VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
Britain's contribution to détente: the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, 1972-1975
Keywords: diplomacy
negotiations
constructed peace
Conference on Security and Cooperation (CSCE)
Cold War
detente
UK foreign policy

This thesis examines Britain’s role in the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE). Based on multi-archival research and interviews with key diplomats, it presents the first in-depth study of Britain’s involvement in the negotiations leading up to the Helsinki Final Act of 1 August 1975. It draws on Marc Trachtenberg’s notion of the ‘constructed peace’, and Alexander Wendt’s concept of ‘cultures of anarchy’ to elucidate how the rapprochement process at once stabilised and transformed the East-West conflict. This forms the theoretical framework of the thesis.
The thesis revises the interpretation of détente as a status quo project driven by the imperatives of ‘Realpolitik’. Rather, different conceptions of stability and change challenged each other during the Helsinki talks. British diplomacy and the Final Act to which it contributed in fact linked the consolidation of the status quo to an ultimately transformative agenda that was infused with liberal ideas such as human rights. Realpolitik blended with Moralpolitik.
To develop this argument, the thesis’ narrative first assesses Britain’s role in the early days of détente politics in the 1950s and 1960s. It then traces Britain’s role in the three main phases of the Helsinki process: the transition from bilateral to multilateral détente (1970-1972); preliminary talks (1972-1973); official negotiations (1973-1975). The British were defensive détente sceptics at the beginning of this process, but became ambitious and positive contributors over the course of the talks.
The thesis thus argues that London played a significant part in the CSCE. British foreign policymakers were initially architects of the Cold War, but then early and active proponents of détente until the mid-1960s, when their continental partners adopted a more proactive approach. London was to return to the forefront of détente diplomacy when the CSCE process got under way. Its involvement in the CSCE also marked an important step in Britain’s own transformation into a European middle power. The multilateralisation of détente coincided with Britain’s integration into the European Community, providing a propitious environment in which London’s negotiators acted with determination and skill, thus reasserting their country’s influence despite its continuing relative decline.
Mating behaviour and female mate choice in the Harvest mouse (Micromys minutus)
Keywords: mating behaviour
female mate choice
micromys minutus
behavioural ecology
harvest mouse
familiarity

The harvest mouse (Micromys minutus) is Britain’s smallest rodent, and one of its least‐studied mammals. Mounting concerns over the status of its British populations highlights the paucity of information about this species, not least about different aspects of its behaviour. I study the mating behaviour of the harvest mouse, focusing on female mate choice, and specifically on the effect familiarity with the male has on the female’s mating preference.
In order to isolate the role of familiarity on female mate choice, I conducted a controlled choice experiment, in which the female had a choice between two tethered males ‐ one familiar and one unfamiliar to her. The results support the prediction that female harvest mice prefer familiar males over unfamiliar ones when they are in oestrus. Results also reveal that females spend more time in proximity to unfamiliar males when they are not in oestrus, and that the difference in the body weight of the males affects the strength of their response.
A more naturalistic experiment was also set up, in which a female and two males ‐ again one familiar and one unfamiliar – were allowed to interact unhindered. This setup allowed the recording of full mating cycles, including copulations. These experiments provide descriptive information about both inter‐ and intra‐sexual interactions surrounding mating. Dominance relations between the two males were very clear cut and the female mated with the dominant male, and only with him. Familiarity did not seem to affect the female’s mating preference.
In summary this study shows that female harvest mice prefer familiar males over unfamiliar ones and that male familiarity and dominance interact to influence female mate choice. The study also provides background information about the harvest mouse’s mating behaviour and intra‐male interactions with potential significance for the understanding of other aspects of the natural history of this poorly studied species.
Imaging neuroinflammatory processes with USPIO-MRI
Keywords: Microglia
Macrophages
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Blood Brain Barrier
MRI Contrast Agents

