Search

My artwork is an exploration of abstract mark-making that arises from a contemplation of the relationship between the individual and the landscape. This connects my work with a form of ecological thinking referred to as ecopsychology; a concept which offers me the freedom to explore patterns in nature while remaining purposefully connected to environmental concerns. My drawing process is thus informed by patterns in earth, sea, and sky, by the mark-making process itself and by the human detritus that pollutes, but is nevertheless a part of, the landscape as I encounter it. All of this feeds into the cycle of drawn acts. The abstraction of my drawn forms resolves into a more material practice in my sculptures which make use of found objects and evoke the entanglements that characterise the ecology of the contemporary world. In this way, my art making suggests modes of thought, encompassing all aspects of the environment, which are required to open space for ecological action.

This thesis investigates a theoretical response to the question of what constitutes the political implications of the 2008 Global Financial Crisis. This thesis, working within the tradition of critical and cultural theory, undertakes a sustained engagement with the works of Jacques Derrida to theorise the traditions, norms, and practices that inform a response to an event such as the crisis of 2008. This thesis works with his proposals that: the spectre of its limitations haunts politics; that this has led to the 'deconstruction' of the meaning of politics through complex textual frameworks; and that this dynamic leads to a tension between the arrival of new political possibilities on the one hand and new forms of political sovereignty on the other. After examining the significance of Derrida's approach and secondary literature debating its interpretation, this thesis deconstructs the political implications of the crisis from politics in the traditional sense of the nationstate, the textual politics of scholarship, and finally the politics of the media, the domain, I argue, that incorporates the most discrete and sophisticated forms of sovereign decision-making. Finally, this thesis opens up its findings to secondary literature that suggest contrasting arguments.

The central hypothesis of this thesis is that probabilistic user interface design provides an effective methodology for delivering productive and enjoyable applications in virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR). This investigation is timely given the recent emergence of mass-market virtual and augmented reality head-mounted displays and growing demand for tailored applications and content. The design guidance for building compelling and productive applications for these environments is, however, currently lagging the pace at which the underlying technology is maturing. This is problematic given important differences between designing conventional 2D interfaces and interactions and their embodied 3D counterparts. This dissertation investigates probabilistic user interface design as a method for solving many of the novel challenges encountered when developing applications for VR and AR. Probabilistic user interface design seeks to model the uncertain events in a system and identify, implement and validate strategies that drive improved system performance. This thesis addresses four research questions by applying a probabilistic treatment in four distinct but closely related case studies. These four case studies are selected to illustrate the flexibility and unique benefits offered by this method. Research Question 1 asks how the probabilistic qualities of an interface can be determined and how this can inform design. This question is investigated in the context of text entry in VR with a probabilistic characterisation performed on two fundamental design choices. Research Question 2 relates to the challenge of adapting AR applications to deployment contexts not knowable at design time. A study in which crowdworkers are employed to build a probabilistic understanding of the requirements for contextually adaptive AR answers this question. The text entry theme is revisited in answering Research Questions 3 which asks how high levels of input noise can be mitigated through inference. A probabilistic text entry method specifically tailored for use in AR is implemented and evaluated. Finally, Research Question 4 asks how the high dimensional design space in AR and VR applications can be efficiently explored to support ideal design choices. Interface refinement through probabilistic optimisation and crowdsourcing is shown to be highly efficient and effective for this purpose. A probabilistic treatment in the design process has many potential benefits, principle among which is increased robustness to circumstances unanticipated at design time. This thesis contributes to the toolset and guidance available to designers and supports the development of next generation user interfaces specifically tailored to virtual and augmented reality.

This thesis connects the concepts of participation and play in higher education (HE), both of which are familiar themes in education literature. The former is typically seen as a 'problem' to be solved (i.e. widening participation), and the latter as a potential 'solution' (i.e. games-based learning). I challenge this conception by arguing that the logic of problems and solutions is a symptom of a flawed neoliberal discourse that overlooks much of what happens in universities. Education is often treated as a game, and this metaphor can be developed further by asking how participants actually play it. To do this, I conceptualise play and participation as situated social processes that must be understood in qualitative terms rather than on the basis of impact or results. Using a novel model of the 'magic circle' drawn from Huizinga (1949) and Lave and Wenger (1991), and a playful pragmatist methodology influenced by Dewey (1929), I explore the question of how play and participation can influence each other to transform HE. My research data comes from my work with a typical 'widening participation' cohort on a foundation degree in Education Studies. Twelve students took part in ten group interviews on the topics of play and educational participation, and I engaged in critical reflective teaching and research practice as I designed playful learning activities for a cohort of eighty students, producing field notes from observations and a reflective teaching journal. Critical thematic and autoethnographic analysis of data suggests that the way in which students and educators respond to the 'rules of the game' affects their participation. This thesis makes a contribution to theory through my use of ideas drawn from play (the magic circle, playstyles, Total Play) in the philosophy of HE. It also contributes practically; I argue that play is useful not because it improves results, but because it unlocks new ways of experiencing and thinking about HE. My key conclusion is that if HE really is a game that we all play, we should also play with it.

The Suzuki-Miyaura reaction is a landmark discovery which has revolutionised the field of palladium catalysis. Since its inception, reaction development has not only progressed the range of electrophiles which can be adopted in this transformation but has significantly enhanced the scope of organoboron reagents which can be used, cementing the reaction as the most favoured method for C-C bond formation. Despite these advances, investigation around this key transformation is continuous. A key highlight of this reaction, which is desirable to the synthetic community, is the chemoselectivity shown between, competing electrophiles, through selective oxidative addition based on electronics and bond dissociation energies, and competing nucleophiles, through selective transmetalation using boron protecting groups. The use of boron protecting groups typically adds several steps to a synthetic sequence and, as such, is an aspect which this investigation looks to address by establishing chemoselectivity between ostensibly equivalent organoboron species. In order to probe this chemoselectivity a workhorse reaction was chosen: The Brown oxidation. This work describes the development of a chemoselective oxidation of competing organoboron species with a thorough investigation into the origin of this observed chemoselectivity. This study serves as a platform for chemoselectivity in other organoboron reactions without the necessity of protecting groups. A key mechanistic event in the SM reaction which has recently been disclosed in several mechanistic investigations, is the anion metathesis step. Although this critical step has been suitably highlighted in these studies, we believe control of this event would provide a powerful, yet untapped, control vector in PdII catalysis. The following study highlights how an ion metathesis can be regulated to facilitate discrimination between competing Mizoroki-Heck and Suzuki-Miyaura pathways. To interrogate this vinyl BPin, a competent nucleophile in both cross-couplings, is employed as a bifunctional chemical probe. Ultimately, this thesis will discuss unexplored chemoselectivity of organoboron compounds and how this selectivity can be leveraged for the improvement of synthetic chemistry.

