Negotiated freedom: a portfolio of original compositions

When is a work considered complete? What elements should be clearly defined in the score, and which aspects should remain adaptable to allow for personal interpretation by performers? How can I create composed music that captures the essence of the original improvised sound I perform in the moment, while also allowing for guided, organic improvisation by other performers. At the core of this research is the development of a compositional approach informed by my unique voice as a guitarist, shaped by over thirty years of performance experience across diverse musical contexts. The primary aim of this research has been to extend this guitar-based approach to composition and improvisation in chamber ensemble settings, creating a music that facilitates collaborative performance and fluid sonic creation. The compositional process is iterative. It begins with improvisations on guitar, which serve as the foundation for the musical material. This material is then notated into structured works, which are presented to performers. Following this, the works undergo workshopping, testing notation methods, and exploring the sonic possibilities of the performers and their instruments. The score is refined through repeated cycles of performance and revision, allowing the composition to evolve in response to performers' interpretations. As the research progresses, the works branch out into larger ensemble grouping, with the individual voices of the performers playing a key role in shaping the compositions. Because I perform in these works, the compositions foster a collaborative environment between composer and performer, naturally challenging traditional hierarchies. This ongoing dialogue between composer and performer creates space for spontaneity and mutual influence, with the performers' individual sounds becoming an integral part of the in-the-moment compositional process. This research has resulted in a portfolio of compositions that blend through-composed material with notation methods designed to facilitate controlled improvisation, allowing performers to manipulate specific sonic elements freely. These works embody the intricate relationship between composition and improvisatory freedom, blurring the lines between the two while preserving my distinct compositional voice. Through careful notation and iterative collaboration, I provide performers with materials that act as both a safety net and a springboard for creative freedom, enabling them to express themselves more freely and confidently. This approach fosters a sense of agency, shared ownership, and spontaneity in performance, empowering musicians to engage more fully in the creative process. Ultimately, this study contributes to contemporary composition and performance practice. The resulting works are presented in the portfolio as musical scores, recordings, and filmed performances

Social usage of Scottish Gaelic in modern Glasgow

Glasgow is a city of great cultural importance and demographic focus for speakers of Scottish Gaelic, with a long history of migration from Gaelic-speaking areas of Scotland to Glasgow characterising the relationship between language and city. This relationship continues to the present day, with a substantial portion of Census-reported Gaelic speakers living in and around Glasgow. This constitutes a challenge for language revitalisation, the theory of which has traditionally considered urban environments to be a site of language shift away from minority languages. Despite this, the reality of Gaelic’s presence in Glasgow, and the city’s demographic pull on Gaelic speakers, must be engaged with to effectively inform policy and language revitalisation efforts. This thesis develops a high-level understanding of the contemporary social usage of Gaelic in Glasgow. For reasons of scope and practicality under the conditions of the Covid-19 pandemic, research was focused on non-employment related, public usage of Gaelic, examining the spaces within which Gaelic speakers meet to determine the contexts in which Gaelic is spoken in Glasgow, and the factors which govern that usage. This research is underpinned by theoretical principles not only in reversing language shift, but also in urban sociolinguistics. Economic, structural and ecolinguistic theories allow for an understanding of Glasgow’s importance and function regarding Gaelic, while sociolinguistic theories of usage motivation and sociological theories of the social network and community of practice drive analysis of the personal interactions which constitute the social patterns of Gaelic usage in Glasgow. Through ethnographic observation, analysis of data shared by City of Glasgow Council and Glasgow University, and interviews with a range of Gaelic speakers who live and work in Glasgow, this research yields insights into the usage of Gaelic across a variety of social contexts in the city. In particular, the social networks and usage opportunities present in the arts sector and Glasgow University are highlighted as anchor points for Gaelic in a predominantly Anglophone city. The now-diminished role which Gaelic plays in religious contexts is explored, and this thesis contains potentially the last ethnographic observations of St Columba Gaelic Church and the “Highland Cathedral”. In addition, findings relating to the social experiences of Gaelic speakers in the city and the roles and social dynamics of “Gaelic” pubs, Glasgow Gaelic School and the Island associations are presented. Beyond providing a broad range of data and analysis which may inform policy and provide avenues for future, closer research, the primary findings of this thesis highlight the great importance of social connections in facilitating and motivating the usage of Gaelic in an urban environment. The social networks which make up the fabric of Glasgow’s Gaelic world and their relationship with Gaelic are influential in the prevalence of spoken Gaelic in any given setting. This phenomenon underpins the variety in the practices and experiences of Gaelic as a social language in Glasgow. It is intended that both the findings and theoretical contributions of this thesis will contribute to future developments in the study and understanding of Gaelic in Glasgow and in other urban environments

Exploring digital metacognitive therapy for bipolar disorder: effectiveness, therapist characteristics, and the therapeutic alliance in remote care

The global mental health crisis underscores the pressing need for innovative approaches to address gaps in care, particularly for individuals with Severe and Enduring Mental Illness (SEMI). This thesis explores the potential for digital mental health interventions (DMHIs) to enhance accessibility and effectiveness of psychological treatments in SEMI, with a focus on synchronous telepsychological interventions (STIs), including videoconferencing (VCF), as a promising modality. A central theme is the adaptation and application of Individualised Metacognitive Therapy (MCT+), tailored for bipolar disorder type I, delivered digitally. Further, the therapeutic alliance and therapist characteristics, such as mentalisation capacity and attachment style, are examined as mechanisms of interest that can affect outcomes in digitally delivered psychotherapy. The current research is situated within Chile's healthcare system, and the introduction takes into account its historical, socio-political, and structural context, and the challenges of delivering equitable mental health care in a mixed public-private system. Next, a systematic review and meta-analysis of STIs for SEMI provide a comprehensive overview of their effectiveness, highlighting benefits such as increased accessibility, reduced stigma, and enhanced engagement. The review identifies gaps in the current research literature, and informs, the empirical and qualitative studies in subsequent chapters. A mixed-methods approach, informed by pragmatism, integrates quantitative and qualitative analyses to explore the implementation of MCT+ via videoconferencing. Quantitative findings from the implementation of MCT+ highlight its potential benefits and limitations. Anxiety symptoms showed a statistically significant reduction (GAD-7 scores: 10.08 to 5.75, p = .032), reflecting the intervention’s impact on emotional regulation. Depression scores demonstrated a positive trend (PHQ-9: 11.00 to 8.14, p = .087), but without statistical significance; however, a clinically meaningful reduction of three points suggests potential benefits for individual patients. Metacognitive beliefs improved significantly (MCQ-30: 71.57 to 63.07, p = .049), indicating reductions in maladaptive beliefs, while subscale improvements varied. The impact on quality of life (QoL) was minimal, with no significant changes observed (WHOQOL-BREF: 15.17 to 15.50, p = .791). Reliable Change Index (RCI) analyses further highlighted variability in outcomes, with some participants experiencing significant deterioration in domains such as anxiety (n = 2; RCI = -2.176, -1.995) and psychological distress (n = 2; RCI = -2.29, -2.10). Only one participant demonstrated clinically significant improvement in QoL (RCI = +2.06). Therapist characteristics were explored as potential predictors of therapeutic outcomes. Mentalisation capacity (MASC, RFQ) demonstrated a complex relationship with the therapeutic alliance, with significant interactions between automatic and controlled mentalisation (b = -0.451, p = .008), suggesting that a balance between these capacities is crucial. Attachment style (ECR-12) showed weak, non-significant correlations with alliance quality (rho = -0.54 to 0.25, p > .05), while between-patient differences accounted for the majority of alliance variability (65.3%–77.7%), underscoring the importance of patient-specific factors. Qualitative findings provided further depth, capturing patient and therapist perspectives on the dynamics of the therapeutic process. Themes such as balancing structure and flexibility, the role of engagement, and the impact of perceived therapist availability aligned with the quantitative results, offering insights into the mechanisms that drive variability in outcomes. Both groups highlighted the value of personalised care and the challenges posed by the digital format, such as the absence of non-verbal cues and the need for adaptive mentalisation strategies. The findings emphasise the potential of STIs, particularly videoconferencing, in addressing treatment gaps for SEMI in resource-limited settings, with implications for global mental health care. The thesis concludes by discussing the broader impact of digital psychotherapy, its limitations, and future directions, advocating for sustainable and inclusive digital interventions to improve mental health outcomes. Overall the thesis provides a useful contributions to the evolving field of digital mental health, particularly relevant to Chile, and provides actionable insights for enhancing therapeutic practices in diverse and challenging contexts

