This dissertation argues that edifying dialogue is an appropriate and satisfying component of historically critical biography. It has been a part of biography. The edifying and critical intent is traced through pre-modern biography to demonstrate that this was the case in the Hebrew, Greek, Roman, Early Christian and Medieval eras. Key authors examined include the author(s) of the Pentateuch, the Gospel writers and the authors of the Biblical epistles, Herodotus, Polybius, Livy, Plutarch, Tacitus, Athanasius, Jerome, Sulpicius Severus, and John Capgrave. It can be a part of biography even given the challenges of contemporary theory posed by the extreme positions of positivism and postmodernism (or their chastened re-formulations). Important authors discussed in this section include Arthur Marwick, Keith Jenkins, David Harlan and Peter Novick. It is a part of some biographies meant for a particular audience (such as feminist works). And hopefully it will be increasingly looked upon as the preferred way of writing biography. My dissertation follows these stages. I begin with what biography has been and argue that the Greek and Roman historians believed that the intent of biography was critical and edifying. In fact, critical and edifying intent is notable also in Biblical and medieval biographies. The next section argues that edifying discourse is compatible with both traditional and postmodern theories of history-writing. The third section of the dissertation moves from theoretical considerations to the work of two notable Christian historians, George Marsden and Harry Stout. I note that these two scholars in particular are, in theory, open to my argument but that they can hesitate to engage in edifying discourse in biography. Finally, I briefly examine a few authors who write edifying and critical biography. Toril Moi, Carolyn Heilbrun, and the Bollandists are discussed in this section.

In this thesis, numerical experiments are performed to test the numerical stability of the finite element method for analyzing incompressible materials from boundary displacements. The significance of the study relies on the fact that incompressibility, or density preservation during deformation, is an important property of materials such as rubber and soft tissue.<p>It is well known that the finite element analysis (FEA) of incompressible materials is less straightforward than for materials which are compressible. The FEA of incompressible materials using the usual displacement based finite element method results in an unstable solution for the stress field. Hence, a different formulation called the mixed u-p formulation (u displacement, p pressure) is used for the analysis. The u-p formulation results in a stable solution but only when the forces and/or stress tractions acting on the structure are known. There are, however, certain situations in the real world where the forces or stress tractions acting on the structure are unknown, but the deformation (i.e. displacements) due to the forces can be measured. One example is the stress analysis of soft tissues. High resolution images of initial and deformed states of a tissue can be used to obtain the displacements along the boundary. In such cases, the only inputs to the finite element method are the structural geometry, material properties, and boundary displacements. When finite element analysis of incompressible materials with displacement boundary conditions is performed, even the mixed u-p formulation results in highly unstable calculations of the stress field. Here, a hypothesis for solving this problem is developed and tested. Theories of linear and nonlinear stress analysis are reviewed to demonstrate that it may be possible to determine the von Mises stress uniquely in spite of the numerical instability inherent in the calculations.<p>To validate this concept, four different numerical examples representing different deformation processes are considered using ANSYS®: a plate in simple shear; expansion of a thick-walled cylinder; a plate in uniform strain; and Cooks membrane. Numerical results show that, unlike the normal stress components Sx, Sy, and Sz, the calculated values of the von Mises stress are reasonably accurate if measurement errors in the displacement data are small. As the measurement error increases, the error in the von Mises stress increases approximately linearly for linear problems, but can become unacceptably large in nonlinear cases, to the point where solution process encounter fatal errors. A quasi-Dirichlet patch test in association with this problem is also introduced.

This study used computer aided design software Solid Work to draw four models of pressure vessel, and to analyze the displacement and the stress by the finite element analysis software ANSYS. To carry on the main body of the pressure vessel and find the highest stress of the pressure vessels by finite element analysis. The stress analysis of the pressure vessel main body contains main nozzle, the skirt of the main body ban and the connected control line. And the stress analysis factor includes: the stress distribution situation by seismic force and the displacement change factor of the wind power and the stress distribution condition of the thermal load by expand with heat and contract with cold (normal temperature climb to high temperature). The researcher also discussed the difference of the stress distribution between individual analysis and the overall analysis. The present study used finite element analysis (contain main body, spray nozzle, skirt in view of the overall analysis ban) to carry on the shell individual analysis first, then using the boundary condition of the result displacements regarding connected spray nozzle, the pipeline by the shell analysis again carries on stress analysis of the spray nozzle and the pipeline. Based on the results of stress analysis by the finite element method, the researcher discussed the differences of stresses between overall analysis and the individual analysis results.

A graphical preprocessor for Spectral Element Method (SEM) is developed with an emphasis on user friendly graphical interface and instructive element construction. The interface of the preprocessor helps users with every step during mesh generation, aiding their understanding of SEM. This preprocessor's Graphical User Interface (GUI) and help system are comparable to other commercial tools. Moreover, this preprocessor is designed for educational purposes, and prior knowledge of Spectral Element formulation is not required to use this tool. The information window in the preprocessor shows stepby- step instructions for the user. The preprocessor provides a graphical interface which enables visualization while the mesh is being constructed, so that the entire domain can be discretized easily. In addition, by following informative steps during the mesh construction, the user can gain knowledge about the intricate details of computational fluid dynamics. This preprocessor provides a convenient way to implement h/p type nonconforming interfaces between elements. This aids the user in learning advanced numerical discretization techniques, such as the h/p nonconforming SEM. Using the preprocessor facilitates enhanced understanding of SEM, isoparametric mapping, h and p type nonconforming interfaces, and spectral convergence. For advanced users, this preprocessor provides a proficient and convenient graphical interface independent of the solvers. Any spectral element solver can utilize this preprocessor, by reading the format of the output file from the preprocessor. Given these features, this preprocessor is useful both for novice and advanced users.

Abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA) are an expansion in diameter of the abdominal aorta and their rupture is a leading cause of mortality. One of the treatments for AAA is the implantation of an endograft (also called a stent graft), a combination of fabric and metal stents, to provide a new conduit for blood and shield the aneurysm sac from direct pressurization. After implantation of the stent graft, the aneurysm may shrink, grow, or stabilize in diameter ? even in the absence of apparent flow into the sac ? in some cases resulting in graft failure through component separation, kinking, or loss of seal at its ends. Greater understanding of AAA and treated AAA could provide insight on how treatment might be modified to improve treatment methods and/or design devices to be more effective in a wider range of patients. Computational models provide a means to investigate the biomechanics of endografts treating AAA through analysis of the endografts, the AAA, and the combination of them. Axisymmetric models of endograft-treated AAA showed that peak von Mises stress within the wall varied between 533 kPa and 1200 kPa when different material properties for the endograft were used. The patient-specific models, built from time series of patient CT scans with similar patient history but different outcomes, show that wall shrinkage and stability can be related to the level of stresses within the vessel wall, with the shrinking AAA showing a greater reduction by endograft treatment and a lower final value of average von Mises stress. The reduction in pressure felt by the wall is local to the central sac region. The inclusion of thrombus is also essential to accurate stress estimation. The combination of axisymmetric and patient-specific computational models explains in further detail the biomechanics of endograft treatment. The patient-specific reconstruction models show that when effectively deployed and reducing the pressure felt in the AAA wall, the graft is under tension in the sac region and compression at its ends.

Dielectric waveguides are crucial devices in the making of integrated-optical circuits. It is very important to analyze this type of waveguides so we can optimize the design for better performance. Analysis of bent waveguides has been a difficult problem in the past. In a bent waveguide, two coordinate systems are needed to fully describe the ongoing complex scattering process in the transition region of the waveguide. It is extremely hard to analyze such problems for methods built on a single coordinate system such as the finite-difference,finite-element methods and the beam propagation method (BPM). In this thesis, we adopt dual mode-field representations (for all the low and higher-order modes), one for the incident and reflected waves and the other for the transmitted waves, to study bending effects. To calculate the wave fields, we apply the analytic continuity principle to allow the waves to analytically extend and join smoothly on the bordering line. By matching the two continuity conditions of both the fields and their normal derivatives we get two matrix equations for the reflection and transmission coefficients. For symmetrical bending waveguide, the task can be further reduced to solving two smaller problems each with even or odd symmetry on the bordering line. As the bent angle increases the governing matrix equation becomes more singular. As a result, all the elements in the matrix are calculated with closed-form formulae to minimize the stability problem. In addition, special numerical methods are used to extend the range of the bending angles that this method can handle. In conclusion, our theory can calculate microwave bending waveguides up to 30 degrees and for dielectric slab waveguide with 15 degree bent angle. With this method we are able to compute small reflection coefficients of about -60dB and less.

