<p><em>Escherichia coli </em>cells undergo many morphological and physiological changes to survive in late stationary phase due, in part, to the exhaustion of nutrients and accumulation of inhibitory metabolites. Previous microarray data in our lab provided the general profile of gene expression from exponential phase to 48 h of incubation. The goal of this study is to use qPCR to validate the preferentially expressed genes in late stationary phase determined by the microarray data. The expression of three genes (<em>hha, tomB </em>and <em>emrK</em>) with increased expression levels from 24 h to 48 h of incubation and another two RpoS-dependent genes (<em>bolA</em> and <em>osmY</em>) with decreased expression from 24 h to 48 h of incubation were chosen as the target genes. RNA was first extracted from exponential phase, early stationary phase, 24 h and 48 h bacterial cultures. Hot phenol-chloroform and a commercial kit were used to isolate RNA. All these methods recovered low RNA in late stationary phase. qPCR partly confirmed the previous microarray data. The expression of <em>hha</em>, <em>tomB</em> and <em>emrK</em> was validated to increase from 24 h to 48 h of incubation. The discordant results between qPCR and microarray data may be due to the low transcript abundance of target genes and genomic DNA contamination in RNA extracted from 48 h bacterial cultures.</p> / Master of Science (MSc)

This thesis consists of an analysis of Middle and Late Iroquoian sites located within the Middle Trent Valley region of south-central Ontario. Comparsions between the assemblages from these sites suggests that Iroquoian culture developed in situ in this area, and was not the result of migrations from the south. Several interrelated Middle to Late Iroquoian foci inhabited the interior areas of this region . until atleast the end of the fifteenth century, when the Middle Trent Valley was abandoned. Two sites in particular, the late Middleport Wilson site and the early Late Iroquoian Bark site, are discussed in detail. The Bark site is a small mid-fifteenth century Huron village with close socio-cultural ties to contemporary Huron groups in the Upper Trent Valley. The Wilson site is a large Middleport village dating to the end of the fourteenth century. It is suggested that the Bark site inhabitants represent a portion of the earlier Wilson site occupants, who returned to the area of the Wilson site to take advantage of their abandoned fields. / Thesis / Master of Arts (MA)

Despite the fact that most firms are late entrants in any product market, research on how to achieve a late-mover advantage is limited and lags behind the theoretical work on first-mover advantage. The strategic choice a late mover can utilize to compete against the pioneer is largely underdeveloped. Further, extant studies provide contradictory arguments and predictions regarding the efficacy of two basic late entry strategies: an enhancing strategy (providing a late entrant with enhanced features along existing product attributes) and a distinctive strategy (adding new or unique features to a late entrant' offering). The goal of this dissertation is to better understand the underlying behavioral mechanisms that enable a late entrant to compete with a successful pioneer and thereby address this inconsistency in the literature. Taking a category-based learning perspective, it is proposed that new brands are learned through a comparison process with existing brands. In the process, common features are evaluated in a category-based mode while unique features are processed in a piecemeal fashion. Two behavioral mechanisms are identified — discrepancy effects (i.e., perceived differentiation) which add to the late entrant's visibility and attractiveness, and ambiguity effects (comparison difficulty and perceived performance risk) that lessen the late entrant's attractiveness. Product category familiarity is proposed as the key moderator that affects the salience of each behavioral mechanism and hence the effectiveness of late entry strategies. Three experiments were designed to test the proposed perspective. It was found that common features are the focus of comparison in unfamiliar product classes and unique features receive particular attention in familiar product classes. Accordingly, ambiguity effects become more salient in unfamiliar product categories while differentiation effects are more prominent in familiar product cases. Further, a distinctive strategy is both more differentiated and more ambiguous than an enhancing strategy. Thus, a distinctive strategy is more effective in a familiar product class due to its attention-grabbing nature. An enhancing strategy is more successful in a novel or unfamiliar product class because of low levels of ambiguity. These findings provide important implications for product entry and positioning strategies as well as for further research. / Ph. D.

