The Public Poster: An Exploration of Storytelling in Poster Design

Research suggests that it is incredibly difficult for a person to change their mind. Confirmation bias and echo chambers are just a few of the reasons people do not give themselves the opportunity to explore new stories, ideas, beliefs. It is now our challenge to connect with people in unconventional ways and explore storytelling in new spaces to give difficult topics more accessibility to public discourse. The Public Protest Poster can be found at the start of most movements for social and political change by creating a simplified statement with a strong graphic for instant impact. Yet, protest posters rely on viewers having some previous knowledge about a particular topic in order to fully understand the scope and target of the poster. This form of visual communication lacks any opportunity for greater context or connection for the viewer to take in new perspectives. This project seeks to explore adding animation to poster design to elaborate on a story that will encourage audiences to engage with topics they may not normally reflect on

Electronic Cigarette User Plasma Nicotine Concentration and Puff Topography: Influence of Liquid Nicotine Concentration and User Experience

Electronic cigarettes (ECIGs) aerosolize an often nicotine-containing solution for user inhalation. ECIG nicotine delivery may depend on liquid nicotine concentration and user puffing behavior (topography). This study examined the relationship among liquid nicotine concentration, puff topography, and plasma nicotine concentration. Thirty-three ECIG-experienced and 31 ECIG-naïve individuals completed four laboratory sessions that differed by ECIG liquid nicotine concentration (0, 8, 18, or 36 mg/ml). A 3.3 volt “eGo” ECIG battery attached to a 1.5 Ohm dual coil “cartomizer” filled with 1 ml of 70% propylene glycol/30% vegetable glycerin nicotine liquid was used in two ECIG-bouts (10 puffs; 30 s IPI). Plasma nicotine concentration, puff topography, and HR were evaluated. Some ECIG/liquid combinations can deliver physiologically active doses of nicotine to users, and nicotine delivery depends on liquid nicotine concentration and user puffing behavior. Liquid contents, device characteristics, and user behavior should be considered when regulating ECIGs

THE INFLUENCE OF ELECTRONIC CIGARETTE HEATING COIL RESISTANCE ON NICOTINE DELIVERY, HEART RATE, SUBJECTIVE EFFECTS, AND PUFF TOPOGRAPHY

Electronic cigarette (ECIG) users can manipulate several device features including liquid nicotine concentration (mg/ml) and heating coil resistance (Ohms). One class of ECIG models, called “sub-Ohm” devices, use coils with a resistance of \u3c 1 Ohms, lower than those observed in conventional ECIGs (e.g., ≥ 1.5 Ohms). Increasing voltage or decreasing coil resistance increases device power. Given that ECIG coil resistance and liquid nicotine concentration have not been manipulated systematically and simultaneously in clinical laboratory studies, the influence of these factors on ECIG acute effects remain unclear. The primary purpose of this study was to examine the influence of coil resistance and liquid nicotine concentration on nicotine delivery, heart rate (HR), subjective effects, puff topography, and liquid consumption. Thirty-two experienced ECIG users completed four independent laboratory sessions that differed by coil resistance (0.5Ohm or 1.5Ohm ) and liquid nicotine concentration (3 or 8 mg/ml). In each session, participants used a 4.5 V “Kanger SUBOX” loaded with 3.5 ml ECIG liquid in a 10-puff directed and 60-minute ad libitum bout. Nicotine delivery was greatest when using 8 mg+0.5Ohm combination and lowest when using the 3 mg/ml+1.5Ohm combination and HR followed a similar pattern. Abstinence symptom suppression was most pronounced for the 8 mg+0.5Ohm combination and least pronounced for the 3 mg/ml+1.5Ohm combination. Participants provided the highest ratings for pleasantness, satisfaction, and liking of harshness/irritancy and throat hit sensations for the 3 mg+0.5Ohm combination. Overall, use of ECIGs filled with 3 mg/ml nicotine concentration resulted in longer/larger puffs, increased puff frequency, and greater consumption of ECIG liquid. ECIG coil resistance, liquid nicotine concentration, and user puff topography, all of which influence ECIG nicotine delivery, should be considered together when making regulatory decisions aimed at protecting public health

