This thesis attempts to provide new insight into some population-dynamical problems and also proposes a new perspective on certain models of ecological communities. Following a short introduction into the field of mathematical modelling of population dynamics, the first chapter investigates the paradoxical Hydra Effect, the increase of mean population size as a response to an increase in mortality rate, in a class of simple predator-prey models. The main result is that a Hydra Effect occurs if and only if the system dynamics are oscillatory, which has interesting implications for the theory of optimal harvesting and biocontrol of invasive species. The second chapter discusses how coordinate transformations change the structure of intraguild predation food webs, establishing a close connection of certain cases of intraguild predation to simpler community modules such as exploitative competition and food chains. These results and possible generalizations of them could have wide-ranging implications for the question of how structural properties of food webs determine population-dynamical properties such as ecological stability and persistence. The last chapter presents numerical investigations of how random environmental fluctuations affect the spatiotemporal dynamics of oscillatory reaction-diffusion models, such as classical predator-prey and simple lambda-omega systems. These results in particular question whether travelling waves arising from these models can explain similar spatiotemporal waves found in natural populations.

Although guidelines and minimal standards for the care and documentation of wounds in home health care settings in the United States are available, there is a lack of compliance among many home health care agencies (HHAs) with regard to the accuracy of wound documentation and care of wounds. Failure to follow guidelines for wound care according to Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and Home Health Outcome and Assessment Information System standards could result in loss of revenue for HHAs, improper treatment of wounds, and legal ramifications. The purpose of this doctoral project was to develop and validate a staff educational module on wounds and wound documentation for an HHA. Benner's from-novice-to-expert model was the conceptual framework for understanding nurses' matriculation. The practice-focused question focused on whether a wound staff educational module increased the home health care nurse's knowledge about wounds and wound documentation. A 5-level Likert scale was used by an expert panel to validate the staff educational module. Descriptive analysis was used to evaluate the data. The results of the survey supported implementing the educational module with recommendations (overall percentage 93% [4.4]). The findings of this project contribute to social change by increasing nurses' knowledge of wound care, improving the quality of wound care, increasing reimbursement and revenue, and decreasing the cost of care for wounds.

Radio broadcasting is the primary part of the infotainment system in automobile and nowadays it is not only uses for the entertainment but facilitate the users by broadcasting digital information along with audio data. Radio Data System (RDS) is the radio broadcasting communication standard that broadcasts the digitally encoded data on the conventional band of the analogue FM radio. It transfers different type of data that uses for various applications along with audio channel of the FM radio station and overcome the glitches of the car radio to big scope. It is using commercially in the infotainment system of the automobile with basic features of the RDS since fifteen years. However, it is facing issues with lower data rates as compared to other digital radio broadcasting technologies that are also using in many countries. To confront this issue, RDS forum proposed the standardization of RDS with RDS2 in 2018, So RDS2 has been standardized and published that improves the data capacity by adding more channels. Hence, developers can use these channels for broadcasting the additional information. The ultimate goal of thesis is the development of RDS2 encoder, which increases the data capacity up to four times as compared to currently RDS encoder by upgrading the data channels with the modeling of additional RDS2 features and services. This thesis proposes an approach for the implementation and validation of encoder with complete simulation of FM-RDS2 transmitter under all standardized feature modeling in the Software Defined Radio (SDR) environment. For this purpose, GNU Radio Companion (GRC) is used which offers the signal processing blocks to construct SDR modules. Using GRC, three main steps will be completed by using different libraries and tools. Implementation of RDS2 encoder and data-rate enforcer blocks with features modeling are written in C++ language. GUI designing of each block is executed in XML script language and simulation of complete FM-RDS2 transmitter using all-new custom and predefined signal processing blocks. Our determinative observation shows this approach remarkable improvements in terms of a prototype of new standard’s encoder, interpolating property of framework and decreasing the cost.

