Digital Commons Network^™

Efficient Deep Neural Networks For 3-D Scene Understanding Of Unstructured Environments, Joshua Luke Thompson

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

In the past decade, deep learning (DL) has taken the world by storm. It has produced significant results in a wide variety of applications ranging from self driving cars to natural language processing (NLP). Modern deep learning is built from a number of different algorithms including artificial neural networks (ANN), optimisation algorithms, back-propagation (BP), and varying levels of supervision. Recent advances in GPU hardware, improved availability of large, high quality datasets, and the development of modern training algorithms have all played a pivotal role in the emergence of modern deep learning. These advances have made it easier to train and …

Analysis Of Mathematical Models Using Non-Linear Ordinary Differential Equations With Application To Activated Sludge Process, Salman Saud Alsaeed

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

The activated sludge process has been successfully applied to treat both municipal sewage and industrial wastewater since the beginning of the 20th century. Today, across the world, more than 90% of modern municipal water treatment plants use the activated sludge process. The process consists of three major components: an aeration tank, a clarification or settling tank, and a method for returning some activated sludge to the input line. The procedure’s effectiveness is contingent on employing microorganisms, which consume the organic contaminants in the wastewater and generate new microorganisms. This self-replication means that, in theory, the process may continue indefinitely. The …

Exploration Of A Methodology For Evaluating Variation In On-Treatment Positioning And Dosimetric Consequences For Vmat Breast Patients, Tabarak Mahmoud

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

The study examines the development and scrutiny of an all-encompassing methodology aimed at appraising the fluctuations in on-treatment positioning and the subsequent dosimetric implications for patients undergoing Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy (VMAT) for breast cancer treatment. The utilisation of VMAT in breast cancer therapy has showcased the potential for optimised dose delivery while demanding meticulous attention to patient setup accuracy and its potential impact on dose distribution.

A method was developed that employed harnessing daily Cone-Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT) scans acquired during treatment, to evaluate day-to-day positional fluctuations in Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy (VMAT) for 5 patients with left and …

The Ethical Professional Identities Of Ilp Lawyer Directors: Integrated, Leveraged, Or Problematic?, Karina Murray

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

This thesis examines the central question of how the responsibilities of being a director of an incorporated legal practice (ILP) may impact upon the lawyer’s ethical professional identity. It investigates how the participants construct their director identity and explores the motivations behind the decision to become an ILP director. Additionally, it considers how these lawyer directors view and manage the ‘duality’ involved between the roles of lawyer and director, particularly in relation to their ethical obligations owed to their clients, the administration of justice, and the legal profession.

This research seeks to fill a gap in empirical study investigating a …

Characteristics Of N-Alkanes In Tropical Sediment – Implications For Palaeoenvironmental Research, Fabian Boesl

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

There are still significant knowledge gaps in our understanding of the Quaternary palaeo-history of tropical Australasia. Sedimentary archives, such as lake or cave sediments, and their associated proxies, have properties which can illuminate past climate and ecology, and provide insight into how people have interacted with their environment.

Biomarkers such as n-alkanes are increasingly being used to study past vegetation assemblages as they have the potential to preserve well when compared to other widely used proxies such as pollen. In addition, as compound-specific isotopes can be measured on n-alkanes, there is great potential for investigating vegetation sources more directly than …

Investigation Of The Heat And Moisture Performance Of Naturally Ventilated Wall Systems In Residential Buildings In Australian Climates, Jacqueline Thim

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

Managing moisture in buildings has become increasingly important, as the recent drive for building energy performance has resulted in increasingly complex building envelopes. Cavity ventilation is a potential solution to both manage moisture and improve building thermal efficiency. This thesis investigates the impacts of ventilated cavities on the hygrothermal performance of lightweight wall constructions in residential buildings in Australian climates.

