Sydney Digital Theses (Open Access)

Responsible Management of AI Use in Organizations: Case Studies of Strategic AI Capabilities, Risk Controls, and Knowledge Management

2026-06-10T01:22:43Z

Responsible Management of AI Use in Organizations: Case Studies of Strategic AI Capabilities, Risk Controls, and Knowledge Management Wang, Yichen Organizations are increasingly investing in artificial intelligence (AI), yet many still struggle to translate its technical potential into reliable, and strategically aligned organizational outcomes. These challenges have intensified as AI evolves from static predictive analytics to dynamic and opaque systems embedded in core organizational processes. Existing responsible AI approaches mainly provide high-level ethical principles. As such, an important research question remains: How can organizations achieve responsible management of AI use? To address this question, this thesis presents three qualitative case studies across different AI technologies and organizational contexts, contributing to explain how organizations can develop capabilities, governance mechanisms, and control approaches for responsible use. In particular, Study 1 examines how a social-media platform develops strategic AI capability when implementing predictive AI systems. The findings identify a cyclical capability development process that enables organizations to cultivate informed agility, controlled efficiency, and anticipatory resilience in response to evolving predictive AI outputs. Study 2 investigates dynamic learning recommendation systems across three leading social-media platforms and develops a cybernetic control approach for governing black-box AI systems through buffering, feedforward, and feedback controls. This study demonstrates how organizations maintain model performance and reliable control under conditions of continuous model evolution and learning instability. Study 3 examines a cybersecurity organization adopting generative AI for organizational knowledge management. Drawing on the SECI model of knowledge creation, this study proposes a phase-dependent AI alignment approach and identifies alignment mechanisms that support accountable, and domain aligned AI-generated knowledge outcomes.

Estimating Output Gaps in Open Economies

2026-06-09T07:51:34Z

Estimating Output Gaps in Open Economies De Gorostiza, Gilliane Angela Estimating the output gap remains a critical challenge for macroeconomic policy due to data limits, reporting lags, and global shocks. This dissertation extends the Beveridge-Nelson (BN) decomposition framework across three chapters to provide more reliable, informative, and timely indicators of economic slack for emerging Asian economies and Australia, demonstrating that multivariate and mixed-frequency BN frameworks improve real-time policy decision-making. The first chapter shows that the BN filter provides more reliable estimates for emerging Asian economies than Hodrick-Prescott, Christiano-Fitzgerald, or Hamilton filters. Cyclical consumption is more volatile than the output gap, and less than one-third of GDP growth fluctuations stem from trend shocks, countering the "cycle is the trend" view. Crucially, BN estimates suffer from smaller, less frequent revisions during major economic shifts. The second chapter reveals that while traditional domestic slack measures are uninformative for Southeast Asian economies due to structural issues and informal employment, financial and external variables are highly relevant. Financial factors dominated during the Asian and Global Financial Crises, with external variables often explaining a larger share of cyclical fluctuations than domestic output. The third chapter applies a mixed-frequency framework to Australia. It finds that the labor market's intensive margin (aggregate hours worked) offers a more significant informational contribution than headline unemployment. Furthermore, the Trade Weighted Index (TWI) provides informational value nearly equivalent to the entire financial or macroeconomic sectors combined. While domestic shocks drive most Australian fluctuations, the Global Financial Crisis was largely driven by foreign shocks. Finally, a weekly TWI indicator allows for more timely updates but does not improve nowcast accuracy relative to a monthly frequency.

Writing a Migrant Body: Identity Predicament and Resistance in Sinophone Fiction by Chinese Migrant Women in Australia 1996-2004

2026-06-09T07:13:54Z

Writing a Migrant Body: Identity Predicament and Resistance in Sinophone Fiction by Chinese Migrant Women in Australia 1996-2004 Ye, Su This thesis examines the migrant identities of mainland Chinese women in 1990s Australia through Sinophone fictional works by migrant women writers, centring the migrant body as a core site of gendered, racialized, and transnational power negotiation, exploitation, and resistance. Spanning five interwoven chapters, the study traces a thematic progression from male migrants’ socio-economic precarity and bodily marginalization to female migrants’ layered quests for belonging, sexual subjectivity, marital agency, and cross-cultural solidarity. Chapter One establishes an analytical baseline via metamorphosis and gaze subversion, highlighting the vulnerable male migrant body in women’s writing. Chapter Two explores “return” as a response to rootlessness, revealing the psychological un-recoverability of the homeland and an alternative return to Eastern Buddhist-Taoist philosophy. Chapter Three examines female sexual subjectivity as emerging not through linear Western emancipation but via imitation, sacrifice, rupture, and utilitarian coping. Chapter Four analyses migrant marriages as sites of power imbalance, where the female body becomes a locus of gendered labour displacement, exploitation, and resistance. Chapter Five explores “sisterhood” from internalized misogyny to cross-racial, cross-class solidarity. The thesis reveals that the conflicting roles of the literary “body” align with the complexity of Chinese women’s migrant identities, and that “writing a migrant body” is a unique tool to expose and resist multiple pressures. It argues that Sinophone fiction by 1990s migrant women reclaims the female body from Western Orientalist stereotypes and redefines migrant identity through nuanced portrayals of resistance and agency, revealing female solidarity as a vital form of empowerment. Migrant identity and feminist consciousness are iterative processes, forged through repeated engagement with marginalization across all spheres of migrant life.

Turning the gaze towards the monstrous: Alternative visions of humanity in the works of Virginie Despentes, Julia Ducournau and Paul B. Preciado

2026-06-09T06:02:26Z

Turning the gaze towards the monstrous: Alternative visions of humanity in the works of Virginie Despentes, Julia Ducournau and Paul B. Preciado Smith-Davies, Beaudicea This thesis examines the work of three contemporary Francophone artists: Virginie Despentes, Julia Ducournau, and Paul B. Preciado. It uses the monster of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein as a model to analyse the monsters in the texts and films of these three artists. It argues for an all encompassing and universal monstrosity, which transcends binary oppositions and speaks to the whole of humanity.

The Unrealised Potential of AI Solutions for Pasture-based Dairy Systems

2026-06-09T02:58:19Z

The Unrealised Potential of AI Solutions for Pasture-based Dairy Systems Azubuike, Blessing Nnenna Efficient management of pasture-based dairy systems can benefit substantially from integrating individual cow supplementation, real-time pasture monitoring, and grazing event detection, but traditional herd-level approaches cannot address the biological variation and dynamic pasture growth inherent in commercial operations. This thesis developed and validated AI and machine learning methods across three interconnected domains, establishing empirical foundations for integrated precision management. Feeding optimisation was addressed through two studies. A Random Forest model combined with Differential Evolution reallocated concentrate to 81 cows across 91 days, achieving an 8% theoretical milk yield increase without additional feed cost (Chapter 3). Four evolutionary algorithms applied to 1,053 training cows and 165 optimised cows over 30 days achieved 6.63 to 8.64% theoretical yield improvements, with NSGA-II outperforming all others across 10 runs (Chapter 4). These gains are predictive estimates; controlled field validation remains necessary. Pasture biomass estimation was addressed through satellite and smartphone-based approaches, both validated against rising plate meter ground truth. An XGBoost model trained on Sentinel-2 imagery from 16 farms achieved R² = 0.70 and MAE = 216 kg DM/ha, outperforming the commercial Pasture.io platform (Chapter 5). These estimates supported automated grazing event detection across 12 farms, where Random Forest achieved within-year F1 = 0.878 and One-Class Support Vector Machine achieved cross-year F1 = 0.692, outperforming supervised models by 7.6% on Year 2 data despite average 24.2% supervised degradation (Chapter 6). Smartphone imagery achieved R² = 0.561 as a low-cost complement sensitive across high-biomass ranges where satellite indices saturate (Chapter 7). Each domain functions independently on commercial farms, though the integrated system linking all three in real time remains the frontier for future research.

Linguistic Landscapes, Assemblages, and Affective Regimes in Chongqing’s Public Transport Hubs: From Transit Spaces to Meaningful Places

2026-06-08T23:02:35Z

Linguistic Landscapes, Assemblages, and Affective Regimes in Chongqing’s Public Transport Hubs: From Transit Spaces to Meaningful Places Liao, Ke This thesis examines how the linguistic landscape (LL) shapes the social functions of public transport hubs and generates patterned affective experiences in Chongqing, a megacity in Southwestern China. Responding to the largely quantitative focus of prior LL research in China, this thesis advances an interpretive and theoretical informed analysis of how signage mediates relations among people, space, affect, and mobility. Drawing on three rounds of large-scale data collection, this thesis first maps the categories, spatial distribution, and linguistic composition of signage across six major transport modes. This quantitative overview identifies key semiotic features and notes changes in the institutional and social functions of these transport hubs. Building on this foundation, an in-depth qualitative analysis of Chongqing North High-Speed Railway Station employs Pennycook’s (2017) assemblage and Scollon and Scollon’s (2003) geosemiotics framework to examine the dynamic interactions among linguistic and semiotic resources, passengers, and differentiated spatial zones. The analysis is further extended to Jiangbei International Airport, where Wee and Goh’s (2019) concept of affective regimes is integrated with Bourdieusian notions of affect and capital to elucidate how passengers’ emotions are structured, circulated, and rendered socially productive across interconnected online and offline contexts. Overall, this thesis demonstrates how LL transforms transport hubs from sites of transit into multifunctional and meaningful places through co-constitutive sign–people–space relations. It also shows how affect is institutionally organised and implicated in the production of social functions within regimes of mobility. Empirically, this thesis contributes a rich and systematic corpus to LL research on China and transport infrastructures; theoretically, it advances the integration of assemblage and affect in LL scholarship.

Towards a Framework for Community Stakeholder Engagement with Infrastructure Projects Through Social Media

2026-06-08T11:24:09Z

Towards a Framework for Community Stakeholder Engagement with Infrastructure Projects Through Social Media Zhang, Jingbo In infrastructure projects, systematic engagement with the perspectives and positions of community stakeholders is usually challenging. In this study, social media is introduced as a platform for observing and gathering the voices and attitudes of community stakeholders. Based on traditional stakeholder engagement theory, this research employs naturalistic inquiry to collect data on the organic interactions between stakeholders and projects on social media. It analyses and summarises stakeholder engagement patterns on social media, introducing a novel framework of stakeholder sentiment and emotion analysis. This theoretical framework includes a new social media dialogue model. It employs two main analytical tools: categorical grouping of online community stakeholders and a stakeholder emotion matrix based on social media data. The model also categorises the online response strategies for projects based on the output of these tools. This study supplements current stakeholder engagement theory by providing a framework to guide online stakeholder engagement. The theoretical framework outlines the general environment for online stakeholder engagement, offers essential elements and steps for project stakeholder dialogues, and provides appropriate theories and methods for different dialogue stages and steps. It offers new perspectives and theories for future research on online stakeholder engagement. The novel social media stakeholder framework proposed in this study can be applied to project stakeholder engagement practices, providing new analytical tools and response strategies for studying community stakeholder engagement via social media, which will enable practitioners to use social media to carry out community stakeholder engagement for projects more efficiently.

