Pikavipit – Kuluttajien riistoa vai tiukan valvonnan alla olevaa liiketoimintaa?

Pikavippi on nykykäsityksen mukaan vakuudeton, lyhytaikainen, euromääräisesti pienehkö luotto, joka hankitaan yleensä joko tekstiviestillä tai Internetissä täytettävällä hakemuksella. Luotto maksetaan hakijan tilille asiakkaan suostuttua luotontarjoajan ehtoihin luottotietojen tarkistuksen jälkeen. Tutkielmassa on selvitetty millainen oli lainsäädännöllinen lähtötilanne, kun pikavipit tulivat markkinoille. Lisäksi halusin selvittää lainsäätäjän toimia alaa kohtaan, sekä selvittää ovatko pikaluotot koronkiskontaa tai ovatko ne sitä joskus olleet. Tutkielma toteutettiin lainopillista ja de lege ferenda – menetelmiä käyttäen. Lainsäätäjä on tehnyt kaksi merkittävää lainmuutospakettia pikaluottoja kohtaan erityisesti kuluttajansuojan parantamiseksi. Pikaluotot eivät ole täyttäneet missään vaiheessa koronkiskonnan tunnusmerkistöä. Jos maksamattomat luotot päätyvät oikeuteen perittäviksi niin perintäkulut muodostuvat lain asettamien taulukkohintojen mukaisesti, vaikka kuluttajasta saattaa tuntua kohtuuttomalta maksaa suuria perintäkuluja. Mikäli pikaluotot kielletään, siirtynevät lyhytaikaisten pienluottojen markkinat ainakin osittain pimeille markkinoille tai tarjolle tulee lakia kiertäviä korvaavia lainatuotteita.

Formal development and quantitative verification of dependable systems

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An optically coupled power stimulus isolation unit with high voltage and fast rise time output

Recent technological developments have created new devices that could improve and simplify the construction of stimulus isolators. HEXFET transistors can switch large currents and hundreds of volts in nanoseconds. The newer opto-isolators can give a pulse rise time of a few nanoseconds, with output compatible with MOSFET devices, in which delays are reduced to nanoseconds. Integrated DC/DC converters are now available. Using these new resources we developed a new electrical stimulus isolator circuit with selectable constant-current and constant-voltage modes, which are precise and easy to construct. The circuit works like a regulated power supply in both modes with output switched to zero or to free mode through an opto-isolator device. The isolator analyses showed good practical performance. The output to ground resistance was 1011 ohms and capacitance 35 picofarads. The rise time and fall time were identical (5 µs) and constant. The selectable voltage or current output mode made it very convenient to use. The current mode, with higher output resistance values in low current ranges, permits intracellular stimulation even with tip resistances close to 100 megaohms. The high compliance of 200 V guarantees the value of the current stimulus. The very low output resistance in the voltage mode made the device highly suitable for extracellular stimulation with low impedance electrodes. Most importantly, these characteristics were achieved with a circuit that was easy to build and modify and assembled with components available in Brazil.

Analyzing the Effects of the New Renewable Energy Policy in Russia on Investments into Wind, Solar and Small Hydro Power

