Semantic manipulation and business context in big data analytics
- Authors: Dinh, Loan
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Business organisations receive a huge amount of data from many sources every day. These data are known as big data. Since they are mostly unstructured, big data creates a complex problem of how to capture, manage, analyse and then derive meaningful information from them. To deal with the challenges that big data has brought, this research proposes a new technique in big data analytics in the business area to integrate semantically meaningful information relevant to textual queries and business context. To achieve this aim, this study makes three major related contributions. Firstly, the relationship between business processes and strategies is established using the concept of a rule-based inference model via facts and annotations. This relationship is required to determine the importance of a big data query for a business organisation. Secondly, we introduce approaches to determine the significance level of a query, by incorporating the processstrategy relationship, process contributions and priority of business strategies. Thirdly, the proposed data analytic technique embeds business context into the bedrock of data collection and analysis process. The first two contributions were implemented using Python programming language including the Pyke package (Pyke is built in the Python environment and has an artificial intelligence tool for the development of expert systems) and their performances were analysed based on a business use case. The last contribution was implemented mainly in the Hadoop and Java programs. Results show that the first contribution successfully establishes the processstrategy relationship, the second calculates the significance level of a query in relation to a business organisation, while the third reveals the huge impact of query significance level and business context on big data collection and captures deep business insights.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Dinh, Loan
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Business organisations receive a huge amount of data from many sources every day. These data are known as big data. Since they are mostly unstructured, big data creates a complex problem of how to capture, manage, analyse and then derive meaningful information from them. To deal with the challenges that big data has brought, this research proposes a new technique in big data analytics in the business area to integrate semantically meaningful information relevant to textual queries and business context. To achieve this aim, this study makes three major related contributions. Firstly, the relationship between business processes and strategies is established using the concept of a rule-based inference model via facts and annotations. This relationship is required to determine the importance of a big data query for a business organisation. Secondly, we introduce approaches to determine the significance level of a query, by incorporating the processstrategy relationship, process contributions and priority of business strategies. Thirdly, the proposed data analytic technique embeds business context into the bedrock of data collection and analysis process. The first two contributions were implemented using Python programming language including the Pyke package (Pyke is built in the Python environment and has an artificial intelligence tool for the development of expert systems) and their performances were analysed based on a business use case. The last contribution was implemented mainly in the Hadoop and Java programs. Results show that the first contribution successfully establishes the processstrategy relationship, the second calculates the significance level of a query in relation to a business organisation, while the third reveals the huge impact of query significance level and business context on big data collection and captures deep business insights.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Spatial epidemiological investigation of sport and leisure injuries in Victoria, Australia
- Authors: Singh, Himalaya
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Sport and leisure injuries are recognised as a public health issue in Australia. Despite the many health benefits associated with sport and leisure participation, there is a risk of sustaining injury during participation. To keep Australia active, there is a critical need to prevent injury occurrence. Epidemiological investigations in sport and leisure injuries have been largely examined by grouping of sports, age groups, sex and level of play. In addition, intrinsic (person-level) factors have been considered, such as strength, flexibility or previous injury history. These factors may not be sufficient to identify injury burden or prevent an increase in injury incidences. In the broader injury literature (e.g., road traffic crashes or drowning), it is known that injuries often cluster within specific places (i.e., road intersections or bodies of water). These specific geographic locations may also relate to sport and leisure injuries (e.g., sports grounds or facilities). Similarly, population-level factors such as socio-economic status or cultural groups within an area could influence the types of sports and leisure activities people participate in and consequently, the injuries that occur. A review presented in this PhD thesis revealed that there is very limited sport and leisure injury epidemiological information from a geographical perspective. To address this gap, and determine whether there is a spatial pattern in sport/leisure injuries, the aim of this PhD was to examine the geospatial distribution of sport/leisure injury hospitalisations and their association with a broad range of social and economic characteristics. This thesis uses spatial epidemiological methods to answer questions such as ‘Where do sports and leisure injuries occur?’ and ‘In whom do sports/leisure injuries occur?’ The main chapters present the results of the application of spatial epidemiological methods to describe the problem, to test hypotheses and to explore associations with possible explanatory variables. The findings showed a significant variation across metropolitan, regional and rural areas in the pattern and clustering of injuries when examining different sports, age groups and other variables such as education level. A secondary aim of this thesis was to consider the dissemination of sport and injury epidemiological data. As emphasised in the literature, there is limited spatial epidemiological information available to decision-makers and key stakeholders. At best, descriptive maps might be included in a report or research paper. However, these are static and limited to the results that the author chooses to present. Therefore, an important output from this PhD is a web-GIS application that has been specifically built to enable the exploratory analysis of sport/leisure injuries in Victoria. Sport and leisure injury prevention strategies and policy development relies on information about where, when, to whom and how sport/leisure injuries occur. This thesis demonstrates that a spatial epidemiological approach is an important and novel way to address epidemiological questions from a geographical perspective.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Singh, Himalaya
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Sport and leisure injuries are recognised as a public health issue in Australia. Despite the many health benefits associated with sport and leisure participation, there is a risk of sustaining injury during participation. To keep Australia active, there is a critical need to prevent injury occurrence. Epidemiological investigations in sport and leisure injuries have been largely examined by grouping of sports, age groups, sex and level of play. In addition, intrinsic (person-level) factors have been considered, such as strength, flexibility or previous injury history. These factors may not be sufficient to identify injury burden or prevent an increase in injury incidences. In the broader injury literature (e.g., road traffic crashes or drowning), it is known that injuries often cluster within specific places (i.e., road intersections or bodies of water). These specific geographic locations may also relate to sport and leisure injuries (e.g., sports grounds or facilities). Similarly, population-level factors such as socio-economic status or cultural groups within an area could influence the types of sports and leisure activities people participate in and consequently, the injuries that occur. A review presented in this PhD thesis revealed that there is very limited sport and leisure injury epidemiological information from a geographical perspective. To address this gap, and determine whether there is a spatial pattern in sport/leisure injuries, the aim of this PhD was to examine the geospatial distribution of sport/leisure injury hospitalisations and their association with a broad range of social and economic characteristics. This thesis uses spatial epidemiological methods to answer questions such as ‘Where do sports and leisure injuries occur?’ and ‘In whom do sports/leisure injuries occur?’ The main chapters present the results of the application of spatial epidemiological methods to describe the problem, to test hypotheses and to explore associations with possible explanatory variables. The findings showed a significant variation across metropolitan, regional and rural areas in the pattern and clustering of injuries when examining different sports, age groups and other variables such as education level. A secondary aim of this thesis was to consider the dissemination of sport and injury epidemiological data. As emphasised in the literature, there is limited spatial epidemiological information available to decision-makers and key stakeholders. At best, descriptive maps might be included in a report or research paper. However, these are static and limited to the results that the author chooses to present. Therefore, an important output from this PhD is a web-GIS application that has been specifically built to enable the exploratory analysis of sport/leisure injuries in Victoria. Sport and leisure injury prevention strategies and policy development relies on information about where, when, to whom and how sport/leisure injuries occur. This thesis demonstrates that a spatial epidemiological approach is an important and novel way to address epidemiological questions from a geographical perspective.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Stay or go? Young people’s agency and mobility in and out of small towns
- Authors: Parkin, Ember
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: This doctoral thesis examines young people’s place attachments in two small Victorian towns. This qualitative ethnographic study uses auto-driven photo-elicitation to understand young people’s sense of place and futures in their home towns of Castlemaine and Maryborough. These case study towns are of a similar size, geography and heritage fabric. However, they are home to starkly different social indicators and economic policy contexts. The study seeks to understand how the cultural features of small towns affect young people’s place attachment and also how place relationships might subsequently affect young people’s sense of futures through their desired and intended locations and aspirations. To achieve this, the thesis explores young people’s social constructions of place. The photoelicitation method enables close attention to be paid to young people’s engagement with their home towns. This thesis argues that agency or lack of agency is a significant factor in strengthening or diminishing young people’s place attachments. Previous research suggests that one result of place attachment is that people will seek to remain being in a place. For young people in this study there appears to be an inverse relationship. Young people who had a broad and holistic sense of place engagement and attachment also had a broad sense of future possibilities and thus, intended to leave their home towns in pursuit of personal growth and education. Whereas young people who had a more limited sense of attachment or engagement had a narrower sense of future possibilities and were less likely to desire to leave their home town. The study contributes to knowledge about the ways in which place engagement can affect young people’s social and physical mobility.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Parkin, Ember