Young active galaxies across the radio spectrum

2026-06-10T06:29:01Z

Young active galaxies across the radio spectrum Kerrison, Emily Florence The lifecycle of active galaxies is an open question in modern astronomy. In particular, not all active galaxies are active radio galaxies, in possession of synchrotron-emitting jets, and it is not obvious why. This thesis focuses on these active radio galaxies, and was completed as part of the First Large Absorption Survey in HI conducted with the Australian SKA Pathfinder (ASKAP-FLASH). Early on, we realised many HI detections in ASKAP-FLASH were made towards so-called 'Peaked Spectrum' sources, active galaxies in which the synchrotron jets are still embedded in the dense, nuclear gas of their host galaxy. The thesis presents a new Bayesian framework for identifying peaked spectrum sources using pre-existing radio survey data, RadioSED. Applying RadioSED to a test field, we increase the number of known peaked spectrum sources by more than an order of magnitude in that area through careful treatment of pre-existing datasets. We investigate the multiwavelength properties of this sample, and identify that many of them are distant, making them interesting probes of the physical conditions at cosmic noon and beyond. We then take early results from the ASKAP-FLASH Pilot Surveys and use a new pipeline for mock observations, SANGRiA, to determine whether we can recover the high observed HI detection rate towards compact jets in simulations, under the assumption that it is a purely geometrical effect. Finally, this thesis presents a multiwavelength study of a different type of radio AGN detected in HI with ASKAP-FLASH, demonstrating the gains to be made by multi-wavelength follow up of HI detections, and revealing at least three intervening galaxies along that line of sight, one of which is the likely host of the HI. Overall, this thesis reinforces the key role of peaked spectrum sources in studies of active galaxy evolution, jet-gas interactions, and the changing distribution of gas across the different ages of our Universe. Includes publication

Greenwashing: Regulatory Enforcement, Prevention and Detection

2026-06-04T02:33:05Z

Greenwashing: Regulatory Enforcement, Prevention and Detection Peng, Shiyao The prevalence of sustainability disclosures is rapidly increasing, with many such disclosures becoming mandatory across major jurisdictions. At the same time, greenwashing – defined as misleading sustainability claims exaggerating or misrepresenting environmental or other sustainability performance – has proliferated. This has attracted intensified global regulatory scrutiny. Despite academic interest, there is limited knowledge about how regulators identify, assess, and sanction greenwashing claims in practice. The thesis addresses this gap, examining greenwashing through a regulatory lens. In so doing, unique greenwashing datasets are systematically constructed, including a dataset of global greenwashing regulatory enforcement cases between 2015-2024, as well as a greenwashing taxonomy consolidated from eight regulatory guidelines. These datasets provide the thesis’ conceptual and empirical foundation, clarifying how greenwashing is characterised in academic research and regulatory action. Building on this foundation, the thesis comprises three interconnected studies investigating: (1) how regulators define, interpret, and act against greenwashing; (2) whether sustainability assurance potentially reduces greenwashing by addressing regulator-relevant subject matters; and (3) how generative large language models (LLMs) can support large-scale automated detection of greenwashing based on regulatory indicators. Includes publication

Carbonate sequestration in the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic oceans over the Cenozoic

2026-06-04T01:55:48Z

Carbonate sequestration in the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic oceans over the Cenozoic Dalvand, Faranak This thesis reconstructs the regional evolution of the carbonate compensation depth (CCD) across the Pacific and Indian oceans during the Cenozoic. Using lithological, carbonate, and paleo-depth data from DSDP, ODP, and IODP drill sites, regional CCD variability was modelled through time. The results reveal strong spatial differences linked to ocean circulation, tectonic gateway changes, Antarctic glaciation, atmospheric CO₂ fluctuations, and climate transitions. The Pacific Ocean records major Neogene CCD fluctuations associated with gateway reorganisations and the late Miocene biogenic bloom, while the Indian Ocean shows significant variability related to Indo-Pacific circulation and monsoon intensification. This thesis also presents the first basin-specific synthesis of carbonate accumulation rates across the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian oceans since the Cretaceous, highlighting major inter-basin differences in pelagic carbonate burial. The findings demonstrate that long-term carbonate preservation and oceanic carbon storage were strongly controlled by tectonic evolution, deep-water circulation, and global climate change, providing new insights into the evolution of Earth’s carbon cycle and climate system through geological time. Includes publication

Rebuilding Public Trust in Social Media Platforms? A Case Study of Meta’s Oversight Board

2026-06-03T04:46:22Z

Rebuilding Public Trust in Social Media Platforms? A Case Study of Meta’s Oversight Board Cao, Rumeng Social media platforms have become an integral part of everyday life. Power within the digital environment has become concentrated in a few dominant platforms because of user behaviour and platform design. This concentration allows these platforms to exert a strong influence on civic discourse and the public sphere. However, the growing prevalence of misinformation has transformed how public discussions unfold online. Companies, such as Meta, have faced ongoing criticism for permitting harmful content to spread and for their misuse of user data. These companies’ ineffective responses to these issues have further undermined public trust. Trust plays a crucial role in the digital era. It determines whether users remain active and engaged on social media platforms. To restore public trust, Meta established the Oversight Board as an independent body to review user appeals for removing their content and to enhance transparency and accountability in content moderation. This thesis investigates the effectiveness of Meta’s Oversight Board and examines its decision-making processes. Following the platform regulation triangle theory, this study employs the methodology of document analysis and semi-structured interviews. This study analyses Facebook’s regulatory history from 2010 to 2020 and evaluates Meta’s current strategies for addressing misinformation. This study’s findings contribute to broader debates on platform regulation and offer practical insights for other social media platforms seeking to improve content governance.

Investigating the use of steroids in children with Infantile Epileptic Spasms Syndrome: A multi-omics evaluation of gene and epigenetic regulation

2026-06-03T02:11:10Z

Investigating the use of steroids in children with Infantile Epileptic Spasms Syndrome: A multi-omics evaluation of gene and epigenetic regulation Innes, Emily Amy Objectives: Infantile epileptic spasms syndrome (IESS) is a severe developmental and epileptic encephalopathy of infancy. High-dose oral prednisolone may induce epileptic spasm remission yet long-term outcomes remain poor and it remains unclear whether steroids are targeting disease mechanisms. We investigated the biological pathways underlying IESS and how prednisolone treatment exerts an effect in IESS. Methods: A multi-omics analyses compared blood samples from infants with IESS at baseline (n=11) to controls (n=11) and IESS pre-post prednisolone treatment (n=11). Analyses included bulk RNA sequencing, proteomics, phosphoproteomics and neuroinflammation panel testing. Pathway enrichment analysis using GSEA and ORA identified significantly enriched pathways based on FDR-adjusted p-values. Results: Infants with unknown aetiology had better developmental outcomes than infants with structural aetiologies. Prednisolone induced significant leukophilia, neutrophilia and lymphopenia (all adjusted p-value <0.05). BDNF was significantly elevated at baseline, and prednisolone caused significant increase in nerve growth factor, and significant decrease in the chemokine CCL2. Using RNA seq, prednisolone reversed baseline upregulated ribosomal and mitochondrial pathways, and reversed baseline downregulated immune and membrane transport pathways. Using concordance of quantitative RNA and protein to explore the effects of prednisolone, the most upregulated pathway was 'secretory granule membrane' and the most downregulated pathway was 'ribonucleoprotein complex biogenesis'. Phosphoproteomics revealed the most dysregulated pathway at baseline and after prednisolone was 'chromatin binding'. Significance: Altered gene and epigenetic regulation may be an aetiological mechanism underlying IESS. Prednisolone treatment may control epileptic spasms by altering gene expression through immune-mediated, ribosomal and chromatin pathways.

Compassion Satisfaction and Compassion Fatigue in Australian Rural and Remote Rehabilitation Healthcare Workers

2026-06-03T01:16:44Z

Compassion Satisfaction and Compassion Fatigue in Australian Rural and Remote Rehabilitation Healthcare Workers McGrath, Kelly Lucinda Background. Australian rural and remote rehabilitation healthcare workers operate within insurance-based frameworks with standardised KPIs that do not consider the complexities of rural and remote practice. They face isolation, travel, limited resources, and hazardous conditions that affect professional quality of life, including compassion satisfaction (CS) and compassion fatigue (CF), which comprises burnout and secondary traumatic stress (STS). Aim. To examine, for the first time, levels, experiences, risk and protective factors of CS and CF in this work cohort. Methods. The Professional Quality of life (ProQOL) model guided three studies: a scoping review (n=12 studies), semi‑structured interviews (n=16), and a national mixed‑methods survey that included the ProQoL5 scale (n=29). Each informed the next study. Volunteer participants were rural and remote rehabilitation healthcare workers and registered members of their professional body. Results. No studies specific to rural and remote rehabilitation healthcare workers were found by the scoping review; research focused on medicine and nursing, where CS, CF, and burnout were linked to negative work and environmental factors. Interviews revealed that poor support and safety cultures normalised WHS risks. Survey findings showed lower CS, higher burnout and worse STS than mostly urban Australian healthcare workers Organisational impacts included poor work-life balance and work culture. Conclusions. Rural and remote rehabilitation healthcare workers may experience lower CS and higher CF than urban colleagues. Reported organisational factors align with psychosocial hazards identified in Safe Work Australia legislative updates. The ProQOL5 scale may not fully capture these hazards and therefore needs to be validated in this cohort. Addressing organisational conditions through supervision and workload management is important for workforce sustainability. Includes publication

