The aim of this thesis is to test the accuracy of the heights measured by GNSS RTK with service providers CZEPOS and Trimble VRS Now. The thesis deals with precise of height measurement with the influence of surrounded obstacles, such as multipath, fading with the tall buildings, presence of high-voltage lines, limited shadow horizons at the edge of the forest, and measurement under the ideal conditions. The work also deals with the comparison of the period initialization of these monitored conditions. In the locations mentioned a network of test points was built. For measuring GNSS Leica System 1200 apparatus was used. It was measured always five times in five-second epochs and three times twenty-second epochs for each provider in five locations and thirty points during the mornings and afternoons. For independent height comparison the technical levelling was used. The outcome can be applied in practical use.

This dissertation attempts a Bakhtinian analysis of the polyphonic dialogue between Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now, Karel Schoeman's Na die Geliefde Land and Jason Xenopoulos' Promised Land. Specific Bakthinian concepts are employed to determine whether the films are "apt" adaptations of the literary texts; how the stylistically hybrid texts engage in conversation with different movements, genres and trends; how the polyphonic conversations between different texts and discourses, such as literature and film, or colonialism and postcolonialism, can provide insight into the variety of discourses, textual and ideological, of a postcolonial, post-apartheid South Africa; and how identity crises experienced by key characters can be explained using the notions of hybridity, "The Marginal Man" and liminality. All four texts have key characters that experience identity crises that spring from cultural hybridity; their cultural hybridity has the potential to either render them marginally stagnant or lead them to liminally active participation within their imagined communities. This dissertation argues that even though there are major differences between the films and the literary texts they are based upon, they are relevant to a specific target audience and therefore enrich the ur-texts. Salient characteristics of realism, symbolism, impressionism, modernism, postmodernism, postcolonialism and the apocalyptic dialogise one another within the four texts, thereby liberating the texts from one authorial reading. The dialogue between the discourses of literature and film supplement an understanding of the dialogue between war, imperialism, colonialism, postcolonialism and the Will to Power. / Thesis (M.A. (Applied Language and Literary Studies))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006

Thesis (M.A. (Applied Language and Literary Studies))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006.

This dissertation attempts a Bakhtinian analysis of the polyphonic dialogue between Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now, Karel Schoeman's Na die Geliefde Land and Jason Xenopoulos' Promised Land. Specific Bakthinian concepts are employed to determine whether the films are "apt" adaptations of the literary texts; how the stylistically hybrid texts engage in conversation with different movements, genres and trends; how the polyphonic conversations between different texts and discourses, such as literature and film, or colonialism and postcolonialism, can provide insight into the variety of discourses, textual and ideological, of a postcolonial, post-apartheid South Africa; and how identity crises experienced by key characters can be explained using the notions of hybridity, "The Marginal Man" and liminality. All four texts have key characters that experience identity crises that spring from cultural hybridity; their cultural hybridity has the potential to either render them marginally stagnant or lead them to liminally active participation within their imagined communities. This dissertation argues that even though there are major differences between the films and the literary texts they are based upon, they are relevant to a specific target audience and therefore enrich the ur-texts. Salient characteristics of realism, symbolism, impressionism, modernism, postmodernism, postcolonialism and the apocalyptic dialogise one another within the four texts, thereby liberating the texts from one authorial reading. The dialogue between the discourses of literature and film supplement an understanding of the dialogue between war, imperialism, colonialism, postcolonialism and the Will to Power. / Thesis (M.A. (Applied Language and Literary Studies))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006

В рамках данной работы представлен фрагмент исследования политических метафор, которые задействуются в формировании образа России в британских СМИ. Цель данного исследования – изучить специфику метафорических моделей, объективирующих образ России в СМИ Великобритании. Анализ производится с помощью корпусных технологий, анализируется массив материала из англоязычного корпуса NOW (News on the web). Наряду с дефиницией метафорической модели как элемента, апеллирующего к когнитивной деятельности человека, отобранные метафорические единицы сортировались по разрядам и видам, была указана их дискурсивная характеристика, дана оценка продуктивности метафорической модели при моделировании образа России, а также характеристика прагматического потенциала модели. При анализе и интерпретации метафор использовались работы известных отечественных лингвистов. Материал отбирался из британских газет и журналов в период с 01.01.2019 по 30.04.2021 (использованы такие издания как «The Spectator», «The Guardian», «The «Politico», «The New European» и др.). Метод метафорического моделирования, который используется в работе, представляет возможность выявить специфику доминантных метафорических моделей. В исследовании также используется описательный метод, который позволяет включить в работу интерпретационную методику. Данные методы позволяют комплексно проанализировать собранный материал и изучить метафорический образ России в британских СМИ. Актуальность исследования определяется процессами глобализации, которые расширяют границы межкультурной коммуникации. Они обязывают исследовать то, как образ России воспринимается в других странах для составления имиджа страны, работы с ним и его корректировки. / This article presents a fragment of the study of political metaphors that form the image of Russia in the British media. The purpose of this study is to find the specifics of metaphorical models that objectify the image of Russia. The analysis is carried out with corpus technologies, the material was taken from the English-language NOW corpus (News on the web) and analyzed. Along with the definition of the metaphorical model as an element appealing to the cognitive activity of a person, the selected metaphorical units were sorted by categories and types, their discursive characteristics are indicated, the productivity of each metaphorical model in modeling the image of Russia is evaluated, the pragmatic potential of the models are given. The works of well-known Russian linguists were used in the analysis and interpretation of metaphors. The material was selected from British newspapers and magazines in the period from 01.01.2019 to 30.04.2021 (such media as "The Spectator", "The Guardian", "The "Politico", "The New European", etc. were used). The method of metaphorical modeling, which is used in the paper, provides an opportunity to identify the specifics of dominant metaphorical models. The study also uses a descriptive method, which allows to include an interpretative method in the work. These methods allow us to comprehensively analyze the collected material and study the metaphorical image of Russia in the British media. The relevance of the research is determined by the processes of globalization, which expand the boundaries of intercultural communication. They oblige us to study how the image of Russia is perceived in other countries to create the image of the country, work with it and adjust it.

In the early days of e-commerce, countries took to the phenomenon at very different speeds. Researchers proved the most important factors for this to be propensity for trust and the perceived risk of online purchases. Today, the use of short-term, interest-free consumer credit, also known as ‘buy now, pay later’ (BNPL), is becoming increasingly popular. This concept, too, has gained very different footing between countries. There is a gap in the research on why, but use of short-term consumer credit offline has been proved to be related to people’s trust and attitude to risk. This study reviews several macro-environmental factors previously proven to be related to technology diffusion, risk and trust, and attempts to prove their respective impact on online shopping and the use of BNPL. Data on online shopping is collected from the Global Findex Database and includes 52 countries, while data on BNPL is collected from Swedish FinTech company Klarna and includes six countries. Out of ten macro-environmental factors examined, five showed a significant positive correlation to online shopping: individualism, long-term orientation, competitiveness, ease of doing business and political stability. Two cultural factors, individualism and uncertainty avoidance, showed a promising linear relationship with BNPL use, in the opposite sign of their respective hypothesis, although only significantly for individualism. Both these cultural dimensions are documented to affect risk behaviour. These results indicate that whatever perceived risk counteracts the diffusion of online shopping, drives the use of BNPL products. We reason that BNPL cancels some of the aspects of an online purchase proven to be perceived as risky, such as card information theft. Thus, high individualism and low uncertainty avoidance means people are less bothered by the risk of online shopping, and therefore less incentivised to mitigate them using BNPL. The main limitation of this study is the sample size of the market data on the use of BNPL, as well as the included countries being too similar in many aspects. The findings are useful for FinTech’s and e-commerce companies exploring new markets for expansion, and for policymakers attempting to regulate this emerging financial industry. / När e-handeln etablerade sig tog länder till sig detta teknikfenomen i olika takt. Forskare har visat att de mest betydande faktorerna som påverkar detta är ett lands inställning till tillit samt hur riskfyllt onlinehandel anses vara. Idag blir kortsiktig, räntefri konsumentkredit, även känt som ‘buy now, pay later’ (BNPL), alltmer populärt. Även detta koncept har fått olika fäste i olika länder. Det saknas forskning på varför, men offline har användningen av kortsiktig konsumentkredit visats vara relaterad till människors tillit och attityd gentemot risk. Denna studie granskar ett antal makrofaktorer som tidigare påvisats vara relaterade till spridningen av teknik, samt risk och tillit, och försöker bevisa deras respektive påverkan på e-handel och användningen av BNPL. Data på e-handel hämtas från Global Findex Database och inkluderar 52 länder, medan data på användningen av BNPL hämtas från det svenska FinTech-bolaget Klarna, och inkluderar sex länder. Utav de tio makrofaktorer som undersöktes visade fem en signifikant positiv korrelation till e-handel: individualism, långsiktighet, konkurrenskraft, affärsreglering och politisk stabilitet. Två kulturella faktorer, individualism och osäkerhetsundvikande, visade lovande linjära förhållanden med användning av BNPL, i motsatt riktning jämfört med deras respektive hypoteser, dock enbart signifikant för individualism. Båda dessa kulturella dimensioner har tidigare visats påverkarisk beteende. Dessa resultat indikerar att den uppfattade risk som motverkar spridningen av e-hande ldriver användningen av BNPL. Vi resonerar att BNPL motverkar vissa av de aspekter hos e-handel som visat sig uppfattas som riskabla, som kortbedrägeri. Alltså innebär hög individualism och lågt osäkerhetsundvikande att konsumenter är mindre besvärade av riskerna med e-handel, och därför mindre motiverade att mildra dessa risker genom att använda BNPL. Studiens huvudsakliga begränsningar är antalet marknader i data på användning av BNPL, samt att de inkluderade länderna är för lika i många aspekter. Studiens resultat är användbara för FinTechs och e-handelsbolag som letar efter nya marknader att expandera till, och för beslutsfattare som vill reglera denna växande finansiella bransch.

The aim of this thesis is to analyse the function of colour in film through three films by British director Nicolas Roeg. To this end, this thesis has the following three correspondent aims: first to consider the theoretical relationship between colour and film within film studies as a discipline. Second, to propose a means of discussing film colour outside the dominant approach of restoration and degradation. Third to explore how Roeg’s implements colour within three of his films Performance, Don’t Look Now, and finally Bad Timing, and the ideological and aesthetic questions that emerge through a consideration of colour in these works. By looking at colour and Nicolas Roeg this thesis will not only present a critical response to the research question but it will also fill a small gap in the current dearth of work that exists on both colour and British cinema in the 1970s.

This dissertation consists of two chapters. The first chapter establishes an algorithm for calculating capital requirements. The calculation of capital requirements for financial institutions usually entails a reevaluation of the company's assets and liabilities at some future point in time for a (large) number of stochastic forecasts of economic and firm-specific variables. The complexity of this nested valuation problem leads many companies to struggle with the implementation. The current chapter proposes and analyzes a novel approach to this computational problem based on least-squares regression and Monte Carlo simulations. Our approach is motivated by a well-known method for pricing non-European derivatives. We study convergence of the algorithm and analyze the resulting estimate for practically important risk measures. Moreover, we address the problem of how to choose the regressors, and show that an optimal choice is given by the left singular functions of the corresponding valuation operator. Our numerical examples demonstrate that the algorithm can produce accurate results at relatively low computational costs, particularly when relying on the optimal basis functions. The second chapter discusses another application of regression-based methods, in the context of pricing variable annuities. Advanced life insurance products with exercise-dependent financial guarantees present challenging problems in view of pricing and risk management. In particular, due to the complexity of the guarantees and since practical valuation frameworks include a variety of stochastic risk factors, conventional methods that are based on the discretization of the underlying (Markov) state space may not be feasible. As a practical alternative, this chapter explores the applicability of Least-Squares Monte Carlo (LSM) methods familiar from American option pricing in this context. Unlike previous literature we consider optionality beyond surrendering the contract, where we focus on popular withdrawal benefits - so-called GMWBs - within Variable Annuities. We introduce different LSM variants, particularly the regression-now and regression-later approaches, and explore their viability and potential pitfalls. We commence our numerical analysis in a basic Black-Scholes framework, where we compare the LSM results to those from a discretization approach. We then extend the model to include various relevant risk factors and compare the results to those from the basic framework.

Richard Wagner is one of the most important and influential composers for scholars of film music. His concept of the Gesamtkunstwerk or "total art work," which combined music, visuals and storytelling, played an indelible role in the creation of film aesthetics, especially with regard to music and sound design. Yet, Wagner's actual music has its own curious legacy in film history, in terms of how it is used to interact with a story that often bears no relation to those of Wagner's operas. This is particularly interesting with regard to the Der Ring des Nibelungen (aka "the Ring Cycle"). The Ring is his most ambitious and influential, and densest work, and perhaps the one with the greatest lingering legacy in popular culture. For example, "Ride of the Valkyries," an excerpt from Die Walküre made famous by Looney Tunes shorts and Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now, is still a frequent presence in film, television and advertising that want to evoke sounds of war and conquest--associations created more from its use in those contexts than the original opera. This thesis will examine films and television series of the last half-century that have used musical examples from the Ring in their soundtracks. Works given particular focus will include Apocalypse Now (1979), the Japanese anime series Princess Tutu (2002-2003) and Terrence Malick's historical romance The New World (2006). The examination will discern both how film media has influenced modern cultural perceptions of the original operas--and of Wagner's legacy in general--and also how said film media is itself a reflection of modern attitudes about Wagner and his masterwork.

<p>This dissertation consists of three chapters relating to various topics in empirical Industrial Organization. The first two chapters deal with the empirical treatment of sales in online markets. The third chapter explores the level of pass-through for taxes on soft drinks.</p><p>In the first chapter I demonstrate that when dealing with online market places it is important to take into account the fact that multiple listings coexist. Traditionally, the economic literature has treated listings as independent. In reality, however, buyers often have the choice between multiple contemporaneous listings. I demonstrate that it is important to take this fact into account since sellers who list their items simultaneously are in direct competition. More specifically, I show that the sale probability of a given item decreases when the number of simultaneous listings increases. Thus, the aforementioned assumption of independence can lead to wrong results.</p><p>In the second chapter, I specify and estimate a structural model of mechanism choice in online markets. I consider both sides of the market: On the demand side, buyers' choices among available listings are equilibrium outcomes of an entry game. On the supply side, sellers take competition into account and make equilibrium decisions when choosing sales mechanisms and prices. I estimate this model using data from sales of baseball tickets on eBay. I find that sellers' outside options, dynamic incentives, and risk preferences affect mechanism choice. Using the estimation results from my model I analyze the welfare effects of a hybrid mechanism (buy-it-now auctions) eBay offers. I find that the existence of buy-it-now auctions increases the consumer surplus and reduces the producer surplus. The reason for this is that buy-it-now auctions diminish sellers' potential for diversification via mechanism choice and thus strengthen competition.</p><p>The third and last chapter focuses on the incidence of soda taxes by studying the pass-through level of these taxes. It lays out a framework for thinking about the determinants of the pass-through level. More specifically, it builds theoretical models that examine the pass-through under more complex supply structures with multiple manufactures and retailers. In addition to providing some intuition behind theoretical predictions of the models, this chapter also presents empirical results found in the data along with their implications.</p> / Dissertation