A teoria de redes complexas se consolidou nos últimos anos, graças ao seu potencial como ferramenta versátil no estudo de diversos sistemas discretos. É possível enumerar aplicações em áreas tão distintas como engenharia, sociologia, computação, linguística e biologia. Tem merecido atenção, por exemplo, o estudo da organização estrutural do cérebro, tanto em nível microscópico (em nível de neurônios) como regional (regiões corticais). Acredita-se que tal organização visa otimizar a dinâmica, favorecendo processos como sincronização e processamento paralelo. Estrutura e funcionamento, portanto, estão relacionados. Tal relação é abordada pela teoria de redes complexas nos mais diversos sistemas, sendo possivelmente seu principal objeto de estudo. Neste trabalho exploramos as relações entre aspectos estruturais de redes neuronais e corticais e a atividade nas mesmas. Especificamente, estudamos como a interconectividade entre o córtex e o tálamo pode interferir em estados de ativação do último, considerando-se o sistema tálamo-cortical do gato bem como alguns modelos para geração de rede encontrados na literatura. Também abordamos a relação entre a morfologia individual de neurônios e a conectividade em redes neuronais, e consequentemente o impacto da forma neuronal em dinâmicas atuando sobre tais redes e a eficiência das mesmas no transporte de informação. Como tal eficiência pode ter como consequência a facilitação de processos maléficos às redes, como por exemplo, ataques causados por vírus neurotrópicos, também exploramos possíveis correlações entre características individuais dos elementos que formam as redes complexas e danos causados por processos infecciosos iniciados nos mesmos. / Complex network theory has been consolidated along the last years, owing to its potential as a versatile framework for the study of diverse discrete systems. It is possible to enumerate applications in fields as distinct as Engineering, Sociology, Computing, Linguistics and Biology, to name a few. For instance, the study of the structural organization of the brain at the microscopic level (neurons), as well as at regional level (cortical areas), has deserved attention. It is believed that such organization aims at optimizing the dynamics, supporting processes like synchronization and parallel processing. Structure and functioning are thus interrelated. Such relation has been addressed by complex network theory in diverse systems, possibly being its main subject. In this thesis we explore the relations between structural aspects and the activity in cortical and neuronal networks. Specifically, we study how the interconnectivity between the cortex and thalamus can interfere in activation states of the latter, taking into consideration the thalamocortical system of the cat, along with networks generated through models found in literature. We also address the relation between the individual morphology of the neurons and the connectivity in neuronal networks, and consequently the effect of the neuronal shape on dynamic processes actuating over such networks and on their efficiency on information transport. As such efficiency can consequently facilitate prejudicial processes on the networks, e.g. attacks promoted by neurotropic viruses, we also explore possible correlations between individual characteristics of the elements forming such systems and the damage caused by infectious processes started at these elements.

John Macrone (1809-1837) was a Scotsman who arrived in London around 1830 and became a publisher, in partnership with James Cochrane between January 1833 and August 1834, and independently between October 1834 and his death in September 1837. A friend of Dickens and Thackeray, he published Sketches by Boz and, posthumously, The Paris Sketch Book. One of his other projects was a life of Scott, which he began to write soon after the death of the novelist; but his book, chiefly remembered because Hogg wrote his Anecdotes of Scott for inclusion in it, fell under the displeasure of Lockhart, and was cancelled shortly before it was to have been published. A fragmentary manuscript, however, was recently discovered by the author of this thesis and has now been edited for the first time, together with a biographical study of Macrone, in which extensive use is made of previously unpublished and uncollected material.

