VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
Monsoon Marketplace: Inscriptions and Trajectories of Consumer Capitalism and Urban Modernity in Singapore and Manila

This study aims to trace the genealogy of consumer capitalism, public life, and urban modernity in Singapore and Manila. It examines their convergence in public spaces of commerce and leisure, such as commercial streets, department stores, amusement parks, coffee shops, night markets, movie theaters, supermarkets, and shopping malls, which have captivated the residents of these cities at important historical moments during the 1930s, 1960s, and 2000s. Instead of treating capitalism and modernity as overarching and immutable, I inquire into how their configuration and experience are contingent on the historical period and geographical location./nMy starting point is the shopping mall, which, differing from its suburban isolation in North America and Western Europe, dominates the burgeoning urban centers of Southeast Asia. Contrary to critical and cultural theories of commerce and consumption, consumer spaces like the mall have served as bustling hubs of everyday life in the city, shaping the parameters and possibilities of identity, collectivity, and agency without inducing reverie or docility. Focusing on logics, functions, and processes that are said to be characteristic of the mall, such as monumentality, enclosure, prestige, modernity, and spectacle, I uncover their emergence and variation in prior consumer spaces across different periods and locations. Delving into the archive, I analyze the spatial, literary, and visual cultures of these milieus. I highlight changes in the form, meaning, and usage of significant words, images, ideas, narratives, objects, practices, and spaces commonly associated with the realities of consumer capitalism, public life, leisure time, and urban modernity./nAcross the various chapters, I pursue several threads: Firstly, I explore different forms of modernity, particularly sanitary modernity, a regime of health, morality, beauty, and order, which the government applies to the cityscape and its population. As discernible in its temporality and influence, I trace how its character shifts from evangelical religion in the 1930s, to national development in the 1960s, to neoliberal cosmopolitanism in the 2000s. Secondly, I discuss the passage from a bazaar economy to a formal system, with its corresponding changes to the norms of commercial arrangement, consumer behavior, and visual perception. Thirdly, I look at shifts in the dominant basis of social value in the city from the display of material wealth, to the emulation of movie stardom, to the pursuit of an excessive lifestyle. Lastly, I examine different modes of spectacle, which commercial and leisure spaces have deployed in order to attract consumers, including those that produce absorption and immersion in spectators.

Advisor: Trinh, Minh-ha T.
Alkali Vapor-Cell Magnetometry and its Application to Low-Field Relaxometry and Diffusometry

The availability of high-sensitivity magnetic sensors such as alkali vapor-cell magnetometers has fueled a growing body of literature on the development of inexpensive, portable and robust magnetic resonance systems which operate in ultra-low magnetic fields. This work covers the design, construction and operation of such a magnetometer, and its use as a high-sensitivity low-field detector of in nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) experiments, including zero-field J-spectroscopy, relaxometry and diffusometry. In particular, we have attempted to demonstrate the utility of these devices for 1- and 2-dimensional relaxometry and diffusometry measurements, which are currently a significant commercial application of low-field NMR.

Advisor: Pines, Alexander
Languages of Exile and Diaspora: A De-Colonial Approach to Equatoguinean and Afro-Latin@ Literature

This project undertakes a comparative analysis of literatures written by Afro- Latin@ and Afro-Hispanic diasporic and exilic writers in the post-1960's/post- independence period. Through decolonial analyses this project examines how these texts create new discursive spaces for engaging critical concepts found in Afro-diasporic and exilic global literatures. I propose that these literatures produced in exile and diaspora show how postcolonial literature engages in a (re)telling of history, interrogates foundational narratives of the nation(s), and articulates critical positions that elucidate decolonial discourses./nI examine the decolonial possibilities of global Afro-diasporic and exilic literature and as such, I propose the use of the theory of the decolonial attitude as a way to read these texts as literary palimpsests. The chapters engage critical topics in decolonial thought including: faithful witnessing and theories of representation, the reimagining of reparations and futurities through decolonial love, and the impossibilities of home and exile./nThe goal of this project is to aid in the mapping of the diasporic and exilic global Afro-Latin@ Caribbean and Equatoguinean archipelago. This dissertation re- conceptualizes the fields of Latin@ Studies, Afro-diaspora Studies, and the study of literature in light of theories of decoloniality. Thinking about these nations -- Equatorial Guinea, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic -- and literatures in the context of the long-durée of colonial and postcolonial histories and migrations makes it possible to begin mapping the dialogue between Equatoguinean and Afro-Latin@ diasporic and exilic populations.

Advisor: Maldonado-Torres, Nelson
Feldman, Keith P.
Macroscopic quantum phenomena in interacting bosonic systems: Josephson flow in liquid 4He and multimode Schrodinger cat states

In this dissertation, I analyze certain problems in the following areas: 1) quantum dynamical phenomena in macroscopic systems of interacting, degenerate bosons (Parts II, III, and V), and 2) measures of macroscopicity for a large class of two-branch superposition states in separable Hilbert space (Part IV). Part I serves as an introduction to important concepts recurring in the later Parts. In Part II, a microscopic derivation of the effective action for the relative phase of driven, aperture-coupled reservoirs of weakly-interacting condensed bosons from a (3 + 1)D microscopic model with local U(1) gauge symmetry is presented. The effective theory is applied to the transition from linear to sinusoidal current vs. phase behavior observed in recent experiments on liquid 4He driven through nanoaperture arrays. Part III discusses path-integral Monte Carlo (PIMC) numerical simulations of quantum hydrodynamic properties of reservoirs of He II communicating through simple nanoaperture arrays. In addition to calculating the local superfluid density in these systems, new estimators for hydrodynamic observables and novel methods for extracting the length scale characterizing the decay of superfluidity at the system boundary from PIMC data are introduced with the aim of exploring the mechanism of superfluid weak-link formation in nanoscale containers./nPart IV consists of an analysis of macroscopicity measures for a large class of Schrodinger cat states of N-mode photonic systems. For cat states of this class, it is shown that a well-known measure of superposition size based on the optimal distinguishability of the branches and another based on metrological usefulness of the superposition relative to its branches agree (i.e., designate the same superpositions as macroscopic) when the inner product of the branches of the superposition is sufficiently small. For certain superpositions in this class, a technique is presented for deriving a state-specific textit{metrological macroscopicity algebra} of observables. The dynamics of superposition size measures is also considered, leading to the notion of "distinguishability time,'' a generalization of the orthogonalization times of Mandelstam-Tamm and Margolus-Levitin./nIn Part V, an investigation of the nonequilibrium dynamics of a quantum dot-Josephson junction-quantum dot nanodevice is presented. The nonequilibrium action of the system is calculated by making use of the Keldysh formalism and a potential use of the device for transferring macroscopic superposition states between a spin-system and an s-wave superconductor is discussed.

Advisor: Whaley, Birgitta
Effects of Coverage on Antipyschotic Utilization among Medicare Part D Beneficiaries with Schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorders in Washington State

Medicare Part D is health insurance for people who are either disabled or over 65 years old or suffer from End Stage Renal Disease. It provides coverage for outpatient prescription drugs and is a departure from the traditional Medicare program in which the benefits are uniform. Coverage has a minimum drug formulary packaged in standard plans or actuarially equivalent plans that offers varying additional benefits./nObjective: (1) to examine the effects of coverage on utilization of select antipsychotic drugs: olanzapine, quetiapine, risperidone, and haloperidol, (2) to understand out-of-pocket expenditure patterns among beneficiaries with schizophrenic and bipolar disorders in Washington State. Design: a descriptive and analytical cross-sectional, retrospective study design that used 2008 Part D Event data (1922 unique individuals). Measurements: utilization of four antipsychotics (in number of claims and medication adherence measured in Proportion of Days Covered) and out-of-pocket expenditures before the gap-in-coverage period (pre-ICL), during the gap-in-coverage period (ICL), and post gap-in-coverage period (post-ICL). Results: Beneficiaries who experienced all three benefit phases (i.e. pre-ICL, ICL, and post-ICL) comprised a very small percentage, 1.36 percent, of the study population and generated only 141 claims. Among these beneficiaries, 70.92 percent had low PDC adherence that primarily occurred during the ICL period (35.46 percent), followed by the pre-ICL period (21.3 percent), and the post-ICL period (14.19 percent). Only 29 percent of beneficiaries who experienced all three benefit phases had high PDC, with the highest percentage (13.5 percent) occurring in the post-ICL period (13.48 percent), followed by the pre-ICL period (11.35 percent) and the ICL period (4.26 percent). Beneficiaries spent far more in average our-of-pocket expense during the gap period ($36.43) than averages in the pre-gap period and the catastrophic coverage period combined ($14.19). Non-adherent beneficiaries paid a greater average than adherent beneficiaries: low PDC beneficiaries paid an average of $27.95 and a median of $2.25, while high PDC beneficiaries paid an average of $7.50 and a median of $ 0. Conclusion: Utilization of antipsychotics is affected by the extent of Part D plan coverage beneficiaries choose and elements of Part D plans effect medication utilization differently.

Advisor: Scharlach, Andrew E
On Exotic Lagrangian Tori in CP2

We construct an exotic monotone Lagrangian torus in CP2 using techniques motivated by mirror symmetry. We show that it bounds 10 families of Maslov index 2 holomorphic discs, and it follows that this exotic torus is not Hamiltonian isotopic to the known Clifford/nand Chekanov tori.

