Instant messaging is a popular form of communication over the Internet. Statistics show that instant messaging has overtaken email in popularity. Traditionally, instant messaging has consisted of a desktop client communicating with other clients via an instant messaging service provider. However, instant messaging solutions are starting to become available in the web browser–services like Google Talk, Live Messenger and Facebook. Despite the work done by researchers to secure instant messaging networks, little work has been done to secure instant messaging in the browser. We present secure browser-based instant messaging overlays as a means to enable convenient, secure communication in existing browser-based instant messaging interfaces. Additionally, we present a prototype implementation of the secure messaging overlays and the results of two user studies--the first study focusing on user interest in secure chat and the second being a usability study of the prototype.

Instant messaging with Internet-based software is a ubiquitous form of communication in industrialized nations. In fact, many educators are observing that students engage with instant messaging while simultaneously engaged in academic activity. Though this type of multitasking is pervasive, educational researchers have not examined how the practice of instant messaging impacts learning outcomes. This dissertation describes the background, empirical and theoretical foundations, methods and results of a study examining the impact of instant messaging activity on learning, where instant messaging and learning are simultaneous activities. The question posed is grounded in the related areas of instant messaging practices, the Generation M profile, Cognitive Load Theory, and integration of instant messaging in K-16 classrooms. This work presents empirical evidence pointing out the necessity of conducting empirical study regarding how instant messaging activity might impact learning. Quantitative methods used to conduct the study are presented including data collection instruments. The results of the study are discussed in broad terms related to Generation M and Cognitive Load Theory. Methodological limitations related to practice opportunities for the research sample as well as the performance measure used are detailed. In addition, implications of the results in relationship to those teaching members of Generation M in K-16 classrooms as well as those designing instruction for this population are discussed. The discussion concludes with recommendations for further research in this area.

Over the last few years, text messaging has taken the domination among young adults. Messaging via phones has a wide range of both, human and social factors. These Instant Messaging [IM] applications also offer features other than just texting and for example, sending documents, photos, videos, links and more. All these features and attributes are making people pull towards these IM applications more and more. Despite having these features, people expect more from these IM applications, which leads these IM applications to compete with each other by providing more features or modifying the existing features. This competition to be the better application amongst the IM applications has led us to do a research study on which applications have better user experience through a survey evaluation. Background: Messaging through phones got a lot easier when platforms like iMessage, Telegram, WhatsApp, etc., were introduced to people. WhatsApp and Telegram gained popularity over iMessages as iMessages was limited only to IOS. So, technically people preferred WhatsApp and Telegram over iMessages. In order, to deduct which application is preferred among WhatsApp and Telegram, a survey evaluation is done based on Usability Heuristics. Thus, the title of the thesis is “Comparative research of WhatsApp and Telegram by using heuristic principles.” Objectives: The prime objective of the thesis is to compare both the applications, WhatsApp, and Telegram and to find which application has followed the principles of Usability most. The comparison between these two applications is done via a survey evaluation and the results will be noted. Methods: The method that has been chosen and used for comparison is survey evaluation. The survey will be done via google forms, and the questions of the study are based on HCI principles. The survey will have a total of 10 questions. Approximately of 45 users will be given the questionnaire google form to fill out. Results: The results from the survey will be collected and noted. The results are examined and the application that has the better user experience will be found. Conclusion: From the study and the survey, it is concluded that WhatsApp has a better user experience than Telegram.