The Holocene (11,750 Yrs. B.P. - present day) provides valuable examples of climate change in response to natural and anthropogenic forcing, by which future forecasting models can be validated. However, reliable climate and environmental observations rarely extend beyond the past 200 years. In this case proxy-based reconstructions can extend the record further. The sediments and water of Windermere, NW England, have been studied since the 1930s. These studies show the potential of the sediments to create a record of environment and climate change which extends from the Pleistocene to the present day. It's location in the NE Atlantic region means it is ideally suited to record changes in climate and environment which are affected by globally important systems such as the North Atlantic Oscillation, Atlantic sea surface temperatures and the North Atlantic Currents. This thesis aims to firstly provide preliminary results of a multiproxy study of the whole Holocene sediment sequence from Windermere's North Basin. A combination of organic, geochemical, and sediment microfabric analysis complemented by a chironomid inferred mean July temperature and pollen community reconstruction show the potential for the Holocene sediments of Windermere to record major climate events such as the 4.2 k. Yrs. B.P. cooling event. More detailed analysis has identified mass transport deposits (MTDs) in the early Holocene, likely caused by seismic instability induced by isostatic readjustment following deglaciation. The sediments of Windermere have also been impacted by anthropogenic activities since at least the beginning of the industrial revolution. However, the full impact of this activity is as yet unknown. With this in mind this thesis aims to provide a detailed history of anthropogenic impacts on the water column and sediments. Using gravity cores collected from Windermere in 2014 this thesis presents a novel combination of techniques to relate microscopic sediment fabric features to lake-basin scale processes. Together microfabric and geochemical methods enabled the identification of MTDs which, despite bioturbational mixing, can be dated to 1979 and 1979-1980 respectively. The timing of these features make a likely trigger the 4.7 ML 1979 Carlisle earthquake. Slope failure was likely to be the result of preconditioning principally by increased sediment in-wash as a result of anthropogenic activities. This study constitutes the first evidence of seismic activity-induced MTDs preserved in lake sediments in the UK and is published in the Journal of the Geological Society of London. Further to this, this study presents the results of a multi-method organic- and geochemical, and sediment fabric analysis, applied to reconstruct the history of eutrophication and pollution in Windermere. Eutrophication developed in the late 19th and earliest 20th centuries and is marked by changes in the sediment microfabric, organic chemistry and geochemistry. Δ13C values show increased lake productivity is coeval with Pb, Zn, Cu, Hg, and As enrichment. Δ15N values in the South Basin sediment correlate with Zn, Hg and Cu, suggesting a major source of pollution to be from human sewage or farm runoff marked by isotopically heavy nitrate. In peak eutrophic conditions, a strongly reducing environment promoted Fe dissolution and the formation of anglesite-barite mineralisation, hitherto undescribed in lake sediments. Partial recovery is shown to occur after 1980 across both basins, but elevated δ15N in the South Basin shows the continued impacts of sewage discharge. Results also show elevated concentrations of Mn, Fe, Ba, and As in the surficial sediment. Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM)-led methods additionally identified preserved diatom algae seasonal blooms, some of which may be matched with bloom occurrence record from Windermere. Millimetre-scale laminations of Fe and Mn minerals are also further analysed from the surface and pre-eutrophication intervals, and are shown to record seasonal cycles of lake ventilation. Results also show tight coupling of Fe and P, which indicates the potential redox-driven release of P to the water column with implications for lake eutrophication. This study highlights the power of microstratigraphic techniques in the recognition and characterisation of event layers in sediments where bioturbative disruption has occurred.

Textualism is the doctrine of statutory interpretation propounded by a small group of US federal court judges, including the late Justice Antonin Scalia. Whilst the doctrine has attracted a great deal of scholarly attention, few have considered its historical development. In this dissertation, textualism is analysed in order to uncover the core principles and sets of rules from which it is comprised. Then, the development of these principles and sets of rules is traced back through the treatises on statutory interpretation published in England and America in the Victorian era, which were well-known to and frequently cited by Justice Scalia. Textualism is revealed to be an Anglo-American doctrine that emerged over the course of the nineteenth century; and it was made explicit in the treatises on statutory interpretation, which developed via a transatlantic scholarly dialogue. The doctrine fell out of favour in the US as the nineteenth century drew to a close; and around the same time, the rule prohibiting recourse to legislative history, a core feature of textualism, became subject to significant judicial challenge in England. The matter was resolved by a landmark decision in 1906, after which time the doctrine became firmly entrenched in England until approximately the 1980s. Textualism's long tenure in England demonstrates how a doctrinal common law theory typical of the late Victorian era persisted for more than a century despite variations in judicial application of the rules from which the doctrine is comprised, criticism from within the legal community, and significant social change over time. The modern US revival of this doctrine is further testament to textualism's tenacity. Whilst many scholars have found the doctrine to be problematic, it has remained attractive to common law judges from the time of its emergence in the middle of the nineteenth century through to the present. This is so because textualism was developed and refined through doctrinal legal scholarship, and as a result, it is consistent with traditional common law modes of reasoning, and it is tailor-made to meet the needs of judges deciding cases.

