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Media Habits and Awareness of Native American Representation in the Media of Young Adults.
No full textNative Americans are often an overlooked population when it comes to researchingrepresentation in movies, television, and other forms of media. Moreover, little is known aboutgeneral audience’s awareness of such representation, especially from Native American and Non-Native American young adults. In this study, 31 high school students completed an online surveyon their media consumption habits, their interest in the entertainment industry, and theirawareness of Native American representation in the media they consume. While mediaconsumption habits collected were expected for the targeted demographic, their limitedawareness of Native American representation reflected an uncertainty of Native Americanidentity and an absence of Native American content in their media consumption. These findingsindicate a need for greater integration of Native American content in the media as well as furtherresearch, specifically on Native American populations, regarding awareness and consumptionhabits
Mathematical and Machine Learning Approaches to Predicting Drug Penetration in Heterogeneous Tuberculosis Lesions.
No full textTuberculosis is among the most widespread infectious diseases in the modern world. The disease is characterized by the lesions, or granulomata, which its infection form in the lungs, which are resilient to antibiotic penetration and can cause latent, chronic infections. Current research aims to improve predictions of tuberculosis disease outcomes and improve therapy by studying tuberculosis through animal models, in humans, and in computational simulations of mathematical models. The abundance of drug distribution image data available from animal and human sources is a target for machine learning techniques, which could assist in predicting the outcomes of disease treatments on specific lesions, and prior models may inform the design of new mathematical models which incorporate spatially-relevant information, a necessity for predictions involving infected granulomata. The prospects of convolutional neural networks, a k-nearest neighbor algorithm, and a mathematical model in COMSOL Multiphysics for generating predictions relevant to clinical outcomes are examined, and these examined methods show promise to be developed further in the future
Representación del cuerpo femenino en la poesía de escritoras latinoamericanas.
No full textThis thesis synthesizes anthropological studies of the human body with Spanish poetry. It focuses on applying anthropological theory to a series of poems which focus on the female body in order to affirm and direct the experience of living in the patriarchal society. The image or metaphor that each poem presents of the body reflects the author's desire own of her lived experience.The authors chosen represent a longitudinal sample of female poets whose work mentions or focuses on the female body. The poets included are Santa Teresa de Ávila, Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz, Alfonsina Storni, Rosario Castellanos, Gioconda Belli, and Gloria Anzaldúa. In these poems, each author reclaims her body, life, and story
Construction of Hybrid Inhibitors for Metalloproteinase Targeting.
No full textAlthough cancer-promoting activities of extracellular proteases and peptidases in the tumor microenvironment are well known, the disruption of individual enzymes in this environment remains a fundamental challenge. To better understand the roles of these enzymes in cancer progression, and to potentially begin to target them in vivo, selective inhibitors of these enzymes are needed. Small molecules, which have proven potent inhibitors of these enzymes, are rarely selective enough to target an individual enzyme. Antibodies can exhibit exemplary selectivity of binding, but inhibitory clones are difficult to isolate. This work explores a novel strategy for selective, effective inhibition of such enzymes, in which a specific protein binder is conjugated to an inhibitory small molecule. To this end, antibodies against a model antigen, matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) were identified and site-specifically modified for conjugation to an inhibitory small molecule. Candidate small molecules were also identified and evaluated for inhibitory efficacy. Then, conditions to efficiently conjugate the two moieties were explored and leveraged to produce candidate hybrid inhibitors. We anticipate that this strategy will provide a robust method of producing selective inhibitors for broad classes of enzymes active in the tumor microenvironment and in other complex diseases
Deliberate Warfare: Destruction of Cultural Property During Armed Conflict in Bosnia & Armenia.
No full textSubmitted in partial fulfillment of the degree Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. Abstract: Despite many efforts by the international community to protect cultural property during warfare, the loss of and damage to cultural property remained a ubiquitous feature of armed conflict throughout the 20th Century, and now, the 21st Century. This thesis explores why cultural property is destroyed during warfare or conflict. What are perpetrators trying to achieve when they target cultural property such as historical buildings, works of art, archaeological sites, libraries, museums, and places of worship? Are perpetrators successful in achieving their goals? What are the consequences of destroying cultural property? I hypothesize that the destruction of cultural property is a deliberate tactic to not only expunge or dislocate a population so as to discredit their claim to territory, but it is also an attempt to eradicate a culture and erase an identity. Using Bosnia and Armenia as case studies, the research concludes that while perpetrators are successful with the physical removal of a population (in the form of killing or dislocating them), they fail to eradicate a culture and erase an identity from a territory. There are two reasons for this: (1) culture and identity are intangibles, whereas cultural property and people are not and (2) culture and identity are passed down through generations in permanent and nonpermanent ways
Host-Parasite Interactions in Babesiosis: Insights from Immunologic and Genetic Studies.
No full textExploring the molecular and immunologic factors contributing to host resistance to Babesia microti infection
Exploring the Relationship between Geography, Agglomeration Economies, and Firm Performance in Tanzanian Manufacturing.
No full textAgglomeration economies are thought to lead to benefits for clustered firms, an ideathat often underpins industrial development schemes. Though the effects and determinants ofthese agglomerations have been studied thoroughly in many developed countries, there isrelatively little work of this kind in the developing country context. Identifying the determinantsof firm clusters in Tanzania can help in understanding how agglomeration economies can beformed and sustained. One of the primary theoretical determinants of agglomeration is naturaladvantage. This paper makes use of data from the 2013 Census of Industrial Production as wellas data on geography from Henderson et al. (2017) to test how well geographic characteristics ofa district in Tanzania are able to explain agglomeration rates of manufacturing firms in thatdistrict. It finds that geographic variables can explain up to 35% of the variation in firmclustering across districts; however, the relationship between geography and agglomerationvaries across the agglomeration rates of different sectors and sector-pairings. The paperconcludes with a cursory analysis of the relationship between agglomeration and firmperformance. It finds some evidence for a positive relationship between agglomeration andproductivity, and demonstrates that for certain measures of agglomeration, agglomeration’srelationship to productivity varies by firm characteristics
Modelling and Guidance for the Distribution of Chlorine-Based Disinfectants for Household Water Treatment in Emergency Settings.
No full textChlorine-based disinfectants are one of the most commonly used forms of household water treatment for emergency interventions. A unique property of these disinfectants is the maintenance of residual chlorine post-distribution, allowing for the continued disinfection of water sources. The efficacy of an intervention using chlorine-based disinfectants is reliant on this residual maintenance. However, while the biocidal properties are well-studied, the residual decay pathways of different disinfectants are still widely unknown. Four most commonly used disinfectants were studied with regard to the potential decay pathways, including hypochlorite salts, sodium dichloroisocyanurate (NaDCC), chlorine dioxide, and chloramines. The available models for chlorine decay were studied and analyzed for applicability to each compound based on the available information on chemical reaction pathways and physical properties.The effectiveness of an intervention, however, is not based solely on the efficacy of a given product. Therefore, one increasingly used product, Aquatabs, was studied through key informant interviews to create an evidence-based set of recommendations from experience in the field. Aquatabs are a form of NaDCC manufactured by Medentech® and are available as tablets of 10 different dosages for 5 quantities of water, with one set of 5 dosages for development or long-term usage and another set of 5 dosages for emergencies. This has been reported to cause confusion among beneficiaries, and was the focus of the semi-structured interviews. The information was synthesized to create recommendations for future use of Aquatabs and chlorine-based disinfectants in general. Together with information about the residual maintenance, the recommendations made provide a holistic view of chlorine-based disinfectant use in emergency settings and the solutions possible to several issues that are known about household water treatment generally
Bioengineered GelMA Tooth Bud Constructs for Future Applications in Regenerative Dentistry
No full textAbstract: Tooth loss is a prevalent disease that affects millions of people worldwide. Loss of natural teeth can contribute to physiological and social disadvantages while reducing the quality of life. The exciting emerging field of Regenerative Dental Research aims to use biologically-based tissue engineering techniques to create bioengineered dental tissue and whole tooth replacement therapies. This innovative approach will provide function and responsiveness similar to natural teeth and serve as an alternative to currently used artificial materials. The basic goal of tissue engineering is to repair or replace damaged or lost tissues by utilizing a combination of cells and supportive scaffolds. The work described here is focused on the characterization and optimization of a three-dimensional (3D) tooth bud model composed of postnatal dental progenitor stem cells and HUVECs encapsulated within Gelatin Methacryloyl (GelMA) hydrogel scaffold. Preliminary in vitro results showed that GelMA hydrogels can be tuned to resemble mechanical characteristics of the natural tooth bud microenvironment. Also, encapsulated dental cells and HUVECs exhibited increased attachment, metabolic and MMP activities overtime. Furthermore, in vitro capillary-like networks formed within the 3D tooth bud model. In vivo implanted tooth bud constructs demonstrated functional vascular networks that circulated host red blood cells (RBCs) and mineralized tissue that adopted the size and shape of the original construct. Optimization of the GelMA tooth bud model aimed to assess the effect of various cell seeding densities and fabrication techniques. Optimized tooth bud constructs showed evidence of many features of natural tooth buds. This includes a putative dental epithelial stem cell (DESC) niche, a basement membrane, Wnt signaling, bioengineered enamel knot (EK) signaling center, transit amplifying (TA) cells, and fibrillin expression that resembled that of early tooth development. These results are the first to report the recapitulation of the natural DESC niche and other features of natural tooth development using postnatal dental cells. All of the results presented here, suggest that GelMA hydrogel is a promising scaffold material that can be used in future applications for bioengineering dental tissues and excitingly, whole teeth replacements in humans. Future studies focus on advancing this 3D tooth bud model towards clinical applications.Thesis (Ph.D.)--Tufts University, 2018.Submitted to the Dept. of Cell, Molecular & Developmental Biology.Advisors: Pamela Yelick, and Li Zeng.Committee: Heber Nielsen, and Lauren Black III.Keywords: Developmental biology, Cellular biology, and Histology
From Ownership to Shared Use: The Spatial Patterns of Carsharing in Massachusetts
No full textAbstract: As an alternative to private vehicle ownership, carsharing has the potential of reducing congestion, and reducing the environmental impact of emissions due to transportation. This paper attempts to use Cervero and Kockelmen's 5D measures for the built environment - density, diversity, design, distance to transit and destination accessibility - while controlling for demographics to see if the built environment can significantly influence Zipcar membership in the Boston metropolitan area at the zipcode scale. Results suggest that service jobs, regional employment diversity and the walkability of a zipcode significantly increased Zipcar membership.Thesis (M.S.)--Tufts University, 2018.Submitted to the Dept. of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning.Advisor: Sumeeta Srinivasan.Committee: Mary Davis.Keywords: Urban planning, Transportation, and Geographic information science and geodesy