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The present study is an investigation of a recent phenomenon, the creation and maintenance of a student-centered online community using Line, a Web 2.0 mobile messaging (MIM) application. In recent years, mobile instant messaging has become the most widely utilized form of social media (Clement, 2019a), and has been increasingly used by students to interact about schoolwork (e.g., Cetinkaya, 2017; Bouhnik & Deshen, 2014; Tanaka, 2014). With the ubiquity of mobile technology use amongst students, how interactions in student-centered online groups contribute to the achievement of academic goals warrants further research. Therefore, this study had three purposes. The first purpose was to utilize Wenger’s (1998) community of practice framework to investigate whether an online group formed by the students could evolve into an academic community of practice. A second purpose was to analyze online interactions through the lens of uses and gratifications theory (Katz, Blumler, & Gurevitch, 1973) to discover the specific academic uses of MIM valued by the participants. Furthermore, the affordances (Gibson, 1977) that made the application amenable to academic purposes were investigated. The third purpose was to further analyze online interactions to uncover the specific ways in which the practices of the online academic group contributed to and conflicted with the achievement of course objectives. A case study approach (Yin, 2014) was used to provide a thick descriptive account of the online group and achieve the objectives of the study. The 12 participants in this study were members of an intact EAP course, which was part of an English-medium economics curriculum at a private Japanese university. The main source of data were two online groups created using the Line application, one group consisting of all members of the class and the other a group of four students created to work on the course project. Other sources of data included online documents saved to Google Drive, a survey, interviews, and course materials. Data from all sources were coded and analyzed first inductively, using codes from the three frameworks used in the study, and then inductively, to discover any other themes that emerged from the data. The analysis suggested that the online group created by the participants evolved into an academic community of practice. There was evidence of a focused academic domain because the vast majority of online posts dealt directly with course content. Moreover, interactions revealed the development of trust, reciprocity, and commitment, all key components of mutual engagement. Various group practices also emerged that supported students in their coursework and contributed to group learning. A key factor in community formation was attributed to the Line application meeting the academic needs of students. Key gratifications associated with the needs of the students included online interaction with a closed group, convenience, quickness, retrievability, information sharing, and emotional support. The affordances that enabled these gratifications to be obtained were selective connectivity, context-free access, asynchronous/synchronous communication, information aggregation, and multi-user content creation. Further analysis of the online interactions supported by these affordances showed that the prominent group practices directly supported course objectives. However, there were several conflicts associated with the use of MIM, such as problems with the constant flow of messages, unequal levels of contribution, and academically questionable activities. Finally, a summative analysis led to the creation of a model that demonstrated the relationships between learning objectives, student academic needs, gratifications, and affordances in the formation of a community within the context of a traditional university course. / Applied Linguistics

This dissertation proposes an alternative FPGA design compilation flow to reduce the back-end time required to implement an FPGA design to below the level at which the user's attention is lost. To do so, this flow focuses on enforcing modular design for both productivity and code reuse, while minimizing reliance on standard tools. This can be achieved by using a library of precompiled modules and associated meta-data to enable bitstream-level assembly of desired designs. In so doing, assembly would occur in a fraction of the time of traditional back-end tools. Modules could be bound, placed, and routed using custom bitstream assembly with the primary objective of rapid compilation while preserving performance. This turbo flow (TFlow) aims to enable software-like turn-around time for faster prototyping by leveraging precompiled components. As a result, large device compilations would be assembled in seconds, within the deadline imposed by the human attention span. / Ph. D.

Yes / The emergence of globalisation has promoted human rights education, the media and scholarly works have drawn attention to the issue of the rule of law and mob justice activities constantly recurring in developing countries. The paper examines the effects of mob justice on the rule of law and democratisation in Africa using Ghana as a case study. The paper is of the view that mob justice has both negative and positive effects on the rule of law and democratisation in Ghana. This is because the legal and criminal justice systems in some societies are seen by citizens as illegitimate as they fail to punish suspected criminals appropriately; thus, negatively destroying democracy and the image of the State. Positively, mob justice serves as a wake-up call for the State to take its responsibility to protect the rights of its citizens seriously. The paper draws on international human rights law in the light of international legal instruments, such as the UDHR, ICCPR, and African Charter, as well as the 1992 Constitution of Ghana and employs mainly the Tylerian procedural justice perspective, as well as Liberal democratic theory. It uses theoretical, critically analytical and qualitative empirical evidence (based on semi-structured interviews from purposive sampling of 15 expert opinions and relevant organisations with a keen interest in the subject matter) for the analysis. / Ghana Scholarship Board funded the research on the Rule of Law & Mob Justice in Ghana.

