Nowadays, the multi-standard wireless receivers and multi-format video processors have created a great demand for integrating multiple standards into a single chip. The multiple standards usually require several Analog to Digital Converters (ADCs) with different specifications. A promising solution is adopting a power and area efficient reconfigurable ADC with tunable bandwidth and dynamic range. The advantage of the reconfigurable ADC over customized ADCs is that its power consumption can be scaled at different specifications, enabling optimized power consumption over a wide range of sampling rates and resulting in a more power efficient design. Moreover, the reconfigurable ADC provides IP reuse, which reduces design efforts, development costs and time to market. On the other hand, software radio transceiver has been introduced to minimize RF blocks and support multiple standards in the same chip. The basic idea is to perform the analog to digital (A/D) and digital to analog (D/A) conversion as close to the antenna as possible. Then the backend digital signal processor (DSP) can be programmed to deal with the digital data. The continuous time (CT) bandpass (BP) sigma-delta ADC with good SNR and low power consumption is a good choice for the software radio transceiver. In this work, a proposed 10-bit reconfigurable ADC is presented and the non-overlapping clock generator and state machine are implemented in UMC 90nm CMOS technology. The state machine generates control signals for each MDAC stage so that the speed can be reconfigured, while the power consumption can be scaled. The measurement results show that the reconfigurable ADC achieved 0.6-200 MSPS speed with 1.9-27 mW power consumption. The ENOB is about 8 bit over the whole speed range. In the second part, a 2-bit quantizer with tunable delay circuit and 2-bit DACs are implemented in TSMC 0.13um CMOS technology for the 4th order CT BP sigma-delta ADC. The 2-bit quantizer and 2-bit DACs have 6dB SNR improvement and better stability over the single bit quantizer and DACs. The penalty is that the linearity of the feedback DACs should be considered carefully so that the nonlinearity doesn't deteriorate the ADC performance. The tunable delay circuit in the quantizer is designed to adjust the excess loop delay up to +/- 10% to achieve stability and optimal performance.

Digital-to-Analog Converters (DAC) form the feedback element in sigma-delta modulators. Any non-linearity in the DAC directly degrades the linearity of the modulator at low and medium frequencies. Hence, there is a need for designing highly linear DACs when used in high performance sigma-delta modulators. In this work, the impact of current mismatch on the linearity performance (IM3 and SQNR) of a 4-bit current steering DAC is analyzed. A selective calibration technique is proposed that is aimed at reducing the area occupancy of conventional linearization circuits. A statistical element selection algorithm for linearizing DACs is proposed. Current sources within the required accuracy are selected from a large set of current sources available. As compared with existing calibration techniques, this technique achieves higher accuracy and is more robust to variations in process and temperature. In contrast to existing data weighted averaging techniques, this technique does not degrade SNR performance of the ADC. A 5th order, 500 MS/s, 20 MHz sigma-delta modulator macro-model was used to test the linearity of the DAC.

