Дисертації з теми "Srf network"

Актуальність теми. Одним з шляхів розвитку електричних мереж на території України є підключення нових побутових та промислових споживачів, а саме реконструкція існуючих ліній для дотримання рівня якості електроенергії. Основними проблемами є: - непрозорість надання послуг з приєднання електричних установок до електричних мереж; (Основною проблемою приєднання є те що, вам ніколи ніхто точно не скаже зразу – скільки коштуватиме приєднання до електричної мережі з певної точки на карті і за який час це буде виконано. Це явище створює можливості для «торгів» з клієнтами для «вичавлювання» з них максимальної економічної вигоди». Саме через це багато іноземних інвесторів переносить своє виробництво до інших країн). - непрозора процедура визначення плати за приєднання до електричних мереж; (Плата за приєднання має бути недискримінаційною та прозорою, а також публікуватися у відкритому доступі. – з такими умовами кожен зможе підрахувати ціну з точністью до 90-95%, але залишається питання прозорості. Зараз замовнику можуть поставити вимоги які рівні, або й перевищують ціну звичайного приєднання) - невідповідність законодавства України законодавству ЄС; (Після підписання Президентом України закону про «Про ринок електричної енергії» стартував дворічний перехід, під час якого всю архітектуру ринку перебудують у відповідність до правил, які працюють в ЄС. В галузі повинна з’явитися конкуренція і зникнути перехресне субсидіювання) Та ще багато інших проблем, які будуть розглянуті в цій роботі, тож я вважаю що тема досить актуальна. За результатами аналізу технічного стану енергетичної галузі України встановлюємо її незадовільний технічний стан та організацію експлуатації, що впливає на подальший розвиток економіки країни та життєвий рівень населення. Відповідно до міжнародних зобов’язань Україна має забезпечити розвиток бізнесу (зокрема підняття свого рейтингу Doing Business), адже на сьогодні рівень України ще не задовольняє інтереси суспільства. Для забезпечення належного рівня України принциповим питанням є спрощення процедури та пошук оптимальності приєднання до електричних мереж. Мета та завдання досліджень. Полягає у огляді та вирішення питань стосовно підвищення ефективності функціонування мереж електропередавальних організацій в частині приєднання споживачів до електричних мереж шляхом організаційно-управлінських, технікоекономічних, нормативно-правових, екологічних та технологічних питань. Об’єкт дослідження – процеси організації приєднання споживачів до електричних мереж електропередавальної організації. Предмет дослідження – методи підвищення ефективності організації приєднання. Методи дослідження. Методологічну основу проведеного наукового дослідження склали такі методи: нечітка логіка (теорія масового обслуговування), кластерний аналіз даних трансформаторних підстанцій, математично-фізичні розрахунки. Наукова та практична цінність роботи полягає у проведенні дослідження організаційно-управлінських, техніко-економічних, нормативно-правових, екологічних та технологічних питань, формуванні пропозиції по підвищенню ефективності діяльності електропередавальної організації щодо приєднання споживачів до електричних мереж, а також у розробці пропозицій запровадження геоінформаційної системи управління розвитком та експлуатацією об’єктів енергетики в Україні.
Actuality of theme. One of the ways to develop electricity networks in Ukraine is to connect new household and industrial consumers, namely the reconstruction of existing lines to meet the level of electricity quality. The main problems are: - non-transparency of electricity connection services installations to electric networks; (The main problem with joining is that, you never have exactly anyone will tell at once - how much will cost connection to an electric network with a certain point on the map and how long it will take. This phenomenon creates opportunities to "bid" with customers to "squeeze" out of them maximum economic benefit ". That is why many foreigners investors transfers their production to other countries). - non-transparent procedure for determining the fee for connection to the electricity grid; (The accession fee should be non - discriminatory and transparent, and also be published in the public domain. - with such conditions everyone will be able to calculate the price with an accuracy of 90-95%, but remains issues of transparency. Now the customer can set requirements which equal to, or exceed the cost of a conventional connection) - inconsistency of Ukrainian legislation with EU legislation; (After the President of Ukraine signed the law on the electricity market, a two-year transition began, during which the entire market architecture will be rebuilt in accordance with the rules in force in the EU. Competition should appear in the industry and cross-subsidization should disappear) Yes, there are many other issues that will be considered in this paper, so I think that the topic is quite relevant. Based on the results of the analysis of the technical condition of the energy industry of Ukraine, we establish its unsatisfactory technical condition and organization exploitation, which affects the further development of the country's economy and living standards of the population. In accordance with Ukraine's international obligations should ensure business development (including raising its Doing rating) Business), because today the level of Ukraine does not satisfy the interests society. To ensure the proper level of Ukraine in principle the question is to simplify the procedure and find the optimal connection to electrical networks. The purpose and objectives of research. It consists in reviewing and resolving issues related to improving the efficiency of networks of electricity transmission organizations in terms of connecting consumers to electricity networks through organizational and managerial, technical and economic, regulatory, environmental and technological issues. The object of research - the processes of organization of connection of consumers to the electrical networks of the power transmission organization. The subject of research - methods to increase the efficiency of the organization of accession. Research methods. The methodological basis of the conducted research was the following methods: fuzzy logic (queuing theory), cluster analysis of transformer substation data, mathematical and physical calculations. The scientific and practical value of the work lies in the study of organizational and managerial, technical and economic, regulatory, environmental and technological issues, the formation of proposals to improve the efficiency of the transmission organization to connect consumers to electricity networks, as well as the development of proposals for geographic information management system development and operation of energy facilities in Ukraine.

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Emotional intelligence (EI) refers to the competence to identify and express emotions, understand emotions, assimilate emotions in thought, and regulate both positive and negative emotions in oneself and others. EI is a necessary, but not fully sufficient, quality Green Berets must possess to establish, nurture, and enhance effective relationships within the joint, interagency, intergovernmental, and multinational arena. As the Special Forces Regiment transitions from intensive participation in operations supporting the Global War on Terrorism to developing the forward-focused Global Special Operations Forces Network, thickening these critical relationships emerges as the foundation of any expected future success. This thesis strives to elucidate the substantial scientific evidence establishing EI as a critical and well-deserving addition to the traditional measures of competence, such as intelligence quotients and general personality. Specifically, the author demonstrates that the skills and abilities associated with EI were deemed most critical by the Office of Strategic Services assessment staff, and that these same skills remain key competencies for accomplishing partner-based special operations today. The author recommends practical changes to the current assessment and selection of Special Forces personnel, as well as for the training and placement of selected Soldiers.

This thesis is focussed on an interpretive evaluation study of a large and complex e-government project that was intended to further the achievement of improved governance in the management of public sector funds in Sri Lanka and was actively supported by one of the international financing institutions. Why is this important? The learning lies not so much in establishing 'the facts' of the matter - the processes through which the project initially failed and then later succeeded in meeting its performance targets - but rather in facilitating the building of a shared view of these processes that will inform the design and implementation of future e-govemment projects. The conclusion is reached that the concept of' good governance' in financial management that was held by the international financing institution at the time of the research exercise was inadequately supported by the available e-govemment project design and implementation tools. An integrated information system was deemed to be necessary for fiscal accountability and transparency. Yet an international 'best practice' model was rejected as inappropriate during the process of localisation in the Sri Lankan Ministry of Finance. Improved governance was eventually achieved - but through local information systems improvisations. This process study employs three complementary analytical frameworks from Actor- Network Theory that have rarely been applied together. A synergy is created that is able to exploit the interpretive powers of the theory, with the whole of the analyses being greater than its constituent parts. As such, this is a potential model for future qualitative evaluation studies of information systems projects.

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The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Special Operations Forces (SOF) Headquarters and its predecessor the NATO SOF Coordination Center (NSCC) have made significant progress in special operations interoperability during its brief history. Despite the rapid progress, large gaps in communications, doctrine, intelligence sharing, equipment, and structure within NATO SOF units remain. The lessons learned from the past decade of persistent conflict and emergence of advanced communication capabilities offer an unprecedented window to analyze and enhance special operations interoperability within NATO and abroad. This research analyzes what systems and procedures increase special operations interoperability among coalition special operations forces, interagency, and diplomatic partners to enhance combined operations. The overarching hypothesis proposes that special operations coalitions with high levels of camaraderie, social and technical networking, and the presence of common threats enable enhanced special operations interoperability and effectiveness in combined operations. These dynamics coalesce to produce the accelerants of trust, responsibility, and access that contribute to elevate coalitions from marginal levels of integration to become trusted special operations networks. Enhanced special operations interoperability serves as a catalyst to facilitate communication and effectiveness among military, law enforcement, diplomatic, and interagency partners collaborating against common asymmetric threats.

