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Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird is an iconic classic that inspired many street lawyer novels. Examining John Grisham’s A Time To Kill as a low-culture-imprint of Lee’s novel, the thesis analyzes the convergent and divergent points of rhetorical devices that promote colour-blind liberalism across the two texts seeing as they are published 30 years apart. Both pieces of legal fiction act as a reflection and critique of formal legal institutions and through this reflection, the thesis deals with how the texts reinforce, perpetuate and resist the white dominant ideology through the “progressive” race politics of colorblind liberalism.

The Fincastle Bison Kill Site (DlOx-5), located approximately 100 km east of Lethbridge, Alberta, has been radiocarbon dated to 2 500 BP. Excavations at the site yielded an extensive assemblage of lithics and faunal remains, and several unique features. The elongated point forms, along with the bone upright features, appeared similar to those found at Sonota sites within the Dakota region that dated between 1 950 BP and 1 350 BP. The relatively early date of the Fincastle Site prompted a re-investigation into the origins of the Besant Culture. The features, faunal and lithic assemblages from twenty-three Late Middle Prehistoric sites in Southern Alberta, Saskatchewan, Montana, Wyoming, and the Dakotas were analyzed and compared. The findings show that Fincastle represents an early component of the Besant Culture referred to as the Outlook Complex. This analysis also suggests a possible Middle Missouri origin of the Fincastle hunters, as well as the entire Besant Culture. / xii, 183 leaves : ill. (chiefly col.) ; 29 cm

Problems of emerging antibiotic resistance are becoming a serious threat worldwide, and at the same time, the interest to develop new antimicrobials has declined. There is consequently a need for efficient methods to develop new treatments that minimize the risk of resistance development and that are effective on infections caused by resistant strains. Based on in silico mathematical models, describing the time course of exposure (Pharmacokinetics, PK) and effect (Pharmacodynamics, PD) of a drug, information can be collected and the outcome of various exposures may be predicted. A general model structure, that characterizes the most important features of the system, has advantages as it can be used for different situations. The aim of this thesis was to develop Pharmacokinetic-Pharmacodynamic (PKPD) models describing the bacterial growth and killing after mono- and combination exposures to antibiotics and to explore the predictive ability of PKPD-models across preclinical experimental systems. Models were evaluated on data from other experimental settings, including prediction into animals. A PKPD model characterizing the growth and killing for a range of E. coli bacteria strains, with different MICs, as well as emergence of resistance, was developed.  The PKPD model was able to predict results from different experimental conditions including high start inoculum experiments, a range of laboratory and clinical strains as well as experiments where wild-type and mutant bacteria are competing at different drug concentrations. A PKPD model, developed based on in vitro data, was also illustrated to have the capability to replicate the data from an in vivo study. This thesis illustrates the potential of PKPD models to characterize in vitro data and their usage for predictions of different types of experiments. The thesis supports the use of PKPD models to facilitate development of new drugs and to improve the use of existing antibiotics.

Background: Infections caused by carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae such as Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae are among the most urgent threats of the infectious disease realm. The incidence of these infections has only been increasing over the years and due to very limited treatment options, mortality is estimated at about 50%. Methods: To evaluate the in vitro activity of meropenem and polymyxin B against carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae, antimicrobial susceptibility testing and time-kill studies were performed on K. pneumoniae clinical isolates representing a wide range of meropenem resistance (MICs 4 – 128 mg/L). Results: Regrowth was observed at clinically relevant concentrations of meropenem alone (4, 16, and 64 mg/L) or polymyxin B alone (0.25 and 1 mg/L) within 24 hours. However, meropenem and polymyxin B in combination were consistently bactericidal, achieving synergistic activity in strains with lower meropenem resistance (MICs ≤32 mg/L). Conclusions: Our findings are in agreement with the limited available literature, but we add that the synergistic interaction between meropenem and polymyxin B is dependent on the degree of meropenem resistance in KPC-producing K. pneumoniae. This data suggests that lower level resistance to carbapenems may be amenable to antimicrobial combinations involving a carbapenem and a polymyxin.

