ITC/USA 2011 Conference Proceedings / The Forty-Seventh Annual International Telemetering Conference and Technical Exhibition / October 24-27, 2011 / Bally's Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada / Prognostic technology uses a series of algorithms, combined forms a prognostic-based inference engine (PBIE) for the identification of deterministic behavior embedded in completely normal appearing telemetry from fully functional equipment. The algorithms used to define normal behavior in the PBIE from which deterministic behavior is identified can be adapted to quantify normal spacecraft telemetry behavior while in orbit about a moon or planet or during interplanetary travel. Time-series analog engineering data (telemetry) from orbiting satellites and interplanetary spacecraft are defined by harmonic and non-harmonic influences, which shape it behavior. Spectrum analysis can be used to understand and quantify the fundamental behavior of spacecraft analog telemetry and relate the behavior's frequency and phase to its time-series behavior through Fourier analysis.

The Extended Evolutionary Synthesis (EES) is currently emerging as a theoretical alternative to the Modern Synthesis (MS) in which to frame evolutionary observations and interpretations. These alternative frameworks differ fundamentally in their understanding of the relative roles of the genotype, phenotype, development and environment in evolutionary processes and patterns. While the MS represents a gene-centred view of evolution, the EES instead emphasizes the interactions between organism, development and environment. This novel theoretical framework has generated a number of evolutionary predictions that are mutually incompatible with the equivalent of the MS. While research and empirical testing has begun on a number of these in a neontological context, the field of palaeontology has yet to contribute meaningfully to this endeavour. One of the reasons for this is a lack of methodological approaches capable of investigating relevant evolutionary patterns in the fossil record. In this thesis morphometric methods capable of providing relevant data are developed and employed in the analysis of Cambrian fossils. Results of these analyses provide empirical support for the process of evolution through phenotypic plasticity and genetic assimilation hypothesized by the EES. Furthermore, theoretical revision to the species concept in a palaeontological context is suggested. Finally, predictions of the EES specific to the fossil record are made explicit and promising directions of future research are outlined.

Compressive sampling enables signal reconstruction using less than one measurement per reconstructed signal value. Compressive measurement is particularly useful in generating multidimensional images from lower dimensional data. We demonstrate single frame 3D tomography from 2D holographic data. / Dissertation

Fourier telescopy imaging is a recently-developed imaging method that relies on active structured-light illumination of the object. Reflected/scattered light is measured by a large “light bucket” detector; processing of the detected signal yields the magnitude and phase of spatial frequency components of the object reflectance or transmittance function. An inverse Fourier transform results in the image. In 2012 a novel method, known as time-average Fourier telescopy (TAFT), was introduced by William T. Rhodes as a means for diffraction-limited imaging through ground-level atmospheric turbulence. This method, which can be applied to long horizontal-path terrestrial imaging, addresses a need that is not solved by the adaptive optics methods being used in astronomical imaging. Field-experiment verification of the TAFT concept requires instrumentation that is not available at Florida Atlantic University. The objective of this doctoral research program is thus to demonstrate, in the absence of full-scale experimentation, the feasibility of time-average Fourier telescopy through (a) the design, construction, and testing of smallscale laboratory instrumentation capable of exploring basic Fourier telescopy datagathering operations, and (b) the development of MATLAB-based software capable of demonstrating the effect of kilometer-scale passage of laser beams through ground-level turbulence in a numerical simulation of TAFT. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2015. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Considere a variedade Tn x S1 com coordenadas (t;x) e considere uma 1-forma diferencial fechada e real a(t) em Tn. Neste trabalho consideramos o operador Lpa = dt +a(t) Λ ∂x de D\'p em D\'p+1, onde D\'p é o espaço das p-correntes da forma u = ∑ Ι I Ι = puI (t, x)dtI. O operador acima define um complexo de cocadeia formado pelos espaços vetoriais D\'p e pelos homomorfismos lineares Lpa : D\'p → D\'p+1. Definiremos o que significa resolubilidade global no complexo acima e caracterizaremos para quais 1-formas a o complexo é globalmente resolúvel. Faremos o mesmo com respeito a hipoeliticidade global no primeiro nível do complexo. / Consider the manifold Tn x S1 with coordinates (t;x) and let a(t) be a real and closed differential 1-form on Tn. In this work we consider the operator Lpsub>a = dt +a(t) Λ ∂x de D\'p from D\'p to D\'p+1, where D\'p is the space of all p-currents u = ∑ Ι I Ι = puI (t, x)dtI . The above operator defines a cochain complex consisting of the vector spaces D\'p and of the linear maps Lpa : D\'p → D\'p+1. We define what global solvability means for the above complex and characterize for which 1-forms a the complex is globally solvable. We will do the same with respect to global hypoellipticity on the first level of the complex.

