Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of California, Los Angeles, 1993. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 158-167).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of California, Los Angeles, 1988. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.)--Northern Kentucky University, 2006. / Made available through ProQuest. Publication number: AAT 1437572. ProQuest document ID: 1203575471. Includes bibliographical references (p. 41-45)

Bibliography: leaves 216-231. Examines the sliding capability of external fixators under load and describes the development and testing of an external fixator capable of providing axial cyclic motion to a fracture site while a patient is walking.

Abstrakt   Titel: Säljstöd Nivå: Kandidatuppsats Författare: Fredrik Palmé och Niclas Östlin Handledare: Jens Eklinder Frick och Jonas Molin Datum: 2015 - januari   Syfte: Tidigare forskning har visat att det finns lite eller ingen interaktion mellan säljstödsstrukturerna Self-Support, Core-Team Support och External-Support. Syftet med denna studie är därför att öka vår förståelse kring säljstödsstrukturer och se om det finns ett samspel mellan dem och om de kan kombineras, samt öka förståelsen för de fyra underliggande dimensionernas (workload, complexity, prequalification och customization) påverkan på valet av säljstöd. Metod: Studien är designad som en fallstudie med en kvalitativ ansats och ett hermeneutiskt perspektiv. Den teoretiska referensramen samlades in med hjälp av deduktion och det empiriska materialet samlades in genom semi-konstruerade intervjuer.  Resultat och slutsats: Studien indikerar att det finns ett konstant samspel mellan de tre olika säljstödsstrukturerna. Valet av säljstöd beror  på säljarens upplevelser av de fyra dimensionerna och Self-Support, Core-team support och External-support är ofta kombinerade för att erbjuda det mest lämpliga stödet vid rätt tidpunkt.  Förslag till vidare forskning: Eftersom ett av företagen var under omstrukturering och led av viss personalbrist, finns det möjligtvis en skillnad i appliceringen av säljstöd i ett företag som har lämplig mängd personal. Det vore även intressant att se vilken påverkan kommunikationen i ett mer centraliserat företag hade haft på valet av säljstöd.  Uppsatsen bidrag: Studiens bidrag är den ökade förståelsen kring samspelet mellan olika säljstödsstrukturer. Det måste anses vara svårt att skapa ett ramverk för att bestämma vilket säljstöd som bör tillämpas, då varje säljsituation är unik och kan behöva en kombination av olika säljstöd för att vara tillräcklig.  Nyckelord: Säljstöd, Self-Support, Tvärfunktionella grupper, Externt stöd, Arbetsbörda, Komplexitet, Anpassningsbarhet, Förkvalificering, Säljaktiviteter.

The armed conflict in Syria is complex and bloody. This paper aims to provide a better understanding of how and why the conflict started in Syria. The purpose of the study is to identify the key actors in the conflict, both internal and external actors and the impact of these actors in the Syrian conflict and what role they have played to achieve their goals. Furthermore, this paper also seeks to explore the changing character of conflict over time and the main obstacles for the peace in Syria. The study’s method is a comparative case study. A comparison between 2011-2017 is used to draw general conclusions. The theoretical framework to analyze are realism and liberalism. The materials used for this study are books, articles and documents etc. In conclusion, this paper finds that Assad's family has ruled Syria with an iron fist for many decades and a lack of freedom and economic problems caused protests  against Assad’s rule. The nature of war has changed in the period 2011 to 2017. Syria was a state of war of all against all. Syria was divided between many actors and they strove for power and dominance. The main obstacles to peace, there are various divisions within the opposition and most of them living abroad and  the external actors has impacted conflict. The reform of the United Nations Security Council  is a prerequisite for peace in Syria. The UN should send peacekeeping forces to Syria and Syria needs a Marshall Plan.

L’appareillage permet à aux personnes amputées de membre inférieur de retrouver une autonomie de déplacement. Actuellement, cette autonomie est limitée dans certaines situations de la vie courante comme la marche en pente ou en escalier. Des capteurs dits embarqués sont de plus en plus souvent intégrés dans les prothèses et permettent d’enregistrer des informations cinématiques et dynamiques au cours de la locomotion. Dans ce contexte, l’objectif de la thèse est de contribuer au développement de méthodes de traitement des données issues de ces technologies pour quantifier et améliorer l’adaptation de la prothèse à l’environnement. Ces méthodes ont été mises en œuvre et évaluées dans le cadre de l’utilisation d’un nouveau système prothétique contrôlé par microprocesseur de genou-cheville (SPCM), développé par la société Proteor et visant à faciliter la locomotion des personnes amputées au-dessus du genou dans les situations de pente ou de descente d’escalier. La première partie de cette thèse a été consacrée à la quantification des adaptations permises par le SPCM au cours de la locomotion dans différentes situations de la vie courante (plat, pente, escalier). La deuxième partie de la thèse s’est intéressée à développer des estimations de paramètres de la marche (vitesse de marche et inclinaison de la pente) et à la classification de 4 situations de la vie courante (plat, montée et descente de pente, descente d’escalier) à l’aide d’algorithmes d’apprentissage automatique pouvant être calculé par le SPCM en temps réel. L’ensemble de ces travaux permettra de mieux quantifier l’activité réelle de l’utilisateur. Cette quantification pourrait aider l’utilisateur ou l’équipe médicale pour le suivi d’activité mais aussi le constructeur pour améliorer l’adaptation des éléments prothétiques à l’environnement rencontré et pour vérifier l’utilisation réelle du SPCM. / Prosthetic devices allow people with lower limb amputation to recover their autonomy. Currently, this autonomy is limited in several everyday life situations such as walking on a slope or in stairs. Embedded sensors, frequently integrated inside the prostheses, record kinematic and dynamic data during locomotion. In this context, this PhD thesis aims to contribute to the development of methods for the processing of data provided by these technologies to quantify and improve the adaptation of the prosthesis to the environment. These methods were applied and evaluated in the context of the use of a new prosthetic knee-ankle system controlled by microprocessor (SPCM) developed by Proteor to facilitate the locomotion in situations such as slope or downstairs walking for people with above knee amputation. The first part of the work was devoted to the quantification of the adaptations allowed by the SPCM in different situations of daily life (flat, slope, staircase). The second part of the thesis focused on the estimation of gait parameters (walking speed and slope inclination) and the classification of 4 everyday life situations (flat, slope ascent and descent, stair descent) using machine learning algorithms that can be computed by the SPCM in real time. The body of this work will make it possible to better quantify the user real life activity. This quantification could help the user or the medical team in the activity monitoring but also the manufacturer to improve the adaptation of the prosthetic components to the environment and to verify the SPCM actual use.

