VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
The Ontario school curriculum: a critical overview

Educational reforms have been introduced by the Ontario government since 1995, including a new standardized curriculum. This thesis examines the Ontario elementary curriculum for what and whose knowledge is being legitimized in schools. Using a critical anti-racism perspective, this study interrogates racialized power relations. A combined content and critical discourse analysis explores how the language of the curriculum is exclusionary, how Eurocentricism and Whiteness are propagated through the content, and how the history and knowledge of racial minorities is rendered inconsequential. This study finds that White bodies are privileged in schools while racialized bodies are disempowered and thus disadvantaged. Recommendations for curriculum reform are made, alongside broader action strategies for the inclusivity and empowerment of all students.

Keywords: Education, Curricula
Education, Ontario
Discrimination in education, Ontario
Racism, Ontario
B7H4, a negative regulator of T cell immunity

Homeostasis-driven T cell proliferation appears to break tolerance and promote autoimmune responses against tumor-associated self-antigens. Furthermore, inhibitory signals, such as B7H4 and TGFbeta, are expressed by many tumors and involved in their evasion of anti-tumor immunity. We constructed B7H4/Immunoglobulin (B7H4/Ig) fusion protein, which negatively regulates T cell activation in vitro, and tested the response of homeostatically expanded T cells to B7H4/Ig. These cells displayed reduced responsiveness to B7H4/ig-mediated suppression of IFNgamma production. Moreover, in normal T cells B7H4/Ig enhanced the release of IL-10, a cytokine that reportedly inhibits IFNgamma production in T cells. In contrast, IL-10 was undetectable in homeostatically expanded T cells treated with B7H4/Ig. This further demonstrates lower sensitivity of these cells to B7H4/lg and might explain their anti-tumor reactivity. However, the response of homeostatically expanded T cells to TGFbeta was similar to that of normal T cells, presumably, due to its universal inhibitory effect on immune response.
The nonduality of nonconceptual wisdom and conceptual cognition: a study of the tathāgatagarbha teaching in the Anūnatvāpurnatvanirdeśa-parivarta

Although the doctrine of tathagatagarbha can be traced to the teaching of an innately pure luminous mind (prakrtis cittasya prabhadsvara) in early Buddhist teachings, the Anunatvapurnatvanirdesa-parivarta (AAN) is often considered one of the earliest Buddhist scriptures that explicitly expound the teachings of the tathagatagarbha .The central message of the AAN focuses upon the non-increase and non-decrease nature of the dharmadhatu. This brings out the idea of the dharmadhatu as a totality which transcends all dualistic notions. Translated into Chinese by Bodhiruci in 525 CE, the AAN is now extant only in Chinese translation (Taisho no. 668). Unfortunately, no serious studies have ever been conducted on this sutra in Western scholarship. The precise relationship between the tathagatagarbha and the two Mahayana traditions, Madhyamaka and Yogacara, is also worth investigating in detail. The thesis will argue that the tathagatagarbha is not a separate school in Indian Buddhism. It will then study the historical issues relating to the AAN, followed by a philosophical investigation of its teachings. The thesis will also undertake an "external" consideration of the doctrinal relationship between the AAN and a number of sutras and sastras. It will also incorporate a study of Bodhiruci, of the Northern Wei dynasty, who translated the AAN into Chinese, as well as the first complete English translation of the AAN from its extant Chinese version. This study may provide an alternative view on the tathagatagarbha theory. The thesis will argue that the tathagatagarbha is referring to be an aspect of all experiences. This means that all beings are by nature having a dimension of the mind not fully realized, and it is yogic meditative practices that enable the practitioners to develop an awareness of the enlightenment which is always implicit in our consciousness.
Analysis of mode split in the Greater Toronto Area: long-range temporal trends and underlying travel behaviour