Thesis (M.S. in Electrical Engineering)--Naval Postgraduate School, December 2006.
Thesis Advisor(s): Douglas J. Fouts. "December 2006." Includes bibliographical references (p. 105-106). Also available in print.

This study reconceptualises Sri Lanka's external trade and interactions from the middle of the first millennium BC to the early second millennium AD. Unlike earlier analyses, mine draws on the excavated material culture from three port-cum-urban centres - Mantai, Kantharodai and Kirinda - which were linked to major urban complexes, interior resource bases and Indian Ocean maritime networks. The scale and intensity of their external trade and connectivity, crafts and industries varied greatly over time and location. My findings illustrate Sri Lanka's earliest cultural-commercial connections with India from the middle of the first millennium BC. By the beginning of the CE, islanders were trading with the Middle East and the Mediterranean in the west and Southeast Asia and China in the east. The Middle East was a particularly strong connection from about the mid-3^rd century. Materials from Southeast Asia and China arrive by the late 7^th/8^th centuries, with the focus of external trade shifting away from the Middle East to the Far-East around the end of the 10^th century, lasting until the 12^th/13^th centuries and beyond. My findings demonstrate that internal developments in irrigated agriculture, iron technology, crafts, industries and procurement-distribution networks were crucial for external trade and connectivity. Contrary to the traditional view, I identify local agency as an important driving force behind both internal and external trade in ancient Sri Lanka. The island's external connectivity did not depend on a single factor but was based on specific historical realities which were constantly redefined and reformulated in response to the changing dynamics within and outside Sri Lanka.

Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) have proved to be useful in approximating non- linear systems in many applications including motion control. ANNs advocated in switched reluctance motor (SRM) control typically have a large number of neurons and several layers which impedes their real time implementation in embedded sys- tems. Real time estimation at high speeds using these ANNs is diffcult due to the high number of operations required to process the ANN controller. An insuffcient availability of time between two sampling intervals limits the available computation time for both processing the neural net and the other functions required for the motor drive. One ideal application of ANNs in SRM control is rotor position estimation. Due to reliability issues, elimination of the rotor position sensors is absolutely required for high volume, high speed and low cost applications of SRM's. ANNs provide a means by which drive designers can implement position sensorless drive technology that is both robust and easily implemented. It is demonstrated that a new and novel ANN configuration can be implemented for accurate rotor position estimation in a sensorless SRM drive. Consisting of just 4 neurons, the neural estimator is the smallest of its kind for SRM rotor position estimation. The breakthrough that provided the reduction was the addition of a non- linear input. Typical input spaces for SRM position neural estimators consist of both current,and fux-linkage. The neural network was trained on-line using these inputs and a third, non-linear input provided by a preprocessed product of the two typical inputs.
Master of Science

Internet protocol TV (IPTV) is predicted to be the key technology winner in the future. Efforts to accelerate the deployment of IPTV centralized model which is combined of VHO, encoders, controller, access network and Home network. Regardless of whether the network is delivering live TV, VOD, or Time-shift TV, all content and network traffic resulting from subscriber requests must traverse the entire network from the super-headend all the way to each subscriber's Set-Top Box (STB). IPTV services require very stringent QoS guarantees When IPTV traffic shares the network resources with other traffic like data and voice, how to ensure their QoS and efficiently utilize the network resources is a key and challenging issue. For QoS measured in the network-centric terms of delay jitter, packet losses and bounds on delay. The main focus of this thesis is on the optimized bandwidth allocation and smooth data transmission. The proposed traffic model for smooth delivering video service IPTV network with its QoS performance evaluation. According to Maglaris et al [5] first, analyze the coding bit rate of a single video source. Various statistical quantities are derived from bit rate data collected with a conditional replenishment inter frame coding scheme. Two correlated Markov process models (one in discrete time and one in continuous time) are shown to fit the experimental data and are used to model the input rates of several independent sources into a statistical multiplexer. Preventive control mechanism which is to be including CAC, traffic policing used for traffic control. QoS has been evaluated of common bandwidth scheduler( FIFO) by use fluid models with Markovian queuing method and analysis the result by using simulator and analytically, Which is measured the performance of the packet loss, overflow and mean waiting time among the network users.

IPTV is now offered by several operators in Europe, US and Asia using broadcast video over private IP networks that are isolated from Internet. IPTV services rely ontransmission of live (real-time) video and/or stored video. Video on Demand (VoD)and Time-shifted TV are implemented by IP unicast and Broadcast TV (BTV) and Near video on demand are implemented by IP multicast. IPTV services require QoS guarantees and can tolerate no more than 10-6 packet loss probability, 200 ms delay, and 50 ms jitter. Low delay is essential for satisfactory trick mode performance(pause, resume,fast forward) for VoD, and fast channel change time for BTV. Internet Traffic Engineering (TE) is defined in RFC 3272 and involves both capacity management and traffic management. Capacity management includes capacityplanning, routing control, and resource management. Traffic management includes (1)nodal traffic control functions such as traffic conditioning, queue management, scheduling, and (2) other functions that regulate traffic flow through the network orthat arbitrate access to network resources. An IPTV network architecture includes multiple networks (core network, metronetwork, access network and home network) that connects devices (super head-end, video hub office, video serving office, home gateway, set-top box). Each IP router in the core and metro networks implements some queueing and packet scheduling mechanism at the output link controller. Popular schedulers in IP networks include Priority Queueing (PQ), Class-Based Weighted Fair Queueing (CBWFQ), and Low Latency Queueing (LLQ) which combines PQ and CBWFQ.The thesis analyzes several Packet Scheduling algorithms that can optimize the tradeoff between system capacity and end user performance for the traffic classes. Before in the simulator FIFO,PQ,GPS queueing methods were implemented inside. This thesis aims to implement the LLQ scheduler inside the simulator and to evaluate the performance of these packet schedulers. The simulator is provided by ErnstNordström and Simulator was built in Visual C++ 2008 environmentand tested and analyzed in MatLab 7.0 under windows VISTA.

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The NPS Tactical Horizon Extension Project objective is to define and demonstrate a concept by which task force-level commanders and below can obtain a persistent, over-the-horizon surveillance capability for the purpose of target development and other missions without tasking national or theater-level assets. Our goal is to increase the ISR capacity of units who normally would not rate the priority to task a Predator, Global Hawk, or U-2. There are two guiding tenets in developing this concept. First, the equipment and its control should be organic to the SOF unit or task force. Second, utilizing this capability should not require the soldier to carry any additional equipment into the field. Initial research led us to the idea of using networked unmanned aerial systems (UAS's) to generate an over-the-horizon surveillance capability for SOF. We demonstrated the concept by forming a network comprised of a forward ground team, an inexpensive, test-bed UAS equipped with an off-the-shelf video camera, a manned aircraft, and a tactical operations center (TOC). We attained connectivity through an ITT Mesh structure at 2.4 GHz, amplified to 1W. Researchers were from the Defense Analysis, Mechanical and Astronautical Engineering, and Information Sciences Departments. We conducted successful experiments through the USSOCOM-NPS Cooperative Field Experimentation Program.
Outstanding Thesis

