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The Kindled End
No full textThe Kindled End is a dark political fantasy romance set in the kingdom of Citra, where every hundred years Kvikna rises and revenants—monstrous creatures drawn to the gifted—begin to hunt. Three absol—gifted without limit—are pulled into the heart of court politics, seduction, and looming war. As loyalties shift and desire flares, they will awaken truths that could ruin them—and fracture a kingdom already more frayed than anyone knows
Presencing, Heritage, and Memory at Stewart Indian School
No full textThis thesis examines the materialization of both colonial power and student presence at Stewart Indian School (SIS), a Federal Indian Boarding School (FIBS) located outside Carson City, Nevada, as both a site of colonial control and Indigenous persistence, self-determination, and resistance. Student experiences at SIS were shaped not only by the institution's assimilationist goals but also by everyday acts of resistance and cultural expression, including cultural performances and the reclamation of Indigenous identities. Established to enforce cultural dominance through education, daily routines, and its institutional environment, SIS ultimately became a space where students resisted assimilation efforts and fostered the development of "Pan-Indian" identities. Building on existing scholarship on the FIBS system and theories of institutionalized control (e.g., governmentality and hegemony), this study situates SIS within the broader context of colonial dispossession and erasure. Through an examination of historical sources and material evidence from other archival research, the built environment of the campus, and the SIS Cultural Center and Museum, this thesis highlights how the school functioned both as a tool of assimilation and as a site of cultural persistence, inter-Tribal solidarity, and resistance while examining its closure as part of a colonial "logics of elimination" aimed at suppressing student activism and facilitating settler control of land. This research advocates for the use of presencing as an analytical framework for FIBS that centers Indigenous agency, aiming to challenge colonial narratives of erasure and decolonize heritage management and scholarship
Recovering the Roots of the Literacy Narrative via Disciplinary History and Textbooks
No full textThis dissertation investigates the literacy narrative assignment. The history of this assignment lives in journals, textbooks, and people’s
experiences, yet no formal history of it exists. To address this, I
investigate literacy narrative and proto literacy narrative scholarship in
the Journal of Basic Writing, examine how textbooks teach it, and
conduct preliminary interviews with established scholars in the field.
Additionally, this dissertation holds a series of my own literacy
narratives that situate my literacy history, prior to becoming a teacher
and since joining the discipline. I argue the durability and adaptability of
the assignment comes from its capacity to signify “a sense of belonging”
in various contexts and within diverse communities. Like narrative
writing, literacy narrative has historically been connected to
developmental writing, and it struggles to be seen outside of
developmental contexts. This dissertation challenges that view and
conventional knowledge about literacy narratives and their uses. I
suggest those working with literacy narratives familiarize themselves
with literacy and literacy narrative theories and write their own literacy
narratives to create more understanding about the genre
Border-Lines, Volume XIII
No full textBorder-Lines is an interdisciplinary and intersectional academic journal dedicated to the dissemination of research on Chicana/o-Latina/o cultural, political and social issues. Border-Lines is a refereed journal that seeks to publish scholarly articles drawn from a variety of disciplines such as anthropology, education, geography, human health, literary and cultural studies, political science, social work and sociology
Interfacial Fluidics using Liquid Metal Alloys
No full textIn this thesis, I highlight studies I have accomplished to investigate real-time physicochemical changes in gallium alloys immediately upon contact with microdroplets of various fluids. Such interactions are often overlooked due to the limited accessibility of specialized equipment. To tackle the challenge, I have introduced a nanoporous conductive wire platform fabricated by injecting eutectic gallium indium (eGaIn) into microtubes upcycled from artificial kidneys. This framework provides an economical and effective method to observe weak interfacial interactions within a nanoporous domain, enabling studies on fluid transport and interfacial dynamics. The platform also captures dynamic changes in gallium oxide’s amphoteric properties, which facilitate unique interactions with various fluids. It enables fluid transport and interaction within the nanoporous structure by providing direct access to reactive gallium oxide. The innovative design provides a foundation for future nano- and bioanalytical applications utilizing liquid metal alloys. In contrast to the nanoporous fiber studies, I have utilized 2D thin films of liquid metal to dissect true interactions with various fluids – especially microdroplets with dilute analytes. My research focus in this study was to demonstrate the chemo-mechanical stability of the film by harnessing atomic concentrations of gallium and oxygen. Three fluorinated samples were tested: 200 ppm PFOA, 0.014 ppb PFAS, and 0.001 ppb PFAS demonstrating sensitivity to varying PFAS concentrations. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and Raman spectroscopy were employed to quantify and validate the shifts in elemental distributions and surface dynamics of the eGaIn films. The results suggest that a 2D thin film of liquid metal can be harnessed for rapid in situ analysis of dilute analytes, offering a new pathway for chemical sensors. Additionally, I highlight how to use ImageJ to examine surface heterogeneity and defects, including pinholes, which are needed for the dynamic investigation of the 2D interface. Overall, interfacial fluidic studies will help understand the behavior of microdroplets of various fluids in real-time without relying on bulky and expensive analytical tools
