VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
The responsibility to protect: a legal perspective

The Responsibility to Protect has evolved with remarkable speed into a substantive norm in the international arena. This paper examines its evolution from a concept included in Boutros Boutros-Ghali's "Agenda For Peace" to its development by the International Commission on Intervention and State Sovereignty to its recent adoption by the United Nations General Assembly. The author locates the Responsibility to Protect within two trends in international law: the jus cogens prohibition against genocide and the more emergent push for greater accountability on the part of international organizations, including the United Nations. This latter trend is discussed in some detail as the author examines its institutional and legal framework. The author concludes that the Responsibility to Protect contributes significantly to both the prohibition against genocide and the call for greater accountability of international organizations.

Keywords: Humanitarian intervention
Intervention (International law)
Crimes against humanity
Young women's perceptions about self-care and osteoporosis

This qualitative study investigated the experiences of young women participating in self-care related to osteoporosis. The study involved semi-structured, in-depth interviews that were conducted with fourteen participants, aged 24 to 41. Findings were interpreted using a theoretical framework of health promotion with a poststructuralist perspective. Perceived risk for osteoporosis varies according to age and family history. Responsibility for self-care is related to a woman's social role in society. Discourses that influenced participation in self-care included; risk and future health, weight control, wholesomeness in eating, and language and the acquisition of biomedical rationality. The interplay between the self-definition of health and the dominant discourses of wholesomeness in eating and weight control has made food intake the focus of self-care. A routine represents the tangible evidence of a successful behavior change. Self-monitoring of behavior ensures a routine is upheld. Participation in self-care and the dominant discourses contribute to the evolving self-definition of health and healthy behavior. The focus of food and monitoring of food fuels the cycle to greater levels of control and self-discipline. Women's bodies are ongoing and evolving projects of self-care, self-discipline and self-monitoring.
A hierarchical theory for layered beams with piezoelectric actuation

In order to realize the full compatibility of advanced composite and sandwich structures an internally consistent and accurate modeling process is needed. Hansen and de Almeida developed a unified hierarchical theory for layered beams which has the ability to accurately predict through-the-thickness stress and strain distributions, as well as displacement moments of all combinations of symmetric laminates and sandwich structures. This theory asserts that these predictions can be developed as a superposition of sets of well chosen fundamental states, where a hierarchical sequence of bending states occurs. Fundamental states are described as numerical experiments performed on an infinitesimal segment of the physical beam. Here, piezoelectric actuation effects are considered and a new fundamental state is developed modeling the actuation within the composite or sandwich structure through the application of a uniform electric field. The capabilities of this fundamental state are shown within the confines of the hierarchical beam theory by solving three problems: a purely actuated system, a system subjected to both electrical and mechanical loads and a system of piezoelectric patches that are embedded within a composite structure. The calculated through-the-thickness stress and strain distributions and the displacement moments yield comparable results to 2-D ANSYS finite element predictions.

Keywords: Composite construction
Actuators
Piezoelectric devices
The practice of difference in a feminist collective: a critique of transversal politics

This study was designed to examine feminist theory and practice focused on socially constructed categories of difference and their effect on the capacity of grassroots organizations to enact transformative anti-violence agendas. Using the qualitative research methods of semi-structured interviews and document analysis, the study explores the twenty-year evolution of the anti-oppression practices of a Toronto collective sharing several features with other urban North American feminist collectives. An examination of transversal and anti-oppression approaches to feminist practice provides the theoretical framework within which the research findings are examined. The findings suggest that while transversal dialogue offers possibilities for answering the expressed desire of many feminist activists for engagement across differences in social location, anti-oppression practices rooted in reflection on lived experience of oppression and internalized dominance are preconditions to engagement in constructive dialogue across mutiple standpoints. Intersectional feminist analysis is presented as offering a crucial bridge between the two approaches.
Evolution of Kranz anatomy and vein pattern in Flaveria (Asteraceae)

