Cette présentation examinera le degré de certitude qui peut être atteint dans le domaine scientifique. Le paradigme scientifique est composé de deux extrêmes; causalité et déterminisme d'un côté et probabilité et indéterminisme de l'autre. En faisant appel aux notions de Hume de la ressemblance et la contiguïté, on peut rejeter la causalité ou le hasard objectif comme étant sans fondement et non empirique. Le problème de l'induction et le sophisme du parieur proviennent d’une même source cognitif / heuristique. Hume décrit ces tendances mentales dans ses essais « Of Probability » et « Of the Idea of Necessary Connexion ». Une discussion sur la conception de la probabilité de Hume ainsi que d'autres interprétations de probabilité sera nécessaire. Même si la science glorifie et idéalise la causalité, la probabilité peut être comprise comme étant tout aussi cohérente. Une attitude probabiliste, même si elle est également non empirique, pourrait être plus avantageuse que le vieux paradigme de la causalité. / This presentation examines the degree of certainty which can be attained in science. The scientific paradigm is composed of two extremes; causality and determinism on one end and probability and indeterminism on the other. By appealing to Hume’s notions of resemblance and contiguity, we can dismiss any claim of objective causality or chance as being ungrounded for lack of an empirical basis. The problem of induction as well as the gambler’s fallacy stem from the same cognitive/heuristic source. Hume describes these mental tendencies in his essays ‘Of Probability’ and ‘Of the Idea of Necessary Connexion’. This will necessitate a discussion of Hume’s notion of probability, as well as other interpretations of probability. While science has glorified and romanticized causality, probability can be understood as being just as consistent. While a probabilistic stance is as non-empirical as a causal stance, it will be remarked that we may benefit from a paradigmatic switch to probabilism.

Made available in DSpace on 2010-04-20T20:57:02Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 3 AlessandraSFGodoi2006.pdf.jpg: 19061 bytes, checksum: 5263ea29f172cb43b07515b286172b45 (MD5) AlessandraSFGodoi2006.pdf.txt: 614967 bytes, checksum: 24e37083b48ca5557be63aeda5dfcd58 (MD5) AlessandraSFGodoi2006.pdf: 1323544 bytes, checksum: 0f61d5b19c999541c7bf435400b8fed8 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2006-08-09T00:00:00Z / Esta tese oferece uma releitura crítica da influente obra de Herbert A. Simon e alguns de seus seguidores sobre a decisão de modo geral, tendo em vista um problema específico: a decisão de investimento da firma. A partir de um exercício de aplicação teórica, bem como de um conjunto de oito estudos de caso, propõe-se um modelo sintético ou roteiro para a compreensão da decisão de investimento da firma segundo uma perspectiva processual que se baseia na idéia central de construção de uma representação da realidade. Esta estaria sujeita a limitações de caráter cognitivo à coleta e ao processamento de informações (racionalidade limitada), bem como ao condicionamento das possibilidades de ação efetivamente disponíveis ao empreendedor, mediante uma rede de sinergias e escolhas menores cujas conseqüências não foi possível prever ao longo de um amplo leque de dimensões, a decisões passadas (liberdade limitada, conceito original introduzido por esta tese). Com base nessa estrutura, divide-se o processo decisório em três etapas (busca, análise e escolha), discutindo-se em detalhe cada um deles e ressaltando elementos importantes que conferem estrutura e coerência ao processo, dado o pressuposto de que a otimização irrestrita neoclássica não é alcançável, na prática, no caso da decisão de investimento da firma. / This thesis offers an interpretation of the influential work of Herbert A. Simon and some of his followers regarding decision-making as a whole, considering a specific problem: the investment decision by firms. Combining insights obtained from the application of the theory and from the conduct of eight case studies, we propose a synthetic model for the understanding of firm investment decisions according to a processual perspective, based on the central idea of the construction by entrepreneurs of a representation of reality. This representation is subject to cognitive limitations related to difficulties in collecting and processing information (bounded rationality), as well as to the conditioning of possibilities of action truly available to the entrepreneur to past choices, through a net of synergies and smaller decisions, the consequences of which it was not possible to forecast precisely along a large scope of dimensions (bounded liberty, an original concept introduced by this thesis). Based on this structure, the decision process is divided in three stages (search, analysis and choice), each of them discussed in detail with the intention of pointing out the most important elements that confer structure and coherence to the process, assuming that full neoclassical rationality is not attainable in practical complex decisions.

This diploma thesis deals with landscape as a way of seeing, its critique and its defense. The thesis will initially focus on the presentation of the critical concept of ways of seeing by English art critic and writer John Berger. On the basis of this, the thesis will move to the exploration of the critical concepts of landscape and landscape painting by British humanistic cultural geographer Denis E. Cosgrove and American visual theorist and philosopher W. J. T. Mitchell. Subsequently, it will also deal with the relationship of these concepts to the concept of landscape by English historian and art historian Simon Schama. Cosgrove and Mitchell both deal in a similar way with the critical reflection of the idea of landscape in terms of postmodern and postcolonial criticism. Both authors are influenced by Berger's concept and claim that our aesthetic perception of landscape is not a natural vision, but an acquired, historically created way of seeing. This way of seeing then raises a number of questions in relation to the traditional conception of landscape aesthetics and can lead to a rethinking of traditional concepts such as aesthetic attitude, psychical distance or the idea of disinterested pleasure. Opposite to it, the thesis intends to present an optimistic concept of landscape by Schama. The...

