Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Regional variation'
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Cai, Yong. "Regional mortality variation in China /." Thesis, Connect to this title online; UW restricted, 2005. http://hdl.handle.net/1773/8899.
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Wormald, Jessica. "Regional variation in Panjabi-English." Thesis, University of York, 2016. http://etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/13188/.
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The research presented in this thesis details the linguistic patterns of two contact varieties of English spoken in the UK. Based on an analysis of recordings made in two British cities, the research assesses the influence of Panjabi on the English spoken in Bradford and Leicester. In addition, it considers what the role and influence of the respective regional ‘Anglo English’ variety is having on the development of the contact variety in each location. The research here focusses on variation in voice quality, the vowels FACE, GOAT and GOOSE, and the realisation of /r/. For voice quality, a vocal profile analysis (e.g. Laver 1980) was completed for each of the speakers included in the corpus with characteristic vocal settings observed among Panjabi and Anglo English groups. The results from a dynamic vowel analysis of F1 and F2 variation across the trajectory for FACE, GOAT and GOOSE illustrated that despite the cross regional similarities which are observable in Panjabi English, local interpretations are crucial. A combined auditory and acoustic analysis of /r/ in word initial and medial position revealed divergent regional patterns in Panjabi English. A number of arguments are put forward to account for the linguistic parallels reported here, and more widely, in contact varieties of English in the UK. The findings of the thesis contribute to a growing body of work that explores the development of contact varieties spoken in the UK, with this thesis concentrating on the development of ‘Panjabi English’ in two locations simultaneously. The patterns observed are accounted for by considering research from both language and dialect contact research, with the thesis drawing together ideas from these two separate fields. The claims put forward argue that the similar patterns observed can be considered to be independent innovations, with contact processes accounting for the linguistic correspondences.
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Loukina, Anastasssia. "Regional phonetic variation in modern Greek." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2008. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.496578.
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Igarashi, Yosuke, Kan Sasaki, and Akira Utsugi. "Regional variation of VOT in Ibaraki Japanese." 日本音声学会, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/2237/18699.
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McQuaid, Siobhan E. "Adipose tissue function : regional and circadian variation." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2009. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.504670.
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Morgan, G. L. "Regional variation models of white matter microstructure." Thesis, University College London (University of London), 2012. http://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/1379541/.
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Diffusion-weighted MRI (DW-MRI) is a powerful in vivo imaging technique that is particularly sensitive to the underlying microstructure of white matter tissue in the brain. Many models of the DW-MRI signal exist that allow us to relate the signals we measure to various aspects of the tissue structure, including measures of diffusivity, cellularity and even axon size. From histology, we know that many of these microstructure measures display distinct patterns of variation on length scales greater than the average voxel size. However very few methods exist that use this spatial coherence to inform and guide parameter estimation. Instead, most techniques treat each voxel of data independently. This is particularly problematic when estimating parameters such as axon radius which only weakly influence the signal, as the resulting estimates are noisy. Several methods have been proposed that spatially smooth parameter estimates after fitting the model in each voxel. However if the parameter estimates are very noisy, the underlying trend is likely to be obscured. These methods are also unable to account for spatial coupling that may exist between the various parameters. This thesis introduces a novel framework, the Regional Variation Model (RVM), which exploits the underlying spatial coherence within white matter tracts to estimate trends of microstructure variation across large regions of interest. We fit curves describing parameter variation directly to the diffusion-weighted signals which should capture spatial changes in a more natural way as well as reducing the effects of noise. This allows for more precise estimates of a range of microstructure indices, including axon radius. The resulting curves, which show how microstructure parameters vary spatially through white matter regions, can also be used to detect groupwise differences with potentially greater power than traditional methods.
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Al-Hadhrami, Ahmed Abdullah Nasser. "Regional and national variation in Arabic handwriting." Thesis, University of Central Lancashire, 2013. http://clok.uclan.ac.uk/8560/.
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It has been established in a number of research publications that a careful study of general handwriting features based on class characteristics could indicate either the place or the country where the writer was first taught to write. Using these studies as the basis, this research was carried out explicitly to understand the characteristics of Arabic handwriting. The aim of this study was to determine the presence of any particular features or characteristics that may be common to individuals of a given region or nationality. This was done by obtaining samples of handwriting collected from individuals of four countries including; Jordan, Morocco, Oman and Tunisia, where Jordon and Oman are considered to be Eastern Arab world and Morocco and Tunisia in the Western Arab world. An attempt was made to establish whether it was possible to determine either the region or nationality of the writer of an Arabic passage of text, based on the formation and the style of the handwriting using specific Arabic characters. Different steps were taken towards the identification of the class characteristics of Arabic handwriting in this study starting with the collection of 600 handwriting samples from the participants in four Arabic countries employing; 150 handwriting samples from each. Ten different characters and one word were selected for examination, with more than one form of each character in different positions being identified and the handwriting samples classified accordingly. In total, 221 class characteristics were identified from the samples based on different criteria including the shape, number of strokes, pen movement and starting point. Tests of association using chi-squared on individual characters showed that the p-value is less than 0.001 in every case. Correspondence analysis was used to produce a plot of relative similarities where the different countries appear as discernible, but overlapping groups. ANOSIM showed these groups to be statistically different (R = 0.321 p = 0.0002, 1000 permutations). Tree analysis was used to create a classification system and blind tests were conducted to test the accuracy of the classification system. On the basis of the statistics used, significant differences were found in character forms used by the individuals from the four Arabic countries, suggesting that either region or nationality of the writer may potentially be predicted with a useful degree of accuracy. Though the samples were obtained from only four countries out of a total of 22 Arab countries and only ten characters and one word out of 28 characters were chosen in this study, the results obtained are valuable and useful, particularly to Forensic Document Examiners (FDEs). In turn this could be implemented in practice in a situation where a questioned document containing Arabic text is presented and the suspected author could have come from one of the four considered countries.
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Russ, Robert Brice. "Examining Regional Variation Through Online Geotagged Corpora." The Ohio State University, 2013. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1385420187.
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Dupré, Cecilia. "Regional and local variation in plant species richness." Doctoral thesis, Uppsala universitet, Institutionen för evolutionsbiologi, 2001. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-691.
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In this thesis, I examine the variation in plant species richness along gradients of productivity and disturbance in grasslands and forest habitats in southern Sweden, and I compare the documented patterns with theoretical predictions. Moreover, I evaluate the relative importance of habitat quality and habitat configuration for the occurrence of field layer species in deciduous forests. Finally, I present a new method for the determination of the regional species pool. To examine regional and local variation in plant species richness, I gathered data on species composition in plots of different size (0.001 - 1000 m2) in three vegetation types (deciduous forests, dry grasslands and coastal meadows) in four regions of southern Sweden (Öland, Gotland, Småland and Uppland). As predicted by the species pool hypothesis, differences in small-scale species richness of deciduous forests and dry grasslands were correlated with differences in the size of the regional species pool. Moreover, among plots large-scale diversity was predictive of small-scale diversity. Species diversity showed a hump-shaped relationship with productivity in forests, and was related to environmental heterogeneity and the size of the 'habitat-specific' species pool. In the two types of grassland examined, grazed sites were richer in species than abandoned sites. Moreover, both species composition and the representation of plants with different life-history characteristics differed between grazed and abandoned sites. As predicted by the intermediate disturbance hypothesis, species richness was highest at intermediate levels of grazing in coastal meadows. However, all the above patterns were scale-dependent, and not observed at all plot sizes. The occurrence of field layer species in deciduous forests was more strongly related to habitat quality (mainly soil factors) than to habitat configuration (forest area and isolation). Across species, low seed production, clonal reproduction and habitat specificity were negatively associated with isolation.
