Noção de simetria na cosmologia de Anaximandro de Mileto

Through the philosophical movements in Ionia and through researches made on phýsis (started by the first wise men in Miletus), we elected Anaximander‟s cosmology as a fertile ground for exploring the Greek notion of symmetry. From a geographical perspective, initially, the Greeks‟ originality towards the notion of a due measure will be questioned, since the astrological and mathematical knowledge were common in Babylon and Egypt. Although the cultural environment on the Milesian commercial ports and its architecture show evidences of a possible eastern impact on the Greek thought, it will be noted (from fragments validated by the Doxography tradition) that the problem with the birthplace of the notion of harmony and of due measure is something specific of the Greek culture and inherent to its remote religiosity. The resumption of these notions refers to the issue of arché and to its divinity assumed by Thales, Anaximander and Anaximenes. The divine was not an extrinsic notion to the Milesian thought towards the first element. Therefore, we will have as a result of this investigation some assumptions for which the notion of symmetry in Anaximander, stated in his ápeiron, could be, from the dialogue between philosophy and Orphism, an assimilation of the One, as witnessed in the Derveni papyrus.

The evolutionary relationships and age of Homo naledi : an assessment using dated Bayesian phylogenetic methods

Acknowledgements We wish to express our gratitude to the National Geographic Society and the National Research Foundation of South Africa for funding the discovery, recovery, and analysis of the H. naledi material. The study reported here was also made possible by grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the Canada Foundation for Innovation, the British Columbia Knowledge Development Fund, the Canada Research Chairs Program, Simon Fraser University, the DST/NRF Centre of Excellence in Palaeosciences (COE-Pal), as well as by a Discovery Grant from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, a Young Scientist Development Grant from the Paleontological Scientific Trust (PAST), a Baldwin Fellowship from the L.S.B. Leakey Foundation, and a Seed Grant and a Cornerstone Faculty Fellowship from the Texas A&M University College of Liberal Arts. We would like to thank the South African Heritage Resource Agency for the permits necessary to work on the Rising Star site; the Jacobs family for granting access; Wilma Lawrence, Bonita De Klerk, Merrill Van der Walt, and Justin Mukanku for their assistance during all phases of the project; Lucas Delezene for valuable discussion on the dental characters of H. naledi. We would also like to thank Peter Schmid for the preparation of the Dinaledi fossil material; Yoel Rak for explaining in detail some of the characters used in previous studies; William Kimbel for drawing our attention to the possibility that there might be a problem with Dembo et al.’s (2015) codes for the two characters related to the articular eminence; Will Stein for helpful discussion about the Bayesian analyses; Mike Lee for his comments on this manuscript; John Hawks for his support in organizing the Rising Star workshop; and the associate editor and three anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments. We are grateful to S. Potze and the Ditsong Museum, B. Billings and the School of Anatomical Sciences at the University of the Witwatersrand, and B. Zipfel and the Evolutionary Studies Institute at the University of the Witwatersrand for providing access to the specimens in their care; the University of the Witwatersrand, the Evolutionary Studies Institute, and the South African National Centre of Excellence in PalaeoSciences for hosting a number of the authors while studying the material; and the Western Canada Research Grid for providing access to the high-performance computing facilities for the Bayesian analyses. Last but definitely not least, we thank the head of the Rising Star project, Lee Berger, for his leadership and support, and for encouraging us to pursue the study reported here.

Stimulus Integration and Parsing in the Primate Auditory Midbrain

Integrating information from multiple sources is a crucial function of the brain. Examples of such integration include multiple stimuli of different modalties, such as visual and auditory, multiple stimuli of the same modality, such as auditory and auditory, and integrating stimuli from the sensory organs (i.e. ears) with stimuli delivered from brain-machine interfaces.

The overall aim of this body of work is to empirically examine stimulus integration in these three domains to inform our broader understanding of how and when the brain combines information from multiple sources.

