Search Constraints
« Previous |
1 - 10 of 512
|
Next »
Number of results to display per page
Search Results
- Resource Type:
- Report
- Creator:
- Dawson, David, Adler, Andy, and Sinclair, Ian
- Description:
- This paper is provided on the terms "As Is, Where Is", and the Authors give no warranty or representation of any kind whatsoever as to the appropriate policies for the use of, nor the safety of the use of CEWs. The Authors expressly disclaim all express or implied warranties relating to the contents of the paper. The Authors give no warranty or representation of any kind whatsoever that the recommendations contained in this report are comprehensive. The Authors give no warranty or representation of any kind whatsoever that the recommendations are up to date beyond the date on which the paper is published.
- Abstract:
- Several studies including the Braidwood Commission report, the Report of the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security of the Conducted Energy Weapon, the report of the Commission for Public Complaints against the RCMP and other provincial reports and coroners’ recommendations have discussed the need for reliable uniform testing of Conducted Energy Weapons (CEWs) independent of the manufacturer. This version (3.0) adds an appendix which describes testing of the Taser 7 CEW. The CEW Test Procedure: - Establishes a methodology by which testing facilities and personnel across Canada will be able to test CEWs and determine whether they are operating within manufacturers’ specifications; - Defines data collection requirements so that data collected during the testing of any CEW in Canada may be used in forensic analysis of that weapon and may also be added to a central data base for future research and data mining programs.
- Date Created:
- 2021-02-17
- Resource Type:
- Thesis
- Creator:
- Robb, Colleen
- Abstract:
- Risk assessments are vital within the criminal justice system, yet research regarding the optimization of these instruments for women is limited. Currently, minimal research is available on the impact various statistical weighting methodologies may have on the prediction of recidivism for women. Using two-year fixed follow-up data from 656 justice-involved women from Maine United States, the current study explored the predictive validity of the Service Planning Instrument for Women (SPIn-W; Orbis Partners, 2007) at the item level and the predictive accuracy of four weighting methodologies. Results from the present study showed that 19 of the 98 items of the SPIn-W were significantly predictive of recidivism. Further, the gender-responsive Nuffield 2.0 weighting method most often evidenced the greatest levels of predictive accuracy across aggregate and domain level scores. Pending replication and cross-validation, the current study suggests that the SPIn-W be updated with the gender-responsive Nuffield 2.0 method to optimize predictive validity.
- Thesis Degree:
- Master of Arts (M.A.)
- Thesis Degree Discipline:
- Psychology
- Date Created:
- 2021
- Resource Type:
- Thesis
- Creator:
- Mitchell-Dupuis, Andreane
- Abstract:
- Ancient mantle-derived rocks allow us to gain insights into the geochemical evolution of Earth's early mantle. We present a 176Lu-176Hf study of the Saglek-Hebron Complex (northern Labrador, Canada), which contains some of the oldest mafic and ultramafic rocks on the planet. Low-Fe ultramafic and basaltic metavolcanic rocks yield an isochron of 3934 ± 127 Ma with a suprachondritic initial epsHf=+8.9 ± 2.7. This value implies a highly incompatible-element depleted source for these rocks, which was more depleted than the Depleted Mantle estimates at the same age. Decoupled Sm-Nd and Lu-Hf systematics can be explained by ancient source depletion during a magma ocean in the garnet stability field. High-Fe ultramafic rocks yield an isochron corresponding to an age of 3405 ± 503 Ma. Mafic intrusions were age-dated at 3875 ± 454 Ma and at 2716 ± 370 Ma. The Saglek-Hebron Complex has recorded mantle-derived magmatism for over 1 billion years.
- Thesis Degree:
- Master of Science (M.Sc.)
- Thesis Degree Discipline:
- Earth Sciences
- Date Created:
- 2021
- Resource Type:
- Thesis
- Creator:
- Bishop, Gary Scott
- Abstract:
- The successful application of a structural health monitoring (SHM) system for composite aerospace structures requires a holistic approach encompassing the full life cycle of the structure. Important capabilities of an SHM system include: 1) recognition, 2) identification, 3) severity, and 4) location of a defect. This was achieved, first, by designing a novel manufacturing method to co-cure piezoelectric sensors to the surface of carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) panels, allowing for in-situ cure monitoring, manufacturing inspection, and in-service monitoring. Second, numerical and experimental techniques used Lamb wave propagation to recognize and identify multiple types of manufacturing defects and determine the severity of a delamination defect. A comparison of co-cured and bonded piezoelectric sensors showed similar waveform shape, Lamb wave propagation velocity, and signal amplitude for the anti-symmetric Lamb wave mode. Performing a time-frequency domain analysis using the continuous wavelet transform demonstrated the ability to recognize and identify delamination, porosity, and foreign object defects. To determine the severity of a delamination defect, five input signals were compared and it was determined the Mexican hat excitation provided the best average main lobe width resolution and signal-to-noise ratio over a range of frequencies, particularly at lower frequencies. Finally, a multiple level discrete wavelet transform decomposition was able to provide signal compression, up to 450 times, while still maintaining the important signal features to determine the severity of a delamination defect. This allowed both the length ratio and depth sequence of multiple delamination defects to be correctly identified. The practical approach of this research to focus on the manufacturing process and manufacturing defects provided an important step towards a holistic SHM system for CFRP structures.
