De nos jours, les liaisons par fibres optiques monomode ou multimodes équipent de plus en plus de bâtiments, de lieux et sites de transports publics (gares, aéroports, autoroutes, ports ou plateformes multimodales). Ceci est dû au débit important qu’offre la fibre optique et à son atténuation très faible sur de longues distances. Afin de gérer au mieux la transmission au sein de la fibre optique, les performances de divers codes à une dimension 1D OOC et PC et deux dimensions 2D-MWOOC sur les récepteurs conventionnels ont été étudiées. Cependant, les performances obtenues restent limitées lorsque le nombre d’utilisateurs croit significativement. En ne tenant pas compte du bruit causé par les composants du système, la dégradation des performances est principalement due aux interférences d’accès multiples (IAM). De ce fait, nous proposons dans le cadre de cette thèse d’optimiser les performances du récepteur PIC en ajoutant un facteur de compensation qui permet de réduire au mieux les interférences d’accès multiples. Ceci est étudié avec les codes optiques à deux dimensions 2D-PC/PC que nous générons. Des expérimentations sur un banc d’essai optique en laboratoire sont effectuées pour illustrer la mise en oeuvre de multiservices. Une validation de certains résultats théoriques est également menée sur un simulateur dédié. / Nowadays, public transport spaces (train stations, airports, highways, ports or multimodal platforms) and buildings are being more and more equipped by single mode or multimode optical fibers. The high throughput offered and the very low attenuation over long distances proposed by optical fiber are indeed very promising. For a better management of optical fiber transmissions, the performance of various one-dimensional 1D OOC and PC codes, and twodimensional2D- MWOOC codes on conventional receivers have been previously studied.These studies show that a good level of performance is only available to a restricted number of users. Assuming noiseless components in the system, the performance degradation is mainly due to multiple access interference (MAI). Therefore, we propose in this thesis to optimize the performance of PIC receivers by adding a compensation factor that can best reduce the MAI. This is studied with two-dimensional optical codes 2D-PC/PC that we have generated. Experiments on a laboratory test bench were made to implement multiple services. The theoretical studies and the channel optical transmission simulations were also validated by using a dedicated simulator tool.

Pour explorer les conséquences biographiques de la participation aux événements de Mai-Juin 68, dans un va-et-vient permanent entre effort d'objectivation (par l'analyse statistique) et effort de compréhension (fondé sur l'analyse de récits de vie), une enquête quantitative et qualitative a été menée auprès d'un échantillon apparié de personnes ayant participé aux événements et de leurs enfants scolarisés dans deux écoles alternatives à Paris et à Nantes. De façon générale, il s'agissait d'étudier les incidences des rencontres entre trajectoires individuelles et événement politique et leurs effets potentiels sur la « deuxième génération » (celle des enfants). La première partie propose une sociogenèse des dispositions contestataires analysant les déterminants de l'engagement en Mai 68 et les registres de participation à l'événement. La deuxième partie étudie les incidences biographiques de la participation à Mai 68, à partir d'une analyse longitudinale et processuelle des trajectoires post soixante-huitardes, fondée sur des indicateurs d'inflexion des trajectoires (politiques, professionnelles et privées). Dans une démarche proche de celle de Doug McAdam dans Freedom Summer, ces deux premières parties mettent en évidence l'hétérogénéité des micro-unités de génération trop souvent confondues dans une « génération Mai 68 », en repérant ce qui tient aux histoires de vie antérieures et aux expositions différenciées à l'événement. La troisième partie poursuit l'enquête auprès des « enfants de soixante-huitards » pour identifier les effets des événements de Mai-Juin 68 sur la « deuxième génération », via notamment les socialisations familiale et scolaire contre-culturelles et la transmission intergénérationnelle d'héritages de Mai 68.

This thesis examines the issues of the modern French education system through an analysis of the film, Entre Les Murs (2008) and French education's socio-historical and political context. The study finds that the way in which France thinks about authority, language, and multiculturalism leads to the exclusion of certain students from the learning process. The aim of the study is to critically rethinks these issues in light of theories on race, identity, and postcolonialism in order to eventually propose solutions so that all students may fully flourish in modern French society.

