La tesis que aquí presentamos busca estudiar dos cuestiones fundamentales. En primer lugar, el cómo se ha ido forjando la responsabilidad de proteger (R2P) en el marco de las Naciones Unidas. Y en segundo lugar, analizar las intervenciones de los miembros permanentes del Consejo de Seguridad en relación a esta temática a través del análisis de la argumentación de los mismos en una selección de debates y documentos oficiales. Se trata de un análisis teórico-práctico que intentará resolver si dentro del marco de la ONU la R2P se interpreta y se explota como algo que va más allá de un concepto meramente político. Nuestro punto de partida será poner a prueba la hipótesis inicial de la R2P, tanto en su formulación formal como en su aplicación en una serie de casos que se fueron sucediendo en el contexto posterior a la Guerra Fría. Asimismo, intentará determinar si se trata de un concepto que terminará resultando en un principio de carácter y aceptación universal o, por el contrario, simplemente responde a una demanda emanada de la comunidad internacional sin utilidad práctica real y aplicable a los conflictos actuales. De la misma forma, este trabajo pretende hacer énfasis en la distinción, si la hubiese, entre el concepto de protección de civiles (POC) y R2P, señalando tanto sus similitudes como sus diferencias. Pero el verdadero valor añadido de este estudio reside en analizar la evolución de la retórica empleada por los miembros del Consejo de Seguridad de la ONU a través del análisis de su discurso político de las intervenciones de los cinco miembros permanentes (P5s) del Consejo de Seguridad en una serie de sesiones públicas en relación a la R2P. Estudiaremos si los conceptos que se han ido acuñando a lo largo de la historia disponen del mismo significado y contenido político, o si por el contrario la terminología empleada va evolucionando a medida que se van sucediendo diferentes acontecimientos históricos. Además de analizar las intervenciones de los miembros permanentes del Consejo de Seguridad en una selección de debates y reuniones a puerta abierta, también estudiaremos una serie de documentos oficiales del Consejo, resoluciones o declaraciones presidenciales (PRST) donde aparecen reflejadas, tanto en los párrafos operativos como en el preámbulo de las mismas, alusiones a la R2P. Partiremos de que la responsabilidad de proteger supone que, más allá de los principios de soberanía, integridad territorial y la no interferencia en los asuntos domésticos de los estados, cuando un Estado no quiere o no puede cumplir con su responsabilidad de proteger los derechos humanos, relativos a las de cada uno de sus habitantes, corresponde a la comunidad internacional, y en particular a las Naciones Unidas, adoptar medidas colectivas firmes con el objetivo de paliar las atrocidades que se estén produciendo. La tesis se enmarca en el campo de las ciencias sociales, y aunque a primera vista pueda parecer un estudio de gran calado jurídico, por los temas y la materia estudiada, no es este el caso. Se trata más bien de un trabajo que se inserta en una línea de investigación de talante político, dentro de la rama de las relaciones internacionales. La originalidad del trabajo reside, entre otras cosas, en el hecho de que la doctoranda ha ocupado distintos cargos dentro de la ONU. Cabría destacar, entre otros, su estancia en la Misión híbrida las Naciones Unidas y la Unión Africana en Darfur (UNAMID), durante 14 meses, en calidad de oficial información pública. Y el trabajo que realizó, entre 2011-2012 en el Consejo de Seguridad de las Naciones Unidas, pudiendo ofrecer así una visión real, pragmática y global de cómo funciona el órgano político internacional por excelencia. Por otro lado, y de igual importancia, ha tenido a su alcance datos y la posibilidad de poder trabajar con fuentes primarias de gran relevancia, de acceso restringido, o de difícil acceso. Al comenzar la fase exploratoria de la tesis, donde se tantearon diferentes temas de estudio, siempre dentro de una misma área de conocimiento, la doctoranda decidió ocuparse de un concepto relativamente nuevo en el ámbito internacional, pero que a los pocos años se convertiría en uno de los temas más debatidos en los círculos académicos y políticos. La responsabilidad de proteger vendría a sustituir lo que en la década de los noventa se conoció como intervención humanitaria. A diferencia de la anterior, la R2P pone énfasis en la responsabilidad de Estado de proteger a sus ciudadanos, con el novedoso añadido de que la comunidad internacional cobra un papel primordial a la hora de asistir a estos países a cumplir con sus obligaciones de protección. Por otro lado, cuando nos planteamos este trabajo nos dimos cuenta de que la literatura que se había publicado al respecto era aunque intensa, poco innovadora; es decir, casi todos los autores presentaban en sus textos planteamientos muy similares, hasta el punto de caer en una reproducción generalizada de temas y proposiciones. Por lo que podemos afirmar que son pocas las aportaciones teórico-prácticas en este sentido. De ahí que nos hayamos centrado exclusivamente en aquellos autores que, además de explicar sus antecedentes y rasgos principales han contribuido, de una forma u otra, a la elaboración, consolidación, difusión y afianzamiento del concepto. La revisión bibliográfica que se llevó a cabo durante la primera fase de la elaboración de la tesis se centró en el estudio de libros, capítulos de libros, artículos académico-científicos y documentos oficiales de organismos regionales e internacionales publicados desde principios de los años noventa, hasta el último semestre de 2012; teniendo en cuenta que salvo los documentos relacionados con los antecedentes de la R2P, los demás han sido publicados entre 2005 y 2012. Se trata en su totalidad de literatura en lengua inglesa, menos aquellos textos oficiales que han sido traducidos al español. El motivo que nos ha llevado a examinar publicaciones inglesas en su gran mayoría es porque constituyen las fuentes primarias más relevantes que abordan la noción de R2P. Por otro lado, destacar que no se trató de un análisis exhaustivo de cada publicación, sino de ofrecer una relación de textos que estimamos necesaria para abordar en profundidad el tema que aquí tratamos.

