Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Motion resistances'

The presented diploma thesis deals with the measurement of car deceleration during engine braking from different starting speeds and different speed gears with a sample of vehicles. This piece of work consists of a theoretical part, where problem background is defined, selected driving parameters including the manner how to measure them are explained and the facts in the field of structural characteristics of the vehicle are given, further from a design of measurement methodology that gives an overall plan of implementation, all the respective information and a description of handling with decelerometer, further from a real measurement of the deceleration including an interpretation of partial obtained values and finally from the evaluation of all results with appropriate conclusions.

The purpose of this study was to determine if the ankle supports chosen were able to provide increased resistance to inversion, as measured by moment of force, without limiting plantar flexion or dorsiflexion. Resistance to inversion moment of force was measured on an isokinetic dynamometer (KinCom) in passive mode, for six support conditions (low-top (LT) and midcut (MC) shoes with semi-rigid and flexible orthoses). The braces used were the Active Ankle T1 Trainer (AA) and the Ankle Stabilizing Orthosis (ASO). The shoes were ASICS Gel Airier volleyball shoes in low-top and midcut models. It was found that there was a significant difference in resistance to inversion moment of force mean, between the MC alone and the LT with AA. It was concluded that the best support condition was the combination of LT and AA. It decreased sagittal range of motion the least and provided increased force to resist inversion as compared to the control condition (LT). (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

Since 1976, the General Directorate of Disaster Affairs of Turkey has deployed several strong-motion accelerographs at selected sites. Within the framework of the project entitled Compilation of National Strong Ground Motion Database in Accordance with International Standards, initiated in 2006, site conditions at a total of 153 strong-motion sites were investigated within the uppermost 30 m depth through boreholes including Standard Penetration Testing and surface seismics by means of Multi-channel Analysis of Surface Waves (MASW). In this study, firstly, the assessment of the site characterization was held by making use NEHRP Provisions, EC-8 and Turkish Seismic Design Code. The corrected penetration resistances are calculated and observed how it affects the classification. In addition, the consistency of site classes obtained from either penetration resistance or shear wave velocity criteria is examined. Also the consistency of the boundaries of the site classes in terms of shear wave velocity and penetration resistance data pairs are investigated. Secondly, the liquefaction potential of these sites is examined. Thirdly and finally, the shear wave velocity profiles obtained from MASW technique are contrasted to other seismic tests.

L'oeuvre de l'ecrivain mexicain jose revueltas (1914-1976) est placee sous le signe de la prison. Reflet d'une biographie mouvementee ou le militantisme communiste tient une place essentielle, on y retrouve avec insistance le theme de l'enfermement, indissociable de la lutte pour y echapper. Son combat contre les geoles du pouvoir au mexique des annees trente a soixante-dix, d'une part, et contrela prison de l'orthodoxie stalinienne, de l'autre, impregne ses romans : resistance a l'oppression et critique du dogme. Manifeste ou metaphorique, cette presence de la prison est obsedante jusque dans ses nouvelles et ses pieces de theatre : physique, politique sociale, ideologique, ontologique. . . Etudiee dans le cadre de ces coordonnees carcerales, la bio / graphie (le vecu et l'oeuvre) revueltienne montre une puissante tendance a la cloture. Celle-ci est contrariee par des forces de sens oppose : la resistance et la critique trouvent leurs correspondants, au niveau de la fiction, dans une ecriture qui cherche a se soustraire a l'enfermement, dans des personnages en lutte, notamment les militants critiques et certains personnages feminins, dans un travail de la memoire au sein du texte. Il en decoule que ce discours litteraire - dont la methode declaree est celle du realisme critique - a souvent devance le discours ideologique du meme auteur et detecte deux faits centraux dans l'histoire du siecle : l'echec du mouvement communiste, l'emancipation de la femme. L'oeuvre revueltienne suit, des premiers ecrits aux derniers, la forme d'une spirale, echappant ainsi a la sterilite de l'enfermement circulaire.

The objective of the dissertation is to develop simplified analytical models for typical linear-motion and rotary-motion energy-conversion systems under active DC excitation without tedious numerical-simulation effort, and provide practical implementation of the models in optimal-design and thermal-protection aspects. The model of a vacuum automatic circuit recloser (a typical linear-motion system under DC excitation) is first developed in the form of a non-linear discontinuous eighth-order dynamic system. The model is then used to simulate the transient mechanical and electromagnetic performance during the opening and closing movements of the recloser. Such a model is not found in the literature. Although the model is based on certain simplifying assumptions, the result is validated by high-speed-camera measurements. In addition, the impact of key design variables is explored, based on which an improved recloser design is proposed, and helps to optimize capital and production costs without degrading performance. Further analytical investigation is carried out in modeling an inverter-fed induction motor (IM) (a typical rotary-motion system) with active DC injection. The IM is closed-loop controlled via two popular motor-control algorithms, namely, the direct-torque-control (DTC) algorithm and field-oriented-control (FOC) algorithm. Quantitative relationships between the changes of various machine variables during the active DC excitation are provided in the theoretical analysis. The developed DC-injection model is further simplified for practical implementation. The developed IM model under DC injection results in practical ways to excite a proper amount of DC current directly or indirectly into IM stator windings via different closed-loop motor-control algorithms. In a DTC motor-drive system, the modeling work makes it possible to excite the DC current indirectly inside the motor by superimposing a stator-flux-linkage-bias command in the flux-control loop or a torque-ripple command in the torque-control loop. The proposed flux-linkage-injection and torque-injection methods are the first novel efforts to implement the DC-signal-injection method in a DTC motor-drive system. In addition, the analysis carried out in a standard FOC drive system brings about an improved DC-current-injection approach: the torque ripple in this method is significantly mitigated compared to all existing DC-injection methods in FOC systems. The proposed DC-injection methods, either in a DTC or an FOC system, lead to a simple, low-cost, accurate, and non-invasive thermal-monitoring scheme for closed-loop-controlled IMs, where the stator temperature is indirectly estimated from stator resistance. Furthermore, considering inverter non-idealities, there is a challenge for a typical inverter drive to accurately estimate the DC component of motor terminal voltages. The existing methods are extended to provide a complete study of the real-time signal-processing technique for both DTC and FOC algorithms, and are finally implemented in a custom-built programmable motor-drive system. The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed technique gives accurate and robust stator-temperature estimation, regardless of the operating conditions and cooling modes. The analytical modeling method for the linear-motion and rotary-motion energy-conversion systems can be further extended to other power devices with similar mechanisms, and implemented in optimal design, control, and thermal-protection areas.

Introduction: Neck pain is a common problem in society and is more prevalent among women. The consequences of neck pain for the individual often include activity and participation limitations, thus affecting many dimensions of life. There is still a lack of understanding of the underlying mechanisms of the disorder and likewise of efficient rehabilitation for people with neck pain. However, coordination exercises have shown promising short-term effects. To carry this line of research forward, there is a need to improve methods for objective characterization of impairments and to investigate novel methods of rehabilitation. Aims: To characterize impairments of active cervical range of motion of the upper and lower cervical levels in women with chronic neck pain with a novel method (Study I and II) and identify the influence of head posture and movement strategies (Study II). Further, to investigate the effects of a novel method for neck coordination exercise on sensorimotor function and neck pain (study III) and the consistencies of motor variability metrics in a goal directed arm movement task to aid the design of future clinical research (Study IV). Methods: All studies were laboratory based with kinematic assessments of neck movements (Study I-III), balance (Study III) and goal directed arm movements (Study III, IV). The studies had designs that were: cross-sectional (I and II), randomized controlled trial (III) or test-retest reliability study (IV). Participants in Study I (n=135) and II (n=160) were women with chronic non-specific neck pain and healthy controls. In Study III, women with chronic non-specific neck pain (n=108) were randomized into three different individually supervised 11 week interventions. Study IV included healthy women (n=14). Results: It was found that cervical range of motion impairments in women with non-specific neck pain were direction- and level-specific; impairments were greater in extension in the upper and flexion in the lower levels of the cervical spine. The magnitude of impairments in range of motion was associated to self-ratings of functioning and health. Possible group differences in natural head posture were rejected as a cause for the direction specific effects. Neither could the effects be explained by a strategy to minimize torque in the cervical spine during movement execution. The neck coordination training was not superior to strength training (best-available) and massage treatment (sham) in improving sensorimotor functions or pain according to short-term and 6 months follow ups. The results from the study of the goal directed movement task showed that between and within-subject sizes of most motor variability metrics were too large to make the test suitable for application in clinical research. Conclusions: Women with chronic non-specific neck pain have direction- and level-specific impairments in cervical sagittal range of motion. The underlying causes of these specific impairments remains unresolved, but the direction specific impairments are not related to natural head posture. The clinical validity of the method of characterization of cervical range of motion was supported and it can be useful in future clinical research. The novel method of neck coordination exercise showed no advantages on sensorimotor functions or pain compared with best-available treatment in women with chronic non-specific neck pain.
Långvarig smärta i nacken är vanligt förekommande och orsakar både personligt lidande och stora kostnader för samhället. Långvariga nackbesvär är vanligare hos kvinnor än hos män. Det saknas kunskap om effektiva rehabiliteringsmetoder, men forskning har indikerat att träning som förbättrar nackens koordination kan vara effektivt. För att uppnå bättre rehabiliteringsresultat är det viktigt att utveckla metoder för att objektivt mäta funktionsnedsättningar och att utveckla samt utvärdera nya rehabiliteringsmetoder. Syftet med avhandlingen kan sammanfattas i tre delar: Att detaljerat mäta nedsättningar i nackens rörelseomfång hos kvinnor med långvarig nacksmärta; att utvärdera effekten av en ny metod för nackkoordinationsträning på rörelsefunktion och smärta hos kvinnor med långvarig nacksmärta; samt att utvärdera ett nytt test för att mäta precision och koordination vid målriktade armrörelser och ämnat för framtida klinisk forskning. Resultaten visade att kvinnor med långvarig nacksmärta hade specifika nedsättningar i nacken rörelseomfång; i övre nackregionen var bakåtböjning mer begränsad medan i nedre nackregionen var framåtböjning mer begränsad. Vi kunde utesluta att resultaten berodde på skillnader i huvudets normala hållning. Graden av rörelsebegränsning i nacken uppvisade samband med personernas självskattade funktion, symtom och hälsa. Nackkoordinationsträningen var inte var bättre än styrketräning eller massage för att förbättra rörelsefunktion eller för att minska smärta. Det nya testet för armrörelser var inte lämpat för kliniska studier av rörelseprecision. Slutsatserna från avhandlingsarbetet är att kvinnor med långvarig nacksmärta har begränsningar i nackens rörelseomfång vid framåt- och bakåtböjning av huvudet som är specifika vad gäller nivå i halsryggen och riktning. Att graden av rörelsebegränsning uppvisade samband med självskattad funktion, symtom och hälsa styrker testets kliniska validitet. Ytterligare forskning behövs för att förstå orsakerna bakom de specifika nedsättningarna. Nackkoordinationsträningen som utvärderades kan inte rekommenderas för kvinnor med långvarig nacksmärta eftersom korttidsuppföljning och 6-månadersuppföljning visade att träningsformen inte var bättre än styrketräning eller massage, vare sig när det gällde att förbättra sensomotorisk funktion eller att minska smärta.

El entrenamiento de la fuerza en los deportes de equipo ha ido evolucionando en las últimas décadas hacia un enfoque más integrador, adaptándose a sus características propias y distanciándose de los entrenamientos más tradicionales derivados de los deportes individuales. Julio Tous (Seirul·lo, 2017, Capítulo Tous Fajardo, Julio) propone un cambio de paradigma basando el entrenamiento de fuerza en el movimiento humano, así serán los movimientos los que actuarán como eje vertebrador de las propuestas de ejercicios de fuerza y no los grupos musculares, que serán los meros ejecutores. Una de las metodologías que nos permiten ajustarnos a este cambio de paradigma es el entrenamiento estructurado a través de sus diferentes niveles de aproximación deportiva. Seirul·lo (Seirul-lo, 1993b) estableció cuatro niveles de especificidad que iban de general a competitivo; posteriormente, Moras (1994) estableció seis niveles de aproximación deportiva que iban del 0 al 5 y sus diferentes agrupaciones. Uno de los grandes retos pendientes de abordar y aportar evidencia científica era mediante qué sensores y a través de qué tipo de análisis se debían monitorizar estos niveles de aproximación deportiva, especialmente en ese cambio de ejercicios con una predominancia condicional a otros con predominancia coordinativa. Desde una perspectiva de evaluación, las oscilaciones del movimiento humano se pueden evaluar como cualquier otra serie temporal (Couceiro et al., 2014). Sin embargo, las series temporales fruto de señales fisiológicas presentan fluctuaciones no lineales y, como consecuencia, realizar un análisis estadístico mediante técnicas lineales nos dará como resultado una información parcial del movimiento humano (Orellana & Torres, 2010). Por lo tanto, el uso de herramientas no lineales como la entropía puede ser una buena alternativa para explorar la naturaleza del movimiento humano y su relación con el desarrollo coordinativo (Preatoni et al., 2013), reflejando cambios en la variabilidad de movimiento durante la ejecución de las tareas y a lo largo del tiempo. Así, el objetivo de esta tesis fue analizar el rol de la variabilidad de movimiento medida a través de la entropía en tareas de fuerza con diferentes niveles de aproximación deportiva. Primero se hizo una prueba piloto con el objetivo de comprobar si los acelerómetros de dos sensores con frecuencias de muestreo de 100 y 1000Hz eran válidos para evaluar tareas de fuerza de corta duración seleccionados en los estudios de esta tesis. Se observaron que había diferencias tanto en los valores de aceleración media como de entropía en base a la frecuencia de muestreo, con valores de entropía significativamente superiores al registrar a 100 Hz, donde claramente se observaba que había una pérdida de puntos temporales los cuales hacían que la señal fuera menos previsible (Figura 11). En conclusión, dadas las características temporales de las tareas de fuerza en los deportes de equipo, 1000 Hz es una frecuencia adecuada para registrar los ejercicios cortos y explosivos, y por lo tanto fue la frecuencia empleada durante todos los estudios de la tesis. En el primer estudio se analizó la variabilidad en la aceleración durante una tarea de fuerza realizada con un cono de inercia sin (NOBALL) y con (BALL) el condicionante de coger y pasar un balón de rugby. Cambios en las medias (%; ± 90% CL) de 4.64; ± 3.1 g en la aceleración media y 39.48; ± 36.63 a.u. en la entropía indican un aumento probable y muy probable cuando se introduce el condicionante del balón. La entropía multiescala también mostró una mayor imprevisibilidad de la aceleración bajo la condición del balón, especialmente en escalas de tiempo más altas. Por lo tanto, la aplicación de condicionantes coordinativos en el entrenamiento de fuerza con jugadores de rugby produce una cantidad diferente de variabilidad de movimiento a través de múltiples escalas de tiempo fisiológico. El segundo estudio tuvo como objetivo identificar las diferencias entre posiciones (forwards vs. backs) en la variabilidad del movimiento en el entrenamiento de placajes acumulados durante los roles de ataque y defensa. Los participantes realizaron cuatro bloques de seis placajes de defensa (es decir, placar a un oponente) y seis de ataque (es decir, ser tacleado por un oponente mientras llevaba una pelota), es decir, 48 placajes totales. Se utilizó la entropía muestral (SampEn) para analizar la variabilidad del movimiento. Se observaron diferencias significativas entre bloques en los backs (bloque 1 frente a 3 y bloque 1 frente a 4 pero no en forwards. La variabilidad del movimiento mostró una reducción progresiva con los placajes acumulados, especialmente en los backs y en el rol defensivo. Los delanteros presentaron valores de variabilidad de movimiento más bajos en todos los bloques, particularmente en el primero, tanto en el rol de ataque como en el defensa. Por último, el tercer estudio el objetivo fue identificar los cambios en la variabilidad de movimiento y la velocidad de ejecución durante un período de entrenamiento de seis semanas utilizando una tarea de fuerza realizada con un cono inercial sin (NOBALL) y con (BALL) el condicionante de coger y pasar una pelota de rugby, durante un período de seis semanas. SampEn no mostró una disminución significativa para NOBALL (ES -0.64 ± 1.02) y una disminución significativa para BALL (ES -1.71 ± 1.16; p <0.007). Además, la velocidad de ejecución mostró un aumento significativo para NOBALL (ES 1.02 ± 1.05; p <0.047), y un aumento significativo para BALL (ES 1.25 ± 1.08; p <0.025) entre las semanas 1 y 6. El índice de complejidad mostró mayores niveles en la condición de BALL, especialmente en las primeras tres semanas. La velocidad de ejecución y la variabilidad de movimiento se adaptaron a las limitaciones de la tarea después de un período de entrenamiento de cuatro semanas. Las medidas de entropía parecen una técnica de señal de procesamiento de datos prometedora para identificar cuándo se deben cambiar estas tareas de ejercicio en el entrenamiento de fuerza en los deportes de equipo. En conclusión, analizar la variabilidad de movimiento a través de la entropía tendrá un rol fundamental en el control y programación de tareas de fuerza en los deportes de equipo, especialmente cuando estas tengan una predominancia coordinativa basada en el movimiento deportivo.
Over the last decades, resistance training in team sports has evolved towards a more integrative approach, adapting to its own characteristics and distancing itself from the more traditional training derived from individual sports. Based on human movement, Julio Tous (Seirul·lo Vargas, 2017, Chapter Tous Fajardo, Julio) proposed a paradigm shift in which movements act as the backbone of exercise selection instead of the muscle groups, which in turn become mere executors. Structured training is a resistance training methodology that allows us to adjust to this paradigm shift through different levels of sports approach. Seirul·lo (1993) established four levels of specificity ranging from general to competitive. Subsequently, Moras (2000) developed six levels of sports approach, ranging from zero to five with different groupings. Analysis of human movement has evolved to allow the assessment of the variability of a measure by targeting the detection of changes in fluctuations and spatiotemporal characteristics of the outcomes. Within the past 20 years, entropy analysis has become relatively popular as a measure of system complexity. Thus, the aim of this thesis was to analyse the role of movement variability measured through entropy in resistance training in team sports with different levels of sports approach. First, a pilot test was carried out to compare the values of mean acceleration and entropy values in short actions (i.e. collisions) when registered with two devices with different accelerometer sampling frequencies (1000 Hz versus 100 Hz). Differences were observed for mean acceleration and entropy when measured with different sampling frequencies. Therefore, 1000 Hz was selected as the sampling frequency for the rest of the experiments on this thesis. The first study described the variability in acceleration during a resistance training task, performed in horizontal inertial flywheels without (NOBALL) or with the constraint of catching and throwing a rugby ball (BALL). Mean changes (%; ±90%CL) of 4.64; ±3.1 g for mean acceleration and 39.48; ±36.63 a.u. for sample entropy indicated likely and very likely increase when in BALL condition. Multiscale entropy also showed higher unpredictability of acceleration under the BALL condition, especially at higher time scales. Thus, the application of match specific constraints in resistance training for rugby players elicit different amount of variability of body acceleration across multiple physiological time scales. The second study aims to identify between-position (forwards vs. backs) differences in movement variability in cumulative tackle events training during both attacking and defensive roles. Participants performed four blocks of six tackling (i.e. tackling an opponent) and six tackled (i.e. being tackled by an opponent while carrying a ball) events (i.e. 48 total tackles) while wearing a micro-technological inertial measurement unit. Sample entropy (SampEn) were used to analyse the movement variability. Significant between-block differences were observed in backs (block 1 vs 3 and block 1 vs 4) but not in forwards. Movement variability shows a progressive reduction with cumulative tackle events, especially in backs and the defensive role. Forwards present lower movement variability values in all blocks, particularly in the first block, both in the attacking and defensive role. Last, in the third study aims was to identify the changes in movement variability and movement velocity during six weeks training period using a resistance horizontal forward-backward task without (NOBALL) or with (BALL) the constraint of catching and throwing a rugby ball in the forward phase, during a six-week period. SampEn showed no significant decrease for NOBALL (ES -0.64 ± 1.02) and significant decrease for BALL (ES -1.71 ± 1.16; p<0.007) conditions. Additionally, movement velocity showed significant increase for NOBALL (ES 1.02 ± 1.05; p<0.047), and significant increase for BALL (ES 1.25 ± 1.08; p<0.025) between weeks 1 and 6. The complexity index showed higher levels of complexity in BALL condition, specifically in the first three weeks. Movement velocity and complex dynamics were adapted to the constraints of the task after a four-week training period. Entropy measures seem a promising processing signal technique to identify when these exercise tasks should be changed. In conclusion, analysing the movement variability through entropy will have a fundamental role in the control and programming of resistance training in team sports, especially when they have a coordinative predominance based on sports movement.