Background Previous studies have demonstrated suboptimal management of care for osteoarthritis (OA). The objectives of this study were to (i) identify indicators of quality of care for OA in general practice, (ii) measure quality of care using routine general practice records and through an enhanced recording template (iii) estimate the effect of the template introduction on quality of care, and (iv) assess the feasibility of quality indicators as trial outcome measures. Methods A systematic review and narrative synthesis of quality indicators was undertaken. An iterative process of development resulted in an electronic template to record management of OA in consultations, based on identified quality indicators. This was triggered by a case definition of clinical OA derived through consensus. An assessment of coding, diagnostic misclassification using consultation narrative, and baseline recorded quality of care before template installation in eight practices was undertaken. Measurement after template installation facilitated a before-and-after comparison of care. The indicators were used as secondary outcomes in a cluster-randomised trial of a model OA consultation. Results There were fifteen valid, feasible quality indicators. Consultation prevalence of clinical OA was comparable to other estimates but up to one-third of cases may not represent true OA. Prescribing and referral data were well-captured in the routine record; assessment and core treatment indicators (such as education and advice) were not and so were included in the recording template. The template had small-to-moderate effects on weight recording, and paracetamol and topical anti-inflammatory prescription. Assessment of the effect of the model consultation was limited by high baseline quality achievement and variation between trial arms, practices and clinicians. Conclusion Assessment of quality of care for OA in general practice through quality indicators is feasible but comprehensive assessment requires enhanced recording approaches. Inter-clinician variability requires further understanding and reduction, and triangulation with patient-experienced quality is needed.

Legacy industrial contaminants, such as trichloroethene (TCE), that have been released to aquifers in the last century, now threaten the quality of groundwater baseflow to lowland rivers and streams. Before reaching these receptors, contaminant plumes must first transit the heterogeneous environment of the aquifer-river interface. This research investigates the fate and potential for in-situ natural attenuation at this interface where a poorly-defined TCE plume potentially threatens a ‘gaining’ lowland river in the UK. It was possible to reveal a well-defined discharge zone of the plume in the riverbed with limited dispersion occurring in the low-permeability floodplain deposits. Through electrical resistivity imaging and intrusive sampling, this alluvial aquitard was revealed to be laterally extensive along the river corridor. A dissolved TCE flux of 0.43–1.5 g d–1 to the river was estimated,with most of this discharge occurring over a 40 m long reach, centred on a meander bend in the floodplain. The location and magnitude of this flux is influenced by continuity of stratified silt and peat deposits extending riverward from the floodplain, which provide significant retardation capacity. Metre-scale heterogeneity in the spatial variability of the groundwater discharge through these deposits was revealed with riverbed temperature mapping. A dominance of aerobic and nitrate-rich water throughout the aquifer-river system maintains a large stoichiometric demand for organic carbon and prevents the onset of reducing conditions required for significant dechlorination of the plume. However, at discrete shallow locations in the riverbed and parts of the alluvium, partial dechlorination of the plume was observed. A grid of pore water samplers revealed more enhanced dechlorination to cis-1,2-dichloroethene and vinyl chloride in methanogenic zones of the shallow sediment that was influenced by river macrophyte growth. Although in-situ natural attenuation does exceed the up-gradient aquifer in places, overall these processes are unlikely to prevent migration of the majority of the contaminant mass to the river. However, surface water impacts from this particular plume are unlikely with the large dilution available in the river itself.

The lobster, Homarus americanus (Milne Edwards) is a commercially-important species harvested in Canada and exported live to international markets. Landed condition and post-harvest handling practices play a significant role in the ability of an exporter of live lobster to provide customers with a premium product. A set of standardized quality handling, storage and shipping parameters does not exist, an absence that can lead to quality degradation or premature mortality that impacts both the reputation of the H. americanus stakeholders as well as being a potential waste of a limited natural resource. Studies on physiological risk factors for storage, emersion tolerance and cardioventilatory responses to immersion temperature change were conducted to assess their impact on the maintenance of quality in the supply chains of live H. americanus. Based on survival analysis during long term storage, it was found that storage risk factor predictive success was season-dependent, with haemolymph lactate positively correlated with long-term storage mortality in spring-caught lobsters, but not with winter-caught ones. Haemolymph total protein, haemocyanin and refractive index were positivelycorrelated with long term storage mortality in winter-caught lobsters but not spring-caught ones. The immediate pre-harvest acclimation temperature affected the lobsters' response to emersion. Haemolymph pH and lactate levels during emersion revealed that the standard 3 °C environmental air temperature, used for commercial live shipments, causes a delay in the onset of anaerobic metabolism in 7.5 °C, but not 2.5 °C pre-acclimated lobsters. Although H. americanus is reportedly sensitive to changes in environmental temperatures less than 0.5 °C, it was found that acute changes in immersed water temperature of 5 °C did not elicit an overall change in cardioventilatory activity. Complete haemolymph temperature change occurred within 30 minutes of immersed, acute environmental temperature change, notably faster than was observed in the absence of cardioventilatory activity, indicating the effectiveness of the cardioventilatory activities in H. americanus as a heat exchange system. The current findings, along with existing relevant research findings in the literature, were used to create a template for model commercial post-harvest practices for H. americanus. The template consists of a food quality and safety control program based on the globally-accepted HACCP principles of inductive reasoning that stress proactive versus reactive processes. The current research findings provide critical control points that can be applied throughout the post-harvest distribution chain from first landing to delivery to the end consumer. These critical control points are identified with suggested parameters to use as guidelines for the H. americanus live trade in an effort to improve the consistency of quality and reduce the risks that can lead to product and/or quality loss as a result of incorrect practices.

A qualitative study exploring disordered eating in a small group of first-year undergraduate students studying for professional health care related degrees (n=12) illustrating what support mechanisms and services are required for those 1st year students experiencing or at risk. Key issues emerging: Lack of understanding to the nature/risks associated with disordered eating and the use of disordered eating as a stress coping mechanism. For some of the students their patterns of disordered eating seemed to predate their arrival at university. Disordered eating was perceived negatively and as a mental health issue, they were consequently reticent to acknowledge to the university or in some cases to approach student counseling, being wary of the academic/ professional consequences. This was possibly reflected in a sometimes concealed /sub-clinical experience. Loneliness was an issue for some. A number of the students were evidently wary of eating in more public refectories. Almost all of the students felt very positive about their arrival at university and that their experience with disordered eating could potentially add to their repertoire as future health care professionals. Conclusion: The University could further develop its outreach to new students with a more consistently supportive program including stress training and more support via student buddying; and extend its program on positive mental health to reduce a sense of stigma within the student population. Personal tutors and student health care facilities need to be consistently trained in the understanding and person centered approach to students experiencing disordered eating, particularly the sub-clinical group. The University could consider some small changes and adaptations to the refectory eating areas to better facilitate at risk students. Finally the University could perhaps better use the first few months of student's arrival at university to help embed a program to develop a stronger sense of coherence and wellbeing.

