The coastal, indigenous communities around Alaska have subsisted on marine animals for generations, often focusing on large apex predators such as seals, sea lions, and whales. Three species of pinnipeds (harbor seal, Steller sea lion, northern fur seal) and the northern sea otter have all undergone significant population declines since the 1970s, some regions more than others. Archived vibrissae (whiskers) and body tissues from these four species were available from the Bering Sea and throughout the Gulf of Alaska from the 1990s and early 2000s. Tissues from these species are exceedingly difficult to obtain; thus, the archived tissues provided a finite and irreplaceable resource of data. Analysis of these archived tissues indicates which species, tissues, and gender bioaccumulate metals more readily. In this study twelve heavy metals (arsenic, cadmium, chromium, cobalt, copper, lead, manganese, mercury, nickel, selenium, vanadium, zinc) were analyzed in vibrissae from the four select species, and in body tissues from harbor seals and Steller sea lions. The samples were collected from three regions (southeastern, southcentral, and southwestern Alaska) during the 1990s through early 2000s. Significant differences of heavy metal concentrations in vibrissae were detected among elements (p2(110) = 454.81, p2(66) = 310.88, p

Carnivore are undoubtedly among the most threatened of the mammal species in Africa because of the low density at which they occur and their large home range requirements that do not match with human propensity to develop and alter wildlife habitat. However, the degree of threat is unevenly distributed within the continent, with western and central African carnivores being the most threatened and the least studied. I estimated population size, density, and proportion of area occupied in relation to environmental factors of one medium-size (serval – Leptailurus serval) and two large carnivores (lion – Panthera leo and leopard – P. pardus) in the Niokolo Koba National Park, Senegal, West Africa, using remote camera surveys and both traditional (CR), spatially explicit capture-recapture (SECR) techniques for servals and leopards, and non-spatial (MR) and spatial mark resight (SMR) methods for lions. Lions selected optimal sites with both high tree density and prey activity; leopards occupied areas with high tree density but with less prey activity; and servals selected habitats with more dense canopy cover where leopards were absent. The presence of lions was favorable to serval presence, as we presume leopards avoid lions, although we did not have strong evidence to support it. Moreover, the half mean maximum distance moved (½ MMDM) method under CR methods appeared to overestimate leopard and serval density while full MMDM estimates were close to SECR methods density estimates. For lions, both ½ MMDM and full MMDM methods in MR framework overestimated density whereas the SMR method resulted in more reasonable estimates, especially in light of previous assessments of lion densities in West Africa.. These results are of high importance for conservation and management purposes of the imperiled Niokolo Koba carnivore community. / Master of Science

The reintroduction of lions, cheetahs and African wild dogs to Kwandwe Private Game Reserve in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa created the opportunity to study the biology and behaviour of these large carnivores in an enclosed system. The research focused on space utilisation and feeding ecology of the predators, using standard observational methods. Changes in the structure of the carnivore guild, and changes in the prey base that occurred during the study were used as natural experiments to examine factors affecting space use and diet. In general, the diets of the predators were similar to previous studies and prey abundance was more important than prey species size in determining prey selection. Changes in the abundance of certain prey species was matched by a dietary switch in lions from kudu to warthog and an increase in the proportion of springbok kills by the cheetahs. There was no significant difference in the proportions of prey species detected by ad hoc or continuous observations. Core areas occupied by the predators were significantly smaller than home ranges except when females were denning. Home ranges overlapped both within and between species, but there was very little overlap of core areas. An increase in the number of lion prides in the area during the study resulted in an increase in overlap of home ranges of lions and cheetahs, but did not result in a change in home range size. Space use by female cheetahs with cubs increased as the cubs grew older. The use of thicket vegetation by cheetahs decreased with an increase in the number of lion prides. Minimum Daily Energy Expenditure, energy intake and net benefit were calculated for the predators using data from continuous observations. All predators exhibited a large net benefit and the net benefit for single female cheetahs was greater than for the members of the coalition. Net benefit for the alpha pair of African wild dogs was lower than that of the pack.