The ANPT (Air Navigation Procedures Trainer) is a navigation simulator being developed by Litton Systems (Canada) Limited. The ANPT design is based on the use of two ECLIPSE S/200 minicomputers to supply the background monitoring necessary for the system. This reports deals with the implementation of the software for the processor that will control the navigation simulation hardware of the ANPT. Two major sections of the implementation are covered: the organization phase which details the modules needed to control the hardware and to communicate with the other processor, and the integration phase in which the various modules are linked together with each other and with the hardware in order to obtain a cycling system. The problems that could be encountered during system integration will be discussed along with possible solutions to these problems. / Thesis / Master of Engineering (ME)

Den här rapporten är en sammanställning av ett gestaltningsarbete där ett bostadshus i 5 våningar projekterats fram. Huset i fråga har anpassats till att kunna byggas med prefabricerade volymelement och enbart i stommaterialet trä. Prefabricerade volymelement är färdigbyggda rumsenheter, tillverkade på fabrik. Dessa kan vara så pass färdigställda att de levereras till en byggarbetsplats med färdig fasad och fast inredning. Eftersom arbetet baserats på volymelementsbyggande, har projektering skett efter de villkor och den byggteknik som då tillämpas. Ett praktiskt exempel som påverkat lägenhetsutformningen är transportkraven vad gäller lastbredd och lasthöjd. Detta har i sin tur påverkat hur stora volymelementen får vara och som en följd lägenheternas utformning. Rapporten behandlar teorin bakom industriellt byggande i trä, men framförallt de praktiska utmaningar samt möjligheter som uppstått som en konsekvens av att bostadsprojektet designats enligt en modulprincip. / This report is a compilation of the planning of a 5-storey residential building. The building in question has been designed to be built entirely in a wooden frame mainly consisting of a modular building system. Modules also referred to as prefabricated volume elements are room units that have been constructed through industrial means. These room units can be developed enough to be delivered with complete facades or even fixtures. Since the planning of the residential building has been made based on a modular building system, adaptations to the project has had to been made as to accommodate necessary requirements. A practical example of this is how the apartment plan has been affected based on laws concerning the maximum amount of allowed width/height during transportation on public roads. These laws control the size of how big volume elements can become and as a result the apartment layout. The report consists of a study into the area of industrial wood construction, but foremost it treats the practical challenges and possibilities that have surfaced as a consequence of planning residential housing based on a modular basis.

This project explores methods to build habitats on the moon. It specifically explores the design of an interior modular system for inflatable habitats. Lunar Architecture can broadly be divided into three stages, pre-integrated, semi-integrated and built on site. Pre-integrated habitats, are fully assembled on earth and shipped with a rocket to the Moon, which has initial practicality, but constrains structure size to a rockets cargo space. Inflatable habitats fall under the semi-integrated category, which means that all the added interior volume created after inflation, will need to be built out onsite. It makes most sense to design a well-functioning modular system for this purpose, as modularity can provided the required redundancy and minimize the total amount of unique parts needed. The system needs to be lightweight, compact when stored, yet versatile enough to create flexible and engaging interiors. The project asks what a self-sufficient architecture in a lunar context would look like, if it were built with a modular approach and if it is possible to create sustainable, engaging environments through modularity.

Background: Online learning has recently garnered increased attention as technology use in the classroom grows. However, most of the published approaches regarding this topic in postgraduate education centers on clinical environments. Models of partnerships between applied public health agencies and academic centers to produce mutually beneficial online learning opportunities for graduate-level public health courses have not been explored in the literature. Methods: East Tennessee State University (ETSU) and the Tennessee Department of Health (TDH) partnered to build three online, asynchronous epidemiology modules for an interdisciplinary audience of graduate students. The goals of the modules were to (1) introduce students to a public health issue, (2) provide students with hands-on learning about data and information available through TDH, and (3) allow students to connect theory to practice by having them create a product for use by TDH. TDH created topic-specific modules that would be used within the infectious disease, chronic disease, and cancer epidemiology courses, and piloted during the 2015–2016 academic term. Results: Conference calls between the two institutions occurred in the spring and the summer of 2015. Two of the three epidemiology modules were presented to ETSU staff for critique and edits at an in-person meeting during the summer. The methods of delivery for each section within a module varied from recorded webinar format to self-guided instruction. One module utilized available learning tools provided by the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, while the other module was constructed entirely using TDH data. Both modules included various exercises and assignments to be conducted in class and as homework and concluded with the student being asked to construct a learning product as a final project. The ETSU–TDH team decided that this learning product would be provided back to TDH for possible future use. Discussion: The innovative partnership between a state government agency and an academic institution has demonstrated the need for such collaborations in public health. Understanding how applied public health practice would utilize what is learned in the classroom and preparing students for real-world application may be the missing link between theory and practice.

