<p>Spectrally efficient transmission schemes are becoming a more common requirement for digital communication systems. Especially in wireless communication since the bandwidth of available frequencies is a shared resource. In addition, wireless communication systems suffer from transmission media with varying conditions. Adaptive coded modulation (ACM) has been suggested as a bandwidth-efficient transmission technique in wireless fading environments. The use of ACM is motivated by its ability to improve spectral efficiency (SE) by adapting the transmission rates to the variations in channel signal-to-noise ratio. Any ACM scheme rely on being able to predict future states of the transmission medium. Under idealized conditions, such as the prediction being perfect, an ACM scheme can be configured to maximize the SE under the condition of the bit error rate (BER) being below a specified target BER. Here, computer simulations of an example system show that such systems in some cases fail to achieve the target BER, since the idealized conditions used in the design process do not hold in a realistic setup.</p><p> By limiting the number of transmission modes, introducing imperfect prediction, and other practical conditions such as delay in the communication system and probability of outage, a more practical ACM scheme can be considered. We show that it is still possible to optimize the performance of such schemes. A wireless communication channel with a Rayleigh fading envelope is assumed here since most results then can be presented in closed form expressions. For other distributions of the fading, results can be found numerically. By optimizing the performance of an idealized ACM scheme using capacity achieving channel codes, we have been able to upper bound the SE of practical ACM schemes. The results also provide us with a technique to control the average BER in the case of imperfect knowledge of future channel states. Simulation results for a modified ACM scheme that uses this technique is shown to have an average BER that is less than the target BER</p>

Spectrally efficient transmission schemes are becoming a more common requirement for digital communication systems. Especially in wireless communication since the bandwidth of available frequencies is a shared resource. In addition, wireless communication systems suffer from transmission media with varying conditions. Adaptive coded modulation (ACM) has been suggested as a bandwidth-efficient transmission technique in wireless fading environments. The use of ACM is motivated by its ability to improve spectral efficiency (SE) by adapting the transmission rates to the variations in channel signal-to-noise ratio. Any ACM scheme rely on being able to predict future states of the transmission medium. Under idealized conditions, such as the prediction being perfect, an ACM scheme can be configured to maximize the SE under the condition of the bit error rate (BER) being below a specified target BER. Here, computer simulations of an example system show that such systems in some cases fail to achieve the target BER, since the idealized conditions used in the design process do not hold in a realistic setup. By limiting the number of transmission modes, introducing imperfect prediction, and other practical conditions such as delay in the communication system and probability of outage, a more practical ACM scheme can be considered. We show that it is still possible to optimize the performance of such schemes. A wireless communication channel with a Rayleigh fading envelope is assumed here since most results then can be presented in closed form expressions. For other distributions of the fading, results can be found numerically. By optimizing the performance of an idealized ACM scheme using capacity achieving channel codes, we have been able to upper bound the SE of practical ACM schemes. The results also provide us with a technique to control the average BER in the case of imperfect knowledge of future channel states. Simulation results for a modified ACM scheme that uses this technique is shown to have an average BER that is less than the target BER

<p>My general aim in this work has been to provide an alternative, sociocognitive perspective on Gricean pragmatics in general and on flouting and flout-based meaning in particular. My specific aim has been to take some fundamental steps towards a<i> theory</i> of flouting and flout-based meaning. In fulfilment of these aims, I have deconstructed certain basic theoretical notions which are central both to Gricean pragmatics and to the specific issue of flouting and flout-based meaning, and reconstructed them from within Bakhtinian dialogism and the dialogically based socio-cognitive approach. During this process, the notion of cooperation as interpretational drive has been replaced by the notions of <i>reciprocal response-readiness</i>, <i>socialized interpretational drive,</i> and <i>imposed thematic relevance</i>; maxims have been re-interpreted and subsumed under a general notion of <i>intersubjective constraints</i> on <i>interaction</i>, and context has been explicated as <i>socio-cognitive context.</i> Finally, flouting has been defined as providing <i>imposed thematic relevance</i>, and the effects of this type of relevance on the hearer, that is, <i>heightened attention</i> and <i>increased interpretational activity</i>, have been explored.</p>

