Industrial design in endoscopy : the development of a tissue and organ extractor

Throughout history, developments in medicine have aimed to improve patient quality of life, and reduce the trauma associated with surgical treatment. Surgical access to internal organs and bodily structures has been traditionally via large incisions. Endoscopic surgery presents a technique for surgical access via small (1 Omm) incisions by utilising a scope and camera for visualisation of the operative site. Endoscopy presents enormous benefits for patients in terms of lower post operative discomfort, and reduced recovery and hospitalisation time. Since the first gall bladder extraction operation was performed in France in 1987, endoscopic surgery has been embraced by the international medical community. With the adoption of the new technique, new problems never previously encountered in open surgery, were revealed. One such problem is that the removal of large tissue specimens and organs is restricted by the small incision size. Instruments have been developed to address this problem however none of the devices provide a totally satisfactory solution. They have a number of critical weaknesses: -The size of the access incision has to be enlarged, thereby compromising the entire endoscopic approach to surgery. - The physical quality of the specimen extracted is very poor and is not suitable to conduct the necessary post operative pathological examinations. -The safety of both the patient and the physician is jeopardised. The problem of tissue and organ extraction at endoscopy is investigated and addressed. In addition to background information covering endoscopic surgery, this thesis describes the entire approach to the design problem, and the steps taken before arriving at the final solution. This thesis contributes to the body of knowledge associated with the development of endoscopic surgical instruments. A new product capable of extracting large tissue specimens and organs in endoscopy is the final outcome of the research.

Languaging the actor : an examination of the terminology used in actor training

Throughout the twentieth century increased interest in the training of actors resulted in the emergence of a plethora of acting theories and innovative theatrical movements in Europe, the UK and the USA. The individuals or groups involved with the formulation of these theories and movements developed specific terminologies, or languages of acting, in an attempt to clearly articulate the nature and the practice of acting according to their particular pedagogy or theatrical aesthetic. Now at the dawning of the twenty-first century, Australia boasts quite a number of schools and university courses professing to train actors. This research aims to discover the language used in actor training on the east coast of Australia today. Using interviews with staff of the National Institute of Dramatic Art, the Victorian College of the Arts, and the Queensland University of Technology as the primary source of data, a constructivist grounded theory has emerged to assess the influence of last century‟s theatrical theorists and practitioners on Australian training and to ascertain the possibility of a distinctly Australian language of acting.