First, I examine visually-guided auditory, a problem with implications for the general problem in learning of how the brain determines what lesson to learn (and what lessons not to learn). For example, sound localization is a behavior that is partially learned with the aid of vision. This process requires correctly matching a visual location to that of a sound. This is an intrinsically circular problem when sound location is itself uncertain and the visual scene is rife with possible visual matches. Here, we develop a simple paradigm using visual guidance of sound localization to gain insight into how the brain confronts this type of circularity. We tested two competing hypotheses. 1: The brain guides sound location learning based on the synchrony or simultaneity of auditory-visual stimuli, potentially involving a Hebbian associative mechanism. 2: The brain uses a ‘guess and check’ heuristic in which visual feedback that is obtained after an eye movement to a sound alters future performance, perhaps by recruiting the brain’s reward-related circuitry. We assessed the effects of exposure to visual stimuli spatially mismatched from sounds on performance of an interleaved auditory-only saccade task. We found that when humans and monkeys were provided the visual stimulus asynchronously with the sound but as feedback to an auditory-guided saccade, they shifted their subsequent auditory-only performance toward the direction of the visual cue by 1.3-1.7 degrees, or 22-28% of the original 6 degree visual-auditory mismatch. In contrast when the visual stimulus was presented synchronously with the sound but extinguished too quickly to provide this feedback, there was little change in subsequent auditory-only performance. Our results suggest that the outcome of our own actions is vital to localizing sounds correctly. Contrary to previous expectations, visual calibration of auditory space does not appear to require visual-auditory associations based on synchrony/simultaneity.

My next line of research examines how electrical stimulation of the inferior colliculus influences perception of sounds in a nonhuman primate. The central nucleus of the inferior colliculus is the major ascending relay of auditory information before it reaches the forebrain, and thus an ideal target for understanding low-level information processing prior to the forebrain, as almost all auditory signals pass through the central nucleus of the inferior colliculus before reaching the forebrain. Thus, the inferior colliculus is the ideal structure to examine to understand the format of the inputs into the forebrain and, by extension, the processing of auditory scenes that occurs in the brainstem. Therefore, the inferior colliculus was an attractive target for understanding stimulus integration in the ascending auditory pathway.

Moreover, understanding the relationship between the auditory selectivity of neurons and their contribution to perception is critical to the design of effective auditory brain prosthetics. These prosthetics seek to mimic natural activity patterns to achieve desired perceptual outcomes. We measured the contribution of inferior colliculus (IC) sites to perception using combined recording and electrical stimulation. Monkeys performed a frequency-based discrimination task, reporting whether a probe sound was higher or lower in frequency than a reference sound. Stimulation pulses were paired with the probe sound on 50% of trials (0.5-80 µA, 100-300 Hz, n=172 IC locations in 3 rhesus monkeys). Electrical stimulation tended to bias the animals’ judgments in a fashion that was coarsely but significantly correlated with the best frequency of the stimulation site in comparison to the reference frequency employed in the task. Although there was considerable variability in the effects of stimulation (including impairments in performance and shifts in performance away from the direction predicted based on the site’s response properties), the results indicate that stimulation of the IC can evoke percepts correlated with the frequency tuning properties of the IC. Consistent with the implications of recent human studies, the main avenue for improvement for the auditory midbrain implant suggested by our findings is to increase the number and spatial extent of electrodes, to increase the size of the region that can be electrically activated and provide a greater range of evoked percepts.

My next line of research employs a frequency-tagging approach to examine the extent to which multiple sound sources are combined (or segregated) in the nonhuman primate inferior colliculus. In the single-sound case, most inferior colliculus neurons respond and entrain to sounds in a very broad region of space, and many are entirely spatially insensitive, so it is unknown how the neurons will respond to a situation with more than one sound. I use multiple AM stimuli of different frequencies, which the inferior colliculus represents using a spike timing code. This allows me to measure spike timing in the inferior colliculus to determine which sound source is responsible for neural activity in an auditory scene containing multiple sounds. Using this approach, I find that the same neurons that are tuned to broad regions of space in the single sound condition become dramatically more selective in the dual sound condition, preferentially entraining spikes to stimuli from a smaller region of space. I will examine the possibility that there may be a conceptual linkage between this finding and the finding of receptive field shifts in the visual system.