Examining Scotland’s industrial and supply chain capabilities for producing hydrogen derivatives and products

The study analyses Scotland’s industrial and supply chain capabilities for producing hydrogen derivatives and products (HDPs). It explores the relative strengths and weaknesses of different regions in terms of potential growth of HDP sectors. It also looks at the policy gaps at Scottish, UK and EU level

From Local Governance to Constitution Building: Yemen after 10 Years of Conflict

Ten years into the devastating conflict between Ansar Allah and Yemen’s internationally recognized government, governance has undergone significant transformations. In 2025, local and substate governance structures across Yemen present a diverse and evolving landscape, indicative of the complex realities on the ground. This report delves into the myriad forms of governance that exist in Yemen in 2025 and examines some of the future constitutional challenges these forms may present. As fragmentation and contestation affect an increasing number of countries globally, this study provides essential insights into the analytical challenges faced by various decision makers and analysts. It also offers a critical insight into the fluid nature of governance in a rapidly changing world

The pursuit of virginity in Thai gay culture: the exploration through autoethnographic letter-writing

This part is the abstract of my doctoral thesis or the electronic letters I have written to many addressees. In case someone else comes across this abstract, Sawatdee Krub. My thesis and the letters I wrote are about virginity, a controversial concept that receives much criticism. However, the maintenance of virginity seemed to be important to me, a gay from Bangkok, Thailand, until I reached the age of thirty when I decided to lose it. Why is virginity valued, and sexual intercourse to be refrained from and discouraged? This thesis aims to understand this phenomenon through letter writing. But why letters? You might be curious. These 12 electronic letters represent the whole journey I had engaged in virginity since 2021 when I wrote - typed - monthly explorations to my supervisor, Jonathan Wyatt. Inspired by Laurel Richardson’s writing as a method of inquiry, I began my journey by including stories, articles, and literature that relate to sex and virginity. Another essential element is autoethnography. This methodology uses the researcher’s personal experiences and connects them to the culture, disclosing self-stories and vulnerability and then creating a format that retrospectively looks like writing a letter to someone close. It encompasses both personal and professional elements. This autoethnographic letter format provides the space to reflect by going back and forth between past and present, academic and personal selves, and between myself and other addressees, you, for example. Therefore, I kept this format and recrafted all monthly letters to be written to significant others, including my family members, gay best friends, therapist, supervisor, Examiners, and even myself. The first letter began with the story of the night I lost my virginity. Then, each crafted letter was written to trace back and understand what societal and cultural elements in family, school, and the wider society - Thailand - seemed to affect the understanding of sex and virginity. The secrecy of sex talk, sexuality education in the Thai educational curriculum, Buddhist and Christian doctrines and HIV/AIDS were narrated in respective letters. Attitudes during the time I grew up seemed to discourage sex. Virginity was valued. The plot seemed to thicken when it connected to my Phet (Thai gender and sexuality) as a gay. Being gay or kathoey (Transgender men) was tolerated but not accepted in my childhood and young years. I brought you to witness the heteronormativity/heterosexism and the hegemony of two genders in Thailand. Like me, the other Phets/genders seemed to be against the norm. Panopticon, disciplinary power, and poststructuralist thinkers were engaged to show how my gay friends and I were bullied and disrespected, which crystallised in my 8th letter of the idea of being a good person or Kon Dee in the Thai context. This keyword encompassed desirable and admirable qualities of Thai society that guaranteed safety and love for Thai gays. Virginity or refraining from sex seemed to be one of the manifestations of being Kon Dee. Metaphorically, it was like a cloak gathered round me. Thai gays might experience the condition of Kon Dee differently in their own life. Still, this condition/discourse needs to be recognised, reflected on, or challenged by gay people or Thai LGBTQ+. Perhaps not only gay people but family members, counsellors, or general readers, both Thai and internationally, may also benefit from engaging with these letters reflectively and critically. These letters could be helpful for gender/sexuality equality. I hope you will enjoy this letter/thesis

