“Not Drowning but Waving: The American Junior Year Abroad” explores and describes study abroad amongst college students while also showing the historical roots of study abroad. This thesis seeks to understand the history and current issues in study abroad while also giving a literary description of the experiences, personal changes, and development of insight in the students who decide to study abroad. The Introduction serves both as the introduction to my project as well as an overview of the history and current issues within study abroad. It is divided into three main parts. The first section discusses the impetus for the project, the research methodology, relevant literature, and the genre of creative nonfiction. The second section covers the history of American travel and study abroad, as well as the work of the Fulbright Program. The third section is a short survey of contemporary trends within study abroad, and addresses issues of gender, race, location, and student behavior while abroad. The creative portion of this thesis describes the study abroad students’ stories, experiences, and insights during and after a semester in Europe. The first three chapters of this section—“Leaving”, “Destinations” and “Guardians at the Gate”—describe some of the initial experiences during a semester abroad. Chapter one looks at the process of traveling to a new country and adapting to new cultural norms. Chapter two describes the study abroad destinations where I did my primary research for this project. Chapter three explores some logistical issues in study abroad, namely academics, finances, and housing. Chapter four explores the challenges students face after the initial excitement of study abroad wears off, and looks at the issues of student responsibility, danger, harassment, and alcohol abuse. Chapter five describes student travel habits, which is one of the most popular elements of study abroad but also one of the more problematic. Chapter six looks at the challenge of re-entry to North America for study abroad students, and chapter seven provides a conclusion to the piece.

The last twenty-five years have seen our understanding of the formation and abundance of planets revolutionised, thanks to the first detections of debris discs, and, a decade later, of the first extrasolar planets. Hardly a week now goes by without a planet discovery, and the range of methods used to search for planets has expanded to include techniques that are efficient at detecting different types of planets. By combining the discoveries of the various methods, we therefore have the opportunity to build a picture of planet populations across the Galaxy. In this thesis, I am presenting work done as a basis towards such an effort: first I present work carried out to improve modelling methods for gravitational microlensing events. Since the first microlensing observing campaigns, the amount of data of anomalous events has been increasing ever faster, meaning that the time required to model all observed anomalous events is putting a strain on available human and computational resources. I present work to develop a method to fit anomalous microlensing events automatically and show that it is possible to conduct a thorough and unbiased search of the parameter space, illustrating this by analysing an event from the 2007 observing season. I then discuss the possible models found with this method for this event, and their implication (Kains et al. 2009), and find that this algorithm locates good-fit models in regions of parameters that would have been very unlikely to be found using standard modelling methods. Results indicate that it is necessary to use a full Bayesian approach, in order to include prior information on the parameters. I discuss the analytical priors calculated by Cassan et al. (2009) and suggest a possible form of an automatic fitting algorithm by incorporating these priors in the algorithm used by Kains et al. (2009). Another topic with which this thesis is concerned is the evolution of debris discs around solar-type stars. Late-type stars are expected to be the most numerous host stars of planets detected with the microlensing technique. Understanding how their debris discs evolve equates to understanding the earliest stages of planet formation around these stars, allowing us to truly put our Solar System in perspective. Using the analytical model of Wyatt et al. (2007a), I modelled the evolution of infrared excess flux at 24 and 70 microns using published data of debris discs around solar-type (spectral types F, G and K) stars from the Spitzer Space Telescope. By comparing the results of this study to an analogous study carried out by for A stars by Wyatt et al. (2007b), I find that although best-fit parameters are significantly different for solar-type stars, this may be due to the varying number of inefficient emitters around stars of different spectral types. I suggest that although effective properties are different by an order of magnitude or more, intrinsic properties, while still different, are so by a much smaller factor. These differences may be due to the longer timescales over which solar-type stars evolve, which allow for the formation of larger and stronger planetesimals.

In recent years, the study of stimulated emission from and by biological systems has gained wide spread attention as a promising technology platform for novel biointegrated laser. However, the photonic properties and the associated physics of many biological laser systems are not yet fully understood and many promising resonator architectures and laser classes have not yet transitioned into the biological world. In this thesis, we investigate the fundamental photonic properties of lasers based on single biological cells and explore the potential of distributed feedback (DFB) gratings as novel biointegrated laser resonators. We show how the easy and flexible fabrication of DFB resonators helps to realize optofluidic and solid-state biological lasers. Lasing characteristics, such as tunable and single mode emission, are investigated and different applications are explored. Fourier-space emission studies on different biological lasers give insight in to the photonic dispersion relation of the system and the fundamental creation of lasing modes and their confinement in living systems. The first purely water based optofluidic DFB laser is demonstrated and novel sensing applications are suggested. This device shows low threshold lasing due to an optimized mode shape, which is achieved by a low refractive index substrate and the use of a mixed-order grating. Next, by integrating a high refractive index interlayer on a DFB resonator, a laser device incorporating the novel solid-state biological gain material green fluorescent protein (GFP) is realized. Lastly, we show how the thickness of organic polymer lasers can be reduced to its fundamental limit (< 500 nm) and the resulting membrane like laser devices can be applied to and operated on various body parts to potentially complement biometric identification.

The Master‘s thesis deals with the design of information system of the company KLAS Nekoř a.s. Based on the analysis, I will present suggestions to improve information system of the company. Master‘s thesis assesses the current situation of the information system of the company and establishes requirements for the selection of the optimal solution. It also describes the steps for the implementation of a new information system in the company KLAS Nekoř a.s.

What is the correct way to interpret the relationship between the message of Jesus and the kerygma, a hermeneutic of discontinuity and evolution or a hermeneutic of continuity and development? The Eschatological Jesus will argue for continuity and development. In their portraits of a non-eschatological and non-messianic Jesus J.D. Crossan and Marcus Borg raise questions about the relationship between Jesus and the kerygma but do not answer them. Reginald H. Fuller and Martin Hengel demonstrate that high Christology can be traced directly to the eschatological ministry of Jesus, especially his authority. Fuller describes Jesus' authority in terms of an inaugurated eschatology and a distinctive sonship which he extends to others. Martin Hengel describes Jesus' eschatological authority as one who acted in God's place when he called his disciples the way God called his prophets and imposed on them a divine discipline and in Lk. 13:34 which has parallels in Sir. 1:15 and Deut. 32:11. This is a messianic authority since it was the Messiah who stood in God's place at the end of time. This Jesus who is in control of the end gave rise to a belief in his pre-existence and the claims of the Fourth Gospel. P.M. Casey, on the other hand, rejects such authority as being apparent in Jesus' ministry. Unlike Fuller and Hengel who see the Fourth Gospel as the logical outgrowth of Jesus' use of 'Abbā, Casey sees the Fourth Gospel as a betrayal of Jesus and the synoptic tradition. However, Casey overlooks the synoptic gospels' portrait of Jesus' acting in God's place and Matthew's use of προσκγνεῖν and προσέρχεσθαι. The Eschatological Jesus concludes with the belief that Jesus' ministry was messianic and eschatological and that the authority he exhibits provides the basis for not only his being Christ, but divine Lord and Son of God.

