Libraries in Ukraine have been profoundly affected by the ongoing Russian invasion. But more than that, they are constrained by their historical colonial heritage as a Soviet institution which was used by the Moscow regime as a propaganda tool to exert control, both politically and culturally – not least in the form of Russification, which in the context of Ukrainian libraries took the form of a predominance of Russian-language books in place of Ukrainian. The present thesis aims to explore how Ukrainian libraries cope with the current war situation, how they are affected by and come to terms with their problematic past, and how these issues may relate.The study uses ethnographic methods to describe 11 libraries in Western Ukraine in 2023. The findings are discussed against a theoretical background of sociolinguistics, knowledge organization and postcolonial theory. It describes the libraries’ infrastructure problems, the continuing presence of huge Soviet-Russian collections, and the ongoing mass weeding of these collections during the war. The thesis suggests that Ukrainian libraries face five structural problems beyond the impact of the war: poor collections, lack of infrastructure and funding, administrative peculiarities, government regulations, and the catalogues and classifications. Especially, the need for more and relevant books is a pressing and fundamental concern. Two positive developments are suggested to have taken place during the war: ongoing reversal of the colonial heritage through the mass weeding efforts, and a popularization of the libraries through social initiatives relating to the war effort. / Bibliotek i Ukraina har blivit djupt påverkade av den pågående ryska invasionen. Men vad mer är har de varit kringskurna av sitt historiska koloniala arv som en sovjetisk institution som Moskva-regimen använde som ett propagandaverktyg för att utöva kontroll, både politiskt och kulturellt – inte minst i form av russifiering, vilken i de ukrainska biblioteket tog sig uttryck i en predominans av ryskspråkiga böcker på bekostnad av ukrainska. Den föreliggande uppsatsen ämnar att utforska hur ukrainska bibliotek hanterar den pågående krigssituationen, hur de påverkas av och handskas med sitt problematiska förflutna, och hur dessa frågor kan vara relaterade till varandra.Studien använder etnografiska metoder för att beskriva 11 bibliotek i västra Ukraina år 2023. Resultatendiskuteras utifrån en teoretisk bakgrund av sociolingvistik, kunskapsorganisation och postkolonial teori. Den beskriver bibliotekens infrastrukturproblem, den fortsatta närvaron av enorma sovjetryska samlingar samt den under kriget pågående massgallringen av dessa samlingar. Uppsatsen framställer att ukrainska bibliotek ställs inför fem strukturella problem utöver krigets inverkan: undermåliga samlingar, avsaknaden av infrastruktur och finansiering, administrativa egenheter, statliga regelverk samt kataloger och klassifikationer. I synnerhet är behovet av fler och relevanta böcker en tryckande och fundamental angelägenhet. Två positiva utvecklingar föreslås ha ägt rum under kriget: en pågående uppgörelse med det koloniala arvet genom ansatserna till massgallring, samt en popularisering av biblioteken genom sociala initiativ relaterade till krigsinsatsen.

Possible areas of improving the efficiencies of the Lincoln University flame weeder are identified and investigated. The Hoffmann burner initially used in the Lincoln University flame weeder was found not to entrain sufficient air to allow complete combustion of the LPG used. A new burner, the Modified Lincoln University burner, was designed to improve the entrainment of air. Results show that the new design entrained sufficient air to theoretically allow complete combustion of the LPG, and this resulted in a 22.7% increase in heat output per Kg of LPG used over the Hoffmann burner. Temperature x time exposure constants required to kill weeds 0 - 15, 15 - 30, and 30 - 45 mm in size, were found to be respectively 750, 882, and 989 degrees Celsius.Seconds. These constants can be used to calculate the maximum speed of travel an operator can use a flame weeder at, once the temperature profile underneath its shields are established at various travel speeds, and therefore ensure that the flame weeder is used at its maximum efficiency. The constants can also be used to establish the cost efficiency of any flame weeder (in $/Ha), depending on the size of the weeds to be treated. The materials and methods used in establishing the temperature x time exposure constants can be used to establish the temperature x time exposure constant of any weed species at any size.