VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
Mental Health, Coping, Resilience, and Community in Plurisexual Emerging Adults

Despite cultural shifts in the acceptance of sexual minority individuals, plurisexual people continue to face mental health disparities in comparison to their monosexual counterparts. This study investigated how stressors (e.g., identity uncertainty, internalized homonegativity, experiences of microaggression), and resources (e.g., resilience, social support, connectedness to LGBTQIA2S+ communities) relate to psychological well-being and distress in plurisexual emerging adults. It also explored how this population describes and labels their sexual identities. Participants completed an online survey assessing the above-listed variables, as well as measures related to sexual identity, fluidity, and coping. All 774 participants were between the ages of 18 and 29, experienced attraction to more than one gender, and were living in Canada or the USA. Results indicated high levels of anxiety and depression in the sample. Minority stress was predictive of poorer mental health outcomes, while social support and resilience served as protective factors. Implications for counselling interventions are discussed, as well as the importance of education and training for clinicians to address the specific needs of this population.

Keywords: plurisexual
well-being
Advisor: Gillis, Joseph R
Power-Efficient Voltage-Mode RF Front-End Using Quantized Analog Signal Processing

In favour of saving precious real-estate and reducing overall cost for modern RF front-ends, SAW (Surface Acoustic Wave)-less RF receivers have become a popular topic recently. Unfortunately, removal of SAW filters requires the receiver to handle large blockers (e.g., above 0 dBm) without degrading the noise floor and in turn increases the overall power consumption of both the signal and local oscillator (LO) paths. My contributions to the state-of-the-art SAW-less receivers for my PhD addresses the abovementioned issues and can be summarized in the following major points: 1) for the first time, voltage-mode approach was made compliant to modern SAW-less receiver specs by the use of Quantized Analog (QA) signal processing, 2) for the first time, power scalability feature for the LO is introduced where LO power is scaled based on the operative scenario, leading to a significant power reduction compared to state-of-the-art (e.g., down to 1.6 mW for the LO), 3) an automated calibration platform was developed for the QA receiver where it significantly increased the linearity performance (e.g., up to 33 dB improvement for both third-order and second-order intermodulation products compared to non-calibrated), and 4) a novel multi-stage QA low-noise amplifier (LNA) was investigated with the introduction of tree architecture which dramatically reduces the power consumption and input capacitance when large input swing for the LNA is required.The first chapter reviews the state-of-the-art SAW-less receivers which identifies the core issue of excessive power consumption in these modern receivers and to appreciate the outlined solutions presented in this thesis. Chapter 2 presents the employed design strategies in the proposed receiver to address the excessive power. In chapter 3, the proposed SAW-less RF receiver design is presented as well as the manufactured test chip with its measurement results, with the results verifying points 1) and 2) above. Chapter 4 provides the automation calibration platform developed to increase overall linearity performance of the first QA test chip described in point 3) above. In chapter 5, the novel tree QA architecture is presented along with simulation results verifying point 4) above. The last chapter provides concluding remarks of the entire thesis.

Keywords: Digital calibration
Power efficient
Power scalable
Quantized Analog
RFIC
SAW-less
Advisor: Liscidini, Antonio
Modelling Additively Manufactured Material for Applications in Topology Optimization

Topology optimization and additive manufacturing are two emerging technologies which complement one another. Topology optimization can produce highly efficient, non-intuitive designs, which are difficult to manufacture, and additive manufacturing can be used to make highly intricate designs. However, despite this apparent mutually beneficial relationship, they are not used in conjunction in industry. One of the reasons for this is the inconsistency in the printed material and consequentially there is a lack of an accurate material model. This thesis focuses on addressing this issue by designing finite element models that describe the unique features of additive manufacturing; developing a material testing technique to quantify stochastic material properties associated with layer fusion; and demonstrating the usefulness of the finite element models and material testing technique through topology optimization. Two finite element models are described in this thesis, the first provides a novel description of the material density based on filament angle and the second allows separate material descriptions for the fusion and bulk material. The first of these finite element models allows more efficient optimization algorithms to be used in dual printing angle and topology optimization algorithms, including algorithms which contain stress constraints. The second of these two finite element models allow sources of uncertainty associated with the fusion between printed layers to be separated. Furthermore, the developed experimental technique can capture this local information. The experimental technique uses digital image correlation to measure local strain, which is used to calculate the mean, standard deviation and correlation length of the Young’s modulus for both the fusion and bulk regions. It is then demonstrated how these random field properties can be incorporated into topology optimization algorithms using both intrusive and non-intrusive methods to quantify the uncertainty.

Keywords: Additive
Manufacturing
Optimization
Topology
Advisor: Steeves, Craig A
Opera Chunhyangjeon [ˈɔpera tɕʰunçaŋʥʌn]- An introduction to South Korea’s first Changjak Opera, Opera Chunhyangjeon (1949), including a Korean lyric diction guide with a complete IPA transcription of the libretto for non- Korean speakers

Gesamtkunstwerk, translated as ‘total work of art,’ is a German term that is often used to describe opera. In addition to this ‘union of arts,’ opera is also a vehicle that can be used to share and experience foreign languages and culture from different times and countries. This study investigates the use of opera to share foreign language and culture, and presents two major resources to the Western music community. First, it introduces Opera Chunhyangjeon (1949), a Korean opera composed by Je-Myung Hyun (1903-1960), with libretto by Seo-Gu Lee (1899-1981). Looking at Opera Chunhyangjeon (1949) in a few different contexts- its literary roots, its musical stylistic development, and the history of South Korea during this time, gives the insight to the birth of the changjak opera, a meaningful amalgamation of Korean traditions and Western musical form. Second, this paper provides a performance guide in Korean lyric diction, with a complete libretto, Romanization, IPA transcription and English translation of Hyun’s Opera Chunhyangjeon to facilitate the needs of non-Korean speakers when approaching this work. By these means, this study looks to make Opera Chunhyangjeon available to a broad international audience as a tool for learning the music and history of Korean opera and the life and culture of the Korean people through a beloved classic folktale.

Advisor: Philcox, Steven SP
Formal Teacher Leadership and the Education Management Hierarchy

Teacher Leadership has become a significant area of interest for building capacity within schools. This qualitative study centres on the constraints imposed on teacher leaders in their relationships with teachers and administration. The impact hierarchical relationships have on the effectiveness of the teacher leadership role is of particular interest. Micro-political analysis of teacher relationships in schools research on collegial teacher interactions are fundamental to this study. A lack of formal policy recognition may contribute to the way teacher leaders engage in their roles, their role ambiguity, and their lack of authority. The results show that teacher leaders navigate their roles by engaging in “invisible leadership” or “leading from the center” as teachers, mentors, guides, confidantes, and leaders in their “teachership” within their school communities. Many of the teacher leaders use their emotional intelligence and micro-political strategies to navigate collegial relations in their roles with other teachers and the education management hierarchy. The data demonstrated that some teacher leaders are identified and mentored very early in their teaching careers, while others bring skills from other industries and university training to support them in their work. The teacher leadership role is complex and has become a topic of interest in sustaining reform efforts and catalyzing change. This research provides further insights into the micro-political and collegial relations of teacher leaders within the education management hierarchy and the supports leading to their effectiveness.

Keywords: Education Management
Hierarchy
Invisible Leadership
Micropolitics
Position of Responsibility
Teacher Leadership
Advisor: Bascia, Nina
Minding the Mundane: The Critique of Political Participation from Epicurus to Montaigne

Minding the Mundane theorizes an important way of thinking about politics both today and in the history of European political thought. I call this the mundane perspective and locate it particularly in Epicurus and his ancient followers, as well as (in modified form) in early modern European theorists influenced by Epicureanism. The mundane perspective is a way of looking at and talking about political activity, one which is critical of the lofty self-conceptions and aspirations most political communities create for themselves, instead encouraging attention to features of human nature that are often thought of as “mundane”: the needs of the body and the everyday needs of the soul for intellectual activity and commerce with other human beings. The Introduction argues for the importance of the mundane perspective in the history of political thought and as well as its relevance to contemporary political theory and practice. The first chapter draws out the political dimensions of Epicurus’ advice to his followers to “live unseen,” setting the stage for the readings to come by introducing the paradoxes of a political thought that is critical of political engagement. The next chapter draws out the mundane perspectives of two theorists often associated with the republican tradition: Thomas More and Niccolò Machiavelli. The final two chapters examine monarchical versions of the mundane perspective in the novels of François Rabelais and the essays of Michel de Montaigne. The mundane perspective calls us and our politics back down to earth. It is therefore of interest to scholars and citizens seeking to moderate the increasingly heated politics of contemporary liberal democracies, and to those seeking a deeper understanding of the phenomenon of political disengagement. Minding the Mundane contributes to our understanding of the republican tradition by recovering a normatively attractive rival to republicanism, and to contemporary political theory by arguing that contemporary neo-republicans and democratic theorists alike have been too influenced by the republican tradition. The mundane perspective offers a helpful corrective to the overly romantic conceptions of citizenship held by political theorists and sheds light on the widespread preference of liberal democratic citizens for private over public life.

Advisor: Beiner, Ronald
Influence of Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) on Rostral Fluid Shift, and the Pathophysiology on Asthma

The presence of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in persons with asthma confers a heightened risk of overnight exacerbation of asthma, declined lung function, increased airway hyperresponsiveness, and greater need for asthma medications. Previous studies showed that overnight fluid shift from the legs into the neck and peripharyngeal tissues increases upper airway resistance and severity of OSA. Recent findings also indicated that in asthma, fluid shift into the thorax induced by lower body positive pressure (LBPP) while supine provokes an increase in small airway resistance. However, whether fluid redistribution links OSA with asthma remains unknown. This thesis aimed to investigate the role of fluid accumulation in the thorax in the pathophysiological link between OSA and asthma. The central hypothesis is that one mechanism by which OSA can predispose to small airway narrowing in asthma is by aggravating fluid accumulation in the thorax during sleep. We found that simulated obstructive apneas in awake participants increased thoracic fluid volume (TFV) by approximately 50 ml in both healthy and asthma groups. However, small airway narrowed only in the asthma group, indicating that increases in TFV resulting from negative intrathoracic pressure swings during simulated apneas, increase small airway narrowing in patients with asthma, but not in healthy controls (Chapter 3). We expanded this work into the overnight and clinical setting, and found that patients with asthma and co-existing OSA had a larger increase in TFV and greater small airway narrowing than asthma patients without OSA (Chapter 4). Moreover, we investigated whether asthma treatment with bronchodilators can prevent the airway narrowing that is attributable to rostral fluid shift. It was found that small airway narrowing would increase after application of LBPP, both with and without bronchodilator (Chapter 5). Finally, we developed a model of the respiratory system, to estimate elastance of the airway tissues and total respiratory system in patients with asthma in response to increase in TFV. Our modelling results showed that increases in TFV was associated with an increase in airway tissue elastance (Chapter 6). Taken together, these studies demonstrate that fluid accumulation in the thorax narrows the small airway in patients with asthma, and contributes to the pathophysiological link between OSA and asthma.

Keywords: asthma
obstructive sleep apnea
rostral fluid shift
small airway narrowing
thoracic fluid accumulation
Advisor: Yadollahi, Azadeh A. Y.
Ephrin-B2 and EphB4 Signaling in the Development of Fibrosis

Pulmonary fibrosis (PF) is a pathology featured in many diseases frequently classified as interstitial lung diseases. Deregulated extracellular matrix (ECM) remodeling disrupts lung architecture, causing decreased lung function and patient mortality. Current therapies are limited to slowing rather than halting disease progression. We previously identified fibroblast-derived ephrin-B2 as a key mediator of PF. This work seeks to further evaluate the role of ephrin-B2 and its potential receptor ephB4 in PF development. Ephrin-B2 is highly expressed in endothelial cells within lung tissue, and this work seeks to address whether endothelial expression of ephrin-B2 contributes to PF. We have previously identified ephB4 as a likely target for ephrin-B2 signaling in PF. I sought to evaluate whether ephB4 ablation on fibroblasts was sufficient in protecting against the development of PF using a conditional type I collagen-driven Ephb4 KO mouse line that I generated. Ephb4 CKO substantially protects against bleomycin-induced PF in mice. RNA sequencing was performed on lung fibroblasts isolated from ephB4 KO mice and control mice to assess its signaling mechanism. 11 ECM and 7 protein transport genes were downregulated with the KO of fibroblast ephB4; this is the first study to link ephB4 signaling to fibrotic extracellular matrix remodeling and secretion. To evaluate whether ephB4 pharmacological inhibition could also impact ECM and protein transport NanoString was performed on mouse and human fibroblasts treated with profibrotic cytokine TGF-β1 and ephB4 inhibitor NVP-BHG712. ECM and protein transport genes were downregulated in mouse and human fibroblasts. Human fibroblasts treated with NVP-BHG712 downregulate the expression of classic pro-fibrotic markers. Mice administered with ephB4 inhibitor 5 days post-bleomycin challenge developed markedly less PF compared to controls. RNA sequencing of human IPF fibroblasts indicate that a key potential downstream target of ephB4 signaling is ELN. ELN was shown through human protein-protein interactions to share TGF-β1 as an interaction partner with ephB4. Mice therapeutically treated with ephb4 inhibitor downregulate ELN in lung tissue after initiation of fibrosis. Ultimately, ephB4 signaling shows excellent potential in both understanding the mechanisms of fibrosis pathology, and in future translation towards addressing human disease, potentially by modulating key ECM proteins like ELN.

