In this thesis we study the short-time Fourier transform. The short-time Fourier transform of a function f(x) is obtained by restricting our function to a short time segment and take the Fourier transform of this restriction. This method gives information locally of f in both time and frequency simultaneously.To get a smooth frequency localization one wants to use a smooth window, whichmeans that the windows will overlap. The continuous short-time Fourier transform is not appropriate for practical purpose, therefore we want a discrete representation of f. Using Gabor theory, we can write a function f as a linear combination of time- and frequency shifts of a fixed window function g with integer parameters a; b > 0. We show that if the window function g has compact support, then g generates a Gabor frame G(g; a; b). We also show that for such a g there exists a dual frame such that both G(g; a; b) and its dual frame has compact support and decay fast in the Fourier domain. Based on [2], we show that B-splines generates a pair of Gabor frames.

There has been much advancement in the field of data and information quality (DIQ) since two decades ago. However, despite a large number of the theoretical and empirical studies in this field, there is a lack of understanding about the mechanisms and dynamics of forming, adjusting and changing organisational users’ (information consumers) assumptions and expectations based on which they perceive the quality of information required for making decision in order to perform a task within an organisational environment. Although it is already known that information consumers perceive the quality of information according to the requirements of the organisational task and the context of use, how the task requirements affect information consumers’ expectations of information quality has been a black-box in the body of literature. The main objective of this research is to contribute to the literature of DIQ by exploring the role of the setting of a task within an organisational context in the formation, development and change of information consumers’ underlying expectations of information quality. Information consumers’ assumptions and expectations are called information quality (IQ) frames by this research. Moreover, this research examines the role of IT artefacts, which are used to support performing the task, in these dynamics. As an organisational task is usually performed by a group, the role of the task group of which information consumers are members is investigated by this research. Having adopted a multi-case study design, this thesis has targeted seven different task groups in seven different organisations from multiple industries. This in-depth qualitative research also employs interviews as the main source of data and documents as the secondary source of data. The collected data and empirical evidence is analysed using the thematic analysis and pattern coding. This study’s theoretical contributions to the body of literature are as follows. Firstly, the findings indicate that information consumers should not be simply categorised into domain-specific experts or novices for understanding the mechanisms that affect their IQ frames. Regarding the domain of the task, an information consumer might have domain-related experience that differentiates him from both an expert and a novice. Moreover, this study found that the organisational-specific experience plays a significant role in these dynamics. Secondly, four different settings of a task within an organisational context have been recognised and the insights have been provided into the likely impact of each setting on IQ frames. The findings show that the setting of a task that affects IQ frames is enforced by the interplay between the degree of situatedness of the task and the degree of its explicitness. Thirdly, this research contends that the role of other members of a task group contributes directly to the setting of a task rather than directly influencing their colleague’s IQ frames. Fourthly, this thesis confirms that the organisational resource limitations and the time pressure, which were already mentioned in the literature, affect how information consumers perceive the quality of information but the empirical evidence reveals that other types of pressure such as the pressure of a competitive market has a similar role, therefore, it is argued that in general the organisational pressure impacts the way information consumers perceive information quality. However, this thesis argues that this influence is mediated by the setting of a task. In other words, the organisational pressure can increase the degree of situatedness of a task within an organisational context. Finally, the findings of this study indicate that information consumers’ interpretation of how an IT artefact enables a task within an organisational context is the key mechanism through which the IT artefact can participate in forming, adjusting or changing their IQ frames. The interpreted type of an IT artefact, its interpreted capabilities, the organisational intervention and the IT support by IT technicians of an organisations are the main four factors that govern the influence of the IT artefact on information consumers’ IQ frames. In addition, the computing environment in which the IT artefact operates in, information consumers’ level of IT knowledge and prior experience of using the IT artefact can be involved indirectly in these dynamics. The theoretical contributions of this research have led to the development of a framework for IQ frames and the underlying dynamics have been explained in detail. In addition to the theoretical contributions, this study has a number of practical implications for organisations and management regarding the importance of the organisational settings in how information quality is judged by organisational users (information consumers).

In the transition between 2D and 3D animation animators tried to be able to replicate all of the styles and techniques in 3D that they utilized in 2D. Motion blur eventually came to replace a popular 2D technique known as a smear frame. A smear frame is much more than a path of motion or a blur though, it has a style that cannot be replicated with such methods. I present a creative project with the intent on creating 3D smear frames in a self-made character rig. In order to achieve this I will be designing, modeling, texturing, rigging, animating, and rendering the character of Champ Champions.