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Dupré, Cecilia. "Regional and local variation in plant species richness /." Uppsala : Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis : Univ.-bibl. [distributör], 2001. http://publications.uu.se/theses/91-554-5064-4/.
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Lau, Mandy Hang Man. "Spatial planning, meta-governance and sub-regional variation." Thesis, University of Cambridge, 2013. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.608284.
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Seppä, K. (Karri). "Quantifying regional variation in the survival of cancer patients." Doctoral thesis, Oulun yliopisto, 2012. http://urn.fi/urn:isbn:9789526200118.
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Abstract Monitoring regional variation in the survival of cancer patients is an important tool for assessing realisation of regional equity in cancer care. When regions are small or sparsely populated, the random component in the total variation across the regions becomes prominent. The broad aim of this doctoral thesis is to develop methods for assessing regional variation in the cause-specific and relative survival of cancer patients in a country and for quantifying the public health impact of the regional variation in the presence of competing hazards of death using summary measures that are interpretable also for policy-makers and other stakeholders. Methods for summarising the survival of a patient population with incomplete follow-up in terms of the mean and median survival times are proposed. A cure fraction model with two sets of random effects for regional variation is fitted to cause-specific survival data in a Bayesian framework using Markov chain Monte Carlo simulation. This hierarchical model is extended to the estimation of relative survival where the expected survival is estimated by region and considered as a random quantity. The public health impact of regional variation is quantified by the extra survival time and the number of avoidable deaths that would be gained if the patients achieved the most favourable level of relative survival. The methods proposed were applied to real data sets from the Finnish Cancer Registry. Estimates of the mean and the median survival times of colon and thyroid cancer patients, respectively, were corrected for the bias that was caused by the inherent selection of patients during the period of diagnosis with respect to their age at diagnosis. The cure fraction model allowed estimation of regional variation in cause-specific and relative survival of breast and colon cancer patients, respectively, with a parsimonious number of parameters yielding reasonable estimates also for sparsely populated hospital districtsTiivistelmä Syöpäpotilaiden elossaolon alueellisen vaihtelun seuraaminen on tärkeää arvioitaessa syövänhoidon oikeudenmukaista jakautumista alueittain. Kun alueet ovat pieniä tai harvaan asuttuja, alueellisen kokonaisvaihtelun satunnainen osa kasvaa merkittäväksi. Tämän väitöstutkimuksen tavoitteena on kehittää menetelmiä, joilla pystytään arvioimaan maan sisäistä alueellista vaihtelua lisäkuolleisuudessa, jonka itse syöpä potilaille aiheuttaa, ja tiivistämään alueellisen vaihtelun kansanterveydellinen merkitys mittalukuihin, jotka ottavat kilpailevan kuolleisuuden huomioon ja ovat myös päättäjien tulkittavissa. Ehdotetuilla menetelmillä voidaan potilaiden ennustetta kuvailla käyttäen elossaolo-ajan keskiarvoa ja mediaania, vaikka potilaiden seuruu olisi keskeneräinen. Potilaiden syykohtaiselle kuolleisuudelle sovitetaan bayesiläisittäin MCMC-simulaatiota hyödyntäen malli, jossa parantuneiden potilaiden osuuden kuvaamisen lisäksi alueellinen vaihtelu esitetään kahden satunnaisefektijoukon avulla. Tämä hierarkkinen malli laajennetaan suhteellisen elossaolon estimointiin, jossa potilaiden odotettu elossaolo estimoidaan alueittain ja siihen liittyvä satunnaisvaihtelu otetaan huomioon. Alueellisen vaihtelun kansanterveydellistä merkitystä mitataan elossaoloajan keskimääräisellä pidentymällä sekä vältettävien kuolemien lukumäärällä, jotka voitaisiin saavuttaa, mikäli suotuisin suhteellisen elossaolon taso saavutettaisiin kaikilla alueilla. Kehitettyjä menetelmiä käytettiin Suomen Syöpärekisterin aineistojen analysointiin. Paksusuoli- ja kilpirauhassyöpäpotilaiden elinaikojen keskiarvojen ja mediaanien estimaatit oikaistiin harhasta, joka aiheutui potilaiden luontaisesta valikoitumisesta diagnosointijakson aikana iän suhteen. Parantuneiden osuuden satunnaisefektimalli mahdollisti rintasyöpäpotilaiden syykohtaisen kuolleisuuden ja paksusuolisyöpäpotilaiden suhteellisen elossaolon kuvaamisen vähäisellä määrällä parametreja ja antoi järkeenkäyvät estimaatit myös harvaan asutuille sairaanhoitopiireille
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Servello, Frederick A. "Regional variation in the nutritional ecology of ruffed grouse." Diss., Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1985. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/71259.
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Three experiments with captive ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus) demonstrated that dietary metabolizable energy (ME) can be predicted from neutral detergent solubles, total phenols, and percent acorns of grouse diets. The weight of the fat attached to the gizzard was highly correlated with percent carcass fat in 82 grouse and was judged a useful index of body condition.
Crop contents of 1005 grouse collected during fall and winter 1981-84 in Maine, New York, Wisconsin, Washington, Virginia, West Virginia, Indiana, Ohio, North Carolina, and Georgia were used to make regional comparisons of food habits and diet quality. The ME of crop contents was predicted from chemical composition. Evergreen leaves of woody plants were the most common late winter forages of grouse in southeastern states, whereas buds, twigs, and catkins were the most common late fall and winter forages in diets of grouse in northern states. Winter diets in the Southeast tended to have higher levels of predicted ME than diets in the North; however, southeastern diets tended to have higher levels of total phenols and lower levels of protein than typical northern diets. Evergreen leaf forages had higher levels of tannin phenols than buds, twigs, and catkins. Dietary ME appeared adequate in both the North and the Southeast, but low levels of protein and high levels of tannins may result in poorer quality winter diets along the southeastern edge of the range of the ruffed grouse.
Acorns comprised 63% of the crop contents of 22 grouse collected in Virginia in March and April 1982, the spring following a year of high acorn production. Leaves and flowers of herbaceous forbs were the primary forages of 41 grouse collected in spring 1983 and 1984. Body fat levels were greater for females than males and declined from March to April. Fat declines appeared to be related to breeding activities.
Evergreen leaves were the most abundant forages available to grouse in late winter on a study site in southwestern Virginia. Biomass of high quality herbaceous leaves-was insufficient to meet estimated energy requirements of grouse in late winter, indicating a need for a dietary shift to low quality evergreen leaves.Ph. D.
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Salazar, Israel. "Vocal Flexibility and Regional Variation in Free-Tailed Bat Song." FIU Digital Commons, 2016. http://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/2602.
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While much work has been done on regional vocal variation in birds, relatively few studies have found evidence of similar variation in mammalian vocalizations. This study quantifies individual, colonial, and regional level variation in T. brasiliensis songs in the southeastern United States. Brazilian free-tailed bats (Tadarida brasiliensis) are among a handful of mammals that produce complex, hierarchically structured vocalizations. Their songs are composed of multiple syllables that are combined into three phrases that vary in number and order across renditions. Tadarida brasiliensis songs showed considerable amount of variation, and differed significantly between locations in terms of syllable structure and song syntax. Some of the variation observed was not correlated to geographical distance, and is unlikely to be explained by genetic divergence or differences in habitat use. These results indicate the existence of vocal dialects and a possible role of vocal production learning in dialect formation in this species.
