Disambiguation of range-Doppler radar measurements

Observing the Moon by a monostatic synthetic-aperture radar system has the inherent problem that any given combination of range and Doppler shift in a measurement will map to two different regions on the lunar surface. This ambiguity has previously been avoided using an interferometric radar configuration or selective illumination. The objective of this thesis was to write and validate a method for disambiguating monostatic inverse synthetic-aperture radar measurements of the Moon. The method implemented in this thesis was conducted by simulating multiple range-Doppler radar maps with differing apparent rotation axes, based on data from NASA's Horizon ephemeris [13] and optical reflectivity measurements from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera [6]. Included in the simulation were the Hagfors scattering law to allow scaling the amount of backscattered power based on the incidence angle of the electromagnetic wave, range dependent power reduction and noise due to random surface and subsurface undulations. The disambiguation, thus estimation of the true normalized scattering cross-sections, was conducted by solving an overdetermined linear least square system of the simulated maps. The disambiguation based on three range-Doppler maps resulted in an error standard deviation of 18.56% of the average reflectivity value, which decreased by including additional maps in the procedure. The method described in this thesis was found to be unbiased and can be used with EISCAT3D when it becomes operational in the future, and existing Arecibo measurements of Venus [3]

Kunsten å høste frukter. En dramaserie.

Kunsten å høste frukter er en mini dramaserie i seksdeler på 50min. Den mislykkede forfatteren Miriam (30) tar på seg ansvaret for å drive fruktgården videre med sin demente bestefar uten å være kvalifisert for oppgaven, og med bygda imot seg.Utplassering og masteroppgaveMAN350MASV-MA

Eksperttankegang gjennom en hel verdikjede : En studie av Best Value Procurement kontrahering og hvordan tankegangen videreføres oppstrøms i verdikjeden

Master's thesis in Industrial economics and technology management (IND590)According to the Rådgivende Ingeniør Forening (RIF), there is a need for changes in project execution by way of early involvement of subcontractors and focus on their expertise. Nye Veier AS wants to be involved in making these changes and therefore have adopted the Best Value Procurement methodology. This contracting method is intended to ensure that projects are awarded to the best expert, that is most suitable to complete the project. The construction industry has long been criticized for inefficiency and for its high frequency of conflicts during the execution phase of projects. Traditionally, price has been the most important factor when selecting subcontractors. As a result, there has been a major focus on cutting costs as much as possible. Nye Veier, as a client has received positive feedback from subcontractors after they have implemented BVP as a procurement method. They wonder how the main contractors go about securing the best experts, and whether the main contractors apply the principles of BVP upstream in the supply chain. Thus, this master thesis will discuss the following issue: How do contractors seek experts in their own value chain without using the BVP methodology? Through the thesis, qualitative research method has been used by conducting several interviews of contractors in the value chain, and by collecting relevant theory. Results indicate that the contractors and subcontractors experience several challenges with adapting to a new contracting method.The contractors have expended resources on BVP education and have determined that the subcontractors are not advanced enough or adequately equipped for this methodology. This suggest that BVP is best suited between the client and the contractor

Building Trust in Brussels: Lobbying Strategies of Nordic Interest groups

In their pursuit of influencing EU institutions and decision-makers, Nordic interest groups face the choice of directly contacting the decision-makers or generating pressure indirectly through mobilizing and/or changing the public opinion. After choosing their policy issues, interest groups have to determine to either lobby alone or to join coalitions. This thesis investigates the lobbying strategies chosen by Nordic interest groups that are registered in the EU Transparency Register. I build my theoretical argument on a prominent school of thought that claims that resource-rich interest groups are more likely to choose inside lobbying strategies compared to resource-poor groups. The argument is tested through a mixed methodological approach, combining the analyses of a built for purpose dataset that provides information about all Nordic interest groups registered in the EU Transparency register. The empirical analyses show that a considerable fraction of the Nordic interest groups chooses inside lobbying strategies and/or outside lobbying strategies. However, the online survey answers reveal that a large majority prefers to lobby in coalitions. Additionally, it seems that Norwegian interest groups focus on outside lobbying as well as inside lobbying strategies (mostly targeting the Commission), to compensate for their lack of representation in the EU institutions. While lobbying resources and group characteristics matter to the choice of most lobbying strategies, the aspect of building reputation and trust is of importance when it comes to all lobbying strategies applied by the Nordic interest groups

Building Trust in Brussels: Lobbying Strategies of Nordic Interest groups

In their pursuit of influencing EU institutions and decision-makers, Nordic interest groups face the choice of directly contacting the decision-makers or generating pressure indirectly through mobilizing and/or changing the public opinion. After choosing their policy issues, interest groups have to determine to either lobby alone or to join coalitions. This thesis investigates the lobbying strategies chosen by Nordic interest groups that are registered in the EU Transparency Register. I build my theoretical argument on a prominent school of thought that claims that resource-rich interest groups are more likely to choose inside lobbying strategies compared to resource-poor groups. The argument is tested through a mixed methodological approach, combining the analyses of a built for purpose dataset that provides information about all Nordic interest groups registered in the EU Transparency register. The empirical analyses show that a considerable fraction of the Nordic interest groups chooses inside lobbying strategies and/or outside lobbying strategies. However, the online survey answers reveal that a large majority prefers to lobby in coalitions. Additionally, it seems that Norwegian interest groups focus on outside lobbying as well as inside lobbying strategies (mostly targeting the Commission), to compensate for their lack of representation in the EU institutions. While lobbying resources and group characteristics matter to the choice of most lobbying strategies, the aspect of building reputation and trust is of importance when it comes to all lobbying strategies applied by the Nordic interest groups

