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Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Birla Institute of Technology and Science'
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1
Lee, Yue-kong Martin. "The institute of sports, HKUST." Hong Kong : University of Hong Kong, 1995. http://sunzi.lib.hku.hk/hkuto/record.jsp?B25949342.
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Sandon, Lydia 1976. "An archive of scholarly publishing at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1999. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/16721.
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Thesis (M.Eng.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 1999.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 63-64).
This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections.
by Lydia Sandon.
M.Eng.
3
Amirbayat, Jafargholi. "Selected publications submitted to the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology for the degree of Doctor of Science." Thesis, University of Manchester, 1995. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.679242.
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Baker, Mona. "Selected publications submitted to the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology for the degree of Doctor of Science." Thesis, University of Manchester, 1999. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.679243.
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Ellis, Tyler Shawn. "Design of a low enrichment, enhanced fast flux core for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Research Reactor." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/53264.
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Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Nuclear Science and Engineering, February 2009.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 115-117).
Worldwide, there is limited test reactor capacity to perform the required irradiation experiments on advanced fast reactor materials and fuel designs. This is particularly true in the U.S., which no longer has an operating fast reactor but depends upon two aging thermal reactors for testing the behavior of various materials in an irradiation environment. The MIT research reactor is planning for a new core to end the need for highly enriched uranium and operate the reactor with uranium enrichments under 20%. This study explores the use of the central region in the newly proposed MIT reactor core to boost the production of fast neutrons, thus making the new core more beneficial for materials testing. The Fast Flux Trap introduces a region of fissile material surrounding a central irradiation facility which is cooled by liquid lead-bismuth eutectic. This arrangement maximizes the fast neutron production by avoiding neutron moderation in the center. The fissile material, arranged in a tight hexagonal pin array, can be uranium enriched in either 235U or 233U, to the limit allowable for non-proliferation. Insertion of the Fast Flux Trap in the proposed low enriched uranium core operated at a 10 MW power level, can provide a 252%-271% higher fast neutron flux than the previously proposed designs with low enriched fuel for the MIT research reactor and a 235%-253% higher fast neutron flux than the existing highly enriched uranium MITR-II core at 5 MW.
(cont.) This new core fast flux capability is within a factor of 2 to 4 of the much larger national test reactors, the Advanced Test Reactor and the High Flux Isotope Reactor, and hence can allow the MIT research reactor to be more useful for fast irradiation. The work covered both steady state and transient events involving the Fast Flux Trap, using the Monte Carlo N-Particle (MCNP) transport code. It was shown that the power distribution within the Fast Flux Trap pins as well as the plates in the rest of the core will be satisfactory; or in other words, no excessive power peaking will develop. The limits of the Fast Flux Trap lifetime were found to exceed the expected licensing time of the new core. Furthermore, the reactivity implications of metallic coolant leaks, water flooding of the Fast Flux Trap and various possible test materials were all found to be acceptable. The loss of flow following a pump trip event was analyzed using the RELAP5-3D code, and found not to result in excessive temperatures with regards to materials strength and corrosion resistance. While the specific design developed in this dissertation is particular to the MIT research reactor core, the Fast Flux Trap design concept can potentially be applied in other reactor cores so that other thermal spectrum research and test reactor facilities can benefit from this enhanced capability.
by Tyler Shawn Ellis.
Ph.D.
6
Perry, Anthony J. "Research work submitted for the degree Doctor of Engineering of the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology." Thesis, University of Manchester, 1997. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.679246.
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Cho, Jung Yun. "Why women are underrepresented in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields in the United States." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2018. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/117904.
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Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, 2018.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 94-106).
The issue of women's underrepresentation in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields in the United States has recently gained significant interest and accordingly, a great increase in the body of literature on this topic. A review of the literature reveals that the issue is a complex phenomenon with a myriad number of causes. These causes may be socioeconomic or cultural influences, or they may be specific events in women's educational or occupational timeline such as first-year college and university STEM classes. This thesis will use the following two themes to weave through and present the existing body of research: (1) STEM fields are riddled with gender stereotypes, which make many women uncomfortable and feel like they do not belong; (2) a gender confidence gap exists in STEM fields and discourages women from entering or further pursing STEM. An examination of gender composition of STEM fields across different countries validates these two themes as well. Finally, this thesis will end with a discussion of several potential strategies for increasing the representation of women in STEM.
by Jung Yun Cho.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
8
Wei, Wei S. M. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. "An investigation of optimal job characteristics for recruiting and retaining Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) professionals." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/107353.
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Thesis: S.M. in Engineering and Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, System Design and Management Program, 2016.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 97-98).
Motivated by the aspiration to extrapolate optimal combinations of job characteristics that may minimize employee turnover rate, this research investigates impacts of specific workplace policies in autonomy, performance feedback, skill and task variety, identity, and significance. A questionnaire is designed to discover what the most effective talent management strategies are to attract, develop and retain top tier talents in STEM fields. In this thesis, the targeted demographics are professionals who hold at least one bachelor's degree in STEM fields or work in STEM fields. By collecting, organizing, and analyzing the survey data set, the research attempts to identify series of workplace autonomy policies and work task characteristics that are appealing to the targeted demographics. The thesis analyzes the respondent dataset using three approaches. Firstly, chisquared tests suggest that the dataset exhibits similar job characteristic preference patterns within each demographic dimension (i.e. generation, gender, household composition, education and professional backgrounds). Secondly, conditional probability tests indicate respondents' acquisition and retention rates associated with specific policies. Lastly, the cross-tabulated contingency tables summarize the insights for optimizing performance review frequency and methods. After investigating questionnaire participants' responses, this thesis enriches the data set with literature review findings. This thesis proposes practical recommendations to improve existing workplace autonomy policies based on the research insights.
by Wei Wei.
S.M. in Engineering and Management
9
Launder, Brian. "Submission the to the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology for the award of the higher Doctorate in Engineering." Thesis, University of Manchester, 1995. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.679470.
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Schmidt, Eric Andrew. "Characterization of a fiber suspension jet in a co-flow dilution process." Available online, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2005, 2003. http://etd.gatech.edu/theses/available/ipstetd-1047/.
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Mahrt-Washington, Catherine. "Gender, and other variables, affecting graduation outcomes and the future of science : male vs. female students 1995-2003, Rochester Institute of Technology's College of Science /." Online version of thesis, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/1850/7933.
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Pugliese, Sebastian C. "Kinetics and mass transfer in the chlorination of draft pulp fibers." Available online, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2005, 1988. http://etd.gatech.edu/theses/available/ipstetd-1040/.
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Ingalsbe, Dana I. "Relating mechanical properties of paper to papermaking variables." Available online, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2005, 2001. http://etd.gatech.edu/theses/available/ipstetd-1031/.
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Uhlin, Karen Ingegerd. "The influence of hemicelluloses on the structure of bacterial cellulose." Diss., Available online, Georgia Institute of Technology, 1990:, 1990. http://etd.gatech.edu/theses/available/ipstetd-11/uhlin%5Fki.pdf.
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Chanin, Steven Bruce. "Guesser--a heuristic approach to robot motion planning." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1991. https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/128803.
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Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 1991.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 88-89).
by Steven Bruce Chanin.
Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 1991.
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Watkins, A. Paul. "Selected publications submitted to the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology for the award of the Higher Doctorate in Engineering (DEng)." Thesis, University of Manchester, 1998. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.679244.
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Saulnier, Christopher R. "Exploring design based wilderness education : a pedagogy to develop design thinking, an engineering science worldview, and leadership capacity." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/103575.
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Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program, 2015.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 80-84).
This study explores the experience of students during the implementation of a design-based wilderness education curricula. I introduce the concept of a curriculum that combines the pedagogies of design-based learning and wilderness education to encourage the development of design thinking, an engineering science worldview, and leadership ability. This project bridges the gap between the wilderness education and engineering education literature as this is a novel approach to engineering education. In bridging the two literatures, we find that the outcomes of wilderness education align well with the contemporary demands of engineering education. The initial implementation of the design-based wilderness education curriculum took place in the Summer of 2014. Thirty students from the Singapore University of Technology and Design and six students from MIT participated in the program. A mixed-methods study was performed, relying on surveys, exit interviews, and instructor observations. The findings from the research illustrate that design-based wilderness education holds the potential to serve as an exciting novel avenue to encourage design thinking, the development of an engineering science worldview, and leadership ability. While further research is necessary, this initial exploration finds that wilderness education is a promising vector for supporting effective design thinking practices and the development of an engineering science worldview, alongside leadership ability.
by Christopher R. Saulnier.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
18
Hartong, Bradley H. "Epi-halohydrin modified polyamines as mordant agents for alkaline rosin sizing." Diss., Available online, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2005, 2004. http://etd.gatech.edu/theses/available/ipstetd-1025/.
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McLauchlan, Nathaniel Ross. "Crushed rock thermal energy storage & nuclear technology : option space & economic impacts." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2018. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/117794.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, 2018.Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering, 2018.
This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections.
Cataloged student-submitted from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 101-103).
Increasing amounts of intermittent renewables have led to zero and negative priced electricity at times of peak wind and solar production. The volatility added to the grid by renewables and low prices at peak production create a demand for flexible energy supply and present an opportunity for energy arbitrage. Nuclear reactors in the United States are inflexible when compared to fossil generators, and batteries may store energy at peak renewable production, albeit at a high capital cost. Thermal energy storage coupled to nuclear reactors may both increase nuclear flexibility and capitalize on price volatility, benefitting the economics for the struggling nuclear industry. This research maps the option space for constructing a crushed rock thermal energy storage (TES) system coupled to a light water reactor and employs a modification of the GenX capacity expansion model to evaluate the economic. Historic demand and renewable resource availability from ERCOT were used to illustrate the benefit of crushed rock TES with an increasingly restrictive CO₂ emission constraint. Parametric variations were used to address uncertainty in performance estimates. Crushed rock TES was found to be beneficial under favorable conditions, reducing the average price of electricity from $81/kWh (without TES) to $73/kWh (with TES) at a system marginal cost of $5/kWh-heat and emissions constraint of 100 g CO₂/kWh-electric, a nearly 10X reduction of current emissions. Unfavorable conditions resulted in a price reduction from $81/kWh to $78/kWh with the same cost estimates and carbon constraint. The investment cost of enabling the ability for nuclear generation to couple to crushed rock TES was also found to significantly affect the system's favorability and effect on electricity prices.
by Nathaniel Ross McLauchlan.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M.
20
Ng, Benny Siu Hon. "A machine learning approach to evaluating renewable energy technology : an alternative LACE study on solar photo-voltaic (PV)." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2020. https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/127172.
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Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, May, 2020Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, May, 2020
Cataloged from the official PDF of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 75-79).
Currently, renewable technologies are often evaluated using the Levelized cost of electricity (LCOE), which is a measure of building and operating a generating plant over an assumed αnancial life and duty cycle. Naturally, instead of only measuring the cost, a more holistic approach would be to also assess the economical value of the renewable generating technology. One approach to this would be to measure the Levelized Avoided Cost of Electricity (LACE), which considers what it will cost the grid to generate electricity using renewable technology, amortized over its lifetime. However, estimating avoided cost can be challenging since it requires knowledge of how the renewable technology would perform in electricity generation, especially when taking into account a projected future period. Naturally this would have repercussions in policies adopting greater renewable technologies, further emphasising the importance of an adequate measure of evaluating renewable technology.
In this thesis, we explore several methods of evaluating alternative sources of energy, with an in-depth focus on a LACE evaluation of solar PV as an alternative source of electricity generation within CAISO market. Through experimentation of different variants of a recurrent neural network, an LSTM model was trained to predict 2016 electricity prices of all nodes within CAISO. The model achieved a Mean Absolute Scaled Error (MASE) of 0.761, outperforming a naive baseline using the Day-Ahead prices. Using the predicted prices, the LACE for solar PV was estimated and compared against the LACE computed with perfect knowledge of prices. Even though they had similar mean values, there was a significant difference in the variance. The effects of improvements in price prediction on the LACE was further explored. We found that the smaller the difference in the estimated LACE to the respective LCOE value, the greater the impact of improving price prediction performance; and was able to place an implicit value of an improvement of price prediction performance. Especially for policy and decision makers, this improvement in electricity price forecasting would directly translate to greater confidence when making the decision to switch a solar PV alternative.
by Benny Siu Hon Ng.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M.
S.M.inTechnologyandPolicy Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society
S.M. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
21
Bliss, Terry L. "Retention of fine particles in a fiber mat during washing." Diss., Available online, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2005, 1999. http://etd.gatech.edu/theses/available/ipstetd-1004/.
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Dyer, Thomas J. "Elucidating the formation and chemistry of chromophores during kraft pulping." Diss., Available online, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2005, 2004. http://etd.gatech.edu/theses/available/ipstetd-1018/.
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DeLozier, Greg. "Part 1: Employing conventional defoamer emulsions to enhance the flotation removal of flexographic news inks." Diss., Available online, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2005, 2003. http://etd.gatech.edu/theses/available/ipstetd-1016/.
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Mehra, Varun S. M. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. "Optimal sizing of solar and battery assets in decentralized micro-grids with demand-side management." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/108959.
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Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program, 2017.Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2017.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 199-209).
Solar-based community micro-grids and individual home systems have been recognized as key enablers of electricity provision to the over one billion people living without energy access to-date. Despite significant cost reductions in solar panels, these options can still be cost-prohibitive mainly due over-sizing of generation assets corresponding with a lack of ability to actively manage electricity demand. The main contribution shared is the methodology and optimization approach of least-cost combinations of generation asset sizes, in solar panels and batteries, subject to meeting reliability constraints; these results are based on a techno-economic modeling approach constructed for assessing decentralized micro-grids with demand-side management capabilities. The software model constructed is implemented to represent the technical characteristics of a low-voltage, direct current network architecture and computational capabilities of a power management device. The main use-case of the model presented is based on serving representative, aggregated, household-level load profiles combined with simulated power output from solar photovoltaic modules and the kinetic operating constraints of lead-acid batteries at hourly timesteps over year-long simulations. The state-space for solutions is based on available solar module and battery capacities from distributors in Jharkhand, India. Additional work presented also extends to real-time operation of such isolated micro-grids with requisite local computation. First, for load disaggregation and forecasting purposes, clustering algorithms and statistical learning techniques are applied on quantitative results from inferred load profiles based on data logged from off-grid solar home systems. Second, results from an optimization approach to accurately parametrize a lead-acid battery model for potential usage in real-time field implementation are also shared. Economic results, sensitivity analyses around key technical and financial input assumptions, and comparisons in cost reductions due to the optimization of solar and battery assets for decentralized micro-grids with demand-side management capabilities are subsequently presented. The work concludes with insights and policy implications on establishing differentiated willingness-to-pay, tiers of service, and dynamic price-setting in advanced micro-grids.
by Varun Mehra.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M.