The neocortex is the most recently evolved part of the mammalian brain which is involved in a repertoire of higher order brain functions, including those that separate humans from other animals. Humans have evolved an expanded neocortex over the course of evolution through a massive increase in neuron number (compared to our close relatives-­‐‑ the chimpanzees) in spite of sharing similar gestation time frames. So what do humans do differently compared to chimpanzees within the same time frame during their development? This dissertation addresses this question by comparing the developmental progression of neurogenesis between humans and chimpanzees using cerebral organoids as the model system. The usage of cerebral organoids, has enabled us to compare the development of both the human neocortex, and the chimpanzee neocortex from the very initiation of the neural phase of embryogenesis until very long periods of time. The results obtained so far suggest that the genetic programs underlying the development of the chimpanzee neocortex and the human neocortex are not very different, but rather the difference lies in the timing of the developmental progression. These results show that the chimpanzee neocortex spends lesser time in its proliferation phase, and allots lesser time to the generation of its neurons than the human neocortex. In more scientific terms, the neurogenic phase of the neocortex is shorter in chimpanzees than it is in humans. This conclusion is supported by (1) an earlier onset of gliogenesis in chimpanzees compared to humans which is indicative of a declining neurogenic phase, (2) an earlier increase in the chimpanzee neurogenic progenitors during development, compared to humans, (3) a higher number of stem cell– like progenitors in human cortices compared to chimpanzees, (4) a decline in neurogenic areas within the chimpanzee cerebral organoids over time compared to human cerebral organoids.

My aim with this research has been to see how surrogate mothers' situation in Georgia looks like, and how different aspects affect the understanding of the process itself and create different prerequisites for surrogate mothers. I interviewed staffs who meet surrogate mothers in their work. I conducted five interviews. The theories I have chosen to use in the study is Maslow's hierarchy of needs and Goffman's labeling theory. I concluded that surrogacy is a controversial subject that is interesting to analyze, based on these theories. After I had interviewed people, it turned out that there are some hierarchical differences between surrogate mothers and biological mothers. The study shows those surrogate mothers' motives and perception is different in society, leading to stigma and categorized ring of the phenomenon. In the future it will be interesting to formulate, visualize, debate and discuss how surrogacy affects society and the professionals' assessments of the phenomenon. I hope that the study raises future interest in others and brings new perspectives which professionals can benefit from. / Mitt mål med denna uppsats har varit att se hur surrogatmödrars situation i Georgien ser ut, och hur olika aspekter påverkar förståelsen för själva processen och skapar olika förutsättningar för surrogatamödrar.  Jag gjorde detta genom att intervjua personal som träffar surrogatamödrar i sin verksamhet. Jag genomförde fem intervjuer. De teorier jag valt att använda i studien är Maslows behovstrappa och Goffmans stämplingsteori. Jag kom fram till att surrogatmödraskap är ett omdiskuterat ämne som är intressant att analysera utifrån dessa teorier. Efter att jag intervjuat personerna visade det sig att det förekommer en del hierarkiska skillnader mellan surrogatmödrar och biologiska mammor. Studien visar att surrogatmödrarnas motiv och uppfattning ser olika ut i samhället, vilket leder till stigmatisering och kategorisering av själva fenomenet. I framtiden kommer det bli intressant att formulera, synliggöra, problematisera och diskutera hur surrogatmödraskap påverkar samhället och professionellas bedömningar på fenomenet. Jag hoppas att studien väcker framtida intresse för andra och bidrar med nya perspektiv som professionella kan ha nytta av.

