VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
Experimental and numerical development of an electrokinetic micro-mixer and a concentration gradient generator using surface charge patterning

The promise of increased portability and throughput in conjunction with reductions in cost, analyte consumption and handling, has propelled microfluidics to the forefront in a quest to obtain total micro-analysis systems superior in function to their lab-sized counterparts. This thesis addresses two critical processes key to lab-chip functionality, namely the creation of an efficient electrokinetic micro-mixer and conversely, the production of a stable concentration gradient generator. In the course of this study, a novel method of complex, microscale surface charge patterning was formulated, microfabrication techniques were optimized for features from 30 to 500mum, and the effects of surface charge heterogeneity were visualized. These endeavours culminated in the creation of a micro-mixer capable of decreasing required mixing channel lengths by up to 88% within the low Reynolds regime. Secondly, a stable gradient generator capable of producing controllable, complex gradients suitable for a wide range of analytes was presented.
Alien to law: premises promises of extra

This thesis addresses speculative legal theory about extraterrestrial intelligent (ETI) life. I introduce the relevant questions and themes through my own intuitions and by assessing two criticisms of such theory (Chapter One). I next turn to a close-reading of two First World attempts at ETI legal theory (Chapters Two Three). After reviewing their efforts and uses of colonial history and science/technology, I examine the relationship and potential communities of law and science through the examples of the International Geophysical Year and the Bogota Declaration (Chapter Four). Working through the deficits of ETI theory against the backdrop of the Cold War, I also point to fragmentation in Third World approaches. In order to overcome these deficits, I present alternative approaches suggested by a Fourth World perspective and indigenous legal theories and traditions (Chapter Five). This thesis concludes with a brief discussion on the pitfalls of this type of speculation.

Keywords: Extraterrestrial beings
Life on other planets
Plurality of worlds
A mechanistic study of cytochrome P450 2C11 down-regulation by aromatic hydrocarbons

Aromatic hydrocarbons (AHs) are environmental contaminants that cause a variety of deleterious effects in mammals. The aromatic hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) functions as a ligand-activated transcription factor that mediates many of the responses to AHs. Induction of cytochrome P450 1A1 (CYP1A1) is the most fully characterized response and is mediated by binding of the activated AHR complex to dioxin-responsive elements (DREs) located in the 5′ -flanking region of the gene. In contrast to CYP1A1 induction, several other genes including the rat male-specific constitutive hepatic CYP2C11 are suppressed by AHs. Alterations in CYP levels can lead to a disruption of the balance between bioactivation and detoxification of chemicals and may have serious clinical implications. Our aim was to determine if CYP2C11 suppression by AHs is mediated at the transcriptional level by cis-acting elements in the 5′-flanking region of the gene, and to determine the role of the AHR in this suppressive response. 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) suppressed CYP2C11 mRNA in primary rat hepatocytes without altering the mRNA half-life. We identified five regions in the CYP2C11 5′ -flank containing the DRE invariant core; electrophoretic gel retardation assays showed that at least one of these CYP2C11-DREs formed a specific, ligand-inducible complex that contained the AHR and the AHR nuclear translocator. To test the function of the CYP2C11-DREs, Hepa-1, BRL 5637 and HepG2 cells were transiently transfected with luciferase reporter constructs containing various regions of the CYP2C11 5 ′-flank and promoter. No decrease in luciferase activity was found following TCDD treatment. In transfected primary rat hepatocytes, the CYP2C11-luciferase reporter vectors were suppressed by interleukin-1β but not by TCDD. The AHR antagonist 3′,4′ -dimethoxyflavone blocked TCDD-induced CYP1A1 DRE-driven reporter activity, but on its own suppressed CYP2C11 mRNA. In vitro DNase footprinting with rat hepatic nuclear extracts showed protein binding at several sites in the CYP2C11 5′-flank but the pattern was not altered by in vivo treatment with 3-methylcholanthrene, an effective AHR agonist and CYP1A1 inducer. These results suggest that AHs down-regulate CYP2C11 by a negative transcriptional mechanism that is not simply due to AHR binding to an identified DRE-like sequence and that is distinct from that used by inflammatory cytokines.
Effect of time on clinical efficacy of topical anaesthesia

Objectives. (1) To determine the effect of time on clinical efficacy of topical anaesthetic 5% lidocaine. (2) To determine whether it is equally effective in reducing pain from needle insertion vis à vis anaesthetic administration. (3) To correlate pain relief and heart rate. Methods. Randomized, double blind, placebo controlled, split-mouth; n=90. Results. For needle insertion only, 5% lidocaine significantly reduced the pain in all the time frames. For anaesthetic administration, a significant difference in mean VAS was noted only after 10 minutes. Time of application did not result in a significant difference in effect for either needle insertion or injection of local anesthetic. Conclusions. Topical anesthetic application relieves pain from needle insertion in the palate after any one of 2, 5 or 10 minutes of application, but requires 10 minutes in order to reduce pain from local anaesthetic injection.
After the Wars of Religion: protestant-Catholic accommodation in the French town of Loudun, 1598--1665

