title: Destructive development: Exploitation and imperialism in Nicaragua

contributor:
Rodimon, Sarah (author)
(Sacouman, Jim) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2010

abstract: The following honours thesis has been researched by means of naturalistic  observation and a literature review that details historical and modern aspects of the  relationship between the United States and Nicaragua. The central argument of this work  is that modern, capitalist imperialism has caused severe human and environmental  exploitation that necessitates grassroots organization, liberation and national sovereignty  within Nicaragua. It is argued that contemporary capitalist imperialism creates the  conditions to ignite revolutionary activity. Such revolutionary activity has not been  historically uncommon in Nicaragua, but has also not yet become sustainable. Another  socialist revolution is necessary for Nicaragua to overcome the iron grip of neoliberalism.

abstract: Sociology


title: Love bugs: The effects of male hairpencil odor on courtship behaviour of females in Helicoverpa zea (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

type: Text Dissertation/Thesis

contributor:
Rose, Sarah M. (author)
(Hillier, Kirk) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

rights: The author grants permission to the University Librarian at Acadia University to reproduce, loan or distribute copies of my thesis in microform, paper or electronic formats on a non-profit basis. The author retains the copyright of the thesis.

subject: LE3 .A278 2010

abstract: Helicoverpa zea Hübner ( Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is a billion dollar crop pest, affecting agriculture in North and South America as well as Europe. Males have odour- secreting hairpencil glands found at the tip of their abdomen which are extruded during courtship. Previous studies have shown that hairpencil odours in similar species act as a female attractant or cause females to become quiescent, consequently making copulation attempts by males more likely to be accepted. This study was designed to determine the effects of the H. zea male hairpencil odour on the courtship behaviour of female H. zea through a series of mating assays. Normal mating assays were conducted to first determine stereotypical courtship behaviour within the moth species. Subsequent manipulations ( hairpencil ablation, antennectomy and hairpencil ablation with odour reintroduction) were performed on the moths to determine the importance of hairpencil odour in mating. Surgical control trials were performed with moths that had undergone „ mock‟ surgeries and hexane control trials were used with odour reintroduction trials. Normal assays determined stereotypical mating behaviours in H. zea. Stereotypical behaviours for males included hairpencil extension, abdominal curl, antennal tap, dragging, missing and successful clasping. For females, behaviours included flying or moving away, ovipositor extension, abdominal extension and dragging. Manipulation assays determined the presence of hairpencil pheromone plays an important role in female quiescence and consequently, copulation success rate. When able to detect hairpencil pheromone, females were less likely to move or fly away from clasp attempts. Odour reintroduction trials were unsuccessful in increasing the frequency of successful clasps of ablated males; reasons for this are unknown and require further study.

abstract: Biology


title: Extraversion and its influence on exercise responses to music: Linking individuals to exercise

contributor:
Gravelle, Timothy D. (author)
(Murphy, René) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2010

abstract: Today many people today are listening to music when they exercise to enhance their  experience. Because individuals and musical pieces are extraordinarily complex, Chapter  1 of this thesis focuses on these complexities. Eysenck’s theory of extraversion and  personality and the Brunel Music Rating Inventory ( BMRI) are discussed in the  personality and music sections of this chapter respectively. This chapter also includes  literature surrounding dissociation, a mechanism by which music is able to lower the  ratings of perceived exertion ( RPE) of listeners when they exercise. The review of  literature provides a compelling argument that individuals who vary on the extraversion  trait will respond differently to music of varying intensities. Chapter 2 then examines  whether or not the functionality of music is influenced by music volume differently for  introverts and extraverts. The main findings of this study include: significantly lower  RPE for introverts only in the lowest volume conditions ( 0% volume p = 0.04;  56% volume p = 0.004), significantly lower reported affect in the absence of music ( p =  0.04), and a positive correlation between extraversion and total distance accumulated  during the experimental phase of the study ( r = 0.16, p = 0.04). Taken together, these  findings suggest that extraversion and music volume do interact to influence the  functionality of music.

abstract: Kinesiology


title: Carbonate sedimentology of enigmatic limestone beds in the Pennsylvanian Joggins Formation, Nova Scotia, Canada

contributor:
Aziz, Annas Abdul (author)
(Pufahl, Peir K.) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2010

abstract: The Joggins Fossil Cliffs of Nova Scotia, Canada, is one of the best- exposed Carboniferous successions in the world. Intense study over the past 150 years has provided important information about coal- forming and fluvial processes in well preserved strata. A longstanding question is the extent to which marine conditions influenced sedimentation. Understanding this influence is important because seawater salinity is a primary control on vegetation type, and thus coal production in coastal environments. The investigation of limestone beds in the Joggins Formation provides a new perspective on the depositional environments in which coal was produced. Limestone beds are 15 to 100 cm thick and contain ostracodes, bivalves, and echinoderm fragments. They occur primarily within cyclothems at the base of the Joggins Formation interbedded with coal and flood plain deposits. The antithetic relationship in the abundance of ostracodes and bivalves through the thickness of the Joggins Formation, as well as the presence of echinoderms, is interpreted to reflect a gradual transition from marine to fluvial conditions with time. Examination of limestone with cathodoluminescence further reveals that maximum burial depths were probably no more than 60 to 80 m, which is much shallower than recent published estimates. Future work should couple these new findings with vitrinite reflectance data from coals to more completely understand burial history.

abstract: Earth & Environmental Sciences


title: Skip rope or skip a meal?: A theory driven examination of the factors contributing to caloric restriction and exercise among university students

contributor:
Rayner, Sophie Elizabeth (author)
(Shields, Chris) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2010

abstract: Weight management has become an increasing concern among undergraduate  students. Research suggests that while being physically active presents multiple health  benefits, most students choose to use forms of diet to manage their weight. These weight  control patterns are troubling as dieting behaviours ( e. g., dietary restraint– deliberately  eating less) have been associated with a number of negative health outcomes.  Understanding the factors that influence the weight management attempts by university  students is therefore useful in health promotion of this population. The Theory of Planned  Behaviour ( TPB) was used to investigate the cognitions that influence undergraduate  students to participate in both dieting and exercise. Additionally, the use of diet and  exercise as compensatory behaviours by undergraduates was analyzed.

abstract: Kinesiology


title: A possible multiple impact crater site in southwestern Nova Scotia, Canada

contributor:
Brisco, Trevor H. (author)
(Spooner, Ian) (Thesis advisor)
(Pufahl, Peir K.) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2010

abstract: An approximately 0.4 km diameter elliptical structure was identified in southwestern Nova Scotia in 1987 during a regional airphoto survey. The structure was confirmed as an impact crater in 2009, and was named the Bloody Creek structure ( BCS). In addition to the main crater, a cluster of discontinuous arcuate scarps located approximately 1 km north of the BCS was identified. These arcuate scarps have been called the North Group. This study has identified these arcuate scarps as possible impact crater remnants, suggesting the impactor fragmented upon entry into the atmosphere producing a crater field. Evidence for impact origin is based on an integrated analysis of geomorphic, geophysical and petrographic data collected in the summer, fall and winter of 2009.  Analyses of aerial photos revealed discontinuous arcuate scarps and flat depressed inner floors. Geophysical surveys confirmed the negative relief feature of the structures. The craters are infilled with lacustrine sediment and peat.  Thin- section analysis of samples collected proximal to the crater rim document shock metamorphic features that include kink bands in feldspar and biotite and planar microstructures ( PMs) in quartz and feldspar. The PMs consist of rare planar fractures ( PFs) in both quartz and feldspar and possible planar deformation features ( PDFs) in quartz. Of these features, the PDFs are considered uniquely diagnostic of shock metamorphism.

