The thesis deals with inferences and their function in text understanding. The theoretical part involve a survey of various definitions of inference, a setting of notions which are related to inferences and at last classification of inferences based on linguistic and psychological literature. The empirical part is based on analysis of cook recipes (and technical instruction partially). We have set five means of language which indicate a necessity of making inference (pronouns, ellipsis, hyponyms-hypernyms relation, pronoun vše and adjectivizated participles) - in all cases these inferences are necessary for comprehension. We confronted these inferences with classification described in the theoretical part. Another inferences we make as the text is read are infereces which are not associated with a concrete means of language: bridging inferences and instrumental inferences. Knowledge of the language, general knowledges and experiences take part in inferencing.

<p>Organizations, like individuals, are expected to learn from their mistakes. Companies that successfully rely on past knowledge to inform programmatic decisions use knowledge management tools to capture and disseminate this information, often in the form of lessons learned databases. However, past mistakes continue to happen in the aerospace industry, including NASA. Although NASA has taken measures to stress the importance of lessons learned in organizational culture, relatively little work has been done to develop the user interface of their lessons learned database. Encouraging engineers to review lessons only goes so far when the interface itself is outdated and difficult to use. We propose that an interactive network tool is an effective way to disseminate lessons learned to novice systems engineers.</p><p><br></p><p>In this thesis, I begin by developing a model to represent spacecraft anomaly narratives and applying this model to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s publicly available lessons learned database. I then create an interactive network tool and populate it with the set of modeled lessons. Then, I design an experiment to determine how novice engineers use two different knowledge management tools—the interactive network and the NASA database. I use transcripts of users’ thought processes, verbalized to me during the experiment, to create a mental model of how users with access to knowledge management tools respond to engineering scenarios. From the mental model, I identify the functional strengths and weakness of both the interactive network and the NASA database. Finally, I discuss the results of the experiment and recommend future improvements to the interactive network tool.</p><p><br></p><p>We found that the interactive network was a better resource for users to make connections between topics, and that the NASA database was a better resource for users to search for specific information. Using the interactive network over the NASA database correlated with an increase in performance for the majority of the experiment, but data we collected do not provide enough evidence for us to conclude that the interactive network is a better dissemination tool than the NASA database in all scenarios. We found that receiving lessons learned from either of the tools takes time because each tool’s functionality elicits new tasks from the user. Finally, we found that the top performers in the experiment used each of the tool’s strongest features.</p><div><br></div><p></p>

O aprendizado motor pode ser considerado um processo sensório-cognitivomotor, que envolve a formação de representações neurais da tarefa, chamadas de modelos internos. Essa forma de entender o aprendizado motor permite que processos como o aprendizado por meio da prática mental, ou seja, sem a finalização do movimento pelos efetores e a realimentação sensorial conseqüente a isso, possam ser compreendidos. A prática mental mostra-se uma forma de treinamento tão eficiente quanto a prática física em adultos, porém com vantagens quanto à generalização, visto que favorece a formação de modelos internos mais flexíveis. Entre os 5 e 6 anos de idade, a despeito das imaturidades de funções cognitivas, como memória de trabalho e atenção, as crianças já são capazes de imaginar tarefas motoras dinâmicas, embora não haja evidências na literatura sobre a capacidade de aprendizado por meio da imaginação nem a comparação com o treino físico. Desta forma, o objetivo deste estudo foi comparar a capacidade de aprender, reter e generalizar uma nova habilidade motora de oposição seqüencial de dedos por meio do treino físico e mental, em crianças de 5 e 6 anos. Para tal, foi comparado o desempenho motor em uma tarefa de oposição seqüencial de dedos, em 3 diferentes condições: com treinamento físico da tarefa, com treinamento mental e sem treinamento. O grupo de prática física (PF) era composto por