The objective of this research is to simulate crashworthiness for Out-of-Position (OOP) occupants incorporating a 50th percentile Hybrid III dummy and a side curtain airbag in a 1996 Dodge Neon under side impact scenarios. Two different methods of airbag techniques namely, the uniform pressure (UP) and the smooth particle hydrodynamics (SPH) were compared. This study revealed that there is minimal difference between UP and SPH methods when the dummy’s head impacts the airbag after it has fully inflated. However, when the dummy’s head impacts the airbag during the inflation process, the modeling of the airbag gas dynamics becomes critical in predicting the dummy response. The SPH method, which models the gas dynamics in the airbag, causes the airbag to unroll more uniformly. Depending on the timing of the dummy’s head impact with the airbag these differences in inflation can produce significant differences in dummy head accelerations.

Phenotypic plasticity and developmental instability in leaf traits are common in oak species but the role of environmental factors is not well understood. To decipher possible correlations between different leaf traits and effects of the position of leaves within the tree canopy, we quantified the plasticity of three leaf traits of 30 trees of Quercus alba L., Quercus palustris Muench and Quercus velutina Lam. We hypothesized that trees could modify the shape of their leaves for better adaptation to the variable microclimate within the canopy. Our results demonstrated that the south and north outer leaves were significantly smaller, more lobed and denser than those situated in the inner canopy. The order of leaves on the branch accounted for the plasticity of leaf traits in Q. alba only. Plasticity of lobing in Q. alba and Q. velutina depended on the height of the trees. We detected fluctuating asymmetry (FA) in all three species, but the source of variation depended on branch position in Q. velutina only. FA was more pronounced in north-facing leaves. Plasticity of the leaf traits ranged from small to medium. Plasticity of leaf area and leaf mass per area (LMA) depended on the branch position. However, the plasticity of lobation was not affected by the location of a branch within the tree canopy. Quercus alba and Q. palustris had similar plastic responses but the plasticity of Q. velutina was significantly smaller. We concluded that individual plants detect and cope with environmental stress through vegetative organ modification.

Investigation on second-position clitic phenomena has steadily increased since Wackernagel’s (1892) observations. Researchers have applied contemporary clitic typology to various Semitic languages though Syriac has received little attention. This thesis identifies a group of Syriac rhetorical particles and describes their categorization as clitics, versus words or affixes. It establishes each of the Syriac particles as second-position clitics and provides evidence of this conclusion from a state-of-the-art digitized corpus of Syriac literature. Extending previous Syriac analyses, this thesis describes the nature of attachment of these second-position clitics as enclisis to either the first word or the first constituent/phrase of their domain. This variable clitic attachment behavior has been previously attested only in three other unrelated languages: Serbo-Croatian, Luiseño and Ngiyambaa. I discuss the analysis and application of these discoveries and their implications for future Syriac and linguistic research.

<p> The interrelationship of force, surface elecrograms (EMG) and joint position for static voluntary contractions of Quadriceps Femoris muscle group in man were investigated before and during partial curarization induced by d-tubocurarine. </p> <p> Four normal male volunteers were studied. Each performed a series of brief isometric contractions (by extension of the lower leg against resistance) at different levels of force and at three knee-joint positions while lying in the supine position. All series were repeated for both a normal state and a partially paralyzed state under the :influence of curare. Torque generated about the knee-joint was measured with a Cybex isokinetic system and the nyoelectric activity of three quadriceps muscles was monitored using bipolar surface electrodes. </p> <p> Traditional parameters of nyoelectric activity (mean-rectified-EMG [MRE], and root-mean-squared-DG [RMSE]) were calculated using a minicomputer (PDPll/34), which had also acquired and processed the data. In addition, EMG power spectra were computed by Fast Fourier Transform techniques in an attempt to provide further insight into the effects of curare on human muscle. </p> <p> In order to provide a basis for comparison of the normal state with the parially curarized state, force-EMG relationships were computed for each subject, muscle, knee-joint angle, and condition. Statistical methods (three-way ANOVA' s) were then employed to both quantify any differences that may have existed between the two states and to identify sources of differences within each state. A similar statistically- based comparison of the power spectra was undertaken utilizing several indices that described the shape of the spectra. A general description of the activities of the quadriceps femoris muscles followed after collating all the information that the surface DIG provided in conjunction with the external forces measured. </p> <p> It was concluded that curare did not have any significant effects on the force-EMG relationship. There appeared to be a slight effect of curare on the power spectra however, with a general trend of increasing lower frequency power. The greatest source of variation of force-EMG relationships and power spectra was attributed to the position of the knee-joint. </p> / Thesis / Master of Engineering (MEngr)