abstract: Earth & Environmental Sciences


title: Analysis of auxin-like and gibberellin-like activity in a seaweed extract derived from Macrocystis integrifolia

contributor:
Fisher, Megan L. A. (author)
(Kristie, David) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2010

abstract: Seaweed extracts are widely used in horticulture to promote plant growth and  health. A species of kelp ( Macrocystis integrifolia Bory de Saint- Vincent) is harvested by  West Coast Marine Bioprocessing Corp. ( Vancouver, BC) and used to produce a liquid  seaweed extract called Kelpgrow. The objectives of this study were to determine levels of  gibberellin- ( GA) and auxin- like activity in Kelpgrow and compare the effects of  Kelpgrow to seaweed extracts produced by other companies. GA- and auxin- like  activities were assessed using lettuce hypocotyl elongation and mung bean rooting  bioassays respectively. Although physico- chemical analysis by NCR- IMB revealed very  low levels of plant growth regulators in Kelpgrow, auxin- like rooting activity in  Kelpgrow was equivalent to ca. 3.0x10- 4 M IBA, 1200 times higher than expected based  on the physico- chemical analysis. Maximal effects of Kelpgrow on root mass and root  number were found at concentrations of 1% and 2% respectively. Kelpgrow induced new  roots primarily in the upper 3 cm of a 4 cm hypocotyl. GA- like activity was equivalent to  ca. 2.2x10- 5  M GA3, 2200 times higher than expected. High levels of auxin- like activity  and significant GA- like activity were present in a high molecular weight fraction ( HMW)  of Kelpgrow (> 13, 000 MW) produced by dialysis. Two other seaweed extracts exhibited  similar but distinct rooting behavior in mung bean rooting bioassays. Rooting activity  was retained in a HMW fraction ( attained via dialysis) of one product but totally lost in  the other. Overall these results indicate that GA and auxin- like activity in Kelpgrow  occurs primarily in the HMW fraction, and is not related to the presence of GAs and  auxins in the extract.

abstract: Biology


title: Parameter estimation for deterministic simulators with time series output

contributor:
Hodder, Corey Allan (author)
(Ranjan, Pritam) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2010

abstract: Computer simulators provide an easy way to emulate complex real world phenomena  using statistical models. Modeling real life phenomena is done because conducting  real life experiments will be difficult or even infeasible. Typically simulators are  deterministic and computationally expensive, and as a result modeling simulators  with statistical emulators has become popular. It is often beneficial to find inputs for  the simulator corresponding to a particular output and solving the inverse problem  for computer simulators with scalar output is a non- trivial but known procedure.  Solving the inverse problem for computer simulators with functional output can be  difficult. We will devise a new method for solving the inverse problem for simulators  with functional responses based on the method for scalar responses. We will show that  this method works for finding inverse solutions efficiently. We will attempt to find  the inverse solution to a model that simulates the population dynamics of European  red mites on apple trees in the Annapolis Valley, NS and the inverse solution to the  Canadian Integrated Modeling Systems ( CIMS) model, an energy- economy model for  predicting technology changes.

abstract: Mathematics & Statistics


title: Nosema and necrophoresis: A honey bee parasite and undertaking behaviour

contributor:
Colwell, Megan J. (author)
(Shutler, Dave) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2010

abstract: European honey bees ( Apis mellifera) live in closed colonies at high densities with  genetically- related individuals ( mostly sisters) in constant high temperatures and humidity,  making disease prevention a necessity. Undertakers are a specialist group of honey bee workers  that remove dead bees from the hive ( necrophoresis), presumably to restrict the spread of  pathogens. Nosema ceranae is an emerging fungal parasite of the European honey bee, and is a  serious threat to hive health. The first objective of this study was to test if undertakers  distinguished among corpses with different intensities of Nosema- infection. The second  objective was to test if undertakers treated corpses consistently in consecutive removals from  colonies. Dead bee traps ( 2 m x 1 m) were used to collect corpses that had been uniquely marked  with paint or string. I recorded distances at which corpses were dropped from a hive ( drop  distance), redeployed them in a second hive, and again recorded drop distances. N. ceranae  infection intensity was quantified in recovered corpses. There was no significant correlation  between drop distance and N. ceranae intensity. There was also no significant relationship  between the initial and subsequent drop distance of corpses experimentally re- introduced to  hives. These results suggest that necrophoresis is not pathogen- driven. However, observations  suggest a new hypothesis that drop distance depends on how corpses are carried and whether they  get tangled with undertakers. This could be investigated by studying how undertakers grasp  corpses, how undertakers drop corpses, and how undertakers become tangled with corpses.

abstract: Biology


title: Effect of self pacing in learning from multimedia

contributor:
Krieger, Dena R. (author)
(Major, Sonya) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2010

abstract: An experiment was conducted to examine the effect of self- pacing on learning from video. University students watched videos that described a concept ( volcanic eruption), a sequential concept ( mitosis) and a procedure ( knot- tying). Participants were randomly assigned to a condition in which they were able to pause and move around to different parts of the video, while others were assigned to watch the video in its entirety without any control of the pace of presentation. Participants were tested on the material they learned in the video by means of retention and transfer scales for learning of the volcano and mitosis concepts and success and time taken to complete the knot. It was found that there was no effect of self- pacing on any of the tasks, but there were trends that indicated a negative relationship between self- pacing behavior and performance. This suggests that the relationship between self- pacing and learning is not straightforward.

abstract: Psychology


title:
Straying and Diel movement
by upstream migrating anadromous alewife Alosa pseudoharengus (Wilson, 1811) among four rivers in Cumberland Basin, Inner Bay of Fundy

contributor:
Gregoire, Mathieu John (author)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)
(Stokesbury, Michael) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2020

abstract: Biology

abstract:
Natal-river  philopatry  is  a  common  trait  across  anadromous  fish  taxa,  with  iteroparous species  returning  to  their  rivers  of  origin multiple  times  over  the  course  of  their  lives.   Some straying occurs in most populations, as individuals venture beyond expected migratory paths and colonize  new  rivers  or  mix  with  established  populations.    From  May  2013  to  June  2019,  we tagged 9270 upstream-migrating  adult alewifeAlosa  pseudoharengus (Wilson,  1811) in  four rivers as  part  of  a  study examining the  efficiency  of  local  fishways in  rivers tributary to Cumberland Basin, Inner bay of Fundy. Fish passage efficiency at obstruction bypass structures like fishways is an important parameter in ensuring  conservation of anadromous fish stocks. A total  of 5919 tagged fish  were  detected by antenna  arrays  installed  on  the four
rivers  being monitored,  with 1036 individuals  detected  on  rivers  other  than the  ones  on  which  they  were tagged.    By  comparing  straying  with  fish  age,  sex,  and proximity  of  destination  rivers,  we
calculated howthese va riables influenced the migration choices of spawning alewife. To test the effect of artificial illumination on fish passage use by alewife, we illuminated one of two Denil-style  fishways  in  the  2014  season  and  found  that  illumination  had  a  negative  effect  on  fish presence within the fishway.


title: Examination of the use of intertidal weirs as fish monitoring platforms in the upper Bay of Fundy

contributor:
Baker, Matthew A. (author)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)
(Redden, Anna) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2020

abstract: Biology

abstract:
The upper Bay of Fundy is an area of high ecological importance for a diverse assemblage of fish species. It is also the location of tidal energy demonstration with the Fundy Ocean Research Center for Energy
(FORCE) facilitating the deployment of tidal in-stream energy conversion devices and undertaking environmental effects monitoring (EEM) at its test site in Minas Passage. Since 2009, FORCE’s EEM program has utilized a variety of strategies to gain a better understanding of fish presence and activity within and near the test site. In this study, commercial intertidal weir catches and a single-beam echosounder were used to address identified information gaps, including the suitability of intertidal weirs as fish monitoring platforms. The aims of this thesis were to: 1)examine the trends in the presence and relative abundance of fishes in catches at two intertidal weirs, and 2) investigate the usefulness of an Acoustic Zooplankton Fish Profiler (AZFP) in monitoring fish moving in close proximity to an intertidal weir. Sampling was conducted near weekly during daytime low tides in spring and summer 2013 at weirs in Bramber and Five Islands, Nova Scotia. Clupeids dominated the weir catches. Relative abundance and species richness varied seasonally and reflected the movement and spawning patterns of migratory species. Considerable variation in fish catches were observed over time, with greater fish captures and acoustic backscatter during dusk/night. While intertidal weirs
were shown to be useful monitoring platforms for assessing general patterns in the presence and abundance of fish in nearshore Minas Basin, such sites are not suitable for the deployment of an AZFP. Echosounders
are better suited for the subtidal environment and are likely to be beneficial if used in combination with an experimental weir located in Minas Passage.