L'apoptose est un processus primordial pour le développement et le maintien des organismes eucaryotes. Elle est régulée à différents niveaux de l’expression génique. En fonction des stimuli intra- et extra-cellulaires, les facteurs de transcription régulent l'expression des protéines pro-survies et pro-apoptotiques. Ces facteurs de transcription facilitent la formation du complexe de pré-initiation (CPI) de la transcription pour activer la transcription. Le CPI est composé de l’ARN polymérase II et des facteurs généraux de transcription dont le facteur de reconnaissance du promoteur, TFIID. TFIID est un complexe multi-protéique composé de la protéine de liaison de la boîte TATA (TBP) et de 14 facteurs associés à TBP (TAFs) tel que TAF6 qui nous intéresse. TAF6 est exprimé sous 5 isoformes d'épissage alternatif (?, ?, ?, ð, ? ). TAF6? et TAF6ð sont deux entités antagonistes. Ils sont issus de l’épissage alternatif du deuxième exon de TAF6. Contrairement au variant majoritaire TAF6? qui a une activité oncogénique et antiapoptotique, le variant minoritaire TAF6ð est pro-apoptotique. À l’opposé de TAF6?, l’excision de la partie alternative du deuxième exon empêche la dimérisation de TAF6ð avec TAF9 dans TFIID (TFIID?). Les analyses de puce à ADN ont montré que l'impact sur le transcriptome de la perte de TAF6? est fortement distinct de l'impact causé par l'induction de l’isoforme pro-mort TAF6ð par des oligonucléotides antisens qui bascule l’épissage (SSO pour Splice site Switching Oligonucleotids). En outre, la déplétion du variant d'épissage majeur TAF6? aboutit à la perte de la viabilité des cellules. L'importance de l'induction de TAF6ð dans la mort cellulaire programmée et nos résultats précédents montrant que TAFð induit l’apoptose indépendamment de p53 dans de nombreux types de cellules cancéreuses, nous ont incités à entreprendre une dissection des éléments cis d'ARN qui contrôlent l'épissage du variant TAF6ð. Nous avons développé un système de minigène pour étudier les éléments cis d'ARN qui contrôlent l'expression de TAF6ð. Le minigène inclut la séquence génomique de TAF6 (exon 2 à exon 3) qui est dirigé par le promoteur CMV et il mime le patron d’épissage alternatif de TAF6? et TAF6ð endogène. Nous avons entrepris une analyse mutationnelle pour identifier les éléments cis de TARN pré-messager de TAF6. Nos données ont mis en évidence un site activateur d'épissage dans l’exon 2 constitutif. Dans l’intron, deux motifs polyC et polyG pourraient réguler l’épissage alternatif de TAF6ð. Ces motifs représentent des sites potentiels de liaison pour les protéines de liaison à l’ADN, hnRNP K et H respectivement. Nous avons donc testé l’effet de la surexpression de hnRNP K et H sur l’épissage alternatif de TAF6 et nous n'avons eu aucuns changement sur l’expression de TAF6ð endogène. De plus, nous avons constaté que la mutation d'un seul nucléotide qui semble perturber la structure secondaire d'ARN au site d’épissage proximal, renverse complètement le patron d’épissage. Cette mutation favorise le choix du site d’épissage distal (un site faible) à la place du site d’épissage proximal (TAF6?). Nos résultats suggèrent aussi qu’un élément régulateur d’épissage qui favorise TAF6? est présent dans l’exon 2 alternatif. Pour permettre l’identification des facteurs d’épissage influençant le choix du site d’épissage, nous avons créé un nouveau système d’épissage rapporteur. Notre nouveau vecteur contient la séquence génomique de TAF6 (exon 2 à exon 4) modifiée par l’introduction d’un codon stop prématuré (CSP) dans l’exon 2 alternatif et fusionné à la protéine EYFP. La combinaison des essais de transfections transitoires avec les SSOs ont été utilisés pour valider ce système contrôlé par cytométrie de flux. Dans le futur, ce système pourrait être utilisé pour produire une lignée stable afin d'identifier les facteurs d’épissage impliqués dans la régulation de l’épissage alternatif par un criblage d’inhibition (siRNA) ou de surexpression (ADNc). Donc, mon projet présente la première identification des éléments cis qui contrôlent l’épissage du facteur aussi bien que le développement d’un système d'épissage rapporteur créé pour permettre l’identification des protéines d'épissage qui régulent l’expression de TAF6ð. [symboles non conformes]

