Approved for public release, distribution is unlimited / Modern technology is making virtual environments a part of daily life. However, some constraints about the usage of virtual environments, such as the need for high performance and well-configured computers, prevent users from accessing virtual environments in some places other than special computer rooms. Mobile devices may be used to solve this limitation in a virtual environment. The remote-control approach to access virtual worlds on the Internet or on a corporate network is a new concept that opens new doors to users. First step of this approach is already in use, such as games implemented for mobile devices using the screen of a mobile device as display, and has given satisfying results for some users. This research will take the user, who not only wants to be mobile but also does not want to sacrifice high resolution textures and complex models, closer to his/her goal. Mobile devices provide mobility to the user, but sacrifice not only the reality of the virtual environments but also screen size, which is very important for visibility of complex virtual environments. The hybrid approach with wireless internet connection by using mobile devices as remote control gives the user the advantages of mobility over desktop PCs. On the other hand, the realism provided by high-quality PCs on the server side exceeds the capabilities of mobile devices. / Lieutenant Junior Grade, Turkish Navy

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited / Handheld devices have evolved significantly from mere simple organizers to more powerful handheld computers that are capable of network connectivity, giving it the ability to send e-mail, browse the World Wide Web, and query remote databases. However, handheld devices, because of its design philosophy, are limited in terms of size, memory, and processing power compared to desktop computers. This thesis investigates the use of Data Flow Query Language (DFQL) in querying local and remote databases from a handheld device. Creating Standard Query Language (SQL) queries can be a complex undertaking; and trying to create one on a handheld device with a small screen only adds to its complexity. However, by using DFQL, the user can submit queries with an easy to use graphical user interface. Although handheld devices are currently more powerful than earlier PCs, they still require applications with a small footprint, which is a limiting factor for software developed. This thesis will also investigate the best division of labor between handheld device and remote servers. / Sergeant, United States Army

L’assurance médicaments est un des facteurs qui peuvent influencer l’adhésion aux médicaments. Les objectifs de ce mémoire étaient d’évaluer l’impact du type d’assurance médicaments (publique versus privée) sur l’adhésion et le coût des antihypertenseurs et d’évaluer l’impact des procédures de remboursement et de la contribution du patient sur l’adhésion aux médicaments prescrits pour traiter une maladie chronique. Afin de répondre à ces objectifs, deux cohortes rétrospectives ont été construites à partir des bases de données de la RAMQ et reMed : une cohorte appariée d’utilisateurs d’antihypertenseurs couverts par une assurance médicaments privée ou publique et une cohorte de patients couverts par une assurance médicaments privée ayant rempli au moins une ordonnance pour un médicament traitant une maladie chronique. Les résultats montrent que le niveau d’adhésion aux antihypertenseurs était similaire entre les deux types d’assurance médicaments et que le coût des antihypertenseurs était 28,9 % plus élevé au privé. De plus, il a été observé que les procédures de remboursement n’affectaient pas l’adhésion, alors que le niveau de contribution des patients l’affectait. Les patients qui déboursaient un plus grand montant à l’achat de leurs médicaments étaient moins adhérents (différence : -19,0 %, Intervalle de confiance [IC] à 95 % : -24,0 à -13,0), alors que les patients qui n’avaient rien à débourser étaient moins adhérents (différence : -9,0 %, IC à 95 % : -15,0 à -2,0), que ceux qui devaient débourser une petite somme. Les résultats présentés dans ce mémoire montrent que l’assurance médicaments influence l’adhésion par l’entremise des caractéristiques des plans d’assurance. / Drug insurance is one of many factors that can influence medication adherence. The objectives of this thesis were to evaluate the impact of the type of drug insurance (private versus public) on adherence to antihypertensive medications and the cost of medications, and to evaluate the impact of drug reimbursement procedures and out-of pocket expenses on adherence to medications prescribed for chronic diseases. To meet these objectives, two retrospective cohorts were constructed from the RAMQ and reMed databases: a matched cohort of antihypertensive users covered by private or public drug insurance and a cohort of patients covered by private drug insurance who filled at least one prescription for a medication prescribed for a chronic disease. The results have shown that the level of adherence to antihypertensive medications was similar between the two types of drug insurance and that the cost of antihypertensive medications was 28,9% higher for those privately insured. It was also observed that drug reimbursement procedures didn’t affect medication adherence, while the level of out-of-pocket expenses affected it. Patients with the highest out-of-pocket expenses were less adherent (difference: –19.0%; 95% confidence interval [CI]: –24.0 to –13.0), while patients with no out-of-pocket expenses were less adherent (difference: -9.0%; 95% CI: –15.0 to –2.0) than those with low out-of-pocket expenses. The results presented in this thesis have shown that drug insurance affects medication adherence through the characteristics of drug insurance plans.