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Murphy, Conn. "Society, settlement & status : regional variation in Minoan Neopalatial architecture." Thesis, University of Cambridge, 1999. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.624573.
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Chen, Dongjin. "Legacies and Incentives:Explaining Variation in Local Healthcare Expenditure Variation in Post-Mao China." Kent State University / OhioLINK, 2012. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=kent1343052167.
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Cameron, Kathryn. "Regional variation in tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvier) abundance and habitat use." FIU Digital Commons, 2010. http://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/260.
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The purpose of this study was to investigate whether there is regional variation in the abundance and habitat use of tiger sharks (Galeocerdo cuvier) within in a model seagrass ecosystem. Abundance was determined with catch rates on drumlines and habitat preferences were investigated using acoustic tracking of large tiger sharks (n=4). I found spatiotemporal variation in the probability of catching at least one shark and in catch rates on days sharks were caught. In general, sharks were present throughout more of the year and in higher abundances in the northern region. Habitat use also varied between regions. In the northern region, sharks moved randomly with respect to habitat, while in the southern region sharks preferred shallow habitats. Although preliminary, these results suggest that large predator abundance and habitat use may vary over relatively small spatial scales and that such variation may be useful for elucidating their ecological role.
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Holmes, Alexandra Marie. "Regional variation of Early Archaic Greek Doric Temples in the Peloponnese." Thesis, King's College London (University of London), 1996. https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/regional-variation-of-early-archaic-greek-doric-temples-in-the-peloponnese(9ae8dce1-55ae-4685-8e70-234cf6556e11).html.
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Goundry, Katrin. "Regional variation and change in the history of English strong verbs." Thesis, University of Glasgow, 2016. http://theses.gla.ac.uk/7764/.
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This thesis investigates how the strong verb system inherited from Old English evolved in the regional dialects of Middle English (ca. 1100-1500). Old English texts preserve a relatively complex system of strong verbs, in which traditionally seven different ablaut classes are distinguished. This system becomes seriously disrupted from the Late Old English and Early Middle English periods onwards. As a result, many strong verbs die out, or have their ablaut patterns affected by sound change and morphological analogy, or transfer to the weak conjugation. In my thesis, I study the beginnings of two of these developments in two strong verb classes to find out what the evidence from Middle English regional dialects can tell us about their origins and diffusion. Chapter 2 concentrates on the strong-to-weak shift in Class III verbs, and investigates to what extent strong, mixed and weak past tense and participle forms vary in Middle English dialects, and whether the variation is more pronounced in the paradigms of specific verbs or sub-classes. Chapter 3 analyses the regional distribution of ablaut levelling in strong Class IV verbs throughout the Middle English period. The Class III and IV data for the Early Middle English period are drawn from A Linguistic Atlas of Early Middle English, and the data for the Late Middle English period from a sub-corpus of files from The Penn-Helsinki Parsed Corpus of Middle English and The Middle English Grammar Corpus. Furthermore, The English Dialect Dictionary and Grammar are consulted as an additional reference point to find out to what extent the Middle English developments are reflected in Late Modern English dialects. Finally, referring to modern insights into language variation and change and linguistic interference, Chapter 4 discusses to what extent intra- and extra-linguistc factors, such as token and type frequency, stem structure and language contact, might correlate with the strong-to-weak shift and ablaut levelling in Class III and IV verbs in the Middle English period. The thesis is accompanied by six appendices that contain further information about my distinction of Middle English dialect areas (Appendix A), historical Class III and IV verbs (B and C) and the text samples and linguistic data from the Middle English text corpora (D, E and F).
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Yamamoto, Keiko. "Study on regional scale mass variation using GRACE satellite gravity data." 京都大学 (Kyoto University), 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/2433/59309.
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Nzotungicimpaye, Claude-Michel. "Local variation and regional transport of tropospheric ozone over Cape Town." Master's thesis, University of Cape Town, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/12862.
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Includes bibliographical references.[Fix subscripts in abstract.] The attractive image of Cape Town is threatened by periods of poor air quality occurring most often between April and September, during episodes of brown haze. When this haze occurs, it appears in the morning as a layer of concentrated pollution, likely to be associated with photochemical pollutants such as tropospheric ozone (O3) and some of its precursors. Previous studies have identified local emission sources and meteorological conditions associated with both the air pollution and the brown haze in Cape Town. However, due to the transport of air pollutants, emissions from remote sources may also contribute to air pollution levels in Cape Town. This dissertation investigates the local variation and the regional-scale transport of atmospheric pollution over Cape Town, with a focus on O3 pollution. The study analyses O3 observations from local air quality stations and uses two atmospheric chemistry-transport models to simulate the photochemical pollution over southern Africa.
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Barnes, Sonia. "MORPHOPHONOLOGICAL VARIATION IN URBAN ASTURIAN SPANISH: LANGUAGE CONTACT AND REGIONAL IDENTITY." The Ohio State University, 2013. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1371475793.
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Nolan, Justin M. "Ethnobotany in Missouri's Little Dixie : knowledge variation in a regional culture /." free to MU campus, to others for purchase, 2000. http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/mo/fullcit?p9974669.
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Mukhametdinov, Mikhail. "Mercosur and the European Union: Variation Among the Factors of Regional Cohesion." Thesis, The University of Sydney, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/2123/14571.
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This thesis is based on the idea that contemporary examples of regionalism should be evaluated against several propositions of multiple integration theories rather than against those of a single theory. In order to systematically explain why and how integration outcomes in MERCOSUR differ from those in the EU, the thesis develops an analytical framework for the comparison of the two blocs. The framework operates with key themes of neofunctionalism, intergovernmentalism, social constructivism and neorealism. MERCOSUR is compared with the EU by the use of the various criteria of economic interdependence, economic convergence, intra-bloc size and interest asymmetries, cultural diversity and geostrategic motivations, which are identified as the salient parameters of the mentioned theories. The comparison demonstrates several things. First, MERCOSUR’s integration achievement is highly contingent upon regional endogenous properties, particularly structural asymmetries of size and interest among the member states and peculiarities of the region’s economic geography. Second, contrary to common expectations, there are some policy domains where MERCOSUR may outperform the EU, as in cultural integration. Third, major integration theories developed on the basis of the EU are useful for understanding difficulties of the MERCOSUR process and the differences in its outcomes relative to those of the EU. The proposed framework for the comparison of MERCOSUR and the EU can be used and modified for the analysis of other contemporary regions.
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Adams, Christopher Blaine. "Profile Analysis of Regional Variations Among Virginia Winery Visitors." Thesis, Virginia Tech, 2001. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/34397.
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This research is concerned with examining market segments and regional variations associated with winery visitors in the state of Virginia. The tourism literature published by the state of Virginia for wineries indicates that there are five wine regions. In this research, data were collected from interviews conducted at wineries in each of the five wine regions. The first phase of analysis sought to create market segments using a factor-cluster approach. Segments were created using cluster analysis and multiple discriminant analysis. Three distinct market segments based on benefits sought by the visitor emerged from these data. Regional variations were examined in the second part of this study. The data were classified into individual regions based on the locations of the wineries examined. Distinct differences in the regional profiles were revealed. Weak significant relationships among the segments and regions were also revealed through analysis indicating a spatial component to the segments. This research proposes the use of three regions for market research purposes, while retaining the five existing regions for promoting an organized structure to visiting wineries in the state.Master of Science
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Newall, Graham Newall. "Plastitcity in the avian brain : implications of regional variation for learning and memory." Thesis, University of Newcastle Upon Tyne, 1995. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.295529.
