VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
The role of portfolios in teachers' professional growth and development: a knowledge building analysis

This study contributes to understanding the role of portfolios in promoting the growth of individual inservice teachers' professional knowledge. It involves six teachers of various backgrounds and experience who have used portfolios for at least a year. This study theorizes teachers' growth and development of professional knowledge within a framework of Popper's model (1979) of the growth of scientific knowledge, and Wolf and Dietz's (1998) model of teaching portfolios. I examine to what extent portfolio evidence supports the occurrence of growth and development of teachers' professional knowledge and the extent to which the use of portfolios contributes to that knowledge development. I question portfolio development as a useful form of professional growth and whether the reflective aspect of portfolio construction is fundamental to the professional growth and development of these six teachers. Reflective teaching and why reflection is essential to the portfolio process is addressed within the theoretical question of how to incorporate a view of reflection into the knowledge building framework. I provide an outline of strategies used to determine the role of teaching portfolios in promoting teacher professional knowledge and discuss methods employed in gathering and analyzing this information. For the majority of participants, the portfolio is useful because it helps them organize their thinking about their classroom work by providing a framework for piecing together the vast amount of information that bombards teachers. The portfolio as a framework allows information, perspectives, and changing practice to be reviewed so participants can examine their progress towards meeting particular goals. An overview of literature on teachers' professional knowledge suggests that teachers' professional knowledge is a fluid concept. Teachers' portfolios provide teachers with opportunities to explore and extend their tentative theories through discussions and feedback from colleagues and students, as well as to reflect on their own learning. Portfolio usage should be presented as an option for teachers to choose among other alternative modes of inservice education.

Keywords: Portfolios in education
Teachers, Training of
Teachers, Rating of
Educational evaluation
Deterministic automata for streamed XML validation

In environments like the Web, where the networks are not always reliable, it is possible that a continuous stream of data gets interrupted. To continue processing when the stream flow is restored, we have to remember the states in which the finite-state automaton was at the moment of the interruption. Our goal is to characterize classes of nonrecursive DTDs (Document Type Definition) for which on-line validation is performed by a deterministic finite-state automaton. The first class we consider contains DTDs that use only one-unambiguous regular expressions. Then, we generalize to a new class of DTDs that contain k-unambiguous regular expressions. The k-unambiguous regular expressions are a generalization of the one-unambiguous regular expressions. We investigate several characterizations of this new class of regular expressions. We also prove that the lower and upper bound on the size of the finite-state automaton used for on-line validation is exponential in the size of the DTD.
Spectroscopy of site selected InAs/InP quantum dots

The same nano-template technique was used to isolate single quantum dots or quantum dot molecules, simply by changing the geometry of the template from a ridge to a square-based pyramid. Photoluminescence data collected from a series of capped, isolated pyramids with base widths varying in the range from 462 to 814 run shows considerable simplification of the emission spectrum as the base width is reduced. Finally, a single quantum dot was nucleated at the apex of a small enough pyramid. Micro-photoluminescence measurements of such a single InAs quantum dot on a pyramidal InP nano-template show clear s and p-shell electronic structure. The p-shell is composed of numerous lines and exact diagonalization calculations have been used to interpret the splittings between these lines in terms of Coulomb-induced, many-body renormalization of the excitonic states. These calculations support a shape asymmetry of the quantum dot of approximately 10%. The chemical beam epitaxial growth of self-assembled InAs quantum dots on planar (001) InP substrates was studied using photoluminescence spectroscopy. Transmission electron microscopy revealed that dots were found to be approximately square in shape with sides aligned along
Characterization of the centre of pressure trajectory during gait in stroke patients

Impaired walking function following stroke leads to long-term disability and reduced participation in daily activities (1,2). The present study highlights the importance of evaluating dynamic stability during gait to provide insight on functional abilities and identify those at a higher risk of falling. The objectives included comparing centre of pressure (COP) parameters between the paretic and non-paretic limbs during the single support phase, and relating step-to-step variability in COP parameters to the severity of sensorimotor control impairment. Stroke survivors walked at their preferred and fast speed over a pressure sensitive mat. The results demonstrated an asymmetrical anterior-posterior (AP) COP displacement in favour of the non-paretic limb. A modification in forward progression was demonstrated by delays in advancing the COP over the foot. Step-to-step AP-COP displacement variability under the paretic limb was negatively associated to sensorimotor control. This work emphasizes the importance of evaluating dynamic stability during post-stroke gait performance.
Optical diagnostics toolbox for laser interstitial thermal therapy

Laser interstitial thermal therapy (LITT) shows promise as an alternative to radiation therapy and/or invasive surgery. While LITT has shown promise in a number of clinical trials, widespread implementation of LITT requires the development of practical on-line monitoring techniques for ensuring complete coagulation of the tumour volume while sparing healthy surrounding tissues. The first half of this thesis focuses on providing a better understanding of the optical signal dynamics that occur during LITT for the purpose of developing monitoring strategies that utilize optical measurements. Based on diffuse light model results and phantom experiments we develop a novel strategy for determining the location of the coagulation boundary using temporally measured changes in optical signal intensity. The strategy is evaluated in ex vivo bovine liver and shown to localize the thermal damage boundary location to within sim; 1 mm. The second half of this thesis examines the utility of radiance measurements for in vivo optical property determination and spectroscopic assessment of tissue state that can be applied for on-site treatment planning and pre/post treatment evaluation of tissue malignancy or thermal damage zones, respectively. A novel radiance-based technique is presented for separating the absorption and scattering properties of turbid media under realistic noise conditions and typical experimental uncertainty. We demonstrate that the technique is able to experimentally quantify optical properties to within sim; 10% for transport albedos greater or equal to 0.5. Finally, we develop a novel spectroscopic method that can quantify chromophore concentrations, interstitially, at a single sensor position. The technique is verified experimentally in tissue simulating phantoms and shown to recover chromophore concentrations to within sim; 10%. The results of this thesis provide a potential interstitial optical toolkit for monitoring and evaluation of LITT.
New members of the mammalian P-glycoprotein gene family and their evolution

P-glycoproteins (Pgp's) are transport proteins localized on the plasma membrane of a number of different cell types. Overexpression of some members of the Pgp multigene family in cell lines is associated with the multidrug resistance (MDR) phenotype, where cells acquire simultaneous resistance to a wide variety of drugs. Pgp's are also overexpressed in some tumours, suggesting that they might be involved in chemotherapy failure. In mammals, Pgp's are encoded by a small family of highly conserved genes thought to have arisen through sequential gene duplications. Isoforms differ in their tissue expression patterns, and in their substrates. We are interested in cloning Pgp genes from different species in order to understand the evolution and function of this gene family in mammals. The Pgp multigene families of human and rodents, containing two and three isoforms respectively, have been well characterized. Genomic Southern blotting has been used to predict that there are five Pgp genes in the pig. In this thesis, sequences characterizing these five genomic fragments are presented. The pig appears to have undergone recent expansion of its Pgp gene family. It has four genes corresponding to the Class I drug-resistance causing isoform of Pgp, three of which are atypical, and a single gene for the Class III isoform. Expression of Class I Pgp in brain endothelial cells and Class III in the liver is phylogenetically conserved in pigs, rodents and humans. This study has led to the identification of a novel sister gene to Pgp (spgp). This gene is closely related to Pgp, and equally related to all members of the Pgp multigene family. It exists in both fish and mammals, indicating an ancient origin. Spgp is a liver-specific protein localized to the bile canalicular membrane. Class III Pgp is also localized to this membrane and has been shown to be involved in the translocation of phospholipid into the bile canaliculus. The substrate of Spgp is not yet known, but its relationship to Pgp suggests that it is an ATP-dependent transporter. Its localized expression may indicate that it is important for normal liver function.
The impact of patient, physician and centre factors on successful treatment with peritoneal dialysis in individuals with end-stage kidney disease in Ontario: A population-based retrospective cohort study

The use of peritoneal dialysis has been steadily declining over the past decade, and high treatment failure rates have been implicated. Past studies have examined clinical risk factors for peritoneal dialysis failure, but few have examined non-clinical, potentially modifiable risk factors. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of Ontario health care databases from April 1, 1995 to March 31, 2005 to examine the effect of patient, physician, and dialysis-centre characteristics on peritoneal dialysis treatment failure. In 5,162 incident peritoneal dialysis patients, the 5-year unadjusted probability of treatment and patient survival was 58.2% and 46.9%, respectively. In patients failing peritoneal dialysis, 43.5% failed treatment in the first year. Significant determinants of treatment failure included increased patient age, diabetes mellitus, lower level of education, greater frequency of nephrologist visits in the predialysis period, hemodialysis prior to peritoneal dialysis, male sex of the treating physician, and lower annual physician volume of peritoneal dialysis. Future strategies to improve peritoneal dialysis failure rates should include increasing educational resources and counselling available for patients with lower levels of education, increasing physician awareness about the poor outcomes associated with late nephrologist referral, and improving physician peritoneal dialysis volume and experience with peritoneal dialysis.
The design and analysis of active and passive microfluidic systems

