VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
Arterial remodeling in response to hemodynamic and axial forces

Arteries are dynamic tissues that remodel in response to changing mechanical forces associated with blood flow and pressure. Since a clinically relevant example of mechanical regulation of arterial function occurs in bypass graft failure at distal anastomosis sites, an in vivo model of distal anastomosis was used to test the hypothesis that local hemodynamics influence pathological responses. End-to-side anastomoses of right to left rabbit carotid arteries were performed at acute, intermediate and right angles and the upstream left carotid arteries were ligated to simulate pathological occlusion. Tissue responses were examined in the wall of the recipient vessel opposite the anastomosis site (the bed), where unusual hemodynamic forces are imposed. Three months after surgery, intimal thickening was observed on upstream portions of acute, and more rarely, intermediate anastomoses only. Medial thinning due to loss of cells and matrix, and aneurysmal dilatation, was observed in all right angle and some intermediate anastomoses, but not in acute anastomoses. These data illustrate the sensitivity of arterial remodeling to anastomotic angle, presumably through changes in local hemodynamics. In addition to the mechanical forces associated with blood flow and blood pressure, arteries are also under considerable lengthwise stretch (axial strain); however, the origin, regulation and significance of axial strain has received little study. To test the hypothesis that axial strain greatly influences adaptive remodeling of arterial tissue, rabbit carotid artery responses to both increases and decreases of axial strain were examined. Arteries were surgically stretched, elevating axial strain from 62 ± 2% to 97 ± 2%, without altering blood flow rate. A rapid growth response involving both cell and matrix turnover returned axial strain to basal levels within one week, via an endothelium, independent mechanism. In converse experiments, axial strain was reduced from 62 ± 2% to 30 ± 2% without affecting blood flow rate, by the use of interposition arterial grafts. Axial strain remained unaltered after 12 weeks and extreme vessel tortuosity was evident by 5 weeks. These data indicate that normal axial strains are re-established after increases but not decreases in strain. This thesis provides insight into the physiological regulation of axial strain and the pathological consequences regarding its loss.
Assessing the optimism-pessimism debate, nuclear proliferation, nuclear risks, and theories of state action

This dissertation focuses on the current debate in international relations literature over the risks associated with the proliferation of nuclear weapons. On this subject, IR scholars are divided into roughly two schools: proliferation "optimists," who argue that proliferation can be beneficial and that its associated hazards are at least surmountable, and proliferation "pessimists," who believe the opposite. This debate centers upon a theoretical disagreement about how best to explain and predict the behavior of states. Optimists generally ground their arguments on rational deterrence theory and maintain that nuclear weapons can actually increase stability among states, while pessimists often ground their arguments on "organization theory," which contends that organizational, bureaucratic, and other factors prevent states from acting rationally. A major difficulty with the proliferation debate, however, is that both sides tend to advance their respective theoretical positions without adequately supporting them with solid empirical evidence. This dissertation detailed analyses of the nuclear programs in the United States, Russia, China, India, and Pakistan to determine whether countries with nuclear weapons have adequate controls over their nuclear arsenals and fissile material stockpiles (such as highly enriched uranium and plutonium). These case studies identify the strengths and weaknesses of different systems of nuclear controls and help predict what types of controls proliferating states are likely to employ. On the basis of the evidence gathered from these cases, this dissertation concludes that a further spread of nuclear weapons would tend to have seriously negative effects on international stability by increasing risks of accidental, unauthorized, or inadvertent use of nuclear weapons and risks of thefts of fissile materials for use in nuclear or radiological devices by aspiring nuclear states or terrorist groups.
Healing the body in the "culture of risk," pain, and injury, negotiations between clinicians and injured athletes in Canadian competitive intercollegiate sport

As researchers, we must question the effect and influence of those who, in essence, are in the front lines of the sport injury/pain complex--sport medicine clinicians. Using a combination of semi-structured one-on-one interviews and focus groups with athletes, coaches, and sport medicine clinicians, this case study examined the negotiation of treatment between clinicians and athletes in an intercollegiate setting. While a number of findings were drawn from this study, they included the evidence that a 'culture of risk' was reinforced under certain circumstances during negotiation, but was tempered by the existence of a "culture of precaution" that worked to resist those influences. Clinicians acknowledged the benefit of working with student-athletes who recognise the importance of academics, and who tend to be cautious when injured, particularly with head injuries. Recommendations were offered to maintain and improve the negotiation of treatment, and included a greater focus on the role of coaches.
Toronto area car ownersyhip study, a longitudinal survey and a preliminary analysis of results