The doctoral thesis was an study about Miquel Mai, a polític, jurist, bibliophile and art collector in Barcelona in the first half of the XVI century. The thesis presents the figure of Miquel Mai by his biographic history, with emphasis in the principals chapters that he was participant. After, there was a chapter whose principal theme its the connection between Miquel Mai and the Erasmism movement. Third, it was an analysis of all the art objects that Miquel Mai accumulates. Fourth, the thesis explores the library (formed by more than 2000 books). And finally, we studied the relationship between the art objects who decorate the library and the same books that was in the library. / Aquesta tesi és un estudi al voltant de la persona de Miquel Mai, politic, jurista, bibliòfil i col•leccionista d'art a la Barcelona de la primera meitat del segle XVI. La tesi presenta a Miquel Mai a partir del seu relat biogràfic, posant especial èmfasi en els principals capítols polítics en els que va participar. Seguidament es desenvolupa un capítol dedicat a la possible definició de Miquel Mai com a erasmista i la influència que aquest corrent espiritual va jugar al llarg de la seva vida. En tercer lloc s’analitza els inventaris de béns i tota la relació d’objectes artístics que va acumular amb el pas del temps. Un quart aspecte gira entorn a l’extensa biblioteca (més de 2000 llibres) que Miquel Mai va formar a la seva residència de la plaça de la Cucurulla de Barcelona. I en cinquè lloc es posa de manifest la relació directe entre els béns artístics que decoraven la biblioteca i les lectures que precisament es trobaven en aquesta biblioteca.

Thailand has faced under-nutrition and yet, paradoxically, the prevalence of diseases of over-nutrition, such as obesity and diabetes, has escalated. Since access to diabetes prevention programs is limited in Thailand, especially in rural areas, it becomes critical to develop a health information delivery system that is relevant, cost-effective and sustainable. Therefore, the main objective of this program is to build capacity for chronic disease prevention in Thailand through application of learning technologies in the education, support and accreditation of community health care workers (CHCWs). This program stems from established partnerships among: The University of Waterloo (UW), Department of Health Studies and Gerontology; Institute of Nutrition, Mahidol University (INMU); The Office of Disease Prevention and Control 10 Chiang Mai province; Ministry of Public Health (MOPH), Thailand and UW, Centre for Teaching Excellence (CTE) . The development of the community-based diabetes prevention education program in Chiang Mai, Thailand was informed by in-depth interviews with health care professionals (n=12) and interviews (n=8) and focus groups (n = 4 groups, 23 participants) with community volunteers, screened as at-risk for diabetes. Coded transcripts from audio-taped interviews or focus groups underwent qualitative analysis by hand and using NVivo software. Health care professionals identified opportunities to integrate health promotion/ disease prevention into CHCWs’ duties. However, they also identified potential barriers to program success as motivation for regular participation, and lack of health policy support for program sustainability. Health care professionals supported an education program for CHCWs and recommended small-group workshops, hands-on learning activities, case studies and video presentations that bring knowledge to practice within their cultural context; CHCWs should receive a credit for continuing study. Community volunteers lacked knowledge of nutrition, diabetes risk factors and resources to access health information. They desired two-way communication with CHCWs. A tailored diabetes prevention education program was designed based on this formative research. Learning modules were delivered over eight group classes (n=5/class) and eight self-directed E-learning sessions (www.FitThai.org). The program incorporated problem-based learning, discussion, reflection, community-based application, self-evaluation and on-line support. The frequency that students accessed on-line materials, including video-taped lectures, readings, monthly newsletters, and community resources, was documented. Participant satisfaction was assessed through three questionnaires. Knowledge was assessed through pre-post testing based on an exam that was pilot tested with 32 CHCWs from a district outside of the 5 districts in semi-urban Chiang Mai province from which the 69 participating CHCWs (35 intervention, 34 control) were randomly selected. The program was implemented over four months. Three quarters of participants attended all eight classes and no participant attended fewer than six. Online support and materials were accessed 3 – 38 times (median 13). Participants reported that program information and activities were fun, useful, culturally relevant, and applicable to diabetes prevention in their specific communities. Participants also appreciated the innovative technology support for their work. Comfort with E-learning varied among participants. Scores on pre-post knowledge test increased from a mean (SD) of 56.5% (6.26) to 75.5% (6.01) (P < .001). The effect of the program on knowledge of CHCWs was compared between intervention and control communities at baseline and the end of the program. Overall, the knowledge at baseline of both groups was not significantly different (56.5% (6.26) intervention versus 54.9% (6.98) control) and all CHCWs scored lower than 70%. The lowest scores were found in the “understanding of nutritional recommendations” section (mean score = 28% in intervention and 30% in control CHCWs). After 4 months, CHCWs in the intervention group demonstrated improvement relative to the control group (75.5% (6.01) versus 57.4% (5.59), respectively, p <.001, n=69). The percent of CHCWs achieving a total score of 70% was 77% (27/35) in intervention and 0% in control groups. The diabetes prevention education program was effective in improving CHCWs’ health knowledge relevant diabetes prevention. The innovative learning model has potential to expand chronic disease prevention training of CHCWs to other parts of Thailand. Ultimately, prevention of chronic diseases and associated risk factors should be enhanced.

