O objetivo principal desse trabalho foi o de descrever e compreender a maneira pela qual se constituem em mantém-se as formas de sociação de uma organização chamada Casa da Cultura Digital em Porto Alegre (CCD). Para tanto, os objetivos específicos foram: descrever as sociabilidades e conflitos como formas de sociação; descrever as peculiaridades da forma se organizar da CCD; e, compreender os significados que a CCD tem para seus integrantes. Estes objetivos estão embasados nos direcionamentos das “lentes teóricas” utilizadas que buscam compreender os estilos de vida e as formas de viver em conjunto permeadas por uma saturação do indivíduo em meio às objetificações da vida moderna, as quais podem lhe constranger. Em certos casos, tais objetificações são chamadas de formas de sociação: maneiras pelas quais as pessoas associam-se umas com as outras e desenvolvem conteúdos – entendidos como motivações ou interesses – que se abrigam em uma determinada “forma”. Quando uma lógica racional-instrumental, que faz parte de tais objetificações, dá sinais de saturação, emerge uma forma de viver em comum estética, lúdica e presenteísta que, de certo modo, opõe-se às institucionalizações, ao gigantismo e ao imperativo da eficiência. Um exemplo dessa expressão acontece em tribos pós-modernas, as quais revelam um modo de ser e estar com os outros dotado de uma razão sensível. Neste trabalho, estão em foco estas duas noções: formas de sociação e tribos contemporâneas à luz do exemplo de uma organização de natureza associativa, que busca realizar eventos, palestras e encontros para informar a população sobre cibercultura, uso dos meios digitais e o universo hacker - não restrita a isso. A partir de uma aproximação etnográfica com esse campo, foi possível notar sinais de uma exacerbação das sociabilidades, dos conflitos e de algumas peculiaridades da forma de organizar as tarefas, tais como: a rejeição de formalizações, de hierarquias, certa aversão às relações demasiadamente monetarizadas, bem como o modo de uso dos espaços físicos e do ciberespaço. Tal forma de ser e de organizar-se revela aspectos de um grupo que busca expressar-se em sua criatividade, demonstrando, para além disso, uma tentativa de se opor às formas de trabalho centralizadoras e pouco criativas, formatando um espaço divergente. Nesse jogo de formas, entre proximidades e afastamentos, o sujeito mostra que quando não encontra a satisfação nos ambientes “tradicionais”, este busca maneiras de expressão concretizadas em uma organização que se aproxima da metáfora da tribo contemporânea, constituindo uma forma de sociação, a qual revela negações e rearticulações de formas de gestão. / The main objective of this work was to describe and comprehend the way through which forms of sociation are constituted and maintained in an organization named Casa da Cultura Digital (CCD) situated in Porto Alegre. Thus, the specific objectives were: to describe sociabilities and conflicts as forms of sociation; to describe the peculiarities of the way CCD is organized; and, comprehend the meanings that CCD plays to its members. These objectives are based on the directions of the “theoretical lenses” which search to comprehend the life styles and forms of living together permeated by a saturation of the individual amidst the objectifications of a modern life, which can constrain him (SIMMEL, 2005b). In certain cases, these objectifications are named forms of sociation: manners through which people associate with one another and develop contents – understood as motivations and interests – that accommodate in a certain form. When an instrumental rationality, which is part of those objectifications, displays signs of saturation, an aesthetic, playful, and presentist way of living emerges in a certain way opposing to an institutionalization, a gigantism, and an efficiency imperative. An example of this expression happens in “post-modern tribes” (MAFFESOLI, 2010b) that reveal a form of being with others permeated by a sensitive reason. In this work, both notions of forms of sociation and contemporary tribes are in focus from an example of organization named Casa da Cultura Digital, an association which seeks to perform events, lectures, meetings to inform the population about cyberculture, the use of digital means and the hacker realm – not restricted to these themes. This form of being and organizing reveals a group that seeks to express itself in its creativity, sensitiveness, hedonism, and presentist interactions, which demonstrate, beyond that, an attempt to oppose centralized and less creative forms of working, thus, formatting a different space. In this play of forms, between proximities and distances, the individual shows that when the satisfaction is not found in “traditional” realms, he searches for forms to express himself that are actualized in an organization which approaches the metaphor of a contemporary tribe constituting a form of sociation, which reveals denials and re-articulations of ways of managing.

