Les matériaux cellulaires poreux de type mousse présentent un grand intérêt pour de nombreuses applications. Leurs propriétés thermiques, mécaniques, acoustiques dépendent fortement de leur microstructure complexe. Afin de mieux comprendre la relation microstructure/propriétés mécaniques de ces matériaux, une modélisation micromécanique basée sur une méthode d’homogénéisation périodique et le lemme de Hill est proposée pour prédire les propriétés élastiques effectives de ces matériaux. Une approche basée sur le diagramme de Voronoï est utilisée pour générer des structures de mousse périodiques réalistes plus ou moins irrégulières, couvrant une large gamme de matériaux . Différents types de mousses à forte porosité sont générés, non seulement des matériaux cellulaires à pores ouverts mais aussi des matériaux cellulaires à pores fermés. Des comparaisons avec des résultats issus de tomographie X d’architectures réelles 3D de mousses valident ces approches de Voronoï. Les simulations numériques permettent d’étudier l’influence des paramètres morphologiques des mousses sur les propriétés élastiques effectives. De nouvelles lois analytiques génériques de propriétés effectives sont déduites pour des mousses à cellules ouvertes de type Kelvin. Une attention particulière est portée sur la détermination de l’élément de volume représentatif (VER). Des méthodes statistiques spécifiques sont proposées pour déterminer le VER approprié aux modèles de mousse. Dans le cas des mousses polymères isolantes à cellules fermées irrégulières anisotropes, la confrontation avec des résultats d’essais mécaniques confirme la validité des modèles développés. / Thanks to the excellent combination of physical, mechanical and thermal properties, foam materials bring new possibilities to extend the range of the properties for engineering, which is limited by fully dense solids. In this study, a micromechanical modeling based on Hill's lemma (Hill's lemma periodic computational homogenization approach) is proposed for predicting the effective elastic properties of foam materials. An approach based on Voronoi diagram is used to generate realistic periodic foam structures, including regular and irregular open-cell structures, and irregular closed-cell structures. First, the influences of morphological parameters of open-cell foams on the effective elastic properties are studied. The generated structures allow representing the details of the microstructure and cover a large range of foam materials for engineering purposes. With the assessments, new generic analytical laws are proposed for Kelvin open-cell foams by considering their morphological parameters. Second, the tomography images are analysed to obtain the morphological description of the real irregular open-cell structure. With these morphological parameters, numerous numerical realistic structures are generated. Specific statistic methods are proposed to determine the Representative Volume Element (RVE) for foam models. Third, the anisotropic irregular closed-cell foam is studied. The numerical structures are generated with the morphological description of the reconstructed tomography structure and the effective elastic properties of the closed-cell foam models are estimated. The numerical results show the satisfying agreement with the experimental results.

Made available in DSpace on 2017-07-21T19:25:49Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Jaqueline Ap Borges.pdf: 4346896 bytes, checksum: 7cddb136f61196f7c1bd6d777eaee0bc (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-09-11 / In this study, the Computed Tomography (CT) and gamma-ray attenuation (GRA) techniques were used in the investigation of representative sample sizes for attributes related to soil structure. First of all, the representative elementary length (REL) for experimental measurements of soil mass attenuation coefficient (μes), of samples from a sandy and a clayey soil, was analyzed. The study was conducted with two radioactive sources (241Am and 137Cs), three collimators (2–4 mm diameters), and 14 thickness (x) samples (2–15 cm). From these analyzes, it was possible to identify an ideal thickness range for each of the studied sources (2-4 cm and 12-15 cm for the sources of 241Am and 137Cs, respectively). The application of such results in representative elementary area evaluations, in clayey soil clods via CT, indicated that experimental soil mass attenuation coefficient average values obtained for x>4 cm and source 241Am might induce the use of samples which are not large enough for soil bulk density evaluations. Subsequently, μCT images with a total volume of 39×39×33 mm3 and spatial resolution of 60 μm were used for macroporous system morphological characterization of a Rhodic Ferralsol with clayey texture, under no-till (NT) and conventional till (CT) systems. Attributes as macroporosity (MAP), number of macropores (NMAP), tortuosity (τ) and connectivity (C) of the pores were assessed. The C degree was estimated based on the Euler-Poincaré characteristic (EPC). Once 3D images enable the study of these attributes in different sample volumes, the proposed study is ideal for the analysis of representative elementary volume (REV). Usually, the selection of subvolumes for REV analysis occurs concentrically to a small volume or in adjacent positions. Here, we introduced a new method for selecting the positions of subvolumes, which are randomly chosen within the total image volume (random selection). It was observed that higher fluctuations in amplitude of each analyzed property values occurred for smaller subvolumes and random selection. When these positions are randomly selected, all regions of the sample have the same probability of occurrence. Thus, the subvolumes can be selected from regions that exhibit similar characteristics, or which are quite different from each other. The results allowed the study of each of these attributes in function of the analyzed sample volume. Such analysis enabled the identification of a REV for MAP and τ measurements for both soils. However, NMAP and CEP showed no indication of stabilization within the total sample volume analyzed (39×39×33 mm3). From this study, it was possible to detect the influence of each management systems (NT and CT) on the macroporous system. In general, results obtained for soil under PC showed higher regularity, which is probably due to its homogenization induced by the plowing, conducted twice a year. / No presente estudo, as técnicas de tomografia computadorizada (TC) e atenuação de raios gama (AGR) foram utilizadas na investigação do tamanho representativo de amostras para atributos referentes à estrutura do solo. Primeiramente, foi analisado o comprimento elementar representativo (CER) de amostras de um solo de textura arenosa e outro de textura argilosa para medidas experimentais do coeficiente de atenuação de massa do solo (μes). O estudo foi realizado com duas fontes radioativas de raios gama (241Am e 137Cs), três aberturas de colimadores circulares (2-4 mm) e 14 espessuras (x) distintas de amostras deformadas de solo (2-15 cm). A partir destas análises foi possível identificar um intervalo de espessura ideal para cada uma das fontes estudadas (2–4 cm e 12–15 cm para as fontes de 241Am e 137Cs, respectivamente). A aplicação dos resultados obtidos para a fonte de 241Am, e solo argiloso, em avaliações de área elementar representativa (AER) para medidas de densidade do solo (ρs) via TC, indicaram que os valores médios de μes para x>4 cm podem induzir ao uso de amostras com tamanho não representativo. Na sequência, imagens de microtomografia de raios X (μTC), com volume total de 39×39×33 mm3 e resolução espacial de 60 μm, foram utilizadas para a caracterização micromorfológica do sistema macroporoso de um Latossolo vermelho de textura argilosa, submetido aos sistemas de manejo de plantio direto (PD) e plantio convencional (PC). Foram analisados atributos físicos como macroporosidade (MAP), número de macroporos (NMAP), tortuosidade (τ) e conectividade (C) dos poros. O grau de C dos poros foi estimado a partir da característica de Euler-Poincaré (CEP). Uma vez que imagens 3D possibilitam o estudo destes atributos em diferentes volumes de amostra, o estudo proposto é ideal para a análise de volumes elementares representativos (VERs). Geralmente, a seleção dos subvolumes para análises de VER se dá concentricamente a um volume de origem ou em posições adjacentes a este. Neste trabalho foi introduzida uma nova forma de seleção da posição dos subvolumes, os quais são selecionados randomicamente dentro do volume total da imagem (seleção aleatória). Observou-se que as maiores amplitudes de flutuações nos valores de cada atributo analisado ocorreram para os subvolumes menores quando selecionados de forma aleatória, em comparação à seleção centralizada. Quando estas posições são selecionadas aleatoriamente, todas as regiões da amostra têm a mesma probabilidade de ocorrência. Com isso, os subvolumes podem ser selecionados em regiões que apresentem características similares, ou então, que sejam muito diferentes umas das outras. Os resultados permitiram o estudo de cada um destes atributos em função do volume de amostra analisado. Tais análises possibilitaram a identificação de um VER para medidas de MAP e τ para os dois solos estudados. No entanto, a NMAP e a CEP não apresentaram indícios de estabilização até o volume total de amostra analisado (39×39×33 mm3). Quanto aos dois sistemas de manejo avaliados (PD e PC), foi possível detectar a influência de cada um deles na estrutura macroporosa do solo. De uma forma geral, o solo sob PC apresentou maior regularidade nos resultados obtidos, o que se deve à homogeneização do mesmo induzida pelo revolvimento do solo realizado duas vezes ao ano.

