The purpose of this research was to compare results from two approaches to measuring change over time. The multilevel model (MLM) and latent growth model (LGM) were imposed and the parameter estimates were compared, along with model fit. The study came out of education and used data collected from 191 teachers as part of a professional development intervention in science, which took place over four years. There were missing data as a result of teacher attrition. Teachers reported use of reform-oriented practices (ROP) was used as the outcome, and teacher-level variables were examined for their impact on initial ROP and change in ROP from baseline to one year after the intervention. Change in ROP was examined using a piecewise change model where two linear slopes were modeled. The first slope estimated the change from baseline to T1, or the initial change after the intervention while the second slope estimated the change from T1 to T3, or the secondary change. Parameter estimates obtained from MLM and LGM for a model using the error covariance structure commonly assumed in MLM (i.e., random slopes, homogeneous level-1 variance) were nearly identical. Models with various alternative covariance structures (commonly associated with the LGM framework) were examined, and results were nearly identical. Most of the model fit information was in agreement regarding the best fitting model being the model that assumed the typical MLM error covariance structure with the exception of the standardized root mean square residual (SRMR) fit index. The results from the models demonstrated that ROP increased after participating in the first year of the intervention and this level was sustained, though did not increase significantly in subsequent years. There was more variation in ROP at baseline. This information tells us that the intervention was successful in that after participating in the intervention the teachers' used ROP more frequently. The success of the intervention did not depend on any of the predictors that we assessed, and, as a group, the teachers became more similar in their use of reform-oriented practices over time.

As the public becomes more concerned with the natural environment, one of the major topics discussed is the oil. Since there is no true source of knowledge how long the oil can continue to be extracted, it is interesting to know how long the world can benefit from such as scarce resource. Instead of idly watching as oil production decreases with time, which pre-measures could be taken in order to minimize a negative impact on an economy? The UAE is a thriving oil rich countries which for the past 30 years have experienced a vast oil wealth. Even though the oil gave wealth to the UAE, they should avoid any future oil dependency since it could negatively affect its now flourishing economy. Therefore, for the UAE to continue growing in the future it is in the best interest for the government to focus on a diversifying strategy that promotes the non-oil economy. By referring to concepts and theories of previous research in this field such as the Solow growth model, Resource curse and Dutch disease the authors find that the UAE had managed to diversify or not. Three sectors in different periods between 1970 and 2007 were measured: The oil sector, the non-oil sector and the government sector. Diversification changes means a decreasing dependency of the oil sector to the non-oil sector while the latter instead depends more on the government sector. Using British Petroleum (2008) and United Nations (2008) as sources, data was collected in order to draw a time-series regression analysis and test empirically for these diversification trends. The results for all periods confirmed that the UAE have indeed diversified and it could thus be observed that it started its successful strategy already in the 1970s. With the right government policy investments and the stability in the union, the UAE prevented from becoming dependent on oil and thereby not crowding out its important non-oil economy. / Med en ökad allmän medvetenhet angående naturmiljön så är oljan bland det mest omtalande temat. Eftersom inget vet exakt hur länge oljan kan utvinnas, är det intressant att veta hur länge världen kan förlita sig på en sådan begränsad resurs. Finns det förebyggande medel för att minska en negativ verkan på ekonomin istället för att passivt bevittna en sjunkande oljeproduktion? Förenta Arabemiraten (FAE) är en framgångsrik union som under de senaste 30 åren har åtnjutit en omfattande oljerikedom. Trots att oljan lade grunden för tillväxten i FAE, så börs unionen undvika sitt oljeberoende eftersom den negativt kan påverka den nuvarande blomstrande ekonomin. Således, för att bibehålla tillväxten i FAE för framtiden, borde det vara i statens största intresse att fokusera på en differentierings-strategi som främjar icke-oljans ekonomi. För att veta om FAE faktiskt har differentierat sig eller inte, används koncept och teorier för tidigare forskning kring områdets som t.ex. Solows tillväxtmodel, Resursförbannelsen och holländska sjukan. Tre sektorer mättes i olika perioder mellan 1970-2007: oljesektorn, icke-sektorn och statssektorn. Icke-olje sektorn förväntas minska oljeberoendet samt öka beroendet av statssektorn vilket resulterar i en differentieringstrend i ekonomin. Genom källor från British Petroleum (2008) och Förenta Nationerna (2008)  har data insamlats för att empiriskt testa en tidsserie regression och se förändringar mellan sektorerna. Under alla perioder i FAE blev en differentieringstrend bekräftad och man kunde därför se att denna framgångsrika strategi redan åtogs i 1970-talet. Med effektiva investeringar i den offentliga sektorn samt en hållbar stabilitet i unionen, undvek FAE ett oljeberoende och därmed främjade icke-olje ekonomin.

