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  • Au-coated tilted fiber Bragg grating twist sensor based on surface plasmon resonance

    Resource Type:
    Article
    Creator:
    Zhou, Wenjun, Albert, Jacques, Zhang, Yang, and Shen, Changyu
    Abstract:
    A fiber twist sensor based on the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect of an Au-coated tilted fiber Bragg grating (TFBG) is proposed. The SPR response to the twist effect on an Au-coated TFBG (immersing in distilled water) is studied theoretically and experimentally. The results show that the transmission power around the wavelength of SPR changes with the twist angle. For the twist ranging from 0° to 180° in clockwise or anti-clockwise directions, the proposed sensor shows sensitivities of 0.037 dBm/° (S-polarized) and 0.039 dBm/° (P-polarized), which are almost 7.5 times higher than that of the current similar existing twist sensor.
    Date Created:
    2014-01-01

  • Field-assisted patterned dissolution of silver nanoparticles in phosphate glass

    Resource Type:
    Article
    Creator:
    Albert, Jacques and Andreyuk, Alexander
    Abstract:
    Phosphate glass samples doped with silver ions through a Na+-Ag+ ion-exchange process were treated in a hydrogen atmosphere at temperatures near 430 °C for durations ranging from 4 to 5 h. Such treatment causes metallic silver precipitation at the surface as well as nanoclustering of silver atoms under the surface under conditions very similar to those used for silicate glasses. The presence of silver clusters resulted in a characteristic coloring of the glass and was verified by the observation of a plasmon resonance peak near 410-420 nm in the absorption spectra. Applying a DC voltage between 1.4 and 2 kV at temperatures between 120 and 130 °C led to dissolution of the clusters in the area under the positive electrode, thereby bleaching the glass color. The use of a patterned doped-silicon electrode further led to the formation of a 300 nm thick surface relief on the glass surface and of a volume complex permittivity grating extending at least 4 μm under the surface. Such volume complex refractive index gratings may find applications in passive or active (laser) photonic devices in rare-earth doped phosphate glasses, where conventional bulk grating formation techniques have limited applicability.
    Date Created:
    2014-01-01

  • Non enim ab hiis que sensus est iudicare sensum. Sensation and Thought in Theaetetus, Plotinus and Proclus

    Resource Type:
    Article
    Creator:
    MacIsaac, Gregory
    Abstract:
    I examine the relation between sensation and discursive thought (dianoia) in Plato, Plotinus, and Proclus. In Theaetetus, a soul whose highest faculty was sensation would have no unified experience of the sensible world, lacking universal ideas to give order to the sensible flux. It is implied that such universals are grasped by the soul's thinking. In Plotinus the soul is not passive when it senses the world, but as the logos of all things it thinks the world through its own forms. Proclus argues against the derivation of universal logoi from the senses, which alone can't make the sensible world comprehensible. At most they give a record of the original sense-impression in its particularity. The soul's own projected logoi give the sensible world stability. For Proclus, bare sensation does not depend on thought, but a unified experience of the sense-world depends on its paradigmatic logoi in our souls.
    Date Created:
    2014-01-01

  • Escherian Reflections on the Charter and Human Rights in Canada

    Resource Type:
    Article
    Creator:
    Mac Neil, Michael
    Date Created:
    2014-01-01

  • In the Company of my Peers: Implementation of RDA in Canada

    Resource Type:
    Article
    Creator:
    Riva, Pat, Cross, Emma, Andrews, Sue, Oliver, Chris, and Grover, Trina
    Abstract:
    This article describes the progress made toward implementing Resource Description and Access (RDA) in libraries across Canada, as of Fall 2013. Differences in the training experiences in the English-speaking cataloging communities and French-speaking cataloging communities are discussed. Preliminary results of a survey of implementation in English-Canadian libraries are included as well as a summary of the support provided for French-Canadian libraries. Data analysis includes an examination of the rate of adoption in Canada by region and by sector. Challenges in RDA training delivery in a Canadian context are identified, as well as opportunities for improvement and expansion of RDA training in the future.
    Date Created:
    2014-01-01

  • Cross-section electrical resistance tomography of La Soufrière of Guadeloupe lava dome

    Resource Type:
    Article
    Creator:
    Lesparre, Nolwenn, Adler, Andy, Komorowski, Jean-Christophe, Grychtol, Bartłomiej, and Gibert, Dominique
    Abstract:
    The electrical resistivity distribution at the base of La Soufrière of Guadeloupe lava dome is reconstructed by using transmission electrical resistivity data obtained by injecting an electrical current between two electrodes located on opposite sides of the volcano. Several pairs of injection electrodes are used in order to constitute a data set spanning the whole range of azimuths, and the electrical potential is measured along a cable covering an angular sector of ≈120? along the basis of the dome. The data are inverted to performa slice electrical resistivity tomography (SERT) with specific functions implemented in the EIDORS open source package dedicated to electrical impedance tomography applied to medicine and geophysics. The resulting image shows the presence of highly conductive regions separated by resistive ridges. The conductive regions correspond to unconsolidated material saturated by hydrothermal fluids. Two of them are associated with partial flank collapses and may represent large reservoirs that could have played an important role during past eruptive events. The resistive ridges may represent massive andesite and are expected to constitute hydraulic barriers.
    Date Created:
    2014-01-01

  • Upper bounds on the spanning ratio of constrained theta-graphs

    Resource Type:
    Conference Proceeding
    Creator:
    Bose, Prosenjit and Van Renssen, André
    Abstract:
    We present tight upper and lower bounds on the spanning ratio of a large family of constrained θ-graphs. We show that constrained θ-graphs with 4k2 (k≥ 1 and integer) cones have a tight spanning ratio of 1+2 sin(θ/2), where θ is 2 π/ (4k+2). We also present improved upper bounds on the spanning ratio of the other families of constrained θ-graphs.
    Date Created:
    2014-01-01

  • Bi-directional representation learning for multi-label classification

    Resource Type:
    Conference Proceeding
    Creator:
    Guo, Yuhong and Li, Xin
    Abstract:
    Multi-label classification is a central problem in many application domains. In this paper, we present a novel supervised bi-directional model that learns a low-dimensional mid-level representation for multi-label classification. Unlike traditional multi-label learning methods which identify intermediate representations from either the input space or the output space but not both, the mid-level representation in our model has two complementary parts that capture intrinsic information of the input data and the output labels respectively under the autoencoder principle while augmenting each other for the target output label prediction. The resulting optimization problem can be solved efficiently using an iterative procedure with alternating steps, while closed-form solutions exist for one major step. Our experiments conducted on a variety of multi-label data sets demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed bi-directional representation learning model for multi-label classification.
    Date Created:
    2014-01-01

  • A facility coloring problem in 1-D

    Resource Type:
    Conference Proceeding
    Creator:
    Maheshwari, Anil, Nandy, Ayan, Smid, Michiel, and Das, Sandip
    Abstract:
    Consider a line segment R consisting of n facilities. Each facility is a point on R and it needs to be assigned exactly one of the colors from a given palette of c colors. At an instant of time only the facilities of one particular color are 'active' and all other facilities are 'dormant'. For the set of facilities of a particular color, we compute the one dimensional Voronoi diagram, and find the cell, i.e, a segment of maximum length. The users are assumed to be uniformly distributed over R and they travel to the nearest among the facilities of that particular color that is active. Our objective is to assign colors to the facilities in such a way that the length of the longest cell is minimized. We solve this optimization problem for various values of n and c. We propose an optimal coloring scheme for the number of facilities n being a multiple of c as well as for the general case where n is not a multiple of c. When n is a multiple of c, we compute an optimal scheme in Θ(n) time. For the general case, we propose a coloring scheme that returns the optimal in O(n2logn) time.
    Date Created:
    2014-01-01

  • Multi-level adaptive active learning for scene classification

    Resource Type:
    Conference Proceeding
    Creator:
    Guo, Yuhong and Li, Xin
    Abstract:
    Semantic scene classification is a challenging problem in computer vision. In this paper, we present a novel multi-level active learning approach to reduce the human annotation effort for training robust scene classification models. Different from most existing active learning methods that can only query labels for selected instances at the target categorization level, i.e., the scene class level, our approach establishes a semantic framework that predicts scene labels based on a latent object-based semantic representation of images, and is capable to query labels at two different levels, the target scene class level (abstractive high level) and the latent object class level (semantic middle level). Specifically, we develop an adaptive active learning strategy to perform multi-level label query, which maintains the default label query at the target scene class level, but switches to the latent object class level whenever an "unexpected" target class label is returned by the labeler. We conduct experiments on two standard scene classification datasets to investigate the efficacy of the proposed approach. Our empirical results show the proposed adaptive multi-level active learning approach can outperform both baseline active learning methods and a state-of-the-art multi-level active learning method.
    Date Created:
    2014-01-01

  • Continuity and change in the home literacy environment as predictors of growth in vocabulary and reading

    Resource Type:
    Article
    Creator:
    LeFevre, Jo-Anne and Sénéchal, Monique
    Abstract:
    One hundred and ten English-speaking children schooled in French were followed from kindergarten to Grade 2 (Mage: T1 = 5;6, T2 = 6;4, T3 = 6;11, T4 = 7;11). The findings provided strong support for the Home Literacy Model (Sénéchal & LeFevre, 2002) because in this sample the home language was independent of the language of instruction. The informal literacy environment at home predicted growth in English receptive vocabulary from kindergarten to Grade 1, whereas parent reports of the formal literacy environment in kindergarten predicted growth in children's English early literacy between kindergarten and Grade 1 and growth in English word reading during Grade 1. Furthermore, 76% of parents adjusted their formal literacy practices according to the reading performance of their child, in support of the presence of a responsive home literacy curriculum among middle-class parents.
    Date Created:
    2014-01-01

  • UML consistency rules: a systematic mapping study

    Resource Type:
    Report
    Creator:
    Labiche, Yvan, Genero, Marcela, and Torre, Damiano
    Abstract:
    Context: The Unified Modeling Language (UML), with its 14 different diagram types, is the de-facto standard tool for objectoriented modeling and documentation. Since the various UML diagrams describe different aspects of one, and only one, software under development, they are not independent but strongly depend on each other in many ways. In other words, the UML diagrams describing a software must be consistent. Inconsistencies between these diagrams may be a source of the considerable increase of faults in software systems. It is therefore paramount that these inconsistencies be detected, analyzed and hopefully fixed. Objective: The aim of this article is to deliver a comprehensive summary of UML consistency rules as they are described in the literature to date to obtain an extensive and detailed overview of the current research in this area. Method: We performed a Systematic Mapping Study by following well-known guidelines. We selected 94 primary studies from a search with seven search engines performed in December 2012. Results: Different results are worth mentioning. First it appears that researchers tend to discuss very similar consistency rules, over and over again. Most rules are horizontal (98.07%) and syntactic (88.03%). The most used diagrams are the class diagram (71.28%), the state machine diagram (42.55%) and the sequence diagram (47.87%). Conclusion: The fact that many rules are duplicated in primary studies confirms the need for a well accepted list of consistency rules. This paper is a first step in this direction. Results indicate that much more work is needed to develop consistency rules for all 14 UML diagrams, in all dimensions of consistency (e.g., semantic and syntactic on the one hand, horizontal, vertical and evolution on the other hand).
    Date Created:
    2014-01-01

  • An orchestrated survey of available algorithms and tools for Combinatorial Testing

    Resource Type:
    Report
    Creator:
    Labiche, Yvan and Khalsa, Sunint Kaur
    Abstract:
    For functional testing based on the input domain of a functionality, parameters and their values are identified and a test suite is generated using a criterion exercising combinations of those parameters and values. Since software systems are large, resulting in large numbers of parameters and values, a technique based on combinatorics called Combinatorial Testing (CT) is used to automate the process of creating those combinations. CT is typically performed with the help of combinatorial objects called Covering Arrays. The goal of the present work is to determine available algorithms/tools for generating a combinatorial test suite. We tried to be as complete as possible by using a precise protocol for selecting papers describing those algorithms/tools. The 75 algorithms/tools we identified are then categorized on the basis of different comparison criteria, including: the test suite generation technique, the support for selection (combination) criteria, mixed covering array, the strength of coverage, and the support for constraints between parameters. Results can be of interest to researchers or software companies who are looking for a CT algorithm/tool suitable for their needs.
    Date Created:
    2014-01-01

  • A Blue Ocean Strategy Analysis of IMAX’s Move to Go Hollywood

    Resource Type:
    Article
    Creator:
    Becker, Hilary
    Date Created:
    2014-01-01

  • Multi-objective optimal design of a near net zero energy solar house

    Resource Type:
    Conference Proceeding
    Creator:
    Bucking, Scott, Zmeureanu, Radu, and Athienitis, Andreas
    Abstract:
    This paper presents a multi-objective redesign case study of an archetype solar house based on a near net zero energy (NZE) demonstration home located in Eastman, Quebec. Using optimization techniques, pathways are identified from the original design to both cost and energy optimal designs. An evolutionary algorithm is used to optimize trade-offs between passive solar gains and active solar generation, using two objective functions: net-energy consumption and life-cycle cost over a thirty-year life cycle. In addition, this paper explores different pathways to net zero energy based on economic incentives, such as feed-in tariffs for on-site electricity production from renewables. The main objective is to identify pathways to net zero energy that will facilitate the future systematic design of similar homes based on the concept of the archetype that combines passive solar design; energy-efficiency measures, including a geothermal heat pump; and a building-integrated photovoltaic system. Results from this paper can be utilized as follows: (1) systematic design improvements and applications of lessons learned from a proven NZE home design concept, (2) use of a methodology to understand pathways to cost and energy optimal building designs, and (3) to aid in policy development on economic incentives that can positively influence optimized home design.
    Date Created:
    2014-01-01

  • The Wealth of Wealthholders

    Resource Type:
    Research Paper
    Creator:
    Lee, Minjoon, Tonetti, Christopher, Shapiro, Matthew D., Caplin, Andrew, and Ameriks, John
    Abstract:
    This paper introduces the Vanguard Research Initiative (VRI), a new panel survey of wealthholders designed to yield high-quality measurements of a large sample of older Americans who arrive at retirement with significant financial assets. The VRI links survey data with a variety of administrative data from Vanguard. The survey features an account-by-account approach to asset measurement and a real-time feedback and correction mechanism that are shown to be highly successful in eliciting accurate measures of wealth. Specifically, the VRI data reflect unbiased and precise estimates of wealth when compared to administrative account data. The VRI sample has characteristics similar to populations meeting analogous wealth and Internet access eligibility conditions in the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) and Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF). To illustrate the value of the VRI, the paper shows that the relationship between wealth and expected retirement date is very different in the VRI than in the HRS and SCF—mainly because those surveys have so few observations where wealth levels are high enough to finance substantial consumption during retirement.
    Date Created:
    2014-12-09