Ce travail est consacré à la modélisation mathématique et numérique des écoulements eau-air en conduite qui interviennent notamment dans les centrales de production d’électricité ou les réseaux d’eaux usées. On s’intéresse particulièrement aux écoulements mixtes caractérisés par la présence de régimes stratifiés pilotés par des ondes gravitaires lentes, de régimes en charge ou secs (conduite remplie d’eau ou d’air) pilotés par des ondes acoustiques rapides, et de poches d’air piégées. Une modélisation précise de ces écoulements est nécessaire afin de garantir le bon fonctionnement du circuit hydraulique sous-jacent. Alors que la plupart des modèles disponibles dans la littérature se concentrent sur la phase eau en négligeant la présence de l’air, un modèle bicouche compressible prenant en compte les interactions eau-air est proposé dans cette thèse. Sa construction réside dans l’intégration des équations d’Euler barotropes sur la hauteur de chaque phase et dans l’application de la contrainte hydrostatique sur le gradient de pression de l’eau. Le modèle obtenu est hyperbolique et satisfait une inégalité d’entropie en plus d’autres propriétés mathématiques notables, telles que l’unicité des relations de saut ou la positivité des hauteurs et densités de chaque phase. Au niveau discret, la simulation d’écoulements mixtes avec le modèle bicouche compressible soulève plusieurs défis en raison de la disparité des vitesses d’ondes caractérisant chaque régime, des processus de relaxation rapide sous-jacents, et de la disparition de l’une des phases dans les régimes en charge ou sec. Une méthode à pas fractionnaires implicite-explicite est alors développée en s’appuyant sur la relaxation rapide en pression et sur le mimétisme avec les équations de Saint-Venant pour la dynamique lente de la phase eau. En particulier, une approche par relaxation permet d’obtenir une stabilisation du schéma en fonction du régime d’écoulement. Plusieurs cas tests sont traités et démontrent la capacité du modèle proposé à gérer des écoulements mixtes incluant la présence de poches d’air piégées. / The present work is dedicated to the mathematical and numerical modelling of transient air-water flows in pipes which occur in piping systems of several industrial areas such as nuclear or hydroelectric power plants or sewage pipelines. It deals more specifically with the so-called mixed flows which involve stratified regimes driven by slow gravity waves, pressurized or dry regimes (pipe full of water or air) driven by fast acoustic waves and entrapped air pockets. An accurate modelling of these flows is necessary to guarantee the operability of the related hydraulic system. While most of available models in the literature focus on the water phase neglecting the air phase, a compressible two-layer model which accounts for air-water interactions is proposed herein. The derivation process relies on a depth averaging of the isentropic Euler set of equations for both phases where the hydrostatic constraint is applied on the water pressure gradient. The resulting system is hyperbolic and satisfies an entropy inequality in addition to other significant mathematical properties, including the uniqueness of jump conditions and the positivity of heights and densities for each layer. Regarding the discrete level, the simulation of mixed flows with the compressible two-layer model raises key challenges due to the discrepancy of wave speeds characterizing each regime combined with the fast underlying relaxation processes and with phase vanishing when the flow becomes pressurized or dry. Thus, an implicit-explicit fractional step method is derived. It relies on the fast pressure relaxation in addition to a mimetic approach with the shallow water equations for the slow dynamics of the water phase. In particular, a relaxation method provides stabilization terms activated according to the flow regime. Several test cases are performed and attest the ability of the compressible two-layer model to deal with mixed flows in pipes involving air pocket entrapment.