Made available in DSpace on 2017-07-21T19:26:00Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Jonathan Costa.pdf: 3369485 bytes, checksum: 2b63c545ac05b578cd30088e73371def (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-04-15 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / The gamma-ray attenuation technique is based on the interaction of radiation with matter. In soil physics the technique is mainly used to determine the soil bulk density, porosity, and soil moisture. The mass attenuation coefficient ) is defined as the probability of interaction per unit of volume of a photon with a given energy with the matter. An accurate measurement of is important for evaluation of representative soil physical parameters. Usually,is considered constant during evaluations of soil physical properties, even for different sample sizes or nuclear system geometry. The main objective of this study was to analyze the effect of sample size and collimator diameter in evaluations of for a heterogeneous porous medium (soil). The radioactive sources of 241Am (59,4keV) and 137Cs (661,6 keV) were used. These sources are chosen because they are the most commonly used for soil physical properties measurements. Sample thickness and solid angle variations were obtained using acrylic boxes with sizes from 2 to 15 cm and four circular collimators (1-4 mm). Two different soil textures (sandy-loam and silty-clay) were also used, besides the different sample sizes and collimator diameters. The results obtained show that the influence of collimator size and sample thickness in the variations of is less than 5% (relative deviation considering each value for each thickness and the average value calculated for all thicknesses) for both soils and radioactive sources. However, for the 241Am only specific sample thicknesses (2-12 cm) can be used when collimators with small diameters (1 and 2 mm) are used. This occurs due to problems in the photopeak evaluation after determined soil thickness. In order to compare the obtained experimental results of with theoretical ones, theoretical values were generated via XCOM for water and soils. A good agreement was found for water (3,8% - 241Am and 6,3% - 137Cs, relative deviation considering the theoretical value as reference), which represents a good gamma-ray system operation. However, for the soil samples the same was not observed. A possible explanation for this result is the qualitative soil chemical composition evaluation used to generate the via XCOM. To conclude, the results of this work show that even small changes in the value with the collimator size and sample thickness can cause important changes in measurements of soil physical properties such its bulk density. / A técnica de atenuação de raios gama se baseia na interação da radiação com a matéria, abrangendo diversos objetivos, dentre eles, a determinação de parâmetros físicos do solo, tais como sua densidade, umidade e porosidade. O coeficiente de atenuação de massa pode ser definido como a probabilidade de interação por unidade de volume entre um meio material (absorvedor) e o fóton a uma dada energia. Uma medida precisa desse coeficiente é importante para determinações representativas de parâmetros físicos do solo. Normalmente, em determinações destes parâmetros, mede-se o coeficiente de atenuação do meio que fica considerado como constante, mesmo para diferentes tamanhos de amostras ou geometria do sistema nuclear. No presente trabalho, procurou-se analisar a variação do com o aumento da espessura da amostra e também com o tamanho do colimador para um meio poroso heterogêneo como é o caso do solo. Foram usadas duas fontes de radiação gama emitindo fótons de diferentes energias, sendo elas 241Am (59,4 keV) e 137Cs (661,6 keV). Essas duas fontes são as mais comuns usadas para medidas de propriedades físicas do solo. As variações nas espessuras das amostras foram obtidas utilizando-se caixas de acrílico com tamanhos de 2 a 15 cm. Para a variação na espessura do feixe foram usados quatro colimadores circulares com diâmetros de 1 a 4 mm. Foram utilizados nesse estudo dois solos de diferentes texturas, sendo elas, franco-arenosa e argilo-siltosa. Os resultados obtidos mostram que, embora exista influência do tamanho do colimador e espessura da amostra nas medidas de essas são menores do que 5% (desvio relativo considerando cada valor de para cada espessura e o valor médio para todas as espessuras) para ambos os solos e fontes radioativas. Para a fonte de 241Am somente espessuras definidas de amostra (2-12 cm) podem ser usadas na medida do para o solo quando os colimadores menores (1 e 2 mm) estão sendo usados. Isso ocorre devido a problemas no levantamento do fotopico após determinada espessura de amostra para essa fonte radioativa. Na comparação dos valores experimentais de obtidos e valores teóricos gerados via XCOM foi observada uma boa concordância entre os dados experimentais e teóricos para a água (3,8% - 241Am e 6,3% - 137Cs de desvio relativo considerando o valor teórico como referência) o que representa um bom funcionamento do sistema nuclear. No entanto, o mesmo não foi observado para o solo devido ao levantamento da composição química desse meio poroso ter sido somente qualitativo. Porém, nesse trabalho foi verificado que, mesmo pequenas modificações no valor de com o tamanho do colimador e espessura da amostra, podem influenciar de maneira significativa medidas de propriedades físicas do solo como a sua densidade.

Made available in DSpace on 2017-07-21T19:26:08Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Talita Rosas Ferreira.pdf: 6282017 bytes, checksum: f3b7825f0878fb8865db212f2fd79a70 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-03-14 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / The computed tomography (CT) represents a technique that provides images of samples, allowing the study of different soil physical phenomena by qualitative and quantitative analysis in 2D and 3D. In the area of applied physics to porous media is a matter of investigation the definition of representative elementary areas (REA) regarding measurements of physical properties of this media. REA is related to the minimum area of a sample needed to represent its characteristics of interest. The aim of this study was to define REAs to be adopted for density (ρs) measurements from sample soil collected in volumetric rings. Having this purpose in mind, three soils with different textures were analyzed: Geric Ferralsol (GF), Rhodic Ferralsol (RF) and Eutric Nitosol (EN). Six samples from each soil were submitted to the method of volumetric ring (VR) and CT for ρs evaluation. A first generation tomograph equipped with 241Am gamma-ray source was used in the image acquisition. Consecutive areas were selected according to three different schemes (consecutive areas increasing from a first area selected at the center of the image and consecutive areas increasing from a first area selected at the inferior and superior borders of the sample) with size areas ranging from 1.2 to 678.8 mm². For ρs measurements, the following criteria were adopted: 1) relative deviation (RD) between ρs – RV and each of the areas not superior to 10, 8, 6, 4 and 2%; 2) RD between ρs - CT obtained for the last area selected inside the tomographic image and each of the remaining areas equally not superior than the criteria from item 1; 3) that at least three consecutive areas must not differ in RD values among themselves, using the variation criterion presented in items 1 and 2. It was considered that the REA for ρs was reached at the variation criteria of 4%. The REA found for ρs, according to the area selection starting from the center, superior and inferior borders of the tomographic images, were: 432.0; 393.3 and 334.0 mm² (GF), 473.1; 457.4 and 393.3 mm² (RF) and 349.7; 457.4 and 334,0 mm² (EN), respectively. The results obtained by the area selection starting from the center were assumed to be the real values of REA for the studied soils. In this study, it was also proposed an alternative criterion of analysis based on the results obtained, which use as reference, simultaneously, the methods of VR and CT. Therefore, it was possible to define that áreas measuring 432.0 mm² e 349.7 mm² provide, respectively , reliable density values for the LVA and NV soils. / A Tomografia Computadorizada (TC) é uma técnica que fornece imagens do interior de amostras, permitindo a investigação de diferentes fenômenos físicos que ocorrem no solo por meio de análises qualitativas e quantitativas em 2D e 3D. Na área de física aplicada a meios porosos, uma questão que vem sendo estudada nos últimos anos diz respeito à definição de áreas elementares representativas (AER) para medidas de propriedades físicas desses meios. A AER está relacionada com a área mínima de uma amostra, necessária para representar suas características de interesse. O objetivo deste estudo foi definir AERs para medidas de densidade (ρs) de amostras de solo coletadas em anéis volumétricos. Para isso, três solos de diferentes texturas foram analisados: Latossolo Vermelho-amarelo (LVA), Latossolo Vermelho (LVE) e Nitossolo Vermelho (NV). Seis amostras de cada solo foram submetidas a dois métodos para determinação da sua ρs: método do anel volumétrico (AV) e da TC. Para a obtenção das imagens foi utilizado um tomógrafo de raios gama de primeira geração equipado com fonte de 241Am. Foram selecionadas, nas imagens tomográficas, áreas consecutivas, de acordo com três diferentes esquemas (áreas concêntricas crescentes a partir de uma área no centro da amostra e áreas crescentes a partir de uma área selecionada nas bordas inferior e superior da amostra), com áreas variando de 1,2 até 678,8 mm². Para medidas de ρs, os seguintes critérios foram adotados para a definição da AER: 1) desvio relativo (DR) entre o valor médio de ρs - AV e cada uma das demais áreas não superior a 10, 8, 6, 4 e 2%; 2) DR entre o valor médio de ρs - TC obtido para a última área (UA) selecionada na imagem tomográfica e para cada uma das demais áreas igualmente não superior aos critérios do item 1; 3) que pelo menos três áreas consecutivas não devessem diferir entre si nos valores de ρs, de acordo com os itens 1 e 2. Considerou-se que a AER para a ρs foi atingida no critério de variação de 4%. As AERs obtidas para ρs, de acordo com uma seleção de áreas partindo do centro, face inferior e face superior das imagens tomográficas foram, respectivamente, 432,0; 393,3 e 334,0 mm² (solo LVA), 473,1; 457,4 e 393,3 mm² (solo LVE) e 349,7; 457,4 e 334,0 mm² (solo NV). Os resultados obtidos por meio da seleção de áreas partindo do centro das imagens tomográficas foram adotados como valores oficiais de AER dos solos estudados. Também foi proposto neste trabalho um novo critério de análise baseado nos resultados que utilizam como referência os métodos do AV e da TC, simultaneamente, a partir do qual foi possível determinar que as áreas de tamanho 432,0 mm² e 349,7 mm², respectivamente, fornecem valores de densidade confiáveis para os solos LVA e NV.

The courts in Canada have often been cast, by both courts and legal scholars, as 'umpires' or 'arbiters' of the federal-provincial division of powers - umpires or arbiters that have the exclusive, or at least decisive, authority to clarify and enforce, and resolve disputes about, 'who does what' in the federal system. However, the image conveyed by these metaphors underestimates the role that the federal and provincial political branches play in the federal system, by working out their own solutions, in the intergovernmental arena, both directly and indirectly, where questions and disputes arise about how jurisdiction is and should be allocated. The image conveyed by the umpire or arbiter metaphors also sits uncomfortably with the facilitative role that the Supreme Court of Canada has carved out for itself in its recent division of powers decisions, a role that casts the courts as facilitators of these instances of intergovernmental dialogue. This doctoral dissertation challenges, and moves beyond, the umpire and arbiter metaphors. It examines the political safeguards available to the provinces in Canada to prevent, or limit, perceived federal encroachments on provincial jurisdiction, in the process highlighting the role that the political branches play in Canada in working out their own allocations of jurisdiction, outside of the courts. It describes, and critically evaluates, the facilitative role carved out by the Court in its recent division of powers decisions, identifying various reasons to be skeptical of a facilitative role that casts the courts as facilitators of intergovernmental dialogue. Finally, and with an eye to future research, it briefly outlines an alternative facilitative role that focuses on facilitating deliberation about the division of powers implications of particular initiatives, arguing that it would be premature to dismiss facilitative approaches to judicial review altogether.

Submitted by Valter Deperon (vdeperon@gmail.com) on 2018-04-26T00:45:07Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Valter Deperon_Dissertacao Abril2018_versaofinal250418.pdf: 457197 bytes, checksum: 9d22b722941ef7a64a699e95eb5bc378 (MD5) / Rejected by Thais Oliveira (thais.oliveira@fgv.br), reason: Valter, boa tarde! Tivemos de rejeitar a Tese novamente, pois a data da aprovação está preenchida, deve estar em branco. e também deve conter o "Campo de Conhecimento" (este deve esta preenchido) acima da Data da Aprovação. Por gentileza, alterar e submeter novamente. Obrigada. Qualquer dúvida, entre em contato. on 2018-04-26T16:18:09Z (GMT) / Submitted by Valter Deperon (vdeperon@gmail.com) on 2018-04-26T21:25:09Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Valter Deperon_Dissertacao Abril2018_versaofinal260418.pdf: 457236 bytes, checksum: 1c91df12538fe6bdb4de139789c59112 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Thais Oliveira (thais.oliveira@fgv.br) on 2018-04-26T22:00:31Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Valter Deperon_Dissertacao Abril2018_versaofinal260418.pdf: 457236 bytes, checksum: 1c91df12538fe6bdb4de139789c59112 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Suzane Guimarães (suzane.guimaraes@fgv.br) on 2018-04-27T13:59:54Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Valter Deperon_Dissertacao Abril2018_versaofinal260418.pdf: 457236 bytes, checksum: 1c91df12538fe6bdb4de139789c59112 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-04-27T13:59:54Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Valter Deperon_Dissertacao Abril2018_versaofinal260418.pdf: 457236 bytes, checksum: 1c91df12538fe6bdb4de139789c59112 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2018-03-28 / Após a abertura do mercado de resseguros pela Lei Complementar nº 126/2007, três categorias de resseguradores foram criadas no Brasil: local, admitido e eventual. Os dois últimos formados por companhias estrangeiras que se instalaram no Brasil. Diante disso, houve muita incerteza a respeito do tratamento tributário que deveria ser aplicado sobre as transações de resseguros internacionais que, resumidamente, são: prêmios de resseguros, comissões de resseguros e sinistros pagos. O mercado se autorregulou e passou a praticar e a interpretar as regras fiscais, conforme a legislação securitária e tributária então vigente. Em 2017, a Receita Federal publicou a Solução de Consulta Cosit nº 62 que basicamente reafirmou o tratamento tributário que o mercado estava praticando para as categorias local e eventual, porém inovou ao equiparar o ressegurador admitido ao local, para fins fiscais. A razão da equiparação deu-se em função da exigência regulatória da Superintendência de Seguros Privados (SUSEP) de que o ressegurador admitido deva constituir um escritório de representação no Brasil, conferindo poderes a um procurador para aceitar e vincular a empresa estrangeira perante o mercado brasileiro. Com isso, concluiu-se que tal atividade equivaleria à do ressegurador local. O efeito prático de tal conclusão é um tratamento tributário semelhante ao conceito de Estabelecimento Permanente (EP), e a aplicação de regras tributárias locais ao admitido implica em um aumento significativo da carga tributária e das exigências e custos contábeis, financeiros e operacionais ao ressegurador admitido, o que inviabilizaria o mercado de seguros e resseguros, diante da potencial falta de cobertura para os riscos administrados no Brasil. A determinação de tratamento tributário equiparado a ressegurador local à empresa estrangeira não pode ser realizada por presunções formais legais, mas necessitaria de um exame concreto e fático de que, materialmente, as decisões de assunção de risco, subscrição e pagamento de indenizações está sendo feita pelo escritório de representação no Brasil, e não apenas em virtude de documentos formais. As atividades do escritório de representação não se confundem com as do ressegurado admitido estrangeiro por ele representado, existindo total independência e autonomia societária, contábil, operacional e fiscal. Embora tenha poder para assinatura de contratos, se tais poderes não são exercidos, o risco de EP é mitigado. A clara demonstração de ausência de execução de poder decisório e assinatura de contratos, bem como a revisão total dos processos internos, com a definição clara das atividades que são desempenhadas pelo escritório de representação é elemento de prova fundamental para afastar as potenciais autuações e discussões administrativas e judiciais. / After the opening of the reinsurance market under Complementary Law 126/2007, three categories of reinsurers were created in Brazil: local, admitted and occasional. The last two were formed by foreign companies that expanded into Brazil. As such, there was a lot of uncertainty regarding the tax treatment that should be applied to international reinsurance transactions, as follows: reinsurance premiums, reinsurance commissions and claims (indemnities) paid. The market was then self-regulated and began to apply and interpret the tax rules, in accordance with the regulatory insurance and tax laws applicable at that time. In 2017, the Federal Tax Authorities (RFB) issued the Cosit Advance Tax Ruling (ATR) nº 62, which basically confirmed the tax treatment that the market was practicing for the local and the occasional categories, but innovated by equating the admitted category to the local reinsurers for tax purposes. The reason for such an equation was based on SUSEP's regulatory requirement for admitted reinsurers to establish a representation office in Brazil, and to grant acceptance and binding powers to a local attorney-in-fact. As a result, it was understood that such activity would be equal to the local reinsurer business. The practical outcome of this conclusion is to consider the foreign entity with a Permanent Establishment (PE) tax treatment, therefore applying local tax rules to them, which imply in a substantial increase in the tax burden, as well as a stricter and more costly accounting, financial and operational framework. This ultimately shall result the insurance and reinsurance market to be considered unfeasible in Brazil, and might result in a potential lack of coverage for Brazilian insurance risks. The determination of tax treatment to the foreign company cannot be carried out simply by legal and formal presumptions; rather, it must require a concrete and factual examination of whether, in essence, the decision-making of risk acceptance, underwriting and claims payments are being effectively executed by the representation office in Brazil, and not merely by virtue of formal documents. The activities of the representation office must not be confused with those of the foreign admitted reinsurer, since there have full autonomy, and operational, corporate governance and tax independency in each entity. Although it has the power to sign contracts, if such powers are not executed, the risk of PE is mitigated. A clear demonstration of the absence of decision-making power of execution and signature of contracts and the overall review of internal processes, with clear definition of the activities that can be performed by the representative office is a fundamental evidence to rule out the potential tax assessments and administrative and judicial disputes.

This thesis addresses the use of psychological assessment in personnel psychology and practice, specifically the relationship between selected personality characteristics of medical representatives in relation to their work performance. In the theoretical part, the selected methods of psychological testing of personality traits used in personnel psychology, with the focus on the Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire 16 PF, are desribed. It also deals with the performance appraisal and attention is paid to assessment of employees in a broader context, the most frequent rating errors and the key methods of individual and group performance appraisal. The empirical part deals with the research that examines relationship between the personality characteristics of medical representatives working in a multinational pharmaceutical company to determine whether the most successful workers differ in personality traits from the lowest performing individuals, and what personality characteristics of the profession are exhibited. Keywords: personnel psychology, personality tests, sixteen personality factor questionnaire 16 PF, performace appraisal, medical representative

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Thesis (MPA.) -- University of Limpopo, 2005 / Refer to the document

<p>This dissertation explores the ‘socio-cultural dilemma’ facing international peacebuilders in war-torn societies through a case study of the post-conflict process in Bosnia and Herzegovina. This is done with the help of a typological approach of the grid-group Cultural Theory framework, which defines four social solidarities – or ideal type cultures – of individualism, egalitarianism, fatalism and hierarchy. A central argument in the thesis is that international intervention is culturally individualistic and/or egalitarian, thus socio-culturally unviable in war-torn societies, which are usually dominated by hierarchical and fatalist social solidarities.</p><p>This underlying socio-cultural conflict is used to trace the Bosnian post-war process, where the relationship between the managing international institution – the Office of the High Representative of the International Community – and the local nationalist elites repeatedly changed in response to the failure of international policies to produce the desired result, namely broad socio-cultural change in the local politics and society. Four different periods in the process are identified: 1) ’economic conditionality’, 2) ‘Bonn Powers’, 3) ‘the concept of ownership’ and 4) ‘Euro-Atlantic integration’. Each period is defined by different culturally biased policies, supported by corresponding social relations and strategic behaviours.</p><p>The individualistic and egalitarian biased approaches usually resulted in failures, as they were not viable in the local socio-cultural context. After adapting to the local context, new viable approaches produced results in specific policy areas, but at the cost of unwanted side-effects in the form of reinforcement of dominant social solidarities. The result was therefore contrary to the broad goal of the process, which was to transform the local political culture.</p><p>In other words, the defining and re-defining of the OHR’s role in the Bosnian process was a consequence of the dilemma of having to make an unsatisfactory choice: either to adapt to the way the political game is played in the Bosnian socio-cultural context in order to achieve effectiveness in the policy process, or to stay true to the peacebuilders’ own cultural biases and attempt to change the local socio-cultural accordingly. In essence, it is argued, this is the socio-cultural viability dilemma that is inherent in international peacebuilding.</p><p>In unveiling of the socio-cultural viability dilemma, the dissertation explores central problems in the Bosnian post-conflict process. It provides a credible explanation to a number of hitherto unexplained difficulties and paradoxes experienced in Bosnia. It concludes that the international intervention in this particular case was neither a success story nor a failure per se, but one which failed to properly address the dilemma of socio-cultural viability. The key conclusions regarding peacebuilding in general are that there should be a greater under¬¬standing of socio-cultural issues in peacebuilding in order to better manage the socio-cultural viability dilemma. Practically, this means that international peacebuilders need to adapt to local context and strive towards the goal of local ownership of the process. The aim should be to make the intervention as viable as possible, as quickly as possible, to boldly implement policies that promote changes in the local socio-cultural context, and to withdraw only after the necessary conditions for local ownership are in place.</p>