For those working with young people, it is invaluable to know to what extent any individual's decisions around drug use reflect the behaviour which their peers have modelled for them. Peer influence is, however, notoriously difficult to estimate, often because of the inadequacies of the available data. This thesis describes secondary statistical analysis of the Belfast Youth Development Study, a dataset with several attractive characteristics. Peer behaviour could be measured at t he level of the school grade, the friendship cluster and various related subgroups. Furthermore, data on network composition and drug use behaviours were available over multiple consecutive years, which is rare internationally. Using a suite of regression models, including standard linear, instrumental variables and fixed effects models, I demonstrate the importance of friends' behaviour and of the relationships between friends in determining individual• level drug use. Specifically, I find strong positive causal coefficients for friends' average use of cannabis and other drugs on ego's use. By contrast, the mean use of other grademates is found to have zero effect on that of ego. In dealing with the problems of identification, I employ a sound instrumental variable strategy exploiting network structure and capitalise on the longitudinal dimension of BYDS to produce an individual fixed effects model controlling for initial preferences and select ion of new friends. This is the first such model of adolescent drug use. Both of these strategies converge on a peer influence coefficient of 0.4, indicating that a 10% increase in friends' illegal drug use results increases ego's likelihood of use by 4%. The effect is much stronger for friends who reciprocate ego's friendship. There is also evidence that drug using groups are more tightly knit at their core but also more open around their margins than other groups. These results are discussed in terms of their applicability to educating young people, both on how their peers' behaviour might compromise their long-term health and personal autonomy, and, reciprocally, on the potential effects of their behaviour on their closest friends.

The Internet has been adopted as a video distribution technology by different categories of amateur video producers who were using other distribution methods prior to its advent. I conducted a one-year ethnographic study of amateur producers from three such categories (public access television producers, video activists, and film and television fans) to understand their reasons for this adoption, how they used this technology, and the interactions with their audiences that followed from its use, analysing my findings within a new materialist framework. I found that the producers had a diverse set of reasons for going online and that these largely depended on their specific circumstances, and on how they saw the online environment in relation to their overall objectives as video makers. These circumstances and objectives also meant that some producers resisted going online at all, or used the technology in a restricted way, and that traditional distribution methods continued to exist in some form alongside the Internet-based ones. The producers assembled together different people and technologies to distribute their videos, which was often a complex and contested process, typically resulting in distribution assemblages that were precarious and that required on-going maintenance. These assemblages used a wide variety of technological components, selected for a broad range of reasons, which also largely reflected the specific circumstances and objectives of the producers. I also found that the producers varied considerably in their attitude towards audience engagement, as well as in the methods they used to achieve it, and in the success of those methods. Some were in fact indifferent to it, while others considered it a critical part of their activities. While some were successful in producing sustained interactions with their audiences, others failed to do so. These findings enrich and problematize our current understanding of this emergent phenomenon.

The pathophysiology of acute post-stroke hyperglycaemia (PSH) is important as hyperglycaemia affects the majority of stroke patients, and is consistently associated with poorer outcome in terms of survival, disability and markers of brain injury such as infarct expansion. There appears to be an interaction between brain arterial patency and hyperglycaemia that has not been fully characterised. This thesis initially reviews the literature on hyperglycaemia and stroke before focusing on animal models of PSH and clinical trials of insulin treatment for PSH in two systematic reviews with meta-analysis. The thesis then looks at the relationship between glucose profiles and clinical outcome in a historical population receiving IV thrombolysis for acute ischaemic stroke, specifically exploring alternative indices of glycaemic state to compare the optimal predictive index for functional outcome as measured by the modified Rankin scale. The main body of the thesis details a prospective observational clinical study which recruited 108 patients within 6 hours of acute ischaemic stroke. These patients had careful monitoring of blood glucose levels over a 48 hour period and detail brain imaging including CT perfusion scanning to examine the ischaemic penumbra, CT angiography on admission and at 24-48 hours to document brain arterial patency with follow-up CT brain imaging to assess outcome infarct volume. The relationship between 48 hour blood glucose profiles, clinical outcome and imaging findings is then explored. The main findings of the thesis are summarized below. · Animal models of PSH have shown that hyperglycaemia exacerbates infarct volume in MCA occlusion models but studies are heterogeneous, and do not address the common clinical problem of PSH because they have used either the streptozotocin model of type I diabetes or extremely high glucose loads. · Animal models show that insulin has a non-significant and significantly heterogeneous effect on infarct growth. 3 · Clinical trials of insulin for post stroke hyperglycaemia have shown no benefit in terms of improved functional outcomes or mortality. Insulin is associated with an increased risk of hypoglycaemia. · In a historical cohort mean capillary blood glucose over 48 hours was more predictive of clinical outcome that admission blood glucose or two consecutive elevated glucose measurements. · A high proportion of acute stroke patients have a blood glucose level above 7mmol/L within 6 hours of onset. Different patterns of blood glucose levels define different populations. · Higher admission and mean glucose levels correlate with larger infarct volumes. Larger core perfusion lesion volumes are associated with a greater risk of mortality. Admission hyperglycaemia is more harmful than hyperglycaemia after 6 hours. · In patients with angiographic evidence of an arterial occlusion infarct volume varies significantly with glycaemic status. In some populations late hyperglycaemia is associated with better imaging outcomes. · Tandem occlusions are associated with bad outcomes after ischaemic stroke.

