Consider a set B of blue points and a set R of red points in the plane such that R ∪ B is in general position. A graph drawn in the plane whose edges are straight-line segments is called a geometric graph. We investigate the problem of drawing non-crossing properly colored geometric graphs on the point set R ∪ B. We show that if ||B| − |R|| ≤ 1 and a subset of R forms the vertices of a convex polygon separating the points of B, lying inside the polygon, from the rest of the points of R, lying outside the polygon, then there exists a non-crossing properly colored geometric path on R∪B covering all points of R ∪ B. If R∪B lies on a circle, the size of the longest non-crossing geometric path is related to the size of the largest separated matching; a separated matching is a non-crossing properly colored geometric matching where all edges can be crossed by a line. A discrepancy of R ∪ B is the maximal difference between cardinalities of color classes of intervals on the circle. When the discrepancy of R ∪ B is at most 2, we show that there is a separated matching covering asymptotically 4 5 of points of R ∪ B. During this proof we use a connection between separated matchings and the longest common subsequences between two binary sequences where the symbols correspond to the colors of the points.

The author deals with the phenomenon of dumpster diving. Being focused on those divers who are used to dumpster dive not being pressed to it by their financial situation, she concentrates on their definition of purity and their way of dealing with symbolic boundaries of clean and unclean. After summarising social-environmental and social scientific background of the phenomenon in context of the theoretical frame based on Mary Douglas and her book about purity and danger the author presents a qualitative analysis of participant observation and in- depth interviews with informants who dumpster dive voluntarily. Based on quantitatively and representatively tested public opinion on dumpster diving she points both the colourful composition of dumpster divers' motives and ideological believes and their reflection and norm- based boundaries categorization that is connected to food they are used to eat. In connection with informants' conception of food value the author argues that through inspiring power of the first dumpster diving experience informants' understanding and dealing with those boundaries have changed. Nevertheless, she stresses that despite being convinced their way of consumption is right and thus pure the informants tend to apply and present themselves by pattern of conduct that...

Repair of DNA double-strand breaks via homologous recombination is an essential pathway for vertebrate cell development and maintenance of genome integrity throughout the organism’s lifetime. The Rad51 enzyme provides the central catalytic function of homologous recombination while many other proteins are involved in regulation and assistance of Rad51 activity, including a group of five proteins referred to as Rad51 paralogs (Rad51B, Rad51C, Rad51D, Xrcc2, Xrcc3). At the start of my work, cellular studies of human Rad51 (HsRad51) had shown only that it forms distinct nuclear foci in response to DNA damage. Additionally, no information regarding the cellular localization, potential DNA damage-induced redistribution or cellular functions for any of the Rad51 paralog proteins was available. Therefore, the goals of this work were to (1) present a more complete description of the cellular localization and DNA damage-induced redistribution of Rad51 and the two paralog proteins known to specifically associate with Rad51, Rad51C and Xrcc3, and (2) to define specific functional roles for Rad51C and Xrcc3 in mediating Rad51 activity. I focused on the use of cellular, RNAi and immunofluorescence methods to study endogenous Rad51, Rad51C and Xrcc3 in human cells. In my initial studies we showed for the first time that Xrcc3 forms distinct foci in both the nucleus and cytoplasm independent of DNA damage, that the distribution of these foci did not change significantly throughout the time course of DNA damage and repair, and that Xrcc3 focus formation is independent of Rad51. Additionally, and unlike most previously published images of nuclear Rad51, we found that the majority of DNA damage-induced nuclear Rad51 foci do not colocalize with gamma H2AX, a histone marker used to indicate the occurrence of DNA double strand breaks. As a consequence of these initial outcomes, a significant amount of effort was devoted to developing and optimizing immunofluorescence methods. Importantly, we developed a purification method for commercially available monoclonal antibodies against Rad51C and Xrcc3 that significantly improved their reactivity and specificity. My next study concentrated on Rad51C. Similar to Xrcc3, we found for the first time that Rad51C forms distinct nuclear and cytoplasmic foci independent of DNA damage and Rad51. An additional and surprising outcome was our discovery that Rad51C plays an important role in regulating the ubiquitination and proteasome-mediated degradation of Rad51. While biochemical functions for Rad51 paralog proteins had been suggested in the literature, this was the first demonstration of a specific biochemical function for Rad51C that contributes directly to the Rad51 activity in the homologous recombination pathway. Our improved immunofluorescence methods allowed us to see the accumulation of Rad51, Rad51C and Xrcc3 at the nuclear periphery early in response to DNA damage, suggesting the existence of a DNA damage-dependent trafficking mechanism that promoted movement of these proteins from the cytoplasm to the nucleus. This led to further studies in which we show distinct co-localization of cytoplasmic Rad51 with actin as well as alpha and beta tubulin. Using both immunofluorescence and sub-cellular fractionation methods our recent results strongly suggest that trafficking of Rad51 to the nucleus in response to DNA damage is regulated at least in part by its association with cytoskeletal proteins, and involves movement of both existing pools of Rad51 and newly synthesized protein. In a particularly exciting development, in collaboration with Leica Microsystems and Dr. Joerg Bewersdorf at The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, ME., I have been able to exploit a new technology, 4Pi microscopy, to provide the first images of endogenous nuclear proteins using this method. Results presented in this thesis have added significantly to a more complete understanding of cellular localization Rad51, Rad51C and Xrcc3, and have provided important insights into possible mechanisms of cellular trafficking of Rad51 in response to response to DNA damage. Additionally, we have defined a specific function for Rad51C in its regulation of Rad51 ubiquitination. These findings open several new avenues of investigation for furthering our understanding of the cellular and molecular functions of proteins with critical roles in the maintenance of genome integrity in human cells.