title: Using a drifting hydrophone array to obtain positions of Atlantic harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) and analyze their vocalizations and swimming behaviour

contributor:
Adams, Michael J. (author)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)
(Redden, Anna) (Thesis advisor)
(Sanderson, Brian) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2020

abstract: Biology

abstract:
Atlantic harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) are common to the inner Bay of Fundy, including the Minas Passage area where tidal energy development is underway. Towards determining the potential effects of tidal energy turbine installations in Minas Passage on harbour  porpoise  behaviour, this  study  used  drifting  passive  acoustic  monitoring (PAM) sensors  to  collect  high-quality  sound  data,  including  porpoise  echo
location  clicks. The study also applied new methods and procedures to process the hydrophone array datasets. A 2017 field  study provided  data for comparison  of three monitoring methods: C-POD, icListenHF hydrophone with  Coda  click  detector,  and  visual  sightings. The  broadband icListenHF hydrophone with Coda detected relatively more harbour porpoise vocalizations and was less susceptible to high flow noise. A follow up study in 2018 used an array of four synchronized  hydrophones  suspended  from  a  drifter.  Positional  information  was estimated from porpoise clicks. Click source level, effective sampling range (~30 m), and local  porpoise  abundance  (~2.8 per km2)  were estimated  from  detected  clicks. Water masses west of Minas Passage appear to have greater porpoise vocalization activity, and likely greater porpoise abundance,  than  more  eastern  water  masses. Echolocation  click tracks suggest that porpoises sometimes exhibit little movement when at depth for extended periods. Video footage indicate near-surface swimming speeds of~2 m/s. On-beam click detections gave greater source level, a wider click envelope, and more reverberations at the tail of the click when compared to off-beam detections. This is consistent with anatomical focusing of sound to form a beam from many transmission paths within the porpoise. This study demonstrated that porpoise clicks can be used to reliably obtain porpoise position out to ~40 m, which is in line with turbine near-field monitoring needs.


title: Constructing politics: Arendt, Rancière, and the concept of work

contributor:
Buryk, Niall (author)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)
(Brittain, James) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2020

abstract: Politics

abstract: This  thesis understands that  the  lay-understanding  of  the  concept  of  work  is founded  upon  problematic  assumptions  that  continue to  exasperate  social  and  political inequalities. These assumptions and inequalities are demonstrated through a reading of the philosophy of Hannah Arendt and the theory of Jacques Rancière. First, Arendt’s concepts of public, private, and social realms, as well as her concepts of labour, work, and action are reconstructed. Her account of the activity of the human being is derived largely through the  thought of Aristotle’s conception of the speaking human as political animal, which claims  that  those  who  do  not  speak  are  not  fully  human.  The  concept  of  work  is  then presented through Jacques Rancière’s political theory. He labours not to define work but to understand that definitions of work are enactments of what he calls the distribution of the sensible. This theory is further developed by presenting Rancière’s concepts of police, politics, equality, and his parapolitical critique of Aristotle. Arendt and Rancière are then brought into an encounter with each other, along with the many scholarly interpreters who stage similar comparisons of these two thinkers. Some aspects of Rancière and Arendt’s thinking are shown to be compatible (such as their instance on politics requiring a space of appearance,  their  fascination  with  theatre  as  a  political  venue,  their  fixation  on  human rights, and their engagement with the ancient Greeks). However, the broad consensus of secondary  theorists consulted  throughout  this  work is  that  there  is  too  large  a  distance between the theory and philosophy of Rancière and Arendt on the concept of work to be satisfyingly  bridged.  This  thesis  supports  this  criticism,  and  takes it  a  step  further  by deploying Rancière’s theoretical arsenal  against Arendt’s rigid philosophy of  work,  and argues  that  Arendt, who  polices exactly  what  work  is  and  what  work  is  not,  risks dehumanizing the worker.


title: Municipal planning and the production of space in rural Nova Scotia

contributor:
Lutz, Emily (author)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)
(Biro, Andrew) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2020

abstract: Politics

abstract:
Municipal planning strategies are documents that govern land-use rules and provide policies for the growth and development of a municipality. They articulate the vision of a local community and can detail how a place exists both independent of and within the global sphere. Henri Lefebvre’s theories on the production of space state that the hegemonic economic discourse of a society is the primary determinant of how space is
created. A review of the municipal planning strategies of the rural communities of the Town of Wolfville and the Village of New Minas will examine how these documents either mitigate or enhance the influence of the dominant economic system of a society on the spatial development of a community. This study demonstrates that planning documents are tools that can enable citizens to think creatively about community and
responsible development within a capitalist economic system that ultimately encourages the opposite.


title: The movement of Atlantic Sturgeon Acipenser oxyrinchus Mitchill, 1815 through the Minas Passage–Minas Basin corridor using traditional and novel tagging technology

contributor:
Lilly, Jessie Marie (author)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)
(Stokesbury, Michael) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2020

abstract: Biology

abstract:
The  behavior  of  Atlantic  Sturgeon  within  their  spawning  and  feeding  habitat  has  been  well documented.  However,  there  is  a  lack  of  knowledge  concerning  their  long-term  movements between critical habitats. Understanding patterns in sturgeon’s migratory behavior is critical to identify and mitigate harm caused to both Canadian and US Atlantic Sturgeon populations. The  focus  of my  MSc  thesis  was  to  use  acoustic  tagging  technology  to  answer  questions regarding  1)  patterns  in  temporal  and  spatial  proximity  between  Atlantic  Sturgeon  within  a frequented migratory corridor; and 2) spatial overlap and predicting encounter rates of Atlantic Sturgeon with instream tidal turbines located at the Fundy Ocean Research Center for Energy (FORCE),  Minas  Passage,  Nova  Scotia.  For  Chapter  1,  I  used  data  obtained  from  acoustic receivers deployed between 2012-2014 within the Minas Passage –Minas Basin corridor to predict  whether  sturgeon  tagged  with  acoustic  transmitters  (n  =  103)  from  the  same  genetic river  of  origin  and,  at  the  same  life  stage,  had  a  higher  likelihood  of  forming  associations. Atlantic Sturgeon were found to co-occur with certain other individuals more frequently than expected  by  chance in  regions  that  serve  as  feeding  zones  but  did  not  exhibit  long  term associations throughout their marine migration. For Chapter2, I assessed  acoustically tagged Atlantic Sturgeons (n = 43) movement through the FORCE test site during 2018-2019. In 2009, the FORCE test site was established on the northern shore of Minas Passage NS to test tidal turbines. We found that a large proportion of tagged Atlantic Sturgeon migrated through this region multiple times throughout the summer at a depth similar to proposed tidal turbines. This study  provides  baseline  data  for  Atlantic  Sturgeon  spatial  and  temporal  distribution  at  the
turbine site. Future studies will assess how sturgeon behavior changes during the presence of operational tidal turbines.


title: Anthropogenic subsidies and contaminant biotransport by herring gull (Larus argentatus) in southern Nova Scotia

contributor:
McIntyre, Jessie Anna (author)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)
(Mallory, Mark) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2020

abstract: Biology

abstract:
Seabirds can biotransport contaminants, moving them from marine to terrestrial environments around breeding colonies. This process can have marked impacts on receiving environments and biota. Generalist predators such as herring gulls (Larus argentatus) can exploit a wide range of natural and anthropogenic food items such as waste from fish processing or mink (Mustela vision) farms. The impact of gulls transporting contaminants from anthropogenically sourced food has not been assessed in southern Nova Scotia. To examine foraging patterns, GPS tags were deployed on herring gulls caught at breeding colonies in southern Nova Scotia in 2014, 2015 2018 and 2019. Gulls from all study colonies used anthropogenic food sources extensively. I measured total mercury (THg), persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and a suite of trace elements (TEs) in surface soils from gull colonies and nearby gull-free reference sites to determine if gulls were depositing contaminants from anthropogenic food sources. Additionally, I collected soil cores at different depths from gull colonies to examine deposition of these contaminants temporally.  I found little evidence of gull or atmospheric deposition of contaminants through time in cores. I found a consistent THg biotransport signal, but local conditions and other seabird species also likely impact THg accumulation in soils. I also detected a signal of biotransport with respect to some TEs, including zinc and copper. In contrast I did not find that POPs were accumulating in soils at high concentrations. Overall, results suggest that highly mobile and scavenging gulls are biovectors for some contaminants likely derived from anthropogenic food sources and
that generalist predators increase the environmental footprint of these industries that produce abundant waste.


