This thesis describes a dissimilarity-based classification tool, the δ-machine, which gives an alternative way of statistical modeling compared to the conventional ones that directly use predictor... Show moreThis thesis describes a dissimilarity-based classification tool, the δ-machine, which gives an alternative way of statistical modeling compared to the conventional ones that directly use predictor variables. We use the symbol δ, because it is commonly used as a symbol for dissimilarities in multidimensional scaling.In this thesis, we discuss the properties of the δ-machine, and extend the δ-machine from handling continuous predictor variables only to handle different types of predictor variables, including continuous, ordinal, nominal, and binary predictor variables via the two tailored dissimilarity functions. Furthermore, we study the classification performance of the δ-machine in high dimensional data. We propose a Majorization-Minimization algorithm to interpolate new data points coherently into previously constructed classical multidimensional scaling (CMDS) configurations, and use the proposed algorithm in the δ-machine in high dimensional data scenario, where CMDS is applied to reduce the original high dimensional predictor variables. In order to make predictions for new data points, therefore, needs to interpolate them into the constructed CMDS.The δ-machine shows promising predictive performance in general and is able to find informative exemplars/prototypes, which bring extra insights of data. The informative exemplars could be used in the further study. Show less
This dissertation focuses on the overall study, as well as the nuances, of bullying behaviours among school-going youth in India. A systematic review of past literature from India is presented by... Show moreThis dissertation focuses on the overall study, as well as the nuances, of bullying behaviours among school-going youth in India. A systematic review of past literature from India is presented by synthesizing 37 empirical studies examining psychometric properties of the instruments adopted, methodological characteristics, sample size and procedures, and characteristics of bullying behaviour. Results show that bullying is widely spread, and certain factors, like caste and religion, and their association with bullying behaviours are typical to the Indian culture. This dissertation also examines if dimensions of psychopathy, namely callous-unemotional traits, narcissism, and impulsivity, can differentiate between, bullies, victims, and bully-victims in a longitudinal capacity. Using a multi-informant approach and multinomial logistic regression analyses, it was found that psychopathy dimensions taken together provide a better fit in predicting bullying than the independent psychopathic subscales. The dissertation further investigates the structure and context of the relationship between victimization and Body Mass Index through a transactional model. Key results of structural equation modeling analyses yielded mainly concurrent relations between BMI and victimization, emphasizing that results from western countries may not generalize to India. Finally, bullying behaviours among youth as a function of their socio-economic status (SES) in classroom and self-perceptions of minority status are examined using a moderated-mediation growth model. Results show classroom level SES plays a significant role in predicting victimization cross-sectionally, and is mediated through perceptions of self. However, in the long run, being part of a minority, and perceiving self as such, leads to decreased victimization among youth in India. Show less
The increasing popularity of Twitter in both scholarly communication and public engagement with science has triggered widespread Twitter interactions around scientific information, thus giving rise... Show moreThe increasing popularity of Twitter in both scholarly communication and public engagement with science has triggered widespread Twitter interactions around scientific information, thus giving rise to the emergence of scholarly Twitter metrics which aim to measure and characterize Twitter interactions related to scholarly objects. For the sake of more advanced scholarly Twitter metrics, the overarching aim of this PhD dissertation is to characterize diverse forms of Twitter interactions around scientific papers to understand in greater-depth the Twitter reception of scientific information and improve scholarly Twitter metrics. To this end, this dissertation starts with large-scale analyses of how many and how fast scientific papers are mentioned on Twitter in comparison with other types of social media metric data sources, to unravel the broadness and speed of Twitter presence of scientific papers. Then, focusing on scholarly tweets of scientific papers per se, this dissertation investigates the characteristics of diverse user interaction behaviors around scholarly tweets, shedding light on their potential value in developing more advanced indicators for measuring deeper levels of Twitter reception of scientific information. Finally, based on the main findings, this dissertation further discusses the possibility to approach a more fine-grained indicator system of scholarly Twitter metrics. Show less