In 2014 the Cuban government announced that 24% of the country’s generated electricity will come from renewable energy sources by 2030. In Cuba the emissions have drastically risen over the past decade due to the increasing amount of electricity demand. Today most of the generated electricity is produced by burning oil. To achieve this goal before 2030 major investments in renewable energy will be required. There is also a big concern in Cuba about climate change, as Cuba’s geographical position is very vulnerable to drastic weather changes. This drive efforts towards a more sustainable society, in addition to the economic aspect of being independent of imported oil.   The objective of the study is to evaluate the economical, ecological and social profitability of PV systems in Cuba. The main purpose will consist of making economic and technical calculations using the software Matlab (version R2016a) for the installation of the PV system on the building most suitable at The University of Havana. The study will consider both a PV system with and without energy storage. The PV module that will be investigated in this study is the crystalline silicone cells, since this is the most common used in PV system in Cuba. This is to enable for the university to become partly or completely independent from the electricity generated by the government owned electricity company (UNE). It is important for the university to become independent from the national electricity grid due to the high number of power-cuts and since the electricity company in Cuba regulates how much electricity that can be consumed each month. The project will consider both economic, ecological and social aspects to find the best solution for the installation of PV system at The University of Havana.   The study showed that the most suitable building for a PV system installation is the building of Institute of Science and Technology of Materials. All three orientations examined in this study cover the electricity consumption during an average day and can work as a backup system. The result concluded that the most economical and optimized installation, taking into account the desired function of the PV system for the building of IMRE is an incline angle of 20°, 270 number of installed PV modules and an orientation towards south if installing a PV system with energy storage. The excess electricity from the PV system has assumed to be used for recharging the battery or sold back to the grid for same price as the private PV companies sell electricity for, 0,06-0,07 USD/kWh. It was concluded that the cost of generated electricity from a PV system installed at The University of Havana is 5,5-32,5 % cheaper with battery and without battery the cost is 47,8-62,7 % cheaper than current price of generated electricity at 0,15-0,21 USD/kWh. The result from this study complements other studies done and validates that also smaller PV systems are economical profitable in Cuba. This study has shown that it is economic, ecological and social profitable to install a PV system at The University of Havana. / År 2014 meddelade den kubanska regeringen att 24 % av landets elproduktion ska vid år 2030 komma från förnybara energikällor. På Kuba har utsläppen ökat drastiskt under det senaste decenniet på grund av den ökande efterfrågan på el. Idag produceras majoriteten av den genererade elen från olja och för att uppnå målet om en ökad mängd förnybara energikällor före år 2030 krävs stora investeringar. Det finns en stor oro på Kuba kring klimatförändringarna, på grund av att landets geografiska position är mycket sårbar för drastiska väderförändringar. Detta driver ansträngningarna mot ett mer hållbart samhälle, utöver den ekonomiska aspekten att vara oberoende av importerad olja.   Syftet med studien är att utvärdera PV-systemets ekonomiska, ekologiska och sociala lönsamhet på Kuba. Huvudsyftet kommer att bestå av att göra ekonomiska och tekniska beräkningar med softwareprogrammet Matlab (version 2016a) för installation av PV-systemet på de byggnader som anses lämpligast att installera på. Studien kommer att utvärdera både ett PV-system med och utan energilagring. I denna studie är de kristallina silikoncellerna som tillämpas eftersom dessa är de mest förekommande på Kuba. Installation av ett PV system kommer kunna göra det möjligt för universitetet att bli helt eller delvis oberoende av den el som genereras av det statligt ägda elbolaget (UNE). Det är viktigt för universitetet att bli oberoende av det nationella elnätet på grund av det stora antalet strömavbrott som existerar idag och eftersom Kubas elbolag reglerar hur mycket el som kan konsumeras varje månad. Projektet kommer att överväga både ekonomiskt, sociala och ekologiska aspekter för att finna den bästa lösningen för installation av ett PV-system vid Havannas Universitet.   