De par sa position, le Golfe du Lion est un site idéal pour l’investigation des changements paléo-environnementaux et des processus affectant le dépôt sédimentaire. Les travaux antérieurs ont permis de mettre en évidence les impacts de la variabilité climatique et glacioeustatique sur l’organisation stratigraphique de la marge, mais également sur les exports terrestres de matière organique.L’étude isotopique du carbone organique et de l’azote de la matière organique dans les sédiments du forage PRGL1-4 nous a permis de mettre en évidence de forts exports fluviaux lors des interstades survenus au cours des 200 000 derniers milles ans. La mise en regard de cette découverte avec les enregistrements paléo-climatologiques terrestre et marin disponibles dans la région indique que ces forts exports fluviaux résultent d’une augmentation des précipitations le long de la bordure Nord Méditerranéenne. Grâce à la position dePRGL1-4, nous proposons que ces pluies soient le résultat d’une augmentation du passage de dépressions Nord Atlantique dans le bassin Ouest Méditerranéen.Une caractérisation des isotopes du soufre préservés dans la pyrite sédimentaire a été réalisée. Les résultats obtenus ont permis de mettre en évidence une variation isotopique insoupçonnée, l’une des plus grandes observées de nos jours, dont la cyclicité semble indiquer un fort contrôle climatique. Nous proposons deux mécanismes influençant le fractionnement isotopique: une modulation de l’activité bactérienne par le climat, et/ou (ii) une modulation locale liée la nature des sédiments impliqués dans la formation des pyrites en lien avec les variations eustatiques. / By its position, the Gulf of Lion is an ideal location for investigation of past ecological changes and processes affecting the sedimentary deposition. Previous work has highlighted the impacts of climatic and glacio-eustatic changes on the GoL stratigraphic organization, but also on terrestrial exports of organic matter.This isotopic study based on the organic carbon and nitrogen preserved in PRGL1-4 sediments highlights important rivers runoff during warm periods of the last 200 000 years.Regional intercomparison with terrestrial and marine records indicates that these river exports resulting from an increase of precipitation over the North Mediterranean borderland.Using PRGL1-4 location, out of Mediterranean cyclogenetic area, we suggest that these pluvial events occurred in response to enhance passage of North Atlantic atmospheric perturbation into the Western Mediterranean basin.Pyrite sulfur isotopes investigations over the last 500 kyr have also been done. The stratigraphic variations (up to 76‰) in the isotopic data reported here are among the largest ever observed in pyrite, and are in phase with glacial-interglacial sea level. These results suggest that there exist important but previously overlooked depositional controls on sedimentary sulfur isotope records. Two different mechanisms influencing the isotopic fractionation can explain the observed dataset: a climatic modulation of the bacterial activity, and / or (ii) a local sedimentary modulation involve during early diagenetic formation of pyrite in relation with the eustatic variations.

Muscle samples from 105 marine mammals stranded along the Oregon-Washington coasts (2002-2009) were tested for levels of total mercury by Cold Vapor Atomic Fluorescence Spectrometry. The total mercury present is predominantly in the form of highly toxic methylmercury. After normalizing muscle tissue to 75% water weight, due to variance in water content, Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus) and northern elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris) exhibited the highest mean concentrations of total mercury followed by harbor seals (Phoca vitulina), harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena), and California sea lions (Zalophus californianus); 0.34 ± 0.278, 0.34 ± 0.485, 0.21 ± 0.216, 0.17 ± 0.169 and 0.15 ± 0.126 mg/kg normalized weight, respectively. Mean normalized values demonstrated limited muscle methylmercury accumulation in these species in the Pacific Northwest. Normalizing muscle mercury concentrations eliminated variability from desiccation, and allowed for a clearer indication of the amount of mercury the animal accumulated before stranding. However, actual wet weight concentrations in some of the stranded carcasses were high enough to pose a risk to scavengers.

在這個研究中，我們嘗試將節奏的要素（速度、誇張度與時間調配）參數化，以產生能控制特定風格之人物角色的動畫。角色動作風格化的生成及控制是藉由一個層級式的動畫控制系統RhyCAP (Rhythmic Character Animation Playacting system), 透過一個節奏動作控制（Rhythmic Motion Control, RMC) 的方法來實現。RMC是基於傳統動畫的原則，設計參數化的動作指令，來產生生動並具有說服力的角色動作。此外，RMC也提供了運動行為的模型來控制角色動畫的演出。藉由RhyCAP系統所提供的高階控制介面，即使是沒有經過專業傳統動畫技巧訓練的使用者，也能夠創作出戲劇性的中國舞獅動畫。 / In this research, we attempt to parameterize the rhythmic factors (tempo, exaggeration and timing) into the generation of controllable stylistic character animation. The stylized character motions are generated by a hierarchical animation control system, RhyCAP (Rhythmic Character Animation Playacting system) and realized through an RMC (Rhythmic Motion Control) scheme. The RMC scheme can generate convincible and expressive character motions from versatile action commands with the rhythmic parameters defined according to the principles of traditional animation. Besides, RMC also provide controllable behavior models to enact the characters. By using the high-level control interface of the RhyCAP system, the user is able to create a dramatic Chinese Lion Dance animation intuitively even though he may not be professionally trained with traditional animation skills.

