VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
The case against a human rights exception to sovereign immunity: Is anything left?

While sovereign immunity has increasingly been set-aside in international criminal proceedings, it continues to block most cases of civil lawsuits based upon the same circumstances. The main explanation given by judges for this decision is that a wide consensus supporting an exception to the sovereign immunity rule, based on violation of human rights, cannot be found. In this paper I argue against the above claim, by exposing the reasons judges give for their reluctance to adjudicate human rights claims as unconvincing. Through analyzing the structure of sovereign immunity, I show that it becomes very clear that not only do the judges look at the concept in a way that fits their aim; they also base their claim on outdated arguments. By suggesting a different view of the situation, I complicate the argument against using state immunity to bar jus cogens actions, opening the door to further considerations and future developments.

Keywords: Immunities of foreign states
Government liability
Human rights, Actions and defenses
Mitogen-activated protein kinases: characterization of a novel member and roles in senescence and erythropoietin signal transduction

Cells continually respond to environmental cues such as changes in nutrient availability, environmental stress, toxins, hypoxia or signals from other cells. Critical to these responses to extracellular signals are protein kinase cascades that lead to the activation of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK) family members. At least three distinct MAPK pathways are known: the p38HOG MAPK, the Stress-Activated Protein Kinases (SAPKs) and the Extracellular Signal-Regulated Kinases (ERKs). Here, we describe the characterization of a novel MAPK-like molecule from rat and its evolutionary orthologues in D. melanogaster and C. elegans. Rat NKIATRE showed similarity to both the MAPKs and cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs). Expression of NKIATRE was restricted to testis, brain and skeletal muscle, with no expression in proliferative tissues or cultured cell lines. Two isoforms of NKIATRE were identified which differ in their carboxyl-terminal ends and subcellular localization. I also investigated the roles of the SAPK and p38HOG MAPK pathways in cellular senescence. Specific activation of the p38HOG pathway, but not SAPK, induced permanent and irreversible cell cycle arrest at the G1 phase of the cell cycle in tumor cells. This cell cycle arrest was concomitant with features of cellular senescence, including upregulation of cyclin-dependent kinase p21Cip1, histochemical markers of senescence, and gene expression previously associated with senescence. Finally, I describe the roles of the MAPKs in erythropoietin (EPO) signal transduction. Through the use of phosphorylation-specific antibodies, I have shown that EPO induces activation of p38, SAPK and ERK, concomitant with serine phosphorylation of STAT1, STAT3 and STAT5A/B transcription factors. Distinct MAPK pathways were required for the serine phosphorylation events: STAT1 serine phosphorylation was dependent on p38MAPK, whereas STAT3 serine phosphorylation required both p38 and ERK. No evidence was found for a role of SAPK in STAT serine phosphorylation. Serine phosphorylation of STAT1 and STAT3 required a proximal portion of the EPOR that correlates with JAK2 activation, and JAK2 overexpression was sufficient to activate p38 and ERK. Collectively, these results suggest complex, contrasting roles of MAPKs in cell differentiation, cellular senescence and erythropoietin signal transduction.
Experimental and fluid inclusion constraints on the ore metal content and origin of volatiles associated with large NI-CU--PGE deposits

Microanalyses of synthetic fluid inclusions containing a S-free, NaCl brine (20-70 wt% eq. NaCl) that was reacted with silicate melt and Pt and Au metal at T=600-800°C, P=1.5 kbar show that both metals are significantly soluble (Cfluidmetal 1-103 ppm) at moderately oxidizing (Ni-NiO) conditions, and partition strongly into the fluid phase (Dfluid/meltmetal = 102-103). Maximum dissolved Pt and Au concentrations decrease by sim;2 log units with increasing salinity from 20 to 70 wt% eq. NaCl. Maximum dissolved Au concentrations increase approximately sim;1 log unit for every 100°C increase in brine temperature. The negative correlation between trapped metal concentration and salinity may be the result of the "salting-out" of neutral metal complexes [e.g., aqueous PtCl3H or Pt(OH)2-(H2On) as the NaCl0 content increases in the fluid and free H2O is consumed. Due most likely to slow metal-fluid-melt equilibrium, microanalysis of fluids trapped using synthetic fluid inclusion methods allows only semi-quantitative estimation of minimum (non-equilibrium) precious metal solubility. Microanalyses of fluid inclusions from the footwall Cu-Ni-PGE systems at Sudbury, Canada, and pegmatites and cumulate rocks below the J-M reef in the Stillwater Complex, U.S.A. show that Na-Ca-K-Fe-Mn-Ba-Pb-Sr-Zn-rich brines ( sim;30-80 wt% eq. NaCl) and non-aqueous volatiles (CH4 vapour; liquid/supercritical CO2; halide melt) carried ppm concentrations of precious/accessory metals (Pt, Pd, Au, Ag, Sn, Ag, Bi) and up to wt% concentrations of base metals (Cu) at the time of their entrapment. Volatile P-T-X characteristics show major similarities at Sudbury and Stillwater, notably evidence for carbonic fluid-brine immiscibility and the selective partitioning of ore metals into the carbonic fluid phase. Inclusion assemblages record a prolonged evolution of volatiles. At near-solidus conditions, inclusions trapped C and Cl-rich volatiles that exsolved from and coexisted with a high Cl/H2O residual silicate liquid or fractionated sulfide liquid at sim;700-800°C. At post-cumulus conditions, inclusions trapped hybrid fluid compositions derived by the interaction of magmatic brines with crystalline wall-rocks, sulfides, or groundwater, and later modified by carbonic fluid-brine immiscibility and metal reprecipitation. Ore metals in the volatiles were derived through interaction with PGE-bearing sulfide assemblages or possibly by the partitioning of ore metals from sulfide liquid.
Media education curriculum in Ontario: a critical analysis