La fièvre de la Vallée du Rift (FVR) est une zoonose due à un virus transmissible par une large variété de vecteurs. Au cours des quinze dernières années, elle a rendu malades des dizaines de milliers de personnes, entrainé des centaines de décès humains et provoqué la mort de plus de 100 000 ruminants domestiques en Afrique et dans la péninsule arabique. Suite à la découverte de la présence du virus à Mayotte, les autorités sanitaires, le Cirad (Centre de coopération internationale en recherche agronomique pour le développement) et les éleveurs ont créé en 2009 un système de surveillance en santé animale, le SESAM. L‘objectif de cette thèse était de faire un état des lieux de la situation épidémiologique de la FVR chez les ruminants à Mayotte en 2012-2013, d’évaluer les perspectives de persistance de la maladie et d’étudier les perceptions et les priorités des éleveurs vis-à-vis de cette maladie. En 2012, le fonctionnement du dispositif de surveillance de la FVR a été révisé avec un renouvellement partiel du groupe d’éleveurs sentinelles et un renforcement de la surveillance événementielle basée sur la recherche systématique de la FVR en cas d’avortement ou de mortalité anormale. Une baisse continue de la séroprévalence de 2010 à 2013 a été observée. En 2012-2013, le taux d’incidence est resté stable avec environ deux séroconversions pour 100 animaux-ans. Ce taux est très inférieur au taux d’incidence de 18% observé en 2011. Le virus de la FVR n’a été détecté dans aucun des prélèvements réalisés dans le cadre de la déclaration officielle des avortements chez les ruminants (n=41). Des critères d’évaluation de la performance du dispositif de surveillance ont été proposés et ont mis en évidence une amélioration de la qualité des données entre 2010 et 2013. Un modèle dynamique de type SIR a permis d’estimer le niveau de transmission hôte-vecteur attendu qui expliquerait au mieux la séroprévalence observée de 2008 à 2013 à Mayotte. La probabilité de transmission hôte-vecteur estimée par ce modèle est cinq fois plus faible qu’attendue. Dans ces conditions, la probabilité de persistance de la FVR, en l’absence de nouvelle introduction d’animaux virémiques reste inférieure à 10%, cinq ans après l’arrivée du virus. Enfin, la priorisation des problèmes sanitaires à Mayotte par une démarche d’épidémiologie participative et des réunions d’éleveurs a mis en évidence que les cinq problèmes spontanément rapportés comme les plus importants chez les bovins sont dans l’ordre le charbon symptomatique, les tiques, le syndrome « bavite-fièvre-grippe», le syndrome « dermatophilose-boutons » et la diarrhée. La FVR est absente de ce classement mais les avortements arrivent en 9ème position et à la première selon le critère de « risque ». La surveillance, et les approches interdisciplinaires de modélisation et de sciences humaines doivent être poursuivies pour évaluer plus précisément le risque de réémergence de la FVR à Mayotte et anticiper les réponses à y apporter. La surveillance doit aussi s’adapter aux attentes des éleveurs et développer l’approche syndromique ainsi que s’intégrer pleinement aux dispositifs régionaux et nationaux. / Rift Valley fever (RVF) is a vector-borne zoonosis, with a wide variety of potential competent vectors. During the last fifteen years, RVF caused tens of thousands of human cases, hundreds of human deaths and more than 100,000 domestic ruminant deaths in Africa and in the Arabic peninsula. After the first detection of RVF in Mayotte, an animal health surveillance network has been created in 2009, namely the SESAM. The aim of this PhD was to assess the epidemiological situation of Mayotte toward RVF in 2012-2013, to assess the persistence probability of RVF in the territory and to document farmers’ perceptions and health priorities. In 2012, RVF surveillance has been revised in order to partially renew the pool of the sentinel herds. The passive surveillance with systematic RVF detection assay on abortion and abnormal mortality was enforced. A continuous decrease in the seroprevalence was observed based on 2010-2013 data. During 2012-2013, a steady incidence rate of about 2 seroconversions per 100 animal-year was observed. This rate is much lower than the previous assessment of 18% during 2011. RVF virus was not detected in any of the 41 declared abortion cases. Surveillance performance criteria were discussed and assessed showing mainly an increase in data quality between 2010 and 2013. A SIR dynamic model was built based on vector knowledge and observed seroprevalence in Mayotte from 2008 to 2013. Estimated host-vector transmission rate was fivefold lower than expected according to current literature. Persistence probability, without reintroduction of viremic animals, was predicted to be 10% five years after virus introduction. Finally, health problem prioritization in Mayotte was studied through focus groups, gathering 164 farmers. The five main issues stated were: blackleg, ticks, a respiratory « fever/flu-like» syndrome, a dermatologic syndrome and diarrhoea. RVF was absent from the priority problems list in which abortions were ranked 9th. However abortions came first when « risk » criteria was taken into account, raising issues of cultural risk perceptions. Further surveillance and research using transdisciplinary approaches that mix mathematical modelling and the humanities should be continued with the view to assess more precisely reemergence probability in Mayotte and anticipate mitigating measures. Surveillance and research should also align with farmers’ expectations. The development of syndromic surveillance (abortion, death, etc.) requires strengthening surveillance network and identification data quality. Mayotte surveillance components should also be fully integrated within the regional and national schemes.

