For all the successes of the two edifices of modern physics, quantum theory and Einstein's relativity, a fundamental description of the Universe as a whole -- a theory that informs as to the true nature of reality -- has continued to elude science. This thesis describes the development and evolution of a new paradigm called Process Physics, a radical information-theoretic modelling of reality. It is argued that the failure of the extant approaches in physics is the direct consequence of limitations stemming from the mathematization, language and methodology of theoretical physics: the limitations of the postulated background spatial concepts and geometric modelling of time, the limitations of quantum theory in its failure to account for the measurement process and classicality; and the limitations of formal systems. In contrast, Process Physics utilizes the limitations of logic first identified by Godel and asserts the priority of process and relational endophysics, realized via a stochastic, autopoietic bootstrap system whose properties emerge a posteriori rather than being assumed a priori. The work is arranged in two parts. Part I discusses the historical, philosophical, and metaphysical foundations of physics to consider how the prevailing views in modern physics arose and what this revealed and contributed to the development of Process Physics. Part II describes the fundamentals of the new theory and its implementation, and demonstrates the viability of looking outside the current paradigms by showing that Process Physics yields unified emergent phenomena that permit an understanding of fundamental processes and penultimately motivate both quantum theory and relativity as relevant higher-level descriptors within their respective domains.

關於描述兩個觀察地A和B相似的程度而言，生物品種是否相同是其中的一個切入點，因此品種重複（species overlap）便為描述兩觀察地相似度的一種指標。就一般的生物或生態研究而言，較常使用的品種重複指數為以品種數為計算基礎的 Jaccard index，公式為 ，其中 和 分別為觀察地A和B的總品種數，而 則為兩地的共同品種數，這樣的計算方式為Gower(1985) 歸類描述兩單位（unit）的相似度（similarity）中的一種。在我們的研究中，將令依觀察到的品種數及品種重複數所計算出的 Jaccard index 視為估計值，記為 ；若描述相似度時僅以品種為計算單位，而忽略個別品種的數量未免有資訊流失的情形，因此我們延伸 Jaccard index 指數而另立以個別品種數為計算單位的 N 指數，並以無母數最大概似估計法（Nonparametric Maximum Likelihood Estimator, NPMLE）估計 N 指數，記為 。另外，Smith, Solow 和 Preston (1996) 也提出利用 delta-beta-binomial 模型修正 Jaccard index 的低估（underestimate）情形，我們將此模型所推估的品種重複記為 ，因此我們的研究重點便在於以模擬實驗比較 、 和 在估計真正參數時的行為。 在模擬實驗中，根據蒙地卡羅（Monte-Carlo）模擬法則，我們設計6種品種發生機率相等的平衡母體，及12種品種發生機率服從幾何分配的不平衡母體，以500次抽樣所得的平均數及標準差決定估計的好壞。根據研究結果，若在已知母體為平衡母體的情形之下， 和 有不錯的估計；而 則是不管在平衡母體或不平衡母體皆有不錯的估計，但 和 在某些不平衡母體時，卻有極偏差的估計。 除了模擬實驗之外，我們並推導出 的期望值和變異數，並證明其為 N 指數的大樣本不偏估計值（asymptotic unbiased estimator），並以台灣西北部濕地的鳥類記錄為實例，計算出三個估計值，並以跋靴法（Bootstrapping）計算出三個估計量的標準差估計值，發現NPMLE 有最小的變異程度。 / In describing the similarity between communities A and B, species overlap is one kind of measure. In ecology and biology, the Jaccard index (Gower, 1985) ,denoted , for species overlap is widely used and is useded as an estimation in our research. However, the Jaccard index is simply the proportion of overlapping species, that is those species appearing in more than one community, to unique species, that is those species appearing in only one community. However, this index ignores species proportion information, assigning equal weight to all species. We propose a new index, N, which includes proportion information and is estimated by a Nonparametric Maximum Likelihood Estimator (NPMLE), denoted . Smith et al. (1996) proposed a delta-beta-binomial model to improve underestimation of the Jaccard index, we denoted this estimator . In our Monte-Carlo simulations, we design 6 balanced populations in which every species has an equal proportion and 12 unbalanced populations in which species proportions follow a geometric distribution. We found that and are accurate for balanced populations but overestimate or underestimate the true value for some unbalanced populations. However, is robust for both balanced and unbalanced populations. In addition to simulation results, we also give theoretical results, which prove some asymptotic properties of NPMLE .For example, species abundance of wild birds communications occurred at two locations in north-western Taiwan.Via bootstrapping, has smaller standard error than and .