Keywords: EphB4
Ephrin-B2
Fibroblast
Pulmonary Fibrosis
Advisor: Kapoor, Mohit
Hinz, Boris
Targeting Vulnerabilities in RB-deficient Breast Cancer

Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a lethal disease with limited treatment options. TNBC affects younger women and has high rates of relapse and metastasis, which are lethal; new therapies are therefore desperately needed. Most TNBC cases have mutations in TP53. RB-loss is also seen in ~30% of TNBCs and is associated with metastasis. As RB-loss is not directly druggable, identifying downstream pathways may expose vulnerabilities that are amenable to therapeutic interventions. Employing murine models of TNBC driven by p53 loss or combined Rb plus p53 loss, Rb-deficiency was found to induced mitochondrial protein translation (MPT) and sensitize human TNBCs to tigecycline, an FDA-approved antibiotic targeting prokaryotic protein translation, both in vitro and in vivo (Chapter 2). Kinome drug screens of human and murine TP53/RB1/PTEN-deficient cancer cells identified the CDC25 phosphatase as a target for diverse TNBC lines. CDC25 inhibition was synergistic with WEE1 and PI3K inhibition in vitro and combined CDC25 plus PI3K inhibition strongly attenuated growth of the TP53/RB1/PTEN-deficient TNBC line BT549 in immune-compromised NSG mice (Chapter 3). In addition to MPT, Rb-loss also downregulated immune hallmarks including interferon alpha/gamma, inflammation, complement, allograft rejection and IL6 JAK STAT3 signaling. Furthermore, analysis of all BC subtypes or TNBCs revealed a subset of immune modulators including immune checkpoint CD274 (PD-L1) and PVR that correlated with RB-loss, and E2F1 and E2F2 gain signatures. ENCODE analysis confirmed recruitment of pRB-E2F1 to the promoters of these immune modulators. Both PD-L1 and PVR were induced by overexpression of E2F1or RB-depletion, and suppressed by over-expression of pRB. Importantly, the FDA-approved CDK4/6 inhibitor (CDK4/6i) palbociclib attenuated PD-L1 and PVR expression in RB-deficient TNBC lines (Chapter 4, submitted). Rb-loss in an immunocompetent mouse model of HER2 (her2/neu) induced mammary tumors that responded to palbociclib to the same extent as Rb-proficient tumors. This is in contrast to results obtained in vitro using CDK4/6i-sensitive line MCF7 in which isogenic RB-loss desensitized cells to palbociclib, and this was further attenuated upon p130 depletion (Chapter 5, unpublished). These studies describe new vulnerabilities of RB-deficient, aggressive BC, involving cell metabolism (MPT), cell cycle (CDC25), and immune checkpoint modulators (PD-L1, PVR) as potential new therapeutic modalities.

Advisor: Zacksenhaus, Eldad EZ
Gut Hormone Regulation of Hepatic and Intestinal Lipoprotein Production

Dyslipidemia is a key component of insulin resistance, which results in the overproduction of hepatic and intestinal apolipoprotein (apo)B-containing lipoprotein particles. These particles are catabolized down into highly proatherogenic remnants. Several gut-derived peptides have been identified as regulators of energy metabolism; one such peptide is the incretin hormone glucagon-like peptide (GLP)-1. Our laboratory has previously demonstrated that GLP-1 can signal both centrally and peripherally to reduce postprandial and fasting lipoprotein secretion. Here, I examine a novel vagal neuroendocrine signalling pathway by which native GLP-1 may exert its anti-lipemic effects. Furthermore, I demonstrate a novel role for other gut-derived peptides in regulating intestinal lipoprotein production. Portal vein injections of GLP-1(7-36) into Syrian golden hamsters revealed a site-specific anti-lipemic role for native GLP-1. This effect was lost after GLP-1R antagonism, and in a GLP-1R KO hamster model. The suppressive effects of portal GLP-1 on intestinal lipoprotein excursion were also lost after chemical, pharmacological, surgical, or selective denervation of the vagus nerve – together identifying the vagus nerve as a key component of GLP-1's endogenous signalling pathway. Moreover, we demonstrate a role for nodose ganglia GLP-1R-containing neurons in propagating anti-lipemic viscerosensory signals. These data are complimented by the finding of portal and nodose ganglia GLP-1 resistance following diet-induced insulin resistance, suggesting loss of this vagal GLP-1 signalling pathway may occur at the advent of diabetic dyslipidemia. The role of other gut- derived anorexigenic hormones were also investigated, and we identified that Peptide YY, oxytocin, and cholecystokinin (CCK) also exert a suppressive effect on postprandial lipoprotein metabolism. Importantly, we also delineate the effect of CCK receptor signalling from bile acid release on postprandial lipemia. This in combination with data showing CCKs effects are lost in GLP-1R KO hamsters suggests that CCK may exert its effects though bile acid-mediated increases in GLP-1 secretion. Overall, the data presented here supports a key role for GLP-1 receptors on the portal vein afferent neurons in modulating intestinal fat absorption and lipoprotein production and identifies other gut-derived peptides as novel regulators of postprandial lipemia. Insights from these data may support identification of potential drug targets for treatment of diabetic dyslipidemia.

Keywords: Chylomicron
Dyslipidemia
GLP-1
Insulin Resistance
Vagus
Advisor: Adeli, Khosrow