Our understanding of the folding of membrane proteins lags behind that of soluble proteins due to the challenges posed by the exposure of hydrophobic regions during in vitro chemical denaturation and refolding experiments. While different folding models are accepted for soluble proteins, only the two-stage model and the long-range interactions model have been proposed so far for helical membrane proteins. To address our knowledge gap on how different membrane proteins traverse their folding landscapes, Chapter 2 investigates the structural features of SDS-denatured states and the kinetics for reversible unfolding of sensory rhodopsin II (pSRII), a retinal-binding photophobic receptor from Natronomonas pharaonis. pSRII is difficult to denature, and only SDS can dislodge the retinal chromophore without rapid aggregation. Even in 30% SDS (0.998 $\mathit{\Chi}_{SDS}$), pSRII retains the equivalent of six out of seven transmembrane helices, while the retinal binding pocket is disrupted, with transmembrane residues becoming more solvent-exposed. Folding of pSRII from an SDS-denatured state harbouring a covalently-bound retinal chromophore shows deviations from an apparent two-state behaviour. SDS denaturation to form the sensory opsin apo-protein is reversible. This chapter establishes pSRII as a new model protein which is suitable for membrane protein folding studies and has a unique folding mechanism that differs from those of bacteriorhodopsin and bovine rhodopsin. In Chapter 3, SDS-denatured pSRII, acid-denatured pSRII and sensory opsin obtained by hydroxylamine-mediated bleaching of pSRII were characterised by solution state NMR. 1D $^1$H and $^{19}$F NMR were first used to characterise global changes in backbone amide protons and tryptophan side-chains. Residue-specific changes in backbone amide chemical shifts and peak intensities in 2D [$^1$H,$^{15}$N]-correlation spectra were analysed. While only small changes in the chemical environment of backbone amides were detected, changes in backbone amide dynamics were identified as an important feature of SDS- and acid-denatured pSRII and sensory opsin. $^{15}$N relaxation experiments were performed to study the backbone amide dynamics of SDS-denatured pSRII, reflecting motions on different timescales, including fast fluctuations of NH bond vectors on the ps-ns timescale and the lack of exchange contributions on the µs timescale. These studies shed insight on differences in the unfolding pathways under different denaturing conditions and the crucial role of the retinal chromophore in governing the structural integrity and dynamics of the pSRII helical bundle. Hydrogen bonds play fundamental roles in stabilising protein secondary and tertiary structure, and regulating protein function. Successful detection of hydrogen bonds in denatured states and during protein folding would contribute towards our understanding on the unfolding and folding pathways of the protein. Previous studies have demonstrated residue-specific detection of stable and transient hydrogen bonds in small globular proteins by measuring $^1{\it J}_{NH}$ scalar coupling constants using NMR. In Chapter 4, different methods for measuring $^1{\it J}_{NH}$ scalar coupling were explored using RalA, a small GTPase with a mixed alpha/beta fold, as proof-of-concept. Detection of hydrogen bonds was then attempted with OmpX, a beta-barrel membrane protein, both in its folded state in DPC micelles and in the urea-denatured state. While $^1{\it J}_{NH}$ measurement holds promise for studying hydrogen bond formation, further optimisation of NMR experiments and utilisation of perdeuterated samples are required to improve the precision of such measurements in large detergent-membrane protein complexes. Naturally occurring split inteins can mediate spontaneous trans-splicing both in vivo and in vitro. Previous studies have demonstrated successful assembly of proteorhodopsin from two separate fragments consisting of helices A-B and helices C-G via a splicing site in the BC loop. To complement the in vitro unfolding/folding studies, pSRII assembly in vivo was attempted by introducing a splicing site in the loop region of the beta-hairpin constituting the BC loop of pSRII. The expression conditions for the N- and C-terminal pSRII-intein segments were optimised, and the two segments co-expressed. However, the native chromophore was not observed. Further optimisation is required for successful in vivo trans-splicing of pSRII and application of this approach towards understanding the roles of helices and loops in the folding of pSRII.

Our society changed, but the urban water and sanitation system of today is roughly the same as it was 100 years ago. The system is designed for, developed from and sustained by human activities, and has since its introduction affected household patterns of routine activities. The urban water and sanitation system is now being criticised for not being sustainable due to excessive material, energy and chemical use, and failure to recycle and reuse resources. Altering household practices is perceived as one important step towards improved sustainability. In this study, two changes in water and sanitation arrangements at the household level are analysed: individual meters for volumetric billing of hot and cold water, and dry toilets with separate collection of urine and faeces. These arrangements increase system transparency, and their proponents believe that the arrangements enhance resource recycling and/or rsource savings. However, success in this regard can only be achieved if accompanied by appropriate household routines. The extent to which such appropriate routines come about and why (not) is the focus of attention in this study; the aim is to describe and analyse the interaction between householder routines and changes in water and sanitation arrangements. This study takes as its starting point household everyday life. A methodological combination of time-diaries, interviews, physical measurements and simple observations is developed and implemented in two cases; the housing area Ringdansen with flats (volumetric billing) and the collective Gebers based on an ecological way of life (dry toilets). The theoretical approach is developed from time-geography and culture analysis. The methodological and theoretical approaches have proven useful and can be developed further. Household responded differently to the volumetric billing in Ringdansen, but in general, no sweeping routine changes took place in the households. A comparison of average total water usage per household (at an aggregated level) between the two cases, showed no significant difference. Water-use routines are also similar in the two areas, even though variations appear between households. There seems to be a socio-culturally defined lower limit for water use, regarded as necessary for maintaining sufficient standards of cleanliness and comfort, irrespective of the influence of ecological or economic incentives. Differences in household composition, built-in technical arrangements and existence of a garden (Gebers) explain the differences in hot and cold water usage between the two areas. The dry toilet was shown to have a decisive impact on toilet disposal routines; only biodegradable waste products are thrown into it and the cleaning agents are environmentally friendly toilet disposal routines that reach beyond the 'good' routines evolving from environmental concern. The relationship between changes in water and sanitation arrangements and householder routines may be expressed as follows: an extensive change in arrangements, either technical/physical, organisational and/or economical, results in more radical routine changes, and more so if combined. However, the improvement as regard ecological sustainability is conditional on what is socio-culturally accepted - social sustainability.