The capability of organizations to respond to unexpected events has been investigated from different theoretical angles: organizational learning, improvisation, ambidexterity, resilience, to name but a few. These concepts, however, hardly ever refer to structural characteristics. Against this backdrop, the aim of this paper is twofold. First, based on systems and organizational learning theory, it will theoretically link the characteristics of organizational structure with organizational responses to unexpected external jolts, thus contributing to better understand the reactions of organizations to the unexpected. Second, it will empirically illustrate the relation of organizational structure with organizational responses by investigating how Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in Austria reacted to the unexpected inflow of refugees from Central Europe. In 2015, CSOs accepted a wide range of responsibilities and worked together with government entities to provide shelter, catering, and transport for almost one million refugees. Based on participant observations during opera- tion, in-depth interviews (2015 and 2016) and focus groups with decision-makers (2017), we will sketch three longi- tudinal case studies of organizations with very different structures, concentrating on the processes and operations they developed during the crisis. Our findings show that their responses are closely related to their structure, specifically to the flexibility and the stability of structural elements. Remarkable changes took place in all organizations investigated. Initial responses and first structural changes occurred mainly where the structure already allowed for flexibility. Yet in the long run, the adaptations also impacted the stable structural elements.

This thesis stems from academic research following my MPhil in 1992. It presents a portfolio of fourteen selected papers offering insights on major issues affecting the accountancy-related areas of external auditing (EA) and corporate governance (CG) in the small state of Malta. The commentary (Chapter 1) presents a background to the development of the portfolio and overviews the theoretical framework and methodology. It then introduces each paper, underlining common sub-themes. The contributions of the papers to knowledge are then indicated by (i) overviewing the development of each sub-theme contributing to the academic discourses in EA and CG, and (ii) laying out the relevance to the wider debates relating to small state literature. The commentary concludes by looking at the follow-up research agenda and the beckoning future. Chapters 2 to 15 then reproduce fourteen papers an introductory paper and thirteen others in two parts. The introductory paper includes most major small state sub-themes recurring in different ways in the subsequent papers: issues relating to close relationships and independence, discipline, resistance to change, regulation, secrecy, small business units and other small state issues. The following first part includes seven papers on Maltese external auditing in owner-managed companies, auditor changes, auditor perceptions, qualified opinions, first-time auditor selection, fee development and dysfunctional audit behaviour. The second part then comprises six papers on Maltese CG including the CG statement, internal audit benchmarking, conflicts of interest in co-operatives, the board/management relationship, a CG index, and small shareholder participation in the AGM. The portfolio contributes to literature notably by its original highlighting of the significance of the above-mentioned sub-themes on various aspects of EA and CG in a small state. Furthermore, the portfolio impacts Maltese EA and CG practices, particularly by emphasising the need to go beyond the adoption of imported regulatory frameworks.

[pt] O presente trabalho aborda o desenvolvimento e construção de um protótipo de uma máquina, de baixo custo, controlada por computador para corte de materiais flexíveis. A motivação deste é a crescente importância, no contexto da industria nacional, da manufatura com materiais flexíveis. Apesar de grande variedade de materiais usados na industria do vestuário, enfatiza-se aqui o corte de tecido. O problema abordado, consiste no controle simultâneo do três motores de passo e na escolha de uma ferramenta de corte mais adequada ao processo automatizado. O terceiro motor é a fixação do material. Por sua natureza flexível a fixação de alguns pontos não garantem a rigidez do conjunto podendo o tecido enrugar com a passagem da ferramenta de corte. Como será visto, o presente trabalho determinou uma configuração de porta-ferramentas e ferramenta que elimina o problema de fixação e simplifica o processo de corte, como também apresenta uma solução para eliminar a necessidade de um terceiro motor para o alinhamento da ferramenta à trajetória de corte. / [en] The present research addresses the development and construction of a low cost prototype of a machine, controlled by computer, for automated cutting of flexible materials. The motivation for this research is the increasing importance, in the national industry context, of flexible material manufacturing. Although there is a great variety of flexible materials used in the garment industry, the emphasis lies on textile cutting. The problem consists in the simultaneous driving of three step Motors and the Best choice of cutting tools. The third motor is necessary to align the cutting balde tangentially to the desinred path. Another topic of research was how to fiz the fabric to the cutting table. Due to fabric flexibility, fixing just some points does´ntguarantee the stiffness of whole and can generate wrinkles during the cutting process. This research also considers the choice of rigth tool in order to eliminate the movement of fabric and simplify the cutting process. Finally, a solution for eliminating the necessity of the third motor to align the blade tangentially to the desired path has also been considered