Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Co-assessing'

The Candida genus is full of fungi that are subtle parts of the human microbiome, but they can cause complications if they overgrow within the body—specifically the mouth and throat, the genitalia, and the entire body through infection of the bloodstream. Candida species are a rising problem for many across the world, and this can be seen in the recent threat of Candida auris hospitalizing patients and being regularly resistant to anti-fungal medications. Beyond C. auris, Candida albicans is the most common Candida species that humans must combat because it causes the most infections in humans—mostly vaginal yeast infections. C. albicans does have natural competitors that can either inhibit its growth or kill it in general, and the competition that we took advantage of was with the Alcaligenes species. Alcaligenes faecalis and Alcaligenes viscolactis have been shown to at least inhibit C. albicans growth and maybe even kill the fungus. This rate of infection from C. albicans places it at the forefront of Candida research, and we attempted to further this research by utilizing both A. faecalis and A. viscolactis to create a co-infection model for Caenorhabditis elegans—a simple nematode lifeform. It is known that A. faecalis and A. viscolactis do not commonly adversely affect humans, so little research has been done concerning their clinical effects. We were looking to find a possible answer to C. albicans infections beyond antifungal drugs because we know that antibiotic resistance is on the rise. We performed liquid assays to test the survivability of C. elegans nematodes in various bacterial/fungal circumstances. We subjected batches of C. elegans to E. coli OP50 as a control, A. faecalis, A. viscolactis, C. albicans, A. faecalis and C. albicans, and A. viscolactis and C. albicans. This procedure was followed in order to determine the viability of using the Alcaligenes species to either help the C. elegans survive the infection or prevent them from getting infected at all. After following through with the project, we found that there was a noticeable increase in the survivability of C. elegans when subjected to both one of the Alcaligenes species and C. albicans as opposed to the C. albicans alone. The data, although early, shows the possibility of Alcaligenes species being used to combat C. albicans infections in lifeforms.

Research has demonstrated that problem gambling is associated with substance and alcohol abuse (Petry, Stinson, & Grant, 2005), participation in criminal activities (McCorkle, 2002; Meyer & Stadler, 1999), and involvement in the criminal justice system (NORC, 1999). This study assessed problem gambling and its relation to crime and substance use within a population in which these risk factors are compounded: Adults mandated to participate in drug and DUI courts. Results indicate that the prevalence and severity of problem gambling may be higher within this population than any other. Furthermore, the results of qualitative and quantitative analyses converged to highlight that gambling, crime and substance use are interrelated behaviors, as each may lead to and/or reinforce the other. These findings suggest that problem gambling is a salient issue among substance-abusing offenders and that resources should be dedicated to screening those involved with the criminal justice system for problem gambling, establishing evidence based best practices in the prevention and treatment of problem gambling within this population, and that such practices may incorporate components addressing gambling, crime, and substance use.

Research has demonstrated that problem gambling is associated with substance and alcohol abuse (Petry, Stinson, & Grant, 2005), participation in criminal activities (McCorkle, 2002; Meyer & Stadler, 1999), and involvement in the criminal justice system (NORC, 1999). This study assessed problem gambling and its relation to crime and substance use within a population in which these risk factors are compounded: Adults mandated to participate in drug and DUI courts. Results indicate that the prevalence and severity of problem gambling may be higher within this population than any other. Furthermore, the results of qualitative and quantitative analyses converged to highlight that gambling, crime and substance use are interrelated behaviors, as each may lead to and/or reinforce the other. These findings suggest that problem gambling is a salient issue among substance-abusing offenders and that resources should be dedicated to screening those involved with the criminal justice system for problem gambling, establishing evidence based best practices in the prevention and treatment of problem gambling within this population, and that such practices may incorporate components addressing gambling, crime, and substance use.

Doutoramento em Informação e Comunicação em Plataformas Digitais
Current demands for the Information and Communication Society often exclude certain groups either by their age, lack of participation in the labour workforce, health status or learning difficulties. In fact, active ageing and lifelong learning have been central issues for the Political Declaration and Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing and the World’s Health Organisation. Although debate continues about the best strategies for increasing the participation of older adult citizens in economic, cultural and social affairs, few studies have addressed the potential of a game-based approach to encourage healthier habits, a sense of security and participation in society. The purpose of this mixed-method study is to assess the effectiveness of game-based learning to encourage active ageing. In this thesis, thirty-three adult learners (G0) at a University of Third Age were involved in the design process of two learning programmes (game-based learning – GBLP and computer-assisted learning – CALP). The field research deployed an array of longitudinal methods, including surveys, group discussions, and participant observation. Sixty adult learners at four Universities of Third Age were then assigned to three different groups: The Experimental Group (G1), who tested firstly the GBLP and then the CALP; The Comparison Group (G2), who tested firstly the CALP and then the GBLP; and the Control Group (G3) that did not take part in the intervention. Before and after each experiment, the participants were assessed on their perception of health-related wellbeing and quality of life, using the SF36v2 and WHOQOL-BREF scales. Semi-structured interviews with ten Subject Matter Experts from the Industry and the Educational Sector in the fields of Games, Human-Computer Interaction and Psychology and/or Ageing studies were carried out in order to get their perspective on the use of games for learning and meet the challenges of the ageing process and changes in behaviours. Findings suggest that although no significant differences between the type of experiment undertaken by each group and their health-related wellbeing and quality of life were observed, there were significant differences between the group type and their perception on mental health (F(2,57) = 3.771, p= .029) and general health-related wellbeing (F(2,57) = 5.231, p= .008) in which the GBLP showed improvements relative to the CALP. When designing such learning programme, the environment, mental and psychological wellbeing and quality of life domains should be considered whereas metamemory, immediate feedback, context-aware challenges, storytelling/bios and role-playing, imagery-based techniques and social engagement are important design factors to foster the participants’ confidence to solve daily-life problems, decrease ageing bias and encourage participation in society. Two prototypes of the learning programmes are provided as a result of the co-design sessions and a set of design recommendations are also included.
As exigências atuais que decorrem da Sociedade da Informação e Comunicação, por vezes, excluem certos grupos, quer pela idade, quer por não fazerem parte da população ativa, quer pelo estado de saúde ou dificuldades de aprendizagem. De facto, o envelhecimento ativo e a aprendizagem ao longo da vida têm sido temas centrais da Declaração Política de Ação Internacional para o Envelhecimento de Madrid e da Organização Mundial de Saúde. Apesar de, recentemente, se ter verificado um interesse crescente na utilização de estratégias que visem responder aos desafios de uma sociedade envelhecida, grande parte dos estudos parece não considerar os jogos como estratégia de aprendizagem para motivar hábitos saudáveis, segurança e participação na sociedade. Trinta e três alunos de uma Universidade Sénior (G0) foram envolvidos no processo de design de dois programas de aprendizagem (baseado em jogo – GBLP e assistido por computador – CALP). O trabalho de campo teve como base os seguintes métodos longitudinais: inquérito, discussões em grupo e observação participante. Sessenta alunos de quatro Universidades Sénior foram posteriormente divididos em três grupos: Grupo Experimental (G1) que testou primeiro o GBLP e depois o CALP; Grupo de Comparação (G2) que testou primeiro o CALP e depois o GBLP; e o Grupo de Controlo (G3) que não teve intervenção. Antes e pós cada experiência, foi avaliada a perceção sobre o bem-estar de saúde e qualidade de vida, utilizando as escalas SF36v2 e WHOQOL-BREF. Entrevistas semiestruturadas foram também concretizadas com dez especialistas da Academia e Indústria nas áreas dos Jogos, Interação Homem-Máquina, Psicologia e Envelhecimento, de modo a obter as suas perspetivas sobre o uso de jogos e mudanças comportamentais e envelhecimento ativo. Os resultados sugerem que embora não tenham sido encontradas diferenças estatisticamente significativas entre grupos sobre o estado de bem-estar sobre saúde e qualidade de vida, verificaram-se diferenças entre cada grupo e perceção sobre a saúde mental (F (2,57) = 3.771, p = .029) e bem-estar geral (F (2,57) = 5,231, p = 0,008) em que GBLP foi eficaz em relação ao CALP. Relativamente ao design de jogos, os fatores ambiente, bem-estar mental e psicológico dos domínios de bem-estar e qualidade de vida devem ser considerados, enquanto os fatores de design como metamemória, feedback imediato, desafios adaptados ao contexto, narrativa e bios dos personagens, imagética e engagement social são importantes para aumentar a confiança dos participantes na resolução de problemas do dia-a-dia, diminuir o medo de envelhecer e incentivar a participação na sociedade. Dois protótipos que resultam das sessões de co-design são apresentados tais como um conjunto de recomendações para o seu desenvolvimento.