This thesis presents an analysis of recently enacted Russian renewable energy policy based on capacity mechanism. Considering its novelty and poor coverage by academic literature, the aim of the thesis is to analyze capacity mechanism influence on investors’ decision-making process. The current research introduces a number of approaches to investment analysis. Firstly, classical financial model was built with Microsoft Excel® and crisp efficiency indicators such as net present value were determined. Secondly, sensitivity analysis was performed to understand different factors influence on project profitability. Thirdly, Datar-Mathews method was applied that by means of Monte Carlo simulation realized with Matlab Simulink®, disclosed all possible outcomes of investment project and enabled real option thinking. Fourthly, previous analysis was duplicated by fuzzy pay-off method with Microsoft Excel®. Finally, decision-making process under capacity mechanism was illustrated with decision tree. Capacity remuneration paid within 15 years is calculated individually for each RE project as variable annuity that guarantees a particular return on investment adjusted on changes in national interest rates. Analysis results indicate that capacity mechanism creates a real option to invest in renewable energy project by ensuring project profitability regardless of market conditions if project-internal factors are managed properly. The latter includes keeping capital expenditures within set limits, production performance higher than 75% of target indicators, and fulfilling localization requirement, implying producing equipment and services within the country. Occurrence of real option shapes decision-making process in the following way. Initially, investor should define appropriate location for a planned power plant where high production performance can be achieved, and lock in this location in case of competition. After, investor should wait until capital cost limit and localization requirement can be met, after that decision to invest can be made without any risk to project profitability. With respect to technology kind, investment into solar PV power plant is more attractive than into wind or small hydro power, since it has higher weighted net present value and lower standard deviation. However, it does not change decision-making strategy that remains the same for each technology type. Fuzzy pay-method proved its ability to disclose the same patterns of information as Monte Carlo simulation. Being effective in investment analysis under uncertainty and easy in use, it can be recommended as sufficient analytical tool to investors and researchers. Apart from described results, this thesis contributes to the academic literature by detailed description of capacity price calculation for renewable energy that was not available in English before. With respect to methodology novelty, such advanced approaches as Datar-Mathews method and fuzzy pay-off method are applied on the top of investment profitability model that incorporates capacity remuneration calculation as well. Comparison of effects of two different RE supporting schemes, namely Russian capacity mechanism and feed-in premium, contributes to policy comparative studies and exhibits useful inferences for researchers and policymakers. Limitations of this research are simplification of assumptions to country-average level that restricts our ability to analyze renewable energy investment region wise and existing limitation of the studying policy to the wholesale power market that leaves retail markets and remote areas without our attention, taking away medium and small investment into renewable energy from the research focus. Elimination of these limitations would allow creating the full picture of Russian renewable energy investment profile.

Placental hydroxymethylation vsmethylation at the imprinting control region 2 on chromosome 11p15.5

In addition to methylated cytosines (5-mCs), hydroxymethylcytosines (5-hmCs) are present in CpG dinucleotide-enriched regions and some transcription regulator binding sites. Unlike methylation, hydroxymethylation does not result in silencing of gene expression, and the most commonly used methods to study methylation, such as techniques based on restriction enzymatic digestion and/or bisulfite modification, are unable to distinguish between them. Genomic imprinting is a process of gene regulation where only one member of an allelic pair is expressed depending on the parental origin. Chromosome 11p15.5 has an imprinting control region (ICR2) that includes a differentially methylated region (KvDMR1) that guarantees parent-specific gene expression. The objective of the present study was to determine the presence of 5-hmC at the KvDMR1 in human placentas. We analyzed 16 third-trimester normal human placentas (chorionic villi). We compared two different methods based on real-time PCR after enzymatic digestion. The first method distinguished methylation from hydroxymethylation, while the other method did not. Unlike other methylation studies, subtle variations of methylation in ICRs could represent a drastic deregulation of the expression of imprinted genes, leading to important phenotypic consequences, and the presence of hydroxymethylation could interfere with the results of many studies. We observed agreement between the results of both methods, indicating the absence of hydroxymethylation at the KvDMR1 in third-trimester placentas. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study describing the investigation of hydroxymethylation in human placenta using a genomic imprinting model.

Salted lamb meat blanket of Petrolina-Pernambuco, Brazil: process and quality

Salted lamb meat blanket, originated from boning, salting, and drying of whole lamb carcass, was studied aiming at obtaining information that support the search for guarantees of origin for this typical regional product from the city of Petrolina-Pernambuco-Brazil. Data from three processing units were obtained, where it was observed the use of a traditional local technology that uses salting, an ancient preservation method; however, with a peculiar boning technique, resulting in a meat product with great potential for exploitation in the form of meat blanket. Based on the values of pH (6.22 ± 0.22), water activity (0.97 ± 0.02), and moisture (69.86 ± 2.26) lamb meat blanket is considered a perishable product, and consequently it requires the use of other preservation methods combined with salt, which along with the results of the microbiological analyses (absence of Salmonella sp, score <10 MPN/g of halophilic bacteria, total coliforms between 6.7 × 10³ and 5.2 × 10(6) FUC/g, and Staphylococcus from 8.1 × 10³ CFU/g at uncountable) reinforce the need of hygienic practices to ensure product safety. These results, together with the product notoriety and the organization of the sector are important factors in achieving Geographical Indication of the Salted lamb Meat blanket of Petrolina.

