Een callcenter is een afdeling of organisatie die is gespecialiseerd in het afhandelen van telefoonverkeer. Klanten, die bellen naar een callcenter, worden geholpen als er een werknemer beschikbaar...Show moreEen callcenter is een afdeling of organisatie die is gespecialiseerd in het afhandelen van telefoonverkeer. Klanten, die bellen naar een callcenter, worden geholpen als er een werknemer beschikbaar is, anders komen ze in een wachtrij. Er is geen limiet voor de lengte van de wachtrij. De klanten komen aan volgens een Poisson proces met parameter λ. De gespreksduur met een werknemer is exponentieel verdeeld met parameter µ en er zijn s werknemers die de gesprekken voeren. Ten slotte is het ongeduld van de klanten exponentieel verdeeld met parameter γ. Met ongeduld wordt bedoeld de tijd die klanten bereid zijn te wachten voordat ze geholpen worden. Er wordt aangenomen dat klanten niet ophangen tijdens een gesprek met een werknemer. In deze scriptie wordt verder aangenomen dat een callcenter-manager alleen invloed uit kan oefenen op het aantal werknemers s. In veel callcenters wordt momenteel voor het bepalen van het aantal werknemers gezocht naar het aantal werknemers dat nodig is om meer dan tachtig procent van de klanten binnen twintig seconden te helpen. Het is niet eenvoudig te zeggen wat de negatieve gevolgen zijn voor het callcenter door het later behandelen van de overgebleven twintig procent. Ook wordt er in dit systeem geen rekening gehouden met het feit dat klanten voor het ene callcenter langer willen wachten dan voor een ander callcenter. Deze twee nadelen hebben geleid tot het zoeken naar een nieuw systeem. Het nieuwe systeem waar hier naar wordt gekeken, zoekt het aantal werknemers dat nodig is om ervoor te zorgen dat minder dan ´e´en procent van de klanten ongeduldig wegloopt. Hierdoor weet je precies wat het gevolg is van het systeem en je houdt rekening met het verschil tussen callcenters. Er zal in deze scriptie worden uitgelegd hoeveel werknemers een callcenter-manager minimaal in dienst moet nemen om ervoor te zorgen dat minder dan ´e´en procent van de klanten ongeduldig wegloopt. Hierbij wordt eerst gekeken naar het stationaire geval. Vervolgens worden de resultaten van het stationaire geval gebruikt in simulaties om te testen of ze op korte termijn ook bruikbaar zijn.Show less
Dit onderzoek werd geleid door twee hoofdvragen, namelijk: ‘hoe kan binnen het Therapeuticum van Zonnehuizen een cliënttevredenheidsonderzoek uitgevoerd worden?’ en ‘wat is de cliënttevredenheid...Show moreDit onderzoek werd geleid door twee hoofdvragen, namelijk: ‘hoe kan binnen het Therapeuticum van Zonnehuizen een cliënttevredenheidsonderzoek uitgevoerd worden?’ en ‘wat is de cliënttevredenheid binnen het Therapeuticum over de relatie met de therapeut?’ Een uniek en bruikbaar instrument werd ontwikkeld. De vragenlijst omvatte drie domeinen van cliënttevredenheid, namelijk ‘de relatie met de therapeut’, ‘de organisatie en omgeving van de therapie’ en ‘het effect van de therapie’. De interne consistentie van de vragenlijst bleek hoog. De onderzoeksgroep bestond uit 46 cliënten van 9 tot 20 jaar oud met een lichte verstandelijke beperking en bijkomende psychiatrische problematiek, die in april 2011 één van de therapieën binnen Zonnehuizen volgden. Cliënten van het Therapeuticum waren tevreden over de therapieën in het algemeen en waren bijzonder tevreden over hun relatie met de therapeut. Meisjes waren meer tevreden over de algehele therapie dan jongens, maar in tevredenheid over de relatie met hun therapeut bleek geen verschil tussen jongens en meisjes. Er bestonden geen relaties tussen de cliëntkarakteristieken ‘leeftijd’, ‘intelligentie’, ‘gedragsproblemen’, ‘aantal weken therapie’ en de ‘algehele cliënttevredenheid’ en de ‘tevredenheid over de relatie met de therapeut’. De ‘tevredenheid over de relatie met de therapeut’ bleek een grote voorspeller van ‘de tevredenheid over het effect van de therapie’. De thema’s ‘ het aardig vinden van de therapeut’, ‘het op je gemak voelen in de groep en bij de therapeut’ en ‘het begrijpen van de therapeut’ werden door cliënten genoemd als aanvullende punten. Dit onderzoek voorzag in een instrument om jaarlijks de cliënttevredenheid in het Therapeuticum in kaart te brengen en het gaf inzicht in het belang van een kwalitatief goede relatie tussen therapeut en cliënt. De individuele, unieke cliënt van Zonnehuizen is erbij gebaat dat de therapeuten zich blijven inzetten de goede relatie die er is te behouden en wellicht zelfs nog verder te optimaliseren.Show less
