NCube/papyrus huggingface dataset:
Colonial Ideology and Legacy and Feminine Resistance in Jamaica Kincaid

My thesis "Colonial Ideology and Legacy and Feminine Resistance in Jamaica Kincaid" analyzes, criticizes and deconstructs the foundations of colonial ideology. It examines how colonial Manichaeanism oppresses the woman, and explores the sites of feminine resistance for (formerly) colonized women. In the first chapter, I define colonial ideology as based on Colonial Manichaeanism. I argue that the colonizer-colonized relationship is reductive and dehumanizing. I explicate and criticize Frantz Fanon's analysis of this relationship of superiority and inferiority and his understanding of violence. I also study Jamaica Kincaid's A Small Place, which reproduces this relationship and extends it to the present through the tourist/native relationship. In the second chapter, I study the mother as a colonial figure in Annie John. The mother-daughter relationship offers another re-enactment of the colonizer-colonized relationship, which is highlighted through images of heaven and hell. I also develop the metaphor of death and I argue that love and Obeah are resistance strategies to colonial figures. The last chapter engages the corporal in colonial oppression, and feminine resistance. I scrutinize the female body in its wavering between veiling and exposure in Lucy. I analyze the movement of the female body as emblematic of the fluidity of feminine identity and as such, an identity which is misrepresented by colonial and patriarchal discourse.

Keyphrases: Jamaica Kincaid, Colonial Manichaeanism, feminism, resistance, body, dehumanization
Memoria, nación y pertenencia en la obra de Benedicto Chuaqui

The purpose of this thesis is to analyze Benedicto Chuaqui’s identity reconstruction in his autobiographical work Memorias de un emigrante (1942). Born in Syria, Chuaqui recreates his migratory experience in Chili, at a time when the country is marked by many social, economic and political changes. The analysis of Chuaqui’s subjectivity within the text reveals an identity reconstruction propelled by his desire to belong to the Chilean nation. By reconstructing his past, the author defends his membership to the nation, and by doing so, offers his own definition of Chilean identity. The work calls into question the essentialist definition of identity both individually and collectively, as the author sees it as fractured, multiple and reconstructed over time.

Keyphrases: immigration arabe, nation, Arab immigration, autobiography, Chilean literature, identity, nation
The DPRK in China's post-cold war foreign policy - a neoclassical realist analysis

Since the bilateral negotiations between the United States and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) on the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula failed to produce any effective outcome in the 1990s, China was brought to the table and agreed to play its part as a mediator in the Four Party Talks (1997-1998) between both Koreas and the United States, as well as in the Six-Party Talks (2003-2007), with the addition of Russia and Japan as negotiators. While the American policies toward the DPRK have taken a tough and inflexible turn with former President George W. Bush declaring, at the end of January 2002, that North Korea, Iran, and Iraq “constitute an axis of evil arming to threaten the peace of the world”, China’s DPRK policy, however, reflects long-lasting terms of friendship and collaboration between the two countries. With concerns mounting over the aggressive policies of the North Korean regime and its determination to keep its nuclear arsenal, the question is: why does China insist on preserving its good ties with its neighbour, even when those policies are said to hinder its political and economical interests?  To address this question, the theoretical framework of neoclassical realism will be tested within a three-level – systemic, state, and individual level – analysis, with consideration of the propositions that the relative distribution of power shapes China’s North Korea policy, and intervening variables at the state and individual levels are filtering the systemic pressures and thus, shaping decisions related to North Korea. These variables include: a) leadership’s perception of power; b) regime type and ideology, and; c) type of foreign policy decision-making unit. This in-depth analysis will then provide grounds in defining China’s core interests in backing up the secluded regime.

