VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
Amino acid-activated family C G-protein coupled receptors

Amino acids act as either orthosteric agonists or as positive allosteric modulators of Family C G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs). Family C receptors can be categorized into two primary groups based on amino acid sensitivity. A group that includes the metabotropic glutamate receptors (mG1uRs) was activated solely by L-glutamate, while a second group that includes an array of chemosensory receptors, responded to a broad spectrum of amino acid ligands. Phylogenetic analysis suggested an early separation of these two lineages of receptors. Two receptors in the latter class, the fish 5.24 receptor, and its putative mammalian orthologue, GPRC6A, both displayed a broad amino acid activation profile and a preference for basic amino acids. The molecular basis for ligand selectivity in Family C receptors was explored using amino acid sequence alignments, molecular modeling, mutagenesis, radioligand binding, and functional assays. Four conserved residues in the ligand binding pockets that interact with the alpha-amino group of the bound ligands are essential for amino acid recognition. Three additional sites at positions 78, 310, and 389 (numbering as in the 5.24 receptor) that establish bonds with the side-chain of the ligands are the primary determinants of amino acid selectivity within the family. An approach using "ancestral reconstruction" in order to trace the evolutionary history of molecular changes in protein structure, was carried out on the 5.24 receptor background. Using this approach, the ancestral residues at positions 78, 310, and 389 were inferred to be arginine, alanine, and isoleucine respectively. The pharmacological profile of the ancestral receptor displayed high affinity for L-glutamate and Group I mGluR-specific agonists. These findings suggested that the ancestral receptor of Family C GPCRs may have been pre-adapted for use in glutamate-mediated neurotransmission. Our results also suggest that this feature was further refined in the mGluR subfamily during evolution whereby the Group I mGluRs (mGluR1 and mGluR5) may have retained a more primitive configuration of the binding pocket compared to the other six mGluR receptor subtypes.
Analysis of the over-expression and regulation of the cadherin-catenin complex during border cell migration in the Drosophila ovary

The cadherin-catenin adhesion complex is crucial for the maintenance of tissue architecture and contributes to various morphogenetic processes. One of my aims was to elucidate whether too much DE-cadherin-mediated adhesion can impede morphogenetic processes such as border cell migration. A second aim was to analyze the regulation of the cadherin-catenin complex during border cell migration, using constructs that covalently link DE-cadherin with either alpha-catenin or Armadillo/beta-catenin, and testing the effect of their over-expression. My analysis was unable to definitively determine whether too much adhesion impedes morphogenetic movements. The results suggested that when the cadherin-catenin complex is over-expressed, either the cells are able to compensate for the increased amount of protein at the membrane, or the biosynthetic pathway becomes overwhelmed and the proteins cannot reach the membrane. The results also suggest that the cytoplasmic tail of DE-cadherin is essential for the regulation of the cadherin-catenin complex during border cell migration.
Application of graph rigidity in formation control of multi-robot networks

This thesis designs a formation control for multivehicle systems that uses only local information. Formation control of this type can be applied in mobile sensor networks applications. The control is derived from a potential function based on an undirected infinitesimally rigid graph. This graph specifies the target formation. Then the potential function is used to specify a gradient control, under with the target formation then becomes a manifold of equilibria for the multivehicle system. The stability of this manifold is studied using a nonlinear coordinate transformation and linearization techniques. Using these techniques, we show that the infinitesimal rigidity condition of the formation graph provides a sufficient condition to show that the equilibrium manifold is locally asymptotically stable. Finally, a complete study of the stability of the regular polygon formation is presented. These results were validated experimentally.
Queering the nation: a transnational feminist reading of two spoken word poets

This thesis analyzes the performance poetry of diasporic Jamaicans Staceyann Chin and d'bi young to comment on narratives of sexualized citizenship in the United States, Canada and Jamaica. In contrast to the picture of Jamaica's homophobic violence as hyper(hetero)sexual offered by gay activists, media and travel narratives in the North, Chin and young's work suggests the complexity of Jamaican sexual cultures within a history of slavery and colonialism. I interpret their art as critical commentary on how queer communities in the North are not always oppositional to heteronormative state practices, but sometimes work to uphold and sustain practices of neoimperialism. Mobilizing concepts of erotic power and autonomy, I suggest that Chin and young articulate embodied countermemories of desire, self-love and self-in-community that combat the long-term silence imposed on speaking about black women's sexualities, both in Jamaica and in the North.

