Följande uppsats behandlar fyra hovporträtt av konstnären Bronzino föreställande fursteparet Cosimo I de’ Medici och Eleonora di Toledo speglade mot de litterära källorna Machiavellis Fursten och Castigliones Boken om hovmannen. Uppsatsen empiriska material kommer således att bestå av ovanstående material placeras framför varandra för att belysa dess beröringspunkter, både i fråga om likheter och olikheter. Analysens teoriangrepp kommer med avstamp i Roland Barthes semiotiska bildanalys att närma sig porträttens denotativa men främst konnotativa uttryck. Vidare har Shearer Wests bok Portraiture använts för förståelsen kring porträttet som genre i dess historiska kontext. Undersökningens disposition består av två huvudrubriker varav den första behandlar den historiska kontexten och den sista delen själva bildanalyserna. Resultatet visar på att samtliga porträtt av Cosimo och Eleonora finner flera beröringspunkter i Machiavellis furstespegel som Castigliones hovmannaideal, men skiljer sig delvis beroende på porträtt. Vidare har undersökningen visat på att Cosimo i sina två utvalda statsporträtt – valde att i det senare gestalta sig själv i en måttfullare stil – inte helt olik den måttfullhet som skildras i såväl Castigliones litterära verk som visuella porträtt. Cosimos tidigare porträtt svarar dock bättre mot Machiavellis idé om imitering. De två porträtten av Eleonora finner även dom olika samband med textmaterial och där Eleonoras senare statsporträtt tycks besitta flera av hertiginnans drag – något som inte med samma tydlighet framträder i det tidigare porträttet. Gemensamt för alla porträtt är deras avsaknad av sprezzatura som den allra viktigaste egenskapen för en person vid hovet.

The purpose of this study was to examine whether a L2 learner could correct or imitate structures of the language that they could not produce in written production defined by processability theori levels.The Informants had Arabic as their mother tongue. The study showed that the ability of correction developed slower than the capacity for imitation and the ability to written production. The ability of the correction developed by the duration of the stay. The result was a confirmation of theory formation in processability theory. Corrective elicitering could be developed into a useful diagnostic tool in the classroom and thus provide an education that followed a natural learning order according to processability theory by Pienemann. Keywords: processability theori, imitation, correction, written production / Syftet med uppsatsen var att undersöka om andraspråksinlärare kunde korrigera eller imitera strukturer i språket som de inte kunde producera i skriftlig produktion enligt processbarhetsteorins nivåer. Informanterna hade arabiska som modersmål. Studien visade att förmågan till korrektion utvecklades långsammare än förmåga till imitation och förmåga till skriftlig produktion. Förmågan till korrektion utvecklades med vistelsetiden. Resultatet var en bekräftelse på teoribildningen i processbarhetsteorin. Korrektiv elicitering skulle kunna utvecklas till ett användbart diagnostiskt verktyg i klassrummet och därmed ge en undervisning som följde en naturlig inlärningsordning enligt Pienemanns processbarhetsteori.

A poesia de João Rodriguez de Sá de Meneses e João Rodriguez de Lucena preservadas no Cancioneiro Geral de Garcia de Resende colocou em evidência a presença da cultura clássica tão constante no imaginário quinhentista português. Esses poetas fizeram traduções de algumas das famosas epístolas de heroínas míticas como Penélope, Enone, Laudâmia e Dido , aos seus amados ausentes. Esse conjunto de cartas é conhecido como Heroides, do poeta romano Ovídio, poeta elegíaco que foi responsável, entre outras coisas, por ter servido de modelo para muito do que se produziu depois na Idade Média e Renascimento. A Imitação e a Tradução eram mecanismos frequentes naquela época e foram usadas com maestria nas traduções desses poetas do Cancioneiro. O porquê da escolha de determinadas cartas e não de todas também é relevante, já que se tratava do momento das navegações e, portanto, necessitava-se acalmar o coração das damas que permaneceram em terras lusitanas à espera de seus amados ausentes. E ainda, propor a elas um modelo de comportamento. / The poetry of João Rodriguez de Sá de Meneses and João Rodriguez de Lucena preserved in Garcia de Resendes Cancioneiro Geral puts in evidence the presence of the classical culture so constant at the cinquecentist Portuguese imaginary. These poets translated some of the famous epistles of mythical heroines - like Penelope, Oenone, Dido and Laodomia -, to their loved missing ones. This set of epistles are known as Heroides, from Ovid, the elegiac Roman poet who was responsible, among other things, to have served as a model for much of what was produced after in the Middle Age and Renaissance. Imitation and Translation were recurrent mechanisms at that time and were employed with propriety at the translations of those poets of the Cancioneiro. The reason why those determinate epistles were chosen and not all of them is also relevant, because it was the moment of navigation so, therefore, was necessary pacify the hearts of the ladies that stayed in Portuguese lands waiting for their lovers. And still, propose a model of conduct to those ladies.

