VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
Conceptualizations of Identities in Bisexual, Pansexual, and Plurisexual Communities
Keywords: Bisexual
Internalized Stigma
Pansexual
Plurisexual
Reflexive Thematic Analysis

Plurisexual people – individuals who are attracted to multiple genders – are at increased risk for mental health concerns. Internalized sexual stigma, that is, the internalization of negative attitudes towards one’s sexual orientation, is a key contributor to plurisexual mental health. However, extant scales of this construct are few and lack appropriate content. This study aimed to understand individuals’ attitudes towards their plurisexuality, and translate this into questionnaire items. Qualitative interviews were conducted with n = 13 plurisexual people and n = 3 mental health clinicians. Reflexive thematic analysis yielded three themes: (1) Validating vs. Doubting Myself – self-affirmation to combat identity uncertainty, (2) Owning My Truth vs. Avoiding It – accepting plurisexuality as a core part of oneself versus denying it, and (3) Celebrating vs. Shaming Myself – viewing plurisexuality as an overall positive versus negative force in one’s life. Implications for conceptualizations of internalized sexual stigma and quantitative scale development are discussed.
Detecting Multipartite Entangled States with Machine Learning-Derived Witnesses
Keywords: Entanglement Detection
Entanglement Witness
Machine Learning
Quantum Information Science

We are entering a time in which quantum channel capacity is becoming increasingly dependent on having high-dimensional entangled systems. However, existing methods of detecting high-dimensional entanglement are hindered by their need for an unwieldy amount of measurements and computational power. Indeed, the use of entanglement witnesses circumvents this problem by only considering a small subset of the entangled states in Hilbert Space. Although efficient witnesses for 2-qubit Bell States and 3-Qubit GHZ states are well-known, the predominant “fidelity method" witnesses used for detecting multipartite W states remain relatively complex in the amount of measurements that they require. The work outlined in this thesis aims to improve on existing entanglement witnesses by drawing their correspondence with supervised learning techniques, specifically Support Vector Machines. In doing so, one can derive entanglement witnesses whose features (observables obtained via local operations and classical communications) can be ranked according to their impact on the classification of entangled and separable states. This method allows us to derive W state witnesses that require fewer measurements than those derived via the fidelity method. The process of Recursive Feature Elimination is also presented, by which we can define witnesses that can be decomposed into fewer Pauli observables at the cost of inferior tolerance to noise. Finally, we present the practical utility of our derived witnesses through physical experiments performed on the superconducting qubit devices provided by IBM.
An Online Platform for Manipulating and Understanding Attentional Tunneling: The Development and Assessment of CogLog 2.0
Keywords: attentional processes
attentional tunneling
passive data monitoring

This thesis explores the induction and measurement of attentional tunneling in a display-based visual search task through the development and subsequent analysis of an online platform called CogLog. An overview of the terms and definitions relevant to attentional tunneling, as well as a review of the state-of-the-art of measurement and manipulation of attentional tunneling, are provided. The original CogLog was designed by previous researchers but is no longer accessible for further research as originally intended; therefore, the development and assessment of a more accessible and modular platform called CogLog 2.0 as serves as the major contribution of this thesis. The assessment confirms that CogLog 2.0 performs comparably to its predecessor with the addition of a built-in workload assessment feature. CogLog 2.0 is positioned as a tool for further studying attentional tunneling as well as cognitive countermeasures and adaptive display interventions.
Cell-extracellular Matrix Interactions Contribute to Rapid Embryonic Wound Closure
Keywords: adherens junctions
cytoskeleton
Drosophila
Extracellular matrix
integrins
wound healing

Embryos repair wounds rapidly, in a process driven by the collective movement of the cells around the wound. The cells adjacent to embryonic wounds polarize the cytoskeletal proteins actin and non-muscle myosin II at the wound edge. Simultaneously, adherens junction proteins including E-cadherin are internalized from the wound border and localize to former tricellular junctions around the wound. Using quantitative microscopy, we found that cells adjacent to embryonic wounds in Drosophila polarized Talin, a core component of cell-extracellular matrix (ECM) adhesions. Integrin knock-down delayed wound closure and was associated with a defect in E-cadherin reinforcement at tricellular junctions along the wound edge. Additionally, depleting integrins caused a reduction in actin levels and an abnormal actin distribution around the wound. Together, our results show that cell-ECM adhesion contributes to embryonic wound repair and reveal an interplay between cell-cell and cell-ECM adhesion for the transmission of forces that drive embryonic wound healing.
Covalent Attachment of Polyaspartic Acid to Experimental Resin-based Materials for the Microinvasive Treatment of White Spot Lesions: An In vitro Pilot Study
Keywords: Covalent bond
Experimental Infiltrant
Polyaspartic acid
Resin Infiltrant
White spot lesion

Background: Resin infiltrants can be improved through the addition of bioactive molecules. A bioactive molecule capable of promoting hydroxyapatite development is polyaspartic acid, pAsp. Objective: This in vitro study assessed the material properties of experimental resin-based materials. Methods: Artificial white spot lesions on extracted human premolars (n=60) were treated with resin-based materials, Prime&BondTM (Dentsply Sirona, North Carolina, USA) or IconTM (DMG, Hamburg, Germany), containing pAsp (passive or covalent) or unmodified. After remineralization, specimens were assessed for penetration depth (μm) through Confocal Microscopy, and surface nanohardness (GPa) and Young’s modulus (GPa) through Diamond Berkovich Indenter. Two-way ANOVA followed by Tukey post-hoc test was used to analyze data, a=0.05. Results: Covalent attachment of pAsp significantly increased penetration depth compared to passive addition pAsp to resin-based materials (p=0.013). Conclusion: To our knowledge this is the first study to covalently attach pAsp to resin-based materials targeted for the treatment of white spot enamel lesions.
A Power-Performance Comparison of CMOS Tunable-Delay Clock Buffers
Keywords: Clock Buffering
Digitally-Controlled Delay Line
Power-Supply Induced Jitter
Random Jitter
Random Jitter Amplification
Wireline Communications

This thesis presents a systematic comparison of the power-supply induced jitter (PSIJ), random jitter (RJ) generation and random jitter amplification (RJA) of different CMOS tunable-delay clock buffers in GF 45-nm PDSOI technology. Under the proposed com- parison methodology, inductive peaking buffer architectures using passive and active inductors were found to have the best jitter performance. Passive inductors require large areas at moderate clock frequencies and thus are impractical for most applications. A novel active inductive peaking buffer architecture is proposed as an alternative, improving upon the state-of-the-art by reducing the self-loading effect and improving jitter atten- uation. The clocks of two different digitally-controlled delay lines (DCDL) using shunt capacitor buffers and the proposed active inductive peaking buffers were used at the final multiplexer stage of a prototype 25 Gb/s NRZ transmitter. The resulting post-layout simulated transmitter output jitter shows a 30% reduction using the proposed active inductive peaking buffer design.
Effects of Maternal High Fat Diet on Microglia Activation in Rat Offspring
Keywords: Amygdala
High-fat diet
Immunophenotype
Inflammation
Microglia
NFKB

Maternal consumption of high saturated-fat diets (mHFD) leads to anxiety-like phenotypes in offspring. Prior evidence suggests that enhanced reactivity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, which regulates the stress response and neuroinflammation through glucocorticoid receptor (GR) activity, contributes to these phenotypes. Microglia sustain long-lasting phenotypes in response to mHFD, but their role in early-life GR-mediated neuroinflammation is relatively unknown. The objectives of this study were: (1) measure inflammatory gene expression in P7 (neonatal) offspring after mHFD exposure; (2) study changes in microglia density, activation, and morphology; (3) purify microglia from P60 (adult) offspring and characterize their immunophenotype. I hypothesized mHFD would alter offspring microglia to become more activated and pro-inflammatory. My results showed microglia changed their immunophenotype and became activated after mHFD exposure during neonatal stages. Adult microglia immunophenotypes were altered in a sex-specific manner. This research provides insight into mechanisms that drive stress-related mental health outcomes associated with developmental mHFD exposure.
Upper and Lower Body Intersegmental Coordination During Unsupervised Gait of Older Adults with Dementia
Keywords: Coordination
Dementia
Falls
Gait
Video-based Analysis

People with dementia are at a high risk of falls, and changes in coordination of the upper and lower body segments may contribute to this risk. Using data obtained from a vision-based gait monitoring system, the temporal cross correlation between trunk and thigh displacement (right and left) in the mediolateral direction, expressed as a percent of the gait cycle (%lag time), was measured in 52 people with dementia. Participants with dementia who fell during the study had more negative %lag times, representing a pattern of gait coordination where trunk motion lagged behind thigh motion. Negative %lag times were associated with number of falls during the study and a history of falls. Negative %lag times were also associated with older age, lower balance test scores, increased agitation scores and spatiotemporal gait measures reflecting decreased stability. Negative %lag times are a marker for impaired stability and fall risk in people with dementia.
Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis-Individual Patient International Meta-analysis of Biochemical and Clinical Predictors of Outcome
Keywords: Autoimmune Liver Disease
Elastography
End Stage Liver Disease
Liver Biochemistry
Liver Disease
Primary Sclerosing cholangitis

PSC is an autoimmune disease of the biliary tracts that affects males more than females. Patients with PSC have a variable disease course. The disease hallmark is strictures and dilations involving the bile ducts with an increased risk of cholangiocarcinoma. PSC has a close association with IBD predominantly UC with a higher hazard of developing colon cancer. Risk stratification of PSC patients is crucial for patient education and to guide clinical decisions and transplant efforts. Multiple risk stratification strategies and models have been proposed. In this study, we sought to explore novel risk stratification strategies in addition to longitudinal risk stratification models to identify patients with progressive disease. ALP, TB, Albumin and platelets have a distinctive pattern and levels for patients with progressive disease and can identify them up to 10 years before experiencing death or transplant. Additionally, total bilirubin ULN can be used to discriminate high-risk patients.
A Framework For Bayesian Optimization of Probabilistic Robustness Metrics
Keywords: Gaussian processes
Machine Learning
Optimization
Robustness Metrics
Uncertainty

In this thesis, we consider the problem of optimizing probabilistic robustness metrics that depend on the outputs of expensive black-box simulators. In the present work, Gaussian process models of the black-box simulators are leveraged as surrogates to construct sample-based approximations of acquisition functions that can then be used to guide Bayesian optimization algorithms towards the optimum of the probabilistic robustness metric. Sample-based approximations enable accelerated optimization of some acquisition functions using stochastic gradient descent methods, while enabling our framework to accommodate arbitrary robustness metrics. An approach is presented to address the challenges associated with visualizing convergence of probabilistic robustness metrics calculated using surrogate models that are updated sequentially with each observation. A prototype GUI is developed to allow users to specify their problem statement while ensuring all parameters and data are correctly defined. Lastly, numerical studies are presented to illustrate the efficacy of the proposed approach.
Characterization of PRR20A, FCBR3B and KLHL40 as Proximity-Dependent Effectors of Protein Stability
Keywords: FCGR3B
KLHL40
Proximity-Dependent degradtion
PRR20A

Proteasomal degradation, a natural process that degrades proteins, is used in targeted protein degradation (TPD) therapeutics to cure diseases. To find potential degraders for TPD, the Taipale lab screened for proteins that induce protein degradation or stabilization in a proximity-dependent manner. I characterized the degraders PRR20A and FCGR3B and the stabilizer KLHL40. I made mutants of PRR20A to identify residues in its degron and identified some residues that might be involved in it. I performed a CRISPR screen on cells expressing FCGR3B-vhhGFP or KLHL40-vhhGFP, with the vhhGFP nanobody binding a GFP construct. In the FCGR3B samples there were kinases and GPI-anchor biogenesis proteins. There were chaperones and phosphorylases in the KLHL40 samples. These proteins can be inhibited to see if they are involved in the KLHL40 or FCGR3B mechanism. The PRR20A residues can help identify an E3 acting on it. Characterizing these proteins could help in developing proximity drugs.
Play-in-Development: An Examination of the Role of Free Play and the University in the Sport-for-Development Sector
Keywords: Community Service-Learning
Play
Post-secondary
Sport-for-development
University

The following research examined student experiences with the community service-learning (CSL) course Play Around the World (PAW), offered by the Faculty of Kinesiology, Sport, and Recreation (KSR) at the University of Alberta (U of A). This research sought to understand the nature and objectives of the program, and to analyze PAW student experiences with the program to answer the following research questions: 1) What is the role of the university within the sport for development (SFD) sector, and 2) What is the role of “free play” within the sport for development sector: with a third research question having emerged as the research process unfolded: 3) How can the PAW program inform the SFD sector moving forward? Key findings revealed that the university and their use of the free play methodology created critically reflexive environments which allowed student practitioners to challenge the neoliberal and neo-colonial features associated with traditional SFD programs.
Predicting Oxygen Transport Properties of Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell Gas Diffusion Layers with Local Saturation Considerations: A Pore Network Modelling Approach
Keywords: gas diffusion layer
local saturation
oxygen transport resistance
polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell

Polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cells are a promising means of reducing anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. However, mass transport losses hinder the performance of PEM fuel cells, impeding their commercialization. This thesis comprises of two studies that determine the impact of liquid water within the substrate on the oxygen transport behaviour of the fuel cell. First, the impact of channel and land region saturation on the oxygen transport properties of the substrate were determined. The oxygen transport properties of the substrate were severely affected by channel region saturation, while land region saturation had a relatively minor impact. Next, the contribution of the substrate to the oxygen transport resistance of a PEM fuel cell was determined. It was determined that significant oxygen transport resistance arises from the catalyst layer (CL) or CL-microporous layer interface. This thesis offers insight into designing next-generation components for improved PEM fuel cell performance.
Student Reflections of their Experiences with French as a Second Language Programs in Ontario
Keywords: core french
French as a second language
french immersion
FSL
Ontario
second language

By documenting student perspectives on French as a Second Language (FSL) in Ontario, this study gains a better understanding of the degree to which students appreciate their FSL programs. The literature review reveals that research on FSL focuses primarily on teachers’ working conditions, pedagogy, and student proficiency and motivation. This study aims to provide the voice of students on their experiences of FSL. Participants were university students (n=24) who had previously completed a FSL program in Ontario. Data were collected using a questionnaire and individual interviews (n=8) and were analysed via a mixed method approach through a Complexity Theory framework. Findings revealed that participants generally appreciated their FSL programs, however they also wished to be more proficient in their oral skills, particularly university-level French-studies students who felt underprepared for their French studies. Participants expressed wanting to have more agency and authentic learning in their FSL programs at the elementary/secondary levels. En documentant les points de vue des étudiants sur le français langue seconde (FLS) en Ontario, cette étude permet de mieux comprendre dans quelle mesure ils apprécient leurs programmes de FLS. L'analyse documentaire révèle que la recherche sur le FLS porte principalement sur les enseignants, la pédagogie et la compétence et la motivation des élèves. Les participants étaient des étudiants universitaires (n=24) qui avaient déjà suivi un programme de FLS en Ontario. Les données ont été recueillies par un questionnaire et d'entretiens individuels (n=8) et ont été analysées via une approche de méthode mixte dans un cadre de théorie de la complexité. Les résultats ont révélé que les participants appréciaient généralement leurs programmes de FLS, mais qu'ils souhaitaient également être plus compétents dans leurs compétences orales. Les participants ont exprimé le désir d'avoir plus de pouvoir et l’apprentissage authentique dans leurs programmes de FLS aux niveaux élémentaire/secondaire.
Topological Properties of Causal Spaces
Keywords: General Topology
Mathematical Relativity
Metric Geometry

