Modelling the simultaneous effects of intellectual capital and knowledge management on the organisational performance of Finnish companies

The aim of this study was to contribute to the current knowledge-based theory by focusing on a research gap that exists in the empirically proven determination of the simultaneous but differentiable effects of intellectual capital (IC) assets and knowledge management (KM) practices on organisational performance (OP). The analysis was built on the past research and theoreticised interactions between the latent constructs specified using the survey-based items that were measured from a sample of Finnish companies for IC and KM and the dependent construct for OP determined using information available from financial databases. Two widely used and commonly recommended measures in the literature on management science, i.e. the return on total assets (ROA) and the return on equity (ROE), were calculated for OP. Thus the investigation of the relationship between IC and KM impacting OP in relation to the hypotheses founded was possible to conduct using objectively derived performance indicators. Using financial OP measures also strengthened the dynamic features of data needed in analysing simultaneous and causal dependences between the modelled constructs specified using structural path models. The estimates were obtained for the parameters of structural path models using a partial least squares-based regression estimator. Results showed that the path dependencies between IC and OP or KM and OP were always insignificant when analysed separate to any other interactions or indirect effects caused by simultaneous modelling and regardless of the OP measure used that was either ROA or ROE. The dependency between the constructs for KM and IC appeared to be very strong and was always significant when modelled simultaneously with other possible interactions between the constructs and using either ROA or ROE to define OP. This study, however, did not find statistically unambiguous evidence for proving the hypothesised causal mediation effects suggesting, for instance, that the effects of KM practices on OP are mediated by the IC assets. Due to the fact that some indication about the fluctuations of causal effects was assessed, it was concluded that further studies are needed for verifying the fundamental and likely hidden causal effects between the constructs of interest. Therefore, it was also recommended that complementary modelling and data processing measures be conducted for elucidating whether the mediation effects occur between IC, KM and OP, the verification of which requires further investigations of measured items and can be build on the findings of this study.

Use of airborne laser scanner data in demanding forest conditions

Most of the applications of airborne laser scanner data to forestry require that the point cloud be normalized, i.e., each point represents height from the ground instead of elevation. To normalize the point cloud, a digital terrain model (DTM), which is derived from the ground returns in the point cloud, is employed. Unfortunately, extracting accurate DTMs from airborne laser scanner data is a challenging task, especially in tropical forests where the canopy is normally very thick (partially closed), leading to a situation in which only a limited number of laser pulses reach the ground. Therefore, robust algorithms for extracting accurate DTMs in low-ground-point-densitysituations are needed in order to realize the full potential of airborne laser scanner data to forestry. The objective of this thesis is to develop algorithms for processing airborne laser scanner data in order to: (1) extract DTMs in demanding forest conditions (complex terrain and low number of ground points) for applications in forestry; (2) estimate canopy base height (CBH) for forest fire behavior modeling; and (3) assess the robustness of LiDAR-based high-resolution biomass estimation models against different field plot designs. Here, the aim is to find out if field plot data gathered by professional foresters can be combined with field plot data gathered by professionally trained community foresters and used in LiDAR-based high-resolution biomass estimation modeling without affecting prediction performance. The question of interest in this case is whether or not the local forest communities can achieve the level technical proficiency required for accurate forest monitoring. The algorithms for extracting DTMs from LiDAR point clouds presented in this thesis address the challenges of extracting DTMs in low-ground-point situations and in complex terrain while the algorithm for CBH estimation addresses the challenge of variations in the distribution of points in the LiDAR point cloud caused by things like variations in tree species and season of data acquisition. These algorithms are adaptive (with respect to point cloud characteristics) and exhibit a high degree of tolerance to variations in the density and distribution of points in the LiDAR point cloud. Results of comparison with existing DTM extraction algorithms showed that DTM extraction algorithms proposed in this thesis performed better with respect to accuracy of estimating tree heights from airborne laser scanner data. On the other hand, the proposed DTM extraction algorithms, being mostly based on trend surface interpolation, can not retain small artifacts in the terrain (e.g., bumps, small hills and depressions). Therefore, the DTMs generated by these algorithms are only suitable for forestry applications where the primary objective is to estimate tree heights from normalized airborne laser scanner data. On the other hand, the algorithm for estimating CBH proposed in this thesis is based on the idea of moving voxel in which gaps (openings in the canopy) which act as fuel breaks are located and their height is estimated. Test results showed a slight improvement in CBH estimation accuracy over existing CBH estimation methods which are based on height percentiles in the airborne laser scanner data. However, being based on the idea of moving voxel, this algorithm has one main advantage over existing CBH estimation methods in the context of forest fire modeling: it has great potential in providing information about vertical fuel continuity. This information can be used to create vertical fuel continuity maps which can provide more realistic information on the risk of crown fires compared to CBH.

Predictors of academic achievement and social competence in adolescence : facilitation, inhibition and general cognitive processing /

The relevance of attentional measures to cognitive and social adaptive behaviour was examined in an adolescent sample. Unlike previous research, the influence of both inhibitory and facilitory aspects of attention were studied. In addition, contributions made by these attentional processes were compared with traditional psychometric measures of cognitive functioning. Data were gathered from 36 grade 10 and 1 1 high school students (20 male and 16 female students) with a variety of learning and attentional difficulties. Data collection was conducted in the course of two testing sessions. In the first session, students completed questionnaires regarding their medical history, and everyday behaviours (the Brock Adaptive Functioning Questionnaire), along with non-verbal problem solving tasks and motor speed tasks. In the second session, students performed working memory measures and computer-administered tasks assessing inhibitory and facilitory aspects of attention. Grades and teacher-rated measures of cognitive and social impulsivity were also gathered. Results indicate that attentional control has both cognitive and social/emotional implications. Performance on negative priming and facilitation trials from the Flanker task predicted grades in core courses, social functioning measures, and cognitive and social impulsivity ratings. However, beneficial effects for academic and social functioning associated with inhibition were less prevalent in those demonstrating a greater ability to respond to facilitory cues. There was also some evidence that high levels of facilitation were less beneficial to academic performance, and female students were more likely to exceed optimal levels of facilitory processing. Furthermore, lower negative priming was ''S'K 'i\':y-: -'*' - r " j«v ; ''*.' iij^y Inhibition, Facilitation and Social Competence 3 associated with classroom-rated distraction and hyperactivity, but the relationship between inhibition and social aspects of impulsivity was stronger for adolescents with learning or reading problems, and the relationship between inhibition and cognitive impulsivity was stronger for male students. In most cases, attentional measures were predictive of performance outcomes independent of traditional psychometric measures of cognitive functioning. >,, These findings provide support for neuropsychological models linking inhibition to control of interference and arousal, and emphasize the fundamental role of attention in everyday adolescent activities. The findings also warrant further investigation into the ways which inhibitory and facilitory attentional processes interact, and the contextdependent nature of attentional control.associated with classroom-rated distraction and hyperactivity, but the relationship between inhibition and social aspects of impulsivity was stronger for adolescents with learning or reading problems, and the relationship between inhibition and cognitive impulsivity was stronger for male students. In most cases, attentional measures were predictive of performance outcomes independent of traditional psychometric measures of cognitive functioning. >,, These findings provide support for neuropsychological models linking inhibition to control of interference and arousal, and emphasize the fundamental role of attention in everyday adolescent activities. The findings also warrant further investigation into the ways which inhibitory and facilitory attentional processes interact, and the contextdependent nature of attentional control.

Towards the development of a questionnaire of post transgression motives and behaviours /

The primary purpose of this study was to develop a questionnaire that assesses both forgiveness-seeking motives and behaviours. This questionnaire was based on the premise that, following the commitment of an offense in the context of a relationship, a perpetrator will be motivated to reduce the damage that has taken place. The . ' questionnaire examined several motives that a perpetrator might have for seeking forgiveness. These motives were divided into five proposed domains of posttransgression concerns: God, Self, Victim, Others/Society, and Relationship. Within these domains, the following more specific types of concern were explored: Avoidance of punishment, concern about public image, emotional well-being, self-image, sense of fairness/justice, loss of relationship, loss or gain of power, and loss of ability to trust. The questionnaire also assessed which behaviours (approach and avoidance) a perpetrator might use in order to address these concerns. In addition, this study explored whether or not the severity of the situation and the personality of the perpetrator influenced post transgression motives and behaviours. Participants were 221 individuals from the community and Brock University. They filled out a questionnaire package that assessed personality traits, social desirability, and forgiveness-seeking motives and behaviours. In order to answer items assessing motives and behaviours, participants were asked to imagine themselves as perpetrators in three hypothetical transgression scenarios. These scenarios ranged in severity fi^om low to high. Participants were asked to rate their motives and behaviours both in an immediate time frame (immediately following the transgression) and in the long-term (in order to move on from the situation). Results indicated that the motivation items could be classified into the following subscales:Concern about God, Damaged Self-worth Concerns, Justice Concerns, Impression Management Concerns, Victim and Others Concerns, and Relationship Concerns. The behaviour items formed the following subscales: Approach, Avoidance, Denial and Hiding, and Groveling. Results also indicated differences in motivations and behaviours based on the severity of the situation as well as the personality (assessed using the HEXACO inventory) of the perpetrator.