The objective of this study is to conduct an empirical analysis of long-range modal split trends, between 1986--2001, in the Greater Toronto Area during the morning peak period by examining underlying travel-related factors and network performance indicators. The results suggest a shift in demographic and socio-economic factors towards promoting auto usage. The mode split analysis reveals widespread reduction in transit modal split. The rate of decline in transit mode shares was faster between 1986--1996 than between 1996--2001. Previous studies suggest a growing trend of increased congestion during the post-recession period. The travel time analysis showed travel times for auto are deteriorating at a faster pace than transit. This result may be responsible for the non-uniformity in mode split trends. Further study into the relationship between mode split trends and changes in level-of-service characteristics (particularly congestion, travel time and costs) for auto and transit, using mode choice models, is recommended.
Promoting equitable schools: the role of equity policies in Toronto-area schools

The central goal of this thesis is to investigate the development and implementation of an equity policy in a major, urban school board in the Greater Toronto Area. This study engages in a document analysis of this board's equity policy to examine its merits and possible deficiencies. Further, this study utilized semi-structured interviews with policy writers, superintendents, principals, and teachers to describe challenges faced in creating and implementing an effective and all-encompassing policy. The intent of this study is to explore what types of changes school boards need to make (if any) in order to enable marginalized students to achieve success in Ontario schools. Findings suggest that adequate resources and leadership have not been provided for proper policy implementation, a lack of knowledge of the policy exists, and discomfort is present in implementing equity among the Board's stakeholders. Recommendations for effectively implementing equity directives and achieving equitable schools are provided.

Keywords: Educational equalization, Ontario
Educational change, Ontario
Discrimination in education, Ontario
School improvement programs, Ontario
Seasonal changes in the structure of RBC biofilms

Heterotrophic biofilms growing in the successive three stages of the RBC reactor in a full-scale wastewater treatment plant in the summer of 2002 were investigated and compared to those growing in the fall of 2001. The seasonal changes in their structure were studied in terms of biofilm thickness, dry solid density, internal pore distribution and patterns, and surface roughness. The comparison results indicate that due to the higher flow rate in the summer of 2002, these biofilms had thinner, denser and less rugged surface structure than the biofilms sampling in the fall of 2001; furthermore, they showed less heterogeneous internal pore distribution. However, biofilms from both seasons showed some similarities: biofilms in stages 2 and 3 had similar structure; and their internal geometric porosity and pore surface roughness didn't show any correlation with the biofilm depth. A similar study of nitrifying biofilms was not carried out because little biomass grew on the sampling tapes during the summer sampling period.
Hydration in non-covalent DNA-drug interactions: The high-pressure approach

One of the major obstacles in understanding non-covalent DNA-drug interactions and macromolecular interactions in general is a lack of quantitative knowledge of hydration. This is partly due to a lack of methods to probe thermodynamic hydration waters. The close relationship between hydration and volume makes volumetric methods one of the most promising tools for studying hydration. In this thesis, a series of volumetric studies on non-covalent DNA-drug interactions were carried out and the volumetric properties were determined from pressure induced binding affinity change. We have obtained volume change data for ethidium bromide and netropsin binding with poly[d(A-T)]·poly[d(A-T)] and poly(dA)·poly(dT), respectively, at the helix-coil transition temperatures of the DNA-ligand complexes using a novel experimental method by measuring the pressure dependence of the helix-coil transition temperatures of the free and bound DNA polymers. We further studied the temperature dependence of volume changes of ethidium binding with poly[d(A-T)]·poly[d(A-T)] and poly(dA)·poly(dT) by spectroscopically monitoring the pressure dependence of binding affinities of the systems at different temperatures. The results were successfully interpreted according to the Scaled Particle Theory. The effects of ligand charge on DNA ligand interactions were studied using a model ligand 3,8-diamino-6-phenylphenanthridine (DAPP). The volume changes of neutral DAPP and its charged form DAPPH+ binding with calf thymus DNA were measured. The volume change of binding with the charged DAPPH+ was found to be about 7.8+/-1.5 cm 3 mol-1 more positive than with the neutral DAPP. This large positive volume change is interpreted as arising mainly from partial desolvation of the charge of DAPPH+ upon binding with DNA. We measured the thermodynamic and volumetric properties of a series of DNA ligand binding systems, including intercalators ethidium bromide, propidium iodide and daunomycin binding with poly[d(A-T)]·poly[d(A-T)], poly(dA)·poly(dT) and poly[d(G-C)]·poly[d(G-C)], and the minor groove binder, Hoechst 33258, binding to poly[d(A-T)]·poly[d(A-T)]. The difference between different binding systems was interpreted as mainly resulting from three hydration related processes: (I) Burial of non-polar hydrophobic solvent accessible surface, (II) Burial of polar surface and formation of solute-solute H-bonds, and Ill. Disruption of "structural" hydration. The importance of combining volumetric and other thermodynamic properties to study hydration become apparent.
File system isolation for untrusted applications

