- Authors: Stapleton, Craig
- Date: 2005
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text: false
- Description: Doctor of Psychology
Motion picture production : A micro-budget model
- Authors: Owen, Richard
- Date: 2016
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: The film industry plays an important cultural and economic role in Australia. However, the film industry in Australia has struggled for many years under a subsidy-driven government intervention process that creates a high degree of dependence on a subsidy-centric model. Motion picture production costs worldwide have risen dramatically over the last decade with Hollywood production budgets commonly exceeding $100 million. Australia as a nation has a proven capability to produce respectable motion pictures at varying production budgets, although this capacity has become entrenched with taxpayers’ money. Historically, subsidy-driven industries in Australia trend towards collapse due primarily to cyclical fiscal deficits and changing funding imperatives at the Commonwealth level. As a PhD by exegesis, the focus of this research was to create, as well as evaluate, a new model of film production that would not be dependent on subsidies. This study evaluated a number of factors that were relevant to establishing a viable micro-budget model. Micro-budget films have received little research attention, with the focus being on major films. This research examined an alternative model, through the creation of a feature-length micro-budget film, called Stakes, and assessed it across a range of criterion to determine whether Australia’s film industry could be strengthened and potentially become self-sufficient. The resulting motion picture premièred in Australian cinemas on October 29th 2015. The justification, methods and results are discussed in detail throughout this exegesis providing strong evidence in favour of the viability for a micro-budget segment in the Australian film industry. Such a model could reduce the risk of Australia’s film industry collapsing if subsidies are reduced or abolished. Thus, this research has significant implications for Australia’s film industry and also contributes strongly to scholarship through providing crucial information on micro-budget films.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Owen, Richard
- Date: 2016
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: The film industry plays an important cultural and economic role in Australia. However, the film industry in Australia has struggled for many years under a subsidy-driven government intervention process that creates a high degree of dependence on a subsidy-centric model. Motion picture production costs worldwide have risen dramatically over the last decade with Hollywood production budgets commonly exceeding $100 million. Australia as a nation has a proven capability to produce respectable motion pictures at varying production budgets, although this capacity has become entrenched with taxpayers’ money. Historically, subsidy-driven industries in Australia trend towards collapse due primarily to cyclical fiscal deficits and changing funding imperatives at the Commonwealth level. As a PhD by exegesis, the focus of this research was to create, as well as evaluate, a new model of film production that would not be dependent on subsidies. This study evaluated a number of factors that were relevant to establishing a viable micro-budget model. Micro-budget films have received little research attention, with the focus being on major films. This research examined an alternative model, through the creation of a feature-length micro-budget film, called Stakes, and assessed it across a range of criterion to determine whether Australia’s film industry could be strengthened and potentially become self-sufficient. The resulting motion picture premièred in Australian cinemas on October 29th 2015. The justification, methods and results are discussed in detail throughout this exegesis providing strong evidence in favour of the viability for a micro-budget segment in the Australian film industry. Such a model could reduce the risk of Australia’s film industry collapsing if subsidies are reduced or abolished. Thus, this research has significant implications for Australia’s film industry and also contributes strongly to scholarship through providing crucial information on micro-budget films.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Canonical Duality Theory for Global Optimization problems and applications
- Chen, Yi
- Authors: Chen, Yi
- Date: 2015
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: The canonical duality theory is studied, through a discussion on a general global optimization problem and applications on fundamentally important problems. This general problem is a formulation of the minimization problem with inequality constraints, where the objective function and constraints are any convex or nonconvex functions satisfying certain decomposition conditions. It covers convex problems, mixed integer programming problems and many other nonlinear programming problems. The three main parts of the canonical duality theory are canonical dual transformation, complementary-dual principle and triality theory. The complementary-dual principle is further developed, which conventionally states that each critical point of the canonical dual problem is corresponding to a KKT point of the primal problem with their sharing the same function value. The new result emphasizes that there exists a one-to-one correspondence between KKT points of the dual problem and of the primal problem and each pair of the corresponding KKT points share the same function value, which implies that there is truly no duality gap between the canonical dual problem and the primal problem. The triality theory reveals insightful information about global and local solutions. It is shown that as long as the global optimality condition holds true, the primal problem is equivalent to a convex problem in the dual space, which can be solved efficiently by existing convex methods; even if the condition does not hold, the convex problem still provides a lower bound that is at least as good as that by the Lagrangian relaxation method. It is also shown that through examining the canonical dual problem, the hidden convexity of the primal problem is easily observable. The canonical duality theory is then applied to dealing with three fundamentally important problems. The first one is the spherically constrained quadratic problem, also referred to as the trust region subproblem. The canonical dual problem is onedimensional and it is proved that the primal problem, no matter with convex or nonconvex objective function, is equivalent to a convex problem in the dual space. Moreover, conditions are found which comprise the boundary that separates instances into “hard case” and “easy case”. A canonical primal-dual algorithm is developed, which is able to efficiently solve the problem, including the “hard case”, and can be used as a unified method for similar problems. The second one is the binary quadratic problem, a fundamental problem in discrete optimization. The discussion is focused on lower bounds and analytically solvable cases, which are obtained by analyzing the canonical dual problem with perturbation techniques. The third one is a general nonconvex problem with log-sum-exp functions and quartic polynomials. It arises widely in engineering science and it can be used to approximate nonsmooth optimization problems. The work shows that problems can still be efficiently solved, via the canonical duality approach, even if they are nonconvex and nonsmooth.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Chen, Yi
- Date: 2015
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: The canonical duality theory is studied, through a discussion on a general global optimization problem and applications on fundamentally important problems. This general problem is a formulation of the minimization problem with inequality constraints, where the objective function and constraints are any convex or nonconvex functions satisfying certain decomposition conditions. It covers convex problems, mixed integer programming problems and many other nonlinear programming problems. The three main parts of the canonical duality theory are canonical dual transformation, complementary-dual principle and triality theory. The complementary-dual principle is further developed, which conventionally states that each critical point of the canonical dual problem is corresponding to a KKT point of the primal problem with their sharing the same function value. The new result emphasizes that there exists a one-to-one correspondence between KKT points of the dual problem and of the primal problem and each pair of the corresponding KKT points share the same function value, which implies that there is truly no duality gap between the canonical dual problem and the primal problem. The triality theory reveals insightful information about global and local solutions. It is shown that as long as the global optimality condition holds true, the primal problem is equivalent to a convex problem in the dual space, which can be solved efficiently by existing convex methods; even if the condition does not hold, the convex problem still provides a lower bound that