This thesis explores the extent to which eschatology shapes temporal existence. The interlocutors are Alexander Schmemann and Joseph Ratzinger. The first part of the thesis examines (1) Schmemann's account of eschatology, (2) how this shapes temporality, and (3) what it means to be a person in time. Schmemann's account is based upon a dualistic conception of temporality in which ‘this world', the ‘old' aeon, finds its meaning and life in the ‘new' aeon. Thus, meaning is found anagogically and teleologically, and human persons are called not only to ascend and leave the ‘old' aeon but, as priests, to instil meaning into the world by offering it to God. It is argued that although Schmemann's anthropology is Christocentric and relational, it remains, like his view of temporality, teleologically unidirectional. The second part of the thesis addresses the same questions as are raised in part one but of Ratzinger's theological approach. For Ratzinger eschatology is absorbed into Christology, and thus it is understood relationally as is also the case with his account of history. The Logos as dia-Logos works within history ‘wooing' humankind into relationship with the trinitarian God. As a result of Ratzinger's relation vision, history is undivided––there is no ‘old' and ‘new' aeon––and history succeeding Christ continues to be Advent history. As historical creatures, human persons are relational beings who must be understood as both ‘with' and ‘for' the other. Temporality as relational ‘space' is central to his account and interpreted as grounded in the eternal being of the relational God. The thesis concludes that for Ratzinger God's triune relationality shapes eschatology and what it means to be a person in time. Whereas, for Schmemann, the converse is the case: eschatology informs his conception of relationality, temporality, and personhood. As a result of the primacy of eschatology in Schmemann's theology human temporal existence is ultimately denigrated.

Cette étude s'inscrit dans le cadre du contrat franco-allemand DEUFRAKO K2 associant la SNCF et la DEUTSCH BAHN sur l'étude du bruit généré par les trains à grande vitesse. Une cavité rectangulaire peu profonde est d'abord placée dans une soufflerie bas-bruit. Les visualisations pariétales de l'écoulement et les mesures anémométriques montrent que l'écoulement se rattache sur le fond de la cavité et décolle à nouveau au passage du bord aval. Les plus fortes fluctuations de pression pariétale instationnaire (mesurées par microphones) sont aussi observées au niveau du bord aval, région dans laquelle l'intensimétrie 3D localise principales sources acoustiques. Le rayonnement acoustique révèle un spectre large bande sans phénomène de couplage entre les champs aérodynamique et acoustique. Une maquette réaliste de la baignoire à l'échelle 1/7e a ensuite été conçue et placée dans une soufflerie subsonique. Des visualisations pariétales de l'écoulement montrent une structure d?écoulement 3D très complexe. Les mesures de fil chaud indiquent une plongée très rapide de la couche de cisaillement amont vers le fond de la baignoire ainsi qu'un jet vertical intense au niveau du bord aval. Les coefficients de pression en paroi restent quasiment uniformes dans la baignoire. L'analyse spectrale révèle deux régions comportant des modes de résonance auxquels s'ajoute le STROUHAL des pantographes. L'influence des pantographes est enfin simulée via leur modélisation par deux cylindres circulaires, d'écartement et d'incidence variables, placés dans la soufflerie bas-bruit. Les expériences dévoilent de forts couplages aéroacoustiques non-linéaires (feedback) évoluant suivant ces deux paramètres. Les analyses spectrale et bispectrale de la pression acoustique mesurée en champ lointain (microphone) ainsi que les visualisations et les champs de vitesses obtenus par PIV contribuent à l'interprétation de ces phénomènes. Les expériences de chaque étude sont comparées à des simulations numériques.

Glass beads comprise the most frequently found evidence of trade between southern Africa and the greater Indian Oceanbetween the 7th and 16th centuries AD.  In this thesis beads recovered from southern African archaeological sites are organized into series, based on morphology and chemical composition determined by LA-ICP-MS analysis.  The results are used to interpret the trade patterns and partners that linked eastern Africa to the rest of the Indian Ocean world, as well as interconnections between southern Africa andEast Africa.   Comprehensive reports on bead assemblages from several archaeological sites are presented, including: Mapungubwe, K2 and Schroda in the Shashe-Limpopo Basin; Chibuene in southern Mozambique; Hlamba Mlonga in eastern Zimbabwe; Sibudu Cave in KwaZulu-Natal, Kaole Ruins in Tanzania and Mahilaka in northwest Madagascar.  The conclusions reached show that trade relationships and socio-political development in the south were different from those on the East Coast and that changes in bead series in the south demonstrate it was fully integrated into the cycles of the Eurasian and African world-system.

The War of the Spanish Succession saw the culmination in the development of European warfare during the “Military Revolution” period, which saw European states fielding larger armies with geographically more ambitious strategies under the umbrella of the nascent eighteenth‐century phenomenon of the “Fiscal‐Military State.” By investigating the Austro‐British alliance at the diplomatic, strategic, logistical, and operational levels during the war, greater insight can be gained into the mechanics of alliance warfare and how two allies reconcile independent war strategies in order to achieve a common goal. This is done in particular by exploring British attempts to influence Austrian war strategy through the tools of diplomacy and logistics in order to bring it more in line with British war strategy, particularly in the region of southern Europe. The chronological approach adopted by this thesis will demonstrate how the course of a war can influence strategy and, in turn, facilitate or impede allied collaboration. The early years of the war saw unsuccessful attempts at Austro‐British collaboration due to the distance between the two allies and the limited contact between them. The 1703 crisis of the Austrian monarchy following financial collapse, rebellion, and a hostile Bavaria forced a dramatic revision of British strategy, culminating the Blenheim campaign of 1704. The expansion of the war into Iberia saw a broadening of Austro‐British military contacts, and the strategic situation in Italy was the source of greater collaboration. However, this expanded collaboration could prove diplomatically damaging when strategic or operational goals diverged. The later years of the war saw Austro‐British collaboration reach its peak, but Austria had to sacrifice much of the direction of its own war effort in the Mediterranean to Britain as the price for British support. The final years of the war saw British and Austrian war strategies diverge in light of the death of Joseph I.

I Sverige finns idag ett flertal olika företagsformer att välja mellan. Några av de företagsformerna är exempelvis enskild firma och aktiebolag. En näringsidkare kan ha startat en enskild firma som efter några år har expanderats. Näringsidkaren har då möjlighet att ombilda sin enskilda firma till ett aktiebolag. Den enskilda firman är en egen fysisk person och när en ombildning sker blir aktiebolaget sin egna juridiska person. Vid ombildning av företagsform finns det ett flertal krav men även skattemässiga aspekter att ta hänsyn till. En ombildning från enskild firma till ett aktiebolag kan ske på två olika sätt, genom inkråmöverlåtelse eller apportemission. Tillgångarna som finns i den enskilda firman måste överlåtas på ett korrekt sätt. Här ska därför uttagsbeskattnings- och underprisöverlåtelsebestämmelserna tillämpas. Dessa bestämmelser finns reglerade i 22 och 23 kap. Inkomstskattelagen (1999:1229). Definitionen av uttag är när näringsidkaren har till syfte att ta ut tillgången från verksamheten. Det kan antingen vara för att överlåta till en annan näringsverksamhet eller för privatbruk. Detta kan då leda till att näringsidkaren blir uttagsbeskattad för tillgången. För att undvika uttagsbeskattning, finns underprisöverlåtelsebestämmelserna i 23 kap. IL. I 23 kap. 14 – 29 §§ IL finns dessa bestämmelser reglerade och de ska vara uppfyllda för att det ska betraktas som underprisöverlåtelse.  En maskin är den tillgången som används i scenariot i detta arbete. För att undvika att skattekonsekvenser uppstår, ska maskintillgången värderas på ett korrekt sätt. Det finns ett samband mellan redovisning och beskattning som påverkar näringsverksamheten. Görs redovisningen på ett korrekt sätt, blir det lättare att se hur maskintillgången ska värderas vid en ombildning. Värderas tillgången på ett korrekt sätt behöver det inte ske någon uttagsbeskattning för tillgången vid ombildningen. Följs bestämmelserna som krävs vid en ombildning och vid värdering av tillgången, underlättas procedurerna för näringsidkaren. Detta har även en påverkan på näringslivet.