This thesis is a collection of poems.

Chapter 1. The family Pteronarcyidae (Plecoptera) is a highly studied group of stoneflies and very important to a wide variety of aquatic studies. Several phylogenies have been proposed for this group recent decades, however there is little congruence between the various topologies. The present study revises the phylogeny of the group by combining molecular data from mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit II, ribosomal subunit 12S, ribosomal subunit 16S, and nuclear loci ribosomal subinit 18S and Histone H3, with published morphological data in a parsimony-based total evidence analysis. The analysis produced a well-supported phylogeny with novel relationships within the genus Pteronarcys. Maximum Likelihood and Bayesian analyses produced topologies congruent with parsimony analysis. Character mapping revealed several homoplasious morphological characters that were previously thought to be homologous. Chapter 2. Phylogeographic studies in aquatic insects provide valuable insights into mechanisms that shape the genetic structure of aquatic communities. Yet studies that include broad geographic areas are uncommon for this group. We conducted a broad scale phylogeographic analysis of P. badia across western North America. In order to allow us to generate a larger mitochondrial data set, we used 454 seqeuncing to reconstruct the complete mitochondrial genome in the early stages of the project. Our analysis reveals what appears to be a complex history of isolation and multiple invasions among some lineages. The study provides evidence of multiple glacial refugia and suggests that historical climactic isolations have been important mechanisms in determining genetic structure of insects in western North America. Our ability to generate a large mitochondrial data set through mitochondrial genome reconstruction greatly improved nodal support of our mitochondrial gene tree, and allowed us to make stronger inference of relationships between lineages and timing of divergence events.

The purpose of this study is to compile the major eschatological prophecies and teachings found in the scriptures and in the discourses and writings of Latter-day Saint General Authorities; to include sufficient explanatory material to interrelate and clarify the events which are expected to transpire; and to establish, in so far as is possible, the order of these eschatological events.

<p>Included in licentiate thesis in manuscript form.</p>

<p>  </p> <p>Hydrogen fuel cells are an abundant and cleaner source of energy, making them an attractive option for powering transportation systems. Hydrogen fuel cell drones are a new type of drone that generates energy from fuel cells for flight and expels heat and water vapor as byproducts. Compared to battery-powered drones, hydrogen fuel cell drones have better endurance and payload capacity due to their higher energy density, making them more efficient for eCommerce delivery. This research compares the performance of hydrogen and battery delivery drones for both drone-only and truck-drone last-mile delivery systems. A mixed integer programming model has been formulated to minimize the total delivery time for small to medium customer instances using the two-echelon vehicle routing problem, where drones are launched from the truck to serve one or more customers. The study conducted a comparative analysis by varying different parameters of drones on multiple sets of customer instances from real-world data to determine the best choice of drones for different scenarios. The results of the analysis show that hydrogen fuel cell drones have significant delivery advantages over typical battery drones in terms of delivery time and efficiency. Additionally, a sensitivity analysis was conducted to demonstrate the impacts of different parameters on the objective function of the delivery systems.</p>

This dissertation analyzes fifteenth-century representations of the Last Supper that were painted on the walls of monastic refectories located in and around the city of Florence, with a focus on the viewer’s multi-sensory experience of the paintings in their spaces of reception and in relation to theatrical performance. The project explores Domenico Ghirlandaio’s innovative approach to the composition and its relationship with the refectory (or dining hall) through compositional changes, particularly with his Last Supper at the convent of Ognissanti (c. 1480-1481), that marked an important pivot in the presentation of this familiar iconography by demonstrating a greater awareness of and engagement with the viewer. These pictorial innovations relate to the performance of devotional plays (sacre rappresentazioni) in fifteenth-century Florence and inspired the construction of sacred mountain sanctuaries (sacri monti) composed of multi-media sculptural groups arranged in devotional chapels. My dissertation illustrates how each of these modes of representation—painting, performance, and multi-media sculpture—reacted to and altered their spaces of reception, involving their viewers as active participants in immersive, sensorial experiences. The first chapter explores the origins and development of the monumental Last Supper frescoes in Florence’s monastic refectories, a tradition known as i cenacoli fiorentini. I discuss the iconography, provide a brief catalogue of the paintings, and observe how Ghirlandaio moved the standard composition from reinforcing the two-dimensionality of the refectory wall and toward an immersive experience that encouraged a sense of association between the painted scene and the space of reception. In the second chapter, I argue that, in addition to quattrocento techniques of pictorial illusionism, the dynamic performances of sacre rappresentazioni informed the interest in activating the viewer’s emotional engagement with the Last Supper fresco. Chapter three more directly involves the space of the refectory in my analysis, as I explore how the various functions and multi-sensory conditions of the refectory environment enhanced the performative and immersive qualities of the cenacolo painting. Finally, the fourth chapter extends my discussion to the sacri monti pilgrimage sites located in San Vivaldo and Varallo, Italy. I draw comparisons between the three-dimensional chapel environments and the Last Supper refectory frescoes. By placing these works in dialogue with one another, I observe new insights in the canonical cenacoli images and engage the sacri monti with the broader field of Renaissance art history. / 2024-06-24T00:00:00Z