Rail-road terminals are the chain links in intermodal rail-road transportation where standardized load units (containers, swap bodies and trailers) are transfered from trucks to trains and vice versa. We consider three subproblems of the operational planning process at rail-road terminals that terminal operators are facing in their daily operations. These are the optimization problems storage planning, load planning and crane planning. The aim of storage planning is to determine load unit storage positions for a set of load units in a partially filled storage area. Here, different restrictions like non-overlapping of stored load units have to be respected. The objective of storage planning is to minimize the total transportation costs and the number of load units that are not stored at the ground level. For the load planning we assume a scenario of overbooked trains. So, the aim of load planning is to assign a subset of the load units that are booked on a train to feasible positions on the wagons such that the utilization of the train is maximized and the costs for the handling in the terminal are minimized. For the feasible positioning of load units length and weight restrictions for the wagons and the train have to be respected. For the load planning of trains we consider a deterministic version and a robust approach motivated by uncertainty in the input data. The last considered optimization problem is the crane planning. The crane planning determines the transfer of the load units by crane between the different transportation modes. For each crane a working plan is computed which contains a subset of the load units that have to be handled together with individual start times for the transfer operations. For the load units which have to be transfered in the terminal, storage and load planning compute destination positions (inside the terminal). These destination positions are part of the input for the crane planning. The main objective of crane planning is to minimize the total length of the empty crane moves that have to be performed between successive transports of load units by the cranes. We provide MIP-models for all three subproblems of the operational planning process at rail-road terminals. For the storage and crane planning we also propose fast heuristics. Furthermore, we present and compare computational results based on real world data for all subproblems. The main contributions of this thesis concern load and storage planning. For the deterministic load planning we provide the first model that represents all practical constraints including physical weight restrictions. For the load planning we furthermore present robustness approaches for different practical uncertainties. For the storage planning we provide complexity results for different variants. For the practical setting we developed a heuristic which is able to compute solutions of high quality in a small amount of runtime.

Quantum-Dot Cellular Automata (QCA) is currently being investigated as an alternative to CMOS technology. There has been extensive study on a wide range of circuits from simple logical circuits such as adders to complex circuits such as 4-bit processors. At the same time, little if any work has been done in considering the possibility of reconfiguration to reduce power in QCA devices. This work presents one of the first such efforts when considering reconfigurable QCA architectures which are expected to be both robust and power efficient. We present a new reconfiguration scheme which is highly robust and is expected to dissipate less power with respect to conventional designs. An adder design based on the reconfiguration scheme will be presented in this thesis, with a detailed power analysis and comparison with existing designs. In order to overcome the problems of routing which comes with reconfigurability, a new wire crossing mechanism is also presented as part of this thesis.