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Hill, Matthew E. "Causes of Regional and Temporal Variation in Paleoindian Diet in Western North America." Diss., The University of Arizona, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/196065.
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This dissertation explores geographic and diachronic variation in Great Plains and Rocky Mountain Paleoindian (12,500-7000 14C years before present) forager exploitation of animal resources in order to explore how use of different habitats influenced land-use and subsistence strategies. To accomplish this goal, this study documented the full range of variability in the Paleoindian record using a combination of published data and new data. These patterns were then compared to explicit predictions derived from behavioral ecology and animal ethology and biology studies. The results, presented in this dissertation, allow the testing of several, often contradictory, important subsistence-settlement hypotheses in current Paleoindian research, specifically the ongoing debate about Paleoindian diet breadth and human causes of megafaunal extinction. Overall, there appears to be a covariance between environmental zone and forager land use. Paleoindian foragers structured their land use according to the presence and nature of a number of important resources within major environmental zones. Specifically, this study finds sites in grassland settings with low diversity of resources have lower artifact densities and are often dominated by exotic lithic raw materials. In these same areas prehistoric groups made almost exclusive use of large fauna. Sites in foothill/mountain or alluvial valley settings with ecologically high density and high diversity have higher proportions of short-term camps than do other areas and those camps have higher artifact density than do other types of sites. These sites exhibit a mixed use of small- and medium-sized game. Overall this study shows Paleoindian hunters had only modest impact on prey species.
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Foster, H. J. "Variation in the provision of secondary education in the nineteenth century : a regional study." Thesis, University of Liverpool, 1988. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.233487.
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King, Michael. "Child guidance centres in Japan : regional variation in policy implementation and the family-bond." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2017. https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:1a3761ce-594f-47f7-9523-c787fb563b54.
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In contemporary Japan, approximately 85 per cent of children in alternative care are placed in large institutions. This contrasts with global discourse, encapsulated in the UN Guidelines for the Alternative Care of Children, and with practice in most OECD countries, which use foster care more extensively. Explanations for Japan's outlier status often focus on a homogenous national culture, yet there is significant regional variation between local authorities in how policy is implemented, most readily visible in the percentage of children in foster care. The title of this dissertation points to the three original contributions to knowledge of this work. The first is the rich ethnographic description of the child guidance centres and the decision-making process by which a child is removed from the family and placed into care. The second contribution is the explanation of regional variation in policy implementation. This is explained with reference to regional variation in resources, in norms, on the goals of care, the functions of different types of care, and the threshold until which a child is seen as being suitable for foster care, and in the organisational cultures of the child guidance centres. The final contribution to knowledge is the construction of the family-bond, between child and 'parent'. This is understood as singular and discrete, that is, that a child can only have one family-bond at any moment in time. Where foster care is constructed as anything other than professional or semi-professional care in a family setting it is seen as a threat to the child's family-bond with their natal parent. This dissertation argues that current attempts to increase the use of foster care by national and local authorities are likely to have limited impact unless they take this construction of the family-bond into account and focus on redefining the function of foster care.
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Taylor, Thomas Timothy. "Detection of Regional Variation of Bone Mineralization in a Human Mandible using Computed Tomography." The Ohio State University, 2012. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1331042122.
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Zhen, Gengchong, Ying Li, Yindong Tong, Lei Yang, Yan Zhu, and Wei Zhang. "Temporal Variation and Regional Transfer of Heavy Metals in the Pearl (Zhujiang) River, China." Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University, 2016. https://dc.etsu.edu/etsu-works/3.
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Heavy metals are highly persistent in water and have a particular significance in ecotoxicology. Heavy metals loading from the Pearl River are likely to cause significant impacts on the environment in the South China Sea and the West Pacific. In this study, using monthly monitoring data from a water quality monitoring campaign during 2006–2012, the temporal variation and spatial transfer of six heavy metals (lead (Pb), copper (Cu), cadmium (Cd), zinc (Zn), arsenic (As), and mercury (Hg)) in the Pearl River were analyzed, and the heavy metal fluxes into the sea were calculated. During this period, the annual heavy metal loads discharged from the Pearl River into the South China Sea were 5.8 (Hg), 471.7 (Pb), 1524.6 (Cu), 3819.6 (Zn), 43.9 (Cd), and 621.9 (As) tons, respectively. The metal fluxes showed a seasonal variation with the maximum fluxes occurring from June to July. There is a close association between metal fluxes and runoff. The analysis of the heavy metal transfer from the upstream to the downstream revealed that the transfer from the upstream accounted for a major portion of the heavy metals in the Pearl River Delta. Therefore, earlier industry relocation efforts in the Pearl River watershed may have limited effect on the water quality improvement in surrounding areas. It is suggested that watershed-based pollution control measures focusing on wastewater discharge in both upstream and downstream areas should be developed and implemented in the future.
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Young, Alastair Lachlan. "Regional variation in expression and function of 15-prostaglandin dehydrogenase in colorectal cancer liver metastases." Thesis, University of Leeds, 2010. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.535133.
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Pendly, Melissa Lin. "Investigating the Regional Variation in Rules and Best Management Practices for Forestry in New Zealand." Thesis, University of Canterbury. School of Forestry, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10092/9322.
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Under the Resource Management Act 1991, the interpretation and implementation of environmental policy is primarily the responsibility of local government. The management of forestry operations may be influenced via two written means: statutory rules published in regional and district plans, and recommended best management practices (BMPs) published in guidelines. There are concerns that inconsistency between jurisdictions’ regulations have a negative impact on the forestry industry; both in terms of cost and achieving positive environmental outcomes.
This research has investigated and quantified the variation in Permitted Activity rules and BMPs between the sixteen Regional Councils of New Zealand, with a focus on culvert installation and earthworks. This research quantified variation on both a national scale and between neighbouring councils. A peer review exercise was carried out to test the possible subjectivity of results, and found that an expert panel largely agreed with the results produced.
It has been found that there is significant variation in these regional rules and BMPs. Variation in both the level of control, i.e., the number of rules and BMPs per council, and the nature of control, i.e., the proportion of rules or BMPs utilised, is considerable. Further, the rules and BMPs of one council are seldom the same as another. This variation is apparent on both a national scale and when considering only neighbouring pairs of councils.
The findings on levels of variation between councils show that the variation is high, given that the parameters of this research excluded rules and BMPs which pertained to areas of special significance or value. As only ‘general’ rules and BMPs were examined, one would expect variation between councils to be low. The results, however, indicate that there is only limited agreement between Regional Councils.
New Zealand’s resource management rules and policies regarding plantation forestry are currently under review. By highlighting the existing regional variation, this research may help to promote the need for a more consistent and effective approach to the regulation of forestry operations.
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Talpe, Matthieu Jean. "Investigation of regional variation in Lunar crater morphometry from (Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter) LOLA observations." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/114358.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis: S.B., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, 2011.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 41-42).