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: This doctoral thesis examines young people’s place attachments in two small Victorian towns. This qualitative ethnographic study uses auto-driven photo-elicitation to understand young people’s sense of place and futures in their home towns of Castlemaine and Maryborough. These case study towns are of a similar size, geography and heritage fabric. However, they are home to starkly different social indicators and economic policy contexts. The study seeks to understand how the cultural features of small towns affect young people’s place attachment and also how place relationships might subsequently affect young people’s sense of futures through their desired and intended locations and aspirations. To achieve this, the thesis explores young people’s social constructions of place. The photoelicitation method enables close attention to be paid to young people’s engagement with their home towns. This thesis argues that agency or lack of agency is a significant factor in strengthening or diminishing young people’s place attachments. Previous research suggests that one result of place attachment is that people will seek to remain being in a place. For young people in this study there appears to be an inverse relationship. Young people who had a broad and holistic sense of place engagement and attachment also had a broad sense of future possibilities and thus, intended to leave their home towns in pursuit of personal growth and education. Whereas young people who had a more limited sense of attachment or engagement had a narrower sense of future possibilities and were less likely to desire to leave their home town. The study contributes to knowledge about the ways in which place engagement can affect young people’s social and physical mobility.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Teachers' emotional intelligence as a predisposition for discrimiation against students with severe emotional and behavioural disorders
- Authors: Metaxas, Melinda
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Students with Emotional Behavioural Disorders (EBD) are among the most challenging students to teach. Personality Trait Theory predicts teachers’ level of Emotional Intelligence (EI) would affect their cognitive-affective-behavioural reactions towards students with EBDs, and influence level of academic achievement and difficult behaviour of these students. This research explores which teachers are more predisposed to discriminate against EBD students, and identifies the most ‘effective’, supportive EI teacher traits. Underlying psychological processes, such as genetic EI make-up of teachers, may prove to be most valuable in determining whether more practical strategies for dealing with students’ behaviour/emotions are effectively applied and successful. An Attribution Model framework helped assess teacher reactions towards students. Two hundred and sixty one teachers from 51 Victorian schools participated in the study by completing self-report questionnaires, including the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire. A quantitative survey methodology used vignettes, with each school contact person randomly giving 50/50 surveys to their teachers (depicting a student with either mild or severe EBD symptoms). Pathway analysis revealed that teachers with higher EI reported less stigmatising and punitive intentions and likely greater helping behaviours. A new EI Process Model of Stigmatisation was proposed to measure teacher reactions through an affective-cognitive-behavioural sequence, rather than a cognitive-affective-behavioural sequence. Teachers’ EI levels also related to their own levels of psychological distress and/or compassion stress, which influenced likely helping or punitive outcomes. Despite behavioural severity of EBD students, teachers higher in EI still indicate more supportive helping behaviours. Specifically-identified ‘ideal’ teacher EI traits should lead to greater helping and be psychologically beneficial to both students and teachers. These results assisted development of an assessment tool (ASET – Assessment Screen for Emotionally Intelligent Teachers), which lays a sound foundation for schools and others to profile or recruit teachers with best ‘qualities’ to effectively teach students EBD students.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Metaxas, Melinda
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Students with Emotional Behavioural Disorders (EBD) are among the most challenging students to teach. Personality Trait Theory predicts teachers’ level of Emotional Intelligence (EI) would affect their cognitive-affective-behavioural reactions towards students with EBDs, and influence level of academic achievement and difficult behaviour of these students. This research explores which teachers are more predisposed to discriminate against EBD students, and identifies the most ‘effective’, supportive EI teacher traits. Underlying psychological processes, such as genetic EI make-up of teachers, may prove to be most valuable in determining whether more practical strategies for dealing with students’ behaviour/emotions are effectively applied and successful. An Attribution Model framework helped assess teacher reactions towards students. Two hundred and sixty one teachers from 51 Victorian schools participated in the study by completing self-report questionnaires, including the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire. A quantitative survey methodology used vignettes, with each school contact person randomly giving 50/50 surveys to their teachers (depicting a student with either mild or severe EBD symptoms). Pathway analysis revealed that teachers with higher EI reported less stigmatising and punitive intentions and likely greater helping behaviours. A new EI Process Model of Stigmatisation was proposed to measure teacher reactions through an affective-cognitive-behavioural sequence, rather than a cognitive-affective-behavioural sequence. Teachers’ EI levels also related to their own levels of psychological distress and/or compassion stress, which influenced likely helping or punitive outcomes. Despite behavioural severity of EBD students, teachers higher in EI still indicate more supportive helping behaviours. Specifically-identified ‘ideal’ teacher EI traits should lead to greater helping and be psychologically beneficial to both students and teachers. These results assisted development of an assessment tool (ASET – Assessment Screen for Emotionally Intelligent Teachers), which lays a sound foundation for schools and others to profile or recruit teachers with best ‘qualities’ to effectively teach students EBD students.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Tertiary student connectedness : Intervention influence on student connectedness as measured in health and academic behaviours of regional tertiary students
- Authors: Young, Patricia
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: At a time when university student diversity is heightened and when national government regulations have shifted their quality focus from support improvements to student achievement, little is known about the mechanism of the latter. University efforts to support quality, caring interactions between students and staff, known as connectedness, are currently favoured, and this thesis examines connectedness, mood, emotional well-being and academic behaviours of commencing students at a regional Australian university. This is done through the lens of a first semester intervention, known as Tertiary Learning Communities (TLC). Drawing on existing connectedness research, across both school and university settings and guided by a whole-school framework, details of the establishment of a suitable working party, the development of survey, pilot and intervention activities, and monitoring the ability of a cross-campus intervention to influence student connectedness and behaviour markers, are highlighted to advance further understanding of the mechanics of connectedness in a university setting. The developed survey, which collected data from undergraduate students early in their first semester, effectively captured perceptions of connectedness across a broad range of sources in addition to their mood, emotional well-being and academic student behaviours. Paired sample-tests assessed connectedness changes, and chi square analysis assessed behaviour changes when comparing the experimental and control groups on two occasions. A single intervention aligned to a first year core unit to support academic and social interactions, was shown to be ineffective in enhancing student connectedness during the semester of the intervention or the semester following the intervention. However, the level of connectedness decreases measured across ‘personal’, ‘other students’ and ‘lecturers’ were indeed significant, as was the finding that connectedness decreases for intervention participants exceeded the decreases of the control group. Furthermore, mood and emotional well-being challenges and the slow emergence of academic behaviours were also revealed. These findings provided support for future inclusive student support initiatives, maintained the involvement of working party members and extended support beyond the first semester to across first year.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Young, Patricia
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: At a time when university student diversity is heightened and when national government regulations have shifted their quality focus from support improvements to student achievement, little is known about the mechanism of the latter. University efforts to support quality, caring interactions between students and staff, known as connectedness, are currently favoured, and this thesis examines connectedness, mood, emotional well-being and academic behaviours of commencing students at a regional Australian university. This is done through the lens of a first semester intervention, known as Tertiary Learning Communities (TLC). Drawing on existing connectedness research, across both school and university settings and guided by a whole-school framework, details of the establishment of a suitable working party, the development of survey, pilot and intervention activities, and monitoring the ability of a cross-campus intervention to influence student connectedness and behaviour markers, are highlighted to advance further understanding of the mechanics of connectedness in a university setting. The developed survey, which collected data from undergraduate students early in their first semester, effectively captured perceptions of connectedness across a broad range of sources in addition to their mood, emotional well-being and academic student behaviours. Paired sample-tests assessed connectedness changes, and chi square analysis assessed behaviour changes when comparing the experimental and control groups on two occasions. A single intervention aligned to a first year core unit to support academic and social interactions, was shown to be ineffective in enhancing student connectedness during the semester of the intervention or the semester following the intervention. However, the level of connectedness decreases measured across ‘personal’, ‘other students’ and ‘lecturers’ were indeed significant, as was the finding that connectedness decreases for intervention participants exceeded the decreases of the control group. Furthermore, mood and emotional well-being challenges and the slow emergence of academic behaviours were also revealed. These findings provided support for future inclusive student support initiatives, maintained the involvement of working party members and extended support beyond the first semester to across first year.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
The acute effects of aerobic exercise on Leukocyte Telomere biology
- Authors: Chilton, Warrick
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Description: Habitual exercise is unequivocally associated with decreased all-cause mortality and morbidity. Despite the strength of the association, a large part of the decreased risk is physiologically unaccounted for. Accumulating evidence indicates that leukocyte telomere length (LTL) may be one such explanatory mechanism. Telomeres are specialized deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) sequences located at chromosomal ends where they protect the genomic DNA from enzymatic degradation. Excessive and/or premature telomere shortening in leukocytes is associated with a host of chronic diseases and impaired immune function. Observational associations exist between LTL and habitual physical activity/exercise in multiple cohorts. However, correlation does not imply causal story and the underpinning mechanisms behind the association are unclear. The current consensus is that long-term exercise-induced reductions in oxidative stress and inflammation mediate the association. The acute dynamics of telomere biology are poorly understood; however, a growing body of evidence suggests that telomeres may be amenable to acute modulation via expression of telomereassociated genes and microRNAs. Accordingly, the overarching aim of this thesis was to characterize the acute effects of aerobic exercise on leukocyte telomere biology.
- Authors: Chilton, Warrick
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Description: Habitual exercise is unequivocally associated with decreased all-cause mortality and morbidity. Despite the strength of the association, a large part of the decreased risk is physiologically unaccounted for. Accumulating evidence indicates that leukocyte telomere length (LTL) may be one such explanatory mechanism. Telomeres are specialized deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) sequences located at chromosomal ends where they protect the genomic DNA from enzymatic degradation. Excessive and/or premature telomere shortening in leukocytes is associated with a host of chronic diseases and impaired immune function. Observational associations exist between LTL and habitual physical activity/exercise in multiple cohorts. However, correlation does not imply causal story and the underpinning mechanisms behind the association are unclear. The current consensus is that long-term exercise-induced reductions in oxidative stress and inflammation mediate the association. The acute dynamics of telomere biology are poorly understood; however, a growing body of evidence suggests that telomeres may be amenable to acute modulation via expression of telomereassociated genes and microRNAs. Accordingly, the overarching aim of this thesis was to characterize the acute effects of aerobic exercise on leukocyte telomere biology.
The contribution of silverfish (insecta: zygentoma) to Australian invertebrate biodiversity and endemism
- Authors: Smith, Graeme
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Silverfish (Order Zygentoma) are quite abundant in Australia but have been largely overlooked. This thesis examines the biodiversity of the Australian fauna at the level of genus, describing at least one representative species from each named genus and some new genera. The endemism of the fauna is evaluated and likely zoogeographic origins proposed. Over 4000 specimens were examined, either collected by the author, borrowed from or examined within museum collections or supplied by organisations and individuals conducting fauna surveys. Twenty- seven new native species are described and two redescribed, bringing the number of named species recorded in Australia to 74. Five new genera are described and four additional genera recorded in Australia for the first time including autochthonous representatives of three subfamilies previously unrecognised as native to Australia (Acrotelsatinae, Lepismatinae and Coletiniinae). No representatives of the families Maindroniidae, Tricholepidiidae and Protrinemuridae were found. The subfamily Acrotelsatinae was redefined following a revision of the enigmatic genus Anisolepisma Paclt, 1967 with the unique structure of the thoracic sterna identified as diagnostic for the subfamily. Contrary to existing opinion, it is suggested that this is a fundamentally different and plesiomorphic character, rather than an apomorphic reduction of the free thoracic sterna. A monograph of the Australian Zygentoma is presented, including a summary of the biology of the order, a key to and diagnoses of the genera, as well as information on the known habitat and distribution of each genus and a discussion of their zoogeography. At the suprageneric level the fauna is less diverse than seen in other zoogeographic regions but appears to be rich in the number of species. The fauna displays a high degree of endemism with 91% of described species and 52% of the genera known only from Australia. Some genera appear to be ancient and probably represent a Pangean element in the Australian fauna. Others appear to have emerged in the late Jurassic when Africa was still joined to Gondwana, while some may have appeared in the Cretaceous or Palaeocene when Australia and South America were connected to Gondwana. More recent links with the Asian fauna are limited and there appears to be no widespread highly mobile global species other than the six introduced anthropophilic species. Maps of the worldwide distribution records extracted from the taxonomic literature are used to discuss the zoogeography of the subfamilies and tribes present in Australia. Molecular data using two mitochondrial genes (16S and COI) as well as a nuclear gene (28S) were compared with detailed morphological and morphometric analysis to examine populations initially determined as Heterolepisma sclerophylla or close to it. Distances of 0.9– 1.8% or greater in 28S, and 7.2–14% in COI were associated with morphologically distinct species. A southern Queensland population was found to be genetically, morphometrically and morphologically very distinct from those collected in NSW and was described as new (Heterolepisma sp. B). Six well-defined barcode clusters (“lineages”) were identified within the NSW populations, each with >4% divergence in COI sequences and each geographically restricted. Intracluster divergences are also large, and despite the well-supported phylogeny no clear “barcode gap” (distinction between intracluster and intercluster distances) was found for three of the six NSW populations. The 28S data distinguished only four of the six COI clusters from NSW with essentially no variation within each cluster. The 28S data generally aligned well with morphological evidence, clearly identifying Heterolepisma sp. B as a distinct species, and supporting also the description of Heterolepisma sp. A even though it only appears to differ from H. sclerophylla in the number of styli. Similar genetic distances are observed in 28S data for H. sclerophylla populations from North Nowra, Glenbrook/Burralow/Nattai and Megalong, however the Broulee and Wellington populations have identical 28S sequences. The low levels of variation in 28S sequences between NSW populations accord with the lack of unambiguous morphological differences.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Smith, Graeme
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Silverfish (Order Zygentoma) are quite abundant in Australia but have been largely overlooked. This thesis examines the biodiversity of the Australian fauna at the level of genus, describing at least one representative species from each named genus and some new genera. The endemism of the fauna is evaluated and likely zoogeographic origins proposed. Over 4000 specimens were examined, either collected by the author, borrowed from or examined within museum collections or supplied by organisations and individuals conducting fauna surveys. Twenty- seven new native species are described and two redescribed, bringing the number of named species recorded in Australia to 74. Five new genera are described and four additional genera recorded in Australia for the first time including autochthonous representatives of three subfamilies previously unrecognised as native to Australia (Acrotelsatinae, Lepismatinae and Coletiniinae). No representatives of the families Maindroniidae, Tricholepidiidae and Protrinemuridae were found. The subfamily Acrotelsatinae was redefined following a revision of the enigmatic genus Anisolepisma Paclt, 1967 with the unique structure of the thoracic sterna identified as diagnostic for the subfamily. Contrary to existing opinion, it is suggested that this is a fundamentally different and plesiomorphic character, rather than an apomorphic reduction of the free thoracic sterna. A monograph of the Australian Zygentoma is presented, including a summary of the biology of the order, a key to and diagnoses of the genera, as well as information on the known habitat and distribution of each genus and a discussion of their zoogeography. At the suprageneric level the fauna is less diverse than seen in other zoogeographic regions but appears to be rich in the number of species. The fauna displays a high degree of endemism with 91% of described species and 52% of the genera known only from Australia. Some genera appear to be ancient and probably represent a Pangean element in the Australian fauna. Others appear to have emerged in the late Jurassic when Africa was still joined to Gondwana, while some may have appeared in the Cretaceous or Palaeocene when Australia and South America were connected to Gondwana. More recent links with the Asian fauna are limited and there appears to be no widespread highly mobile global species other than the six introduced anthropophilic species. Maps of the worldwide distribution records extracted from the taxonomic literature are used to discuss the zoogeography of the subfamilies and tribes present in Australia. Molecular data using two mitochondrial genes (16S and COI) as well as a nuclear gene (28S) were compared with detailed morphological and morphometric analysis to examine populations initially determined as Heterolepisma sclerophylla or close to it. Distances of 0.9– 1.8% or greater in 28S, and 7.2–14% in COI were associated with morphologically distinct species. A southern Queensland population was found to be genetically, morphometrically and morphologically very distinct from those collected in NSW and was described as new (Heterolepisma sp. B). Six well-defined barcode clusters (“lineages”) were identified within the NSW populations, each with >4% divergence in COI sequences and each geographically restricted. Intracluster divergences are also large, and despite the well-supported phylogeny no clear “barcode gap” (distinction between intracluster and intercluster distances) was found for three of the six NSW populations. The 28S data distinguished only four of the six COI clusters from NSW with essentially no variation within each cluster. The 28S data generally aligned well with morphological evidence, clearly identifying Heterolepisma sp. B as a distinct species, and supporting also the description of Heterolepisma sp. A even though it only appears to differ from H. sclerophylla in the number of styli. Similar genetic distances are observed in 28S data for H. sclerophylla populations from North Nowra, Glenbrook/Burralow/Nattai and Megalong, however the Broulee and Wellington populations have identical 28S sequences. The low levels of variation in 28S sequences between NSW populations accord with the lack of unambiguous morphological differences.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
The influence of controlled fire on the mobilization of Potentially Toxic Elements (PTE) in a mined landscape : Implications for land management and environmental health
- Authors: Abraham, Joji
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Controlled fires conducted in fire prone areas are an efficient and economic option to reduce the frequency and intensity of wild fires that result in damage to human property, infrastructure and ecosystems. However, in a similar way to wild fires, controlled fires affect many of the physical and bio-geochemical properties of the forest soil, and may remobilize Potentially Toxic Elements (PTE) from vegetation and soil organic matter. The objective of this study is to investigate the mobilization of PTEs in a mined landscape after a controlled fire and to describe their temporal variations in concentrations. Soil samples were collected two days before and two days after the controlled fire, at the end of each season, and after a major rainfall in September 2016, from a legacy mine site in Maldon, Central Victoria, Australia, and analysed for PTE concentrations. The results revealed PTE mobility after the controlled fire, and most of the PTEs (As, Cd, Cu, Mn, and Zn) evidenced an increase in concentration (1.2, 1.5, 1.1, 2.9, and 1.7 times respectively) and other PTEs (Hg, Cr and Pb) shown a decrease (1.4, 1.1 and 1.1 times respectively) immediately after the fire. The increase in PTE concentration immediately after the fire is postulated to be associated with the addition of PTE enriched ash to the soil and the reduction is due to the volatilization of elements during fire. The PTEs, which increased their concentrations immediately after the fire show a temporal decrease in concentration in the post-fire soil environment due to the removal of ash and surface soil by rainfall runoff, leaching and wind activity. However, Hg shows an increase in concentration after the major rainfall event. Although, median concentrations of As, Hg, Pb, Cu and Zn exceeded the Australian and Victorian top soil averages, only As and Hg are considered to be a risk to human and aquatic ecosystems health due to their elevated concentration and toxicity. Climate change and the resulting projection for increased forest fire frequency illustrates a growing concern given the expected concomitant increase in PTE mobilization. Preparing appropriate land and water management strategies, and addressing environmental health practice and policy, specifically at the legacy mining areas require a review. This study highlights the significant risk these sites pose.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Abraham, Joji
