Il est connu que le vieillissement de la population canadienne va augmenter la demande d’aide à domicile et qu’un soutien insuffisant du secteur public accroît l’implication des réseaux informels et privés. En s’appuyant sur les données de l’Enquête nationale sur la santé de la population (ENSP) et de l’Enquête sur la santé dans les collectivités canadiennes (ESCC), cette recherche analyse les tendances et déterminants de l’utilisation de l’aide à domicile subventionnée par le gouvernement au Canada et en Ontario entre 1996-1997 et 2009-2010. Il en ressort que la proportion de bénéficiaires âgés de 65 ans et plus est en diminution, passant de 9,9% à 9,2% au Canada (1996-1997 à 2005) et de 10,2% à 8,8% puis 9,6% en Ontario (1996-1997, 2005, 2009-2010). Les compressions sont particulièrement ressenties dans les services de maintien à domicile, dont l’aide pour les travaux ménagers (de 51% à 34% en Ontario). Les personnes âgées, les femmes, les gens vivant seuls ou qui ont besoin d’assistance pour accomplir certaines activités de la vie quotidienne (AVQ) ou activités instrumentales de la vie quotidienne (AIVQ) reçoivent de moins en moins d’aide publique à domicile. En conclusion, le présent système de santé, qui semble se concentrer sur les soins de santé plutôt que sur les services de maintien, ne répond pas aux besoins des personnes âgées. Par ailleurs, le cas ontarien évoque l’impact que peuvent avoir les décisions politiques sur l’utilisation de l’aide à domicile. Les résultats suggèrent qu’entre 1996-1997 et 2005, ce sont surtout les personnes âgées de 18 à 64 ans et ceux nécessitant des soins qui bénéficièrent des programmes publics. Durant la période suivante (2005 à 2009-2010), il semble y avoir un intérêt plus marqué pour les 65 ans et plus dont la proportion d’utilisateurs s’accroît plus rapidement. / It is known that the aging of the Canadian population will increase the demand for home care and that insufficient support from the public sector increases the implication of the informal and private networks. Using cross-sectional data from the National Population Health Survey (NPHS) and the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS), this research analyzes the trends and predictors of subsidized home care in Canada and Ontario between 1996/97 and 2009/10. It shows that the proportion of care receivers aged 65 and older is decreasing, going down from 9.9% to 9.2% in Canada (1996/97 to 2005) and from 10.2% to 8.8% then 9.6% in Ontario (1996/97, 2005, 2009/10). Government cuts are particularly felt in terms of home support services, like support for housework (from 51% to 34% in Ontario). Older persons, women, people living alone or those who need assistance to perform some activities of daily living (ADLs) or instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs) are receiving less and less subsidized home care. In conclusion, the actual health system, that appear to focus on health care instead of home support services, do not meet the needs of older persons. Furthermore, the Ontario case evokes the effect that policies can have on home care utilization. Results suggest that between 1996/97 and 2005, it is mostly persons aged from 18 to 64 years old or needing health care that benefited from the public program. During the next period (2005 to 2009/10), there seems to be a greater interest for the 65 and older, whose proportion of users increases more rapidly.

This thesis outlines the development of the doctrine of Purgatory in the theology of the nineteenth century theologian John Henry Newman (1801-1890). I trace the beginning of this development from 1816-1828 by identifying key theological themes from Newman’s early Evangelical writings on holiness, purification and conversion. After rejecting the Evangelicalism of his youth, Newman moved progressively towards High-Church Anglicanism from 1828 onward, and adopted the Anglican teaching of the 'intermediate state'. From 1830 he began to preach on this teaching by presenting it as an alternative to the 'depressing prospect' to the 'Romish' doctrine of Purgatory. However from 1837-1845 his views on Purgatory shifted considerably after studying the Tridentine decrees. In 1841 he claimed in Tract XC of Tracts for the Times that significant changes in the formulation of Article XXII of the XXXIX Articles meant that the Church of England did not reject the doctrine of Purgatory in its primitive form, but rather only the 'Romish' extremes of mediaeval theology which had corrupted her teaching. His claim that there was no disparity between what Trent taught on Purgatory and what the Church of England held in Article XXII caused widespread controversy among his contemporaries. In his early Roman Catholic years, from 1845-1853, he initially adopted the commonly held punitive model of Purgatory, but leaned increasingly towards an ameliorative understanding of the doctrine. By 1865 Newman had adumbrated a theology of Purgatory in The Dream of Gerontius, in which he showed how rather than being purged by material fire, the soul was purified by a singular and instantaneous experience of the holiness of God. I demonstrate how his theology of Purgatory in the Dream represents a significant contribution to a renewed understanding of the doctrine in Roman Catholic theology.

