Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Crossing the Gap'

Orangutans are the largest predominantly arboreal primate and consequently have a diverse repertoire of positional behaviour. Problems associated with travel on thin flexible supports worsen as body size increases; therefore locomotion should vary with body size. The aim of this thesis was to explore how orangutans solve problems related to life in wild and captive environments and how this changes with growth and development. A cross-sectional sample of wild orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus wurmbii) was studied at Tuanan Field Station in Central Borneo with subjects ranging from infant to adult. Results from wild orangutans showed that locomotion varied according to body size with larger orangutans using larger supports and gaining stability by bearing their weight in suspension. In contrast captivity promoted higher frequencies of terrestrial behaviours and these increased with age. Wild orangutans crossed large gaps in the canopy by oscillating compliant trunks. However I found that these skills are not fully mastered until 6 years old. Mothers were found to provide assistance during gap crossing according to the needs of their offspring. This thesis has shown that complex locomotor behaviour develops slowly during ontogeny and this may have implications for orangutan life history in different types of habitat.

Habitat loss and fragmentation occur at unprecedented rates, especially in tropical countries where human activities have deforested or degraded around 80% of tropical rainforests. Tropical forest fragmentation is considered the main cause of extinction of tropical forest avifauna, yet the mechanisms by which fragmentation affects bird populations are poorly understood. The present study investigates the pattern of bird species distribution in a fragmented landscape in tropical southeastern Mexico and the relation of bird community and species distribution patterns to landscape and fragment characteristics. Area and isolation of forest fragments were the main determinant of species richness and abundance in fragments, especially for forest-dependent species. The significant effect of isolation on species persistence in forest fragments suggests that limitation of dispersal is one potential mechanism by which fragmentation affects species distribution in the landscape. To understand how fragmentation can affect bird dispersal in a fragmented landscape, the effect of open areas and corridors on movement patterns of forest birds was investigated. The evidence presented in this study supports the idea that bird movement is restricted by open areas, especially for forest-restricted birds. Forested corridors had a positive effect on movement rates of forest birds, potentially acting to preserve movement and dispersal processes, and ultimately species persistence, in heavily fragmented landscapes.

L'objectif de cette thèse est d'étudier le comportement de traversée d'intersection en conduite automobile sous l'angle des actions visuellement guidées. Dans l'introduction, nous montrons que les principales études portant sur la traversée d'intersection se sont focalisées sur les processus de jugement perceptif ; or nous montrons que la compréhension de cette activité pourrait être affinée en utilisant les concepts de la théorie de la perception directe et ceux issus de l'étude du controle moteur. Notre revue de questions nous conduit à rapprocher la tache de traversée d'intersection à l'intérieur d'un créneau libre du trafic à celle d'interception de cible se déplaçant horizontalement. Or, dans le cadre des taches d'interception, il a été démontré que la stratégie d'angle de relèvement constant (i.e., Constant Bearing Angle, CBA) a un fort pouvoir explicatif vis-à-vis des données expérimentales. Nous avons donc tiré partie des outils de simulation automobile pour tester la plausibilité de l'utilisation d'une telle stratégie par les conducteurs. Dans le premier chapitre expérimental, nous montrons qu'il est légitime d'étudier le couplage perception-action dans ce type de tache et que les conducteurs adoptent des régulations comportementales proches de celles observées dans une tache d'interception de mobile. Le second chapitre expérimental nous permet de mettre en évidence l'utilisation conjointe par les conducteurs d'informations relatives au créneau du trafic (supports globaux) et aux véhicules (supports locaux). Enfin, dans le dernier chapitre expérimental, nous mettons en évidence que les conducteurs n'utilisent pas exclusivement le taux de changement de l'angle de relèvement comme information visuelle mais qu'ils utilisent aussi l'expansion optique des véhicules du trafic. Nous concluons ce travail en montrant comment nos résultats nous permettent d'interpréter sous un autre angle ceux obtenus avec une méthodologie fondée uniquement sur les jugements perceptifs. Enfin, nous proposons des perspectives expérimentales en envisageant la manipulation des capacités d'action des conducteurs ainsi que des perspectives appliquées en envisageant l'utilisation de nos résultats dans le contexte de la conception d'un système d'assistance à la conduite.

