This study aimed to compare the acute effects of two independent warm-up (WU) protocols, neuromuscular warm-up (NMWU) and standardized soccer warm-up (STWU), on three soccer-specific performance tests in adolescent male and female soccer players. Substantial evidence exists of NMWU programs reducing Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injuries, particularly in soccer. Regardless of this reduced risk of injury, NMWU program adherence is low. Enhanced athletic performance has been reported to encourage consistent WU adherence more effectively than injury risk, especially in youth athletes. Therefore this study compared the effects of a NMWU and a STWU on physical performance in youth soccer players to encourage adherence and implementation. Following familiarization with a locally developed NMWU, 35 (11 female, 24 male) student-athletes (mean age: 14.7 yrs) from two high school-based soccer academies completed four sessions over a two week period evaluating the effects of WU on three soccer specific performance tests. Performance tests included T-test (agility), vertical jump (Peak Power Output), and 20-m sprint (acceleration and speed). The first week of testing consisted of NMWU familiarization, Yo-Yo Intermittent Recovery Test Level 1, and the collection of physical characteristics. The second week of testing consisted of two testing sessions, WU protocols were randomly assigned to the testing sessions ahead of time (session 1: STWU; session 2: NMWU) and were completed at the beginning of the session prior to testing. A series of five two-tailed repeated measures ANOVA were conducted to determine significant differences in WU means. The overall group demonstrated a significant increase in Peak Power Output (p=0.001) and agility (p=0.016) following the STWU compared to the NMWU. Neither WU demonstrated a measurable effect on 5m,10m, and 20m times. The findings of this research may have been influenced by the single use of the NMWU which may have limited the NMWU potential to enhance the three soccer-related performance tests. In order to explore the effectiveness of NMWU on performance enhancement as a means of improving its adherence in youth players, further research implementing NMWU over an extended period of weeks or months should be carried out, consistent with studies demonstrating NMWU impact on ACL injury risk in youth and adults. / Graduate

