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This thesis explored attachment-based formulations and interventions. It is comprised of three papers: 1) a systematic literature review, 2) an empirical study and 3) a critical appraisal of the research process. The systematic review (Paper 1) investigated which manualised attachment-based interventions were effective for improving the caregiver-infant relationship from conception to two years. The review involved two stages: Stage 1 identified manualised attachment-based interventions and Stage 2 reviewed the evidence-base for each included intervention. Twenty-five interventions were included, eligible evidence was identified for 16 interventions and 36 studies were synthesised. Findings demonstrated that there was some empirical evidence to support that the 16 manualised attachment-based interventions improved caregiver-infant relational outcomes. Stronger evidence was determined for three interventions. However more high-quality research evidence was needed before firm conclusions could be made. In light of the review findings, recommendations were made to improve future research quality and build on intervention efficacy. The empirical study (Paper 2) is a qualitative study that aimed to explore biological parents experiences when they were informed by a clinical or related service that their child was considered to have attachment-related difficulties. Sixteen semi-structured interviews were conducted and transcripts were analysed using a grounded theory approach. Findings revealed four superordinate themes from the data including 1) failing as a parent, 2) the process of making sense, 3) a call to action and 4) attachment awareness and interrelated difficulties. Shame was found to be the core concept that was central and interrelated with each of these themes. These findings were combined to develop a grounded theory of the parental journey from shame into awareness. Findings were discussed in relation to existing literature and clinical recommendations made on how healthcare professionals could support parents' emotional reactions and facilitate their attachment-related understanding and engagement with help and support. The critical appraisal (Paper 3) provides a reflection of the research process. The rationale and justifications for decisions and choices made, challenges faced, skills gained and how this process will contribute towards future professional practice are discussed.

Alpha radiation detector technology lags behind gamma and beta due to difficulties presented by the short travel of alpha particles in environments complicated by mixed radiation fields, complex geometries, areas of high dose, and limited operator access. Yet, it is vital in nuclear decommissioning, safety and security operations. Recent developments focus on alpha-induced radioluminescence as a mechanism for long-range alpha detection. Detection in the 300-400 nm wavelength range has been achieved in special lighting conditions, but interference from background light hampers detection in daylight. This thesis looks at the viability of detecting ultraviolet C (UVC, 180 - 280 nm) radioluminescence photons, focusing on characterising a flame sensor (UVTRON, Hamamatsu) sensitive to photons only in this wavelength range. UVC is already used in the detection of fires and corona discharge as Earth's atmosphere absorbs UVC from the sun and artificial lighting does not produce UVC. UVC radioluminescence from a 6.95 MBq 210Po sample was detected in normal lighting conditions using the UVTRON, with very low background counts found in all environments. As the UVC radioluminescence signal is small, gas flows of Ar, Xe, Ne, N2, Kr and P10 were directed over the 210Po sample to enhance radioluminescence with positive effect. In one instance Xe doubled the count in relation to an air atmosphere. Tests showed that the UVTRON reacts to the presence of gamma and beta radiation. However, it may be possible to identify alpha radioluminescence by separating the gamma and UVC parts of the signal. Research presented herein shows it is possible to use a UVC flame sensor to detect alpha radiation through radioluminescence, and therefore an approach which uses the UVC portion of the radioluminescence spectrum may be successful in the development of a stand-off alpha detector, which would overcome many of the difficulties affecting traditional alpha detection methods.

Much of the literature on pupils' engagement with science is founded on an assumption that interest in science is a personal characteristic, which is 'sparked' by activities that hold particular fascination for the learner. In contrast, this thesis develops a practice theory of interest in science, which adopts a sociocultural view and holds that children's interests are enacted as part of their developing identities at home and school. Building on Holland et al.'s (1998) concept of 'identity in practice' and González, et al.'s (2006) 'funds of knowledge', a practice theory of interest maintains that children's interests cannot be studied in isolation from their fluid and constantly forming identities, and are situated in a social, cultural and historical context. Such interests and identities are positional, and are often developed and enacted in accordance with major structural divisions in society. Interests also emerge in response to discourses, in the context of the cultural worlds in which we engage. Viewing science interest in these terms has particular methodological implications, and this study utilises the Mosaic approach (Clark and Moss, 2011), a multi-methods data generation technique designed to listen to children's perspectives on their lives, which acknowledges adults and children as co-constructors of knowledge and understanding. In a study spanning two years, I generated data with eight children in their first years at school, from ages 5 to 7. Using the lens of a practice theory of interest in order to recognise and explore the social situatedness of children's relationship with science, this study examines the symbolic meaning of their interests and the cultural signs and tools they use to story themselves, and how they are storied by others. The findings indicate that children's science interests are deeply embedded in family and school practices, and that children express interest in specific aspects of science, which are noticed (and encouraged) by parents, but less so by school staff. It concludes that the format of school appears to be constraining, so that certain stories cannot be told, this has implications for practice.

Preparing for the operational environment is a fundamental principle of military doctrine. This thesis looks at current and historical military practice and aims to determine future training initiatives to help better prepare the soldier for conflict conditions. Whilst the future of military conflict will always be determined by politics, the potential reaction time can be very short, so we must be in a position of continuous training for operations, with optimum ramp up opportunities for readiness. During operations in Afghanistan the campaign Formation Operational Readiness Mechanism (FORM) Fitness Doctrine (CFFD) provided guidance for the physical preparation of all ranks, tailored to the specific requirements for Operation HERRICK. Building on the success of CFFD, we must re-analyse our physical preparation for operations philosophies to align them with the requirements of contingency. Whilst the exact physical requirements for future operations are inherently unknown, it is essential that we derive appropriate physical training (PT) philosophies and methodologies to efficiently and effectively promote physical fitness and injury resilience.

Learning and memory abilities decline with age; however collaborative learning with a familiar partner has been found to improve older adults’ performance on memory tasks and reduce these age-related differences. However it is unclear whether collaborating with a familiar partner is more beneficial to learning compared with collaborating with a stranger. Similarly, it is unclear whether older adults collaborate similarly with human and computer partners. The aim of this PhD thesis is to understand the role of collaborator identity on collaborative learning, and to investigate whether collaborative learning is as efficient and accurate with a range of learning partners. While collaborative learning is a socially-based memory task, the relationships between collaborative learning and social cognition have not yet been explored. The secondary aim of this thesis is to use experimental collaborative learning paradigms alongside standardised and experimental measures of social cognition to explore whether social cognition accounts for a significant amount of variance in collaborative learning performance with different partners. Two studies compare younger and older adults’ learning with familiar and unfamiliar partners on different collaborative learning paradigms. Two subsequent studies compare older adults’ learning on computerised versions of the collaborative learning tasks with partners they perceive to be humans or computers based on recordings of natural human or synthetic speech respectively. In all studies, measures of social cognition were used to assess whether social abilities affect learning outcomes with different partner types. When comparing older and younger adults’ results, familiarity had no effect on learning or immediate or delayed recall performance. Older adults initially took longer to complete the learning trials but performed with similar efficiency as younger adults by the final trials. Younger and older adults recalled collaboratively learned information with comparable accuracy after a delay of one hour, however after one week, older adults recalled the route less accurately than younger adults. Social cognition was not related to collaborative learning with familiar partners, but was related with unfamiliar partners, suggesting that those who are better able to take the perspective of another person may benefit during interactive learning. Social cognition was related to collaborative learning with perceived human partners but not perceived computer partners. This thesis offers a new perspective on the interplay between social and cognitive function in collaborative learning with different learning partners, and explores the differences between younger and older adults when learning collaboratively. The findings are discussed in relation to cognitive, social, and technological theories. On the whole, collaborative learning can result in older adults learning with similar speed and accuracy to younger adults; while familiarity does not improve learning outcomes, perceived human-ness does.