The fight to implement and teach media education in schools has been a continuous struggle since the 1940s. This thesis first explores the history of media education in respect to its definition, theory, and philosophy. It then examines the current state of media education in the Ontario education system. The underlying premise of the thesis is an argument for a media literate society and a media education that fosters critical awareness and preparation rather than protection and inoculation. In this study I apply an analytic approach from the field of media education---the Media Education Triangle---as a framework to examine the media education curriculum in Ontario. Through a close reading of the curriculum, I show how roles for teachers and students are constructed. At the same time, however, I suggest that these roles do not operate in a deterministic and consistent fashion, and that the moments of inconsistency in the curriculum may be used to extend students' critical media capacities.
The effects of surface concentrations on fibroblast response to collagen-polyacrylic acid modified surfaces

Bioactive surfaces are designed to elicit more favourable host responses through specific, targeted, biomolecular interactions between the implant surface and host. Surfaces with type I collagen covalently immobilized to a graft polymerized layer of polyacrylic acid (PAA) were previously shown to promote intimate implant-connective tissue integration. In this thesis, it was hypothesized that PAA graft and immobilized collagen surface concentrations significantly affect in vitro fibroblast response to the above collagen-PAA modified surfaces. Collagen and PAA surface concentrations were found to significantly affect keratocyte and 3T3 cell proliferation, morphology, F-actin cytoskeletal structure and synthesized type I collagen deposition. Concentration dependencies were also functions of the cell response and cell line considered. Two groups of surfaces were of particular interest. 3T3 cell and keratocyte proliferation were significantly lower (p
The prevalence of thiamin deficiency in hospitalized patients with congestive heart failure

This study determined the prevalence of thiamin deficiency (TD) in a cross-section of hospitalized congestive heart failure (CHF) patients and investigated factors that may contribute to its development. Erythrocyte TPP concentrations, using high performance liquid chromatography, were measured in 100 CHF patients, and compared to 50 controls (C). TD was significantly more prevalent in CHF patients (33%) compared to C (12%) (p = 0.007). TD was related to pre-admission spironolactone use (p = 0.046), non-use of thiamin-containing supplements (p = 0.046), and preserved renal function (p = 0.046). TD tended to be associated with worsened CHF (p = 0.13), malnutrition (p = 0.16), decreased appetite (p = 0.13), and inadequate thiamin intake (p = 0.18). Urine thiamin (mug/g creatinine) was a significant positive predictor of thiamin status using multiple regression analysis (p = 0.03). A significant proportion of hospitalized CHF patients were TD. Studies of thiamin supplementation in CHF patients are warranted. Larger trials are needed to substantiate the risk factors for TD.
Language, religion and immigrant settlement: an ethnography

