Institutional Quality, Reforms and Integration in the Maghreb

institutions, Maghreb, economic reform

Lost in translation: Impediments to the homogenous interpretation of IFRS translations

In order to satisfy the financial needs of an increasingly globalized world, regulators and accounting professionals have pursued the harmonization of national accounting standards through International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). These standards have been adopted in more than 100 countries and are currently available in 47 languages. When financial information is prepared in accordance with IFRS, users of that information may assume that the application of the accounting rules is consistent across countries. In actuality, many differences in interpretation and application can occur because of the difficulties inherent in translating the standards from one language to another. Inconsistent application of international accounting standards presents a significant threat to the comparability of international financial information and thus the long term success of IFRS. The problems associated with inconsistent application of translations of IFRS are difficult to isolate and study. Language is naturally intertwined with elements of culture and history. This thesis employs a qualitative approach that draws on the disciplines of linguistics and cultural studies to identify and analyze some of the factors that may impede the homogenous interpretation and application of IFRS

Visuomotor Rotation Adaptation and Workspace Manipulation: A Behavioral and Cognitive Emphasis

This is a three-study dissertation in which we aimed to broaden our knowledge of the mechanisms contributing to a 45° clockwise visuomotor adaptation by including variations in workspace. We provide behavioral and in one study physiological outcomes as evidence to support our conclusions. In the first experiment, we observed the adaptation of movement parameters such as pathlength, movement time, resultant velocity, and normalized jerk across groups trained with rotated visual feedback with both the left and right hands. Workspace location and hand differentially affected movement trajectory length. The group that practiced the task with their nondominant, left hand showed larger after-effects, thus deviations in pathlength and initial direction error than those who practiced with their right hand. We also observed the transfer of pathlength from the left to the right hand but no ensuing after-effects. These findings failed to support the dynamic dominance model of bilateral transfer asymmetry, which posits the right hand is uniquely adapted for movement trajectory information. In the second experiment, participants adapted to the visuomotor rotation and generalized the adaptation to other workspaces. Subjects adapted to the visuomotor rotation in all three workspace locations. Corresponding neural measures indicated workspace related changes, with the biggest differences between contralateral and ipsilateral workspaces consistent with the observed behavioral results. The observed neurophysiological patterns were mainly in the right central and parietal– cortical areas involved in spatial processing. We argue these brain areas may be involved in workspace-related inhibition to allow the left hemisphere work efficiently. In the final experiment we investigated how manipulation of visual feedback and workspace location affected visuomotor adaptation for groups using real and remembered targets during performance. We showed participants visuomotor rotation transferred from the central to the ipsilateral workspace location. Also removing the target during rotational adaptation decreased, thus improved reaction time for unrotated real target trials regardless of workspace. Since gaze strategies differed between groups, we reasoned that gaze does not significantly contribute to visuomotor adaptation. The current studies add to existing evidence for understanding mechanisms responsible for adapting to a visuomotor rotation under different contexts

Effect of Contact Pesticides on Vine Mealybug Parasitoids, Anagyrus sp. near pseudococci (Girault) and Coccidoxenoides perminutus (Timberlake) (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae)

Anagyrus species near pseudococci (Girault) and Coccidoxenoides perminutus (Timberlake) (Hymenoptera:Encyrtidae) are well-known mealybug parasitoids. Both are proven biological control agents of Planococcus ficus(Signoret) (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae) in vineyards. These parasitoids are affected by some pesticides used for thecontrol of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) and P. ficus in vineyards. To establish which of the vineyard pesticidesis more toxic to parasitoids, pesticide bioassays were carried in the laboratory using adult and pupal parasitoids.Fipronil and α-cypermethrin caused significant acute toxicity of both parasitoids. Low mortality was recorded forall these pesticides for parasitoids emerging from mummies indicating that the mummy case was an effective barrierto pesticides for parasitoids. Buprofezin, mancozeb and an insecticidal soap were not toxic to parasitoids in bothbioassays. Some pesticides have far-reaching negative impacts on parasitoids of orchard and vineyard arthropodpests. A refinement on pest management strategies regarding method and timing of application of pesticides whereparasitoids constitute part of the pest management program is essential

Investigating the Variables Influencing Post-Retirement Satisfaction of Teachers

The general purpose of this study was to find out the factors that contributed to or accounted for post-retirement satisfaction among Ghanaian teachers; and whether female teacher retirees and male teacher retirees differ in their post-retirement satisfaction with all thosefactors that account for post-retirement satisfaction. After reviewing, the literature eight main research questions were formulated to guide the study. Simple random sampling procedure was used to select 230 respondents for the study. The instrument for the study was the questionnaire. Data were analysed using correlations, cross-tabulations and chisquare test of independence. The major finding from the study showed that retirees in general are quite satisfied with all the indicators of post-retirement satisfaction. However, apart from their accommodation status female teacher retirees and male teacher retirees differ in their satisfaction with all the measures of satisfaction in retirement

Plasmon reflections by topological electronic boundaries in bilayer graphene

Domain walls separating regions of AB and BA interlayer stacking in bilayer graphene have attracted attention as novel examples of structural solitons, topological electronic boundaries, and nanoscale plasmonic scatterers. We show that strong coupling of domain walls to surface plasmons observed in infrared nanoimaging experiments is due to topological chiral modes confined to the walls. The optical transitions among these chiral modes and the band continua enhance the local ac conductivity, which leads to plasmon reflection by the domain walls. The imaging reveals two kinds of plasmonic standing-wave interference patterns, which we attribute to shear and tensile domain walls. We compute the electronic structure of both wall varieties and show that the tensile wall contain additional confined bands which produce a structure-specific contrast of the local conductivity. The calculated plasmonic interference profiles are in quantitative agreement with our experiments.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figure

Students’ Views on the Nature of Science in an Interdisciplinary First-Year Science Program: Content Analysis of a Weekly Reflection Activity

A primary aim of science education is to teach students how to interpret and engage with scientific information. To do so effectively requires an adequate understanding of the nature of science (NOS)—in other words, what science is and how it works. There is a long history of evidence to suggest that many undergraduate students struggle to properly understand NOS. While the specific factors contributing to misinformed views on NOS may be difficult to tease apart, the way in which students learn about science at the undergraduate level is a significant contributor. We implemented a reflection activity in a unique first-year program at a large Canadian university in order to promote student learning of NOS. Through the students’ reflections, we identified how certain pedagogical approaches, many of which deviate from traditional teaching methods used throughout undergraduate science education, can positively impact student comprehension of NOS. Our experiences support the use of reflective practices in promoting critical thinking and the development of more nuanced student views of NOS. Click here to read the corresponding ISSOTL blog post

Carrier capture dynamics of single InGaAs/GaAs quantum-dot layers

Using 800nm, 25-fs pulses from a mode locked Ti:Al2O3 laser, we have measured the ultrafast optical reflectivity of MBE-grown, single-layer In0.4Ga0.6As/GaAs quantum-dot (QD) samples. The QDs are formed via two-stage Stranski-Krastanov growth: following initial InGaAs deposition at a relatively low temperature, self assembly of the QDs occurs during a subsequent higher temperature anneal. The capture times for free carriers excited in the surrounding GaAs (barrier layer) are as short as 140fs, indicating capture efficiencies for the InGaAs quantum layer approaching 1. The capture rates are positively correlated with initial InGaAs thickness and annealing temperature. With increasing excited carrier density, the capture rate decreases; this slowing of the dynamics is attributed to Pauli state blocking within the InGaAs quantum layer