In the master’s thesis, we evaluate the impact of different types of soil treatment on the physical and hydro-physical properties of the subsurface layers of soil. The experimental research took place near the town of Šakvice in two chosen areas treated conventionally, i.e. by tillage. The PRP SOL substance was applied to one of the observed areas. Unimpaired soil samples were taken during the vegetation period of the grown crops in the topsoil (10,20 cm) and in the undersoil (30 cm) on 13th May 2009 and on 10th September 2009. The chosen physical parameters of the soil, i.e. the reduced volume mass, the porosity, the distribution of pores, the actual content of water and air, were determined by standard analytical methods. The double-ring infiltration method was used during the field measuring of infiltration. The Philip’s equation and the Philip’s type three-parameter equation were used for the data analysis, serving as a base for estimation of saturated water content Ks. A protractor with a constant gradient was used during laboratory measuring. The results of a year-long research have not shown any major influence of the PRP SOL substance on the physical quality of the subsurface layers of soil in the observed area. On the contrary, the permeability od the soil obtained on the basis of Ks estimation is higher in the area treated by the PRP SOL substance.

The aim of this diploma thesis is to analyse development in arranging of the real estate transactions in the Czech Republic after 1989 and describe contemporary condition. Contemporary condition was analysed as unsatisfactory. There does not exist any law that would regulate real estate market, neither is there a duty to proof a professional training or ability for the business. Real estate agencies do not have a good reputation in the Czech Republic and with many citizens they are unfavourable. As a reaction upon contemporary unsatisfactory situation, the Economic Bureau of the Czech Chamber of Deputies elected an operative group that is supposed to maintain a survey of the contemporary situation in the real estate market and suggest possible solutions. This work aims also to analyse the suggested solutions and to supply solutions that would be missing.