Keyphrases: foreign policy, neoclassical realism, China, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea), United States, nuclear weapons, power, ideology, decision-making
A brain-computer interface for navigation in virtual reality

A Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) decodes the brain signals representing a desire to do something, and transforms those signals into a control command. However, only a limited number of mental tasks have been previously detected and classified. Performing a real or imaginary navigation movement can similarly change the brainwaves over the motor cortex. We used an ERS-BCI to see if we can classify between movements in forward and backward direction offline and then online using different methods. Ten healthy people participated in BCI experiments comprised two-sessions (48 min each) in a virtual environment tunnel. Each session consisted of 320 trials where subjects were asked to imagine themselves moving in the tunnel in a forward or backward motion after a randomly presented (forward versus backward) command on the screen.  Three EEG electrodes were mounted bilaterally on the scalp over the motor cortex. Trials were conducted with feedback. In session 1, Band Power method, Time-frequency representation, Autoregressive models and asymmetry ratio were used in the β rhythm range with a Linear-Discriminant-analysis classifier and a Support Vector Machine classifier to discriminate between the two mental tasks. Thresholds for both tasks were computed offline and then used to form control signals that were used online in session 2 to trigger the virtual tunnel to move in the direction requested by the user's brain signals. After 96 min of training, the online band-power biofeedback training achieved an average classification precision of 76 %, whereas the offline classification with asymmetrical ratio and band-power achieved an average classification precision of 80%.

Keyphrases: Brain-Computer Interface, Event-Related Synchronization, Motor Imagery, Virtual Reality, Navigation, EEG classification, Navigation
La destruction créative des paysages : les impacts spatiaux des restructurations économiques globales de l’industrie automobile à Windsor, Ontario

In a context of great economic transformations imposed by globalization, the development of innovations and the financialization of the economy have deeply affected the mono industrial cities of the fordist period. The automotive industry, largely influenced by global economic restructuring, was also deeply touched. In doing so, the urban landscapes of cities dependent on this industry, such as Windsor in Ontario, were built and destroyed by the process of creative destruction, by it’s spatial component.  Thereby, the landscape structure of Windsor has been transformed: while important areas in different neighborhoods are waiting to be reinvested, giving rise to abandoned landscapes, other landscapes are created. This research is based on the study of three neighborhoods along the Detroit River that has undergone significant changes in their landscapes. The main objective of this research is to determine how the process of creative destruction takes place in Windsor and what are the spatial impacts. To achieve this goal, observations of the landscape with the creation of the photographic repertoire, accompanied by direct interviews were the preferred methods.    Research has determined that the process of creative destruction takes place in contexts of decline, but also growth. With overall economic restructuring of the automotive industry, the landscapes of Windsor have been created, unstructured, and sometimes restructured through the efforts of local actors. Faced with the phasing out of certain areas, these actors had to think about new strategies in response to landscape transformations, like urban neoliberalism. Therefore, we can conclude that creative destruction of the landscape is related to global economic processes and negotiated by local actors.

Keyphrases: postfordisme, Windsor, Creative destruction, landscapes, economic restructurations, globalization, fordism, postfordism, urban neoliberalism, Windsor
Les mères accusées d'infanticide dans le district judiciaire de Montréal 1798-1850

During the nineteenth century, illegitimate birth was a major transgression. Abandonned by their lovers, feeling shamed and in constant fear of being repudiated by their families and communities, some unmarried women could not bear the burden of pregnancy. In the face of ineffective contraceptive methods as well as unreliable abortion technics, unable to sue for paternity or unaware that orphanages and maternities offered them alternatives, these women began to hide their pregnancies and resolved to kill their children almost immediately after birth. The discovery of a new-born corpse started a formal investigation, and some women were dragged to court. This study focuses on the individual and social issues surrounding mothers who have commited infanticide and attempts to understand the circumstances that led them to murder their own children.

Keyphrases: Infanticide, Abandon, Infanticide, Murder, Abandonment, Child, Woman, Sexuality, Abortion, Pregnancy
Les Néerlandais en exemple : l’image des Néerlandais dans les écrits religieux français portant sur les Antilles et la Côte Sauvage sud-américaine au XVIIe siècle

This study addresses the different roles embodied by the Dutch in the French missionary chronicles in the West Indies and on the South American Wild Coast in the second half of the 17th and early 18th centuries. The analysis of the different literary representations reveals that between 1640 and 1670, the French missionaries put forward the Dutch as a successful colonial model worthy of emulation by the French authorities and colonials. This is notably the case with the writings of Jean-Baptiste du Tertre (1654, 1667-1671), the Dominican father who was indeed familiar with the Dutch. At the beginning of the following century, however, once the Dutch had been forced out of the race for the West Indies, the study of Jean-Baptiste Labat’s chronicle (1722) reveals that the Dutch had gradually been replaced by the English as a successful model worthy of emulation by the French in Caribbeans.

Keyphrases: France, Jean-Baptiste du Tertre, JeanBaptiste Labat, Netherlands, otherness, representations, French, Dutch
Calcul en n-dimensions sur GPU

Scientific computing on GPU (graphical processing units) is on the rise, specifically in machine learning. This thesis presents the implementation of an efficient multidimensional array on the GPU.  We will begin by a review of what currently implements similar functionality and the disadvantage of a fragmented approach. We will focus on packages that have a Python interface.  We will explain techniques to optimize execution such as order reduction and automatic asynchronous computations.  Finally, we will present the functionality of the module developed for this thesis.

Keyphrases: Python, GPGPU, Scientific computing
Rétro ingénierie des modèles d’objets dynamiques pour JavaScript

Understanding of objects in object-oriented programs is an important task for understanding the code. JavaScript (JS) is a dynamic object-oriented language, Its dynamic nature makes understanding its source code very difficult. In this thesis, we focus on object analysis in JS programs to automatically produce a graph of objects inspired by UML class diagrams from an execution trace. The resulting graph shows the structure of the objects as well as their interconnections. Our approach uses a source-to-source transformation of the original code in order to collect information at runtime. This transformation makes it possible to collect complete information with respect to object creations and property updates. From this information, we perform multiple abstractions that aim to generate a more compact and intuitive representation of objects. This approach has been implemented in the JSTI prototype. To evaluate our approach, we measured its performance and the graph compression achieved by our abstractions. We used the ten V8 benchmarks for this purpose. Results show that JSTI is efficient enough to be used in practice, with an average slowdown of around 14x. Moreover, for 9 out of the 10 studied programs, the generated object graphs are sufficiently small to be visualized directly by developers. We have also performed a qualitative validation of the approach by manually inspecting the generated graphs. We have found that the graphs generated by JSTI generally correspond very closely to the expected results. Keywords: Program analysis, dynamic analysis, JavaScript, profiling.

Keyphrases: JavaScript, Program Analysis, Dynamic Analysis, Profiling
De la pitance indigeste au divin pot-au-feu : la quête du bon repas comme thème dans l’œuvre de Joris-Karl Huysmans

Food is a fundamental concern in Joris-Karl Huysmans’ work. His novels reveal a genuine interest for the edible, and a number of his protagonists embark on a quest for an acceptable meal. But beyond simple dietary preoccupations, I propose that food in Huysmans’ œuvre constitutes a veritable topos that structures and determines the narrative. From the indigestion caused by toxic meals to the spiritual elevation permitted by heavenly foods, eaters engage in an increasingly mystical journey as they attempt to find alimentary bliss.  To better understand this thematic and discursive evolution, I analyze a small selection of works comprising À Vau-l’eau (1882), En Ménage (1881), À Rebours (1884) and Là-bas (1891). These four texts, studied separately, present a fecund mise en scène of dietary issues; examined diachronically, they reveal a veritable textual and thematic progression, developing and amplifying the question of food that from a vital quest for subsistence evolves into a search for deeper spiritual fulfillment.

Keyphrases: Fin-de-siècle, Joris-Karl Huysmans, XIXe siècle, Fin-de-siècle, Food, French literature, Nineteenth-century, Meal
Vénus et Neptune en Crète : la fonction dramatique des divinités dans Idoménée de Danchet et Campra

This essay focuses on the deities’ role in the dramatic structure of Antoine Danchet and André Campra’s Idoménée, a tragédie en musique originally written in 1712 and rearranged in 1731. This research raises questions about the evolution of this particular genre while aiming to show how the representation of the Gods in Idoménée is linked to a formal opening which announces the disappearance of the prologue during the 1740s, as the deities are no longer used to solely praise the king but actively contribute to start off the dramatic effect as early as this opening part of the opera, thus giving a new function to the prologue. Through a brief historical overview of the French opera genre known as tragédie lyrique and of the mythological traditions linked to Venus and Neptune, this essay questions the place of these two deities in the human universe as envisioned by the tragédie lyrique which, as it is well known, tends to unify the supernatural and human worlds. In Idoménée, this unification mostly occurs through the use of a prologue, which also forms the first act of this drama, giving the deities in question an essential role in the dramatic structure of the opera.

Keyphrases: André Campra, Antoine Danchet, tragédie en musique, tragédie lyrique, Neptune, French theatre of the 18th century, gods, dramatic structure
Les cadres de lectures alternatifs :
une approche non-conventionnelle pour le développement de vecteurs vaccinaux

Introduction: Alternative reading frames (ARFs) are used by multiple viruses in order to generate different proteins from a single nucleotide sequence. Cryptic epitopes, which comprise antigens derived from proteins encoded in ARFs, have recently been the focus of studies pertaining to antiviral immunity and cytotoxic T lymphocytes. Methodology: In order to verify the immunological potential of epitopes encoded in programmed ARFs, three cassettes were constructed to permit the expression of three welldescribed epitopes (GAG77–85 epitope of human immunodeficiency virus type 1; NS31406-1415 epitope of hepatitis C virus; core18-27 epitope of hepatitis B virus) from three overlapping reading frames. The first cassette permits alternative translation initiation, the second cassette includes signals inducing ribosomal frameshifting and the third cassette serves as a control. These elements were introduced into adenoviral vectors. Recombinant adenoviruses were used to immunize C57BL/6 transgenic mice expressing HLA-A*0201 and HLA-DR1. The immune response induced was measured one week following immunization using IFN  ELISpot assays. Results: In the context of vaccine cassettes, peptides derived from alternative translation initiation and ribosomal frameshifting can be expressed and detected by the immune system in an animal model. Conclusion: These findings suggest the possibility of designing vaccination strategies in the hope of preventing or curing certain diseases associated with chronic viral infections, such as those caused by human immunodeficiency virus and hepatitis C virus.

Keyphrases: Vaccins, Vaccines, Cryptic epitopes, Alternative reading frames, Cytotoxic T cells
Trois soupirs pour ensemble sonate pour piano et un souvenir du présent pour orchestre À la recherche d'un langage personnel

This thesis contains the scores, the analysis and the audio files for three works which I composed in 2011 and 2012. While compositing these works, I aimed at seamless flow and continuity, as well as exploring the effects of dynamics and transitions. I also focussed on transparent orchestration, and on making my intentions as direct and clear as possible. This research has permitted me to define a more personal musical language. The text contains a chapter for each piece. The three pieces contained here are: Trois soupirs, for 2 voices and small ensemble (two violins, viola, cello and a positive organ) Sonate, for piano Un souvenir du présent, for orchestra

Keyphrases: Souvenir, Soupirs, Sonate, Piano, Ensemble, Analysis, Orchestra, Contemporary, Music
ARF1 contrôle la migration des cellules hautement invasives du cancer du sein via Rac1

ADP-ribosylation factors (ARFs) are monomeric G proteins important for actin cytoskeleton reorganization, lipid membrane remodeling, and vesicule formation. Our laboratory has previously shown that ARF1 is overexpressed in highly invasive breast cancer cells and contribute to their enhanced proliferation and migration phenotype. In this study, we propose to define the role of ARF1 on the activation of Rac1, an important member of the Rho family of GTPases implicated in the formation of lamellipodia and in the migration process. Globally, we evaluated whether ARF1 activation could affect Rac1 activation and the signaling pathway necessary for cell migration. Using an RNAi approach in MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells, we first determined the essential contribution of Rac1 in ARF1-dependant migration. Mechanistically, endogenous inhibition of ARF1 expression altered EGF-dependent Rac1 activation. We next investigated the consequences of such effect on Rac1 interaction partners. We showed that ARF1 and Rac1 are constitutively complexed but that ARF1 is necessary for EGF-dependent Rac1 association with IRSp53, an essential protein for lamellipodia formation. When unable to interact, Rac1/IRSp53 complex translocation to plasma membrane was considerably inhibited. In conclusion, this study provides a new mechanism by which ARF1 regulates cell migration and identifies this GTPase as a promising pharmacological target to reduce metastasis formation in breast cancer patients.

Keyphrases: Rac1, IRSp53, Breast cancer, Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor, ADP-ribosylation Factor-1, Cell migration
Les Déterminants Génétiques de la Pharmacocinétique du Busulfan et les Résultats de la Transplantation

Busulfan (Bu) is a key compound of conditioning regimen in children undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). Inter-individual differences in Bu pharmacokinetics might affect Bu efficacy and toxicity. Since Bu is mainly metabolized by glutathione S-transferase (GST), we investigated the relationship between GSTA1, GSTM1 and GSTP1 genotypes with first-dose Bu pharmacokinetics (PK), and relationship with HSCT outcomes in 69 children receiving myeloablative conditioning regimen. GSTM1 null genotype correlated with higher Bu exposure and lower clearance in patients older than 4 years (p≤0.04). In accordance with the suggested functional role GSTA1*A2 haplotype was associated with lower drug levels and higher drug clearance (p≤0.03). Gene-dosage effect was also observed (p=≤0.007). GSTA1 haplotypes were associated with HSCT outcomes Patients with two copies of haplotype *A2 had better event free survival (p=0.03). In contrast, homozygous individuals for haplotypes *B and *B1 had higher occurrence of veno-occlusive disease (p=0.009). GSTM1 null individuals older than 4 years had more frequently graft versus host disease (p=0.03). In conclusion, we showed that GST gene variants influence Bu PK and outcomes of HSCT in children. A model for the dosage adjustment with the inclusion of genetic and non-genetic factors should be evaluated in a future prospective validation cohort.

Keyphrases: Busulfan, GST, Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, Pharmacokinetics, Pharmacogenetics, Children
Nouveaux outils de pharmacodynamie des immunosuppresseurs chez des receveurs pédiatriques de greffe d’organe

Optimal immunosuppression following solid organ transplantation is unique to each individual and requires a balance between risks of rejection and overexposure to immunosuppressive therapy. The evaluation of residual function of T lymphocytes after mitogen stimulation (effective pharmacodynamic monitoring) should allow measurement of the direct effect of immunosuppressive drugs on their target. We studied various parameters of effective pharmacodynamic monitoring in 34 paediatric patients receiving solid organ transplants and treated with tacrolimus and mycophenolate (MPA). The tests proposed in this work are adapted to the paediatric setting in real time. Quantification of CD25 among CD4 cells activated by OKT3 can differentiate two groups of patients according to their degree of immunosuppression. Median values for age and MPA plasma concentration are lower and higher, respectively, in the patient group most heavily immunosuppressed. Neither study of the parameters that may influence the response (secretion of interleukins, proportion of lymphocyte subpopulations CD4, CD8, naive and regulatory T cells) nor study of the restoration of basal cell function brought about by Il2, guanosine or xanthosine, helped to explain the observed inter-individual variability. These results should be confirmed in a larger cohort of patients in order to test their relevance in clinical practice.

Keyphrases: Immunosuppression, Tacrolimus, Pediatric, Pharmacodynamic monitoring, Pharmacokinetic monitoring, Mycophenolate, T lymphocytes