Thesis (Laureatus in Technology ( Food))-- Cape Technikon, 1991 / This dissertation reports on a three prong approach to obtain new knowledge on the interdependent effects which buyers' specifications, peach crop attributes and sieve stack arrangement have on the masses of peach halves sorted into classes of average diameter. Applying statistical methods and using suitable application computer programs a computer-aided system was developed to improve on the manual selection of sieve diameters. It was concluded that size sorting peach halves for the purpose of mass classification is inaccurate and counter-productive. It is suggested that modern technology be employed to develop a method to determine peach half masses individually.

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Python Package Index (PyPI) is a repository that hosts all the packages ever developed for the Python community. It hosts thousands of packages from different developers and for the Python community, it is the primary source for downloading and installing packages. It also provides a simple web interface to search for these packages. A direct search on PyPI returns hundreds of packages that are not intuitively ordered, thus making it harder to find the right package. Developers consequently resort to mature search engines like Google, Bing or Yahoo which redirect them to the appropriate package homepage at PyPI. Hence, the first task of this thesis is to improve search results for python packages. Secondly, this thesis also attempts to develop a new search engine that allows Python developers to perform a code search targeting python modules. Currently, the existing search engines classify programming languages such that a developer must select a programming language from a list. As a result every time a developer performs a search operation, he or she has to choose Python out of a plethora of programming languages. This thesis seeks to offer a more reliable and dedicated search engine that caters specifically to the Python community and ensures a more efficient way to search for Python packages and modules. / A Thesis submitted to the Department of Computer Science in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science. / Fall Semester 2015. / November 13, 2015. / Python Code Search Engine, Python Module Search Engine, Python Package and Module Search Engine, Python Package Search Engine, Python Search Engine / Includes bibliographical references. / Piyush Kumar, Professor Directing Thesis; Sonia Haiduc, Committee Member; Margareta Ackerman, Committee Member.

The ability to detect small refractive index changes in analytes is of uttermost importance since these index changes can be directly correlated to the presence of small amounts of chemicals of interest within analytes. Photonic devices such as 1D PhC nanocavities are one of the interesting structures to be used as optical sensors due to their capability to integrate with CMOS technology. We present in this study, a simple optical technique of detection based on 1D PhC nanocavities that gives good sensitivity for various types of chemicals. The work reported in this thesis concerned with the designed, fabrication, and characterisation of 1D PhC nanocavity devices based on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) material. The objective of this work is to provide an optical wave-guided sensing technology using 1D PhC nanocavity devices in the wavelengths region around 1550 nm. Firstly, the PhC nanocavities were designed and modelled using 2D and 3D Finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) computations to provide insight behaviour of the resonator waveguides. The designated PhC nanocavity devices were carefully fabricated via combination of electron beam lithography (EBL) and the dry and wet etching technology. The nanocavity devices were realised using optimised fabrication process to ensure the sensing chips are reproducible and reliable. This is done by careful control at nanometre scale of fabrication process of the PhC nanocavity devices and the microfluidic chip. Then, the devices were paired with the PDMS based microfluidic channel system. The nanocavity devices were characterised and the sensor system were tested for their optical sensing capabilities. The sensitivity of various Q factor values corresponds to the different cavity lengths are studied. The sensor system sensitivity, S were measured via refractive index sensing experiment varying from 135.78 to 245.72 nmRIU-1 with the detection limit, DL of 8 x 10-6 RIU. The sensing area estimated is 2.35 μm2. In addition, through the non-specific interaction experiment, bio molecular proteins BSA as low as 3.125 μg/ml concentrations were detected. Finally, the sensor system thermal responses were measured.

Diabetes is a long-term condition which causes significant public health concern in view of its increasing prevalence and associated morbidity. Notwithstanding this, effective management has been shown to prevent or delay the onset of diabetes complications, thereby improving prognosis. Diabetes has a high self-management demand. This involves behaviour modification together with psycho-social adjustments required to overcome challenges with integrating diabetes management in one’s life. Such challenges often originate from the socio-cultural context and it is recognised that support for diabetes self-management should target these challenges. The purpose of this study was therefore to explore how Maltese individuals with Type 2 diabetes believe they can be supported to manage their condition, as well as to examine whether, and if so how such views may be shaped by the Maltese socio-cultural environment. The study used a qualitative design guided by a Grounded Theory approach. Data were collected by in-depth focus group and one-to-one interviews, carried out amongst 52 adults with Type 2 diabetes recruited from an outpatient hospital clinic and community-based diabetes clinics in Malta. A total of six focus groups and twelve one-to-one interviews were conducted. Theoretical sampling was used and data analysis involved constant comparison of data, together with conceptualising and organising the data into categories. Generated categories were linked by exploring relationships between them, in the process of developing a substantive theory. The emergent theory describes how participants viewed diabetes self-management as involving the implementation of skills in thought and behavioural management. These skills were found to be key to coping and consisted of flexibility, proactive management, stress management and developing a positive mind-set towards diabetes. Furthermore, the theory outlines how aspects of Maltese culture, including those related to stigma, family, food and health services were seen to influence diabetes self-management directly, or through their impact on the development of such skills. A basic social process emerged representing individuals’ movement across the coping continuum, characterising transition to a higher/lower level of coping, during particular episodes in life. This process reinforced the identified relationship between the socio-cultural context and patient’s agency, demonstrating how such movement coincided with negative/positive experiences of socio-cultural influence. These findings have contributed new knowledge about the relationship between culture and diabetes-related coping. They suggest that patients may be supported in managing their diabetes by addressing cultural factors which influence the development of specific self-management skills. In Malta, this may involve new ways of delivering culturally sensitive care and education.