Chez Guillevic, le statut de la rhétorique est paradoxal. Toute l’œuvre est traversée par un impératif des choses et du réel qui s’accompagne d’un vœu de simplicité. Cette poésie, qui se voit rappelée à l’ordre du concret, se méfie d’une rhétorique qui viendrait éclipser la réalité des choses, ou accroître la distance entre ces deux pôles, que sont l’expérience du monde et sa mise en mots. Les poèmes, denses et resserrés sur eux-mêmes, se présentent alors manifestement comme un défi à la rhétorique. Pourtant, nous n’assistons pas à une éviction de la notion, mais plutôt à un ensemble de mutations, qui supposent une subrogation des valeurs la définissant. En effet, si Guillevic passe pour un poète qui se serait spontanément tourné vers le monde et vers les objets, ce rapport au réel, au départ, n’a rien d’euphorique. Il reste à construire car le monde se rétracte. Il faut retrouver une force dans le langage ; une force agissante. Se méfier d’une rhétorique éloquente et ornementale revient alors à inscrire dans le poème une tension qui fait du langage un support solide auquel se raccrocher ; les figures ne sont plus de l’ordre de la figuration mais de celui de la mise en rapport. On assiste donc à des processus de relittéralisation et de défiguration du langage, ce qui fait qu’il n’est plus question d’une rhétorique de surface, mais d’une rhétorique fondamentale, qui passe par un engagement de l’être dans le langage. Et comme il s’agit toujours de chercher à faire l’expérience du monde, plutôt que de s’obstiner à lui trouver un sens, la rhétorique est alors dissociée de ces notions de conceptualité, de représentation et de signification qu’elle a tendance à véhiculer. Enfin, chez Guillevic, se méfier de la rhétorique, c’est aussi remplacer la métaphore par l’ellipse et instaurer dans le poème un creux, ou un entre-deux, qui, sans pour autant annuler ce constat d’une inadéquation fondamentale entre le langage et la réalité, ne se présente pas moins comme le lieu où peut advenir une dimension neuve et originelle du sujet, du langage et du monde. / In the work of Guillevic, the status of rhetoric is paradoxical. All the work is characterised by an imperative of reality. The most important is simplicity. So, this poetry, which is called to reality, constantly distrusts rhetoric : indeed, rhetoric could overshadow the reality of the things and increase the distance between these two poles, that are the experience of the world, and its implementation in word. The poems, dense and tight on themselves, appear clearly as a challenge to rhetoric.However, in the work of Guillevic, the notion of rhetoric is not totally forgotten. On the contrary, we can note some mutations of the notion. The defining values are modified. Indeed, Guillevic is considered as a poet who spontaneously turned himself to the world and to the objects, but, first, this contact with reality is very difficult. This contact needs to be built or to be modified because, in the beginning, the world frightens. It is reluctant to welcome the poet. That is why Guillevic must find a strength in the language in order to build or to appease this relation between the subject and the world. And, paradoxically, distrust big rhetoric and its eloquence enables to do that, because this distrust puts a tension in the poem. First, this tension transforms the language of the poem and makes it as a solid to cling to. Then, the figures of speech no more belong to the order of representation but they belong to this necessity of a better relation between the subject, the language and the world. The poem tends to literality and to ‘disfiguration’. So, it is no more about a superficial rhetoric ; the rhetoric is now fundamental and joins the language and the being. The experience of the world is more important than the meaning, so that we can say that the notion of rhetoric is no longer connected to the concepts of conceptuality, representation and meaning. And we can also note that Guillevic replaces the metaphor by the ellipse : distrust rhetoric opens in the poem an empty place where these three elements that are the language, the poetic subject and the world can revive.

Syften: Syftet med studiet är dels att redogöra för huvudorsaken som har gett upphov till uppkomsten av snabblånebranschen. Dels att framställa väsentliga faktorer som har föranlett att branschen kan stanna kvar på snabblånemarknaden. Metod: Med avseende på studiets två frågeställningar har vi använt oss dels av kvalitativ ansats för att kunna beskriva noggrant anledningen till uppkomsten av snabblånebranschen via en tolkning av en del intervjufrågor. Dels tillämpades en kvantitativ ansats för att komma till viktiga faktorer som resulterat i att företagen inom denna bransch stannat kvar på kreditmarknaden. Teoretisk referensram: Studiens teoretiska referensram utgörs av vetenskapliga artiklar och  böcker som handlat om informationens asymmetriska påverkan, finansiella gap och  entreprenöriska möjligheter. Vidare har relevant material från Finansinspektionen,  Kronofogden och Konsumentverket använts som grund till den kvalitativa undersökningen  för det empiriska studien. Empiriska studier: Den empiriska studien utförts på åtta av branschens fyrtiofyra företag snabblåneföretag, som tillhör branschorganisationen S.K.E.F. Slutsats: Till följd av asymmetrisk information mellan parter (kreditgivare & kredittagare) avstår stora och traditionella kreditinstitutioner från att förmedla krediter till vissa kredittagare som har låg kredittrovärdighet. Därigenom skapas en marknad som utmärks av obalans mellan utbud av kapital och efterfrågan på kapital vilket leder till uppkomsten av ett finansiellt gap. Entreprenörer upptäcker affärsmöjligheter genom att skapa nya tjänster som efterfrågas av marknaden. På så vis fyller snabblåneföretagen det finansiella gapet på kreditmarknaden som inte fylls av andra kreditinstitutioner. Studiens resultat visar att snabblåneföretag erhåller låga vinster. Men om företagen motverkar kreditrisker genom regelrätta och noggranna kreditbedömningar leder detta troligtvis till högre vinst. / Purposes: The purpose of the study is partly to account for the main reason that has given rise to the emergence of instant loans industry. Secondly to produce significant factors have led the sector to remain on the instant lending market.  Methods: With respect to the study's two issues, we have used both a qualitative approach to describe accurately the reason for the emergence of instant lending industry through the interpretation of some interview questions. We have partly applied a qualitative approach to understand the important factors that constitute the fact that the sector manage to remain in the credit market. Theoretical framework: The study's theoretical framework is made up of scientific articles and books that dealt with media information’s asymmetric impact, financial gaps and entrepreneur opportunities. Furthermore, the relevant material from the Financial Supervisory Authority, The Swedish Enforcement Authority and Swedish Consumer Agency has been used in order to obtain a qualitative survey of the empirical study.   Empirical studies: Our empirical study consists of eight out of the industry's forty-four instant loan companies that belong to the trade organization S.K.E.F. Conclusion: As a result of asymmetric information between the parties refrain large and traditional credit institutions from providing loans to borrowers by low of credibility. A market characterized by imbalance between supply of capital and demand for capital lead to an emergence of a financial gap within the market. Entrepreneurs find business opportunities by creating new services demanded by the market. Thus fills the instant loans companies the financial gap on the credit market that is not filled by other credit institutions. The result of this study concludes that firms obtain low profits. But if companies counteracts credit risk this will likely lead to a higher profit by making regular and thorough credit checks on the borrower.

