Ground motions from earthquakes are known to be affected by earth's surface topography. Topographic effects are a result of several physical phenomena such as the focusing or defocusing of seismic waves reflected from a topographic feature and the interference between direct and diffracted seismic waves. This typically causes an amplification of ground motion on convex features such as hills and ridges and a de-amplification on concave features such as valleys and canyons. Topographic effects are known to be frequency dependent and the spectral accelerations can sometimes reach high values causing significant damages to the structures located on the feature. Topographically correlated damage pattern have been observed in several earthquakes and topographic amplifications have also been observed in several recorded ground motions. This phenomenon has also been extensively studied through numerical analyses. Even though different studies agree on the nature of topographic effects, quantifying these effects have been challenging. The current literature has no consensus on how to predict topographic effects at a site. With population centers growing around regions of high seismicity and prominent topographic relief, such as California, and Japan, the quantitative estimation of the effects have become very important. In this dissertation, we address this shortcoming by developing empirical models that predict topographic effects at a site. These models are developed through an extensive empirical study of recorded ground motions from two large strong-motion datasets namely the California small to medium magnitude earthquake dataset and the global NGA-West2 datasets, and propose topographic modification factors that quantify expected amplification or deamplification at a site. To develop these models, we required a parameterization of topography. We developed two types of topographic parameters at each recording stations. The first type of parameter is developed using the elevation data around the stations, and comprise of parameters such as smoothed slope, smoothed curvature, and relative elevation. The second type of parameter is developed using a series of simplistic 2D numerical analysis. These numerical analyses compute an estimate of expected 2D topographic amplification of a simple wave at a site in several different directions. These 2D amplifications are used to develop a family of parameters at each site. We study the trends in the ground motion model residuals with respect to these topographic parameters to determine if the parameters can capture topographic effects in the recorded data. We use statistical tests to determine if the trends are significant, and perform mixed effects regression on the residuals to develop functional forms that can be used to predict topographic effect at a site. Finally, we compare the two types of parameters, and their topographic predictive power. / Ph. D.

No / The famous Celtic site of Entremont, well known for its head cult and warrior statues, is a heritage gem of southern France. This naturally inhibits further excavation there, but the authors show just how much can be achieved through an integrated package of remote mapping techniques. Their exemplary methodology produced more than a high resolution plan of the unexcavated part of the site; this type of integrated procedure generates ground-breaking research, without breaking any ground. Here the investigation mobilised arguments for pre-urban monuments, and the activities, enclosures, entrances and circulation of the oppidum.

The need to construct optimal drape surfaces arises in airborne geophysical surveys where it is necessary to fly a safe distance above the ground and within the performance limits of the aircraft used, but as close as possible to the surface. The problem is formulated as an LP with constraints at every point of a grid covering the area concerned, yielding a very large problem. The objective of the LP is to create as "good" a surface as possible. This formulation is new, as previous methods did not aim to minimise an objective function. If the desired surface has only slope limitations, the resulting drape surface must be constrained in the first derivative. Such a drape surface is readily constructed using the Lifting Algoritlun. It is shown that the Litling Algorithm is both exact and has great speed advantages. Some numerical results confinning exacmcss and speed are presented, as is the algorithm's analogy to a flow network method. An enhanced lifting method with a better order of complexity is also proposed and tested numerically. In most practical situations a drape surface is required which has both first and second derivatives constrained. If only a cut through such a surface is considered, the problem can be solved with relative ease by exploiting its nctwork~Jike structure. This method fonns the basis of one of the preferred heuristics developed later. It was not possible to generalise this method to a full two~dimensional drape surface. A commercially available LP package fares better in finding the optimal solution. Several heuristic methods were examined. first a general heuristic method based on a lifting approach was developed. This was followed by a method using repeated application of the method used for sections (the Alternating One-dimensional Dual Algorithm ["AODA"]). Three heuristics based on thimbles were also designed. Thimbles are caps whose first and second derivatives are acceptable and which are placed over local infeasibilities in the topography The work ends with a chapter comparing the efficiency of various heuristics and comparing the results obtained using a number of test datasets. It was fOLmd that heuristic methods provide acceptable drape surfaces and that the choice lies between speed and accuracy, with a previously designed smoothing method being the fastesl and the AODA the most accurate and quick enough. / Operations Research / D.Phil.