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Controlled fires conducted in fire prone areas are an efficient and economic option to reduce the frequency and intensity of wild fires that result in damage to human property, infrastructure and ecosystems. However, in a similar way to wild fires, controlled fires affect many of the physical and bio-geochemical properties of the forest soil, and may remobilize Potentially Toxic Elements (PTE) from vegetation and soil organic matter. The objective of this study is to investigate the mobilization of PTEs in a mined landscape after a controlled fire and to describe their temporal variations in concentrations. Soil samples were collected two days before and two days after the controlled fire, at the end of each season, and after a major rainfall in September 2016, from a legacy mine site in Maldon, Central Victoria, Australia, and analysed for PTE concentrations. The results revealed PTE mobility after the controlled fire, and most of the PTEs (As, Cd, Cu, Mn, and Zn) evidenced an increase in concentration (1.2, 1.5, 1.1, 2.9, and 1.7 times respectively) and other PTEs (Hg, Cr and Pb) shown a decrease (1.4, 1.1 and 1.1 times respectively) immediately after the fire. The increase in PTE concentration immediately after the fire is postulated to be associated with the addition of PTE enriched ash to the soil and the reduction is due to the volatilization of elements during fire. The PTEs, which increased their concentrations immediately after the fire show a temporal decrease in concentration in the post-fire soil environment due to the removal of ash and surface soil by rainfall runoff, leaching and wind activity. However, Hg shows an increase in concentration after the major rainfall event. Although, median concentrations of As, Hg, Pb, Cu and Zn exceeded the Australian and Victorian top soil averages, only As and Hg are considered to be a risk to human and aquatic ecosystems health due to their elevated concentration and toxicity. Climate change and the resulting projection for increased forest fire frequency illustrates a growing concern given the expected concomitant increase in PTE mobilization. Preparing appropriate land and water management strategies, and addressing environmental health practice and policy, specifically at the legacy mining areas require a review. This study highlights the significant risk these sites pose.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Visiting Friends and Relatives (VFR) travel in Australia : An examination of the role of VFR hosts
- Authors: Yousuf, Mohammad
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Visiting Friends and Relatives (VFR) travel is a significant form of travel in terms of global travel numbers. However, research on VFR travel is small relative to its size. In particular, research regarding the role of hosts of VFR travellers in shaping their trips including travel decisions and activities has been examined by few researchers. No previous research explored the differences in hosting between immigrant and non-immigrant local residents despite VFR travel being commonly associated with migration in existing literature. Before this research, the differences between hosting friends and relatives had been neglected, resulting in VFR hosts being treated as one homogenous group. Previous research also failed to empirically test the influence of destination on the hosting of VFRs. Thus, this is the first study examining the hosting of VFRs through combining how migration, relationship types, and destination types, impact VFR travel experiences for hosts. Given that VFR travel is a significant component of Australia’s visitor numbers, and that it comprises a large immigrant population, Australia is a suitable setting for this study. Considering the multi-dimensional elements in the study, the “VFR Whole Tourism Systems Model” was used as the conceptual model for this study. Quantitative research was conducted nationally with 331 residents, collected through an online survey, assessing the differences and similarities in hosting behaviours. Qualitative research was undertaken through in-depth interviews with 34 local residents in three contrasting destinations in Victoria understanding the social interactions between VFR hosts and their visiting friends/relatives. Significant differences were found between immigrants and nonimmigrants regarding attracting VFRs and hosting experiences. Differences were also noted between hosting friends versus hosting relatives, and it was also determined that the destination types impact VFR hosting. Such findings have provided valuable insights regarding the economic and social benefits of promoting local marketing campaign targeting local residents.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Yousuf, Mohammad
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Visiting Friends and Relatives (VFR) travel is a significant form of travel in terms of global travel numbers. However, research on VFR travel is small relative to its size. In particular, research regarding the role of hosts of VFR travellers in shaping their trips including travel decisions and activities has been examined by few researchers. No previous research explored the differences in hosting between immigrant and non-immigrant local residents despite VFR travel being commonly associated with migration in existing literature. Before this research, the differences between hosting friends and relatives had been neglected, resulting in VFR hosts being treated as one homogenous group. Previous research also failed to empirically test the influence of destination on the hosting of VFRs. Thus, this is the first study examining the hosting of VFRs through combining how migration, relationship types, and destination types, impact VFR travel experiences for hosts. Given that VFR travel is a significant component of Australia’s visitor numbers, and that it comprises a large immigrant population, Australia is a suitable setting for this study. Considering the multi-dimensional elements in the study, the “VFR Whole Tourism Systems Model” was used as the conceptual model for this study. Quantitative research was conducted nationally with 331 residents, collected through an online survey, assessing the differences and similarities in hosting behaviours. Qualitative research was undertaken through in-depth interviews with 34 local residents in three contrasting destinations in Victoria understanding the social interactions between VFR hosts and their visiting friends/relatives. Significant differences were found between immigrants and nonimmigrants regarding attracting VFRs and hosting experiences. Differences were also noted between hosting friends versus hosting relatives, and it was also determined that the destination types impact VFR hosting. Such findings have provided valuable insights regarding the economic and social benefits of promoting local marketing campaign targeting local residents.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Voices from the margins : A critical ethnography of conflict in female friendship in a regional Australian school
- Authors: Pappaluca, Kimberly
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: The way that interpersonal conflict is displayed and navigated is informed by broader discourses about the nature of gender roles, gender expectations, and understandings of what it means to be a girl in regional Australia. This research explores the role of conflict in everyday school interactions for the female students of one regional secondary school in the state of Victoria, Australia. For these female students, the nature of their interpersonal conflict was either widely discussed and scrutinised by teachers, adults and other students, or ignored and silenced by the same groups. For the young women of Rural Valley, their experience of conflict is intrinsically tied to the cultural spaces and places they occupy. In this thesis, young women’s voices and experiences of conflict in a regional secondary school are considered through a critical perspective situated within critical theory. A critical ethnography has been conducted drawing upon the notion of horizontal violence to develop understandings of the nature of conflict as experienced by young women from regional Australia. In order to illuminate the lived experiences of conflict for young women, narrative portraiture is used as a representational method to deconstruct traditional views of ethnographic writing. In doing so, this research provides a counter-narrative to dominant discourses about how young women experience and manage conflict and how they navigate their relationships when conflict arises. This research is significant because it challenges stereotypical notions of what conflict means to young girls in a regional secondary school context. The findings of this study highlight that young women use group-specific strategies to negotiate friendships and confront structural inequalities of a hegemonic education system. This research ultimately advocates for understandings of conflict that move away from deficit discourses to advance discussions concerned with the gendered nature of violence within Australian society.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Pappaluca, Kimberly
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: The way that interpersonal conflict is displayed and navigated is informed by broader discourses about the nature of gender roles, gender expectations, and understandings of what it means to be a girl in regional Australia. This research explores the role of conflict in everyday school interactions for the female students of one regional secondary school in the state of Victoria, Australia. For these female students, the nature of their interpersonal conflict was either widely discussed and scrutinised by teachers, adults and other students, or ignored and silenced by the same groups. For the young women of Rural Valley, their experience of conflict is intrinsically tied to the cultural spaces and places they occupy. In this thesis, young women’s voices and experiences of conflict in a regional secondary school are considered through a critical perspective situated within critical theory. A critical ethnography has been conducted drawing upon the notion of horizontal violence to develop understandings of the nature of conflict as experienced by young women from regional Australia. In order to illuminate the lived experiences of conflict for young women, narrative portraiture is used as a representational method to deconstruct traditional views of ethnographic writing. In doing so, this research provides a counter-narrative to dominant discourses about how young women experience and manage conflict and how they navigate their relationships when conflict arises. This research is significant because it challenges stereotypical notions of what conflict means to young girls in a regional secondary school context. The findings of this study highlight that young women use group-specific strategies to negotiate friendships and confront structural inequalities of a hegemonic education system. This research ultimately advocates for understandings of conflict that move away from deficit discourses to advance discussions concerned with the gendered nature of violence within Australian society.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Wild deer as potential reservoirs of economically important gastrointestinal parasites in South Eastern Australia
