Handheld devices are becoming increasingly common, and they have varied range of resources. Mobile Cloud Computing (MCC) allows resource constrained devices to offload computation and use storage capacities of more resourceful surrogate machines. This enables creation of new and interesting applications for all devices. We propose a scheme that constructs a high-performance de-centralized system by a group of volunteer mobile devices which come together to form a resourceful unit (cloudlet). The idea is to design a model to operate as a public-resource between mobile devices in close geographical proximity. This cloudlet can provide larger storage capability and can be used as a computational resource by other devices in the network. The system needs to watch the movement of the participating nodes and restructure the topology if some nodes that are providing support to the cloudlet fail or move out of the network. In this work, we discuss the need of the system, our goals and design issues in building a scalable and reconfigurable system. We achieve this by leveraging the concept of virtual dominating set to create an overlay in the broads of the network and distribute the responsibilities in hosting a cloudlet server. We propose an architecture for such a system and develop algorithms that are requited for its operation. We map the resources available in the network by first scoring each device individually, and then gathering these scores to determine suitable candidate cloudlet nodes. We have simulated cloudlet functionalities for several scenarios and show that our approach is viable alternative for many applications such as sharing GPS, crowd sourcing, natural language processing, etc.

Existing methods used for service discovery assume that the world is static, con- sidering a predetermined set of attributes. As a result, current discovery techniques return many results that are irrelevant. Our approach to high quality service dis- covery improves the results’ relevancy by considering dynamic attributes with values changing over time. Using this approach, we reveal structure from the data to satisfy the consumers’ experiences. Web service quality is a set of dynamic attributes used to rank services with similar functionalities. When picking a service to execute financial transactions effi- ciently, we might consider availability, reliability, response time, and transaction cost as quality indicators. Supporting dynamic attributes is a feature critical to providing exceptional quality service discovery. In addition, effective service discovery requires detailed context models that describe both static and dynamic features. The context takes into consideration the situation of the service, the operating environment, the users’ circumstances, and their preferences. For instance, latency is an important issue in stock trading services with direct impact on revenue. One of the main challenges in enabling dynamic service discovery is developing techniques and models to handle the novel aspects of the web service paradigm. This challenge leads to a variety of research questions related to measuring, monitoring, or querying of dynamic attributes, while guaranteeing integrity and validity. We outline an architecture framework called Static Discovery Dynamic Selection (SDDS) to gather and manage dynamic attributes considering both context and do- main information at discovery time—augmenting static mechanisms. The architec- ture of SDDS defines individual components that collectively satisfy flexible and ac- curate service selection with a robust resource management approach capable of con- sidering high-frequency data. Moreover, we devised a multi-criteria decision making algorithm that considers the knowledge domain and the user context, and accordingly, the algorithm returns a small set of accurate and reliable results. As part of the SDDS framework, autonomic computing adds self-adaptability by taking highly dynamic context information into account. The impact of our method is demonstrated in an implementation of the model. We demonstrate that increasing the adaptability of the web service discovery by including context information provides a noticeable reduction in the number of results returned compared to static web service discovery methods. We extend the proposed infrastructure to ascertain whether a particular service satisfies, at execution time, specific security properties. We introduce the notion of certified web service assurance, characterizing how consumers of the service can specify the set of security properties that a service should satisfy. In addition, we illustrate a mechanism to re-check security properties when the execution context changes. To this end, we introduce the concept of a context-aware certificate and describe a dynamic, context-aware service discovery environment. / Graduate

