VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
Temporal prediction and the mammalian auditory system
Keywords: generalization
normative model
behavior
prediction
auditory
discrimination

Neurons in the sensory systems are tuned to diverse but specific features of the sensory environment. Various hypotheses have been proposed to explain how this particular tuning may be the result of optimisation to statistical regularities of natural sensory stimuli under a given principle, such as efficient coding, sparse coding, and slowness. In this thesis, we investigate whether the auditory system is governed by temporal prediction. This principle states that the sensory features represented by neurons are optimised to predict immediate future input from recent past input. Experimental evidence indicates that neurons in the retina extract the most predictive information at a near-optimal efficiency level. Recent theoretical work has also demonstrated that temporal prediction can explain tuning across different sensory modalities. An artificial neural network optimised for temporal prediction of natural moving images can explain many of the receptive field features exhibited by neurons at different stages along the visual pathway. An auditory counterpart applied to spectrogram-like representations of natural sounds similarly produces receptive fields resembling those in the primary auditory cortex. In this thesis, we present work that further explores this explanatory principle for the auditory system. First, we show that an artificial neural network optimised for temporal prediction of raw waveforms of natural sounds produces tuning properties that are both qualitatively and quantitatively similar to those observed in the cochlea. Second, we show that a decision model based on auditory temporal prediction can predict the behaviour of mice in multiple auditory discrimination tasks. Finally, we present work that investigates whether a recurrent temporal prediction model can explain functional connectivity and neural responses to natural sounds in primary auditory cortex. Together, these findings provide further support for the role of temporal prediction in accounting for diverse characteristics of the auditory system.
Pathways to inclusion and exclusion: An analysis of Medellín’s participatory budgeting process (2004-2017)
Keywords: Peacebuilding
Participatory budgeting
Political inclusion
Transitional justice
ICTs

Political exclusion from public decision-making processes is one of the main causes of conflicts worldwide. The scholarship on the political inclusion of marginalised populations in a broad range of contexts and fields is growing rapidly. A specific subject that is receiving increased attention is participatory budgeting, a process that allows citizens to decide how to spend part of the local government budget. Still, the studies that examine the influence of offline and online participatory budgeting on political inclusion in peacebuilding contexts remain scarce. This thesis aims at contributing to the literature by analysing the influence of participatory budgeting on political inclusion in Medellín, Colombia’s second-biggest city.
A case study approach was used to explore the participatory budgeting process in Medellín, from its launch as a city-wide policy in 2004 until its last regulatory change in 2017. Instead of testing pre-specified hypotheses, the thesis uses grounded theory to identify the factors and pathways that contribute to explain the influence of Medellín’s offline and online participatory budgeting on political inclusion in the view of its participants. The qualitative data collected and analysed suggests that participatory budgeting could boost political inclusion, while sometimes, even simultaneously, also reducing it. Using a grounded theory approach, this thesis develops a framework that explains how power dynamics and the deployment of the public budget through the participatory budget might foster or hinder political inclusion, depending on the design and implementation of the participatory budgeting process. The thesis also advances the literature by providing a thick description of political inclusion in Medellín’s participatory budgeting process, that characterises who are the actors that participate in the process and the distinctive dynamics of their interactions, along with how this participation may influence political inclusion.
Mapping the proteomes of endoplasmic reticulum domains by proximity biotinylation
Keywords: proteome
endoplasmic reticulum
nuclear envelope

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is the largest organelle in the cell and is involved in a wide range of functions such as biogenesis of membrane and secretory proteins, calcium homeostasis and lipid synthesis. To be able to carry out these functions, the ER depends on an elaborate architecture consisting of a network of flat cisternae-like sheets and narrow tubules. The ER also assembles the nuclear envelope (NE) which is formed by two membranes, the inner and outer nuclear membrane (INM and ONM), that separate the cytoplasm from the nucleoplasm. Despite continuous with each other, these ER domains serve different functions. Consistent with their diverse roles, ER domains also appear to harbour distinct proteins. However, the complete proteomes of the various ER domains have not been systematically analysed and annotated. The primary objective of this project was to map the protein compositions of the distinct ER domains. To this aim, an APEX2-based proximity biotinylation assay coupled to subcellular fractionation was established and a data analysis pipeline developed. The assay was capable to identify many of the well-characterised INM, ER tubule and ER sheet proteins in their anticipated domain. Additionally, a range of bona fide proteins, that have not previously been shown to enrich at any of these domains, were identified. Therefore, these data provide a valuable resource to enhance our understanding of ER organisation. Additionally, the developed assay and data analysis pipeline can serve as a discovery platform to probe how the protein compositions of the ER domains change in response to disease-associated mutations or upon external perturbances. As an example, the effect of LMNA knockout on the protein composition of the inner nuclear membrane was investigated, whereby a small number of proteins were identified to be affected by depletion of A-type lamins.
Engineering small molecule-mediated communication between light-activatable synthetic cells and bacterial cells
Keywords: Synthetic biology

Gene-expressing compartments are a minimal representation of living cells. By using DNA blueprints to inform an assembly line of biological machinery how to manufacture the proteins required for a particular function, these cell-like compartments, often referred to as synthetic cells, have been engineered to exhibit life-like behaviours, such as division and communication. Although, despite these advances, little emphasis has been placed on how their activities are regulated. For synthetic cells to become a mature and valuable technology, it is essential that we precisely control where and when their functions are executed. Should this be achieved, synthetic cells could be used for the controlled production of drugs or signalling molecules, and be interfaced with living cells/tissues to modulate their behaviours. This thesis delineates progress towards creating gene-expressing synthetic cells that are activated only in the presence of UV light and describes how light-activated synthetic cells could be interfaced with living cells.
Synthetic cells were constructed by functionalising giant unilamellar vesicles with a cell-free protein synthesis system and DNA template. The DNA template dictated which proteins were synthesised inside the vesicle and, therefore, the overall function of the compartment. Photo-sensitive blocking groups were subsequently installed into the promoter regions of the DNA templates to regulate in situ gene expression; transcription, and in turn, translation, was prevented until the promoter was uncaged with UV light. This method of regulation enabled the resulting light-activated synthetic cells to be controlled remotely and in a spatiotemporally-controlled manner. To demonstrate the versatility of this platform, light-activated synthetic cells that participated in one-way communication with living cells were constructed. These compartments expressed an N-acyl homoserine lactone synthase in response to UV light, which synthesised an N-acyl homoserine lactone that was released and detected by engineered E. coli cells.
Shepherds of men: a reassessment of the Athenian 
strategoi in the classical period

Keywords: Athens
military history
Greek history
leadership
Ancient history
Athenian institutions

This thesis analyses the Athenian strategoi in the fifth and fourth centuries BC. The work critically engages with existing literature on the matter and proposes a different reconstruction of the strategoi. Instead of being weak officers with limited powers, this work argues that the strategoi had substantial independence and authority within the limits of their mandate, which was often quite loose. The office accountability limited erratic behaviour and open insubordination, but did not totally hinder every commander's independence; some commanders acted more boldly than others, probably trusting that by achieving a positive outcome in battle they would avoid harsh repercussions for any misbehaviour.
The strategoi’s authority is also discussed in extra-legal terms. The personal authority of the strategoi is discussed, on the one hand, engaging with existing scholarship on non-institutional ways to exercise power. On the other hand, the phenomenon is studied in terms of charismatic authority. The formulation of ‘synergic charisma’ is here adopted to explain the most extreme cases of extra-legal authority and offers a sociologically sound explanation for its numerous examples.
The second part of the thesis focuses on the more practical aspects of the strategia. It is proposed that the strategoi had some control over their men, even amateur citizen-soldiers, which allowed them to execute basic tactics already in the fifth century. The trend of the professionalisation of the strategoi is here questioned in favour of a mellower development. The major changes are due to fourth century Athens' socio-economic conditions more than this alleged professionalisation, of which the evidence is limited.
Lastly, the strategoi's role in the campaign's morale management and organisation is discussed to demonstrate their considerable set of responsibilities, which suggests a considerable degree of independence.
Investigating the role of lineage in the cortical integration of thalamic inputs
Keywords: Cortical development
Sensory processing

Primary sensory cortex receives and integrates inputs from first-order and higher-order thalamic nuclei. First-order inputs convey sensory information from the periphery and exhibit simple response properties, whereas higher-order inputs exhibit more complex response properties, provide contextual feedback, and can modulate first-order inputs. The data presented within this thesis show that the way in which cortical neurons integrate these thalamic inputs, reflects the progenitor cell from which the cortical neurons derive. Within layer 4 of mouse primary somatosensory cortex, excitatory neurons that derive from apical intermediate progenitors exhibit multi-whisker response properties and receive higher-order thalamic input, in a manner consistent with their dendritic morphology. These properties depend upon the expression levels of the transcription factor Lhx2, which when increased, abolishes the higher-order properties of apical intermediate progenitor-derived neurons, and disrupts the induction of sensory-evoked plasticity. These data reveal a lineage- dependent mechanism that establishes the integration and functional contribution of higher-order thalamic inputs within cortex.
Probing dark matter with resonant dynamics of the Galactic bar
Keywords: Local stellar kinematics
Dynamical friction
Dark matter
Galactic bar
Resonant dynamics

This thesis provides a novel dynamical evidence for dark matter by measuring for the first time the deceleration of the Galactic bar. This spin-down of the bar requires the transfer of energy and angular momentum to dark matter by dynamical friction, which not only is in conflict with modified gravity theories, but also imposes constraints on the kinematics and nature of dark matter.
The deceleration of the Galactic bar is quantified using the astrometric and photometric data of the Solar neighbourhood stars recently obtained by the Gaia space telescope. When the bar spins down, the resonant phase-space drifts radially outward through the stellar disk while growing in volume, thereby capturing new stars along its path. Since these trapped stars conserve the action of libration, which quantifies the amplitude of motion around the resonance, the resonant phase-space grows just like tree-rings, adding new layers of trapped stars at its surface. Together with the negative metallicity gradient in the disk, this implies a prominent increase in stellar metallicity towards the resonance centre. We detected this tell-tale signal in the bar's corotation resonance, thus quantitatively proving the bar's slowdown. During the course of this research, we also resolved the long-standing issue on the origin of the Hercules stellar stream and provided a precise estimate on the bar's current pattern speed.
Furthermore, in order to constrain the phase-space distribution of dark matter from the measured slowing rate of the bar, we developed a theory of dynamical friction in the non-linear regime in the slow limit of bar evolution. Using the resonant angle-action coordinates, we successfully modelled the long-term oscillation and saturation of dynamical friction as a result of the non-linear phase mixing in the trapped phase-space.
Sámi youth: Identity complexity of an indigenous Scandinavian people
Keywords: youth
identity prism
Sámi
indigeneity
identity

The Sámi people of Scandinavia are a group of indigenous people who for the most part reside within an area known as Sápmi where they engage with their traditional, social and cultural realities while also being full participants in the modern day Nordic existence. When it comes to the Sámi youth, they are faced with a perplexing, extraordinary and distinctive negotiation of figuring out who they are within the overall coexistence of their traditional and modern selves. This thesis seeks to understand, describe, analyse and conceptualise the complex identities of young Sámi indigenous people through a long-term, cooperative, cross-section exploration into the contextual reality of a group of young Sámi existing within a certain time and space in the heart of Sápmi. In this study more than two years worth of ethnographic data collected in the field with young Sámi participants is processed in order to conceptualise the findings into a comprehensive understanding of the Sámi youth complex, multifaceted and dynamic identities. This gave rise to the novel idea and theory of the identity prism and its functionalities as a way forward for discussing and comprehending human identity. The identity prism as a superordinate unit of understanding the self offers an in-depth exposition of the anthropological meaning of the individual identity as created by both the private thought of the self and the social meaning of the shared environments in a dynamic system of interactions, exchanges, reflections, refractions and self-continuity. As part of the overall power hierarchy, the prismatic understanding of identity in terms of the self and the other proposes a way of perception of the modern, multicultural, globalised reality by considering the complex, multifaceted and dynamic nature of human identity.
Regiodivergent nucleophilic fluorination under hydrogen bonding phase transfer catalysis
Keywords: Regiodivergent
Phase Transfer Catalysis
Nucleophilic Fluorination
organocatalysis
Hydrogen Bonding
parallel kinetic resolution

Chapter 1 briefly introduces the different concepts that have been applied in regioselective catalysis. Non-catalyst controlled and catalyst-controlled methods for inducing regioselectivity are presented. Despite the abundance of fluorination methods, no catalytic regiodivergent nucleophilic fluorination has been recorded in literature to the best of our knowledge. The potential of hydrogen bonding phase transfer catalysis (HBPTC) is then discussed as a viable method to address this problem. Finally, the aim of this thesis is summarised.
Chapter 2 focuses on the efforts taken towards the development of a novel hydrogen bonding-mediated regioselective nucleophilic fluorination. The effect of hydrogen bond donor (HBD) urea organocatalysts on altering fluoride’s anion kinetic preference is demonstrated. It is also presented that HBD urea organocatalysts are capable of not only changing the kinetic regiochemical preference of fluoride, but also induce a thermodynamic product equilibration. First, this chapter focuses on the substrate of choice and then expands on the development and optimisation of a kinetically and thermodynamically controlled regiodivergent nucleophilic fluorination protocol.
Chapter 3 presents the scope of the urea-catalysed regioselective fluorination. Substrate synthesis and the efforts made to expand the synthetic applicability of the developed methodology are also presented.
Chapter 4 describes our attempts towards merging our developed catalytic regioselective fluorination with a kinetic resolution process and presents proof of concept for a novel regiodivergent parallel kinetic resolution.
Chapter 5 gives full experimental procedures and characterisation data for all novel compounds.
Sexual selection and reproductive trade-offs in caring parents
Keywords: Female competition
Female choice
Parental care
Sexual selection

Successful reproduction depends on individuals both obtaining mates and other reproductive resources, and producing offspring that are capable of surviving to maturity. However, for each of these investments they must draw on a finite pool of resources leading to trade-offs that can influence selection on both competitive and parental investment. As such, species are often characterised by one sex which focuses investment on reproduction and parental care and one which invests predominantly in intrasexual competition. However, there are important cases where males or females are selected to invest heavily in both reproduction and competition. In teleost fish, male-only parental care is the predominant parental strategy, but males typically also compete more intensely for mates than females. In polygynous species, females usually provide the majority of the parental care and invest in reproduction through eggs or foetal nourishment. However, female-female competition for resources that will improve reproduction can also be an important selective force in females and drive the evolution of competitive traits. How do the constraints imposed by a trade-off between reproduction and competition influence selection in these two cases? In this thesis I use a combination of experimental, observational and meta-analytical methods to investigate male-only parental care and female-female competition in fish. By analysing the costs and benefits of paternal care across species I show that care may be sexually selected in males, as females prefer males already guarding eggs, and that this preference in females may improve offspring survival. Using laboratory experiments and field observations on the harem-breeding cichlid, Lamprologus ocellatus, I find support for a trade-off between competition and reproduction in females and show that competition for male contributions to care may influence the outcomes of this trade-off. This work demonstrates that in some cases, relaxation of the trade-off between parental investment and intrasexual competition may select for parents that are both competitive and caring, but in other cases, this trade-off may still impose constraints on the evolution or expression of competitive or parental traits.
Rhodium(I) catalysis for intermolecular alkyne hydroacylation and desymmetrisation
Keywords: C-H activation
[2+2+2] cycloaddition
Desymmetrisation
Rhodium
Hydroacylation

This thesis discloses the uses and development of rhodium(I) catalysis within intermolecular hydroacylation and asymmetric [2+2+2] cycloadditions.
Chapter 1 provides a general overview of the key methods and tethering strategies within the field rhodium(I) catalysed hydroacylation.
Chapter 2 describes the diverse synthesis of fully saturated O- and N-heterocycles through a hydroacylation/conjugate-addition sequence.
Chapter 3 uses azine N-oxides as novel directing groups for aldehyde C–H activation within intermolecular hydroacylation reactions.
Chapter 4 presents a short field overview of rhodium(I) catalysed [2+2+2] cycloaddition, before applying this reaction to sulfoximine desymmetrisation.
Cognitive foreclosure
Keywords: Economics
Competition law
Antitrust
Behavioural economics
Technology

Digital markets now fundamentally intertwine with our social and economic lives. International enforcement actions, the US and EU Google cases in particular, demonstrate how from a behavioural economic perspective digital platforms may be beginning to implicate antitrust’s two most fundamental doctrinal components—conduct and market power—in nuanced ways. In short, the regulatory and policy landscape showcases that we may be moving closer towards an antitrust world whereby firms can manipulate consumers’ psychological shortcomings to foreclose competition – a new form of nefarious conduct that might appropriately be termed “cognitive foreclosure”. And because consumers’ cognitive anomalies are the drivers behind this new form of potentially anti-competitive conduct, consumers simultaneously are the potential solution. The behavioural deviation from perfect competition, then, would need to be “substantial” and “sustainable” such that consumers cannot short-circuit these emerging market failures themselves. This Thesis proffers digital platform markets as one context in which such a deviation may be expected to occur and hence warrant antitrust intervention.