Partnering is a broad term used to describe an integrated team working approach; and integration means combining various elements into a whole. Partnering became popular within the UK construction industry largely as a result of two distinct 1990 reports (i.e. Latham, 1994 and Egan, 1998). The corollary of this relied to some extent on parties being dependent upon one another for success whether this arrangement was for a one off project or a longer term relationship over a number of projects. Partnering was also proffered as a vehicle for providing greater efficiencies and a higher ‘value’ through an agreement where a set of actions could help project teams improve their conjoined performance. The partnering approach was seen as an agreement that endorsed better collaboration, engendered mutual trust and team working, whilst also creating a platform for sharing both risk and rewards. Therefore, whilst not meant to be a fixed way of working per se, it was acknowledged from the outset that certain cultural, attitudinal and procedural changes would be required throughout the relevant supply chain. This to enable partnering to develop as project teams evolved within their relationships in order to find the most effective ways of achieving agreed objectives. Meaning partnering was about achieving ‘best value’ for all parties. Yet, while the positive aspects of partnering have been espoused in extant literature, covering various industry sectors, including: manufacturing, retail and construction; there was no explicit definition as to what partnering was [specifically] within the UK construction industry, or what it was supposed to achieve. Considerable debate therefore continues to challenge the partnering paradigm, for as it remains unestablished with limited systematising or standardisation, organisations commonly communicate with those one tier removed. As a result, the UK construction industry remains relatively unchanged despite successive reports, recommendations and potential collaborative solutions. Thus organisations continue to pursue their own self-interests to such an extent that ‘true’ collaborative working is often rendered impossible to achieve. This has had a negative impact on the industry as a whole, including the supply chain. In summary therefore, the industry still remains fragmented, adversarial and divided, which impedes communication, trust and a willingness to embrace the true ‘spirit’ of partnering per se. The study, taking a pragmatic post-positivist stance, focuses on four key disciplines (Client, Consultant, Main Contractor and Sub-contractor). The rationale supporting this approach endeavoured to capture actors and context, such that observations and research findings could be grounded and linked back to theory generation. An explicit mixed method research methodological approach was adopted in this research to purposefully explore phenomena and reason, especially to increase understanding and affirmation in respect of the partnering paradigm. This engaged both quantitative and qualitative approaches which engaged domain practitioners across the four disciplines. Content analysis of that qualitative data provided a vehicle for mapping the fabric, resilience and veracity of the core partnering drivers. This helped develop the second phase of the measuring instrument. Accordingly, theoretical codes were then generated and subsequently administered to 40 individual companies across the four disciplines. Purposive sampling was then used to select two case studies for data capture and model explication. Quantitative data analysis was then used to evaluate a series of drivers and variables. These were then mapped into a conceptual process model using an iterative approach (within the case studies) to affirm process conformity, accuracy and relevance. The model was then tested and validated with independent domain experts to ensure cogency (internal/external), reliability (inter-rater/observer) and homogeneity (consistency). This work presents a new conceptual model for strengthening and supporting the partnering paradigm; which, it is proffered will open up new discourse in both theory and practice. The philosophical underpinnings of this work support the concepts of sustained partnering growth, through guidance, governance and commonality. It presents stakeholders with a systematised and standardised approach to supply chain collaboration. The conceptual model identifies eight key drivers, the granularity of which highlight dynamic drivers, dependencies and relationships needed to support and promote ‘true’ partnering. The causal relationships and dependencies embody different organisational ‘cultures’ where partnering parties can work together regardless of their perceived dominance and/or tier position. Thus, the entire supply chain can be actively and more purposefully engaged in the partnering paradigm the full potential of partnering. Moreover, as the success of partnerships depends to a large extent on selecting appropriate partners; there is a concomitant need to evaluate the ‘quality’ of these relationships. The conceptual partnering model presented in this thesis offers new insight into these dynamic relationships. In doing so, it offers readers detailed evidence for further reflection – specifically cognisant of partnering organisations’ different perceptions, positioning and responsibilities for making the partnering ethos work in practice.

The thesis examines the development of the civil air route between Britain and India from 1918 to 1932. Although an Indian route had been pioneered before the First World War, after it ended, fourteen years would pass before the route was established on a permanent basis. The research provides an explanation for the late start and subsequent slow development of the India route. The overall finding is that progress was held back by a combination of interconnected factors operating in both Britain and the Persian Gulf region. These included economic, political, administrative, diplomatic, technological, and cultural factors. The arguments are developed through a methodology that focuses upon two key theoretical concepts which relate, firstly, to interwar civil aviation as part of a dimension of empire, and secondly, to the history of aviation as a new technology. With regards to empire, the thesis investigates the imperial and economic value of imperial aviation, perceptions of Britain's imperial potency, and the nature of Britain's long-term policy and administrative arrangements in London, Delhi, Persia, and on the Trucial Coast. In relation to technology, the thesis examines the choices made by the British. In connection with both empire and technology, the thesis considers the character and effects of the 'official mind' responsible for civil aviation policy. The research shows that, in relation to aviation, British imperial policy-making was in general neither confident nor proactive. In terms of the India route, British imperial administrators displayed weakness, in that they were unable to impose their will sufficiently strongly to drive through the route either rapidly or effectively. The impetus for imperial aviation came from the empire's core, and the causes of the route's delay were therefore located within the core. The primary cause was Britain's resistance to providing financial support for air transportation. As the First World War ended, the development of imperial aviation depended upon that of civil aviation. With private capital investment not forthcoming, the Government reluctantly took on responsibility but not until 1924, when, provoked by Germany's air progress and lured by the promise of imperial prestige, was the Government forced to provide financial support to civil aviation. It subsidised Imperial Airways, but in pursuing the policy of wholly funding the R101 airship project it made the wrong technological choice. The Imperial Airship Scheme only diverted public money away from the aeroplane development on which future civil aviation would depend. In the second half of the 1920s, as the British attempted to develop the India route via Persia and then the Trucial Coast, their long-term policy in the region seemed to promise diplomatic advantage in negotiations. However, as aviation represented an unwelcome incursion into local sovereignty, it caused local opposition. Unable to resort to their traditional 'gunboat diplomacy,' the British found their influence greatly below what they had presumed. When they were forced to develop a collaborative relationship with local elites, it became apparent that a balance of power had emerged. While undoubtedly showing the limitations of British imperial policy-making, the protracted history of the establishment of the Indian air route demonstrates that to some extent the British 'official mind' was flexible, and capable of adapting to changed conditions.

