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Embodied Belonging in the Social Science Lab
No full textThis article was originally published in ACME: An International Journal for Critical Geographies. The version of record is available at: https://doi.org/10.14288/acme.v24i1.2429.
Copyright (c) 2025 Embodiment Lab, Hanan Abou Ali, James Edward Bryan, Carrie Chennault, Dharni Grover, Mehrnaz Haghdadi, Faisal Bin Islam, Nari Kim, Nora Lucas, Nusrat T Mohana, Lindsay Naylor, Rebecca Nixon, Kelsey M. Obringer, Georgina Ramsay, Naznin Nahar Sultana, Kaanan Thakkar, Nathan Thayer.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).The Embodiment Lab, rooted in critical human geography, is grounded in embodiment, belonging, mentorship, care, and temporal dynamics to challenge norms in the neoliberal university. We argue that the Lab serves as a counter-practice within the academy by prioritizing our individual and collective well-being over productivity metrics. Weekly practices cultivate radical vulnerability, creating a foundation for a caring environment. Delving into multifaceted spatial dimensions our experiences suggest that the Lab becomes a living example of a feminist ethic of care. Belonging emerges as an antidote to the exclusions ingrained in academic spaces. The Lab empowers its scholars to challenge uneven power dynamics, fostering inclusion where diverse voices are heard. The Lab's emphasis on collective action and intentional processes of growth contrasts with a conventional fast, metric-driven tempo. In this paper, we offer a model to center care in lab spaces by reflecting on our own experiences in a space that values scholars as whole individuals rather than vessels of productivity. We illustrate the reflexive character of the Lab, acknowledging its adaptability and dynamism over time. Rejecting the neoliberal norms that too often dictate research spaces, the Lab exemplifies the messy and ongoing process of creating care-full academic spaces
A Look Back At 20 Years of Research on Gender and Voting in Politics & Gender
No full textThis article was originally published in Politics & Gender. The version of record is available at: https://doi.org/10.1017/S1743923X24000461.
© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the Women, Gender, and Politics Research Section of the American Political Science Association.
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution and reproduction, provided the original article is properly cited.This essay highlights the impact of Politics & Gender on the discipline’s understanding of how gender shapes the preferences, behavior, and motivations of voters. It provides descriptive information about the prevalence of research on gender and voting in the journal, along with the proportion of articles dedicated to women voters across different regions globally. The bulk of the essay focuses on the substance of this research — drawing out major themes and identifying significant contributions within each theme — and it concludes by offering a future research agenda on gender and voting
Eco-Conscious Design Process: Natural Dyed Knitwear with Innovative 3D Motifs
No full textThis article was originally published in International Textile and Apparel Association Annual Conference Proceedings. The version of record is available at: https://doi.org/10.31274/itaa.18825.
© 2024 The author(s). Published under a Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.This research project was aimed at demonstrating the feasibility of producing eco-conscious knitwear that prioritizes environmental sustainability without compromising on aesthetic appeal or functionality. The knowledge through practice methodology guided the development of a modular sweater on a flatbed knitting machine. By looking for innovative approaches to material selection, dyeing processes, and garment construction, this project seeks to inspire broader adoption of sustainable practices within the fashion industry. The inspiration for this study was derived from the octopus, reflecting its organic patterns and red-orange hues in the color of the yarns and the shape of the repeating 3D motif. Sustainability was prioritized through the hierarchy of the knitted garment design process, from fiber and yarn selection to fabric design and assembly stages. By integrating upcycled materials, natural dyeing, innovative 3D machine-knitting, and sustainable assembly techniques, the design process explored in this project achieved a balance between aesthetics and environmental consciousness
Mathematical modeling of drug distribution and their interaction with lymphocytes and HIV inside the lymph nodes
