Thesis (M.S.)--University of Michigan, 1981.

Originally presented as the author's dissertation. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 271-286).

The aim of the diploma thesis is to evaluate a significance of sport events for tourism and to analyze their impacts on tourism in the region. The thesis is divided into four chapters, the first two summarize theoretical knowledge - the economic importance of tourism, the inclusion of events into the context of the tourism industry and also specifics of sport events and their general impacts on the region, in which they are held. The next two chapters are devoted to the most important sport events in the Czech Republic as well as abroad and to the evaluation of their impacts on tourism in the destination. The final chapter focuses fully on the analysis of impacts of the Biathlon World Championship 2013 in Nové Město na Moravě on tourism in the region.

The purpose of this study was to examine the structure of the event process on Cal Poly’s campus. An intrinsic case study method was used, and data were collected and analyzed using triangulation from three sources of information: documents, interviews, and participation research. Overall, the structure of the event management process on campus was found to be stable, but could use improvement. Cal Poly should consider establishing a specific, designated organization that would help centralize the event management process at Cal Poly. This organization could be in charge of training and updating event managers, approving events, monitoring volume of events on campus at a specific time, holding event managers accountable to following policies, and maintaining a website that would act as a hub for all event-related materials.

Tourism industry is one of the hardest hits by the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, Event industry as an important stakeholder of tourism has been fiercely damaged globally. In this study the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the event industry businesses in Sweden, their methods of coping with this situation and the recovery plans will be evaluated. Further some predictions about the future trends and possible transformations of the industry have been made. This research has been conducted qualitatively and by gathering data from both primary and secondary sources provided a very broad reference for the researcher. Restrictions in Sweden started with a 500-person limit then the figures went down to 50 people, followed by 8 people, afterwards 300 and finally 8 people limit again. Commercially, it has been difficult to conduct business due to the massive uncertainty brought on by COVID-19 for all the companies in the event industry in Sweden. Cancelling or postponing events caused huge revenue losses, redundancies, closing businesses etc. limitations and uncertainties brought by COVID-19 pandemic forced some innovative companies to start rethinking their event packages. By upskilling staff and digital investing in building the needed infrastructures, many event companies could step into the virtual and hybrid events landscape. Meanwhile , Small to medium-sized companies suffered the most in terms of tackling the situation due to limited resources and severity of the situation. The forceful hiatus to hold-on till going back to normal has been the best solution for those who were not able to come up with coping strategies. Clearly by the mass vaccine distribution, the event industry will gradually go back to its normal status quo, while virtual on demand and hybrid events will stay as important components of the industry.The result of this study reveals the value of resiliency and being prepared that will help companies to survive during crisis situations. But after all, although this pandemic is a disruption that caused many challenges for the event industry. But, at the same time it brought many dynamic opportunities for the sector to slowly evolve and develop.

This dissertation examines the legends of the Biblical book of Joshua in an attempt to identify the relics of reminiscence that reside within the document. The initial step in this process is presenting the neuropsychological perspective of myth making and the nature of confabulation in oral tradition. The natural segue is then made to the Deuteronomistic history of the text and the formation of the initial source legend. From this investigation the basic structure of the Primary Conquest Source Legend is exposed. The next step is a comparison of this Source Legend with the history of proto-Israel. This investigation provides a clear contextual epoch for the legend of conquest against Jericho and Ai. A related finding is the contextual epoch for the second source legend used to form the present text of Joshua. / Religious Studies & Arabic / D.Litt. et Phil. (Biblical Studies)

Previous research indicates that those with a history of abuse have an increased risk to experience subsequent traumatic events. This study utilized a convenience sample of undergraduate students to examine the reaction of those with a history of abuse to subsequent traumatic experiences. In addition, the study assessed the level of posttraumatic growth an individual experiences following childhood abuse. The level of posttraumatic growth was examined to determine if the growth allowed for participants to better handle successive traumas. Those with a history of abuse experienced higher levels of symptomology following a successive traumatic event. Results did not support the hypothesis that among those with a history of abuse, lower levels of posttraumatic growth would predict higher levels of symptoms following a later trauma. Implications and limitations of the study, as well as directions for future research are discussed.

