Doctor of Philosophy

dissertationThis thesis describes the synthesis and properties of organically modified silica (ORMOSIL) particles with possible applications in the field of drug delivery. Nanoparticle drug delivery methods take advantage of the unique physical properties of nanoscale architecture to deliver a large payload of drug to a targeted site. They are highly porous, contain many organic functionalities for covalent attachment, and their surfaces can be functionalized. A particle-based approach allows for the delivery of a large and localized payload in a single package. Initial study focused on the generation of submicron organically modified silica particles containing boron. This involved the synthesis of vinyl-enriched silica particles and the postmodification of the vinyl functionalities throughout the particle body. Hydroboration and bromination of the vinyl functionalities showed for the first time that the organic functionalities of ORMOSIL particles could be significantly modified. Next, new organically modified silica particle types were developed. These new particle types incorporated unique organic functionalities that may undergo additional functionalization. Organic functionalities included alkenyl-, cyano-, mercapto-, and isocyanto- throughout the particle body. The different organic functionalities were then modified to demonstrate their reactivity. Finally, a particle containing nuclei suitable for neutron capture therapy, a fluorescent tag, and targeting ligand was synthesized. Boron was the active nuclei, fluorescein was the fluorescent label, useful for in vitro studies, and folic acid is a broad field targeting ligand, useful in targeting a variety of cancer types. The particle containing the three unique motifs underwent early stages of in vitro studies against the OVCAR-3 cell line. This thesis has considerably advanced the field of ORMOSIL chemistry through the development and modification of new ORMOSIL products. While initial efforts were geared toward the development of an ORMOSIL suitable for drug delivery, the variety of products formed that possess unique characteristics make these materials useful far beyond drug scaffolding. Additional work that is currently being pursued in the Zharov research lab includes the development of highly porous OMROSIL particles for MRI imaging, ORMOSIL hybrids that are degradable under acidic conditions, and the use of ORMOSIL particles as a stationary phase for solid phase extraction

Performatives and Imperatives

The term “performative” is used in at least two different senses. In the first sense, performatives are generatives, i.e. expres- sions by the use of which one creates new deontic states of affairs on the ground of extralinguistic conventions. In the sec- ond sense, performatives are operatives, i.e. expressions which contain verbal pred- icates and state their own utterances. In the article, both these types of expressions are compared to the class of imperatives which are characterized as expressions of the form “Let x see to it that p” and typ- ically express wishes. It is claimed that (1) only these imperatives are generatives which are uttered by deontic authorities, (2) no imperative is an operative sensu stricto; (3) imperative operatives are used instead of “pure” imperatives in order to emphasize the force of resolution

LEARNING ASSESSMENT AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT ON ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING PROFESSORS

The present research investigates the professional progress of English language teachers related to the language assessment and teaching methodologies and represents a theoretical planning of the field of curriculum and assessment in English Language Teaching and its effect in terms of professional and qualified development. Assessment is an essential section of the educational process, as it controls whether or not the goals of instruction are being achieved. Assessment influences decisions about ratings, assignment, improvement, instructional requirements, curriculum, etc… A qualitative connection between theory and implementation of well-developed practices in assessment contribute to positive achievements to in-service teachers. The major achievement of the study is that English teachers' professional progress is eloquent only if the assimilated information is applied in their environment.   Article visualizations

Frequency stabilization of a monolithic Nd:YAG ring laser by controlling the power of the laser-diode pump source

The frequency of a 700mW monolithic non-planar Nd:YAG ring laser (NPRO) depends with a large coupling coefficient (some MHz/mW) on the power of its laser-diode pump source. Using this effect we demonstrate the frequency stabilization of an NPRO to a frequency reference by feeding back to the current of its pump diodes. We achieved an error point frequency noise smaller than 1mHz/sqrt(Hz), and simultaneously a reduction of the power noise of the NPRO by 10dB without an additional power stabilization feed-back system.Comment: accepted for publication by Optics Letter

