This thesis explores the teaching and learning of English for Medical Purposes (EMP) in a Syrian Arab university (Tishreen University). It investigates the inherent contradictions in the position of EMP in an Arab-medium university by drawing on the socio-political and economic factors shaping English language education policy in Syria. It also critiques “mainstream” ESP through examining the “purpose” in English for Medical Purposes. Rather than viewing learning as an end product, this study suggests that learning English is part of a dynamic process of learning to become a doctor in Syria and as part of constructing the 21st Century Syrian “doctor” identity. I draw on aspects of poststructuralism and complexity theory to take the analysis of English for Specific Purposes beyond issues of needs analysis, content, and materials development. ESP, from its outset, has been proposed for decades as a commodity that meets students’ linguistic and communicative needs. However important these concerns are for the development of the discipline, as I argue in this thesis, ESP seems to adopt a “mechanistic” approach by predetermining “needs” and “purposes” which fails to account for the complexity of human beings’ behaviours and responses in educational contexts. The deterministic conceptualisation of ESP places rigid boundaries between ESP and the reality of the medicine profession, therefore, fails to meet students’ needs which transcend boundaries of classroom in aspiration for recognition by the medical community worldwide. English for Medical Purposes, in this study, goes beyond “specific purposes” to account for the role of English as a foreign language in constructing doctor identity and in the process of becoming a doctor. Data in this qualitative research were collected through focus groups with students of medicine in Tishreen University, semi-structured interviews with medical tutors and management officials in the Faculty of Medicine and the Higher Institute of Languages, as well as ESP teachers. Policy documents were analysed, and field notes were taken in classroom and hospital observations. Based on the analysis of these sources, a deeper understanding of EMP at Tishreen University is reached through the lens of poststructuralism and complexity theory. Finally, this thesis ends by drawing an ESP/Applied Linguistics relationship among the implications the findings have for policy makers, teachers and medical students, alongside recommendations for future ESP research directions.

The results of a statistical study of hard x-ray solar flares are presented in this dissertation. Two methods of analysis were used, the Diffusion Entropy (DE) method coupled with an analysis of the data distributions and the Rescaled Range (R/S) Method, sometimes referred to as "Hurst's method". Chapter one provides an introduction to hard x-ray flares within the context of the solar environment and a summary of the statistical paradigms solar astronomers currently work under. Chapter two presents the theory behind the DE and R/S methods. Chapter three presents the results of the two analysis methodologies: most notably important evidence of the conflicting results of the R/S and DE methods, evidence of a Levy statistical signature for the underlying dynamics of the hard x-ray flaring process and a possible separate memory signature for the waiting times. In addition, the stationary and nonstationary characteristics of the waiting times and peak intensities, are revealed. Chapter four provides a concise summary and discussion of the results.

The dynamic approach to fractional Brownian motion (FBM) establishes a link between non-Poisson renewal process with abrupt jumps resetting to zero the system's memory and correlated dynamic processes, whose individual trajectories keep a non-vanishing memory of their past time evolution. It is well known that the recrossing times of the origin by an ordinary 1D diffusion trajectory generates a distribution of time distances between two consecutive origin recrossing times with an inverse power law with index m=1.5. However, with theoretical and numerical arguments, it is proved that this is the special case of a more general condition, insofar as the recrossing times produced by the dynamic FBM generates process with m=2-H. Later, the model of ballistic deposition is studied, which is as a simple way to establish cooperation among the columns of a growing surface, to show that cooperation generates memory properties and, at same time, non-Poisson renewal events. Finally, the connection between trajectory and density memory is discussed, showing that the trajectory memory does not necessarily yields density memory, and density memory might be compatible with the existence of abrupt jumps resetting to zero the system's memory.

This dissertation addresses the delicate problem of establishing the statistical mechanical foundation of complex processes. These processes are characterized by a delicate balance of randomness and order, and a correct paradigm for them seems to be the concept of sporadic randomness. First of all, we have studied if it is possible to establish a foundation of these processes on the basis of a generalized version of thermodynamics, of non-extensive nature. A detailed account of this attempt is reported in Ignaccolo and Grigolini (2001), which shows that this approach leads to inconsistencies. It is shown that there is no need to generalize the Kolmogorov-Sinai entropy by means of a non-extensive indicator, and that the anomaly of these processes does not rest on their non-extensive nature, but rather in the fact that the process of transition from dynamics to thermodynamics, this being still extensive, occurs in an exceptionally extended time scale. Even, when the invariant distribution exists, the time necessary to reach the thermodynamic scaling regime is infinite. In the case where no invariant distribution exists, the complex system lives forever in a condition intermediate between dynamics and thermodynamics. This discovery has made it possible to create a new method of analysis of non-stationary time series which is currently applied to problems of sociological and physiological interest.