In adolescence, the use of cognitive reappraisal (CR) is adaptive for general emotion regulation and for decreasing symptoms of depression. Still, with all of the literature indicating the usefulness of CR, minimal research attempts to understand the childhood processes contributing to CR in adolescence. My dissertation study examined individual factors of executive function and frontal EEG asymmetry during late childhood, and environmental factors of parenting in adolescence, as predictors of adolescent CR and depressive symptoms. Data were from 123 participants in late childhood (age 10) and adolescence (age 14.5). During the late childhood visit, executive function and frontal EEG asymmetry were assessed. The adolescent visit included questionnaires for maternal CR, maternal supportive and unsupportive responses to adolescent's negative emotions, adolescent CR and depressive symptoms. Results indicated that maternal unsupportive reactions moderated the association between maternal CR and adolescent CR, such that higher unsupportive reactions were associated with higher adolescent CR when mothers reported higher CR. Higher CR in turn was associated with lower depressive symptoms. Regarding individual factors, frontal EEG asymmetry moderated the association between inhibitory control during late childhood and adolescent CR, such that better inhibitory control during late childhood was associated with higher CR when children had right frontal asymmetry. Higher CR was associated with lower depressive symptoms in adolescence. The results suggest the potential for targeting inhibitory control and parenting as two mechanisms for improving CR among adolescents to diminish depressive symptoms. / Doctor of Philosophy / Changing the way one thinks of an emotional event is considered highly adaptive, this strategy is referred to as cognitive reappraisal (CR). 123 participants during late childhood and adolescence and their mothers participated in this study. During the late childhood visit, children completed executive function tasks and electrical brain activity was collected during rest. For the adolescent visit, mothers completed questionnaires regarding their emotion regulation strategies and parenting styles, adolescents completed questionnaires regarding their own emotion regulation strategies and depressive symptoms. Results indicated that when mothers indicated more CR and higher unsupportive reactions this was associated with higher adolescent CR. Higher CR in turn was associated with lower depressive symptoms. Late childhood electrical brain activity and a child's ability to inhibit prepotent responses (inhibitory control) were associated with higher adolescent CR. Higher CR was associated with lower depressive symptoms in adolescence. The results suggest the potential for targeting inhibitory control and parenting as two mechanisms for improving CR among adolescents to diminish depressive symptoms.

A holistic study of abandoned house sites on the island of Unst was conducted to address the extent to which perceptions of historic settlement on Shetland are supportable. These perceptions cast long lived nucleated settlement as the normative traditional form of historic settlement, and dispersed settlements as short-lived exceptions to this norm. Historic settlement, in these perceptions are argued to be static, which is not borne out in archaeological evidence. Issues associated with historic Shetland settlement models were identified to parallel traditional views of Scottish highland rural settlement, which cast the highland society as ahistoric and unchanging. Historical, archaeological and geographic evidence for settlement on Unst were used to assess the geographical distribution of historic settlement on the island. Two detailed case studies integrated archaeological prospection techniques with the historical, archaeological and landscape contexts to form new narratives for the field remains around two abandoned house sites. Assessment of the historical settlement of Unst highlighted a much greater degree of variation between the different evidence strands for the perceptions to truly represent the island’s historical settlement. Similarly, findings from the case studies highlighted a much greater degree of alterations to the field systems and enclosures associated with the settlements than would be anticipated. Alternative narratives with several phases were hypothesised for field remains of each case study. / Hunter Archaeological and Historical Trust; Society of Antiquaries of Scotland; School of Archaeological and Forensic Sciences

Late-adolescent African American students face unique difficulties on their journey to womanhood. As members of a double minority (i.e., African American and female) (Jean & Feagin, 1998), certain limiting stereotypes relevant to both race and gender pose challenges to these students. They must overcome these challenges in order to excel within the various and changing environments they move through on a daily basis (hooks, 1981, 1994). Within the context of social justice, this dissertation provides insight into the role that language and literacy practices play to help enable the positive and affirming development of self-hood of African American college freshmen. This research is qualitative and employs critical narrative inquiry to analyze data collected from six academically high-achieving African American female freshmen college students attending Ivy League, Historically Black Colleges, and private and state universities in the United States.

