Introdução. A alimentação é considerada pela Organização Mundial da Saúde um dos principais fatores de risco modificáveis para doenças crônicas não transmissíveis, ressaltando a importância do entendimento dos hábitos alimentares e seus determinantes no atual cenário epidemiológico. Entretanto, pouco se sabe sobre as características nutricionais e as características dos usuários da alimentação fora do lar. Objetivo. Investigar a qualidade nutricional da alimentação fora do lar e sua relação com características sociais, demográficas e de estilo de vida. Materiais e métodos. Estudo transversal, de base populacional, por meio de inquérito domiciliar, com amostra de 232 adolescentes e 602 adultos e idosos. Foi aplicado questionário sobre hábitos de vida, condições sóciodemográficas, atividade física e inquérito alimentar, por meio do recordatório de 24h. As características das refeições realizadas fora do lar foram investigadas pelo uso do Índice de Qualidade da Refeição (IQR), com base nas recomendações da Organização Mundial da Saúde e Ministério da Saúde brasileiro. A associação entre alimentar-se fora do lar e a qualidade da dieta, verificada por meio do Índice de Qualidade da Dieta Revisado para a População Brasileira (IQD-R) foi investigada pelo uso de modelos de regressão linear múltiplo. A razão de prevalência de pessoas consumindo refeições fora do lar e sua associação com as características sociais, demográficas e de estilo de vida foi analisada através da regressão de Poisson com variância robusta. Resultados. Dentre os 834 entrevistados, 32 por cento relataram ter realizado ao menos uma das três principais refeições (café da manhã, almoço e jantar) fora de casa. Foram detectadas associações estatisticamente significantes entre consumir alimentos fora do lar e ter excesso de peso. Pôde-se observar a presença tanto de alimentos marcadores de uma dieta saudável, a exemplo do arroz e feijão, como de alimentos integrantes de uma dieta não saudável, como refrigerantes, salgados, sanduíches e pizzas. O escore médio do Índice de Qualidade da Refeição realizada fora do lar foi de 42,62 (IC 95 por cento : 36,17-49,07) pontos no café da manhã; 42,54 (IC 95 por cento : 37,7547,34) pontos no almoço e 42,92 (IC 95 por cento : 36,47-49,38) pontos no jantar. Almoçar fora de casa apresentou associação negativa (p<0.05) com a qualidade da dieta, independente do sexo, renda familiar per capita e estado nutricional. Conclusão. Os achados sugerem que alimentar-se fora de casa pode contribuir como fator de risco modificável para DCNT, apresentando maior teor de gorduras total e saturada. No entanto, a qualidade nutricional das refeições realizadas dentro de casa também precisa ser melhorada / Background. Diet is considered by the World Health Organization a major modifiable risk factors for chronic diseases, emphasizing the importance of understanding the feeding habits and their determinants in the current epidemiological scenario. However little is known about the nutritional characteristics and the characteristics of users of food away from home. O bjective. To investigate the nutritional quality of food away from home and their relationship to social, demographic and lifestyle. Methods. Crosssectional study, a population-based, through a household survey with a sample of 232 adolescents (12-19 years), 602 adults and elderly (20 years or more) of both sexes. Dietary intake was measured by application of 24hR by phone. The overall dietary quality was assessed by the Brazilian Healthy Eating Index Revised (B-HEIR) and the Meal Quality Index (MQI) was used to evaluate dietary quality of the main meals. The association between the B-HEIR and the MQI was assessed by linear regression analysis. The proportion of people that consumed meals away from home and its association with the social, demographic and lifestyle were analyzed by Poisson regression with robust variance. Results. Among the 834 respondents, 32 per cent had at least one meal away from home. The average energy consumption per meal away from home was 628 kcal (sd 101kcal), about 35 per cent of the average daily consumption reported in this population. Statistically significant associations were found between food consumption away from home and overweight. It was observed the presence of both food markers of a healthy diet, such as rice and beans as food components of a unhealthy diet as soft drinks, snacks, sandwiches and pizzas. The average MQI score of lunch consumed away from home was lower than lunch at home, with higher amounts of total and saturated fats. Have lunch away from home was associated with the MQI score. Conclusion. Our findings suggest that eating meals away from home can contribute as a modifiable risk factor for chronic diseases, with higher levels of total and saturated fat. However, the meals consumed at home also need improvement

Detta arbete berör filmmusik, och hur den i olika former kan uppfattas samspela med en filmscen. Mitt syfte var att undersöka på vilka sätt olika typer av filmmusik fungerar i samspel med en filmscen, och hur de kompletterar bilden. Detta genomfördes genom att jag komponerade tre olika musikstycken till en och samma filmscen och lät sedan en fokusgrupp om 6 personer diskutera kring dem. Jag fick en djupare insikt i klassisk orkestrering, arrangering och hur man på olika sätt kan förmedla känslor genom musik för att förhöja en filmupplevelse. En insikt jag fått av detta arbetet är att endast en typ av filmmusik kan te sig enformig och otillräcklig i vissa fall och att instrumentering spelar en större roll i känsloförmedlingen, än jag tidigare anat. Jag har fördjupat mina kunskaper inom filmmusik och arrangering avsevärt och har fått en större förståelse för hur man med musik kan berätta, utan att använda ord.

This thesis studies the development of the decision-making style at Thailand’s Siam City Cement Public Company Limited (SCCC). The research reviewed the literature, including parent and immediate disciplines. The parent discipline was divided into disciplines 1, 2 and 3. Discipline 1 covered the concept of decision-making and its process. It also assessed types of decisions and summarised the model of decision-making. Discipline 2 looked at organisational structure, decision-making and the locus of decision-making. Finally, discipline 3 focused on group decision-making, group consideration in decision-making and enhancing the group decision-making process. In the immediate discipline, the key elements that influence Thai’s decision-making styles were discussed. This encompassed Thai societal and cultural characteristics, Hierarchy, organisational characteristics and decision-making. Moreover, research gaps were also explored and the study then proposed four research propositions. The propositions included directing SCCC to develop an appropriate decision-making style based on the group decision-making strategy. The analysis undertaken was qualitative and employed a case study methodology. The data was collected in SCCC’s Bangkok office between May and September 2002. Data collection was carried out using the Triangulation method. This method employs multiple sources of evidence, including personal interviews, direct and participant observations, documentation and obtaining archival records. The findings confirmed that group decisionmaking should be adopted to enhance the effectiveness of decision-making and efficiency within the firm. Recommendations were also provided for improving practices at the individual, department and organisational level. Finally, contributions to the knowledge, research limitations and areas for further research were discussed.

Questionnaires were administered to 118 Secondary College students in the A.C.T. to obtain quantitative data about the students' self perception, about their friendship groups, their relationships with the other members of their family, their attitudes to their education and their employment experiences and expectations. The data also identified away from home students and at home students. The data obtained from these two student groups was analysed. The away from home group of students were then interviewed individually and qualitative data analysed for recurring themes and a profile of the away from home Year 12 student emerged. The away from home students in this A.C.T. study had been through periods of unstable accommodation, poverty, family distress, leaving school or changing schools and had made a conscious decision to complete their Year 12 Certificate to improve their employment opportunities. As a result of this study predictive indicators for an away from home student were generated. Following these findings an understanding of the specific issues and needs of away from home students can be encouraged among student welfare groups, parents and other educational/ welfare bodies. This in turn should assist the student achieve his or her educational outcomes and academic success.

Consumption of food away from home (FAFH) is widely believed to be a contributing factor to the current obesity crisis and other diet related problems in North America. At present, in Canada, a number of issues related to FAFH consumption such as the relationship between obesity and fast foods, trans-fats, sugar and sodium content of restaurant foods, and restaurant advertising for children are being widely discussed. In these discussions, it is apparent that the interrelationships between FAFH, nutrition and diet related diseases are complex. Therefore, there are significant gaps in our knowledge. In this study, a number of important research questions related to FAFH consumption were studied in order to provide a detailed understanding of FAFH purchase trends, nutrient demand trends, factors affecting these trends and to provide some idea of the possible effectiveness of proposed policy interventions in the area. In paper one of this study, a sample of Canadian FAFH purchases were analysed using a two stage demand model to examine the impact of industry advertising, households habit forming preferences and socio-demographic and economic variables. Given the unique method of restaurant categorization, results provide new and additional information of the impact of above variables in Canadian context. The second study examined the demand for selected nutrients in FAFH to understand factors affecting nutrient intake in FAFH foods focusing on chain restaurants. An innovative measure of nutrient content (nutrient density) was used in the analysis and study results provides interesting new information about nutrient consumption from chain restaurants in the FAFH market. The third study examined how some specific food industry changes in product formulations aimed at reducing trans-fatty acids (TFAs) could and have affected consumers overall diet quality and their demand for food away from home. This study provides some indications of effectiveness of the current trans-fat recommendations in Canada. In summary, this study is an empirical investigation of a number of questions related to Canadian FAFH consumption: What is the structure of the FAFH market in Canada? What are the households FAFH purchasing patterns? What is the impact of advertising and habit forming preferences and socio-economic and demographic factors on FAFH purchases? What are the nutrition profiles of the most popular menu items of chain restaurants? What are the factors affecting nutrient demand in FAFH foods? Would a specific food industry change in product formulation such as reducing TFAs have affect consumers overall diet quality and their demand for FAFH? In general, results from the three independent studies provide useful information to fill some of the gaps in our knowledge of FAFH consumption, especially on health and nutrition with implications for public policy. / Agricultural and Resource Economics

The role of water and volatiles in the solar system is of critical interest in planetary science. Evidence for the past action of water or direct observation of water on a planetary body can indicate the potential to harbor life and is critical to human exploration of the solar system. We study two very different remote sensing techniques that address the issue of identifying water-related processes on the surface of other planetary bodies, and in particular, Mars. The first technique, combined thermal infrared and visible imaging, has been used extensively on Mars for determining the thermal inertia of surface materials. In the second part of this dissertation, we develop a technique that combines remote thermophysical and visible data sets with ground-based field investigations for the identification of sedimentary features at the surfaces of alluvial fans. Several methods for remotely identifying sedimentary features will be explored using thermal and visible images. We combine results from pre-existing ground-based studies with thermal images and ground-based field investigations to develop a robust technique to be used on a variety of alluvial fans. In the third part, we characterize the remote thermophysical and visible properties of specific classes of sedimentary features on alluvial fans using the technique developed in part two. The second remote sensing technique, neutron spectroscopy, has been used on many planetary spacecraft missions for the identification of hydrogen on planetary surfaces. The Dynamic Albedo of Neutrons (DAN) instrument on the upcoming Mars Science Laboratory rover mission represents a new type of neutron detector for planetary spacecraft, with the neutron detectors mounted to a rover on the Martian surface (as opposed to in orbit around the planetary body) and neutron counts that are binned by time, energy, and location (as opposed to just by energy and location). In chapter four, we model expected neutron energies and arrival times for geologic settings where water has altered the chemistry of the near surface using available geochemical data from the Mars Exploration Rovers (MER). Particle transport models are used to determine the sensitivity of neutron detection techniques to the variations in hydrogen abundance, hydrogen layering and chemical composition measured by MER.

Consumer expenditure on food away from home in the United States has grown substantially in recent decades. Changes in the food service system, increased complexity of family structure, and the food policies made by government agencies have continued to influence the marketing, distribution, retailing, and demand for food products and the food industry. This study explores consumption behavior on food away from home (FAFH) and determines the differentiated impacts of economic and demographic variables on FAFH by type of meal and by type of facility among different household types. Each of the two systems of expenditures is estimated with two alternative econometric procedures to accommodate censoring in the dependent variables: the trivariate Tobit estimator and the multivariate sample selection estimator. Data for this study come from the 2008 and 2009 Consumer Expenditure Surveys, the most recent U.S. national household expenditure surveys conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Joint statistical significance of error correlations among equations justifies estimation of the sample selection systems. The opposite marginal effects on probabilities and expenditure levels of some variables highlight the advantage of the sample selection system over the Tobit system. Segmentation of the sample by household types is also justified with formal statistical tests. The empirical results indicate that the effects of demographic and socioeconomic factors on FAFH consumption vary by type of meal and by type of facility. Income, work hours, race, education, geographical region, and household composition are important factors. Food stamps have no impact on FAFH for married couples without children and single parenthood has conflicting effects on probabilities and conditional levels of expenditures.

Obesity is a rapidly growing public health threat as well as an economic problem in the United States. The recent changes in eating habits, especially the relative increase of food away from home (FAFH) consumption over the last three decades raised the possibility of causal linkage between obesity and FAFH. This study confirms the positive, significant association between the body mass index and FAFH consumption in adults, consistent with previous findings in the economic and nutrition literature. This work goes a step further, however. We demonstrate FAFH consumption at quick-service restaurants has a significantly larger effect on body mass index than FAFH consumption at full-service restaurants. Further disaggregation of FAFH by meal occasion reveals that lunch consumed away from home has the largest positive effect on body mass index compared to other meal occasions (breakfast, dinner and snacks). Survey data with missing observations or latent variables are not rare phenomena. The missing value imputation methods are combined into two groups, contingent upon the existence or absence of an underlying explicit statistical model. Explicit modeling methods include unconditional mean value imputation, conditional mean and regression imputation, stochastic regression imputation, and multiple imputation. The methods based on implicit modeling include hot deck and cold deck imputation. In the second essay, we review imputation methods commonly used in the agricultural economics literature. Our analysis revealed strong preference of researchers for the regression imputation method. We consider several alternative (regression, mean and median) single imputation methods to impute and to append prices of foods consumed at home (foods commercially purchased and prepared from ingredients) from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) dietary intake data. We also demonstrate the superiority of regression imputation method compared to the mean and median imputation methods for commercially prepared foods. For ingredient foods, the results are ambiguous with no imputation method clearly outperforming the others.

Pottery is a kind of craft which requires retentive training. The only way to achieve each technique is to practice in repetition till the skill has been absorbed into the hands and body of the practitioner. The most obvious problematic achievement in pottery skill is ‘wheel throwing’ technique. With the long history in straight forward training, one needs to free the mind and allow oneself be a ‘copy machine’ in order to learn the technique properly. The paradox of traditional practice of having mastered the skill, but could not break through, is one of typical obstruction to many crafters. ‘Flood’ as theme for investigation in clay was an attempt to set up a method in order to find the ‘breaking through’ in term of ‘thinking’ and ‘making’ for traditional pottery practitioner to be relevant in the pace of contemporary surrounding. The investigation was planned to de‐familiarize my perception over my tradition and practice, and it was an eye‐opening to how I positioned myself personally and professionally to the discipline, the society and the world.

Obesity is a rapidly growing public health threat as well as an economic problem in the United States. The recent changes in eating habits, especially the relative increase of food away from home (FAFH) consumption over the last three decades raised the possibility of causal linkage between obesity and FAFH. This study confirms the positive, significant association between the body mass index and FAFH consumption in adults, consistent with previous findings in the economic and nutrition literature. This work goes a step further, however. We demonstrate FAFH consumption at quick-service restaurants has a significantly larger effect on body mass index than FAFH consumption at full-service restaurants. Further disaggregation of FAFH by meal occasion reveals that lunch consumed away from home has the largest positive effect on body mass index compared to other meal occasions (breakfast, dinner and snacks). Survey data with missing observations or latent variables are not rare phenomena. The missing value imputation methods are combined into two groups, contingent upon the existence or absence of an underlying explicit statistical model. Explicit modeling methods include unconditional mean value imputation, conditional mean and regression imputation, stochastic regression imputation, and multiple imputation. The methods based on implicit modeling include hot deck and cold deck imputation. In the second essay, we review imputation methods commonly used in the agricultural economics literature. Our analysis revealed strong preference of researchers for the regression imputation method. We consider several alternative (regression, mean and median) single imputation methods to impute and to append prices of foods consumed at home (foods commercially purchased and prepared from ingredients) from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) dietary intake data. We also demonstrate the superiority of regression imputation method compared to the mean and median imputation methods for commercially prepared foods. For ingredient foods, the results are ambiguous with no imputation method clearly outperforming the others.