title: Kingship and warfare in Malory's Morte Darthur

contributor:
Killacky, Madeleine S. (author)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)
(Whetter, Kevin) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2019

abstract: English & Theatre Studies

abstract: This thesis is an exploration of kingship and warfare in Sir Thomas Malory’s Morte Darthur.Broadly, this thesis explores the subjects of kingship and warfare through the character of King Arthur to demonstrate that it is not only right, but also necessary for Arthur to fight in war for his kingship and his polity. Although older scholarship argues that Arthur is presented positively, my main claim that Arthur is a just king throughout Malory’s Morteis contentious because recent scholarship is more sceptical of Arthur’s just kingship. I demonstrate that throughout Arthur’s wars (Tale I, Tale II, and Tale VIII), Arthur consistently exceeds that which is expected of him as a just king, and that Malory most effectively demonstrates Arthur’s just kingship by underscoring hisability to depend on counsel.


title: Informing fisheries monitoring and barriers to fish movement with traditional and local ecological knowledge (TLEK)

contributor:
Reinhartsen, Maja (author)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)
(Avery, Trevor) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2019

abstract: Biology

abstract:
A history of overexploitation in regional fisheries and vulnerability to effects of climate change form the basis for growing support of an anticipatory approach to management of marine resources within an ecosystem-based framework. To boost the effectiveness and adherence to marine policies, conserve resources for future use, and combat climate-related environmental changes, knowledge holders must be better engaged in current issues. The disconnect between community members with experience-based traditional and local ecological knowledge (TLEK) related to Minas Basin fisheries and watersheds, and
the science-based knowledge used in policy making forms a barrier to effective resource management. This work aimed to collect, compile, and assess TLEK in conjunction with standard scientific data collection to help inform policy related to ecosystem management in fisheries. The directive supported creation and adoption of integrative and collaborative protocols for community-level resource oversight and knowledge sharing. Extrapolation and application of TLEK data to explore changes in fish distributions, demographics and fisheries data collection methods is of growing significance and of regulatory interest.
The significance of this project included a record of fisheries TLEK in a local waterway with significant fish migration activity and barriers to habitat access. Development of relationships between TLEK and various environmental indicators was a critical component of the research. The outcomes included compilation of data to inform target and non-target fisheries conservation actions, increased stewardship for key species conservation, and dissemination of analyses to diverse stakeholders.


title: Social network members' disapproving opinions of marginalized and non-marginalized relationships

contributor:
Tibbetts, Nicole (author)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)
(Holmberg, Diane) (Thesis advisor)
(Blair, Karen) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2019

abstract: Psychology

abstract:
The purpose of the current thesis was to examine a hypothesized model for social network members’ (SNM) disapproval of their friend or family member’s romantic relationship. Specifically, it explored whether others’ disapproval of the relationship, accumulated evidence, cognitive rigidity, and prejudiced beliefs
predicted overall relationship disapproval. The current study further investigated whether these factors varied by relationship type (i.e., visibly marginalized versus non-visibly marginalized). Using structural equation modeling, the online study (N = 486) observed a strong model fit. As hypothesized, better evidence and others’ disapproval predicted stronger SNM disapproval. However, contrary to predictions, rigid thinking and prejudice were unrelated to SNM’s disapproval. Also, no differences amongst the variables were found by relationship type. Further exploration through supplementary analyses revealed that the majority of respondents provided justifiable reasons for their disapproval, yet when choice of relationship was restricted (i.e., the relationship to be evaluated was chosen for them), prejudiced attitudes emerged. The implications and theoretical explanations for the findings are discussed


title: Development and validation of a scale that measures recollected caregiver sensitivity

contributor:
Frank, Rachel (author)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)
(Price, Lisa) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2019

abstract: Psychology

abstract: Caregiver sensitivity is an essential component of healthy development. Experiences of sensitive caregiving in childhood are associated with better psychological and physical well-being in adulthood. The goal of the current research was to validate a new, retrospective measure of subjective experiences of caregiver sensitivity called the Recollected Caregiver Sensitivity Scale (RCSS). In Study 1, a pilot version of the RCSS was given to a 373-participant sample of undergraduate students and assessed using a Principal Components Analysis, bivariate correlations, and regression analyses. All items strongly loaded onto at least one of two core components, suggesting that none of the items needed to be eliminated. Almost all scales measuring theoretically related constructs were significantly correlated with the RCSS in the ways expected. The RCSS also predicted well-being over and above a self-report measure of attachment. In Study 2, a Confirmatory Factor Analysis was conducted, and construct validity and discriminant validity were assessed using web-based data collection from a diverse sample from across Canada. The CFA identified a 3-factor model that was a good fit for the data. The RCSS also significantly correlated with other measures of well-being in the ways expected; the exception was one measure that was worded to emphasize more prosocial behaviours, which are theoretically linked to caregiver sensitivity. The RCSS also predicted well-being over and above a known attachment measure as well as another measure of recollected caregiver sensitivity. Overall, the results from Studies 1 and 2 indicate that the RCSS is a promising new measure of caregiver sensitivity.


title: Schooling food: an examination of student food practice at a small rural university in Canada

contributor:
Pulsifer, Brittany (author)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)
(Frank, Lesley) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2020

abstract: Sociology

abstract:
This thesis explores student food practices at a rural, largely residential University campus in Eastern Canada answering the research question: what are the social relations of student food practices? Using the meso-
level social construct of social practice, as well as life course theory and the concept of place, qualitative research was conducted in 2015 using 12 semi-structured interviews, one focus group, and secondary analysis of qualitative comments from a campus-wide survey on student food insecurity.  Results of the thematic qualitative analysis show that student food practices are in transition while at university, shaped by changing macro and micro social relations particular to place, demonstrating an example of what Bourdieu terms a ‘habitus in flux.’ The results also show that for many students, transitions to adulthood and the reformulation of habitus, are limited by access to economic capital realized in high rates of food insecurity while at university.


title: Exploration into the population genetics of American Black Bears (Ursus americanus) in the Maritimes, Canada with emphasis on Nova Scotia

contributor: (Bondrup-Nielsen, Soren) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2020

abstract: Biology

abstract:
The population genetic structure of American Black Bears (Ursus americanus) in the Maritimes, Canada, with emphasis on Nova Scotia, was examined at both a large- and small-scale. The large-scale study used hunter-sourced tooth samples from across Nova Scotia, as well as samples from New Brunswick. Evidence of three weakly differentiated genetic subpopulations were found in the Maritimes, with their generalized geographic locations being: 1) New Brunswick, 2) Northeastern Nova Scotia, and 3) Southwestern Nova Scotia. Findings suggest that the New Brunswick subpopulation had high measures of genetic diversity as well as effective population size relative to both subpopulations in Nova Scotia, but in particular the Southwestern Nova Scotia subpopulation. The small-scale study involved collecting hair samples from a series of hair snags from within a ~7 km2 region in Southwestern Nova Scotia. It was hypothesized that a lack of male-biased dispersal could be contributing to inbreeding within this subpopulation, and thus it was predicted that
both females and males would exhibit low dispersal and that black bears in this region would exhibit low genetic diversity.  Limited evidence was found for reduced male-biased dispersal, with potentially some evidence of increased female dispersal relative to some other black bear populations. Additionally, no evidence was found for inbreeding at the study site.


title: Assessing non-targeted camera and manual surveys for characterizing a medium-to-large mammalian species assemblage at a highway construction site

contributor:
Beauliua, Brook Aubin (author)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)
(Avery, Trevor) (Thesis advisor)
(Mockford, Stephen) (Thesis advisor)
(Milton, G. Randy) (Thesis advisor)
(Stanley, Ryan) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2020

abstract: Biology

abstract: Road networks and traffic have demonstrable effects on the survival and behavior of individual mammals that can culminate in negative population impacts. Despite a need for assessing mammalian species assemblages at new and existing roads, simple and efficient non-targeted survey options are limited. Camera arrays and foot-based surveys at plots, transects, and surrounding roads were used at a highway construction and stream intersection to inventory medium-to-large mammals and assess the positioning of detections in time and space. Cameras (64,334 images and 1,237 survey days), plot and transect (328 plot and 25-m transect segment surveys), and road (448 km) surveys detected 15 mammal species, 13 of which were expected on-site. Qualitatively, most detections aligned with species-specific temporal (monthly, time-of-day) and spatial (habitat, landscape features) activity patterns. Fine and coarse spatial tests had contradictory results for snowshoe hare (Lepus americanus) and white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), signifying survey methods were unable to distinguish small-scale spatial activity patterns for these species, possibly due to unequal survey effort or small survey areas relative to home range size. Cameras provided more reliable data than foot-based surveys; non-camera surveys can provide supplementary data and inform camera placement. Method choice, survey design, and implementation must be informed by project objectives; design considerations are more complex where frequency, temporal, or spatial variables are important. Future work must re-assess cameras and foot-based surveys where effort is standardized across assessed spatial and temporal scales and among survey methods. Comparisons in detection efficiency by species between non-targeted surveys and species-specific methods should be conducted.