This is a systematic and critical study of the mission of the Kimbanguist Church in the city of Lubumbashi in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The research question was: “How do the Kimbanguist members interpret and express the Christian message in and for the context of Katanga province through their communal life, worship and mission?” A historical chapter traces the origins and growth of the church, followed by four chapters that analyze the mission of the church by means of a ‘praxis cycle.’ The chapters look at mission strategies (leadership, church departments, mission methods), followed by mission agents (spiritual head, clergy, chaplains, women, youth), the theological sources of mission (the Bible, the life of Simon Kimbangu, and a code of conduct) and spirituality (liturgy, sacraments, pilgrimages and festivals). In a concluding chapter several critical issues were identified for critical dialogue between the Kimbanguist church and other African churches. / Christian Spirituality, Church History & Missiology / M. Th. (Missiology)

Thesis (MA (Psychology))--University of Stellenbosch, 2005. / This paper examines the notion of forgiveness by highlighting the personal psychological experience that may be discarded in the moral and political debate. Faced with his dilemma of whether or not to forgive the heinous crimes of a dying man, Simon Wiesenthal’s invites readers of his personal story in The Sunflower to ask themselves what they would have done in his place. Most respondents have considered this a moral, theological or political issue. This paper chooses to view his question from a psychological perspective. By analysing his autobiographical account in The Sunflower and process model of forgiveness developed by Enright and the Human Development Study Group (1991, 1994), Wiesenthal’s psychological responses have been investigated on behavioural, cognitive and emotional levels.

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Norton Simon was a unique collector because he let passion guide his collecting interests, but he controlled his passion by making his purchases based on smart economic decisions bolstered by years of experience in successful business negotiations. The Norton Simon Museum, today in Pasadena, California, displays the eccentric collectors life work as he created one of the greatest and most recognized collections on the west coast. By examining the progression and establishment of Norton Simon Inc., alongside the creation of the Norton Simon Art Foundation, multiple parallels can be drawn between Simons’ unique approach to business and the application of his unorthodox techniques to his purchases in the art world – Norton Simon’s “two hats”.

This thesis analyzes the beliefs of population theorist Julian L. Simon through the creation of a harm principle. It specifically analyzes his argument that we value our freedom to choose how many children we want above all other values in the context of overpopulation and environmental destruction. The developed harm principle is meant to give us a method to decide how to balance our personal freedom with our security-survival. I begin with an overview of Simon’s work, as well as an exposition of other prominent population theorists. I then propose a principle that is a utilitarian alternative to John Stuart Mill’s Harm Principle. I apply the principle to the situation wherein overpopulation causes such great environmental damage that we must choose between upholding procreative rights and our continued survival. I conclude that in most cases we will accept limitations on our procreative freedom in order to maintain our planet and ensure our security-survival.

A wide range of applications have been recognized for terahertz radiations. In fact, medical imaging, homeland security screening, very high-speed wireless telecommunications systems and even drug and gas detection are boosting the development of terahertz emitters and receivers. The work of this thesis is among the efforts in that regard. Actual terahertz detectors are suffering many drawbacks, they are bulky, very slow, not very sensitive or operates at non-practical temperatures. Combined with the complexity to realize terahertz emitters, it explains the difficulties of terahertz radiations to ensure market penetration with practicable civil applications. In that regard, we aim to better understand and improve a specific terahertz photodetector: the Terahertz Quantum Well Photodetector. Those devices working principle relies on a photocurrent created by the excitation of electrons from ground states of quantum wells to the continuum under terahertz impinging light. The intensity of the photocurrent is depending on the intensity of the radiation received by the device. The device active region is made of a multiple quantum wells GaAs/AlGaAs system. By changing the design of the device, that is the thicknesses of each layer, the aluminum fraction of the doping concentration, we can modify its performances. Documented and commented Matlab functions and routines have been implemented in order to simulate a given structure and scripts have been written to find the optimum parameters for a target absorption frequency. Our model has been verified by comparison with experimental data reported in the literature. Based on our model, we systematically study the impact of the active region and contact parameters on the device performances. In addition, innovative designs are proposed in order to reduce the undesirable dark current and thus increase the detectivity. They benefits from many-body effects, effects that are usually a constraint on the design. To our knowledge this is the first time those effects are used to realize innovative designs and increase the performances of quantum well infrared photodetectors. Finally we expose other designs that have been tested in the infrared domain with QWIP and adapt them to the terahertz range. In particular, we propose a quantum cascade photodetector, a double barrier bound-to-miniband and a phonon-assisted band to miniband structures.

成功的企業購併需仰賴正確的投資評估以及有效的購併過程管理,本文包含兩個部分,第一部分主要探討購併利益評估的問題,使用的方法為real-option approach簡化了購併效益之評估,且可獲得較正確的結果;第二部分為兩家國際出版業合併之個案研究,就此成功的例子而言,管理者可以獲得較有利且完善的合併經營方法。 / Successful mergers depend on proper valuation of this special type of investment and effective management of this process. First essay devoted to the problem of merger profitability valuation. Using real-option approach, a simple model is developed to expand accuracy in decision making process about merger possibility. This model considers uncertainty of situation and provides flexibility in company’s strategy. According to this approach profitability of merger may be calculated by using value of premium paid for acquiring company and value of synergy that expected from merge of two companies. Main problem of merger’s valuation in this approach is correct definition of synergy. In second essay, merger of two publishing companies Addison Wesley Longman and Simon & Schuster is analyzed. Positive experience in choosing candidates for merge, pre- and post-acquisition decision making process can serve as a good example of effective merger’s management.