Point processes are common in many physical applications found in engineering and biology. These processes can be observed in one-dimension as a time series or two-dimensions as a spatial point pattern with extensive amounts of literature devoted to their analyses. However, if the observed process is a hybrid of spatial and temporal point process, very few practical methods exist. In such cases, practitioners often remove the temporal component and analyze the spatial dependencies. This marginal spatial analysis may lead to misleading results if time is an important factor in the process. In this dissertation we extend the current analysis of spatial point patterns to include a temporal dimension. First- and second-order intensity measures for analyzing spatiotemporal point patterns are explicitly defined. Estimation of first-order intensities are examined using 3-dimensional smoothing techniques. Conditions for weak stationarity are provided so that subsequent second-order analysis can be conducted. We consider second-order analysis of spatiotemporal point patterns first in the space-time domain through an extension of Ripley's Κ-function. An alternative analysis is given in the frequency domain though construction of a spatiotemporal periodogram. The methodology provided is tested through simulation of spatiotemporal point patterns and by analysis of a real data set. The biological application concerns the estimation of the homerange of groups of the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker in the Fort Bragg area of North Carolina. Monthly or bimonthly point patterns of the bird distribution are analyzed and integrated over a 23 month period. / Ph. D.

Fracture systems or networks always control the stability, deformability, fluid and gas storage capacity and permeability, and other mechanical and hydraulic behavior of rock masses. The characterization of fracture systems is of great significance for understanding and analyzing the impact of fractures to rock mass behavior. Fracture trace data have long been used by engineers and geologists to character fracture system. For subsurface fractures, however, boreholes, wells, tunnels and other cylindrical samplings of fractures often provide high quality fracture trace data and have not been sufficiently utilized. The research work presented herein is intended to interpret fracture traces on borehole walls and other cylindrical surfaces by using stereology. The relationships between the three-dimension fracture intensity measure, P32, and the lower dimension fracture intensity measures are studied. The analytical results show that the conversion factor between the three-dimension fracture intensity measure and the two-dimension intensity measure on borehole surface is not dependent on fracture size, shape or circular cylinder radius, but is related to the orientation of the cylinder and the orientation distribution of fractures weight by area. The conversion factor between the two intensity measures is determined to be in the range of [1.0, π/2]. The conversion factors are also discussed when sampling in constant sized or unbounded fractures with orientation of Fisher distribution. At last, the author proposed estimators for mean fracture size (length and width) with borehole/shaft samplings in sedimentary rocks based on a probabilistic model. The estimators and the intensity conversion factors are tested and have got satisfactory results by Monte Carlo simulations. / Ph. D.

Fractures and fracture networks govern the mechanical and fluid flow behavior of rock masses. Tunneling and other rock mechanics applications therefore require the characterization of rock fractures based on geological data. Field investigations produce only a limited amount of data from boreholes, outcrops, cut slopes, and geophysical surveys. In tunneling, the process of excavation creates a priceless opportunity to gather more data during construction. Typically, however, these data are not utilized due to the impedance of sampling and analysis on the flow of construction, and safety concerns with sampling within unlined tunnel sections. However, the use of this additional data would increase the overall safety, quality, and cost savings of tunneling. This study deals with several aspects of the above, with the goal of creating methods and tools to allow engineers and geologists to gather and analysis fracture data in tunnels without interrupting the excavation and without compromising safety. Distribution-independent trace density and mean trace length estimators are developed using principles of stereology. An optimization technique is developed utilizing Differential Evolution to infer fracture size and shape from trace data obtained on two or more nonparallel sampling planes. A method of producing nearly bias free empirical trace length CDF's is also introduced. These new methods and tools were validated using Monte Carlo simulations. A field study was conducted in an existing tunnel allowing the above methods and tools to be further validated and tested. A relational database was developed to aid in storage, retrieval, and analysis of field data. Fracture models were built and updated using fracture data from within the tunnel. Utilization of state of the art imaging techniques allowed for remote sampling and analysis, which were enhanced by the use of 3d visualization techniques. / Ph. D.