Over the course of this period, the balance between the two communities did change, largely in favour of the Catholic populace. Yet, the Protestant accent on survival helped this community maintain its hold in the town. In an age when religious toleration was based on expediency, it is this kind of balance operating in Loudun that created the necessary conditions for confessional accommodation. Also, members of both communities held a firm understanding of their particular creed and had little inclination to adopt components from the opposite faith. That theme of necessity and difference determined to a considerable degree the kind of relations that could take place. Interconfessional godparentage and mixed marriages were rare in Loudun, but we find stronger evidence of interaction in areas more germane to the commercial and non-religious sphere. This thesis is a local study that examines the potential for accommodation between Protestants and Catholics after the French Wars of Religion. The town chosen is Loudun and the period of coverage is 1598 to 1665. What did living in the precarious climate established by the Edict of Nantes mean for a locality like Loudun? Could the Protestants and Catholics here develop working arrangements and a tradition of accommodation, even though the memory of conflict remained vivid? Could accommodation entail the adoption of the characteristics and beliefs of the opposite religion, or did both sides remain perfectly watertight and grounded in their religious convictions?We have sought to reconstruct the attributes of each of the two confessional communities. Specifically, this thesis assesses the shifting demographic and political balance between them and charts the unfolding response of both the Protestant and Catholic communities to those changes. It reviews the potential for conflict and compromise in matters pertaining to officeholding, economic matters, urban geography, legal customs, and family life, and aims to determine where and how the two communities were able to establish working arrangements with each other.
The curvature model for mixed surfactant microemulsion systems

The objectives of this work were to develop a simple procedure to determine the hydrophilic/lipophilic nature of surfactants based on microemulsion phase behavior and to characterize mixed surfactant systems. The concept of hydrophilic-lipophilic difference (HLD) and the net-average curvature (NAC) were used to develop a model to characterize systems containing anionic-anionic and anionic-nonionic surfactant mixtures. Salinity and temperature scans were carried out and phase changes were noted. It was found that in anionic-anionic systems the linear mixing rule is applicable, and was used to calculate the intrinsic curvature parameter (Ci), which can be used as an alternative scale to the HLB and packing factor to characterize the behavior of a surfactant in microemulsion systems. For anionic-nonionic systems the linear mixing rule does not apply because of the interactions between anionic and nonionic surfactants which seem to be dominated by the charge shielding effect that nonionic surfactants have on anionic surfactants.
Designs for single user, up-close interaction with wall-sized displays

The decreasing cost of projectors has enabled the creation of high resolution wall-sized displays by tiling multiple projectors together. Wall displays are interesting from an interaction perspective since their extended surface and high resolution allow the presentation of large amounts of data that may be viewed and interacted upon at close proximity. These characteristics also give rise to some unique challenges that we explore in three interaction design explorations: organizing the layout of content spread across large distances can be tiresome, repeated reaching for simple selection tasks can be tedious, while tracking visual changes across the display surface may prove problematic. In the first design exploration, layout management and context switching is achieved using alternative views of different areas on the display. We introduce a new framework, used first to instantiate examples of existing techniques, and then as a catalyst for developing three new ones. The most promising new technique was preferred to traditional approaches by the majority of users when performing a layout management, comparison and context switching task. In the second design exploration we present and evaluate in a pilot user study a set of new techniques, which facilitate access to areas of the display that are difficult to reach without significant physical movement, by copying remote content close to the user. Through our findings we identify desirable design properties specifically for remote reaching designs, used to refine our most promising technique. The refined technique outperformed existing approaches in multiple target selection tasks. Our last exploration aids the identification and understanding of dynamic visual changes happening out of the user's sight. We propose a mechanism for storing and revealing hidden changes, explore its design space, and perform an informal user feedback session on a wall display prototype. Users preferred the technique to no buffering for a game task and chose the buffered history to be presented both statically and as an animation. Individually, each design exploration contributes significantly to the specific interaction aspect it investigates. Together, they demonstrate how careful design may lead to general-purpose techniques that can benefit any type of application performed on wall-sized displays.
Torsional cyclic fatigue of an endodontic nickel-titanium rotary instrument