Keywords: Poetry, Social aspects
Sex in art
Women poets, Caribbean
Lesbianism in literature
Homophobia, Jamaica
Homophobia, United States
Homophobia, Canada
Racism, Jamaica
Racism, United States
Racism, Canada
Feminism
Mobility, space and subjectivity: Yoko Tawada and German-language transnational literature

This study introduces Japanese-German author Yoko Tawada, employing theories of mobility as a framework through which to read her German-language literature. Mobility appears in Tawada's writings in numerous forms: migration, colonial expansion, tourism and leisure travel, daily transportation, and the virtual movement of information along telecommunications highways. I argue that Tawada's work provides readers with alternative frameworks for thinking about displacement which challenge the models of mobility and identity that underpin much reception of German-language transnational literature. My initial chapter examines major trends in this reception, illustrating how most studies focus on the debilitating effects of dislocation and how writers not easily identified with economic migration or diasporic communities are neglected. Chapter 2 discusses Tawada's interest in the roles that landscapes, home, foreign territories and even tourist sites might play in the production of identities or, conversely, how subjects contribute to the social construction of spaces they inhabit. Chapter 3 discusses how Tawada's Talisman critiques notions about the ethnographic value of transnational writing. Rather than offering information about Japanese-German identity, these autobiographical essays turn the ethnographic gaze on German culture, resisting ethnographic designs readers may have on the text. I also consider how Tawada's reversal of the usual terms of ethnographic writing results in an interrogation of concepts of Heimat. Chapter 4 considers constellations of geography, language and travel in Überseezungen, where Tawada questions the stakes for the contemporary traveling subject, as acts of travel become more uniform. I argue that Tawada locates the possibility for shifting modes of subjectivity not in geographic, but in linguistic dislocation. In Chapters 2 to 4, I also maintain that Tawada is not unique in her thematic preoccupations. I examine works by Biondi, Chiellino, Sideri, Özdamar, Zaimoglu and Şenocak to determine how they engage in questions of mobility, showing how the theoretical questions raised by Tawada's work can be applied to transnational literature generally. In conclusion, I contend that expanding hitherto narrowly defined categories of migrant, exile, or diasporic literature to incorporate more diverse investigations of the interconnectedness of place, identity and language offers one way to realise the potential of non-territorial literary paradigms.

Keywords: Emigration and immigration in literature
Identity (Psychology) in literature
German literature, History and criticism
Multi-vehicle systems as mobile antenna arrays

This thesis explores a new dimension--the mobility of robots--to improve the communication performance of an array of antennas. Optimizing over the positions of the antennas in the plane is proposed. Simulations of mobile receiving antennas give evidence of large signal-to-interference-noise-ratio (SINR) gains. The impressive results motivate the construction and analysis of a related problem: Mobile robots equipped with antennas form an antenna array sending a coherent signal. An optimal configuration with regards to signal-to-noise-ratio (SNR) is derived and a control law resembling the Kuramoto coupled oscillator model is suggested for the centralized case. Each robot's control law is determined by relative information from surrounding robots. Arbitrary graph topologies are then analyzed and a modified control law is presented. Convergence to the optimal configuration is proved for almost all initial conditions. Switching topologies are then explored in this context.
Embryonic stem cell-based technology to study gene function in the mouse

Mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells have revolutionized gene function studies in the mouse. Manipulation of the ES cell genome and in vitro screening allow for generation of precisely engineered genomic alterations including control of transgene integration position and copy number. Improvement of ES cell technology is the focus of the following work. A mouse line expressing Cre recombinase in a neuron-specific manner was established by placing Cre under the control of the endogenous tau locus. Characterization of this mouse line revealed that tissue-specific reporter expression is achieved; however, this mouse line should be used with caution. A novel site-specific integrase called phis;C31 was added to the toolbox of site-specific recombinases. Extensive characterization of the system revealed that high integrase expression level is important for recombination. The results suggest a mechanism for phis;C31 function and a new approach to make phis;C31 integrase a useful tool to study gene function in mouse.
Exploring the use of subtypes to understand differences in the severity and nature of child physical abuse

Current definitions of child physical abuse include a broad range of acts. Historical and clinical research suggests that this category of child maltreatment has expanded to include clinically diverse phenomena that vary in their nature, pattern and potential for immediate and serious consequences. The primary objective of this research was to improve understanding of the factors associated with severe physical abuse. Case characteristics associated with more severe physical abuse were examined in a Canadian sample. In addition, a central proposition is that research on abuse severity may be hindered by the assumption that physical abuse is a uniform entity. Thus, analyses were employed to identify subtypes of abuse contexts. Finally, this dissertation examined whether subtypes differed in the nature and severity of physical abuse.

