This dissertation examines topical humor produced by "Late Night with David Letterman," "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," "Saturday Night Live," and The Onion for the period of one year after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Three phases emerge: the purgation of extreme emotions like anger, acceptance or...
This thesis is devoted to the study of A-branes on symplectic tori and to the Mirror Symmetry conjecture. Using a method called Seidel's mirror map, we are able to reconstruct the homogeneous coordinate ring of a complex abelian variety using Lagrangian intersection theory on the mirror symplectic torus. Moreover, we...
In composite manufacturing, Vacuum Assisted Resin Transfer Molding (VARTM) is becoming increasingly important as a cost effective manufacturing method of structural composites. In this process the dry preform (reinforcement) is placed on a rigid tool and covered by a flexible film to form an airtight vacuum bag. Liquid resin is...
This dissertation presents a Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) study of anisotropic superconductors, MgB$_2$ and Bi$_2$Sr$_2$CaCu$_2$O$_{8+\delta}$ (Bi2212), and diffusion in glass-forming aqueous solutions of glycerol. In glycerol and deuterated water mixtures, the diffusion of glycerol is measured selectively by the $^1$H NMR stimulated echo technique in the gradient field of a...
The primary function of the human urinary bladder is to store urine, while maintaining a permeability barrier that protects underlying tissues from noxious urinary components. Inflammatory diseases of the bladder, including urinary tract infection (UTI) and interstitial cystitis (IC), afflict millions of patients in the US annually and cause significant...
High relaxivity contrast agents are of great importance in the advancement of magnetic resonance imaging diagnostics for use in biomaterials. Biomaterials that are implanted into the body, with the goal of repairing or regenerating lost or damaged tissue, need to be tracked noninvasively, over time. I have completed work using...
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) allows for the selective visualization of blood vessels via the intravascular injection of a paramagnetic contrast agent and the suppression of background signal. Called magnetic resonance angiography (MRA), this technique can produce three-dimensional images and is useful clinically for the noninvasive diagnosis of vascular disorders. In...
What can the theatrical use of food accomplish in performances which assert cultural, legal, or moral rights to food production and consumption in a food insecure society? Case studies comprising the USDA's 1933-34 World's Fair exhibits, the May 1933 Wisconsin Cooperative Milk Pool protest, the 1936 Federal Theatre Project living...
"Prufrock" to <em>The Waste Land</em>: T. S. Eliot's Periodical Publications, 1915-1922 Randall J. Woods This dissertation presents, in publication date order, the 167 articles published by T. S. Eliot from 1915 to 1922, most of which have never been reprinted. They include literary criticism, book reviews, poetry, philosophical essays, humorous...
I study several aspects of a game-theoretic model of persuasion. A speaker attempts to persuade a listener to take an action which is highly ranked by the speaker. The listener knows the speaker's preference but is uncertain about what the speaker can say. The listener can commit to a persuasion...