Les organismes s’adaptent aux variations nutritionnelles en modulant l’expression de leurs gènes. Le contrôle transcriptionnel de l’expression génétique implique de nombreux acteurs, dont les corégulateurs. Un dysfonctionnement de ces corégulateurs est connu pour générer un métabolisme cellulaire inadapté et contribuer à la pathogenèse de maladies métaboliques. Nous avons démontré que l’activation pharmacologique in vivo de SIRT1, une désacétylase membre de la famille des sirtuines, protège les souris de l’obésité en augmentant leur dépense énergétique. Au niveau moléculaire, nous avons lié ces effets à une expression accrue de gènes impliqués dans la biogenèse mitochondriale, la phosphorylation oxydative et l’oxydation des acides gras dans les tissus métaboliques. Ceci est dû au fait que SIRT1 entraîne la désacétylation et l’activation consécutive de PGC-1α, un régulateur majeur de l’activité mitochondriale. Nous avons également montré, qu’à l’instar des désacétylases, les acétyltransférases ont aussi un large impact sur l’homéostasie énergétique. En effet, en induisant l’expression de l’acétyltransférase GCN5, SRC-3 facilite l’acétylation de PGC-1α et par conséquent inhibe son activité. De façon intéressante, le niveau d’expression de SIRT1 est inversement corrélé à celui de GCN5 et SRC-3 dans des situations de jeun ou de surnutrition. Il en résulte une régulation coordonnée de l’activité de PGC-1α, à la fois par les désacétylases et les acétyltransférases, nous menant à considérer ces enzymes comme membres d’un réseau de corégulateurs renseignant PGC-1α sur le statut énergétique cellulaire, PGC-1α adaptant ensuite la production énergétique grâce à son rôle sur l’activité mitochondriale
Organisms respond to variations in hormonal, metabolic, and nutritional signaling by altering the expression of their genetic information, allowing metabolic adaptation. Transcriptional control is achieved through an interwoven and redundant molecular circuitry that involves individual transcription factors, the basal transcriptional machinery, and multiprotein coregulator complexes, which fine-tune metabolic homeostasis. Most of the coregulators interact directly with transcription factors and can either repress or enhance their transcriptional activities. Aberrant signaling by coregulators is known to generate abnormalities of cellular metabolism, and hence can contribute to abnormalities of systemic metabolic pathways and to the pathogenesis of several common disorders, such as obesity and type 2 diabetes. We first demonstrated that an in vivo pharmacological activation of SIRT1, a member of the evolutionary conserved family of NAD-dependant deacetylases named sirtuins, protects the mice against the development of obesity and linked pathophysiologies, through an increased energy expenditure. At the molecular level, the in vivo effects of the sirtuinactivating compounds were associated with an induction of the expression of genes involved in mitochondrial biogenesis, oxidative phosphorylation and fatty acid oxidation in metabolic tissues such as the skeletal muscle and the brown adipose tissue and were explained by a the SIRT1-mediated deacetylation, and subsequent activation, of PGC-1α, a master regulator of mitochondrial function. In parallel, through a genetical approach, we demonstrated that not only deacetylases but also acetyltransferases impact in a major fashion on energy homeostasis. In fact, we have shown that, through promoting the expression the PGC-1α acetyltransferase GCN5, SRC-3 facilitates PGC-1α acetylation in muscle and brown adipose tissue and consequently inhibits PGC-1α activity. Interestingly, the expression levels of SIRT1, the major PGC-1α deacetylase, mirror those of SRC-3 and GCN5 in various physiological situations such as fasting and high fat feeding. This results in a convergent regulation of PGC-1α acetylation by both acetyltransferases and deacetylases and lead us to consider theses enzymes as members of coregulator network that informs PGC-1α about the cellular energy status, which then adapts cellular energy production through its commanding role of master regulator of mitochondrial function. It is therefore tempting to speculate that this converging cofactor network, including SRC-3, GCN5 and SIRT1 can be exploited to design new preventive and therapeutic strategies to combat obesity and associated metabolic disorders such as type 2 diabetes

The aim of this thesis is to explore how livelihoods are recovering in the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami in Sri Lanka through the lens of the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework and the social networks approach—methods of inquiry that have gained considerable impetus in livelihoods research. The study is conducted with reference to two tsunami-affected fisher villages in the Hambantota District, Southern Province. It employs a qualitative ethnographic methodology that examines narratives emerging from households, local officials of government and non-government organizations, office bearers of community-based organizations, local politicians, village leaders, and key informants. Focus is on evaluating how particular roles, activities, and behaviour are given importance by these groups in specific post-tsunami contexts and how these aspects relate to broader conceptualizations of social networks, informal politics, social inequality, and ethnographic research in South Asia. The findings support four major contributions to the literature. First, social networks are significant as an object of study and a method of inquiry in understanding livelihoods post-disaster. Second, paying heed to varied forms of informal politics is critical in post-disaster analyses. Third, the concept of intersectionality can extend and improve upon prevailing approaches to social inequality in disaster recovery. Fourth, ethnographic research is valuable for understanding everyday networks, informal politics, and change in South Asia. Collectively, these findings present a human geography of post-tsunami livelihoods in Sri Lanka, where networks, politics, and inequalities, which form an essential part of everyday livelihoods, have been reproduced in disaster recovery. The thesis constitutes a means of offering expertise in the sphere of development practice, highlighting internal differentiation in access to aid as a key issue that needs to be identified and systematically addressed by policymakers and practitioners.

Now a day, one of the most attractive research topics in the area of Intelligent Traffic Control is

Inter-vehicle communication (V2V communication). In V2V communication, a vehicle can

communicate to its neighbouring vehicles even in the absence of a central Base Station. The

concept of this direct communication is to send vehicle safety messages one-to-one or one-to-

many vehicles via wireless connection. Such messages are usually short in length and have very

short lifetime in which they must reach the destination. The Inter-vehicle communication system

is an ad-hoc network with high mobility and changing number of nodes, where mobile nodes

dynamically create temporary sensor networks and transferring messages from one network to

others by using multiple hops due to limitation of short range.

The goal of the project is to investigate some basic research questions in order to organize such

sensor networks and at the same time highlight the appropriate routing protocol that support

mobile ad hoc networks in an efficient and reliable manner.

In our investigation, we have answered the technical issues in order to construct a V2V

communication system. We have also studied some mobile ad hoc network routing protocols in

detail and then selected the DSR (Dynamic Source Routing) for our V2V communication and

then simulated it according to our system requirements. We are quite satisfied by the result of

DSR, but at the same time much more work is required to come up with an absolute application

for the end user.

Le réseau de distribution électrique français, construit dans une optique de desserte d'électricité depuis les centrales de production en amont, vers les consommateurs en aval, est aujourd'hui le lieu de transits d'énergie multi-sens et dont la charge instantanée dépend à la fois des consommations et des productions locales. Il faut donc moderniser les modèles d'exploitation des réseaux actuellement utilisés.C'est dans ce contexte que le gestionnaire du réseau de distribution de la Vienne SRD, et les différentes équipes du laboratoire LIAS, ont cherché à mettre en place un outil d'optimisation des schémas d'exploitation des réseaux de distribution d'électricité de la VIENNE.Dans cette thèse, le trnvt1il s'est porté principalement sur la modélisation du problème et non sur les méthodes de résolution. En effet, le contexte industriel du développement de l'outil d'optimisation du réseau a permis de se rapprocher au mieux de la réalité des informations disponibles concernant le réseau électrique. Et il est apparu plus pertinent d'utiliser des méthodes de résolution exactes tout en recherchant à simplifier le modèle complexe de représentation du réseau électrique. Ainsi,un modèle simple d'optimisation basé sur le problème de Bot à coût minimum a été mis en place et une étude comparative a été réalisée avec les modèles complexes présents dans la littérature.Ce premier modèle a été reformulé et rendu convexe et quadratique, et permet ainsi d'obtenir des performances supérieures en terme de temps de résolution à solution égale. Le problème d'optimisation simplifié a aussi été élaboré pour permettre de prendre en compte un horizon de temps dans l'optimisation du réseau électrique', afin de prendre en compte des profils de consommation et de production au cours du temps. En effet, ceci permet ainsi de prendre en compte des variations liées au comportement des consommateurs et des producteurs reliés au réseau.Et pour finir. ces modèles d'optimisation ayant pour objectif d'être inséré dans un outil d'aide à la décision pour une utilisation dans un contexte industriel. différentes contraintes liées à l'exploitation des réseaux électriques ont été insérées au modèle.Différents cas d'études issus de la littérature sont présentés pour valider la pertinence du modèle au regard des méthodes existantes. Nous avons pu expérimenter en simulation notre optimisation de réseau sur données de réseaux réels, ce qui a démontré l'applicabilité de la démarche à des problèmes de tailles importantes correspondant à la réalité du réseau électrique de SRD
The French electrical distribution network was originally built to bring electricity from very large producers to consumers, but it has now become a place of multi-directional energy flows that rely on local production and consumption. Because of this new situation, the way of operating electrical networks needs to be renewed. In light of this, the local Distribution System Operator (SRO) of the French department Vienne and the different teams of the LIAS laboratory have worked together on the development of a distribution network configuration optimization tool. In this thesis the majority of the work was focused on the modeling part of the problem rather than on the development of new optimization methods. The industrial root of this project gave the opportunity to be very close to the reality of the available network data. Based on those observations,it was more consistent to use exact and precise optimization methods to solved simplified versions of the complex electrical network models.Thus a simple optimization model based on the minimum cost flow problem was developed, and a comparative study between the developed model and state of the art more complex one was led. This simple model was reformulated to become convex and quadratic and to reach better resolution time performances with the same solutions. This optimization problem was developed to take into account a time horizon factor into the optimization of the operation planning of the distribution network. The time horizon factor aim to represent the production and consumption variation over a selected period. Finally. because this model has to be integrated into a decision making helping tool that will be used by the DSO SRD several operational constraints were added into the optimization model. Several state of the art case studies arc presented to validate the model accuracy regarding existing methods. Simulation experiments were done on real networks data to show the applicability of the proposed optimization model over large scale case studies which correspond to the DSO SRO reality