No full textZurakowski, Ryan M.Piovoso, Michael J.The lymphatic system, particularly the lymph nodes, plays a pivotal role in the adaptive immune response and serves as a critical battleground in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Lymph nodes are structured into isolated lobules that facilitate efficient immune cell interactions but also present significant barriers to the penetration of antiretroviral drugs (ARVs). These barriers transform lymph nodes into pharmacological sanctuary sites where HIV can persist despite systemic therapy, posing a substantial obstacle to viral eradication. ☐ This dissertation investigates the mechanisms underlying the limited distribution of ARVs within lymph node tissues and explores strategies to enhance drug penetration to eradicate HIV reservoirs. Recognizing that the lymph node’s complex architecture and selective permeability hinder free drug diffusion, we hypothesized that lymphocyte-mediated transport plays a crucial role in delivering ARVs to the lymph node parenchyma. ☐ To test this hypothesis, we developed a distributed pharmacokinetic (PK) model using a reaction-diffusion framework to simulate the spatial distribution of ARVs within lymph nodes. This model incorporate spatial heterogeneity and account for the unique physiological barriers of lymph nodes. Using data from mass spectrometry imaging techniques, specifically Infrared Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption Electrospray Ionization (IRMALDESI), and applying Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods and nonlinear mixed-effect modeling, we quantified the spatial distribution of ARVs. The modeling revealed that for certain ARVs, such as Tenofovir (TFV) and Atazanavir (ATZ), lymphocytemediated transport is the dominant mechanism facilitating drug penetration into lymph node lobules. In contrast, drugs like Efavirenz (EFV), due to their high lipophilicity, distribute more uniformly through passive diffusion. ☐ Further, we explored the dynamics of HIV infection within lymph nodes by simulating the progression of viral replication and the formation of latent reservoirs under antiretroviral therapy. The integrated compartmental PK/PD model demonstrated that while ongoing HIV replication in lymph node sanctuary sites contributes to the total latent reservoir, the accumulation of novel latent cells occurs at a remarkably slow rate. This slow accumulation explains the difficulty in detecting viral evolution in treated individuals and underscores the challenges in achieving complete viral eradication. ☐ To address these challenges, we investigated strategies to enhance ARV delivery to lymph nodes. Recognizing the limitations of free drug diffusion, we proposed leveraging mechanisms of lymphocyte ingress to facilitate drug transport. ☐ The findings of this dissertation contribute to a deeper understanding of the transport phenomena occurring at the specialized boundaries of lymph nodes. By elucidating the role of lymphocyte-mediated transport and quantifying the impact of physiological barriers on drug distribution, we provide valuable insights that can inform the design of more effective therapeutic strategies. Enhancing drug penetration into lymph node sanctuary sites is imperative for improving the efficacy of HIV treatments and moving toward a functional cure. ☐ This research lays the groundwork for a multifaceted approach to overcoming poor drug transport in lymph nodes. By combining advanced modeling techniques with experimental validation, we offer a framework that can be applied to other lymph noderesident diseases, such as metastatic cancer, where similar challenges in drug delivery exist. Future work will focus on developing and testing innovative drug delivery systems that can bypass or exploit the lymph node’s structural barriers, ultimately aiming to eliminate viral reservoirs and improve patient outcomes.University of Delaware, Department of Biomedical EngineeringPh.D
Exercise parameters to consider for Achilles tendinopathy: a modified Delphi study with international experts
No full textThis article was originally published in British Journal of Sports Medicine. The version of record is available at: https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2025-110183
© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2025. This is an open access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited, appropriate credit is given, any changes made indicated, and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/To assess the level of agreement among experts on the heel raise exercise parameters that influence midportion and insertional Achilles tendinopathy (AT) rehabilitation outcomes.
An international expert panel in AT rehabilitation was invited to complete a three-round Delphi survey. In the first two rounds, experts were asked to review a pregenerated list of exercise parameters (based on the heel raise exercise) and rate their perceived influence on rehabilitation outcome, using a 5-point Likert scale. For each parameter, consensus criteria for major influence on rehabilitation were (a) median≥4, (b) ≥75% of scoring 4 or 5 and (c) IQR≤1. The third round aimed to rank the exercise parameters according to importance (from most to least important) during rehabilitation. 17 experts participated in the entire Delphi process. A total of 16 exercise parameters were assessed, of which 4 (intensity of contraction, total time under tension, number of repetitions and sets, type of contraction) reached consensus as having a major influence on rehabilitation for midportion AT and 3 reached consensus for insertional AT (range of ankle dorsiflexion during the exercise, intensity of contraction, number of repetitions and sets). The rankings of parameters that reached consensus showed that contraction intensity was perceived as the most important variable for midportion AT rehabilitation, while range of ankle dorsiflexion was deemed the most important variable for insertional AT rehabilitation.
