In this study, we aim to explore the characteristics of different AI algorithms using the classical Chinese board game xiangqi as the testbed. We did this by utilizing four different build-in AI agents in Ludii: Random, Flat MC, UCT and Minimax, and having them playing against each other in all possible match ups and exploring their play patterns. The result shows that in terms of the most basic play patterns, i.e., the win/loss rate, we can arrive at a skill ranking as follows: Minimax > UCT > Flat MC > Random. When it comes to more specific metrics such as piece frequency and taking out, Minimax also stands out from all the other three AI agents. We believe this study is a good starting point for looking into deeper how these AI agents differ from each other. The study also suggests that just the type of algorithm and how it is implemented can already possibly affect the observed play patterns and for further research exploring mapping between AI and play types it is important to be familiar with the default playing pattern of these AI algorithms before turning them into specific player types.

Globalization is spreading worldwide and it is coming together with its norms. These norms are not appreciated worldwide and there are many nations which have significant populations that are opposed to globalization and its norms. Mc Donald’s is a multinational corporation, it is entering and expanding into different markets as a result of globalization. Nevertheless, this should not indicate that it is an easy goal to spread worldwide for Mc Donald’s due to the anti-globalization movements. Hence, Mc Donald’s developed the concept of “think global, act local” which is highly related to glocalization marketing strategy. Mc Donald’s is using local assets, local services, local goods and even the company is producing special products for each country as a results of the glocalization marketing strategy. Turkey has a unique culture between the East and the West and it is one of the countries in which Mc Donald’s have significant growth in the last 15 years. Mc Donald’s has a specific menu for Turkey and there are many products which are actually glocalized. As a matter of fact, this work focuses on the glocalization marketing strategy of Mc Donald’s in Turkey.

ELEMENTAL AND ISOTOPIC STUDY OF DIFFERENTIATED METEORITES AND IMPLICATIONS FOR THE ORIGIN AND EVOLUTION OF THEIR PARENT BODIES Iron meteorites are differentiated meteorites composed largely of Fe-Ni alloys. The metallic phase of many iron meteorites shows a texture called the Widmanstätten pattern, which develops as a two-phase intergrowth of kamacite (α-bcc, ferrite) and taenite (γ-fcc, austenite), and forms by nucleation and growth of kamacite from taenite during slow cooling of the parent body. Selected iron meteorites - octahedrites of different structural and chemical groups (Canyon Diablo, Toluca, Bohumilitz, Horh Uul, Alt Biela, Nelson County, Gibeon and Joe Wright Mountain) were studied with intention to evaluate the scale and extent of Fe isotopic heterogeneities in iron meteorites and to find the possible link between the isotopic variations and thermal histories of the respective meteorite parent bodies. The Fe isotopic compositions of kamacite and taenite in the studied meteorites, obtained by three independent analytical techniques with different spatial resolution capabilities (laser ablation and solution MC ICP-MS and SIMS) show significant variations of up to ~4.5‰ in δ56 Fe. The taenite is isotopically heavier compared to kamacite in all studied meteorites. There is no correlation...

O objetivo desta tese é basicamente problematizar quatro questões: quais são os sentidos e os significados que estão em jogo para o termo periferia; qual é a influência da atuação dos coletivos artísticos da periferia na formulação de um novo significado para o termo periferia; por que houve uma explosão de atividades culturais na periferia nos últimos vinte anos e; qual o caráter e o alcance da ação política desses coletivos artísticos. Para tanto, o texto parte do contexto social da década de 1990, quando as periferias de São Paulo sofriam os desdobramentos do neoliberalismo e um alto índice de homicídios. Logo, o texto aponta algumas mudanças ocorridas nas últimas duas décadas nessas periferias. Algumas delas são o aumento do número de coletivos artísticos nesses bairros, tema principal desta tese; o crescimento evangélico e a presença do PCC. Também se discorre sobre o aumento da atuação de ONGs e do poder público nas periferias. Por fim, o texto conceitua a obra do grupo de rap Racionais MC´s como sendo a narrativa legitimada por essa população para contar sua história e discorre sobre uma nova subjetividade surgida na periferia e centrada no orgulho dessa condição. O indivíduo que passa a agir politicamente a partir desse orgulho é denominado neste trabalho como sujeito periférico. O texto discorre também sobre como três campos discursivos obtiveram a preponderância para definir o que seja periferia em distintos tempos históricos. Estes campos discursivos são: o discurso acadêmico, os coletivos artísticos da periferia e a indústria do entretenimento. Logo, realiza uma aprofundada análise histórica, social e política da obra dos Racionais MC´s tentando entender por que o discurso enunciado por esse grupo causou tanto impacto nas periferias e criou uma nova forma de entendimento sobre o que seja periferia para o todo da sociedade, além de influenciar a própria auto-imagem que os moradores da periferia passaram a possuir de si mesmos. Entrelaçado a esse fenômeno, o texto discute como nos últimos vinte anos houve um alargamento do significado do termo periferia, que já não passa a ser definido somente pelo binômio pobreza e violência, mas também pelos elementos cultura e potência. No entanto, esta potencialidade da população periférica pode ser utilizada para sua afirmação política ou para fins mercadológicos, expressos em uma certa celebração dos pobres visualizada na atualidade que por um lado esvazia o caráter crítico do termo periferia e por outro celebra a denominada Classe C. Por fim, esta tese apresenta os resultados de pesquisas etnográficas realizadas em coletivos artísticos da periferia de São Paulo discutindo como estes coletivos influenciaram na ressemantização do termo periferia. Também se problematiza neste trabalho o labor estético e fundamentalmente político desses coletivos, em um contexto de crise das formas clássicas de mobilização política. / The aim of this thesis is basically to discuss four issues: what are the senses and the meanings that are at stake for the term periphery; what is the influence of the periphery artistic collective action in formulating a new meaning to the term periphery; why has there been an explosion of cultural activities in the periphery in the last twenty years; which is the character and scope of the political action of such artistic collectives. Therefore, the text starts off from the social context of the 1990s, when the periphery of São Paulo suffered the consequences of neoliberalism and a high murder rate. Soon, the text indicates some changes which have happened within the last two decades in these peripheries. Some of those are the increasing number of cultural collectives in these neighborhoods, the main theme of this thesis; the evangelical growth and the presence of the PCC. It also discusses the increased presence of NGOs and public authorities in the periphery. Finally, the text defines the work of the rap group Racionais MC\'s as the narrative legitimized by this population to tell their story and discusses a new subjectivity emerged in the periphery and centered on the pride of such condition. The individual who starts to act politically from that pride is termed here as a peripheral subject (sujeito periférico). The text also discusses how three discursive fields obtained the preponderance to define what periphery is in different historical times. These discursive fields: the academic discourse, the artistic collectives of the periphery and the entertainment industry. Therefore, it conducts a thorough historical, social and political analysis of the work of the Racionais MC\'s trying to understand why the discourse produced by this group has caused such an impact on the peripheries and has created a new way of understanding what periphery is to the whole of society, while influencing the very self-image that periphery dwellers have of themselves. Intertwined with this phenomenon, the paper discusses how, in the past twenty years, there has been a modification to the term periphery, which no longer comes to be defined only by the binomial poverty and violence, but also by the elements culture and potential. However, this potential of the peripheral population may either be used for their political statement or for marketing purposes, expressed in a certain celebration of the poor which is currently observed and which on the one side empties the critical nature of the term periphery and on the other side celebrates the so-called \"Class C\". Finally, this thesis presents the results of an ethnographic research conducted with artistic collectives in the periphery of São Paulo by discussing how these collectives influenced in the resemantization of the term periphery. In addition, this paper discusses the fundamentally political and aesthetic work of these collectives in the context of a crisis of the classical forms of political mobilization.

Wie haben sich rechtsextreme Orientierungen in die Mitte der Gesellschaft drängen können? Diese Kernfrage wird am Beispiel der Stadt Hennigsdorf geklärt. Es geht darum zu zeigen, wie einige wenige Einwohner dagegen kämpfen und die Bevölkerung der Stadt, der Bürgermeister, die Stadtverwaltung, die Stadtverordnetenversammlung und die Pressevertreter darauf reagieren. Des Weiteren soll geklärt werden, welche Ansatzmöglichkeiten existieren, dem Rechtsextremismus in Hennigsdorf besser als zuvor zu begegnen. Im ersten Teil wird die Untersuchung vorgestellt: Es werden die Bedingungen der Stadt Hennigsdorf, der Zugang zu den Probanden und der rechten Szene und die Art sowie mit ausgewählten Vertretern der Institutionen, vor allem aber mit sechs rechtsextrem orientierten Jugendlichen, die auch porträtiert werden. Im zweiten Teil zur Theorie werden die verschiedenen Debatten um den Begriff des Rechtsextremismus und dem der Demokratie dargelegt und dann auf die allgemeinen und Hennigsdorf-spezifischen rechtsextremen Erscheinungsformen vor allem in der Jugendkultur und ihrer Verankerung eingegangen. Anschließend werden die makrogesellschaftlichen Bedingungen für Rechtsextremismus in der Geschichte der DDR und den Rechtsextremismus insbesondere in der späten DDR als Ausdruck von Widerstand und Ressentiments - mit einer besonderen Akzentuierung von Gewalt und gewalttätigen Formationen am Ende der DDR in und um Oranienburg – gewissermaßen als gesellschaftlichen Boden für eine dann sehr schnelle Ausweitung nach der Wiedervereinigung im Kontext schwerer sozialer, ökonomischer und mentaler Erschütterungen, die bis in die Familienkonflikte hineinreichen. / How have radically right-wing orientations been able to push to the middle of the society? This central issue is cleared at the example of the city of Hennigsdorf. It is all about showing how some few inhabitants fight against it and the population of the town, the mayor, the municipal authority, the municipal council and the representatives of the press react to it. Furthermore it shall be cleared, which possibilities exist to face the right-wing extremism better than before in Hennigsdorf. The analysis is introduced in the first part: The conditions of the city of Hennigsdorf, the entry to the probands, the right scene and representatives of the institutions, six right-wing orientated teenager also will be portrayed. The different debates about the term right-wing are explained in the second part and then discussed in relation to Hennigsdorf. Then it is explained how the macro social conditions for right-wing extremism developed in the history of the DDR as an expression of resistance and resentments - with a special accentuation of force and violent formations at the end the DDR in and around Hennigsdorf and Oranienburg.

Chemical weathering of silicate rock consumes atmospheric CO2 and supplies the oceans with cations, thereby controlling both seawater chemistry and climate. The rate of CO2 consumption is closely linked to the rate of CO2 outgassing from the planetary interior, providing a negative feedback loop essential to maintaining an equable climate on Earth. Reconstruction of past global temperatures indicates that a pronounced episode of global cooling began ~50 million years ago, coincident with the collision of India and Asia, and the subsequent exhumation of the Himalayas and Tibet. This has drawn attention to the possible links between exhumation, erosion, changes in silicate weathering rates, and climate. However, many of the present-day weathering processes operating on the continents remain debated and poorly constrained, hampering our interpretations of marine geochemical archives and past climatic shifts. To constrain the controls on silicate weathering, this thesis investigates the lithium (Li) isotopic composition of river waters, suspended sediments and bed load sediments in the Alaknanda river basin, forming the headwaters of the Ganges. Due to the large fractionation of Li isotopes in the Earth’s surface environment, Li is sensitive to small changes in silicate weathering processes. As a consequence of the pronounced gradients in climate (rainfall and temperature) and erosion across the basin, the river waters show large variations in their Li isotopic composition (δ7Li), ranging from +7.4 to +35.4‰, covering much of the observed global variation. This allows a detailed investigation of the controls on Li isotope fractionation, and by extension silicate weathering. The Li isotopic composition is modelled using a one-dimensional reactive transport model. The model incorporates the continuous input of Li from rock dissolution, removal due to secondary mineral formation, and hydrology along subsurface flow paths. Modelling shows that the Li isotopic variations can be described by two dimensionless variables; (1) the Damköhler number, ND, which relates the silicate dissolution rate to the fluid transit time, and (2) the net partition coefficient of Li during weathering, kp, describing the partitioning of Li between secondary clay minerals and water, which is primarily controlled by the stoichiometry of the weathering reactions. The derived values of the controlling parameters ND and kp, are investigated over a range of climatic conditions and on a seasonal basis, shedding light onto variations in the silicate weathering cycle. In a kinetically limited weathering regime such as the Himalayan Mountains, both climate and erosion exert critical controls the weathering intensity (the fraction of eroded rock which is dissolved) and the weathering progression (which minerals that are being weathered), and consequently the fractionation of Li isotopes and silicate weathering in general. Modelling of the Li isotopic composition provides an independent estimate of the parameters which control silicate weathering. These estimates are then used to constrain variables such as subsurface fluid flux, silicate dissolution rates, fluid transit times and the fraction of rock which is weathered to form secondary clay minerals. The simple one-dimensional reactive transport model therefore provides a powerful tool to investigate the minimum controls on silicate weathering on the continents.

O objetivo desta tese é basicamente problematizar quatro questões: quais são os sentidos e os significados que estão em jogo para o termo periferia; qual é a influência da atuação dos coletivos artísticos da periferia na formulação de um novo significado para o termo periferia; por que houve uma explosão de atividades culturais na periferia nos últimos vinte anos e; qual o caráter e o alcance da ação política desses coletivos artísticos. Para tanto, o texto parte do contexto social da década de 1990, quando as periferias de São Paulo sofriam os desdobramentos do neoliberalismo e um alto índice de homicídios. Logo, o texto aponta algumas mudanças ocorridas nas últimas duas décadas nessas periferias. Algumas delas são o aumento do número de coletivos artísticos nesses bairros, tema principal desta tese; o crescimento evangélico e a presença do PCC. Também se discorre sobre o aumento da atuação de ONGs e do poder público nas periferias. Por fim, o texto conceitua a obra do grupo de rap Racionais MC´s como sendo a narrativa legitimada por essa população para contar sua história e discorre sobre uma nova subjetividade surgida na periferia e centrada no orgulho dessa condição. O indivíduo que passa a agir politicamente a partir desse orgulho é denominado neste trabalho como sujeito periférico. O texto discorre também sobre como três campos discursivos obtiveram a preponderância para definir o que seja periferia em distintos tempos históricos. Estes campos discursivos são: o discurso acadêmico, os coletivos artísticos da periferia e a indústria do entretenimento. Logo, realiza uma aprofundada análise histórica, social e política da obra dos Racionais MC´s tentando entender por que o discurso enunciado por esse grupo causou tanto impacto nas periferias e criou uma nova forma de entendimento sobre o que seja periferia para o todo da sociedade, além de influenciar a própria auto-imagem que os moradores da periferia passaram a possuir de si mesmos. Entrelaçado a esse fenômeno, o texto discute como nos últimos vinte anos houve um alargamento do significado do termo periferia, que já não passa a ser definido somente pelo binômio pobreza e violência, mas também pelos elementos cultura e potência. No entanto, esta potencialidade da população periférica pode ser utilizada para sua afirmação política ou para fins mercadológicos, expressos em uma certa celebração dos pobres visualizada na atualidade que por um lado esvazia o caráter crítico do termo periferia e por outro celebra a denominada Classe C. Por fim, esta tese apresenta os resultados de pesquisas etnográficas realizadas em coletivos artísticos da periferia de São Paulo discutindo como estes coletivos influenciaram na ressemantização do termo periferia. Também se problematiza neste trabalho o labor estético e fundamentalmente político desses coletivos, em um contexto de crise das formas clássicas de mobilização política. / The aim of this thesis is basically to discuss four issues: what are the senses and the meanings that are at stake for the term periphery; what is the influence of the periphery artistic collective action in formulating a new meaning to the term periphery; why has there been an explosion of cultural activities in the periphery in the last twenty years; which is the character and scope of the political action of such artistic collectives. Therefore, the text starts off from the social context of the 1990s, when the periphery of São Paulo suffered the consequences of neoliberalism and a high murder rate. Soon, the text indicates some changes which have happened within the last two decades in these peripheries. Some of those are the increasing number of cultural collectives in these neighborhoods, the main theme of this thesis; the evangelical growth and the presence of the PCC. It also discusses the increased presence of NGOs and public authorities in the periphery. Finally, the text defines the work of the rap group Racionais MC\'s as the narrative legitimized by this population to tell their story and discusses a new subjectivity emerged in the periphery and centered on the pride of such condition. The individual who starts to act politically from that pride is termed here as a peripheral subject (sujeito periférico). The text also discusses how three discursive fields obtained the preponderance to define what periphery is in different historical times. These discursive fields: the academic discourse, the artistic collectives of the periphery and the entertainment industry. Therefore, it conducts a thorough historical, social and political analysis of the work of the Racionais MC\'s trying to understand why the discourse produced by this group has caused such an impact on the peripheries and has created a new way of understanding what periphery is to the whole of society, while influencing the very self-image that periphery dwellers have of themselves. Intertwined with this phenomenon, the paper discusses how, in the past twenty years, there has been a modification to the term periphery, which no longer comes to be defined only by the binomial poverty and violence, but also by the elements culture and potential. However, this potential of the peripheral population may either be used for their political statement or for marketing purposes, expressed in a certain celebration of the poor which is currently observed and which on the one side empties the critical nature of the term periphery and on the other side celebrates the so-called \"Class C\". Finally, this thesis presents the results of an ethnographic research conducted with artistic collectives in the periphery of São Paulo by discussing how these collectives influenced in the resemantization of the term periphery. In addition, this paper discusses the fundamentally political and aesthetic work of these collectives in the context of a crisis of the classical forms of political mobilization.

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Ce manuscrit présente les premiers résultats d'études élémentaires et isotopiques du Zn, du Sr et du Pb, réalisées dans les principaux types d'échantillons liés aux gaz volcaniques (gaz, sublimés, eaux thermales, roches), ainsi que deux nouvelles méthodologies d'échantillonnage des émanations volcaniques. Les variations isotopiques du Zn observées au Merapi suggèrent que les processus de changement de phase (fluides/solides) peuvent provoquer des fractionnements isotopiques significatifs des éléments trace métalliques. L'étude couplée Sr/Pb réalisée à Vulcano indique que les compositions en éléments trace métalliques des fumerolles et des eaux thermales sont influencées par les sources naturelles et anthropiques. Ce travail a aussi permis la mise au point de nouvelles méthodologies d'échantillonnage et d'analyse des gaz et des panaches volcaniques, permettant d'accéder à la composition chimique complète de ces manifestations gazeuses de manière simple et efficace.

Dans la recherche de modulations adaptées à la voie descendante des réseaux cellulaires 4G, i.e. permettant le transfert de données à haut débit tout en garantissant une grande mobilité aux utilisateurs, les systèmes MC-CDMA s'affirment aujourd'hui comme des solutions à fort potentiel. Ces techniques reposent sur la combinaison des modulations à porteuses multiples et l'étalement de spectre qui permet l'accès multiple par répartition de code. En parallèle, les sytèmes MIMO constituent une nouvelle voie très prometteuse améliorant notablement l'efficacité spectrale des systèmes hertziens via la dimension spatiale. Cette thèse porte sur l'optimisation des systèmes MIMO/MC-CDMA par l'étude des codes temps-espace en blocs (STBC)ou en treillis (STTC).<br /><br />Après un état de l'art relativement exhaustif des systèmes MIMO en général et des codes temps-espace en particulier, nous proposons de nouveaux codes STBC orthogonaux, puis une représentation polynômiale permettant la comparaison des codes STTC existants. La combinaison STBC/MC-CDMA étudiée ensuite améliore sensiblement les performances d'un système MC-CDMA SISO tout en autorisant un décodage relativement simple. Leur optimisation repose sur des techniques de détection mono-utilisateurs ou multi-utilisateurs. Leur performances sont évaluées dans des configurations MISO ou MIMO, aussi bien sur des canaux théoriques que sur des canaux réalistes. Enfin, la combinaison STTC/MC-CDMA est étudiée.