The dairy industry has undergone a dynamic phase during the past two decades. Innovations in terms of technologies, processes, and products have changed the way the production of milk is done. This research takes an exploratory approach to look at the process of opportunity discovery within farm businesses and what firms in the dairy industry are doing to become more innovative. In addition, this research looks at the strategies farmers are using to successfully implement those innovations. An important factor that could affect the performance of a firm is the degree of which the firm is able to become aware of and exploit innovations that help bridge productivity and opportunity gaps. Data is collected through qualitative tools, including in-depth interviews of dairy producers from Saskatchewan, Canada and Aguascalientes, Mexico. Such data collection provides this research with specific insights into the process of opportunity discovery. It also indicates which managerial practices moderate the successful discovery and exploitation of business opportunities in the dairy industry. A theoretical framework was developed around four managerial factors; networking, human capital, market orientation and entrepreneurial orientation. Several propositions were built to identify the impact of these factors on the discovery and exploitation of opportunities in the dairy industry in both Canada and Mexico. This research shed more light on why some producers are more productive than others and how this is allowing some dairy producers to be more profitable. In addition, findings compare both industries and the differences and similarities are shown in terms of operations, managerial styles and processes in which the discovery and exploitation of opportunities take place.

Dopamine D3 receptors (DRD3) are implicated in relapse to drugs. The current study investigated the role of DRD3 in cue-induced reinstatement of nicotine-seeking in rats. Rats were trained to lever-press for intravenous infusions of nicotine, associated with the illumination of a cue-light, under a fixed-ratio schedule of reinforcement. Following extinction of the behaviour, where lever pressing had no consequences, reinstatement testing was performed by reintroduction of the cues after systemic or local administration (into discrete brain areas) of the DRD3 selective antagonist SB277011-A. Systemic antagonism of DRD3 significantly attenuated cue-induced reinstatement of nicotine-seeking. The same effect was observed upon infusions of SB277011-A into the basolateral amygdala or the lateral habenula, but not the nucleus accumbens. The current findings implicate DRD3 in cue-induced reinstatement of nicotine, delineate some of the neural substrates underlying this role and support a potential for using selective DRD3 antagonists for the prevention of relapse to smoking.

Dopamine D3 receptors (DRD3) are implicated in relapse to drugs. The current study investigated the role of DRD3 in cue-induced reinstatement of nicotine-seeking in rats. Rats were trained to lever-press for intravenous infusions of nicotine, associated with the illumination of a cue-light, under a fixed-ratio schedule of reinforcement. Following extinction of the behaviour, where lever pressing had no consequences, reinstatement testing was performed by reintroduction of the cues after systemic or local administration (into discrete brain areas) of the DRD3 selective antagonist SB277011-A. Systemic antagonism of DRD3 significantly attenuated cue-induced reinstatement of nicotine-seeking. The same effect was observed upon infusions of SB277011-A into the basolateral amygdala or the lateral habenula, but not the nucleus accumbens. The current findings implicate DRD3 in cue-induced reinstatement of nicotine, delineate some of the neural substrates underlying this role and support a potential for using selective DRD3 antagonists for the prevention of relapse to smoking.

Discovering novel compounds that stimulate or abrogate angiogenesis can lead to development of new therapeutic agents that may effectively treat diseases with pathological angiogenesis. The zebrafish model allows for a whole-organism approach to drug discovery. Advantages over other animal models include small embryo size, fecundity, rapid embryonic development, optical clarity and easy accessibility of the embryos. My goal is to validate the therapeutic efficacy and identify the molecular mechanisms of action of three compounds identified from our previous chemical genetic screens. Fenretinide promoted angiogenesis in zebrafish embryos but inhibited the angiogenesis-dependent process of fin regeneration. The pro-angiogenic effects of fenretinide appear secondary to the stimulation of somitogenesis. I3M potently inhibited angiogenesis and fin regeneration, and may act partially through the notch pathway. Lastly, I validated the anti-angiogenic effect of a novel compound DHM. Comprehensively, my studies support the utility of zebrafish as a versatile tool for anti-angiogenic drug discovery.

