Groundwater data in this thesis, which is taken from the database of Sveriges Geologiska Undersökning, characterizes chemical and quantitative status of groundwater in Sweden. The data usually is recorded with only quantification limits when it is below certain values. Accordingly, this thesis is aiming at handling such kind of data. The thesis considers this topic by using the EM algorithm to get the results from maximum likelihood estimation. Consequently, estimations of distributions on censored data of trace elements are expounded on. Related simulations show that the estimation is acceptable.

The measure-multiplicity-invariant for masas in II_1 factors was introduced by Dykema, Smith and Sinclair to distinguish masas that have the same Pukanszky invariant. In this dissertation, the measure class (left-right-measure) in the measuremultiplicity- invariant is studied, which equivalent to studying the structure of the standard Hilbert space as an associated bimodule. The focal point of this analysis is: To what extent the associated bimodule remembers properties of the masa. The structure of normaliser of any masa is characterized depending on this measure class, by using Baire category methods (Selection principle of Jankov and von Neumann). Measure theoretic proofs of Chifan's normaliser formula and the equivalence of weak asymptotic homomorphism property (WAHP) and singularity is presented. Stronger notions of singularity is also investigated. Analytical conditions based on Fourier coefficients of certain measures are discussed, that partially characterize strongly mixing masas and masas with nontrivial centralizing sequences. The analysis also provide conditions in terms of operators and L2 vectors that characterize masas whose left-right-measure belongs to the class of product measure. An example of a simple masa in the hyperfinite II1 factor whose left-right-measure is the class of product measure is exhibited. An example of a masa in the hyperfinite II1 factor whose leftright- measure is singular to the product measure is also presented. Unitary conjugacy of masas is studied by providing examples of non unitary conjugate masas. Finally, it is shown that for k greater than/equal to 2 and for each subset S \subseteq N, there exist uncountably many non conjugate singular masas in L(Fk) whose Pukanszky invariant is S u {1}.

A full wave finite-difference time-domain method (FDTD) combined with thin-wire and thin-slot algorithms to analyze a metamaterial fabricated with periodic mushroom structures, is proposed in this dissertation. This proposed method is suitable for analyzing problems involving large structures with fine structural details. A periodic analysis for mushroom structures is presented. Only a single unit mushroom cell is required to present the phenomena of infinite periodicity with the help of periodic boundary conditions (PBCs). The composite right-/left-handed (CRLH) transmission line (TL) approach is introduced and used to approximate CRLH metamaterial through lumped L and C. Finally, several CRLH metamaterial mushroom-based structures are investigated. A 19 by 8 flat microwave lens and a parabolic microwave lens structure composed of 410 unit mushroom cells are investigated. These structures demonstrate negative refractive index (NRI) characteristics while operate in the left-hand (LH) region. The simulation and measurement results of one- and two-dimensional CRLH mushroom-based structures are compared.

In this thesis, we introduce a LHM (Left-Handed Material) with both negative permittivity and permeability. Improvement of gain antenna is achieved by utilizing the characteristics of the LHM which can focus the EM wave. We start with an analysis of electromagnetic characteristic of LHM, especially its negative index of refraction. Structures with only negative permittivity or negative permeability are also analyzed. Then, we design the structure of LHM that can reduce the sensitivity of S11 of an antenna. So that the antenna operating frequency is not changed even in the presence of the LHM. The LHM unit cell structure comes from the idea by combination of two basic SNG (Single Negative) structure. We design a unit cell whose index of refraction is negative and close to zero. Further, we combine LHM and antenna. Simulation and measurement results show that the LHM is effective. The reflection coefficient of antenna does not change much by the combination of proposed LHM. The half power beam¡Ðwidth of antenna become narrower. The antenna gain improvement can be about 3 dB or higher. Finally, the LHM has been miniaturized successfully, resulting in reduction in size by about 50%. Comparing simulation and measurement, we find the LHM is still effective. A dipole antenna is used to verify out design. The antenna gain has been enhanced and the reflection coefficient does not change much.