Keywords: Social service
Criminology
Inquiry into the issues of democracy and peace education in a kindergarten program

This study inquires into how the TRIBES program facilitates the implementation of peace and democracy in a Kindergarten classroom. Included as part of this study are the types of instructional approaches a teacher may use. Tangentially, the study also presents issues related to the implementation of change. The study draws reference to the need for children as learners to use integrated body movement for healthy development. This natural enquiry enhanced their language acquisition and the ability to make meaning using their own voice. Through this process the learners were able to develop a consciousness towards themselves, and friends within their community. By exploring in nature and the out of doors children greatly enhance this development. Reference is made to First Nations traditional teachings, Reggio Emilia schools, European Forest Kindergartens and Waldorf schools. The data strongly suggests that teaching TRIBES does help promote democracy and peace during these highly formative years.

Keywords: Democracy, Study and teaching (Primary)
Democracy, Canada
Peace, Study and teaching (Primary)
Peace, Canada
Education, Aims and objectives
Elements of effective instructional design for elementary mathematical problem solving computer software

Problem solving is an area of mathematics needing urgent attention by educators. Mathematics organizations, researchers and curriculum strongly advocate for increased problem solving skill development in students. Computer technology may aid some students in learning or practising problem solving skills. This research investigates student perceptions of how effective are instructional design elements of mathematical software, as it relates to their development of problem solving skills. Eighteen instructional design elements were identified from the literature on educational software design. Thirty-two grade five students from varied socio-economic backgrounds in a large district school board in Ontario, Canada, used three mathematical problem solving software programs. For each program, students recorded their perceptions of the effectiveness of each design element in solving mathematical problems, using a written questionnaire and an audiotaped interview. The results of this study indicate that all eighteen identified instructional design elements were judged to be effective by students for learning in mathematical software programs. Students highly rated elements such as feedback, written help and audio guides, because they perceived these elements to aid in their understanding and navigation of the program, as well as provide assistance in persevering with challenging problem solving tasks. Students also felt that having attainable and realistic goals was appropriate. Results sometimes differed according to mathematical ability. For animation elements, low ability students perceived animation to aid in their learning more than high ability students. Low ability students perceived organization and tools in a software program to assist them more in their learning than did the high ability students. Gender did not have any effect on student responses. Examination of the three software programs suggests that they were developed to be gender-neutral. This research indicates that students are aware of software design aspects which aid in their learning, and their insights can provide teachers, software developers and software reviewers with instructional design elements (e.g. narrated text written on screen, constant feedback on progress, detailed graphics, realistic goals) to consider when designing or acquiring educational software.

Keywords: Educational technology
Computer software
Mathematics, Data processing
Mathematics, Computer-assisted instruction
Mathematics
Contested place: Religion and values in the dispute, Burnt Church/Esgenoopetitj, New Brunswick

This dissertation is an investigation of how implicit values, concerns and beliefs shaped the prolonged and violent environmental conflict that occurred in Burnt Church/Esgenoopetitj New Brunswick, Canada, between the years of 1999 and 2002. The dispute in Burnt Church was sparked by the Marshall decision of the Supreme Court of Canada, which recognized the treaty rights of Mi'kmaq people to fish, and prompted the entry of Mi'kmaq fishers into the lobster fishery outside of the regulated season. Grounded in the academic study of religion, philosophical phenomenology, and ethnography, this study demonstrates that the "fishing dispute" in Burnt Church/Esgenoopetitj was not simply a conflict over access to the lobster fishery, but a result of the deeply contested nature of this place. The dispute in Burnt Church is important as one illustration of the larger dilemma of place-based conflicts between indigenous and settler communities across Canada. Residents of the two communities of Burnt Church, Mi'kmaq and English, both argue that understanding the dispute requires understanding the place in which it occurred. The philosophical articulation of place suggests that place is the necessary ground of existence, and the way in which people and landscapes inscribe themselves on one another over time (Casey 1993, Malpas 1999, Stefanovic 2000). Religion and values shape sense of place in Burnt Church/Esgenoopetitj both historically and culturally; further, people's senses of place are themselves profoundly religious, as sense of place binds together communal social identity. Exploration of this place-based understanding of the dispute, and its history, raises the importance of native and non-native rights, sovereignty, nationalism, and conservation as values articulated in the dispute, and socially and religiously negotiated during and after the conflict. The dissertation concludes with a brief examination of the importance of non-local senses of place in the dispute, such as those of the Canadian government and Canadian activists. Resolution of conflicts such as the dispute in Burnt Church/Esgenoopetitj asks for more than simply negotiating the presenting issue, whether that issue is fishery access, forestry, or land rights; resolution requires attending to the implicit values and senses of place of both aboriginal people and settler communities.
The Canciones y villanescas espirituales of Francisco Guerrero and the tradition of sacred song in Renaissance Spain