When computer systems are compromised by an attack, it is difficult to determine the precise extent of the damage because the state changes made by an attacker and those made by regular users can be closely intertwined. In particular, the file system provides a single namespace that, when compromised, can have cascading effects on the entire system, making intrusion analysis and recovery a difficult process. This thesis proposes using a copy-on-write file system, called Isolation File System (IFS), to provide a transparent, restricted privilege sandboxing environment for running untrusted applications. The goal of IFS is to limit propagation of attacks by confining each application to its own complete namespace. If a sandboxed application is exploited, a coarse-grained recovery method allows completely removing the footprint of the software. Our approach supports existing applications by providing mechanisms for explicit sharing across IFS environments. Our evaluation shows that IFS is fairly easy to configure.
Lewis acid-mediated ring expansion of methylenecyclopropanes

This rearrangement strategy ultimately led to the extension of this idea towards the ring expansion of methylenecyclopropyl hydazones as a route to novel isomeric diazene scaffolds. Optimization studies revealed a highly unusual divergent selectivity based on the ligands used in the reaction. Preliminary scope and mechanistic discussions for this new rearrangement reaction are subsequently presented. Reports on the use of activated cyclopropanes and their derivatives have grown dramatically over the last several years, primarily due to their ease of preparation and broad reactivity. Previously, our group reported the synthetic utility of related methylenecyclopropane systems as a route to trans 2,3-disubstituted pyrrolidines. While synthetically useful, stereochemistry issues limited this earlier work. Indeed, this same limitation is also evident in other related disclosures by other groups. Hence, we set out to address this issue through the development of a new diastereoselective ring expansion of tertiary methylenecyclopropyl amides. In general, the scope for this transformation was very broad, affording the desired pyrrolidine products in good to excellent yields and in excellent selectivities. Mechanistic studies using deuterium-labeled substrates revealed that the major pathway for initial ring opening/ring closing proceeded via an SN2/SN2 pathway. The application of this aforementioned methodology was subsequently applied toward the total synthesis of the neuroexcitatory amino acid ( - )-kainic acid. Using our methodology, ( - )-kainic acid could be prepared from previously known precursors in 13 linear steps and in 18% overall yield. The selective rearrangement of secondary methylenecyclopropyl amides to generate exocyclic beta, gamma-unsaturated lactams is also presented. Yields and selectivities for this process were generally good to excellent for a broad range of substrates. Relevent mechanistic studies are also discussed.
The pathophysiology of anti-Kell "hemolytic disease of newborn."

Hemolytic disease of newborn due to anti-K, an antibody of the Kell blood group system, is associated with low circulating reticulocytes. Also, the antibody titer and bilirubin levels are not reliable predictors of anemia. These observations suggest that anti-K antibodies (Abs) may affect erythropoiesis. The inhibitory effect of the antibodies was studied in vitro using mononuclear cells isolated from cord blood. The generation of BFU/CFU-E colonies was evaluated in the presence of maternal anti-K, commercially available monoclonal IgM anti-K, polyclonal IgG anti-K and anti-k, and with a murine anti-Kell glycoprotein antibody. Also, the effect of anti-Kell blood group Abs was evaluated in the presence of excess monomeric IgG, and on purified CD34+ cells. All Abs significantly inhibited erythroid colony formation (p
Hierarchical ordering of stannic oxide: new materials for solid state gas sensors

