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The Cacophony Project
Get PDFHow will we know if any pest eradication interventions actually increase the amount of bird life?
The Cacophony project aims to return New Zealand's bird life to its former glory, by using technology to help eradicate the pests responsible for killing so many birds.
The Project will turn birdsong into data and use the best of IT technologies to dramatically improve our ability to trap bird killing predators. The device we are creating is called the Cacophonometer and it will be able to;
· Lure predators with sound and light
· Identify using camera and Artificial Intelligence
· Eliminate the identified predators
· Monitor the background bird song to measure the impact
Tim and his fellow cacophoners think this approach has the potential to increase trapping efficiency by up to 80,000 times, long term
2017 Student projects in support of final year BEngTech students at Wintec.
Get PDFThe final year of the BEngTech degree at Wintec requires students to undertake a design/research project. This project will showcase their whole of degree learning.
AIM
To enable students to investigate an engineering problem; to propose, specify, design and develop a solution and where feasible, to construct and test a prototype.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
On the successful completion of this course the student will be able to:
1. Synthesise a solution for an engineering problem.
2. Complete a project to a specified standard.
3. Design, project manage and evaluate a concept/model/product.
4. Use software application packages as an engineering tool, if required.
5. Communicate effectively with customers, peers, technicians and engineers
Implementation framework for chronic disease intervention effectiveness in Māori and other indigenous communities
Get PDFAbstract
Background
About 40% of all health burden in New Zealand is due to cancer, cardiovascular disease, and type 2 diabetes/obesity. Outcomes for Māori (indigenous people) are significantly worse than non-Maori; these inequities mirror those found in indigenous communities elsewhere. Evidence-based interventions with established efficacy may not be effective in indigenous communities without addressing specific implementation challenges. We present an implementation framework for interventions to prevent and treat chronic conditions for Māori and other indigenous communities.
Theoretical framework
The He Pikinga Waiora Implementation Framework has indigenous self-determination at its core and consists of four elements: cultural-centeredness, community engagement, systems thinking, and integrated knowledge translation. All elements have conceptual fit with Kaupapa Māori aspirations (i.e., indigenous knowledge creation, theorizing, and methodology) and all have demonstrated evidence of positive implementation outcomes.
Applying the framework
A coding scheme derived from the Framework was applied to 13 studies of diabetes prevention in indigenous communities in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United States from a systematic review. Cross-tabulations demonstrated that culture-centeredness (p = .008) and community engagement (p = .009) explained differences in diabetes outcomes and community engagement (p = .098) explained difference in blood pressure outcomes.
Implications and conclusions
The He Pikinga Waiora Implementation Framework appears to be well suited to advance implementation science for indigenous communities in general and Māori in particular. The framework has promise as a policy and planning tool to evaluate and design effective interventions for chronic disease prevention in indigenous communities
Cadmium accumulation in agricultural soils
No full textCadmium (Cd) has accumulated in New Zealand (NZ) soils as a result of phosphate fertiliser application. Cadmium is a biotoxic heavy metal and can be adsorbed by soil and enter the human food chain. Three objectives were investigated in this thesis: 1. Determine if the distribution of Cd varies between soils with contrasting mineralogy and drainage characteristics, but the same phosphate fertiliser history, 2. Evaluate the utility of Cd stable isotope ratios (δ114/110Cd) to trace the sources of Cd in NZ soils through time and distinguish the contribution of different sources of Cd in NZ soils, and, 3. Determine whether there is a difference in the concentration of Cd in irrigated and unirrigated soils within the same paddock.
The concentration of Cd was measured in three soils, with contrasting mineralogy and drainage characteristics within the same paddock, and thus same fertiliser history. The mean concentration of Cd in topsoil (0-7.5 cm) samples was 0.77 mg kg-1 (range 0.56-0.99) in the Horotiu soil (Orthic Allophanic Soil in NZ soil classification, Typic Hapludand in US soil taxonomy), 0.83 mg kg-1 (range 0.60-1.11) in the Bruntwood soil (Impeded Allophanic Soil in NZ soil classification, Aquic Hapludand in US soil taxonomy) and 0.78mg kg-1 (range 0.46-0.96) in the Te Kowhai soil (Orthic Gley Soil in NZ classification, Typic Humaquept in US soil taxonomy). There were no significant differences in the concentration, and/or the total mass of Cd between the three soils. Cadmium was mainly adsorbed to the near surface soil regardless of soil mineralogy and drainage characteristics. Thus, it was concluded that it is appropriate to apply the same Cd management approach (The Tiered Fertiliser Management System) to the investigated soil types.
Isotope ratios of Cd (δ114/110Cd) were used to trace the sources of Cd in a longterm irrigation and fertiliser trial at Winchmore, Canterbury, New Zealand. The isotopic composition of pre-2000 fertilisers (δ114/110Cd = 0.10 ± 0.05 to 0.25 ± 0.04) was comparable to the Nauru source rocks used in fertiliser manufacture (δ114/110Cd = 0.22 ± 0.04), but distinct from the control subsoil (δ114/110Cd = -0.33 ± 0.04) and post-2000 fertilisers (δ114/110Cd range of -0.17 ± 0.03 to 0.01 ± 0.05).
