O teste do monopolista hipotético, descrito nos guias de defesa da concorrência dos vários países do mundo, consiste na metodologia usada para definir o tamanho do mercado de um bem. Os testes de preços constituem uma das formas de operacionalizar o teste do monopolista hipotético via análise de cointegração. Considerando a ausência de intersecção desta área antitruste da economia com a área de computação, esse trabalho desenvolveu e implementou o teste de cointegração não linear de Kapetanios et al. (2006), como proposta de teste de preços, para avaliar se estes bens pertencem a um mesmo mercado relevante. Este objetivo é vinculado ao desenvolvimento de uma ferramenta visual de informação (computacional) com o objetivo de facilitar a apresentação vinculada aos resultados obtidos, uma vez que a área de antitruste envolve diferentes grupos de profissionais e agentes (consumidores e produtores). A ferramenta visual resultante busca facilitar a apresentação dos conceitos econômicos envolvidos em relação aos resultados normalmente apresentados. / The hypothetical monopolist test, described in guidebooks antitrust various countries of the world, is the methodology used to define the size of the market for a good. The tests of prices are one of the ways to operationalize the hypothetical monopolist test via cointegration analysis. Considering the absence of this intersection area of antitrust economics to the field of computing, this paper developed and implemented the nonlinear cointegration test of Kapetanios et al. (2006), as proposed price test to assess whether these goods belong to the same relevant market. This objective is linked to the development of a visual tool for information (computational) in order to facilitate the presentation linked to the results obtained, since the area of antitrust involves different groups of professionals and agents (consumers and producers). The resulting visual search tool facilitate the presentation of economic concepts involved in relation to the results presented normally.

Heteroaryl nitrone spin traps have been suggested to act as free radical scavengers. The geometry optimizations and the single-point energies of the spin trapping reactions of the heteroaryl nitrones, 5,5-dimethylpyrroline-N-oxide (DMPO) and α-phenyl-N-t-butylnitrone (PBN) have been computationally studied using ab initio (Hartree-Fock (HF) and second-order Møller-Plesset (MP2)) methods and Density Functional Theory (DFT) methods. The effects of new heteroaryl substituents on a parent nitrone spin trap have been examined at the HF and MP2 levels with the 6-31G*, and cc-pVnZ (n=D, T, Q) basis sets. The thermodynamics of the spin trapping at the C-site and O-site with •H, •CH3 and •OH radicals were studied at the HF/6-31G* and DFT/m06/6-31G* levels. The addition reactions favor at the C-sites and the double adducts are thermodynamically more stable than the mono adducts. The spin trapping of DMPO, PBN and α(Z)-(3-methylfuroxan-4-yl)-N-tert-butylnitrone (FxBN) with •OH have also been studied.

The Georgia Department of Education requires students to earn 4 course credits in the area of mathematics in order to graduate from high school. Academic success for mathematics students in a school district in southern Georgia has been encumbered because teachers lack cultural competency in mathematics instruction, which has hindered minority students from developing reasoning, critical analysis, and problem-solving skills needed to earn these required math credits. The purpose of this project study was to examine teachers' perceptions of using culturally relevant teaching strategies to influence the academic performance of minority students in the mathematics classroom. The conceptual framework was Dewey's progressive education theory. Six high school math teachers were purposefully selected for face-to-face interviews. Interview transcripts were coded using the Coding Analysis Toolkit and analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings showed that culturally competent mathematics instruction is important when teaching minority students; however, math teachers were not adequately prepared to teach minority students. Based on the findings, a professional development program was developed for secondary math teachers. Implications for positive social change include increasing math teachers' cultural awareness during instruction to help minority students increase academic proficiency in mathematics.

In Part A of this ethnography, I explain how my life experiences have shaped who I am and why I want to be a teacher. In Part B, I describe my experience of working with three focus students—an English learner, a student with a 504 Plan, and a student with significant life experience. My work with these students allowed me to learn of their strengths and assets, and areas of need. Based on the knowledge that I compiled over the course of the Fall Semester 2018, I created an action plan to help each student improve his/her academic standing and socio-emotional well-being. In Part C, I identify and evaluate the assets of the school and the community in which my students live, and how such assets help students thrive. I also assess the challenges that both the school and community face, and their continuous efforts to overcome them. In Part D, I reflect on my first year of teaching to assess my instructional practices, and I evaluate the progress made by my whole class, and more specifically my focus students.