Otitis media (OM) is characterised by inflammation of the middle ear and is a common cause of conductive hearing impairment that places a substantial social, medical and economic burden on healthcare systems globally. Despite the importance of the disease, the aetiology of chronic middle ear inflammatory disease remains poorly understood. The development and persistence of chronic OM is multi-factorial with a significant genetic component. A new mouse model of chronic OM, edison, was generated by N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea (ENU) mutagenesis and discovered in a recessive screen at MRC Harwell. Homozygous edison mice have craniofacial abnormalities, an emphysema-like lung phenotype and spontaneously develop a conductive hearing loss at 28 days as measured by ABR. Histological analysis shows the hearing loss is associated with the development of chronic OM in the middle ear, characterised by mucosal inflammation and highly cellular ear exudates. Similar to the Jeff and Junbo mutants, edison shows raised levels of Vegfa, Tnfα and Il-1β in middle ear fluids. A putative functional mutation was identified, resulting in a missense Leu972Pro change in a relatively unknown gene, Nischarin (Nisch). The identification of additional ENU-induced Nisch alleles, and subsequent characterisation, validated Nisch as the causative gene in edison. NISCH selectively binds ITGA5, which is thought to have a role in modulating VEGF signalling through SRC and FAK kinases. A significant genetic interaction between Nisch and Itga5 exists and impacts upon development of chronic OM. Mice heterozygous for Itga5-null and homozygous for edison alleles show a significantly increased penetrance and severity of chronic OM. Analysis of downstream pathways suggests that the edison allele is impacting upon both RAC1 and TGF-β/SMAD signalling. I also explored the potential use of the edison mouse as a model for bacterial challenge with the human otopathogen, NTHi. Similar to the Junbo infection model at MRC Harwell, the edison mouse was identified as a robust OM model for bacterial NTHi infection. The edison mouse highlights a new candidate gene for susceptibility to chronic OM and will provide further insight into the genetic pathways and pathogenic processes involved in chronic OM.

This thesis explores the picosecond dynamics of aqueous solvent and the low frequency modes of biomolecular systems. These dynamics are probed with a combination of experimental THz spectroscopy and theoretical models from molecular dynamic simulations. The dynamics of the water are first measured in a polar liquid concentration series, with an attenuated total reflectance method to reduce absorption from the highly absorbing solvent. Reverse micelle systems are also investigated using a transmission method to reduce the non-essential bulk water around the sugar trehalose. The THz spectrum and molecular dynamic simulations of both these experiments show increasingly sterically hindered waters in the presence of a perturbed hydrogen bond network. Classical computational models of condensed phased water do not reproduce a broad spectral feature at 200 cm-l (6 THz). A region associated with the bending and stretching motions of hydrogen bonding. Three methods of explicit polarisation are tested on classical water models to improve modelling of this bending and stretching dynamic, but each method fails to replicate a 200 cm-l peak. It was concluded quantum mechanical effects of the hydrogen bond are not adequately accounted for, which may significantly impact the 200 cm-l frequency region. The low frequency modes of proteins are also investigated using the Gprotein coupled receptor bovine rhodopsin . Rhodopsin is activated by light illumination, which causes a conformational shift in the protein structure. This was detected as a change in the proteins low frequency dynamics that were stabilised by the presence of membrane. Normal mode analysis of the inactive and active bovine rhodopsin crystal structure confirmed these results. Furthermore, part of this thesis explores a novel THz spectrometer design, based on the principles of polarisation modulation infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy. This spectrometer has advantages over traditional methods, principally being able to perform real time referencing without the need of a separate optical path.

Some foster carers have birth children living at home whilst fostering other children. At times foster carers' birth children (FCBC) have been reported to experience a sense of loss and sadness when their relationships with foster children cease due to placements ending. This thesis aims to provide a preliminary examination of whether FCBC's childhood experience of these, often serial, relational losses has an enduring impact on their psychosocial wellbeing. It provides a qualitative examination of adult FCBC's accounts and memories of foster placement endings and their understanding of whether an enduring impact is experienced. Thirteen adult FCBC were interviewed using a semi-structured interview schedule. Five main themes emerged from the thematic analysis of the data. Two factors (Un)Certainty and Connectedness provide wider contextualisation to FCBC's experience of placement endings. 'Experiencing Absence' emphasises FCBC's immediate and long-term psychological response to and management of these relational losses. Finally, Relational Adaptation and Psychological Growth highlight FCBC's understanding of wider psychological implications of experiencing foster placement endings in the longer- term. Further research is therefore warranted in order to extend the current findings and delineate factors of risk or resilience in accounting for a possible long-term psychosocial impact. It is suggested that the psychological wellbeing and needs of FCBC, particularly around planning of foster placement endings, should be more formally recognised within national and local foster service policy and guidelines. Further, under certain conditions FCBC and their families may benefit from receiving greater psychological support to aid their experience around placement endings.

In the early mammalian embryo cells undergo differentiation into specific lineages, which are assembled into a blueprint for the mature body plan. The coordinated positioning of each tissue involves extensive cell movement and tissue rearrangement, which is ultimately controlled by cytoskeletal remodeling at a cellular level. Examples of two critical early events are migration of the Anterior Visceral Endoderm (AVE) and gastrulation. Both involve epithelial cells undergoing rearrangement and directed cell movement, yet the underlying molecular mechanisms that control such events remain undefined. We have been investigating a possible role for the Planar Cell Polarity (PCP) pathway, an evolutionarily conserved pathway, which in Drosophila regulates tissue polarity and cell movement primarily through modification of the cytoskeleton. A core group of PCP proteins have been defined including the membrane receptor Frizzled, the cytoplasmic proteins Dishevelled and Prickle, and the transmembrane proteins Flamingo and Strabismus. They co-localize to form asymmetric complexes within the cell, which modulate cytoskeletal components thus resulting in changes in cell shape or position or arrangement of a whole tissue. Specifically we have been investigating the Prickle orthologues Prickle! and 2 and Test in, and the Flamingo orthologues Celsrl-3. Initially we defined the early embryonic expression patterns of these genes and as a consequence of their expression in both the AVE and gastrulating cells we chose to analyze the function of Celsrl and Testin. We used genetic approaches to analyze their function. We generated two mouse lines, one carrying a Cre inducible Dominant-Negative form of Celsrl in the Rosa26 locus and another with a genetrap in the Testin locus resulting in a null allele. In addition to the characterization of the embryonic expression patterns of the Prickle and Flamingo orthologues this thesis describes the generation and analysis of both the Celsrl and Testin mutant lines and the subsequent analysis of both relating to a proposed role for PCP in the early mammalian embryo.

