The way mass is distributed in galaxies plays a major role in shaping their evolution across cosmic time. The galaxy's total mass is usually determined by tracing the motion of stars in its potential, which can be probed observationally by measuring stellar spectra at different distances from the galactic centre, whose kinematics is used to constrain dynamical models. A class of such models, commonly used to accurately determine the distribution of luminous and dark matter in galaxies, is that of equilibrium models. In this Thesis, a novel approach to the design of equilibrium dynamical models, in which the distribution function is an analytic function of the action integrals, is presented. Axisymmetric and rotating models are used to explain observations of a sample of nearby early-type galaxies in the Calar Alto Legacy Integral Field Area survey. Photometric and spectroscopic data for round and flattened galaxies are well fitted by the models, which are then used to get the galaxies' total mass distribution and orbital anisotropy. The time evolution of massive early-type galaxies is also investigated with numerical models. Their structural properties (mass, size, velocity dispersion) are observed to evolve, on average, with redshift. In particular, they appear to be significantly more compact at higher redshift, at fixed stellar mass, so it is interesting to investigate what drives such evolution. This Thesis focuses on the role played by dark-matter haloes: their mass-size and mass-velocity dispersion correlations evolve similarly to the analogous correlations of ellipticals; at fixed halo mass, the haloes are more compact at higher redshift, similarly to massive galaxies; a simple model, in which all the galaxy's size and velocity-dispersion evolution is due to the cosmological evolution of the underlying halo population, reproduces the observed size and velocity-dispersion of massive compact early-type galaxies up to redshift of about 2.

The kinematics is a fundamental tool to infer the dynamical structure of galaxies and to understand their formation and evolution. Spectroscopic observations of gas emission lines are often used to derive rotation curves and velocity dispersions. It is however difficult to disentangle these two quantities in low spatial-resolution data because of beam smearing. In this thesis, we present 3D-Barolo, a new software to derive the gas kinematics of disk galaxies from emission-line data-cubes. The code builds tilted-ring models in the 3D observational space and compares them with the actual data-cubes. 3D-Barolo works with data at a wide range of spatial resolutions without being affected by instrumental biases. We use 3D-Barolo to derive rotation curves and velocity dispersions of several galaxies in both the local and the high-redshift Universe. We run our code on HI observations of nearby galaxies and we compare our results with 2D traditional approaches. We show that a 3D approach to the derivation of the gas kinematics has to be preferred to a 2D approach whenever a galaxy is resolved with less than about 20 elements across the disk. We moreover analyze a sample of galaxies at z~1, observed in the H-alpha line with the KMOS/VLT spectrograph. Our 3D modeling reveals that the kinematics of these high-z systems is comparable to that of local disk galaxies, with steeply-rising rotation curves followed by a flat part and H-alpha velocity dispersions of 15-40 km/s over the whole disks. This evidence suggests that disk galaxies were already fully settled about 7-8 billion years ago. In summary, 3D-Barolo is a powerful and robust tool to separate physical and instrumental effects and to derive a reliable kinematics. The analysis of large samples of galaxies at different redshifts with 3D-Barolo will provide new insights on how galaxies assemble and evolve throughout cosmic time.

The study of supermassive black hole (SMBH) accretion during their phase of activity (hence becoming active galactic nuclei, AGN), and its relation to the host-galaxy growth, requires large datasets of AGN, including a significant fraction of obscured sources. X-ray data are strategic in AGN selection, because at X-ray energies the contamination from non-active galaxies is far less significant than in optical/infrared surveys, and the selection of obscured AGN, including also a fraction of heavily obscured AGN, is much more effective. In this thesis, I present the results of the Chandra COSMOS Legacy survey, a 4.6 Ms X-ray survey covering the equatorial COSMOS area. The COSMOS Legacy depth (flux limit f=2x10^(-16) erg/s/cm^(-2) in the 0.5-2 keV band) is significantly better than that of other X-ray surveys on similar area, and represents the path for surveys with future facilities, like Athena and X-ray Surveyor. The final Chandra COSMOS Legacy catalog contains 4016 point-like sources, 97% of which with redshift. 65% of the sources are optically obscured and potentially caught in the phase of main BH growth. We used the sample of 174 Chandra COSMOS Legacy at z>3 to place constraints on the BH formation scenario. We found a significant disagreement between our space density and the predictions of a physical model of AGN activation through major-merger. This suggests that in our luminosity range the BH triggering through secular accretion is likely preferred to a major-merger triggering scenario. Thanks to its large statistics, the Chandra COSMOS Legacy dataset, combined with the other multiwavelength COSMOS catalogs, will be used to answer questions related to a large number of astrophysical topics, with particular focus on the SMBH accretion in different luminosity and redshift regimes.

