This paper presents a method for simultaneously optimizing the routes and schedules of certain commuter airlines. This method is specifically designed for those commuter airlines which primarily provide a feeder service from small communities into a single large community. The problem is that given a set of small communities, a single large community, a set of aircraft and the demand as a function of time of day, determine which communities each aircraft will serve, the order in which these communities will be served and the time(s) that the aircraft will stop at each community in order to minimize passenger inconvenience. These assignments are subject to service and economic constraints. The problem is formulated as a mixed integer quadratic programming problem. A computer program is developed to solve this problem. An example problem with an operating commuter airline is included to demonstrate the application of the solution procedure. / M. S.

This study was concerned with linear and nonlinear stress and failure analysis of an idealized damage zone in a laminated composite under compressive loading. The following conclusions can be made from results of the analysis. 1. A boundary layer exists around the damage zone; it is similar to the boundary layer along the free edges. 2. Interlaminar stresses in the boundary layer around the damage zone are similar to those produced at the free edge. 3. The interlaminar stresses around the damage zone may be as large or larger than those at the free edge depending upon the fiber orientations and stacking sequence. 4. The boundary layer associated with the damage zone extends as far or farther into the interior of the laminate as does the free edge effect, depending on fiber orientation and stacking sequence. 5. Only laminated materials with more than one fiber orientation are affected by the damage zone. 6. Lamination theory is valid in interior regions away from free edges and the damage zone. 7. The presence of a damaged zone induces interlaminar stresses in an interior region away from free edges and the damage zone. 8. Due to interlaminar stresses produced in an interior region, failure, defined by a Tsai-Wu failure criterion, may initiate in the interior away from free edges and the damage zone. 9. The cutout extending down to a ±45 interface may produce large stress concentrations near the edge of the damage zone, depending upon the fiber orientations and stacking sequence. 10. Elastic results adequately predict where failure initiates for the laminate considered. 11. A damaged [90/±45/0]_s laminate fails at approximately 60 percent of the load carried by an undamaged laminate. 12. For a [90/±45/0]_s laminate, initial failure occurs at the free edge in the 0° layer. Subsequent failure in the interior of the 0° layer as well as at the free and cutout edges of the other layers leads to total failure. This investigation indicates that future areas of study should include: 1. Linear and nonlinear analysis of hygrothermal effects in laminates with idealized damage zones. 2. A three layer damage zone (cutout) in an eight layer laminate. 3. The effects of varying geometric parameters such as cutout width and layer thickness. 4. More detailed nonlinear analysts. 5. An improved method for modeling failure and unloading of an element. 6. Experimental study of specimens with idealized damage Zones to compare with theoretical analysis. 7. Analysis capability for bending of unsymmetric laminates. / Master of Science

In 1973, a Virginia statute providing for special assessment of agricultural, horticultural, forest, and open-space lands went into effect. The purpose of this statute was to slow the conversion of agricultural lands to non-agricultural uses and to provide tax equity for farmers. Four localities approved use-value assessment ordinances for 1973; by 1976, twenty-two localities had approved use-value assessment ordinances. This rising participation in the land-use taxation program accompanies a rise in the costs of the program. Tax revenues foregone due to special assessment have significant impacts on the local tax bases. Since participation and costs are already significant, and likely to increase, evaluation of the program is warranted. The objectives of this thesis are to explain the process of administering use-value taxation, to determine the practices currently employed in administering use-value taxation at the local level, and to identify those applications of the law that deviate from the legislative intent. A model of the decision process at the local level is utilized in meeting with this first objective. This model depicts the flow of information to the local decision-maker, and incorporates the influences affecting the decision, based on the theory of William Niskanen and Herbert Simon. In meeting with the second objective, a survey was conducted with the cooperation of the Commissioners of the Revenue, Real Estate Assessors, and Treasurers of the localities having use-value taxation in effect for 1976. The third objective, the identification of applications of the law which deviate from the legislative intent, involved the use of the decision model to identify potential misapplications of the law, and the analysis of the survey data to identify existing misapplications. In conclusion, the analysis suggests that participation in the program and costs of administering the program are substantial and increasing, and misapplications of the law are known to occur. In consideration of these conclusions, further research is justifiable in determining the relation of use-value taxation with other land-use controls, and in obtaining more information about the use-value taxation program within given localities. / Master of Science