Advisor: Auroux, Denis
Randomizing Reals and the First-Order Consequences of Randoms

In this dissertation we investigate two questions in the subject of algorithmic randomness. The first question we address is "Given a real, is there a probability measure for which the real is not an atom, but relative to which the real is algorithmically random?" This question was originally studied by Reimann and Slaman with respect to Martin-Lof randomness, and this research continues their investigation by considering the question with respect to stronger notions of randomness and by providing metamathematical analysis of Reimann and Slaman's methods./nThe second question we investigate is "What are the first-order consequences of the existence of 2-random reals?" Conidis and Slaman showed that the consequences lie somewhere between IΣ1 and BΣ2, but left open the question of further classification. We show that the existence of 2-random reals does not imply BΣ2, and thus the consequences lie strictly between IΣ1 and BΣ2. Furthermore, by utilizing the methods in this proof we are able to construct a κ-like model in which BΣ2 fails and thereby answer an open question posed by Kaye in 1995.

Advisor: Slaman, Theodore A
Learning from others through testimony and statistics

In learning about the world, children have at least two types of information available to them: information they learn from their personal experiences, and information they receive from others. This dissertation examines how children use both of these types of information to make inferences about others. In chapter 1, I discuss the role of this work in the context of previous developmental psychology research. In chapter 2, I present a set of empirical studies in which children inferred an agent's graded preferences from observing his choice actions. In chapter 3, I present a second set of empirical studies, in which children's endorsement of majority testimony differs based on domain type and amount of personal experience available. In chapter 4, I present a third set of empirical studies in which children assessed informants' knowledge sources and chose options endorsed by informants who received their knowledge from more reliable sources of knowledge. In chapter 5, I discuss the implications of this work and suggest future directions. Overall, the empirical work included in this dissertation suggests preschoolers' inferences abilities are more sophisticated than previously demonstrated: they can use contextual information in conjunction with statistical information, and can use that to make inferences about others' mental states and knowledge.

Advisor: Xu, Fei
Generalized Arrows

Multi-level languages and arrows both facilitate metaprogramming, the act of writing a program which generates a program. The arr function required of all arrows turns arbitrary metalanguage expressions into object language expressions; because of this, arrows may be used for metaprogramming only when the object language is a superset of the metalanguage./nThis thesis introduces generalized arrows, which are less restrictive than arrows in that they impose no containment relationship between the object language and metalanguage; this allows generalized arrows to be used for heterogeneous metaprogramming. This thesis also establishes a correspondence between two-level programs and one-level programs which take a generalized arrow instance as a distinguished parameter. A translation across this correspondence is possible, and is called a flattening transformation./nThe flattening translation is not specific to any particular object language; this means that it needs to be implemented only once for a given metalanguage compiler. Support for various object languages can then be added by implementing instances of the generalized arrow type class; this does not require knowledge of compiler internals. Because of the flattening transformation the users of these object languages are able to program using convenient multi-level types and syntax; the conversion to one-level terms manipulating generalized arrow instances is handled by the flattening transformation./nA modified version of the Glasgow Haskell Compiler (GHC) with multi-level types and expressions has been produced as a proof of concept. The Haskell extraction of the Coq formalization in this thesis have been compiled into this modified GHC as a new flattening pass.

Advisor: Wawrzynek, John
Cellular Functional Architecture of the Human Cone Photoreceptor Mosaic

Chromatic and high-acuity aspects of vision are mediated by cone photoreceptors, which sample the image relayed by the eye's optics and transduce it into the neural signals that give rise to perception. Our understanding of how individual cones function has largely been gleaned from in vitro electrophysiological preparations, which allow the experimenter to stimulate single receptors while simultaneously recording their outputs. Building upon these findings requires investigating how signals arising from single sensory input neurons are handled downstream by the nervous system, up to and including the perceptual stage. With these goals in mind, the tools to approach these questions in vivo must be developed./nThe challenges associated with studying the perceptions arising from single sensory receptors are not trivial--doing so requires an ability to visualize and repeatedly stimulate the receptor of interest, which can be difficult when it is situated within a densely packed array of similar cells that is itself contained within a sensory organ. The eye, however, represents a unique case because the receptor layer can be visualized directly through the transparent cornea and lens. The fidelity of this view is diluted only by optical imperfections in the refractive components of the eye. Advances in ocular imaging that have taken place over the past 20 years now make it possible to overcome these imperfections and image individual photoreceptors in vivo. The series of experiments described in this document involve the development of methods to overcome these obstacles, the application of this technology to study single-cone-driven perception in healthy subjects, and the translation of these tools to the clinical realm, where cone structure and function were studied with micron-scale resolution in patients with retinal disease.