<p>Among new emerging digital communication systems, there is a clear trend of an increasing number of services using high capacity broad band connections, e.g. transfer of images, video and high quality sound. This makes it necessary to find bandwidth efficient modulation formats and efficient channel equalization solutions at the receiver. A modulation format, with possibilities for both relatively simple equalizer structures and bandwidth efficient solutions is Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM). The symbol stream is divided into parallel symbol streams, which are modulated on to separate subchannels. The frequency spectra of the subchannels overlap, but the orthogonality of the subchannels are maintained in the time domain at the sampling instant.</p><p>To obtain orthogonality between subchannels in OFDM system, one of the assumptions which are made, is exact knowledge of the carrier frequency at the receiver. In the case of a carrier frequency offset (CFO) between transmitter and receiver, the orthogonality between subchannels are lost. With a CFO some of the signal power will be transferred into interference power, i.e. noise, reducing the system performance. All digital transmission systems suffers from performance degradation in the case of a CFO and it is thus important to minimize the CFO, i.e. perform carrier frequency synchronization. The CFO generated interference is special for the OFDM systems and makes them more vulnerable to CFO than single carrier (SC) systems. In addition, the symbol length is increased in OFDM systems compared to SC systems, reducing the amount of CFO tolerated before phase slipping occurs (i.e. erroneous decisions due to CFO generated phase errors). Extra care should be taken in the case of OFDM systems to synchronize the carrier frequency at the receiver with the carrier of the transmitter.</p><p>The main topics of this work have been:</p><p>• Carrier synchronization in bandwidth efficient OFDM systems on stationary channels. To obtain maximum bandwidth efficiency, neither pilots, guard intervals, repeated sequences or other redundant signalling is used in the proposed methods. Four new OFDM carrier frequency acquisition algorithms are proposed, with performance investigated by simulations. The frequency estimator of Kay is investigated for use in Decision Directed (DD) carrier frequency tracking, with OFDM and non-constant amplitude modulation.</p><p>• Consequences of non perfect carrier frequency tracking and time varying transmission channels in OFDM systems. Both OFDM systems using QAM with rectangular pulses and OFDM systems using O-QAM with finite length pulses have been investigated.</p><p>Degradation due to non-perfect tracking on stationary channels has been calculated and performance requirements for the developed tracking algorithms are found.</p><p>For flat Rayleigh fading channels, degradation due to non-perfect tracking and doppler spread are calculated.</p>

My general aim in this work has been to provide an alternative, sociocognitive perspective on Gricean pragmatics in general and on flouting and flout-based meaning in particular. My specific aim has been to take some fundamental steps towards a theory of flouting and flout-based meaning. In fulfilment of these aims, I have deconstructed certain basic theoretical notions which are central both to Gricean pragmatics and to the specific issue of flouting and flout-based meaning, and reconstructed them from within Bakhtinian dialogism and the dialogically based socio-cognitive approach. During this process, the notion of cooperation as interpretational drive has been replaced by the notions of reciprocal response-readiness, socialized interpretational drive, and imposed thematic relevance; maxims have been re-interpreted and subsumed under a general notion of intersubjective constraints on interaction, and context has been explicated as socio-cognitive context. Finally, flouting has been defined as providing imposed thematic relevance, and the effects of this type of relevance on the hearer, that is, heightened attention and increased interpretational activity, have been explored.

