A mobile robotic platform for Autonomous Site Selection and Preparation (ASSP) was developed for an analogue deployment to Mauna Kea, Hawai‘i. A team of rovers performed an autonomous Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) survey and constructed a level landing pad. They used interchangeable payloads that allowed the GPR and blade to be easily exchanged. Autonomy was accomplished by integrating the individual hardware devices with software based on the ArgoSoft framework previously developed at UTIAS. The rovers were controlled by an on-board netbook. The successes and failures of the devices and software modules are evaluated within. Recommendations are presented to address problems discovered during the deployment and to guide future research on the platform.

A mobile robotic platform for Autonomous Site Selection and Preparation (ASSP) was developed for an analogue deployment to Mauna Kea, Hawai‘i. A team of rovers performed an autonomous Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) survey and constructed a level landing pad. They used interchangeable payloads that allowed the GPR and blade to be easily exchanged. Autonomy was accomplished by integrating the individual hardware devices with software based on the ArgoSoft framework previously developed at UTIAS. The rovers were controlled by an on-board netbook. The successes and failures of the devices and software modules are evaluated within. Recommendations are presented to address problems discovered during the deployment and to guide future research on the platform.

One of the serious and growing potential problems in most large urban areas is the shortage of land for waste disposal. Although there are some efforts to reduce and recover the waste, disposal in landfills is still the most common method for waste destination. An inappropriate landfill site may have negative environmental, economic and ecological impacts. Therefore, it should be selected carefully by considering both regulations and constraints on other sources. In this study, candidate sites for an appropriate landfill area in the vicinity of Ankara are determined by using the integration of Geographic Information Systems and Multicriteria Decision Analysis. For this purpose, sixteen input map layers including topography, settlements (urban centers and villages), roads (Highway E90 and village roads), railways, airport, wetlands, infrastructures (pipelines and power lines), slope, geology, land use, floodplains, aquifers and surface water are prepared and two different MCDA methods (Simple Additive Weighting and Analytic Hierarchy Process) are implemented in GIS environment. Comparison of the maps produced by these two different methods shows that both methods yield conformable results. Field checks also confirm that the candidate sites agree well with the selected criteria.

This study introduces an approach that seeks a possible relationship between settlement locations, water resources and rock types. The method is applied to &Ccedil / ankiri province (central-north Anatolia) which covers approximately an area of 8380 km2. Three main data sets used in this study. These are settlement, water and rock type data.The methodology of the study is composed of five steps. The first step is the conversion of all water data into a standardized point data. Total number of point data for water is 23911 after this step. The second step is to find the distances between water resources and settlements. In the third step the densities of water resources and settlements are derived and then tested for the rock types in particular areas. The fourth step is the overlay analysis in which all three data sets are combined to find preferred and avoided regions of settlements in relation to water resources and rock types. In the last step all analyses are integrated to extract information on effect of two parameters on the selection of a site. The main conclusions derived from the analysis are that: a) the mean and median distances between settlements and water resources are, 285 m and 163 m respectively, b) there is a strong relationship between water resources and settlement area, c) old clastics is the mostly preferred rock type whereas the carbonate rocks are mostly avoided.

Many factors affect the productivity of songbirds. Which vegetation types the birds inhabit, nest-site characteristics, and adult behavior at the nest may affect predation and parasitism frequencies, fecundity, and nest survival and fledgling survival. All of these metrics determine reproductive success of individuals and may influence population persistence, especially for threatened and endangered species. My research investigated factors that affected these metrics for endangered black-capped vireos (Vireo atricapilla). Shrubland is considered high quality vireo habitat, with woodland vegetation types considered marginal. I located and monitored nests, conducted nest behavior observations, recorded behavior and predation at nests using video cameras, and resighted fledglings in shrubland, oak-juniper woodland, and deciduous woodland during the 2008–2010 breeding seasons. I monitored 302 black-capped vireo nests in 259 territories and resighted 350 fledglings with unique color combinations. Apparent nest success, nest survival, success of first nest attempts, parasitism and predation frequency, and fecundity did not differ statistically among vegetation types. Parasitism frequency was nearly twice as high in shrubland (22 percent) than in either woodland (12 percent in each) and varied by year. Nest-site characteristics differed among vegetation types, but nest survival was affected only by nest height and year; nests placed higher from the ground and nest attempts in 2008 and 2009 had lower survival. Fledgling survival was not affected by vegetation type or proximity of the nest to oak-juniper woodland. Nest behavior was not affected by vegetation characteristics, though nest attentiveness during incubation increased as average cover from 0 to 2 m increased. Females spent 80 percent more time on nests during incubation and 250 percent more time on nests during the nestling stage than males, but visitation was similar for each sex. Overall, the probability of nest success improved as male participation increased. My results emphasize the importance of male participation in determining the outcome of nests for species exhibiting bi-parental care. Furthermore, woodland habitats previously considered marginal may be good quality habitat in areas with large populations of black-capped vireos. Recognizing woodlands as non-typical, yet still suitable, habitat will allow managers to incorporate these vegetation types into management plans and recommendations for landowner conservation incentive programs.

