Digital Commons Network^™

Some Properties Of Hereditarily Indecomposable Chainable Continua, Thomas John Kacvinsky

Masters Theses

"In 1920, B. Knaster and C. Kuratowski raised the question of whether each homogeneous plane continuum is a simple closed curve. In 1921, S. Mazurkiewicz raised the question of whether each subcontinuum of Euclidean n-space which is homeomorphic to each of its subcontinua is necessarily an arc. In that same year, B. Knaster and C. Kuratowski raised the question of whether there exists a nondegenerate hereditarily indecomposable continuum.

The third question was answered in the affirmative in 1922 by B. Knaster, when he constructed a nondegenerate hereditarily indecomposable subcontinuum of the plane.

The second question was answered in 1947 by …

Stemming Technique For Loading Angled Holes Charged With Anfo, Michael David Wilkins

Masters Theses

"Little research has been published on stemming blast holes, particularly what happens during the process. Previous work has concentrated on the performance of the inert material to find the best way to seal the hole and retain the explosive energy, at the exclusion of determining what happens during the loading and stemming process. Such studies were carried out by Konya and Worsey.

The major problem with stemming studies is that rock is an opaque material, and the actual mechanisms involved during the stemming process cannot be viewed. For this reason, tests were performed using clear tubes to simulate a blast …

Reinforcement Of Web Openings In Cold-Formed Steel Members, Erika Kirsten Nelson

Masters Theses

"To expand on previous research concerning perforated cold-formed steel web elements, an experimental investigation was conducted to examine the influence of reinforcement on the behavior and strength of single web flexural members with web openings. In current design practice, reduction factors are applied to the strength equations to account for the debilitating effect of web openings. This reduction in capacity may lead to the selection of a greater member thickness or depth than would be required of a solid web member. A more economical approach may be to reinforce the web in the proximity of the opening to increase the …

Asynchronous Distance Learning Technology: The Instructor's Perspective, Earl Alexander Evans

Masters Theses

"Advances in communications, computer technology and human-computer interfaces have enabled concurrent advances in Web-based education. A number of case studies concerning applications of Web-based education for both distance learning and on-campus programs have been published. Primarily, these studies have focused on individual assessments of the Web-based technologies. In addition, these published studies have generally highlighted the successes while little discussion about failed attempts has been presented in the literature.

In contrast, this thesis provides a broad-based assessment of applied Web technology for higher education. This research was conducted via a survey completed by twenty five university and college faculty from …

Damage Detection Of Bridge-Like Structures Using State Space Models, Javier Valentin Sivico

Masters Theses

"A global damage detection algorithm for bridge-like structures is proposed. This method provides the capability of determining the reduction in both stiffness and damping parameters of the structural elements. It is assumed the mass of the structural elements is not affected by the damages, which is a reasonable assumption for bridge-like structures. The proposed method uses the state space representation of the structural dynamics to make the diagnosis of the structural integrity. Given that the state space representation of any system is not unique, the damage detection procedure is developed for the physical coordinates of the state space representation. A …