Teses / dissertações sobre o tema "Investigating the FBI"

Thesis (M.S. in Security Studies (Homeland Security and Defense))--Naval Postgraduate School, March 2009.
Thesis Advisor(s): Schweit, Katherine D. "March 2009." Description based on title screen as viewed on April 23, 2009. Author(s) subject terms: Counterterrorism, Knowledge Management, Knowledge Transfer, Best Practices, Homeland Security, Training, Federal Bureau Of Investigation, FBI, Expert Registry, Center for Lessons Learned, Skill Building, Storytelling, Organizational Change, Mobile Education Team, MET Includes bibliographical references (p. 65-68). Also available in print.

Domestic intelligence is very important in preventing disorder while ensuring unity and security during a time of national crisis. However, if uncontrolled, domestic intelligence can be subject to political misuse, which causes serious damage both to individuals and to democratic institutions. There are various theoretical explanations for political misuse of domestic intelligence. The political use of domestic intelligence is best explained by the sociological theory of unfulfilled needs. On the other hand, political counterintelligence can be best explained by Threat Theory. In order for a domestic intelligence organization to be effective, its organizational discretion must be limited by establishing clear legislation that is not secret, on the focus, limits, and techniques of domestic intelligence. This system must be supported by a multi-level control mechanism.

The results are presented here of multi-wavelength observations centred on two fields of the Leiden-Berkeley Deep Survey, which form the basis for a study of the population and cosmic evolution of the high redshift, low power, Fanaroff & Riley class I (FRI) radio galaxies. These fields, Hercules.1 and Lynx.2, contain a complete sample of 81 radio sources with S_1.4GHz > 0.5 mJy within 0.6 square degrees. Wide-field, ~1.5 arcsec resolution, radio observations, along with near infra-red and optical imaging, and some multi-object spectroscopy, are used to select the best high-redshift FRI candidates, giving 37 in total. Currently, the host galaxy identification fraction is 86% with 11 sources remaining unidentified at a level of r > 25.2 (Hercules; 4 sources) or r > 24.4 (Lynx; 7 sources) and K > 20. Spectroscopic redshifts are determined for 49% of the sample and photometric redshift estimates are presented for the sample sources without spectra or previously published results. 95% of the 37 best FRI high-redshift candidate sources were then observed using sub-arcsecond radio resolution, with the aim of detecting extended emission with respect to compact core features - vital for unambiguous morphological classification. The nature of the radio observations meant that 10 extra sample sources could also be included in the data. Lower resolution data were also taken for the Lynx.2 field sources to provide a comparison with the 1.5 arcsec data. The classification of the entire radio sample is done in two stages. Sources which showed clear extension are classified by morphology alone, whereas sources with no obvious or weak extension were classified using a combination of morphology and flux density loss in the higher resolution data indicative of resolved out extended emission. Five groups are used for this - 'Certain FRIs', 'Likely FRIs', 'Possible FRIs', 'Unclassifiable sources' (for those not included in the higher resolution observations) and 'Not FRIs'. The final group numbers are 8, 10, 24, 33 and 6 for groups 1-5 respectively. The space densities of the maximum, probable and minimum FRIs are then calculated and compared to two previously published measurements of the local value, and with the behaviour of the strongest FRII sources. The results for all three groups show density enhancements of factors of 5-9 at z ~ 1.0 which implies cosmic evolution of the FRI population; this enhancement is also in very good agreement with that predicted by previous models. The behaviour of the FRI/FRII dividing luminosity, as a function of host galaxy absolute magnitude, at the different cosmic epochs of the sample, and for two different star formation histories, is also investigated. A shift to brighter absolute magnitudes is found to be inconsistent with the data but this conclusion is weak due to the lack of knowledge of the host galaxy stellar populations, and the small number of sources in the sample.

This qualitative study utilized elite, semi-structured interviews of a purposive sample of the first women who became Special Agents and supervisors in the highly gendered Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The historical context for their experiences is significant in light of social and legal mandates for equal opportunity and the increased interest in gender-specific research that took place during the 1970s. Literature relating to feminist perspectives, the integration of women into nontraditional occupations, and the gendered nature of bureaucracy supported the conceptual framework. Guided by educational criticism, four strategies were used recursively: typological analysis was used to define categories of data; interpretive analysis was used to identify patterns and connections in the data; evaluation was used to attach value to the data beyond the participants, and thematics were used to analyze pervasive messages within the data as a whole. Typologies included the choice of nontraditional careers, decision-making, efficacy as leaders, and efforts to negotiate the FBI’s bureaucracy. Three metaphors were used to interpret connections and patterns according to feminist standpoint theory, career self-efficacy theory, and various organizational principles. A Supergirl metaphor highlighted women’s unique knowledge and complex roles; a Target metaphor highlighted complex patterns for high achievement and response to obstacles, and a Clubhouse metaphor highlighted masculine culture, the role of rules, and changes to an organization’s equilibrium. Evaluation analysis addressed the moral obligation for women in leadership and the need for organizational diversity. Themes in the data included occupational pride, the challenge to manage multiple roles, an absence of relationship support, and inconsistency in feminist views.

In this body of work, the interactions of coagulation factor XI with high molecular weight kininogen and laminin-111 were investigated using various biophysical methods such as surface plasmon resonance technology and protein x-ray crystallography. These techniques were utilised to identify and characterize key binding sites. Prior to the start of this PhD study, a series of FXI binding peptides were developed by Novo Nordisk A/S (Denmark) with the aim of using them for FXI purification. Sequence alignment of these peptides revealed the shared tripeptide motif 'DFP' that is the main focus of this PhD investigation. This motif is also found in HMWK that circulates bound to FXI in plasma and in extracellular matrix laminin-111. Initially, the expression levels of human recombinant coagulation FXI is investigated. Following this, the successful co-crystallization of coagulation FXI with two 'DFP' binding peptides lead to the identification of a key hydrophobic pocket in the underside of the Apple 2 domain of FXI. The stoichiometry of the FXI-HMWK complex was also investigated using size exclusion chromatography and Edman degradation. Our data suggests that 1 FXI dimer circulates bound to 1 HMWK dimer. Surface plasmon resonance technology was utilised to probe the equilibrium binding constants of coagulation FXI interaction with full length HMWK and laminin. This study revealed multiple binding sites are involved in the protein complex formation. The 'DFP' motif is the shared binding motif between HMWK and laminin to FXI. The motif 'SDDDWIPDIQID' which is found N-terminus to the 'DFP' motif on HMWK was also identified to be important for HMWK binding to FXI. This part of the study also revealed that the peptides, domain 6 of HMWK and Laminin-111's G-like domain bound selectively to the apple 2 domain of FXI when compared with the apple 3 domain of FXI. Finally, coagulation assays were performed using platelet poor human plasma using activated partial thromboplastin time and calibrated automated thrombogram assays. We found that the 'DFP' peptides were able to alter coagulation parameters such as delaying the start of thrombin generation and reducing total thrombin generated in the absence of tissue factor. We also found that these `DFP' peptides did not interfere with the extrinsic pathway of coagulation.

This study develops and tests several hypotheses regarding the influence and the reliability of a range of variables related to the firm-specific interest of multinational corporations. This thesis presents an examination of foreign direct investment behaviour of the Triad countries’ firms from the firm-specific factors point of view using a large panel data covering 1985-2011. Adopting a firm-specific approach to FDI behaviour, it provides a two-stage analyses to find out (1) the probability of firm characteristics’ and firm specific factors’ affecting firms’ FDI decisions and (2) these factors’ role in determining the amount of FDI to be undertaken. Overall, empirical findings show support for the firm specific assets’ significant role in FDI behaviour.

Over the last two or three decades increasing and ever accelerating trends of environmental degradation have been recorded and widely reported in a number of international scientific works. As is often claimed, this situation is particularly attributable to globalization and the widespread increase of economic activities. The recognition that FDI represents a relevant part of globalization raises various concerns. However, its environmental implications are not easy to identify and this gives rise to complex arguments and contradictory views. This work aims to give a modest contribution to the scientific reflection on the FDI-environment relationship and is structured as follows. The first chapter introduces the main aspects of FDI and identifies the links characterizing its relationship with the natural environment. The second chapter provides a literature review. The third chapter is entirely dedicated to the empirical analyses which attempt to go beyond what is done in the literature. In fact, in addition to a major interest in trade, a particular orientation to develop analyses on national aggregated data is generally observed. Our work, instead - and this might be perceived as its original contribution - investigates the mentioned relationship at the level of specific activity sectors. Through the use of the econometric technique of panel data, a purpose-built dataset is investigated to mainly observe the effect that FDI inflowing in the "agriculture and fishing", the "manufacturing" and the "transport and communication" sectors of the OECD countries generates on the level of some considered pollutants. More specifically, the analysis of the "agriculture and fishing" sector focuses on both the FDI-CH4 (over the period 1990-2005) and FDI-CO2 from the sectoral fuel combustion (over the period 1981-2005) relationships. The "manufacturing" and "transport and communication" sectors are analysed only on the basis of the FDI-CO2 from the sectoral fuel combustion relationship (over the period 1981-2005). Two final chapters are respectively dedicated to the concluding discussion and policy considerations of the work. The results of our analyses, expressed in terms of cumulative effects, show that when the investigation of the "agriculture and fishing" sector is made to observe the CH4-FDI relationship, the coefficient results equal to + 0.0427 + 0.0018 FDI, this showing the increase of Methane emission when FDI grows by 1%. When the "agriculture and fishing" sector is analysed in relation to the CO2-FDI relationship, the cumulative effect coefficient becomes equal to - 0.0848 - 0.0036 FDI, this representing the response of CO2 as a result of 1% growth of FDI. The cumulative effect coefficient for the "manufacturing" sector is equal to + 0.0058 + 0.0014 FDI which represents the increase of the sectoral CO2 from fuel combustion when FDI grows by 1%. Finally, the coefficient of the cumulative effect for the "transport and communication" sector is found equal to + 0.0027 + 0.0014 FDI, this representing the growth of the sectoral CO2 from fuel combustion as a result of a 1% increase of FDI. If the inflow of FDI in each sector is considered at the sample mean value, then for "agriculture and fishing" an actual cumulative impact of +0.0213 is observed for the CH4-FDI and another of -0.0436 for the CO2-FDI relationship. An actual cumulative impact equal to +0.0051 is observed for the CO2-FDI relationship in the "manufacturing" sector and another of +0.0022 for the CO2-FDI in the "transport and communication" sector (values in natural logarithm of CO2 in Mt). Apart from the interpretation of the algebraic signs, which would make us say that FDI is beneficial to the environment when the sign of the identified effect is negative and vice-versa, it is worth underlining how a closer look at the quantitative aspect of our results would allow us to highlight the nearly-zero value and the almost neutral role that FDI exerts on the considered environmental indicators. This is also confirmed by the very small and almost quantitatively insignificant results achieved from assessing the impact FDI exerts on the considered pollutants through GDP. With regard to the "agriculture and fishing" sector, the impact of FDI on CO2 through GDP cannot be identified due to the insignificant result achieved in the estimation of the CO2-GDP relationship. Apart from this, however, an outcome equal to -0.0003 is observed when the impact of FDI inflowing in the "agriculture and fishing" sector on CH4 is assessed through GDP (with FDI and GDP considered at their sample mean value respectively). Similarly, a result of +0.00002 is observed when assessing the impact of FDI on CO2 through GDP in the manufacturing sector and another of +0.0006 when the "transport and communication" sector is made the subject of attention (values in natural logarithm of CO2 in Mt).