title: Achieving commonwealth: a reformation of Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri’s biopolitical subject

contributor:
Doucet, Tiffany Rose (author)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)
(Whitehall, Geoffrey) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2019

abstract: Politics

abstract: Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri’s trilogy offers an analysis of the powers of contemporary global society and the biopolitical subject’s potential resistance.  In Empire, Multitude: War and Democracy in the Age of Empire and Commonwealth, they reconceptualize the power relations of contemporary global society and the production of an alternative world by redefining the subject through affirmative biopolitics.  I argue that their biopolitical subject’s productive potential and communal bonds remain unrealized. I contend that Hardt and Negri’s reliance on biopolitics as the subject’s defining characteristic is an undertheorized problem. Therefore, I argue that Hardt and Negri’s reliance on biopolitics limits their understanding of the subject. To remedy this shortcoming, I engage with Rosi Braidotti’s Zoë-centric subject and nomadic theory. Braidotti theorizes a vital, sustainable, and productive subject through an affirmative theory of Zoë and the production of subjectivity through becoming-nomadic.  By reimagining Hardt and Negri’s biopolitical subject through Zoë the bonds the subject makes to one other are strengthened and the subject’s productivity is directed towards sustaining life.


title: Saltmarsh sediment fungal communities and arbuscular mycorrihizal fungi in sporobolus pumilus (Roth) (Poaceae) (Spartina patens) of the MInas Basin, Nova Scotia: identification, abundance and role in restoration

contributor: (López-Gutiérrez, Juan Carlos) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2019

abstract: Biology

abstract:
Saltmarshes are ecosystems of significant ecological importance for their roles in coastal stability and fundamental roles in marine ecosystems. These ecosystems are in decline due to anthropogenic destruction and current climate regimes causing ocean level rise. Coastal restoration efforts are underway worldwide, but the success remains variable, with many failing in long term coastal stability. The fungal communities within saltmarsh sediment are understudied, especially in areas subject to mega-tidal influence such as the Bay of Fundy, Nova Scotia. My study investigates the fungi present in saltmarsh sediment and focuses on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF); symbionts of the dominant saltmarsh grass Sporobolus pumilus (Roth) (Poaceae) (formerly Spartina patens). Internal transcribed spacer region 2 (ITS2)rDNA metaamplicon barcoding revealed many ubiquitous rhizosphere fungi, including AMF, in three
saltmarsh sites around the Minas Basin, NS, but the persistent species composition may be based on the sediment characteristics. AMF colonization counts were conducted on S. pumilus roots and differed between the Kingsport saltmarsh and the Wolfville and Windsor saltmarshes, although the same
Funneliformis species was found in all root tissue. Saltmarsh native AMF, Funneliformis geosporum, was propagated and used as a treatment for S. pumilus in three tidal mesocosm growth trials. This salt tolerant fungal symbiont increased host plant survival and growth under simulated saltmarsh conditions.
These data indicate that fungal saltmarsh community establishment, especially AMF, are an essential consideration for improving saltmarsh restoration practices in areas of mega-tidal influence such as the Bay of Fundy.


title: Canadian Baptist women in ministry: pastoral care givers and receivers

contributor: Armstrong-Whitehouse, Ida Krista (author)

subject: LE3 .A278 1984

abstract:
No abstract
Acadia Divinity College


title: Building and maintaining authentic learning experiences: educators' experiences with Mi'kmaw and treaty education in Nova Scotia's public high school social studies classrooms

contributor:
Pulchny, Alexandra (author)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)
(Tinkham, Jennifer) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2020

abstract: Sociology

abstract: As efforts to decolonize education in Canada continue, Nova Scotia models their work after that of Saskatchewan by implementing Treaty Education initiatives and curricula into public schools that speak to the histories and knowledges of Mi’kmaq peoples. However, minimal research has been conducted on the success of such initiatives in the classroom settings. Drawing on data collected through analysis of two curricular documents and five interviews with educators teaching Citizenship 9 and Mi’kmaw Studies 11, this thesis presents the importance of Treaty and Mi’kmaw Studies education, the ways in which several educators incorporate culturally responsive teaching practices and curricula into the classroom, methods of student engagement, and barriers educators face in terms of professional development and classroom resources. My research concludes that although there are current strides to improve the quality of culturally responsive education in Nova Scotia, some educators believe efforts must continue to create authentic learning experiences.


title: Investigating social ideals at the Fin-de-Siècle: challenging Victorian values in Sarah Grand’s New Woman trilogy

contributor:
Grantwell, Athena (author)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)
(Rigg, Patricia) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2020

abstract: English & Theatre Studies

abstract:
This thesis explores how Sarah Grand’s trilogy, Ideala, The Heavenly Twins, and The Beth Book, challenges received standards and values at the turn of the twentieth century. These three novels depict the social anxiety around cultural change at the Fin-de-Siècle, and I argue that they also offer the beginning of change. The trilogy focuses on prevalent Victorian beliefs involving women, such as gender roles and marriage, and
examines how they were enforced through legal constraints and social expectations. This thesis shows the consequences of such beliefs for society, and more specifically for women, as in her trilogy she reveals the dangers of syphilis and gender inequality. In order to do this, this thesis demonstrates how the trilogy format gradually introduces progressive ideologies and develops characters over the course of the three novels to
depict Grand’s New Woman ideal and, ultimately, to put forward a vision for women in the new century.


title: Saved by grace: toward an interdisciplinary understanding of the White Savior Complex through the lenses of race and gender

contributor:
McPhee, Shelby Ashley Emanuel (author)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)
(Brickner, Rachel) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2020

abstract: Politics

abstract: Colonial  powers  rationalized  the  expansion  of  their  empires  in  part  through  the trope of “white saviourism”—the obligation of Europeans to civilize the “native savages” in newly discovered territories. This thesis offers an analysis into how the White Savior Complex is found in today’s contemporary moment. Using post-colonial theory and post-colonial feminist theory, I explore three different examples of encounters between “first world” and “third world” peoples: the period of colonial empire, models of international development in the post-WWII context, and the current voluntourism industry. I find that all offer unique opportunities for “first world” people to perform “white saviorism” and have a sense of the “heroic self.” I argue that the White Savior Complex is an example of a “colonial continuity” which has survived the demise of colonialism and is restated in contemporary  international  development  theory  and  practice, and  is  a  foundational principle/pillar/marketing strategy of the voluntourism industry.


title: Joe Orton: his 'dangerous' drama

contributor:
Thomas, Michael Wyndham (author)
(Smyth, Donna) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 1977

abstract:
This thesis attempts to examine the various aspects of danger in the drama of British playwright, Joe Orton (1933-1967). The examination deals principally with four of Orton's plays: The Ruffian on the Stair, The
Erpingham Camp, Entertaining Mr. Sloane and Loot.
As a stylist, Orton is descended from Oscar Wilde. His language is artificial and the construction of his plays both deliberate and cogent; no action is left unresolved. The subject-matter of Orton's drama, however,
differs markedly from that of Wilde's. Orton viewed the world as an intrinsically cruel and heartless place. Mankind's greatest crime, he felt, lay in its attempt to ignore the bestial side of its nature. However, such a
view did not prompt outrage in Orton. On the contrary, it prompted delight: a delight manifested in the fact that he chose comedy and not tragedy as his vehicle for dramatic expression.
 In his drama, Orton uses the element of danger on two levels. On the first level, he depicts onstage the agents of danger; the victims of those agents; the situations through which danger is engendered; and the
ways in which, through the manipulation of that danger, immorality can triumph over good. On the second level, he communicates.

