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Soft computing is a concept that has come into prominence in recent times and its application to power system analysis is still more recent. This thesis explores the application of soft computing techniques in the area of voltage stability of power systems. Soft computing, as opposed to conventional “hard” computing, is a technique that is tolerant of imprecision, uncertainty, partial truth and approximation. Its methods are based on the working of the human brain and it is commonly known as artificial intelligence. The human brain is capable of arriving at valid conclusions based on incomplete and partial data obtained from prior experience. It is an approximation of this process on a very small scale that is used in soft computing. Some of the important branches of soft computing (SC) are artificial neural networks (ANNs), fuzzy logic (FL), genetic computing (GC) and probabilistic reasoning (PR). The soft computing methods are robust and low cost. It is to be noted that soft computing methods are used in such diverse fields as missile guidance, robotics, industrial plants, pattern recognition, market prediction, patient diagnosis, logistics and of course power system analysis and prediction. However in all these fields its application is comparatively new and research is being carried out continuously in many universities and research institutions worldwide. The research presented in this thesis uses the soft computing method of Artificial Neural Networks (ANN’s) for the prediction of voltage instability in power systems. The research is very timely and current and would be a substantial contribution to the present body of knowledge in soft computing and voltage stability, which by itself is a new field. The methods developed in this research would be faster and more economical than presently available methods enabling their use online.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Victoria University (Melbourne, Vic.), 2008. / Includes bibliographical references.

Rhizoctonia root rot is caused by a soil borne fungus, Rhizoctonia solani and is a serious problem in bedding plants. The objective of this study was to determine the efficacy of three chemical and two biological products for controlling Rhizoctonia root rot in cool season and warm season bedding plants. Experiments were conducted with summer and winter bedding plants in a nursery production and landscape situation. The efficacy of conventional fungicides or biological products to control Rhizoctonia root rot in bedding plant production and simulated landscape growth cannot be evaluated from results of this study because of low mortality of plants.

The long-term use of reclaimed water for landscape maintenance and the effects on soil chemistry and soil structure were investigated. Irrigation with reclaimed versus potable water for five years or more affects chemical properties of soil. Soils irrigated with reclaimed versus potable water had higher EC. Monsoon precipitation had less of a leaching effect than anticipated and significantly reduced EC only on two out of 13 sites. Soils irrigated with reclaimed water had higher SAR values than those irrigated with potable water and can potentially develop infiltration problems in the future. Contour maps of the EC for three depths of one site as measured by soil samples and EC as predicted by EM38 measurements for pre- and post-monsoon sampling times were developed.

IsaMill is a stirred type mill used in mineral industry for fine and ultra-fine grinding. The difficulty in obtaining the internal flow information in the mill by experimental techniques has prevented the development of the fundamental understanding of the flow and generating general methods for reliable scale-up and optimized design and control parameters. This difficulty can be effectively overcome by numerical simulation based on discrete element method (DEM). In this work a DEM model was developed to study particle flow in a simplified IsaMill. The DEM model was validated by comparing the simulated results of the flow pattern, mixing pattern and power draw with those measured from a same scale lab mill. Spatial distributions of microdynamic variables related to flow and force structure such as local porosity, particle interaction forces, collision velocity and collision frequency have been analyzed. Among the materials properties of particles, it is shown that by decreasing particle/particle sliding friction coefficient, the particle flow becomes more vigorous which is useful to grinding performance. Restitution coefficient does not affect the particle flow significantly. A too low or too high particle density could decrease grinding efficiency. Although grinding medium size affects the flow, its selection may depend on the particle size of the products. Among the operational variables considered, the results show that fill volume and mill speed proved to be important factors in IsaMil process. Increase of fill volume or mill speed increases the interaction between particles and agitating discs which results in a more vigorous motion of the particles. Among the mill properties, particle/stirrer sliding friction plays a major role in energy transfer from stirrer to particles. Although there exists a minimum collision energy as particle/stirrer sliding friction increases, large particle/stirrer sliding friction may improve grinding performance as it has both large collision frequency and collision energy. However, that improvement is only up to a critical particle/disc sliding friction beyond which only input energy increases with little improvement on collision frequency and collision energy. Reducing the distance between stirrers or increasing the size of disc holes improves high energy transfer from discs to particles, leading to high collision frequency and collision energy. Among the different stirrer types, the energy transfer is more effective when disc holes are present. Pin stirrer shows increased collision energy and collision frequency which also result in a high power draw. Using the DEM results, a wear model has been developed to predict the wear pattern of the discs. This model can be used to predict the evolution of the disc wear with the time. It is shown that energy transfer from discs to particles are increased when discs are worn out. An attempt has also been made to analyze the microdynamic properties of the mill for different sizes. It is shown that specific power consumption and impact energy are correlated regardless of the mill size and mill speed.