<p> The study concerns how human observers judge the relative position of successively presented points of light in an otherwise dark field. In particular, the possible role of involuntary head movements and binocular/monocular viewing conditions is considered. The data are analysed in terms of a mathematical model of the perceptual process which deals with short term memory for visual position. Contrary to previous suggestions in the literature, neither of the viewing variables proved to have a significant effect. In addition, the results provide a strong test of the theoretical model which appears to confirm the model's validity. The results of this study are shown to suggest a particular direction for future experimentation.</p> / Thesis / Master of Arts (MA)

Syftet med denna studie är att bidra med kunskap kring hur beteenden möjliggörs och/eller begränsas utifrån klassrummets utformning och elevers placering. I fokus för studien står frågor om inlärning och arbetsro. Studien utgår från Sweller’s kognitiva belastningsteori. I studien används metoden observation för att samla in data. Studien omfattar två parallellklasser i årskurs tre för en skola belägen i en kranskommun till en större stad. Dessa klasser har observerats under sammanlagt tolv lektionstillfällen.  Genom att använda kognitiv belastningsteori kan studiens resultat visa att teorin används som en pedagogisk åtgärd inom klassrummets utformning och elevplacering. Detta för att öka engagemang, skapa möjligheter för interaktion, främja inlärning och skapa en god arbetsro som möjliggör ett självständigt arbete. Resultatet visar att elevers placering och klassrummets utformning har en betydande roll för hur olika beteenden möjliggörs/begränsas med koppling till inlärning och arbetsro, vilket är frågor som står för studiens fokus. Resultatet visar vidare att taltid, time on task och engagemang förekommer oftast i den främre raden av klassrummet. Dessa beteenden förekommer minst ofta i den mittre raden och mest sällan i den bakre raden. Detta resultat är i likhet med vad tidigare forskningsstudier visar att den främre raden uppvisar hög interaktion, i mittenraden är detta lägre interaktion och lägst i bakre raden. Däremot visar studien att interaktion mellan elev och elev har en ojämn uppdelning i de olika raderna och klasserna.

During the thesis work, a feasibility study of the BPPM error-correction protocol is performed. The beyond pulse position modulation (BPPM) protocol was invented at Ericsson AB and describes a modulation encoding using vertically and horizontally polarized single photons for optical transmission and error-correction. The thesis work is a mixture of both experimental laboratory work and theoretical software simulations which are intended to mimic actual optical fiber transmission. One aspect of the project work involves designing the optical communication system which is used to evaluate the probabilities of transmission errors in the form of false detections and losses of light. During the project work, the BPPM protocol is implemented and used for software simulated error generation and correction. With the available laboratory setup used as the point of reference, error-correction using the BPPM protocol is studied using pulses of light containing more than one photon. The results show that the BPPM protocol can be used to recover some of the information that is lost during optical fiber transmission. Factors such as the size of the codewords, the number of photons per pulse and detection efficiency of the utilized single photon detector (SPD) have a significant impact on the success of the transmission.

Rotor position estimation of switched reluctance machines (SRMs) is the main focus of this work. Rotor position sensors are a crucial component of optimal motor controls. Fail-safe operation and system cost reduction have been extensively researched and implemented in industry and academia. Position sensorless control on switched reluctance machines introduces a new challenge due to high nonlinearity under different operating conditions. A comprehensive review of SRM analytical modeling is presented, detailing each technique's main advantages and drawbacks. A least square-based analytical model (LSA) is proposed, which provides a simpler implementation and improved performance when compared to the methods commonly used in the literature. A literature review of rotor position sensor technology, position sensor fail modes, and position sensorless control is presented, providing a good roadmap of potential development and current limitations of the current technology. A wide speed range sensorless control is usually required when considering fail-safe techniques, fail detection methods, and low-cost applications. A unified nonlinear optimization-based sensorless control is proposed in this thesis, where a single method is used for startup, low and high speeds, with reduced memory allocation where a look-up table is not required, optimal transient response due to the elimination of a phase-locked-loop (PLL), and robustness against parameter variation. The method is validated at a wide speed range and torque conditions, thus showing the performance against conventional methods. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

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