A fractal stochastic point process (FSPP) is used to model molecular evolution in agreement with the relationship between the variance and mean numbers of synonymous and nonsynonymous substitutions in mammals. Like other episodic models such as the doubly stochastic Poisson process, this model accounts for the large variances observed in amino acid substitution rates, but unlike other models, it also accounts for the results of Ohta's (1995) analysis of synonymous and nonsynonymous substitutions in mammalian genes. That analysis yields a power-law increase in the index of dispersion and an inverse power-law decrease in the coefficient of variation with the mean number of substitutions, as predicted by the FSPP model but not by the doubly stochastic Poisson model. This result is compatible with the selection theory of evolution and the nearly-neutral theory of evolution.

Enterprise decision making is continuously transforming in the wake of ever increasing amounts of data. Organizations are collecting massive amounts of data in their quest for knowledge nuggets in form of novel, interesting, understandable patterns that underlie these data. The search for knowledge is a multi-step process comprising of various phases including development of domain (business) understanding, data understanding, data preparation, modeling, evaluation and ultimately, the deployment of the discovered knowledge. These phases are represented in form of Knowledge Discovery and Data Mining (KDDM) Process Models that are meant to provide explicit support towards execution of the complex and iterative knowledge discovery process. Review of existing KDDM process models reveals that they have certain limitations (fragmented design, only a checklist-type description of tasks, lack of support towards execution of tasks, especially those of the business understanding phase etc) which are likely to affect the efficiency and effectiveness with which KDDM projects are currently carried out. This dissertation addresses the various identified limitations of existing KDDM process models through an improved model (named the Integrated Knowledge Discovery and Data Mining Process Model) which presents an integrated view of the KDDM process and provides explicit support towards execution of each one of the tasks outlined in the model. We also evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency offered by the IKDDM model against CRISP-DM, a leading KDDM process model, in aiding data mining users to execute various tasks of the KDDM process. Results of statistical tests indicate that the IKDDM model outperforms the CRISP model in terms of efficiency and effectiveness; the IKDDM model also outperforms CRISP in terms of quality of the process model itself.

No description available.

Approximately 60% of college seniors lost at least one family member or friend since beginning college (Cox, Dean, & Kowalski, 2015). Research reveals that bereaved students are more likely than their nonbereaved peers to struggle with academic problems and attrition (Cousins, Servaty-Seib & Lockman, 2017), highlighting the importance of identifying protective factors for this group of individuals. Researchers have identified restoration-oriented coping as a helpful coping mechanism in other samples (Caserta & Lund, 2007; Caserta, Lund, Utza, & de Vries, 2009). Despite qualitative evidence suggesting bereaved undergraduates often employ restoration-oriented coping, no research has formally assessed the effects of restoration-oriented coping in a bereaved undergraduate sample. This study assessed the effects of restoration-oriented coping on students’ (N=420; 68.8% female; 46.7% white) psychological well-being in a longitudinal design. Data were part of a larger study (“Spit 4 Science”) assessing the development of substance use and emotional health outcomes in college students. Students were assessed annually; those who reported a loss, had pre-, and post-loss data were included in analysis. Hierarchical multiple linear regressions were conducted and showed restoration-oriented coping was predictive of better psychological well-being and that this relationship was strengthened by social support quality. Extraversion was also predictive of better psychological well-being, while openness and neuroticism were related to poorer psychological well-being. Moreover, neuroticism mediated the relationship between distress at indication of loss and post-loss follow-up. Further research of restoration-oriented coping efforts among bereaved undergraduates is warranted. Additional resources and support may help to keep students engaged following a loss.

