Thesis: Ph. D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Economics, 1980 / Bibliography : leaf 127. / by Kazuo Ueda. / Ph. D. / Ph. D. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Economics

Innovations in production and retail methods have propelled the fashion industry's explosive growth, with complex global supply chains that pose serious environmental and social issues. Despite increased awareness and multiple attempts toward sustainability, the industry is still trapped in an unsustainable paradigm. Therefore, this dissertation aims to examine the barriers of transition toward a sustainable fashion model. Given the highly globalized nature of the fashion supply chain, and manufacturing spread across different nations, it is essential to examine the barriers to sustainability from the perspective of actors within the supply chain. Examining these issues through the perspectives of manufacturers and other key stakeholders offers valuable insight into the intricate dynamics at work and helps in locating regional barriers that could prevent a smooth transition. Hence, this study focuses on conducting interviews with manufacturers and industry experts in Indian fashion supply chain to get the perspective of a manufacturing country. The findings reveal a disconnect between sustainability standards and their local implementation, often exacerbated by the lack of brand accountability and disregard for local realities. The research highlights how certifications, largely shaped by Western ideals, fail to account for the socio-economic and infrastructural constraints of manufacturing regions like India. This study argues for a pivot away from a one-size-fits-all approach to sustainability, advocating for strategies tailored to local contexts that better align with the needs and challenges faced by actors in developing economies. / Doctor of Philosophy / Innovation in production and sales methods has propelled the fashion industry's notable expansion in recent decades. But along with major social repercussions like low salaries, excessive working hours, and workplace exploitation, this expansion has serious environmental impacts like carbon emissions, water pollution, and wastewater management problems. Considering the growing number of strategies to promote sustainability, the industry is still confronting significant challenges in attaining true sustainability. Thus, this study aims to investigate the challenges of implementing sustainable practices, particularly from the viewpoints of Indian manufacturers and experts. India is a key hub in the garment manufacturing, which is why it was selected as the study location. The analysis reveals a significant discrepancy between the sustainability standards and their actual implementation. A key finding is that organizations based in the West mostly set guidelines for sustainable production, frequently ignoring the particular social, economic, political, and infrastructure difficulties that developing countries like India confront. The study argues that it is imperative that sustainability certifications and standards in this industry be reevaluated. This study advocates for tailored sustainability strategies that consider regional circumstances and difficulties rather than enforcing identical sustainability standards globally. Customizing sustainability initiatives to fit local contexts can lead to more effective and equitable solutions that are both practical and attainable.

<p>The main topic of this licentiate thesis is fast faultdetection. The thesis summaries the work performed in theproject“Fast fault detection for distributionsystems”.</p><p>In the first chapters of the thesis the term“fast”is used in a general manner. The term is laterdefined based upon considerations and conclusions made in thefirst chapters and then related to a specific time.</p><p>To be able to understand and appreciate why fast faultdetection is necessary, power system faults and theirconsequences are briefly discussed. The consequences of a faultare dependent of a number of different factors, one of thefactors being the duration of the fault.</p><p>The importance of the speed of the fault detection dependson the type of equipment used to clear the fault. A circuitbreaker which interrupt currents only when they pass through anatural zero crossing might be less dependent on the speed ofthe fault detection than a fault current limiter which limitsthe fault current before it has reached its first prospectivecurrent peak.</p><p>In order to be able to detect a fault in a power system, thepower system must be observed, i.e., measurements of relevantquantities must be performed so that the fault detectionequipment can obtain information of the state of the system.The fault detection equipment and some general methods of faultdetection are briefly described.</p><p>Some algorithms and their possible adaptation to fast faultdetection are described. A common principle of many algorithmsare that they assume that either a signal or the power systemobject can be described by a model. Sampled data values arethen fitted to the model so that an estimate of relevantparameters needed for fault detection is obtained. An algorithmwhich do not fit samples to a model but use instantaneouscurrent values for fault detection is also described andevaluated.</p><p>Since the exact state of a power system never is known dueto variations in power production and load, a model of thepower system or of the signal can never be perfect, i.e., theestimated parameter can never be truly correct. Furthermore,errors from the data acquisition system contribute to the totalerror of the estimated parameter.</p><p>Two case studies are used to study the performance of the(modified) algorithms. For those studies it has been shown thatthe algorithms can detect a fault within approximately 1msafter fault inception and that one of the algorithms candiscriminate between a fault and two types of common powersystem transients (capacitor and transformer energization).</p><p>The second case study introduced a system with two sourceswhich required a directional algorithm to discriminate betweenfaults inside or outside the protection zone.</p><p>It is concluded that under certain assumptions it ispossible to detect power system faults within approximately 1msand that it is possible to discriminate a power system faultfrom power system transient that regularly occurs within powersystems but which not are faults.</p>

