L’Union européenne a poursuivi pendant des années sa construction sans rencontrer de véritable obstacle sur sa route. Dans un tel contexte, la communication se réduisait plus ou moins à informer après coup de chaque avancée. Il semblerait que son modèle ne soit plus en adéquation avec le monde dans lequel elle se construit aujourd’hui. A côté de l’euroscepticisme, se dresse un ennemi tout aussi gênant qui grossit et enfle de jour en jour : le désintérêt. Pendant les années 1990, la Commission a élaboré plusieurs stratégies de communication pour tenter d’inverser la tendance, composées de deux volets : d’une part séduire le citoyen, d’autre part informer le public des enjeux et autres décisions. Depuis, l’Union s’est aperçue que cette communication ne suffisait pas à compenser les sérieux handicaps dont souffre l’Europe. Car celle-ci accumule les contradictions, les manques, les « c’est un peu ça mais pas tout à fait ». L’Europe n’est pas une démocratie. Encore moins une nation. Est-elle un Etat ? Certains le pensent, mais ils sont peu nombreux. Sans oublier les autres contraintes : la barrière de la langue, mais aussi des représentations, des cultures propres à chaque pays, etc. Dans un tel contexte, la communication, l’information et la discussion apparaissent comme un moyen pour créer une identité européenne. Mais, pour atteindre cet objectif, encore faudrait-il que la circulation de l’information ne pose pas de problème. Et, pour le moment, ce n’est pas le cas. Pour répondre aux attaques et combler les manques, les institutions construisent un discours autour des valeurs attendues par le public. Et aujourd’hui ce que ce dernier souhaite, c’est que l’Europe devienne plus démocratique, plus proche, plus compréhensible. Les institutions européennes ont bien compris ces nouvelles attentes et les ont progressivement intégrées dans leur discours et leur action au fil des années. Elles se sont emparées de la notion qu’il faut absolument décliner : la proximité. Une notion polysémique qui justifie aujourd’hui toute action publique et la contraint fortement. On ne dit plus intérêt général, mais intérêt général local, on ne dit plus citoyen mais habitant. Il est impossible à présent de gouverner d’en haut, de ne pas aller sur le terrain. Mais comment l’Europe hier si lointaine, peut-elle reprendre à son compte cette notion sans être « décalée » ? Quels peuvent être les bénéfices ? Depuis le début des années 2000, et même avant si on n’y prête attention, pas un jour ne passe, pas une stratégie ne s’élabore, sans en toile de fond ce fameux rapprochement avec le citoyen européen. L’Union personnalise les enjeux, rapproche, écoute, prend en compte les opinions. Bref, utilise une communication de proximité. Et l’impératif d’accorder communication et réalité conduit petit à petit l’Europe à bouleverser son fonctionnement et son modèle. Mais les institutions se heurtent à d’éternels problèmes qu’elles ne peuvent résoudre seules. Leurs moyens financiers dérisoires les empêchent d’assurer une diffusion minimale qui garantirait un minimum de réception. Le discours a changé, l'action aussi, mais pas la fréquence. Or, on ne peut se rapprocher qu'à plein temps, pas par intermittence / For years, the European Union went on with its construction without encountering any real obstacle on its way. In such a context, communication somewhat consisted in providing information after any positive evolution. It seems that now, the fashion in which we design communication is no longer in accordance with nowadays’ world. Apart from euroscepticism, another enemy is appearing. It is equally important and becomes more serious everyday: disinterest. In the 1990’s, the Commission devised several strategies of communication to try and reverse the tendency. Those strategies were made up of two parts: on the one hand, they consist in seducing citizens, and on the other, to inform the public of challenges and other decisions. Since then, the European Union has noticed that its communication wasn’t enough to make up for serious handicaps which Europe suffers from. Because contradictions are piling up, lacks, as well as what we could call approximations or rough guesses: “it’s something like that, but not quite so, in fact”. Europe isn’t a democracy, let alone a nation. Is it a State? Some people think it is, but there aren’t many to think so. Without forgetting other constraints: language barriers, as well as representations and cultures specific to each country… In such a context, communication, information and discussion appear to be means to create a European identity. However, in order to reach this goal, information should circulate without problems. But for the moment this is not the case. So that they can face attacks and fill in gaps, institutions deliver speeches about values expected by the public. And today, what the public wishes for is a more democratic and comprehensible Europe, where people feel closer to each other. European institutions are well aware of new expectations and progressively built them in their speeches and actions over the years. They made theirs a notion with several versions: proximity. A polysemous notion which justifies all public actions today and strongly restrains them. You shouldn’t say general interest anylonger, but rather local general interest; you shouldn’t say citizen anylonger but rather inhabitant. It is impossible today to govern from high up without doing fieldwork. But how can Europe, so far-distant yesterday, take back this notion without any discrepancy? What advantages can there be? Since the beginning of the 2000’s, and even before that if we pay attention, not a day is spent, not a single strategy is devised without this very connection with the European citizen in the background. The Union individualizes issues, brings together, listens, takes into account different views. Altogether, Europe uses a communication of proximity. And the imperative to make communication and reality match slowly leads Europe to disrupt its mechanisms and model. But institutions clash against everlasting problems which they cannot resolve by themselves. Their ridiculous financial means prevent them from guaranteeing even a minimum circulation which could secure a minimum of reception. Speeches have changed, actions too, but not their frequency. And yet, you can only come closer full-time, not part-time

This thesis deals with the technology platforms that bring together different types of actors in the same sector by supporting the Operational Programme Enterprise and Innovation. The aim was to use three case studies to assess the functioning of technology platforms and their benefits to its members. The thesis is mainly qualitative in nature. Research questions focus on the membership structure and activities of technology platforms, the importance of various types of proximity in cooperation with its members and the impact on their competitiveness. Thanks to the paper I found out the benefits of technology platforms to deepen relationships and mutual trust, which proved important for the mutual cooperation. Social and cognitive proximity are the two most important types of proximity in cooperation with actors. The thesis also revealed deficiencies in meeting the objectives of technology platforms consisting in the definition and implementation of the vision of the field. Negative finding is the absence of government among members of the technology platforms. Technology platforms are with their activities shaping the emergence and spread of knowledge and innovation for mutual cooperation among actors from different backgrounds. Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)

Master of Public Health / Department of Kinesiology / Andrew T. Kaczynski / Background: With the dramatic increase in childhood obesity rates over the last three decades, parks can offer an accessible and affordable population-level solution to the important issue of youth physical inactivity. The primary purpose of this study was to examine the association of park proximity and park features with nearby youth achieving recommended levels of physical activity. Methods: This community-based study was conducted in Kansas City, Missouri. Valid physical activity data were obtained for 191 youth via a parent proxy survey with an overall response rate of 27.4%. Geographic information systems (GIS) were used to create three measures of park proximity within 1 mile of children’s homes. Detailed park characteristic information for all parks within 1 mile of the youth (n=146 parks) was obtained via observational audits. Binary logistic regression analyses were used to examine the relationship between each park proximity and park characteristic variable and the likelihood of youth meeting physical activity recommendations, while controlling individual and neighborhood level covariates. Results: All youth and female youth who had a park within one-half mile of home were more likely to achieve physical activity recommendations than those with no parks nearby. Likewise, all youth and male youth with three or more parks within 1 mile were significantly more likely to achieve physical activity recommendations than those with only 1 park. Further, youth that had a park with a playground within one-half mile or a baseball field within 1 mile of their home were more likely to achieve physical activity recommendations. Finally, having a park with particular amenities within 1 mile from home (transit stops, traffic signals, picnic tables, grills, trash cans, shade, and roads through the park) was also associated with greater odds of achieving physical activity recommendations. Conclusions: Parks are valuable community resources that can play an important role in the battle against rising rates of obesity and chronic disease in youth across the country. Better understanding the ways in which these settings are associated with physical activity among children can inform future research and environmental and policy changes that can promote the health and well-being of generations to come.

Master of Regional and Community Planning / Department of Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning / Katherine Nesse / The following report examines the craft beer industry as a major component of the beverage production cluster in Northern Colorado. By using the four locational determinants derived by Porter (1990) as a framework, this study evaluates the role of geography as a key component in an industry’s ability to foster a competitive advantage. Despite his focus on national competitiveness, Porter's diamond model has influenced strategic thinking on a regional scale (Stimson, Stough & Roberts, 2006). In turn, it can help us to understand the interactions that underlie localized cluster dynamics. The cluster conception in economic development literature assumes that each of Porter's components is equally spatially connected. Resources are focused towards building assets in a region defined by analyzing the cluster. However, factors of the craft beer industry in Northern Colorado did not completely adhere to the traditional parameters of regional cluster geography. Personal interviews with key actors involved in the craft beer industry, along with economic data revealed that local factors are not always the driving force behind the development of the craft beer industry. In addition, the data analysis indicates that determinants of cluster success may be significant at various geographic scales. Locational determinants may not operate within the same area as defined by cluster analysis. Thus, this report closes with a recommendation to consider the significance of proximity when looking to increase the competitiveness of a given industry cluster—for the relationship between locational determinants and geography varies between factors.

Dans cette recherche nous nous intéressons aux processus d'échange d'informations entre acteurs au travers de trois approches théoriques : les routines organisationnelles, l'approche par les proximités et la théorie de l'effectuation. Le projet est de rendre intelligible le rôle joué par la dialectique causale/effectuale dans l'articulation des routines organisationnelles d'échanges d'informations dans un contexte de proximité. Nous utilisons une méthode qualitative organisée autour de l'étude des domaines vitivinicoles du territoire provençal. Notre démarche abductive s'organise autour d'une phase exploratoire et d'une phase compréhensive descriptive au cours desquelles nous avons procédé à des analyses textuelles, via des logiciels d'aide à l'analyse de données qualitatives et de contenu, selon la méthode de comparaison continue empruntée à la théorie enracinée. Nos résultats indiquent que la triangulation des différentes informations issues des processus d'échanges avec les différents acteurs dans un contexte de proximité participe, de manière générale, à l'évolution des formes de raisonnement des responsables des domaines vitivinicoles, d'une logique causale à une logique effectuale et vice-versa. En cela la théorie de l'effectuation et plus précisément la dialectique causale/ effectuale peut alors être considérée dans une perspective intégrative pour compléter et agrémenter l'intelligibilité des processus d'échanges d'informations. L'existence d'interactions entre les modes de raisonnements causaux et effectuaux des responsables des domaines vitivinicoles sont en lien avec la médiatisation des routines organisationnelles internes et externes bâties sur des mix de proximités organisationnelles. / In this research, we are looking at information exchanges processes among actors, using three theoretical appoaches : organisational routines (Lewin et al. 2011), proximity approches (Pecqueur et Zimmermann, 2004 ; Torre et Beuret, 2012 ; Torrès, 2003, 2009) and the effectuation theory (Sarasvathy, 2003, 2007). Our itent is to understand the role of causal/effectual modes of reasoning in the articulation of organisational routines within context of proximity among actors. Using a qualitative method based on a single-case involving embedded units of analysis, we are studying small and medium size entreprises (SMEs) of the Provence wine industry. Our abductive approach is organised around an exploratory and a descriptive/ comprehensive phase. We proceeded textual analyses, with the help of softwares and content analyses, using the continuous comparison method borrowed from the grounded theory. Our findings reveal that the triangulation of various informations stemming from exchanges processes developped with different actors in a proximity context, participate to the evolution of the managers' modes of reasoning from causal to effectual and vice-versa. We discussed that the effectuation theory and more precisely, the causal/effectal modes of reasoning, can be considered as in integrative approach which contribute to a better understanding of the informations exchanges processes among actors. We argued more precisely, that interactions between causal and effectual modes of reasoning of wine SMEs managers are related to the mediation of internal and external organisational routines build on mix of proximities.

L'essor des dispositifs mobiles a conduit à un nouveau paradigme d'Environnements Informatiques pour l'Apprentissage Humain (EIAH) : les environnements d'apprentissage ubiquitaires. Tout comme beaucoup d’EIAH classiques, les environnements d'apprentissage ubiquitaires permettent une médiation informatique entre l'apprenant et des connaissances propres au domaine d'apprentissage. Cependant, dans les EIAH ubiquitaires, cette médiation a lieu dans un contexte physique spécifique qui détermine en partie le déroulement des sessions d'apprentissage. Les objets de l’environnement physique, ainsi que les événements ou processus qui s’y déroulent, sont pris en compte pour fournir des informations adaptées ou proposer des interactions pertinentes. Nous nous plaçons dans ce travail dans le cadre de l'apprentissage en musée, pour des visites libres ou en groupes scolaires organisés. Nous analysons en première partie les pratiques d'apprentissage en musée et en particulier l'apprentissage instrumenté par des dispositifs mobiles. Cette analyse nous permet d'introduire, d'une part, les notions de représentation et de manipulation automatique de connaissances utiles à notre travail et, d'autre part, les concepts propres aux systèmes informatiques sensibles au contexte qui nous intéresseront en particulier. Nous proposons par la suite un modèle sémantique du patrimoine culturel permettant une description riche et complète des artefacts muséaux. L'apprentissage ubiquitaire nécessite une représentation adéquate du contexte. En nous inspirant des travaux de Zimmerman, nous proposons de représenter le contexte suivant plusieurs espaces contextuels, chaque espace contextuel étant associé à une ontologie. Ces espaces permettent de faire le lien entre les connaissances purement contextuelles et les connaissances issues de la modélisation du patrimoine culturel ; ils sont peuplés automatiquement en fonction des déplacements de l'utilisateur et de ses interactions avec le dispositif.Nous définissons un processus d'opérationnalisation des modèles du patrimoine culturel et du contexte à l’aide de calculs de proximités sémantiques pour la génération automatique d'activités d'apprentissage. Afin de prendre en compte le contexte, nous définissons également des proximités contextuelles mesurant l'adéquation des activités générées au contexte de l'utilisateur. Pour permettre aux enseignants de spécifier des objectifs pédagogiques, nous proposons un formalisme de règles pédagogiques offrant deux modes de contrôle : un contrôle thématique et un contrôle contextuel. Ces derniers permettent de concilier la liberté d’exploration de l’environnement, indispensable dans le cadre d’un apprentissage ubiquitaire, avec un guidage pédagogique défini par l'enseignant. / The rise of mobile devices has led to a new paradigm of technology enhanced learning (TEL) environment : ubiquitous learning environment. Like many classics TEL environments,ubiquitous learning environments offer a computer based mediation between thelearner and the learning domain. However, in ubiquitous environments, this mediationtakes place in a specific physical context which partly determines the course of learning.The learner acts both in the physical and in the digital spaces. Objects in the physicalenvironment, as well as events or processes that take places are taken into account toprovide appropriate information or propose relevant interactions. The field of application of this work is ubiquitous learning in museum, either in thecase of informal learning (e.g. classic museum visit) or in the case of more formal schoollearning in museum. We first analyse learning practices in museum, especially usingmobile devices. This analysis allows us to introduce, on the one hand, the concepts ofknowledge representation used in our work and, on the other hand, the concepts specificto context sensitive systems.We propose in the following a semantic model of cultural heritage allowing a rich andfull description of museum artifacts. Ubiquitous learning requires an adequate representationof context. Drawing our inspiration from the work of Zimmerman, we proposeto represent context according to several contextual spaces, each space being associatedwith an ontology. These spaces allow to relate the purely contextual knowledgeand knowledge from the model of cultural heritage, they are automatically populatedaccording to movements of the user and his interaction with the device.We define a process for operationalizing the models of cultural heritage and contextusing semantic proximity computations for the automatic generation of learning activities.To take into account the context, we also define contextual proximity, measuringthe adequacy of generated activities to the user context. To enable teachers to specifylearning objectives, we propose a formalism of rules offering two modes of control: athematic control and contextual control.

Este trabalho tem por objetivo analisar os determinantes locais da inovação no Brasil e avaliar sua dinâmica espacial. Especificamente, avalia-se como a P&D das empresas locais, a pesquisa universitária da região, o nível de adensamento urbano e a relativa especialização ou diversificação do sistema produtivo local afetam a inovação regional. Para isso, foi realizada uma Análise Exploratória de Dados Espaciais e a estimação de um modelo econométrico utilizando como medida do resultado de inovação o número de patentes por habitante das microrregiões. É possível notar que a inovação está desigualmente distribuída pelo espaço geográfico e se concentra especialmente nas Regiões Sul e Sudeste, onde se encontram os principais clusters inovativos. O modelo empírico adotado se baseia na Função de Produção de Conhecimento aplicada às regiões e é estimado por meio de um Tobit Espacial Autorregressivo (SAR-Tobit). O uso de um modelo SAR-Tobit permite lidar de modo mais adequado com um grande número de regiões sem patentes, além disso, foram feitos diversos testes adicionais que buscam assegurar a qualidade dos resultados inferenciais. A estimação do modelo desse trabalho indica que maiores níveis regionais de P&D industrial e da pesquisa universitária implicam em maior inovação, medida pelas patentes. Ao mesmo tempo, as regiões adensadas e diversificadas tendem a apresentar um melhor desempenho inovativo, o que aponta para existência de vantagens de caráter jacobiano no país. Por fim, a inovação local é afetada positivamente pela proximidade de microrregiões mais inovadoras, o que corrobora a existência de transbordamentos de conhecimento inter-regionais da inovação. / The aim of this thesis is to analyze determinants of local innovation in Brazil and assess their spatial dynamic. Specifically, it evaluates how the R&D of local firms, regional university research, urban density and specialization or diversification of local industrial system affects regional innovation. This purpose is achieved by means of an Exploratory Spatial Data Analysis and the estimation of an econometric model using the number of patents per capita as a measure of local innovative outputs. The results shows that innovation is not homogeneously distributed in the Brazilian geographic area and is especially concentrated in South and Southeast Regions, where the main innovation clusters are located. The empirical model adopted is based on the Knowledge Production Function applied to regions and is estimated using a Tobit Spatial Autoregressive (SAR-Tobit). The use of a SAR-Tobit model allows to deal more appropriately with a large number of regions without patents. Moreover, several additional tests were performed to ensure the quality of inferential results. The estimation of the model of this work indicates that higher levels of regional industrial R&D and university research imply greater innovation, measured by patents. At the same time, denser and diverse regions tend to present a better innovative performance, pointing to the existence of Jacobian advantages. Finally, local innovation is positively affected by the proximity of the most innovative micro-regions, which confirms the existence of interregional knowledge spillovers for innovation.

A presente pesquisa envolve a análise de trabalhos que realizei entre 2012-2018 relacionados às questões da cidade contemporânea e à perda gradual de sua capacidade de promover encontros. Discuto como, na sociedade urbana contemporânea, espaços propícios ao encontro e à troca entre alteridades, tais como calçadas, praças e parques foram sendo substituídos por experiências individualizadas, praticadas em ambientes assépticos e dirigidos ao consumo massivo. A partir dessas inquietações, investigo de que forma processos artísticos participativos e de caráter dialógico possibilitam a ocorrência de situações de encontro no espaço público, examinando a ocorrência de tais processos como microacontecimentos cotidianos. Meu interesse parte do entendimento de que os projetos, ações e inserções desenvolvidos se constituem como modos de subjetivação capazes de encaminhar a construção daquilo que entendo como poéticas da proximidade. / The present research involves the analysis of works that I performed between 2012-2018 related to contemporary city issues and the gradual loss of their capacity to promote meetings. I discuss how, in contemporary urban society, spaces conducive to meeting and exchanging between alterities, such as sidewalks, squares and parks were replaced by individualized experiences practiced in aseptic environments and directed to mass consumption. From these concerns, I investigate how participatory artistic processes and dialogical character enable the occurrence of situations of encounter in the public sphere, examining the occurrence of such processes as everyday micro events. My interest is based on the understanding that the projects, actions and insertions developed are forms of subjectivation capable of directing the construction of what I understand as poetics of proximity.

The use of experimental methods in International Relations (I.R.) studies continues to be relatively unpopular, and especially so among the International Political Economy (IPE) research fraternity in Brazil. Notwithstanding, this paper is the product of an experimental survey administered among the undergraduate students\' population at the University of São Paulo in April 2014, in which the hypothesis that cultural proximity mattered to public opinion about trade partners was investigated and subsequently validated. In pretreatment tests, language, religion and social norms and values were identified as proxies for cultural proximity. These were incorporated into four treatment vignettes that described a potential trade partnership in terms of its economic gains as well as the cultural (dis)similarity of the partner country. With the addition of a control condition - having no economic or cultural information - the five vignettes were embedded into questionnaires administered to 503 students across 7 faculties. Treatment effects under all conditions confirmed that people\'s decisions were affected by the cultural indicators. Their contradictory response to descriptive questions however, implies that though their actions may be conducive with culturally influence, people\'s declarations will tend to suggest otherwise. / A utilização de métodos experimentais em estudos de Relações Internacionais (RI) continua sendo relativamente incomum e, particularmente, entre os pesquisadores de Economia Política Internacional (EPI) no Brasil. Não obstante, este trabalho foi o resultado de um survey experimental aplicado entre os alunos de graduação da Universidade de São Paulo em abril de 2014, cuja hipótese de que a proximidade cultural importava para a opinião pública no que tange os parceiros comerciais foi investigada e, posteriormente validada. Nos testes de pré-tratamento, a língua, a religião e as normas e os valores sociais foram identificados como os indicadores para a proximidade cultural. Estes indicadores foram incorporados em quatro vinhetas de tratamento, em que uma parceria comercial foi descrita em termos dos ganhos econômicos, bem como a (não) similaridade cultural do país parceiro. Com a adição de uma condição de controle - em que não havia nenhuma informação econômica ou cultural - as cinco vinhetas foram incluídas em questionários aplicados a 503 estudantes entre 7 faculdades. Havia efeitos do tratamento em todas as condições e, portanto, foi possível confirmar que as decisões das pessoas foram afetadas pelos indicadores culturais. No entanto, as respostas contraditórias às questões descritivas sugeriram que por mais que as ações do público tendem a demonstrar coerência com a influência de atributos culturais, suas declarações verbais tendem a apontar ao contrário.

Gastrointestinal (GI) alpha-synuclein (ASN) detection may represent a clinically useful biomarker of Parkinson's disease (PD), but this has been challenged by conflicting results of recent studies employing different immunohistochemical (IHC) methods and reporting diverse morphological patterns with variable biological interpretation. To increase sensitivity and specificity, we applied three different techniques to detect different possible conformations of ASN in GI tissue derived from biopsies of the GI tract, which were obtained from a longitudinally followed, clinically well-characterized cohort of PD subjects and healthy controls (HC) (Oxford Discovery study). With IHC, we used antibodies reactive for total (T-ASN-Abs), phosphorylated (P-ASN-Abs) and oligomeric (O-ASN-Abs) ASN; with the ASN Proximity Ligation Assay (AS-PLA), we targeted oligomeric ASN species specifically; finally, with the Paraffin-Embedded Tissue Blot (PET-Blot) we aimed to detect fibrillary conformations of ASN specifically. Optimisation and validation of the PET-Blot and PLA techniques was carried out with studies on brain tissue from subjects with ASN pathology, and these experiments were used to gain insight into morphology and distribution of different conformational variants of ASN in the brain of subjects with Lewy pathology. We specified all the detected morphological staining patterns with each technique interpreting them as pathologic or non-specific. Correlation to clinical symptoms was assessed to investigate the potential predictive or diagnostic value of specific staining patterns as biomarkers. A total of 163 GI tissue blocks were collected from 51 PD patients (113 blocks) and 21 healthy controls (50 blocks). In 31 PD patients, GI biopsies had been taken before PD diagnosis (Prodromal PD group); while in 20 PD patients biopsies were obtained after PD diagnosis (Manifest PD group). The majority of these tissues blocks were from large intestine (62%), followed by small intestine (21%), stomach (10%) and oesophagus (7%). With IHC, four ASN staining patterns were detected in GI tissue (Neuritic, Ganglionic, Epithelial, and Cellular), while two distinct staining patterns were detected with AS-PLA (cellular and diffuse signal) and with AS-PET-Blot (ASN-localised and peri-crypt signal). The level of agreement between different techniques was generally low, and no single technique or staining pattern was able to reliably distinguish PD patients (Prodromal or Manifest) from HC. Overall, our study suggests that even specific detection of ASN conformational variants currently considered pathologic was not adequate for the prediction of PD. Future studies with these or other novel techniques focusing on the upper part of the GI tract could overcome current limitations in sensitivity and specificity.