abstract: English & Theatre Studies


title: The Dominion Atlantic and Nova Scotia

contributor:
Smith, Charles Thompson (author)
(MacLean, A.H.) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 1965

abstract:
No abstract
History & Classics


title: A narrative approach to the female body: anti-trafficking training material based on biblical and theological narratives of the female body

contributor:
Schoultz, Natasha (author)
(Robbins, Anna) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2020

abstract: The central thesis of this dissertation is that the physical body is a crucial category for engagement and understanding for those visiting prostituted women in the brothels of  Czechia (official name of the Czech Republic). As such this dissertation focuses on narratives of the physical bodies of prostituted women, women within the Bible, and the brothel volunteers. A narrative approach is used to express the varied lived experiences of the bodies of women. The dissertation begins with a narrative sketch of the lives of women in prostitution, based on the eight years of experience the researcher has visiting women in the sex industry of Czechia. This sketch leads to the discovery that the prostitution experience involves the related themes of connection and disconnection: to and from God, others, and self. These themes are followed through the narratives of various biblical women, finding that they too experience a sense of connection and/or disconnection based on the narratives of their bodies. In the theology section which follows these narrative explorations, the human body in its desire for connection as having iconic value in further exploring the mystery of God, is discussed. As the female body lives within a state of disconnection, yet longs for connection, so too does it point to the longing of the human heart for connection with the ultimate source of connection, the divine one. Qualitative research, in the form of focus groups and questionnaires, demonstrates that brothel volunteers have the same themes flowing throughout their narratives as those of the women in prostitution and the women in the Bible: disconnection and connection, based on lived narratives of their bodies. As a result, strategies to help volunteers to better engage in brothel interactions, emerge. These include the need for more connection with their own bodies, and the desire for training curriculum which would facilitate this. In the final chapter of this dissertation the researcher suggests some training needs and ways in which these needs might be addressed, through additional trainings and more adequate training curriculum.

abstract: Acadia Divinity College


title: The unresolved issue of blood feuds in post-Communist Albania and a Christian radical response

contributor:
Golloshi, Alfred (author)
(Parushev, Parush R.) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2019

abstract:
The aim of this thesis is to develop a ‘Just Peacemaking theological response’ to the tragic situation  of  Albanian  blood  feuds. In  the  first  chapter is  a description  of  what  the  blood feud  is  and  also its context.
It is  an  honour  killing  which differs in  nature from  other killings. I  used some  specific  interviews  to  explore  more  in  depth  the  situation  of  those who have faced this tragedy. Social and family pressures are
the driving forces sustaining the practice of blood feuds. Social pressure can be useful to stop blood feuds but cannot heal memories and does not restore justice and bring back the honour of a person or family.
In the second chapter  I  will explore what the Canon is, how it came to exist and the reasons it has been used as a bedrock and justification for blood feuds. The Canon is not the main source to be blamed for these bloody killings, but this distorted human traditionis  built  around  it.  The  Canonis  the  first  constitution  of  a  wider legal  system which organized the  socio-political  life  and  inner-legal  autonomy  of Albanian  communities, enabling  them to  survive  for  several  centuries  under  foreign  occupation.  Thus,  today it disserves to be seriously studied.
In  the  third  chapter, the  theory  of Just  Peacemaking outlined  by  Glen  H.  Stassen  is studied. A  deeper  and  a  thicker  understanding  of the historical  Jesus  bridges  the  gap  of dualism  and strongly encourages the church to practice ‘transforming initiatives’ and to participate in society for peacemaking and social transformation, so much needed in our post-communist societies.
Lastly, I present the Just Peacemaking theory as a public discourse which seeks social transformation.  I develop  a  specific  study  resource  and  a  survey  which  revealed  that attitudes of people can generally be influenced positively. By teaching and expanding Just Peacemaking, the transforming  initiatives  of  the Sermon  on  the  Mount  may  form  solid convictions in people to resist the pressure to commit blood feuds and also to be able to forgive and offer peace. Finally, some of the findings and contributions of the thesis are presented with recommendations for further research on this social field.

abstract: Acadia Divinity College


title: Good things to those who ask: ancient answers to contemporary challenges to the efficacy of petitionary prayer

contributor:
Ernst, John C. (author)
(Boersma, Spencer) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2020

abstract:
Contemporary debate over the efficacy of petitionary prayer has been strongly influenced by Eleonore Stump’s 1979 formulation of the argument against its logical coherence. Arguments recognizably similar to Stump’s, however, were being considered in the early centuries of Christianity, provoking some discussion but little apparent concern. The purpose of this thesis is to examine the early Christian understanding of the efficacy of petitionary prayer, in conjunction with the contributions of Stump and others interacting with her 1979 article, to determine whether a suitable defence against Stump’s argument can be constructed on the basis of the early sources. With some assistance from the philosophy of relations, it closely examines the relational framework suggested by the various factors linked by the early authors to the efficacy of prayer,
ultimately concluding that this framework suggests a plausible means by which prayer gives God additional reason to grant petitions.

abstract: Acadia Divinity College


title: Clements Township: its history and its people, 1783-1870

contributor:
Sutherland, Ira Maxwell (author)
(Longley, R.S.) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 1957

abstract:
No abstract
History & Classics


title: Advancing light: evangelicalism in Yarmouth Township 1761-1830

contributor:
Goodwin, Danlel Corey (author)
(Moody, Barry) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 1986

abstract:
A number of studies have been written on early Maritime evangelicalism In recent years. However the literature has too often been preoccupied with Henry Alline and the 'Great Awakening' or taken a survey-type
approach to regional evangelical developments. Consequently, certain generalizations and perhaps an over emphasis of Alline's importance has prevailed without supporting evidence from individual community studies.
Using the 'case study' by examining evangelical development in one approach, township, this thesis endeavours to consider the topic from a different perspective.
It was discovered that the New England evangelicalism brought to Yarmouth Township by the planters in the 1760's and early 1770's remained essentially unchanged between 1761-1830. While changes occurred in
denominational or sectarian affiliation, church structure, polity, theology, and preachers, the fervent evangelical zeal Whltefieldlan-type preaching which characterized the days of settlement remained constant throughout the and early period examined. In fact, It was this evangelical orientation which provided unity and Identity for a Yarmouth New Light group, which separated from the Chebogue congregation in 1783, as It
was transformed Into a Regular Baptist Church.

abstract: History & Classics


title: The baptismal controversy, 1811-1848, as the religious dimension of intellectual awakening in Nova Scotia

contributor:
Goodwin, Daniel Corey (author)
(Zeman, Jarold K.) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 1989

abstract:
No abstract.
Acadia Divinity College


title: How capability maneuvers within exploitation: an examination of the women workers in Mexico's electronic assembly maquiladoras

contributor:
Redden, Stephanie M. (author)
(Brickner, Rachel) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2010

abstract:
The capability approach, developed by Amartya Sen, and later adapted by Martha Nussbaum, is a popular approach to
understanding "development." This thesis analyzes women workers in Mexico's maquiladoras through Nussbaum's capabilities approach to explore the ways they are able to expand and improve their existing capability, even under the
exploitative working conditions of global export factories. This thesis argues that women's lives cannot be evaluated
using dichotomous categorizations such, functioning in a "truly human" way or not, as implied by Nussbaum's capabilities
approach, or exploited/ empowered, as argued in much of the maquiladora literature. Instead, this thesis presents a more
nuanced depiction of women's working lives by constructing a typology of the ways that women workers can be seen to be
both informally and formally resisting and maneuvering to exercise and improve their capability even under the most
exploitative conditions of the maquiladoras.

abstract: Politics


title: Parelaphostrongylus tenuis (Fryadko and boev) in the moose and white-tailed deer of Nova Scotia

contributor:
Brown, Janis Evelyn (author)
(Taylor, Hilda) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 1983

abstract:
Research was initiated in 1980 to survey the frequency of occurrence and the distribution of Paralephostrongylus tenuis in
white-tailed deer and moose in Nova Scotia. From 1980 through 1982, 305 moose and deer heads were collected from
cooperating hunters, road and miscellaneous kills and examined for the presence of the adult nematode. A total of 853 feces collections from these sources and six study areas were examined for first stage larvae using the Baermann technique. The six study areas were established in areas of varying moose and deer densities and were sampled seasonally
for two years. In deer 50.7% of the heads and 64.7% of the feces were infected. In moose 6.5% of the heads and 12.7% of
the feces were infected. The parasite is probably not the controlling factor on the moose population. The occurrence of
the parasite in moose was related to the frequency of occurrence in deer.  Moose appear to be surviving with the parasite.

