The case study as a scientific method is, and has been for a long time, a subject of heavy discussion in the scientific community. Some scientists disregard the study completely and argue that it’s nothing more than story-telling, while others claim that the case study is the most relevant research method there is. As with all scientific methods case studies have both advantages and disadvantages and the aim of this study is to present and discuss these.

This descriptive case study of the transformation in medical care at the community level was carried out with a triangulation approach. Data from documents and surveys using both semi-structured and unstructured interviews were gathered to evaluate and explain how medical care delivery changed from a primarily public system to one predominantly private.

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M.Com. (Industrial Psychology) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

This study draws on census data and geographic information systems (GIS) to investigate the relationship between light rail transit (LRT) infrastructure development and gentrification in Portland, Oregon. While recent research using comprehensive measures of neighborhood socioeconomic status (SES) supports a potentially causal link between transit development and gentrification, research into the effects of transit on property values alone tends to dominate the discourse. This study therefore seeks to build on previous research to develop an index measure of neighborhood SES and SES change based on measures of education, occupation, and income, using census data from 1980-2010. This multifaceted measure of neighborhood SES is analyzed in relation to LRT access using correlation, OLS regression, and GIS hot spot and choropleth mapping. Findings: Throughout the study period, low SES neighborhoods largely disappeared from the City of Portland, while low-income households were gradually priced out. Simultaneously, the easternmost suburb of Gresham became more highly concentrated in low SES neighborhoods. No definitive relationship between LRT and SES is found along the Eastside Blue or Westside Blue Lines, but strong evidence is found supporting a positive effect of Yellow Line MAX development on the rapid gentrification of North Portland from 2000-2010. Regressions run on neighborhoods along the Yellow Line indicate that SES change was greatest for those that began the decade with large Black populations, low rents, and close proximity to stations. Findings are discussed through the theoretical framework of the urban growth machine, which suggests the differential relationship between LRT and neighborhood SES relates to the distinct values of different parts of the region for the pursuit of general growth goals.

This research looks at some of the different methods of validation used in the growing phenomenon citizen science. Citizen science is discussed and a small range of different typologies is used to define it. To find some of the common themes of validation six case studies are performed. The case studies examine the following six citizen science projects: GLOBE at Night, eBird, Citclops, Foldit, Galaxy Zoo and EyeWire. These projects a divided equally in to two types based on previous typological research: data collection projects and analysis projects. All projects are international in scope but differ greatly in actions and so in what type of validation they use. It is showed that some validation is made in comparison to data made by professionals or machine data or some other external source. In two cases the results of the project are self-validating and one case validation is made by experts on data that seems out of the ordinary. A few projects use consensus data i.e. the average of observations or analyses made by the citizen scientists either for validation or as a measure of probable correctness. A short discussion of the results and some suggestions of future research finishes of this research.

University of Macau / Faculty of Arts and Humanities. / Department of English

University of Macau / Faculty of Arts and Humanities. / Department of English

This thesis aims to facilitate the siting and implementation of Florida Atlantic University Southeast National Marine Renewable Energy Center (FAU SNMREC) ocean current energy (OCE) projects offshore southeastern Florida through the analysis of benthic anchoring conditions. Specifically, a suitability analysis considering all presently available biologic and geologic datasets within the legal framework of OCE policy and regulation was done. OCE related literature sources were consulted to assign suitability levels to each dataset, ArcGIS interpolations generated seafloor substrate maps, and existing submarine cable pathways were considered for OCE power cables. The finalized suitability map highlights the eastern study area as most suitable for OCE siting due to its abundance of sand/sediment substrate, existing underwater cable route access, and minimal biologic presence. Higher resolution datasets are necessary to locate specific OCE development locales, better understand their benthic conditions, and minimize potentially negative OCE environmental impacts. / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (M.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2014. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

陸靜塵. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2011. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 220-229) / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstracts in Chinese and English. / Lu Jingchen.