The polymorphic nature of amyloid assembly: Exploring fibril morphology and the structural relationship towards mechanical stability

The polymorphic nature of amyloid fibrils is important in the understanding of structural based relationships, such as a morphology influence on cytotoxicity and disease progression. The work reported here uses Atomic force microscopy (AFM) to enhance the understanding of fibril morphology in addition to the relationship between structure and stability towards breakage. A novel quantitative cluster analysis was developed here to identify the vast range of fibril morphologies present within a population. Using fibrils formed from three peptide sequences identified by the WALTZ algorithm, we have characterised the polymorphism displayed by each fibril population and provided structural models to predict the likely filament arrangements accessible to each. The range of fibril polymorphism also conveys mechanical differences, defined here by persistence length values for each respective population. These mechanical differences subsequently affect fibrils stability towards breakage, quantified here using AFM and subsequent image analysis. Additionally, using AFM, a structural comparison was performed between Sup35NM amyloid fibrils formed in vitro and those formed in situ using a synthetic biology approach with the Curli-dependent amyloid generator (C-DAG) in E. Coli. Structural similarities between fibrils formed using this system and those formed in vitro is of great value given the importance of a sequence-structure relationship. The work in this thesis expands on possible fibril morphologies and the related mechanical properties, which has implications in the understanding of disease enhancing structural motifs and the utilisation of amyloid fibrils in a biotechnology role

Fight Like a YA Girl: Fourth Wave Feminism, Defense, and Weaponization Through the Lens of Object Relations

This thesis will discuss how the genre of Young Adult (YA) fiction, more specifically Fantasy YA fiction, reflects the major goals and objectives of fourth wave feminism, ultimately arguing for the need for more intersectional representation in heroine characters. YA Fantasy fiction consistently features a strong heroine in both spirit and body, one who uses weapons to take on systems of injustice in their respective worlds, from systematic child murder to modern slavery. What and how, then, are these books teaching the next generation about feminism? I attempt to answer this question with this thesis, looking at three YA female protagonists and their individual methods of literally and figuratively fighting against the patriarchy. I explore their relationships with weapons and fighting in general, paying attention to the use of designated instruments as weapons and the implications of this relationship on these characters. To do this, I will employ the theoretical framework of Object Relations and its notable theorists, including Melanie Klein, D.W Winnicott, Jessica Benjamin, and Nancy Chodorow, examining the connections between the heroine’s sense of self, their childhood, and the object world around them. Further, I examine the use of the female body as a weapon itself, therefore requiring me to think about the significance of weaponizing the female body given the historical reality of sexual violence as a powerful bodily weapon. When put into conversation with the goals of fourth wave feminism, I will ultimately conclude that YA Fantasy fiction aligns with fourth wave feminism in its goal of female empowerment through equality but is lacking in the field of intersectional representation

Exploring Factors That Influence Human Trafficking Sentencing Lengths

The area of human trafficking and sentencing research is currently under-explored. Consequently, little foundational knowledge has been established in this area of sentencing research to ensure that sentencing biases do not exist that undermine the tenets of justice. This study produces research and findings that incrementally contribute to building this foundational knowledge on human trafficking and sentencing. It does this by creating and testing a conceptual framework of human trafficking and sentencing that identifies potential predictors of human trafficking sentencing lengths that can be used to identify potential problematic sentencing issues. The model tested in the study includes the following concepts: paternalism/chivalry, political conservatism, the diffusion of responsibility in the sentencing of group offenders, sentencing year. The data used to test the validity of the conceptual framework is comprised of human trafficking sentencing data that was extracted from press releases, reports, and cases disseminated by the United States Attorney’s Office (USAO) from 2013 - 2017. The results of this study find support for two of the four predictive concepts, paternalism/chivalry and the diffusion of responsibility in predicting human trafficking sentencing lengths. For paternalism/chivalry, this study finds that female human trafficking offenders receive sentences that are, on average, 27% shorter than their male counterparts. The diffusion of responsibility concept results suggests that human traffickers who offend with an accomplice(s), on average, receive sentences that are about 9% shorter than solo traffickers. The extant research on human trafficking and sentencing has been consistently marginalized due to a lack of data. The inception of this study and its findings overcome these obstacles to produce original findings, which engenders a formidable basis of research on which future works can expound. In itself, this study forwards progress towards a fuller understanding of human trafficking and its effect where implications can be devised to eradicate the conditions that catalyze the manifestations of human trafficking

NATIONAL POLICE DATABASES AND THEIR INCREASING IMPORTANCE IN 21ST CENTURY POLICING

On November 14, 2023, Chief Constable Amanda Blakeman presented “National Police Databases and Their Increasing Importance in 21st Century Policing” for this year’s West Coast Security Conference. The key points discussed were the creation, functions, and use cases of the Police National Database (PND).   Received: 12-18-2023 Revised: 01-26-202

The Muslim Veil in America: A Symbol of Oppression or Empowerment?

The purpose of this thesis is to look at Muslim women in America who veil and how Americans perceive them. The U.S. media has presented a common theme of negative stereotypes about women who veil, including the idea that they are oppressed or associated with terrorist groups. Here, I examine how Americans perceive beauty and how those perceptions may be associated with the negative images of Muslim women who veil. This thesis takes a look at the background of veiling within Islam, how Islam and veiling have been portrayed in the media, and how perceptions of beauty shape what Americans believe about veiling. To examine these issues, I utilized secondary research and two supplemental personal interviews, one with a non-Muslim American woman and the other with a Muslim woman who used to—but not longer does—veil. The results I found were that, in America, a Muslim woman wears the veil as a form of empowerment. However, there are many different factors that lead non-Muslim Americans to believe that they are oppressed

A Wandering Guide to Rhode Island: short and long walks for all to enjoy

Rhode Island, or the Ocean State, is known for its beautiful beaches but little is known about its beautiful hiking, walking, and wandering trails that cover the entire state. These trails offer breathtaking looks over the Narragansett Bay and calming trails through the woods. Talking to friends around school, though, it showed me how little many of them actually knew about these different trails around the state. When thinking about my own Honors Project, I wanted to create something that was useful for the readers and showed some of what Rhode Island can offer in terms of walks, as well as experience some new walks for myself. To do this, I decided to create my very own hiking guide of Rhode Island. After researching different trails to explore in each corner of Rhode Island, I put a plan in place for how I was going to accomplish this. With the weeks leading up to the end of the semester, I spent mornings and afternoons traveling to these locations I planned for and explored every nook and cranny that they have to offer me. Taking photos from as many angles I could think of during these walks, I quickly grew a gallery of photos from my hiking. I journaled the experiences I had and what I learned not only about the trail but also about myself. Towards the end of the semester and once I had acquired a significant amount of material, I began to compile it in the software program InDesign to create my very own book. During this design process, I wanted to make this as authentic as possible. Pouring over other hiking guides from the New England area, I incorporated some design elements that I liked as well as veered off to create a unique, individual design. While other guides were heavy on content and text, I wanted to incorporate a more visual and colorful aesthetic to my overall product. One specific element I incorporated from other guides is a short description on how to get to the trailhead. Through this process, I cultivated a stronger eye for layout and design, learning how best to make writing and images look good together on the blank page. I specifically chose to create a physical book for my project as I want to pursue a career in the publishing industry. This project provided firsthand experience of what it takes to put together a book for publication. Not only has this project taught me new skills and proficiencies, but this is something that I can use while applying for positions within the publishing industry

Implementing Agile Software Development for Small - Medium Business

Software projects have a long history of delivering projects over budget, behind schedule, and not meeting expectations. Software development teams have typically tried to follow the “waterfall” or building paradigm of “define, design, and develop” in a proscribed fashion. The problem with this approach is it provides no mechanism for innovation or evolution of the software. In reality users often don’t really know what they want in software until they see it in action and gain new insights on how they would like it to work. The contrasting approach is “iterative development” where software is delivered as a series of working features. The family of development processes surrounding iterative development is referred to as “Agile Methodologies” and is characterized as being adaptable to change (Highsmith 2004). This approach embraces the uncertainty surrounding the requirements by measuring the project on vision, cost and schedule rather than scope, cost and schedule. The overall idea with this approach is to turn development into a collaborative process with the customer and illicit feedback early and often. This approach, in turn, allows development to adapt and evolve with change. The challenge is applying these methodologies to small business environment. In the small business environment, budgets vary from very small to medium in scope, typically on the order of one week to three months. Projects also vary from completely new domain to those that just modify existing features. It is not realistic to follow the same process for these widely varied scenarios. It is also import that costs associated with documenting and managing project must scale with the nature of the project. The author, through research and experience as a small business developer with Blue Ocean Consulting, lays out an approach that breaks the Agile methodology into phases. These phases provide a framework for skipping aspects of the process that are not needed in certain scenarios. Projects that fall within a completely new domain would go into a discovery process to define vision, high level features, ballpark of investment, and data sheet. Projects that fall into an existing known domain but have completely new features would skip discovery and start with the analysis phase. Projects that are updates or expansions in the scope of existing features in an existing domain would jump right to the innovation phase

Circadian clocks and breast cancer

Circadian clocks respond to environmental time cues to coordinate 24-hour oscillations in almost every tissue of the body. In the breast, circadian clocks regulate the rhythmic expression of numerous genes. Disrupted expression of circadian genes can alter breast biology and may promote cancer. Here we overview circadian mechanisms, and the connection between the molecular clock and breast biology. We describe how disruption of circadian genes contributes to cancer via multiple mechanisms, and link this to increased tumour risk in women who work irregular shift patterns. Understanding the influence of circadian rhythms on breast cancer could lead to more efficacious therapies, reformed public health policy and improved patient outcome