dezesseis crianças com média de idade de 6,5±0,2 anos, sendo doze meninas e quatro meninos; o grupo de prática mental (PM) composto por 12 crianças com média de idade de 5,7±0,5 anos, dentre elas 7 meninos e 5 meninas e o grupo sem prática (SP), por 12 crianças de 5,6±0,4 anos, das quais 8 eram meninos e 4 meninas, todos destros. Os grupos de PF e PM foram submetidos a uma sessão de treino com 2400 repetições, sendo avaliados, assim como o grupo SP, antes, depois, 4, 7, 14 e 28 dias após o treinamento. Os resultados mostram que independente da forma de treino, as crianças foram capazes de melhorar o seu desempenho em termos de velocidade ao longo do treinamento, sendo que o grupo PM foi mais rápido para concluir cada bloco de treino em comparação com o grupo PF. Quanto à aquisição, embora de forma mais lenta, as crianças do grupo PM atingiram o mesmo desempenho que o grupo PF ao final das reavaliações, enquanto que o grupo SP permaneceu com o desempenho semelhante ao da primeira avaliação e significativamente inferior aos grupos PF e PM. Já para a generalização, os grupos PF e PM apresentaram melhora do desempenho da seqüência reversa (SR) mais lenta em comparação à seqüência treinada (ST), porém ao final dos 28 dias de experimento o grupo PM manteve esta melhora, enquanto o grupo PF perdeu desempenho. O grupo SP não apresentou diferenças significativas no comportamento de nenhuma das 2 seqüências testadas. Com base nesses resultados, pode-se concluir que crianças de 5 e 6 anos vii são capazes de aprender, reter e generalizar uma nova habilidade motora envolvendo movimentos seqüenciais de oposição de dedos por meio da prática mental, sem diferenças em comparação com a prática física, porém com vantagens quanto à generalização. / Motor skill learning (MSL) is a sensory-cognitive-motor process that involves the formation of neural representations of a task, known as internal models. This way of understanding the MSL allows processes such as motor learning through mental practice, which is, without end-movements from muscles and the subsequential sensorial feedback to those movements, to being understood. Mental practice is shown as a form of training as efficient as the physical practice in adults, however with advantage on generalization since it favors the formation of more flexible internal models. Between 5 and 6 years of age, in spite of immature cognitive functions such as working memory and attention, children are already capable to imagine dynamic motor tasks, although there is no evidence in literature regarding motor learning through imagination neither a comparison with physical training. Therefore, the objective of this study is to compare the ability of learning, retaining and generalizing a fresh motor ability of sequential opposition of fingers by physical and mental practice in children of 5 and 6 years. To do so, motor performance in a task of sequential opposition of fingers was compared in 3 different conditions: by (1) physical training of the task, (2) mental training and (3) no training at all. The physical practice group (PF) was composed by sixteen children with an average of 6,5±0,2 years, with twelve girls and four boys; the mental practice group (PM) was composed by 12 children with an average of 5,7±0,5 years, amongst them 7 boys and 5 girls and finally the notraining group (SP), composed with 12 children of 5,6±0,4 years, 8 boys and 4 girls, all dexterous. The PF and PM groups were submitted to one session of training with 2400 repetitions; they were evaluated, as well as group SP, before the training and 4, 7, 14 and 28 days after the training. The results have shown that regardless the form of training the children were capable to improve their speed performance throughout the training, with PM group concluding each block of training faster when compared to group PF. Regarding acquisition, although being slower, the children of PM group have reached the same performance as PF group in the end of the reevaluations, whereas SP group remained with the same performance as the one on the first evaluation and thus significantly inferior performance compared to PF and PM groups. As for generalization, groups PF and PM presented improvement in performance of the reversal finger opposition sequence (SR), both slower in comparison to the trained finger opposition sequence (ST), however in the end of 28 days of experiment the PM group kept this improvement while PF group lost performance. SP group did not present significant performance differences in neither of the 2 tested sequences. Based on these results, we conclude that children of 5 and 6 years are capable to learn, to retain and to generalize a new motor ability involving sequential movements of ix opposition of fingers through mental practice, without differences in comparison with physical practice, however with advantages in generalization.