A datação cronológica do Parmênides aliada às críticas contidas na primeira parte do Diálogo parece compor um dilema exemplificado pelas leituras de Owen e Cherniss: se as críticas não são relevantes para a doutrina das Formas, por que apresentá-las da maneira aporética, como nos são apresentadas no Parmênides? Se por outro lado, as críticas são relevantes e afetam a doutrina Platônica, como devemos interpretar os Diálogos posteriores ao Parmênides, sobretudo o Timeu, que apresenta uma doutrina semelhante àquela de Diálogos como a República? O presente trabalho tem como objeto de estudo a doutrina das Formas de Platão no Diálogo Parmênides, e sua relação com a doutrina das Formas presente nos Diálogos da maturidade. Tendo em vista o dilema interpretativo representado pelo Parmênides, nosso trabalho pretende investigar e analisar os argumentos da primeira parte do Diálogo, e mostrar que a doutrina atacada é, de fato, muito semelhante àquela apresentada pelos Diálogos da fase madura do pensamento Platônico, como Banquete, Fédon e República. / The chronological dating of the Parmenides, when combined with the critique present in the first part of the dialogue, seems to present a dilemma which is exemplified by Owens and Chernisss readings: if the criticisms are not relevant to the Platonic doctrine of Forms, why present them in such an aporetic way as we are presented in the first part of the Parmenides? If otherwise the criticisms are indeed relevant and pose real problems for the Platonic doctrine, how are we to interpret the dialogues that follow the Parmenides, especially the Timaeus, which seems to present a doctrine of Forms similar to that of dialogues such as the Republic? This thesis has as its subject the Platonic doctrine of Forms as presented in the first part of the Parmenides, and its relation to the doctrine of Forms present in dialogues contained in the second group of Platonic dialogues, such as Phaedo and Republic. Given the interpretive dilemma represented by the Parmenides, this research intends to investigate and analyze the arguments of the first part of that dialogue, and show that the doctrine under attack is, indeed, very similar to that advanced in the middle-period dialogues, such as Symposium, Phaedo and Republic.

In the modern competitive business environment, government institutions need to embrace information communications technology to remain competitive. Procurement has been recognized as a priority government agenda by many public sector agencies worldwide. In the same line the Government of Rwanda has taken several initiatives to streamline its public procurement system to bring it into line with the fundamental principles of transparency, competition, economy, efficiency, fairness, and accountability. Seminega the director of Rwanda public procurement authority stated that e-procurement can help the Government of Rwanda to reach to the above-mentioned principles .E-procurement can be described as an electronic way of procuring goods and services as well as other procurement process activities with the help of internet and other information and communication technologies systems. Before the adoption of e-procurement in some institutions in Rwanda, all the procurement activities were done traditionally in their institutions and this procurement method has been criticized for having many deficits, that contributed to huge losses in public funds and lacks transparency, accountability, and fair competition. In this regard, the government of Rwanda decided to adopt an e-procurement system in its public institutions. the e-procurement system was launched in August 2016. The pilot stage started with eight public institutions, ministry of finance and economic planning is one of them and it is a case study used in this thesis research. it has been selected by the researcher because it is a cross-cutting ministry in the procurement process. Different forms of e-procurement have been discussed as well as benefits and challenges associated with the adoption of e-procurement. the purpose of this research study is to examine how the e-procurement system is used and explore the benefits and challenges associated with its adoption in Rwanda’s public institution. Qualitative research was chosen, and a case study was conducted in the ministry of finance and Economic planning. The source of data for the empirical is from personal interviews and second data. The findings of the present study demonstrate that the adoption of the e-procurement system brought several benefits to MINECOFIN but also it presents challenges associated with the adoption of e-procurement

Masters in Public Administration - MPA / The subject matter of corruption is a topical one in South Africa, where many institutions in the socio-political economy, both private and public, are subject to corruption allegations which emerge from time to time in the media. A number of studies have been undertaken on this topic globally, mainly in Latin America, but there remains a dearth of published academic work on the phenomenon in South Africa. Inevitably what transpires in the socio-political economy has a bearing on the lives of the general public. Of interest in this study is public perceptions of corrupt practices in the country and how these affect ordinary people. The objective of this study is to explore how people perceive corruption in the City of Cape Town, using the residents of Brooklyn as a case study.

The modularity theorem implies that for every elliptic curve E /Q there exist rational maps from the modular curve X_0(N) to E, where N is the conductor of E. These maps may be expressed in terms of pairs of modular functions X(z) and Y(z) that satisfy the Weierstrass equation for E as well as a certain differential equation. Using these two relations, a recursive algorithm can be constructed to calculate the q - expansions of these parameterizations at any cusp. These functions are algebraic over Q(j(z)) and satisfy modular polynomials where each of the coefficient functions are rational functions in j(z). Using these functions, we determine the divisor of the parameterization and the preimage of rational points on E. We give a sufficient condition for when these preimages correspond to CM points on X_0(N). We also examine a connection between the algebras generated by these functions for related elliptic curves, and describe sufficient conditions to determine congruences in the q-expansions of these objects.

No description available.

The focus of the following research was to provide an optimized particle stabilized foam of Laponite and Pluronic L62 in water by understanding (1) the Laponite-Pluronic interactions and properties for improved performance in a particle stabilized foam and (2) the interfacial properties between air and the Laponite-Pluronic complex. These studies were conducted using both bulk and interfacial rheology, XRD, sessile droplet, TGA and UV-vis. Two novel and simple techniques, lamella break point and capillary breakup extensional rheometry, were used to both understand the Laponite Pluronic L62 interaction and determine a different mechanism for foaming properties. Bulk rheological properties identified an optimal Laponite concentration of 2% with Pluronic L62 ranging from 2.5% and 6.5%, due to the ease of flow for the dispersion. The Pluronic L62 was observed to enhance the Laponite bulk rheological properties in solution. Additionally TGA showed a similar trend in thermal resistance to water with both addition of Laponite and Pluronic L62. XRD demonstrated that 0.25% Pluronic intercalated into Laponite from dried 2% Laponite films. XRD demonstrated that the Laponite matrix was saturated at 1% Pluronic L62. UV-vis demonstrated that a monolayer of Pluronic L62 is observed up to 0.65% Pluronic L62 onto Laponite. Interfacial rheology showed that Laponite enhances Pluronic L62 at the air-liquid interface by improving the storage modulus as low at 0.65% Pluronic L62 with 2% Laponite. The lamella breakpoint of Laponite with Pluronic films indicate strong film interaction due to higher increases in mass. Extensional rheology indicates that 2.5% to 6.5% Pluronic with 2% Laponite show the most filament resistance to stretching.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 219-252). / Drawing on Pierre Bourdieu's theory of field and capital, this thesis examines the disciplinary differences in the social sciences concerning the possession of scientific capital and levels of engagement with academic and non-academic constituencies in three African universities, Eduardo Mondlane University in Mozambique, Makerere University in Uganda and the University of the Western Cape in South Africa. Contrary to approaches that regard disciplinary fields as homogeneous epistemic and social spaces on the grounds of the principles of the stratification of scientific fields, this study investigates the relationship between the hierarchical position of selected discipline-clusters and the levels of engagement with both internal and external constituencies. The study reveals that levels of possession of scientific capital have a significant effect on the differentiation of the disciplinary fields, both within and across institutions, and on the levels of engagement with (internal) academic and (external) non-academic entities. The analysis shows that scientific capital does not determine the level and forms of engagement with different constituencies. However, the differences across discipline-clusters at institutional level reflect the engagement with academic rather than with non-academic constituencies. In other words, this means that the level of engagement varies more between different disciplines when the engagement is related to academic entities than is the case when non-academic entities are concerned. Therefore, engagement is not a major discriminator amongst institutions. Scientific capital is what gives academics prestige and symbolic capital to the institution. The significance of this is that academics from different discipline-clusters might have different experiences of engagement with different constituencies. I further conclude that the growing importance that the notion of engagement has for the university is, perhaps, too simple if it does not account for the complex and multifaceted characteristics of disciplinary and institutional fields.

Equations of the form 𝑎𝑥³ + 𝑏𝑦³ = 1, where the constants 𝑎 and 𝑏 are integers of some number field such that 𝑎𝑥³ + 𝑏𝑦³ is irreducible, are a particularly significant class of cubic Thue equations that notably includes the cubic Pell equation. For a positive cubefree rational integer 𝑑, we consider the family of equations of the form 𝑚𝑥³ − 𝑑𝑛𝑦³ = 1 where 𝑚 and 𝑛 are squarefree. We define an 𝐿-function associated to 𝑑 whose nonvanishing coefficients correspond to the nontrivial solutions of those equations. That definition uses expressions related to the cubic theta function Q (􏰇√ 􏰈-), and we study that 𝐿-function’s analytic properties by using a method generalizing the approach used by Takhtajan and Vinogradov to derive a trace formula using the quadratic theta function for Q. We construct its meromorphic continuation and determine the locations and orders of its poles. Specifically, the poles occur at the eigenvalues of the Laplacian for the Maass forms 𝑢_𝑗 , 𝑗 = 1, 2, 3, · · · in the discrete spectrum, with a double pole at 𝑠 = ½ and possible simple poles at 𝑠=𝑠_𝑗,1−𝑠_𝑗,where𝜆𝑗 =2𝑠_𝑗(2−2𝑠_𝑗)istheLaplaceeigenvalueof𝑢𝑗 and𝜆𝑗 ≠1.

As shown by Zagier, singular moduli can be represented by the coefficients of a certain half integer weight modular form. Congruences for singular moduli modulo arbitrary primes have been proved by Ahlgren and Ono, Edixhoven, and Jenkins. Computation suggests that stronger congruences hold for small primes $p \in \{2, 3, 5, 7, 11\}$. Boylan proved stronger congruences hold in the case where $p=2$. We conjecture congruences for singular moduli modulo powers of $p \in \{3, 5, 7, 11\}$. In particular, we study the case where $p=3$ and reduce the conjecture to a congruence for a simpler modular form.