King Charles III of Spain implemented a series of Enlightenment reforms throughout his domain following the 1763 defeat of the Seven Years War Among the royal officials sent to enact these reforms in the Caribbean, the Crown dispatched Field Marshal Alejandro O’Reilly to the colony of Puerto Rico Historians have attributed to his 1765 inspection, or visita, and subsequent report, or memoria, the foundations for a turning point in the island’s history Despite the historical consensus that has lauded O’Reilly’s recommendations, this inspector-general does not merit the credit that historians consistently have given him Agrarian and economic patterns such as population growth, smuggling, and the hato economy persisted decades after his visita into the nineteenth century Other events helped drive immigration and investment into Puerto Rico more than O’Reilly’s memoria Ultimately, O’Reilly did not trigger enduring change in the colony’s history, and Puerto Rican historiography awaits the corresponding revision / Includes bibliography / Thesis (MA)--Florida Atlantic University, 2016 / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Policy makers adopt irrigated agriculture for food security, since irrigation doubles crop production. Therefore, the development of large irrigation systems has a long history in many places worldwide. Although large-scale irrigation schemes play an important role in improving food security, many schemes, especially in Africa, do not yield the expected outcomes. This is related to poor water management, which is generally due to a lack of effective evaluation and monitoring. The objective of this study, therefore, is to propose a new methodology to assess, evaluate and monitor large-scale irrigation systems. Information on irrigation indicators is needed to enable the evaluation of irrigation performance. The evaluation is the first and the most significant step in providing information about how it is performing. After reviewing extensive literature, a list of indicators related to the performance of irrigation, rainwater supply and productivity is suggested. The irrigation efficiency indicators Relative Irrigation Supply (RIS) and Relative Water Supply (RWS) are selected. Potential rainwater supply to crops can be tested based on the Moisture Availability Index (MAI) and the Ratio of Moisture Availability (RMA). Water productivity can be assessed by Crop Yield (Y) and Water Use Efficiency (WUE). However, the central problem facing large-scale irrigation schemes is always the lack of data, which calls for the development of a new method of data acquisition that allows evaluation and monitoring. Remote Sensing (RS) technology makes it possible to retrieve data across large areas. Two different approaches via RS, the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and Actual Evapotranspiration (ETa), can be utilized for monitoring. The well-known Vegetation Condition Index (VCI), derived from the NDVI, is modified (MVCI) to allow a qualitative spatio-temporal assessment of irrigation efficiency. MVCI takes into account crop response to water availability, while ETa indicates whether water is used as intended. Furthermore, the assessment of the possible hydrological impact of the irrigation system should be considered in the evaluation and monitoring process. The Sudanese Gezira Scheme of 8,000 square kilometers in the Nile Basin, where performance evaluation and monitoring are absent or poorly conducted, is no exception. This research takes the large-scale irrigation of the Gezira Scheme as a case study, as it is the largest scheme, not only in the Nile Basin but also in the world, under single management. The first long-term historical evaluation of the scheme is conducted for the period 1961–2012 rather than only on a short-time scale as is the common practice. An increase in RIS and RWS values from 1.40 and 1.70 to 2.23 and 2.60, respectively, since the 1993/94 season shows decreasing irrigation efficiency. MAI and RMA for summer crops indicate a promising rainfall contribution to irrigation in July and August. The Gezira Scheme achieves low yield and WUE in comparison to many irrigation schemes of the globe. Low productivity is mainly due to poor distribution and irrigation mismanagement. This is indicated by the 15-year MVCI spatio-temporal analysis, which shows that the northern part of the scheme experiences characteristic drought during the summer crop season. Although MVCI can be considered a monitoring tool, the index does not deduct the soil water content, and water could be wasted and available in other ways (e.g. water depressions). Spatio-temporal information for ETa is required to better quantify water depletion and establish links between land use and water allocation. However, several RS models have been developed for estimating ETa. Thus, improving the understanding of performance of such models in arid climates, as well as large-scale irrigation schemes, is taken into account in this study. Four different models based on the energy balance method, the Surface Energy Balance Algorithm for Land (SEBAL), Mapping EvapoTranspiration at High Resolution with Internalized Calibration (METRIC™), Simplified Surface Energy Balance (SSEB) and MOD16 ET are applied in order to determine the optimal approach for obtaining ETa. Outputs from these models are compared to actual water balance (WB) estimates during the 2004/05 season at field scale. Several statistical measures are evaluated, and a score is given for each model in order to select the best-performing model. Based on ranking criteria, SSEB gives the best performance and is seen as a suitable operational ETa model for the scheme. SSEB subsequently is applied for summer and winter crop seasons for the period 2000–2014. Unfortunately, one of the limitations faced in the current research is the absence of validation data on a regional scale. Therefore, the assessment focuses on spatial distribution and trends rather than absolute values. As with the MVCI distribution, the seasonal ETa for the Gezira Scheme is higher in the southern and central parts than in the northern part. This confirms the robustness of the developed MVCI. To avoid using absolute values of ETa, the ratio of ETa from agricultural areas (ETagr) to the total evapotranspiration (ET) from the scheme (ETsum) is calculated. The ETagr/ETsum ratio shows a descending trend over recent years, indicating that the water is available but not being utilized for agricultural production. This study shows that SSEB is also useful for identifying the location of water losses on a daily basis. Around 80 channels are identified as having leakage problems for the 2013/14 crop season. Such information is very useful for reducing losses at the scheme. In addition, Rainwater Harvesting (WH) is addressed and found to be applicable as an alternative solution for accounting for rainfall in irrigation. It is seen that these management scenarios could save water and increase the overall efficiency of the scheme. It is possible to save 68 million cubic meters of water per year when the overall irrigation efficiency of the scheme is improved by only 1%. A level of efficiency of 75% is predicted from the proposed management scenarios, which could save about 2.6 billion cubic meters of water per year. In conclusion, the present study has developed an innovative method of identifying the problems of large-scale schemes as well as proposing management scenarios to enhance irrigation water management practice. Improved agricultural water management in terms of crop, water and land management can increase food production, thereby alleviating poverty and hunger in an environmentally sustainable manner.

本研究は中国農村部における貧困問題、特に2000年代以降の南西部少数民族地域の貧困と経済発展、および政府の貧困削減政策について研究するものである。世界銀行や中国国家統計局などの公的機関が公開したデータ、および研究対象地域で収集された農家家計や地域経済発展に関するデータを用いて、農村貧困の実態、政府による「精準扶貧」政策の実施と効果、少数民族地域貧困地域の生活と貧困、および自力で貧困状況を改善した地域の事例について分析した。 / This study sheds a light on the poverty issues in rural China from the 2000s, with a specific focus on the poverty and economic development in ethnic areas in south-western China, and the poverty alleviation policies implemented by the government. Utilizing the data published by organizations such as World Bank and National Bureau of Statistics of China, and the data collected from the research area, the following research questions are discussed: the actual conditions of poverty in rural China; the implementation and the effect of the governmental poverty alleviation policy, named Targeted Poverty Relief Strategy (jingzhun fupin); the livelihood and poverty of ethnic minorities living in deprived area; and the case study of a region which has lifted themselves out of poverty. / 博士(現代アジア研究) / Doctor of Philosophy in Contemporary Asian Studies / 同志社大学 / Doshisha University

