Lobjectif de notre travail était triple. Dune part, nous voulions caractériser lévolution de la trace mnésique dans les 48 heures qui suivent lapprentissage explicite dune tâche motrice séquentielle (FTT). Nous nous sommes intéressés plus particulièrement à la période qui suit immédiatement lapprentissage de cette tâche. En effet, cette période, particulièrement vulnérable à une interférence au sens large du terme, semble cruciale dans le processus de consolidation de la trace mnésique. Dautre part, les différentes étapes de lapprentissage moteur ayant été définies, nous voulions étudier le rôle spécifique de M1 au cours de chacune de celles-ci. Pour ce faire, nous avons utilisé la SMTr à faible fréquence que nous avons appliquée à différents délais sur le scalp en regard du cortex moteur primaire controlatéral à la main utilisée pour la tâche. Enfin, quelques études récentes suggérant que la SMTr à haute fréquence pourrait améliorer certaines tâches cognitives et motrices chez le sujet sain comme chez le sujet cérébrolésé, nous avons tenté daugmenter la performance de nos volontaires sains en leur appliquant la SMTr à haute fréquence en regard du cortex moteur primaire directement après lapprentissage de la tâche. Au terme de ce travail nos conclusions sont les suivantes : 1. Le traitement de la trace mnésique fraîche est un processus dynamique qui passe au moins par trois étapes. a. Lors de la première étape, caractérisée par les 30 premières minutes qui suivent lentraînement, la trace mnésique est accessible, plus efficace quà la fin de lentraînement mais fragile aux perturbations extérieures. Une interférence survenant à ce moment peut détériorer le rappel immédiat de la tâche et dans certaines conditions la performance à long terme. b. La seconde étape, caractérisée par les heures qui suivent lentraînement et pendant lesquelles le sujet est éveillé, correspond à une phase de stabilisation de la trace mnésique durant laquelle celle-ci est moins accessible mais plus robuste aux interférences. c. La troisième étape correspond à lamélioration de performance survenant après au moins une nuit de sommeil. Bien que nous nayons pas testé spécifiquement le rôle du sommeil, nous avons montré que 24 et 48 heures après lentraînement, la trace mnésique est optimale et de nouveau accessible lors de lexécution de la tâche. 2. La première étape nest pas dépendante du niveau de performance du sujet. Elle est présente après un premier entraînement mais également 48 heures plus tard après un second entraînement. Il reste néanmoins à préciser si ce gain de performance survenant précocement après lentraînement est toujours présent ou non après plusieurs semaines dentraînement, lorsque le sujet a atteint son niveau de performance maximal. 3. Le rôle de la première étape dans le processus de consolidation à long terme reste à préciser. Dun côté, le gain de performance acquis lors de la première étape (5 et 30 minutes) est proportionnel au gain de performance acquis lors de la troisième étape (après 48 heures). Ces données suggèrent que la première étape reflète une structuration précoce de la trace mnésique. Dun autre côté, cette première étape est partiellement supprimée par la SMTr sans modification de la performance à plus long terme, suggérant que la première et la troisième étape sont au moins partiellement indépendantes. 4. Contrairement à lapprentissage dune tâche motrice simple (Muellbacher et coll. 2002), la consolidation de la trace mnésique survient très précocement pendant la phase dacquisition de la tâche. En effet, jusquà présent aucune interférence, quil sagisse dune nouvelle séquence apprise juste après la première (Walker et coll. 2003a, Korman et coll. 2007) ou dune SMTr (nos données, Robertson et coll. 2005), na permis de supprimer complètement la trace mnésique dune tâche motrice séquentielle. Le participant ne revient jamais à létat « naïf », initial, et dans le pire des cas, son niveau de performance est superposable à celui de la fin de lentraînement. 5. Le cortex moteur primaire intervient dans les étapes très précoces (30 premières minutes) de la consolidation de la trace mnésique qui succède à la phase dacquisition. La SMTr appliquée au niveau de M1 controlatéral à la main entraînée réduit la performance du sujet uniquement si elle est appliquée immédiatement après lentraînement et non 4 et 24 heures plus tard. Labsence de détérioration de la performance à ces 2 derniers délais démontre quil sagit dun effet spécifique de la SMTr sur la trace mnésique et non simplement dune réduction de la vitesse de frappe liée à une inhibition relative de la région cérébrale responsable de lexécution du mouvement. De plus, labsence deffet de la SMTr lorsque celle-ci est appliquée au niveau du cortex occipital immédiatement après lentraînement prouve quil sagit dun effet spécifique de la SMTr au niveau de M1. 6. La SMTr à haute fréquence appliquée immédiatement après lentraînement a le même effet que la SMT à basse fréquence sur lévolution de la trace mnésique au cours des 48 premières heures. Elle réduit lamélioration observée 30 minutes après lentraînement sans modifier la performance 48 heures plus tard. Cet effet délétère précoce potentiel sur lapprentissage moteur doit être pris en compte lors des études utilisant la SMT à haute fréquence à visée thérapeutique et en particulier en réhabilitation motrice chez les sujets cérébrolésés dautant quil nexiste actuellement pas de recommandation de sécurité en ce qui concerne la SMTr à haute fréquence chez ces patients. Nous avons donc démontré lexistence dune phase précoce (5 à 30 minutes après lentraînement) et transitoire (absente 4 heures après lentraînement) au cours de laquelle la performance qui suit un entraînement unique saméliore (« early boost »). La détérioration partielle de cette amélioration transitoire de performance par la SMTr suggère quà cette phase, la trace mnésique est distribuée dans un réseau cérébral incluant M1. Par contre, labsence de détérioration ultérieure de la performance (48 heures) et labsence deffet de la SMTr à 4 heures et 24 heures suggèrent que la consolidation dune tâche motrice récemment apprise dépend de circuits cérébraux cortico-cérébelleux et cortico-striataux dans lesquels M1 ne jouerait pas un rôle critique (Robertson et coll. 2005, Doyon et Benali 2005, Peigneux et coll. 2006). Il est possible que dans les premières minutes qui suivent un apprentissage séquentiel, les réseaux neuronaux impliqués dans cet apprentissage soient activés de façon globale (Albouy et coll. 2006). Dans ces conditions, la participation de M1 ne serait pas spécifique de la séquence apprise. Les corrélats cérébraux de cette phase devraient être étudiés en utilisant limagerie par résonance magnétique fonctionnelle (IRMf, voir perspectives).