This thesis is about constructing an archaeological predictive model for Bonaire, Dutch Caribbean. The idea for this research came out of the political change in the former Netherlands Antilles. On...Show moreThis thesis is about constructing an archaeological predictive model for Bonaire, Dutch Caribbean. The idea for this research came out of the political change in the former Netherlands Antilles. On 10-10-2010 the Netherlands Antilles were dismantled as an autonomous part of the Kingdom of The Netherlands and have formed new political entities. Through this change Bonaire became an overseas municipality of The Netherlands. With this change the bureaucratic system of Bonaire became part of the Dutch bureaucratic system. Bonaire has signed the Valletta Treaty in the meanwhile, which means that the cultural heritage management system has to be transformed into a completely new system. The archaeological predictive models which are described in this thesis can function as useful tools for the new cultural heritage management system on Bonaire. However, this is the first time that a predictive model has been made for Bonaire. These first phase models can be seen as the first steps in the development of predictive modeling on Bonaire. All aspects related to the construction of a predictive model were carefully considered.Show less
An (inhomogeneous) abstract Cauchy problem is a type of differential equation of Banach space valued functions. The only derivate in a Cauchy problem is du dt , where u is the sought-after solution...Show moreAn (inhomogeneous) abstract Cauchy problem is a type of differential equation of Banach space valued functions. The only derivate in a Cauchy problem is du dt , where u is the sought-after solution. However, because we consider such a general setting, we could for example also formulate some systems of multiple higher order differential equations as a Cauchy problem. In section 3 we consider certain stochastic integral equations. The connection with the (inhomogeneous) abstract Cauchy problem is, that the latter is (almost) a special case of the stochastic integral equations that we study. The idea is that the stochastic element adds the resulting effect of random ’white noise’. This can be useful in all sorts of applications, since it can model the effects of small changes one could not predict. We first consider a stochastic integral equation in a separable Hilbert space, for which an existence and uniqueness proof is known (see [GA]). We would like to generalise this by allowing values in an arbitrary Banach space. This is done in section 3.3. We will also prove a boundedness result there. We finish in section 3.4 with some specific examples of stochastic integral equations. I would like to thank my thesis supervisor Onno van Gaans for the effort he has put into guiding me in the right direction. Thanks to his regular help I have always had the sense of really getting somewhere.Show less
The aim of this thesis was to investigate the „otherness‟ of Archaic and (Early) Classical Sparta, and the existence of a shift between both periods. Sparta has always been considered to be...Show moreThe aim of this thesis was to investigate the „otherness‟ of Archaic and (Early) Classical Sparta, and the existence of a shift between both periods. Sparta has always been considered to be different. To enquire whether it really was different or not, I investigated the history of the research on Sparta and Laconia (chapter 1), the history of Sparta and Laconia in the broader perspective of Greek developments (chapter 2), the possibility of Sparta being a polis and its connections with other Greek centres (chapter 3), the supposed Spartan conquest of (first) the whole of Laconia, and further Messenia and reducing its people to Perioeci and Helots (chapter 4) and finally the Spartan mirage and the problem of the multiple villages Sparta existed of (chapter 5). To reach this goal, I favoured the „integrated approach‟: I used all possible sources, both textual and archaeological. The archaeological sources are, unfortunately not really abundant. In Sparta mainly rescue excavations have been carried out apart from the excavation of the sanctuary of Artemis Orthia and the Roman theatre, and only one thorough surface survey was carried out – just outside Sparta, to the east of the ancient city. Messenia has had one extensive and one intensive survey, but they are mainly limited to the western part of the province. Textual sources are more numerous, but they were mostly written by outsiders who looked at Sparta from an Athenocentric or otherwise biased viewpoint. They together created the mirage that Sparta was conservative, backwards, warlike, „other‟. Therefore we have to be careful to uncritically accept their statements.Show less
