O presente estudo avaliou a influência do formato do pilar na capacidade retentiva de copings metálicos cimentados sobre implantes. Foram avaliados dois pilares de um mesmo sistema, com as mesmas indicações, mesma altura e mesmo grau de convergência, mas de desenhos diferentes. Dez pilares SynOcta RN e dez pilares sólidos RN de 5,5 milímetros, ambos fabricados pela Straumann USA, e utilizados para coroas e próteses fixas cimentadas, foram fixados com torque de 35 N/cm em vinte réplicas de implante previamente fixadas em blocos de resina. Vinte copings plásticos pré-fabricados para fundição foram encerados, incluídos, fundidos e usinados por um único operador. Posteriormente à inspeção dos copings metálicos em estereomicroscópio, os mesmos foram cimentados (Temp Bond NE) nos pilares, com carga de 5 kg mantida por dez minutos. Após as amostras terem sido armazenadas por 24 horas em 100% de umidade à temperatura ambiente, foram submetidas a ensaio de tração com velocidade de 5 mm/min até o deslocamento dos copings metálicos. A força necessária para o deslocamento foi registrada em kilograma-força e os dados analisados estatisticamente com auxílio do teste T de Student para amostras independentes. A média da força necessária para remoção dos copings metálicos cimentados sobre os pilares SynOcta (11,19 kg) foi estatisticamente superior à observada para os pilares sólidos (10,18 kg). Considerando as limitações deste estudo, podemos concluir que o desenho do pilar influencia significativamente a retenção de copings metálicos. / This study evaluated the influence of the abutment design on the retention of cementretained, implant-supported metallic copings. Two abutments of the same system, with the same height, indications and total occlusal convergence, but of different designs were evaluated. Ten RN SynOcta abutments and ten RN solid titanium abutments both manufactured by Straumann USA and indicated for cement-retained single crowns and fixed partial dentures were tightened to 35Ncm on twenty implant analogs previously placed in resin blocks. Twenty plastic burnout copings were waxed, included, cast and machined by the same operator. After inspected under a stereomicroscope, the copings were cemented (Temp Bond NE) with load of 5 kg maintained for ten minutes. After this, the assemblies were stored for 24h in 100% humidity at room temperature and subjected to a pull-out test at a crosshead speed of 5 mm/min until the displacement of the metallic copings. The load required to dislodge each coping was recorded in kilogram-force and the data were statistically analyzed using the T student test for independent samples. The mean load necessary load to dislodge the metallic copings showed by SynOcta abutments (11,19 kg) was statistically higher than the one for the solid abutments (10,18 kg). With the limitations of this study, we can conclude that the design of the abutment influence significantly the retention of metallic copings.

The diploma thesis deals with comparing metropolitan areas in the Czech Republic and France. The aim of this thesis is evaluate by a comparative analysis the position of metropolitan areas in regional policy of the countries mentioned above. The comparison is based on analysis of expert texts and with help of four evaluation criteria (state support, local support, territorial classification, topics solve within metropolitan areas). The comparison showed that in regional policy of Czech Republic are metropolitan areas included considerably weak, in compare of situation of metropolitan areas in regional policy of France. This fact is explained by absence of state interest. Due to the high fragmentation of settlement system, not too long support of municipal cooperation is not helpful for this situation. From the point of view of territorial classification are disunity in demarcation of metropolitan areas, or overall interest in its creation only from EU´s pressure assessed as negative. Next, the level of institutionalization in term of improved the position of metropolitan areas in Czech regional policy is assessed. From the findings about metropolitan governance in France and in other European countries it was possible to construct the suggestions of institutionalization metropolitan areas in Czech Republic.