Os ensaios clínicos ocorrem cada vez mais em uma escala global e as pesquisas patrocinadas vem mudando para as regiões emergentes. A condução desses estudos traz benefícios para centros de pesquisa, pacientes e para o país como um todo. No entanto, a alocação de ensaios clínicos por companhias farmacêuticas multinacionais é um processo complexo determinado por múltiplos fatores e o conhecimento de quais fatores as companhias farmacêuticas valorizam mais ao alocar ensaios clínicos é escasso. Assim, compreender melhor esse processo é essencial para governos e centros de pesquisa que desejam atrair mais ensaios clínicos patrocinados por companhias farmacêuticas multinacionais. O objetivo deste trabalho é apresentar os atributos de centros de pesquisa clínica necessários para melhorar a captação de estudos clínicos patrocinados. Para identificar os fatores considerados determinantes da seleção de centros de pesquisa por patrocinadores e organizações representativas de pesquisa clínica foi desenvolvido um estudo descritivo-exploratório por meio da revisão da literatura através de buscas em bases de dados. As buscas resultaram na seleção de 16 materiais bibliográficos que abordaram a questão seleção de centros de pesquisa. Os fatores considerados mais críticos para a seleção foram disponibilidade de população alvo e capacidade de recrutamento, tempo de start-up e interesse e motivação da equipe do centro. Além disso, a infraestrutura é considerada um pré-requisito que pode inviabilizar a seleção e a qualidade de dados também é muito valorizada. Os custos diretos de execução do ensaio não foram considerados muito importantes, ao contrário dos custos indiretos. A partir do conhecimento dos pré-requisitos e dos fatores determinantes da seleção de um centro para um ensaio clínico multicêntrico patrocinado por companhias farmacêuticas, a Empresa Brasileira de Serviços Hospitalares poderá promover e direcionar os esforços para organizar uma rede de centros de pesquisa que pode ser muito atrativa. / Clinical trials are increasingly occurring on a global scale and sponsored research has been shifting to emerging regions. Conducting these studies brings benefits to research centers, patients, and the country as a whole. However, the allocation of clinical trials by multinational pharmaceutical companies is a complex process determined by multiple factors and the knowledge of what factors pharmaceutical companies value most when allocating clinical trials is scarce. So, better understanding this process is essential for governments and research centers wishing to attract more clinical trials sponsored by multinational pharmaceutical companies. The objective of this work is to present the attributes of clinical research centers necessary to improve the capture of sponsored clinical studies. To identify the factors considered as determinants of the selection of research centers by sponsors and clinical research organizations, a descriptive-exploratory study was developed through the review of the literature through searches in databases. The search resulted in the selection of 16 bibliographic materials that addressed the issue of selection of research centers. The factors considered most critical for center selection were target population availability and recruiting capacity, start-up time, and interest and motivation of the center staff. In addition, infrastructure is considered a prerequisite that can make selection unfeasible and data quality is also highly valued. The direct costs of running the trial were not considered very important, as opposed to indirect costs. From the knowledge of the prerequisites and determinants of the selection of a center for a multi-center clinical trial sponsored by pharmaceutical companies, the Empresa Brasileira de Serviços Hospitalares can promote and direct efforts to organize a network of research centers that can be very attractive.