This Bachelor thesis is about the Modular Response Analysis, a method to reconstruct a biochemal network from experimental data. It mathematically describes two methods, one based on the results...Show moreThis Bachelor thesis is about the Modular Response Analysis, a method to reconstruct a biochemal network from experimental data. It mathematically describes two methods, one based on the results from the steady state of a chemical network, and one based on the results of different time series in a chemical network. For these methods, also the Singular Value Decomposition is described. This decomposition is helpful in solving overdetermined systems of equations, which is a common situation when applying these methods in an experimental environment.Show less
The comparative study of colonial phenomenas brings scholars from specific fields together in an attempt to analyse the processes at work in a local context and to make significant evaluations...Show moreThe comparative study of colonial phenomenas brings scholars from specific fields together in an attempt to analyse the processes at work in a local context and to make significant evaluations about local responses to colonial interactions, cultural assimilation, issues of power and trade, as well as the impact of the colonial experience on the hypothetical centre from which the “colonial appendix” stems. The comparative study of the Greek and Viking colonial movements allows for the discovery of many common aspects; archaeologists can compare the two phenomenas and to answer specific questions about how these came to be. In this paper, I have analysed the evidence for the Greek settlement of the Southern Ukrainian coast in the Archaic and Classical periods, specifically the sites of Olbia and Berezan, and the Viking expansion into present-day Russia and Ukraine. By bringing together the historical tradition of both, as well as the most recent archaeological research in this area, I have discovered that the comparative study of these two processes allows us to understand colonial settings in a clearer fashion, especially if the geographical setting is shared and the politico-economic situations bear several resemblances. This is the case for the Milesian colonies and the Viking hillforts and trade-posts along the Russian and Ukrainian rivers.Show less
In deze bachelorscriptie wordt een karakterisering gegeven van reguliere operators op de eindige rijen, c00(I), naar een willekeurige gerichte geordende vectorruimte Y ; de ruimte Lr(c00(I), Y )...Show moreIn deze bachelorscriptie wordt een karakterisering gegeven van reguliere operators op de eindige rijen, c00(I), naar een willekeurige gerichte geordende vectorruimte Y ; de ruimte Lr(c00(I), Y ) blijkt orde-isomorf te zijn met de eenvoudige ruimte van functies van I naar Y, Y I . Als Y gericht en integraal gesloten is, dan blijkt Lr(c00(I), Y ) ⊂ Lr(c00, Y δ ) ordedicht en kan, als het supremum van twee operators bestaat, de formule van Riesz-Kantoroviˇc worden toegepast. Ook blijkt Lr(c00(I), Y ) archimedisch, riesz of dedekind compleet te zijn dan en slechts dan als Y respectievelijk archimedisch, riesz of dedekind compleet is. Via een analoog bewijs blijkt de ruimte van continue reguliere operators Lr(` 1 , X) van ` 1 naar een geordende banachruimte (X, || · ||) met een, nader te specificeren M-reguliere norm || · ||, orde-isomorf te zijn met ` ∞(X). Wat nieuw schijnt te zijn, is een bewijs dat ordedichtheid transitief is, i.e. als X ⊂ Y ordedicht en Y ⊂ Z ordedicht, dan is X ⊂ Z ordedicht. De scriptie begint met een beknopte inleiding in de theorie over (abstracte) geordende vectorruimten, met veel aandacht voor equivalente definities.Show less
Advanced master thesis | Political Science (Advanced Master)
open access
