Disertační práce se zabývá soustavou lineárních diskrétních rovnic se zpožděním a řeší Cauchyovu úlohu s danou počáteční podmínkou užitím zde definovaných maticových funkcí. Odvozený vzorec je pak použit při řešení úlohy relativní řiditelnosti této soustavy. Je dokázáno kritérium řiditelnosti soustavy, nalezena množina všech řídicí funkcí a minimální funkce vyhovující dané úloze.

Biological invasion has become a major threat to economy, ecology, global biodiversity and ecosystem function of aquatic ecosystems. The main aim of the thesis was to study the effects of the zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha), a versatile invasive species, on phytoplankton dynamics and ecosystem function of lakes. In a first attempt, I compared the density of Dreissena and the physicochemical data of ecosystems that it invaded among North American and European lakes to identify important factors in its invasion success. Secondly, I investigated the impact of zebra mussels on phytoplankton community composition in a natural lake. Thirdly, I evaluated whether zebra mussel feeding behavior were affected by the presence of predatory waterborne cues. Finally, I examined the effect of Dreissena on seston stoichiometry. A Generalized Additive Model revealed that a joint effect of surface area, mean depth, total phosphorus and calcium concentrations can explain the variability in Dreissena density. Selective grazing by zebra mussels varied in relation to seasonal phytoplankton dynamics. Risk cues released by predators affected both feeding rate and prey selection of the mussels and had cascading indirect effects on phytoplankton biomass and community structure. I found that the flux in nutrients caused by differences in zebra mussel consumption lead to a variation in phytoplankton nutrient limitation. The flexibility of zebra mussel feeding behavior and variation in susceptibility among phytoplankton groups to mussel ingestion indicate that invading zebra mussels could alter phytoplankton community composition of lakes and have important ecosystem consequences. The results of this thesis contribute to the growing evidence that predators indirectly affect resource dynamics and food web structure through their non-lethal effects on consumers. The results suggested that zebra mussel can indirectly both reduce and increase the energy transfer efficiency from primary producers to upper trophic levels in the pelagic and benthic food webs, respectively.

Many would agree that learning occurs when new information is stored in memory. Therefore, most learning efforts typically focus on encoding processes, such as additional study or other forms of repetition. However, as I will outline in this thesis, there are other means by which to improve memory, such as retrieval practice in the form of tests. Testing memory has a reinforcing effect on memory, and it improves retention more than an equal amount of repeated study – referred to as the testing effect – and it has been assumed that retrieval processes drive this effect. Recently, however, this assumption has been called into question because of findings that suggest that articulation, that is, the act of providing an explicit response on a memory test, may play a role in determining the magnitude of the testing effect. Therefore, in three studies, I have examined the effects of retrieval and articulation on later retention, in an attempt to ascertain whether the testing effect is entirely driven by retrieval, or if there are additive effects of articulation. I have also explored possible boundary conditions that may determine when, and if, the effects of retrieval and articulation become selective with respect to memory performance. In all three studies, participants studied paired associates and were tested in a cued recall paradigm after a short (~5 min) and a long (1 week) retention interval, and retrieval was either covert (i.e., responses were retrieved but not articulated) or overt (i.e., responses were retrieved and articulated).  In Study I, I demonstrated that uninstructed covert retrieval practice (by means of delayed judgments of learning) produced a testing effect (i.e., improved memory relative to a study-only condition) similar to that of explicit testing, which supports the idea that the testing effect is mainly the result of retrieval processes. In study II, I compared memory performance for covert and overt testing, and found partial support for a relative efficacy in favor of overt retrieval, compared to covert retrieval, although the effect size was small. In Study III, I further explored the distinction between different response formats (i.e., covert retrieval vs. various forms of overt testing), specifically handwriting and keyboard typing. I also examined the relative efficacy of covert versus overt retrieval as a function of list order (i.e., whether covert and overt retrieval is practiced in blocks or random order) and its manipulation within or between subjects. The results of Study III were inconclusive insofar as a relative efficacy of covert versus overt retrieval, with respect to later retention, could not be demonstrated reliably. The list order manipulations did not appear to affect covert and overt retrieval selectively. More importantly, in cases where a relative efficacy was found, the effect size was again small. Taken together, the three studies that of thesis indicate that the benefit of testing memory appears to be almost entirely the result of retrieval processes, and that articulation alone adds very little – if anything – to the magnitude of the testing effect, at least in cued-recall paradigms. These findings are discussed in terms of their theoretical implications, as well as their importance for the development of optimal teaching and learning practices in educational settings. / <p>At the time of the doctoral defense, the following paper was unpublished and had a status as follows: Paper 3: Accepted.</p>

