Thesis (M.S.)--Rochester Institute of Technology, 2005. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaf 45).

Thesis (M.S.)--Naval Postgraduate School, 2002. / Thesis advisor(s): Robert E. Looney, William Gates. Includes bibliographical references (p. 43-45). Also available online.

This dissertation presents a reconstruction of the phoneme inventory of Proto-Hlai, based on data from twelve Hlai languages spoken on Hainan, China. A classification of the Hlai languages is given with the innovations upon which it based, followed by a discussion of contact relationships and a discussion of reconstruction methodology. The inventory of Proto-Hlai initials is reconstructed, and original sesquisyllabic forms are shown to be necessary to account for the reflexes between the daughter languages; the initial inventory is also marked by the presence of aspiration on most consonants in word-initial position. This is followed by the reconstruction of the rime inventory, an outstanding features of which is two laryngeal components which are argued to have been the precursors to two of the synchronic tone categories in the daughter languages, and which conditioned segmental variation in most of the daughter languages. A comparison is made between Proto-Hlai, Proto-Be, and Proto-Southwest Tai, and a preliminary reconstruction of Proto-Southern Kra-Dai (the immediate ancestor of Proto-Hlai) is performed. When this reconstruction is compared with that of Proto-Hlai, it is shown that several important sound changes occurred in Pre-Hlai, including intervocalic obstruent lenition, vocalic transfer, aspiration of word-initial consonants, and peripheral vowel raising. The language Jiamao is examined in detail, and it is argued that Jiamao is a non-Hlai language which has been in close contact with Hlai since the Pre-Hlai period. An examination of the correspondences between Jiamao and Hlai reveal at least two layers of Hlai loanwords in Jiamao, and evidence Jiamao was originally very different from Hlai structurally. Finally, the Proto-Hlai lexicon is compared with those of other Southeast Asian language phyla, and it is shown that Hlai retains evidence of shared lexicon (via either a genetic or contact relationship) with Sino-Tibetan, Mon-Khmer, Hmong-Mien, and Austronesian, the last of which is particularly striking. The dissertation concludes with a summary of findings, empirical and theoretical contributions, and suggestions for future research.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin -- Madison, 1954. / Typescript. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 45-46).

3D SEISMIC INTERPRETATION AND MODEL OF THE SCHRATTENBERG FAULT SYSTEM IN THE VALTICE AREA Šárka Hlaváčková Abstract The Schrattenberg normal fault system represents a dominant feature of the western margin of the Vienna Basin. Along with the Steinberg fault, they controlled the sedimentary and tectonic development of the area, and considerably participated in the deposition of the basin fill during a relatively short period of time in the Miocene. A detailed interpretation of the fault system is essential for full understanding of the local basin development and its geological architecture. The oil exploration industry targets mainly the Steinberg and Schrattenberg fault system because of the occurrences of oil and natural gas deposits that are related to the basin tectonics, which forms structural traps sealed by the main fault systems or by minor synthetic or antithetic faults. The thesis presents a geological framework of the Mistelbach block near Valtice at the western margin of the Vienna Basin. Geological interpretation includes also the fault framework modeling with the emphasis on the course of the Schrattenberg fault system. The model was built in the Petrel interpretation software with the use of the principles of the 3D seismic interpretation. In particular, seismic stratigraphy methods, Petrel...

The discipline of historical biogeography seeks to understand the contribution of earth history to the generation of biodiversity. Traditionally, the study of historical biogeography has been approached by examining the distribution of a biota at or above the species level. While this approach has provided important insights into the relationship between biological diversity and earth history, a significant amount of information recorded below the species level (intraspecific variation), regarding the biogeographical history of a region, may be lost. The application of phylogeography - which considers information recorded below the species level - goes some way to addressing this problem. Patterns of intraspecific molecular variation in wide-ranging taxa can be useful for inferring biogeography, and can also be used to test competing biogeographical hypotheses (often based on the dispersal-vicariance debate). Moreover, it is argued here that phylogeographical studies have recently begun to unite these two disparate views, in the recognition that both dispersal and vicariance have played fundamental roles in the generation of biodiversity. Freshwater dependent taxa are ideal model organisms for the current field of research, as they reflect well the underlying biogeographical history of a given region, due to limited dispersal abilities - their requirement for freshwater restricts them. To this end, this study documented the phylogeographical history of the giant freshwater prawn (Macrobrachium rosenbergii) utilising both mitochondrial (COI & 16S) and nuclear (microsatellite) markers. Samples (n = ~1000) were obtained from across most of the natural distribution of M. rosenbergii [Southern and South East (SE) Asia, New Guinea, northern Australia]. Initial phylogenetic analyses identified two highly divergent forms of this species restricted to either side of Huxley's extension of Wallace's Line; a pattern consistent with ancient vicariance across the Makassar Strait. Subsequent analyses of molecular variation within the two major clades specifically tested a number of biogeographical hypotheses, including that: 1.) a major biogeographical transition zone between the Sundaic and Indochinese biotas, located just north of the Isthmus of Kra in SE Asia, results from Neogene marine transgressions that breached the Isthmus in two locations for prolonged periods of time; 2.) Australia's Lake Carpentaria [circa 80 000 - 8 500 before present (BP)] facilitated genetic interchange among freshwater organisms during the Late Pleistocene; 3.) sea-level fluctuations during the Pleistocene constrained evolutionary diversification of M. rosenbergii within the Indo-Australian Archipelago (IAA); and 4.) New Guinea's Fly River changed course from its current easterly outflow to flow westwards into Lake Carpentaria during the Late Pleistocene. The results support hypotheses 1-3, but not 4. The potential for phylogeography to contribute significantly to the study of historical biogeography is also discussed.

Thesis (M.A. in Nav. Intel.)--Naval Postgraduate School, 1975. / Bibliography: l. 148-153.

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