Advances in technology continuously reshape habits, behaviours and interactions at individual, organisational and societal levels. Information and Communication technology (ICT) is pervasive, and is the bearer of crucial information, analysis and responses to the recipient. It assists in processes such as understanding phenomena and taking appropriate action. It also provides communication means, platforms and tools to interact with one another. In the United Kingdom’s (UK) Energy industry, smart meters are currently being deployed by energy suppliers to their customers. These are presented as a revolutionary device that supports a more efficient energy use at home and/or in the workplace, and helps customers save on their energy bill and reduce carbon footprint. Using interpretivist phenomenological Human-centred qualitative research, The thesis work explores the impact of using smart meter devices, as perceived by UK customers, in helping to monitor, use and manage energy consumption at home. Also, the study looks into alternative technology and customers’ expectations in the context of energy efficiency. And finally, the principles of a design is presented to respond to customers demands and desires. Passive participant observation, Future workshop and inspiration cards session are the methods and techniques applied in this research to collect  data. The findings constitute good grounds for individual consumers to be aware of the opportunities made available by alternative technology. At organisational level it is a basis for energy suppliers to change their behaviour towards a changing demand and adapt by switching their core business to supplying Information and analysis as well as energy efficiency management solutions. At societal level government bodies and regulating agencies can tackle sustainability and green energy issues by controlling the profit driven character of privatised energy companies and responding to real market demand as perceived by consumers. Emerging technologies present opportunities that have the capabilities of breaking the status quo of energy supply industry in the UK as well as the rest of world. The value of this research is to show customers’ perceived reality and expectations, as well as opportunities to change the way energy is supplied and consumed.

The thesis topic: Mapping professional path of chemistry-teacher training graduates at the Faculty of Education Abstract: This thesis is analysing current carreers of former chemistry students (absolvents) at the Charles University of Prague, Faculty of Education. The theoretical part is focused on topics such as pedagogic proffesion, pedagogic research, research methods and briefly also to study "Absolvents of the Charles University". The practical part constitutes the research itself. There were 78 graduates of the faculty asked for completion of a questionnaire that was created. The evaluation was performed on the basis of gathered data. After comparing with other, but very similar researches, it was found that research results are almost similar and generally corresponds with current trends. The aim of this study was to look up and get in touch with as many as possible faculty graduates and learn more about their careers. For example, if it was hard to find the corresponding employment in education sphere after their graduation, whether they even teach or how - after practical experience - do they contemplate the teaching profession. Keywords: teaching profession, the usage of graduates, career, chemistry teachers, Charles University in Prague: Faculty of Education, pedagogic research, questionnaire,...

With the implementation of more and more stringent measures to prevent money laundering, criminals are resorting to the expertise of lawyers for assistance in the formulation of increasingly complex money laundering schemes. This expertise is provided both wittingly and unwittingly. The purpose of this research was to consider whether the South African anti-money laundering legislation places suspicious transaction reporting obligations, which are in line with and meet international directives, conventions and best practice frameworks, on attorneys. The study entails a consideration of the suspicious transaction reporting obligations of lawyers introduced by the Financial Action Task Force, the European Union, the United Kingdom and South Africa and provides an understanding of the concept of money laundering, the money laundering process and the areas in which lawyers are vulnerable to money laundering. The research found that the suspicious transaction reporting responsibilities of attorneys in terms of South African anti-money laundering legislation are not in line with international frameworks and best practice. / Dissertation (MPhil)--University of Pretoria, 2014. / tm2015 / Auditing / MPhil / Unrestricted

Criminals make use of accountants to assist them, knowingly or unknowingly, with complex money laundering schemes. The nature of the accounting profession places accountants in an ideal position to identify possibly money laundering activities. The purpose of this research is to consider whether the reporting obligations of South African accountants in terms of section 29 of the Financial Intelligence Centre Act, No 38 of 2001, as amended, corresponds sufficiently with the services they provide so as to constitute an effective anti-money laundering measure. In order to evaluate the relevance of section 29, the reporting requirements of accountants practising in South Africa are compared with those of the European Union and the United Kingdom, as well as the requirements of the Financial Action Task Force. The research study will also analyse the money laundering process and the nature of the accounting profession and consider some of the methods used to perpetrate money laundering applicable to accountants. The research found that accountants in South Africa have a duty to report suspicious transactions only when they are party to such transactions or when they are going either to receive the proceeds of crime or be used for money laundering purposes. Accordingly, in view of the fact that accountants are more likely to be in a position to observe money laundering than to be party to such a transaction, the requirements of section 29 of the Financial Intelligence Centre Act, No 38 of 2001, as amended, are not effective when applied to accountants. Copyright / Dissertation (MPhil)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Accounting / unrestricted

- 62 - 8. SUMMARY The thesis deals with the television policy of the Labour Parry, 1992-1997. The topic works as a framework for interpretation of Norman Fairclough's concepts, applying his transdisciplinary approach and Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA). Within the framework, I answer simple questions such as whether discourse that had reached the status of policy can have real economic impact (in the case of Campaign for Press and Broadcasting not) or where the global discourse meets the local (issues of cross media ownership and new technologies). In my quest to better understand the relationship between social change and discourse, I follow the history of deregulation of the broadcasting duopoly, the way of the Labour Party towards deregulation and in the light of this information analyse three different texts and shortly follow up on coherence in the 1992 and 1997 Labour and Conservative manifestos. To conclude, I appreciate the wide academic freedom that discourse and its interconnectivity provides. As discourses can influence society, a free society should understand and participate in its discourses. In Labour Party television policy, the participation was certainly not complete.

The accession of Turkey to the EU has become one of the major unresolved issues of European integration and leads directly into bigger debates about the underpinnings and purpose of the EU. Should Turkey be a Member State with full rights or be connected to the through a yet undefined special relationship? That is the kind of question many are asking nowadays. Every Member State of the European Union has a different vision of Europe, with different views of how the Union should be defined and on what foundations it should be based. This work explores the relationship between the concept of Europe held by a country's political elite, through analysing its discourse, and the country's position towards Turkish EU membership. Three cases are presented: France, Germany and the United Kingdom.

Mgr. Ivana Příbramská: Informační systémy ve vysokém školství s důrazem na identifikaci uživatelů, informačních potřeb a jejich uspokojování (dizertační práce) Abstract Focus of this thesis is on users in tertiary education and on the extent, to which their information needs are met by information systems and resources provided by both higher education institutions and other organizations. Second chapter sets up a theoretical framework, summarizing research in the field of the information seeking and information seeking behavior, models of information seeking, information needs and their satisfaction. Third chapter describes higher education area and its role in information provision to the users (coming from both within and outside the area); all users within this area are classified and their information needs and sources for satisfaction of these needs are listed. Fourth chapter is concerned with information systems in higher education in Czech Republic including classifications used within this field, national systems collecting data from higher education institutions and short description of three local information systems. Final chapter describes two examples of implementation process and further development of two particular information systems used at the Charles University in Prague and on the...

(in English) The topic of the diploma thesis is to compare the WebArchiv with selected foreign Web Archives, which are responsible for preserving the national cultural heritage. The introduction briefly explains the history of Web Archives and typology of harvesting. Next parts deal with the history, legal aspects of archiving, selected types of harvesting, Web resources, systems, accessing and evaluation the Czech (WebArchiv), Australian (Pandora) and British archive (United Kingdom Web Archive). The text continues with an evaluation of the selected archives that mentions strong and weak properties and possible solutions. In conclusion, outlines the problematic aspects of archiving, which must be addressed in the future. [Author's abstract]

Euroscepticism is considered as a stream of thoughts whch is typical of the EU distrust or of the European integration and its goals as such. The most common objections to joining the integration proces are loss of national sovereignty, not paying enough attention to national interests or too strict policy unification that does not allow for national particularities. This master thesis will focus on euroscepticism as a concept, il will analyze its ideological roots and the most frequent arguments in favour of this concept. Furthermore, it will analyze various classifications of euroscepticism as well as its potential to be called a new cleavage or even ideology as I suggest that there is no widely-accepted definition. Great Britain - a representative of traditionally very sceptical approach towards European integration project has been chosen as a model case. In this case study firstly, the development of potential eurosceptical thinking within the Conservative Party and the Labour Party will be explored. More importantly, it will concentrate on the (in)consistency of their European policies in time, analysis of their attitudes in the 21st century and finally it will try to derive the future development of their possible eurosceptical opinions from their current manifestos and public speeches. The...

In the UK, the unprecedented cuts to local budgets, implemented by the national governments from 2010 to the present day, have pushed local authorities to reconsider their scope, their role and their action. The ever decreasing budgets have de facto transformed local councils from service providers to territorial entrepreneurs, as the pressing pursuit of revenues has placed the economic profit at the core of the local policy-making. Urban planning plays a central role in this shift in mindset. The British planning system has been remodelled so to facilitate the implementation of development processes, as these grant revenues from planning obligations, uplifts in land values and higher income from taxes. The reform of the planning system has however conceded free rein to developers, especially through the introduction of the Development Viability Appraisal, a document which they use to reduce the provision of affordable housing, in favour of luxury housing tenures. Therefore, in London the mechanisms that rule the territorial transformations exacerbate the existing housing crisis and force local communities to face displacement. Austerity has thus initiated a cascade-effect whose negative externalities are tangible at the very local level. The emerged topics find their concretization in the description of the Heygate Estate regeneration.