Solar-blind Ultraviolet cameras are used to detect missile plumes and perform the detection of corona on high voltage electrical lines. This study investigates the influence of the spectral transfer function of a specific solar-blind Ultraviolet camera upon Ultraviolet energy measurement results. In addition to the spectral transfer response investigated, is the influence of other related factors, including the specific camera operation and design. The possibility that the particular camera‟s measurements are being influenced by its own spectral transfer function, is initially investigated by using a simplified model. The objective of the model was to determine if the hypothesis is possible. In addition to the spectral transfer function of the camera, other factors that could influence camera measurements were also investigated in the literature. Included are highlights from other research conducted utilising this type of camera for high voltage electrical purposes, as well as comments for further research. Subsequently experiments were executed to characterise the camera, including the determination of the spectral transfer function of the specific camera, taking into considering limitations of the camera and related equipment. Derived from the spectral transfer of the camera and the other experiments and literature, a proposed method of calibration is presented, as well as suggestions for the improvement of the camera and better utilisation thereof. / Son-blind ultraviolet kameras word gebruik om missiel uitlaat gasse sowel as korona op hoogspannings kraglyne op te spoor. Die studie ondersoek die invloed van die spektrale oordragfunksie van „n spesifieke son-blind ultraviolet kamera op ultraviolet energie meetingsresultate. Addisioneel tot die spektrale response geondersoek, is die invloed van ander verwante faktore op metings insluitend die spesifieke kamera se werking en ontwerp. Die moontlikheid dat die spesifieke kamera se metings beïnvloed word deur sy eie spektrale oordragfunksie, word aanvanklik eers ondersoek aan die hand van ‟n eenvoudige model. Die doel van die model is om te bepaal of die hipotese moontlik is. Addisioneel tot die spektrale oordragfunksie van die kamera, word ander faktore wat die kamerametings kon beïnvloed het, ook ondersoek in die literatuur. Ingesluit is hoogtepunte van ander navorsing wat die tipes kameras gebruik vir hoogspannings elektriese doeleindes, plus kommentaar vir verdere navorsing. Vervolgens is eksperimente uitgevoer om die kamera te karakteriseer, insluitend die bepaling van die spesifieke kamera se spektrale oordragfunksie, met inagneming van die beperkings van kamera en verwante toerusting. Afgelei uit die spektrale oordragfunksie van die kamera en die ander eksperimente en literatuurstudie, is „n voorgestelde kalibrasiemetode aangebied, asook voorstelle vir die verbetering en die kamera en meer effektiewe gebruik daarvan. / Dissertation (MEng (Electronic Engineering))--University of Pretoria, 2015. / Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineering / MEng (Electronic Engineering) / Unrestricted

Cette thèse porte sur l'inférence de réseaux. Le cadre statistique naturel à ce genre de problèmes est celui des modèles graphiques, dans lesquels les relations de dépendance et d'indépendance conditionnelles vérifiées par une distribution multivariée sont représentées à l'aide d'un graphe. Il s'agit alors d'apprendre la structure du modèle à partir d'observations portant sur les sommets. Nous considérons le problème d'un point de vue bayésien. Nous avons également décidé de nous concentrer sur un sous-ensemble de graphes permettant d'effectuer l'inférence de manière exacte et efficace, à savoir celui des arbres couvrants. Il est en effet possible d'intégrer une fonction définie sur les arbres couvrants en un temps cubique par rapport au nombre de variables à la condition que cette fonction factorise selon les arêtes, et ce malgré le cardinal super-exponentiel de cet ensemble. En choisissant les distributions a priori sur la structure et les paramètres du modèle de manière appropriée, il est possible de tirer parti de ce résultat pour l'inférence de modèles graphiques arborescents. Nous proposons un cadre formel complet pour cette approche.Nous nous intéressons également au cas où les observations sont organisées en série temporelle. En faisant l'hypothèse que la structure du modèle graphique latent subit un certain nombre de brusques changements, le but est alors de retrouver le nombre et la position de ces points de rupture. Il s'agit donc d'un problème de segmentation. Sous certaines hypothèses de factorisation, l'exploration exhaustive de l'ensemble des segmentations est permise et, combinée aux résultats sur les arbres couvrants, permet d'obtenir, entre autres, la distribution a posteriori des points de ruptures en un temps polynomial à la fois par rapport au nombre de variables et à la longueur de la série. / In this dissertation we investigate the problem of network inference. The statistical frame- work tailored to this task is that of graphical models, in which the (in)dependence relation- ships satis ed by a multivariate distribution are represented through a graph. We consider the problem from a Bayesian perspective and focus on a subset of graphs making structure inference possible in an exact and e cient manner, namely spanning trees. Indeed, the integration of a function de ned on spanning trees can be performed with cubic complexity with respect to number of variables under some factorisation assumption on the edges, in spite of the super-exponential cardinality of this set. A careful choice of prior distributions on both graphs and distribution parameters allows to use this result for network inference in tree-structured graphical models, for which we provide a complete and formal framework.We also consider the situation in which observations are organised in a multivariate time- series. We assume that the underlying graph describing the dependence structure of the distribution is a ected by an unknown number of abrupt changes throughout time. Our goal is then to retrieve the number and locations of these change-points, therefore dealing with a segmentation problem. Using spanning trees and assuming that segments are inde- pendent from one another, we show that this can be achieved with polynomial complexity with respect to both the number of variables and the length of the series.