IsaMill is a stirred type mill used in mineral industry for fine and ultra-fine grinding. The difficulty in obtaining the internal flow information in the mill by experimental techniques has prevented the development of the fundamental understanding of the flow and generating general methods for reliable scale-up and optimized design and control parameters. This difficulty can be effectively overcome by numerical simulation based on discrete element method (DEM). In this work a DEM model was developed to study particle flow in a simplified IsaMill. The DEM model was validated by comparing the simulated results of the flow pattern, mixing pattern and power draw with those measured from a same scale lab mill. Spatial distributions of microdynamic variables related to flow and force structure such as local porosity, particle interaction forces, collision velocity and collision frequency have been analyzed. Among the materials properties of particles, it is shown that by decreasing particle/particle sliding friction coefficient, the particle flow becomes more vigorous which is useful to grinding performance. Restitution coefficient does not affect the particle flow significantly. A too low or too high particle density could decrease grinding efficiency. Although grinding medium size affects the flow, its selection may depend on the particle size of the products. Among the operational variables considered, the results show that fill volume and mill speed proved to be important factors in IsaMil process. Increase of fill volume or mill speed increases the interaction between particles and agitating discs which results in a more vigorous motion of the particles. Among the mill properties, particle/stirrer sliding friction plays a major role in energy transfer from stirrer to particles. Although there exists a minimum collision energy as particle/stirrer sliding friction increases, large particle/stirrer sliding friction may improve grinding performance as it has both large collision frequency and collision energy. However, that improvement is only up to a critical particle/disc sliding friction beyond which only input energy increases with little improvement on collision frequency and collision energy. Reducing the distance between stirrers or increasing the size of disc holes improves high energy transfer from discs to particles, leading to high collision frequency and collision energy. Among the different stirrer types, the energy transfer is more effective when disc holes are present. Pin stirrer shows increased collision energy and collision frequency which also result in a high power draw. Using the DEM results, a wear model has been developed to predict the wear pattern of the discs. This model can be used to predict the evolution of the disc wear with the time. It is shown that energy transfer from discs to particles are increased when discs are worn out. An attempt has also been made to analyze the microdynamic properties of the mill for different sizes. It is shown that specific power consumption and impact energy are correlated regardless of the mill size and mill speed.