This dissertation explores the interplay between language, religion and immigrant settlement in globalization, using skilled Chinese immigrants in Toronto, Canada as a case. The analytical framework combines social culturally sensitive approaches to learning (Vygotsky 1978; Lave and Wenger 1991; Lantolf 2000b) and language (Bourdieu 1977a, 1977b, 1991; Woolard 1998), and situates immigrants' "language problem" within applied linguistics, but more importantly in the globalized political economy (Heller 2003). This dissertation questions the assumption that linguistic proficiency is the key to economic, social and political integration, an assumption that underlies Canadian immigrant selection and settlement service provision policies. It suggests that social economic inclusion, or allowing ethnolinguistic minority immigrants a legitimate speaking position, at interpersonal, institutional and ideological levels, is the condition and process of immigrant language learning. The dissertation results from a three-year ethnography of the settlement experiences and trajectories of five immigrants who had worked professionally in Mainland China prior to immigration, including interviews with twenty-two people who were influential in their settlement. It focuses on one couple and documents their lived experiences of finding access to learning English, searching for work in their fields, struggling to settle, and becoming devoted evangelical Christians in Toronto. It examines their language practices and identity reconstruction at three strategic sites: a community college and two churches. It shows that the formal English classes constructed the couple as language learners who were necessarily deficient, and thus did not offer them a position from which to speak legitimately. Positioned as outsiders and having little idea of how to shift to the 'inside', they experienced alienation. In contrast, the interpersonal support and more inclusive structure and ideology at church allowed them to progressively participate in informal and/or formal church activities, thus offered them a legitimate speaking position. Evangelical Christianity also provided them a framework to interpret their immigration and settlement experiences as ethnolinguistic minorities in Canada. Their increased participation at church constituted a gendered process of improving English, finding pathways into social and economic life, and becoming integrated into a transnational evangelical Christian Chinese community.

Keywords: Immigrants, Language
Immigrants, Ontario
Immigrants, Religion
Immigrants, Ontario
Immigrants, Social conditions
Immigrants, Ontario
Chinese language, Ontario
Chinese, Religion
Chinese, Ontario
Chinese, Social conditions
Chinese, Ontario
English language, Study and teaching
Genomic location analysis of Myc and Mnt

Myc is an oncogenic transcription factor that controls diverse cellular functions, through the activation and repression of target genes. Mxd family members have been shown to repress transcription at Myc activated genes. The current dogma is that this antagonistic relationship between Myc and Mxd is the key to the regulation of Myc function. However, knockout studies have shown that one Mxd family member, Mnt, may be more important in inhibiting transformation than other family members. This data has led to our hypothesis that the identification of Mnt target genes will help us uncover the subset of Myc target genes that are important for transformation. We have identified 481 genomic loci bound by Myc and 328 genomic loci bound by Mnt by combining chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) with promoter enriched microarrays (chip) in HL60 cells. The ChIP has been optimized to examine Myc and Mnt binding in a model of Myc-dependent transformation.
Analysis of crosstalk in twisted-pair cable binders for digital subscriber line applications

This thesis combines the statistical analysis along with the deterministic electromagnetic theory to study both the Near-End Crosstalk (NEXT) and Far-End Crosstalk (FEXT) under geometric non-uniformities in cable binders. Further, a Thevenin equivalent based MTL method is extended from the Multi-conductor Transmission Line (MTL) theory to model crosstalk in a heterogeneous Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) system including a transition from a segment of optical fiber to twisted-pair copper lines. The proposed method based on the Thevenin representation is first developed and subsequently validated. Then the proposed method is employed for the characterization of crosstalk, incorporating geometric cable non-uniformities in the heterogeneous DSL system. Finally, the proposed method is compared with the conventionally used Power Sum Loss (PSL) model to illustrate its significant improvement in crosstalk estimation and hence its importance for Dynamic Spectrum Management (DSM) in the future heterogeneous DSL systems.
The effects of extracellular calcium on normal and leukemic B cell function

Calcium is well known for its role as a second messenger; however, it also functions as a receptor ligand for numerous cell types. Evidence presented here suggests that fluctuations in extracellular calcium (Ca 2+o) are sensed by a novel B cell Ca2+ o receptor resulting in the release of internal calcium stores and subsequent activation of PLCgamma, PI3K/AKT, MAPK, PKC, CaMKII and NF-kappaB signaling pathways. Ultimately, sensing of this danger signal results in the expression of the early response gene, CD83, and enhances immunoreceptor-mediated B cell activation, whereas Ca2+o chelation with albumin or serum, diminishes immunoreceptor agonist-induced B cell immunogenicity (such as that induced by phorbol esters), suggesting that Ca2+ o prepares B cells to mount an immune response. The inability to sense such a danger signal, or defective Ca2+ o responsiveness, may enable immune evasion, as seen in a number of cancers. Cells from chronic lymphocytic leukemia patients with indolent disease (as indicated by long lymphocyte doubling times, low CD38% and low-risk cytogenetics) were found to exhibit defective Ca2+ o receptor-mediated intracellular calcium mobilization, which was associated with constitutively activated JNK. Conversely, CLL cells from patients with progressing or advanced disease had intact or restored Ca2+ o responsiveness, as well as enhanced immunoreceptor responses and reduced susceptibility to apoptosis, suggesting that Ca2+o mediated NF-kappaB signals may promote growth and anti-apoptotic signaling. Furthermore, these findings suggest that Ca2+o responsiveness is a new prognostic indicator of more aggressive disease and a target for new treatment strategies.
The role of hydration in drug-DNA and protein-DNA interactions