Multiple-choice questions are acknowledged to be difficult for both English mother-tongue and second-language university students to interpret and answer. In a context in which university tuition policies are demanding explicitly that assessments need to be designed and administered in such a way that no students are disadvantaged by the assessment process, the thesis explores the fairness of multiple-choice questions as a way of testing second-language students in South Africa. It explores the extent to which two multiple-choice Linguistics examinations at Unisa are in fact ‘generally accessible’ to second-language students, focusing on what kinds of multiple-choice questions present particular problems for second-language speakers and what contribution linguistic factors make to these difficulties. Statistical analysis of the examination results of two classes of students writing multiple-choice exams in first-year Linguistics is coupled with a linguistic analysis of the examination papers to establish the readability level of each question and whether the questions adhered to eight item-writing guidelines relating to maximising readability and avoiding negatives, long items, incomplete sentence stems, similar answer choices, grammatically non-parallel answer choices, ‘All-of-the-above’ and ‘None-of-the-above’ items. Correlations are sought between question difficulty and aspects of the language of these questions and an attempt is made to investigate the respective contributions of cognitive difficulty and linguistic difficulty on student performance. To complement the quantitative portion of the study, a think-aloud protocol was conducted with 13 students in an attempt to gain insight into the problems experienced by individual students in reading, understanding and answering multiple-choice questions. The consolidated quantitative and qualitative findings indicate that among the linguistic aspects of questions that contributed to question difficulty for second language speakers was a high density of academic words, long items and negative stems. These sources of difficulty should be addressed as far as possible during item-writing and editorial review of questions.

Utilising previously unpublished ceramic evidence from the important Late Cypriot settlement of Enkomi, this thesis focuses on the impact on Cypriot social organisation of increased involvement with the complex societies of the eastern Mediterranean at the beginning of the Late Cypriot period, c. 1650 BCE. The main focus is on one aspect of the material culture: the first appearances of wheelmade pottery and the relationship of the wheelmade ceramics to the remainder of the assemblage. The introduction of wheelmade pottery has long been seen as a component of the 'social complexity package' and considered to be indicative of highly complex societies, along with full-time specialisation and mass production. The ceramic and settlement evidence from Enkomi is addressed in detail to evaluate the degree of social complexity present for the initial stages of settlement transformation on Cyprus from MCIII-LCIIB, prior to the appearance of urban centres during LCIIC. The extent of excavation at Enkomi, compared to other sites of the period, and the wealth of finds from both mortuary and settlement contexts has led to assumptions about the site's relative importance to the processes of change occurring on Cyprus. The notion of Enkomi as a pre-eminent town or as an archaic state is questioned in relation to the evidence from other settlements. The thesis is divided into four parts. Part 1 discusses the theoretical background for social complexity and outlines the explanatory models which have been developed for the Late Cypriot. I address the importance of trade, and briefly outline the modes of contact and social organisation in the eastern Mediterranean region in order to provide a framework for the interaction of Cyprus within this sphere. I also discuss the significance that has been placed on the appearance of wheel made ceramics in archaeological assemblages. The identification of wheel made ceramics is more complex than is often assumed and an important distinction should be made between pottery with the superficial appearance of being wheelmade and pottery that is actually wheelmade. Part 2 assesses the evidence of ceramics and settlement from other early LC sites in order to investigate whether Enkomi may be considered to have played a dominant role on the island in terms of site hierarchy or control over resources. A brief summary of the evidence of the ceramic and settlement evidence for the EC-MC and the LCllC-lllA periods is provided for comparative purposes. In Part 3 the Enkomi settlement and ceramic evidence is considered in detail. The combined evidence indicates a more complex sequence of construction, occupation and abandonment than has been assumed. Additionally, the adoption of wheelmade pottery is found to be a sporadic and gradual process, with the handmade and wheelmade versions of the ceramic wares manufactured concurrently from LCl-LCIIB. The conclusions reached are presented in Part 4. The processes by which Cyprus came to play an important role within the trading networks of the Late Bronze Age are more complex and gradual than generally acknowledged. A combination of settlement and ceramic evidence indicates that social organisation during LCI remained small-scale with regional traditions persisting and limited influence between the emergent polities on the island. During LCllA-B, the degree of intra-island contacts increased and a uniform material culture is adopted, developing into a series of highly structured urban polities by LCIIC. It does not appear likely that any site or region exercised islandwide control during LCI and the autonomous polities of LCIIC therefore represent a continuation of the social organisation from the preceding periods, rather than a devolution of centralised control.

