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The picturebook: The intergenerational pretzel
(2026-02-04) Price , Te Kani
Picturebooks, as a finite and static object become a temporal anchor point for different generations of audience. Each audience group will have different motivations to purchase or engage with a picturebook. As a designer how do you cater for an audience driven by nostalgia, one for the now and another reader a future generation from now. Not to mention the historical journey the story itself may have taken prior to being immortalised in a book. In this presentation I will explore my process as a picturebook designer from both an audience and a marketplace perspective.
Welsh publishing for children
(2026-02-03) Rosser, Siwan M.
Cymraeg (Welsh) is one of the UK’s indigenous languages and was, until the end of the 19th century, the language of the majority of the population of Cymru (Wales). Despite its decline during the 20th century, it is still spoken by around 20% of the population and was recognised as an official language in 2011. Language activism and changes to legislation have led to new rights and opportunities for speakers of Cymraeg to use the language and a growing demand for Welsh-medium education. More and more children are now learning Welsh at school rather than at home, and books and the Welsh publishing industry underpin efforts to connect new speakers with the language beyond the classroom, as well as sustain those who are raised in Welsh speaking families and communities. Children’s literature in Cymraeg – although at times overlooked, and more often than not underfunded – plays a pivotal role in engaging children with language, culture and a sense of belonging to the land they inhabit. This lecture will outline the key developments, struggles and achievements of Welsh publishing for children in recent times, allowing a space for us to reflect on some of the common issues facing children’s publishing in indigenous, marginalised languages in a global context.
Neighbourly and unneighbourly behaviour in the Te Aroha district
(Historical Research Unit, University of Waikato, 2016) Hart, Philip
As is to be expected, many examples could be found of neighbourly and unneighbourly behaviour. Because of the nature of their work, miners and indeed settlers generally had to help each other, and ‘fair play’ was a desired ideal. Residents mingled at weddings, funerals, farewells, and patriotic socials. When people were in need, assistance was given and money was raised by special events, and when fires broke out, everyone did their best to save both life and property. Despite such neighbourly acts, there were plenty of examples of quarrelsome residents and rude behaviour. In small settlements, prying and gossiping were endemic. Disliked residents were mocked, some practical jokes were malicious, and some libels were spread. In particular, local government politics provoked much bitterness over minor matters, and rivalry between Te Aroha and Waiorongomai could be friendly in sport but unfriendly on some issues. A detailed example of one prominent resident, Charles Ahier, is provided to illustrate how a pillar of the community was vilified and how he vilified his critics. Newspapers sometimes provided biased reporting, fanning the flames of petty disputes. But overall, squabbles were outweighed by positive interactions.
Larrikins in the Te Aroha district, mostly in the nineteenth century
(Historical Research Unit, University of Waikato, 2016) Hart, Philip
Larrikinism was offensive to the respectable, who worried about its causes and what was to be done to curtail it. Examples are given of the wide variety of petty but annoying behaviour indulged in by young men, at all kinds of events. Even entertainments and church services were not immune. Characteristics included bad language, loafing, noise, abuse, vulgarity, furious riding, playing football in a manner than endangered others, vandalism, and being affected by alcohol. Examples are given of the remarkable number of times that larrikins disrupted church services and meetings, along with temperance gatherings. A variety of social events were affected, and even the reading room in the library was not immune. In particular, larrikins infested the domain and its hot baths, potentially threatening the tourist trade. Annoying women was common, and New Year’s Eve provided another opportunity for making trouble. Vandalism of both public and private property caused on-going concern. And some vandals came from elsewhere to annoy the locals. To cope with larrikinism, some solutions such as special clubs for the young were suggested, but had little success, as the problem never went away. Perhaps the problem was exaggerated, for although it never went away, normally larrikinism did not lead to a life of crime. ‘Youthful high spirits’, perhaps, but irritating none the less.
Structural and thermal performance of cold-formed steel studs with slits
(The University of Waikato, 2025) Ghosh, Kushal; Roy, Krishanu; Lim, James Boon Piang; Carson, James K.; Hudd, Ray
Cold-formed steel (CFS) studs in lightweight construction increasingly incorporate web slits to limit thermal bridging, yet these openings can reduce axial strength. This thesis integrates structural and thermal assessments through validated non-linear elasto-plastic finite element analysis (FEA) and complementary heat-transfer modelling. Shell-element FEA models were developed and validated against tests, then used in a 960-case parametric study spanning section dimensions, slit geometry, thickness, and member length to establish the influence of slits on concentric axial capacity. The results were evaluated against the Direct Strength Method (DSM) in AS/NZS 4600, leading to strength-reduction recommendations and modified DSM expressions that achieve reliability indices β ≥ 2.5. The programme was extended to combined axial compression and minor-axis bending using 1,134 FEA models with six eccentricities, demonstrating a systematic discrepancy in current AS/NZS 4600 interaction checks: strengths are generally underestimated at eccentricities of 10–25 mm and overestimated at 50 mm. A new interaction equation incorporating element and web slenderness ratios is proposed and verified within the AISI S100 reliability framework. Subsequently, a parametric three-dimensional heat-transfer study quantified the dependence of heat flux on geometry and slit parameters, providing a quantitative basis for thermal performance gains and their balance with strength. The thesis proposes design recommendations and revised equations for slitted CFS studs that satisfy codified reliability targets and support informed selection of slit configurations to balance energy efficiency and structural capacity in practice.