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This study seeks to develop a greater understanding of approaches to integrating technique and interpretation at the highest level of violin playing in the classical tradition, by reflecting on my professional practice as a violinist and violin teacher in the broader context of violin pedagogy both in China and in the West. It comprises three components: a thesis, a video-recorded final recital of works by Debussy, Strauss and Wieniawski, and video recordings of repertoire by Bach, Schubert, Brahms, Ernst and Milstein. The motivating factor behind this study is that the separation of technique and interpretation is seen as a common approach in many teaching environments, particularly in the context of violin training in China where the focus is put on technical perfection. This pedagogical approach has had significant results in training young people; however, evidence suggests that the lack of connection between the development of musicality and technical training inherent in this exclusively technique-driven approach to violin pedagogy may have a built-in limit to what can be achieved. Therefore, my project aims to investigate ways to develop high-level instrumental technique alongside individual musical development to establish the foundations for a deep engagement with style and interpretation, and to develop a more integrated approach for students. The investigation is conducted through a variety of approaches. My practice-led research examines the technical and interpretive issues involved in preparing specific repertoire for performance, prioritising techniques of expressivity such as tone quality, tone colour, choices of bowings and fingerings, breathing and vibrato; conducting interviews/ observations and taking lessons with a group of world-renowned violin professors; and documenting my reflections on the lessons and my own practice sessions. My research confirms that adopting a more integrated approach to technique and expression results in a richer and wider range of interpretive possibilities. The findings also provide a new perspective on fundamental questions surrounding the balance between technical and musical issues in a later stage of musical development. The purpose of developing this approach is to seek a rich qualitative understanding from which to extrapolate broader principles and approaches that could then inform high-level violin teaching in China and assist students in their further development.

Programmable recruitment of transcription factors to activate genes in a targeted and specific manner, commonly known as CRISPR activation (CRISPRa), offers unprecedented opportunities for therapeutic interventions. For example, the upregulation of the compensatory gene LAMA1 using CRISPRa to treat LAMA2-related deficient congenital muscular dystrophies (LAMA2-RD) has emerged as a mutation-independent therapeutic approach for this condition. However, the viral delivery of CRISPRa components has been complicated by their size and the limited packaging capacity of adeno-associated viruses (AAVs), necessitating the use of dual AAV approaches that contribute to a common bottleneck in gene therapy, including high dose, potential toxicity, and production cost. Here, I present a miniaturized CRISPRa system that can be packaged into a single AAV and apply this approach to upregulate a compensatory gene Lama1 in a mouse model representing a severe form of LAMA2-RD. Single-AAV9 carrying S. aureus dCas9, driven by novel mini promoter 4XNRF1, combined with tripartite activators VP64-delp65-delRTA and a single guide RNA targeting the mouse Lama1 promoter resulted in systemic LAMA1 expression, including critical target tissues for LAMA2-RD such as the skeletal muscles and peripheral nerves. Importantly, the single AAV-mediated Lama1 upregulation significantly improved neuromuscular functions and extended the lifespan of the severe LAMA2-RD mouse model. Compared to the current state of CRISPRa therapeutic in LAMA2-RD, here, I successfully rescued the disease phenotype in a much more severe mouse model with only half the viral load. These results are crucial to advance the therapeutic development of upregulating the disease modifier gene for LAMA2-RD. Moreover, the components and engineered cassettes presented are adaptable for AAV-based gene therapy for different genetic diseases, such as other neuromuscular disorders and haploinsufficiency-related diseases.

In recent years, a huge success on photovoltaic and light emitting has been achieved in the field of organic-inorganic hybrid perovskites owing to the superior optoelectronic properties of excited states. Regulating the primary excited states is the foundation of developing multi-functional optoelectronics, including the light-emitting, photovoltaic and lasing actions. By revisiting the photophysical processes of excited states, some new strategies are suggested to further pushing the efficiency of perovskites forward. This thesis focuses on the manipulation of excited states through combining optoelectronic devices, from excited states generation to excited charge carrier transport. Chapter 1 presents a basic introduction to excited states in semiconductors and some optoelectronic applications of organic inorganic hybrid perovskites. Chapter 2 demonstrates charge-transfer excitons in 2D perovskite heterostructures. In this chapter, we first discover charge-transfer excitons in 2D perovskite heterostructure (PEA2PbI4/PEA2SnI4), which opens up the potential applications in perovskite LEDs and photodetectors. Chapter 3 reveals doping enhanced orbit-orbit interaction in Sn based perovskites and Chapter 4 introduces long-order orbital interaction through slow hot-carrier cooling. In these two chapters, we explore the possible strategies to increase the population of dark states through orbit-orbit interaction toward highly efficient quasi-2D perovskite solar cells and lead-free perovskite solar cells. Chapter 5 proposes a new strategy (uniform permutation of 2D nanoplates) in quasi-2D perovskite films toward efficient charge collection and Chapter 6 realizes AC electroluminescence in quasi-2D perovskite LEDs. In these two chapters, we propose a new strategy to facilitate bipolar carrier transport in quasi-2D perovskite films toward world record high fill factor in quasi-2D perovskite solar cells and efficient alternating current driven LED. Chapter 7 summarizes the entire studies in this dissertation.

Creativity has many benefits and scientists seek to understand what fosters it. Extant research suggests that positive emotions foster creativity. Guided by the appraisal-tendency framework, which details how closely related emotions differentially influence cognitive processes, four studies (N = 1,508) documented that trait and induced awe, compared to amusement, promotes creativity. Two trait based studies found that awe-prone people in the USA, Iran, and Malaysia reported more creative tendencies (Study 1) and were more likely to solve a creativity problem (Study 2). Turning to state-based awe, people experimentally induced to experience awe were more likely than people induced with amusement to consider unconventional associations (Study 3) and generate original ideas (Study 4). However, Study 5 (N = 152) did not reveal significant difference across experimental conditions on the Duncker Candle Task using the actual materials in the laboratory. This is the first set of studies that documented the unique contribution that awe has on promoting creativity.