Today’s computing vision makes users to access services, applications via lightweight portable devices instead of powerful personal computers (PC). Since today’s applications and services need strong computing power and data storage, raising question will be “Who will provide these 2 attributes if users do not?” Cloud computing trend moves computing power and data storage from users’ side to application infrastructure side. The services that traditionally stored in users’ own computers will move into cloud computing platform and delivered by the Internet to its users. This new platform comes with its own benefits and design characteristics. Since all information data will move into another platform than individual computers, information visualization will be an opportunity field to analyze and maintain the cloud system structure as well as delivering abstract data into meaningful way to end users.

This research was initiated due to the popularity brand community phenomenon is gaining among companies through last several years. Growing number of companies on the market and shortening of the life cycle of products, make companies work hard in order to retain existing customers and gain new ones. Brand communities may provide many benefits to companies such as ability to build customer loyalty, increase of the marketing efficiency and enhancement of a brand. We wish to explore brand communities from two perspectives: inside, factors that may influence brand community members in particular purchase of augmented products and word of mouth communication and outside, the perception of brand communities as a future value by prospective customers.Due to our philosophical considerations and non-geographical nature of brand communities, the research method that we have chosen is quantitative. In order to collect a large amount of primary raw data we have used a survey approach. Therefore the self-administered questionnaire was designed. Two sampling techniques were used in data collection process – convenience and snowball. The survey was distributed via e-mail and Internet. The predetermined respondents were asked to answer questionnaires and distribute them further. During the data collection period 258 respondents were surveyed.The findings of this research suggest that prospective customers, who have a favorite brand, see brand community as a future value, hence may have an incentive to buy products or services of a particular brand. A managerial implication in this case is that brand communities are a good opportunity for a company to build long term relations with existing customers by involving them in brand community activities. Brand community events such as meetings, festivals, and promotional activities also influence an incentive of consumers to buy augmented products or services of a company; hence giving a firm an opportunity to earn additional profits by selling more additional products, paid services or accessories. Word of mouth communication is another valuable asset that companies may use. In our research we have proved that word of mouth inside brand communities may influence its members to buy products or services of another brand under the influence of an opinion leader or the majority. So managers of companies that sell related or supplemented products may jointly organize events, and reach more consumers.

Together with a research group from Mälardalen University’s department of Health, Care and Social Welfare, a prototype for an iPad app was created that aims to solves some of the current issues in healthcare for toddlers. The prototype would then be used by the research group to test with toddlers and examine whether the toddlers’ knowledge of basic medical treatments was increased. Due to varying linguistic backgrounds and abilities, the iPad had to be completely free of words, communicating only through sounds, images and animation. In this study, a research question was developed: What design aspects of illustrations and animations make them identifiable and ensure basic usability in an interactive iPad app that does not contain any written or spoken words for children between the ages 3 and 5? In order to find the answers to this question, an expert review was conducted, relevant design principles were studied to learn more about usability guidelines and animation for children, a prototype was created and iterative participatory tests were conducted with children of the same age as the target audience. These methods showed that there is a lack of usability guidelines when it comes to designing usability for a young audience. However, the usage of an expert review method prior to creating an app proved to be an effective way to see different design strategies in action and evaluate them. The participatory tests indicated that the usage of two different gestures is challenging for young children, and that instructions for these two gestures have to be different from one another.

The views expressed in this thesis are those of the author and do not reflect the official policy or position of the Department of Defense or the U.S. Government. / The numerical experiments, carried out through the use of a pressure-velocity coupled method to solve the Favre Averaged Navier-Stokes equations, on steady and sinusoidally oscillating flows at five different Keluegan-Carpenter numbers, and three periodicity levels are described. A second-order in time, second-order in space, second-level predictor-corrector finite difference scheme has been used. The solutions were solved by the CFD-ACE program from the CFD Research Corporation. The analysis has produced in-line force coefficients comparable to those obtained experimentally for sinusoidally-oscillating flows.

This study explored the effects of cultural consequences identified through a ranking task on the selection of interlocking behavioral contingencies and aggregate products constituting ethically self-controlled responses when participants had pre-existing relationships. Two experiments were conducted to explore these effects. Experiment 1 had two triads of three participants each recruited from a university-based autism center. Experiment 2 had three triads of three participants each; participants in Triads 3 and 4 were recruited from a university-based rock-climbing club while participants in Triad 5 were recruited from the same university-based autism center as in Experiment 1. All participants were exposed to a task that involved choosing odd or even rows from a matrix displayed throughout the experimental session. Individual contingencies were programmed in all conditions while metacontingencies were programmed in some conditions. Participants selected the topography of the cultural consequence through a pre-experimental ranking task prior to the onset of the experimental session. A change was made to the experimenter's verbal behavior in all operant and metacontingency conditions for Experiment 2. The results of both experiments indicate that identification of the cultural consequence through a ranking task with participants having pre-existing relationships did have an effect on the continued selection of the cultural consequence across all triads with quicker selection occurring during Experiment 2. This study extends the current literature on ethical self-control and provides new procedures and designs to further understand the variables involved in the selection of cultural consequences when there is competition with an immediate operant consequence.