abstract: Gene manipulation techniques, such as RNA interference (RNAi), offer a powerful method for elucidating gene function and discovery of novel therapeutic targets in a high-throughput fashion. In addition, RNAi is rapidly being adopted for treatment of neurological disorders, such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease, etc. However, a major challenge in both of the aforementioned applications is the efficient delivery of siRNA molecules, plasmids or transcription factors to primary cells such as neurons. A majority of the current non-viral techniques, including chemical transfection, bulk electroporation and sonoporation fail to deliver with adequate efficiencies and the required spatial and temporal control. In this study, a novel optically transparent biochip is presented that can (a) transfect populations of primary and secondary cells in 2D culture (b) readily scale to realize high-throughput transfections using microscale electroporation and (c) transfect targeted cells in culture with spatial and temporal control. In this study, delivery of genetic payloads of different sizes and molecular characteristics, such as GFP plasmids and siRNA molecules, to precisely targeted locations in primary hippocampal and HeLa cell cultures is demonstrated. In addition to spatio-temporally controlled transfection, the biochip also allowed simultaneous assessment of a) electrical activity of neurons, b) specific proteins using fluorescent immunohistochemistry, and c) sub-cellular structures. Functional silencing of GAPDH in HeLa cells using siRNA demonstrated a 52% reduction in the GAPDH levels. In situ assessment of actin filaments post electroporation indicated a sustained disruption in actin filaments in electroporated cells for up to two hours. Assessment of neural spike activity pre- and post-electroporation indicated a varying response to electroporation. The microarray based nature of the biochip enables multiple independent experiments on the same culture, thereby decreasing culture-to-culture variability, increasing experimental throughput and allowing cell-cell interaction studies. Further development of this technology will provide a cost-effective platform for performing high-throughput genetic screens. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Bioengineering 2012

The era between the close of the nineteenth century and the onset of the First World War witnessed a marked increase in radical agitation among Indian and Irish nationalists. The most outspoken political leaders of the day founded a series of widely circulated newspapers in India and Ireland, placing these editors in the enviable position of both reporting and creating the news. Nationalist journalists were in the vanguard of those pressing vocally for an independent India and Ireland, and together constituted an increasingly problematic contingent for the British Empire. The advanced-nationalist press in Ireland and the nationalist press in India took the lead in facilitating the exchange of provocative ideas—raising awareness of perceived imperial injustices, offering strategic advice, and cementing international solidarity. Irish and Indian press coverage of Britain’s imperial wars constituted one of the premier weapons in the nationalists’ arsenal, permitting them to build support for their ideology and forward their agenda in a manner both rapid and definitive. Directing their readers’ attention to conflicts overseas proved instructive in how the Empire dealt with those who resisted its policies, and also showcased how it conducted its affairs with its allies. As such, critical press coverage of the Boxer Rebellion, Boer War, Russo-Japanese War, and World War I bred disaffection for the Empire, while attempts by the Empire to suppress the critiques further alienated the public. This dissertation offers the first comparative analysis of the major nationalist press organs in India and Ireland, using the prism of war to illustrate the increasingly persuasive role of the press in promoting resistance to the Empire. It focuses on how the leading Indian and Irish editors not only fostered a nationalist agenda within their own countries, but also worked in concert to construct a global anti-imperialist platform. By highlighting the anti-imperial rhetoric of the nationalist press in India and Ireland and illuminating their strategies for attaining self-government, this study deepens understanding of the seeds of nationalism, making a contribution to comparative imperial scholarship, and demonstrating the power of the media to alter imperial dynamics and effect political change.

Antagonism among various religious communities and particularly between Hindus and Muslims has become a recurring feature of the public sphere in South Asia. This antagonism fed a steady growth of Muslim separatism in British India which led to the creation of Pakistan in 1947. The purpose of this thesis is to explore the evidence of such communal attitudes within the major movement dedicated to achieving Indian nationhood, the Indian National Congress. From its founding in 1885, the organization espoused secular ideals and a broad vision of Indian nationalism which would be inclusive of all religious communities. Nevertheless, a strong undercurrent of Hindu chauvinism was evident early in its history and contributed to the weakening of political and communal harmony from the early 1890s to the late 1940s. Lokamanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak (1856-1920) and Sardar Vallabhbhai J. Patel (1875-1950) were two powerful leaders who helped to nurture this Hindu chauvinism over a period of two generations of political activism. This thesis investigates how Tilak and Patel's demonization of Muslims in the print media and the relegation of Muslims to limited roles within Congress helped to enfeeble the secular goals of Congress, despite the efforts of Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948) and Jawaharlal Nehru (1889-1964)