Experiments were conducted to determine the palatability and digestibility of corn oil by ponies. A 15-day palatability trial established 20% as the maximum level of corn oil readily consumed by the ponies. Three digestion trials were conducted with eight mature gelding ponies weighing about 225 kg (incomplete Latin squares). A 7-day preliminary period preceded each 7-day collection period. Canvass collection bags and harnesses were used to collect total fecal excreta. In each trial, two ponies were fed each of four rations. The basal ration was composed of chopped alfalfa hay, cracked corn and crimped oats. In the experimental rations, corn oil was substituted for 5, 10 and 20% of the basal ration. At the end of each trial blood samples were taken. Addition of oil to the ration did not affect the apparent digestibility of crude protein. Apparent digestibility of fatty acids increased linearly with the level of corn oil. Values were 43, 62, 70 and 85% for rations containing 0, 5, 10 and 20% corn oil, respectively. Apparent digestibility of fatty acids in the corn oil, calculated by difference increased with level of corn oil. The value was 94% for the oil when substituted for 20% of the basal ration. Blood hemoglobin and hematocrit were normal and were not affected by feeding corn oil. Serum cholesterol increased from the addition of corn oil (122, 144, 148, 155 mg/100 ml for rations containing 0, 5, 10 and 20% oil, respectively). Serum triglyceride levels were not affected by ration fed. Serum calcium and magnesium levels remained in the normal range, and were not consistently affected by the corn oil level in the ration. / Master of Science

This study investigated the effect of sex of stimulus upon perception of violent themes in binocular rivalry by males and females. In binocular rivalry, two non-identical stimuli are presented to the subject, one to each eye. The subject then reports his perception of the stimuli shown. Previous research has shown that the familiar is reported more often than the unfamiliar, and that use of violent stimuli elicit more violent responses in certain classes of subject. This study introduced female stimuli in the same number, violent and non-violent, as male stimuli to assess any effect such a modification might have. The results showed that in both males and females, male stimuli were interpreted violently more often then female stimuli. This seems to be the result of the visual inputs that the subjects are confronted with in real life. Males are portrayed as more physically violent than females, and the results are a reflection of what the subjects expected to see, that is, what was more familiar. The topics of subject reliability, eye dominance, and perceptual versus response bias were also addressed. It was suggested that binocular rivalry research be conducted in the direction of its use as a projective technique and its relation to such concepts as psychological androgyny. / Master of Science

In 1860, Lynchburg was a thriving tobacco town. The "golden leaf" had stimulated the economy and made the city financially sound. When civil war erupted, Lynchburg cast her fate with Virginia and the Confederacy. Mobilization began at a rapid rate. Men flocked to the ranks, industries geared to war production and women began making clothing for the soldiers. Located on three railroad lines and a canal, Lynchburg became an important transportation link for the Confederacy. Soldiers poured into the city during the first year of war. The city established two camps accommodating over 10,000 soldiers. A military hospital came into being shortly thereafter. As the war progressed, sick and wounded men poured into Lynchburg in such a stream that three general military hospitals and three independent hospitals were ultimately established. The general hospitals were divided into divisions and extended even into various tobacco factories. Lynchburg constantly faced inflation and scarcity during the war. Sometimes action from local authorities aided the problem, but many times Lynchburg citizens lived in fear of privation. With the city full of transit soldiers, crime became an almost insurmountable problem. The end finally came on April 12, 1865, when Mayor Branch surrendered the city to Federal troops. / Master of Arts

Many years of continuous collections of deer kill data on state game management areas have largely been poorly utilized by deer biologists. Recent computer modeling developments have provided a vehicle for the examination of these collections of data. This thesis represents an attempt to demonstrate the usefulness of minimum population reconstruction in defining those populations that best contrast different harvest strategies. Buck-only deer hunting is compared to either-sex hunting on two similar areas. To determine if variables such as weather are acting to alter hunter participation and harvest in southeastern deer herds, 25 independent variables were tested. Correlation coefficients and maximum R² improvements provided the statistical basis for drawing conclusions concerning the relative "strength" of these variables. Higher than normal temperatures before and during the hunt were found to be positive contributors to harvest, as was precipitation before the hunt. Hunt days that followed nights of full moon also demonstrated a positive, but generally weak association with kill. The size of the deer population on an area, and the number of hunters that participate in a hunt were found to be the most powerful contributors to overall deer harvest. An evaluation of vegetative density indicated that buck hunting is most successful on areas that are more open, whereas doe harvest was related more to a denser vegetative classification. Buck-only hunting, when promoted over long periods of time, was found to drastically distort male age structure in favor of young age classes. Heavy either-sex harvests, however, provided not only a greater harvest of deer, but sex and age classes remained relatively stable in the herd. Continual monitoring of deer kill and careful analysis of reliable data through modeling is a most efficient method for not only detecting potential problems in herd welfare, but also in the establishment of forthcoming hunt regulations. / Master of Science

Three problems associated with the taxonomy and growth of anaerobic cocci belonging to the genera Peptococcus and Peptostreptococcus were studied. One study involved the designation of the neotype strain of Peptococcus niger, the type species of the genus Peptococcus. The type strain had been lost, and there were no extant ·strains of this taxonomically important species. Several strains of anaerobic cocci isolated from the navels of several human subjects were found to be identical with the original description of Peptococcus niger. Therefore, an amended description of this species was published. Another study involved the taxonomic status of Peptococcus anaerobius. A search of the early descriptions of Peptococcus anaerobius revealed that the original description of the species was probably based on descriptions of several different anaerobic cocci. Consequently, a request has been made of the Judicial Commission of the International Committee on Systematic Bacteriology to reject the name Peptococcus anaerobius as a nomen confusum. A third study involved the inhibition of growth of Peptostreptococcus anaerobius by sodium polyanethol sulfonate (SPS). Gelatin and protease peptone were found to protect Peptostreptococcus anaerobius from inhibition of growth by SPS, and, therefore, are useful additions to blood culture media for the purpose of enhancing isolation of Peptostreptococcus anaerobius from blood cultures. Numerous strains of other anaerobic cocci were also tested for sensitivity to SPS. / Master of Science

Containerized Virginia pine seedlings were inoculated with Pisolithus tinctorius and grown monoxenically in various substrates consisting of peat:vermiculite amended by mine spoil. Significantly better seedling growth and ectomycorrhizal development occurred when substrates were inoculated three weeks before or at seeding, rather than three weeks after seeding or not at all. Low levels of mine spoil substrate amendments did not affect seedling growth, but did result in significantly lower ectomycorrhizal development. A concurrent open-air greenhouse study showed that mine spoil amendments aided seedling growth more than inoculation did. Mycorrhizal infection was not affected by spoil substrate. Recommendations for the production of mycorrhizal container stock were presented. / Master of Science

The feasibility of a geographical information base for supporting industrial forestry operations decisions was investigated by identifying the data needs of the industry, the sources of the data with the data's availability, cost, and media, and the available software which could be used in developing the system. The major data needs are a description of an area by terrain, soils, forest type with growth and removal data, and climatic data. Information on the micro-terrain encountered in an area was often requested by equipment companies. Land and mill managing firms requested soils data of a site quality nature while equipment companies wanted trafficability measurements. Both wanted information describing the local wood using industry by type and size of firm, the raw material{s) procured, production capacity, and product(s). The sources of the data are numerous, and much of the data can be acquired in machine readable form. Soils data presents the largest problem of high cost and time to gather and input, and is not available for many areas. Work on extraction and interpolation of forest survey data is necessary to meet equipment engineering needs. The system is best developed in a modular fashion. Much of the software can be directly purchased. Conscientious efforts must be made to include input from potential users in the development and implementation of the system if it is to succeed. It was concluded that further development should be aimed at the equipment companies where the information base appeared most needed and wanted. / Master of Science