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X-ray scatter in cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) is known to reduce image quality by introducing image artifacts, reducing contrast, and limiting computed tomography (CT) number accuracy. The extent of the effect of x-ray scatter on CBCT image quality is determined by the shape and magnitude of the scatter distribution in the projections. A method to allay the effects of scatter is imperative to enable application of CBCT to solve a wider domain of clinical problems. The work contained herein proposes such a method. A characterization of the scatter distribution through the use of a validated Monte Carlo (MC) model is carried out. The effects of imaging parameters and compensators on the scatter distribution are investigated. The spectral frequency components of the scatter distribution in CBCT projection sets are analyzed using Fourier analysis and found to reside predominately in the low frequency domain. The exact frequency extents of the scatter distribution are explored for different imaging configurations and patient geometries. Based on the Fourier analysis it is hypothesized the scatter distribution can be represented by a finite sum of sine and cosine functions. The fitting of MC scatter distribution estimates enables the reduction of the MC computation time by diminishing the number of photon tracks required by over three orders of magnitude. The fitting method is incorporated into a novel scatter correction method using an algorithm that simultaneously combines multiple MC scatter simulations. Running concurrent MC simulations while simultaneously fitting the results allows for the physical accuracy and flexibility of MC methods to be maintained while enhancing the overall efficiency. CBCT projection set scatter estimates, using the algorithm, are computed on the order of 1-2 minutes instead of hours or days. Resulting scatter corrected reconstructions show a reduction in artifacts and improvement in tissue contrast and voxel value accuracy.

X-ray scatter in cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) is known to reduce image quality by introducing image artifacts, reducing contrast, and limiting computed tomography (CT) number accuracy. The extent of the effect of x-ray scatter on CBCT image quality is determined by the shape and magnitude of the scatter distribution in the projections. A method to allay the effects of scatter is imperative to enable application of CBCT to solve a wider domain of clinical problems. The work contained herein proposes such a method. A characterization of the scatter distribution through the use of a validated Monte Carlo (MC) model is carried out. The effects of imaging parameters and compensators on the scatter distribution are investigated. The spectral frequency components of the scatter distribution in CBCT projection sets are analyzed using Fourier analysis and found to reside predominately in the low frequency domain. The exact frequency extents of the scatter distribution are explored for different imaging configurations and patient geometries. Based on the Fourier analysis it is hypothesized the scatter distribution can be represented by a finite sum of sine and cosine functions. The fitting of MC scatter distribution estimates enables the reduction of the MC computation time by diminishing the number of photon tracks required by over three orders of magnitude. The fitting method is incorporated into a novel scatter correction method using an algorithm that simultaneously combines multiple MC scatter simulations. Running concurrent MC simulations while simultaneously fitting the results allows for the physical accuracy and flexibility of MC methods to be maintained while enhancing the overall efficiency. CBCT projection set scatter estimates, using the algorithm, are computed on the order of 1-2 minutes instead of hours or days. Resulting scatter corrected reconstructions show a reduction in artifacts and improvement in tissue contrast and voxel value accuracy.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-10-09T12:42:21Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 / Made available in DSpace on 2014-10-09T14:02:11Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 / Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP) / Tese (Doutoramento) / IPEN/T / Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares - IPEN-CNEN/SP / FAPESP:09/13764-3