VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
Elias Canetti's autobiography: A didactic struggle against death

This study is the first to present Elias Canetti's "official" autobiography---the three volumes Die gerettete Zunge (1977), Die Fackel im Ohr (1980), and Das Augenspiel (1985)---as a didactic narrative, and to examine how this narrative functions. The resulting (conditional) answer to scholars' rejection of, and irritation with, the text is prefaced by a discussion of identity theory and modern-day autobiographical studies. This demonstrates that Canetti's text is a construct rather than a conventional autobiography that (re)presents a unified "I" through an unbroken first-person narrative. The use of the term didactic indicates that Canetti's autobiography encourages and prompts readers to think through the development of what the author presents as his struggle against death; this struggle is carried out throughout the entirety of the autobiography. Because the text's didactic nature hinges on readers' acceptance both of Canetti's struggle and of transformation as the key method for affirming life against death, these two concepts are discussed as Canetti's "foundational myth."From this starting point, the text's didactic nature is first examined through interpretational dilemmas, which present readers with an unexplained connection between different episodes. This produces the same effect as Wolfgang Iser's Leerstellen, but requires a different outcome in reading. Namely, the interpretational dilemmas encourage readers to adopt Canetti's thinking, so that they can comprehend the developments in his life---which generally relate to the struggle against death---and solve the interpretational dilemmas. This process heightens the chances that readers incorporate Canetti's struggle into their own lives. Further proof of the text's didactic nature is delivered through a second, constitutive element of the didactic narrative: the textual discourses. In particular, the discourse of the doctor-as-writer not only provides insight into Canetti's struggle, but also acts as a metaphor for Canetti's own conception of his work and for the prime function of the autobiography: the text offers readers a cure for the general human acceptance of death's influence upon life.
Ascent to the Empyrean: for double chorus and orchestra

Named after Hieronymus Bosch's (15th century) painting by the same title, Ascent To The Empyrean for double chorus and orchestra, is a musical meditation on the dilemma expressed in Pascal's quote. This metaphysical theme informed my compositional procedures and techniques, and influenced my choice of thematic material and musical quotes. Thus, the almost inaudible rumble of the bass drum which begins the piece suggests the immensity of past time; the work's dosing string glissando, which ends at the first violins' highest possible note, represents an entrance to an equally vast future. Between these gleams of past and future, the piece concentrates on the brief moment—compared to the “vast abyss of time”—that one's existence represents. The notion of life and existence indispensably embraces its opposite—that of death and non-existence. As each life passes, it leaves a living legacy. This cycle, continuing for billions of years, connects every moment within the larger “moment” of one's entire life to the first spark of existence in the universe. Musically, I express this concept through the almost obsessive repetition of various musical ideas, creating a mantra-like effect. At the extra-musical level, this effect serves the purpose of assisting the mind in focusing on this moment and through the experience of the moment savoring eternity. The first movement quotes a brief Amin (Amen )—a part of the Ize Heruvimi (Cherubic Hymn) of the Divine Service of St. John Chrysostomos (1895)—over a drone on A in the low register (m.20–36). The Amin's simple harmonic progression (i-VI-iv-i) is transformed into a three-bar harmonic-ostinato which, performed by the harp, harmonically supports the thematic material throughout the entire movement. The second movement—compositionally the most involved movement of the work—explores the textural and harmonic consequences of layering heterogeneous materials in the same musical space. Without pause, the third and last movement begins its gradual and steady ascent out of this sustained G. Through leaner instrumentation and textural transparency, this movement provides real contrast to the dense sound world of the preceding two movements. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)
Linguistic analysis of efficiency using fuzzy system theory and data envelopment analysis

Linguistic Analysis of Efficiency (LAE) is a new theoretical development in the domain of efficiency analysis that brings together the elements of performance evaluation with the elements of benchmarking. In organizational practice, LAE is a visually appealing tool, which, based on comparative efficiency evaluation, assists in choosing the best path for improving productivity while at the same time promotes organizational learning. LAE has been built upon two important theories in today's scientific community—Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) initiated by Charnes et al. [Char78] and Fuzzy System Theory (FST) originated by Zadeh [Zade65]. Combining the two theories, LAE model produces an easy to understand set of natural language rules that describes the shape and characteristics of the standard DEA production space and its efficiency frontier. Once created, these rules then can be easily translated into various forms of informative charts showing the paths toward improving efficiency. LAE thus removes the complexity and abstractness of the DEA process making it more transparent to not only the analyst, but, more importantly, to the decision making unit's (DMUs) manager or the new DMUs that may be created. Hence, LAE allows the analyst to interact with (and better understand) the inner workings of DEA, opening the door to new insight for DMUs wishing to improve efficiency and providing, for the first time, a map for new DMUs to follow when starting out.
Differential effect of macronutrient ingestion on cognitive performance in individuals with type 2 diabetes mellitus

Ingestion of high glycemic-index carbohydrate foods results in cognitive deficits in individuals with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), yet the mechanisms remain unclear. This thesis distinguished between nutrient-induced increases in glucose, insulin, or cortisol as potential mediators of cognitive dysfunction using pure nutrient drinks differing in their impact on these parameters. On paragraph recall, mediated by the hippocampus, both glucose and protein ingestion resulted in poorer performance 20 to 100 minutes post ingestion in 30 adults with T2DM and these decrements associated with nutrient-induced increases in salivary cortisol. In contrast, protein ingestion enhanced performance on the executive components of Stroop and Trails, which associated with higher post-prandial insulin area under the curve. These results suggest that cognitive performance is not affected equally by nutrient-induced endocrine responses in adults with T2DM. Thus, acute hypercortisolemia may be detrimental to hippocampul-mediated tasks and executive function may be enhanced during periods of acute hyperinsulinemia.
Cortical representation of lower facial and masticatory muscles

Background. Whether muscles of mastication and those of facial expression have distinct representations within the motor cortex is unknown. Objectives. To determine the centre-of-gravity (CoG), size, cortical inhibition and facilitation of the cortical representations for the triangularis and masseter muscles. Methods. Using transcranial magnetic stimulation, we determined the cortical representation maps and assessed intracortical inhibition and facilitation of the triangularis and masseter muscles in 14 healthy subjects. Results. The CoG of the triangularis muscle is significantly lateral to that of the masseter muscle. Short interval intracortical inhibition (SICI) was easily obtained from the masseter muscle whereas the triangularis muscle showed less inhibition. The masseter muscle showed no intracortical facilitation (ICF) but ICF was present in the triangularis muscle. Conclusions. The triangularis muscle is represented more lateral than the masseter muscle. The different patterns of SICI and ICF observed may be related to the different functions of masticatory and facial muscles.
Mathematical models for predicting hospital bed availability for the following day

Many hospitals have faced increased demand on limited resources in recent years, leading to a situation of high utilization of hospital beds. We present a conditional probability model and a simple discharge ratio model to forecast the number of discharges for the following day for general medicine, orthopedic surgery, and cardiac surgery. The models were used in a forecasting comparison with an experienced bed-planning manager of a large, tertiary-care academic centre to assess their utility. The prediction success attained for the surgical services can aid bed-planning managers to make advanced bed control decisions to manage bed utilization.
Essays in immigrant health and health service utilization in Canada

This dissertation attempts to make important contributions to the small but growing literature on immigrant health and health service utilization. As the main data source, it makes use of the first three cycles of the Canadian National Population Health Survey. The first essay, "Understanding the Healthy Immigrant Effect in Canada" examines the dynamics of immigrants' health and health service utilization behaviour with tenure in Canada. The panel nature of the data is exploited to distinguish between changes in immigrant health and utilization behaviour over time, and changes in the types of immigrants that have entered the country over time. This distinction cannot be made using cross-sectional analysis as is common in the existing literature. The findings suggest that the decline in health following immigration found in cross section data remains when controls for cohort of entry and survey year are included. As well, the dynamics of immigrant health service utilization is consistent with a story of initial access barriers to newly arrived immigrants followed by assimilation to the Canadian norm for services that are more preventative in nature. The second essay, "Social Networks and Health Service Utilization in Canada" explores whether an individual's decision to use various health services is affected by those in their social network. Regional and language group variation in the data is exploited to construct a variable that captures both quantity and quality characteristics of networks. Strong and robust evidence of network effects is found on the decision to utilize preventative services. These are the same services for which access barriers were found in the first essay. As well, this work presents novel evidence that utilization of health services by immigrants increases in the number of doctors that speak their language in their neighborhood.
Determinants of educational achievement of Francophone students in Ontario