Animating the “Outside”: a Tripartite Model of Analysing 1960s Jazz

2026-06-01T05:58:39Z

Animating the “Outside”: a Tripartite Model of Analysing 1960s Jazz Clarkson, Timothy Nicholas Garrett The revolutionary change in jazz improvisation of the 1960s featured a sudden increase in the degree and duration of departure from pre-composed forms. This practice, commonly known as “outside” playing, has generally been interpreted in musicology and music theory through the lens of “dissonance.” Black radical scholars claim a different, Afrological ontology of dissonance, distinct from the Eurological ontology and philosophy that underpins most mainstream music theory. In this thesis, I argue that a music-theoretical focus on outside playing’s technical dimension has produced a Eurological attunement in discussions of 1960s jazz, neglecting its interactive dimension and cultural practice. Benjamin Givan’s alternative conception of “apart” playing foregrounds interactivity through layers of relationships between musicians working in a group dialogue with composed materials (the “referent”). Black radical discourse more strongly foregrounds the cooperative togetherness that “apart” playing requires, and resists the necessity for resolution and unity. I adopt Fred Moten’s use of “appositional” playing to reflect both these dimensions of improvisational practice and its cultural resonances. I develop new animated music-theoretical tools that innovatively redeploy the Neo-Riemannian Tonnetz to illuminate the dynamic nature of “appositional” playing outlined above. My rationale is anchored in Eric Isaacson’s argument for advantages of animation over still images in engaging temporal relationships. Two case studies investigate strategies within John Coltrane and Ornette Coleman’s ensembles for problematising the referent, developing evidence supporting the sonic phenomena listeners have regularly identified as “transcendence” and “freedom” in their music. These case studies demonstrate the unique advantage of animated tools for investigating the technical and interactive layers of “appositional” playing, and for tying this evidence to the music’s socio-cultural moment.

A multi-point maximum principle to prove global parabolic Harnack inequalities

2026-06-01T03:30:51Z

A multi-point maximum principle to prove global parabolic Harnack inequalities Slegers, Jessica Rachel In this work, we introduce a novel methodology for proving global pointwise Harnack inequalities for parabolic partial differential equations on a Riemannian manifold. The main idea of our approach is to apply a multi-point maximum principle. We demonstrate our techniques by studying the Harnack inequalities satisfied by positive solutions of the linear Schrödinger equation and the doubly nonlinear heat equation. In Chapter 1, we recount the history of parabolic Harnack inequalities, before reviewing the existence of solutions to our aforementioned equations of interest in Chapter 2. In Chapter 3, we present the first proofs of the Harnack inequality using our multi-point maximum principle approach, focusing on classical solutions. In Section 3.1, we analyse the Schrödinger equation, first in Euclidean space and then on a Riemannian manifold with nonnegative Ricci curvature. This section contains applications to Schrödinger equations with a gradient drift term, including the heat equation governed by the Ornstein-Uhlenbeck operator. In addition, we use our Harnack inequality to recover a differential Harnack inequality comparable to the famous result of Li and Yau. In Section 3.2, we demonstrate how our techniques can be extended to prove the Harnack inequality for positive classical solutions of the doubly nonlinear heat equation. However, since solutions of this equation do not in general possess sufficient regularity to be treated as classical solutions, we dedicate Chapter 4 to adapting our proof techniques to viscosity solutions. After reviewing the basic notions associated with viscosity solutions, we develop a modified version of the parabolic theorem on sums by Crandall and Ishii, which is crucial in our methodology. Finally, we present a new proof of the Harnack inequality satisfied by positive viscosity solutions of the doubly nonlinear heat equation.

Contact and non-contact non-destructive detection of debonding of tiles

2026-06-01T02:26:30Z

Contact and non-contact non-destructive detection of debonding of tiles Zhao, Yu Debonding of tiles in high-rise buildings poses safety threats, making reliable non-destructive inspection (NDI) essential. This study systematically investigates contact and non-contact acoustic NDI methods for detecting tile debonding or loose fixings, elaborating on their mechanisms and procedures. It also provides algorithms applicable to practice, such as identifying loose slot wedges in hydropower generator stators. First, a non-contact acoustic method using a directional sound source and Laser Doppler Vibrometer (LDV) is established. A numerical model simulates acoustic interaction with tiles. The debonding area is identified by plotting the out-of-surface velocity map based on vibration amplitudes at resonance frequency. Numerical simulations agree with experiments, confirming accuracy for various debonding shapes. To enhance efficiency, a deep learning (DL) method is proposed. Continuous wavelet transform converts signals into time-frequency scalograms to build a signature database. Two DL networks are trained: the first classifies debonding types (100% accuracy with a single scalogram), and the second identifies unknown shapes (errors 1–31%). This two-stage method offers a fast, effective solution. The non-contact approach is extended to inspect slot wedges in hydropower generators. Wedges are classified as loose, intermediate, or normal. Using a directional sound source and analyzing frequency peaks (900–2100 Hz), loose and normal conditions achieve 100% accuracy; with DL, all three reach 100%. This method reduces operation time compared to contact techniques. Finally, a contact inspection method using a hammer and microphone mimics human hearing. Debonded areas produce distinct acoustic waveforms. A Fast Fourier Transform-based approach identifies resonance frequencies, and the Digital Damage Fingerprints method maps debonding. This eliminates subjectivity inherent in worker-dependent methods, yielding more reliable results

Computational modelling of spatial contagion dynamics: epidemics, infodemics and socio-economic turbulence

2026-06-01T02:14:37Z

Computational modelling of spatial contagion dynamics: epidemics, infodemics and socio-economic turbulence Jamerlan, Ma Christina Contagions, ranging from epidemics to infodemics and socio-economic turbulence, are often studied in isolation despite exhibiting analogous spatiotemporal transmission dynamics. In this thesis, we develop a unifying multi-city framework for modelling spatial contagions, integrating contagion dynamics, risk disposition, population mobility, and resource distribution. By extending classical multi-city epidemic models, we introduce dynamically adaptive risk-driven mobility flows and examine how population mobility, susceptibility acquisition, risk disposition and effectiveness of distributed resources jointly shape contagion severity and resultant spatial patterns across multiple contagion types. Our results show that small changes in risk disposition or resource effectiveness parameters can lead to substantial shifts in contagion dynamics, revealing phase transitions and tipping points in resultant contagion patterns. We introduce a novel metric, the average cluster intensity, to quantify mean contagion cluster intensity and measure emergent phenomena, such as shield immunity. In some contagion types, altruistic interactions between inoculated and affected individuals reduce overall contagion severity and fragment spatial spread. This shielding effect is most pronounced in socio-economic turbulence, moderate in epidemics, limited in social myth spreading, and not observed in polarisation dynamics. Our case studies using Australian data on COVID-19 incidence, crime records, conflict exposure during protests, and real estate activity confirm that Turing-like patterns are observed empirically in concordance with our model's predictions. Overall, this thesis provides a robust framework for understanding how risk disposition, susceptibility, mobility, and resource distribution collectively drive spatial contagion dynamics. Findings may guide policymakers in designing interventions, allocating resources, and mitigating contagion impacts across diverse societal domains.

Automatic Privacy Compliance Checks for Mobile Apps Using Natural Language Processing

2026-06-01T01:23:15Z

Automatic Privacy Compliance Checks for Mobile Apps Using Natural Language Processing Pinchahewage, Bhanuka Malith Silva The rapid growth of the mobile app ecosystem has intensified concerns about how user data is collected, shared, and communicated through privacy disclosures. Privacy compliance in app marketplaces relies heavily on developer self-reporting and user awareness. As a result, privacy information, whether in detailed policy documents or in summarised forms, often fails to accurately reflect intended data practices. This thesis explores how recent advances in NLP can enable automated and scalable privacy compliance checks in the Google Play Store. It identifies key factors that limit the transparency and usability of privacy policies and proposes enhanced parsing and structuring techniques to improve comprehension and support more effective regulatory oversight. Existing encoder-based models provide accurate predictions but lack interpretability, while decoder-based LLMs provide meaningful explanations, yet they lack verifiability. To address this gap, this thesis first introduces an entailment-driven LLM framework that couples generative reasoning and re-evaluation strategies with embedding-based verification, improving both the interpretability and factual consistency of privacy policy classification. It then presents PrivPRISM, a novel language-modelling framework that leverages both encoder and decoder architectures for large-scale compliance analysis, which cross-examines privacy policies, Play Store disclosures, and installation artefacts to detect inconsistencies. Findings reveal that 53% of analysed apps exhibit discrepancies, highlighting the need for evidence-driven auditing. Finally, this thesis details PrivSTRUCT, a structured modelling approach that leverages developer-defined structural cues to disentangle complex privacy disclosures by linking data items to their stated or implied purposes. The findings reveal a persistent transparency gap in which broadly defined purpose disclosures obscure sensitive first- and third-party data practices in mobile apps.

Automated Mobile Content Compliance Verification Using Multimodal Learning

2026-06-01T01:08:33Z

Automated Mobile Content Compliance Verification Using Multimodal Learning Denipitiyage, Dishanika Dewani The rapid expansion of the mobile app ecosystem has intensified concerns about exposure to inappropriate or misleading content, particularly for children. Although regulatory frameworks such as the GDPR, and app store policies aim to standardise age-appropriate content, mobile marketplaces still rely heavily on developer-declared ratings. Consequently, content rating compliance remains largely underexplored compared to privacy, security, and malware detection. Investigating the detection of content rating non-compliance in mobile apps, this thesis first introduces a multimodal similarity search pipeline to identify app metamorphosis, capturing substantial app evolution over five years. By combining text and visual embeddings with a majority-voting correspondence strategy, the study quantifies app progression and reveals the prevalence of rating inconsistencies in the Google Play. Second, the thesis proposes a vision–language representation learning framework that jointly analyses app descriptions and visual creatives to detect rating violations, leveraging a cross-attention module to align textual and visual semantics, while ListMLE loss models the ordinal structure of content ratings. Next, addresses cross-platform rating inconsistencies by leveraging the Apple App Store as a reference. A content-descriptor-driven data generation pipeline converts app creatives and descriptions into structured question–answer pairs, enabling interpretable descriptor-level prediction using a vision–language model. A two-stage training strategy combining supervised fine-tuning and mistake-driven preference optimisation significantly improves recall over baseline models, enabling cross-platform content compliance auditing in mobile app ecosystems. Building on this ordinal modelling, the thesis concludes with RankOOD, a unified framework that detects out-of-distribution samples by analysing class-wise ranking violations in model outputs, achieving state-of-the-art performance.