The complex adaptation of C4 photosynthesis is physiologically stable, persistent, and C4 plants are found in environments where photorespiration reduces carbon gain in C3 plants. The C4 pathway is present in 19 angiosperm families, including monocot and eudicot taxa, and represents an excellent example of evolutionary convergence to address carbon loss from photorespiration. C4 photosynthesis has been studied for over 40 years; however, steps in the evolution of this pathway remain unclear, including the role of anatomical evolution to support C4 biochemistry. The research reported within this dissertation addresses a broad goal of understanding the evolution of C4 photosynthesis at a smaller taxonomic scale using the genus Flaveria. This is facilitated by the presence of species representing four photosynthetic types in Flaveria: C3, C4, and two intermediate types (C3--C 4 and C4-like). This overall goal of this study aims to identify evidence for possible evolutionary steps of C4 photosynthesis through a comparison of C3, C4 and intermediate species. The first chapter assesses the evolutionary history of Flaveria, employing modern and traditional taxonomic tools to create a well-resolved phylogeny. The second chapter presents a broad comparative analysis of leaf anatomy and vein pattern in C3, intermediate, and C4 Flaveria species through analysis of qualitative and quantitative data. This chapter also focuses on the evolution and the potential role of Kranz anatomy, including the role of venation, in the evolution of the C4 pathway. The third chapter addresses the developmental differences giving rise to the altered vein pattern observed in C4 Flaveria species compared to C3 species. It also compares the timing of vein pattern formation with ground tissue development in C3 and C4 species. The fourth chapter assesses plasticity and acclimation to shade in C 3 and C4 Flaveria species, focusing specifically on anatomical and vein pattern features. In the concluding chapter, contributions of this thesis are reviewed and future directions of research are highlighted. Each chapter elucidates different aspects of C4 plant structure and development in Flaveria, adding to our knowledge of the mechanisms involved in the evolution of this complex adaptation and to our understanding of C4 biology.
Lives of the most notorious criminals: popular literature of crime in England, 1675-1775

This dissertation provides the first comprehensive study of the vast body of criminal literature—ranging from individual “lives” and “Last Dying Confessions” of the condemned, to longer collections of trials and criminal biographies—which proliferated in England in the late seventeenth and early eighteenth century. Traditionally considered to “fall below the dignified historian's horizon line”, significant only insofar as it constituted an antecedent to realist fiction the novel, this literature has only in the last decade or so attracted serious academic interest. However, recent studies have tended to use this material selectively, focusing on the extent to which it can be seen as a “fit” for the preoccupations and (largely subconscious) emotional requirements of its audience, telling us less about the “real” lives of criminals than the society which produced them. However, this thesis demonstrates not only the importance of distinguishing between the different genres of criminal literature and the way in which they changed over time, but of acknowledging the degree to which such texts were invested with multiple meanings. Indeed, both the inherent ambiguity of such literature and the seemingly insatiable public interest in the lives of early eighteenth-century criminals facilitated a certain freedom of expression on the part of the condemned—who were often able to shape or even appropriate the medium of the “Last Dying Confession” for their own ends. This thesis argues that criminals themselves were willing to subscribe to a definition of crime as an individual failure of a moral order and as a product of universal human depravity—which, in the context of a world in which all people were rogues or sinners but where only a few were called upon to expiate their crimes, could be not only empowering but even faintly subversive. This relatively open forum was to close over the course of the eighteenth century as interest in the individual lives of “common” criminals waned and criminality was gradually redefined in environmental terms; however, for a brief period, the highwayman or petty pilferer was cast, not only as “Everyman”, but as a principal actor in his/her own life.
School climate improvement: exploratory factor analysis of the Psychosocial Environment Profile (PSE)

The concept school climate has gained momentum over the last few years. A very large body of various studies has revealed different dimensions of school environment that promote the concept. Some of the literature unearthed, deal with specific aspects of the school climate, such as concern with the issue of bullying and cooperative learning, which offers students the opportunity to learn from each other, while others deal with the concept as a whole entity. This study investigated an instrument that was developed by the World Health Organization (2002) to help researchers and educators sharpen their focus in understanding and promoting a healthy school environment. The sample for the study was 203 staff members who were asked to rate their school environment based on the instrument that used a Likert scale ranging from 1-5. The psychometric properties of the instrument were investigated to determine its validity and reliability including its usefulness as an instrument that is feasible for use in an elementary school population. The Psychosocial Environment Profile instrument was found to have a very stable factor structure both within schools and between schools. Ratings by the various groups in the schools did not make a significant difference in the research outcomes. The scale exhibited high levels of internal consistency based on Cronbach's (alpha) alpha. The research results suggest that there is a need for future research in this area of school improvement. Research that is more rigorous is required to establish further the PSE profile as a valid and psychometrically sound instrument.

Keywords: Factor analysis
School environment, Evaluation
School improvement programs
Under the aegis of central banks: capital mobility, partisan politics and central bank reform in Britain and France

This dissertation examines the move to statutory central bank autonomy in France and Britain. It seeks to explain why these countries abruptly instituted historic revisions of their central bank statutes. These reforms were unexpected, given the sensitivity of employment and GDP to monetary policy. Deeply entrenched traditions of central bank dependence in France and Britain make these statutory reforms worthy of in-depth study. Although central bank autonomy became contentious in French and British policy-making circles in the late 1980s, a revision of the statutes was unanticipated in both countries until the reforms were formally underway in 1994 and 1998 respectively. Government ambitions to maintain the credibility of monetary policy in an era of high capital mobility provide a convincing, but all too simple and mechanical, explanation for grants of central bank autonomy. Policy failures, perceived credibility problems and electoral competition in Britain and France were crucial incentives for elected officials in their decision to confer autonomy on their central banks. Price stability did not necessarily require central bank autonomy, but the devolution of monetary policy authority to central bankers promised to serve governments well by shielding them from the political consequences of future policy failures. Domestic politics and institutions, mere intervening variables in the eyes of students of systemic forces, determined the type of autonomy that prevailed. In fact, variations in central bank autonomy were quite pronounced across both of the cases. The relationship between the executive branch of government and its bureaucracy provides an important clue to explain the type of autonomy that central banks eventually gained. The dissertation explores this issue and extends its general examination to Japan and New Zealand, two logical cases for probing the essential plausibility of the analysis. It concludes that governments steeped in traditions of ministerial responsibility, and that place a high value on executive control over the bureaucracy, tend to include high levels of transparency and accountability in central bank reforms. Conversely, weak transparency and accountability provisions in such reforms seem to prevail in countries with powerful bureaucracies and relatively weak legislatures.
A psychoeducation trial for people with chronic stable angina

Chronic stable angina (CSA) is a cardinal symptom of coronary artery disease (CAD) and has a major negative impact on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) including general health status, and ability to self-manage. Current secondary prevention approaches lack adequate scope to address CSA as a multidimensional persistent pain problem. This trial evaluated the impact of a low-cost 6-week angina psychoeducation program (The Chronic Angina Self-Management Program [CASMP]) on HRQOL, self-efficacy and resourcefulness to self-manage symptoms, and CSA-related costs. Participants (N=130) were randomized to the CASMP or 3-month wait-list usual care; 117 completed the study. Measures were taken at baseline and 3 months. General HRQOL was measured using the SF-36 and the disease-specific Seattle Angina Questionnaire. Self-efficacy, resourcefulness and cost of illness were measured using the Self-Efficacy Scale, the Self-Control Schedule, and the Ambulatory Home Care Record respectively. The mean age of participants was 68, and 80% were male. ANOVA of change scores yielded significant improvements in treatment group physical functioning [F= 11.75(1,114), p barbelow;
An investigation of issues and techniques in highly interactive computational visualization

Computers have changed the nature of data visualization in two important ways. First, computers allow increasingly large data sets to be automatically processed. Thus, much research effort has focused on increasing the speed and quality of graphical rendering, to accommodate data sets having greater cardinality, resolution, number of dimensions, etc. Second, computers enable interactive exploration of different views and depictions of the same data over time. Although interactive visualization is now a norm, we argue that strategies for easing and improving this interaction are relatively underexploited, and show this in three case studies. Each study involves the design and implementation of novel techniques to aid visualization in some application domain. We assert the usefulness of a small set of guiding design goals for interactive visualization that are: to ease input, to augment output over space by increasing and improving output in any given state, and to augment output over time by using smooth transitions between states. The utility of these goals is demonstrated, firstly, through the results of each case study driven in part by the goals, and secondly, by using the experience gained from the case studies to generate a set of concrete design guidelines that specify how to better achieve the design goals, and that can be applied in future design work. The first study considers visualization of 3D volumetric data, and uses spatial deformations to reduce occlusion and increase the visibility of internal surfaces of the data. The second involves visualizing and browsing a rooted tree, and uses a space-filling algorithm to automatically increase the number of nodes visible to the user. The third examines visualization of genealogical graphs, and develops layout techniques to avoid crowding of nodes and edge crossings. Each of the three studies pays attention to the meaningful subsets that exist within the data, and how to exploit these subsets during interaction. Each study also introduces an interaction technique enabling rapid and light-weight traversal of entire sequences of states, with visually continuous transitions across states. Following the case studies, the issues encountered are analyzed, a taxonomy of parameter manipulation is developed, and guidelines for future design are generated to help achieve the original design goals. Taken individually, each case study contributes significantly to its domain in the specific aspects it investigates. Furthermore, the relative variety in our case studies results in a broad perspective with which to analyze the issues encountered. The unified contribution of the work lies in demonstrating multiple ways of pursuing the design goals, and in the design guidelines subsequently generated that can be applied to situations beyond our cases studies.
Reformulating the nature of stress in nurses' work in pediatric intensive care: an institutional ethnography

Nursing stress has been studied in various locations around the globe, including Asia, Australia, the Caribbean, Europe, the Middle East, and North America. There are currently three main conceptualizations of nurses' stress: occupational stress, moral distress, and traumatization. The latter includes compassion fatigue, secondary traumatic stress and, vicarious trauma. Although we have learned a great deal from these fields, they lack important contextual aspects of nurses' practice, such as the gendered nature of a predominately female workforce, and the nature of the work, including bodily caring. The purpose of this study was to reformulate of the nature of stress in nursing, with attention to these and other important contextual aspects of nurses' practice. Smith's (1987, 1990a, 1990b, 1999) critical sociological frame of institutional ethnography was used to explicate the forms of stress in nurses' everyday worlds and their social organization. Data collection methods included in-depth interviews, participant observation, and focus groups with pediatric intensive care nurses. Data analysis focused on explicating the social organization of nurses' stress. Forms of stress included: emotional distress; constancy of presence; burden of responsibility; stress associated with bodily caring; and stress associated with being mothers, daughters, sisters and aunts. The social mapping of these forms of stress brought important structural aspects of practice to the forefront. These included textual mediation of stress in the form of documentary practices which rendered invisible much of the nurses' stress. Yet hospital work processes were utterly dependent on the nurses' enduring these kinds of stress from shift to shift. A reformulation of the nature of stress in nursing included attention to the everyday practice activities of nurses and the social mapping of these activities. Emphasis was placed on exercising skepticism in adapting or adopting existing models due to their lack of attention to important aspects of practice, such as extended time with patients, bodily caring, and nurses' identities. The study concludes with an insistence that these particulars of nurses' worklives be included in any further research regarding nurses' stress.
Morality, democracy, and autonomy: appreciating the significance of Lawrence Kohlberg's just community

This thesis contends that Lawrence Kohlberg's Just Community program of moral education has conceptual significance to his theoretical work in the field of moral development. The argument contends that a perspective recognizing the Just Community as conceptually significant provides a more comprehensive picture of Kohlberg's work than do critical perspectives which limit their critical scope to his Structural Stage Model of moral development. Apprehending the Just Community's conceptual significance provides the opportunity to respond to critics, like Carol Gilligan and Helen Haste, who have suggested that Kohlberg's work is inattentive to notions of attachment in morality, but who either neglect or dismiss consideration of the Just Community in making these conclusions. The argument concludes by stating that a more philosophically comprehensive and mature understanding of morality was developing in Kohlberg's Just Community, a project undertaken well in advance of these major criticisms.

Keywords: Moral education
Moral development
Communities
The cost-effectiveness of home nocturnal hemodialysis

1.2.5 Conclusions. HNHD is a cost-effective dialysis modality, expected to be dominant when compared to IHD under usual conditions. The strength of our conclusions is limited by the non-randomized design. 1.2.1 Introduction. This thesis compares the relative cost-effectiveness of two forms of hemodialysis, conventional in-centre hemodialysis (IHD), where treatments take place in the hospital three times a week for four hours, and home nocturnal hemodialysis (HNHD), where treatments take place overnight in the home for six to eight hours. 1.2.3 Methods. We performed a one-year prospective costing study, during which 19 IHD and 24 HNHD patients underwent interviews to assess their utility score for current health by the standard gamble method. We used decision analysis techniques to examine the relative cost-effectiveness of HNHD and IHD over a lifetime with end stage renal disease using a Markov state-transition model comparing two strategies: only IHD or starting on IHD and subsequently transferring to HNHD. In addition, we examined methodological issues that arose during these studies. 1.2.4 Results. The total cost for health care delivery was 20% less for HNHD with projected mean annual costs more than $10,000 lower ($56,394 vs. $68,935). HNHD was associated with a higher utility score (0.77 +/- 0.23 vs. 0.53 +/- 0.35, p=.03), and was the dominant strategy with an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) of $45,932 saved per quality-adjusted life years (QALY) gained. In the decision analysis, HNHD was associated with a quality-adjusted survival estimate of 5.79 QALYs, with lifetime costs of $538,094. The values for IHD were 5.31 QALYs and $543,602 respectively, yielding an ICER of $11,475 saved per QALY gained. Important determinants of cost-effectiveness were transplantation time and whether benefits declined over time. Methodological issues were identified in modeling two time periods, interpreting cost-effectiveness acceptability curves, and eliciting preferences by different techniques. 1.2.2 Population. We compared all patients from the HNHD program at the Humber River Regional Hospital (n=33), and patients from the IHD program at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto (n=23), selected if they were felt to be suitable for and interested in home hemodialysis. The groups were demographically similar.