Storytelling and Self-Formation in Nineteenth-Century British Novels

This dissertation aims to examine the various ways in which three Victorian novels, such as Wilkie Collins?s The Woman in White (1860), Anne Bront�?s The Tenant of Wildfell Hall (1848), Charlotte Bront�?s Villette (1853), address the relationship between storytelling and self-formation, showing that a subject formulates a sense of self by storytelling. The constructed nature of self and storytelling in Collins?s The Woman in White shows that narrative is a significant way of attributing meaning in our lives and that constructing stories about self is connected to the construction of self, illustrating that storytelling is a form of self-formation. Anne Bront�?s The Tenant of Wildfell Hall exemplifies Bront�?s configuration of the relational and contextual aspect of storytelling and self-formation in her belief that self is formed not merely through the story he/she tells but through the triangular relationship of the storyteller, the story, and the reader. This novel proves that even though the writer?s role in constructing his/her self-concept through his/her narrative is important, the narrator?s triangular relationship with the reader and the text is also a significant component in his/her self-formation. Charlotte Bront�?s Villette is concerned with unnarration, in which the narrative does not say, and it shows that the unnarrated elements provide useful resource for the display of the narrator?s self. For Charlotte Bront�, unnarration is part of the narrative configuration that contributes to constructing and presenting the storyteller?s self-formation. These three novels illuminate that narrative is more than linguistic activities of the symbolic representation of the world, and that it cannot be fully conceived without taking into consideration the storyteller?s experience and thoughts of the world

Concert recording 2021-10-18

[Track 1]. From lo song pur solo, H. 344. Solo cantata for soprano and basso continuo. I. Recitiative, lo son pur solo ; II. Aria, Sono amante / Alessandro Scarlatti - From Szene aus Goethe\u27s Faust. Gretchens Bitte, D. 564 / Franz Schubert -- Deh pietoso, oh addolorata / Giuseppe Verdi -- From Song of Almah. I. Rose of Sharon ; III. Cedar Lebanon / Andrew Beall. [Track 2]. Duet. Dirait-on from Les chansons des roses / Morten Lauridsen ; Puisqu\u27ici bas toute âme, Op. 10, No. 1 / Gabriel Fauré -- Korean art song collection. Ihwau (Pear blossom rain) ; Betle Norae (Loom song) / Won-Joo Lee -- From the musical Salzzagi opseoye. Salzzagi opseoye (Softly, please come) / Chang-Kwon Choi

Concert recording 2019-03-29

[Track 1]. Ionhontsiá:te (Mother earth). Grandmother moon for soprano and cello / Dawn Ierihò:kwats Avery -- [Track 2]. Lieux ecartez, paisible solitude from Céphale et Procris / Élisabeth Jacquet de La Guerre -- [Track 3]. Four Dickinson songs / Lori Laitman Emily Dickinson -- [Track 4]. Guendae Issume (Because you are here) / Sunae Kim -- [Track 5]. Lee Eung and Arirang (Arirang) / YoungRan Park -- [Track 6]. She tell her love [Track 7]. A boy and a girl / Stephen Caldwell -- [Track 8]. Morgen, op. 27, no. 4 [Track 9]. Heimliche Aufforderung, op. 27, no. 3 / Richard Strauss -- [Track 10]. Suleika, op. 14, no. 1 / Franz Schubert -- [Track 11]. Philine: Singet nicht in Trauertönen, op. 98a, no. 7 / Robert Schumann -- [Track 12]. Mignon: Kennst du das Land / Hugo Wolf -- [Track 13]. From Song of Almah. III. Cedar of Lebanon / Andrew Beall

Two-gap and paramagnetic pair-breaking effects on upper critical field of SmFeAsO0.85_{0.85} and SmFeAsO0.8_{0.8}F0.2_{0.2} single crystals

We investigated the temperature dependence of the upper critical field [$H_{c2}(T)$] of fluorine-free SmFeAsO$_{0.85}$ and fluorine-doped SmFeAsO$_{0.8}$F$_{0.2}$ single crystals by measuring the resistive transition in low static magnetic fields and in pulsed fields up to 60 T. Both crystals show that $H_{c2}(T)$'s along the c axis [$H_{c2}^c(T)$] and in an $ab$-planar direction [$H_{c2}^{ab}(T)$] exhibit a linear and a sublinear increase, respectively, with decreasing temperature below the superconducting transition. $H_{c2}(T)$'s in both directions deviate from the conventional one-gap Werthamer-Helfand-Hohenberg theoretical prediction at low temperatures. A two-gap nature and the paramagnetic pair-breaking effect are shown to be responsible for the temperature-dependent behavior of $H_{c2}^c$ and $H_{c2}^{ab}$, respectively.Comment: 21 pages, 8 figure