Studien visade att den lämpligaste byggnaden för en installation av PV-system är på en av byggnaderna som tillhör Institute of Science and Technology of Materials. Alla tre orienteringar för en installation som undersöktes i denna studie täcker elförbrukningen under en genomsnittlig dag och kan även fungera som ett backupsystem. Resultatet visade att den mest ekonomiska och optimala installationen med hänsyn till PV-systemets önskvärda funktion för byggnaden, är en lutningsvinkel på 20 °, en installation på 270 PV-moduler och med en orientering mot söder om PV-systemet installeras med energilagring. Överskottselen från PV systemet har antagits att användas till att ladda upp batterierna eller säljas tillbaka till nätet för samma pris som för privata solcellsföretag säljer för, 0,06–0,07 USD/kWh. Slutsatsen för kostnaden för genererad el från ett PV-system installerat vid Havannas Universitet är att det blir 5,5–32,5% billigare med batteri och utan batteri är kostnaden 47,8–62,7% billigare än nuvarande elproduktion i landet, 0,15-0,21 USD/kWh. Resultatet av denna studie kompletterar andra studier som gjorts och validerar att även mindre installation av PV-system är ekonomiskt lönsamma på Kuba. Denna studie har visat att det är ekonomiskt, ekologiskt och socialt lönsamt att installera ett PV-system vid Havannas Universitet. / Las emisiones de gases de invernaderos en Cuba han aumentado drásticamente en la última década, a causa de la creciente demanda del uso de la electricidad. En la actualidad la mayor parte de la electricidad generada en el país se obtiene por la quema del petróleo. En el año 2014, el gobierno de Cuba se propuso la meta, de que un 24% de la electricidad generada en el país en el 2030, fuese obtenida a partir de las fuentes de energías renovables. Para cumplir este objetivo antes del año 2030, será imprescindible hacer grandes inversiones en nuevas tecnologías para el uso de las fuentes de energías renovables. En Cuba también existe una gran preocupación por el cambio climático debido a las vulnerabilidades de la isla frente a los fenómenos atmosféricos que afectan al país por su situación geográfica. Esto ha incrementado los esfuerzos para alcanzar un desarrollo socioeconómico sostenible y la independencia energética del país. El objetivo de este estudio es evaluar la rentabilidad económica, ecológica y social de los sistemas fotovoltaicos (FV) en Cuba. Para lograr este fin se hacen cálculos económicos y técnicos utilizando el software Matlab versión R2016a para la instalación de los sistemas FV en los edificios de la Universidad de La Habana. El estudio considera ambos tipos de sistemas FV, con y sin almacenamiento de energía. Los módulos FV que se investigan en este trabajo son los basados en celdas solares de silicio cristalino porque estas son las celdas más usadas en los sistemas FV de Cuba. Este proyecto contribuirá a que la universidad se independice parcial o completamente de la electricidad generada en el país. La independencia de la red eléctrica nacional es muy importante para la universidad por la gran cantidad de cortes eléctricos a causa de las regulaciones del consumo energético de cada mes. El proyecto considera los aspectos socioeconómicos y ecológicos para encontrar el sistema FV óptimo en la Universidad de La Habana.   El estudio demuestra que uno de las edificaciones que cumple con las condiciones óptimas para la instalación de un sistema fotovoltaico en la Universidad de La Habana es el edifico central del IMRE. Los aspectos examinados en este estudio consideran el consumo energético promedio en el día y la capacidad de respaldo del sistema FV. Teniendo en cuenta, las características de un sistema FV con almacenamiento de energía en los edificios de IMRE, se concluyó que la instalación óptima y más económica tiene un ángulo de inclinación de 20°, una cantidad de 270 módulos FV instalados y una orientación hacia el sur. Los resultados indicaron que el costo de un sistema FV instalado en la Universidad de La Habana es 5,5-32,5%, más económico con batería, y sin batería el costo es 47,8-62,7% más económico que la electricidad generada actualmente. Estos resultados complementan otros estudios realizados y demuestran que el uso de sistemas FV más pequeños son rentables económicamente en Cuba. Este estudio ha demostrado que la instalación de un sistema FV en la Universidad de La Habana es ecológica, económica y socialmente rentable.

In this thesis, integrated active filter auxiliary power modules (AFAPMs) is presented in electrified vehicle applications. A topological evaluation is conducted particularly for the auxiliary power module (APM) applications in the electrified vehicles. Several primary and secondary base topologies are compared in terms of VA rating and performance. Multiple input/output topology configurations are compared with different connection configurations and control schemes. The MOSFET loss analysis is given. Based on the MOSFET loss analysis, the modular full bridge current doubler with input-series-output-parallel configuration presents better performance in terms of the switch efficiency and cost analysis. Bulk capacitor banks occupy large volume and impact the reliability in the traction inverter and HV battery charger in the vehicle applications. A capacitor-less design is relatively urgent for the next generation electrified vehicle. Active filter (AF) is one potential solution to reduce the corresponding dc-link capacitance. However, additional components are required which increases the system complicity and decreases its reliability. Hence, it would be great to integrate the AF into the LV battery charger for the vehicle applications. Based on the power switch requirements, the AFAPM is evaluated for traction inverter and HV battery charger, respectively. The evaluation result shows that the AFAPM for the HV battery charger system is a feasible and attractive solution. Furthermore, a simple and effective dual-mode dual-voltage charging system operating principle is proposed. The integrated AFAPM converter charges the LV battery when the vehicle is running and operates as an AF when the vehicle is connected to the grid and the HV battery is charging. Hence, the low-frequency second-order harmonic current is alleviated without a bulk capacitor bank or an extra AF circuit in the HV battery charger. For magnetic design, there is a trend toward integration and planarization. Two planar transformers are built for two different AFAPM prototypes. A minimized leakage inductance method is presented and implemented on a 20:1 center-tapped planar transformer. Three different integrated AFAPM converters are proposed. By applying these AFAPM converters, the required extra components to form the AF for the HV battery charger are reduced and thus the cost, size and weight for the dual-voltage charging system in the electrified vehicle applications can be reduced. Two prototypes are built. The experiments show promising results confirming the effectiveness of the proposed converters. / Dissertation / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Torsion pairs were introduced by Dickson in 1966 as a generalization of the concept of torsion abelian group to arbitrary abelian categories. Using torsion pairs, we can divide complex abelian categories in smaller parts which are easier to understand. In this thesis we discuss torsion pairs in the category of modules over a finite-dimensional algebra, in particular we explore the relation between torsion pairs in the category of all modules and torsion pairs in the category of finite-dimensional modules. In the second chapter of the thesis, we present the analogue of a classical theorem of Auslander in the context of τ-tilting theory: for a finite-dimensional algebra the number of torsion pairs in the category of finite-dimensional modules is finite if and only if every brick over such algebra is finite- dimensional. In the third chapter, we revisit the Ingalls-Thomas correspondences between torsion pairs and wide subcategories in the context of large torsion pairs. We provide a nice description of the resulting wide subcategories and show that all such subcategories are coreflective. In the final chapter, we describe mutation of cosilting modules in terms of an operation on the Ziegler spectrum of the algebra.