Deviance or making do: Seder in the institution

Deviance or Making Do: Seder in the Institution, compares the institution of Jewish religion and the traditions that go along with the holiday of Pesach, Passover, against one impromptu Passover Seder held at a rehab clinic and mental health hospital. It shows how in many ways and to many of the Jewish faith this event could be viewed in such a way that it is labeled as deviant, but in the end how far does it actually stray from the true heart of a Seder

Architecture Beyond Waste: Redirecting Urban Consumption

ABSTRACT Title of Thesis: Architecture Beyond Waste Degree Candidate: Stanley Mathurin Degree and Year: Master Of Architecture, 2010 Thesis directed by: Assistant Professor Hooman Koliji, Chair Assistant Professor Micheal Ambrose Professor Emeritus Ralph D. Bennett, AIA The rate of our consumption is rapidly transforming our planet's biomass into human mass, which equals more trash. The U.S. is estimated to generate 225 million tons of trash a year. Each one of us generates about 4.3 pounds of waste per day. As a country we generate more garbage than any other country by far. About one-third of American garbage will be recycled or composted, leaving about 150 million tons of garbage to be managed by other methods. This thesis aims to foster new developments in the design, construction and operation of municipal systems in urban areas. This architecture will respond to the cities rate of consumption and the disposal of waste by alternative methods that produce energy, such as turning waste into fertilizer, biogas, electricity, recyclable materials and distributing it back into the surrounding community

Reverse engineering signalling networks in cancer cells

Obwohl die Krebstherapie im letzten Jahrhundert große Fortschritte gemacht hat, bleibt die Resistenz gegen medikamentöse Behandlungen ein großes Hindernis im Kampf gegen den Krebs. In dieser Arbeit habe ich ein R-Paket namens STASNet entwickelt, das semi-quantitative Modelle der Signaltransduktion aus Signalisierungs-Störungsantwortdaten unter Verwendung von Least Square Modular Response Analysis-Modellen generiert. Um zu untersuchen, wie gut STASNet die Aktivität von Signalwegen quantifizieren kann, haben wir Perturbationsdaten von einem Paar isogener Darmkrebszelllinien mit und ohne SHP2-Knock-out, einem bekannten Resistenzmechanismus bei dieser Krebsart, verwendet. Ich habe dann untersucht die Resistenz gegen die MEK- und ALK-Hemmung beim Neuroblastom, einem pädiatrischen Krebs mit schlechter Prognose. Ein Wirkstoffscreening zeigte, dass der MEK-Inhibitor Selumetinib ein Panel von Neuroblastom-Zelllinien in drei sensitive und sechs resistente Zelllinien trennte, dass konnte nicht mit einzelnen molekularen Markern erklärt. STASNet-Modelle zeigten, dass die starke Resistenz gegen Selumetinib durch eine starke Rückkopplung von ERK auf MEK oder eine vielschichtige Rückkopplung sowohl auf MEK als auch auf IGF1R getrieben wurde. Aus dem Modell konnte eine kombinatorische Therapie abgeleitet werden, die auf MEK in Kombination mit entweder RAF oder IGF1R abzielt, je nach Art der in der Zelllinie vorhandenen Rückkopplungen. Schließlich ergab die Untersuchung der Wirkung von NF1-KO auf die Signalübertragung, dass der Verlust von NF1 den MAPK-Weg für die Liganden-induzierte Aktivierung hypersensibilisierte, aber das ERK-RAF-Rückkopplung störte. Die Erkenntnisse aus den in dieser Arbeit entwickelten Modellen werden somit dazu beitragen, personalisierte Kombinationen von Inhibitoren zu entwerfen, die als Zweitlinientherapie nach molekularer Untersuchung der Tumorreaktion auf die Erstbehandlung eingesetzt werden könnten.Cancer therapy has seen immense progress over the last century but resistance to drug treatments remains a major obstacle in the war against cancer. I developed an R package named STASNet to generate models of signal transduction from signalling perturbation-response data using Least Square Modular Response Analysis models. I used these models to study how differences in signal transduction relate to drug resistance and can be used to make predictions about resistance mechanisms and optimal treatments. To show how STASNet can accurately quantify the activity of signalling pathways, I used perturbation data from a pair of isogenic colon cancer cell line with and without SHP2 knock-out, a known resistance mechanism in this cancer type, which showed that MAPK signalling is more affected by SHP2 knock-out than PI3K signalling, confirming the role of SHP2 as a primary MAPK component. I investigated resistance to MEK and ALK inhibition in neuroblastoma, a pediatric cancer with a dismal prognosis. The MEK inhibitor Selumetinib separated a panel of neuroblastoma cell lines into three sensitive and six resistant cell lines that could not be explained with individual molecular markers. STASNet models trained on perturbation-response data from these cell lines revealed that the strong resistance to Selumetinib was driven by a strong feedback from ERK to MEK or a multi-layered feedback to both MEK and IGF1R. This was confirmed by phosphoproteomics and suggested a therapy targeting MEK in combination with either RAF or IGF1R depending on the type of feedback present in the cell line that was confirmed experimentally. Finally, studying the effect of NF1-KO on signalling revealed that the loss of NF1 hyper-sensitized the MAPK pathway to ligand-induced activation but disrupted the ERK-RAF feedback. Those insights to design personalized combinations of inhibitors that could be used as second line therapy after molecularly monitoring the tumor response to the initial treatment