Complex systems are ensembles of interconnected elements where mutual interaction and an optimized amount of disorder produce advanced functionalities. These systems are abundant in our daily experience: typical examples are the brain, biological ecosystems, society, and finance. In the last century, researchers have investigated the fundamental properties of disordered systems, unveiling fascinating and counterintuitive dynamics. The main aim of this Dissertation is the study of a new platform of disorder-enhanced photonics systems, denoted as Complex Metamaterials. Due to its ultrafast time scale nanophotonics represents an ideal framework to investigate and harness complex dynamics. Starting from the theoretical modeling of disordered plasmonic systems, I discuss advanced real-life applications, including the generation of highly-resistant structural colors from porous metal surfaces and the realization of early-stage cancer detectors based on surface roughness and self-similarity. In addition to the effects of structural disorder on plasmonic systems I also investigate the complex emission dynamics from non-conventional nanolasers. Lasers represent the quintessential example of a complex photonic system due to the simultaneous presence of strong nonlinearities and multi-mode interactions. At the same time, the integration of nanolasers with silicon-based electronic circuitry represents one of the greatest technological challenges in the field of nanophotonics. By combining ab-initio simulations and analytical modeling, I characterize the nonlinear emission from three-dimensional plasmonic nanolasers known as SPASERs. My results show for the first time the occurrence of a spontaneous rotational emission in spherical SPASERs, which originates from the nonlinear interaction of several lasing modes. I further discuss how rotating nanolasers can be employed as a fundamental building block for integrated quantum simulators, random information sources, and brain-inspired photonics platforms. Leveraging the practical limitations of SPASERs, I also propose a novel concept of near-field nanolaser based on invisible anapole modes. Anapoles constitute a peculiar state of electromagnetic radiation with no far-field emission and they have been recently discovered in dielectric nanoparticles. By integrating anapole lasers in a silicon-compatible platform, I discuss several advanced applications such as spontaneously polarized nanolasers and ultrafast pulse generators on-chip.

In this thesis, we review basic properties of linear codes and lattices with a certain focus on their interplay. In particular, we focus on the analogous con- structions of cyclic codes and cyclic lattices. We start out with a brief overview of the basic theory and properties of linear codes. We then demonstrate the construction of cyclic codes and emphasize their importance in error-correcting coding theory. Next we survey properties of lattices, focusing on algorithmic lattice problems, exhibit the construction of cyclic lattices and discuss their applications in cryptography. We emphasize the similarity and common prop- erties of the two cyclic constructions.

Prisons are a specific type of organization with distinct challenges for their management. Most importantly, prisons - as well as understandings of how to 'successfully' manage them - are embedded in a pluralistic environment that consists of a variety of stakeholders with different ideas and expectations with regard to role and governance of prisons. This study addresses the question of which different understandings of 'good' prison management can be found in the Austrian discourse and how the expected complexity constituted by contradictory expectations is manifested in the shared narratives of prison managers. I draw on an institutional theory perspective in order to reconstruct the distinct constellation of institutional logics at the field level as well as at the individual level. Empirically, the study has four central elements: First, I identify the institutional logics at the field level as well as the relevant actors in the field. Second, I reconstruct the prevalent institutional logics as well as the metaphors in use at the individual level. Third, I compare field level and individual level. Finally, I am particularly interested in whether and how metaphors are used by prison managers to enact institutional logics and establish relationships between them. To answer the questions concerning the field level, I focused on articles in five Austrian newspapers from 1970 to 2015. Regarding the individual level, I conducted eight narrative interviews with (former) Austrian prisons managers. Methodologically, I combine a variety of different analytical approaches, namely content analysis, metaphor analysis, and objective hermeneutic analyses. The findings reveal two different 'types' of logics, namely governance and purpose logics. These logics differ in their content (what they claim jurisdiction over), their structure (their relationships within and across types), and in the metaphors used (purpose logics have a more restricted set of metaphors, while governance logics have a more differentiated set). Further, the empirical analyses show that metaphors play a variety of roles with regard to logics. They may either specify individual logics, set up competing logics against each other, stress complementarities between logics, or create relationships between otherwise unrelated logics. Summing up, this dissertation contributes, first, to literature on cross-level relationships of institutional logics by linking field-level results with individual-level results. Second, it extends literature on institutional pluralism and institutional complexity by arguing that constellations of logics do not only exist at different levels but there may also be different types of logics within a constellation. Third, I contribute to rhetorical approaches in institutional theory by showing how metaphors are a way of manifesting institutional pluralism. Fourth, for the practice of prison management, the study has implications for the planning and realization of change management efforts.

Java has recently become a multi paradigm language, with the functional paradigmnow made available alongside the traditional, imperative, one. Programming in thefunctional paradigm may be considered complicated or hard to read, and there maybe concerns that the code it produces may become hard to maintain because ofcomplexity or readability issues. On the other hand, proponents of the functionalparadigm promises smaller amounts of less complex code, as the framework takeson a larger responsibility. This Bachelor’s thesis closely examines the differences be-tween effectively equal code written in functional and imperative Java, respectively,from the aspects of readability, complexity and verbosity, and shows that while codewritten in the functional paradigm is smaller and less complex, it is not harder to read.