Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston University N.B.: Page 62 and 74 missing in numbering

The purpose of this study was to describe the current Master Gardener and County Director perceptions of the Mississippi Master Gardener program. Participation for both groups was voluntary and the Master Gardeners were chosen through random sampling. In the final sample, a total of 43 County Directors and 233 Master Gardeners completed the survey. The dependent variable was motivation functions: Understanding, Values, Enhancement, Protect, Social, and Career. The independent variable was group, which included Master Gardeners and County Directors. Results showed that Master Gardener’s highest ranked reasons for volunteering were related to the Understanding, Values, and Enhancement functions. They volunteered to learn more about horticulture and to help others. Data also showed that volunteers were very satisfied with their overall Master Gardener experience. Eleven of the twelve questions ranked above 5.0 on a scale of 1 to 7. Master Gardener’s highest ranked perceptions of the benefits of the program were also related to the Understanding, Values, and Enhancement functions. County Director’s highest ranked perceptions of benefits of the program were related to the Understanding, Values, and Social functions.

Ce travail de thèse s‘organise en trois parties l‘observation de l‘effet de l‘avancée dans l‘âge sur la performance entriathlon, l‘étude du modèle du Master triathlète (i.e. > 40 ans) à travers les facteurs de la performance et la mesurede l‘impact du vieillissement sur le rendement énergétique du pédalage. Le recrutement de Masters triathlètesentraînés a permis d‘étudier rigoureusement l‘impact du vieillissement sur les fonctions physiologiques impliquéesdans la performance, tout en contrôlant les effets supplémentaires liés à l‘adoption d‘un mode de vie sédentaire. Surune épreuve de triathlon et pour chaque mode de locomotion, le déclin de la performance a une forme exponentielle.Un déclin significatif sur triathlon distance olympique a été observé sur la performance totale à partir de 45 ans chezles Masters triathlètes hommes. Il est plus précoce chez les femmes. Il est plus prononcé sur Ironman que surdistance olympique. Comparé aux autres modes de locomotion, un moindre déclin des performances en cyclisme estobservé. Avant et après un triathlon distance olympique, VO 2max, vVO2max, les vitesses aux seuils ventilatoires etl‘efficience énergétique étaient significativement plus faibles chez les Masters triathlètes, mais le couple maximalvolontaire était similaire pour les deux groupes. 24 heures après la course, une diminution significative et similairepour les deux groupes a été observée pour VO 2max et vVO2max. Il n‘a pas été observé de différence sur le couplemaximal isométrique ou sur l‘efficience énergétique de la course à pied en sous maximal. Lors de l‘épreuve detriathlon, il n‘a pas été observé de différence d‘intensité relative d‘effort entre les deux groupes. Ces résultatsindiquent que chez les sujets bien entraînés, l‘intensité relative de l‘effort sur l‘ensemble d‘un triathlon distanceolympique et la fatigue 24 heures après la course semblent indépendant de l‘âge. La dernière partie du travailexpérimental consistait à mesurer l‘impact du vieillissement sur le rendement énergétique du pédalage au sein d‘unepopulation de cyclistes et triathlètes tous bien entraînés sur une large tranche d‘âge. Un déclin significatif a étécaractérisé. Les hypothèses explicatives sont multifactorielles. Une relation entre l‘efficience énergétique et laréduction de puissance ou la modification de la composition corporelle avec l‘âge a été établie. D‘autres hypothèsessont évoquées comme le remodelage du schéma d‘activation musculaire et l‘expertise du pédalage, les propriétésmécaniques du muscle ou la part du coût énergétique de la ventilation. / This thesis is organized in three parts closely related, in order to observe the effect of aging on performance intriathlon, to the study the master triathlete model (i.e. > 40 years) through the performance factors and to measurethe impact of aging on the pedaling efficiency. The recruitment of master triathletes regularly trained in enduranceallowed the study of ageing, by controlling the cofounding effects of a sedentary lifestyle or pathologies appearance,on physiological systems. The decline in triathlon performance follows the exponential model. In male subjects,performance loss does not appear before 45 years, whereas in female, it appears earlier. Age-related declines inperformance were less pronounced for Olympic compared with the Ironman distance. There was a lesser age relateddecline in cycling performance compared with running and swimming performances. The second part of this thesisaimed to study the master triathlete model (maximal isometric torque and cardio-respiratory parameters) prior to andfollowing an Olympic distance triathlon. Prior to the event VO 2max, vVO2max, speed at ventilatory thresholds andrunning economy were significantly lower in master athletes, but maximal voluntary torque was similar betweengroups. 24h following the race, a similar significant decrease in VO 2max and vVO2max.was observed in both groups.No change was recorded in maximal voluntary torque or submaximal running economy following the event. Theresults indicate that for well trained subjects, the overall relative exercise intensity during an Olympic distancetriathlon and the fatigue effects of the race 24h after seems to be independent to the age. The last part of theexperimental work was to measure the impact of ageing on the pedaling efficiency in a population of cyclists andtriathletes all well trained on a wide age range. A significant decline was characterized. Explanatory hypotheses aremultifactorial. A relationship between energy efficiency and reduction of power or the modification of the bodycomposition with age has been established. Other assumptions are evoked as the remodeling of the pattern of muscleactivation and the expertise level of cycling, the mechanical properties of muscle or the share of the energy cost ofventilation.

