No description available.

An iterative solution to the problem of blind image deconvolution is presented whereby a previous image estimate is explicitly used in the new image estimation process. The previous image is pre-filtered using an adaptive, non-parametric stabilizing function that is updated based on a current error estimate. This function is experimentally shown to dramatically benefit the convergence rate for the a priori restoration case. Noise propagation from one iteration to the next is reduced by the use of a second, regularizing operator, resulting in a hybrid iteration technique. Further, error terms are developed that shed new light on the error propagation properties of this method and others by quantifying the extent of noise and regularization error propagation. Optimal non-parametric, frequency adaptive stabilizing and regularization functions are then derived based on this error analysis. / Thesis / Master of Engineering (ME)

Time-domain simulations were performed to investigate the influence of passive and active anti-roll tanks and moving weights on ship motions. A point mass moving across the ship was used to model the non-linear effects of the tank systems in various computer simulation environments. PID control of the mass position was used for the active tank (pump) systems and a vibration absorber was used for the passive tank systems. A single-degree-of-freedom non-linear code was developed to investigate the influence of various coefficients and control strategies. The final active and passive tank system implementations were included in the LAMP code developed by SAIC. Results of the time-domain simulations are shown, which indicate the effectiveness of these types of roll control systems. / Master of Science

<p>The term Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement (RAP) is used to designate a material obtained from the removal of pavement materials. RAP is used across the US in multiple applications, largely on asphalt pavement layers. RAP can be described as a uniform granular non-plastic material, with a very low percentage of fines. It is formed by aggregate coated with a thin layer of asphalt. It is often used mixed with other granular materials. The addition of RAP to aggregates decreases the maximum dry unit weight of the mixture and decreases the optimum water content. It also increases the Resilient Modulus of the blend, but decreases permeability. RAP can be used safely, as it does not pose any environmental concerns. The most important disadvantage of RAP is that it displays significant creep. It seems that this is caused by the presence of the asphaltic layer coating the aggregate. Creep increases with pressure and with temperature, and decreases with the degree of compaction. Creep can be mitigated by either blending RAP with aggregate or by stabilization with chemical compounds. Fly ash and cement have shown to decrease, albeit not eliminate, the amount of creep. Mechanical stabilizing agents such as geotextiles may also be used.</p><p><br></p><p><br></p>

En cas de catastrophes importantes, telles qu’un tremblement de terre ou un incendie, l’efficacité des forces de la sécurité civile nécessite une bonne coordination des différents groupes d’intervention. Suivant la nature et l’importance du sinistre, l’infrastructure des moyens de communications classique peut être détruite. Les forces d’intervention ont donc besoin de nouveaux outils de communication dits réseaux de circonstance. Ces réseaux posent de nouveaux problèmes de routage, pour maintenir la connectivité, mais aussi d’allocation de ressources, particulièrement importante dans un contexte de sécurité où les communications doivent être garanties. Dans une première partie, nous avons abordé la problématique de l’allocation de ressources dans les réseaux de circonstance utilisant le partage TDMA. Nos solutions visent une répartition équitable des canaux et prennent en compte une zone d’interférence double de celle de transmission.Evaluer de nouvelles politiques dans des réseaux déployés sur des scènes de catastrophe nécessite de nouveaux modèles de mobilité. Nous avons donc également développé un nouveau modèle de mobilité spécifique au déplacement des équipes de la sécurité civile. / When a major disaster occurs, such as an earthquake or fire, the efficiency of the rescue workers depends of the coordination between the different emergency teams. This coordination needs reliable communication equipments. In such a situation, however, the infrastructure for wireless communication is generally destroyed or unusable. It is therefore necessary to find adapted communication tools for the rescue workers known as opportunistic networks. These networks pose new challenging problems such as, for instance, resource allocation which is particularly important for the QoS satisfaction. In the first part of our thesis, we addressed the problem of resource allocation in ad hoc networks using the TDMA access mechanism. Our solutions aim to perform a fair distribution of channels and take into account an interference area twice as large as the transmission range. Evaluation of new policies for opportunistic networks deployed in disaster areas requires new mobility models. We developed a novel mobility model dedicated to the movement of rescue workers. Our model includes the group mobility and some characteristics of human mobility. It also incorporates a mechanism to circumvent obstacles presents in the simulation area.

No description available.

Hemoglobin biosynthesis in erythrocyte precursors involves several steps. The correct ratios and concentrations of normal alpha (α) and beta β) globin proteins must be expressed, apoproteins must be folded correctly, heme must be synthesized and incorporated into these globins, and the resulting α and β subunits must be rapidly and correctly assembled into heterotetramers. These events occur on a large scale in vivo, and dysregulation causes serious clinical disorders such as thalassemia syndromes. Recent work has implicated a conserved erythroid protein known as Alpha-Hemoglobin Stabilizing Protein (AHSP) as a participant in these events. Current evidence suggests that AHSP enhances α subunit stability and diminishes its participation in harmful redox chemistry. There is also evidence that AHSP facilitates one or more early-stage post-translational hemoglobin biosynthetic events. In this work, the rate constants associated with AHSP binding to and dissociation from native ferric and ferrous human α subunits have been determined, along with the binding and dissociation equilibrium constants. Also, several mutant AHSP proteins were used to better define the cis-trans peptidyl-prolyl isomerization events that AHSP is known to undergo, and several naturally occurring human a subunit missense mutants were used to probe AHSP function. Additionally, several post-binding events regarding AHSP:α-subunit interactions were investigated, such as autooxidation, heme uptake, hemin loss, effects on ligand binding, and secondary structure acquisition. Finally, AHSP was co-expressed with α and β subunits in transgenic Escherichia coli as a way of probing the effects of AHSP on hemoglobin production. Collectively, these data support the model that AHSP rapidly binds α subunits, stabilizes them, and then is displaced by β subunits during hemoglobin production.

Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Auburn University, 2007. / Abstract. Vita. Includes bibliographic references (p.238-254).

Submitted by Daniele Amaral (daniee_ni@hotmail.com) on 2017-10-02T19:48:59Z No. of bitstreams: 1 TeseMCAL.pdf: 16584321 bytes, checksum: ba4677495b9f610f2747a383f8ee91cf (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Ronildo Prado (bco.producao.intelectual@gmail.com) on 2018-01-29T16:58:22Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 TeseMCAL.pdf: 16584321 bytes, checksum: ba4677495b9f610f2747a383f8ee91cf (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Ronildo Prado (bco.producao.intelectual@gmail.com) on 2018-01-29T16:58:31Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 TeseMCAL.pdf: 16584321 bytes, checksum: ba4677495b9f610f2747a383f8ee91cf (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-01-29T17:02:13Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 TeseMCAL.pdf: 16584321 bytes, checksum: ba4677495b9f610f2747a383f8ee91cf (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-11-28 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / The convenience of single-use packaging of high density polyethylene (HDPE) led to the need to convert them into biodegradable materials in less time to minimize the environmental problems caused by disposal. An alternative is the use of prodegradants. However, mechanical properties of packaging materials must be preserved during use and pro-degrading action should increase only after disposal. To achieve this balance between performance and degradability, stabilizers can be added to HDPE/prodegradant. HDPE is a chemically stable polyolefin, hence abiotic degradation times, even in the presence of prodegradant, are long. Therefore, the need for kinetic studies has become critical. To this end, formulations with different manganese stearate levels (50, 200 and 400 ppm) in the presence or absence of stabilizers (primary and secondary) were subjected to thermo-oxidative degradation at three temperatures (60, 70 and 80 °C). For the development of the kinetic studies, tensile tests, infrared spectroscopy and size exclusion chromatography were performed at different thermo-oxidation times. The results showed that manganese stearate, regardless of concentration, in addition to accelerating thermal oxidation of HDPE caused a higher level of degradation, characterized by lower molar masses and higher levels of carbonyl index at the end of the degradation time. Addition of the primary stabilizer increased induction time without altering degradation rates, which enables it to be used in conjunction with the prodegradant to delay the onset of the degradative process. However, the secondary stabilizer caused no significant difference for the levels studied. The kinetic assessment (Arrhenius extrapolations) allowed us to conduct studies predicting degradation times relevant to the analysis of degradation. / A conveniência de embalagens de uso único de polietileno de alta densidade (PEAD), gerou o interesse em tentar convertê-los em materiais biodegradáveis em tempos menores, com o objetivo de minimizar os problemas ambientais que o seu descarte indevido provoca. Uma alternativa é a utilização de aditivos pró-degradantes. No entanto, as propriedades mecânicas das embalagens precisam ser preservadas durante o uso e a ação pró-degradante deve ser intensificada somente após seu descarte. Para se atingir este equilíbrio entre desempenho e degradabilidade, estabilizantes podem ser adicionados ao PEAD/pró-degradante. Por se tratar de uma poliolefina estável quimicamente, os tempos de degradação abiótica, mesmo na presença de pró-degradante, são longos, por isso, a necessidade de se realizar estudos cinéticos se torna fundamental. Para isso, as formulações com diferentes teores nominais de estearato de manganês (50, 200 e 400 ppm) na presença ou ausência de estabilizantes (primários ou secundários) foram submetidas à degradação termo-oxidativa em três temperaturas (60, 70 e 80 °C). Para o desenvolvimento dos estudos cinéticos, ensaios de tração, espectroscopia de infravermelho e cromatografia por exclusão de tamanho foram realizados em diferentes tempos de termo-oxidação. Os resultados mostraram que o estearato de manganês, independente da concentração avaliada, além de acelerar a termo-oxidação do PEAD, promoveu um nível de degradação maior, caracterizado por menores massas molares e maiores índices de carbonila, ao final do tempo de degradação. A adição do estabilizante primário aumentou o tempo de indução sem alterar as taxas de degradação, o que possibilita sua utilização em conjunto com o pró-degradante, para retardar o inicio do processo de degradativo. No entanto, o estabilizante secundário não causou diferenças significativas, para as concentrações estudadas. A avaliação cinética (extrapolações de Arrhenius), permitiu realizar estudos de previsões de tempos de degradação relevantes para a análise da degradação.

The aim of the thesis " A Physiotherapist's View of Overactive Bladder function in Multiple Sclerosis Patients" and the influence of physiotherapy on the symptoms of the overactive bladder. This thesis deals with exert influence on symptoms of an overactive bladder by physiotherapy. Therapy is based on the fact that guarding reflexes that maintains continence at the level of spine and subcortical (micturition centre in pons) are activated by the contraction of the pelvic floor muscles. Physiotherapy contains pelvic floor muscle training with biofeedback, behavioral training and training of stabilizing function of pelvic floor muscles. Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)