Aim and Objectives: The overall aim of this work was to explore the current organisation of general medical services in Scotland, and by doing so, to create evidence which would identify a more effective and acceptable organisational model for the future delivery of primary care (general medical services) within the Scottish context. There were three research objectives: to improve understanding of the views of the public in relation to the organisation of general practice (general medical services) within the wider context of primary care within Scotland; to improve understanding of the views of professionals working within primary care in relation to the organisation of primary care; and to identify and refine models of primary care, and then to test these models of primary care against the status quo with primary care staff and with representatives of the public. Methods: Mixed methods were used to answer the research questions. These included group-work with members of the public in order to identify their priorities for the future of primary care; and semi-structured interviews with a purposive sample of primary care staff which combined members of the core practice team with Community Health Partnership and Health Board managers. Two alternative models for the provision of primary care general medical services were identified by combining the findings from the public and primary care staff with the literature. The two alternative models were then explored by public representatives and primary care staff using mixed methods which combined scoring of the models with deliberative discussion. Results: Work with the public identified a number of specific priorities. The most important priorities included: quality of care; access to care; and holism. A number of other issues such as a desire for involvement in their own care and the importance of access were also identified. Equity was also acknowledged as being important. There was general agreement between the public and primary care staff in terms of priorities, although staff were resistant to an increased role for the public in overseeing the organisation of practices. Staff and the public agreed on the high levels of variability in general medical practice and the public were concerned about low levels of holism. Staff and managers described an emerging sense of confusion about the roles of general practice. Practice staff had very negative views of Community Health Partnerships and Health Boards in terms of governance, and there was a lack of leadership and direction across primary care. There was evidence of low levels of trust between practice staff and CHP/Board managers. Skillmix was seen as desirable, though some saw it as a means to cost reduction. The independence of practices within the NHS was overwhelmingly supported by staff, who felt that this was preferable to the difficulties encountered in the directly employed and managed system. Practice ownership and the issue of profit was contested with a number of staff being uncomfortable with the idea, but there was a recognition that removing this driver might have negative consequences. There was ambivalence about the move to a wider model of health and the impact of integration with other sectors which was seen negatively by practice staff. Two alternative models were identified: a local contract model and a social enterprise model. These were tested by public representatives and primary care staff against the status quo. The public scored the local contract more highly on the domains of patient influence on service organisation, and on patient and carer involvement in their care. The public representatives scored the social enterprise model significantly more highly than the local contract model and the status quo. The primary care group did not score the novel models significantly higher than the status quo. The staff group were concerned about proposals to increase the involvement of the public in the organisation of services. Conclusions: The work builds on that of others who have identified the public’s priorities for primary care. It suggests that holism, patient influence in service organisation and equity are important priorities. The work with primary care staff confirms work by others relating to difficulties with the governance of primary care. Alternative independent models of provision were advanced which might address some of the current difficulties in general medical services. The author proposes that user involvement should form an important part of primary care governance, bringing together conflicting perspectives of CHP/Board managers and practice staff. The public’s main role in governance is to mediate between the positions taken by health professionals and managers, creating a shared perspective which is acceptable to the public. Furthermore, the concept of conditional trust and the emergence of new forms of professionalism which foster interdisciplinary working are proposed as potential solutions to the current impasse.

This thesis studies Amorphous Solid Water (ASW) using Molecular Dynamics for the purpose of investigating what governs asteroid, planet and comet formation, which in turn provides the foundations for life to exist in the universe. This thesis begins by presenting the astronomical background to this study, focusing on our current understanding of how the universe evolved from the Big Bang to its current state, and the role which interstellar dust grains have played in stellar evolution. It is currently believed that the icy mantles which reside on interstellar dust grains in cold dense regions of the interstellar medium (ISM) act as a catalyst allowing the formation of prebiotic molecules. The catalytic properties of icy mantles responsible for synthesis of these molecules depend on the concentration of unsatisfied, or 'dangling', ASW hydrogen bonds within these icy mantles, Observational studies do not detect dangling O-H bonds but experimental studies do. This study suggests that while ASW dangling O-H bonds do exist in these icy mantles, most water molecules exist in a hydrogen bonded network with about 3.78 hydrogen bonds per water molecule. This should be compared with crystalline ice for which all four hydrogen bonds per molecule. Moreover, this work also indicates that there are more dangling bonds in the interfacial region than the bulk region. Work in this thesis also investigates the role that 'shadowing' and 'electrostatic steering' play in ASW growth on extraterrestrial dust surfaces. Currently, it is believed that the coral-like structure of ASW is caused solely by shadowing, a geometric phenomenon. However, this work finds that although shadowing has an influence, ASW growth and its subsequent structure are primarily determined by electrostatic steering, i.e. a process where depositing water molecules are steered towards dangling O-H bonds on the ASW surface. This thesis concludes by contrasting these new findings with the properties and structure of ASW, and describing the implications for our understanding of stellar evolution.

This thesis explores the structure of the criminal law and, in particular, the structural device of element analysis. Building upon the classical actus reus/mens rea distinction, element analysis further sub-divides both parts of an offence into acts, circumstances and results. In doing so, element analysis offers advantages within the criminal law, both as a structure for legal discussion and analysis, and as a structure for law reform. In relation to the latter, recent reform of inchoate assisting and encouraging (as well as a range of Law Commission recommendations) has made use of element analysis to structure the reform of the general inchoate offences, requiring different levels of fault in relation to different offence elements. However, despite the increasingly important role played by element analysis, it remains a controversial device. Critics have exposed a lack of objectivity within the separation of elements, and an unacceptable level of complexity, particularly in relation to assisting and encouraging. Accepting much of their criticism, but rejecting the viability of the alternatives offered, this thesis therefore seeks to reinterpret and remodel element analysis in order to realise its potential

The goal of the research described in this thesis was to create composites which have consistent values of electrical conductivity that can be suitably tailored depending on production method to yield a range of low cost flexible 'electronic' materials. Blends of linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) with 8, 10 and 12 wt.% polyaniline (PANI) and similar formulations with varying concentrations of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were prepared using melt blending. The morphology of the blends and dispersion of the CNTs were examined by a combination of X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy which showed that some nanotubes were well dispersed but there was evidence of agglomeration at higher loadings. The. ultimate tensile strength (UTS) of the composites tended to decrease with increased PANI content but modulus remained constant. 3-5 wt.% CNTs improved the UTS of LLDPEIPANI composites but higher CNT :oading decreased strength and elongation at break. Volume resistivity measurements were taken from sheet samples, revealing that LLDPEIPANI composites had attained a percolation threshold, with a drop in resistivity from 1018 to 108 a.cm for 12 wt.% PANI. Resistivity values for LLDPE composites containing CNT and PANI/CNT were influenced by film thickness. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy examined effects occurring at the boundary between composite surfaces and an electrolyte solution. Using this technique, MWCNTs were seen to reduce the resistance of the composite. Solid state impedance spectroscopy was used to characterise the electrical behaviour of the bulk material and revealed that no LLDPEIMWCNT composites were percolated for 500 Jlm thick specimens. Furthermore, it revealed that MWCNTs eliminated the current carrying capacity ofPANI in LLDPE/PANIIMWCNT composites. Supplied by The British Library - 'The world's knowledge'