Tin oxide materials are commonly used commercially as electroactive semiconductors for the detection of toxic gases such as carbon monoxide and methane. Surfactant and colloidal templating routes have been used to develop tin oxide materials which have a large range of porous architectures, from microporous/mesoporous solids to macroporous opals and inverse opals. Structure-property relationships between the underlying microstructure of the tin oxide architectures and the sensor response towards carbon monoxide were examined. Mesostructured tin oxide materials were synthesized using non-aqueous chemistry in ethylene glycol, as well as using anionic dodecylsulfate and dodecylsulfate templates. An unusual two-step surfactant decomposition was observed for latter mesostructures, as the surfactants decomposed to give stable sulfated mesoporous SnO2 materials upon calcination. FT-Raman Spectroscopy, Powder X-ray diffraction, nitrogen gas adsorption and AC-Impedance spectroscopy were used to monitor the evolution of the sulfated mesostructures upon calcination. It was postulated that the sulfate groups stabilized the mesostructure and also inhibited the sensitivity towards carbon monoxide by preventing adsorption of carbon monoxide on the tin oxide surface. Tin oxide opals and inverse opals were fabricated from silica and polystyrene sacrificial colloidal crystal templates. The tin oxide opals were synthesized by micromolding in inverted polymer opals (MIPO). The sensor response of the resulting structures was examined towards carbon monoxide, toluene and ethanol. The inverted tin oxide opals were found to exhibit near-ideal sensing behaviour, whereas the tin oxide opals showed large deviations from ideality. The structures were studied theoretically by considering them as resistor networks which could be broken down into simple resistor units consisting of agglomerates and junctions. Further studies were undertaken on the tin oxide opals to vary the neck diameter between adjacent spheres by variable sintering of the parent silica colloids. Relationships between the neck diameter and the sensor behaviour were observed. Future work in these systems includes the development of platinum-tin oxide opalene structures which can operate as room temperature carbon monoxide sensors, opal structures grown directly into the grooves of interdigitated arrays used for sensing, lithium battery anode materials, photocatalysts, and light harvesting materials.
H.C. Artmann's structuralist imagination: A semiotic study of his aesthetic and postmodernity [Austria]

The present thesis about the Austrian writer Hans Carl Artmann (1921--2000) argues that his literary work is designed by a structuralist imagination in the sense of a reasoning that corresponds to linguistic structuralism that is based on Saussurean semiology. The study is divided in four sections. The first section provides introductory chapters on Artmann's biographic context, the scholarly context, and the cultural context of Austrianness. The second section discusses methodological implications that are relevant for theorizing postmodernity in general and Artmann's postmodernity in a particular sense. Given that Artmann's strong potential for postmodernity can be principally characterized by many different theories and notion of postmodernity, the study selects a narrow definition of postmodernity as bi-paradigmatic irony. The third section analyzes Artmann's three aesthetic principles (synchrony, arealism, smallness) and examines their relation to rhetoric, on the basis of which three typical categories of signs (aliens, angels, monsters) are proposed to be characteristic of his work. Taking into account Artmann's aesthetic principles, the fourth section applies the selected definition of postmodernity in terms of bi-paradigmatic irony to three prose texts (dracula dracula, tok ph'rong suleng, Grunverschlossene Botschaft).
Analysis of the regulation of basic helix-loop-helix transcription factor activity during murine trophoblast development: E-factor independent activity of Hand1 in trophoblast and other cell types