African American students' severe underachievement in mathematics in comparison to their peers has been framed as an achievement gap that continues to widen despite the efforts of many education scholars and leaders. Throughout history in the United States, mathematics education has been designed, developed, and delivered within a Eurocentric philosophy. Consequently, African American students have been at a systemic disadvantage in terms of perceiving the cultural relevance of mathematics; which has served as a detriment to their academic success. By merging ethnomathematics and culturally relevant pedagogy (CRP) into a theoretical framework, this study investigates these issues and proposes a shift in mathematics education toward a more culturally aware approach. In this study, it is argued that implementing a multicultural education approach such as ethnomathematics into the mathematics curriculum coupled with employing culturally relevant pedagogical practices will increase relevance in the mathematics education for African American students. The purpose of this study was to gain African American high school students’ perception of mathematics, as well as their cultural awareness and its relation to mathematics education. To gain students’ perceptions about mathematics education from a cultural respect, 375 students in grades 9-12 completed three online surveys which were (1) a four-item demographic questionnaire (age, gender, grade, ethnicity), (2) the 40-item Attitude Towards Mathematics Inventory (ATMI), and (3) the 12-item Students Perception about Cultural Awareness (SPCA) survey. This study incorporated a quantitative, correlational research design. To address research questions one and two, Pearson correlations were conducted to examine the associations between the variables of interest which were (1) Value, (2) Enjoyment, (3) Sense of Security, (4) Motivation, and (5) Cultural Awareness. Variables (1), (2), (3), (4) were derived from the ATMI survey through factor analysis while variable (5) was constructed from the SPCA survey. To address research question three, a MANOVA was conducted to assess for differences in attitudes toward mathematics and perceptions of cultural awareness by ethnicity. For research questions one and two, it was found that there was a statistically significant correlation between the variables of interest. For research question three, it was found that there was not a statistically significant difference in the variables of interest by ethnicity. In further analysis of the data, it was found that many African American students have a substandard attitude of value, enjoyment, sense of security, and motivation toward mathematics. Nonetheless, these students had a high sense of cultural awareness and cultural pride. Generally, the students felt that the incorporation of culture into mathematics would assist in raising their achievement to some degree. This study highlights recommendations to educational leaders to learn about the culture of their students, allow that data to inform policy decisions, and lead a shift to the approach of mathematics education toward the theories of ethnomathematics and CRP.

An analysis of the correspondence between Charles Lyell and Gideon Mantell from 1821 to 1852, in conjunction with other manuscript material, highlights the contrasting backgrounds and geological careers of the two men. It is also characterised by two underlying themes: the nature and timing of their geological work; and the influence of various social factors on their career plans and desire to achieve high social and scientific status. In turn, these points raise several wider issues and inter-related questions concerning the following aspects of English geology in the first half of the nineteenth century. When, why and how did an elite group of geologists emerge in England during this period? Who were its members and what were their characteristics in common? What was the nature and scope of the geological work carried out by the identified elite? In what way did it differ from Mantell's? What social and other barriers did Mantell encounter in his search for scientific and social status? What were the critical factors? In this thesis these issues are examined on a decade-by-decade basis, in three main chapters, as a prelude to examining the central question of why Mantell, unlike Lyell, did not achieve the status of an elite geologist. First, an elite group of English geologists is identified through a series of prosopographic and 'screening' analyses of all members of council of the Geological Society of London (GSL). Geologists who did not meet the prescribed criteria are taken into account. Thirteen geologists are identified in the penultimate and final stages of screening over the four decades. Mantell was the only provincial identified, but he did not attain a position in the final list, which consisted exclusively of a distinctive group of 'gentleman-specialists'. Second, the concept of a geological 'domain' is introduced to analyse the nature and scope of the geological work carried out by the identified group. A critical finding is that all members identified in the final 'screening' list established a 'domain' in one of four categories of the concept and were recognised as the leading authority or exponent of the domain they had fashioned. Finally, the impact and relative importance of specific social and other factors on the careers of Lyell and Mantell are examined. When the findings from each decade of the three chapters are brought together it is shown that by the end of the 1820s it was necessary for a future elite geologist to be so 'positioned' in terms of basic geological experience, location, income and available time that he was able to identify and subsequently fashion an appropriate geological 'domain'. 'Gentleman-specialists', such as Lyell, who were able to follow this strategy, constituted a clearly defined elite that dominated the GSL in the 1830s and 1840s. Mantell's failure to achieve elite geological status stemmed from the fact that he placed too much emphasis on fashioning his image and social status, rather than his scientific career. In doing so, he let the opportunity slip of establishing a major domain - British fossil reptiles - in the early 1830s.

In this dissertation we investigate theoretical aspects of some practical approaches used in solving and understanding search problems. We concentrate on the Satisfiability problem, which is a strong representative from search problem domains. The work develops general theoretical foundations to investigate some practical aspects of satisfiability search. This results in a better understanding of the fundamental mechanics for search algorithm construction and behaviour. A theory of choice or branching heuristics is presented, accompanied by results showing a correspondence of both parameterisations and performance when the method is compared to previous empirically motivated branching techniques. The logical foundations of the backtracking mechanism are explored alongside formulations for reasoning in relevant logics which results in the development of a malleable backtracking mechanism that subsumes other intelligent backtracking proof construction techniques and allows the incorporation of proof rearrangement strategies. Moreover, empirical tests show that relevant backtracking outperforms all other forms of intelligent backtracking search tree construction methods. An investigation into modelling and generating world problem instances justifies a modularised problem model proposal which is used experimentally to highlight the practicability of search algorithms for the proposed model and related domains.

<p>This thesis explores the possibility of formulating an intermediate approach towards global justice. The desired approach should be intermediate in the sense that it is located in the normative space between the two rather exterme philosophical positions of cosmopolitanism and liberal nationalism for reasons explained in the thesis. As it turns out in the argumentation within this thesis it is an appropriate identification of the facts that can be thought morally relevant in the context of global justice which is of crucial importance for achieving this task. This is the case since such morally relevant facts, as will be shown, are decisive not only for making definite sense of the ideals at stake with regard to the issues of global inequality and absolute poverty. They furthermore also are essential for determining normatively appropriate and empirically effective obligations for working towards a more just world.</p>

<p>I Norden avreglerades elmarknaden under 1990-talet. För att skapa en effektiv marknad räcker det emellertid sällan med enbart avreglering. Ofta behövs även fler konkurrerande aktörer på marknaden. Inom vissa branscher med exempelvis höga anläggningskostnader kan det dock vara svårt för potentiella konkurrenter att etablera sig. Ett sätt kan då vara att öppna upp marknaden för internationell handel och på så sätt skapa konkurrens. Det var tänkt att den nordiska elmarknaden skulle agera som en gemensam marknad. Kapaciteten i överföringssystemen mellan de nordiska länderna är emellertid låg, vilket innebär att potentiella konkurrenter från de nordiska länder inte kan slå sig in i önskad grad på den svenska elmarknaden. I Sverige är det tre stora elproducenter som dominerar den svenska elmarknaden, Vattenfall AB, Sydkraft AB samt Birka Energi. Uppsatsens syfte är dels att analysera prisområdesproblematiken på den nordiska elmarknaden, dels att avgöra om de största elproducenterna i Sverige agerar som oligopolister. Dessutom görs en kortare jämförelse mellan de olika metoderna som används i uppsatsen för att studera marknadsdominans.</p>

I Norden avreglerades elmarknaden under 1990-talet. För att skapa en effektiv marknad räcker det emellertid sällan med enbart avreglering. Ofta behövs även fler konkurrerande aktörer på marknaden. Inom vissa branscher med exempelvis höga anläggningskostnader kan det dock vara svårt för potentiella konkurrenter att etablera sig. Ett sätt kan då vara att öppna upp marknaden för internationell handel och på så sätt skapa konkurrens. Det var tänkt att den nordiska elmarknaden skulle agera som en gemensam marknad. Kapaciteten i överföringssystemen mellan de nordiska länderna är emellertid låg, vilket innebär att potentiella konkurrenter från de nordiska länder inte kan slå sig in i önskad grad på den svenska elmarknaden. I Sverige är det tre stora elproducenter som dominerar den svenska elmarknaden, Vattenfall AB, Sydkraft AB samt Birka Energi. Uppsatsens syfte är dels att analysera prisområdesproblematiken på den nordiska elmarknaden, dels att avgöra om de största elproducenterna i Sverige agerar som oligopolister. Dessutom görs en kortare jämförelse mellan de olika metoderna som används i uppsatsen för att studera marknadsdominans.