Advancing Additive Manufacturing of Copper Alloys: Processing, Microstructure, and Property Optimisation

2026-05-29T02:59:25Z

Advancing Additive Manufacturing of Copper Alloys: Processing, Microstructure, and Property Optimisation Chen, Kangwei Copper (Cu) and its alloys are indispensable to modern society due to their exceptional electrical and thermal conductivity, mechanical performance, and corrosion resistance. The transition towards Industry 4.0 and beyond has intensified demand for advanced Cu-based materials. Additive manufacturing (AM) offers the potential to realise these requirements through design flexibility, reduced material waste, and component customisation. However, its application to Cu alloys remains hindered by challenges intrinsic to Cu, such as high reflectivity and rapid heat dissipation. AM imposes cyclic, spatially localised energy inputs that generate steep thermal and stress transients, producing microstructural phenomena not predicted by steady-state metallurgy. Consequently, the fundamental links between powder feedstock, processing conditions, microstructural evolution, post-processing and the resulting mechanical and functional properties are not yet well understood, limiting the widespread adoption of AM Cu alloys. This thesis systematically investigates how AM process parameters, alloying strategies, and powder feedstock characteristics govern the microstructure and performance of three representative Cu alloys—Cu-10Sn, Cu-1Ti, and Cu30Ni. Through a combination of advanced microscopy, mechanical and electrical testing, computational fluid dynamics simulations, thermodynamic simulations, and density functional theory calculations, this thesis establishes quantitative links between processing conditions, microstructural features, and macroscopic properties. Collectively, the findings provide new insights into the solidification pathways, microstructural evolution, and strengthening mechanisms unique to AM Cu-based alloys and deliver practical guidelines for optimising alloy and process design. By bridging fundamental metallurgy with AM-specific processing, the thesis contributes to enabling Cu alloys as next-generation functional and structural materials.

Use of the Sonomat for Evaluating Nocturnal Body Movements in Children.

2026-05-28T13:07:00Z

Use of the Sonomat for Evaluating Nocturnal Body Movements in Children. Lu, Mimi Han Qing Movements during sleep are routinely observed but not consistently quantified in paediatric sleep assessment. This thesis evaluates the Sonomat (MAT) alongside polysomnography (PSG) for measuring sleep-related body movements. In a retrospective cohort of children with concurrent Sonomat and PSG studies, movements were scored using event-duration thresholds (≥1s, ≥3s, ≥5s, ≥7s). Movement index (MI, events/h) and movement duration (MD, % of time) were determined. Analyses examined inter-system agreement, automated scoring, and whether movement burden differed by obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) status, including within children with McGill oximetry scores of 1. The Sonomat consistently measured higher MI and MD than PSG, detecting more brief movements. This difference lost statistical significance for MI when restricted to movements ≥7s. MD remained statistically significant, though the clinical relevance of a 0.9% difference (~4.5 min of median total sleep period) is unclear. At the 3s threshold, inter-system agreement reached 88%. MD emerged as the preferred burden metric, being less sensitive to event-splitting or merging than MI. Automated MAT scoring showed asymmetry, with MD most closely approximating manual scoring. Movement burden, especially MD, strongly correlated with wakefulness. No discrimination by OSA status was found in overall or sleep-restricted analyses. Small cohort size and retrospective design limited power for sub-analyses, including within the McGill score 1 group. Snoring and stertor are captured by Sonomat but not by the mixed obstructive apnoea-hypopnoea index (MOAHI). In summary, the Sonomat is viable for measuring sleep-related body movements, detecting more brief events than PSG but converging for events ≥7s. MD provides a more robust burden measure than MI. Movement metrics tracked wakefulness but did not differentiate OSA status by MOAHI. Future work should examine larger cohorts and broader sleep-disordered breathing criteria.

Understanding treatment needs to improve care and outcomes for children and adults with rheumatic conditions and their caregivers.

2026-05-28T12:23:55Z

Understanding treatment needs to improve care and outcomes for children and adults with rheumatic conditions and their caregivers. Kelly, Amy Helen The importance of involving the patient in making decisions about their health care and in turn for clinicians to understand the patient’s perspective is recognised. Building on the existing literature, within this thesis a systematic review of outcome measures reported in myositis randomised control trials was conducted and identified that the majority of outcomes reported were surrogate markers and there were few patient reported outcome measures (PROMs). It was also identified that there was very limited data about patient and caregiver experiences in Juvenile Dermatomyositis (JDM) research and to further investigate this, two qualitative research projects were conducted. The first explains the experiences and perspectives of parents who have children diagnosed with JDM and the second study examines parents’ perspectives on the outcome measures important to them. Part 2 of this thesis evolved after the COVID-19 pandemic to investigate the current landscape of telemedicine in Australia and the patient’s perspective of utilising these services. A narrative review was conducted examining how telemedicine is utilised in health care in Australia and the benefits and the disadvantages, in the management of chronic disease and more specifically rheumatic diseases. A qualitative study was then carried out, investigating the experiences of rheumatic disease patients in a metropolitan centre, that provides insights into the patient’s perspective when using telemedicine, to help inform clinicians and administrators as to how to best use this modality to improve health outcomes. Includes publication

Using Multi-omics To Study 2-Hydroxyglutarate (Patho)Biology

2026-05-28T10:05:39Z

Using Multi-omics To Study 2-Hydroxyglutarate (Patho)Biology Vigder, Niv The term 2-hydroxyglutarate (2HG) is often used broadly in the biomedical literature, yet it overlooks a key biochemical nuance: chirality. 2HG exists as two enantiomers, L2HG and D2HG, which are structurally identical except for the configuration around the chiral hydroxyl-bearing carbon at the C2 position. This enantioselectivity is biologically consequential as the two forms arise from distinct metabolic pathways engaged under different physiological and pathological stresses. L2HG, but not D2HG, accumulates robustly under conditions of hypoxia, acidosis, and myocardial ischemia. This thesis begins with an introduction (Chapter 1) tracing the evolution of 2HG research from its early chemical characterization to its recognition as a signaling metabolite. Building on this conceptual framework, the first results chapter (Chapter 2) investigates the relationship between L2HG and triglyceride / fatty acid metabolism and demonstrates that conditions promoting L2HG accumulation are accompanied by coordinated remodeling of neutral lipid pools, consistent with altered fatty acid handling and energy storage pathways. The second results chapter (Chapter 3) focuses on phosphatidylethanolamine metabolism, implicating L2HG in regulation of glycerophospholipids. The final results chapter (Chapter 4) moves beyond reductionist analysis by applying a holistic, network medicine–based framework to integrate proteomics data, leading to the identification of major vault protein (MVP), the principal structural component of vault nanoparticles, as a previously unrecognized molecular target of L2HG-associated metabolic stress. Finally, Chapter 5 integrates the findings of this thesis and highlights future directions for the field. Collectively, this thesis defines a connection between L2HG metabolism and lipid and protein remodeling, establishing an integrated framework for understanding how L2HG functions as a metabolic signal in (patho)biology. Includes publication

Mobilising Social Capital and Participation: Deaf Organisations and Access in Disasters

2026-05-28T09:37:33Z

Mobilising Social Capital and Participation: Deaf Organisations and Access in Disasters Craig, Leyla Disasters expose inequities in how information and support are designed, delivered, and accessed, particularly for groups whose linguistic, cultural, and access needs are overlooked. Deaf people, at the intersection of disability and cultural-linguistic minority status, remain underserved in disaster risk reduction (DRR) research and practice despite barriers to lifesaving information. Taking Deaf support organisations as its starting point, this thesis examines how they mobilise alongside health and emergency services, challenges in delivering accessible disaster information, and systemic gaps that leave deaf people at heightened risk. It investigates how mobilisation strategies shape access and participation in DRR. Drawing on qualitative case studies from nine countries (Aotearoa New Zealand, Australia, Haiti, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Nepal, the Philippines, and the USA), this research explores how organisational strategies shape access, participation, and social capital for resilience. Grounded in Deaf ways of knowing, critical intersectionality, and Bourdieu’s concepts of capital, field, and habitus, I use reflexivity to examine my positionality as a deaf researcher and how it shaped the study. Findings show Deaf support organisations play a critical undervalued role in enabling accessible communication during disasters. Despite limited resources, they bridge communication gaps and support resilience, though their role remains under-recognised in emergency management. Exclusion is shaped by systemic barriers and internal hierarchies within Deaf communities, disproportionately affecting deaf people who are further marginalised. Building on this, the thesis develops a relational framework integrating social capital and participatory inclusion to explain how power, recognition, and access shape participation in DRR. It argues that strengthening Deaf support organisations is essential for inclusive disaster preparedness and response. Includes publication

Deep-time reconstructions of Earth's surface environments and elevations

2026-05-28T04:38:14Z

Deep-time reconstructions of Earth's surface environments and elevations Singh, Satyam Pratap Reconstructing Earth's ancient surface topography in deep geological time demands the synthesis of plate tectonic reconstructions, geodynamic simulations, paleoclimate modelling, and advanced computational methodologies. This thesis pioneers an integrated computational framework bridging geological observations with numerical models for paleotopographic reconstruction. A novel deformable plate tectonic reconstruction is developed incorporating time-evolving deforming meshes within rift zones, applied to the Gulf of Mexico. Systematic optimisation across 32,400 mesh configurations reduced crustal-thickness RMSE from 14.8 km to 5.6 km against the GEMMA model. The resulting subsidence histories illuminate key depositional enigmas, including ~1.5 km of pre-drift subsidence during the Sinemurian (193–183 Ma), southward migration of red-bed deposition beneath Jurassic salt, and the westward deflection of Cenomanian–Turonian clastic systems. Transitioning to active margins, the Python Deep Time Data Mining (pyDTDM) library is introduced within an Explainable AI (XAI) framework, integrating plate reconstructions, mantle convection simulations, and paleoclimate outputs. The XAI model identifies subduction flux as the dominant orogenic driver, with trench-advance episodes intensifying crustal thickening, while mantle temperature anomalies and long-term precipitation exert secondary but significant influences. Leveraging these insights, a deep neural network reconstructs active-margin paleotopography at 1 Myr resolution throughout the Mesozoic and Cenozoic. Validated against geochemical paleoelevation proxies and regional studies, the model reveals the East Asian Cordillera exceeding 3 km during the mid-Cretaceous and reproduces established Andean uplift phases. All workflows are disseminated as open-source tools under GPL/LGPL licences, with broader implications extending to mineral exploration, paleoclimate modelling, and biodiversity evolution studies.