Yes
This paper introduces a hybrid dynamic modelling approach for the prediction of NOx emissions for a Diesel engine, based on a multi-physics simulation platform coupling a 1-D air path model (GT-Suite) with in-cylinder combustion model (CMCL Stochastic Reactor Model Engine Suite). The key motivation for this research was the requirement to establish a real time stochastic simulation capability for emissions predictions early in engine development, which required the replacement of the slow combustion chemistry solver (SRM) with an appropriate surrogate model. The novelty of the approach in this research is the introduction of a hybrid approach to metamodeling that combines dynamic experiments for the gas path model with a zonal optimal space-filling design of experiments (DoEs) for the combustion model. The dynamic experiments run on the virtual Diesel engine model (GT- Suite) was used to fit a dynamic model for the parameters required as input to the SRM. Optimal Latin Hypercubes (OLH) DoE run on the SRM model was used to fit a response surface model for the NOx emissions. This surrogate NOx model was then used to replace the computationally expensive SRM simulation, enabling real time simulations of transient drive cycles to be executed. The performance of the proposed approach was validated on a simulated NEDC drive cycle against experimental data collected for the engine case study, which proved the capability of methodology to capture the transient trends for the NOx emissions. The significance of this work is that it provided an efficient approach to the development of a global model with real time transient modelling capability based on the integration of dynamic and local DoE metamodeling experiments.
The full-text of this article will be released for public view at the end of the publisher embargo on 12 Aug 2021.

Emerging technologies such as wireless local area networks and cellular telephones have dramatically increased the use of wireless communications services within the last 10 years. The shortage of available spectrum exists due to increasing demand for wireless services and current spectrum allocation regulations. To alleviate this shortage, Research aims to improve spectral efficiency and to allow spectrum sharing between separately managed and non-coordinating communications systems. This thesis explores the feasibility of spectrum sharing between airborne weather radar and wireless local area networks at 9.3 GHz – 9.5 GHz. Characteristics of flight paths of aircraft using airborne weather radar and the low duty cycle of radar transmissions offer unique opportunities for spectrum sharing. But it was found that the extremely sensitive receivers provide challenges for designing a communications system meant for widespread use. The probability of causing harmful interference to airborne weather radar is too great for most types of wireless local area networks, but a direct sequence spread spectrum scheme could share spectrum with airborne weather radar. Bit errors in wireless local area network links caused by airborne weather radar interference do not significantly decrease the performance of the wireless local area network system. The distribution of interference outside of the airborne weather radar receiver by using direct sequence spread spectrum combined with the acceptable bit error rates indicate that while spectrum sharing between airborne weather radar and wireless local area network at 9.3 GHz – 9.5 GHz is not feasible, direct sequence spread spectrum systems can share spectrum with airborne weather radars under more limited assumptions.
Master of Science

Household ability to pay (ATP) for health care services has become a critical policy issue in developing countries because of changes to health system financing and delivery that are likely to impose higher illness cost burdens on poor households. The research presented in this thesis was driven by widespread concern about ATP among different policy actors, and by the fact that conceptual and empirical understanding of the issue remains poorly developed. The thesis uses a conceptual framework for assessing ATP that is, at its core, concerned with the implications that illness costs and related coping strategies have for household livelihoods. The main research objectives were to measure the household costs of illness, examine the types of asset (e. g. financial, social) that are mobilised to cover illness costs, and to evaluate the impact of these illness cost burdens and coping strategies on household livelihoods in the medium term. In so doing, the thesis aimed to identify factors which make households robust or vulnerable to illness costs which development agencies might support. Research was conducted in two low-income communities in Colombo, Sri Lanka. A survey of 423 households was carried out to obtain a profile of illness, treatment actions and illness costs in the two communities, and to identify case study households. The main part, of the research was to follow 16 case study households for eight months, which enabled in-depth investigation of treatment seeking behaviour, expenditure patterns, asset strategies and their impact on household livelihoods. The main findings of the research were ' that free public provision of health services protected poor households from high treatment -costs. In particular, public tertiary hospitals protected households against potentially catastrophic treatment costs associated with inpatient care. This enabled households to access treatment without adopting risky coping strategies. However, aspects of the health system failed to protect households from illness costs, and in a context of low and insecure incomes, illness costs did not have to be high to exceed daily budgets and undermine ability to meet basic food needs. Consequently, households often required additional resources to meet illness costs, and people's financial and social resources were shown to be important factors influencing ability to manage illness costs. However, the research also found that income-poor households had weak social resource endowments which forced them into riskier borrowing or asset strategies. Policy actions to support household assets are examined.