Une question fondamentale qui surgit dans le cadre de l’analyse probabiliste du risque sismique est le choix des indicateurs de nocivité des signaux sismiques. En plus de réduire la variabilité de la réponse structurelle (ou non structurelle),un indicateur amélioré (i.e. capable de mieux capturer les caractéristiques de nocivité des mouvements sismiques, aussi bien que l’alea sismique) fournit des critères moins stricts pour la sélection des signaux sismiques.Deux nouveaux indicateurs sont proposés dans cette étude: le premier, nommé ASAR (i.e. Relative Average Spectral Acceleration), est conçu pour la prévision de la demande structurelle, le second, nommé E-ASAR (i.e.Equipment Relative Average Spectral Acceleration), vise à prévoir la demande des composants non structuraux. Les performances des indicateurs proposés sont comparées avec celles des indicateurs de la littérature, sur la base de: a)milliers d’enregistrements sismiques ; b) analyses numériques conduites avec des modèles représentants différents types de bâtiments; et c) analyses statistiques rigoureuses des résultats. Selon l'étude comparative, les indicateurs développés s'avèrent être plus “efficaces” que les indicateurs couramment utilisés. D'ailleurs, l’ASAR et l’E-ASAR ont montré au propre la caractéristique de la “suffisance” en ce qui concerne la magnitude, la distance source-site, et le type de sol (VS30). De plus, les deux indicateurs originaux peuvent être calculés simplement avec la connaissance de la fréquence fondamentale du bâtiment. Cette caractéristique rend l’ASAR et l’E-ASAR facilement exploitables dans les études probabilistes d’alea sismique.Par conséquent, en raison de leur efficacité, suffisance, robustesse et formulation simple, l’ASAR et l’E-ASAR peuvent être considérés comme des candidats prometteurs pour la définition de l’alea sismique dans les cadres de l'analyse probabiliste et déterministe du risque sismique. / A fundamental issue that arises in the framework of Probabilistic Seismic Risk Analysis is the choice of groundmotion Intensity Measures (IMs). In addition to reducing record-to-record variability, an improved IM (i.e. one able tobetter capture the damaging features of a record, as well as the site hazard) provides criteria for selecting input groundmotions to loosen restrictions.Two new structure-specific IMs are proposed in this study: the first, namely ASAR (i.e. Relative Average SpectralAcceleration), is conceived for Structural demand prediction, the second namely, E-ASAR (i.e. Equipment-RelativeAverage Spectral Acceleration), aims to predict Non-Structural components acceleration demand. The performance ofthe proposed IMs are compared with the ones of current IMs, based on: a) a large dataset of thousands recordedearthquake ground motions; b) numerical analyses conducted with state-of-the-art FE models, representing actualload-bearing walls and frame structures, and validated against experimental tests; and c) systematic statistical analysesof the results. According to the comparative study, the introduced IMs prove to be considerably more “efficient” withrespect to the IMs currently used. Likewise, both ASAR and E-ASAR have shown to own the characteristic of“sufficiency” with respect to magnitude, source-to-site distance and soil-type (Vs30). Furthermore, both the introducedIMs possess the valuable characteristics to need (in order to be computed) merely the knowledge of the building’sfundamental frequency, exactly as it is for the wide-spread spectral acceleration Spa(f1). This key characteristic makesboth ASAR and E-ASAR easily exploitable in Probabilistic Seismic Hazard Analysis.Therefore, due to their proven efficiency, sufficiency, robustness and applicable formulation, both ASAR and EASARcan be considered as worthy candidates for defining seismic hazard within the frameworks of both Probabilisticand Deterministic Seismic Risk Analysis.

L'activité physique a un impact important sur la santé populationnelle, et les comportements de transport constituent une partie substantielle de l'activité physique totale. Ce travail de thèse a pour objectif d'améliorer les mesures de l'activité physique liées au transport et d'utiliser ces nouvelles mesures dans des études de cas empirique sur l'activité physique liée au transport des adultes âgés de 35 à 83 ans résidant en Ile-de-France. Méthodes: Des données GPS et d'accéléromètre ont été collectée dans le cadre de " RECORD étude GPS " pour 236 participants. L'Enquête Globale Transport a recueilli des données sur une population de 21332 participants sur une période d'un jour. Les méthodes statistiques utilisées incluent Random Forests, des régressions binomiales négatives; et des systèmes d'information géographique. Résultats Les unités de temps plus courtes ont donné lieu à des estimations d'activité physique beaucoup plus importantes. Nous avons observé 18,9 min T-APMV par jour en moyenne dans cet échantillon représentatif de l'Ile-de -France. Les participants ayant un niveau d'éducation plus élevé ont plus de T-APMV que les participants moins instruits. Les personnes ayant un revenu du ménage plus élevé ont moins T-APMV par jour. Conclusion Ce travail renforce les recommandations de la littérature d'une harmonisation plus poussée des indicateurs de l'activité physique basés sur l'accéléromètre. Des interventions concernant les modes de transport peuvent avoir un effet important sur l'activité physique. / Background Physical activity has an important impact on various health outcomes, and transport accounts for a substantial part of total physical activity. This PhD work aimed to improve measures of transport-related physical activity and to report empirical findings on the transport-related physical activity of adults aged 35 to 83 years living in Ile-de-France. Methods The RECORD GPS Study collected GPS and accelerometer data for 236 participants over a 7-day period, resulting in the observation of 7425 trips. The Enquête Globale Transport) collected data over one day, resulting in the observation of 82084 trips for 21332 participants. The methods used include random forest prediction models, geographical information systems, and negative binomial regressions. Results Shorter epochs (time units) resulted in considerably larger estimates of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity MVPA. This finding supports calls from the literature for further harmonization of accelerometer-based indicators of physical activity. We observed an average 18.9 minutes of daily T-MVPA (95% confidence interval: 18.6; 19.2 minutes). Participants with a higher level of education did more T-MVPA than their less educated counterparts. In contrast, people with a higher household income did less T-MVPA per day. Conclusion This PhD work was the first study to combine a very detailed dataset - including GPS, accelerometer, and mobility behaviour data - and a large-scale transport survey. Transport interventions could have an important impact on physical activity for this population.