The researcher’s previous experience suggested the use of computer-based design and fabrication tools might enable new models of practice that yield a greater integration between the 3D art and design disciplines. A critical, contextual review was conducted to assess what kinds of objects are being produced by art and design practitioners; what the significant characteristics of these objects might be; and what technological, theoretical and contextual frameworks support their making. A survey of international practitioners was undertaken to establish how practitioners use these tools and engage with other art and design disciplines. From these a formalised system of analysis was developed to derive evaluative criteria for these objects. The researcher developed a curatorial framework for a public exhibition and symposium that explored the direction that art and design practitioners are taking in relation to computer-based tools. These events allowed the researcher to survey existing works, explore future trends, gather audience and peer response and engage the broader community of interest around the field of enquiry. Interviews were conducted with practitioners whose work was included in this exhibition and project stakeholders to reveal patterns and themes relevant to the theoretical framework of this study. A model of the phases that practitioners go through when they integrate computer-based tools into their practice was derived from an existing technology adoption model. Also, a contemporary version of R. Krauss’s ‘Klein Group’ was developed that considers developments in the field from the use of digital technologies. This was used to model the context within which the researcher’s practice is located. The research identifies a form of ‘technologyled- practice’ and an increased capacity for a ‘transdisciplinary discourse’ at the intersection of disciplinary domains. This study will be of interest to practitioners from across the 3D art and design disciplines that use computerbased tools.

The cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 is a model experimental organism for proteomic research because its entire genomic sequence is available and cyanobacteria have high adaptive potential towards a variety of environmental stresses. Heat shock characteristically induces expression of the heat shock proteins (Hsps) and photosynthetic organisms have demonstrated the ability to acclimatise their photosynthetic apparatus to milder elevated temperatures. In this study the proteomic methodology of two dimension gel electrophoresis and peptide mass fingerprinting mass spectrometry (PMF MS) was developed for the analysis of Synechocystis proteins. High resolution was attained with the application of narrow acidic pH range 'zoom' gels and of 192 individual soluble protein spots analysed via MALDI ToF, 105 were identified. A 2-D difference gel electrophoresis (2D DIGE) based proteomic approach has been applied to characterise the heat shock response in the soluble protein fraction and determine protein factors involved in the thermal acclimation of the thylakoid membrane and its associated photosynthetic machinery in Synechocystis. These analyses together with PMF MS for protein identification characterised 176 and 108 heat shock and heat acclimation responsive protein spots, respectively. In both analyses, molecular chaperones displayed the highest heat elevated level, demonstrating a dual role in stabilisation and refolding of both soluble and membrane-bound proteins. Other proteins identified in the heat shock response included those involved in photosynthesis, carbon fixation, translation, amino acid biosynthesis and several hypothetical proteins. Proteins involved in heat acclimation of the thylakoid membrane included constituents of photosynthesis, respiration, hopene biosynthesis and several hypothetical proteins. Furthermore, a candidate heat sensor involved in the regulation of heat shock gene expression has been characterised through analysis of the heat shock response in a histidine kinase knock out mutant strain of Synechocystis, namely Мік34, which displays increased thermal tolerance. The gene product of hik34 has a possible dual role in both the suppression of hsp gene expression under normal growth temperature and enhancement under heat shock.

Arrangements are also considered for providing other ways of deploying in situ natural turfgrass in multi-use stadia. These methods are not dependent on long-term advantageous environmental conditions. Some of these arrangements can also provide for the exchange of turfgrass playing surfaces for those are hard wearing. The details of these arrangements are complemented by case studies. Implementing some of these other arrangements may negate the need to incorporate strict environmental standards in stadia design

Selection has been primarily focussed on the use of ability and aptitude measures as they have been shown to predict job performance in uniformed organisations. Personality assessment has largely been ignored as a possible contributor to improving predictions of performance. The emergence of the Five Factor Model as a framework for personality research, together with the development of the Trait Self Description Inventory (TSDI), has provided the opportunity to investigate how personality assessment might improve upon existing selection methods to predict performance in training. It was found that existing criterion measures did not fully reflect the core aims of the training organizations. This led to the use of a Leadership Trait Rating Scale as a criterion measure for subsequent investigation of the psychometric properties of the TSDI, and the development of a performance taxonomy. Five studies were carried out. Four of the studies involved soldiers and officers from the British Army as participants. These studies were undertaken to contrast the predictive validity of the Big Five factors against overall and specific areas of performance and to examine the incremental validity of the Big Five factors and their sub factors over general ability measures. The fifth study examined the general isability of the findings using similar data gathered from the Metropolitan Police Service. Contextual factors were found to have great influence on relationships between personality assessment and criterion measures. A novel, robust, two factor leadership model was identified. The first factor represented cognitively orientated leadership traits and the second, personality orientated leadership traits. These factors broadly equated to 'can do' and 'will do' attributes. Overall, the Big Five personality measures predicted no worse than, and, in some cases, as well as, some of the Army's Regular Commissions Board (RCB) dimensions. Big Five sub factors (facets) in certain situations were shown to predict performance better than the Big Five factors. The development potential of personality assessment for improving existing selection systems in uniformed organizations was confirmed by the findings.

The purpose of this thesis is firstly to provide a co-ordinated history of the development of the network of Regional Theological Courses which has grown, since the founding of the Southwark Ordination Course in 1960, to a position whereby 2000 the network was providing part-tune training for about half of the ordinands of the Church of England. Secondly there is a critical assessment of the effectiveness of these Courses both relative to the more traditional Theological Colleges and having regard to the work of those ordained and in parochial ministry. The thesis draws heavily on unpublished primary source documentation from the archives of the Courses, together with interviews with key personnel and a survey of those who have trained on the Courses, their subsequent supervisors and diocesan Bishops. Chapters 1 and 2 describe the development of the Courses from 1960-1979 and Chapter 3 is about the watershed of 1979 when unexpectedly all the Courses were validated for training Stipendiary as well as Non-Stipendiary clergy. Chapter 4 introduces critical questions raised by key interviewees and Chapter 5 describes further interviews with current Course Principals. The period from 1979 to 2000 is covered by Chapter 6 which describes central Reports and debates and Chapters 7-10 which show the development of the individual Courses in the Regions. Selected curriculum issues are raised in Chapter 11 and this is followed by the results of the Survey of Bishops in Chapter 12, of Supervisory Clergy in Chapter 13 and of Past Students in Chapter 14. Chapter 15 lists conclusions and recommendations. Further information from the surveys that is not included in the main text has been provided as supplementary material.