In essence, airport slots are planning tools for the rationing of capacity at airports where available capacity falls short of air travel demand. Since the availability of slots is directly... Show moreIn essence, airport slots are planning tools for the rationing of capacity at airports where available capacity falls short of air travel demand. Since the availability of slots is directly connected to the capacity of an airport at a particular date and time, a slot is by definition a scarce resource. The extent of. Slot scarcity depends on the congestion level of an airport. Excess demand for slots has substantial implications for airlines, coordinators and airports alike, as well as for society as a whole. This dissertation is designed to explore the compatibility of the global and specific legal regimes governing airport slot coordination with the particular socio-economic challenges that international organizations, governments and air transport industry stakeholders are experiencing today. A multitude of socio-economic objectives are identified, including but not limited to the environment in terms of noise and carbon reduction policies, growing airport access issues and general debates on airport functions to society. The number of so-called 'super-congested' airports in terms of the full slot capacity being historically 'occupied' by incumbent carriers are on the rise and are carefully studied from a policy and legal point of view. Show less
The corpus of Æsopian fables books has been taught to French children and teenagers for centuries. Yet little analysis looks at the production in its entirety. Therefore, within this corpus, I... Show moreThe corpus of Æsopian fables books has been taught to French children and teenagers for centuries. Yet little analysis looks at the production in its entirety. Therefore, within this corpus, I evaluated the relationship between the text, the images, and the educational purpose of various fable authors using 252 visuals, published between 1500 and 2020. Sources include picture books, board games, sheet music, posters, school materials, and even application software. All have in common the aim of pursuing or promoting an educational use of the fables. My research focuses on the role that illustrated fables play in French education.Through a sociological approach that features the concept of médiation littéraire, book history, literary analysis, the study of the layout of the books and intermedial analysis, I conclude that Æsopian fables are used as a social link between generations of French people.They became essential across primary schools in the mid-19th century. Before that, they were mostly intended for socially privileged children whose families could afford a secondary education.Regardless of the century, the illustrations which accompany fables play a role in the text’s adoption across French schools: they participate in the transmission of the genre and other kinds of knowledge Show less
The increasing amount and complexity of data over the past decades have given rise to new sorts of questions, also in the field of infectious disease epidemiology. This thesis proposes methods to... Show moreThe increasing amount and complexity of data over the past decades have given rise to new sorts of questions, also in the field of infectious disease epidemiology. This thesis proposes methods to analyze data available at multiple resolution levels and to combine different data types in infectious disease surveillance. Hereby using techniques central to data science. Show less
The heart is innervated by the autonomic nervous system, which can be divided into sympathetic and parasympathetic parts. The balance between cardiac sympathetic and parasympathetic innervation is... Show moreThe heart is innervated by the autonomic nervous system, which can be divided into sympathetic and parasympathetic parts. The balance between cardiac sympathetic and parasympathetic innervation is critical for maintaining normal cardiac function. After myocardial infarction, sympathetic hyperinnervation has been discovered in patients as well as in animal models, which has raised growing awareness in relation to arrhythmogenesis. However the mechanism is not clear yet. In this thesis, we hypothesize a role for epicardium-derived cells (EPDCs) in this process. In addition, we aimed to study ganglia remodeling after myocardial infarction. We explored: i) the role of EPDCs in promoting cardiac sympathetic re-/hyperinnervation after cardiac damage in vitro, ii) the impact of sex of EPDCs on cardiac innervation, iii) the generation of inducible proliferative human EPDCs (iEPDCs), iv) neuronal remodeling of superior cervical ganglia after myocardial infarction and v) the molecular signature of SCG revealed by single nucleus RNA sequencing. Show less
Sugammadex (Bridion®, laboratory code Org 25969) encapsulates neuromuscular blocking agents rocuronium and vecuronium and reverses their pharmacological effect in the post-operative setting. During... Show moreSugammadex (Bridion®, laboratory code Org 25969) encapsulates neuromuscular blocking agents rocuronium and vecuronium and reverses their pharmacological effect in the post-operative setting. During the development trajectory of this first selective relaxant binding agent, it was found that sugammadex has an effect on standard coagulation laboratory coagulation assays. However, this off-target effect was not further evaluated in clinical studies. This raised safety concerns by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) during their review of the application for marketing authorization for sugammadex.This thesis is comprised of a variety of in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo (clinical) pharmacology studies to provide more insight into the off-target effect of sugammadex on coagulation. The research involved the search for a mechanism, but also the clinical consequences on both primary and secondary hemostasis in clinical studies that included healthy volunteers. This evaluation was indispensable to overcome the bleeding safety concerns raised by both the EMA and the FDA. Show less
This thesis addresses several pathophysiological and clinical aspects of both the Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome (LEMS, introduced in chapter 1) and myasthenia gravis (MG).In chapter 2, the... Show moreThis thesis addresses several pathophysiological and clinical aspects of both the Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome (LEMS, introduced in chapter 1) and myasthenia gravis (MG).In chapter 2, the search for new LEMS associated small cell lung cancer (SCLC) markers is described, leading to the discovery of ERC1 as a new antigen associated with LEMS.In chapter 3, a literature review of screening methods for SCLC in LEMS is presented, aswell as the role of associated SOX1 antibodies in SCLC-LEMS patients.In chapter 4 long-term follow-up, functional impairment and quality of life in LEMSpatients are described. We also report a normal survival in LEMS patients without associated tumour as well as an improved tumour survival in SCLC-LEMS patients.In chapter 5, we report that lowering the cut-off value for increment from 100% to 60% increases sensitivity for diagnosis of LEMS, without a negative effect on the specificity.Chapter 6 reports that a lower initial compound muscle action potential amplitude is a marker of more severe disease in AChR MG.In chapter 7, we show a small symptomatic effect of ephedrine as a symptomatic treatment in MG patients, in a placebo-controlled, double-blind, randomised, multiple crossover series of n-of-1 trials. Show less
In this research project I analyze and reflect on taqsīm recordings by two leading figures of ‘ūd playing who were pillars of modern Arabic music, namely the Egyptians Muḥammad al-Qaṣabjī (1898... Show moreIn this research project I analyze and reflect on taqsīm recordings by two leading figures of ‘ūd playing who were pillars of modern Arabic music, namely the Egyptians Muḥammad al-Qaṣabjī (1898-1964) and Riyāḍ al-Sunbāṭī (1906-1981). I decode and underline their most significant traits in order to:1) enrich and develop my melodic-rhythmic vocabulary;2) deepen my understanding of the structural, melodic and rhythmic processes underlying the genre;3) design a structural framework or a model for pre-composing taqsīm-like pieces of music.To put it another way, the dissertation discusses the creation of pre-composed taqāsīm. The pieces follow a specific model of pre-composition that was designed while taking al-Qaṣabjī and al-Sunbāṭī’s taqsīm practice as a reference and a source of inspiration. This model contributes to both artistic research and practical knowledge, and provides new insights into structural, melodic and rhythmical processes of the genre. The artistic outcome of this project includes five new works for solo ‘ūd. Show less
Due to the increased incidence of breast cancer and improved survival, more women are at risk of developing contralateral breast cancer (CBC). The aim of this thesis was to explore risk factors... Show moreDue to the increased incidence of breast cancer and improved survival, more women are at risk of developing contralateral breast cancer (CBC). The aim of this thesis was to explore risk factors associated with CBC. We observed significant associations for a polygenic risk score of common germline variants (PRS313) and for different adjuvant systemic therapy regimens with (subtype-specific) CBC risk. These factors may be incorporated in CBC risk prediction models together with other known and available risk factors. For support of clinical decision making more biological information is needed to understand CBC development in women with invasive breast cancer and DCIS. As a first step towards implementation of a risk prediction model, we performed an exploratory interview study, which showed that patients had varying preferences for graphical presentation of probabilities in a CBC prediction model. In future studies, the prediction model should be incorporated in a decision support tool and implemented in clinical practice. This tool can then help to better identify women at high risk of CBC who may benefit from prophylactic surgery, while the estimates can also be used to reassure patients who are at low risk of developing CBC. Show less
In the field of Western art music, improvisation has become a much discussed topic. In this interdisciplinary study Mooiman argues that in this context, improvisation is not to be seen as a quasi... Show moreIn the field of Western art music, improvisation has become a much discussed topic. In this interdisciplinary study Mooiman argues that in this context, improvisation is not to be seen as a quasi-autonomous skill or art form, but as an aspect of music-making in general. With this research, Mooiman offers a ‘panorama’ of nineteenth-century styles and situations of music-making that together sketch a picture of improvisatory aspects of nineteenth-century music. Music was generally experienced as a wordless language, and he argues that making music was understood as a rhetorical act: performers strove for musical persuasion. This study focuses on the performer: it explores how performers in the nineteenth century might have thought during the real-time act of music-making, and how performers today might learn to use musical languages from the past actively again. For this last aspect, the area of music theory is relevant; Mooiman concludes his dissertation with a discussion of how traditional music theory is challenged by improvisatory music-making. Show less