Bioreactors are devices used for the growth of tissues in a laboratory environment. They exist in many different forms, each designed to enable the production of high-quality tissues. The dynamic environment within bioreactors is known to significantly affect the growth and development of the tissue. Chondrocytes, the building blocks of articular cartilage, for example, are stimulated by mechanical stresses such as shear, as compared with those in tissues grown under static incubation conditions. On the other hand, high shear can damage cells. Consequently the shear-stress level has to be controlled in order to optimize the design and the operating conditions of bioreactors. Spinner flasks have been used for the production of articular cartilage in vitro. Assuming the existence of a relation between the cellular glycosaminoglycan (GAG) synthesis and the local shear stresses on the construct surfaces, this research focuses on the development of a model for cartilage growth in such devices. The flow produced in a model spinner flask is characterized experimentally using particle-image velocimetry (PIV). A computational fluid dynamic (CFD) model validated with respect to the laboratory measurements is constructed in order to predict the local shear stresses on the construct surfaces. Tissue growth experiments conducted in the prototype bioreactor permit construct histologies and GAG contents to be analyzed and then correlated with the shear-stress predictions. The integration of this relation into the CFD model enables the prediction of GAG synthesis through convective effects. Coupling this convective model to an existing diffusive model produces a complete cartilage-growth model for use in aiding the optimization of existing bioreactors, and in the design of new ones.

<p><strong>As the public becomes more concerned with the natural environment, one of the major topics discussed is the oil. Since there is no true source of knowledge how long the oil can continue to be extracted, it is interesting to know how long the world can benefit from such as scarce resource. Instead of idly watching as oil production decreases with time, which pre-measures could be taken in order to minimize a negative impact on an economy? The UAE is a thriving oil rich countries which for the past 30 years have experienced a vast oil wealth. Even though the oil gave wealth to the UAE, they should avoid any future oil dependency since it could negatively affect its now flourishing economy. Therefore, for the UAE to continue growing in the future it is in the best interest for the government to focus on a diversifying strategy that promotes the non-oil economy. By referring to concepts and theories of previous research in this field such as the Solow growth model, Resource curse and Dutch disease the authors find that the UAE had managed to diversify or not. Three sectors in different periods between 1970 and 2007 were measured: The oil sector, the non-oil sector and the government sector. Diversification changes means a decreasing dependency of the oil sector to the non-oil sector while the latter instead depends more on the government sector. Using British Petroleum (2008) and United Nations (2008) as sources, data was collected in order to draw a time-series regression analysis and test empirically for these diversification trends. The results for all periods confirmed that the UAE have indeed diversified and it could thus be observed that it started its successful strategy already in the 1970s. With the right government policy investments and the stability in the union, the UAE prevented from becoming dependent on oil and thereby not crowding out its important non-oil economy. </strong></p> / <p><strong>Med en ökad allmän medvetenhet angående naturmiljön så är oljan bland det mest omtalande temat. Eftersom inget vet exakt hur länge oljan kan utvinnas, är det intressant att veta hur länge världen kan förlita sig på en sådan begränsad resurs. Finns det förebyggande medel för att minska en negativ verkan på ekonomin istället för att passivt bevittna en sjunkande oljeproduktion? Förenta Arabemiraten (FAE) är en framgångsrik union som under de senaste 30 åren har åtnjutit en omfattande oljerikedom. Trots att oljan lade grunden för tillväxten i FAE, så börs unionen undvika sitt oljeberoende eftersom den negativt kan påverka den nuvarande blomstrande ekonomin. Således, för att bibehålla tillväxten i FAE för framtiden, borde det vara i statens största intresse att fokusera på en differentierings-strategi som främjar icke-oljans ekonomi. För att veta om FAE faktiskt har differentierat sig eller inte, används koncept och teorier för tidigare forskning kring områdets som t.ex. Solows tillväxtmodel, Resursförbannelsen och holländska sjukan. Tre sektorer mättes i olika perioder mellan 1970-2007: oljesektorn, icke-sektorn och statssektorn. Icke-olje sektorn förväntas minska oljeberoendet samt öka beroendet av statssektorn vilket resulterar i en differentieringstrend i ekonomin. Genom källor från British Petroleum (2008) och Förenta Nationerna (2008)  har data insamlats för att empiriskt testa en tidsserie regression och se förändringar mellan sektorerna. Under alla perioder i FAE blev en differentieringstrend bekräftad och man kunde därför se att denna framgångsrika strategi redan åtogs i 1970-talet. Med effektiva investeringar i den offentliga sektorn samt en hållbar stabilitet i unionen, undvek FAE ett oljeberoende och därmed främjade icke-olje ekonomin.</strong><strong></strong></p>

