The objectives of this study were to investigate stability related basic wood properties and to determine stability performance of New Zealand grown Douglas-fir and those of radiata pine wood. In this study, nine 60-year old Douglas-fir trees and thirteen 26-year old radiata pine trees were selected from forests in Canterbury region. From these trees, 36 discs of 200 mm thick (13 for Douglas-fir and 23 for radiata pine) and 388 boards with dimensions of 100mm x 50mm x 4.8m (210 fro Douglas-fir and 178 fr radiata pine) were prepared. From the prepared discs, 515 specimens (204 for Douglas-fi and 211 for radiata pine) were prepared for green moisture content (MC) and basic density measurements, The same total number of 515 specimens (205 for Douglas-fir and 210 for radiata pine) were also prepared for shrinkage measurements. From the green MC specimens, green weight, volume and oven-dry weight were measured while for the shrinkage specimens, dimensions and weights were measured at equilibrium for nine humidity conditions. These data were used to analyse basic wood properties and moisture uptake characteristics for both Douglas-fir and radiata pine. Variation of shrinkage within a tree and between trees was also studied for both species. After this, selected specimens (36 for Doulas-fir and 36 for radiata pine) were further tested in water immersion for water repellence examination. The 388 full size boards (100mmx50mmx4.8m) were used for studies on distortion and acoustic properties at a sawmill (Southland Timber Ltd.). Dimensions, weights and acoustic velocity were measured from each board before and after drying. These data were used to analyse distortion and strength characteristics for both Douglas-fir and radiata pine. Comparison of the relative stability of full sized Douglas-fir and radiata pine structural timber was investigated in this study. The results from small sample study confirmed that Douglas-fir is much stronger, has lower longitudinal shrinkage and lower gradient in corewood which can be used to explain the better dimensional stability of Douglas-fir than radiate pine although there is significant variability in the shrinkage for both Douglas-fir and radiate pine. In water immersion tests, Douglas-fir has better water repellency property than radiata pine over 2000 hours period during water immersion. Under the same commercial practice in sawing and kiln drying, it is clearly shown that Douglas-fir timbers were straighter with lower levels of distortion than radiata pine at similar final moisture content. It is also interesting to note that the final moisture content in a range of 13-18% for Douglas-fir did not have significant impact on timber distortion but a negative trend was observed for radiata pine with MC in a range of 9 -14%. Tree heights showed clear influence on twist for radiata pine timbers, but it was not clearly observed from Douglas-fir timbers. Corewood proportion is found to have negative impact on the timber distortion for both Douglas-fir and radiata pine. Douglas-fir timbers showed much higher average acoustic MOE value than radiata pine timbers at similar final moisture content. Because of the various proportion of corewood, the shrinkage varied greatly along the stem height and along the disc radius direction for the two species. This variation caused the difference of distortion between corewood, outerwood and transition wood, but the difference between butt log, middle log and top log is inconsistent. Therefore, it is recommended that the corewood proportion to be a criterion for the timber pre-sorting. Variation of stability performance between trees was also found to be significant for the two species, and methods need to be developed for log sorting as well to reduce the timber distortion degradation. Non-destructive testing method such as acoustic tool may be offered to be a new approach for sorting logs, but it is also necessary to be aware of the significant difference between species. The outcome from this project includes better understanding of Douglas-fir for structural applications. The conclusion can be drawn that Douglas-fir has superior quality for its strength, durability and moisture resistance. Douglas-fir is also claimed to have uniform properties and thus to be more stable compared to radiata pine. Douglas-fir timbers showed much higher acoustic MOE value than radiate pine timbers as similar final moisture content.

Die Dissertation befasst sich mit den Reformprozessen, die sich vom Zeitpunkt des System-umbruchs 1989/90 bis zum EU-Beitritt 2004 in den Ministerialverwaltungen Estlands und Polens vollzogen haben. Die Veränderungen, die während dieser Zeit stattfanden, standen im Spannungsfeld zweier Prozesse: des von innenpolitischen Erfordernissen geprägten Transformationsprozesses und des Europäisierungsprozesses, in dem die EU als einflussreicher externer Akteur hinzutrat. Konzeptionell greift die Untersuchung auf die Diskussionen aus der institutionellen Transformationsforschung und die Debatten um die Europäisierung von Regierungs- und Verwaltungssystemen zurück. Die Arbeit konzentriert sich auf die Veränderungen auf der zentralstaatlichen Ebene und betrachtet diese Veränderungen in ihrer horizontalen und sektoralen Dimension. Die horizontale Dimension umfasst Rahmenbedingungen des Verwaltungssystems insgesamt, dies sind zentrale Strukturen des Regierungsapparates, die regierungsinternen Koordinationsmechanismen und die Etablierung des öffentlichen Dienstes. In der sektoralen Dimension wird die Verwaltung im Politikfeld Landwirtschaft betrachtet. In beiden Ländern gab es einen gemeinsamen Ausgangspunkt der Entwicklungen, das sozialistische Verwaltungssystem, und einen ähnlichen Zielpunkt der Verwaltungsreformen in den 1990er Jahren: eine wie auch immer definierte „moderne Verwaltung“. Auch die Rahmenbedingungen des EU-Integrationsprozesses in Mittelosteuropa lassen eher Konvergenzen erwarten. Doch spielen nationale politische Konstellationen eine entscheidende Rolle für die Entwicklungen, so dass man bilanzierend sagen kann: Estland und Polen haben mit Beginn der Transformation unterschiedliche nationale Entwicklungspfade eingeschlagen und ihre Verwaltungssysteme unterscheiden sich mittlerweile stärker voneinander als zur Zeit des Sozialismus. / The dissertation is concerned with transformation of ministerial administrations in Estonia and Poland between 1989/90 and EU accession in 2004. Two processes, the transformation process largely determined by domestic politics and the Europeanisation process with the EU entering the arena as a powerful external actor, influenced changes during this period. The theoretical background of the study refers to institutionalist approaches in transformation research and debates on Europeanisation of governmental and administrative systems. The study focuses on developments on central state level, which are analysed in a horizontal and a sectoral dimension. The horizontal dimension covers the framework of the administra-tive system, as there are structures of central state government, coordination mechanisms within government and the establishment of a civil service. In the sectoral dimension administrative structures in agricultural administration are examined. Both countries share a common point of origin, the socialist administrative system and a simi-lar point of arrival, a “modern” administration, however the latter may be defined. The conditions of the EU integration process also lead to the assumption of convergent developments. But in national political constellations have a decisive impact on developments. As a résumé it can be stated that Estonia and Poland entered different national paths of development from the outset of transformation and administrative systems by now differ in a larger degree than in socialist times.

Pancreatic cancer is relatively uncommon. Despite its relative scarcity, it is the fourth-ranked cancer killer in the Western world with less than a 5% 5-year survival rate. The high mortality rate is due to the asymptomatic nature of the disease and the advanced stage at which it is usually diagnosed. S100P is a calcium-binding protein that has been shown to be highly expressed in the early stages of pancreatic cancer and has been proposed as a potential therapeutic target via the blocking of its interaction with its receptor RAGE, the receptor for advanced glycation end-products. In this thesis, computational techniques were employed on the NMR ensemble of S100P (PDB Accession code 1OZO) to identify potential inhibitors of the S100P-RAGE interaction in the hope of identifying a series of novel leads that could be developed into clinical candidates for the treatment of pancreatic cancer. In silico studies identified putative binding sites at the S100P dimeric interface capable of accommodating cromolyn, an anti-allergy drug shown to bind to the protein both in vitro and in vivo. Virtual screening of >1 million lead-like compounds using 3D pharmacophore models derived from the predicted binding interactions between S100P and cromolyn, identified 9,408 'hits'. These were hierarchically clustered according to similarities between chemical structures into 299 clusters and 77 singletons. Biological screening of 17 of the 'hits' identified from virtual screening stuidies, 4 of which were synthesised in-house, against pancreatic cancer cell lines identified five compounds that demonstrated an equal or greater capacity to reduce BxPC-3 S100P-expressing pancreatic cells' metastatic potential in vitro relative to cromolyn. Compound 24 in particular, showed significant (p<0.05) inhibition of invasion of these cells at a concentration of 100 μM that was comparable to cromolyn at the same concentration. This compound, structurally distinct from cromolyn, was successfully synthesised, purified and characterised in-house alongside 39 of its analogues. Biological screening of compound 24 and four of its analogues for anti-proliferative activity against BxPC-3 and Panc-1 pancreatic cancer cell lines showed all five compounds significantly (p < 0.0001) inhibiting proliferation in both cell lines at a concentration of 1 μM relative to the non-treated control. Hence, structurally distinct compounds that show promising inhibitory activity on the metastasis and proliferation of pancreatic cancer cells have been identified using a structure-based drug design methodology. These compounds, with further optimisation, could provide good starting points as therapeutic lead candidates for the treatment of pancreatic cancer.

