VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
Basic fibroblast growth factor mediates neointimal formation in porcine aortic explants

Neointimal formation was studied in a porcine aortic explant model that exhibits intimal smooth muscle cell (ISMC) accumulation beneath an intact endothelium (nondenuded) after seven days in culture. Removal of the endothelium prior to culture (denuded explant) results in limited neointimal formation, unless denuded explants are incubated with clay 5 nondenuded conditioned media. The concentration of a number of known SMC mitogens was similar in conditioned media from nondenuded and denuded explants, indicating that these mitogens were not the soluble factor in nondenuded conditioned media which induced neointimal formation in denuded explants. Since basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) was found in greatest abundance, I hypothesized that this mitogen mediated early neointimal formation. Basic FGF immunoreactivity in tissue sections and mitogenic activity of bFGF in conditioned media were similar in denuded and nondenuded explants. However, the addition of exogenous bFGF (1 ng/mL) enhanced neointimal formation in nondenuded explants but not in denuded explants, indicating an FGF receptor dependent mechanism. Western blots of intimal lysates showed a time dependent increase in fibroblast growth factor receptor-1 (FGFR-1) expression over a seven day course, with higher levels seen in lysates from nondenuded explants. Immunoreactive FGFR-1, detected in both endothelial cells and ISMCs of nondenuded explants, were not detected in ISMC of denuded explant sections. Quantitative ligand binding and in situ autoradiography demonstrated specific, high affinity binding of $\sp{125}$I-bFGF to receptors on intimal cells. FGF receptors 3 and 4 were also expressed in intimal lysates; however, their expression did not correlate with neointimal formation and was markedly less abundant than FGFR-1 expression. The addition of bFGF neutralizing antibodies which resulted in partial reduced bFGF did not decrease ISMC accumulation but increased FGFR-1 expression. When bFGF neutralizing antibodies were administered more frequently (every 24 hours), resulting in a marked reduction in bFGF, neointimal formation was reduced despite increased FGFR-1 protein. Thus, bFGF mediates neointimal formation and appears to reciprocally regulate FGFR-1 in porcine aortic explants.
Student nurses' clinical decision-making, key to professional practice

Expertise in clinical decision-making is a hallmark of professional nursing. Changing demographics, technology, and health care have increased the complexity and importance of nurses' clinical decision-making (DM). Developing students' clinical DM ability is a prime goal of nursing educators, but understanding of this complex phenomenon is fragmentary. The literature related to clinical DM reveals many disagreements, while alternative cognitive processing theories (Information Processing, Skill Acquisition) have led to several DM models. Nursing research in this area has used simulations and focused on RNs and university nursing students. Research into college students' DM, and into the effects of context is lacking. The purpose of this research project was to learn about university and college nursing students' clinical DM while giving patient care. The research questions were: What are the DM patterns of student nurses engaged in patient care and how appropriate are they? Are there observable differences in DM patterns and appropriateness based on program type or age/life experience? How does the context affect students' clinical DM? Does clinical DM change during a clinical rotation? This was a focused ethnography with a volunteer sample of 7 college and 8 university nursing students. The researcher observed participants giving care on medical/surgical in-patient units. Data were analyzed within the context of Information Processing Theory (IPT) which postulates short-term and long-term memory constraints. The study indicated cognitive processing limitations similar to those postulated by IPT. The sample's nature precludes generalization, and the study's results are limited to a description of student nurses' clinical DM in a particular semester and location. The major finding was the powerful influence of context on participants' DM. The context was strong enough to nullify differences based on program type and age/life experience. Participants made five types of decisions in short, irregular sequences. Participants' DM improved during the rotation. The study identifies the importance of increasing clinical teachers' awareness of the clinical environment's complexity from the students' standpoint. Students need a supportive atmosphere and freedom to practice decision-making within the limits of patient safety if they are to develop the clinical DM abilities needed in professional practice.
Resource allocation decision-making in an Ontario teaching hospital

