This thesis discusses whether berserkir really went berserk. It proposes revised paradigms for berserkir as they existed in the Viking Age and as depicted in Old Norse literature. It clarifies the Viking Age berserkr as an elite warrior whose practices have a function in warfare and ritual life rather than as an example of aberrant behaviour, and considers how usage of PDE ‘berserk’ may affect the framing of research questions about berserkir through analysis of depictions in modern popular culture. The analysis shows how berserksgangr has received greater attention than it warrants with the emphasis being on how berserkir went berserk. A critical review of Old Norse literature shows that berserkir do not go berserk, and suggests that berserksgangr was a calculated form of posturing and a ritual activity designed to bolster the courage of the berserkr. It shows how the medieval concept of berserkir was more nuanced and less negative than is usually believed, as demonstrated by the contemporaneous existence in narratives of berserkir as king’s men, hall challengers, hólmg†ngumenn, Viking raiders and Christian champions, and by the presence of men with the byname berserkr in fourteenth-century documents. Old Norse literature is related to pre-Viking Age evidence to show that warriors wearing wolfskins existed and can be related to berserkir, thus making it possible to produce models for Viking Age and medieval concepts of berserkir. The modern view of berserkir is analysed and shows that frenzy is the dominant attribute, despite going berserk not being a useful attribute in Viking Age warfare which relied upon men holding a line steady rather than charging individually. The thesis concludes that ON berserkr may be best translated as PDE ‘champion’, while PDE ‘berserker’ describes the type of uncontrollable warrior most commonly envisaged when discussing berserkir. Most illustrations have been removed from the digital version of this thesis for copyright reasons. The references in the captions guide the reader to the original source for those illustrations.

Thesis (M.A.)--Boston University / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / A study was done to compare the variability of skull dimensions of Mirounge angustirostris at the time of its near extinction with that of the present rapidly increasing population. Twenty measurements were made upon each of twenty-one skulls, and sixteen ratios developed from these measurements. The age, sex and year of collection of each specimen was recorded. The specimens were divided into an 1800 (near extinction) and 1900 (present) group on the basis of collection date. The ratio vs. age was plotted for the males and females of each year group. The regression line for each year group was calculated. The two populations were then compared as to variability by determining the variation around this regression line. No significant difference in variability was found. / 2031-01-01

Troubling Spaces explores the relationship between the representation of space and place on the Northern Irish stage and the production of space that occurs within Northern Irish society during the Troubles. Drawing from Henri Lefebvre’s The Production of Space, I examine how Nationalists and Unionists produced a series of communal narratives which allowed them to reorder Northern Irish space and its social relations. Additionally, I examine how these communal ideologies create divergent concepts of Northern Irish place which Doreen Massey refers to as negative and enclosed concepts of place. This not only reinforces the dualistic binary between Nationalism and Unionism, it also incites tribal associations and allegiances. Moving on from this, I conduct a close reading of three Troubles plays, Stewart Parker’s Northern Star and Pentecost and Christina Reid’s Tea in a China Cup, to examine how their dramatic narratives intersect and interact with non-traditional stage space to produce dramatic environments which provide compelling commentaries on Northern Irish spatiality. My examination of Northern Star traces the development of the ideological structures which shape Northern Irish spatiality; in Pentecost, I explore how its liminal domestic space is perfectly suited to illustrate the dynamic conceptualisation of place Massey argues for; and, finally, in Tea in a China Cup, I develop the distinction between private domestic spaces and public social spaces further by examining matrilineal narratives in relation to communal symbols within a female-coded domestic space. Through these close readings, I will demonstrate that a dialogical relationship can be discerned between the production of space and place that occurs within Northern Irish society and the representation of it on the Northern Irish stage. While many plays have the potential to act as an endorsement of the restrictive and enclosed concepts of space and place in the ideological frameworks of Nationalism and Unionism, the three that I have chosen provide important counterpoints during the Troubles that actively resist their cultural hegemony.

This thesis re-evaluates farming practices in Iceland up to c.l600. Advancing Þorvaldur Thoroddsen's early twentieth century work, Lýsing Íslands, this study incorporates modem archaeological investigations, documentary evidence and recent scholarship to advance the discussions of lceland's livestock economy. The study examines farms and their land to give a holistic understanding of pastoral farming and fodder acquisition. An evaluation of the textual sources demonstrates long-term stability in the relative livestock values, though the kúgildi fluctuated in value. Herd sizes and the composition of these herds are also examined to show the purpose of these animals. The vast corpus of máldagar are analysed to show the economies of church-farms (staðir and bændakirkjur), including the changing nature of livestock farming between the twelfth and sixteenth centuries, on local, regional and countrywide scales. Livestock products and consumption beyond the much discussed milk, meat and wool economies are critiqued. It is here argued that Icelandic farming generally moved towards a wool-producing economy, however, masked by this wool economy generalisation were a diversity of farming practices. It is only by examining the complexities of these practices that we discover that Icelandic farming was not declining, but adapting to the challenges of this period.

