Les fraternités ou les confréries de Notre Dame du Rosaire des Hommes Noirs sont apparues au Brésil au cours de la période de l'esclavage, en manifestant un grand intérêt pour les Africains, libres et captifs, et leurs descendants. Malgré l'imposition du culte catholique qui les caractérisait, ces associations laïques n'ont pas cessé d'être un vecteur de création de sociabilités et de construction d'identités. Il serait ainsi possible de prétendre que les noirs ont élaboré, à partir des confréries les accueillant dans le Nouveau Monde, des modes alternatifs d'existence en acceptant la religion du maître et en incorporant simultanément les rituels et les symboles culturels mémorisant leur appartenance aux sociétés de provenance. Cette ambiguïté marque probablement ce qui les singularisait en particulier, d'autant plus que pour exister ces associations dépendaient nécessairement de la bénédiction du pouvoir séculier et religieux par la reconnaissance de leurs statuts et de leurs règles. Selon différentes approches, ces aspects sont présentés dans l'étude qui suit sur la fraternité de Notre Dame du Rosaire des Hommes Noirs, située dans la ville de Quixeramobim, dans l'intérieur du Ceará au Brésil, aux alentours de l'année 1755, et accueillant les esclaves issus de la région africaine de l'Angola. L'objet de la recherche, qui ne constitue nullement une revendication, une création ou une assimilation par les membres de cette fraternité au long de son existence presque bicentenaire, problématise la notion de groupe de provenance. C'est à partir de cette problématique que le concept d'identité est ici interrogé. De même, une description ethnographique du processus de constitution et d'organisation de la confrérie est présentée, attentive à ses dimensions diachroniques et synchroniques. Pour cette dernière, le dialogue avec des descendants d'anciens membres de l'organisation de la confrérie a été indispensable, surtout pour recueillir la mémoire du plus important rite de sociabilité de la fraternité : la fête de commémoration de sa patronne Notre Dame du Rosaire. / The brotherhoods of Nossa Senhora do Rosário dos Homens Pretos flourished in Brazil during the slavery period. They were of great interest for African people and their descendants. In spite of being characterized by the imposition of Catholic cults, these lay-led associations revealed as a means for group socialization and identity construction. In this way, such brotherhoods became a space through which black people could produce an alternative form of existence in the world. While at times they were led to accept the religion of their slavery masters, at times they embodied cultural symbols which connected them to the societies from which they had been removed. This ambiguity is perhaps one of the most visible features of this type of brotherhoods. I explore these issues in my study about the brotherhood of Nossa Senhora do Rosário dos Homens Pretos, which was established by slaves of Angolan origin in Quixeramobim, in the back-lands of Ceará, Brazil, around the year of 1755. Throughout the period of two centuries, the idea of Angolan origin has not been claimed as a central idea in the foundation and continuity of this brotherhood. Yet, it emerges in the notion of group of origin. While doing an ethnographic description of the processes involved in the making of this brotherhood, here I also introduce the concept of identity. Through my dialog with the descendants of the old members of this association I attempt to recuperate the memory of its main form of sociability: the feast of Nossa Senhora do Rosário.

Les règles d'origine sont employées pour définir l'endroit où un produit était manufacturé. Pour comprendre l'évolution du commerce, particulièrement lorsqu'il s'agit des accords unilatéraux et bilatéraux, la connaissance des règles d'origine préférentielles et le cumul est nécessaire. Les règles d'origine préférentielles jouent un rôle légitime dans la prévention des déviations commerciales. L'UE a le plus grand nombre d'accords commerciaux préférentiels avec un niveau élevé d'harmonisation des lois d'origine, par exemple l'accord économique d'association (EPA) pour 78 pays ACP et le système du cumul pour l'Euromed. Comme nous savons, la subvention pour le produit d'agriculture tel que le sucre de l'UE et le coton des Etats-Unis sont la raison principale qui cause la pauvreté des PMA. Ainsi, les objets principaux de cette dissertation est veulent trouver : Est-ce que l'UE emploie vraiment sincèrement les règles d'origine préférentielles pour aider les PMA ou veut juste garder leurs avantages coloniaux historiques? Pourquoi les pays membre de l'UE contre la nouvelle politique de la commission à la CJUE après les plaignantes a pris la consultation à l'OMC par le même produit ? Comment les règles d'origine préférentielles de l'UE garde-t-elle l'harmonie avec leurs pays membres et les Etats membres de l'OMC? Pourrions-nous trouver une solution de s'améliorer ou remplacer les règles d'origine préférentielles de l'UE pour empêcher un autre cas se produire dans l'OMC et le CJCE pour le même produit? Nous trouverons la réponse à la conclusion. / Rules of origin are used to define the place where a product was manufactured. To understand the evolution of trade, especially in the cases of unilateral and bilateral trade agreements, the knowledge of the preferential rules of origin and cumulation is necessary.The preferential rules of origin play a legitimate part in the prevention of the commercial deviations. The EU has the largest number of preferential trade agreements with a high degree of harmonization of origin laws, for example the Economic Partnership Agreement （EPA） for 78 ACP countries and the system of cumulation for EURO-MED.As we know, the subsidiary for agriculture product such as sugar and cotton of EU and USA are the main reason which causes the poverty of LCDs. So, the mains purpose of this dissertation is want to find: Does EU really sincerely uses the preferential rules of origin （PROO） to help the LCDs or just want to keep their historical colonial benefits? Why the EU member against the EU commission's newly policy after the WTO member by the same product? How the EU PROO does keep harmony with their member countries and the WTO's member countries? Could we find a way to improve or replace the PROO of EU for the same product to prevent another case happen both in WTO and CJCE? We have found the answer at the Conclusion.

Les poux sont de véritables marqueurs pour l'étude de l'évolution humaine car ils ont été associés à l’homme depuis nos ancêtres et se sont dispersés à travers le monde avec ses différentes migrations. Les poux de tête et les poux de corps ont été étudiés morphologiquement depuis longtemps. Les poux de tête vivent et pondent leurs lentes dans les cheveux tandis que les poux de corps vivent et pondent leurs lentes dans les vêtements. Ces derniers sont associés à une mauvaise hygiène de vie et sont responsables de la transmission du typhus épidémique, de la fièvre des tranchées et de la fièvre récurrente. L’un des objectifs de ma thèse était d'accroître les connaissances sur les poux de tête et les poux de corps de l’homme afin d’assurer un meilleur contrôle. Il est essentiel de déterminer si les poux de tête et les poux de corps sont allopatriques ou s’ils pourraient exister en sympatrie. Ainsi, les études d'ADN mitochondrial ont montré qu'il y a trois clades clairement divergents des poux de tête (A, B et C) et un seul clade des poux de corps qui est partagé avec les poux de tête (clade A). Chaque clade a une répartition géographique bien déterminée. / Lice are effective markers for studying human evolution because they have been parasitizing humans since the emergence of our hominid ancestors and have been dispersed throughout the world by early human migrations. Human head and body lice have been studied morphologically for a long time. Head lice live and lay their eggs in human hair. Body lice live and lay their eggs in clothes, are associated with poor hygiene in clothing and are responsible for the transmission of epidemic typhus, trench fever and relapsing fever. One aim of my thesis was to increase the knowledge of human head lice and body lice for a better control. It is critical to determine if head lice and body lice are allopatric, with distinct epidemiology, or if they might exist in sympatry. Then, mitochondrial DNA studies have shown that there are three clearly divergent clades of head lice (A, B and C) and that only one clade of body lice is shared with head lice (clade A). Each clade has a unique geographic distribution. During the thesis work, extensive literature survey was done to write a review. Then we aimed to establish a molecular tool in order to distinguish between head and body lice. We found that only one gene (Phum_PHUM540560 gene) was able to differentiate the two ecotypes of Pediculus humanus. Moreover, we aimed to estimate the correlation between phenotypes and genotypes among human lice, and we found that the lice phylogeny (based on intergenic spacers) was correlated to the geographic origin of lice, but no correlation between the color and the phylogeny.