A micro Particle Imaging Velocimetry (PIV) system for bulk measurements in microfluidic systems was constructed. Numerical and experimental analysis with ANSYS FLOTRAN and with micro PIV was performed on microfluidic valves, mixers, and pumps developed as part of this work. Numerical model validity and microfluidic system component performance was determined. The numerical models underpredicted microfluidic component performance. Surface micromachining, Micralyne Protolyne technology, and Silicon on Insulator (SOI) techniques were used to produce the components.
Experimental investigation of pulsating heat pipe performance: Effects of working fluid, geometrical parameters and nanoparticles

Pulsating heat pipes (PHPs) have emerged as possible cooling devices for high heat flux electronics. In this study, an optimum PHP design is investigated. The PHPs were constructed of multiport extruded aluminum tubing. Several parameters were varied for this purpose: type of working fluid, the fluid fill ratio, the heat pipe orientation, and the PHP dimensions. Addition of diamond nanoparticles to the working fluid was also tested. It was found that the optimum fluid fill ratio depends on the PHP structure, with 50% and 20% being the best values for the 35-port and 26-port PHPs, respectively. Also, the 35-port design was able to dissipate a higher power input of 80W, versus 60W for the 26-port case. In the vertical orientation the PHP delivered better performance compared to the horizontal case. Acetone outperformed ethanol only at low power inputs. The nanoparticle addition slightly improved the PHP performance.
Civil society in Shanghai: Market economy transition, new residential neighbourhoods and the potential for democratic participation

Civil society developments are emerging from within Shanghai's new residential neighbourhoods that have the potential to foster democratic participation. While political networks of the old communities continue to play an important role in the associational life of Shanghai's residents, the organizations in the new communities differ in fundamental ways. This can be attributed to the market economy transition and the changes to Shanghai's economic, social and political norms, as well as to the rise of the middle class as politically creative agents voicing collective concerns through the Homeowners' Associations. Yet, from interviews with residents themselves, the feeling is that civil society is not in direct opposition to the state's desire to protect its widening market interests. Rather, one future possibility is their working in tandem with government, to enhance the potential for democratic participation and political openness.
Effect of celastrol on heat shock protein expression and neuronal cell death in the rodent brain

Heat shock proteins (Hsps) are a conserved group of proteins with chaperone activity that are involved in protein folding and turnover. Due to their participation in protein folding, Hsps have been studied as a means to treat protein-misfolding disorders such as neurodegenerative diseases. Celastrol is a natural product that was identified as a possible treatment for the neurological disorder Huntington's disease. This thesis examines the effects of celastrol on the expression of Hsps in the rodent brain. Western immunoblotting revealed that changes in Hsp expression are not detectable following celastrol administration. In addition, Fluoro-Jade B staining demonstrated that neuroprotective levels of celastrol do not induce neuronal cell death in the mouse brain. This was of interest since high doses have been reported to be cytotoxic in tissue culture. These results support celastrol's development as a clinical agent in that the levels required for neuroprotection do not trigger neuronal cell death.
Dynamic load balancing in distributed content-based publish/subscribe

Distributed content-based publish/subscribe systems to date suffer from performance degradation and poor scalability under load conditions typical in real-world applications. The reason for this shortcoming is due to the lack of a load balancing solution, which have rarely been studied in the context of publish/subscribe. This thesis proposes a load balancing solution specific for distributed content-based publish/subscribe systems that is distributed, dynamic, adaptive, transparent, and accommodates heterogeneity. The solution consists of three key contributions: a load balancing framework, a novel load estimation algorithm, and three offload strategies. Experimental results show that the proposed load balancing solution is efficient with less than 0.7% overhead, effective with at least 90% load estimation accuracy, and capable of load balancing with 100% of load initiated at an edge node of the entire system using real-world data sets.
Spectral methods for multi-scale feature extraction and data clustering

We address two issues that are fundamental to the analysis of naturally-occurring datasets: how to extract features that arise at multiple-scales and how to cluster items in a dataset using pairwise similarities between the elements. To this end we present two spectral methods: (1) Sparse Principal Component Analysis S-PCA---a framework for learning a linear, orthonormal basis representation for structure intrinsic to a given dataset; and (2) EigenCuts---an algorithm for clustering items in a dataset using their pairwise-similarities. EigenCuts is a clustering algorithm for finding stable clusters in a dataset. Using a Markov chain perspective, we derive an eigenflow to describe the flow of probability mass due to the Markov chain and characterize it by its eigenvalue, or equivalently, by the halflife of its decay as the Markov chain is iterated. The key insight in this work is that bottlenecks between weakly coupled clusters can be identified by computing the sensitivity of the eigenflow's halflife to variations in the edge weights. The EigenCuts algorithm performs clustering by removing these identified bottlenecks in an iterative fashion. As an efficient step in this process we also propose a specialized hierarchical eigensolver suitable for large stochastic matrices. S-PCA is based on the discovery that natural images exhibit structure in a low-dimensional subspace in a local, scale-dependent form. It is motivated by the observation that PCA does not typically recover such representations, due to its single minded pursuit of variance. In fact, it is widely believed that the analysis of second-order statistics alone is insufficient for extracting multi-scale structure from data and there are many proposals in the literature showing how to harness higher-order image statistics to build multi-scale representations. In this thesis, we show that resolving second-order statistics with suitably constrained basis directions is indeed sufficient to extract multi-scale structure. In particular, S-PCA basis optimizes an objective function which trades off correlations among output coefficients for sparsity in the description of basis vector elements. Using S-PCA we present new approaches to the problem of constrast-invariant appearance detection, specifically eye and face detection.
Sexual selection and the evolution of genitalia in the guppy (Poecilia reticulata)

In many taxa with internal fertilization and multiple-mating, male genitalia exhibit remarkable diversity among closely related species. In this thesis I examine genitalic variation and genitalic function in a model organism for the study of sexual selection, the guppy. I ask whether guppies from different populations vary in their genitalic structures, whether this variation is associated with the level of predation risk in a population, and how the genitalic claw functions. In Chapter 2, I present evidence of inter-population variation in genitalic traits and its association with predation regime. In Chapter 3, I show that the claw is not necessary for sperm transfer and that it may instead be advantageous in matings with unreceptive females, thus suggesting a sexual conflict function. In Chapter 4, I provide evidence that the claw does not function to stimulate females into biasing fertilization success, suggesting that the claws are not favoured by cryptic female choice.
Towards the development of a safer walker: How can we modify a standard pickup-walker to reduce its adverse effects on postural re-stabilization?

Older adults often use mobility aids to improve mobility. However, it has been reported that use of mobility aids can impede lateral compensatory stepping, when recovering from perturbations during standing. Such stepping reactions are prevalent and functionally important responses to instability, and are quite likely to be the only recourse in the event that the stability limits established by the walker are exceeded. It was, however, unknown what effect mobility aids might have on lateral compensatory stepping reactions during walking. Studies have shown that many falls did not occur during quasi-static state, but happened during ambulation while using assistive devices. Our first study showed that lateral compensatory stepping was also impeded by assistive devices, especially by the walker, when recovering from perturbations during ambulation. Thus, two potentially safer walkers aimed at enhancing the user's ability to recover balance were developed and evaluated. The experiment showed that simple walker modifications could help to reduce its adverse effects on postural re-stabilization.
Isolation of forskolin-resistant mutants from Y1 adrenal cells

Forskolin is a diterpene that stimulates cAMP accumulation in Y1 adrenal cells causing morphological changes and growth inhibition. This project outlines the isolation of novel forskolin resistant mutants from the Y1 cell line. Subclones of Y1 adrenal cells were grown in forskolin to select mutants resistant to the growth-inhibitory and morphological effects of the diterpene. The mutants also were resistant to effects of ACTH on cell shape. Two of the mutants were deemed novel since they lacked the SF1S172 allele associated with previously isolated mutants. These two mutants had adenylyl cyclase activities resistant to both forskolin and ACTH, likely accounting for the forskolin-resistant phenotype. Neither mutant exhibited a deficiency in the major adenylyl cyclase isoforms expressed in Y1 cells or in ACTH receptors. The identification of the underlying mutation leading to resistance to both forskolin and ACTH should define critical factors involved in hormonal response in adrenal cells.