This study evaluated the effects of the type of language used by the therapist during a functional analysis on rates of challenging behavior with individuals who came from families where Spanish was the primary language. Three individuals with autism spectrum disorder who live in a residential treatment facility participated in a multi-element (i.e., demand, attention, play- verbal, and play-nonverbal) functional analysis (FA). The FA was conducted in an ABAB experimental design with the A conditions conducted in Spanish and the B conditions conducted in English. Language did not have an effect on rates of challenging behavior during the FA. One participant displayed no responding across conditions and the other two participants responded similarly during the demand conditions regardless of the language in which the conditions were conducted. Functional communication training (FCT) was conducted for one of these two participants in both languages. The results for this individual that there was no difference according to language in rates of challenging behavior as well as acquisition and maintenance of a functionally communicative response. Keywords: functional analysis, language, functional communication training, Autism Spectrum Disorder, problem behavior / Applied Behavioral Analysis

Proper formation of the heart is a critical developmental event which requires strict regulation of coordinated cardial cell adhesion, alignment, and migration. The simple, tube-like heart of the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, has proven to be an attractive system in which to study the regulatory pathways which control cardiogenesis. This is mainly due to its strikingly similarity to the vertebrate heart during early embryogenesis. In addition, many genes identified in association with congenital heart disease in humans have homologues in Drosophila, suggesting that this model organism has great potential to contribute to cardiovascular research. The extracellular matrix protein encoded by slit is a ligand for the receptors Robo, and Robo2 (lea). Recently, a third receptor for Slit has been identified as the heparin sulfate proteoglycan Syndecan. The main objective of this thesis was to use time lapse confocal imaging in order to develop further understanding of the mechanisms which result in heart assembly defects in slit, robo, lea, and syndecan mutants. We also aimed to gain a better understanding of the role of Syndecan within the Slit-Robo pathway and elucidate its relative contribution to development of the mature heart. In mutants homozygous for slit, as well as mutants doubly heterozygous for robo and lea, cardial cell alignment, adhesion, and synchronized migration were disrupted. The heart phenotype of syndecan homozygous mutants was similar that of slit and robo, lea, however the migration speed of cells to the midline did not seem to be affected. Based on our findings, we hypothesize that Slit may have Syndecan-dependent and Syndecan-independent functions in the heart. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

In this dissertation I am using M. truncatula as a model legume that forms indeterminate nodules with rhizobia under limited nitrogen conditions. I take advantage of an M. truncatula Tnt1 mutant population that provides a useful resource to uncover and characterize novel genes. Here, I focused on several objectives. First, I carried out forward and reverse genetic screening of M. truncatula Tnt1 mutant populations to uncover novel genes involved in symbiotic nitrogen fixation. Second, I focused on reverse genetic screening of two genes, identified as encoding blue copper proteins, and characterization of their mutants' potential phenotypes. Third, I further characterized a nodule essential gene, M. truncatula vacuolar iron transporter like 8 (MtVTL8), which encodes a nodule specific iron transporter. I characterized the expression pattern, expression localization and function of MtVTL8. Additionally, I characterized several residues predicted to be essential to function using a model based on the known crystal structure of Eucalyptus grandis vacuolar iron transporter 1 (EgVIT1), a homologous protein to MtVTL8. I identified several potential essential residues of the MtVTL8 protein, mutagenized them, and through complementation experiments in planta and in yeast assessed functionality of the resulting protein. This helped us to better understand the potential mechanism by which MtVTL8 functions.

A nonlinear movmg contact algorithm has been implemented to model the sticking-sliding inelastic behavior in the interlocks of steel sheet pile sections subjected to axial tension. Previously, numerical instabilities were encountered during the solution process while conducting a series of verification problems for the algorithm by the Newton-Raphson method. In an attempt to identify the cause of these instabilities, an in-depth study of the effect of fineness of the finite element mesh on the convergence of the solution has been undertaken. The solution process credited to Riks and Wempner has been used to find the postbuckling equilibrium path of shallow reticulated domes. This algorithm, with some modifications, is used to move from one load step to another step in this study. As in most nonlinear problems, the size of the load step influences the rate of convergence. In addition, in the moving contact problem nodes can move along the sides of an element on the contact surface. Thus, the mesh refinement also affects the rate of convergence. To study the effects of both of these parameters, a series of test problems was run with variable load steps and mesh refinements. The modified Riks-Wempner algorithm, which automatically adjusts the load step size as the solution process advances, successfully solved all the inelastic and large displacement problems attempted. From the mesh refinement studies two conclusions were reached: for curved boundaries use curved elements and avoid the use of irregularly shaped elements. Finally, the improved solution algorithm is applied fo sheet pile interlocks loaded in axial tension. Results for progressively increasing load show the spread of yielding in the thumbs and fingers of the interlocks and the sliding of one past another as the deformations increase. / Master of Science