The continuous strive for improvement and achieving higher efficiency for the ability to keep up with the market, as the competitors increases with the newer technologies that becomes available for the world leading companies. Project performance approaches as an aid towards project success is thus an important topic among organizations as a subpart for increasing their project planning efficiency. This case study is performed at a company within the industrial manufacturing where the profits has been decaying for decades. The efficiency regarding project planning has been heavily reduced. Evaluate and estimate the performance measurement effects caused by the current planning tool compared with another major planning tool used world-wide by a vast majority for project activity scheduling. The goal is to evaluate the differences a change-up can do in the three variables such as cost, time and quality but this study brings an additional variable –client satisfaction –that has an effect on the total project efficiency, and if a change-up could be necessary for the project managements. This has been done by collecting data in forms of interviews with people from different areas involved in the project planning process and people with who have experience in using two different major planning tools. The data were then analyzed and comparisons between the planning tools were made. The final part of the master thesis concludes the results of the research question and hypothesizes and that these were significant to the study as it reaches its purpose with additional variables such as communication, visualization and client satisfaction.

Perhaps mankind's most urgent challenge at present is anthropogenic climate change, with the associated sea-level rise and desertification set to produce major losses of arable land and living space, as well as loss of life. The key to preventing the worst effects of AGW lies in limiting humanity's emissions of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide, of which the vast majority comes from the burning of fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas. However, fossil fuels are embedded in all of the world's economies, responsible for almost all of the provision of electrical power and transport, making the sizable reductions required in the timescale necessary somewhat impractical. One solution lies in Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS), which involves, in one incarnation, the combustion of fossil fuels in pure oxygen, simplifying the processing and storage of the carbon dioxide produced. There is potential for very high process efficiencies if oxygen is provided by Oxygen Transport Membranes (OTM). This thesis is concerned with the development of membranes and test procedures for mixed-phase OTM, which typically consist of a dense, gastight layer of perovskite and fluorite phases. An inactive support layer may also be present. The surface area, and therefore surface exchange of either side is improved by the addition of exchange layers to either side. Oxide ion migration is accomplished by applying a pO2 differential to the membrane at high temperature. Causes and mechanisms for degradation are not fully understood, and there is potential to improve oxygen flux. One way to achieve this is by the use of very thin, supported membranes, and this thesis demonstrates that such membranes can be fabricated with well-understood manufacturing processes. Another method of improving oxygen flux is by the use of catalysts on the exchange layers of the membrane. The most popular method of introducing 6 catalysts to an exchange layer or electrode involves impregnation of a metal salt into a ceramic backbone, followed by reduction to yield a catalytically active phase. However, this process is wasteful of catalyst, labour-intensive and control of the distribution of catalyst is difficult or impossible. An alternative exists, where metals doped into a perovskite migrate to the surface and form nanoparticles on exposure to a sufficiently high temperature and reducing atmosphere, and this thesis demonstrates the benefits of using such an approach. Improvements in oxygen flux of up to a factor of 7 over an undoped perovskite exchange layer have been demonstrated. The conductivity and crystal structures of (La0.8Sr0.2)0.95Cr0.5Fe0.5O3-δ and (Sc2O3)0.19(CrO2)0.01(ZrO2)0.789O1.94 under oxidising and reducing atmospheres at high temperatures have been evaluated using neutron powder diffraction and a novel in-situ rig, demonstrating that the OTM composition is a p-type conductor, and quantifying the effect of oxygen stoichiometry on conductivity and unit cell parameters.