The average length of life from birth until death in a human population is a single statistic that is often used to characterise the prevailing health status of the population. It is one of many statistics calculated from an analysis that, for each age, combines the number of deaths with the size of the population in which these deaths occur. This analysis is generally known as life table analysis. Life tables have only occasionally been produced specifically for South Australia, although the necessary data has been routinely collected since 1842. In this thesis, the mortality pattern of South Australia over the period of 150 years of European settlement is quantified by using life table analyses and estimates of average length of life. In Chapter 1, a mathematical derivation is given for the lifetime statistical distribution function that is the basis of life table analysis, and from which the average length of life or current expected life is calculated. This derivation uses mathematical notation that clearly shows the deficiency of current expected life as a measure of the life expectancy of an existing population. Four statistical estimation procedures are defined, and the computationally intensive method of bootstrapping is discussed as an estimation procedure for the standard error of each of the estimates of expected life. A generalisation of this method is given to examine the robustness of the estimate of current expected life. In Chapter 2, gender and age-specific mortality and population data are presented for twenty five three-year periods; each period encompassing one of the colonial (1841-1901) or post-Federation (1911-96) censuses that have been taken in South Australia. For both genders within a census period, four types of estimate of current expected life, each with a bootstrap standard error, are calculated and compared, and a robustness assessment is made. In Chapter 3, an alternate measure of life expectancy known as generation expected life is considered. Generation expected life is derived by extracting, from official records arranged in temporal order, the mortality pattern of a notional group of individuals who were born in the same calendar year. Several estimates of generation expected life are calculated using South Australian data, and each estimate is compared to the corresponding estimate of current expected life. Additional estimates of generation expected life calculated using data obtained from the Roll of Honour at the Australian War Memorial quantify the reduction in male generation expected life for 1881-1900 as a consequence of military service during World War I, 1914-18, and the Influenza Pandemic, 1919. / Thesis (M.Sc.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Applied Mathematics, 2003.

Cette thèse est consacrée aux méthodes de Bootstrap pour unepopulation ?nie. Le premier chapitre introduit quelques rappels sur l'échantillonnage et propose une présentation synthétique des principales méthodes d'estimation de précision. Le chapitre 2 rappelle les méthodes de Bootstrap proposées pour un sondage aléatoire simple et introduit deux nouvelles mé thodes. Le chapitre 3 donne un nouvel algorithme de Bootstrap, consistant pour l'estimation de variance d'un estimateur par substitution dans le cas d'un tirage à forte entropie. Dans le chapitre 4, nous introduisons la notion d'échantillonnage équilibré et proposons un algorithme rapide. Nous montrons que l'algorithme de Bootstrap proposé est également consistant pour l'estimation de variance d'un tirage équilibré à entropie maximale. Le cas d'un échantillonnage complexe et celui d'un redressement est traité au chapitre 5. Une application au Nouveau Recensement de la population est donnée dans le chapitre 6.

<p>This thesis discusses non-linearities associated with a sampling switch and compares transmission gate, bootstrapping and bulk-effect compensation architectures at circuit level from linearity point of view for 0.35 um CMOS process. All switch architectures have been discussed and designed with an additional constraint of switch reliability.</p><p>Results indicate that for a specified supply of 3.3 Volts, bulk-effect compensation does not improve third-order harmonic distortion significantly which defines the upper most limit on linearity for a differential topology. However, for low-voltage operations bulk-effect compensation improves third-order harmonic noticeably.</p>

<p>This thesis consists of four papers dealing with estimation and inference for quantile regression of longitudinal data, with an emphasis on nonlinear models. </p><p>The first paper extends the idea of quantile regression estimation from the case of cross-sectional data with independent errors to the case of linear or nonlinear longitudinal data with dependent errors, using a weighted estimator. The performance of different weights is evaluated, and a comparison is also made with the corresponding mean regression estimator using the same weights. </p><p>The second paper examines the use of bootstrapping for bias correction and calculations of confidence intervals for parameters of the quantile regression estimator when longitudinal data are used. Different weights, bootstrap methods, and confidence interval methods are used.</p><p>The third paper is devoted to evaluating bootstrap methods for constructing hypothesis tests for parameters of the quantile regression estimator using longitudinal data. The focus is on testing the equality between two groups of one or all of the parameters in a regression model for some quantile using single or joint restrictions. The tests are evaluated regarding both their significance level and their power.</p><p>The fourth paper analyzes seven longitudinal data sets from different parts of the biostatistics area by quantile regression methods in order to demonstrate how new insights can emerge on the properties of longitudinal data from using quantile regression methods. The quantile regression estimates are also compared and contrasted with the least squares mean regression estimates for the same data set. In addition to looking at the estimates, confidence intervals and hypothesis testing procedures are examined.</p>