This thesis explores contemporary health club use, and the meaning of such for those that live and/or work in the city. Focusing on the 'premier' health club sector this study considers the factors that encourage people to become part of the contemporary premier club culture. More specifically, this thesis is concerned with defining the characteristics of the premier club environment and to consider who they attract and why? What are the reasons behind the decision to join a premier club, does it reflect a personal desire to improve ones health and fitness or is it a culmination of social pressures and rational thought? Why is it that premier clubs are located within thriving cities and are they a prominent feature amongst the social network of the city? These questions emerged at a time when 4 million people in the UK held health club membership and premier clubs were receiving increasing media attention. Whilst this rise in popularity of health clubs only equates to 8% of the population holding club membership, it suggests that for a select number of people, health club use is a significant feature of everyday life (Mintell, 2003). Simultaneously, sociology is increasingly concerned with most aspects of health and illness, the state of the body and the impact of it on everyday practices. However, health club use remains a significantly underdeveloped area of sociological inquiry. This qualitative study has focused on the premier club environment, defined within this thesis as 'a club which expands on the common health club model of gym, aerobics studio and pool and offers a better standard of these basic facilities, a wider range of activities and extension services such as spa treatments, dry cleaning and booking services', The research was conducted in four premier clubs in two major UK cities. The empirical findings suggest that premier club use is socially and culturally located. There is a 'social value of health' which infiltrates all channels in society, a value which is particularly strong within the social network of the city. The research has shown that whilst premier club use is obviously, to an extent, a personal quest for bodily improvement, it is motivated by two factors. The first being the 'need' to improve health and fitness as a consequence of working in a high-pressured city workplace and the second, a desire to present a certain 'image of fitness', which again is shaped by the value of health that exists in the city workplace. In conclusion it was found that within the context of the city, body work and the development of a 'workstyle' is a motivating factor behind the decision to join a premier club. Premier club is an integral feature in the process of individualisation as social agents are engaging in a reflexive project of the self, whereby shaping their body and creating an overall image, or a positive workstyle, is of the essence.

Chronic widespread pain has been described as a major health problem in the Western world, but we know little about the experiences of people who live with this condition. The broad questions explored in this thesis are how people with chronic widespread pain experience, understand and give meaning to their 'condition', and how people with chronic widespread pain attempt to influence or exert control over their pain. The methods employed are located within a qualitative approach, using a 'psychosocial' perspective to explore individuals' experiences in a social context, and an interpretative perspective, to focus on the meanings and interpretations of participants. It also draws on a narrative approach, using the stories told by participants to illustrate the experience of chronic widespread pain in their everyday lives. Data was generated through lifegrid interviews, follow-up interviews, unstructured diaries and diary interviews with eight people with chronic widespread pain. In addition, five family members were interviewed. Findings focus on the experience of living with chronic widespread pain in the different realms in which pain arises, is experienced and managed, namely bodily, social, household, family and biographical. In exploring these areas, a number of themes recur which characterise the experience of living with chronic widespread pain. These themes include uncertainty, which manifests itself on a day-to-day basis and in the longer term; tensions arising in managing chronic widespread pain; the impact of experiencing and managing chronic widespread pain control on self and identity; and the effect of the invisible and contested nature of chronic widespread pain on sufferers' experiences.

Innovation has been studied from the perspectives of social psychology, economics, business studies, sociology and science and technology studies. Collyer (1996) claims that factors in the social or technical environment are subsumed in psychology, by an emphasis on the personality structure or cognitive activity within the individual. In the area of business studies and economics the emphasis has been on the development and transfer of products to the market rather than on the creation of new products - largely ignoring inventions that have no, or limited, commercial application (like orphan drugs) Few studies have concentrated on the social, cultural or political process of innovation, the focus being on the adoption and diffusion processes. According to Collyer (1996) most studies, which theorise the social formation of ideas and knowledge, focus on the locus of scientific knowledge production, in the research laboratory (see Knorr- Cetina 1995 in Jasanoff et al 1995, Latour 1987). These studies ignore the political and ideological influences from external sources and other sites of knowledge production (ergo Mode 2 sites in industry and for example, medical practitioners seeking solutions to practical problems, or especially in this case the patients and their advocates). Mode 1 (knowledge production) is mainly to be found in basic research, mostly academic, producing scientific documentation. Mode 2 is mainly to be found in applied research, mostly industrial, producing patents through the development of applications or processes. There may be crossovers into strategic applied research by both modes but in general they are different types of knowledge production, or the mechanism by which research benefits economic growth. Nowotny et al (2001) suggest that society is changing and the line that previously separated science and society is continually being transgressed. New networks are forming and the public speaks back to science creating new public arenas ('agoras') where the constitution of science policy involves 'negotiation', 'mediation', 'consultation' and 'contestation' challenging science and technology to produce 'socially robust' knowledge. In the orphan drug 'market' we can see industry, researchers (public and private), charitable organisations (as advocates), regulators (politics) and venture capitalists brought together in a public forum. This theses makes a significant contribution to knowledge by using a social constructionist approach as the innovation process unfolds and by providing a further methodological conceptual framework for Mode 2 knowledge production. Whilst providing evidence for Nowotny et aI's agora it also provides a model of the relationship between scientific expertise and policy making extending the decisionist and technocratic model following Edwards's (1999) claim that there is no adequate model available to demonstrate the relationships between scientific expertise, public policy making and the public.

Recent results from four-fermion interaction models have suggested that new exotic phases form at finite baryon density which give rise to colour superconductivity. The main stumbling block in making a first principles lattice QCD measurement in this regime is that the introduction of the chemical potential makes the QCD lattice action complex, prohibiting naive probabilistic Monte Carlo methods for the evaluation of the functional integral. A re-weighting method developed in Glasgow makes use of ensembles generated at zero chemical potential but suffers from the pathologies common to re-weighting methods. This thesis describes two new methods developed for lattice measurements at finite baryon density, which we finally combine to give a resolution to the pathologies of the Glasgow re-weighting method in SU(3). Firstly we investigate SU(2) QCD at finite density, where we are free to vary the chemical potential we use to generate ensembles. In our measurements of the Lee-Yang zeros of the grand canonical partition function and related thermodynamic observables we find similar pathologies to SU(3). We attribute this to the normalisation in the reweighting method and ensemble-averaging of the polynomial expansion coefficients of the method. However, as we are able to vary the chemical potential in our SU(2) measurements we further establish that the ensemble-averaging of the polynomial coefficients are effected selectively in the expansion. By combining the expansion coefficients from different ensembles (through the ratio of the normalisations) we are thus able to alleviate the bias in our sampling. We then further develop this method for SU(3) with static quarks by generating a range of canonical ensembles which we combine with our new re-weighting approach. From our SU(2) measurements we establish the existence of a diquark superfluid at high densities and low temperatures. We also determine the position and order of the associated symmetry breaking transitions in the mass-chemical potential plane. From our measurements of static SU(3) we establish that the finite density transition at intermediate coupling is a first order percolation transition. Having addressed the pathologies of the re-weighting method in two nonabelian gauge field theories which are simpler to evaluate numerically, in future work SU(3) QCD can be evaluated at finite density.