Hospitals occupy an important position within the Canadian health care system and their services are highly valued by the public. As hospitals receive a substantial portion of the public funding allocated by governments to health care, and as governments increasingly seeks ways to reduce public spending, attention has focused on how hospitals ought to make decisions about the allocation and use of the health care resources they receive. The purpose of this study was to describe resource allocation decision-making in a Canadian hospital and to identify themes relevant to the process. The study was conducted using ethnographic methods to examine resource allocation decision-making in one Canadian teaching hospital over a period of approximately eleven months. There were three sources of data: hospital documents collected throughout the field study period, interviews of senior administrators, senior physicians and members of the board of trustees and non-participant observation at the hospital, most of which occurred at meetings of senior level decision-making groups. Two major resource allocation processes were observed during the field work: decision-making about the operating budget and decision-making about the capital budget. Major themes in allocating the operating budget were those of the central role of senior administrators, evolving relationships, incremental budgeting, soft information and professional judgement, power and marginal changes in allocations and responses to fiscal stress. Major themes in allocating the capital budget were roles, goals and preferences, deteriorating relationships, capital budget components and decision processes, power and capital allocations and responses to fiscal stress. These two processes are described in detail and analysis of the processes focuses on the research questions of who makes decisions, how decisions are made and the reasons given for resource allocation decisions.
Electrical properties of the mantle upwelling zone beneath a mid-ocean ridge, an application of vertical gradient sounding

On mid-ocean ridges, as adjacent plates move apart, the mantle material rises to fill the void created. During its ascent the solidus of the material is crossed and melting occurs. The melt itself is eventually emplaced at the ridge axis producing new oceanic crust. The understanding of the flow of the solid and molten material is hampered by the lack of knowledge of vital model parameters such as the connectivity of the partial melt. Connectivity is related to the permeability in the upwelling region. It therefore controls the migration pattern of the buoyant melt, the flow of the solid phase material, and the mantle upwelling mechanism. Changes in the geometry of the distribution of melt in the solid material have a large impact on the electrical conductivity. I have measured the conductivity of the upwelling region to constrain possible partial melt geometries. I present results of vertical gradient sounding (VGS) experiments on the Endeavour and Explorer ridge, which are part of the Juan de Fuca and its northern extension, the Explorer ridge, respectively. The VGS method is a natural source EM method based entirely on measurements of the magnetic fields. Electrical responses of the 1D layered normal seafloor combined with a 2D region representing the mantle upwelling zone and proposed upwelling mechanisms are derived. A comparison of the synthetic response of a range of models with data measured on the Endeavour segment shows that the conductivity in the upwelling region is very high (in the order of 1 to 5 ohm m depending on the shape of the upwelling region). The results of this experiment suggest that the pore space containing the conductive melt is well connected. The melt must be able to move freely through the upwelling region. The experiments support so called melt migration models. The data measured on the Explorer segment yielded a different conductivity model. The data do not require the presence of a pronounced 2D conductivity anomaly at depth and therefore precludes the existence of large or well connected melt fractions in an upwelling region underneath Explorer ridge. The data therefore support a study of magnetic anomaly maps that suggests that the Explorer ridge is degenerate, i.e. that the Explorer plate is slowly deforming internally and its movement is governed by the movement. of the surrounding plates.
Michael Dummett's logical basis of metaphysics

In this dissertation I argue that there are three major problems with Dummett's theory of meaning for natural language. The first problem is epistemological. Dummett invokes the concept of implicit knowledge to explain how we are able to learn and master the language that we speak. Dummett argues that the only way to avoid the negative semantic implications of Wittgenstein's say/show distinction is to explain how we are able to grasp sense. Grasping sense depends upon our implicit knowledge of the meaning of our language. Dummett's argument for avoiding Wittgenstein's say/show distinction is in the form of a disjunctive syllogism: either a theory of meaning can obtain as a theory of understanding, or a theory of sense is mute. That there are problems with the first disjunct suggests that we can infer the second and conclude that Wittgenstein is right: a theory of sense is mute. The second problem is contextual. The best way to interpret Dummett's philosophy of language is within the context of what Kripke describes as a tension between two tendencies: a tension between our scientific and non-scientific tendencies. The first tendency influences Dummett to conceive of philosophy as (1) a sector in the quest for the truth, and (2) as providing explanations for baffling problems. The second tendency influences Dummett to put a constraint upon the first tendency. Wittgenstein's later philosophy functions, for Dummett, as a reminder that such scientific theorizing about language cannot be produced apart from how language is used. What is problematic about this tension is that it influences Dummett to posit the problematic concept of implicit knowledge. The third problem is interpretative. Dummett's problematic theory of meaning for language is, in the end, a reductio ad absurdum of his interpretation of Wittgenstein as a full-blooded conventionalist. Through a discussion of Wittgenstein's particular brand of conventionalism, as well as his own contribution to the foundations dispute in the philosophy of mathematics, I argue that Dummett's reading of Wittgenstein is incorrect. The success of Dummett's worthwhile contribution to analytical philosophy depends upon adequately addressing these three problems.
The use of photopyroelectric transduction to analyze chemical and metal surfaces of nanometer thickness and the application of these surfaces to chemical sensor design

A photopyroelectric spectrophotometer was designed and built to measure the optical absorption spectra of nanometer thick chemical and metal surfaces, which were used to enhance the analytical response of a chemically selective binding event. The spectrophotometer used an oscillating mirror to irradiate pyroelectric, $\beta$-phase, polyvinylidene difluoride (PVDF) detectors, onto which analytical samples had been deposited. The experimental accuracy of the spectrophotometer was determined to be $\pm$15%. An all-metal, optically opaque, thermally thin, wavelength independent optical reference standard was designed and implemented using successive layers of 4000 A silver, 300 A chromium and 500 A gold black on 52 $\mu$m PVDF. The reference signal was proportional to the optical source irradiance, was accurate to within 4% and was used to determine the relative absorption of an analytical sample. Aluminum films of between 25 A and 1000 A were sandwiched between silver particle films of 10.0 $\pm$ 0.5 A mass thickness and a reflective silver base and were used to increase the net optical absorption of the silver particle film by a maximum factor of 5. Air bubbled through acetic acid (99%) and ammonium hydroxide (51.5%) solutions was used to modulate the absorption spectrum of bromthymol blue in and out of resonance with the surface plasmon of a 10.0 $\pm$ 0.5 A silver particle film. The change in signal under acidic exposure relative to that under alkaline exposure was increased by a factor of 7 with the plasmon resonance condition, as compared to the change in signal when there was no silver particle film and no surface plasmon resonance. The ultimate detection limit of bromthymol blue was determined to be 4 $\pm$ 2 ng irradiated mass and (2 $\pm$ 1) $\times$ 10$\sp{12}$ irradiated molecules.
Trying nothing, appraisals on nihilism in American fiction of the 1970s

"Nihilism" denotes the conclusion that life has no meaning or purpose because no one can verify that any meaning or purpose exists. Nihilistic characters appear throughout literature; however, they are most common in European and North American fiction written since the Enlightenment. This thesis examines how five American novels written in and about the late 1960s and early 1970s--Walker Percy's Love in the Ruins (1971), Joyce Carol Oates' Wonderland (1971), Thomas Pynchon's Gravity's Rainbow (1973), Robert Stone's Dog Soldiers (1974), and Don DeLillo's The Names (1982)--sample, test, and challenge both nihilism and nihilistic characters. Chapter One begins by defining nihilism and describing fictional nihilists in novels by Turgenev, Dostoevsky, and others, then divides the five novelists under study into two camps. While all five attempt to counter nihilism by developing religious or quasi-religious interpretations of human purpose, they separate over the origins of nihilism. Oates and Pynchon are "Seekers" who criticize what they see as their culture's life-denying emphasis on conformity and reason. Percy and Stone are "Prophets" who see attacks on reason and restraint as invitations to nihilism. DeLillo tests both views, adopting neither. Discussions of Nietzsche's influence on both views and comparisons of the authors' statements with contemporary analyses of nihilism help clarify these different positions. Subsequent chapters examine different novelists' appraisals of nihilism in detail. Chapter Two discusses Percy's use of Tom More's crisis of faith to dramatize the dangers of "scientism." Chapter Three deals with Oates' handling of Jesse Vogel's obsession with order and the way this obsession leads to the destruction of his family. Pynchon's call for a refutation of "a control that is out of control" and his critique of "romantic totalism" are the concerns of Chapter Four. Chapter Five shows how Stone's disturbing depictions of untrammeled hedonism refute the claims of those who believe mankind must live free of guilt and caution. The final chapter discusses how DeLillo uses descriptions of both the cult called "The Names" and characters who try to understand that cult in order to pose fiction and communion against a nihilistic refusal of all mystery.
Action Research in Gender Issues in Science Education, Towards an Understanding of Group Work with Science Teachers