Characterization of goat milk and potentially symbiotic non-fat yogurt

Combining prebiotics and probiotic microorganisms improve quality in the formulation of foods. In this paper, the characteristics of goat milk and symbiotic yogurt were studied. Raw goat milk was analyzed and the skimming process was optimized. For the formulation of a potentially non-fat symbiotic yogurt made with skimmed goat milk, inulin, gelatin, sugar, and Streptococcus salivarius subsp. thermophilus, Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus and Lactobacillus casei subsp. rhamnoshus. Chemical characteristics, acceptability, and viability of lactic acid bacteria and probiotic culture were assessed. The protein and fat content of the raw milk was 2.90 and 3.56 g/100 mL, respectively. The optimum skimming process was obtained at 9,800 rpm and 4 °C for 15 minutes. The product formulated had a protein and fat content of 4.04 to 0.04 g/100 mL, good sensory properties, and acceptability of 95%. The lactic bacteria count was 9 × 10(7) CFU mL- 1, and probiotic culture count was higher than 1 × 10(6) CFU mL- 1, which guarantees their effect and capacity to survive in the digestive tract and spread in the intestine. The yogurt was stable during the 21 days of storage. Therefore, this study shows that goat milk yogurt is an adequate delivery vehicle of the probiotic culture L. casei and inulin.

Food production in solidarity economy: an issue that goes beyond laws

Abstract Food production within the context of solidarity economy is an alternative way to offer employment and income for a significant part of the Brazilian population. The purpose of this study was to carry out a business diagnosis in order to evaluate the facilities, the production process and hygiene practices of seven solidarity economy enterprises located in the city of Novo Hamburgo, Southern Brazil, that work with food production and sales. Visits took place at the enterprises and a check-list was used to record data. Although food production happens in places with space and setting restrictions, it guarantees distinctive foods with aggregate value, where handlers follow the whole process, from raw materials selection to sales. Basic hygiene principles are followed, as they guarantee the production of food with quality, which contributes towards income generation for participating families. Specific laws that apply to the characteristics and needs of small-scale food production must be written in order to regulate solidarity economy enterprises.

Physical access for persons with disabilities

For persons with disabilities, the activities that able-bodied people take for granted can be major, often insurmountable challenges. Attempting to enter a restaurant for lunch with friends can result in lengthy and adversarial litigation if the facility is not accessible to a person with a disability or other mobility impairment. This litigation would be initiated after the individual was effectively refused service; a refusal based on hislher personal physical characteristics. If a shopping mall is not equipped with "access amenities", then the disabled person may be excluded from shopping there and thus exercising consumer freedom. If workplaces are not equipped to accommodate the access needs of persons with disabilities, then those people are effectively barred from gainful employment there. If a municipal goveniment building is inaccessible to disabled persons, then they may be excluded from participating in council meetings. These are all activities that the majority of the population enjoys as a matter of course, in that they represent the functions of a free citizen in a free society. If a person is excluded from such activities because of some personal characteristic, then that person is subjected to differential or discr~minatory treatment. The guarantees provided in Canadian feden! and provincial rights legislation, are such that people are not to be discriminated againsL Where buildings and facilities othen\iise open to the public are not accessible for persens with disabilities, then those people are being discriminated against. To challenge these discriminatory practices, individuals initiate complaints through the administrative justice system. To address the extent to which this is a problem, many sources were consulted. Constitutional lawyers, tribunal members, advocates for the disabled and land use planners were interviewed. Case law and legislation were reviewed. Literature on citizenship theory, dispute resolution and dispute avoidance was compiled and assessed. And, the field of land use planning was analyzed (drawing on the WTiter's educational and experiential background) as a possible alternative method for effecting systemic access for persons with disabilities. The conclusion of this study is that there does exist a proactive method for assuring access, a method that can apply the systemic remedy needed to deal with this problem. The current method, which is an adversarial and piecemeal complaint process, has proven ineffective in remedying this discrimination problem~ Failure to provide an appropriate remedy means that persons with disabilities will not enjoy the degree of citizen status enjoyed by the able-bodied. This is the current circumstance, and since equity is the aim of rights legislation, and since such legislative and administrative frameworks have failed in that purpose, then an alternative method is necessary. An alternative model is the one in which land use planning is based. It has conflict avoidance and conflict minimization as underpinnings. And, most importantly, land use planning is already a proyen method of combatting discrimination.