L'hétérochromatine est une caractéristique conservée des chromosomes eucaryotes, avec des rôles centraux dans la régulation de l'expression des gènes et le maintien de la stabilité du génome. Comment la réparation de l'ADN est régulée par l'hétérochromatine reste mal compris. Chez Saccharomyces cerevisiae, le complexe SIR (Silent Information Regulator) assemble une fibre de chromatine compacte. La chromatine SIR limite la résection aux cassures double-brin (DSB) protégeant les extrémités chromosomiques endommagées contre la perte d'informations génétiques. Toutefois, lesquels des trois complexes de résection redondants, MRX-Sae2, Exo1 et Sgs1-Dna2 sont inhibés et par quel(s) mécanisme(s) reste à decouvrir. Nous montrons que Sir3, le facteur de fixation des histones de l’hétérochromatine de Saccharomyces cerevisiae, interagit physiquement avec Sae2 et inhibe toutes ses fonctions. Cette interaction limite notamment la résection médiée par Sae2, stabilise MRX à la DSB et augmente le Non-Homologous End Joining (NHEJ). De plus, la chromatine répressive SIR inhibe partiellement les deux voies de résection extensive médiées par Exo1 et Sgs1-Dna2 par des mécanismes distincts. L'inhibition par les SIR de la résection extensive et de Sae2 favorise la NHEJ et limite le Break-Induced Replication (BIR), prévenant ainsi de la perte d'hétérozygotie au niveau des subtélomères. / Heterochromatin is a conserved feature of eukaryotic chromosomes, with central roles in regulation of gene expression and maintenance of genome stability. How DNA repair occurs in heterochromatin remains poorly described. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the Silent Information Regulator (SIR) complex assembles a compact chromatin fibre. SIR-mediated repressive chromatin limits Double Strand Break (DSB) resection protecting damaged chromosome ends against the loss of genetic information. However, which of the three redundant resection complexes, MRX-Sae2, Exo1 and Sgs1-Dna2 are inhibited and by which mechanism remains to be deciphered. We show that Sir3, the histone-binding factor of yeast heterochromatin, physically interacts with Sae2-mediated resection and inhibits all its functions. Notably, this interaction limits Sae2-mediated resection, delays MRX removal from DSB ends and promotes Non-Homologous End Joining (NHEJ). In addition, SIR-mediated repressive chromatin partially inhibits the two long range resection pathways mediated by Exo1 and Sgs1-Dna2 by distinct mechanisms. Altogether SIR mediated inhibition of extensive resection and of Sae2 promotes NHEJ and limits Break-Induced Replication (BIR) preventing loss of heterozygosity at subtelomeres.

Dans cette thèse nous contribuons à répondre aux questions sur les processus dynamiques sur réseaux temporels. En particulier, nous etudions l'influence des représentations de données sur les simulations des processus épidémiques, le niveau de détail nécessaire pour la représentation des données et sa dépendance des paramètres de la propagation de l'épidémie. Avec l'introduction de la matrice de distributions du temps de contacts nous espérons pouvoir améliorer dans le futur la précision des prédictions des épidémies et des stratégies d'immunisation en intégrant cette représentation des données aux modèles d'épidémies multi-échelles. De plus nous montrons comment les processus épidémiques dynamiques sont influencés par les propriétés temporelles des données. / In this thesis we contribute to provide insights into questions concerning dynamic epidemic processes on data-driven, temporal networks. In particular, we investigate the influence of data representations on the outcome of epidemic processes, shedding some light on the question how much detail is necessary for the data representation and its dependence on the spreading parameters. By introducing an improvement to the contact matrix representation we provide a data representation that could in the future be integrated into multi-scale epidemic models in order to improve the accuracy of predictions and corresponding immunization strategies. We also point out some of the ways dynamic processes are influenced by temporal properties of the data.