A semi-analytical cavity ventilation model was developed and used in combination with one-dimensional hygrothermal simulation tool WUFI Pro to calculate transient cavity ventilation rates and simulate the hygrothermal performance of walls in four case studies that investigated: 1) a comparison …

Mindfulness And Imagery Enhanced Behavioural Parent Training: A Natural Evolution In Parenting Interventions, Mark O. Donovan

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

Many parents feel overwhelmed by challenging child behaviours and multiple demands and seek assistance from parenting interventions. Behavioural parent training (BPT) has represented the gold standard treatment since the 1970s. However, half of parents disengage from BPT, with higher drop-out among socially-disadvantaged families. There is a need for evolution. The five studies within this thesis used a mixed methods approach to examine whether integrating mindfulness and imagery into existing BPT programs, via the 8-week Confident Carers Cooperative Kids (CCCK) group program, could meet a wider sociodemographic of family needs.

High-Temperature Thermal, Tribological And Mechanical Properties Of High-Entropy Alloys And Alloys Composites, Tri D. Vo

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

The discovery of High-Entropy Alloys (HEAs) has been a significant development in the field of Materials Science. In 2004, Cantor introduced the concept of single solid solution alloys containing several elements in equal or near equal proportions. The concept was also introduced by Yeh and co-workers, who coined the term ‘HEA’. This challenged conventional thinking about how alloys could be designed and opened up new possibilities for creating materials with unique properties. In 2014, Yiping Lu and his team proposed the concept of dual-phase eutectic HEAs, which has enabled the development of improved HEAs with both high strength and high …

Assessment And Application Of Practical Methods For Objective And Subjective Player Monitoring In American Collegiate Football, Benjamin Alan Mckay

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

American collegiate football (ACF) is one of the most demanding sports one could participate in. The physicality of the preparation and competition, along with the compounding effects of full-time academic demands provide an environment where adverse outcomes physically or mentally may develop. ACF has a long history, with the first game being played in 1869. The revenue that is generated by each program that’s competing in the Bowl Championship Series provides a significant resource for programs to support the student-athlete. Although, there is still limited research on methods to monitor the health and wellbeing of the student-athlete. It is common …

Understanding The Prevention And Management Of Radial Artery Spasm During Transradial Cardiac Catheterisation, Elizabeth Curtis

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

Background: Coronary artery disease, involving stenoses of the coronary vasculature, is a major contributor to cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality in Australia. Cardiac catheterisation is a key strategy in the management and diagnosis of coronary artery disease. This procedure is rapidly evolving as new knowledge and technological advancements change practice. Such rapid evolution has created challenges in sustaining the evidence base to guide best practice.

Current recommendations suggest the use of the radial artery to gain access for the procedure. Despite the current emphasis on radial artery access, the prevalence of radial artery spasm (RAS) poses a notable challenge …

A Full Sharding Scheme For Consortium Blockchain In A Zero-Trust, Shared Resource Setting, Quang Long Le

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

Blockchain technology has emerged as a response to the growing demand for trust, transparency, and security in the realm of digital financial transactions, in which Bitcoin serves as an initial prime example. It offers an immutable, decentralised ledger system to verify and record transactions without a central authority, indicating a paradigm shift in traditional financial systems. Blockchain is a pioneering topic including a set of technologies that have the potential to revolutionise, improve, or even substitute existing technologies, particularly focusing on its implications and applications in the financial transaction sector.

The inherent properties of Blockchain, such as decentralisation, immutability, and …

The Diachronic Mind Institutionalized: On The Distributed Organization Of Cognition And Its Challenges, Mads Julian Dengso

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

Recent developments from 4E approaches to cognition argue for variously distributed forms of life and cognition. But while these accounts assert the existence and predominance of distributed forms of organization, what is less clear is: what role does distributed organization play for life and cognition? This thesis seeks to explore, explain, and apply the active role that spatiotemporally distributed forms of organization play in facilitating the cognitive capacities of living systems. It will employ a broadly interdisciplinary synthetic philosophy in dialogue with 4E approaches to cognition. The thesis will thus address the material and organizational substrates of cognition while raising …

Liquid-Solid Triboelectric Nanogenerators, Jing You

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

The triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) has emerged as a notable innovation in energy research, converting mechanical energy into electrical energy through the triboelectric effect and electrostatic induction. Of its many variations, the liquidsolid mode TENG has gained significant attention due to its inherent wear resistance, mechanical durability, and consistent operation.