In chapter 5, I will comment on these findings more generally, compare them to existing theoretical models, and discuss what these results tell us about processing in the central nervous system in a multi-stimulus situation. My results suggest that the brain is flexible in its processing and can adapt its integration schema to fit the available cues and the demands of the task.

Evaluating the Impact of the Positive Choices Intervention on Substance Use, Psychological, and Care Engagement Outcomes Relevant to Current National HIV Prevention Goals

The HIV epidemic in the United States continues to be a significant public health problem, with approximately 50,000 new infections occurring each year. National public health priorities have shifted in recent years towards targeted HIV prevention efforts among people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) that include: increasing engagement in and retention in care, improving HIV treatment adherence, and increasing screening for and treatment of substance use and psychological difficulties. This study evaluated the efficacy of Positive Choices (PC), a brief, care-based, theory-driven, 3-session counseling intervention for newly HIV-diagnosed men who have sex with men (MSM), in the context of current national HIV prevention priorities. The study involved secondary analysis of data from a preliminary efficacy trial of the PC intervention (n=102). Descriptive statistics examined baseline substance use, psychological characteristics and strategies, and care engagement and HIV-related biological outcomes. Generalized Estimating Equations (GEE) examined longitudinal changes in these variables by study condition. Results indicated that PC improved adherence to HIV treatment, but increased use of illicit drugs, specifically amyl nitrates and other stimulant drugs; additionally, moderation analyses indicated differences in patterns of change over time in viral load by baseline depression status. Implications of the findings and suggestions for future research are discussed.

New evidence in trauma resuscitation - is 1:1:1 the answer?

Traumatic injury is a common problem, with over five million worldwide deaths from trauma per year. An estimated 10 to 20% of these deaths are potentially preventable with better control of bleeding. Damage control resuscitation involves early delivery of plasma and platelets as a primary resuscitation approach to minimize trauma-induced coagulopathy. Plasma, red blood cell and platelet ratios of 1:1:1 appear to be the best substitution for fresh whole blood; however, the current literature consists only of survivor bias-prone observational studies.

Realisable climate change narratives in public discourse: an East/West comparative analysis of environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) as a response to global climate change

This thesis looks at how non-experts develop an opinion on climate change, and how those opinions could be changed by public discourse. I use Hubert Dreyfus’ account of skill acquisition to distinguish between experts and non-experts. I then use a combination of Walter Fisher’s narrative paradigm and the hermeneutics of Paul Ricœur to explore how non-experts form opinions, and how public narratives can provide a point of critique. In order to develop robust narratives, they must be financially realistic. I therefore consider the burgeoning field of environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) analysis as a way of informing realistic public narratives. I identify a potential problem with this approach: the Western assumptions of ESG analysis might make for public narratives that are not convincing to a non-Western audience. I then demonstrate how elements of the Chinese tradition, the Confucian, Neo-Confucian, and Daoist schools, as presented by David Hall and Roger Ames, can provide alternative assumptions to ESG analysis so that the public narratives will be more culturally adaptable. This research contributes to the discipline by bringing disparate traditions together in a unique way, into a practical project with a view towards applications. I conclude by considering avenues for further research.

Processes of social flourishing and their liminal collapse: elements to a genealogy of globalization

This article aims at exploring a long-term historical perspective on which contemporary globalization can be more meaningfully situated. A central problem with established approaches to globalization is that they are even more presentist than the literature on modernization was. Presentism not only means the ignoring of history, but also the unreflective application to history of concepts taken from the study of the modern world. In contrast, it is argued that contemporary globalization is not a unique development, but rather is a concrete case of a historical type. Taking as its point of departure the spirit, rather than the word, of Max Weber, this article extends the scope of sociological investigation into archaeological evidence. Having a genealogical design and introducing the concept of ‘liminality’, the article approaches the modern process of globalization through reconstructing the internal dynamics of another type of historical change called ‘social flourishing’. Taking up the Weberian approach continued by Eisenstadt in his writings on ‘axial age’, it moves away from situations of crisis as reference point, shifting attention to periods of revival by introducing the term ‘epiphany’. Through the case of early Mesopotamia, it shows how social flourishing can be transmogrified into globalizing growth, gaining a new perspective concerning the kind of ‘animating spirit’ that might have driven the shift from Renaissance to Reformation, the rise of modern colonialism, or contemporary globalization. More generally, it will retrieve the long-term historical background of the axial age and demonstrate the usefulness and importance of archaeological evidence for sociology.