The Toronto Area Car Ownership Study was conducted to define the state-of-the-art in car ownership modelling, to design and administer a longitudinal survey to fulfill the data requirements for such a model, to validate the survey results and to conduct preliminary analysis on those results. An in-depth retrospective telephone survey design was chosen to allow a dynamic nested logit vehicle transactions model to be estimated. The survey was conducted with the help of a computer aid and was found to produce results consistent with prior beliefs about car ownership behaviour. Simple univariate analyses were conducted on the data to determine the relationship between characteristics of the household and the occurrence of vehicle transactions, the choice of vehicle type, the number of years a vehicle is held, and the degree of consumer loyalty to different types of vehicles.
Nonlinearity and signal processing in vestibulo-only cells and the translational vestibulo-ocular reflex

Recordings were obtained from 110 randomly selected vestibulo-only (VO) neurons in the vestibular nucleus of two rhesus monkeys. Sinusoidal stimuli were delivered at several frequencies and velocities while position transients (steps) were delivered in the naso-occipital, inter-aural and in directions 90 CCW, 60 CCW, 30 CCW, 30 CW, and 60 CW to the naso-occipital direction, The response to sinusoidal stimuli was nonlinear. Specifically, the response of VO neurons violated the principles of superposition and homogeneity. The response to position transients was also nonlinear. Specifically, the responses were directionally asymmetric. One direction of step (forward step) elicited a response that approximated the integral of the acceleration profile of the stimulus (velocity direction). In the opposite direction (backward step), the cells simply encoded the acceleration of the motion. This asymmetry could be attributed to an increase in the time constant of decay of an excitatory response and the initial inhibition of a neurons' response in the opposite direction. A rate limiter implemented as a procedure that extended the time constant of decay (time constant enhancement) was used to model these responses. Time constant enhancement was dependent on spike arrival time in addition to the mean firing rate of the cell. This proved to be a powerful tool enabling us to model both the nonlinearity during sinusoids and the asymmetry during position transients. The tVOR was also investigated in response to sinusoids and position transients. A simple model is proposed that adequately simulates the tVOR in response to sinusoids. However, the tVOR in response to steps of position revealed novel responses and exposed the inadequacies of sinusoids due to phase relationship ambiguity between the input and output. Specifically, in response to position transients, the eye position traces were similar in waveform to head acceleration, an uncompensatory response, which could be taken to be compensatory if the stimulus was a sinusoid. Time constant enhancement was again used to model the tVOR in response to steps.
The settlement and adaptation needs of Korean newcomer and immigrant families in Toronto, pilot study

Despite the growing number of Korean immigrants to Canada, there is little research on their settlement and adjustment needs. The purpose of this study is to document the settlement and adaptation needs of Korean families living in Toronto and to distinguish between the experiences of Korean newcomer and immigrant families. Semi-structured interviews with six newcomers, ten immigrants, and ten key informants from the Korean community revealed that Korean families living in Toronto had concerns consistent with other immigrant groups. The main difference between these newcomer and immigrant families related to parent-child conflicts. Intergenerational relationships were more strained in immigrant families due to differences in the adjustment and adaptation rates experienced by the two generations. These newcomers were more likely than longer-term immigrants to be actively seeking out ways to integrate socially into mainstream Canadian society while the immigrant respondents were more likely to remain primarily within the Korean community.
Chinese language education, the contemporary Japanese university, and modern Japan

This thesis investigates undergraduate Chinese language education in the modern Japanese university. It attempts to account for the recent upsurge in interest in Chinese language learning but also deals with broader questions about the nature of Chinese education in Japanese universities. The study attempts to situate the modern system in its historical context, giving a general overview of the historical Sino-Japanese language contact through the Tokugawa period and moving on to discuss Chinese language education in the context of the upheaval of the Meiji period. Finally it describes the modern Chinese language curriculum in the Japanese university, showing a system that only now is treating Chinese as a real foreign language. This thesis also explores how the current Chinese language education system reflects complex Japanese attitudes toward China and Asia and argues the current system shows a changing Japanese identity in Asia.
Nickel-based amorphous alloys with Cr/V additions for the hydrogen evolution reaction in alkaline solution