This thesis examines the utility of USPIO-MRI to provide a tool of tracking macrophage recruitment to sites of neuroinflammation within the CNS. Recruited macrophages and microglia resident in CNS tissue play a key role in the pathophysiology of a number of neuroinflammatory diseases such as neuropathic pain and multiple sclerosis. Under activated conditions, microglia and macrophages will phagocytose invading cells and CNS debris. It has been shown that ultrasmall superparamagnetic particles of iron oxide (USPIO), such as Sinerem, injected systemically, are engulfed by macrophages, which in turn migrate to sites of tissue injury. USPIOs can be visualised as a distinct reduction in signal intensity on T2* weighted MR images. However, there are still some issues regarding the distinction between iron-laden recruited macrophages and the entry of free iron across a permeable blood brain barrier (BBB) in disease cases. Hence, it was shown that intravenously injected Sinerem is cleared from the peripheral circulation within 24 hours, indentifying this as a time point as suitable for MCP-1 injection. Data showed that free USPIO can be visualised in the brain and that there is a linear relationship between Sinerem concentration and T2* signal intensity changes.
MCP-1 induces macrophage recruitment to the site of microinjection and causes BBB breakdown at between 3 and 4 hours. In particular it was shown that T2* signal intensity changes are seen, in the presence of an intact BBB, as a result of Sinerem laden macrophages. This finding was verified by the co-localisation of ED-1 positive cells and Prussian blue positive regions. It was demonstrated that there is a strong correlation between T2* signal changes and the number of macrophages. This demonstrates that USPIO-MRI can be used to characterise macrophage infiltration in neuroinflammation in the presence of an intact BBB.
Ultrasound parametric imaging and image analysis for breast cancer characterisation and treatment monitoring
Keywords: PARAMETRIC IMAGING
ULTRASOUND IMAGING
IMAGE REGISTRATION
BREAST CANCER
CANCER TREATMENT MONITORING

Breast cancer research based on medical ultrasound has traditionally focused on providing early diagnosis and breast cancer classification/characterisation. However, with the advances in cancer therapy treatments and innovations in cancer drug developments, developing methods for treatment monitoring is becoming ever more important. In particular fibrotic change in breast cancer is a common after-effect that accompanies successful breast cancer chemotherapy treatment where breast tumour cells are eradicated and replaced by fibrous tissue. As a result, the ability to monitor fibrotic changes can be used to indicate the effectiveness of chemotherapy treatments. Ultrasound spectral parametric imaging is a method that looks at the information embedded in the frequency/spectral domain of ultrasound RF signals and can be used to characterise tissue ultrasound backscattering properties. In this thesis ultrasound spectral parametric imaging is first applied to characterise breast fibrosis and its efficacy for monitoring breast cancer neoadjuvant chemotherapy treatment is subsequently investigated in a pilot study. The pilot study suggests that an increase in ultrasound spectral intercept is able to indicate fibrotic changes before and after treatments. These encouraging results suggest further work is considered to determine the suitability for monitoring intermediate changes. As histopathology images are considered as the gold standard in breast cancer pathology, ultrasound parametric images need to be studied and compared against histopathology so information provided in ultrasound parametric images can be better understood. A new registration method is shown to improve the alignment of ultrasound parametric images and histopathology images that facilitates the comparison between the images. The registration method is based on the coherent point drift (CPD) algorithm and the thin plate spline (TPS) method. All of the results show that ultrasound spectral parametric imaging is a promising tool for providing further understanding of breast cancer changes during therapy, which in turn will lead to improved breast cancer treatment monitoring and planning.
Struggling to belong: nativism, identities, and urban social relations in Kano and Amsterdam
Keywords: categorisation
ethnicity
identity
nativism
Netherlands
Nigeria
Kano
Amsterdam
integration
conflict
minorities
urban governance

The research problem of this thesis is to explore the effects of top-down, bureaucratic definitions of belonging and social identity on urban social relations. More specifically, the thesis analyses the ways in which the nativist categorisations of indigeneity in Kano and autochtonie in Amsterdam can help to understand the tensions between ethnic groups in these two cities. Methodologically, the study is designed as a least-similar, comparative exploration and uses mixed qualitative and quantitative methods in its case studies of Kano and Amsterdam. Theoretically, this study uses identity cleavages and identification as the mediators between policy categories and social relations. It combines social-psychological, historical, and institutional theories to link bureaucratic nativism to ethnic identities and, finally, to conflictual (or ‘destructive’) interethnic relations. The resulting theoretical argument of the thesis is that nativist policy categorisations are likely conducive to antagonism, avoidance, and conflict between groups defined as ‘natives’ and ‘settlers’.
The central finding of the thesis is that both in Kano and in Amsterdam, indigeneity and autochtonie have entrenched a primordial and competitive (or ‘exclusionary’) notion of ethnic identities and have thus been conducive to interethnic antagonism, avoidance, and conflict. Introduced at a time of rapid immigration, social change, and persistent horizontal inequalities, the two top-down policy categories came to redefine urban belonging in Kano and Amsterdam. As a result, previously apolitical ethnic boundaries between ‘natives’ and ‘settlers’ became politicised, connected to exclusionary definitions of religion and class, and ranked on the basis of their claim to a primordial ‘native’ status - that is, their status as historical ‘first-comers’ in their place of residence. The categorisation and group positioning effects of nativism have, therefore, intensified the urban struggle to belong in Kano and Amsterdam. At the same time, however, the thesis underlines that ethnic conflict in Kano and Amsterdam is limited, partly because nativist forms of belonging are continuously challenged by, for example, inclusive multiculturalism in Kano and urban citizenship in Amsterdam.
On the geometric and analytic properties of some random fractals
Keywords: Probability
Fractals
Spectral Analysis

