VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
Domestic sources of Ukraine’s foreign policy: examining key cases of policy towards Russia, 1991-2009

Ukraine’s foreign policy has puzzled observers since the dissolution of the Soviet Union due to its unusual inconsistency. This inconsistency exhibited itself in contradictory decisions by the Ukrainian executive carried out within a short period of time, which signalled either greater cooperation with Russia and relative cooling of relations with the West, or integration into Western institutions and worsening of the relations with Moscow. This study aims to explain the inconsistency by examining the sources of Ukraine’s foreign policy through process-tracing in four policy cases: Ukraine’s renouncement of nuclear weapons (1991-1994), the status of the Black Sea Fleet (1991-1997), the Odesa-Brody pipeline (2002-2004), and the 2006-2009 gas disputes. Contrary to dominant interpretations of Ukraine’s foreign policy vacillation that emphasise the role of external influences, especially that of Russia and the West, this study concludes that Ukraine’s inconsistent foreign policy decisions are best explained by domestic factors – intra-executive divisions and the influence of vested interests on policy-making. The work relies on the use of primary sources including archival research, elite interviews, and Ukrainian and Russian newspaper reports.

Keywords: nuclear weapons
foreign policy
oil
Ukraine
gas crises
gas
Ukraine-Russia relations
sources of foreign policy
Odesa-Brody
Black Sea Fleet
Advisor: Pravda, A
Sasse, G
Development and assessment of in vitro tumour models for anti-cancer drug testing

The study of the development of anti-cancer drugs and preclinical efficacy tests has until today encountered a major problem identified as lack of reliable in vitro tumour models which are able to reflect in vivo tumour conditions. These models provide a clear basis for understanding tumour development processes, assisting in the selection of agents from various chemicals and testing the efficacy of drugs. There are two important characteristics for an in vitro tumour model, i.e. tumour-like structure of cell aggregates, and the in vivo-like culture microenvironment. To meet these two requirements, an in vitro perfusion based three-dimensional tumour model was developed for the three dimensional culture of cancer cells and related anti-cancer drugs tests. In order to assess this model, DLD1 and NCI/ADR cells were cultured in four different models and compared their proliferation rate, cell viability, micro tumour formation and drug responses. In addition, the comparison of static and perfusion culture were done on monolayer and in 3D also. The cells in perfusion culture showed higher proliferation rates and significantly, higher cell viabilities after a 6-day culture compared to statically cultured cells, especially for the cells in the 3D culture. Microtumours (MTs) were formed from this model, which showed significant tumour-like morphological characteristics, a denser and highly stable structure, a higher cell viability, and varied drug responses compared with spheroids. The inhibition effect of paclitaxel and cisplatin, two common type anti-cancer drugs, were tested and a comparative study was carried out using conventional two-dimensional (2D) static culture, spheroids, and the developed 3D MTs model, as well as real human tumour tissues. The results showed that the cells in 2D culture were most greatly inhibited while human tumours showed the lowest drug responses. The efficacy of anti-cancer drugs, tested in conventional 2D static culture, was greatly amplified. Besides, the response of MTs to agents was much closer to that of human tumours, when the values of spheroids are relatively closer to the cells in 2D culture. It is further supported that MTs have more tumour-like characteristics than spheroids. When compared, the inhibition to proliferation of cells in static and perfusion culture showed significantly different drug responses except for the cells on the monolayer. The shown difference between static and perfusion culture can be due to the different culture environment, and further related to the different action mechanisms of anti-cancer agents. The perfusion culture provides a more homogenous and more physiological microenvironment for the in vitro tumour growth, and in vitro perfused 3D cancer model, developed in this thesis, proved valuable for the study of in vitro cancer and related anti-cancer drug tests.

Keywords: anti-cancer drug testing
3D tumor model
in vitro
Advisor: Cui, Z
The study of candidate sialometabolism genes and sialometabolism gene regulation in Haemophilus influenzae

