Switzerland has, despite being a rather small country, a big start-up scene which develops rapidly and puts forth many entrepreneurs. Currently, it is certain that any opportunity for competitive advantage must be exploited and emerging markets like India prove to be full of them. This research aims to investigate the cultural and institutional problems Swiss start-ups faced and how they overcame them when internationalising to India, using a qualitative research approach. Relevant theories regarding the topic were gathered and collated in a deductive manner with the empirical findings of five interviews conducted with Swiss Born Global start-ups, which internationalised either down- or upstream activities of their value chain to India. The findings show that institutional problems are largely dependent on the industry a company is working in. Cultural problems on the other hand occur in a more general manner and entrepreneurs internationalising to this market should be aware of the cultural differences to facilitate their internationalisation process. Further findings display the importance of an own network in the country and the indispensability of partners that help the companies navigate the Indian space.

Dans les années 1990, la mise en œuvre de la libre circulation au sein de l’espace Schengen s’est accompagnée de la mise en place de mécanismes coopératifs entre États voisins en matière de police, de justice et de douanes. La coopération policière interroge quant à l’articulation des moyens et des acteurs dépositaires de la violence physique légitime de part et d’autre de la frontière nationale. Comment s’organise la coopération policière ? Sur quels mécanismes repose-t-elle empiriquement ? Que représente la présence de la frontière nationale, et qu’implique-t-elle pour les acteurs participant à la coopération sur le terrain ? A travers le cas d’étude de la coopération policière transfrontalière franco-suisse, analysé selon une approche qualitative, cette recherche transdisciplinaire interroge le rôle et la fonction de la frontière en tant que ligne de démarcation entre deux entités étatiques, sur le territoire de la métropole du Grand Genève. En retenant la distinction entre normes institutionnelles et normes pratiques, deux dimensions ont été retenues : les pratiques coopératives entre acteurs publics sur l’espace transfrontalier, et les pratiques de collaboration entre acteurs publics et privés sur un territoire éphémère, à travers le cas du Paléo Festival de Nyon, plus grand festival de musique en plein air de Suisse, situé à proximité immédiate de la frontière française. La thèse principale est que la frontière, au prisme de l’activité policière, est transcendée par des logiques économiques et professionnelles. Premièrement, la recherche montre que la coopération policière telle qu’étudiée ici est au service de la préservation des logiques économiques, au point où les tentations souveraines – tel que le rétablissement des contrôles systématiques aux frontières – s’étouffent d’elles-mêmes face à la force du marché. Deuxièmement, la compréhension du fonctionnement empirique de la coopération policière transfrontalière nécessite de tenir compte de la temporalité des enjeux de sécurité : le recours par les acteurs à des normes institutionnelles ou informelles varie en fonction de l’inscription des enjeux dans un temps quotidien, cyclique ou événementiel. Le recours aux normes informelles traduit l’adaptation des acteurs policiers à leur territoire d’intervention : ils deviennent ainsi des vecteurs de rapprochement entre les États, en participant à l’atténuation du différentiel frontalier que représente la frontière nationale. Bien que certains facteurs structurels contribuent à faire perdurer les discontinuités liées à la présence de la frontière nationale, il reste que cette dernière est désormais loin de jouer sa fonction initiale de démarcation intrinsèque, et cela même en matière de sécurité, qui reste compétence régalienne. / Since its implementation in the 1990s, the free movement of persons within the Schengen area has seen the development of a framework of bilateral cooperation agreements concerning the police, judiciary and Cus-toms. Cooperation between police forces has raised questions about the manner in which legally-sanctioned physical force may be exercised on either side of the border by those authorized to do so. How is police coopera-tion actually organized at a practical level? On what empirical mechanisms is it based? What does the national border represent in the context of police cooperation and how is it perceived by the actors involved in the field? Under the perspective of the French-Swiss cross-border police cooperation, this qualitative and transdisciplinary research questions the role and function of the border as a demarcation line between two State entities, within the territory of the Greater Geneva metropolis. Using the classification of official norms and practical norms, the research is organized around two dimensions: cooperation practices between public actors within the cross-border area, and collaboration practices between public and private actors within an ephemeral territory through the case study of the Paléo Festival of Nyon, the most important open air musical event of Switzerland, located close to the French border.The result of this thesis is to show that the border, through policing, is transcended by economic and professional logics. Firstly, the research demonstrates that police cooperation serves to preserve economic interests to the point of rendering inoperative the temptations of national sovereignty temptations (e.g., back to systematic border checks). Secondly, the understanding of how cross-border police cooperation works empirically, requires taking into account the temporality of security issues: the actors use official or practical norms depending on whether security issues fall into a linear, cyclical or event-related time period. The use of practical norms reflects the adaptation of the different police to their territory of intervention: they thus become drivers of a ‘rapprochement’ between the two States, participating in the attenuation of the border. Even though some structural factors contribute to maintaining discontinuities, the border’s role as a line of demarcation is now much reduced, even in terms of security which none the less remains a national responsibility.