In this article, I want to explain Michael Otsuka¡¦s idea of distributive justice, the latest theory of the left-libertarianism. Otsuka argued that self-ownership can be combined with a kind of egalitarian ownership principle and he critics that the conflict between self-ownership and equality is an illusion. I will examine Otsuka¡¦s theory about self-ownership, egalitarian proviso and the framework of political societies of voluntarism. And I will point out what is the wrong and right in his theory.

The aim of this thesis is to examine how the Filipino children are affected when either one or both of their parents are living and working abroad based from a teacher’s point of view. Focus is directed towards influences on the daily life of children. The study is based on qualitative interviews with six high school teachers, from two different schools. Their statements have been analyzed by using the theory of attachment and sentence categorization. The teachers described that they think it is a common thought that left-behind children tend to have a bad behavior. However, none of these teachers described the children that they are teaching in that manner but in fact, they described them as responsible, independent and good students. Conclusion of the study is that the cultural context and the environment affect how the children are able to cope with their situation. It was also found that the role of the mother has a significant importance for these children. There is also great need of a motherly and fatherly figure, even though it is not the biological parents of the children.

A proteomic procedure for analyzing mouse left ventricular collagen by mass spectrometry has been developed. The procedure involves a purification step that removes non-collagenous cellular components from the collagen extracellular matrix, a step that solubilizes the collagen in aqueous solvents before it is proteolytically digested for analysis with ESI-LCMS/MS. Collagen from healthy and lathrytic mice has been positively identified by applying the SEQUEST database search algorithm to spectra from the collagen prepared using this procedure. Analysis shows that the relative percentage of collagen peptides detected in lathrytic tissue is significantly greater than that of the healthy tissue. These preliminary results suggest that the percentage of cross-linked collagen is lower in the lathrytic tissue as indicated by the greater protein sequence coverage obtained for this tissue. This procedure lays the ground work for future experimentation that has the ability to allow for the identification and quantification of cross-linked peptides.

Effective leadership is a key factor for productive organizations. In this era of educational accountability, starting primarily with the passage of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, there has been increased pressure on school leaders to perform a wide repertoire of leadership skills to increase the capacity of schools to meet or exceed national and state academic standards. Student accountability in Arizona began in 2002 when the state legislature passed A.R.S. §15-241 known as Arizona LEARNS. The Achievement Profile, Arizona LEARNS complied with national mandates to establish a research-based evaluation model for school accountability and is the cornerstone of Arizona's system of school accountability.The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of NCLB (2001) and Arizona LEARNS (2002) on middle-school principal leadership responsibilities and behavior informed by the work of Marzano, Waters, and McNulty (2005). In addition, the relationship between the academic accountability measures and adherence to the middle-school philosophy was explored. The participants consisted of 56 Arizona middle-school principals. The participants completed a survey instrument.Pearson Product-Moment Correlations, Independent Sample t-tests, and ANOVA were used to investigate the effects of years of experience, annual yearly progress, Title I funding, and Arizona LEARNS performance label on the ability to execute specific leadership behaviors and responsibilities as a result of the influence of NCLB and Arizona LEARNS. Demographic data and responses from the open-ended questions of the survey provided depth to the quantitative analysis.Research results indicated NCLB (2001) and Arizona LEARNS (2002) have influenced the ability of middle-school principals in Arizona to execute specific leadership behaviors and responsibilities, such as Being a Change Agent and Being Visible. Research data also indicated a significant change in middle-schools as a result of the increased focus on academic achievement. In open-ended responses, middle-school principals noted multiple concerns with NCLB (2001) and Arizona LEARNS (2002), specifically a decrease in curricular offerings, less student support, and the public consequences of AYP and Arizona LEARNS labels.This study examines impact of academic accountability on middle-school leadership in Arizona and as such is valuable to practitioners in the current era of accountability.