L'étude des noyaux exotiques est un outil important pour sonder la structure nucléaire des noyaux éloignés de la stabilité. Pour des noyaux situés à la drip-line proton, l'émission directe de protons a été prédite depuis le début des années 1960. Ce travail de thèse est focalisé sur l'étude de la radioactivité 2-protons du noyau 45Fe. Un modèle théorique récent, dit modèle à trois corps, prévoit les corrélations énergétiques et angulaires qui doivent exister entre les protons émis. Afin d'étudier le processus d'émission, une Chambre à Projection Temporelle a spécialement été conçue pour reconstruire en trois dimensions la trajectoire des protons. Elle a été utilisée pendant une expérience sur le séparateur LISE3 du GANIL pour l'étude de 45Fe. Pour la première fois, les deux protons émis ont pu être détectés individuellement. Des outils d'analyse spécifiques ont permis de calculer les corrélations énergétiques entre les protons, montrant qu'ils partagent équitablement l'énergie disponible, tel que le prévoient les différents modèles théoriques. Les corrélations angulaires ont été étudiées, mais le manque de statistique ne permet pas de trancher définitivement sur le processus d'émission mis en jeu même si les données sont en accord avec les prévisions du modèle à trois corps. L'expérience a également permis d'étudier l'émission retardée de protons de 43Cr. L'émission beta-2p a été identifiée ; les corrélations énergétiques et angulaires sont en faveur d'une émission séquentielle des deux protons. Enfin, et pour la première fois, l'émission retardée de trois protons a été observée pour ce noyau. / The study of exotic nuclei is a powerful tool to probe the nuclear structure far from stability. For nuclei at the proton drip-line, the direct emission of protons has been predicted since the beginning of 1960s. This PhD thesis is focused on the study of the 2-proton radioactivity of 45Fe. A recent theoretical model, called three-body model, predicts the energetic and angular correlations which have to exist between the two protons emitted. In order to study the emission process, a Time Projection Chamber was especially developped to reconstruct the proton tracks in the three-dimension space. It was used during an experiment performed at the LISE3 separator of GANIL for the study of 45Fe. For the first time the two protons emitted were individually observed. A specific analysis allows us to calculate the energetic correlations between protons, showing they share equally the decay energy, as predicted by the whole theoretical models. The angular correlations were studied, but the lack of statistics does not allow us to determine definitively the emission process which occurs even though the data agree with the three-body model predictions. Moreover, the experiment allowed to study the proton delayed emission of 43Cr. The beta-2p emission was identified; the energetic and angular correlations favour a sequential emission of the two protons. Finally, the delayed emission of three protons was observed for the first time for this nucleus.

The purpose of this thesis is to provide an analysis of the history, purpose, utility, and effects of deliberate delayed kindergarten, known colloquially as "academic redshirting" or, simply, "redshirting." This thesis discusses and examines the history of kindergarten, the definition of school readiness, factors that led to the emergence of academic redshirting, demographics of children who are typically redshirted, and the consequences of the redshirted population within the kindergarten classroom. Also examined are trends in state and district mandated kindergarten age minimums over the last 50 years. The paper concludes with a policy recommendation for the improvement of early childhood education in the United States and a challenge to those who care about the future of American public education.