Transkriptionelle Netzwerke (Transkriptionsfaktoren, epigenetische Modulatoren und spezifische Zielgene) stellen die unterste Ebene der zellinternen Signalübertragung dar. Eingebettet in verschiedene stimulusabhängige Signalwege bedienen sich ihre Komponenten genetischer und epigenetischer Mechanismen, um Zielgene transkrip-tionell zu regulieren und Veränderungen der Chromatinstruktur hervorzurufen. In der vorliegenden Arbeit wurde die hierarchische Organisation und Zusam-mensetzung des MEK-ERK-abhängig gesteuerten transkriptionellen Netzwerks und seine Veränderung im Zuge der HRAS-vermittelten onkogenen Transformation von HA1-Zellen untersucht. Viele Arbeiten haben sich bereits eingehend mit der Charak-terisierung einzelner Komponenten und Zielgene beschäftigt (Wagner et al. 2005, Reddy et al. 2002, Sun et al. 2006, Kapitel 1). Im Unterschied zu den zitierten Studien wurde in der vorliegenden Arbeit ein umfassendes Protokoll zur genomweiten De-chiffrierung transkriptioneller Netzwerke unter Kombination von experimentellen und bioinformatischen Methoden entwickelt und durchgeführt. Die Analyse ge-nomweiter Expressionsprofile un- und U0126-behandelter immortaler und HRASV12-transformierter humaner Nierenepithelzellen (HA1EB, HA1ER) erlaubte die Identifi-zierung von 138 auf- und 103 abregulierten genspezifischen IDs der RAS-ERK-abhängig gesteuerten Signalkaskade. Regulierte Transkriptionsfaktoren wurden i-dentifiziert und im Westernblot, sowie zum Teil mittels Durchflusszytometrie und RT-PCR validiert und nachfolgend transienten siRNA-Experimenten unterzogen. Für die Transkriptionsfaktoren ELK3, SRF und den hierarisch darunter liegenden Faktor FRA1 wurden Expressionsprofile der spezifischen siRNA-vermittelten Hemmung in beiden Zelllinien erstell und mit bioinformatischen Methoden (TRAP, GSEA-GO) a-nalysiert um direkte und indirekte sowie gemeinsame Zielgene zu ermitteln. Zusätz-lich wurde der Effekt auf phänotypischer Ebene (Softagar, MTT) überprüft. In der vorliegenden Arbeit ließ sich keine direkte Hierarchie der drei Transkrip-tionsfaktoren SRF, FRA1 und ELK3 bestätigen. Allerdings konnte zum ersten Mal eine gemeinsam regulierte Gruppe von Genen identifiziert werden, die darauf schließen lässt, dass die drei Transkriptionsfaktoren sowohl in HA1EB, als auch in HA1ER Teile eines gemeinsam regulierenden Netzwerks sind. Aus den Proliferationsexperimenten wurde zudem bestätigt, dass jeder Transkriptionsfaktor individuell eine essentielle Rolle bei der Promotion maligner Eigenschaften spielt. Für alle drei Transkriptionsfak-toren konnte eine RAS-abhängige starke Verschiebung der spezifisch angesteuerten Gene nachgewiesen werden. Diese Verschiebung wurde mittels TRAP und GSEA auch für alternative Regulatoren der spezifischen Zielgene festgestellt. Die nähere Analyse der FRA1-abhängigen Zielgene führte zu neuen Erkenntnis-sen zur Umordnung des Transkriptoms im Zuge der onkogenen Transformation. Die FRA1-spezifischen Zielgene in HA1EB und HA1ER weisen unterschiedliche Funktio-nalitäten auf. So wurden in HA1EB viele Gene identifiziert, die im Rahmen der Im-munantwort eine Rolle spielen und in HA1ER nicht reguliert werden. In den RAS-transformierten HA1ER konnten dagegen Gene identifiziert werden, die in der Tu-morprogression eine Rolle spielen (FRA1, STAT3, MTA1, TCFL5). Die Verifizierungen mittels qPCR und ChIP bestätigten 5 der 38 möglichen FRA1-Zielgene. Von diesen, FRA1, AEBP1, FRA1, TCFL5, NPAS2 und YWHAZ ist lediglich FRA1 bereits als FRA1-Zielgen beschrieben. Die Funktionen der neu identifizierten RAS-abhängigen FRA1-Zielgene untermauerten bereits bekannte Funktionen der FRA1-vermittelten Transkription (Differenzierung, Proliferation, zirkadiane Rhythmen, Apoptose) und erweitern sie um verschiedene Aspekte wie Metabolismus und Rückkopplungen in die Signaltransduktion, die noch nicht für die RAS-abhängige FRA1-vermittelte Transktiption beschrieben worden sind. Dazu gehören unter anderem Interaktionen mit TGFbeta, WNT, JAK/STAT und JNK. Daneben sind in den HA1ER eine Vielzahl von Regulatoren des RHO-Signalwegs identifiziert worden, was für FRA1 auf bisher unbekannte Interaktionen mit RAC/RHO-Signalwegen schließen lässt.
Transcriptional networks represent the final level of internal signal transmission. They are embedded in different signalling pathways and use genetic as well as epi-genetic mechanisms to regulate their according target genes. During oncogenic trans-formation they are undergoing massive rearrangements in composition, regulation and interaction. This leads to radical changes in the transcriptome and drives the on-cogenic phenotype of the according cells. My thesis employs the composition of the MEK-ERK-dependent transcriptional net-work and its alteration during the HRAS-oncogene-mediated transformation in HA1-cells. By commencing from already known components: SRF, Ternary Complex Fac-tors (TCF: SAP1, SAP2/ELK3, ELK1) and members of the AP1-complex (JUN, FOS-proteins) I analyzed the alteration in expression of secondary targets and their inter-action as well as their relation to the superior factors. Therefore I compared genome wide expression profiles (Affymetrix, HG-U133A) of immortal HA1EB and HRASV12-oncogene-transformed HA1ER-cells with and without U0126-induced MEK/ERK-inhibition and extracted several MEK/ERK-dependent transcription factors. Among them where FRA1 and ELK3, two transcription factors already known to be involved in oncogenesis and proliferation associated processes. ELK3 needs SRF as crucial binding partner to function. Therefor I also included SRF into the subsequent analysis. The three transcription factors function in different time-dependent hierarchy states so we supposed a putative hierachical network be-tween them. I established transient knockdown cells deriving from HA1EB and HA1ER for all three transcription factors and generated further expression profiles from them. Additionally I verified the importance of these transcription factors on survival and proliferation via MTT and Softagar experiments. Using different statis-tically and bioinformatical methods (GSEA, TRAP) in collaboration with the Max-Planck-Institute for molecular Genetics Berlin, several direct and indirect targets of these transcription factors were predicted. These were partially overlapping in all transcription factors. Also, in comparison of the immortal and the transformed cell line, a shift of functionalities and composition of the different target gene populations and collaborating factors could be detected for all three transcription factors. It was found that in HA1EB FRA1 seems more likely to regulate immunresponsive genes as well as genes associated with the cytoskeleton and nucleus organisation whereas in HA1ER FRA1 regulates a large group of transcription- and signalling-associated genes. Additionally it could be shown that in both cell lines FRA1 regulates genes in-volved in epigenetic processes as well as circadian rhythms which are known to be important aspects in oncogenic transformation. I verified 37 different putative target genes of FRA1 using qRT-PCR (Taqman) and partially also ChIP-analysis. Of these 37genes, 5 were fully validated as directly regu-lated targets of FRA1: FRA1, AEBP1, YWHAZ, NPAS2 and TCFL5. They imply functionalities connected to proliferation and differentiation (AEBP1, FRA1, TCFL5) as well as apoptosis (YWHAZ) cell cycle control and circadian rhythm (NPAS2, AEBP1), feedbacks into the signalling (YWHAZ, AEBP1) and metabolism (NPAS2, AEBP1). Summarised the work of this thesis contributes to the decipherment of the direct and indirect targets of the according transcription factors and strengthens the argument of a general and massive shift of the transcriptional network during oncogenic trans-formation of cells. The importance of all three transcription factors on the survival of genes could be proved via proliferation assays. Additionally the functionality of their according targets could be integrated into processes connected to oncogenic trans-formation.

The objective of this thesis is to design and implement a small scaleInternet Service Provider (ISP) for the NetCenter sub department atMälardalen University. The ISP is intended to give NetCenter a networkseparate from the University’s network, providing them with a moreflexible environment for lab purposes. This will give their students anopportunity to experience a larger backbone with Internet accessibility,which has not been previously available. At the same time it will place theteachers in control of the network in the NetCenter lab premises.The network is designed with a layered approach including an Internetaccess layer, a larger core segment and a distribution layer with aseparated lab network. It also incorporates both a public and a privateserver network, housing servers running e.g. Windows Active Directory,external DNS services, monitoring tools and logging applications. TheInternet access is achieved by peering with SUNET providing a full BGPfeed.This thesis report presents methods, implementations and results involvedin successfully creating the NetCenter ISP as both a lab network and anInternet provider with a few inevitable shortcomings; the most prominentbeing an incomplete Windows Domain setup.

Split ring resonator (SRR) is a metamaterial structure which displays negative permeability values over a relatively small bandwidth around its magnetic resonance frequency. Unit SRR cells and arrays have been used in various novel applications including the design of miniaturized microwave devices and antennas. When the SRR arrays are combined with the arrays of conducting wires, left handed materials can be constructed with the unusual property of having negative valued effective refractive indices. In this thesis, unit cells and arrays of single-ring multiple-split type SRR structures are numerically analyzed by using Ansoft&rsquo
s HFSS software that is based on the finite elements method (FEM). Some of these structures are constructed over low-loss dielectric substrates and their complex scattering parameters are measured to verify the numerical simulation results. The major purpose of this study has been to establish equivalent circuit models to estimate the behavior of SRR structures in a simple and computationally efficient manner. For this purpose, individual single ring SRR cells with multiple splits are modeled by appropriate two-port RLC resonant circuits paying special attention to conductor and dielectric loss effects. Results obtained from these models are compared with the results of HFSS simulations which use either PEC/PMC (perfect electric conductor/perfect magnetic conductor) type or perfectly matched layer (PML) type boundary conditions. Interactions between the elements of SRR arrays such as the mutual inductance and capacitance effects as well as additional dielectric losses are also modeled by proper two-port equivalent circuits to describe the overall array behavior and to compute the associated transmission spectrum by simple MATLAB codes. Results of numerical HFSS simulations, equivalent circuit model computations and measurements are shown to be in good agreement.