is at least as good as that by the Lagrangian relaxation method. It is also shown that through examining the canonical dual problem, the hidden convexity of the primal problem is easily observable. The canonical duality theory is then applied to dealing with three fundamentally important problems. The first one is the spherically constrained quadratic problem, also referred to as the trust region subproblem. The canonical dual problem is onedimensional and it is proved that the primal problem, no matter with convex or nonconvex objective function, is equivalent to a convex problem in the dual space. Moreover, conditions are found which comprise the boundary that separates instances into “hard case” and “easy case”. A canonical primal-dual algorithm is developed, which is able to efficiently solve the problem, including the “hard case”, and can be used as a unified method for similar problems. The second one is the binary quadratic problem, a fundamental problem in discrete optimization. The discussion is focused on lower bounds and analytically solvable cases, which are obtained by analyzing the canonical dual problem with perturbation techniques. The third one is a general nonconvex problem with log-sum-exp functions and quartic polynomials. It arises widely in engineering science and it can be used to approximate nonsmooth optimization problems. The work shows that problems can still be efficiently solved, via the canonical duality approach, even if they are nonconvex and nonsmooth.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Temporal and environmental influences on seed protein accumulation in soybean seeds
- Authors: Sykes, Geoffrey
- Date: 1991
- Type: Text , Thesis , Masters
- Full Text: false
- Description: Masters Degree of Applied Science
Development and evaluation of optimization based data mining techniques analysis of brain data
- Authors: Zarei, Mahdi
- Date: 2015
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Neuroscience is an interdisciplinary science which deals with the study of structure and function of the brain and nervous system. Neuroscience encompasses disciplines such as computer science, mathematics, engineering, and linguistics. The structure of the healthy brain and representation of information by neural activity are among most challenging problems in neuroscience. Neuroscience is experiencing exponentially growing volumes of data obtained by using different technologies. The investigation of such data has tremendous impact on developing new and improving existing models of both healthy and diseased brains. Various techniques have been used for collecting brain data sets for addressing neuroscience problems. These data sets can be categorized into two main groups: resting-state and state-dependent data sets. Resting-state data is based on recording the brain activity when a subject does not think about any specific concept while state-dependent data is based on recording brain activity related to specific tasks. In general, brain data sets contain a large number of features (e.g. tens of thousands) and significantly fewer samples (e.g. several hundred). Such data sets are sparse and noisy. In addition to these problems, brain data sets have a few number of subjects. Brains are very complex systems and data about any brain activity reflects very complex relationship between neurons as well as different parts of the brain. Such relationships are highly nonlinear and general purpose data mining algorithms are not always efficient for their study. The development of machine learning techniques for brain data sets is an emerging research area in neuroscience. Over the last decade, various machine learning techniques have been developed for application to brain data sets. In the meantime, some well-known algorithms such as feature selection and supervised classification have been modified for analysis of brain data sets. Support vector machines, logistic regression, and Gaussian Naive Bayes classifiers are widely used for application to brain data sets. However, Support vector machines and logistic regression algorithms are not efficient for sparse and noisy data sets and Gaussian Naive Bayes classifiers do not give high accuracy. The aim of this study is to develop new and modify the existing data mining algorithms for the analysis brain data sets. Our contribution in this thesis can be listed as follow: 1. Development of new algorithms: 1.1. Development of new voxel (feature) selection algorithms for Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data sets, and evaluation of these algorithms on the Haxby and Science 2008 data sets. 1.2. Development of new feature selection algorithm based on the catastrophe model for regression analysis problems. 2. Development and evaluation of different versions of the adaptive neuro-fuzzy model for the analysis of the spike-discharge as a function of other neuronal parameters. 3. Development and evaluation of the modified global k-means clustering algorithm for investigation of the structure of the healthy brain. 4. Development and evaluation of region of interest (ROI) method for analysis of brain functionalconnectivity in healthy subjects and schizophrenia patients.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Zarei, Mahdi
- Date: 2015
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Neuroscience is an interdisciplinary science which deals with the study of structure and function of the brain and nervous system. Neuroscience encompasses disciplines such as computer science, mathematics, engineering, and linguistics. The structure of the healthy brain and representation of information by neural activity are among most challenging problems in neuroscience. Neuroscience is experiencing exponentially growing volumes of data obtained by using different technologies. The investigation of such data has tremendous impact on developing new and improving existing models of both healthy and diseased brains. Various techniques have been used for collecting brain data sets for addressing neuroscience problems. These data sets can be categorized into two main groups: resting-state and state-dependent data sets. Resting-state data is based on recording the brain activity when a subject does not think about any specific concept while state-dependent data is based on recording brain activity related to specific tasks. In general, brain data sets contain a large number of features (e.g. tens of thousands) and significantly fewer samples (e.g. several hundred). Such data sets are sparse and noisy. In addition to these problems, brain data sets have a few number of subjects. Brains are very complex systems and data about any brain activity reflects very complex relationship between neurons as well as different parts of the brain. Such relationships are highly nonlinear and general purpose data mining algorithms are not always efficient for their study. The development of machine learning techniques for brain data sets is an emerging research area in neuroscience. Over the last decade, various machine learning techniques have been developed for application to brain data sets. In the meantime, some well-known algorithms such as feature selection and supervised classification have been modified for analysis of brain data sets. Support vector machines, logistic regression, and Gaussian Naive Bayes classifiers are widely used for application to brain data sets. However, Support vector machines and logistic regression algorithms are not efficient for sparse and noisy data sets and Gaussian Naive Bayes classifiers do not give high accuracy. The aim of this study is to develop new and modify the existing data mining algorithms for the analysis brain data sets. Our contribution in this thesis can be listed as follow: 1. Development of new algorithms: 1.1. Development of new voxel (feature) selection algorithms for Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data sets, and evaluation of these algorithms on the Haxby and Science 2008 data sets. 1.2. Development of new feature selection algorithm based on the catastrophe model for regression analysis problems. 2. Development and evaluation of different versions of the adaptive neuro-fuzzy model for the analysis of the spike-discharge as a function of other neuronal parameters. 3. Development and evaluation of the modified global k-means clustering algorithm for investigation of the structure of the healthy brain. 4. Development and evaluation of region of interest (ROI) method for analysis of brain functionalconnectivity in healthy subjects and schizophrenia patients.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Your stories, my stories, our stories : Power/knowledge relations and Koorie perspectives in discourses of Australian History Education
- Authors: Weuffen, Sara
- Date: 2017
