VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
Life under Siege: Militarized Welfare in U.S.-occupied Okinawa
Keywords: Biopolitics
Cold War
Japanese colonialism
Militarism
Okinawa
U.S. military occupation

This dissertation examines the formations of what I have termed “militarized welfare,” that is, the multilayered ways in which discourses and practices of protecting and promoting life became intricately and intimately connected with militarism in Okinawa through the period of U.S. administration (1945-1972). This project draws on, and aims to contribute to, roughly three fields of scholarly literature: the politics of life and death, theorized most explicitly by Michel Foucault; U.S. (and Japanese) Cold War expansionism in the Asia-Pacific; and transpacific militarism. The central argument of my thesis is that the expansion of medical welfare in Okinawa was not antithetical to militarization, but in fact enabled it. I demonstrate this complementary relationship between warfare and welfare by closely examining the lived experiences of agents and subjects of welfare in/for occupied Okinawa – missionaries, medical practitioners, patients, Okinawan diaspora, and displaced farmers. While each actor engaged in promoting and protecting life in their own right, their acts of welfare were often easily appropriated by the U.S. military and U.S. and Japanese governments to serve their respective purposes. My thesis also tries to capture the moments when this affinity between welfare and the military was destabilized by actors who closely observed the limits of medical welfare in Okinawa. Chapter 1 explores the role of American Christianity in occupied Okinawa in producing the narratives of liberation and rehabilitation to transform Okinawa into a place worthy of salvation in the American imagination. Chapter 2 closely examines the lived experiences of public health nurses, illustrating how the education and mobilization of public health nurses constituted part of the biopolitical strategy of the U.S. Cold War empire. Chapter 3 explores the transpacific circuits of care and relief that connected occupied Okinawa, Hawaiʻi and beyond in multifaceted ways. I argue that transpacific biopolitical projects of “nurturing life” were facilitated through the necropolitical network that simultaneously shaped the Pacific in Cold War formations. Chapter 4 focuses on the protest by displaced farmers and shows how land and life itself became an effective basis for the struggle against militarism. However, these movements were soon depoliticized through social security measures.
Impacts of Late Quaternary Climate Changes on the Southern African Savanna Biome
Keywords: data analysis
machine learning
pollen
Quaternary
savanna-grassland dynamics
Southern Africa

Understanding the role of climate in driving vegetation change over recent geological time provides critical information for predicting future changes. Pollen analysis can be used to track past vegetation change, and to reconstruct Late Quaternary paleoenvironments. Pollen assemblages can assist in understanding biome responses to climate change if there is reasonable probability that they represent specific biomes. To test if biomes can be statistically described in terms of pollen assemblages, supervised machine learning methods are used to classify modern African biomes using modern pollen data. The Random Forest classifier is identified as the best method for classifying biomes using high dimensional pollen data with the ability to predict African biomes (arid, montane, tropical and subtropical closed and open systems, e.g. forests and savanna/grassland) to a high degree of accuracy and precision. The Random Forest classification model is then regionally developed for Southern Africa to investigate past savanna-grassland dynamics. An expanded modern pollen dataset for Southern Africa was compiled, and linked with contemporary biomes to build regional classification models. After validation, the models are applied to a fossil pollen record for probabilistic reconstructions of past biomes. The results show that savanna likely dominated this region for most part of the past 60,000 years. However, the glacial-interglacial transition (10,000-11,900 years ago) shows increased likelihood of grassland and rapid shifts in biome positions, offering a more complex and nuanced view of past savanna vegetation dynamics. Lastly, a late Holocene record is examined to understand more iirecent changes in savanna biome in semi-arid Southern Africa. A gradual development of relatively wetter local conditions beginning with the Northgrippian-Meghalayan transition (ca. 4.5-4 ka) is evidenced by multiple proxy records obtained from a paleomarsh context. The wet phase lasts ca. 2000 years and is characterized by increased organic matter content, dominance of taxa indicative of marshy conditions, presence of freshwater fungi, and isotopic composition of soil organic matter consistent with the presence of woody vegetation. This record provides evidence for wet conditions starting around 4.2 ka cal BP that is consistent with other regional and global records.
Phylogenetic, Ontogenetic, and Functional Implications of Hominoid Mandibular Corpus Shape Variation
Keywords: Biological Integration
Evolution
Geometric Morphometrics
Mandibular Growth
Mandibular Shape
Primate Ontogeny

