Electricity availability and stability have a great contributory share of industrialization growth rate, poverty statistics, unemployment, foreign investors' participation, medium and small scale encouragement, crime and mortality rates recorded in any country. Nigeria as a country has been challenged with unstable and unreliable power supply. There are many problems associated with electricity production in Nigeria. Such problems are recorded in the generation, transmission and distribution facets of electricity production. With a multi-faceted problem, this document has been developed to deal with the economic aspect of power generation in Nigeria. Out of numerous technologies that are used in power generation, Nigerian predominantly sources its electricity supply from gas power plants and hydropower systems located within the country. Unfortunately, the Nigeria hydropower has been challenged with hydrological shortfalls. The gas power plant which is now conventional is being challenged with the developing gas technology around the globe. This development has adversely affected the cost of gas and subsequently the cost of power production using gas power plants. As a result of hydrological limitations on Nigerian hydropower dams, effect of gas price on cost of energy produced and diversifying gas technology, harnessing electric energy from Inga falls of River Congo was considered as an economic choice of power production in Nigeria. The choice of power production adopted in this document was made from an economic viability studies carried out between Nigerian gas power plants and hydropower production from the River Congo. The choice of technology employed for harnessing electric energy is largely dependent on the economic factors that go with the development. While some of these technologies go with large initial capital investment some are challenged with geometric increase of running cost. As applied in this work, the Net Present Value, Internal Rate of Return, Levelized Cost of Energy and Cash Flow Trend Analysis are suitable tools to determine choice of power plant. These tools were integrated and developed as an NILC model. In the analysis presented in this dissertation, the economic viability of the two power plants selected was determined with the use of the Net Present Value, Internal Rate of Return, Levelized Cost of Energy and Cash Flow Trend Analysis (NILC) model. The model was used to measure the economic viability quantities of the two power plants selected for economic comparison. After the completion of economic comparative analysis, hydropower production from the River Congo was concluded to be a better choice of power production compared to the conventional gas power plant option in Nigeria. / Thesis (M.Ing. (Development and Management Engineering))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2009.

Propionibacterium freudenreichii est une bactérie très utilisée par l’industrie laitière. Elle appartient aux Actinomycètes connus pour leur survie pendant de longues périodes, dans des conditions environnementales défavorables. Pour mieux comprendre ce phénomène, la caractérisation phénotypique de 8 souches de P. freudenreichii a été réalisée sur 11 jours dans un milieu en carence nutritionnelle. Le taux de survie bactérienne a été mesuré par densité optique, par énumération et évaluation de la viabilité cellulaire. En outre, l’absence de lyse cellulaire a été évaluée par PCR quantitative. La croissance de P. freudenreichii a été décrite en phases exponentielle, stationnaire, stationnaire tardive et survie à long terme.Dans nos conditions expérimentales pendant la période de survie à long terme, les bactéries sont restées viables. La caractérisation phénotypique a montré que P. freudenreichii CIRM-BIA138 était la plus résistante à la carence nutritionnelle et entrait dans un état viable mais non-cultivable. Cette souche a été utilisée pour une étude fonctionnelle par RNA-Seq ainsi que pour des analyses biochimiques sur les surnageants de culture, en phases exponentielle et stationnaire. L’association de ces données transcriptomiques et métabolomiques a permis de déduire les stratégies impliquées dans la survie de cette bactérie. La préparation à l’état de dormance, la diminution du métabolisme et l’utilisation de sources alternatives d’énergie semblent impliquées dans l’adaptation et la persistence de P. freudenreichii CIRM-BIA138 en carence nutritionnelle durant de long / Propionibacterium freudenreichii is a dairy bacterium belonging to the Actinobacteria group, which is known to survive for long periods in harsh environmental conditions. In order to investigate the long-term survival phenomenon in P. freudenreichii, 8 strains were phenotypically characterized for a period of 11 days in nutrient shortage condition. Bacterial survival rate was assessed by optical density, CFU counting and live-dead cellular viability. In addition, the absence of cell lysis was evaluated by quantitative PCR. P. freudenreichii growth phases were classified as exponential, stationary, late stationary and long-term survival. Moreover, it was observed that bacterial viability was maintained during long-term survival.Phenotypical characterization indicated that P. freudenreichii CIRM-BIA138 was more resistant to nutrient shortage being able to enter into a viable but nonculturable dormant state. In addition, functional studies of this strain were conducted by RNA-Seq on cultures sampled in exponential and stationary growth phases. Concomitantly, several biochemical analyses were carried out on the culture supernatant. An integrative approach of metabolomic and transcriptomic data allowed us to infer strategies associated with the survival of this bacterium, such as preparation for the dormant state, slow down of metabolic activity and utilization of alternative sources of energy, which altogether might allow P. freudenreichii CIRM-BIA 138 to adapt and persist through nutrient shortage for long periods.

Magister Legum - LLM

Thesis deals with startup companies and their development methodology. The main aim is to present a model of startup company development. Within the theoretical part successful and unsuccessful businesses are analyzed and selected approaches to the development of startup companies are explained. In practical part, based on the findings a model for startup company development is proposed.

