Polymers permeate almost all facets of modern life. For end use applications, these materials are typically processed into products at elevated temperatures under which molten polymers are subjected to flow. Particular interest lies in the flow-induced crystallization behavior of polymer melts under extensional flow, which is a flow type dominant...
This thesis consists of three projects, centered around the aim to better model real-world systems under uncertainty, specifically, under stochastic disruptions, using optimization. A stochastic disruption is a type of infrequent event in which the timing and the magnitude are random. We introduce the concept of stochastic disruptions and a...
Contactin associated protein like 2 (CNTNAP2) has emerged as a prominent susceptibility gene implicated in multiple complex neurodevelopmental disorders, including autism spectrum disorders (ASD), intellectual disability (ID), and schizophrenia (SCZ). The presence of seizure comorbidity in many of these cases, as well as inhibitory neuron dysfunction in Cntnap2 knockout (KO)...
Understanding how spin waves propagate through ferromagnets is an important component of a wider international effort to create spintronic devices. In this thesis, we develop a propagating spin wave spectroscopy to make a variety of measurements on thin films of Yttrium Iron Garnet (YIG), a material known for having long...
In this dissertation, I cover three different topics in macroeconomics. In Chapter 1, I explore the macroeconomic implications of an increase in business competition and its micro transmission channels. In Chapter 2, I document a rise in savings and cash holdings by non-financial corporations across advanced economies and show that...
The concealed information test (CIT) has garnered more empirical support than other methods of recognition detection and has a firm theoretical foundation. Because it occurs involuntarily, even when recognition is denied, P300 amplitude is a robust indictor of concealed information. Although the P300-based CIT shows great promise for field use,...
The tension-spoke bicycle wheel owes its stiffness and strength to a cooperative relationship between the rim and the spokes: the rim holds the spokes in tension to prevent them from buckling under external loads, while the spokes channel external forces to the hub and prevent the rim from becoming severely...
The structure of the North American crust and mantle was investigated using P wave teleseismic tomography and the links between seismic tomographic models, locations of volcanism, sediment isopachs, and continental scale crustal structures via plate reconstruction modeling. Nearly 50,000 teleseismic P wave delay times were measured from seismograms recorded by...
Infidel(itie)s of Colour: Unruly Black Bodies, Modernity and Performance in Post-Apartheid South Africa focusses on the ways that queer and feminist artists of colour draw upon their traditional black cultural heritage and spiritual practises as a means of laying claim to cultural citizenship and belonging in post-apartheid South Africa. I...
Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) and their associated Cas proteins provide an immune-like response in many prokaryotes against extraneous nucleic acids. CRISPR-Cas systems are classified into different classes and types that vary widely in composition, target recognition, and overall mechanism. The main division of CRISPR-Cas systems occurs between...