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Over the past decade, popularised notions and approaches to the teaching and learning of Australia’s history have been overwhelmingly researched and written by non-Indigenous academics. This research challenges dominant non-Indigenous curriculum and research agendas by exploring how, why, and to what degree Koorie, and by extension Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives, are taken up for the development and implementation of school-based curriculum aligned to the Year Nine Australian Curriculum: History. The research is guided by Michel Foucault’s poststructural theory to examine a range of discourses identified by year nine history teachers and three Koorie Elders in Ballarat and Greater Shepparton. It is supplemented through Martin Nakata’s ground breaking work on Indigenous Standpoint Theory to acknowledge and highlight the cross-cultural/racial power/knowledge relations of peoples who are involved in the research. It is a timely response to the 2013 mandatory implementation of the Australian Curriculum: History in Victorian state schools. The research builds upon academic research (see Clark, 2006; Harrison & Greenfield, 2011; Mackinlay & Barney, 2011; 2014b) about how teachers may engage critically with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander specific content. It contributes significantly to a field of research that has not received much attention over the past eleven years. The research is a striking contribution to understandings of Australian cross-cultural/racial research and education practices. It argues that teachers are not necessarily insensitive to cross-cultural/racial relations operating in Australia; rather, that more rigorous and comprehensive teacher education programs are required for the integration of Koorie perspectives on Australian history. The research clearly demonstrates that stories from local Koorie communities offers up a wealth of knowledge that may be drawn upon to reform curriculum agendas towards shared-history understandings of Australia’s history. Ultimately, it advocates for a more nuanced and mature conversation about contemporary cross-cultural/racial education practices in Australia.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Weuffen, Sara
- Date: 2017
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Over the past decade, popularised notions and approaches to the teaching and learning of Australia’s history have been overwhelmingly researched and written by non-Indigenous academics. This research challenges dominant non-Indigenous curriculum and research agendas by exploring how, why, and to what degree Koorie, and by extension Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives, are taken up for the development and implementation of school-based curriculum aligned to the Year Nine Australian Curriculum: History. The research is guided by Michel Foucault’s poststructural theory to examine a range of discourses identified by year nine history teachers and three Koorie Elders in Ballarat and Greater Shepparton. It is supplemented through Martin Nakata’s ground breaking work on Indigenous Standpoint Theory to acknowledge and highlight the cross-cultural/racial power/knowledge relations of peoples who are involved in the research. It is a timely response to the 2013 mandatory implementation of the Australian Curriculum: History in Victorian state schools. The research builds upon academic research (see Clark, 2006; Harrison & Greenfield, 2011; Mackinlay & Barney, 2011; 2014b) about how teachers may engage critically with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander specific content. It contributes significantly to a field of research that has not received much attention over the past eleven years. The research is a striking contribution to understandings of Australian cross-cultural/racial research and education practices. It argues that teachers are not necessarily insensitive to cross-cultural/racial relations operating in Australia; rather, that more rigorous and comprehensive teacher education programs are required for the integration of Koorie perspectives on Australian history. The research clearly demonstrates that stories from local Koorie communities offers up a wealth of knowledge that may be drawn upon to reform curriculum agendas towards shared-history understandings of Australia’s history. Ultimately, it advocates for a more nuanced and mature conversation about contemporary cross-cultural/racial education practices in Australia.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Co-encapsulation of Omega-3 fatty acids and probiotic bacteria through complex coacervation
- Authors: Eratte, Divya
- Date: 2016
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: The research described in this thesis investigated the microencapsulation of omega-3 oil and probiotic bacteria together in a protein-polysaccharide complex coacervate matrix. The synergistic or competitive interactions between the probiotic bacteria and omega-3 fatty acids when packaged in a single microcapsule was determined including how best to utilise such interaction to achieve improved oxidative stability of omega-3 fatty acid and better survival of the probiotic bacteria. Encapsulation and co-encapsulation of tuna oil (O) and Lactobacillus casei 431 (P) as models of omega-3 and probiotic bacteria, respectively, were carried out and the works is described in this thesis in five distinct sections. (1) The optimisation of the complex coacervation process between whey protein isolate (WPI) and gum Arabic (GA). (2) Microencapsulation of tuna oil (O) in WPI-GA complex coacervates followed by spray and freeze drying to produce microcapsules (WPI-O-GA). (3) Microencapsulation of probiotic bacteria L. casei 431 (P) in WPI-GA complex coacervates followed by spray and freeze drying to produce microcapsules (WPI-P-GA). (4) Co-encapsulation of omega-3 oil and L. casei 431 together in WPI-GA coacervate matrix followed by spray and freeze drying to produce co-microcapsules (WPI-P-O-GA). (5) In-vitro digestion evaluation of co-microcapsules and microcapsules to indicate bioavailability. The viability of L. casei was significantly higher in WPI-P-O-GA co-microcapsules than in WPI-P-GA microcapsules in both spray and freeze dried microcapsules. The oxidative stability of tuna oil was significantly higher in spray dried co-capsules. Also, co-microencapsulation increased the survivability of L. casei during simulated digestion. There was no significant influence observed on the release properties of omega-3 oil due to co-microencapsulation. However, the total omega-3 fatty acids in the released oil during in-vitro digestion were found to be higher, when co-microencapsulated. Hence, co-microencapsulation was shown to protect the L. casei and deliver both viable cells and omega-3 oil to human intestine without any significant adverse effect on their functionality and properties.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Eratte, Divya
- Date: 2016
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: The research described in this thesis investigated the microencapsulation of omega-3 oil and probiotic bacteria together in a protein-polysaccharide complex coacervate matrix. The synergistic or competitive interactions between the probiotic bacteria and omega-3 fatty acids when packaged in a single microcapsule was determined including how best to utilise such interaction to achieve improved oxidative stability of omega-3 fatty acid and better survival of the probiotic bacteria. Encapsulation and co-encapsulation of tuna oil (O) and Lactobacillus casei 431 (P) as models of omega-3 and probiotic bacteria, respectively, were carried out and the works is described in this thesis in five distinct sections. (1) The optimisation of the complex coacervation process between whey protein isolate (WPI) and gum Arabic (GA). (2) Microencapsulation of tuna oil (O) in WPI-GA complex coacervates followed by spray and freeze drying to produce microcapsules (WPI-O-GA). (3) Microencapsulation of probiotic bacteria L. casei 431 (P) in WPI-GA complex coacervates followed by spray and freeze drying to produce microcapsules (WPI-P-GA). (4) Co-encapsulation of omega-3 oil and L. casei 431 together in WPI-GA coacervate matrix followed by spray and freeze drying to produce co-microcapsules (WPI-P-O-GA). (5) In-vitro digestion evaluation of co-microcapsules and microcapsules to indicate bioavailability. The viability of L. casei was significantly higher in WPI-P-O-GA co-microcapsules than in WPI-P-GA microcapsules in both spray and freeze dried microcapsules. The oxidative stability of tuna oil was significantly higher in spray dried co-capsules. Also, co-microencapsulation increased the survivability of L. casei during simulated digestion. There was no significant influence observed on the release properties of omega-3 oil due to co-microencapsulation. However, the total omega-3 fatty acids in the released oil during in-vitro digestion were found to be higher, when co-microencapsulated. Hence, co-microencapsulation was shown to protect the L. casei and deliver both viable cells and omega-3 oil to human intestine without any significant adverse effect on their functionality and properties.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Mitchell, Thomas
- Date: 1991
- Type: Text , Thesis , Masters
- Full Text: false
- Description: Masters Degree in Applied Science, Occupational Health and Safety
Between the public and personal voices : discourses and meanings of quality teaching in higher
- Authors: Crebbin, Wendy
- Date: 1999
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text: false
- Description: "This thesis is an analysis of the construction of, and contestation over, meanings about quality teaching in higher education in Ausralia, during the period 1992-1996."