This thesis uses a case study of the Community Home Energy Retrofit Project (CHERP) and it analyzes the larger statewide effort in California to increase energy efficiency in existing residential buildings to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. CHERP’s primary strategy is to embed itself into a community, educate residents on the multiple benefits of energy efficiency, and inspire them to take energy-saving actions in their own homes. It then builds its own community by connecting like-minded individuals together and provides an opportunity for them to exercise their political agency. This thesis analyzes CHERP’s effort in the context of the political, social, and economic climate of California. It identifies three obstacles for widespread energy efficiency adoption: one, CHERP’s lack of funding to support permanent staff and pay for collateral materials; two, low access to energy efficiency measures for low-income households and renters; and three, a lack of high quality home performance contractors that perform energy efficiency upgrades utilizing a whole-house energy systems approach. The thesis concludes with five recommendations to overcome these issues.

Este trabalho discorre sobre as causas do fracasso do socialismo realmente existente e por extensão elabora uma crítica consistente ao marxismo tradicional. A crítica incide precisamente na ênfase que se dá às categorias de exploração, propriedade privada e mercado, tidas como essenciais na determinação do capitalismo. Seguindo a lógica, estas formulações críticas possibilitam certo cotejamento no interior da produção teórica do serviço social ao restaurar a dimensão efetivamente crítica do pensamento marxista. Nessa perspectiva, discutiremos as influências da corrente aqui criticada nas elaborações da categoria profissional a fim de explorar os debates manifestos dentro do universo marxista. Em último caso, busca oferecer outras perspectivas teóricas no interesse de contribuição epistemológica. / This paper discusses the causes of the failure of really existing socialism and by extension prepares a consistent critique of traditional Marxism. The Critical focuses precisely in the emphasis that is given to the categories of exploitation, private property and the market, seen as essential in determining capitalism. Following this logic, the critical formulations allow certain mutual comparison the theoretical production of social work. Thus, compares influences of current here criticized in the elaborations of the profession in order to explore the manifests debates into the Marxist universe. Ultimately, offers other theoretical perspectives on epistemological contribution of interest.

A utilização de polímero natural como auxiliar de floculação pode ser alternativa interessante para o aumento da capacidade de estações de tratamento de água para abastecimento. O polímero natural é um produto de baixo custo, de fácil preparo e aplicação. Por ser produzido em larga escala e utilizado nos mais diversos setores da indústria, o polímero natural apresenta-se como alternativa aos polímeros sintéticos que, de maneira geral, são produtos de elevado custo e produzidos com matéria prima geralmente importada. No presente trabalho procurou-se demonstrar a eficiência dos polímeros naturais de fécula de batata e de fécula de mandioca na clarificação da água, mediante a realização de ensaios de laboratório e testes de campo - realizados na estação de tratamento ETA-2 de Valinhos (SP) - para diferentes características da água bruta. A gelatinização dos polímeros foi feita à temperatura ambiente, utilizando-se hidróxido de sódio. Para os testes na ETA-2, foram aproveitadas as instalações existentes e executadas pequenas adaptações para aplicação dos polímeros naturais. Conclui-se que, apesar de alguns ajustes que devem ser feitos, principalmente nos filtros, é possível utilizar os polímeros naturais na ETA-2 com grande probabilidade de êxito, com vistas ao aumento da capacidade de tratamento. Os resultados demonstraram que, tanto o polímero de fécula de batata como o de fécula de mandioca, foram eficientes como auxiliares de floculação na clarificação da água. / Natural polymer utilization as flocculation aid may be an effective alternative for upgrading the capacity of water treatment plants with low cost, easiers to prepare and apply. As natural polymers are large scale produced and applied in many different industrial sectors, it comes as a fesiable alternative for synthetic polymers that are generally high cost and made of imported materials. On this work it was tried to show the efficiency of natural polymers such as potato and manioc starch, for clarifying water by jar-test evaluations and field tests - carried out on water treatment plant WTP-2 of Valinhos (SP - Brazil) - for different characteristics of raw water. The polymer gelatinization was obtained by sodium hydroxide application. For the tests at WTP-2 the existing facilities were utilized and only small adaptations were made to apply natural polymers. The conclusion was, in despite of needing filters adjustments which must be made on water treatment plant for polymer application, it is possible to utilize the product with high successful probability for upgrading the capacity of water treatment plant. The results showed that even potato as well as cassava starchs were efficient on plant clarified water.

The upgrading of facilities for the Music Department of the University of Pretoria has long been overdue. The Department is constantly growing in terms of enrolment numbers and academic expertise, however, the facilities for the Department are limited and obsolete. This dissertation will thus explore the possibilities of extending and converting the existing Music Department's facilities in an effort to provide sufficient venues for performances and tuition, as well as portray the Department's contemporary image and dynamics through its new facilities on Campus in an effort to revitalise the music precinct and provide more exposeure to a public audience for the Department. Copyright / Dissertation (MArch(Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Architecture / unrestricted

京都大学 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(エネルギー科学) / 甲第23534号 / エネ博第425号 / 新制||エネ||81(附属図書館) / 京都大学大学院エネルギー科学研究科エネルギー社会・環境科学専攻 / (主査)准教授 MCLELLAN Benjamin, 教授 石原 慶一, 教授 下田 宏 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Energy Science / Kyoto University / DFAM