25
Schneider, Ian Michael. "Electricity market integration of stochastic renewable resources : efficiency and risk tradeoffs." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/108958.
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Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program, 2017.Thesis: S.M. in Electrical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2017.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 55-57).
Electricity generation from renewable sources is growing rapidly, but the variability and uncertainty of renewable resources like wind and solar energy can increase the costs of supplying reliable electricity. Competitive markets for wholesale electricity are widely used in the United States, but the regulatory details that govern their treatment of stochastic resources can have significant effects on efficiency and risk. This research analyzes how producers respond to market mechanisms intended to improve forecasting and long-term siting decisions. This thesis characterizes producer equilibrium strategies in competitive short term energy markets by examining the bidding behavior of energy market participants when energy imbalance payments are determined endogenously from market clearing conditions. The results show that the market-based pricing mechanism leads to better tradeoffs of system efficiency and risk compared to the case where penalties are exogenous, suggesting additional benefits of market-based penalty prices beyond those previously studied. This research also explores how long-term market investment equilibria are affected by current energy policies. It presents new analytical results showing how the Production Tax Credit (PTC) biases wind investment towards high-producing sites, but with higher overall levels of wind correlation, which can induce additional costs associated with reliability and system risk.
by Ian Michael Schneider.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M. in Electrical Engineering
26
Lee, Stephen James S. M. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. "Adaptive electricity access planning." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2018. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/117878.
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Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program, 2018.Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2018.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 139-149).
About 1.1 billion people worldwide lack access to electricity and an additional 1 billion have unreliable access. The social ramifications of this problem are noteworthy because access to electric power has the potential to transform societies. While admirable efforts are underway, there is general consensus that progress is falling far short of what is needed to reach international electricity access goals. In light of such deficiencies, it is arguable that systems-level experimentation and innovation is required if we are to achieve universal electricity access in the next one to two decades. With the advancement of technology, new opportunities are emerging that can potentially change the game. Machine learning methods and detailed technoeconomic models for planning comprise one set of technologies that hold significant promise for accelerating access. This thesis builds upon recent work towards the development of more intelligent decision support systems for electrification planning. Progress towards automated and scalable software systems for the extraction of building footprints from satellite imagery are presented. In addition, a novel model for probabilistic data fusion and other machine learning methods are compared for electrification status estimation. Inference tools such as these allow for the cost-effective provision of granular data required by techno-economic models. We also acknowledge that the technologies we detail should not be developed in a vacuum. Given that electrification is a complex endeavor involving numerous social and technical factors, careful consideration must be given to human, policy, and regulatory concerns during the planning process. We notice how uncertainty abounds in these activities and propose "adaptive electricity access planning" as a new model-assisted framework for the explicit consideration of uncertainty in large-scale planning. This work aspires to provide valuable perspective on the importance of uncertainty in planning as these endeavors continue to evolve.
by Stephen James Lee.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M.
27
Wong, Shun Him. "Valuing energy storage in electricity grids : a machine learning approach." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2018. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/117879.
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Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program, 2018.Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2018.
Cataloged from student-submitted PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 83-87).
Meeting climate change mitigation targets likely requires the integration of large amounts of renewable energy generation, as well as energy storage systems, into the electric grid. However, the deployment of energy storage systems will remain limited until they become economically attractive, with or without government policy. One of the most profitable and widely studied energy storage system ventures is realtime temporal arbitrage, where the decision to charge or discharge the energy storage device is made according to some charging policy or decision rules, ideally charging when electricity prices are low and discharging when prices are high. In this thesis, state-of-the-art Machine Learning methods in the field of electricity price forecasting were used to accurately predict electricity prices. An improvement on existing recurrent neural network methods was introduced, using contextual knowledge of nodal prices and information such as geolocational spatial correlation data. It was then demonstrated that these prices can be used to inform a charging policy for an energy storage device which will maximize its associated arbitrage revenue. The most profitable policy requires perfect foresight of electricity prices, and hence the true valuation of the energy storage device given imperfect forecasts is bounded from above by a valuation using perfect foresight. The effect of improvements in electricity price forecasting accuracy on the valuation of energy storage systems is then explored using simulations, which places an implicit value on the improvement of electricity price forecasting methods. The impact of these improvements on the introduction of energy storage systems into the grid is then evaluated.
by Shun Him Wong.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M.
28
Chamberlain, Daniel. "Design and validation of mobile kit and machine learning algorithms for pulmonary disease screening and diagnosis." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/108957.
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Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program, 2017.Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2017.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 107-112).
Pulmonary diseases are responsible for more than 15% of deaths worldwide. Much of this burden is concentrated in the developing world, where these diseases cause 19% of deaths. In much of the developing world, pulmonary diseases are under-diagnosed and misdiagnosed because the correct equipment is not available or health care is provided by workers with insufficient training. To help improve the diagnosis of pulmonary disease, we built a pulmonary diagnostic kit that consists of an electronic stethoscope, an augmented reality peak flow meter, and an electronic questionnaire. Using this kit, we collected data from patients who visited the Chest Research Foundation, a pulmonary clinic in Pune, India. Using the data collected from these patients, we pursued several of avenues of research. First, we trained algorithms to automatically detect two adventitious breath sounds: wheezes and crackles. We used two approaches to detect these sounds: traditional signal processing methods and new techniques from deep semi-supervised learning. Both techniques showed moderate success at identifying wheezes and crackles. Second, we evaluated the diagnostic potential of detecting wheezes and crackles and compared it to using signal processing analysis of lung sounds to directly detect pulmonary disease. We showed that this new technique leads to improved diagnostic accuracy. This finding indicates that future research should focus less on lung sound identification. Third, we combined measurements from all three components of our kit to predict the diagnosis of patients with pulmonary disease. We showed that most of the diagnostic accuracy of the kit was provided by the peak flow meter and questionnaire combination. Together, these two devices were able to accurately detect patients with asthma and COPD. After developing the diagnostic algorithms, we built an Android application to guide a user through the necessary data collection to arrive at a diagnosis. The application was designed to create questionnaires and data queries from an externally defined model definition file, allowing the application to be easily repurposed for different classification tasks in medicine and other fields. Future research will expand the use of the pulmonary diagnostic kit to include additional pulmonary diseases and will test its use in a large-scale field study to determine its accuracy as a screening tool for asthma and COPD. If the results of future trials are consistent with the findings in this thesis, the kit and algorithm combination may provide useful information for improving diagnosis of pulmonary disease.
by Daniel Chamberlain.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M.
29
Loving, James Howard. "Enabling malware remediation in expanding home networks." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/108839.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program, 2017.Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2017.
This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections.
Cataloged from student-submitted PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 79-91).
As the Internet of Things (IoT) grows, malware will increasingly threaten Internet security and stability. Many actors, from individuals installing antivirus on their personal computers to law enforcement conducting botnet takedowns, have some capability to prevent or remediate malware, but these strategies face technical and economic challenges. These challenges worsen as the IoT expands, due to the high number of IoT devices and other characteristics of the IoT. Fortunately, Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are positioned to effectively contribute to malware remediation efforts, through the detection and notification of compromise. However, Network Address Translation (NAT) and IPv6 Privacy Extensions prevent ISPs from identifying the specific compromised device. We refer to this lastmile extension of the IP traceback problem as the residential source identification problem. As the IoT grows, the problem worsens: IoT devices are less capable of self-remediation and expected to soon outnumber traditional devices, thus imposing a significant cost on customers to triangulate and remediate an infection. To address the residential source identification problem, I propose EDICT, an open-source software package for home routers that will enable consumers to identify a specific device, given retrospective notification of the malicious behavior, without compromising the consumer's privacy. EDICT does this by maintaining a mapping of IP flows to devices through a series of scalable Bloom filters, allowing EDICT to operate under the significant memory constraints of home routers. When a customer is informed of compromise, EDICT will query this connection log using a fuzzy check of the timestamp and source port, both provided by the ISP, iterated across a log of identified devices. EDICT will then provide the customer with user-friendly information on the infection's source, enabling remediation.As the Internet of Things (IoT) grows, malware will increasingly threaten Internet security and stability. Many actors, from individuals installing antivirus on their personal computers to law enforcement conducting botnet takedowns, have some capability to prevent or remediate malware, but these strategies face technical and economic challenges. These challenges worsen as the IoT expands, due to the high number of IoT devices and other characteristics of the IoT. Fortunately, Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are positioned to effectively contribute to malware remediation efforts, through the detection and notification of compromise. However, Network Address Translation (NAT) and IPv6 Privacy Extensions prevent ISPs from identifying the specific compromised device. We refer to this lastmile extension of the IP traceback problem as the residential source identification problem. As the IoT grows, the problem worsens: IoT devices are less capable of self-remediation and expected to soon outnumber traditional devices, thus imposing a significant cost on customers to triangulate and remediate an infection. To address the residential source identification problem, I propose EDICT, an open-source software package for home routers that will enable consumers to identify a specific device, given retrospective notification of the malicious behavior, without compromising the consumer's privacy. EDICT does this by maintaining a mapping of IP flows to devices through a series of scalable Bloom filters, allowing EDICT to operate under the significant memory constraints of home routers. When a customer is informed of compromise, EDICT will query this connection log using a fuzzy check of the timestamp and source port, both provided by the ISP, iterated across a log of identified devices. EDICT will then provide the customer with user-friendly information on the infection's source, enabling remediation.
by James Howard Loving.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M.
30
Hillen, Florian S. M. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. "Does management matter in scientific laboratories? : evidence from Harvard Medical School." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2018. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/117888.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program, 2018.Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2018.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 89-91).
The high quality of modern medical care is built upon the creation of scientific knowledge generated from medical research. While the role of management practices has been rigorously explored across various industries, little is known about management in medical research. I collected data surveying principal investigators of medical research laboratories at the Harvard Medical School to examine the relationship of management practices and research outputs. I find that principal investigators with more effective management practices are associated with higher-impact research (measured by citations). This effect is stronger and more significant in younger compared to older laboratories and remains robust after using different controls. This study helps to increase the understanding of management in a scientific setting and should start a new discussion about the relevance of management in medical research.
by Florian Hillen.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M.
31
Oladeji, Olamide. "Network partitioning algorithms for electricity consumer clustering." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2018. https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/122917.
Full textAbstract:
This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections.Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program, 2018
Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2018
Cataloged from student-submitted PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 97-103).
In many developing countries, access to electricity remains a significant challenge. Electrification planners in these countries often have to make important decisions on the mode of electrification and the planning of electrical networks for those without access, while under resource constraints. To facilitate the achievement of universal energy access, the Reference Electrification Model (REM), a computational model capable of providing techno-economic analysis and data-driven decision support for these planning efforts, has been developed. Primary among REM's capabilities is the recommendation of the least-cost mode of electrification - i.e by electric grid extension or off-grid systems - for non-electrified consumers in a region under analysis, while considering technical, economic and environmental constraints.
This is achieved by the identification of consumer clusters (either as clusters of off-grid microgrids, stand-alone systems or grid-extension projects) using underlying clustering methods in the model. This thesis focuses on the development and implementation of partitioning algorithms to achieve this purpose. Building on previously implemented efforts on the clustering and recommendation capabilities of REM, this work presents the development, analysis and performance evaluation of alternative approaches to the consumer clustering process, in comparison with REM's previously incorporated clustering methodology. Results show that the alternative methodology proposed can compare favorably with the hitherto implemented method in REM. Consequently, the integration of the pro- posed network partitioning procedures within REM, as well as some potential future research directions, is discussed.
Finally, this thesis concludes with a discourse on the social and regulatory aspects of energy access and electricity planning in developing countries, providing some perspectives on the development policies and business models that complement the technological contributions of this work.
by Olamide Oladeji.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M.
S.M.inTechnologyandPolicy Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program
S.M. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
32
Van, Grootel Alexander Willem Anton. "Manufacturing variability; effects and characterization through text-mining." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2019. https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/122216.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, 2019Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2019
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 77-89).
Researchers and developers of new materials and processes often underestimate or neglect the effects of manufacturing variability and, as a result, make overly optimistic assumptions about their technologies. In this thesis, I explore the effects of manufacturing variability and find ways to characterize the manufacturing variability of emerging manufacturing processes. I develop a framework that connects manufacturing variability to environmental impact and economic costs through the concept of overdesign. I study examples using this framework and find that around 19% of concrete production is used solely to overcome issues of manufacturing variability, and that reducing the variability when producing fiber composite parts for a Boeing 787 reduces fuel consumption by millions of dollars and saves ktons of CO₂ from entering the atmosphere. I further explore the effects of manufacturing variability by considering its impacts on the commercialization process of new technologies.
I consider Additive Manufacturing (AM), a promising technology, and argue that this technology has not reached commercial traction in great part due to our lack of understanding of the uncertainty associated with this process. I draw parallels to fiber composites, which faced similar issues in the 1980s before a collaborative effort, through the Advanced Composite Technology (ACT) and Advanced General Aviation Technology Experiments (AGATE) programs, was able to solve many of these challenges. Finally, I consider the volumes of data available in published documents and analyze whether it is possible to extract this information using text mining techniques, and to use these data to characterize the manufacturing variability of upcoming technologies. Some important challenges obstruct our ability to extract all the important information from these documents, but important steps are made to remove some of these challenges and I demonstrate that useful information can be extracted.
Manufacturing engineers view processes as stochastic rather than deterministic. I ultimately argue for this view to also be adopted by environmentalists, materials researchers, and decision makers. I also further develop methods to extract and utilize manufacturing variation information.
by Alexander van Grootel.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M.
S.M.inTechnologyandPolicy Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society
S.M. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
33
Chimento, Charles William III. "Open innovation in the US Air Force." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2020. https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/127168.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, May, 2020Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, May, 2020
Cataloged from the official PDF of thesis. "May 2020."
Includes bibliographical references (pages 121-127).
If the Air Force is to maintain lethality and readiness, we must learn to adapt technologies and praxis within an increasingly diffuse knowledge landscape. This thesis examines two efforts orchestrated through AFWERX that seek to invigorate grass-roots problem-solving and reform research and development partnerships with small businesses. Stepping back, chapter one motivates and characterizes the ideological shift within the Department of Defense (DoD) towards agility, highlighting pioneering efforts and their challenges. Chapter two turns to the Squadron Innovation Fund (SIF), introduced in 2018 to empower mission-oriented units to address capability and efficiency gaps. The chapter contributes a data-driven perspective on the spending trends, draws lessons from analogous efforts in industry, and offers practical steps to leverage the potential of the SIF as a bottom-up signal for heavier funding sources. Chapter three evaluates the state of the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program and traces its rapid reform under AFWERX, thereby setting up a rigorous econometric evaluation of these reforms in chapter four. Together, these chapters chart out a way forward for the SIF while providing evidence that AFWERX's modifications to SBIR are drawing a more desirable applicant pool.
by Charles William Chimento III.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M.
