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This project discusses some of the methodologies developed over the years to estimate attributable risk among exposed persons and the attributable risk in the entire population (also called Etiologic Fraction). It provides a general framework for estimating attributable risk among the exposed (denoted lambda_e). By making use of the recent observation that the two measures of attributable risk can be linked through the prevalence of the risk factor among the cases (denoted V_x), an estimate of population attributable risk (denoted lambda) for matched case-control studies is determined. Using the methodology developed recently by Kuritz and Landis (1987), this project provides explicit formulas for estimating the attributable risk among the exposed and the population attributable risk, and their large sample variances. This has been done both in situations where exactly R controls have been matched to a case and for a variable number of controls per case. The methodologies are illustrated with data from some case-control studies reported in the literature. Asymptotic relative efficiencies of different matching designs computed in terms of the costs of gathering cases and controls, are presented, together with some recommendations on what design is considered optimal. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

Semiparametric modeling is a combination of the parametric and nonparametric models in which some functions follow a known form and some others follow an unknown form. In this dissertation we made contributions to semiparametric modeling for matched case-crossover data. In matched case-crossover studies, it is generally accepted that the covariates on which a case and associated controls are matched cannot exert a confounding effect on independent predictors included in the conditional logistic regression model. Any stratum effect is removed by the conditioning on the fixed number of sets of the case and controls in the stratum. However, some matching covariates such as time, and/or spatial location often play an important role as an effect modification. Failure to include them makes incorrect statistical estimation, prediction and inference. Hence in this dissertation, we propose several approaches that will allow the inclusion of time and spatial location as well as other effect modifications such as heterogeneous subpopulations among the data. To address modification due to time, three methods are developed: the first is a parametric approach, the second is a semiparametric penalized approach and the third is a semiparametric Bayesian approach. We demonstrate the advantage of the one stage semiparametric approaches using both a simulation study and an epidemiological example of a 1-4 bi-directional case-crossover study of childhood aseptic meningitis with drinking water turbidity. To address modifications due to time and spatial location, two methods are developed: the first one is a semiparametric spatial-temporal varying coefficient model for a small number of locations. The second method is a semiparametric spatial-temporal varying coefficient model, and is appropriate when the number of locations among the subjects is medium to large. We demonstrate the accuracy of these approaches by using simulation studies, and when appropriate, an epidemiological example of a 1-4 bi-directional case-crossover study. Finally, to explore further effect modifications by heterogeneous subpopulations among strata we propose a nonparametric Bayesian approach constructed with Dirichlet process priors, which clusters subpopulations and assesses heterogeneity. We demonstrate the accuracy of our approach using a simulation study, as well a an example of a 1-4 bi-directional case-crossover study. / Ph. D.

Despite the fact ultra-wideband (UWB) technology has been around for over 30 years, there is a newfound excitement about its potential for communications. With the advantageous qualities of multipath immunity and low power spectral density, researchers are examining fundamental questions about UWB communication systems. In this work, we examine UWB communication systems paying particular attention to transmitter and receiver design. This thesis is specifically focused on a software radio transceiver design for impulse-based UWB with the ability to transmit a raw data rate of 100 Mbps yet encompasses the adaptability of a reconfigurable digital receiver. A 500 ps wide Gaussian pulse is generated at the transmitter utilizing the fast-switching characteristics of a step recovery diode. Pulse modulation is accomplished via several stages of RF switches, filters, and amplifiers on a fully designed printed circuit board specifically manufactured for this project. Critical hardware components at the receiver consist of a bank of ADCs performing parallel sampling and an FPGA employed for data processing. Using a software radio design, various modulation schemes and digital receiver topologies are accommodated along with a vast number of algorithms for acquisition, synchronization, and data demodulation methods. Verification for the design is accomplished through transmitter hardware testing and receiver design simulation. The latter includes bit error rate testing for a variety of modulation schemes and wireless channels using a pilot-based matched filter estimation technique. Ultimately, the transceiver design demonstrates the advantages and challenges of UWB technology while boasting high data rate communication capability and providing the flexibility of a research testbed. / Master of Science