Após mais de duzentos anos, o interesse pela obra de Karl Philipp Moritz (15 de setembro de 1756 26 de junho de 1793) só tem aumentado. Diferentes autores como Herman Hesse e Walter Benjamin, e, mais recentemente, Hans Joachin Schrimpf, Tzvetan Todorov, Peter Szondi, Arno Schmidt e Peter Handke têm escrito ressaltando a importância e a fecundidade desse autor. Moritz pode ser considerado um dos autores inaugurais do romantismo alemão. Este mestrado em filosofia, área de estética, pretende, por meio de seleção, tradução e introdução dos textos de Karl Philipp Moritz, contribuir para a valorização dessa importante obra em nossa cultura. Os textos selecionados são de teoria da linguagem, estética e filosofia. / After over two hundred years, the concern for the works of Karl Philipp Moritz (September 15th 1756 June 26th 1793) has increased steadily. Different authors such as Herman Hesse and Walter Benjamin and more recently Hans Joachin Schrimpf, Tzvetan Todorov, Peter Szondi, Arno Schmidt and Peter Handke have written on the relevance and fecundity of this author. Moritz can be said to be one of the inaugural authors of German Romanticism. This Masters in Philosophy, in the Aesthetics field, intends, by means of selection, translation and introduction of Karl Philipp Moritz texts, to contribute to the appreciation of this important work in our culture. The selected texts belong to the fields of Language Theory, Aesthetics and Philosophy.

Cette thèse propose une solution au problème de la génération de mouvements pour les robots humanoïdes. Le cadre qui est proposé dans cette thèse génère des mouvements corps-complet en utilisant la dynamique inverse avec l'espace des tâches et en satisfaisant toutes les contraintes de contact. La spécification des mouvements se fait à travers objectifs dans l'espace des tâches et la grande redondance du système est gérée avec une pile de tâches où les tâches moins prioritaires sont atteintes seulement si elles n'interfèrent pas avec celles de plus haute priorité. À cette fin, un QP hiérarchique est utilisé, avec l'avantage d'être en mesure de préciser tâches d'égalité ou d'inégalité à tous les niveaux de la hiérarchie. La capacité de traiter plusieurs contacts non-coplanaires est montrée par des mouvements où le robot s'assoit sur une chaise et monte une échelle. Le cadre générique de génération de mouvements est ensuite appliqué à des études de cas à l'aide de HRP-2 et Romeo. Les mouvements complexes et similaires à l'humain sont obtenus en utilisant l'imitation du mouvement humain où le mouvement acquis passe par un processus cinématique et dynamique. Pour faire face à la nature instantanée de la dynamique inverse, un générateur de cycle de marche est utilisé comme entrée pour la pile de tâches qui effectue une correction locale de la position des pieds sur la base des points de contact permettant de marcher sur un terrain accidenté. La vision stéréo est également introduite pour aider dans le processus de marche. Pour une récupération rapide d'équilibre, le capture point est utilisé comme une tâche contrôlée dans une région désirée de l'espace. En outre, la génération de mouvements est présentée pour CHIMP, qui a besoin d'un traitement particulier. / This thesis aims at providing a solution to the problem of motion generation for humanoid robots. The proposed framework generates whole-body motion using the complete robot dynamics in the task space satisfying contact constraints. This approach is known as operational-space inverse-dynamics control. The specification of the movements is done through objectives in the task space, and the high redundancy of the system is handled with a prioritized stack of tasks where lower priority tasks are only achieved if they do not interfere with higher priority ones. To this end, a hierarchical quadratic program is used, with the advantage of being able to specify tasks as equalities or inequalities at any level of the hierarchy. Motions where the robot sits down in an armchair and climbs a ladder show the capability to handle multiple non-coplanar contacts. The generic motion generation framework is then applied to some case studies using HRP-2 and Romeo. Complex and human-like movements are achieved using human motion imitation where the acquired motion passes through a kinematic and then dynamic retargeting processes. To deal with the instantaneous nature of inverse dynamics, a walking pattern generator is used as an input for the stack of tasks which makes a local correction of the feet position based on the contact points allowing to walk on non-planar surfaces. Visual feedback is also introduced to aid in the walking process. Alternatively, for a fast balance recovery, the capture point is introduced in the framework as a task and it is controlled within a desired region of space. Also, motion generation is presented for CHIMP which is a robot that needs a particular treatment.

This literature review explores human mirror neurons from several angles. First it retells mirror neuron history, from the initial discovery in the macaque monkey research through to the experiments determining if there is a human brain homologue. Then the merits of two opposing evolutionary views – mirror neurons as an adaptation or an association, here referring to an adaptation’s byproduct – are discussed. Lastly the autistic mirror neuron dysfunction hypothesis – stating that a faulty mirror neuron system is at the basis of autistic behavioral patterns – is examined for its validity but ultimately found lacking and in need of further development.

National culture has a significant influence on how innovations are adopted and diffuse throughout society. Existing innovation literature often employ Hofstede’s cultural difference dimensions to predict technology diffusion, which is critical to international marketers who are interested in tapping into this region. However, whilst Hofstede initially clustered the Arab nations into one region, past works have failed to compare and predict the diffusion of innovations amongst the Middle East and North African (MENA) nations. To address this research gap and to challenge Hofstede’s assumption of the MENA region as one cultural homogenous group, this study proposes to 1) measure the cultural differences of the seven nations, including Kuwait, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Iraq, Libya, and Lebanon within the MENA region and 2) explore the relationship between national culture and the diffusion of innovations amongst the seven countries. Using Hofstede’s latest national culture instrument, the Value Survey Model 2013 (VSM13), 775 survey data is collected from university students based in the seven nations to obtain new national cultural profiles on six dimensions, which are power distance, uncertainty avoidance, individualism, indulgent versus restraint, long-term orientation and masculinity femininity index. Empirical evidence shows that all seven nations differ significantly on each of Hofstede’s national culture dimensions, particularly on the power distance, uncertainty avoidance, indulgent versus restraint, and long term orientation dimension. The Bass Model is employed to estimate each of the seven nation’s diffusion patterns based on their mobile subscription data, and then correlated with their national culture ranks along with other variables such as socioeconomic indicators and telecommunication sector specific variables. The findings indicate that out of the six national culture indices, only the power distance index, indulgent versus restraint, long term orientation, and uncertainty avoidance dimensions show significant correlations with the innovation and imitations levels on the national level, suggesting that these particular cultural scales can effect and limit the innovation levels and the speed of the diffusion process of innovations. Results also indicate that literacy rate and urbanization are significantly correlated with the speed of the diffusion process and imitation levels on the national level. This research sheds new light on cross national diffusion literature by empirically revealing the innovative and imitative profiles of seven Arab States that were previously underrepresented and untested. The present study also provides fresh insights into the diffusion and national culture relationship by analysing the MENA region, which presents a theoretical contribution to cross cultural diffusion studies by advancing our understanding of the process by which Hofstede’s dimensions are associated with innovative and imitative levels. International marketing managers are thus advised to adopt a waterfall strategy when approaching the MENA region, in which innovative countries, such as Kuwait, are first targeted for introducing innovative products and services, through mass media and advertising. Whilst imitative countries, such as Egypt, are targeted for last entry, with a marketing communication plan that utilizes brand ambassadors and influencers, so as to reduce the risk and uncertainty of the innovation in question.