Une augmentation de la température à jeune âge du béton peut être causée par la chaleur d’hydratation dans le cas d’éléments massifs ou par l’application d’un traitement thermique dans l’industrie de la préfabrication. Lorsque le couple critique température maximale/durée de maintien est dépassé, il y a formation différée de l’ettringite (DEF) expansive pouvant fissurer les pièces. Les travaux présentés dans ce mémoire ont pour but principal d’établir une limite sécuritaire pour des mélanges V-S pour béton de masse et V-P pour béton préfabriqué régulièrement utilisés par le Ministère des Transports du Québec. Ces bétons utilisent des liants binaires composés de fumée de silice de type GUb-SF et des liants ternaires composés de fumée de silice et de cendres volantes ou de laitier de haut-fourneau. La norme canadienne actuelle (CSA A23.1-14 et CSA A23.4-16) impose une limite fixe de température qui ne dépend ni de la durée de traitement ni du type de liant utilisé. Le lien, souvent énoncé dans la littérature, entre la réponse d’un liant à un traitement thermique et sa composition chimique et minéralogique, déterminé respectivement par fluorescence X et diffraction des rayons X couplée par la méthode de calcul Rietveld, a pu être confirmé. Le rapport SO3 solubles/Al2O3 est notamment ce qui permet la meilleure estimation de la sensibilité d’un liant. Le processus de formation différée de l’ettringite est lent et peut prendre plusieurs années. Donc, pour étudier le phénomène, des méthodes d’essais accélérés ont été testées. Des méthodes ont ainsi pu être proposées pour de futurs tests. Une méthode d’essai rapide d’expansion de barres de mortier permet d’identifier les liants les plus sensibles à la DEF. La formation de la DEF dans les liants les moins sensibles peut être appréciée par le gain de masse de prismes de béton et leur observation microstructurale au microscope électronique à balayage (MEB). Une méthode sur bétons de masse et bétons préfabriqués permet de classer le degré de sensibilité d’un liant face à la DEF selon le gain de masse des prismes de béton. Les liants ternaires montrent une bonne résistance face à la DEF. La sensibilité des liants binaires dépend du rapport SO3 solubles/Al2O3 du liant. / Abstract : A heat cure for concrete can be caused by hydration in massive structures or by thermal treatment in prefabrication industry. When the limit couple maximum temperature/duration of treatment is exceeded, the delayed formation of ettringite occurs and leads to cracking in concrete. The main goal of the work presented in this essay is to establish a safe batch limit for some mixtures, VS (mass concrete) and V-P (precast concrete) which are often used by MTQ. These concretes use some cements blended with silica fume and ternary blended cements with silica fume and fly ash or blast furnace slag. Indeed, the current Canadian standard (CSA A23.1) set a limit which doesn’t depend on duration of the treatment nor the type of bender. However, the link between composition of the used bender, with can be determined by X-ray fluorescence and X-ray diffraction, and the response to a thermal treatment has been confirmed. The soluble SO3/Al2O3 ratio allows to estimate if a bender is sensitive to heat cure. The delayed formation of ettringite is a long process which can last a decade. In order to study this phenomenon, several accelerated test methods have been used. Some of them are available for some future tests. An accelerated expansion method using mortar bar allows to spot the DEF-sensitive benders. Delayed ettringite formation in the less sensitive bender can be estimated by weight gain in concrete prisms and by observation with scanning electron microscope (SEM). The sensitivity level of a bender can by estimated using a method based on weight gain. Ternary blended cements show a greater ability to withstand DEF. The sensibility of binary blended cements depends on soluble SO3/Al2O3 ratio.