Master of Science / Department of Biology / Samantha M. Wisely / Nearly 30% of emerging infectious diseases are caused by vector-borne pathogens with wildlife origins, posing a risk for public health, livestock, and wildlife species of conservation concern. Understanding the spatial patterns of exposure to dipteran vectors and their associated pathogens is critical for epidemiological research to target prevention and control of vector-borne infectious diseases. In recent years, Western Equine encephalitis, St. Louis encephalitis, West Nile Virus encephalitis and avian malaria have not only been a public health concern but also a conservation concern, specifically the conservation of grassland nesting birds. Although the central Great Plains is the most specious region for grassland nesting birds, their role in the enzootic (primary) amplification cycle of infectious diseases may lead to further population depressions, and could potentially result in spill-over events to humans and livestock. The goals of my thesis were 1) to identify the underlying causes of spatio-temporal abundance patterns of mosquito vectors within the grasslands of the eastern Smoky Hills, and 2) to create probabilistic distributions of functional disease vectors, to evaluate disease risk in Greater Prairie-chicken (Tympanuchus cupido, surrogate species for other grassland nesting birds). First, I found that temporal dynamics in mosquito abundances were explained by maximum and minimum temperature indices. Spatial dynamics in mosquito abundances were best explained by environmental variables, such as curvature, TWI (Topographic Wetness Index), distance to woodland and distance to road. Second, the overall predictive power of the ecological niche models of important vector species in the grasslands of the Smoky Hills was better than random predictions, indicating that the most important predictor variables in their distribution were: distance to water, TWI, AASHTO (soil particle size distribution), and mean temperature during the coldest quarter. Furthermore, the spatial analysis indicated that Greater Prairie-chicken nest in areas with a higher probability of vector occurrence than other potentially available habitats within the grasslands. However, I failed to detect a significant difference in the probability of vector occurrence at nest of infected versus uninfected females. Understanding the distribution and abundance patterns of vectors of infectious diseases can provide important insights for wildlife conservation as well as public health management.

Utilization of ALS data for update of a road network Abstract My thesis concerned problematics of automatic detection of communication data from aerial laser scanning. Goal of this method is to identify area of roads - tarmacs as accurate as possible. On its basis are counted attributes of specific parts. In first part of the thesis are summarized known procedures, which are used to deal with the issue and experiences and evaluation of the output of theirs authors. In practical part of the thesis is described procedure methodology, which is based on findings from the literature review. Subsequently, input data and model areas are introduced. In the final parts are described results and compared with the results of authors, who used such evaluation in their work. Key words: airborne laser scanning, digital topographic database, road network, database update

Dans cette thèse, des simulations numériques ont d'abord été effectuées avec le logiciel FLAC (Itasca) sur un modèle de pente élastique linéaire homogène pour caractériser l'amplification de l'accélération le long de la surface située le long et à l’arrière de la crête d'une pente, et évaluer ainsi l'effet de la topographie sur l'amplification de l'accélération. L'interaction entre la fréquence du signal sismique appliqué à la base du modèle et l'angle et la hauteur de la pente a été particulièrement étudiée. Il a été constaté que le facteur d’amplification de l’accélération varie de manière significative avec l’angle de et la hauteur de la pente, la fréquence et la durée (nombre de cycle) du signal. De plus, l'amplification du mouvement du sol due à la topographie de la pente est influencée de manière significative par l'effet de couplage complexe entre les ondes incidentes et les ondes réfléchies sur la topographie, et qu’elle est fortement contrôlée par le rapport entre la longueur d'onde du signal incident et la hauteur de la pente.Les simulations numériques sont basées sur une étude géotechnique et une modélisation géomécanique nécessitant de valider les résultats par des comparaisons entre les résultats de modélisations et les données provenant des observations sur le terrain. L’analyse des domaines de fréquence, telle que la densité spectrale et la réponse en fréquence, est un moyen performant pour comprendre les caractéristiques des processus et les divers phénomènes qui ne peuvent pas être expliqués dans le domaine temporel. À cette fin, une étude de la crête du parc Xishan à Zigong au Sichuan en Chine a été réalisée. Les amplifications du site associées au mouvement du sol produit par le séisme de