http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/3035 2013-05-23T07:38:28Z 2013-05-23T07:38:28Z Todorović, Milan http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/5905 2012-12-07T15:16:21Z 2004-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: The underground music scene in Belgrade, Serbia: A multidisciplinary study Authors: Todorović, Milan Abstract: The focus of this study is the underground music scene in Belgrade, Serbia. This work requires the exploration of varied cultural and market factors that have shaped the scene, resulting in its present form. The explored phenomenon is complex and achieving the necessary depth of analysis will involve the use of a wide set of theoretical sources and research methods. The fieldwork includes in-depth interviews, reflective accounts of longitudinal participant observation, data collected through email correspondence, and a large amount of documentary data. Data analysis will be articulated into a single methodology (examined in depth in Chapter 3). Description: This thesis was submitted to Buckinghamshire Chilterns University College for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and was awarded by Brunel University on 26 May 2004.

2004-01-01T00:00:00Z Curcio, Janice Ann http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/4528 2012-11-05T11:09:46Z 2010-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Genesis 22 and the socio-religious reforms of Ezra and Nehemiah Authors: Curcio, Janice Ann Abstract: The objective of this research project is to build a sound defense of the hypothesis that Genesis 22, the story of the testing of Abraham, functioned in Persian Period Judah to benefit the systematic socio-religious reforms implemented by Ezra the priestly scribe. It is argued in this dissertation that the “Book of the Law” Ezra read to the Temple community is a version of the Pentateuch, which under Ezra’s care had become the holy writ of Judaism. Based on Ezra’s scribal abilities, priestly status, royal commission to teach God’s Law to the people of the Trans-Euphrates Satrapy, and his impetus to reform the apostate Temple community, it is argued that Ezra is the final redactor of the Book of the Law of Moses. Being deeply immersed in the Pentateuch, it is most likely that Ezra would have used the narrative material in the corpus that would best effect socio-religious reform. It is shown in this dissertation that there could be no better text than Genesis 22 to instill that ideology in the apostate Temple community. It is further postulated that Genesis 22 would have been used at that time to instill in the apostate members of that community a sense of reverence for God, obedience to the tenets of the Book of the Law, which overwhelmingly advocates a lifestyle of socio-religious separateness. It is also argued that embracing that ideology was paramount to the survival of the Temple community as a distinct religious entity in the Persian Empire, as well as to regaining their autonomy over the Land. A redaction critical analysis, an examination of key words and phrases, a consideration of separateness as the ideology of the postexilic period, and a study on cultic reform in Ancient Israel are used to support the argument that Genesis 22 was used to impact the wayward fifth-century Jews. Furthermore, it is shown that divine testing, the fear of God, covenant, and socio-religious separateness expressed in the Abraham cycle (all of which culminate in Genesis 22) are the main concerns of Ezra, making the narrative an indispensable didactic in the reform and indoctrination of the apostate elders, priests and Levites of the Jerusalem Temple community. It is shown that Abraham’s demonstration of utter reverence and radical obedience to God’s directives would have best set the standard of the God fearing Jew at that time. Having apparently lost their identity as the people of Yahweh, whose original vocation it was to bless the nations with the revelation of the one true God of creation and his Law, it has been argued in this dissertation that Genesis 22 would have been used in the effort to restore that identity to the Temple community in the fifth-century reform movement. Description: This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.

2010-01-01T00:00:00Z Wateridge, John Frederick http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/4353 2012-11-23T09:47:06Z 1996-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Delivering successful IS/IT projects: Eight key elements from success criteria to review via appropriate management, methodologies and teams Authors: Wateridge, John Frederick Abstract: In spite of decades of research, Information Systems/Information Technology (IS/IT) projects still often fail to deliver the objectives expected of them. Managers require information systems to achieve their business objectives and the failure of these projects inevitably hinders the progress and success of their organisations. This research examines the key criteria by which IS/IT projects are judged to be successful and what factors are important in influencing the success of IS/IT projects. The research shows that very often different participants in a project are aiming at different targets and they each have their own perception of project success. There must be greater convergence on the criteria for success. To achieve this, the criteria for success and associated factors that influence success need to be defined clearly, agreed by all parties at the start of the project and reviewed as the project progresses. Agreeing the criteria is not sufficient to guarantee success. The project has to be carried out within a defined framework. The project life cycle is used to link the two disciplines of project management and systems development, and to highlight the fundamental issues that must be carried out on all projects. However, project managers need to focus more on the products of the system and not on the plans and schedules. Therefore, there should be the emphasis on configuration management as a means of linking the two disciplines. Furthermore, automated tools need to provide additional functionality to be of any practical use to project managers and system developers. Project managers are crucial to the development process and they need a portfolio of skills to deliver successful projects in the future. The research outlines the development path for project managers to acquire these skills. They should not rely solely on experience but formal career development has to be part of the overall strategy of the organisation. Description: This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.

1996-01-01T00:00:00Z Davies, Bernard William http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/3444 2012-11-02T09:49:27Z 2008-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Central Europe – Modernism and the modern movement as viewed through the lens of town planning and building 1895 - 1939 Authors: Davies, Bernard William Abstract: This thesis sets out to re-locate and redefine the historical arguments around the development of the Modern Movement in architecture. It investigates the development of architectural modernism in Central Europe from 1895-1939 in the towns and cities of the multinational Habsburg Empire, in a creative milieu in which opposition, contrast and difference were the norm. It argues that the evolution of the Modern Movement through the independent nations that arose from the Empire constituted an early and significant engagement with urbanisation, planning and architectural modernism that has been largely overlooked by western scholarship. By reviewing the extant literature in discussion with Central European authorities and by drawing upon a little known range of sources, this thesis brings into focus the role of key individuals such as Plečnik, Fabiani and Kotěra and it explores the significance of developments in town planning in places like Zagreb and Ljubljana. In restoring some of this missing detail and revisiting some of the key sites, the thesis reveals how Central European individuals made early and significant contributions to the development of architectural modernism and the Modern Movement that have hitherto received little critical acknowledgement. What this research reveals is how these figures developed what can be seen as local solutions, rooted in the context and culture of individual towns and cities and their unique histories. However more significantly, this thesis also demonstrates that these independent initiatives were formed with an understanding of - and in response to - wider national and international developments in the field of architectural modernism. In this connection, the thesis can be regarded as part of an emerging academic effort to redress the history of the Modern Movement and an attempt to set in motion a raft of suggestion for further research into this rich field of cultural endeavour. Description: This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.

2008-01-01T00:00:00Z