高莘. / 論文(哲學博士)--香港中文大學, 2007. / 參考文獻(p. 229-254). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstracts in Chinese and English. / Lun wen (zhe xue bo shi)--Xianggang Zhong wen da xue, 2007. / Can kao wen xian (p. 229-254). / Gao Xin.

Battery technology is a great candidate for energy storage applications. The need for high-performance and cost-effective batteries has motivated researchers to put much effort into improving battery performance. In this work, we attempt to understand the elements that affect the microstructure and performance of two battery systems. The first part of this work focuses on the investigation of transport and structural properties of porous electrodes in an alkaline electrolyte. A DC polarization method was deployed for tortuosity measurements. An apparatus was designed to flow specified current through and measure the voltage drop over the porous electrodes. Using a modified Ohm's law, effective diffusion coefficient and associated tortuosity were determined. Multiple compositions (different types and amounts of conductive additives) were tested to understand the effects of composition on the transport properties. As a validation and to further understand the tests, a model was developed and used for data analysis. The second part of this dissertation describes simulations of the manufacturing process of a Li-ion electrode. LAMMPS, a particle simulator, was used for this meso-scale particle-based simulation. The interactions between particles were understood by model-experiment comparisons of the macroscopic properties such as viscosity of the slurry and elasticity of the dried film. The microstructure created by this simulation was consistent with the one we observed in SEM/ FIB images. Although the emphasis was the drying process in this part, some preliminary coating and calendering simulations are presented. Finally, the effects of electrode heterogeneity were investigated by a Newman-type model and tomographic images. An electronic conductivity map was initially generated over a Li-ion cathode. Then SEM/FIB images of specified high, middle, and low conductivity regions were taken to confirm heterogeneity. For modeling purposes, three regions of high, middle, and low ionic resistance were considered connected in parallel, representing the real electrode heterogeneity. Multiple cases of heterogeneities such as non-uniform ionic resistance and active material loading at low, middle, and high charge-discharge rates were studied. The results show that higher rates increase non-uniformities of dependent properties such as temperature, current density, positive and negative electrodes states of charge, and charge and discharge capacities especially in charging cases.

<p>Asymptotically flat spaces are widely studied because it is one natural way of describing an isolated system in general relativity. In this thesis we study what happens to the Lanczos potential at spacelike infinity in such spacetimes. By transformations of the Weyl-Lanczos equation, we derive expressions for the limiting equations on both the timelike unit hyperboloid, and the timelike unit cylinder. Finally the Newman-Penrose formalism is used to get a component version of the equations.</p>

<p>In this thesis we calculate the Hawking mass numerically for surfaces in Kerr spacetime. The Hawking mass is a useful tool for proving the Penrose inequality and the result does not contradict the inequality. It also does not contradict the assumption that the Hawking mass should be monotonic for surfaces in Kerr spacetime. The Hawking mass is quasi-local and defined by the spin coefficents of Newman and Penrose, so first we give a discussion about quasi-local quantities and then a short description of the Newman-Penrose formalism.</p>

John Henry Newman (1801-1890) ha sviluppato una riflessione filosofia originale circa la questione della certezza nel suo Essay in Aid of a Grammar of Assent (1870). Con questo saggio egli si inserisce nella britannica tradizione filosofica di riflessione sulla gnoseologica e l’atto d’assenso. La tesi presenta uno studio sulla genesi dell’opera. Anzitutto si offre una ricostruzione del pensiero newmaniano per mezzo di un excursus tra le principali opere, la corrispondenza e gli scritti contenenti il lavoro di elaborazione delle tesi contenute nel saggio. Inoltre, viene ripercorsa la tradizione britannica di riflessione sulla certezza al fine di far emergere, per paragone, l’originalità del Saggio di Newman. I fattori di questa originalità vengono, infine, esposti nell’ultimo capitolo. Questo studio permette di documentare i fattori essenziali di uno specifico realismo newmaniano fondato sul primato della persona e la dinamica di elaborazione di una diversa e più ampia concezione moderna della razionalità. Tale novità emerge dalle riflessioni svolte da Newman sulle nozioni di real, notional, probability. / In his Essay in Aid of a Grammar of Assent (1870) John Henry Newman develops an original philosophical thought about the question of certainty. By means of the Essay he enters into the British philosophical tradition of thinking about gnoseology and the act of assent. This thesis shows the genesis of that work. First of all the development of Newman’s thought is analyzed by an excursus through his main works, his correspondence and papers which hold the elaboration of Essay’s contents. Then, British tradition of thinking about certainty is retraced in order to point out, by comparison, the originality of Newman’s Essay. At last, the elements of that originality are explained in the last chapter. This study documents the essential elements of a specific newmanian realism based on the primacy of human person, and it record the development of a differently modern and wider notion of reason. Such a difference of conception is testified by Newman’s remarks about the concepts of real, notional and probability.

Asymptotically flat spaces are widely studied because it is one natural way of describing an isolated system in general relativity. In this thesis we study what happens to the Lanczos potential at spacelike infinity in such spacetimes. By transformations of the Weyl-Lanczos equation, we derive expressions for the limiting equations on both the timelike unit hyperboloid, and the timelike unit cylinder. Finally the Newman-Penrose formalism is used to get a component version of the equations.

In this thesis we calculate the Hawking mass numerically for surfaces in Kerr spacetime. The Hawking mass is a useful tool for proving the Penrose inequality and the result does not contradict the inequality. It also does not contradict the assumption that the Hawking mass should be monotonic for surfaces in Kerr spacetime. The Hawking mass is quasi-local and defined by the spin coefficents of Newman and Penrose, so first we give a discussion about quasi-local quantities and then a short description of the Newman-Penrose formalism.

The semi-classical black hole tunnelling method is a useful technique to calculate black hole temperature and understand black hole thermodynamics. I will investigate the black hole tunnelling method in detail. I will compare two different approaches used to calculate black hole tunnelling. The tunnelling method can be applied to a broad range of spacetimes and I will show this explicitly in order to demonstrate the robustness of the tunnelling technique. In particular, I will apply the tunnelling method to spacetimes including: Rindler (the method can recover the Unruh temperature), and more general spacetimes (such as Kerr-Newman and Taub-NUT). I will also discuss the 5d Kerr-Gödel spacetimes in detail (while showing a previous unobserved property of these spaces). Once the parameter space of Kerr-Gödel is understood in detail, I will show how the tunnelling method can also be successfully applied to the Kerr-Gödel black hole. Finally, the key result of my thesis involves extending the tunnelling method to model fermion emission. The previous tunnelling calculations all involved the emission of scalar particles. I will model the emission of spin-1/2 fermions from various spacetimes including the Rindler spacetime and general non-rotating black holes. I will also model the emission of charged spin-1/2 fermions from the Kerr-Newman spacetime to show that the method is also applicable to rotating spacetimes. In all these cases I show that the correct Hawking temperature (Unruh temperature in the case of Rindler) is recovered for spin-1/2 fermion emission. Although this final result is not surprising, it is an important result because it confirms that Dirac particles will radiate from the black hole at the same temperature as scalar particles. It has always been assumed that this is the case but there is very little literature involving fermion radiation of black holes. So the results of my calculations are twofold, I demonstrate that Dirac particles are emitted at the same temperature as scalar particles from a black hole and it shows how robust the semi-classical tunnelling technique is.