Sialic acid (SA) is a known major virulence factor of Haemophilus influenza (Hi). This study aims to analyse the functions of some candidate sialometabolism genes, and to further our current understanding on the Hi sialometabolism gene regulation.
Two candidate sialometabolism genes (HI0227 and HI0148) and their adjacent ORFs (HI0228, HI0148.1 and HI0149) were studied. HI0148.1 and HI0149 are transcribed as a single gene in screened NTHi strains, and we refer to the combined ORF as NTHI0236 (the designation in strain 86-028NP). Across Hi strains screened, the sequences of HI0227, HI0148 and NTHI0236 are conserved. However, the sequence of HI0228 is heterogeneous. Mutants that lack the functions of HI0227, HI0228, HI0148 and NTHI0236 were compared to their respective wild type parent strains for ability to grow on SA (in aerobic and microaerophilic conditions), their ability to sialylate LPS and their ability to resist complement mediated killing. The mutants did not exhibit major differences in the tested aspects of sialometabolism compared to their respective wild type strains. Changes observed in some of the mutants in serum bactericidal assays and LPS profiles were due to the effect of phase variable genes. The sialometabolism functions of HI0227, HI0148, and NTHI0236 remain obscure, and we postulate that HI0228 is a pseudogene.
Investigation of Hi sialometabolism gene regulation was conducted using mutants that lack different steps of the Neu5Ac catabolism pathway and the Neu5Ac activation pathway. The expression of nanE and siaP, respectively representing the Neu5Ac catabolism and transport operons, were assessed using RT-PCR and qPCR. We investigated a temporal/concentration effect of Neu5Ac on the expression of sialometabolism operons, which highlights the importance of studying the Hi sialometabolism gene regulation as a dynamic process. We further demonstrated that GlcN-6P, a Neu5Ac intermediate from the catabolism pathway, is likely the SIS sugar that interacts with SiaR, the repressor protein of the Hi sialometabolism operons. We postulate that upon binding of GlcN-6P to SiaR, the SiaR-mediated repression on the Hi sialometabolism operons is relieved, resulting in the induction of the expression of Neu5Ac catabolism and transport genes.

Keywords: sialometabolism
Haemophilus influenzae
Advisor: Hood, D
Using ‘next-generation’ sequencing in the identification of novel causes of inherited heart diseases

Next-generation sequencing methods now allow rapid and cost-effective sequencing of DNA on a scale not previously possible. This offers great opportunities for the research of Mendelian disorders, but also significant challenges. The sequencing of exomes, or whole genomes, has emerged as a powerful clinical research tool, with targeted gene analyses generally being preferred in the clinical diagnostic setting. These methods have been employed here with the aim of identifying novel genetic causes of inherited heart disorders and to gain insights into the utility and limitations of these techniques for clinical diagnosis in these disorders.
Data produced from the introduction of a targeted multi-gene next-generation sequencing test into clinical practice has been studied. Variation within the mitochondrial genome has been analysed to assess the importance of mitochondrial DNA variants in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. The m.4300A>G mutation is identified as an important cause of this disorder, with other previously cardiomyopathy-associated and novel variants also identified. Such multi-gene tests can facilitate interpretable and phenotype-relevant results, but at the expense of limiting more extensive data acquisition.
Whole-genome sequencing has been performed in five families with different autosomal dominant inherited heart disease phenotypes of unknown genetic aetiology. In two of these likely pathogenic variants were identified, one in the gene encoding titin (TTN) and the other in the calcium channel subunit gene CACNA1C. In vitro studies were undertaken to support the pathogenicity of the TTN variant and understand the functional effects of this. In the other three families either multiple candidate gene variants were identified or no clear candidate variant was identified. This highlights the difficulties in interpreting these results, even in carefully selected families. Overall, although the research benefits of exome or genome studies are evident, the interpretation and validation of genetic variant data produced remains highly challenging for clinical diagnosis.

Keywords: inherited
genomics
genetics
exome
cardiology
mitochondrial
whole-genome sequencing
genome
Advisor: Watkins, H
Gehmlich, K
The control of task sets and long-term memory

The current thesis explores the complex relationship between cognitive control and memory. A series of experiments combined task-switching paradigms with recognition memory tests to measure how switching between tasks influences effective control over long-term memory. In these experiments, participants were presented with compound stimuli consisting of a picture and an overlaid word, and were cued in each trial whether the word or the picture was relevant (attended) or irrelevant (unattended). Participants were then tested for their memory of items presented during task switching. Experiments 1-2 indicated that switching between tasks reduces the selectivity of processing: Switching was associated with impaired task performance as well as more similar memory ratings for attended and unattended items. Experiments 3-5 extended these findings by showing that enhanced top-down control positively affected task-performance as well as memory, in both cases by increasing the selectivity of processing toward task-relevant information. Experiments 6-7 replicated key effects with simple switches of visual attention, and explored the neural correlates of successful task performance and encoding using EEG. The key finding here was that previously observed ―subsequent memory‖ effects reflect, at least in part, selective encoding processes. The last chapter extended the focus of the investigation to explore the role of control in long-term memory retrieval. FMRI meta- analyses indicated considerable overlap in neural activation found during task switching and during the adoption of different retrieval sets. The results of Experiment 8 indicated that switching during task performance and later memory retrieval were both associated with decreased selectivity of processing. Collectively, the results of this thesis suggest that selectivity of processing is a critical factor in effective task performance and successful memory, with potentially very similar mechanisms underlying the two. This work demonstrates the fruitfulness of combining research on cognitive control and memory to study questions relevant for both fields.

