Thesis (M.S.)--University of North Carolina at Wilmington, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves : 60-61).

Software implementovaný v rámci Fly-by-Wire systému firmy Honeywell je složen z mnoha modelů implementovaných v systému Simulink. Tato práce se zabývá hledáním přímých a nepřímých spojitostí mezi jednotlivými signály v systému těchto modelů. Jako vhodný aparát je zvolena teorie grafů. Na základě modelů jsou vygenerovány grafy a úloha nalézt spojitost mezi signály je převedena na úlohu nalézt cestu mezi dvěma vrcholy grafu. Známé algoritmy k vyhledávání cest v grafech určují délku nebo váhu nalezené cesty. Pro tuto aplikaci je ale potřeba rozlišovat cesty primární a sekundární bez ohledu na jejich délku. Proto jsou tyto známé algoritmy upraveny.

Denna studie undersöker hur svensk och brittisk tidningspress rapporterade om ländernas inrikes Black Lives Matter-demonstrationer under sommaren 2020. Syftet är att jämföra ett urval av artiklar från respektive land samt undersöka i vilken utsträckning protestparadigmets karaktärsdrag återfinns i artiklarna. Metodologiskt kombineras kvantitativ innehållsanalys och kvalitativ textanalys. Den kvantitativa delen ger en överblick över rapporteringen i artiklarna, medan den kvalitativa delen bidrar med en mer djupgående analys. Det teoretiska ramverket grundar sig i gestaltningsteorin. Mer specifikt tar uppsatsen avstamp i teorin om protestparadigmet, som föreslår att medier tenderar att vinkla rapporteringen mot våld, konflikt och polisingripanden under demonstrationerna snarare än orsak, syfte och mål med en demonstration. Även teorin om aktivistdilemmat används, en teori som menar att demonstranter ofta tar till våldsamma handlingar för medial uppmärksamhet, vilket i sin tur kan bidra med en risk till att rörelsen framställs ofördelaktigt i medierna. Resultatet av studien visar att paradigmets karaktärsdrag tydligt syns i de svenska artiklarna eftersom de till stor del fokuserar på våldsamheter i samband med demonstrationerna, samtidigt som demonstranternas budskap ofta undermineras. Medan paradigmets karaktärsdrag generellt sett nyanseras eller inte förekommer i de brittiska artiklarna eftersom stort utrymme ges till demonstranterna att uttrycka sitt budskap och mål samtidigt som en tydlig distinktion mellan provokatörer och fredliga demonstranter oftast görs.

This dissertation examines how Black influencers navigate the highly competitive commercial terrain of influencing. Situated within literature about the commodification of the Black feminine body, neoliberal discourses about individualized digital labor, and the racialization of discourses about Black labor and success, I argue that celebrity status flattens and makes palatable political projects easily consumed by digital audiences. In particular, brands and digital media companies appropriate woke culture at the expense of Black communities, influencers, and people by propping up economic solutions to racial strife and diversifying their public facing images. By offering individualized, market-based solutions, brands and media outlets obscure the systemic forces that plague Black influencers who are precariously positioned within a mode of digital labor that lacks a supportive infrastructure and exacerbates their vulnerabilities. Contextualized by the George Floyd protests of 2020, I further argue that Black influencers do not internalize neoliberal logics or pursue aspirational labor in the same way as their white counterparts due to the material vulnerabilities and systemic pressures explicitly shaping Black women’s experiences on visually oriented platforms such as Instagram and YouTube. Rather, Black influencers challenge traditional definitions of influencing, traversing the line between ‘conventional’ and political work by actively addressing the way systemic issues permeate the sphere of digital labor. Although Black influencers adopt a hustle and grind mentality indicative of neoliberal governmentality, they also work to reclaim their bodies, voices, and individuality against a space fraught with the politics of representation. / Media & Communication

In Shakespeare’s Othello, Othello faces societal pressures of racism as he marries Senator Brabantio’s White daughter Desdemona. This creates the main plot, and the villain of the play, Iago, plots against him which leads to the destruction of Othello’s reputable character. Othello is transformed into a violent, murderous husband by Iago’s villainous ploy fueled by using racial slurs, and Othello’s final form matches the name his enemies assign him. Stripping Othello of his name and portraying him as “the Moor”, a term used to describe a category of Black persons viewed as barbaric, is a tactic used throughout time and is rooted in historical strategies for identity destruction and racism. The reader witnesses this tactic in a play written some 400 years in the past, but the problem still lingers in America where racism is commonly expressed through “Speech Acts”. Just a short time ago, Paul Robeson, a famous actor of Othello, faced these same problems while pursuing his spot on the stage. In consideration of today’s time, the movement “Say His Name” started following the death of George Floyd only two years ago, and this signifies the persistence of racism alongside the importance of names. Using slurs or refusing to use a person’s rightful name is a form of racial identity destruction witnessed from Shakespeare’s time, to Paul Robeson’s portrayal of the character, and into America’s now as the phrase “Say His Name” has become a staple in the fight against police brutality on Black persons in America.

