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A expansão do tecido urbano e o adensamento das cidades têm um impacto negativo sobre os recursos hídricos, tanto na quantidade quanto na qualidade das águas no ambiente, pois aumenta as cargas de poluentes no meio e altera o ciclo hidrológico natural, criando riscos à população. É possível reduzir tais riscos através do diagnóstico, planejamento e gestão adequada das áreas de risco para a proteção civil e das comunidades. A abordagem ecohidrológica, que considera a relação funcional entre hidrologia, sistemas aquáticos e sua biota na escala de bacia hidrográfica, incorporando aspectos quantitativos e qualitativos da água em uma visão de interdependência entre Ecologia e Hidrologia, permite o diagnóstico, planejamento e manejo adequado dos cursos hídricos em benefício tanto dos humanos quando dos demais seres vivos. Este trabalho busca investigar a dinâmica ecohidrológica no espaço e no tempo da Bacia do Rio Monjolinho, localizada no Município de São Carlos (SP), no contexto de gestão de riscos de desastres hidrológicos. Os processos quantitativos são investigados por meio de simulações com o SWMM (Storm Water Management Model) e os dados de simulação são utilizados, por vez, na determinação do IP (Índice de Perigo) de pontos estratégicos da bacia hidrográfica e também das áreas com maior risco de inundação. Com relação à qualidade, onze variáveis clássicas de qualidade dágua são determinadas experimentalmente em 15 pontos da bacia a fim de caracterizar a dinâmica das cargas de poluentes, permitindo desta maneira a avaliação do risco biológico na bacia. Os resultados quali-quantitativos mostram que os vales dos rios oferecem riscos tanto devido às inundações quanto devido ao alto risco de contaminação. / The urban tissue expansion and the urban area densification have a negative impact on water resources, in terms of quality and quantity of available water, since it increases the polutant load at the same time it changes the natural hydrological cycle, exposing population to risk. It is possible to reduce the risks by means of assessment, planning and correct management of risk areas in order to protect the communities. The ecohydrology, which takes into account the functional relationship between hydrology, aquatic systems and biota in watershed scale, considering quali-quantitative aspects and their interdependecies, enable us to assess, plan and manage risks in an advantageous way for humans and living beings as well. This work investigates the ecohydrology dynamics in space and time of Rio Monjolinho basin, located within the municipality of São Carlos (SP), Brazil, in the context of disaster risk management. The quantitative aspects are investigated using the SWMM (Storm Water Management Model) simulation model, and the simulation data generated are used to calculate the Risk Index (RI) and to map the flooding risk areas in the basin. Eleven classic water quality variables are experimentaly determined to assess the polutant load dynamics and its distribution in the sub-basins, enabling us to assess the biologic risks. The results show that some areas in the catchment are not just flood risk areas but also areas of high biological risk of contamination.

This thesis examines the role of the Chinese news media in the 1989 pro-democracy movement. The three functions of this thesis are: 1) to provide evidence of changes in the pro-democracy movement; 2) to identify corresponding changes in the press coverage of the movement; 3) to examine what relationship exists between changes in the movement and changes in the press coverage of the movement.

Esta tesis intenta demostrar cómo los sistemas de Recuperación de Información (RI) y los sistemas de Detección de Sucesos (TDT - Topic Detection and Tracking) mejoran si se añade una componente temporal extraída automáticamente del texto, a la cual denominaremos periodo de suceso. Este atributo representa el espacio de tiempo en el que transcurre el suceso principal relatado en cada documento. Con este propósito la tesis ha cubierto los siguientes objetivos: * Definición de un modelo de tiempo para representar y manipular las referencias temporales que aparecen en un texto. * Desarrollo de una aplicación para la extracción de expresiones temporales lingüísticas y el reconocimiento del intervalo absoluto que referencian según el calendario Gregoriano. * Implementación de un sistema para la extracción automática del periodo de suceso. * Modificación de los actuales sistemas de RI, TDT para incluir la información temporal extraída con las herramientas anteriores.

A expansão do tecido urbano e o adensamento das cidades têm um impacto negativo sobre os recursos hídricos, tanto na quantidade quanto na qualidade das águas no ambiente, pois aumenta as cargas de poluentes no meio e altera o ciclo hidrológico natural, criando riscos à população. É possível reduzir tais riscos através do diagnóstico, planejamento e gestão adequada das áreas de risco para a proteção civil e das comunidades. A abordagem ecohidrológica, que considera a relação funcional entre hidrologia, sistemas aquáticos e sua biota na escala de bacia hidrográfica, incorporando aspectos quantitativos e qualitativos da água em uma visão de interdependência entre Ecologia e Hidrologia, permite o diagnóstico, planejamento e manejo adequado dos cursos hídricos em benefício tanto dos humanos quando dos demais seres vivos. Este trabalho busca investigar a dinâmica ecohidrológica no espaço e no tempo da Bacia do Rio Monjolinho, localizada no Município de São Carlos (SP), no contexto de gestão de riscos de desastres hidrológicos. Os processos quantitativos são investigados por meio de simulações com o SWMM (Storm Water Management Model) e os dados de simulação são utilizados, por vez, na determinação do IP (Índice de Perigo) de pontos estratégicos da bacia hidrográfica e também das áreas com maior risco de inundação. Com relação à qualidade, onze variáveis clássicas de qualidade dágua são determinadas experimentalmente em 15 pontos da bacia a fim de caracterizar a dinâmica das cargas de poluentes, permitindo desta maneira a avaliação do risco biológico na bacia. Os resultados quali-quantitativos mostram que os vales dos rios oferecem riscos tanto devido às inundações quanto devido ao alto risco de contaminação. / The urban tissue expansion and the urban area densification have a negative impact on water resources, in terms of quality and quantity of available water, since it increases the polutant load at the same time it changes the natural hydrological cycle, exposing population to risk. It is possible to reduce the risks by means of assessment, planning and correct management of risk areas in order to protect the communities. The ecohydrology, which takes into account the functional relationship between hydrology, aquatic systems and biota in watershed scale, considering quali-quantitative aspects and their interdependecies, enable us to assess, plan and manage risks in an advantageous way for humans and living beings as well. This work investigates the ecohydrology dynamics in space and time of Rio Monjolinho basin, located within the municipality of São Carlos (SP), Brazil, in the context of disaster risk management. The quantitative aspects are investigated using the SWMM (Storm Water Management Model) simulation model, and the simulation data generated are used to calculate the Risk Index (RI) and to map the flooding risk areas in the basin. Eleven classic water quality variables are experimentaly determined to assess the polutant load dynamics and its distribution in the sub-basins, enabling us to assess the biologic risks. The results show that some areas in the catchment are not just flood risk areas but also areas of high biological risk of contamination.

This study evaluates methods for clustering web users via vector space models, for the purpose of web page prefetching for possible applications of server optimization. An experiment using Latent Semantic Analysis (LSA) is deployed to investigate whether LSA can reproduce the encouraging results obtained from previous research with Random Indexing (RI) and a chaos based optimization algorithm (CAS-C). This is not only motivated by LSA being yet another vector space model, but also by a study indicating LSA to outperform RI in a task similar to the web user clustering and prefetching task. The prefetching task was used to verify the applicability of LSA, where both RI and CAS-C have shown promising results. The original data set from the RI web user clustering and prefetching task was modeled using weighted (tf-idf) LSA. Clusters were defined using a common clustering algorithm (k-means). The least scattered cluster configuration for the model was identified by combining an internal validity measure (SSE) and a relative criterion validity measure (SD index). The assumed optimal cluster configuration was used for the web page prefetching task.   Precision and recall of the LSA based method is found to be on par with RI and CAS-C, in as much that it solves the web user clustering and web task with similar characteristics as unweighted RI. The hypothesized inherent gains to precision and recall by using LSA was neither confirmed nor conclusively disproved. The effects of different weighting functions for RI are discussed and a number of methodological factors are identified for further research concerning LSA based clustering and prefetching.

The benefits of effective teaching methods have been well researched and documented. Salient amongst most literature on such benefits is their ability to promote learners’ subject-matter comprehension and their active participation in class activities. Subject-matter and learner participation can be considered key ingredients in promoting effective learning. In adult education, due to the unique characteristics that the learner brings to the learning situation, it behooves the educator to select appropriate methods in promoting learning. By employing appropriate teaching methods, the educator is able to help adult learners achieve the desired learning outcomes. This study therefore sought to comparatively examine the effectiveness of the various teaching methods used by educators in teaching learners in adult education programmes in Ghana and South Africa. The study focused on the National Functional Literacy Programme of Ghana and the Kha Ri Gude Mass Literacy Programme of South Africa. The study was conducted using a qualitative research approach where the multiple case study design was employed. A purposive sample of 152 participants comprising 72 learners and 4 educators each from Ghana and South Africa were selected for the study. The interview schedule, focus group discussion guide and unstructured observation guides were used to elicit data from the participants. The study revealed, amongst other things, that some of the methods employed by the educators in the teaching and learning encounter were ineffective in promoting adult learning in both programmes. The study recommends that methods employed to teach adult learners should help them effectively to make meaning of the various information or events that they are presented with. As a result, teaching moves from the traditional view of transmission to helping learners to reexamine their meaning-making structures. / UNISA / ABET and Youth Development

The process of local preservation, urban renewal, and national park building at Roger Williams National Memorial in Providence, Rhode Island, reveals important facets of the urban park idea. In 1958, the Providence Preservation Society and the Providence City Plan Commission jointly released the College Hill Study, which called for renewal of the College Hill neighborhood through preservation of the architecturally significant homes, selective demolition, and the creation of a new National Park Unit dedicated to Providence’s founder, Roger Williams. The new park, established in 1965, went through a lengthy planning process before opening in 1984. The planning process revealed concerns about determining historical authenticity, supporting the revitalized historic district of College Hill, and preventing the park from becoming a haven for undesirable people and activities. Since its opening, the park has grown into a mature green space which is an important part of the civic and cultural life of Providence. The success of this park in fulfilling the goals of its planners and continuing to provide a valued green space for residents demonstrates an achievement that has important implications for ongoing urban park building by the National Park Service.

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Mémoire numérisé par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.