De l’isolement des îlots pancréatiques à leur implantation, l’inflammation est omniprésente au cours de la transplantation d’îlots pancréatiques. Le maintien d’une inflammation contrôlée est essentiel pour préserver la survie et la fonctionnalité du greffon à court et long terme. L’objectif de ce travail de thèse est d’identifier précisément les mécanismes inflammatoires à l’origine de la perte précoce des îlots et de déterminer des cibles thérapeutiques pour limiter ces réactions inflammatoires.Nous avons ainsi démontré que les conditions de culture induisent des réactions à l’origine du développement d’un phénotype pro-inflammatoire et pro-oxydant propre à l’îlot. Cette induction se caractérise par une élévation de la sécrétion de cytokines, de chimiokines pro-inflammatoires, une activation des voies de l’inflammation Toll-like récepteurs (TLRs)-dépendantes et une génération d’espèces réactives de l’oxygène (ROS). Toutefois, ce processus peut être prévenu par l’activation de l’Hème oxygénase-1 (HO-1), une enzyme anti-oxydante et anti-inflammatoire.Par l’étude des réactions inflammatoires sur un modèle animal de transplantation mimant les conditions de transplantation humaine, nous avons démontré qu’un changement des médiateurs plasmatiques de l’inflammation et du protéome hépatique s’opère 12 heures après transplantation. De plus, ces résultats sont associés à une infiltration des îlots par les cellules immunitaires qui s’organise 12 heures après transplantation. Nous avons également établi le rôle anti-inflammatoire de la rapamycine (une drogue immunomodulatrice) sur les îlots et les macrophages in vitro. Nous avons ainsi démontré que l’usage de la rapamycine avec la mise en place d’un pré-traitement des îlots et du receveur avant la greffe serait envisageable. Ces travaux ont permis de caractériser les mécanismes inflammatoires mis en oeuvre immédiatement avant et après transplantation. Ainsi, ces données offrent de nouvelles pistes thérapeutiques susceptibles de prévenir et/ou limiter l’inflammation au cours de la transplantation d’îlots pancréatiques. / From isolation of pancreatic islets to their implantation, the inflammation is ubiquitous in the pancreatic islet transplantation. Maintaining a controlled inflammation is essential to preserve the survival of the graft and the functionality in the short and long term. The objective of this work is to identify precisely the inflammatory mechanisms behind the early loss of islets and identify therapeutic targets to reduce these inflammatory reactions. We have demonstrated that culture conditions induce reactions causing the development of a specific proinflammatory and pro-oxydant phenotype islet. This induction is characterized by an increase in the secretion of cytokines, chemokines pro-inflammatory activation pathways of inflammation Toll-like receptors (TLRs) -dependent and generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). However, this process can be prevented by the activation of Heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory enzyme.By studying the inflammatory responses in an animal model of transplantation mimicking the conditions of human transplantation, we demonstrated that a change of plasma mediators of inflammation and liver proteome occurs 12 hours after transplantation. Furthermore, these results are associated with infiltration of the islets by immune cells which organizes 12 hours after transplantation. We also determined the anti-inflammatory role of rapamycin (an immunomodulatory drug) on the islets and macrophages in vitro. We have thus demonstrated that the use of rapamycin with the establishment of a pre-treatment of islets and recipient before transplantation could be considered. These studies have characterized the inflammatory mechanisms implemented immediately before and after transplantation. Thus, these data provide new therapeutic approaches that can prevent and / or reduce inflammation during pancreatic islet transplantation