Whilst it is commonly accepted that transposable elements can generate genetic variation, the significance of this for the maintenance and dissemination of such elements is controversial. Here long-term laboratory populations of Drosophila melanogaster, maintained at two discrete temperatures, are screened by Southern blotting for the patterns of insertion of several transposable elements (copia, mdg-2, mdg-4 and P). Consistent with a temperature-specific adaptive role for some insertions, several are apparently found at higher frequency in lines at one temperature. Further characterisation of these putatively temperature-selected insertions was attempted. Of three distinct approaches taken towards cloning these insertions, a single-stranded DNA-ligation for PCR-amplification technique, not thought to have been previously exploited for isolating transposable element insertion sites, generated the best results. One copia insertion was successfully sequenced, although single fly PCR experiments suggested that the frequency of this in caged populations was not related to temperature. A major collection of D. melanogaster from the French and Spanish Pyrenees was undertaken along four discrete altitudinal clines, with a view to screening for specific transposable element insertions. A novel strategy was developed for correlation of altitude with mean seasonal temperature of each collection site. Altitudinal variation in the frequency of Thr-Gly length polymorphism at the period locus was found to be consistent with predictions based on known latitudinal clines. This is the first known example of putatively adaptive clinal genetic variation in European populations of Drosophila collected along altitudinal transects. Finally, a fundamental re-examination of the theoretical issues surrounding the possible adaptive significance of transposable elements is developed. It is demonstrated that he extension of ideas on the 'units of selection' to transposable elements has led to confusion. A model of transposable element evolution which presents a coherent alternative to the selfish DNA approach is presented.

One strategy for the isolation of molecules required for the establishment of specific synapses is to screen for mutations which disrupt identified neuronal connections and subsequently to clone and characterise the genes involved. The giant fibre system of Drosophila melanogaster is an ideal focus for such investigations. This system mediates the fly's jump-escape response, allowing neuronal connectivity mutants to be isolated as a subset of those flies which fail to jump in response to a light-off stimulus. The Passover mutation was isolated in this way, and was subsequently shown to be an allele of the shaking-B (shak-B) locus, thus implicating shaking-B in the establishment of neuronal connectivity, and inspiring the molecular analysis which is reported here. Genetic analysis reveals two distinct functions at the shaking-B locus, one (termed shak-B(neural)) is required for the normal development of the imaginal nervous system, while the other, shak-B(lethal) is an essential function, without which the animals die as embryos or first instar larvae. Most shaking-B alleles disrupt both of these genetic functions, although some (like shak-B passover) are specifically neural, while others (such as shak-B L41) affect only the essential function. The 19E3 polytene region in which shaking-B resides was cloned by chromosome walking from microcloned entry points and the breakpoints of deficiency chromosomes which encroach upon the shak-B region were used to define a 15 kb stretch of walk in which at least some of the gene must lie. Unique DNA fragments from this area were used to probe cDNA libraries and the embryonic cDNA KE2(1.8) was isolated. The KE2(1.8) cDNA was sequenced and found to contain no extensive regions of reading frame, though an internal 122 codon open reading frame (ORF) was implicated by computer algorithms as a likely coding region, and was found be highly homologous to the N terminus of the Drosophila Ogre protein and to part of the C. elegans Unc-7 protein, both of which are implicated in nervous system development. An asymmetric PCR strategy was used to sequence this small ORF from shak-B mutant chromosomes, and a 17 bp deletion which is predicted to abolish translation of the ORF was found to underlie the shak-BL41 allele. Due to the rarity of shak-B cDNAs, a library screening strategy based upon inverse PCR was devised. This technique enabled the isolation of cDNAs representing a further four shak-B transcript forms, while yet another two cDNAs were isolated by conventional means. Sequence analysis of these clones and of the genomic regions from which they were derived has provided a wealth of data regarding the putative products and genomic organisations of these transcripts. The SIPC8 cDNA contains an ORF of 372 residues, implying a protein of 44.4 kDa with extended homology to Ogre and Unc-7. In the neural and lethal shak-B alleles shak-B allelels and shak-B r-9-29 this reading frame was found to be disrupted by a mutation which introduces a stop codon in a downstream exon. This finding, together with the identification of the shak-BEC201 allele suggested that Shak-B(neural) and Shak'B(lethal) proteins have unique N terminal regions but converge upon common C terminal sequences. While the SIPC8 cDNA is disrupted by lesions causing lethal alleles, the P2.4 cDNA isolated by Krishnan and colleagues was found to contain an ORF with a unique N terminus, and a C terminus common to that of the SIPC8 reading frame. The unique N terminus of P2.4 was found (BCrishnan et aL, 1993) to be disrupted by lesions underlying shak-B(neural) mutations including shak-B passover go fulfilling the criteria demanded of a shak-B(neural) transcript. Shak-B proteins contain hydrophobic segments suggestive of transmembrane domains, and assessment of the likely transmembrane dispositions of all putative Shak-B proteins was carried out using optimal computer algorithms. Based on these structural predictions and on the phenotypes and expression patterns of shaking-B and its homologues, the possible functions of Shaking-B proteins are considered.

This is an exploration of the validity of the generally accepted belief that rural self-sufficiency declined in Victorian England. Three phases of rural self-sufficiency are identified which follow a chronological sequence. The first is household independence, many basic goods and services are produced within the household: there are a small number of specialised craftsmen and tradesmen within the village, but few, if any, shops. This is followed by decline in household independence, but maintenance of village self-sufficiency with the presence of at least basic specialised crafts and trades and some shops. The final stage is erosion of village self-sufficiency: loss of essential services, leading to hierarchical dependence on services provided by towns. The main data sources used are the unpublished census enumerators' books and the trade directories. Their validity as primary sources is assessed in the context of their suitability for macro- and micro-level studies of rural crafts and trades. Rural service provision over time is explored, initially, at the county level, then focusing on two agricultural areas containing 31 parishes. The status of craftsmen and tradesmen within their local communities is examined in two self-sufficient villages, St. Paul's Walden and Much Hadham. The county-wide study showed that a significant proportion of Hertfordshire villages retained their self sufficiency in basic crafts and trades at least until the beginning of the twentieth century. Self-sufficiency was the predominant system of rural service provision in villages in the Buntingford area from the mid-nineteenth century until at least the 1890s. In contrast, the predominant system of rural service provision in villages in the Stevenage area changed from self sufficiency at mid-century to hierarchical dependence on central villages and neighbouring towns by the 1890s. The study of individual craftsmen and tradesmen revealed evidence of declining economic status and downward social mobility among craftsmen and tradesmen in both the parishes examined in detail.

Elizabeth Taylor's texts are elusive and allusive. Part 1 offers a biographical sketch of the writer, then applies theory, drawing on and adapting the work of Harold Bloom, Roman Ingarden, Michael Riffaterre, Linda Hutcheon and Patricia Waugh, among others, to describe and account for the bare style and the high degree of referentiality. Seven kinds of "reflectivity" are proposed, with special attention to self-reflectivity - "reflexivity." The presence of "structural reflexivity" is shown in the first novel. Part 2 discusses the other 11 novels and one novella in pairs linked by the texts which they reflect (upon), as follows: Palladian (1946) and "Hester Lilly" are located within the Gothic tradition in women's writing, but their application of a Bloomian kenosis to its major text, Jane Eyre (1847), is noted. A View of The Harbour (1947) and A Wreath Of Roses (1949) are discussed in terms of their refusal of Woolfian "vision. " A Game Of Hide And Seek (1951) and The Sleeping Beauty are interrelated with the Grimm fairy tale. Two major characters in Angel (1957) and The Wedding Group (1968) are shown to be based on real people and their psychology to define one theme. Two Henry James novels are detected as the parallel texts for In A Summer Season (1961) and The Soul Of Kindness (1964), with two allegories also drawn in by allusion. Lastly, Mrs Palfrey At The Claremont (1971) and Blaming (1976) are contrasted in their reflectivity and the latter's application of kenosis to itself and the whole oeuvre.