Neste trabalho está apresentada uma alternativa para o cálculo do fator de concentração de tensões (FCT) em juntas tubulares soldadas do tipo Y. Redes Neurais Artificiais (RNA) foram utilizadas para representar a distribuição de tensões ao longo da junta tubular para os casos de carregamento força axial no plano e momento fletor no plano. As RNA podem aprender a partir de um conjunto de dados sem a necessidade de uma expressão matemática entre as variáveis dependentes e independentes; representa uma vantagem sobre o procedimento normalmente utilizado, ou seja, as equações paramétricas. O modelo proposto representa um avanço no projeto de juntas tubulares, uma vez que evita a necessidade de se conhecer uma expressão matemática para representar a distribuição de tensões na junta e fornece um método mais preciso para avaliar a distribuição de tensões ao longo da junta soldada. O conjunto de dados utilizado foi formado a partir de simulações numéricas das juntas soldadas através do MEF, nas quais foi considerada a geometria do cordão de solda.
An alternative approach to calculate stress concentration factors (SCF) in Y-type welded tubular joints is presented. Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) were used to represent the stress distribution along the tubular joints in both in-plane axial force and in-plane bending moment load cases. ANN can learn from a database without establishing a mathematical expression between dependent and independent variables, which is an advantage over the usual parametric equations approach. The proposed model represents an improvement in the tubular joints design, since it avoids the previous knowing of a mathematical expression to represent the stress distribution in the joint and provides an accurate method to evaluate the stress distribution along the welded fillet joint. The database herein used was completed with FE simulations of tubular joints which consider the geometry of the weld fillet.

La présente étude explore les relations maritimes établies pour des raisons commerciales entre le monde méditerranéen, l’Inde du Sud et Sri Lanka, entre le IIIe siècle av. n.è. et le VIIe siècle de n.è. Il s’agit dans un premier temps d’élaborer une synthèse quantifiée des imports issus du monde gréco-romain d’après les vestiges archéologiques découverts en Asie du Sud, en les confrontant aux autres types de sources. Cette synthèse nous conduit à nous pencher sur les contacts culturels que les liens commerciaux ont favorisé dans leur sillage : transferts, métissages, imitations et appropriations. Dans un dernier temps, ce sont les flux inverses qui ont fait l’objet de notre attention, décelables à travers les objets exportés par l’Inde et Sri Lanka vers les côtes de l’Arabie, de l’Afrique, du golfe Persique et de la mer Rouge. Il apparaît que les témoignages du commerce n’impliquent pas de très grandes quantités échangées mais n’ont pas été dénués malgré tout d’un impact certain sur les sociétés. Ainsi se tissent des réseaux complexes qui impliquent tous les acteurs de cette zone géographique, dont les extrémités est et ouest que sont l’Asie et la Méditerranée constituent une des facettes
This dissertation deals with the maritime connections that took place between South Asia (South India and Sri Lanka) and the Mediterranean world between the 3rd c. BCE and the 7th c. CE. It first establishes a global account of the archaeological remains found in South Asia that show the importation of Mediterranean products into this area, by comparison with other types of sources (texts, inscriptions, coins). The study then proceeds towards the social and cultural impact that these imported goods may have had on local populations, with regard to their proper way of appropriating foreign sources of inspiration depending on the regional context. Lastly, attention has been drawn on the return flow of goods from East to West, through archaeological vestiges located on the coasts of Egypt, Africa, Arabia and in the Persian Gulf. This leads to a reassessment of the global quantity of commercial goods crossing this large area, which may have been inferior to what was previously considered, whereas the social and cultural impact is not to be denied. The full picture of these interactions gives an image of a very intricate and complex network, involving lots of intermediaries, middlemen and local networks, which would have created a strong background for the direct long-distance links

The changes in consumer patterns, digitalization, and the augmented diplomatic relation between Sweden and India has opened new opportunities for Swedish small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to enter the Indian market, which is characterized as an emerging market. Although SMEs often have scarce resources, they are succeeding in entering foreign markets and competing with Multinational corporations (MNCs). The phenomenon called Born Globals contradicts with the conventional internationalization theories. It sheds light on new internationalization paths, where the firm often is an SME and offers digitized products or services. Business networks and brand strategies are set to be important factors when entering the international markets, yet there are still research gaps in how Swedish SMEs enter the Indian market. The purpose of this study is to investigate the motives of Swedish SMEs when establishing in the Indian market. A qualitative methodology was used, by collecting data through semi-structured interviews from multiple case studies: (1) advisory organisations and (2) companies. The findings show that India is perceived as a continent rather than a country since there are differences in state growth rates and purchasing power. Other findings show that international business networks and market knowledge are crucial for entering a new market. SMEs do not need to have an established brand to succeed in entering the Indian market.
Förändringar i konsumentmönster, digitalisering och den ökade diplomatiska relationen mellan Sverige och Indien har öppnat nya möjligheter för svenska små och medelstora företag (SMF) att träda in på den indiska marknaden, som även kännetecknas som en tillväxtmarknad. SMF besitter oftast knappa resurser, när de vill konkurrera med multinationella företag (MNC) på den internationella marknaden. Fenomenet som kallas Born Globals strider mot de konventionella internationaliserings-teorierna och belyser istället hur SMF-bolagen expanderar och etablerar sig internationellt. Denna studie fokuserar på SMF som erbjuder digitaliserade produkter eller tjänster. Affärsnätverk och varumärkesstrategier anses vara viktiga faktorer vid inträde på de internationella marknaderna, men det finns fortfarande forskningsgap i hur svenska SMF träder in på den indiska marknaden. Syftet med denna studie är därför att undersöka vilka grundläggande motiv som svenska SMF har vid etablering på den indiska marknaden. En kvalitativ metod användes genom att samla in data genom semistrukturerade intervjuer från multipla fall: (1) rådgivande organisationer och (2) företag. Resultaten visar att Indien uppfattas som en kontinent snarare än ett land, eftersom det finns skillnader i tillväxt och köpkraft mellan staterna, vilket attraherar svenska SMF. Dessutom visar undersökningen på att utländska affärsnätverk och marknadskunskap är avgörande faktorer vid inträde på en ny marknad. Däremot behöver inte SMF ha ett etablerat varumärke för att lyckas träda in på den indiska marknaden.

Докторска дисертација припада области информационих система, са јасним акцентом на употребу неуронских мрежа за решавање проблема вишеструких зависних временских серија  који је у  овом докторату дефинисан.Основни циљ дисертације је креирање система у форми едукативног софтвера путем којег ће се обучавати младе кошаркашке судијеЈедан од кључих елемената овог  доктората јесте симулација хоризонталног видног поља на основу којег се  утврђује да ли је резоновано кретање кошаркашких судија било адекватно  или није. Стога развијени софтвер поседује споменуту едукативну примену.Како би се реализовао споменути софтвер спроведено је истраживање које је обухватило обучавање великог броја традиционалних вишеслојних перцептрона као и формирање посебне  LTR  –  MDTS структуре неуронске мреже за коју се сматра да је погодна за решавање постојећег проблема. За реализацију симулације хоризонталног видног поља разматрано је више алгоритама из области рачунарске графике  а  Sweep and Prune  алгоритам је парцијално пружио основу за развијени и тренутно  имплементирани алгоритам.
Doktorska disertacija pripada oblasti informacionih sistema, sa jasnim akcentom na upotrebu neuronskih mreža za rešavanje problema višestrukih zavisnih vremenskih serija  koji je u  ovom doktoratu definisan.Osnovni cilj disertacije je kreiranje sistema u formi edukativnog softvera putem kojeg će se obučavati mlade košarkaške sudijeJedan od ključih elemenata ovog  doktorata jeste simulacija horizontalnog vidnog polja na osnovu kojeg se  utvrđuje da li je rezonovano kretanje košarkaških sudija bilo adekvatno  ili nije. Stoga razvijeni softver poseduje spomenutu edukativnu primenu.Kako bi se realizovao spomenuti softver sprovedeno je istraživanje koje je obuhvatilo obučavanje velikog broja tradicionalnih višeslojnih perceptrona kao i formiranje posebne  LTR  –  MDTS strukture neuronske mreže za koju se smatra da je pogodna za rešavanje postojećeg problema. Za realizaciju simulacije horizontalnog vidnog polja razmatrano je više algoritama iz oblasti računarske grafike  a  Sweep and Prune  algoritam je parcijalno pružio osnovu za razvijeni i trenutno  implementirani algoritam.
Doctoral dissertation belongs to the field of information systems, with a clear  emphasis on the use of neural networks for solving the problem of multiple dependent time series, which is defined in this doctorate. The main objective of the  thesis is to create a system in the form of educational software that will be used druring the training of young basketball referees.One of the key elements of this doctorate is a simulation of a horizontal field of  vision  on the basis of which it is determined whether the movement of  reasoned  basketball referees was adequate   or not.  Therefore developed software has  aforementioned educational use. In order  to realize the aforementioned software, a  research  was conducted that included training of a large number of traditional multilayer perceptron neural networks and the  formation of special LTR  -  MDTS  neural network  structure which is considered to be  suitable  for solving the presented problem. For the realization of the simulation  of the horizontal field of vision a large number of algorithms in the field of computer graphis was considered  and Sweep and Prune algorithm partially provided the basis for the developed and  currently implemented algorithm.