Federal recognition, native space and indigenous performance: an ethnographic analysis of northeastern dance in the Shinnecock powwow

The following has been included in the absence of an abstract: 1.6 THESIS AIMS AND STRUCTURE This project has the following main aims: 1. To define who the Shinnecock tribe are and why the approval of Federal Recognition for the tribe in 2010 was culturally significant. 2. To explore how the powwow, a form of longstanding cultural expression helped in the obtainment of Shinnecock Federal Recognition in 2010. 3. To use a facet of the powwow, Northeastern dances, as a case study, to illustrate the influence of a Northeastern identity and style has had on the Federal Recognition Process

Morphology Controlled Synthesis of Copper Based Multimetallic Nanostructures and Their Electrocatalytic Properties for Methanol Oxidation Reaction

This research focuses on the development of shape-controlled synthesis of Cu NM, Cu-based bimetallic and trimetallic nanostructures, and their electrocatalytic properties for methanol oxidation reaction (MOR). Copper nanomaterials (Cu NM) with specific surface facets can tailor their catalytic activity. Understanding reagents responsible for Cu NM growth is important for morphology-controlled synthesis of the nanostructures. This research studies the halide influence on Cu NM growth and morphology in an oil-based synthesis. The morphology of the Cu NM varies with the halide type (i.e., Cl-, Br-, I-), and the halide concentration. Additionally, the type of Cu precursor also influenced the morphology of the resultant Cu NM. Select Cu nanostructures were utilized as templates for the formation of bimetallic and trimetallic nanostructures in order to study the composition and morphology influence on the electrocatalytic properties. Binary and ternary core-frame and frame nanostructures, composed of Cu, Pt, and Ru, were developed and their electrocatalytic activity was investigated. Multimetallic, branched core-frame nanostructures were formed by co-reducing Pt and Ru onto the vertices and edges of Cu rhombic dodecahedra. The multimetallic frame nanostructures were formed by etching the coreframe nanostructures. Studies over electrocatalytic activity demonstrated the multimetallic coreframe nanostructures decreased MOR activity, while the multimetallic frame nanostructures enhanced MOR activity and stability, due to the alloying at the frame nanostructure’s surface. Additionally, the incorporation of Ru into these novel frame nanostructures improved resistance towards CO poisoning. This research also develops multimetallic nanotubes with synthetically tunable surface morphology and platinum content. CuPt nanotubes with smooth and rough surface morphology were developed through the in situ separation of the galvanic replacement reaction and the co-reduction mechanisms, during the alloying process with Cu nanowires. Ru was incorporated into the multimetallic nanotubes forming Cu-Pt-Ru smooth and rough surface structure. The influence of nanotube surface morphology and composition on electrocatalytic activity was investigated, which determined the importance of surface roughness for enhanced MOR activity. Rough nanotubes with Ru increased MOR activity, decreased MOR overpotential, and improved resistance towards CO poisoning. This research provides insight into the effects of nanomaterial composition and structure on electrocatalysis of MOR