Phosphate-Based Dechlorination of Electrorefiner Salt Waste using a Phosphoric Acid Precursor
Get PDFElectrochemical processing of spent nuclear fuel in molten chloride salts results in radioactive salt waste. A growing global energy demand has revitalized interest in nuclear energy technology. With increasing quantities of used nuclear fuel (UNF), the Department of Energy (DOE) launched the “Converting UNF Radioisotopes Into Energy” (CURIE) program in 2022, providing resources for projects focusing on advancing UNF recycling technologies, including advanced non-aqueous methods like electrochemical reprocessing. Projects supported by the CURIE program will aim to reduce the volume of high-level waste (HLW) that will require permanent disposal and will also potentially provide feedstock that could be used in domestic advanced reactors. To that end, salt partitioning is an effective way to reduce HLW volume before long-term repository storage.Chlorine removal from the salt waste has been identified as an effective and efficient first step in the management of this and volume reduction of this HLW. Cl removal from the salt waste stream also aides in the waste form process as Cl solubility in the baseline oxide glasses like borosilicate glass tends to be very low, and the capacity of baseline mineral waste form options such as sodalite and apatite have very limited Cl capacities.
In this work, a simple salt was dechlorinated with a phosphoric acid phosphate precursor, resulting in a glassy dechlorinated product. Because it is unknown if these processes would be conducted in a hot cell with an air or argon environment, dechlorination efficacy was evaluated in both environments. It was found that dechlorination was possible in both air and argon environments, although atmospheric oxygen appeared to play a significant role in the process. To evaluate temperature and atmosphere dependence on the extent of dechlorination, scanning electron microscopy (SEM)/energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) was performed on the intermediate products formed under different temperature conditions for each atmosphere. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and evolved gas analysis (EGA) were used to understand the off-gas behavior during dechloination under different processing conditions (e.g. heating profile and environment).
This work serves as an initial step to advance the Technological Readiness Level of H3PO4-based dechlorination step towards implementation of iron phosphate waste forms to immobilize electrochemical fuel reprocessing salt waste streams. Sections of this thesis are verbatim reproduced from the study published by the American Chemical Society in the journal ACS Omega (“Phosphate-Based Dechlorination of Electrorefiner Salt Waste using a Phosphoric Acid Precursor”)
Towards Efficient AI for Science in Scalable and High Performance Distributed System
No full textArtificial intelligence (AI) has seen rapid development over the last few decades, significantly impacting various domains such as computer vision and natural language processing. In recent years, machine learning methods have been increasingly applied to the scientific discovery process, accelerating advances in diverse fields. Notable examples include AlphaFold, which predicts protein structures, and ClimateX, which enhances weather prediction capabilities. The ability of AI to process large volumes of data, recognize complex patterns with precision, and uncover intricate relationships has made it an indispensable tool for innovation across scientific domains. Scientific research often demands extensive data processing and computation, typically facilitated by high-performance computing (HPC) clusters or major cloud providers such as AWS, Azure, and GCP. However, efficiently leveraging these infrastructures for accelerated scientific discovery poses significant challenges. This dissertation addresses the efficient management of AI-driven science workloads on scalable, high-performance distributed systems. Motivated by the requirements of extensive machine learning applications and the need to effectively handle large scientific datasets, this dissertation develops novel frameworks aimed at optimizing resource allocation on supercomputers, minimizing storage costs in the cloud, and harnessing scalable serverless resources for machine learning training. Additionally, this dissertation introduces an AI application for climate research, employing diffusion models for super-resolution and data assimilation to enhance climate prediction accuracy. We first address the challenges prevalent in high-performance computing by analyzing supercomputer clusters at DOE National Laboratories. Our findings indicate that roughly 10\% of the node resources in these clusters, including major installations like Aurora at Argonne National Laboratory (over 10,000 nodes) and Summit at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (over 4,000 nodes), remain unutilized by the main scheduler. Such underutilization represents a significant loss of computational potential. To address these challenges, we develop a framework named MalleTrain, which efficiently utilizes these otherwise wasted dynamic resources for scalable data-parallel distributed deep learning training. Next, we