Thesis - Doctoral
Recent Deposits
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Intrinsic reward driven exploration for deep reinforcement learning
Deep reinforcement learning has become one of the hottest research topics in machine learning. In reinforcement learning, agents interact with the environment and try to maximise the expected cumulative reward. The goal ... -
Permian arc volcanism and aspects of the general geology of the Skippers Range, NW Otago
The Skippers Range in NW Otago is a structurally isolated block bounded by the Alpine Fault to the northwest, the Glade-Darran Fault to the west and the Hollyford Fault to the east. Within it are five intrusive and fault ... -
Development of hydrogel-based strategies for tissue vascularisation
The tissue engineering field and regenerative medicine has emerged as a promising strategy to overcome the lack of availability of organs and tissue grafts for transplantation. One of the main challenges in the field is ... -
Wild self-care: Rethinking 'risky' health-related practices among members of the gay community
Gay and queer men tend to experience higher rates of mental health issues, STIs/HIV, suicide, substance dependency, and poor well-being than other demographics. Despite sustained public health efforts internationally, many ... -
Development and preclinical evaluation of an oral therapeutic colorectal cancer vaccine
Colorectal cancer (CRC) has become the second most common cause of cancer death worldwide, indicating the need for novel therapies to reduce mortality rates and the global burden of this disease. Therapeutic subunit vaccines ... -
Survival, not resilience: Young people's housing instability
Young people’s experiences of housing instability need to be recognised. The extant literature tends to equate young people’s experiences with that of adults and the limited literature that exclusively examines young people ... -
Mechanisms of bactericidal action and β-lactam synergy by the zinc ionophore PBT2
The emergence and global spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is an increasingly serious threat to human and veterinary medicine. Driven by the misuse and overuse of antibiotics, resistance to our antibiotic armoury ... -
Tracing the lines of race & health online: A mixed-methods exploration of the African-American HIV/AIDS movement on Twitter
Although accounting for 13 percent of the American population, in 2017, African-Americans made up over 42 percent of people living with HIV or AIDS (PLWHA) in the United States. In addition to the highest prevalence, ... -
Dysfunction in the anterior cingulate cortex and the ventral tegmental area in relation to decision making and motivation in an animal model of schizophrenia
Difficulties in decision-making and motivation can impact functional outcomes in schizophrenia. Two brain regions that play a role in decision-making and motivation are the ACC and VTA, with both showing dysfunction in the ... -
Tracking flow and fate of organic matter and contaminants within native food webs surrounding finfish aquaculture
The development of aquaculture to provide a source of protein has the potential to alleviate pressure on wild fish stocks, allowing marine systems to regenerate while providing livelihood to millions of people. Given the ... -
Value coding in the pigeon nidopallium caudolaterale
Until recently, the avian brain has remained relatively unexplored by neuroscientists. However, as reports of evidence of high-order behaviour in birds has increased, the avian brain is increasingly becoming a model of ... -
Handicrafts-enacted tourism realities in Bangladesh
Within the panorama of ethnic tourism, cultural elements of distinctive ethnic groups are the primary attraction for tourists. Within this tourismscape, handicrafts have received significant popularity, and consequently, ... -
Carbon-rich cavitands from reduced-symmetry resorcin[4]arenes
Cavitands (or container molecules) possess an enforced cavity suitable for binding small guests in solution and the solid state. The aryl units of arene-rich cavitands act as both structural elements and binding sites to ... -
Grafting purified cortical pericytes into mouse motor cortex
Brain regeneration through stem cell transplantation studies holds the potential to enhance functional recovery of the damaged brain. Most of the positive effects fostered by transplanted stem cells are believed to be ... -
Victims, suffering, and reconciliation: A narrative investigation of victims' autobiographies in the aftermath of political violence in South Korea
Victim issues have received increasing attention under the ethic of ‘victim-centeredness’ in peace and conflict studies. Resting on the belief that victim-driven practices are an effective peacebuilding strategy, scholars ... -
Integrated petrologic, geochemical and experimental investigation of intraplate alkaline magmas at Dunedin Volcano: constraints on mantle sources, differentiation trends and magmatic processes
Intraplate volcanic settings have long been recognized for the compelling diversity of magma compositions if compared to plate boundary magmatism. Alkaline volcanoes are typically characterized by an impressive variety of ... -
Localisation and tracking of stationary users for extended reality
In this thesis, we investigate the topics of localisation and tracking in the context of Extended Reality. In many on-site or outdoor Augmented Reality (AR) applications, users are standing or sitting in one place and ... -
Effects of protein and exercise on insulin-like growth factor 1
Insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-1) is a hormone associated with multiple physiologic outcomes including increased muscle growth and repair as well as uncontrolled cell growth, i.e. cancer. Both exercise and nutritional ... -
Clinical anatomy of the neurofascial sheath
Background: The peripheral nerve blockade (PNB) and minimally invasive surgery are central to the “Fast Track Surgery” strategy which uses multimodal perioperative rehabilitation programs and aims to facilitate early ... -
Global Orangeism, 1795-2020: Growth, influence, and decline
The Loyal Orange Institution or Orange Order was founded amidst agrarian conflict in a small town in County Armagh, Ireland, in 1795. Despite these seemingly insignificant beginnings, the Orange Order has managed to spread ...