Functional neuroimaging studies of autobiographical memory have grown dramatically in recent years. These studies are important because they can investigate the neural correlates of processes that are difficult to study using laboratory stimuli, including: (i) complex constructive processes, (ii) recollective qualities of emotion and vividness, and (iii) remote memory retrieval. Constructing autobiographical memories involves search, monitoring and self-referential processes that are associated with activity in separable prefrontal regions. The contributions of emotion and vividness have been linked to the amygdala and visual cortex respectively. Finally, there is evidence that recent and remote autobiographical memories might activate the hippocampus equally, which has implications for memory-consolidation theories. The rapid development of innovative methods for eliciting personal memories in the scanner provides the opportunity to delve into the functional neuroanatomy of our personal past. / Dissertation

The understanding of the motion of animal groups, such as birds, fish and insects, has been greatly advanced by applying principles of self-organisation – the emergence of global patterns from simple, local, interactions between individuals. The desert locust, Schistocerca gregaria, provides a useful model system for the experimental study of collective behaviour. During plague years, the desert locust can form aggregations extending over hundreds of km. Before developing wings, juvenile locusts form marching ‘bands’ which can maintain group cohesion as they migrate over large distances. In this thesis I investigate locust aggregation, group motion and individual interactions. I also apply the same principles to a study of human behaviour. In Chapter 2, I describe the automated tracking methods that I developed and used to collect the data for the rest of the thesis. In the experiments described in Chapter 3, the relative strengths of the attraction to conspecifics and environmental heterogeneities were explored by presenting groups of locusts with two aggregation sites. I found that locusts had a preference to enter the site with the higher population. The locusts formed dynamic aggregations on the sites; no site was consistently more populated than the other, but individuals were significantly more attracted to the site with the higher current population. In Chapter 4, I consider the effect of marching experience on locust behaviour. Groups of locusts that had experience of directed marching, followed by a sudden reduction in density, behaved indistinguishably from those that had only experienced the lower density throughout, indicating a lack of hysteresis effects in collective responses to change in local population density. In Chapter 5, I investigate a locust’s response to its nearest neighbour. I quantified a locust’s propensity to start or stop moving according to the relative position, orientation and movement of its nearest neighbour. In Chapter 6 the techniques developed studying the locusts were applied to human groups. The response of people to different sized groups was quantified, replicating an earlier study in New York. The response was weaker in Oxford but had the same characteristics of the previous study, showing an initially linear response which saturated. The spatial distribution of gaze copying was anisotropic, tending to occur behind the group.

Proponho-me, nesta Tese, explorar como se constrói e se perpetua um grupo de pesquisa básica comportamental em modelo animal a partir de um laboratório universitário de neurociências voltado para o estudo da memória. Em particular, através do rastreio das práticas científicas e de suas várias ramificações, procuro entender o processo de produção de pesquisa básica comportamental no Sul do Brasil, levando em consideração desde os recursos materiais escassos até os custos emocionais elevados dos seus pesquisadores para manter um laboratório multiespécies. Travo diálogos antropológicos com humanos, ratos e drogas – aqui considerados os principais atores desse local específico de produção de conhecimentos. Nesse caso, para produzir a (neuro) ciência de base é preciso mobilizar parceiros multiespécies, incorrendo em um tipo de aprendizagem mútua planejada e, ao mesmo tempo, inesperada. Junto a cientistas e ratos, as drogas funcionam como um terceiro ator fundamental na viabilidade de relações produtivas. Rastreando parcerias institucionais, artefatos de laboratório, protocolos e práticas ligados à experimentação e à gramática usada para compor a ciência nesse lugar, investigo a maneira com que elementos heterogêneos demandam cuidado constante na manutenção de sua associação voltada a produzir conhecimento. Também considero a forma processual e contínua da aprendizagem exigida para coordenar esses elementos heterogêneos em nome da promessa que a ciência encarna. / Through the ethnographic study of a university neuroscience laboratory in Southern Brazil, I propose in this thesis to explore how a behavioral research group focused on the study of memory is built and perpetuated. In particular, by following the various ramifications of certain scientific practices connected with animal experimentation, I seek to understand the production of basic research, taking into account the full array of inputs – from scarce material resources to high emotional costs for researchers – required to maintain a multispecies laboratory in this Latin American setting. My dialogue engages with humans, rats and drugs - considered here the major actors of this specific site of knowledge production. To produce this basic (neuro) science one must mobilize multispecies partners, engaging in a kind of mutual learning that is both planned and unexpected. Together with rats and scientists, drugs act as a third fundamental actor in the definition of productive relationships. Tracing institutional partnerships, laboratory artifacts, protocols, and practices linked to experimentation and the grammar used to compose science in this laboratory, I investigate the way in which heterogeneous elements demand constant care in maintaining their association aimed at producing knowledge. I also consider the processual and continuous forms of learning required to coordinate these heterogeneous elements in name of the promises embodied in science.

