Thesis (M.A.)--University of North Carolina at Wilmington, 2003. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaf : 39).

Proefschrift Universiteit van Amsterdam. / Met bibliogr., index, lit. opg. - Met samenvatting in het Indonesisch en Nederlands.

München, Techn. Universiẗat, Diss., 2003.

The present paper deals solely with parasites of marine fishes of the family Enbiotocidae represented in the American Pacific according to Special Publications no. 2, American Fisheries Society, 1960, by 20 species, all of which are marine except the Tule perch, Hysterocarpus traski (Gibbons) from fresh water. In Tomales and Bodega Bays 174 fishes representing 9 embiotocid species were examined and found to harbor 6 species of digenetic trem todes, including one here in described as new.

Based on the democratic values that the Swedish curriculum wants to mediate, the aim of thisstudy is to investigate what support pupils with speech anxiety receive and wishes to receivein grade 4-6. This study is a multi-method research - a research that combines qualitative andquantitative methods within the same project. The qualitative method is used to answer thefirst two research questions directed at the teachers. These are “How do three teachers planthe oral parts considering pupils with speech anxiety?” and “What kind of support isparticularly favorable according to the teacher's experience?” The quantitative method is usedto answer the last research question addressed to pupils which is “What support do theteachers’ pupils want if they have speech anxiety?” The theoretical framework used for this study is Pauline Gibbons' understanding of theconcept scaffolding which was originally founded by Lev Vygotsky and is a branch of hissociocultural theory. The results of this study show that some teaching methods andadaptations are particularly effective. These include: language development strategies, givingpupils time for preparation and to practice at home/with friends, present orally only for theteacher or a small group, join the group that presents without speaking, have a friend standingwith them at presentations, record a video as an alternative and to plan oral sub-goals in thedevelopment talks. Another key part is the teacher's behavior towards and relationship withthe pupils, which can play a crucial role in their development. Pupils with speech anxiety tendto not tell the teacher about it unless they have a good relationship, which can lead to notgetting the help that they need. The classroom climate is also addressed as an importantaspect. Overall, the teachers and pupils agree on which support is most successful. Theconclusion of this study is that pupils with speech anxiety performs better in environmentsthey experience as safe and with people they feel safe with.

Gibbons (Hylobatidae), taxonomically apes, have been largely ignored in cognitive research. This is surprising given their unique phylogenetic position, being intermediate between the monkeys and great apes, and the available diversity of extant species. They are therefore, ideally placed to study the evolution of cognitive abilities in the hominoid line; they offer the opportunity to determine how the mental capacities of primates have changed through the transition from monkey to ape. This research aimed to begin to fill the void in our knowledge regarding the cognitive abilities of this family through investigations of their object manipulation and tool-use skills, relating the findings to the evolution of the hominoid brain. In a raking-in task, where the gibbons were presented with a tool that could be used to draw in an out-of-reach food item, these apes evidenced potentially insightful comprehension of object relationships when the tool and goal object were presented in direct alignment. They also proficiently used a rake to retrieve a reward while avoiding a trap that presented an impediment to goal attainment; however, in general, they required a period of learning to perform consistently. Once the necessary relationships between the tool and goal object were not physically situated in the task layout, as in true tool-use manipulation, the gibbons performed poorly. In a raking-in task where the necessary orientation for success had to be produced by the subject, no individual evidenced foresightful comprehension of the required action. There was some suggestion of learning the correct behaviour through associative processes. This finding was also supported by evidence from dipping experiments where the gibbons were provided with a transparent box containing a liquid reward and sticks that could be used as tools to access it. No individual developed dipping behaviour. The gibbons therefore, performed well on tasks when the salient relationships between tool and goal were directly perceivable. Once they became responsible for producing that relationship, performance was poor. When the necessary orientation between the tool and goal was not provided by the experimenter, the gibbons evidenced low motivation to manipulate the objects. Given the gibbons’ requirement for direct visual feedback to comprehend the causal interactions between objects, this likely hindered their learning process. Failure therefore on the true tool-use tasks may not represent a particular cognitive limitation in these apes. A consistent finding was that the hoolock gibbons (Bunopithecus) were the most attentive and effective of the four gibbon genera. This is potentially due to the more variable natural environment experienced by these apes, driving selection for greater exploratory tendencies and flexibility of behaviour. The findings from this, and other work on primate cognition, suggest that contrary to propositions put forward by proponents of modular accounts of hominid brain evolution, the cognitive architecture of non-human primates contains neural mechanisms capable of processing technical information that may not be completely encapsulated. Suggestions that no non-human possesses specialised cognitive machinery for understanding objects as tools are also challenged.