Bakgrund: Subacromiell smärta är vanligt hos idrottare med repetitivt arbete ovan axelhöjd, vilket kan orsakas av obalans i muskulatur, förändrad position eller inskränkt rörlighet av scapula. Nedsatt funktion av scapula och dess stabilitet kan leda till minskad axelledsrörlighet och försvagad muskultur i området. Träning är förstahandsalternativet för minskad smärta, förbättrad funktion och ökad rörlighet vid subacromiell smärta. Behandling med scapulafokuserad träning har i dagsläget otillräcklig evidens. Mer studier behövs för att avgöra vilken nedsättning av scapula som den typ av träning påverkar och hur olika scapula fokuserade interventioner påverkar subacromiell smärta. Syfte: Syftet med studien var att undersöka effekten av kombinationsövningen ”shoulder dislocations” vad gäller scapulakontroll, aktiv utåtrotation i axelled och smärta hos crossfitutövare med subacromiell smärta. Metod: Single-subject metod med AB design användes till studien. Tre baslinjemätningar och fyra mätningar under interventionsfasen gjordes, där scapulakontrollen och aktiv utåtrotation i axeln mättes samt smärtskattning utfördes. Deltagarna var sin egen kontroll. Populationen var personer som tränade crossfit vid minst tre tillfällen per vecka med subacromiell smärta. Under interventionen utför deltagarna ”shoulder dislocation” tre gånger per vecka med doseringen tio repetitioner i tre set. Resultatet presenterades i grafer och analyserades visuellt. Resultat: Fyra deltagare inkluderades i studien varav en med bilaterala besvär. Samtliga deltagare förbättrade scapulakontrollen, fyra av fem deltagare förbättrade den aktiva utåtrotationen i axelled. Tre av fem deltagare upplevde minskad smärta under träning och vid mättillfället. Slutsats: ”Shoulder dislocation” tycks förbättra scapulakontrollen, aktiv utåtrotation i axelleden hos crossfitutövare med subacromiell smärta och tendens till minskad smärta.
Background: Subacromial pain is common among overhead athletes, which can lead to muscular imbalance, changed position or decreased mobility of scapula. Reduced function and stability of scapula could lead to decreased shoulder mobility and weakened musculature in the area. Exercise is first hand choice to reduce pain, improve function and increase range of motion at subacromial pain. Treatment with scapular focused exercise is today limited. More studies are needed to determine what kind of reduction of scapula this exercise influences and how different scapular focused interventions affect subacromial pain. Aim: The purpose of the study was to examine the effect of the combination exercise ”shoulder dislocations” in terms of scapula control, active external rotation in the glenohumeral joint and pain in crossfit athletes with subacromial pain. Method: Single-subject method with AB design was used in the study. Three baseline measurements and four measurements during the intervention phase was collected, where control of scapula, active external rotation and pain was measured. Participants were their own control. The population was individuals who trained crossfit at least three times a week and had subacromial pain. During the intervention the participants performed ”shoulder dislocations”. Performing three sets of ten repetitions three times a week. The results were presented in graphs and visually analyzed. Results: Four participants were included in the study whereof one had bilateral disorders. All participants increased control of scapula, four out of five increased active external rotation of the glenohumeral joint. Three out of five participants experienced pain reduction during exercise and at the time of measurement. Conclusion: ”Shoulder dislocations” seems to improve control of scapula and active external range of motion of the glenohumeral joint in crossfit athletes with subacromial pain.

Sensing devices developed upon resonant microelectromechanical and nanoelectromechanical (M/NEMS) system technology have become one of the most attractive areas of research over the past decade. These devices make exceptional sensing platforms because of their miniscule dimensions and resonant modes of operation, which are found to be extremely sensitive to added mass. Along their unique sensing attributes, they also offer foundry compatible microfabrication processes, low DC power consumption, and CMOS integration compatibility. In this work, electrostatically and piezoelectrically actuated RF MEMS bulk resonators have been investigated for mass sensing applications. The capacitively-transduced resonators employed electrostatic actuation to achieve desired resonance mode shapes. These devices were fabricated on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrates with a device layer resistivity ranging from 0.005 Ω cm to 0.020 Ω cm. The electrode-to-resonator capacitive gap was defined by two different techniques: oxidation enabled gap reduction and sacrificial atomic layer deposition (ALD). For oxidation enabled gap reduction, a hard mask composed of silicon nitride and polysilicon is deposited, patterned, and defined using standard MEMS thin-film layer deposition and fabrication techniques. The initial lithographically-defined capacitive gap of 1 μm is further reduced to ~300 nm by a wet furnace oxidation process. Subsequently, the reduced gap is transferred to the device layer using a customized dry high-aspect-ratio dry etching technique. For sacrificial approach, a ~100 nm-thin ALD aluminum oxide sidewall spacer is chemically etched away as the last microfabrication step to define the ~100 nm capacitive gap. Small capacitive gaps developed in this work results in small motional resistance (Rm) values, which relax the need of the read-out circuitry by enhancing the signal transduction. Piezoelectrically-actuated resonators were developed using thin-film bulk acoustic resonant (FBAR or TFBAR) and thin-film piezoelectric-on-substrate (TPoS) technologies with reported Q factors and resonant frequencies as high as 10,638 and 776.54 MHz, respectively, along with measured motional resistance values as low as 169Ω. To the best of our knowledge, this work is the first one that demonstrated TPoS resonators using LPCVD polysilicon as an alternative low loss structural layer to single-crystal silicon with Q factors as high as ~3,000 (in air) and measured motional resistance values as low as 6 kΩ with an equivalent acoustic velocity of 6,912 m s-1 for a 7 μm thick layer. Polysilicon based TPoS single devices were measured with the coefficient of resonant frequency of -3.77 ppm/°C, which was the lowest ever reported for this type of devices. Also a novel releasing process, thin-piezo on single crystal reactive etched (TPoSCRE), allows us to develop of TPoS resonators without the need to SOI wafers. The fabricated devices using this technique were reported with Q factor exceeding ~1,000 and measured motional resistance values as low as 9 kΩ. The sensitivity of a fourth-order contour mode ZnO-on-SOI disk resonator based mass sensor was determined by performing multiple depositions of platinum micro-pallets using a focus ion beam (FIB) equipped with gas injection system on strategically-chosen locations. It was found out that the sensitivity of the resonator on its maximal and minimal displacement points was of 1.17 Hz fg-1 and 0.334 Hz fg-1, respectively. Also, the estimated limit of detection of the resonator was found to be a record breaking 367 ag (1 ag = 10-18g) compared to devices with similar modes of resonance. Lastly, a lateral-extensional resonator was used to measure the weight of HKUST-1 MOF crystal cluster. The weight of it was found to be 24.75 pg and 31.19 pg by operating two lateral resonant modes, respectively.

