Mémoire numérisé par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

Thèse numérisée par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

Fuzzy attributes are used to quantify imprecise data that model real world objects. To effectively use fuzzy attributes, a fuzzy membership function must be defined to provide the boundaries for the fuzzy data. The initialization of these membership function values should allow the data to converge to a stable membership value in the shortest time possible. The paper compares three initialization methods, Random, Midpoint and Random Proportional, to determine which method optimizes convergence. The comparison experiments suggest the use of the Random Proportional method.

Clustered data often feature nested structures and repeated measures. If coupled with binary outcomes and large samples (>10,000), this complexity can lead to non-convergence problems for the desired model especially if random effects are used to account for the clustering. One way to bypass the convergence problem is to split the dataset into small enough sub-samples for which the desired model convergences, and then recombine results from those sub-samples through meta-analysis. We consider two ways to generate sub-samples: the K independent samples approach where the data are split into k mutually-exclusive sub-samples, and the cluster-based approach where naturally existing clusters serve as sub-samples. Estimates or test statistics from either of these sub-sampling approaches can then be recombined using a univariate or multivariate meta-analytic approach. We also provide an innovative approach for simulating clustered and dependent binary data by simulating parameter templates that yield the desired cluster behavior. This approach is used to conduct simulation studies comparing the performance of the K independent samples and cluster-based approaches to generating sub-samples, the results from which are combined either with univariate and multivariate meta-analytic techniques. These studies show that using natural clusters leaded to lower biased test statistics when the number of clusters and treatment effect were large, as compared to the K independent samples approach for both the univariate and multivariate meta-analytic approaches. And the independent samples approach was preferred when the number of clusters and treatment effect were small. We also apply these methods to data on cancer screening behaviors obtained from electronic health records of n=15,652 individuals and showed that these estimated results support the conclusions from the simulation studies.

Thèse numérisée par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

Polyconvexity is a standard assumption on hyperelastic stored energy densities which, together with some growth conditions, ensures the weak lower semicontinuity of the respective energy functional. The present work first reviews known results about gradient polyconvexity, introduced by Benešová, Kružík and Schlömerkemper in 2017. It is an alternative property to polyconvexity, better-suited e.g. for the modelling of shape-memory alloys. The principal result of this thesis is the extension of an elastic material model with gradient polyconvex energy functional to an elastoplastic body and proving the existence of an energetic solution to an associated rate- independent evolution problem, proceeding from previous work of Mielke, Francfort and Mainik. 1

A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Science, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Johannesburg, 2014. / In the present thesis the use of convergence as a tool in functional analyses was investigated, with special focus on comparisons using distantly related species (“convergence approach”). Guidelines for the convergence approach were forumlated and applied in the evaluation of selected hypotheses on the contextualization of early hominins. Additionally, comprehensive reviews on water use in primates were carried out, with special focus on hominoids, including humans. The first description (and video footage) of swimming and diving behaviour in a common chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) and an orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus) were presented here, along with swimming behaviour in other great apes (without video footage). Hypotheses on the loss of instinctive swimming in hominoids were discussed and the Saci last common ancestor hypothesis was proposed. This model suggests that the loss of swimming ability in hominoids is best explained as a consequence of phylogenetic constraints linked to the adaptation to an arboreal life in the last common ancestor of this taxon. Furthermore, several hypotheses on early hominin evolution were reviewed. It was pointed out that several of these hypotheses have similar methodological flaws in the use of analogies to corroborate specific arguments. A hypothesis on the emergence of the habitual bipedalism in early hominins was outlined, arguing that this trait did not evolve in association with a locomotory advantage or for other reasons usually presented in the literature, but as a signal to advertise unprofitability – as a warning signal in an anti-predator strategy. It was argued that fossil evidence does not allow a high resolution of inference concerning incipient traits – traits which are not optimized to fulfil a certain function after a functional change. The consideration of different lines of evidence presented in this thesis indicate that the topic “water use” must be considered in discussions on early hominin evolution. The fact that humans regularly and intensively interact with water can be considered as an indication that in some part of human phylogeny after the hominin/panin split, swimming and diving ability was specifically selected. However, contrary to the view of several proponents of the aquatic hypotheses, it was demonstrated that humans are not absolutely unique concerning their ability to learn to swim and to dive. It is therefore also conceivable that our ability to learn to swim is associated to our cognitive abilities and is not a product of specific selection in our past.

This thesis deals with intellectual property and discusses the legislation of copyright law, trademark law and their possible convergence. The aim of the thesis is to introduce the basic attributes of the two individual pieces of legislation, to show the foundations on which copyright law and trademark law stand and thus to define their common and completely different characters. The thesis is divided into an introduction that brings the subject to the topic, four main chapters and a final conclusion. The first chapter deals with the theoretical context of copyright law and trademark law in the areas of intellectual property rights, intangible property and constitutional establishment in the Czech Republic. In the following two chapters, the two mentioned protections are discussed in more detail. The chapters have a similar classification that helps to understand the individual copyright and trademark elements. Here are described legal regulations both in the international, European and valid law of the Czech Republic and they focus in more detail on the main concepts such as the author, the author's work, trademark, effects or registration proceedings. Important part are also the subchapters on protection options. The fourth chapter is devoted to the main topic of this study, the convergence of...

This thesis analyses the progression of the average wages of the countries in the Eurozone between 1996 and 2017. The purpose of this study is to examine if the wages in those countries have converged during this period and the impact of adopting the Euro had. To answer that question, data has been collected for every country and expose the progression of the average wages relatively to the Eurozone’s average. Furthermore, the thesis employs an econometrical model to conclude if the average wages are statistically different from the Eurozone’s average.  With the above process, this paper concludes that there is no significant indication of wage convergence between all countries during the analysed period. However, by omitting Luxembourg, Finland, France, Ireland, Greece and Portugal there are trends of convergence in the remaining countries, both above and below the Eurozone average wage throughout the period. The econometrical model concludes that Finland and France are the only countries whose average wages are not statistically different from the Eurozone average throughout the analysed period. Finally, the adoption of the Euro does not appear to have an impact in terms of wage convergence.

This thesis aims to provide a brief exposition of some chosen modes of convergence; namely uniform convergence, pointwise convergence and L1 convergence. Theoretical discussion is complemented by simple applications to scientific computing. The latter include solving differential equations with various methods and estimating the convergence, as well as modelling problematic situations to investigate odd behaviors of usually convergent methods.