CHILD PSYCHIATRY IN BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA: HISTORY OF DEVELOPMENT - REVIEW

The paper gives an overview of the spatial conditions, human resources and development course of child and adolescent psychiatry as an independent profession. The beginnings of the development date back to 1959, when the Department of children and youth is opened in Sarajevo at the Neuropsychiatric Clinic, which continues without interruption even today. After that was opened same department in Banja Luka and after a certain period of outpatient work, and stationary departments in Tuzla and Mostar. Over time, as the world’s developed and improved understanding of the needs of treatment of mental disorders, and as the trends of professional approaches changed from time to time, the same set of guidelines were followed by the professional work of staff members in the departments. As the material opportunities allowed, in all localities there is a clear tendency to improve spatial conditions. However, personnel capability has improved at a slightly faster pace, so by the war time in Bosnia-Herzegovina (BH) between 1992 and 1995, in BH were mostly trained professional teams. In meanwhile, the need for psychiatric assistance has largely exceeded the human resource capabilities. The situation of war has changed dramatically in the present situation, departments are empty, and there is a paradoxical situation that the patient in the hospitals does not exist, but the reason is bizarre, since because of the war, physically, patients are not able to access to hospitals. This situation also contributes to the departure a large number of staff, which is in the child psychiatry, and so was insufficient. Despite this, during the war in Sarajevo, the Psychiatric Clinic conducts research on psychiatric morbidity and evaluation of population trauma due to war stress in the city of Sarajevo, and included the population of children and adolescents who remained in the city. The project is implemented only in the city area, because Sarajevo was city, three and half years under the total military siege. Further on, the paper elaborates the status of spatial and human resources capacity in the post-war period up to the present day. There is an evident expansion of the psychological assistance service throughout the territory of BH, which has been largely on the initiative and all the necessary assistance of the international community through non-governmental organizations, but with the involvement of the remaining domestic staffs. They were also stated the government projects, in the last two decades, on the professional training of staff working in Mental Health Centers across the country. In the latest age of the last ten years, a number of private psychological counselling centers have been opened that, beside the psychiatrists, are led by certified psychotherapists, psychologists, pedagogues, and teachers. This fact is very important for the future, because this is a good part solving the current lack of professionalism to provide psychological assistance to the population in developmental age. All professionals involved in the human psyche were aware of how important the timely recognition and provided expert assistance, when it comes to developmental age. In the post-war period, certain scientific researches on the psychological trauma severity of the population are being carried out, and the results of some of these researches are mentioned in this paper. The paper concludes with the statement that the current state of development of child psychiatry in the country is satisfactory in relation to the conditions that we had the past decade, but with the suggestion that a long way to furthering this profession and its affirmation at the global level is in the future

Cation exchange at the secondary building units of metal–organic frameworks

Cation exchange is an emerging synthetic route for modifying the secondary building units (SBUs) of metal–organic frameworks (MOFs). This technique has been used extensively to enhance the properties of nanocrystals and molecules, but the extent of its applications for MOFs is still expanding. To harness cation exchange as a rational tool, we need to elucidate its governing factors. Not nearly enough experimental observations exist for drawing these conclusions, so we provide a conceptual framework for approaching this task. We address which SBUs undergo exchange, why certain ions replace others, how the framework influences the process, the role of the solvent, and current applications. Using these guidelines, certain trends emerge from the available data and missing experiments become obvious. If future studies follow this framework, then a more comprehensive body of observations will furnish a deeper understanding of cation exchange and inspire future applications.United States. Dept. of Energy. Office of Basic Energy Sciences (Award DE-SC0006937)3M CompanyAlfred P. Sloan FoundationResearch Corporation for Science AdvancementNational Science Foundation (U.S.). Graduate Research Fellowship (Grant 1122374)MISTI (Hayashi Seed Fund