Thailand has faced under-nutrition and yet, paradoxically, the prevalence of diseases of over-nutrition, such as obesity and diabetes, has escalated. Since access to diabetes prevention programs is limited in Thailand, especially in rural areas, it becomes critical to develop a health information delivery system that is relevant, cost-effective and sustainable. Therefore, the main objective of this program is to build capacity for chronic disease prevention in Thailand through application of learning technologies in the education, support and accreditation of community health care workers (CHCWs). This program stems from established partnerships among: The University of Waterloo (UW), Department of Health Studies and Gerontology; Institute of Nutrition, Mahidol University (INMU); The Office of Disease Prevention and Control 10 Chiang Mai province; Ministry of Public Health (MOPH), Thailand and UW, Centre for Teaching Excellence (CTE) . The development of the community-based diabetes prevention education program in Chiang Mai, Thailand was informed by in-depth interviews with health care professionals (n=12) and interviews (n=8) and focus groups (n = 4 groups, 23 participants) with community volunteers, screened as at-risk for diabetes. Coded transcripts from audio-taped interviews or focus groups underwent qualitative analysis by hand and using NVivo software. Health care professionals identified opportunities to integrate health promotion/ disease prevention into CHCWs’ duties. However, they also identified potential barriers to program success as motivation for regular participation, and lack of health policy support for program sustainability. Health care professionals supported an education program for CHCWs and recommended small-group workshops, hands-on learning activities, case studies and video presentations that bring knowledge to practice within their cultural context; CHCWs should receive a credit for continuing study. Community volunteers lacked knowledge of nutrition, diabetes risk factors and resources to access health information. They desired two-way communication with CHCWs. A tailored diabetes prevention education program was designed based on this formative research. Learning modules were delivered over eight group classes (n=5/class) and eight self-directed E-learning sessions (www.FitThai.org). The program incorporated problem-based learning, discussion, reflection, community-based application, self-evaluation and on-line support. The frequency that students accessed on-line materials, including video-taped lectures, readings, monthly newsletters, and community resources, was documented. Participant satisfaction was assessed through three questionnaires. Knowledge was assessed through pre-post testing based on an exam that was pilot tested with 32 CHCWs from a district outside of the 5 districts in semi-urban Chiang Mai province from which the 69 participating CHCWs (35 intervention, 34 control) were randomly selected. The program was implemented over four months. Three quarters of participants attended all eight classes and no participant attended fewer than six. Online support and materials were accessed 3 – 38 times (median 13). Participants reported that program information and activities were fun, useful, culturally relevant, and applicable to diabetes prevention in their specific communities. Participants also appreciated the innovative technology support for their work. Comfort with E-learning varied among participants. Scores on pre-post knowledge test increased from a mean (SD) of 56.5% (6.26) to 75.5% (6.01) (P < .001). The effect of the program on knowledge of CHCWs was compared between intervention and control communities at baseline and the end of the program. Overall, the knowledge at baseline of both groups was not significantly different (56.5% (6.26) intervention versus 54.9% (6.98) control) and all CHCWs scored lower than 70%. The lowest scores were found in the “understanding of nutritional recommendations” section (mean score = 28% in intervention and 30% in control CHCWs). After 4 months, CHCWs in the intervention group demonstrated improvement relative to the control group (75.5% (6.01) versus 57.4% (5.59), respectively, p <.001, n=69). The percent of CHCWs achieving a total score of 70% was 77% (27/35) in intervention and 0% in control groups. The diabetes prevention education program was effective in improving CHCWs’ health knowledge relevant diabetes prevention. The innovative learning model has potential to expand chronic disease prevention training of CHCWs to other parts of Thailand. Ultimately, prevention of chronic diseases and associated risk factors should be enhanced.

PN code tracking plays a very important role in CDMA communication systems. In literature, the influences of multipath fading and of multiuser interference on PN code tracking are studied separately. The multipath fading influence is mitigated by combining a rake receiver and a channel estimator in the Delay-Locked Loop (DLL). The multiuser interference is overcome by incorporating a data estimator into the DLL. In the downlink, PN code tracking may suffer from the multipath fading influence. However, the multipath fading and the multiuser interference influences exist in the uplink. Unfortunately, sole use of the aforementioned methods cannot solve out both influences simultaneously. In this thesis, two new Coherent Decision-Directed Delay-Locked Loop (CDD-DLL) PN-Code tracking schemes are developed and either can overcome both influences. First, a channel and a data estimators are incorporated into the DLL inherent with a rake receiver. This new scheme works properly in an environment with multipath fading and multiuser interference. Second, the original CDD-DLL is combined with a multipath interference canceller (MPI) to reduce both influences. Analytical results are derived for the two schemes proposed and are validated with numerical simulations. Simulation results show that the conventional DLLs working in a multipath fading and multiuser interference environment can be significantly improved using the new schemes. Moreover, the latter outperforms the former because the multipath interference is cancelled completely.

Foreign Direct investment (FDI) has been recognized as a vital source of development for African countries, which are mainly capital importing countries. This has led to a quest for effective regulation of the activities of foreign investors in a country while considering the profit making goals of the investors as well. As there is a need to strike a balance between the need to regulate entry and activities of investors and reaping the immense benefits of FDI such as growth and development. The regulation of FDI thus becomes important. However, there is no universal multilateral agreement on Investment (MAI) that binds most states oft the world. What we have is attempts at regional levels to regulate Investment uniformly. This quest has led to debates with many developing countries (Africa Inclusive) resisting attempts to formulate a MAI. This paper will start with an introduction of the importance of FDI as well as the various attempts that have been made to regulate FID on a multilateral level. Then the paper will go on to examine two Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs) Botswana-China BIT on Promotion and Protection of Investments 2000,Czech-Tunisia BIT for the Promotion and Reciprocal Protection of Investment 1997, and two Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) - Chapter 11 of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), 1990 and the investment provisions of the U.S &ndash;Morocco Free Trade Agreement 2004, to identify those trends that are common to these agreements that have been entered into by African countries. It will examine these provisions in line with the rights and obligations they create for the investors as well as the host countries. / Magister Legum - LLM

<p>Foreign Direct investment (FDI) has been recognized as a vital source of development for African countries, which are mainly capital importing countries. This has led to a quest for effective regulation of the activities of foreign investors in a country while considering the profit making goals of the investors as well. As there is a need to strike a balance between the need to regulate entry and activities of investors and reaping the immense benefits of FDI such as growth and development. The regulation of FDI thus becomes important. However, there is no universal multilateral agreement on Investment (MAI) that binds most states oft the world. What we have is attempts at regional levels to regulate Investment uniformly. This quest has led to debates with many developing countries (Africa Inclusive) resisting attempts to formulate a MAI. This paper will start with an introduction of the importance of FDI as well as the various attempts that have been made to regulate FID on a multilateral level. Then the paper will go on to examine two Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs) Botswana-China BIT on Promotion and Protection of Investments 2000,Czech-Tunisia BIT for the Promotion and Reciprocal Protection of Investment 1997, and two Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) - Chapter 11 of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), 1990 and the investment provisions of the U.S &ndash / Morocco Free Trade Agreement 2004, to identify those trends that are common to these agreements that have been entered into by African countries. It will examine these provisions in line with the rights and obligations they create for the investors as well as the host countries.</p>

Thesis (M. Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references.