Indium antimonide (InSb) and gallium antimonide (GaSb) are technologically important III-V semiconductor materials used in infrared detector systems. Yet, the application of these materials is to a certain extent limited, in that the techniques currently used for their growth are both expensive and problematic. Semiconductor electrochemical deposition, which has been successfully applied to the generation of II-VI semiconductor materials, may offer the prospect of overcoming such limitations. This work presents results that represent a significant contribution to the development of electrochemical methods for both InSb and GaSb thin film growth. The direct electrochemical co-deposition of InSb was achieved via the potentiostatic electrolysis of aqueous halide/citric acid electrolyte solutions, and for the first time, non-aqueous (ethylene glycol) electrolyte solutions containing the halides and tetraethylammonium chloride. This choice of solvents allowed the compound's deposition to be studied over a wide range of temperatures (RT to 185 °C). A first report was also made of the direct potentiostatic co-deposition of GaSb from an aqueous solution containing Ga[2](SO[4])[3] and SbCl[3].An extensive study was carried out on the relationship between the technique's fundamental growth parameters (temperature, deposition potential, solution composition etc.) and the film's compositional, crystallographic and morphological properties. The material's characterisation showed that there was tendency for the films to be non-stoichiometric. X-Ray diffraction patterns obtained from InSb films deposited from aqueous electrolyte solutions showed them to generally consist of two phases, the compound and, depending mostly on deposition potential, one of the elements. Films containing three phases, the compound and both elements, were deposited on Ti substrates from aqueous solutions and on to ITO substrates from non-aqueous solutions. These results were interpreted from both thermodynamic and kinetic viewpoints. This led to the conclusion that kinetic barriers to the formation of InSb still existed, even at the highest temperature used (~185 °C). In respect of GaSb, the compound's formation was complicated by a side reaction involving the evolution of H[2].New studies involving Scanning Electron Microscopy of the electrodeposited materials showed that they exhibited a nodular morphology, which can be explained in terms of the film's limiting current growth conditions. Energy Dispersive X-Ray Analysis (EDX) and Glow Discharge Optical Emission Spectroscopy (GDOES) identified indium chloride as a major impurity in the InSb films, especially those deposited from non-aqueous solutions. A mechanism for the incorporation of indium chloride was proposed, based on the physical entrapment of a precipitate of the compound.

Community Politics implies a bottom-up approach to politics, working inside and outside existing political institutions to create a participatory democracy. First adopted by the Liberal Party in 1970, this political strategy is based upon the principles of subsidiarity and devolution of power. It has remained a key component of the third party's strategy throughout the last three decades. This thesis examines Community Politics and its practical application by the Liberal Democrats to contemporary local government. The first part of the thesis traces the historical development of Community Politics from the Social Liberal tradition of Thomas Hill Green, through Jo Grimond's reinvention of the Liberal Party as a radical, non-Socialist alternative to Conservatism, to the radical Young Liberal activists of the 1970s. It then goes on to present a theoretical analysis of Community Politics, which investigates the dilemmas and contradictions of a strategy founded on the ideas of locality and the collective for a liberal party in a modem, urban democracy. The second part of the thesis is an empirical analysis of the recruitment of Liberal Democrat councilors and of their representativeness. Research data is used to assess the claims that Liberal Democrat councilors offer a distinct quality and type of representation that corresponds with the aims of the Community Politics strategy. The third and final part considers Liberal Democrat politics in the context of the local authority party group and the level of democracy in the organisation of these groups, before finally exploring the policy and practice of Community Politics in Liberal Democrat controlled authorities.

Founded in 1865, the Palestine Exploration Fund (PEF) was for the first 20 years of its existence both the principal British exploration society in the Holy Land and a surveying organisation which was heavily dependent upon the work of and support of the Royal Engineers. From 1865 to 1886 PEF functioned as an independent organisation dependent for its work and existence upon the intelligence department of the War Office. Employing Royal Engineers, men and officers, the Fund surveyed western and eastern Palestine, Sinai, and completed a geographical survey around the Dead Sea. Its surveyors included Charles Wilson (later Sir Charles Wilson), Charles Warren (later Sir Charles Warren), Claude Conder and H. H. Kitchener (later Lord Kitchener), and its supporters and organisers included many notable men of the day. The survey operation linked closely with the need for a full map of the Holy Land area in order to protect and police the eastern hinterland to the Suez Canal. After 1890 the PEF became an archaeological organisation employing William Flinders Petrie (1891), Frederick Jones Bliss (1891-1900), R. A. Macalister (1900-09) and lastly Duncan Mackenzie (1910-1912). From 1913 to 1914 the PEF reverted to its former role of intelligence gathering for the War Office and employed Leonard Woolley and T. E. Lawrence as archaeologists and as a cover for Royal Engineers under Captain Newcombe who surveyed the Wilderness of Zin area. After 1918 the British Mandate in Palestine rendered such uses of the PEF obsolete. This thesis examines the composition of the PEF, its foundation, the involvement of the military intelligence departments with PEF, its financial basis and its relationship to the British involvement in the Middle East. It does not examine the PEF's role in archaeological history, but concentrates upon its work as a Victorian imperial institution.