Investigations towards the synthesis of isotope labelled analogues of tocopherols and tocotrienols /

Vitamin E is considered as the most effective lipophilic chain breaking antioxidant. a-Tocopherol and its analogues have been studied thoroughly with regards to its biokinetics and bioavailabily. Deuterated tocopherols have been synthesized and utilized in such studies. Tocotrienols are arousing more and more interest because of their high efficiency as antioxidants. However, to date, there is no effective synthetic method reported for deuterated tocotrienols. This thesis is focused on the investigation of the synthetic methods of deuterated tocotrienols and their analogues: 5-trideuteromethyl-a-tocotrienol, 5- trideuteromethyl-p-tocotrienol, tocotrienol acetate, silyl tocotrienol ether, etc. Several synthetic procedures for the preparation of poly-deuterated tocopherols are known. Mainly the deuterium is introduced by use of labelled formaldehyde and deuterated hydrogen chloride under Lewis acid catalysis. However, these methods are not effective in tocotrienols due to exchange of protons for deuterium at other sites under the acidic conditions. We developed several different approaches to generate polydeuterated tocotrienols by using both morpholinomethylation followed by reduction with NaCNBDs as deuterated reducing reagents and transmetalation strategy. The 5-trideuteromethyl-a-tocotrienol was finally obtained in a satisfactory yield of 60%. In addition, this thesis also discussed the study of structural comparison and the chemical property difference of tocopherols and tocotrienols, which provides hints to explain the reactivity difference of them towards oxidation at the C3-C4 positions.Furthermore, the methodology of halogenation and dehydrohalogenation of tocotrienol was explored to prepare a hexaene tocotrienol derivative as a florescent reporter of tocopherol.

The structural effects of divalent cations and insulin on phospholipid model membranes /

It is well accepted that structural studies with model membranes are of considerable value in understanding the structure of biological membranes. Many studies with models of pure phospholipids have been done; but the effects of divalent cations and protein on these models would make these studies more applicable to intact membrane. The present study, performed with above view, is a structural analysis of divalent io~cardio1ipin complexes using the technique of x-ray diffraction. Cardiolipin, precipitated from dilute solution by divalent ionscalcium, magnesium and barium, contains little water and the structure formed is similar to the structure of pure cardiolipin with low water content. The calcium-cardiolipin complex forms a pure hexagonal type II phase that exists from 40 to 400 C. The molar ratio of calcium and cardiolipin in the complex is 1 : 1. Cardiolipin, precipitated with magnesium and barium forms two co-existing phases, lamellar and hexagonal, the relative quantity of the two phases being dependent on temperature. The hexagonal phase type II consisting of water filled channels formed by adding calcium to cardiolipin may have a remarkable permeability property in intact membrane. Pure cardiolipin and insulin at pH 3.0 and 4.0 precipitate but form no organised structure. Lecithin/cardiolipin and insulin precipitated at pH 3.0 give a pure lamellar phase. As the lecithin/cardiolipin molar ratio changes from 93/7 to SO/50, (a) the repeat distance of the lamellar changes from 72.8 X to 68.2 A; (b) the amount of protein bound increases in such a way that cardiolipin/insulin molar ratio in the complex reaches a maximum constant value at lecithin/cardiolipin molar ratio 70/30. A structural model based on these data shows that the molecular arrangement of lipid and protein is a lipid bilayer coated with protein molecules. The lipid-protein interaction is chiefly electrostatic and little, if any, hydrophobic bonding occurs in this particular system. So, the proposed model is essentially the same as Davson-Daniellifs model of biological membrane.

