This dissertation documents a doctoral endeavor to explore both the potential of theatre as a means to enable students to practice vulnerability and the potential curricular impact of such a practice, using an in-depth narrative study of six theatre and drama for the young specialists. The researcher attempts to gain understanding and create a discourse on the vulnerability of the every-student as a curricular concern as well as make a connection to the potential of theatre as a means to practice navigating vulnerability. This not only involves a reconsideration of the term vulnerability to be seen as a path to strength, but also a reconsideration of educator responsibilities. The researcher sought stories of the everyday vulnerabilities that a student might encounter during school and specifically did not seek stories of vulnerabilities from extreme or exceptional traumatic events. While this study does not produce specific curriculum planning, it yields a better understanding of the concept of vulnerability, including the acknowledgment that practicing navigating vulnerability and practicing vulnerability can be accepted as useful terminology in educational pursuits. A key component of the research is the development of a Métissage Circle Theatre Script entitled “To Practice Vulnerability?” as a method of data analysis and research dissemination. It is the researcher’s intent that this script be available for readings by non-actors at school board meetings, parent-teacher meetings, teacher organizations, departments of education, theatre and drama organizations, theatre artist groups, and educational policy decision-makers. The script gently invites readers to begin to explore, ask questions, and discuss the educational possibilities, and provides a low-risk opportunity to navigate the vulnerability experienced when simply encountering the very subject of our own vulnerability. / Graduate / 0727 / 0465 / cclement@uvic.ca

Le but de cette étude exploratoire est de déterminer si le test de concordance de script est un instrument capable de mesurer le raisonnement clinique d’étudiantes en formation et s’il peut déceler des différences entre le raisonnement clinique des novices et des expertes de la profession. Un TCS adapté au domaine des sciences infirmières et portant sur des champs particuliers de la pédiatrie a été administré à des candidates revendiquant différents niveaux d’expérience : des expertes du domaine (n=15), des infirmières (n=40) et des étudiantes de troisième année de formation (n=30). D’une durée de 20 minutes, le test a été pratiqué en ligne; il comptait 15 scénarios et 45 items au total. Les scores des étudiantes étaient significativement inférieurs aux scores des infirmières et des expertes. Le TCS est un instrument fiable et utile lorsqu’il s’agit de déterminer, en termes de raisonnement clinique, une différence de niveau entre la novice et l’experte.

Texture analysis is an important problem in machine vision, with applications in many fields including medical imaging, remote sensing (SAR), automated flaw detection in various products, and document analysis to name but a few. Over the last four decades many techniques for the analysis of textured images have been proposed in the literature for the purposes of classification, segmentation, synthesis and compression. Such approaches include analysis the properties of individual texture elements, using statistical features obtained from the grey-level values of the image itself, random field models, and multichannel filtering. The wavelet transform, a unified framework for the multiresolution decomposition of signals, falls into this final category, and allows a texture to be examined in a number of resolutions whilst maintaining spatial resolution. This thesis explores the use of the wavelet transform to the specific task of texture classification and proposes a number of improvements to existing techniques, both in the area of feature extraction and classifier design. By applying a nonlinear transform to the wavelet coefficients, a better characterisation can be obtained for many natural textures, leading to increased classification performance when using first and second order statistics of these coefficients as features. In the area of classifier design, a combination of an optimal discriminate function and a non-parametric Gaussian mixture model classifier is shown to experimentally outperform other classifier configurations. By modelling the relationships between neighbouring bands of the wavelet trans- form, more information regarding a texture can be obtained. Using such a representation, an efficient algorithm for the searching and retrieval of textured images from a database is proposed, as well as a novel set of features for texture classification. These features are experimentally shown to outperform features proposed in the literature, as well as provide increased robustness to small changes in scale. Determining the script and language of a printed document is an important task in the field of document processing. In the final part of this thesis, the use of texture analysis techniques to accomplish these tasks is investigated. Using maximum a posterior (MAP) adaptation, prior information regarding the nature of script images can be used to increase the accuracy of these methods. Novel techniques for estimating the skew of such documents, normalising text block prior to extraction of texture features and accurately classifying multiple fonts are also presented.