Šiame darbe išnagrinėjome paviršines elektromagnetines bangas kairinių medžiagų sandūrose. Tyrėme, ar sandūrose tarp įprastinių aplinkų, kurių μ > 0 ir ε > 0, ir kairinių medžiagų, kurių μ < 0 ir ε < 0, gali susidaryti paviršiniai plazmonai. Įrodėme, kad, kai dviejų aplinkų magnetinės skvarbos , paviršiniai plazmonai visada susiformuoja įprastinės ir kairinės medžiagų sandūroje. Taip pat nustatėme, kad įprastinės aplinkos, kurios , ir kairinės medžiagos aplinkos, kurios , sandūroje, kai ir , gali susiformuoti paviršiniai plazmonai. Ištyrę paviršinių plazmonų susidarymo sąlygas, išanalizavome dažnines dielektrinių ir magnetinių skvarbų priklausomybes ir nustatėme, kad įprastinių aplinkų, kurių , ir kairinių medžiagų aplinkų, kurių , sandūrose paviršiniai plazmonai susidaro, kai metamedžiagų dažniai yra rezonansinių dažnių eilės. / Dielectric materials are characterized by two parameters, magnetic permeability and electric permittivity determining its responseto the electromagnetic radiation. A left-handed material is a material whose permeability and permittivity are simultaneously negative, μ < 0 and ε < 0. Such a material can be a structure composed of metal split ring resonators and rods that causes microwaves to behave in an unusual manner. A left-handed material reverses a basic feature of light. Specifically the phase of the electromagnetic wave propagates in the opposite direction to the energy flow leading to the negative refraction. A possible application of the left-handed materials was suggested in 2000 by Pendry, who considered the optical properties of a rectangular lens made of a slab of negatively refracting material. Some of the radiation waves emitted or reflected by ordinary objects decay very quickly. As a result, the subwave length structural information about the object carried by these ‘evanescent’ waves is lost. Left-handed materials would amplify evanescent wave thus retaining the information they contain and achieving unprecedented resolution that overcomes diffraction limit of conventional imaging. The aim of this work is to analyse the formation of the surface plasmons at an interface between an ordinary material and a metamaterial characterized by negative electric polarisability and negative magnetic permeability. For this purpose we have first analyzed the boundary... [to full text]

The purpose of this study was to determine if significant differences existed in principals’ perceptions of their school’s capacity to meet Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) requirements between principals whose schools failed to meet AYP requirements for one year compared to principals whose schools failed to meet AYP requirements for two to four consecutive years. Additionally, responses of the principals were analyzed based on the level of school, the location of the school, and if the school was or was not a Title I campus. A total of 2,040 schools met the criteria of the study and a finite population sampling method was utilized where the entire population of eligible principals was invited to participate in the study. A quantitative online survey was distributed to principals of eligible schools. A total of 183 principals responded, for a participation rate of nearly 10%. The study utilized two statistical methods for analyzing discrete data. Independent-t tests were conducted to determine if there were statistically significant differences in principals’ perceptions of their school’s capacity between principals of schools that failed to meet AYP requirements for one year, and those that failed to meet AYP requirements for two to four consecutive years. It was found that there were not statistically significant differences in principals’ perceptions of their school’s capacity. The second method of analyzing data was to conduct two-way ANOVAs to test for statistically significant differences in perceptions of principals based on level of school, type of school, and Title I status. It was found that there were not any statistically significant differences in principals’ perceptions of their school’s capacity. The absence of statistically significant differences in principals’ perceptions of their school’s capacity to meet AYP requirements regardless of the number of years the school missed the requirements, location of the school, type of school, or Title I status of the school could reasonably lead to the conclusion that capacity domains of schools fail to predict success of schools. This however, would contradict most literature that has previously been written about school capacity. Other more reasonable conclusions, as well as future research are presented in this study.