Monument Monitor: using citizen science to preserve heritage

This research demonstrates how data collected by citizen scientists can act as a valuable resource for heritage managers. It establishes to what extent visitors’ photographs can be used to assist in aspects of condition monitoring focusing on biological and plant growth, erosion, stone/mortar movement, water ingress/pooling and antisocial behaviour. This thesis describes the methodology and outcomes of Monument Monitor (MM), a project set up in collaboration with Historic Environment Scotland (HES) that requested visitors at selected Scottish heritage sites to submit photographs of their visit. Across twenty case study sites participants were asked to record evidence of a variety of conservation issues. Patterns of contributions to the project are presented alongside key stakeholder feedback, which show how MM was received and where data collection excelled. Alongside this, the software built to manage and sort submissions is presented as a scalable methodology for the collection of citizen generated data of heritage sites. To demonstrate the applicability of citizen generated data for in depth monitoring and analysis, an environmental model is created using the submissions from one case study which predicts the effect of the changing climate at the site between 1980 - 2080. Machine Learning (ML) is used to analyse submitted data in both classification and segmentation tasks. This application demonstrates the validity of utilising ML tools to assist in the analysis and categorising of volunteer submitted photographs. The outcome of this PhD is a scalable methodology with which conservation staff can use visitor submitted images as an evidence-base to support them in the management of heritage sites

Connected Learning In School: Making Identities In Youth-Led Affinity Spaces

This visual ethnographic account explores how students at an urban high school cultivated their own youth-led affinity spaces: a youth activism group, a dance team, and a film club. My research examines how and why these youth-led spaces emerged, the kinds of making students did within the spaces, and how their identities shifted or changed over time both within and outside of these spaces. My research responds to discourses that seek to reimagine school through interest-driven learning. The Maker Movement and Connected Learning are two such movements that argue that students’ interests should be an integral part of their school learning experiences. These movements argue for students\u27 learning and participation in school to be active and authentic, to build on students’ out of school literacies, and to position students as creative agents. In urban districts, students are often subjected to test prep and didactic approaches that limit how youth express and demonstrate learning and are disconnected from their own interests or affinities. In creating youth-led affinity spaces, students were exercising agency, engaging in leadership, and pursuing their interests. Thus far, there has not been an examination of interest-driven learning, schooling, and identity. My examination of youth-making can create opportunities for youth to cultivate dialogic relationships with peers and adults, draw on their out of school literacies and media knowledge to influence their making, and perform new identities – within the institutional boundary of school

High pressure polymer science, routes to drug delivery

The area of high pressure is receiving great attention and being used to study a range of materials including metals, minerals, energetic materials and pharmaceuticals. Polymers are being increasingly used in pharmaceutical and biomedical applications. The main reason behind this is their physico-chemical characteristics that can be tuned to suit different applications. These characteristics can differ in different forms of the same compound. These forms can be obtained by different techniques including high pressure (Chapter 1).;The work presented in this thesis has used high pressure techniques, including diamond anvil cells (DACs) and large volume press cell, to investigate pharmaceutical polymers and a model active pharmaceutical ingredient (ibuprofen). The change of materials under pressure was studied by in-situ Raman spectroscopy (Chapter 2). The first challenge faced in this project was fluorescence, which hinders Raman spectroscopy.;Surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) technique was adopted to improve the signal and overcome fluorescence. This was achieved successfully on weak Raman scattering amino acids and fluorescent polymers (Chapter 3). A range of commonly used polymers were studied under high pressure in DAC. Poly glycolic acid (PGA) and poly lactic acid (PLA) exhibited a similar phenomenon of moving from crystalline or semi-crystalline into a less ordered form between 4-5 GPa. Ethylcellulose (EC) and hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) demonstrated a similar change at about 2-3 GPa (Chapter 4).;Both EC and HPMC were used as a platform for sustained release dosage forms in different ratios with ibuprofen. These formulations were mixed using resonant acoustic mixing technique and subjected to high pressure (0.8 GPa) before being tested for drug release. The change in release patterns was mainly caused by the pressure transmitting medium (PTM) rather than the application of pressure (Chapter 5). Individual formulation components were used as received powders, treated by PTM at ambient pressure and subjected to 0.8 GPa before exploring their flowability.;The PTM treatment and pressure has increased the flow function of polymers but not ibuprofen. The formulation blends were tested for flowability in powder and ambient pressure forms. Unlike individual components, the treated blends exhibited a decrease in flow function and increase in cohesion (Chapter 6).;Overall, this thesis demonstrates that the application of pressure, using DACs, on commonly used polymers in pharmaceutical applications does help in inducing phase transitions at different pressures. Adapting SERS technique has been successful in overcoming fluorescence in polymers and improving Raman signal in weakly scattering amino acids. The application of pressure, using large volume press, did not have a significant effect on release pattern of APIs from the tested formulations.;The change was mainly due to the pressure transmitting medium. The effect of pressure was tested on powder flowability and found to increase polymers flowability but not ibuprofen.The area of high pressure is receiving great attention and being used to study a range of materials including metals, minerals, energetic materials and pharmaceuticals. Polymers are being increasingly used in pharmaceutical and biomedical applications. The main reason behind this is their physico-chemical characteristics that can be tuned to suit different applications. These characteristics can differ in different forms of the same compound. These forms can be obtained by different techniques including high pressure (Chapter 1).;The work presented in this thesis has used high pressure techniques, including diamond anvil cells (DACs) and large volume press cell, to investigate pharmaceutical polymers and a model active pharmaceutical ingredient (ibuprofen). The change of materials under pressure was studied by in-situ Raman spectroscopy (Chapter 2). The first challenge faced in this project was fluorescence, which hinders Raman spectroscopy.;Surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) technique was adopted to improve the signal and overcome fluorescence. This was achieved successfully on weak Raman scattering amino acids and fluorescent polymers (Chapter 3). A range of commonly used polymers were studied under high pressure in DAC. Poly glycolic acid (PGA) and poly lactic acid (PLA) exhibited a similar phenomenon of moving from crystalline or semi-crystalline into a less ordered form between 4-5 GPa. Ethylcellulose (EC) and hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) demonstrated a similar change at about 2-3 GPa (Chapter 4).;Both EC and HPMC were used as a platform for sustained release dosage forms in different ratios with ibuprofen. These formulations were mixed using resonant acoustic mixing technique and subjected to high pressure (0.8 GPa) before being tested for drug release. The change in release patterns was mainly caused by the pressure transmitting medium (PTM) rather than the application of pressure (Chapter 5). Individual formulation components were used as received powders, treated by PTM at ambient pressure and subjected to 0.8 GPa before exploring their flowability.;The PTM treatment and pressure has increased the flow function of polymers but not ibuprofen. The formulation blends were tested for flowability in powder and ambient pressure forms. Unlike individual components, the treated blends exhibited a decrease in flow function and increase in cohesion (Chapter 6).;Overall, this thesis demonstrates that the application of pressure, using DACs, on commonly used polymers in pharmaceutical applications does help in inducing phase transitions at different pressures. Adapting SERS technique has been successful in overcoming fluorescence in polymers and improving Raman signal in weakly scattering amino acids. The application of pressure, using large volume press, did not have a significant effect on release pattern of APIs from the tested formulations.;The change was mainly due to the pressure transmitting medium. The effect of pressure was tested on powder flowability and found to increase polymers flowability but not ibuprofen