Thesis (M. A. (African Languages)) -- University of Limpopo, 2004 / Refer to document

Aleksandra Hajduczek

This thesis examines the effects of species, rainfall and soil type on tree biomass regressions, as well as the effects of stand dominance and structure on stand biomass regressions in north-east Australian woodlands. This was achieved by examining tree characteristics and biomass relationships for a series of woodland monitoring sites throughout the study area. This study utilised a modified data set from this permanent monitoring site network to provide structural attributes for trees and communities of varying composition in the grazed woodlands. These data were supplemented with environmental data and tree harvest data sets. Initially, the research reported in this thesis developed allometric and stand biomass regressions for Callitris glaucophylla communities. This research also demonstrated that changes in tree-form were not reflected in changes in the environment, nor did such changes reflect changes in tree biomass regressions for three eucalypt species. As a result, a common regression provides a robust estimate of total aboveground biomass of eucalypt trees in the study area. Thus expensive destructive harvesting can generally be avoided for minor eucalypt species. Finally, this study demonstrated a successful methodology that described the stand structure of all the grazed woodland sites based on tree heights. This methodology was developed to allow the expansion of a single stand regression to estimate stand biomass across the entire north-east Australian woodlands. The findings demonstrated in this study, combined with the long-term data from the permanent monitoring network sites, should enhance the estimation of carbon flux within eucalypt communities of north-east Australia’s grazed woodlands.

(1) Rate of increase was measured for feral donkey populations in parts of northern Australia as the average exponential rate of increase, r, in a population subjected to substantial reduction. (2) The annual rate of increase was estimated to be r = 0.21. This estimate was compared with the exponential rate of increase in another recovering donkey population and found to be in close agreement. (3) Ultimate and proximate factors regulating the abundance of feral donkey populations were examined by monitoring and sampling two populations; one at or close to equilibrium density, the other below equilibrium density and recovering from reduction. (4) The size of the population at equilibrium density remained stable over the 12 months of monitoring while the size of the recovering population increased by 20 percent (r = 0.18/yr). (5) Growth and body condition were significantly depressed in the population at equilibrium density suggesting that donkey populations are limited by the food resources available to them. (6) Breeding occured over a discrete season, with births occurring between September and February. 11 (7) Fecundity was high, with more than 75 percent of mature females breeding in each year, and was independent of population density. (8) Adult and juvenile mortality were density dependent, with mortality over the first six months of life the most important demographic factor influencing rate of increase in donkey populations, and hence population abundance. (9) Implications of the estimated rate of population increase for the cost of long-term control of feral donkey populations were examined by constructing numerical models predicting the relative cost of ongoing control. (10) These models were constructed using functions to describe density dependent variation in population productivity and the cost per donkey removed. (11) The cost of removing donkeys at various population densities was estimated using predator-prey theory. The cost, measured in hours of helicopter time per removal, was found theoretically and empirically to take the form of an inverted functional response curve, with cost saturated at high donkey densities. (12) The utility of models predicting the cost of continuing pest control is illustrated by comparing the relative costs of two potential strategies for feral donkey control.

Building Collaboration, Building Community: A Home for Northern Learning explores the potential for architecture to support learning endeavors in the Canadian North. Informed by traditional approaches to northern learning for cultural continuity, alongside the assimilative effects of the residential school experience, the thesis strives to develop an environment for contemporary northern learning where both Aboriginal cultures and values can thrive alongside current educational endeavors. Situated within a context plagued by imposed and unsuccessful architectural models, the thesis advocates for a design process rooted in collaborative ideals. At its core, the thesis asserts that both the local knowledge of the community and the training of the architect are vital components in the design process. In the development of an environment for northern learning, both the socio-cultural visions of a northern people and the skill sets of the architect are of necessity. Local stories and perspectives - both past and present - guide project developments. As directed by the community, the scope of work does not focus solely upon the formal learning environment, but rather upon a series of social and cultural structures designed to support learners within the northern educational context. Technically, as informed by traditional architectural predecessors, the contemporary forms are developed in accordance with the local climate: the proposed architecture invites its inhabitants to thrive within the immediate northern landscape. Ultimately, these explorations – of community vision and technical design - are synthesized into a series of design vignettes for a student living community in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. The ideas housed within the architectural translations and the broader thesis documentations are not finite conclusions but rather they form the foundation for future investigations: they provide a starting point for continued dialogues and developments.

Building Collaboration, Building Community: A Home for Northern Learning explores the potential for architecture to support learning endeavors in the Canadian North. Informed by traditional approaches to northern learning for cultural continuity, alongside the assimilative effects of the residential school experience, the thesis strives to develop an environment for contemporary northern learning where both Aboriginal cultures and values can thrive alongside current educational endeavors. Situated within a context plagued by imposed and unsuccessful architectural models, the thesis advocates for a design process rooted in collaborative ideals. At its core, the thesis asserts that both the local knowledge of the community and the training of the architect are vital components in the design process. In the development of an environment for northern learning, both the socio-cultural visions of a northern people and the skill sets of the architect are of necessity. Local stories and perspectives - both past and present - guide project developments. As directed by the community, the scope of work does not focus solely upon the formal learning environment, but rather upon a series of social and cultural structures designed to support learners within the northern educational context. Technically, as informed by traditional architectural predecessors, the contemporary forms are developed in accordance with the local climate: the proposed architecture invites its inhabitants to thrive within the immediate northern landscape. Ultimately, these explorations – of community vision and technical design - are synthesized into a series of design vignettes for a student living community in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. The ideas housed within the architectural translations and the broader thesis documentations are not finite conclusions but rather they form the foundation for future investigations: they provide a starting point for continued dialogues and developments.