The West Coast of Vancouver Island (WCVI), with an average gross wave energy flux of 40-50 kW/m at the continental shelf, possesses one of the most energetic wave climates in the world and has the potential to meet the electric demands of the utility grid on Vancouver Island and numerous coastal remote communities. However, the development of wave energy sites has the potential to interrupt other existing marine activities and wave energy operations could damage the sensitive marine ecosystems. The objective of this thesis is to identify strategically important sites for wave energy – sites that have great economic potential in an energy generation context yet have minimal impacts on existing economic uses and minimal ecological impacts. Wave energy technology agnostic frequency and directional filters were developed based on a unionized representation of Wave Energy Converter (WEC) performance generated by combining four types of WEC performance characteristics. These two filters improved the quantification of extractable wave resources by accounting for the technological limits of wave frequencies and directions. Subsequently, a detailed economic evaluation was developed to estimate the influence of the distance to the coastline and transmission network, electricity market sizes, and a technology agnostic description of WEC farm physical layout on the selection of wave energy sites. The technology-agnostic description of WEC farm physical layouts was designed based on the cable properties, cable termination/distribution, and cable protection used in real-world projects. The WEC farm capacities are constrained by the transmission cable to minimize the cost for developing wave energy sites. Lastly, a multi-criteria analysis, which includes four stakeholder perspective scenarios, was developed to identify the strategically important sites for future wave energy development along the WCVI. A total of 16 regions, covering an area of 392 km2 and having an average of 35.68 kW/m wave energy flux, were identified as strategically important sites for wave farms. These regions show the potential to meet the electric demand of Vancouver Island, and they are worth further investigated when selecting a location for future wave energy development. / Graduate

Mink (Mustela vison) are an important species because they occur at a high trophic level, they are considered a potential indicator species for environmental contaminants, and they are a popular target species among fur trappers. Despite the importance of mink, their ecology in North America is not well understood. I sampled 59 of 60 Hudson River tributaries with 2 scent stations randomly established along each tributary for 2 10-day monitoring periods to evaluate presence/absence of mink via remote camera photographs and tracks. When sampling was completed, I quantified microhabitat characteristics at 84 randomly selected scent stations. Statistical tests for microhabitat did not indicate a difference among variables selected for analysis between scent stations where mink visits were detected and those where mink visits were not detected. I also analyzed all scent stations for macrohabitat characteristics related to human disturbance, using 150 m circular buffers in ArcGIS 9.2. Although the percent cover of human disturbance was 7.0% greater at scent stations where mink were not detected, the difference was not significant and may therefore indicate that mink may have a tolerance for moderate human disturbances. I also evaluated the performances of 2 types of remote cameras (Moultrie Game Cameras: MGC I–40 and MGC 200) in detecting mink visits at scent stations as well as comparing remote camera detections of mink visits with observations of tracks. The MGC I–40 cameras detected a significantly greater number of mink visits (n = 50) compared to the MGC 200 cameras (n = 3). Detection of mink at scent stations was also significantly greater using the remote cameras compared with observations of mink tracks. Mink were also live–trapped and implanted with subcutaneous radiotransmitters. There were 13 mink captures (0.31 mink/100 trap–nights) with radiotransmitters being implanted in 12 (11 males and 1 female) mink. Overall 166 den sites were located with a mean of 15.9 den sites/mink. Microhabitat analysis of 33 used den sites and 33 unused potentially available den sites (UPADs) indicated that shoreline cover was significantly greater at used den sites. Macrohabitat analysis using 150 m circular buffers surrounding 76 used den sites and 76 unused potentially available sites (UPASs) indicated that human disturbance was 3.3% greater at the UPASs than at used den sites, but this difference was not significant. This may further suggest that mink may have a tolerance for moderate human disturbances. Den site structures most often used by mink included brushpiles or logjams (21.1%) and bank burrows (17.5%). The use of den site structures appeared to be largely based on shoreline cover and availability. The mean linear home range of male mink was 6.6 km (SE = 0.6, range 3.2 – 8.4 km), which was similar to the female's home range of 6.5 km. Ten mink home ranges encompassed portions of both the Hudson River and its tributaries accounting for a mean of 2.8 and 4.4 km, respectively. Mean daily movement distances of mink along shorelines was 659 m (SE = 42, range 0 – 3,087 m) and was significantly greater along tributaries than along the Hudson River.