South Africa is faced with much poverty, joblessness and an economy that is not sustainable. Unemployment is on the rise in South Africa with the Eastern Cape having the largest number of unemployed people. Co-operatives can be used as a tool to combat poverty and for job creation, but the problem is that co-operatives are still an unknown entity in South Africa. Co-operatives are only known by a few and those few are still sceptical and not willing to form co-operatives. The already established businesses are also not forthcoming nor showing any willingness to do businesses with co-operatives. The less they do business with them, the less the co-operatives flourish. The present study investigates to what extent co-operatives can be a solution to decrease poverty and unemployment. The primary objective of this study was to make a contribution to the development and success of co-operatives by investigating the performance of co-operatives in the in the important business functions of financial management, general management, human resources management, marketing management and operations management. The study also investigated which of these business functions were the most important determinants of business success in these co-operatives. A sample of 50 co-operatives in the East London area of the Eastern Cape was selected and three members per co-operative were requested to answer the questionnaire. The expected number of respondents was therefore 150. However, only 65 usable questionnaires (response rate of 43.3%) were returned. The SEDA Small Business Assessment Tool was used to measure the co-operatives’ performance in these business functions. The empirical results revealed that the strongest correlates of business success in these co-operatives were financial management (r = 0.57, p < 0.05) followed by human resources management (r = 0.49, p < 0.05) and operations management (r = 0.40, p < 0.05). The results also show that, while the co-operatives do have some form of financial management strategies in place, they do not address some of the major financial management concepts that are really essential in a sound financial management policy. The co-operatives generally do not follow any formal financial costing system at all. The results however indicated that the co-operatives expressed high confidence in their financial, general and human resource management practices and low confidence in their marketing and operations management practices.

Thesis (MScAgric)--Stellenbosch University, 2013.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The influence of malolactic fermentation (MLF) in most red and some white wines is one of many factors that determine or influence wine quality, because it affects the flavour and sensory profile of wine. This process is a decarboxylation process conducted by lactic acid bacteria (LAB) such as Oenococcus, Lactobacillus, Pediococcus and Leuconostoc. Mostly Oenococcus oeni, but recently also Lactobacillus plantarum is used in commercial starter cultures and also the first mixed MLF starter culture (NT 202 Co-Inoculant) was commercialized in 2011. The reason for the predominant use of O. oeni and recently L. plantarum is due to their tolerance to the harsh wine environment. Malolactic fermentation leads to a decrease in acidity and an increase in pH that leaves the wine with a softer mouthfeel. Another reason to conduct MLF is the improvement of microbial stability by the removal of malic acid as carbon source. Research focus has recently shifted to the ability of LAB and MLF as well as the interaction of LAB with yeast to alter the wine aroma profile via the modification and/or production of certain aroma compounds. The main goal of this study was to assess the impact of yeast and nutrient addition on the ability of the NT 202 Co-Inoculant to conduct MLF during co-inoculation and to evaluate the aroma compound production in the final wine. The first aim was to evaluate the impact of different red and white wine yeast strains on the ability of the NT 202 Co-Inoculant to conduct MLF during co-inoculation in Chardonnay, Merlot and Shiraz. Malolactic fermentation was unsuccessful in the Chardonnay due to a low pH, but successful in Merlot and Shiraz. Based on the malic acid degradation ability of the NT 202 Co- Inoculant, the yeasts were grouped into three categories: inhibitory, neutral or stimulatory towards MLF. Co-inoculated MLF showed a clear decrease in total fermentation time while yeast strains such as WE 372 and Exotics showed positive compatibility with the NT 202 Co- Inoculant. The impact of the yeast-bacterial combinations on the aroma compound production in the final wine was evaluated. Co-inoculated MLF showed positive aroma changes in the red wines with a general increase in total esters (associated with fruity characters in wine) especially ethyl lactate and diethyl succinate that also contribute to the mouthfeel of the wine. Production of esters, volatile fatty acids and higher alcohols seemed to depend on the yeastand LAB strain used. The NT 202 Co-Inoculant contributed to the monoterpenes produced and MLF led to increased concentrations of diacetyl and acetoin, which are associated with buttery characters in wine. The second aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of wine additives (used during coinoculation) such as yeast- and bacterial nutrients, clarifying- and detoxifying agents on the ability of the NT 202 Co-Inoculant to conduct MLF and to assess their impact on the aroma compound production in the final wine. No negative or positive impact on the malic acid degradation of the NT 202 Co-Inoculant or the resulting aroma compound production was observed for the different wine additives used in this study. The results generated from this study showed that the selection of yeast strains is important as it will influence both the fermentation duration and final wine aroma.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die invloed van appelmelksuurgisting (AMG) in die meeste rooi- en witwyne is een van baie faktore wat wynkwaliteit beïnvloed, omrede dit die geur en sensoriese profiel van wyn beïnvloed. Hierdie proses is 'n dekarboksileringsaksie wat deur melksuurbakterieë (MSB), soos Oenococcus, Lactobacillus, Pediococcus en Leuconostoc, uitgevoer word. Die mees algemene bakterieë wat gebruik word, is Oenococcus oeni, maar onlangs het Lactobacillus plantarum ook na vore getree in die gebruik van kommersiële aanvangskulture. Die eerste gemengde AMGaanvangskultuur (NT 202 Co-Inoculant) is in 2011 gekommersialiseer. Die rede vir die oorheersende gebruik van O. oeni en L. plantarum word toegeskryf aan hul gehardhiedsgraad in ‘n uitdagende wynomgewing. Appelmelksuurgisting lei tot 'n afname in die suurheidsgraad en 'n toename in die pH van die wyn, wat 'n sagter mondgevoel tot gevolg het. Nog 'n rede waarom AMG deurgevoer word, is om die mikrobiese stabiliteit van die wyn te verbeter deur die verwydering van appelsuur as koolstofbron. Die navorsingsfokus het onlangs verskuif na die vermoë van MSB en AMG, sowel as die interaksie van MSB met die gis, om die wynaromaprofiel te verander deur middel van die verandering en/of produksie van sekere aromaverbindings. Die hoofdoel van hierdie studie was om die impak van die gis en voedingstof te evalueer ten opsigte van die vermoë van die NT 202 Co-Inoculant om AMG uit te voer tydens koïnokulasie. Die produksie van aromakomponente in die finale wyn is ook geëvalueer. Die eerste doelwit was om die impak van verskillende rooi- en witwyngisrasse te evalueer ten opsigte van die vermoë van die NT 202 Co-Inoculant om AMG uit te voer tydens koïnokulasie in Chardonnay, Merlot en Shiraz. Appelmelksuurgisting was onsuksesvol in die Chardonnay weens 'n lae pH, maar suksesvol in Merlot en Shiraz. In terme van die appelsuurafbraakvermoë van die NT 202 Co-Inoculant, is die giste in drie kategorieë gegroepeer: inhiberend, neutraal of stimulerend teenoor AMG. Ge-koïnokuleerde AMG het 'n duidelike afname in die totale fermentasietyd getoon, terwyl gisrasse, soos WE 372 en Exotics, ‘n positiewe verenigbaarheid met die NT 202 Co-Inoculant getoon het. Die impak van die gisbakteriële kombinasies op die aromakomponentproduksie in die finale wyn is geëvalueer. Gekoïnokuleerde AMG het positiewe aromaveranderinge in die rooiwyne getoon met 'n algemene toename in die totale esters (wat geassosieer word met vrugtige karakters in wyn), veral etiellaktaat en dietielsuksinaat, wat ook bydra tot die mondgevoel van die wyn. Dit het voorgekom dat produksie van esters, vlugtige vetsure en hoër alkohole moontlik afhanklik kan wees van die gis- en bakteriële ras gebruik. Die NT 202 Co-Inoculant het bygedra tot die monoterpene wat geproduseer is en AMG het gelei tot verhoogde konsentrasies van diasetiel en asetoïen, wat geassosieer word met botteragtige karakters in wyn. Die tweede doelwit van hierdie studie was om die impak van wyntoevoegingsmiddels (wat tydens koïnokulasie gebruik word) bv. gis- en bakteriese voedingstowwe, verhelderingsagente, asook detoksifiserende agente, te evalueer ten opsigte van die vermoë van die NT 202 Co- Inoculant om AMG uit te voer en om hul impak op die produksie van die aromakomponente van die finale wyn te ontleed. Geen negatiewe of positiewe effekte is waargeneem vir die verskillende wyntoevoegingsmiddels, wat in hierdie studie gebruik is, in terme van die appelsuurafbraak van die NT 202 Co-Inoculant of die gevolglike produksie van aromakomponente nie. Hierdie studie se resultate toon dat die keuse van die gisras belangrik is, omdat dit die fermentasietydperk, asook die finale wynaroma, beïnvloed.
Anchor Yeast, Oenobrands, The National Research Foundation and THRIP, for financial support