Monster Business is a feature film project comprising a horror-thriller feature screenplay and an accompanying exegesis. The screenplay is about a best-selling author who is behind on the delivery of the sequel to his money-spinning first novel and is made an offer by an enigmatic stranger to help rearrange his working environment to facilitate the rapid completion of the manuscript. Over the coming hours, then months, the author discovers just how far the stranger will go to complete the terms of this bizarre and brutal new contract. This accompanying exegesis examines a series of 'paratexts' (a logline, a one-pager and a treatment) that the screenplay has given rise to. The thesis argues that the role of the screenwriter does not end with the production of the core text--the screenplay. Instead, in order to support the development and/or the marketing of the script into a feature film, the screenwriter is an ongoing generator of supplemental documents or paratexts. The paper explores the status and function of paratexts (loglines, onepagers, treatments and explanatory development notes). It further argues that developmental paratexts are a necessary evil, providing a sifting or culling mechanism for producers and production executives, and that they are intended to guide a project toward being 'greenlit' but will more often have, at best, benign or, at worst, negative or destructive effects on its development. In this way, developmental paratexts, although ubiquitous and pro forma, are inherently problematic.

How can a playwright share authorial control with a group of actors when creating a new play script? How does the individual playwright address matters of genre, form, style and structure to create a unifying theme, while remaining true to the dramatic intention and aesthetics of the group? What impact will the collaborators have on a playwright's work? Will they help or hinder the writing process? This exegesis closely follows the creation of a new play, The Woods, in a process where the playwright intended to facilitate a collaborative process with the actors rather than act as sole author. Issues arising in this mode of working include the real meaning of sole authorship, aesthetic integrity and creative power balance. The analysis of these issues will have relevance for theatre practitioners working in collaborative contexts.

This thesis, comprised of a stage play and exegesis, asks whether the Mike Leigh Method, commonly used by Auteur directors could be adapted to benefit a playwright during the redrafting and development process. I seek to answer this question by examining differing methodologies of drama creation and charting my process as I work to redraft my character driven stage play Deceased Estate through the adaptation and application of the Mike Leigh Method. I contend that Leigh’s method affords a set of honed and proven guidelines that can help the playwright get to the heart of the character driven drama and offer an adapted method template that can be used and furthered by other Playwrights wishing to develop their work in this manner.

Magister Scientiae - MSc (Computer Science) / This thesis describes the development cycles of an authoring tool that generalises scenario creation for SignSupport. SignSupport is a mobile communication tool for Deaf people that currently runs on an Android smartphone. The authoring tool is computer-based software that helps a domain expert, with little or no programming skills, design and populate a limited domain conversation scenario between a Deaf person and a hearing person, e.g., when a Deaf patient collects medication at a hospital pharmacy or when a Deaf learner is taking a computer literacy course. SignSupport provides instructions to the Deaf person in signed language videos on a mobile device. The authoring tool enables the creation and population of such scenarios on a computer for subsequent 'playback' on a mobile device. The output of this authoring tool is an XML script, alongside a repository of media les that can be used to render the SignSupport mobile app on any platform. Our concern was to iteratively develop the user interface for the authoring tool, focusing on the domain experts who create the overall flow and content for a given scenario. We had four development iterations, where the rst three were evaluated for usability; for both pharmacy and ICDL course scenarios with purposive sampling. The fourth iteration focused on using the authoring tool to design an ICDL practise mobile app, recording the necessary SASL videos and using an XML parser to render the designs XML script into an Android app. The research conducted herein leveraged multiple approaches to content authoring and generalisation; and further that software generalisation can improve accessibility and a ordability for the ultimate end users. The thesis concludes with a summary of recommendations and lessons learnt.