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Dans cette thèse, nous proposons des solutions parrallèles basées sur le systèmes actuel GPU (graphics processing unit) pour deux problèmes de minimisation de graphe Euclidien, à savoir le problème de forêt/arbre couvrant minimum Euclidien (EMSF / EMST) et le problème du voyageur commerce (TSP). Les solutions proposées résolvent également aussi le problème d'une paire bichromatique la plus proche (BCP), et suivent la technique de ``contrôle décentralisé, du parallélisme des données et des mémoires partagées par GPU".Nous proposons une technique de recherche dans le voisinage le plus proche de dimension K Euclidienne basée sur les approches classiques de NNS d’Elias qui divisent l’espace Euclidien en cellules congruentes et ne se chevauchant pas, où la taille des points de chaque cellule est délimitée. Nous proposons aussi une technique d'élagage pour obtenir le NNS à base de composants afin de trouver le point de sortie le plus proche de l'ensemble de points de requête de Q dans la complexité temporelle linéaire séquentielle lorsque les données sont uniformément réparties. Ces techniques sont utilisées conjointement avec deux GPU algorithmes proposés pour arbre traversement, à savoir la recherche en largeur bidirectionnelle GPU et la liste chaînée dynamique distribuée, afin d'adresser le BCP. Basé sur la solution BCP, un algorithme parallèle Divide and Conquer est implémenté pour construire EMSF et EMST totalement côté GPU. Le TSP est adressé avec différents algorithmes de recherche locaux parallèles 2-opt, dans lesquels nous proposons une méthodologie ``évaluation multiple K-opt, mouvements multiples K-opt" afin d’exécuter simultanément, sans interférence, des processus massifs 2-/3-opt mouvements qui se retrouvent globalement sur le même circuit TSP pour de nombreux bords. Cette méthodologie est expliquée en détail pour montrer comment nous obtenons un calcul haute performance à la fois du côté du GPU et CPU. Nous testons les solutions proposées et rapportons des résultats de comparaison expérimentale par rapport aux algorithmes de pointe. / In this thesis, we propose parallel solutions based on current graphics processing unit (GPU) system for two Euclidean graph minimization problems, namely the Euclidean minimum spanning forest/tree (EMSF/EMST) and the travelling salesman problem (TSP). The proposed solutions also solve the bichromatic closest pair (BCP) problem, and follow technique of ``decentralized control, data parallelism, GPU shared memories".We propose a Euclidean K-dimensional nearest neighbourhood search (NNS) technique based on classical Elias' NNS approaches that divide the Euclidean space into congruent and non-overlapping cells where size of points in each cell is bounded. We propose a pruning technique to obtain component-based NNS to find a query point set Q's closest outgoing point within sequential linear time complexity when the data is uniformly distributed. These techniques are used together with two proposed GPU tree traversal algorithms, namely the GPU two-direction Breadth-first search and distributed dynamic linked list, to address the BCP. Based on the BCP solution, a divide and conquer parallel algorithm is implemented for building EMSF and EMST totally on GPU side. The TSP is addressed with different parallel 2-opt local search algorithms, in which we propose a ``multiple K-opt evaluation, multiple K-opt moves" methodology in order to simultaneously execute, without interference, massive 2-/3-opt moves that are globally found on the same TSP tour for many edges. This methodology is explained in details to show how we obtain high performance computing both on GPU and CPU side. We test the proposed solutions and report experimental comparison results against the state-of-the-art algorithms.

This study explores the development of a Western firm's subsidiary in the Ukraine and sets out to contribute to the theoretical development about the managing of subsidiaries in the Post-Soviet market. The cross-institutional approach to analyse the subsidiary has been adopted to explore influence from the institutional setting of the parent firm and from local institutions. In the theoretical framework, special attention is directed to studies analysing the challenges that Western firms encounter when operating in the Post-Soviet market. Institutional theory therefore serves as a framework for theories on market entries, networks and management transfers.The empirical study is based on a case study conducted in connection to a training project for local employees of a Western firm's subsidiary operating in the Ukraine. Besides being a source of inspiration, the training project provided good access to respondents and insights about the challenges that the subsidiary faced.The analysis shows that the introduction of the Western firm's management in the subsidiary reflects in the local employees' forming of identities. A clear pattern is that local employees' development of identities in line with the Western firm's norms is supported by socialisation in settings dominated by the Western firm. A setting dominated by conflicts between Western and local norms, in contrast, resulted in developments of conflict identities. The analysis of the subsidiary's managing of influences from the local institutional setting indicates that this concerned filtering. Striking was that the subsidiary was successful in managing influences when the filtering conditions were characterised by consonance. Looking into aspects making the filtering of external influences difficult, the analysis points out barter trade and local actors' boundary spanning towards authorities in the Ukrainian society as aspects creating dissonances and vacuum. Thus, influences characterised by dissonance and/or vacuum made it particularly difficult for the subsidiary to manage these influences.One of the major contributions of this thesis is the cross-institutional approach to analyse developments in a subsidiary in the Post-Soviet market. By applying this approach the study suggests that the managing of a cross-institutional setting concerns both internal and external boundary spanning. Of vital importance for the internal boundary spanning are issues influencing local employees' forming of a 'we' with the Western firm's representatives. The standpoint is that this concerns local employees' identity identification, which is a new perspective on management transfers towards a subsidiary in the Post-Soviet market. Concerning the managing of external boundary spanning, the study points towards the importance of observing local actors' ways of dealing with dissonances and vacuum in local networks. / digitalisering@umu

Die Struktur der Plasmamembran ist von deren Lipid- und Proteinzusammensetzung abhängig und wird durch die Anbindung an das unterliegende Zytoskelett beeinflusst. Das Ziel der vorliegenden Arbeit war die Untersuchung eines neuen Modellsystems basierend auf po­ren­über­span­nen­den Membranen, welches sowohl die heterogene Lipidzusammensetzung als auch den Einfluss eines unterliegenden Netzwerks berücksichtigt. Lipidmembranen, zusammengesetzt aus der „raft“-ähnlichen Lipidmischung DOPC/Sphingo­myelin/Cho­les­terin (40:40:20), wurden auf porösen, hochgeordneten Siliziumsubstraten mit Po­ren­durch­messern von 0.8, 1.2 und 2.0 µm durch Spreiten und Fusion von Riesenvesikeln (giant unilamellar vesicles, GUVs) präpariert. Die mikroskopische Phasenseparation in koexistierenden flüssig-geordneten (liquid ordered, lo) und flüssig-ungeordneten (liquid disordered, ld) Domänen wurde stark durch das unterliegende poröse Substrat beeinflusst. Die Größe der lo-Domänen konnte durch die Porengröße des Siliziumsubstrats, die Temperatur und den Cholesteringehalt der Membran, welcher durch Zugabe von Methyl-β-Cyclodextrin moduliert wurde, kontrolliert werden. Die Bindung der Shiga Toxin B-Untereinheit (STxB) an po­ren­überspannende Membranen, dotiert mit 5 mol% des Rezeptorlipids Gb3, führte zu einem Anstieg des Anteils der lo-Phase. Außerdem wurde die Bildung von lo-Domänen in nicht-phasenseparierten Membranen, zusammengesetzt aus DOPC/Sphingomyelin/Cholesterin/Gb3 (65:10:20:5), durch die Shiga Toxin-Bindung induziert. Ein Anstieg des Anteils der lo-Phase konnte ebenfalls bei der Bindung der pentameren Cholera Toxin B-Untereinheit (CTxB) an po­ren­überspannende Membranen, dotiert mit 1 mol% des Rezeptorlipids GM1, beobachtet werden. Des Weiteren wurde der Einfluss der chemischen Struktur des Gb3-Moleküls auf die Shiga Toxin-Bindung und die Reorganisation von festkörperunterstützten Membranen (solid supported membranes, SSMs) untersucht. Die STxB-Bindung an α-hydroxyliertes Gb3 erhöhte signifikant den Anteil der lo-Phase, während eine cis-Doppelbindung zur Bildung einer weiteren lo-Phase führte, die vermutlich ungesättigte (Glyko-)Sphingolipide und Cholesterin enthält. Im Falles des ungesättigten Gb3 konnte außerdem eine Kondensation zu größeren Domänen nach der STxB-Bindung beobachtet werden. Die genaue Phasenzuordnung der eingesetzten Glykospingolipide vor der Proteinbindung ist bisher unbekannt. Daher wurde das Phasenverhalten eines fluoreszierenden Polyen-Ga­lac­to­ce­re­bro­sids untersucht, welches bevorzugt in der lo-Phase von GUVs angereichert war. Dieser neue, intrinsische Fluorophor vermag als Grundlage für weitere Studien zum Phasenverhalten von Glykosphingolipiden dienen.

Scholars in strategy, economics, and sociology of science and technology have studied technology development as a source of firms’ economic gains as well as institutional changes. Drawing on the extant research of technology and innovation strategy, I investigate the problem of knowledge generation and flows in technology development. Specifically, I explore how firms generate novel technology and develop technological breakthroughs; how knowledge flows between firms affect interfirm cooperation in a knowledge network; and how science and technology programs impact the institutions of knowledge production. In Essay 1 (Chapter 2), I examine the antecedents of knowledge recombination and technological breakthroughs. Conceptualizing a firm’s exploration as a combinatory search of prior new-recombination (an original technology component), I investigate the impacts of prior new-recombination and search boundary (local vs. boundary-spanning) on the characteristics of focal invention. In particular, I theorize and juxtapose the contrasting effects of the boundary of technological search of prior new-recombination on the propensities that the focal invention generates new recombination and becomes a technological breakthrough. Specifically, I hypothesize that, when the technological search involves new recombination in prior inventions, 1) the likelihood of generating new recombination in the focal invention is greatest for a boundary spanning search, smallest for a local search, and intermediate for a hybrid search (which involves both types of search); but 2) the likelihood for the focal invention to become a technological breakthrough is greatest for a local search, smallest for a boundary spanning search, and intermediate for a hybrid search. I find supporting evidence from the analysis of U.S. nanotechnology patents granted between 1980 and 2006. The purpose of Essay 2 (Chapter 3) is to determine the effect of knowledge flows on the formation of interfirm cooperation. By distinguishing codified knowledge flows from tacit knowledge flows, this paper demonstrates that antecedents of interfirm cooperation lie in codified knowledge flows that precede interfirm cooperation. Two properties of asymmetry in directional codified knowledge flows, intensity and uncertainty, underpin this paper’s arguments and empirical tests. The main finding in this study is that intense codified knowledge flows weaken the formation of interfirm cooperation. By mapping dyadic firms to a center and a periphery firm within a knowledge network, I theorize that the uncertainty of directional codified knowledge flows induces the center and the periphery firms to pursue interfirm cooperation differently. The results show that while uncertainty caused by distant technology components in knowledge flows hinders a center firm from pursuing interfirm cooperation, uncertainty stimulates a periphery firm to pursue interfirm cooperation. A statistical analysis performed on a sample of enterprise software firms between 1992 and 2009 supports the hypotheses of this paper. In Essay 3 (Chapter 4), I examine how the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI), a most recent U.S. government’s science and technology (S&T) program launched in 2000, impacts the nature of university research in nanotechnology. I characterize the NNI as a policy intervention that targets the commercialization of technology and a focused research direction to promote national economic growth. As such, I expect that the NNI has brought about unintended consequences in terms of the direction of university-industry knowledge flows and the characteristics of university research output in nanotechnology. Using the difference-in-differences analysis of the U.S. nanotechnology patents filed between 1996 and 2007, I find that, for the U.S. universities, the NNI has increased knowledge inflows from the industry, diminished the branching-out to novel technologies, reduced the research scope, and decreased the likelihood of technological breakthroughs, as compared to other U.S. and non-U.S. research institutions. The findings suggest that, at least in the case of the NNI, targeted S&T programs of the government may increase the efficiency of university research, but potentially do so at a considerable price.