Supporting health data science education with learning analytics and artificial intelligence

Health Data Science (HDS) is a new and interdisciplinary field that leverages computational methods, such as data science, statistics, and artificial intelligence, to analyse health, medical, or biological data. There is limited knowledge about how to teach and learn HDS topics effectively. Despite the urgent need to train health data scientists, educational institutions worldwide struggle to teach these interdisciplinary concepts effectively. This challenge is particularly evident in postgraduate studies, where learners come from diverse backgrounds. Additionally, there is a lack of clear guidelines on effective learning strategies in HDS to support students in addressing their educational challenges. To address this gap, this thesis aims to offer insights into health data science education through three key objectives. Firstly, it aims to uncover engagement patterns with HDS resources, including how learners interact with various types of educational resources and topics (Objective 1). Secondly, it aims to identify students’ learning tactics and strategies in health data science and explore how they impact student performance (Objective 2). Lastly, the thesis aims to develop an Artificial Intelligence (AI) assistant for the early prediction of struggling students in HDS and to provide them with personalised suggestions (Objective 3). A range of methods were employed, including qualitative content analysis, quantitative analysis of questionnaire data, and AI techniques on log data from online learning platforms. The qualitative content analysis by interviewing early career researchers from two UK institutes was conducted to understand and elaborate on the challenges they face in HDS education. Subsequent analysis then explored the self-reported learning strategies used by these researchers to overcome their educational challenges while shedding light on effective teaching methods and course design in HDS. A survey questionnaire was used to identify learning strategies and course design preferences in HDS among undergraduate and postgraduate learners across three HDS courses with varied modalities, designs, and academic levels. AI methods were used to uncover learners’ engagement with different resources as well as learning tactics and strategies based on clickstream data, reflecting the actual behaviours of learners. The thesis also analysed the correlation between the use of these learning tactics and strategies and students’ performance. Finally, a novel AI assistant was developed based on HDS students’ behaviours and learning process. The AI method used explainable AI and a counterfactual approach to provide suggestions that can help improve students’ performance. The results related to the first objective of this thesis indicate that students in HDS preferred a variety of resources and believed visually impressive materials enhance their understanding of HDS topics. Among these topics, machine learning emerged as the most interesting, while analysing genomic data was identified as the most difficult topic. Regarding the second objective, a range of learning tactics and strategies were identified, among which, connecting new information to prior knowledge and peer learning showed the highest correlation with student performance. The results also showed that students who engaged deeply with the material and applied different learning tactics throughout the course achieved higher grades than others. For the third objective, the novel AI assistant showed strong accuracy in predicting students’ performance, with an Area Under Curve (AUC) between 83% and 91%. The feedback generated by the AI, as evaluated by the course organiser, confirmed the validity of the suggestions. Additionally, the evaluation of the AI method on an external dataset outperformed traditional machine learning algorithms. The results of this thesis can potentially improve HDS education in the following ways. It can help develop effective courses through the appropriate design of learning materials (Objective 1). Also, evidence from Objective 2 can lead to guidelines that can help learners better manage their educational challenges. The AI model developed (Objective 3) can be used by teachers to identify students needing help and provide them with personalised suggestions according to their learning process. The evidence-based guidelines derived from this thesis have the potential to empower both learners and educators in HDS. We consider these to be significant contributions to the critical yet under-investigated field of HDS education

Are anonymised datasets from clinical trials truly anonymous?