This dissertation presents the development of a two-dimensional St. Johns River model and the coupling of hydrodynamic and wave models for the simulation of storm tides. The hydrodynamic model employed for calculating tides and surges is ADCIRC-2DDI (ADvanced CIRCulation Model for Shelves, Coasts and Estuaries, Two-Dimensional Depth Integrated) developed by Luettich et al. (1992). The finite element based model solves the fully nonlinear shallow water equations in the generalized wave continuity form. Hydrodynamic applications are operated with the following forcings: 1) astronomical tides, 2) inflows from tributaries, 3) meteorological effects (winds and pressure), and 4) waves (wind-induced waves). The wave model applied for wind-induced wave simulation is the third-generation SWAN (Simulating WAves Nearshore), applicable to the estimation of wave parameters in coastal areas and estuaries. The SWAN model is governed by the wave action balance equation driven by wind, sea surface elevations and current conditions (Holthuijsen et al. 2004). The overall work is comprised of three major phases: 1) To develop a model domain that incorporates the entire East Coast of the United States, Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea, while honing in on the St. Johns River area; 2) To employ output from the SWAN model with the ADCIRC model and produce a uni-directional coupling of the two models in order to investigate the effects of the wave radiation stresses; 3) To couple the ADCIRC model with the SWAN model to describe the complete interactions of the two physical processes. Model calibration and comparisons are accomplished in three steps. First, astronomical tide simulation results are calibrated with historical NOS (National Ocean Service) tide data. Second, overland and riverine flows and meteorological effects are included, and computed river levels are compared with the historical NOS water level data. Finally, the storm tides generated by Hurricane Floyd are simulated and compared with historical data. This research results in a prototype for real-time simulation of tides and waves for flash flood and river-stage forecasting efforts of the NWS Forecasting Centers that border coastal areas. The following two main conclusions are reported: 1) regardless of whether one uses uni-coupling or coupling, wind-induced waves result in an approximately 10 – 15 % higher peak storm tide level than without any coupling; and 2) the wave-current interaction described by the coupling model results in decreasing peaks and increasing troughs in the storm tide hydrograph. Two main corollary conclusions are also drawn from a 122-day hindcast for the period spanning June 1 – October 1, 2005. First, wind forcing for the St. Johns River is equal to or greater than that of astronomic tides and generally supersedes the impact of inflows, while pressure variations have a minimal impact. Secondly, water levels inside the St. Johns River depend on the wind forcings in the deep ocean; however, if one applies an elevation hydrograph boundary condition from a large-scale domain model to a local-scale domain model the results are highly accurate.

Architecture extends into a place through the manifestation of the human spirit and will. It should intensify that place and heighten the awareness of human existence. Upon entering into this higher realm of understanding of the self and place, one begins to find beauty in the created object inhabited. This architecture speaks of a higher intention of man, awakens his emotions, and urges his desires to not merely exist but to engage in the celebration of life. Architecture at the scale of the Town is a stage upon which the daily lives of the individual and the collective are framed, and the exchange of ideas, services, products and entertainment become the scenes of a play. The Town is an artifact of humanity. Through architecture, the Town should be a place where one can refine the mind, body, and soul - a place of fellowship and gathering. The focus of this thesis is to provide such a place for the Town of Floyd, Virginia. / Master of Architecture

This research develops and tests a methodology for improving quality on a continuous process line. A nonwovens line was chosen as the experimental environment to test this methodology. First the process variables were analyzed and classified and a screening experiment was run to determine which variables had a significant effect on the quality measures--air permeability, caliper, basis weight, and appearance--of the filter media. Then a second experiment was run to study fewer variables in more detail. The data were interpreted with ANOVA and regression models. This research makes three general contributions: a methodology for improving quality on a continuous process line, the cause-and-effect relationships between some of the independent and dependent variables, and the second-order and third-order effects show the complexity of the research environment. / Master of Science

The goal of this research is to shed light on current developments in the field of Aboriginal Theatre Studies. This investigation encourages the reader to look again at the ways in which elements of Aboriginal culture are manifesting in contemporary theatre. Aboriginal theatre is increasingly visible in Canada and its cachet is growing with both artists and audiences. As a result, culturally specific worldviews and traditional practices are being introduced to mainstream Canadian theatre audiences. Through interviews with practicing Aboriginal artists like Floyd Favel, Yvette Nolan and Marie Clements and through an exploration of their individual theatrical processes, this research has attempted to identify how practicing Aboriginal artists consciously privilege Indigenous ways of knowing in their approaches to creating theatre for the contemporary stage.

The goal of this research is to shed light on current developments in the field of Aboriginal Theatre Studies. This investigation encourages the reader to look again at the ways in which elements of Aboriginal culture are manifesting in contemporary theatre. Aboriginal theatre is increasingly visible in Canada and its cachet is growing with both artists and audiences. As a result, culturally specific worldviews and traditional practices are being introduced to mainstream Canadian theatre audiences. Through interviews with practicing Aboriginal artists like Floyd Favel, Yvette Nolan and Marie Clements and through an exploration of their individual theatrical processes, this research has attempted to identify how practicing Aboriginal artists consciously privilege Indigenous ways of knowing in their approaches to creating theatre for the contemporary stage.