Mathematical modeling of biological systems can be useful to reveal new insights into biological observations. Here we apply mathematical modeling to study the underlying molecular networks driving observed behaviors of two systems. First, we apply systems biology and dynamic systems theory techniques to reveal new insights into the process of hematopoiesis. More specifically, we search the literature to deduce the underlying molecular mechanism that drives cell fate determination in granulocyte-monocyte progenitor (GMP) cells that are exposed to various cytokines. By converting this molecular mechanism into a set of ordinary differential equations (ODEs), we acquired new insights into the behavior of differentiating GMP cells. Next, we explore the cell cycle of the model prokaryotic organism, Caulobacter crescentus. Caulobacter is a uniquely successful oligotrophic bacterium, found abundantly in freshwater systems. While it is not a pathogenic species, Caulobacter is extremely well studied due to its distinguishable asymmetrical morphology and the ability to synchronize populations by cell cycle stage. We built a detailed mathematical model of the molecular mechanism driving the cell cycle. This research suggests a previously unknown role for the unknown form of the master regulator, CtrA, in regulating the G1-S transition. Furthermore, we incorporate a nutrient signaling model into the cell cycle model to investigate how Caulobacter responds to nutrient deprivation. We find that regulation of DivK phosphorylation is an essential component of the nutrient signaling pathway and demonstrate how starvation signals work together in synergy to manifest in observed cell cycle response. / Doctor of Philosophy / Every cell in the human body has the same DNA, yet there are cells of all kinds with different jobs, appearances and behaviors. This simple concept is a consequence of complex regulatory systems within cells that dictate what genes are expressed and when. This dissertation breaks down the molecular mechanisms that regulate gene expression in cells and how these mechanisms result in the interesting behaviors and morphologies that have been observed experimentally. By deriving mathematical equations to describe the molecular mechanisms, we simulate how cell behavior might change under different conditions to make novel discoveries. More specifically, we utilize these techniques to study the freshwater bacterium, Caulobacter crescentus, and human cells of the white blood cell lineage. We utilize our models to identify previously unknown aspects of the molecular mechanisms, develop explanations for mysterious cell behaviors and provide interesting predictions that have not been explored experimentally.

<p>The Artillery Lake area is diagonally bisected by the north-northeasterly trending Thelon Front. The best single surface feature to represent the Thelon Front is the "straight zone" which is a zone of porphyroclastic metasediments that also contains the study area. Kinematic indicators observed in the study area include extensional shear surfaces, C&S fabric, mica "fish", asymmetrical porphyroclast tails, asymmetrical folds, microfaulted porphyroclasts and secondary quartz subgrain foliations. Kinematic analysis of these features has shown that right lateral simple shear displacements and "east-side-up" vertical shear displacements have been accommodated within the rocks of the study area. The displacement senses determined by kinematic analysis are consistent with the regional data indicating progressively deeper exposures of structural levels to the east which suggests vertical motions localized at the domain boundaries. The stretching lineation present in the area is a combination of passive and direct extensions due to sub-vertical motions in the shear zone. A transition from early-ductile to late-brittle feldspar deformation textures indicates that metamorphic conditions during initial deformation were at epidoteamphibolite facies and relaxed during the later stages of deformation to greenschist facies. </p> / Thesis / Bachelor of Science (BSc)

