The purpose of this thesis is to establish what specific forces influence whether or not a democratic setback within one nation will diffuse to peripheral states. Past studies devoted to this topic have largely suggested that diffusion essentially functions like a contagious disease, where the likelihood of "infection" is primarily based upon the level of interaction between states. This thesis however proposes that the interaction of the signal generated from a democratic state's collapse and the receptiveness of neighboring nations to this signal ultimately determines when and where diffusion will occur. In order to test the validity of this thesis' claims, the level of democracy within the neighboring states of all failed democratic governments spanning the years 1842-2002 are examined during the first years following such system breakdowns within a large-N quantitative research design. Ultimately this study leads to the conclusion that the interaction of signals and receptivity play a major role in the diffusion of democratic setbacks.

In recent years, the giant squid processing industry in Peru exhibited a 59% increase in exports with respect to 2018. According to estimates, this industry generates approximately 30,900 jobs per year. However, some SMEs experience low productivity, such as the PECEPE company, due to plant downtime. This represents 26% of the available time, which translates into the loss of 1760 tons every year. The most constraining external factor the sector faces is uncertainty in resource availability caused by changing weather conditions and informal fishing activities. Although there is a large number of research studies on the fishing industry and resource extraction, literature on processing plant operations is scarce. Within this context, this study seeks to promote a high impact sector in Peru, as well as fostering processing plant competitiveness and productivity. Hence, to address these issues, the authors propose a maintenance management model under the TPM approach. As part of the results from model implementation, a 39% decrease was reported in plant downtime, while maintenance costs also decreased by 16%, which, in turn, increased machine availability and production by 784 tons per year.

Submitted by Silvana Teresinha Dornelles Studzinski (sstudzinski) on 2016-05-19T11:52:47Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Rafael Schilling Fuck_.pdf: 13674935 bytes, checksum: ec10e9cc80a07607a1481af73a8a919b (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-05-19T11:52:47Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Rafael Schilling Fuck_.pdf: 13674935 bytes, checksum: ec10e9cc80a07607a1481af73a8a919b (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-02-25 / CAPES - Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / PROEX - Programa de Excelência Acadêmica / Nessa Tese de Doutorado em Educação, apresenta-se uma investigação orientada pelo seguinte problema: como se constituem os processos cognitivos emergentes da experiência de programação de alunos-monitores? Sob a linha de pesquisa em Educação, Desenvolvimento e Tecnologias, a investigação tem como objetivo construir uma cartografia dos processos cognitivos de alunos, os quais emergem de suas experiências de programação. Esses alunos estavam participando de oficinas de Scratch, cujo objetivo era a produção de Objetos de Aprendizagem (OA) por meio desse ambiente de programação, para sua utilização por alunos de anos iniciais de escolas públicas. Os conceitos-ferramenta que operam nessa Tese, sustentados em Maturana, Varela e Kastrup, são acoplamentos estruturais tecnológicos, enação/invenção, recognição e breakdowns. De abordagem qualitativa de cunho descritivo, baseada em estudo de caso e inspirada no método cartográfico de pesquisa-intervenção, a investigação possibilitou a constituição de pistas acerca dos processos cognitivos emergentes das experiências de programação dos sujeitos. De modo geral, vislumbrou-se que essas experiências foram, predominantemente, recognitivas. Embora se tenham identificado algumas brechas inventivas, percebeu-se que elas não eram cultivadas, de tal modo que pudessem se tornar mais significativas e desencadear novos processos inventivos. Nesse sentido, compreendeu-se que são necessárias intervenções que promovam processos recorrentes de problematização, a fim de provocar “rachaduras” na cognição dos sujeitos, levando-os à invenção de si, do conhecimento e do mundo. / In this Doctoral Thesis in Education, we present a research guided by the following problem: how are the emerging cognitive processes of student-monitors programming experience? Under the line of research in Education, Development and Technology, the research aims to build a cartography of the cognitive processes of students, which emerge from their programming experiences. These students were participating in Scratch workshops, whose objectif was the production of Learning Objects through this programming environment for use by students in the early years of public schools. The concepts-tool that operate in this Thesis, supported in Maturana, Varela and Kastrup, are structural technological couplings, enaction / invention, recognition and breakdowns. This qualitative study of descriptive nature, based on case study and inspired by the cartographic method of intervention research, the research led to the invention of clues about the emerging cognitive processes of programming subject experiences. In general, we realized that these experiences were predominantly recognitives. Although we have identified some inventive loopholes, we realized that they were not grown, so they could become more significant and trigger new inventive processes. In this sense, we understand that interventions are needed to promote recurrent processes of problematization in order to cause breakdowns in the cognition of subjects, leading them to the invention of self, knowledge and the world.

In the planned linear accelerator called Compact Linear Collider, CLIC, electrons and positrons will be accelerated to velocities near the speed of light. A limiting factor in accelerating structures are vacuum breakdowns, which are electrical discharges from a surface as a result of a large electric field being applied. In the preparatory studies for the CLIC, Uppsala University in collaboration with The European Organization for Nuclear Research, CERN, is building a DC Spark system to analyze vacuum breakdowns. This system containing large planar electrodes will be cooled down all the way down to around 4 K in order to limit the rate of wich vacuum breakdowns happen. When cooling a system like this, which consists of different components made of different materials there is the question of how the system will be affected. The objective of this project is to investigate how the cooling will affect the stability in terms of stresses and to analyze the cool down time of the system. Another goal is to make a material recommendation for a few parts based on the results. This will be done by simulating the cooling in COMSOL Multiphysics, which is a program that uses finite element analysis to solve complex problems where different branches of physics interact. The conclusion is that the system will most likely be stable as it is and there is no need to redesign it. The choice of recommended material is alumina with the reason being it should cause the least stress and the smallest gap between the electrodes when the cooling is done. There was no big difference in the cool down time between the materials. Further studies and simulations on the system is also recommended since there are many factors not taken into consideration in this study.

Over the years, much attention has been given to the analysis of the pull type ordering system to reduce in-process inventory and to improve product quality. Kanban Control Systems are widely used to control the release of parts in multi-stage manufacturing systems operating under a pull mechanism. Considerable research has been done to study the individual manufacturing systems for multi stage and single product. However, not much research has been done to compare different pull control policies for multi product manufacturing systems. Most of the research done in multi-product system assumes that a kanban card is dedicated to a part type. The aim of this research is to compare the Kanban Control System (KCS), Generalized Kanban Control System (GKCS) and Extended Kanban Control System (EKCS) in the context of multi-product manufacturing systems where the kanban cards are either dedicated to a single part type or shared among the different part types. In this study, we analyze the performance of various control policies for a multi-product multi-stage manufacturing system. The manufacturing system considered in this research use a single-card kanban system, where the transportation of materials between the different work-centers is controlled by production kanbans. Demands that arrive to the system are satisfied from the finished goods inventory whenever possible and are backordered otherwise. Performance measures are number of backorders, average waiting time of backordered demand and average work in process. Our results show that Shared GKCS has lower number of backorders when the variability in the processing time is low, while Shared EKCS performs better when variability in the processing time is high. Trade off analysis was performed on average WIP and time to satisfy backorders. The Shared EKCS makes a better service-inventory compromise than traditional KCS. The Shared GKCS results in lower average waiting time to satisfy the backordered demand indicating responsiveness of this control system. The overall results indicate GKCS and EKCS with dedicated or shared kanbans outclass kanban control policy. The shared kanban-like control systems outperform dedicated control systems for all performance measures considered in this research.

No description available.

Bulk laser-induced breakdown and self-focusing in single samples of fused quartz and NaCl were examined using picosecond optical pulses at 1.0 ym and 0.5 ym. The results of three separate but related experiments are reported. First the nonlinear index of refraction, n2, of each of the test materials is measured near the respective damage thresholds of the samples. The values of 1*2 were determined by detecting beam distortions in the far field, transmitted laser beam profile caused by the irradiance dependent index of refraction. The experimental traces were compared to theoretical beam profiles generated by a nonlinear propagation code and n2 was extracted from the resulting fits.

No description available.