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Multimedia applications in wireless networks are usually categorized into various classes according to their traffic patterns and differentiated Quality-of-Service (QoS) requirements. The traffic of heterogeneous multimedia applications often exhibits the Long-Range Dependent (LRD) and Short-Range Dependent (SRD) properties, respectively. The integrated scheduling scheme that combines Priority Queuing (PQ) and Generalized Processor Sharing (GPS) within a hierarchical structure, referred to as PQ-GPS, has been identified as an efficient mechanism for QoS differentiation in wireless networks and attracted significant research efforts. However, due to the high complexity and interdependent relationship among traffic flows, modelling of the integrated scheduling scheme poses great challenges. To address this challenging and important research problem, we develop an original analytical model for PQ-GPS systems under heterogeneous LRD and SRD traffic. A cost-effective flow decomposition approach is proposed to equivalently divide the integrated scheduling system into a group of Single-Server Single-Queue (SSSQ) systems. The expressions for calculating the queue length distribution and loss probability of individual traffic flows are further derived. After validating its accuracy, the developed model is adopted as an efficient performance tool to investigate the important issues of resource allocation and call admission control in the integrated scheduling system under QoS constraints.

Metastasis is the leading cause of mortality in human breast cancer. However, there are few predictive, prognostic, or therapeutic targets of breast cancer metastasis. Ezrin, a membrane cytoskeletal cross-linker, is frequently over-expressed in human breast cancer and is required for motility and invasion by cultured epithelial cells. Our group has recently shown that ezrin acts co-operatively with the non-receptor tyrosine kinase, Src, in the transformation of epithelial cells, in which ezrin is phosphorylated on specific tyrosines, such as Y477, by Src (91, 93). We therefore examined whether Src/ezrin interaction also regulates invasion and metastasis of breast cancer. This thesis presents the following results: 1) In a murine system, ezrin and Src are differentially localized in nulliparous, lactating mammary glands and PyMT-induced tumours, with pronounced apical expression in nulliparous mammary glands but non-polarized strong cytoplasmic expression in PyMT-induced tumours. 2) Increased expression and activation of ezrin, Src and Met in PyMT-induced tumours compared to normal breast tissues was observed. A concomitant increased expression of activated Stat3 and HGF was also observed in PyMT-induced tumours, consistent with the establishment of an HGF/Met autocrine loop. 3) In invasive human breast tumours, from a premenopausal patient cohort, ezrin showed significantly greater cytoplasmic localization compared to non-neoplastic epithelial ducts in normal mammoplasties. 4) In a mouse breast carcinoma xenograft model, a Y477F ezrin mutant (not phosphorylatable by Src), significantly reduced local invasion of primary tumours and spreading into visceral organs, yet, it did not significantly affect primary tumour growth rate. 5) Y477F ezrin-expressing tumours exhibited focal areas of incomplete membranous ezrin staining which was absent in control tumours. Moderate/strong cytoplasmic ezrin staining was evident in both tumour groups. Thus, ezrin is differentially localized in non-invasive versus invasive mammary tumours. Our study implicates a role of the Src/ezrin pathway in regulating local invasion and metastasis of breast carcinoma cells and provides a clinically relevant model for assessing the Src/ezrin pathway as a potential prognostic marker and treatment target for invasive breast cancer.
Thesis (Master, Pathology & Molecular Medicine) -- Queen's University, 2010-04-28 12:24:25.286

No
The batch renewal process is the least-biased choice of process given only the measures of count correlation and interval correlation at all lags.This paper reviews the batch renewal process, both for LRD (long-range-dependent) traffic and for SRD (short-range-dependent) traffic in the discrete space-discrete time domain, and in the wider context of general traffic in that domain. It shows some applications of the batch renewal process in simple queues and in queueing network models. The paper concludes with open research problems and issues arising from the discussion.

In 2010, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) released the first edition of the Highway Safety Manual (HSM). The HSM introduces a six-step safety management process which provides engineers with a systematic and scientific approach to managing road safety. The first step of this process, network screening, aims to identify the locations that will most benefit from a safety improvement program. The output obtained from network screening is simply a list of locations that have a high concentration of collisions, based on their potential for safety improvement. The ranking naturally tends to lead to the assumption that the most highly ranked locations are the obvious target locations where road authorities should allocate their often-limited road safety resources. Though these locations contain the highest frequency of collisions, they are often spatially unrelated, and scattered throughout the roadway network. Allocating safety resources to these locations may not be the most effective method of increasing road safety. The purpose of this research is to investigate and validate a two-step method of post-network screening analysis, which identifies collision hotzones (i.e., groups of neighboring hotspots) on a road network. The first step is the network screening process described in the HSM. The second step is new and involves network-constrained kernel density estimation (KDE), a type of spatial analysis. KDE uses expected collision counts to estimate collision density, and outputs a graphical display that shows areas (referred to here as hotzones) with high collision densities. A particularly interesting area of application is the identification of high-collision corridors that may benefit from a program of systemic safety improvements. The proposed method was tested using five years of collision data (2005-2009) for the City of Regina, Saskatchewan. Three different network screening measures were compared: 1) observed collision counts, 2) observed severity-weighted collision counts, and 3) expected severity-weighted collision counts. The study found that observed severity-weighted collision counts produced a dramatic picture of the City's hotzones, but this picture could be misleading as it could be heavily influenced by a small number of severe collisions. The results obtained from the expected severity-weighted collision counts smoothed the effects of the severity-weighting and successfully reduced regression-to-the-mean bias. A comparison was made between the proposed approach and the results of the HSM’s existing network screening method. As the proposed approach takes the spatial association of roadway segments into account, and is not limited to single roadway segments, the identified hotzones capture a higher number of expected EPDO collisions than the existing HSM methodology. The study concludes that the proposed two-step method can help transportation safety professionals to prioritize hotzones within high-collision corridors more efficiently and scientifically. Jurisdiction-specific safety performance functions (SPFs) were also developed over the course of this research, for both intersections (three-leg unsignalized, four-leg unsignalized, three and four-leg signalized), and roadway segments (major arterials, minor arterials, and collectors). These SPFs were compared to the base SPFs provided in the HSM, as well as calibrated HSM SPFs. To compare the different SPFs and find the best-fitting SPFs for the study region, the study used statistical goodness-of-fit (GOF) tests and cumulative residual (CURE) plots. Based on the results of this research, the jurisdiction-specific SPFs were found to provide the best fit to the data, and would be the best SPFs for predicting collisions at intersections and roadway segments in the City of Regina.

碩士
國立交通大學
電信工程研究所
102
As wireless communication technologies progress, a huge variety of user equipments (UEs) show up. At the same time, the ever growing number of bandwidth-demanding application makes traffic grow exponentially in wireless networks. In order to meet the rapidly increasing demand of data traffic, LTE-Advanced brought the heterogeneous networks (HetNets) which mixes high and low-power nodes up to improve the system capacity. Because of the characteristic of new OFDM access, enhanced inter-cell interference coordination (e-ICIC) becomes so important that frequency reuse models are taken into account and combined with HetNets. Soft frequency reuse (SFR) stands out from the models to show great spectral efficiency and works smoothly while femtocells are inserted into the system. However, sticking to the fixed frequency allocation of SFR is unrealistic and unfair to some of the UEs. So we propose the brand new adaptive frequency allocation scheme to increase the total system throughput while guaranteeing quality of service and fairness to all UEs in the system.

