Thesis (Ph.D)--Psychology, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2010. / Committee Chair: Rogers, Wendy; Committee Member: Catrambone, Richard; Committee Member: Charness, Neil; Committee Member: Feldman, Jack; Committee Member: Fisk, Arthur. Part of the SMARTech Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Collection.

Background: Smartphones and related applications are increa singly gaining relevance in the healthcare domain. We previously assessed the demands and preferences of medical students towards an application accompanying them during a course on general practice. The current study aims to elucidate the factors associated with adop tion of such a technology. Therefore we provided students with a prototype of an application specifically related to their studies in general practice.

The main approach to studying the proteome is a technique called data dependent acquisition (DDA). In DDA, peptides are analyzed by mass spectrometry to determine the protein composition of a biological isolate. However, DDA is limited in its ability to analyze the proteome, in that it only selects the most abundant ions for analysis, and different protein identifications can result even if the same sample is analyzed multiple times in succession. Data independent acquisition (DIA) is a newly developed method that should be able to solve these limitations and improve our ability to analyze the proteome. We used an implementation of DIA (SWATH) to perform relative protein quantitation in the model bacterial system, Clostridium stercorarium, using two different carbohydrate sources, and found that it was able to provide precise quantitation of proteins and was overall more consistent in its ability to identify components of the proteome than DDA. Relative quantitation of proteins is an important method that can determine which proteins are important to a biochemical process of interest. How we determine which proteins are differentially regulated between different conditions is an important question in proteomic analysis. We developed a new approach to analyzing differential protein expression using variation between biological replicates to determine which proteins are being differentially regulated between two conditions. This analysis showed that a large proportion of proteins identified by quantitative proteomic analysis can be differentially regulated and that these proteins are in fact related to biological processes. Analyzing changes in protein expression is a useful tool that can pinpoint many key processes in biological systems. However, these techniques fail to take into account that enzyme activity is regulated by other factors than controlling their level of expression. Activity based protein profiling (ABPP) is a method that can determine the activity state of an enzyme in whole cell proteomes. We found that enzyme activity can change in response to a number of different conditions and that these changes do not always correspond with compositional changes. Mass spectrometry techniques were also used to identify serine hydrolases and characterize their expression in this organism. / February 2016

This dissertation is an ethnographic analysis of the ways in which disenfranchised Black communities mobilize cultural legacies of maroonage to empower themselves through the establishment of independent educational institutions. Using Kamali Academy, an African-centered, systematic home school in New Orleans, Louisiana, as a case study and ethnographic site, I examine two primary questions: What does the relationship between maroonage, as a political-cultural praxis, and independent Black educational institutions tell us about the construction of autonomous Black communities in the United States? Specifically, what does Kamali Academy teach us about these communities’ viability as interventions into a failing educational system that marginalizes Black students and families in New Orleans? Building on existing scholarship, I highlight maroonage as a method of community construction within a dominant socio-political structure. I depart from the literature, however, by rearticulating maroonage as a translocal and transhistorical cultural tradition, a process by which individuals and communities disengage from the dominant structure and re-engage in affirming and positive institutions. When considered within the context of both the charter school movement that has taken over New Orleans public schools since Hurricane Katrina as well as the extensive legacy of the struggle for independent Black education in the United States, Kamali Academy provides insight into what I have termed institutional maroonage, or the formation and maintenance of independent Black institutions that serve as spaces for community building and benefit the interests of Black freedom. / text

In this thesis, we develop an algorithm for detecting independent motion in real-time from 2D image sequences of arbitrarily complex 3D scenes. We discuss the necessary background information in image formation, optical flow, multiple view geometry, robust estimation, and real-time camera and scene pose estimation for constructing and understanding the operation of our algorithm. Furthermore, we provide an overview of existing independent motion detection techniques and compare them to our proposed solution. Unfortunately, the existing independent motion detection techniques were not evaluated quantitatively nor were their source code made publicly available. Therefore, it is not possible to make direct comparisons. Instead, we constructed several comparison algorithms which should have comparable performance to these previous approaches. We developed methods for quantitatively comparing independent motion detection algorithms and found that our solution had the best performance. By establishing a method for quantitatively evaluating these algorithms and publishing our results, we hope to foster better research in this area and help future investigators more quickly advance the state of the art. / text

This study's purpose was to explore the college choice process for foster care youth who are aging out of Florida's protective services system. The research methodology included three components. First, a survey of the Independent Living Coordinators throughout the state of Florida solicited data regarding participation rates and enrollment patterns among foster care youth. Next, in a meeting setting, a survey was administered to foster care youth, probing the extent to which they considered certain college choice decision factors. Finally, upon completion of the survey, participants remained for a guided focus group discussion to further explore their decision criteria.The results of the Independent Living Coordinator survey indicated that foster care youth enrolled in higher education programs far less frequently than non-foster care youth. The survey also demonstrated that of those foster care youth who participated in postsecondary programs, more than half chose c ommunity colleges.The survey administered to young persons transitioning out of the child welfare system indicates that, in general, these youth agreed that the four decision factors they considered most strongly when investigating higher education options were increased income potential, independence, a career goal, and the desire for respect or status. The subsequent focus group discussion confirmed that the complexity of the admissions process, one's academic preparedness, and financial considerations were important when deciding whether to attend postsecondary education. The discussion also revealed nine choice factors that were not specifically addressed either on the survey or in the focus group discussion guide, seven of which could be considered prominent. Those factors were: the desire to be the first in the family to obtain a degree, time management challenges, the presence or absence of a partner during the academic pursuit, family members detracting from the goal, whethe r or not there was a break between secondary and postsecondary education, hardships as motivators, and one's age at the beginning of a postsecondary pursuit. Analysis of the data further revealed that of all the decision factors mentioned either on the survey or in the subsequent discussions, financial concerns top the list.