- Thesis Degree:
- Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
- Thesis Degree Discipline:
- Engineering, Aerospace
- Date Created:
- 2021
- Resource Type:
- Thesis
- Creator:
- Miller, Grael
- Abstract:
- The knowledge of machining forces in robotic machining is of critical importance to ensure the accuracy and stability of the tool-workpiece interaction. To that end, this thesis presents a method for applying conventional mechanistic milling models to the prediction of cutting forces generated through the robotic machining of chamfers with arbitrary cross-sections. To apply the existing cutting force models, the edges of the workpiece to be machined are measured with a laser scanner. The resulting scan is discretized into rectangular segments, allowing the existing cutting force models to be applied to predict the forces generated through the machining of the scanned edge ... Abstract exceeds word limit
- Thesis Degree:
- Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
- Thesis Degree Discipline:
- Engineering, Mechanical
- Date Created:
- 2021
- Resource Type:
- Thesis
- Creator:
- Baldwin, Simon Darrell
- Abstract:
- High-stress police encounters can evoke psychological and physiological stress reactions in officers, which can result in cognitive and perceptual deficits, as well as inferior performance. These effects can be particularly detrimental during a critical incident, when officers are expected to demonstrate sound judgement and proficient performance. This dissertation reports on two studies, one drawing on data from officers during active-duty and the other using an experimental scenario, to examine the relationship between stress, training, and performance in UoF encounters. Study 1 examined autonomic stress responses experienced by 64 police officers, during general duty calls for service and interactions with the public. Officer characteristics, including years of service and training profiles, were also examined to explore whether experience and training impacted cardiovascular reactivity. Study results highlight the sorts of risks that officers are routinely exposed to in the course of their duties, as well as the nature and frequency of the stress reactions experienced by officers. Study 2 assessed the performance of 122 officers during a realistic lethal force scenario to examine whether performance was affected by the officer's level of training, years of service, and stress reactivity. Results demonstrated that the scenario produced elevated heart rates, as well as perceptual and cognitive distortions, commensurate with those observed in naturalistic settings. Elevated stress was a predictor of poorer performance and increased lethal force errors. Training and years of service had complex effects on both performance and lethal force errors. The results from these two studies provide important insights into the general relationship between stress, training, and performance in UoF encounters. The findings provide LEAs with an opportunity to critically reflect on current training practices and offer a roadmap for making evidence-based improvements to training. They also provide important evidence that may inform the reasonableness standard used in courts of law by painting a realistic picture of police performance under stress given the current training available to officers. Perhaps most importantly, the research identifies a need for a concerted effort to increase police training standards and ensure the necessary infrastructure is in place to achieve them.
- Thesis Degree:
- Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
- Thesis Degree Discipline:
- Psychology
- Date Created:
- 2021
- Resource Type:
- Thesis
- Creator:
- Rafeiro, Jesse Joseph Donald
- Abstract:
- Critiquing the anthropocentric dispositions of architectural education, this dissertation introduces a "de-anthropocentric" vector of ethical thinking through fiction as a form of pedagogy. The term de-anthropocentric as opposed to non-anthropocentric here posits nonhuman life as an important dimension of architectural consideration while acknowledging that there are limitations to understanding or advocating on behalf of the nonhuman other. By problematizing anthropocentrism in this way, the research participates in concurrent discourses in philosophy, education theory, anthropology, biology and literature studies that challenge the inherited biases of Western ontology and epistemology. Recognizing the predominance of education in structuring these biases, the research takes inspiration from experimental approaches in posthuman education studies that historically situate and reorient definitions of the human and disciplinarity. Toward this, the dissertation investigates three trajectories in literature studies as departure points: the weird realism of Howard Phillips Lovecraft, the multispecies worlding of Donna Haraway and the graphic portrayal of animal subjectivities in David Herman's narratology beyond the human. From these examples, the dissertation theorizes nonhuman narrative, representation and worldbuilding approaches in an architectural context. Finally, locating the early Renaissance as a period of major educational transition in architecture, the research analyzes Antonio di Pietro Averlino's Libro architettonico (1461-63) as a model of fiction-based pedagogy for the present. Written as a continuous fictional dialogue disrupted by digressions into the natural environment, animals, anecdotes, fictional buildings and social practices, the work offers a multifaceted educational model for questioning human-nonhuman relations. Between text and image, the work instructs by imagining the ideal city of Sforzinda through the narrative device of the golden book: a source of ancient literary wisdom. Following an analysis of Filarete, the dissertation presents a re-interpretation of Filarete's golden book as a pedagogical device to channel critical insight from literature and other disciplines into architectural education.
