The South Atlantic has a relevant role on the AMOC variability as it includes two main conduits of its upper-ocean return flow: the NBUC and the IWBC that carry, mainly, the SACW and the AAIW and are originated from the bifurcation of the SEC. One of the hypotheses of this work is that analyzing the bifurcation variability it is possible to get an index of the AMOC changes. Another hypothesis is that in a global warming scenario, changes in the hydrological cycle would drive modifications in the water masses that are part of the AMOC, and thus, contribute to its variability. Four global model results were used, with different forcing and spatial resolution. Results show that changes in the bifurcation are linked to modications in the currents both caused by variations in the wind stress curl. Good correlations were found between the SEC bifurcation at the surface and the AMOC. The NBUC seems to be the link between them. Shallowing of the SACW core is related to an increase of the salinity on neutral surfaces. The AAIW is occupying less space in the water column due to an increasing of the salinity in the neutral surfaces at 11°S, while the opposite happens at 27°S / The South Atlantic has a relevant role on the AMOC variability as it includes two main conduits of its upper-ocean return flow: the NBUC and the IWBC that carry, mainly, the SACW and the AAIW and are originated from the bifurcation of the SEC. One of the hypotheses of this work is that analyzing the bifurcation variability it is possible to get an index of the AMOC changes. Another hypothesis is that in a global warming scenario, changes in the hydrological cycle would drive modifications in the water masses that are part of the AMOC, and thus, contribute to its variability. Four global model results were used, with different forcing and spatial resolution. Results show that changes in the bifurcation are linked to modications in the currents both caused by variations in the wind stress curl. Good correlations were found between the SEC bifurcation at the surface and the AMOC. The NBUC seems to be the link between them. Shallowing of the SACW core is related to an increase of the salinity on neutral surfaces. The AAIW is occupying less space in the water column due to an increasing of the salinity in the neutral surfaces at 11°S, while the opposite happens at 27°S

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-27T17:27:11Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Marcelo de Souza Cleto.pdf: 1362779 bytes, checksum: 748402aa0ca6e2a5226a536720b3b307 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-09-03 / The theory of participation developed by the dialectical science assumes the ontological meaning of the intermediate conceptually called by the ancient tradition of metaxy philosophy. In contemporary times the debate on the concept of property got an epistemological relief according to the reflections made by the philosopher and political scientist Eric Voegelin. The author s interpretation of the work scaled its ontology prioritized by the political substance of the human, which finds in the intermediate causal nexus of its participation in the other dimensions of the being (daimon, cosmos and society). After examining the mutual participation within the community of the being the thesis presents the problems of the modernity of metaxy, which highlighted in contrast with the gnosis, puts the term via historiogenesis the tension between truths. The victory of a representation of the truth culminated in a history of order, explained since the representative experiences of archaic Greek tradition as myths (Hesiod) and rites (Dionysus). The route of the investigation enhances the history, the criticism of positivism and the differences brought to light through the development of archeology, a fact that made possible the specific treatment of experiences that are retroactive to the noetic period. The hypothesis of ontological plethora of finite being is confirmed following the logic of the identical and different, unfolded into its continuities and discontinuities ranging from the evocative and transcendent character of symbols to the present intentionality in the philosophies of Anaximander and Heraclitus / A teoria da participação elaborada pela ciência dialética, pressupõe o sentido ontológico do intermediário, conceitualmente chamado pela tradição antiga da filosofia de metaxy. Na contemporaneidade o debate sobre as propriedades do conceito adquiriu relevo epistemológico em função das reflexões efetuadas pelo filósofo e cientista