Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal.

Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal

. Ce travail propose, en se basant sur un corpus issu de revues spécialisées en médecine tropicale et sur une série d'interviews de spécialistes du domaine, de comprendre le (ou les) rôle(s) des cartes, d'étudier son évolution au cours du temps ainsi que son impact dans la construction du fait scientifique. Cette étude s'est plus particulièrement appuyée sur la sémiotique peircienne qui a permis d'appréhender le sens des cartes, sur les écrits de Latour concernant la construction de la science ainsi que sur ceux de Robert concernant les technologies intellectuelles. Ces écrits ont donné lieu à la construction d'un système d'analyse de toute carte que notre corpus a alimenté. Outre l'impact réel des cartes publiées, impact constaté par une plus forte citation des articles les publiant, il a été mis en évidence que le(s) rôle(s) évolue(nt) au cours du temps. Au départ, toutes les cartes publiées avaient une fonction d'illustration et n'étaient pas nécessaires à la compréhension de l'article. Au fur et à mesure que les médecins adoptent les avancées de la cartographie, elles acquièrent de nouveaux rôles et deviennent des outils de recherche qui possèdent une autonomie scientifique. Inversement, nous observons des cartes qui perdent de leur « scientificité » au cours du temps. Si donc le rôle de la carte en médecine tropicale est dépendant à un moment donné des connaissances sémiologiques et médicales de son auteur et de son lecteur, il l'est aussi du temps qui, par l'évolution technique, scientifique et sociopolitique de l'environnement, modifie l'apport de ce support pour la recherche et pour la communication. / These objects can cover many different disciplines and appear in this study both politically and scientifically. This study intends to, by being based on a corpus of magazines specialised in tropical medicine and on a series of interviews of specialists in the area, understand the role of maps, studying their evolution in time and their impact on the construction of scientific fact. This study is primarily based on Peirce's semiotics allowing the comprehension of maps, on Latour's works about the construction of science and on Robert's studies into intellectual technologies. These papers led to the construction of an analytical system for all maps used by our corpus. Beyond the primary impact of published maps, which can be noticed through frequent quotations of the articles publishing them, it has been proved that its roles change over time. To start with, all the published maps had an illustrated purpose and were not required to understand the article. As doctors started adopting the progress in cartography, map stook on new roles and became research tools with their own scientific independance. Conversely, we observe that some maps loose their « scientificity » with time. In conclusion, if the role of maps in tropical medicine is dependant on the semiological and medical knowledge of the author and the reader, it is also dependant on the time, which by the technical, scientific and sociopolitical evolution of the environment, alters the use of this format for research and communication.

Spatially-explicit information is essential for planning and implementing interventions against vector-borne diseases. This is also true for African trypanosomoses, a group of diseases of both humans and animals caused by protozoa of the Genus Trypanosoma, and transmitted by tsetse flies (Genus Glossina).<p>In this thesis the knowledge gaps and the requirements for an evidence-based decision making in the field of tsetse and trypanosomoses are identified, with a focus on georeferenced data and Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Datasets, tools and analyses are presented that aim to fill some of the identified knowledge gaps.<p>For the human form of the disease, also known as sleeping sickness, case detection and treatment are the mainstay of control, so that accurate knowledge of the geographic distribution of infections is paramount. In this study, an Atlas was developed that provides village-level information on the reported occurrence of sleeping sickness. The geodatabase underpinning the Atlas also includes the results of active screening activities, even when no cases were detected. The Atlas enables epidemiological maps to be generated at a range of scales, from local to global, thus providing evidence for strategic and technical decision making.<p>In the field of animal trypanosomosis control, also known as nagana, much emphasis has recently been placed on the vector. Accurate delineation of tsetse habitat appears as an essential component of ongoing and upcoming interventions against tsetse. The present study focused on land cover datasets and tsetse habitat. The suitability for tsetse of standardized land cover classes was explored at continental, regional and national level, using a combination of inductive and deductive approaches. The land cover classes most suitable for tsetse were identified and described, and tailored datasets were derived.<p>The suite of datasets, methodologies and tools presented in this thesis provides evidence for informed planning and implementation of interventions against African trypanosomoses at a range of spatial scales. / Doctorat en Sciences agronomiques et ingénierie biologique / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished