The purpose of this investigation is to determine if the Polyfactor test can be used to predict the success or failure of marriage. The Polyfactor test is an indirect scale assessing the present marital adjustment of each spouse and the overall marital adjustment of the couple.

Under the Common Core State Standard (CCSS) initiative, states that voluntarily adopt the common core standards work together to develop a common assessment in order to supplement and replace existing state assessments. However, the common assessment may not cover all state standards, so states within the consortium can augment the assessment using locally developed items that align with state-specific standards to ensure that all necessary standards are measured. The purpose of this dissertation was to evaluate the linking accuracy of the augmented tests using the common-item nonequivalent groups design. Pseudo-test analyses were conducted by splitting a large-scale math assessment in half, creating two parallel common assessments, and by augmenting two sets of state-specific items from a large-scale science assessment. Based upon some modifications of the pseudo-data, a simulated study was also conducted. For the pseudo-test analyses, three factors were investigated: (1) the difference in ability between the new and old test groups, (2) the differential effect size for the common assessment and state-specific item set, and (3) the number of common items. For the simulation analyses, the latent-trait correlations between the common assessment and state-specific item set as well as the differential latent-trait correlations between the common assessment and state-specific item set were used in addition to the three factors considered for the pseudo-test analyses. For each of the analyses, four equating methods were used: the frequency estimation, chained equipercentile, item response theory (IRT) true score, and IRT observed score methods. The main findings of this dissertation were as follows: (1) as the group ability difference increased, bias also increased; (2) when the effect sizes differed for the common assessment and state-specific item set, larger bias was observed; (3) increasing the number of common items resulted in less bias, especially for the frequency estimation method when the group ability differed; (4) the frequency estimation method was more sensitive to the group ability difference than the differential effect size, while the IRT equating methods were more sensitive to the differential effect size than the group ability difference; (5) higher latent-trait correlation between the common assessment and state-specific item set was associated with smaller bias, and if the latent-trait correlation exceeded 0.8, the four equating methods provided adequate linking unless the group ability difference was large; (6) differential latent-trait correlations for the old and new tests resulted in larger bias than the same latent-trait correlations for the old and new tests, and (7) when the old and new test groups were equivalent, the frequency estimation method provided the least bias, but IRT true score and observed score equating resulted in smaller bias than the frequency estimation and chained equipercentile methods when group ability differed.

Modification d'algorithmes classiques utilises dans le maintien de la cohérence de copies multiples en vue de prendre en compte une latence de détection de faute. Bref parallèle des algorithmes modifies de Kaneko et Herran et Verjus. Réalisation d'une nouvelle classification de pannes.

The purpose of this study was (a) to determine the effect of a four-step learner readiness profile: positive, active, clear, and energetic (PACE) on self-reported anxiety in first year nursing students before skill performance tests, and (b) to determine the effect of PACE on the performance of first year nursing students on skill tests. The subjects consisted of 27 first year nursing students enrolled at Chemeketa Community College in Salem, Oregon. Two multiple baseline designs across subjects were employed. Volunteers were randomly divided into three subject groups. Baseline data were collected on 5 skill tests for Group 1, 8 skill tests for Group 2, and 11 skill tests for Group 3. The treatment variable, PACE, was implemented once the baseline was established for self-reported anxiety and performance. Findings indicated that PACE was an effective treatment for reducing self-reported anxiety by first year nursing students before skill performance on tests. The students also demonstrated an increased percentage of successful skill performance tests after completion of PACE. It was concluded that PACE was an efficient and effective method for reducing self-reported anxiety and for increasing skill performance test success in first year nursing students enrolled at Chemeketa Community College, Salem, Oregon. It was recommended that PACE be implemented in the first year of the nursing program. / Graduation date: 1996

Many search problems are commonly solved with combinatoric algorithms that unnecessarily duplicate and serialize work at considerable computational expense. There are techniques available that can eliminate redundant computations and perform remaining operations concurrently, effectively reducing the branching factors of these algorithms. This thesis applies these techniques to the problem of parsing natural language. The result is an efficient programming language that can reduce some of the expense associated with principle-based parsing and other search problems. The language is used to implement various natural language parsers, and the improvements are compared to those that result from implementing more deterministic theories of language processing.

