Mistranslated

Mistranslated is an essay based on my research on the patriarchal structure that is inherent in the translation, and an attempt to challenge them through the perspective of a colored woman with a transnational background. I focus on the cognition of cultural identity that is otherwise a subject of oblivion when living in a homogenous nation. Moving between countries that predominantly share the same racial ethnicity and languages, I began to be categorized with the modifier only after I stepped into dynamics of the diasporic community – America. As my presence of cultural identity becomes increasingly apparent after being positioned in a cosmopolitan society, I try to resolve the confusion made by the irony of the marginalized self living in a ‘broader’ world. One of my strategies is to go back to language. As much as it has been explored as a field of study, it is prominent that language is the primary tool for not only communication, but also the way to see and understand even the most basic element of the world. The act of translating and the confusion it brings about allow me to draw the connection between my status as an Asian woman and translation, in which they are defined as not of ‘subject’, but rather ‘the other’. This thesis challenges to subvert this canon by blurring the conventions of translation, which ultimately provides different perceptions to each individual based on their experiences

NDM-522: DECENTRALIZED SEMI-ACTIVE CONTROL FOR MULTI-PERFORMANCE-BASED DESIGN

Traditional performance-based design (PBD) that has a single performance level has been widely researched by changing section sizes of structural members or material properties to resist single hazard levels. However, this approach has limitations in terms of achieving performance and alternative design options for the owner. To overcome these limitations of the traditional PBD method, a multi-performance-based control design (MPBCD) methodology is newly proposed. The MPBCD integrates a decentralized semi-active control algorithm with semi-active smart damping devices and an advanced multi-objective optimization method. The multi-objective optimization is used to achieve various sets of performance-based control designs. The control designs satisfy multiple performance levels under multiple hazard levels without changing cross-section sizes or material properties of structural members. This MPBCD provides multiple sets of control designs (i.e., control device layouts with control design variables) to minimize design costs and maximize control effectiveness. The multiple sets of designs offer optimal performance-based control design covering a broad range of hazard levels with various performance levels. This numerical study uses an advanced decentralized semi-active controller and large-scale 200-kN magnetorheological (MR) dampers installed in a nine-story moment-resisting frame (MRF) building. From the multi-objective optimization technique, multiple layouts of control devices and controller parameters for multiple performance levels under multiple hazard levels are investigated

Identification and characterisation of a secreted acid phosphatase, Aph1 in the fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans

Human fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans is a major cause of mortality among immunocompromised individuals. Extracellular acid phosphatase activity has been detected in >95% of the C. neoformans strains isolated from patients with AIDS, including the highly virulent serotype A strain H99. However the contribution of this activity to virulence of C. neoformans has never been determined. As part of this study, four putative acid phosphatases were identified in C. neoformans H99 genome: CNAG 02944 (Aph1), CNAG_06967 (Aph2), CNAG_02681 (Aph3) and CNAG_06115 (Aph4), of which only Aph1 is predicted to be secreted. The aims of this study were to determine (1) whether Aph1 is the enzyme responsible for extracellular acid phosphatase activity in H99, and whether it is induced in response to phosphate starvation; (2) Aph1 substrate specificity; (3) the role of Aph1 in cellular function and virulence and (4) the expression pattern of APH2, APH3 and APH4. The findings show that Aph1 is the major secreted acid phosphatase of broad specificity regulated by phosphate availability at the transcriptional level. Expression of APH2, APH3 and APH4 is also phosphate-dependent. Furthermore, Aph1 contributes to phosphate homeostasis and virulence of C. neoformans by releasing phosphate from intra- and extracellular substrates

Optimization Model for Base-Level Delivery Routes and Crew Scheduling

In the U.S. Air Force, a Logistic Readiness Squadron (LRS) provides material management, distribution, and oversight of contingency operations. Dispatchers in the LRS must quickly prepare schedules that meet the needs of their customers while dealing with real-world constraints, such as time windows, delivery priorities, and intermittent recurring missions. Currently, LRS vehicle operation elements are faced with a shortage of manpower and lack an efficient scheduling algorithm and tool. The purpose of this research is to enhance the dispatchers\u27 capability to handle flexible situations and produce good schedules within current manpower restrictions. In this research, a new scheduling model and algorithm are provided as an approach to crew scheduling for a base-level delivery system with a single depot. A Microsoft Excel application, the Daily Squadron Scheduler (DSS), was built to implement the algorithm. DSS combines generated duties with the concept of a set covering problem. It utilizes a Linear Programming pricing algorithm and Excel Solver as the primary engine to solve the problem. Reduced costs and shadow prices from subproblems are used to generate a set of feasible duties from which an optimal solution to the LP relaxation can be found. From these candidate duties the best IP solution is then found. The culmination of this effort was the development of both a scheduling tool and an analysis tool to guide the LRS dispatcher toward efficient current and future schedules

STR-903: UNSUPERVISED NOVELTY DETECTION BASED STRUCTURAL DAMAGE DETECTION METHOD

Many structural damage detection methods using machine learning algorithms and clustering methods have been proposed and developed in recent years. Novelty detection is a common method that is based on an unsupervised learning technique to detect structural damage. The detection process involves applying the novelty detection algorithm to recognize abnormal data from the testing data sets. In order to make these algorithms capable of identifying abnormal data, sufficient normal data must first be obtained and used as training data. It is the fact that sufficient normal data is relatively convenient to measure compared to abnormal data for large-scale civil structures. Abnormal data from the testing data sets can be identified by using the well-trained normal model established by the algorithms. In this paper, a machine learning based novelty detection method called the Density Peaks based Fast Clustering Algorithm (DPFCA) is introduced and some improvements to this algorithm are made to increase the precision of detecting and localizing the damage in an experimental structure. Feature extraction is also an important factor in the process of damage detection. Thus, two damage-sensitive features such as crest factor, and transmissibility are extracted from the measured responses in the experiments. Experimental results showed good performance of the innovative method in detecting and locating the structural damage positions in various scenarios

Vav1 inhibits RANKL-induced osteoclast differentiation and bone resorption

Vav1 is a Rho/Rac guanine nucleotide exchange factor primarily expressed in hematopoietic cells. In this study, we investigated the potential role of Vav1 in osteoclast (OC) differentiation by comparing the ability of bone marrow mononuclear cells (BMMCs) obtained from Vav1-deficient (Vav1−/−) and wild-type (WT) mice to differentiate into mature OCs upon stimulation with macrophage colony stimulating factor and receptor activator of nuclear kappa B ligand in vitro. Our results suggested that Vav1 deficiency promoted the differentiation of BMMCs into OCs, as indicated by the increased expression of tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase, cathepsin K, and calcitonin receptor. Therefore, Vav1 may play a negative role in OC differentiation. This hypothesis was supported by the observation of more OCs in the femurs of Vav1−/− mice than in WT mice. Furthermore, the bone status of Vav1−/− mice was analyzed in situ and the femurs of Vav1−/− mice appeared abnormal, with poor bone density and fewer number of trabeculae. In addition, Vav1-deficient OCs showed stronger adhesion to vitronectin, an αvβ3 integrin ligand important in bone resorption. Thus, Vav1 may inhibit OC differentiation and protect against bone resorption