político Eric Voegelin. A exegese da obra do autor dimensionou sua ontologia primada pela substância política do humano, que encontra no intermediário o nexo causal de sua participação nas demais dimensões do ser (daimon, cosmos e sociedade). Após o exame da participação mútua no interior da comunidade do ser a tese apresenta a problemática da modernidade da metaxy, que realçada no contraste com a gnose, coloca a termo via historiogênese a tensão entre verdades. A vitória de uma representação da verdade culminou numa história da ordem, explanada desde as experiências representativas da tradição grega arcaica como os mitos (Hesíodo) e os ritos (Dionísio). O trajeto da investigação valoriza a história, a crítica ao positivismo e as diferenciações vindas à luz através do desenvolvimento da arqueologia, fato que tornou possível o tratamento específico de experiências que retroagem ao período noético. A hipótese da superabundância ontológica do ser finito foi confirmada segundo a lógica do idêntico e do diferente, desdobrada em suas continuidades e descontinuidades que vão desde o caráter evocativo e transcendente dos símbolos até a intencionalidade presente nas filosofias de Anaximandro e Heráclito

<p>In modern approach to software development, a great importance is given to monitoring &nbsp;of software quality in early development phases. Therefore, static analysis becomes more important. Furthermore, software projects are becoming more complex and heterogeneous. These characteristics are reflected in a diversity of functionalities and &nbsp;variety of computer languages and the technologies used for their development. Because of that consistency in static analysis becomes more important than it was earlier.</p><p>In this dissertation SSQSA: Set of Software Quality Static Analyzers is described. The aim &nbsp;of the SSQSA framework&nbsp; is consistent static analysis. This goal is reached by introducing new intermediate source code representation called eCST: enriched Concrete Syntax Tree. The dissertation mostly focuses on eCST, intermediate representations derived from it, and their generation with description of the&nbsp;<br />tools involved in it.</p><p>The main characteristic of eCST is language independence which gives to SSQSA framework two-level extensibility: supporting a new language and supporting a new &nbsp;analysis. This leads to eciency of adding both level supports and&nbsp;consistency of added functionalities.</p><p>To prove the concept, support for more than 10 characteristic languages was introduced. Furthermore, characteristic static analysis techniques (software metrics calculation,&nbsp;<br />code-clone detection, etc.) were implemented and integrated in the framework.&nbsp;</p><p>Established SSQSA framework provides the infrastructure for the further development of the complete platform for software quality control.</p> / <p>U modernim pristupima razvoju softvera veliki značaj pridaje se kontroli kvaliteta softvera u ranim fazama razvoja.&nbsp;Zbog toga, statička analiza postaje sve značajnija. Takođe,&nbsp;softverski proizvodi postaju sve kompleksniji i heterogeni.&nbsp;Ove karakteristike se ogledaju u raznovrsnosti jezika i&nbsp;tehnologija koje se koriste u procesu razvoja softvera. Zbog&nbsp;toga, konzistentnost u statičkoj analizi dobija veći značaj&nbsp;nego &scaron;to je to bio slučaj ranije.</p><p>U ovoj disertaciji opisan je SSQSA skup statičkih analizatora&nbsp;za kontrolu kvaliteta (eng. Set of Software Quality Static&nbsp;Analyzers). Namena SSQSA okvira je konzistentna statička&nbsp;analiza. Cilj se postiže uvođenjem nove međureprezentacije&nbsp;<br />izvornog koda nazvane eCST (obogaćeno konkretno sintaksno stablo, eng. enriched &nbsp;Concrete Syntax Tree).&nbsp;Fokus disertacije je primarno na eCST reprezenataciji koda,&nbsp;<br />reprezentacijama izvedenjim iz eCST i procesu njihovog&nbsp;generisanja, sa opisom oruđa angažovanim u ovim procesima.</p><p>Osnovna i najbitnija karakteristika eCST reprezenatacije&nbsp;je nezavisnost od jezika u kom je izvorni kod pisan, &scaron;to&nbsp;SSQSA okviru daje pro&scaron;irivost na dva nivoa: kroz podr&scaron;ku&nbsp;za nove jezike i kroz podr&scaron;ku za nove analize. Ovo dovodi do&nbsp;efikasnog uvođenja funkcionalnosti na oba navedena nivoa,&nbsp;kao i do konzistentnosti uvedenih funkcionalnosti.&nbsp;</p><p>Kao dokaz ispravnosti koncepta, podr&scaron;ka za vi&scaron;e od 10&nbsp;ulaznih jezika je uvedena. Takođe, implementirane su karakteristične tehnike statičke analize (izračunavanje softverskih&nbsp;metrika, otkrivanje duplikata u kodu, itd.) i integrisane u&nbsp;SSQSA okvir.&nbsp;</p><p>Na opisani način, postavljanjem SSQSA okvira, obezbeđena&nbsp;je infrastruktura za dalji razvoj kompletne platforme za kontrolu kvaliteta softvera.&nbsp;</p>