The main objective of this research is to model and analyse complex electromagnetic problems by means of a new hybridised computational technique combining the frequency domain Method of Moments (MoM), Finite-Difference Time-Domain (FDTD) method and a subgridded Finite-Difference Time-Domain (SGFDTD) method. This facilitates a significant advance in the ability to predict electromagnetic absorption in inhomogeneous, anisotropic and lossy dielectric materials irradiated by geometrically intricate sources. The Method of Moments modelling employed a two-dimensional electric surface patch integral formulation solved by independent linear basis function methods in the circumferential and axial directions of the antenna wires. A similar orthogonal basis function is used on the end surface and appropriate attachments with the wire surface are employed to satisfy the requirements of current continuity. The surface current distributions on structures which may include closely spaced parallel wires, such as dipoles, loops and helical antennas are computed. The results are found to be stable and showed good agreement with less comprehensive earlier work by others. The work also investigated the interaction between overhead high voltage transmission lines and underground utility pipelines using the FDTD technique for the whole structure, combined with a subgridding method at points of interest, particularly the pipeline. The induced fields above the pipeline are investigated and analysed. FDTD is based on the solution of Maxwell's equations in differential form. It is very useful for modelling complex, inhomogeneous structures. Problems arise when open-region geometries are modelled. However, the Perfectly Matched Layer (PML) concept has been employed to circumvent this difficulty. The establishment of edge elements has greatly improved the performance of this method and the computational burden due to huge numbers of time steps, in the order of tens of millions, has been eased to tens of thousands by employing quasi-static methods. This thesis also illustrates the principle of the equivalent surface boundary employed close to the antenna for MoM-FDTD-SGFDTD hybridisation. It depicts the advantage of using hybrid techniques due to their ability to analyse a system of multiple discrete regions by employing the principle of equivalent sources to excite the coupling surfaces. The method has been applied for modelling human body interaction with a short range RFID antenna to investigate and analyse the near field and far field radiation pattern for which the cumulative distribution function of antenna radiation efficiency is presented. The field distributions of the simulated structures show reasonable and stable results at 900 MHz. This method facilitates deeper investigation of the phenomena in the interaction between electromagnetic fields and human tissues.

This study performed detailed measurements on and around scaled up conducting and adiabatic airfoils with and without film cooling. The conducting vane was a matched Bi airfoil, which accurately scaled the convective heat transfer and conduction through the solid, in order to produce non-dimensional surface temperatures and thermal boundary layers that were representative of an actual engine. Measurements made on all vane models included surface temperature measurements and thermal profiles above the walls. Separate measurements on non-film cooled and film cooled conducting models allowed for the individual contributions of the internal convective cooling and external film cooling to the overall cooling scheme to be quantified. Surface temperature and thermal field measurements above the wall were also performed on a film cooled adiabatic model. For the conducting model with internal cooling only, strong streamwise temperature variations were seen. The surface temperature variations were highly dependent on the local external and internal heat transfer coefficients. Spanwise temperature variations also existed, but were modest in comparison to streamwise variations. Comparing the thermal fields above the film cooled adiabatic and conducting walls allowed for the assumption that the conducting wall would not significantly affect the thermal field in the film cooling jet to be tested. Near the edge of the film cooling jet the developing thermal boundary layer had a clear effect on the overlying gas temperature, suggesting that the common assumption that the adiabatic wall temperature is the appropriate driving temperature for heat transfer to a film cooled wall was invalid. On the jet centerline thermal boundary layer effects were less influential, due to the development of a new, thin boundary layer. This suggested that the adiabatic wall temperature as driving temperature for heat transfer was a reasonable assumption on the jet centerline for most cases tested. As film cooling momentum flux ratio increase, thermal boundary layer effects became more influential on the jet centerline. Additionally, the high resolution surface temperature measurements and thermal field measurements above the wall presented in the current study represent a significant improvement in the data available for validation of computational simulations of conducting turbine airfoils. / text