The isotopic compositions of fertilised soil samples ranged from δ114/110Cd = 0.08 ± 0.03 to δ114/110Cd = 0.27 ± 0.04, which were comparable to pre-2000 fertilisers.
Thus, it becomes possible to distinguish the sources of Cd within the soil using isotopes. The fractional distribution of Cd sources confirmed the main contribution of Nauru-derived phosphate fertilisers (pre-2000 fertilisers) in increasing the amount of Cd in soils at the Winchmore research farm.
The concentration and distribution of Cd in adjacent irrigated and unirrigated soils with the same phosphate fertiliser history were investigated. Twenty-two pairs of soil samples from 4 depths (0-10, 10-20, 20-30 and 30-40 cm) were taken from irrigated and unirrigated areas in the same paddocks on different dairy farms from three regions of New Zealand (Bay of Plenty, Manawatu-Wanganui, and Canterbury). The mean concentration of Cd (depth of 0-10 cm and 10-20 cm) and the cumulative mass of Cd (depths of 0-20, 0-30, and 0-40 cm) were higher (P < 0.05) in unirrigated soil than in irrigated soil. Total Cd was about 10% less abundant in the 0-40 cm depth range in irrigated soil (mean of 0.63 kg ha-1) than unirrigated soil (mean of 0.73 kg ha-1), with the average difference of 7.2 g ha-1yr-1 for the 0-40 cm depth. The significant difference (P < 0.05) in the cumulative mass of Cd between irrigated and unirrigated soils demonstrated that irrigation may have enhanced the mobility of Cd. However, overall the results demonstrate that Cd was generally immobile and mainly absorbed to the near surface of the soils studied
Mahi Tahi Working Together Embedding model used in BIBM651 Marketing Planning and Control
Get PDFFor the last two years, Beverly Taylor (Tutor), Anthea Newport (Academic Learning Adviser) and Carolyn Paulsen (Liaison Librarian) have worked together as a teaching team, having adopted an embedding model for the marketing module: BIBM651 Marketing Planning and Control. This workshop was organised and facilitated by Beverly Taylor. Staff across Wintec were invited to attend a session
An exploration of the professional relationship between caseloading midwives and the women they care for.
Get PDFThis research seeks to increase understanding regarding the midwife-woman relationship. Midwives provide care within a context that is intimate and highly emotional. Additionally, it is often in a one-to-one setting that is private. To work successfully in this space they need to have a high level of self-awareness and reflexivity to be responsive to the situations that may arise. A positive relationship has been shown to influence the outcome for the woman and her baby (Hunter, 2005; Pembroke & Pembroke, 2008; Thomas & Dixon, 2012; Walsh, 1999), and increase the job satisfaction for the midwife (McAra-Couper, Gilkison, Crowther, Hunter, Hotchin & Gunn, 2014)
How do older farming quad bike users navigate risk in relation to quad bike accidents?
Get PDFThis is research conducted with Grant Christy Director of the Regional Trauma Centre.
Ethics proposal Wintec and ethics proposal HDEC prepared and permission to proceed granted.
Invitations have been sent out and farmers willing to participate have returned their forms Participants have been contacted and interviews arranged Research design has been written.
The delay in the research and thus publication is a result of the time it took to gain permission from HDE
Identifying authentic teaching strategies that build employability skills of vocational education graduates.
Get PDFThe following presentation was given at the Ako Aotearoa Tertiary Projects Colloquia, held in November, 2017.
This is a Ako Aotearoa Regional Hub funded collaborative research project undertaken by a dozen educational developers from eight Institutes of Technology and Polytechnics (ITPs). The project team sought to identify where and how teachers embed ways of enchancing their learners' skills for employability, life-long learning and contributing to society. The research describes a number of case studies arising from classroom observations and interviews of a range of effective teachers, across various institutions, subject areas and NQF levels. The outcome of the research is a toolkit of commonly used practices titled Guidelines for Good-practice in Embedding Employability Skills. These are easy to embed into teaching practice and likely to be effective for learners in diverse contexts
Meniscus Literary journal
Get PDFMeniscus is an online, free access literary journal published by the Australasian Association of Writing Programs (AAWP). The editors and advisory board are based in Australia, New Zealand and the UK, and welcome submissions from writers anywhere in the world.
Meniscus publishes high quality, innovative poetry, short fiction, and creative essays in English, or in other languages with a good parallel translation. Meniscus publishes two issues a year: in April, and in October
Boon street art festival 2017
No full textPublic Artwork contributed to Boon Street Art Festival, Hamilton NZ in 2017. In collaboration with artist Tracy Croucher. together working as Tn