This work began as a study of how the activities of members of the basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factor family are regulated during murine trophoblast development. It was shown that the zinc finger transcription factor mSna negatively regulates differentiation of these cells to a secondary trophoblast giant cell (TGC) fate via binding to E-box sequences, the preferred binding site for most bHLH factors. A detailed analysis of bHLH gene expression during placental development suggested that the opposing activities of Hand1 and Mash2 may coincide in trophoblast of the ectoplacental cone (EPC), which contains the precursors of secondary TGCs. However, it was found that while Hand1 and Mash2 can inhibit each other's activity in vitro, Hand1 does not need to repress Mash2 activity in order to promote TGC differentiation. Analysis of E-factor expression indicated that it was downregulated at the periphery of the EPC, prior to the onset of TGC differentiation. As Hand1 can both heterodimerize with E-factors and homodimerize, this led me to speculate that the ability of Hand1 to promote TGC formation may be based on the activity of Hand1 homodimers. This model was validated via the use of tethered Hand1 dimers in Rcho-1 trophoblast cells, where forced homodimerization of Hand1 was found to override the inhibitory effects of Mash2 on TGC differentiation. Further, it was shown that during embryonic stem (ES) cell in vitro differentiation (IVD) a novel requirement for Hand1 activity to inhibit cardiomyocyte differentiation could similarly be fulfilled by Hand1 homodimers. Finally, it was demonstrated that mice in which the sole source of Hand1 consists of tethered Hand1 homodimers were viable, strongly suggesting that the majority of the in vivo activity of Hand1 may be due to Hand1 homodimers. The contents of this thesis thus describe the in vivo mechanism of Hand1 activity, which is essential for the differentiation of a number of cell lineages. Further, these results may have broader implications for bHLH factor activity in general, as they contradict the assumption that bHLH factors such as Hand1 must heterodimerize with E-factors in order to regulate cellular differentiation.
Identification of risk factors predicting problem drinking in pregnancy: The motherisk experience

Introduction. Approximately 20% of women drink some alcohol during pregnancy, making effective screening of all pregnant women an essential part of prenatal tare to improve identification and reduce risks. Risk drinking is most prevalent pattern of alcohol use in pregnancy, hence determining the potential predictors to help identify women at risk for prenatal ethanol use is critical. Methods. Women calling the Alcohol Helpline for information regarding their alcohol use in pregnancy were included. Univariate and multivariate analysis were done to determine independent variables predictive of alcohol use. Risk drinking was defined by TWEAK score of ge;3. Results. Women at risk are often non-compliant with psychiatric therapy (p
The distribution and physiological effects of FGLa-type allatostatin-like peptides in the blood-feeding bug, Rhodnius prolixus

The presence of allatostatin-like immunoreactivity (ALI) has been demonstrated throughout the nervous system, gut, and peripheral tissues of unfed fifth instar and adult Rhodnius prolixus. ALI in apparent neurosecretory cells of the brain, suboesophageal ganglion, and mesothoracic ganglionic mass, as well as in midgut endocrine-like cells, suggests that Rhodnius allatostatins may act as neurohormones/hormones. The presence of ALI in possible interneurons and areas of neuropile throughout the central nervous system (CNS) also suggests roles as neuromodulators and/or neurotransmitters. The inhibitory properties of Diploptera punctata AST 7 (Dippu-AST 7) has been demonstrated on the Rhodnius hindgut and dorsal vessel. Because of the low concentrations capable of inhibiting both spontaneous (10-12 M) and leucokinin 1 (LK 1)-induced contractions (10-10 M--10-9 M) of the hindgut, as well as spontaneous (10-12 M) and serotonin-induced (10-9 M) dorsal vessel contractions, it is suggested that AST-like peptides in Rhodnius act as neurohormones on these tissues.
Vector spatial soliton collisions in AlGaAs slab waveguides

In this work, collisions of orthogonally polarized solitons in AlGaAs slab waveguides are studied theoretically, numerically and experimentally. The effects of nonlinear anisotropy in zinc-blende semiconductors on these interactions are also explored theoretically, and soliton interactions in crystals grown along the [001] and [111] axes are studied in the presence of varying degrees of waveguide birefringence. Through an extensive series of numerical simulations, different interaction regimes are identified and a toolbox for analyzing soliton interactions is developed. This understanding is then used to propose a novel birefringence managed switch. Soliton collision experiments were performed in [001] grown AlGaAs slab waveguides. Techniques for estimating waveguide birefringence from the magnitude of the four wave mixing energy transfer and for estimating collision angle without removing the sample were devised. A collision-induced lateral shift of the solitons at the waveguide output was observed, although the shift was not large enough to enable switching. Collisions between orthogonally polarized beams proved to be phase dependent owing to the effects of parametric processes, and power dependent beam splitting was observed. There was reasonable agreement between simulated collisions and experimental observations.