Les propriétés de cristallisation et les interactions moléculaires intervenant dans des matières grasses naturelles, en létat ou modifiées, ainsi que dans leurs mélanges ont été caractérisées, et ceci dans le contexte de la mise sur le marché de produits alimentaires gras à teneur réduite en acides gras trans. En plus dune compréhension des propriétés de cristallisation, ce travail propose une modélisation offrant une possibilité de prédiction de propriétés de systèmes ternaires à partir des systèmes binaires correspondants. Enfin, la dernière partie de ce travail concerne une étude plus détaillée de la cinétique du polymorphisme et de lintersolubilité des constituants triglycéridiques dun composé majeur des formulations « low-trans » : lhuile de palme, ainsi que dun grand nombre de ses fractions (stéarines, oléines, superoléines et fractions intermédiaires). Lensemble des résultats démontre lintérêt de réaliser des diagrammes de phases pour létude du comportement dynamique de systèmes lipidiques et la nécessité de combiner plusieurs techniques pour caractériser ces systèmes hautement complexes et instables.

The DrrAB proteins of Streptomyces peucetius belong to the ABC family of ubiquitous membrane transporters. The DrrA and DrrB proteins together form a drug efflux pump that carries out the transport of the anticancer drug doxorubicin by carrying out ATP hydrolysis. The present study is the first where the intrinsic factors involved in the assembly of the DrrAB functional complex have been elucidated. The drrA and drrB genes in the wild type operon have overlapping stop and start codons (ATGA) which indicates translational coupling between the two genes. On insertion of a fortuitous stop codon in DrrA it was shown that the expression of DrrB is coupled to that of the upstream gene drrA. Furthermore, it was observed that a functional complex could be achieved only when the genes were maintained in cis in a translationally coupled manner. Translational regulation in DrrA was found to be involved in the control of optimal levels of DrrB. Inhibitory interactions within drrA sequence were speculated to cause translational arrest at the C terminus of DrrA. A novel assembly domain that forms the interface between DrrA containing the Nucleotide Binding Domain (NBD) and DrrB comprising the TransMembrane Domain (TMD) was found. Based on the data presented in this study a model is proposed for the biogenesis of the DrrAB drug pump. The model suggests that translational coupling between DrrA and DrrB is crucial for functional complex formation. Further, there is evidence of regulation of translation by attenuation in the intergenic region of drrA and drrB. The regulation seems to involve the last 30 nucleotides of the mRNA of drrA and some upstream sequences within drrA that cause translational arrest within the C terminus of DrrA. Since DrrB is translationally coupled to drrA, this translational arrest in conjunction with coupling causes lowering in the levels of DrrB. Finally, since the DrrA-DrrB interaction domain lies in the C terminus of DrrA, only the fully translated DrrA product will be competent to form a complex with DrrB. This interaction between the C terminus of DrrA and the N terminus of DrrB may be crucial for initial targeting of the complex to the membrane. The model is expected to serve as primer and open up an interesting yet insufficiently understood subject of membrane protein biogenesis.

This thesis is a study of Hamilton P. Bee and his role in the American Civil War. Bee was first a Texas brigadier general, in charge of a state militia district, and then a Confederate brigadier general, in command of the Western Sub-District of Texas. His duties included administration, diplomacy, and combat. As commander of the area from San Antonio to the Rio Grande, Bee had to cope with Unionist sentiment, regulation of trade – especially the control and impressment of cotton -- border unrest, relations with Mexico and France, and Federal invasion of the Rio Grande border and occupation of the coast. He also took part in the Confederate action against Nathaniel Banks's Red River Campaign into Louisiana in 1864 and participated in the battles of Mansfield, Pleasant Hill, and Monett's Ferry. Bee proved to be a competent administrator and an excellent diplomat, but no combat general. He ran his sub-district and the cotton trade about as well as anyone could have, and through his arrangements with the cotton owners was the only one who arrived at a viable method whereby the government obtained the needed cotton. His extradition agreement with the Mexicans and his dealings with them kept the peace on the border. But he had no experience in combat, and, when the Union forces invaded Texas at Brownsville, he panicked and ran. His actions in the battles in Louisiana showed him to be courageous and level-headed in the heat of battle, but were still indicative of his inexperience. After Richard Taylor accused him of letting Banks escape and relieved him of duty, Bee could do little to regain public confidence even though he was not at fault. He spent the remainder of the conflict in Texas and at war's end fled to Mexico to escape Unionist wrath. Since Bee was involved in all the major issues of the Trans-Mississippi, a study of his career offers a key to understanding the problems and difficulties in Texas and the failure of the area to live up to its potential to aid the Confederate war effort.

In 1949, Taiwan and Mainland China were segregated from each other and governed separately. Because of closed society and blocked information at that time, even though the two were very close to each other, there was no such trans-border crime ever happens. Following China¡¦s reforms and opening up of its policies in 1978, the number of displaced workers and jobless populace increased due to a series of reforms on economical systems and nation-operated business. The transformation of economic system had caused a big impact to politics and society of Mainland China, which successfully changed the control mechanism of the government on its society, causing social changes and restructuring. The gap between rich and poverty, urban and rural, was getting bigger. Day by day, jobless issue was getting more critical. Thus, trans-border crimes arose. Taiwan declared the ending of Martial Law on July 15, 1987. And in November of that same year, Taiwan opened up the visitations to Mainland China, Taiwanese investments in Mainland China, Cross-straits educations, interactions of barter trading, agriculture and technological personnel, making the interflow between Taiwan and Mainland China closer than ever. In virtue of similar consanguinity, culture, languages and customs, many people of Mainland China are yearned towards the wealthy and comfortable living in Taiwan. As the enactments of Taiwan and Mainland China are not well-integrated and that the politics of both are opposing to each other, common framework and control against crimes are hard to establish. With the continuous crackdown actions on crimes of Taiwan in 1984, mafias and gangsters took advantage of the non-extendable jurisdiction and absconded to Mainland China. They collaborated with the local illicit dealers and continued to engage with illegal affairs as to seek for extravagant profits. Trans-border crimes for the main purpose of economic benefits then came into existence. Most types of trans-border crimes between Taiwan and Mainland China are: illegal immigration, drug smuggling, firearm smuggling, prostitution out of fraud marriages, illegal working, absconding and hiding of criminals, the kidnapping in Taiwan and paying ransom in Mainland China, swindling over the cell phones. These crimes have become new issues which influence the public securities between the cross-straits. Due to the opposing condition of the cross-straits politics, discussion and controls about the affairs remain standstill up to now. There is no proper control strategy and systemized solution can be followed to resolve the criminal issues caused by the interflow between the cross-straits. Now that the government is opening the tourists from Mainland China to Taiwan, to prevent them from engaging in crimes after ¡§jumping out of the plane¡¨ and leaving tourist team, the governments of both borders must temporarily put aside their supremacy and dispute over unification issue. Instead, they must thoroughly think over the matter, discuss and develop specific practicable schemes against trans-border crimes. The main purpose of this research is to analyze the causes, purposes, types, methodology and severity of trans-border crimes of the cross-straits. The possible mode of cooperation on public security between the two borders is proposed. In order to maintain the public order and economic progress of the cross-straits, and to protect the lives and wealth safety of the people, both borders should confer with each other and enter agreement of cooperation on criminal jurisdictions.