Les travaux de cette thèse concernent la modélisation et la simulation numérique de la propagation d’ondes acoustiques en présence d’un écoulement. Le modèle retenu pour ces études est l’équation de Galbrun. Les travaux faits sur l’équation de Galbrun ont essentiellement porté sur le régime harmonique. En revanche, la plupart des études mathématiques et numériques du problème de l’aéroacoustique est en régime transitoire. C’est pourquoi, il est intéressant pour nous d’étudier l’équation de Galbrun en régime transitoire. Pour résoudre cette équation en régime transitoire, notre approche a reposé sur la transformée de Laplace, qui nous permet de faire l’échange entre le domaine harmonique et le domaine réel. Un autre sujet abordé dans cette thèse est celui du traitement des conditions aux limites non réfléchissantes en écoulement uniforme et non-uniforme. Nous proposons la méthode PML pour l’équation de Galbrun. Inspirée par la méthode de Hu, nous proposons un nouveau modèle PML associé à l’équation de Galbrun, qui a toujours conduit à une solution exponentiellement décroissante dans la couche, même en présence d’ondes inverses. Les simulations acoustiques montrent étonnamment d’erreur de convergence pour les deux modèles classiques et nouveaux. Nous validons notre modèle PML à travers plusieurs exemples numériques dans l’écoulement uniforme et non-uniforme. Le dernier objectif est de proposer des modèles de sources aéroacoustiques associées à l’équation de Galbrun. Après une présentation en détail des modèles existants, on adapte une méthode hybride (EIF) à l’équation de Galbrun. Pour assurer la validité de l’approche globale, certains tests classiques sont choisis parmi la littérature et les résultats sont comparés avec les approches existantes et les solutions analytiques. / The work of this thesis is about the numerical modeling and simulation of the propagation of acoustic waves in the presence of a flow. The model used for these studies is the equation of Galbrun. The work done on the Galbrun equation focused on the harmonic regime. In contrast, most of the mathematical and numerical studies of the aeroacoustics problems are in the transient regime. That is why it is interesting for us to study the Galbrun equation in the transient regime. To solve this equation in the transient regime, our approach is based on the Laplace transform, which allows us to exchange between the frequency domain and the real domain. Another topic discussed in this thesis is the treatment of non-reflecting boundary conditions in uniform and non-uniform flow. We propose the Perfectly Matched Layer method for the Galbrun equation. Inspired by the Hu’s method, we propose a new PML model associated with the Galbrun equation, which always leads to an exponentially decreasing solution in the layer, even in the presence of reverse waves. Acoustic simulations show surprisingly error convergence for both classic and new models. We validate our PML model through several numerical examples in uniform and non-uniform flow. The final objective is to propose models for aeroacoustics sources associated with the Galbrun equation. After presenting in detail the existing models, we adapt a hybrid method (Expansion about Incompressible Flow) in Galbrun equation. To ensure the validity of the overall approach, some classical tests are selected from the literature and the results are compared with existing approaches and analytical solutions.

Empirical data have not adequately revealed current methods of nonprofit leadership in a way that reflects shared leadership in the nonprofit sector leaving nonprofit organizations (NPOs) at a disadvantage in relation to understanding and describing leadership effectiveness. Using a conceptual framework that incorporated organizational theory, shared leadership theory, path goal theory, transformational theory, leader member exchange, and fund development theory, this mini ethnographic study was conducted to explore the effect of leadership styles in shared leadership situations and the impact of matched and unmatched leadership styles on NPO funding performance. With the use of purposeful sampling to conduct the study, the participants represented 5 community partner NPOs in the New York City area with 20 or fewer employees and average annual funding of $600,000 or more during the previous 3 years. The data analysis of interviews, observation, journaling, member checking, and document review and analysis were performed through hand coding using an inductive analytical method to identify patterns and themes. The study results indicate that matching leadership styles of executive and senior leaders such as leader member exchange and path-goal development are directly related to a team-oriented culture that is essential for the longevity and effective performance of non-profit organizations. Based on the findings, shared leadership promotes a culture of positive social change through building honesty and integrity, which in turn can help nonprofit organizational leaders improve funding programs and stakeholder interest. Ultimately shared leadership benefits the social needs of society by enhancing the services to the beneficiaries who receive the NPO programs.