Power electronics are becoming established in ever broadening areas of industry. The transition from previous generation technology is driven by the oportunity for improvements in controllability, efficiency, and longevity. A wide variety of power semiconductors are available, however power handling capacity is still a significant limitation for many applications. An increase in the capacity of a single device is usually accompanied by a drop in switching frequency, and hence achievable system bandwidth. Increased capacity can be attained without this loss in bandwidth by using multiple lower power devices in parallel. Products based on parallel device topologies are already present in the marketplace, however there are many associated complications. The nature of these complications depends on the control method and topology used, but no system combines high performance and high power with high reliability and easy maintainability. This research aims to identify and develop a method that would provide a system of voltage source inverters with a total capacity in excess of 10MVA, with effective control bandwidth comparable to a 100kVA system. Additionally, the method should be equally applicable at still higher power levels in the future with the anticipated development of higher capacity power semiconductors. The primary goal when using paralleled devices is to achieve an even distribution of system load between them, as unbalanced load leads to poor system utilisation. Devices can be paralleled either passively, in which devices are controlled in common and characteristics inherent to the device are relied upon to balance load; or actively, in which devices are individually controlled and monitored to improve load balance. A key component of the thesis is the identification and analysis of the inadequacies inherent to passively paralleled systems. It is the limitations of passive paralleling that provide the motivation to develop an active parallel control mechanism. Following the analysis, an active control algorithm is developed and implemented on a paralleled system. The proposed system topology consists of an array of medium power Voltage Source Inverter (VSI) modules operating in parallel. Each module is controlled semi-independently at a local level, with an inter-module communications network to enable active equalisation of module load, and redundant fault management. An innovative load equalisatiion algorithm is developed and proven, the key feature of which is this inclusion of a synthetic differential resistance between modules within the system. The result is a modular expandable structure offering the potential for very high power capacity combined with quality of response usually only found in low power systems. The system as a whole is extremely reliable as any module can be isolated in the event of a fault without significantly affecting the remainder of the network. Performance results from both simulation and experimentation on a two module small scale prototype are given. Using the developed topology and control method extremely accurate load balancing can be achieved without degradation of the response characteristics. The system is tested up to only 2.4kW in the course of this research, but the correlation with simulation is high and gives confidence that the developed mechanism will allow the 10MV A goal to be achieved. Following the developmental stage of this research the technology has been applied to a commercial system comprising parallel structures of up to 8 modules with a total power handling capacity of 1MVA with no deterioration in performance. 2MVA systems are deliverable with the current technology without any changes, and higher power levels are expected to be easily achieved.

Thesis (D.B.A.)--Nova University, 1990. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 118-146).

No description available.

by Liu Chun-kwong Alex. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1995. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 85-87). / ABSTRACT --- p.iv / TABLE OF CONTENTS --- p.vii / LIST OF TABLES --- p.x / ACKNOWLEDGMENT --- p.xii / Chapter / Chapter I. --- INTRODUCTION --- p.1 / The Nature of MBA --- p.1 / A Degree of Controversy --- p.1 / The Aim of MBA --- p.2 / Variety of MBA --- p.2 / The Purpose of The Study --- p.2 / Scope of The Study --- p.3 / "Full Time, Two Year MBA" --- p.4 / Participating MBA Programmes --- p.4 / "Full-Time, Two-Year MBA Students" --- p.5 / Personal Interview with Faculty Members of MBA --- p.5 / Literature Review --- p.6 / Methodology of Study --- p.7 / Objectives --- p.7 / Design of Questionnaire --- p.7 / Test of Questionnaire --- p.8 / Sample Size --- p.9 / Method of Approaching Respondents --- p.9 / Anonymity --- p.10 / Data Analysis --- p.10 / Chapter II. --- LITERATURE REVIEW --- p.11 / Report of the Project by Porter and McKibbin --- p.11 / Large Scale Changes in MBA in the United States during the early 1990s --- p.12 / Current Trend of change of MBA in the United States --- p.13 / MBA in Asia --- p.15 / MBA in Hong Kong --- p.15 / MBA in Taiwan --- p.16 / Chapter III. --- PROFILE OF THE PARTICIPATING FULL TIME MBA PROGRAMMES --- p.18 / Full Time MBA Programme of The Chinese University Of Hong Kong --- p.18 / Establishment --- p.18 / Objectives --- p.18 / Entry Format --- p.19 / Curriculum --- p.19 / Specific Activities for Students --- p.20 / Overall Characteristics --- p.20 / Full Time MBA Programme of The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology --- p.21 / Establishment --- p.21 / Objectives --- p.21 / Entry Format --- p.22 / Curriculum --- p.22 / Specific Activities for Students --- p.23 / Overall Characteristics --- p.23 / MBA of National Chengchi University --- p.23 / Establishment --- p.24 / Objectives --- p.24 / Entry Format --- p.24 / Curriculum --- p.25 / Specific Activities for Students --- p.25 / Overall Characteristics --- p.26 / MBA of National Taiwan University --- p.26 / Establishment --- p.26 / Objectives --- p.27 / Entry Format --- p.27 / Curriculum --- p.27 / Specific Activities for Students --- p.28 / Overall Characteristics --- p.28 / Chapter IV. --- RESEARCH FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS --- p.29 / Response Rate --- p.29 / Overall Sample Characteristics --- p.30 / Sex --- p.30 / Age Range --- p.31 / Highest Academic Qualification Obtained --- p.32 / Working Experience --- p.33 / Major Source of Financial Support of Study --- p.34 / Motivations of Taking MBA --- p.34 / Criterion of Choosing Present MBA --- p.36 / Emphasis on Quality of Students by Faculty --- p.37 / Usefulness of Various Methods of Selecting Students in Recruitment --- p.38 / Emphasis of Present MBA on Various Quality of Students --- p.39 / Performance in MBA of Students According to Various Quality of Student --- p.40 / Attributes of Performance of Students --- p.41 / Usefulness of Specific Fields/Subjects --- p.42 / Usefulness of Various Kinds of Course Work --- p.43 / Emphasis in Academic Development Versus Practical Development --- p.44 / Abundance of Electives and Availability of Electives --- p.45 / Number of Elective Courses --- p.45 / Variety of Elective Courses --- p.46 / Availability of Favorite Elective Courses --- p.46 / Courses Wanted to See Added --- p.47 / Performance of Faculty of MBA --- p.48 / Likelihood of Fulfillment of Goal --- p.49 / Overall Findings --- p.50 / Chapter V. --- RECOMMENDATION --- p.54 / APPENDIX --- p.65 / BIBLIOGRAPHY --- p.85

In computer simulation the term \"multibody system\" is usually employed to describe a system of interconnected bodies. Several examples of multibody systems can be found in railway engineering. A wheelset interacting with a track through a contact interface is just one example of practical interest. Modelling mechanical systems in a virtual environment contributes to the understanding of subjects such as dynamic behaviour, stability, durability, wear, fatigue, etc. In the context of a rigid-flexible multibody system mathematically described by a weak-form, the purpose of the present work is to evaluate the contributions due to rigid bodies considering their contact interactions. Inertial contributions due to distribution of mass of a rigid body are fully developed, considering a general pole position associated with a single node, representing a rigid body element. Rodrigues rotation parameters are used to describe finite rotations, by an updated Lagrangian description. Then, the so-called master-surface to master-surface contact formulation is adapted to be used in conjunction with the rigid body element and flexible bodies, aiming to consider their interaction in a rigid-flexible multibody environment. New surface parameterizations are proposed to establish contact pairs, permitting pointwise interaction in a frictional scenario. The proposed formulation is used to represent mechanical systems from different contexts, including a numerical example of the wheel-rail contact interface. The obtained results show the robustness and applicability of the methods. / Em simulação computacional o termo \"sistema multicorpos\" é usualmente empregado para descrever um sistema de corpos interconectados. Diversos exemplos de sistemas multicorpos podem ser encontrados no campo da engenharia ferroviária. Um rodeiro interagindo com a via através de uma interface de contato é apenas um dos exemplos de interesse prático. A modelagem de sistemas mecânicos em um ambiente virtual contribui para o entendimento de assuntos como comportamento dinâmico, estabilidade, durabilidade, desgaste, fadiga, etc. No contexto de um sistema multicorpos rígido-flexível descrito matematicamente por uma forma fraca, o propósito do presente trabalho é avaliar as contribuições devido à presença de corpos rígidos considerando interações de contato. Contribuições inerciais devido à distribuição de massa do corpo rígido são desenvolvidas e apresentadas em totalidade, considerando um polo genérico associado a um único nó, representando o corpo rígido. Parâmetros de rotação de Rodrigues são usados para descrever rotações finitas em uma descrição Lagrangiana atualizada. A formulação de contato master-surface to master-surface é adaptada para ser usada em conjunto com o elemento de corpo rígido e corpos flexíveis, estabelecendo a interação entre esses corpos em um ambiente de simulação multicorpos. Novas parametrizações de superfícies de contato são desenvolvidas para estabelecer os pares de contato, assumindo-se interações pontuais, em um cenário de contato com atrito. A formulação proposta é usada para representar sistemas mecânicos em diferentes contextos, incluindo um exemplo numérico do caso de contato roda-trilho. Os resultados obtidos mostram a robustez e a aplicabilidade dos métodos.

This thesis offers a new rationale that helps explain the phenomena of elective provisions in tax law. I analyze tax elections with reference to a particular election offered to individual taxpayers —the choice to itemize expenses or to take the standard deduction to determine taxable net income under section 63(e) of the Internal Revenue Code. I make three arguments concerning the section 63(e) election that are relevant to evaluating tax elections more generally. First, the ability to itemize deductions can be seen as having an efficiency rationale in addition to its more well-recognized horizontal equity rationale. For taxpayers with lower incomes, the election to itemize acts as a screen that reveals the taxpayer’s unobservable cost-type to the government and allows the income tax to be more optimally “tailored” in the direction of a first-best lump sum tax by lowering itemizers’ marginal tax rates. Second, I show that the elective standard deduction introduced in 1944 can be viewed as a mechanism that bolsters the separating function of the election by reducing the itemizing propensity of would-be tax avoiders and low-ability taxpayers on the boundary between itemizing and not itemizing, while saving government enforcement and taxpayer compliance costs. Third, I argue that one of the drawbacks of using elective provisions such as section 63(e) to optimally tailor the income tax—deliberation costs borne by lower-income taxpayers who are uncertain about whether they should make the election—can be mitigated by viewing elections as call options written by the government in favor of the taxpayer. By structuring the election within a real option framework, the taxpayer will have higher net utility with no loss in equity as compared to an election structured outside the real-option framework. The flexible election rules of section 63(e) comport with this utility-enhancing real option approach. Moreover, the real option analysis suggests that little-noticed details of tax elections more generally may have more important effects on their efficiency than previously recognized.

This thesis offers a new rationale that helps explain the phenomena of elective provisions in tax law. I analyze tax elections with reference to a particular election offered to individual taxpayers —the choice to itemize expenses or to take the standard deduction to determine taxable net income under section 63(e) of the Internal Revenue Code. I make three arguments concerning the section 63(e) election that are relevant to evaluating tax elections more generally. First, the ability to itemize deductions can be seen as having an efficiency rationale in addition to its more well-recognized horizontal equity rationale. For taxpayers with lower incomes, the election to itemize acts as a screen that reveals the taxpayer’s unobservable cost-type to the government and allows the income tax to be more optimally “tailored” in the direction of a first-best lump sum tax by lowering itemizers’ marginal tax rates. Second, I show that the elective standard deduction introduced in 1944 can be viewed as a mechanism that bolsters the separating function of the election by reducing the itemizing propensity of would-be tax avoiders and low-ability taxpayers on the boundary between itemizing and not itemizing, while saving government enforcement and taxpayer compliance costs. Third, I argue that one of the drawbacks of using elective provisions such as section 63(e) to optimally tailor the income tax—deliberation costs borne by lower-income taxpayers who are uncertain about whether they should make the election—can be mitigated by viewing elections as call options written by the government in favor of the taxpayer. By structuring the election within a real option framework, the taxpayer will have higher net utility with no loss in equity as compared to an election structured outside the real-option framework. The flexible election rules of section 63(e) comport with this utility-enhancing real option approach. Moreover, the real option analysis suggests that little-noticed details of tax elections more generally may have more important effects on their efficiency than previously recognized.