Emergence of liquid following laser melting of gold thin films

X-ray structural science is undergoing a revolution driven by the emergence of X-ray Free-electron Laser (XFEL) facilities. The structures of crystalline solids can now be studied on the picosecond time scale relevant to phonons, atomic vibrations which travel at acoustic velocities. In the work presented here, X-ray diffuse scattering is employed to characterize the time dependence of the liquid phase emerging from femtosecond laser-induced melting of polycrystalline gold thin films using an XFEL. In a previous analysis of Bragg peak profiles, we showed the supersonic disappearance of the solid phase and presented a model of pumped hot electrons carrying energy from the gold surface to scatter at internal grain boundaries. This generates melt fronts propagating relatively slowly into the crystal grains. By conversion of diffuse scattering to a partial X-ray pair distribution function, we demonstrate that it has the characteristic shape obtained by Fourier transformation of the measured F(Q). The diffuse signal fraction increases with a characteristic rise-time of 13 ps, roughly independent of the incident pump fluence and consequent final liquid fraction. This suggests the role of further melt-front nucleation processes beyond grain boundaries

Quantitative and Qualitative Analyses of the Cell Death Process in Candida albicans Treated by Antifungal Agents

The death process of Candida albicans was investigated after treatment with the antifungal agents flucytosine and amphotericin B by assessing morphological and biophysical properties associated with cell death. C. albicans was treated varying time periods (from 6 to 48 hours) and examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). SEM and AFM images clearly showed changes in morphology and biophysical properties. After drug treatment, the membrane of C. albicans was perforated, deformed, and shrunken. Compared to the control, C. albicans treated with flucytosine was softer and initially showed a greater adhesive force. Conversely, C. albicans treated with amphotericin B was harder and had a lower adhesive force. In both cases, the surface roughness increased as the treatment time increased. The relationships between morphological changes and the drugs were observed by AFM clearly; the surface of C. albicans treated with flucytosine underwent membrane collapse, expansion of holes, and shrinkage, while the membranes of cells treated with amphotericin B peeled off. According to these observations, the death process of C. albicans was divided into 4 phases, CDP0, CDP1, CDP2, and CDP4, which were determined based on morphological changes. Our results could be employed to further investigate the antifungal activity of compounds derived from natural sources

Proton Pump Inhibitors Exert Anti-Allergic Effects by Reducing TCTP Secretion

BACKGROUND:Extracellular translationally controlled tumor protein (TCTP) is known to play a role in human allergic responses. TCTP has been identified outside of macrophages, in activated mononuclear cells, and in biological fluids from allergic patients. Even TCTP devoid of signal sequences, is secreted to extracellular environment by an yet undefined mechanism. This study is aimed at understanding the mechanism of TCTP release and its regulation. A secondary goal is to see if inhibitors of TCTP release can serve as potential anti-allergic asthmatic drugs. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS:Using Western blotting assay in HEK293 and U937 cells, we found that TCTP secretion is reduced by omeprazole and pantoprazole, both of which are proton pump inhibitors. We then transfected HEK293 cells with proton pump expression vectors to search for the effects of exogeneously overexpressed H(+)/K(+)-ATPase on the TCTP secretion. Based on these in vitro data we checked the in vivo effects of pantoprazole in a murine model of ovalbumin-induced allergy. Omeprazole and pantoprazole reduced TCTP secretion from HEK293 and U937 cells in a concentration-dependent fashion and the secretion of TCTP from HEK293 cells increased when they over-expressed H(+)/K(+)-ATPase. In a murine model of ovalbumin-induced allergy, pretreatment with pantoprazole reduced infiltration of inflammatory cells, increased goblet cells, and increased TCTP secretion induced by OVA challenge. CONCLUSION:Since Omeprazole and pantoprazole decrease the secretion of TCTP which is associated with the development of allergic reaction, they may have the potential to serve as anti-allergic (asthmatic) drugs

Quantitative and Qualitative Analysis of the Antifungal Activity of Allicin Alone and in Combination with Antifungal Drugs

The antifungal activity of allicin and its synergistic effects with the antifungal agents flucytosine and amphotericin B (AmB) were investigated in Candida albicans (C. albicans). C. albicans was treated with different conditions of compounds alone and in combination (allicin, AmB, flucytosine, allicin + AmB, allicin + flucytosine, allicin + AmB + flucytosine). After a 24-hour treatment, cells were examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) to measure morphological and biophysical properties associated with cell death. The clearing assay was conducted to confirm the effects of allicin. The viability of C. albicans treated by allicin alone or with one antifungal drug (AmB, flucytosine) in addition was more than 40% after a 24-hr treatment, but the viability of groups treated with combinations of more than two drugs was less than 32%. When the cells were treated with allicin alone or one type of drug, the morphology of the cells did not change noticeably, but when cells were treated with combinations of drugs, there were noticeable morphological changes. In particular, cells treated with allicin + AmB had significant membrane damage (burst or collapsed membranes). Classification of cells according to their cell death phase (CDP) allowed us to determine the relationship between cell viability and treatment conditions in detail. The adhesive force was decreased by the treatment in all groups compare to the control. Cells treated with AmB + allicin had a greater adhesive force than cells treated with AmB alone because of the secretion of molecules due to collapsed membranes. All cells treated with allicin or drugs were softer than the control cells. These results suggest that allicin can reduce MIC of AmB while keeping the same efficacy