A comparison of the reliability of three pattern recognition classifiers has been made using data having a great amount of variation. The basic concepts of the Linear Learning Machine, the K Nearest Neighbor Classifier, and the Potential Function Classifier are presented. Prediction of whether a student would pass or fail freshmen Chemistry 120 was made, based on various test results. The Linear Learning Machine was found to be an unworkable classifier for this kind of data. Both the Potential Function Classifier and the K Nearest Neighbor classifier were acceptable with the Potential Function Classifier being generally a better classifier.

The speciation and quantification of organic sulfur forms in fossil fuel is an area of research. This thesis describes an NMR method which offers potential for identifying and possibly quantifying both nonvolatile and volatile sulfur forms in fossil fuels. The method is based on the methylation of sulfur compounds to form methyl sulfonium salts: RSR + Ch3I --> (R2S+-Ch3)I~ We propose to apply this chemistry to the analysis of sulfur functions in fossil fuels. The sulfur functions are methylated using 13C-enriched methyl iodide. The products are then analyzed by 13C NMR spectroscopy to establish the chemical shifts of the added methyl carbons. The chemical shifts are then correlated against those of known sulfonium salts.

Analyses of the kinetic data obtained on the redox reaction between cobalt(II)-4,4',4",4"-tetrasulfophthalocyanine [Co(II)TSPC4-] and iodine in the presence of air show three reactions in dimethylsulfoxide(DMS0), N,N-dimethylacetamide(DMA), and diethylene glycol(DEG) while there are two reactions in methanol(Me0H). Two of the three reactions in DMSO, DMA, and DEG are biphasic with one reaction in all of the solvents being too fast to be accurately measured on the Cary Model 14 spectrophotometer. When the reactant solutions are purged with argon for 40 minutes under identical conditions, the same biphasic reactions are observed in DMSO and DEG while only one of the three reactions is observed in DMA. In methanol, the same two reactions are present. In the absence of air, one of the biphasic reactions in DMSO and DEC,, and one of the two reactions in Me0H are still to fast to be measured accurately on the Cary Model 14 spectrophotometer. All reactions had a large excess of iodine over the Co(II)TSPC4- to ensure that they went to completion. The concentrations of Co(II)TSPC4- and iodine were varied in each solvent to determine their reaction order. The measurable iodine reaction in DMSO,Me0H, and DEC has a first order dependency on both the Co(II)TSPC4- and iodine concentration. In the DMA solvent, the iodine reaction has a one-half order dependency on the iodine concentration and a first order dependency on the Co(II)TSPC4- concentration. There seems to be no simple dependency on the concentrations of either iodine and oxygen in the oxygen related reactions in all solvents. The redox reaction in each solvent was examined over a range of temperatures in order to obtain the activation parameters, ΔH* and ΔS*. A brief kinetic study was made in DMSO with iodide introduced into the reaction system.

Calcium carbonate with impurities of lead and manganese have produced measurable thermoluminescence (TL) when excited by ultraviolet (uv) radiation. In this investigation the lead impurities comprise the majority of trapping centers stimulated by uv irradiation. In addition, centers associated with the CO3groups have been found to be capable of absorbing uv and ultimately producing TL. The 2537 Å mercury line is primarily responsible for stimulating these centers, and the response was found to be linear to 0.6734 joules/cm2. The thernoluminescence response was discovered to be dependent on the concentrations of lead and manganese. However, for a given concentration of manganese there exists a particular concentration of lead that will maximize TL. The wavelength region 3100 Å to 3300 Å was found to be responsible for optically detrapping charges previously stimulated by 2537 Å irradiation. The studies of linearity of response, dose rate dependence, fading, and wavelength response indicate that this phosphor may be employed as an ultraviolet TL dosimeter. This would permit the application over the range of uv wavelengths from 2300 Å to 2700 Å, and dose rate intensities from 75 uW/cm2 to 1600 uW/cm2.

The purpose of this project was to study the thermal and oxidative stability of a specific polymer composite. A TG/FTIR combined technique was employed to characterize this polymer/graphite fiber composite. The polymer composite sample was decomposed in nitrogen, air, and 3% oxygen atmospheres in a Seiko thermogravimetric analyzer. The use of a gas cell Fourier-transform IR spectrometer downstream from the TGA allowed for the identification of evolved gas products. The thermal oxidative stability (TOS) of this composite was compared to its thermal stability. Also, comparison of the TOS in different atmospheres was made. In addition, the effects of specimen geometry in terms of sample thickness and surface area-to-volume ratio (A/V) were investigated by relating gas diffusion into the specimen to its relative stability.

The spectra of transition metal complexes with triphenylphosphine have been measured near 260 nm and the results interpreted in terms of perturbation of the it electron system of the phenyl ring. All complexes studied show sou degree of delocalization of the d-orbital electrons of the metal into the phenyl ring. However, for first row transition metals, the primary affect was found to be polarization of the phenyl ring due to the presence of the metal ion. For second and third row transition metal ions, the primary effect was found to be metal-ligand back-bonding. However, the effect of polarization of the rings due to the metal ion was noticeable.

