No description available.

Although there has been a great deal of research in the areas of social networks, social support and well-being over the past two decades, little of that research has been cross-cultural, and virtually none has been carried out in countries outside the West. The present study attempted to describe the structure and functioning of the social networks of a group of relatively modern urban Moroccan women, and the associations among their social networks, social support, physical health and psychological well-being. Extensive interviews were conducted with 108 married or previously-married women who were living in a middle-class neighborhood in Rabat, Morocco. Subjects were asked to identify social network members, defined as friends, family or others who provided various types of support in typically encountered life situations, or with whom the subject had negative interactions. Standardized self-report instruments were used to assess physical and psychological well-being, and to assess the occurrence of stressful life events. Additional observational data were collected on respondents' neighborhoods and immediate physical surroundings. A model describing the interactions between well-being, network structure and network function was tested using factor-analytic and set-regression techniques. Stressful life events predicted reduced physical well-being. Enhanced psychological functioning was predicted by reciprocity in relationships, marital satisfaction, and to a lesser degree, practical and emotional support. Contrary to predictions, patronage support was associated with both enhanced physical and psychological well-being. Results were generally consistent with Conservation of Resources (COR) theory, which predicts that the uniformly large and well-functioning networks found in this study would produce effect sizes that were small, but consistent with Western research findings.

L'orientation du choix des agriculteurs vers des variétés efficientes dans l'utilisation du P est une issue économique pour améliorer leur productivité. Dans cette optique, la variation génétique de l'efficience d'utilisation du phosphore (EUP) chez la fève a été étudiée au champ (sous conditions pluviales) et en pots sous conditions semi-contrôlées. Dans les essais au champ sur deux années et dans deux situations de disponibilité du P dans le sol (faible/optimale) la variation génétique de l'EUP a été significative. La première année, avec une teneur en P du sol de 11,35 mg P(Olsen)/kg sol (niveau optimal), la variété Defès à petites graines, produisant peu de paille, s'est révélée la plus efficiente dans l'utilisation de P. Alors que la seconde année, avec une teneur en P du sol de 5 mg P(Olsen) /kg sol) (niveau faible) la variété Karabiga à grosses graines a été la plus efficiente dans l'utilisation du P. L'EUP a été positivement corrélée à l'indice de récolte (IR) et à l'indice de récolte relatif au P (IRP). La réserve totale du P dans le grain a été positivement corrélée au poids moyen du grain à l'inverse de sa concentration en P. Dans les essais en pots on a trouvé que la grosseur du grain par son influence positive sur la biomasse (MSR) et le volume (VR) racinaires détermine la variation génétique de l'EUP. Les génotypes à grosses graines se sont révélés les plus efficients que ce soit dans l'utilisation du P du sol ou de celui apporté. L'EUP calculée sur la base de la biomasse à la floraison a été positivement corrélée au VR et à la MSR mais elle a été négativement corrélée au rapport matière sèche racinaire à la matière sèche aérienne (MSRMSA). Les génotypes à petites graines montrent une meilleure réponse à l'apport de P. L'apport du phosphore a amélioré la surface foliaire (SF), la production en biomasse à la floraison et à la maturité, la rétention des organes reproducteurs et le rendement grain. La SF et le rapport MSRMSA différencient entre génotypes tolérants/sensibles à la déficience phosphatée. Les génotypes sensibles ont une SF moins importante et un MSRMSA élevé comparativement aux génotypes tolérants. Sur cette base, l'évaluation d'un plus grand nombre de génotypes pour l'EUP est réalisable économiquement en pots mais devrait être complétée par des essais au champ sur un nombre restreint de génotypes. Selon la conduite culturale (pluviale ou irriguée) et l'utilisation du produit final, les agriculteurs peuvent se baser sur le choix du calibre de la semence de fève pour une meilleure EUP. Pour les améliorateurs, l'EUP chez la fève pourrait être augmentée par l'amélioration des indices IR et IRP / To improve productivity in an economical way, farmers need to choose varieties with a high Phosphorus (P) use efficiency. This study focuses on genetic variation of P use efficiency (PUE) on Vicia faba L, both in field (pluvial conditions) and in pots (semi-controlled conditions). Trials in field were occurred during two years and in two different situations of P availability in soil (low/optimal). The genetic variation of PUE was significant. The first year, in soil with optimal phosphorus content (11.35 mg P(Olsen)/kg soil) the variety Defès, with small seeds and producing few straw, was the more efficient in P use. Harvest index (HI) and phosphorus harvest index (PHI) were positively correlated with PUE. The second year, in soil with low phosphorus content (5 mg P(Olsen)/kg soil), the variety Karabiga, large seeds one, was the most efficient in P use. The total storage of P in seed is positively correlated with seed dry weight, even if its concentration decreases with seed dry weight. Pots trials showed the positive influence of seed size on dry matter (RDM) and volume (RV) of roots. By that way, seed size determines genetic variation of PUE. Large seeds genotypes are the most efficient, both in use of soil P and fertilizer P. There is a positive correlation between PUE based on above ground biomass production at flowering and root's characteristics (RDM, RV). Inversely, PUE is negatively correlated with root to shoot ratio (RDSDM). The P supply improved leaf area (LA), dry matter production at flowering and at maturity, retention of flowers, and seed yield. Genotypes tolerant/sensitive to P deficiency can be differentiated thanks to LA and RDSDM. Sensitive genotypes have a smaller LA and a higher RDSDM than tolerant ones. According to farmer's practices (pluvial or irrigated) and the use of the final product, farmers' choice can be based on the seed size of faba bean to achieve the best PUE. For breeders, improvement of HI and PHI indices would increase PUE on faba bean

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Université de Paris. / Includes bibliographical references.

Inaug.--diss.--Tübingen. / Lebenslauf. "Die arbeit erscheint gleichzeitig in den 'Historischen studien'." "Literaturverzeichnis": p. [5]-10.

The lower continental slope of Morocco’s west coast consists of Triassic-age salt manifested in the form of diapirs, tongues, sheets, and canopies, and both extensional and compressional structures that result from salt movements. Salt diapirism and regional tectonics greatly influenced a broad spectrum of depositional processes along the margin. Mapping of a 1064-km² (411-mi²) seismic survey acquired in the Safi Haute Mer area reveals that Jurassic to Holocene salt mobilization has induced sedimentation that manifests itself in gravity slumps and slides and debris flows. An east-west–trending structural anticline located downdip of the salt-influenced region, was activated during the Atlas uplift (latest Cretaceous) and shaped much of the lower continental slope morphology from Tertiary time until present. The largest of the mass transport deposits (MTC) is a 500-m (1640-ft)-thick Cretaceous-age unit that spans an area of up to 20,000 km2 (7722 mi2). Seismic facies composing the MTC are (1) chaotic, mounded reflectors; (2) imbricated continuous to discontinuous folded reflector packages interpreted to represent internal syn-depositional thrusts; and (3) isolated, thick packages of continuous reflectors interpreted to represent transported megablocks (3.3 km2 [1.3 mi2]). The latter show well preserved internal stratigraphy. The MTCs originated from an upslope collapse of a narrow shelf during the earliest phases of the Alpine orogeny. Seismic geomorphologic analysis of the non-salt-deformed sections reveal numerous linear features that are interpreted as migrating Mesozoic-age deepmarine sediment waves. Three styles of sediment waves have been identified. These include: (1) type J1—small (less than 17 m thick) and poorly imaged, Jurassic in age, ridges that have wavelengths of up to 12 km and crest-to-crest separations of less than 1 km; (2) type K1—early Aptian constructional sediment waves (~110 m thick) that appear to show some orientation and size variations which suggest an influence on currents by salt-influenced seafloor topography, and (3) type K2—latest Albian and earliest post-Albian sediment waves exhibiting wave heights of 40 m and crest-to-crest separations of 1 km, that are continuous across the entire study area and show evidence of up-slope migration. / text

No description available.

Interactions in culture, science, and technology in early Islamic North Africa are studied through an examination of Maghribi metallurgy. My dissertation, based on the Social/Cultural Construction of Technology (SCOT) model (Bijker 1997), explores the impact of the Islamic religion and culture on scientific and technological change in the spheres of gold and silver minting, copper working, and iron smelting towards reconstructing the role and impact of metals in Islamic society. The purpose of my reconstruction is to define and contextualize early Islamic Maghribi metallurgy for a region and time period poorly defined in the history of metallurgical technology. The development of this history of technology involves the investigation of technical design within a religious framework, presenting explanations for the motivations of the use of certain metals from both their intrinsic and instrumental properties. This specialized history is important in that it provides information of significance on the larger scope of the history of technology and science and on the structure of Islamic society. This study uses multiple lines of evidence, including historical documents, numismatic evidence, and archaeological data in an effort to situate the role of early Islamic Maghribi metallurgy into the framework of the history of African metallurgy. The religious and cultural meanings of metals are outlined through the compilation of their mention in the qur’ān, the Hadīth, and the chronicles of travelers. Coinage survey positions the political and economic role of the Islamic state, and addresses the stability of western-periphery polities within the state and the concerns of a dogmatically motivated bimetal system. The site of al-Basra, Morocco, a state mint under the Idrisid rule (A.D. 788-959), is the source for the excavated metal materials; the metal artifacts, unprocessed minerals, slag, non-metal tools associated with the metal production, and metallurgical facilities are described in their historical context. This dissertation presents, for the first time ever, an English translation of al-dawHa al-mushtabika fī DawābiT dār al-sika (The Intricate Tree in the Realm of the House of Minting). This fourteenth century Arabic text details the meaning, production, and uses of metals in medieval Islamic society, and serves as a unit of study within Maghribi metallurgical technology. An ethnographic study of the metal artisans of Fes, Morocco provides a modern-day reflection to this reconstruction. This study supports the SCOT methodology by identifying the relationships between scientific and technological practices and systems of belief. The Islamic culture and its practices -- which were part codified religion, part belief system -- were subject to change based on the contextual situations of the society. This study demonstrates that the society’s metallurgical practices were subject to the same conditions. The metallurgical know-how within Islamic Maghribi society was, and is, a direct reflection of the unifying themes embedded in the culture.

No description available.

No description available.