This thesis examines the critical response to Quentin Tarantino’s representations of screen violence, primarily the violent content in his three revenge thrillers: Kill Bill (2003-4), Inglourious Basterds (2009), and Django Unchained (2012). Throughout Tarantino’s career, critics have attacked him for aestheticizing bloodshed to such a degree that it becomes a glib, pop culture affectation, and the empirically larger amounts of violent content in the revenge thrillers has only encouraged this claim. This paper argues for a recontextualization of how Tarantino wields brutality throughout these three pictures, that the rise in graphic content reflects a greater engagement with social-moral concerns in a manner that is both socially responsible – to echo Susan Sontag’s views on visual representations of violence in Regarding the Pain of Others (2003) – and creatively consistent among those artists looking to retain their cultural significance as they age.

The 2015 publication of Harper Lee’s Go Set a Watchman (2015) raised questions and concerns when it was read in the context of the author’s first novel, To Kill a Mockingbird (1960), a text with strong, direct statements related to civil rights and social injustice. This thesis examines textual similarities and differences between Watchman and Mockingbird, suggesting the likely influence of editor Thèrése “Tay” von Hohoff in Mockingbird’s published version. Additionally, the thesis examines Hohoff’s 1959 biography, A Ministry to Man: The Life of John Lovejoy Elliott, as a plausible inspiration for Lee’s Mockingbird hero, Atticus Finch. Containing corroboration from available correspondence, biographical information, interviews, and historical records, this thesis documents Hohoff’s editorial influence on Lee as the two worked together to create a lasting contribution to American literary history and culture.

This research validates electro-disinfection as a potential secondary ballast water treatment technology. Electricity applied to bacteria laden water produced bactericidal effects, reactive oxygen species and chlorine generation which annihilated bacteria. Evaluation of electro-disinfection experiments showed titanium electrodes had the maximum kill efficacy while disinfection with aluminum and stainless steel electrodes had lesser kill efficacy. A continuous flow electro-disinfection reactor was evaluated utilizing artificial brackish and fresh ballast water. Brackish water had a 100% bacteria kill efficiency utilizing titanium electrodes at a current density of 10 mA/cm2. Fresh water was augmented with the addition of salt to increase its electrical conductivity from 232 μS/cm to 873 μS/cm to ascertain 100% bacteria kill efficiency with titanium electrodes and a current density of 9.8 mA/cm2.

