The 2007-13 operational programmes: a preliminary assessment: Spring – Autumn 2005

A preliminary assessment of the 2007-13 operational programmes on EU cohesion policy

The life and teaching of Donald S. Reinhardt: Brass Pedagogue, 1908-1989

Thesis (D.M.A.)--Boston UniversityDonald S. Reinhardt (1908-1989) was an instructor of brass students for a span of over fifty years. According to The Reinhardt Foundation, he taught approximately 5000 students. His theories about embouchure and use of air, coupled with his ability to analyze brass players' individual dental characteristics, led him to develop paradigms of brass playing and a corresponding approach to teaching brass students. Most important among the corpus of his work was the development of nine embouchure categories, or types, into which he believed brass petformers could be assigned and for which he developed specific pedagogical approaches. The various embouchure types, according to Reinhardt, are a result of differing physical characteristics among performers. Many students, amateurs and professionals alike, attest to having benefited enormously from Reinhardt having analyzed their embouchures, placing them into one of his distinct categories, and then giving them specific guidelines pertaining to the physical act of playing their instrument. Many of Reinhardt's students have had careers as professional performers, particularly in the jazz and commercial idioms. Reinhardt documented his work in the 1942 publications Pivot System for Trumpet and Pivot System for Trombone, in which he articulated his theories regarding embouchure classifications and provided a description of a motion he termed the "pivot." He published a much more detailed Encyclopedia of the Pivot System in 1964 in order to expand upon his theories and describe them in detail. In addition to these and other publications, he also produced unpublished materials in the form of personalized instructions and exercises. Reinhardt's theories are considered foundational by many former students as well as some second and third generation students. In some cases, however, they have been misunderstood by those who have only read or heard about them. This biographical study of Reinhardt's life and work addresses his methods, his students, and his influence on brass instruction and performance

The cropping-plan decision-making : a farm level modelling and simulation approach

L'assolement' c'est à dire l'attribution des cultures sur les différentes parcelles de l'exploitation agricole' est un élément fondamental de la stratégie de l'agriculteur. Il provient d'un équilibre entre des contraintes et objectifs multiples alliant les dimensions sociale' économique' agronomique et environnementale (utilisation des ressources). Il reflète deux dimensions: une dimension stratégique (lié aux orientations de l'exploitation) et une dimension tactique plus lié à l'adaptation des attributions suite à des contextes changeant (climatique' prix). Afin représenter ces deux niveaux et ainsi structurer les enjeux relatifs aux choix d'assolement à l'échelle de l'exploitation nous proposons une approche basées sur : i) une analyse du processus décisionnel par le biais d'enquêtes en exploitation; ii) une modélisation dynamique aussi bien sur des processus biophysiques (modèles de culture) que sur des processus de gestion (modèle de décision) pour comprendre et simuler. ABSTRACT : Evolutions of the institutional and environmental contexts are driving search for alternative cropping systems to reduce water use while maintaining high levels of productivity. This thesis is an account of the long tradition of research on cropping-plan choices at the farm level. It concerns the scope of modelling agricultural systems with an opening to economy. The objective of the research described in this thesis is to produce formalised knowledge on farmers’ croppingplan choices under uncertain environment (price and weather) by analysing and modelling their decision-making processes. Formalising and modelling decision-making processes is becoming a crucial point to develop decision support systems that go beyond limitations of formerly developed prescriptive approaches. This thesis contributes to the development of a formalised and integrated methodology to study and model complex decision-making process. This methodology enables to fill the gap between field surveys and decision-model implementation. The methodology is drawn upon a theoretical background of the decision-making' and consistently combined tools to respectively survey' analyse' model and implement coupled agent and biophysical models. In this thesis' I address the question of uncertainty in two directions. I first analyse the spatio-temporal dynamic of individual farmers’ decision-making process. Then I estimate farmers’ aversion to risk by comparing stated and revealed elicitation methods. On the basis of field survey results' I develop a decision model called CRASH. The approach to develop the model stresses on explicit formalisation of the decision-making process in its temporal and spatial dimensions' and representation of the domain knowledge through generic concepts that are close to ones used by decision-makers. The implementation of developed models is carried out on the RECORD platform as trail blazing project. The originality relies on the use of dynamic models on both the biophysical and management processes. This research opens new perspectives for developing farm specific decision support systems that are based on simulating farmers’ decisionmaking processes. The modelling and simulating the cropping-plan decision-making processes should enable to design with farmers cropping systems that re-conciliate the required adaptive capacities and needs to maintain cropping systems productivity