本論文由三篇文章所構成。第二章主要針對參考點（reference points）的選擇問題。在綠色國民所得帳中，選擇哪個參考點作為扣除環境質損與自然資源折耗是很重要的。由於既有文獻中的參考點選擇大多過於極端，本文遂針對文獻上的缺失，建議以法定的環保標準做為參考點，使得環境質損、環境效益、自然資源折耗與服務都可顯示出來。 第三章則以台灣的烏魚業為對象，以不合作賽局分析大陸漁民在烏魚迴游路徑上捕魚以及溫室效應對台灣漁業及消費者造成的影響。 第四章則指出Huang and Cai (1994)一文在理論模型設計上的問題，並提出改正，以使其論點獲得支持。 / This dissertation is made up of three essays that address the issues of green net national product, renewable resources and pollution externalities. In Chapter 2, the issue of choosing reference points is discussed. The reference point is a key parameter for estimating the values of environmental degradation and natural resource depletion that are used to adjust the Net National Product. Most of the reference points used in the literature are extreme points in the spectrum of environmental quality and may thus result in estimated values of degradation and depletion that are not consistent with the standard theory of environmental economics. In this chapter, we argue that by using clearly defined standards as reference points, e.g., environmental quality standards, for managing environmental quality and natural resources, correct values of environmental degradation and services, and natural resource depletion and direct nature services, as well as green NNP can emerge. In Chapter 3, we examine the problem of non-cooperative fishing between Mainland China (MC) and Taiwan (TW) as well as the effects of rising sea surface temperature (SST) on the grey mullet fishery. By setting the three stages of the non-cooperative game, it is shown that the expansion of the fleets in MC and the rising SST cause the rent obtained from the TW fishery to decline, and that Taiwan may partially offset such an adverse effect by adjusting its fleet size. This essay also shows that Taiwan can expand its fleet to a greater extent when facing an imperfectly elastic demand for fish than when facing a perfectly elastic demand. In addition, when consumer welfare is included in the determination of the size of the fleet, fleet size can expand more than when profit is considered alone. In Chapter 4, we point out the problems in Huang and Cai (1994) that arise from the absence of a “pollution externality.” We modify their model by introducing the emission tax and find that it supports Huang and Cai (1994)’s claim that the share of private abatement expenditure is constant at all times, a claim that is criticized by Shieh, et al. (2001).

Seit den 70er Jahren erscheint die Welteinkommensverteilung zwischen den Nationen polarisiert in arm und reich. Dieses Phänomen kann theoretisch mithilfe des Solow Wachstumsmodells erklärt werden. Der Nachweis wurde auf drei Arten geführt. Als erstes wurde graphisch gezeigt, dass Änderungen der Annahmen bezüglich der Sparquote, des Bevölkerungswachstums sowie der Sparquote des Humankapital im erweiterten Solow Wachstumsmodell zu Bipolarität führen können. Die zweite Vorgehensweise war analytisch: eine endogene Sparquote wurde in das Solow Wachstumsmodell eingefügt, für welches dann die Gleichgewichte bestimmt wurden. Es konnte gezeigt werden, dass es zur Polarisierung kommt. Schließlich wurde ein empirisch determiniertes Solow Wachstumsmodell formuliert. Die Sparquote sowie die Bevölkerungswachstumsrate wurden mithilfe von Regressionen geschätzt und in das Modell integriert. Hieraus wurden anschließend die Gleichgewichte bestimmt.

Pacific silver fir (Abies amabilis (Dougl. ex Loud.) Forbes) is an important timber crop species in coastal forests of B.C. Its range extends from sea-level to almost timberline, and from the hypermaritime region on the west coast of Vancouver Island to the subcontinental region on the leeward side of the Coast Mountains. With this relatively wide climatic amplitude, a large variability in the height growth pattern of Pacific silver fir can be expected, since climate is considered to be the most influential determinant of the trajectory of height over age of forest trees. This variability, however, is not reflected in the height growth curves and site index tables used to estimate Pacific silver fir site index, since the curves and tables were developed from low-elevation stands on Vancouver Island. Consequently, when these curves and tables are applied to high-elevation or submaritime stands, we get biased estimates of site index. Accurate estimates of site index are necessary for accurate yield predictions. Furthermore, they are essential for making rational decisions about whether to cut the forest in situations where potential tree growth is marginal, such as in high-elevation forests.

Western larch (Larix occidentalis Nutt.) is a locally important species in the Nelson Forest Region, and to a lesser extent, in the Kamloops Forest Region. Its range extends from west of the Rockies to Okanagan Lake, and north to Salmon Arm, in the IDF, ICH, MS, and ESSF biogeoclimatic zones. Prior to this study, the site index curves developed for western larch in western Montana were used to model height and estimate site index in British Columbia. It has been suggested that these curves may not adequately reflect the height growth patterns of western larch in BC. Differences could arise from genetics, different methods of selecting sample trees, or climatic differences. The objective of this project was to produce accurate height growth models for western larch in BC.

Height growth models of coastal low- and mid-elevation Pacific silver fir, low-elevation white spruce, and low- and midelevation lodgepole pine have been used for predicting productivity of subalpine fir, Engelmann spruce, and lodgepole pine, respectively. These models, however, are biased in predicting height growth of high-elevation subalpine fir, Engelmann spruce, and lodgepole pine. To improve this situation, 329 sample plots (165 for subalpine fir, 90 for Engelmann spruce, and 74 for lodgepole pine) were located throughout the Engelmann Spruce-Subalpine Fir (ESSF) zone. Stem analysis was carried out on three dominant trees in each 0.04 ha sample plot. For each study species, a height growth model was developed on the data from two-thirds of the sample plots using the conditioned Chapman-Richards’ function; the model was validated using the remaining one-third of the sample plots.

Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves have been widely used in evaluation of the goodness of the diagnostic method in many study fields, such as disease diagnosis in medicine. The area under the ROC curve (AUC) naturally became one of the most used variables in gauging the goodness of the diagnosis (Mossman, Somoza 1991). Since medical diagnosis often is not dichotomous, the ROC curve and AUC need to be generalized to a multi-dimensional case. The generalization of AUC to multi-class case has been studied by many researchers in the past decade. Most recently, Nakas & Yiannoutsos (2004) considered the ordered d classes ROC analysis by only considering the sensitivities of each class. Hence, their dimension is only d. Cha (2005) considered more types of mis-classification in the ordered multiple-class case, but reduced the dimension of Ferri, at.el. from d(d-1) to 2(d-1). In this dissertation we are trying to adjust and calculate the VUS for an ordered multipleclass with Cha’s 2(d-1)-dimension method. Our methodology of finding the VUS is introduced. We present the method of adjusting and calculating VUS and their statistical inferences for the 2(d-1)-dimension. Some simulation results are included and a real example will be presented. Intellectual outcomes in pediatric brain-tumor patients were investigated in a prospective longitudinal study. The Standard-Binet Intelligence Scale-Fourth Edition (SB-IV) Standard Age Score (SAS) and Composite intelligence quotient (IQ) score are examined as cognitive outcomes in pediatric brain-tumor patients. Treatment factors, patient factors and time since diagnosis are taken into account as the risk factors. Hierarchical linear/quadratic models and Gompertz based hierarchical nonlinear growth models were applied to build linear and nonlinear longitudinal curves. We use PRESS and Volume Under the Surface (VUS) as the criterions to compare these two methods. Some model interpretations are presented in this dissertation.