[ES] Esta investigación propone un total de doce indicadores para el análisis reflexivo y crítico de obras de arte comprometido actuales. Para la elaboración de estos indicadores se presenta un enfoque teórico que parte de la sociología crítica del arte y de los estudios sobre Nuevos Movimientos Sociales, combinado con una aproximación práctica que analiza las característi-cas igualadoras y diferenciadoras de las obras escogidas. Los indicadores propuestos se dividen en tres niveles: contextual, específico para obras com-prometidas y general para cualquier propuesta artística. Los indicadores contextuales tienen en cuenta el estado de campo del arte y de los campos generales, exponen la posición que el o la artista ocupa en ellos y sitúan la obra escogida en el conjunto de su producción artística. Los indicadores específicos para el arte comprometido atienden a varias cuestiones: la simpli-cidad/complejidad de la obra, su claridad/opacidad, la reflexividad de la artista, la actualidad del tema tratado, la presencia de posiciones antagonistas a nivel social, el interés de la obra para colectivos concretos y la contribución a los marcos cognitivos no pertenecientes al cam-po específico del arte actual. Por último, los indicadores del tercer nivel analizan la obra en el campo del arte en base a dos cuestiones: la presencia de experiencia o de experimentación, y su carácter de producto o productora del medio artístico. El conjunto de la investigación propone una base teórico-práctica para el análisis reflexivo y crítico del arte comprometido actual, atendiendo especialmente al contexto en que se produce, a su impacto social y a las características propias de cada campo autónomo de producción cultural. / [EN] This research proposes twelve indicators for the reflective and critical analysis of contempo-rary 'committed' art pieces. A theoretical approach based on the critical sociology of art and the studies on New Social Movements is presented in order to elaborate these indicators, and it has been combined with a practical one, which analyzes the equalizing and differentiating characteristics of the chosen works of art. The proposed indicators are divided into three levels: contextual, specific for 'committed' art and general for any artistic piece. Contextual indicators take into account the artistic and gen-eral field's statement, they also expose each artist position on this artistic and general context and understands the piece of work on the context of his/her creator's artwork. The second level -specific- involve several issues: work's simplicity/complexity, its clarity/opacity, artist's reflexivity, the topicality of its subject, the presence of antagonistic positions in the social field, the interest of the work for concrete groups, and the contribution to cognitive frames outside the current artistic field. Finally, third level indicators analyze the work in the artistic field relying on two aspects: the presence of experience or experimentation, and its nature as artistic field's product or producer. The whole research proposes a theoretical-practical basis for the reflexive and critical analy-sis of contemporary 'committed' art. In order to do so, special attention is paid to the context in which it is produced, to its social impact and to the characteristics of each autonomous field of cultural production. / [CA] Esta investigació proposa un total de dotze indicadors per a l'anàlisi reflexiva i crítica d'obres d'art compromés actual. Per a l'elaboració d'estos indicadors es presenta un enfocament teòric que parteix de la sociologia crítica de l'art i dels estudis sobre Nous Moviments Socials, combinat amb una aproximació pràctica que analitza les característiques igualadores i diferen-ciadores de les obres triades. Els indicadors proposats es divideixen en tres nivells: contextual, específic per a obres com-promeses i general per a qualsevol proposta artística. Els indicadors contextuals tenen en compte l'estat de camp de l'art i dels camps generals, exposen la posició que l'artista ocupa en ells i situen l'obra triada en el conjunt de la seua producció artística. Els indicadors específics per a l'art compromés atenen diverses qüestions: la simplicitat/complexitat de l'obra, la seua claredat/opacitat, la reflexivitat de l'artista, l'actualitat del tema tractat, la presència de posici-ons antagonistes a nivell social, l'interés de l'obra per a col·lectius concrets i la contribució als marcs cognitius no pertanyents al camp específic de l'art actual. Finalment, els indicadors del tercer nivell analitzen l'obra en el camp de l'art en relació a dos qüestions: la presència d'experiència o d'experimentació, i el seu caràcter de producte o productora del medi artístic. El conjunt de la investigació proposa una base teoricopràctica per a l'anàlisi reflexiva i crítica de l'art compromés actual, atenent especialment el context en que es produeix, al seu impacte social i a les característiques pròpies de cada camp autònom de producció cultural. / Yustas Martínez, L. (2020). Útiles para una valoración reflexiva y crítica del arte comprometido actual. Estudio de seis casos producidos en el Estado español entre 2012 y 2017 [Tesis doctoral]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/149495

This study examined a mediational model of mental illness stigma, parent-child communication about mental health concerns, and help seeking attitudes/behaviors among young adults with at least one immigrant parent while considering the possible moderating effect of acculturation gap. The primary goal of this study was to examine whether the acculturation gap changed the relation between mental illness stigma and communication about personal mental health concerns with immigrant parents, which in turn could become a significant predictor of their help-seeking attitudes, as well as a barrier to seeking professional mental health services. Findings provided support to the direct and indirect effects of mental illness stigma through communication about mental health concerns on attitudes about help-seeking. The acculturation gap hypothesized to be a possible moderator for the stigma-communication about mental health concerns relationship among young adult ABCI was found to be significant for ABCI with a low mainstream culture acculturation gap. Discussion on the findings, limitations of the study, future research directions, and counseling implications are addressed.