No description available.

The purpose of this thesis was to develop an economical, sustainable, and environmentally friendly straw Medium Density Fibreboard (MDF) process, capable of full-scale manufacturing and to produce MDF of requested quality. The investigated straw was based on wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and rice (Oryzae sativa L.). In this thesis three different methods were taken for manufacture of straw MDF; (A) wheat-straw fibre was blowline blended with melamine-modified urea-formaldehyde (MUF), (B) rice-straw fibre was mixed with methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) in a resin drum-blender, and (C) wheat-straw fibre was activated in the blowline by the addition of Fenton’s reagent (H2O2/Fe2+) for production of non-resin MDF panels.  The MUF/wheat straw MDF panels were approved according to the requirements of the EN standard for MDF (EN 622-5, 2006). The MDI/rice-straw MDF panels were approved according to requirements of the standard for MDF of the American National Standard Institute (ANSI A208.2-2002). The non-resin wheat-straw panels showed mediocre MDF panel properties and were not approved according to the requirements in the MDF standard. The dry process for wood-based MDF was modified for production of straw MDF. The straw MDF process was divided into seven main process steps. 1.       Size-reduction (hammer-milling) and screening of straw 2.       Wetting and heating of straw 3.       Defibration 4.       Resination of straw fibre 5.       Mat forming 6.       Pre-pressing 7.       Hot-pressing       The primary results were that the straw MDF process was capable of providing satisfactory straw MDF panels based on different types of straw species and adhesives. Moreover, the straw MDF process was performed in pilot-plant scale and demonstrated as a suitable method for producing straw MDF from straw bales to finished straw MDF panels. In the environmental perspective the agricultural straw-waste is a suitable source for producing MDF to avoid open field burning and to capture carbon dioxide (CO2), the biological sink for extended time into MDF panels, instead of converting straw directly into bio energy or applying straw fibre a few times as recycled paper. Additionally, the straw MDF panels can be recycled or converted to energy after utilization. A relationship between water retention value (WRV) of resinated straw fibres, the thickness swelling of corresponding straw MDF panels, and the amount of applied adhesive was determined. WRV of the straw fibre increased and the TS of straw MDF declined as a function of the resin content. The empirical models developed were of acceptable significance and the R2 values were 0.69 (WRV) and 0.75 (TS), respectively. Reduced thickness swelling of MDF as the resin content is increased is well-known. The increase of WRV as a function of added polymers is not completely established within the science of fibre swelling. Fortunately, more fundamental research can be initiated and likely a simple method for prediction of thickness swelling of MDF by analysis of the dried and resinated MDF fibres is possible. / Syftet med denna avhandling var att lägga grunden för en ekonomisk, hållbar och miljövänlig MDF process för halmråvara, kapabel för fullskalig produktion av MDF och goda skivegenskaper. Framställningen av MDF skivor utgick från halm av vete (Triticum aestivum L.) och ris (Oryzae sativa L.). Tre olika metoder användes för att producera MDF av halm; (A) fibrer av vetehalm belimmades i blåsledning med ett melaminmodifierat urea-formaldehydlim (MUF), (B) fibrer av rishalm belimmades i en limblandare med metylen difenyl diisocyanate (MDI), (C) Limfria MDF skivor av vetehalm framställdes med aktivering av fibrer genom tillsats av Fenton´s reagens (H2O2/Fe2+) i blåsledning utan någon tillsats av syntetiskt lim. Sammanfattningsvis kan det understrykas att framställda MDF-skivor av MUF/vetehalm var godkända enligt standard för MDF (EN 622-5, 2006). Dessutom var framställda MDF skivor av MDI/rishalm också godkända enligt krav i standard för MDF ”American National Standard Institute” (ANSI A2008.2-2002). Limfria vetehalmskivor visade på måttliga skivegenskaper och klarade inte kraven i MDF standard.   