M.A. / The anonymity associated with Computer Mediated Communication has formed the basis of an assumption that fantasy is a prominent feature of interactions taking place via the internet. Some of the literature argues that through fantasy identities all participants are able to become whoever they want to be, creating new virtual communities where equality between members is fundamental in their interactions. The findings of this dissertation suggest, however, that anonymity is limited by the reasons for chat room participation. Further, all the members are not equal, with a clear hierarchy evident as one logs onto the site. This study also argues that the concept of ‘virtual communities’ is not an accurate description of what occurs in chat rooms. The examination of chat rooms as ‘new meeting places’ for real identities is expected to generate more accurate theoretical postulations, in which the significance of the linkages between on- and offline realities is acknowledged. The extended case method was used to examine a chat room, known as Conversations, to investigate the linkages between online participation patterns and offline realities. Issues concerning identity and identity formation informed the principal motives in the selection of a research design that allowed the researcher extensive exposure to the members of this chat room. Since the emphasis was on the discovery of the meaning the chatters themselves attached to their participation, it was important to use a comprehensive research design. To this effect, three complementary data gathering techniques were employed; namely: virtual participant observation, face-to-face participant observation and in-depth interviews. Through this innovative research design the linkages between social opportunities, individual motivation and chat room participation were illuminated. / Meera Ichharam Chris Bolsmann

Vehicular Ad Hoc Network (VANET) supports wireless communication among vehicles using vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication and between vehicles and infrastructure using vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication. This communication can be utilized to allow the distribution of safety and non-safety messages in the network. VANET supports a wide range of applications which rely on the messages exchanged within the network. Such applications will enhance the drivers' consciousness and improve their driving experience. However, the efficiency of these applications depends on the availability of vehicles real-time location information. A number of methods have been proposed to fulfill this requirement. However, designing a V2V-based localization method is challenged by the high mobility and dynamic topology of VANET and the interference noise due to objects and buildings. Currently, vehicle localization is based on GPS technology, which is not always reliable. Therefore, utilizing V2V communication in VANET can enhance the GPS positioning. With V2V-based localization, vehicles can determine their locations by exchanging mobility data among neighboring vehicles. In this research work, we address the above challenges and design a realistic V2V-based localization method that extends the centroid localization (CL) by assigning a weight value to each neighboring vehicle. This weight value is obtained using a weighting function that utilizes the following factors: 1) link quality distance between the neighboring vehicles 2) heading information and 3) map information. We also use fuzzy logic to model neighboring vehicles' weight values. Due to the sensitivity and importance of the exchanged information, it is very critical to ensure its integrity and reliability. Therefore, in this work, we present the design and the integration of a mobility data verification component into the proposed localization method, so that only verified data from trusted neighboring vehicles are considered. We also use subjective logic to design a trust management system to evaluate the trustworthiness of neighboring vehicles based on the formulated subjective opinions. Extensive experimental work is conducted using simulation programs to evaluate the performance of the proposed methods. The results show improvement on the location accuracy for varying vehicle densities and transmission ranges as well as in the presence of malicious/untrusted neighboring vehicles. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2016. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

The Future Will Be Better Tomorrow is a satirical post-apocalyptic novel that examines the personal and social ironies that occur in a society that is unbalanced by an unexplained apocalyptic event. Working with a combination of dark humor and the terrifying realities of an apocalyptic event – in this case: a blackout – the novel aims to challenge the machinery established by this particular subset of the science fiction genre. / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (M.F.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2014.. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

The novel Animalia is the representation of not just human relationships, but also, of human beings’ relationships to other animals. While the story revolves around a family, the narrative as a whole is meant to bring the reader into a microcosmic ecosystem. Essentially, I am examining an ecosystem. An ecosystem, not in the traditional sense, but an ecosystem nonetheless, because the narrative is a study of how varying species of heterotrophs interact with one another for both physical and emotional sustenance. Russell Water’s story is paramount, but the animals’ affect on one another is what lies below the peak and forms the mountain (an unintentional Hemingway reference). “It has often been observed that an object in a story does not derive its density of existence from the number and length of descriptions devoted to it, but from the complexity of its connections with the different characters” (Sartre 1210). Essentially, through complex and multiple connections between the human species and other species within Kingdom Animalia, I am attempting to develop an “ecosystem” that allows for narrative progression and the interconnection of relationships and thematic elements which range from the capitalistic class system to natural selection. / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (M.F.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2014.. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Native Multicast plays an important role in distributing and managing delivery of some of the most popular Internet applications, such as IPTV and media delivery. However, due to patchy support and the existence of multiple approaches for Native Multicast, the support for Native Multicast is fragmented into isolated areas termed Multicast Islands. This renders Native Multicast unfit to be used as an Internet wide application. Instead, Application Layer Multicast, which does not have such network requirements but is more expensive in terms of bandwidth and overhead, can be used to connect the native multicast islands. This thesis proposes Opportunistic Native Multicast (ONM) which employs Application LayerMulticast (ALM), on top of a DHT-based P2P overlay network, and Automatic Multicast Tunnelling (AMT) to connect these islands. ALM will be used for discovery and initiating the AMT tunnels. The tunnels will encapsulate the traffic going between islands' Primary Nodes (PNs). AMT was used for its added benefits such as security and being better at traffic shaping and Quality Of Service (QoS). While different approaches for connecting multicast islands exists, the system proposed in the thesis was designed with the following characteristics in mind: scalability, availability, interoperability, self-adaptation and efficiency. Importantly, by utilising AMT tunnels, this approach has unique properties that improve network security and management.