MEMORIA PARA OPTAR AL TÍTULO DE MAGÍSTER EN CONTROL DE GESTIÓN / Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN) se ha convertido en un estándar para describir flujos de tareas. BPMN propone un conjunto de símbolos que representan el comportamiento de los procesos de negocios desde el punto de vista del usuario de un sistema de información y aporta descripción de elementos para la automatización computacional. Por otra parte, el comportamiento de procesos ha sido estudiado por decenas de años en Investigación Operativa bajo el nombre de Problema de Scheduling. A pesar de la estrecha relación, no se encuentra en la literatura ninguna referencia a ambos problemas en conjunto, ni ningún aporte desde el problema de Scheduling a la representación del comportamiento en BPMN. ¿Es posible enriquecer la capacidad descriptiva de BPMN con elementos del comportamiento estudiados en el problema de Scheduling? ¿Es posible que existan elementos del comportamiento de procesos de negocio relevantes que no estén representados en BPMN? ¿Cuáles son esos elementos?. Para responder a estas preguntas, investigamos en detalle el formalismo BPMN y el problema de Scheduling, identificamos diferencias y proponemos un conjunto de símbolos que añaden más descripción al comportamiento de los procesos de negocios desde el punto de vista del usuario. Adicionalmente, se hizo una revisión de dos trabajos previos que proponen mejoras a BPMN, pero que van en una dirección diferente a lo buscado en este trabajo. En este trabajo presentamos detalladamente el último estándar BPMN 2.0 y revisamos un voluminoso resumen del problema de Scheduling (Pinedo, 2016). Durante esta revisión, encontramos varios elementos prácticos relevantes del problema de Scheduling que no están representados en BPMN. Entre estos elementos destacan la velocidad de procesamiento, tiempo de procesamiento, la capacidad de procesamiento, la regla de prioridad y la función objetivo. Estudiando las diferencias, encontramos que hay elementos que describen el problema de Scheduling que deberían incorporarse al estándar BPMN, porque contribuyen a una mejor y más completa caracterización de los procesos. De hecho, con los atributos de velocidad, el tiempo de preparación y de procesamiento, se puede describir gráficamente la presencia de cuellos de botella y restricción de recursos. Adicionalmente, la regla de prioridad permite describir colas de espera impuestas por condiciones propias del negocio. Finalmente, la función objetivo permite comunicar de manera gráfica a los participantes del negocio cuáles son los objetivos que la organización requiere de los procesos. Hay algunos elementos propios de Scheduling que proponemos agregar sólo opcionalmente. Entre estas opciones están las restricciones que consideran la fecha de llegada de la tarea al sistema, los tiempos de espera entre máquinas, y familia de tareas. Con nuestra propuesta se robustece la capacidad descriptiva del estándar BPMN y lo hace apropiado a un mejor análisis consistente con la teoría de Scheduling.

<p>How is competition affected when market boundaries appears none-existing? Our way of communicating and interact has changed the business landscape and created one, international market accessible to all companies striving for competitive advantage (McDougall et al., 2000). Internationalization is the name of the process where firms cross national boundaries and take part of this international market. There are several theories describing this phenomenon, however one of the first models presented was one by the Swedish researchers Johanson and Vahlne in 1977. The Internationalization Process model, also known as the IP model, explains the internationalization of firms as an incremental process of international involvement where knowledge about foreign markets and market commitment affect the way a company proceed internationally.</p><p>Today’s business landscape has introduced a new kind of companies, a product of our connected world; born global firms are increasing in numbers and described as small, often high technological firms aiming for the international market right after establishing. As the authors of this master thesis we found it interesting that a model such as the internationalization model is still used, discussed and referred to. How can a model deriving from the 1970´s still have such importance in today’s changed world? Is it even applicable for this new business arena that the born global firms constitute?</p><p>Our research question has been as follows;</p><p>How does Johanson and Vahlne’s internationalization process model work in practice for born global firms?</p><p>The way we have analysed our findings is according to our purpose of the study; to define a born global company according to existing theories, examine its relation to the internationalization process model and create a more dynamic version of Johanson and Vahlne’s model.</p><p>The research process has been carried out as a qualitative study where we have made a deep study of a small, high technological company in Umeå called Seaflex. We have also included an interview with the Swedish Trade Council to support and broaden our empirical findings. Since our aim is to draw conclusions about an existing theory, we have undertaken a deductive approach in our research.</p><p>After conducting our research we have in our analysis defined Seaflex as a born global company, examined its relation to internationalization and then, in specific to Johanson & Vahlne’s internationalization process model. Finally in our conclusions we present a new internationalization process model focused on born global firms. Our findings are that when born global firms go international, the knowledge needed can be mainly obtained through the development of relationships with partners and new opportunities are discovered through the deliberate use of networks.</p><p>Due to the fact that our research involves solely one company, we are aware of its limited generalization. Therefore, our main suggestion for further research is to examine our suggested model however with a much broader perspective taking several born global firms perspectives into account.</p>

<p>TOUCHE (Task-Oriented and User-Centered process model for developing interfaces for Human-Computer-Human Environments) is a process model for software development created to develop groupware. The creation of TOUCHE is part of a research project carried out at three Spanish universities. The aim of the project is to create a complete process model for the development of usable groupware. This thesis is part of this project and aims to further advance the TOUCHE process model so that it fulfills its aim on developing for usability. The thesis is based on research from the HCI (Human-Computer Interaction) and CSCW (Computer-Supported Cooperative Work) fields. In the thesis a new version of TOUCHE is created which has a strong focus on developing for usability.This is done by selecting four principles from the HCI field, incorporating what is considered to be most important when developing for usability. The principles are a strong focus on, and the involvement of users throughout the whole process, an iterative process, multidisciplinary design, and aim for groupware usability. TOUCHE is analyzed from these principles and missing elements are identified. The difficulties of integrating these elements into TOUCHE are discussed and finally elements are chosen to be integrated into TOUCHE. These elements include a usability guide, evaluation cycles, prototyping, pre-documentation and a multidisciplinary team.</p>

As the baby boomer generation ages, and as advanced medical techniques keep people alive longer, the need for family caregivers will grow. Researchers have determined that the health of family caregivers is generally poorer that noncaregivers. Also, the type of family relationship has been determined to influence health outcomes. This study examined how caregiving parents and caregiving adult children compared with regard to caregiving variables and health outcomes. Social support was then assessed to determine if a mediating effect existed between the predictors and health outcomes. Using data from the MIDUS II survey, the health outcomes of self-identified caregiving parents and caregiving adult children was studied in light of the predictor variables of type of relationship, provision of activities of daily living, length of time caregiving, and family demands. Multiple regression analysis was used to determine the relation between the predictors and health outcomes. Mediation tests were administered to assess if social support mediated between the significant predictors and health outcomes. The type of family relationship influenced health outcomes with caregiving parents demonstrating poorer health than caregiving adult children. Caregiving parents had lower self-rated health and higher numbers of chronic conditions than caregiving adult children. Perceived family demands were associated with increased number of chronic conditions for both caregiving adult children and caregiving parents. No significant influence was found between provision of activities of daily living or length of time caregiving with health outcomes. Similarly, no mediation effect of social support was found between the significant predictor variables and health outcomes. Using the stress process model, this study examined caregiving predictor variables and health outcomes for caregiving parents and caregiving adult children. Caregiving parents were found to demonstrate poorer self-rated health and more chronic health conditions that caregiving adult children. Unlike many previous studies, perceived family demands was found to have a strong association with the number of chronic health conditions for both groups of caregivers. / Graduation date: 2012

This case study investigates the co-construction communication patterns that emerged during an Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) intervention designed to reduce negative and critical self-talk. The transcripts of eight sequential acupressure and behavioral (SAB) counseling intervention sessions between a therapist and two medically nonadherent HIV-infected women were analyzed using Giorgi's (1989, 1994, 1997, 2006) phenomeonlogical method of inquiry. The analysis revealed three major themes: "assessing the present," "reviewing the past," and "forging the future," and eight subthemes: "safe atmosphere," "disclosure," "negotiating meaning," "releasing the past," "breaking the past-to-present pattern," "reducing uncertainty," "generating options," and "projecting images." Prior to the intervention sessions, the women reported experiencing negative and critical self-talk and inconsistent medication adherence. Self-talk and illness narrative modifications were evident within and across sessions as the therapist used sequential acupressure and behavioral counseling techniques. During the one month follow-up, the participants reported no experience of negative and critical self-talk and described actions taken toward goals discussed and imagined during the intervention such as medication adherence, exercise, and reenrollment in school. The co-construction themes that emerged in the intervention were consistent with findings in the comforting message literature with specific parallels to the factor analysis findings of Bippus (2001). This work lends support to comforting message research and suggests that distinctions between everyday comforting messages and chronic illness support strategies may be more similar than anticipated. Other study conclusions include clinical and practical implications for people working with HIV-infected individuals.

This thesis deals with the problem of estimating the probability of failure of a system from computer simulations. When only an expensive-to-simulate model of the system is available, the budget for simulations is usually severely limited, which is incompatible with the use of classical Monte Carlo methods. In fact, estimating a small probability of failure with very few simulations, as required in some complex industrial problems, is a particularly difficult topic. A classical approach consists in replacing the expensive-to-simulate model with a surrogate model that will use little computer resources. Using such a surrogate model, two operations can be achieved. The first operation consists in choosing a number, as small as possible, of simulations to learn the regions in the parameter space of the system that will lead to a failure of the system. The second operation is about constructing good estimators of the probability of failure. The contributions in this thesis consist of two parts. First, we derive SUR (stepwise uncertainty reduction) strategies from a Bayesian-theoretic formulation of the problem of estimating a probability of failure. Second, we propose a new algorithm, called Bayesian Subset Simulation, that takes the best from the Subset Simulation algorithm and from sequential Bayesian methods based on Gaussian process modeling. The new strategies are supported by numerical results from several benchmark examples in reliability analysis. The methods proposed show good performances compared to methods of the literature.