Estimations of accumulation area ratio (AAR) and equilibrium line altitude (ELA) were carried out on the Southern Patagonia Icefield. The icefield lies on the border between Chile and Argentina on the southern tip of South America. It is the largest mid-latitude ice mass in the world but despite this fact little research has been conducted in the area. The main reasons for this are most likely the harsh weather conditions and remoteness of the area. However, since icefield’s act as a source for fresh water and as an indicator of climate change more research is crucial. This study focuses on three objectives: to map the snow cover, to estimate AAR and ELA and to discuss their variations during the period 2000 to 2010. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) is particularly useful for studying cloudy areas because it’s high temporal resolution increase the chances of acquiring cloud- free images. Satellite images were processed, classified and analyzed. The classification results yielded large interannual variations but also congruity. The pattern of the snow cover suggest substantial wind control on snow accumulation, particularly snow deposition on eastern slopes. No statistically significant trends of AAR and ELA could be detected, although, a vague decrease in AAR and increase in ELA is recognized. Average values of AAR and ELA estimated over the period yields lower AARs and higher ELAs than previously suggested. The average AAR is calculated to be 0.66. Average ELA is estimated to be 970 m.a.s.l. and 1270 m.a.s.l. for the western and eastern sides, respectively.

Anal acoustic reflectometry (AAR) is a technique that is currently under investigation for the assessment of faecal incontinence. It uses reflected sounds waves to measure cross sectional area at different pressures leading to a profile of the anal canal, and in particular the high pressure zone of the anal sphincters. The cross sectional area from the high pressure zone is then plotted on a graph to give seven characteristic parameters. AAR has been shown to be reproducible and reliable, able to distinguish between continence and incontinence, correlate with the severity of incontinence and able to discriminate between the three patterns of incontinence (urge, passive and mixed). Opening pressure has been shown to be an independent predictor of success with peripheral nerve evaluation, the trial period before sacral nerve stimulation. This thesis aimed to validate AAR against manometry and explore its physiological and clinical potential. A retrospective analysis of 265 patients who had undergone AAR was undertaken in order to develop a surrogate marker for anal canal length. The surrogate marker did find the expected difference between men and women but this was not clinically significant. Furthermore, the surrogate marker was unable to differentiate between incontinence and continence. A technical limitation (Gibbs phenomenon) of AAR was subsequently shown to explain this unexpected result. Prior manometry could possibly interfere with the interpretation of AAR, and therefore a prospective randomised cohort study of 30 patients was conducted to assess two orders of data collection. Reassuringly it does not matter which one of these investigations is undertaken first. In order to test the hypothesis that the greater the challenge to the anal sphincter, the greater the response, the effect of two rates of anal canal stretch was investigated in a prospective randomised cohort study of 50 patients with faecal incontinence. No difference was found between normal or fast rates of AAR. This study has validated a faster method of AAR that can be used alongside manometry in any order. A pudendal nerve block was used to investigate whether AAR assesses primarily internal or external sphincter function in a prospective cohort study of 15 patients using both AAR and manometry. Bilateral pudendal nerve block reduced the function of the external anal sphincter but had no effect on the internal sphincter using both techniques. This study suggests that AAR at rest is predominately an investigation of the internal anal sphincter. A prospective study of 30 patients with faecal incontinence was carried out to establish if AAR can predict the outcome from posterior tibial nerve stimulation. Posterior tibial nerve stimulation improved rectal sensation, manometry squeeze pressures, quality of life, severity of incontinence and was more effective for patients with urge incontinence. A variety of demographic, clinical and physiological measures were unable to predict the success of posterior tibial nerve stimulation. The results presented in this thesis suggest that the full clinical potential of AAR has yet to be realised and it will be necessary to compare it with high resolution anal manometry in the future. Progress in this field would be greatly facilitated by establishing the normal values for this technique and the development of a robust AAR assessment of the external anal sphincter.

The aim of this thesis is to draw up a detailed analysis of a business plan to build retail brand store with Apple products. The analytical part of this thesis is devoted to the selected market and to the conditions to build official Apple store. Processed business plan is based on real data, questionnaire and expert´s experiences in the field and try to determine the success of the business as precisely as possible. The financial plan includes necessary expenses and planned profits which shows in two versions what conditions must be done to achieve a profit.

AR media or augmented reality has become increasingly prevalent in today's society, and more and more applications leverage the technology's ability to present digital 3D objects in the physical space, particularly in gaming. However, the auditory aspect, also known as audio augmented reality (AAR), has not received much attention despite its presence in various forms in our daily lives. From information systems that announce the arrival of the next train through speakers to museums that provide guided tours through buildings using headphones, AAR surrounds us almost every day. But how would a game be experienced and constructed solely using AAR? This article explores the construction of an interactive auditory gaming experience using Audio Augmented Reality (AAR). The focus is on analyzing the techniques employed to create this gaming experience entirely through AAR. Furthermore, the potential inherent in this medium as an inclusive experience for a broad audience is discussed. By exploring and analyzing the implementation of Dolby Atmos in the interactive auditory game "Ambience," this article contributes to the understanding of AAR as an innovative technology and its potential to create unique and accessible experiences for different users. / AR medier eller augmented reality är en teknik som har blivit allt vanligare förekommande i dagens samhälle och fler och fler applikationer använder sig av teknikens förmåga att framställa digitala 3D-objekt i det fysiska rummet, framför allt inom spel. Trots detta har den auditiva delen, även kallad audio augmented reality (AAR), inte fått mycket uppmärksamhet, trots att den existerar i någon form runt omkring oss nästan dagligen. Allt från informationssystem som kan berätta via högtalare när nästa tåg anländer till museer som använder hörlurar för att ge guidade turer genom byggnader. Men hur skulle en interaktivupplevelse byggas upp som endast använder sig av AAR? Denna artikel undersöker uppbyggnaden av en interaktiv audiell upplevelse med hjälp av Audio Augmented Reality (AAR). Fokus ligger på att analysera de tekniker som användes för att skapa denna upplevelse helt genom AAR. Vidare diskuteras den potentiella inneboende kraften i denna typ av medium som en inkluderande upplevelse för en bred publik. Genom att utforska och analysera implementeringen av Dolby Atmos i den interaktiva audiella upplevelsens ambiens, bidrar denna artikel till förståelsen av AAR som en nyskapande teknik och dess potential att skapa unika och tillgängliga upplevelser för olika användare.

In cells and organelles transporters are responsible for translocation of amino acids, sugars and nucleotides among others. In the central nervous system (CNS), amino acid transporters can function as neurotransmitter transporters and nutrient sensors. The Solute carrier (SLC) superfamily is the largest family of transporters with 395 members divided in 52 families. The system A and system N amino acid transporter family, SLC38, consists of 11 members, SNAT1-11 (SLC38A1-11). The members are expressed in the brain, exclusively in neurons or astrocytes and some in both. Amino acid signaling is mainly regulated via two pathways, the amino acid responsive (AAR) pathway and the mechanistic/mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) pathway. These pathways regulate the protein synthesis in opposite directions depending on the amino acid availability. SLC38 members along with other SLCs have been identified to participate in these pathways. In paper I, the regulation of SLC genes after complete amino acid starvation in mouse hypothalamic cells have been studied with microarray and we found that 47 SLC genes were significantly altered at five hours of starvation. Interestingly, we found that Slc38a1 and Slc38a7 were upregulated along with the known starvation responding gene, Slc38a2. A complementary starvation study for the SLC38 genes was performed using primary mouse embryonic cortex cells. We found that Slc38a1, Slc38a2, Slc38a5, Slc38a6 and Slc38a8 were upregulated while Slc38a3, Slc38a7 and Slc38a11 were downregulated. Three members from the SLC38 family, SNAT8 (paper IV), SNAT9 (paper III) and SNAT10 (paper II) have been histologically characterized in mouse brain and all these transporters are exclusively neuronal. SNAT8 and SNAT10 were also functionally characterized and shown to be transporters for alanine and glutamine among others. SNAT8 was shown to mediate sodium dependent transport and was classified to system A. SNAT10 was shown to be a sodium independent bidirectional transporter and displayed characteristics for system A and N. SNAT9 is a lysosomal component of the Ragulator-Rag complex which senses amino acid availability and activates mTORC1. In paper III we also found that Slc38a9 gene expression was upregulated following starvation and downregulated following high-fat diet in mouse brain.