A Generic Model of Execution for Synthesizing Domain-Specific Models

Software engineering researchers are challenged to provide increasingly more pow- erful levels of abstractions to address the rising complexity inherent in software solu- tions. One new development paradigm that places models as abstraction at the fore- front of the development process is Model-Driven Software Development (MDSD). MDSD considers models as first class artifacts, extending the capability for engineers to use concepts from the problem domain of discourse to specify apropos solutions. A key component in MDSD is domain-specific modeling languages (DSMLs) which are languages with focused expressiveness, targeting a specific taxonomy of problems. The de facto approach used is to first transform DSML models to an intermediate artifact in a HLL e.g., Java or C++, then execute that resulting code. Our research group has developed a class of DSMLs, referred to as interpreted DSMLs (i-DSMLs), where models are directly interpreted by a specialized execution engine with semantics based on model changes at runtime. This execution engine uses a layered architecture and is referred to as a domain-specific virtual machine (DSVM). As the domain-specific model being executed descends the layers of the DSVM the semantic gap between the user-defined model and the services being provided by the underlying infrastructure is closed. The focus of this research is the synthesis engine, the layer in the DSVM which transforms i-DSML models into executable scripts for the next lower layer to process. The appeal of an i-DSML is constrained as it possesses unique semantics contained within the DSVM. Existing DSVMs for i-DSMLs exhibit tight coupling between the implicit model of execution and the semantics of the domain, making it difficult to develop DSVMs for new i-DSMLs without a significant investment in resources. At the onset of this research only one i-DSML had been created for the user- centric communication domain using the aforementioned approach. This i-DSML is the Communication Modeling Language (CML) and its DSVM is the Communication Virtual machine (CVM). A major problem with the CVM’s synthesis engine is that the domain-specific knowledge (DSK) and the model of execution (MoE) are tightly interwoven consequently subsequent DSVMs would need to be developed from inception with no reuse of expertise. This dissertation investigates how to decouple the DSK from the MoE and sub- sequently producing a generic model of execution (GMoE) from the remaining appli- cation logic. This GMoE can be reused to instantiate synthesis engines for DSVMs in other domains. The generalized approach to developing the model synthesis com- ponent of i-DSML interpreters utilizes a reusable framework loosely coupled to DSK as swappable framework extensions. This approach involves first creating an i-DSML and its DSVM for a second do- main, demand-side smartgrid, or microgrid energy management, and designing the synthesis engine so that the DSK and MoE are easily decoupled. To validate the utility of the approach, the SEs are instantiated using the GMoE and DSKs of the two aforementioned domains and an empirical study to support our claim of reduced developmental effort is performed.

Trabajo de campo en geografía : Experiencia en región con conflictos socioambientales

El artículo rescata la importancia del trabajo de campo geográfico en una región con conflictos socioambientales, como el del el agua en las Sierras Chicas de Córdoba. Se hace eje en una experiencia pedagógica, la Práctica Sociocomunitaria (PSC), llevada a cabo por profesores, alumnos y ayudantes de la materia Geografía Rural, de la carrera de Licenciatura en Geografía de la Facultad de Filosofía y Humanidades (FFyH), en la localidad de La Granja, departamento Colón, de la provincia de Córdoba. La PSC es una experiencia que acerca a los alumnos al campo social de los conflictos territoriales. Se trata de una modalidad que va más allá de un proyecto de extensión, ya que involucra a todos los alumnos del grado que cursan la materia. Y es también una manera de aunar, en nuestro caso desde el quehacer geográfico, las funciones de docencia, investigación y extensión propias de los universitarios. Se pretende, a través de la PSC, acercar a los alumnos de Geografía Rural al trabajo de campo, con organizaciones sociales de base local motorizadas que conocen los problemas de su localidad en profundidad y que trabajan junto con nuestro equipo de investigación. A la vez, el contacto, las reflexiones grupales e individuales, los debates con los estudiantes universitarios, aportarán al colectivo social, una ampliación de la esfera de conocimientos de la realidad sobre la que viven y luchan. El artículo comienza definiendo qué se entiende por PSC. Luego, atendiendo específicamente a nuestra práctica, desarrollamos lo que para nosotros son las dos lógicas que sustentan el trabajo en terreno. Una, referida a la construcción del conocimiento, a los modos diversos de aprender y de saber. Otra, vinculada a la comprensión del conflicto socioterritorial, en relación con el escenario donde se realiza la práctica: la Mesa del Agua y Ambiente de La Granja. Incluimos un apartado sobre la descripción de la experiencia y los resultados, para finalizar con algunas reflexiones pensadas en función de la continuidad de la práctica.