Computer technology has made rapid advances over the past several years. New developments in hardware have included the use of disks, cassette tape storage, and computer graphics. Hardware designed for specific uses has rapidly become a major component of the computer graphics technology. Many new programs have advanced the field of computer graphics and have facilitated the development of a new process termed digitizing.The present study used an Intergraph Computer System to digitize Bender Gestalt Test (BGT) protocols. This digitizing approach, although performed by the computer, can be likened to (a) taking a grid at 1/100th inch resolution, (b) placing the grid over the drawn designs, (c) reporting the X,Y coordinates which intersect the lines of the BGT drawing, (d) interpreting those X,Y coordinates statistically, and (e) developing norms for various aspects of subject drawings.A comparison was made between the computer digitizing method and the traditional method of scoring BGT protocols. The comparison was based on six indices selected from the 1977 Hutt Adience-Abience Scale. Data were collected from 60 children diagnosed as severely emotionally handicapped (SEH) and 60 children diagnosed as "normal."Intra-rater and inter-rater reliability as well as criterion-related and concurrent validity were analyzed. Reliability results favored the computer approach, while criterion-related validity was essentially the same for both computer and traditional scoring methods. Criterion validity for the traditional technique was slightly, but not significantly, higher. Concurrent validity results indicated a limited degree of similarity between the two methods; however, the discriminant properties of both methods differed. With two exceptions, all discriminant indices for both scoring methods were not significant. Drawing placement and rotation were statistically significant under the traditional method of assessment; however, neither the computer nor the traditional scoring method clearly discriminated SEH from normal children. With BGT assessment based on only six indices, lack of successful discrimination was not surprising. Previous studies recommended that the BGT be used only in a test battery when assessing emotional handicaps. The current study supported those recommendations and suggested that computer scoring can be more reliable and equally as valid as the traditional scoring method for assessing emotional factors on the BGT protocol.

Bicycle dynamics and behaviors have been vastly studied through modeling and simulation. Due to the complexity, software models are often assumed subjecting to di erent nonholonomic constraints in order to simplify the models and control algorithms. A real life autonomous bicycle faces perturbances from the road, wind, tire deformation, slipping among other external forces. Limitations of simulations will not always allow these to apply. All these issues make the autonomous bicycle research very challenging. To study the bicycle control problems a few research results from the literature are reviewed. A nonlinear bicycle model was used to conduct control simulations. Model based nonlinear controllers were applied to simulate the balance and path tracking control. A PID controller is more practical to replace the non-linear controller for the balance control. Simulation results of the di erent controllers are compared in order to decide the proper control strategies on the hardware platform. The controller design of the platform complies with practicality based on the hardware con guration. Two control schemes are implemented on the test platform; both are developed with PID algorithms. The rst scheme is a single PID control loop in which the controller takes the roll angle feedback and balances the running platform by means of steering. If the desired roll angle is zero the controller will try to hold the platform at the upright position. If the desired roll angle is non-zero the platform will be balanced at an equilibrium roll angle. A xed roll angle will lead to a xed steering angle as the result of balance control. The second scheme is directional control with balance consisting of two cascaded PID loops. Steering is the only means to control balance and direction. To do so the desired roll angle must be controlled to achieve the desired steering angle. The platform tilts to the desired side and steering follows to the same side of the tilt; the platform can then be lifted up by the centrifugal force and eventually balanced at an equilibrium roll angle. The direction can be controlled using a controlled roll angle. Many implementation issues have to be dealt with in order for the control algorithm to be functional. Dynamic roll angle measurement is implemented with complementary internal sensors (accelerometer and gyroscope). Directional information is obtained through a yaw rate gyroscope which operates on the principle of resonance. To monitor the speed of the platform, a rotational sensor was formed by using a hard drive stepper motor attached to the axis of the vehicle's driving motor. The optoelectronic circuit plays the vital role to ensure the system functionality by isolating the electromagnetic noise from the motors. Finally, in order to collect runtime data, the wireless communication is implemented through Bluetooth/RS232 serial interface. The data is then plotted and analyzed with Matlab. Controller gains are tuned through numerous road tests. Field test results show that the research has successfully achieved the goal of testing the low level control of autonomous bicycle. The developed algorithms are able to balance the platform on semi-smooth surfaces. / UOIT

Många rekryteringsmetoder som används i dag, som CV och referenstagning, har enligt studier låg validitet, däremot visar många studier att personlighet är stabilt över tid och därför är en mer valid prediktor för att kunna predicera arbetsprestation. Studiens syfte var att undersöka Shapes, ett internetbaserat personlighetstest, och dess arton kompetensdimensioner med test-retest utifrån tre frågeställningar. En datainsamling med 91 deltagare (29 män och 62 kvinnor) gjordes vid två tillfällen med tre veckors mellanrum. Deltagarna delades upp i kön- och åldersgrupper för att se skillnad över tid inom grupperna. Medelvärdesskillnader och korrelationer över tid jämfördes där resultatet visade att det fanns positiva samband mellan båda testtillfällena på samtliga dimensioner. Sju av de arton dimensionerna hade skillnader på medelvärde från testtillfälle ett och testtillfälle två. Detta skulle kunna bero på att Shapes inte är tillräckligt tillförlitligt för att mäta dessa dimensioner eller att dessa dimensioner inte är stabila över tid.