Among new emerging digital communication systems, there is a clear trend of an increasing number of services using high capacity broad band connections, e.g. transfer of images, video and high quality sound. This makes it necessary to find bandwidth efficient modulation formats and efficient channel equalization solutions at the receiver. A modulation format, with possibilities for both relatively simple equalizer structures and bandwidth efficient solutions is Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM). The symbol stream is divided into parallel symbol streams, which are modulated on to separate subchannels. The frequency spectra of the subchannels overlap, but the orthogonality of the subchannels are maintained in the time domain at the sampling instant. To obtain orthogonality between subchannels in OFDM system, one of the assumptions which are made, is exact knowledge of the carrier frequency at the receiver. In the case of a carrier frequency offset (CFO) between transmitter and receiver, the orthogonality between subchannels are lost. With a CFO some of the signal power will be transferred into interference power, i.e. noise, reducing the system performance. All digital transmission systems suffers from performance degradation in the case of a CFO and it is thus important to minimize the CFO, i.e. perform carrier frequency synchronization. The CFO generated interference is special for the OFDM systems and makes them more vulnerable to CFO than single carrier (SC) systems. In addition, the symbol length is increased in OFDM systems compared to SC systems, reducing the amount of CFO tolerated before phase slipping occurs (i.e. erroneous decisions due to CFO generated phase errors). Extra care should be taken in the case of OFDM systems to synchronize the carrier frequency at the receiver with the carrier of the transmitter. The main topics of this work have been: • Carrier synchronization in bandwidth efficient OFDM systems on stationary channels. To obtain maximum bandwidth efficiency, neither pilots, guard intervals, repeated sequences or other redundant signalling is used in the proposed methods. Four new OFDM carrier frequency acquisition algorithms are proposed, with performance investigated by simulations. The frequency estimator of Kay is investigated for use in Decision Directed (DD) carrier frequency tracking, with OFDM and non-constant amplitude modulation. • Consequences of non perfect carrier frequency tracking and time varying transmission channels in OFDM systems. Both OFDM systems using QAM with rectangular pulses and OFDM systems using O-QAM with finite length pulses have been investigated. Degradation due to non-perfect tracking on stationary channels has been calculated and performance requirements for the developed tracking algorithms are found. For flat Rayleigh fading channels, degradation due to non-perfect tracking and doppler spread are calculated.

The purpose of this master thesis has been to attain a greater understanding on how an individual experiences being part of couple’s therapy. The empirical research is based on a phenomenological approach and interviewing of five people who have been in couple therapy. I interviewed one person from each couple. These interviews have contributed to highlight what matters the most for couples in therapy, and also what helped them to improve everyday life together. Through an interpretative phenomenological approach I developed three main categories, with associated sub categories. The categories are: 1. "Relations" which includes the following sub categories i) The experience of being seen, ii) To feel chemistry with the therapist and iii) The importance of an objective third person. 2. "Motivation" with the sub categories i) It’s easier if both want to seek therapy and ii) The will to invest in the relationship. 3. "Communication", which has the sub categories i) To create understanding and awareness, ii) To remove the associated taboo iii) The expectation of getting direct advice. The categories represent the most prominent aspects of the informants' experience being part of couple’s therapy and what they considered to be the most important factors. This gave the basis for the discussion. The categories are discussed based on relevant theory regarding "person-in-relation", motivation and communication. Other relevant theory will be included where appropriate. According to this study one of the most prominent tendencies is the importance of being "seen" by both the therapist and the partner. It also shows the necessity of including an objective third part, which can provide care and recognition to both parts. By doing so the clients feel treated with respect and the foundation for growth and development has been made. This also affects the motivation to continue developing the relationship. The therapist is most likely to succeed if both clients want to be helped or if the therapist can convince a doubting person of their methods at an early stage. This leads to an inner motivation, which again is a good foundation for further work and investment in the relationship. The informants value an improved communication during therapy and talks about how a greater awareness of patterns and tendencies leads to a better understanding towards each other. They also talk about the importance of how the therapist makes the situation less daunting, which makes the couple feel less like "failures". Following the therapy the couples also promoted couples therapy as something positive. The expectation of receiving exact advices has also been examined and how this helps promoting and/or inhibiting growth. In conclusion considerations are made regarding the limits of the study as well as implicating further research. / Formålet med denne masterppgaven er å få økt innsikt i hvordan det oppleves for enkeltindividet å være i parterapi. Det empiriske forskningsmaterialet ble til gjennom en fenomenologisk tilnærming og intervju med fem personer som tidligere har vært i parterapi. Jeg intervjuet én representant fra hvert par. Intervjuene  har bidratt til å løfte frem hva som oppleves som viktig i møtet med terapeuten, og hva som hjalp paret til en bedre hverdag sammen. Gjennom fortolkende fenomenologisk analyse ble det utarbeidet tre hovedkategorier, med tilhørende underkategorier. Disse kategoriene er: 1. «Relasjoner»,  med underkategoriene «Opplevelse av å bli sett», «Kjemi med terapeut» og «Betydningen av en objektiv tredjepart», 2. «Motivasjon», med underkategoriene  «Lettere når begge vil i terapi» og «Vilje til å investere i forholdet», og 3. «Kommunikasjon», med underkategoriene «Å skape forståelse og bevisstgjøring», «Fjerne tabu» og «Forventninger om praktiske råd». Kategoriene representerer det mest fremtredende ved informantenes opplevelse av hvordan det var å være i  parterapi, og hva som opplevdes som viktig for dem. Dette dannet utgangspunktet for drøftingen. Kategoriene er drøftet ut fra relevant teori om person i relasjon,  motivasjon og kommunikasjon. Annen relevant teori blir trukket inn der hvor det er hensiktsmessig. I følge denne studien ser en sentral tendens ut til å være betydningen av å bli sett av terapeuten og partneren sin. Det er også avgjørende å få inn en objektiv tredjepart, som i tillegg gir anerkjennelse og omsorg til begge parter i parforholdet. På den måten føler klientene seg møtt med respekt, og grunnlaget for vekst og utvikling er lagt. Dette påvirker også motivasjonen for å arbeide videre med forholdet. Terapien har best grunnlag for suksess hvis begge parter ønsker å gå til terapi, eller at den tvilende part blir overbevist etter kort tid. Dette fører til indre motivasjon, som er et godt grunnlag for videre arbeid og investering i forholdet.  Informantene legger stor vekt på forbedret kommunikasjon under terapien, og forteller om hvordan hjelp til å bli bevisst mønster og tendenser er med på å skape en større forståelse av hverandre. De drar også frem viktigheten av at terapeuten normaliserer det å gå i terapi, slik at de ikke føler seg så «mislykket». I etterkant av terapien er de også opptatt av å selv fremme parterapi som noe positivt. Forventningene om direkte råd er også belyst, og hvordan dette er med på å fremme og/eller hemme vekst. Avslutningsvis gjøres det betraktninger i forhold til undersøkelsens begrensninger, samt implikasjoner for videre forskning.

