Strain Sensors Fabricated From Conductive Polymer Composites

Strain sensors are vital tools for ensuring the safety, performance, and efficiency of a wide range of systems and structures. There is a need for low cost yet highly sensitive strain sensors, as this is not available in the current commercial market. Conductive Polymer Composites (CPC) have the potential to fulfil this requirement due to their good processability, cost-effectiveness and tunable electrical properties. However, despite significant progress in recent years, there are still areas of CPC-based strain gauges which require further research before they can be used for practical applications. This thesis investigates carbon black and flexible epoxy resin (CB/epoxy) composites for use as strain sensors. The CB/epoxy composites are fabricated using a method which is low cost and easily scalable, and during environmental testing found to have a Temperature Coefficient of Resistance just three times the magnitude of traditional metallic strain sensors. The CB/epoxy composites are tested under cyclic strain and calculated to have a Gauge Factor (GF) up to eight times that of typical metallic strain gauges. Thin-film metallic strain gauges are also fabricated, analysed and tested under cyclic strain to provide a reference against conventional strain gauge technology. A design of a Rig for testing strain gauges under cyclic strain is also presented. A model for the electrical properties of the CPCs under strain is developed in order to give insight into the microscopic mechanisms that determine GF, offering a valuable potential tool for optimising CPC compositions to achieve enhanced performance. Currently few simulations exist for modelling the piezoresistive properties of CPCs. This thesis not only validates the potential of CPCs as a viable alternative to conventional strain gauges, but also lays the groundwork for further innovation in the design of highly-sensitive, cost-effective strain sensors

Forming Catholic Identity in Young People: Contingency, Agency and the Power of Family Life

This thesis argues that the formation of Catholic identity is not exclusively an institutional nor an innate process, but is co-produced by families and young people in a complex relationship with the institutional Church. It highlights the expertise and labour of Catholic families to contextualise catholicity within specific family, social and cultural settings; the agency and persistence of participants as they seek out the relational, affective Catholicity required to maintain their identity; and the ambiguous role of the institutional Church in balancing forces of innovation and tradition. The study reveals the processes of inheriting or choosing, normalising, enacting and imagining this identity in cycles of adaptation and innovation. Drawing Pierre Bourdieu and Robert Orsi into conversation to examine the interrelationship of structuring structures and improvisation in the data, I sketch three styles of Catholic parenting: spiritual apprenticeship, enforcing, and enabling. I then outline the range of participants’ responses and the surprising role of ambiguity and paradox in their religious lives. A capacious catholicity is revealed, centred around a loving relationship with God, capable of withstanding the shocks and challenges of adolescence, and more concerned with the doxa of their families and communities than the orthodoxy of the institutional Church. I argue that these daily micro-innovations contribute to Catholicism’s ability to adapt across time and space, raising questions about the complex role of the Church in managing processes of change while remaining recognisably Catholic. Developing an emic, non-normative Lived Catholicism approach during the research, I have argued that Catholic identity is far more contingent, diverse and locally produced than either sociologists of religion or the Church itself usually acknowledge. This research contributes to the wider discussion about the production of religious identity in young people, the future shape of the Catholic Church, and the complex relationship between religion and secular culture

The Art of Deferral: Ethics and the Other in the Fiction of J. M. Coetzee

A literary text, as a work of art, presents itself as an attempt to convey a story based on an author’s subjective representation of things and events. It is regarded as a vehicle to arrive at meanings or elicit messages. This thesis, however, embarks on a deconstructive reading of J. M. Coetzee’s texts that seeks to pursue a transgressive vision of the expectation of a literary text by highlighting the self-cancelling nature of Coetzee’s literary texts. Drawing on both cognitive theory and Levinasian ethics, this thesis develops the concept of a deferral of meaning that brings the cognitive and the ethical together in the demesne of imaginative art. Applying some key concepts of Levinasian ethics together with theories of cognitive science, it aims at demonstrating how such an approach effectively destabilises the rigid framework that the relationship between text-meaning, text-reader, text-author and accordingly self-Other, human-animal and bodymind has been built on. The thesis also challenges conventional perspectives on the concepts of certainty, absolute truth, and closure by reconceptualizing the concepts of uncertainty, the Other, and infinity. Approaching Coetzee’s writing through a framework of Levinasian ethics and contemporary cognitive theory, the thesis explores the capacity of J. M. Coetzee’s literary texts in eluding hermeneutics by rejecting the notions of absolute meaning and finite understanding. Finally, the thesis, in cancelling the concepts of certainty and absolute meaning, and in demonstrating Coetzee’s metareflective performance of such cancellation, seeks a redress for the failed recognition of the possibility of the encounter with the literary text as an encounter with the Other, the infinite

Geometry-Informed Graph Neural Networks for Multi-Person Human-Object Interaction Recognition in Videos

Human-Object Interaction (HOI) recognition in videos is a fundamental task in computer vision with wide-ranging applications, including robotics, surveillance, and autonomous systems. Accurately modeling the complex interactions between multiple humans and objects in dynamic environments is crucial for developing intelligent systems that can understand and recognize human behavior. HOI recognition in multi-person scenarios presents unique challenges that surpass traditional action recognition and single-person HOI tasks. With multiple individuals inter- acting simultaneously with various objects, complexities such as occlusions and overlapping interactions become prevalent. Video-based analysis is crucial, as static images fail to capture the temporal dynamics necessary for understanding these interactions. To tackle these challenges, integrating geometric cues like human poses and object keypoints with visual features such as appearance and motion is essential. Geometric understanding is inherently more robust to occlusions and can provide additional spatial information that visual features alone may miss. The primary aim of this research is to develop a robust and accurate multi-person HOI recognition framework that effectively fuses geometric and visual features, addressing these complexities through three objectives: (1) designing advanced multimodal feature fusion methods, (2) collecting comprehensive multi-person HOI datasets, and (3) creating a generalizable framework suited for diverse scenarios. The motivation behind this research direction stems from the limitations of current visual-based approaches, which often fail to generalize in complex real-world scenarios. Extracting geometric is inspired by skeleton-based action recognition, as they are less affected by challenges like partial occlusions. Effective fusion of geometric and visual features is critical for creating a holistic representation that enhances the model’s understanding of interactions. Additionally, the success of this framework hinges on the availability of high-quality datasets that reflect the diversity of real-world MPHOI situations. Therefore, we also collect multi-person HOI datasets that not only aid in training and validating the proposed model but also contribute to the broader research community. This comprehensive approach ensures that our framework is well-equipped to handle the intricate nature of MPHOI recognition in dynamic video environments. This research introduces a series of novel frameworks designed to enhance the robustness and accuracy of multi-person HOI recognition in videos. We start with the Two-level Geometric feature-informed Graph Convolutional Network (2G-GCN), the first attempt to complement visual features with geometric features learned from geometric understanding via graph-based deep learning methods. We also introduce MPHOI-72, a novel two- person HOI dataset specifically designed to evaluate the effectiveness of 2G-GCN in multi-person HOI scenarios, thereby advancing the field from single-person to multi-person HOI recognition. Building on the insight from 2G-GCN that the geometric cues offer extensive comple- mentary information, the need for a more effective fusion of geometric and visual features is identified. We propose the CATS framework to advance HOI recognition from category- level to scenery-level understanding. This framework fuses geometric and visual features for each human and object category, and subsequently constructs a scenery interactive graph to learn the relationships among these categories, providing a more structured and comprehensive understanding of the interactions within a scene. Recognizing the need for further improvements in multimodal feature fusion and dynamic interaction modeling, we propose the Geometric Visual Fusion Graph Neural Networks (GeoVis-GNN). It further refines the fusion of geometric and visual features at the entity level via a dual-attention mechanism and enhances HOI modeling by an interdependent entity graph. To better represent realistic multi-person HOI scenarios, we introduce MPHOI-120, a challenging dataset collecting three-person HOI activities with frequent occlusions and exponentially increasing interaction complexity. We validate the effectiveness of our methods through extensive experiments and quali- tative analysis, demonstrating that our approaches outperform state-of-the-art techniques in HOI recognition across both multi-person and single-person scenarios in videos

Augustine's Confessions and Christian Practice

This study offers a sustained treatment of the contributions Augustine’s Confessions offers to Christian practice. In recent decades, contemporary theology has elevated the formative potential of Christian practice, in part thanks to the theological project of Stanley Hauerwas. However, a problem I chart across Hauerwas’s work is a lack of interior description that addresses questions of theological agency. In response, I turn to Augustine to chart how his theological development of the will culminated in the Confessions with a theological depiction of interior agency. Specifically, Augustine’s account charts sin and grace as they effect the will, as well as a complex treatment of the problems created for the will by memory, time and new creation. As a whole, the Confessions thus provides a theological account of interior agency that is missing from Hauerwas’s project and has relevance for addressing the formative potential of Christian practice today

"In the kitchen because there's no other space for me" Testimony and epistemology in Newfrontiers women A Charismatic Practical Theological investigation into the lived religion of Newfrontiers women in the UK

This thesis examines the faith lives of women from the Christian Charismatic church network Newfrontiers using a practical theological research methodology. Data for the research was collected via participant observations of services and research interviews. This research is situated within Charismatic theology and the methodological processes stem from this commitment. Making use of Charismatic practices of testimony to hear experiences of meeting God and accounts of oppressions this research offers a novel methodology for Charismatic Practical Theology. The review of literature concerning this church network shows that there is a a gap in knowledge about Charismatic women’s faith lives with most research in this field concerning gender and complementarian church governance. Research by Kristin Aune in 2001 described the construction of gender in Newfrontiers; it is, along with my own Masters research, the only academic treatment of Newfrontiers women. Kristin Aune describes the use of the Jezebel narrative in 1 and 2 Kings as part of the network’s self-understanding of women who seek power in churches and marriage. Hearing the testimony of the research participants allowed for the construction of the primary theme in the research: making a place. This theme is expanded upon by describing it in terms of epistemic justice. The women can be understood as suffering epistemic injustice that they negotiate using the power of the Holy Spirit in their lives. A hermeneutic of Newfrontiers women is created from the data and a new reading of the story of Jezebel is offered. The research suggests that this is not a fitting way to describe women in Newfrontiers but rather the biblical character of Elizabeth is suitable.

Intergenerational Dialogue with Young People on Spirituality in Churches: A Participatory Case Study

This research uses intergenerational dialogue as an approach to explore ways to increase young people’s agency within a church community. This case study builds on theoretical and professional discourse in the fields of youth work and Christian youth work and sits amidst contemporary discussions about changing trends in religion and belief in the UK. ‘Spirituality’ is discussed with reference to theoretical perspectives on the theme, which recognise it as a complex term that many academics still consider worth exploring, despite difficulties in defining it. This research design combines Participatory Action Research (PAR) and Collaborative Inquiry (CI) methodologies, using an innovative approach of action and reflection with intergenerational dialogue to offer Dialogical Participatory Action Research as a new approach to research. Participants formed a Dialogue Group which identified social and structural obstacles which had prevented young people from being able to participate fully in their context. These participants developed creative practices which were designed to facilitate new ways for young people to participate in and contribute to intergenerational church meetings. Their reflections on the successes and challenges of the research year have informed my data analysis in relationship with theoretical analysis. As well as a new research model this thesis contributes findings which demonstrate the usefulness of intergenerational dialogue as an approach for developing young people’s agency within a church community. Young people experienced greater agency and participation and found this experience positive to their sense of self and to their outlook on their church. Participants found that not only young people benefitted from this new paradigm, but that their positive and particular contributions could develop new church practices and spiritual insights. The changes this church community underwent to create space for the increased agency of young people demonstrated the potential for greater inclusivity and spiritual formation of the wider congregation

The Other Side of the Limit: Nonsense and Therapy from Hume and Kant to Wittgenstein

“What is nonsense?” is one of the most fundamental questions in philosophy and has been implicit since the subject’s origins. This thesis explores the role of nonsense in the work of Wittgenstein, the philosopher perhaps most critical of philosophy itself. Wittgenstein’s work, alongside that of Hume and Kant, is emblematic of the critical impulse in philosophy. This approach does not build philosophical systems or offer answers to philosophical questions. Rather, it interrogates whether the very questions asked are valid, useful, or clear. Though most philosophers are critical to an extent, some make especially broad critiques and distance themselves from other philosophical practices. Broad philosophical critiques, such as those found in Hume, Kant or Wittgenstein require a notion of nonsense with which to frame other philosophy. Through critical comparison, I argue that Wittgenstein’s notion of nonsense is more concrete than Hume's or Kant's, as is his method for addressing philosophical nonsense as it emerges. I argue that Wittgenstein’s understanding of nonsense emerges in response to his biggest influences: Russell and Frege. Wittgenstein’s approach emerges from a reply to Russell’s language-adjacent philosophy and incorporates Frege’s understanding of sense. I argue that the early and later Wittgenstein have distinct methods but share a conception of nonsense as something which cannot have meaning. The later Wittgenstein’s therapeutic approach emerges from his dissatisfaction with the Tractatus’ response to nonsense. Understanding the later work requires engagement with the earlier. Finally, taking seriously Wittgenstein’s comparisons between psychotherapy, particularly psychoanalysis, I argue that Wittgenstein’s therapeutic approach uses arguments to dissolve philosophical problems. Further, appropriately incorporating Freud into my interpretation shows that Wittgenstein’s method does not put an end to philosophy – rather it creates a productive, reflective role for philosophical nonsense

SCRUTINISING PANKSEPP’S (1995) SEPARATION CALL HYPOTHESIS OF PILOERECTION AND CHILLS: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY

The present research acts as a comprehensive test of the separation call hypothesis of piloerection (colloquially known as goosebumps) and chills (Panksepp, 1995, 2009). This theory claims that: (1) piloerection and chills are triggered by musical features that resemble infant cries; (2) these cry-like sounds induce feelings of separation distress; (3) these social feelings are connected to piloerection and chills as part of a social thermoregulatory response. Panksepp also directly analogises cry sounds to high pitched crescendos, suggesting that high frequencies may be an important auditory feature for separation call elicited chills. In the present study, these claims were tested by measuring piloerection, chills, separation distress and bodily temperature in response to a range of audio excerpts. This included audio of infant cries and music excerpts with cry-like features (reflecting separation calls) and audio of infant babbles and music excerpts with cry-dissimilar features (not reflecting separation calls). Versions of each excerpt with the auditory frequencies manipulated either 25% higher or lower were also presented to test the relevance of pitch. The findings contradicted each claim of the hypothesis: the only measure to differ between the cry/cry-like and babble/cry-dissimilar stimuli was chills, and in this case chills were more common in response to the music excerpts than actual audio of infant cries. This is opposite to the expected relation. These findings call the separation call hypothesis into question. In light of this, alternate priorities for future research are discussed

Everyday Transformative Gender Justice: Photo-Voices from Colombia

Transitional justice, as a field of scholarship and practice, aims to address past wrongdoings of authoritarian regimes and armed conflicts. However, critical scholarship has convincingly pointed to problematic aspects of the field, including its legalistic bias and one-size-fits-all interventions. Transformative justice has emerged as an alternative to mainstream transitional justice. This proposal prioritises local needs and agency while addressing unequal power relations that underpin violent conflicts. Yet, the transformative model remains largely normative without sufficient empirical grounding. To address this gap, my PhD thesis proposes an everyday transformative gender justice framework that centres on the needs and demands of so-called ordinary people living in transitional and conflict-affected contexts. To develop the framework, I draw on the transformative justice literature, but also from radical feminist scholars and the everyday peace literature. Further, the framework is empirically informed by data from two participatory photography projects in Cauca, Colombia, as well as documents and interviews with representatives from Colombia’s transitional justice institutions. Based on the empirical data of my research in Colombia, I make three main arguments on how transitional justice can be more transformative. First, it needs to address violence as a continuum of direct and structural violence that affects people’s lives. Second, a transformative view of transitional justice must tackle gender-based violence as a continuum of violence that manifests in both violent and ‘peaceful’ times, while taking issues of care, masculinities and femininities seriously. Third, transformative justice needs to provide redress for economic, social, and cultural rights through redistribution and recognition measures. By contrasting how everyday voices and institutional actors frame the transformative potential of transitional justice, I contribute to an understanding of how exactly transitional justice can be more transformative for the people who need it the most