Discovering novel compounds that stimulate or abrogate angiogenesis can lead to development of new therapeutic agents that may effectively treat diseases with pathological angiogenesis. The zebrafish model allows for a whole-organism approach to drug discovery. Advantages over other animal models include small embryo size, fecundity, rapid embryonic development, optical clarity and easy accessibility of the embryos. My goal is to validate the therapeutic efficacy and identify the molecular mechanisms of action of three compounds identified from our previous chemical genetic screens. Fenretinide promoted angiogenesis in zebrafish embryos but inhibited the angiogenesis-dependent process of fin regeneration. The pro-angiogenic effects of fenretinide appear secondary to the stimulation of somitogenesis. I3M potently inhibited angiogenesis and fin regeneration, and may act partially through the notch pathway. Lastly, I validated the anti-angiogenic effect of a novel compound DHM. Comprehensively, my studies support the utility of zebrafish as a versatile tool for anti-angiogenic drug discovery.

In this dissertation we present deterministic algorithms for reliable and efficient communication in ad hoc networks. In the first part of this dissertation we give a specification for a reliable neighbor discovery layer for mobile ad hoc networks. We present two different algorithms that implement this layer with varying progress guarantees. In the second part of this dissertation we give an algorithm which allows nodes in a mobile wireless ad hoc network to communicate reliably and at the same time maintain local neighborhood information. In the last part of this dissertation we look at the distributed trigger counting problem in the wireless ad hoc network setting. We present a deterministic algorithm for this problem which is communication efficient in terms of the the maximum number of messages received by any processor in the system.

Namban screens are a well-known Japanese art form that was produced between the end of the 16th century and throughout the 17th century. More than 90 of these screens survive today. They possess substantial historical value because they display scenes of the first European activities in Japan. Among the subjects depicted on Namban screens, some of the most intriguing are ships: the European ships of the Age of Discovery. Namban screens were created by skillful Japanese traditional painters who had the utmost respect for detail, and yet the European ships they depicted are often anachronistic and strangely. On maps of the Age of Discovery, the author discovered representations of ships that are remarkably similar to the ships represented on the Namban screens. Considering the hypothesis that ships of some of the Namban screens are copies of ships represented on contemporary European cartography, the author realized that one particular historical event connecting Europe and Japan may be the source of these representations. This was the first visit of the Japanese Christian embassy, the Tensho Embassy, to Rome, in 1582. Its journey to Europe and its following visit to the Taiko, or first effective leader of Japan, Hideyoshi Toyotomi, may have been a trigger for the production of one of the most well-known Japanese artworks, the Namban screens.

The past few years have witnessed a significant evolution in mobile computing and communications, in which new trends and applications have the traditional role of computer networks into that of distributed service providers. In this thesis we explore an alternative way to form wireless ad-hoc networks whose topologies can be customized as required by the users’ software applications. In particular, we investigate the applicability of mobile codes to networks created by devices equipped with Bluetooth technology. Computer simulations results suggest that our proposed approach can achieve this task effectively, while matching the level of efficiency seen in other salient proposals in this area. This thesis also addresses the issue of service discovery in mobile ad-hoc networks. We propose the use of a directory whose network location varies in an attempt to reduce traffic overhead driven by users’ hosts looking for service information. We refer to this scheme as the Service Directory Placement Algorithm, or SDPA. We formulate the directory relocation problem as a Markov Decision Process that is solved by using Q-learning. Performance evaluations through computer simulations reveal bandwidth overhead reductions that range between 40% and 48% when compared with a basic broadcast flooding approach for networks comprising hosts moving at pedestrian speeds. We then extend our proposed approach and introduce a multi-directory service discovery system called the Service Directory Placement Protocol, or SDPP. Our findings reveal bandwidth overhead reductions typically ranging from 15% to 75% in networks comprising slow-moving hosts with restricted memory availability. In the fourth and final part of this work, we present the design foundations and architecture of a middleware system that called WISEMAN – WIreless Sensors Employing Mobile Agents. We employ WISEMAN for dispatching and processing mobile programs in Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs). Our proposed system enables the dynamic creation of semantic relationships between network nodes that cooperate to provide an aggregate service. We present discussions on the advantages of our proposed approach, and in particular, how WISEMAN facilitates the realization of service-oriented tasks in WSNs.