The Granada Basin is an intramontane basin situated within the Betic Orogen of southern Spain, at the westernmost extension of the Alpine Orogenic Belt. The Basin was initiated in the early-mid Miocene and is still active today. The Granada Basin rests upon rocks of the metamorphic Internal Zones of the Betic Orogen, which have evolved in core-complex style, extending and uplifting since the late Miocene, a process which has profoundly affected the evolution of the Eastern margin of the Granada Basin. The sediments of the basin record some of this history, both in conglomerate clast composition and in syn and post-sedimentary deformation of the basin. Sediment was derived from the rocks of the Internal Zone rocks in the Sierra Nevada region. The basin flank has been uplifted progressively during the rise of the Internal Zones core-complex. This has resulted in the westward migration of the depocentre of the basin and the recycling of the eastern basin margin. The Granada Basin is therefore an ideal place to study the evolution of sediment composition, in relation to recycling during a single orogenic phase, and the evolution of maturity and the progressive loss of provenance signature during recycling. Three conglomeratic fan formations are found on the eastern flank of the basin, which record a transition from marine to terrestrial deposition. In order of decreasing age these are the Dudar, Pinos Genii and Alhambra Formations. Despite a constant provenance, the maturity of the sediments increases with decreasing age. Conglomerate clasts become increasingly rounded and clast composition becomes more mature into the younger Pinos Genii and Alhambra Formations. Quartzose clasts become more common and labile schistose clasts increasingly confined to the smaller grain sizes. Sandstone composition, however, does not become more mature, but marginally less mature. Quartz content does not increase, and lithic component grains do not diminish, despite the increased effects of terrestrial weathering in the younger formations. This disparity between the different grain sizes may be explained by the continuing break-down of conglomerate clasts within the sediment, providing a primary source of sand-size detritus. Provenance indications from sandstone detrital modes are generally confirmed using established discrimination schemes, but in detail, the nature of the Granada Basin sands derived from a high grade metamorphic core-complex source may require the recognition of a distinct provenance type. Major and trace element geochemistry indicates a general increase in compositional maturity with sandstones, as the quantity of Si02 and other more immobile elements increase at the expense of mobile elements. These changes are generally consistent with weathering differences between the marine Dudar and terrestrial Alhambra Formations, but also with the possibility of sedimentary recycling. This increase in compositional maturity occurs in the sandstones despite the detrital mode maintaining its immaturity. Si02 increase is not obviously related to increased quartz content. The geochemical provenance indication given by the sediments is a passive margin regime, incorrect in the present tectonic setting but, perhaps related to the depositional setting of the protoliths to the metasedimentary rocks in the Sierra Nevada source region. Heavy minerals record an increase in stable species into the younger formations, consistent with increased maturity. Zircon, apatite, tourmaline and, surprisingly, epidote increase in abundance at the expense of garnet and amphiboles. However, for garnet and tourmaline intra-species chemistry reveals no compositional bias that can be related to sedimentary recycling or erosional and depositional weathering differences between formations. Epidote alone shows an increase in Fe poor examples in the Pinos Genii and Alhambra Formations compared with the Dudar Formation. Isotopic dating of conglomerate clasts and basement rocks from the Sierra Nevada reveals a cooling history for the Internal Zones that reaches back to the late Cretaceous. Most ages fall between 30 and 10 Ma, with the peak of cooling between 18-13Ma. Cooling rates range up to 100°C/Ma. The Alpujarride Complex, structurally above the Nevado Filabride Complex records an earlier (25Ma, 40Ar-39Ar) and slower cooling rate (35.7°C/Ma.). There is a complex relationship between cooling in the Internal Zones and sedimentation in the Granada Basin. During the most rapid cooling, sedimentation in the Granada basin had either not begun or was shallow marine carbonate deposition, indicating that there was no relief in the Internal zones at the time. The coarse sedimentation in the Dudar Formation records the uplift and evolution of the Sierra Nevada core-complex, with rapid generation of relief and the exposure of the Nevado Filabride Complex to form the dominant sediment source for the eastern Granada Basin. However, the uplift recorded by the coarse sediments of the Dudar Formation is not directly related to the isotopic cooling ages recorded by this detritus.

Faced with a rapid increase in the amount of data available to form the basis of diagnostic and management decisions in intensive care medicine, clinicians will require the assistance of computers, and in particular knowledge-based systems, if they are to avoid being overwhelmed. The development of knowledge-based systems in medicine can be traced through three generations, starting with systems that reasoned in an ad hoc fashion using surface level knowledge and progressing to systems that attempted to capture deeper knowledge of their specialist domains. More recently, a third generation of systems has emerged that use more rigorous methods of reasoning with surface level knowledge as a platform for the application of deeper knowledge. A knowledge-based system has been developed for the diagnosis of disorders of acid-base balance and hypoxemic state using a blackboard architecture to control processes of data classification and belief updating in a hierarchy of hypotheses. To acquire the knowledge for the diagnostic system, a knowledge editing environment was developed and the two systems have been combined to form a set of domain independent tools. These tools were applied to a second domain - the diagnosis of hyperlipidaemia. Evaluation studies performed in the domains of acid-base balance and hyperlipidaemia have shown that the system performs at a level comparable to that of an expert clinician.

This thesis investigates the use of a highly parallel SIMD machine for fast Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) signal processing. Through the development of new parallel techniques for the SAR processing problem, the Distributed Array Processor is shown to meet the computational demands of SAR while remaining flexible and cost effective. SAR azimuth compression is shown to be the significant computational component of the SAR processing chain whereas coping with range migration is the significant non-numerical component. High precision time-domain, and fast frequency-domain based SAR azimuth compression algorithms are presented together with techniques for efficiently handling the range migration. New parallel DSP algorithms, applicable to SAR, are developed which include a comprehensive FFT suite of mixed precision, interpolation and filtering routines. A complexity analysis of the algorithms is presented. The efficient FFT algorithms use a block floating point precision which has been tailored to match the DAP architecture. The statistical properties of this BFP approach are compared to the standard fixed and floating point precision algorithms. A broad study of DFT algorithms showed that the PFA/WFTA were the most suited to range-Doppler SAR azimuth processing on the DAP. However DAP implementation of the permutations associated with these algorithms was found to be non-trivial. The permutation problems were solved by constraining the dimensions to yield toroidally ordered data sets on which new parallel algorithms, based on Floyd's matrix transposition algorithm, were applied. A complexity analysis of the new algorithms is presented and compared to the conventional power-of-two based algorithms. It is shown that the restricted dimensions associated with the developed algorithms may be used in a SAR design which actually increases the number of looks selectable with no additional data movement overheads, when compared to the power-of-two based processors. A range compressed SAR simulator is formulated and programmed. A set of SEASAT and ERS-1 data bases is presented. Three DAP based SAR azimuth compression processors are designed : the single look time-domain processor (TDA), the single look frequency-domain processor (FDA), and the multiple look frequency-domain processor (MLA3). The relative performance of these designs is studied using the simulated data. Complexity formulae derived for the processors are verified experimentally thus allowing extrapolated times for a large data set to be computed.