Evolutionary stability is a necessary condition for imitative dynamics of policy learning and innovation to come to a rest. We apply this concept to profit tax competition in a regime where a common and consolidated profit tax base for multi-jurisdictional firms is divided among governments by means of formulary apportionment. In evolutionary play, governments exhibit aggregate-taking behavior: when comparing their performance with others, they ignore their impact on the consolidated tax base. Consequently, evolutionarily stable tax rates are less efficient than tax rates in best-response tax competition. / Series: WU International Taxation Research Paper Series

Cette thèse analyse le processus de diffusion des sports modernes dans les cinq territoires qui ont formé l’Indochine entre 1858 et 1945. Cette thèse a pour objectif de comprendre pourquoi et comment les mouvements de jeunesse et les sports occidentaux se sont développés, dans une société très majoritairement rurale avec un niveau de vie très faible. L’enjeu historique est de comprendre comment ces divers mouvements ont contribué à former une fraction de la jeunesse indochinoise – par hypothèse majoritairement urbaine et lettrée en français – et d’envisager le rôle de ces mouvements et activités dans la formation d’un nationalisme vietnamien moderne. Il s’agit également, sur un second plan, d’analyser les processus de transferts et d’appropriations culturelles qui sont au cœur de ces nouvelles pratiques et de comprendre comment celles-ci transforment les cultures locales. Dans cette perspective, on s’interrogera sur ces transformations : celles-ci sont-elles gouvernées par le mimétisme ou la concurrence mimétique, l’hybridation ou s’agit-il d’un simple transfert ? Ces questions engagent ensuite à comprendre comment ces deux plans – plan politique de la construction du nationalisme vietnamien, plan culturel des transformations impliquées par les nouvelles pratiques – s’articulent et s’alimentent. Par ailleurs, la genèse des politiques sportives coloniales est abordée. Enfin la comparaison avec d’autres espaces colonisés, français, britanniques ou hollandais, permet d’illustrer la singularité de la configuration indochinoise. / This doctoral thesis analyzes the process that led to the spreading of modern sports over the five States which formed Indochina from 1858 until 1945. This study aims to explain why and how the youth movements and western sporting activities spread in a predominantly rural society whose standards of living were low. The historical stake is to understand how these different movements contributed to shaping up a part of Indochinese youth assumed as mainly urban and literate in French, and to consider the part played by these movements and their activities into the development of modern nationalism in Vietnam. The second aim is to analyze the transfer process and cultural appropriation which are at the heart of these new practices and to understand how they change the local cultures. In that respect, we will examine these transformations: were they brought about through imitation, mimetic competition, hybridization or just through a plain transfer? Those questions then lead us to understand how the two levels, firstly a political one with the building up of Vietnamese nationalism, secondly a cultural one with the changes involved by those activities, link up and feed off one another. Moreover the genesis of sporting colonial policies is dealt with. And the comparison with other colonial territories, French, British or Dutch, helps to illustrate the particularity of the Indochinese configuration.

This study examined the relationship between emergent imitation skills and social communication skills in 15 to 18 month old infants, using a quantitative correlational research design. Imitation skills are an index of later social cognition and language development, and a critical mechanism in language learning for typically developing children. Social communication skills in this age predict later language skills. The relationship between imitation and social communication is poorly understood in infants. This study looked at the relationship between imitation and social communication at their emergence. This study included 30 typically developing infants, whose participation was volunteered by their parents. They were recruited through posters and word-of-mouth in communities in the Pacific Northwest. Infants’ imitation behaviors were measured using the Motor Imitation Scale (Stone, Ousley, & Littleford, 1997), and their social communication skills were measured using the Communication and Symbolic Behavior Scales- Developmental Profile (Wetherby & Prizant, 2002). This study used a naturalistic observation model so the one-hour play sessions took place in the infants' homes. Sessions were digitally recorded for later scoring and analysis. This study demonstrated a concurrent and predictive relationship between imitation and language understanding in this age group. The study suggests that imitation is an important variable in early language acquisition that needs further study, and needs to be addressed when assessing prelinguistic child development. The study suggests that imitation skills should be fostered early on and provides evidence-based methods for facilitating imitation and language development. / Graduate / 0525 / 0518 / 0620 / 0460 / lhanika@uvic.ca