Mesoscopic devices, such as nano-wires, are of interest for the next step in creating spintronic devices. With the ability to manipulate electrons and their spin, spintronic devices may be realised. To that end the different effects found in low-dimensional devices must be studied and understood. In this thesis  the influence that lateral spin-orbit coupling (LSOC) has on a nanowire, with asymmetrical confinement potential, is studied. The nanowire is studied through a numerical approach, using the Hartree-Fock method with Dirac interactions to solve the eigenvalue problem of an idealised infinite nanowire. The nanowire has a split-gate that generates the electrostatic asymmetrical confinement potential. It is found that the lateral spin-orbit coupling has little to no effect without any longitudinal effects in the wire, such as source-drain bias. The electrons will spontaneously create spin-rows in the device due to spin polarization. The spin polarization is triggered by using LSOC, numerical noise or from a weak magnetic field. / Mesoskopiska anordningar, som nano-trådar, tros vara ett viktigt steg för att skapa spinnelektronik. För att kunna skapa spinnelektronik behövs kunskap om hur elektroner kan manipuleras. Generellt måste därför existerande fenomen i nanoelektronik studeras. I denna avhandling studeras hur ''lateral spin-orbit koppling'' (LSOC) influerar en nanotråd som har en asymmetrisk potentialbarriär. Hartree-Fock metoden, med Dirac potential för elektron-elektron interaktioner, användes för att beräkna energinivåerna för en idealisk, oändligt lång nanotråd. Nanotråden har en split-gate som alstrar den elektrostatiska, asymmetriska potentialbarriären. "Lateral spin-orbit koppling" visar sig ha minimal effekt då longitudinella effekter, exempelvis spänning, saknas. Elektronerna placerar sig spontant i spinn-rader i tråden vid spontan spinn polarisation. Spinn polarisationen sätts igång av LSOC, numeriska störningar eller från svagt pålagt magnetfält.

This thesis is meant to describe and explain a space in which one can imagine things necessary for making objects that wobble, squeak, clack, creak, crank in and out, open and close, light up, roll about and generally hurl themselves into creepy existence. It is also an endeavor to describe some objects having lately taken such a journey into being. These include (but are not limited to): a chess table for one, an examining table and tray, two workbenches, chessmen and women, creaky floorboards, stairs on wheels, a stool on wheels, and Monsters of various sizes and shapes.

Assessor: The purpose of this study is to highlight tenants and staff’s perception of user’s involvement and influence in municipal group housing in living by the Act concerning Support and Service for Persons with Certain Functional Impairments (LSS). The study where performed in five small municipalities in the southern part of Sweden. Leading research questions have inter alia been in what way the process of decision-making is shared between the user and support person. Applied methods are mixed between qualitative interpretative modes with a certain quantitative approach. Qualitative group interviews consist of two focus groups with professional employees. One consists of three middle managers and the other one of five caregivers at special housing (LSS). Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with three individual users, i.e. a person who has assistance according to LSS. Twenty-four quantitative questionnaires directed to professionals in varying positions, all with the common feature that they are working with people with disabilities according to LSS. The assembled data was coded and themed into participation, influence, integrity and self-determination, living like others. Findings: Users can influence through board meetings and by legal predecessors and staff. The situational built in asymmetrical power imbalance can be compensated through mutual acceptance.

Este trabalho propõe uma avaliação quantitativa do efeito do desequilíbrio nos índices de operação do sistema de distribuição de energia elétrica. Os cenários apresentados contemplam os desequilíbrios existentes nos circuitos de média tensão e, também, os desequilíbrios na carga. Os desequilíbrios da rede consideram os efeitos da assimetria dos circuitos que provocam acoplamentos diferenciados entre os condutores. Para tanto, foram empregados dois sistemas, sendo um deles teórico e constituído por apenas um circuito e outro uma rede de distribuição padrão do IEEE. A primeira etapa da avaliação é realizada utilizando um modelo que reproduz um trecho fictício de linha de distribuição aérea trifásica com geometria e condutores típicos de redes de distribuição de energia de média tensão a cinco condutores, sendo um deles o condutor fictício de retorno pela terra. Os desequilíbrios de carga foram gerados aleatoriamente através do método de Monte Carlo, considerando variados índices de desequilíbrio. O desequilíbrio das correntes e as perdas do sistema foram determinados com o objetivo de quantificar o impacto das variações realizadas no trecho de linha. Para o sistema teste IEEE 34 Node Test Feeder, foram avaliados os erros decorrentes da consideração do acoplamento médio no cálculo das perdas de potência ativa e reativa, bem como os desequilíbrios de corrente, com o uso do software OpenDSS. Chega-se à conclusão de que o modelo que considera o acoplamento médio é capaz de determinar com muita fidelidade o desequilíbrio das correntes e das perdas para um circuito típico de distribuição em média tensão, não sendo necessária a representação exata das assimetrias dos condutores. / This Master Thesis proposes a quantitative evaluation of the effect of unbalance in the operational indexes of distribution networks. The scenarios comprehend the unbalance of medium voltage circuits and the unbalance in the load. The unbalances consider the effects of the asymmetry of circuits, that cause different couplings between the conductors. Therefore, two systems were implemented, one theoretical and the other a distribution network following the IEEE standard. The first stage of the evaluation is performed using a model that reproduces a fictitious section of a three-phase aerial distribution power line with five conductors considering earth return path, with geometry and typical conductors used in medium voltage energy distribution. The load unbalances were randomly produced using the Monte Carlo method, considering different unbalance rates. The current unbalance factor and the system losses were determined to quantify the impact of the variations in the line section. For the IEEE 34 Node Test Feeder system, the errors from considering the average coupling in the calculation of active and reactive power losses were evaluated, as well as the current unbalance factor. In conclusion, the model that considers the average coupling can successfully determine with a high degree of accuracy the imbalance of currents and the losses for a typical medium-voltage distribution circuit without the need of an exact representation of the asymmetries of the conductors.

