University of Galway Research Repository

Recent Submissions

  • Publication
    Practice review: Stakeholder mapping and civil society initiatives focusing on gender and whistleblowing
    (University of Galway, 2024-08-29) Milán, Taymi; Kenny, Kate; European Education and Culture Executive Agency, European Commission
    [No abstract available]
  • Publication
    Motion tracking analysis in elite soccer: Pattern discovery
    (University of Galway, 2024-10-08) Nejadi, Pouyan; Newell, John; Sangachin, Davood Roshan; Irish Research Council (IRC); Orreco LTd
    In modern soccer (football), extensive motion tracking data are collected, capturing players’ movements at a rate of 25 times per second. Traditionally, these data have been utilised for tactical analysis, focusing on aspects such as team formation and identifying motion patterns. However, my research aims to leverage these data in a novel manner, prioritising player performance, injury management, rehabilitation, and player welfare. This thesis seeks to develop new statistical methods to identify personalised patterns of movement, enabling the creation of tailored training sessions that address the physiological demands specific to each player’s position. Additionally, by analysing the types of movements and associated physical forces, sports scientists can design rehabilitation programs for injured players more effectively. To this end, advanced modelling techniques are incorporated to enhance the analysis of motion tracking data. The bivariate generalised linear model (GLM) offers a sophisticated approach to jointly modeling angular change and speed change in player trajectories. By characterising trajectories into interpretable parameters, such as angular change and speed change, this model provides valuable insights into the underlying patterns of player movement. Furthermore, the bivariate GLM facilitates the clustering of trajectories based on the estimated parameters, allowing for the identification of similar movement patterns among players.
  • Publication
    Direct Flux via Virtual Faces (DFVF-overset): Interpolation-free, conservative, overset CFD using a generalised finite volume method
    (Elsevier, 2023-10-18) Devlin, James; Chandar, Dominic; Quinlan, Nathan J.; Irish Research Council
    We present DFVF-overset (Direct Flux via Virtual Faces), a conservative overset scheme based on a general form of the finite volume method, originally derived for a meshless method, which intrinsically supports overlapping cells. Fluxes pass between overlapping cells through virtual faces which have rigorously defined area. Exact conservation is retained, and the method does not require interpolation between constituent grids. The new technique has been implemented as a preprocessor for the open-source CFD library OpenFOAM, and validated for a number of 1D and 2D cases. In a 1D diffusion case, the method converges to an analytical solution in the second order. For the lid-driven cavity, DFVF-overset results are close to single-grid solutions and display similar convergence towards a benchmark solution. The new method produces smooth velocity fields, and on a relatively coarse grid, it resolves a tertiary vortex which is absent in interpolation-based overset solutions. In static and dynamic multiphase cases solved with a volume-of-fluid method, conventional overset schemes display loss of liquid mass, whereas DFVF-overset demonstrates strict conservation of mass and close agreement with single-grid solutions. The new technique shows promise for applications where conventional overset is unsuitable due to interpolation errors or lack of conservation.
  • Publication
    Vulnerability as a technology of EU migration management in the Aegean: From humanitarian exceptions to border violence
    (University of Galway, 2024-10-08) Keady-Tabbal, Niamh; Mulally, Siobhán
    This thesis conceptualises vulnerability as a technology of migration management in order to reveal the relationship between international law, and the production and normalisation of border violence. It sheds light on an exclusionary logic of humanitarian exceptionalism that structures racialised migrants’ access to territory and protection in international and European law. On land and at sea, access to protection for the world’s ‘unwanted’ migrants, whose right to cross national borders is unrecognised, and who lack the necessary passport and financial means to travel freely, is, in practice, increasingly contingent on the logic of humanitarian exceptionalism. In the context of the EU border and migration management policies in Greece, this logic plays out in the way that two parallel concepts of vulnerability determine access to asylum: increasingly, we see that in order to gain admission, asylum seekers must be recognised as ‘vulnerable’ on land or ‘in distress’ at sea. Both function as criteria for protection and have been employed through migration management policies in a way that is, in practice, limiting the core right to seek and enjoy asylum at the external borders of the EU. By demonstrating the role of vulnerability as a technology of migration management, this thesis advances an understanding of the relationship between the paradigm of European migration management, the erosion of the right to seek asylum and the increasing forms of violence, both ‘slow’ and ‘spectacular,’ against irregularised migrants at external borders of the EU.
  • Publication
    Sustainability reporting in higher education institutions: Barriers, opportunities, case studies and toolkits
    (University of Galway, 2024-10-08) Adams, Thomas; Goggins, Jamie; Science Foundation Ireland
    This thesis investigates the role of sustainability reporting in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), focusing on their potential to foster sustainable development and act as agents of change. Through a comprehensive analysis of published academic literature, this research identifies significant barriers to effective sustainability reporting, including lack of standardised frameworks, data collection challenges, financial constraints, limited stakeholder engagement, and organisational complexities. A sustainability report was completed as part of the literature review, in order to critique the reporting process and to identify particularly challenging areas to focus this research on. The Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System™ (STARS®) was used as the assessment tool, with Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) and Carbon Footprint (CF) reporting as the two chosen focal research areas. The aim of the thesis was to explore the identified barriers to sustainability reporting, through the lens of ESD and CF reporting. This was done through the creation of innovate tools, the application of these tools in demonstration cases, and engagement with stakeholders. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) keyword scanning and carbon footprint calculator tools, which were developed as part of this work, are published as open-access resources to enhance data collection efficiency and accuracy. The SDG keyword scanning tool automates the identification of relevant SDG content within curriculum materials, providing a baseline measure for ESD. The carbon footprint measurement tool offers a robust method for calculating scope 3 emissions for organisations in Ireland, particularly from purchased goods and services. By applying these tools, the thesis highlights the practical difficulties and opportunities in implementing effective sustainability reporting in HEIs. The ESD demonstration cases published as part of this thesis include a sample ESD baseline for University of Galway, an example of ESD implementation into an engineering programme and an ESD baseline for civil engineering programmes across Ireland. The carbon footprint demonstration cases include a carbon footprint report for University of Galway covering the years 2017-2023, an analysis of the impacts of COVID-19 on the university’s carbon footprint, a supply chain analysis and a roadmap to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions. The demonstration cases and practical applications demonstrate how these tools can be tailored to local contexts, thereby addressing specific institutional needs. The research underscores the importance of engaging stakeholders, developing comprehensive data management systems, and securing financial and administrative support to achieve sustainable practices. Engagement with key stakeholders through emails, workshops, surveys and student assignments revealed that stakeholders are also struggling with the identified barriers and are eager for more supports and resources for effective sustainability reporting, planning and development. The findings contribute to the broader understanding of how HEIs can overcome common barriers to sustainability reporting, emphasising the necessity for adaptable, user-friendly tools and frameworks. This work supports the ongoing effort to integrate sustainability into higher education, ultimately enhancing the capacity of HEIs to contribute to global sustainability goals.