Extracellular ATP (eATP) is an important signalling molecule involved in regulation of plant growth and development, interactions with other organisms and responses to several environmental stimuli. The molecular targets mediating the physiological effects of eATP in plants remain to be identified. The work presented in this thesis focuses on identifying the signalling components that underlie the physiological roles of eATP in plants, with a strong emphasis on cell death control. An Arabidopsis thaliana (Arabidopsis) cell culture system combined with 2-dimensional difference in-gel electrophoresis (2D-DIGE) and mass spectrometry was used to identify proteins differentially expressed following ATP treatment. Twenty four putative cell death proteins were identified using the cell death-inducing toxin Fumonisin B1 (FB1) in combination with an ATP reversal filter. The potential role of these candidates in eATP- regulated cell death was tested using a variety of cell death assays on Arabidopsis T-DNA insertion KO mutants. The mitochondrial ATP synthase β-subunit, AT5G08690, was shown to be a novel cell death gene. The early effects of eATP on global protein and transcript abundance were also investigated. 2D-DiGE identified 53 proteins differentially regulated by ATP and bioinformatic analysis revealed new effects of eATP on general metabolism. Re- examination of a previously acquired DNA chip experiment that used ATP and FB1 treatments identified 10 genes that are differentially expressed within minutes by eATP that can be used as molecular markers. 2D-DiGE proteomics was also used to investigate the specific toxic effects of FB1 on Arabidopsis. A subset of proteins that were specifically regulated by FB1 treatment were tested for a role in FB1-induced cell death using cell death assays on Arabidopsis T-DNA insertion KO mutants. The UDP-glucose pyrophosphorylase, AT3G03250, was identified as a cell death gene responsive to FB1.

Schizophrenia is a severe and chronic disorder in many cases. The illness can impact on the whole family. Family interventions are a psychosocial treatment for schizophrenia. A robust evidence base has developed supporting the use of family interventions, as reduced relapse and other clinical benefits can be produced. The majority of service users in forensic services suffer from schizophrenia. Yet little is known about the need, acceptability or feasibility of family intervention in forensic services. The over-arching goal of this programme of research was to review the literature for family intervention and conduct a comprehensive needs assessment, with a final aim to resolve the barriers of implementation of family intervention within forensic services. Meta-analysis indicated that the efficacy of family interventions resulted in positive outcomes in reduced relapse and psychotic symptoms, and improved knowledge and relationships. Family interventions were found to be applicable to the psychological needs of forensic service users. Problems were identified with staff training and supervision on forensic wards, with few wards providing family intervention as part of treatment for schizophrenia. Relatives of forensic service users expressed a need for family intervention. Staff highlighted that the barriers to family intervention were associated with insufficient time, poor support, lack of training, deficient information sharing, and geographic limitations between family homes and the forensic units. Staff offered solutions to implementing family intervention that related to revised policy and improved supervision. Relatives and staff held positive attitudes toward family intervention with open-minded attitudes towards the use of a web camera to facilitate family intervention in forensic services (e-FFI). The fourteen week web based family intervention (e-FFI) feasibility study generated reduced levels of stress, stigma and expressed emotion with improvements in the family’s knowledge of schizophrenia, personal health and an acceptance of forensic services. E-FFI was administered with ease achieving positive feedback from the family and the forensic service.

Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2006.
The aim of this study was to investigate reasons/factors affecting the decline in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Botswana. It has been observed that there are many factors that help explain why the inflow of (FDI) is skewed towards developed nations. Principal amongst them is the population factor, that is, bigger markets and the level of technology. In the case of developing countries in general and Botswana in particular it was found out that FDI was attracted by the prospects of making massive profits. Therefore multinational companies invest mostly in developing countries which are endowed with natural resources such as ()iI, diamonds, gold and platinum. Although Botswana is endowed with diamonds and other natural resources, it has not been attracting the much needed FDI. Reasons advanced for its failure to attract good FDI include among others, small population, the bureaucratic civil service, lack of good infrastructure and lack of well trained human resources in the fields of science, engineering and financial services.

The evolution of cathode/electrolyte interface in solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) during operation is an important indicator for evaluating the overall performance of a cell. In this thesis, the most important and typical interfaces were studied in great details under wide range of SOFC operation conditions using combined focused ion beam-scanning transmission electron microscopy techniques. The results clearly demonstrate the dynamic relationship between interface, segregation, and performance of cathode materials for fuel cells.

This master’s thesis is made to increase the understanding of the dynamic characteristics of a typical large swing check valve used in a system that transports pressurized water to a reactor tank.3D FSI-simulations are performed for a number of transients in order to study the dynamic characteristics their dependence of the deceleration rate. The purpose is to find information about the dynamics that could be used in a future improvement of a 1D-model.Steady state simulations are performed for angles in the whole spectrum. Seven transient FSI-simulations with different constantly decelerating flows from 630 kg/s2 (6.7 m/s2) to 40 320 kg/s2 (430 m/s2) have been performed. The pressure on the disc caused by the hydraulic torque is integrated and the corresponding torque contribution, together with the weight torque, is used in the second law of motion to calculate the movement of the disc throughout the transients.Steady state simulations yield the pressure drop over the valve, which could be compared with field measurements in order to validate the CFD-simulations. Comparison of the pressure distribution on the disc for the steady state and transient simulations shows the importance of taking the disc angular velocity into account when modelling in 1D. Correlations between the angle, angular velocity, torque and mass flow are obtained from the transient FSI-simulations. Torque coefficients according to (Li & Liou, Vol. 125) are also brought out from the simulated transients, but in order to create a model in line with this approach further simulations have to be performed. A prediction of the pressure rise that occurs when a swing check valve closes in backward flow according to the Joukowsky equation is brought out and gives an idea of the loadings that the system has to be able to handle.

The controlled organization of individual molecules and nanostructures with nanoscale accuracy is of great importance in the investigation of single-molecule events in biological and chemical assays, as well as for the fabrication of the next generation optoelectronic devices. In this regard, the precise patterning of individual molecules into hierarchical structures has attracted substantial research interest in recent years. DNA has been shown to be an ideal structural material for this purpose, due to the specificity of its programmability and outstanding chemical flexibility. DNA origami can display a high degree of positional and precise binding sites, allowing for complex arrangements and the assembly of different nanoscale architectures. In this project, we present a novel platform based on the use of DNA scaffolds for the organization of individual nanomoieties (with nanoscale spatial control), and their selective immobilisation on surfaces for single-molecule investigations. In particular, semiconductor quantum dots (QDs), fluorescence molecules, linear small peptides, and structural proteins were tethered with single-molecule accuracy on DNA origami; their subsequent organization in array configuration on nanopatterned surfaces allowed us to fabricate and test different platforms for single-molecule studies. In particular, we developed a Focused Ion Beam (FIB) nanofabrication strategy and demonstrated its general applicability for the assembly of functionalised DNA nanostructures in highly uniform nanoarrays, with single-molecule control. In addition, we further explored this nanofabricated platform for biological investigations at the single-molecule level, from protein-DNA interactions to cancer cell adhesion studies with single-molecule control. Investigations have been carried out via fluorescence microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Focused Ion Beam (FIB) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). By and large, combining the programming ability of DNA as a scaffolding material with a one-step lithographic process, we have developed a platform of general applicability for the fabrication of nanoscale chips that can be employed in a variety of single-molecule investigations.

The rapid growth of the microelectronics industry in the last decades made it possible to produce structures in the sub-micrometer scale on silicon chips and to reach an integration scale under 100 nm. Decreasing the size and increasing the complexity of these structures make a control of quality and defects investigation more difficult. During a long time ultrasound devices are being used for nondestructive investigation of materials, like ultrasound microscopes, scanning photo-acoustic microscopes or scanning electron-acoustic microscopes, where acoustic waves are generated by acoustic transducers, focused laser or electron beams, respectively. The aim of this work is to investigate more precisely the acoustic wave generation by pulsed and periodically modulated ion beams in different solid materials depending on the beam parameters and to demonstrate the possibility to apply an intensity modulated focused ion beam (FIB) for acoustic emission and for nondestructive investigation of the internal structure of materials on a microscopic scale. The combination of a FIB and an ultrasound microscope in one device can provide the opportunity of nondestructive investigation, production and modification of micro- and nanostructures simultaneously. The FIB spot size in modern systems is comparable with that of a focused electron beam and the penetration depth of ions with energy of 20-60 keV is lower than 100 nm. This makes it possible to reach a sub-micrometer resolution of a scanning ion acoustic microscope. On the other hand side a FIB with energy of 20-60 keV is a good tool which can be used for the fabrication of nanostructures using ion milling, implantation or ion beam assisted deposition techniques. The bulk ultrasound emission in a solid was investigated using a pulsed high energy ion beam focused on aluminum, copper, iron and silicon samples. Oxygen, silicon and gold ion beams were applied in charge states from 1+ to 4+ with the pulse duration of 0.5 - 4 µs and an energy of 1.5 - 10 MeV. Intensity of the detected acoustic waves shows a linear dependence on the energy of the incident ions, on the ion flux as well as on the pulse duration. No influence of the ion charge and ion mass to the emission of acoustic waves was observed. The ion acoustic effect was applied for a nondestructive material inspection using intensity modulated FIB providing by the IMSA-100 FIB system with an accelerating potential of 30-35 kV. The achieved lateral resolution of this scanning ion acoustic microscope is in the micrometer range depending on the sample material and the beam modulation frequency. The resolution can be improved by increasing the frequency. The maximal modulation frequency which was obtained at IMSA-100 is about 2 MHz corresponding to lateral resolution of 4-5 µm on silicon. Using this microscope, some images of integrated microstructures on a silicon chip were obtained using the lock-in technique for filtering of the signal from the noise and increasing of the total imaging time. The possibility to visualize near sub-surface structure was demonstrated. Due to the strong sputtering effect and the long time of irradiation the imaged structures were significantly damaged. Si2+, Ge2+, Ga+ and Au+ ions were used. All these ions are quite heavy and have high sputtering coefficients. Long-time imaging improves the quality of acoustic images, i. e. the signal-to-noise ratio is reduced with the square root from the pixel time, but leads to significant erosion of the imaged structure.