This study investigated bird distributions in relation to local habitat and landscape pattern and the implications which habitat fragmentation may have for woodland birds. There were two sections to the research: an experimental study investigating bird gap crossing behaviour across distances of five to 120m; and an observational study modelling woodland bird distributions in relation to local habitat and landscape scale variables in two study areas (East Loch Lomond and the Central Scotland Forest). In the experimental study it was hypothesised that bird willingness to cross gaps will decrease with increasing gap distance even at home-range scales and that the rate of decline will vary interspecifically in relation to bird morphology. Song thrush mobbing calls played at woodland edges in the West of Scotland were used to attract birds across gaps and results were compared with the response along woodland edges. Data were obtained for four species: chaffinch, coal tit, robin and goldcrest. The decline in response with distance across gaps and along woodland edge was modelled for each species using generalized linear modelling. Maximum gap crossing distances ranged from 46m (goldcrest) to 150m (extrapolated value for the chaffinch). Goldcrests responded more readily through woodlands. There was no difference between woodland edge and gap response for the coal tit. Robins and chaffinches however responded more readily across gaps than through woodland. When different response indices were plotted against bird mass and wing area, results suggested that larger birds with bigger wings responded more readily across gaps than through woodland. It is suggested that this relates to differences in bird manoeuvrability within woodlands and ability to evade a predator in gaps. Fragmentation indices were calculated for an area of the Central Scotland Forest to show how willingness to cross different gap distances influences perception of how fragmented the woodlands are in a region. Results are discussed in the context of the creation of Forest Habitat Networks. The data for the observational section of the work was from bird point counts for 200 sample points at East Loch Lomond in 1998 and 2000 and 267 sample points in the Central Scotland Forest in 1999. In addition a time series of point count data was available for 30 sample points at East Loch Lomond. Additional data was gathered for ten sample points (1998) and two sample points (2000) at East Loch Lomond to investigate effects of observer, time and weather on count data. Generalized linear and generalized additive modelling was carried out on these additional data. Results indicated that biases due to the variation in time and weather conditions between counts existed in the pure count data but that these were eliminated by reducing data to presence and absence form for analysis. Species accumulation curves indicated that two counts per sample point were insufficient to determine species richness. However a sufficiently large proportion of the species was being detected consistently in two counts of ten minutes duration for it to be valid to model them in relation to habitat and landscape variables. Point count data for East Loch Lomond in 1998 (ELL98) and the Central Scotland Forest in 1999 (CSF99) for the wren, treecreeper, garden warbler, robin, blue tit, blackbird, willow warbler, coal tit, goldcrest, great tit, and song thrush were analysed using generalized additive modelling. In addition models were built for the blackcap (CSF99) and the siskin, redstart and wood warbler (ELL98). Where all relationships were identified as linear, models were rebuilt as GLMs. Models were evaluated using the Area Under the Curve (AUC) of Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) plots. AUC values ranged from 0.84-0.99 for ELL98 and from 0.76-0.93 for CSF99 indicating high predictive accuracy. Habitat variables accounted for the largest proportion of explained variation in all models and could be interpreted in terms of bird nesting and feeding behaviour. However additional variation was explained by landscape scale and fragmentation related (especially edge) variables. ELL98 models were used to predict bird distributions for Loch Lomond in 2000 (ELL00) and for the CSF99. Likewise the CSF99 models were used to predict distributions for ELL98 and ELL00. Predicted distributions had useful application in many cases within the ELL site between years. Fewer cases of useful application arose for predicting distributions between sites. Results are discussed in the context of the generality of bird environment relationships and reasons for low predictive accuracy when models are applied between sites and years. Models which had useful application for ELL00 were used to predict bird distributions for 2025 and 2050 at East Loch Lomond. Habitat and landscape changes were projected based on the proposed management for the site. Since woodland regeneration rates are difficult to predict, two scenarios were modelled, one assuming a modest amount of regeneration and one assuming no regeneration. Predictions derived from the ELL98 models showed broad-leaved species increasing in distribution while coniferous species declined. This was in keeping with the expected changes in the relative extent of broad-leaved and coniferous habitat. However, predictions from the CSF99 models were often less readily explicable. The value of the modelling approach is discussed and suggestions are made for further study to improve confidence in the predictions.

Over the past decade, a ‘gayby boom’ (Richman, 2002) has occurred in the Israeli male-gay community: hundreds of gay couples became fathers through cross-border commercial surrogacy. This rise was accompanied by political struggles over access to surrogacy for same-sex couples within Israel. This study explores first, the causes of this sudden rise in ‘gay surrogacy’; and second, the social implications, especially pertaining to the alteration of family norms in the 21st century. Drawing on Science and Technology Studies (STS), surrogacy is analysed as an 'assemblage', consisting of the interaction between socially shaped practices and desires, the medical and legal technologies involved, and the overarching state apparatuses. To draw out the complexity of the different components of this assemblage (individual, medical and legal, and state), 31 gay surrogacy fathers were interviewed, along with Israeli surrogacy industry representatives (n=6) and policy makers (n=13). Media coverage of ‘gay surrogacy’ and documentation from relevant court appeals and state committees on reproductive technologies were incorporated into the analysis to provide a contextual framework. Three themes were identified. First, surrogacy provides Israeli gay men a unique combination of novelty and sameness: surrogacy offers ‘biological’ fatherhood, similar to that enjoyed by heterosexual couples, but also facilitates the creation of a new family model, the ‘two-father-family’. The contradiction between the application of technology and the idea of ‘procreation’ disappeared through a discursive normalising and neutralising mechanism, in which surrogacy serves as a stand-in for ‘natural procreation’. Through this process, assisted reproduction facilitated the normalisation of the gay family. Second, despite the fact that surrogacy markets operate globally, the State emerged as a significant force in shaping the specific mechanisms of the surrogacy process, as well as the procreative desires of the Israeli surrogacy fathers – who were geared towards both genetic procreation and reproducing the nation. Gay fatherhood through surrogacy was found to be part of the new ‘gaystream’ (Duggan, 2002), expressing desires towards a new (homo)normativity and participating in homonationalist (Puar, 2007) struggles. Finally, cross-border surrogacy operates in a global market, based upon the commerce of gametes and reproductive services involving third-party women, often from impoverished parts of the world (Vora, 2015). This creates a moral dilemma for commissioning fathers, regarding the commodification of women and children in the market for reproductive services, and the related harm and exploitation within surrogacy markets. Surrogacy fathers negotiated these moral conflicts by forming ideas and ideals of reciprocity, intimacy and shared commitment towards and with the surrogate. However, the realisation of these values is heavily dependent upon the regulatory regimes in the surrogacy state and the outcomes of the medical and physical procedures – that is, the birth of a live healthy child. In conclusion, surrogacy offers a site for making families and remaking ‘the family’. It is based on already existing familial norms, but at the same time partially unsettles these; it is shaped by state regulations and national desires; and it is deeply implicated in unequal global markets, while explicitly harbouring ideals of intimacy and reciprocity. As surrogacy becomes the normative familial form for gay men in Israel, the need arises for collective critical reflexion on the impacts of surrogacy practices on global ‘others’, and on minorities within the Israeli queer community.

Istraživanje koje je sprovedeno u okviru disertacije poslužilo je za definisanje matematičkog modela koji se može primeniti u postupku određivanja nivoa usluge za nesignalisane pešačke prelaze. Formirani model za proračun stepena propuštanja pešaka u uslovima lokalnog odvijanja saobraćaja zavisi od protoka pešaka i vozila, strukture saobraćajnog toka (učešće autobusa i teretnih vozila) i smera kretanja vozila na lokaciji pešačkog prelaza. U okviru disertacije izvršena je analiza pešačkih intervala prilikom prelaska kolovoza. Uporednom analizom prihvatljivih i kritičnih intervala dobijen je model ponašanja pešaka u zavisnosti od karakteristika lokacije nesignalisanog pešačkog prelaza. Utvrđena je zavisnost između dužine prihvaćenih intervala pešaka prilikom prelaska kolovoza i uslova odvijanja saobraćaja, polnih karakteristika pešaka i broja pešaka koji prelaze kolovoz na nesignalisanom pešačkom prelazu.
The study, which was conducted within the thesis, has served to define a mathematical model that can be applied in the process of determining the level of service at unsignalized pedestrian crossings. The formed model for motorist yield rate, in terms of the local pedestrian traffic flow, depends on pedestrian and vehicular flow rate, traffic flow structure (the share of buses and freight vehicles), and vehicle moving at the location of a pedestrian crossing. The pedestrian gap acceptance behaviour has also been analysed. Comparative analysis of acceptable and critical pedestrian gap was conducted. Model of pedestrian behaviour, which depending on the site characteristics, was formed and it has been proven a correlation between the length of the accepted pedestrian gaps and the roadway and traffic conditions, gender characteristics and the number of pedestrians at unsignalized crossings.

During the last two decades, innovations that contribute to sustainable development has received increasing attention in the markets and academia. The diffusion of sustainable innovations is a key element in society’s transformation toward a greener and more sustainable economy. Within industries that utilize industrial gases in their operations, there are thousands of fugitive emission sources that puts strain on the safety of the plant and the personnel. As most gases are combustible and hazardous to humans and the environment, these companies must have effective leak detection and repair (LDAR) programs. In recent years, a new gas detection technology called Optical Gas Imaging have emerged which can identify gas compounds safer and more efficient compared to older leak detection technologies. However, the rate of diffusion of the innovation has been slow and limited to oil and gas industries, even though many other industries such as steel, paper and pulp and chemical industries utilize gases as well. As such, this research has aimed to identify factors that influence the adoption of sustainable innovations within gas-utilizing industries. The qualitative data was gathered through semi structured interviews with gas-utilizing companies in Sweden and analyzed with interpretive methods. The results show that regulatory factors are a strong driver for the diffusion of sustainable innovations while characteristics of price, availability and type of innovationdecision works as barriers. The generated knowledge may contribute on how innovators of a sustainable innovations can overcome these barriers and improve the rate of adoption of sustainable innovations.
Under de senaste två decennierna har innovationer som bidrar till hållbar utveckling fått ökad uppmärksamhet på marknaden och inom forskningen. Diffusionen av hållbara innovationer är ett viktig del av samhällets omvandling mot ett mer hållbart samhälle. Inom branscher som använder industriella gaser i sin verksamhet finns det tusentals flyktiga utsläppskällor som belastar anläggningen och personalens säkerhet. Eftersom de flesta gaser är brännbara och farliga för människor och miljö, är det viktigt att dessa företag har effektiva läckedetekterings- och reparationsprogram (LDAR). Under de senaste åren har en ny gasdetekteringsteknologi, Optical Gas Imaging, kommit fram som kan identifiera gasföreningar säkrare och effektivare jämfört med äldre tekniker för läckedetektering. Däremot, har diffusionsgraden för innovationen varit långsam och begränsad till olje- och gasindustrin, även om många andra industrier så som stål, papper och massa, och kemiska industrier också använder gaser som energi. Därför har syftet med denna stuie varit att identifiera faktorer som påverkar diffusionen av hållbara innovationer inom industrier som använder gaser. Den kvalitativa datan samlades in genom semistrukturerade intervjuer med företag i Sverige som använder gaser, där datan analyserades med tolkningsmetoder. Resultatet visar att lagar och regler är en stark drivkraft för diffusionen av hållbara innovationer medan innovationsegenskaper såsom ”pris” och nyckelfaktorerna ”tillgänglighet” och ”innovationsbeslut” agerar som hinder. Den genererade kunskapen från denna studie kan bidra till hur en hållbar innovationskapare kan åtgärda dessa hinder och förbättra dess diffusion i marknaden.

L’étude de la voirie antique du site archéologique de Saint-Romain-en-Gal (Rhône), menée depuis vingt-cinq ans, a permis de mettre en lumière le rôle essentiel de la rue du Portique dans le développement de ce quartier de Vienne antique, situé sur la rive droite du Rhône. Traversant la plaine d’ouest en est, cette rue qui s’interrompait brutalement sur la berge du Rhône en face du cœur ancien de la capitale des Allobroges, a soulevé la question du franchissement du fleuve. Le nombre des ponts attribués à l’époque romaine a connu des évolutions au fil du temps. Une recherche historiographique importante a donc été menée afin d’établir la connaissance effective des indices prouvant la présence d’un ou de plusieurs ouvrages d’art antiques à la hauteur de Vienna, duplex urbs. Mais pour comprendre leur logique d’implantation, il a fallu également suivre la genèse d’installation des points de franchissement plus récents qui ont été soumis aux mêmes contraintes topographiques et urbaines que les ouvrages antiques. Il ressort de cette étude que deux ponts peuvent être attribués à l’époque romaine. Le troisième, plus monumental, le pont de pierre, considéré dans la mémoire collective comme le Pont Romain de la ville, semble toutefois remonter au Haut Moyen Âge
The study of the ancient road to the archaeological site of Saint-Romain-en-Gal (Rhône), conducted for twenty-five years, helped to highlight the essential role of the Portico street in the development of this area of Antique Vienna, on the right bank of the Rhône. Across the plain from west to east, the street would strop abruptly on the bank of the Rhône opposite the ancient heart of the capital of the Allobroges, raised the issue of crossing the river. The number of bridges attributed to the Roman era has seen changes over time. An important historiographical research has been conducted to determine actual knowledge clues proving the presence of one or more works of ancient art at the height of Vienna, duplex urbs. But to understand their logic implementation, it took also follow the genesis of installing newer crossing points that were subject to the same topographical and urban and ancient books constraints. It appears from this study that two bridges can be attributed to the Roman era. The third, more monumental, stone bridge, seen in the collective memory as the roman bridge in the city, however, seems to go back to the High Middle Age