Cartas al editor / Revisión por pares

Exoskeletons for gait training commonly use a rigid-linked "skeleton" which makes them heavy and bulky. Cable-driven exoskeletons eliminate the rigid-linked skeleton structure, therefore creating a lighter and more transparent design. Current cable-driven leg exoskeletons are limited to gait assistance use. This thesis presented the Cable-driven Active Leg Exoskeleton (C-ALEX) designed for gait retraining and rehabilitation. Benefited from the cable-driven design, C-ALEX has minimal weight and inertia (4.7 kg) and allows all the degrees-of-freedom (DoF) of the leg of the user. C-ALEX uses an assist-as-needed (AAN) controller to train the user to walk in a new gait pattern. A preliminary design of C-ALEX was first presented, and an experiment was done with this preliminary design to study the effectiveness of the AAN controller. The result on six healthy subjects showed that the subjects were able to follow a new gait pattern significantly more accurately with the help of the AAN controller. After this experiment, C-ALEX was redesigned to improve its functionality. The improved design of C-ALEX is lighter, has more DoFs and larger range-of-motion. The controller of the improved design improved the continuity of the generated cable tensions and added the function to estimate the phase of the gait of the user in real-time. With the improved design of C-ALEX, an experiment was performed to study the effect of the weight and inertia of an exoskeleton on the gait of the user. C-ALEX was used to simulate exoskeletons with different levels of weight and inertia by adding extra mass and change the weight compensation level. The result on ten subjects showed that adding extra mass increased step length and reduced knee flexion. Compensating the weight of the mass partially restored the knee flexion but not the step length, implying that the inertia of the mass is responsible for the change. This study showed the distinctive effect of weight and inertia on gait and demonstrated the benefit of a lightweight exoskeleton. C-ALEX was designed for gait training and rehabilitation, and its training effectiveness was studied in nine healthy subjects and a stroke patient. The healthy subjects trained with C-ALEX to walk in a new gait pattern with 30% increase in step height for 40 min. After the training, the subjects were able to closely repeat the trained gait pattern without C-ALEX, and the step height of the subjects increased significantly. A stroke patient also tested C-ALEX for 40 minutes and showed short-term improvements in step length, step height, and knee flexion after training. The result showed the effectiveness of C-ALEX in gait training and its potential to be used in stroke rehabilitation.