S.M.inTechnologyandPolicy Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society
S.M. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
34
Ozaltun, Bora. "Learning from supply shocks in the energy market : evidence from local and global impacts of the shale revolution." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2020. https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/127174.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, May, 2020Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, May, 2020
Cataloged from the official PDF of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 97-100).
In this thesis, we carry out three studies of the local and global impacts of supply shocks in energy markets, and also analyze certain properties of these markets. First, the relationship between US power plants and local air pollution is assessed from 2003 to 2016, by exploiting the information provided by the large deviations that occurred during that period due to the shale revolution. Next, fossil fuel trade is analyzed from a networks perspective, quantifying its properties. Finally, a general equilibrium model of fossil fuel trade is constructed to simulate the impact of a supply shock to a given country and in order to understand the impact of the shale revolution.
by Bora Ozaltun.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M.
S.M.inTechnologyandPolicy Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society
S.M. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
35
Seby, Jean-Baptiste. "Networked interactions, graphical models and econometrics perspectives in data analysis." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2020. https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/129081.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program, September, 2020Thesis: S.M. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, September, 2020
Cataloged from student-submitted PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 231-243).
This thesis is composed of two independent parts. In Part I, we study higher-order interactions in both graphical models and networks, i.e., interactions between more than two nodes. In the graphical model setting, we do not assume that interactions are known and our goal is to recover the structure of the graph. Our main contribution is an algebraic criterion that enables us to determine whether a set of observed variables have a single cause or multiple causes. We also prove that this criterion holds in the presence of confounders, i.e., when the causes are hidden. In the network setting, we assume that the structure of the graph is known. Our objective is then to identify what kind of information about data can be learned from the analysis of higher-order interactions. More precisely, using the generalization of the normalized Laplacian and random walks on graphs to simplicial complexes, we study a simplicial notion of PageRank centrality as defined in [Schaub et al., 2018].
Conducting numerical experiments on both synthetic and true data, we find evidence that the so-called edge PageRank is related to the concepts of local and global bridges in networks. In Part II, we analyze the determinants of yield gaps in Semi-Arid Tropics (SAT) regions in India. Analyzing a panel data of households within 30 villages over 6 years in India, we apply a fixed effects estimation method and a quantile regression with fixed effects to identify the most significant explanatory variables of yield gaps for 5 different crops. Using a correlated random effects estimator for unbalanced panel data, we can also estimate coefficients for time-invariant variables. We find that yield gaps determinants are crop specific. In addition to that, soil characteristics show the most significant effects on output rate. When statistically significant, correlations with the type of soil are negative. This result might suggest that the choice of cropping pattern is not necessarily appropriate.
Finally, results suggest that unobservable heterogeneity of households is critical in explaining farm productivity. Time-invariant variables hardly explain this heterogeneity for which more research is needed.
by Jean-Baptiste Seby.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
S.M.inTechnologyandPolicy Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program
S.M.MassachusettsInstituteofTechnology,DepartmentofElectricalEngineeringandComputerScience
36
Kilian, Joe. "Two undecidability results in probabilistic automata theory." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1985. https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/126347.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (B.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 1985.Bibliography: leaf 13.
by Joseph J. Kilian.
Thesis (B.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 1985.
37
Devlin, Christopher P. "An investigation of the mechanism of high-intensity paper drying." Diss., Available online, Georgia Institute of Technology, 1986:, 1986. http://etd.gatech.edu/theses/available/ipstetd-8/devlin%5Fcp.pdf.
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Sepulveda, Nestor A. (Sepulveda Morales). "Decarbonization of power systems : analyzing different technological pathways." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/107278.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering, 2016.Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program, 2016.
This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections.
Cataloged from student-submitted version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 211-214).
Climate change poses a major challenge to society. Different sectors of society will need to respond in different ways; for the power sector, the response will require the aggressive reduction of CO2 emissions to near zero by 2050. There is no unique pathway for achieving a given level of decarbonization, and different pathways will require greater or lesser resources. In general, as the degree of carbon mitigation increases, each additional unit of reduction will become more expensive. The world has limited resources, as do national economies. Thus, whether the solution to decarbonization is achieved through markets or through centralized planning, the solution should be the one that maximizes society's welfare, i.e., that achieves the goal at minimum cost for society. This thesis explores the potential cost implications of different decarbonization pathways for the electricity generation mix in the year 2050. The impacts of different CO2 reduction targets and technological choices on the cost of decarbonization are compared. The average price of electricity is used as a metric for the cost of decarbonization to society. An important requirement of the analysis is to take account of changes in the expected cost of existing technologies over this period, as well as the possibility that new technologies will become available. This research takes a systemic view, including a detailed representation of the interactions between different types of power system technologies, taking into consideration the synergies and limitations that each asset class creates and/or imposes on others. To explore the impact of differences in system characteristics, two different U.S. power systems are analyzed: New England's power system and the Texas power system. These differ significantly in their demand profiles and in the availability of renewable resources. Cost estimates developed by the International Energy Agency and the Nuclear Energy Agency for 2020 are used as input parameters for the analysis. Uncertainty in cost estimates is addressed by a comprehensive sensitivity analysis on future cost reductions for renewables and storage systems, as well as future cost increases for nuclear technologies. Additionally, to account in part for the likelihood of future changes in the pool of available technological options, two new supply-side technologies currently under development are included in the analysis, as are new capabilities for managing demand-side resources. A novel long-term generation investment model, GenX, has been developed to determine the minimum cost generation mix subject to various emissions constraints and different technological pathways. GenX is a capacity expansion model with clustered unit commitment constraints whose main features include: 1) the ability to evaluate the impact of operating constraints with hourly resolution on investment decisions and on total generation cost; 2) the ability to account for the chronological variability of demand and renewable output, and correlations between the two; and 3) the ability to decide on power plant investments and operation at the individual plant level. Each technology is characterized by a particular set of operational and economic parameters. Additionally, GenX is capable of modeling new technological concepts {advanced nuclear (Generation IV) and heat storage{ which would support interactions between electricity and heat markets. The model is implemented in the Julia language and has been used to simulate 560 different decarbonization/technology scenarios. Key results include: (1) the importance for minimizing the cost of decarbonization of having a diversity of technological options with a range of technical and economic attributes; more specifically, (2) the central importance of having dispatchable low-carbon resources, such as nuclear power or carbon capture and sequestration systems. For example, when dispatchable low-carbon technologies are not available, the cost of achieving deep decarbonization goals is shown to triple in power systems such as New England's with lower renewables potential, and to double even in a Texas-like system with higher renewables potential; and (3) the great potential of new technological concepts for simultaneously reducing CO2 emissions and decreasing the cost of electricity considerably. An important policy implication of this work is the need to shift from technology-specific support mechanisms for decarbonization (e.g. renewable portfolio standards) to general low-carbon support mechanisms that will allow for competition between and adaptation of low-carbon technologies. The methodology developed in this research supports two important new capabilities for policy makers: (1) the ability to calculate the extra cost associated with dispensing with specific technological options {such as nuclear power{ will enable improved cost-benefit analysis of policies directed towards specific technologies; (2) the ability to model the potential impact of new technological concepts on the cost of decarbonization will help to optimize the allocation of R&D resources with respect to their potential contribution to reducing CO2 abatement costs.
by Nestor A. Sepulveda.
S.M.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
39
Kearns, Jordan Taylor. "Effects of intermittent generation on the economics and operation of prospective baseload power plants." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/115006.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program, 2017.Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering, 2017.
This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections.
Cataloged from student-submitted PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 149-157).
The electricity system is transitioning from a system comprised primarily of dispatchable generators to a system increasingly reliant on wind and solar power-intermittent sources of electricity with output dependent on meteorological conditions, adding both variability and uncertainty to the system. Dispatchable generators with a high ratio of fixed to variable costs have historically relied on operating at maximum output as often as possible to spread these fixed costs over as much electricity generation as possible. Higher penetrations of intermittent capacity create market conditions that lead to lower capacity factors for these generators, presenting an economic challenge. Increasing penetrations of intermittent capacity, however, also leads to more volatile electricity prices, with highest prices in hours that renewable sources are unavailable. The ability of dispatchable generators to provide energy during these high priced hours may counteract the loss of revenue from reduced operating hours. Given the disparate revenues received in this volatile market, the relative competitiveness of generation technologies cannot be informed by their cost alone; the value of generators based on their production profiles must also be considered. Consequently, comparisons of generator competitiveness based on traditional metrics such as the levelized cost of electricity are misleading, and power system models able to convey the relative value of generators should instead be used to compare generator competitiveness. The purpose of this thesis is to assess the relative competitiveness of generation technologies in an efficient market under various penetrations of intermittent power. This work is specifically concerned with the relative competitiveness of power plants equipped with carbon capture and storage ( CCS) technology, nuclear power plants, and renewable generation capacity. In order to assess relative competitiveness, this work presents an extensive literature review of the costs and technical flexibility of generators, with particular attention to CCS-equipped and nuclear capacity. These costs and flexibility parameters are integrated into a unit commitment model. The unit commitment model for co-optimized reserves and energy (UCCORE), developed as part of this thesis, is a mixed integer linear programming model with a focus on representing hourly price volatility and the intertemporal operational constraints of thermal generators. The model is parameterized to represent the ERCOT power system and is used to solve for generator dispatch and marginal prices at hourly intervals over characteristic weeks. Data from modeled characteristic weeks is interpolated to estimate generator profits over a year to allow for a comparison of generator competitiveness informed by both costs and revenues. Scenario analysis conducted using the UCCORE model shows that the difference in energy prices captured by generators becomes an important driver of relative competitiveness at modest penetrations of intermittent power. Increasing the ratio of intermittent to dispatchable capacity causes intermittent generators to depress market prices during the hours they are available due to their coordinated output. Prices, however, rise in hours when intermittent capacity is unavailable because of scarcity of available capacity. This work develops the weighted value factor to compare the revenues of intermittent and dispatchable generation capacity. The weighted value factor is the market value of a generators production profile relative to an ideal generator dispatched at full capacity for all hours. The results show that as the proportion of intermittent capacity increases, the relative value of dispatchable generators also increases and at an increasing rate. At high penetrations of intermittent capacity, the power system experiences increasing risk of generation shortages leading to exceptionally high prices. In these systems, dispatchable generators able to capture peak pricing become most profitable. At lower penetrations of intermittent capacity, peak pricing remains influential, but is less extreme and the relative importance of low capital and fixed costs increases. The sensitivity of generator profitability to assumed value of lost load, oil and gas price, and carbon price is also assessed. The key implication of these results is that efficient price signals may lead to opportunities for investment in dispatchable generators as the proportion of intermittent capacity on a power system increases. Markets and models that do not capture the full hourly volatility of efficient energy prices, however, are missing critical signals. The importance of these signals on relative competitiveness increases with the penetration of intermittent power. Without accounting for price volatility, markets and models will undervalue dispatchable capacity and overvalue intermittent capacity.
by Jordan Taylor Kearns.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M.
40
Biasca, James E. "Oriented fiber refining application of individual modes of mechanical action to single pulp fibers /." Diss., Available online, Georgia Institute of Technology, 1989:, 1989. http://etd.gatech.edu/theses/available/ipstetd-446/biasca%5fje.pdf.
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41
Boyer, Sebastien (Sebastien Arcario). "Transfer learning for predictive models in MOOCs." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/104832.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program, 2016.Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2016.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 85-87).
Predictive models are crucial in enabling the personalization of student experiences in Massive Open Online Courses. For successful real-time interventions, these models must be transferable - that is, they must perform well on a new course from a different discipline, a different context, or even a different MOOC platform. In this thesis, we first investigate whether predictive models "transfer" well to new courses. We then create a framework to evaluate the "transferability" of predictive models. We present methods for overcoming the biases introduced by specific courses into the models by leveraging a multi-course ensemble of models. Using 5 courses from edX, we show a predictive model that, when tested on a new course, achieved up to a 6% increase in AUCROC across 90 different prediction problems. We then tested this model on 10 courses from Coursera (a different platform) and demonstrate that this model achieves an AUCROC of 0.8 across these courses for the problem of predicting dropout one week in advance. Thus, the model "transfers" very well.
by Sebastien Boyer.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M.
42
Yee, Alexander Wing Lake. "The impact of distributed energy resources (DERs) in integrated gas-electricity energy systems." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/115030.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program, 2017.Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2017.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 99-102).
Our gas and power energy systems are interconnected, which makes the decision to provide energy a non-trivial one for consumers and the system as a whole. The focus of this thesis is on the long-term planning of integrated electricity and natural gas infrastructures at the distribution (low voltage) level. This research explores the question on how pricing relates to the coupling of a gas-electricity system given an expected greater consumer participation at the residential level. I developed a long-term planning tool that is able to consider the interaction between the integrated natural gas-electric energy system. In the first component of the tool, I formulated a mixed integer linear program, Z-DRE, as a proxy for the rational consumer. Given commodity prices, investment costs and demand profiles, Z-DRE would decide which distributed energy resource (DER) equipment or conventional equipment to invest in as well as when to run these equipment to meet its demand. The results of this program would determine what demand profile (or supply profile) the electrical and natural gas grids would need to meet. A model electrical grid and a model natural gas grid were simulated with these demands in order to determine if any reinforcement was needed. If reinforcements were needed, a heuristic was used to determine where the reinforcement should be placed in the grid and iteratively continued this process until a 99% reliability was achieved. I considered two pricing incentives to determine what effect pricing could have on the individual consumer and the spillover effects to the overall grid. The two pricing strategies was (1) a static feed-in-tariff combined with a static residential consumption tariff and (2) a dynamic feed-in-tariff and a dynamic residential consumption rate, both pegged to the market rate of electricity. In the context of New England, I found that adoption of Combined Heat and Power (CHP) units was unlikely to occur without generous electricity feed-in-tariffs which would require a wealth transfer. As a result, it is anticipated that the integrated gas-electric network to be only loosely coupled for New England at the distribution level. I also considered what effect using prices that tracked the wholesale rate of electricity might have on CHP adoption and came to the similar conclusion that the electricity prices in New England are too low to spur CHP investment. I note that over-adoption of CHP units from extremely high feed-in-tariffs (in the cases of both the static feed-in-tariff and the dynamic feed-in-tariffs) caused an extraordinary need for electricity grid reinforcement in order to accommodate the enormous backward power flow back into the high voltage grid. However, the grid also needed moderate reinforcements when there was a low or no feed-in-tariff. I found the reinforcement cost minimum (and total cost minimum) can be found with a tariff that encourages only a portion of the population to purchase CHPs since the locally generated power could now be consumed within the distribution network. This lowered the need for capacity between the primary feeders of the high voltage network and the secondary distribution network.
by Alexander Wing Lake Yee.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M.
