Introduction As e-cigarette use increases, questions about individual and public health effects remain unanswered (e.g. cessation tool, addiction path). Despite increasing use, few studies have focused on vape shop patrons. This study examined whether vape shop patrons believe their health is affected by the use of e-cigs; more specifically, the aim was to evaluate the association between e-cig use, change in tobacco use, and perception of health. Methods A survey of e-cig users (N=78) was conducted in vape shops. Questions included e-cig and traditional tobacco use, health perceptions, and demographics. Descriptive techniques were used to characterize participants as either those who perceived e-cig use improved their health or those who perceived their health unaffected. Logistic regression assessed the association between change in tobacco use, e-cig use, and perception of health effects. Results Most reported daily e-cig (91%) and current (11.5%) or former (78.2%) combustible cigarette use. Approximately, three-fourths (76.9%) perceived better health; the remainder (23.1%) perceived unaffected health. Change in cigarette use was significantly associated with perceptions that health is better with e-cig use. Participants who decreased cigarette use by 2-3 cartons/month and more than 3 cartons/month were significantly more likely to indicate that e-cig use has improved their health compared to those who decreased tobacco use by 1.5 cartons or fewer per month (OR=4.35, 95% CI: 1.13-16.9; OR=25.67, 95% CI: 2.97-221.7, respectively). Conclusions The majority of e-cig users perceived better health. Our findings suggest that health campaign designers should carefully assess the scientific uncertainty surrounding the use of these devices and consider means to clearly convey this information. Given the lack of scientific agreement on the health effects of e-cigs and the important role that perceptions play in behavior, health campaign designers, health education practitioners, policy makers, and health care providers should err on the side of caution when advising individuals about e-cig use.

Mémoire numérisé par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

This PhD thesis tracks the history of the Italian unemployment welfare during the second half of the twentieth century, offering an account of why the Italian system of social security never established a universal safety net against unemployment, choosing instead a social policy system targeted on the core industrial workforce. During the post-war period, Italian unemployment insurance remained severely lacking compared to other European countries. To compensate, the country relied on the Cassa Integrazione Guadagni (CIG), a short time work scheme providing a wage replacement allowance to compensate employees in the industrial sector for a temporary reduction of their working time. Starting from the late 1960s, the scope and duration of the CIG were progressively expanded to tackle manpower redundancies, catering for the weakness of other forms of support. During the 1970s and the 1980s, short time emerged as the chief instrument to cushion the economic and social consequences of the industrial crisis of the country. This thesis explains the peculiar characteristics of the Italian unemployment welfare model as a consequence of the country's pattern of labour conflict, showing how industrial relations and social policy influenced one another. In the early postwar decades, while the unions were organisationally weak, the CIG emerged as a less expensive alternative to general unemployment insurance. This engendered a path dependent effect. Following the rise of industrial unrest and the strengthening of organised labour in the early 1970s, unions and employers favoured the increasing use of the CIG so as to protect their respective interests for job security and manpower flexibility, at the expense of the weaker strata of the labour market. Far from being a simple instrument of income maintenance, the CIG played a key role in shaping social relations of production at the work-place level and was used to diffuse industrial conflict on the shop floor. With the onset of deindustrialisation, during the 1980s, the CIG became a powerful tool for the demobilisation of organised labour.

This thesis will cover the use oftheinfluence map technique applied to the retro game Ms. Pac-Man. A game thatis easy to learn but hard to master. The Ms. Pac-Man controller is implemented with five main parameters that alters the behaviour of the controller while the Ghost controller have three parameters. The experimental results of the controllers is explored to using the alterations of the parameters to find its peak of performance. The conclusion from using the influence map for this game shows that you can easy achieve a certain degree of success fairy easily but as with the game itself it is hard to master same goes for developing a sophisticated controller for this game.

The increase in use of e-cigarettes in adolescents is a major public health concern that must be addressed. Research studies showed some e-cigarettes contained varying amounts of nicotine and sever cancer-causing chemicals. The purpose of this quantitative, cross-sectional study was to assess the perception of harm (dependent variable) from using e-cigarettes and being exposed to state and school-based antitobacco programs (independent variable) and to determine if the association was modified by socioeconomic status or area of residence. Attitude-social influence-self-efficacy theory was the chosen theory for research and suggests that attitude, social influence, and self-efficacy variables can be persuaded via specific health promotion activities. Texas students enrolled in 6th to 12th grade of an eligible school who voluntarily consented to participate and received written authorization from a parent were included. Nearly half of participants out of N=9,239 adolescents considered e-cigarettes very dangerous, yet more than half reported using the device. Ordinal logistic regression was used to determine the relationship between the independent and dependent variables. The results concluded that though majority of adolescents perceived e-cigarettes as harmful, exposure to state and school antitobacco programs are not completely effective at discouraging use. The findings of the study may provide potential impact for positive social change for adolescents and tobacco cessation by increasing understanding of what factors are associated with increased/decreased perception of harm. Results of the study may encourage public health professionals to create and disseminate tailored antitobacco educational information including school and state activities and resources.

