Developments in Information and Communication Technologies are rapidly breaking down the barriers of time and place that may have previously limited learning to those able to access campus-based programmes. Distance learning, or e-learning, offers exciting opportunities to cross cultural borders and open up the world of education in ways inconceivable even a few years ago. This study considered how e-learning can be used to effectively deliver training to those involved in Christian mission work. Holistic mission training aims to equip the whole person head, heart and hands for Christian service, especially in cross-cultural contexts. Particularly in the Western world, this training has traditionally taken place within face-to-face learning communities, with e-learning s place as a delivery mode being a matter for debate. The research set out to identify and define the key criteria required for the effective delivery of holistic mission training through e-learning and conceptualise those criteria within a framework. A multimethod research design was adopted combining qualitative and quantitative data collection techniques. A systematic literature review was carried out to identify and define the key criteria for effective mission training and effective e-learning and the main challenges in delivering mission training through e-learning, along with potential solutions. Further criteria were found through action research to develop and evaluate a programme of holistic mission training delivered through e-learning. The study contributes to knowledge by identifying for the first time the elements, factors and conditions that can enable holistic mission training to be delivered effectively through e-learning and setting them within a framework to facilitate the development and evaluation of e-learning programmes. The findings highlight principles applicable to different learning situations, cultures and technologies and are largely transferable to other disciplines.

In the last decade, the development and deployment of Uninhabited Airborne Vehicles (UAVs) has increased dramatically. This has in turn increased the desire to operate UAVs in civilian-airspace. Current UAV platforms can be integrated into civilian-airspace, with other air traffic, however they place a high burden on their human operators in order to do so. In order to meet the competing objectives of improved integration and low operator workload it will be necessary to increase the intelligence on-board the UAV. This thesis presents the results of the research which has been conducted into increasing the on-board intelligence of the UAV. The intent in increasing the on-board intelligence is to improve the ability of a UAV to integrate into civilian-airspace whilst also reducing the workload placed upon the UAV's operator. The research has focused upon increasing the intelligence in two key areas: mission planning; and mission piloting. Mission planning is the process of determining how to fly from one location to another, whilst avoiding entities (eg. airspace boundaries and terrain) on the way. Currently this task is typically performed by a trained human operator. This thesis presents a novel multidisciplinary approach for enabling a UAV to perform, on-board, its own mission planning. The novel approach draws upon techniques from the 3D graphics and robotics fields in order to enable the UAV to perform its own mission planning. This enables the UAV's operator to provide the UAV with the locations (waypoints) to fly to. The UAV will then determine for itself how to reach the locations safely. This relieves the UAV's operator of the burden of performing the mission planning for the UAV. As part of this novel approach to on-board mission planning, the UAV constructs and maintains an on-board situational awareness of the airspace environment. Through techniques drawn from the 3D graphics field the UAV becomes capable of constructing and interacting with a 3D digital representation of the civilian-airspace environment. This situational awareness is a fundamental component of enabling the UAV to perform its own mission planning and piloting. The mission piloting research has focused upon the areas of collision avoidance and communications. These are tasks which are often handled by a human operator. The research identified how these processes can be performed on-board the UAV through increasing the on-board intelligence. A unique approach to collision avoidance was developed, which was inspired by robotics techniques. This unique approach enables the UAV to avoid collisions in a manner which adheres to the applicable Civil Aviation Regulations, as defined by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) of Australia. Furthermore, the collision avoidance algorithms prioritise avoiding collisions which would result in a loss of life or injury. Finally, the communications research developed a natural language-based interface to the UAV. Through this interface, the UAV can be issued commands and can also be provided with updated situational awareness information. The research focused upon addressing issues related to using natural language for a civilian-airspace-integrated UAV. This area has not previously been addressed. The research led to the definition of a vocabulary targeted towards a civilian-airspace-integrated UAV. This vocabulary caters for the needs of both Air Traffic Controllers and general UAV operators. This requires that the vocabulary cater for a diverse range of skill levels. The research established that a natural language-based communications system could be applied to a civilian-airspace-integrated UAV for both command and information updates. The end result of this research has been the development of the Intelligent Mission Planner and Pilot (IMPP). The IMPP represents the practical embodiment of the novel algorithms developed throughout the research. The IMPP was used to evaluate the performance of the algorithms which were developed. This testing process involved the execution of over 3000 hours of simulated flights. The testing demonstrated the high performance of the algorithms developed in this research. The research has led to the successful development of novel on-board situational awareness, mission planning, collision avoidance and communications capabilities. This thesis presents the development, implementation and testing of these capabilities. The algorithms which provide these capabilities go beyond the existing body of knowledge and provide a novel contribution to the established research. These capabilities enable the UAV to perform its own mission planning, avoid collisions and receive natural language-based communications. This provides the UAV with a direct increase in the intelligence on-board the UAV, which is the core objective of this research. This increased on-board intelligence improves the integration of the UAV into civilian-airspace whilst also reducing the operator's workload.