The so-called ‘Pacific Century’ has inspired a new wave of literature on the impact of the rise of China on existent trends of Geopolitics, Development and Global Governance. In no place has this...Show moreThe so-called ‘Pacific Century’ has inspired a new wave of literature on the impact of the rise of China on existent trends of Geopolitics, Development and Global Governance. In no place has this been more apparent than in sub-Saharan Africa, a region previously dominated by Western influence and norms. This thesis examines the implications of the pursuit of interests by the EU and China on Sovereignty since the turn of the century, focusing on the case of Nigeria. I argue that whereas the EU considers sovereignty to be ‘subjective’ to internal legitimacy, China adopts a ‘defensive’ stance on the norm. These positions are the result of each actor’s respective interests in resource accumulation, economic growth and diplomatic support. Using process tracing, I show how the pursuit of interests by the EU and China result in both direct and indirect impacts on Sovereignty in Nigeria. Whereas most scholars of International Relations focus on direct breeches of sovereignty in the case of international intervention in state affairs, I have developed the concept of indirect breeches of Sovereignty to incorporate cases in which internal state affairs are influenced, for example through the support of a particular regime type that does not necessarily hold internal legitimacy. This concept has important implications for the potential for collective bargaining between states and the ability to determine the amount of influence of external states in cases of Political-Economic diversity.Show less
A special kind of paper was used in Mexico since the first century BC. This kind of paper bares the name amate. It has developed, from the Mexica era (14th century) onwards, for many uses of which...Show moreA special kind of paper was used in Mexico since the first century BC. This kind of paper bares the name amate. It has developed, from the Mexica era (14th century) onwards, for many uses of which one relates to the fabrication of objects which play a role in ritual and social context. Until recently amate paper objects were used extensively until the 1960s and ‘70s as material expression in ritual context to address spirits of the cosmic world. After the 1960s it became a material for commercial purposes and is even substituted by industrial paper nowadays. However, the paper objects have adapted their meaning and religious significance to the change of the material. Among the Nahua, the providence of industrial paper to the people made the use of amate disappear. Nonetheless, industrial paper substituted amate paper and the use of paper objects in ritual context continued. The use of these paper objects have been of interest among various scholars through time. Furthermore, analogies between the use of amate paper object in the Nahua and Mexica society are interesting in order to detect similarities or differences in the role amate paper in ritual context of both societies. However, a new perspective can shed a different light on the analysis of the role of these amate paper objects in ritual context and their religious significance. Since ritual theory is used in general to explain rituals in indigenous cultures, a theoretical perspective on ritual in the Mesoamerican erea, where differences of worldview exists, could question the applicability of ritual theory to the rituals of the Nahua and the Mexica in which amate paper objects play a major role.Show less
The Vlaardingen (VL) period poses many interpretational challenges. That does not result from a poor array of data. On the contrary, good preservation conditions in many sites offer a wealth of...Show moreThe Vlaardingen (VL) period poses many interpretational challenges. That does not result from a poor array of data. On the contrary, good preservation conditions in many sites offer a wealth of information. That information, (artefacts, settlement configurations etc) can be subject to divergent interpretations though, and a clear picture of subsistence and habitation mode or inter-site relations is lacking. Even more obscure is the relationship between the VL group and other groups or ‘cultures’ of the upland area, in what is nowadays the Netherlands and other neighboring regions. Consequently every new excavation, such as the one of Hellevoetsluis-Ossenhoek (hereafter Hellevoetsluis), can provide invaluable information. Use-wear analysis has been shown to possess considerable potential in contributing to discussion on the aforementioned issues in the Dutch Delta (cf. Van Gijn 1998, 2008a). This thesis has a dual aim: the first is to analyze the position of the VL group within the process of ‘neolithization’. In that way a series of questions (habitation mode, subsistence strategies and cultural aspects) can take