Les relations spatiales entre les différentes régions dans une image sont utiles pour la compréhension et l'interprétation de la scène représentée. L'analyse Spatio-temporelle d'une scène implique l'intégration du temps dans des relations spatiales entre les objets en mouvement. Les relations spatio-temporelles sont définies dans un intervalle de temps utilisant la géométrie 3D ou l'extension de la géométrie 2D à la dimension temporelle. La modélisation des relations spatiales dynamiques prend en compte la position relative des objets et leurs relations directionnelles, ceci implique les relations topologiques, directionnelles et de distance. Ces relations sont étendues au domaine temporel. Dans notre travail, on décrit une méthode de combinaison d’information topologique et directionnelle où les relations d'Allen floues 1D sont appliquées au domaine spatial. La méthode proposée intègre le flou au niveau des relations. La méthode très gourmande initialement en temps de calcul en raison de l’approximation des objets ainsi qu'à l'algorithme de fuzzification des segments des sections longitudinales est améliorée en utilisant une approximation polygonale adaptée sur les objets considérés. L'algorithme du fuzzification des segments d'une section longitudinale inclut des opérateurs d'agrégation floue. Dans la méthode proposée, Les relations topologiques 2Dsont représentées par un histogramme. Les relations floues n'étant pas exhaustives, un algorithme de défuzzification des relations spatiales a été proposé pour réaliser un ensemble JEPD de relations spatiales. Cet ensemble de relations spatiales est représenté par un graphe de voisinage où chaque nœud du graphe représente la relation topologique et directionnelle. Cette méthode définit des relations spatio-temporelles en utilisant le modèle de données Espace-Temps. Un ensemble de relations spatio-temporelles est également fourni à l'aide de la stabilité topologique. Afin de valider le modèle, nous avons développé des applications fondées sur le raisonnement spatio-temporel proposé. Celui-ci a permit la création de tables de composition pour les relations spatiales topologiques structurées en sous-tables. Les entités de ces sous-tables sont liées les unes aux autres par des relations spatiales. Dans une seconde application, nous avons proposé une méthode de prédiction des évènements entre objets en mouvement fondée sur le même raisonnement spatio-temporel. Les objets en mouvement changeant de position à chaque instant, la prédiction de la nouvelle position spatiale d'un objet tient compte des états de relations spatiales calculées précédemment. / Spatial relations between different image regions are helpful in image understanding, interpretation and computer vision applications. Spatio-temporal analysis involves the integration of spatial relations changing over time between moving objects of a dynamic scene. Spatio-temporal relations are defined for a selected time interval using 3D geometry or extension of 2D object geometry to the time dimension with sequence occurrence of primitive events for each snapshot. Modeling dynamic spatial relations takes into account the relative object position and their directional relations; this involves the topological, directional and distance relations and their logical extension to the temporal domain. In this thesis, a method for combining topological and directional relations information is discussed where 1D temporal fuzzy Allen relations are applied in spatial domain. Initially, the method has a high computational cost. This computing cost is due to the object approximation and the fuzzification algorithm of segments. The computing time has been using polygonal object approximation. Fuzzification algorithm is replaced with fuzzy aggregation operators for segments of a longitudinal section. In this method, two dimensional topological relations are represented in a histogram. The representation method for two dimensional spatial relations has been changed. These fuzzy relations are not Jointly Exhaustive and Pairwise Disjoint (JEPD). An algorithm for defuzzification of spatial relations is proposed to realize JEPD set of spatial relations, these JEPD spatial relations are represented in a neighborhood graph. In this neighborhood graph, each node represents the topological and directional relation. This method is further extended for defining spatio-temporal relations using space and time data model, a set of spatio-temporal relations are also elaborated using the stability property in topology. In an application, a method for spatio-temporal reasoning based on this new model is developed. Spatio-temporal reasoning consists of developing the composition tables for spatial relations. Composition table for topological relations are rearranged into sub-tables. Entities in these sub-tables are related to each other and mathematical rules are defined for composition of spatial relations which elaborate the relation between entities of sub-tables. In another application, we propose a method for motion event predictions between moving objects. It is a similar process to the spatio-temporal reasoning. Dynamic objects occupy different places at different time points, these objects have multiple choices for subsequent positions and a unique history. Prediction about motion events take into account the history of a moving object and predict about the semantics of a motion event.