- Authors: Panozzo, Jacqueline
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Gastrointestinal (GI) parasite infection of ruminant livestock can be a source of significant economic loss for farmers. Appropriate animal management and drug treatments can reduce the transmission and subsequent effect of GI parasite infections on ruminant livestock productivity. However, transmission of infection from outside sources, such as wildlife, can make GI parasite control measures in livestock ineffective. In Australia, particularly Victoria, the large population of wild deer now represents a significant biosecurity risk due to the potential ability of economically important GI parasites of livestock to infect deer. This thesis aimed to investigate the presence of GI parasites in three species of Victorian wild deer (fallow, hog and sambar) by screening deer faecal samples through the traditional parasitology technique of faecal egg count (FEC) and through DNA-based molecular techniques of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and next-generation sequencing (NGS). Screening wild deer faecal samples for strongyle parasites via FEC resulted in 15.1% positive samples. DNA based techniques were significantly more sensitive than FEC, with 60.0% deer faecal samples positive for strongyles. NGS detected DNA of eleven different strongyle species in wild deer faecal samples, including the economically important parasite species of livestock of O. ostertagi, O. leptospicularis, Haemonchus spp., O. radiatum, Trichostrongylus spp. and C. oncophora. Infection with the economically important trematode parasite of livestock, Fasciola hepatica, was also confirmed by worm recovery in hog deer. The same economically important strongyle species were also detected in faecal samples from wild deer co-grazing with cattle. Collectively, this study has indicated that wild deer in Victoria may be significant reservoirs of parasitic diseases of livestock and warrants further investigation.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Panozzo, Jacqueline
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Gastrointestinal (GI) parasite infection of ruminant livestock can be a source of significant economic loss for farmers. Appropriate animal management and drug treatments can reduce the transmission and subsequent effect of GI parasite infections on ruminant livestock productivity. However, transmission of infection from outside sources, such as wildlife, can make GI parasite control measures in livestock ineffective. In Australia, particularly Victoria, the large population of wild deer now represents a significant biosecurity risk due to the potential ability of economically important GI parasites of livestock to infect deer. This thesis aimed to investigate the presence of GI parasites in three species of Victorian wild deer (fallow, hog and sambar) by screening deer faecal samples through the traditional parasitology technique of faecal egg count (FEC) and through DNA-based molecular techniques of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and next-generation sequencing (NGS). Screening wild deer faecal samples for strongyle parasites via FEC resulted in 15.1% positive samples. DNA based techniques were significantly more sensitive than FEC, with 60.0% deer faecal samples positive for strongyles. NGS detected DNA of eleven different strongyle species in wild deer faecal samples, including the economically important parasite species of livestock of O. ostertagi, O. leptospicularis, Haemonchus spp., O. radiatum, Trichostrongylus spp. and C. oncophora. Infection with the economically important trematode parasite of livestock, Fasciola hepatica, was also confirmed by worm recovery in hog deer. The same economically important strongyle species were also detected in faecal samples from wild deer co-grazing with cattle. Collectively, this study has indicated that wild deer in Victoria may be significant reservoirs of parasitic diseases of livestock and warrants further investigation.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
'You Beauty' Alex Jesaulenko An historical exploration of the migrant who became a legend
- Authors: Eddy, Daniel
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text: false
- Description: The Austrian-born Alex Jesaulenko played football in the Victorian Football League (VFL) from 1967 to 1981. His rise to national prominence emerged during a period of great change within both Australian society and Australian rules football. This thesis, through a critical biographical approach, examines for the first time Jesaulenko’s early life, looking at his migrant experience and the role that Australian rules football played in aiding his integration into Australian society. It is not a kick-and-handball analysis of Jesaulenko’s entire football career; that has been extensively covered within copious amounts of primary and secondary sources. Instead, it explores his migrant journey – an important aspect of Jesaulenko’s life which has been largely overlooked – and the key developmental years of sporting education prior to emerging as a VFL champion. It concludes with one of, if not the most, iconic moments in the game’s history: Jesaulenko’s mark in the 1970 VFL grand final, which cemented his name within the Australian sporting consciousness. Australian rules football, and sport more generally, holds a unique place within society. Footballers, it can be argued, are archetypes for our daily dreams and aspirations; exalted figures that we afford status which few will experience in their everyday lives. Therefore, it is through the prism of Jesaulenko’s journey that we can learn more about the role Australian rules football has played for migrants integrating into Australian society.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
A framework for sustainability performance assessment for manufacturing processes
- Authors: Singh, Karmjit
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Sustainable manufacturing methods make it possible to develop products in ways which minimize negative environmental impacts, conserve energy and save natural resources whilst being economically sound. The concepts of sustainability in manufacturing being are still fairly broad, in scope, and need to be more focused and firmly established at the process, machine or factory levels. This project proposes a structure for manufacturing with a main objective to develop a sustainability framework which encompasses various production processes. Structured information models for the seamless flow of information across the design and manufacturing domains, for selected manufacturing processes, are defined. The thesis work identifies key performance indicators (KPIs) for the assessment of manufacturing sustainability and performs analysis of selected unit manufacturing processes and their sub-processes with the aim of proposing a methodology for determining science-based measurements of the manufacturing processes affecting these KPIs. The theoretical foundations established are then used to develop a model that could evaluate sustainability of selected manufacturing processes and their respective process plans providing a basis for inter-process comparison and selection of the most sustainable process plan. The proposed framework is presented in form of a manufacturing planning computer-based package which is designed to to consider different influencing factors such as product information, part geometry, material related physical and processing properties and the manufacturing equipment operating data. The thesis presents a number of case studies which have been published in international journals. The case studies present estimates of the manufacturing sustainability KPIs for a number of production methods. These estimates have been verified with available shop floor data. The work in the thesis makes it possible to establish manufacturing industry equipped to deal the challenges of the future when sustainability will be the major factor up on which the quality of success will be determined.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Singh, Karmjit
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Sustainable manufacturing methods make it possible to develop products in ways which minimize negative environmental impacts, conserve energy and save natural resources whilst being economically sound. The concepts of sustainability in manufacturing being are still fairly broad, in scope, and need to be more focused and firmly established at the process, machine or factory levels. This project proposes a structure for manufacturing with a main objective to develop a sustainability framework which encompasses various production processes. Structured information models for the seamless flow of information across the design and manufacturing domains, for selected manufacturing processes, are defined. The thesis work identifies key performance indicators (KPIs) for the assessment of manufacturing sustainability and performs analysis of selected unit manufacturing processes and their sub-processes with the aim of proposing a methodology for determining science-based measurements of the manufacturing processes affecting these KPIs. The theoretical foundations established are then used to develop a model that could evaluate sustainability of selected manufacturing processes and their respective process plans providing a basis for inter-process comparison and selection of the most sustainable process plan. The proposed framework is presented in form of a manufacturing planning computer-based package which is designed to to consider different influencing factors such as product information, part geometry, material related physical and processing properties and the manufacturing equipment operating data. The thesis presents a number of case studies which have been published in international journals. The case studies present estimates of the manufacturing sustainability KPIs for a number of production methods. These estimates have been verified with available shop floor data. The work in the thesis makes it possible to establish manufacturing industry equipped to deal the challenges of the future when sustainability will be the major factor up on which the quality of success will be determined.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Advocates or corporates : constructions of clinical nursing practice in Australia with regards to the idealisation of advocacy and autonomy
- Authors: Cole, Clare