Assessing Executive Function Beyond Motor Challenges: Understanding Planning in Cerebral Palsy through a Metacognitive Lens

2026-05-26T06:34:39Z

Assessing Executive Function Beyond Motor Challenges: Understanding Planning in Cerebral Palsy through a Metacognitive Lens Zhan, Yueting Planning entails the ability to formulate and execute goal-directed actions. Difficulties with planning are increasingly recognised in people with cerebral palsy (CP), alongside broader executive function vulnerabilities that affect self-regulation. However, characterising these difficulties in CP remains challenging because many standardised clinical measures embed motor, speech, or perceptual demands that can complicate valid interpretation of ability. Planning also relies on metacognitive monitoring, which supports evaluation of progress and strategic adjustment, yet this process is rarely made explicit in assessment. This thesis examined planning in CP through a validity-focused and metacognitive lens. First, a meta-analysis of executive function assessment in children with CP showed that the validity of cognitive assessment is closely tied to the alignment between task demands and CP-related functional profiles. Second, experimental studies in neurotypical adults examined metacognitive reactivity, whereby eliciting self-evaluations alters ongoing cognition and performance. Across two planning paradigms, explicit monitoring had task-dependent effects. Specifically, prompting metacognitive reflection impaired the acquisition of explicit structural knowledge in Complex Problem Solving, whereas optimality-focused evaluations in the Tower of Hanoi supported reflection and strategic adjustment. Finally, the Tower of Hanoi paradigm was translated to adults with CP, providing novel evidence that monitoring is engaged during planning and that explicit monitoring may support adaptive action selection. Overall, this thesis highlights the need for valid and accessible executive function assessment in CP. It also suggests that explicit monitoring warrants further investigation as a potential compensatory support for planning difficulties, with future work needed to link metacognitive indices to functional outcomes that support independence and autonomy in people with CP.

Assessment of molasses-based additives for methane mitigation in beef cattle

2026-05-26T04:13:28Z

Assessment of molasses-based additives for methane mitigation in beef cattle Nikoloric, Maria Enteric methane (CH₄) mitigation is a priority for pasture-based beef systems, where practical delivery of antimethanogenic additives to grazing cattle remains challenging. Molasses lick blocks (MLBs) have been proposed as a practical strategy to regulate intake and improve additive delivery in extensive systems. This thesis evaluated novel molasses-based formulations intended for incorporation into MLBs by (i) screening their in vitro antimethanogenic effects and (ii) assessing in vivo responses in growing beef cattle over 70 days. Due to commercial confidentiality and pending intellectual property protection, ingredient identities are not disclosed. In vitro, four formulations were assessed for effects on rumen fermentation and methane production. One formulation (“Product 3”) showed the strongest response. At 6% inclusion, CH₄ production was reduced by >90%, although digestibility declined. At 4% inclusion, Product 3 reduced CH₄ production by 62% without impairing digestibility, demonstrating the importance of dose optimisation. The in vivo experiment evaluated Product 3 delivered as a grain-based pellet to growing steers at target intakes of 0, 100, or 200 g/head/day. Methane emissions were measured using a GreenFeed system. Compared with control pellets, CH₄ yield was reduced (P < 0.01) by up to 11.7%, with no adverse effects on dry matter intake, liveweight gain, or feed efficiency. Overall, Product 3 demonstrated a dose-dependent antimethanogenic effect, achieving substantial methane reductions without compromising animal performance. These findings highlight its potential as a dietary strategy for low-emission beef production and support further evaluation in grazing systems using final MLB formulations. Includes publication

Modelling the mechanisms underlying variable spatiotemporal cortical response dynamics

2026-05-26T02:37:43Z

Modelling the mechanisms underlying variable spatiotemporal cortical response dynamics Maran, Rishikesan Elucidating how the brain's diverse repertoire of neural dynamics emerges from its fixed anatomical structure, known as the `structure--function relationship', remains a challenge in macroscale neuroscience. While progress has been made in predicting resting-state (spontaneous) functional connectivity from structural connectivity, this static paradigm often fails to capture the mechanisms that shape dynamics over faster (sub-second) timescales, or how the spatiotemporal properties of brain dynamics can reconfigure over time under a fixed structural connectome. Accordingly, this thesis investigates the mechanisms that underlie spatiotemporal variability in stimulus-evoked cortical dynamics over fast (sub-second) timescales. Its main contribution is a timely investigation into the open question of why the geometry of brain anatomy can successfully capture key statistical properties of spontaneous brain dynamics, while ignoring the highly specific arrangements of the various long-distance inter-regional fibres that support global brain communication. Specifically, this thesis demonstrates, through newly constructed models, that long-distance connectivity is essential for capturing fast-timescale interactions between specific remote populations, but these interactions are obscured in slower order-of-seconds fluctuations of spontaneous activity. Furthermore, these fast dynamics are shown to be contingent on the spatial proximity of the driving stimulus, and critically gated by the simultaneous burst-like firing of subcortical arousal nuclei, which is often ignored in the modelling literature. Collectively, this thesis challenges the notion of a fixed structure--function relationship, showing that brain dynamics over fast timescales, despite evolving on a static anatomical backbone, can exhibit a diverse range of spatiotemporal patterns, mediated by variations in the spatial profile of driving stimuli, and fluctuations in internal arousal.

From the Cosmic Web to the Bar: The Multiscale Drivers of Galaxy Spin Evolution

2026-05-26T00:27:37Z

From the Cosmic Web to the Bar: The Multiscale Drivers of Galaxy Spin Evolution Rutherford, Tomas Hamish The assembly and evolution of angular momentum in galaxies is shaped by a combination of internal and external processes. Integral field spectroscopy has revolutionised our ability to study stellar kinematics across thousands of systems. In this thesis, we investigate the physical drivers of galaxy spin evolution. We use marked correlation functions to find an anti-correlation of \lre\ with environment, and show it is not driven by stellar mass or slow rotators, and agrees with results from the EAGLE simulations. We examine how mergers drive galaxy spin-down. From deep HSC SAMI galaxy images, we identify low surface brightness tidal features. Younger galaxies with tidal shells exhibit lower spin and higher slow rotator fractions. We conclude that radial major mergers are the primary driver of spin-down in young early-type SAMI galaxies, with the lack of shells in older systems reflecting early Universe. We derive orbital distributions for a subsample of SAMI early-types, using Schwarzschild models. We find that the orbital fractions correlate strongly with \lre, with the strongest relation arising from the merger-generated hot + counter-rotating fraction. Hot and cold orbits correlate with stellar age and tidal shells, while warm orbits do not, implying mergers cause stars to transition directly from cold to hot orbits. These results indicate that merger-driven heating dominates the spin-down of massive galaxies. We next extend this to late-type galaxies. We use GECKOS-MUSE observations of edge-on discs to assess how the presence of dust affects JAM modelling. When dust is masked, we find discs are fit well. Analysis of residual velocity fields reveals coherent excesses in two galaxies that are aligned with bar orbits and supported by photometric bar signatures. Collectively, this research contributes to a multiscale understanding of angular momentum evolution, connecting cosmological environment, mergers, age and the internal orbital structure of galaxies. Includes publication

Picturing Identity: An Investigation into Culturally Inclusive Literacy Practice with Secondary EAL/D Students Using Multimodal Texts

2026-05-25T06:33:16Z

Picturing Identity: An Investigation into Culturally Inclusive Literacy Practice with Secondary EAL/D Students Using Multimodal Texts Allaou, Sussan This Australian study investigates how multimodal literacy activities may support culturally inclusive literacy practices with secondary students for whom English is an additional language or dialect (EAL/D). The cultural inclusion of EAL/D youth is viewed as a process through the lens of education justice (Kalantzis & Cope, 2025), arguing for teaching pedagogy that acknowledges students’ personal and cultural background in the learning process. The study focusses on the potential for multimodal identity texts to give voice to EAL/D students and facilitate their participation in communities, increasing connections between teaching practices that support recently arrived English language learners and mandated inclusivity policies. This research project adopted an iterative case-study approach to investigate the experiences of EAL/D student participants in Years 9 and 11, before and after the creation of multimodal identity texts in the form of digital video diaries. Drawing on an analytical framing that combines principles of multiliteracies pedagogy (New London Group, 1996) and social semiotics (Callow, 2023; Kress & Van Leeuwen, 2006), my adaptation of Callow’s social semiotic framework (Callow, 2023) includes the analysis of ‘voice’ as an additional element to the visual and written modes in the framework. The case study builds upon previous research with multimodal identity texts to propose that visual and written elements combine with features of audio during students’ creation of digital identity texts, portraying powerful multimodal meanings that support EAL/D student representations of identity and culturally inclusive literacy practice. The findings indicate that EAL/D youth’s digital representations of identity are influenced by the complexity of adolescent identity formation and characterised by both intrapersonal and interpersonal connections with themselves and others.

Carbonate Platform and Coral Reef Response to Environmental Perturbations: Insights from Scott Reef North West Shelf Australia

2026-05-25T06:01:39Z

Carbonate Platform and Coral Reef Response to Environmental Perturbations: Insights from Scott Reef North West Shelf Australia Williams, Carra Georgina Coral reefs preserve important archives of past sea-level and climatic change due to their depth-dependent growth, good preservation potential, and ability to be precisely dated using U–series techniques. Isolated carbonate platforms along rapidly subsiding continental margins record expanded sea-level histories because sustained subsidence maintains accommodation within euphotic–mesophotic zones, enabling long-term reef accretion and stratigraphic preservation. However, fossil reef cores from such settings are rare, diagenetically altered, and limited by poor spatial and temporal sampling, leaving uncertainties in reef responses to environmental change over millennial timescales. Scott Reef, on Australia’s Northwest Shelf, preserves one of the most continuous Quaternary reef archives in the Indo-Pacific. However, uncertainties remain regarding reef initiation and demise, the impact of the Middle Pleistocene Transition, and controls on long-term reef resilience. This thesis investigates environmental and eustatic controls on carbonate platform evolution across Neogene–Quaternary climate transitions, with relevance to future reef response under changing climate conditions. High-resolution geological models of Scott Reef are developed to assess responses to orbital forcing, sea-level change, and oceanographic variability. The approach integrates forward stratigraphic modelling with multi-scale datasets, including 3D seismic, multibeam bathymetry, reef cores, well logs, U–series geochronology, and modern ecological observations. Methods combine core logging, hyperspectral scanning, neutron computed tomography, and facies analysis to refine lithological interpretation and palaeoenvironmental reconstructions. Coralgal assemblages are used within a chronostratigraphic framework spanning 500 kyr. This integrated approach provides new constraints on Scott Reefs evolution and improves understanding of carbonate platform responses to climatic and oceanographic forcing. Includes publication