Gotland has a rich material cultural heritage from the Stone Age to the Middle Ages thanks to the island's strategic location in the middle of the Baltic Sea; especially true for the Viking Age when Gotlanders had extensive trade contacts with the east dating from the mid 12th century and Gotland’s economy was dominated by such contacts. This essay deals with Gotland's maritime infrastructure and its development between about 1100 and 1400 based on a case study of boat rivets from the medieval settlement of Västergarn. The study focus is on Västergarn’s emergence as a maritime community on Gotland's west coast, and if Västergarn had the opportunity to decide its own economy, i.e., to control its’ external contacts and internal trade with the rest of Gotland? What role did maritime traffic play in Västergarn economy? Is it possible to draw conclusions about site maritime organization and infrastructure based on the extensive rivet material? What supply chains with the surrounding area may have existed that made such activity possible? What professional skills and knowledge were in place? In the analytical part of the dissertation a classification system for Västergarn's rivet material is established and discussed in comparison with other literature on boat building technology from the rest of Scandinavia, in particular the Baltic Sea area. Results of the study indicate the existence of a boatyard mainly for the repair of clinker-built vessels. Further conclusions about how shipping, especially after clinker-built vessels were replaced by cogs, affected Västergarn's economy and its’ further existence as a port, however, is not established. / Gotland har ett rikt materiellt kulturarv från stenåldern till medeltiden tack vare öns strategiska läge i mitten av Östersjön. Särskild är detta tydlig för vikingatiden då gotlänningarna hade handelskontakter österut. Sedan mitten av 1100-talet dominerades den gotländska ekonomin av kontakterna med tyska handelsförbund vilket också får nedslag i de materiella källorna. Denna uppsats behandlar Gotlands maritima infrastruktur och dess utveckling mellan ca. 1100 och 1400 utifrån en fallstudie av båtnitar från den medeltida bosättningen Västergarn. Syftet är att studera framväxten av Västergarn som ett maritimt samhälle vid Gotlands västkust och hur Västergarn utvecklades som en hamn. Hade Västergarn möjlighet att bestämma 2 över sin egen ekonomi, dvs att kontrollera de externa kontakterna och interna handeln mot övriga Gotland? Vilken roll spelade skeppstrafiken och användningen av skepp för Västergarn ́s ekonomi? Går det att dra slutsatser utifrån det omfattande nitmaterial om platsens maritima organisation och infrastruktur? Vilka försörjningskedjor med omlandet kan ha existerat som möjliggjorde en sådan verksamhet? Vilka professionella färdigheter och kunskaper fanns på plats? I avhandlingens analytiska del etableras och diskuteras ett klassifikationssystem för Västergarn ́s nitmaterial och jämförs med annan litteratur om båtbyggningsteknik från övriga Skandinavien, i synnerhet Östersjöområdet. Resultat av studien tyder på existensen av ett båtvarv huvudsakligen för reparation av klinkbyggda skepp. Vidaregående slutsatser om hur sjöfarten särskild efter att klinkbyggda skepp ersattes av koggar påverkade Västergarns ekonomi och vidare existens som hamn går däremot inte att dra.

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Les fluorures (NbF5, MoF6 et WF6) et les oxyfluorures (VOF3 et CrO2F2) de métaux de transition sont intercalés dans le graphite sous atmosphère oxydante de fluor. Ces composés (de second stade) sont utilisés en tant que précurseurs dans le but de réaliser un échange fluor-oxygène via un composé oxygéné à base de silicium: l'hexaméthyldisiloxane (HMDSO). Un mécanisme d'échange en deux étapes est proposé. Ces nouveaux matériaux présentent une réversibilité partielle vis a vis de l'intercalation électrochimique du lithium. De la même façon la réactivité des fluorures inorganiques (BF3, TiF4, NbF5, MoF6 et WF6) avec les nanotubes multiparois, élaborés par voie catalytique (Co/Al2O3), est étudié en présence de fluor. Le processus de purification suivant: traitement thermique et lavage acide est préalablement effectué. L'étude par DRX montre une intercalation partielle des nanotubes. En RPE, une modification des propriétés électroniques a pu être mise en évidence. La fluoration du [70] fullerène a une température de 320 °C, permet d'obtenir un matériau présentant une faible dispersion en composition. La liaison C-F est de type ionocovalente pour une longueur de 0,149 nm. Sa structure cristalline est cubique face centrée (cfc, a = 1,7949 nm). Les tests électrochimiques montrent, outre une défluoration de la molécule de C70, une intercalation réversible de lithium; ces deux phénomènes étant en compétition. La réduction de fluorures de graphite (covalents ou ioniques) par différentes méthodes (thermique, chimique et électrochimique) conduit à l'obtention de carbones désordonnés. Le stockage du lithium par voie électrochimique s'y effectue par l'intermédiaire de deux phénomènes situées à E < 0,2 V et à E > 0,8 V. Le premier est attribué à l'insertion du lithium entre les plans graphitiques ainsi qu'a l'adsorption de lithium dans les pores créés par le processus de réduction. A plus haut potentiel la dissociation des liaison Li-X de bord de plans conduit à une capacité supplémentaire.