Alloy compositions of Ni55-xCo25B 20Crx and Ni55-yCo25B20 Vy where x = 1-20 and y = 1-10 were produced using the melt spinning technique. The amorphous nature of the alloys was confirmed by X-ray diffraction and their atomic composition verified by Inductively Coupled Plasma Spectroscopy. Differential Scanning Calorimetry was used to determine their thermal characteristics. The electrocatalytic activity of the alloys was measured using a steady state potentiostatic technique. Polarization curves yielded data on the exchange current density and the Tafel slope values for the alloys. As the concentration of chromium and vanadium increased in the alloys, from 1 to 20 at.% and 1 to 10 at.%, the exchange current density increased from 4 to 16 * 10-5 A/cm2 and from 3 to 6.6 * 10-5 A/cm2 respectively. Increased Cr and V concentrations increased the Tafel slopes from 155 to 210 mV/dec and from 145 to 165 mV/dec respectively, in the low overpotential range.
Expression of SAK in human colorectal cancer and murine fibroblasts

Sak and Plk are protein kinases of the polo family. In lower organisms, Plk homologs are required for the precise regulation of mitosis. In this thesis, SAK expression has been evaluated in a series of human colorectal cancers, and compared with that of PLK. In the majority of colorectal cancer specimens, both SAK and PLK were more highly expressed in tumours than in adjacent normal intestinal tissue. In both colorectal cancer cell lines and tumours, expression of SAK was greater in samples showing microsatellite instability compared to those with chromosomal instability. PLK expression did not differ between these groups. An inducible system was assembled to express a GFP-Sak fusion protein in murine fibroblasts, and to examine subcellular localization of the protein during the cell cycle. While expression and localization of GFP-Sak were similar to patterns reported for PLK, differences in nucleolar and perinuclear distribution were observed, suggesting a distinct function for Sak.
Creating spaces for dieticians to promote food security, can we move beyond the charity model?

The dramatic rise in demand for charitable food assistance in Canada over the past twenty years indicates that a growing segment of society is experiencing some degree of food insecurity. In 1991, The Canadian Dietetic Association published its position that all Canadians have the right to food security and that dieticians have an important role to play. This paper looks at the question of how dieticians are promoting food security within the context of their professional role. A snowball sample was used to invite five dieticians, identified by their colleagues as actively addressing the issue of hunger in the community, to participate in a 90 minute in-depth interview describing their activities and the barriers and supports encountered in relation to their food security work. An analysis of the respondents' experiences illuminates the factors within the context of the workplace and within the professional mandate of dieticians that block attempts to promote food security initiatives. The possibilities and the limitations of the role of dieticians in the promotion of domestic food security are discussed.
Willing shape-shifters: The loathly lady from Irish Sovranty to Spenser's Duessa

I explicate the nexus of cultural ideas embodied in the loathly lady motif, whose narratives are concerned with national and personal identity. Her shape-shifting flesh signals the contestation of will inherent in kingship, nationhood, and heterosexual relations. I begin with the Irish Sovranty figure, Chaucer and Gower's loathly ladies, Dame Ragnell, Thomas of Erceldoune's fairy queen, and several balladic heroines: medieval versions which endorse active female sexuality and make male subjugation to it a kingly ideal. The two loci of the tales, the forest and court, are diametrically opposite spheres brought into play with each other through the two main characters of the tales, the beastly bride and the hunter hunted. These enact an courtship ritual invoking an imbroglio of concerns, including anxiety about food and sex, fear of assimilation, suspicion of human beastliness; the signification of feminine flesh, the relation of word to flesh, of genre to gender; initiation into maturity, social hierarchy, and the power ratio underpinning heterosexuality. The paradoxes of the beastly bride and the hunter hunted are coupled; the slippage of inversion allows a loosening of gender roles. The female body of the loathly lady incorporates anxiety and desire inherent in competition, with the union of opposites providing redemptive closure. I then show how Spenser makes an opposite use of the same motif. Duessa, his loathly lady, is sternly disempowered, her active sexuality is punished, her adept performance of the role of romance lady is disavowed. The trial and execution of her is used to urge Elizabeth toward harsher treatment of the Irish. Spenser addresses the issues which the medieval loathly lady configures, but his different inflexion measures his assessment of these. Yet like the medieval models, where the loathly lady is a king-maker like the Irish bard, and where Chaucer's and Gower's hags reflect authorial intention, Duessa, too, provides a paradigm of Spenser's performance. Her multiplicity mirrors his poetic strategy, while her energy is displaced onto Mutability and reconciled by Nature, in alignment with the happy endings of the medieval tales.
Studies on indoor fungi