To develop and deliver an innovative and technologically superior product is not enough to succeed when it does not meet the user's daily needs. To develop such a product, you need an abstract and easy to use communication platform for target users, decision makers, and developers, that can also act as a model of the relevant part of the real world displaced by a possible innovation, auxiliary tool in creating a mind map and documentation, and a way of promoting the final product. An instance of such a platform is a sophisticated comic book, itself an instance of sequential art. Not only is it a feature rich and intuitive tool for collaboration of interested parties with different backgrounds, skills and roles, but since it essentially reflects the relevant part of the real world displaced by the innovation, it's pretty easy and quick for a new user to learn and master. Although not limited to such instances, it can be found as an especially useful tool for crowdsourced and open source based projects. This thesis will lay down the much needed theoretical basis for the Sequential Art Driven Development method and offer a practical application of such method, with an open call for contributions from members of the crowd, in the form of a CC0 licensed comic book series "Who is Secret Agent X-9?", a showcase platform for cutting edge technologies like the Bitcoin network and Nemo Mobile operating system.

Prior studies have shown that investment knowledge and motivation increases when students in a school setting have access to a stock trading learning platform.  This thesis aims to further investigate if a stand-alone online stock trading learning platform, on its own, can help non stock investors understand financial literacy concepts.It further attempts to identify what type of system functionality that is most beneficial for the beginner when it comes to understanding and applying these concepts.  To explore this, an MVP stock trading learning platform1 was initially developed so that new features could be implemented and modified freely, without being bound by existing software. The development was done using the lean UX method and Jobs To Be Done interviews. From this, it was found that merely enabling the users to trade stocks (without risk) did not significantly help them to understand investing concepts and draw new conclusions.  New functionality was then added to the learning platform, in the form of a historical propagation feature. It lets the user assemble a stock portfolio and see what the portfolio would be worth today if bought earlier. This enabled the user to quickly and interactively see the effects of diversification and return of investment over time. Pre/post interviews showed that the platform, with historical propagation functionality, altered the users perception of both diversification and return, which indicates that it also has the potential to affect financial literacy. / Tidigare studier har visat att investerings-kunskap och motivation ökar när elever i en skolmiljö har tillgång till en inlärningsplattform för aktiehandel.  Detta examensarbete syftar till att ytterligare undersöka om en fristående online- aktie-inlärningsplattform, i sig, kan hjälpa icke-aktieinvesterare att förstå begrepp rörande finansiell kompetens. Arbetet försöker vidare identifiera vilken typ av systemfunktionalitet som är mest fördelaktig för nybörjaren när det gäller att förstå och tillämpa dessa begrepp.  För att utforska detta utvecklades inledningsvis en MVP (minimum viable product) lärplattform för aktiehandel så att nya funktioner kunde implementeras och modifieras fritt utan att begränsas av befintlig programvara. Utvecklingen skedde med hjälp av lean UX-metoden och Jobs To Be Done intervjuer. Av arbetet kunde man konstatera att funktionaliteten med att bara göra det möjligt för användarna att handla aktier (utan risk) inte hjälpte dem nämnvärt att förstå investerings-koncept och dra nya slutsatser.  Ny funktionalitet lades sedan till på inlärnings-plattformen i form av en historiepropagagerings-funktion. Funktionen låter användaren skapa en aktieportfölj och se vad portföljen skulle vara värd idag om den köptes tidigare. Detta gjorde det möjligt för användaren att snabbt och interaktivt se effekterna av diversifiering och resultatet av investeringar över tid. Pre / post intervjuer visade att plattformen, med historiepropagerings-funktionalitet, förändrade användarnas uppfattning om både diversifiering och avkastning, vilket indikerar att den också har potential att påverka finansiell kompetens.

Twenty-four early to midlactation Holstein cows were allocated to one of three treatments. Treatments consisted of: 1) basal ration plus 60 g wheat bran per day per head (control); 2) basal ration plus 57 g yeast culture per day per head; 3) basal ration plus 57 g yeast culture plus 3 g Aspergillus oryzae per day per head. Feed intake and milk yield were recoreded daily and milk composition and body weights were recorded weekly. Feed and fecal samples were recorded weekly. Feed and fecal samples were collected to determine apparent nutrient digestibility. No statistical difference was observed in milk yield among treatments. Percent fat, protein, and solid non fat of milk samples for the control fed group was significantly higher than the other treatment groups. Apparent crude protein, acid detergent fiber, and neutral detergent fiber digestibilities for cows fed the fungal culture treatments were significantly higher. Six rumen-fistulated Holstein cows were randomly assigned to one of three treatments in a 3x3 replicated Latin square design. Rumen pH was significantly lower for cows fed treatment two. Total volatile fatty acid and ammonia nitrogen concentration were higher for cows fed treatment two. Three rumen-fistulated Holstein cows were assigned one of three treatments in a 3x3 Latin square design for an in situ study. Approximately 15 g of grass hay, low quality alfalfa, and high quality alfalfa were sealed in nylon bags and put into the rumen. Samples were analyzed for dry matter, acid detergent fiber, neutral detergent fiber, and crude protein. Regardless of substrate used, dry matter disappearance was lower for control. Regardless of treatment ration fed, high quality alfalfa as a substrate was significantly higher in dry matter disappearance.

Ce travail de thèse s’est intéressé au transport urbain de passagers dans un contexte d’offre de transport multimodale consistant en la coexistence de plusieurs modes de transport. Dans la pratique, un problème de transport multimodal nécessite la prise en compte de plusieurs objectifs et de contraintes spécifiques liées aux modes ou à la séquence de modes utilisés. De telles contraintes sont appelées contraintes de viabilité.Cette thèse CIFRE s’est déroulée en collaboration avec la société MobiGIS, spécialisée dans le conseil et le développement d’applications autour des Systèmes d’Information Géographiques.Le problème étudié dans cette thèse est celui de la recherche d’itinéraires viables multimodaux point à point bi-objectif pour lequel il s’agit à la fois de minimiser le temps de trajet et le nombre de changements de mode. Compte tenu notamment des objectifs considérés, ce problème est de complexité polynomiale.Sur la base d’une modélisation multi-couches des réseaux de transport multimodaux et d’une modélisation par un automate à états finis des contraintes de viabilité nous avons proposé différents algorithmes de résolution de ce problème basés sur le principe de fixation et extension de labels. Nous avons également proposé une règle de dominance basée sur les états de l’automate de viabilité et permettant d’élaguer le nombre de labels explorés par nos algorithmes. Des adaptations en bidirectionnel ou en utilisant le principe de la recherche A_ ont également été proposées.Les algorithmes proposés ont été évalués sur une partie du réseau de transport de la ville de Toulouse et les expérimentations ont mis en évidence l’intérêt de la règle de dominance basée sur les états ainsi que de l’approche bidirectionnelle développée.Un prototype logiciel implémentant différentes fonctionnalités des algorithmes de plus courts chemins a été développé. Il permet notamment de réaliser des calculs d’itinéraires point à point, des calculs d’accessibilité ou des calculs de distancier / This thesis focuses on urban passenger multimodal transportation. In practice, a multimodal transportation problem requires taking into account several objectives and specific constraints related to modes or sequence of used modes. Such constraints are called viability constraints. This work has been carried out in collaboration with MobiGIS, a company specialized in consulting and development of applications around Geographical Information Systems.The problem studied in this thesis is the bi-objective multimodal viable point-to-point shortest path, aiming at minimizing the total travel time and the total number of mode changes. Given the considered objectives, this problem is polynomial.On the basis of a multi-layered graph model of the multimodal transportation networks, and of a finite state automaton model of the viability constraints, we propose various algorithms for solving this problem, based on the principle of label setting and extension.We also proposed a new dominance rule based on the states of the automaton to reduce the number of labels explored by our algorithms. Bidirectional and A* variants are also proposed.The algorithms are evaluated the transportation network of the city of Toulouse and experiments demonstrate the interest of the proposed dominance rules and bidirectional approach. A prototype software implementing different features of the shortest path algorithms has been developed. It notably enables calculations of point-to-point routes, accessibility and origin-destination matrices

This study aimed to answer the question whether time to market and competition pressure are important issues for new companies with a software products and whether they affect the development process and decision-making regarding releasing or the product. The study is based on the literature data and interviews with six technology startup companies. It investigated how the concept of minimum viable product is used by the companies for testing the product-market fit and how they apply principles of user-centred design for providing a good user experience of their products. I found that innovative products helped the companies escape direct competition. The development cycle was mostly defined by the industry standards and concrete customer needs rather than the competition pressure. User-centred design practices are widely implemented by the startups, but they are not always complete. In today's software market, the experience that the customers are provided with new products seems to be more important for the startups than formalisation of the development process and the product's time to market. / Den här studien sökte besvara frågan huruvida tid till marknadsintroduktion och tryck från konkurrenter är viktiga faktorer för nya uppstartbolag inom mjukvaruutveckling och huruvida dessa faktorer påverkar utvecklingsprocessen och beslut rörande produktlansering. Studien baserar sig på en litteraturgranskning och intervjuer med sex teknologiuppstartbolag. Studien undersökte hur konceptet av minsta bärkraftiga produkt används av uppstartbolagen för att testa hur bra produkten passar marknaden och hur bolagen använder principer från användarcentrerad design för att ge en god användarupplevelse i sina produkter. Jag fann att innovatina produkter hjälpte bolagen undvika direkt konkurrens. Utvecklingscykeln bestämdes framför allt av industristandarder och konkreta behov från kunderna i stället för av trycket från konkurrenter. Användarcentrerad designpraxis är vida erkänd hos uppstartbolagen, men tillämpningen är inte alltid komplett. I dagens mjukvarumarknad verkar kunders användarupplevelse i nya produkter vara viktigare för uppstartbolagen än att formalisera utvecklingsprocessen och produktens tid till marknadsintroduktion.

No description available.