Supporting Education for All: The Role of Multicultural Creative Arts Curriculum in Addressing the Principles of Anti-Bias Education

2026-05-25T06:00:58Z

Supporting Education for All: The Role of Multicultural Creative Arts Curriculum in Addressing the Principles of Anti-Bias Education Zhu, Dan This qualitative study investigated how Multicultural Creative Arts Curricula (MCAC) can foster children's identities as part of anti-bias practice in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC). Although the Arts are widely used in ECEC, limited research has explored how Anti-Bias Education (ABE) principles are enacted through MCAC or how children make sense of identity through creative arts experiences. The study examined how Australian educators incorporated diverse identities and enacted ABE using MCAC, and how children expressed understandings of identity across artforms. It was informed by sociocultural and ecological systems theories, culturally responsive pedagogy, and ABE. An ethnographic multiple-case study was employed across two Australian ECEC settings, with children's perspectives sought alongside educators' through participatory approaches within everyday activities. Data were collected through observations, focus group interviews, and curriculum documentation. Findings showed that teacher beliefs, pedagogical responsiveness, institutional conditions, and artform affordances shaped MCAC enactment. When the Arts functioned as open-ended and dialogic experiences, children transformed identity-related meanings across modes; event-based practices constrained deeper inquiry and multimodal expression. Children expressed identity and belonging diversely, though shaped by educators' confidence with cultural and linguistic diversity and institutional routines. The study advances understanding of how MCAC can move beyond symbolic multiculturalism to support identity, fairness, and empathetic action in everyday pedagogy. Findings highlight the need for professional learning, institutional support, and responsive pedagogy to ensure the Arts operate as a vehicle for culturally responsive and socially just ECEC.

The economics of targeting systemic drivers of mental health using dynamic simulation modelling

2026-05-25T02:34:47Z

The economics of targeting systemic drivers of mental health using dynamic simulation modelling Crosland, Paul The objective of this PhD research project was to use system dynamics modelling (SDM) to conduct economic evaluation of mental health interventions through the application of the approach to three case studies. A literature review conducted for this thesis did not find any studies that used a SDM approach for economic evaluation of mental health interventions. Modelling Study 1 was a cost-utility analysis of eight interventions for youth mental health. It found that Technology-enabled integrated care, Family education, an Online parenting programme and Multi-cultural informed care were cost effective. Methodological insights included the identification of synergistic effects, identification of emergent outcomes in the form of unintended consequences, and the influence of mental health service capacity on the cost effectiveness of some interventions. Modelling Study 2 estimated the health benefits and economic value of improving the social determinants of mental health in the Brisbane South region. Even modest improvements in determinants resulted in material increases in health outcomes and reduction in costs. Modelling Study 3 used constrained optimisation analysis with a SDM framework to systematically test the cost effectiveness of seven scenarios varying existing mental health services capacity growth, new interventions targeted at youths, and budget constraints on the amount of investment funds available for new interventions. The analysis demonstrated there is health and economic value in expanding existing services and implementing new interventions concurrently to capitalise on synergistic effects; the combination of interventions that is most cost effective can be identified using systematic methods in response to changes in the budget constraint; and there are health and economic consequences to attenuated levels of investment in new interventions. Includes publication

Manipulation of Natural Deformables: Simulation, Inference, and Learning

2026-05-22T06:40:55Z

Manipulation of Natural Deformables: Simulation, Inference, and Learning Jacob, Jayadeep Over the past decades, machine learning has transformed robotic manipulation, enabling autonomous systems to perform complex rigid body tasks. Yet, this progress has not translated to deformable objects, characterised by high-dimensional state spaces and non-linear dynamics. Handling natural variants of deformables, such as tree branches and plant stems, is an even greater challenge, exacerbated by their non-uniform geometry and asymmetric dynamics. Viable solutions must quantify uncertainties from imperfect sensors and inaccurate models to account for the probabilistic nature of the world. To address these challenges, we present an ensemble of frameworks to model the intricate plant topology, estimate dynamic parameters, and learn efficient control strategies. First, we present a simulation-driven inverse inference approach to model the uncertain dynamics of plant stems under deformation, in a real-to-sim context. Framing system identification as a Bayesian inference problem, we estimate the multi-modal, spring parameter posterior density. Our non-parametric method can incorporate biological assumptions, quantify the estimation uncertainty, and tolerate contact instabilities. Next, we train a non-prehensile, contact-sensitive, reinforcement learning policy to interact with tree branches, in a sim-to-real setting. The spring abstractions are integrated with a parametric L-system model to build a procedural forest. The novel proprioceptive approach transfers zero-shot from simulation to real, manipulating stems with unseen geometry and dynamics, exhibiting unique contact strategies. Finally, we expand the sim-to-real strategy, emphasising manipulation with the whole arm, treating the deformables as a collection. To learn a computationally efficient policy, we leverage a distributional state representation. Our blank slate policy learning approach can autonomously discover creative de-occlusion strategies for clearing electrical power lines of overhanging foliage.

A Culturally Appropriate and Linguistically Understandable Translation Approach: For Dementia-related Public Health Information

2026-05-22T04:54:16Z

A Culturally Appropriate and Linguistically Understandable Translation Approach: For Dementia-related Public Health Information He, Zihan Dementia is a leading cause of death in Australia. As Australia’s culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) ageing population grows, dementia-related public health information must be scientifically accurate, culturally appropriate and linguistically understandable. However, many existing translations rely on literal translation, which can misrepresent dementia, reduce accessibility and reinforce stigma. In Chinese, the common term 痴呆症 (chī dāi zhèng, Stupidity and Idiocy Syndrome) is especially problematic because it associates dementia with stupidity and contributes to shame, fear and avoidance. This thesis proposes the Culturally Appropriate and Linguistically Understandable (CALU) Translation Model for translating dementia-related public health information. It develops and demonstrates CALU through Chinese translations of English dementia resources, with a focus on renaming dementia in Chinese. Drawing on interviews with twenty-one Chinese-speaking dementia experts across the Asia-Pacific region, the thesis identifies 认知障碍症 (rèn zhī zhàng ài zhèng, Cognitive Impairment Syndrome) as a scientifically accurate and culturally appropriate alternative to 痴呆症. It further evaluates CALU translations with Chinese-speaking community readers and applies the model in two Australian dementia campaigns: Face Dementia and Facing Dementia Together. The thesis argues that effective health translation requires more than semantic equivalence. It must address stigma, cultural meaning, reader comprehension and community trust. By integrating expert consultation, community feedback and iterative translation strategies, CALU offers a practical framework for improving multilingual public health communication. The study contributes to translation studies, dementia communication and CALD health promotion by showing how culturally responsive translation can reduce stigma, improve accessibility and support equitable dementia awareness among Chinese-speaking communities. Includes publication

Strategies to Ensure Intersectional Fairness in Vision-Language Models for Clinical Decision Support

2026-05-22T04:46:57Z

Strategies to Ensure Intersectional Fairness in Vision-Language Models for Clinical Decision Support Zhang, Yupeng Rapid integration of artificial intelligence (AI), particularly Vision-Language Models (VLMs), as decision support system for medical diagnosis promises to enhance healthcare outcomes. However, these models can inherit and amplify societal biases, leading to significant performance disparities across diverse patient subgroups. This thesis addresses a critical and often overlooked challenge: intersectional fairness, where compounded disadvantages emerge for individuals with multiple demographic attributes (e.g., by race and gender). Existing fairness interventions, which typically focus on single demographic attributes, often fail to mitigate these compounded biases and can inadvertently degrade overall model performance or mask subtle but clinically significant disparities in diagnostic certainty. This thesis introduces a novel regularisation framework, Cross-Modal Alignment Consistency Maximum Mean Discrepancy (CMAC-MMD), to specifically address intersectional fairness at the decision level of models' architecture. This approach represents a conceptual shift from image and text feature-level manipulation to directly equalizing the model's diagnostic confidence across all intersectional subgroups. By defining a scalar "cross-modal alignment score" that serves as a proxy for the model's certainty, the CMAC-MMD method leverages a unique fairness loss to align the statistical distributions of these scores. This process compels the model to produce predictions with equitable confidence and decisiveness for all patient subgroups, regardless of their demographic profile, without requiring sensitive data during inference time. The effectiveness of the proposed framework is comprehensively evaluated through benchmarking on dermatology and ophthalmology datasets for disease classification. The results demonstrate that CMAC-MMD reduces intersectional performance disparities across multiple fairness metrics while maintaining overall diagnostic accuracy as baseline models.

“To Feed Such Hunger”: Proposing a Women’s Gastronomic Literature

2026-05-22T01:39:05Z

“To Feed Such Hunger”: Proposing a Women’s Gastronomic Literature O'Connor, Lucy My project “To Feed Such Hunger”: Proposing a Women’s Gastronomic Literature is a close reading of texts that examines the writing of four authors producing narrative non-fiction food writing in twentieth-century America. Feminist scholarship has established the importance of women’s life writing as historical, political and productive, but food writing, particularly by women, has often been categorised as a separate generic entity. Similarly, the relationship between women and food is rife with existing presuppositions about gender and class dynamics: wherein women cook in a domestic rather than a professional sphere; wherein the way that they eat is always mediated by body-consciousness; where women cook in service of and to provide nourishment for others. If we understand both foodways and life writing as gendered spaces, it follows that food writing is a gendered domain. Historically, women’s food writing has been the domestic cookbook; by comparison, men are gastronomes whose writing showcases their knowledge and taste. My project recognises women’s food writing as a complex arena with no easy or monolithic definitions, in an attempt to ensure that such writing is afforded the attention and nuance so easily applied to men’s writing. I argue that the work of M.F.K. Fisher, Julia Child, and later Nora Ephron and Laurie Colwin can and should be understood within the context of the gastronomic tradition: each writer brings her own unique contributions to the category. By opening up this space to include women, we can better understand the ways that gender has impacted the aesthetics of pleasure, taste, hospitality and eating.