Ce mémoire considère trois œuvres littéraires des décennies d'après-guerre dans lesquelles le contrôle social est omniprésent, soit Nineteen Eighty-Four de George Orwell, Player Piano de Kurt Vonnegut, et One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest de Ken Kesey. L'analyse propose que ces auteurs examinent les réponses individuelles et collectives possibles face au contrôle socio-sonique, incluant le conformisme et la déviance, à travers la musicalité de leurs personnages. Mon approche repose sur des théories reliées à la sociologie, la musicologie et les études sonores afin d'élaborer une perspective holistique des paysages sonores de la modernité qui caractérisent les romans. Ce cadre théorique permet de traiter deux idées centrales, soit le contrôle social par l'institutionnalisation de cultures sonores et la musicalité sous forme de carrière déviante. Mon argument principal est qu'Orwell, Vonnegut, et Kesey présentent la réception sonore de leurs personnages comme étant doublement liée à leurs réactions face à la répression. D'une part, les auteurs représentent la musique et le son en tant qu'outils de contrôle produits et utilisés par des pouvoirs autoritaires. Dans les romans, ces pouvoirs établissent des normes socio-soniques qui supportent un système social basé sur la subjugation de la population sous une idéologie hégémonique. D'autre part, les auteurs présentent la musicalité en tant que moyen de résistance : ils établissent un parallèle entre les réactions déviantes de leurs protagonistes envers le son et les postures contre-culturelles de ceux-ci. La musique et le son font partie intégrante de la prose d'Orwell, Vonnegut, et Kesey; je soutiens que leurs représentations de musicalité traduisent une évaluation des notions d'agentivité et d'opposition contre-culturelle à l'autoritarisme. Ce mémoire offre une approche innovatrice à l'analyse des œuvres de par son interdisciplinarité, qui mène à de nouvelles considérations illuminant la relation entre le contrôle socio-sonique et la musicalité déviante dans les dystopies antiautoritaires d'après-guerre.
This thesis considers three literary works from the postwar decades in which social control is omnipresent: George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four, Kurt Vonnegut's Player Piano, and Ken Kesey's One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. The analysis posits that these authors depict potential individual and collective responses to socio-sonic control, including conformism and deviance, through the musicality of their characters. My approach, grounded in theorizations related to sociology, musicology, and sound studies, develops a holistic perspective of the soundscapes of modernity that characterize the novels. This theoretical framework allows for an examination of two central notions in the narratives; namely, the institutionalization of sonic cultures for purposes of social control, and the concept of musicality as part of a deviant career. My main argument is that Orwell, Vonnegut, and Kesey present their characters' reception of sound as being doubly tied to their reactions to repression. On one hand, the authors represent music and sound as tools of control produced and used by authoritarian powers. In the novels, such powers enforce socio-sonic norms that support a social system based on the subjugation of the population under a hegemonic ideology. On the other hand, the authors present musicality as means of resistance: they interlink their protagonists' deviant reactions vis-à-vis sound and their countercultural postures. Music and sound are an integral part of Orwell's, Vonnegut's, and Kesey's prose; I argue that, through their portrayals of musicality, they foreground the possibility for individual agency and countercultural resistance to oppose authoritarianism. The thesis offers an innovative approach to the narratives, as its theoretical interdisciplinarity leads to new considerations illuminating the relationship between socio-sonic control and deviant musicality in postwar anti-authoritarian dystopias.

Se situant dans l’histoire immédiate, la littérature africaine contemporaine participe de la dénonciation de la violence des régimes postcoloniaux et des guerres civiles. Ce sont des nouvelles formes d’écriture caractérisées à la fois par l’urgence et par l’intention de s’éloigner des formes européennes, donnant lieu à une expression universelle et à la revendication du roman comme œuvre d’art. Cette contribution se propose, à partir de neufs romans francophones, anglophones et hispanophones publiés entre 1990 et 2000, d’explorer et d’analyser la réinsertion de la femme africaine subsaharienne dans les archives officielles. À travers des témoignages fictionnels inspirés des faits réels et des histoires relevant de la sphère privée, ces auteur(e)s créent un nouvel imaginaire sur la femme africaine évoluant entre violence et résistance. Par une approche interdisciplinaire, nous tenterons d’identifier les images de la femme dans ces romans, ainsi que les moyens stylistiques et langagiers dans le processus de la réinterprétation des archives et de la réinsertion de la femme africaine subsaharienne dans l’Histoire
In relation to the immediate history, contemporary African literature contributes to the denunciation of the violence of postcolonial regimes and civil wars. These new forms of writing are characterized both by the urgency and by the intention to move away from European forms, giving rise to a universalizing writing and the claim of the novel as a work of art. This contribution is proposed, from nine Francophone, Anglophone and Hispanophone novels published between 1990 and 2000, to explore and analyse the reintegration of Sub-Saharan African women in the official archives. Through fictional testimonies inspired by real facts and stories of the private sphere, these authors create a new imagination about African women evolving between violence and resistance. Through an interdisciplinary approach, we will try to identify the images of the woman in these novels, as well as the stylistic and linguistic means in the process of the reinterpretation of the archives and the reintegration of the African Sub-Saharan woman in history
En relación a la historia inmediata, la literatura africana contemporánea contribuye a la denuncia de la violencia de los regímenes poscoloniales y de las guerras civiles. Estas nuevas formas de escritura se caracterizan tanto por la urgencia de escribir como por la intención de alejarse de las formas de expresión europeas, dando lugar a una escritura universal y a la reivindicación de la novela como obra de arte. Esta contribución se propone de explorar y analizar la reintegración de las mujeres africanas subsaharianas a los archivos oficiales, a partir de nueve novelas de expresión francesa, inglesa y española, publicadas entre 1990 y 2000. A través de testimonios ficticios inspirados por hechos reales e historias de la vida privada, estos autores y autoras crean una nueva imagen de las mujeres africanas desenvolviéndose entre la violencia y la resistencia. A través de un enfoque interdisciplinario, intentaremos identificar las imágenes de la mujer en estas novelas, así como el estilo y el lenguaje en el proceso de reinterpretación de los archivos y la reintegración de la mujer africana subsahariana en la historia

Bone loss and muscle atrophy are two main physiological conditions affecting astronauts while being in space. In order to counteract the effects, at least two hours of aerobic and resistant countermeasure exercise is scheduled into their working day, seven days a week. Yoyo Technology AB has developed a resistance exercise device based on the flywheel principle, providing a load independent of gravity. However, there is no biomechanical research done on the efficiency of the device in microgravity, from a human movement point of view using simulation software. The aim of this thesis was to evaluate the effects of performing a leg press on the flywheel exercise device in a microgravity environment. Simulations of performing a flywheel leg press in earth gravity, microgravity and performing a conventional squat were done. The evaluated parameters were reaction forces, joint angles, joint moments, joint powers and muscle recruitment in the lower extremities. The simulations were done using a biomechanical simulation software based on a motion capture data collection. From the results two conclusions were proposed. Performing a flywheel leg press in microgravity environment or on earth provides at least as much peak moment as a body weighted squat performed on earth. Furthermore, performing a flywheel leg press in microgravity will induce a higher activity level among hip extensors and knee flexors compared to performing a flywheel leg press on earth.

This dissertation examines the representations of Casablanca in Moroccan cinema and their articulation of postcolonial subjectivity since the 1990s. To overcome a deep economic recession and simmering social unrest in the early 1980s, Morocco embarked on a comprehensive programme of structural adjustment policies under the aegis of the International Monetary Fund. Market reforms ushered in novel forms of spatial development and social relations in Moroccan cities over the next decades. In the cultural field, a popular cinema emerged in the early 1990s and has projected the complex structures of everyday life in urban space. The New Urban Cinema (NUC) has anchored national cinema in the everyday life and affective economy of a society in transition. The country’s largest city, Casablanca, is the setting for some of NUC’s most original portrayals of the Moroccan subject under globalisation. Taking space, affect and violence as intertwined sites of film analysis, my research project closely examines the new forms of postcolonial subjectivity that have evolved in Morocco through this cinema. Twenty films are read against the backdrop of neoliberal Casablanca and the social, economic as well as political transformation of Morocco and the world under globalisation. The dissertation combines close textual analysis with a cultural studies perspective, which situates films in their historical contexts of production and reception in Morocco and beyond. Drawing on postcolonial, film and urban studies, my aim is to contribute to interdisciplinary scholarship on cinematic responses to neoliberal globalisation, and to a social history of contemporary Morocco.

Projeto de Pós-Graduação/Dissertação apresentado à Universidade Fernando Pessoa como parte dos requisitos para obtenção do grau de Mestre em Medicina Dentária
Introdução Nos últimos anos, a Endodontia tem sofrido inúmeros avanços e melhorias clínicas que ajudaram a tornar o tratamento Endodôntico cada vez mais viável e eficaz. Uma das áreas onde se tem verificado maior investigação e consequente aparecimento e disponibilização de avanços tecnológicos é a instrumentação dos canais radiculares, tais como instrumentação mecanizada com movimentos reciprocantes e sistemas de lima única. Propomo-nos então com a execução deste trabalho, realizar um levantamento relativo ao sistema Reciproc®, acerca de vários factores, tais como a resistência à fadiga cíclica, resistência à fratura dos instrumentos, extrusão de detritos a nível apical, erros de instrumentação, capacidade de remoção de detritos dos canais e tempo de trabalho do sistema Reciproc, bem como à sua comparação com os sistemas ProTaper e WaveOne. Metodologia Elaboração de uma pesquisa bibliográfica recorrendo às bases de dados: Pubmed, B-On e RCAAP, Scielo, Mesh Database e Science Direct com as seguintes palavras-chave: “Continuous Rotation”, “Reciprocating Motion”, “Single-file”, “Instrumentation”, “ WaveOne”, “ProTaper”, “Reciprocating”, “cyclic fatigue”, “torsional resistance”, “endodontic instruments”, “nickel-titanium”, “canal curvature”, “endodontic treatment” e “rotary systems” Conclusão Com a realização deste trabalho podemos constatar que o sistema Reciproc® se apresenta como uma excelente opção, apresentando os melhores resultados, relativamente à fadiga clinica e resistência à fractura, capacidade de limpeza e redução do tempo de trabalho. Recomendamos a execução de mais estudos sobre o tema aumentando as amostras em estudo e realizando estudos in vitro. Introduction During the last years, Endodontic’s has suffered a huge development and clinical improvements that helped to make the endodontic treatments more viable and effective. One of the areas where there has been more research and consequent appearance and availability of technological advances is the instrumentation of root canals, such as mechanical instrumentation with reciprocating movements and single file systems. We propose with the execution of this work, to perform a survey on the Reciproc® system on various factors, such as resistance to cyclic fatigue, fracture resistance of the instruments, extrusion of debris at the apical level, instrumentation errors, capacity debris removal channels Reciproc system and working time, as well as its comparison with ProTaper and Waveone systems. Methodology Bibliographic research was performed using databases such as Pubmed, B-On, RCAAP, Scielo, Mesh Database and Science Direct with the following key-words: “Continuous Rotation”, “Reciprocating Motion, “Single-file”, “Instrumentation”, “WaceOne”, “ProTaper”, “Reciprocating”, “cyclic fatigue”, “torsional resistance”, endodontic instruments”, “nickel-titanium”, “channel curvature”, “endodontic treatment” and “rotary systems”. Conclusion With this work we conclude that the Reciproc® system is presented as an excellent option, with the best results in relation to clinical fatigue and fracture resistance, cleanability and reduction of working time. We recommend running more studies on the subject by increasing the samples analyzed and performing in vitro studies.