Microfinance is an initiative which seeks to address financial inclusion, micro-entrepreneurship, and poverty reduction without over burdening governments. However, the current sector of microfinance is still heavily dependent on the good will of donors. The over-reliance on donations is a feature which threatens the long term sustainability of microfinance. Much has been written about this reliance, but research to date hasn’t empirically examined the effect of regulation as a mediator. This is a critical area of study because regulation directly affects Microfinance Institutions’ (MFI) innovation, and innovation is what shapes the future of microfinance. This thesis considers the role that regulation plays in affecting MFI’s and their ability to innovate in products, services and long-term sustainability via access to capital. Interviews were undertaken with stakeholders in MFI’s, NGO’s, Self-Regulating Bodies, and Regulators in India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. This thesis discusses findings from interviews in relation to regulatory measures regarding financial self-sustainability of MFI’s. The conclusions of this thesis have implications for policy and inform the microfinance literature.

Recent studies have revealed a variety of left–right asymmetries among vertebrates and invertebrates. In many species, left- and right-lateralized individuals coexist, but in unequal numbers (‘population-level’ lateralization). It has been argued that brain lateralization increases individual efficiency (e.g. avoiding unnecessary duplication of neural circuitry and reducing interference between functions), thus counteracting the ecological disadvantages of lateral biases in behaviour (making individual behaviour more predictable to other organisms). However, individual efficiency does not require a definite proportion of left- and right-lateralized individuals. Thus, such arguments do not explain population-level lateralization. It has been shown that, in the context of prey–predator interactions, population-level lateralization can arise as an evolutionarily stable strategy when individually asymmetrical organisms must coordinate their behaviour with that of other asymmetrical organisms. I extended the mathematical model showing that populations consisting of left- and right-lateralized individuals in unequal numbers can be evolutionarily stable, based solely on strategic factors arising from the balance between antagonistic (competitive) and synergistic (cooperative) interactions. I also provided empirical evidence to support the prediction from theoretical models suggesting that population-level lateralization is more likely to have evolved in social than in non-social species. I compared olfactory lateralization in two species of Hymenoptera Apoidea, the honeybee (Apis mellifera), a social species, and the mason bee (Osmia cornuta), a solitary species. Recall of the olfactory memory 1 h after training to associate an odour with a sugar reward, as revealed by the bee extending its proboscis when presented with the trained odour (Proboscis Extension Reflex – PER), was better in honeybees trained with their right than with their left antenna. No such asymmetry was observed in mason bees. Similarly, electroantennographic (EAG) responses to a floral volatile compound and to an alarm pheromone component were higher in the right than in the left antenna in honeybees but not in mason bees. Further experiments were conducted to test the lateralized recall of olfactory memory in honeybees, following conditioning of the PER, at 1 or 6 h after training, using a range of different odours. Results confirmed previous evidence that bees learn to associate a new odour of a positive stimulus mainly in neural circuits accessed via their right antenna, and that, after a period of a few hours, memory consolidation occurred accompanied by antennal asymmetry, with bees now being able to recall the odour mainly when using their left antenna. I showed that this peculiar dynamic of memory traces has severe consequences when odours are already known to the bees (either for a biological reason or as a result of previous experience) and are thus already present in the long-term memory store. Response competition arising from multiple memory traces could be observed, with bees showing unexpected lack of specificity in their longer-term olfactory memories. The behavioural finding that honeybees are better in learning to associate odours with a sugar reward when they are trained through their right antenna can been partially explained by the stronger responsiveness of the olfactory receptor neurons inside the right antenna, as shown in my experiments by EAG recordings. I checked whether this in turn might be associated due to a difference in the number of the olfactory sensilla present on the right and on the left antennae. I found that the number of olfactory sensilla is higher on the right antenna with respect to the left antenna. Surprisingly, I also observed for the first time that the number of non-olfactory sensilla was significantly higher on the left antenna than on the right antenna in all segments except the apex. I investigated the generality and phylogenetic origins of the antennal asymmetry found in the honeybee Apis mellifera by examining three species of Australian stingless social bees (Trigona carbonaria, Trigona hockingsi and Austroplebia australis). Meliponinae (stingless bees) are much older compared to Apidae, Bombinae and Euglossinae; thus, it is maintained that the honeybees did not evolve from the stingless bees but rather independently from some other (asocial) bee type and that any social features the two lines of evolution now share are the result of convergent rather than divergent evolution. I found that stingless bees (Meliponinae) have the same laterality as honeybees (Apinae). This evidence suggests that lateralization evolved prior to the evolutionary divergence of these groups or that it evolved separately in each line. Furthermore, since honeybees and stingless bees are the only highly social bees, it seems that lateralization at the population level was convergent and evolved in association with social behaviour, supporting the hypotheses of the theoretical models that population level lateralization is more likely to evolve in social rather than in non-social species.