The objectives of this study are twofold: firstly, to give an account of the current methods of knowledge production, and secondly to contribute a consultation piece on oncologists perceptions of non-technical issues regarding the ethical, legal and social implications of microfluidic lab-on-chip technology (MF LOC). Two connected theses statements are put forth. First, understanding the transformations of knowledge production will allow for a more socially and ethically informed mode of governance to emerge. Second, it is important to consider who might use the technology and how it might impact institutions and individuals. <p>Interviews were conducted with 31 Canadian oncologists during August 2004 to February 2005. Qualitative analysis was used to examine the oncologists responses. It was found that of the different types of knowledge production that were reviewed (Mode-1, Mode-2, Triple Helix, and Post-normal science) the Triple Helix thesis was most supported. However, an integration of characteristics of Mode-2 with the Triple Helix thesis best accounts for the current description of knowledge production. The principles inherent in Post-Normal Science provide a starting point for developing an approach for building capacity for an independent institution that examines the ethical, legal and social concerns regarding transformative technologies. In relation to the second thesis, the results indicate that MF LOC devices have great potential to transform institutional practices and affect individual lives. And it is important to understand that the oncologists studied constructed their understanding of MF LOC technology within a scientific and biomedical repertoire consequently, future research should assess the perceptions and concerns of other groups of people that are different from the scientific and biomedical repertoire.

The objectives of this study are twofold: firstly, to give an account of the current methods of knowledge production, and secondly to contribute a consultation piece on oncologists perceptions of non-technical issues regarding the ethical, legal and social implications of microfluidic lab-on-chip technology (MF LOC). Two connected theses statements are put forth. First, understanding the transformations of knowledge production will allow for a more socially and ethically informed mode of governance to emerge. Second, it is important to consider who might use the technology and how it might impact institutions and individuals. <p>Interviews were conducted with 31 Canadian oncologists during August 2004 to February 2005. Qualitative analysis was used to examine the oncologists responses. It was found that of the different types of knowledge production that were reviewed (Mode-1, Mode-2, Triple Helix, and Post-normal science) the Triple Helix thesis was most supported. However, an integration of characteristics of Mode-2 with the Triple Helix thesis best accounts for the current description of knowledge production. The principles inherent in Post-Normal Science provide a starting point for developing an approach for building capacity for an independent institution that examines the ethical, legal and social concerns regarding transformative technologies. In relation to the second thesis, the results indicate that MF LOC devices have great potential to transform institutional practices and affect individual lives. And it is important to understand that the oncologists studied constructed their understanding of MF LOC technology within a scientific and biomedical repertoire consequently, future research should assess the perceptions and concerns of other groups of people that are different from the scientific and biomedical repertoire.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Western Australia, 2006.

Cooperative behaviours among individuals play a crucial role in social interactions. There is a special interest in investigating the occurrence of cooperation among apes, because this knowledge could as well shed light on evolutionary processes and help understand the origin and development of cooperation in humans and primates in general. Gibbons are phylogenetically intermediate between the great apes and monkeys, and therefore represent a unique opportunity for comparisons. The aim of the present study was to discover whether or not gibbons (Hylobates lar) show cooperative behaviours among each other. In order to test for the respective behaviours, the gibbons were presented with a commonly used experimental cooperative problem-solving task. Additionally, social behaviours were recorded during behavioural observations. The gibbons in this study did not exhibit cooperative behaviours during the problemsolving task. Behavioural observations revealed that the gibbons spent significantly more time ‘out of arm’s reach to everyone’, suggesting that they are less involved in social interactions than other, more cooperative apes. Both findings combined support the “social brain hypothesis”, which predicts that cognitive abilities are constrained by the complexity of the animals’ social life. Based on previous findings of occurrences of cooperative behaviours in two other primate lineages (i.e. New World monkeys and Old World monkeys) it was suggested that cooperation in primates was a matter of a convergent evolutionary processes rather than a homologous trait.