This thesis aims to improve the early identification of mental healthproblems (MHPs) in children by developing a prediction model for MHPs inchildren based on readily available information from... Show moreThis thesis aims to improve the early identification of mental healthproblems (MHPs) in children by developing a prediction model for MHPs inchildren based on readily available information from electronic patient recordsfrom general practice.The prediction models for child MHPs, based on the data from the electronichealth records of general practitioners (GPs), have not yet performed wellenough to be used safely in daily practice. A number of relevant predictivecharacteristics have been identified: characteristics such as physicalcomplaints (e.g. abdominal pain or headache) and characteristics related tohigher health care use (e.g. more than two GP visits or a laboratoryexamination in the previous year) were age-independent predictors of MHPs.Awareness of (a combination of) these characteristics can help GPs to identifyMHPs at an early stage.To investigate whether merging information from preventive youth healthcare(PYH) and GPs in one algorithm can improve the identification of MHPs, wecombined information from the electronic files of PYH and GPs. However, themodels based on these combined data did not outperform the models based on GPdata alone. Several individual characteristics measured in PYH turned out to bepredictors for MHPs in general practice. Show less
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by memory loss and declined cognitive functioning. Brain changes in AD involve grey matter atrophy and changes in brain... Show moreAlzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by memory loss and declined cognitive functioning. Brain changes in AD involve grey matter atrophy and changes in brain function. These different brain characteristics can respectively be visualized with structural and functional MRI scans. These MRI modalities have been used for AD classification, but studies typically only include a limited number of features. In this thesis we derived multiple types of features from each MRI modality, and combined those to discriminate AD patients and elderly controls. First, we showed that AD classification accuracy increases when combining multiple types of measures from a single MRI modality. This was shown for structural MRI scans in chapter 2, and for resting state fMRI scans in chapter 3. In chapter 4 we evaluated whether MRI based AD classification models can discriminate AD in a diverse clinical population as well. This worked to some extent, and it worked best using structural MRI scans. In chapter 5 we used baseline multimodal MRI scans from the same diverse clinical population to predict two-year follow-up cognitive decline. Decline was predicted above chance level for the MMSE, but not for six other neuropsychological tests. Show less
The making of sacrifices seems part and parcel of any elite sportsperson’s life. Remarkably, the insights that we find in the current literature in social sport studies are not able to make sense... Show moreThe making of sacrifices seems part and parcel of any elite sportsperson’s life. Remarkably, the insights that we find in the current literature in social sport studies are not able to make sense of the references to sacrifice in the data that emerged in the context of this study on the social significance of elite women’s football. The thesis that I put forward is that the existing Marxist, cultural studies and Foucauldian poststructuralist frameworks that we find in the field of social sport studies must be supplemented by the theory of play inherited from Johan Huizinga, Eugen Fink and Hans-Georg Gadamer for both conceptual and ethical reasons. I argue that the theory of play allows us first of all to make sense of the player’s experience of sacrifice. More precisely, understood as an independent, irreducible structure of experience, play allow us to make sense of the women’s football players’ experiences of sacrifice in a way that is compatible and complimentary to those insights of Marxism, cultural studies and Foucauldian poststructuralism, which remain indispensable. Secondly, the theory of play makes visible that the existing frameworks miss important insights in theorizing the subject, and, by extension, brings forth a notion of freedom and resistance that is currently lacking in the field of social sport studies. ‘Lacking’, as we cannot find these notions in the field of social sport studies, but also ‘lacking’ because the field of study is in need of alternative ways to think about freedom and resistance. This thesis thus contains a systematic point, namely our discovery that “players play”, that their experience cannot be understood without an account of play as such, alongside an analysis of what that means; and a methodological point, namely that in order to take into consideration that players play, we need a new method, which I describe as a feminist playology. The prefix feminist refers to the commitment of this method to understand sport as a gendered activity. Show less
In Bronze Age Europe, an enormous amount of metalwork was buried in the ground and never retrieved. Patterns in these finds show that this was a deliberate practice: people systematically deposited... Show moreIn Bronze Age Europe, an enormous amount of metalwork was buried in the ground and never retrieved. Patterns in these finds show that this was a deliberate practice: people systematically deposited valuable metal objects in specific places in the landscape, even in non-metalliferous regions. Although this practice seems puzzling from our modern perspective, these patterns demonstrate that this is not simply a matter of irrational human behaviour. Instead, there were supra-regionally shared ideas and conventions behind this practice.This book aims to acquire a better understanding of these ideas and conventions. By systematically investigating the objects and places that people selected for metalwork depositions, the logic behind the practice of selective metalwork deposition is unravelled.This book focuses specifically on the emergence of the practice in Denmark, northern Germany, and the Netherlands, a non-metalliferous region that has not been studied as a whole before, despite striking similarities in the archaeological record. Starting from the first introduction of metal, the emergence and development of selective metalwork depositions is examined and followed over time. In addition to a new chronological and geographical depth to research on metalwork depositions, this book provides a detailed catalogue of the metalwork from the research area. Show less
Survival of patients with colorectal cancer improved markedly over the past decades, as a result of advances in screening, staging procedures, treatment, and surveillance. However, still about 20%... Show moreSurvival of patients with colorectal cancer improved markedly over the past decades, as a result of advances in screening, staging procedures, treatment, and surveillance. However, still about 20% of patients with colorectal cancer develop metachronous metastases and 20% of all patients with colorectal cancer have metastatic disease at diagnosis. Several treatment modalities, such as total mesorectal excision (TME) and preoperative (chemo)radiotherapy for rectal cancer, as well as adjuvant chemotherapy for stage III colon cancer, have been studied extensively and showed to improve cancer-related outcomes. On the contrary, the effectiveness of other treatment modalities including adjuvant chemotherapy for rectal cancer and for stage II colon cancer, and surgery of the primary tumour in incurable metastatic colorectal cancer are still subject of debate. Moreover, there is considerable short-term and long-term morbidity after (chemo)radiotherapy or surgery which should be taken into account. Further defining optimal treatment strategies is therefore of great importance. This thesis focused on improving evidence for treatment modalities that are currently subject of debate for patients with colorectal cancer. This was done using data from randomised controlled trials as well as cancer registry data. Show less
As museums face more scrutiny and are being demanded to decolonize, there are opportunities for Dominican museums to adopt a critical perspective and turn their collections and exhibitions into... Show moreAs museums face more scrutiny and are being demanded to decolonize, there are opportunities for Dominican museums to adopt a critical perspective and turn their collections and exhibitions into connections to our cultural past, present, and future. Nevertheless, specific research on archaeological collections in the Dominican Republic, the earliest hub of the European invasion, conquest, and colonization of the New World, has been scarce. This qualitative study explored how communities can be engaged to critically analyze museum narratives that perpetuate colonial ideas of Caribbean Indigenous extinction, which contribute to a disconnection from Indigenous heritage collections. Findings suggest opportunities for connections by improving access through the design of education and exhibition initiatives and the representation of cultural practices in ways that are important to the communities. This study provides future scholars with practical suggestions for designing community connections with Indigenous heritage institutions while creating multi-vocal engagements and inclusive meeting points for cultural self-determination. Show less
Breast cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer death in women worldwide. Survival after diagnosis varies greatly between patients even when the tumor characteristics aresimilar. Familial... Show moreBreast cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer death in women worldwide. Survival after diagnosis varies greatly between patients even when the tumor characteristics aresimilar. Familial studies have shown that relatives with breast cancer tend to have similar prognosis, indicating that breast cancer survival might have a heritable component. Moreover,candidate genes studies have identified prognostic roles for germline mutated genes such as BRCA1/2 and pharmacogenomic studies have explored how germline mutations might affect treatment. Nonetheless, the role of common germline variants on breast cancer survival is still unclear. In this thesis, we aimed exploring the association between common germline variants and breast cancer survival. Show less
In large-scale infrastructure projects, the Dutch government allows its citizens to suffer some damage and nuisance ('facilitated damage'). The government then aims to settle claims and compensate... Show moreIn large-scale infrastructure projects, the Dutch government allows its citizens to suffer some damage and nuisance ('facilitated damage'). The government then aims to settle claims and compensate that damage; it also tries to restore the trust relationship between victimized citizens and the government. How can government arrive at a trust-building compensation policy if it has facilitated damage for a group of citizens in a large-scale infrastructural project, for the sake of the public interest? In this research, an interdisciplinary theoretical framework of trust-building compensation policy is designed based on legal, public administrative and political science insights. Subsequently, on the basis of three extensive case studies – the construction of the North/South metro line in Amsterdam, the expansion of Schiphol Airport, and the consequences of gas extraction in Groningen – the study analyzes to what extent these theoretical insights have an effect in practice: did they help to build or recover trust in government? The aim of the study is to provide practical and concrete guidelines for lawyers and policymakers involved in compensation policy, so that they know how not to damage trust in the government in the future. Show less