Mandibular fragments are among the most commonly preserved elements in the primate fossil record. These specimens are often studied through linear measurements of mandibular corpus height and breadth, which are used to calculate mandibular robusticity (MR). Presently, the significance of mandibular corpus variation in both living and fossil hominoids remains unclear. Here, three separate analyses are conducted to develop and evaluate an alternative method to quantify hominoid mandibular corpus shape and to investigate the dietary, phylogenetic and ontogenetic significance of hominoid mandibular corpus shape variation in order to help interpret corpus shape variation in the primate fossil record. These analyses use landmarks and semilandmarks to capture the shape of the outline of the mandibular corpus in cross-section in a sample of extant great apes, corporal cortical bone distribution (CBD) in a sample of extant and fossil hominoids, and to assess ontogenetic changes in corpus shape and the relationship between these changes and molar crypt length, breadth and height in a sample of extant hominoids. These results show that quantification and comparison of the shape mandibular corpus in cross-section is a preferred alternative to MR in studying the hominoid fossil record. Additionally, extant hominoids are found to have significant CBD shape differences that are phylogenetically significant and do not match morphological predictions based on diet. Investigation into ontogenetic changes in corpus shape shows clear differences in growth patterns among all three species prior to the emergence of M1, and finds a significant covariance between molar crypt form and corpus shape during the developmental stage marked by the emergence of M1. This research is significant because it provides support for the hypothesis that hominoid mandibular corpus shape is influenced by the development of the molars in their crypts during development. These results also indicate that both corpus shape and corporal CBD shape are taxonomically and phylogenetically significant and do not match morphological predications based on diet in hominoids. Additionally, this research shows that quantification and comparison of the outline of the mandibular corpus is a preferred alternative to MR in studying the hominoid fossil record.
Neural Circuitry of Upper Airway Respiratory Plasticity: Identifying the Neural Circuitry Underlying Long-term Facilitation of Inspiratory Genioglossus Motor Output
Keywords: Genioglossus
Hypoglossal
Locus coeruleus
Long-term facilitation
Neural plasticity
Optogenetics

The respiratory system is highly adaptive and can change its behaviour to provide protective responses in face of repeated respiratory challenges. Elucidating the role of how neurons and neural circuits mediate these responses can open new treatments for those that cannot adapt. Respiratory long-term facilitation (LTF) is one form of adaptation that can increase genioglossus motor output, potentially providing a means to mitigate respiratory disorders such as obstructive sleep apnea. I examined the neural circuitry that underlies this form of respiratory motor plasticity and I identified: (1) the neural circuit that mediates respiratory LTF of inspiratory genioglossus motor output, (2) a novel trigger that elicits LTF without directly or indirectly modulating the respiratory feedback systems, and (3) the neurotransmitter(s) that are essential to the manifestation of respiratory motor plasticity of genioglossus motor output. Using tract-tracing, immunohistochemical and pharmacological approaches, I have identified a tripartite circuit connecting the nucleus tractus solitarius (NTS), the locus coeruleus (LC), and the hypoglossal motor nuclei (XII) that are individually critical to the elicitation of LTF. I also employed a series of optogenetic approaches to identify the LC as a trigger that can elicit LTF following intermittent stimulation of the LC alone. Lastly, I identified noradrenaline, released by the LC and acting on α1-adrenergic receptors at the hypoglossal motor nuclei, to be the key neurotransmitter-receptor system that gates the expression of respiratory motor plasticity. These findings provide direction and novel therapeutic targets to treat respiratory disorders such as obstructive sleep apnea.
Enhancing Steel Cleanliness in Tundishes by applying Physical and Mathematical Modeling
Keywords: Mathematical modeling
Open eye
Reoxidation
Steel cleanliness
Steel/slag/argon/inclusion interation
Tundish metallurgy