Wenchuan en 2008 ont été évaluées à l'aide de la technique du rapport spectral standard (SSR) et de la méthode d'accélération quadratique moyenne (arms) dans le domaine temporel. Une analyse numérique à 2D utilisant la méthode des différences finies au moyen du logiciel FLAC (Itasca) a été ensuite mise en œuvre et les résultats ont été comparés aux mesures de terrain. Les pics “simulés” des amplifications spectrales sont toujours inférieurs à ceux dérivés des enregistrements de terrain. L'effet d'atténuation important sur le mouvement d'entrée pour les hautes fréquences met en évidence le fait qu'un rapport d'amortissement du signal ne représente pas correctement la dissipation d'énergie dans les simulations numériques. Des amplifications significatives se sont produites à des fréquences élevées (> 10 Hz) et sont considérées comme résultant de conditions locales spécifiques telles que la fracturation des roches et les marches de faîtage; ils ne se produisent donc pas nécessairement au sommet de la colline.Enfin, des études paramétriques ont été réalisées avec des modèles élastiques en termes de diverses géométries de pente 2D et de couches géologiques de subsurface pour caractériser les amplifications du mouvement du sol. L’analyse paramétrique a pour but de comprendre le rôle joué par ces couches de surface, l’angle de la pente et la hauteur de la pente sur l’amplification du mouvement du sol,et donc d’évaluer si l’amplification du site peut être responsable du déclenchement du glissement de terrain. Ensuite, l'analyse dynamique sur des modèles de pente pour différentes magnitudes a été effectuée et une rupture de pente basée sur le déplacement a été créée pour évaluer la stabilité de la pente du site de Las Colinas au Salvador. Les résultats numériques ont clairement montré que les effets de site peuvent avoir induit d'importantes amplifications du mouvement du sol qui ont contribué à déclencher des glissements de terrain. / In this research work, numerical simulations using the finite difference FLAC software (Itasca) were first conducted with a homogeneous linear elastic slope model in order to characterize the acceleration amplification along the slope surface and behind the slope crest, and then to evaluate the topographic effect on the acceleration amplification. The interaction between the frequency of the seismic input motion applied at the base of the model with the slope angle and height has been deeply investigated. It was found that significant changes in the acceleration amplification factor result from variations in the slope angle and height as well as the signal frequency and duration. In addition, it has been shown that the ground motion amplification due to slope topography result from complex coupling effects between the input waves and the reflected waves on the topographic features and is highly controlled by the ratio between the wavelength of the input signal and the slope height.Numerical simulations are based on geotechnical investigations and geotechnical modeling, and it is necessary to validate the results through comparisons between modeling results and field observations. Frequency domain analysis such as spectral density and frequency response are an effective way to understand process characteristics and the various phenomena that cannot be explained in the time domain. For this purpose, a case study at Xishan Park ridge in Zigong in China has been studied. Site amplifications associated with the ground motion produced by the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake have been evaluated using the Standard Spectral Ratio (SSR) technique and root-mean-square acceleration (arms) method in time domain. 2D numerical analysis using finite difference method using the FLAC software (Itasca) has been then performed and results have been compared with monitoring data. The “simulated” peaks of the spectral amplifications are always lower than those derived from the field records. The strong attenuation of input motion at high frequencies highlights the shortcoming that a signal damping ratio does not adequately represent the energy dissipation in numerical simulations. Significant amplifications occurred at high frequencies (>10 Hz) and are considered to result from local specific conditions such as rock fracturing and ridge steps; thus they do not necessarily occur at the top of the hill. Finally, parametric studies were performed with elastic models in terms of various 2D slope geometries and geological layers to characterize the ground motion amplifications. The purpose of the parametric analysis is to understand the role of the geological layer, slope angle and slope height on the ground motion amplification, and thus to estimate if site amplifications could be responsible for the triggering of landslide. Then, the dynamic analysis on the slope model for different seismic magnitudes was performed and a slope failure based on displacement was created to evaluate the Las Colinas slope stability in Salvador. The numerical results clearly showed that site effects can have induced significant ground motion amplifications that contributed to trigger landslides.