This research provides a focused exploration into the interactions between solids and liquids within the domain of TENGs. Beginning with an overview of TENGs—from the general background to their various operational modes, followed by a comprehensive literature review of solid-liquid TENGs.

Perceptions Of Leadership Intelligence, Safoora Pitsi

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

In this thesis, leadership perceptions refer to assessments made by followers or potential leaders themselves that a target individual has both the qualities typical of leaders and the potential to exhibit leadership in a specific situation. Perceptions play a crucial role in leadership, as individuals who are perceived as leaders possess a heightened potential to influence both organisational processes and outcomes. In this thesis, leadership is described as a process of being perceived as a leader by followers. It results from an individual’s social-cognitive process to categorise others. Leadership Categorisation Theory (LCT) maintains followers’ implicit leadership theory (ILT) or leadership …

Parent Guiding Behaviours To Empower Children’S Game Play: Prioritising Autonomy Toward Self-Regulation Development, Natalie Day

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

Self-regulation (SR) is critical for early childhood development and is considered the ability to control thoughts, emotions, and behaviour toward goal attainment. Significant for academic and social outcomes, and longer-term adult well-being, preschool SR is influenced by biological and environmental influences resulting in heterogenous growth trajectories. Shown to create significant and lasting change, efforts to diminish discrepancies in children’s SR development have resulted in a surge of early intervention programs ranging in design and implementation. Despite the evidence for the significance of the role of parents and the experiences offered by the home learning environment for children’s development there is …

Synthesis And Palladium-Catalysed Reactions Of Cyclic Sulfamidate Imines And Related Analogues, Quoc Hoang Pham

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

Five-membered cyclic sulfamidate imines—the unsaturated analogues of the well-established synthetic precursor cyclic sulfamidates—have attracted increasing interest from synthetic chemists within the last two decades, and the recent developments involving this intriguing scaffold is summarised in Chapter 1. Featuring a highly reactive imine functionality, these stereodefined heterocycles are popular substrates in various transition metal-catalysed asymmetric reactions such as hydrogenation, transfer hydrogenation, and nucleophilic addition. On the other hand, the nucleophilic reactivity of these cyclic imines, enabled by the acidic proton(s) at the α-position to the imine functionality, have also been elegantly demonstrated in several organocatalysed cascade transformations. This manuscript describes the …

Factors Determining Access To Finance And Growth Of Smes In The United Arab Emirates, Ali Mohammed Khalifa Almuwaijei

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) play a crucial part in the economic development of any nation. SMEs comprise 90% of enterprises in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), employing approximately 43% of the entire workforce; small firms are more flexible towards innovation and creating new business models. The UAE government is particular in developing SME outcomes and their innovative capacities since SMEs have marked phenomenal growth since 2008, contributing 9% of the compounded annual growth rate. However, SMEs rely primarily on intangible assets for financing; hence, they seek external financing. Consequently, they face challenges in raising external funds because they lack …

Pre-Oxidation Of New Zealand Ironsand – Where Does The Titanium Go?, Oscar Bjäreborn

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

The interplay between iron- and titanium oxides has been studied, for a better understanding of how different amounts of titanium affects iron ore, for relevance in downstream ironmaking processes.