abstract: Biology


title: An introduction to job analysis: the job inventory method

contributor:
McDonald, Donald G. (author)
(Mosher, John I.) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 1951

abstract:
No abstract
Economics


title: God-forsakenness and the perfection of Jesus: Jürgen Moltmann on the atonement in conversation with Hebrews 5:7 - 10 and Irenaeus

contributor:
Adams, Nathan (author)
(Robbins, Anna) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2018

abstract:
This thesis on the atonement proposes that Jesus’ God-forsakenness is a descent into the situation of sin, for the purpose of recreating and perfecting the human will in triumph over sin. It is arrived at in a conversation, carried out within the dynamic theological framework Moltmann has built upon Jesus’ cry of God-forsakenness. After exploring Moltmann, Hebrews 5:7-10’s atonement explanation is brought into the conversation to both be interpreted through Moltmann’s theological lens and to offer correction to that lens. A Hegelian focus on finitude and non-being as the problem atonement seeks to solve is identified in Moltmann, at the expense of sin, the primary problem identified by Hebrews. An excision of this aspect of Moltmann’s theology is suggested with a replacement by Irenaeus’ recapitulation, which complements both Moltmann and Hebrews. The result is a fusion of God-forsakenness and recapitulation/perfection.
This image of the atonement could be described as substitutionary recapitulation.

abstract: Acadia Divinity College


title: Learning with symbols

contributor:
Galila, Ahmed (author)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)
(Silver, Daniel L.) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2019

abstract: Computer Science

abstract:
The effectiveness of deep neural network models depends on the size and quality of the datasets used to develop these models.  Often a lack of sufficient training examples results in the learning algorithm settling into a suboptimal local minima.  Individual human learners encounter similar difficulties while learning. However, these challenges are overcome through social interaction and the sharing of learned knowledge in the form  of  symbols.   This  thesis  presents  a  hypothesis  that  states  that  the  presence of  clear  and  concise  symbols  while  training  artificial  neural  networks  improves  the accuracy  of  these  models  when  trained  on  impoverished  datasets,  similar  to  how knowledge sharing among humans allows them to overcome their learning difficulties. Empirical studies compare the accuracy of recurrent neural networks, based on long short-term memory units, trained in the presence of symbols with similar networks trained  without  the  benefit  of  symbols.   The  models  are  trained  to  perform  basic arithmetic operations on images of handwritten digits from the MNIST dataset.  We try two forms of digit symbol encodings (one-hot and temperature) and compare how well each encoding is able to guide the training process to discover a representation of an algorithm that can generalize to all instances of the problem.  The results show that  the  models  trained  with  the  aid  of  symbols  are  more  effective  at  performing arithmetic than the models trained without symbols.  Furthermore, we show that the
temperature encoding of digit symbols are able to capture the quantity and ordinal relationship between the operands and are more effective at discovering an algorithm for each arithmetic operation


title: Medicalized definitions of severe mental illness: a qualitative analysis of Nova Scotia's mental health policies, strategies & legislation

contributor:
Campeau, Kaitlin (author)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)
(Rudrum, Sarah) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2020

abstract: Sociology

abstract: This study seeks to answer two questions: how do Nova Scotia policy makers define severe mental illness? How do definitions of severe mental illness influence the creation and implementation of mental health policies? Theoretical frameworks and concepts such as social constructionism, medicalization, stigma, and intersectionality were used to unpack the characteristics that are essential to defining severe mental illness. Literature on North American mental health policies were examined to provide context. The methods used were a Intersectionality-Based Policy Analysis (IBPA) (guided by a critical discourse analysis) of Nova Scotia’s most current mental health strategies and legislation, as well as conducting semi-structured interviews with ten individuals that embody the roles of policy makers, mental health professionals, and members of mental health Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO). The findings were broken down into five themes. (1) The process of defining severe mental illness is framed through the process of medicalization and the mental health continuum; (2) the social determinants of health framework is used to frame diversity in mental health policy; (3) medical professionals have more power in contributing to mental health policies than  persons with lived experience; (4) the mental health system is disconnected, which creates discontinuous mental health treatment; (5) stigma impacts severely mentally ill marginalized persons more so than non-marginalized persons. Severe mental illness is defined through medicalized discourse, which ignores the social context of persons with severe mental illness. Thus, a new definition of severe mental illness must include of social analysis paired with medical discourse in understanding the distress of persons with severe mental illness. Severe mental illness and mental distress must be examined societal structures.


title: Survival and movements of American black ducks (Anas rubripes) and mallards (Anas platyrhynchos) wintering in western Nova Scotia, Canada

contributor:
Peck, Liam Edmund (author)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)
(Mallory, Mark) (Thesis advisor)
(Robertson, Gregory) (Thesis advisor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2020

abstract: Biology

abstract:
American black ducks were once the most abundant and most heavily harvested species of waterfowl in eastern North America but wintering black duck populations have declined and continue to decline in southern and central regions of the black duck’s wintering range. In contrast,recent ob servations suggest numbers of black ducks wintering in Atlantic Canada are increasing. Despite the extensive amount of research on black ducks, little work has focused on better understanding black ducks that overwinter at the northernmost limit of the black duck wintering range. To build upon the knowledge of wintering black ducks in Atlantic Canada,
I examined survival and movements of American black ducks and mallards that winter near the northern limit of their range.
To assess survival and fidelity of wintering American black ducks and mallards, I used data from 498 black ducks and 550 mallards captured and banded during the wintering period from 2009-2015 at an agricultural site in western Nova Scotia, Canada. I found virtually no support for models with annual variation in survival, fidelity or reporting probabilities. In general, survival was high and comparable to results from other locations and from birds banded before the fall hunting season. Male mallards and black ducks had a higher probably of survival (72.3% and 88.8% for males > 2 years old) compared to female mallards and black ducks (53.8% and 71.9%). Young male black ducks had a higher rate of reporting than adult male black ducks, suggesting a higher vulnerability to harvest that persists after surviving their first hunting season. Female black ducks had the lowest reporting rate of all groups, and both species showed high winter site-fidelity.
Migratory chronology and movements of American black ducks were analyzed using data from 11 black ducks tagged with Platform Terminal Transmitter. These telemetry data revealed that wintering black ducks from
my study site contained both longer-distance migrants and locally-breeding individuals. Longer distance migrants moved away from the wintering area to inland areas throughout Atlantic Canada to stage before traveling north to breed as far away as the southern shores of Ungava Bay, Quebec, while some birds remained in Nova Scotia year-round.
Results presented in this thesis will inform future population modeling, harvest management and habitat capacities assessments of these two species at the northeastern limit. When future work assesses Atlantic Canada’s carrying capacity for wintering black ducks, researchers and conservationists may want to consider the implications of high rates of survival and fidelity in a population of black ducks that contains year-
round locals and migrant birds.


title: Sofishticated tracking: improved protocol for acoustic tagging of sensitive clupeid fishes, and applications in investigating postspawning migration of alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus) in Minas Basin, Bay of Fundy

contributor:
Tsitrin, Elizabetha (author)
(Stokesbury, Michael) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2020

abstract:
Gaspereau River in Kings County, Nova Scotia, supports a commercially valuable stock of anadromous alewives. Little is known about oceanic movement of this species. In addition to natural mortalities, the population faces potential threat from the development of in-stream tidal energy in the Bay of Fundy. This study offers the first glimpse at post-spawning migration in Atlantic Canada using novel High Residency acoustic tracking technology. The first chapter identified the physiological and behavioural response of alewife to internal tagging based on reflex impairment and post-mortem examinations. The results showed the procedure is viable for the remote tracking of a species known to be sensitive to handling.The second chapter applied acoustic tracking methods to investigate post-spawning migration of Gaspereau River alewife within Minas Basin and through Minas Passage. Minas Passage is a region slated for instream tidal turbine infrastructure so overlap in this region was assessed. Results showed 77% of tagged individuals were
detected by receiver arrays in Minas Basin, including a considerable portion within the Passage. Alewife movement appeared to be primarily dictated by tidal transport. These data will provide baseline information for
future assessments of the stock.