This thesis is to study on the preparation of iron nano-particles by electrochemical method in aqueous solution. The resultant particles are stabilized as a colloidal suspension by the use of cationic surfactants. The advantages include those high yield, low cost, and simple control of particle size by adjustment of the current density. It is revealed that current density, distance between electrodes, temperature, and surfactant concentration of aqueous solution play important roles on the preparation of nano-particles. The morphology, structure, composition, and optical properties of nano-particles are studied by Ultraviolet-Visible spectrophotometer (UV/Vis spectrophotometer), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The effect of particle size on the magnetic properties of nano-particles has been studied using superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID). According to the experimental results, the greater imposed current density is applied, the smaller the particle size is obtained. The absorption spectra of the particles exhibit that the characteristic peak of surface plasmon band is at 264 nm. The maghemite (£^-Fe2O3) phase is clearly confirmed by X-ray diffraction and TEM analysis. From the hysteresis loop studies, particles are paramagnetic at room temperature and they exhibited super-paramagnetic phenomenon. They become ferromagnetic at low temperature. The increase of the coercive force is due to the reduction of thermal vibration.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact effect of varied structure of golf ball. The researcher applied finite element analysis software LS-DYNA to do nonlinear impact analysis of different golf ball models. It was hoped that this study could design a better golf ball for golfer. The researcher had developed ten stress versus strain curves of two-piece golf balls (including a core and a cover) and three-piece golf balls (including a core, an inner cover and a cover) and four different thicknesses of inner cover of three-piece golf balls. The simulation also adjust the density of inner cover to analyze the impact procedure under the definite weight. With the special design of two-piece balls and three-piece balls, the impact models extract the ball velocities, and angular velocities for the calculation of the ball flight. Finally, the researcher made suggestions for some combination of material property and thickness of the core and the inner cover of the golf ball for the designer to develop a suitable golf ball.

As a result of ¡§the X-ray Phase Problem¡¨, traditional direct methods can¡¦t solve the structures of the large molecules. For exploring alternate methods, Wu-Pei Su applied simulated annealing to solve the structure of the large molecules and obtained success. Adopting his concept, we wrote a program for solving the structure of the molecules by C Program Language. And for decreasing the running time of the program, we introduced the concept of genetic algorithm into simulated annealing method.

Abstract The dynamic models for different linear or nonlinear beam structures are proposed in this dissertation. The proposed mathematical model for a turbo-disk, which is valid for whatever isotropic or orthotropic turbo-blades with or without shrouds, accounts for the geometric pretwist and taper angles, and considers coupling effect among bending and torsion effect as well. The Kelvin-Voigt internal and external damping effects have been included in the formulation. The effect of fiber orientation on the natural frequencies of a fiber-reinforced orthotropic turbo-blade has also been investigated. The eigenvalue problems of a single pre-twisted taper-blade or a shrouded turbo-blade group are formulated by employing the differential quadrature method (DQM). The DQM is used to convert the partial differential equations of a tapered pre-twisted beam system into a discrete eigenvalue problem. The Chebyshev-Gauss- Lobatto sample point equation is used to select the sample points in these analyses. The effect of the number of sample points on the accuracy of the calculated natural frequencies has also been studied. The integrity and computational efficiency of the DQM in this problem will be demonstrated through a number of case studies. The effects of design parameters, i.e. Kelvin-Voigt internal and linear external damping coefficients, the fiber orientation, and the rotation speed on the dynamic behavior for a pretwisted turbo-blade are investigated. The dynamic response of a nonlinear electrode actuator used in the MEMS has also been formulated and analyzed by employing the proposed DQM algorithm. The transitional responses of the derived nonlinear systems are calculated by using the Wilson¡V method. Results indicated the curve shape of the electrode and the cantilever actuator may affect the pull-in behavior and the residual vibration of the electrostatic actuators significantly. Numerical results demonstrated the validity and the efficiency of the DQM in solving different type beam problems.