本論文集收錄了三篇有關開放經濟宏觀經濟學的文章。 / 第一篇文章研究了中國從1978年到2010年實際經濟週期。本文首先詳細記錄了中國實際經濟週期三十多年來經驗特征, 我們發現中國的實際經濟週期表現出不同于其他新興市場國家和發達國家的獨特的實際經濟週期經驗特征。再則，我們通過建立實際經濟週期模型和貝葉斯估計方法來檢驗現有新興市場實際經濟週期理論能夠在多大程度上解釋中國實際經濟週期。在我們的估計結果中，我們發現一個包含持久性生產力衝擊的基準模型不能很好的解釋中國實際經濟週期。而在基準模型的基礎上添加了國際金融摩擦的擴展模型（我們稱之為金融摩擦模型）能夠較好的解釋中國實際經濟週期。國際金融摩擦替代了持久性生產力衝擊的作用并優化了模型擬合。 / 第二篇文章研究了發展中國家廣泛使用的財政性油價穩定政策的福利影響。一些評論認為作為發展中國家的主要貿易對象的發達國家，特別是美國，能夠從發展中國家的油價穩定政策中獲利。我們的文章研究了這個論題，我們建立了一個具有美元非對稱性定價特征的兩國家模型。我們發現發展中國家的最優油價補貼率以及它的全球福利影響關鍵性的取決於是否貨幣政策能夠有效的應對油價衝擊。當貨幣政策能夠完全有效並且能夠央行使用最優貨幣政策時， 發展中國家則不需要財政性的油價穩定政策。然而當貨幣政策不能夠完全有效時，即使能夠使用最優貨幣政策，發展中國家還是需要油價補貼來穩定油價。而對美國來說，由於存在非對稱性的美元定價，美國反而受到福利損失。 / 第三篇文章研究了進口中間產品價格衝擊的福利影響和傳遞機制。隨著垂直貿易的快速發展，世界中間產品價格的波動成為了小型開放經濟體國家的主要不確定性衝擊之一。我們建立並且估計了一個兩部門的價格粘性的模型來解釋中間產品價格衝擊如何通過垂直貿易途徑對小型開放經濟體產生影響。我們發現其影響關鍵性的取決于垂直貿易結構和匯率制度。再次，其影響也顯著取決于國際金融市場准入的程度。 / This thesis consists of three essays on Open-Economy Macroeconomics. / The first essay studies real business cycle in Chinese economy. During the past three decades, Chinas economy experienced sizable economic fluctuations along with rapid economic growth. However, the research on Chinese real business cycle is limited. In this paper, we document some stylized facts of Chinese real business cycle from 1978 to 2010. We find that Chinese real business cycle exhibits a mixed pattern that is not consistent with those of developed economies or emerging market economies. Moreover, we investigate to what extent the existing theories of emerging market real business cycle can explain Chinese data using Bayesian estimation of small open economy real business cycle models. Our results show that a benchmark model with permanent pro-ductivity shocks cannot account for stylized facts of Chinese real business cycle very well. Instead, a Financial-Friction model that augments the benchmark with inter-national financial friction significantly improves the model fitness. And international financial friction dominates the role of permanent productivity shocks. / The second essay studies oil price stabilization polices that are adopted extensively in developing countries. Some argue that developed economies, especially the US, may gain from these policies through trade. This paper studies this issue in a two-country model with dollar currency pricing. We find that the optimal level of oil price stabilization chosen by developing countries and its implications for global welfare depend critically on whether monetary policy can eectively respond to oil shocks. In an environment without monetary shocks, when optimal monetary policies are considered, there is no role for oil price stabilization in developing countries. However, to make the oil price stabilization policy redundant, optimal monetary policy is not necessary. Some non-optimal endogenous monetary policies satisfying certain conditions can also make the developing countries choose zero oil price stabilization. The results change when there are monetary shocks. Even with optimal monetary policies, the developing countries will choose a positive level of oil price stabilization. However, due to dollar currency pricing, the US actually loses from the stabilization policy. Our results are well supported by the quantitative analysis in a full-fledged dynamic stochastic general equilibrium model. / The third essay studies the welfare implication and transmission mechanism of imported intermediate goods price shock. With the rapid growth of vertical trade in small open economies, the world price fluctuation of intermediate goods has increasingly become one of major uncertainties faced by these economies. This paper develops and estimates a two-sector sticky-price model to show how intermediate goods price shock affects small open economies through vertical trade. We find that the effects depend critically on the structure of vertical trade and exchange rate policy regime. Furthermore, the quantitative eects of intermediate goods price shock also change significantly with the degree of financial integration. / 1. Real business cycle in Chinese economy -- 2. Oil price stabilization and global welfare -- 3. The effects of intermediate good price shocks on small open economy. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Wu, Zhouheng. / Thesis (Ph.D.) Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2014. / Includes bibliographical references. / Abstracts also in Chinese.