Les composites à matrice céramique, constitués à la fois d’une matrice et d’un renfort fibreux en carbure de silicium, ont été choisi pour le développement des réacteurs d’avion. Bien que de nombreux travaux se soient intéressés à la synthèse de la matrice ou de l’interphase, peu ont traité directement du renfort, élément clé dans le comportement des composites, dans de telles conditions d’application. Ce mémoire porte donc sur ces matériaux appartenant à la première génération (contenant une grande proportion d’oxygène) et se scinde en deux parties. Tout d’abord, la réactivité chimique des fibres vis-à-vis de l’air, de la vapeur d’acide phosphorique ou du dichlore est étudiée via l’énergie d’activation apparente de l’attaque, et des corrélations avec les propriétés physicochimiques ou microstructurales des fibres en sont tirées. Ces résultats montrent l’influence notable qu’ont des éléments métalliques (titane, zirconium), pourtant présents en faibles quantités (<1% at.) Ensuite, la rupture prématurée de fils Si-C-O est étudiée et prédite aux températures intermédiaires (400-900°C). Ces résultats, une fois corrélés aux propriétés des fibres et à leur réactivité chimique, permettent de proposer deux mécanismes d’endommagement pouvant entrainer la rupture des fils selon les conditions d’essais : la fissuration sous-critique ou l’oxydation sans contrainte. Pour pallier l’instabilité de certaine de ces fibres un traitement de phosphatation, précédé ou non d’une chloration, transforme la surface en une barrière environnementale multicouche, sans dégradation des propriétés mécaniques, ce qui a pour effet de ralentir le mécanisme d’endommagement induit par l’oxydation et se répercute par une nette augmentation de leur durée de vie. / Ceramic Matrix Composites (CMC) are technical materials, made of a matrix reinforced by continuous fibers, considered for civil aircraft jet engine. Although the matrix and the interphase were extensively studied in past decades, reinforcement did not gain much attention however it pilots the ultimate failure of the composite. This work is dedicated to the first generation SiC fibers containing a large amount of oxygen and is divided in two parts. Firstly, chemical reactivity of Si-C-O fibers is studied against chloride, oxidant of phosphating gases. Apparent activation energies appear as an intrinsic property and are correlated with physicochemical or microstructural properties. Among observations, we show that the nature of the metallic element, such as titanium or zirconium, greatly influence the chemical stability of the fibers, however their proportion is low (1at. %). Thereafter, delayed failure of Si-C-O tows has been studied in order to predict it at intermediate temperatures (400-900°C). A statistical approach of tows’ lifetime allows us to define the survival probability at given condition, key point for the composite certification. Results were correlated to fibers properties and their chemical reactivity suggesting two damaging phenomena leading to the tows failure: slow crack growth or static oxidation. To overcome the instability of some fibers (doped with titanium), phosphating treatment was used to transform the surface of each fiber in multilayer silicophosphate coating acting as an environmental barrier. Obviously, mechanical properties of the fibers core were not affected by this etching reaction. A clear oxidation resistance and lifetime enhancement of the tows was reached by this route.

The diploma thesis is focused on the theme of speech therapy. The thesis deals with problems of delayed speech development in pre-school children, especially their vocabulary. The main aim of the thesis is the evaluation of vocabulary as well as evaluation of awareness about possibilities of enrichment and indicative range of evaluation of vocabulary. The main investigation was realized by means of half-structuralized interviews with respondents, who spend the most time and are in the daily contact with evaluated children. Arose findings should help to increase the effectiveness of speech therapy in the field of speech content of children with delayed language development. The output of this thesis is the newly created testing materials that will help assess the indicative range of vocabulary in these children.

Nous avons donc proposé dans cette thèse une stratégie pour suivre l’évolution des fissures dans une structure en béton précontraint. L'objectif principal est de définir des briques de modélisation permettant d'étudier le comportement des fissures dans les enceintes de confinement des centrales nucléaires. Chaque brique de modélisation permet ainsi de représenter un phénomène non-linéaire présent dans ces structures : la fissuration du béton, les grilles d'armatures, les cables de précontrainte, la décohésion de l'acier dans le béton ainsi que le vieillissement du béton. Elles ont été validées grâce à plusieurs essais expérimentaux et appliquées à différentes zones. de l'enceinte de confinement pour simuler l'amorçage et la propagation des fissures. Enfin, une stratégie pour définir un état initialement fissuré a été développé à l'aide de ces différentes briques ainsi qu'une méthode de zoom pour reproduire les conditions limites de la précontrainte et la montée en pression sur une partie de l'enceinte. / The difficulty of predicting cracks on reinforced concrete structures is due to the heterogeneity of the concrete and the dependence on environmental boundary conditions. To overcome this problem, we introduce directly a potential crack at the initial time, using cohesive zone models. A major difficulty will be to juggle the cohesive zone models describing cracking and the phenomena of creep and drying, and thus to consider three types of nonlinearities appearing in the calculation : cracking, decohesion of steelconcrete and creep. We also propose a strategy to represent an initially cracked structure. In this thesis, the crack behavior in different parts of the confinement building are modeled using the above described method.