We give an overview of finite group frames and their applications to calculating summary statistics from partially ranked data, drawing upon the work of Rachel Cranfill (2009). We also provide a summary of the representation theory of compact Lie groups. We introduce both of these concepts as possible avenues beyond finite group representations, and also to suggest exploration into calculating summary statistics on Hilbert spaces using representations of Lie groups acting upon those spaces.

This research consists of experimental load tests and numerical simulations of structural steel connections with various filler materials to study the effect of non-steel fillers on the connection strength. Non-steel fillers are used in the steel connections to provide thermal insulation by reducing thermal bridging. Eight specimens having steel and polypropylene filler plates of various thicknesses were tested in the laboratory. The collected data were compared to a Finite Element Analysis (FEA) using ABAQUS to validate the numerical results. After validation, three parametric studies were conducted using ABAQUS to provide insight into general behavior of connections with a variety of fillers that could be used as thermal breaks. In addition, an extreme case of having air gaps instead of alternative fillers was also considered. The Research Council on Structural Connections (RCSC 2014) suggests a reduction in the bolt shear strength when undeveloped fillers with a thickness of more than 0.25 inch are used while using any non-steel material is prohibited due the limited research available. Most research studies have investigated the mechanical behavior of thermal breaks in either end-plate moment connections or slip-critical connections. No data is available for thermal breaks in bearing-type connections up to failure. This research aims to study the effects of filler material properties such as modulus of elasticity and strength on bolt strength, as well as investigate whether the current equation in RCSC 2014 is applicable for alternative filler materials like polypropylene that has less than 0.5% of the steel modulus of elasticity and less than 10% of steel strength.

This research examines how racism is hidden and denied by the press, and how blame is attributed to individuals in crime news stories. This research heavily relies of van Dijk's (2015) six discursive strategies to reveal how racism is hidden and denied in the press: positive self-presentation, denial and counter-attack, moral blackmail, subtle denials, mitigation, and defense and offense. Specifically, the Chapel Hill shooting is used as an example of a crime news story for my case study. This study will use framing as the primary method, and critical discourse analysis will be used to guide my interpretations of the frames. Frames are defined by Entman (1993) as texts that select "some aspects of a perceived reality and make them more salient" in such a way as to promote a particular problem definition, causal interpretation, moral evaluation, and/or treatment recommendation for the item described. I will examine words and phrases used when referring to the perpetrator and the victims in the crime story, and examine manifest frames. I begin by explicating terms that my research is founded upon: ideology, critical discourse analysis, race and racism, blame, and framing. Newspaper articles are collected and analyzed for van Dijk's six discursive strategies. The difference between national and regional news coverage is also examined. My findings suggest there are two gaps in van Dijk's six discursive strategies. I propose the addition of two discursive strategies that the press use to deny racism: negative self-presentation and contradiction.

The Maple V package Vessiot is an extensive set of procedures for performing computations in variational and tensor calculus. Vessiot is an extension of a previous package, Helmholtz, which was written by Cinnamon Hillyard for performing operations in the calculus of variations. The original set of commands included standard operators on differential forms, Euler-Lagrange operators, the Lie bracket operator, Lie derivatives, and homotopy operators. These capabilities are preserved in Vessiot, and enhanced so as to function in a multiple coordinate frame context. In addition, a substantial number of general tensor operations have been added to the package. These include standard algebraic operations such as the tensor product, contraction, raising and lowering of indices, as well covariant and Lie differentiation. Objects such as connections, the Riemannian curvature tensor, and Ricci tensor and scalar may also be easily computed. A synopsis of the command syntax appears in Appendix A on pages 194 through 225, and a complete listing of the Maple procedural code is given in Appendix B, beginning on page 222.

Nesse trabalho, estudamos o método do referencial móvel e sistemas diferenciais exteriores. Estabelecemos resultados de Geometria Riemanniana via referenciais móveis e com essa linguagem introduzimos o Teorema de Gauss-Bonnet-Chern e apresentamos uma adaptação da demonstração original de S.-S. Chern presente no artigo A simple intrinsic proof of the Gauss-Bonnet formula for closed Riemannian manifolds. Ao abordar aspectos da teoria de Cartan-Kähler, codificamos as ideias oriundas dos referenciais móveis em sistemas diferenciais exteriores e mostramos algumas aplicações à Geometria Riemanniana. / In this work, we study the method of moving frame and exterior differential systems. We set up results of Riemannian Geometry via moving frames and with this language we introduce the Gauss-Bonnet-Chern Theorem and present an adaptation of the original proof of S.-S. Chern in the article A simple intrinsic proof of the Gauss-Bonnet formula for closed Riemannian manifolds. In discussing aspects of Cartan-Kählers theory, we encode the ideas from moving frames into exterior differential systems and use this tool in Riemannian Geometry.