The role of molecular, clinical and socioeconomic factors in the long-term survival of axillary node negative breast cancer patients

The overall objective of this study was to investigate factors associated with long-term survival in axillary node negative (ANN) breast cancer patients. Clinical and biological factors included stage, histopathologic grade, p53 mutation, Her-2/neu amplification, estrogen receptor status (ER), progesterone receptor status (PR) and vascular invasion. Census derived socioeconomic (SES) indicators included median individual and household income, proportions of university educated individuals, housing type, "incidence" of low income and an indicator of living in an affluent neighbourhood. The effects of these measures on breast cancer-specific survival and competing cause survival were investigated. A cohort study examining survival among axillary node negative (ANN) breast cancer patients in the greater Toronto area commenced in 1 989. Patients were followed up until death, lost-to-follow up or study termination in 2004. Data were collected from several sources measuring patient demographics, clinical factors, treatment, recurrence of disease and survival. Census level SES data were collected using census geo-coding of patient addresses' at the time of diagnosis. Additional survival data were acquired from the Ontario Cancer Registry to enhance and extend the observation period of the study. Survival patterns were examined using KaplanMeier and life table procedures. Associations were examined using log-rank and Wilcoxon tests of univariate significance. Multivariate survival analyses were perfonned using Cox proportional hazards models. Analyses were stratified into less than and greater than 5 year survival periods to observe whether known markers of short-tenn survival were also associated with reductions in long-tenn survival among breast cancer patients. The 15 year survival probabilities in this cohort were: for breast cancerspecific survival 0.88, competing causes survival 0.89 and for overall survival 0.78. Estrogen receptor (ER) and progesterone receptor (PR) status (Hazard Ratio (HR) ERIPR- versus ER+/PR+, 8.15,95% CI, 4.74, 14.00), p53 mutation (HR, 3.88, 95% CI, 2.00, 7.53) and Her-2 amplification (HR, 2.66, 95% CI, 1.36, 5.19) were associated with significant reductions in short-tenn breast cancer-specific survival «5 years following diagnosis), however, not with long-term survival in univariate analyses. Stage, histopathologic grade and ERiPR status were the clinicallbiologieal factors that were associated with short-term breast cancer specific survival in multivariate results. Living in an affluent neighbourhood (top quintile of median household income compared to the rest of the population) was associated with the largest significant increase in long-tenn breast cancer-specific survival after adjustment for stage, histopathologic grade and treatment (HR, 0.36, 95% CI, 0.12, 0.89).

Analytical modelling of bacterial migration and accumulation with rate-limited sorption in discrete fractures

An analytical model for bacterial accumulation in a discrete fractllre has been developed. The transport and accumlllation processes incorporate into the model include advection, dispersion, rate-limited adsorption, rate-limited desorption, irreversible adsorption, attachment, detachment, growth and first order decay botl1 in sorbed and aqueous phases. An analytical solution in Laplace space is derived and nlln1erically inverted. The model is implemented in the code BIOFRAC vvhich is written in Fortran 99. The model is derived for two phases, Phase I, where adsorption-desorption are dominant, and Phase II, where attachment-detachment are dominant. Phase I ends yvhen enollgh bacteria to fully cover the substratllm have accllillulated. The model for Phase I vvas verified by comparing to the Ogata-Banks solution and the model for Phase II was verified by comparing to a nonHomogenous version of the Ogata-Banks solution. After verification, a sensitiv"ity analysis on the inpllt parameters was performed. The sensitivity analysis was condllcted by varying one inpllt parameter vvhile all others were fixed and observing the impact on the shape of the clirve describing bacterial concentration verSllS time. Increasing fracture apertllre allovvs more transport and thus more accllffilliation, "Vvhich diminishes the dllration of Phase I. The larger the bacteria size, the faster the sllbstratum will be covered. Increasing adsorption rate, was observed to increase the dllration of Phase I. Contrary to the aSSllmption ofllniform biofilm thickness, the accllffilliation starts frOll1 the inlet, and the bacterial concentration in aqlleous phase moving towards the olitiet declines, sloyving the accumulation at the outlet. Increasing the desorption rate, redllces the dliration of Phase I, speeding IIp the accllmlilation. It was also observed that Phase II is of longer duration than Phase I. Increasing the attachment rate lengthens the accliffililation period. High rates of detachment speeds up the transport. The grovvth and decay rates have no significant effect on transport, althollgh increases the concentrations in both aqueous and sorbed phases are observed. Irreversible adsorption can stop accllillulation completely if the vallIes are high.

