A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Science, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. in fulfilment of the requirements tor the degree of Master of Science / This thesis develops the theoretical basis of the qualitative frame based modelling technique, a paradigm recently proposed by Starfield for the modelling of ecosystems with a multiplicity of stable states. This technique is a refinement of the State-and- Transition conceptual model of Westoby et al which involves the division of the ecosystem dynamics into a catelog of stable 'states' and a suite of transitions between these states. The frame models of Starfield associate with each stable configuration of the ecosystem a qualitative rule based model for the key processes in that stable configuration. The aims of this thesis are the following, 1. A rigorous definition of frame modelling of dynamic ecosystems is proposed, and this theoretical foundation is used to demonstrate that qualitative frame models may be used to mode! dynamic ecosystems to an arbitrary accuracy. 2. The development of implementation software. A qualitative rule based frame modelling environment is presented. and a specification for an improved environment is proposed based on the theoretical work. / Andrew Chakane 2019

In this study we examine what frames there is to be found in the Swedish parliamentary debate on organized crime between 2015 and 2020. The study also describes the degree of influence that the different frames reach, this is measured through the degree of institutionalization of each frame. The specific questions we answer is “Which frames does organized crime get in the parliamentary debate from 2015 to 2020?” and “To what degree have the frames from the parliamentary debate on organized crime become institutionalized?”. When collecting the empirical data a textual analysis is used combined with a frame analysis. The empirical data in the study consists of documents from politicians and larger parliamentary debates relevant for the questions that the study seeks to answer. The analysis showed that there have been four different frames during this period but only two of them are frequently used. The two who have been most frequently used are called crime political and socio political in this essay. Although it may seem obvious that these two frames exist there are widely spread ideas about what to prioritize. That is because every actor in the parliament is arguing that both of them are needed to solve the issue of organized crime. The essay did however show that the crime political frame has been dominating the period of examination and the most legislative work has been done in that policy area.

Perspective taking is typically defined as the ability to reason about others’ mental states (e.g. their beliefs, thoughts, desires, and intentions) and to understand the role of those mental states in everyday situations (I. A. Apperly, 2012). Traditional accounts of perspective taking typically analyze the ability based on three different domains: visual, affective or emotional, and cognitive perspective taking (Flavell, 2004). From a behavioral viewpoint, perspective taking skills are built upon the ability to recognize our own behavior in relation to the context. Relational Frame Theory (RFT) is a contemporary behavioral account of human language and cognition (Hayes et al., 2007). From an RFT viewpoint, perspective-taking skills involve deictic relations between individuals, spaces, and time. Instead of using the three dimensions analyzed in the other fields, RFT studies the development of complex perspective-taking skills through three types of deictic frames: interpersonal (I-YOU-OTHER), spatial (HERE-THERE), and temporal (NOW-THEN-LATER). The purpose of this dissertation was to develop a set of behavioral assessments to measure visual, emotional, and cognitive perspective-taking skills from an RFT viewpoint. This dissertation made methodological and empirical contributions to the field by proposing three behavioral computer-based protocols for evaluating the role of deictic frames on visual, emotional, and cognitive perspective taking tasks. Experiment 1 results revealed significant differences in response latency and correct response levels on interpersonal and spatial deictic frames at simple and reverse levels of complexity on a visual perspective-taking task. These findings suggested that transforming stimulus functions following a mutually entailed relationship between interpersonal and spatial frames is not equivalent to performing conditional discriminations involving both interpersonal and spatial stimuli. Experiment 2 results revealed significant differences in response latency and correct response levels on interpersonal frames with simple, reverse, and double reverse levels of complexity on an emotional perspective-taking task. The finding showed that as the complexity of the deictic relations in emotional perspective taking increased, so did the number of errors and latency to respond. Furthermore, the findings of the study indicate that the valence of emotions has an effect on the levels of deictic relational responding. On a cognitive perspective-taking task, the results of Experiment 3 revealed significant differences in response latency and correct response levels on interpersonal frames with simple and reverse levels of complexity. False beliefs and false desires increased the number of errors and latency to respond to interpersonal deictic frames, according to the findings. Overall, these protocols improved the ecological validity of RFT-based protocols of deictic frames, extended previous research on perspective taking, and opened up new research avenues.

This study used a research through design method to examine time in roleplaying games, particularly with regards to the emotional impact of time skips as affected by various mechanical and narrative factors. The design in question drew from prior work in games, films, and other narrative works with time skips, based on the assumption that time skips can have a great emotional impact, but that impact may be lesser or greater depending on how it is handled. I based the design on a theoretical framework which suggested that roleplaying games would be more impactful given a deep immersion into the reality of the gameworld, and specifically a sense that time’s passage in the gameworld realistically reflected the way humans experience time in the real world. As such, the game was built to reflect specific theories regarding the human processes of memory and aging. The tabletop roleplaying game ran over the course of three 2.5-hour sessions over several weeks, with three participants roleplaying pre-built characters who aged with the time skip that occurred between sessions. Following the final session, I moderated a focus group interview to collect data about the emotional impact of the experience. Generally, the game did have a profound emotional impact. I found that the most impactful game elements were those which highlighted change on several levels; in particular, mechanics and narrative moments which emphasized character growth – or losses which characters had undergone – were very effective. Though this study used a tabletop roleplaying game as its medium, the design was built to be general enough that certain findings could be tested with other mediums as well, which I explore in the discussion section.