Keywords: cognitive control
attention
fMRI
EEG
memory
Advisor: Yeung, N
An investigation of certain methods in the analysis of growth curves

In growth curve studies, measurements are made on individuals over a moderately large period of time and the main problem is set as the best possible evaluation of the curve which is believed to underlie the phenomenon. One important meaning of the term 'best possible evaluation' is the efficient estimation of the coefficients which, postulated by the model, characterize this curve. The important key for doing this, is the 'best' (in a certain way) estimation of the covariance matrix of observations which is supposed here to be the same for all individuals. The purpose of this thesis is to investigate certain methods which have been suggested to be appropriate for this problem both theoretically and empirically as well as to prove certain results concerning the problem of efficiency itself when an estimate of the covariance matrix of observations, irrespective of the method which calculated it, is at hand. More specifically, it is shown that REstricted Maximum Likelihood (REML) gives in general estimates of the regression coefficients whose estimated variance lies nearer to their true value quite independently from the form of the covariance matrix, than Maximum Likelihood (ML) and it is proved that the general estimated scatter of the estimated regression coefficients is greater for REML. When we measure more than one characteristics on time and for a special class of covariance models, the property that the REML estimates of the variance of estimated regression coefficients are larger than the corresponding ML, which holds for one characteristic, is lost. Asymptotically however, the two methods give identical results.
Another method which is not based on the adoption of a certain parametric form for the covariance matrix is considered. A new method is suggested for its optimal choice and a comparison is made between this and three other already known methods. Empirical results suggest that it retains a very good balance between the variance of the regression coefficients and their real and optimal value for the majority of the covariance models which have been tested as possible population covariance matrices. Finally, upper and lower bounds of different types of efficiency are obtained by assuming that an estimate of the population covariance matrix has already been calculated and is not distant from the true covariance matrix more than a certain constant.

Advisor: Marriott, F
Light harvesting and photoconversion efficiency enhancement in dye-sensitized solar cells via molecular and photonic advancements

The main goal of this thesis is to investigate and develop the physics of dye-based photovoltaic physics through molecular and photonic routes. Numerous photovoltaics devices have been fabricated through the course of this work to study their characteristics, performance, physical composition and action. The relative youth of the field of dye-based optoelectronics provides extensive scope for new research which provides fascinating opportunities in terms of physical processes.This thesis is divided into two main projects; exploring the adaption of conventional dye-sensitized solar cells via starkly different routes which serendipitously culminated in striking similarities at their conclusion. The first route is through incorporating spectrally complementary dye molecules with the intention of extending the range of light absorption of the final devices. This initial aim was achieved and was then furthered by the realisation of an unexpected and unprecedented energy transfer process occurring, imparting enhanced photocurrent generation in both the near-IR and visibile region. The second route involves investigating the effect on dye-sensitized solar cell physics and performance of the inclusion of metallic nanoparticles with the expectation of inducing plasmonic interactions. Novel systems were designed and implemented, devices were made which display significant performance enhancement, attributed to plasmonic coupling into the dyes and thereby increasing photocapture. A number of other investigations are documented whose current completion does not sufficiently warrant independent chapters but whose scientific interest is evident.

Keywords: energy transfer
Forster
solar cells
plasmonics
dye sensitized
photovoltaics
Advisor: Snaith, H
Facies analysis of the Portland Beds

The Portland Group, previously known as the Portland Beds, is the highest division of the regressive marine Jurassic succession in England. The strata are well exposed on the coast of Dorset and the Bas Boulonnais of North-east France and poorer exposures occur in Wiltshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire. The rocks are also known from boreholes in Hampshire, Surrey, Sussex and Kent. This thesis comprises a facies analysis of the Portland Group using stratigraphical, sedimentological and palaeo- ecological data.
In spite of being familiar to most geologists, if only in name, these rocks are surprisingly poorly documented and there was ample scope for a detailed study of the sediments. Because refined correlation by fossils has not been established a regional approach is used and the successions in each area are described and interpreted in turn. Correlations are suggested between the widely separated areas.using phases of regression and transgression, supplemented by ammonite evidence as much as possible. The thickest sections exposed are in Dorset where the sequence reaches nearly 80m. This area provides the basis for description and interpretation of the areas where the successions are thinner, reaching a minimum of 6m in the far north-eastern outcrop in Buckinghamshire.
The Portland Group in Dorset is divided into the Portland Sand Formation overlain by the Portland Limestone Formation, described in separate chapters. The Portland Sand Formation is an upward continuation of the sandy and silty development in the Upper Kimmeridge Clay. The sediments are dolomitic and the highest beds are virtually pure fine grained dolomite which is interpreted as having formed in relatively deep water. An environmental model for the deposition of the Portland Sand Formation is discussed ... [See pdf file for full abstract.]
Subduction-obduction related petrogenetic and metamorphic evolution of the Semail ophiolite sole in Oman and the United Arab Emirates