RESUMO Neste trabalho, a origem dos Jatos de Baixos Níveis (JBN) noturnos de Iperó (SP) e o seu papel na dispersão de poluentes no Estado de São Paulo são investigados. Para tanto são utilizados os dados coletados nas quatro campanhas de medidas em Iperó. Utilizou-se também um modelo numérico de mesoescala não-hidrostático TVM para simular a estrutura espacial 3-D do JBN em resposta as forçantes topográficas e associadas ocupação da superfície. Os resultados observacionais indicam que o JBN ocorre em Iperó com bastante freqüência nas noites de céu claro, com intensidade variando entre 8 e 10 m/s e localizado em torno de 350 m acima da superfície. Os JBNs em Iperó caracterizam-se por um cisalhamento direcional, com ventos de SE na superfície e de ENE na região de máximo. Ocorrem tanto no inverno como no verão, e afetam o ciclo diurno médio do vento observado nos primeiros 100 metros na região de Iperó. Os JBNs são responsáveis pelo máximo noturno (21:00 HL) existente no ciclo diurno médio do vento na região. Os resultados numéricos indicam que o JBN de Iperó é resultado da ação combinada de quatro fatores: (1) circulação anabática no setor paulista do vale do Rio Paraná; (2) oscilação inercial; (3) circulação catabática noturna e (4) brisa marítima. Estes quatro fatores combinados sustentam um JBN com intensidade de 5 a 10 m/s, localizados a uma altitude de 100 a 400 m acima da superfície, durante maior parte da noite. O JBN simulado numericamente encontra-se localizado no setor oeste da região de convergência da circulação anabática e da brisa marítima. Esta região de convergência em baixos níveis se forma durante o dia na parte mais elevada do Estado de São Paulo que acompanha da linha do litoral (Serra do Mar e da Cantareira). O efeito do JBN sobre o transporte de poluente foi investigado com um modelo Lagrangiano de dispersão de partículas. Verificou-se que o JBN aumenta a dispersão horizontal das partículas, transportando o poluente atmosférico emitido na superfície até 250 km da fonte. / ABSTRACT This work investigates the nocturnal Low-Level Jet (LLJ) in Iperó, Brazil, and its role in the pollutant dispersion on the State of São Paulo (SP). Data of four field campaigns in Iperó-SP was used in this investigation. A mesoscale and non-hydrostatic TVM model is also used to simulate the 3D structure of the LLJ, which is a dynamic response to topography and land use. The observational results indicate that the LLJ is frequently found during clear air nights, with a maximum between 8 and 10 m s–1, located around 350 m above surface. The LLJ in Iperó is characterized by a directional wind shear, with SE winds near surface and ENE near to the maximum. They occur during the winter and summer, and can modify the diurnal cycle of the mean wind in the first 100 m in the Iperó area. The LLJ are responsible by the nocturnal maximum (21:00 LT) in the mean wind in Iperó. The numerical results indicate the Iperó LLJ is a result of four factors: (1) anabatic circulation in São Paulo sector of the Paraná River Basin; (2) inertial oscillation; (3) nocturnal katabatic circulation and (4) sea breeze. These factors, together, sustain a LLJ with jet core intensity between 5 and 10 m/s, located between 100 and 400 m above surface during the major of nighttime period. The simulated LLJ numerically is found in the west sector in the convergence zone of the anabatic and sea breeze circulations. This convergence flow area appears during the daytime above the more elevated areas in the State of São Paulo, i.e., along mountains aligned parallel to coastline (Serra do Mar and Cantareira). The effects of the LLJ in a pollutant transport were investigated using a Lagrangian Particle Dispersion model coupled to the mesoscale model TVM. The results show that the LLJ increases the horizontal dispersion of the particles released near surface in Iperó and is able to transport the pollutant up to 250 km downwind the source.