Infraestruturas lineares, como as estradas, estão por todos os lugares no mundo e os impactos causados por elas são inúmeros e intensos. Focando no impacto de mortalidade de fauna por colisão com veículos, esta tese teve o objetivo de propor diferentes abordagens para identificar locais para a implementação de medidas de mitigação desse impacto. Além da introdução geral, a tese tem três capítulos que correspondem a três artigos científicos. O primeiro capítulo explorou dados de répteis atropelados em 33 meses de monitoramento mensais em 277 km da BR-101 e avaliou tanto o padrão espacial quanto o padrão temporal de fatalidades além de estimar a magnitude de atropelamentos de répteis na estrada. O segundo e o terceiro capítulo exploram abordagens preditivas de atropelamento de fauna para dois diferentes contextos: uma única estrada e uma rede de estradas. O segundo capítulo teve o objetivo de testar se usando características da paisagem, da rodovia e dos animais, nós podemos predizer onde estão os locais com maior chance de um animal ser atropelado. Para isso, também para a BR-101, calculei a probabilidade de travessia através de mapas de conectividade e a probabilidade de colisão através de uma equação que considera o tráfego de veículos, o tamanho dos animais e dos veículos e a velocidade dos animais para duas espécies de mamíferos nativos do Brasil: o furão (Galictis cuja) e o zorrilho (Conepatus chinga). Para o terceiro capítulo, foi utilizado a rede de estradas do estado de Victoria na Austrália, na qual calculei a probabilidade de travessia e de colisão para o canguru cinza oriental (Macropus giganteus), espécie nativa da Austrália. No primeiro capítulo, demonstrei que: 15.377 cágados, lagartos e serpentes são atropelados a cada ano na BR-101 no sul do Brasil; hot moments de atropelamentos de répteis ocorreram no verão, especialmente em dezembro para lagartos e serpentes; hotspots de atropelamentos foram coincidentes para tartarugas, lagartos e serpentes; existiu um efeito positivo do tráfego e da rizicultura nos atropelamentos e negativo da silvicultura; medidas de mitigação nos hotspots prioritários poderiam evitar 45% das fatalidades de répteis. No segundo capítulo, concluí que a probabilidade de fatalidade através da multiplicação das probabilidades de travessia e colisão não teve um bom poder de predição dos atropelamentos e que a probabilidade de colisão sozinha foi melhor em predizer os atropelamentos do que a probabilidade de travessia, entretanto as espécies apresentaram padrões diferentes. No terceiro capítulo, concluí que um modelo aditivo das duas probabilidades foi melhor em predizer os atropelamentos de cangurus do que os modelos individuais de probabilidades de travessia e colisão, entretanto o modelo integrado não apresentou a predição esperada. A probabilidade de travessia foi um preditor melhor dos atropelamentos de cangurus que a probabilidade de colisão para a rede de estradas. Portanto, concluo que: 1) os atropelamentos de fauna podem ser bastante acentuados em determinados contextos e que é possível identificar locais de maior agregação que seriam efetivos para mitigação; 2) é possível usar dados de tráfego de veículos e tamanho e velocidade dos animais para predizer locais de mais atropelamentos, entretanto deve se ter cuidado pois isso é específico para cada espécie; 3) para o contexto de rede de estradas, é possível predizer o atropelamento utilizando a probabilidade de travessia e a probabilidade de colisão em um mesmo modelo. Ainda é necessário explorar outras maneiras de calcular e integrar as probabilidades aqui propostas, mas nesta tese eu demonstrei uma forma possível de predizer atropelamentos para um contexto em que não há dados dessa natureza disponíveis, seja para estradas novas ou para uma rede de estradas. / Linear infrastructures, such as roads, are worldwide and impacts caused by them are innumerable and intense. We focused on impact of road-kills due to wildlife-vehicle collisions and aimed to propose different approaches to identify locations to implement mitigation measures for this impact. Besides the general introduction, this thesis has three chapters which correspond to three scientific papers. The first chapter examined reptile road-kill data from monthly road survey during 33 months in a 277 km of BR-101 road. We evaluated spatial and temporal patterns of road-kills and estimated the magnitude of reptile road-kills on that road. The second and third chapters examined predictive approaches of wildlife road-kills for two different contexts: a single road and a road network. The second chapter aimed to test if it is possible to use of landscape, road, animals features to predict locations where there are more road-kills. For the same road (BR-101), I calculated crossing probability using connectivity maps and collision probability using an equation which considers traffic volume, animal and vehicle size, and animal speed for two native mammal species from Brazil: the Lesser Grison (Galictis cuja) and the Molina’s Hog-nosed Skunk (Conepatus chinga). To the third chapter, I used the road network of Victoria state in Australia, which I calculated crossing and collision probabilities for eastern grey kangaroo (Macropus giganteus), a native species from Australia. In the first chapter, I demonstrated that: 15,377 freshwater turtles, lizards and snakes are road-kills each year in Br-101 in Southern Brazil; road-kill hot moments occur in the summer, specially in December for lizards and snakes; road-kill hotspots are coincident among freshwater turtles, lizards and snakes; there is a positive effect of traffic and rice plantation on road-kills and a negative effect of silviculture; mitigation measures of priority hotspots could avoid 45% of reptile fatalities. In the second chapter, I concluded that fatality probability though multiplication of crossing and collision probabilities did not have a good predictive power of road-kills and collision probability alone was better to predict road-kills than crossing probability, however species showed different patterns. In the third chapter, I concluded that an additive model with the two probabilities was better to predict kangaroo road-kills than individual models of crossing and collision probabilities, however the integrated model did not present an expected prediction. Crossing probability was a better predictor of kangaroos road-kills than collision probability for the road network. Therefore, I concluded that: 1) wildlife road-kills can be really high in some contexts and it is possible to identify locations with more road-kill aggregations which would be effective for mitigation; 2) it is possible to use traffic volume, animals size and speed to predict location of road-kills, however it is specific for each species; 3) for road network context, it is possible to predict kangaroo road-kills using crossing and collision probability in the same model. Exploring another ways to calculate and integrate the probabilities used here is necessary, however in this thesis I demonstrated one possible manner to predict road-kills in a context which road-kill are not available, such as new roads or road networks.