A produção de milho tem uma grande importância para o país. Ter o conhecimento sobre o crescimento da planta é de fundamental importância para seu manejo. Pode-se obter esse conhecimento fazendo um estudo por meio de modelos de crescimento, para se obter informações por meio de parâmetros com interpretações biológicas que trazem consigo um resumo sobre a curva característica do crescimento da planta, que podem ajudar no planejamento da cultura e principalmente conhecer qual período a planta mais cresce, a época mais adequada para adubação e realização do controle de pragas. Considerar características não comuns de suposições do modelo pode dar maior confiabilidade nos resultados do ajuste, como por exemplo a consideração da heterocedasticidade e não normalidade residual. Sendo assim, esse trabalho teve o objetivo de ajustar o modelo logístico considerando a heterocedasticidade e diferentes distribuições para o erro como normalidade, assimetria normal e assimetria t-student, a dados da altura da planta do milho do híbrido transgênico 30F35 Y (Yieldgard), observados ao longo do tempo. O experimento foi realizado no município de Votuporanga-SP, em área experimental do Pólo Regional Noroeste Paulista da APTA (Agência Paulista de Tecnologia dos Agro-negócios), no ano agrícola 2011/2012. A primeira medição da altura da planta de milho foi realizada 15 dias após a semeadura. As medições seguintes ocorreram com 30, 40, 50 e 122 dias, respectivamente, após a semeadura. Em cada dia de avaliação foi medido a altura das plantas em centímetros, com auxílio de uma régua, sendo esta medida da base da planta (solo) até o ápice da última folha expandida do cartucho. Toda a análise foi realizada utilizando o software R. Todos os modelos considerados se ajustaram bem a curva de crescimento do híbrido transgênico 30F35 Y (Yieldgard), porém o modelo logístico considerando erros normais assimétricos foi escolhido como mais adequado para modelar a curva, com base nos avaliadores utilizados. / Maize production is of great importance for the country. Knowing the plant development is of major importance to its management. Such knowledge may be attained through growth curves studies, to obtain information through parameters with biological interpretation which are able to synthesize the plantt\'s growth curve. This synthesis may help in management issues, such as information on the period of most rapid growth, best time to apply fertilizers and control pests. Considering uncommon features of the model assumptions may provide greater reliability on the results of the fitted model, such as residual heteroscedasticity and non-normality. In that sense, this work aimed to fit the logistic model considering variance heterogeneity and different error distributions such as normal, skew-normal and skew-t, to the transgenic hybrid 30F35Y maize height data through time. The experiment was conducted in the municipality of Votuporanga-SP, in an experimental station of the Pólo Regional Noroeste Paulista da Agência Paulista de Tecnologia dos Agro-Negócios (APTA) during the agronomic year of 2011/2012. The first height data measurement was taken 15 days after sewing. The following measurements were taken at 30, 40, 50 and 122 days after sewing. Each day the plant height was measured in centimeters using a ruler, measuring from the plant base (soil) until the edge of the last expanded leaf. All analyses were carried out using software R. All considered models fitted the data reasonably well, however the logistic model considering skew-normal errors was chosen as most adequate to model the data, basing on the goodness-of-fit tests.

