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Smart antenna is a potential performance enhancement tool in a communications link that can be used at either end (transmitter or receiver) of the link in the form of beamforming or diversity operation. While receive smart antenna techniques and operations have matured over the years, transmit smart antenna is relatively a new concept that has seen its growth over the past few years. Both these smart antenna operations have been traditionally designed for base station applications. But with the advent of high-speed processors, transmit smart antenna can also be feasible at a small wireless terminal (SWT). This dissertation studied the feasibility of using smart antenna at a SWT. Both smart transmit and receive antennas are studied, including multiple input and multiple output (MIMO) systems, however the emphasis is placed on transmit smart antennas. The study includes algorithm developments and performance evaluations in both flat fading and frequency selective channels. Practical issues, i.e., latency and amount of feedback, related to transmit smart antenna operation are discussed. Various channel measurements are presented to assess the performance of a transmit smart antenna in a real propagation environment. These include vector channel measurements for narrowband and wideband signals, channel reciprocity, and effect of antenna element spacing on diversity performance. Real-time demonstrations of transmit smart antenna have been performed and presented, and, the applicability of the proposed techniques in the Third Generation standards and wireless local area networks (WLAN) is discussed. Receive beamforming with a small number of antenna elements (which is usually the case for a SWT) is analyzed in an interference-limited environment. / Ph. D.

Every year in the United States, cancer accounts for one in four deaths. As the pool of those who have received diagnoses increases, more individuals can be encountered who have survived a terminal diagnosis or exceeded expected time limits for survival. Perhaps even more extraordinary, many of these consider it the "best thing" that ever happened to them. These are the modern eras' "mythical" heroes; they return bearing maps for our own eventual journeys. This study used a grounded theory research approach to illuminate the phenomenon of terminal diagnosis survivorship as evidenced in the psycho/social/spiritual learning process. The unit of analysis is the psychosocial and spiritual learning process as discovered and developed from three cases of individuals who described being positively transformed after receiving a terminal diagnosis. Three research questions were examined: (a) What are the components (e.g., coping strategies, problem solving techniques, emotion management) of the learning process employed by three cancer patients who have experienced a terminal diagnosis? (b) In what ways did the phenomenal meaning of their lives change as they coped with the trauma of a terminal diagnosis followed by remission persisting a significant time past doctors' predictions? (c) What changes did they make in their lives, viewed from a holistic perspective, including thought processes, healthcare, emotion, spirituality and changes in their social lives? A comparative analysis of tape recorded interviews yielded the data resulting in a six-phase model of terminal diagnosis survivorship delineating a psycho/social/spiritual transformational learning process. Death acceptance emerged as a central organizing construct facilitating transformational changes in those given a terminal diagnosis resulting in a constellation of attitudinal and behavioral change. This model challenges and extends theory in adult learning and post traumatic survival by challenging the heavily rational and cognitive based theories of these fields, emphasizing the importance of emotions, altered states, extrarational experiences and spirituality. This model also explicates the role of denial that can alternatively hamper, facilitate or place on hold movement toward death acceptance, the ultimate transformative agent. Additionally, this model elucidates the importance of holding environments on both sustaining and eliciting transformational and developmental change. / Ph. D.