This thesis is an exploration of ancestral narratives in the fiction of Thomas Keneally and Christopher Koch. Initially, ancestry in literature creates an historical relationship which articulates the link between the past and the present. In this sense ancestry functions as a type of cultural memory where various issues of inheritance can be negotiated. However, the real value of ancestral narratives lies in their power to aid in the construction of both personal and communal identities. They have the potential to transform these identities, to transgress “natural” boundaries and to reshape conventional identities in the light of historical experience. For Keneally, ancestral narratives depict national forbears who “narrate the nation” into being. His earlier fictions present ancestors of the nation within a mythic and symbolic framework to outline Australian national identity. This identity is static, oppositional, and characterized by the delineation of boundaries which set nations apart from one another. However, Keneally’s more recent work transforms this conventional construction of national identity. It depicts an Irish-Australian diasporic identity which is hyphenated and transgressive: it transcends the conventional notion of nations as separate entities pitted against one another. In this way Keneally’s ancestral narratives enact the potential for transforming identity through ancestral narrative. On the other hand, Koch’s work is primarily concerned with the intergenerational trauma causes by losing or forgetting one’s ancestral narrative. His novels are concerned with male gender identity and the fragmentation which characterizes a self-destructive idea of maleness. While Keneally’s characters recover their lost ancestries in an effort to reshape their idea of what it is to be Australian, Koch’s main protagonist lives in ignorance of his ancestor’s life. He is thus unable to take the opportunity to transform his masculinity due to the pervasive cultural amnesia surrounding his family history and its role in Tasmania’s past. While Keneally and Koch depict different outcomes in their fictional ancestral narratives they are both deeply concerned with the potential to transform national and gender identities through ancestry.

碩士
國立臺灣師範大學
體育學系
95
Abstract 　　Individuals catch up the relevant information which released from the external environment through their sense organs for action, and also get more information then before from the extrinsic environment by action. That is the coupling between perception and action. There were 22 children, 18 adults and 19 old people joined in this experiment. The body height, eye-height, leg length, leg strength, and the range of motion in hip were measured before the judge and actual crossing test. All the participants were asked to perform one round judge and another round actual crossing, the gap increased five centimeters trial by trial. 3 (age) × 2 (crossing) mixed design two-way ANOVA, stepwise regression and principal component analysis were used to examine the perception-action coupling ability, correlation between crossing and individual factors, and same qualities that to be categorized. The results showed that: The diversity between judge and actual crossing in children and old people were higher than adults. The range of motion in hip as the predict parameter of actual gap crossing in these three ages were validity. The eye height and leg length were also positively correlated to old peoples’ judged gap crossing; the perceptual result and the leg strength were also positively correlated to actual gap crossing, and all of the predictors can be categorized into two major portions. It means that individuals can judge the environment not only by body-scaled ratio, but also physical fitness factors such as hip flexibility and leg strength. The cumulative explained variances surpasses 66% in three ages, it means the variance was effective to explain original scores. The conclusions were: (1) Children and old people have lower perception-action coupling ability than adults, (2) The range of motion in hip can be the predictor of actual crossing in each age group. The eye height, leg length and range of motion in hip can also be the predictors of judged crossing for old people. Judged crossing result and leg strength were the predictors of actual crossing in old people, and (3) all the predictors can be categorized into two portions, body scaled ratio and physical fitness factors.

碩士
世新大學
性別研究所
99
In Taiwan Society, LGBT people of different ages has been through different levels of social stigma and oppression; however, it makes young and elder LGBT people hardly have chances to meet and connect with each other. Volunteers of The Elderly Gay Team in Taiwan Tongzhi Hotline Association begin to make friends with elderly gays, to build trust and friendship with each other, and try to cross the generation gap; thus this thesis make it possible that the gay men of different generations can see one another. Meanwhile, this study has also been trying to reverse the stereotypes and simplified imaginations of elderly gays in Taiwan's LGBT community by finding out the diversity in different life stories of elderly gay men. These experiences of interaction with elderly gay men in Elder Gay Team also bring out the multiple thinking for Taiwan's LGBT social movements. However, as a volunteer of Elder Gay Team and a gay man of young generation, I suddenly realize how my imagination of these elderly gay people frames me to make friends with them, when I am facing with the generation gap and these experiences. Where do these frames and imaginations come from? How can I deal with the limitation that these frames and imaginations bring to me? How do the volunteers of The Elderly Gay Team think about the friendship and trust relationships we developed with elderly gays? How to break these imaginations and frames, get closer with elderly gays, empower with each other after becoming aware of the generation gap between us, and experience the different social values and the conflicts of volunteers' social rules? The volunteer's experiences and the reflection process is the main direction of this thesis.

碩士
國立臺灣師範大學
教育學系
95
The purpose of this study was to explore the gap between teaching theory and practice of five beginning teachers taught at different junior high schools. Through narrative inquiry, this study re-comprehended the challenges the teachers faced in their fields, and understood the efforts they made to overcome the difficulties. I invited four beginning teachers to undertake interactive narrative inquiry for almost one year. Then I analyzed our teaching stories and found that the beginning teachers encountered five aspects of challenges: personnel interaction, competitive atmosphere, authority culture, gender differences, and different teacher career developments. Under these challenges, there were gaps the beginning teachers tried to cross over. The teachers tried to re-construct teachers knowledge and to develop the personal practical knowledge in order to cross over the distance between theories and practices. The teachers tried to re-establish the relation of teachers and pupils in order to cross over the cultural differences between teachers and students. The teachers tried to re-understand the learning essence in order to cross over the pressure of competitive atmosphere. Additionally, the teachers tried to expand the diverse roles of teachers to cross over the stereotyped teacher image. Underneath the deepest of the challenges, beginning teachers tried to struggle with educational structure and to search for teacher identities. Based on the findings, this study provides the following suggestions. First, beginning teachers should be encouraged to support each other through a collaborative community. Second, the authority should establish a system to help beginning teachers to develop professionally. Third, beginning teachers should be encouraged to develop the ability to challenge the inequality in the field.

博士
國立臺灣師範大學
社會教育學系
104
Traveling has been a popular leisure activity at the present time. However, whether the traveler can advance the ability of self-illuminating and self-discovering depends on his inner journey of transcending. Traveling literature which presents the inner journey of traveler’s narratives and dialogue with oneself is worthy of exploration. This thesis is primarily concerned with exploring the process of self-transcending of a traveler and traveling literature. The methodology comprised textual analysisand converged two different modes of life transformation Campbell’s stages of heroic adventure and Otto Scharmer’ s levels of U theory. From the perspectives of self-transcending, this thesis, in addition to offering an analysis of Gao Xingjian ‘s life adventure and his works with Joseph Campbell’s stages of heroic adventure and archetypes of heroes, is meanwhile to interpret Soul Mountain with Otto Scharmer’s levels of U theory. Ultimately, this thesis try to integrate the results of interpretation of Gao Xingjian ‘s life adventure and Soul Mountain into a new model.

Significant numbers of children experience reading difficulty in the intermediate school years. Inexperience with expository text may partially explain this difficulty. While much of the extant research has focussed on the delivery of effective early interventions, investigation of efficacious practices with intermediate level struggling readers continues to require investigation. A case study that documents a research-based intervention with two struggling intermediate students is presented in this thesis. It explores a methodology that combines decoding and comprehension strategy instruction with fluency training, primarily utilizing expository text from children's popular literature. The strong positive results obtained are thought to be linked to the balancing of skill and strategy instruction with affective considerations. Phonological core deficits appear to have been addressed through oral repeated reading preceded by listening-previewing and accompanied by a "switched-on" self-monitoring for comprehension strategy. The findings suggest harmful effects may occur with some struggling readers from the use of fluency training that employs unengaging text and emphasizes speed over accuracy, expression and construction of meaning.