This thesis investigated children's school achievement in terms of an integration of three theories of achievement motivation. The three theoretical outlooks were expectancy-value theory (EVT), implicit theories of intelligence (ITI), and flow theory (FT). The first of two studies was an exploratory investigation of the effectiveness of each theory independently and combined to predict children's achievement in four school subjects. The subject areas were maths, reading, instrumental music and sport. Participants were 84 children (40 females and 44 males) aged 9 to 10 years, one of each child's parents, and school teachers of each child in the four subject areas. All data were collected through questionnaires based on the three models. The results indicated that EVT and FT but not ITI accounted for a significant amount of the variance in children's achievement, including effects for subject area and gender. A second confirmatory study tested EVT, FT and an integrated model for the prediction of achievement in maths, reading and instrumental music. The participants were a further 141 children (74 females and 67 males) aged 10 to 11 years, and a parent and teachers of each child. Data collection using questionnaires occurred early in the school year (Timel) and approximately five months later (Time2). For EVT, children and parents’ competence beliefs were significant predictors of children's achievement in each subject area. Females tended to believe themselves more competent at reading and instrumental music and also valued these subjects more highly than boys. Modeling results for flow theory indicated that children's emotional responses to classes (happiness and confusion) were significant predictors of achievement, the type of emotion varying between subject areas and time periods. Females generally had a more positive emotional reaction to reading and instrumental music classes than males did. The integrated model results indicated significant relationships between EVT and flow theories for each subject area, with EVT explaining most achievement variance in the integrated model. Children's and parents’ competence beliefs were the main predictors of achievement at Timel and 2, Subject area and gender differences were found which provide direction for future research. Anecdotal reports of parents and teachers often attest to individual differences in children's involvement in various school domains. Even among children of apparently similar intelligence, it is not uncommon to find one who likes nothing better than to work on a mathematics problem while another much prefers to read a novel or play a musical instrument Some children appear to achieve good results for most of the activities in which they are engaged while others achieve in a less consistent manner, sometimes particularly excelling in one activity. Some children respond to failure experiences with a determination to improve their performance in the future while others react with resignation and acceptance of their low ability. Some children appear to become totally absorbed in the activity of playing sport while others cannot wait for the game to end. The primary research objective guiding the current thesis is how children's thoughts and feelings about school subjects differ and are related to their school achievement. A perusal of the achievement motivation literature indicates several possible models and concepts that can be applied to explain individual differences in children's school achievement. Concepts such as academic self-concept, multiple intelligences, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, self-beliefs, competence beliefs, subjective task values, mastery and performance goals, ‘Flow’ experiences and social motivation are just some of the constructs used to explain children's achievement motivation, both within and between various activity domains. These constructs are proposed by researchers from different theoretical perspectives to achievement motivation. Although there is much literature relevant to each perspective, there is little research indicating how the various perspectives may relate to each other. The current thesis will begin by reviewing three currently popular theoretical orientations cited in achievement motivation research: subjective beliefs and values; implicit theories of intelligence, and flow experience and family complexity. Following this review, a framework will be proposed for testing the determinants of children's school achievement, both within each of the three theoretical perspectives and also in combination.

Political and environmental chaos recently experienced in Haiti has damaged the economic sector and telecommunication infrastructure. Developmental data from Haiti show 3 major trends: inadequate social and economic development, insufficient benefits from the global economy, and poorly planned information technology infrastructure (ITI). The specific problem addressed in this study is a knowledge gap in the views of stakeholders within Haiti's national culture on how the country's ITI can be developed to better engage Haiti in 21st century global and digital economy. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the views of 48 expert participants regarding ITI development within Haiti's national culture to better engage Haiti with the 21st century global and digital economy. To satisfy the goal of this exploratory research a case study research design was used, and data were collected from multiple sources including in-depth interviews of 48 participants, observational field notes, and archival documentation. The analysis of the archival data, online surveys, and semi-structured interviews of expert informants revealed that nationwide broadband internet availability has been achieved, which has resulted in internet usage increasing from 2% in 2002 to 12% in 2009. The study participants noted the lack of reliable access to electricity limits the implementation of ITI in the nation. Legislation and financial investment are needed to improve ITI in Haiti. The academic significance and social change implications of the study include filling the knowledge gap of the status of ITI in Haiti, helping the national development of a modernized ITI well-connected to the global economy, and a better quality of life for Haiti's people.

The replication of human intelligence, learning and reasoning by means of computer algorithms is termed Artificial Intelligence (Al) and the interaction of such algorithms with the physical world can be achieved using robotics. The work described in this thesis investigates the applications of concept learning (an approach which takes its inspiration from biological motivations and from survival instincts in particular) to robot control and path planning. The methodology of concept learning has been applied using learning decision trees (DTs) which induce domain knowledge from a finite set of training vectors which in turn describe systematically a physical entity and are used to train a robot to learn new concepts and to adapt its behaviour. To achieve behaviour learning, this work introduces the novel approach of hierarchical learning and knowledge decomposition to the frame of the reactive robot architecture. Following the analogy with survival instincts, the robot is first taught how to survive in very simple and homogeneous environments, namely a world without any disturbances or any kind of "hostility". Once this simple behaviour, named a primitive, has been established, the robot is trained to adapt new knowledge to cope with increasingly complex environments by adding further worlds to its existing knowledge. The repertoire of the robot behaviours in the form of symbolic knowledge is retained in a hierarchy of clustered decision trees (DTs) accommodating a number of primitives. To classify robot perceptions, control rules are synthesised using symbolic knowledge derived from searching the hierarchy of DTs. A second novel concept is introduced, namely that of multi-dimensional fuzzy associative memories (MDFAMs). These are clustered fuzzy decision trees (FDTs) which are trained locally and accommodate specific perceptual knowledge. Fuzzy logic is incorporated to deal with inherent noise in sensory data and to merge conflicting behaviours of the DTs. In this thesis, the feasibility of the developed techniques is illustrated in the robot applications, their benefits and drawbacks are discussed.