BACKGROUND: Funders, regulators and publishers are increasingly requesting that clinical trial researchers share their research data with others, once the primary analysis has been completed. Existing clinical trial data could significantly contribute to expanding medical and scientific knowledge by investigating questions beyond the original study scope, facilitating individual participant data (IPD) meta-analysis, verifying results, and exploring novel methodologies for data analysis. Anonymisation of IPD before sharing can offer a way to safeguard participants' privacy. While there are several recommendations and guidance available for attempting data anonymisation prior to sharing, completely anonymising data while keeping it usable remains challenging. Moreover, many anonymised datasets are already publicly available for secondary research. However, it remains unclear whether study participants could potentially be at risk of re-identification, and under what circumstances re-identification is more likely to occur. METHODS: In the first phase of this PhD research, a systematic scoping review was conducted to gather publications that reported recommendations on anonymisation for enabling data sharing from clinical trials, to understand what guidance was available to researchers and how publicly available anonymised datasets from clinical trials might have been compiled. Two reviewers, Aryelly Rodriguez with Chris Tuck or Alastair Murray independently assessed titles, abstracts, and full texts for eligibility. One reviewer extracted data from selected papers using thematic synthesis, which was then reviewed by a second reviewer for accuracy. Results were summarised through narrative analysis. Moving on to the second phase, I collected a broad selection of publicly available anonymised datasets that have been made available for research purposes extending beyond their original scope, to explore the characteristics of these anonymised datasets, assess the feasibility of applying re-identification risk scores to them, and determine how these scores could be useful. I estimated their re-identification risk scores with three equations designed for calculation of such scores based on the information in the entire dataset. These equations are commonly applied to routinely collected health records and only generate numerical values ranging from 0 (lowest risk) to 1 (maximum risk), without attempting to re-identify individuals within the datasets. Subsequently, I calculated the re-identification risk scores for each dataset, using the three equations. This analysis explored the characteristics of the datasets associated with increased or decreased risk scores, and compared the risk scores to evaluate their practicality for implementation. In the third and final phase of this PhD research, I used an online exploratory cross-sectional descriptive survey that consisted of both open-ended and closed questions to gather the UK researchers’ views regarding their experiences with the de-identification, anonymisation, release methods and re-identification risk estimation for clinical trials datasets. RESULTS: The systematic scoping review identified 59 eligible articles (from 43 studies) for inclusion. From these articles, three distinct themes emerged: anonymisation, de-identification and pseudonymisation. The articles also showed that the most commonly recommended anonymisation techniques are removal of direct participant identifiers, and the careful evaluation and modification of indirect identifiers to minimise the risk of identification. Anonymisation of datasets in conjunction with controlled access was the most recommended method for data sharing. For the next phase, I contacted data holders and followed their local procedures to access the anonymised datasets. I identified 86 potentially eligible datasets from 18 repositories and successfully secured 76 of them. After full evaluation, 70 datasets met the inclusion criteria and were included in the analysis, representing 14 out of the 18 repositories. Thirty-one datasets were shared with minimal restrictions (open access), while 39 were shared with varying levels of restrictions before access was granted (controlled access). Datasets had, on average, four identifiers and mean risk scores ranging from 0.47 to 0.91. The most common pieces of information present in the datasets that, when combined, may indirectly identify a participant were sex (80%) and age (72.9%). For the final phase, the exploratory survey had 38 responses to invitation from June 2022 to October 2022. Thirty-five participants (92%) used internal documentation, institutional standard operating procedures and/or published guidance to de-identify/anonymise clinical trials datasets. De-identification followed by anonymisation and then fulfilling data holders’ requirements before access was granted (controlled access) was the most common process for releasing the datasets as reported by 18 (47%) participants. Eleven participants (29%) had previous knowledge of re-identification risk estimation but had not used this. Experiences in the process of de-identifying/anonymising the datasets and maintaining such datasets were mostly negative, the main reported issues were lack of resources, guidance, and training. CONCLUSIONS: There is no single standardised set of recommendations on how to anonymise clinical trial datasets for sharing. However, the systematic scoping review showed a developing consensus on techniques used to achieve anonymisation. Researchers in clinical trials still consider that anonymisation techniques by themselves are insufficient to protect participant privacy, and they need to be paired with controlled access. The second phase of this research confirmed that clinical trial datasets are very rich in personal details and using re-identification risk scores as a measure of this richness is feasible. These scores could inform the anonymisation process of clinical trials datasets to release them for secondary research. We proposed a strategy for incorporating these scores into the decision-making process for releasing clinical trials datasets. Finally, the majority of responders to the survey reported using documented processes for de-identification and anonymisation. However, our survey results clearly indicate that there are still gaps in the areas of guidance, resources and training to fulfil sharing requests of de-identified/anonymised datasets, and that re-identification risk estimation is an underdeveloped area. This work will be of interest to the clinical trials research community, funders and publishers seeking to improve the process of anonymisation and foster data sharing