The field of real numbers does not permit a direct representation of the (improper) delta functions used for the description of impulsive (instantaneous) or concentrated (localized) sources. Of course, within the framework of distributions, these concepts can be accounted for in a rigorous fashion, but at the expense of the intuitive interpretation. The existence of infinitely small numbers and infinitely large numbers in the Levi-Civita field allows us to have well-behaved delta functions which, when restricted to the real numbers, reduce to the Dirac delta function. Here we develop the foundations for a mathematically rigorous theory of localized and instantaneous sources that has a clear and unambiguous way of specifying a mathematically concentrated source. We use the already existent one variable measure and integration theory on Levi-Civita field to construct the foundations of a measure and integration theory in two and three dimensions. First we construct measurable sets using sets with boundaries that can be expressed as analytic functions and we show the the resulting measure is Lebesgue-like. In particular we prove the measurability of countable sets, the countable union of measurable sets, and the finite intersection of measurable sets. Following that we use analytic functions to construct a larger class of measurable functions, we then define the integral of a measurable function over a measurable set. We prove several propositions regarding measurable functions and the associated integration theory including that the set of measurable functions is closed under multiplication and addition, and that integration is linear. This allows for a wide range of applications for the delta function in one, two, and three dimensions and sets the course for a more extensive study of this topic in the future.

This thesis has included (1) a course of study in English, (2) a presentation of departmental policies and procedures peculiar to Delta High School, and (3) a survey of departmental problems and their resolutions. All have emerged as a result of school consolidation in 1967 (Delaware County: Royerton, DeSoto, Eaton, and Albany) Included in the work is a compilation of results which have required hundreds of hours of "unseen labor."The decisions, ideas, suggestions, plans, and projects described in the thesis are representative of the entire English Department at Delta High School.The total program and curriculum guide have been set up to meet the needs of the school at the present time and yet viewed and planned s o that the move into the new physical plant will not be a sudden, disrupting change, but rather a smooth transition.

This dissertation explores the experiences of Egyptian peasants from the Delta province of Minufiyya who were tried for murder by newly created "native" or "national" courts between 1884 and 1914. Through the study of 2,000 pages of criminal files, I deconstruct how the colonial state used the modern techniques of judicial orality, writing, and performance, both to justify a series of reforms that turned the entire legal process into a parody of justice, and to develop a grand narrative that essentialized peasants as revengeful, greedy, and passionate and ultimately linked their alleged immorality to their illiteracy. Furthermore, my work sheds light on how peasants reacted to this process of moralization of the law by promoting the "honor of the brigand" through violence and poetry. Finally, by focusing on the many petitions contained in the judicial files, my dissertation provides new insight into the development of a "vernacular" culture of the law that betrays the peasants' awareness of the highly political nature of the legal process. By presenting and analyzing an untapped wealth of Egyptian archives produced by the native courts, this research not only sheds invaluable light on the workings and hence the very nature of British colonial justice in Egypt, but also represents a significant advance in the knowledge of the origins of Egypt's current legal system. On a more theoretical level, this study also constitutes an important contribution to the reflection on the subaltern subject initiated by Rosalind O'Hanlon and Talal Asad, by showing how the peasants' agency paradoxically lies in their "disempowerment."

This dissertation explores the experiences of Egyptian peasants from the Delta province of Minufiyya who were tried for murder by newly created "native" or "national" courts between 1884 and 1914. Through the study of 2,000 pages of criminal files, I deconstruct how the colonial state used the modern techniques of judicial orality, writing, and performance, both to justify a series of reforms that turned the entire legal process into a parody of justice, and to develop a grand narrative that essentialized peasants as revengeful, greedy, and passionate and ultimately linked their alleged immorality to their illiteracy. Furthermore, my work sheds light on how peasants reacted to this process of moralization of the law by promoting the "honor of the brigand" through violence and poetry. Finally, by focusing on the many petitions contained in the judicial files, my dissertation provides new insight into the development of a "vernacular" culture of the law that betrays the peasants' awareness of the highly political nature of the legal process. By presenting and analyzing an untapped wealth of Egyptian archives produced by the native courts, this research not only sheds invaluable light on the workings and hence the very nature of British colonial justice in Egypt, but also represents a significant advance in the knowledge of the origins of Egypt's current legal system. On a more theoretical level, this study also constitutes an important contribution to the reflection on the subaltern subject initiated by Rosalind O'Hanlon and Talal Asad, by showing how the peasants' agency paradoxically lies in their "disempowerment."

Cet ouvrage porte sur la conception, la synthèse, les propriétés physico-chimiques et les propriétés pharmacologiques de peptides analogues de la Leu enképhaline. Ces travaux ont été effectués dans une collaboration entre les laboratoires des Pr Yves Dory et Louis Gendron. Le but à long terme de cette recherche est de développer des analgésiques (antidouleurs) basés sur le squelette de la Leu enképhaline, mais possédant une action orale. Bien sûr, par ces recherches, la compréhension des interactions intermoléculaires entre la Leu enképhaline et sa cible biologique (le récepteur opioïdergique delta; DOP) a pu être améliorée. Les informations recueillies par ces travaux pourront être d’une utilité notoire dans le développement futur d’analgésiques. Trois articles originaux sont insérés dans cet ouvrage (chapitres 1 et 3). Une introduction détaillée sur l’état des connaissances sur les analgésiques, plus particulièrement des peptides opioïdes, est présentée en premier lieu. Le chapitre 1 présente une série d’analogues d’enképhalines obtenus par remplacement systématique des amides par des alcènes. La deuxième section de ce chapitre présente une amélioration portée à la synthèse de ces analogues (réaction de déconjugaison cinétique). Aux chapitres 2 et 3 sont présentés d’autres analogues d’enképhalines obtenus par remplacement systématique des amides. Le chapitre 2 comporte les remplacements de type ester et N-méthyl amide. Le chapitre 3 comporte le remplacement de type triazole, obtenu par chimie de type « click ». Le chapitre 4 comporte des analogues de la Leu enképhaline obtenus par modification des chaînes latérales du peptide. Les chaînes des acides aminés 2 et 5 ont été modifiées pour obtenir des peptides plus sélectifs pour DOP, ainsi que pour avoir la possibilité de marquer le peptide avec un atome radioactif. L’annexe 5 relate la synthèse du SB-235863. Ce composé est un agoniste sélectif de DOP dérivé de la codéine.

In this thesis, low-power charge-pump (CP) based switched-capacitor (SC) circuits are proposed. The approach is validated in SC integrators and gain stages, and is shown to achieve power savings compared to conventional SC circuits. For the same thermal noise and settling performance, a CP based integrator with N sampling capacitors ideally consumes N^2 times lower OTA power compared to a conventional integrator. Practical effects such as the OTA partial slew-rate limitation and the CP parasitics reduce the power savings. In the case of a SC gain stage, reduction in power savings also occurs due to the load capacitance from the next stage. A prototype delta-sigma modulator employing a CP integrator at the front-end is fabricated. Experimental results demonstrate that the CP based ADC achieves the same performance as a conventional ADC while consuming three times lower OTA power in the front-end integrator. The CP ADC achieves 87.8 dB SNDR 89.2 dB SNR and 90 dB DR over a 10 kHz bandwidth while consuming 148 uW from a 1.2 V power supply. The conventional ADC has similar performance but dissipates 241 uW. The CP ADC figure-of-merit (FOM) is 0.369 pJ/conv-step, which is almost 40% lower than that of the conventional ADC.

In this thesis, low-power charge-pump (CP) based switched-capacitor (SC) circuits are proposed. The approach is validated in SC integrators and gain stages, and is shown to achieve power savings compared to conventional SC circuits. For the same thermal noise and settling performance, a CP based integrator with N sampling capacitors ideally consumes N^2 times lower OTA power compared to a conventional integrator. Practical effects such as the OTA partial slew-rate limitation and the CP parasitics reduce the power savings. In the case of a SC gain stage, reduction in power savings also occurs due to the load capacitance from the next stage. A prototype delta-sigma modulator employing a CP integrator at the front-end is fabricated. Experimental results demonstrate that the CP based ADC achieves the same performance as a conventional ADC while consuming three times lower OTA power in the front-end integrator. The CP ADC achieves 87.8 dB SNDR 89.2 dB SNR and 90 dB DR over a 10 kHz bandwidth while consuming 148 uW from a 1.2 V power supply. The conventional ADC has similar performance but dissipates 241 uW. The CP ADC figure-of-merit (FOM) is 0.369 pJ/conv-step, which is almost 40% lower than that of the conventional ADC.