Falls can have severe consequences for elderly adults. In 2000, nearly 10,300 people aged 65 years or older died as a result of falls, and 2.6 million individuals were treated for non-fatal fall-related injuries. In order to reduce fall incidences, it is important to identify possible causes of falls, such as muscle weakness and imbalance. In this study, we examined balance control in the elderly during task transitions while performing the Timed Up and Go test (TUG). The TUG is a commonly used clinical balance test that includes transition phases between three daily activity tasks: sit-to-stand, walking and turning. Our findings suggested that elderly adults, especially fallers, have reduced balance control ability while making transitions during TUG. During sit-to-walk (STW), when compared to young adults, elderly adults demonstrated a smaller forward center of mass (COM) velocity, a smaller anterior-posterior (A-P) COM-Ankle angle, and a larger upward kinetic energy ratio at seat-off. Additionally, the medial-lateral COM control in elderly fallers was also perturbed due to their significant reduction in forward COM velocity. The reduced initial hip extensor moment and increased ankle plantarflexor moment in elderly fallers was associated with their reduced generation of horizontal momentum during STW. Smaller A-P COM-Ankle angles and taking more steps when making a turn demonstrated a reduction in balance control ability in elderly adults. Our analyses suggest that balance control is an important factor contributing to longer STW and turning durations of TUG. Furthermore, lower extremity muscle strength at hip and knee joints demonstrated a stronger association with STW than turning duration. To enhance the early detection of fall risk, we also assessed the ability of balance tests to predict future risk of falling in elderly adults. Our results indicated that biomechanical balance parameters measured during TUG were associated with future fall status. Among all biomechanical parameters investigated, frontal plane balance control parameters appear to be the most significant predictors for future falls. This dissertation includes unpublished co-authored material.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-12T22:58:12Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 arquivo4277_1.pdf: 4341020 bytes, checksum: 14c9ce1c7a9f4c1c01f64ebee2dd8876 (MD5) license.txt: 1748 bytes, checksum: 8a4605be74aa9ea9d79846c1fba20a33 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008 / No presente trabalho, foi desenvolvido e caracterizado um sistema híbrido formado pela evaporação térmica de um nanofilme molecular de complexo de terra rara sobre um filme fino metálico, obtido por um processo bottom-up. Para a produção do novo híbrido, o complexo fotônico Eu(btfa)3bipy foi depositado sobre um substrato recoberto por um filme de prata nanoestruturado formado pela redução térmica de íons de prata seguido do crescimento e migração de nanopartículas de prata para a superfície do material vítreo. A luminescência do complexo de terra rara sobre o substrato vítreo foi monitorada em função do tempo de tratamento na temperatura de transição vítrea (Tg), e do crescimento do nanofilme autoformado, este, por sua vez, monitorado por microscopia de força atômica (AFM). Amostras de dois sistemas GAPAgF e GAPAgO foram obtidas pela fusão dos materiais de partida em um forno resistivo, seguido por um tratamento térmico próximo da Tg para produzir um filme de prata nanoestruturado na superfície das amostras, apresentando uma aparência metálica. O novo substrato vítreo ativo GAPAgO possui uma enorme velocidade de crescimento do nanofilme se comparada com a cinética de crescimento do vidro ativo GAPAgF, previamente estudado. O crescimento das nanopartículas foi monitorado por AFM em ambos os sistemas, em função do tempo de tratamento térmico, apresentando o crescimento de nanoestruturas de prata com 100 nm somente em dois minutos de tratamento térmico. A energia de ativação E relacionada com cristalização, e o fator de freqüência υ foi calculado para êtsr composições do sistema GAPAgO. O resultado indica uma instabilidade deste vidro se relacionado com o sistema GAPAgF previamente estudado. A morfologia da superfície foi avaliada em função da atmosfera durante o tratamento térmico. O sistema GAPAgO apresentou uma geometria preferencial de crescimento do nanofilme na superfície do vidro. Medidas de fluorescência do íon Eu3+ no complexo Eu(btfa)3 Palavras chave: Nanopartículas de prata, Plásmons, processo bottom up. bipy foram analisadas como uma função do tempo de tratamento, mostrando um melhor aumento da luminescência em amostras com superfícies mais rugosas. As propriedades fotônicas das amostras foram analisadas, e os sistemas foram caracterizados por DRX, AFM e XPS. O objetivo final deste trabalho é de usar esses novos materiais, como substratos ativos para nanodispositivos

Abstract Imaging of the head and spine with CT and/or MRI was performed on 125 Northern Finnish NF1 patients to evaluate the CNS lesions in patients of different ages and their role in diagnosis and follow-up. Manifestations of NF1 in the head were more common in children than in adults. 77% of the children and 33% of the adults had T2 hyperintense brain lesions. Optic gliomas were present in 29% of the patients, in 44% of the children and 10 % of the adults. 8% of the patients had other intracranial tumours . Spinal lesions were seen in 75% of the patients. Hyperintense T2 lesions were most common in the age group of 5 to 9 years. During follow-up of the children, the lesions diminished in 25%, remained unchanged in 36%, showed mixed behaviour in 20% and disappeared in 10%. In 15% they increased in size and number. In one patient a malignant tumour developed at the site of a T2 lesion. Optic gliomas were located intraorbitally and/or prechiasmally in 94%, chiasmally and/or at the hypothalamus in 58% and in other optic areas in 14% of the patients. 52 % of the intraorbital gliomas were bilateral. The gliomas remained unchanged in 68% of the children and 50% of the adults. Other lesions included plexiform neurofibromas, sphenoid bone dysplasias and hydrops of the optic sheath. Optic glioma was more common in children with T 2 hyperintense brain lesions than without them. The other brain tumours included six astrocytomas, including an affected mother and her son. In one patient the astrocytoma regressed spontaneously. Hydrocephalus was seen in 5% of the patients. T2 hyperintense brain lesions were more common and numerous in macrocephaly; all macrocephalic children, but only 59% of the normocephalic children were affected. All children without T2 lesions were normocephalic. The brain measurements did not reveal any specific area to be responsible for macrocephaly. Spinal postural changes and dural ectasias were more common in adults. The spinal cord was affected in two patients. Spinal neurofibromas were seen in 19% of the children and 55% of the adults. Even young children may have severe manifestations. In one family a rare familial type of spinal neurofibromatosis (FSNF) was observed in four adults with bilateral spinal neurofibromas at all levels of the spine. Although both CT and MRI were valuable in CNS imaging, MRI proved to be the method of choice in detecting T2 hyperintense brain lesions, in evaluating the intracranial extent of optic gliomas and hydrops of the optic sheath and lesions of the spinal cord and nerves. MR imaging proved necessary for evaluating the extent of NF1 manifestations and helpful in the diagnosis, screening and follow-up of NF1 patients.