The oxidation of NZ ironsand as well as synthetic titanomagnetite (TTM) of three different compositions has been studied in air up to 1320°C. In-situ monitoring of mass gain and thermal response during oxidation (TGA-DSC), as well as ex-situ analysis of crystals phases (powder XRD) and microstructure (SEM) of samples after quenching from select oxidation temperature at deliberate time intervals. Crystal phases in the samples were mapped spatially using SEM- EBSD, and …

Conflict-Generated Content: Cognitive Surplus And The Life Cycle Of Online Conflict Reporting, Douglas Simkin

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

This thesis explores both the role and experience of the modern conflict journalist in the new media paradigm of the internet. It does so by proposing a novel way of understanding what it means to be a conflict journalist in an environment where the lines between content mediator and combatant are becoming increasingly blurred. The objective of this thesis is twofold: Firstly, it aims to highlight the key characteristics of the modern conflict journalist by comparing data collected from the Syrian Civil War and the 2014 and 2022 conflicts in Ukraine. Secondly, the thesis is accompanied by a portfolio of …

Evaluation Of Renewable Energy Generation And Storage For Industrial Buildings, Craig Pickup

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

This research focuses on the financial aspects of the underutilised industrial renewable energy generation and storage market in Australia, where the developed methodology is applied to two distribution warehouses and a large energy consuming manufacturer. Throughout Australia the residential and utility scale renewable energy market is booming, however the industrial market has been lagging behind at a fraction of the residential generation capacity in 2020. This lack of uptake in the industrial market is attributed to perceived costs and lack of industry knowledge. This research simplifies the results of solar PV and energy storage design into key financial metrics that …

Measuring Sub-Second Isomers Using Photon Activation, Shaun Carlos Delpiano

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

A rarely studied feature of many naturally abundant isotopes is the possibility of exciting the nucleus using high energy photons into an isomeric state with a half-life of microseconds up to minutes and hours. These photonuclear interactions have been explored as a method of performing non-destructive trace elemental analysis of mineral ores using a technique known as Gamma Activation Analysis (GAA). In GAA, samples are irradiated with a linear accelerator to induce short-lived radioactivity in a sample, transferred to a shielded pair of high purity germanium detectors where their characteristic decay is measured. The time taken to mechanically transfer samples …

Agent-Based Online Scheduling For Multi-Task Resource Allocation In Complex Environments, Yikun Yang

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

Agent-based scheduling refers to applying Multi-Agent System (MAS) to model the scheduling environment, where intelligent agents cooperate to determine the task scheduling, so as to achieve scheduling objectives autonomously. To date, agent-based scheduling approaches have been developed for multiple domains, such as cloud computing, manufacturing systems, and smart grids. However, with the applications of the Internet of Things (IoT) and advanced communication technologies, real-world scheduling approaches are challenging to achieve satisfactory performances due to four challenges, which are (1) the expansion of the scheduling scale, (2) the involvement of uncertainties during the scheduling, (3) multiple real-world constraints, and (4) system …

Investigating The Relationship Between Post-Injury Occupational Change And Persistent Occupational Identity: A Mixed Methodological Study Combining Quantitative Analysis Of A Survey Of Adult Australians With Qualitative Analysis Of Interviews With Truck Drivers Who Have Experienced Occupational Change, Ross Girdler

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

The literature regarding occupational change indicates that identification with one occupation can present a barrier to making the change to another. Rehabilitation Counsellors are often given the responsibility of assisting individuals to make that change, usually through vocational counselling. The principles which underpin the conduct of vocational counselling commonly do not include consideration of the effect of persistent occupational identity on occupational change. While the concept of occupational identity has been the topic of extensive research for several decades there is no consensus regarding its definition, or how it is different from related concepts and very limited research into how …

Saudi-Arab Emerging Video Game Cultures, Archetypes, Narratives, And User Experiences, Omar Abdulaziz S. Alkhamees

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

Arab representation in media has been a major focus of many works of renowned scholars, such as Edward Said (1978), Shaheen (2000), Karim (2005) and others. Journalism, film, television, and ancient literature have all been studied in these works. A recent addition to the study of Arab representation is the medium of video games. This was first examined by Reichmuth and Werning (2006) and Machin and Suleiman (2006) and extended by many works that are discussed in this thesis. The vast majority of the literature on Arab representation in video games focuses on Western video games and the reaction of …