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A Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) changes the basis of a group algebra from the standard basis to a Fourier basis. An efficient application of a DFT is called a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT). This research pertains to a particular type of FFT called Decimation in Frequency (DIF). An efficient DIF has been established for commutative algebra; however, a successful analogue for non-commutative algebra has not been derived. However, we currently have a promising DIF algorithm for CSn called Orrison-DIF (ODIF). In this paper, I will formally introduce the ODIF and establish a bound on the operation count of the algorithm.

Recent work has shown that fast matrix multiplication algorithms can be constructed by embedding the two input matrices into a group algebra, applying a generalized discrete Fourier transform, and performing the multiplication in the Fourier basis. Developing an embedding that yields a matrix multiplication algorithm with running time faster than naive matrix multiplication leads to interesting combinatorial problems in group theory. The crux of such an embedding, after a group G has been chosen, lies in finding a triple of subsets of G that satisfy a certain algebraic relation. I show how the process of finding such subsets can in some cases be greatly simplified by considering the action of the group G on an appropriate set X. In particular, I focus on groups acting on regularly branching trees.

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The purpose of this work is to investigate the implementation of nitride fuels containing little or no uranium in a fast-spectrum nuclear reactor to reduce the amount of plutonium and minor actinides in spent nuclear fuel destined for the Yucca Mountain Repository. A two tier recycling strategy is proposed. Thermal spectrum transmutation systems converted from the existing LWR fleet were modeled for the first tier, and the Japanese fast reactor MONJU was used for the fast-spectrum transmutation. The modeling was performed with the Monteburns code. Transmutation performance was investigated as well as delayed neutron fraction, heat generation rates, and radioactivity of the spent material in the short and long term for the different transmutation fuel cycles. A two-tier recycling strategy incorporating fast and thermal transmutation with uranium-free nitride fuel was shown to reduce the long-term heat generation rates and radioactivity of the spent nuclear fuel inventory.

The purpose of this qualitative research, framed as a narrative inquiry, was to explore the experiences of a select familys participation in the Family and Schools Together (F&ST) program at an elementary school in Northwestern Saskatchewan. All members of this select family were Caucasian and of non-aboriginal descent. These participating family members, a mother, father and their three boys, told their story within the context of guided questions in the setting of individual unstructured interviews. The interviews were audio taped, transcribed, analyzed for unique and common threads and written into the form of a family narrative. Although unique threads were discovered from the analysis, the following common experiences emerged: the importance of taking time for family, the benefit of connecting with others and building relationships, the perception of the goals behind F&ST and favourite activities. These experiences were incorporated into the family narrative. <p>This study offers the opportunity for a greater awareness into the impact, participation in the F&ST (Family and Schools Together) intervention program has had on one select family and how that impact can be used to strengthen the delivery of that program and encourage others to get involved. Findings from this study show that the select family in this study experienced positive growth in family relationships, and positive affiliation with their school and community as a result of participating in F&ST. The findings from this study form the basis for implications for practice as well as for areas of further research.