University of Canterbury

Seismic Assessment of a Full-Scale Perimeter-Fixed Ceiling with Hook-And-Loop-Secured Lay-In Tiles Using Shake Table Tests

Grid-and-tile ceiling systems are widely installed in commercial buildings but have frequently experienced damage in past earthquakes, resulting in safety risks, costly repairs, and operational interruptions. The present study examines the seismic performance of a perimeter-fixed...

A Minimal Compact Description of the Diversity Index Polytope

Abstract. A phylogenetic tree is an edge-weighted binary tree, with leaves labeled by a collection of species, that represents the evolutionary relationships between those species. For such a tree, a phylogenetic diversity index is a function that apportions the biodiversity of t...

Fire‐Atmosphere Coupling Starts Upwind: Selective Redistribution of Turbulence at the Fire‐Induced Rear Inflow

Abstract Wildfires alter local atmospheric conditions, yet the spatial extent and frequency‐dependent characteristics of fire‐induced inflow perturbations remain largely unquantified. This study applies Multivariate Empirical Mode Decomposition (MEMD) to analyze high‐frequency ho...

Nonsmooth local optimization via direct search

Abstract A direct search method for local unconstrained optimization of nonsmooth functions is presented. The method performs forward tracking line searches along a sequence of poll directions, where the lengths of many poll directions are bounded away from zero. Convergence is s...

Ethical Asymmetry in Human-Robot Interaction – An Empirical Test of Sparrow’s Hypothesis

The ethics of human-robot interaction (HRI) have been discussed extensively based on three traditional frameworks: deontology, consequentialism, and virtue ethics. We conducted a mixed within/between experiment to investigate Sparrow's proposed ethical asymmetry hypothesis in hum...

Refining the Simulation of Mixed‐Phase Clouds Over Coastal Antarctica With a Tailored Ice Nucleating Particle Parameterization

Abstract Climate models have substantial biases in downwelling shortwave radiation over the Southern Ocean (SO) and Antarctica, primarily due to their inability to accurately represent the frequent occurrence of low‐level mixed‐phase clouds. Building on the evaluation of the Unif...

Pathways from social media use to low self-esteem: The role of body dissatisfaction and social connectedness

Background Social media platforms have become central to self-presentation and social interaction. However, accumulating evidence suggests that individuals who engage in heavy and passive social media use often experience lower self-esteem. This study aimed to examine how social...

I Made the Choice, Did I? Exploring the Influence of Goal-Directed AI on Human Decision-Making

As AI become integrated into decision-making, some concerns emerge: Can AI shape our decisions without us noticing? To examine this, we adopt forcing techniques from performance magic, which guide apparently open choices toward predetermined outcomes. This provides a lens for exa...

Year-round movement of emperor penguin colonies observed from space

Abstract Emperor penguins are threatened by climate change and their population is predicted to decline rapidly this century due to changes in Antarctic sea ice. Remote sensing is a key tool for monitoring emperor penguins but analysis has been restricted to spring/summer due to...

Shared Landscapes, Shared Futures: Visual Landscape Evolution Modelling for Community Stewardship

Abstract. Landscapes are living systems whose long-term trajectories carry profound cultural, spiritual, and resource significance for Indigenous communities worldwide. Yet the tools capable of simulating long-term landscape change, such as numerical landscape evolution models, r...

FloodA5: An Open-Source Framework for Flood Modelling on an Equal-Area Pentagonal DGGS

Abstract. Discrete Global Grid Systems (DGGS) provide a hierarchical alternative to conventional raster and vector spatial representations, offering globally consistent indexing, equal-area tessellations, and native support for multi-resolution analysis. Although DGGS have been w...

Development of an open-source analytical Digital Twin framework for environmental modelling and management

Abstract. Environmental Digital Twins are dynamic virtual representations of physical environments that support real-time monitoring, scenario modelling, and community decision-making, that hold significant promise for addressing complex environmental challenges. Yet the developm...

Public Engagement in the Design of Urban Blue‐Green Infrastructure: Contrasting Approaches and Project Outcomes in Ōtautahi Christchurch

ABSTRACT Although blue‐green infrastructure (BGI) is increasingly used to mitigate the challenges that climate change poses for cities, public involvement in its design is uneven. Here we examine three BGI projects in Ōtautahi Christchurch, Aotearoa New Zealand, documenting how l...

The dimensionality of plant–plant competition

Abstract To avoid extinction, every species must be able to exploit available resources at least as well as all other species in its community. Theory predicts that, the more distinct the niches of competing species, the more species that can coexist together. However, both theor...

Joint economic and epidemiological modelling of alternative pandemic response strategies

Abstract In an emerging pandemic, policymakers need to make decisions with limited information and require trade-offs between the health impact of the pandemic and the economic costs of the response. Most mathematical models have focused on direct health impacts, neglecting the e...

Multi-pathogen situational assessment and forecasting of respiratory disease in Aotearoa New Zealand

Abstract Real-time analysis of epidemic trends and forecasts can help support public health planning and the response to seasonal respiratory disease. Here, we present two models that were used in a 2025 New Zealand winter situational assessment programme for three respiratory pa...

Advancing the management control systems-as-a-package: designing external resilience controls for climate-exposed agricultural industry

Purpose Agricultural firms face climate, technological and geopolitical volatility. Existing management control system (MCS) frameworks acknowledge uncertainty but lack a control category that explains how external signals trigger and shape internal routines. This study aims to i...

Undergraduate engineering students’ knowledge, perceived competence and perspectives of university graduate attributes

Graduate attributes (GAs) are widely embedded within engineering curricula; however, students’ awareness of these attributes, their perspectives on their relevance and how they are implemented across teaching and assessment contexts are rarely reported. This study explores engine...

From silence to engagement: how leadership shapes employee participation in workplace mental wellbeing initiatives

Purpose Employee mental wellbeing is a critical driver of engagement and productivity, creating a strategic imperative for organizations to foster psychologically safe workplaces through targeted wellbeing initiatives and supportive resources. Despite widespread investment in suc...

Skuas as sentinels of high pathogenicity avian influenza H5N1 on the Antarctic Peninsula in the 2024/2025 austral summer

Despite Antarctica's geographic isolation, the first incursion of high pathogenicity avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 was detected in the 2023/2024 austral summer. Surveillance for HPAI H5N1 in Antarctica remains patchy due to logistical, financial and infrastructure challenges, with...