This study uses design-based research (DBR) to develop an empirically-substantiated instructional theory about students' development of angle and angle measure, with real-world connections and technological tools through the use of context-aware ubiquitous learning. The research questions guiding this research are: 1) How do students come to understand angle and angle measure through the use of real-world connections and technology enabled learning tasks? 2) What are effective means of support to facilitate students' understanding of angle and angle measure? A conjectured local instruction theory was developed from a thorough review of the literature in chapter two. This review encompassed research-based developmental trajectories and effective instructional supports for promoting students' understanding of angle and angle measure. It was conjectured that context-aware u-learning was a good support for students coming to understand angle and angle measure. Context-aware u-learning in this study involves the use of real-world connections and a Dynamic Geometry Environment. The local instruction theory was subject to a cyclical iterative process of anticipation, enactment, evaluation, and revision (Gravemeijer & van Eerde, 2009). This process contributes to the theories of how students come to understand angle and angle measures, while also developing a set of instructional activities which can be utilized and adapted by educators to meet the needs of the students in their classrooms. The instructional sequence was implemented in one classroom-based teaching experiment in the first macro cycle of the DBR process. A second macro cycle was implemented using revised instructional materials in one classroom-based teaching experiment. Findings indicate that context-aware u-learning is a valuable mathematical context for introducing students to angle and angle measure. Common misconceptions about angle can be avoided as the students study angles in the real world which presents them with angles with rays of different length and in various orientations. Good foundations were built by having the students consider angle by the generalizable properties and over the seven days the students showed good movement across the van Hiele levels of geometric thinking. A revised local instruction theory is presented as a result of the findings from this study. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

This study related to the way the New Poor Law was administered with regard to inmate children in the County of Worcester between 1834 and 1871. It dealt with the influence of Old Poor Law practices on the New Poor Law and examined the treatment, training and education offered in workhouses, together with the employment obtained by "long stay" workhouse children on leaving such institutions. It demonstrated the effectiveness of the treatment obtained in attaining the prime objective of avoiding lifelong pauperism. However, an attempt was made to equate this advantage with the obvious disadvantages of institutionalisation and the associated losses of freedom implied. The impact of the workhouse, a "total institution"(as defined by Goffman (1968)) on the child inmates and those employed to care for them was considered. Treatment was tightly controlled by a set of Rules and Regulations based on the utilitarian principles of "National Uniformity and "Less Eligibility", although these constraining principles was not adhered to after about 1836 in the case of child inmates. Boards of Guardians' Minute Books were rigorously used to establish local practices, which were then related to national policy, so that differences between rural and urban unions became apparent. The earlier studies by Ross (1955) and others had examined national Poor Law policy by using Central Poor Law Authority papers as their starting point. The findings for Worcestershire proved most congruent with those of Digby (1976 and 1978) who significantly had used similar sources in her study of Norfolk. The findings for Worcestershire Unions supported Himmelfarb's ideas (1984) by illustrating the changed attitude towards poverty and hence its changing definition between 1834 and 1871.

This research is concerned with the effects of temperature and frequency on the fatigue crack propagation behaviour. The fatigue behaviour at elevated temperature has been reviewed with emphasis on the mechanisms of propagation proposed to explain the effects of temperature and frequency. The crack propagation characteristics of a single crystal superalloy have been investigated at various temperatures and frequencies. Determination of the fatigue crack propagation rates was combined with the measurement of crack tip plastic zone sizes and observation of the deformation behaviour. At elevated temperature, the fatigue crack propagation rates were determined to be dependent on the frequency of loading. At low and high crack growth rates increased crack propagation rates were associated with higher cycling frequencies. At intermediate crack growth rates, the highest propagation rates were associated with the lowest frequency. Selected area channelling pattern techniques were used to determine the plastic zone sizes and revealed that at high frequencies (>10Hz) the plastic zone sizes at elevated and ambient temperature are similar. With decreasing frequency at elevated temperature creep may lead to increased plastic zone sizes but may also affect the crack tip geometry thereby restricting further effects. At room temperature crack propagation is observed to occur by shear of the γ' precipitate on <110> {111} resulting in {111} crystallographic facets on the fracture surface. At elevated temperature (>6000 C) however, the crack growth mechanism changes and propagation takes place on {100}. Observations of the dislocation structure indicate that deformation is concentrated within the γ matrix. It is proposed that the observed crack propagation in the γ matrix on {100} arises by the constraints imposed by the surrounding γ' precipitate. A model is presented for the frequency dependence of the intermediate crack growth rate in terms of the observed strain gradients within the plastic zone and the achievement of a critical local fracture strain.

The thesis examines the beliefs about education and society of the following groups of people:- 1. Teacher trainers in College and University Departments of Education. 2. Students in one College of Education training for posts in secondary schools (3 and 4 year courses). 3. Teachers in (i) Secondary Modern Schools (ii) Comprehensive Schools (iii) Maintained Grammar Schools (iv) Direct Grant Grammar Schools (v) Independent Schools. Beliefs were assessed by:- (a) (i) The Oliver "Survey of Opinions" Scales (ii) The Highfield-Pinsent Corporal Punishment Scale (iii) The writer's scales dealing with attitudes to streaming by ability and 11+ selection (iv) The Wilson-Patter son Conservatism scales. (b) A series of unstructured interviews. The data is analysed conventionally (e.g. by correlations, factor analysis, critical ratio tests of mean differences etc.) and also "conceptually" - an attempt to analyse the underlying ideological assumptions of the respondents' declared beliefs about "ability". The study deals in controversial material - the link between political beliefs and educational beliefs; the differences in beliefs held by teachers in different kinds of institutions? the differences between the beliefs of teachers and teacher trainers.and the beliefs of students. Certain tentative conclusions about the nature of teachers' beliefs about notions of "ability" are made and the implications of such beliefs for the aims of comprehensive education.

Two now X-ray curved crystal vacuum spectrometers are described. With the first of these the LX1,2 lines of Lanthnaum were remeasured, and with the second a study of the Mx,b emissons and the absorptions in the expected region of the and Miv and MV edges was undertaken, in addition the and Miv and Mv edges of Barium were remeasured. The Miv and Mv edges for the rare earth are not found and the absorption detected is of a line character and of the same Wavelength as the emission lines Mx and My. A discrepancy between previous measurements loading to the energy difference between the Miv and Mv levels of Lanthanum has been resolved. Assuggestion is made to account in part for the apparent absence of the normal absorption edges. As a direct result of the investigation of the Lanthanum emission and absorptions, it has been possible to give an explanation which accounts for the presence of the Mx and My lines in Lanthanum and also for the reciprocal nature of the absorption and emission processes, processes. Also described in a section dealing with ancillary equipment are a tapo-coupled, variable ratio micro-densitometer of new design, and an optical micrometer for the measurement of the microdensitometer traces.