investigate AI for science challenges in cloud computing, specifically the emerging paradigm of serverless computing. Our investigation includes examining serverless function instances for data caching. We introduce the InfiniCache framework, an in-memory caching system. Compared to AWS ElastiCache, InfiniCache achieves cost savings of 31 to 96 times for large object caching without compromising performance. We further explore the potential of using serverless computing for machine learning training. We introduce SMLT, a user-centric framework designed to facilitate scalable and adaptive machine learning training on public cloud platforms using serverless technologies. Finally, we introduce WindSR, a diffusion-based framework tailored for wind speed super-resolution that innovatively incorporates data assimilation. This framework enables seamless integration of data assimilation techniques into a diffusion-based super-resolution model
Mojave Desert restoration: drought and facilitation influences on plant communities and soil seed banks in annual grass invaded shrublands
No full textNon-native grasses, like Bromus rubens, have become widespread in arid ecosystems across the western United States, including the Mojave Desert. Their prolific seed production and rapid spread pose significant threats to native flora and wildlife habitats. These invasive grasses alter fire cycles, degrade habitats, and reduce biodiversity. In desert ecosystems, soil seed banks are critical reservoirs for future vegetation, supporting plant diversity and ecosystem resilience. In particular, annual plants rely on seed banks to buffer against fluctuating climatic conditions, which helps sustain population stability and ecosystem function. Native annuals often use bet-hedging strategies like delayed germination to persist through unfavorable conditions. In contrast, invasive species like B. rubens lack a persistent seed bank, relying on early germination, rapid growth, and high reproductive output, allowing them to quickly dominate soil seed banks. As climate change intensifies with shifting precipitation patterns and increasing drought episodes, native and invasive species plant and seed bank dynamics become more complex. In addition to seed banks, desert shrubs play a crucial role in shaping plant communities by creating microsites that buffer harsh climate conditions and facilitate plant germination and establishment. Shrub microsites often enhance native and invasive plant abundance, but it remains unclear whether these patterns persist in seed banks under changing climate conditions. Additionally, efforts to control non-native grasses with pre-emergent herbicides like imazapic can unintentionally affect native species. Historically, invasive grass management has been reactive, targeting areas post-disturbance, such as after wildfire events that remove established vegetation.
Here, I evaluated the effectiveness of imazapic applications in reducing B. rubens cover and seed banks in invaded, but otherwise intact, plant communities. Using a split-plot design, I examined how single and repeated herbicide applications affect native and non-native plant communities and soil seed banks. Imazapic was aerially applied at four sites in Gold Butte National Monument in fall 2019, with a second application applied to a portion of each plot in fall 2020, creating once- and twice-treated sections. Vegetation was monitored from 2020 to 2022 to assess changes in non-native grass cover, annual forb cover, and perennial shrub cover. I also examined imazapic’s effects on native and invasive seed banks across different microsites (under shrub canopies and in open spaces) during a wet year (2020) and a drought year (2021). An additional drought year (2022) of seed bank data was collected in untreated plots to investigate how shrub facilitation and drought, as measured by the Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI), influenced seed bank density and composition. Soil samples were taken from beneath shrub canopies and interspaces and the seed bank was quantified using an emergence assay.
Initial herbicide treatments reduced B. rubens cover by 6.3% ± 1.2% in 2020, but this effect diminished in subsequent years. Twice-applied treatments did not show additional reductions until the second year after the second application. In interspaces, B. rubens seed density was reduced by once-applied treatments in both years, while reductions under shrub canopies varied by shrub species. Twice-applied treatments did not lead to further seed density reductions, likely due to minimal B. rubens growth during the application and concomitant drought years. Native forb cover decreased by as much as 2.9 % ± 0.6% after the first treatment but recovered in the following years. Herbicide treatments did not significantly affect the overall seed density of native forbs, though some species were negatively impacted. Perennial shrub cover remained stable, though drought induced mortality of the shrub Ambrosia dumosa was higher in herbicide treated plots.
While imazapic initially reduced B. rubens cover, the drought beginning in 2020 likely counteracted these benefits by suppressing annual plant emergence. Additionally, increased mortality of key shrub species suggested a tradeoff between reducing invasive grasses and maintaining native vegetation. Analyzing an additional year of seed bank data revealed that B. rubens seed density declined during drought but remained higher under shrub canopies compared to open spaces, suggesting that shrub facilitation of seed banks intensified during drought. Native forb density remained stable or increased despite drought, although their response to shrub facilitation was less pronounced. Species richness and diversity fluctuated, primarily driven by declines in B. rubens seed density.