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Crebbin, Wendy
- Date: 1999
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text: false
- Description: "This thesis is an analysis of the construction of, and contestation over, meanings about quality teaching in higher education in Ausralia, during the period 1992-1996."
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Never give up... : Perceptions of perseverance and its impact on the life and academic success of nine university students
- Authors: Griffiths, Katrina
- Date: 2017
- Type: Text , Thesis , Masters
- Full Text:
- Description: Perseverance is a quality which individuals draw on to achieve their goals, despite any challenges they may face, and so is one of the keys to academic and life success. Perseverance is considered to be a positive attribute that can be learned. In this study, how tertiary students understand perseverance, how they acquired it and its role in their lives and learning are explored. The research sample for the study consists of nine pre-service teachers from Initial Teacher Education (ITE) in regional Victoria, Australia. The researcher uses semi-structured interviews, and draws on educational and salutogenic theory and a qualitative methodology. The data has been analysed within the Ecological framework based on the work of McLeroy and colleagues (1988). In the introductory chapter the aims of the study are outlined, perseverance is defined and its significance as a character strength/ attribute is considered. The second chapter, the literature review, explores the extent to which perseverance, along with associated character strengths, has been identified as a significant factor that influences educational achievement and the ability to meet life’s challenges. The third chapter provides justification for applying a qualitative phenomenological methodology, with particular attention to describing both the salutogenic theoretical perspective and the Ecological Model (EM). The fourth chapter, the data analysis, identifies themes within the data and these are discussed with reference to the relationships between the EM layers. The fifth chapter offers the discussion, implications and conclusion of the study. The research findings indicate that all the participants defined perseverance as an attribute or character strength which they called on to overcome challenges and obstacles as they pursued their goals. They associated it with such qualities as persistence, motivation, commitment, focus, goal-setting and strength, amongst others. They recognized perseverance as integral to their academic success as well as to their ability to manage crises and challenges in their lives. They identified multiple contributors to their acquisition of perseverance, including family members, friends and some teachers. Many of the participants identified instances when they made a conscious decision to persevere, and viewed the experience as definitive in their growth as mature people. However, few of the participants considered the schools they attended to have played a significant role in developing their understanding of perseverance or of helping them acquire it, though they were appreciative of those teachers who gave them general support and encouragement. They recognized the importance of schools and teachers explicitly teaching perseverance and supporting its development through positive critique and feedback, and of students experiencing multiple opportunities for practising perseverance at the individual, family, school and policy levels. In educational practice, these conclusions suggest that further research into how best to implement these approaches across all schools would be invaluable.
- Description: Masters by Research
- Description: erseverance is a quality which individuals draw on to achieve their goals, despite any challenges they may face, and so is one of the keys to academic and life success. Perseverance is considered to be a positive attribute that can be learned. In this study, how tertiary students understand perseverance, how they acquired it and its role in their lives and learning are explored. The research sample for the study consists of nine pre-service teachers from Initial Teacher Education (ITE) in regional Victoria, Australia. The researcher uses semi-structured interviews, and draws on educational and salutogenic theory and a qualitative methodology. The data has been analysed within the Ecological framework based on the work of McLeroy and colleagues (1988). In the introductory chapter the aims of the study are outlined, perseverance is defined and its significance as a character strength/ attribute is considered. The second chapter, the literature review, explores the extent to which perseverance, along with associated character strengths, has been identified as a significant factor that influences educational achievement and the ability to meet life’s challenges. The third chapter provides justification for applying a qualitative phenomenological methodology, with particular attention to describing both the salutogenic theoretical perspective and the Ecological Model (EM). The fourth chapter, the data analysis, identifies themes within the data and these are discussed with reference to the relationships between the EM layers. The fifth chapter offers the discussion, implications and conclusion of the study. The research findings indicate that all the participants defined perseverance as an attribute or character strength which they called on to overcome challenges and obstacles as they pursued their goals. They associated it with such qualities as persistence, motivation, commitment, focus, goal-setting and strength, amongst others. They recognized perseverance as integral to their academic success as well as to their ability to manage crises and challenges in their lives. They identified multiple contributors to their acquisition of perseverance, including family members, friends and some teachers. Many of the participants identified instances when they made a conscious decision to persevere, and viewed the experience as definitive in their growth as mature people. However, few of the participants considered the schools they attended to have played a significant role in developing their understanding of perseverance or of helping them acquire it, though they were appreciative of those teachers who gave them general support and encouragement. They recognized the importance of schools and teachers explicitly teaching perseverance and supporting its development through positive critique and feedback, and of students experiencing multiple opportunities for practising perseverance at the individual, family, school and policy levels. In educational practice, these conclusions suggest that further research into how best to implement these approaches across all schools would be invaluable.
- Authors: Griffiths, Katrina
- Date: 2017
- Type: Text , Thesis , Masters
- Full Text:
- Description: Perseverance is a quality which individuals draw on to achieve their goals, despite any challenges they may face, and so is one of the keys to academic and life success. Perseverance is considered to be a positive attribute that can be learned. In this study, how tertiary students understand perseverance, how they acquired it and its role in their lives and learning are explored. The research sample for the study consists of nine pre-service teachers from Initial Teacher Education (ITE) in regional Victoria, Australia. The researcher uses semi-structured interviews, and draws on educational and salutogenic theory and a qualitative methodology. The data has been analysed within the Ecological framework based on the work of McLeroy and colleagues (1988). In the introductory chapter the aims of the study are outlined, perseverance is defined and its significance as a character strength/ attribute is considered. The second chapter, the literature review, explores the extent to which perseverance, along with associated character strengths, has been identified as a significant factor that influences educational achievement and the ability to meet life’s challenges. The third chapter provides justification for applying a qualitative phenomenological methodology, with particular attention to describing both the salutogenic theoretical perspective and the Ecological Model (EM). The fourth chapter, the data analysis, identifies themes within the data and these are discussed with reference to the relationships between the EM layers. The fifth chapter offers the discussion, implications and conclusion of the study. The research findings indicate that all the participants defined perseverance as an attribute or character strength which they called on to overcome challenges and obstacles as they pursued their goals. They associated it with such qualities as persistence, motivation, commitment, focus, goal-setting and strength, amongst others. They recognized perseverance as integral to their academic success as well as to their ability to manage crises and challenges in their lives. They identified multiple contributors to their acquisition of perseverance, including family members, friends and some teachers. Many of the participants identified instances when they made a conscious decision to persevere, and viewed the experience as definitive in their growth as mature people. However, few of the participants considered the schools they attended to have played a significant role in developing their understanding of perseverance or of helping them acquire it, though they were appreciative of those teachers who gave them general support and encouragement. They recognized the importance of schools and teachers explicitly teaching perseverance and supporting its development through positive critique and feedback, and of students experiencing multiple opportunities for practising perseverance at the individual, family, school and policy levels. In educational practice, these conclusions suggest that further research into how best to implement these approaches across all schools would be invaluable.
- Description: Masters by Research
- Description: erseverance is a quality which individuals draw on to achieve their goals, despite any challenges they may face, and so is one of the keys to academic and life success. Perseverance is considered to be a positive attribute that can be learned. In this study, how tertiary students understand perseverance, how they acquired it and its role in their lives and learning are explored. The research sample for the study consists of nine pre-service teachers from Initial Teacher Education (ITE) in regional Victoria, Australia. The researcher uses semi-structured interviews, and draws on educational and salutogenic theory and a qualitative methodology. The data has been analysed within the Ecological framework based on the work of McLeroy and colleagues (1988). In the introductory chapter the aims of the study are outlined, perseverance is defined and its significance as a character strength/ attribute is considered. The second chapter, the literature review, explores the extent to which perseverance, along with associated character strengths, has been identified as a significant factor that influences educational achievement and the ability to meet life’s challenges. The third chapter provides justification for applying a qualitative phenomenological methodology, with particular attention to describing both the salutogenic theoretical perspective and the Ecological Model (EM). The fourth chapter, the data analysis, identifies themes within the data and these are discussed with reference to the relationships between the EM layers. The fifth chapter offers the discussion, implications and conclusion of the study. The research findings indicate that all the participants defined perseverance as an attribute or character strength which they called on to overcome challenges and obstacles as they pursued their goals. They associated it with such qualities as persistence, motivation, commitment, focus, goal-setting and strength, amongst others. They recognized perseverance as integral to their academic success as well as to their ability to manage crises and challenges in their lives. They identified multiple contributors to their acquisition of perseverance, including family members, friends and some teachers. Many of the participants identified instances when they made a conscious decision to persevere, and viewed the experience as definitive in their growth as mature people. However, few of the participants considered the schools they attended to have played a significant role in developing their understanding of perseverance or of helping them acquire it, though they were appreciative of those teachers who gave them general support and encouragement. They recognized the importance of schools and teachers explicitly teaching perseverance and supporting its development through positive critique and feedback, and of students experiencing multiple opportunities for practising perseverance at the individual, family, school and policy levels. In educational practice, these conclusions suggest that further research into how best to implement these approaches across all schools would be invaluable.
Using narrative strategies in contemporary figurative painting
- Authors: Coutts, Maryanne
- Date: 1999
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text: false
- Description: "This project applies an analysis of narrative, its elements, strategies and devices to figurative painting within the practical project of producing visual narrative fiction."
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Innate-like T cells in patients with cancer
- Authors: Minoda, Yosuke
- Date: 2017
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Innate-like T cells, including invariant natural killer T (NKT), mucosal associated invariant T (MAIT) cells or g T cells are associated with regulation of anti-tumour responses in humans and mice, although their exact role remains controversial. We have studied innate-like T cells from tumour infiltrating lymphocytes (TILS), peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and bone marrow (BM) derived cells from patients undergoing treatment for cancer and compared their characteristics to cells from healthy donors. We identifed that the overall frequency of innate-like T cells was variably deficient in patients with blood or solid cancers. Interestingly, the deficiency of innate-like T cells appeared to be more severe than that of other T cells suggesting a specific impact. An increased proportion of activated g T cells and MAIT cells suggested they could have a functional role in responses to cancer cells. Despite the deficiency of these subsets in patient tissue samples, we showed that anti-tumour capacity of innate-like T cells was intact as innate-like T cells in most patient groups had a similar cytokine response to stimulation as cells from healthy donors. Finally, we also showed that innate-like T cells appeared not to broadly recognize cancer cells, as no direct impact was identified in their overall frequency or cytokine expression when exposed to autologous tumour cells, cancer lysates or lipids extracted from patient tumours, or colorectal cancer cell lines. This project was aimed at providing an overview of potential defects in innate-like T cells based on my analysis of a wide range of samples in the Fiona Elsey Cancer Research Institute (FECRI) Tissue Bank. As a result of my studies, we have established a clear understanding of innate cells in cancer, which provides a basis for future studies. Our novel findings include analysis of frequency distribution and functional capacity of MAIT cells in solid tumours other than colorectal cancer and in patients with blood cancers such as chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL), non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL), multiple myeloma (MM) or other haematological malignancies, something not previously reported. Taken together, we showed that a deficiency of innate-like T cells is common in patient groups with cancer and could be a risk factor for disease and possibly a target for immunotherapies, but the functional capacity was intact for cytokine responses.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Description: Innate-like T cells, including invariant natural killer T (NKT), mucosal associated invariant T (MAIT) cells or
- Authors: Minoda, Yosuke
- Date: 2017