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Although the idealisation of nurses as advocates is popularised in nursing literature and supported within nursing frameworks, codes and standards, there has been little critical examination of these ideas within contemporary Australian healthcare settings and nursing practice. The Australian Healthcare system is a complicated system of interacting service providers and consumers. Institutions that regulate healthcare professionals and organisations normalise understandings of nursing and nursing practice, including conceptualisations of the importance of autonomy and advocacy and how each is to be supported and/or practised. This study used the perceptions of practising Registered Nurses (RNs) to examine the actualities of advocacy and support for autonomy as they are carried out within clinical practice, and to highlight, problematise and then analyse differences between the rhetoric and realities of practice. Firstly, a phenomenological lens, including an ethnographic model of observation, was used to thematically map and examine the RNs’ lived experience of their practice, paying particular attention to their conceptions of and responsibilities toward advocacy and autonomy. This thematic analysis brought to the fore a range of assumptions that, although clearly normative within nursing practice, are in evident tension with one other. These were then re-examined using a range of Michel Foucault’s concepts concerning the construction and maintenance of regimes of truth. Designed to unpack the operations of power and knowledge, and to make visible the techniques of disciplinarity and governmentality that inform and support them, an engagement of these concepts has allowed this thesis to critically examine the normative constructions and enactments of nursing practice with regards to ideas and practices concerning advocacy and autonomy. What this thesis provides is a detailed examination of the contrasting constructions of power and knowledge within nursing practice in relation to advocacy and autonomy, how and why these concepts have been operationalised within nursing practice, and how they could be re-visioned into the future.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Cole, Clare
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Although the idealisation of nurses as advocates is popularised in nursing literature and supported within nursing frameworks, codes and standards, there has been little critical examination of these ideas within contemporary Australian healthcare settings and nursing practice. The Australian Healthcare system is a complicated system of interacting service providers and consumers. Institutions that regulate healthcare professionals and organisations normalise understandings of nursing and nursing practice, including conceptualisations of the importance of autonomy and advocacy and how each is to be supported and/or practised. This study used the perceptions of practising Registered Nurses (RNs) to examine the actualities of advocacy and support for autonomy as they are carried out within clinical practice, and to highlight, problematise and then analyse differences between the rhetoric and realities of practice. Firstly, a phenomenological lens, including an ethnographic model of observation, was used to thematically map and examine the RNs’ lived experience of their practice, paying particular attention to their conceptions of and responsibilities toward advocacy and autonomy. This thematic analysis brought to the fore a range of assumptions that, although clearly normative within nursing practice, are in evident tension with one other. These were then re-examined using a range of Michel Foucault’s concepts concerning the construction and maintenance of regimes of truth. Designed to unpack the operations of power and knowledge, and to make visible the techniques of disciplinarity and governmentality that inform and support them, an engagement of these concepts has allowed this thesis to critically examine the normative constructions and enactments of nursing practice with regards to ideas and practices concerning advocacy and autonomy. What this thesis provides is a detailed examination of the contrasting constructions of power and knowledge within nursing practice in relation to advocacy and autonomy, how and why these concepts have been operationalised within nursing practice, and how they could be re-visioned into the future.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Barriers and enablers to women's access to services during childbearing in Timor-Leste
- Authors: King, Rosemary
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Background: In Timor-Leste the maternal mortality ratio (MMR) is one of the highest in Southeast Asia, in some districts only 15-25% of women birth in a facility with a skilled birth attendant (SBA). Care from SBA is the international benchmark for quality maternity care. Purpose: Determine the barriers and enablers to women's access to services during childbearing in Timor-Leste, including women’s expectations and needs. Methodology: Qualitative research using focused ethnography, data collection methods included semi-structured interviews, focus groups and participant observation. Seventeen stakeholders and thirty women from three districts in Timor-Leste participated. Thematic analysis and coding of data with triangulation of the findings between separate participant groups. Results: Barriers to woman’s access to SBA include poor roads, lack of transport, costs associated with accessing SBA, lack of availability and poor quality services. Lack of privacy, multiple care-givers and poor interpersonal communication from SBA were also noted. Stakeholders emphasise health promotion and antenatal care to counteract the influence of traditional beliefs and promote demand for SBA. Many women demonstrate their agency in health seeking behaviours and choices for care during pregnancy and childbirth. Discussion: Women understand that pregnancy and childbirth poses potential risks to their health. Rural women, women from low socio-economic and other marginalised groups have less access to services. Perceptions of poor quality services also reduce women’s demand. Conclusion: Barriers and enablers to woman’s access to services are identified using an amended AAAQ framework introducing the domain of Antecedents in addition to domains of Access, Availability, Acceptability and Quality (AAAQA). Further expenditure on health service infrastructure, staff training and community outreach will improve access and quality SBA. Culturally safe SBA services may also improve the uptake of SBA service in Timor-Leste. Key words: Timor-Leste, Skilled birth attendance, cultural safety, women’s agency, quality maternity care.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: King, Rosemary
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Background: In Timor-Leste the maternal mortality ratio (MMR) is one of the highest in Southeast Asia, in some districts only 15-25% of women birth in a facility with a skilled birth attendant (SBA). Care from SBA is the international benchmark for quality maternity care. Purpose: Determine the barriers and enablers to women's access to services during childbearing in Timor-Leste, including women’s expectations and needs. Methodology: Qualitative research using focused ethnography, data collection methods included semi-structured interviews, focus groups and participant observation. Seventeen stakeholders and thirty women from three districts in Timor-Leste participated. Thematic analysis and coding of data with triangulation of the findings between separate participant groups. Results: Barriers to woman’s access to SBA include poor roads, lack of transport, costs associated with accessing SBA, lack of availability and poor quality services. Lack of privacy, multiple care-givers and poor interpersonal communication from SBA were also noted. Stakeholders emphasise health promotion and antenatal care to counteract the influence of traditional beliefs and promote demand for SBA. Many women demonstrate their agency in health seeking behaviours and choices for care during pregnancy and childbirth. Discussion: Women understand that pregnancy and childbirth poses potential risks to their health. Rural women, women from low socio-economic and other marginalised groups have less access to services. Perceptions of poor quality services also reduce women’s demand. Conclusion: Barriers and enablers to woman’s access to services are identified using an amended AAAQ framework introducing the domain of Antecedents in addition to domains of Access, Availability, Acceptability and Quality (AAAQA). Further expenditure on health service infrastructure, staff training and community outreach will improve access and quality SBA. Culturally safe SBA services may also improve the uptake of SBA service in Timor-Leste. Key words: Timor-Leste, Skilled birth attendance, cultural safety, women’s agency, quality maternity care.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Bitcoin : users’ characteristics, motivations and investment behaviours
- Authors: Carter, Corey
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: In less than a decade, the cryptocurrency known as Bitcoin has gone from a fringe phenomenon to a topic of increasing interest to academia and mainstream investors. However, despite the growing body of research seeking to understand Bitcoin, the pseudonymous, decentralised, and globally-diffused nature of its user base means that the individuals who use it remain poorly understood. In particular, the motivations, risk-appreciation, and investment behaviours of early adopters and innovators are subject to supposition in the absence of data derived from the user base. This thesis seeks to address this gap in knowledge by employing a multi-stage, mixed methodology approach and a theoretical framework to understand the Bitcoin user base. Utilising semantic analysis, a survey of online cryptocurrency communities, and econometric time-series analysis, this thesis addresses the extent and nature of Bitcoin in hedging; how individual users perceive their own motivations, uses, and risks that have driven their behaviour; and the nature of the relationship between the prices of cryptocurrency and indices of confidence. Analysis of the data determined that the use of Bitcoin as an instrument of hedging is limited, and influenced by political and institutional factors. Likewise, its motivations, uses, and risks are reflective of the users’ political ideology, with the community and marketplace becoming more sophisticated as they evolve over time. Additionally, despite several case studies demonstrating risk-averse adoption of Bitcoin, there is no relationship between its prices and confidence.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Carter, Corey
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: In less than a decade, the cryptocurrency known as Bitcoin has gone from a fringe phenomenon to a topic of increasing interest to academia and mainstream investors. However, despite the growing body of research seeking to understand Bitcoin, the pseudonymous, decentralised, and globally-diffused nature of its user base means that the individuals who use it remain poorly understood. In particular, the motivations, risk-appreciation, and investment behaviours of early adopters and innovators are subject to supposition in the absence of data derived from the user base. This thesis seeks to address this gap in knowledge by employing a multi-stage, mixed methodology approach and a theoretical framework to understand the Bitcoin user base. Utilising semantic analysis, a survey of online cryptocurrency communities, and econometric time-series analysis, this thesis addresses the extent and nature of Bitcoin in hedging; how individual users perceive their own motivations, uses, and risks that have driven their behaviour; and the nature of the relationship between the prices of cryptocurrency and indices of confidence. Analysis of the data determined that the use of Bitcoin as an instrument of hedging is limited, and influenced by political and institutional factors. Likewise, its motivations, uses, and risks are reflective of the users’ political ideology, with the community and marketplace becoming more sophisticated as they evolve over time. Additionally, despite several case studies demonstrating risk-averse adoption of Bitcoin, there is no relationship between its prices and confidence.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Effects of brown coal fly ash on 30% monoethanolamine CO₂ capture systems