Towards a just community: an examination of the development of cultural citizenship rights in Canada from a communitarian perspective

The notion of citizenship, while a basic human right, has come under scrutiny. It was once assumed a liberal inspired regime of citizenship rights would reign as the primary ideological perspective in the Western world, however this has not been the case. Numerous competing paradigms have questioned the premise upon which liberal guarantees of citizenship rights are based. In particular, communitarianism has subjected liberal rights discourse to a closer examination. Communitarian theory holds that universalist principles negate any articulation of community and its internal diversity, such as cultural citizenship. It is this understanding of citizenship that has taken hold in Canada. The Canadian political experience illustrates a number of attributes associated with communitarian thought. It is a collectivist society that articulates a notion of the common good, acknowledges the internal diversity of its citizens and possesses a highly developed deliberative democratic process. To this end, Canada can be described as being more communitarian than liberal in nature in the process it has adopted to address citizenship rights. However, the type of commuIiitarianism displayed in Canada differs from the political models examined by such scholars as Michael Sandel, Iris Marion Young or Will Kymlicka. Cultural citizenship rights are fluid and malleable in Canada. While no clear guarantees of citizenship rights exist, there is a common commitment by Canadians to engage in a fair, open and inclusive deliberative process. This model is unique to Canada; it cannot be exported in that it is a product of Canadian political culture. As a result, the contemporary demands of cultural citizenship are dealt with effectively and democratically in Canada in that the proper mechanisms for public deliberation exist.

The Implementations of Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) in Beijing and Ontario Schools

Since the knowledge-based economy has become a fashion over the last few decades, the concept of the professional learning community (PLC) has started being accepted by educational institutions and governments as an effective framework to improve teachers’ collective work and collaboration. The purpose of this research was to compare and contrast the implementations of PLCs between Beijing schools and Ontario schools from principals’ personal narratives. In order to discover the lessons and widen the scope to understand the PLC, this research applied qualitative design to collect the data from two principal participants in each location by semistructured interviews. Four themes emerged: (a) structure and technology, (b) identity and climate, (c) task and support, and (d) change and challenge. This research found that the root of the characteristics of the PLCs in Beijing and Ontario was the different existing teaching and learning systems as well as the test systems. Teaching Research Groups (TRGs) is one of the systems that help Chinese to organize routine time and input resources to improve teachers’ professional development. However, Canadian schools lack a similar system that guarantees the time and resources. Moreover, standardized test plays different roles in China and Canada. In China, standardized tests, such as the college entrance examination, are regarded as the important purpose of education, whereas Ontario principals saw the Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) as a tool rather than a primary purpose. These two main differences influenced principals’ beliefs, attitudes, strategies, and practices. The implications based on this discovery provide new perspectives for principals, teachers, policy makers, and scholars to widen and deepen the research and practice of the PLC.

James & Geroge Stodart Limited Announce Stodart's Canadian Agency

An announcement "inaugurating direct sales and Canadian shipments from our home distilleries James & George Stodart Established 1835, 80 West Nile St., Glasgow, Scotland, beg to announce appointment of Stodart's Canadian Agency Limited". Included in the brochure are prices, brands, guarantees and order information.

L'encadrement juridique du traitement des données personnelles sur les sites de commerce en ligne

"Thèse en vue de l'obtention du grade de docteur en droit de l'Université Panthéon-Assas (Paris II) et de docteur en droit de la faculté de droit de l'Université de Montréal en droit privé"

Modes de représentation pour l'éclairage en synthèse d'images

Réalisé en cotutelle avec l'Université Bordeaux 1 (France)

La protection des créances des sous-traitants dans le domaine de la construction

La sous-traitance est une pratique constante dans le domaine de la construction, en raison de ses atouts économiques et techniques. Par cette pratique, les sous-traitants effectuent des travaux sans être, sur le plan juridique, liés contractuellement au maître de l’ouvrage. Comment assurer le paiement de leurs créances, eu égard au risque de défaillance de l'entrepreneur. Le législateur a prévu un régime légal de protection et la pratique a élaboré des mécanismes. Le régime légal, bien qu’il assure efficacement la protection des créances des sous-traitants, comporte certaines faiblesses dans son application qui peuvent causer des inconvénients aux sous-traitants et au propriétaire. L’assurance de titres et des retenues de fonds par l’institution financière ou le notaire peuvent pallier ces difficultés pour le propriétaire. Les mécanismes de protection élaborés par la pratique, tels que le cautionnement et les garanties monétaires, accroissent la protection des sous-traitants lorsqu’ils sont utilisés parallèlement au régime légal et profitent au propriétaire.