Browse Theses and Dissertations

SN 28049 is a novel DNA intercalating anti-cancer drug developed at the Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre as part of ongoing research into topoisomerase II poisons with high activity against solid tumours. SN 28049 was curative against murine Colon 38 tumours, a model of colorectal adenocarcinoma which is generally unresponsive to topoisomerase II poisons (1), while two clinically used... [Thesis or Dissertation]

It’s like the sun and the tide. The aim of this study was to understand the meaning of ‘being aged’ through the everyday experiences of those who are aged. Philosophically, this interpretive study was informed by hermeneutics and interpretive phenomenology. The writings of two twentieth-century philosophers, Hans-Georg Gadamer and Martin Heidegger, guided the study’s design and research... [Thesis or Dissertation]

The main aim of this study was to develop nanoparticulate drug delivery systems for chlorambucil (CHL) and asulacrine (ASL). CHL is a DNA alkylating agent. In an attempt to alter the pharmacokinetics (short half-life, rapid clearance and high volume of distribution) and improve the anticancer activity, CHL was incorporated into a lipid nanosphere (LN) formulation. The LN were composed of... [Thesis or Dissertation]

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Thesis available online from NZETC http://www.nzetc.org/tm/scholarly/tei-WalRobl.html. Print thesis available in the University of Auckland Library or available through Inter-Library Loan.This Thesis sets out to present the work of Horatio Gordon Robley; to open his remarkably prolific and determined output as an artist to further investigation and consideration. This Thesis does not attempt to interpret his work, although - where called for - notes have been added to Robley's own; to correct, or explain, the information he gives. In thus ordering Robley's extensive,... [Thesis or Dissertation]

This thesis investigates how rural and remote communities in northeast Thailand harness information and communication technologies (ICTs) for community development and develops a new model of ICT-based lifelong learning center for local communities. The main research questions are: 1. How to adapt ICTs to fit rural communities? 2. How to integrate ICTs into their lifestyle? 3. How to use ICTs... [Thesis or Dissertation]

Restricted Item. Print thesis available in the University of Auckland Library or available through Inter-Library Loan.The ‘Rise of China’ is fast becoming one of the most significant events in modern world history. Yet academic assessments of the country’s development so far remain on one hand narrowly focused on economic and military factors and, on the other, of secondary relevance to New Zealand. This thesis addresses both deficiencies. It juxtaposes New Zealand’s bilateral relationships with China... [Thesis or Dissertation]

This thesis proposes a method to critique whether introducing sustainable development concepts into a planning process enables decision-makers to effectively address ecological sustainability. The method is trialed by assessing the adoption of sustainable development concepts by the central Government of New Zealand. A Sustainable Development Assessment Framework is proposed, allowing users to... [Thesis or Dissertation]

The synthesis of novel C9-halogenated anthracyclinones by Lewis acid promoted cyclisations of ortho-methallyl anthraquinonyl chiral dioxanes has been investigated. Tin tetrachloride-N,N-dimethylformamide promoted cyclisation of the dioxane (30) proceeded with excellent stereoselectivity to give an 82% yield of the diastereomerically pure chlorotetracycle (78). Stronger Lewis acids gave poorer... [Thesis or Dissertation]

Whole document restricted at the request of the author, see Access Instructions file below for details of how to access the print copy.This is a study of four Church Missionary Society (CMS) wives in New Zealand in the nineteenth century. The women are Charlotte Brown (nde Arnett), Anne Wilson (nee Hawker), Elizabeth Colenso (n6e Fairburn) and Catherine Hadfield (nde Williams). My thesis is that these women who were regarded by the CMS as adjuncts to their husbands were in fact "more than wives." Until recently... [Thesis or Dissertation]

This dissertation presents new modular and integrative information methods and systems inspired by the way the brain performs information processing, in particular, pattern recognition. The proposed artificial systems use spiking neurons as basic elements, which are the key components of spiking neural networks. Of particular interest to this research are various spiking neural network... [Thesis or Dissertation]

This thesis establishes a natural acquisition order for 18 nominal structures in Mandarin SLA, and assesses the extent to which that order can be explained as a consequence of cognitive processing demands. The natural acquisition order is based on a longitudinal study of three adults learning Mandarin in a classroom environment in Auckland, New Zealand. Two representatives of an average... [Thesis or Dissertation]