μ -Calpain is localized to the mitochondrial intermembrane space. Apoptosisinducing factor (AIF), which executes caspase-independent cell death, is also localized to the mitochondrial intermembrane space. Following processing at the N-terminus, AIF becomes truncated (tAIF) and is released from mitochondria. The protease responsible for AIF processing has not been established. The same submitochondrial localization of mitochondrial μ-calpain and AIF gives support to the hypothesis that mitochondrial μ-calpain may be responsible for processing AIF. Atractyloside-induced tAIF release in rat liver mitochondria was inhibited by cysteine protease inhibitor MDL28170, but not by calpain inhibitors PD150606 or calpastatin. Moreover, μ-calpain immunoreactivity was difficult to detect in rat liver mitochondria. In a mitochondrial fraction from SH-SY5Y cells, incubation with 5 mM Ca2+ resulted in the activation of mitochondrial μ-calpain but not in AIF truncation. Finally, in hippocampal neurons calpain activation did not induce AIF processing or nuclear translocation and AIF translocation to nucleus was calpain independent. The localization of μ-calpain to the mitochondrial intermembrane space is suggestive of its possible involvement in AIF processing, but direct experimental evidence supporting such a role has been elusive. We observed that mitochondrial μ-calpain required high Ca2+ for activation. We examined the hypothesis that the endogenous calpain inhibitor, calpastatin, may be present in the neuronal mitochondria. Calpastatin was detected in the mitochondriaenriched fraction obtained from rat cerebral cortex and SH-SY5Y cells. The mitochondrial calpastatin was resistant to proteinase K digestion, indicating localization internal to the outer mitochondrial membrane. Submitochondrial fractionation revealed that the calpastatin was localized to the mitochondrial intermembrane space and mitoplasts (inner mitochondrial membrane and matrix) but not to the mitochondrial outer membrane fraction. Mitochondrial calpastatin was not detected when mitoplasts were incubated with proteinase K, suggesting that calpastatin is not present in the matrix. The N-terminus of XL domain of calpastatin, when fused to GFP and transfected to SH-SY5Y cells showed mitochondrial localization and thus confirmed the presence of a mitochondrial targeting sequence in calpastatin. Together, these results demonstrate the presence of calpastatin in the neuronal mitochondrial intermembrane space, the same submitochondrial compartment as mitochondrial μ-calpain. This finding explains the high Ca2+ requirements for mitochondrial μ-calpain activation.

Compared to the early days of China’s New Documentary Movement in the 1990s, Chinese independent documentary in the past decade has become more diverse in topic and style, thanks to technologies such as digital video cameras and the internet. Independent documentaries capture a fast-changing China in progress, and have thus drawn scholarly attention from cultural or social studies perspectives. However, industrial development in the past decade has often been neglected in favor of textual analysis of films. Since the marketization of independent documentaries in the 1990s was mainly through international film festivals, and a domestic industry has been lacking, it is easy to assume that Chinese independent documentarians today still have to follow the same path as their counterparts in the 1990s. However, my research on the Chinese independent documentary scene in Beijing in 2009 showed me a picture of a burgeoning domestic industry for independent documentaries, with a handful of newly emerged multi-functional independent film organizations practicing production, distribution and exhibition. Since a real industry has not yet formed, I use “ecosystem” instead of “industry” in the context of Chinese independent documentary. This study compares three representative organizations which are different from each other in nature and emphases, from their birth and evolution to their work and strategies. I argue that these organizations have created new possibilities and opportunities for today’s Chinese independent documentaries, through their different strategies in balancing themselves in a three-legged system of the global, national and local forces and resources. / text

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Στην παρούσα διπλωματική εργασία μελετώνται μέθοδοι διαχωρισμού σημάτων σε ανεξάρτητες συνιστώσες. Αφού δοθεί ο ορισμός του προβλήματος και μια αναφορά στις κυριότερες μεθόδους για την αντιμετώπισή του, γίνεται σαφές ότι δεν μπορούν να σχεδιαστούν γενικές μέθοδοι διαχωρισμού σημάτων. Παρά την πληθώρα των πρακτικών προβλημάτων στα οποία βρίσκει εφαρμογή το μαθηματικό πρότυπο, δεν είναι δυνατός ο σχεδιασμός μιας ενιαίας μεθόδου που να αντιμετωπίζει αποτελεσματικά όλες τις περιπτώσεις διαχωρισμού σημάτων. Ο αναγνώστης πληροφορείται για τις περιοχές έρευνας και ανάπτυξης των διαφόρων μεθόδων καθώς και για τις εφαρμογές τους σε διάφορους τομείς της σύγχρονης επιστήμης. Στη συνέχεια, υλοποιούνται κάποιες από αυτές τις μεθόδους και παρουσιάζονται τα αποτελέσματα προσομοίωσης πραγματικών πειραματικών δεδομένων που λήφθηκαν για την εκπόνηση της συγκεκριμένης διπλωματικής εργασίας. Τα αποτελέσματα εξάγονται με την χρήση και υλοποίηση αλγόριθμου επεξεργασίας των δεδομένων στο πρόγραμμα Matlab και μελετώνται εκτενέστερα με το πρόγραμμα Adobe Audition 1.5. Τέλος, παρουσιάζονται τα συμπεράσματα από την εφαρμογή του αλγόριθμου στα πραγματικά δεδομένα και δίνεται μια μαθηματική- θεωρητική βάση για την βελτιστοποίηση των μεθόδων διαχωρισμού σημάτων. / -