This study identified key exercise parameters for mid-portion and insertional AT rehabilitation based on expert opinion. This information should assist practitioners in optimising their approach to deliver more effective, patient-specific exercises for AT rehabilitation.The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors
Ultrafast-light- or current-driven classical and quantum nonequilibrium states of magnons in magnetic heterostructures
No full textNikolić, Branislav K.Spin and charge pumping—current generation in the absence of a bias voltage along with the ensuing terahertz (THz) radiation from laser-irradiated magnetic materials, is a key phenomenon in spintronics with significant implications for designing novel table-top THz emitters and ultrafast magnetic memory devices. The interplay between localized magnetic moments (LMMs) and conduction electrons plays a significant role in these processes, influencing material properties including Giant Magnetoresistance (GMR) and Tunneling Magnetoresistance (TMR), which are central to modern spintronic devices like magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs) used in hard disk drives and non-volatile magnetic random access memories (MRAM). In magnetic materials, the collective excitation in the ordering of the LMMs is called spin wave (SW), and its quantized form is known as a magnon. Magnon-based logic gates and information processing have been explored as potential avenues for low-power, high-frequency computing due to the ability of spin waves to transmit information without the joule heating associated with charge transport. ☐ Recent advancements in spintronics have led to the development of efficient THz emitters from magnetic materials that output a broad, gapless spectrum in the range of 1-30 THz. However, a detailed microscopic mechanism of THz generation—specifically, the dynamics of conduction electrons and LMMs excited by the light, as well as effects of spin and charge pumping due to the dynamics of LMMs and the back action of conduction electrons on the LMMs is not well understood even after decades of intense research. To unravel the mechanism of THz generation from magnetic materials, in this thesis, we develop a multiscale quantum-classical hybrid formalism in which conduction electrons are described by quantum master equation (QME) that includes the effects of dissipation by external bosonic bath and the dynamics of LMMs is modeled classically using atomistic spin dynamics governed by the Landau-Lifshitz-Gilbert (LLG) equation. The emitted electromagnetic radiation is then computed from the time-dependent charge densities and bond currents using Jefimenko's equations. On applying this framework to a bilayer of MnSn and spin-orbit (SO)-coupled nonmagnetic material like Platinum (Pt), we demonstrate that---charge pumping by local magnetization of Mn3Sn in the presence of its own SO coupling is far more important than standardly assumed spin current generation and subsequent spin-to-charge conversion within the adjacent nonmagnetic SO-coupled material, in the process of THz generation from magnetic materials. ☐ Furthermore, to investigate electron-magnon interactions, we employ a recently developed numerical exact quantum-classical hybrid scheme of time-dependent nonequilibrium Green functions (TDNEGF)+LLG formalism---applied to a two-terminal device hosting a SW attached to two semi-infinite normal metal leads. The attached leads provide a continuous spectrum, allowing for the exchange of energy and particles from the system. We show that SW pumps chiral spin and charge current into leads, with the flow of current tied to the direction of the propagation of SW and current scaling linearly with the frequency of precession of the SW. In contrast to previous literature, we also showed that chiral charge current can be pumped from the SW even in the absence of SO coupling. This is due to time-retardation effects---motion of localized magnetic moment affects conduction electron spin in a retarded way so that it takes a finite time until the electron spin reacts to the motion of the classical vector. ☐ Nonetheless, in both QME+LLG+Jefimenko and TDNEGF+LLG formalism, the nonequilibrium dynamics of LMMs is described by the LLG equation, treating localized spins as classical vectors of fixed length. However, spin is a genuine quantum degree of freedom, and even though quantum effects become progressively less important for spin value S > 1, they exist for all S < ∞. To test the validity of this approximation, we compare the dynamics of LMMs interaction with conduction electrons via exchange interaction in fully quantum-many body treatment and quantum-classical approach. We were able to show that quantum-classical dynamics can faithfully reproduce fully quantum dynamics in the ferromagnetic (F) metallic case, but only when spin S and Heisenberg exchange between localized spins and sd exchange are sufficiently small. Increasing any of these three parameters can lead to substantial deviations, which are explained by the dynamical buildup of entanglement between localized spins and/or between them and electrons. In the antiferromagnetic (AF) metallic case, substantial deviations appear even at early times, which therefore poses a challenge to how to rigorously justify the wide usage of the LL equation in phenomenological modeling of antiferromagnetic spintronics experiments.University of Delaware, Department of Physics and AstronomyPh.D
Comprehensive overview of the macroscopic thermo-hydro-mechanical behavior of saturated cohesive soils
No full textThis article was originally published in Technobius. The version of record is available at: https://doi.org/10.54355/tbus/5.1.2025.0071.