Esta dissertação tem como objetivo central investigar fatores que moderam a relação entre satisfação pós-recuperação e intenção de recompra no varejo online. Mais especificamente, esta pesquisa visa analisar se os construtos qualidade do relacionamento, resistência à mudança e motivo inferido moderam a relação entre satisfação com o gerenciamento de reclamações e intenção de recompra no varejo online. Para verificar tais moderações, inicialmente foi realizada a etapa exploratória de pesquisa, na qual, por meio de entrevistas em profundidade, evidenciou-se que as variáveis propostas poderiam moderar a relação entre a variável independente e dependente desta dissertação, bem como foi adicionado o construto valor econômico como possível moderador da relação entre satisfação pós-reclamação e intenção de recompra. Em seguida, para testar as hipóteses propostas foi aplicada uma survey junto a consumidores norte-americanos (N=500), operacionalizada com auxílio do Qualtrics, via Mechanical Turk. Como resultado dos testes, tem-se que a qualidade do relacionamento, o motivo inferido e a percepção de valor econômico moderam a relação entre satisfação pós-recuperação e intenção de recompra no varejo online, ou seja, podem explicar, em partes, a não linearidade da relação entre a variável independente e dependente desta pesquisa. Destaca-se ainda que as dimensões da qualidade do relacionamento (a saber: satisfação, confiança e comprometimento) sugeridas neste estudo também moderaram, individualmente, a relação entre a variável independente e dependente desta pesquisa. Sendo assim, esta dissertação contribuiu para a literatura de Marketing e comércio eletrônico ao evidenciar que tanto a qualidade do relacionamento, bem como as dimensões de satisfação, confiança e comprometimento moderam a relação entre satisfação com o gerenciamento de reclamações e intenção de recompra. Além disso, evidencia-se que a elevada percepção de valor econômico, e os motivos inferidos pelos clientes (se positivos), diante da falha inicial ocorrida, também podem sinalizar intenções de recompra dos consumidores junto a sites varejistas.
This dissertation aims to investigate factors that moderate the relationship between satisfaction with complaint handling and repurchase intention in online retail. More specifically, this research aims to examine whether the quality of the relationship constructs, resistance to change and inferred motive moderate the relationship between satisfaction with complaint handling and repurchase intention in online retail. To test such moderations, was taken an exploratory research stage through in-depth interviews in which it became clear that the proposed constructs could moderate the relationship between the independent and dependent variables of this dissertation, as well as the variable economic value was added as a possible moderator of the relationships between satisfaction with complaint handling and repurchase intention. Then, to test the hypotheses was applied a survey with online consumers (N=500) from United States, through Qualtrics and Mechanical Turk. The results indicate that the relationship quality, the inferred motive and the perceived economic value moderated the relationship between satisfaction with complaint handling and repurchase intention in online retail. It is emphasized that the dimensions of relationship quality (satisfaction, trust and commitment) suggested in this study also moderated, in an individual way, the relationship between the independent and dependent variables of this study. Thus, this dissertation has contributed to the literature of marketing and e-commerce by showing that both the relationship quality as well as the dimensions (satisfaction, trust and commitment) moderate the relationship between satisfaction with complaint handling and repurchase intention. Furthermore, it is evident that the high perceived economic value, and the motive inferred by customers (if positive), facing the initial failure occurred, can also indicate repurchase intentions of consumers with online retailers.

Que ce soit par rejets chroniques ou accidentels, l’impact d’une installation nucléaire sur l'environnement dépend essentiellement des transferts atmosphériques qui, comme le montre l'accident de Fukushima, impacts sur l’environnement et les populations. Ce travail s’intéresse à la caractérisation et à la modélisation du dépôt sec des aérosols submicroniques sur des surfaces liquides en mouvement telles que des rivières. Compte tenu de l’inexistence de données sur le dépôt sec des aérosols submicroniques sur une surface liquide en mouvement, la démarche s’est appuyée sur : 1) l’acquisition expérimentale de vitesses de dépôt et 2) l’analyse et l’interprétation des résultats au moyen d’un travail de modélisation. Les expérimentations de dépôts ont été réalisées avec des aérosols d’uranine injectés dans la maquette de la soufflerie IOA-IRPHE. Ces expérimentations ont permis d’obtenir de nombreuses vitesses de dépôt sec pour différentes configurations caractérisées en fonction des conditions de vent, de courant, d’ambiance, de déformations de la surface liquide (mesures des vagues) et de distribution granulométrique des aérosols injectés. La partie modélisation a consisté à adapter le modèle à résistance de Slinn et Slinn (1980). Les principales adaptations apportées par ce travail ont consisté à prendre spécifiquement en compte les différentes classes de particules du spectre granulométrique du champ aérosolique, à évaluer les évolutions de ce spectre en fonction des mécanismes d’hygroscopicité et d’agrégation et à intégrer les mécanismes de diffusiophorèse et de thermophorèse
Whether by chronic or accidental releases, the impact of a nuclear installation on the environment mainly depends on atmospheric transfers; and as the accidents at Chernobyl and Fukushima show, affect the contamination of surfaces and impacts on the environment and the population. This work focuses on the characterization and modeling of dry deposition of submicronic aerosols on liquid surfaces in motion such as rivers. The evaluation of dry deposition is based on the estimation of flux modeling as the product of particle concentration and deposition velocity. Due to the lack of data on the dry deposition of submicronic aerosols on a liquid surface in motion, the approach was based on two axes: 1) the acquisition of experimental deposition velocities and 2) the analysis and interpretation of results through modeling. The experiments were performed with uranine aerosols released into the IOA-IRPHE wind tunnel. These experiments have given many dry deposition velocities for different configurations characterized according to wind, current, ambient temperature and relative humidity, the liquid surface deformations (measured significant wave height) and size distribution of aerosols released. The modeling part was to adapt the model to resistance. Slinn and Slinn (1980). The main adjustments made by this work have been to take specific account of the different classes of particle size distribution, the spectrum variation as a function of hygroscopicity, and mechanisms of aggregation. It is integrated mechanisms of diffusiophoresis and thermophoresis, respectively produced by the evaporation of water and the temperature gradient at the air-water interface

Parue entre 1940 et 1993, l’œuvre d’Henri Thomas se remarque par sa qualité et par sa profusion. L’auteur a abordé les différents champs de la création littéraire (romans, récits, nouvelles, poésies) mais aussi la critique, la traduction et le domaine autobiographique. Il reste pourtant un écrivain quasiment inconnu pour le grand public et cela en grande partie parce que son œuvre résiste à la lecture et ne se laisse pas facilement intégrer dans les canons littéraires. Limpides au premier abord, ces textes nous donnent pourtant la vive sensation d’un mystère innommable que le lecteur ne peut approcher que par détours. La thèse ci-présente interroge dix récits de l’auteur – des romans et des nouvelles écrits dans de différentes périodes de sa vie –, et part de l’hypothèse que la réticence est la figure dominante de ces textes qui oscillent en permanence entre le dit et le non-dit, entre le montré et le caché, entre la précarité et la surabondance discursive. Dans la première partie, nous analysons deux situations occurrentes dans lesquelles la réticence apparaît (l’épiphanie et la disparition) et l’inscription paradoxale de la réticence dans l’œuvre sous la forme d’un discours lacunaire ou d’un discours digressif. La deuxième partie est consacrée à la dialectique du plein et du vide qui est repérable notamment au niveau de la conception sur l’image et la mémoire. Enfin, la troisième partie est consacrée à la dimension performative de la réticence. Elle s’inscrit textuellement dans le récit par les points de suspension, les tirets et l’italique, donne lieu à une identification problématique des instances narratives et implique un rapport particulier entre l’auteur et le lecteur
Published between 1940 and 1933, Henri Thomas’ work stands out for its quality and quantity. The author approached different spheres of the literature (novels, short novels, poems) but also critic, translations or autobiographies. Despite all this, Henri Thomas remains a writer almost unknown to the large public, mostly because his works resist reading and are not easily integrated in the literary canons. Transparent at a first sight, his texts give us the strong sensation of an unnamable mystery that the author can only approach indirectly. Our thesis starts from the hypothesis that reticence is the dominant figure of these texts – which are permanently oscillating between told and untold, between revealed and unrevealed, between austerity and discursive superabundance. The analyzed corpus consists of 10 narrative texts – novels and short novels written by the author in different periods of his life – that allow us to have a wider view of his narrative creation. In the first part of the thesis, we describe 2 occurrence situations in which we find the reticence (epiphany and disappearance) and the paradoxical ways in which this appears in the form of an incomplete speech or a digressiv speech. The second part is dedicated to the dialectics of the full and the empty, two faces of the reticence, especially when it comes to the conception of image and memory. Finally, the third part is dedicated to the performative dimension of reticence: beyond its textual characteristics such as the ellipsis, the hype or the italics, the reticence determines o problematic identification of the narrative instincts and a special relation between the author and the reader

