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Kantian philosophy of history: teleology, anthropology and cosmopolitanism in “Idea for a universal history with a cosmopolitan aim” (1784)
No full textTheoretical thesis.Bibliography: pages 79-85.Chapter One. Universal history -- Chapter Two. Social antagonism -- Chapter Three. Cosmopolitan constitution -- Conclusion -- Bibliography.This thesis is a work in the history of philosophy and philosophy of history of Immanuel Kant. It provides a reading of Kant’s Idea for a Universal History witha Cosmopolitan Aim (1784) as a theoretical philosophical history which is intended to be practical. The thesis may be broken down into five parts. In the Introduction, the argument of the Idea essay is introduced and summarised. In Chapter One (Universal History), a definition of universal history as a theory of the natural teleology of human action is defended. In Chapter Two (Social Antagonism), the counterintuitive concept of unsociable sociability is explained as a mechanism for human development through conflict. In Chapter Three (Cosmopolitan Constitution), the concept of the civil constitution is explained as a step towards the cosmopolitan political order envisioned by Kant. In the Conclusion, the thesis is summarised and a brief philosophical evaluation of the Idea essay is proposed.Mode of access: World wide web1 online resource (85 pages
In search of a leftist democratic imaginary : what can theories of populism tell us?
No full textIt might seem that Herbert Marcuse was right: leftist politics can no longer avoid the challenge of devising its own positive normative grounds. The neoliberal political rationality that is now hegemonic must be taken on by a new imaginary: radical, leftist and democratic. This article explores what major theories about new populism have to offer to a radical leftist attempt to reinvent itself. The regeneration of populist movements across the globe appears to offer signposts to guide a new radical politics. Yet I argue that populism is no ideologically empty mobilizing strategy able to be harnessed to all manner of political purposes. Embedded in its demagogic form are key presumptions about the character of democratic justification that collude with a neoliberal political project. Theories of new populism help us to shed light, instead, on the challenges that face the Left in its own self-reconstitution amidst liberal democratic crisis. Circumspection concerning the ideological load that is carried by a populist rendering of democratic politics needs to be united with an insight into how the rise of populism itself issues a warning about aspects of a social democratic past that cannot be reclaimed unchanged.18 page(s
Tibetan diaspora, mobility and place : 'exiles in their own homeland'
No full textThis article elaborates a theoretical framework for making sense of Tibetans in Tibet who live as 'exiles in their own homeland'. Placing questions of mobility at the centre of anthropological approaches to diaspora, it subjects 'the fact of movement' to critical scrutiny. In so doing it calls into question three fundamental assumptions of recent work in both 'new mobilities' and the study of diaspora more broadly: first, that people move and territory does not; second, that 'place(s)' and 'movement(s)' are different sorts of things, and clearly distinguishable; and, third, that movement takes places only in Euclidean space. Beginning by placing recent Tibetan experiences of exile and diaspora in comparative context, it then works through recent deconstructions of the boundary between movement and place, a critique of Western ethno-epistemologies of movement, and Law and Mol's work on social topology as theoretical orientations that might allow us to make sense of mobile homelands and diasporas in situ.22 page(s
Electrostatic problems for arbitrary rotationally symmetric double-connected conductors and complementary structures
No full textEmpirical thesis.Bibliography: pages 50-52.1. Introduction -- 2. Preliminaries -- 3. Geometrical description of the problem -- 4. Double-connected conductors -- 5. 5. Complementary structures -- 6. Conclusion -- References.This thesis considers potential theory problems for rotationally symmetric conductors. The profile of structures is arbitrary and it allows one to model a variety of screens important in applications. Mathematically, the problem is described by the boundary value problem for the Laplace equation subject to the Dirichlet boundary conditions. We consider two types of conductors: double-connected conductors with the apertures of equal angular size and complementary structures to them. The problem is solved by the semi-analytical Method of Regularization (MoR) that provides a mathematically rigorous solution.The MoR, based on Abel’s integral transform and theory of triple series equations with the Jacobi polynomials, allows us to transform the ill-posed initial system of series equations arising from the standard formulation of the problem to a well-conditioned second kind Fredholm matrix equation. Numerical algorithms based upon the solution of the matrix equation, after truncation to a finite system of equations, converge with guaranteed and predictable accuracy.In this thesis the generalization of the solution algorithm for arbitrarily shaped double-connected screens is developed in the case of rotationally symmetric prescribed potential and the solution for the complementary structures in general case (for arbitrarily preassigned potential) is obtained.Mode of access: World wide web1 online resource ([v], 52 pages
Impacts of population ageing on China's economy: labor force, savings and consumption