This thesis examines the sources for generating financial and social capital for ethnic small business owners, particularly for Sri Lankan ethnic small businesses in Australia. The results further our understanding of raising capital by introducing a model by generating capital for ethnic small businesses. This model identifies the informal and formal sources of financial capital, factors influencing those sources and networking activities for generating social capital. We found that competition and rising costs are the major business problem for Sri Lankan ethnic small business owners, not raising capital. The reasons for using personal savings as the major surce of capital include difficulties associated with approaching financial institutions and government agencies. The role of networking with ethnic associations was also explored. Finally, recommendations are made to business owners on how to overcome various business problems and to promote better networking activities through ethnic associations. Recommendations are also made to government agency officials to provide information about government progammes, and to financial institutions about satisfying banking needs of ethnic small business owners.
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Os projetos de digitalização do ensino estão progressivamente a integrar-se nas escolas, quer a nível nacional como a nível internacional. A digitalização do ensino é uma forma complementar de aprendizagem com recurso à tecnologia, que adiciona novas formas de aquisição de conhecimento aos métodos do ensino convencional. Em 2019, na Região Autónoma da Madeira (RAM) surgiu uma iniciativa de cariz tecnológico designada Projeto Manuais Digitais na qual os alunos, através de tablets, acedem aos manuais escolares e a uma plataforma de ensino-aprendizagem. O bom funcionamento deste projeto depende de redes de comunicação que garantam uma boa qualidade de serviço no acesso dos dispositivos aos conteúdos pedagógicos e a outros recursos didáticos de caráter digital. A principal contribuição deste projeto de mestrado é a proposta de um processo claro, preciso e completo, para auxiliar as escolas na análise, planeamento e implementação de redes de comunicação que suportem o Projeto dos Manuais Digitais, com foco nas suas Redes de Área Local Sem Fios (sigla do inglês Wireless Local Area Network, WLAN). O processo foi criado tendo em conta a realidade das escolas da RAM, direcionado na avaliação das capacidades necessárias ao suporte dos utilizadores, das aplicações e nas questões de gestão, manutenção, segurança e desempenho. Para a validação do processo proposto, este foi comparado com a metodologia de planeamento e projeto de redes informáticas apresentada pelo Edmundo Monteiro e Fernando Boa Vida [7], além disso, foi ainda aplicado como caso de estudo numa escola da RAM. A análise comparativa com esta metodologia revelou que o processo proposto possui as fases que são típicas numa metodologia de planeamento e projeto. Os resultados obtidos com a sua aplicação prática demonstraram que o mesmo é adequado para o planeamento destas redes, tendo em consideração as características físicas das escolas da RAM e dos seus recursos humanos, permitindo a estas um guia simplificado para um processo complexo e, assim, economizar tempo e recursos.
The digitalization of education projects are progressively being integrated into schools, both nationally and internationally. The digitization of education is a complementary form of learning using technology, which adds new ways of acquiring knowledge to conventional teaching methods. In 2019, in the Autonomous Region of Madeira (sigla do português Região Autónoma da Madeira, RAM), a technological initiative named Digital Manuals Project emerged, in which students, using tablets, access school textbooks and a teaching-learning platform. The proper functioning of this project depends on communication networks that guarantee a good quality of service in the access of the devices to the pedagogical contents and other didactic resources of digital character. The main contribution of this master project is the proposal of a clear, precise and complete process, to assist schools in the analysis, planning and implementation of communication networks that support the Digital Manuals Project, focusing on their Wireless Local Area Networks (WLAN). The process was created taking into account the reality of RAM schools, aiming to access the necessary capacities to support users, applications and management, maintenance, security and performance issues. For the validation of the proposed process, it was compared with the methodology of planning and design of computer networks presented by Edmundo Monteiro and Fernando Boa Vida [7], moreover, was also applied as a case study in a RAM school. The comparative analysis using this methodology revealed that the proposed process has the phases that are typical in a planning and project methodology. The results obtained with the practical application of the process showed that it is suitable for the planning of these networks, taking into account the physical characteristics of the RAM schools and their human resources, allowing them a simplified guide to a complex process and, thus, save time and resources.

Game theory and mechanism design have emerged as an important tool to model, analyze,and solve decentralized design problems involving multiple agents that interact strategically in a rational and intelligent way. Some examples of these design problems include: auctions and markets in electronic commerce; network economics; dynamic pricing; routing protocols in wireless networks; resource allocation in computational grids; algorithms for selfish agents;etc. The motivation for this doctoral work springs from the high level of current interest indesigning innovative mechanisms for solving emerging game theoretic problems in the area of electronic commerce. In this thesis, we focus on three such problems and advance the current art in mechanism design while developing new, innovative mechanisms to solve the problems. The first problem we explore is the highly strategic problem of forming a high value E-business supply chain by choosing the best mix of supply chain partners. In our research, we formulate the supply chain formation problem as a mechanism design problem in a generic wayand show that the well known VCG (Vickrey-Clarke-Groves) mechanisms provide an apt frame-work for solving this problem. We provide a compelling example of a three stage automotive distribution network to illustrate the power and e±cacy of the proposed methodology. The second problem we model and solve is that of designing a revenue maximizing sponsored search auction. This is a problem that is faced by every Internet search engine, such as Google,MSN, and Yahoo!, whenever it receives a search query. In our research, we take a comprehensivelook at existing auction mechanisms for this problem. Our work leads to an innovative new auction mechanism, which we call OPT (optimal mechanism), that exhibits a superior level ofperformance. The proposed mechanism extends, in a non-trivial way, the well known Myersonoptimal auction to the specific setting of sponsored search auctions. The proposed mechanism maximizes the revenue to the search engine and also satisfies two crucial properties, Bayesian incentive compatibility and interim individual rationality. The third contribution is in respect of Stackelberg problems, which are game theoretic problems that involve hierarchical and sequential decision making. By focusing attention on an important subclass of these problems, namely the Single-Leader-Rest-Followers (SLRF) problems, we extend all relevant aspects of classical mechanism design theory to the case of SLRF problems. We derive many important results in respect of procurement auctions with reserve prices using the developed theory. The research carried out as part of this doctoral work, we believe, advances the current art in mechanism design while developing innovative mechanisms to solve those problems.

Ce mémoire porte sur le rôle que jouent les médias de masse dans la construction de la personnalité publique des nouveaux chefs de partis politiques. Lorsqu’un individu est nommé à la tête d’un parti politique, il est la plupart du temps peu connu du grand public. Or, comme une écrasante majorité de citoyens n’a jamais l’occasion d’entrer en contact directement avec les hommes et les femmes politiques, c’est exclusivement par le biais des médias que la plupart des gens apprennent à connaître leurs représentants politiques – ou ceux qui aspirent à jouer ce rôle. Or les médias ne se contentent pas de répéter ce que les politiciens disent. Les informations qu’ils décident d’inclure dans leurs reportages, les mots qu’ils utilisent et les cadrages qu’ils retiennent contribuent à définir la personnalité des leaders émergents dont ils parlent. Les médias choisissent aussi de mettre l’accent sur certains traits de personnalité et décident d’en ignorer d’autres. Afin de mieux comprendre ce phénomène, nous avons étudié le cas de l’ex-chef du Parti québécois, André Boisclair. Nous avons cherché à savoir si la couverture dont ce dernier a fait l’objet a été stable ou si elle a suivi certains cycles, et nous nous sommes intéressés aux critères retenus par les médias pour évaluer sa personnalité. Pour ce faire, nous avons étudié le volume, le format, le ton, les objets et les cadrages qui caractérisent la couverture dont a été l’objet André Boisclair à l’antenne de la Société Radio-Canada et du Réseau TVA entre le 4 juin 2005 et le 21 février 2007. Nos conclusions sont à l’effet que la couverture a bel et bien suivi un cycle, et que les critères retenus par les médias sont très similaires à ceux qui sont réputés être importants pour la population dans le choix d’un leader politique.
This thesis focuses on the role played by mass media in the construction of the public personality of emerging leaders. When a political party chooses a new leader, this leader is often known by very few people. Since a majority of citizens rarely has the occasion to interact directly with political figures, it is exclusively through the media that most people are able to get acquainted with those who represent them – and with those who aspire to play that role. But the media do not only repeat what politicians say. The pieces of information they decide to include in their stories, the words they use, and the frames they select contribute to the definition of the public personality of the leaders they talk about. News media also choose to put the emphasis on particular personality traits, and to ignore others. In order to have a better understanding of this phenomenon, we have studied the case of former Parti québécois leader, André Boisclair. We have tried to determine if the coverage he was object of has been stable over time, or if it has followed cycles, and we have studied the criteria used by the media to assess his personality. To achieve these ends, we have studied the volume, the format, the tone, the objects and the frames, which have characterized the coverage broadcasted on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and the TVA Network between June 4, 2005 and February 21, 2007 about André Boisclair. Our conclusions show that the coverage indeed follows cycles, and that the criteria used by the news media are very similar to those which have already been identified as important to the public in the selection of a political leader.