This thesis tries to identify the new city-governance mechanisms deployed in the Western Aegean small town of Seferihisar, following the town&lsquo / s membershipto the international Cittaslowassociation of small towns. The membership has quickly transformed the place into a yearlong touristic destination, while leading several other agendas for the improvement of theurbanquality of life in the town. Regarding Turkey&lsquo / s EU Accession Process, this thesis regards Cittaslow as a multi-scalar meta-governance mechanism, which guides the municipalities of small towns in rescaling their urban governance as tailor-fit to their corresponding sociospatial specificities. The thesis argues that the social-democratic municipality in Seferihisar plays a key energizing role in the

<p>Granular materials are hard to understand due to their discrete and a-thermal nature. The mechanical response of a granular packing under external deformations, although highly relevant in industrial processes, is still poorly understood, partly due to the difficulty to generate a homogeneous granular packing. In this thesis, I present a novel shear apparatus that avoids the formation of inhomogeneities known as shear bands. This apparatus provides quasi-static, quasi-uniform simple shear deformation to a 2D model granular system under fixed packing fraction &phi. The position, orientation and forces for each particle are obtained at each shear step, using the photo-elastic technique. This model granular system exhibits coupling between the shear strain, &gamma, and the pressure, P, which we characterize by the `Reynolds pressure', and a `Reynolds coefficient', R(&phi) = (&partial^2 P/ &partial &gamma^2)/2. Under cyclic shear, this system evolves logarithmically slowly towards limit cycle dynamics, which we characterize in terms of pressure relaxation at cycle n: &Delta P &simeq - &beta ln(n/n_0). &beta depends only on the shear cycle amplitude, suggesting an activated process where &beta plays a temperature-like role. In addition, particles in the sheared system are diffusive. The translational and rotational diffusion, observed under stroboscopic view during cyclic shear, are observed to depend on the packing fraction but not on the stress states of the system. Finally, the structure of the force network, and how that connects to the mechanical behavior, is also briefly discussed.</p> / Dissertation

We report on the combination of slow light propagation with the resonance properties of a photonic crystal (PhC) cavity and with the slow mode of a PhC waveguide. We demonstrate theoretically and experimentally that slow light induced by the Coherent Population Oscillation (CPO) effect enables to have small-size and ultrahigh quality (Q) factor cavity, regardless of the technological and design issues. The experimental proof is performed in a L3 2D PhC cavity with semiconductor quantum wells as active, medium in which the CPO effect is induced. We achieve a cavity Q-factor of 520000, which corresponds to an enhancement by a factor 138 in comparison with the original Q-factor of the cavity. We present a theoretical approach to the combination of CPO-based slow light and slow mode in PhC waveguides, showing that the total group index is a multiplication of the group indices associated respectively to the CPO slow light and to the waveguide slow mode. We also set the basis for the experimental demonstration by designing and fabricating samples in the clean room facilities of LPN and addressing the challenging issue of coupling and extracting light in and from the waveguides. A particular design of the PhC in the waveguide is issued as a grating that allows to couple light perpendicularly to the plane of the PhC from free space. The vertical coupler has also been designed and fabricated along the waveguide and has been experimentally characterized. Slow light based on CPO effect in the PhC waveguides is always under experimental investigation.

Slow speed rotating machines are the mainstay of several industrial applications worldwide. They can be found in paper and steel mills, rotating biological contractors, wind turbines etc. Operational experience of such machinery has not only revealed the early design problems but has also presented opportunities for further significant improvements in the technology and economics of the machines. Slow speed rotating machinery maintenance, mostly related to bearings, shafts and gearbox problems, represents the cause of extended outages. Rotating machinery components such as gearboxes, shafts and bearings degrade slowly with operating time. Such a slow degradation process can be identified if a robust on-line monitoring and predictive maintenance technology is used to detect impending problems and allow repairs to be scheduled. To keep machines functioning at optimal levels, failure detection of such vital components is important as any mechanical degradation or wear, if is not impeded in time, will often progress to more serious damage affecting the operational performance of the machine. This requires far more costly repairs than simply replacing a part. Over the last few years there have been many developments in the use of Acoustic Emission (AE) technology and its analysis for monitoring the condition of rotating machinery whilst in operation, particularly on slow speed rotating machinery. Unlike conventional technologies such as thermography, oil analysis, strain measurements and vibration, AE has been introduced due to its increased sensitivity in detecting the earliest stages of loss of mechanical integrity. This programme of research involves laboratory tests for monitoring slow speed rotating machinery components (shafts and bearings) using AE technology. To implement this objective, two test rigs have been designed to assess the capability of AE as an effective tool for detection of incipient defects within low speed machine components (e.g. shafts and bearings). The focus of the experimental work will be on the initiation and growth of natural defects. Further, this research work investigates the source characterizations of AE signals associated with such bearings whilst in operation. It is also hoped that at the end of this research program, a reliable on-line monitoring scheme used for slow speed rotating machinery components can be developed.