Simultaneous extraction of order parameters and orientational distribution fuctions from 31[superscript]P NMR spectra of magnetically partially oriented phospholipid bilayers

Order parameter profiles extracted from the NMR spectra of model membranes are a valuable source of information about their structure and molecular motions. To al1alyze powder spectra the de-Pake-ing (numerical deconvolution) ~echnique can be used, but it assumes a random (spherical) dist.ribution of orientations in the sample. Multilamellar vesicles are known to deform and orient in the strong magnetic fields of NMR magnets, producing non-spherical orientation distributions. A recently developed technique for simultaneously extracting the anisotropies of the system as well as the orientation distributions is applied to the analysis of partially magnetically oriented 31p NMR spectra of phospholipids. A mixture of synthetic lipids, POPE and POPG, is analyzed to measure distortion of multilamellar vesicles in a magnetic field. In the analysis three models describing the shape of the distorted vesicles are examined. Ellipsoids of rotation with a semiaxis ratio of about 1.14 are found to provide a good approximation of the shape of the distorted vesicles. This is in reasonable agreement with published experimental work. All three models yield clearly non-spherical orientational distributions, as well as a precise measure of the anisotropy of the chemical shift. Noise in the experimental data prevented the analysis from concluding which of the three models is the best approximation. A discretization scheme for finding stability in the algorithm is outlined

Synthesis and utilization of guanidine catalysts for applications directed towards the preparation of butenolide and modified amino acid derivatives

Development of guanidine catalysts is explored through direct iminium chloride and amine coupling, alongside a 2-chloro-l,3-dimethyl-IH-imidazol-:-3-ium chloride (DMC) induced thiourea cyclization. Synthesized achiral catalyst N-(5Hdibenzo[ d,t][1,3]diazepin-6(7H)-ylidene)-3,5-bis(trifluoromethyl) aniline proved unsuccessful towards O-acyl migrations, however successfully catalyzed the vinylogous aldol reaction between dicbloro furanone and benzaldehyde. Incorporating chirality into the guanidine catalyst utilizing a (R)-phenylalaninol auxiliary, generating (R)-2-((5Hdibenzo[ d,t] [1,3 ]diazepin-6(7H)-ylidene ) amino )-3 -phenylpropan-l-ol, demonstrated enantioselectivity for a variety of adducts. Highest enantiomeric excess (ee) was afforded between dibromofuranone and p-chlorobenzaldehyde, affording the syn conformation in 96% ee and the anti in 54% ee, with an overall yield of30%. Attempts to increase asymmetric induction were focused on incorporation of axial chirality to the (R)phenylalaninol catalyst using binaphthyl diamine. Incorporation of (S)-binaphthyl exhibited destructive selectivity, whereas incorporation of (R)-binaphthyl demonstrated no effects on enantioselectivity. Current studies are being directed towards identifying the catalytic properties of asymmetric induction with further studies are being aimed towards increasing enantioselectivity by increasing backbone steric bulk.

Automatic Inference of Graph Models for Complex Networks with Genetic Programming

Complex networks can arise naturally and spontaneously from all things that act as a part of a larger system. From the patterns of socialization between people to the way biological systems organize themselves, complex networks are ubiquitous, but are currently poorly understood. A number of algorithms, designed by humans, have been proposed to describe the organizational behaviour of real-world networks. Consequently, breakthroughs in genetics, medicine, epidemiology, neuroscience, telecommunications and the social sciences have recently resulted. The algorithms, called graph models, represent significant human effort. Deriving accurate graph models is non-trivial, time-intensive, challenging and may only yield useful results for very specific phenomena. An automated approach can greatly reduce the human effort required and if effective, provide a valuable tool for understanding the large decentralized systems of interrelated things around us. To the best of the author's knowledge this thesis proposes the first method for the automatic inference of graph models for complex networks with varied properties, with and without community structure. Furthermore, to the best of the author's knowledge it is the first application of genetic programming for the automatic inference of graph models. The system and methodology was tested against benchmark data, and was shown to be capable of reproducing close approximations to well-known algorithms designed by humans. Furthermore, when used to infer a model for real biological data the resulting model was more representative than models currently used in the literature.

Network Similarity Measures and Automatic Construction of Graph Models using Genetic Programming

A complex network is an abstract representation of an intricate system of interrelated elements where the patterns of connection hold significant meaning. One particular complex network is a social network whereby the vertices represent people and edges denote their daily interactions. Understanding social network dynamics can be vital to the mitigation of disease spread as these networks model the interactions, and thus avenues of spread, between individuals. To better understand complex networks, algorithms which generate graphs exhibiting observed properties of real-world networks, known as graph models, are often constructed. While various efforts to aid with the construction of graph models have been proposed using statistical and probabilistic methods, genetic programming (GP) has only recently been considered. However, determining that a graph model of a complex network accurately describes the target network(s) is not a trivial task as the graph models are often stochastic in nature and the notion of similarity is dependent upon the expected behavior of the network. This thesis examines a number of well-known network properties to determine which measures best allowed networks generated by different graph models, and thus the models themselves, to be distinguished. A proposed meta-analysis procedure was used to demonstrate how these network measures interact when used together as classifiers to determine network, and thus model, (dis)similarity. The analytical results form the basis of the fitness evaluation for a GP system used to automatically construct graph models for complex networks. The GP-based automatic inference system was used to reproduce existing, well-known graph models as well as a real-world network. Results indicated that the automatically inferred models exemplified functional similarity when compared to their respective target networks. This approach also showed promise when used to infer a model for a mammalian brain network.