Listeria monocytogenes e Yersinia enterocolitica são agentes zoonóticos e têm capacidade de transmissão através dos alimentos, inclusive carne suína. O presente estudo avaliou, mensalmente, de maio de 2007 a abril de 2008, alguns pontos da cadeia produtiva da carne suína em abatedouros e açougues do Estado de São Paulo. Foram avaliados ambientes dos estabelecimentos visitados e amostras de línguas, tonsilas e cortes de carne suína. Listeria monocytogenes foi isolada de todos os tipos de amostra, com presença dos sorotipos 4b, 1/2b, 1/2a e 1/2c. Estes isolados demonstraram grande similaridade, sugerindo até que haja persistência do agente em ambiente, de acordo com a PFGE, reforçando seu potencial de transmissão para humanos. Yersinia enterocolitica 4/ O:3 foi detectada exclusivamente em abatedouros, principalmente nos animais, apresentando, portanto, menor potencial de transmissão para humanos. Entretanto, Yersinia enterocolitica 1A, considerada não patogênica, foi isolada de todos os tipos de amostras, e a maioria apresentou fatores de virulência, devendo este fato ser melhor investigado. Os resultados apresentados indicam a necessidade de se tomar medidas para controle e prevenção da disseminação dos agentes, principalmente da Listeria monocytogenes. / Listeria monocytogenes and Yersinia enterocolitica are zoonotic agents with capacity of transmission through foods, including pork. The present study evaluated, monthly, from May 2007 to April 2008, several points of swine meat productive chain in slaughterhouses and butcheries from Sao Paulo state. It were evaluated the environments of visited establishments and samples of tongues, tonsils and pork cuts. Listeria monocytogenes was isolated from all kinds of samples and the serotypes 4b, 1/2b, 1/2a and 1/2c were present. These isolates showed great similarity, even suggesting that there was persistence of the agent in the environment, according to the PFGE, reinforcing its potential of transmission to humans. Yersinia enterocolitica 4/ O:3 was exclusively detected in slaughterhouses, mainly in the animals, presenting therefore, low potential of transmission to humans. However, Yersinia enterocolitica 1A, considered no pathogenic, was isolated from all kinds of samples, and the majority presented virulence factors, suggesting that this observation should be better investigated. The results presented indicate the necessity of measures of control and prevention of agents dissemination, mainly of Listeria monocytogenes.

Assessment of different gait patterns of daily living could provides useful information in studying one individual's stability and mobility during locomotion. As the foundation for better assessment of different gait patterns, the ability to automatically identity different patterns and walking surroundings provide valuable information for further understanding the relations between gait pattern and energy consumption. We apply Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT) for feature generation and Fuzzy-logic based approach for designing the multi-class classifier to identify gait patterns among fiat walking, descending stairs, and ascending stairs based on continuous kinematic signals. / Falls in the aging population has always been one of the most challenging problems in public health care. We propose an automatic falling detection algorithm based on the analysis of plantar force on both feet, because plantar forces are an important parameters directly associated with postures of human locomotion. The proposed two-stage algorithm efficiently overcome the shortcomings of the widely proposed accelerometer or gyroscope based algorithms and could provide efficient assistant for automatic detection of falls once they occur. / Finally, the research of studying gait abnormalities is introduced. We develop the methodology for modeling and classifying abnormal gaits including toe-in, toe-out, over-supination, and heel walking via machine learning algorithms, hidden Markov models (HMM) and support vector machine (SVM) based on a suite of gait parameters. The trained classifiers can classify abnormal gait patterns mentioned above and the proposed methodology will make it possible to provide realtime feedback to assist persons with gait abnormalities in the development of a normal walking pattern in their daily life. / Keeping abnormal motion for long time will ultimately lead to pain in the feet, ankles, legs and skeletal disease, and badly influences the skelecton growth especially for children and adolescents. In biomedicine, gait analysis has been proved as an useful approach. in revealing helpful insights into the recognition of motion abnormalities. Analysis of gait is commonly used as a routine procedure in identifying movement or posture related abnormalities of humans and aiding the therapeutic processes. Our goal is to monitor and study gaits of humans in order that proper motion adjustments can he advised to improve their posture style and long-term well being. / Most currently utilized measurement systems for motion and gait analysis have the shortcomings of that the monitoring and analysis of motion is constrained in a limited environment and human-related assistance is essential. All of them cannot be acceptable for the purpose of long-term monitoring and studying of motion abnormalities. In this thesis, a new concept of an inexpensive, compact, and lightweight shoe-integrated platform is introduced. The shoe-integrated system is composed of a suite of sensors for wirelessly capturing gait parameters and generating well qualified analysis results. The ideal platform requires no specialized equipment or lab setup, allowing data to be collected not only in the narrow confines of a research lab, but essentially anywhere, both indoors and outdoors. / To be one of the common postural abnormalities, postural kyphosis is studied and modeled. We apply Cascade Neural Networks with Node-Decoupled Extended Kalman Filtering (CNN-NDEKF) to train the model for this binary classification problem. This proposed study is of particular significance to provide feedback in the application of postural kyphosis rectification. / Chen, Meng. / "December 2009." / Adviser: Yangsheng Xu. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 72-01, Section: B, page: . / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2010. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 120-130). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. Ann Arbor, MI : ProQuest Information and Learning Company, [200-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstract also in Chinese.