Impact of demographic changes on healthcare expenditures in the Czech Republic Abstract This work aims to analyse the influence of demographic changes on public healthcare expenditures in the Czech Republic. The first part displays particular factors having effect on healthcare expenditures with a special focus on demographic characteristics. In spite of the fact that the expenditure level seems to be mainly affected by the economic output of particular states and new technology development, while the influence of demographic fluctuation is of minor effect so far, this situation is likely to change. The next part presents the health care expenditures evolution in the Czech Republic from the beginning of the nineties. The data sources confirm that these expenditures keep growing just the same way as in other states in the world. The last part defines and quantifies the foreseen scenarios of the above mentioned health care expenditures depending upon demographic evolution. The results of those scenarios are being compared with other analysis results focusing on analyzing the influence of ageing process and health condition fluctuations on expenditure levels in the Czech Republic as well as in other EU countries. Keywords: population ageing, health care, costs of dying, health, new technologies, healthcare...

The fourth industrial revolution, also known as Industry 4.0, is based on digital industrial technology developments. The purpose of Industry 4.0 is to transform industrial manufacturing through digitalization and new technologies. The introduction of Industry 4.0 has led companies to consider digitalization as essential for company strategies. For decades, companies have aspired to increase performance by using advanced production practices, such as different operation methods and advanced manufacturing technologies. The intention of introducing these practices is to advance companies towards high performance by implementing advanced techniques. One way of utilizing the potential of new technologies is by an adoption of the concept Industry 4.0. This research studies the impact of Industry 4.0 on companies current manufacturing strategies and operational performance. The study is carried out by conducting case studies on two companies with connections to the concept of Industry 4.0 and implementations of Industry 4.0 technologies such as big data, Internet of things, the Cloud concepts, simulations, and autonomous robots. Through theoretical and comparative analysis and discussion, the study found that an adoption to Industry 4.0 as a concept is a long and stepwise process. Successful Industry 4.0 adaption requires integration of Industry 4.0 with current manufacturing strategies. Implementation of certain Industry 4.0 technologies can have an impact on operational performance if these are integrated with advancements of manufacturing practices. The practices of manufacturing strategies are significantly associated with operational performance. In other cases, the impact of implementing new technologies linger, and is not directly noticeable. With this in consideration, the value of these new technologies should not be limited to operational measurements such as financial measures.

The thesis deals with a vision of future of travel - the transport system hyperloop and aims to support the development of emerging technology. The aim is to further define the current traffic trends and determine the hyperloop system, to find its suitable language and overall integration into the Brno transport system. The Hyperloop station is located within the Brno Triangle, which consists of three interconnected stations - Dolní, Heršpice and Hlavní.

[pt] A embalagem está no centro de questões de sobrevivência alimentar para mais de sete bilhões de pessoas no mundo. A presente pesquisa tem uma característica exploratória, voltada a investigar se as novas tecnologias digitais (especialmente microtomografia e impressão 3D) potencializam as abordagens de pensar e projetar embalagem por meio de analogias entre biologia e design (Biomimética). Tem também, uma característica experimental, objetivando estimular a criação e prototipação de conceitos inovadores biomiméticos para embalagem de alimentos. Os métodos utilizados foram: pesquisa bibliográfica, documental e de campo; entrevistas com especialistas (biólogos); coleta de materiais biológicos (especialmente frutos) e experimentação - que foi realizada em dois momentos: Experimento A, onde aplicou-se o pensamento biomimético baseado na abordagem Biologia para Projetar (Biomimicry 3.8, 2007), sem uso de novas tecnologias e Experimento B, onde aplicou-se o mesmo pensamento, porém com uso de novas tecnologias (microtomografia e impressão 3D). Graças ao processo de design exploratório e experimental, chegou-se a um conceito de design, que foi resultado de um desdobramento das analogias geradas entre biologia (vagem do amendoim) e design (embalagem). Ele propõe um sistema biomimético inovador para embalagem de alimentos que: aumenta a proteção e conservação, reduzindo o desperdício, permite adaptação a diferentes formatos e dimensões do conteúdo a ser embalado e otimiza o uso de materiais e processos. O resultado final alcançado faz-nos vislumbrar uma série de desdobramentos dessa pesquisa, principalmente ao que se refere à viabilidade técnica e implementação industrial do sistema criado, a fim de que seu uso possa ser generalizado em larga escala e, desta forma, contribuir para gerar impacto positivo nas questões contemporâneas de acesso e preservação de alimentos. / [en] The packaging is at the heart of food survival issues for more than seven billion people in the world. This research has an exploratory characteristic, aimed to investigate whether the new digital technologies (specially microtomography and 3D printing) potentializes the approaches of thinking and designing packaging through analogies between biology and design (Biomimicry). It also has an experimental feature, aiming to stimulate the creation and prototyping of biomimetic concepts for innovative food packaging. The methods used were: bibliographical research, documentary and field; interviews with experts (biologists); collection of biological materials (especially fruit) and trial - which was held in two stages: Experiment A, which applied the biomimetic based thinking approach Biology to Design (Biomimicry 3.8, 2007), without the use of new technologies and Experiment B, where we applied the same thought, but with the use of new technologies (microtomography and 3D printing). Thanks to the exploratory process of and experimental feature, this research came to a design concept, which was the result of a breakdown of analogies generated between biology (pod peanuts) and design (packaging). He proposes an innovative system for Biomimetic package for foods which: increase the protection and conservation, reducing waste, allows adaptation to different shapes and dimensions of the content and optimizes the use of materials and processes. The end result achieved makes us glimpse a number of developments of this research, especially when it comes to the technical feasibility and industrial implementation of the system introduced in order to allow its use to be widespread on a large scale and thus help to generate positive impact on contemporary issues of access and preservation of food.

<p>Over the course of history, innovation has been the forefront of industrial change. New innovations have continuously surpassed old solutions, which have contributed to the trajectory of mankind. In today’s market IT has an increasingly important role. Innovation within IT is characterised by high degrees of visionary thinking and optimism towards the success of the venture. This has contributed to bubble effects emerging in the economy of a highly speculative nature.</p><p>A central issue lies in the complexity of evaluating innovation and especially more radical and visionary ones. In general terms of evaluation, innovations are evaluated in two main phases: internally and externally. For visionary innovations it is not evident how and on what grounds the innovation should be evaluated both internally in terms of feasibility and externally in terms of market response. In that aspect there is a gap in evaluation and especially <em>how </em>visionary innovation can be evaluated. The aim of the research is to investigate the phenomenon of visionary innovation and contribute with knowledge about the characteristics that influence growth and adoption.</p><p>The research is based upon a two-step qualitative investigation. Firstly the research is imed at constructing a framework for evaluating the innovation and thereafter objectifying the characteristics on case studies within the IT sector.</p><p>The research has found three major areas for evaluation: (1) <em>the eco-system, </em>(2) <em>the  ustomer </em><em>behaviour </em>and (3) <em>the target market</em>. The eco-system is focused towards the ompetitive environment, the technology and the infrastructure. The customer behaviour  ddresses customers’ existing behaviours, their needs and demands and the surplus value  he new offering brings. In terms of the customer behaviour the switching costs and benefits  of other alternatives is also important to consider. Finally, the target market  onsists of the market characteristics, the customer segmentation and the overall  ttractiveness of the market. Based on the characteristics of these factors and the market  nd industry, constraints and drivers can be identified to either support or contradicts the  peed of adoption of new solutions.</p><p>The main findings of the report are that growth is dependent on and influenced by positive and negative drivers. The three elements the drivers are thus connected and correlating, in the sense that the drivers can have different levels of severity. For instance, a negative driver that is negatively correlated with another element has a high level of severity related to growth.</p>

Thèse défendue en régime co-tutelle entre l'Université Paris 3 Sorbonne-Nouvelle et l'Université de Montréal / Consacrée à la multiplication des spectacles à haute teneur technologique, cette thèse porte sur la question de la disparition du comédien de la scène, selon une approche intermédiale. Le postulat de base est que le théâtre est un média, incorporant divers autres médias, approche actuellement très débattue à l’intérieur du champ théâtral. Ainsi, la recherche est orientée vers les pratiques européennes et nord-américaines d’aujourd’hui, à savoir les spectacles mis en scène depuis l’an 2000 jusqu’à nos jours (Castellucci, Vorn, Goebbels). Pour désigner les spécificités scéniques de cette période, le terme « extrême-contemporain » est mobilisé. Il accrédite les techniques et les technologies les plus récentes dans la fabrique du théâtre dont les artistes conceptualisent des scénarios possibles de l’avenir. Aiguillonné par un tel réflexe techno-scientifique, ce travail de recherche explore également plusieurs concepts déferlant actuellement sur la scène intellectuelle savante, tels que l’excommunication (Galloway), les Nouveaux matérialismes (Barad) et le posthumanisme (Besnier). Afin de mieux rendre compte de la portée scientifique de ces courants de pensée, la thèse s’appuie sur la notion d’entropie, issue de la physique. L’hypothèse qui sous-tend la démarche est que ces théories opèrent une entropie, induisent de cette façon une épistémologie unitaire nouvelle. L’auteur de ce texte explore les liens entre ces théories et le spectacle vivant extrême-contemporain, en défendant la thèse que l’analogie entre eux permet une meilleure compréhension à la fois de ce qui se passe dans le paysage scénique actuel et dans l’horizon intellectuel encore à venir. / Focused on the increase of theatre shows with a high degree of technological involvement, this thesis deals with the question of the disappearance of the living actor on the stage, with an intermedial approach. The basic postulate is that the theatre is a media, incorporating diverse media, an approach currently very much debated inside the theatrical academic community. Thus, this research is oriented towards today’s European and North American practices, namely the performances staged since the year 2000 until today (Castellucci, Vorn, Goebbels). In order to designate the scenic specificities of this period, the term "extreme-contemporary" is introduced. It accredits the most recent techniques and technologies in the theatre productions whose artists conceptualize possible scenarios of the future. Guided by such a techno-scientific reflex, this research work also explores several concepts currently sweeping the scholarly intellectual scene, such as excommunication (Galloway), New-materialisms (Barad) and posthumanism (Besnier). In order to better account for the scientific significance of these currents of thought, the thesis relies on the notion of entropy, derived from physics. The hypothesis underlying the approach is that these theories operate an entropy, thus inducing a new unitary epistemology. The author of this thesis explores the links between these theories and the extreme-contemporary live performance, defending the idea that the analogy between them allows both a better understanding of what is happening on the current scenic landscape and on the intellectual horizon yet to come.

Распространение научных знаний может проходить как в традиционных формах популяризации науки, так и с использованием новейших технологий, в том числе с использованием медиапроектов. В диссертации рассматриваются специфические характеристики медиапроектов, посвященных науке, как новых форм популяризации науки. В работе анализируется представленность знания в общественном сознании, а также изучаются новые методы корректировки образа науки, а также методы противодействия распространению в обществе недостоверных знаний и квазинаучных теорий. В диссертации анализируются известные отечественные медиапроекты о науке. / The spread of scientific knowledge can take place both in traditional forms of science popularization and using the latest technologies, including media projects. The dissertation discusses the specific characteristics of media projects devoted to science as new forms of science popularization. The paper analyzes the representation of knowledge in the public mind and studies new methods of adjusting the image of science as well as methods of countering the spread in a society of false knowledge and quasi-scientific theories. There are the well-known domestic media projects about science analyzes in the dissertation.

[pt] Esta tese investiga a interação mediada pela tecnologia, a partir de mensagens produzidas e compartilhadas por cidadãos da região metropolitana do Rio de Janeiro no Twitter e no Facebook, com foco na mobilidade urbana, em seus deslocamentos no trânsito e no transporte público e privado. Os objetivos deste estudo buscam: i) realizar um exame analítico das atividades e ações na sequência conversacional, descrevendo como são produzidas e interpretadas pelos participantes; ii) analisar os papéis que o cidadão e as ferramentas tecnológicas desempenham interacionalmente em uma estrutura de multiparticipação; iii) refletir sobre como as atividades e ações que surgem nas conversas virtuais se relacionam à vida social urbana. O estudo está baseado nos suportes teóricos da Análise da Conversa, no contexto virtual, que informam sobre tomadas de turno, atividades e ações, nos conceitos da Sociolinguística Interacional, no âmbito da estrutura de participação e dos papéis dos participantes na produção e interpretação dos enunciados, e nos estudos da ordem social sobre a mobilidade urbana em grandes cidades. A metodologia é qualitativa e interpretativa. Os dados consistem de conversas públicas registradas nas páginas das redes sociais do BRT Rio, do Metrô Rio, do O Dia 24 Horas e da SuperVia, onde os participantes interagem entre si e com as empresas. As mensagens foram selecionadas de acordo com as ações que implementam, contextualizadas no universo da mobilidade urbana. A análise dos dados indica que: i) a disposição dos turnos nas sequências não-ordenadas de encadeamento das postagens demanda novas estratégias de produção de ações na organização da interação, e as expectativas dos participantes se definem a partir da escolha de qual turno anterior realizarão uma ação em sequência; ii) nestas ações surgem interpretações como a de solicitação e fornecimento de informação, notificação, elogio, agradecimento, reclamação, sugestão, insulto, crítica ou de não-responder; iii) motoristas e passageiros desempenham um papel coletivo ao interagir neste ambiente, onde a estrutura de participação torna-se mais complexa ao converter todos os participantes em falantes potenciais e ouvintes ratificados, simultâneos e alternados, configurando padrões de organização social de interação multiparticipativa. O estudo destas novas formas tecnologicamente mediadas de comunicação, com foco na mobilidade urbana em uma grande cidade, atualiza os conceitos acerca dos modelos de interação face a face, do papel do cidadão neste processo e dos fenômenos sociais contemporâneos situados. / [en] This thesis investigates the interaction mediated by technology, from messages produced and shared by the citizens of the Rio de Janeiro on Twitter and Facebook, focusing on urban mobility, during their movements in traffic and in public and private transportation. The objectives of the study seeks to: i) perform an analytical examination of the activities and actions in the conversational sequence, describing how participants produce and interpret them; ii) analyze the roles that citizen and social network technologies play interactively in a multi participation framework; iii) reflect on how the activities and actions that arise from virtual conversation are related to urban social life. The study is based on the theoretical concepts of Conversation Analysis, in the virtual context, via new technologies, which inform about turn-taking, activities and actions, Interactional Sociolinguistics, in the scope of participation framework and participants roles in the production and interpretation of the utterances, and the studies of the social order upon urban mobility in big cities. The methodology is qualitative and interpretive. The data consist of public conversations from the social network pages of BRT Rio, Metro Rio, O Dia 24 Horas and SuperVia, where participants interact with each other and with the companies. The messages were selected according to the actions they implement, contextualized in the universe of urban mobility. The analysis of the data indicates: i) the arrangement of the turns in the unordered sequences of post demands new producing actions strategies on the organization of the interaction, and the expectations of the participants are defined from the choice of which previous turn they will perform an action in sequence; ii) ii) in these actions, different interpretations arise, such as requesting and providing information, notification, praise, thanks, complaint, suggestion, insult, criticism or non-response; iii) drivers and passengers play a collective role in interacting in this environment, where the participation framework becomes more complex by converting all participants into simultaneous and alternated potential speakers and ratified listeners , setting patterns of multiparticipative social organization of interaction. These new technologically mediated forms of communication, focusing on the urban mobility in a big city, update the concepts about face to face interaction models, the citizen s role in this process and the situated contemporary social phenomena.

Toutes les photos présentes dans ce mémoire (sauf indication contraire) ont été réalisées par Dan Antonat (c). / À l’ère de la société de la connaissance, l’éducation supérieure occupe une place prépondérante dans le monde et les universités sont des acteurs de premier ordre. La connaissance, à travers l’innovation qu’elle permet, est devenue un élément central du processus de production et l’on parle désormais d’une économie du savoir, qui serait porteuse d’un ensemble de changements qui affectent la société sur différents plans. Le mode de fonctionnement traditionnel des universités n’y échappe pas et connaît plusieurs renouveaux. Les NTIC ont fait évoluer les manières d'enseigner et de faire de la recherche et l’on parle aujourd’hui d’un nouveau type de relations inédites entre les universités, l'État et le secteur de l’industrie. Après avoir passé en revue l’ensemble de ces changements, nous proposons d'explorer l'impact de toutes ces transformations sur le développement physique des universités à travers l’étude du projet de construction du futur campus de l'Université de Montréal à Outremont et de l'École des HEC Montréal. Nous analysons dans notre étude l'influence de ces changements sur l'organisation physique des universités et sur l'architecture des bâtiments. / In the era of the knowledge society characterized by the importance of constant innovation, various dimensions of social life are going through notable renewals. The New Technologies of Information and Communication (NTIC) are offering a large panel of new possibilities that affects the traditional mode of operating of various institutions. In this context, Universities become fundamental actor, by contributing to the high education of the population through their activities of teaching and research. It seems that the traditional mission of universities is going through major changes. Lots of new possibilities permit by the NTIC affects the traditional way of teaching and doing research and we also talk about new kind of unprecedented relations between universities, state and the industry. We offer to explore the impact of all these changes on the physical development of universities through a look at a case study of the campus of Université de Montréal and the business school of HEC Montreal. Our work discuss about the influence of these changes in the physical organization of the university, more specifically on the architecture of the buildings. Through a look at the project of construction of a new campus situated at Outremont, we have attended to study actual tendencies and concerns about university buildings. We then attended to analyse the impacts of these developments on the organisation of universities buildings through a study of the architectural features of the new school of HEC Montréal.

Sur un exemple concret d’entreprise française disposant des technologies innovantes dans les domaines du chauffage et de la distribution d’eau et ayant un projet d’expansion vers un nouveau marché, en l’occurrence, le marché russe, l’auteur montre l’importance de ces technologies pour accéder au marché fortement différent du marché domestique. Au sein du secteur du chauffage dans un pays où, à cause des conditions climatiques froides, le besoin de se chauffer présente un besoin vital, où le retard technologique dû au phénomène historique du monopole du chauffage central collectif est particulièrement ressenti et où le marché est en pleine formation avec la montée de la concurrence, les technologies nouvelles ont sans doute un rôle capital à jouer. Comment l’entreprise porteuse de ces technologies doit-t-elle aborder le marché russe certes très prometteur, mais fragile surtout en cette période délicate de la crise économique mondiale? Quels en sont les risques et les perspectives ? Comment réussir ce marché ? Comment mettre en valeur et transférer de nouvelles solutions technologiques ? Quels sont les avantages de ce transfert pour l’entreprise, mais également pour son partenaire local, pour la région visée et pour l’Etat receveur ? Telles sont les questions que l’auteur se pose. Le rôle des technologies nouvelles va certainement au-delà d’un secteur ou d’un domaine d’activité : les technologies nouvelles apportées par des entreprises occidentales ont sans doute accéléré, en ce qui concerne la Russie, le passage d’un système économique du type soviétique vers un système de libre-échange que l’on connait sous le terme d’économie de marché. / On a specific example of a French company having innovative technologies in the field of heating and water distribution, and realizing an expansion project to a new market, in this case, the Russian market, the author shows the importance of technologies when penetrating a market strongly different from the domestic one. Within the heating sector in the country where, because of a cold climate, the need to feel warm is a vital need, where the technological backwardness due to the historical phenomenon of the central residential heating monopoly is obvious, and where market is taking shape and competition is now growing, new technologies have without doubt a capital part to play. How should a company with such technologies approach the Russian market certainly very promising, but also fragile especially in this delicate period of the world economic crisis? What are the risks and the perspectives for the company? How to succeed in this market? How to enhance the value and to transfer new technological solutions? What advantages does this transfer bring to the company, but also to the company’s local partner, to the targeted region, and to the receiving country? These are questions the author asks himself. The role of new technologies is certainly beyond a sector or a field of activity: the new technologies brought by western companies undoubtedly accelerated, as Russia is concerned, the change from the Soviet-type economic system to a free-market system, known as the market economy.