- Authors: Chowdhury, Mohammad
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Accumulation of fly ash during post-combustion capture (PCC) of CO2 is an emerging concern. This work assesses concerns that soluble ash components (e.g. Na, Ca, Mg) increase conductivity of amine systems increasing corrosion rates, and decreasing CO2 capture e ciency; slightly soluble metals ions (e.g. Fe) may catalyse amine oxidation; and insoluble ash components cause erosion and blockages in the PCC plants as well as providing catalytic surfaces. Loy Yang brown-coal y ashes (using XRD, SEM, EDS and ICP-MS) are rst characterised and separated into soluble, insoluble and char fractions. The e ect of each fraction on MEA oxidation (measured by UV-vis and organic acid formation) and corrosion is determined using lab-scale experiments in static and stirred pressurised reactors at simulated PCC stripper conditions. Fly ash was three times more soluble in severely oxidising conditions compared to mild 30% MEA extractions. Vantho te represents 10-20% of the y ash and was the main source of sodium, calcium and magnesium ions while Szmolnockite was a source of iron. Iron solubility was dependent on conditions, with 5% soluble in aqueous MEA and 10% in simulated desorber conditions. The soluble fraction was the only ash fraction to signi cantly promote MEA oxidation. Aged pall rings from a PCC pilot plant had severe grain boundary corrosion and chromiumoxide depletion. Grain boundary corrosion was less severe in pall rings under severely oxidising conditions. The e ects of soluble ash were unclear while organic acids promoted pitting. Fly ash is an important source of soluble sodium, calcium and iron into 30% MEA. The insoluble fraction had minimal impact on MEA oxidation and corrosion, suggesting that it was inert. Soluble ash fractions increased corrosion severity and promoted MEA oxidation. This work shows that deep y ash removal prior to PCC is particularly important for ashes with high solubility in the CO2 absorption system.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Chowdhury, Mohammad
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Accumulation of fly ash during post-combustion capture (PCC) of CO2 is an emerging concern. This work assesses concerns that soluble ash components (e.g. Na, Ca, Mg) increase conductivity of amine systems increasing corrosion rates, and decreasing CO2 capture e ciency; slightly soluble metals ions (e.g. Fe) may catalyse amine oxidation; and insoluble ash components cause erosion and blockages in the PCC plants as well as providing catalytic surfaces. Loy Yang brown-coal y ashes (using XRD, SEM, EDS and ICP-MS) are rst characterised and separated into soluble, insoluble and char fractions. The e ect of each fraction on MEA oxidation (measured by UV-vis and organic acid formation) and corrosion is determined using lab-scale experiments in static and stirred pressurised reactors at simulated PCC stripper conditions. Fly ash was three times more soluble in severely oxidising conditions compared to mild 30% MEA extractions. Vantho te represents 10-20% of the y ash and was the main source of sodium, calcium and magnesium ions while Szmolnockite was a source of iron. Iron solubility was dependent on conditions, with 5% soluble in aqueous MEA and 10% in simulated desorber conditions. The soluble fraction was the only ash fraction to signi cantly promote MEA oxidation. Aged pall rings from a PCC pilot plant had severe grain boundary corrosion and chromiumoxide depletion. Grain boundary corrosion was less severe in pall rings under severely oxidising conditions. The e ects of soluble ash were unclear while organic acids promoted pitting. Fly ash is an important source of soluble sodium, calcium and iron into 30% MEA. The insoluble fraction had minimal impact on MEA oxidation and corrosion, suggesting that it was inert. Soluble ash fractions increased corrosion severity and promoted MEA oxidation. This work shows that deep y ash removal prior to PCC is particularly important for ashes with high solubility in the CO2 absorption system.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Harvesting stormwater : Testing the paradigm by assessing the impacts with an inter-disciplinary case study
- Authors: Ebbs, David
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Integrated Urban Water Management (IUWM) is often proposed as a framework for comprehensively managing the water cycle in urban areas. One of the tenets of IUWM is that, due to increased impervious area, stormwater runoff in excess of the natural flow could be captured and used to supplement the water supply, while mitigating the environmental impact. This thesis tests that theory through an inter-disciplinary case study utilising legacy data for the regional city of Ballarat, Australia. The case study approach has enabled the water balance of an urbanised catchment to be better understood in various ways and provided for five tightly nested research projects, being: 1. Does the long-term development of water management within a city provide insight into what drives decisions, therefore informing future progress? 2. Can the drivers of water use be adequately determined from a community wide, historical analysis such that future regulatory decisions can be informed? 3. Will assessment of the long-term streamflow of a river, combined with an urban water balance of the catchment, enable the identification of additional stormwater flow due to urbanisation, in excess of the natural flow? 4. Can the impact of urbanisation on groundwater be identified (i.e. trends quantified or qualified) from the city’s legacy data or any available data sources, or models? 5. Is it possible to establish a comparative analysis technique that accounts for the uncertainty of information which changes over time, maintains intellectual rigour and is understandable and easily presented? IUWM was found, perhaps unsurprisingly, to be a complex problem with the challenges being very contextual on the particular catchment and city being studied. This research revealed that evidence of greater volumes of water being generated from increasingly urbanised impervious catchments is not easy to find. This finding may challenge conventional thinking and means that decisions on stormwater harvesting and WSUD practices more broadly should first be informed by evidence of the water balance. This research also revealed some very significant challenges in the water industry with finding and effectively using very dispersed data sets which are held and managed across multiple water agencies in various digital and hard copy formats. Information and data availability is critical to all aspects of IUWM, including in the measurement of its success, and so this research reminds the water industry of the importance of its data management practices.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Ebbs, David
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Integrated Urban Water Management (IUWM) is often proposed as a framework for comprehensively managing the water cycle in urban areas. One of the tenets of IUWM is that, due to increased impervious area, stormwater runoff in excess of the natural flow could be captured and used to supplement the water supply, while mitigating the environmental impact. This thesis tests that theory through an inter-disciplinary case study utilising legacy data for the regional city of Ballarat, Australia. The case study approach has enabled the water balance of an urbanised catchment to be better understood in various ways and provided for five tightly nested research projects, being: 1. Does the long-term development of water management within a city provide insight into what drives decisions, therefore informing future progress? 2. Can the drivers of water use be adequately determined from a community wide, historical analysis such that future regulatory decisions can be informed? 3. Will assessment of the long-term streamflow of a river, combined with an urban water balance of the catchment, enable the identification of additional stormwater flow due to urbanisation, in excess of the natural flow? 4. Can the impact of urbanisation on groundwater be identified (i.e. trends quantified or qualified) from the city’s legacy data or any available data sources, or models? 5. Is it possible to establish a comparative analysis technique that accounts for the uncertainty of information which changes over time, maintains intellectual rigour and is understandable and easily presented? IUWM was found, perhaps unsurprisingly, to be a complex problem with the challenges being very contextual on the particular catchment and city being studied. This research revealed that evidence of greater volumes of water being generated from increasingly urbanised impervious catchments is not easy to find. This finding may challenge conventional thinking and means that decisions on stormwater harvesting and WSUD practices more broadly should first be informed by evidence of the water balance. This research also revealed some very significant challenges in the water industry with finding and effectively using very dispersed data sets which are held and managed across multiple water agencies in various digital and hard copy formats. Information and data availability is critical to all aspects of IUWM, including in the measurement of its success, and so this research reminds the water industry of the importance of its data management practices.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Histories of the Ballarat District Orphan Asylum, Ballarat Orphanage and Ballarat Children’s Home, 1866-1983
- Authors: McGinniss, David
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: The thesis outlines the development of three children’s residential institutions on the site of 200 Victoria Street, Ballarat East: the Ballarat District Orphan Asylum (1866-1909), the Ballarat Orphanage (1909-1968), and the Ballarat Children’s Home (1968-1983). These institutions are the historical precursors to the contemporary community service organisation now known as Child and Family Services Ballarat, or simply Cafs. The thesis focuses particularly on the shifting cultures of these institutions, to identify waves of change, surging and receding to form long patterns of alternating reform and repose. Established ways of operating overlapped with new and developing ideas, to create a dynamic environment constantly negotiating its relationships with government, communities and of course the families and children who came to rely on them. As a result, when transformative change occurred, it was difficult for leaders and policy-makers to recognise it as such at the time, as it was often experienced more as crisis and response. This provides a useful set of historical examples for current leadership and practitioners to learn from. Most critically, however, it locates the thousands of children who were institutionalised - eating, sleeping, playing, learning and working – as central to the narrative formation of identity for the historic institutions themselves, the contemporary organisation they have become, and the communities of Ballarat and beyond. Children were sent to these institutions from all over Victoria and Australia and made their homes in many different places when they left. Nevertheless, the stories and lives of the children from these institutions and the adults they have become are a key part of contemporary collective identity. The institutions are remembered with complex and contradictory mixtures of regret, loss, trauma and fondness, reflecting the mixed legacies that these institutions have left in contemporary Ballarat and beyond.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: McGinniss, David
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: The thesis outlines the development of three children’s residential institutions on the site of 200 Victoria Street, Ballarat East: the Ballarat District Orphan Asylum (1866-1909), the Ballarat Orphanage (1909-1968), and the Ballarat Children’s Home (1968-1983). These institutions are the historical precursors to the contemporary community service organisation now known as Child and Family Services Ballarat, or simply Cafs. The thesis focuses particularly on the shifting cultures of these institutions, to identify waves of change, surging and receding to form long patterns of alternating reform and repose. Established ways of operating overlapped with new and developing ideas, to create a dynamic environment constantly negotiating its relationships with government, communities and of course the families and children who came to rely on them. As a result, when transformative change occurred, it was difficult for leaders and policy-makers to recognise it as such at the time, as it was often experienced more as crisis and response. This provides a useful set of historical examples for current leadership and practitioners to learn from. Most critically, however, it locates the thousands of children who were institutionalised - eating, sleeping, playing, learning and working – as central to the narrative formation of identity for the historic institutions themselves, the contemporary organisation they have become, and the communities of Ballarat and beyond. Children were sent to these institutions from all over Victoria and Australia and made their homes in many different places when they left. Nevertheless, the stories and lives of the children from these institutions and the adults they have become are a key part of contemporary collective identity. The institutions are remembered with complex and contradictory mixtures of regret, loss, trauma and fondness, reflecting the mixed legacies that these institutions have left in contemporary Ballarat and beyond.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Investigating factors affecting restoration of native grassland in ex-cropland
- Authors: Shakir, Shakir Bahaddin
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Native grasslands are one of the most endangered ecosystems in Australia. Approximately 99% of native grasslands have been disturbed for agriculture and pastoralism. Today, however, many agricultural and grazing lands have been abandoned. Restoring abandoned areas to native grassland is a challenge that must be met if these systems are to persist. This thesis sought to gain a better understanding of the biotic and abiotic barriers to restoring native grasslands in ex-cropping land, and to investigate novel techniques to overcome them in degraded native grassland in the Victorian Volcanic Plains. Firstly, I compared ex-cropland to high-quality remnant grassland, and showed that excropland supports a high number of exotic weeds, a lack of native species propagules, high nutrient levels (especially phosphorus and nitrogen), and an absence of organic carbon—all barriers which must be overcome if native grassland restoration is to succeed. I conducted a replicated field experiment in ex-cropland, to investigate four restoration approaches to overcoming barriers to restoration: (i) adding urban green waste to heat and kill the exotic seed bank (ii) adding sugar and/or mulch to promote microorganism and draw down soil nitrogen, (iii) using a modified clay product called Phoslock to reduce soil phosphorus levels, and (iv) scalping of topsoil 10 cm on ex-cropland site to remove the exotic seed bank and high nutrient soil. After each treatment, native grass seed was added, and the vegetation, seed bank, soil nutrients and microbial activity were monitored over 2.5 years. The hot mulch, scalping and sugar treatments all achieved significantly greater cover of native grasses than the control treatments. The hot waste treatment also effectively eliminated the exotic weed seed bank, but the soil N levels increased dramatically, which is counterproductive to the long-term goals of grassland restoration. Scalping out-performed all other treatments with regard to reducing soil N and P. All treatments suffered from reinvasion by exotic species, suggesting that any grassland restoration technique needs to be coupled with ongoing exotic weed management. Abstract ii High soil phosphorus is a difficult barrier to restoration of native grassland. A possible way to address this is to use plants with high P uptake to help draw down soil P. Native grassland taxa from the genus Ptilotus have been shown to have high P-uptake. I conducted two studies of Ptilotus macrocephalus and Ptilotus polystachyus to investigate their potential in this role. The first of these was an examination of techniques to break their seed dormancy, and to find their optimum germination conditions. I tested their response to smoke water, heating shock, cold stratification and gibberellic acid. The highest germination rates (62% and 38% for P. microcephalus and P. polystachyus, respectively) were achieved when the seeds were pre-treated with GA500 and exposed to a temperature range of (20/18OC) and a 12h dark/12h light regime. Smoke water, heat shock and the removal of floral bracts also improved germination rates, but not at the same magnitude as GA. The second study of Ptilotus was a glasshouse trial that examined the effectiveness of the two taxa at reducing available soil phosphorus. This trial included a third high P-uptake species (Lupinus albus) for comparison, and also investigated if the addition of Phoslock® could bind soil P into insoluble forms. P. macrocephalus and P. polystachyus accumulated high amounts of soil P. Thus, several years of seeding and harvesting of these plants is anticipated to provide a useful option for soil P reduction. Phoslock® reduced soil available P, but only at high concentration of Phoslock 1500 g/m2 and at very high soil P concentrations; it was less effective at levels that typically expect in ex-cropping paddocks. The findings of this thesis have advanced our current knowledge of the restoration of excropland. The research has tested methods to overcome biotic and abiotic barriers to restoration of the Victorian Volcanic Plains grasslands, and has demonstrated some practical approaches to begin the treatment. It was suggested that many of the methods and techniques used in this study could be useful technique in broad areas of grassland restoration within Australia as well as in similar situations in temperate climate conditions across the globe.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Shakir, Shakir Bahaddin
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Native grasslands are one of the most endangered ecosystems in Australia. Approximately 99% of native grasslands have been disturbed for agriculture and pastoralism. Today, however, many agricultural and grazing lands have been abandoned. Restoring abandoned areas to native grassland is a challenge that must be met if these systems are to persist. This thesis sought to gain a better understanding of the biotic and abiotic barriers to restoring native grasslands in ex-cropping land, and to investigate novel techniques to overcome them in degraded native grassland in the Victorian Volcanic Plains. Firstly, I compared ex-cropland to high-quality remnant grassland, and showed that excropland supports a high number of exotic weeds, a lack of native species propagules, high nutrient levels (especially phosphorus and nitrogen), and an absence of organic carbon—all barriers which must be overcome if native grassland restoration is to succeed. I conducted a replicated field experiment in ex-cropland, to investigate four restoration approaches to overcoming barriers to restoration: (i) adding urban green waste to heat and kill the exotic seed bank (ii) adding sugar and/or mulch to promote microorganism and draw down soil nitrogen, (iii) using a modified clay product called Phoslock to reduce soil phosphorus levels, and (iv) scalping of topsoil 10 cm on ex-cropland site to remove the exotic seed bank and high nutrient soil. After each treatment, native grass seed was added, and the vegetation, seed bank, soil nutrients and microbial activity were monitored over 2.5 years. The hot mulch, scalping and sugar treatments all achieved significantly greater cover of native grasses than the control treatments. The hot waste treatment also effectively eliminated the exotic weed seed bank, but the soil N levels increased dramatically, which is counterproductive to the long-term goals of grassland restoration. Scalping out-performed all other treatments with regard to reducing soil N and P. All treatments suffered from reinvasion by exotic species, suggesting that any grassland restoration technique needs to be coupled with ongoing exotic weed management. Abstract ii High soil phosphorus is a difficult barrier to restoration of native grassland. A possible way to address this is to use plants with high P uptake to help draw down soil P. Native grassland taxa from the genus Ptilotus have been shown to have high P-uptake. I conducted two studies of Ptilotus macrocephalus and Ptilotus polystachyus to investigate their potential in this role. The first of these was an examination of techniques to break their seed dormancy, and to find their optimum germination conditions. I tested their response to smoke water, heating shock, cold stratification and gibberellic acid. The highest germination rates (62% and 38% for P. microcephalus and P. polystachyus, respectively) were achieved when the seeds were pre-treated with GA500 and exposed to a temperature range of (20/18OC) and a 12h dark/12h light regime. Smoke water, heat shock and the removal of floral bracts also improved germination rates, but not at the same magnitude as GA. The second study of Ptilotus was a glasshouse trial that examined the effectiveness of the two taxa at reducing available soil phosphorus. This trial included a third high P-uptake species (Lupinus albus) for comparison, and also investigated if the addition of Phoslock® could bind soil P into insoluble forms. P. macrocephalus and P. polystachyus accumulated high amounts of soil P. Thus, several years of seeding and harvesting of these plants is anticipated to provide a useful option for soil P reduction. Phoslock® reduced soil available P, but only at high concentration of Phoslock 1500 g/m2 and at very high soil P concentrations; it was less effective at levels that typically expect in ex-cropping paddocks. The findings of this thesis have advanced our current knowledge of the restoration of excropland. The research has tested methods to overcome biotic and abiotic barriers to restoration of the Victorian Volcanic Plains grasslands, and has demonstrated some practical approaches to begin the treatment. It was suggested that many of the methods and techniques used in this study could be useful technique in broad areas of grassland restoration within Australia as well as in similar situations in temperate climate conditions across the globe.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy