VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
FE and HE or FE versus HE: an analysis of perspectives from college and university leaders in England
Keywords: collaboration
FE
market
HE
marketisation
competition
colleges
tertiary
further education
vocational
relationship
marketization
identity

This study explores the relationship between Further Education Colleges and Universities as tertiary providers in England, by interviewing participants from the two sectors to understand their thoughts and views. The relationships are discussed in terms of collaboration or competition within the strains of quasi-market logic, student choice, and institutional identity. With students being increasingly viewed as consumers and the branding of provision appearing to be just as strategic as the delivery models, there is tension between institutions as they compete for attention. However, this is far from a fair fight. With radically different funding structures, political interest and public knowledge, the Further Education sector is the David to Universities' Goliath; however, where exactly the slingshot is coming from has not yet been decided. With Colleges struggling to curate and maintain their identity, themes of victimhood and the force of marketisation are an ever-present struggle for these institutions, often resulting in scathing reviews from their colleagues. The future of this relationship is presented as a fraught and tense one, with Universities confident in their prestige and Colleges trying to educate other people’s children. With the hope of collaboration in the future, the issue, for now, remains for Colleges to try to establish their own identity.
Development of a durable and efficacious pre-erythrocytic malaria vaccine 
Keywords: CSP
TRAP
liver-stage
pre-erythrocytic
malaria

Despite the licensing of RTS,S/AS01 as the first malaria vaccine by WHO, development of a durable and efficacious malaria vaccine is still needed to achieve 75% efficacy as targeted in Malaria Vaccine Technology Roadmap. While the identification of more immunogenic pre-erythrocytic malaria antigens is still ongoing, CSP and TRAP are two of the most promising antigens for the subunit pre-erythrocytic malaria vaccines. This thesis aims to improve the subunit pre-erythrocytic malaria vaccines targeting CSP and TRAP that have been evaluated in clinical trials. First, Adenovirus and MVA vaccines encoding TRAP antigen were improved by substituting the antigen sequence with the African strain sequence that is more relevant to the vaccine deployment region. The vaccines induced high T-cell response and protected more mice against malaria infection following challenge with transgenic P. berghei sporozoite expressing homologous P. falciparum TRAP compared to Adenovirus-MVA vector vaccine encoding ME-TRAP, which contain heterologous strain antigen sequence. Secondly, the concept of combining virus-like particle vaccine modalities with an Adenovirus vector was investigated, using CSP antigen as a model, to produce a vaccine that induced high antibody and CD8 T-cell responses, which are required for protection against malaria infection. Subsequently, the strategy was expanded to include multiple antigens, CSP and TRAP, that may improve the protection by inducing broad immune responses against different pre-erythrocytic antigens. Lastly, the strategy to broaden the antibody response against subdominant epitope within CSP antigen, which is known to contain protective epitope, was evaluated using heterologous vaccinations. This strategy induces a high antibody response against subdominant epitope that correlates with protection against sporozoite infection in vivo and in vitro. Together, these preclinical studies have provided valuable information for the clinical development of pre-erythrocytic malaria vaccines targeting CSP and TRAP antigens.
Late-stage C-H activation of spiropiperidines via evolved P450BM3 mutants and its application to fragment-based drug discovery
Keywords: spiropiperidines
late stage CH functionalisation
late stage CH activation
biocatalysis
P450
cytochrome P450
P450BM3
CH activation

This thesis describes the synthesis of spirocyclic piperidines, specifically 6-azaspiro[4.5]decane and 7-azaspiro[4.5]decane, and the late-stage functionalisation of the synthesised piperidines via P450BM3 mutants. Utilisation of the newly-installed hydroxyl group as a synthetic handle was also explored, with the aim of demonstrating the potential of P450BM3 catalysis to Fragment-Based Drug Discovery.
Chapter 1 provides an introduction to Fragment-Based Drug Discovery and a review of the major synthetic studies towards spirocyclic piperidines. Subsequently, the significance of C−H functionalisation and the various aspects of P450BM3 applications are discussed.
Chapter 2 describes the synthesis of 6-azaspiro[4.5]decane and its substrate engineering to access hydroxylated products at various unactivated positions. Molecular Dynamics simulations and molecular docking were employed to investigate the underlying ligand-protein interactions.
Chapter 3 describes the synthesis of 7-azaspiro[4.5]decane and its substrate engineering to access hydroxylated products. Analogous to Chapter 2, computational methods were also employed to study ligand-protein interactions.
Chapter 4 explores the utilisation of the hydroxyl group introduced by P450BM3 mutants as a synthetic handle for functional group diversification. Numerous synthetic reactions were performed and the results are discussed.
Finally, Chapter 5 details the protein engineering of P450BM3 mutants to optimise the conversion and selectivity of a selected metabolite via docking-guided mutagenesis. Computational and experimental results were compared by considering different factors in the docking algorithms.
Agency in transit: social negotiations of Pakistani women in international higher education
Keywords: intersectional
women
higher education
feminism
diversity
agency
Global South
Pakistan
international
CIE2023
negotiations
decision-making

This study is an exploration of the agencies afforded to Pakistani women who receive international postgraduate higher education. It examines (a) the influence of various social relations on their agency and (b) evaluations of surrounding processes and ultimate outcomes of agentive decisions. Qualitative, semi-structured interviews are conducted with ten globally-situated Pakistani women who completed postgraduate and graduate outside of Pakistan up to six years ago. The work of Chandra Talpade Mohanty, Lila Abu-Lughod, and Saba Mahmood is drawn to contextualise the complex nuances of localised agency of Pakistani women which transcends liberal feminist and Western notions. The research - by examining women’s navigations through higher education - uniquely contributes to scholarship surrounding their agency by presenting a process-over-outcome conceptualization that expands traditional/universalised understandings. In doing so, it shows us how little we know about the diversity of women’s agency and the pathways through which they conceptualise their power. This work thus highlights the need for deeper engagement with women’s lived experiences surrounding agentive decision-making processes.
Singular instantons and parabolic bundles over complex surfaces
Keywords: complex surfaces
algebraic geometry
singular instantons
moduli theory
parabolic bundles

Let (X,Σ) be a pair consisting of a Riemannian 4-manifold and an embedded surface and G a compact connected Lie group. A singular G-instanton on X\Σ is one not extending to X and the singularity is encoded in a conjugacy class in G, the holonomy along Σ.
When X = C2 and Σ is a complex line we show that if the holonomy along Σ has a certain property there is a natural correspondence between euclidean G-instantons on C2\Σ and suitable holomorphic objects on (P2, Σ, D∞) called parabolic framings, where D∞ = P2\C2. As a corollary we obtain a classification of G-instantons on S4\S2 for the round metric in terms of parabolic framings which in the trivial case of no singularities gives a new proof of Donaldson Theorem on framed bundles [D1], and a classification of hyperbolic G-monopoles with arbitrary mass and charge in terms of based rational maps of P1 into flag manifolds proving conjectures of Atiyah [A1] and Garland-Murray [GM].
Using the techniques developed and Simpson existence Theorem, [S], when (X, Σ) is a compact complex Kähler pair and G = U(n) or SU(n) we also obtain a natural correspondence between irreducible instantons on X\Σ and stable parabolic vector bundles on (X, Σ) proving the “Parabolic bundles conjecture” of Kronheimer [K].
We then construct moduli spaces of stable parabolic and framed parabolic bundles and of singular instantons and carry out a comparison of the deformation theories where the correspondence is proved showing that there always is an infinitesimal isomorphism which is a diffeomorphism at smooth points. As a consequence we obtain the smoothness of all moduli spaces of irreducible G-instantons on S4\ S2, sufficient topological conditions for the existence of G-instantons on S4\S2 with prescribed holonomy along S2 and necessary and sufficient topological conditions when G = SU(n) proving a conjecture of Kronheimer-Mrowka [KM1]. We also deduce that the extended moduli spaces of instantons on S4\S2, where the holonomy along S2 is allowed to vary with fixed centralizer, are products so that the diffeomorphism type of the moduli space depends on the holonomy along S2 only up to its centralizer in G. Corresponding results for hyperbolic monopoles also follow.
Taxonomy and ecology of the British species of drosophila
Keywords: ecology
British
Drosophila
species
taxonomy

Various species of Drosophila, because of their short generation time and large salivary gland chromosomes, have proved to be admirably suited for genetic research. In recent years, the great steps taken in studies of population genetics and evolutionary investigations have made it increasingly inportant that the taxonomy, distribution, and ecology of the various species should be studied.
In Great Britain, there are twenty eight species on the check list. Twenty-one of them have been classifed into four of the five subgenera set out by Sturtevant; seven of them are as yet unclassified. A key is given for the British species of Drosophila, with references to full descriptions of the various species by other authors.
Where the nomenclature of a particular species is confused, it is discussed.
Continued in thesis ...
Post/Colonial Ghana, elites, and education
Keywords: education
interviews
CIE2022
CIE
post-colonial
religion
elites
Ghana
colonial

This dissertation critically examines how colonial missionary education in Ghana has shaped its students’ life chances and attitudes, and subsequent international schooling choices for their own children. Despite regaining independence from colonial rule in 1957, with a campaign born of the Pan-Africanism movement, Ghana’s elites are still looking to the West to educate their children; with ‘Britishness’ continuing to play a central role in the acquisition and maintenance of elite status in postcolonial Ghana. Through interviewing elite Ghanaians who were educated by the Scottish missionaries in the two decades post-independence; the children of missionary educated parents, whose primary and/or secondary education took place in the UK; and a retired university expert on the Scottish Presbyterian Church in Ghana, this dissertation reveals how social class reproduction in Ghana is both a complex and multifaceted process involving the intersection between class and race. Through applying a ‘postcolonial constructivist’ methodology (Adem, 2021), and by theoretically engaging with both Bourdieu’s (1984) ‘theory of practice’ and Fanon’s (1967) ‘thesis on whiteness’, this dissertation confirms much of postcolonial analysis, and is indicative of the broader asymmetrical power relations that exist between Africa and the West. That is, that the legacy of colonialism, and missionary education more specifically, has upheld the British as the main purveyors of elite identity is postcolonial Ghana. As a result, and regardless of current governmental efforts to encourage the diaspora to return, if this ‘colonial inheritance’ continues to cast a shadow over Ghana’s own indigenous heritage, then the country may potentially be deprived of some of its own skilled human capital, that is so necessary for both its economic and social development.
Digitally mediated education and outreach practices in cultural heritage institutions in the UK
Keywords: digital learning
online surveys
offsite Programming
DSC
synchronous
cultural heritage
onsite programming
DSC2022
asynchronous
pedagogical approaches
skills development
COVID-19 pandemic
outreach
online learning
expert interviews

This qualitative study seeks to address the limited amount of research available concerning the rapid change in Cultural Heritage (CH) learning and outreach working practices, experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of UK-based CH learning and outreach teams, around their increased use of online and digital learning tools during the pandemic and identify any subsequent influences these tools had on their current onsite and offsite programme delivery strategies, pedagogical approaches and collaborative ways of working. Data was gathered through 39 online surveys and 18 semi-structured interviews with CH professionals, working in learning, outreach and engagement settings. The data was transcribed and coded. A thematic analysis approach to the data revealed three prominent themes: Removal of the Default, Dragged by Sheer Necessity into the New World and Step Change. These themes provide insight into the multiple influences online and digital learning tools can have on CH learning and outreach programmes and provide a reflective guide on best practice for CH practitioners wishing to implement them.
What is in a form? the variation between English local authorities' exclusion rates and their organizational artifacts
Keywords: CIE2022
CIE
document review
exclusion rates
secondary data review

School exclusion, which is the practice of removing a student from school for a fixed or indefinite period of time, has become an increasingly researched and analyzed topic. This is unsurprising given the significant rise in its use in certain countries. There are increased efforts to understand the phenomenon more comprehensively, and in particular, what drives some areas to exclude more than others. The following thesis is a comparative paper that examined school exclusion variation in England, specifically at the local authority level. The research included two phases of data collection—1) Document Review and 2) Secondary Data Review—on 10 different local authorities. Phase 1 was driven by the document review. Local authority documents—specifically, exclusion forms and exclusion parent notification letters—were evaluated to determine how authorities vary in the way they interpret and present information about school exclusion. Additionally, local authority documents were analyzed to determine how closely they aligned with national exclusion guidance and what, if anything, they could reveal about the local authority’s ethos regarding exclusion. Phase 2 was driven by the secondary data review. The exclusion rates of the 10 local authorities were analyzed to determine what relationship, if any, exists between the way a local authority presents information about school exclusion in documents and the actual rate of exclusion in that authority. Specifically, do authorities with more punitive language in documents have higher rates of exclusion, and vice versa if the language appears less punitive? The findings from Phase 1 demonstrated that there was significant variation in the way local authorities presented and interpreted exclusion information and the degree to which documents aligned with national guidance. However, detecting ethos was complex. Documents are one element of an organization’s culture, and thus need to be further contextualized. The findings from Phase 2 showed that local authorities at extreme ends of the spectrum—i.e., with incredibly high or incredibly low rates of exclusion—did seem to demonstrate significantly more punitive and less punitive language in documents respectively. However, there is no apparent pattern if one moves away from the extremes and evaluates authorities in the middle of the spectrum. This suggests the need for continued investigation into the multitude of factors that drive local variation in exclusion rates.
CipherTrace: automatic detection of ciphers from execution traces
Keywords: virtual machine introspection
binary analysis
reverse engineering
FFR
dynamic analysis
cryptographic key identification and extraction
cipher identification

Cryptography is defensive in nature, as it provides confidentiality, integrity, and authenticity to its consumers for data processing, storage and transmission. The employment of cryptography in software has introduced additional complexity in investigating the intent of a binary program or a running process. The rapid-increasing trend of using cryptography in malicious software, has re-introduced cryptography from an ”active-defense” perspective. This trend is known as cryptovirology, which was first introduced in 1996. The ever-increasing number of malware samples employing cryptography has demanded for more sophisticated analysis techniques to account for the malware and its operation(s), and if applicable, allow for neutralization and/or recovery. Generally, the detection and identification of cryptographic functions, routines, or algorithms facilitates malware analysis and forensics. However, most of the attempts presented in the literature have basically followed a top-down approach, which (by design) has limited them, as they are mainly focused on detecting certain implementations, rather than the building blocks, elements, or ingredients of cryptography in general. Nevertheless, the lack of work on automating the process makes it harder to scale in quantity and quality. In this dissertation, we explore the idea of generalizing the detection of cryptography, via dynamically analyzing Out-of-VM execution traces of binary programs. The prototype we developed (CipherTrace) is based on PANDA, the architecture-neutral dynamic analysis platform. PANDA was favored among others mainly due to its plugin architecture as well as its record-and-replay functionality, which allows for developing extensions easily and repeatable analysis. PANDA is based on QEMU, which is a whole-system emulator and virtualizer. In QEMU, the in-guest components are not visible to the guest programs, therefore it provides isolation to a certain extend, wherein the results are more true-hearted. We apply custom heuristics on the synthetic information of called functions, e.g., count of arithmetic operations, number of executions of basic blocks, memory access patterns, and more. The synthetic information can be categorized as raw (i.e., Platform-driven or Assembly-driven), or lifted (i.e., LLVM-driven). Finally, we report the findings, observations, limitations, and assert the feasibility and scalability of the concept, the dynamic analysis approach, as well as the technique applied to identify cryptographic (crypto) elements to classify a cipher. Crypto elements are the generic elementary units (or constituents) of cryptography, i.e., the operational functional blocks (e.g., a substitution or permutation step, etc).
Exploring the relationship between code-switching and emotions. A systematic review.
Keywords: language embodiment
Construted Emotion Theory
emotion
code-switching

This systematic review aims to assess the interaction of code-switching (CS) and emotions, and how this relationship may be influenced by cross-cultural and cross-modality differences. The link between language preference and emotions has long been discussed, yet an overview on factors within and underlying the association is still lacking. As such, there is a critical need for a systematic evaluation of the interaction of CS and emotions. An initial search in four databases resulted in 1944 papers, which were then screened by 6 inclusion criteria. A total of 19 studies within the last 10 years were identified, with the majority of studies based in Asian contexts, and English as the most common second language. The overall risk of bias of included studies was moderate-to-high, and the key issue was the ambiguity of data collection. Narrative synthesis of selected studies showed that CS and emotions interacted with each other both in intrapersonal and interpersonal perspectives. People tended to switch their code when feeling emotional. CS was also applied for several affection functions, especially in expressing, negotiating, and managing emotions. Intensive, abrupt, and negatively charged emotions were often linked to CS, with anger being identified most frequently. This interaction could probably be either conscious or unintentional. Compared to people from western cultures, people originally from Asia were found applying CS uniquely for emotional support. No salient cross-modality difference was found. Overall, results of reviewed studies were consistent. Emotions could influence the occurrence of CS and CS was also employed for emotional functions. This interaction is influenced by personal language experiences that shaped by their social and cultural backgrounds. Further studies on other cross-linguistic and cross-cultural differences are suggested to build up the interaction to a broader context.
Warrior women: the changing appeal of the Amazon in the art of Greece and the wider Mediterranean c. 600-300 B.C.
Keywords: Athenian vases
Etruscan material culture
Athenian vase trade
Greek material culture
Greek mythology
Caria
Amazonomachy
Etruscan Italy
classical archaeology
Anatolian material culture
South Italian vases
Amazons
Archaic Greece
Classical Greece
Lycia

This thesis investigates the mythological figure of the Amazons in the literary and material culture of the ancient Mediterranean. Beginning with the earliest references to the Amazons, this thesis examines the wide variety of media featuring the myth with a particular focus on material culture of sixth to fourth centuries B.C. The thesis is organised both chronologically and geographically, beginning with material from Archaic and Classical Greece before exploring the material culture of Italy and Western Anatolia. The thesis thus tracks the development of this single myth through a variety of media, geographical contexts, and chronological periods. This is a novel approach, as these aspects of the Amazon mythos are usually considered in isolation. These approaches are supplemented throughout by an analysis of what the myth potentially represented to the societies who interacted with the story through imported and local material culture. The thesis concludes that the inherent adaptability and enigmatic nature of the Amazon story was a key factor behind its popularity, and that mythological art from antiquity can be as significant for its ambiguities and complexities as in its more straightforward codifications of meaning.