Even with its opposition to “fast” and “globalization,” the Slow Food movement has embraced new media and speed to disseminate information to a worldwide audience. The organization’s use of new and social media is the focus of this ethnographic study to examine the online discourse of the movement through the theoretical lens of international political economy of media and globalization theory. Online interviews via social media and supplemental textual analysis of Slow Food-related online discourse reveals themes concerning time, education and community and shows that participation in the dialogic discussion surrounding Slow Food online varies widely across groups and new media platforms.

An influential theory of chess skill holds that expertise in chess is not due to greater depth of search by experts but, rather, to the ability to recognize familiar patterns of pieces. Although there is evidence that experts search deeper than non-experts, the data are not consistent. In this thesis, I propose “key-position theory” which states that only in a small number of key positions is it necessary to search deeply and it is these positions that experts search deeper than non-experts. Study 1 found, consistent with key-position theory, that the distribution of moves times is extremely skewed with some moves taking much longer than others. This pattern was more pronounced for the stronger players. Study 2 found that the errors made by weaker players involved less search than the errors made by stronger players. These findings suggest that search is an important component of chess expertise.

This research aimed to address the knowledge gaps in the literature regarding the removal of waterborne pathogens (viruses and protozoa) by modified multistage slow sand filtration. In the current study, two pilot-scale multistage slow sand filtration systems were operated continuously for over two years. The pilot systems treated agricultural- and urban-impacted raw river water of variable quality with turbidity peaks over 300 NTU and seasonal cold temperatures <2°C. The first system (Pilot 1) consisted of two independent trains that included pre-ozonation, shallow-bed upflow gravel roughing filtration, and shallow-bed slow sand filtration. Pilot 1 was a pilot-scale version of an innovative, commercially available full-scale system. The second system (Pilot 2) included a full-depth upflow gravel roughing filter, a full-depth slow sand filter, and a second shallow-depth slow sand filter in series. The SSFs of both pilots were operated at high hydraulic loading rates (typically 0.4 m/h) at the upper limit of the literature recommended range (0.05 to 0.4 m/h). Both pilot systems provided excellent turbidity removal despite the high filtration rates. Effluent turbidity of all multistage SSF pilot systems were within the regulated effluent limits in Ontario for full-scale SSFs (below 1 NTU at least 95% of the time and never exceeded 3 NTU), despite raw water turbidity peaks over 100 NTU. The roughing filters contributed to approximately 60-80% of the full-train turbidity removal, compared to and 20-40% for the slow sand filters. On average, the second slow sand filter in pilot 2 provided almost no additional turbidity removal. The slow sand filter run lengths were short because of frequent high raw water turbidity, with about 50-80% of the runs in the range of 1-3 weeks. To prevent excessive SSF clogging and maintenance, filtration rates should be decreased during periods of high turbidity. Seven Cryptosporidium and Giardia challenge tests were conducted on the slow sand filters of both pilot systems at varying filtration rates (0.4 or 0.8 m/h), temperatures (2 to 25°C), and biological maturities (4 to 20 months). Removal of oocysts and cysts were good regardless of sand depth, hydraulic loading rate, and water temperature in the ranges tested. Average removals in the SSFs ranged from 2.6 to >4.4 logs for Cryptosporidium oocysts and ranged from >3.8 to >4.5 logs for Giardia cysts. This was consistent with findings in the literature, where oocyst and cyst removals of >4 logs have been reported. Cryptosporidium oocyst removals improved with increased biological maturity of the slow sand filters. At a water temperature of 2°C, average removal of oocysts and cysts were 3.9 and >4.5 logs, respectively, in a biologically mature SSF. Doubling the filtration rate from 0.4 to 0.8 m/h led to a marginal decrease in oocyst removals. Sand depths in the range tested (37-100 cm) had no major impact on oocyst and cyst removals, likely because they are removed primarily in the upper section of slow sand filter beds by straining. In general, good oocyst and cyst removals can be achieved using shallower slow sand filter bed depths and higher filtration rates than recommended in the literature. There are very few studies in the literature that quantify virus removal by slow sand filtration, especially at high filtration rates and shallow bed depths. There are no studies that report virus removal by slow sand filtration below 10°C. As such, 16 MS2 bacteriophage challenge tests were conducted at varying water temperatures (<2 to >20°C) and filtration rates (0.1 vs. 0.4 m/h) between February and June 2006 on biologically mature slow sand filters with varying bed depths (40 vs. 90 cm). Biologically mature roughing filters were also seeded with MS2. Average MS2 removals ranged from 0.2 to 2.2 logs in the SSFs and 0.1 to 0.2 logs in the RFs under all conditions tested. Virus removal by slow sand filtration was strongly dependant on hydraulic loading rate, sand depth, and water temperature. Virus removal was greater at a sand depth of 90 cm vs. 40 cm, at an HLR of 0.1 m/h vs. 0.4 m/h, and at warm (20-24°C) vs. cold (<2-10°C) water temperatures when sufficient warm water acclimation time was provided. Increased sand depth likely increased MS2 removal because of greater detention time for predation and greater contact opportunities for attachment to sand grains and biofilms. A lower HLR would also increase MS2 removal by increasing detention time, in addition to decreasing shear and promoting attachment to filter media and biofilms. Greater MS2 removal at warmer water temperatures was attributed to improved biological activity in the filters. Schmutzdecke scraping was found to have only a minor and short-term effect on MS2 removals. Virus removal can be optimized by providing deep SSF beds and operating at low filtration rates. Virus removal may be impaired in cold water, which could affect the viability of using SSF/MSF at northern climates if communities do not use disinfection or oxidation. As a stand-alone process, slow sand filtration (with or without roughing filtration) may not provide complete virus removal and should be combined with other treatment processes such as disinfection and oxidation to protect human health.