L'objectif de ce travail est d'étudier les apports atmosphériques de Pb à partir d'enregistrements environnementaux de Méditerranée occidentale. Le calcul des inventaires de Pb anthropique de plusieurs milieux de dépôts et la reconstruction temporelle des apports obtenus par un couplage du 210Pb et des isotopes stables du Pb est le moyen de valider ou de remettre en question l'enregistrement sédimentaire. Le sédiment de la pente continentale du Golfe du Lion révèle un inventaire moyen de Pb anthropique de 110!±!7!mg.cm-2 similaire à l'inventaire atmosphérique estimé en Camargue, soit 99!µg.cm-2. La reconstitution des apports de Pb anthropique dans ces mêmes sédiment obtenue par une modélisation prenant en compte la diffusion, rejoint les émissions anthropiques régionales au cours du dernier siècle dans la zone Ferrand (1996). Le sédiment de pente continentale est donc un intégrateur efficace et fidèle du signal de pollution atmosphérique, aussi bien du point de vue quantitatif mais aussi qualitatif. En mer d'Alboran, zone particulière de par sa situation géographique, sa situation climatique, sa situation météorologique, et son contexte hydrologique, l'inventaire sédimentaire moyen de Pb anthropique est de 153!±!47!µg.cm-2, soit 1,5 fois supérieur à celui du Golfe du Lion. L'étude des retombées atmosphériques actuelles, de particules sédimentaires de la colonne d'eau et de sédiments profonds des bassins Est et Ouest de la mer d'Alboran permet de montrer la continuité du signal isotopique entre ces trois compartiments et de définir les sédiments profonds comme susceptible de restituer le signal atmosphérique sur une plus ou moins longue période de temps.

This paper deals with testing the method Reflectance Transformation Imaging (RTI) on the copy of the Piraeus-lion in Historic Museum in Stockholm. The purpose is to find out if it is possible to gather more information about the runic inscriptions. RTI is a method that records the surface normal of individual pixels in a digital photograph by analyzing the impact of light coming from different angles of entrance. RTI produces sort of a 3D-image of the object. There will be an overview of earlier interpretations of the runic scripts written on the lion as well as an overview of Varangians in the southeast. After examination of the lion with RTI, has a conclusion been made that the method should be performed again on similar items, and on the copy of the Piraeus-lion to evaluate its full potential.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:29:49Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2011-02-25Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T19:59:47Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 marques_mc_me_sjrp.pdf: 878935 bytes, checksum: 764ef3d1dbc56457288c4d8d81bd3b78 (MD5) / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / Este trabalho propõe-se a rediscutir o conceito corrente de conto de fadas, tal como proposto por autores como Jolles (1976) e Propp (1983), a partir de um contraponto dessas teorias com as formulações de J. R. R. Tolkien em seu ensaio “Sobre histórias de fadas” (2006). Partindo dessa revisão, pretende-se demonstrar como As crônicas de Nárnia, de C. S. Lewis, pode ser lida como o que Tolkien denomina “história de fadas”, pois a presença da oposição entre o “mundo real”, com tempo e espaço histórico bem definidos, e o mundo maravilhoso ou “outro mundo” parece ser um fator decisivo para diferenciar um conto de fadas de uma história de fadas / This research proposes to revisit the current concept of fairy tale as proposed by authors such as Jolles (1976) and Propp (1983), counterpointing those theories with the formulations of J.R.R. Tolkien in his essay “On Fairy-Stories” (2006). The aim is to demonstrate how The Chronicles of Narnia, by C. S. Lewis, can be read as a fairy story according to Tolkien, since the presence of an opposition between the real world, with well defined time and historical space, and the wonderful world or other world seems to be a decisive factor to differentiate a fairy tale from a fairy story

The main focus of this master thesis is to encourage the development of sociable relations in junior level pupils towards schoolmates and other children. This intention also involves support of positive relation towards oneself and the environment. The teoretical section of the tesis defines basic terms and gives characteristics of juior school age with consideration to development of child´s drawing technique and the impact of media to its personality. The tesis furthermore deals with culture and aestetic taste, which is an integral part of upbringing and education, and it also involves treatise on using of fine arts on the field of education, benefits of visual creation and its potential in the sphere of comunication. The practical section presents a graphic project called ``Let´s be friends``, which is based upon cinematization of the book written by C. S. Lewis ``The Lion, the witch and the wardrobe`` (directed by Andrew Adamson USA, 2005). Its purpose is to draw children towards deliberation about friendship and revealing the secret of how this relationship works. The project is to give the children posibility to enter the storyline, perform it, which is meant for supporting as well as developing their creativity and imagination. In the conclusion, there is a reflexion caried out by the means of visual creation activity.