<p>For at least two thousand years, voting has been used as one of the most effective ways to aggregate people's ordinal preferences. In the last 50 years, the rapid development of Computer Science has revolutionize every aspect of the world, including voting. This motivates us to study (1) <bold>conceptually, how computational thinking changes the traditional voting theory</bold>, and (2) <bold>methodologically, how to better use voting for preference/information aggregation with the help of Computer</p><p>Science</bold>.</p><p>My Ph.D. work seeks to investigate and foster the interplay between Computer Science and Voting Theory. In this thesis, I will discuss two specific research directions pursued in my Ph.D. work, one for each question asked above. The first focuses on investigating how computational thinking affects the game-theoretic aspects of voting. More precisely, I will discuss the rationale and possibility of using computational complexity to protect voting from a type of strategic behavior of the voters, called <italic>manipulation</italic>. The second studies a voting setting called <italic>Combinatorial Voting</italic>, where the set of alternative is exponentially large and has a combinatorial structure. I will focus on the design and analysis of novel voting rules for combinatorial voting that balance computational efficiency and the expressivity of the voting language, in light of some recent developments in Artificial Intelligence.</p> / Dissertation

Surface Biological Modification and Cellular Interactions of Magnetic Spinel Nanoparticles Eva Liang-Huang Heintz 191 Pages Directed by Dr. Z. John Zhang The interest in magnetic nanoparticles is multi-dimensional. Fundamentally, it is important to be able to control their magnetic properties and to correlate to specific applications. In biology, magnetic nanoparticles offer promising potential as magnetic carriers or chaperones for magnetic localization and manipulation of therapeutic reagents. The synthesis of superparamagnetic CoFe2-xSmxO4 nanoparticles and the tunability of their magnetic properties by size and composition variations are discussed. An increase in size of CoSm0.19Fe1.81O4 nanoparticles produced an increase in blocking temperature and saturation magnetization, but a non-linear coercitivity response was observed with change in size. By varying the composition, the saturation magnetization of CoFe2-xSmxO4 decreased dramatically while the coercitivity increased when compared to native cobalt spinel ferrite (CoFe2O4) nanoparticles. These results demonstrate how the magnetic properties of cobalt spinel ferrite nanoparticles can be tailored to specific applications. Surface modifications of cobalt spinel ferrite nanoparticles facilitated the conjugation of oligonucleotides. Using a transfection reagent, CoFe2O4 ??igonucleotide conjugates were delivered into mammalian cells. Post transfection, synchronized movement of cells in response to an external magnetic field was observed. This demonstrated the possibility of magnetic manipulation and localization of therapeutic reagents coupled to CoFe2O4 magnetic nanoparticles. Results from this thesis demonstrate the potential role of magnetic spinel nanoparticles in cell biology and will facilitate the progress towards in vivo testing.

Parts orienting is an important part of automated manufacturing. Sensorless manipulation has proven to be a useful paradigm in addressing parts orienting, and the manipulation of deformable objects is a growing area of interest. Until now, these areas have remained separate because existing orienting approaches utilize forces that if applied to deformable parts violate the assumptions used by existing algorithms, and could potentially break the part. We introduce a new algorithm and manipulator actions that, when provided with the geometric description and a deformation model of choice for the part, exploits the deformation and generates a Plan that consists of the shortest sequence of manipulator actions guaranteed to orient the part up to symmetry from any unknown initial orientation and pose. Additionally, the algorithm estimates whether a given manipulator is sufficiently precise to perform the actions which guarantee the final orientation. This is dictated by the particular part geometry, deformation model, and the manipulator action path planner which contains simple end-effector constraints and any standard motion planner. We illustrate the success of the algorithm with multiple parts through 192 trials of experiments that were performed with low-precision robot manipulators and six parts made of four types of materials. The experimental trials resulted in 154 successes, which show the feasibility of deformable parts orienting. The analysis of the failures showed that for success the assumptions of zero friction are essential for this work, increased manipulator precision would be beneficial but not necessary, and a simple deformation model can be sufficient. Finally, we note that the algorithm has applications to truly sensorless manipulation of non-deformable parts.

