Design and Construction of a Multispectral Camera for Spectral and Colorimetric Reproduction

Multi-spectral imaging and spectral reflectance reconstruction can be used in cultural-heritage institutes to digitalize their collections for documentation purposes. It can be used to simulate artwork under any lighting condition, and to analyze colorants that were used. The basic idea of a multi-spectral imaging system is to sub-sample spectral reflectance factor, producing results similar to a spectrophotometer. The sampled data are used to reconstruct reflectance for the visible spectrum. In this thesis, a wide band multispectral camera was designed and constructed to achieve high spectral and color accuracy as well as high image quality. Noise propagation theory was introduced and tested. A seven channel band- pass filter set was modeled using Gaussian functions and optimized to yield high spectral and colorimetric reproduction accuracy as well as low colori- metric noise. Single and sandwich filters were selected from o!-the-shelf absorption filters using the Gaussian bandpass filter model. Experiments were conducted to test the spectral, color and noise performance of the novel sandwich filters and compared with interference filters. The novel sandwich fil- ters led to increased colorimetric accuracy along with a reduction colorimetric noise. This imaging system will be used as part of a recommended workflow for museum archiving, and will be an important addition to the spectral imaging capabilities at MCSL

Location-based Modeling and Statistics Internship with Location, Inc.

In the summer 2016, I had the honor to work as a GIS & statistics intern at Location, Inc. It is a Software as a Service (SaaS) private company that builds and delivers location-based big data, analytics, tools, and services. The company’s mission is to create the best location-based technologies to help businesses make well-informed decisions (Location, Inc.). I was chosen by the company’s CEO, Dr. Andrew Schiller, who is also a Clark Alumnus. During the internship period, I worked in the data science team supervised by Jonathan Glick, and my main responsibilities were handling geographical and statistical related tasks to support project development. In general, I participated in two projects and worked on many different tasks such as tabular data cleaning, descriptive statistics analysis, geo-datasets development, spatial analysis, etc. The samples of work I describe here are processing TransUnion datasets and network analysis in ArcMap. I have learned a few new skills such as processing big data or using basic SPSS syntax, and gathered wider experience from the work. Overall, it was a wonderful experience for me, and no doubt it would shape my future career. I would definitely recommend this internship opportunity to other GISDE students

Global Trade Limitations to HIV Medication Access in Developing Countries

International trade and patent laws pose monetary and logistical challenges to all countries affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic in their abilities to access the most current and effective treatments. The development of international patent law applicable to medications has undergone significant changes since the 1990’s under The Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) established by the World Trade Organization (WTO). Case studies of China, India and Brazil’s implementation of pharmaceutical patent protection reveal the limitations of TRIPS and its subsequently recognized flexibilities. Although the goal of these flexibilities is to allow for greater access to medications, they fall short in reaching the universally accepted goal of a right to health

Becoming a co-designer:The change in participants’ perceived self-efficacy during a co-design process

Perceived self-efficacy is an integral part of a capability set that allows participants to transform design capabilities into the functioning of doing design. However, existing research investigating the change in participants’ perceived self-efficacy during a co-design process is inadequate. Therefore, this paper aims to demonstrate the changeability of participants’ perceived self-efficacy and its changing trajectory in a co-design process. The findings are extracted from a remote co-design project with older people, employing generative toolkits and culture probes, to address loneliness in later life. It has been discovered that the participants who successfully completed the co-design process experienced an increase in their perceived self-efficacy, following a U-shaped model. Furthermore, the depth of the U-shaped curve is contingent on how well the co-design process is designed to align with participants’ embodied knowledge and skills. The findings of this paper address the inadequate discussion of the change in participants’ perceived self-efficacy in co-design methodological literature. The introduced U-shaped model can equip co-design researchers and practitioners with the ability to anticipate and prepare for potential situations arising from changes in participants’ perceived self-efficacy during co-design processes