A college degree provides benefits to individuals and society, but education is an expensive endeavor. College costs are high and they continue to rise while the median family income shows only modest increases. By lowering the cost of attendance, financial aid makes it possible for many students, especially those from low and middle-income families to attend college. FAFSA is the main instrument used in distributing financial assistance although completing the form is not an easy task. Each year, many students do not file the FAFSA or file it too late, missing valuable financial resources. The focus of this research was on students who file FAFSA late. The purpose of the study was two-fold: to explore the relationship between the timing of FASFA filing and the characteristics of financial aid applicants, and to assess the impact of late filing on student finances. Logistic regression analysis was used to examine how much of the variation in timing of FAFSA filing could be explained by students characteristics. The findings indicate late FAFSA filers tend to be in-state, male students, coming from single households, with weak high school academic performance. Focusing on low-income group, the study found the odds of filing late were nearly 2.8 times higher for in-state students than they were for out-of-state students. Being male increased the chances of late filing; the odds of filing late for low-income male students were 1.53 times higher than they were for low-income females. The impact of late FAFSA filing on student finances was assessed through linear regression analyses. The results show late filers received less grant aid but larger loan amounts. Compared to on time filers, late FAFSA filers received, on average, $2,815 less in grant aid and $662 more in loans. The current study shed light on several key factors that make students more likely to miss the FAFSA deadlines. In addition, it demonstrated that late filing has major financial consequences for students and their families. The findings can be used by high school guidance offices, college administrators, state and federal governments, and higher education leaders concerned with improving college affordability. / Ph. D. / Higher education provides benefits to individuals and society. Benefits aside, education is expensive, and most students need financial assistance to offset the college price. By lowering the cost of attendance, financial aid makes it possible for many students, especially those from low and middle income families to attend college. Financial assistance is key for a successful degree completion, while FAFSA remains the main instrument used to distribute the aid. Filing a FAFSA is a critical step in securing financial assistance, although completing the form is not an easy task. The combination of several barriers such as complexity of the form, confusing deadlines, low predictability, and lack of information about the student aid system make the FAFSA application process challenging. Because of that, many students fail to complete or file the FAFSA on time. However, due to limited resources, the timing of the FAFSA filing matters. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between the timing of FAFSA filing and characteristics of financial aid recipients. Logistic regression analysis was used to examine how much of the variation in timing of FAFSA filing could be explained by students demographic and socioeconomic characteristics. The findings indicate late FAFSA filers tend to be in-state, male students, coming from single households, with weak high school academic performance. Additionally, the current study assessed the impact of late FAFSA filing on the amount of grants and loans received by the applicants in their first year in college. The results of the impact assessment show late FAFSA filers received significantly more loans and less grant aid. The current study identified key factors that make students more likely to file a late FAFSA. It also demonstrated that late filing has major financial consequences for students and their families. The findings can be used by high school guidance offices, college administrators, state and federal governments, and higher education leaders concerned with improving college affordability.

[pt] Esta tese teve como objetivo conhecer a experiência de vida e os sentimentos de pessoas adultas que tiveram conhecimento do seu diagnóstico de autismo após 18 anos de idade. Foi realizada uma pesquisa qualitativa na qual 12 autistas foram entrevistados. Os resultados foram analisados de acordo com o método de análise de conteúdo, na sua vertente categorial. A partir da análise do material, emergiram cinco categorias relacionadas aos relatos de vida: dificuldade social como o ponto central; questões sensoriais; dificuldade de linguagem e a ingenuidade; rigidez/comportamento repetitivos; facilidades/vantagens que o autismo trouxe e sete categorias relacionadas aos sentimentos e mudanças após receber o diagnóstico: alexitimia; alívio; revisitação do passado; autocompaixão; direitos adquiridos; identidade pessoal; identidade social. Os dados desta investigação formam organizados e detalhados em quatro artigos. O primeiro deles, Autismo em adultos: relatos de vida após um diagnóstico tardio, explorou relatos de vida, presentes e passados, deste grupo de pessoas, e observou-se que são frequentes as experiências dolorosas relacionadas às dificuldades sociais, sensoriais e de linguagem. O segundo, Autismo em adultos: sentimentos e mudanças após o diagnóstico tardio, investigou os sentimentos e o que mudou na vida dos entrevistados após o diagnóstico, verificando-se o alívio como algo muito frequente, seguido por um entendimento do passado e um aumento do respeito pelas próprias peculiaridades e escolhas. O terceiro artigo, Afinal, sou autista ou tenho autismo?: a identidade em foco, buscou entender como estes adultos veem o seu autismo, o impacto do diagnóstico na construção da sua identidade pessoal e social. Os resultados sugeriram que é comum a percepção do autismo como algo inseparável da identidade da pessoa, apesar de muitas vezes existir dúvida sobre comunicar socialmente o diagnóstico. Por fim, o quarto e último artigo, Neurodiversidade: um novo diagnóstico?, apresentou uma revisão e reflexão sobre o que é a neurodiversidade, se este termo pode ser usado como um diagnóstico médico e como este movimento se relaciona com os diferentes modelos de deficiência. / [en] The aim of this thesis was to understand the life experience and feelings of adults who became aware of their autism diagnosis after 18 years of age. A qualitative research was conducted in which 12 autistic people were interviewed. The results were analyzed according to the content analysis method, using a categorical approach. From the analysis of the material, five categories related to life experience emerged (social difficulties as the main point; sensory issues; language difficulties and naivety; rigidity/repetitive behavior; facilities/advantages that autism brought) and seven categories related to feelings and changes after receiving the diagnosis (alexithymia; relief; revisiting the past; self-compassion; acquired rights, personal identity; social identity). The data from this investigation is organized and detailed in four articles. The first of them, Autism in adults: life experiences after a late diagnosis, explored life narratives, present and past, of this group of people, and it was observed that painful experiences related to social, sensory and language difficulties are common. The second, Autism in adults: feelings and changes after late diagnosis, investigated the feelings and what changed in the lives of those interviewed after the diagnosis, obtaining as a result that relief is a very common sentiment, followed by an understanding of the past and an increase in self-respect. The third article, After all, am I autistic or do I have autism?: identity in focus, sought to understand how this group of adults see their autism, the impact of the diagnosis on the construction of their personal and social identity. The results suggested that it is common to perceive autism as something inseparable from the person s identity, although there is often doubt about communicating the diagnosis socially. Finally, the fourth and final article, Neurodiversity: a new diagnosis?, presented a review and reflection on what neurodiversity is, whether it can be used as a medical diagnosis and how this movement relates to different models of disability.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Boston University / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / The primary objective of the thesis is the correlation of the stylistic evolution of the miniature with an historical evolution of society during the complex period of the fourteenth century. Apart from Courajod's thesis of an "international courante," scholars have not concentrated on the historical factors underlying the origins of Late Gothic realism: the rise of the French monarchy and the rise of the bourgeoisie. Delisle, Martin, and Durrieu directed their research towards investigating anonymous manuscripts and identifying them with the names of artists listed in royal accounts. Bunim and White dedicated their efforts to the development of perspective in medieval art. Panofsky analyzed the formal and spatial aspects of International Style in his Early Netherlandish Painting, but without elaborating in detail the initial causes of Late Gothic realism. There is need, then, of a study which presents the evolution of Parisian miniature painting within the historical context of the times. In order to show the manner in which the innovations of the fourteenth century miniature painting reflected the changes of feudal society, the treatise is limited to a discussion of the leading miniaturists of the epoch: Master Honore, Jean Pucelle, Master "Boqueteaux," Jacquemart de Hesdin, Master Boucicaut, and the Limbourg brothers. Though Courajod established the beginning of the International Style with the ascent of Charles V to the throne in 1364, a new naturalism had been introduced into the representation of the figure by Master Honore at the close of the thirteenth century. Moreover, his pupil, Jean Pucelle, responsive to the realistic currents of the north and the south, actually laid the foundation for International Style during the first quarter of the fourteenth century. For these reasons, one regards Courajod's dating of the new art merely as the point of no return. With the influx of Flemish artists into royal ateliers during the middle of the century, the future belonged to it. To determine the historical significance of form and space, the most important works of the miniaturists have been studied and are reproduced for the benefit of the reader in a volume accompanying the test. Accorded the privilege of seeing and handling fourteenth century manuscripts in such institutions as The Cloisters, the Pierpont Morgan Library, The New York Public Library, The Walters Art Gallery, and the Houghton Library, one feels qualified in stating that the principal feature lost in the prints is the element of color, an aspect of painting which, for all of its importance, is irrelevant.to the nature of this study. Of primary consideration are the reasons why the Late Gothic artist gave volume to the figure and created the illusion of space, while, at the same time, he reaffirmed the decorative quality of the page. By analyzing the miniature in conjunction with the historical interpretations of such renowned medievalists as Perroy, Pirenne, and Scheville, one arrives at a rationale for the formal dichotomy that characterized the development of an International Style in Parisian miniature painting of the fourteenth century. / 2999-01-01

Yes