The Role of Itk in T Cell Development: A Dissertation

Itk is a member of the Tec family of non-receptor tyrosine kinases. It is expressed in T cells, NK cells, and mast cells. The purpose of this study was to determine the role of Itk in T cell development. Previous work from our lab and others has demonstrated that Itk is involved in signaling downstream of the T cell receptor and initial analysis of Itk-deficient mice revealed that these mice had some defects in T cell development. There are two stages of T cell development, the pre-T cell stage and the CD4+ CD8+ double positive stage, at which signals downstream of the T cell receptor are important. At the CD4+ CD8+ double positive stage, these signals direct two concurrent, but distinct processes known as repertoire selection and CD4/CD8 lineage commitment/differentiation. I show that there are only slight defects in development at the pre-T cell stage, presumably due to reduced TCR signaling. However these results clearly demonstrate that Itk is not essential at this stage of development. In contrast, repertoire selection, in particular positive selection, is significantly affected by the absence of Itk. Similarly, I show that Itk plays a role in lineage differentiation, although commitment to the appropriate lineage occurs normally in the absence of Itk

Music of a Thousand Years

Iran’s particular system of traditional Persian art music has been long treated as the product of an ever-evolving, ancient Persian culture. In Music of a Thousand Years, Ann E. Lucas argues that this music is a modern phenomenon indelibly tied to changing notions of Iran’s national history. Rather than considering a single Persian music history, Lucas demonstrates cultural dissimilarity and discontinuity over time, bringing to light two different notions of music-making in relation to premodern and modern musical norms. An important corrective to the history of Persian music, Music of a Thousand Years is the first work to align understandings of Middle Eastern music history with current understandings of the region’s political history.  “Ann E. Lucas very effectively combines historical analysis, ethnomusicology, and musicology to provide a broad, holistic explanation for complex, nuanced processes of change. Well written and highly original in its approach, this is a major contribution to the field.” KAMRAN SCOT AGHAIE, Associate Professor of Iranian History, University of Texas  “Music of a Thousand Years presents an innovative narrative of Persian music history and also provides important new perspectives on how to analyze the meaning of music and culture in historical perspective.” MOHSEN MOHAMMADI, Lecturer in Ethnomusicology, University of California, Los Angeles  “Lucas turns the standard history of Persian music on its head, proving it is not a story of the survival of an ancient tradition, but rather the story of the invention of tradition. Revisionist in the best sense of the word.” JAMES L. GELVIN, author of The Modern Middle East: A History  ANN E. LUCAS is Assistant Professor of ethnomusicology in the Department of Music at Boston College, where she also teaches in the Islamic Civilizations and Societies Program. She is recognized for her work on music historiography of the Middle East

Music of a Thousand Years

"Iran’s particular system of traditional Persian art music has been long treated as the product of an ever-evolving, ancient Persian culture. In Music of a Thousand Years, Ann E. Lucas argues that this music is a modern phenomenon indelibly tied to changing notions of Iran’s national history. Rather than considering a single Persian music history, Lucas demonstrates cultural dissimilarity and discontinuity over time, bringing to light two different notions of music-making in relation to premodern and modern musical norms. An important corrective to the history of Persian music, Music of a Thousand Years is the first work to align understandings of Middle Eastern music history with current understandings of the region’s political history. “Ann E. Lucas very effectively combines historical analysis, ethnomusicology, and musicology to provide a broad, holistic explanation for complex, nuanced processes of change. Well written and highly original in its approach, this is a major contribution to the field.” KAMRAN SCOT AGHAIE, Associate Professor of Iranian History, University of Texas “Music of a Thousand Years presents an innovative narrative of Persian music history and also provides important new perspectives on how to analyze the meaning of music and culture in historical perspective.” MOHSEN MOHAMMADI, Lecturer in Ethnomusicology, University of California, Los Angeles “Lucas turns the standard history of Persian music on its head, proving it is not a story of the survival of an ancient tradition, but rather the story of the invention of tradition. Revisionist in the best sense of the word.” JAMES L. GELVIN, author of The Modern Middle East: A History ANN E. LUCAS is Assistant Professor of ethnomusicology in the Department of Music at Boston College, where she also teaches in the Islamic Civilizations and Societies Program. She is recognized for her work on music historiography of the Middle East.

Cepheids and Long Period Variables in M33

We are conducting a long-term photometric survey of the nearby galaxy M33 to discover Cepheids, eclipsing binaries, and long-period variables. The dataset combines previously-obtained optical images from the DIRECT project with new observations acquired at the WIYN 3.5m telescope. The entire data set spans over 7 years with excellent synoptic coverage which will enable the discovery and characterization of stars displaying variability over a wide range of timescales (days, weeks, months, years). In this preliminary work we show representative light curves of different variables we found so far in two fields, color-magnitude diagrams, and optical Cepheid Period-Luminosity relations for M33. The ultimate goal of the project is to provide an absolute calibration of the Cepheid Period-Luminosity relation, and to study its metallicity dependence at optical wavelengths.Comment: 3 pages, 6 figures. To appear in "Stellar Pulsation: Challenges for Theory and Observation", Eds. J. Guzik and P. Bradle

Nowhere to Go: Maternity Care Deserts Across the U.S.

Consistent, high-quality maternity care is essential to protect the health of all moms and babies. Maternity care encompasses health care services for women during pregnancy, delivery and postpartum. With over 3.5 million births in the U.S. annually, and rising rates of maternal mortality and morbidity, there is ample opportunity to improve maternal and birth outcomes in our country. The 2022 Nowhere to Go: Maternity Care Deserts Across the U.S. report is an update of the 2020 report and aims to increase education and raise awareness about maternity care deserts. Along with data and maternity care deserts classification updates, new topics touching on the postpartum period, the importance of telehealth and the intersection of chronic disease and pregnancy are included

Mobile Incidental Learning to Support the Inclusion of Recent Immigrants

Social inclusion of recent immigrants is a challenge in many countries for both immigrants and the host communities. To harness the potential of social, situated and opportunistic mobile interactions for the social inclusion of immigrants in a host country, we have developed an Incidental Learning Framework. This supports the design and evaluation of MApp, a suite of smartphone tools and services for recent immigrants. Developed within the European Union's MASELTOV project (http://www.maseltov.eu), the MApp delivers language learning activities, image-to-text translation, context-aware and interest-based recommendations, local information, game-based cultural learning and social support to immigrants in cities. Preliminary field trials in Vienna, Madrid and London have highlighted issues of mobile literacy, affordability, ethics and privacy challenges, as well as insights into motivations and possible measures of success. Incidental learning implemented on a smartphone app has implications for the relationship between formal and informal learning; new systems of learner support by other immigrants, mentors and volunteers; the design of learning materials that combine immediate assistance with longer term learner development; and potential conflicts between technological affordances, e.g. context awareness and learner tracking, and user preferences among vulnerable groups such as recent immigrants