In the pharmaceutical industry uniform flow of powders is one of the most important considerations in solid dosage manufacture. Improper feeding of powders from storage hoppers into dye-presses can lead to inconsistent product quality, causing economic and health impacts. Investigation into the properties affecting powder flow is crucial. There were four objectives of the current research: 1. To determine the effect of moisture on the flow (Jenike flow index, Hausner Ratio and Carr Index, static and dynamic angle of repose) of selected pharmaceutical powders. 2. To study the effect of particle shape and size on Jenike flow index for selected starch and pharmaceutical powders. 3. To determine the effect of mixture compositions on the Jenike flow index of ordered mixtures of selected pharmaceutical powders. 4. To develop a novel flowability tester based on electrical capacitance tomography (ECT) that measures the dynamic angle of repose of powders.<p>To address the first objective, to determine the effect of moisture content on the flow of four pharmaceutical powders; an active pharmaceutical ingredient (API), aspartame, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC), and Respitose® ML001 were selected. The API and Respitose® powders were found to be nonhygroscopic and were tested at near zero moisture contents only (in this case 0.31% and 0.19% respectively). Aspartame was tested at moisture contents of 0%, 2%, 5% and 8% and HPMC at moisture contents of 0%, 2%, 5% and 10%. Powder flowability was measured using the Jenike shear index, the Hausner Ratio, the Carr Index and the static and dynamic angles of repose. The Jenike flow index of aspartame increased from 0.885 to 3.65 with an increase in moisture content, which was attributed to the formation of large, round agglomerates. The Jenike flow index of HPMC decreased from 3.28 to 2.65 with an increase in moisture content, which was attributed to the increasing strength of liquid bridges. The Jenike flow index was the only flowability indicator to capture this complex behaviour. <p>In order to address the second objective, five starches (cow cockle, barley, rye, rice and tapioca), as well as four pharmaceutical ingredients (an API, aspartame, HPMC, and Respitose® ML001), were characterised for size and shape, and then tested for flowability. Powder flowability was measured using the Jenike shear test, the most widely accepted flowability standard in the pharmaceutical industry. It was found that the Jenike flow index decreased linearly with decreasing aspect ratio and decreasing roundness for the powders investigated. It was also determined that particle shape had a greater impact on flowability than size for powders under 30 microns in diameter. <p>To address the third objective, ordered mixtures of pharmaceutical powders were examined to determine their flowability. Six combinations of Respitose® ML001, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC), and an active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) in varying concentrations were selected for investigation. Powder flowability was measured using the Jenike shear test, the most widely accepted flowability standard in the industry. The Jenike flow indices of the ordered mixtures were indistinguishable from the Jenike flow index of pure Respitose® at the alpha = 0.1 level.<p>The fourth objective, to develop a novel flowability tester using electrical capacitance tomography to measure the dynamic angle of repose, was investigated at the same time as the effect of moisture content. It was determined that the results of the novel dynamic angle of repose tester did not correlate well with the Jenike shear test. More development is needed before the novel flowability tester is ready for industrial use. The Jenike shear cell remains the only acceptable flow test for complex flow behaviour.

Syfte och frågeställningar Huvudsyftet med denna studie var att se om ett vertikalhopp eller ett trippelhopp uppvisade större känslighet att identifiera skillnader mellan opererat och icke-opererat ben i jämförelse med ett horisontalhopp hos individer som genomgått främre korsbands(ACL)-rekonstruktion. Studien syftade även till att undersöka om individens kön påverkade resultatet och om prestationen på de olika hoppen hade ett samband med isokinetisk benstyrka respektive det knäspecifika instrumentet KOOS, The Knee injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score. Metod 17 försökspersoner, 9 män och 8 kvinnor (medelålder 28 år) deltog i studien. De hade alla genomgått primär unilateral ACL-rekonstruktion i genomsnitt 7 månader tidigare. Vid ett och samma mättillfälle utfördes ett isokinetiskt styrketest samt tre funktionella hopp: vertikalhopp (”Jump and Reach”), trippelhopp samt horisontalhopp. KOOS fylldes i av försökspersonerna runt samma tidpunkt (nätbaserat frågeformulär för utvärdering av patientens upplevelse av sitt knä och knärelaterade besvär). Resultat Vertikalhoppet uppvisade en högre sensitivitet i jämförelse med horisontalhoppet vid test 7 månader efter ACL-rekonstruktion. Gällande de absoluta värdena (opererat ben) uppvisade både vertikalhoppet som trippelhoppet ett statistiskt samband med explosiv quadricepsstyrka (240grader/sekund), r=0,75 respektive r=0,73. Inget samband kunde ses mellan hopp och resultatet på KOOS. Inga könsskillnader hittades. Slutsats Resultaten visar att vertikalhoppet är ett mer sensitivt test för att identifiera funktionella nedsättningar i ACL-rekonstruerat knä i jämförelse med horisontalhoppet som ofta används som ”gold standard” i forskning och i den kliniska vardagen. En enkel och billig testmetod för vertikalhoppet, ”Jump and Reach” som användes i denna studie visar liknande resultat på sensitiviteten i jämförelse med datoriserade mätmetoder som är dyra och ofta inte tillgängliga i sjukgymnastens kliniska vardag.