Diversas pesquisas têm reportado que o aumento da produtividade da cultura do milho se deve muito mais à tolerância a estresses abióticos do que a aumentos per se. O déficit hídrico é um dos mais importantes fatores envolvidos na redução de produtividade nessa cultura, mas devido à dificuldade de seleção direta para tolerância à seca, são empregados caracteres secundários como o caráter stay green ou senescência retardada de folhas e colmos. Todavia, estudos sobre a herança desse caráter são escassos na literatura. Em vista disso, este trabalho teve como objetivo estudar a herança deste caráter em milho tropical, utilizando o delineamento III (Comstock e Robinson, 1952). A partir do cruzamento entre as linhagens endogâmicas L08-05F e L38-05D, foram obtidas 100 progênies F2:3, as quais foram retrocruzadas com cada um dos parentais, resultando em 200 progênies de retrocruzamento. Estas progênies foram avaliadas em dez ambientes, com duas repetições por ambiente, em Piracicaba SP, utilizando o delineamento ?-látice. A avaliação do stay green foi feita em dez plantas competitivas por parcela, 120 dias após a semeadura, utilizando uma escala de notas variando de 1 a 5, em que 1 correspondeu às plantas com todas as folhas acima e pelo menos duas folhas verdes abaixo da espiga e 5 à planta com todas as folhas secas. O caráter florescimento feminino foi avaliado e utilizado como covariável para ajuste das variações de maturação das progênies, e as médias das parcelas foram utilizadas para as análises. A estimativa da variância aditiva foi muito superior à de dominância e a variância da interação aditiva por ambiente apresentou maior magnitude que a variância aditiva. O tipo de ação gênica foi de dominância parcial, mas devido ao desequilíbrio de ligação da população, este pode estar superestimado. O coeficiente de herdabilidade em nível de plantas apresentou baixa magnitude (~25%) enquanto que em nível de médias a magnitude foi elevada (~70%). Estes resultados indicam que os efeitos aditivos são mais importantes que os dominantes no controle do caráter stay green e que os efeitos aditivos não são consistentes nos diversos ambientes de avaliação. Assim, o nível de heterose deve apresentar baixa magnitude, e a seleção fenotípica não pode ser realizada em nível de plantas, mas baseada em médias de experimentos com repetições, conduzidas em diversos ambientes para minimizar os efeitos destes e suas interações com os genótipos. A linhagem L08-05F apresentou maior nível de stay green que a linhagem L38-05D e, portanto, pode ser utilizada como fonte de alelos favoráveis para serem transferidos para outras linhagens visando aumentar o nível deste caráter em linhagens que apresentarem baixos níveis de senescência retardada. / Several researches have reported that the increase in maize productivity could be attributed to the tolerance to abiotic stresses rather than to an increase on a plant productivity per se. Moisture stress is one of the most important stresses that reduce the maize productivity, but because of the difficulties for the direct selection for tolerance to moisture stress secondary traits as delayed senescence, also known as stay green trait, has been employed for this purpose. However, there is limited information reported on the inheritance of this trait. Thus, the objective of this research was to study the inheritance of the stay green trait in maize using the design III (Comstock and Robinson, 1952). One hundred F2:3 progenies were developed from a population derived from the cross between the inbred lines L08-05F and L38-05D; and these progenies were backcrossed to the inbred parents giving rise to 200 backcrossed progenies. These progenies were evaluated in ten environments, with two replications per environment, in Piracicaba City, São Paulo State, using the experimental design ?-lattice. The stay green trait was recorded in ten competitive plants per plot 120 days after sowing, using a scale with scores from 1 to 5, where score 1 was assigned to the plants with all leaves above the ear and at least two leaves below the ear green, and score 5 was assigned to plants with all leaves senescent. The trait days to silking was also recorded and used as covariate to adjust the maturation variation of the backcrossed progenies, and the mean of the plots was used for analysis. The estimate of the additive variance was quite larger than the dominance variance, the additive x environment variance was quite larger than the additive variance, and the average level of dominance was partial dominance, but since the population was in linkage disequilibrium the level of dominance may be overestimated. The heritability coefficient on a plant level was of low magnitude (~25%) while that one on a mean level presented high magnitude (~70%). These results indicated that the additive effects were more important than the dominance effects for the control of the stay green trait, and that the additive effects are not consistent across the environments. Therefore, the level of heterosis should present low magnitude, and the phenotypic selection should not be conducted on a plant level; instead selection should be based on the means of replicated experiments assessed in several environments to minimize their effects and the genotype by environment interactions. The inbred line L08-05F presented higher level of stay green than the inbred L38-05D and thus the former inbred could be used as a source of favorable alleles to be transferred to others inbreds to increase the level of this trait in inbreds that have low levels of delayed senescence.