R/V Gunnerus Digital Twin Infrastructure

Denne rapporten undersøker potensialet for bruk av digitale tvillinger i utdannings-øyemed for ingeniørstudenter gjennom NTNUs forskningsfartøy FF Gunnerus. Samtidig som digitale tvillinger blir mer og mer relevant for å øke kunnskapen om et fartøy eller system under operasjon, bør man evaluere nytteverdien av digitale tvillinger også for utdanning. I denne oppgaven foreslås en infrastruktur for en digital tvilling av FF Gunnerus, samt hvordan en digital tvilling kan være en nyttig ressurs for utdanningen av mariningeniører. Dette eksemplifiseres i en casestudie basert på signaldata fra FF Gunnerus. Arbeidet i denne rapporten har utgangspunkt i en rekke tidligere initiativer knyttet til en digital tvilling av FF Gunnerus, og formålet er å fremme videre arbeid mot en slik tvilling. Definisjonen av en digital tvilling varierer med formål og anvendelsesområde. Derfor er det nødvendig å knytte ulike definisjoner opp mot en digital tvilling av FF Gunnerus. Fra et akademisk ståsted er ønsket funksjonalitet avhengig av disiplin. For å være en ressurs for mange ulike disipliner trenger en digital tvilling et robust fundament. Basert på en litteraturstudie rundt definisjoner og bruk av digital tvillinger foreslås en digital tvilligsinfrastruktur som byggestein for en fullverdig digital tvilling. Infrastruktur består av tre deler, nemlig databehandling, modellerings- og simuleringsmiljø, og program- og systemvare. Hver komponent legger til rette ulike funksjoner som gjennomgås i rapporten. Videre diskuteres verdien av en digital tvilling som pedagogisk verktøy, og en livssyklusmodell for digitale tvillinger foreslås for å inkludere studenter i en større del av det teknologiske handlingsrommet knyttet til digitale tvillinger. Gjennom en casestudie eksemplifiseres et typisk brukseksempel av en digital tvilling til utdanning av mariningeniører. Casestudien tar for seg tilstandsbasert vedlikehold ved hjelp av kunstige nevrale nettverk (ANNs). Gjennom casestudien utvikles et rammeverk for avviksdetektering. Rammeverket kan anvendes som et prediktivt vedlikeholdsverktøy. Gjennom rammeverket har studenter mulighet til å lage, implementere og teste data-drevne algoritmer på utvalgte systemer på FF Gunnerus. Rammeverket er todelt, hvor den ene delen omhandler et modelleringsverktøy utviklet i Python for utvikling av tilbakematede nevrale nettverksmodeller (RNNs). Den andre delen tar for seg utvikling av en webapplikasjon hvor man kan laste opp trente modeller og visualisere predikert data og detekterte avvik i et sanntidsmiljø. Webapplikasjonen er utviklet med en React frontend skrevet i JavaScript, en Flask backend skrevet i Python og et databasesystem for lagring av skipsdata gjennom PostgreSQL. Webapplikasjonen publiseres gjennom skytjenesten Heroku. Både modelleringsverktøyet og webapplikasjonen testes ved å implementere en testmodell gjennom modelleringsverktøyet. Testmodellen er en type RNN kjent som lang kortsiktig hukommelsesnettverk (LSTM). Modellen testes mot en simulert feil på to av eksosutløpene på den ene hovedmotoren. Feilen gjør at eksostemperaturen stiger over forventet maksverdi over et gitt intervall. Gjennom testing klarer modelleringsverktøyet å detektere 95,8 % av de simulerte feilene. Etter å ha lastet opp modellen til webapplikasjon oppnådde sanntidsvisualiseringen liknende prestasjon, som forventet

Success in Equity Crowdfunding: A Quantitative Study of What Drives Equity Crowdfunding Campaign Success in Norway

This Master’s thesis studies what drives success in Norwegian equity crowdfunding campaigns. Norway is an interesting context for studying equity-based crowdfunding because of limited access to venture capital for start-ups additionally to heavy reliance on state support. The recent boom in equity crowdfunding in Norway makes this study relevant. A linear regression analysis is based on 192 observations collected from the two existing equity crowdfunding platforms in Norway; Folkeinvest and Dealflow. The thesis highlights variables supplemented by the relevant literature within success factors in crowdfunding and presents 14 hypotheses. The most prominent results of the study is that a longer campaign duration has a significant negative influence, and a sustainability-oriented project has a significant positive influence on campaign success. Number of images, videos and the team size are positively associated with campaign success in relation to attracting investors. Including images of high quality significantly influences campaign success. There is no difference between the sexes in access to capital, and equity-based crowdfunding has the effect of decentralizing start-up capital by distributing money to both cities and districts. The results suggest that Norwegian equity crowdfunding investors are less triggered by financial arguments than traditional investors. This is the first study to research success factors in Norwegian equity crowdfunding campaigns and it will provide a foundation of valuable insights for future studies and discussions