Weather radar imagery is important for several remote sensing applications including tracking of storm fronts and radar echo classification. In particular, tracking of precipitation events is useful for both forecasting and classification of rain/non-rain events since non-rain events usually appear to be static compared to rain events. Recent weather radar imaging-based forecasting approaches [3] consider that precipitation events can be modeled as a combination of localized functions using Radial Basis Function Neural Networks (RBFNNs). Tracking of rain events can be performed by tracking the parameters of these localized functions. The RBFNN-based techniques used in forecasting are not only computationally expensive, but also moderately effective in modeling small size precipitation events. In this thesis, an existing RBFNN technique [3] was implemented to verify its computational efficiency and forecasting effectiveness. The feasibility of modeling precipitation events using RBFNN effectively was evaluated, and several modifications to the existing technique have been proposed.

Reputation is an important asset for organisations worldwide. Many researchers have attempted to develop a measurement construct to assess an organisation’s reputation, with the RepTrak System being recognised to be the world’s first tool that assess reputation across multiple stakeholders and areas of the organisation. Nevertheless, the characteristics, methods and stakeholders to include within an assessment of this intangible asset continues to be widely debated. Organisations are under intense scrutiny by their stakeholders, with reputation being an organisational asset on which many opinions are formed. Universities in the UK are no different, as they compete for students from around the world, with the institutions thought to have the best reputations, attracting more students. Nevertheless, no agreed measure for assessing a university’s reputation exists, with many organisations relying solely on league table rankings. Thus, this thesis evaluated existing reputation measurement characteristics, to determine their applicability in assessing the reputation of a UK university. The antecedents of reputation are also widely debated. Authors suggest that stakeholders’ prior knowledge and experience, and communication they receive from an organisation contributes to their perceptions of that organisation’s reputation. The Media Richness Theory suggests a hierarchy to this communication, with face-to-face communication recognised to be of increasing importance due to its ‘rich’ nature. Consequently, the use of events as a strategic communication tool for marketing and public relations purposes has become increasingly popular. Nevertheless, the impact of these events on an organisation’s reputation has yet to be assessed. Thus, the aim of x this thesis is to evaluate the impact that these events have on stakeholders’ perceptions of a UK university’s reputation. A case study methodology, using mixed methods, and underpinned by a pragmatic philosophical perspective was adopted. Five semi-structured interviews were held with senior managers during the first phase of data collection and analysis. Results from these interviews were used to determine the strategic purpose of events as a communication tool. In phase two of the research, the study’s main variables (Reputation, Event Influence, Knowledge and Familiarity, Future Intentions) are combined into a model to assess their relationships. These are tested using Structural Equation Modelling, and data collected from 23 university events and 592 event attendees, using a quantitative questonniare. This study contributes to our knowledge and understanding of the benefits of using events as a form of communication, and highlights the necessity of using a variety of communication channels to inform different stakeholder groups. Findings within this research contradict existing knowledge within the UK Higher Education Industry, by suggesting that university league tables were not the most frequently used method of assessing a university’s reputation, and that rather stakeholders base their perceptions on their personal experience with the institution. Consequently, attending events is found to have a positive influence on attendees’ perceptions of the university’s reputation, however a threshold level exists for stakeholders with high levels of familiarity with the university. Therefore, evidence of the impact of using events as a communication tool is found with a positive return on investment in terms of reputation gains. Thus, findings can be used to inform communication strategy within the higher education industry within the UK.