Cooperation between two repressive epigenetic systems, DNA methylation and PRC2, in pluripotency and differentiation

The epigenome is established during embryogenesis by the acquisition of cell type-specific DNA methylation and histone modification patterns. Curiously, disruption of DNA methyltransferases or Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 (PRC2) components, which establish repressive DNA methylation and H3K27me3 modifications, respectively, does not affect the proliferation and self-renewal of pluripotent mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs), despite resulting in differentiation defects and lethality during embryonic development. These modifications are deposited in a mutually exclusive manner, with H3K27me3 diffusing in a hypomethylated background and a limited increase in DNA methylation observed in PRC2 mutants. Therefore, a partial compensation mechanism between these two antagonistic modifications might exist to maintain the pluripotent state but becomes lost upon differentiation. In this thesis, I aimed to test this hypothesis by simultaneously disrupting DNA methylation and PRC2 in distinct pluripotent states and embryoid bodies. I inactivated Ezh2, a catalytic component of PRC2, in a cell line where DNA methylation levels can be controlled by doxycycline-inducible suppression of the endogenous maintenance DNA methyltransferase Dnmt1. I systematically compared the outcomes in ESCs cultured under the ground state naïve (2i/LIF) and metastable naïve (Serum/LIF) conditions, focussing on cellular morphology, stem cell identity and transcriptional changes. I identified that simultaneous disruption of DNA methylation and H3K27me3 had a minor effect on transcriptional regulation and stem cell identity in 2i/LIF conditions but led to a major destabilisation of transcriptional networks in Serum/LIF. This led to spontaneous differentiation, as evidenced by morphological changes, loss of pluripotency transcription factor expression and activation of lineage specification genes. Interestingly, the DNA methylation- and H3K27me3-deficient Serum/LIF cells continued to proliferate as a mixed population where differentiating cells co-existed alongside those that retained stem cell identity. This suggests that co-depletion of DNA methylation and H3K27me3 might be sensitising the primed subpopulation of Serum/LIF cells by amplifying stochastically expressed lineage priming factors. In contrast, 2i-induced signalling was sufficient to maintain the ground state naïve pluripotency independently of deficiencies in DNA methylation and H3K27me3. I also demonstrated that repression by DNA methylation and PRC2 has an antagonistic role in pluripotency and differentiation by co-depleting these pathways in embryoid bodies. In addition to morphological changes, the DNA methylation- and H3K27me3-deficient embryoid bodies showed an impaired ability to extinguish pluripotency networks but could induce gene expression programmes associated with early embryonic, endodermal and germline lineages. In summary, my findings suggest that while the epigenome might shape cell fate and lineage specification choices, the underlying transcriptional state plays a major role in maintaining stem cell identity. Additionally, I demonstrated that DNA methylation and PRC2 can partially compensate for each other, as spontaneous differentiation is only observed in double mutants cultured in Serum/LIF. Lastly, my observations highlight the dual requirement for DNA methylation and PRC2 in metastable naïve pluripotency maintenance and establishment of the appropriate lineage specification programmes during differentiation

Early warning systems and dryland communities in the Horn of Africa: A desk review of actors, challenges, and opportunities

This report is part of a series drafted to respond to the challenge: “How can we bridge the disconnects between food security, climate, and natural hazards early warning systems and the anticipatory actions that pastoral and agro-pastoral communities in the Horn of Africa can take to overcome recurring shocks and threats to their lives and livelihoods?