a more refined shape or addressed to some degree if possible. The second is to use the use-wear results from the site of Hellevoetsluis, in order to evaluate the results of the preceding discussion in a constructive manner. In addition, some new assumptions or questions might become part of the discussion in this second data-laden part. The structure of this thesis is as follows: a comprehensive discussion of the state and potential of use-wear studies will precede, in order to outline the main interpretative tool. After a brief description of the general characteristics of the VL group, a detailed discussion of the neolithization process in the Lower Rhine Basin. This discussion will subsequently be narrowed down on a presentation of the chipped stone industries of the VL group and the use-wear analyses conducted so far, so that a framework for the discussion of more refined questions can be set up. The presentation of the use wear results will occupy the final part, along with a discussion of the inferences in comparison to the theoretical problematic presented in the previous chapters.Show less
In January 2010 Marcell A. Marosvölgyi and Hans J. van Gorkom published an article named Cost and color of photosynthesis [1]. In this article an equation is derived that gives the optimal energy...Show moreIn January 2010 Marcell A. Marosvölgyi and Hans J. van Gorkom published an article named Cost and color of photosynthesis [1]. In this article an equation is derived that gives the optimal energy production through photosynthesis relative to the cost in maintaining the 'light harvesting' system. In this bachelor thesis we set out to understand the model assumptions and the equations which follow from the model derived in [1]. We also wanted to see if the method of 'map iteration' worked for finding solutions to the equations obtained. That is, firstly to investigate whether these iterations would converge to a solution for each starting point and secondly if the obtained solution is unique. Since this was not possible by hand MATLAB was used for simulation and iteration. Due to the limited amount of time available for this bachelor project we were not able to solve all the questions we came up with. A lot of time was used in understanding the main article because of its interdisciplinary character; covering biology, biochemistry, physics and of course mathematics. Unfortunately we could not exchange views with the authors to verify our ideas, clarify possible misunderstandings from our side or possible errors from their in the article. We hope that this will be done in near future, after the completion of this bachelor project and the writing of this thesis.Show less
Robustness is the ability of a network to continue performing well when it is subject to failures or attacks. In this thesis we survey robustness measures on simple, undirected and unweighted...Show moreRobustness is the ability of a network to continue performing well when it is subject to failures or attacks. In this thesis we survey robustness measures on simple, undirected and unweighted graphs, network failures being interpreted as vertex or edge deletions. We study graph measures based on connectivity, distance, betweenness and clustering. Besides these, reliability polynomials and measures based on the Laplacian eigenvalues are considered. In addition to surveying existing measures, we propose a new robustness measure, the normalized effective resistance, which is derived from the total effective resistance. Total effective resistance is — within the field of electric circuit analysis — defined as the sum of the pairwise effective resistances over all pairs of vertices. The strength of this measure lies in the fact that all (not necessarily disjoint) paths are considered, in other words, the more backup possibilities, the larger the normalized effective resistance and the larger the robustness. A chapter is dedicated to optimizing the normalized effective resistance, first for graphs with a fixed number of vertices and diameter, and second for the addition of an edge to a given graph. For all of the measures described above we evaluate the effectiveness as a measure of network robustness. The discussion and comparison of robustness measures is illustrated by a number of examples. Where possible we make extensions to weighted graphs and for all statements we provide either an elaboration of the original proof, or — when a rigorous proof is not available — we provide one ourselves.Show less
