In Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom, explosions accounted for 81% of all injuries; this is a higher casualty percentage than in any previous wars. Blast wave overpressure has recently been associated with varying levels of traumatic brain injury in soldiers exposed to blast loading. Presently, the injury mechanism behind primary blast brain injury is not well understood due to the complex interactions between the blast wave and the human body. Despite these limitations in the understanding of head injury thresholds, head kinematics are often used to predict the overall potential for head injury. The purpose of this study was to investigate head kinematics, and predict injury from a range of simulated blast loads at varying standoff distances and differing heights of bursts. The validated Generator of body data multi-body human surrogate model allows for numerical kinematic data simulation in explicit finite element method fluid structure interaction blast modeling. Two finite element methods were investigated to simulate blast interaction with humans, an enhanced blast uncoupled method, and an Arbitrary Lagrangian Eularian fully coupled method. The enhanced blast method defines an air blast function through the application of a blast pressure wave, including ground reflections, based on the explosives relative location to a target; the pressures curves are based on the Convention Weapons databases. LBE model is efficient for parametric numerical studies of blast interaction where the target response is the only necessary result. The ALE model, unlike classical Lagrangian methods, has a fixed finite element mesh that allows material to flow through it; this enables simulation of large deformation problems such as blast in an air medium and its subsequent interaction with structures. The ALE model should be used when research into a specific blast scenario is of interest, since this method is more computationally expensive. The ALE method can evaluate a blast scenario in more detail including: explosive detonation, blast wave development and propagation, near-field fireball effects, blast wave reflection, as well as 3D blast wave interaction, reflection and refraction with a target. Both approaches were validated against experimental blast tests performed by Defense Research and Development Valcartier and ConWep databases for peak pressure, arrival time, impulse, and curve shape. The models were in good agreement with one another and follow the experimental data trend showing an exponential reduction in peak acceleration with increasing standoff distance until the Mach stem effect reached head height. The Mach stem phenomenon is a shock front formed by the merging of the incident and reflected shock waves; it increases the applied peak pressure and duration of a blast wave thus expanding the potential head injury zone surrounding a raised explosive. The enhanced blast model was in good agreement with experimental data in the near-field, and mid-field; however, overestimated the peak acceleration, and head injury criteria values in the far-field due to an over predicted pressure impulse force. The ALE model also over predicted the response based on the head injury criteria at an increased standoff distance due to smearing of the blast wave over several finite elements leading to an increased duration loading. According to the Abbreviated Injury Scale, the models predicted a maximal level 6 injury for all explosive sizes in the near-field, with a rapid acceleration of the head over approximately 1 ms. There is a drastic exponential reduction in the insult force and potential injury received with increasing standoff distance outside of the near-field region of an explosive charge.

Le Vietnam du Doi Moi poursuit sa libéralisation économique tout en consolidant le système politique hérité du marxisme-léninisme. Ce paradoxe influence considérablement son processus d'intégration économique internationale et se manifeste particulièrement dans le commerce des services. La manière dans laquelle le Vietnam reconnaît le principe de non-discrimination via les traités bilatéraux, plurilatéraux et multilatéraux, tant sous l'angle du commerce des services que sous l'angle de l'investissement, le prouve. Par ailleurs, dans le souci d'accélérer le développement économique, d'importantes réformes relatives au droit des affaires ont supprimé des discriminations substantielles entre les opérateurs économiques. Cependant, en raison de l'insuffisance de l'adapatation structurelle, la mise en oeuvre du principe de non-discrimination pose toujours de nombreuses difficultés. / Vietnam of Doi Moi pursues economic liberalization while strengthening the political system initiated from Marxism-Leninism. This paradox significantly influences its international economic integration process and manifests itself especially in the domain of trade in services. This is demonstrated by the manner in which Vietnam recognizes the principle of non-discrimination, through bilateral, plurilateral and multilateral agreements, in trade in services as well as in investements. Besides, in order to accelerate economic development, important reforms on business law have removed substancial discriminations between economic operators. However, the insufficient ajustement on structural matters still poses many problems for the implementation of the principle of non-discrimonation.

No description available.

This thesis examines how military members and veterans with Operational Stress Injuries are treated by Canadian justice systems. It suggests a correlation between mental injuries sustained on operations by military personnel and propensities for military and societal misconduct. By comparing civilian and military processes with American justice counterparts, a plan to improve the existing Canadian legal landscape is proposed. Using an analysis of the underlying philosophy and purpose of military justice, a problem solving diversionary court is recommended, along with legislative and policy amendments. The use of a consent-based “Treatment Standing Court Martial” would place military justice officials parallel to civilian justice alternative measures programs, and in a better position to break the cycle of recidivism among veterans by addressing root causes. Education to reduce stigma along with military-civilian partnerships are also advocated to enhance the detection of mental illness and to foster early treatment for military personnel and veterans. The overall goals of the work include: reducing recidivism, improving operational efficiency and taking care of military members, veterans and their families.

The aim of this project has been to investigate whether there are correlations to be found between gut microbes and serum metabolites, which could be involved in the development of epilepsy. To do so, metabolomics data containing metabolites and metagenomics data containing bacteria have been integrated and used in a pipeline utilizing the software package DIABLO in R Studio. DIABLO stands for Data Integration Analysis for Biomarker discovery using Latent cOmponents and utilizes multi-block pls-da to integrate multiple omics data sets to find potential biomarkers. The results in this project are mainly divided into two groups, the first group being from taking samples at an early time point, where subjects have not yet developed symptoms of epilepsy and the second group being from taking samples at a late time point, where the subjects have developed epilepsy. To find biomarkers in the data used for the integration, two subgroups are of highest interest, namely subgroup PTE, which is the group that develops epilepsy symptoms after an induced trauma to the brain, as well as subgroup TBI which do not develop epilepsy symptoms after an induced trauma to the brain. Results from the early time point suggests that bacteria such as those from Phelethenecus, Christenselellales, Ventrimonas, Ruminococcaceae and Acetatifactor, as well as metabolites such as LPC 17:0, Indole and Indole-3-carboxyaldehyde might be of interest in finding biomarkers previous to the development of epilepsy after induced brain trauma.  Results from the late time point suggests that bacteria such as those from Muribaculaceae and Avidehalobacter, as well as metabolites such as Dioctyl sulfosuccinate, Canrenone, LPC 18:0, Uric acid, Arjunolic acid and Pseudouridine might be of interest in finding underlying mechanisms behind the existing condition of epilepsy. The hope is that findings in this paper might aid in future development of knowledge behind this disease as well as its underlying mechanisms.