  • Particle-based participating media rendering using density octrees

    Resource Type:
    Article
    Creator:
    Whitehead, Anthony D. and Monette, Richard
    Abstract:
    In order for computer generated imagery to recreate the characteristic visual appearance of phenomena such as smoke and fog it is necessary to compute the way in which light interacts with participating media. In this work we present a novel technique for computing volumetric single scattering lighting solutions for particle-based inhomogeneous participating media data sets. We seek to calculate volumetric lighting solutions for particle-based data sets as such data sets have the advantage of being spatially unbounded and relatively unrestricted with regard to memory as compared to uniform grids. In order to perform the calculations which are required for computing such a lighting solution, we introduce a novel octree based data structure. We refer to this new data structure as a density octree. The design of the density octree allows for efficiently computing light attenuation throughout the spatial extent. Using our data structure, we are able to produce high quality output imagery of arbitrary particle data sets in the presence of arbitrary numbers of lights.
    Date Created:
    2014-07-02

  • Report on the Implementation of Domestic Violence Death Review Committee Recommendations 2007 - 2011

    Resource Type:
    Report
    Creator:
    Research Change, Action
    Abstract:
    This report highlights the lack of action from ministries and organizations to help end violence against women, created by Action Research Change with the support of CFICE’s Violence Against Women Hub.
    Date Created:
    2014-12-01

  • Knowledge mobilization expands and informs Oblate Lands public

    Resource Type:
    Report
    Creator:
    Lait, Michael
    Date Created:
    2014-03-24

  • Critical Food Forest Scan & Ideas for a Food Forest in Peterborough : Includes Final Report

    Resource Type:
    Report
    Creator:
    Shaw, Samantha, Johnston, Melissa, Mulrooney, Nadine, Poppleton, Matthew, Mager, Zoë, Knight-Lira, Andre, and Wilkinson, Matthew
    Description:
    Completed for: Peterborough GreenUP Professor Tom Whillans, Trent University Trent Centre for Community-Based Education
    Abstract:
    This document is a compilation of research reports written by students in the Environmental Resource Studies/Science (ERTS) 3160H class at Trent University in the winter of 2014. The research was completed in conjunction with GreenUP, Trent Centre for Community-Based Education (TCCBE), and Taylor Mackey (a graduate student research assistant in Trent’s Sustainability Studies program). The students looked critically at urban food forests around the world and made suggestions for designing a food forest in Peterborough. These reports will help inform this process alongside a report written by Taylor Mackey as part of his research assistanceship: An Urban Food Forest for Peterborough: Planting for Our Future. An urban food forest is an area in a city or town where trees, and often other plants, are intentionally planted for food production. These urban food forests often attempt to mimic natural ecosystems. Currently urban forests are generally considered valuable solely for the ecosystem services they provide, such as stormwater management. In the past these urban forests were often managed for the products they produced, rather than just the services they could provide. There is increasing interest in creating edible landscapes in urban areas. Some are starting to see urban forests as more than something that can clean the air or reduce the stormwater runoff. Some are starting to see the potential to create areas that can provide these services as well as produce food for human consumptions, as well as a host of other benefits. Most of the studied urban food forests focus on food security. Urban food forests have the potential to provide the same services as our current urban forests, but also produce food (and perhaps increase biodiversity in the process).
    Date Created:
    2014-05-05

  • Common Site Planning Initiatives for Abbey Gardens and Peterborough GreenUP: Includes Final Report

    Resource Type:
    Report
    Creator:
    Badeen, Dennis, Schryer, Brook, Fox, Karen, Xie, Guoyun, Halsey, Gordon, McTavish, Kristeen, Purdon, Matthias, and Potter, Kristen
    Description:
    Completed for: Abbey Gardens & Peterborough GreenUP; Supervising Professor: Tom Whillans; Trent Centre for Community-Based Education
    Abstract:
    Finding Common Ground for Facilitating Collaborative Partnerships stemmed from a desire among several employees of Peterborough GreenUP and Abbey Gardens to explore the potential for collaboration between both organizations. In the winter of 2014, planning began for a meeting between members of GreenUP and Abbey Gardens facilitated by Trent graduate students in the Sustainability Studies program through the Community First: Impacts of Community Engagement (CFICE) project and Trent Centre for Community Based Education (TCCBE). What this meeting would look like and what would be discussed evolved over the next few weeks and culminated in a daylong workshop in Bobcaygeon on April 1st, 2014. This report summarizes the main ideas that came up in several activities and presentations. It contains resources on the background of the project, next steps, and the contact information of participants from both organizations. Appendices include the presentation slides from the respective organizations presentations, staff lists and contact information for each organization, and detailed activity notes from the workshop.
    Date Created:
    2014-04-07

  • An Urban Food Forest for Peterborough: Planting for Our Future : Includes Final Report

    Resource Type:
    Report
    Creator:
    Mackey, Taylor
    Description:
    Completed for: Peterborough GreenUP , Supervising Professor: Tom Whillans; Trent Centre for Community-Based Education
    Abstract:
    An urban food forest is modelled after a wild forest, but is intentionally designed and planted with food production in mind. Essentially an urban food forest is a combination of wild forest and orchard. They are made up of a close-knit community of plants that help each other. There are many benefits that an urban food forest can provide. They can improve the environment we live in; help build stronger, more resilient, communities; and can provide a host of economic benefits as well. Urban food forests help us create more sustainable communities that are healthy and enjoyable to live in. We need to rediscover our past, when we cultivated urban forests, not just for the services they provided, but also for the products as well. It is not just rural forests that can provide useable products. In fact it might even be argued that urban forests can be more productive, per unit of area, because of the intentional planning and design that goes into them. An urban food forest is a community within a community, the plants help and support one another, just as we help support one another in our communities.
    Date Created:
    2014-04-07

  • The Road to Grandma's House: The Daily Experiences of Economically Disadvantaged Elderly Women in Rural and Urban Ottawa

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Lalonde, Julie
    Abstract:
    Elders are the fastest growing segment of the Canadian population; yet, little is written about their lives. Using an intersectional analysis, I conducted qualitative interviews with economically disadvantaged elderly women in the Ottawa area to try and uncover the daily experiences of being a woman who is both elderly and living in poverty. My research argues that elderly women are invisible in Canada and that the consequence of this erasure is that we fail to recognize the ways in which economically disadvantaged elderly women are incredibly resilient and resourceful. However, I caution against simply praising their resiliency. Instead, I advise a critical examination of the systemic barriers that force elderly women to work so hard to survive. Keywords: intersectionality, feminist gerontology, poverty, elderly, rural, urban
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Arts (M.A.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Canadian Studies
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Good for the Heart and Soul, Good for Business: The Cultural Politics of Documentary at the Hot Docs Film Festival

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Winton, Ezra
    Abstract:
    This dissertation looks at the ways in which the Toronto-based Hot Docs documentary film festival is undergoing a process of transforming documentary cinema and culture from the margins to the mainstream through a process of the commercialization of documentary. In particular three interlocking forces are examined, including populism, consumerism and liberalism. By privileging commercial interests and strategies over local community, advocacy and political activist considerations, Hot Docs is developing into a very successful and vital cultural institution and event, both nationally and globally. This thesis investigates the consequences of the festival’s commercial strategy with two aspects in mind—the mode of its consumption, and the management of contestation and dissent—and argues that radical perspectives, local advocacy and political participation are being eroded for the sake of a large, accessible and attractive festival image and performance.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Communication
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Parallel Real-Time OLAP On Cloud Platforms

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Zhou, Xiaoyun
    Abstract:
    Successful organizations increasingly rely on data analysis to develop new opportunities, guide business strategies and optimize resources. Online analytical processing (OLAP) systems are one of the most powerful technologies to provide the ability to interactively analyze multidimensional data from multiple perspectives. In this thesis we designed a new data structure, the PDCR-tree, that work on distributed systems providing low-latency transactions processing even for very complex queries. Using a PDCR-tree we demonstrate how to build a real-time OLAP system on a cloud based distributed platform called CR-OLAP. The CR-OLAP can be built using an m+1 machine scalable architecture so as the system load increases, the number of machines, m, can be increased to improve performance. Experiments show the system can process a query with 60% data coverage on a database with 80 million data tuples with a response time 0.3 seconds or less, well within the parameters of a real-time system.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Computer Science (M.C.S.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Computer Science
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Integrals, Jump-Diffusion Processes and Monte Carlo Simulation

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Huang, Yue
    Abstract:
    This master thesis is to fulfill the curiosity in how special characteristics of Brownian motion motivate the development of Ito calculus from Stieltjes integral. We will see the general Stieltjes integral theories and how the concept of p-variation plays a determining role and the case where the fractional Brownian motion can also be an integrator under the Stieltjes scope. Then we will give a tour of the distinctive traits of Brownian motion and how they mark the necessity to evolve a new Ito integral. Subsequently, we expand the integrator in Ito integral to jump-diffusion processes. Thereafter, we see how these new stochastic processes play a role in modelling financial assets and how sample paths of these stochastic processes can be generated using simulation and examplify the fact that Jump-Diffusion models are improvements from classical Black-Scholes-Merton model to incorporate the fat tail effects exhibited in empricial financial data.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Science (M.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Probability and Statistics
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Animal Camouflage: Disentangling Disruptive Coloration from Background Matching

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Webster, Richard James
    Abstract:
    Camouflage is ubiquitous in the natural world and provides adaptive benefits to both predators and their prey. In this study I test concepts of animal camouflage using the experimental paradigm of humans foraging for real and artificial moth targets on a computer screen and assessed camouflage efficacy by measuring detection rates. Chapter 1 outlines the questions and objectives of this doctoral thesis. In Chapter 2 I introduce the phenomenon of disruptive coloration, followed by a brief-review of the visual mechanisms contributing to visual search. Chapter 3 tested if non-random orientation behaviour of moths in the field could be explained by behaviourally-mediated camouflage. I showed that the preferred field-orientations of moths were associated with lower detection rates in the lab, and that the relative orientation of the moth to the tree was the key driver. Chapter 4 tested the fundamental assumption that disruptive coloration functions by impairing shape perception. It was predicted that if edge-intersecting patches are disruptive, then altering the shape of a target would interact with edge coloration. Artificial moth-like targets did show an interaction between edge coloration and target shape, which explained detectability. These findings suggest that effectiveness of camouflage due to edge markings is dependent on target shape, which further supports the hypothesis that edge markings function as disruptive coloration. Chapter 5 took a similar approach to chapter 4 but tested if there was an interaction between edge coloration and target boundary visibility, which could explain detectability of moth-like targets. Results from Chapters 4 and 5 suggest that shape and boundary properties play a role in disruptive function of edge markings. Chapter 6 tested how this might occur. It is thought that edge-intersecting patches impair object recognition. It was predicted that moth-like targets with more edge-intersecting patches would be harder to recognise. Recognition was characterised by human foveal vision, monitored by eye-tracking. Indeed, targets with a larger number of edge-intersecting patches were associated with being difficult to recognise, and reduced detectability even at the expense of background matching.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Biology
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Ghrelin - The Defender of Fat in the Face of Stress: Implications in Obesity Treatment

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Patterson, Zachary
    Abstract:
    Chronic activation of the stress response can lead to a number of metabolic disturbances such as obesity, metabolic syndrome, Type II diabetes and car- diovascular disease. The exact mechanisms underlying these metabolic changes are currently uncharacterized. Traditionally, many of these effects have been at- tributed to the increased levels of circulating glucocorticoids (cortisol in humans and corticosterone in rodents) as a function of hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis hyperactivity. However, recent evidence suggests that the gut de- rived hormone ghrelin may be a key contributor to the physiological changes generated in response to chronic stress. Ghrelin is a gut-brain peptide that promotes appetite and the accumulation of adipose tissue by encouraging the utilization of carbohydrates as a fuel source, while sparing fat tissue. Inter- estingly, plasma ghrelin concentrations increase in response to stressful stimuli, and remain elevated following cessation of the stressor. The present thesis was aimed at investigating the role of ghrelin in mediating stress-induced metabolic changes. In addition, this thesis explores the efficacy of potential therapeutic treatments of stress-induced metabolic disorders. Overall, the data presented in this thesis suggests that ghrelin elicits an increase in caloric intake in response to stress while promoting the utilization of carbohydrates as a fuel source. Central ghrelin signalling is required to elicit the metabolic consequences of a chronic social defeat stress. Increased ghrelin secretion in response to stress caused a significant increase in visceral adipose tissue and produced a hormonal profile indicative of obesity and metabolic syndrome. Animals lacking a functional ghrelin signalling system do not show these metabolic changes. Pharmacologi- cal blockade of ghrelin with a putative GOAT inhibitor was sufficient to reduce stress-induced ghrelin secretion and subsequent caloric intake, thereby improv- ing the metabolic outcome of a chronic social defeat stress paradigm.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Neuroscience
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Ecology of Stress in the Tropical Coastal Marine Fish, the Checkered Puffer (Sphoeroides Testudineus)

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    St-Louis, Felicia
    Abstract:
    It is imperative that we understand the physiological, behavioural and ecological consequences of stress in wild animals. This thesis presents an integrative and multidisciplinary study on the ecology of stress in a tropical coastal marine fish, the checkered pufferfish (Sphoeroides testudineus). By incorporating physiological and behavioural tools, I quantified individual variation in the glucocorticoid (GC) stress response and established a negative relationship between the GC stress response and two established fitness proxies of the pufferfish (chapter 2). GCs were then experimentally elevated for the purpose of investigating the thermal-related consequences on the pufferfish in the laboratory and in their natural coastal habitat (chapter 3). Various consequences were documented including fluctuating GCs and weakened fitness proxies to thermal shock, and minor variations in ecosystem dynamics. As a whole, this thesis improves our understanding of the ecology of stress in a wild tropical fish population.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Science (M.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Biology
    Date Created:
    2014

  • The Perception of Periods: A Qualitative Study into the Experience of, and Attitudes Towards, Menstruation and Menstrual Suppression

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Gouchie, Lauren
    Abstract:
    This study examines women’s experiences of, and attitudes towards, menstruation and menstrual suppression. Using a grounded theory, approach one-on-one interviews with women highlight common motives behind the decision making process to manipulate and/or suppress menstrual cycles through use of hormonal contraception. While current advertisements by pharmaceutical companies for contraceptives work to be an influencer for menstrual suppression, they often fail to portray accurate representations of women and women’s lives. Instead of being influenced by these advertisements, women are more and more commonly utilizing health care professionals, the Internet and friends as sources of information about contraception and menstrual suppression. This study highlights the contradictions experienced by women who wish to use hormonal contraceptives to continuously alleviate pain associated with menstruation, or for contraceptive purposes, but are hesitant about the presence of synthetic hormones in their bodies. While convenience is attractive, many women prefer to remain natural.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Social Work (M.S.W.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Social Work
    Date Created:
    2014

  • The Perfect Political Storm? The Tea Party Movement, the Redefinition of the Digital Political Mediascape, and the Birth of Online Politicking 3.0.

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Raynauld, Vincent
    Abstract:
    This doctoral dissertation examines the growing impact of the two converging dynamics that are responsible for the reconfiguration of the online and, to some extent, real-world political communication, mobilization and organizing dynamic in the United States in recent years. These two converging dynamics, which constitute the core of the online politicking 3.0 model, are the grassroots-intensive uncontrolled decentralization and hyper-fragmentation of digital politicking. It is argued in this dissertation that the Tea Party movement is one of the first large scale manifestations of online politicking 3.0 in the United States. In order to illustrate this point, this dissertation offers an extensive quantitative content analysis of slightly more than 1.7 million tweets with at least one #teaparty hashtag that were posted on Twitter’s public timeline between December 9, 2009 and March 19, 2011, a time period roughly coinciding with the 2010 Midterm U.S. election cycle. A heuristic review of some facets of #teaparty tweets is also conducted in order to contextualize some of the quantitative data. This dissertation concludes that the the communication, organizing and organizing impact of the Tea Party is likely to be felt in the future. It is expected to have deep transformational effects on the structure of the political mediascape and, to a broader extent, on participatory engagement patterns in the United States and many other national contexts over the next decade.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Communication
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Autonomous Mobile Robot Positioning using Unscented HydridSLAM

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Monjazeb, Amirhossein
    Abstract:
    Simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) is a process in which a mobile robot travels through an environment and concurrently makes a momentary map of the environment and uses that map to localize itself. The simultaneous localization and mapping is currently one of the most challenging problems in the field of autonomous mobile robots and providing a solution to SLAM may open doors to the world of truly autonomous robots. The most significant contribution of this dissertation is to provide a novel approach to Simultaneous Localization and Mapping problem in extensive outdoor environments and based on estimation approach. The new approach is called Unscented HybridSLAM filter which presents a consistent mathematical model out of a rigorous probabilistic Bayesian-based framework. It is theoretically proven that the map converges and how the new approach can handle correlations that arise between error in motion and error in observation. It is also shown that there is no need for a large storage of information since the inherent structure of Unscented HybridSLAM does not require memory as much as its counterpart filters. The map evolution of the new algorithm is examined in detail as well as its performance. The new approach is compared to currently used algorithms in particular EKF-SLAM, FastSLAM, and HybridSLAM and results are probed and discussed in different simulated scenarios. Together, the theoretical modeling and simulations results prove the consistency of Unscented HybridSLAM and show that it is possible to apply Unscented HybridSLAM as an alternative algorithm for real implementations.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Engineering, Mechanical
    Date Created:
    2014

  • The Rhetoric of Dominion Income Taxation and the Modern Political Imaginary in Canada, 1910-1945

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Tough, David G.
    Abstract:
    This thesis uses Quentin Skinner’s study of rhetoric to interrogate the origins of the modern political imaginary in Canada between 1910 and 1945. The Dominion taxing power was the object of a sustained rhetorical critique in the early 20th century, in which the Liberal and Conservative party identities, built around the protective tariff in the post-Confederation era, were slowly weakened and supplemented with a new representation of difference: the left-right spectrum. Beginning in 1910 with the Grain Growers’ Guide, the nationalist resonances of the Dominion tariff were cast as duplicitous distractions from exploitation and fiscal inefficiency. During the First World War, this characterization of the tariff and the political differences it produced became tied to demands for ‘conscription of wealth,’ as the basis of a fairer and more democratic political culture. A species of what Ian McKay calls a “people’s enlightenment,” this critique resulted in the first Dominion income tax, the Income War Tax of 1917. A Dominion income tax introduced the new possibility of transferring income that had been taxed progressively from one region to another. The catastrophic economic depression of the 1930s exposed the weakness of the tariff as a fiscal instrument; a more powerful Dominion income tax was cast as the necessary solution to the crisis, and was duly introduced in 1941 and 1942. With these changes, income taxation became a universal burden and the possible basis for large-scale Dominion social programs like the Family Allowances – a combination that Shirley Tillotson calls “the citizenship of contribution.” In recognition of this new possibility, party programs for the redistribution of income were aligned on a left-right spectrum. The displacement of the old party system and the establishment of the new spectrum were both examples of what is here termed political modernism, creating a new and modern political imaginary for a democratic politics of redistribution.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    History
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Indigenous Peoples, Civilization and the Expansion of International Society: An 'Inter-Societal Perspective

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Pearcey, Mark Edward
    Abstract:
    Until recently, the expansion of international society has been depicted as the linear projection of European norms and values into the non-European world; specifically, Westphalian norms and values. Increasingly however, critical English School scholars – amongst others – have begun to critique this perspective, noting that the evolution of international society has been constituted through the interaction between expanding European empires and the non-European peoples they came into contact with. Edward Keene (2002), for instance, argues that the norms and values that underpin international society are the product of imperialism. Problematically however, many of these accounts tend to overlook the long-term negative effects of these norms and values, focusing instead on how they established the foundations for a cosmopolitan society of states. This dissertation reflects critically on these types of arguments, through an historical analysis of Indigenous-state relations. Specifically, it asks: What role have state-Indigenous relations had in constructing the colonial legacies of the discourse on civilization? And, what are the implications of this for understanding the relationship between international and world society in International Relations theory? Through this analysis, this dissertation contribute to IR theory in three ways: 1) by supplementing the English School’s focus on intra-societal relations with greater attention paid to ‘inter-societal’ relations; 2) by establishing a space for dialogue between the English School and Postcolonialism; and 3) by ‘decolonizing’ English School theory, challenging its Eurocentric and state-centric assumptions.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Political Science
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Multi-Antenna System Performance and Impairments in Long Term Evolution Radio Access Networks Using the Extended Spatial Channel Model

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Chauvin, Michel Evan
    Abstract:
    LTE is being deployed to meet consumer demand for high bit rate mobile wireless. This thesis studies 3 areas of wireless communications; phase noise, Doppler and link adaptation, and multi-antenna system performance. The thesis focuses on the performance of 4 base-station (BS) antennas, simulation results using 3GPP's spatial channel model and the effects of impairments and configurations on the downlink. The best performing antennas evaluated are the 4-transmitter, 4-port, correlated cross-polarized BS antennas when TM4's CLSM is used. Despite added overhead, 4 antennas provides gain over 2 antennas due to beamforming. When only 2-ports are available, TM3's OLSM outperforms TM4 as UE velocity increases, since 2-port TM3 is less dependent on CSI. Link adaptation latency contributes to degradation starting at low velocity. In addition, high-speed train simulations show throughput degradation at 350km/hr. Finally, the downlink is subjected to phase noise to show the effect of generated and measured phase noise.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Engineering, Electrical and Computer
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Does Canada Have a Hidden 'Wealthfare' System?: The Policy History and Household Use of Tax-Preferred Savings Instruments in Canada

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Robson, Jennifer Colleen
    Abstract:
    Canada has account-based, tax-preferred savings instruments that are delivered through the financial services sector and that receive generous support through federal income tax incentives and direct transfers. In this thesis, I ask whether there is adequate evidence to treat this set of tax-preferred savings instruments as a hidden welfare system, and, whether the system is progressive or regressive in distributing public support for individual or household saving and accumulation of assets. The thesis presents three different studies of the set of tax-preferred instruments: a history of each instrument, an analysis of household data on ownership and allocations, an exploratory qualitative study that explores consumer perceptions, understanding and use of these savings instruments.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Public Policy
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Sex Offenders Do Change on Risk-Relevant Propensities: Evidence from a Longitudinal Study of the Acute-2007

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Babchishin, Kelly Melanie
    Abstract:
    Few studies have examined the patterns of change in risk-relevant propensities among sex offenders. Given that existing evidence suggests that offenders’ risk of reoffending can change across time, the ability to detect change in measures of risk-relevant propensities would be useful for release, management, and treatment decisions. Of the studies that have examined change in such factors among sex offenders, researchers assumed that the observed scores were without error, making it impossible to disentangle the effects of true change from increased reliability. To date, no studies have examined whether this assumption is correct. The current dissertation advances knowledge by examining change in sexual offending risk using statistical models that separate the effects of measurement error from true change. Two studies were conducted, both using repeated assessments of the Acute-2007 scores for sex offenders on community supervision (Hanson et al., 2007). In the first study, the temporal stability of the factor structure of the Acute-2007 was examined across three time-points for 317 sex offenders. The Acute-2007 met the assumption of measurement invariance and, as such, observed changes were attributed to true change on the risk-relevant propensities assessed by the Acute-2007. The factor analyses supported a one-factor model; however, additional analyses found that two factors (i.e., Approach and Collapse factors) were differentially related to other similar risk measures and recidivism. In Study 2, sex offenders were found to decrease on risk-relevant propensities during the course of community supervision. Higher risk offenders were found to change less than lower risk offenders on the Acute-2007 total scores after controlling for initial scores. The rate of offender change also significantly differed across supervision officers on behavioural indicators of intention to reoffend (Approach total scores) but not indicators of coping skills (Collapse total scores). Exploratory analyses found clear incremental effects of initial and reassessed scores for the prediction of any recidivism. The findings support the Acute-2007 as assessing dynamic, changeable risk-relevant propensities for offending. Additional studies would be required to identify the best methods of integrating change in risk assessments of sex offenders.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Psychology
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Molecular and Cellular Analysis of Disease Resistance Mechanisms in Wheat

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Albaraky, Ashwaq Omar E.
    Abstract:
    Plants are exposed to abiotic stresses such as drought, high or low temperature, and to biotic stresses such as insect attack or pathogen infection. Plants have developed specific mechanisms to detect external signals with proper phosiological responses in order to survive under these challenges. Protein Phosphorylation is involved in plant response to pathogen attacks. One of the principle phosphorylation pathways that are used by plants in biotic and abiotic stress responses is mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway, which consists of MAPKKK, MAPKK, and MAPK. The following work will be presented: cell death mechanisms, DNA repairing genes, β-glucanase and glutamine synthetase, and FLR gene expression have been studied when resistant and susceptible wheat cultivars were challenged by fungal toxin Fumonisin B1 and defense signaling molecule salicylic acid (SA).
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Science (M.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Biology
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Design and Construction of an Experimental Apparatus to Assess the Performance of a Solar Absorption Chiller with Integrated Thermal Storage

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Baldwin, Christopher
    Abstract:
    As the prevalence of mechanical space cooling in the residential sector increases in Canada, the amount of energy consumed and greenhouse gases released is increasing. Solar absorption cooling has the potential to significantly reduce the energy consumption for space cooling. The design and construction of a complete experimental apparatus to assess the performance of an absorption chiller was completed. The experimental set-up consists of a heat source, a heat rejection loop, and a building load simulator. In addition, a model of the experimental set-up was created in TRNSYS. Through simulation it was determined that the chiller should be run for seven complete cycles and measurements taken at 30 second time intervals. The error on the temperature readings was determined to be ±0.49°C while the temperature difference measured by the thermopiles has an uncertainty of ±0.15°C. The thermal coefficient of performance can be determined to an overall uncertainty of ±3.8 percent.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Engineering, Mechanical
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Examining Sensorial Interfaces as the Stimuli for Remote Affective Communication

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Zhang, Xinchu
    Abstract:
    Current communication technologies have a significant role in satisfying social connection and networking, but have not yet been developed to entirely support interpersonal communication, especially in creating and maintaining intimacy and a sense of connection in an intimate relationship, specifically with young adult children and older parents. Under the emerging trend of ubiquitous computing, this research examines the possibility of creating new means for augmenting intimacy in remote affective communication between young adult children and older parents. From a small-targeted group, this exploratory study rooted in family communication activities and family life is exploring the possible themes, cues and artefacts that support family closeness but are missing in conventional communication (audio and video). By generating a group of concepts and new tools for remote family interaction, the findings of this thesis offer insights into new means of communication tools for supporting family connectedness.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Design (M.Des.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Industrial Design
    Date Created:
    2014

  • The Semantics of the Persian Object Marker - râ

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Hosseini Fatemi, Maryam
    Abstract:
    This study presents an analysis of the semantics of the Persian object marker –râ. Semantically, –râ has been identified with definiteness marking (Sadeghi, 1970; Vazinpour, 1977), specificity marking (Browne, 1970; Karimi, 1989, 1990, 1996, 2003a, and 2005) and presupposition marking (Ghomeshi, 1996; Ganjavi, 2007). In this study, I challenge the assumptions presented in previous works and argue that while definiteness, specificity and presupposition capture important aspects of the meaning of –râ, none of them adequately characterize its semantics. Specifically, I argue that a unified account can be given if we assume that –râ is a maximality operator which picks out the maximal member of the denotation of its argument following Link (1983) and Beck and Rullmann (1999). The maximality proposal can account for the appearance of –râ on question words, contrastive topics, donkey sentences, plurals and indefinites which have remained unexplained in previous accounts of –râ.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Cognitive Science (M.Cog.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Cognitive Science
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Particulate Deposition Prediction of Diluted Two-Phase Impinging Jet

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Alatawi, Eid Salem S.
    Abstract:
    Insights into particle transport and deposition process in impinging jet flow, in light of the available experiments, can be gained using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) numerical simulations. The present thesis focuses mainly on the prediction of aerosol particle transport and deposition in impinging jet flow. An extensive literature survey has indicated that the present work represents the first comprehensive investigation of aerosol particle transport and deposition, using Reynolds averaged Navier Stokes/eddy interaction model (RANS/EIM) along with near-wall corrections, and large eddy simulation (LES) numerical approaches applied to particle-laden impinging jet flow. A new in-house tracking code for particle-laden impinging jet flow using modified EIM, as well as modified EIM in conjunction with the near-wall correction technique based on impinging jet flow characteristics was developed to simulate the particulate phase. Two different approaches in the framework of RANS method, RANS SST (shear stress transport) and RANS RSM-BSL (Reynolds stress transport-Baseline) model were used to simulate the fluid phase in three cases of nozzle-to-surface distances of L/D = 2, 4 and 6. Also, to better understand the applicability and accuracy limits of different numerical methods on aerosol particle deposition, one representative case for an impinging jet flow of L/D = 2 was performed using LES. Deposition results without near-wall correction, with turbulent tracking, showed unrealistic behavior at the beginning of the wall jet region and close to the stagnation point. Once the normal-to-wall fluctuating velocity, which plays important role for particle deposition on the impingement wall, was properly modeled via the near-wall correction technique, significant improvements were obtained when compared to the previous experiments, for all L/D cases. However, the results showed that RANS RSM-BSL/modified EIM, in conjunction with the near-wall correction, have better performance in predicting the deposition results. Particle deposition results for L/D = 2 showed that LES is in closer agreement with previous experimental data more than RANS RSM-BSL/modified EIM along with near-wall correction. These results provide new insight into the general behavior of the aerosol particle transport and deposition process in impinging jet flow.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Engineering, Mechanical
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Sound of the Drum, Energy of the Dance - Making the Lake Huron Treaty Atlas the Anishinaabe Way

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Pyne, Stephanie Anne
    Abstract:
    This thesis takes a reflexive narrative approach to critically interpreting the iterative processes involved in the making of the Lake Huron Treaty Atlas (the Atlas). The Atlas is an interactive, multimedia, geospatial web product that reflects an inclusive approach to telling the story of the Robinson Huron Treaty relationship process over time and across space, bringing together a variety of historical and geographical perspectives. Both the thesis and the Atlas interpret Anishinaabe perspectives and incorporate them in their style and approach; they participate in the current trend in critical cartography to engage in mapping in new ways by reflecting the multiple dimensions of socioeconomic, political and cultural ‘reality’. Making contributions in many areas, including in the conceptual and practical spheres of cartography, this thesis comments on some deep trends such as the spatial turn to performance and the critical turn to interpretation. In addition, it participates in the seventh fire project of reconciliation reflected in the significant Anishinaabe Teaching, the Seven Fires Prophecy, by promoting a holistic and emergent approach to development, and by emphasizing the possibility of bridging perspectives to build intercultural awareness through the collaborative creation of the Atlas as a reconciliation tool. This thesis asserts that through holistic, reflexive and critical cartographic practice, it is possible not only to acknowledge Anishinaabe perspectives in mapping processes, but to integrate them as well, in a manner that (1) preserves their inherent meaning and value, and (2) augments the meaning of the cybercartographic mapping processes. I aim to demonstrate how this type of practice has been employed in the Lake Huron Treaty Atlas project by providing critically reflexive narrative accounts of the Travels in the Making of the Atlas Map and the Map of Maps, each of which functions as a narrative portal to the other maps in the Atlas.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Geography
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Prototype Testing of a Modified Poroelastic Matric Suction Sensor.

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Jayasinghe, Prabodha
    Abstract:
    The matric suction is one of the stress state variables used in the interpretation of the engineering behaviour of soils. This thesis documents development of a Poroelastic Matric Suction Sensor (PE sensor). The advantage of this sensor is that it is a direct method with a relatively large range of suction measurement (up to 8MPa), without any cavitation. Modifications of the sensor were carried out to increase accuracy. The modified sensor was then evaluated by comparison with total suction measurements made in artificial silt and in fine grained material. In addition, the behaviour of the sensor when using oil sand tailings was also monitored and compared. The experimental results showed that the suction range of the sensor is about 8MPa, with a mean relative uncertainty of 0.5MPa, a standard deviation of 0.5MPa compared to the WP4T PotentiaMeter Device. The behaviour of the sensor at temperatures below 00C was also investigated.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Engineering, Environmental
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Re-routing Pathways to Depression: Effects of Mindfulness on Internalized Stigma, Appraisals, Coping and Depressive Symptoms

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Christie, Kelly-Lyn
    Abstract:
    Despite increasing research and accessibility of treatment, depression remains a leading cause of global disease and disability, and depression rates among young adults continue to rise (WHO, 2007). Both trait mindfulness and mindfulness training have been inversely associated with depressive symptoms (e.g., Segal, Williams & Teasdale, 2002), however, the processes underlying this effect are not fully understood. The goal of the present program of research was to identify the extent to which psychosocial variables (including internalized stigma, coping, appraisal and stressor responses) account for the relationship between mindfulness and well-being. In Study 1 (N = 368), trait mindfulness predicted lower endorsement of internalized stigma and greater endorsement of positive appraisals and adaptive coping repertoires among young adults, which in turn predicted a decrease in depressive symptoms. In Study 2, an analysis of both student (N = 372) and community (N = 275) samples revealed that trait mindfulness inversely predicted the use of emotion-focused coping techniques in response to a variety of interpersonal, financial, and workplace/academic stressors, while mindful coping was associated with greater perceptions of controllability and the use of problem-focused coping strategies. Study 3 sought to determine if trait mindfulness (Study 3.1; N = 19) and brief mindfulness training (Study 3.2; N = 87) influenced psychological response (e.g., anxiety, affect), coping, and neuroendocrine response following an acute stressor task. Facets of mindful observing and awareness predicted lower baseline cortisol among participants, while non-reacting to experience predicted a diminished cortisol response from baseline to post-stressor task. No differences in coping, psychological or neuroendocrine response were observed as a function of a brief mindfulness intervention, suggesting that longer interventions may be needed to elicit beneficial effects. These results support an inverse relationship between trait mindfulness and negative appraisals, internalized stigma, and the use of emotion-focused coping strategies, and suggest that these variables might constitute important pathways in the relationship between trait mindfulness and depressive symptoms. Programs targeted at developing mindfulness skills might be particularly effective in mitigating physical and psychological responses to stressors among individuals at risk of depressive illness.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Psychology
    Date Created:
    2014

  • A Landscape-Scale Assessment of Holocene Fire Regime Controls in South-Eastern British Columbia, Canada

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Courtney Mustaphi, Colin John
    Abstract:
    Multiple vegetation and forest fire history records were established by analyzing Holocene-aged lake sediment stratigraphies collected across a vegetation and elevation gradient in southeast British Columbia, Canada. The stratigraphies were dated using radiometric techniques, lead-210 and radiocarbon dating, and tephrochronology and were examined to understand the spatial controls of forest fires and how those controls varied in importance throughout the Holocene in response to orbital geometry variations, climatic change, forest composition changes, and fuel abundance within the watersheds. Local conditions have been shown to be important controls of fire activity in the region, but can be overridden by other broad-scale factors such as climate. Aspect was shown to be an important spatial control of fire frequencies at mid elevation Engelmann spruce-subalpine fir forests. At subalpine elevations, fuel abundance within the catchment was important in explaining millennial to centennial scale fire frequencies. When investigating past biomass burning, the analysis of macroscopic charcoal morphologies permits a more nuanced analysis of the temporal variability in fuel sources and taphonomic processes in a watershed. This study contributes to our knowledge of the varying spatial controls at the landscape scale of Holocene forest fires in mountainous southeastern British Columbia, to understand the influence of local and broad-scales controls of biomass burning and to the analysis of sediment-charcoal morphologies.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Earth Sciences
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Behaviour and Energetics of Sturgeon Fishway Passage

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Thiem, Jason
    Abstract:
    Global reliance on water resource development has resulted in the disconnection of key migratory pathways for numerous fish species, leading to population declines. Fishways represent one solution for reinstating connectivity, although their biological effectiveness often remains unknown and the mechanisms contributing to successful passage for most species is poorly understood. This thesis applied an interdisciplinary approach to investigate fishway passage by lake sturgeon. Identification of key spawning habitats downstream of a dam equipped with a fishway revealed that attraction and passage efficiency of the fishway unlikely limit reproductive success in this population of lake sturgeon; nevertheless, lake sturgeon still locate and pass the fishway annually. Overall fishway passage efficiency was 36% and successful passage was unrelated to adult sturgeon size or water temperatures. Successful passage events were highly variable in duration, and turning basins within the fishway considerably delayed passage and increased failure rates, leading to speculation that variability in energy use resulting from path selection may be a possible mechanism for delayed or failed passage. New methods were developed for the field quantification of sturgeon swimming activity and energy use using animal-borne accelerometers. Calibrations demonstrated the utility of accelerometers as a direct measure of volitional swimming speed and identified that sturgeon are capable of swimming at speeds in excess of those previously observed. Field application identified that sturgeon rarely used high speed swimming to traverse the fishway and that energy use was not predictive of successful passage, although successful individuals exhibited a higher cost of transport. Successful fishway passage resulted in an energetic cost equivalent to individuals travelling 2.1–13.3 km in a lentic system. Other endogenous (i.e. internal state, navigational ability) or exogenous (i.e. fine scale hydraulics) factors possibly influence passage success, although these remain unknown and represent an area for future research on sturgeon and numerous other species. Fishways remain a promising solution for maintaining connectivity in fragmented systems and this thesis serves as a useful model for gaining insight into fishway effectiveness for a single species. It also highlights the challenges and necessary knowledge required to ensure optimal habitats are available to all species.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Biology
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Identification of Thermal Abnormalities by Analysis of Abdominal Infrared Thermal Images of Neonatal Patients

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Nur, Ruqia
    Abstract:
    Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), is a devastating inflammatory disease of infants for which there is no cure and exact causes remain unknown. Diagnoses are limited to radiographic findings and in most institutions Modified Bell’s Criteria is used, neither are capable of reliable early detection. In this thesis, a novel method of abdominal infrared thermal imaging is proposed that allows direct measurements of skin temperature, which are capable of unveiling thermal abnormalities that may indicate intestinal inflammation characteristic of NEC. Abdominal thermal symmetry analysis was performed, results obtained from the 20 normal and the 9 NEC affected infants were statistically compared. A higher degree of thermal asymmetry was seen with the NEC group in comparison to the Normal group, notably when image enhancement techniques were done. We are hopeful that this new non-contact, non-ionizing method may potentially offer an early diagnostic tool.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Biomedical Engineering
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Redox Ambi-Valence of Phenylcyanamide Ligands in Ruthenium Complexes

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Choudhuri, Mohommad Mahbubur Rahman
    Abstract:
    Four dinuclear ruthenium (II)-terpyridine-bipyridine complexes of bridging substituted (dimethyl-, unsubstituted dichloro- and tetrachloro-) 1,4-dicyanamidebenzene dianion ligands have been synthesized. The singly oxidized complexes were characterized by vis-NIR, IR and EPR spectroscopies which confirm a valence configuration with the oxidized bridging ligand. Six dinuclear ruthenium (II)-terpyridine-bipyridine complexes of bridging substituted (tetramethyl-, dimethyl-, unsubstituted, dichloro-, tetrachloro-) azodi(phenylcyanamide) ligands have been synthesized. The EPR spectroscopy, supported by IR and vis-NIR spectroelectrochemistry of singly oxidized complexes showed a transition in non-innocent behaviour of the bridging ligand and established the ligand-centred radical descriptions for tetramethyl-/dimethyl-, a delocalized metal-ligand mixed-valence description for unsubstituted, and a localized metal-centred mixed-valence descriptions for dichloro-/tetrachloro- azodi(phenylcyanamide) complexes. Six mononuclear ruthenium (II)-(dmso-S)-bipyridine complexes of substituted (pentachloro-, tetrachloro-, trichloro-, dichloro-, monochloro- and unsubstituted) phenylcyanamide monoanion ligands were synthesized and characterized. The complexes exhibited photo-induced Ru-S to Ru-O and thermal Ru-O to Ru-S linkage isomerism in solutions and solid polymer films. The quantum yields (0.43-0.06) of photo-induced Ru-S to Ru-O linkage isomerism are shown to decrease with increasing donor properties of the phenylcyanamide ligand. The thermal Ru-O to Ru-S back reaction (k = 4.52 – 2.61 x 10-3 s-1) showed a modest decrease with decrease in the donor properties of the phenylcyanamide ligand. The scan rate dependent cyclic voltammograms demonstrated redox-induced Ru-S to Ru-O and Ru-O to Ru-S linkage isomerism and provided estimates of ground state isomerism rates. DFT calculations established the non-innocent behaviour of phenylcyanamide ligands. Five mononuclear neutral ruthenium (III)-terpyridine-chloride complexes of substituted (pentachloro-, tetrachloro-, trichloro-, dichloro-, monochloro-) phenylcyanamide monoanion ligands were synthesized. The paramagnetic NMR spectroscopy of complexes in dimethylsulfoxide provided estimates of pi-carbon spin density distributions of phenylcyanamide ligands (0.7-3.0 %) and suggested a Ru(III)-centred spin in disagreement with the gas-phase DFT spin density calculations which gave mostly ligand-centred spin. It is suggested that specific solvent-solute interactions stabilize the Ru(III) oxidation state.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Chemistry
    Date Created:
    2014

  • 'Are You There God?': Secularization of Religious Narratives in Contemporary Cinema

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    O'Shea, Mary
    Abstract:
    The budding field of religion and film has almost exclusively consisted of works by religious studies scholars. The objective of this thesis is to approach religion and film from a film studies standpoint, with a focus on narrational, stylistic, and genre analysis. The films explored, Silent Light (Carlos Reygadas, Mexico, 2007), Requiem (Hans-Christian Schmid, Germany, 2006), and Take Shelter (Jeff Nichols, USA, 2011), are not a part of the popular Western cinema that dominates religion and film discourses. These independent works about resurrection (Silent Light), possession (Requiem), and apocalypse (Take Shelter) secularize the religious element of their respective narratives, and as a result, there is room for doubt, hesitation, and a variety of interpretations. The ambiguous sensibility of these films is crucial to this thesis, which aims to complicate the notion of the “religious film.”
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Arts (M.A.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Film Studies
    Date Created:
    2014

  • The Assessment Of In-Bed Mobility Using Pressure Sensitive Mats

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Bennett, Stephanie Louise
    Abstract:
    Clinical mobility tools have been shown to predict adverse outcomes in elderly patients, yet aren’t used often enough to inform hospital staff on patient health. Integrated computing has therefore become increasingly important and is predicted to improve traditional healthcare. This thesis details the design of an algorithmic system to partially automate a mobility tool. Three pressure sensitive mats were set-up on a hospital bed frame, underneath a mattress. Thirty volunteers enacted five movements on the hospital bed; each movement representative of a different mobility score. These movements generated pressure data, and a system of algorithms was constructed in a decision tree to automatically classify data. The overall system yielded 96% accuracy, where the misclassifications were due largely to inconsistencies in volunteer performance. These results suggest that this algorithmic system is effective in distinguishing between the mobility enactments examined here, and emphasizes the potential for integrated computing to improve traditional healthcare.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Biomedical Engineering
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Negotiating Social Practices: The Role of Ubiquitous Computing In Students' Lives

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Todd, Benjamin
    Abstract:
    This thesis explores how the digital divide goes beyond issues of access. In addition, I argue that the concept of a digital generation, or digital native is too simplistic. While young people are more dependent on ubiquitous computing devices such as cell phones, the way they are interpreting and using these technologies, even among users with the same access to ICTs, is different and varies from user to user. My research shows that while Carleton students see their use of mobile technology as increasingly and undeniably central to the way they communicate, form and express their social identities and form collectivities, the way they are using these technologies and the meaning they assign them is fluid and changeable, forcing them to constantly negotiate with each other what kind of cell phone use is appropriate.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Arts (M.A.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Sociology
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Efficient Hermite-based Variability Analysis Using Decoupling Technique

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Pham, Tuan Anh
    Abstract:
    During the design and fabrication process of electronic systems, one of the major concerns is predicting the effect of the variability of their geometrical and physical parameters on the general performance of the designed circuits. To address the above difficulty, this thesis presents a new Hermite-based approach to circuit variability analysis using the Polynomial-Chaos (PC) paradigm. The new approach is aimed at limiting the growth of the computational cost of variability analysis with the increase in the number of random variables and the number of Hermite coefficients used to represent the circuit response in each random variable. The proposed method is based on deriving a closed-form for the structure of augmented matrices generated by the PC approach. An algorithm is then developed to decouple the large augmented matrices into independent matrices that can be factorized in parallel. Additionally, the model-order reduction is applied to circuit stochastic analysis using the proposed PC approach.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Engineering, Electrical and Computer
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Divergent Disability Rates in Canada: Analysis of the Social Determinants of Disability

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    MacKenzie, Andrew Michael
    Abstract:
    Reported disability rates in Canada have varied widely between provinces since 1983. Quebec always reports a disability rate about half the Canadian average while Nova Scotia reports a significantly higher rate than the national average. This pattern has been consistent for many years, across surveys and disability identification questions. This research sheds light on possible factors that may influence the robust nature of these discrepancies in the disability rates of these provinces. This research uses the social determinants of health approach to explore risk factors that are potentially associated with the onset of disability. Cross-sectional data are used to examine the details of current disability rates and differences that exist between provinces. Longitudinal data and survival analysis modelling are used to evaluate the factors influencing the onset of disability over time. Determining the influence of these factors over time helps understand how disability rates evolved into the current discrepancies. The findings of this research suggest that Nova Scotia has elevated risks for disability due to a number of factors often related to disability. Nova Scotia has one of the oldest age structures in Canada, low levels of income and education combined with high rates of smoking, obesity and poor health. The combination of these characteristics suggest that the consistently high disability rate in Nova Scotia is logical due to elevated rates for a significant number of risk factors that appear to have a strong influence on the onset of disability. The results of this research regarding the low disability rates in Quebec are less clear. Several factors suggest Quebec’s disability rate should be lower than Nova Scotia, but not at an extremely low level. The age structures of Quebec and Nova Scotia are remarkably similar yet Quebec reports much lower rates of poor health despite a smoking rate and other risk factors for conditions related to disability that are above the national average. However, Quebec also reports significantly lower rates of obesity and a variety of chronic conditions such as arthritis, which combine to produce an environment in Quebec where there are fewer conditions that are often associated with disability.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Sociology
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Thermo-Reversible Gelation Of Rod-Coil and Coil-Rod-Coil Molecules Based on Perylene Diimides

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Dahan, Elianne
    Abstract:
    Polymer gelation is a route to obtain highly organized morphologies. The aim of my thesis was to study the physical gelation of covalently attached perylene diimide (PDI) polymers during their self-assembly. With the gelators used, chain entanglement and network formation trap the solvent causing gelation. Hence, forces such as hydrogen bonding are not a requirement. We first describe the thermo-reversible gelation of PDMS via the physical route, without any functionalization. We discuss a solvent system, propylamine or hexylamine, gelled by PDMS, without any filler, catalysts or chemical crosslinks. The simple route to the physical gelation of PDMS was then extended to preparing PDMS attached PDI based gels. We then continued our work with PDI attached to a water-soluble side chain; here we studied the gelation of PDI, substituted with Jeffamine® on one imide nitrogen (MJ-PTCDI) or both (DJ-PTCDI). Previous studies in our group showed that self-assembly of the PDI was seen in water and aqueous solvent mixtures, but not in the other non-aqueous solvents. In the present case, the morphology of the gels depended on the amount of solvent: non-solvent ratio. For our final gelator, we attached oligostyrene to both sides of the PDI (PS-PTCDI-PS), to form a coil-rod-coil molecule, and studied its gelation behavior. This differs from the case of coil-rod-coil molecules discussed before; with Di-PDMS, the Tg of the PDMS segment is -125 °C. With DJ-PTCDI, considering that the glass transition temperatures of PEO and PPO are -50 and -75 °C, respectively, the Tg of Jeffamine® can be expected to be about -60 °C. However, here the oligostyrene segment has a Tg of 43 ˚C. We finally used the PS-PTCDI-PS as a guest in its corresponding polystyrene (PS) polymer matrix, in an attempt to make composite films. We showed that by attaching a side group (oligostyrene) which is compatible with the PS polymer, the mixing would be better. Hence, molecularly dispersed composite film could be obtained. The aim was to fabricate films with no crystallization or phase separation. Further research on these composite polymer films will shed light on their outstanding optical properties.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Chemistry
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Envisioning Equity: Coalition and Partnership Strategies of Ottawa's Equity and Inclusion Lens

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Kotani, Yumi
    Abstract:
    This thesis examines the development process of the Equity and Inclusion Lens, a guidebook on inclusive practices designed for City of Ottawa employees, created by a coalition of eleven local community-based social movements in partnership with the City. It analyzes the political strategies pursued by these actors at three interrelated but distinct scales: the City-community partnership, the intersectional coalition of movements, and the individual movements themselves. While the shared strategies adopted by both the coalition and the partnership were generally effective in achieving their common goals, as well as those specific to each movement, this study argues that the multiple priorities they had to address sometimes contradicted one another. The strategies adopted at the higher scales also played out differently at the scale of the individual movements, as some movement-specific strategies aligned more readily with the shared strategies of the coalition and the partnership, while others ran counter to them.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Arts (M.A.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Political Economy
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Blast Hazard Mitigation through Vented Suppressive Shields

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Abdelalim, Omar
    Abstract:
    Vented Suppressive shield (VSS) containers have been used for the storage of hazardous materials, especially explosives. The role of VSS containers is to attenuate the blast pressure and impulse outside the container and to eliminate primary fragment hazard associated with accidental explosions. Most VSS containers are typically designed from experience of previous container testing programs or lessons learned from previous accidents. Another method that is used to analyze and design VSS structures is using Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) software packages such as AUTODYN that are expensive, has long computational time as well as requires special expertise to get the best use of it. The aim of this study is to develop a reliable design methodology that may be used to design the elements of the VSS containers without using CFD software packages. The study begins with defining the vent area ratio for different VSS sections. AUTODYN was used to calculate the pressure outside VSS containers with different scenarios. The obtained data were utilized to develop a set of equations to predict the pressure and impulse outside the container. The pressure values obtained from the equations showed a good correlation with the results obtained from previous experimental results. The second part of the thesis was studying the pressure profile on the sidewalls of the containers. The pressure profiles on the sidewall of the containers were studied using 2D AUTODYN models. Some modifications were made to the Friedlander’s waveform equation in order to take into account the effect of internal explosion. The single layer plate configuration was chosen as a control configuration and geometric coefficients were introduced in order to take into account the effect of different geometric sections. The pressure profiles obtained from the developed equations were compared to those obtained from AUTODYN. Finally, a single degree of freedom (SDOF) model was developed to study the structural response of the VSS elements due to internal explosion. The SDOF model was able to predict the structural behaviour of steel VSS elements. The results were compared with those obtained from AUTODYN software and a good correlation was found between the two responses.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Engineering, Civil
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Gaming with Ghosts: Hauntology, Metanarrative, and Gamespace in Video Games

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Robertson, Adrien
    Abstract:
    This thesis undertakes a hauntological analysis of video games and their ludonarrative structures. Chapter One argues that avatars are spectral figures within a game’s narrative constructs, and examines the manipulation of time and space in games like Braid (2008) function in conjunction with McKenzie Wark’s concept of gamespace. Chapter Two performs a hauntological analysis of the lore of The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, examining how characters manipulate the fourth wall in acts of metagaming in order to access gamespace from within the game world, culminating in a form of metagamespace. Chapter Three engages with confessional, anonymous online fan sites to argue that, where metagamespace fails, fans continue to perpetuate extratextual sites of narrative interpretation, further proliferating spectral narrative threads.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Arts (M.A.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    English
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Improving Digital Control System Performance Through a Novel Jitter Compensating Method

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Perera, Kaluarachchige Chamira
    Abstract:
    Software induced delays degrade the performance of a digital control system which can result in violation of performance requirements. Shortcomings of the state-of-the-art include, not considering satisfying plant response characterizing performance requirements, implementation complexity, and extra overhead for the solution. Additionally, a proportional integral derivative (PID) controller solution to compensate for input-output and output jitter, to the best of our knowledge was not found. This research proposes a jitter compensating PID controller. Firstly, the worst case sampling to output delay, which is one sampling period, is modeled. Secondly, this delay placed between the controller and plant. Finally, the PID controller is designed to satisfy performance requirements. Advantages of this solution include satisfying performance requirements, and unchanged implementation complexity and execution overhead. Performance results validate the effectiveness of the proposed solution by demonstrating its ability to meet performance requirements in response to a step function, and by tracking a square wave.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Engineering, Electrical and Computer
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Numerical Investigations of Instability and Transition in Attached and Separated Shear Layers

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Brinkerhoff, Joshua Robert
    Abstract:
    This integrated thesis documents a series of five complementary numerical investigations aimed at understanding the flow instability and laminar-to-turbulent transition process in attached and separated shear layers. Direct numerical simulation was used in these studies to accurately resolve the spatial and temporal scales of the simulated flows. The first two investigations simulate the flow in an idealized computational domain that approximates the conditions on the suction surface of a low-pressure turbine (LPT) blade. The first study investigates the interaction of the Tollmien-Schlichting instability in the attached-flow region with the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability in the separated-flow region. The interaction produces packets of coherent vortices that facilitate transition to a fully-turbulent boundary layer. The effect of swept-blade conditions on the transition process is investigated in the second numerical study by sweeping the simulation domain by 45 degrees. The resulting three-dimensional pressure field creates the potential for a crossflow-induced instability mode, but its effect on the transition process is minimal and transition follows the same mechanisms observed in the unswept configuration. The characteristics of the coherent vortices that facilitate transition to turbulence in the first study are further investigated through a series of fundamental studies of an isolated turbulent spot that is triggered by a transverse jet. The first of these fundamental studies demonstrates the sensitivity of the formation and structure of the coherent vortices to the level of free-stream acceleration. A subsequent fundamental study identifies the regeneration process by which the turbulent spot grows laterally through the formation of packets of hairpin vortices along the spanwise edges of the spot and longitudinally by the increase in the spatial scale of the hairpin vortices. The final fundamental study investigates the effects of elevated free-stream turbulence levels and LPT-realistic pressure distributions on the transition process. Under elevated turbulence conditions, bypass transition occurs as streamwise streaks form in the laminar boundary layer and roll-up into hairpin-shaped vortices via a Kelvin-Helmholtz instability mode that is accelerated by the free-stream turbulence. The wave-packet regeneration model identified under low free-stream turbulence is promoted by elevated free-stream turbulence, increasing the growth-rate of turbulent spots under elevated turbulence conditions.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Engineering, Aerospace
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Age and Geochemical Character of Granite and Syenite Plutons in the Grenville Province of Southeastern Ontario; Insights into Magmatism During the Ottawan Orogeny and Evidence of the Frontenac Intrusive Suite in the Sharbot Lake Domain

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Cutts, Jamie Alistair
    Abstract:
    Seven plutons in the Composite Arc Belt and Frontenac terrane of the Grenville Province are herein determined to be part of the Kensington-Skootamatta intrusive suite. The syenite-monzonite and granite-monzogranite plutons have crystallization ages of ca. 1086-1072 Ma and ca. 1077-1067 Ma, respectively. In general, the plutons are shoshonitic, metaluminous to weakly peraluminous, and alkalic to calc-alkalic. The plutons have conflicting trace element signatures that suggest a within-plate tectonic setting with a weak remnant suprasubduction zone signature and a depleted mantle isotopic signature of εNd 2-5. This geochemistry points to derivation of these melts through fractionation of an alkaline basalt or partial melting of quartzofeldspathic crust. Melt generation was perhaps initiated by crustal delamination, and further heated through insulation by overthickened crust and the Midcontinent Rift magmatic system. Two other plutons that were studied have ca. 1180-1160 Ma crystallization ages and geochemical characteristics similar to the Frontenac intrusive suite.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Science (M.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Earth Sciences
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Extraversion and Counter-Dispositional Behaviour: Exploring Consequences and the Impact of Situation-Behaviour Congruence

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Whelan, Deanna Carolyn
    Abstract:
    People behave differently from one moment to the next and thus are frequently behaving ‘out of character’ or counter to their dispositions. Previous research exploring acting out of character indicated that acting extraverted was associated with increases in positive affect for both trait introverts and trait extraverts, whereas acting introverted was associated with cognitive control costs, but only for trait extraverts. These asymmetrical negative consequences can be partially explained by counter-dispositional behaviour as it may consume mental resources through monitoring and modifying behaviour. I proposed that previous research exploring counter-dispositional behaviour has neglected the importance of situational effects. Research demonstrates that contra-normative behaviour is depleting. Previous findings of costs for acting ‘out of character’ were limited to when behaviour was also incongruent with situational norms. Thus, I extended this line of inquiry by using the acting paradigm in introverted situations. I posited that there would be negative costs associated with acting extraverted, as it was contra-situational. I also posited that there would be even greater costs for dispositional introverts as they were also behaving counter-dispositionally. In two studies, I created introverted situations and randomly assigned participants to one of three experimental conditions (act extraverted, act introverted or control condition). In study 1 (N = 158), participants in the acting extraverted condition reported more positive affect, enjoyment, valence, and authenticity. Furthermore, no effects of cognitive fatigue were found. Thus, the hypothesized costs of acting extraverted were not found. In study 2 (N = 85) acting instructions were modified to highlight the positive features of introversion and the negative features of extraversion. Study 2 also employed naïve confederates so that feedback was uniform across conditions. Unlike previous acting studies, study 2 found no benefits for acting extraverted, but did find that participants reported the most effort and least authenticity when acting extraverted. Study 2 results suggest contra-situational costs, but these did not differ by disposition. Previous research and study 1 demonstrate benefits for acting extraverted and suggest that introverts may be happier by behaving extraverted more often. Study 2 provides a critical caveat that this may not always be true.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Psychology
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Ultrasonic Signal Processing for Continuous Measurements of Tissue Displacement and Thickness During Muscle Contraction

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Turkistani, Hisham
    Abstract:
    Tissue displacement and thickness are useful parameters for quantifying muscle function. These parameters can be obtained using ultrasound with high frame rate and reasonable spatial resolution. However, a conventional hand-held ultrasonic probe that is bulky, rigid, and heavy may not be suitable for continuous muscle monitoring during physical activities. This research aimed to measure tissue displacement and thickness variation during muscle contraction using a wearable ultrasonic sensor. However, the energy of the transmitted ultrasonic waves using the wearable ultrasonic sensor is lower than that of a conventional probe. In order to overcome this issue, selected signal processing techniques were applied and compared. It was found in the numerical simulation experiments that the frequency-domain techniques, in particular LQ-factorization, had better tracking accuracy than the time-domain techniques. In the in-vivo experiment, ultrasonic signals were acquired at a forearm during isometric contraction. The tissue boundary displacements and thickness changes were successfully obtained
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Biomedical Engineering
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Development of Biocompatible Aptamer Films as Smart Materials for Novel Fertilizer Systems

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Foster, Amanda
    Abstract:
    Aptamers are short, single stranded nucleic acids that fold into well-defined 3D structures which bind to a single target molecule with affinities and specificities that can rival antibodies. The compatibility of aptamers with nanostructures such as thin films, in combination with their inherent properties could set the foundation for the development of smart materials. This research will focus on development of a biocompatible aptamer-polyelectrolyte film system for use in controlled-release applications. We demonstrated the ability of the sulforhodamine B aptamer to function while sequestered in a chitosan-hyaluronan film matrix. Our results also suggest that deposition conditions play a strong role in the internal film interactions and growth mechanism. As a secondary objective, the protective role of the polyelectrolytes against nuclease-mediated aptamer degradation was investigated. This research has the potential to revolutionize materials used in controlled-release platforms with possible application to fertilizer systems which will be discussed.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Science (M.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Chemistry
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Semiparametric Marginal Models For Incomplete Binary Longitudinal Data With Dropouts

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Chowdhury, Salehin Khan
    Abstract:
    In this thesis, we explore semiparametric marginal models for binary longitudinal data with dropouts. We are specifically interested in the joint estimation of the marginal mean parameters and association parameters by second order generalized estimating equations when the marginal mean response model is partially linear. First, we propose and explore a set of weighted generalized estimating equations (GEEs) for fitting regression models to longitudinal binary responses when there are dropouts. Under a given missing data mechanism, the proposed method provides unbiased estimators of the regression parameters and association parameters. Simulations were carried out to study the robustness properties of the proposed method under both correctly specified and misspecified correlation structures. The method is also illustrated in an analysis of some actual incomplete longitudinal data on cigarette smoking trends, which were used to study coronary artery development in young adults. We also developed a semiparametric approach to analyzing longitudinal binary data. We applied second order GEE approach to analyze longitudinal binary responses under partially linear single-index models. We use the local polynomial smoothing technique to estimate the single-index parameters. We study the empirical properties of the proposed method in simulations. Our simulation study demonstrates that if the true underlying model is partially linear, then our proposed method generally provides unbiased and efficient estimators. The proposed method is also applied to some real data sets obtained from two longitudinal studies. Next, we propose a weighted local linear kernel method and a weighted second order GEE approach for simultaneous estimation of the single-index, regression and association parameters in partially linear single-index models with dropouts. Finally, the proposed methods are applied to some clinical data obtained from a Genetic and Inflammatory Marker of Sepsis (GenIMS) study. The estimates of the single-index showed strong evidence of nonlinear trend in the mean response function. It is evident from this application that our proposed methods can be used to improve the efficiency of the estimates obtained from an ordinary GEE model for binary longitudinal data with dropouts.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Probability and Statistics
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Solidarity by Association: The Unionization of Faculty, Academic Librarians and Support Staff at Carleton University (1973-1976)

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Attridge Bufton, Martha Carolyn
    Abstract:
    In the mid-1970s, three employee groups at Carleton University changed campus labour relations dramatically: the professors and librarians who belonged to the Carleton University Academic Staff formed the first Ontario faculty union in June 1975; nine months later the Ontario Labour Relations Board certified the Carleton University Support Staff Association as the bargaining agent for the administrative and technical staff. The history of faculty labour action at Carleton has been told but not that of either academic librarians or support staff so this case of unionism provides a unique opportunity to compare their experiences. Working primarily with oral histories, I argue that status was critical to mobilizing labour action at Carleton. These employees—many of whom were women—wanted a fair workplace but deliberately chose an independent association over a trade union because such “solidarity by association” was compatible with their deeply held beliefs about their work and place on campus.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Arts (M.A.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    History
    Date Created:
    2014

  • "Marching Must Be Dignified": The Government of Parades in Northern Ireland

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Salhany, Susan
    Abstract:
    In July 1996, public disorder associated with parades in Northern Ireland amounted to a significant crisis for the state. The result was the creation of an independent commission, known as the Northern Ireland Parades Commission, to manage how parades take place. This dissertation is concerned with the governing strategies and tactics deployed by the Parades Commission since its inception in 1997. It is concerned with the practical means through which the attempt was made to constitute the spaces and politics of parading as an object of government. Michel Foucault's study of governmentality, as well as the subsequent development of his work by other scholars, provides the overall approach to this thesis. I argue that in the mid-1990s, early attempts to repress, ban, and prohibit parading give way in important degrees to attempts to encourage, entice and direct the conduct of individuals and groups. The strategies, tactics, administrative procedures, and discourses deployed by the Commission aimed to capture and reorganize local symbolic politics and political relations in Northern Ireland in ways deemed conducive to peaceful parading. This study also concerns itself with the challenges, problems and resistances faced by the Commission. In particular, it takes into account the ways in which the lack of political consensus and the history of political conflict in Northern Ireland has shaped the governing project, as well as the ways in which the attempt to govern a symbolic display challenged the processes and practices of government. This thesis ultimately shows how the Commission's attempts proved unsuccessful: as evident by the constant challenges faced by the body, the spaces and politics of parading are elusive and difficult to constitute; the government of parades has required persistent experimentation which continues to present day.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Sociology
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Cartilage Simulation Using Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Boyer, Philip Anthony Nicholas
    Abstract:
    Abnormal bone growth in the hip joint causing increased stress during motion is a condition known as Femoral Acetabular Impingement (FAI). FAI is considered to be a primary cause of osteoarthritis in this joint due to wear of articular cartilage. A computer simulation for preoperative evaluation of FAI requires the representation of cartilage for accurate force and stress determination, but current methodologies such as the finite element method (FEM) do not simultaneously provide both the accuracy and the computational speed necessary for such a representation. In this thesis, a fast and accurate simulation of articular cartilage is proposed using adaptations of previous research and unique extensions to the method of smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH). Strong correlation is found between simulations of compression and indentation experiments of cartilage with previously published experimental results, with simulations operating in excess of real-time rates.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Biomedical Engineering
    Date Created:
    2014

  • When Europe Re-Built the Neighbourhood: City Beautiful, Hull-House, and the Emergence of American Internationalism, 1890-1920

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Mahoney, Maureen Anne
    Abstract:
    Alice Hamilton, Grace Abbott, and Frederic C. Howe were members of a well-educated, white middle-class that burgeoned around the turn-of-the-century in the United States, and they embraced “Progressivism” and pacifism. In the flow of people, ideas, and culture that criss-crossed the North Atlantic, creating the intricate networks that formed an “international consciousness,” Hamilton, Abbott, and Howe were also involved. In Chicago and Cleveland, however, their encounters with European culture were informed by shifting conventions of gender. At Hull-House in Chicago, Hamilton and Abbott observed the social transformations induced by mass immigration, and were forced to admit their education was not directly relevant. Drawing upon pragmatism and feminism, they learned to emphasize the subjectivity of experience, to view culture as a cooperative balance of diverse values, and to conceive of identity and knowledge as products of social and historic circumstances. By using these principles, they came to perceive American and European domestic spaces as two parts of an inclusive community. In Cleveland, corruption and chaotic growth convinced Howe that reform must be initiated by “public-spirited” men who privileged collective well-being, were familiar with “civilized” European cities, and experimented with reform. Mayor Tom L. Johnson, who tried to reclaim local democracy with tent meetings, three cent fares, public (municipal) ownership of key utilities, amongst other reforms, commissioned architect Daniel H. Burnham to develop the Group Plan (1903), which drew heavily upon Beaux-Arts traditions, before rebuilding downtown. Inspired, Howe returned to Europe to study male civic leadership. The purpose of an international community, as he perceived it, was the unlimited exchange of information between public-spirited men. Internationalism was therefore gendered. This dissertation argues this happened within American cities where Hamilton, Abbott, and Howe had novel experiences and encountered European people, ideas, and architectural traditions as they were integrated within Chicago and Cleveland during an intense period of trans-Atlantic sharing. By using collective biography to examine the effects of domestic gendered experience on perceptions of internationalism, this dissertation reveals how local and global traditions converged in ways that altered definitions of power, culture, and community at local, national, and international levels
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    History
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Hydraulic Performance of Compacted Clay Liners (CCLS) Under Simulated Landfill Conditions

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Abdulrahman, Abdulghader
    Abstract:
    Experimental investigations were carried out to evaluate the hydraulic performance of Compacted Clay Liners (CCLs) in landfills before waste placement and after waste placement. Results exhibited positive correlation between CCLs’ hydraulic conductivity and plasticity indices when CCLs exposed to daily thermal or wet-dry cycles. Overlaying the CCL with a layer of geomembrane minimized the effects of daily thermal and wet-dry cycles. After waste placement, the hydraulic conductivity for CCL specimens increased by two to three times their initial values when exposed to 55℃ for 75 days. Initial increase in hydraulic conductivities for all CCL specimens occurred when the permeant was changed from tap water to leachate. However, as the leachate exposure time increased, hydraulic conductivity readings decreased to as low as one order of magnitude after 75 days of leachate permeation at room temperature. The rate of hydraulic conductivity reduction due to leachate permeation was slower at higher temperatures.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Civil Engineering
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Near-Field Explosion Effects on the Behaviour of Reinforced Concrete Columns: A Numerical Investigation

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Abladey, Lawrence Abladey
    Abstract:
    Recent terrorist attacks and accidental explosions have increased the need to study the behaviour of structures subjected to blast loadings. Most research work investigating the behaviour of reinforced concrete columns to blast loading have concentrated on their response from far-field explosions. Limited amount of work is available on the effects of near-field explosion on behaviour of reinforced concrete columns. This thesis presents a parametric numerical study to investigate the effects of near-field explosions on the response behaviour of reinforced concrete columns. The study included effects on scaled distances and tie spacing on behaviour of columns. The numerical analysis showed that for increasing charge masses, the natural period of vibration of reinforced concrete columns increased. Also the effects of tie spacing were markedly noticeable at lower scaled distances. Peak column deflections at higher scaled distances occurred mid-height while peak column deflections at lower scaled distances occurred closer to the column supports.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Civil Engineering
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Perception-Motivated High-Quality Stylization

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Li, Hua
    Abstract:
    Non-photorealistic rendering (NPR) algorithms are used to produce stylized images, e.g., in a painted or stippled style. This thesis presents a new family of automatic methods for effects and styles including halftoning, screening, stippling, line art, and mosaics. Our proposed algorithms are motivated by perceptual effects including contrast and similarity to present structure preservation. Meanwhile, the novelty also shows in exploring primitives in distribution for our NPR algorithms. First, we propose a novel contrast-aware error diffusion algorithm based on a priority-based scheme, called Prioritized Contrast-based Error Diffusion (CED), to generate stylized imagery. The core idea of this technique is to implicitly and progressively preserve the original tendency in contrast. This method generates halftoning with a success in similarities for tone, structure, and contrast, and with good visual appearance. We extend Prioritized CED with variations on masks and priority configuration to create screening style with non-uniform patterns. To apply Prioritized CED to stippling generation, we design a new modification to the contrast-aware error distribution to provide density control in dot distribution. A set of varied stippling styles are produced. Thanks to the good structure preservation, all resulting effects are quite good. We also propose a technique of pixel clustering and employ skeletonization for generation of line art with long strokes. Pixel clustering produces long lines by processing a set of pixels, which align along the edge guidance from a smoothed bilateral filter on an edge tangent field (ETF). Skeletonization captures large-scale structure of an image. We can create simplified line art with clean and elegant visual appearance. Second, we propose a novel automatic approach to construct an artistic tessellation (AT) through the growth of curves in a particle system. The core idea is to present similarity, and in addition, to consider spatial balance during curve growth. The AT method is applied to create natural and abstract patterns. The further exploration guided by a bilateral smoothed ETF from an image can simulate stained-glass mosaics.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Computer Science
    Date Created:
    2014

  • A Client-Oriented Solution for Optimistic Replication of Cloud Services

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Zhu, Wenbo
    Abstract:
    This dissertation presents a novel approach to enable tunable tradeoffs between performance and consistency for geographically replicated cloud services. The end goal of the approach is to have a solution by which replication is able to improve the overall performance of the system while inconsistency due to optimistic message delivery is bounded in both time and space. We achieve the latter goal with an eagerly executed commit layer that detects and solves conflicts in parallel with the optimistic replication layer. We believe such a solution not only solves the performance bottleneck of replicated services but also enables a full spectrum of tunability which will further allow applications to choose the best strategy to balance the tradeoff between performance and consistency for their replicated services. The new solution differs from the traditional eventual consistency model by providing a capability to solve conflicts in an online manner and to leverage the explicit role of clients in specifying the consistency requirements. Experiments on a prototype system in a real cloud environment are described, that show that the Client Oriented Layered Optimistic Replication (or COLOR) is feasible, and which evaluate the achievable tradeoffs between performance and consistency on a realistic example system under load, distributed over five replicas in two continents. The prototype shows that COLOR provides a well defined programming model to assist application developers to control the replication of their cloud services without resorting to the otherwise non-guarantee eventual consistency model in face of performance challenges.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Engineering, Electrical
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Proof-of-Concept Inverse Micro-Scale Dispersion Modelling for Fugitive Emissions Quantification in Industrial Facilities

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Joynes, Ian M.
    Abstract:
    A proof-of-concept study was conducted to locate and quantify fugitive emissions within a gas processing plant with inverse micro-scale dispersion modelling. A synthetic wind field and receptor observations were generated for a simplified model of a gas processing plant. Source reconstruction was performed with an objective function that measured the misfit of candidate emission source distributions. The objective function gradient was evaluated with adjoint sensitivity analysis, and the candidate emission source distribution that minimized the objective function was found using the L-BFGS-B optimization algorithm. The inverse dispersion model was tested under non-ideal conditions such as multiple emission sources, unfavourable receptor coverage, and the addition of observational noise. In an effort to mitigate the prediction of false emission sources, objective function regularization and emission source filtering were investigated. It was found that a combination of regularization and filtering achieved the best estimates of the emission locations and total emission rates.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Engineering, Mechanical
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Kinematic Calibration of Serial Manipulators Using Relative Measurements

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Lu, Chao-Chia
    Abstract:
    Kinematic calibration is necessary to enhance the accuracy of robotic manipulators. It is typically desired to perform this task in both a cost-effective and time-efficient manner. Many techniques exist in the literature that achieve both goals. In this thesis, a novel model-based kinematic calibration method using relative measurements is developed and implemented, which has proven to be useful for optical measurements, and is capable of achieving the same level of accuracy as the typical absolute measurement methods. Furthermore, the effects of measurement noise, the number of measured poses, and the best pose configurations for kinematic calibration are investigated. Both a Thermo CRS A465 and a 7 DOF WAM Arm were used in this thesis. The results for the WAM Arm lead to a significant improvement in the end-effector pose accuracy. The implication is that the relative measurement concept is a valid tool for model-based kinematic calibration of serial manipulators.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Engineering, Mechanical
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Deformation and Stresses Generated on The Bolted Flange Joint Assembly and The Grayloc Clamp Connector at Elevated Temperatures

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Mogri, Mustafa
    Abstract:
    Finite element analyses were performed to investigate the leakage and structural integrity of the bolted flange joint assembly (BFJA) and Grayloc clamp connector (GCC), when each assembly was subjected to bolt preload, internal pressure and thermal loadings. The thermal loadings were divided into spatially-uniform and spatially-nonuniform temperatures. The internal pressure for both assemblies was 27 MPa. The BFJA was found to have satisfactory leakage and structural performance for the thermal loadings expected on the low-temperature (260 °C) side of the Carleton Supercritical Water (CSCW) loop. The GCC was found to have satisfactory leakage and structural performance for the thermal loadings expected on the high-temperature (600 °C) side of the CSCW loop. The leakage integrity of the GCC was found to fail for temperature gradients as high as 100 °C. The use of the GCC on the exit of the test section employed on the CSCW loop was not recommended.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Engineering, Mechanical
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Hidden Authority, Public Display: Representations of First Nations Peoples at the Calgary Stampede, 1912-1970

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Joudrey, Susan Louise
    Abstract:
    This dissertation addresses the intersections of race, performance, and cultural representation in Canada’s prairie west by examining settler expectations of First Nations participation in the Calgary Exhibition and Stampede, 1912-1970. In North America, Aboriginal peoples have played prominent roles in historical pageants and Wild West shows, including the Calgary Stampede. These venues presented specific depictions of the North American indigenous population and reinforced constructed identities that were, at times, in conflict with one another. At the Calgary Exhibition and Stampede members of the Siksika, Kainai, Piikani, Tsuu T’ina, and Stoney Nakoda nations worked with (and sometimes against) Stampede organizers, Indian Agents, and city officials to lend authenticity to the western narrative. At the Stampede, First Nations’ participation was organized by public officials, businessmen, and Indian Agents to reflect (and repeat) specific ideas about the development of Calgary and the prairie west. Often “Indians” were situated in public events to draw a comparison between the progress of a modern city and the less civilized past. The depictions of Aboriginality on Stampede ephemera, as well as the involvement and performance of members of the Treaty 7 Nations in parades, street displays, and the Indian Village, shaped the memory of audiences and other performers. Stampede organizers and city officials portrayed Calgary as a “civilized” space which was no longer “wild,” and required signifiers of the past, such as First Nations men and women, to represent what existed before. As mediums of memory, First Nations participants provided an “Other” against which “civilized” Calgarians could be compared. Popular cultural events like the Stampede replicated the power structures evident in what are considered more overt colonial contexts like the reserve system or residential schools. There was a strategic attempt by white organizers to control expressions of Aboriginal identity and culture at the Calgary Stampede by regulating what was appropriate and inappropriate. Furthermore, the Department of Indian Affairs was concerned with the representation of “Indian” at the Stampede and attempted to restrict First Nations involvement. However, the Stampede also provides an example of how members of the Treaty 7 Nations developed approaches for operating within oppressive frameworks.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    History
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Ion Extraction and Counting System for Barium Tagging in Gaseous Xenon for the Enriched Xenon Observatory

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Rozo Martinez, Maria Paula
    Abstract:
    The Enriched Xenon Observatory is an experiment in the search of the neutrinoless double beta decay of 136Xe. A positive observation and measurement of the decay rate would determine fundamental properties of the neutrinos, such as their nature (Majorana or Dirac) and their absolute mass scale. The identification of the barium daughter product of the decay via laser induced fluorescence would allow a background free measurement of the process and would improve the detection sensitivity to reach neutrino masses on the order of 10 meV. As one of the main components of the barium tagging concept in gaseous xenon, a mass spectrometry system consisting of ion extraction, transport, mass identification and counting devices was designed, developed and characterized for this work. The implementation of a nanoelectrospray ionization source coupled to micron sized insulated nozzles for ion extraction from high pressure gas into vacuum of both singly and doubly charged states of barium was demonstrated.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Science (M.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Physics
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Farewell to Rural Nova Scotia? A Participatory Action Study of Rural Youth Migration in Atlantic Canada

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    MacBride, Megan
    Abstract:
    Recently, outward migration from rural communities in the province is an issue that is gaining increased attention due to the economic and community ramifications of significant migration trends. Using a participatory action research approach, this study focuses on the lived experiences of young adults who grew up in one rural community. Qualitative interviews were done with eight participants who have either stayed in, left, or returned to their rural hometown. An analysis was completed using political economy and structural social work theories in order to understand these key factors and possible points for action. Key findings include the need for more relevant guidance for rural youth in high school and later in life, community development strategies that focus on young adults, and increased government attention and consultation on rural youth issues.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Social Work (M.S.W.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Social Work
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Network Traffic Characterization Using (p,n)-grams Packet Representation

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Hijazi, Abdulrahman A
    Abstract:
    With the ever increasing advances in network protocols and traffic complexity, new challenges are emerging in traffic characterization and management. In this thesis, we propose a new approach that can complement existing ones with a simple high-level understanding of network traffic. Our approach uses (p,n)-grams representation to analyze network traffic, where a (p,n)-gram is an $-byte string starting at offset p. We argue that the (p,n)-grams representation combines the efficiency of using specific packet fields (e.g. ports) with the generalized pattern matching of n-grams, without the complexity and overhead of full packet pattern matching. We also show that using (p,n)-grams allows for traffic analysis at all packet parts (payload content, header port/flow, and other header behavior fields), without mixing between similar patterns that may accidentally exist at different fields within packets. As a proof of concept, we develop a (p,n)-gram-based lightweight unsupervised clustering algorithm (ADHIC) that makes no prior assumptions about the involved protocols. We show that ADHIC can automatically cluster network traffic using a binary decision tree into equivalence classes that closely approximate standard measures of network traffic. We also show that ADHIC can be used to monitor network traffic through observing the dynamic updates to the clustering tree. Those incremental updates highlight the temporal changes in network traffic that are not easily detected using standard network analysis methods. We then research the characteristics and distributions of (p,n)-grams in network packets, and how they can be utilized for traffic analysis. In particular, we argue that (p,n)-grams have automatic fingerprinting capability where a simple frequency analysis of network packets can capture structural (p,n)-grams based on their relative high frequencies. These (p,n)-grams represent protocol and sub-protocol structures and cross-protocol patterns. We observe that (p,n)-grams follow a power-law-like distribution where the structural ones constitute the rapidly-dropping-off curve before the long tail. We argue that this special distribution adds to the efficiency of (p,n)-grams-based traffic analysis as it describes structural (p,n)-grams as 1) a small set of (p,n)-grams that 2) can be easily distinguished from the long list. Our observation relies on a thorough empirical analysis using independent network traffic traces.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Computer Science
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Non Uniform Deposition of pMDI Aerosol in a Large Volume Spacer

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Sprigge, Elizabeth
    Abstract:
    Chronic lower respiratory tract diseases have been cited as the fourth leading cause of death in Canada in both 2000 and 2009 [1]. Pressurised metered dose inhalers (pMDIs) administer medication for patients suffering from these disorders, in particular for asthma. Medication released from a pMDI can be difficult to inhale directly, and add-on devices have been designed to aid delivery. While add-on devices, or spacers, increase the percentage of medication that reaches the patient, medication also deposits on the walls of the device. The deposition of medication within a large volume spacer is studied, using spectrophotometry for experiments and computational fluid dynamics, implementing mean-flow and turbulent tracking of particles. Regions of deposition are of interest, as well as the way that the deposition varied for different inhalation flow rates. The aim is to determine optimal inhalation flow rate as well as studying the cause of the non-symmetrical deposition.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Engineering, Mechanical
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Unmanned Aeronautical Ad-hoc Networks: Enhancing the Reactive-Greedy-Reactive Protocol and Introducing a New Mobility Model

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Medjo Me Biomo, Jean-Daniel
    Abstract:
    Unmanned Aeronautical Ad-hoc Networks (UAANETs) are infrastructure-less and self-organizing networks that are formed by small and medium sized Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) that are deployed for a wide range of civilian and military applications. Having a reliable routing protocol for communication between the UAVs is critical. Our goal in this research is twofold. First, we enhance one of the existing routing protocols, the Reactive-Greedy-Reactive (RGR) protocol. In doing so, we propose the Optimized-RGR. Secondly, we propose the Enhanced Gauss-Markov (EGM) mobility model for UAANET simulations to replace the widely used, but unrealistic, Random Waypoint (RWP) mobility model. Simulations performed using the OPNET simulator show that Optimized-RGR outperforms RGR. There is a 5.3% increase in Packet Delivery Ratio at a negligible cost in latency. Furthermore, realistic mobility models, including EGM, show a lot of network partitioning. Therefore, this should be taken very seriously when developing a routing protocol for UAANETs.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Engineering, Electrical and Computer
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Tympanal Ears in Nyphalidae Butterflies: Morphological Diversity and Tests on the Function of Hearing

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Hall, Laura Elizabeth
    Abstract:
    Several Nymphalidae butterflies possess a sensory structure called the Vogel’s organ (VO) that is proposed to function in hearing. However, little is known about the VO’s structure, taxonomic distribution or function. My first research objective was to examine VO morphology and its accessory structures across taxa. Criteria were established to categorize development levels of butterfly VOs and tholi. I observed that enlarged forewing veins are associated with the VOs of several species within two subfamilies of Nymphalidae. Further, I discovered a putative light/temperature-sensitive organ associated with the VOs of several Biblidinae species. The second objective was to test the hypothesis that insect ears function to detect bird flight sounds for predator avoidance. Neurophysiological recordings collected from moth ears show a clear response to flight sounds and chirps from a live bird in the laboratory. Finally, a portable electrophysiology rig was developed to further test this hypothesis in future field studies.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Science (M.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Biology
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Investigating the Role of Mortality in Explaining the Negative Road Effect on Birds

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Jack, Joanna Rose
    Abstract:
    Lower abundance of forest birds near high traffic roads has been attributed to traffic noise, but the potential role of traffic mortality has not been adequately tested. To test the hypothesis that traffic mortality is an important contributor, I predicted that where there is a higher risk of traffic collision, there would be a stronger decrease in the number of forest birds close to roads over the course of the breeding season. I compared relative abundance of forest birds, at four distances from high traffic roads, at ten sites where the birds were more likely to cross the road (forest on the other side) vs. at ten sites where they were less likely to cross the road (open field on the other side). The prediction was supported, suggesting that roads bisecting natural areas may create population sinks. This highlights the importance of mitigating traffic mortality in important bird habitats.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Science (M.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Biology
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Improved Jamming-Resistant Frequency Hopping Spread Spectrum Systems

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Atta, Walid Mohamed Saad Aly
    Abstract:
    Frequency hopping spread spectrum is widely used in military applications to provide communication between command posts, soldiers, vehicles, sensors, missile launchers, etc. It provides good protection against the effects of frequency selective fading, and can be robust in jamming environments. Traditional frequency hopping spread spectrum involves dividing the available spectrum into a large number of sub-bands, and hopping over these sub-bands in a pseudo-random fashion, but there are different implementations within this general framework that can deliver better performance. In this thesis, we present several existing frequency hopping spread spectrum schemes and we investigate their performance in the presence of frequency selective fading and adaptive partial band jamming. We optimize the control parameters of matched frequency hopping, clipped matched frequency hopping and advanced frequency hopping to enhance their throughput performance. We also propose three new random frequency hopping schemes that generate a hopping pattern with the property of being random over the total bandwidth of the channel but good sub-bands tend to be selected more frequently. These new random frequency hopping schemes provide greater resilience to adaptive jamming and give much higher throughput than the existing schemes.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Engineering, Electrical and Computer
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Reduced Capacitor Eight Bit SAR Analog to Digital Converter

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Lanfranconi, Daniel James
    Abstract:
    The charge sharing SAR ADC is a hybrid between the binary weighted SAR ADC and the serial SAR ADC.The charge sharing SAR ADC has less capacitors, and therefore less die area and less leakage than a binary weighted SAR ADC. It’s conversion time is less than the serial SAR ADC because it uses a capacitor array with more capacitors than the serial SAR ADC. The simulated signal to noise ratio (SNR) was measured to be 49.9dB. The simulated signal to noise and distortion ratio (SINAD) was measured to be 48.72dB. The simulated effective number of bits (ENOB) was measured to be 7.8bits. The simulated total harmonic distortion (THD) was measured to be -60.3dB. The simulated spurious free dynamic range (SFDR) was measured to be 60.4dB. The simulated worst case dynamic nonlinearity, differential non-linearity (DNL) and integral non-linearity (INL) are less than 1/2 least significant bit (LSB).
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Engineering, Electrical and Computer
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Computational Fluid Dynamic Solver Based on Cellular Discrete-Event Simulation for use in Biological Systems

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Van Schyndel, Michael
    Abstract:
    The use of computer simulations in biology and the medical research field has gained in popularity. These simulations are providing researchers the opportunity to better predict the behavior of biological systems before performing long and expensive physical trials. The modeling of large biological systems would benefit from a method of approximating fluid flow quickly and accurately. The Discrete Event System Specification (DEVS) has rarely been used for modeling the physics of fluid flow. In this thesis we show how Cell-DEVS, a derivative of the DEVS formalism that conforms to the Cellular Automata parameters, can be used to provide realistic approximations of fluid flow. The goal of the Cell-DEVS based CFD model will be to accurately approximate the fluid flow with minimal computational effort. Furthermore, the design of the solver should be such that it can be easily adjusted for use in a wide range of biological systems.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Biomedical Engineering
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Optimal Intertemporal Pricing Strategies for Firms Introducing New Products