The formation of the Liberal Party of Australia in the mid-1940s heralded a new effort to stem the tide of government regulation that had grown with Labor Party rule in the latter years of World War II and immediately after. It was not until 1949 that the party gained office at Federal level, beginning what was to be a record unbroken term of 23 years, but its efforts faltered at State level in Victoria, where the party was divided, and in New South Wales, where Labor was seemingly entrenched. The fortunes were reversed with the rise to leadership of men who bore a different stamp to their predecessors, and were in many ways atypical Liberals: Henry Bolte in Victoria and Robin Askin in New South Wales. Bolte, a farmer, and Askin, a bank officer, had served as non-commissioned officers in World War II and rose to lead parties whose members who had served in the war were predominantly of the officer class. In each case, their man management skills put an end to division and destabilisation in their parties, and they went on to serve record terms as Liberal leaders in their respective States, Bolte 1955-72 and Askin 1965-75. Neither was ever challenged in their leadership and each chose the time and nature of his departure from politics, a rarity among Australian political leaders. Their careers are traced here in the context of the Liberal revival and the heightened expectations of the post-war years when the Liberal Party reached an ascendancy, governing for a brief time in 1969-70 in all Australian States as well as the Commonwealth. Their leadership is also examined in the broader context of leadership in the Liberal Party, and also in the ways in which the new party sought to engage with and appeal to a wider range of voters than had traditionally been attracted to the non-Labor parties.

本文以維度縮減(dimension reduction)為主題，介紹其定義以及四種目前較被廣為討論的處理方式。文中首先針對Li (1991)所使用的維度縮減定義型式y = g(x,ε) = g1(βx,ε)，與Cook (1994)所採用的定義型式「條件密度函數f(y | x)=f(y |βx)」作探討，並就Cook (1994)對最小維度縮減子空間的相關討論作介紹。此外文中也試圖提出另一種適用於pHd的可能定義(E(y | x)=E(y |βx)，亦即縮減前後y的條件期望值不變)，並發現在此一新定義下所衍生而成的子空間會包含於Cook (1994)所定義的子空間。 有關現有四種維度縮減方法(SIR、SAVE、SIR-II、pHd)的理論架構，則重新予以說明並作必要的補充證明，並以兩個機率模式(y = bx +ε及y = |z| +ε)為例，分別測試四種方法能否縮減出正確的方向。文中同時也分別找出對應於這四種方法的等價條件，並利用這些等價條件相互比較，得到彼此間的關係。我們發現當解釋變數x為多維常態情形下，四種方法理論上都不會保留可以被縮減的方向，而該保留住的方向卻不一定能夠被保留住，但是使用SAVE所可以保留住的方向會比單獨使用其他三者之一來的多(或至少一樣多)，而如果SIR與SIR-II同時使用則恰好等同於使用SAVE。另外使用pHd似乎時並不需要「E(y│x)二次可微分」這個先決條件。 / The focus of the study is on the dimension reduction and the over-view of the four methods frequently cited in the literature, i.e. SIR, SAVE, SIR-II, and pHd. The definitions of dimension reduction proposed by Li (1991)(y = g( x,ε) = g1(βx,ε)), and by Cook (1994)(f(y | x)=f(y|βx)) are briefly reviewed. Issues on minimum dimension reduction subspace (Cook (1994)) are also discussed. In addition, we propose a possible definition (E(y | x)=E(y |βx)), i.e. the conditional expectation of y remains the same both in the original subspace and the reduced subspace), which seems more appropriate when pHd is concerned. We also found that the subspace induced by this definition would be contained in the subspace generated based on Cook (1994). We then take a closer look at basic ideas behind the four methods, and supplement some more explanations and proofs, if necessary. Equivalent conditions related to the four methods that can be used to locate "right" directions are presented. Two models (y = bx +ε and y = |z| +ε) are used to demonstrate the methods and to see how good they can be. In order to further understand the possible relationships among the four methods, some comparisons are made. We learn that when x is normally distributed, directions that are redundant will not be preserved by any of the four methods. Directions that contribute significantly, however, may be mistakenly removed. Overall, SAVE has the best performance in terms of saving the "right" directions, and applying SIR along with SIR-II performs just as well. We also found that the prerequisite, 「E(y | x) is twice differentiable」, does not seem to be necessary when pHd is applied.

From the eighth to the fourteenth century, places of wonder and dread appear in a wide variety of genres in Old and Middle English: epics, lays, romances, saints’ lives, travel narratives, marvel collections, visions of the afterlife. These places appear in narratives of the other world, a term which in Old and Middle English texts refers to the Christian afterlife: Hell, Purgatory, even Paradise can be fraught with wonder, danger, and the possibility of harm. But in addition to the other world, there are places that are not theologically separate from the human world, but that are nevertheless both marvellous and horrifying: the monster-mere in Beowulf, the Faerie kingdom of Sir Orfeo, the demon-ridden Vale Perilous in Mandeville’s Travels, or the fearful landscape of the Green Chapel in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Fraught with horror or the possibility of harm, these places are profoundly different from the presented or implied home world of the text. My dissertation investigates how Old and Middle English narratives create places of wonder and dread; how they situate these places metaphysically between the world of living mortals and the world of the afterlife; how they furnish these places with dangerous topography and monstrous inhabitants, as well as with motifs, with tropes, and with thematic concerns that signal their marvellous and fearful nature. I argue that the heart of this poetics of marvellous spaces is displacement. Their wonder and dread comes from boundaries that these places blur and cross, from the resistance of these places to being known or mapped, and from the deliberate distancing between these places and the home of their texts. This overarching concern with displacement encourages the migration of iconographic motifs, tropes, and themes across genre boundaries and theological categories.

Rubens' material reality culminates in the tableau which he named Het Pelsken (Flemish for 'The little Fur,' known also as La Pelisse). Of his vast oeuvre it is the most frequently cited work, described by one spectator as an "oil painting of a subject quite unusual...a beautiful woman naked beneath her dark fur." 1 Among art historians the tableau has been the subject of debate as to its 'meaning,' especially since the life-size image does not include narrative paraphernalia that would allow mythological interpretations. But as one scholar wrote, "most are relieved that the work was never meant to be sold."2 / This dissertation's trajectory is different. It points to Rubens' late style tableaux, of which Het Pelsken is one, as items painted in an exquisite technique effecting (bodily) presence, and conceived as commodities destined for circulation. Thus the works are heavily invested by producer(s) and buyer(s). Painted in a sophisticated allegorical language that simultaneously defies easy (narrative) access and yet keeps viewers continuously spellbound, Het Pelsken is being reframed together with some of Rubens' other paintings to establish a dialogue with today's audience. This study analyzes the allegorical paradigm by way of Walter Benjamin's dialectics in order to locate levels of truth---which are of relevance to current viewers---and also probes the forces that generate such an overt and repeated display of the feminine body. In so doing, the study also spotlights neo-allegorists, who in their' more recent art practice reconnect with Rubens and disconnect with some compositional and technical strategies of the Baroque master's paintings. These artists include contemporaries Robert Rauschenberg, Peter Dressler and Jean-Luc Godard. / 1Leopold von Sacher-Masoch, please see Chapter One for more of his commentary. 2Julius Held's research and response is also taken up in Chapter One.

From the eighth to the fourteenth century, places of wonder and dread appear in a wide variety of genres in Old and Middle English: epics, lays, romances, saints’ lives, travel narratives, marvel collections, visions of the afterlife. These places appear in narratives of the other world, a term which in Old and Middle English texts refers to the Christian afterlife: Hell, Purgatory, even Paradise can be fraught with wonder, danger, and the possibility of harm. But in addition to the other world, there are places that are not theologically separate from the human world, but that are nevertheless both marvellous and horrifying: the monster-mere in Beowulf, the Faerie kingdom of Sir Orfeo, the demon-ridden Vale Perilous in Mandeville’s Travels, or the fearful landscape of the Green Chapel in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Fraught with horror or the possibility of harm, these places are profoundly different from the presented or implied home world of the text. My dissertation investigates how Old and Middle English narratives create places of wonder and dread; how they situate these places metaphysically between the world of living mortals and the world of the afterlife; how they furnish these places with dangerous topography and monstrous inhabitants, as well as with motifs, with tropes, and with thematic concerns that signal their marvellous and fearful nature. I argue that the heart of this poetics of marvellous spaces is displacement. Their wonder and dread comes from boundaries that these places blur and cross, from the resistance of these places to being known or mapped, and from the deliberate distancing between these places and the home of their texts. This overarching concern with displacement encourages the migration of iconographic motifs, tropes, and themes across genre boundaries and theological categories.