Fungi are among the most common microbiota in the interiors of buildings, including homes. Indoor fungal contaminants, such as dry-rot, have been known since antiquity and are important agents of structural decay, particularly in Europe. The principal agents of indoor fungal contamination in North America today, however, are anamorphic (asexual) fungi mostly belonging to the phyla Ascomycota and Zygomycota, commonly known as "moulds". Broadloom dust taken from 369 houses in Wallaceburg, Ontario during winter, 1994, was serial dilution plated, yielding approximately 250 fungal taxa, over 90% of which were moulds. The ten most common taxa were: 'Alternaria alternata, Aureobasidium pullulans, Eurotium herbariorum, Asperillus versicolor, Penicillium chrysogenum, Cladosporium cladosporioides, P. spinulosum, sphaerospermum, As. niger' and 'Trichoderma viride'. Chi-square association analysis of this mycoflora revealed several ecological groups including phylloplane-, soil-, and xerophilic food-spoilage fungi. Genotypic variation was investigated in two common dust-borne species, ' Penicillium brevicompactum' and 'P. chrysogenum'. Nine multilocus haplotypes comprising 75 isolates of 'P. brevicompactum ' from 50 houses were detected by heteroduplex mobility assay (HMA) of polymorphic regions in beta-tubulin (benA), nuclear ribosomal RNA spanning the internal transcribed spacer regions (ITS 1-2) and histone 4 (his4) genes. Sequence analysis of the benA and rDNA loci showed two genetically divergent groups. Authentic strains of 'P. breticompactum' and 'P. stoloniferum' clustered together in the predominant clade, accounting for 86% of isolates. The second lineage contained 14% of isolates, and included collections from the rotting fruit bodies of macrofungi. Similarly, 5 multilocus haplotypes based on acetyl coenzyme-A synthase (acuA), benA, ITS1-2 and thioredoxin reductase (trxB) genes comprised 198 isolates of 'P. chrysogenum' obtained from 109 houses. A strictly clonal pattern of inheritance was observed, indicating the absence of recombination. Phylogenetic analyses of allele sequences segregated the population into three divergent lineages, encompassing 90%, 7% and 3% of the house dust isolates, respectively. Type isolates of P. chrysogenum and its synonym 'P. notatum' clustered within the secondary lineage, confirming this synonymy. No isolates of nomenclatural status clustered within the predominant lineage; however, this Glade contained Alexander Fleming's historically noteworthy penicillin-producing strain from 1929. Similarly, there was no available name for the minor lineage.
Programmable accounting management for Virtual Private Networks

Until now, proposals for IP accounting management have not exploited the power of programmable networks. Thus, real-time charging and pricing schemes are still regarded as impractical, because the accounting management tasks are executed only at the edges. In this thesis, we introduce the notion of programmable accounting management which is more flexible, efficient and scalable. Specifically, we propose real-time charging and pricing mechanisms which are practical. Moreover, we propose a novel programmable accounting architecture for QoS-enabled Virtual Private Networks (VPNs). This architecture gives the flexibility to the providers to employ real-time accounting, and offers an open accounting interface inside the network nodes. This entails that also the VPN subscribers can execute accounting tasks inside the network nodes. For example, they can keep their providers under surveillance, or they can apply their own accounting policies for their users.
A set-top box for internet browsing, the UTvSurfer system

The World Wide Web (WWW) has become an invaluable source of information to many people. Internet appliances have recently been introduced as an inexpensive alternative to personal computers for providing access to the Internet. This thesis presents the hardware and software architecture of one such Internet appliance, the UTvSurfer system. The UTvSurfer system is a television set-top box for web browsing and emailing. The UTvSurfer system is based on the AMD Elan SC300 microcontroller and the QNX operating system. It has support for PCMCIA cards as well as for smart cards. Input is provided through a remote control which may be shared with the television. Applications for the UTvSurfer system include a HTML 3.2 compliant web browser with optional prefetching, a POP3 and SMTP email client, and a PPP dialer for connecting to an Internet service provider. A remote program loader allows the system to download remote applications and to execute them locally.
A CDMA multiple packet-burst capture receiver scheme

A packet-based, spread-spectrum, multiple-capture receiver scheme is proposed for the reverse channel of a cellular communication system in which the terminals utilize common codes to spread the initial portion of their transmissions which is required for capture and a temporarily assigned long spreading code for the data portion of the transmissions. Access to the reverse channel is controlled through a busy tone signal in the forward channel in order to prevent excessive multiple access interference at the receiver. A model of the receiver scheme is developed and simulated using bit and chip rates similar to those in third generation mobile communication systems. Packet-transmission capture, packet throughput, access delay and packet-erasure rates in the receiver scheme are investigated. In addition, the effect of intercell interference, path diversity, antenna selection diversity and slow terminal motion is also examined.