Fiberframställningsprocessen för MDF modifierades till en produktion utgående från halm. MDF processen för halm delades upp i sju primära processoperationer.   (1)            Storleksreducering och sållning av halm (2)            Vätning och uppvärmning av halm (3)            Defibrering (4)            Belimning av halmfiber (5)            Mattformning (6)            Förpressning (7)            Pressning   De viktigaste resultaten från denna studie är att MDF av halm kunde produceras utgående från olika typer av halmsorter och lim. Dessutom utfördes MDF-processen i pilotskala och visade på en lämplig metod för framställning av MDF-skivor från halmbalar till färdiga halmfiberskivor. Det miljömässiga perspektivet på att använda jordbruksavfall till framställning av halmskivor är att undvika förbränning av halm ute på fältet, men det är även möjligt att binda koldioxid (CO2) i halmskivor under längre tid än att omsätta halmråvaran omedelbart som bioenergi eller använda halmfiber som returpapper några få gånger. Dessutom kan MDF återanvändas eller bli omsatt till energi efter användning.   Ett förhållande mellan ”water retention value” (WRV), av belimmade halmfiber, tjocklekssvällning för motsvarande MDF av halmskivor och mängden av tillsatt lim vid olika nivåer har undersökts. Med ökande limhalt tilltog WRV fibersvällning, vidare minskade tjocklekssvällning för motsvarande MDF skivor. De framtagna empiriska modellerna var godtagbara och beräknade R2 värden var 0.69 (WRV) och 0.75 (TS). Minskad tjocklekssvällning med ökad limhalt är dokumenterad sen tidigare. Ökad fibersvällning WRV vid tillsats av polymerer (limmer) är inte fullständigt etablerad inom vetenskapen för fibersvällning. Lyckligtvis kan grundläggande forskning initieras och sannolikt föreligger en enkel metod för att prediktera tjocklekssvällning av MDF genom analyser av torkade och belimmad MDF fiber.

No description available.

This study explored the impact of the importation of expatriate English teachers on the morale of the Malaysian English teachers and attempted to identify the perceptions of Malaysian English teachers, expatriate native English-speaking teachers (NESTs), and expatriate nonnative English-speaking teachers (nonNESTs) regarding the practices that are prevalent in Malaysia in areas such as hiring, remuneration, and benefits. An initial questionnaire was completed by the participants to ensure that they fit the target demographic profiled. Then, a semi-structured interview was conducted as a follow-up to the participants' open-ended responses in the second part of the questionnaire. Completed questionnaires were gathered from ten participants, and two semi-structured interviews were conducted with an expatriate NEST and a Malaysian nonNEST respectively. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze responses to the seven-point Likert-scale statements. In addition, this study took a qualitative approach in analyzing the core themes of the responses in the semi-structured interview and the questionnaire. Examining individual survey items and interviews revealed that there is a large discrepancy in wages between NESTs and nonNESTs in Malaysia, and this contributes to the unhappiness and low morale of Malaysian English teachers. In addition, the presence of expatriate NESTs causes Malaysian nonNESTs to have low self-esteem as they compare themselves to their native counterparts. This study also revealed that participants felt that the importation of expatriate NESTs had no significant impact on improving the language proficiency of students. Owing to the perceived failure to deliver desired results, the majority of the participants agreed that hiring qualified and experienced English teachers (not on the basis of one's race or first language) is paramount in improving the language proficiency of Malaysian students. The analysis of the data collected resulted in recommendations for a more in-depth study of the impact of the importation of expatriate NESTs/nonNESTs to the morale of Malaysian nonNESTs and the improvement of the language proficiency of Malaysian students. Also, the contributing factors for the decline of the English proficiency of Malaysian students should be thoroughly evaluated so as to affect change.