The rapid growth of the microelectronics industry in the last decades made it possible to produce structures in the sub-micrometer scale on silicon chips and to reach an integration scale under 100 nm. Decreasing the size and increasing the complexity of these structures make a control of quality and defects investigation more difficult. During a long time ultrasound devices are being used for nondestructive investigation of materials, like ultrasound microscopes, scanning photo-acoustic microscopes or scanning electron-acoustic microscopes, where acoustic waves are generated by acoustic transducers, focused laser or electron beams, respectively. The aim of this work is to investigate more precisely the acoustic wave generation by pulsed and periodically modulated ion beams in different solid materials depending on the beam parameters and to demonstrate the possibility to apply an intensity modulated focused ion beam (FIB) for acoustic emission and for nondestructive investigation of the internal structure of materials on a microscopic scale. The combination of a FIB and an ultrasound microscope in one device can provide the opportunity of nondestructive investigation, production and modification of micro- and nanostructures simultaneously. The FIB spot size in modern systems is comparable with that of a focused electron beam and the penetration depth of ions with energy of 20-60 keV is lower than 100 nm. This makes it possible to reach a sub-micrometer resolution of a scanning ion acoustic microscope. On the other hand side a FIB with energy of 20-60 keV is a good tool which can be used for the fabrication of nanostructures using ion milling, implantation or ion beam assisted deposition techniques. The bulk ultrasound emission in a solid was investigated using a pulsed high energy ion beam focused on aluminum, copper, iron and silicon samples. Oxygen, silicon and gold ion beams were applied in charge states from 1+ to 4+ with the pulse duration of 0.5 - 4 µs and an energy of 1.5 - 10 MeV. Intensity of the detected acoustic waves shows a linear dependence on the energy of the incident ions, on the ion flux as well as on the pulse duration. No influence of the ion charge and ion mass to the emission of acoustic waves was observed. The ion acoustic effect was applied for a nondestructive material inspection using intensity modulated FIB providing by the IMSA-100 FIB system with an accelerating potential of 30-35 kV. The achieved lateral resolution of this scanning ion acoustic microscope is in the micrometer range depending on the sample material and the beam modulation frequency. The resolution can be improved by increasing the frequency. The maximal modulation frequency which was obtained at IMSA-100 is about 2 MHz corresponding to lateral resolution of 4-5 µm on silicon. Using this microscope, some images of integrated microstructures on a silicon chip were obtained using the lock-in technique for filtering of the signal from the noise and increasing of the total imaging time. The possibility to visualize near sub-surface structure was demonstrated. Due to the strong sputtering effect and the long time of irradiation the imaged structures were significantly damaged. Si2+, Ge2+, Ga+ and Au+ ions were used. All these ions are quite heavy and have high sputtering coefficients. Long-time imaging improves the quality of acoustic images, i. e. the signal-to-noise ratio is reduced with the square root from the pixel time, but leads to significant erosion of the imaged structure.

With the increase in length of wind turbine blades flutter is becoming a potential design constrain, hence the interest in computational tools for fluid-structure interaction studies. The general approach to this problem makes use of simplified aerodynamic computational tools. Scope of this work is to investigate the outcomes of a 3D CFD simulation of a complete wind turbine blade, both in terms of numerical results and computational cost. The model studied is a 5MW theoretical wind turbine from NREL. The simulation was performed with ANSYS-CFX, with different volume mesh and turbulence model, in steady-state and transient mode. The convergence history and computational time was analyzed, and the pressure distribution was compared to a high fidelity numerical result of the same blade. All the model studied were about two orders of magnitude lighter than the reference in computation time, while showing comparable results in most of the cases. The results were affected more by turbulence model than mesh density, and some turbulence models did not converge to a solution. In general seems possible to obtain good results from a complete 3D CFD simulation while keeping the computational cost reasonably low. Attention should be paid to mesh quality.

The clinical management of Factor XI (FXI) deficiency is problematic due to the marked phenotypic heterogeneity between individuals with this disorder and the lack of a reliable test to predict bleeding risk. FXI-deficient individuals are currently at risk of being over- or under treated, with associated risks of transfusion-related complications or haemorrhage respectively. The improvement of care of FXI-deficient patients requires the development of measures that can predict bleeding phenotype and enable the identification of individuals who need treatment at times of haemostatic challenge. In addition, for those requiring treatment, there is a need for development of tests which can determine the optimal type and dose of FXI replacement on an individually tailored basis, as well as assays which can accurately monitor the effect of treatment and guide clinicians in the requirement for further perioperative treatment. This thesis addresses these objectives by studying global haemostasis assays and bleeding scores as tools to predict bleeding tendency and by studying the utility of global haemostasis assays as potential tests by which FXI replacement treatment can be determined and monitored. For prediction of bleeding tendency, this research demonstrated that the thrombin generation assay (TGA) was able to differentiate bleeding tendency provided the sample conditions used in the assay were optimised to assess FXI involved coagulation pathways thought to be of relevance in vivo: using platelet rich plasma with inhibition of in vitro contact activation and a low tissue factor trigger. Thromboelastometry measured using the same sample type was similarly able to distinguish bleeding phenotype. However, when the potential clinical utility of the assays was compared using receiver operating characteristic curve analysis, thromboelastometry was inferior to TGA as an identifier of bleeding tendency. When the thromboelastometry sample type used was whole blood, or where assays were performed in the presence of tissue plasminogen activator the assays did not differentiate bleeding phenotype. For purposes of treatment planning, the potential of the TGA to determine the optimal dose of FXI replacement was assessed by in vitro spiking experiments using two commercially available FXI concentrates and samples from individuals with major FXI deficiency. Each concentrate improved thrombin generation, but dose response curves were found to differ, suggesting different properties for the two products. The clinical utility of the approach was then demonstrated with comparable TGA results obtained in ex vivo samples from patients treated with FXI concentrate and baseline samples spiked in vitro with equivalent amounts of the same FXI concentrate. The utility of global haemostasis assays to monitor the effect of FXI replacement in FXI-deficient individuals undergoing surgery was also tested. Improvement in assay parameters after treatment with solvent-detergent fresh frozen plasma or FXI concentrate was demonstrated suggesting assay value in FXI replacement monitoring. Finally the use of recently developed bleeding assessment tools and bleeding scores as descriptive, diagnostic or predictive measures was tested along with correlation with FXI:C levels and TGA parameters. This analysis confirmed that bleeding scores have a limited value in the clinical assessment of FXI deficiency.

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A combined experimental and computational investigation of the deformation behavior of pure magnesium single crystal at the micron length scale has been carried out. Employing the recently exploited method of microcompression testing, uniaxial microcompression experiments have been performed on magnesium single crystals with [0001], [2-1-12], [10-11], [11-20] and [10-10] compression axes. The advantage of the microcompression method over conventional mechanical testing techniques is the ability to localize a single crystalline volume which is characterizable after deformation. The stress-strain relations resulting from microcompression experiments are presented and discussed in terms of orientation dependent slip activity, twinning mechanisms and an anisotropic size effect. Such a mechanistic picture of the deformation behavior is revealed through SEM, EBSD and TEM characterization of the deformation structures, and further supported by 3D discrete dislocation dynamics simulations. The [0001], [2-1-12], and [10-11] compression axes results show dislocation plasticity. Specifically, the deformation due to [0001] compression is governed by pyramidal slip and displays significant hardening and massive unstable shear at stresses above 500MPa. In the case of the two orientations with compression along an axis 45 degrees to the basal plane, unsurpringly it is found that basal slip dominates the deformation. In contrast, compression along the [11-20] and [10-10] directions show deformation twinning in addition to dislocation plasticity. In the case of compression along [11-20], the twinning leads to easy basal slip, while the twin resultant during compression along [10-10] does not lead to easy basal slip. In all cases, a size effect in the stress-strain behavior is observed; the flow stress increases with decreasing column diameter. Furthermore, the extent of the size effect is shown to depend strongly on the number of active slip systems; compression along the [0001] axis is associated with 12 slips systems and displays a saturation of the size effect at a diameter of 10μm, while the other orientations still show a significant size effect at this diameter. The experimental evidence of an orientation-dependent deformation behavior in flow stress has been investigated by 3D discrete dislocation dynamics simulations. Here, the code TRIDIS was modified for hcp structure and c/a ratio of Mg. By matching the simulation results to experimental results, some proper constitutive material parameters such as initial dislocation density, dislocation source length, the critical resolved shear stress were suggested. For the case of [0001] and [2-1-12] orientation, dislocation feature in the pillar during the deformation was exhibited and strain burst was discussed

An experimental investigation of a vibrating Kaplan turbine runner was performed in order to understand the hydrodynamic effects and to obtain or confirm the mass and damping coefficients used for dimensioning at the design stage. Improved design can lead to increased efficiency and lifetime of hydropower stations. The method was based on the 90◦ phase shift between acceleration and velocity and their relationship with mass and damping respectively. The experiment examined frequencies between 1–9 Hz at displacements between 0.25–2.00 mm. Results showed a frequency dependent added mass which varied between 1.2 and 1.5 (neglecting the highest and lowest frequencies) and an added damping between 0.8 and 1.2 which became of importance at low frequencies. A mathematical interpretation of the fluid solid interactions (based on the constitutive equation for stresses in a Newtonian fluid) has been derived and connected to the obtained experimental data.