Integrated microfluidic devices for biomedical analysis attract lots of interest in the MEMS (Micro-Electro-Mechanical-Systems) research field. However, the characteristic Reynolds number for liquids flowing in these microchannels is very small (typically less than 10). At such low Reynolds numbers, turbulent mixing does not occur and homogenization of the solutions occurs through diffusion processes alone. Hence, a satisfactory mixing performance generally requires the use of extended flow channels and takes longer to accomplish such that the practical benefits of such devices are somewhat limited. Consequently, accomplishing the goal of u¡VTAS requires the development of enhanced mixing techniques for microfluidic structures. This study first presents a microfluidic mixer utilizing alternatively switching electroosmotic flow and proposes two microchannel designs of T-form and double-T-form micromixer. Switching DC field is used to generate the electroosmotic force to drive the fluid and also used for mixing of the fluids simultaneously, such that moving parts in the microfluidic device and delicate external control system are not required for the mixing purpose. Furthermore, this study also proposed a novel pinched-switching mode in the T-form microfluidic mixer, which could be effectively increase the perturbation within the fluid to promote the mixing efficiency. In this study, computer simulation for the operation conditions is used to predict the mixing outcomes and the mixing performance is also confirmed experimentally. Result shows the mixing performance can be as larger as 95% within the mixing distance of 1 mm downstream the common boundary between the different sample fluids. The novel method proposed in this study can be used for solving the mixing problem in a simple way in the field of micro-total-analysis-systems. Furthermore, in order to demonstrate the proposed micromixer is feasible for on-line bio-reaction, this study designs a fully integrated device for demonstration of DNA/enzyme reaction within the microfluidic chip. The microchip device contains a pre-column concentrating region, a micro mixer for DNA-enzyme mixing, an adjustable temperature control system and a post-column concentration channel. The integrated microfluidic chip has been used to implement the DNA digestion and extraction. Successfully digestion of £f-DNA using EcoRI restriction enzyme in the proposed device is demonstrated utilizing large-scale gel electrophoresis scheme. Results show that the reaction speed doubled while using the microfluidic system. In addition, on-line DNA digestion and capillary electrophoresis detection is also successfully demonstrated using a standard DNA-enzyme system of $X-174 and Hae III. Finally, this reasearch also proposes a novel cell/microparticle manipulation platform by integrating an optical tweezer system and a micro flow cytometer. During operation, electrokinetically driven sheath flows are utilized to focus microparticles to flow in the center of the sample stream then pass through an optical manipulation area. An IR diode laser is focused to generate force gradient in the optical manipulation area to manipulate the microparticles in the microfluidic device. Moving the particles at a static condition is demonstrated to confirm the feasibility of the home-built optical tweezer. The trapping force of the optical tweezer is measured using a novel method of Stocks-drag equilibrium. The proposed system can continuously catch moving microparticles in the flowing stream or switch them to flow into another sample flow within the microchannel. Target particles can be separated from the sample particles with this high efficient approach. More importantly, the system demonstrates a continuously manipulation of microparticles using non-contact force gradient such that moving parts and delicate fabrication processes can be excluded. The proposed system is feasible of high-throughput catching, moving, manipulation and sorting specific microparticles/cells within a mixed sample and results in a simple solution for cell/microparticle manipulation in the field of micro-total-analysis-systems. In this thesis, low-cost soda-lime glass substrates are adopted for the microchip fabrication using a simple and reliable fabrication process. Three kinds of novel microfluidic devices including an electrokinetically-driven microfluidic mixer, a high throughput DNA/enzyme reactor and an optically cell manipulation platform are successfully demonstrated. It is the author¡¦s believes that the results of this study will give important contributions in the development of micro-total-analysis-systems in the future. With the success of this study, we have a further step approaching to the dream of lab-on-a-chip system for bio-analytical applications.

Nowadays premium promotion has caused a stir in many industries. Sales promotion comprises a multitude of marketing tools designed to stimulate the purchase of goods and services by providing an incentive. Among those promotion tools, premium occupies a very important place. It belongs to non-monetary promotion which is different from the monetary one that we generally know. Many experts address that in long term, monetary promotion might have imposed negative impact on their own brand. However, premium promotion is one of non-monetary promotion, and it brings up consumers the ¡§gains¡¨, not the ¡§reduced losses.¡¨ The academic research on the subject in Taiwan or even in other countries is scarcely seen, although premium-based sales promotions are commonly used on marketing practice. It is a kind of multifunctional promotion tool. For example, attractiveness, the linkage with main product, immediacy, mention of value, and free/self-liquidating product etc. are needed to highly care about. Premium promotion may avoid some negative influences from price promotion. However, if marketers cannot operate premium well, it might still cause some problems. This study does not only discuss Consumers¡¦ Overall Appreciation, but also try to find out Perceived Manipulation Intent beyond consumers. This thesis is 2¡]high/low attractiveness¡^x 2¡]high/low perceived fit between the premium and the product¡^x 2¡]direct/delayed¡^x 2¡]mention/not mention of the premium¡¦s value¡^mixed experiment design ANOVA. Mentioning the value of the premium and immediacy are between-subject factors and attractiveness and perceived fit between the premium and the product are within-subjects factors. The purpose of this study is the effect of four premium independent variables on Overall Appreciation and Perceived Manipulation Intent of Consumer Reaction. The study shows: 1. High attractiveness, high product-premium fit, and direct premium all have significantly positive effects on consumer¡¦s overall appreciation. 2. Attractiveness and product-premium fit has an interaction effect on overall appreciation, and fit is like a moderator. 3. Product-premium fit and mention of value has an interaction effect on overall appreciation. 4. Attractiveness, product-premium fit, and immediacy has an interaction effect on overall appreciation. 5. Attractiveness, product-premium fit, and immediacy has statistically significant on perceived manipulation intent.