Cette thèse traite de l'intégration de bases de données topographiques qui consiste à expliciter les relations de correspondance entre bases de données hétérogènes, de sorte à permettre leur utilisation conjointe. L'automatisation de ce processus d'intégration suppose celle de la détection des divers types d'hétérogénéité pouvant intervenir entre les bases de données topographiques à intégrer. Ceci suppose de disposer, pour chacune des bases à intégrer, de connaissances sur leurs contenus respectifs. Ainsi, l'objectif de cette thèse réside dans la formalisation, l'acquisition et l'exploitation des connaissances nécessaires pour la mise en œuvre d'un processus d'intégration virtuelle de bases de données géographiques vectorielles. Une première étape du processus d'intégration de bases de données topographiques consiste à apparier leurs schémas conceptuels. Pour ce faire, nous proposons de nous appuyer sur une source de connaissances particulière : les spécifications des bases de données topographiques. Celles-ci sont tout d'abord mises à profit pour la création d'une ontologie du domaine de la topographie. Cette ontologie est utilisée comme ontologie de support, dans le cadre d'une première approche d'appariement de schémas de bases de données topographiques, fondée sur des techniques d'appariement terminologiques et structurelles. Une seconde approche, inspirée des techniques d'appariement fondées sur la sémantique, met en œuvre cette ontologie pour la représentation des connaissances sur les règles de sélection et de représentation géométrique des entités géographiques issues des spécifications dans le langage OWL 2, et leur exploitation par un système de raisonnement / This PhD thesis deals with topographic databases integration. This process aims at facilitating the use of several heterogeneous databases by making the relationships between them explicit. To automatically achieve databases integration, several aspects of data heterogeneity must be detected and solved. Identifying heterogeneities between topographic databases implies comparing some knowledge about their respective contents. Therefore, we propose to formalise and acquire this knowledge and to use it for topographic databases integration. Our work focuses on the specific problem of topographic databases schema matching, as a first step in an integration application. To reach this goal, we propose to use a specific knowledge source, namely the databases specifications, which describe the data implementing rules. Firstly, they are used as the main resource for the knowledge acquisition process in an ontology learning application. As a first approach for schema matching, the domain ontology created from the texts of IGN's databases specifications is used as a background knowledge source in a schema matching application based on terminological and structural matching techniques. In a second approach, this ontology is used to support the representation, in the OWL 2 language, of topographic entities selection and geometry capture rules described in the databases specifications. This knowledge is then used by a reasoner in a semantic-based schema matching application

RESUMO Neste trabalho, a origem dos Jatos de Baixos Níveis (JBN) noturnos de Iperó (SP) e o seu papel na dispersão de poluentes no Estado de São Paulo são investigados. Para tanto são utilizados os dados coletados nas quatro campanhas de medidas em Iperó. Utilizou-se também um modelo numérico de mesoescala não-hidrostático TVM para simular a estrutura espacial 3-D do JBN em resposta as forçantes topográficas e associadas ocupação da superfície. Os resultados observacionais indicam que o JBN ocorre em Iperó com bastante freqüência nas noites de céu claro, com intensidade variando entre 8 e 10 m/s e localizado em torno de 350 m acima da superfície. Os JBNs em Iperó caracterizam-se por um cisalhamento direcional, com ventos de SE na superfície e de ENE na região de máximo. Ocorrem tanto no inverno como no verão, e afetam o ciclo diurno médio do vento observado nos primeiros 100 metros na região de Iperó. Os JBNs são responsáveis pelo máximo noturno (21:00 HL) existente no ciclo diurno médio do vento na região. Os resultados numéricos indicam que o JBN de Iperó é resultado da ação combinada de quatro fatores: (1) circulação anabática no setor paulista do vale do Rio Paraná; (2) oscilação