No full textEmpirical thesis.This thesis is the result of a co-tutelle program with the Renmin University of China.Bibliography: pages 185-220.Chapter 1. Introduction -- Chapter 2. China’s demographic future under the two-child policy -- Chapter 3. China’s labour force supply and population ageing -- Chapter 4. “Getting old before getting rich” : impact of ageing on household savings in China -- Chapter 5. Do older people consume more? Impact of ageing on household consumptions in China -- Chapter 6. Conclusions and discussion -- References -- Appendices.China has been experiencing profound changes in its population due to the three-decade implementation of the one-child policy, including imbalance in sex ratios, low fertility rates, and population ageing. This thesis focuses on the growing significance of population ageing in China and the impacts of ageing on labour force supply, savings and consumptions in the economy.China would witness an accelerating ageing process in the next three decades, even though the government has implemented the new fertility policy in 2016. Using the simulation model based on the data from the Chinese 2010 census, this thesis first examines the changes of fertility rates under sudden policy adjustment – the abolition of its decades-long one-child policy and the implementation of a two-child policy. The results show that the two-child policy makes a significant but temporary effect on fertility rates and annual births in China, which marginally affects the demographic future in the country. The labour force supply in the future would be confronted with a declining in the size and proportion, an ageing process, and increasingly growing costs, which further weaken the competitiveness of the economy in international trades. The thesis also investigates the impacts of ageing on the declining in labour force participation rates using the standardization method, indicating a contribution of 24% to the overall decline in labour force participation rates during 2000-2010.Based on both macro-level data from provincial statistics and micro-level data from the China Family Panel Studies 2011, the study also explores the effects of ageing on savings and consumption. The findings suggest that ageing affects household economic behaviours through two mechanisms, one of which negatively affects savings and consumption through an ageing population structure, and the other of which positively increases savings and consumption by supporting elderly parents in the family. These findings deepen the understanding of the relationship between population ageing and the economy, and extend the application of related theories in the case of China. The thesis provides evidence-based analysis that will contribute to the evaluation and formulation of further economic reforms under a rapidly ageing demographic condition in the country.Mode of access: World wide web1 online resource (xviii, 262 pages) graphs, table
A right to universal health coverage in Nigeria?: a transformative proposal from a comparative perspective
No full textTheoretical thesis.Bibliography: pages 263-297.Chapter 1. Introduction -- Chapter 2. The right to health as 'legal positions' -- Chapter 3. Nigeria, the comparators, and health indicators -- Chapter 4. The international context -- Chapter 5. The constitutional context -- Chapter 6. The policy and legislative context -- Chapter 7. The judicial context -- Chapter 8. Conclusion -- Bibliography.Utilising comparative legal methodology, this thesis develops a framework for transforming the health system of Nigeria through the right to health. It argues that by conceiving the right to health as a set of legal positions to universal health coverage and applying this framework across the international, constitutional, policy and legislative,and judicial domains, the health system of Nigeria can be transformed to achieve better health outcomes. It conceptualises better health outcomes as significant reductions in the mortality and morbidity ratio, in the incidence of communicable and non-communicable diseases; and improvements in underlying determinants of health.Informing the thesis problem is the marginal position of health and the poor treatment of the right to health in Nigeria. This is evidenced by way the right has been poorly engaged with at the international level, the weak framing of the right in the constitution, the nonenforcement of legislative provisions guaranteeing the right, and the reluctance of the courts to interpret the right in a way that secures its legal effect. In addition, health outcomes in the country, as revealed by key health indicators kept by the World Health Organisation and other international institutions, show that the health system of Nigeria performs poorly when compared to those of Brazil, India and South Africa, which serve as comparators to Nigeria.Using the mixed-method approach to examine a variety of data sources, the thesis finds that the health outcomes recorded for Nigeria and the comparators largely reflect their level of engagement with the right to health in the international, constitutional, policy and legislative, and judicial domains. Brazil and South Africa, which show better levels of engagement with the right to health than Nigeria and India, also achieve better health outcomes. The significance of this finding is that it shows that by strengthening the right to health across these four domains, better health outcomes are likely to be achieved in Nigeria. The thesis maps a blueprint for transforming the Nigerian health system by bolstering engagement with the right to health across these domains.Mode of access: World wide web1 online resource (x, 297 pages
Colourful conservation: genetic incompability and conservation genetics in the wild Gouldian finch (Erythrura gouldiae)