The Communication of Design to Non-Experts: An Investigation Into Effective Methods of Communicating Design Through Drawing Styles

Communication between designers and their client has always been an essential element in the design of buildings and interior spaces. This communication occurs in various different ways, but the key method of a designer communicating their space is through their drawings. Clients come from many different backgrounds and many may not have the training or experience that allows them to fully understand what they are seeing in the drawings being presented and as such can be considered non-experts. A majority of drawings are typically presented and developed in two-dimensions which can be confusing for non-experts to understand since they rarely experience a space in two-dimensions. In establishing this research two main questions were developed to focus the study. Firstly, how do designers use drawings to communicate design intent and spatial elements? Secondly, how do non-experts interpret these drawings into perceiving a space that they can occupy? This research will assist designers with insight into how non-experts translate drawings in their minds to create a mental perception of a space. The research will also provide information on elements in drawings that communicate effectively in helping people perceive a space. Finally, the research will delve into if a particular style of drawing, two-dimensional, three-dimensional or a combination of both, communicates with higher accuracy the elements of design that assist people in perceiving a space. Understanding how drawings can effectively communicate design to assist non-experts in perceiving space is a critical part of a designer\u27s role. Advisor: Timothy Hemsat

The Role of Motives and Decision Rules in Restaurant Tipping

The goal of this research is to address critical deficiencies in our understanding on how bill size, service quality, motives, and decision rules affect tipping behavior. This research uses social norm and equity theories to define the role of motives and decision rules used in determining tipping behavior. Additionally, it provides further evidence of other operant motives and decision rules through qualitative analysis. A conceptual framework and operational model are developed and empirically tested

Algorithms for testing security in graphs

W niniejszym artykule przedstawiamy metodę weryfikowania bezpieczeństwa zbioru w grafie, dającą wysokie prawdopodobieństwo poprawnej weryfikacji. Problemem jest określenie, czy dla danego grafu G oraz podzbioru S zbioru wierzchołków tego grafu zbiór S jest bezpieczny, to znaczy każdy jego podzbiór X spełnia warunek: |N[X] ∩ S| ≥ |N[X] \ S|, gdzie N[X] jest domkniętym sąsiedztwem zbioru X w grafie G. Zaprojektowaliśmy pseudotester o wielomianowej złożoności obliczeniowej dla decyzyjnego problemubezpieczeństwa zbioru w grafie wykorzystując m.in. koncepcję symulowanego wyżarzania. Wykonaliśmy testy dla grafów, w których podgraf indukowany przez zbiór S jest drzewem lub grafem ograniczonego stopnia (przez 3 oraz 4). Z uwagi na coNP-zupełność problemu bezpieczeństwa zaproponowane przez nas podejście jest uogólnieniem koncepcji testowania własności znanej z literatury. In this paper we propose new algorithmic methods giving with a high probability the correct answer to the decision problem of security in graphs. For a given graph G and a subset S of a vertex set of G we have to decide whether S is secure, i.e. every subset X of S fulfils the condition: |N[X] S| |N[X] \ S|, where N[X] is a closed neighbourhood of X in graph G. We constructed a polynomial time property pseudotester based on the heuristic using simulated annealing and tested it on graphs with induced small subgraphs G[S] being trees or graphs with a bounded degree (by 3 or 4). Our approach is a generalization of the concept of property testers known from the subjectliterature, but we applied our concepts to the coNP-complete problem

Comparative analysis of wood market between the Baltic countries, Sweden, Poland, Germany, Finland and Denmark

The Project consists of the comparison of the wood markets in the countries around the Baltic Sea (Poland, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania). After a short introduction into the present situation on the Global market in general and the position of the biggest companies situated in forest industry a particular analysis of the markets will be done in the term of comparative confrontation. In the shadow of coming integration by the frames of EU this kind of draw up will describe position of the wood market and forestry itself and the possible changes in the free flow of the services, goods and capital in the European Community. Also special characteristics in the possibilities of the countries in transition to move into the broad market of integrated Europe will be considered in relation to its potential stock and potential productivity

Increased Water Use Efficeincy Through Trickle Irrigation

The gap between supply and demand of water for agricultural and municipal uses is rapidly closing at a time when world food requirements are increasing at an alarming rate. To meet the demand for agricultural products, new lands must be brought into production or higher yields must be realized from existing lands. In either case, more efficient use of water is prerequisite. Trickle irrigation is an approach to obtain increased water use efficiencies (ratio of weight of grain harvested to weight of total crop water use) and therefore a way to increase food production with our limited water resources. The ultimate goal of this investigation was the development of required crop inputs for selected crops to optimize the design of trickle irrigation systems and obtain an optimum water balance for living plants. Specific objectives were as follows: 1. To quantitatively determine optimum irrigation timing and necessary water application amounts for selected crops when using trickle irrigation; and 2. To develop a general method for the hydraulic design of trickle irrigation systems using inputs from the first objective for optimizing the system. To achieve these objectives, experiments were conducted in field lysimeters and in a well-instrumented field plot installation for evaluating the crop inputs. Complete control of the soil water balance can be achieved by the use of these facilities. By knowing the required crop inputs and utilizing known principles of fluid mechanics proper design procedures were developed to provide optimum design for trickle irrigation systems. To achieve the first objective, three research experiments were conducted at the research lysimeters of the Department of Agricultural Engineering at Texas A&M University for which grain sorghum was selected as the experimental crop. The first two experiments were designed to study the response of grain sorghum to trickle and subsurface irrigation. A comparison of water use efficiencies under well-watered conditions using both intensified and conventional water application methods and the evaluation of water use efficiencies with trickle irrigation applications designed to limit the availability of water were the specific objectives. The results indicated higher water use efficiencies and better crop response when the trickle method of application was used. Also, the results showed that higher water use efficiencies can be obtained by applying sparing amounts. An additional investigation carried out under a different research project of the Texas Water Resources Institute (TWRI Project No. A024TEX) was designed to develop a computer model to simulate grain sorghum yield and water use under high frequency irrigation. The simulation methods used in this study can be used to simulate a complete irrigation experiment greatly reducing research costs and allowing the determination of water requirements for many crops under many different soil and climatic conditions. The objective of the third research experiment conducted in 1974 was to determine if different irrigation frequencies would influence the growth and water use efficiency of grain sorghum when irrigated at optimum levels. Results indicated that frequency of application had no significant effect on the water use efficiency of grain sorghum for irrigation intervals up to 7 days. To attain the second goal of this investigation two trickle irrigation lateral design methods were developed. With the first method the pressure loss and emitter flow ratio for trickle irrigation laterals can be determined. The design method is based upon known principles of fluid mechanics. A computer program was written to determine the lateral pressure loss and emitter flow ratio at a given design length as function of pipe size, tree spacing, number of emitters per tree, emitter spacing, downstream lateral pressure and lateral slope. For a given set of design inputs, the program can be used to determine if the given pipe size will be adequate to limit the pressure loss and flow variation along the lateral to limits acceptable for the design lateral length. In the second method design equations are utilized to calculate the maximum lateral length for a given value of the uniformity of application coefficient. The solution depends upon the emitter flow function, elevation change, pipe size, reduction coefficient for dividing flow, pipe roughness coefficient, the average emitter flow rate, and either the average emitter spacing or the number of emitters per lateral. For a given uniformity the solution is a linear log-log line with a slope that depends only on the flow rate exponent in the pipe friction loss equation. Dimensionless graphs were developed that can be used to design the trickle irrigation laterals. It is believed that the results obtained in this research would provide far-reaching state, national and international benefits