In this paper, we study causal spaces, i.e. spaces equipped with a time separation function. We introduce some natural topologies on this space and study their properties. We study how causal path-connectedness simplifies the topologies, and induces desirable properties such as first count- ability. We also study the compatibility of these topologies with subspaces and products. Finally we introduce an analog of the Hausdorff distance for metric spaces, called the Hausdorff time separation.
DropMAVE: A High-throughput Droplet Microfluidic Platform for Non-localized Protein Variant Effect Assays
Keywords: droplet microfluidics
missense variation
multiplexed functional assay
single-cell analysis
variant interpretation

Genome variant interpretation becomes increasingly important as next-generation sequencing discovers more genomic variation. Precision medicine seeks to leverage genomic data to better inform clinical decision making. Because most variants are classified as variants of uncertain significance, genomic data often do not have functional annotations to inform clinical decision making. Of the currently available variant interpretation methods, multiplexed assays of variant effect (MAVEs) are the only methods that can provide strong functional evidence for variant pathogenicity at scale. Because of technical challenges, scalable variant effect assays are limited for non-localized genes are limited, e.g., genes encoding secreted proteins or genes encoding enzymes with diffusible enzymes. I developed DropMAVE, a droplet microfluidic platform for scalable non-localized gene variant function assays. This platform is accessible to most life science research laboratories and generalizable to improve variant interpretation for many non-localized genes.
Social Equity in Infrastructure Planning and Delivery? Introducing An Innovative Tool Developed for the City of Toronto
Keywords: Applied Research
Asset Management
Infrastructure
Project Prioritization
Social Equity
Transportation Planning

This project stems from an applied research partnership between the University of Toronto and the City of Toronto. Over an 18-month period, our team designed a web-based tool to help managers at the Transportation Services Division assess the equity performance of infrastructure projects under their care. The tool’s output is a quantitative score which is based both on the demographic profile of those who live around the project location and on the anticipated impacts of the project. The main goal of this master’s thesis is to explain the scoring protocol we developed and to demonstrate how the tool can be used in practice to inform decision-making. As the City of Toronto faces a major budget shortfall, this new tool shows great promise to support equity-oriented project prioritization. More broadly, we hope that reporting our experience will prompt other cities to make equity an integral part of their infrastructure planning and delivery process.
Investigation of Neural Effects of Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation on Hot and Cold Cognitive Systems in Depression
Keywords: cognition
major depression
rTMS

Introduction: Cognitive impairment is a chronic feature of major depressive disorder (MDD), conceptualized as aberrant processing in hot (emotion-laden) and cold (emotion-independent) cognitive systems. While the clinical efficacy of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) for MDD has been established, its effects on cognition remain unclear. This thesis aimed to investigate the effect of rTMS on hot and cold cognition. Methods: MDD patients (N=24) received rTMS, completed cognitive assessments, and were evaluated for depressive symptoms. Matched healthy controls (HC) (N=33) were recruited. Results: Following rTMS, antidepressant effect was observed in MDD patients, while hot and cold cognition remained unchanged. A pre-rTMS cognitive phenotype for remitters emerged, suggesting greater sustained attention, free recall, and efficiency in facial expression identification, independent from clinical outcome. Conclusions: Findings suggest rTMS to be cognitively safe and clinically efficacious. A pre-rTMS cognitive phenotype for remitters was discovered, highlighting potential trait-markers indicative of future remission status.