The topic of this diploma thesis is the relationship between rights of designation and unfair competition law. The thesis is divided into five chapters. The first two chapters define rights of designation and unfair competition law in general and the following chapters concentrate on the relationship between them. The first chapter focuses initially on the place of rights of designation in the system of intellectual propert y law and afterwards it concentrates on particular rights of designation, i.e. trademark, designation of origin and geographical indication. This chapter deals with characteristic features of the rights of designation and differences between them and national, international and european legislation. The emphasis is also put on current issues, that are related to the rights of designation. Chapter two is devoted to unfair competition law. This chapter focuses on legislation of unfair competition and the concept on which unfair competition law is based (that is combination of general clause and non-exhausting list of merits). Subsequently, it defines subjects of the unfair competition and claims that a subject affected by the unfair competition can make. The third chapter, which presents crucial part of this thesis, concetrates on the relationship between rights of designation and...

[pt] Empresas brasileiras e de outros países emergentes estão construindo, ou planejam construir em um futuro próximo, sua estratégia de marca e posicionamento global. O uso da marca país pode ser uma maneira de diferenciar suas ofertas no mercado internacional. Com base no conceito de country equity, originado da extensão do constructo brand equity para países, esta pesquisa teve como objetivo investigar empiricamente a influência que a origem brasileira de um produto exerce sobre a atitude de consumidores estrangeiros desse produto. Adotou-se o modelo de Pappu e Quester (2010), composto por cinco dimensões (conhecimento do país, imagem micro de país, imagem macro de país, qualidade percebida e lealdade ao país), que foi complementado com indicadores afetivos (sentimentos, emoções), com base em Haubl (1996). O modelo proposto foi testado em duas categorias de produtos, uma de produtos duráveis (automóveis) e outras de produtos não duráveis (sapatos). Os questionários foram aplicados a uma amostra de 439 estudantes chilenos. A análise dos dados coletados permite agregar novas noções aos resultados de estudos anteriores sobre as dimensões do constructo country equity sob o ponto de vista do consumidor. / [en] The use of nation branding can be a way to differentiate multinational companies offerings in target international markets. Based on the concept of country equity, originated from the extension of the construct of brand equity to countries, this research aimed to empirically investigate the influence the Brazilian origin of a product has on foreign consumers’ attitudes towards this product. Building on the work by Pappu and Quester (2010), a consumer-based perspective was adopted for country equity and the construct was operationalized with five dimensions, comprising country awareness, macro country image, micro country image, perceived quality, and country loyalty toward the country. Their model was complemented with affective indicators (feelings, emotions), based on Haubl (1996). The proposed model was tested in two different product categories, a durable consumer product category (cars) and a nondurable consumer product category (footwear). The questionnaires were administered to a sample of 439 Chilean students. The data analysis adds new approaches to the results of previous studies on the dimensions of the country equity construct from a consumer-based perspective.

M. Tech. (Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Applied and Computer Sciences), Vaal University of Technology / Bambara groundnut (Vigna subterranea L. Verdc) is an underutilized crop in the African continent. It is a drought tolerant crop and fixes atmospheric nitrogen. Bambara groundnut is primarily grown for the protein content of its seeds and is mainly produced by small scale farmers at the subsistence level. However, despite its importance as a subsistence crop in many African countries, only local landraces of bambara groundnut are still cultivated. Mass selection of a few local varieties for the main agronomic characteristics has been carried out. All the bambara groundnut germplasm in South Africa has not been morphologically characterized. Although the protein of bambara groundnut is of good quality and is rich in lysine, there is no information on the characterisation of these proteins. The presence of antinutritional factors in the crop has also received little attention. This study focused on three major objectives including: (I) to assess the extent of morphological variations among thirty selected landraces of bambara groundnut, (II) to characterize the major seed proteins in these accessions using one dimensional gel electrophoresis, and (III) to determine the presence of any anti-nutritional factors in the seeds of the selected bambara groundnut landraces. 30 accessions of bambara groundnut were evaluated for their variability in agronomic and morphological traits. The field experiment was conducted at ARC-VOPI in Roodeplaat research farm during the 2014/2015 summer cropping season. The field trial was arranged as a complete randomized block design with 3 replications. 18 quantitative traits were recorded to estimate the level of genetic variability among accessions. 4 different methods were employed to extract seed proteins from 30 bambara groundnut accessions in order to ascertain the best method for protein extraction. These methods included: 10%-80% isopropanol, 10% trichloroacetic acid (TCA) in acetone solution, sonication and 2x Lammeli buffer extraction methods. The quick start Qubit® fluorometer protein kit was used to determine the protein concentration in each sample. The samples were then subjected to one dimensional gel electrophoresis. For antinutritional analysis, 5 factors (condensed tannins, free and phytic acid phosphate, polyphenol and trypsin contents) were used to determine the amount of antinutrient in 30 bambara seeds that were ground to a fine powdery flour. 3 replicates of all the samples were ground for each assay evaluated. The flour was then immediately extracted and used for the different assays. The analysis of variance revealed significant differences only in 10 of the 18 phenotypic traits that were evaluated. The UPGMA cluster analysis based on the quantitative traits produced vii four distinct groups of genotypes and a singleton. Genotypes SB11-1A, SB19-1A, SB12-3B and Bambara-12 were found to possess good vegetative characters and are recommended for use as suitable parents when breeding cultivars for fodder production. Desirable yield and yield-related traits were identified in B7-1, SB4-4C, SB19-1A, Bambara-12 and SB16-5A and are recommended as suitable parental lines for bambara groundnut grain production improvement. The quantitative characters therefore provided a useful measure of genetic variability among bambara genotypes and will enable the identification of potential parental materials for future breeding programmes in South Africa. Out of the 4 different seed protein extraction methods exploited for this study, the 2x Laemmli buffer extraction method produced the best result with clear protein bands. A unique feature from all extraction methods was the presence of a common protein band at ̴ 75 kDa. All extraction methods except 10 % TCA-Acetone resolved common banding patterns in all the bambara groundnut samples. This data suggests that there is very little or no intraspecific genetic diversity among the seed proteins of bambara groundnut accessions studied. There was wide variation in the content of the five antinutritional compounds among the thirty bambara groundnut accessions. The mean values for condensed tannin content ranged between 0.20 - 6.20 mg/g. Free phosphate recorded an overall mean of 1.71 mg/g while a range of 1.35 - 4.93 mg/g was observed by phytic acid phosphate (PAP). The polyphenol content had an overall mean of 0.39 mg/g and trypsin inhibitor (TIA) was quite variable among the bambara groundnut accessions ranging from 5.30 - 73.40 TIA/mg. Generally, higher levels of antinutrients were observed in this study compared to the other studies. The results obtained in this study led to a conclusion that although variations exits among the accessions studied, further research is required to verify the extent of morphological variations, the efficiency of protein extractions methods evaluated and the effects of these antinutrients in human and animal feeds.

The recently discovered site of Rising Star in the Craddle of Humankind, Johannesburg, South Africa, has yielded the single largest fossil hominin assemblage on the African continent to have been uncovered to date. Much of the anatomy of the new species, Homo naledi, has been described. With relatively human-like lower limb and strangely primitive-likeupper body, Homo naledi displays a mosaic of traits in its morphology. A small cranium for a member of the genus Homo adds to this unexpected mix of characters. [Abbreviated Abstract. Open document to view full version] / MT 2017

The purpose of this study is to further explore the modern phenomenon of COO, brand image, and online influencer marketing as they relate to consumer's purchase intention online. This empirical study employs a mixed method approach with quantitative exploratory factor analysis through a survey as well as qualitative exploration through focus groups and in-depth interviews. Quantitative data analysis revealed that online influencers have a significant effect on consumers’ purchase intent as well as their perception of COO or brand image. Qualitative data analysis further revealed that when consumers do not follow online influencers, they have a less than significant effect on the consumers’ perception of COO. However, if consumers actively follow online influencers, the probability of them adhering to the recommendations of purchasing from an unfamiliar COO is high. This results in the recognition of the need for further research, as well as some insightful avenues to investigate.

Background  Along with an impressive increase of individual incomes and expansion of middle class populations (Lee & Nguyen, 2017), Vietnam is an attractive market where the fashion category receives the high interest among young consumers. Noticeably, while Western fast fashion is considered as a cheap product in most developed countries, it is kind of an expensive item in the Vietnam context. Although previous studies show that Vietnamese millennials are fond of the products from the West, Vietnam is a challenging market that requires Western fast fashion brands to have an insight into local consumer preferences since the local consumer’ values, attitudes, and behaviors are changing dramatically. Purpose  The purpose of this study is to explore attitudes of Vietnamese millennials towards Western fast fashion brands related to country of origin (COO) as well as the symbolic values of these brands in the mind of Vietnamese millennials. It thereby helps the Western companies to understand the Vietnamese market in terms of fast fashion, discovering potential investment opportunities and propose suitable marketing strategies to enter this market.  Method  Following the purpose of this study, an exploratory qualitative research with an abductive approach was utilised. Specifically, in-depth interviews with open-ended questions were employed to have an insight into the participants’ attitude towards Western fast fashion brands. Additionally, after the interviews, the participant's opinions were captured for a visualization of attributes of Western fast fashion brands. Conclusion The research results show that Vietnamese millennials generally have positive attitudes towards Western fast fashion brands related to COO. Nevertheless, in this particular study, the emerging symbolic values include sense of beauty,  educational background, social status as well as self-identity. The study also points out its delimitations and limitations, offers various possibilities for managerial implications, as well as provides some suggestions for future research.

A pesquisa trata do desenvolvimento de tecnologia experimental para produção de material compósito de alto desempenho a partir de fibras e resinas de origem vegetal. A fibra extraída do fruto do coqueiro (Cocos nucifera) combinada a resinas comerciais obtidas da casca da acácia negra (Acacia mearnsii) e do óleo de mamona (Ricinuscommunis) foram utilizadas para a fabricação de peças de mobiliário e telhas de cobertura destinadas à construção civil. Corpos de prova e protótipos foram produzidos e testados nos laboratórios da Divisão de Produtos Florestais do IPT - Instituto de Pesquisas Tecnológicas do Estado de São Paulo com financiamento da Fapesp- Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo.Os resultados dos ensaios indicam que o compósito de fibra e resina pode substituir materiais convencionais como aglomerados e laminados de madeira, apresentando vantagens como resistência à umidade, resistência ao ataque de cupins e maior elasticidade, além de ser moldável, estrutural e isolante térmico. / The following doctorate thesis describes an experimental development of native technology for the utilization of plant fibers in the manufacture of environmentally sound composite materials suitable to replace wood fiberboard, particleboard and MDF. Coir fiber extracted from the common coconut tree (Cocos nucifera) combined with plant resins obtained from black wattle (Acacia mearnsii) and castor plant (Ricinus communis) were used to produce molded components and flat sheets in experimental process. Prototypes of school chairs and corrugated roof tiles were manufactured and a complete set of tests were done to verify technical feasibility and potential applications. Coir fiber as well as other suitable plant fibers are an abundant resource in the poorest regions of Brazil and in several other developing countries in Asia and Africa. The use of such technology by the communities living off fiber extraction could aggregate value to their production and be an important factor to promote sustainable development.