This study examined the endurance limit (EL) of size 30 ProFile .06, instruments. The EL is the load amplitude below which instrument cycling is almost unrestricted. The EL is the angular deflection of the instrument tip from its long axis below which instrument fracture would not occur after 106 cycles. The instruments' tips were mounted in a torque-sensing device, and the shafts locked into a reversible-geared motor according to the ANSI/ADA Specification #28. Each instrument was rotated to a pre-determined angular deflection and then back to zero, until fracture occurred. Starting at 200°, testing was continued at decreasing angles until 106 cycles were reached without fracture. The mean log number of cycles and standard deviation were calculated and plotted against the corresponding angular deflection. One-way ANOVA showed statistically significant differences (p < 0.001). Larger angular deflections demonstrated fewer cycles to fracture than smaller deflections. The instrument-specific EL (<2.5°) was predicted.
The function of the exocyst and the FERM protein Yurt in the polarization of Drosophila epithelial cells

I have addressed what mediates the localization of the exocyst complex in epithelial cells. I have shown that localization of Sec6, a component of the complex, is mediated by an interaction with N-cadherin. I have demonstrated that N-cadherin recruits cytoplasmic Sec6 to the plasma membrane via its extracellular portion, and independently of other adherens junction proteins, suggesting that Sec6/N-cadherin interaction is indirect. In addition, I have shown that Sec6 is essential for the maintenance of cell polarity and epithelial tissue integrity, and that it functions in targeting of the apical junctional proteins in the follicular epithelium. Here, I characterized novel factors and mechanisms underlying the establishment and maintenance of epithelial cell polarity. Firstly, I investigated the function of the Drosophila homolog of the yeast exocyst complex in cell polarity. In yeast, the exocyst guides polarized membrane growth through its restricted localization and tethering of secretory vesicles to the plasma membrane prior to their fusion. In the photoreceptor cells, which differentiate from a simple epithelial architecture to a more complex one, Sec6 is essential for growth and protein targeting to the apical membrane specialization, the rhabdomere. Furthermore, I have demonstrated that the exocyst is an effector for a small GTPase Rab11 in mediating biosynthetic transport to the rhabdomere. I have shown that Yurt is a component of the Crumbs complex, and that it functions as a negative regulator of Crumbs in maintenance of epithelial cell polarity. In photoreceptor cells of the adult retina I have shown that Crumbs recruits Yurt to the apical plasma membrane, and that Yurt then controls apical membrane size through a negative regulation of Crumbs function. Furthermore, I have shown that Yurt functions in protection against the light-dependent degeneration of photoreceptor cells. Secondly, I have collaborated on a study that has identified a novel regulator of the Crumbs polarity complex, a FERM domain protein Yurt. Crumbs is an apical membrane protein in epithelial cells essential for maintenance of cell polarity and establishment of apical membrane identity. Mutations in human homolog of Crumbs were identified as predominant causes of neurodegenerative disorders of the retina, RP12 and LCA.
Acoustic characterization of encapsulated microbubble disruption

Bubble disruption is associated with the response of ultrasound contrast agents (UCAs) exposed to high acoustic pressures. This behaviour is important for bubble detection techniques as well as flow quantitation and some proposed therapeutic applications. In this thesis, an acoustic system is described for measuring the changing time-course of the echo from a dilute suspension of UCAs exposed to disruptive ultrasound. A model for the echo was also developed, based on literature reports of optically-determined disruption thresholds and a theoretical description of gas diffusion and shrinking bubbles. This describes a physical picture whereby the microbubble shell is disrupted and free gas bubbles are released. The released bubbles may also fragment into multiple daughter bubbles after disruption. Experimental measurements were made for different UCA formulations. Thick polymer-shelled bubbles showed a clear disruption threshold, with a dramatic increase in echo after gas release. Lipid-shelled bubbles demonstrated a disappearance time that depended on the filling gas. As well, the disappearance time depended on the pressure of the disruptive ultrasound pulse. A mathematical model of the post-disruption echo confirmed the importance of microbubble fragmentation in lipid-shelled bubble disruption. Measurements on the clinical contrast agent Definity showed that the post-disruption behaviour depended not only on the pressure but also the frequency and length of the disruption pulses. This final study also demonstrated some of the limitations in the simple mathematical model based on single-bubble observations from the literature. Further work is required to fill the gaps between the model and experimental results. The differences are intrinsically linked to a dearth of knowledge regarding the population distribution of the free gas bubbles released after shell disruption. Furthermore, the disruption threshold of individual bubbles is not understood well enough to predict the population behaviour measured in the experiments presented in this thesis. The results of this work, however, might help to optimize both imaging and therapeutic applications. Also, they could lead to a better understanding of the biophysical mechanisms behind ultrasound-potentiated drug delivery.
The genre of non-juridical oracles (hrtw) in ancient Egypt