The heat content of a domain D of &Ropf;d is defined as
E(s) = ∫D u(s,x)dx,
where u is the solution to the heat equation with zero initial condition and unit Dirichlet boundary condition. This thesis studies the behaviour of E(s) for small s with a particular emphasis on the case where D
is a planar domain whose boundary is a random Koch curve.
When ∂D is spatially homogeneous, we show that we can recover the upper and lower Minkowski dimensions of ∂D from E(s). Furthermore, in some cases where the Minkowski dimension does exist, finer fluctuations can be recovered and the heat content is controlled by sα exp{f (log(1/s)} for small s, for some positive α and some regularly varying function f.
When ∂D is statistically self-similar, the heat content asymptotics are studied using a law of large numbers for the general branching process, and we show that the Minkowski dimension and content of ∂D exist and can be recovered from E(s). More precisely the heat content has an almost sure expansion
E(s) = c1 sα N∞ + o(sα), a.s.
for small s, for some positive c1 and α and a positive random variable N∞ with unit expectation.
To study the fluctuations around these asymptotics, we prove a central limit theorem for the general branching process. The proof follows a standard Taylor expansion argument and relies on the independence built into the general branching process. The limiting distribution established here is reminiscent of those arising in central limit theorems for martingales.
When ∂D is a statistically self-similar Cantor subset of &Ropf;, we discuss examples where we have and fail to have a central limit theorem for the heat content. We conclude with an open question about the fluctuations of the heat content when ∂D is a statistically self-similar Koch curve.
Statistical methods for studying the frequency of monitoring chronic conditions
Keywords: Primary Care
diabetes
statistical models
monitoring

Evidence for the timing and frequency of monitoring chronic conditions in primary care is often of low quality or absent. Recently, a methodology based upon repeated measures of monitoring tests has been developed to evaluate monitoring strategies which differ by frequency and the length of interval. In studies using this approach, it has been shown that there is potential for substantial over-detection and over-treatment through routine monitoring.
The aim of this thesis was to extend the existing methodology to outcomes with highly skewed distributions and tests that are interpreted as dichotomous or categorical states. These methods were applied to find evidence for the intervals of monitoring for microalbuminuria in people with type 1 diabetes and screening for diabetic retinopathy.
Statistical models were used to describe the progression of albuminuria and retinopathy and estimate the rates of false positive and false negative tests over time. Simulation was then used to create hypothetical cohorts of people being monitored and screening at different frequencies and for different baseline risk. The impact of changing the timing of tests within the programme was measured and evaluated.
The basic framework of the methodology can be usefully extended to tests that have categorical outcome or highly skewed distributions. More frequent monitoring of microalbuminuria in people with type 1 diabetes, and more frequent screening of diabetic retinopathy leads to disproportionate numbers of false positive results and potential over-treatment or referral to specialist services.
As with any other clinical intervention, monitoring and screening intervals should be based upon solid evidence. Monitoring for microalbuminuria and screening for diabetic retinopathy less frequently would reduce the rates of false positives tests but the implications of less surveillance need further investigation.
Socio-religious functions of three Theban festivals in the New Kingdom: the festivals of Opet, the Valley, and the New Year
Keywords: Thebes
ancient Egypt
festival
religion
Egyptology

In addition to temple rituals performed for the god by the king, festivals incorporated a broader domain, where a wider public had access to the divine. The participants in feasts ranged from the royal, officials and priests to the non-elite and the dead. Theoretically and ideologically, individuals would have received fruits of the divine power through the king by taking part in celebrations to variable extent. This functioned a vehicle for the god and the king to maintain their authoritative credibility and, by extension, the world order. The circulation of the divine force formed a different appearance at each festival, such as material supplies, promotions, and juridical decrees. These divine conveyances would have more or less met people’s social and religious needs. By embracing modality, periodicity, and publicness, festivals provided participants and audiences with a public setting and a formal means, whereby they were able to seek their identity as part of society. This may or may not have been relevant to personal piety, allegiance, responsibilities, and goodness, but public celebrations at least brought the king’s subjects together to common grounds for official beliefs and social decorum.
In order to demonstrate such socio-religious functions of festivals, I will attempt to focus on and examine three Theban celebrations in the New Kingdom, namely, the Festivals of Opet, the Valley, and the New Year, about which a wealth of information has survived. The examination can hardly be possible without exploring the history of these feasts because their development from earlier times, to which part of this thesis is also devoted, shows the continuity of elements essential to Egyptian cult practices, particularly those associated with the mortuary cult.
Exceptional preservation of cells in phosphate and the early evolution of the biosphere
Keywords: palaeontology
prokaryote
phosphate
astrobiology
geobiology
eukaryote
proterozoic

The Proterozoic period saw some of the most fundamental revolutions in the biological and geological world. During this period, life diversified and set the stage for the radiation of multicellular life, altering the face of the planet in the process. The fossil record of this time is not yet fully understood, and a revisitation of a historically reported fossil deposit in the 1 Ga Torridon rocks of northwest Scotland shows that they host the fossils of the earliest non-marine eukaryotes, as well as a full and diverse fossil assemblage preserved in sedimentary phosphates and shales. Fine scale sedimentology of the fluvio-lacustrine rocks of the Torridon Group reveals them to be laid down in a laterally variable basin with distinctly different palaeoenvironments. The resident biota is seen to be similarly variable between lithofacies. New criteria for classifying taphonomic effects are presented, and used to characterise assemblages from different palaeoenvironments, with broader applications beyond this study. The Torridon rocks are also host to macrostructures on the surfaces and soles of beds, and these are interpreted as of likely biological origin, with their variability mapped between different lithofacies. High-resolution studies of both the preserved biota and the mineralogy of the preserving medium reveal in detail not only the fine scale structure of the fossil organisms, but also the reasons for their exceptional preservation. Phosphate is analysed in detail to explain its enigmatic occurrence in Proterozoic lakes. To place the Torridon deposits in context, both older and younger rocks were examined in comparison, from the 2 Ga Gunflint Formation of Ontario, Canada, and the Precambrian-Cambrian successions of eastern Newfoundland respectively. New finds of phosphate in these rocks help to reveal biochemical interactions and evolution on the early Earth, with implications for further understanding life on our own planet and elsewhere.
A new role for the spliceosome in the regulation of gene expression
Keywords: Splicing
Gene expression
Exosome
Spliceosome

Through a genome wide study of spliceosome recruitment in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, we were able to identify a set of protein-coding genes that despite the fact that they contain no introns and their mRNA is not known to be spliced; their loci were occupied by the spliceosome. Bioinformatic analysis revealed the existence of splicing signals on these genes. Detailed analysis of BDF2, a representative gene, revealed that the spliceosome negatively regulates its mRNA levels through an unconventional one-step splicing reaction that cleaves BDF2 mRNA and targets the cleavage products for degradation. In an effort to clarify the mechanism of spliceosome recruitment to BDF2 locus, we identified that Bdf1, the redundant to Bdf2 factor, is required for the recruitment of the spliceosome at BDF2 and the subsequent down-regulation of its mRNA levels. The above led us to propose a new role for the spliceosome in the regulation of gene expression. Finally, we investigated the generality of this regulatory mechanism is S. cerevisiae and identified a set of genes which can be differentially spliced and whose physiological expression could be potentially regulated by the spliceosome.
Trustworthy services through attestation
Keywords: trustworthy systems
web services
attestation
assurance
trust
trusted computing

Remote attestation is a promising mechanism for assurance of distributed systems. It allows users to identify the software running on a remote system before trusting it with an important task. This functionality is arriving at exactly the right time as security-critical systems, such as healthcare and financial services, are increasingly being hosted online. However, attestation has limitations and has been criticized for being impractical. Too much effort is required for too little reward: a large, rapidly-changing list of software must be maintained by users, who then have insufficient information to make a trust decision. As a result attestation is rarely used today.
This thesis evaluates attestation in a service-oriented context to determine whether it can be made practical for assurance of servers rather than client machines. There are reasons to expect that it can: servers run fewer programs and the overhead of integrity reporting is more appropriate on a server which may be protecting important assets. However, a literature review and new experiments show that problems remain, many stemming from the large trusted computing base as well as the lack of information linking software identity to expected behaviour.
Three novel solutions are proposed. Web service middleware is restructured to minimize the software running at the endpoint, thus lowering the effort for the relying party. A key advantage of the proposed two-tier structure is that strong integrity guarantees can be made without loss of conformance with service standards. Secondly, a program modelling approach is investigated to further automate the attestation and verification process and add more information about system behaviour. Several sets of programs are modelled, including the bootloader, a web service and a menu-based shell. Finally, service behaviour is attested through source code properties established during compilation. This provides a trustworthy and verifiable connection between the identity of the software on a service platform and its expected runtime behaviour. This approach is applicable to any programming language and verification method, and has the advantage of not requiring a runtime monitor. These contributions are evaluated using an example e-voting service to show the level of assurance attestation can provide.
Overall, this thesis demonstrates that attestation can be made significantly more practical through the described new techniques. Although some problem remain, with further improvements to operating systems and better software engineering methods, attestation may become a trustworthy and reliable assurance mechanism for web services.