Radio tomographic imaging (RTI) is a novel device-free localization technique which utilizes the changes in radio signals caused by obstruction to enable various sensing applications. However, the deployment of these applications is hindered by the energy-expensive radio sensing techniques employed in these systems. In this thesis, we tackle this issue by introducing a novel way to realize a battery-free RTI sensor. We go through the design process and produce and evaluate a working prototype that operates on minuscule amounts of energy. Our design reduces power consumption by orders of magnitude compared to traditional RTI sensors by eliminating the energy-expensive components used in current RTI systems, enabling battery-free operation of RTI sensors. We demonstrate the efficiency and accuracy of our system in a boundary crossing scenario. We Discuss its limitations and tackle some of the security threats correlated with the deployment of such a system. / Radiotomografisk avbildning (RTA) är en ny, anordningsfri lokaliseringstekniksom utnyttjar förändringarna i radiosignaler orsakat av obstruktioner för att möjliggöraolika avkänningsapplikationer. Utvecklingen av dessa applikationer hindrasemellertid av de energiineffektiva radioavkännande tekniker som användsi dessa system. I denna avhandling behandlar vi problemet genom att introduceraen ny metod för att skapa en batterifri RTA-sensor. Vi går igenom konstruktionsprocessenoch producerar och utvärderar en arbetsprototyp som kräver minusklermängder energi. Vår design minskar energiförbrukningen signifikantjämfört med traditionella RTA-sensorer, genom att eliminera de energiineffektivakomponenterna som används i dagens RTA-system, vilket möjliggör batterifridrift av RTA-sensorer. Vi demonstrerar effektiviteten och noggrannheten hos vårtsystem i ett gränsöverskridande scenario. Vi diskuterar begränsningarna och taritu med några av de säkerhetshot som är korrelerade med utplaceringen av ettsådant system.

Many video games have elaborate plots and storylines with intricate world-building and lore for the players to explore. However, some games are about doing real-life activities in a virtual world. These type of games belong to the Social and Life Simulation  genre of games. Often, games within this genre are considered to be plotless, with the presumption that they are lore-less as well. Even though these games do not have a specific plotline to follow there may still be evidence of lore and stories in these games. A case study is conducted, examinimg community-created content for the Social and Life- simulation games Animal Crossing and The Simms that highlight lore and stories in the games. The result shows that the games contain lore wich can be used as a starting point for players to create theories and stories of their own during game play.

Visual cues have previously been classified as visual exproprioceptive, when defining the relative position of the body within the environment and are continuously updated while moving (online), and visual exteroceptive when describing static features of the environment which are typically elaborated offline (feedforward). However peripheral visual cues involved in the control of movement have not previously been clearly defined using this classification. Hence the role played by peripheral visual cues in the planning and/or online control of movement remains unclear. The aim of this thesis was to provide a systematic understanding of the importance of peripheral visual cues in several types of movement, namely overground locomotion, adaptive gait, postural stability and reaching and grasping. 3D motion capture techniques were used to collect limb and whole body kinematics during such movements. Visual peripheral cues were manipulated by visual field occlusion conditions or by the employment of point-lights in a dark room. Results showed that the visual cues provided by different parts of the peripheral visual field are mainly used for online fine tuning of limb trajectory towards a target (either a floor-based obstacle or an object to grasp). The absence of peripheral visual cues while moving disrupted the spatio-temporal dynamic relationship between subject and target and resulted in increased margins of safety between body and target and increased time and variability of several dependent measures. These findings argue in favour of the classification of peripheral visual cues as visual exproprioceptive.