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Innate-like T cells, including invariant natural killer T (NKT), mucosal associated invariant T (MAIT) cells or g T cells are associated with regulation of anti-tumour responses in humans and mice, although their exact role remains controversial. We have studied innate-like T cells from tumour infiltrating lymphocytes (TILS), peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and bone marrow (BM) derived cells from patients undergoing treatment for cancer and compared their characteristics to cells from healthy donors. We identifed that the overall frequency of innate-like T cells was variably deficient in patients with blood or solid cancers. Interestingly, the deficiency of innate-like T cells appeared to be more severe than that of other T cells suggesting a specific impact. An increased proportion of activated g T cells and MAIT cells suggested they could have a functional role in responses to cancer cells. Despite the deficiency of these subsets in patient tissue samples, we showed that anti-tumour capacity of innate-like T cells was intact as innate-like T cells in most patient groups had a similar cytokine response to stimulation as cells from healthy donors. Finally, we also showed that innate-like T cells appeared not to broadly recognize cancer cells, as no direct impact was identified in their overall frequency or cytokine expression when exposed to autologous tumour cells, cancer lysates or lipids extracted from patient tumours, or colorectal cancer cell lines. This project was aimed at providing an overview of potential defects in innate-like T cells based on my analysis of a wide range of samples in the Fiona Elsey Cancer Research Institute (FECRI) Tissue Bank. As a result of my studies, we have established a clear understanding of innate cells in cancer, which provides a basis for future studies. Our novel findings include analysis of frequency distribution and functional capacity of MAIT cells in solid tumours other than colorectal cancer and in patients with blood cancers such as chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL), non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL), multiple myeloma (MM) or other haematological malignancies, something not previously reported. Taken together, we showed that a deficiency of innate-like T cells is common in patient groups with cancer and could be a risk factor for disease and possibly a target for immunotherapies, but the functional capacity was intact for cytokine responses.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Description: Innate-like T cells, including invariant natural killer T (NKT), mucosal associated invariant T (MAIT) cells or
Dr Fanny Reading : 'A clever little bird'
- Authors: Debney-Joyce, Jeanette
- Date: 2016
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: This thesis is the biographical study of the ‘transnational’ life of Dr. Fanny Reading (1884-1974). Dr Reading came to live in the Ballarat area c. 1888 when she was four years old. Originally she was born in Karelitz near Minsk, Russia as Zipporah Rubinovitch. The thesis tells the story of her transformation and also the story of her family members because they were a close-knit orthodox Jewish family. Reading’s biography is of a migrant woman who belonged to a persecuted minority group, and who through force of character rose above the challenging circumstances of her birth. It serves to redress the fact that historically she has been overlooked. It confirms that at a grassroots level she mobilised the Jewish women of Australia and was a significant Jewish leader. As a transnational figure of considerable stature, Reading’s biography contains themes of place, class, gender, ethnicity and diaspora that are woven throughout the thesis. It covers her early childhood and adolescence in Ballarat, then her move to Melbourne early in the twentieth century where she became involved in Jewish youth activities and taught Hebrew at the St Kilda Jewish Congregation. The family name was changed to Reading about 1919. Reading entered the University of Melbourne firstly to study music and then medicine (M.B., B.S.1922.) After graduation, she went into general practice with her eldest brother, who was also a doctor, in Sydney. Inspired by a Zionist emissary Bella Pevsner, Reading founded the Council of Jewish Women in 1923. This organisation became the National Council of Jewish Women in 1929. Reading had a keen interest in the health and education of women and girls, the Hebrew language and Israel. She was held in high regard in both the Jewish and non-Jewish communities and received an MBE in 1961.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Debney-Joyce, Jeanette
- Date: 2016
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: This thesis is the biographical study of the ‘transnational’ life of Dr. Fanny Reading (1884-1974). Dr Reading came to live in the Ballarat area c. 1888 when she was four years old. Originally she was born in Karelitz near Minsk, Russia as Zipporah Rubinovitch. The thesis tells the story of her transformation and also the story of her family members because they were a close-knit orthodox Jewish family. Reading’s biography is of a migrant woman who belonged to a persecuted minority group, and who through force of character rose above the challenging circumstances of her birth. It serves to redress the fact that historically she has been overlooked. It confirms that at a grassroots level she mobilised the Jewish women of Australia and was a significant Jewish leader. As a transnational figure of considerable stature, Reading’s biography contains themes of place, class, gender, ethnicity and diaspora that are woven throughout the thesis. It covers her early childhood and adolescence in Ballarat, then her move to Melbourne early in the twentieth century where she became involved in Jewish youth activities and taught Hebrew at the St Kilda Jewish Congregation. The family name was changed to Reading about 1919. Reading entered the University of Melbourne firstly to study music and then medicine (M.B., B.S.1922.) After graduation, she went into general practice with her eldest brother, who was also a doctor, in Sydney. Inspired by a Zionist emissary Bella Pevsner, Reading founded the Council of Jewish Women in 1923. This organisation became the National Council of Jewish Women in 1929. Reading had a keen interest in the health and education of women and girls, the Hebrew language and Israel. She was held in high regard in both the Jewish and non-Jewish communities and received an MBE in 1961.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Kemo Sabe : Tonto as a developing construction of the Indian character type
- Authors: Moll, Nicholas
- Date: 2014
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: At the opening of each episode of The Lone Ranger radio series, audiences are invited to “return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear”. From 1933 through to 2013 productions of The Lone Ranger media franchise have continued to extend this invitation. The evocation of the past through The Lone Ranger franchise includes Tonto: the masked man’s Indian sidekick. Tonto has remained an element of the franchise since the inception of The Lone Ranger and the development of Tonto presents an intriguing map of changing Indian characterization across the twentieth-century. This study argues that Tonto has developed as the masked man’s foil to incorporate colonial violence and Anglo-American culpability into The Lone Ranger narratives. In doing so, this thesis notes that Tonto’s assimilation within narratives of The Lone Ranger can be read like a parable, presenting a model of appropriate social responses for the interrelation of races through the masked man and Tonto’s partnership. The structure and style of Tonto’s assimilation develops gradually in the franchise over the course of the twentieth-century. Initially Tonto’s assimilation suggested a Romanticized future for the Indian following colonization. However, later productions of The Lone Ranger juxtapose assimilation with extermination. In analysing the development of Tonto, this thesis examines six features of the character. The first three are foundation concepts consisting of the idea of the Indian, the Western genre and franchise theory and development. The second three are constant facets of characterization comprised of Tonto’s status as an Indian, the recurring theme of Manifest Destiny in The Lone Ranger texts, and the growth of Tonto parallel to activism of the 1960s and 1970s. This thesis contributes to knowledge as the first study of Tonto as an ongoing development rather than a static characterization discussed in broad terms.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Moll, Nicholas
- Date: 2014
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: At the opening of each episode of The Lone Ranger radio series, audiences are invited to “return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear”. From 1933 through to 2013 productions of The Lone Ranger media franchise have continued to extend this invitation. The evocation of the past through The Lone Ranger franchise includes Tonto: the masked man’s Indian sidekick. Tonto has remained an element of the franchise since the inception of The Lone Ranger and the development of Tonto presents an intriguing map of changing Indian characterization across the twentieth-century. This study argues that Tonto has developed as the masked man’s foil to incorporate colonial violence and Anglo-American culpability into The Lone Ranger narratives. In doing so, this thesis notes that Tonto’s assimilation within narratives of The Lone Ranger can be read like a parable, presenting a model of appropriate social responses for the interrelation of races through the masked man and Tonto’s partnership. The structure and style of Tonto’s assimilation develops gradually in the franchise over the course of the twentieth-century. Initially Tonto’s assimilation suggested a Romanticized future for the Indian following colonization. However, later productions of The Lone Ranger juxtapose assimilation with extermination. In analysing the development of Tonto, this thesis examines six features of the character. The first three are foundation concepts consisting of the idea of the Indian, the Western genre and franchise theory and development. The second three are constant facets of characterization comprised of Tonto’s status as an Indian, the recurring theme of Manifest Destiny in The Lone Ranger texts, and the growth of Tonto parallel to activism of the 1960s and 1970s. This thesis contributes to knowledge as the first study of Tonto as an ongoing development rather than a static characterization discussed in broad terms.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Excessive exercise, health, fitness and body projects : a case study approach
- Authors: Hoskin, Deborah
- Date: 1998
- Type: Text , Thesis , Masters
- Full Text: false
- Description: The purpose of this investigation was to study how individuals internalise the health and fitness ethic and to consider how this ethic is expressed in individuals' exercise regimes. Consideration is given to what causes individuals to exercise in this manner and what impact it has on their embodiment.
