The ability to determine wood quality using non-destructive tests has enormous potential for the forestry industry in both research and commercial applications. This thesis describes some of the theory of acoustic waves in wood and how wood stiffness can be estimated by measuring the velocity of acoustic waves. Attention is paid to both resonance and stress wave timer technologies and the benefits and problems with both. A detailed description is given of the design of a new tool (Treetap 5.0) to aid in future, acoustic based, timber inspection research.

No description available.

Questa tesi considera tre aspetti di Environmental Regulation. Il primo riguarda i fallimenti del mercato e le azioni correttive corrispondenti del governo. Il secondo prende in esame gli effetti delle politiche di regolamentazione e valuta interventi pubblici efficienti. Il terzo osserva diversità delle normative e indaga le loro interazioni. / This dissertation examines three aspects of incentive problems in Environmental Regulation. The first deals with market failures and the government's corresponding corrective actions. The second examines the effects of regulatory policies and asks which kind of government interventions is efficient. The third observes diversity of regulations and investigates their interactions.

This thesis describes the results of three studies that used different measures of bacterial numbers in retail ground beef (n=309) collected across different locations in Saskatchewan within a one-year period (May 2011 – May 2012). The measurements were compared among three sample categories: 1 - ground beef displaying government inspection information on the label legend (n=126), 2 - originating from facilities licensed by local health regions and thus not subjected to government inspection (n=80), or 3 - processed and repackaged at the retail level thus carrying no government inspection information on the label (n=103). The first study reports baseline levels of bacteria in Saskatchewan retail ground beef as measured by traditional (total aerobic plate count (TAPC) and total E. coli plate count (TEPC)) and culture-independent methods (estimate of total bacterial load (TBL) by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction). After accounting for season and whether the samples were fresh or frozen at purchase, the lowest TAPC (log10 4.9 culture forming units per gram (cfu/g); 95% CI log10 4.7 to log10 5.1 cfu/g), TEPC (log10 0.58 cfu/g; 95% CI log10 0.39 to log10 0.77 cfu/g), and TBL in frozen ground beef (log10 4.5 target copies per gram (tc/g); 95% CI log10 4.0 to log10 4.9 tc/g) were observed in samples originating from federally regulated or provincially licensed facilities. In the second study, presence of known Enterobacteriaceae virulence factors (stx1, stx2, and eae) was detected by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and compared between samples originating from three different regulatory and inspection environments as well as collected during different seasons of the year, and purchased fresh or frozen. One hundred and twelve out of all tested samples (n=308) were positive for the presence of at least one virulence marker with stx1 identified in 107 samples, stx2 - in 8, and eae - in 26. No significant associations were found between the virulence markers presence and sample category, state or season of purchase. The third study investigates the presence and diversity of Campylobacter spp. organisms in the same pool of 309 retail beef samples as detected by molecular methods. Fifty samples (16.2%) tested positive for Campylobacter genus-specific DNA in conventional PCR and 49 samples (15.9%) tested positive for at least one Campylobacter species DNA presence in real-time qPCR, but the crude agreement between the two methods was less than 50%. C. coli DNA presence was observed in 14 samples (4.5%), C. curvus – in 11 (3.6%), C. fetus – in 6 (1.9%), C. hyointestinalis – in 24 (7.8%), C. jejuni – in 12 (3.9%), C. rectus – in 6 (1.9%), and C. upsaliensis – in 9 (2.9%). There was no difference in the frequency of Campylobacter identified among the three sample categories, fresh and frozen, or samples purchased during the cold or warm season. These studies provide data on prevalence of bacteria in retail ground beef offered for sale in Saskatchewan and compare differences between samples presented to the consumer as originating from federally regulated or provincially licensed facilities, locally licensed facilities, or repackaged and processed directly at a retail outlet. The information on baseline levels of bacteria in retail ground beef and the comparisons among different categories can be used in prioritising food safety improvement efforts in Saskatchewan.

No description available.

As humans seek to explore and exploit underwater environments and resources the need for tools and techniques to assist in this is critical. An important component of working in any environment is understanding dimensional information about that environment. The predominant inspection techniques in an underwater environment are sonar and video systems, However, these do not provide fine detail and often critical geometric measurements about small features and defects. Underwater laser scanners have been investigated for underwater measurements and demonstrated to operate with success; however, the current deployment options of these systems are limited. Through this thesis, an easy to deploy underwater laser scanner was developed, overcoming mechanical integration and sensor calibration challenges not previously dealt with. By integrating the laser, sensor and rotary actuator into a single housing, the calibration of the sensor is successfully maintained through multiple deployments of the scanner into a variety of applications. The developed scanner has been successfully deployed for a variety of applications, from Underwater Archeology and Biology in the Dominican Republic and Antarctica to Offshore and Inland asset inspection in the Gulf of Mexico to the Middle East and the Persian Gulf.

Thesis (M.S.P.H.)--University of Michigan, 1947.

Thesis (MTech (Construction Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 99-104). Also available online.

Univ., Diss.--Mainz, 2003. / Literaturverz. S. [185] - 204.

Thesis (M.S.P.H.)--University of Michigan, 1947.