The study begins with an introduction of the contents and makeup of the collection and establishes its position within the larger repertoire of sacred songs on the Iberian peninsula. The examination then turns to the organization of the collection which exhibits a careful system of ordering that had not been present in any earlier collection of sacred songs in Spain. The ordering takes into consideration a unique blending of number and arrangement of voices, thematic grouping of texts according to subject matter, mode, and arrangement of clefs. The analysis then turns to a study of the collection's contents which begins with an examination of the poetic content of the publication and its place within Spain's literary history. This is followed by an analysis of the musical characteristics of the two major musical forms in the collection: the refrain song forms, or villancicos, and the through-composed madrigals. As the study progresses it becomes apparent that the Canciones y villanescas is a work that is transitional in nature, incorporating traditional poetic and musical forms but with innovative stylistic and compositional features that would become standard in the Baroque. The overall organization of the collection is apparently unique to the environs of Seville and seems to suggest that the collection was intended for both liturgical and devotional use. Moreover, the collection also provides insight into the society of the time and represents a very contemporary view of Spanish religiosity at the end of the sixteenth century. Francisco Guerrero was one of the most prominent composers of the Spanish Renaissance, yet despite this fact very little study has been devoted to his Canciones y villanescas espirituales which has been available in modern transcription for nearly fifty years. A scant amount of previous research on this collection has provided only basic structural and musical characteristics of the publication. No previous study has considered the position of that publication within the larger area of sacred song in the Iberian Renaissance. This dissertation seeks to rectify this situation by providing an in-depth study of the collection itself as well as an analysis of its position within the larger tradition of sacred song composition in Spain.
End-to-end Internet traffic characterization

End-to-end Internet traffic monitoring is a valuable technique which benefits both service providers and consumers in monitoring and making decisions to facilitate network planning. Previous research in this area has met many obstacles and more recent studies have found fundamental problems, in the design of, and assumptions made by many end-to-end monitoring tools. In this thesis we will concentrate on end-to-end monitoring based on packet-dispersion probing. After reviewing and highlighting the problems in previous attempts, we propose a new approach to end-to-end monitoring based on Fourier Transforms for estimating the packet size and packet arrival distribution of Internet traffic. We will also explore the accuracy of our technique under various conditions, including those where previous techniques have failed.
Characterization of big bang, a novel Drosophila gene encoding PDZ domain-containing proteins involved in locomotor behaviour

PDZ (PSD-95, Discs-large, ZO-1) domain proteins often function as scaffolding proteins and have been shown to play important roles in diverse cellular processes such as the establishment and maintenance of cell polarity, and signal transduction. Here, I describe the cloning and characterization of a novel Drosophila melanogaster gene that was first identified as C96-GAL4, a GAL4 enhancer trap line. C96, renamed big bang (bbg), is a large and complex gene predicted to produce several different PDZ domain-containing proteins through alternative promoter usage and alternative splicing. Using UAS reporter gene constructs, in situ hybridization, and immunocytochemistry, the expression patterns of bbg were examined throughout development. bbg is expressed in developing embryos, third instar larvae, and in adults, in a wide variety of cell types and tissues, including the gut, muscle, and nervous system. To determine the function of bbg, several different bbg mutations were generated and identified. These mutations are recessive and strongly hypomorphic, or possibly null. bbg mutant adults are not defective in locomotion per se, but appear to have an abnormal response to mechanical shock, i.e. they appear to be mildly bang-sensitive. To identify proteins that may interact with the products of bbg (BBG), and thus gain further insight into their function, yeast two-hybrid screens were carried out using two PDZ domains found in common to all bbg proteins. Preliminary results from this screen suggest that the most C-terminal PDZ domain of BBG interacts with the Na +/K+ ATPase, also known as the sodium pump alpha subunit (ATPalpha), encoded by the Atpalpha gene. Interestingly, Atpalpha mutant adults are also mildly bang-sensitive. Thus, BBG and ATPalpha may interact in vivo, which would be the first example of a specific and direct functional relationship between products of two genes involved in bang-sensitivity. Since bbg encodes multiple PDZ domain-containing proteins, and is broadly and dynamically expressed throughout development, bbg is very likely pleiotropic in function. Thus, in addition to its role in adult locomotor behaviour, bbg may play other important roles in development.
W-band front-end integrated circuits in 65nm CMOS technology

Design and Implementation of W-band LNAs, down-converter, IQ-receiver and 80GHz DCO in 65nm is discussed in this thesis. Design methodology of the shunt-series, transformer-feedback LNA is investigated and compared to the traditional series-series, inductive feedback LNA. The performance of the down-converter incorporating the transformer-feedback LNA is described. With high bandwidth, low noise and low power consumption, the down-converter is suitable for imaging and remote sensing applications. The IQ-receiver is implemented to assess the feasibility of an image-reject receiver architecture and verify the quadrature operation of the VCO presented in [1]. The design of an 80GHz DCO is presented. This topology with digitally controlled, binary-weighted varactors offers a linear tuning curve and can be used in realizing fully digital synthesizers.