Ce travail aborde l’enjeu du vivrier marchand dans la lutte contre la pauvreté des ménages dans l’espace rural du département de la Mvila. L’agriculture vivrière est encore pratiquée par plus de 80% de la population active dans les villages de la Mvila. Pendant longtemps, les cultures vivrières sont exclusivement autoconsommées dans la cellule familiale. Aujourd’hui, s’il est vrai qu’une grande partie de leur production est encore destinée à cette fin, quelques ménages font progressivement du vivrier marchand une réelle ressource économique. L’augmentation de la commercialisation vivrière est souvent une réponse à la baisse du pouvoir d’achat de nombreux ménages agricoles ou à la croissance de la population urbaine non agricole. Cependant, indépendamment des motivations qui guident le choix du vivrier marchand, il semble souvent une opportunité financière qui peut contribuer à l’amélioration des conditions de vie dans les villages. Depuis 1960, l’État multiplie des tentatives visant à réduire les stéréotypes qui associent exclusivement l’agriculture vivrière à l’autoconsommation. Après la crise agricole de la fin des années 1980, la relance de la promotion du vivrier marchand s’intensifie. Pour atteindre cet objectif, il s’ensuit la légalisation des GIC et le financement de divers programmes de subventionnement et d’accompagnement des producteurs. Pourtant, dans les villages du département de la Mvila, la commercialisation vivrière évolue timidement. Et pour beaucoup de ménages, le vivrier marchand reste une source de revenus accessoire. Par conséquent, de façon générale, la contribution de cette activité à la réduction de la pauvreté rurale est encore insuffisante. De nombreuses raisons permettent de comprendre l’insuffisance des résultats de cette stratégie gouvernementale de lutte contre la pauvreté rurale. Il s’agit par exemple de la dépendance paysanne à la cacaoculture ou de la baisse des dynamiques des ménages ruraux autour de la commercialisation vivrière. Cette situation est aussi entretenue par l’absence de modernisation des appareils productifs et commerciaux des cultures vivrières. Un environnement qui entraîne une baisse des volumes, augmente les risques et diminue la rentabilité économique de cette activité. Et, malgré l’évidence de quelques dynamiques des organisations paysannes, l’ampleur des défis actuels restreint beaucoup la faisabilité des initiatives de lutte contre la pauvreté des ménages ruraux avec le vivrier marchand. / This research examines the role of food-producing trade in fighting against poverty in the rural households of Mvila division in Cameroon. Subsistence agriculture appears to be the principal production activity in the target villages 80% of the active population interviewed is involved in such activities. For a long time, self-consumption has been the main orientation of crop production. However, food-producing trade has gained a lot of economic importance these last years. By so doing farmers find alternative income source after cocoa price has dropped while the urban population, not involved in agriculture, has significantly increased. Regardless of the motivations behind the choice of farmers, food-producing trade leads to income diversification and financial power aiming at improving the living conditions of rural people. Since 1960, the central government of Cameroon has been trying to change believes that restrict food crop production to self-consumption in the households. The crucial economic crisis associated with agricultural export products led to Food-producing trade intensification. This objective has been accompanied by Common Group Initiative (CGI) encouragement and other financing subsidy bodies in the rural areas. It is however worthy noticing that, the villages of Mvila division are far to emerge in income generating activities as many households are still timid in adopting food-producing trade. Therefore, the contribution of such activities to poverty reduction is still insufficient. This kind of contradiction can be justified by several factors, including farmer dependence on cocoa farming or farmer fatigue on agriculture and marketing in general. This situation is also sustained by the lack of modernization of the productive and commercial food crop equipments. That global environment leads to decrease of agricultural production volumes and economic return while the risks increase in rural areas. Although some farmer organizations obtain good results, the scale of the current challenges greatly restricts the feasibility of rural households' poverty alleviation initiatives.