Master of Science / Department of Architectural Engineering and Construction Science / Kimberly Waggle Kramer / Insulated precast concrete sandwich panels are commonly used for exterior cladding on a building. In recent years, insulated tilt-up concrete sandwich panels are being used for the exterior load-bearing walls on a building. The insulation is sandwiched between exterior and interior concrete layers to reduce the heating and cooling costs for the structure. The panels can be designed as composite, partially composite, or non-composite. The shear ties are used to achieve these varying degrees of composite action between the concrete layers. A parametric study analyzing the standard, solid single-wythe tilt-up concrete wall panel and solid sandwich (double-wythe separated by rigid insulation) tilt-up concrete wall panels subjected to eccentric axial loads and out-of-plane seismic loads is presented. The sandwich tilt-up panel is divided into two categories – non-composite and composite wall panels. The height and width of the different types of tilt-up wall panel is 23 feet (21 feet plus 2-foot parapet) and 16 feet, respectively. The solid standard panel (non-sandwich) is 5.5 inches in thickness; the non-composite sandwich panel is composed of 3.5-inch architectural wythe, 2.5-inch rigid insulation, and 5.5-inch interior load bearing concrete wythe; and the composite sandwich panel is composed of 3.5-inch exterior, load bearing concrete wythe, 2.5-inch insulation, and 5.5-inch interior, load bearing concrete wythe. The procedure used to design the tilt-up wall panels is the Alternative Method for Out-of-Plane Slender Wall Analysis per Section 11.8 of ACI 318-14 Building Code Requirements for Structural Concrete and Commentary. The results indicated that for the given panels, the applied ultimate moment and design moment strength is the greatest for the composite sandwich tilt-up concrete panel. The standard tilt-up concrete panel exhibits the greatest service load deflection. The non-composite sandwich tilt-up concrete panel induced the greatest vertical stress. Additionally, the additional requirements regarding forming materials, casting, and crane capacity is covered in this report. Lastly, the energy efficiency due to the heat loss and heat gain of sandwich panels is briefly discussed in this report. The sandwich tilt-up panels exhibit greater energy efficiency than standard tilt-up panels with or without insulation.

The diploma thesis deals with the influences that affect young people aged 18 to 24 in the establishment of start-ups. The main aim was to find out which environmental factors influence emergence of youth start-ups and how they differ in Europe, China and the US over time. The thesis describes three models that explain the entrepreneurial intentions and that serve better understanding of human behavior in setting up businesses. Further the thesis includes a description of the individual and environmental factors that are based on current studies. Due to the title of thesis only the impact of environmental factors was tested. The analysis was conducted on a public data of the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor.