Zugl.: Hamburg, Univ., Diss., 1998

Made available in DSpace on 2016-08-03T12:19:08Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Marco Aurelio.pdf: 675456 bytes, checksum: 1ffb9619c48d6085c8ca32198ddbfc93 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-03-19 / The concept of Mission on John R. W. Stott and C. René Padilla is a research that analyses the relation between the proclamation of the word and the social action as contextualized in the Gospel. This thesis, developed towards the granting of the Master s Degree in Sciences of Religion, belongs to the Religion, Society and Culture research field. The bibliography revision was the methodology used for the data collection. The question that guided the research was: what is the concept of world mission in J. Stott and integral mission in R. Padilla? Among the answers it was possible to compare the theology of J. Stott and R. Padilla. In the first chapter, the concept of world mission in the theology of J. Stott was presented. In the second chapter, the concept of integral mission in the theology of R. Padilla was presented as well. In the third chapter, through a comparison it has been demonstrated that J. Stott emphasizes the proclamation of the word by the church, leaving the social service action as a second matter, because his priority is the need of salvation of the sinner, through repentance and the acceptance of Jesus Christ as the savior. On the other hand, R. Padilla sets the proclamation of the word and the service through social action in a joint way and making them inseparable in order to achieve the announcement of the Kingdom of God in society. / No presente estudo sobre o tema Conceito de Missão em John R. W. Stott e C. René Padilla procurei analisar a relação entre proclamação da palavra e ação social contextualizada no Evangelho. Esta dissertação desenvolvida no Programa da Pós-Graduação em Ciências da Religião, pertence à linha de pesquisa Religião, Sociedade e Cultura . A metodologia adotada na coleta de dados foi de uma revisão bibliográfica. O questionamento que norteou a pesquisa foi: qual o conceito de missão mundial em J. Stott e de missão integral em R. Padilla? Com as respostas obtidas, foi realizado um comparativo entre a teologia de ambos. No primeiro capítulo foi apresentado o conceito de missão mundial na teologia de J. Stott. No segundo capítulo, foi apresentado o conceito de missão integral na teologia de R. Padilla. Já no capítulo três, foi realizado um comparativo no qual ficou demonstrado que J. Stott em sua teologia da missão mundial prioriza a proclamação da palavra pela igreja, deixando o serviço de ação social para segundo plano, ao priorizar a necessidade da salvação da alma do pecador que se arrepende, mediante a aceitação Jesus Cristo como seu salvador. Em contrapartida, R. Padilla em sua teologia da missão integral coloca a proclamação da palavra e a prestação de serviço mediante a ação social de forma conjunta e indissociável para concretizar o anúncio do Reino de Deus na sociedade.

M.A. (Practical Theology) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

This study explores the phenomenon of "Mission Mobilisation" and formulation of a contextual approach toward a successful and effective Church Mission Mobilisation in Africa that results an active involvement of the local church in missions. Using a qualitative exploratory case study method, the study of "Church Mission Mobilisation: the case of WMC in the Niassa Province of Mozambique" has served as a practical way to engage with the subject. Hence, the study demonstrates that the absence of contextualisation of the content and approach used by westerners to mobilise local churches, has left most African churches without interest for missions or involvement of any nature. There is a need for a paradigm shift in the way church mission mobilisation is carried out in modern society (specifically African churches) in order to effectively get the whole church involved in missions. The study concludes with practical recommendations on how the issues raised through this study can be applied to a broader field than the Niassa Province of Mozambique. / Christian Spirituality, Church History and Missiology / M. Th. (Missiology)

<p>The accelerating digital transformation in the aerospace and defense sectors underlines a pressing need for refined, standardized methodologies for integrating digital tools into mission engineering (ME).  Existing literature reveals a distinct gap in the practical application of Digital Engineering (DE) and Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) within ME, particularly due to the lack of clear guidelines for implementation. Recognizing DE and MBSE's potential to manage complex systems, this thesis puts forth a novel DE framework specifically designed for ME to streamline digital tool integration.</p> <p><br></p> <p>The research approach includes a thorough literature review, the development and application of a unique framework for an active debris remediation mission, and the examination of case studies. The findings inform the ongoing digital transformation efforts in the defense and aerospace sectors, offering valuable insights into the real-world application of DE and MBSE within ME. This study focuses on the early-stage, holistic-view design processes of mission and system-of-systems, aiming to establish a robust foundation for detailed lower-level engineering design.</p> <p><br></p> <p>By exploring how to leverage current practices to develop a framework that supports digital artifacts and tools, assessing the framework's improvements, and exploring possible quantification of its impact, this thesis charts a path toward the successful execution of complex mission objectives in the digital era.</p>

No description available.

This dissertation explores the need to involve churches in mission according to the Lord Jesus Christ, whose mission was indeed holistic and comprehensive. To achieve this goal, the study calls upon churches to move from a “maintenance Christianity” status, which has been almost a way of life for churches, to a holistic and comprehensive approach to mission. Practically speaking, this is to be illustrated through a case study of churches in the North Kivu Province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The churches in this part of the world present many challenges that sustain such an exploration, namely, misunderstanding regarding mission, lack of well-skilled and visionary church leaders, maintenance Christianity mentality, spirit of tribalism among Christians, and poverty. The study concludes with practical recommendations on how the issues raised through the dissertation can be applied to a broader field than the churches in the North Kivu Province. / Christian Spirituality, Church History & Missiology) / M. Th. (Missiology)

This thesis addresses a needed shift of paradigm for mission and evangelism within the Southern Baptist Convention. The current model lacks appropriate contextualization in a postmodern world. The proposition of the thesis is that a kingdom model for mission and evangelism is more appropriate for Southern Baptists' commitment to mission. The methodology of this thesis was researching primary and secondary sources, interviews with persons currently involved within the mission of Southern Baptists, evaluation of empirical data, and testing of concepts. In Chapter One, the validity of this thesis is presented with the proposition, the limitations, the purpose, the practical nature, and the modus operandi of the thesis stated. Chapter Two explores the problems of evangelism within the mission of Southern Baptists today. Focus is on empirical statistical evidence and the failure of assumptions, methods, and models currently in practice. Chapter Three examines the birth of the mission and evangelism mandate of Southern Baptists and the subsequent development of a monolithic structure unchanged to the present day. Chapter Four traces the evolution of evangelistic witness within the early church and explores the cultural dynamics of the period. / Christian Spirituality, Church History & Missiology / D. Th. (Missiology)