[Truncated abstract] The assumption that facial attractiveness signals mate quality is central to current evolutionary theories of human sexual selection. Evidence for direct links between attractiveness and mate quality is, however, scarce, and the exact nature of mate quality remains the subject of debate. Mate quality may include genetic diversity, because genome-wide diversity has been linked to individual fitness, and diversity within the Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) has been associated with immunocompetence and health in many species. This thesis investigates whether individual genetic diversity plays a role in human sexual selection. The main aim is to examine whether MHC diversity, compared to genetic diversity in general, is especially important for mate preferences, health and mating success. The four studies herein are based on data collected from a large sample of heterosexual, Caucasian males and females. Participants were photographed, provided a DNA sample, and completed questionnaires regarding sexual history and health. Genetic diversity was calculated as both mean heterozygosity (H) and standardised mean-d2 (d2), separately for 12 MHC microsatellite loci and 11 nonMHC loci. The photographs were rated for various attractive features by opposite-sex raters. The first study investigated whether MHC diversity influences preferences for facial appearance in a potential mate, and if so, are they specific to the MHC and are they mediated by specific facial characteristics? I found that MHC-H, but not nonMHCH, positively predicted male facial attractiveness, and that this relationship was mediated by facial averageness. For females, nonMHC-d2 predicted facial symmetry, and potentially attractiveness. These findings indicate that faces contain visual cues to mate quality in both males and females, providing support for evolutionary theories that our preferences are adaptations for identifying mates of high quality. ... Measuring them both allowed me to tease apart their effects on mate preferences, and on health and mating success. Indeed, the MHC appears to be especially important in sexual selection as MHC diversity predicted female mate preferences after controlling for nonMHC diversity, and MHC dissimilarity predicted male mate preferences after controlling for nonMHC dissimilarity. Moreover, although MHC diversity did not appear to influence males’ preference for females, it did predict female mating success, suggesting that males also attend to MHC-related cues, although perhaps non-facial cues, when seeking mates. Additionally, nonMHC diversity predicted both male preferences for female faces and health, suggesting that such preferences are adaptive. Importantly, by providing direct links between facial attractiveness and biological markers of individual quality, genetic diversity, these results support the commonly held assumption that facial attractiveness signals mate quality.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, 2005. / Typescript (photocopy).

Made available in DSpace on 2009-11-18T19:01:40Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 ACF184.pdf: 384059 bytes, checksum: a31414177b45e3233caa19e06b1294ee (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007 / The main purpose of this exploratory work is to investigate the attributes that motivate customers to choose services within beauty and aesthetic centers. Everyday, we are taking by surprise due to the discovery of new procedures that will make many dreams come true regarding youth¿s prolong. Customers are much more demanding now, so the beauty industry must emphasize the importance of beauty in our day lives. The old age fears, the need of men and women in getting close to the perfect beauty and looking great explaining the reason many customer looking for beauty and aesthetic centers to ¿postpone¿ the inevitable old age.This work focus on the increase of beauty and aesthetic industry market position, the quality of service provide by these centers, emphasize the concepts of service quoted by different authors, for instance, Lovelock (2006), Las Casas (2002), Kotler (1998), the characteristics of services, the behaviour of customers, the conceptualized models of service quality from Albrecht and Zemke (1998), moments of truth according to Carlzon (1994).This work presents a summary of beauty along the years; shows the methodology used and the interviews results showing the main quality service attributes in beauty and aesthetic centers; the difficulty faced and suggestion for future research. / O objetivo deste estudo exploratório é investigar quais os atributos que motivam os consumidores na escolha de serviços em ambientes de Estética e Beleza. Todos os dias somos surpreendidos por descobertas que possibilitarão a concretização do sonho tão cobiçado de prolongar a juventude. Com o mercado cada vez mais exigente, a indústria da beleza enfatiza a influência da ¿beleza¿. O medo da velhice, a necessidade que o homem e a mulher têm de parecer cada vez mais perfeitos e de se manter cada vez mais atuantes são alguns dos fatores que os induzem a adotar estratégias para retardar o inevitável envelhecimento. O trabalho aborda o crescimento do setor de Beleza e Estética; discute os aspectos relativos à qualidade do atendimento nos ambientes de Beleza e Estética; evidencia os fundamentos básicos dos conceitos de serviços citados por diferentes autores, a exemplo de Lovelock (2006), Las Casas (2002), Kotler (2000); as características dos serviços; o comportamento do consumidor; os modelos conceituais de qualidade em serviços de Albrecht e Zemke (1998); Momentos de verdade, segundo Carlzon (1994). Apresenta uma síntese da beleza através dos tempos; mostra a metodologia utilizada e o resultado das entrevistas que elegeram os principais atributos da qualidade de serviço nos ambientes de estética e beleza; as limitações do trabalho e sugestões para pesquisas futuras.