Thin films with the ability to impart oxygen and other types of gas barrier are crucial to commercial packaging applications. Commodity polymers, such as polyethylene (PE), polycarbonate (PC) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET), have insufficient barrier for goods requiring long shelf life. Current gas barrier technologies like plasma-enhanced vapor deposition (PECVD) often create high barrier metal oxide films, which are prone to cracking when flexed. Bulk composites composed of polymer and impermeable nanoparticles show improved barrier, but particle aggregation limits their practical utility for applications requiring high barrier and transparency. Layer-by-layer (LbL) assemblies allow polymers and nanoparticles to be mixed with high particle loadings, creating super gas barrier thin films on substrates normally exhibiting high gas permeability. Branched polyethylenimine (PEI) and poly (acrylic acid) (PAA) were deposited using LbL to create gas barrier films with varying pH combinations. Film thickness and mass fraction of each component was controlled by their combined charge. With lower charge density (PEI at pH 10 and PAA at pH 4), PEI/PAA assemblies exhibit the best oxygen barrier relative to other pH combinations. An 8 BL PEI/PAA film, with a thickness of 451 nm, has an oxygen permeability lower than 4.8 x 10^-21 cm^3 * cm/cm^2 * s * Pa, which is comparable to a 100 nm SiOx nanocoating. Crosslinking these films with glutaraldehyde (GA), 1-[3-(dimethylamino)propyl]-3-ethylcarbodiimide methiodide (EDC) or heating forms covalent bonds between PEI and/or PAA. Oxygen transmission rates (OTR) of 8 BL films crosslinked with 0.1M GA or 0.01M EDC show the best oxygen barrier at 100% RH. Graphene oxide (GO) sheets and PEI were deposited via LbL with varying GO concentration. The resulting thin films have an average bilayer thickness from 4.3 to 5.0 nm and a GO mass fraction from 88 to 91wt%. Transmission electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy images reveal a highly-oriented nanobrick wall structure. A 10 BL PEI/GO film that is 91 nm thick, made with a 0.2 wt% GO suspension, exhibits an oxygen permeability of 2.5 x 10^-20 cm^3 * cm/cm^2 * s * Pa. Finally, the influence of deposition time on thin film assembly was examined by depositing montmorillonite (MMT) or laponite (LAP) clays paired with PEI. Film growth and microstructure suggests that smaller aspect ratio LAP clay is more dip-time dependent than MMT and larger aspect ratio MMT has better oxygen barrier. A 30 BL PEI/MMT film made with 10 second dips in PEI has the same undetectable OTR as a film with 5 minute dips (with dips in MMT held at 5 minutes in both cases), indicating LbL gas barrier can be made more quickly than initially thought. These high barrier recipes, with simple and efficient processing conditions, are good candidates for a variety of packaging applications.

(Doctoral Thesis, 2016, Mgr. Tomáš Faukner, IONIC POLYACETYLENE TYPE POLYMERS AND POLYMER NETWORKS BY CATALYST FREE QUATERNIZATION POLYMERIZATION) The composition and structure of a series of ionic π-conjugated poly(monosubstituted acetylene)s prepared via catalyst-free quaternization polymerization (QP) of 2-ethynylpyridine (2EP) activated with equimolar amount of alkyl halide [RX = ethyl bromide, ethyl iodide, nonyl bromide and haxadecyl (cetyl) bromide] as a quaternizing agent (QA) have been studied in detail. The performed QPs gave ionic polymers well soluble in polar solvents, with approximately half of pyridine rings quaternized, which implies that also non-quaternized monomers were involved in the process of QP. The configurational structure of polyacetylene main chains was suggested based on 1 H NMR, IR as well as Raman (SERS) spectral methods. The QPs in bulk gave more expected irregular cis/trans polymers while the QPs in acetonitrile solution gave high-cis polymers. A series of prepared symmetrical bi-pyridylacetylene based monomers has been polymerized via QP approach resulting into a series of new ionic π-conjugated poly(disubstituted acetylene) type materials. It is therefore obvious that the mechanism of quaternization activation frequently applied on monosubstituted...