South African affirmative action law in the workplace is in its infancy. Yet some concepts in this context have already proven to be unclear or in need of interpretation, or are lacking. This thesis focuses on the beneficiaries of affirmative action in employment law. The Employment Equity Act (EEA) creates `designated groups' ─ black people, women and people with disabilities ─ as the beneficiaries of affirmative action. It lays down two requirements for beneficiaries of affirmative action which are investigated: (a) beneficiaries must be from the designated groups - in this regard, the question that arises is whether, having been categorised as disadvantaged, persons are presumed to be de facto disadvantaged and entitled to benefit from affirmative action, or whether further evidence of actual past disadvantage is required; and (b) beneficiaries must be `suitably qualified'. In addition, citizenship as a third requirement for beneficiaries of affirmative action has been mooted in case law. This is evaluated against modern interpretation theory, the Constitution and discrimination law. Against the background of a comparative investigation of the position in the US and Canada, and under international law, specific findings and recommendations are made in respect of South African affirmative action law. These relate to the interpretation of the concept `disadvantage', to a pragmatic and contextualised approach to the notion `degrees of disadvantage', to the recognition of the concept `multiple disadvantage', to the clarification of the meaning and application of the concept `suitably qualified' in a code of good practice, and to a policy decision by government to ensure that affirmative action measures apply mainly to South African citizens who otherwise qualify to benefit. To this end, certain amendments to the EEA, its regulations and codes of good practice are proposed with the aim of ensuring that affirmative action measures in fact benefit those intended by the EEA. Some projections are made to indicate the way forward for affirmative action in South Africa. / Jurisprudence / LL.D.

A partir del análisis de los orígenes y de la creación de la Universidad Internacional Menéndez Pelayo (UIMP) y del Festival Internacional de Santander (FIS), se profundiza en el conocimiento de la historia de ambas instituciones durante el primer franquismo y la relación que en ellas hubo entre política, ciencia, cultura e identidad nacional, a la vez que se demuestra el papel primordial de legitimación política internacional que la dictadura del general Franco asignó a la cultura con el fin de combatir el aislamiento diplomático que sobre España pesaba entre los ecuadores de las décadas cuarenta y cincuenta del pasado siglo. Asimismo, otros aspectos abordados en este trabajo son los referidos a la historia de los cursos de español para extranjeros y la historia de los festivales de música, relativas ambas a nuestro país, así como a la aproximación histórica a la vida cultural de Santander en la inmediata posguerra civil. / From the analysis of the origins and creation of the International University Menéndez Pelayo (UIMP) and the International Festival of Santander (FIS), it delves into the knowledge of the history of both institutions during the early Franco and the relationship that they were between politics, science, culture and national identity, as well as demonstrated the essential role of international political legitimacy to the dictatorship of General Franco assigned to culture in order to combat the diplomatic isolation of Spain weighed between equators decades of the forties and fifties of last century. Also, other issues addressed in this paper are those related to the history of Spanish courses for foreigners and the history of music festivals, both concerning our country, and the historical approach to the cultural life of Santander in the immediate post-Civil War.

South African affirmative action law in the workplace is in its infancy. Yet some concepts in this context have already proven to be unclear or in need of interpretation, or are lacking. This thesis focuses on the beneficiaries of affirmative action in employment law. The Employment Equity Act (EEA) creates `designated groups' ─ black people, women and people with disabilities ─ as the beneficiaries of affirmative action. It lays down two requirements for beneficiaries of affirmative action which are investigated: (a) beneficiaries must be from the designated groups - in this regard, the question that arises is whether, having been categorised as disadvantaged, persons are presumed to be de facto disadvantaged and entitled to benefit from affirmative action, or whether further evidence of actual past disadvantage is required; and (b) beneficiaries must be `suitably qualified'. In addition, citizenship as a third requirement for beneficiaries of affirmative action has been mooted in case law. This is evaluated against modern interpretation theory, the Constitution and discrimination law. Against the background of a comparative investigation of the position in the US and Canada, and under international law, specific findings and recommendations are made in respect of South African affirmative action law. These relate to the interpretation of the concept `disadvantage', to a pragmatic and contextualised approach to the notion `degrees of disadvantage', to the recognition of the concept `multiple disadvantage', to the clarification of the meaning and application of the concept `suitably qualified' in a code of good practice, and to a policy decision by government to ensure that affirmative action measures apply mainly to South African citizens who otherwise qualify to benefit. To this end, certain amendments to the EEA, its regulations and codes of good practice are proposed with the aim of ensuring that affirmative action measures in fact benefit those intended by the EEA. Some projections are made to indicate the way forward for affirmative action in South Africa. / Jurisprudence / LL.D.