Thesis "Presentation of trends in aesthetic medicine in selected specialized Czech magazines Estetika and Health & Beauty" deals with representation and media portrayal of female beauty and a current lifestyle to which more and more women adhere. It is a lifestyle in which body care plays a significant role. This paper analyzes trends in the two most famous Czech magazines devoted to aesthetic dermatology and plastic surgery - Estetika and Health & Beauty. The work aims to analyze these two magazines and find out how they portray these selected trends and which methods they most frequently use to persuade women to undergo surgery. It also tries to expound media representations of ideal beauty and the influence of the media on people. With regard to the objectives the work is divided into three parts: theoretical part, methodological part and empirically analytical part, or more precisely, the research part. The theoretical part comprises the conception of beauty in connection to human body. It examines the development of ideal beauty and the perception of the female body throughout the centuries. All of this is observed in regard to contemporary influence of media on people. It deals with social and medial constructions of reality and the possible influence of media on female self-esteem. The...

The thesis How mothers and daughters perceive and use fashion themes in lifestyle magazines for women is aimed at generational differences when it comes to perception of media content. Specifically, it examines differences in perception of fashion phenomenon presented in lifestyle magazines for women (e.g.: ELLE and Cosmopolitan) by mothers and their daughters. Today, not only individuals, but also family relations are influenced by new media, new technologies, and new forms of media content, therefore I focused on differences in consumption of those lifestyle magazine between two generations of women within a family. The thesis first introduces some theories on social construction of reality; how fashion is presented in magazines; how women as readers perceive fashion and how this influences readers' identities as a result of magazines' consumption, and how advertising is perceived by readers. Theoretical knowledge is then researched. Qualitative research was conducted on ten pairs of respondents (mother - daughter) in the form of interviews. The results show that lifestyle magazines do not serve as a main source of information about fashion anymore. Many young women are more likely to search for information related to fashion on the Internet today. Mothers and daughters do not happen to read and...

Virtue can be seen as a core construct of pastoral theology when it is understood as a relational dynamic which includes the experience of suffering and the pastoral response of compassion. This thesis probes the philosophical theology of Jonathan Edwards, who proposed that virtue is a form of beauty defined as "consent to being." Edwards' construct of virtue is examined from its inception in his pastoral work at Northampton parish. Although it was offered in the context of the 18th century debates in moral philosophy, it is argued that Edwards' idea of virtue is a unique theological contribution to our understanding of the nature of virtue. The implications of this conception of virtue are weighed against current discussions in ethics and moral philosophy on the theme of virtue. Edwards' idea of "consent to being" is expanded from a pastoral theological perspective to include the notion of compassion as an integrative motif. The structure of experience and how we speak about our experiences are explored in relation to this aesthetic understanding of virtue as a form of beauty. This leads to the notion of compassion as ontological consent. Since language is the vehicle by which our experiences are conveyed, the thesis probes the issue of how moral vision is expressed in "experience-near" language through parable, poem, and lament. Moral vision is articulated most adequately through such language, the formulation of which takes the form of a necessary quest. The thesis concludes with a constructive proposal concerning a mature pastoral theology of virtue. This may be seen as an expansion of Edwards' concept of "consent to being" from the vantage point of pastoral theology. It is argued that a dynamic vision of virtue requires some connection between the experience of suffering and the inward striving toward the greatest good. The essence of virtue can be best understood, from a pastoral theological perspective, as the relational dynamic of "suffering with" another human being. / Philosophy, Practical and Systematic Theology / D.Th. (Practical Theology)

CAPES / O imaginário mobilizado pela corrida espacial no segundo período pós-guerra instigou a criação de um repertório visual que logo tornou-se fonte de inspiração em diversos campos da produção cultural. Neste trabalho tenho por objetivo discutir a construção da figura da “mulher do futuro” mediante a articulação entre as produções filiadas a esse imaginário no vestuário e na decoração de interiores. O recorte de estudo abarca as décadas de 1960 e 1970 e está centrado nas representações de interiores domésticos divulgados pela revista Casa & Jardim e nos editoriais e anúncios publicitários de vestuário divulgados pelas revistas Claudia e Manequim. Esses títulos colocaram em circulação uma série de recursos imagéticos e textuais que evidenciam aspectos do comportamento social da época, servindo como base para a investigação das novas representações de feminilidades que surgiram naquele período. A escolha por privilegiar a articulação entre decoração de interiores e vestuário se justifica pela relação historicamente construída entre essas materialidades e o corpo feminino, caracterizando-se como parte integrante na construção de identidades de gênero, classe e geração. Com esse trabalho pretendo evidenciar que as materialidades dos interiores domésticos e do vestuário inspirados pela iconografia espacial atuavam como dispositivos que criavam e reforçavam noções de feminilidades em diálogo com o processo de modernização da sociedade brasileira em curso. / The imagery mobilized by the space race in the second post-war period instigated the creation of a visual repertory that soon became the source of inspiration in several fields of cultural production. In this work I aim to discuss the construction of the "woman of the future" figure through the articulation between the productions affiliated to this imaginary in clothing and interior decoration. The study covers the 1960s and 1970s and is centered on the representations of domestic interiors published by Casa & Jardim magazine and the editorials and advertisements for clothing published by magazines Claudia and Manequim. These publications put into circulation a series of imagery and textual resources that demonstrated aspects of the time’s social behavior, serving as basis for the investigation of the new representations of femininities which appeared in that period. The choice to focus on the articulation between interior decoration and clothing is based on the historically constructed relation between these materialities and the female body, therefore being an important part in the construction of gender, class and generation identities. With this work I intend to show that the materialities of domestic interiors and clothing inspired by the space age iconography acted as devices that created and reinforced notions of femininity.

CAPES / O imaginário mobilizado pela corrida espacial no segundo período pós-guerra instigou a criação de um repertório visual que logo tornou-se fonte de inspiração em diversos campos da produção cultural. Neste trabalho tenho por objetivo discutir a construção da figura da “mulher do futuro” mediante a articulação entre as produções filiadas a esse imaginário no vestuário e na decoração de interiores. O recorte de estudo abarca as décadas de 1960 e 1970 e está centrado nas representações de interiores domésticos divulgados pela revista Casa & Jardim e nos editoriais e anúncios publicitários de vestuário divulgados pelas revistas Claudia e Manequim. Esses títulos colocaram em circulação uma série de recursos imagéticos e textuais que evidenciam aspectos do comportamento social da época, servindo como base para a investigação das novas representações de feminilidades que surgiram naquele período. A escolha por privilegiar a articulação entre decoração de interiores e vestuário se justifica pela relação historicamente construída entre essas materialidades e o corpo feminino, caracterizando-se como parte integrante na construção de identidades de gênero, classe e geração. Com esse trabalho pretendo evidenciar que as materialidades dos interiores domésticos e do vestuário inspirados pela iconografia espacial atuavam como dispositivos que criavam e reforçavam noções de feminilidades em diálogo com o processo de modernização da sociedade brasileira em curso. / The imagery mobilized by the space race in the second post-war period instigated the creation of a visual repertory that soon became the source of inspiration in several fields of cultural production. In this work I aim to discuss the construction of the "woman of the future" figure through the articulation between the productions affiliated to this imaginary in clothing and interior decoration. The study covers the 1960s and 1970s and is centered on the representations of domestic interiors published by Casa & Jardim magazine and the editorials and advertisements for clothing published by magazines Claudia and Manequim. These publications put into circulation a series of imagery and textual resources that demonstrated aspects of the time’s social behavior, serving as basis for the investigation of the new representations of femininities which appeared in that period. The choice to focus on the articulation between interior decoration and clothing is based on the historically constructed relation between these materialities and the female body, therefore being an important part in the construction of gender, class and generation identities. With this work I intend to show that the materialities of domestic interiors and clothing inspired by the space age iconography acted as devices that created and reinforced notions of femininity.

The thesis deals with the impact of orofacial cleft (cleft lip and palate) on family psychosomatics within the psycho-social-ethical framework. It summarises the history, classification and treatment of cleft disorders, followed by an analysis of real-life problems occuring in the process of taking care of a baby with orofacial cleft, specifies terms frequently used when discussing orofacial cleft as a stigma: stigma and stigmatisation, norm and normality, beauty and ugliness.The phenomena of fear and pain, difficulty in communication with the child{\crq}s and the parents{\crq} immediate social surroundings and, the barriers between experts and the parents are dealt with in the thesis. The thesis focuses on orofacial cleft anomalies in connection with Christian ethics. It analyses the relation of abortion and orofacial disorders and the role of hope in the process of taking care and upbringing of a child suffering from this disorder.

This thesis deals with relationship of music and theology. It stems from history of development of the philosophic judgement on the notion of ?musica? in antiquity as well as from the contemporary conceptions and definitions of music. Subsequently it proceeds to the presentation of selected writings of both historical and contemporary theologists? dealing with the subject of the art of music. Based on their analysis this thesis comes to the conclusion that a relationship between theology and music indeed exists and their dialog mutually enriches both of these disciplines. Music transcends the limited capabilities of speech and with its own instruments it speaks about the infinite God. This central thought at which the thesis arrives, is concretely documented in musical activities and pieces of work by selected composers of classical music.