The tundish, being the last vessel which stores steel in liquid state, provides the final opportunity to enhance its quality. Hence, it must be ensured that the tundish acts as a refiner rather than a contaminator. It has been noticed that reoxidation of liquid steel from ambient air aspiration through the ladle slide gate, can seriously degrade the steel quality. As a preventive measure, the reoxidation-prone region is flooded with an inert gas such as argon to prevent aspiration of air. However, some argon bubbles themselves can get aspirated into the liquid steel stream flowing from the ladle into the tundish. Thus, an upwelling buoyant gas-liquid plume is formed, which sweeps off the overlying slag layer and subsequently gives rise to an exposed region of molten steel, known as the Tundish Open Eye (TOE). In the present work, TOE formation in two different tundish systems viz., a 12-tonne four-strand billet caster tundish, and a 63-tonne two-strand slab caster tundish, has been studied. A holistic approach, including plant trials, physical modeling, mathematical modeling, dimensional analysis and mechanistic modeling, has been taken up to investigate the TOE phenomenon. Additionally, the effects of eccentric open eye formation and non-isothermal flows on steel quality were also analyzed. Plant trials were carried out to study the variation of TOE size by using high definition (HD) videography. The total oxygen and inclusion analyses were carried out using the LECO and ASPEX techniques respectively. The mathematical modeling for both the water/oil/air system and liquid steel/slag/argon gas system was performed using the Volume of Fluid (VOF) method, and discrete phase method (DPM), coupled with the standard k-ε turbulence model. The mathematical model was validated with the experimental results from physical modeling and plant trials. A mechanism of formation of the TOEs and emulsification of the slag layer was proposed based on the results. Critical argon gas flow rates were also determined, for which there is negligible or no TOE formation. Operating under these flow rates ensure better steel quality due to prevention of reoxidation through TOE.
Impact of Fuel Variability and Operating Parameters on Biomass Boiler Performance
Keywords: Biomass Boiler
Biomass Combustion
Energy Optimization
Hog Fuel
Pulp and Paper
Wood Waste

Biomass boilers provide up to one-third of the energy requirement in pulp and paper mills by burning hog fuel, which is a mixture of wood-waste available at the mill site. The quality of this fuel varies significantly depending on its source and storage conditions. This fuel variability often causes biomass boiler operation to be unstable and unpredictable. This study consists of two parts: the first part investigates the impact of fuel variability on combustion and develops means for mitigating these impacts to achieve stable boiler operation. The second part identifies the most influential parameter in boiler operation using multivariate analysis, and develops a predictive statistical model for optimization of biomass boiler thermal performance. In the first part, wood species are differentiated by their initial particle density. For all wood species examined, particle density decreases throughout the combustion process but at different rates depending on the combustion stage. During the devolatilization stage, the density decreases significantly as a result of rapid mass loss. This sharp decrease causes particles to be light enough to be entrained and/or be lifted off from the grate by the flue gas. An analytical model is then developed to calculate particle entrainment velocity, and to determine whether a particle is entrained and if so, how much unburned mass is left upon entrainment. In the second part, multivariate analysis is used to identify the most important parameters in boiler operation. The results show that moisture content is the most influential parameter and a soft sensor is consequently developed to estimate the feedstock moisture content from other parameters. A predictive Partial Least Square (PLS) model is built to predict the thermal performance of a boiler in real-time and to determine the contributing factors to process upsets. In practical applications, the entrainment model is used for fuel preparation and sizing to reduce particle entrainment. The PLS model, along with the moisture content soft sensor, can be used for process monitoring providing additional insights into causes of process variability.
Resistances against Hydropower Projects as Place-based Struggles: The Case of Artvin, Turkey
Keywords: citizenship
dams
democracy
ethics
place
social movements

The dissertation examines the implications of place-based action for a rethinking of democratic politics. The research is based on the struggles against hydropower projects in Artvin, a small city in the Black Sea Region of Turkey. The dissertation traces the effects of the dams as spatial interventions in the region based on the accounts of the inhabitants, field observations, official reports, and academic articles; it maps the institutional structures that enable these spatial interventions and reveals ways citizens challenge these institutional structures. The dissertation offers a phenomenological approach as an important addition to social constructivist approaches to understanding the struggles against the run-of-the-river type hydropower projects in the region. Social constructivist approaches to place-based struggles have been significant in unpacking the power dynamics within which spatial interventions are made possible and are resisted. These approaches evaluated place-based struggles based on their handling of heterogeneity and difference, their potential in dismantling of capitalism, their ability to articulate their problems in more structural terms and their ability to be extroverted and situate themselves in broader networks. Phenomenological approaches enable us to articulate the emphasis these struggles put on the significance of “implacement” as a social and physical experience for living beings. The dissertation argues that the anti-hydropower struggles in Turkey—through their emphasis on protecting “life spaces”— underlined a form of placial ethics. “Life spaces” encompassed both human networks of relationships and their embeddedness in the entire eco-system. This placial ethics challenged the existing cost-benefit analysis and redefined the destruction of landscape as a collective loss. This ethics-based politics rendered participatory collective decision-making imperative for spatial interventions and required prioritization of politics of place over partisan politics. The politics aimed at protecting life space thus redefines the nature of interests at stake as well as the nature of democratic participation.
Surface Engineered Sponges Enable Oily Wastewater Remediation and Residual Oil Recovery
Keywords: Adsorption
Crude Oil
Crude Oil Recovery
Nanomaterials
Sponge
Wastewater Remedition