This study deals with thermodynamic characterization of the role of water in drug-DNA and protein-DNA recognition. To this end, we have employed volumetric, calorimetric, and spectroscopic measurements to study the binding of an intercalator (ethidium bromide), a minor groove binder (Hoechst 33258), and a repressor (cro protein) to various DNA structures. A common feature of these reactions is the large number of water molecules that are released to the bulk upon the binding. Specifically, ethidium association with poly(rA)poly(rU), poly(dAdT)poly(dAdT), poly(dGdC)poly(dGdC), poly(dIdC)poly(dldC), and poly(rU)poly(rA)poly(rU) is accompanied by a net release of 11+/-3, 23.5+/-3, 18+/-3, 18+/-3, and 3.5+/-4.5 water molecules per binding site, respectively. Hoechst 33258 association with d(CGCGAATTCGCG)2, poly(dAdT)poly(dAdT), and poly(dA)poly(dT) results in release of 55+/-8, 54+/-5, and 63+/-4 waters to the bulk, respectively. Cro binding to its consensus operator DNA induces a release of approximately 800 waters from both their hydration. The thermodynamic contribution of dehydration is highly favorable being, in absolute magnitude, on the order or higher than the net binding free energy. Conformational contributions to the free energy are also evaluated in all binding events. Our results suggest that, for the reactions of intercalation and cro binding, the favorable contribution of hydration changes is nearly offset by an unfavorable change in configurational entropy of the reacting molecules. A large decrease in configurational entropy of cro protein and its operator DNA is consistent with significant conformational changes of these molecules accompanying their association. The binding-induced structural perturbations of cro and the related increase in its rigidity are reflected in a dramatic 45% decrease in the intrinsic coefficient of adiabatic compressibility of the protein. In general, our results emphasize the significant role of water in determining the specificity and affinity of DNA recognition and the need for expanding such studies to further characterize the structural and thermodynamic contributions of hydration in important biochemical reactions.
Angle illusion: How representation of 3-D form drives perceptual errors in 2-D pictures

Angles between lines on a picture surface may be misjudged when they depict 3-D forms. Our experiment investigated the properties of this possible angle illusion. Subjects were required to estimate acute and obtuse internal angles of quadrilaterals that were either shown alone, or as the top faces of cubes. The drawings of cubes showed the cubes tilted at various angles around a horizontal axis. This generated different acute and obtuse angles in the target quadrilaterals on the 2-D picture surface. For both acute and obtuse angles, the judgements of the quadrilateral on top of the cube were biased towards 90°. The illusory effect was present over the full range of possibilities i.e., for acute angles close to 0° and obtuse angles close to 180°. The results support a perspective theory and run counter to Gestalt and cognitive theories.
The role and representation of contrast in phonological theory

This dissertation deals with the role of phonemic contrast in determining the featural content of phonological relations, and with the relation between phonemic and phonetic contrasts. Chapter one provides an introduction to the contrastivist hypothesis, which holds that phonological computation operates only on those features necessary to distinguish the phonemes of a language from one another, and argues that the Continuous Dichotomy Hypothesis of Dresher, Piggott, and Rice (1994) provides the best means of identifying features as contrastive or redundant. The next two chapters analyze data on voicing assimilation in Czech, Slovak, Polish, and Russian (chapter 2), and on vowel harmony in Yowlumne and Pulaar (chapter 3) that present particular challenges to the contrastivist hypothesis; here it is argued that although redundant features are sometimes crucially present in phonological representations, they do not need to be phonologically active. The data are analyzed using contrastive specifications supplemented by the novel device of prophylactic features, which are redundant features carrying information that is necessary for the phonetic realization of segments, but not for the phonological computation itself. Along the way, comparisons are drawn with analyses that incorporate more detailed phonetic information into the phonological representations, and the advantages of the underspecification approach are revealed. Chapter 4 considers the interaction between phonemic contrast and phonetic distinctness in determining the shapes of phonological inventories. It offers a critical view of some phonetically-oriented approaches, and presents as an alternative a view in which abstract and minimal phonological representations of phonemic contrasts lead to phonetically distinct surface realizations through the synchronic mechanism of phonetic enhancement and the diachronic influence of the acquisition procedure. Finally, chapter 5 explores the degree to which contrastive specification is compatible with Optimality Theory (Prince and Smolensky 1993). Some of the insights of the contrastivist hypothesis can be maintained in Optimality Theory through the translation of a contrastive feature hierarchy into a constraint ranking, but contrastive specification is ultimately at odds with the Optimality Theoretic principle of Richness of the Base and the assumptions that underlie it. The main points of the dissertation are summarized in chapter 6.