Thesis (Ph.D)--University of New Orleans, 2003.
Title from electronic submission form. "A dissertation ... in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Engineering and Applied Science"--Dissertation t.p. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Francis Ponge a entrepris un dialogue avec la peinture en vue d’interroger les fondements d’une telle interférence telle qu’elle se manifeste dans le cadre parisien du 20ème siècle. Ce rapport conçu par le poète comme une alliance participe de l’instauration d’une philosophie humaniste qui clame son attachement au réel comme principe majeur de la création artistique et poétique. L'unité thématique et technique qui régit les textes repose sur des rapprochements systématiques qui concernent plusieurs aspects : parallélisme des pratiques, convergence des visions de l'art, unicité de la définition d'artiste... Ponge prépare le terrain à un nouveau tournant dans son œuvre qui est le dialogue entre l’écriture et la peinture, une pensée qui s'est installée définitivement dans les pages de L'Atelier bien qu'elle se déploie tout au long de ses textes et notamment les premiers. D'une réflexion qui se profile en filigrane sous la forme d'une métaphore filée, la pensée sur l'art revêt un statut majeur dans la poétique de Ponge
Francis Ponge undertook a dialogue with the painting to question the foundations of such interference such as it shows itself in the Parisian frame of the 20th century. This relationship conceived by the poet as an alliance participates of the institution of a humanist philosophy which cries out its attachment in the reality as the major principle of the artistic and poetic creation. The thematic and technical unity which governs texts relaying on systematic links which concern several aspects: parallelism of the practices, the convergence of the visions of the art, the uniqueness of the definition of artist... Ponge prepares the ground for a new turning point in its work which is the dialogue between the writing and the paint a thought which settled down definitively in the pages of The Workshop although it displayed throughout its texts in particular the first ones. Of a reflection which is outlined between the lines under the shape of a spun metaphor, the thought on the art dresses a major status in the poetics of Ponge

This master thesis is divided into two parts: theoretical and practical one. In the theoretical part there is described hydraulic roughness, velocity distribution in the case of hydraulically rough surface and the process of grain sorting in surface layer. The practical part of the thesis resolves the influence of surface layer on hydraulic roughness of bed, expressed by Nikuradse sand grain size ks. The results are formulas explaining dependence of ks on characteristic grain size dx from grain-size distribution curve and comparison with coefficient ks according to different authors.

Les fictions franco-vietnamiennes, qui ont relevé le défi de dépasser le carcan folklorique, offrent un point de vue original sur les concepts de femmes, d’histoire et d’exil dans des contextes de dominations politique et sociale différents. Néanmoins, ces fictions mettent en place des stratégies de résistance très proches. Parmi toutes les questions soulevées par les représentations qu’élaborent ces œuvres, celle de la résistance a été retenue car elle est particulièrement riche et révélatrice de la complexité de leur identité littéraire. Comment s’écrit la résistance dans les œuvres franco-vietnamiennes ? À quoi résistent-elles ? Quels sont les enjeux de cette résistance ? L’étude se focalise sur les fictions de quatre écrivaines franco-vietnamiennes contemporaines, Linda Lê, Kim Lefèvre, Ly Thu Ho et Anna Moï. Ces écrivaines offrent des pistes de réponses à ces questions, en mettant en évidence trois dominations qui se croisent et s’articulent entre elles : la résistance à la domination masculine, à l’histoire surplombante et à la glorification d’une identité nationale figée. Le cadre d’analyse choisi est celui des resistance studies.Cette méthode permet d’engager une description systématique des figures de résistance présentes dans les récits de fiction. Le champ d’investigation pose tout d’abord le problème des représentations de la place des Vietnamiennes, tiraillées entre la société patriarcale teintée de confucianisme et la société française moderne. Elle implique également l’examen des modalités déployées dans les œuvres du corpus pour déjouer les pièges d’une écriture de l’histoire du Vietnam qui accorderait peu de place aux voix subalternes : aux Vietnamiens et en particulier aux femmes. Finalement, à travers l’analyse de l’exil comme forme masquée d’insoumission, nous interrogerons la façon dont le sujet femme-postcoloniale s’approprie les apports exogènes sans renoncer à son éthique et son identité particulières
Having successfully taken up the challenge of going beyond the limits of folklore, French-Vietnamese fiction offers an original point of view on the ideas of women, history and exile. These elements are staged in different contexts of social and political domination, but they nevertheless set up very similar strategies of resistance. This is why, among all the issues raised by the representations framed by these works, that of resistance was chosen, since it is so rich and revealing of the complexity of their literary identity. How is resistance described in French-Vietnamese works? What is being resisted against? What is at stake in this resistance?This study is focused on the works of four French-Vietnamese contemporary writers: Linda Lê, Kim Lefèvre, Ly Thu Ho and Anna Moï. These female writers provide answers to the questions above by highlighting three correlated and intertwined dominations: resistance to male domination, to overarching history, and to the glorification of a frozen national identity. The framework of the analysis is that of resistance studies.This approach enables a systematic description of the resistance figures encountered in these fictional works. The field of investigation first reveals the issue of the representation of Vietnamese women, torn between a Confucean and patriarchal society and that of modern France. It also implies the study of the means developed in these works to avoid the traps of a writing of Vietnamese history that allows little space to subaltern voices of the Vietnamese, and of women in particular. Finally, through the analysis of exile as a hidden form of insubordination, we will question the way in which French-Vietnamese narrative gives initiative to the postcolonial woman subject and enables her to appropriate contributions from outside without denying her ethics and her identity

La politique dans trois pièces d´Hélène Cixous : L’Histoire (qu’on ne connaîtra jamais) (1994) ; L’Histoire terrible mais inachevée de Norodom Sihanouk, roi de Cambodge (1985) et La Ville parjure ou le réveil des Erinyes (1994). L´objectif est de mettre les pièces dans leur contexte historique, contemporain, politique et philosophique. Leur forme d’intervention est étudiée tout autant que la littérature, les archives, la théorie et le contexte qui les informent. Les questions plus générales de la dimension politique dans l’esthétique et les interventions du littéraire sur le champ politique ou idéologique sont aussi au centre de l´analyse. La lecture vise plus particulièrement à identifier les sources et les réalités sur lesquelles les pièces s’appuient (la crise politique et démocratique ; le colonialisme et l´impérialisme occidentaux ; la géopolitique et les guerres civiles et fratricides, tout comme les résistances à ces situations ou événements politiques/historiques) mais aussi les positions prises à leur égard ainsi que les enjeux décisifs qu’elles dégagent. La thèse est composée de deux parties : "La scène du Livre" et "La scène de l’Histoire". La première comporte un parti pris méthodologique ; elle s´ouvre sur une mise en perspective théorique et propose dans un deuxième chapitre l’analyse de L’Histoire (qu’on ne connaîtra jamais) en tant que mise en abyme de l´écriture théâtrale et de la fonction du poète face à l’Histoire. Dans la deuxième partie, l’accent est mis sur l’histoire et la politique contemporaines ainsi que sur les questions de pouvoir, de violence, de territorialité, de démocratie et de justice auxquelles L’Histoire terrible et La Ville parjure cherchent à répondre. L´étude met en évidence deux devoirs qui sous-tendent l´écriture théâtrale d´Hélène Cixous : d’une part, celui de la responsabilité devant la mémoire et, de l´autre, celui de la résistance critique à tout pouvoir injuste
The thesis explores the role of history, memory, responsibility, and politics in three plays by Hélène Cixous: The History (We Will Never Know) (1994), The Terrible but Unfinished Story of Norodom Sihanouk, King of Cambodia (1985) and the Perjured City or the Awakening of the Erinyes (1994). The purpose is to put the plays in their philosophical and political contexts and to engage the questions they raise from literary, archival, and theoretical perspectives. The broader political and ideological dimensions of Cixous’s aesthetic and literary writing are also central to the analysis. The thesis specifically examines the historical and contemporary issues addressed in the plays, such as the crisis of the political order and democracy; colonial and imperial practices; the linkages between geopolitics, civil wars and genocides; and the various forms of individual and collective resistance to power. In addition, it analyzes the discourses and subject positions staked out by the participants in the narratives the plays describe. The thesis is divided into two parts: The first one, entitled "The Scene of the Book", opens with a methodological and theoretical chapter followed by an analysis of The History (We Will Never Know), with emphasis on the mise en abyme of the process of writing and the relationship between the poet and history. In the second part, "The Scene of History", the focus is on contemporary history and politics, using The Terrible but Unfinished Story of Norodom Sihanouk and the Perjured City as case studies, addressing issues of power, violence, territoriality, democracy and justice. The thesis stresses the dual obligation, underpinning the theatrical writings of Hélène Cixous: the responsibility toward memory and the duty to resist unjust power in all its forms