In the US, steam-¬based oil extraction processes generate over 15 billion liters of emulsified oil contaminated wastewater annually. For sustainability, these effluents need to be remediated and/or recycled. However, the complex properties (pH, dissolved salts, and high temperature) of effluents pose challenges for removal of oil microdroplets removal using current separation methods. This thesis developed a new process to selectively recover crude oil microdroplets from wastewater using inexpensive sponges. This process synergistically uses sponge surface properties and pre-existing ionic and thermal energies of the wastewater to achieve 95-99% oil removal efficacy from wastewater. First, an acid-base polymeric sponge was applied to remove crude oil microdroplets from water. In acidic or basic environments, acid-base polymers acquire surface charge due to protonation or dissociation of surface functional groups. This property is invoked to adsorb crude oil microdroplets from water using a polyester polyurethane sponge. Using the surface charge of the sponge and oil droplets, the solution pH (5.6) for 99% oil removal efficacy was predicted and verified through adsorption experiments. The droplet adsorption onto the sponge was governed by physisorption, and the driving forces were attributed to electrostatic attraction and Lifshitz-van der Waals forces. The sponge was regenerated and reused multiple times by mechanical compression. Next, to remove oil microdroplets from water at broad pH conditions, an innovative surface engineered sponge (SEnS) was designed by combining surface chemistry, surface charge, roughness, and surface energy. Under all pH conditions, the SEnS rapidly adsorbed oil microdroplets with 95-99% removal efficiency predominantly by electrostatic attraction and Lifshitz-van der Waals forces. Furthermore, at the best pH value, 92% of the oil was adsorbed within 10 min due to synergistic charge attraction. The adsorbed oil was recovered by rinsing with a diluent while the cleaned SEnS was reused multiple times for oil adsorption. Subsequently, crude oil is recovered from the diluent using distillation. Due to the process efficacy, sponge reuse, and oil recovery, this adsorptive-recovery method using sponges demonstrates great potential for the industrial oil recovery from wastewater. Furthermore, this work lays foundation for the development of new SEnS with the potential to revolutionize water treatment technologies.
Subjugation and Resistance in Older Gay Men's Health Care Experiences
Keywords: Aging
Foucault
Gay Men
Grounded Theory
Health Care
HIV

The scholarship on aging among lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) adults has, in recent years, experienced unprecedented growth. Despite this emerging body of literature, research on older gay men’s health care experiences remains limited. This qualitative study, which is framed theoretically by Foucauldian governmentality and intersectionality, and informed methodologically by a poststructuralist approach to grounded theory known as situational analysis, attempts to address this gap in the literature. Specifically, drawing on interviews with 27 Toronto-based gay men ages 50 and over, 16 of whom reported being HIV-positive at the time of recruitment, the study offers insight on the health care experiences of older gay men. More specifically, the study highlights processes of subjugation and resistance reflected in the accounts of the participants. Chapter 1 provides a critical review of the literature, highlights the role of Foucauldian governmentality and intersectionality in situating the study theoretically, and outlines the study’s research design. Chapter 2 contains an overview of the study’s key findings, which specifically delineate how sociohistorically significant discursive forces rooted in homophobia and HIV stigma, older gay men’s interpretations of medical practices, as well as institutional constructions of gay aging bodies, together reflect the role of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in shaping older gay men’s subjugation and resistance across health settings. Drawing on the study’s insights, and the centrality of Foucauldian governmentality in supporting the conceptualization of these findings, chapter 3 examines the utility of this theoretical framework in guiding and enriching qualitative studies informed by situational analysis. Chapter 4 utilizes the accounts of this study’s HIV-positive participants to identify the health care and social service needs of this population, and incorporates an intersectional lens to conceptualize variations in the service priorities of this group along dimensions of difference such as socioeconomic status, ability, and race. Finally, chapter 5 concludes with a discussion of the study’s contributions to substantive and theoretical bodies of scholarship, and an overview of the inquiry’s implications for policy and practice in the area of gay aging.