Restricted Item. Print thesis available in the University of Auckland Library or available through Inter-Library Loan. [Thesis or Dissertation]

Restricted Item. Print thesis available in the University of Auckland Library or available through Inter-Library Loan.A decision-support tool is designed and developed in the Visual Studio.Net environment. The tool allows managers to model project networks and schedule start times of stochastic activities. The project faces linearly increasing holding costs and delay penalties. Start times are generalized from the single-period newsvendor model in two ways: 1) non-final parallel activities are coordinated to... [Thesis or Dissertation]

Tribal traditions and practices are integral to iwi identity. From the past to the present, the biggest impact on iwi identity was colonisation and subsequent urbanisation. Urbanisation changed the foundation of identity largely due to the demographic rural-urban shift, effectively creating a distance physically and spiritually for Māori between their place of residence and their traditional... [Thesis or Dissertation]

Gravitational waves are predicted by general relativity theory. Their existence could be confirmed by astronomical observations, but until today they have not yet been measured directly. A measurement would not only confirm general relativity, but also allow for interesting astronomical observations. Great effort is currently being expended to facilitate gravitational radiation measurement,... [Thesis or Dissertation]

Intestinal mucins are high-molecular-weight complex glycoproteins which are thought to be fermented by the anaerobic bacteria in the colon. The aim of this thesis was to investigate the mode and extent of mucin degradation by bacteria. A method was developed to isolate gram quantities of soluble pig colonic mucin and pig gastric mucin. These preparations, along with commercially available pig... [Thesis or Dissertation]

Many commercial crops of Cucurbita maxima and C. pepo are grown from Fl hybrid seed in New Zealand. Conventional methods of Fl seed production are labour intensive and expensive. Applying Ethrel sprays at 300ppm at the two and four leaf stage to the seed bearing parent delayed male flowering for sufficient time to allow insect pollination and eliminate 90% of the labour previously needed. After... [Thesis or Dissertation]

Musicians comprise a unique population whereby persistent musical practice involving complex cognitive and motor tasks dates back to childhood when the potential for neural plasticity is at its highest. Accordingly, it has been speculated that musical training results in neural structural and functional differences between musicians and non-musicians. In particular, there is evidence to... [Thesis or Dissertation]

This thesis discusses two characteristics of language which affect translation, using English and Japanese examples. However, the general points made in the thesis are not specific to these two languages. One characteristic of language is that it encodes particular perceptions of experience by its users. Word meaning is defined in this thesis in terms of the typical experience the language user... [Thesis or Dissertation]

This thesis examines the concept and practice of cultural diplomacy. Cultural diplomacy is carried out by a government to support its foreign policy goals or diplomacy (or both) by using a wide range of cultural manifestations for a variety of purposes. The thesis examines aspects of the cultural diplomacy of Canada, Québec, New Zealand and India in order to investigate how cultural diplomacy... [Thesis or Dissertation]

Medical imaging is an essential tool for improving the diagnoses, understanding and treatment of a large variety of diseases. Over the last century technology has advanced from the discovery of x-rays to a variety of 3D imaging tools such as magnetic resonance imaging, computed tomography, positron emission tomography and ultrasonography. As a consequence the size and complexity of medical data... [Thesis or Dissertation]

The topic of my research is the lived experiences of eight psychotherapists and counsellors who consciously work with unusual phenomena as it arises in the therapeutic encounter. Unusual phenomena in this thesis refers to felt experiences which are considered to be beyond the everyday in the Cartesian paradigm and are often referred to as spiritual and/or mystical phenomena. Exploring these... [Thesis or Dissertation]

This thesis presents an effective technique for interference control with the use of frequency selective surfaces (FSSs) in indoor wireless environments. An FSS with a bandstop frequency response was applied to an existing wall as a wallpaper to transform the wall into a frequency- selective (FS) wall. The FS-Wall can be made to deliberately filter out undesired interference, and accordingly... [Thesis or Dissertation]

The Unsettled Object is an installational art project that considers the instability of objects in regards to their assembly, classification, and presentation, underpinned by the context of the museum and supported by Michel Foucault’s notion of the classificatory grids he discusses in The Order of Things: an archaeology of the Human Sciences. (Foucault,1970) The artefacts are being... [Thesis or Dissertation]