Reinforcement learning covers a broad category of control problems in which the learning agent interacts with the environment in order to learn to maximize the collected utility. Such exploratory interaction is often costly, encouraging sample-efficient algorithms to be used in…

A case study of collaborative storyboarding in an animation studio grounded this investigation of visual discourse---discourse about and with visual displays. The focus was on a problem occurring during a 40-minute task between the head storyboard artist and his junior…

This study examines the links between architecture and literature through the work of English author/mathematician/geometrician Lewis Carroll/Charles L. Dodgson. The premise is that throughout Carroll's work, questions concerning the position of the body in relation to its surroundings---the possibility for…

The core of this research project revolves around the development of knowledge and expertise in the field of sequence homology identification techniques, as applied towards the discovery of Bcl2 family members. The use of such methods resulted in the uncovering…

Referees have a job to ensure a safe and fair playing environment. The purpose of this study was to quantify on-ice intensities (heart rate) and on-ice movements (forward or backwards skating or stationary) of referees during ice hockey games. 15…

Reinforcement Learning is a class of methods for solving sequential decision problems when the model of the environment is not known. In this framework, the agent must explore the environment to gather more information about the model and the utility…

This thesis investigated the apparent effectiveness of environmental education essential elements in school field trip programming. First, the elements essential to environmental education field trips were identified from the literature. Second, these elements were incorporated into a questionnaire that was…

Although the study of Thule harpoon heads has produced important seriations, datings and technological reflections during the last century, a lack of fundamental knowledge about these weapons is still occurring. An attempt is made to document the different contexts surrounding…

The result of formal and thematic research undertaken by the author in the1880s, Maupassant's Le Horla (1887), owing to its originality, became a fantastic literature classic. Constituted from the recycling of several passages of independent texts among which La Lettre…

A standard element of many news stories that mention Islam is the 'expert.' An expert contributes what is presented as objective knowledge about Islam to a news story. Through ostensibly objective statements, an expert plays a significant role in the…