Cette thèse porte sur les relations entre le Maroc et l’Union européenne autour des questions migratoires depuis 1999, en particulier sur les négociations depuis 2003 d’un accord de réadmission, c’est-à-dire d’un accord organisant le retour forcé de migrants en situation irrégulière. À partir d’une approche postcoloniale, ce travail questionne l’eurocentrisme des analyses existantes des politiques extérieures de l’UE. L’objectif est de pluraliser les sujets des négociations internationales. Ceci passe d’abord par une étude de l’historicité et de la complexité institutionnelle des politiques migratoires marocaines. Ceci passe aussi par une analyse sociologique des pratiques de résistance des acteurs étatiques marocains aux pressions de l’Union européenne et des pays européens dans le domaine des politiques migratoires. Nous montrons ainsi que les négociations ne relèvent pas seulement du domaine des high politics, mais font aussi partie des pratiques quotidiennes d’acteurs administratifs engagés dans des luttes concurrentielles nationales et internationales. C’est dans ces luttes quotidiennes que transparaît la capacité d’action des acteurs marocains et la remise en cause de l’asymétrie des relations avec les pays européens. / This dissertation examines Morocco-EU negotiations on migrations since 1999, and specifically since 2003, when both partners started negotiating a readmission agreement. The purpose of such an agreement is to make it easier to deport undocumented migrants. Using a postcolonial approach, this work questions existing analyses of the EU’s external policy and their Eurocentric tendencies. The objective is to pluralize the subjects of international negotiations. The first step towards this objective is to study the historical and institutional complexity of Moroccan as well as European actors. A second important step is to offer a sociological analysis of resistance practices of Moroccan actors to pressures from the EU and European countries. I demonstrate in this work that negotiations, far from being limited to the realm of high politics, are part of the day-to-day practices of administrative actors who are engaged in national and international competition. It through the analysis of everyday contestations that one can understand the agency of Moroccan actors and the ways in which they constantly question the asymmetry of their relationships with European countries.

<p>ABSTRACT</p><p>Purpose/aim: To clarify what information is communicated through the PR-firm JKL:s blog, how it is communicated, how it relates to and diverges from the communication theories in point, and what the strategies behind the blogging are. By doing this I hope to contribute to the knowledge on corporate blogging and how it can be used.</p><p>Material/method: Qualitative textual analysis of ten blog posts published on the JKL Blog and process seeking interview with the person in charge of the same blog.</p><p>Main results: JKLs’ blogging coincides to the most part with business intelligence, with the exception that the information doesn’t relate directly to the company’s’ main activities. This is mainly due to that they can’t publish information about their customers or competitors. Instead they want to expose the broad knowledge the company possesses, and thereby create goodwill towards their target groups. JKL can therefore be said to contribute with a different aspect to business intelligence. The blog also uses an asymmetrical PR-model with two way communication but no deep dialogue. This is not, as Grunig and Hunt argue, due to their claiming to be right in every matter, but rather to the nature of the comments given. Feedback on the blog posts is none the less important to JKL, mainly to correct and bring nuance to the information.</p><p>Key words: Blogging, corporate blogging, public relations, symmetrical/asymmetrical communication, one way/two way communication, communication strategy, business intelligence.</p>

ABSTRACT Purpose/aim: To clarify what information is communicated through the PR-firm JKL:s blog, how it is communicated, how it relates to and diverges from the communication theories in point, and what the strategies behind the blogging are. By doing this I hope to contribute to the knowledge on corporate blogging and how it can be used. Material/method: Qualitative textual analysis of ten blog posts published on the JKL Blog and process seeking interview with the person in charge of the same blog. Main results: JKLs’ blogging coincides to the most part with business intelligence, with the exception that the information doesn’t relate directly to the company’s’ main activities. This is mainly due to that they can’t publish information about their customers or competitors. Instead they want to expose the broad knowledge the company possesses, and thereby create goodwill towards their target groups. JKL can therefore be said to contribute with a different aspect to business intelligence. The blog also uses an asymmetrical PR-model with two way communication but no deep dialogue. This is not, as Grunig and Hunt argue, due to their claiming to be right in every matter, but rather to the nature of the comments given. Feedback on the blog posts is none the less important to JKL, mainly to correct and bring nuance to the information. Key words: Blogging, corporate blogging, public relations, symmetrical/asymmetrical communication, one way/two way communication, communication strategy, business intelligence.