Action research is emerging as a promising means of promoting individual and societal change in the context of university programmes in teacher education. However, significant gaps exist in the literature regarding the use of action research groups for the education of science teachers. Therefore, an action research group, dealing with gender issues in science education, was established within the context of a graduate course in action research at OISE. For reasons outlined in the thesis, action research was deemed an especially appropriate means for addressing issues of gender. The group met 14 times from September 1992 until May 1993 and consisted of myself and five other science teachers from the Toronto area. Two of us were in the primary panel, two in the intermediate panel, and two in the tertiary panel. Five teachers were female. One was male. The experiences of the group form the basis of this study. A methodology of participant observation supported by interviews, classroom visits, journals, group feedback and participant portfolios provides a means of examining experiences from the perspective of the participants in the group. The case study investigates the nature of the support and learning opportunities that the action research group provided for science teachers engaged in curiculum and professional development in the realm of gender issues in science education, and details the development of individuals, the whole group and myself (as group worker, researcher and participant) over the life of the project. The action research group became a resource for science teachers by providing most participants with: A place to personalize learning and research; a place for systematic reflection and research; a forum for discussion; a source of personal/professional support; a source of friendship; and a place to break down isolation and build self-confidence. This study clarifies important relational and political issues that impinge on action research in groups through a critical examination of the group dynamics and power issues arising within our group. The results of this study challenge us as educators to clarify our visions, to share power, to negotiate and to collaborate across our differences.
De vera et falsa penitentia, an edition and study

The Pseudo-Augustinian treatise De vera et falsa penitentia is one of the most influential works written on penance in the Middle Ages. In the middle of the twelfth century almost half of this treatise appeared in both the Decretum of Gratian and the Sentences of Peter Lombard; through these two works it was read by canonists and theologians throughout Europe during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. Over one hundred manuscripts of the work itself survive, many from the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, as witness to its continued popularity. While scholars have long recognized its influence, there has been no major study of the treatise itself; the author, his sources, the date of composition and the purpose of the treatise remain unexplored. This thesis provides a new edition of De vera et falsa penitentia based on ten manuscripts, including two of the oldest known manuscripts. There is also a list of all known extant manuscripts of the treatise. An investigation of the sources used by the author of De vera et falsa penitentia demonstrates a good knowledge of patristic works, particularly the Duo libri de paenitentia of Ambrose, a work little used before its appearance in eleventh century canon law collections. In other respects the author reveals a legal bias in his work: his discussion of the problem of clerical penance, his treatment of the relation between freedom of the will and grace and his constant designation of the priest-confessor as iudex, rather than medicus, reveal close ties to legal writings of the eleventh and twelfth centuries. However, De vera et falsa penitentia reveals much closer ties to liturgical ordines for public and private penance that appeared in the tenth and eleventh centuries. The author's discussion of repentance and the proper expression of repentance forms an extended commentary on, and defense of, these liturgical practices. De vera et falsa penitentia is at bottom a conservative document; its contribution to the development of penitential theology was to give a concise, forceful theoretical explanation for old liturgical forms.
Postmodern pathologies, living with disbelief in the fictions of Angela Carter

This study of the narrative techniques employed in Angela Carter's novels, The Infernal Desire Machines of Doctor Hoffman and Nights at the Circus, demonstrates that for Carter, at least, the postmodern project and the feminist one share concerns regarding the formation of subjectivities, the roles of narrative, and the possibilities for a politics of positioning in a postmodern climate of disbelief in master-narratives. The Introduction defines and examines the concepts that are central to locating my subject. A brief synopsis of postmodernism is provided, as well as a more extensive discussion of one particularly problematic master-narrative, the Oedipal paradigm. Drawing on the theories of Freud, Teresa de Lauretis, Helene Cixous, and others, I demonstrate that Oedipal textuality is complicitous with a certain sexuality, one that privileges the male as the active agent of culture and desire, and can be associated with narrative sadism. Part I shows that, in The Infernal Desire Machines of Doctor Hoffman, Carter forestalls the death required by narrative. Through repetition, parody, allegory and semantic play, Carter manages to perpetuate disbelief in the Oedipal paradigm through a postmodern strategy of installing that very paradigm. Part II provides a reading of Carter's Nights at the Circus that offers alternatives to received traditions of narrative. The metaphors of the confidence trick and of comic contagion provide means of speculating on alternatives to a narrative that is intrinsically sadistic. The possibility of revisioning Oedipal textuality is further explored through the figure of Cassandra, who is inherently doubled in that she represents both the traditional silencing of Woman, because she is unheard (an Oedipal dynamic), at the same time as she prefigures the power of the seeress (a Cassandrian dynamic). The ultimate purpose of this study is to demonstrate that Carter's texts offer us strategies for living with the disbelief in metanarratives that characterizes the postmodern age. These strategies suggest possibilities, if not for derailing the Oedipal textual dynamic, then, for providing it with an altogether different mission.