Herman Sörgel devised a plan, beginning in 1927, to usher in a new era of peace and prosperity for the whole of Europe. Atlantropa was his answer to the perceived threats that the European people faced from international competition, overpopulation, and lack of resources. The plan would have resulted in the lowering of the Mediterranean Sea and the ultimate creation of one continent comprised of the former Europe and Africa. Though the plan was never implemented, it poses a fascinating model through which historians may reconsider the time period between the end of the First and Second World Wars. This thesis examines some historical socio-political movements through the lens of Sörgel’s megaproject. Original publications from Herman Sörgel himself as well as those of two notable Atlantropa scholars, Alexander Gall and Wolfgang Voigt, explain in great detail the technical and sociological aspects of the plan. Additionally, theories from Jeffrey Herf, Richard von Coudenhove-Kalergi, and Dina Brandt aid in the understanding of the man who attempted to engineer Europe out of crisis. The following analysis reveals the difficulty in placing Herman Sörgel into any singular political or social movement in his time. Though he espoused some of the same rhetoric as that of the National Socialists and pan-European movements alike, he failed to conform to any particular group. The unwavering obsession with his project consumed all of Sörgel’s energies until his death in 1952. Though all-but-forgotten, the project offers an uncommon means by which to view a tumultuous time in Europe.

Phoenician ships in the broadest sense of the word are the focus of this dissertation and it encompasses the entire period of both Phoenician and Punic seafaring. The study is quantitative, largely historical and archaeological, with the use of secondary sources as well as iconography. The origins of the Phoenician construction technique, the mortise-and-tenon joints, are investigated as well as the various types of Phoenician ships. These are analysed under the headings Merchant ships, Warships and Utility ships. The materials mentioned in Ezekiel’s prophecy about ‘The Ship Tyre’, are analysed, whether they fit the purpose for which they are mentioned. The production process of purple cloth with the use of Murex molluscs is described in detail including an analysis of the boats used to catch the molluscs. The possibility is investigated of whether the Ashkelon Dog Burials could be related to the Phoenician trade in dogs, and whether they could have served as ship dogs. Lastly the difficulties encountered in sailing through the narrow sea straits of the Mediterranean Sea are described, which are subject to Internal waves, affecting the surface water. / Old Testament & Ancient Near Eastern Studies / M. A. (Biblical Archaeology)

Phoenician ships in the broadest sense of the word are the focus of this dissertation and it encompasses the entire period of both Phoenician and Punic seafaring. The study is quantitative, largely historical and archaeological, with the use of secondary sources as well as iconography. The origins of the Phoenician construction technique, the mortise-and-tenon joints, are investigated as well as the various types of Phoenician ships. These are analysed under the headings Merchant ships, Warships and Utility ships. The materials mentioned in Ezekiel’s prophecy about ‘The Ship Tyre’, are analysed, whether they fit the purpose for which they are mentioned. The production process of purple cloth with the use of Murex molluscs is described in detail including an analysis of the boats used to catch the molluscs. The possibility is investigated of whether the Ashkelon Dog Burials could be related to the Phoenician trade in dogs, and whether they could have served as ship dogs. Lastly the difficulties encountered in sailing through the narrow sea straits of the Mediterranean Sea are described, which are subject to Internal waves, affecting the surface water. / Biblical and Ancient Studies / M. A. (Biblical Archaeology)

This thesis, structured in two parts, addresses a series of problems of relevance in the field of Spatial Geodesy. The first part delves into the application of satellite gravity data to enhance our understanding of water transport dynamics. Here, we present two significant contributions. Both are based on satellite gravity data but stem from different mission concepts with distinct objectives: time-variable gravity monitoring and high-resolution, accurate static geoid modelling. First, the fundamental notions about gravity are introduced and a brief summary is made of the different gravity satellite missions throughout history, with emphasis on the GRACE/GRACE-FO and GOCE missions, whose data are the basis of this work. The first application focuses on estimating water transport and geostrophic circulation in the Southern Ocean by leveraging a GOCE geoid and altimetry data. The Volume Transport across the Antartic Circumpolar Current is analyzed and the resulsts are validated validated using the in-situ data collected during the multiple campaigns in the DP. The second application uses time-variable gravity data from the GRACE and GRACE-FO missions to estimate the water cycle in the Mediterranean and Black Sea system, a critical region for regional climate and global ocean circulation. The analysis delves into the analysis of the different components of the hydrological cycle within this region, including the water flow across the Gibraltar Strait, examining their seasonal variations, climatic patterns, and their connection with the North Atlantic Oscillation Index. The second part of the thesis is more focused on data analysis, with the objective of developing mathematical methods to estimate the cross correlation function between two time series that are both unevenly spaced spaced (the sampling is not uniform over time) and observed at unequal time scales (the set of time points for the first series is not identical to the set of time points of the second series). Such time series are frequently encountered in geodetic surveys, especially when combining data from different sources. The estimation of the the cross correlation function for these time series presents unique challenges and requires the adaptation of traditional analysis methods designed for evenly spaced and synchronized time series. The two main contributions in this context are: (i) the study of the asymptotic properties of the Guassian Kernel estimator, that is the recommended estimator for the cross correlation function when the two time series are observed at unequal time scales; (ii) an extension of the stationary bootstrap that allows to construct bootstrap-based confidence intervals for the cross correlation function for unevenly spaced time series not sampled on identical time points.