43
Nami, Mahsa. "Modelling the prospects and impacts of methanol use in transportation in China at computable general equilibrium." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/111319.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program, 2017.Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2017.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 128-134).
The use of methanol as a transportation fuel is not a new phenomenon. However, factors such as price fluctuations, resistance to widespread introduction by special interest groups, and governmental policies have stood in the way of the widespread use of methanol in covering transportation demand. In this thesis, a computable general equilibrium energy-economy model of the world, the Economic Projection and Policy Analysis (EPPA) model, is used to evaluate the potential for methanol vehicle penetration in the private passenger vehicle market in China depending on the cost competitiveness of the technology combination compared to electric and conventional vehicles, the relative prices of methanol and gasoline, and the application of various policies. The use of methanol in light duty passenger vehicles has risen heavily in China due to the abundance of coal in the country and the ability to use it as the feedstock for methanol production in China, thereby reducing China's reliance on foreign oil imports. Additionally, the lower price of methanol fuel compared to gasoline has led it to be an attractive fuel choice from the customer perspective due its favorable economics, with a growing number of individuals converting their conventional vehicles to be able to run on methanol. Since China is not a country abundant with natural gas, the two leading options for obtaining methanol are obtaining it through the use of coal as the feedstock locally or importing it from other countries which are producing methanol using natural gas. Methanol fuel production pathways and the vehicle technology are introduced in EPPA as a substitute for conventional Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) vehicles. Engineering cost estimates as well as existing transportation expenditure trends in China are used for obtaining the input shares and elasticities of substitution as inputs to the model. Simulations are then run until 2050 to understand the rate at which the methanol vehicle technology penetrates the market when competing with electric vehicles and conventional vehicles in the base case scenario. Accordingly, changes in greenhouse gas emissions and particulate emissions are calculated. On the policy side, various sets of policies are tested: instituting a gasoline tax, banning methanol imports for use in passenger private vehicles, applying various combinations of vehicle subsidies for methanol and electric vehicles, and instituting a carbon cap at a national level. Various conclusions emerge from this thesis. First, the penetration of methanol and electric vehicles are slow, achieving market shares of 4% and 1%, respectively. Despite the lower methanol cost compared to gasoline, the penetration of the technology is slowed down by the higher cost of methanol vehicles compared to conventional vehicles as well as the delays associated with introducing new fuels, new vehicles, and new refueling infrastructure, none of which are completely compatible with the incumbent technology. This shift also results in an increase in greenhouse gas emissions compared to the business as usual scenario but a decrease in emissions of nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, and hydrocarbons. Instituting a gasoline tax has a greater impact than existing Chinese vehicle subsidy policies on methanol and electric vehicle penetration. However, the gasoline tax still results in modest methanol and electric vehicle penetration, achieving a market share of 6% each by 2050. Setting a carbon cap under an accelerated effort scenario impacts the vehicle trends most dramatically, completely driving down the use of methanol vehicles and allowing electric vehicles to achieve an 11.47% market share. Finally, these results are used to present various policy recommendations depending on China's existing provincial policy structures, its national objectives, and future goals.
by Mahsa Nami.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M.
44
Testart, Pacheco Cecilia Andrea. "Understanding the institutional landscape of cyber security." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/104820.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2016.Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program, 2016.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 145-153).
The decentralized architecture of the Internet, which has been key to its development and worldwide deployment, is making it challenging to secure Internet user experience. Many organizations claim to be playing a role in improving Internet security. If anything, the space of security-related institutions seems on first inspection to be over-populated, yet poor security persists. This work proposes a framework to understand the role different institutions play in cyber security. The analysis gives insights into the broad institutional ecosystem of public, private and international actors, and the varied nature of these institutions, their interests, incentives, and contributions to cyber security from hardware, software, protocols, standards and regulation. Based on natural language clustering algorithms, this framework classifies institutions along five dimensions: the aspect of cyber security the institution covers (e.g. network security, cybercrime), the industry and activity sector of the institution (e.g. telecommunications, software and service providers), whether it is part of a specific jurisdiction (e.g. US, Europe), specific institution's characteristics such as its working mode (e.g. forum, information sharing) or primary focus (e.g. economic development, consumer trust), and the governance type (for-profit, not-for-profit, government or international organization). We developed a dataset of approximately 120 institutions that claim a role with respect to cyber security, and using the framework, we identify areas of competing and overlapping institutional interest, relevant areas out of scope of current institutions and dysfunctionalities that hinder overall security improvement.
by Cecilia Andrea Testart Pacheco.
S.M.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
45
Owho-Ovuakporie, Kesiena. "Using "teacher moments" as an online practice space for parent-teacher conference simulation in preservice teacher education." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/111318.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program, 2017.Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2017.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 71-75).
The aim of this thesis is to investigate and improve the suitability of Teacher Moments as an online practice space for parent-teacher conference simulation in preservice teacher education. We evaluate Teacher Moments by means of a playtest conducted with students of a preservice education class for undergraduates in the Scheller Teacher Education Program (STEP) at MIT. We set out to answer 3 research questions. 1) How do users perceive the authenticity of parent-teacher conference simulations in Teacher Moments? 2) How do students' reflections relate to the learning objectives after completing a parent-teacher conference simulation in Teacher Moments? 3) How do new users perceive the ease of use of Teacher Moments interface? Most of the preservice teachers in our study felt the simulation experience was authentic and the user interface was easy to use. The main themes we identified in the students' reflections and class debrief were aligned with the simulation learning objectives.
by Kesiena Owho-Ovuakporie.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M.
46
Adebayo, Julius A. "FairML : ToolBox for diagnosing bias in predictive modeling." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/108212.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program, 2016.Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2016.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 94-99).
Predictive models are increasingly deployed for the purpose of determining access to services such as credit, insurance, and employment. Despite societal gains in efficiency and productivity through deployment of these models, potential systemic flaws have not been fully addressed, particularly the potential for unintentional discrimination. This discrimination could be on the basis of race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, or other characteristics. This thesis addresses the question: how can an analyst determine the relative significance of the inputs to a black-box predictive model in order to assess the model's fairness (or discriminatory extent)? We present FairML, an end-to- end toolbox for auditing predictive models by quantifying the relative significance of the model's inputs. FairML leverages model compression and four input ranking algorithms to quantify a model's relative predictive dependence on its inputs. The relative significance of the inputs to a predictive model can then be used to assess the fairness (or discriminatory extent) of such a model. With FairML, analysts can more easily audit cumbersome predictive models that are difficult to interpret.
by Julius A. Adebayo.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M.
47
Specter, Michael Alan. "The economics of cryptographic trust : understanding certificate authorities." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/104028.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis: S.M. in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, Technology and Policy Program, 2016.Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2016.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 71-75).
Certificate Authorities (CAs) play a crucial role in HTTPS, the mechanism that secures all of the web's most important communication; if it has a log-in page, it must use HTTPS. However, recent history is littered with instances of CAs unabashedly undermining the trust model of the web in favor of economic gain, causing catastrophic harm to users in the process. The purpose of this thesis is to understand how well user, domain owner, and browser vendor controls function in order to evaluate methods of realigning CA incentives. Using a compendium of past incidents of CA failure as a series of natural experiments, along with a large dataset of all publicly available certificate collections, we find that it is possible to causally link a very slight increase in domain owners leaving a CA when a CA acts inappropriately. We further find that the technical architecture of the CA system leaves users without effective control over which CAs they trust, and that browsers face certain difficulty in distrusting larger CAs. The end result is a system where large CAs can unilaterally undermine the trust model of the web without clear repercussion.
by Michael Alan Specter.
S.M. in Technology and Policy
S.M.
48
Xu, Hanjiang. "Measurement of fiber suspension flow and forming jet velocity profile by pulsed ultrasonic doppler velocimetry." Diss., Available online, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2005, 2003. http://etd.gatech.edu/theses/available/ipstetd-1071/.
Full text
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Burns, James Robert. "An investigation of Z-direction density profile development during wet pressing." Diss., Available online, Georgia Institute of Technology, 1992:, 1992. http://etd.gatech.edu/theses/available/ipstetd-442/burns%5Fjr.pdf.
Full text
50
Cheng, Yeh Yen, and 陳玉燕. "Graduate Institute of Animal Science National Pingtung University of Science and Technology." Thesis, 2005. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/57378391867885498159.
Full textAbstract:
碩士國立屏東科技大學
畜產系
93
Test 1. Nilegrass (Acroceras macrum) is a perennial forage grass. There were five different germplasms of nilegrass such as AC14, AC26, AC29, AC30 and AC32 involved in the experiment and Nilegrass Taishi No.1 (AC15) was used as check variety. The aim was to explore the agronomic traits, dry matter weight and forage quality of above nilegrass lines. It was tested in Naipu, Pingtung from 2001 to 2003 by cutting every eight weeks. The result showed that dry matter weight (DMW) was the highest with 7.8 Mt/ha/cut in summer and lowest with 3.6 Mt/ha/cut in winter. And with 4.7 Mt/ha/cut and 5.5 Mt/ha/cut in spring and fall were not different（P>0.05）. It showed that crude protein (CP) was the highest with 11.2 % in winter, next CP with 10% and 9.6 % in spring and summer, respectively and the lowest with 8.9 % in fall. Acid detergent fiber (ADF) was the largest with 38 % in fall and the smallest with 32.4 % in winter. It was not different of ADF between fall and summer（P>0.05）. The contents of neutral detergent fiber (NDF) were the highest with 66.4 % in fall and the orders of the other seasons similar with those in ADF. The toppest leaf collar height and plant height were 68 and 80 cm in summer and 34 and 48 cm in winter, respectively. It was not different of the leaf number of nilegrass among four seasons. Brown leaf rate was the highest with 36.1 % in fall and the lowest with 21.0 % in winter. It can be shown that the brown leaf rate lower the forage quality better. The dry matter rates average about 22 % were not different among four seasons too（P>0.05）. Lines AC15 and AC30 both had the highest DMW with 6.5 Mt/ha/cut. Lines AC14 was 5.7 Mt/ha/cut and the others were lower. It indicated that AC30 and AC32 had the highest contents both with 10.2 % and the other lines were lower but not different（P>0.05）. The content of ADF of AC14 was 34.6 % the lowest and those of the other lines were higher but not different each other（P>0.05）. The contents of NDF of AC30 and AC14 were 63.4 % and 63 % the lowest among 6 lines. AC15 had the largest toppest leaf collar height (TLH) and plant height (PH) with 56 cm and 71 cm respectively. In contrast, AC14 had the lowest TLH and PH wit 43 cm and 59 cm respectively. The line of AC32 had the highest brown leaf rate with 30.3% and AC14 had the lowest with 22 %. However, the brown leaf rates of AC30 and AC15 with 26.7 % and 26.4 % were moderate among six lines. From above mentioned results, it indicated that AC30 could be a better line with higher forage yield, higher crude protein, moderate acid and neutral detergent fibers and relative feeding value. AC30 line also can provide the breeders as the breeding materials and be released as an elite variety for farmer to grow to feed the dairy cows or goats. Test 2. Nilegrass (Acroceras macrum Stapf ) is a C3 type plant with perennial habit. It can be made hay and silage as forage for livestock. The objectives of this thesis were to study the affects on agronomic traits, dry matter weight, (DMW), crude protein (CP), acid (ADF) and neutral (NDF) detergent fibers and relative feeding value (RFV) of Nilegrass Taishi No.1 under four different seasons and five cuts. The treatments of five cuts of nilegrass were growing at 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 weeks. The result showed it was highly significantly different among four seasons and five cuts on the agronomic traits including plant height, the toppest and brown leaf collar heights, green and brown leaf numbers, DMW, CP, ADF. NDF and RFV which were also significantly affected by the interactions of seasons × cuts. The whole year’s data were combined to compute by statistic. The result showed that Nilegrass Taishi No. 1 was the highest with 6.1 Mt/ha/cut in summer, DMW of and next 4.8 Mt/ha/cut in Fall, and next 4.1 Mt/ha/cut in spring, It was the lowest with 2.4 Mt/ha/cut in winter. However it had the lowest crude protein 9.0 % in summer and the highest crude protein 15.7 % in winter. ADF and NDF were the highest with 36.8 % and 65.3 % in summer and the lowest with 28.7 % and 52.6 % in winter. RFV was the lowest with 109 in summer and the lowest with 150 in winter. From above-mentioned results. It indicated that Nilegrass Taishi No.1 had the highest DMW but lower forage quality in summer and oppositely in winter. Further, it showed that DMW was the highest with 7 Mt/ha/cut and CP 7.4 % was the lowest when harvest at 12 weeks after cutting. but DMW 4.4 Mt/ha/cut, CP 9.7 % and RFV 116 at 8 weeks after cutting. Obviously, the forage production and forage quality were highly significant different among different cutting stages. The DMW, ADF, NDF increased with growth weeks advanced. The CP and RFV decreased as the cutting was delayed. The highly significantly positive correlations were observed between toppest leaf collar height (TLH), plant height (PH), brown leaf collar height (BLH), DMW, ADF and NDF. However, CP was highly significantly negative correlated with each above-mentioned traits. Besides, stepwise multiple regression analysis was conducted by using DMW, CP, ADF, NDF and RFV as dependent variables. A quantitative measurement of the order of importance of the variables entering the equations was shown by increasing in R2 for each independent variable. It indicated that PH entered the equation first when DMW and CP were used as dependent variables. The contributions of TLH to ADF, NDF and RFV were all the greatest in three equations. The correlation coefficient was 0.97 highly significantly positive between TLH and PH. The error of mean square of TLH was 63.48 lower than that of PH. It indicated that TLH had higher stability. Therefore, it was suggested that toppest leaf collar height could be used as an index trait to evaluate the forage production and quality of Nilegrass Taishi No.1. According to different seasons, Nilegrass Taish No.1 produced DMW 6.5 Mt/ha/cut with CP 9.4 % and RFV 103 when TLH reached 68 cm about growing 10 weeks in spring. And it produced DMW 5.3 Mt/ha/cut with CP 8.5 % and RFV 113 when TLH reached 63cm about growing 6 week in summer, while it produced DMW 6.1 Mt/ha/cut with CP 8.5 % and RFV 113 when TLH reached 61 cm about growing 8 weeks in fall. However, when it cut at 12 week in winter. Taishi No.1 had toppest leaf collar height only 44 cm, DMW 5 Mt/ha/cut, CP 10 %, ADF, NDF, and RFV 143 which still were good quality. Therefore, it maybe cut later and will get more production and still get good quality in winter.