle of B. quintana. Further investigation is warranted to explore the functions of CtrA in B. quintana, not only in the context of the cell cycle but also in other aspects of B. quintana morphology and pathogenesis.</p
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