Blast risk associated with terrorist threats and accidental explosions has become an international concern over the past decade and has provoked structural engineers to implement protective design measures. Recent advances in this area of research has seen tremendous improvements in mitigating this risk through the installation of retrofits, advanced structural design, or pre-emptive protective measures. Tilt-up and precast panel walls are constructed using a unique approach in which the walls are cast horizontally and lifted, or tilted, into their final vertical position. These unique structures are cost effective, energy efficient, and can be rapidly constructed. This approach is commonly applied to the construction of large industrial facilities and the construction of schools which are categorized as high importance structures in the National Building Code of Canada. These panels are inherently flexible and have a surplus of mass making them desirable for protective design applications, however their behaviour under blast induced loads is not well defined. This experimental research project investigates the behaviour of non-composite tilt-up sandwich (NCTS) panels and solid reinforced concrete (SRC) panels with realistic support conditions subjected to blast-induced shockwaves. Previous research shows that NCTS panels, identifiable by their large structural wythe, exhibit some degree of composite behaviour and require between 5% to 10% composite action for successful erection. Five scaled specimens were constructed following common procedures used in practice, equipped with identical data acquisition instruments, and tested at the University of Ottawa shock tube testing facility under similar blast pressure-impulse combinations. Test results for the NCTS and SRC panels are compared graphically in terms of displacement–time histories and sectional strain distributions. The data is evaluated to approximate the composite behaviour at mid-span of the NCTS panel. Analytical results generated, using “RC Blast,” single-degree-of-freedom analysis software developed at the University of Ottawa, were validated with empirical data and are presented graphically. Each specimen was equipped with connections similar to those commonly used in the construction of NCTS panels. These connections were experimentally studied under simulated blast pressures and analysed using CSA A23.3-04 guidelines for punching shear capacity. Modified support iii | P a g e reinforcement layouts and surface bonded FRP laminates were evaluated as strengthening and retrofit techniques to prevent support failure. Dynamic support reactions and predicted support resistances are tabulated for each shot of every panel. The results indicate that it is possible to accurately predict the flexural behaviour and support resistance of a NCTS panel using RC Blast and CSA A23.3-04 guidelines. Several factors considered in this analysis include boundary conditions, dynamic material properties, and shear tie degradation. This analysis of flexural behaviour is highly dependent on shear stiffness, which is directly related to the composite action within NCTS panels. Support resistance was increased significantly through application of the strengthening techniques outlined in this thesis.

Using data from the Kauffman Firm Survey (KFS), this thesis explores the effects that innovation activities has on the survival of new firms. The KFS follows 4,928 American start-ups from 2004 to 2011. A probit model is used to examine the relationships that may exist between a number of different variables relating to innovation and survival. The results indicate that firms that invest in research and development (R&D) and machinery and equipment persistently are more likely to survive than those that do not, or those that only invest once in these types of innovative business activities. Also, with regards to intellectual property (copyrights, trademarks and patents), firms that hold these types of intellectual property have a better chance of survival than those that do not hold any intellectual property.

V této diplomové práci se zabývám problematikou metodik pro vývoj IS. Cílem diplomové práce je analýza současného stavu existující metodiky v konkrétní firmě a návrh metodiky pro vývoj IS. Návrh provádím v závislosti na zjištěných existujících problémech současné metodiky. Práce je rozdělena do tří hlavních částí. V první části práce, v kapitole 2, popisuji současný stav a trendy ve vývoji metodik pro vývoj IS. V druhé části práce popisuji jednak současný stav v analyzované firmě, zejména popis prostředí analyzované firmy a existující metodiky, dále pak uvádím zjištěné problémy současného stavu, jejich rozčlenění a popis. Ve třetí části práce pak uvádím popis navrhované metodiky, zejména se zaměřuji na její procesní a organizační aspekty a na oblast dokumentace v rámci navrhované metodiky. Na závěr uvádím některá doporučení pro implementaci navrhované metodiky do prostředí firmy.

This diploma thesis is dedicated to marketing of start-ups and the most frequent mistakes they make in this field. The goal of this thesis is to propose recommendations for start-up founders which could help them avoid mistakes while building their business. The thesis is divided into three parts. The first part defines the concept of start-ups, explores their history and introduces the main issues start-ups have to deal with in the field of marketing. The second part contains interviews with start-up founders, employers and investors. The third part identifies the main problematic areas of start-ups' marketing and introduces recommendations and best practices for start-up founders, which is supposed to increase their chances to build a successful company.