Current-mode control architectures have been an indispensable technique in many applications, such as Voltage Regulator, Point-of-load converters, power factor correction, battery charger and LED driver. Since the inductor current ramp is used in the modulator in current-mode control without any low pass filter, high order harmonics play important role in the feedback control. This is the reason for the difficulty in obtaining the small-signal model for current-mode control in the frequency domain. A continuous time domain model was recently proposed as a successful model for current-mode control architectures. However, the model was derived by describing function method, which is very arithmetically complicated, not to mention time consuming. For the analysis and design of non-linear system, equivalent circuit model, which is user friendly and intuitive, is an effective tool. In this dissertation, the primary objective is to develop a unified three-terminal switch model for current-mode controls using the results of describing function derivation, which characterizes the small signal property of the common subcircuit of current mode controlled PWM converters. Its application is extended to average current mode control, V2 control and other proposed novel current mode control schemes. First, the existing model for current mode control is reviewed. The limitations of existing model for current-mode control are identified. Based on the universal small signal relationship between terminal currents and the results of describing function derivation, a unified three-terminal switch model for current mode control is proposed. A three-terminal equivalent circuit is developed to represent the small signal behavior of this common sub-circuit. The proposed model is applicable in both constant frequency and variable frequency modulation. After that, the modeling of digital predictive current mode control is presented. Predictive current mode control is one of the promising digital current mode control method featuring fast dynamic response and low sample rate requirement. Many implementations were presented in past ten years. To understand the benefit and the limitation of each implementation, help the engineer to choose the modulation scheme and design the control loop, a small signal Laplace-domain model for digital predictive current mode controls is proposed. The model is extended to the multi-sampled implementation. The modeling result is summarize as the small signal equivalent circuit mode, whose form is consistent with that of analog current mode controls. Based on S-domain model, digital predictive current mode controls are compared with analog implementation to demonstrate the advantages and limitation. Implementation selection guideline and compensation is discussed based on the modeling results. Then, using the proposed unified model is used in the analysis of average current mode control. Under proper design, the inductor current ripple passes through the current compensator and appears in PWM comparator. It significantly influence the high frequency small signal property of the converter. In chapter 3, the proportional feedback is separated from integral feedback so that the sideband frequency feedback effect can be taken into consideration. It extends the results obtained in peak-current model control to average current mode control. The proposed small signal model is accurate up to half switching frequency, predicting the sub-harmonic instability. Based on the proposed model, a new feedback design guideline is proposed. By designing the external ramp following the proposed design guideline, quality factor of the double poles at half of switching frequency in control-to-output transfer function can be precisely controlled. This helps the feedback design to achieve widest control bandwidth and proper damping. V2 control is a popular control scheme in Point-of-load converters due to the unique fast transient response. As the output voltage ripple is used as PWM modulation ramp, V2 control has close relationship with current mode control but this relationship was not addressed in the existing model. Chapter 4 utilizes the three-terminal switch model to build the equivalent circuit model for V2 control, which clearly shows that V2 control is a particular implementation of current mode control, with proportional capacitor voltage feedback and load current feedback embedded. The analysis presented in Chapter 3 provides a clear physical understanding of average current mode control. With constant frequency modulation, the control bandwidth is usually limited by the double pole at half of swithcing frequency, especially in the converters with wide duty cycle range. Chapter 5 proposed a novel I2 current mode control to improve the dynamic performance of average current mode control. In particular, constant on-time I2 control eliminates the need of external ramp while the current loop is inherently stable. Moreover, constant on-time modulation improves the light load efficiency. As a conclusion, this dissertation proposed a unified three-terminal switch model for current mode controls. The application of this equivalent circuit model is extended to average current mode control, V2 control and the novel I2 current mode control. The Laplace-domain model of predictive current mode control is also presented. All the modeling results are verified through simulation and experiments. / Ph. D.

The beginning of the twenty-first century found American society sharply divided and American culture in the midst of tumult; the driving forces behind these changes being individualism, multiculturalism and the politics of gender and sexual orientation. As a result, social structure and what were once traditional values have been abandoned for political correctness. With reports of personal crimes committed on juveniles on school property on the rise, clearly, these shifts away from tradition have trickled down from society at large to the sphere of the public school. Students no longer are using traditional socially accepted norms and values as viable guides to their behavior (Hudak, Ander & Allen, 1980), but violence, which has become a way of attaining respect and self worth as well as material possessions. Some of the most disturbing reports that have been brought to the public's attention are those of students assaulting and robbing one another at knife and gunpoint for clothing. The conceptual framework was that of appearance perception. Clothing and appearance are extremely important to children in their efforts to compete as well as to successfully fit in with their peers. Many school reform efforts have implemented school uniform policies as a way of building a sense of unity and belonging among students, as well as a way of controlling behavior. However, despite the numerous studies that have attempted to show that nonverbal communication may form impressions of personality, character traits, and intelligence, none have focused on school uniforms and their reflection of the personal values of the wearers. This study determined the uniform preferences of uniform-wearing students for middle school children, and described the five terminal values that these students attributed to uniformed students. This research also determined whether there were significant differences between the probabilities of males and females having the same perceptions of the terminal values attributed to uniformed students, because research has shown that these perceptions have a direct effect on style preferences. The sample was comprised of 85 students between 18 and 21 years, who attended a military institute of higher education in which they were required to wear uniforms on a daily basis. Respondents completed a three-part questionnaire, which consisted of: (1) Rokeach Value Survey, (2) demographics questions, and (3) wearer preference measure. The instrument was pilot tested for content validity before it was administered to the sample. Data were analyzed using Pearson Chi-squares and frequencies. The chi-square tests revealed no significant differences in the probability of males and the probability of females selecting the same terminal values for uniformed students. Examination of frequencies determined design criteria for males and females uniform design as well as the five core terminal values attributed to uniformed students. / Master of Science