Towards reverse engineering of Photosystem II: Synergistic Computational and Experimental Approaches

ABSTRACT Photosystem II (PSII) of oxygenic photosynthesis has the unique ability to photochemically oxidize water, extracting electrons from water to result in the evolution of oxygen gas while depositing these electrons to the rest of the photosynthetic machinery which in turn reduces CO2 to carbohydrate molecules acting as fuel for the cell. Unfortunately, native PSII is unstable and not suitable to be used in industrial applications. Consequently, there is a need to reverse-engineer the water oxidation photochemical reactions of PSII using solution-stable proteins. But what does it take to reverse-engineer PSII’s reactions? PSII has the pigment with the highest oxidation potential in nature known as P680. The high oxidation of P680 is in fact the driving force for water oxidation. P680 is made up of a chlorophyll a dimer embedded inside the relatively hydrophobic transmembrane environment of PSII. In this thesis, the electrostatic factors contributing to the high oxidation potential of P680 are described. PSII oxidizes water in a specialized metal cluster known as the Oxygen Evolving Complex (OEC). The pathways that water can take to enter the relatively hydrophobic region of PSII are described as well. A previous attempt to reverse engineer PSII’s reactions using the protein scaffold of E. coli’s Bacterioferritin (BFR) existed. The oxidation potential of the pigment used for the BFR ‘reaction centre’ was measured and the protein effects calculated in a similar fashion to how P680 potentials were calculated in PSII. The BFR-RC’s pigment oxidation potential was found to be 0.57 V, too low to oxidize water or tyrosine like PSII. We suggest that the observed tyrosine oxidation in BRF-RC could be driven by the ZnCe6 di-cation. In order to increase the efficiency of iii tyrosine oxidation, and ultimately oxidize water, the first potential of ZnCe6 would have to attain a value in excess of 0.8 V. The results were used to develop a second generation of BFR-RC using a high oxidation pigment. The hypervalent phosphorous porphyrin forms a radical pair that can be observed using Transient Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (TR-EPR). Finally, the results from this thesis are discussed in light of the development of solar fuel producing systems.

The Effects of Magnetic Dilution and Applied Pressure on Several Frustrated Spinels

The effects of magnetic dilution and applied pressure on frustrated spinels GeNi2O4, GeCo2O4, and NiAl2O4 are reported. Dilution was achieved by substitution of Mg2+ in place of magnetically active Co2+ and Ni2+ ions. Large values of the percolation thresholds were found in GeNi(2-x)MgxO4. Specifically, pc1 = 0.74 and pc2 = 0.65 in the sub-networks associated with the triangular and kagome planes, respectively. This anomalous behaviour may be explained by the kagome and triangular planes behaving as coupled networks, also know as a network of networks. In simulations of coupled lattices that form a network of networks, similar anomalous percolation threshold values have been found. In addition, at dilution levels above x=0.30, there is a T^2 dependency in the magnetic heat capacity which may indicate two dimensional spin glass behaviour. Applied pressures in the range of 0 GPa to 1.2 GPa yield a slight decrease in ordering temperature for both the kagome and triangular planes. In GeCo(2-x)MgxO4, the long range magnetic order is more robust with a percolation threshold of pc=0.448. Similar to diluted nickel germanate, at low temperatures, a T^2 magnetic heat capacity contribution is present which indicates a shift from a 3D ordered state to a 2D spin glass state in the presence of increased dilution. Dynamic magnetic susceptibility data indicate a change from canonical spin glass to a cluster glass behaviour. In addition, there is a non-linear increase in ordering temperature with applied pressure in the range P = 0 to 1.0 GPa. A spin glass ground state was observed in Ni(1-x)MgxAl2O4 for (x=0 to 0.375). Analysis of dynamic magnetic susceptibility data yield a characteristic time of tau* = 1.0x10^(-13) s, which is indicative of canonical spin glass behaviour. This is further corroborated by the linear behaviour of the magnetic specific heat contribution. However, the increasing frequency dependence of the freezing temperature suggests a trend towards spin cluster glass formation.