Intelligent sewer blockage detection system using Internet of Things
- Authors: Buurman, Benjamin
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Thesis , Masters
- Full Text:
- Description: Despite being a common issue in both developed and developing countries, wastewater blockages have severe potential consequences. Blockages can be located at sewer mains or individual properties and can also be classified as partial or full. Full blockages completely obstruct a wastewater asset, and partial blockages will often develop into full blockages if left unattended. Currently, blockages are managed by routine manual inspections to wastewater assets on a round-robin schedule. This is highly inefficient and costly, as blockages that form between these inspections and progress to effluent breaches will go undetected. In this thesis we present an Internet of Things (IoT) solution capable of simultaneously monitoring an entire wastewater infrastructure for blockages while still remaining inexpensive, reliable, and practical. Wireless motes use float switch sensors to detect blockages and transmit this to a central system using either LoRa or Wi-Fi communications. Making both LoRa and Wi-Fi available ensures the system can be adapted in any situation across a variety of geographic and economic restrictions. The central system determines whether a surcharge is caused by a blockage or simply the result of regular activity not requiring intervention. Detection of false positives is critical, as deployment of field technicians is an expensive process that moves resources from other skilled work. If a surcharge is determined to be caused by a blockage, the central system will classify it as full or partial before estimating the property or length of main between properties it is located at. Following this, relevant parties will be notified so field technicians can be deployed to resolve the blockage. We performed both practical laboratory testing and simulation modelling on our proposed system, and confirmed it is indeed capable of detecting, classifying, and locating blockages across a wide urban area. Our choice of hardware, software and network equipment ensures that the proposed IoT-based solution is inexpensive, workable, and easily deployable.
- Description: Masters by Research
- Authors: Buurman, Benjamin
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Thesis , Masters
- Full Text:
- Description: Despite being a common issue in both developed and developing countries, wastewater blockages have severe potential consequences. Blockages can be located at sewer mains or individual properties and can also be classified as partial or full. Full blockages completely obstruct a wastewater asset, and partial blockages will often develop into full blockages if left unattended. Currently, blockages are managed by routine manual inspections to wastewater assets on a round-robin schedule. This is highly inefficient and costly, as blockages that form between these inspections and progress to effluent breaches will go undetected. In this thesis we present an Internet of Things (IoT) solution capable of simultaneously monitoring an entire wastewater infrastructure for blockages while still remaining inexpensive, reliable, and practical. Wireless motes use float switch sensors to detect blockages and transmit this to a central system using either LoRa or Wi-Fi communications. Making both LoRa and Wi-Fi available ensures the system can be adapted in any situation across a variety of geographic and economic restrictions. The central system determines whether a surcharge is caused by a blockage or simply the result of regular activity not requiring intervention. Detection of false positives is critical, as deployment of field technicians is an expensive process that moves resources from other skilled work. If a surcharge is determined to be caused by a blockage, the central system will classify it as full or partial before estimating the property or length of main between properties it is located at. Following this, relevant parties will be notified so field technicians can be deployed to resolve the blockage. We performed both practical laboratory testing and simulation modelling on our proposed system, and confirmed it is indeed capable of detecting, classifying, and locating blockages across a wide urban area. Our choice of hardware, software and network equipment ensures that the proposed IoT-based solution is inexpensive, workable, and easily deployable.
- Description: Masters by Research
A hand made wood object : Studio investigation into transformed nature
- Authors: Rein, Jeannette
- Date: 2016
- Type: Text , Thesis , Masters
- Full Text:
- Description: This research explores the importance of retaining traditional hand skills in terms of their relevance to contemporary and future art practice. I examine the hand made and the process of transforming timber into a wooden sculptural form. I investigate how the artist thinks with the material, and how this process gives the artist the ‘sight’ to identify new and original possibilities. Furthermore, I explore how the transformative approach perpetuates new knowledge, and how skills are modified and adapted to suit the changes. I describe this as a dialogic process. The research examines the correlation between the transformative process and the hand made object, the imprint of the maker and how their memories of the processes used, remain embedded in the object. In addition, this research investigates the transformation processes used in creating an object, to provide individualisation within our highly mechanised world, while providing a bridge connecting the past and the future. Through the examination of traditional hand skills, I demonstrate how such skills provide an anchor, a standard of quality and artisanship that connects artists from traditional wood practice, through contemporary praxis, to hand made digital art. My research focuses on the transformation process and traditional hand skills, the vital role they play in the creation of digital hand made objects; as digital processes utilize new materials, processes and machinery that interfaces with traditional analogue tools.
- Description: Masters by Research
- Authors: Rein, Jeannette
- Date: 2016
- Type: Text , Thesis , Masters
- Full Text:
- Description: This research explores the importance of retaining traditional hand skills in terms of their relevance to contemporary and future art practice. I examine the hand made and the process of transforming timber into a wooden sculptural form. I investigate how the artist thinks with the material, and how this process gives the artist the ‘sight’ to identify new and original possibilities. Furthermore, I explore how the transformative approach perpetuates new knowledge, and how skills are modified and adapted to suit the changes. I describe this as a dialogic process. The research examines the correlation between the transformative process and the hand made object, the imprint of the maker and how their memories of the processes used, remain embedded in the object. In addition, this research investigates the transformation processes used in creating an object, to provide individualisation within our highly mechanised world, while providing a bridge connecting the past and the future. Through the examination of traditional hand skills, I demonstrate how such skills provide an anchor, a standard of quality and artisanship that connects artists from traditional wood practice, through contemporary praxis, to hand made digital art. My research focuses on the transformation process and traditional hand skills, the vital role they play in the creation of digital hand made objects; as digital processes utilize new materials, processes and machinery that interfaces with traditional analogue tools.