The purpose of this research is to generate the most accurate model possible for predicting locations most suitable for new wind energy development using a case study of Iowa. With the United States poised for significant growth in electricity generation from wind and other renewable resources, this research can help developers, transmission planners, landowners, as well as academics in predicting optimal locations for development. Iowa currently has the second greatest installed wind energy capacity and highest percentage of energy generated from wind of all the states, and has excellent resources and central location for a high level of continued development. This research employs a variety of methods including traditional constraint mapping techniques, logistic regression, and a hybrid of both approaches in attempting to produce the best predictive model possible. The best performing logistic regression model with 11 variables correctly predicts 90.1% of overall observations. A variety of output maps are produced and analyzed, and many suggestions for future research in this area are presented.

Os ensaios clínicos ocorrem cada vez mais em uma escala global e as pesquisas patrocinadas vem mudando para as regiões emergentes. A condução desses estudos traz benefícios para centros de pesquisa, pacientes e para o país como um todo. No entanto, a alocação de ensaios clínicos por companhias farmacêuticas multinacionais é um processo complexo determinado por múltiplos fatores e o conhecimento de quais fatores as companhias farmacêuticas valorizam mais ao alocar ensaios clínicos é escasso. Assim, compreender melhor esse processo é essencial para governos e centros de pesquisa que desejam atrair mais ensaios clínicos patrocinados por companhias farmacêuticas multinacionais. O objetivo deste trabalho é apresentar os atributos de centros de pesquisa clínica necessários para melhorar a captação de estudos clínicos patrocinados. Para identificar os fatores considerados determinantes da seleção de centros de pesquisa por patrocinadores e organizações representativas de pesquisa clínica foi desenvolvido um estudo descritivo-exploratório por meio da revisão da literatura através de buscas em bases de dados. As buscas resultaram na seleção de 16 materiais bibliográficos que abordaram a questão seleção de centros de pesquisa. Os fatores considerados mais críticos para a seleção foram disponibilidade de população alvo e capacidade de recrutamento, tempo de start-up e interesse e motivação da equipe do centro. Além disso, a infraestrutura é considerada um pré-requisito que pode inviabilizar a seleção e a qualidade de dados também é muito valorizada. Os custos diretos de execução do ensaio não foram considerados muito importantes, ao contrário dos custos indiretos. A partir do conhecimento dos pré-requisitos e dos fatores determinantes da seleção de um centro para um ensaio clínico multicêntrico patrocinado por companhias farmacêuticas, a Empresa Brasileira de Serviços Hospitalares poderá promover e direcionar os esforços para organizar uma rede de centros de pesquisa que pode ser muito atrativa. / Clinical trials are increasingly occurring on a global scale and sponsored research has been shifting to emerging regions. Conducting these studies brings benefits to research centers, patients, and the country as a whole. However, the allocation of clinical trials by multinational pharmaceutical companies is a complex process determined by multiple factors and the knowledge of what factors pharmaceutical companies value most when allocating clinical trials is scarce. So, better understanding this process is essential for governments and research centers wishing to attract more clinical trials sponsored by multinational pharmaceutical companies. The objective of this work is to present the attributes of clinical research centers necessary to improve the capture of sponsored clinical studies. To identify the factors considered as determinants of the selection of research centers by sponsors and clinical research organizations, a descriptive-exploratory study was developed through the review of the literature through searches in databases. The search resulted in the selection of 16 bibliographic materials that addressed the issue of selection of research centers. The factors considered most critical for center selection were target population availability and recruiting capacity, start-up time, and interest and motivation of the center staff. In addition, infrastructure is considered a prerequisite that can make selection unfeasible and data quality is also highly valued. The direct costs of running the trial were not considered very important, as opposed to indirect costs. From the knowledge of the prerequisites and determinants of the selection of a center for a multi-center clinical trial sponsored by pharmaceutical companies, the Empresa Brasileira de Serviços Hospitalares can promote and direct efforts to organize a network of research centers that can be very attractive.