Poucos estudos têm se dedicado a explorar de forma mais sistemática o processo que levou ao fim do Reino Antigo (2686 a 2160 a.C.) e ao advento do Primeiro Período Intermediário (2160-2055 a.C.) no Antigo Egito. A relativa escassez de fontes sempre foi um dos argumentos usados para rotular esse momento da história egípcia como uma idade das trevas, na qual a civilização do Nilo teria mergulhado em profundo caos decorrente do enfraquecimento da monarquia unificada articulada em torno do faraó e da elite menfita. Nesse entendimento períodos como esse, de retração da capacidade centralizadora do Estado, permanecem alijados da histórica política egípcia e são encarados como meros hiatos dentro de um curso supostamente natural de centralização política. Pretendendo rever essas interpretações, este estudo se debruça sobre a organização da administração estatal egípcia no período que cobre especialmente da Vª dinastia ao Primeiro Período Intermediário. A análise da documentação, que engloba decretos régios e autobiografias inscritas nas tumbas de alguns dos mais destacados funcionários dessa época, demonstra que a corrente percepção acerca do fim do Reino Antigo, na qual as reformas administrativas empreendidas entre a Vª e VIª dinastias teriam provocado excesso de poder das elites locais, levando-as a se autonomizar e a concorrer com o próprio Estado, é equivocada. Partindo de um concepção materialista a respeito do que se entende por Estado foi possível notar que o poder das elites provinciais, no Reino Antigo, articulava-se em torno de pelo menos três eixos principais: através do exercício de funções burocráticas na administração estatal; como responsáveis por instalações régias nas províncias, a exemplo do Hwt; e por intermédio da administração e sacerdócio tanto em templos de divindades locais quanto nas chamadas capelas do ka, destinadas ao culto dos monarcas egípcios. A conclusão é a de que a autonomia de certos grupos provinciais frente ao poder menfita se dá somente após o enfraquecimento deste último, não estabelecendo com ele uma relação causal. Tal autonomia não se configura, igualmente, como um processo de oposição ao Estado, uma vez que elites locais e Estado sei inseriam na lógica estatal por meio de laços de solidariedade e reciprocidade essenciais ao equilíbrio de ambos. Ao ofertar nova luz ao estudo da administração egípcia busca-se repensar as condições que levaram ao declínio do Reino Antigo, assim como reavaliar o lugar do Primeiro Período Intermediário na história egípcia através de uma perspectiva integradora, inserindo-o na dinâmica das relações de poder que marcaram a trajetória dessa sociedade como um momento fundamental no qual administração estatal, longe de entrar em colapso, reorganizase e se rearticula. / Only a few studies have systematically explored the process that led to the ending of the Old Kingdom (2686-2160 B.C) and the arrival of the First Intermediate Period (2160-2055 B.C) in Ancient Egypt. The relative lack of sources has always been an argument to label this moment of the Egyptian history has a period of dark ages, when the Nile civilization supposedly dived into deep chaos due to the weakening of the unified monarchy that jointed around the pharaoh and the Memphite elite. To this understanding, periods like that one, in which the States centralizing capacity retracted, remain excluded from the Egyptian political history and are faced as mere hiatus in a supposedly natural course of political centralization. Aiming to revise such interpretations, the present study discusses the organization of the Egyptian State administration from the 5th dynasty to the First Intermediate Period. The analysis of documents like royal decrees and autobiographies written in the tombs of some of the more distinguished officers of the period, points out the misconception of the current comprehension about the ending of the Old Kingdom. From our point of view, the administrative reforms made between the 5th and the 6th dynasties did not necessarily provoke an excess of power among the local elites, and therefore did not necessarily lead them to become autonomous and then concur with the State. By having in mind a materialistic conception of State, we could notice that the provincial elites power during the Old Kingdom jointed around at least three main perspectives: the exercise of bureaucratic functions in the State administration; the responsibility for royal installations in the provinces, like the hwt for example; and the administration and priesthood in local divinities temples and ka chapels, destined to the cult of the Egyptian monarchs. We have concluded that certain provincial groups started to become autonomous and to face the Memphite power only after this ones hegemony started to weaken; therefore, there is no causal relation. In the same way, such autonomy did not mean an opposition to the State, since the local elites and the State were bounded by solidarity and reciprocity laces which were essential to the balance of both. By offering a new perspective to the study of the Egyptian administration, we aim to rethink the conditions that led to the fall of the Old Kingdom and reevaluate the place of the First Intermediate Period in Egyptian history. We propose an integrating perspective that puts this period into the dynamics of power relations that marked the trajectory of that society as a fundamental moment in which the State administration, far from collapsing, reorganized and rearticulated itself.

O sistema de correntes composto pela Corrente do Brasil (CB) e Corrente de Contorno Intermediária (CCI), 20°S e 28°S, são talvez um dos menos estudados sistemas de correntes de contorno subtropical de todo oceano. Dentro desta região, a CB desenvolve vigorosos meandros e vórtices. Uma combinação de simulações numéricas e estudos observacionais representam importantes ferramentas para investigar este fenômeno. Medidas diretas de velocidade são raras e usualmente restritas a curtos intervalos de tempo, para que padrões de longo termo sejam descritos. Similarmente, dados hidrográficos quase sinóticos e dados de ADCP são esparsos. Por outro lado, dados de XBT armazenados pela Marinha do Brasil são abundantes. Investigaremos aqui como que perfis de temperatura (T) amostrados por XBT podem complementar a climatologia regional e serem utilizados para gerar campos de inicialização e assimilação para modelos numéricos. Um método para a construção de perfis sintéticos de salinidade (S) é proposto considerando o complexo padrão da curva TS da região, o formato do perfil da temperatura in situ e a salinidade superficial. Mais especificamente, salinidade superficial e o perfil adimensional da temperatura in situ são usados para a reconstrução da salinidade nos primeiros 200 m da coluna de água, para perfis com profundidade local superior a 1899 m. O perfil não dimensional da salinidade climatológica é usado para as reconstruções no intervalo de 900-1300 m. Este perfil é então redimensionalizado usando valores estimados pela relação TS climatológica em seus extremos. A reconstrução do perfil de salinidade nas demais porções da coluna de água se dá pelo ajuste linear de um polinômio S(T), para cada intervalo de 25 m. Também é necessária a extrapolação dos perfis verticais de temperatura a partir da profundidade máxima de 1800 m (máxima profundidade das sondas de XBT) até o fundo. Propusemos aqui a utilização de um perfil climatológico de T não dimensional, para então fazer a redimensionalização e extensão da estrutura vertical de temperatura até a profundidade local. Cálculos geostróficos utilizando dados provenientes de cruzeiros hidrográficos quase sinóticos são empregados para testar a metodologia. Uma comparação entre o método proposto e as velocidades geostróficas calculadas por outras metodologias é conduzida. Esta comparação inclui velocidades geostróficas calculadas mediante salinidade constante (S=35), uma adaptação da teoria baseada em ajustes polinomiais para a curva TS, e mediante um polinômio ajustado diretamente entre anomalia do volume específico e temperatura. O método proposto neste trabalho foi o que melhor reproduziu, em termos médios, a estrutura vertical de correntes e o respectivo transporte de volume associado, dentre todos aqueles testados. Em particular, o transporte de volume da CB foi praticamente idêntico ao valor obtido com os campos in situ. / The Brazil Current (BC) and the Intermediate Western Boundary Current (IWBC) between 20°S and 28°S are perhaps two of the less studied subtropical boundary currents of the world ocean. Within this region, the BC develops vigorous meanders and rings. A combination of numerical simulations and observational studies are important tools to unravel these phenomena. Direct current measurements are rare and usually too short to depict the mean, long term circulation patterns. Similarly, quasi-synoptic hydrographic and ADCP data in the region are sparse. On the other hand, XBT data archived by the Brazilian Navy are abundant. Here we investigate how XBT temperature (T) profiles may improve the study region climatology and be used to generate initialization fields for numerical models. A method for constructing synthetic salinity (S) profiles is proposed considering the complex shape of the TS curve of the area, the shape of the in situ temperature profile and surface salinity. More specifically, surface salinity and nondimensionalized in situ temperature profiles are used for reconstructing salinity in the upper 200 m of the water column for locations with local depth greater than 1899 m. The mean nondimensionalized climatological salinity profile is used for the depth interval between 900 and 1300 m. The nondimensionalized profile is then redimensionalized using values estimated by the climatological TS relationship in its extrema. The salinity vertical profile of the remaining portions of the water column by linear fitting S to T each 25 m interval. It is also necessary to vertically extrapolate the temperature profiles from 1800 m (maximum depth reached by the XBT probes) to the ocean bottom. We propose using the nondimensionalized climatological T profile and the values of the temperature sampled at 1800 m as well as the bottom climatological temperature to redimensionalize it and extend the temperature vertical structure to the local depth. Geostrophic calculations using data from recent quasi-synoptic hydrographic surveys in the area are employed to test the methodology. A comparison between the currently proposed method and the geostrophic velocities calculated by other techniques is conducted. This comparison also includes geostrophic velocity estimates considering: constant salinity (S=35), an adaptation of classical techniques based solely on the TS curve shape, and by direct relating specific volume anomaly and temperature. The method proposed in this work is the one which best reproduces the current vertical structure and current volume transport in mean terms among all tested. In particular, the BC volume transport is virtually identical to the values obtained with the in situ fields.