Copyright (c) 2025 Victor Kaliakin, Meysam Mashayekhi.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/).Understanding the effects of temperature on the hydro-mechanical behavior of geomaterials (i.e., soil and rock) has gained significance over the past three decades. This is due to new applications in which these materials are subjected to non-isothermal conditions. Examples of such applications include geothermal systems, nuclear waste disposal, and energy geo-structures. The analysis and design of such applications requires a thorough understanding of the macroscopic thermo-hydro-mechanical (THM) behavior of the geomaterials. Although various aspects of this behavior have been documented in the literature, a comprehensive overview of such behavior is lacking. This article presents such an overview of the macroscopically observed THM behavior of saturated cohesive soils.The graduate studies of the second author were partially supported by funding provided by the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Delaware. This support is gratefully acknowledged
Molecular mechanism underlying autosomal-dominant cataract in the Philly mouse: a βB2-crystallin mutant
No full textDuncan, Melinda K.Cataracts, the clouding of the transparent lens, are the leading cause of blindness worldwide. While many cataracts are age-related, genetic mutations, especially in lens proteins such as crystallins, are a major cause of congenital cataracts. Crystallins are highly expressed proteins in the lens that help maintain transparency and high refractive index. βB2-crystallin, encoded by Crybb2, is the most abundantly expressed β-crystallin in the postnatal mouse lens and has traditionally been viewed as a structural protein. However, its expression in non-lens tissues such as the brain, retina, testis, and ovary, which are the organs that do not require refractive properties, suggests its potential non-refractive roles. ☐ This thesis investigates the non-refractive functions of βB2-crystallin using the Crybb2Phil/Phil mouse (Philly mouse), which carries a 12-bp in-frame deletion in exon 6 of Crybb2. To understand how this mutation affects the lens at the molecular level, RNA sequencing and enrichment analyses were conducted using whole lenses from 7-week-old Crybb2Phil/Phil mutant and wild-type mice, and immunofluorescence staining was performed across different ages from postnatal day 0 to 20 weeks. ☐ RNA-seq data revealed upregulation of cell proliferation-related genes like Mki67 and Pcna, supported by Ki-67 staining showing increased cell proliferation in both the germinative zone and anterior epithelial regions near the fibrotic lesion sites. Apoptosis-related genes were also altered, with elevated cleaved caspase-3 staining in lesion-adjacent epithelial cells. EMT-associated changes in both RNA and protein levels were examined. Although Acta2 (α-SMA) was unexpectedly downregulated at the transcript level, immunostaining revealed α-SMA upregulation in subcapsular fibrotic regions at 9 and 20 weeks. Epithelial marker E-cadherin was progressively reduced, and TGF-β1 was increased, colocalizing with α-SMA. These findings indicate EMT and fibrotic changes in the Crybb2Phil/Phil mutant lens. In addition, dysregulation of autophagy-related genes, including Sqstm1, Map1lc3b, and Lamp2 was observed, and accumulation of P62 protein in mutant fiber cells suggests impaired autophagic flux. This result is similar to previous findings in βA3/A1-crystallin, which regulates autophagy in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), raising the possibility that βB2-crystallin plays a similar role in the lens. ☐ Altogether, these results suggest that βB2-crystallin has broader functions beyond its refractive role. The Crybb2Phil/Phil mutation disrupts multiple pathways such as cell proliferation, apoptosis, EMT, and autophagy, that are essential for lens development and maintenance. This study reveals non-refractive functions of βB2-crystallin and shows how their disruption contributes to cataract formation.University of Delaware, Department of Biological SciencesM.S