Die vorliegende Diplomarbeit befasst sich mit modernen Überwachungsarten für die Einbindung von Bahnübergängen auf ETCS-Strecken. Im Rahmen der Harmonisierung des europäischen Eisenbahnverkehrs werden Strecken zunehmend mit dem Zugbeeinflussungssystem ETCS ausgerüstet, wobei vollüberwachte Systeme eine bedeutende Rolle spielen. Durch flache ETCS-Bremskurven kann es an Bahnübergängen herkömmlicher Überwachungsarten zu betrieblichen Einschränkungen kommen, was es zu vermeiden gilt. Ziel dieser Diplomarbeit ist es, Potenziale moderner Überwachungsarten für Bahnübergänge auf ETCS-Strecken aufzuzeigen. Zu Beginn werden herkömmliche Überwachungsarten und Konflikte bei deren Einbindung auf ETCS-Strecken beleuchtet. Es folgt eine Untersuchung der modernen Überwachungsarten sowie der zukünftigen Schnittstellenarchitektur zwischen Bahnübergangssicherungsanlage (BÜSA) und Stellwerk. Darauf aufbauend werden Vergleiche mit konventionellen Überwachungsarten anhand von beispielhaften Anwendungsfällen angestellt und Möglichkeiten zur Beschleunigung des Entwicklungsprozesses für eine zeitnahe Anwendungsreife identifiziert. Abschließend erfolgt eine Prüfung der Voraussetzungen für die Erprobung im Sicherungstechnischen Labor der TU Dresden.:1 Einführung 2 Grundlagen 3 Moderne Überwachungsarten Bahnübergänge 4 Moderne Überwachungsarten auf ETCS-Strecken 5 Entwicklung der Standardschnittstelle SCI-LX 6 Erprobung im SIL 7 Ergebnisse und Diskussion 8 Zusammenfassung und Ausblick / The present study addresses modern types of level crossing monitoring for the integration of level crossings on ETCS railway lines. As part of the harmonization of European rail traffic, lines are increasingly being equipped with the European Train Control System (ETCS), whereby fully supervised systems play an important role. Due to flat ETCS braking curves, operational restrictions can occur at level crossings of conventional monitoring types, which must be avoided. The aim of this study is to highlight the potential of modern level crossing monitoring types on ETCS lines and to identify outstanding development steps up to application maturity. At the beginning, conventional types of level crossing monitoring and conflicts in their integration on ETCS lines are examined. This is followed by an analyzation of new level crossing monitoring types and the future interface architecture between the level crossing protection system and the interlocking. Based on this, comparisons are made with conventional monitoring types by use cases, and possibilities for accelerating steps in the development process for timely application maturity are identified. Finally, the prerequisites for testing in the Railway Safety Engineering Laboratory of the TU Dresden are checked.:1 Einführung 2 Grundlagen 3 Moderne Überwachungsarten Bahnübergänge 4 Moderne Überwachungsarten auf ETCS-Strecken 5 Entwicklung der Standardschnittstelle SCI-LX 6 Erprobung im SIL 7 Ergebnisse und Diskussion 8 Zusammenfassung und Ausblick

Purpose: To evaluate the use of the GoBack-catheter (Upstream Peripheral Technologies) in complex revascularizations in lower limb arteries. Materials and Methods: In this retrospective single-center study, the results of the first 100 consecutive patients including 101 limb-revascularizations, performed between May 2018 and July 2020 with the study device, were analyzed. In all cases, guidewire-crossing failed, and all lesions were chronic total occlusions (CTO), either de novo, reocclusions, or in-stent reocclusions. Successful crossing was defined as passing the CTO using the study device. Patency at discharge and after 30 days was defined as less than 50% restenosis on duplex sonography, without target lesion revascularization. Results: Median lesion length was 24 cm and 38 patients (37.6%) had a calcium grading according to the peripheral arterial calcium scoring system (PACSS) of 4 or 5. In 20.8% of patients, an occluded stent was treated. CTOs involved the femoropopliteal segment in 91.1%, iliac arteries in 5.9%, and tibial arteries in 7.9%. The GoBackcatheter was employed for entering into or crossing through parts or the full length of a CTO or an occluded stent as well as for re-entering into the true lumen after subintimal crossing. The device was used via contralateral and ipsilateral antegrade as well as retrograde access with an overall technical success rate of 92.1%. In 3 patients minor bleeding occurred at the crossing or re-entry site, which were managed conservatively. Thirty-day adverse limb events comprised minor amputations in 4 patients (4.0%), 1 major amputation (1.0%), and reocclusions in 7 limbs (6.9%). Conclusion: The new GoBack-catheter offers versatile endovascular applicability for complex CTO recanalization in a broad range of peripheral vascular interventions with a high technical success and low complication rate.