This thesis seeks to investigate the ecological theme in German-Swiss prose of the last thirty years. The role of nature has understandably always been significant in Swiss literature. In a nation that has eked out its living, in such an impressive and violent landscape, there is of necessity a highly developed awareness of the environment. Furthermore, the close relationship between mankind and the environment is inherently ambiguous, with each acting alternately as curse and blessing to the other. The bond between people and geography is made all the more vital in the Alps, where existence is under the constant threat of avalanches and landslides. In light of this heightened environmental sensibility, it is unsurprising that, with the growing profile of ecological debate in general, Swiss writers should demonstrate an acute cognisance of the significance of ecological problems. The notion of an ecological voice takes the discussion further. The question is posed whether these works merely represent a reflection of societal concern for the environment, or whether literary responses may constitute solutions. This investigation therefore contributes both to literary criticism on Swiss writing and to the understanding of the role of conceptualisation in finding solutions to ecological problems. To explore and analyse these ideas, this thesis considers a representatively broad spectrum of differing responses to ecological crisis. It is not intended to be an exhaustive list of recent Swiss ‘Öko-Literatur', but instead to be an investigation of the variety of narrative strategies employed in this period of growing ecological awareness.

abstract: This research paper aims to understand Frank Martin’s Huit préludes pour le piano (1948) as a summary of his compositional styles, by demonstrating common elements between the preludes and Martin’s compositions of other genres. Swiss musician Frank Martin (1890-1974) composed in many genres, from theatrical and symphonic works to vocal, chamber, and solo works. Huit préludes pour le piano, his best-known piece for solo piano, merits more recognition in the modern repertoire than it currently receives, as it encompasses a wide range of pianistic techniques, colors, and atmospheres to challenge the mature pianist. This set of preludes represents Martin’s unique compositional sound and style, in which Martin retains a sense of tonal functions despite the intense chromaticism in his music. Featured elements in the Huit préludes include the use of the B-A-C-H motive and its alterations, chromatic yet triadic writing, gliding tonality, baroque elements, dodecaphony, stratification, extreme range and registral shifts, octave doublings and displacements, percussive rhythmic drive, large-scale crescendi, and hidden cyclicism. Martin also uses the 12-tone row as a chromatic tool, but rejects atonality and applies the concept without strict enforcement. Influences of music from past eras are evident in the Huit préludes through various compositional techniques and practices such as contrapuntal lines, chant-like declamatory melodies, imitation, toccata, and pedal-points. This research project explores these various techniques within and between the preludes and his works of other genres, and thus identifies the Huit préludes as a consolidation of Martin’s mature sound and style. / Dissertation/Thesis / Frank Martin, Prelude No. 1 / Frank Martin, Prelude No. 2 / Frank Martin, Prelude No. 3 / Frank Martin, Prelude No. 4 / Frank Martin, Prelude No. 5 / Frank Martin, Prelude No. 6 / Frank Martin, Prelude No. 7 / Frank Martin, Prelude No. 8 / Doctoral Dissertation Music 2017

Hur påverkar klippningen gestaltningen av en karaktär i en film? Syftet med denna uppsats är att undersöka om klippning påverkar gestaltningen av en filmkaraktär och vilka metoder inom filmklippning som kan användas för att uppnå detta. Undersök-ningen sker på huvudkaraktären i filmen Swiss Army Man där tre sekvenser analyse-ras med hjälp av Jens Eders modell för att analysera fiktiva karaktärer. Analysen kopplas till tidigare forskning och teorier om filmklippning. Uppsatsen kommer även att testa Eders modell för att undersöka om den är användbar som karaktärsanalysmo-dell för filmkaraktärer. Resultatet av undersökningen visar att klippning kan användas som en del av arbetet för att gestalta en filmkaraktär. Det finns klippmetoder som gör att klipparen kan på-verka gestaltningen. Eders analysmetod fungerar att koppla till filmklippning men resultatet kan variera då denna metod är subjektiv och karaktärer kan uppfattas olika av varje individ.