Au-delà des compétences humaines et managériales nécessaires pour développer une entreprise, le bon déploiement du Lean peut jouer un rôle important dans la réduction des gaspillages et la maximisation de l'efficacité. Ces avantages dépendent fortement de l'intégration adéquate des techniques Lean. L'un des principaux obstacles auxquels font face les entreprises est la difficulté de choisir les outils Lean qui correspondent le mieux à leurs contextes et qui sont les mieux adaptés à l’atteinte de leurs objectifs.Dans cette étude, nous avons proposé un environnement de co-simulation basé sur HLA avec une plateforme digitale basée sur Java pour permettre à différents fédérés (simulations à évènements discrets) qui représentent les outils opérationnels Lean de fonctionner simultanément en parallèle. Les mécanismes de gestion du temps de HLA sont nécessaires pour réguler l’avancement des fédérés pendant le cycle de simulation. Un exemple d’entreprise aéronautique est utilisé pour démontrer l’utilité de cet environnement de co-simulation. Six modèles de configuration Lean sont étudiés par rapport au modèle actuel de l’entreprise simulé sans l’application du Lean, et ce sous l’influence de la fluctuation du marché, de la diversification de la demande et de l’incertitude des ressources
Aside from the human and managerial skills necessary to propel any business, the right Lean deployment can play a big role in reducing waste and maximizing efficiency. Capturing these benefits is highly dependent on adequate Lean techniques integration. One of the major hurdles companies face is the difficulty to choose the Lean tools that best fit their contexts and that are best tailored towards reaching their objectives. In this study, we proposed an HLA based Co-Simulation framework with a Java-based digital platform to allow different federates (discrete event simulations), representing the operational Lean tools, running simultaneously in parallel. Time management mechanisms of HLA are required for regulating the advancement of the federates during the simulation run. An example of an Aeronautic company is used to demonstrate the usefulness of this co-simulation framework. Six Lean configuration models are investigated under market fluctuation, demand diversification, and uncertainty of resources contexts compared with an actual model simulated as a Lean free scenario

Objective: Despite the evidence that antiretroviral treatment (ART) interruption increases the risk of various negative outcomes, it is still likely that HIV/hepatitis C (HCV) co-infected patients will discontinue ART for several reasons. The impact of interruption on liver fibrosis progression in co-infected adults was examined, using the aspartate aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio index (APRI) as a surrogate marker of liver fibrosis. Method: Time-dependent Cox regression, as well as inverse probability-of-treatment weighting (IPTW) in a marginal structural model, were used to evaluate the association of baseline and time-varying covariates with developing significant fibrosis. Results: After accounting for potential confounders, such as HIV viral load and CD4+ T cell count, the hazard ratio for ART interruption was 2.52 (1.20-5.28). Use of IPTW resulted in a similar estimate of effect, suggesting that mediation by time-varying confounders was negligible. Conclusions: ART interruption was independently associated with an increased risk of liver fibrosis progression in HIV/HCV co-infected patients.
Objectif: Certains patients coinfectés par le VIH et l'hépatite C interrompent leur traitement antirétroviral (TRT) pour des raisons variées, bien que cela augmente les risques de plusieurs effets indésirables. L'impact de l'interruption du traitement sur la progression de fibrose du foie chez des adultes coinfectés a donc été évalué grâce à l'utilisation du score APRI comme marqueur de fibrose du foie. Méthode: Un modèle Cox ainsi qu'un modèle marginal avec pondération par l'inverse de la probabilité de traitement ont été utilisés. Résultats: Après ajustement, le rapport de risque pour l'interruption du TRT était de 2.52 (1.20-5.28). Un effet similaire a été mesuré lorsque la pondération par l'inverse de la probabilité de traitement a été utilisée, ce qui suggère que l'effet des variables variant avec le temps était négligeable. Conclusions: L'interruption du TRT est indépendamment associée avec un risque accru de la progression de fibrose du foie chez les patients coinfectés avec le VIH et l'hépatite C.

Les phases préliminaires du processus de conception sont celles qui influencent le plus le résultat. Elles sont caractérisées par l’incertitude : le processus ne peut être précisément défini à l’avance. L’approche Design Thinking est particulièrement adaptée pour gérer cette spécificité. L’introduction de supports numérique pendant ces phases de conception préliminaire a été identifiée comme une piste de recherche à fort potentiel. L’analyse de ces phases amont a permis de définir des postulats à partir desquels construire ces nouveaux supports numériques. Ces dispositifs sont constitués de deux surfaces tactiles, multi-utilisateurs ; une orientée horizontalement pour favoriser le foisonnement, l’autre orientée verticalement pour favoriser la focalisation. Par conséquence, ces plateformes ont été identifiées avec l’acronyme HOVER (HORizontale VERticale). La méthodologie de recherche comporte deux phases. Lors de la première phase, des expérimentations ont permis de comparer les dispositifs numériques avec les dispositifs actuels. Cette phase avait pour objectif de déterminer si les dispositifs numériques étaient acceptables dans la situation d’usage préconisée. Lors de la deuxième phase, les dispositifs numériques ont été testés dans des situations de travail réelles, afin de déterminer s’ils améliorent ces situations de travail. Ces expérimentations, ont été faites sur une spécifique plateforme HOVER, dénommés plateforme TATIN-PIC (Table Tactile Interactive –Plateforme Intelligente de Conception), construite à l’Université de Technologie de Compiègne. Les quatre expérimentations de la première phase ont révélées un niveau d’acceptabilité satisfaisant. En outre, cette phase permis d’identifier plusieurs pistes d’amélioration notamment au niveau des interactions homme-machines. La prise en compte des données collectées lors de cette phase a conduit à la conception d’une nouvelle version des dispositifs numériques. Cette nouvelle version, dénommée plateforme Digital Project Space (DPS), a été utilisée pour tester le dispositif dans des situations d’utilisation réelles. Les résultats de ces tests préliminaires montrent que les utilisateurs sont satisfaits des améliorations apportées par la plateforme DPS, et que ses performances, sont au pire, comparable aux meilleures prestations des supports papier actuellement disponibles. Des tests complémentaires sont néanmoins nécessaires pour avoir des résultats généralisables. Les perspectives sont de continuer la dissémination des dispositifs DPS dans la sphère productive afin d’obtenir des données quantitatives sur l’efficacité et l’efficience. L’objectif étant d’identifier des modèles prescriptifs de l’impact des dispositifs sur le processus de conception préliminaire
The early preliminary phases of the design process are the most impactful on the final outcomes. However, they are ill defined, the path to follow is not clear. Design-thinking approaches are a good solution to tackle the incertitude of these phases. The introduction of computer tools during these phases has been identified as an interesting research path to explore. Through the analysis of these early preliminary design phases, a list of high-level assumptions has been made. These high-level assumptions delimited the perimeter of action for the design of a new kind of computer supported design platforms. These platforms are composed of two multi-touch, multi-users surfaces; one is horizontal to favor divergent thinking, while the other is vertical to favor convergent thinking. By this fact, I identified them with then name “HOVER” (HORizontal - VERtical) platforms. The preconized research methodology has two steps. The first step consists in the experimental comparison of the new tool with existing ones. The aim of this evaluation is to determine if HOVER platforms are applicable to the situation for which they have been designed. The second step consists in ethnographic observations of real case studies to establish if HOVER platforms have successfully improved the existing situation. This study has been conducted on a specific HOVER platform, the TATIN-PIC platform (French acronym for Table Tactile Interactive – Plateforme Intelligente de Conception) built at the Université de Technologie de Compiègne. The first step, composed of four quasi-experimental observations, showed a satisfying level of applicability. Besides, it provided multiple indications for the improvement of the HOVER platforms regarding Human Machine interactions. For example, it has confirmed the need for an interconnected vertical and horizontal surface, the need for a natural manipulation of intermediary objects, the need for a smooth circulation among design methods and, as well, the need for new design methods to be implemented. Thanks to these indications, a second version of a HOVER platform has been made. This improved platform, called Digital Project Space (DPS) platform, has been used for success evaluation in a real context. From these preliminary tests emerged that users are satisfied by the support of the DPS platform. Performances are in the worst-case scenario, as good as actual tools. Further and more accurate real case studies are needed to generalize these findings. This outlines the future perspectives, such as the definition of prescriptive models of the impact of such device on the early preliminary design phases
Le fasi preliminari del processo di progettazione sono caratterizzate dall’incertezza, sia in termini di conoscenza che di azioni da compiere. Al contempo, pero, sono le fasi cruciali per il risultato globale del processo di progettazione. L’approccio Design Thinking è particolarmente adatto per le caratteristiche di queste fasi. L’introduzione di strumenti digitali durante il processo di progettazione preliminare è stata identificata come una pista di ricerca interessante da esplorare. L’analisi di queste fasi ha permesso di emettere una lista di postulati su cui progettare nuovi strumenti digitali. Questa classe di strumenti ha le sembianze di una piattaforma composta da due superfici tattili multi-utilizzatore; una è orizzontale per favorire il pensiero divergente, mentre l’altra è verticale per favorire il processo convergente. A causa di ciò, abbiamo deciso di identificare queste piattaforme con l’acronimo HOVER (HORizontal and VERtical). Il forte divario in termini di curva d’apprendimento tra i dispositivi esistenti (principalmente basati su carta) e le piattaforme HOVER, ha richiesto la definizione di una metodologia di ricerca adeguata. Questa metodologia ha inoltre il compito di garantire un rigore metodologico nell’approccio di ricerca. Due fasi di questa metodologia sono state eseguite. Nella prima fase, il nuovo dispositivo è comparato sperimentalmente con i dispositivi esistenti al fine di determinare se è applicabile alla situazione per cui è stato concepito. Nella seconda fase, il dispositivo è valutato in una situazione reale al fine di determinare se ha apportato, con successo, un miglioramento alla situazione esistente. Questi studi sono stati condotti su una specifica HOVER platform chiamata TATIN-PIC (acronimo francese per Table Tactile Interactive – Plateforme Intelligente de Conception), progettata e construita all’Université de Technologie de Compiègne. La prima fase, che ha visto quattro esperimenti, ha mostrato un livello di applicabilità soddisfacente, ha inoltre fornito molteplici piste di miglioramento in termini d’interazione uomo macchina. Grazie a questi feedback una seconda versione del dispositivo è stata creata. Tale versione, chiamata piattaforma Digital Project Space (DPS) è stata utilizzata per testare il successo del dispositivo in situazioni di reale utilizzo. Da questi test preliminari è emerso che gli utilizzatori sono rimasti soddisfatti dell’apporto fornito dal dispositivo, e che le performance sono nel caso peggiore equivalenti alla situazione attuale. Ulteriori e approfondite osservazioni di uso in situazioni reale sono necessarie per avere dei riscontri generalizzabili. Questo traccia gli scenari per il futuro; continuando la disseminazione nell’ambito industriale del dispositivo, sarà possibile ottenere dei riscontri quantitativi in termini diefficienza ed efficacia, grazie ai quali, estrapolare dei modelli prescrittivi dell’impatto del dispositivo sul processo di progettazione preliminare