<p>This PhD thesis consists of an introduction and five papers, dealing with statistical methods in phylogenetics.</p><p>A phylogenetic tree describes the evolutionary relationships among species assuming that they share a common ancestor and that evolution takes place in a tree like manner. Our aim is to reconstruct the evolutionary relationships from aligned DNA sequences.</p><p>In the first two papers we investigate two measures of confidence for likelihood based methods, bootstrap frequencies with Maximum Likelihood (ML) and Bayesian posterior probabilities. We show that an earlier claimed approximate equivalence between them holds under certain conditions, but not in the current implementations of the two methods.</p><p>In the following two papers the divergence times of the internal nodes are considered. The ML estimate of the divergence time of the root is improved if longer sequences are analyzed or if more taxa are added. We show that the gain in precision is faster with longer sequences than with more taxa. We also show that the algorithm of the software package PATHd8 may give biased estimates if the global molecular clock is violated. A change of the algorithm to obtain unbiased estimates is therefore suggested.</p><p>The last paper deals with non-informative priors when using the Bayesian approach in phylogenetics. The term is not uniquely defined in the literature. We adopt the idea of data translated likelihoods and derive the so called Jeffreys' prior for branch lengths using Jukes Cantor model of evolution.</p>

This PhD thesis consists of an introduction and five papers, dealing with statistical methods in phylogenetics. A phylogenetic tree describes the evolutionary relationships among species assuming that they share a common ancestor and that evolution takes place in a tree like manner. Our aim is to reconstruct the evolutionary relationships from aligned DNA sequences. In the first two papers we investigate two measures of confidence for likelihood based methods, bootstrap frequencies with Maximum Likelihood (ML) and Bayesian posterior probabilities. We show that an earlier claimed approximate equivalence between them holds under certain conditions, but not in the current implementations of the two methods. In the following two papers the divergence times of the internal nodes are considered. The ML estimate of the divergence time of the root is improved if longer sequences are analyzed or if more taxa are added. We show that the gain in precision is faster with longer sequences than with more taxa. We also show that the algorithm of the software package PATHd8 may give biased estimates if the global molecular clock is violated. A change of the algorithm to obtain unbiased estimates is therefore suggested. The last paper deals with non-informative priors when using the Bayesian approach in phylogenetics. The term is not uniquely defined in the literature. We adopt the idea of data translated likelihoods and derive the so called Jeffreys' prior for branch lengths using Jukes Cantor model of evolution.

This thesis contributes in several ways to the existing knowledge on estimation of truncated, censored, and left truncated right censored (LTRC) regression models. Three new semiparametric estimators are proposed, allowing for asymmetric error distributions. A bootstrap method for estimation of the covariance matrix of the quadratic mode estimator (QME) is proposed and studied. In addition, finite sample properties of estimators for truncated, censored, and LTRC data are studied within simulation studies and applications with real data. The first paper consists of a simulation study of the QME and other estimators of truncated regression models. The paper contributes with results suggesting the bootstrap technique being potentially useful for estimation of the QME covariance matrix. In the second paper estimators of truncated and censored semiparametric regression models are proposed. These estimators are generalizations of the QME and the winsorized mean estimator (WME) by allowing asymmetric ``trimming'' of observations. Consistency and asymptotic normality of the estimators are shown. By combining the two moment restrictions used to derive the estimators in the second paper, a consistent estimator of LTRC regression models is proposed in the third paper. The fourth paper contains an application where LTRC interpurchase intervals of cars are analysed. Results regarding the interpurchase behaviour of consumers are provided, as are results on estimator properties.

The objective of Paper [I] is to analyze potential effects on the Swedish forest sector of a continuing rise in the use of forest resources as fuel in energy generation. An increasing use of forest resources as an energy input may have effects outside the energy sector. In this paper we consider this by estimating a system of demand and supply equations for the four main actors on the Swedish roundwood market. In Paper [II], we estimate a dynamic factor demand model for the Swedish pulp industry. We find weak evidence of adjustment costs for capital. The results suggest that the user cost of capital is a significant determinant of pulp industry investments. We also find that pulp industry investments are insensitive to variations in the price of electricity. Paper [III] proposes a flexible form of adjustment cost function. An empirical illustration shows that the flexible form can detect both convex and non-convex adjustment costs. Furthermore, the flexible form permits testing for the experience effect on adjustment cost. The objective of paper [IV] is to analyze the price formation for wood fuel used by the Swedish district heating sector. According to previous research there is a significant potential for increasing the use of wood fuel in Sweden. The question raised in this paper is why this potential is not realized. According to our results we cannot reject the efficient market hypothesis for all years. The objective of Paper [V] is to test for market power on the market for biofuels. To achieve our objective we make use of the idea of Granger causality. If past values of quantity contribute significantly to the determination of price, quantity is said to Granger cause price, which we will treat as a sign of market power. According to our findings this effect is present.