Thèse (M.Sc.)--Université Laval, 2008. / Bibliogr.: f. 89-101. Publié aussi en version électronique dans la Collection Mémoires et thèses électroniques.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri--Columbia, 2001. / "December 2001." Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 228-272). Also available on the Internet.

The persistence of water conflicts in many arid regions is not simply a matter of water shortages, but rather the lack of equitable agreements that govern the allocation of disputed water resources to mitigate the adverse impacts of hostility and resentment. As such, equity is at the heart of many trans-boundary water disputes. Mindful of the dynamics and implications of inequitable water allocation on inter-state relationships and overall regional stability, this research aims at eliciting and developing theoretical criteria for equitable distribution of water (process equity) responsible for creating equitable outcomes and perception. This research makes the distinction between “process equity” and “outcome equity” and their impact on attaining and sustaining water security, peace, and hydro-stability. These parameters of equitable processes will be developed through a review of current literature addressing the issues of water equity in arid regions, coupled with case study analyses and cross-case comparisons and semi-structured interviews of key water negotiators. These key cases will be selected through a systematic screening methodology that analyzes nine pertinent cases. Collectively, employing these methods will yield in-depth analysis and findings applicable to other international water dispute cases in the context of arid regions. Proposing an alternative strategy that views water as a catalyst for peace and cooperation rather than conflict and altercation, this research further advocates for the development and adoption of an interdisciplinary, transformative approach to conflict resolution to advance water disputes to plausible and implementable agreements. Aiming to inform the theory and practice of hydro-diplomacy along disputed water resources, this approach encapsulates three key components, including rules of engagement, mechanisms of engagement, and neutral third-party mediation. Water satiety is identified as a major characteristic of equitable water allocation agreements that ensure the level of satisfaction of all involved stakeholders and the extent to which acceptable agreements, durable implementation, and sustainable relationships among co-riparians are attained and maintained. / text

The Rim Rock country, on the western edge of a vast Trans-Pecos Texas lava field, received thousands of feet of volcanic material during the Tertiary Period. Although pyroclastic rocks predominate, several flow rocks form the most distinctive stratigraphic markers. Dikes, sills, and laccoliths were emplaced following the cessation of extrusive igneous activity. The Vieja Group, comprising the oldest volcanic strata, has been tentatively assigned to the Chadronian Stage (Lower Oligocene). Late Tertiary block-faulting created an intermontane area which subsequently received thick bolson deposits. Recent climatic fluctuations have resulted in the development of gravel-capped terraces along the Rio Grande. / text

Within the next decade an inter provincial trail, called the Trans Canada Trail, will be developed to accommodate non-motorized traffic such as hikers, skiers, horsemen, and cyclists. Anticipating the need for rest stop facilities, this thesis seeks to explore the design potential of two isolated facilities. The focus of this exploration is the impact of landscape on the development of architectural form. While existing conditions found in each site were recorded and considered throughout the design process, a conscious effort was also made to build a site rather than site plan This position, first articulated by William Rees Morrish in his book Civilizing Terrain. acknowledges that not every piece of land can become an urban place. Instead, placemaking often requires willful acts of change in order to enhance or more effectively reveal its existing qualities. This position opposes the current attitude fostered by the environmental movement that all landscapes should remain untouched. The two sites selected were both located in western Canada: one on the eastern shore of Lake in southern British Columbia and the other in a farmer's field near Milk River in southern Alberta. This thesis traces the discoveries and attempts made to locate a center, develop an arrival sequence and insert an architectural form into the experience of the landscape. Both sites were explored simultaneously, reaching a similar level of resolution, at which point the British Columbia site was dropped and the prairie site was developed further. The Alberta site then became the developed body of the thesis.