Thesis (M.Dev.) -- University of Limpopo, 2016
In 2010, the South African Department of Agriculture rolled out the Farm Together Agricultural Co-operative Training Programme (Farm Together Programme) to support the development and growth of selected agricultural co-operatives nationwide. This study is an impact assessment of the programme, focusing on the Capricorn District Municipality in the Limpopo Province. A survey of co-operative members whose co-operatives had participated in the programme and in-depth interviews with key stakeholders were conducted. The findings provide insights into the strengths and weaknesses of the programme. Overall, the programme was relevant and comprehensive. It provided the basic skills needed to run co-operatives. However, there has been minimum impact on growth and development. Gaps identified in the programme include lack of ongoing mentoring, monitoring and evaluation of progress being made in setting up structures to support growth and development. Women with low levels of literacy dominate the membership. Further research is required to explore why the youth and men do not participate in co-operatives.

One of the most significant features of the Third Pillar, which came into being as part of the Treaty of European Union, is the so-called 'implementation gap' between the expectations and aspirations of the member states in this area and the empirical reality. This regularly features in the standard literature on the Third Pillar, yet there has been little detailed research done to either measure or determine the root causes of such an occurrence. Rather than simply accept that such a 'gap' exists, this thesis attempts to measure the implementation gap in two distinct areas of internal security co-operation. These are two of the most under-researched areas within the Third Pillar, namely the development of the European Police Office (and related elements of police cooperation) and progress in the related area of a European counter-terrorist framework. A model of 'perfect implementation' has been devised utilising tests from three distinct schools of decision-making - foreign policy analysis, the implementation school (which has its own distinct subset of literature) and European decision-making. By applying tests in relation to the establishment of objectives, the question of leadership, the scale of the 'sacrifice' made and a detailed analysis of the legislative output of each area, the thesis measures how close the reality is to the ideal. In terms of the nature of objectives, an examination of the clarity and consistency of such aims will be determined at two levels. The overall 'metapolicy' of the Third Pillar - the creation of 'an area of freedom, security and justice'- is compared to the current enlargement process, in order to determine both the meaning of such a concept and to ascertain where the priorities of the member states actually lie. Certain terms used within the European Union and replicated within the literature, such as describing such areas as 'matters of common interest', will be analysed to determine their meaning and their applicability to the empirical reality. As a result, and complimenting the 'Good Governance' initiative of the European Commission, which aims to determine the appropriate level for each of the competencies of the EU, the legitimacy of the European level of decision-making will be examined in each area. In terms of determining the root causes of the 'implementation gap', the solution most commonly offered - both by practitioners and in the secondary literature - relates to the process of communitarisation, which has already begun for the areas such as immigration and asylum and judicial co-operation on civil matters. Yet, in the case of the two case studies examined in this thesis - European police cooperation and the European counter-terrorist framework - communitarisation is not forthcoming, with little mention made of the post-Amsterdam elements of the Third Pillar in the draft Treaty of Nice. As such, the control factor of the institutional framework of the European Union does not apply as directly in either case study. Both have shared the same institutional structure since the inception of the Third Pillar, a structure that is likely to remain untouched by the process of enlargement. Therefore, there is a need to look beyond the potential panacea of communitarisation for other potential explanations as to why greater progress has been made in one area as opposed to the other.

Magister Curationis - MCur
As South Africa continues to experience the highest prevalence of HIV/AIDS globally, co-occurring mental illness poses challenges for public health. Mental illness has increased among people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA), as infected individuals succumb to the psychological stress and trauma of the disease. Key research issues, not yet well established, relate to whether professional nurses, working in psychiatric hospitals in South Africa, are equipped with the necessary knowledge and skills to be able to provide effective mental healthcare services, given the increase in mental illness of PLWHA. An increase in mental illness translates into an increase in demand for psychiatric services by PLWHA. There is a paucity of research on HIV/AIDS knowledge of professional nurses working in psychiatric hospitals in South Africa, despite the established acknowledgement of the increase of mental illness amongst PLWHA. The aim of this study was to assess the HIV/AIDS knowledge, attitude and perceived risks of professional nurses working in a psychiatric hospital in the Western Cape, South Africa. A quantitative, descriptive survey design, using an all-inclusive sampling method, was used to select 121 professional nurses employed at a psychiatric hospital in Western Cape to participate in the study. The objectives of the study were to: describe professional nurses’ knowledge of HIV/AIDS; describe the attitudes of professional nurses towards PLWHA and mental illness; and determine professional nurses’ perceived HIV risks in a psychiatric hospital.

Different challenges arising from increasingly uncertain and unpredictable environmental and economicconditions have been shifting the focus of public governance and socio-economic development. Morerecently, empirical studies have demonstrated a transitional epoch in which humanity is currently in: TheAnthropocene, as well as its harmful effects that degrade the biosphere, and thus our economic, political,social well-being. The casual dynamics of climate change and its impacts on life-supporting ecosystemshas increasingly been recognized by a resilient approach which incorporates adaptive processes andschemes, allowing public governance to embrace the changes rather than control uncertainty. Thisresearch introduces the interwoven concepts of adaptive capacity, adaptive governance, and resiliencewithin a social and environmental framework. It provides a review of how these concepts support aparadigm shift to mitigating current and future challenges—understood through a multidisciplinaryapproach, and how scholars have sought to develop a blueprint to improve the need to foster and mobilizeadaptive capacity within the governance of the commons. In Sweden, key governmental and businessleaders have shown the ability to foster environmental governance that is capable of developing analternative form of planning, implementing, and managing public policy. Moreover, Sweden’s concertedmultilevel governance and public policy efforts have promoted an all-encompassing generational, mainlythrough: coordinated environmental policies and private, public, and civil society partnerships. Theseinitiatives have led to innovative technologies and projects (e.g. urban vertical farming technology) as wellas cross collaboration and integration of companies and industries in order to achieve economic, social,and environmentally symbiosis.

Water has been classified as an increasingly stress resource, according to the last World Water Development Report. Concerns about clean drinking water and water sanitation are also focal points of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Moreover, small and medium-sized enterprises (SME), as well as start-ups, are interested in water management innovation and reaching countries with difficult access. This project is motivated by a desire to identify and classify the challenges of reaching water-stressed regions or people living at the bottom of the pyramid (BOP) that are facing water scarcity as well as the aim to recognize approaches of how partnerships - strategic alliances, joint ventures, co-opetition, and buyer-supplier relationship - address some of those challenges. The importance of partnerships, their specific motives, and the assets and activities interchanged in each experience, have been examined through different interviews. By focusing attention on the relation between challenges, partnerships, and business model levels, this paper suggests that partnerships are essential to reach emerging markets, but not all of them are valuable at the earlier stages of a start-up. In addition, according to the challenges that are expected to address, a particular type of partnership should be established, which implies different adaptations in the business model. Therefore, the contribution of this study is to provide orientation to small companies on how to use partnerships based on the challenges to overcome reaching regions with water scarcity.
Vatten har klassificerats som en resurs som allt mer drabbas av vattenstress enligt senaste rapporten från World Water Development. Bekymmer om rent dricksvatten och vattenrening hamnar i fokus i de Globala målen för hållbar utveckling (SDG). Dessutom fokuserar små till medelstora företag och startups är intresserade av innovation inom vatten management och att nå länder där tillgång till vatten är svår. Detta projekt motiveras av en vilja att identifiera och klassificera utmaningarna av att nå vattenstressade regioner och människorna som lever i botten av pyramiden (BOP) som drabbas av vattenbrist och att hitta de metoder som med samarbetspartners, strategiska samarbeten, samriskföretag och leverantörssamarbeten kan hjälpa med dessa utmaningar. Betydelsen av samarbeten, deras specifika mål och tillgångar och aktiviteter som spridits i form av utbyte för varje händelse har examinerats genom olika intervjuer. Genom att fokusera på sammanhanget mellan utmaningarna, samarbeten och olika nivåer av affärsmodeller föreslår denna studie att samarbeten är grundläggande för att kunna nå utvecklingsområden, men inte alla är viktiga i de tidigare skeden i en startup. Dessutom enligt de utmaningar som uppkommer, en speciell typ av samarbete ska etableras som innebär olika anpassningar av affärsmodellen. Därför bidrar denna studie till att ge små företag riktlinjer på hur man använder sammarbetspartnerskap baserat på utmaningarna för att nå de regioner som har vattenbrist.

Dans un contexte de dérèglement climatique, d’augmentation des inondations en milieu urbain,d’augmentation des incertitudes, les gestionnaires urbains sont obligés d’innover pour concevoir des stratégies de gestion des risques adéquates. Parmi ces stratégies, rendre les villes résilientes est devenu un impératif. Le concept de résilience est un concept pluridisciplinaire qui définit la capacité d’un système à absorber une perturbation et à récupérer ses fonctions par la suite. Cette notion renvoie à une innovation technique, urbaine, sociale, architecturale, économique et politique et enjoint à une remise en question des stratégies traditionnelles de gestion du risque. Cette injonction à l’innovation s’adapte parfaitement à la complexité urbaine, économique, politique, sociale, écologique du monde contemporain. De ce fait, le concept de résilience s’intègre aux enjeux d’étalement urbain et aux risques associés. Pourtant, malgré cette adéquation théorique et conceptuelle, la résilience demeure complexe à intégrer dans les pratiques des urbanistes et acteurs territoriaux. Sa multitude de définitions et d’approches a favorisé son abstraction et son manque d’opérationnalisation. Face à ce constat, cette recherche se propose de répondre à ces lacunes opérationnelles en construisant un système spatial d’aide à la décision afin de clarifier et favoriser l’intégration du concept dans les pratiques urbaines. L’idée défendue est que la résilience urbaine incarne les aptitudes et capacités d’une ville et de sa population à mettre en place avant, pendant et après un événement perturbateur de façon à en limiter les impacts négatifs. Ce positionnement scientifique permet donc d’analyser la résilience urbaine sur un long pas de temps, mettant en avant des capacités proactives que le système urbain doit développer de façon à (ré) agir face à l’inondation. Ce travail s’est appuyé sur un partenariat socio-économique avec la Ville d’Avignon et son Service SIG (Système d’Information Géographique). L’approche a permis de construire trois indicateurs de mesure afin d’aborder la résilience urbaine, technique et social. Ces indicateurs ont permis d’acquérir des informations sur les variables définissant des potentiels de résilience qui favoriseraient l’émergence d’une réponse adéquate face à une inondation urbaine. L’utilisation de techniques de géovisualisation a permis de favoriser la visualisation des traitements et des résultats afin d’expliciter la démarche auprès des gestionnaires urbains. Parallèlement, des ateliers de concertation ont été montés afin de présenter et discuter des résultats obtenus grâce aux indicateurs avec les responsables et gestionnaires des infrastructures critiques.La co-construction de ces indicateurs, afin de construire une analyse et une connaissance autour de la résilience urbaine, suivis de la mise en place d’ateliers avec les acteurs du territoire, afin de favoriser le processus décisionnel territorial, a permis de développer une culture de résilience. Ce système spatial d’aide à la décision a donc permis la mutualisation des connaissances théoriques et pratiques autour des questions de risques urbains et de résilience afin de parvenir à un consensus nécessaire pour la prise de décision et l’opérationnalisation de la résilience
In a context of climate change, increased urban flooding and increased uncertainty, urbanmanagers are forced to innovate to design appropriate risk management strategies. Among thesestrategies, making cities resilient has become an imperative. The concept of resilience is amultidisciplinary concept that defines the ability of a system to absorb a disturbance and then recoverits functions. This concept refers to technical, urban, social, architectural, architectural, economic andpolitical innovation and calls into question traditional risk management systems. This injunction toinnovation is perfectly adapted to the urban, economic, political, social and ecological complexity ofthe contemporary world. As a result, the concept of resilience is integrated with urban sprawl issues andassociated risks. However, despite this theoretical and conceptual adequacy, resilience remains complexto integrate into the practices of urban planners and territorial actors. Its multitude of definitions andapproaches have contributed to its abstraction and lack of operationalization.In response to this observation, this research aims to address these operational gaps by buildinga spatial decision support system to clarify and promote the integration of the concept into urbanpractices. The idea behind this approach is that urban resilience embodies the abilities and capacities ofa city and its population to develop before, during and after a disruptive event in order to limit itsnegative impacts. This scientific positioning therefore makes it possible to analyze urban resilience as acontinuum, highlighting proactive capacities that the urban system must develop in order to (re)act inthe face of flooding. This work was based on a socio-economic partnership with the City of Avignonand its GIS Service (Geographic Information System). The approach made it possible to build threemeasurement indicators to address the urban, technical and social resilience of the Avignon area. Theseindicators have made it possible to acquire information on the variables defining potential resilience thatwould foster the emergence of an adequate response to a natural disaster and more precisely to an urbanflood. The use of geovisualization techniques has made it possible to visualize treatments and results inorder to explain the approach to urban managers. At the same time, consultation workshops were heldto present and discuss the results obtained through the indicators with critical infrastructure managersand managers.The co-construction of these indicators, in order to build an analysis and knowledge aroundurban resilience, followed by the implementation of workshops with stakeholders in the territory, inorder to promote the territorial decision-making process, has made it possible to develop a culture ofresilience. This spatial decision support system has therefore made it possible to pool theoretical andpractical knowledge on urban risk and resilience issues in order to reach the consensus necessary fordecision-making and the operationalization of resilience

Co-branding strategies arise from the brands’ need to reinvent themselves and are commonly defined as an alliance between two brands in order to create a new product that will carry both brands’ names. The goal of our research is to assess the influence of brand gender on consumers’ evaluation of a new co-branded product. Previous studies have shown that consumers tend to choose brands that enhance their gender identity. Moreover, consumers associate human personality traits with brands, since they tend to see brands as if they were their family or friends. With the aim of studying this influence, we started by doing a pre-test in order to find out the brands that are more strongly associated to each gender, and more familiar among a list of brands belonging to two product categories – personal care and fashion. The results of the pre-test showed that the brands that have a more favorable relation between gender and familiarity are Axe, Dove, Levis, and Mango. Following we created two co-branding scenarios: Axe by Mango – targeting females – and Dove by Levis – targeting males. We collected data using and online survey. Our sample was composed mainly by students from different University classes in Porto and Faro. We started our analyses by doing a sociodemographic characterization of our sample and a brief descriptive statistical analysis. This was followed by reliability tests to measure the internal consistency of our variables. Finally, we used Linear Regressions to test our hypotheses. Our results show that brand gender has a significant and favorable influence on consumers’ attitude towards the new co-branded product, in the case of a masculine co-branding scenario.

The combustion of fossil fuels results in the release of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, a known greenhouse gas. Evidence suggests that “most of the observed increase in global average temperatures…is very likely due to the observed increase in anthropogenic greenhouse gas concentrations” (IPCC, 2007). One solution currently being examined is carbon capture and storage (CCS). The advantage of CCS is that it does not require an actual reduction in the amount of carbon dioxide emissions created, but reduces emissions to the atmosphere by storing the greenhouse gases in the subsurface. Fundamentally, CCS works in the reverse of oil and gas production. Instead of extracting fluids from the subsurface, CCS injects carbon dioxide (CO2) into the pore spaces of developed oil and gas reservoirs, saline aquifers, or coal bed seams (Bachu, 2007), where it exists in a dense but low-viscosity phase (Supercritical state). The Gulf Coast Carbon Center, based at the University of Texas at Austin’s Bureau of Economic Geology, is currently evaluating the State of Texas Offshore Lands (STOL) in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) in order to evaluate the carbon-storage capacity in the state owned lands. “Capacity is defined as the volume fraction of the subsurface within a stratigraphic interval available for [CO2] sequestration” (Hovorka, 2004). There are a variety of methods currently used to calculate capacity. With so many options, how does a project decide which method to employ in determining capacity? This paper discusses the methods, presents an analysis of the benefits and drawbacks of the various methods, and develops a process for future projects to utilize in determining which methodology to employ. Additionally, storage capacity is calculated using the various methods presented, in order to compare the methods and understand their various advantages and drawbacks. Reservoir specific simulations are expected to predict smaller capacities in comparison to more broad static methods. This will provide end member predictions of capacity, shedding light on what can be expected in best case and worst case scenarios. The lessons learned from this study can be applied to future endeavors and formations all over the world.
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碩士
國立臺灣大學
國際企業學研究所
99
Customer co-production has been recently highlighted in marketing thoughts and practice. As the way how customers interact with firms to co-create services are increasingly affected by firms’ adoption of self-service technologies (SSTs), the study propose a model of SST co-production, which investigate the factors that affect customer co-production in a self-service technology context. The relationships among technology readiness (TR) affects perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness of a customer toward technology, customer satisfaction and co-production are explored and empirically tested. Implications and directions for future research are then discussed.

Yes
Co-production and active participation of the consumers are considered to have enhanced the value co-creation activities that would ensure business benefits of a firm. The marketing literature available does not explicitly explain the philosophy that would motivate the consumers to help to increase values for co-creation activities. In this context, attempts have been made to identify the factors that would impact on co-production and consumers’ participation to co-create values. By studying literature and theories such as theory of co-creation, theory of value creation, information processing theory, marketing theory and expectancy value theory, a conceptual model called F-P-C-B (Future Participation (F) - Co-production (P) - Co-creation (C) - Business Benefit (B)) has been developed along with nine hypotheses. The data was from 362 respondents in India and the model was tested using PLS based analysis. The study shows that it is important for the firms to shift from product-oriented activities to customer-related strategies. It is also found that for obtaining more profitability and better business results, customers should be involved in business activities by way of involving in co-design, idea generation, and other relevant activities of the firms. Moreover, the study highlights that knowledge sharing between the customers and the firm authorities ensures better business values.

The ultimate success of carbon capture and storage project will be ensured only when there is a safe and effective permanent storage of CO₂ for a significant amount of time without any leakages. Credible monitoring and verification is one of the most important aspects of CO₂ sequestration. Accurate reservoir characterization is an important pre-requisite for the design, operation and economic success of processes like CO₂ sequestration. The techniques available include geophysical and geochemical monitoring as well as numerical simulations using models replicating the field. In conducting the numerical simulations, it is required to assess the reservoir heterogeneity correctly. Previous work has shown that the injection data from wells can be utilized for developing models during CO₂ sequestration to understand the spatial distribution of heterogeneities in the formation. In this research, we first understand and examine the information contained in the injection data for a wide range of reservoir models demonstrating different kinds of heterogeneities and rate fluctuations. We will confirm that the reservoir heterogeneities have an imprint on the injection pressure response and they influence CO₂ plume migration significantly. Later we show that the effect of high or low permeability features along with rate fluctuations can provide considerable information about permeability heterogeneity in the reservoir. The applicability of this observation is made using field data from In-Salah gas field from central Algeria. Thus we demonstrate the feasibility of developing an inexpensive method of modeling reservoir heterogeneity by employing readily available measurements of injection pressure and rate to track CO₂ migration. Later we describe method to find out what characteristics of the reservoir heterogeneities can be quantified using injection data (pressure and rate). The injection pressure response during CO₂ sequestration will depend strongly on reservoir, fluid and well properties. A 3-D analytical model with infinite acting boundary is developed in CMG-GEM. Compositional reservoir simulation results from CMG-GEM simulator will be obtained and combined with pressure transient analysis and optimization algorithm for the prediction of reservoir parameters. In case of multiple injection wells in a heterogeneous formation, the analysis yield spatial variations in reservoir parameter groups like transmissibility (kh), permeability to porosity ratio ([kappa]/[phi]) in different part of the reservoir. These parameter groups can subsequently be used to constrain models of reservoir thickness, permeability and porosity. Thus, we imply that multiple reservoir attributes affect migration of CO₂ plume and there is uncertainty associated with the estimation of these attributes. We present an approach to resolve some of that uncertainty using information extracted from injection well response.
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A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, Johannesburg, 2019
Water resource systems management entails the coordination of hydrologic, infrastructural and human activities to plan, develop and supply water efficiently and sustainably. Hydrologic and human behaviour involve high levels of uncertainty and therefore pose unique challenges to water management. In reservoir yield and operation analysis, hydrologic uncertainties are usually incorporated in risk analysis using stochastically generated data but the impacts of human behaviour, although significant, are typically not incorporated. This study was therefore inspired by the need to quantitatively incorporate the impact of human behaviour into reservoir system performance thereby adding value to reservoir operational decision making. Unauthorised water abstraction is a significant human behaviour‐related activity and was therefore selected for this study. A socio‐hydrological model that simulates, couples and dynamically co‐evolves reservoir operation and human behaviour to assess the impact of unauthorised water abstractions on reservoir yield and operation was developed. The model quantitatively and stochastically relates fourstate drivers; hydrological state, users’ compliance, management competence and reservoir performance. Users’ compliance and management competence were modelled statistically by a 3‐parameter skew‐normal distribution and the propensity to unauthorised water abstraction (risk perception) was modelled as a function of users’ compliance, management competence and the hydrological state. The occurrence of unauthorised water abstraction was modelled stochastically by relating a sigmoidal function of risk perception to management competence. To assess the impact of human behaviour, nine scenarios derived from the different combinations of 3 categories of users’ compliance and management competence were developed and tested. The model was applied at a monthly time step to 2 hypothetical but realistic reservoir systems that were based on 90 years of hydrology and configuration of the Elands and the Olifants River reservoir systems in South Africa. Reservoir operation for maximizing yield was optimized by applying a simulation‐optimization approach that used 3 reservoir operating rule curves defined using trigonometric and simple linear functions. Shuffled complex evolution (SCE‐UA) was used for optimisation. The SCE‐UA was effective for the optimisation of the two reservoir systems when simple linear operating rules were applied. When trigonometric rule curves were applied, the SCE‐UA optimized the Elands system effectively but repeatedly terminated at a local optimum with 35% less yield for the larger Olifants system. It was therefore decided to mainly use the results from the linear rule curves to assess the effect of human behaviour on the performance of the two systems. Realistic time series of unauthorised water abstractions whose severity increased as users’ compliance and management competence declined were obtained. The losses in average yield for varying combinations of users’ compliance and management competence ranged from 2.3 to 9.2% and 5.3 to 11.5% for the Elands and Olifants systems respectively. The overall average loss in yield for all the nine scenarios were 5.8% and 8.9% for the Elands and Olifants River systems respectively. The losses in yield in individual years, however, varied considerably and during the drought years of the 90 year simulation period, they were much higher than the average losses. In one year, a 55% reduction in yield resulted from the scenario with the most adverse human behaviour. Optimised reservoir operating rule curves became more restrictive and lower reservoir storage trajectories were obtained as human behaviour declined. The modelling, therefore, revealed that yield reduced as human behaviour deteriorated and the losses obtained were reasonably close to the reported annual water loss due to unlawful uses of 6.4% in South Africa. The sensitive nature of the subject of study makes model verification on real‐life systems challenging. However, the research shows that practical reservoir system modelling that quantitatively incorporate the impact of human behaviour is a future possibility.
PH2020

碩士
國立陽明大學
醫務管理研究所
94
The purpose of this research is to examine: 1) the effectiveness of the amendments to the co-payment policy enacted on July 15, 2005; 2) the impact on medical service utilization by the general public; also 3) the policy impact on disadvantaged groups with co-payment exemption and people with exceptional conditions. In addition, the research investigates the difference in frequency of doctor visits between exempted disadvantaged groups/people with exceptional conditions and the general public after the new policy came into effect. The research analyzes samples from the medical service computer data in the selected hospital between January 1, 2005 and January 31, 2006 (13 months). During the thirteen-month period, 284,953 people were admitted to western medical outpatient service /emergency care; while total doctor visits amounted to 1,306,339. The principal conclusions of the research are as follows: 1. After the increase in co-payments for physician clinic visits on July 15, 2005, the average number of western medical outpatient visits per head saw a significant change. However, the average number of visits per head did not drop due to higher co-payment as anticipated. On the contrary, it increased by 4.25%. Therefore, it is not appropriate to draw a conclusion that the number of outpatient visits by patients in the selected hospital, was affected by the increased co-payment program. 2. Without utilizing the National Health Insurance, the minimum payment for a doctor’s visit (only for diagnosis or report reading without any physical examination or receiving medicine) for non-exempt insured patients is lower than the minimum co-payment of NT $460 when utilizing the insurance. As a result, patients prefer not to utilize the insurance, regardless of their gender, age or exemption status. The doctor visit numbers without insurance increased by approximately 14,000, which accounted for 2.14% of total doctor visits after the new co-payment policy took effect. 3. Among the patients of different insurance exemption categories who were admitted to the western medical outpatient service in the selected hospital, the headcounts for non-exempt patients decreased most significantly (dropped by approximately -3.84% or 3,971). It indicates that increase in the co-payment has had a certain degree of effect on inclination of non-exempt public to visit the doctor . 4. After the policy took effect, the average co-payment per head per visit did not have any notable change for the exempted patients (included veterans, the disabled, low income families, patients under the age of 3), and the non-exempted patients with exemption-qualified diseases. It shows that the new policy indeed takes the benefit of qualified disadvantaged groups into consideration. 5. In the headcount changes among the patients of different levels of loyalty who were admitted to western medical outpatient service in the selected hospital, patients with a high loyalty decreased the least; a low loyalty, the most. It can be concluded that increase in the co-payment has the least effect on the highly loyal patients who were admitted to the western medical outpatient service.

碩士
國立中興大學
環境工程學系所
97
Nowadays, the aggravation of greenhouse effect by combustion of non-renewable sources of energy such as fossil fuel, coal, oil, and nature gas has become a global issue. However, hydrogen can be an alternative and sustainable energy source due to the properties of clean and high energy yield（122 kJ/g）, which is an environmentally friendly technology in the future. Biohydrogen, comparing with the other technologies of hydrogen production, has the advantages of organic waste recycling and cost- effectiveness. Therefore, the aim of this study focuses on the combination of three different types of microorganisms and trying to enhance the efficiency of hydrogen production. This study was divided into two parts. Firstly, after anaerobic fermentation of leftovers, the possibility of using effluent as substrate for phototrophic hydrogen production was evaluated. Secondly, the feasibility of biohydrogen production from co-culture of purple nonsulfur bacterium, Rhodopseudomonas palustris WP3-5, and heterocyst-forming filamentous cyanobacteria, Anabaena sp. CH1, was estimated. In the first part, the inoculum of anaerobic fermentation was isolated from the sludge from wastewater treatment plant via heat treatment and BMP medium enrichment. The results show that the maximum cumulative volume of biohydrogen from semi-continuous anaerobic fermentation system is 248 ml, which is utilizing the leftovers as substrates. The results also indicate that the effluent contains large amount of volatile fatty acid but little amount of ammonium（5 mg/L）. Because the ammonium concentration in effluent is lower than the inhibition threshold（17 mg/L）of Rhodopseudomonas plaustris WP3-5 during biohydrogen production, phototrophic biohydrogen system could be successfully compatible with anaerobic fermentation system as two-stage biohydrogen production system. In the second part, the results from co-cultured system show that the maximum cumulative volume of biohydrogen reaches 140.83 ml in the WP3-5/CH1 mixed ratio of 2/1, which increases 2.48 fold comparing with the sum of cumulative volume（56.77 ml）from individual biohydrogen systems. Acetate, the metabolite of fructose via heterotrophic metabolism of Anabaena sp. CH1, could be taken by Rhodopseudomonas plaustris WP3-5 as energy source to produce biohydrogen. Therefore, the results from this study indicate that the co-culture biohydrogen system combining those two phototrophic bacteria is exactly feasible and the efficiency of biohydrogen production by co-cultured system is better than that of the single culture system.

碩士
國立陽明大學
醫務管理研究所
95
Abstract Starting from July 15 2005, Bureau of National Health Insurance increased co-payment rate of Western Medicine Outpatient Service in hospitals to enforce the policy of the Department of Health - “Good Doctors in the Neighborhood and Good Hospitals in the Community,” healthcare system and to change the patients’ behavior of seeking medical treatment. By promoting the medical services in community, academic medical centers’ outpatient services can be more attainable to emergencies, life-threatening illnesses, and clinical teaching settings. The year before and after the application of the policy, there were a total of 756,619 patients with hypertension whose “self-paid co-payment” or “co-payment waiving” qualifications are coherent. If the patients’ outpatient visits in the same level of medical institutions in the year before the policy was implemented equals to or exceeds 80% of the number of outpatient visits made by the patient in the current year, it is categorized as the patients’ “habitual medical institution level”, which consisted a total of 685,969 patients. There are 642,969 of them still keep the habit after the policy was implemented for one year. This research observed the changes of the “habitual medical institution level” due to variations in personal social-economic status and health condition after the policy was implemented based on 642,969 individuals, in which 597,343 stayed in the same level of hospitality, 18,670 go up to higher levels, and 26,956 descend to lower levels, and how it would affect individuals in choosing higher or lower levels of medical institutions for treatment after the administration. The population traits, relative influential factors, and medical utilization of the patients and the impact on the prescribing of prescription slips for chronic diseases should be stated. 1. Inclination of level of medical institutions: i). Among self-paid co-payment experimental group and co-payment waived control group, those with complication due to hypertension, the hospital levels of control group increases. In contrast, the rest of the patients with hypertension without complications, the hospital level of experimental group decreases. ii). According to the result of case control design, observing the difference between the experimental group and control group after controlling age and sex and its relationship with the shifting of patients’ “habitual medical institution level ” , it is discovered that the patients’ “habitual medical institution level”, experimental group, and the control group are correlated. Statistically, the Logit (Odds Ratio) of experimental group is 1.43 after the adjustment. iii). Females, younger and healthier individuals, and individuals whose insurable income lies between NT$20,000 and NT$40,000 will choose lower levels of medical institutions. On the other hand, veterans, farmers and fisherman are less likely to choose lower levels of medical institutions. iv). Comparing the change of everyone’s annual medical utility, including outpatient visits, treatment duration of prescription, and medical expenses, between before and after the implementation of the policy having been taken. For experimental group, there is an increase in treatment duration of prescription, however, a slight decrease in both the outpatient visits and the medical expenses. In contrast, there is a slight reduction in overall medical utility of the control group, only that the medical expenses for the control group had been twice as high as the experimental group. 2. The Impact of the Prescribing Rate of Continuous Prescription slip for Chronic Diseases. Increase the principle co-payment for outpatient services in medical institutions leveled higher than regional hospitals will induce the rise of cost of medical services, thus, encourage the public to choose nearby clinic as their family physician for regular checkups and to benefit from the follow-up services provided by their doctors. For those patients with stable condition that receive the same dosage for long periods of time, continuous prescription for chronic diseases is encouraged to reduce number of visits. The proportion of the hypertension-prescription rate of the total prescription rate has increased. As for experimental and control groups with or without complication, clinics and dentists” prescribing rate has reached 10%~16%; academic medical centers’ rate is between 20%~40%. The effect is obvious because the average days the drug is prescribed is decreasing; for academic medical centers, it decreased to 4~10 days, for rest of the medical institutions, it decreased to 1~3 days. Since the expiration date for continuous prescription for chronic illness is 3 months with 30-day dosage per prescription each time; the researchers can only trace 2 years of information, which is more complete before the policy implementation, but some cases who take the prescription after the policy was implemented might not be included in the data set. Continuous research is necessary, for there is time variance in the data obtained.

Today’s value chains rely strongly on a virgin material to ‘take-make-dispose’ products.One way to reduce that dependency on finite resources is a circular economy (CE).Different pillars form the concept, this research paper focuses on Product-ServiceSystems (PSS) in which a customer instead of buying a product for example only paysfor the use of one.Companies who want to transfer towards a circular business model (BM) facetremendous organisational challenges. They cannot just modify some parts of theiroperations, they have to change the entire BM. Much of the literature and t on BM is aresult of e-business and therefore not necessarily suitable for circular BM.To investigate if the current tools are suitable, the aim of the research is to answer thequestion: Do existing BM Frameworks cover the information requirements for PSS BMswithin the CE.The paper provides a literature review on two bodies of knowledge. First it explains thecharacteristics of PSSs in the context of a CE; secondly, it describes the different BMframeworks which are assessed in this research.To answer the research question, three sub-questions are formed on values, activitiesand stakeholders of a BM to be applied on the BM frameworks. The research follows atwo-step approach to answer these sub-questions, in a first step 9 experts fromacademia, consultancy and business were interviewed on characteristics of PSSs.Based on these characteristics, 26 questions were defined to assess the strength andlimitations of the 9 BM frameworks.As the analysis of this assessment shows, future work is necessary to develop suitableBM frameworks for PSSs and scaled up to the entire CE. The research does notpropose a new BM framework but rather points on lacks in current ones and suggestspossible further research to locate these lacks. Further, the two-step approach as aresearch methodology can be used to connect and assess any kind of expertknowledgewith existing literature or frameworks.

I analyse the emergence of a co-management system for protected area governance at Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and Haida Heritage Site on the northwest coast of Canada. Of primary concern is the analysis of the co-management structure for properties that are essential for maintaining a sustainable trajectory and an exploration of the key mechanisms for its development. The underlying framework for the analysis in this thesis is panarchy which is based on four categories of factors for building resilience: 1) learning to live with change and uncertainty; 2) nurturing diversity for re-organization and renewal; 3) combining different kinds of knowledge; and 4) creating opportunity for self-organization. This framework emerges from the conclusions of a multi-year team study of the dynamics of socio-ecological systems and how to enhance the resilience of these complex systems to tackle complexity, uncertainty and global environmental change. As the Archipelago Management Board (AMB) is the institutional structure that is managing the future of Gwaii Haanas, therefore, I focus on how this structure facilitates resilience. 1 argue that it should be an arena for flexible collaboration with multi-level governance that facilitates adaptive management (learning and building ecological knowledge into the institutional structure) and nurturing elements of resilience (cultural and ecological memory). The Lyell Island blockade in 1986, was a collective action against a crisis (cultural and environmental degradation caused by industrial logging) where key stewards and several Haida elders provided leadership, vision and trust. Parks Canada helped end the conflict by offering a management approach that accommodates Haida rights to their traditional lands, the formation of Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and Haida Heritage Site. Here I argue that the power-sharing structure of the AMB provides political space for experimentation. As such, the AMB appears to be an adaptive co-management system that is flexible, community-based, tailored to specific situations and supported by and working in collaboration with a concerned government agency to ensure sustainable resource management. So far, this arrangement has been able to successfully move away from a less desired trajectory toward a more sustainable one with the capacity to nurture the ecological health of Gwaii Haanas and the Haida culture on which it depends. I discuss the key role of co-management in re-coupling society to ecological feedback, creating political space for experimentation, accommodating varied ways of knowing and learning, including traditional ecological knowledge to link management with ecological understanding, and extending management into the social domain. I conclude that management in the implementation of protected area policy in Canadian National Parks could benefit from a more explicit collaboration with local communities who have special interests and site-specific ecological knowledge to better understand and monitor complex systems for long-term sustainability of protected areas.

Tese de doutoramento (co-tutela), Biologia (Biologia Marinha e Aquacultura), The University of Adelaide, Universidade de Lisboa, 2013
Connectivity is a critical component of marine fish populations as it drives population replenishment, determines colonization patterns and populations’ resilience to harvest. Knowledge of individual movement patterns is pivotal to ascertain population dynamics and underpins sustainable management. Many marine fish species occupy spatially segregated habitats throughout their life history. Estuarine nursery function and the ecological link between estuaries and the coastal environment were reviewed with emphasis on quantifying estuarine contributions and assessing fish movement to coastal adult populations. The chemical composition of otoliths is one of the most promising natural tags to quantify fish movement, particularly for early life stages. Yet, many uncertainties remain regarding the factors affecting elemental incorporation in otoliths. Temperature, salinity and water composition variations were examined to evaluate their interactive effects on Dicentrarchus labrax otolith chemistry, which is a vital first step in reconstructing environmental histories and intra-estuarine movement patterns. The combined use of otolith chemistry and muscle stable isotopes provided corroborative and complementary information, at different spatio-temporal scales, of intraestuarine habitat use and outlined limited movement between segregated estuarine nursery areas. Otolith elemental signatures of juvenile Platichthys flesus and D. labrax collected in estuarine nurseries along the Portuguese coast were year specific; though variation among seasons did not hinder spatial discrimination. Juveniles were accurately assigned to their estuaries of origin. These elemental signatures constituted the baseline for assessments of connectivity between juvenile and adult populations. The quantification of the relative contributions of estuaries to coastal populations of P. flesus and D. labrax in two years enabled the identification of the estuarine systems which contributed most to the replenishment of coastal populations. Overall, results contributed to prioritization of the conservation of ecologically important habitats and to the development of integrated management strategies for these commercially important species.
A conectividade é uma componente crítica das populações de peixes marinhos na medida em determina a manutenção das populações, os padrões de colonização e a resiliência à pesca. O conhecimento dos padrões de movimento individuais é fundamental para avaliar a dinâmica populacional e promover uma gestão sustentável. Muitas espécies de peixes marinhos ocupam habitats segregados ao longo da vida. A função de viveiro e a ligação ecológica entre estuários e costa foi revista com ênfase na estimativa das contribuições estuarinas e movimentos de indivíduos para os mananciais costeiros de adultos. As assinaturas químicas em otólitos são um marcador natural notável para estimar movimento, sobretudo em estados de vida iniciais. Porém, permanecem muitas incertezas relativamente à influência dos factores ambientais na incorporação e composição química de otólitos. Foram examinados os efeitos da salinidade, temperatura e composição da água em juvenis de Dicentrarchus labrax, um passo essencial para o uso da química de otólitos para reconstruções ambientais e de movimentos intra-estuarinos. O uso integrado de assinaturas químicas de otólitos e isótopos estáveis no músculo forneceu informações complementares sobre a conectividade e movimento limitado entre áreas de viveiro distintas num estuário, a diferentes resoluções espácio-temporais. As assinaturas químicas de juvenis de Platichthys flesus e D. labrax variaram entre anos, e meses, mas a variação sazonal não confundiu a discriminação espacial. Os juvenis foram correctamente classificados aos seus estuários de origem e as assinaturas constituíram as bases de referência para avaliações de conectividade entre populações de juvenis e adultos. A quantificação das contribuições relativas das áreas de viveiro estuarinas permitiu identificar os estuários que mais contribuíram para a reposição das populações costeiras destas espécies nos dois anos analisados. Globalmente, os resultados obtidos contribuem para identificar e priorizar a conservação de habitats ecologicamente importantes e para o desenvolvimento de planos de gestão integrados para estas espécies.
Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT, SFRH/BD/40722/2007 e projetos PTDC/MAR/117084/2010, PEst-OE/MAR/UI0199/2011)