To deal with rapid and ever-changing environment, many scholars argue that the abilities of organizational change have been one of the essential core competencies for organizations. TTW, which has been a state- owned business for more than 60 years, initiated an upgrade program of product quality in September 2003, to improve its competitiveness whilst undergoing privatization. This paper aims to apply complex adaptive system theories to provide a new practical approach for organizational change. To accomplish this, it shall study various processes; including decision, implementation reflection and transform of the program. In the first stage of initiated changes, TTW applied a top-down approach to implement the organizational change following an established blueprint. These exercises included three elements, which are (1) enhanced autonomous quality inspection of first-line operator, (2) More control check-items and higher standards, (3) Promotion and implementation of quality audit system. However, after half-year implementation of the new program, both performances of interior process quality and exterior product evaluation of consumer satisfaction have gained no substantial progress. By observations and interviews with the participants, it was found that there existed a commonly shared rigid mental model amongst organizational members. It encompasses deeply embedded positional authority, behavior of defensive psychology, lack of implicit knowledge and pre-formulated responses. It exhibited the learning and innovative abilities of organizational members, subsequently, which caused the stagnation of quality improvement. The researched organization learned from the reflections derived from the first stage change process, tried to breakthrough the rigid mental model of organizational members, thereafter provoking substantial participation and execution. The targeted field was moved from business office to a factory. At the beginning of second stage change process, the organization applied simple generating rules derived from the complex adaptive system, to initiate a patching change process, which included (1) ice-breaking initiatives, (2) real- time information exchange, (3) time-pace conditioning, and (4) maintaining motivation and orientation. In the second stage change process, there appeared a few minor improving effects which were gradually being imitated and expanded across the whole organization. By the interpretations of the participants, it was found that there existed an evolutionary mental model of organizational members. It unfolded different features, such as: the willingness of experimentation, the generation of new experiences, the shaping of mutual trust by interaction, the delivering of implicit knowledge and expansion and evolution across functional units. By the effects of evolutionary mental model, some unanticipated innovative behaviors were emerging in the organization, which substantively, upgraded the quality performance of the entire organization. Applying the perspective of complex adaptive system, this paper reviews the nature and the dynamics of the whole changing process and provides some theoretical implications. It is argued that innovative behaviors are the emerging process which can not be fulfilled by top-down managerial intention, but rather can be provoked by evolutionary mental model and autonomous self-organization. In addition, some practical implications were proposed that suggested the managers should focus on the changes of the relations of interaction in organizations. To effectively manage the changing process and continuously induce innovative behaviors, managers should (1) shift the commonly shared mental model to focus more on individual mental model and fostering diverse interaction, to help the emergence of new ideas and innovations, (2) shift the existing relations to focus more on real-time interaction, which can promote the expansion and evolution of innovative ideas, (3) shift the control relations to focus more on mutual trust relations, which can generate shared confidence levels and encourage the execution of innovations under uncertain conditions.

Many architects report about mentally visualizing 3D aspects of their design ideas while simply working with 2D sketches of them. Indeed, in architecture, the general practice of conveying 3D building information by means of 2D drawings bears on the assumptions that every architect can mentally visualize a building in 3D by looking at its 2D drawings or sketches and that architects, as many report, can capture the 3D aspects of a building design during such 3D mental visualization practices. Additionally, many intuitively believe that the levels at which architects perform such 3D mental visualization practices is highly correlated to their spatial visualization abilities as defined by existing measures of spatial visualization ability. This thesis presents the outcomes of protocol studies and analyses that were conducted with the aim of developing an in-depth understanding about such 3D mental visualization practices and capabilities of architects on the basis of four research questions. First, what might be the nature of the 3D mental visualization phenomena that architects claim to experience: what are the features of these 3D mental visualizations as evidenced in specific tasks; and what might be the nature of the mental representations created during these visualization processes? Second, can every architect carry out these 3D mental visualization practices; might there be individual differences among architects' performances? Third, might 3D mental visualization of buildings be only an architectural skill; can non-architects, who can read 2D architectural drawings, visualize a building in 3D based on its 2D drawings and can they do so to the same levels of performance of those of architects? Fourth, might performance in 3D mental visualization tasks be related to/predicted by spatial visualization ability? The major conclusions of this thesis with regard to the first research question include that (1) architects can be visualizing the buildings in one of the two major forms or by alternatively switching between them: by imagining themselves situated within (almost) the actual size 3D building environment or by imagining a 3D small scale model of the building; (2) the mental representations they create during these visualization processes capture the various visual and spatial aspects of the buildings with a structure similar to that of an actual size or small scale model of the visualized space/form, yet the way they capture these aspects is not like the way these aspects would be captured from a certain viewpoint in reality; and (3) what they experience during these visualization processes is not like the continuous holistic visuospatial experience that one would have when looking at a building or walking inside/around a building. With regard to the second, third and fourth research questions this thesis concludes that (question 2) architects differ in their 3D mental visualization skills; (question 3) 3D mental visualization is an architectural skill in that it relies on certain abilities that become heightened in architects, possibly during education; and (question 4) 3D mental visualization skills are not related to spatial visualization ability as defined by the standard paper-folding test of spatial visualization ability.