Multimodal NLP in Mental Healthcare

2026-05-22T00:05:14Z

Multimodal NLP in Mental Healthcare Cabral, Rina Carines Manumbali Mental health has been a growing concern for countries, communities, and individuals. Despite considerable advances, mental healthcare systems still face significant challenges, prompting researchers to explore opportunities in deep learning and natural language processing. However, recent research trends have shifted toward incorporating various media-based modalities, including videos, images, and physiological data. This shift, while promising, introduces new limitations, particularly in terms of data accessibility and research reproducibility. This thesis addresses these challenges by leveraging the ubiquity of textual data in mental health-related settings, aiming to exhaust different text-derived complementary information at different abstraction levels to enrich textual representations beyond standard semantic contextualisation. The main contributions are threefold, proposing three abstraction-level modalities and three different approaches to multimodal integration to improve mental health risk detection and information extraction. First, inspired by the complexity of human emotions and language, affective information from the emotion modality is integrated through multi-emotion graph pretraining for depression and suicide risk detection. The second study introduces the acoustic modality, capturing prosodic information derived from textual data and integrating it through a multi-teacher knowledge distillation framework, along with emotion and textual abstractions, for the same mental health tasks. Finally, the word-pair modality is explored, proposing a novel perspective on relational-structural abstraction from raw textual input, integrated through a triplet-grid framework, that improves word-boundary detection for the extraction of disjointed adverse drug reactions. Includes publication

Multi-agent System and Reinforcement Learning in Medical Report Generation

2026-05-21T23:54:48Z

Multi-agent System and Reinforcement Learning in Medical Report Generation Wang, Pengyu Medical large vision-language models have enabled automatic medical report generation, yet two challenges still limit diagnostic utility: normality bias and token-level training misalignment. Models often under-detect abnormalities and miss clinically important findings, while token-level imitation captures writing style rather than report-level clinical correctness. To address this, this thesis proposes two complementary approaches: (i) MRGAgents, a disease-specific multi-agent system that decomposes reporting into condition-focused subtasks for more balanced and comprehensive coverage; and (ii) MRG-R1, a fine-tuning paradigm based on semantic-driven reinforcement learning that directly optimizes report-level clinical correctness and factual alignment. MRGAgents uses specialized agents trained on curated disease-specific subsets of IU X-Ray and MIMIC-CXR, giving each agent stronger discrimination and descriptive ability for its target conditions. At inference, their outputs are aggregated to better balance normal and abnormal findings and provide more complete diagnostic descriptions. Empirically, MRGAgents improved coverage and abnormality reporting over strong baselines, reducing missed findings. MRG-R1 introduces SRL with Group Relative Policy Optimization and a margin CheXbert cosine similarity reward on key radiologic findings. This directly optimizes report-level clinical-label agreement and semantic consistency beyond surface fluency. Evaluated on IU X-Ray and MIMIC-CXR with clinical efficacy metrics, MRG-R1 achieved state-of-the-art CE-F1. Ablation studies showed that MCCS provided finer-grained supervision than CE-F1-based objectives, while an explicit reasoning-to-report process encouraged structured generation and improved diagnostic accuracy with minimal computational overhead. Overall, these architectural and training contributions improve report comprehensiveness, abnormality sensitivity, and clinical correctness for chest X-ray report generation.

A Rapid Steady Solver for the Navier-Stokes Equations

2026-05-21T23:45:40Z

A Rapid Steady Solver for the Navier-Stokes Equations George, Mark Andrew Despite the significant advances in algorithms and computer hardware over the years, Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) models remain to be very time consuming to compute. For applications where fast turnaround time is required such as in hazard prediction models for the dispersion of airborne contaminants in urban environments, the calculation of the flow field can be a significant bottleneck, and current CFD methods are still too computationally expensive. As a result, state-of-the-art approaches for this application have resorted to diagnostic methods, which although fast, do not contain the complete flow physics. This work bridges this gap through the development of a highly efficient steady-state CFD method that is simple to implement and use. This is through the development of three fundamental elements: an efficient coupled solver for the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations, a mass conservative immersed boundary method, and the use of a zero-equation eddy viscosity turbulence model. Validation tests for urban wind tunnel experiments show that the method is faster than standard CFD methods by over 2 orders of magnitude on the same hardware, with losses of accuracy on the order of 25%. This performance makes it possible to solve useful problems on consumer grade desktop hardware in a matter of minutes.

Improving equine oocyte quality to increase the efficiency of embryo in vitro production

2026-05-21T06:13:05Z

Improving equine oocyte quality to increase the efficiency of embryo in vitro production Cortez Polanco, Jenin Victor Recent advances in equine reproductive biotechnology have improved the in vitro production of embryos from immature oocytes collected from donor mares and abattoir-derived ovaries. This process involves oocyte aspiration, in vitro maturation (IVM), intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), embryo culture, and somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) for cloning. The main objective of this thesis was to evaluate different treatments aimed at improving equine oocyte quality and developmental competence. Results showed that oocytes obtained from donor mares had superior quality, leading to higher embryo development rates and a greater proportion of viable offspring compared with abattoir-derived oocytes. Since oocyte quality is a major limiting factor in assisted reproduction, the studies focused on optimizing IVM systems. Different pre-IVM and IVM treatments were compared to determine their effects on oocyte maturation and subsequent embryo development following SCNT. Treatments designed to prevent the spontaneous resumption of meiosis during pre-IVM did not improve developmental potential. In contrast, supplementation of pre-IVM and IVM media with nicotinic acid (NA), a precursor involved in increasing NAD⁺ levels, significantly enhanced the ability of oocytes to develop into blastocysts. Although additional studies are required to further clarify the role of meiosis-inhibiting treatments and confirm the beneficial effects of nicotinic acid, the findings presented in this thesis contribute substantially to the understanding of oocyte developmental competence in horses. Overall, this work provides valuable evidence for refining equine IVM systems and supports the development of improved protocols for in vitro embryo production in equids. Includes publication

On Probabilities regarding Poncelet Polygons over Finite Fields

2026-05-21T06:02:08Z

On Probabilities regarding Poncelet Polygons over Finite Fields Ragas, Ruzzel Dizon An n-sided polygon that is inscribed in a conic A and circumscribed about a conic B is called a Poncelet polygon, and we call the pair of conics (A,B) an n-Poncelet pair. In the projective plane over a finite field of characteristic not equal to 2, we study Poncelet polygons and n-Poncelet pairs, with emphasis on the cases n = 3 and n=4. In particular, we discuss the construction of Poncelet polygons and derive results regarding degenerate Poncelet polygons. Moreover, we provide in-depth results regarding the construction of Poncelet triangles. For our main result, we compute the probability of obtaining a 3-Poncelet pair or a 4-Poncelet pair when we randomly select a pair of distinct conics (A,B), with A smooth or singular and B smooth, in a fixed pencil of conics. We do this for all pencils, classified up to projective automorphism, with at least one smooth conic. Includes publication

From theory to practice example: How programs can more intentionally support living well with spinal cord injury

2026-05-21T04:52:19Z

From theory to practice example: How programs can more intentionally support living well with spinal cord injury Simpson, Bronwyn This thesis investigates how services can be intentionally designed to support well-being outcomes for people with SCI, a population for whom achieving a meaningful and satisfying life may require support beyond initial rehabilitation. Methods A multi-phase qualitative design was employed: phase one comprised a systematic and scoping review, and phase two involved an in-depth qualitative case study of a community-based program. Data were collected through interviews with multiple participant groups, observations, and document analysis. An inductive analytic approach was combined with a theory of change framework to examine how program design and delivery contributed to outcomes. Findings The reviews identified a well-developed understanding of factors influencing well-being, but limited insight into how programs actively address these factors in practice. The case study demonstrated that a program structured around a clear well-being aim and an integrated model of service delivery can generate outcomes across multiple domains of well-being. Outcomes were achieved through interrelated mechanisms, including accessible and appealing program entry points, integration of supports that facilitate both immediate positive experiences and longer-term capacity building, and embedded opportunities for informal peer interaction and support. Repeat engagement and the development of a sense of community further amplified these effects. Together, these mechanisms contributed both directly to well-being and to a more positive and expansive outlook on life. Conclusion This thesis demonstrates the potential of programs intentionally designed to impact well-being and provides transferable insights into how such outcomes can be achieved in practice. The findings support a shift towards holistic, explicitly articulated well-being aims in rehabilitation and disability services and offer a framework to inform program design, implementation, and evaluation. Includes publication

Development of anisotropic MeTro/GelMA and PVA cryogels for tendon regeneration

2026-05-21T01:48:24Z

Development of anisotropic MeTro/GelMA and PVA cryogels for tendon regeneration Zhang, Miao Inferior healing and the peritendinous adhesions after tendon injury can cause pain, restricted mobility, and an increased risk of re-rupture. To accelerate functional tendon healing and prevent peritendinous adhesion formation, components of a tissue-engineered core-shell tendon graft have been developed, consisting of an anti-adhesive polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) cryogel as the shell and a bioactive MeTro/GelMA (MG) cryogel as the core. PVA cryogels were fabricated using unidirectional freeze-thaw (DFT) cycles, followed by lyophilisation. The optimal mechanical properties were found after three DFT cycles, yielding a 5 wt% PVA cryogel with an ultimate tensile strength of 0.6 MPa, a Young’s modulus of 0.2 MPa, and a strain of failure of 288 %. In vitro studies showed that PVA cryogels did not support the attachment of fibroblasts or immune cells. When used as a circumferential wrap around surgically repaired rat Achilles tendons, they reduced peritendinous adhesions in 2 of 3 cases. MG cryogels were fabricated using two DFT cycles, photocrosslinked, and lyophilised, resulting in aligned microchannels. They exhibited a Young’s modulus of 643 kPa, an ultimate tensile strength of 136 kPa and a strain at failure of 32 %. In vitro studies showed increased fibroblast attachment and proliferation. For in vivo studies, MG cryogels were surface-functionalised with tropoelastin (TE) or insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1). Following implantation into window defects created in a rat patellar tendon, the functionalised MG cryogels supported cell infiltration and collagen deposition. At 8 weeks, the repaired tendons treated with MG/TE and MG/IGF-1 achieved 97% and 83% of the failure load of the native tendon, respectively. Overall, the compartmentalised scaffold design shows promise for enhancing tendon healing and preventing adhesions, marking a significant advancement in biomaterials for clinical tendon regeneration. Includes publication

Staying United While Separated: Rethinking the Connectivity and Interaction on Chinese Social Media During the Pandemic of COVID-19