Thesis (S.M.M.O.T.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management, Management of Technology Program, 2000. / Also available online at the MIT Theses Online homepage <http://thesis.mit.edu>. / Includes bibliographical references. / Fostering creativity in research and development (R & D) operations, especially in large corporations in mature industries, is a critical challenge. I hypothesized that very creative groups, what some have termed "hot groups," can be formed even in such organizations and that they may have an impact on the entire organization. A hot group is a lively, high-achieving, dedicated group whose members are extremely excited to work on challenging tasks. The principal research questions in the present study are, "What are the kinds of situational settings where hot groups can arise, grow and sustain in an organization?" and "What are the effects of a hot group on the parent organization?" Based on the literature review and interviews, this study concludes that hot groups can be formed even in cold, hierarchical organizations. Strong sponsorship by senior managers is the most important success factor for the formation of hot groups. In addition, introducing fluctuation or "unfreezing" into organizations, forming a creative culture and formulating policies and systems that stimulate autonomy contribute to the viability of hot groups. In order to sustain the creativity of hot groups, the importance of what has been termed "virtual knowledge" should also be recognized by the sponsors and group members. If top management fails to recognize the achievements and also the effects of hot groups, members of the hot groups often leave the company, causing the diffusion process to cease. Organizational boundaries largely impair the penetration of hot groups' excitement and creativity. The thesis identified two different patterns in the diffusion process of hot groups into the parent organization. In the horizontal diffusion model, the excitement and creativity of a hot group first diffuses horizontally to other people in the parent organization, typically middle to bottom people. The organization changes from the bottom of the hierarchy. Although this is the best way to share the virtual knowledge of how to be creative by the bottom people, it may create disordered chaos in the organization and may take a long time to change the organization. In the vertical diffusion model, top management of the company jumps into the diffusion process in the early stages, and establishes policies and systems to facilitate formation of hot groups. The organization changes from the top of the hierarchy. Although this is the best way to quickly introduce the hot group concept into the organization in a controlled manner, there exists the potential for ending up with insufficient "heat" in the organization. The horizontal and vertical diffusions are complementary and sequential. In order to energize organizations and to make them creative by the hot group concept, both the horizontal and vertical diffusions are required. Overall, the hot group can be a powerful tool for re-energizing organizations and fostering creativity in large corporations in mature industries when they are stuck on the past narrow incremental improvement. / by Hideaki Murata. / S.M.M.O.T.

Thesis (S.M.M.O.T.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management, Management of Technology Program, 2000. / Also available online at the DSpace at MIT website. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 71-72). / The telecommunications industry is highly competitive. Many of the players in the Carrier, Commercial and Network Construction Service markets are looking to have financial, personnel, marketing, other resources and other competitive advantages such as B2B Internet services. Increased consolidation and· strategic alliances in the industry, resulting from the Telecommunications Act of 1996 is giving rise to significant new competition in the industry. In addition to this, the advent of the Internet has made the traditional circuit-switched telephony no longer efficient and economical, and to a certain extent obsolete. The less expensive and easily maintainable IP-switched networks are in greater demand. Information age has made Ecommerce the process of empowering the organizations for information exchange using digital technology. This study includes an analysis of the effect of the above factors on a network operator's business. It also consists of the case studies of two new-age network operators, Level 3 and Qwest. / by Tharunidhar Narravula. / S.M.M.O.T.

A era da informação está sendo viabilizada por uma combinada expansão das telecomunicações e da tecnologia da informação. O acesso à TI tornou-se mais fácil e mais barato e o uso da TI está se massificando na vida das pessoas e principalmente no contexto empresarial. A TI passou a desempenhar papel decisivo e estratégico para as empresas desenvolverem negócios na nova economia. A TI tem influência no valor da empresa para seus clientes e é essencial para a consecução dos objetivos de negócios, pois envolve grandes investimentos e riscos. Tornou-se mais complexo administrar TI, pois a evolução tecnológica é acelerada, os projetos de TI demandam altos investimentos e os executivos de negócios, além de demandarem mais do que TI pode entregar, demonstram insatisfação com os níveis de serviço entregue pelas áreas de TI. É preciso dotar as empresas de sistemas produtivos, relacionados com: acesso, processamento, distribuição e armazenagem de informação. A gestão da TI requer cada vez mais a adoção de processos, modelos, estruturas, alianças e, sobretudo, focos de atuação da liderança, priorizados e alinhados com as estratégias de negócios para capacitar as organizações da TI a cumprirem satisfatoriamente suas atribuições. Em resposta a estes desafios as lideranças de TI estão buscando formas e modelos que possam auxiliá-las na gestão da TI. Neste contexto, as seguintes questões precisam ser discutidas: Que modelos em gestão da TI estão sendo adotados como referência nas organizações de TI?; Como os modelos estão estruturados e no que eles se diferenciam ou se integram entre si?; Os modelos abrangem todas as áreas de gestão da TI?; Como estes modelos são úteis para os executivos da TI? / The information age, is being made possible for a combine expansion of the telecommunications and the information technology. The IT access is becoming cheaper and easier than before and the use of IT is growing so fast in the people living and mainly in the enterprise context. IT is playing a decisive and strategic role to companies develop businesses in the new economy. IT has influence in the customer value and is essential for the achievement of the business objectives, therefore IT involves high investments and risks. Become more complex to manage IT, therefore the technological evolution, the IT projects demands high investments and the business executives are demanding more than what IT can deliver, demonstrating that they are no satisfied with the IT service levels. Is necessary to enable companies with productive systems, related with: access, processing, distribution and storage of information. The IT management requires more adoption of processes, models, structures, alliances and, over all, leaders must be focused on IT action model aligned and prioritized with the business strategies, enabling IT organizations to fulfill its attributions satisfactorily. To face these challenges the IT leaderships are searching forms and models that can guide them in IT management. In this context, the following questions need to be argued: Witch IT management models are being adopted as reference in the IT organizations?; How the models are structured and in what they differentiate or be integrated themselves?; Are the models cover all the areas of IT management?; How these models are useful for the IT executives?