Témoin des principaux événements géopolitiques de la première moitié du XXème siècle (l’effondrement de l’empire habsbourgeois, la Seconde Guerre mondiale, l’Anschluss et le procès de Nuremberg), Rezzori examine les contours de son identité dans le cadre des écritures de soi. Son but est d’interroger les conditions nécessaires à l’affirmation d’une voix individuelle alors que la réalité est entraînée dans un inexorable processus de dislocation et d’hétérogénéisation et qu’elle confronte le sujet à l’épreuve du décentrement et de la déterritorialisation. Loin de céder au pessimisme, Rezzori assume ses fêlures grâce à l’écriture autobiographique dont il remet en cause les modalités. Pour qu’elle intègre la part de négativité inhérente à son moi, l’auteur la fonde sur une stratégie mémorielle singulière : celle de l’Epochenverschleppung. Cette dernière le place dans une position anachronique, sans le couper du présent parce qu’elle l’oblige à sonder de manière critique les pertes endurées à la lumière du présent. Écrire ses déchirures dans un espace autobiographique renouvelé permet à Rezzori de laisser des traces et de résister ainsi au pouvoir d’effacement de l’Histoire
Having witnessed the major geopolitical events of the first half of the 20th century (the fall of the Habsburg Empire, the Second World War, the Anschluss and the Nuremberg Trials), Rezzori explores the outlines of his own identity through his autobiographical writing. He aims to investigate the conditions that are necessary for asserting an individual voice in a reality characterised by a process of dislocation and disintegration, in which the subject is faced with its own decentralisation and deterritorialisation. Far from wallowing in pessimism, Rezzori confronts the crevices of his self in his autobiographical writing, while at the same time questioning the methods of such writing. In order to embrace the element of negativity that his self comprises, the author bases his autobiographical writing, in both its hypothetical and referential forms, on a unique memorial strategy: that of Epochenverschleppung. This places Rezzori in an anachronistic position without cutting him off from the present as it challenges him to examine past losses critically in the light of the present. By exploring the fissures in his identity in a renewed autobiographical space, Rezzori leaves his own imprint and thereby counteracts the obliterating power of History

Dans cette thèse, nous avons étudié d’une manière structurée et détaillée la sémantique des verbes gnat’ et gonjat’. Pour cela, nous avons tout d’abord formalisé leur potentiel sémantique qui comprend les composants de leur valeur de base et ce qu’ils génèrent dans des situations nouvelles, dans des cotextes particuliers. Pour chaque valeur sémantique, nous avons présenté un schéma sémantique, un schéma actantiel en précisant les rôles sémantiques, la nature des actants et leur réalisation syntaxique, ainsi que des illustrations d’emploi dans des cotextes des plus représentatifs, des synonymes, la famille morphologique. Les valeurs plus ou moins communes à gnat’ et à gonjat’ ont été étudiées ensemble, ce qui nous a permis de mettre en évidence leurs similitudes et différences. Puis, nous avons traité la question de la catégorie grammaticale des verbes de mouvement. Après avoir exposé les propriétés traditionnellement attribuées aux corrélats déterminé / indéterminé et les particularités qui sont générées dans l’emploi de chacun de ces corrélats, nous avons analysé la corrélation déterminé / indéterminé en général, et en particulier, entre gnat’ et gonjat’. Faisant partie de la catégorie grammaticale des verbes de mouvement, gnat’ et gonjat’ s’opposent sur le plan grammatical en tant que déterminé vs indéterminé et leurs caractéristiques grammaticales induisent quelques différences sémantiques. Ainsi, la plupart des différences observées entre gnat’ et gonjat’ ne sont pas en fait pas d’ordre lexical, mais résultent des différences grammaticales du déterminé gnat’ et de l’indéterminé gonjat’. Dans la partie consacrée à la dérivation morphologique, nous avons eu pour objectif d’examiner les effets de la préverbation et les modifications de sens que la préverbation entraîne pour ces verbes. Nous avons étudié les préverbés formés sur la base de gnat’ / gonjat’ à valeur spatiale en les regroupant en fonction de l’orientation spatiale : à partir du point de départ, vers le point d’arrivée, les deux en même temps ou en rapport avec un repère. Une attention minutieuse a été accordée aux différences sémantiques et aspectuelles de certains préverbés partageant les mêmes valeurs spatiales. L’étude des préverbés combinés aux préverbes à valeur non spatiale a été organisée en fonction de la morphologie de l’aspect : les préverbés hors couple et les couples de verbes. Quelques particularités ont été observées. Pour que l’étude sémantique soit complète, nous y avons inclus la question des phrasèmes comportant ces verbes. Puis, nous avons analysé le parallélisme qui existe entre gnat’ / gonjat’ simples et préverbés et le verbe dit de position sidet’ : les valeurs que ces verbes ont en commun et aussi, les limites de leur corrélation, Enfin, en partant directement des situations linguistiques concrètes avec gnat’ / gonjat’ simples et préverbés nous avons exposé un certain nombre de mécanismes qui aboutissent à un effet expressif
In this thesis, we have studied the semantics of the verbs gnat’ and gonjat’ in a structured and extensive way. To achieve this, we began by structuring their semantic potential, which includes their basic value and what it produces in new situations, in specific cotexts. For each semantic value, we have presented a semantic schema, mapping the semantic roles of the actants, their nature and their syntactic development, together with examples of usage in the most representative cotexts, the synonyms, the morphological family. The more or less common values of gnat’ and gonjat’ have been studied together, so that we could bring their similarities and differences to light. Then, we dealt with the question of the grammatical category of the verbs of motion. Having presented the usually attributed properties of the correlate determined / indetermined and the particularities that emerge in the usage of each of these correlates, we have focused on the determined / indetermined correlation in general and between gnat’ and gonjat’ in particular. While belonging to the same grammatical category of the verbs of motion, both gnat’ and gonjat’ are opposed on a grammatical level, as determined and indetermined, and their grammatical characteristics lead to some semantical differences. Hence, most of the observed differences between gnat’ and gonjat’ are not of a lexical type; they are rather the result of the semantical differences between the determined gnat’ and the indetermined gonjat’. In the part of our thesis dedicated to morphological derivation, our goal was to study the impacts of verbal prefixation and the change of meaning as a result of the prefixation for these verbs. We have studied prefixed verbs based on gnat’ / gonjat’ with spatial meanings, clustering them depending on their spatial orientation: from the starting point, to the point of arrival, both at the same time or in relation to a landmark. A particular focus has been placed on the semantical and aspectual differences of some verbs with prefixes that share the same spatial values. The analysis of verbs with spatial prefixes was done according to the morphology of the aspect: the verbs with prefixes outside aspectual pairs and the pair of verbs. Some particularities have been observed. For the semantic study to be complete, we have added the question of the phrasemes using these verbs. Then, we studied the similarity between gnat’ and gonjat’ in their simple and prefixed forms and the verb of position sidet’: what those verbs have in common but also the limits of their similarities. Finally, we have taken concrete linguistic situations involving gnat’ and gonjat’ in their simple and prefixed forms in order to outline a number of mechanisms leading to an expressive result

The American planter has mostly been presented as the epitome of the romantic cavalier legend that could be found in the fiction of John Pendleton Kennedy to Thomas Nelson Page: a man of chivalric manners and good breeding; a man of good social position; a man of wealth and leisure (Concise Oxford Dictionary). A closer scrutiny of the cavalier and genteel ethos of the time, however, reveals the inherent ideological inconsistencies with the idea of the gentleman itself, as the ideal came to be more and more perceived as an illusion and as challenges to traditional gender stereotypes came to redefine the nature and role of the Southern Gentleman. This study hopes to complicate the traditional delineation of hegemonic manhood with the aim to better understand how precisely the Old South’s masculine ideals were constructed and maintained over time, especially in times of crisis, and how southern elite males (re)defined, enacted, and/or maintained a distinctive Southern model of masculinity while others resisted, modified, or flouted those ideals. The work undertaken by this dissertation can thus be situated within the broad rubric of masculinity studies and its central axiom—the interrogation of the structures of power, domination, and hierarchy. Enriching masculinity studies of the Old South, this critical study of Southern American fiction attempts to respond to the invitation of historians like Stephen Berry or Craig Thompson Friend in striking a commendable balance between conceptualizing larger historical questions and narrating the intimacies and complexities of Southern men’s individual lives. Taken collectively, these novels continue to explore this fertile field by moving outside the “confines and confidences of elites” (Peel 1). Because it complicates any simple equation between honor, mastery, and manliness, and because it seeks to revisit traditional conceptualisations of gender, I hope that this study will open new ways of thinking about the privileges and wounds of a masculinity that has been considered by most as the normative, invisible, and unquestioned referent from which to measure marginalized others—foreigners, women, or non-whites.

Ce travail de recherche interroge les revendications identitaires (territoriales et politiques, individuelles et collectives) dans un corpus de discours engagés. Nous avons privilégié les discours des partis progressistes, des romans engagés des années 1970-1980, des récits de vie et des témoignages des enfants de la Creuse. Les textes analysés mettent en lumière la construction d'un modèle politique de mise-sous-tutelle et accusent un processus de décolonisation qui étouffe les particularités et stigmatise l'identité créole. Les revendications portent sur l'autonomisation des décisions politiques et la considération des spécificités régionales. Ces particularités locales, qu'elles soient géographiques, langagières ou culturelles, sont défendues comme des éléments constitutifs de l'identité de la Réunion. Cependant, l'identité réunionnaise est représentée dans un processus conflictuel, où les éléments culturels sont hiérarchisés. L'analyse des enjeux de la construction des identités en période postcoloniale montre une inévitable corrélation avec l'organisation de la société coloniale. Les structures de domination, transformées après 1946, corrélées aux effets de la départementalisation et de la mondialisation, entravent la construction d'une identité décomplexée. Dans ce contexte, le discours littéraire devient un moyen de résistance et permet aux subalternes de se réapproprier le discours sur soi et d'apporter une autre version de l'histoire. Cette thèse interroge les enjeux de la construction de l'identité réunionnaise, dans le contexte des mutations sociales et politiques, et en considérant ses conséquences sur les individus. Elle souligne également l'absence de considération du fait colonial et de ses conséquences contemporaines en France
This research paper questions the identity claims (territorial and political, individual and collective) in a corpus of engaged speeches. The decision was to work from speeches of progressive parties, engaged novels from the 1970s-1980s, life stories and accounts from “the Children of Creuse”. The analysed texts highlight the construction of a political model of state supervision and blame a process of decolonisation that stifles particularities and stigmatises the Creole identity. The claims focus on empowering the making of political decisions and considering the regional specificities. These local particularities, either geographic, linguistic or cultural, are defended as defining elements of Reunion's identity. However, the Reunionese identity is represented in a conflictual process in which the cultural elements are organised in a hierarchy. The analysis of the issue of the building of identities during the postcolonial era shows an inevitable correlation with the organisation of the colonial society. The structures of domination, transformed after 1946, correlated to the effects of the departmentalisation and globalisation, hinder the construction of an assertive identity. In this context, the literary speech becomes a means of resistance and allows the subordinates to claim the speech back to themselves and bring another version of the history. This thesis questions the concerns of the building of the Reunionese identity in the context of social and political transformations and by considering its consequences on individuals. It also emphasises the absence of consideration of colonialism and its contemporary impacts in France