Trabajo de campo en geografía : Experiencia en región con conflictos socioambientales

El artículo rescata la importancia del trabajo de campo geográfico en una región con conflictos socioambientales, como el del el agua en las Sierras Chicas de Córdoba. Se hace eje en una experiencia pedagógica, la Práctica Sociocomunitaria (PSC), llevada a cabo por profesores, alumnos y ayudantes de la materia Geografía Rural, de la carrera de Licenciatura en Geografía de la Facultad de Filosofía y Humanidades (FFyH), en la localidad de La Granja, departamento Colón, de la provincia de Córdoba. La PSC es una experiencia que acerca a los alumnos al campo social de los conflictos territoriales. Se trata de una modalidad que va más allá de un proyecto de extensión, ya que involucra a todos los alumnos del grado que cursan la materia. Y es también una manera de aunar, en nuestro caso desde el quehacer geográfico, las funciones de docencia, investigación y extensión propias de los universitarios. Se pretende, a través de la PSC, acercar a los alumnos de Geografía Rural al trabajo de campo, con organizaciones sociales de base local motorizadas que conocen los problemas de su localidad en profundidad y que trabajan junto con nuestro equipo de investigación. A la vez, el contacto, las reflexiones grupales e individuales, los debates con los estudiantes universitarios, aportarán al colectivo social, una ampliación de la esfera de conocimientos de la realidad sobre la que viven y luchan. El artículo comienza definiendo qué se entiende por PSC. Luego, atendiendo específicamente a nuestra práctica, desarrollamos lo que para nosotros son las dos lógicas que sustentan el trabajo en terreno. Una, referida a la construcción del conocimiento, a los modos diversos de aprender y de saber. Otra, vinculada a la comprensión del conflicto socioterritorial, en relación con el escenario donde se realiza la práctica: la Mesa del Agua y Ambiente de La Granja. Incluimos un apartado sobre la descripción de la experiencia y los resultados, para finalizar con algunas reflexiones pensadas en función de la continuidad de la práctica.

Culture in Transfer: Translation and Transcultural Communication International Conference