ABSTRACT A key feature of Canada’s urban system is the uneven distribution of population and economic growth. The 2011 Census showed that in the past five years more than 80% of the country’s growth was concentrated in the 10 largest Canadian Metropolitan Areas. As a result, more than 33% of Canada’s population centres lost population while another 27% experienced slow growth. Despite affecting a third of the country’s communities, population loss was concentrated primarily in remote communities with a population of less than 10,000. To better understand the processes and effects of slow growth and shrinkage in Canada this research was guided by three questions: • How do planners, economic developers and local officials define slow growth, decline and shrinkage? • What factors cause a community to implement growth appropriate planning tools and strategies and; • What components should be part of growth appropriate planning and economic development strategies? These questions were addressed using a qualitative survey which was answered by 70 participants in 51 communities. Overall there was little variance in how respondents defined decline and shrinkage. Given their stigma, each term was primarily associated with population loss, vacant structures and a variety of problems including financial stress and the loss of employment opportunities. When asked approximately 80% of Canadian communities used at least one progressive planning tool or strategy. The implementation of these tools was largely in response to the effects of slow growth and shrinkage as well as future economic outlook, support from local actors (municipal staff and officials, residents, local businesses) and senior governments. Few communities however used these tools to acknowledge or explicitly deal with their slow growth or shrinkage as it was feared that accepting either trend would scare away future investment. Almost all of the research participants agreed that areas of slow growth and population loss required different planning strategies than those experiencing rapid growth. These strategies included altering existing strategies to meet local needs and or creating entirely new planning tools and strategies, collaborating with other professionals, amending existing or creating new roles for planners, leverage local resources for community improvements and using an approach which equally addresses a community physical, economic, environmental and social needs. In addition, respondents noted that more research was required on how to plan in growth challenged areas and in particular, small rural communities.

Since the phase stability region of CuInSe2 (CIS) extends as wide as a few atomic percent, composition variation in a microscopic scale is nature to this material and can be detected by EPMA or TEM-EDS. As the detection volume is kept as small as possible (e.g. we used an electron probe with a diameter of 3nm to measure a TEM specimen thinned by a focused ion beam to a 80 nm thickness), the composition data fluctuate rather significantly. For a near-stoichiometric CIS film prepared by co-evaporation or a selenized film using binary selenides as precursor, the composition variations in a nanometer scale were quite distinct. Due to the tedious procedures for making TEM specimens and doing measurements, we normally used EPMA for the composition analysis. Although the composition was measured in a micrometer scale, its variation still can be detected and expressed by the standard deviation. Our results showed that the selenized films prepared by using binary selenides as precursors (they were used to make the device in this work) had much better composition uniformity as compared with the films selenized from the elemental precursors. We also found that even the time period for the selenization process was short (rapid thermal selenization) or long (conventional selenization), the composition variation did not make any changes. Since there still has problems for making devices by using rapid thermal selenization, we successfully fabricated the CIS thin-film solar cells through the conventional selenization processes. The I-V characteristics of the best CIS cell is in the following: Voc=0.398 V, Jsc=41.14 mA/cm2, fill factor (FF)=54.58%, efficiency= 9.29%. We also made a CIGS cell and found that the open circuit voltage was increased to 0.461 V. However, the efficiency was 4.42%. It still needs more effort to boost its short circuit current and fill factor.

Coherent nonlinear effects such as Electromagnetically Induced Transparency (EIT), Coherent Population Trapping (CPT), and Slow light are studied in thermal Rb vapor by both continuous and pulsed laser fields. This work primarily includes three parts: (I) mode-locked rubidium laser and its applications (II) enhanced coupling between optical and sound waves in the forward direction via ultra-slow light (III) optical steering via ultra-slow light in rubidium vapor. In part(I), I describe the construction and study of a mode-locked rubidium laser operating at the Rb D1 line using an active mode-locking technique inside the laser cavity. The mode-locked laser field is used to observe coherent effects in a dense rubidium gas. In part(II), I experimentally demonstrate enhanced acoustic-optic coupling that occurs when the velocity of sound is close to the group velocity of light. Dragging of the light by effective motion of the gas in a Rb cell is the origin of enhanced coupling. Good agreement between theory and experiment is found. In part(III), I experimentally demonstrate optical beam deflection in coherently driven rubidium vapor due to the steep refraction index profile in the region of EIT.