No full textTheoretical thesis.Bibliography: pages 254-257.Chapter 1. Conservation knight marches for the painted damsel -- Chapter 2. The danger within, The role of genetic, behavioural, and ecological factors in population persistence of colour polymorphic species -- Chapter 3. The colour of paternity, Extra pair paternity in the wild Gouldian finch does not appear to be driven by genetic incompatibility between morphs -- Chapter 4. Morph over matter? Examining body size and age-specific selection on colour morph genotypes in the wild Gouldian finch -- Chapter 5. Three molecular markers show no evidence of population genetic structure in the Gouldian finch (Erythrura gouldiae_ -- Chapter 6. Genetic diversity through time and space, Diversity and demographic history from natural history specimens and serially sampled contemporary populations of the threatened Gouldian finch (Erythrura gouldiae) -- Chapter 7. General discussion.The distinct behavioural and physiological strategies associated with colour morphs can influence population dynamics, where antagonistic interactions and hybrid incompatibilities may be detrimental. Therefore, the covariation between colour and other traits will be relevant to species conservation, but the negative implications have never been explored. Molecular genetic tools allow the measurement of selection on functional genotypes, and place it in the wider context of effective population size (Ne) and gene flow. The Gouldian finch (Erythrura gouldiae) is an Australian threatened species, and sympatric head colour morphs associated with distinct strategies. Experiments on domesticated Gouldian finches have shown that interbreeding between morphs leads to significant offspring mortality, which may be detrimental to population recovery. This species has been embroiled in recent controversy regarding its conservation status as there are no robust estimates of population size or movement capacity across its vast and remote range. In this thesis, I use population genetic techniques using microsatelites, mitochondrial DNA and SNPs to quantify Ne and gene flow across the contemporary range, and a novel allele-specific test for head-colour to determine the extent of incompatibility in the wild. Guided by predictions derived from the experiments on domesticated birds, I do not find any evidence of incompatibility, or strategies to avoid it. Furthermore, population genetic evidence suggests the contemporary range supports a single genetically cohesive population, and suggests individuals are able to move vast distances (>700km). The contemporary Ne is likely large, but there is still uncertainty in these estimates due to the dearth of fundamental knowledge of this species' life-history. Together, this work suggests that incompatibility is unlikely to be a threatening process in the wild, and has identified key knowledge gaps that currently hinder effective conservation management of the Gouldian finch.Mode of access: World wide web1 online resource (289 pages) colour illustration
Proteases of Scedosporium aurantiacum, an opportunistic fungal pathogen
No full textBibliography: pages 154-156.Chapter 1. Introduction -- Chapter 2. Materials and methods -- Chapter 3. Secretion of proteases by an opportunistic fungal pathogen Scedosporium aurantiacum -- Chapter 4. Growth and protease secretion of Scedosporium aurantiacum under hypoxia -- Chapter 5. Effects of Scedosporium aurantiacum proteases on human lung epithelial cells -- Chapter 6. Conclusive summary and future prospects.Scedosporium aurantiacum is an opportunistic filamentous fungal pathogen that is capable of causing a range of infections in immunocompromised people. In Australia, S. aurantiacum is the second most common fungus associated with cystic fibrosis after Aspergillus fumigatus. The majority of the work carried out with S. aurantiacum currently described in the literature features prevalence studies, animal studies including virulence and antifungal susceptibility studies. At the moment, very little is known about the infection mechanism of this fungus. Secreted proteases have been shown to contribute to fungal virulence in several studies with other fungi. This work aimed at profiling and identifying proteases secreted by S. aurantiacum with a view to investigating a potential link with protease production and fungal pathogenicity. Clinical (WM 06.482) and environmental (WM 10.136) S. aurantiacum isolates were grown in a synthetic cystic fibrosis sputum medium supplemented with either casein supporting the synthesis and secretion of a wide range of proteases or mucin, which mimicked the cystic fibrosis lung sputum. Liquid cultivations were performed under both normoxic and hypoxic conditions considering the fact that fungi have to encounter oxygen level differences between the environment and human organs. Secreted proteases in the culture supernatants were examined using enzymatic assays with class-specific substrates, inhibition assays, zymogram activity analysis and protein identification by mass spectrometry. Serine proteases from both strains were responsible for the majority of protease activity under normoxia; elastase- and trypsin-like proteases from the clinical isolate had significantly higher activities than those from the environmental isolate. Under hypoxia, secreted proteases from both isolates were predominated by the aspartic class; cysteine proteases were also detected. The clinical isolate had higher acidic protease activity including aspartic and cysteine protease activities, while the environmental isolate had higher alkaline protease activity featuring chymotrypsin-, subtilisin-, elastase- and trypsin-like protease activities. Protein identification was conducted for both isolates grown under normoxia and hypoxia. Three protease homologs were identified with high sequence similarity to known fungal proteases under normoxia including subtilisin protease S8, putative leucine aminopeptidase and a PA-SaNapH-like protease. Aspartic protease homologs were identified under hypoxia. Cysteine proteases secreted by the clinical S. aurantiacum isolate under hypoxia were involved in both detachment and death of the A549 human lung epithelial cells in vitro, causing rounding up of the cells and release of the cell contents into the environment. Chymotrypsin-like protease from hypoxic cultures was also involved in cell detachment by rounding cells up, yet the floating cells were still alive. Elastase-like protease from normoxic cultures was found to cause cell death by a yet unidentified mechanism. This work expands the existing knowledge of the emerging fungal pathogen S. aurantiacum and provides insights into roles of secreted proteases in fungal invasion.Mode of access: World wide web1 online resource (viii, 161 pages) colour illustration