abstract: The wood-framing trade has not sufficiently been investigated to understand the work task sequencing and coordination among crew members. A new mental framework for a performing crew was developed and tested through four case studies. This framework ensured similar team performance as the one provided by task micro-scheduling in planning software. It also allowed evaluation of the effect of individual coordination within the crew on the crew's productivity. Using design information, a list of micro-activities/tasks and their predecessors was automatically generated for each piece of lumber in the four wood frames. The task precedence was generated by applying elementary geometrical and technological reasoning to each frame. Then, the duration of each task was determined based on observations from videotaped activities. Primavera's (P6) resource leveling rules were used to calculate the sequencing of tasks and the minimum duration of the whole activity for various crew sizes. The results showed quick convergence towards the minimum production time and allowed to use information from Building Information Models (BIM) to automatically establish the optimal crew sizes for frames. Late Start (LS) leveling priority rule gave the shortest duration in every case. However, the logic of LS tasks rule is too complex to be conveyed to the framing crew. Therefore, the new mental framework of a well performing framer was developed and tested to ensure high coordination. This mental framework, based on five simple rules, can be easily taught to the crew and ensures a crew productivity congruent with the one provided by the LS logic. The case studies indicate that once the worst framer in the crew surpasses the limit of 11% deviation from applying the said five rules, every additional percent of deviation reduces the productivity of the whole crew by about 4%. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Construction 2011

La présente thèse de doctorat a eu pour objectif d’étudier les processus cognitifs impliqués dans le traitement d’une information publique délivrée graphiquement en une chaine d’épisodes clefs, présentés selon différents niveaux d’animation et de séquentialité. Cinq messages de perturbation transmis verbalement dans les gares ferroviaires françaises ont été transposés sous une forme visuelle graphique. Six expériences ont été réalisées. Elles avaient pour but de tester l’effet de différentes modalités de présentation sur la compréhension, l’influence du régime de délivrance (séquentiel vs simultané) et du format (statique vs animé) sur l’activation de scripts ou sur la construction de modèles mentaux, d’étudier l’impact de l’organisation des épisodes constituant ces messages sur l’activation de schémas internes, d’analyser le rôle des pictogrammes dans l’activation de concepts en enfin d’évaluer ce matériel dans un environnement reproduisant un contexte de gare, sous pression temporelle. Les résultats ont montré qu’une apparition séquentielle et hiérarchique d’épisodes animés était congruente avec l’organisation des scripts internes des voyageurs. Ils ont également mis en évidence l’impact de l’organisation des épisodes sur l’activation de schémas en mémoire, confirmant d’une part le rôle de « structure fondatrice » du premier épisode et démontrant d’autre part l’effet des relations entre épisodes sur la quantité de traitements engagés. Ils ont révélé que les pictogrammes normalisés et les composants les plus représentatifs d’une catégorie de concepts favorisaient l’activation rapide et efficace de représentations en mémoire. Enfin, l’étude effectuée en condition semi-écologique a confirmé l’efficacité de ce type de message dans un contexte proche de gare sous pression temporelle. / The goal of our studies was to analyze comprehension mechanism of event-related public information presented graphically according to different levels of animation and different levels of sequentiality. Five graphic train messages were developed. These messages were composed of four pictures – episodes. Six experiments were realized. Their goals were to test : (i) the effect of different graphic presentation conditions on comprehension, (ii) the possible influence of delivery regime (sequential vs simultaneous) and presentation format (static vs animated) on internal script activation or on the construction of a mental model and (iii) the role of episodes and (iv) pictograms on the comprehension. We finally realized a more « ecological » study, under time pressure, with a head-mounted display. Our results showed that a dynamic sequential graphic presentation was aligned on the structure of the traveler’s internal scripts of the train disruptions, and by promptly triggering in the traveler’s mind a task-appropriate schema of the relevant events appeared to map perfectly with them. They also showed that when participants analyze the first picture, they begin by laying a foundation for their mental structures. Next, they seems to develop their mental structures by mapping on information delivred by subsequents episodes when that incoming information coheres with previous episode(s). Results showed that pictograms which were considered ‘familiars’ or ‘typicals’ are better understood than the others. The last study demonstrated that graphicals could be understood and lead to an optimal decision in a more « ecological » context under time pressure.

O aprendizado motor pode ser considerado um processo sensório-cognitivomotor, que envolve a formação de representações neurais da tarefa, chamadas de modelos internos. Essa forma de entender o aprendizado motor permite que processos como o aprendizado por meio da prática mental, ou seja, sem a finalização do movimento pelos efetores e a realimentação sensorial conseqüente a isso, possam ser compreendidos. A prática mental mostra-se uma forma de treinamento tão eficiente quanto a prática física em adultos, porém com vantagens quanto à generalização, visto que favorece a formação de modelos internos mais flexíveis. Entre os 5 e 6 anos de idade, a despeito das imaturidades de funções cognitivas, como memória de trabalho e atenção, as crianças já são capazes de imaginar tarefas motoras dinâmicas, embora não haja evidências na literatura sobre a capacidade de aprendizado por meio da imaginação nem a comparação com o treino físico. Desta forma, o objetivo deste estudo foi comparar a capacidade de aprender, reter e generalizar uma nova habilidade motora de oposição seqüencial de dedos por meio do treino físico e mental, em crianças de 5 e 6 anos. Para tal, foi comparado o desempenho motor em uma tarefa de oposição seqüencial de dedos, em 3 diferentes condições: com treinamento físico da tarefa, com treinamento mental e sem treinamento. O grupo de prática física (PF) era composto por dezesseis crianças com média de idade de 6,5±0,2 anos, sendo doze meninas e quatro meninos; o grupo de prática mental (PM) composto por 12 crianças com média de idade de 5,7±0,5 anos, dentre elas 7 meninos e 5 meninas e o grupo sem prática (SP), por 12 crianças de 5,6±0,4 anos, das quais 8 eram meninos e 4 meninas, todos destros. Os grupos de PF e PM foram submetidos a uma sessão de treino com 2400 repetições, sendo avaliados, assim como o grupo SP, antes, depois, 4, 7, 14 e 28 dias após o treinamento. Os resultados mostram que independente da forma de treino, as crianças foram capazes de melhorar o seu desempenho em termos de velocidade ao longo do treinamento, sendo que o grupo PM foi mais rápido para concluir cada bloco de treino em comparação com o grupo PF. Quanto à aquisição, embora de forma mais lenta, as crianças do grupo PM atingiram o mesmo desempenho que o grupo PF ao final das reavaliações, enquanto que o grupo SP permaneceu com o desempenho semelhante ao da primeira avaliação e significativamente inferior aos grupos PF e PM. Já para a generalização, os grupos PF e PM apresentaram melhora do desempenho da seqüência reversa (SR) mais lenta em comparação à seqüência treinada (ST), porém ao final dos 28 dias de experimento o grupo PM manteve esta melhora, enquanto o grupo PF perdeu desempenho. O grupo SP não apresentou diferenças significativas no comportamento de nenhuma das 2 seqüências testadas. Com base nesses resultados, pode-se concluir que crianças de 5 e 6 anos vii são capazes de aprender, reter e generalizar uma nova habilidade motora envolvendo movimentos seqüenciais de oposição de dedos por meio da prática mental, sem diferenças em comparação com a prática física, porém com vantagens quanto à generalização. / Motor skill learning (MSL) is a sensory-cognitive-motor process that involves the formation of neural representations of a task, known as internal models. This way of understanding the MSL allows processes such as motor learning through mental practice, which is, without end-movements from muscles and the subsequential sensorial feedback to those movements, to being understood. Mental practice is shown as a form of training as efficient as the physical practice in adults, however with advantage on generalization since it favors the formation of more flexible internal models. Between 5 and 6 years of age, in spite of immature cognitive functions such as working memory and attention, children are already capable to imagine dynamic motor tasks, although there is no evidence in literature regarding motor learning through imagination neither a comparison with physical training. Therefore, the objective of this study is to compare the ability of learning, retaining and generalizing a fresh motor ability of sequential opposition of fingers by physical and mental practice in children of 5 and 6 years. To do so, motor performance in a task of sequential opposition of fingers was compared in 3 different conditions: by (1) physical training of the task, (2) mental training and (3) no training at all. The physical practice group (PF) was composed by sixteen children with an average of 6,5±0,2 years, with twelve girls and four boys; the mental practice group (PM) was composed by 12 children with an average of 5,7±0,5 years, amongst them 7 boys and 5 girls and finally the notraining group (SP), composed with 12 children of 5,6±0,4 years, 8 boys and 4 girls, all dexterous. The PF and PM groups were submitted to one session of training with 2400 repetitions; they were evaluated, as well as group SP, before the training and 4, 7, 14 and 28 days after the training. The results have shown that regardless the form of training the children were capable to improve their speed performance throughout the training, with PM group concluding each block of training faster when compared to group PF. Regarding acquisition, although being slower, the children of PM group have reached the same performance as PF group in the end of the reevaluations, whereas SP group remained with the same performance as the one on the first evaluation and thus significantly inferior performance compared to PF and PM groups. As for generalization, groups PF and PM presented improvement in performance of the reversal finger opposition sequence (SR), both slower in comparison to the trained finger opposition sequence (ST), however in the end of 28 days of experiment the PM group kept this improvement while PF group lost performance. SP group did not present significant performance differences in neither of the 2 tested sequences. Based on these results, we conclude that children of 5 and 6 years are capable to learn, to retain and to generalize a new motor ability involving sequential movements of ix opposition of fingers through mental practice, without differences in comparison with physical practice, however with advantages in generalization.

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Orientador: Eduardo Strachman / Resumo: Em um ambiente de globalização financeira, a taxa de câmbio se coloca como uma variável de relativa importância para uma economia. A justificativa para isso está centrada no fato de que ela representa um dos principais preços relativos de uma economia e, portanto, estudos que buscam descobri a sua determinação, os seus movimentos e a sua dinâmica estão constantemente presentes na literatura econômica. A emergência sobre essa temática surgiu após o fim do acordo de Bretton Woods em 1973, no qual o seu fim resultou em mudanças na arquitetura do sistema monetário e financeiro internacional, modificando, entre várias coisas, o relacionamento dos países com as suas respectivas taxas de câmbio. Em alguns países o regime de câmbio flutuante foi adotado em detrimento do regime de câmbio fixo, e com isso as taxas de câmbio passaram a apresentar um comportamento altamente volátil, o que despertou a curiosidade sobre este fato. O comportamento volátil das taxas de câmbio somado a propagação da globalização financeira, ocasionou o processo de “financeirização” das taxas. Este processo estreitava a relação do câmbio com os fluxos de capitais de curto prazo, além de permitir ganhos especulativos com a variação cambial. Com essa nova realidade, alguns estudos emergiram com o objetivo de explicar a nova dinâmica cambial. É neste contexto que surgiu a abordagem pós-keynesiana de determinação cambial, que traz como um dos fundamentos a criação do Modelo Mental. O modelo mental seria um esquema... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: The following study aims to verify the applicability of the mental model to explain the dynamics of the exchange rate in Brazil from 2001 to 2018. The end of Bretton Woods agreement in 1973 led to changes in the international financial architecture, such as the ones observed in the relationship between a country with its exchange rate. As some countries chose the floating Exchange rate regime instead of the fixed one. the exchange rates of the following years presented a highly volatile behavior. This behavior added to financial globalization, growing demand for liquid assets, and deep markets, caused a financialization of the Exchange rate. This process strengthened the relation of the Exchange rate to short-term capital flows. In addition, it permitted speculation profits from the exchange variation. In this same period, lots of theories and models were formulated trying to explain this new outline. Among them, there is the post Keynesian approach of exchange rate determination. According to it, agents’ expectations and short-term capital flows are the driving force of currency movements. Thus, this approach created a mental model which delineates the development of those expectations. The complete mental model has three phases; indicators, base factors, and processes, and it will be used as part of this paper methodology. As this study is a descriptive and explanatory, its methodological procedures were divided in two parts. First, there is a descriptive statistical analys... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre