Les SVM (Support Vector Machines) sont de nouvelles techniques d'apprentissage statistique proposées par V.Vapnik en 1995. Elles permettent d'aborder des problèmes très divers comme le classement, la régression, la fusion, etc... Depuis leur introduction dans le domaine de la Reconnaissance de Formes (RdF), plusieurs travaux ont pu montrer l'efficacité de ces techniques principalement en traitement d'image. L'idée essentielle des SVM consiste à projeter les données de l'espace d'entrée (appartenant à deux classes différentes) non-linéairement séparables dans un espace de plus grande dimension appelé espace de caractéristiques de façon à ce que les données deviennent linéairement séparables. Dans cet espace, la technique de construction de l'hyperplan optimal est utilisée pour calculer la fonction de classement séparant les deux classes. Dans ce travail de thèse, nous avons étudié les SVM comme techniques de classement pour la Vérification Automatique du Locuteur (VAL) en mode dépendant et indépendant du texte. Nous avons également étudié les SVM pour des tâches de fusion en réalisant des expériences concernant deux types de fusion, la fusion de méthodes et la fusion de modes. Dans le cadre du projet PICASSO, nous avons proposé un système de VAL en mode dépendant du texte utilisant les SVM dans une application de mots de passe publics. Dans ce système, une nouvelle modélisation basée sur la transcription phonétique des mots de passe a été proposée pour construire les vecteurs d'entrée pour notre classifieur SVM. En ce qui concerne notre étude des SVM en VAL en mode indépendant du texte, nous avons proposé des systèmes hybrides GMM-SVM. Dans ces systèmes, trois nouvelles représentations de données ont été proposées permettant de réunir l'efficacité des GMM en modélisation et les performances des SVM en décision. Ce travail entre dans le cadre de nos participations aux évaluations internationales NIST. Dans le cadre du projet BIOMET sur l'authentification biométrique mené par le GET (Groupe des Écoles de Télécommunications), nous avons étudié les SVM pour deux tâches de fusion. La première concerne la fusion de méthodes où nous avons fusionné les scores obtenus par les participants à la tâche ``One Speaker Detection'' aux évaluations NIST'2001. La seconde concerne la fusion de modes menée sur les scores obtenus sur les quatre différentes modalités de la base de données M2VTS. Les études que nous avons réalisées représentent une des premières tentatives d'appliquer les SVM dans le domaine de la VAL. Les résultats obtenus montrent que les SVM sont des techniques très efficaces et surtout très prometteuses que ce soit pour le classement ou la fusion.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Virginia, 2008. / Title from title page. Includes bibliographical references. Also available online through Digital Dissertations.

No description available.

The human resource perspective of a business process is concerned with the relation between the activities of a process and the actors who take part in them. Unlike other process perspectives, such as control flow, for which many different types of analyses have been proposed, such as finding deadlocks, there is an important gap regarding the human resource perspective. Resource analysis in business processes has not been defined, and only a few analysis operations can be glimpsed in previous approaches. In this paper, we identify and formally define seven design-time analysis operations related to how resources are involved in process activities. Furthermore, we demonstrate that for a wide variety of resource-aware BP models, those analysis operations can be automated by leveraging Description Logic (DL) off-the-shelf reasoners. To this end, we rely on Resource Assignment Language (RAL), a domain-specific language that enables the definition of conditions to select the candidates to participate in a process activity. We provide a complete formal semantics for RAL based on DLs and extend it to address the operations, for which the control flow of the process must also be taken into consideration. A proof-of-concept implementation has been developed and integrated in a system called CRISTAL. As a result, we can give an automatic answer to different questions related to the management of resources in business processes at design time.

Jahresbericht der Research Academy Leipzig 2007:Inhalt - Die Research Academy Leipzig - Rede zum einjährigen Jubiläum der Gründung der Research Academy Leipzig - Die Vorteile von Promotionsschulen Eine Betreuerperspektive - Fächerübergreifende Qualifikationsmaßnahmen: Die Veranstaltungen der Research Academy Leipzig 2007 - Präsentation in der Öffentlichkeit - Kleinkindbetreuung für Kinder der Doktorandinnen und Doktoranden - Das Graduiertenzentrum Mathematik/Informatik und Naturwissenschaften - Graduiertenschule Leipzig School of Natural Sciences – Building with Molecules and Nano-objects BuildMoNa - Deutsch-Französisches Doktorandenkollegium Statistical Physics of Complex Systems - International Max Planck Research School Mathematics in the Sciences - International Research Training Group Diffusion in Porous Materials - Graduiertenkolleg Analysis, Geometrie und ihre Verbindung zu den Naturwissenschaften - Graduiertenkolleg Wissensrepräsentation - Graduiertenkolleg Mechanistische und Anwendungsaspekte nichtkonventioneller Oxidationsreaktionen - Internationales Promotionsprogramm Forschung in Grenzgebieten der Chemie - Das Graduiertenzentrum Lebenswissenschaften - Graduiertenkolleg Interdisziplinäre Ansätze in den Neurowissenschaften InterNeuro - Graduiertenkolleg Funktion von Aufmerksamkeit bei kognitiven Prozessen - Internationales Promotionsprogramm Von der Signalverarbeitung zum Verhalten IPP Signal - International Max Planck Research School The Leipzig School of Human Origins - MD-PhD-Programm der Universität Leipzig - Graduiertenkolleg Universalität und Diversität: Sprachliche Strukturen und Prozesse - Das Graduiertenzentrum Geistes- und Sozialwissenschaften - Internationales Promotionsprogramm Transnationalisierung und Regionalisierung vom 18. Jahrhundert bis zur Gegenwart - Graduiertenkolleg Bruchzonen der Globalisierung - Deutsch als Fremdsprache Transcultural German Studies - Kultureller Austausch Altertumswissenschaftliche, historische und ethnologische Perspektiven - Praktiken gesellschaftlicher Raumproduktionen in Europa Geographische, historische und soziologische Perspektiven - Bildnachweise - Impressum

Cette thèse vise à analyser l’interaction des procédés d’enseignement et d’appropriation dans un univers didactique multipolaire [le tuteur, les aides en ligne, les conduites d’auto-apprentissage, etc.], afin de déterminer à quelles conditions l’utilisation d’un environnement mixte rend possible la mise en oeuvre d’expériences d’apprentissage potentiellement favorables à l’acquisition de l’anglais langue étrangère auprès d’un public LANSAD en milieu universitaire. L’ouverture de cette thèse est consacrée à l’apprenant. Etant donné que la mise en place d’un dispositif pédagogique donné revient à mettre à la disposition de ce dernier des outils visant potentiellement à le conduire vers une progression qualitative et quantitative en L-C 2, celui-ci y occupe une place centrale en tant qu’utilisateur. La deuxième partie vise à mettre en évidence comment les logiques de la DLC et de la RAL peuvent être conciliées pour transformer les diverses implications et pédagogiques tirées de la première partie en outils didactiques susceptibles d’influer positivement sur les mécanismes acquisitionnels des apprenants. Ces considérations sont réinvesties dans le cadre de la troisième partie, afin d’étudier à quelle[s] condition[s] un dispositif permettant a priori aux apprenants [ou d’élaborer à leur intention] des tâches [macrotâches] qui répliquent ou simulent les pratiques sociales observées et qui servent d’objectifs aux apprenants ou à l’institution [Demaizière et Narcy-Combes, 2005] peut être mis en place. Enfin, les pratiques apprenantes au sein du dispositif élaboré sont analysées à la lumière des conclusions tirées dans nos trois premières parties. / The perspective of this dissertation is to analyze how the teaching and learning processes are interacting in a multipolar environment [tutor, online help, learning strategies] in order to shed light on the conditions to which a numerical environment is liable to promote English as a foreign language and culture [hereinafter L-C 2] acquisition amongst ESP learners at university level. The first part of the dissertation deals with the learner. If the implementation of a pedagogical environment aims at providing him - her with tools enabling both a potential qualitative and quantitative progression in L-C 2, the learner indeed plays a central role within it, as a user. In order to achieve this objective, a reflection on the L-C 2 learning processes is necessary to take them into account, as far as possible, in the setting up of a pedagogical environment. The second part looks at how the considerations of SLA, second language learning and teaching and the pedagogical implications drawn from the first part can be linked up and turned into tailor-made tools liable to impact positively on the learners’ SLA processes. The third part is about pedagogical engineering with a particular emphasis on how both the pedagogical implications drawn from the first two parts and the various parameters inherent to a pedagogical setting can be taken into account to implement an L-C 2 blended learning environment. Eventually, action research is presented. This part aims at providing an analysis of the learning practices and of the multipolar interaction taking place within a blended environment and at assessing its potential in terms of SLA.

Interferons (IFNs) perform a wide range of biological activities: anti-microbial, anti-proliferative, immunomodulatory etc. The IFN family includes three main classes: Type I, Type II and the recently identified Type III. The two main members of Type I class are IFNα and IFNβ, which are well known for their anti-viral roles. IFNλ, a member of the Type III class of IFNs, also exhibits antiviral activity. IFNγ, also known as immune IFN, is a Type II IFN which is secreted, primarily, by activated T cells, NK cells and macrophages. IFNγ is a potent immunomodulator which plays important roles in host defense. The diverse functions of this cytokine are demonstrated in Ifnγ-/- mice which display increased sensitivity to several pathogens, high incidences of tumors, reduced inflammatory response etc. IFNγ binds to its cognate receptors, which consist of two subunits, IFNγ receptor (IFNGR) 1 and IFNGR2. IFNγ mediates its multifarious biological actions by activating the Janus activated kinase (Jak)-Signal transducer and activator of transcription (Stat) 1 signaling pathway. Jaks belong to a family of non-receptor protein tyrosine kinases and phosphorylate the IFNγ receptor and the transcriptional co-activator, Stat. IFNGR1, the larger subunit, is required for ligand binding and its carboxyl terminus is involved in binding to Jak1, which in turn phosphorylates Stat1. The smaller subunit, IFNGR2, is required for signaling and contains the Jak2 binding site. After binding of IFNγ to its receptor, a series of phosphorylation events occur, resulting in Stat1 phosphorylation and homodimerization of Stat1 to form the gamma activating factor (GAF). These activated molecules translocate to the nucleus and bind to gamma activating sequence (GAS) present in the promoters of several IFNγ-modulated genes. Thus, the cellular responses mediated by IFNγ are, primarily, due to modulation of gene expression. Therefore, the identification and study of IFNγ stimulated genes, signaling mediators and their cross talk with other cellular pathways is an active area of research. The system of our study was a hepatoma cell line, H6, which is derived from a spontaneous tumor from B10.A mice and selected for in vitro cell culture. It is an IFNγ inducible system and has been used to study IFNγ-induced gene expression and functional responses. Treatment of H6 cells with IFNγ greatly enhanced MHC class I levels but also reduced cell growth. High amounts of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen intermediates (RNI) play crucial roles in the growth suppressive effect of IFNγ. To better understand the signaling pathways involved in the generation of ROS and RNI, the involvement of Ras was investigated. Ras-GTP levels were determined by pull down assays using GST-Raf1-Ras binding domain fusion protein bound to glutathione agarose. Ras activation (conversion of Ras-GDP to Ras-GTP) was observed in H6 cells upon IFNγ treatment by ~12 hr. To assess the functional role of Ras activation, studies with Manumycin A, a farnesyl transferase inhibitor (FTI), were performed. The formation of functional Ras requires farnesylation, a post-translational modification, which is inhibited by FTIs. Treatment with Manumycin A blocked Ras activation but did not significantly modulate the IFNγ-induced MHC class I. However, the inhibitor reduced ROS amounts leading to increased cell growth in the presence of IFNγ. Together, these results delineated the role of Ras and ROS in modulating some functions of IFNγ. To further understand the mechanisms by which Ras mediates its functions during IFNγ mediated growth suppression, the activation and function of Ras effectors was evaluated. In particular, the role of Ras-like (Ral) guanyl nucleotide-binding proteins, RalA and RalB, was investigated. IFNγ induced transcripts of RalA but not RalB. Also, the induction of RalA and IFNγ induced growth suppression were Stat1-dependent. Studies involving chemical inhibitors and genetic studies revealed that Ras played a role in the induction of RalA during IFNγ treatment. The role of c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), a stress induced kinase, was also elucidated in this system. Together, IFNγ induced activation of Ras and its effectors RalA and JNK, leading to high amounts of ROS that suppressed cell growth. To evaluate the physiological significance of Ras activation during inflammatory responses, the mouse model of acetaminophen (APAP) induced liver injury was established. Hepatotoxicity due to overdose of the analgesic and antipyretic, APAP, is a major cause of liver failure in adults. APAP is metabolized into a reactive metabolite which binds to glutathione. Consequently, the depletion of intracellular glutathione stores leads to oxidative stress and liver injury. Notably, Ifnγ-/- mice are resistant to APAP-induced liver damage demonstrating a crucial role for this cytokine. The role of Ras activation was evaluated after oral dosing of BALB/c mice with APAP. Ras-GTP was induced early and decreased amounts were observed upon treatment with L-methionine, which replenished glutathione amounts. Injection with L-methionine or Manumycin A rescued liver injury as assessed by lowered serum alanine aminotransferase amounts and histological analysis. Kinetic studies were also performed, under different treatment conditions, to estimate different biochemical parameters: glutathione amounts, JNK activation, protein carbonylation, ROS amounts, serum amounts of cytokines, TNFα and IFNγ etc. This study reveals a role of Ras activation in stimulating proinflammatory responses and demonstrates the therapeutic efficacy of FTIs during APAP-induced liver injury. In addition the role of RalA during APAP-induced liver injury was also studied. In summary, this study, involving in vitro cell culture and in vivo liver injury model systems, sheds light on the significant contributions of Ras and its effector, RalA, during IFNγ mediated growth suppression and APAP-induced liver injury.

Dissertation (Ph.D.)--University of South Florida, 2008. / Includes vita. Also available online. Includes bibliographical references.

Dissertation (Ph.D.)--University of South Florida, 2008. / Title from PDF of title page. Document formatted into pages; contains 187 pages. Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Esta tese estrutura-se a partir de experiências com a literatura de Guimarães Rosa no sertão de Minas Gerais e ressalta aspectos do retorno da sua obra a determinadas localidades, constituindo o que definimos como Território Literário. Alguns aspectos contribuíram nesse processo: representação do real na obra; recepção da obra geradora de ações em torno da leitura; adaptações da obra em outras linguagens. O processo criativo do escritor e suas estratégias para observar a realidade e torná-la matéria-prima da sua criação são observados a partir de registros localizados em seu arquivo no Instituto de Estudos Brasileiros/USP-SP . Na perspectiva de observar o percurso da obra pelo sertão, são abordados projetos artísticos e pesquisas que mostram a obra como mobilizadora de vivências no sertão real. Destaca-se a expedição Os Loucos por Rosa (1995) como o início de um projeto coletivo em Cordisburgo, Morro da Garça e Andrequicé/Três Marias, cidades de referência na vida e obra do escritor e a partir dela as iniciativas que se firmaram nesses locais: semana culturais; narração de textos literários de cor; o bordado; pintura. As adaptações do texto para a narração oral são apresentadas pelos projetos Contadores de Estórias Miguilim e Caminhos do Sertão, ambos desenvolvidos em Cordisburgo. Na recriação da obra em imagem estão destacados os projetos artísticos: na pintura, o trabalho do artista plástico José Murilo; no bordado, experiências coletivas nas cidades, mostrando técnicas e métodos utilizados. Nessa perspectiva, a proposição de Território Literário firma-se nos caminhos da obra entre espaço, sons, imagem e várias outras ações literárias, que resultaram na valorização da cultura local e na relação estabelecida pelas comunidades com seu Território, revitalizado a partir da literatura. / This thesis is based on experiences with the literature of Guimarães Rosa in the hinterland of Minas Gerais and emphasizes aspects of the return of his work to certain localities, constituting what we define as Literary Territory. Some elements contributed to this process: representation of the real in the work; Reception of the work generating actions around reading; Creations in other languages. The creative process of the writer and his strategies for observing reality and making it the raw material of his creation are observed from records located in his archive at Instituto de Estudos Brasileiros / USP-SP. To observe the course of the work in the backlands, artistic projects and researches are presented; those show the work as a mobilizer of experiences in the reality of the backlands. It is worth mentioning the expedition The Fools by Rosa (1995) as the beginning of a collective project in Cordisburgo, Morro da Garça and Andrequicé / Três Marias, (cities of reference of life and work of the writer)and as what started the initiatives that were established in these Places: cultural week; Narration of literary texts of color; The embroidery and others. The adaptations of text to oral narration are presented by the projects Contadores de Histórias Miguilim and Caminhos do Sertão, both developed in Cordisburgo. In the recreation of his work in image are highlighted a few artistic projects: in painting, the work of plastic artist José Murilo; In embroidery, collective experiences in the cities, showing techniques and methods used. Some artistic projects that recreate his work in imagery are highlighted, such as: work of plastic artist José Murilo in painting; collective experiences in the cities, showing techniques and methods used in embroidery. In this perspective, the Literary Territory proposition is based on the paths of the work between space, sounds, image and several other literary actions, which resulted in the valorization of the local culture and in the relationship established by the communities with their Territory, revitalized because of the literature.