The advent of global Digital Elevation Models of the lunar surface, obtained from the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA), has allowed for a quantitative assessment of crater morphometry. 351 simple and complex craters in the Mare Serenitatis, far side highlands, near side highlands, and South Pole-Aitken basin are decomposed into 50 elevation profiles, from which key geometric crater properties are extracted. The geometric properties and their respective standard variation, such as height-to-diameter ratios, and average elevation profile are compared on a global level to investigate regional differences in terrain rheology and study the transition between the simple and complex crater regime. Furthermore, the relationship between known degradation mechanisms and crater morphometry is discussed, as well as the current state of quantitative methods to assess crater degradation. The resulting regional differences observed in crater morphometry are explained in the context of lunar geologic history. Finally, the addition of other crater geometric properties in future quantitative assessments will broaden the study of crater morphometry, and improvements to current methods are necessary to conclusively define degradation states in terms of quantitative factors.
by Matthieu Jean Talpe.
S.B.
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Fingleton, Bernard, and Manfred M. Fischer. "Neoclassical theory versus new economic geography. Competing explanations of cross-regional variation in economic development." WU Vienna University of Economics and Business, 2008. http://epub.wu.ac.at/3955/1/SSRN%2Did1111590.pdf.
Full textAbstract:
This paper uses data for 255 NUTS-2 European regions over the period 1995-2003
to test the relative explanatory performance of two important rival theories seeking to explain
variations in the level of economic development across regions, namely the neoclassical
model originating from the work of Solow (1956) and the so-called Wage Equation, which is
one of a set of simultaneous equations consistent with the short-run equilibrium of new
economic geography (NEG) theory, as described by Fujita, Krugman and Venables (1999).
The rivals are non-nested, so that testing is accomplished both by fitting the reduced form
models individually and by simply combining the two rivals to create a composite model in an
attempt to identify the dominant theory. We use different estimators for the resulting panel
data model to account variously for interregional heterogeneity, endogeneity, and temporal
and spatial dependence, including maximum likelihood with and without fixed effects, two
stage least squares and feasible generalised spatial two stage least squares plus GMM; also
most of these models embody a spatial autoregressive error process. These show that the
estimated NEG model parameters correspond to theoretical expectation, whereas the
parameter estimates derived from the neoclassical model reduced form are sometimes
insignificant or take on counterintuitive signs. This casts doubt on the appropriateness of
neoclassical theory as a basis for explaining cross-regional variation in economic
development in Europe, whereas NEG theory seems to hold in the face of competition from
its rival. (authors' abstract)
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Upasani, Shubhankar Upasani. "Toward Software for Incorporating the Role of Ecosystem Services in LCA along with Regional Variation." The Ohio State University, 2018. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1543335634067175.
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Mendola, Meredith Lynne. "Regional-climate and Local-microbial Controls on Ecosystem Processes During Grassland Restoration." OpenSIUC, 2013. https://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/theses/1338.
Full textAbstract:
Root productivity likely has consequences for the composition, activity, and recovery of soil microbial populations and the belowground processes mediated by these organisms. In tallgrass prairie, ecotypic variation potentially exists in response to a strong precipitation gradient across the Great Plains. Thus, ecotypic variation within a species may differentially affect belowground net primary productivity (BNPP), the associated soil microbial community, and may scale up to affect ecosystem processes. The goals of this study were to elucidate: (1) whether ecotype, environment, or an ecotype by environment interaction regulate BNPP of a dominant species (Andropogon gerardii) collected from and reciprocally planted in common gardens across a precipitation gradient, and (2) whether variation in BNPP scales to affect microbial biomass and ecosystem processes. I quantified root biomass, BNPP (using root ingrowth bags), soil microbial biomass, and nutrient mineralization rates in root-ingrowth cores below six population sources of A. gerardii (2 Illinois, 2 eastern Kansas, and 2 central Kansas) established in southern Illinois, eastern Kansas, and central Kansas. An ecotype effect was found on above and belowground net primary productivity, but these findings did not translate to soil response variables. Microbial populations themselves may affect the productivity and composition of prairie species. In a second study, soil ecological knowledge (SEK) was tested by applying a native prairie soil slurry amendment to restoration plots to determine efficacy of this method as a restoration practice. The goals of this two year study were to elucidate: (1) whether a slurry amendment of prairie soil would increase above and belowground productivity and belowground ecosystem processes in a prairie restoration, and (2) to evaluate whether differences in plant diversity will scale to affect belowground productivity and ecosystem processes. I quantified aboveground net primary productivity (ANPP) and species composition, as well as root biomass, belowground net primary productivity (BNPP), soil microbial biomass, and nutrient mineralization rates in root-ingrowth cores installed in treated and control plots. A treatment effect was noted on root biomass and total PLFA biomass; however, there was no treatment effect on cover, ANPP, or soil microbial processes. Though the soil microbial community did represent native prairie soil, there was poor establishment of prairie plant species. These factors may be due to the limited time available for data collection and the lack of precipitation in the second growing season. Longer studies may be necessary to fully examine the effects of soil slurry amendments as restoration tools.
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Morallana, Jonas Moqebelo. "Regional connectivity, differentiation and biogeography of three species of the genus Lutjanus in the western Indian Ocean." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1013293.
Full textAbstract:
Snappers of the genus Lutjanus are small to large predatory fishes occurring in inshore circumtropical and subtropical waters throughout the world. These fishes support fisheries across their distribution range. Within the Western Indian Ocean (WIO), previous studies on Lutjanus kasmira revealed limited spatial genetic differentiation, whereas Lutjanus fulviflamma showed high genetic connectivity. The phylogenetic relationships among WIO snappers are unknown. Previous studies in the Indo-Pacific (IP) did not include any WIO representatives. This study examined (1) the phylogeographic patterns in Lutjanus bohar, L. fulviflamma and L. lutjanus to understand the origins and factors influencing the distribution of diversity in the region, (2) how the physical environment, biological, and ecological factors influence genetic diversity, (3) the placement of WIO snappers in context to those from the IP, as well as the placement of taxa not included previously, (4) extent of differentiation among conspecifics from the two regions, and (5) the relationship of the Caesionidae to the Lutjanidae. Samples were sourced from across the WIO and from peripheral localities, where possible. DNA sequence data were generated from two mitochondrial gene regions (cyt-b and NADH-2) and a nuclear gene region (S7 intron 1). Data were analysed under a phylogeographic framework to examine genetic structure, diversity and differentiation among identified regions for each of the three species. Other sequence data were generated from two mitochondrial gene regions (COII and 16S rDNA) to examine the phylogenetic placement of WIO snappers in context of the IP snappers and the relationship of the Caesionidae to the Lutjanidae. Lutjanus bohar and L. fulviflamma displayed high genetic diversity, but lower diversities were observed for L. lutjanus. Genetic differentiation was observed between Mozambique and Maldives in L. bohar. Lutjanus fulviflamma was differentiated in South Africa, Mozambique, Mauritius and Thailand, while differentiation was observed between Kenya and Tanzania in Lutjanus lutjanus. Overall, low genetic differentiation and high connectivity were observed for each of the three species. This differentiation may result from intrinsic features of the species and extrinsic features of the environment, whereas the connectivity is mainly influenced by the pelagic larval duration. These patterns of differentiation are in accordance with a proposed vicariant biogeographic hypothesis for the origins of regional faunas of the IP. Phylogenies were similar to those published, with additional taxa not altering the previous groupings found. Conspecifics from the two regions clustered together, with varying degrees of differentiation among the WIO and IP, depending on the species. Members of the Caesionidae were nested within Lutjanidae, suggesting that morphological characters separating the two families are taxonomically insignificant. This affirms previous notions that the Caesionidae should be a subfamily within the Lutjanidae. This is the first multi-gene study, examining differentiation in multiple species of snapper over a wide geographic area in the WIO, and the results of this study could have potential implications for fisheries management and conservation.
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Morris, Jonathan. "Sociolinguistic variation and regional minority language bilingualism : an investigation of Welsh-English bilinguals in North Wales." Thesis, University of Manchester, 2013. https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/sociolinguistic-variation-and-regional-minority-language-bilingualism-an-investigation-of-welshenglish-bilinguals-in-north-wales(c666cc2a-c131-4dcf-8d74-1c86c9315099).html.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis investigates phonetic and phonological variation in the bilingual repertoire of adolescent Welsh-English bilinguals living in North Wales. It contributes to linguistic research by, firstly, providing an account of language variation in an under-studied area (N. Wales) and context (regional minority language bilingualism) and, secondly, by examining cross-linguistic variation, and the constraints on this variation, in bilingual speech. The two variables under discussion differ in how they are realised in the two languages: /l/ is thought to be heavily velarised in both languages as a result of long-term contact and phonological convergence. Variation in the production of /r/ and realisation of coda /r/ has hitherto been reported as language-specific, though frequent transfer is said to occur from Welsh to English in predominantly Welsh-speaking areas (e.g. Penhallurick 2004: 110; Wells 1982: 390).The first aim of the study is therefore to quantify claims of phonological convergence and transfer in the speech of Welsh-English bilinguals by using a variationist sociolinguistics methodology (e.g. Labov 1966), which also considers the influence of linguistic and extra-linguistic factors on variation. Particular attention is paid to differences between a majority Welsh-speaking town and a town where English is the main language. A further distinction is made between those from Welsh-speaking homes and those from English-speaking homes who have acquired Welsh through immersion education. The second aim is to make empirically-informed theoretical claims about the nature of phonological convergence and transfer, and conceptualise cross-linguistic interaction in the speech of Welsh-English bilinguals in light of existing frameworks. Data (sociolinguistic interviews and wordlists) were collected in Welsh and English from 32 Welsh-English bilinguals aged 16-18. The sample was equally stratified in terms of speaker sex, home language, and area. The two towns compared in the study are Caernarfon (N.W. Wales, where c.88% of the population speak Welsh) and Mold (N.E. Wales, where c. 20% Welsh of the population speak Welsh). The results indicate that English [ɫ] tends to be lighter than Welsh [ɫ] in word-initial onset position for females, and in word-medial intervocalic position for both males and females. The data also show linguistic influences on the realisation of [ɫ] in both languages, and differences between males and females. The realisation of coda /r/ and production of [r] and [ɾ] in English are confined to the speech of those from Welsh-speaking homes in Caernarfon. In Welsh, use of [ɹ] is widespread and is constrained by a more complex interaction between area, home language, and sex. On the basis of these findings, I conclude that features which have undergone phonological convergence due to long-term language contact may be subject to language-specific constraints when implemented phonetically. In terms of transfer, I argue for a ternary distinction between interference, transfer, and transfer which is constrained by linguistic and/or extra-linguistic factors (cf. Grosjean 2012). Finally, I suggest that Mufwene’s (2001) notion of the ‘feature pool’ is the most succinct way of conceptualising Welsh-English transfer and differentiate between more focussed accents of English and a less-focussed variety of North Wales Welsh.
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Shen, Jingdi. "Regional Lexical Variation in Modern Written Chinese: Analysis and Characterization Using Geo-Tagged Social Media Data." The Ohio State University, 2018. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1531845935585073.
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Goad, Rachel Kathleen. "RESPONSE OF REGIONAL SOURCES OF TALLGRASS PRAIRIE SPECIES TO VARIATION IN CLIMATE AND SOIL MICROBIAL COMMUNITIES." OpenSIUC, 2012. https://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/theses/922.
Full textAbstract:
Restoration of resilient plant communities in response to environmental degradation is a critical task, and a changing climate necessitates the introduction of plant communities adapted to anticipated future conditions. Ecotypes of dominant species can affect associated organisms as well as ecosystem function. The extent of ecotypic variation in dominant tallgrass prairie species and the consequences of this variation for ecosystem functioning were studied by manipulating two potential drivers of plant community dynamics: climate and the soil microbial community. Climate was manipulated indirectly through the use of reciprocal restorations across a rainfall gradient where regional sources of dominant grasses Andropogon gerardii and Sorghastrum nutans were seeded with 8 other native species that occur in tallgrass prairie. Four dominant grass sources (originating from central Kansas [CKS], eastern Kansas [EKS], southern Illinois [SIL], or a mixture of these) were reciprocally planted within four sites that occurred across a precipitation gradient in western KS (Colby, KS), CKS (Hays, KS), EKS (Manhattan, KS) and SIL (Carbondale, IL). The three grass sources and mixture of sources were sown into plots according to a randomized complete block design at each sites (n=16, 4 plots / block at each site). Aboveground net primary productivity (ANPP) was measured at the end of the 2010 and 2011 growing season at each site. In 2010, total ANPP declined from western to eastern Kansas, but increased across the geographic gradient in 2011. The dominant grasses did not comprise the majority of community ANPP in WKS, CKS or SIL in either year but did contribute most to total ANPP at the EKS site in 2011. In 2010, volunteer forbs comprised the largest proportion of ANPP in WKS, whereas and in both years planted forbs comprised the largest proportion of ANPP in SIL. Ecotypic variation in ANPP of A. gerardii was not evident, but Sorghastrum nutans ANPP exhibited a site by source effect in 2010 that did not suggest a home site advantage. Variation in the competitive environment at each site may have masked ecotypic variation during community assembly. Further, ANPP responses suggest that grasslands in early stages of establishment may respond more stochastically to climatic variation than established grasslands. Longer term studies will clarify whether ecotypes of dominant prairie grasses affect ecosystem function or community trajectories differently during restoration. Ecotypes of dominant species may support different soil microflora, potentially resulting in plant-soil feedback. A second experiment tested for local adaptation of prairie plant assemblages to their soil microbial community. Native plant assemblages from Kansas and Illinois were tested for local adaptation to their `home' soil by reciprocally crossing soil and plant source in a greenhouse experiment. Seeds and soil were obtained from two remnant prairies, one in eastern Kansas and one in central Illinois, with similar species composition but differing climate. Seeds of four species (Andropogon gerardii, Elymus canadensis, Lespedeza capitata, Oligoneuron rigidum) common to both locations were collected, germinated, and transferred to pots to create 4-species assemblages from each region. Non-prairie (NP) soil from the edge of an Illinois agricultural field was also included as an inoculum treatment to increase relevance to restoration. Kansas and Illinois plant assemblages were subjected to a fully factorial combination of soil inocula [with associated microbial communities] (3 sources: KS, IL, NP) and soil sterilization treatment (sterilized or live). Plants were harvested after 20 weeks and soil was analyzed for microbial composition using phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) markers. Soil sources had different nutrient concentrations and sterilization resulted in a flush of NH4+, which complicated detection of soil microbial effects. However, plant sources did exhibit variation in productivity responses to soil sources, with Kansas plants more responsive to live soil sources than Illinois plants. Despite confounding variation in soil fertility, soil inoculation was successful at manipulating soil microbial communities, and plant sources responded differently to soil sources. Consideration of feedback between soil and plants may be a missing link in steering restoration trajectories.
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Dima, Dafni. "European labour market trajectories before and during the 2008 financial crisis : national, regional and individual variation." Thesis, University of Edinburgh, 2018. http://hdl.handle.net/1842/31084.
Full textAbstract:
Since 2008 Europe has been in crisis, a financial and debt crisis that spread from the U.S. to all European countries. This thesis aims to provide evidence on the consequences of the crisis for individuals’ labour market outcomes across different countries and regions of Europe and to analyse how the recession has differentially affected sub-groups of the European population. Through the analysis of the longitudinal component of the European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) dataset, the project sheds light on the labour market trajectories of more than 20,000 Europeans across 11 European countries and 41 regions, before and during the 2008 financial crisis (2005-2012). Sequence and cluster analysis are used to investigate the heterogeneity of individual labour market trajectories across countries and time, while multilevel models are used to study regional labour markets during the years in crisis. The concept of transitional labour markets, as well as theories of labour market segmentation, job competition and job mobility, provide the theoretical framework for this research. The empirical findings show that during the financial crisis, labour market trajectories appear more turbulent and fragmented for the already disadvantaged sub-groups, namely women, younger workers and low educated workers. Furthermore, during the Great recession, an increase in unemployment among men confirms the sectoral profile of the crisis, which hit harder the male-dominated sectors of construction and industry. At the same time, a decrease in inactivity among women is consistent with the added worker effect, according to which women in periods of economic hardship are pushed towards labour market activity in order to contribute to the household income. Countries with weak economies and underperforming labour markets prior to the crisis, such as Greece and Italy, unsurprisingly experienced a deep and persistent crisis, while countries with stronger economies and more inclusive labour markets, such as Denmark and Sweden, managed to survive the crisis with less social harm. The institutional context of the countries offering high chances of employment even during the financial crisis, such as the Nordic countries, lies on the flexicurity of their labour markets. Indeed, flexible labour markets with the use of reduced working-time schemes, i.e. part-time forms of employment, contained unemployment during the financial shock. However, we need to be cautious about flexibility without security or partial deregulation of the markets, implemented in southern European countries, because during the crisis such policies led to further labour market segmentation and thus an increase in employment inequalities. Finally, the region of residence matters in employment outcomes, almost as much as the country of residence. In fact, from the regional analysis of individual employment outcomes during the years of the crisis, an uneven distribution of labour is detected even within the national borders. Summing up, the European crisis should be considered as the sum of national and regional crises.
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Hanson, A. R. "Modelling the spatial and temporal variation in density of breeding black ducks at landscape and regional levels." Thesis, National Library of Canada = Bibliothèque nationale du Canada, 2001. http://www.collectionscanada.ca/obj/s4/f2/dsk3/ftp04/NQ58215.pdf.
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Sullins, Daniel S. "Regional variation in demography, distribution, foraging, and strategic conservation of lesser prairie-chickens in Kansas and Colorado." Diss., Kansas State University, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/2097/35604.
Full textAbstract:
Doctor of PhilosophyDepartment of Biology
David A. Haukos
The lesser prairie-chicken (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus) is 1 of 3 prairie-grouse species in North America. Prairie-grouse have undergone local or widespread declines due to a loss of habitat through conversion to row crop agriculture, anthropogenic development, and alteration of ecological drivers that maintain quality grasslands. For lesser prairie-chickens, habitat loss and declines were deemed significant for listing as threatened under the Endangered Species Act in 2014. Despite a judge vacating the listing decision in 2015, the lesser prairie-chicken remains a species of concern. Conservation plans are currently being implemented and developed. To maximize the effectiveness of efforts, knowledge of the distribution of lesser prairie-chickens, regional demography, foods used during critical life-stages, and where to prioritize management is needed. To guide future conservation efforts with empirical evidence, I captured, marked with transmitters, and monitored female lesser prairie-chickens in Kansas and Colorado during 2013–2016 (n =307). I used location data to predict the distribution of habitat. Encounter data from individuals were used to estimate vital rates and integrated into a matrix population model to estimate population growth rates (λ). The matrix model was then decomposed to identify life-stages that exert the greatest influence on λ and vital rate contributions to differences in λ among sites. After assessing demography, I examined the diet of adults and chicks during critical brood rearing and winter periods using a fecal DNA metabarcoding approach. Overall, potential habitat appears to compromise ~30% of the presumed lesser prairie-chicken range in Kansas with most habitat in the Mixed-Grass Prairie Ecoregion. Within occupied sites, populations were most sensitive to factors during the first year of life (chick and juvenile survival), however, the persistence of populations through drought may rely on adult survival. Among regional populations, breeding season, nest, and nonbreeding season survival rates contributed most to differences in λ among sites, breeding season survival contributed to differences in λ among more and less fragmented sites. During critical life-stages, diets were comprised of arthropod and plant foods. Among 80 readable fecal samples, 35% of the sequences were likely from Lepidoptera, 26% from Orthoptera, 14% from Araneae, and 13% from Hemiptera. Plant sequences from 137 fecal samples were comprised of genera similar to Ambrosia (27%) Latuca or Taraxacum (10%), Medicago (6%), and Triticum (5%). Among cover types, lesser prairie-chickens using native grasslands consumed a greater diversity of foods. Last, promising conservation options include the conversion of cropland to grassland through the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) and tree removal in mixed-grass prairie landscapes. Lesser prairie-chickens mostly used CRP during nesting and the nonbreeding season, during drier periods, and in drier portions of their distribution. Strategic CRP sign-up and tree removal could recover >60,000 ha and~100,000 ha of habitat respectively. In summary, conservation that targets management in areas within broad scale habitat constraints predicted will be most beneficial. In areas occupied by lesser prairie-chickens, management that increases brood survival in large grasslands having optimal nesting structure will elicit the strongest influence on population growth and will likely be the most resilient to stochastic drought-related effects.
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Thomas, Barbara R. "Regional, provenance and family variation in cold hardiness of western white pine (Pinus monticola Dougl. ex. D. Don)." Thesis, University of British Columbia, 1990. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/28995.
Full textAbstract:
Thirty-seven seedlots of western white pine (Pi nus mont i col a Doug. ex. D. Don) were tested for frost hardiness to determine how transferable seed would be from different seed sources within white pine's coast and interior ranges in British Columbia. Twenty-nine seedlots represented the coast and interior of British Columbia (BC), two were from coastal United States (US), three were from interior US and three were hybrids between interior US and interior BC parents. Detached needles were exposed to a series of freezing temperatures in a programable freezer and relative hardiness was calculated as the length of injured needle expressed as a percentage of total needle length 10 days after freezing. Seasonal progress in hardening was tested using five dates in the autumn of 1989. Seedlings were maintained at the University of British Columbia nursery.
Testing also was carried out from samples collected on separate dates from Nakusp in the BC interior and from Ladysmith, a coastal BC site. There was a statistically significant (p<0.0l) regional difference between the BC coast and BC interior sources in all test runs, excluding the first UBC run and the Ladysmith run. In the runs where regions differed significantly, the difference in percent damage response of needles to freezing was approximately 20%.