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L'objet de cette thèse est la mise en place d'une méthodologie pour la conception préliminaire orientée tâche de manipulateurs mobiles. Elle s'appuie en l'occurence sur les algorithmes évolutionnaires pour effectuer la synthèse de chaînes cinématiques et d'entrées de commande. La méthodologie met donc en oeuvre plusieurs niveaux d'optimisation orientée tâche :<br /><br />- recherche d'une configuration initiale d'un robot, avec minimisation de l'erreur en position de l'effecteur du manipulateur mobile à la position initiale désirée et de la direction réelle avec la direction désirée, évitement d'obstacles<br />- génération de consignes avec minimisation de<br />l'erreur en position de l'effecteur à la trajectoire désirée, évitement d'obstacles et minimisation de la distance à parcourir jusqu'à la position finale désirée<br />- élimination préliminaire des structures cinématiques non adaptées localement aux contraintes de la tâche, avec prise en compte des obstacles, respect des contraintes de structure et minimisation de la masse des robots<br /><br />La sélection finale d'une solution structurelle est alors<br />essentiellement basée sur ses performances dans la réalisation de la tâche. Les différents aspects de la méthodologie sont détaillés et analysés par les résultats de simulation dont la pertinence de l'approche est extraite. Les avantages liés à l'utilisation des algorithmes évolutionnaires et aux adaptations développées dans ce manuscrit, ainsi que leurs limites, sont synthétisés en fin de document.

Th. doct.--Droit pénal--Montpellier 1, 2003. / Bibliogr. p. 257-293. Index.

This dissertation advances the capability of autonomous or semiautonomous robotic manipulation systems by providing the tools required to turn depth sensor measurements into a meaningful representation of the objects present in the robot's environment. This process happens in two steps. First, the points from depth imagery are separated into clusters representing individual objects by a Euclidean clustering scheme. Each cluster is then passed to a recognition algorithm that determines what it is, and where it is. This information allows the robot to determine a pose of the object for grasp planning or obstacle avoidance. To accomplish this, the recognition system must extract mathematical representation of each point cluster. To this end, this dissertation presents a new feature descriptor, the Cylindrical Projection Histogram which captures the shape, size, and viewpoint of the object while maintaining invariance to image scale. These features are used to train a classifier which can then determine the label and pose of each cluster identified in a scene. The results are used to inform a probabilistic model of the object, that quantifies uncertainty and allows Bayesian update of the object's label and position. Experimental results on live data show a 97.2% correct recognition rate for a classifier based on the Cylindrical Projection Histogram. This is a significant improvement over another state-of-the art feature that gives an 89.6% recognition rate on the same object set. With statistical filtering over 10 frames, the raw recognition rate improve to 100% and 92.3% respectively. For pose estimation, both features offe rrotational pose estimation performance from 12° to 30°, and pose errors below 1 cm. This work supports deployment of robotic manipulation systems in unstructured glovebox environments in US Department of Energy facilities. The recognition performance of the CPH classifier is adequate for this purpose. The pose estimation performance is sufficient for gross pick-and-place tasks of simple objects, but not sufficient for dexterous manipulation. However, the pose estimation, along with the probabilistic model, support post-recognition pose refinement techniques. / text

Individuals view an overwhelming number of mediated messages every day, even if most of these messages are merely glanced at or given minimal amounts of attention. It is not possible or advantageous for individuals to critically evaluate all messages they encounter. In that first glance or initial impression, however, our brains process the visual arguments designed by photo manipulation presented in messages. This happens instinctually, almost instantaneously, and most often underneath our radar of consciousness. Following, individuals decide to attend to the information (or not) though conscious processing. Regardless of decisions for elaborative processing, however, the initial visual processing of photo manipulated arguments influences how individuals think, feel, and behave – whether they are aware of it or not. This dissertation contributes to our understanding of the role of implied visual arguments for persuasive message processing in three ways. First, Experiment 1 identified and provided empirical evidence for effects of photo manipulation as a visual persuasion technique. This experiment was a necessary first step in exploring the cause-and-effect relationship of photo manipulation and attitudes to better understand influences on message perception. Second, Experiment 2 tested currently used dual processing approaches for persuasive messages to overcome the gaps that currently exist. Theoretical frameworks widely used in advertising and communication research – ELM and HSM – largely overlook the influence of visual communication and visual processing. These models do not account for the current understand of the brain mechanisms and processes for message processing. Findings from Experiment 2 provide evidence for the need to refine these models to account for influential visual processing variables that are largely absent from the literature. Third, findings from both experiments contributed to the conceptual refinement of visual literacy with evidenced-based support for the boundaries of when this concept is (or is not) influential for assigning meaning to visual messages. / text