Dans cette thèse, nous étudions la convergence de méthode de type éléments finis pour les équations de Maxwell en régime harmonique avec condition au bord d'impédance et l'équation de Helmholtz avec une couche parfaitement absorbante(PML). On étudie en premier, la formulation régularisée de l'équation de Maxwell en régime harmonique avec condition au bord d'impédance (qui consiste à ajouter le term ∇ div à l'équation originale pour avoir un problème elliptique) et on garde la condition d'impédance comme une condition au bord essentielle. Pour des domaines à bord régulier, le caractère bien posé de cette formulation est bien connu mais cela n'est pas le cas pour des domaines polyédraux convexes. On commence alors le premier chapitre par la preuve du caractère bien posé dans le cas du polyèdre convexe, qui est basé sur le fait que l'espace variationnel est inclus dans H¹. Dans le but d'avoir des estimations explicites en le nombre d'onde k de ce problème, il est obligatoire d'avoir des résultats de stabilité explicites en ce nombre d'onde. C'est aussi proposé, pour quelques situations particulières, dans ce chapitre. Dans le second chapitre on décrit les singularités d'arêtes et de coins pour notre problème. On peut alors déduire la régularité de la solution du problème original, ainsi que de son adjoint. On a tous les ingrédients pour proposer une analyse de convergence explicite en k pour une méthode d'éléments finis avec éléments de Lagrange. Dans le troisième chapitre, on considère une méthode d'éléments finis hp non conforme pour un domaine à bord régulier. Pour obtenir des estimations explicites en k, on introduit un résultat de décomposition, qui sépare la solution du problème original (ou de son adjoint) en une partie régulière mais fortement oscillante et une partie moins régulière mais peu oscillante. Ce résultat permet de montrer des estimations explicites en k. Le dernier chapitre est dédié à l'équation de Helmholtz avec une PML. L'équation de Helmholtz dans l'espace entier est souvent utilisée pour modéliser la diffraction d'onde acoustique (en régime harmonique), avec la condition de radiation à l'infini de Sommerfeld. L'ajout d'une PML est une façon pour passer d'un domaine infini à un domaine fini, elle correspond à l'ajout d'une couche autour du domaine de calcul qui absorbe très vite toutes les ondes sortantes. On propose en premier un résultat de stabilité explicite en k. On propose alors deux schémas numériques, une méthode d'éléments finis hp et une méthode multi- échelle basée sur un sous-espace local de correction. Le résultat de stabilité est utilisé pour mettre en relation de choix des paramètres des méthodes numériques considérées avec k. Nous montrons aussi des estimations d'erreur a priori. A la fin de ces chapitres, des tests numériques sont proposés pour confirmer nos résultats théoriques. / In this thesis, we propose wavenumber explicit convergence analyses of some finite element methods for time-harmonic Maxwell's equations with impedance boundary condition and for the Helmholtz equation with Perfectly Matched Layer (PML). We first study the regularized formulation of time-harmonic Maxwell's equations with impedance boundary conditions (where we add a ∇ div-term to the original equation to have an elliptic problem) and keep the impedance boundary condition as an essential boundary condition. For a smooth domain, the wellposedness of this formulation is well-known. But the well-posedness for convex polyhedral domain has been not yet investigated. Hence, we start the first chapter with the proof of the well-posedness in this case, which is based on the fact that the variational space is embedded in H¹. In order to perform a wavenumber explicit error analysis of our problem, a wavenumber explicit stability estimate is mandatory. We then prove such an estimate for some particular configurations. In the second chapter, we describe the corner and edge singularities for such problem. Then we deduce the regularity of the solution of the original and the adjoint problem, thus we have all ingredients to propose a explicit wavenumber convergence analysis for h-FEM with Lagrange element. In the third chapter, we consider a non conforming hp-finite element approximation for domains with a smooth boundary. To perform a wavenumber explicit error analysis, we split the solution of the original problem (or its adjoint) into a regular but oscillating part and a rough component that behaves nicely for large frequencies. This result allows to prove convergence analysis for our FEM, again explicit in the wavenumber. The last chapter is dedicated to the Helmholtz equation with PML. The Helmholtz equation in full space is often used to model time harmonic acoustic scattering problems, with Sommerfeld radiation condition at infinity. Adding a PML is a way to reduce the infinite domain to a finite one. It corresponds to add an artificial absorbing layer surrounding a computational domain, in which scattered wave will decrease very quickly. We first propose a wavenumber explicit stability result for such problem. Then, we propose two numerical discretizations: an hp-FEM and a multiscale method based on local subspace correction. The stability result is used to relate the choice of the parameters in the numerical methods to the wavenumber. A priori error estimates are shown. At the end of each chapter, we perform numerical tests to confirm our theoritical results.