Syftet med denna studie var att granska hur olika typer av teckensnitts läsbarhet på trycksaker påverkas av i vilken typ av ljuskälla de avkodas. Detta har undersökts genom att utföra en kvantitativ studie bestående av en förstudie följt av ett experiment. I experimentet undersöktes testpersonernas läsförmåga av olika typer av teckensnitt i olika typer av ljuskällor. Studien har berört teorier inom ämnena Ljuslära och ljuskällor, Ögats funktion och ljusuppfattning, Text och typografi samt Läsbarhet och lättläslighet. Studiens avgränsningar bestod av att de tre vanligaste teckensnittsklasserna seriff, sanseriff och script har undersökts i de vanligaste ljuskällorna i Sverige representerade av raka lysrör, LED-lampa och stearinljus. Förstudien bestod av att identifiera vilka ljuskällor och teckensnitt som skulle användas i studien tillsammans med att ta fram läsmaterial som användes under experimentet. Testdeltagarna bestod av personer i åldrarna 20–30 år som studerade på Linköpings Universitet. Experimentet bestod av att 24 testpersoner fick läsa texter i de olika teckensnitten och ljuskällorna som identifierades i förstudien. Data insamlad från experimentet analyserades genom att använda statistisk analys, med hjälp av verktyget ANOVA med ett kompletterande post-hoc-test, för att fastställa ett resultat. Resultatet av studien visade att det fanns en signifikant skillnad i läshastighet mellan läsmaterialets meningslängder, där de korta läsmeningarna lästes signifikant snabbare än mellanlånga och långa läsmeningar och mellan lästes snabbare än långa läsmeningar. En signifikant interaktion mellan teckensnittsklass och ljuskälla kunde också identifieras för teckensnittsklassen sanseriff. Interaktionen visade att sanseriff lästes snabbare i LED-lampa än i de andra ljuskällorna. Genom en enkät uttryckte även testpersonerna att de upplevde skillnader i läsning mellan de olika teckensnitten, ljuskällorna och kombinationerna mellan dessa faktorer. Slutsatsen av denna studie presenterade att ljuskällor i sig inte hade en signifikant påverkan på texts läsbarhet, men teckensnitt hade en tydlig påverkan på en texts läsbarhet. Studien visade även att kombinationen av teckensnitt och ljuskälla har en påverkan på testpersonernas läshastighet. Testpersonerna uttryckte att de upplevde att läsbarheten påverkades av ljuskällorna och teckensnitten mer än vad experimentets resultat visade. Det talar för att kombinationen av ljuskällor och teckensnitt har en större påverkan på läsarnas sensoriska uppfattning av textens lättläslighet än textens faktiska läsbarhet. För vidare studier rekommenderas det att undersöka hur stor effekt ögats synförmåga har på avkodandet av teckensnitt i olika typer av ljuskällor genom att öka antalet testpersoner och ta in närsynthet, långsynthet och ålderssynthet som faktorer. Större kontroll av ljuskällorna och användandet av ljusmätarutrustning rekommenderas också för tydligare granskning av ljuskällorna.

This study investigates the global stiffness of a timer frame structure under wind loading using the finite element method by creating parameterized script files. Of key interest was the accuracy of the global stiffness determined from an adaptive 3D beam model in comparison to a 2D beam model and, the stiffness of a 3D beam model when subjected to different types of bracing in the presence of internal bracing provided by a lift shaft structure. Investigation of contact forces on the surfaces between the fastener and the timber at the connection was carried out and a design check for the specified bolts shear capacity done with respect to Eurocode 5. A 3D adaptive connection was created for a 2D frame model and the stiffness of the structure was studied. A comparison of the maximum displacement of the structure in the x direction, under the same wind loading, spring stiffness and boundary conditions, with a 2D beam structure without the adaptive connection initially showed a difference in the displacement. This implied that the rotational stiffness in the beam model was greater than that of the adaptive connection created. Therefore after altering the rotational stiffness of the beam model to achieve similar displacement as in the adaptive model, the rotational stiffness of the created connection was found to be 33.4 · 106Nm. The study also determined the contact forces generated at the surfaces between the fasteners and the timber using the finite element method to integrate over the surfaces and calculate the forces. The results were generated using the History Output in the step module. The only disadvantage of acquiring the contact forces was that, the contact surface simulation caused larger run times for the model to complete the time step. For the adaptive model it took 18 hours to complete each step. Further investigation into the stiffness of a 3D frame structure was conducted. The model of the 3D structure was created by a parameterized script which makes it easy to change input variables such as number of internal walls, geometry in x-z-plane, number of storeys, cross-sectional dimensions, material properties number of diagonals and location of diagonals. A variety of models with different conditions was analyzed. This showed that stiffness has a major impact on the magnitude of reaction forces and displacements.

This thesis describes development of real-time reactive portal applications build on Meteor platform. The goal of this thesis is to describe different parts of the platform as a whole and to offer best practices to develop such applications. The theoretical part provides information covering Node.js server, MongoDB document database and their specific features. The beginning of the practical part focuses on the application design and its components implementation. The last chapter summarizes the outcome of this thesis and analyses advantages and disadvantages of Meteor platform over more traditional technology stack. The output and the main value is the Opticube application that is being used in retail. Another plus is the fact, that this thesis is the first to cover Meteor platform at the Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague.