Centrality measures and analyzing dot-product graphs

In this thesis we investigate two topics in data mining on graphs; in the first part we investigate the notion of centrality in graphs, in the second part we look at reconstructing graphs from aggregate information. In many graph related problems the goal is to rank nodes based on an importance score. This score is in general referred to as node centrality. In Part I. we start by giving a novel and more efficient algorithm for computing betweenness centrality. In many applications not an individual node but rather a set of nodes is chosen to perform some task. We generalize the notion of centrality to groups of nodes. While group centrality was first formally defined by Everett and Borgatti (1999), we are the first to pose it as a combinatorial optimization problem; find a group of k nodes with largest centrality. We give an algorithm for solving this optimization problem for a general notion of centrality that subsumes various instantiations of centrality that find paths in the graph. We prove that this problem is NP-hard for specific centrality definitions and we provide a universal algorithm for this problem that can be modified to optimize the specific measures. We also investigate the problem of increasing node centrality by adding or deleting edges in the graph. We conclude this part by solving the optimization problem for two specific applications; one for minimizing redundancy in information propagation networks and one for optimizing the expected number of interceptions of a group in a random navigational network. In the second part of the thesis we investigate what we can infer about a bipartite graph if only some aggregate information -- the number of common neighbors among each pair of nodes -- is given. First, we observe that the given data is equivalent to the dot-product of the adjacency vectors of each node. Based on this knowledge we develop an algorithm that is based on SVD-decomposition, that is capable of almost perfectly reconstructing graphs from such neighborhood data. We investigate two versions of this problem, in the versions the dot-product of nodes with themselves, e.g. the node degrees, are either known or hidden

Representing Strategic International Human Resource Management: Is the Map the Territory?

This paper is focused on the emergent field of strategic international human resource management (SIHRM). We suggest that SIHRM is becoming an integrated intellectual map in terms of: (1) the typologies created; (2) the language used; and (3) its pedagogy. Does the way in which we articulate SIHRM assist theory development or enact intellectual imperialism? Or both? It is argued that, by exploring the implications of SIHRM for theory, research, practice and teaching, we may raise awareness of current deficiencies and unanswered questions. Do we need to set a new course, or at least make explicit our navigational assumptions

Negative emotional experiences during navigation enhance parahippocampal activity during recall of place information

It is known that the parahippocampal cortex is involved in object-place associations in spatial learning, but it remains unknown whether activity within this region is modulated by affective signals during navigation. Here we used fMRI to measure the neural consequences of emotional experiences on place memory during navigation. A day before scanning, participants undertook an active object location memory task within a virtual house in which each room was associated with a different schedule of task-irrelevant emotional events. The events varied in valence (positive, negative, or neutral) and in their rate of occurrence (intermittent vs. constant). On a subsequent day, we measured neural activity while participants were shown static images of the previously learned virtual environment, now in the absence of any affective stimuli. Our results showed that parahippocampal activity was significantly enhanced bilaterally when participants viewed images of a room in which they had previously encountered negatively arousing events. We conclude that such automatic enhancement of place representations by aversive emotional events serves as an important adaptive mechanism for avoiding future threats

The visual album as a hybrid art-form: A case study of traditional, personal, and allusive narratives in Beyoncé

The combination of visual art and music has resulted in many innovative audio-visual phenomena and provides an on-going exciting avenue of artistic production. This thesis explores one such phenomenon, the visual album. The visual album is a hybrid medium between music video and film; like music video, it promotes an audio album, and like film, it is conceived as a whole work of art. The visual album borrows formats, techniques and theories from genres, such as direct address and the voyeuristic gaze, and uses them in a hybrid manner. I here define the visual album in terms of formal characteristics and its presentation of visual content, delimit it against other media and place it in a wider visual and music-cultural context. Through a case study of Beyoncé (2013), I then investigate the visual album’s narrative content. Inspired by the contestation of music video’s capacity for narrative, I show that the visual album can contain both classic Hollywood cause-and-effect narrative and personal narrative within individual tracks. These narratives are implemented through the development of characters and their interaction with the artist’s star persona. In the absence of a strong overarching narrative, the visual album creates continuity through the use of visual leitmotifs, which allude to earlier fictional and personal narratives, to the language of narrative, and to narratives outside the visual album. I conclude that the visual album is a new audio-visual genre separate from film and music video, and expresses several different types of narratives. As the first detailed investigation of the visual album, the results of this thesis provide insights to the fields of musicology and visual culture, and enable a deeper understanding of audio-visual phenomena within society’s popular culture

Aeronautical Mobile Airport Communications System (AeroMACS)

To help increase the capacity and efficiency of the nation s airports, a secure wideband wireless communications system is proposed for use on the airport surface. This paper provides an overview of the research and development process for the Aeronautical Mobile Airport Communications System (AeroMACS). AeroMACS is based on a specific commercial profile of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.16 standard known as Wireless Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access or WiMAX (WiMax Forum). The paper includes background on the need for global interoperability in air/ground data communications, describes potential AeroMACS applications, addresses allocated frequency spectrum constraints, summarizes the international standardization process, and provides findings and recommendations from the world s first AeroMACS prototype implemented in Cleveland, Ohio, USA

Relation of out-of-schooltime program participation to [STEM] academic outcomes for underrepresented youth

2016 Fall.Includes bibliographical references.This is the primary abstract to my three-part dissertation research project. This publication includes two introductory chapters that provide background information and the theoretical framing for the research. I prepared chapters 3, 4, and 5 as independent research publications; therefore, some of the introductory content of each is summative and yet repetitive of the chapters that precede it. In the final, sixth chapter, I describe how the three research studies relate to each other and contribute to the research worlds of youth development and out-of-schooltime programming, specifically as related to identity development, college readiness, and exposure to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. The research in study 1 supports other findings that out-of-schooltime programs provide support for youth of color. I collected data through focus groups of program participants and alumni to understand the participants' experiences in the program. The study results show the amount of community cultural wealth (CCW) that youth of color developed through participation in the out-of-schooltime program. The research also emphasizes the role of the program location in the development of CCW. I use a critical-race-theory (CRT) lens through which to frame the analyses for this portion of the research. I present the data through a composite counternarrative told through the program participants' voices. Findings reveal that the participants experienced a great deal of CCW, which seemed to assist them during college. I include examples of the six forms of CCW the participants gained from the program. The study concludes with suggestions for practice and future research. This research is part of a larger project intended to provide a basis for increased understanding into how out-of-schooltime programs support underrepresented youth. In the second study, I investigate the factors that seem shared among participants who graduate with 4-year degrees and among those who do not. I use qualitative and quantitative survey data to gather information from alumni youth participants. I analyze the data using a CCW and bioecology framework to understand the strengths of the community throughout the college-readiness process. Findings reveal that participants who academically successful are supported from many different venues. Additionally, these participants need opportunities to shine and show pride in their academics and STEM accomplishments. Those participants who pursued STEM fields indicated they were engaged in fun STEM activities at a young age and received positive recognition in a STEM area. This research supports the need for youth programs that create an inclusive community and values each person’s role and contributions. This study closes with suggestions for practice. For the final study of this three-part research project, I investigated the ways in which amount of experienced discrimination and level of identity awareness influenced participants’ academic and STEM outcomes. I used the same qualitative and quantitative survey tool as in the prior study, and the same population of youth program alumni. I analyzed the data using a three-part framework, including CCW, CRT, and bioecology. I used bioecology in the survey design, as is evident in the survey asking about many components of participants’ lives. I used CRT to identify instances of discrimination and to reframe my perspective to be that of my participants instead of my own. I used CCW to identify strengths the participants employed to overcome discrimination and other obstacles. Findings reveal that participants experienced increasing discrimination for multiple identities at each of the escalating levels (individual, institutional, societal, and civilizational). Additionally, the nonSTEM-persistent participants experience more high-level awareness and discrimination for their identities compared to the STEM-persistent group. In many cases, participants who had experienced more discrimination had higher academic aspirations. This research builds on the growing knowledge base related to the experiences and effects of institutional racism on underrepresented youth

A Cartographic Workflow Manual for Endangered Species Conservation

In response to global consumer demand for rare and exotic wildlife products, poaching of endangered species has become pervasive around the world (Eliason 1999). Despite the enactment of CITES, and other international efforts to protect vulnerable species from overexploitation, the global market for illegal wildlife products is estimated as high as $20-billion a year industry (Wyler 2008). Within important wildlife habitat sites, law enforcement struggle to curb rampant poaching that threatens the ultimate survival of many endangered species (Jachmann 2008; Rowcliffe 2004). Law-enforcement agencies responsible for protecting wildlife from poachers often lack geospatial tools that could greatly improve the effectiveness of their efforts. These tools include accurate topographic maps with the appropriate scale and the level of detail necessary for navigating in difficult and dangerous terrain, and GIS base data needed to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of patrols (Pickles 2015). Recently, collaborations between the University of Montana (UM) and the large cat advocacy group Panthera, have enabled the production of geospatial packages for four protected areas of concern. These packages include printed topographic map series, GPS base-maps and comprehensive GIS base data. Throughout the creation of these packages, UM faculty and students have developed a nuanced workflow for this process using GIS and graphic design software. Until 2018, this workflow had yet to be fully documented. This document presents this workflow in the form of a cartographic manual, including step-by-step methods for creating appropriate geospatial packages. The goal of this document is to increase the efficiency of future cartographic collaborations between UM and conservation-minded groups, while providing valuable educational resources for UM students in GIS and cartography

Aspects of cohesion in web site translation: a translator's perspective

This dissertation investigates the nature of cohesion on a web site and the implications for the web site translator. It approaches the subject from the perspective of the freelance translator. Cohesion traditionally refers to the network of grammatical and lexical items in a text that combine to link different parts of a text and give structure to the text. It is one of the most challenging aspects of translation as each language has its own unique manner in which it employs cohesive devices in the creation of a cohesive text. A web site can be described as a multi-modal and multi-linear instrument of communication where language, image and audio content combine to create cohesion. Hypertext, the defining feature of the World Wide Web has led to a change in the way in which content is accessed, in reading patterns and in the general ordering of information on a web page and web site. Three key areas are identified as being fundamental to web site cohesion, Online Search, Navigation and Page Content, which reflect changing user interaction with the web site as text. Information is now available to the user much in the way that people think, that is, by association rather than in linear sequence. As such, the web site presents a new challenge to the translator in terms of identifying and addressing items that are capable of functioning cohesively on a web site. Traditional models of cohesion are examined and found to be inadequate for the analysis of web site cohesion. A definition of web-specific cohesion is proposed and a model is created for the analysis of aspects of cohesion that are relevant to the translated web site. The model is applied to the English-language content of a corpus of German source-language web sites. The findings are discussed, implications examined, the changing role of the freelance translator in web site translation outlined and topics for further research suggested