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Brownell, Briana
    Abstract:
    Firms can significantly improve their performance upon the introduction of a new product by following an intertemporal pricing strategy which predicts the adoption of the product through time. Four reasons for gradual adoption are explored: delayed purchase, awareness, social pressures and informational needs. The firm does better by pricing a straightforward new product at a lower introductory price when the product is quite visible to other potential adopters when an individual adopts. Differences in price-sensitivity among consumers also impact the firm’s optimal strategy. Products for which the social relevance varies considerably or for which the average perceived social risk of adoption is high cannot necessarily benefit from a low introductory price. A high initial price which decreases through time is better when consumers are varied in their need for information, when on average, much information is needed and when the information generated by other adopters is forgotten more quickly.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Arts (M.A.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Economics
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Disturbance-based restoration for recovery of pitch pine (Pinus rigida) in the Thousand Islands Ecosystem: a comparison of prescribed fire and mechanical disturbance on seedling regeneration

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Van Wieren, Joshua Frans
    Abstract:
    Disturbance plays an important role in maintaining forests worldwide. Many natural disturbance regimes, especially wildfire, have been modified, which can lead to the loss of disturbance adapted forest communities. Pinus rigida (pitch pine) is strongly associated with wildfire in the core of its range, however the association becomes less certain towards the species’ range margins. I tested the efficiency of a prescribed fire and mechanical disturbance treatment on increasing P. rigida seedlings using a Before-After Control-Impact (BACI) design at two sites at the northeast range margin of P. rigida in the Thousand Islands Ecosystem, Canada. Fire had the greatest effect on regenerating P. rigida seedlings and mechanical treatments were ineffective. My results suggest that the use of prescribed fire is the best approach to increase P. rigida seedlings in the Thousand Islands Ecosystem, possibly because these populations are exhibiting phenotypic plasticity in traits that favour conditions created by fire.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Science (M.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Biology
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Low Power Parallel Rolling Shutter Artifact Removal

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Stupich, Nicholas
    Abstract:
    This work presents an algorithm capable of modeling and correcting video artifacts caused by movements of a rolling shutter video camera. An affine transformation is used to model full frame camera movements, and sinusoids model high frequency camera movements and vibrations in the x and y directions, as well as rotations. The model parameters that fit to the extracted feature points are robust to outliers using an m–estimator solution that is efficiently optimized by iteratively decreasing the m–estimator kernel width. The distortion model was found to be capable of accurately modeling rolling shutter distortions, especially those caused by high frequency camera vibrations. The m-estimator solution was found to accurately discount outlier features, and combined with the iteratively decreasing kernel width the global optimum solution is reliably and efficiently found. Automated code optimization decreased model parameter calculation time by 49x by factoring out common terms from matrix element computations.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Engineering, Electrical and Computer
    Date Created:
    2014

  • The Acquisition of Gender Agreement in Adult Learners of Arabic

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Alamry, Ali
    Abstract:
    The present study investigates the acquisition of subject-verb gender agreement in Arabic. The participants were adult L2 learners of Arabic with different native language backgrounds at two different levels of proficiency, as well as native speakers of Arabic. The participants were divided into three groups: learners whose L1s have grammatical gender; learners whose L1s don’t have grammatical gender; and a control group (native speakers of Arabic). One comprehension and three production tasks were used to elicit the data. Results showed significant difference between the L2 learners and the native speakers. However, no significant difference was found between the two experimental groups, suggesting no effect of L1. There exists a significant effect of proficiency level. Advanced learners significantly outperformed the intermediate learners. The findings of this study are discussed in light of the FTFA and the FFFH. To some extent, the results lend support to the former hypothesis.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Arts (M.A.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Applied Linguistics and Discourse Studies
    Date Created:
    2014

  • An Examination of Personality Pairings to Improve Video Game Enjoyment

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Chan, Gerry
    Abstract:
    Much research has explored the value of video games for changing inactive lifestyles. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of personality pairings on enjoyment within two gaming scenarios. It was hypothesized that one would enjoy playing with another possessing a personality type similar to their own. Subjective results showed that matched personality pairings particularly enjoyed playing in a competitive game scenario, males reported more enjoyment in competitive game compared to females, and friends enjoyed playing together more than strangers. Objective measures revealed that a competitive game scenario is more enjoyable than a cooperative game scenario. To maximize enjoyment, recommendations for game design include encouraging social interaction between players and integration of a personality test before or during a multiplayer online game. Future research may evaluate other variables such as culture, and alternative personality pairing possibilities for increasing game enjoyment.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Arts (M.A.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Human-Computer Interaction
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Characterizing Thyroid Hormone Mediated Action on Gene Expression in Mice: Mechanistic Insight into Thyroid Hormone Response Elements, Thyroid Hormone Receptor-binding Sites, and MicroRNAs

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Paquette, Martin
    Abstract:
    Thyroid hormone (TH) exerts its effects by binding to the TH receptor (TR), which binds to TH response elements (TREs) to regulate target gene expression. Disruption of TH action can have detrimental health effects. The precise molecular mechanisms involved in TH mediated gene expression remain unclear. The overall objectives of this thesis were to: i) characterize global gene and microRNA (miRNA) expression in early response to TH perturbation in mouse liver; ii) identify TREs and TR-binding sites found throughout the mouse genome; and iii) compare TRE half-site organizations and their ability to drive gene expression. Transcriptional profiling of mRNA liver samples from TH disrupted mice enabled the identification of genes that were under direct TH-regulation. TREs in the promoter region of Tor1a, Hectd3, Slc25a45 and 2310003H01Rik were validated in vitro, adding four genes to the battery of only 13 known TRE-containing mouse genes. Hepatic miRNAs were also found to be significantly altered following perturbations in TH levels. In vitro analyses confirmed TH regulation of miR-206. Moreover, Mup1 and Gpd2 were confirmed to be targeted by miR-206 in response to TH, demonstrating that miRNAs can act as master regulators of the TH response pathway. ChIP-chip analysis identified TR-DNA interactions in juvenile mouse liver revealing only a few TR-binding sites consistent between all analyzed samples, suggesting that relatively few genes are under direct TH/TR control. Reporter assays confirmed the presence of TREs in the promoter regions of Ddx54 and Thrsp, thus validating two additional functional mouse TREs. Finally, we investigated the relative ability of liganded homodimers of TR and retinoid X receptor (RXR), and the heterodimer TR/RXR, to regulate gene expression for three TRE half-site organizations. We found that there were fundamental differences between TRE configurations that affect nuclear receptor interactions with the response element and the ability to specifically bind their ligands. These studies provide mechanistic insight into TREs, TR-binding sites and TH action. Collectively this thesis increases our understanding of how TH operates to control genome function and provides a basis to develop appropriate testing strategies for environmental chemicals that may disrupt TH-associated genes expression by interaction with TR.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Biology
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Neural Coding via Transmission Delay Coincidence Detectors: An Embodied Approach

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Jeanson, Francis
    Abstract:
    This thesis aims to contribute to the field of cognition via a careful investigation at the mesoscopic level of neural organization and activity via spatiotemporal dynamics to subserve reactive and adaptive behaviour. In particular, coding via coincidence detection with prorogation delays is adopted as the primary mechanism to investigate complex neural dynamics. Initially hypothesized by Moshe Abeles in the early 1980’s, coincidence detection enables neurones to respond by emitting an action potential (a spike) only when other input neurones spike in a precise order. In contrast to the traditional interpretation of neural behaviour whereby cells integrate inputs over long periods of time, coincidence detectors are sensitive to changes at millisecond or sub-millisecond time scales. However, networks of coincidence detectors that incorporate propagation delays remain poorly understood with respect to dynamics and functional application for cognitive tasks. After introducing the functional and biological evidence that motived this research, we explore existing work related to spatiotemporal coding and the neurone and network parameters that influence their behaviour. We then present a discrete neural network model that is used to expose the relationship between structural parameters and network dynamics. After applying these to a reactive light-seeking robot task, we find network parameters that enable dynamic memory storage of input spike patterns. Making use of these dynamics, we then introduce a method for decoding these memories in a modular network architecture and test this approach for robot control in memory maze tasks. Furthermore, the limits of the potentially high memory capacity of these networks is then tested by empirically evaluating both the noise tolerance and the memory capacity of these networks. To complement this empirical work, we develop a set of formal expressions which attempt to approximate analytically the amount of activity of these networks and the probability for any given spike pattern to be expressed by them.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Cognitive Science
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Polarization-Dependent Strain and Twist Sensors Based on Tilted Fiber Bragg Grating

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Li, Ruichao
    Abstract:
    Tilted fiber Bragg grating (TFBG) shows various advantages in sensing parameters such as, strain, temperature and twist angle. In particular, multiple data collected from cladding modes of TFBG provide a multi-functional modality. According to this feature, a temperature-independent strain sensor and a high sensitivity twist sensor based on TFBG are introduced in this thesis. The relative wavelength shifts of P and S polarized spectra are utilized in analyzing strain sensors based on their strong temperature-independent characteristics. Linear experimental results which relate to the wavelength separation from the Bragg mode resonance are presented. Meanwhile, sensitive amplitude variations with respect to the strain applied to TFBG are also evident. Moreover, TFBG shows high sensitivity to twist angle due to its unique structure. The sensitivity of Polarization-dependent loss (PDL) presents an obvious contrast to that of insertion loss; the comparisons are described experimentally.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Engineering, Electrical and Computer
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Seasonal Variation in Assemblage Structure and Movement of Small Stream Fish in an Urban Environment

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Maarschalk-Bliss, Shireen Mary
    Abstract:
    Urban ecology is a discipline that has emerged in response to the unique changes associated with urbanization. Research on ecosystem impacts is lacking, particularly on fish populations within urban stormwater drains. My research goal was to study the assemblage and movement of stream fish within Watts Creek, an urban stream, and a stormwater drain tributary (Kizell) in Kanata, Ontario. In chapter 2 I compared fish assemblage structures of Kizell and Watts and found they were relatively distinct. In chapter 3, using passive integrated transponder technology, I showed that the directionality of movements between Kizell and Watts had little variation. These findings demonstrated the connectivity between Kizell and Watts, and that stream fish are moving into, residing, and utilizing habitat within Kizell throughout the year (including during the winter). These findings suggest that stormwater drains are a functional component of urban stream systems and that drains and streams are interconnected systems.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Science (M.Sc.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Biology
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Cutting Knowledge: The Pathologization of Self-Injury in Correctional Discourse

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Rotenberg, Cristine Raquel
    Abstract:
    This thesis critically examines correctional discourse on prisoner self-injury produced by the Correctional Service of Canada’s (CSC) Research Branch between 1990 and 2012. Grounded in the extant clinical and correctional discourse that has historically constructed self-injury as practiced by manipulative, violent and/or suicidal prisoners, through a discourse analysis this thesis identifies that a new surge of research published since 2010 demonstrates a shift to predominately pathological explanations that aim to reduce the deviant behaviour to the manifestation of a mental illness. This domination of the ‘psy-sciences’ as ‘intellectual technologies’ (Rose, 1990, 1996b) bars sociological or otherwise non-psy understandings of self-injury, while political accountabilities result in the displacement of responsibility for self-injury from the prison to prisoners’ mental illness. It is argued that irrespective of methodological approach (quantitative, qualitative, mixed methods), the CSC’s conceptualization of prisoners who engage in self-injury was pre-determined by their ideological alignment with the psy-sciences.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Arts (M.A.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Sociology
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Examining Gift-Giving Motives in a Cross-Cultural Context

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Ambwani, Vinita P.
    Abstract:
    The purpose of this research was to explore the gift-giving motives of migrants. The first objective was to develop statistically validated measures of the motives in the context of migrants giving gifts to their siblings or to those with whom they have a sibling like relationship, on the occasion of home country travel. The second objective was to examine the relationships between gift-giving motives, Schwartz’ basic human values, immigrants’ intention to return permanently to their home country, and their relative economic status. The data came from South-Asian and Lebanese Canadian samples. Data was collected in two stages via a self-administered survey which could be completed on-line or in a pencil and paper format. In Stage One, 207 and in Stage Two, 316 valid cases were obtained. The data in Stage One was subjected to exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses as well as reliability analyses to develop an eight-factor gift-giving motives measurement scale. In Stage Two the data were subjected to the same analyses to refine the measurement scale developed in Stage One. Measures were successfully developed for the following eight theoretically driven constructs representing gift-giving motives: agonistic, insurance, demonstrating achievement/seeking status, maintaining rituals, reciprocity, utilitarian, guilt, and maintaining social ties. Regression analyses supported theorized links between self-enhancement values and gift-giving motives of agonistic, insurance and demonstrating achievement and seeking status. Similarly, the hypothesized relationships between conservation values and gift-giving motives of maintaining rituals, maintaining social ties, and guilt were also supported. Self-transcendence values were found to predict utilitarian and maintaining social ties motives of gift-giving and openness to change values were found to predict the agonistic motive, as theorized. The relationships between self-transcendence values and guilt and between conservation values and insurance were not supported. The predicted relationships of self-transcendence and conservation values with the gift-giving motive of reciprocity was not supported, suggesting that this motive, in particular, needs further exploration in future research. The findings of this research provide a comprehensive set of measures for gift-giving motives and insights into their relationship with basic human values for continued conceptual, theoretical and empirical work on the topic of gift-giving.
    Thesis Degree:
    Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Management
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Artistes rebelles: la révolte de la danseuse dans trois romans contemporains

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Martin, Melanie C.
    Abstract:
    Cette thèse explore les difficultés que rencontre la femme artiste dans trois romans contemporains : Dans la maison du père de Yanick Lahens, La Virevolte de Nancy Huston et Robert des noms propres d’Amélie Nothomb. Les trois protagonistes artistes cherchent à contourner les normes prescrites par des sociétés patriarcales qui enlèvent à la femme sa capacité de créer. C’est par la voie de la danse que les trois protagonistes de notre corpus réussissent à provoquer un changement radical dans leur vie lorsqu’elles se trouvent face à des rôles sociaux restreints. Ces danseuses parviennent non seulement à agir contre les conventions sociales qui emprisonnent leurs mères, mais à affirmer que malgré les discours sociaux, elles sont en fait des créatrices.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Arts (M.A.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    French and Francophone Studies
    Date Created:
    2014

  • Once Upon a Design - Storytelling and Interactive Fiction in the Design Process

    Resource Type:
    Thesis
    Creator:
    Ogaick, Tara
    Abstract:
    This thesis proposes that non-linear narratives (hypertexts) allow designers to explore scenarios and personas in dynamic and interactive ways. The researcher builds on current uses of narratives in design, interactive fiction, and psychoanalysis in order to expand the purpose for scenarios and personas within the design process as more. In order to assess the potential for hypertext to be used in the design process, the researcher used the open-software, Twine, to construct an interactive scenario sample for designers to explore. The results of this work demonstrate that hypertext preserves the functions of scenarios and personas to introduce a subject, explore a scenario, and address a particular design problem, while successfully implementing interactive elements and a non-sequential story structure to understand the context of the story based on the goals and ideas of the reader.
    Thesis Degree:
    Master of Design (M.Des.)
    Thesis Degree Discipline:
    Industrial Design
    Date Created:
    2014