Measurements of shoot growth phenology were planned as an additional component of growth rhythm. Injury from uncontrolled freezing forced a change of objective to evaluation of genetic differences in recovery from freezing. Those evaluations did not reveal genetic differences in recovery.Forestry, Faculty of
Graduate
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Livingston, Kathryn Jane. "Regional variation in protopalatial Crete? a comparison of Minoan domestic and funerary architecture in Eastern and Central Crete /." Diss., Columbia, Mo. : University of Missouri-Columbia, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/10355/6268.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (M.A.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2007.The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file (viewed on January 15, 2007) Includes bibliographical references.
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Almarhoon, Zahra M. B. S. "Geographic Variation in the Utilization of Antihyperglycemic Therapies in the U.S. Medicaid Program at State-Level Using Geographic Information System." University of Cincinnati / OhioLINK, 2019. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1553618550167677.
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Müller-Nordhorn, Jacqueline. "Regionale Trends der kardiovaskulären Mortalität." Doctoral thesis, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Medizinische Fakultät - Universitätsklinikum Charité, 2005. http://dx.doi.org/10.18452/13968.
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Innerhalb von Deutschland gibt es erhebliche Unterschiede in der kardiovaskulären Mortalität mit einer erhöhten Mortalität in den ostdeutschen im Vergleich zu den westdeutschen Bundesländern. Das Risiko, an einer koronaren Herzkrankheit oder einem Schlaganfall zu sterben, ist in Ostdeutschland etwa 50% höher als in Westdeutschland. Damit hat sich das Risikoverhältnis seit der Wiedervereinigung insgesamt wenig verändert, obwohl sowohl in Ost- als auch in Westdeutschland die kardiovaskuläre Mortalität abgenommen hat. Mögliche Ursachen für die regionale Variation sind Unterschiede bei kardiovaskulären Risikofaktoren, soziodemographischen Faktoren, Lebensstilfaktoren, Umwelteinflüssen und in der medizinischen Versorgung. In ganz Deutschland wird ein hoher Prozentsatz von Patienten mit kardiovaskulären Erkrankungen nicht entsprechend den aktuellen Leitlinien europäischer Fachgesellschaften behandelt. Eine inadäquate Einstellung von Risikofaktoren kann neben einer erhöhten Morbidität auch über den Verlust an Produktivität zu hohen indirekten Kosten für die Gesellschaft führen, ebenso wie zu einer Einschränkung der Lebensqualität für die Patienten. Neben einer adäquaten Prävention ist auch das „richtige“ Verhalten bei Auftreten von kardiovaskulären Symptomen wesentlich (Notrufnummer „112“), da sich ein hoher Prozentsatz der Todesfälle bereits vor Erreichen des Krankenhauses ereignet. Insgesamt zeigt sich eine deutliche Diskrepanz zwischen den Ergebnissen der klinischen Forschung und der Versorgungssituation im Alltag. Um längerfristig die Versorgung der Patienten zu verbessern, sind gezielte Interventionen erforderlich, um die Einhaltung der Leitlinien durch die Ärzte zu fördern und die Compliance der Patienten mit Lebensstilmaßnahmen und medikamentöser Therapie zu verbessern. Längerfristige Ziele sind die Verringerung der Kluft in der kardiovaskulären Mortalität zwischen Ost- und Westdeutschland und eine weitere Reduktion der Mortalität durch eine verbesserte Prävention.Within Germany, there is a considerable regional variation in cardiovascular mortality with an increased mortality in the East compared to the West. The relative risk of cardiovascular death due to coronary heart disease or stroke is about 50% higher in East compared to West Germany. Despite an overall decrease in cardiovascular mortality in both East and West Germany, the risk ratio has remained largely constant since reunification. Possible explanations for the regional variation include differences in cardiovascular risk factors, socio-demographic factors, lifestyle, environmental conditions, and medical care. In addition, a high percentage of patients with cardiovascular diseases in Germany are not treated according to current international guidelines. Apart from an increased morbidity, inadequate treatment of risk factors may lead to a high amount of indirect costs due to productivity loss. Also, health-related quality of life is reduced in patients with cardiovascular diseases. As a high percentage of cardiovascular deaths occur prior to the arrival at the hospital, it is also important to educate people at risk about an appropriate help seeking behaviour in the case of an acute event (e. g. emergency number “112”). To conclude, research results are not sufficiently translated into routine medical care. Interventions are, therefore, needed to improve both compliance of physicians with current guidelines and compliance of patients with lifestyle measures and medication. In the long term, the gap in cardiovascular mortality between East and West Germany should be narrowed and preventive measures should be improved to further reduce cardiovascular mortality in Germany
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Aubanel, Vincent. "Variation phonologique régionale en interaction conversationnelle." Thesis, Aix-Marseille 1, 2011. http://www.theses.fr/2011AIX10002/document.
Full textAbstract:
C'est dans l'interaction sociale, lieu d'occurrence premier du langage parlé (Local, 2003) que la parole est apprise, qu'elle est produite quotidiennement et qu'elle évolue. De nouvelles approches interdisciplinaires de l'étude de la parole, notamment la sociophonétique ou les récents développements de l'interaction conversationnelle, ouvrent de nouvelles perspectives dans la modélisation du traitement de la parole. Une question centrale à cette entreprise est la caractérisation des représentations mentales associées aux sons de la parole. Pour traiter cette question, nous utilisons l'approche exemplariste du traitement de la parole, qui propose que les sons de la parole sont mémorisés en incorporant des informations contextuelles détaillées. Nous présentons une nouvelle tâche interactionnelle, GMUP (pour "Group ’em up"), destinée à recueillir les réalisations de matériel phonologique finement contrôlé produit par deux interactants dans un cadre expérimental écologiquement valide. Les variables phonologiques décrivent les différences existant entre deux variétés de français parlé, le français standard et le français méridional. Des outils de reconnaissance automatique de la parole ont été développés pour évaluer la convergence phonétique, observable de l'évolution des représentations mentales, à deux niveaux de granularité : au niveau catégoriel de la variable phonologique et au niveau plus fin, subphonémique. L’emploi de mesures acoustiques détaillées à grande échelle permet de caractériser finement les différences inter-individuelles dans l'évolution de la forme des réalisations acoustiques associées aux représentations mentales en interaction conversationnelleIt is in social interaction, the primary site of the occurrence of spoken language (Local, 2003) that speech is learned, that it is produced everyday and that it evolves. New interdisciplinary approaches to the study of speech, particularly in sociophonetics and in recent developments in conversational interaction, open new avenues for modeling speech processing. A central question in this enterprise relates to the caracterization of the mental representations of speech sounds. We address this question using the exemplarist approach of speech processing, which proposes that speech sounds are stored in memory along with detailed contextual information. We present a new interactional task, GMUP (which stands for "Group ’em up"), designed to collect realizations of highly-controlled phonological material produced by two interactants in an ecologically valid experimental setting. The phonological variables describe differences between two varieties of spoken French, Northern French and Southern French. Automatic speech recognition tools were developed to evaluate phonetic convergence, an observable of the evolution of the mental representations of speech, at two levels of granularity: at the categorical level of the phonological variable and at a more fine-grained, subphonemic level. The use of large-scale detailed acoustic measures allows us to finely caracterize interindividual differences in the evolution of the acoustic realizations associated with the mental representations of speech in conversational interaction
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Reuter, Ulrich. "The double dividend of more equally distributed FDI : analyzing regional variation in the FDI-growth nexus across Chinese cities." Graduate School of International Development, Nagoya University, 2005. http://hdl.handle.net/2237/6144.
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