A Formação Serra Geral é caracterizada por um expressivo volume de derrames básicos de composição toleítica e pela presença muito subordinada de vulcanitos ácidos. Inúmeros corpos intrusivos (soleiras e diques) são correlacionados a esta unidade e juntamente com os depósitos vulcânicos constituem a Província Magmática do Paraná. Este trabalho trata da investigação geológica e petrológica das intrusões básicas-intermediárias da região do Cerro do Coronel, a sudeste da cidade de Pantano Grande, RS. Esses corpos hipabissais estão estratigraficamente vinculados a Formação Serra Geral e formam um trend com orientação NW-SE. Apresentam contatos concordantes com rochas sedimentares das Formações Rio Bonito e Irati. Disjunções colunares são comuns em todas as ocorrências estudadas e são afetadas por forte fraturamento NE e NW. A pequena variação faciológica é caracterizada por termos equigranulares finos a muito finos e raramente porfiríticos. Texturalmente essas rochas apresentam o predomínio da textura intergranular e subofítica ocasional. São constituídos essencialmente por plagioclásio, augita, minerais opacos como minerais primários e material de baixa cristalinidade como etapa final da cristalização. Os dados geoquímicos de elementos maiores e traços permitem classificar as rochas desses corpos hipabissais como andesito-basaltos de afinidade toleítica, cuja evolução deu-se por mecanismos de cristalização fracionada. As características dos elementos maiores, traços e ETR são compatíveis com as apresentadas para magmatismo vinculados a grandes províncias toleíticas continentais. Estas rochas apresentam concentrações de TiO2 inferiores à 2% mostrando uma tendência para o magma-tipo Esmeralda. / The Serra Geral Formation is characterized by a significant volume of basic flows whith tholeiitic composition and the presence of acids volcanites subordinate. Several intrusive bodies (dikes and sills) are correlated to this unit and along with volcanic deposits constitute the Paraná Magmatic Province. This paper deals with the investigation of geological and petrological basic-intermediate intrusions in the region of the Cerro do Coronel, southeast of the city of Pantano Grande, RS. These hypabyssal bodies are stratigraphically linked to the Serra Geral Formation and they make a trend oriented NW-SE. The contacts are concordant with the sedimentary rocks Rio Bonito and Irati Formations. Columnar disjunctions are common in all instances studied and are affected by strong NE and NW fracturing. The few facies variation is characterized by terms equigranular fine and very fine rarely porphyritic. These rocks are the predominant intergranular texture and occasional subophitic texture. They consist essentially of plagioclase, augite, opaque minerals such as primary minerals and crystallization residue such as final stage of crystallization. Geochemical data of major and trace elements allow to classify the rocks of these bodies such as andesite-basalt hypabyssal with tholeiitic affinity, whose evolution occurred by fractional crystallization mechanisms. The characteristics of the major, trace and REE elements are compatible with those presented for magmatism linked to large continental tholeiitic provinces. These rocks have concentrations below the 2% TiO2 showing a tendency to Esmeralda magma-type.