The purpose of this study was to analyze the long-term (defined as three years) effectiveness of turnaround interventions and identify characteristics of public schools and the systems in which they were embedded that facilitated or impeded their ability of school systems to sustain improved turnaround outcomes. A population of 93 chronically failing schools for which turnaround interventions were implemented in 2016 was extracted from the Texas Education Agency’s Multi-Year Rating List comprised of 7,761 schools. The performance of these 93 schools in the three-year period after the interventions was tracked. Four performance patterns emerged: High Performers, Late Bloomers, Popcorn, and Ongoing Failing. The variables analyzed were classified into two categories. The first category addressed administration, enrollment, and teacher turnover. Five major findings emerged: most school turnaround interventions in Texas improved failing schools, but approximately half failed to reach the standard of “acceptable performance”; there was no consistent relationship between size of schools’ enrollments and failing schools, but the percentage of students attending chronically failing schools was higher in school systems with lower total student enrollment; elementary schools were substantially overrepresented; the population of failing campuses were located in school systems that averaged higher expenditures per pupil than the Texas average, but within this population campuses achieving an A or B ranking three years after the turnaround expended $1,250 more per pupil than school systems with campuses receiving F grades; teacher turnover was higher than the Texas average and teachers had fewer years of experience, but among the 93 failing schools, teacher turnover rates were higher at the schools rated A or B three years after the intervention than the cohort of systems ranked CDF. The second category analyzed student data. There were two major findings. First, African American, economically disadvantaged, and at-risk students were overrepresented in the chronically failing schools. Second, meaningful changes in the profiles between 2016 and 2019 were: an increase in per pupil expenditures by the systems with chronically failing schools; a decline in average enrollment; and an increase in the proportion of White students.

Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) is a group of inherited hemoglobinopathies affecting over 100,000 individuals in the United States and millions more worldwide. Sickle cell anemia, the most common and severe type of SCD, is the result of a point mutation which allows intraerythrocytic hemoglobin to polymerize with itself under oxygen-poor conditions, forming long crystalline or polymeric chains within red blood cells (RBCs) and causing these cells to become sickle-shaped and prone to hemolysis. Due to their decreased deformability and higher affinity to adhere to the endothelium and other blood cells, sickled RBCs occlude the microvasculature, resulting in flow obstruction, tissue hypoxia and ischemia, and an inflammatory response. These effects lead to sudden, severe pain due to systemic vaso-occlusive episodes (VOE) which requires acute care and extended hospitalization. Although multiple pharmacologic therapies are currently approved by the FDA for the treatment of SCD, there exists a lack of adequate treatment options for the prevention of vaso-occlusion and related SCD comorbidities. The overarching purpose of this work is to develop and test two novel rheological-based approaches as potential options for the treatment of SCD. First, the use of blood soluble additives known as drag-reducing polymers (DRPs) were examined for their potential to improve blood flow within microvessels and reduce vaso-occlusion. Our in vitro findings suggest that DRPs may improve the circulation of less-deformable RBCs such as sickle RBCs by reducing their near wall margination and altering their traffic patterns through microchannel bifurcations. Transgenic SCD mice administered DRPs were also found to have significantly reduced hepatic vaso-occlusion during intravital imaging following an inflammatory stimulus. The second rheological-based approach for the treatment of SCD explored a method of intracellular hemoglobin replacement, where we show proof-of-concept feasibility of a technique to remove sickle hemoglobin from sickle RBCs and subsequently replace their intracellular contents with healthy donor hemoglobin. ‘Refilled’ SCD RBCs showed an inability to sickle and improved rheological characteristics, demonstrating this process as a potential novel transfusion therapy in order to eliminate the risk of alloimmunization in SCD patients.

This thesis addresses the development of a coupled 2D Saint Venant Equation - 1D Richards equation (SVE-R) model, emulation of its output using a machine learning algo- rithm, and the application of the resulting emulations to predict storm-driven overland flow and infiltration in patchily vegetated dryland systems. The motivation for this work lies in the critical importance of runoff-runon processes in the function of dryland ecosystems: evaluating how these processes work in real or designed settings is crucial for assessing the vulnerability to desertification or the probability of success of management or restoration plans. The SVE-R equations describe the physics of runoff-runon processes, and are solved here by coupling a finite element SVE solver developed by Bradford and Katopodes [1999] to the Richards equation solver developed by Celia et al. [1990]. The coupled SVE-R model is validated against analytical solutions to the kinematic wave equations [Giraldez and Wool- hiser, 1996]. I firstly show that the hydrological outcomes of interest in dryland systems (i.e. the distribution of infiltration, the runoff ratio and peak flow velocities) were insensi- tive to the choice of a roughness closure scheme. I then develop a machine learning (ML) approach to emulate its predictions. This approach involves training random forest (RF) regressors on collections of pre-computed SVE-R model runs to predict the spatial patterns of infiltration and maximum flow velocity. The RF emulator is very accurate and is several orders of magnitude faster than the SVE-R model. To demonstrate the utility of the ML emulation approach for simulating and managing dryland ecosystems, I present two case studies. Firstly, I apply RF regression to represent within-storm processes in an ecohydro- logical model of spatial patterning of vegetation on the landscape. For the first time, I show that the modeled spatial patterns of vegetation are sensitive to storm characteristics such as duration and intensity. Secondly, I develop a web-based tool to assess plant water availabil- ity and erosion risk at hillslope scales for user-supplied vegetation patterns, which embeds random forest regressors trained on a representative library of storm and hillslope conditions. This case study demonstrates how the combination of machine learning and a web tool can make otherwise challenging predictive insights available to a broad set of potential users.

There are inherent safety risks associated with inactive lithium ion batteries leading to greater restrictions and regulations on shipping and storage. Maintaining all cells of a lithium ion battery at near zero voltage with an applied fixed resistive load is one promising approach which can lessen (and potentially eliminate) the risk of a lithium ion battery entering thermal runaway when in an inactive state. However, in a conventional lithium ion cell, a near zero cell voltage can be damaging if the anode electrochemical potential increases to greater than the potential where dissolution of the standard copper current collector occurs (i.e. ~3.1 V vs. Li/Li+ at room temperature). Past approaches to yield lithium ion cells that are resilient to a near zero volt state of charge involve use of secondary active materials or alternative current collectors which have anticipated tradeoffs in terms of cell performance and cost. In the the present dissertation work the approach of managing the amount of reversible lithium in a cell during construction to prevent the anode potential from increasing to greater than ~3.1 V vs. Li/Li+ during near zero volt storage is introduced. Anode pre-lithiation was used in LiCoO2/MCMB pouch cells to appropriately manage the amount of reversible lithium so that there is excess reversible lithium compared to the cathodes intercalation capacity (reversible lithium excess cell or RLE cell). RLE LiCoO2/MCMB cells maintained 99% of their original capacity after three, 3-day and three, 7-day storage periods at near zero volts under fixed load. A LiCoO2/MCMB pouch cell fabricated with a pre-lithiated anode also maintained its original discharge performance after three, 3-day storage periods under fixed load at 45°C. The strong recharge performance after near zero volt storage is attributed to the anode potential remaining below the copper dissolution potential during near zero volt storage as informed by reference electrode measurements. Pulse discharge measurements were performed and show that double layer capacitance likely plays a major role in determining the behavior of electrode potentials during near zero volt storage. To further the viability of the anode pre-lithiation method in LiCoO2/MCMB cells, stabilization coatings on the cathode materials are being investigated to increase the tolerance of the cathode to the low potentials it may experience during near zero volt storage of an RLE lithium ion cell. Results show that an AlPO4 coating prevents cation exhange in the cathode crystal structure and substantially increases the cathode’s resilience to low electrochemical potentials. Investigations into applying anode pre-lithiation to cells utilizing LiNiCoAlO2 (NCA) cathodes have also been initiated and found to maintain the anode potential below the copper dissolution potential during near zero volt storage. RLE NCA/MCMB cells showed strong recharge performance and improved rate capability retention over a conventional NCA/MCMB cell after ten, 3-day near zero volt storage periods. Scale up of reversible lithium management to NCA/MCMB x3450 pouch cells was achieved using bath lithium addition and rendered a cell that retained 100% of its discharge performance after a 14 day period at near zero volts under fixed load. The near zero volt storage tolerance of lithium ion cells utilizing an advanced, high energy density lithium rich cathode material (0.49Li2MnO3·0.51LiNi0.37Co0.24Mn0.39O2 or HE5050) has also been studied and found to be high at room temperature without the need for anode pre-lithiation. HE5050/MCMB cells maintained ~100% of their discharge capacity after five, 3-day and five, 7-day near zero volt storage periods at room temperature. HE5050/MCMB also maintained ~99% of their discharge capacity after two, 3-day near zero volt storage periods at 40°C. The high first cycle loss and lower intercalation potential of the HE5050 cathode lead to the anode potential remaining

Multimedia instructional materials were used to design science presentations for the topics of Magnetism and Light. Two experiments were conducted with younger learners (Year 5) who had no prior knowledge of the topics, and older learners (Year 6) who had studied the topics previously. Half of the learners were presented the information in auditory form only while the other half were presented the auditory information simultaneously with a visual presentation. Results indicated that for younger students with no prior knowledge of the topic, an audio-visual presentation was superior to an auditory presentation only. These students required a visual presentation to make sense of the auditory explanation. However, older students with prior knowledge of the topic learned more from the auditory only presentation. For these students, the addition of visual information was redundant and so they were disadvantaged by the use of an audio-visual presentation. Together, these two sets of results provide an example of the expertise reversal effect that can be explained by cognitive load theory. These results also provided a basis from which an hypothesis was generated to determine the effectiveness of hands-on instructional materials in science. Experiment 3 was conducted with younger learners (Years 5 and 6) who had no prior knowledge of Newton s First Law of Motion. Half of the learners were presented the information explicitly by the teacher who used instructional materials to visually demonstrate the explanations. The other half watched this presentation while also using the instructional materials themselves during the presentation. Results indicated that if the students are presented with a redundant set of representations, these materials may have a negative consequence for the learning process. Experiment 4 replicated Experiment 3 with minor changes to the experimental design to eliminate possible threats to the validity. The results obtained were similar to those of Experiment 3. The cognitive processing associated with hands-on materials by the students may impose an excessive working memory load. These results provided additional support to those generated by Experiments 1 and 2, emphasising the importance instructors should place on the identification and consideration of prior learning before designing instructional materials.

Previously, it was shown that maternal obesity before pregnancy, during pregnancy and lactation predisposes adult offspring for obesity and NAFLD, with the possible mechanism involving the breast milk. It was later shown that there is an interaction between maternal obesity and post-weaning diet, with alteration in Kupffer (liver macrophage) cells and natural killer cells in the liver. As a sequel to previous findings in our groups, this project focuses on the programming effect of maternal obesity at earlier time points of development. We found that embryos from obese mothers had significantly lower body mass comparing to embryos from the lean mothers, accompanied by an increase in transforming growth factor- (Tgf-) and Glioma-associated (Gli) gene, and altered immune profile. Gli3 is a Hedgehog (Hh) responsive transcription factor, suggesting an involvement of the Hedgehog (Hh) Signalling Pathway in the developmental programming effect of NAFLD. Further investigation and published literature show that Hh is a crucial factor in modulating organ development and immune development. An adult mouse model in this project investigates the relationship between Hh and NAFLD. Taking all the factors together, this thesis demonstrates that there is an interactive effect between the Hh and obesity, which may be the underlying mechanism for the developmental programming effect seen in NAFLD.

According to the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) sediment is a leading cause of water quality impairment (US EPA, 2002). The annual costs of sediment pollution in North America alone are estimated to range between $20 and $50 billion (Pimentel et al., 1995; Osterkamp et al, 1998, 2004). Due to the large spatial and temporal variations inherent in sediment transport, suspended sediment measurement is challenging. The overall goal of this research was to develop and test an inexpensive sensor for continuous suspended sediment monitoring in streams. This study was designed to determine if the gain and phase components of permittivity could be used to predict suspended sediment concentrations (SSC). A bench-scale suspension system was designed and tested to guarantee that there were no significant differences in the sediment suspension vertically or horizontally within the system. This study developed prediction models for SSC with input variables of temperature, specific conductivity, and gain and/or phase at multiple frequencies. The permittivity sensor is comprised of an electrode, power source, and a control box or frequency generator. Fixed and mixed effect, multiple, linear regression models were created and compared for target frequencies. However, it was not possible to meet the normality requirements for prediction accuracy. Partial Least Squares (PLS) regression techniques were also applied to gain and phase data for 127 of the 635 frequencies. The three models with the lowest error between predicted and actual values of SSC for validation were further tested with nine levels of independent validation data. The largest model error (error>50%) occurred for the top three models at 0 and 500 mg/L. At the higher concentrations error varied from 1-40%. Once the treatment levels, of the independent validation data set, were near 1000 mg/L the prediction accuracy increased for the top three models. Model 3A, a phase based model, preformed the best. Model 3A was able to predict six of the nine independent validation treatment levels within 300 mg/L. Future research will provide additional laboratory and field testing of the prototype sensor.

Astrocaryum mexicanum is a native, understory palm of the tropical rainforests of the Sierra Santa Marta in southeastern Mexico. Local residents have traditionally harvested A. mexicanum, relying on its edible inflorescences as a food source as well as a trade commodity. Harvest pressure has increased drastically in recent years as a result of expansion of the local market, as well as habitat loss due to deforestation. This study assessed the current harvest intensity of A. mexicanum inflorescences and evaluated its effects on population structure. Seedling growth and inflorescence production were compared in the continuum of light conditions of forest environments subject to different management practices. We found that the structure of A. mexicanum populations subject to harvest differed significantly from that of unharvested populations. Seedling growth and inflorescence production were greater in the higher light environments. As a result of this study, A. mexicanum is recommended for understory cultivation in the secondary forests that are prevalent throughout the region.