inercial; (3) circulação catabática noturna e (4) brisa marítima. Estes quatro fatores combinados sustentam um JBN com intensidade de 5 a 10 m/s, localizados a uma altitude de 100 a 400 m acima da superfície, durante maior parte da noite. O JBN simulado numericamente encontra-se localizado no setor oeste da região de convergência da circulação anabática e da brisa marítima. Esta região de convergência em baixos níveis se forma durante o dia na parte mais elevada do Estado de São Paulo que acompanha da linha do litoral (Serra do Mar e da Cantareira). O efeito do JBN sobre o transporte de poluente foi investigado com um modelo Lagrangiano de dispersão de partículas. Verificou-se que o JBN aumenta a dispersão horizontal das partículas, transportando o poluente atmosférico emitido na superfície até 250 km da fonte. / ABSTRACT This work investigates the nocturnal Low-Level Jet (LLJ) in Iperó, Brazil, and its role in the pollutant dispersion on the State of São Paulo (SP). Data of four field campaigns in Iperó-SP was used in this investigation. A mesoscale and non-hydrostatic TVM model is also used to simulate the 3D structure of the LLJ, which is a dynamic response to topography and land use. The observational results indicate that the LLJ is frequently found during clear air nights, with a maximum between 8 and 10 m s–1, located around 350 m above surface. The LLJ in Iperó is characterized by a directional wind shear, with SE winds near surface and ENE near to the maximum. They occur during the winter and summer, and can modify the diurnal cycle of the mean wind in the first 100 m in the Iperó area. The LLJ are responsible by the nocturnal maximum (21:00 LT) in the mean wind in Iperó. The numerical results indicate the Iperó LLJ is a result of four factors: (1) anabatic circulation in São Paulo sector of the Paraná River Basin; (2) inertial oscillation; (3) nocturnal katabatic circulation and (4) sea breeze. These factors, together, sustain a LLJ with jet core intensity between 5 and 10 m/s, located between 100 and 400 m above surface during the major of nighttime period. The simulated LLJ numerically is found in the west sector in the convergence zone of the anabatic and sea breeze circulations. This convergence flow area appears during the daytime above the more elevated areas in the State of São Paulo, i.e., along mountains aligned parallel to coastline (Serra do Mar and Cantareira). The effects of the LLJ in a pollutant transport were investigated using a Lagrangian Particle Dispersion model coupled to the mesoscale model TVM. The results show that the LLJ increases the horizontal dispersion of the particles released near surface in Iperó and is able to transport the pollutant up to 250 km downwind the source.

Interactions between the Eph family of receptor tyrosine kinases, and their ligands, the ephrins, are required for the normal development and maintenance of many patterns of connectivity within the nervous system. Eph receptors and ephrins are expressed widely throughout both the developing and mature nervous system where they function as important regulators of cell migration and axon guidance. The studies presented in this thesis examine the role of one particular member of the Eph receptor family, EphA4, in regulating mechanisms that underlie the development and maintenance of certain neural connections within the nervous system. This thesis demonstrates that the EphA4 receptor is expressed within specific regions of the developing and mature nervous system, some of which are associated with the control of locomotor activity. Consistent with these observations are the locomotor defects exhibited by animals with a targeted disruption of the EphA4 gene. These animals exhibit abnormal bilateral limb movements and have severe disruptions of a number of major axonal pathways. One of these disrupted axonal pathways, the corticospinal tract (CST), is a particularly important mediator of locomotor activity. This thesis reveals that EphA4 is expressed on the axons that comprise the CST. It demonstrates that although EphA4 is not required for the initial development of the CST, repulsive interactions between EphA4-bearing CST axons and ephrinB3, a ligand for EphA4 that is expressed at the midline of the spinal cord, appear to prevent CST axons from aberrantly recrossing the spinal midline during development.