Social Plasticity And Limited Resilience Of Coral-Dwelling Gobies (Genus Gobiodon) To Climate Change: Outlook For Coral-Fish Mutualisms In A Changing World, Catheline Yasmin Magali Froehlich

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

Climate change is rapidly altering ecosystems on a global scale, and coral reefs are particularly vulnerable to climate-induced disturbances. Coral reefs depend on mutualisms with their foundation species, i.e. corals, and yet most of the literature has focused on their mutualisms with only one type of symbiont (algae). Little is known about how coral-fish mutualisms respond to climatic disturbances, and yet cyclones and heatwaves are increasingly devastating coral reefs. We urgently need to assess how coral-fish mutualisms respond to disturbances as changes in mutualisms have the potential for causing ecosystem-level changes. Yet fish in coral-fish mutualisms have often been overlooked …

Investigation On Design And Development Methods For Internet Of Things, Yazeed Al Zahrani

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

The thesis work majorly focuses on the development methodologies of the Internet of Things (IoT). A detailed literature survey is presented for the discussion of various challenges in the development of software and design and deployment of hardware. The thesis work deals with the efficient development methodologies for the deployment of IoT system. Efficient hardware and software development reduces the risk of the system bugs and faults. The optimal placement of the IoT devices is the major challenge for the monitoring application. A Qualitative Spatial Reasoning (QSR) and Qualitative Temporal Reasoning (QTR) methodologies are proposed to build software systems. The …

Specification Of Dorsal Root Ganglia Sensory Neuron Subpopulations Derived From Human Pluripotent Stem Cells, Amy Jane Hulme

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

The detection of sensations is essential for everyday functions and requires specialised dorsal root ganglia (DRG) sensory neurons to detect and transmit the stimuli to the central nervous system for processing. The DRG sensory neurons can be broadly classified as either (1) proprioceptors (that detect movement, muscle pressure, and tension), (2) low threshold mechanoreceptors (LTMRs) (that detect touch, hair deflection, and vibration) or (3) nociceptors (that detect pain arising from harmful thermal, mechanical, and chemical stimuli). Unfortunately, there are major challenges in studying sensory perception and disease, including the difficulty in acquiring human tissue samples and the limitations in the …

Resolving Stalled Replication Forks In Escherichia Coli, Kelsey Sarah Whinn

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

DNA replication is essential to successful cell proliferation. Inheritance of traits during cell propagation relies on the accurate duplication of the parental double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) to form two identical daughter copies. This process is carried out by a multi-protein complex referred to as the replisome. Decades of investigations using the model Escherichia coli (E. coli) replisome have provided an overall picture of the process of DNA replication initiation, elongation and termination. However, DNA replication in cells occurs on template DNA coated in DNA-binding proteins that can act as roadblocks and stall the replisome, often resulting in drastic effects on the …

Information Based Diagnostics For The Optimal Construction Of Multi-Environment Trial Datasets, Christopher Lisle

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

The objectives of this thesis are to present novel approaches for optimising the construction of multi environment trial (MET) datasets from a series of plant variety trials. These include evaluating varieties in designed trials at various locations and typically across many years. The MET datasets are then analysed to evaluate how well each variety performs in each environment. Although sophisticated and relevant statistical analyses have been proven to increase the reliability of predicted variety by environment (VE) effects, there has been little research into how to construct an appropriate dataset. This thesis fills a void in the literature by providing …

A Study Of Discrete And Integral Transforms With Logarithmic Separable Kernels, Thomas Futcher

University of Wollongong Thesis Collection 2017+

In this thesis, we will be examining different classes of discrete and integral transforms. We start with a general class of integral transforms which include those logarithmic separable kernels. Transforms with logarithmic separable kernels include the Fourier transform, the Laplace transform and the Mellin transform. The shifting and convolution properties for this class of transforms are examined, and sufficient conditions which guarantee the existence of the convolution formula will be given. It will be shown that a subclass of these integral operators are injective and an inversion formula will be presented on some class of continuously differentiable functions. We will …