Forest models are tools for explaining and predicting the dynamics of forest ecosystems. They simulate forest behavior by integrating information on the underlying processes in trees, soil and atmosphere. Bayesian calibration is the application of probability theory to parameter estimation. It is a method, applicable to all models, that quantifies output uncertainty and identifies key parameters and variables. This study aims at testing the Bayesian procedure for calibration to different types of forest models, to evaluate their performances and the uncertainties associated with them. In particular,we aimed at 1) applying a Bayesian framework to calibrate forest models and test their performances in different biomes and different environmental conditions, 2) identifying and solve structure-related issues in simple models, and 3) identifying the advantages of additional information made available when calibrating forest models with a Bayesian approach. We applied the Bayesian framework to calibrate the Prelued model on eight Italian eddy-covariance sites in Chapter 2. The ability of Prelued to reproduce the estimated Gross Primary Productivity (GPP) was tested over contrasting natural vegetation types that represented a wide range of climatic and environmental conditions. The issues related to Prelued's multiplicative structure were the main topic of Chapter 3: several different MCMC-based procedures were applied within a Bayesian framework to calibrate the model, and their performances were compared. A more complex model was applied in Chapter 4, focusing on the application of the physiology-based model HYDRALL to the forest ecosystem of Lavarone (IT) to evaluate the importance of additional information in the calibration procedure and their impact on model performances, model uncertainties, and parameter estimation. Overall, the Bayesian technique proved to be an excellent and versatile tool to successfully calibrate forest models of different structure and complexity, on different kind and number of variables and with a different number of parameters involved.

I governi e le organizzazioni sanitarie internazionali ribadiscono da tempo l’importanza dell’attivazione di processi di partecipazione al fine di coinvolgere cittadini e stakeholders sui temi riguardanti la salute e il benessere delle comunità. La partecipazione dei cittadini negli interventi di promozione della salute può rafforzare l'empowerment, migliorare la salute generale e ridurre le disuguaglianze. In coerenza con queste premesse, la Regione Emilia-Romagna ha promosso e finanziato un programma estensivo biennale “Guadagnare salute in contesti di comunità”, con lo scopo di promuovere processi partecipativi sui temi di sani stili di vita attraverso un lavoro intersettoriale, interdisciplinare e con il forte coinvolgimento delle comunità locali. Il programma ha previsto la realizzazione di 6 progetti che hanno coinvolto diversi territori della Regione. Analizzare e valutare la partecipazione dei cittadini e la sua efficacia, all’interno queste progettazioni, è molto complesso anche per le diverse posizioni dei decisori e degli operatori sanitari sul concetto stesso di partecipazione e coinvolgimento della comunità. A tale scopo sono stati realizzati due studi quali-quantitativi. Il primo studio qualitativo ha cercato di approfondire la natura delle rappresentazioni della partecipazione all’interno di 17 dirigenti e funzionari che hanno coordinato e implementato a livello regionale e locale i progetti di comunità regionali finanziati. Nel tentativo di indagare le relazioni di una specifica partecipazione di qualità e per le ambiguità emerse dal primo studio e dalla letteratura (Dowling et al.,2004; Granner&Sharpe, 2004; Aveling&Jovchelovitch,2013) il secondo studio ha cercato di comprendere in che modo l’esperienza di una qualità della partecipazione, delle collaborazioni interdisciplinari e della percezione di contribuire a livello decisionale possa essere in relazione con il senso di comunità, l’empowerment, la soddisfazione per la partecipazione e l’intenzione a continuare a partecipare. Gli studi confermano le importanti relazioni tra la partecipazione di qualità e precisi outcome e aprono la strada a futuri approfondimenti specifici. / Citizens’ participation in health promotion interventions, in order to strengthen community empowerment, improve overall health and reduce inequalities is a central assumption of community health psychology and for the most important health organizations and Governments. The study of citizens’ participation and its effectiveness is quite complex also for the different positions about the meaning itself of participation and about which kind of participation’s experience can be useful for who is involved. These issues so far not been explored among health workers, health’s partnership and citizens involved in community-based health project. In the north of Italy, the Emilia-Romagna Region has promoted and funded an extensive two-year program "Gaining health in community settings" with the aim to promote participatory processes on health issue of through work across sectors, interdisciplinary and with the strong involvement of local communities and citizens. In order to understand the representations, ideas and meanings attributed to participation in the health promotion intervention, from who promotes designs and facilitates participatory processes will be presented a qualitative study carried out on 17 interviews of managers and health care professionals who have contributed to the planning and implementation of various community projects. Also, as pointed out by different authors (Dowling et al., 2004; Granner & Sharpe, 2004;Aveling & Jovchelovitch, 2013) it has become increasingly necessary to shift the focus from a general participation to specific processes involved in a quality participation and their possible relation. Starting from these premises was investigated through a questionnaire to 234 participants, active in the design and implementation of these projects, which processes are involved in who have a higher "quality participation" participatory experiences. Specifically, the relationship of quality participation processes have been investigated with the sense of community, empowerment, the perception of efficacy, the satisfaction of the participation and the intention to continue to participate.

Bibliography : leaves 166-187. / 187 leaves : / Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library. / Looks at the laboratory development and clinical use of new techniques for bladder augmentation, all of which result in a neo-bladder lined by urothelium. The combination of autoaugmentation and demucosalised enterocystoplasty was explored in a sheep model. / Thesis (M.D.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Surgery, 1995?

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