It is widely acknowledged that interpreters need to have knowledge of the cultures represented by the languages they work with (e.g. Roy 2002, Angelelli 2004, Wadensjŏ 2008). However, it is not clear what interpreters are expected to do with this knowledge. Some scholars recommend that interpreters be cultural mediators (e.g. Katan 2004 & 2014). As an attempt to examine existing guidelines on interpreters’ roles in the face of cultures/cultural issues, the research reported in this paper compares and contrasts the codes of conduct for interpreters from a number of associations and institutions in the UK, the US and China. The research has collected three different sets of data and has sought to investigate (1) in what ways interpreters are expected to do with their knowledge of cultures; (2) to what extent interpreters’ role as cultural mediators is referred to or defined in these codes of conduct; and (3) whether or not relevant guidelines are practically helpful for interpreters to deal with the range of cultural issues they may encounter in interpreting. Data analysis suggests that while cultural knowledge is a requisite for interpreters, the expectation for them to be cultural mediators may depend on the types of interpreting setting they work with and further guidelines are needed so that interpreters are clear on what they are required to do in dealing with cultural issues. The paper then discusses the implications of these findings and points to some directions for future research. Key references Brunette, L., G Bastin, I. Hemlin and H. Clarke (ed.). The Critical Link 3: Interpreters in the Community. Amsterdam/Philadephia: John Benjamins. Hale, S. 2007. Community Interpreting. Hampshire, New York: Palgrave Macmillan. The International Association of Conference Interpreting, 2015. Interpreting Explained. Available from: http://aiic.net/; accessed on 24 June 2015 Katan, David, --- 2004. Translating Cultures: An Introduction for Translators, Interpreters and Mediators. St Jerome. --- 2014. Workshop: Translation at the cross-roads: time for the transcreational turn? University College London. Martín, Mayte C. & Mary Phelan, 2009. Interpreters and Cultural Mediators – different but complementary roles. In: Translocations: Migration and Social Change. ISSN Number: 2009-0420 (online) McDonough Dolmaya, Julie, (2011. Moral ambiguity: Some shortcomings of professional codes of ethics for translators. In: The Journal of Specialised Translation. Issue 15, January 2011 (online). Pöchhacker, F., 2008. Interpreting as Mediation. In: (ed.) Valero Garcés, C. and Martin, A, Crossing Borders in Community Interpreting: definitions and dilemmas, pp. 9-26. John Benjamins Amsterdam and Philadelphia. Roy, Cynthia B., 2002. The Problem with Definitions, Descriptions, and the Role Metaphors of Interpreters. In: (ed.) Pöchhacker, Franz & Miriam Shlesinger, The Interpreting Studies Reader. Routledge. Wadensjö 1998. Interpreting as Interaction. New York: Addison Wesley Longman Inc.

Aerodynamic optimization using Adjoint methods and parametric CAD models

This paper describes an implementation of a method capable of integrating parametric, feature based, CAD models based on commercial software (CATIA) with the SU2 software framework. To exploit the adjoint based methods for aerodynamic optimisation within the SU2, a formulation to obtain geometric sensitivities directly from the commercial CAD parameterisation is introduced, enabling the calculation of gradients with respect to CAD based design variables. To assess the accuracy and efficiency of the alternative approach, two aerodynamic optimisation problems are investigated: an inviscid, 3D, problem with multiple constraints, and a 2D high-lift aerofoil, viscous problem without any constraints. Initial results show the new parameterisation obtaining reliable optimums, with similar levels of performance of the software native parameterisations. In the final paper, details of computing CAD sensitivities will be provided, including accuracy as well as linking geometric sensitivities to aerodynamic objective functions and constraints; the impact in the robustness of the overall method will be assessed and alternative parameterisations will be included.

Development of release methods for critically endangered freshwater pearl mussels (Margaritifera margaritifera)

Biodiversity loss is a global problem with freshwater bivalves considered amongst the most
endangered biota. The freshwater pearl mussel, Margaritifera margaritifera, is declining
throughout its range owing to habitat degradation and overexploitation. In most of its range,
populations are regarded as reproductively non-functional which has led to the development
of captive breeding programmes. A novel method of releasing M. margaritifera was trialled,
with captive-bred juveniles being released into the rivers caged in ‘mussels silos’ (protective
concrete domes with ventilation creating upwelling to ensure water through flow). We
released 240 juvenile mussels and survival and growth rates were monitored for 18 months
post-release for three size classes: A (13.01-20.00mm); B (10.01-13.00mm); and C (4.01-
10.00mm). We explicitly tested two experimental treatments; one where sediment was added
to each silo (allowing mussels to orientate and burrow) and one without sediment. Survival
by the end of the experiment at month 18 was significantly higher for the largest size class at
97% (though growth was lowest in this cohort), and lowest for the smallest size class at 61%
(though growth was highest in this cohort). Survival and growth were unaffected by the
experimental treatment suggesting that adding sediment offered no advantage. Growth was
positively correlated with both water temperature and the particle size of suspended solids
(both of which were collinear, peaking in summer). There are a large number of ex situ
breeding programmes for freshwater pearl mussels throughout Europe and our finding
suggest that the use of ‘mussel silos’ could be a useful tool to protecting juvenile mussels
allowing them to be released at a relatively early stage of development, minimising the risk of
domestication.