This Master Thesis deals primarily with the legal institute of the right of superficies. It also deals with some another legal institutes which can be used for a building construction on another's land. The Thesis' aim is primarily the analysis and evaluation of the effective legal regulation of the right of superficies and furthermore its comparison with historical regulations, with the Swiss regulation, as well as the comparison with another institutes which can be used for a building construction on another's land. The Thesis is divided into five chapters which are divided into subchapters. The first chapter defines the basical relevant terms which are important for understanding of the legal institute of the right of superficies. The second chapter is dedicated to the history of the right of superficies and introduces historical legal regulations of this legal institute. At first, the original Roman law institute of superficies is introduced, furthermore all the acts which governed the right of superficies in the history in the area of the Czech Republic are analysed, including the regulation of the proposed Czechoslovak Civil Code that never came into force. The attendance is dedicated also to the period when the right of superficies did not exist in the Czechoslovak or Czech legal order. The...

The research aim is to understand how the competitive intelligence (CI) process in large-scale Swiss telecom companies contributes to management decision-making. Studying CI activities of the Swiss large-scale telecom firms (Swisscom, Sunrise, Orange/Salt, Cablecom) in a dynamic European context offers useful insight into the critical challenges that service firms now face when developing intelligence in disruptive market contexts where aggressive competitive behaviour is evident. In considering CI theory, this study has reviewed perspectives drawn from research on the CI process, studies on knowledge management and work on systems thinking. In extending the predominant modular view of CI to include elements of systems thinking, this study has added to our academic understanding of CI at firm level. An Integrative CI Activities framework was developed that enables a more holistic perspective of CI to be adopted, taking account of operational, organisational and strategic perspectives. A diagram representing the range of CI analysis methodologies has also been generated, that differentiates between internal/external orientation and static/dynamic forms of CI analysis. Such frameworks can be used by CI researchers in other market contexts. The methodology for this study drew on a pragmatist philosophy, using a case study strategy that adopted mixed methods in data collection, including semi-structured depth interviews with top CI Analysts in each firm. Findings have shown differences in the scope of CI Activities that link to stages of CI development (developing, developed) and variation between headquarters-centred and firm-centred approaches to CI planning and implementation. The adoption of query based, flexible analysis approaches in firm-centred settings differ from more structured CI analysis techniques in headquarters-based firms. Evidence from this study suggests that networked communication, strong feedback mechanisms and the adoption of more flexible CI analyst roles link to more effective CI processes and to greater potential for direct CI contribution to decision-making. Key contributions emerge through the three lenses of analysis adopted (operational, organisational and strategic); in terms of operational CI processes, the study identifies a complex integrated system at work in firms that implement CI effectively. In studying the link between organisational structure and CI analysis, the study has mapped organisational support patterns and how they shape the CI process at firm level. With respect to the strategic lens, following a detailed worked study of predictive analysis in one case firm, findings have identified adaptiveness in CI design as essential to address disruptive market change. Managerial consideration include a need for a) greater flexibility in CI implementation at firm level to adapt to turbulent markets, b) acknowledgement of the importance of the CI analyst role further and c) more dynamic CI content to be generated by CI analysts.