Volumetric rendering is used to visualize volume data from e.g. scientific simulations. Many advanced applications use large gigabyte- or terabyte-sized data sets, which typically means that multiple compute nodes need to partake in the rendering process to achieve interactive frame rates. Load balancing is generally used to optimize the rendering performance. In existing load balancing techniques, nodes generally only render directly-connected data and handle load balancing based on data locality in kd-trees. This approach can result in redundant data transfers and unbalanced data distribution, which affect the frame rate and increase the hardware requirements of all nodes. In this thesis we present a novel load balancing technique for sort-last volume rendering which utilizes a group hierarchy. The technique allows nodes to render data from arbitrary positions in the volume, without inducing a costly image compositing stage. The technique is compared to a static load balancing technique as well as a dynamic kd-tree based load balancing technique. Our testing demonstrated that the presented technique performed better than or equal to the kd-tree based technique while also lowering the worst-case memory usage complexity of all nodes. Utilizing a group hierarchy effectively helped to lower the compositing time of the presented technique. / Volumetrisk rendering används för att visualisera bland annat vetenskapligasimuleringar. Inom avancerade användingsområden används ofta dataset med en storlek på flera gigabyte eller terabyte. Detta medför att flera noder ofta måste användas för att uppnå en interaktiv bildfrekvens. Belastningsutjämning används generellt för att optimera renderingsprestandan. I befintliga tekniker renderar noder vanligtvis endast direkt sammankopplad data och utför belastningsutjämning baserat på datalokalitet i kd-träd. Detta kan resultera i redundanta dataöverföringar och en obalanserad datadistribution, vilket påverkar bildfrekvensen och ökar hårdvarukraven för alla noder. I denna avhandling presenterar vi en ny teknik för belastningsutjämning för sort-last volumetrisk rendering som använder en grupphierarki. Tekniken tillåter noder att rendera data från godtyckliga positioner i volymen utan att förorsaka ett kostsamt steg för bildsammansättning. Tekniken jämförs med en statisk belastningsutjämningsteknik såväl som en dynamisk belastningsutjämningsteknik baserad på kd-träd. Våra tester visar att den presenterade tekniken presterar bättre eller likvärdigt med den kd-trädbaserade tekniken medan den samtidigt sänker minneskomplexiteten för alla noder. Användandet av en grupphierarki sänkte effektivt bildsammansättningstiden för den presenterade tekniken.

Test-driven development is a software development practice that prompts developers to write tests before writing source code. Studies report varied results on the effects that test-driven development has on the development process, and how this practice compares to other development practices, such as more traditional test-last development methodologies. There also seems like there has not been a discussion around the possible problems that a developer could encounter when adopting this technique, something that seems relevant to making accurate assumptions on the usability of the practice. A literature review was conducted, where the subject of test-driven development is examined with a focus on how inexperienced programmers interact with the practice and what effect it has on the product, in terms of external quality, productivity, number of test written and test coverage. The results suggest that there are no significant differences in external quality and productivity between TDD and TLD. The results also suggest that divide and conquer and refactoring are skills that ease the process of adopting the test-driven development practice.

Excavations at Natural Trap Cave (NTC) began in the mid-1970's and quickly yielded evidence of a diverse steppe fauna that existed during the Last Glacial Maximum (MIS 2) along the western slope of the Bighorn Mountains in north central Wyoming. NTC is a karst pit cave with a 24.5 m vertical drop into a roughly 43 m wide bell-shaped ‘Main Chamber’ and during the course of early excavations a plugged entrance to a fossil-bearing ‘Lower Chamber’ was discovered. Stratigraphic relationships below the entrance to the Main Chamber of the cave were originally studied in the mid-1970's, but were never formally published. Although stratigraphy, taphonomy, and depositional circumstances were briefly discussed over the following years, little has been done to correlate the numerous stratigraphic schemes used by various authors. In this study, four stratigraphic sections were measured and analyzed to establish an easily modifiable lithostratigraphic system of nomenclature. We provide the first correlations of all stratigraphic nomenclature used throughout excavations at NTC to facilitate comparisons with current and previous collections and publications. By leveraging more than 100 radioisotopic dates we developed an age-depth model and chronostratigraphic framework to further interrogate spatiotemporal relationships between strata, paleoenvironmental proxies, and fossil assemblages. Deposition is shown to be discontinuous; sediment accumulation in the study area is restricted to the buildup through peak penultimate and Last Glacial maxima. More recent (<10 ka) Holocene deposits unconformably cover the eroded surface of underlying Pleistocene strata. There is active reworking of sediments with transport and deposition of reactivated material within the Lower Chamber. We note that the two hiatuses coincide with interglacial periods and may reflect changing depositional circumstances within the cave such as extended periods of non-deposition, erosion, or bypass (possibly leading to deposition in the Lower Chamber). Contrary to previous reports, we demonstrate that it is unlikely a prominent snow cone existed or contributed to the pattern of sediment and fossil distribution within the study area, furthermore, we do not observe a continuous Pleistocene-Holocene transition in the study area. Further stratigraphic work will be needed to better understand the interrelationship between Main and Lower chamber deposits and the evolution of sediment accumulation in NTC.

There has been an increase in writings that address the last statements of condemned offenders. Many of these writings suggest that exposure to the humanity sometimes exhibited in these last statements may steer public opinion against the death penalty. This dissertation tests this suggestion by exposing 400 participants to randomly generated vignettes containing various capital crimes, demographic characteristics, and last statements. The survey data are analyzed utilizing multilevel modeling. Study results include the effects of varying levels of demonstrated humanity in the last statements of condemned offenders on public opinion, and whether specific demographic characteristics appear to influence study participant responses. Findings showed no statistically significant results that indicate any effect on death penalty opinion as a result of reading last statements demonstrating humanity. Condemned inmates who did not provide a statement, or stated they had nothing to say, elicited higher levels of confidence that executing them was the right thing to do. Condemned inmates who claimed innocence in their last statements were associated with the lowest level of respondent confidence that execution was the right thing to do, and a higher level of support for life without parole as an alternative punishment. Recommendations for further research are discussed.