- Description: Masters by Research
Firm growth by women-owned Small and Medium Enterprises in a developing economy setting
- Authors: Jomaraty, Mosfeka
- Date: 2015
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: The growth experiences of women-owned Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the context of a developing economy are examined through the lens of pragmatism. This approach views a businesswoman’s ‘belief’, ‘habit’ and ‘doubt’ as critical for researching gender related issues in entrepreneurship. This study explains the growth aspects of women-owned manufacturing and services SMEs of Bangladesh with the aim of addressing two neglected research issues. One is the scarcity of studies on growth oriented women entrepreneurs in developing countries. The other is the lack of focus on very successful high-growth women-owned firms in the context of a strong male-dominated economy. This study adopts a framework developed out of the Diana International Project to evaluate the factors influencing the growth of these successful, growing, Bangladeshi women-owned businesses. In order to evaluate the growth process itself, this framework was then modified with growth resources and actions as explained by Edith Penrose in her 1959 seminal book The Theory of Growth of the Firm. This allows for the investigation of the effects of managerial and entrepreneurial abilities in growth, and the identification of how firms achieve growth. A multiple-case design is adopted, covering sixteen successful growth-oriented firms in the manufacturing and services sector. SMEs were studied as the basis for firm growth from initial venture creation, while the sector concentration on manufacturing and services reflects the urban nature of the study in examining firms that exist in the capital city of Dhaka. Data from in-depth interviews and supporting documents were used for the case studies and integrated with the theoretical framework. Themes were categorised and patterns compared against the framework. The results of this research suggest that SME growth is a process which is gradual and iterative, comprising a series of growth strategies and approaches. The framework identifies interactive connection between different growth variables and highlights how industry sector and the national context of a growing economy facilitate growth of women-owned SMEs. The case study based research seeks to advance scholarship in relation to women’s entrepreneurship globally and contribute to the understanding of growth oriented women’s entrepreneurship. Building upon existing knowledge, this research endeavours to generate new insights and advance theoretical discourse by providing richness and subtlety to the knowledge of growth process and opening up new avenues for future research.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Jomaraty, Mosfeka
- Date: 2015
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: The growth experiences of women-owned Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the context of a developing economy are examined through the lens of pragmatism. This approach views a businesswoman’s ‘belief’, ‘habit’ and ‘doubt’ as critical for researching gender related issues in entrepreneurship. This study explains the growth aspects of women-owned manufacturing and services SMEs of Bangladesh with the aim of addressing two neglected research issues. One is the scarcity of studies on growth oriented women entrepreneurs in developing countries. The other is the lack of focus on very successful high-growth women-owned firms in the context of a strong male-dominated economy. This study adopts a framework developed out of the Diana International Project to evaluate the factors influencing the growth of these successful, growing, Bangladeshi women-owned businesses. In order to evaluate the growth process itself, this framework was then modified with growth resources and actions as explained by Edith Penrose in her 1959 seminal book The Theory of Growth of the Firm. This allows for the investigation of the effects of managerial and entrepreneurial abilities in growth, and the identification of how firms achieve growth. A multiple-case design is adopted, covering sixteen successful growth-oriented firms in the manufacturing and services sector. SMEs were studied as the basis for firm growth from initial venture creation, while the sector concentration on manufacturing and services reflects the urban nature of the study in examining firms that exist in the capital city of Dhaka. Data from in-depth interviews and supporting documents were used for the case studies and integrated with the theoretical framework. Themes were categorised and patterns compared against the framework. The results of this research suggest that SME growth is a process which is gradual and iterative, comprising a series of growth strategies and approaches. The framework identifies interactive connection between different growth variables and highlights how industry sector and the national context of a growing economy facilitate growth of women-owned SMEs. The case study based research seeks to advance scholarship in relation to women’s entrepreneurship globally and contribute to the understanding of growth oriented women’s entrepreneurship. Building upon existing knowledge, this research endeavours to generate new insights and advance theoretical discourse by providing richness and subtlety to the knowledge of growth process and opening up new avenues for future research.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Exotic fish impacts on lake community structure and function in Western Victoria, Australia
- Authors: Khan, Tariq
- Date: 2002
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: The researcher investigated a number of closed catchment lakes in western Victoria that have been stocked with exotic fish. Exotic-native fish interactions were studied and the potential of the exotic species to affect the lake ecosystem structure was explored.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Authors: Khan, Tariq
- Date: 2002
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: The researcher investigated a number of closed catchment lakes in western Victoria that have been stocked with exotic fish. Exotic-native fish interactions were studied and the potential of the exotic species to affect the lake ecosystem structure was explored.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
The cultural interactions of Aborigines with Whales, Whalers and Whaling in southwest Victoria 1828-1850
- Authors: Eldridge, Richard
- Date: 2015
- Type: Text , Thesis , Masters
- Full Text:
- Description: The primary aim of this thesis is to reconstruct the history of Aboriginal cultural associations with whales and whaling in southwest Victoria in the nineteenth century. Despite there being a considerable corpus of information about Aboriginal peoples and whaling in southeast South Australia and southern New South Wales, there is a relative poverty of information on southwest Victoria. One of the primary objectives of this thesis is to offer explanations for this absence of information. Through an analysis of the Convincing Ground massacre that is believed to have taken place in the early period of whaling at Portland Bay, it will be argued that the violence characterised by this event fundamentally transformed race relations at Portland to such an extent that Aboriginal people avoided interaction with whalers. The rationale for this research is twofold: first to contribute to the history of frontier relations in Victoria; second, to reconstruct from archival sources the cultural and economic associations between Victorian Aboriginal people and whalers.
- Description: Master of Business (Research)
- Authors: Eldridge, Richard
- Date: 2015
- Type: Text , Thesis , Masters
- Full Text:
- Description: The primary aim of this thesis is to reconstruct the history of Aboriginal cultural associations with whales and whaling in southwest Victoria in the nineteenth century. Despite there being a considerable corpus of information about Aboriginal peoples and whaling in southeast South Australia and southern New South Wales, there is a relative poverty of information on southwest Victoria. One of the primary objectives of this thesis is to offer explanations for this absence of information. Through an analysis of the Convincing Ground massacre that is believed to have taken place in the early period of whaling at Portland Bay, it will be argued that the violence characterised by this event fundamentally transformed race relations at Portland to such an extent that Aboriginal people avoided interaction with whalers. The rationale for this research is twofold: first to contribute to the history of frontier relations in Victoria; second, to reconstruct from archival sources the cultural and economic associations between Victorian Aboriginal people and whalers.
- Description: Master of Business (Research)