Structural field observations, combined with petrological, isotopic and geochemical analysis of metamorphic and igneous rocks associated with the Semail ophiolite of Oman and the United Arab Emirates, have been used in conjunction with geochronology and estimates of metamorphic conditions and PT paths to constrain the ophiolite emplacement history. The ophiolite metamorphic sole was formed at peak conditions of 840 ± 70°C and 11.6 ± 1.6 kbar (THERMOCALC) and 840-870°C and 11.8-13.9 kbar (conventional thermobarometry) and is characterised by an anticlockwise PTt path. Further analysis and structural constraints imply an apparent inverted sole gradient of ~2°C m-1 and ~3.7 MPa m-1. In conjunction with existing geochronology, a peak sole exhumation rate of ~12.5 mm yr-1 is indicated. Geochemical analysis and tectonic constraints suggest that the Semail ophiolite sole formed from neo Tethyan MORB crust similar in composition to the preserved Triassic-Jurassic Haybi tholeiites and Masirah ophiolite crust. The Bani Hamid granulite facies sole metamorphism peaked at ~96.5 Ma and exhibits a similar PTt path and peak conditions, but formed from oceanic island igneous, volcanoclastic and sedimentary protoliths. Anatectic granitoids in the ophiolite mantle sequence have geochemical and isotopic (Rb-Sr and Sm-Nd) characteristics compatible with derivation from the Bani Hamid sole granulites during prograde metamorphism and have ages of 98.8 ± 9.5 Ma, 93.0 ± 10.0 Ma (Sm- Nd) and 105 ± 4 Ma (U-Pb). The Saih Hatat high pressure metamorphic terrane beneath the ophiolite consists of two contrasting structural levels juxtaposed during exhumation following the subduction of the Arabian continental margin beneath the advancing ophiolite. PT analysis shows the HP event culminated at 450-550°C and 20.0 ± 1.5 kbar (THERMOCALC) and was characterised by a clockwise PTt path. In conjunction with ambiguous existing geochronology, a peak exhumation rate of ~4-12 mm yr-1 is indicated, followed by erosion at ~0.5 mm yr-1.

Keywords: Ophiolite
Subduction
Semail
Metamorphic
Oman
Advisor: Searle, M
Waters, D
The use of intellectual property in high technology Japanese and Western companies

This research comprises a comparative study of Japanese and UK Intellectual Property (IP) management and an extension, informed by the study, of existing IP strategy frameworks. The research was prompted by observing that little has been written about IP management and that Japanese IP management might differ from that in the West due to differing economic, legal and technological circumstances. A literature review found IP related economics literature but little in English regarding IP management. The most relevant work was that by Teece concerning the combined role of complementary assets and intellectual property rights (IPRs). The present research's contribution is thus threefold. A detailed description of the development and nature of Japanese IP management. A comparison with UK IP management, putting Japanese IP management into an international context. Finally, a development of existing general IP Strategy frameworks informed by the results of the international comparison. In studying IP management in Japan a wide range of specialist literature in Japanese was studied. Interviews were held, those with Japanese IP managers, lawyers, government and NGO officials being in Japanese. The first comparative survey of UK and Japanese IP management formed a key source of the data collected. A response rate of 44% in Japan (211 replies) and 33% in the UK (259 replies) enabled comparisons by both size and sector. Many similarities were found between Japanese and UK attitudes to and practice of IP management, reflecting the similarity of the underlying issues in both countries. There were also significant differences between Japanese and UK companies especially in the extent and organisation of resources devoted to IP management, in attitudes to IP strategy, licensing, litigation, the filing of patent applications and in the use and management of patent information. The study provided the basis for developing a view of IP strategy as a dynamic management strategy process. This process occurs in a framework involving time and the control of technological scope and progress using IPRs and complementary assets. Other considerations involved comprise the ability to use resources to exploit markets fully and learning opportunities. The study of Japan's IP management and its development from a position of technological followership to that of still learning leadership thus provides a basis for a view of IP strategy as taking place in an integrated dynamic management framework.