Le modèle standard de la cosmologie est fondé sur les hypothèses d'homogénéité et d'isotropie de l'Univers. Pour interpréter la plupart des observations, ces deux hypothèses sont appliquées de façon stricte ; l’objectif principal de cette thèse a été d'évaluer leur pertinence, en particulier lorsque de très petites échelles sont mises en jeu. Après une revue détaillée des lois de l'optique géométrique en espace-temps courbe, on propose une analyse exhaustive de la propagation de la lumière à travers des modèles cosmologiques « en gruyère », modélisant le caractère grumeleux de l'Univers. L'impact sur l'interprétation du diagramme de Hubble s'avère être faible, en particulier grâce à la constante cosmologique. Lorsqu'appliquées aux données actuelles issues de l'observation de supernovae, les corrections associées tendent à améliorer l'accord entre les paramètre cosmologiques mesurés à partir du diagramme de Hubble et du fond diffus cosmologique. Ceci suggère que la précision des observations cosmologiques atteinte aujourd'hui ne permet plus de négliger l'effet des petites structures sur la propagation de lumière à travers le cosmos. Un tel constat a motivé le développement d'un nouveau cadre théorique, inspiré de la physique statistique, visant à décrire ces effets avec précision. Quant à l'hypothèse d'isotropie, cette thèse aborde d'une part les conséquences potentielles d'une anisotropie cosmique sur la propagation de la lumière, en résolvant les équation de l'optique géométrique dans l'espace-temps de Bianchi I. D'autre part, on y analyse une classe de sources d'anisotropie, à savoir les modèles scalaire-vecteur. / The standard model of cosmology is based on the hypothesis that the Universe is spatially homogeneous and isotropic. When interpreting most observations, this cosmological principle is applied stricto sensu ; the main goal of the present thesis was to evaluate how reliable this assumption is, especially when small scales are at stake. After having reviewed the laws of geometric optics in curved spacetime, and the standard interpretation of cosmological observables, the dissertation reports a comprehensive analysis of light propagation in Swiss-cheese models, designed to capture the clumpy character of the Universe. The resulting impact on the interpretation of the Hubble diagram is quantified, and shown to be relatively small, thanks to the cosmological constant. When applied to current supernova data, the associated corrections tend to improve the agreement between the cosmological parameters inferred from the Hubble diagram and from the cosmic microwave background. This is a hint that the effect of small-scale structures on light propagation may become non-negligible in the era of precision cosmology. This motivated the development of a new theoretical framework, based on stochastic processes, which aims at describing small-scale lensing with a better accuracy. Regarding the isotropy side of the cosmological principle, this dissertation addresses, on the one hand, the potential effect of a large-scale anisotropy on light propagation, by solving the equations of geometric optics in the Bianchi I spacetime. On the other hand, possible sources of such an anisotropy, namely scalar-vector models for inflation or dark energy, are analysed.

Henri-Alexandre Junod was a missionary and a prolific student and writer, whose interests also included the natural sciences and anthropology. In the last two decades he has increasingly come under the spotlight of scholarly studies as a worthy point of reference for his era and a significant individual. This study approaches Junod’s life and work from a biographical perspective, attempting to identify aspects of his work, in particular his fiction, that have not been studied and therefore to shed new light on him. This study begins by considering the nature of biography, its features and problems, and missionary biography in particular. It then examines the literature available on Junod in order to establish the prevailing view of him and his work. This historiographical overview of Junod is then weighed against the available sources on Junod in order to determine whether any areas of study have been overlooked. From the examination of the sources, Junod’s only novel, Zidji: étude de mœurs sud-africaines , is highlighted as one which has never been studied in the literature on Junod. In this novel Junod attempts to give a complete picture of South Africa at the beginning of the twentieth century by telling the story of a black convert’s experiences of tribal life, the mission station and white society. This study examines his use of fiction in presenting this picture and also considers whether this novel adds insight to the understanding of Junod himself, in light of what has already been written about him. Thus, this study aims at contributing to a more complete picture of Junod by unlocking his perspective as it is shown in his novel. / Dissertation (MA (History))--University of Pretoria, 2005. / Historical and Heritage Studies / unrestricted

This research examines the gap between the socio-political and economic reality of Palestine, under Israeli Occupation, and the perceptions, assumptions and limitations of small aid donors like Switzerland in a colonial context. It looks at how global and Swiss aid is formulated and dispensed to fragile ‘non-states’ like Palestine. My thesis found that aid in general is ineffective, with Swiss aid in particular being modest, lacking robustness and failing to respond to the colonial context that prevents Palestine from profiting the most from international aid. In addition, Swiss aid is afflicted by many shortcomings that have been identified by contemporary research: a large part of aid is tied; consultations with local partners are limited, excluding, by and large, civil society; and time constraints are such that current programs are generally designed on a relatively short-term basis.