The sulfone group is a well-established activating moiety important in many organic transformations. Standard procedures for desulfonylation [Al(Hg), or Na(Hg)] were ineffective for the removal of the pyridin-2-ylsulfonyl group from the α-carbon of phosphonic esters. Prompted by these results, we undertook a study for the synthesis of α-(arylsulfonyl)phosphonates, and their fluorination with Selectfluor to produce α-fluoro-α-(arylsulfonyl)phosphonates, Radical mediated hydrogenolysis of α-fluoro-α-(arylsulfonyl)phosphonates using BujSnH gave (α-fluoro)phosphonates. We observed that the yield for the desulfonylation reaction depends on the n-deficiency effect and increase in the order pyrimidinyl > pyridinyl > phenyl sulfonyl. The (α-fluoro)phosphonates were employed as convenient precursors in the Homer-Wadsworth-Emmons (HWE) reaction to provide (α-fluoro)vinyl sulfones. The vinyl and (α-fluoro)vinyl sulfones underwent substitutive silyl and germyl- desulfonylation to yield vinyl and (α-fluoro)vinyl silanes and germanes via an addition-elimination mechanism. The vinyl tris(trimethylsilyl)silanes were employed as nucleophiles (under oxidative conditions) in palladium-catalyzed cross coupling reactions with iodobenzene and bromobenzene.

Arsenic speciation in soils and sediments pose a great challenge due to possible conversion and/or re-adsorption. Since arsenic toxicity is dependent on its chemical species, the purpose of this research is to study the extraction process, determine what factors control species change, and develop an extraction method which preserves the arsenic species during extraction for proper quantitation. After investigating the addition of reagents such as hydroxylamine and ethylenediamine-tetraacetic acid (EDTA) without significant improvement, a method was established for the extraction of mobile or mobilizable arsenic species using phosphate and sodium diethyldithiocarbamate (NaDDC) which prevented conversion and re-adsorption. This method was applied on soils and sediments used in the construction of golf courses as well as South Florida native soil of marl type. Using an extrapolation approach, a method was also developed to estimate mobilizable arsenic species to compare and validate the method above giving similar results.

Möjligheten till att introducera kvantmekanik från ett kvantinformationsperspektiv, för gymnasieelever utan tidigare erfarenhet av kvantmekanik, undersöks i denna studie. Kvantmekaniska koncept såsom den statistiska tolkningen av en vågfunktion, kollapsen av en vågfunktion vid en mätning, operatorer, sammanflätning och interferens introduceras med hjälp av kvantdatorkoncepten: kvantbitar, kvantgrindar, kvantparallellism och Deutschalgoritmen. En Workshop upplagda efter den elevaktiva metoden Peer Instruction hölls på fyra skolor i Uppsala för totalt 77 elever. Peer Instruction går ut på att lektionen delas in i segment som täcker ett koncept åt gången. Varje segment består av en kort genomgång följt av en konceptuell fråga som först besvaras enskilt, sen får deltagarna diskutera frågan och till sist besvaras samma fråga igen. Vilka typer av konceptuella frågor som kan skapa intressanta diskussioner kring kvantmekaniska koncept med hjälp av kvantdatorer undersöks. Hur olika nivåer av förkunskap om- och intresse för fysik, kvantfysik, kvantdatorer och programmering påverkar diskussionerna samt hur elevernas intresse för ämnet och synen på dess svårighetsgrad utvecklas med workshopen undersöks också. Workshopen var över lag uppskattad av eleverna - utifrån kommentarerna på frågorna som ställdes efteråt. Andelen korrekta svar på frågorna efter diskussionerna var höga och workshopen ökade intresset för fysik, kvantfysik och framförallt kvantdatorer samtidigt som synen på svårigheten av desamma minskade. / The possibility to introduce quantum mechanics, to Swedish pre-university and pre-quantum mechanical students, from a quantum information perspective is examined in this study. Quantum mechanical concepts such as the statistical interpretation of a wave function, the collapse of a wave function when a measurement takes place, operators, entanglements and interference are introduced using the quantum computer concepts: qubuits, qubit gates, quantum parallelism and the Deutsch’s algorithm. A workshop organized according to Peer Instruction was held at 4 different schools in Uppsala, Sweden with a total of 77 participants. The lecture was divided into a number of short presentations each followed by a concept test, the concept test was first answered individually, followed by a disussion amongst the students and finally they answered the same question again. Different kinds of conceptual tests and how different levels of pre-knowledge and preinterest in physics, quantum mechanics, programming and quantum computers influenced the discussions were analysed. How the students attitude to the subject and how their view of how difficult it was changed, were also examined. The workshop was generally appreciated by the students - based on the comments in the questions that were asked after the workshop. The proportion of correct answers to the questions after the discussions was high. The workshop increased the interest in physics, quantum mechanincs and especially quantum computers, while reducing the view of the difficulty of the same.

The reclamation of water-logged land by suitable yet inexpensive forms of drainage is becoming a problem of constantly increasing magnitude. A fairly large portion of the extensive land areas, once considered as worthless has proved to be valuable by the introduction of proper drainage systems. Land areas, in which drainage in its simpler forms has proved inadequate, could perhaps be made valuable were it possible to develop an inexpensive yet effective form of drainage. This paper has been prepared primarily for a consideration of poorly drained land areas and a possible means of their reclamation by a suitable choice and distribution of wells. We shall review a few of the fundamental concepts of soil gydro-dynamics and attempt to give to these concepts a practical application in a special case described hereafter. As a preface to the following developments it may be instructive to consider, incidentally, the source and sphere of ground water; also its intimate relation to surface saturation of water-logged land.