La complexité des marchés financiers et la recrudescence des crises particulièrement sévères contribuent à l'évolution et à la remise en cause de modèles économétriques dits standards dans l'explication et la prévision des dynamiques financières. L'alerte donnée conjointement par les responsables prudentiels et les chercheurs vise à encourager le développement de modèles plus complexes, non linéaires et largement inspirés d'autres disciplines. Nous soutenons dans cette thèse l'idée qu'une approche chaos-stochastique des chroniques financières est susceptible de conduire à de meilleurs résultats. La pertinence de cette association est évaluée pour le risque de marché dans deux cadres d'analyse distincts. Nous montrons tout l'intérêt d'une synthèse des modèles chaotiques et des spécifications GARCH avec ou sans changements de régimes markoviens (MRS) pour la modélisation et la prévision de la Value-at-Risk des indices boursiers de la zone euro. Il ressort de cette étude de meilleurs résultats des modèles chaos-stochastiques et dans le cas des spécifications MRS-GARCH, une meilleure adéquation du modèle chaotique de Lasota(1977) pour les indices de l'Europe du Sud, particulièrement plus volatiles que ceux de l'Europe du Nord pour lesquels nous recommandons le modèle de Mackey-Glass(1977). Cette combinaison permet, dans un cadre bivarié, de mieux appréhender les liens qui existent entre les différentes places boursières de la zone euro. Nous introduisons deux nouvelles spécifications qui intègrent les problématiques liées aux ruptures de corrélations : la première permet de distinguer, par une analyse en sous-périodes, les relations d'interdépendance par rapport aux phénomènes de contagion et la seconde propose, dans un cadre unifié, d'intégrer les ruptures de corrélations. Cette double analyse met en évidence le rôle moteur du couple d'indices franco-allemand, l'existence de deux sphères distinctes constituées d'une part par les indices de l'Europe du Nord et d'autre part par les pays de l'Europe du Sud et l'intensification de certaines relations entre indices suite à la crise des dettes souveraines. Nous constatons et insistons sur la pertinence d'un modèle chaotique en moyenne pour rendre compte d'une part de la volatilité attribuée, à tort, aux effets GARCH. / The complexity of financial markets and the resurgence of severe crises contribute to the skepticism and evolution of standard econometric models in the explanation and prediction of financial time series. The warning given jointly by prudential authorities and researchers aims to encourage the development of nonlinear and more complex models inspired by other disciplines. I argue in this thesis that a chaos-stochastic approach of financial dynamics is likely to lead to better results. The relevance of this association is evaluated for market risk in two distinct analytical frameworks. I show the improvements given by a synthesis of chaotic models and GARCH specifications with or without Markov Regime Switching (MRS) for modelling and predicting the Value-at-Risk of 7 mains index of Monetary and Economic Union. It appears, from this study, better results from chaos-stochastic models. In the case of the MRS-GARCH specifications, I find more adequacy of the chaotic model of Lasota (1977) for the indices of Southern Europe, which are especially more volatile than those of Northern Europe for which I recommend the model of Mackey-Glass (1977). This combination allows, in a bivariate framework, to provide information on the relationship between these different indices. I introduce two new specifications that integrate issues related to correlation breakdowns. The first distinguishes, by a sub-periods analysis, the relations of interdependence of contagious relationships. Meanwhile, the second provides, in a unified framework, an integration of correlations breakdowns. These two analyses imply It appears from this double analysis the leading role of the Franco-German duo, the existence of two distinct spheres formed in a part by the Northern European indices and in another part by countries of the Southern Europe, and the intensification of relations between some indices following the sovereign debt crisis. Finally, these results support the relevance of a chaotic model which may account for some volatilities that are, wrongly, attributed to GARCH effects.

Studiens syfte är att undersöka familjehemssekreterares syn på samarbetet inom det tredelade föräldraskapet bestående av socialtjänst, familjehem och biologiska föräldrar samt samarbetets påverkan på familjehemsplacerade barns anknytning. Studien undersöker även hur socialtjänsten hanterar sammanbrott i familjehemsvård. Med semistrukturerade intervjuer som metod fokuserar studien på fem familjehemssekreterares upplevelser då tidigare forskning saknar deras perspektiv. Resultatet visar att socialtjänsten inom det tredelade föräldraskapet brister i samverkan främst på grund av tid- och resursbegränsningar. Hög personalomsättning och bristande kompetens är vidare faktorer som nedmonterade det tredelade föräldraskapet. Socialtjänsten kunde på grund av detta inte ge det stöd som behövdes varpå familjehemmen fick ta ett större ansvar i det tredelade föräldraskapet, vilket ökade risken för sammanbrott. Det hade även negativa effekter på barns anknytning till både familjehemmet och till sina föräldrar. En bättre balans inom det tredelade föräldraskapet skulle därför kunna bidra till bättre förutsättningar för barn i familjehemsvård. / This study aims at investigating social workers’ view on the Swedish three-part parenthood, consisting of the social services, the foster home and the biological parents, and its effects on children's attachment. The study also explores how social services handle breakdowns in foster care. The main focus lies on the perspective of the social workers who are in charge of the contact and support of foster homes, due to the lack of this perspective in earlier research. The study follows a qualitative interview method, with a total of five interviews that took place both digitally and in person. Our findings show that the three-part parenthood lacked cooperation within the social services mainly because of time and resource issues. Furthermore, high staff turnovers and low competence were factors that dismantled the three-part parenthood. Because of this, the social workers could not give the support that was needed. As a consequence, the foster homes had to take a bigger responsibility, which increased the risk of breakdowns. It also brought a negative effect on children's attachment to both the foster home and to their biological parents. A better balance in the three-part parenthood could therefore facilitate a better outcome for children in foster care.