Advisor: Roorda, Austin
Modular docking interactions and signaling enzyme activity

Recognition of phosphotyrosine by SH2 domain-containing proteins is a key feature of signal transduction at the plasma membrane. The output of cell-surface receptors is en- coded in the specificity of these interactions, so understanding the mechanistic factors that determine this specificity is key to determining how information is processed by cells. While the structural details describing how SH2 domains recognize specific sites in their binding partners are well established, much less is known about how the protein context of each SH2 domain and partnership with other recognition modules orchestrate the array of interactions that evolve during a signal transduction event. In theory, combinations of SH2 domain interactions have the ability to provide much higher affinity and specificity than single interactions, but the connection between this property and the molecular mechanisms of protein recognition within known pathways is unclear. To learn how modular protein interactions cooperate to determine specificity, I have studied two differ- ent receptor-binding partner pairs, the ubiquitin ligase c-Cbl with the Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR), and the tyrosine kinase ZAP-70 with the T-cell receptor (TCR) I determined that c-Cbl binding to and phosphorylation by EGFR, and the ability of c-Cbl to transfer ubiquitin to the receptor, is sensitive to the oligomeric state EGFR. EGFR dimeri- zation increases the rate of ubiquitin transfer in a manner that does not depend on direct binding by c-Cbl, and this correlates with the requirement for c-Cbl to dimerize in order to become phosphorylated and activated by the EGFR. These findings suggest a way for EGFR ubiquitylation in cells to be fine-tuned by the level of c-Cbl phosphorylation. I have also determined the origins of affinity in the recognition of the T-cell receptor (TCR) by the tyrosine kinase ZAP-70. ZAP-70 uses a tandem SH2 module to bind specific doubly phosphorylated motifs in the TCR with high affinity and specificity. By performing binding experiments and molecular dynamics simulations with tandem SH2 constructs missing specific portions, I determined that the affinity of the tandem SH2 is based SH2 domains with intrinsically low affinity for phosphopeptides that are held together by a linker able to counter electrostatic repulsion between the SH2 domains. In both the c-Cbl-EGFR and ZAP-70-TCR systems, the combination of SH2 domain interactions provides specificity not possible in isolated protein-protein interactions based on single modular domains. The proteins studied here are the central nodes in broad networks of proteins containing mul- tiple modular domains. Understanding how molecular recognition by modular domains supports signal transduction in these systems will require expanding the understanding of specificity to encompass the collective behavior of proteins in cells.

Advisor: Kuriyan, John
The Molecular Mechanism of Host Responses to Viral Infection

All living organisms, including humans, are constantly under attack by various pathogens such as viruses. Activation of appropriate host innate immune pathways like interferon and/or cell death is often critical for efficient viral clearance. Using biochemical and immunological methods, I have studied these two aspects of the antiviral response. I initially examined the role and regulation of the virus-induced host protein Tripartite Motif Containing Protein 21 (TRIM21) and the adaptor molecule Fas-Associated Death Domain (FADD) in the context of RNA virus infection. I found that TRIM21 functions in concert with FADD to negatively regulate ubiquitination of the transcription factor IRF7, thereby functioning in a negative feedback loop for the viral-induced interferon response. I have also identified the presence of a novel complex consisting of FADD, TRIM21 and RIP1 where TRIM21 and RIP1 regulate each other's ubiquitination status. FADD and RIP1 have been recently implicated in an alternative form of programmed cell death: necroptosis, whose physiological function is not completely clear but it has been suggested to serve as a backup host pathway to fight viral infection. To investigate this possibility, I have screened seven viruses for their ability to induce necroptosis. I found two of them, Sendai virus and MHV68, are capable of inducing necroptosis, particularly in conditions when apoptosis is blocked. I found that MHV68 activates the cytoplasmic sensor molecule STING, leading to production of tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and subsequently causing necroptotic death. In contrast, Sendai virus induced death occurs independently of TNF or the adaptor STING. Instead, Sendai virus-mediated necroptosis requires the RNA sensor RIG-I in conjunction with the deubiquitin protein CYLD and several Sendai virus proteins, leading to de-ubiquitination of RIP1 and formation of RIP1/3 necrosome to promote necroptosis. These data are consistent with the notion that necroptosis may be an additional antiviral mechanism that hosts can employ when apoptosis is blocked. Necrotic cells can then release inflammatory contents which may help alert the immune system. These findings offer insight into the complex host-pathogen relationship, and with continued study may help guide the judicious development of antiviral drugs and vaccines.

Advisor: Winoto, Astar