Addiction, self-control and the self: an empirical, ethical study
No full textTheoretical thesis.‘We all want to be a part of something positive. But our lack of belief in self is what can cause negative impactful choices’ -- at foot of title.Bibliography: pages 237-257.Introduction -- Chapter 1. Perspectives on self-control and what it is for -- Chapter 2. Self-control and addiction : a review of the current literature -- Chapter 3. Experts on their own lives : methods and preliminary results -- Chapter 4. How the self motivates behaviour -- Chapter 5. The influence of the body on our diachronic plans and self-concept -- Chapter 6. The resigned addict : ‘we are just normal people living very complicated lives’ -- Chapter 7. Normative agency exercised -- Chapter 8. Conclusion and summary of main findings -- Appendices -- Bibliography.Addiction is often equated with loss of self-control. Determining what constitutes loss of self-control, however, is complicated. On one hand, substance dependent people often describe their use as involuntary and life-ruining. On the other, substance use requires planning and intentional actions. I will argue that loss of self-control in addiction is poorly understood because current theories do not make explicit which level of self-control they are describing.In this thesis I argue that developing a hierarchical account of self-control is critical when analysing loss of self-control in addiction. I distinguish three hierarchical levels of self-control: 1) intentional self-control, or doing what one intended 2) instrumental self-control, or reaching ones goals, and 3) normative self-control, or living the life one values living. Loss of self-control in addiction is not underpinned by failure on just one level, but rather by a set of interacting factors. Still, to judge whether someone has lost self-control or not, knowledge of the normative level is essential – are people able to live the life they value living and be the person they value being? This normative perspective is poorly examined in the current literature.To gain insight into the circumstances in which normative agency is developed or impaired, I designed a longitudinal, qualitative study involving opioid and alcohol dependent people. I followed 69 participants over a period of 3.5 years, asking them what hampered their self-control and the goals they set for themselves.I conclude that loss of self-control in addiction is often a loss of self. People must see their actions as making sense within their concept of self and their life stories. My first finding is that addiction impacts heavily on people’s bodies – their appearances and how others reacted to them, their energy levels, potential life threatening illnesses, and the risk of overdosing when relapsing. Many participants lost trust that their bodies would carry them into the future. They stopped setting goals for themselves. They lost belief in self-efficacy.I also find that people’s agency is threatened when they lose hope, resulting in a resignation from their normative goals. People struggling with substance dependency are disproportionally vulnerable to adverse circumstances which often cause them to abandon plans. The link between resignation and loss of self-control is frequently misunderstood in the current literature. It is often viewed as a choice-based, justified change of normative outlook, rather than a forced abandonment of the outlook. Resigned, addicted people are perceived as ‘willing addicts’.Finally, regaining belief in self-efficacy is a key aspect of recovery. One respondent said, for instance, that he had many capacities for self-control, but only started using them when he began to believe he could attain the future he valued.My findings highlight the importance of evaluating loss of control within someone’s existential situation and normative framework. The findings have implications for treatment. The model of hierarchical levels of self-control I described can be used by practitioners to assess on which levels the self-control of their clients is impaired. I argue practitioners should evaluate whether current dominant treatments are sufficient for boosting their client’s normative agency. They should help clients reconnect with their image of their ideal future self. They can do so by showing trust in clients’ agency and self-efficacy by assuring them that it is possible to live the life they value living, and to be the person they value being.Mode of access: World wide web1 online resource (259 pages
Welding health hazards
No full textEmpirical thesis.Bibliography: pages 78-79.1. Introduction -- 2. Background and related work -- 3. Experimental procedure -- 4. Data analysis -- 5. Results -- 6. Discussion -- 7. Conclusion -- 8. Future work.Welding is one of the most widely used processes for joining metal together. There is a diversity of welding methods that are used in different working conditions. Welding could be extremely harmful for human health as it emits toxic gases and small respirable particulates that are also called welding fumes. The aim of this project is the assessment of welding fumes. Achieving this aim requires identifying the hazard, assessing the risk, and minimising the risk through proper control methods. To identify the hazard, air sampling techniques will be used to capture gases and welding fumes. Four welding processes will be carried on for the fumes to be extracted and analysed. TIG, MIG, SMAW and OXY welding and data collection will be conducted through air sampling techniques. Based on the results a recommendation will be shown of the welding process and the welding rod material in terms of the least health hazards risk created. The effect of both the extraction distance and flow rate on particle size distribution and morphology was also covered.Mode of access: World wide web.1 online resource (80 pages illustrations (some colour)