We will demonstrate that there existed two discrete types of oracles in ancient Egypt. One type dealt with juridical matters and was referred to as a bi3yt. The other, which will be the main focus of this dissertation, was completely non-juridical in nature; it was rendered to provide global protection for the recipient. These latter oracles, hrtw-oracles, could be used to protect both the living and the dead. An important document that will be looked at closely is Papyrus Bibliothèque Nationale 197 I. It was inadequately published around the turn of the century; this state of affairs has hindered hitherto our realization of its significance. Pap. BN 197 I provides us with an important link between the hrtw -oracles and the corpus of texts known to scholars as ‘donation stelae’. It will clearly be shown that the quid pro quo of a donation of land to a temple was the rendering of a protective oracle by the god of that institution.
Development and initial evaluation of a new questionnaire to assess health-related quality of life before and after surgical orthodontic treatment

There are no adequate measures to assess health-related quality of life before and after surgical orthodontic treatment. This study aims to develop and evaluate a new self-administered questionnaire, which will ultimately be an evaluative index of surgical orthodontic treatment. Items for the questionnaire were chosen based on a variation of the Item Impact Method (Guyatt et al., 1987). Questions were selected from three previously validated oral health measures. Validity testing involved 95 participants. Test-retest reliability was assessed in a subgroup of this sample (n = 16). The discriminant properties of the questionnaire were tested using three cross-sectional groups: pretreatment, 2--6 months post-operative and more than 2 years post-operative groups. The questionnaire showed discriminant validity as many hypotheses concerning differences between groups in quality of life were supported. There were significant associations between questionnaire overall scores and the global rating of overall health (p
Application of task-network planning using total-order forward search to the game of Russian Whist

Planning is very critical activity in many areas in the modern computer applications including space mission sequencing, manufacturing, robotics, and logistics. Because most real-world planning problems are very difficult, AI planning researchers made simplifying assumptions in order to make reasonable progress. In order to apply planning approach to the game of Russian Whist I have adopted a variant of Hierarchical Task Network (HTN) planning, called Total-Order Forward Search (TOFS). Such planners instantiate the operators in the order that they will be executed. I have successfully applied TOFS approach to the domain of declarer's and defensive play in the game of Russian Whist. My implementation of HTN planning called PREFERANCE performs relatively quickly and searches fairly few nodes. In my thesis I describe HTN planning using TOFS and its currently applicable domains. I detail the adaptations required to apply this approach to the game of Russian Whist, and consequent observations.
New perspectives for understanding depression during pregnancy. Prevalence and women's experiences of this disorder

Depression during pregnancy is a potentially devastating mood disorder. Estimates of the number of women affected, however, have varied widely. Furthermore, how pregnant women manage depression and how they make decisions regarding the gestational use of antidepressant medication is a topic that has received little attention. The aim of the present research was two-fold: (1) to use a random effects meta-analytic model to estimate the prevalence of depression, as detected by validated screening instruments and structured interviews, for each trimester of pregnancy, and (2) to use grounded theory to develop a theoretical model that explained managing depression during pregnancy from the perspective of women who had experienced this disorder. Rates of depression during pregnancy are substantial. Structured interviews found lower rates than the Beck Depression Inventory but not the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale. To facilitate women's decisions regarding antenatal depression treatment health systems should provide information about depression, antidepressants, and the prevalence and signs of postpartum depression. 1. A search for observational studies was conducted in MEDLINERTM from 1966, CINAHLRTM from 1982, EMBASERTM from 1980, and HealthSTARRTM from 1975. Of 714 articles identified, 21 (19,284 patients) met predefined acceptability criteria for inclusion in the meta-analysis. Prevalence rates and 95% confidence intervals (CI95%) were: 7.4% (2.2-12.6), 12.8% (10.7 to 14.8), and 12.0% (7.4-16.7) for the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd trimesters, respectively. 2. Nineteen women were recruited through a reproductive mental health program in Ontario. Data were collected during semi-structured interviews and analysed using constant comparative analysis. The theoretical model that explained the process of managing depression was becoming the best mom that I can. The model describes women's journeys from the depths of despair, where depression was perceived to threaten their pregnancy and ability to care for the coming baby, to their arrival at knowing the self and being in a better place. Six interrelated themes, perceived consequences of untreated depression, perceived neonatal adverse effects of antidepressant use, personal influences, interpersonal influences, societal influences, and availability of information, emerged as influencing women's decisions regarding the use of antidepressants. The dominance of each theme was determined by each woman's previous experience with depression.
A narrative review of recall biases

Survey research involves asking people to remember past events. Four biases occur when one asks people to recall past events in the presence of current information: hindsight bias, telescoping bias, anchoring and adjustment bias and implicit theory of change bias. This paper conducts a narrative review summarizing empirical research findings on the four sources of bias in self-reporting. The review provides an up-to-date summary of this research from 54 studies. It shows that the four biases exist and have fairly long research histories, the biases can be moderated by certain variables, they have negative effects and the clarification of the processes underlying each bias occurred gradually and continues. The review also shows the importance of using an integrative framework in the development of methods to minimize the effects of the four biases as each bias never occurs alone.