Durante la transición floral, el meristemo apical del tallo (SAM) cambia su identidad de vegetativo, fase en la que produce hojas y ramas, a inflorescente, fase en que produce flores. Las inflorescencias se clasifican, según la identidad del SAM, en indeterminadas, en las que el SAM crece continuamente durante toda la vida de la planta, y determinadas, en las que el SAM da lugar a una flor terminal. En Arabidopsis, la expresión del gen TERMINAL FLOWER 1 (TFL1) en el centro del SAM impide su conversión en flor y, por lo tanto, la determinación de la inflorescencia. Así pues, TFL1 mantiene la identidad inflorescente del SAM, teniendo, por tanto, un papel clave en el control de la arquitectura de la planta. Esta función de TFL1 está íntimamente relacionada con su particular patrón de expresión. El objetivo principal de este trabajo ha sido la identificación de genes que regulan la expresión de TFL1. Para ello, en primer lugar, se llevó a cabo la mutagénesis con EMS de una línea delatora que contiene un transgén, TFL1pro::GUS, en la que la expresión del gen GUS se encuentra dirigida por las regiones reguladoras de TFL1. Dado al papel de TFL1 en el control de la arquitectura de la planta, el escrutinio se realizó buscando plantas que tuvieran un patrón de expresión de TFL1pro::GUS alterado y, a su vez, presentaran defectos en la arquitectura de su parte aérea. Entre los mutantes seleccionados, la línea 63.1, a la que denominamos moss, resultó ser un mutante hipomorfo del gen ARGONAUTE 1 (AGO1). El mutante moss muestra un aumento de la expresión de TFL1pro::GUS en el SAM, y expresión ectópica en las flores, así como una dramática alteración de la arquitectura de su inflorescencia que parece estar relacionada con el aumento de la expresión de TFL1. Nuestros resultados abren la puerta a la idea de que pequeños RNAs participen en la regulación de TFL1 a través de AGO1. / Fernández Nohales, P. (2011). Papel de TERMINAL FLOWER 1 en el control de la arquitectura vegetal. Análisis de los genes que regulan su expresión [Tesis doctoral]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/11797

As the population ages and individuals with serious illnesses continue to live longer, they are experiencing disruptions in habits and routines, roles, and rituals that provide meaning to their lives. Many individuals receiving palliative or hospice care and their family members are unable to maintain their quality of life (QOL) and well-being due to the negative impact of the serious illness. Individuals and their family caregivers experience difficulty in participating and engaging in activities of daily living (ADLs) (i.e., dressing, bathing, eating) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs) (i.e., making meals, working, finances). Individuals are unable to maintain their independence, return home due to environmental barriers, and receive support from family members due to a lack of training. Family caregivers are thrust into the role of caring for their loved ones without training. Currently, there is an increased need for more health professionals to work in palliative and hospice care. Occupational therapy is one profession that can fill this gap; however, there is a lack of education for occupational therapy practitioners (OTPs) at both the entry and post-professional levels. Occupational Therapy in Palliative and Hospice Care: A Certificate Program contains key components of related professional certification programs in palliative care. Program content aligns with palliative care principles and specific evidence-based occupational knowledge so OTPs will become integral interprofessional palliative care team members. It aims to demonstrate occupational therapy's value in this setting and prepare OTPs to work successfully. Modules provide the foundational information needed to facilitate the use of the principles of palliative care, understand the clients, collaborate with members of the interprofessional team, and provide meaningful occupational interventions during this transition. This program addresses the gap and need for occupational engagement, health promotion, and occupational justice for these individuals and their family members at the end-of-life (EOL).

Current-mode control architectures with different implementation approaches have been an indispensable technique in many applications, such as voltage regulator, power factor correction, battery charger and LED driver. Since the inductor current ramp, one of state variables influenced by the input voltage and the output voltage, is used in the modulator in current-mode control without any low pass filter, high order harmonics play important role in the feedback control. This is the reason for the difficulty in obtaining the small-signal model for current-mode control in the frequency domain. A continuous time domain model was recently proposed as a successful model for current-mode control architectures with different implementation. However, the model was derived by describing function method, which is very arithmatically complicated, not to mention time consuming. Although an equivalent circuit for a current mode control Buck converter was proposed to help designers to use the model without involving complicated math, the equivalent circuit is not a complete model. Moreover, no equivalent circuit for other topologies is available for designers. In this thesis, the primary objective is to develop a unified three-terminal switch model for current-mode control with different implementation methods, which are applicable in all the current mode control power converters. First, the existing model for current mode control is reviewed. The limitation of average models and the discrete time model for current-mode control is identified. The continuous time model and its equivalent circuit of Buck converter is introduced. The deficiency of the equivalent circuit is discussed. After that, a unified three-terminal switch model for current mode control is presented. Based on the observation, the PWM switch and the closed current loop is taken as an invariant sub-circuit which is common to different DC/DC converter topologies. A basic small signal relationship between terminal currents is studied and the result shows that the PWM switch with current feedback preserves the property of the PWM switch in power stage. A three-terminal equivalent circuit is developed to represent the small signal behavior of this common sub-circuit. The proposed model is a unified model, which is applicable in both constant frequency modulation and variable frequency modulation. The physical meaning of the three-terminal equivalent circuit model is discussed. The model is verified by SIMPLIS simulation in commonly used converters for both constant frequency modulation and variable frequency modulation. Then, based on the proposed unified model, a comparison between different current mode control implementations is presented. In different applications, different implementations have their unique benefit on extending control bandwidth. The properties of audio susceptibility and output impedance are discussed. It is found that, for adaptive voltage positioning design, constant on-time current mode control can simplifies the outer loop design. Next, since multiphase interleaving structure is widely used in PFC, voltage regulator and other high current applications, the model is extended to multiphase current mode control. Some design concerns are discussed based on the model. As a conclusion, a unified three-terminal switch model for current mode controls is investigated. The proposed model is quite general and not limited by implementation methods and topologies. All the modeling results are verified through simulation and experiments. / Master of Science