These findings underscore the importance of aligning herbicide treatments with favorable precipitation conditions to enhance treatment efficacy. Effective management of invasive annual grasses requires proactive approaches that account for environmental conditions and microsite variability to safeguard native plant communities and prevent further habitat degradation. This study highlights the critical role of microsites and species-specific responses in shaping seed bank dynamics, offering valuable insights for restoration efforts aimed at managing invasive species and conserving native biodiversity in arid regions under the pressures of climate change
Characterization of adipokines receptors in bovine granulosa cells at the follicular phase of the estrous cycle and emerging role of Neuregulin-4 as a regulator of granulosa cells' function
No full textAdipokines, hormones produced by adipose tissue, were originally described to be solely secreted by white adipose tissue (WAT). However, recent evidence suggests that brown adipose tissue (BAT), in addition to its thermogenic role, also secretes hormones that can modulate both energy and reproductive metabolism. This finding expands and integrates the class of adipokines, traditionally associated with WAT, with those derived from BAT. Adipokines are known to affect ovarian physiology, especially granulosa cells (GC) function, regulating both steroidogenesis and folliculogenesis, which are important processes for female reproductive health. However, most of these studies are restricted to investigating their effects throughout the luteal phase of the reproductive cycle or in vitro without control of ovarian folliculogenesis. Although adipokines' role as GC function regulators is well-established, studies integrating in vivo and in vitro data to develop targeted strategies to aid female fertility are still required. Bovines and humans share several similarities regarding ovarian physiology, and studies presented here used the bovine model to provide valuable insights into improving female fertility in both species. In our first study, we explored the effects of a promising regulator of ovarian physiology, Neuregulin-4 (NRG4). Through in vivo and in vitro experiments, we demonstrated for the first time that NRG4 is expressed by ovarian cells. NRG4 and its receptor (ErBb-4) are more (p<0.001) abundant in bovine GC from small (SM) follicles at the follicular phase of the estrous cycle. Additionally, in vitro treatments of GC with luteinizing hormone (LH) alone or in combination with follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) increased (p<0.05) NRG4 mRNA abundance. Furthermore, NRG4 (20ng/mL) stimulated (p<0.05) GC proliferation, whereas NRG4 (10ng/mL) suppressed estradiol secretion. These findings suggest that NRG4 and its receptor may be involved in follicle development, and their impact on GC physiology varies with the stage of the reproductive cycle.
Our second study explored whether mRNA abundances of adipokines receptors change at the follicular phase of the bovine estrous cycle and their response to GC physiology regulators. Receptors for apelin, asprosin, chemerin, gremlin, irisin, leptin, resistin, and vaspin were more abundant (p≤0.01) in GC from SM follicles, whereas adiponectin receptor 2 was significantly more expressed (p≤0.001) in GC from large (LG) follicles. Additionally, Spearman’s correlation revealed a significative negative (average ρ = - 0.753; p≤0.05) correlation between follicular fluid estradiol levels and GC abundance of four adipokines receptors in SM follicles. In LG follicles, GC abundance of adiponectin receptor 1 and leptin receptor had a strong positive (average ρ = 0.95; p≤0.05) correlation with estradiol levels. The in vitro treatments with known regulators of GC at the follicular phase influenced the mRNA abundance of eight adipokines receptors. These findings demonstrate that adipokines receptors’ expressions in GC are follicle size-dependent and are directly correlated with estradiol secretion. Also, their follicle size-dependent abundance and regulation by known factors involved in GC steroidogenesis suggest a potential role in follicular development throughout the estrous cycle. Collectively, these studies reinforce the essential role of adipokines in ovarian physiology and reveal new influences on their regulation during a crucial phase of the reproductive cycle. These insights may contribute to the development of strategies to overcome ovulatory impairment
Investigation into the Processing Parameters of Phosphate-based Dechlorination of Electrorefiner Salt Waste
No full textElectrochemical processing of used nuclear fuel in molten chloride salts generates complex radioactive salt waste. Phosphate-based dechlorination is a crucial step in waste processing for volume reduction. The technique for recycling chlorine can be applied to waste from our current fleet or reactors, as well as advanced reactors in which pilot-scale facilities are currently being evaluated. In this study, a procedure was developed for the dechlorination of an electrorefiner salt waste simulant called ERV3 salt based on the results of dechlorination with a simple salt mixture. The dechlorination of the simple salt mixture was evaluated using different phosphate precursors and realistic atmospheres. The optimal conditions for simple salt dechlorination were applied to the ERV3 salt. This method allowed for the down selection of processes, ultimately revealing that the ERV3 salt can be effectively dechlorinated at the laboratory scale in an air environment at 600˚C with phosphoric acid as the phosphate precursor. Our findings represent a significant step toward advancing the Technology Readiness Level of phosphate-based dechlorination methods and develops a strategy for future developments in dechlorination research