- Thesis Degree:
- Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
- Thesis Degree Discipline:
- Architecture
- Date Created:
- 2021
- Resource Type:
- Thesis
- Creator:
- Ventura, Katelyn Victoria
- Abstract:
- Parkinson's disease (PD) is characterized by a range of motor and non-motor behavioral deficits thought to occur because of the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra. It has been thought that the appearance of the disorder stems from elevated alpha-synuclein (asyn) protein expression, known to form Lewy body inclusions. The overarching theme of the current series of experiments comprised the evaluation of how increased asyn expression contributes to the development of PD, and whether these actions could be attenuated by a DNA sequence designed to inhibit asyn oligomer formation. A better understanding of asyn protein accumulation and toxic aggregate formation might provide a therapeutic avenue with considerable clinical relevance, especially if tolerance does not develop as it does with other therapeutic approaches. As such, we assessed a novel asyn binding aptamer within both in vitro and in vivo models of Parkinson's disease. In vitro, a single treatment with the asyn aptamer reduced levels of pAsyn, but multiple treatments unexpectedly had less noteworthy effects. Accordingly, the influence of the asyn aptamer was assessed in mice in vivo. It was demonstrated that the aptamer could be detected in several brain regions and in the liver at various times following administration. Ordinarily, in transgenic mice overexpressing the human A53T variant of asyn protein, the elevated expression of asyn protein occurs at 5 months of age. Thus, transgenic mice of this age were treated with the asyn aptamer both acutely and repeatedly to detect asyn protein level changes. The aptamer reduced pAsyn levels compared to control wildtype animals. Indeed, Western blot analyses revealed that this was evident with respect to pAsyn and oligomer asyn in response to both acute and repeated treatment conditions. These reductions in asyn conformations were evident in the more exterior and interior regions of the brain. Overall, the data have important preliminary implications for the development of asyn aptamer treatment strategies that target asyn processes in PD. To be sure, the asyn aptamer needs to be assessed in other preclinically relevant models to determine the validity of the approach to halt or slow the progression of PD.
- Thesis Degree:
- Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
- Thesis Degree Discipline:
- Neuroscience
- Date Created:
- 2021
- Resource Type:
- Thesis
- Creator:
- Ring, Jessica
- Abstract:
- Hacktivism! Craftivism! DIY Feminism! The Maker Movement! In this dissertation, I unpack how certain Do-It-Yourself (DIY) practices have transformed from simple personal pastimes to meaningful sites for activism. To do so, I analyze three overlapping discursive terrains that I contend imbue DIY practices with a sense of 'meaningfulness'—which I term embodied materialism, critical making, and making as communication. I contend that all three of these terrains co-constitute making-as-activism identities, 'real-world' maker activist communities (makerspaces), and the wider making-as-activism network (Maker Culture). However, this blending of 'meaningful making' discourses is not evenly distributed, nor is it without contradictory logics and practices. Therefore, in this dissertation I analyze both mainstream (hegemonic) and counter-cultural (non-hegemonic) narratives of Maker Culture, makerspaces, maker identities, and making-as-activism. Through this multi-sided and multi-sited approach, I discovered that both hegemonic and non-hegemonic discourses co-produce the definitional boundary-work around 'what counts' as making-as-activism. Furthermore, I also contend that in using 'success narratives' and 'passionate work', the work/labour involved in producing Maker Culture are entangled in neoliberal logics—like empowerment and entrepreneurialism—which reproduces invisible structures of privilege within makerspaces. I also analyze how DIY politics and makerspace community-building have been adapted by Canadian feminist makers. Using interview data and my own experiences, I argue that feminist makers are building a non-hegemonic representation of Maker Culture by broadening what making-as-activism looks like, who does it, and how it intersects with holistic critical pedagogies. However, despite using a more reflective critical maker approach, I also discovered that feminist making and makerspaces can also re-produce many of the same contradictory logics that are found in mainstream, hegemonic Maker Culture. In concluding this work, I re-evaluate making-as-activism practices, identities, and communities within the context of the ongoing COVID-19 global pandemic. I conclude that collective care approaches are vital for building healthy communities—including makerspaces—and that joint responsibility can untangle some of the contradictory messiness that comes with leading an activist life in this contemporary moment.
- Thesis Degree:
- Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
- Thesis Degree Discipline:
- Communication
- Date Created:
- 2021
- Resource Type:
- Thesis
- Creator:
- Adibifard, Zeynab
- Abstract:
- This research aims to increase the bandwidth of a transmission-line N-path filter around the clock frequency. The proposed filter consists of two four-path parallel stages with series inductors. The filter solves the trade-off between in-band insertion loss and out-of-band rejection of the original N-path filter. A high-frequency 4-phase non-overlapping clock generator with a 25% duty cycle is designed to drive the proposed filter. The proposed filter has a die area of 1.5 mm2 and was fabricated with CMOS 130-nm technology. The post-layout simulation results show that the filter is tunable from 0.1 to 1GHz, the bandwidth of 80 MHz can be achieved at 1 GHz and the noise figure of the filter is less than 3.2 dB over the frequency range. Unfortunately, the clock generator is not working properly,which is why measurement results show discrepancies from the simulated results. Several hypotheses are explored to explain the cause of these differences.
- Thesis Degree:
- Master of Applied Science (M.App.Sc.)
- Thesis Degree Discipline:
- Engineering, Electrical and Computer
- Date Created:
- 2021