Ce travail de thèse propose une méthodologie multi-échelle basée sur l'utilisation de modèles de substitution fonction de variables aléatoires, pour évaluer la fiabilité résiduelle d'ouvrages en béton atteints de réaction alcali-granulat (RAG), dans l'optique d'une meilleure maintenance. Les modèles de substitution, basés sur des développements en chaos de polynômes des paramètres d'une fonction de forme (sigmoïde dans les cas traités), ont été constitués à plusieurs échelles, afin notamment de réduire les temps de calculs des modèles physiques sous-jacents. A l'échelle microscopique, le modèle de RAG employé est celui développé par Multon, Sellier et Cyr en 2009, comprenant initialement une vingtaine de variables aléatoires potentielles. A l'issue d'une analyse de sensibilité de Morris, le modèle de substitution permet de reproduire la courbe de gonflement dans le temps du volume élémentaire représentatif en fonction de neuf variables aléatoires. L'utilisation du modèle de substitution construit, pour la prédiction des effets mécaniques du gonflement dû à la RAG sur une éprouvette, a nécessité de prendre en compte l'anisotropie de ces effets en améliorant les fonctions poids proposées par Saouma et Perotti en 2006. L'échelle de l'éprouvette étant validée par la confrontation des prédictions aux données expérimentales des travaux de thèse de Multon, une application à l'échelle du barrage de Song Loulou a été entreprise. Le calcul du comportement thermo-chemo-mécanique d'une pile d'évacuateur de crues, dont les résultats en déplacements ont pu être confrontés aux données d'auscultation fournies par l'entreprise AES-SONEL (devenue ENEO), a été réalisé. Des modèles de substitution ont été construits ensuite à l'échelle de la structure afin d'obtenir les déplacements aux points d'intérêt, liés aux états limites de fonctionnement des évacuateurs, et procéder ainsi à l'estimation de la fiabilité résiduelle du barrage. Les calculs d'analyse de sensibilité et la construction des modèles de substitution ont été implémentés en Fortran, Java et OpenTURNS Les calculs sur éprouvette et pile de barrage ont été effectués sous Cast3M. / This work proposes a multi-scale methodology based on the use of surrogate models function of random variables, to evaluate the residual reliability of concrete structures suffering from alkali-aggregate reaction (AAR), for a better maintenance purpose. Surrogate models, based on polynomial chaos expansion of the parameters of a shape function (sigmoid in the studied cases), have been constituted at several scales, in particular in order to reduce computation time of the underlying physical models. At the microscopic scale, the AAR model employed is that developed by Multon, Sellier and Cyr in 2009, initially comprising about twenty potential random variables. At the end of a Morris sensitivity analysis, the surrogate model enables to reproduce the expansion curve over time of the representative elementary volume as a function of nine random variables. The use of the built-in surrogate model in predicting the mechanical effects of AAR expansion on a concrete core required to take into account the anisotropy of these effects by improving the weight functions proposed by Saouma and Perotti in 2006. The core's scale being validated by the comparison of the predictions with the experimental data of Multon's thesis work, an application at the scale of the Song Loulou dam was undertaken. The computation of the thermo-chemo-mechanical behavior of a spillway stack, whose results in displacement could be compared with the auscultation data provided by the company AES-SONEL (now ENEO), was realized. Surrogate models were then constructed at the scale of the structure to obtain displacements at the points of interest, related to the operating limit states of the spillways, and thus to estimate the residual reliability of the dam. The sensitivity analysis computations as well as the construction of the surrogate models were implemented in Fortran, Java and OpenTURNS. Computations on concrete cores and Song Loulou dam spillway were performed under Cast3M.

Guru Dutt was one of the most important filmmakers in India, who worked for a little over a decade starting in 1951. He died prematurely in 1964. In those few years, he made some of Indian cinema?s most memorable films. Song and dance sequences are an integral part of the narrative structure of popular Indian cinema. Guru Dutt, working within that paradigm, devised innovative methods of using song sequences. In his films, the song sequences were not a distraction, but they served the purpose of carrying the narrative forward, expressing the inexpressible, and replacing scenes. He achieved this by his creative use of locations, lyrics, music, camera angles, and placement of the song within the narrative. This study critically analyzes song sequences from five of his films ? Aar Paar (Through and Through, 1954), Mr. and Mrs. 55 (1955), Pyaasa (The Thirsty One, 1957), Kaagaz ke Phool (Paper Flowers, 1959) and Saahib Biwi aur Ghulam (Master Mistress and Slave, 1962). Guru Dutt?s style of song direction focused on realistic depiction and the quality of storytelling. He used each feature of the song to his advantage never losing control of the larger narrative. This study also brings to the fore Guru Dutt?s conflicted views as an artist on the issues of tradition and modernity, and the position of women in the emerging nation.

The diploma thesis deals with the use of Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) for depth profiling and 3D mapping of the zinc-coated steel used in the automotive industry. Before creating depth maps and depth profiles, optimization of the experiment was performed. It was shown that the LIBS technique is suited for making depth profiles and depth maps. The theoretical part deals with the description of the LIBS instrumentation, characteristics of plasma, and assembling of scientific papers which reflect the up to date knowledge about depth profiling and mapping with the use of the LIBS technique. The experimental part describes the optimization of the experiment. Gate delay, the depth and the diameter of craters using the profilometer, the position of the focal plane relative to the sample surface, and selection of spectral lines with the smallest residual signal and small scattering of data were optimized. Depth profiles of zinc, iron, chromium and manganese with the depth map of zinc and iron were made, and also the depth resolution for both elements was calculated.

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