This paper’s goal was to understand how the fighting game animations in the video game Guilty Gear -Strive- lent themselves to their characters appeal, by looking how the animations are built up to be a good quality for a more interesting character based on the character background. The paper aids to help designers find relevant information for the creation of animations for a greater player enjoyment of its characters in a fighting game. This was done by choosing three characters with different speed classes in terms of their design and official marketing for the video game, as well as three attacks that were analyzed by looking at its consisting frames divided into sixty frames per second. The paper finds relevant information and good practices to enhance the appeal of a fighting game character to better represent their characteristics. We find that bigger visual effects such as big explosions or shockwaves are good for stronger characters while the use of faster movements using methods of slow in and slow out and timing are good for making faster characters more appealing, anticipation of attacks are also important while the specific use of the anticipation frames can give different feelings even if they are equally long where acrobatic characters use it for building momentum and stronger characters use them to charge up by pulling their body back.

Förståelse och intresset för mat och måltid ökar explosionsartat vilket medför större krav pålivsmedelsprodukter och upplevelser av en måltid där en produkt står i centrum.Produktutvecklare och gastronomer arbetar ständigt för att producera smakfulla livsmedelsom både är klimatsmarta och uppfyller konsumenternas krav på smak. Inomlivsmedelsindustrin görs det kontinuerligt sensoriska bedömningar för att diskuterasensoriska egenskaper i livsmedelsprodukter. Men hur kommunicerar vi vår sensoriskaupplevelse av livsmedelsprodukter så precist som möjligt? Ett verktyg för att kommunicerasin upplevelse kan vara standardiserade sensoriska bedömning, vilket innebär att man skapartydliga riktlinjer för ett specifikt produktområde, vilket således kan användas för attidentifiera sensoriska egenskaper i en livsmedelsprodukt. Magisteruppsatsen syftar till en litteraturstudie som bygger på en kvalitativ innehållsanalysbaserad på 14 artiklar. Målet med innehållsanalysen var att komma fram till relevantasensoriska egenskapsord inom ramen för veganska och vegetariska livsmedelsprodukter. Ienlighet med de framtagna egenskapsorden kunde ett sensoriskt ramverk upprättas vilketsåledes också resulterar i tydliga smakprofiler och egenskaper för produktområdet. Avsiktenmed att ta fram ett semantiskt ramverk av denna sort var att förenkla smakprovningar inomOrkla Foods Sverige och på så vis utveckla ett enhetligt språk för produktområdet. Avslutningsvis går det att argumentera för att ett semantiskt ramverk med tydligaegenskapsord kan komma att underlätta processen inom produktutveckling, jämförelser avprodukter och dylikt. Trots att det inte går att utesluta människans subjektiva åsikt ochfysiska obalanser sinsemellan, är ett semantiskt ramverk ett relevant verktyg i avseende attförenkla kommunikationen och beskrivningen av veganska eller vegetariskalivsmedelsprodukt.

A series of full-scale beam-to-column moment connection tests were completed to determine the effects of powder actuated fasteners (PAF) and puddle welds on the seismic behavior of steel moment connections.  In seismic regions, PAF are currently prohibited in the connection region (referred to as the protected zone) due to the concern of low-cycle fatigue fracture.  There is almost no information available in the literature regarding the seismic behavior of moment connections with PAF or puddle welds. Full-scale connection testing is the most accurate way to investigate the behavior of different moment connections with common defects and fasteners applied in the protected zone.  However, it is cost prohibitive to conduct full-scale testing programs that are sufficiently comprehensive to investigate a wide range of defect types, severity, and locations.  For this reason, it is desired to develop alternative methods of investigation.  A finite element (FE) model capable of simulating both the global deformation patterns and local buckling effects in a moment connection has been developed.  Validated FE models will allow for further evaluation through numerical simulation of additional configurations.  Furthermore, alternate, more economical, test configurations to experimentally investigate the effect of defects on steel moment connections were explored.  This report discusses the full-scale test setup, results and analysis of completed experimental testing, the development of an FE connection model, and the preliminary development of alternate test configurations. / Master of Science

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While moment frames are a popular lateral-force resisting system, their constant cross-section can lead to inefficiencies in energy absorption and stiffness. By tapering the flange width linearly toward the center of the beam length, the energy absorption efficiency can be increased, leading to a better elastic response from the beam and more elastic stiffness per pound of steel used. Lateral-torsional buckling is an important failure mode to be considered for tapered-flange moment frame shapes. No closed-form or finite element solutions have yet been developed for tapered-flange I-beams with a non-uniform, linear moment gradient and intermediate bracing conditions. In this study, finite element analysis is used to find the buckling stress of each W-shape in the AISC Steel Construction Manual with both a standard straight-flange and the proposed tapered-flange at several lengths and with three intermediate lateral bracing conditions (no bracing, mid-span bracing, and third-span bracing). Plots are generated for each shape at each bracing condition as the buckling stress versus length for both beams and columns. Overall, the results indicate that lateral-torsional buckling of tapered-flange I-beams is not a problem that would prohibit the wide-scale use of this configuration in moment frames. Also, the buckling capacity tapered-flange moment frame shapes can be reasonably estimated as 20% of the corresponding straight-flange moment frame shape.