This thesis assesses the speed of adaptation and adoption of computing systems from an adult first-time user perspective in South Africa, with the aim of determining if it could ultimately lead to the reduction of the existing digital gap. As is evident from the social, educational, and economical gap for some observers, the reality of the existence of the digital gap in South Africa is undeniable. Constant non-targeted progress is made toward addressing imbalances, which seem to be more visible as the number of constant and permanent users is visibly increasing. These observed phenomena are mostly noticed amongst urban, educated, younger, middle-class citizens. The forgotten “missing middle” are left to fend for themselves. These are people who are still outside the digital drive the world is experiencing based on their schooling grade, geographical location, income level, and age. They were not in school when computer literacy was introduced, and they were too poor to teach themselves how to use a computer, too remote to observe the digital drive, and too old to learn from their peers. As citizens, their welfare matters, and when assessing the penetration of ICT in the country, their numbers also matter. One cannot ignore their presence and the difficulties and frustration that they experience when coming into contact with a computing system for the first time. The researcher is of the view that the presence of a computing system may not simply translate to the closure of the digital gap. In other words, people may gain access to a computer, but without computing usability skills or Internet connectivity it may not add value to their daily activities. Closing the digital gap in South Africa can be seen as political propaganda, but the reality is, how do we measure and assess it? It comes down to users, and in this particular case, attention is turned to the “missing middle”, here referred to as the adult first-time user. This is simply someone who is over the age of 18 years, lives in a rural community in South Africa, never completed school, and is using a computer for the first time. The researcher used a handheld tablet system as a tool to assess the participants’ adequacy in terms of the rate at which they complete tasks by developing mathematical equations which were placed together within an assessment metric that was later used to determine user proficiency, as well as their adaptation and user experience in order to determine if the participant can later adopt the device and take advantage of it. By so doing, the metric will comprise variables such as the user movement time, task completion success rate, task completion speed, user satisfaction, user reaction time, user completion rate per activity, time-based efficiency, and the assessment of the level of frustration any adult first-time user may experience while interacting with the system for the first time. The term “digital gap” may not be new to the ICT sphere, but no one has taken the step towards assessing it. The digital gap is no longer the absence of computing systems in many communities but rather the presence of inadequate user experience, which has not been properly measured and documented. The user experience metric (UXM) that was developed in this study provided the researcher with the opportunity to reassess the issue of systems adaptation, adoption, and usability by adult first-time users. This research is particularly driven by sound interaction design principles, user adaptation, and usability and user experience / Ph. D. (Information Systems) / School of Computing

Aim of the final thesis is to create loadbearing prefabricated structure of building, which serve like office building and area for car-showroom, and creating static assessment of main supporting parts. For those parts will make drawing documentation of reinforcement and shapes. Computational 3D model for evaluation of internal forces is realized in Dlubal RFEM 5.07 software. For better check and comparison were create 2D spatial bar models of selected frames.

The aim of the diploma thesis is to design particular vertical and horizontal elements of the prefabricated gym hall. The supporting structure of the gym is formed by means of the column system with the use of the roof preloaded trusses. The entrance part of the building is designed as a column system using load-bearing beams and prefabricated ceiling sections. Overall, the structure of the building consists of columns, footings, foundation beams, reinforcing beams, prefabricated components which function as a ceiling structure, components functioning as a grandstand, a load - bearing beams a preloaded roof trusses V1. The diploma thesis designs particular supporting elements of the construction together with the construction of a grandstand.

The Master’s thesis Office building is compiled in the form of project documentation witch comprises all the requisites required by current regulations. The designed building is placed on the sites numbered 2589/1 in Litomerice. This is a new building withoutbasement with four floors. The house is rectangular in plan, built of precast reinforced concrete frame system with infill masonry and roofing flat roof monotube roofing.