Ontario students' results on national and international assessments reveal a pattern: Francophone students in Ontario usually perform worse than Anglophone students. Recognizing the importance of acquiring reading literacy skills, this study focuses on performance of Ontario students in the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study 2001 (PIRLS) conducted by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA). Using an expanded version of the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) model, this research explores, in addition to the intended curriculum, the implemented curriculum and the attained curriculum, the assessment and the students' performance. The analysis, comparing Ontario Anglophone students and Francophone students' performance and contextual data, uncovers important differences in each of the factors explored. The Ontario French-language and English-language curriculum, the students' prior knowledge, and the classroom environment, including teaching practices and resources, showed notable differences. In addition, the Anglophone and Francophone students' test-taking behaviours and responses were very different. The difficulty of the language used in the assessment and the scoring of the assessment also differed between the English- and French-language versions of the PIRLS. These analyses illustrate the complexity of comparisons across school systems, even those within the same province, and the importance of caution in such comparisons.
Factors affecting multiple mating by female seed beetles, Callosobruchus maculatus

The fitness outcome of polyandry for females may be influenced by numerous factors, beyond the number of mates. Two factors that are rarely examined are male sexual harassment and the timing of matings during the lifespan. I used the beetle, Callosobruchus maculatus to investigate how these two factors independently influenced female fitness. I found a complex relationship where sexual harassment was detrimental to female fitness only when combined with polyandry. When females did not experience sexual harassment, polyandry was directly beneficial in terms of offspring production. The timing of matings (at the beginning or spread out through the females' life) did not appear to affect total offspring production; however females that continued to mate later in life had a prolonged period of offspring production. These results emphasize the need to incorporate additional factors into experimental inquiries, as they can have the power to reverse the outcome of polyandry for females.
Large-scale plasticity: learning-related changes in brain activity and functional connectivity associated with adaptation to distortion of visual feedback

Although it is now widely accepted that the functional organization of the adult nervous system can be modified by learning the mechanisms by which these changes translate into improvements in performance remain largely unknown. The purpose of the present thesis was double. On one hand, it aimed at examining the time course of changes in brain activity during the acquisition of a motor skill. This was addressed in Experiment 1, in which longitudinal changes in brain activity and functional connectivity as a function of learning were investigated while normal participants adapted to the reversal of visuospatial coordinates of a visuomotor tracking task. On the other hand, it aimed at investigating whether learning a motor skill impacted on the neural substrates of a non-practiced behavior. This problem was addressed in Experiment 2 by comparing the scans obtained from the same participants while performing a spatial choice-reaction-time task (CRT) before and after visuomotor adaptation was achieved. The findings of this thesis indicate that the brain regions recruited during visuomotor adaptation changed as a function of learning. Upon the introduction of the experimental manipulation better performance was associated with increased activity in prefrontal areas. However, as adaptation progressed, performance became negatively correlated with activity of prefrontal cortices and positively correlated with activity of left sensorimotor cortex, posterior parietal cortex and subcortical areas such as the anterior cerebellum and putamen. These posterior areas also showed long-term learning-related changes in activity suggesting that visuomotor adaptation was accompanied by neural plasticity. The shift in the brain-behavior relationship was paralleled by an increase in the functional connectivity of posterior cortical and cerebellar regions. In addition to specific learning-related changes in neural activity, adaptation to distortion of visuospatial mapping also impacted on the neural substrates an unpracticed behavior. Despite the fact that no learning was associated with performance on the CRT task, certain regions of the cerebellum and superior frontal gyrus showed greater activity after visuomotor adaptation was achieved. These preliminary results constitute evidence supporting the hypothesis that the nervous system may compensate for learning-related changes in physiology to preserve other aspects of the behavioral repertoire.
Effectiveness of individual cognitive-behavioural therapy for adolescents with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: a pilot study

Although the results of cognitive-behaviour therapy (CBT) with children under 13 years of age, diagnosed with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), have been mixed, CBT with an older ADHD population have been promising. The purpose of this pilot study was to investigate the effectiveness and utility of a 10-week individual CBT treatment program with an adolescent ADHD population aged 14 to 18. It was hypothesized that those who took part in CBT would show significant improvements in self-directedness (SD). It was also expected that those in therapy would show greater improvements in SD than a comparison group. The results revealed that of the six participants who completed CBT, five consistently showed an increase in SD as measured by the Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI). In contrast, the comparison group showed significant decreases in SD. The findings in this pilot study warrant a larger study in the future.
The experiences of black girls in the Toronto high school system: a race, class and gender analysis

This thesis assesses the experiences of Black girls in high school in Toronto. It shows how the Canadian Education system works as a form of oppression to silence and marginalize the voices of these girls making them invisible. This is reflective in the curriculum and teaching practises which fails to recognize the contributions of Blacks in Canada, thus rendering their worldviews invalid. I reflect on my own personal stories and formal educational experiences around my struggle to weave through the system and ultimately making it through.

Keywords: High school students, Black, Ontario
Women, Black, Education (Secondary)
Women, Black, Ontario
Discrimination in education, Ontario
Sexism in education, Ontario
Stretch-induced apoptosis in fetal lung cells

At birth immature lungs of preterm infants are subjected to continuous mechanical ventilation. Though the effect of physical forces on adult lung is well studied, the effect on the preterm newborn lung is not clearly understood. Apoptosis has been suggested to play a role during mechanical ventilation. Herein, we investigated whether continuous stretch of preterm lungs is associated with an increase in apoptosis. We used the Flexercell Strain unit to stretch day 19 fetal rat lung cells. DNA fragmentation occurred when epithelial, but not fibroblast cells were subjected to continuous cyclic high (20%) stretch. Intermittent stretch and continuous cyclic stretch of lower magnitudes (5 and 10%) did not initiate apoptosis. Furthermore, continuous cyclic high stretch increased activities of caspase 8, 9 and 3 as well as a decrease in mitochondria) membrane potential, implicating both the intrinsic and extrinsic caspase pathways during stretch-induced apoptosis.
Modeling the compression of paper in calender nip

Three viscoelastic models of paper compression were studied. Changes in calendering line load and speed were modeled and compared with literature results. In order to account for changing paper stiffness, non-linear springs were introduced in an attempt to compensate for this shortcoming. A new model of the strain history of paper that accounts for soft-nip geometry has been developed in order to model the compression of paper during soft calendering. Calendering experiments were performed on lab coated LWC samples. The coated samples had a coat weight between 1 and 30 gsm using three coating formulations containing both kaolin clay and calcium carbonate. The calendering was performed at 800 kN/m with a 93 Shore D hardness Jalon Orange roll cover. It was found that residual base sheet strain decreases with coat weight. From these results a novel model for soft calendering of coated papers was developed by modifying paper stiffness as a function of the coating layer.
Microassembly of 3D microstructures and micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS)

This work describes the design and development of a general microassembly system that is used to construct 3D microstructures or 3D micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) from a set of micro-components. The term 'general' is used to indicate that this system is not application specific, but rather, can accommodate a range of applications. Microassembly is a process of manipulating micro-components used to build a micro-system, from their original location of fabrication, to the final location of the assembly. Due to the design complexity of many next generation MEMS applications, microassembly will certainly play an important role in future MEMS development. In order to design the microassembly system, three main areas are investigated in this research. (a) The design, construction and testing of a robotic manipulator that is compatible with the manipulation of MEMS micro-components. (b) The design, construction and testing of a suitable end-effector system used to grasp/interface onto micro-components. (c) The design, fabrication and testing of a micro joining system used to create secure joints between micro-components. These three areas of research have all been successfully accomplished. A robotic manipulator referred to as the MJMP has been designed, constructed and used in the manipulation of micro-components and the assembly of 3D microstructures. An end-effector system consisting of a micro-scaled microgripper that is solder bonded to a macro-scaled 'contact head' device, has been designed and fabricated. It has been used for grasping various types of micro-components and releasing them after they have been assembled. Finally, three different types of micro-mechanical joint systems have been designed, fabricated and used to join together multiple micro-components into 3D microstructures or sub-assemblies. This work has been successfully used to create a few proof-of-concept devices such as micro-coils and micro-transformers, with properties that were not previously possible to construct. The size of the microgrippers used, the micro-components used, and the 3D microstructures assembled in this work, are considerably smaller than those used by other current microassembly methods. The results of this work have provided a new way to assemble microstructures, and have resulted in a number of contributions to the MEMS field.
Exploring differences in achievement motivation in a diverse sample of Canadian students

This study examined the relationship between achievement motivation and academic performance, as well as factors predicting these variables, in a diverse sample of 12--15 year old Canadian students. A total of 4,237 students of East Asian, South Asian, Native, African Canadian, and Euro Canadian backgrounds were included in analyses using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth. In general, this study provides modest support for achievement motivation theories, and empirical evidence that Native and African Canadian students may be at-risk with respect to motivation and achievement. The results confirmed a positive correlation between achievement motivation and academic performance. Significant mean differences in achievement motivation and academic performance were found between ethnocultural groups, with East and South Asian students showing the highest outcomes on these measures, and Native and African Canadian students showing the lowest. Positive correlations were found between achievement motivation and several theoretically-meaningful predictor variables.

Keywords: Educational tests and measurements, Canada
Performance
Underachievement, Canada
Achievement motivation, Canada
Motivation (Psychology), Canada