A combined experimental and computational investigation of the deformation behavior of pure magnesium single crystal at the micron length scale has been carried out. Employing the recently exploited method of microcompression testing, uniaxial microcompression experiments have been performed on magnesium single crystals with [0001], [2-1-12], [10-11], [11-20] and [10-10] compression axes. The advantage of the microcompression method over conventional mechanical testing techniques is the ability to localize a single crystalline volume which is characterizable after deformation. The stress-strain relations resulting from microcompression experiments are presented and discussed in terms of orientation dependent slip activity, twinning mechanisms and an anisotropic size effect. Such a mechanistic picture of the deformation behavior is revealed through SEM, EBSD and TEM characterization of the deformation structures, and further supported by 3D discrete dislocation dynamics simulations. The [0001], [2-1-12], and [10-11] compression axes results show dislocation plasticity. Specifically, the deformation due to [0001] compression is governed by pyramidal slip and displays significant hardening and massive unstable shear at stresses above 500MPa. In the case of the two orientations with compression along an axis 45 degrees to the basal plane, unsurpringly it is found that basal slip dominates the deformation. In contrast, compression along the [11-20] and [10-10] directions show deformation twinning in addition to dislocation plasticity. In the case of compression along [11-20], the twinning leads to easy basal slip, while the twin resultant during compression along [10-10] does not lead to easy basal slip. In all cases, a size effect in the stress-strain behavior is observed; the flow stress increases with decreasing column diameter. Furthermore, the extent of the size effect is shown to depend strongly on the number of active slip systems; compression along the [0001] axis is associated with 12 slips systems and displays a saturation of the size effect at a diameter of 10μm, while the other orientations still show a significant size effect at this diameter. The experimental evidence of an orientation-dependent deformation behavior in flow stress has been investigated by 3D discrete dislocation dynamics simulations. Here, the code TRIDIS was modified for hcp structure and c/a ratio of Mg. By matching the simulation results to experimental results, some proper constitutive material parameters such as initial dislocation density, dislocation source length, the critical resolved shear stress were suggested. For the case of [0001] and [2-1-12] orientation, dislocation feature in the pillar during the deformation was exhibited and strain burst was discussed.

The Morita-Baylis-Hillman (MBH) reaction is a carbon-carbon (C-C) bond forming reaction between an activated alkene and an aldehyde. It is a synthetically useful reaction due to the high atom economy and retention of multiple functional groups. Unfortunately, harsh reaction conditions are required during the MBH reaction and unpredictable product stereospecificity have hampered the widespread application of this reaction. Catalysis of the MBH reaction by enzymes has the potential to allow the reaction to occur at ambient conditions, while offering scope for improving the stereospecificity. This thesis focussed on the enzyme design of a MBH enzyme using thermostable fructose-1,6- bisphosphate (FBP) aldolases as scaffolds. These enzymes were chosen because there are common features between the aldol and MBH reactions, both making use of an enol intermediate to attack the aldehyde. In addition, aldolases typically accept a wide variety of substrates. Thermostable aldolases were selected for increased temperature tolerance creating a more desirable catalyst for industrial purposes. Thermoproteus tenax FBP aldolase (TtFBPA; WT and W144L, W144Y, K177A variants) and Staphylococcus carnosus FBP aldolase (ScFruA) were expressed and purified from E. coli. While the retro-aldol reaction catalysed by these enzymes could be easily monitored, the reverse reaction (aldol synthesis) is more difficult to quantify. Multiple methodologies for high throughput spectrophotometric detection of aldol activity were developed as a method of monitoring constructs made during directed evolution of the FBP aldolases. However, none of these proved successful in robustly determining aldol activity. The dihydroxyacetone phosphate (DHAP) mimic 1-hydroxy-3-buten-2-one phosphate (HBOP) was used to assay for MBH catalysis. While crystallographic studies with TtFBPA suggest that HBOP is bound to W144L TtFBPA in a manner compatible with the MBH reaction. NMR studies could not detect any corresponding activity. This suggests further protein engineering will be required to evolve this FBP aldolase to an MBH catalyst. In addition, our crystallographic and NMR studies with TtFBPA reveals this enzyme is capable of catalysing the formation of both FBP and tagatose-1,6-bisphosphate (TBP).Additionally, we determined the first structure of ScFruA. Interestingly, NMR experiments suggested ScFruA lacks significant control of the stereospecificity of the aldol condensation reaction and appears to catalyse the formation of FBP, TBP, xyluose-1,6- bisphosphate and psicose-1,6-bisphosphate. We conclude that while FPB aldolases could indeed provide useful scaffolds for the development of an MBH catalyst, the enzymes lack any inherent activity, necessitating the need for future creation of variants. The success of this approach will depend on the ability to screen mutant libraries for MBH product formation.

Cold mix asphalt (CMA) emulsion technology could become an attractive option for the road industry as it offers lower startup and equipment installation costs, energy consumption and environmental impact than traditional alternatives. The adhesion between bitumen and aggregates is influenced by diverse parameters, such as changes in surface free energies of the binder and aggregates or the presence of moisture or dust on the surface of aggregates, mixing temperatures, surface textures (including open porosity), nature of the minerals present and their surface chemical composition, as well as additives in the binder phase. The performance of cold asphalt mixtures is strongly influenced by the wetting of bitumen on surfaces of the aggregates, which is governed by breaking and coalescence processes in bitumen emulsions. Better understanding of these processes is required. Thus, in the work this thesis is based upon, the surface free energies of both minerals/aggregates and binders were characterized using two approaches, based on contact angles and vapor sorption methods. The precise specific surface areas of four kinds of aggregates and seven minerals were determined using an approach based on BET (Brunauer, Emmett and Teller) theory, by measuring the physical adsorption of selected gas vapors on their surfaces and calculating the amount of adsorbed vapors corresponding to monolayer occupancy on the surfaces. Interfacial bond strengths between bitumen and aggregates were calculated based on measured surface free energy components of minerals/aggregates and binders, in both dry and wet conditions. In addition, a new experimental method has been developed to study bitumen coalescence by monitoring the shape relaxation of bitumen droplets in an emulsion environment. Using this method, the coalescence of spherical droplets of different bitumen grades has been correlated with neck growth, densification and changes in surface area during the coalescence process. The test protocol was designed to study the coalescence process in varied environmental conditions provided by a climate-controlled chamber. Presented results show that temperature and other variables influence kinetics of the relaxation process. They also show that the developed test procedure is repeatable and suitable for studying larger-scale coalescence processes. However, possible differences in measured parametric relationships between the bitumen emulsion scale and larger scales require further investigation. There are several different research directions that can be explored for the continuation of the research presented in this thesis. For instance, the rationale of the developed method for analyzing coalescence processes in bitumen emulsions rests on the assumption that the results are applicable to large-scale processes, which requires validation. A linear relationship between the scales is not essential, but it is important to be able to determine the scaling function. Even more importantly, qualitative effects of the investigated parameters require further confirmation. To overcome the laboratory limitations and assist in the determination of appropriate scaling functions further research could focus on the development of a three-dimensional multiphase model to study coalescence processes in more detail, including effects of surfactants, pH and other additives such as mineral fillers and salts. Additionally, better understanding of the breaking process and water-push out could help significantly to optimize CMA mix design. Different methods, both numerical and experimental could be explored for this.
Cold mix asphalt (CMA) eller kall asfaltbetong med hjälp av emulsionsteknik kan vara ett attraktivt alternativ för vägbyggnadsindustrin då det möjliggör lägre uppstart- och investeringskostnader, lägre energiförbrukning och mindre miljöpåverkan än traditionella alternativ. Adhesionen mellan bindemedel och stenpartiklarna påverkas av ett flertal parametrar, så som förändring i fri ytenergi hos både bindemedel och partiklar i närvaro av fukt eller damm på stenytorna, blandningstemperatur, yttextur (inklusive ytporositet), mineralegenskaper och ytornas kemiska sammansättning lika väl som tillsatsmedel i bindemedlen. Beteendet hos kall asfaltbetong är starkt påverkad av vätningsegenskaperna hos bindemedlet när det kommer i kontakt med stenmaterialet och detta i sin tur är beroende på bitumenemulsionens brytegenskaper och förmåga att blandas. Bättre förståelse av dessa processer är av största vikt. I detta arbete är avhandlingen baserad på fri ytenergi hos både mineraler/aggregat och bindemedel, baserat på kontaktvinkel och på ångabsorptionsmetoder. Den exakta specifika ytan hos fyra typer av aggregat och sju mineraler undersöktes med en metod baserad på BET (Brunauer, Emmett och Teller):s teorier genom att mäta den fysiska adsorptionen av utvalda gaser på ytorna och beräkna mängden adsorberad ånga som korresponderade mot ytlagret. Styrkan hos kontaktytornas bindning mellan bindemedlet och stenaggregaten beräknades baserat på mätningar av den fria ytenergin hos bägge ingående komponenterna, dels i torrhet dels i våta omgivningar. Som tillägg har en ny experimentell metod utvecklats för att studera bitumens blandbarhet genom att studera bitumendroppars relaxation i en emulsionsmiljö. Genom att använda denna metod har korelationen mellan sväriska droppar av bitumen undersökts mot förändringen i ytans area under blandningsprocessen. Testprotokollet utformades för att studera blandningsprocessen i varierande miljöer i en klimatkammare. Presenterade resultat visar att temperatur och andra variabler påverkar de kinetiska förhållandena vid relaxationsprocessen. De visar även att den utvecklade testmetoden är repeterbar och passar för studier av storskaliga blandningsprocesser. Det bör dock påpekas att vidare studier krävs för att påvisa skillnaderna mellan bitumenemulsionsskalan och större skalor. Framtida forskning kommer att koncentreras på utveckling av tredimensionella multifas­modeller för att studera blandningsförlopp på en mer detaljerad nivå, inkluderande effekter på ytaktiva ämnen, pH-värden och andra additativ så som mineralfiller och salt. Som tillägg kommer nyttan av nya karaktäriseringsmetoder att utvärderas, så som lågvikelspridning av neutroner eller kombinationer av röntgen, neutronradiologi och datortomografi, för att studera brytmekanismer hos bitumenemulsioner vid kontakt med mineraler och aggregat.

QC 20160901

Friction Bit Joining (FBJ) is a recently developed spot joining technology capable of joining dissimilar metals. A consumable bit cuts through the upper layer of metal to be joined, then friction welds to the lower layer. The bit then snaps off, leaving a flange. This research focuses on FBJ using DP980 or DP590 steel as the lower layer, AZ31 magnesium alloy as the top layer, and 4140 or 4130 steel as the bit material. In order to determine optimal settings for the magnesium/steel joints, experimentation was performed using a purpose-built computer controlled welding machine, varying factors such as rotational speeds, plunge speed, cutting and welding depths, and dwell times. It was determined that, when using 1.6 mm thick coupons, maximum joint strengths would be obtained at a 2.03 mm cutting depth, 3.30 mm welding depth, and 2500 RPM welding speed. At these levels, the weld is stronger than the magnesium alloy, resulting in failure in the AZ31 rather than in the FBJ joint in lap shear testing.

The purpose of this project is to describe and explain the foreign investment decision process in the uncertain and turbulent environment of transition economy. By getting an in-depth understanding of how decision-making works in the environment of transition economy, the study intends to contribute to the development of business administration theory in the area of foreign investment decision-making, particularly its application in the turbulent and uncertain world. Theoretical ‘blocks’, elaborated on the basis of literature study, include the following concepts: the framework of transition economy; initial motivation (or reasons) of companies to make foreign direct investments (FDI); investigation of the investment climate and information collection methods; project evaluation and investment decision criteria; risk assessment factors and risk reduction measures. Transition economy is defined in the study as ‘a non-planned, non-market economy’ where the new emerging market institutions coexist with the bureaucracy and hierarchy inherited from the old administrative system. Investment projects, therefore, should probably be seen as being under institutional influence from both the local (i.e. transition economy) and the Western investor’s home country environments. The empirical data presented in the paper also shows that it is necessary to establish the relevant economic, legal, political and social institutions in order to attract FDI. The study further includes the analysis of the main components and features of transition economies and their influence on FDI decision-making. One of the results of the study is that FDI decision-making in transition economies is largely consistent with different theoretical approaches suggested in the literature. On the other hand, the empirical support obtained for different theoretical approaches is often questionable and opened to alternative interpretations. The presented project suggests that theoretical perspectives do not preclude each other, but rather have a complimentary character. The study attempts to contribute to the mainstream FDI theories through a firm-level approach based on the case studies. Two in-depth case studies are presented in the paper: Ericsson’s direct investments in Russia and Vattenfall’s investments in the Baltic countries. A formal questionnaire based on the parameters of theoretical ‘blocks’ was created and 25 top executives from Ericsson and Vattenfall who participated in FDI decision-making were surveyed. The empirical investigation took place during the period 1997 - 1998 with partial updating of the cases during the year 2000.  The study shows that where companies confront stable environments, investment decision routines and procedures will be less necessary and important than where market uncertainty is high. The strong appreciation of the local business partners for properly done investment calculations increases the importance of capital budgeting in transition economies more than in developed market economies. Besides, traditional investment appraisal methods provide managers with an ‘objective’ or ‘materialistic’ feedback for the decision-making in the rapidly changing uncertain environment. On the other hand, the study emphasises the importance of strategy over financial techniques and argues that FDI decisions in transition economies should be based on methods consistent with the company’s long-term objectives. In case of permanent changes, new approaches as well as better co-ordination of traditional techniques with strategic, political, historical, geographical and cultural issues are required. Ericsson’ s direct investments in Russia are presented in the paper in connection with other factors: the company’s historical involvement in Russia, marketing strategy, human resource development, privatisation and restructuring of the telecommunication sector in Russia, etc. Nordic Electric Power Co-operation (Nordel), the EU’ s decision in 1996 to create an internal electricity market in Europe, Baltic ring study, future plans to privatise the energy companies in the Baltic countries, etc., are the framework to present the second case. An application of project evaluation and risk assessment techniques for broader and more complicated environments shows that investment decision-making is probably as much, if not more, a social, political and cultural technology as an economic one. The study argues then that the rational choice decision-making model often co-exists with alternative models elaborated in social science - limited rationality, political and garbage can. According to the empirical data, the investment decisions are largely based on intuition, business experience and judgement, personal contacts with representatives from the local country, and these investment criteria are inevitable and acceptable in a situation of total chaos and permanent change. The right chosen partner, for example, is one of the major criteria for the success of the investment project in a transition economy. One of the outcomes of this study is that the revitalised form of investment decision-making will differ rather markedly from much of what has gone before: less emphasis on the quantitative aspects of capital budgeting, more on the qualitative aspects of companies and investment environment. The project also argues that determinants, approaches and criteria of investment activity in transition economies are largely consistent with patterns observed in other parts of the world. A few specific environmental conditions of transition economies, however, are shown in the study to affect the pattern of FDI decision-making. The level of turbulence is still different compared to the developed market economies due to uncertainties and unpredictibilities associated with environment of transition economies. Other major differences are the large power distance with authoritarian leadership, strong hierarchy and bureaucracy as well as the vital role of personal contacts in transition economies. It is not clear, however, if these features of transition economies should be seen as inherited from the past communist system or as an alternative way to organise the economic actors through networks, a way that is natural and appropriate for the majority of Asian societies.

Afin de ne pas prêter le flanc aux railleries et aux critiques, l’Église fait preuve d’une grande prudence à l’égard des déclarations de « guérison miraculeuse ». C’est dans cette perspective qu’elle s’attache à départager l’"authentique" et l’"inauthentique" parmi les manifestations de la vie religieuse et qu’elle considère que « les faux miracles doivent être discernés des vrais ». Ces distinctions ne vont pas de soi. Elles nécessitent des procédures d’enquêtes dont le fonctionnement reste largement inexploré par les sciences humaines. Si, depuis le XIe siècle, le magistère catholique exerce un droit de regard, allant s’élargissant, sur les miracles déclarés par les fidèles, c’est sans doute à la suite des événements de Lourdes (« apparitions » et « guérisons » à partir de 1858) que cette volonté de contrôle s’exprime sous une forme nouvelle. À une époque qui exalte les vertus de la rationalité scientifique, au moment précis où la médecine parisienne atteint le sommet de sa notoriété pour ses travaux sur l’hystérie, redoutant les controverses provoquées par « l’épidémie de guérison » qui suit les visions de Bernadette Soubirous, de nombreux membres de la hiérarchie catholique française souhaitent donner des formes plus respectables à ce que l’on peut considérer comme une « explosion de dévotion populaire » non orthodoxe et difficilement contrôlable. C’est dans le cadre de cette stratégie d’encadrement des événements que s’inscrit, en 1883, au sein même du sanctuaire de Lourdes, la création d’une instance médicale chargée de contrôler les revendications de guérisons miraculeuses. En s’attachant à analyser cette procédure de contrôle, spécifique au sanctuaire de Lourdes, cette thèse voudrait permettre de mieux comprendre la manière dont sont produits les miracles à Lourdes. Notre travail souhaite montrer qu’il est, au contraire, produit collectivement par un ensemble d’acteurs (témoins, médecins, ecclésiastiques…) engagés dans une activité concertée d’enquête complexe au résultat incertain
Not to invite the critics, the Church shows a big caution towards the declarations of "supernatural cure". It’s in this perspective that she attempts to decide between the "authentic" and between the "not authentic" among the demonstrations of the religious life and that she considers that " the false miracles must be discerned by the truths ". These distinctions are not obvious. They require investigation procedures the functioning of which remains widely unexplored by the human sciences. If, for the XIth century, the catholic magistery exercises a right to inspect, going widening, the miracles declared by the believers, it is doubtless following the events of Lourdes ("appearances" and "cures" from 1858) that this will of control expresses himself under a new shape. In a time which excites the virtues of the scientific rationality, at the precise moment when the Parisian medicine reaches the summit of its fame for its works on the hysteria, dreading the caused controversies by " the epidemic of cure " which follows the visions of Bernadette Soubirous, numerous members of the French catholic hierarchy wish to give more respectable forms to what we can consider as a explosion of popular worship not orthodox and with difficulty controllable. It is within the framework of this strategy of frame of the events that joins, in 1883, within the sanctuary of Lourdes, the creation of a medical authority asked to control the claiming of supernatural cures. By attempting to analyze this control procedure, this thesis would like to allow to understand better the way are produced the miracles in Lourdes. Our work wishes to show that it is produced, on the contrary, collectively by a set of actors (witnesses, doctors, clerics) committed in a joint activity of complex investigation to the uncertain result

Disease- and drug-related bone disorders are rapidly increasing in the population. The drugs which are used for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases and metabolic derangements, may have negative or positive effects on bone tissues. In the first study, the possible side-effects of Carbamazepine and epileptic seizures on bone structure and composition were investigated by FTIR and synchrotron-FTIR microspectroscopy, AFM and micro- and nano-hardness analysis. The effects on the blood parameters, bone turnover and vitamin D metabolism were also investigated by ELISA and western blot analysis. The current study provides the first report on differentiation of the effects of both epileptic seizures and AED therapy on bones. Besides Carbamazepine treatment, seizures also caused a decrease in the strength of bone. The biochemical data showed that both the epileptic and drug-treated groups decreased vitamin D levels by increasing the vitamin D catabolism enzyme
25-hydroxyvitamin D-24-hydroxylase. In the second study, the possible pleiotropic (positive) effects of cholesterol lowering drug
Simvastatin on bones were investigated by ATR-FTIR spectroscopy. The current study provides the first report on dose-dependent effects of simvastatin on protein structure and lipid conformation of bones. ATR-FTIR studies showed that although both high and low dose simvastatin strengthen bones, low dose simvastatin treatment is much more effective in increasing bone strength. Neural network analysis revealed an increased antiparallel and aggregated beta sheet and random coil in the protein secondary structure of high dose group implying a protein denaturation. Moreover, high dose may induce lipid peroxidation which limit the pleiotropic effects of high dose treatment on bones. This study clearly demonstrated that using low dose simvastatin is safer and more effective for bone health than high dose simvastatin treatment.

This thesis reports findings from a survey comparing the use of internal and external information services by business persons in the City of Brisbane. The Business Information: an investigation of its sources and use survey was undertaken on behalf of Queensland University of Technology (QUT) Library's Expert Information Service. The study made steps towards the understanding of not only where information is currently sourced, but also why business people prefer the services they currently use to source their information needs. The study has corroborated previous studies into business people's use of information resources and has achieved a better understanding of information use patterns and the potential future role of libraries and library based Fee Based Information Service (FBIS) units. Comparative case studies were undertaken to understand the Australian FBIS environment. FBIS's have developed within the Australian library environment to serve the information needs of business people. They have also developed out of a drive to provide income generation, independent of government funding, for the library that establishes the FBIS. Libraries and FBIS units have resources and expertise of potential value to business people; however, business people still lack an awareness of available information services and resources in general, and specifically in libraries or FBIS units. The main findings of this survey are that: (1) Architects and Small Business Managers are primary markets for FBIS units; (2) The main sources of information currently accessed to make business decisions are internal information services and professional associations; (3) External information service units are favoured for their ability to provide information searching and patents & standards access; (4) The Internet is currently used more than any other electronic form of information resource and an increase is expected in daily and weekly use; (5) Information overload and a lack of time to search for information are major concerns to business people; (6) The majority of respondents have never used a library based FBIS; and (7) Almost 50% of business people report that they have difficulty with not having a budget to acquire information and approximately 35% have no authority to purchase information. Overall the findings suggest that FBIS units should aim to understand the commercial paradigm, providing accurate, timely and up-to-date information for their clients in the most convenient and specific manner possible. The research findings suggest a number of implications for practice for FBIS units, as well as for libraries in Australia.

Imagine a world where someone’s personal information is constantly compromised, where federal government entities AKA Big Brother always knows what anyone is Googling, who an individual is texting, and their emoticons on Twitter. Government entities have been doing this for years; they never cared if they were breaking the law or their moral compass of human dignity. Every day the Federal government blatantly siphons data with programs from the original ECHELON to the new series like PRISM and Xkeyscore so they can keep their tabs on issues that are none of their business; namely, the personal lives of millions. Our allies are taking note; some are learning our bad habits, from Government Communications Headquarters’ (GCHQ) mass shadowing sharing plan to America’s Russian inspiration, SORM. Some countries are following the United States’ poster child pose of a Brave New World like order of global events. Others like Germany are showing their resolve in their disdain for the rise of tyranny. Soon, these new found surveillance troubles will test the resolve of the American Constitution and its nation’s strong love and tradition of liberty. Courts are currently at work to resolve how current concepts of liberty and privacy apply to the current conditions facing the privacy of society. It remains to be determined how liberty will be affected as well; liberty for the United States of America, for the European Union, the Russian Federation and for the people of the World in regards to the extent of privacy in today’s blurred privacy expectations.
B.S.
Bachelors
Health and Public Affairs
Legal Studies

Summaries in English, Afrikaans and Zulu
This study explored the determinants of foreign portfolio investment (FPI) in emerging markets, using panel data analysis. In all three models, main data analysis using the dynamic generalized methods of moments (GMM) approach showed that FPI was positively and significantly by its own lag. This result confirms the view in the literature (Barrell and Pain. 1999; Wheeler and Mody. 1992; Saini. 2000), which argues that existing foreign investors attract other foreign investors as a result of the positive spillovers that they generate. Financial development also had a positive and a significant effect on FPI in all the three models under the fixed effects, random effects and the fully modified ordinary least squares (FMOLS). Moreover, a significant positive relationship running from financial development towards FPI was also detected in model 1 under the pooled OLS method. The findings resonate with those of Bartels et al. (2009), whose study observed that financial markets improve international mobility of capital through their ability to make use of timely, cheaper and efficient to prospective foreign investors. Model 2 produced results that showed that the impact of financial development on FPI was significantly negative under the pooled OLS approach, in line with Gordon and Gupta’s (2004) findings. Trade openness positively affected FPI in a significant manner under the FMOLS, random and fixed effects in all the three models. Similar results were observed in model 1 and 3 under the pooled OLS approach. These results agree with Dobbs et al (2013) that openness to trade addresses any obstacles that might hinder the movement of international capital from one country to another. The complementarity between openness to trade and financial development had a significant negative impact on FPI in all the three models under the random effects, fixed effects and FMOLS. This result is similar to Al-Smadi’s (2018) finding that foreign investors can easily sell off their investments if financial markets are developed and liquid, especially in the presence of high levels of trade openness that facilitates the movement of capital across country borders (Dobbs et al. 2013). In contrast, model 2 under the pooled OLS showed that the combination between financial development and trade openness had a positive significant effect on FPI. This finding agrees with literature which notes that both trade openness and financial development separately and individually enhance FPI. The expectation therefore is that the combination of trade openness and financial development in a particular single country leads to greater FPI inflows. In model 1, the FMOLS, random and fixed effects showed that exchange rates had a significant positive impact on FPI, something that was found in all three models under the pooled OLS approach. This finding supports Haider et al.’s (2016) argument. Models 1, 2 and 3 showed a significant positive relationship running from economic growth to FPI under the fixed effects, FMOLS and pooled OLS econometric estimation techniques. Similar results were observed in models 1 and 2 under the random effects approach. The finding echoes Al-Smadi’s (2018) argument on the relationship between economic growth and FPI. In contrast, the dynamic GMM method showed that economic growth had a negative significant impact on FPI, supporting Leong and Wickramanayake’s (2004) argument that in the presence of high levels of economic growth, local investors prefer to buy back domestic securities from foreign investors, triggering a deleterious effect of FPI inflows. In model 1, the impact of savings on FPI was found to be significantly negative under the fixed effects, random effects, pooled OLS and FMOLS approaches. Similar results were found in model 2 under the random effects and the pooled OLS. These findings contradict the available literature (Masood and Mohsin. 2002; Abdelhafidh. 2013; Ferreira and Laux. 2009) but are similar to those of Al-Smadi (2018), who argues that higher levels of inflation wipe out the value of not only return on capital but also of the original capital invested. Inflation had a significant negative effect on FPI in models 1 and 2 under the pooled OLS approach. Human capital development had a significant positive influence on FPI in models 1 and 2 under the pooled OLS and the dynamic GMM approaches. This result supports Dunning’s (1988) argument that locational advantages exert a significant influence on foreign direct investment or any form of foreign investment. Human capital development was found to be a locational advantage for foreign investment in this case, as Tsaurai (2017a) found.
In hierdie studie is die bepalers van buitelandse portefeuljebelegging (BPB) in ontluikende markte aan die hand van ʼn paneeldataontleding verken. In al drie die modelle het ʼn hoofdataontleding volgens die benadering van dinamiese, veralgemeende metodes van momente (VMM) aangetoon dat sy eie vertraging BPB positief en opmerklik beïnvloed. Hierdie uitslag onderskryf die bevindings in die literatuuroorsig (Barrell & Pain 1999; Wheeler & Mody 1992; Saini 2000). Hiervolgens word aangevoer dat bestaande buitelandse beleggers ander buitelandse beleggers deur hulle positiewe surplusse aanlok. Ook finansiële ontwikkeling het in al drie die modelle onder die benadering van vaste en ewekansige effekte en volgewysigde gewone kleinste kwadrate (VGGKK) ʼn positiewe en opmerklike effek op BPB gehad. Daarby is ʼn opmerklik positiewe verband, wat van finansiële ontwikkeling tot BPB strek, onder die saamgevoegde gewone kleinstekwadrate- oftewel GKK-metode in model 1 bespeur. Hierdie bevinding staaf dié van Bartels et al (2009) dat finansiële markte die internasionale mobiliteit van kapitaal verbeter deurdat hulle tydig goedkoper en doeltreffende inligting aan voornemende buitelandse beleggers verstrek. Die uitslag van model 2, dat die uitwerking van finansiële ontwikkeling op BPB onder die saamgevoegde GKK-benadering opmerklik negatief is, strook met die bevindings van Gordon en Gupta (2004). Oop handel het BPB onder die VGGKK, ewekansige en vaste effekte in al drie die modelle op ʼn opmerklike wyse positief geaffekteer. Soortgelyke uitslae is in model 1 en 3 onder die saamgevoegde GKK-benadering waargeneem. Hierdie uitslae stem ooreen met dié van Dobbs et al (2013), naamlik dat oop handel baie hindernisse uit weg ruim wat die beweging van internasionale kapitaal van een land na ʼn ander belemmer. Die komplementariteit tussen oop handel en finansiële ontwikkeling het ʼn opmerklik negatiewe uitwerking op BPB in al die modelle onder die benadering van ewekansige effekte, vaste effekte en VGGKK gehad. Hierdie uitslag klop met Al-Smadi (2018) se bevinding dat buitelandse beleggers hulle beleggings maklik van die hand kan sit as finansiële markte ontwikkeld en likied is, en in die besonder as handel in hoë mate oop is en kapitaal met gemak oor landsgrense heen kan beweeg (Dobbs et al 2013). In teenstelling hiermee het model 2 onder die saamgevoegde GKK getoon dat die kombinasie van finansiële ontwikkeling en oop handel ʼn opmerklik positiewe effek op BPB het. Hierdie bevinding stem ooreen met dié in die literatuur dat oop handel en finansiële ontwikkeling gesamentlik en afsonderlik BPB aanwakker. Dienooreenkomstig word verwag dat oop handel en finansiële ontwikkeling groter BPB na in ʼn land sal laat vloei. Die VGGKK en ewekansige en vaste effekte het in model 1 getoon dat wisselkoerse ʼn opmerklik positiewe uitwerking op BPB gehad het. Dit het trouens in al drie die modelle onder die saamgevoegde GKK-benadering voorgekom. Hierdie bevinding beaam Haider et al (2016) se argument. Model 1, 2 en 3 het ʼn opmerklik positiewe verband, wat van ekonomiese groei tot BPB strek, onder die vaste effekte, VGGKK en saamgevoegde GKK ekonometriese ramingstegnieke aangedui. Soortgelyke uitslae is in model 1 en 2 onder die benadering van ewekansige effekte waargeneem. Hierdie bevinding sluit aan by Al Smadi (2018) se argument oor die verband tussen ekonomiese groei en BPB. Hierteenoor het die dinamiese GMM-metode getoon dat ekonomiese groei ʼn negatiewe, opmerklike uitwerking op BPB gehad het. Dit staaf Leong en Wickramanayake (2004) se argument dat plaaslike beleggers verkies om binnelandse sekuriteite by buitelandse beleggers terug te koop as ʼn hoë mate van ekonomiese groei aanwesig is, en dat dit ʼn nadelige effek op die invloei van BPB het. In model 1 was die uitwerking van spaargeld op BPB opmerklik negatief onder die benadering van vaste effekte, ewekansige effekte, saamgevoegde GKK en VGGKK. Soortgelyke resultate het in model 2 voorgekom onder die ewekansige effekte en die saamgevoegde GKK. Ofskoon hierdie bevindings strydig met dié in die beskikbare literatuur is (Masood & Mohsin 2002; Abdelhafidh 2013; Ferreira & Laux 2009), strook dit met dié van Al-Smadi (2018) wat beweer dat hoë inflasie nie alleen die opbrengs op kapitaal nie, maar ook die oorspronklike kapitaal uitwis. Inflasie het ʼn opmerklik negatiewe effek op BPB in model 1 en 2 onder die saamgevoegde GKK- en dinamiese VMMbenadering gehad. Die ontwikkeling van menslike kapitaal het ʼn beduidend positiewe invloed op BPB gehad in model 1 en 2 onder die saamgevoegde VKK- en die dinamiese VMM-benadering. Hierdie uitslag beaam Dunning (1988) se argument dat landsgebonde voordele ʼn beduidende invloed op direkte buitelandse belegging of enige ander vorm van buitelandse belegging uitoefen. Tsaurai (2017a) het bevind dat die ontwikkeling van menslike kapitaal in hierdie geval ʼn landsgebonde voordeel vir buitelandse belegging inhou.
Lolu cwaningo luye lwaphenya izizathu zokutshalwa kwezimali emazweni angaphandle, phecelezi (foreign portfolio investment (FPI) ezimakethe ezisafufusayo, ngokusebenzisa uhlelo lokuhlaziywa kwedatha, phecelezii-panel data analysis. Kuwo onke amamodeli omathathu, kuhlelo lokuhlaziywa kwedatha esemqoka, ngokusebenzisa izindlela eziguquguqukayo zezikhathi ezahlukene (GMM) , lokhu kuye kwakhombisa ukuthi i-FPI yathola umthelela omuhle futhi okungumthelela wayo wokushiywa yisikhathi. Lo mphumela uqinisekisa ulwazi olutholakele olumayelana nokubuyekezwa kombhalo wobuciko (Barrell & Pain 1999; Wheeler & Mody 1992; Saini 2000), okuwumbhalo okhuluma ngokuthi abatshalizimali bangaphandle abakhona baheha abanye abatshalizimali bangaphandle okuyinto edalwa yizinzuzo ezinhle ezingumphumela wokutshalwa kwezimali. Ukuthuthukiswa kwezinhlelo zezimali nakho kube nomthelela omuhle nobalulekile kwi-FPI, kuwo wonke amamodeli amathathu, angaphansi kwesimo semiphumela enqunyelwe isikhathi, angaphansi kwemiphumela yazo zonke izinhlelo eziguqulwe ngokugcwele phecelezi fully modified ordinary least squares (FMOLS) . Ngaphezu kwalokho, ubudlelwano obuhle obusemqoka, obuqala ekuthuthukisweni kwezinhlelo zezimali ukuya kuhlelo lwe-FPI, nabo lobudlelwano buye babonakala kumodeli 1, ngaphansi kohlelo lwe pooled OLS method. Ulwazi olutholakele lufana nalolo lukaBartels et al. (2009), lapho ucwaningo lwakhe lwathola ukuthi izimakethe zezimali zithuthukisa ukuthunyelwa kwezimali emhlabeni ngekhono lokusebenzisa ulwazi lwalo ngesikhathi, ngentengo ephansi futhi ulwazi olufanele, lolu lwazi luthunyelwa kubatshalizimali bangaphandle abathembisayo. Imodeli 2 ikhiqize iveze imiphumela ethi umthelela wokuthuthukiswa kwezinhlelo zezimali ohlelweni lweFPI luye lwabonakala lulubi kakhulu ngaphansi kohlelo lwepooled OLS approach, lokhu kuhambisana nolwazi olutholwe nguGordon kanye noGupta (2004). Uhlelo lwezokuhwebelana oluvulekile luye lwaba nomthelela omuhle ohlelweni lweFPI, ngendlela esemqoka kakhulu, ngaphansi kohlelo lweFMOLS, ngaphansi kohlelo lwemiphumela enqunyelwe isikhathi nohlelo olunganqunyelwanga isikhathi, kuwo wonke amamodeli amathathu. Imiphumela efana naleyo yatholakala kumodeli 1 neye 3, ngaphansi kohlelo lwepooled OLS approach. Le miphumela ihambisana naleyo kaDobbs et al. (2013), yona ngile elandelayo; uhlelo oluvulekile lokuhwebelana luyisisombululo sanoma yiziphi izihibe ezingaphazamisa ukuthunyelwa kwezimali emhlabeni ukusuka kwelinye izwe ukuya kwelinye. Ukusebenzisana phakathi kohlelo lokuhweba oluvulekile kanye nohlelo lwezokuthuthukiswa kwezinhlelo zezimali kuye kwaba nomthelela ongemuhle kwiFPI, kuwo wonke amamodeli omathathu, ngaphansi kwemiphumela enganqunyelwanga isikhathi, imiphumela enqunyelwe isikhathi kanye nakwihlelo lweFMOLS. Lo mphumela ufana nalowo ka-Al-Smadi’s (2018) othi abatshalizimali bangaphandle bangatshala kalula izimali zabo uma izimakethe zezimali zithuthukile futhi zinemali elingene, ikakhulukazi uma kukhona amazing aphezulu wohlelo oluvulekile lokuhwebelana, okungamazinga ahola uhlelo lwezokuthunyelwa kwezimali ngaphesheya kwemingcele yamazwe (Dobbs et al. 2013). Okuphikisana nalokhu, imodeli 2, ngaphansi kohlelo lwepooled OLS, luye lwakhombisa ukuthi ukuhlanganiswa kohlelo lwezokuthuthukiswa kwezinhlelo zezimali kanye nohlelo oluvulekile lwezokuhwebelana kuye kwaba nomthelela omuhle kakhulu kwiFPI. Lolu lwazi olutholakele luvumelana nombhalo wobuciko, wona oshoyo ukuthi zombili lezi zinhlelo uhlelo oluvulekile kwezohwebo kanye nokuthuthukiswa kwezinhlelo zezimali, ezehlukene kanye nalezo ezizimele ngayinye, ziqinisa uhlelo lweFPI. Ngalokho, okulindelwe, ukuthi umbimbi oluxuba uhlelo oluvulekile lwezokuhwebelana kanye nezinhlelo zokuthuthukiswa kwezimali, ngandlelathize,, ezweni elilodwa, ziholela izinga eliphezulu lokungena kweFPI. Kumodeli 1, uhlelo lweFMOLS, imiphumela enganqunyelwe naleyo enqunyelwe isikhathi iye yabonisa ukuthi amazinga okushintshelana ngezimali abe nmothelela omuhle kakhulu kwiFPI; okuyinto etholakele kuwo wonke amamodeli omathathu angaphansi kohlelo lwe pooled OLS. Lolu lwazi olutholakele luxhasa umbono kaHaider et al’s (2016. Amamodeli Models 1, 2 kanye neye 3 ziye zakhombisa ubudlelwano obuhle kakhulu obuqala ekuthuthukisweni kwezomnotho ngokohlelo lwe FPI, ngaphansi kwesimo semiphumela enqunyelwe isikhathi, ngaphansi kohlelo lwe FMOLS kanye nasohlelweni lwe pooled OLS okuyindlela esetshenziswa ukulinganisa izinga lokuhluma komnotho. Imiphumela efana nayo le iye yatholakala kumodeli 1 kanye nakumodeli 2, ngaphansi kwemiphumela enganqunyelwe sikhathi. Ulwazi olutholakele luveza imibono ka-Al-Smadi (2018) mayelana nobudlelwano obuphakathi kokuhluma komnotho kanye nohlelo lwe FPI. Okuphikisana nalokho, indlela eguquguqukayo iGMM iye yakhombisa ukuthi ukuhluma komnotho kuye kwaba nomthelela omubi kakhulu kwi FPI, uxhasa umbono ka Leong kanye no Wickramanayake (2004) othi, uma kunamazinga aphakeme okukhula komnotho, abatshalizimali basekhaya bathanda ukuthenga amasheya amabhizinisi asekhaya kubatshalizimali bangaphandle, lokho kuba nomthelela omubi kakhulu ekungeneni kwe FPI. Kumodelil 1, umthintela wokongiwa kwezimali ohlelweni lwe FPI watholakala ukuthi ube nomthelela omubi kakhulu, ngaphansi kwesimo semiphumela enqunyelwe isikhathi, kwemiphumela enganqunyelwanga isikhathi, ohlelweni lwe pooled OLS kanye nasezinhlelweni ze FMOLS. Imiphumela efana nayo le iye yatholakala kumodeli 2, ngaphansi kwemiphumela enganqunyelwe kanye naleyo enqunyelwe isikhathi kanye nasohlelweni lwe pooled OLS. Lolu lwazi olutholakele luphikisana nolwazi lombhalo wobuciko okhona (Masood & Mohsin 2002; Abdelhafidh 2013; Ferreira & Laux 2009), kanti futhi le miphumela ifana naleyo ka-Al-Smadi (2018), yena oshoyo ukuthi amazinga aphezulu amandla emali akaqedi kuphela inzuzo yokutshalwa kwezimali, kodwa aqeda nemali yokuqala etshaliwe. Amandla email aye aba nomthelela omubi kakhulu kwi FPI, kumodeli 1 kanye nnakumodeli 2, ngaphansi kohlelo lwe pooled OLS. Ukuthuthukiswa kwamagugu ayikhono nezingqondo zabasebenzi aye aba nomthelela omuhle ohlelweni lwe FPI, kumamodeli 1 kanye nakumodeli 2, ngaphansi mkohlelo lwe pooled OLS kanye nezindlela eziguquguqukayo ze GMM. Lo mphumela uxhasa umbono kaDunning (1988) othi izinzuzo zendawo ziba nomthelela omuhle kakhulu ohlelweni oluqondile lwezokutshalwa kwezimali emazweni angaphandle noma ngiluphi uhlelo lwezokutshalwa kwezimali emazweni angaphandle. Ukuthuthukiswa kwamagugu angamakhono kanye nemibono yabasebenzi kuye kwatholakala kuyinzuzo yendawo ekutshalweni kwezimali emazweni angaphandle kulesi simo, njengoba lokhu kuye kwatholakala kuTsaurai (2017a).
Business Management
M. Com. (Management Studies)

The liberalization of FDI is deepening, so have the incentive schemes put in place by a number of countries. Investment promotion agencies in these countries are seen to be actively promoting their countries as the best locations for foreign direct investment (FDI). With FDI emerging as a fovourite source of capital for most countries, profound questions about the true value of FDI to host countries are addressed in this study. While incentive packages may be justified on the basis of incomplete internalization of FDI benefits by foreign firms, it still remains critical to establish whether these benefits (spillovers) are substantive. As an attempt to answer these questions, this dissertation uses both firm level and country level data to investigate the effects of foreign direct investment (FDI) on productivity and economic growth. The first part of the study uses cross sectional firm level data to investigate whether foreign firms are more productive than domestic firms. We further examine whether there are any significant productivity spillovers from foreign to domestic firms or not. SIn the second part, focus is on country level analysis which uses both time series and panel data techniques. In the time series analysis we use the recent Toda-Yamamoto causality testing framework to determine the direction of causality between FDI and growth for three groups of countries: developing, emerging and developed countries. This is followed by fixed effects and dynamic panel data analyses for the 37 countries (9 developing, 12 emerging and 16 developed) where we test for absorptive capacity effects. Our findings show that results are determined to a great extent by the method of analysis. Interesting findings emerge from this study. The firm level data revealed the importance of multinational corporations in improving domestic firm productivity. With this finding, we anticipate these results to filter through the macro system and show up in the time series and panel data analyses. In the case of developing economies, productivity differences between domestic and foreign firms are confirmed only where the definition of FDI is below the full ownership level. Positive but statistically insignificant spillovers are found in the developing country sample. From the emerging economy sample, we iii find neither significant productivity differences nor related spillovers from foreign to domestic firms. With regards to developed economies, as in the case of emerging economies, there are no statistically significant productivity differences between domestic and foreign firms. Interestingly, for this sample, positive and highly significant spillovers from foreign to domestic firms are documented. The Toda Yamamoto Granger causality framework shows unidirectional causality from FDI to GDP in Colombia, Egypt and Zambia. These results suggest that in these three countries, we have a case of growth enhancing FDI. There is also evidence of causality which runs from GDP to FDI in China, Indonesia, France, Japan, Spain and the United Kingdom. This is a case where higher levels of economic activity attract foreign direct investment. We also find evidence of bi-directional causality for Argentina, Kenya and Thailand. No clear cut relationship between FDI and growth is established in the rest of the countries: Brazil, Chile, Ghana, India, Jordan, Madagascar, Malawi, Morocco, South Africa and all but four of the developed economies. The dynamic panel data analysis for the developing economy sample reveals positive effects between FDI and economic growth. A key finding from this is the negative impact of financial development, an absorptive capacity measure. This unexpected result raises the possibility of international capital flows becoming more harmful to developing economies when extensive development of the domestic financial sector makes it difficult to regulate financial transactions of relatively esoteric financial contracts. This evidence there should be a nuanced embrace of financial globalization by developing economies. In the emerging economy analysis, the roles of openness of the economy and financial development as absorptive capacity indicators are elevated. Overall, the dynamic analysis shows a largely negative and statistically insignificant effect of FDI on economic growth. For developed economies, we find that negative effects of FDI on economic growth are encountered at both the minimum and mean levels of openness. This suggests that for developed economies, a level of openness above the mean value would be ideal for economic growth to be realized through FDI. iv Corroborating our findings with the work of other scholars, we conclude that our results are complementary. It appears that the contradictions inherent in the FDI-Growth literature could be partly due to methodological differences.

碩士
大葉大學
工業工程與科技管理學系碩士在職專班
97
In this paper, the impact of the correlation on the performance of multiple-cell MC-CDMA (multiple-cell codel-division multiple-access) cellular systems in FBS(further base station) environment with fading channels is investigated. A new closed-form formula for the joint probability density function (joint pdf) of the diversity combiner with arbitrary correlation coefficients in terms of the generalized Laguere polynomial and new expressions of average bit-error rate (BER) for the MC-CDMA system are given in this paper. The results demonstrate that the BER is significantly dependent on the correlation characteristic of diversity branching for multiple-cell environments.

Holes with different sizes from microscale to nanoscale were directly fabricated by focused ion beam (FIB) milling in this paper. Maximum aspect ratio of the fabricated holes can be 5:1 for the hole with large size with pure FIB milling, 10:1 for gas assistant etching, and 1:1 for the hole with size below 100 nm. A phenomenon of volume swell at the boundary of the hole was observed. The reason maybe due to the dose dependence of the effective sputter yield in low intensity Gaussian beam tail regions and redeposition. Different materials were used to investigate variation of the aspect ratio. The results show that for some special material, such as Ni-Be, the corresponding aspect ratio can reach 13.8:1 with Cl₂ assistant etching, but only 0.09:1 for Si(100) with single scan of the FIB.
Singapore-MIT Alliance (SMA)

博士
國立交通大學
光電工程所
87
This dissertation consists of three parts. The first part investigates two special erbium-doped fiber amplifiers (EFDA's). In Chapter 2, power-equalized EFDA modules are constructed by inserting a section of homemade Samarium-doped fiber or several short-period fiber Bragg gratings (FBG's) in EDFA. The characteristics and performances of them are addressed. Measured results of the operation dynamic range and gain variation in the 1.55 mm band are provided. In Chapter 3, optical limiting amplifier (OLA) are proposed and discussed. They are based on multiplexer/demultiplexer pair filter or FBG-integrated-optical-circulator (OC). We have experimentally verified that a single WDM OLA can handle a ring size of 150 km at SONET OC-48 channel rate. The impact of back reflection of the amplified signal in the FBG-based OLA is also experimentally verified and theoretically discussed. The second part of this dissertation, including Chapters 4, 5 and 6, proposes three important FBG-based devices for vast applications in optical networks and lightwave system. There are multiwavelength fiber lasers, wavelength add/drop multiplexers (WADM) and optical cross-connect (OXC) devices. The multiwavelength fiber lasers are either a wavelength-selective ring-cavity lasers or pump-sharing scheme, linear-cavity laser arrays. Power equalization among wavelengths is achieved by several methods: inserting micro-benders between adjacent FBG's, using parameter-adjustment, or by adding FBG's into the individual channels as pump reflectors. Based on FBG's and OC's, various approaches are used to construct both the WADM and OXC devices for applications in optical networks. The characteristic of WADM and OXC devices are presented and compared with some conventional designs. The third part of this dissertation, including Chapters 7 and 8, proposes and discusses several experimental configurations for unidirectional and bidirectional lightwave systems. The conventional EDFA's are used to compensate for the fiber loss in each experiment. A hybrid unidirectional WDM system, including both digital and analog channels, is experimentally demonstrated. The crosstalk rejection requirements for such a hybrid WDM system are studied. Based on the using of WDM multiplexer/demultiplexer pair, two novel bidirectional wavelength add/drop and bidirectional transmission configuration are experimentally demonstrated. Two kinds of bidirectional EDFA's based on FBG's are also proposed. Power penalty induced from various back-reflection effects, mainly the Rayleigh backscattering, in a bidirectional WDM system is measured. The crosstalk rejection requirements for a WDM multiplexer/demultiplexer pair in bidirectional lightwave system are also provided. Finally, summary of the research results and suggestion for future work are presented.

abstract: With the high demand for faster and smaller wireless communication devices, manufacturers have been pushed to explore new materials for smaller and faster transistors. One promising class of transistors is high electron mobility transistors (HEMT). AlGaAs/GaAs HEMTs have been shown to perform well at high power and high frequencies. However, AlGaN/GaN HEMTs have been gaining more attention recently due to their comparatively higher power densities and better high frequency performance. Nevertheless, these devices have experienced truncated lifetimes. It is assumed that reducing defect densities in these materials will enable a more direct study of the failure mechanisms in these devices. In this work we present studies done to reduce interfacial oxygen at N-polar GaN/GaN interfaces, growth conditions for InAlN barrier layer, and microanalysis of a partial InAlN-based HEMT. Additionally, the depth of oxidation of an InAlN layer on a gate-less InAlN/GaN metal oxide semiconductor HEMT (MOSHEMT) was investigated. Measurements of electric fields in AlGaN/GaN HEMTs with and without field plates are also presented.
Dissertation/Thesis
Doctoral Dissertation Physics 2018

Recruiting talented student-athletes is integral to the success of an athletics program. Yet, some universities and individuals therein have been willing to violate National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) recruiting regulations to lure talented athletes to play at their institution. Institutional and isomorphic pressures of discouraging unethical recruiting behavior and practice rely heavily upon the rationalization and institutionalizing of social phenomena through written policy in NCAA Bylaw 13. These policies may be identified as cartel agreements, where a group creates rules to control actions that assure economic profit. Although recruiting top talent may lead to increased victories and revenues, most NCAA athletic departments do not make a profit and being sanctioned for violating NCAA recruiting rules may lead to damaged institutional reputation. In response, universities have invested resources to protect institutional prestige through a comprehensive NCAA rules compliance program. Nevertheless, undisclosed recruiting violations transpire because there are financial incentives to violate NCAA rules. Three separate works were utilized to examine the economic, institutional, and individual factors of NCAA institutional control. First, institutional factors of reported NCAA recruiting violations were analyzed through a series of chi-square tests. Correlative institutional factors were found in particular types of Bylaw 13 violations including conference affiliation, geographic region, sports involved in a major infraction, and size of full-time athletic compliance staff when the violation occurred. Second, hierarchical loglinear regression was used to analyze the results from a survey of 7,200 current student-athletes regarding undisclosed recruiting violations. Various violation types of Bylaw 13 correlatively involved institutions from Bowl Championship Series (BCS) conferences, based on geographic regions, revenue sports, and individual factors of race, sex, and income level. Third, a qualitative instrumental case study examined the economic, administrative, and individual relationships regarding NCAA institutional control of athletics recruiting at a perceivably compliant Division I (FBS), BCS conference-affiliated institution. Findings from this study suggested that the systemic pressure to win championships and maintain institutional control become difficult to balance with the added pressure of high stakes recruiting that can influence the financial stability of an athletic department. The conclusion of this work will assess systemic alternatives regarding NCAA recruiting violations and propose legal remedies to curtail future recruiting violations.

Electrical conductance in the ferromagnetic insulating (FMI) phase of manganites has been experimentally investigated. The investigations were performed on single crystals of compositions La0.82Ca0.18MnO3 and Nd0.7Pb0.3MnO3. The nature of electrical conductance is determined to be Shklovskii–Efros variable range hopping (SE–VRH). Further, at high bias levels, non–linear conductance (NLC) is observed. A “hot electron” model, that quantitatively explains the bias and temperature dependence of the NLC, consistent with the SE–VRH nature of electrical conductance, is presented. The limits of validity of the model are discussed.