I present research in systems of biomedical relevance consisting of agents near or com- prising surfaces using computational approaches. The research topics include formation of bacterial biofilms, behavior of charged species near stacked, like-charged lamellae, and the the conformational behavior of lamellae with strong self-attraction.
In chapter 2, I present...
When we speak, we communicate not only with the words we choose, but also with the patterns of sound we create. As auditory experts, musicians are especially adept at making sense of sound, and accumulating research reveals that this extends to their processing of speech and other communication signals. Much...
How do households confront insecurity? This dissertation is a study of how households navigate insecurity as observed through struggles with homeownership and foreclosure. I discuss insecurity as a multi-dimensional experience that puts important resources at risk of loss and reaches into many areas of family life, including health, wealth, food,...
In the past few decades, psycholinguistic and neurolinguistic research has shown that nouns and verbs are processed differently in cognitively healthy individuals, and can be selectively impaired in aphasic individuals. However, this noun-verb dichotomy is poorly understood. This dissertation investigated cognitive and neural distinctions between nouns and verbs by studying...
The microwave, optical, and electro-optic properties of epitaxial barium titanate thin films grown on (100) MgO substrates and photonic crystal electro-optic modulators fabricated on these films were investigated to demonstrate the applicability of these devices for telecommunication and data networks. The electrical and electro-optical properties were characterized up to modulation...
The purpose of the dissertation is to develop a framework for equilibration of activity-trip chain demand in an integrated system of activity scheduling and travel choices within a dynamic network equilibrium framework. Activity-based modeling systems generate detailed activity chain schedules for individuals, which have to be assigned to transportation networks....
Pattern recognition algorithms have been proposed as a way to control powered lower limb prostheses, specifically for transitioning between the different pre-programmed locomotion modes of the prosthesis (e.g., level ground walking, stair ascent, etc.). However, these algorithms cannot track changes in the statistical characteristics of input signals, and do not...
The growth of incarceration in the United States, a symptom of the concomitant broader institutionalization of a ‘carceral state’, is unquestionably one of the most significant developments in the nation's history. Despite this significance, the public response to the growth and deleterious consequences of incarceration has been notably restrained. This...
Myocardial perfusion is an important marker of cardiovascular health that is routinely evaluated clinically. Perfusion is measured most often using single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) imaging, but magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has many advantages over SPECT. Measuring perfusion quantitatively in ml/min/g would theoretically allow for improved characterization of cardiac...
Consent is at the center of feminist politics and theory; the importance of this concept is evident in the recent campus activism around sexual assault. Because consent has become so critically important, it is necessary for feminists to interrogate the concept of consent. In this dissertation, I argue that consent...