Communication and conflicts are highly relevant aspects in current organizations. The aim of this master thesis is to examine how middle managers experience communication with others when they face conflicts. The purpose is also to analyze how conflicts influence the relational communication. The research question for the thesis is: How do middle managers experience their relational communication with top managers and associates when conflicts occur in the workplace? The master thesis uses a Q-methodological approach to analyze the research question, where subjectivity is the primary focus. Thirteen participants sorted 36 statements that provided the data used in the study. The statements represent different aspects and experiences regarding communication related to conflicts. The data were analyzed using a Q-methodological software, PQmethod. The findings represent three different views regarding the subject, called factors. Factor 1: Direct dialogue creates a good environment and openness to conflicts. Factor 2: Good quality in the relation between us is important, but we lack good strategies to manage conflicts effectively. Factor 3: A Rational negotiations and sharing our thoughts and feelings makes us stronger when meeting conflicts. Some similarities among the factors are apparent. They all share, for example, a comfortable emotion after finding a solution to a difficult conflict. Differences among the factors are apparent in the following ways. Factor 1 promotes appreciation of a direct dialogue when conflicts occur. The direct dialogue contributes to less fear of conflicts within this factor. In factor 2 the quality of the relation is important, and there is little direct dialogue when conflicts occur. Strategies on how to cope with difficult communication is desirable. Faktor 3 has a focus on rational negotiations between parties when meeting conflicts. Both direct dialogue and exchange of feelings and thoughts is appreciated here. The findings are analyzed more thoroughly in the discussion section. / Kommunikasjon og konflikter er svært aktuelle temaer i dagens organisasjoner. Med denne masteroppgaven er formålet å undersøke hvordan ulike mellomledere opplever å kommunisere når konflikter inntreffer arbeidsplassen. Et  ønske er å synliggjøre hvordan konflikter påvirker den relasjonelle kommunikasjonen. Med  følgende problemstilling vil jeg undersøke dette nærmere: Hvordan opplever mellomledere sin kommunikative relasjon til toppledelsen (overordnede) og medarbeiderne (underordnede), når det oppstår konfliktfylte situasjoner på arbeidsplassen? Masteroppgaven går frem ved hjelp av forskningsmetoden Q-metodologi for å besvare problemstillingen, der subjektivitet står i sentrum. Det var 13 deltakere somutførte en sortering ved hjelp av 36 utsagn, som danner datamaterialet for undersøkelsen. Utsagnene representerer ulike aspekter og opplevelser rundt temaet kommunikasjon ved konflikter. Datamaterialet er analysert ved hjelp av et Qmetodisk analyseprogram. Funnene representerer tre ulike opplevelser eller syn på temaet, i form av tre faktorer. Faktor 1: Direkte dialog skaper godt miljø og åpenhet for konflikter. Faktor 2: God kvalitet på relasjonen mellom oss er viktig, men vi mangler strategier for å håndtere konflikter effektivt. Faktor 3: Saklig forhandling og deling av tanker og følelser gjør oss sterkere i konflikter. Noen likheter  eksisterer mellom faktorene. Alle deler til eksempel opplevelsen av behag etter å ha løst opp i vanskelige konflikter. Ulikheter mellom faktorene trer frem på følgende måte. Faktor 1 fremmer opplevelsen av å verdsette en direkte dialog ved konflikter. Den direkte dialogen er med på å føre til lite frykt for konflikter i denne faktoren. Hos Faktor 2 oppleves kvaliteten på relasjonen som viktig, samtidig med lite direkte dialog ved konflikter. Bedre strategier for håndtering av vanskelig kommunikasjon oppleves som ønskelig. Faktor 3 opplever å ha en saklig forhandling med hverandre ved konflikter. Både direkte dialog og veksling av følelser og tanker verdsettes her. Funnene drøftes dypere i lys av teoretiske perspektiver i egen drøftingsdel.

In this thesis, the personalities of Ståle Kleiberg and Misha Alperin are approached from psychological, sociological and cultural perspectives. These artists are also viewed as representatives of some of the ways an individual can develop and excel. They are described in terms of their relationship to their respective domains - Kleiberg as a Norwegian contemporary composer and Alperin as a Ukrainian Jewish jazz composer - and also in terms of their relationships with other artistic domains. / <p>Oppgaven har vedlegg som mangler i digital versjon, og kan framstå som ufullstendig uten dette. Kontakt NTNU Universitetsbiblioteket for utlån av komplett oppgave.</p>

In this masters thesis you can read more about my scientific project on the subject «communication at work». In the thesis I have tried to answer this question: “How do you experience communication at work?” I have used the scientific method Q methodology to answer the question. Q methodology as a method is also presented in more detail in the thesis. My scientific work has been done in a school organization in Norway. The participants have contributed in the project through sorting different statements about the subject “communication at work”. The participants have been asked if they agree, disagree or are neutral to the statements.. The statements have been shaped through theory about communication style, reaction and motive power, and have been adapted to the participant’s communicational universe. There have been 15 participants in the project. Through this the analysis of the information I got, I found a solution with three factors that showed me three different experiences of communication at work. Factor 1 is the safe and open, factor 2 is the likewise and concrete and factor 3 is the innovative and social. Finally, I have seen how this analysis of the three factors can be important for the individual,and for the whole company. / I denne masteroppgåva kan ein lese meir om forskingsprosjektet mitt rundt temaet «kommunikasjon på arbeidsstaden». I oppgåva har eg søkt å svare på problemstillinga: «Korleis opplev du kommunikasjonen på arbeidsstaden din?» For å svare på problemstillinga har eg nytta ein Q-metodisk forskingsmetode, som blir presentert i sin heilskap i oppgåveteksten. Sjølve forskingsprosjektet mitt har blitt gjennomført i ein skuleorganisasjon i ei fylkeskommune i Noreg. Deltakarane har deltatt i forskinga gjennom å sortere utsegn rundt temaet kommunikasjon på arbeidsstaden. Utsegnene ble sortert ut frå kva grad deltakaren opplevde det likt, nøytralt eller ulikt seg sjølv. Sjølve utsegnene har blitt utforma gjennom teori om kommunikasjonsstil, reaksjon og drivkraft, og blitt tilpassa deltakarane sitt kommunikasjonsunivers. Det har vore totalt 15 deltakara som ha deltatt i undersøkinga. Gjennom analyse av datamaterialet, har eg funne fram til ei trefaktorløysing som syner tre forskjellige syn på korleis deltakarane opplever kommunikasjonen på arbeidsstaden. Faktor 1 vert omtalt som den trygge og opne, faktor 2 som den likegyldige og konkrete og faktor 3 som den nyskapande og sosiale. Avslutningsvis har eg sett på korleis analysen av dei tre faktorane kan vere av tyding for den enkelte, samt for verksemda.