2026-05-21T00:54:10Z

Staying United While Separated: Rethinking the Connectivity and Interaction on Chinese Social Media During the Pandemic of COVID-19 Hu, Qiyuan This thesis investigates how Weibo and WeChat shaped connection, cooperation, emotional expression, and civic engagement during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021 within a politically conservative regime. It reveals a central paradox in China’s digital pandemic response: online networks fostered solidarity and connective action while also enforcing compliance, silencing dissent, and reinforcing social and political divisions. Centred on the slogan “Stay cohesive, we can defeat the pandemic” (Zhong Zhi Cheng Cheng, Kang Ji Yi Qing), the thesis reconceptualises We Media through the lenses of prosumers, soft leaders, and influencers. It examines how citizens used intimate networks and social capital to share resources, coordinate local responses, and sustain morale during the crisis. The study combines theories of networked and affective publics, convergence culture, and networked intimacy with Foucauldian power, Bourdieu’s habitus, and Confucian concepts to analyse the relationship between agency, culture, and political discourse in China’s digital sphere. Using Dahlgren and Hill’s five parameters of media engagement as its framework, the study employs autoethnography, digital ethnography, and 16 semi-structured interviews with 18 participants. The findings show that collaboration was shaped not only by platform affordances but also by censorship, nationalism, relational ethics, and peer surveillance. Weibo functioned as a volatile digital public sphere, enabling information exchange and emotional solidarity while amplifying polarisation and suppressing minority voices. WeChat operated as a semi-public space shaped by networked intimacy and Confucian relational norms, where users coordinated cooperation, circulated affective content, enforced moral expectations, and engaged in subtle resistance. Across both platforms, users performed relational and affective labour as We Media, shaping understandings of the pandemic at personal and collective levels.

Synthetic Lethality with FANCM inhibition in ALT-negative Cancer Cells

2026-05-21T00:28:53Z

Synthetic Lethality with FANCM inhibition in ALT-negative Cancer Cells Schwenke, Jake Telomeres are nucleoprotein structures that protect chromosome ends from recognition by the DNA damage response machinery. Due to their high GC content and terminal location, telomeres are particularly prone to replication stress, which is a key contributor to genomic instability, and a defining feature of the Alternative Lengthening of Telomeres (ALT) pathway. This thesis investigates the molecular basis of telomere replication stress and explores how this vulnerability can be exploited for therapeutically. The first part of this thesis focuses on the establishment of novel DNA labelling techniques to identify protein-DNA interactions at single molecule resolution. Combining proximity labelling with single molecule analysis, we aimed to investigate the dynamic behaviour of TRF1, a core shelterin telomere binding protein, during replication stress and oxidative stress. These experiments revealed the technical limitations of current labelling techniques and informed the design of alternate methods for elucidating protein-DNA interactions at single molecule level. The second part of this thesis explores how replication stress can be targeted alongside other pathways to expand established therapeutics. A genome-wide CRISPR screen identified synthetic lethal interactors that sensitise telomerase positive cells to Ubexin-1 treatment, a small molecule inhibitor that targets the FANCM through the interaction between FANCM and the BTR complex, leading to ALT-specific FANCM degradation. The identified interactors promote selective cytotoxicity, sensitising telomerase positive cells to Ubexin-1 treatment and enhancing FANCM degradation. These findings expand the therapeutic potential of replication stress-targeting strategies beyond established contexts. Overall, by exploring replication stress both mechanistically and therapeutically, this work advances our understanding of telomere maintenance, the replication stress response, and identifies new avenues for cancer therapy.

Spatial Political Economy and the Persistence of Disadvantage: An Analysis of Fairfield in Greater Western Sydney

2026-05-19T07:05:48Z

Spatial Political Economy and the Persistence of Disadvantage: An Analysis of Fairfield in Greater Western Sydney Williams-Brooks, Llewellyn Persistent disadvantage remains a critical challenge for Australian public policy, primarily because traditional responses overlook localised experiences. This thesis investigates why Fairfield became the most disadvantaged local government area in New South Wales. Utilising a spatial political economy approach, it examines the geographical, historical, and institutional elements driving persistent disadvantage in Fairfield. The study employs a case-study methodology using empirical analysis. First, it uses Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data, including the 2021 Census, to analyse Fairfield's demographic and socioeconomic features. Second, it critically engages with federal, state, and local policy reports to provide an institutional perspective on governance. Finally, the research is situated within broader academic literatures exploring inequality and disadvantage across diverse policy topics in the Australian context. Analysis reveals that Fairfield's disadvantage stems from two interacting structural pressures. Data shows that concentrated humanitarian settlement creates unique community susceptibilities, especially post-arrival and during economic shocks. Concurrently, a reliance on lower-wage employment and lower female labour market participation constrain local incomes. Together, these factors create an accumulative effect persisting across generations and dampening social mobility. In response, this thesis advocates for place-based policy and reformed fiscal arrangements within the Australian federation. It proposes a framework that empowers local decision-makers and facilitates community-led policy design. This research provides a scalable model for pursuing greater social opportunity across Australian communities grappling with similar vulnerabilities.

Co-occurring Anxiety and Alcohol Use: Advancing Prevention and Early Intervention

2026-05-19T03:14:28Z

Co-occurring Anxiety and Alcohol Use: Advancing Prevention and Early Intervention Guckel, Tara Alysse Anxiety and alcohol use frequently co‑occur, contributing to more complex symptoms, clinical presentations, and poorer outcomes. Yet the mechanisms driving this comorbidity remain unclear, and gaps persist in prevention and early intervention. This thesis aimed to advance understanding of anxiety–alcohol comorbidity by i) clarifying their relationship and ii) improving early interventions for co‑occurring problems. Study 1 presented the first systematic review and meta‑analysis synthesising mediators and moderators of the anxiety–alcohol link. Across 315 effects from 55 studies, findings identified potential targets for prevention and intervention, including age, externalising symptoms, perceptions of peer alcohol use, and positive family experiences. Study 2 examined associations between anxiety and hazardous alcohol use across seven timepoints from early adolescence to young adulthood. Consistent positive within developmental stage associations were observed up to age 16. Although externalising symptoms, drinking motives, and sex moderated cross‑sectional relationships, no consistent longitudinal moderation effects emerged in early adolescence. Study 3 used causal inference methods to test mechanisms of change in the first online intervention for youth with co‑occurring anxiety and alcohol use. Emotion regulation and alcohol use did not mediate social anxiety outcomes, and emotion regulation, positive alcohol expectancies, and motives did not mediate alcohol outcomes. Study 4 used mixed methods to identify barriers and enablers to engagement with online treatment among young adults with co‑occurring anxiety and alcohol concerns. Individual factors, rather than program‑related factors, were the primary barriers to engagement. Collectively, this thesis advances understanding of co‑occurring anxiety and alcohol use and provides evidence to inform prevention, early intervention, and treatment, particularly for youth. Includes publication

A Competency-Based Approach to Assessment of Pharmacist Preceptors in Australia

2026-05-19T02:20:44Z

A Competency-Based Approach to Assessment of Pharmacist Preceptors in Australia Bartlett, Andrew David Background: Pharmacy preceptors play a critical role in the professional development of pharmacy students and interns during work-integrated learning (WIL). Pharmacy education providers depend on the capability of preceptors to supervise, teach and assess students, and for a good WIL experience. Currently, there is no standardised framework for assessing preceptor competence in Australia despite accreditation bodies emphasising the need for quality assurance of experiential education. The aim of this thesis is to explore how preceptor competencies can be identified, validated, and feasibly assessed to ensure quality preceptorship in Australian pharmacy education. Methods: A mixed-methods approach was employed across four studies. Focus groups explored stakeholders’ views of preceptor competence, including motivations and barriers to becoming a preceptor. A systematic scoping review examined the literature from multiple health professions on preceptor competencies and methods of assessment. A cross-sectional survey of pharmacy education providers in Australia and New Zealand examined current preceptor assessment practices. A modified Delphi study was conducted to reach consensus on the competencies that need to be assessed along with the method of assessment and the most appropriate assessor. Results: Sixteen evidence-based competencies were identified, and consensus was reached that eight should be considered mandatory and four preferable for assessment. Agreement was also reached on the method of assessment and appropriate assessor for each competency. One single method of assessment did not capture all competencies, supporting a multimodal assessment approach combining preceptee survey, self-assessment and peer observation. Conclusion: Preceptor competency assessment is necessary and feasible. Implementation of national preceptor standards and systematic evaluation would promote quality assurance and support professional development of preceptors. Includes publication

Ageing Bodies, Rural Places, Precarious Times: A Qualitative Investigation of Successful Ageing in Country New South Wales

2026-05-18T04:55:22Z

Ageing Bodies, Rural Places, Precarious Times: A Qualitative Investigation of Successful Ageing in Country New South Wales Knaggs, Gilbert Since the late 1990s successive Australian governments have drawn on the successful ageing model, first developed by John Rowe and Robert Kahn, to refigure population ageing as a dilemma hinging on the choices of responsible, proactive, risk-aware citizens. Drawing on data gathered from interviews conducted with rurally-based adults aged between 61 and 98 years old, this thesis examines how personal responsibility for the ageing body is enacted by those living in under-serviced communities in rural New South Wales. Personalised responsibility for the ageing body emerged in relation to the spectre of the ‘fourth age’ or, more simply ‘old age’. Following successful ageing discourses, participants in this study often discussed ‘old age’ as a future event wherein one becomes ‘old’, ‘burdensome’, and corporeally ‘leaky’, which may be delayed or avoided through ‘healthy’ and ‘active’ lifestyles. However, many also encountered the fourth age during routine uses of the body in terms of frustrating, life-limiting, and alarming ‘feelings’ (aches, pains, weakness, etc.) which signalled becoming or being old. This thesis engages the works of Michel Foucault and Maurice Merleau-Ponty to explore these ideas. Foucault’s concept of ‘apparatus’ is used to conceptualise successful ageing – and descents into the fourth age – in terms of principles and problematisations which have become commonplace in Australia. Merleau-Ponty’s account of the lived-body as an ‘inter-corporeal’ medium of experience is additionally drawn on to conceptualise successful ageing imperatives as consequential for persons who are uniquely ‘attached’ to rural places. Ultimately, this thesis argues that successful ageing rationalities, which position the fourth age/old age as a problem of prevention, unwittingly produce a ‘sacrificial ethics’ in the fourth age characterised by a logic of corporeal ‘containment’.