It is shown that multigroup transport equations with nondiagonal cross section matrices arise when the modal approximation is applied to energy dependent transport equations. This work is a study of such equations for the case that the cross section matrix is nondiagonalizable. For the special case of a two-group problem with a noninvertible scattering matrix, the problem is solved completely via the Wiener-Hopf method. For more general problems, generalized Chandrasekhar H equations are derived. A numerical method for their solution is proposed. Also, the exit distribution is written in terms of the H functions. / Ph. D. / incomplete_metadata

We present important results from Hilbert space and functional analysis for understanding the subject ofReproducing kernel Hilbert spaces. We then showcase the underlying theory and properties of Reproducingkernel Hilbert Spaces. Finally, we show how the theory of reproducing kernel Hilbert spaces is applicable inboth interpolation and machine learning.

<p dir="ltr">On this thesis, we study the validity of the Blackadar-Kirchberg conjecture for C*-<br>algebras that arise as extensions of separable, nuclear, quasidiagonal C*-algebras that satisfy<br>the Universal Coefficient Theorem. More specifically, we show that the conjecture for the<br>C*-algebra in the middle has an affirmative answer if the ideal lies in a class of C*-algebras<br>that is closed under local approximations and contains all separable ASH-algebras, as well<br>as certain classes of simple, unital C*-algebras and crossed products of unital C*-algebras<br>with Z. We also investigate when discrete, amenable groups have C*-algebras of real rank<br>zero. While it is known that this happens when the group is locally finite, the converse in<br>an open problem. We show that if C*(G) has real rank zero, then all normal subgroups of<br>G that are elementary amenable and have finite Hirsch length must be locally finite.<br><br></p>

We assessed the implementation accuracy and fidelity of two board certified behavior analysts (BCBAs) using the open-ended interview from Hanley. Participants interviewed a confederate using the open-ended interview, and were then asked to use information gathered from the interview to create operational definitions of target behaviors as well as test and control condition procedures for a subsequent matched test-control functional analysis as is characteristic of the interview-informed synthesized contingency analysis (IISCA) strategy. Brief behavioral skills training (BST) was then implemented with all participants to increase the accuracy of constructing both target behavior definitions and functional analysis procedures. Preliminary results show moderate rates of accuracy of target behavior definitions and functional analysis procedures prior to BST, and high rates of accuracy following BST. The results also suggest high implementation fidelity on the open-ended interview may not be necessary to achieve high accuracy when constructing target behavior definitions and functional analysis procedures.

It is argued that the geometric dual of a noncommutative operator algebra represents a notion of quantum state space which differs from existing notions by representing observables as maps from states to outcomes rather than from states to distributions on outcomes. A program of solving for an explicitly geometric manifestation of quantum state space by adapting the spectral presheaf, a construction meant to analyze contextuality in quantum mechanics, to derive simple reconstructions of noncommutative topological tools from their topological prototypes is presented. We associate to each unital C&ast;-algebra A a geometric object--a diagram of topological spaces representing quotient spaces of the noncommutative space underlying A&mdash;meant to serve the role of a generalized Gel'fand spectrum. After showing that any functor F from compact Hausdorff spaces to a suitable target category C can be applied directly to these geometric objects to automatically yield an extension F^&sim; which acts on all unital C&ast;-algebras, we compare a novel formulation of the operator K₀ functor to the extension K^&sim; of the topological K-functor. We then conjecture that the extension of the functor assigning a topological space its topological lattice assigns a unital C&ast;-algebra the topological lattice of its primary ideal spectrum and prove the von Neumann algebraic analogue of this conjecture.

This thesis mainly deals with questions concerning the convergence of some sequences of elliptic and parabolic linear and non-linear operators by means of G-convergence and homogenization. In particular, we study operators with oscillations in several spatial and temporal scales. Our main tools are multiscale techniques, developed from the method of two-scale convergence and adapted to the problems studied. For certain classes of parabolic equations we distinguish different cases of homogenization for different relations between the frequencies of oscillations in space and time by means of different sets of local problems. The features and fundamental character of two-scale convergence are discussed and some of its key properties are investigated. Moreover, results are presented concerning cases when the G-limit can be identified for some linear elliptic and parabolic problems where no periodicity assumptions are made.