Företags potentiella manipulation av tillväxttakt i goodwillnedskrivningstestet : En kvantitativ studie av svenska och finska börsnoterade företag

Bakgrund och problem: I och med den nya standarden IAS 36 ska företagen göra uppskattningar angående den långsiktiga tillväxttakten i goodwillnedskrivningstestet. Detta innebär en möjlighet att manipulera tillväxttakten för att på så vis undvika eller framkalla nedskrivning av goodwill. Problemformulering: Hur påverkar utvalda variabler företags potentiella manipulation av angiven tillväxttakt? Syfte: Syftet med studien är att bidra med förklaringar till vad som påverkar att företag redovisar för höga respektive för låga tillväxttakter i goodwillnedskrivningstestet. Metod: Denna studie bygger på en kvantitativ metod där urvalet består av samtliga svenska och finska börsnoterade företag med redovisad goodwill. Utifrån existerade kunskap formuleras fyra hypoteser som testas mot empirin. Resultat och slutsats: Resultatet av denna studie visar inga signifikanta samband mellan den beroende variabeln manipulation och de oberoende variablerna storlek, skuldsättningsgrad, bransch och redovisningstillsyn. Den deskriptiva statistiken visar att i stort sett hälften av företagen manipulerar tillväxttakten.

Variationelle Zeitdiskretisierungen höherer Ordnung der Konvektions-Diffusions-Reaktions-Gleichungen in zeitabhängigen Gebieten

Wir betrachten zeitabhängige Konvektions-Diffusions-Reaktions-Gleichungen in zeitabhängi- gen Gebieten, wobei die Bewegung des Gebietsrandes bekannt ist. Die zeitliche Entwicklung des Gebietes wird durch die ALE-Formulierung behandelt, die die Nachteile der klassischen Euler- und Lagrange-Betrachtungsweisen behebt. Die Position des Randes und seine Geschwindigkeit werden dabei so in das Gebietsinnere fortgesetzt, dass starke Gitterdeformationen verhindert werden. Als Zeitdiskretisierungen höherer Ordnung werden stetige Galerkin-Petrov-Verfahren (cGP) und unstetige Galerkin-Verfahren (dG) auf Probleme in zeitabhängigen Gebieten angewendet. Weiterhin werden das C 1 -stetige Galerkin-Petrov-Verfahren und das C 0 -stetige Galerkin- Verfahren vorgestellt. Deren Lösungen lassen sich auch in zeitabhängigen Gebieten durch ein einfaches einheitliches Postprocessing aus der Lösung des cGP-Problems bzw. dG-Problems erhalten. Für Problemstellungen in festen Gebieten und mit zeitlich konstanten Konvektions- und Reaktionstermen werden Stabilitätsresultate sowie optimale Fehlerabschätzungen für die nachbereiteten Lösungen der cGP-Verfahren und der dG-Verfahren angegeben. Für zeitabhängige Konvektions-Diffusions-Reaktions-Gleichungen in zeitabhängigen Gebieten präsentieren wir konservative und nicht-konservative Formulierungen, wobei eine besondere Aufmerksamkeit der Behandlung der Zeitableitung und der Gittergeschwindigkeit gilt. Stabilität und optimale Fehlerschätzungen für die in der Zeit semi-diskretisierten konservativen und nicht-konservativen Formulierungen werden vorgestellt. Abschließend wird das volldiskretisierte Problem betrachtet, wobei eine Finite-Elemente-Methode zur Ortsdiskretisierung der Konvektions-Diffusions-Reaktions-Gleichungen in zeitabhängigen Gebieten im ALE-Rahmen einbezogen wurde. Darüber hinaus wird eine lokale Projektionsstabilisierung (LPS) eingesetzt, um der Konvektionsdominanz Rechnung zu tragen. Weiterhin wird numerisch untersucht, wie sich die Approximation der Gebietsgeschwindigkeit auf die Genauigkeit der Zeitdiskretisierungsverfahren auswirkt.