A well-researched line showing equivalence performances in a wide variety of areas has been conducted in the field of Behavior Analysis (BA). One area demonstrates that relating relations is a behavioral account of analogical thinking. Relating relations may have implications for the development of analogical training given that analogical reasoning is seen as the foundation of intelligence yet research in this area is limited. A protocol by Stewart, Barnes-Holmes, and Weil (2009) was developed to train children in analogical reasoning using equivalence-equivalence relations. The purpose of this study was to evaluate an equivalence-equivalence training protocol based on Stewart et al. (2009) and test whether the protocol was effective in training equivalence-equivalence responding to 7 and 8-year-old children. A secondary purpose was to test whether training in equivalence-equivalence responding increased performances on analogical tests. All five participants were dismissed throughout the study. Participant 1 was dismissed during the pre-assessments and all other participants were dismissed during intervention. Because none of the participants passed the equivalence-equivalence training, increases in performance in analogical testes were not analyzed. Individual performance data from training are examined and analyzed to provide an account of the failures to pass the equivalence-equivalence protocol.

本研究主要目的在於小說框架理論的建構，並且運用此一理論具體分析沈從文的小說《邊城》。 本文一共分成五章，第一章是一簡單扼要的介紹。一開始概略敘述為何運用語言學理論研究文學，為何嘗試運用框架理論於小說研究上，以及為何選定沈從文的《邊城》作為文本分析的對象。然後則是簡要解釋了研究方法。最後的部份是對各章節的內容作一番說明。 第二章對框架理論及沈從文與《邊城》作一必要性的陳述。首先針對框架理論作一概括性的整理，包括框架理論的基本定義，來龍去脈，發展，與大致上的運用，然後做完整的回顧。第二部份對沈從文的生平，以及《邊城》做一簡單的整理。 第三章將融合文本語言學中的故事文法研究，框架理論，以及小說而建構出小說的框架理論。首先，將小說的框架分為兩個層次：小說互動框架，以及小說文本框架。瞭解小說不同層次的框架之後，將致力於整個小說框架體系的建立，探索出互動框架與文本框架下的次框架。此外，為了解釋小說如何從基本的故事材料漸漸的經過處理與轉化後，成為小說作品，小說框架理論將援用框架不斷轉化的概念，說明小說框架可不斷的轉變成不同形式的框架。最後，將從形式功能的角度理解小說框架，初步發展小說框架理論。 第四章將運用建構出的小說框架理論對沈從文的小說《邊城》進行分析。所謂的分析，在此定義為兩個過程：閱讀與詮釋。由於框架概念屬於上層心智的抽象概念，因此本章將具體落實到小說文本中句子與語言的層次，實際去挖掘隱藏於字裡行間的框架現象，觀察小說文本框架如何藉由語言機制的操弄，轉化框架，為框架再定調。之後再從具體的框架現象中加以詮釋與評價，為何《邊城》被譽為沈從文最好的小說之一；試圖從小說框架理論解釋這部小說的技巧性、完整性、與豐富性。 第五章為整部論文的終曲，將總結整個小說框架理論的要點，與此一理論運用在沈從文小說《邊城》分析時的優缺點。此外，本章將探討小說框架理論的適用性與侷限性，以及未來可能的發展。 / The main purpose of this research is to construct to a frame theory of novel, and then applies this theory to analyze Shen’s The Border Town. In thesis, there are five chapters. The first chapter is a brief introduction, with a rough description of the motives to do such a research and of the research method. The final part is a outlook of each chapter. The second chapter is the literature review on fame theories and on Shen Cong-wen, the author of The Border Town. The third chapter is to construct the frame theory of novel from story grammar, frame theory, and the novel. The frames in the novel could be further divided into two main frames, interactive frames and textual frames, both comprising different subframes. The construction of the theory is to develop and build those subframes. Besides, for explaining the novel is not static in nature, rather, ever-developing gradually, the concept of the transformation in the frame is adopted, to illuminate the novel is such a frame that transforms all the time. The forth chapter is to analyze The Border Town within the frame theory of novel being constructed. The analysis contains two processes, reading and interpretation. This chapter is to delve into the frames in the language of the novel, to observe how The Border Town frames to be a great masterpiece. The fifth chapter is the conclusion, including the essentials of the theory, and, the pros and cons of the analysis by the theory. Last is the discussion of possibly further development of the frame theory of novel.