Poucos estudos têm se dedicado a explorar de forma mais sistemática o processo que levou ao fim do Reino Antigo (2686 a 2160 a.C.) e ao advento do Primeiro Período Intermediário (2160-2055 a.C.) no Antigo Egito. A relativa escassez de fontes sempre foi um dos argumentos usados para rotular esse momento da história egípcia como uma idade das trevas, na qual a civilização do Nilo teria mergulhado em profundo caos decorrente do enfraquecimento da monarquia unificada articulada em torno do faraó e da elite menfita. Nesse entendimento períodos como esse, de retração da capacidade centralizadora do Estado, permanecem alijados da histórica política egípcia e são encarados como meros hiatos dentro de um curso supostamente natural de centralização política. Pretendendo rever essas interpretações, este estudo se debruça sobre a organização da administração estatal egípcia no período que cobre especialmente da Vª dinastia ao Primeiro Período Intermediário. A análise da documentação, que engloba decretos régios e autobiografias inscritas nas tumbas de alguns dos mais destacados funcionários dessa época, demonstra que a corrente percepção acerca do fim do Reino Antigo, na qual as reformas administrativas empreendidas entre a Vª e VIª dinastias teriam provocado excesso de poder das elites locais, levando-as a se autonomizar e a concorrer com o próprio Estado, é equivocada. Partindo de um concepção materialista a respeito do que se entende por Estado foi possível notar que o poder das elites provinciais, no Reino Antigo, articulava-se em torno de pelo menos três eixos principais: através do exercício de funções burocráticas na administração estatal; como responsáveis por instalações régias nas províncias, a exemplo do Hwt; e por intermédio da administração e sacerdócio tanto em templos de divindades locais quanto nas chamadas capelas do ka, destinadas ao culto dos monarcas egípcios. A conclusão é a de que a autonomia de certos grupos provinciais frente ao poder menfita se dá somente após o enfraquecimento deste último, não estabelecendo com ele uma relação causal. Tal autonomia não se configura, igualmente, como um processo de oposição ao Estado, uma vez que elites locais e Estado sei inseriam na lógica estatal por meio de laços de solidariedade e reciprocidade essenciais ao equilíbrio de ambos. Ao ofertar nova luz ao estudo da administração egípcia busca-se repensar as condições que levaram ao declínio do Reino Antigo, assim como reavaliar o lugar do Primeiro Período Intermediário na história egípcia através de uma perspectiva integradora, inserindo-o na dinâmica das relações de poder que marcaram a trajetória dessa sociedade como um momento fundamental no qual administração estatal, longe de entrar em colapso, reorganizase e se rearticula. / Only a few studies have systematically explored the process that led to the ending of the Old Kingdom (2686-2160 B.C) and the arrival of the First Intermediate Period (2160-2055 B.C) in Ancient Egypt. The relative lack of sources has always been an argument to label this moment of the Egyptian history has a period of dark ages, when the Nile civilization supposedly dived into deep chaos due to the weakening of the unified monarchy that jointed around the pharaoh and the Memphite elite. To this understanding, periods like that one, in which the States centralizing capacity retracted, remain excluded from the Egyptian political history and are faced as mere hiatus in a supposedly natural course of political centralization. Aiming to revise such interpretations, the present study discusses the organization of the Egyptian State administration from the 5th dynasty to the First Intermediate Period. The analysis of documents like royal decrees and autobiographies written in the tombs of some of the more distinguished officers of the period, points out the misconception of the current comprehension about the ending of the Old Kingdom. From our point of view, the administrative reforms made between the 5th and the 6th dynasties did not necessarily provoke an excess of power among the local elites, and therefore did not necessarily lead them to become autonomous and then concur with the State. By having in mind a materialistic conception of State, we could notice that the provincial elites power during the Old Kingdom jointed around at least three main perspectives: the exercise of bureaucratic functions in the State administration; the responsibility for royal installations in the provinces, like the hwt for example; and the administration and priesthood in local divinities temples and ka chapels, destined to the cult of the Egyptian monarchs. We have concluded that certain provincial groups started to become autonomous and to face the Memphite power only after this ones hegemony started to weaken; therefore, there is no causal relation. In the same way, such autonomy did not mean an opposition to the State, since the local elites and the State were bounded by solidarity and reciprocity laces which were essential to the balance of both. By offering a new perspective to the study of the Egyptian administration, we aim to rethink the conditions that led to the fall of the Old Kingdom and reevaluate the place of the First Intermediate Period in Egyptian history. We propose an integrating perspective that puts this period into the dynamics of power relations that marked the trajectory of that society as a fundamental moment in which the State administration, far from collapsing, reorganized and rearticulated itself.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact on the self-concept of students when they transitioned into an academically selective independent middle school. The sample consisted of 107 middle school students in an all-boys independent school in the northeast United States. Data on students' general self-concept, academic self-concept and domain specific academic self-concepts were collected using the Academic Self-Description Questionnaire I and II.;Four hypotheses were tested: 1) Newly enrolled students to the all-boys middle school will initially experience significantly more negative domain specific academic self-concepts than students who are returning or have been promoted from within the school; 2) New students to the all-boys middle school will initially experience a significant negative difference in general academic self-concept than students who are returning or have been promoted from within the school; 3) New students to the all-boys middle school will have a general self-concept that does not differ substantially from the students who are returning or have been promoted from within the school; 4) New students to the all-boys middle school will initially experience lower academic achievement than students who are returning or have been promoted from within the school.;The findings of the study do not support the Big-Fish-Little-Pond Effect; whereas, the students transitioning into the independent middle school were found to have self-concept scores equal to or more positive than current students. Consequently, the findings support the concept of reflected glory and expansion of the Internal/External Frame of Reference Theory.

Randomized clinical trials (RCTs) are considered to be the "gold standard" in order to demonstrate a causal relationship between a treatment and an outcome because complete randomization ensures that the only difference between the two units being compared is the treatment. The intention-to-treat (ITT) comparison has long been regarded as the preferred analytic approach for RCTs. However, if there exists an “intermediate” variable between the treatment and outcome, and the analysis conditions on this intermediate, randomization will break down, and the ITT approach does not account properly for the intermediate. In this dissertation, we explore the principal stratification approach for dealing with intermediate variables, illustrate its applications in two different clinical trial settings, and extend the existing analytic approaches with respect to specific challenges in these settings. The first part of our work focuses on clinical endpoint bioequivalence (BE) studies with noncompliance and missing data. In clinical endpoint BE studies, the primary analysis for assessing equivalence between a generic and an innovator product is usually based on the observed per-protocol (PP) population (usually completers and compliers). The FDA Missing Data Working Group recently recommended using “causal estimands of primary interest.” This PP analysis, however, is not generally causal because the observed PP is post-treatment, and conditioning on it may introduce selection bias. To date, no causal estimand has been proposed for equivalence assessment. We propose co-primary causal estimands to test equivalence by applying the principal stratification approach. We discuss and verify by simulation the causal assumptions under which the current PP estimator is unbiased for the primary principal stratum causal estimand – the "Survivor Average Causal Effect" (SACE). We also propose tipping point sensitivity analysis methods to assess the robustness of the current PP estimator from the SACE estimand when these causal assumptions are not met. Data from a clinical endpoint BE study is used to illustrate the proposed co-primary causal estimands and sensitivity analysis methods. Our work introduces a causal framework for equivalence assessment in clinical endpoint BE studies with noncompliance and missing data. The second part of this dissertation targets the use of principal stratification analysis approaches in a pragmatic randomized clinical trial -- the Patient Activation after DXA Result Notification (PAADRN) study. PAADRN is a multi-center, pragmatic randomized clinical trial that was designed to improve bone health. Participants were randomly assigned to either intervention group with usual care augmented by a tailored patient-activation Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) results letter accompanied by an educational brochure, or control group with usual care only. The primary analyses followed the standard ITT principle, which provided a valid estimate for the intervention assignment. However, findings might underestimate the effect of intervention because PAADRN might not have an effect if the patient did not read, remember and act on the letter. We apply principal stratification to evaluate the effectiveness of PAADRN for subgroups, defined by patient's recall of having received a DXA result letter, which is an intermediate outcome that's post-treatment. We perform simulation studies to compare the principal score weighting methods with the instrumental variable (IV) methods. We examine principal strata causal effects on three outcome measures regarding pharmacological treatment and bone health behaviors. Finally, we conduct sensitivity analyses to assess the effect of potential violations of relevant causal assumptions. Our work is an important addition to the primary findings based on ITT. It provides a profound understanding of why the PAADRN intervention does (or does not) work for patients with different letter recall statuses, and sheds light on the improvement of the intervention.