À ce jour, ont été écrites de nombreuses et remarquables études qui analysent les textes littéraires, philosophiques, journalistiques, épistolaires d’Albert Camus, et ce dans diverses perspectives : stylistiques, narratologiques, linguistiques, psychanalytiques, symboliques, thématiques, biographiques, intertextuelles, sociologiques, politiques, esthétiques, éthiques, philosophiques entre autres. Or, rares sont les études qui examinent l’idée et l’image du temps chez cet écrivain français du siècle dernier, à partir de ses essais philosophico-littéraires. L’essayiste songe par exemple à la conception temporelle, en l’associant tantôt au mouvement circulaire du monde méditerranéen, beau et éternel, ou du cosmos (L’Envers et l’endroit, Noces, entre autre), tantôt à la fonction de la conscience humaine qui espère, se souvient et se révolte (Le Mythe de Sisyphe), tantôt à la marche de l’histoire humaine, européenne (L’Homme révolté). En considérant l’œuvre entière de Camus, et surtout ces quatre essais, L’Envers et l’endroit, Noces, Le Mythe de Sisyphe et L’Homme révolté, notre thèse a pour objectif d’étudier les trois conceptions temporelles, qui n’ont pas reçu une attention critique suffisante : l’éternité, la triple temporalité (le passé, le présent et l’avenir) et le temps historique
To this day, there have been written numerous and remarkable studies which analyze the literary, philosophical, journalistic, and epistolary texts of Albert Camus from diverse perspectives : stylistic, narratological, linguistic, psychoanalytical, symbolic, thematic, biographical, intertextual, sociological, political, esthetic, ethical, philosophical, among others. Rare are studies which examine the idea and the image of time as conceived by this 20th century French writer, as evidenced in his philosophical-literary essays. Camus considers the conception of time by associating it with the circular movement of the Mediterranean world, beautiful and eternal, and that of the cosmos (Betwixt and Between, Nuptials), with the functioning of the human conscience which hopes, remembers, rebels (The Myth of Sisyphus), or with the course of both human and European history (The Rebel). By studying the complete works of Camus, especially, the following four essays—Betwixt and Between, Nuptipals, The Myth of Sysiphus, and The Rebel— our thesis aims to study three temporal notions which have not received sufficient critical attention: eternity, triple temporality (past, present, and future), and historical time

Over the last four centuries, South Africa has been shaped by the twinned, dialectical histories of violence and resistance to violence. However, because both violence and resistance encompass myriad formations and are underlain with a plethora of ideologies and hermeneutics, studying each - particularly from within critical community psychology - is oftentimes necessarily didactic and reductive. Yet, if this kind of research is to retain emancipatory potential, I contend, it should be both community-oriented and politically committed. In an attempt to understand how violence moves through Thembelihle, a low income community in South Africa, an expansive lens for conceptualising violence and resistance is advanced across this research’s four studies. In Study I, I use discursive psychology to examine how Thembelihle has been constructed in dominant discourse by analysing newspaper reporting on the community. Following this, in Study II and Study III, I draw on multimodal discourse analysis to study representations of quotidian life and political resistance in a participatory documentary film entitled Thembelihle: Place of Hope, which was collaboratively produced by residents of Thembelihle, professional filmmakers and myself. Lastly, in Study IV, I harness the narrative-discursive approach to explore how residents of Thembelihle build community in response to Thembelihle: Place of Hope. It was found that within dominant constructions, Thembelihle was personified as a monolithic and an essentially Other geo-cultural space, made newsworthy principally through its engagement with a broad, often vaguely-conceived, notion of violence. In response to dominant discursive constructions of this kind, community members who featured in and produced the documentary advanced a humanistic conception of Thembelihle which did not accept the different violences to which the community is subject. Following this, audiences of the documentary engaged the affective and political dimensions of community-building in order to advance a democratically conceived notion of collective will. These findings present critical community psychologists and violence scholars with a number of considerations around representation; the multitudinous nature of violence and resistance; psycho-politics; and radical hope. Ultimately, I argue, if such research is to be meaningful, it must be guided by and subordinated to the emancipatory requirements articulated by community members.
Psychology
D. Litt et Phil (Psychology)

碩士
國立臺灣師範大學
運動科學研究所
101
Background: Most coaches and researchers support the use of full range of motion (ROM) resistance training. However, some research findings indicate the positive results from utilizing limited ROM resistance training. Previous studies have mainly examined the peak force and concentric work during variable range of motion resistance training on bench press exercise. The comparison on squat resistance exercises remains unknown. Purpose: To investigate the differences in strength, peak force and concentric work between full ROM and limited ROM resistance exercises in resistance untrained men. Methods: Twelve male subjects (age 24.2 ± 1.4 years) performed 10RM squat and bench press tests utilizing both full and limited ROM in a counter-balance and repeated measure manner. Performance was recorded by a high-speed camera during exercises. A paired sample t-test was used to determine the differences in loading, peak force and average concentric work between full ROM and limited ROM resistance exercises. The significance level was set at 0.05. Results: In bench press, strength in limited ROM was significantly greater than in full ROM (63.8 ± 8.6 kg vs 48.3 ± 7.5 kg, respectively)(p < .05). In squat, strength in limited ROM was also significantly greater than in full ROM (110.8 ± 20.3 kg vs 67.9 ± 8.4 kg, respectively). In bench press, the peak force was significantly greater in full ROM (1094.3 ± 306 N) when compared to limited ROM (937.4 ± 231 N). However, the peak force in full ROM squat (1254.4 ± 215.9N) was significantly lower when compared to limited ROM (1951.4 ± 569.9N). In both bench press and squat, the average concentric work was significantly higher in full ROM than in limited ROM (191.9 ± 31.8J vs 139.6 ± 19.7J for full and limited ROM in bench press; 286.3 ± 48.9J vs 239.7 ± 44.9J for full and limited ROM in squat). Conclusion: Despite the fact that strength in full ROM was significantly lower than in limited ROM, the average concentric work was significantly greater in full ROM when compared to limited ROM. However, the peak force was significantly greater in full ROM when compared to limited ROM in resistance untrained men when performing bench press. Resistance training experience may influence the peak force performance during variable ROM resistance exercise.

碩士
國防大學理工學院
造船及海洋工程碩士班
101
It could be harmful to hull structure as submarines float upward and dive downward radically, and the vertical motion could cause the wave effect on the free surface with obvious wave detected by the enemy. Therefore, to reduce the influence of changing fluid loading, sluggish motions are always recommended for submarines. However, it is important to bear in mind that agility and speediness are crucial factors for naval ship design. Sluggish motion is namely to commit suicide for a naval submarine in sea battle. Thus, figuring out an appropriate moving model associating with optimized configuration is a remarkable issue for submarine designers. To study the problems mentioned above, three-dimensional submarine flow had been analyzed and the “Layering” dynamic mesh technique embedded in a numerical solver was used for flow computation. The numerical results obtained in the present research would benefit the design and development of future submarines.

碩士
國立清華大學
化學工程學系
89
Our research emphasizes on developing new methods to simulate the effective conductivities of the composites possessive of contact resistance. We concern composites with inclusions dispersed randomly in the matrix. The inclusions can be spherical particles, or infinitely long fibers. They are named particulate-reinforced composite and long-fiber-reinforced composites , respectively. There is an abundant knowledge about how to obtain the effective conductivities of composites. The critical Biot number, , gives “neutral effect.” That is, we can neglect interface properties while we treat composites’ effective conductivities. We focus on construction of a simulation model, that can be used to calculate the effective conductivities of the composites with any size or any irregular type inclusions dispersed randomly in the matrix. We image that thermal molecules do random walks among inclusions and matrix. Kim and Torquato (1990,1991) brought up the ideas whether the test thermal molecules will walk across the interface or not and how much time it will spend on crossing the interface or coming back. They obtained the effective conductivity of two phase composites. However, they considered single-sized inclusions, and a perfect contact with the matrix. (Temperature fields are continuous across the matrix-inclusion, so are the normal heat fluxes). They didn’t work on problems involving poly-dispersed inclusions with contact resistance at the matrix-inclusion interface. (Temperature fields are not continuous, but the normal heat fluxes are continuous.) However, it is common that contact resistance exists between matrix and inclusions. When the Biot number is infinite, contact resistance will disappear. Then, the matrix contacts the inclusions perfectly. Therefore, the contact resistance problem is a limiting case of the contact resistance problems. The new method is a breakthrough in the area of composites’ effective conductivities. We obtained satisfactory results of the effective conductivities of the fibers and particles arranged regularly in the matrix. Moreover, the effective conductivities of the particulate-reinforced and the fiber-reinforced composites with inclusions randomly distributed are also computed. And we confirm that Biot number is an important parameter again. When Bi is less than the critical Biot number, the combined effect of interface and inclusion is enhancing to the matrix. When Bi is greater than the critical Biot number, the combined effect of interface and inclusion is enhancing to the matrix. We also verify that the inclusions generated are dispersed randomly enough.