This thesis attempts to answer the question "Can we devise a language for interpretation of behavioural simulation of engineered systems (of arbitrary complexity) in terms of the systems’ purpose?" It does so by presenting a language that represents a device’s function as achieving some purpose if the device is in a state that is intended to trigger the function and the function’s expected effect is present. While most work in the qualitative and model-based reasoning community has been concerned with simulation, this language is presented as a basis for interpret- ing the results of the simulation of a system, enabling these results to be expressed in terms of the system’s purpose. This, in turn, enables the automatic production of draft design analysis reports using model based analysis of the subject system. The increasing behavioural complexity of modern systems (resulting from the increasing use of microprocessors and software) has led to a need to interpret the results of simulation in cases beyond the capabilities of earlier functional mod- elling languages. The present work is concerned with such cases and presents a functional modelling language that enables these complex systems to be analysed. Specifically, the language presented herein allows functional description and interpretation of the following. • Cases where it is desired to distinguish between partial and complete failure of a function. • Systems whose functionality depends on achieving a sequence of intermittent effects. • Cases where a function being achieved in an untimely manner (typically late) needs to be distinguished from a function failing completely. • Systems with functions (such as warning functions) that depend upon the state of some other system function. This offers significant increases both in the range of systems and of design analysis tasks for which the language can be used, compared to earlier work.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2003. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 152-160). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2003. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 152-160). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Hamburg.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2007. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes bibliographical references (p. 307-323).

published_or_final_version / Public Administration / Master / Master of Social Sciences

Thesis (M.A.)--City University of Hong Kong, 2009. / "A dissertation undertaken in partial fulfillment of the requirements fo the M.A. in Public Policy & Management, City University of Hong Kong." Title from PDF t.p. (viewed on Sept. 21, 2009) Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.Soc.Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 1989. / Also available in print.

[pt] A Constituição da República de 1988 consolidou uma ampla gama de direitos fundamentais, juntamente com uma arquitetura institucional que buscou dar concretude a esses direitos, através de instrumentos jurídicos processuais que legitimaram a propositura de demandas sobre direitos difusos e coletivos, fortalecendo o poder judiciário e a representação funcional. Destaca-se nessa arquitetura o papel das Ações Civis Públicas (ACPs), com a legitimação da sociedade civil para realizar a propositura de tal ação. Entretanto, junto à sociedade instituiu-se outro ator capaz de mobilizar tais instrumentos em defesa da sociedade e dos princípios democráticos, o Ministério Público (MP). Neste cenário, é que a Defensoria Pública, instituição inicialmente integrante do poder executivo e com atribuição de representar em juízo parcelas subalternas da população, conseguiu adquirir autonomia funcional e administrativa. A mobilização da Defensoria promoveu desdobramentos no âmbito interno e externo de tal instituição. No âmbito externo, destaca-se a possibilidade de propor Ação Civil Pública. Dessa forma, a questão-problema que se coloca para a pesquisa é: Como a Defensoria Pública vem exercendo a prerrogativa de tutelar direitos difusos e coletivos? Frente a isso, assume-se como objetivo geral mapear todas as ACPs propostas pelas Defensorias Públicas de Minas Gerias (DPMG), Rio de Janeiro (DPRJ) e São Paulo (DPESP) nos últimos 5 anos. Desdobram-se como objetivos específicos: mapear as ACPs propostas nos últimos cincos anos nos estados pesquisados; descrever a evolução institucional dos órgão estudados; compreender a opção da CF/88 pelo acesso à justiça pela mão do estado; e realizar uma análise crítica do conceito de representação funcional. Tal caminho possibilitou uma reflexão crítica acerca da expansão da representação funcional e da judiciliazação em nosso país que, até o momento, não conheceu limites. / [en] The Republican Constitution of 1988 consolidated a wide range of fundamental rights, alongside an institutional architecture which aimed to materialize such rights, through judicial process instruments that legitimized the proposal of demands regarding diffuse and collective rights, strengthening the judicial power and the functional representation. Within this architecture, the role of the Public Civil Actions (ACPs, in Portuguese) can be highlighted, with the legitimacy of civil society to realize such proposed action. However, within society it was instituted another actor capable of mobilizing such instruments in defense of society and democratic principles, the Public Ministry (MP, in Portuguese). In this scenario, the Public Defense, an institution that at first was part of the executive branch with the task of representing in court the lower classes of population, managed to gain functional and administrative autonomy. The mobilization of the Public Defense promoted outcomes within and outside such institution. In the external realm, we highlight the possibility of proposing a Public Civilian Action. Therefore, the guiding question of this research is: How has the Public Defense been exercising the prerogative of tutelage of diffuse and collective rights? As such, we take as a main goal to map all the ACPs proposed by the Public Defense of Minas Gerais (DPMG, in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro (DPRJ) and São Paulo (DPSP) in the last 5 years. The specific goals unfold in: mapping the ACPs proposed in the last five years in the researched states; describing the institutional evolution of the studied organs; comprehending the option made by the Constitution of 1988 of access to justice by the hand of the state; and conducting a critical analysis of the concept of functional representation. Such path made it possible to reflect critically regarding the expansion of functional representation as well as about the judicialization of our country, which has known to boundaries so far.

The study constituted an investigation for concept images and mathematical reasoning of Grade 11 learners on the concepts of reflection, translation and stretch of functions. The aim was to gain awareness of any conceptions that learners have about these transformations. The researcher’s experience in high school and university mathematics teaching had laid a basis to establish the research problem. The subjects of the study were 96 Grade 11 mathematics learners from three conveniently sampled South African high schools. The non-return of consent forms by some learners and absenteeism during the days of writing by other learners, resulted in the subsequent reduction of the amount of respondents below the anticipated 100. The preliminary investigation, which had 30 learners, was successful in validating instruments and projecting how the main results would be like. A mixed method exploratory design was employed for the study, for it was to give in-depth results after combining two data collection methods; a written diagnostic test and recorded follow-up interviews. All the 96 participants wrote the test and 14 of them were interviewed. It was found that learners’ reasoning was more based on their concept images than on formal definitions. The most interesting were verbal concept images, some of which were very accurate, others incomplete and yet others exhibited misconceptions. There were a lot of inconsistencies in the students’ constructed definitions and incompetency in using graphical and symbolical representations of reflection, translation and stretch of functions. For example, some learners were misled by negative sign on a horizontal translation to the right to think that it was a horizontal translation to the left. Others mistook stretch for enlargement both verbally and contextually. The research recommends that teachers should use more than one method when teaching transformations of functions, e.g., practically-oriented and process-oriented instructions, with practical examples, to improve the images of the concepts that learners develop. Within their methodologies, teachers should make concerted effort to be aware of the diversity of ways in which their learners think of the actions and processes of reflecting, translating and stretching, the terms they use to describe them, and how they compare the original objects to images after transformations. They should build upon incomplete definitions, misconceptions and other inconsistencies to facilitate development of accurate conceptions more schematically connected to the empirical world. There is also a need for accurate assessments of successes and shortcomings that learners display in the quest to define and master mathematical concepts but taking cognisance of their limitations of language proficiency in English, which is not their first language. Teachers need to draw a clear line between the properties of stretch and enlargement, and emphasize the need to include the invariant line in the definition of stretch. To remove confusion around the effect of “–” sign, more practice and spiral testing of this knowledge could be done to constantly remind learners of that property. Lastly, teachers should find out how to use smartphones, i-phones, i-pods, tablets and other technological devices for teaching and learning, and utilize them fully to their own and the learners’ advantage in learning these and other concepts and skills / Mathematics Education / D.Phil. (Mathematics, Science and Technology Education)