A study on chemical stabilization of Oil Sands Mature Fine Tailings

Oil Sands Mature Fine Tailings (MFT) are generated from extraction of bitumen from oil sands. Fine tailings contain significant fraction of clay minerals, which makes dewatering and consolidation difficult and time-consuming. In this thesis, chemical stabilization of MFT is investigated in an experimental program. Portland cement (PC) and two liquid-based silicate grouts (NS and AAAS) are used for stabilization of MFT. The effectiveness of these stabilizers at different dosages and curing durations is assessed by conducting a series of laboratory tests in terms of the undrained shear strength (Su) and solid content (S%), plasticity and pore fluid chemistry. The gel time and gel syneresis of silicate grouts are studied. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observations and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses are conducted to understand the microstructural changes in MFT after chemical stabilization. The results indicate that the inclusion of Portland cement or silicate grouts increases the solid contents and Atterberg limits of MFT. The undrained shear strength of MFT after chemical treatment increases up to 7.65 kPa with 10% PC, 15.5 kPa with 15% PC, 7.55 kPa with 15% NS and 5.5 kPa with 8% AAAS after 28 days of curing period. The pH of MFT paste increases after chemical treatments. Furthermore, SEM analyses indicate that after chemical treatment by Portland cement, fibrous cement hydrates (CS- H gel) formed during stabilization process bind the MFT particles together, while after the treatment of silicate grouts, gelling products with undulating and irregular shapes serve as cementation agent. The XRD analysis of MFT shows that clay minerals’ peak intensities in XRD patterns reduce after chemical stabilization. The results also indicate the additional C-S-H peaks in cement-MFT mixtures but show no new secondary mineral formations in silicate-MFT mixtures

Global Trade Limitations to HIV Medication Access in Developing Countries

International trade and patent laws pose monetary and logistical challenges to all countries affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic in their abilities to access the most current and effective treatments. The development of international patent law applicable to medications has undergone significant changes since the 1990’s under The Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) established by the World Trade Organization (WTO). Case studies of China, India and Brazil’s implementation of pharmaceutical patent protection reveal the limitations of TRIPS and its subsequently recognized flexibilities. Although the goal of these flexibilities is to allow for greater access to medications, they fall short in reaching the universally accepted goal of a right to health

Double bane or double boon? The effects of gender and the household registration system (hukou) on female migrant workers’ employment opportunities and earnings in contemporary urban China

There are several diverse types of employment discrimination in China’s labour market. Two of the most significant are differentials in employment opportunity and differentials in earnings by gender and household registration system (hukou). Thus, female migrant workers are doubly disadvantaged as victims of discrimination against both rural people and women. This thesis uses mixed research methods (both quantitative and qualitative approaches) to explore four questions related to this dual disadvantage: First, in the public sphere, are those with higher socioeconomic status (i.e., urbanites in China) willing to allow equal opportunities and rights for female migrant workers? Second, in the labour market, is there any evidence to demonstrate that gender and household registration system interact to shape female migrant workers’ employment opportunities and earnings? Third, still in the labour market, if a significant interaction is found between hukou and gender, the female migrant worker group will be compared to the members of three other groups: male migrant workers, urban males, and urban females. The following question will then be investigated: Do female migrant workers experience double (additive assumptions), less than double or more than double (intersectional assumptions) jeopardy in employment discrimination (opportunities and earnings) in 2003 and in 2006? Last, what are the trends in employment discrimination against this group over time? In an exploration of these four questions, this thesis offers theoretical, methodological and practical contributions to an understanding of female migrant workers’ experiences in urban China. It is found that Chinese urbanites indeed do not want to share social goods, attributes and services with female migrant workers. This hostility and intolerance in the public sphere have affected female migrant workers’ access to employment opportunities and earnings. In most cases, they have suffered more than double jeopardy with respect to employment opportunities and earnings. The trends in these two types of employment discrimination are mixed. Employment discrimination against these female migrant workers both in public sphere and in the labour market not only points to the social exclusion based on ascribed features (i.e., hukou and gender), but also reveals the nature of China’s transitional economies that involve both institutional and socio-cultural barriers to social equality