abstract: Biology


title: Early effects of spinal cord transection and motor driven cycling exercise training on skeletal muscle properties

contributor:
Kelley, Melissa D. (author)
(Murphy, René) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2004

abstract: A reduction in muscle mass is known to occur following spinal cord transection. Passive cycling exercise training has been shown to ameliorate or reverse these effects. The aims  of this study were to examine the acute effects of spinal cord transection and motor driven cycling exercise training on muscle mass, total and myofibrillar protein content,  cytochrome C oxidase ( CYTOX) activity, and ß- adrenergic receptor ( ß- AR) density of skeletal muscle. Female Sprague- Dawley rats ( n= 43; ~ 250g) were randomly assigned to 5 experimental groups: control 4 day; control 8 day; spinal cord transection ( Tx) 4 day; spinal cord transection 8 day; and spinal cord transection with exercise. A complete spinal cord transection was performed surgically at the T10 cord level. Exercise training on motor driven bicycles was initiated 5 days after Tx and occurred 60 min/ day for 3 days. Compared to controls, Tx resulted in a marked decrease in muscle mass, with no significant change in total and myofibrillar protein concentrations. Spinal cord  transection also resulted in a significant decrease in plantaris CYTOX activity. ß-adrenergic receptor density of the lateral gastrocnemius was unchanged following spinal  cord transection, however the ß- AR density of the triceps was found to increase.  Exercise for 3 days was not effective in preventing or reversing the acute effects of spinal cord transection. Our results suggest that: 1) muscle atrophy occurs rapidly in the first 8 days following Tx; 2) this atrophy is due to changes in protein content; 3) CYTOX  activity decreases rapidly following Tx; 4) ß- AR density is increased in the triceps but unchanged in the lateral gastrocnemius 8 days after Tx; and 5) although exercise training has previously been shown to be effective, 3 bouts of cycling exercise, as administered in this study, did not counter the acute effects of Tx on hindlimb skeletal muscle properties.

abstract: Biology


title: Level of empowerment and health knowledge among home support workers providing care for frail elderly

contributor:
Noel, Miriam C.A. (author)
(Johnson, Shanthi) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2004

abstract: Canada's health care system has long been recognized as one of the best in the  world. Under the health care umbrella, home care services were created to prevent, delay  or substitute long term and acute care alternatives and to enable people to live longer in  their homes. Home support workers [HSW], who are the front line workers in the home  care environment, provide the needed personal daily care to frail elderly in their homes.  While HSWs are integral to the home care environment, little or no studies have  examined their level of empowerment and health knowledge. Thus, the purposes of this  study were to examine the profile of HSWs in Nova Scotia and to determine the level of  perceived work empowerment and general health knowledge.  A sample of 64 HSWs from five agencies in Nova Scotia were included.  Background characteristics, work profile, level of empowerment and health knowledge  related to seniors, falls, nutrition and physical activity were assessed using a series of  questionnaires. Findings revealed that the majority of workers were older females with a  mean age of 46 years. Forty-four participants indicated that they received additional  training in nutrition and physical activity, while three-quarters specified that they received  health information from training and workshops. However, health knowledge scores were  low, with an overall mean score of 40%. Empowerment level was moderate, with a mean  overall score of 13.9 out of 20, and a moderate amount of formal power was found. The  findings demonstrate the need to revise the curriculum of home support workers to  include health topics and the need to develop continuing education and implement  strategies to enhance the level of empowerment among home support workers.

abstract: Nutrition & Dietetics


title: Implementing a TeX to HTML translator

contributor:
Cooper, Ryan Patrick (author)
(Diamond, Jim) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2004

abstract: TEX is a powerful typesetting system, developed by Donald E. Knuth in the early  1980s, which allows a user who knows little about typesetting mathematics to do so  easily and correctly. TEX is also freely distributed. Because of these features, it has become popular amongst mathematicians, computer scientists, and other researchers.  Since TEX’s inception, it has been used to typeset countless theses, research papers,  textbooks, and other documents. In fact, this document was formatted using TEX.  Since the advent of the World Wide Web, several attempts have been made to de-  velop facilities to translate TEX documents into Web-friendly formats such as HTML  and PDF. However, each of the currently available facilities has shortcomings. Be-  cause of these shortcomings, none of the available facilities are satisfactory solutions. The purpose of this thesis is to develop a satisfactory TEX-to-HTML translator. The thesis discusses the prominent features of TEX and the difficulties in implementing a TEX-to-HTML translator, and reviews existing solutions to the problem, as well as their benefits and shortcomings. The potential approaches to the problem are listed and discussed, as are the reasons for the chosen approach. The software package RCTEX (pronounced “arctic”), the author’s implementation of a TEX-to-HTML translator, is discussed in detail. Finally some sample results are provided and compared to results of the original TEX program and the results of existing solutions.

abstract: Computer Science


title: Sequential consolidation of learned task knowledge

contributor:
Poirier, Ryan Xavier (author)
(Silver, Daniel L.) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2004

abstract: A major problem of life-long machine learning is how to sequentially consolidate  learned task knowledge into a single long-term memory structure (domain knowledge)  without loss of prior knowledge. Consolidated domain knowledge makes more e±cient  use of memory and can be used for e±cient and e®ective transfer of knowledge when  learning future tasks. Relevant background on arti¯cial neural networks, inductive  bias and knowledge transfer using multiple task learning (MTL) networks is reviewed.  A theory of sequential consolidation of task knowledge which uses large MTL networks  and a method of task rehearsal to overcome the stability-plasticity problem and the  loss of prior knowledge is presented. The theory is tested on two synthetic domains  containing diverse sets of tasks and it is shown that new task knowledge can be  consolidated without loss of the existing knowledge under the proper conditions.

abstract: Computer Science


title: Miniaturization of a wet oxidation method for determination of carbon content of copepods and daphnia using a fibre-optic microspectrometer

contributor:
Stafford, Randall Brooke (author)
(Robertson, Michael) (Thesis advisor)
(Roff, John) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2004

abstract: The purpose of this project was to develop and apply a fibre-optic-based microspectrometer  in order to miniaturize a wet oxidation method for the determination of  absolute levels of carbon at the Î¼g and ng acale. The main focus was to produce  length-weight regression curves for freshwater daphnia and marine and freshwater  copepods based on data collected from individual animals. Before reliable results  could be obtained, the equipment and procedure had to be optimized. Once the final  equipment set-up and procedure were in place, a calibration curve involving known  concentrations of glucose was generated to test the resolution of the modified wet  oxidation method. Statistical analysis on the experimental results acquired from the  calibration curve showed that the technique was able to detect carbon concentrations  at the sub-microgram level, over 2 orders of magnitude more sensitive than the former  procedure. Successful length-weight regressions were obtained using this new technique  for two separate populations of Daphnia magna, one on as shipped specimens  and the other after a week of feeding. The regression shows an increase in carbon  with length and feeding. The length-weight relationship was consistent with others  presented in the literature for Daphnia magna using more â€bulk-likeâ€ samples. This  procedure produced the regression lnC = 3.29 lnLâˆ’22.51 with an R2 value of 0.938  which is consistent with the regression lnC = 2.16 lnL + 3.05 with an R2 value of  0.967 by Kawabata and Urabe [1].

abstract: Physics


title: Intersections: Clear-cutting, sustainable forestry, and women's activism in Nova Scotia

contributor:
Glidden, Shauna K. (author)
(Auger, Jeanette) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2004

abstract: This thesis explores clear-cutting practices and sustainable forestry alternatives in Nova  Scotia, while focusing on how women's activism can effect ecological and social change.  A content analysis was conducted on women's environmental activism, ecofeminsim and  ecology literature in order to determine the emerging themes and impetus for community  change. For generations androcentric practices of industrial forestry have failed to plan  for the future of the environment and its impact on local communities. Thus, community  battles have taken place between the cultural space of forest, its corresponding  community identities and the struggle for political power. Embedded within these cultural  spaces are a multitude of idenities in which women's activism has emerged as an  individual and community response. Through the process of community mobilization  women in local communities discover and locate their political voice and successfully  shift these androcentric structures toward a sustainable community model.

abstract: Sociology


title: What a day

contributor:
Hussey, Ian S. (author)
(Quéma, Anne) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2004

abstract: Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway (1925) and Michael Cunningham’s The Hours  (1998) are the focus of this study, which scrutinizes the multifarious relations between  these two heterogeneous textual productions from two theoretical perspectives:  intertextuality and feminism.  Chapter Two examines the relationship between these two texts from the  standpoint of Julia Kristeva’s theory of intertextuality. There is an undeniable intertextual  relationship between these two texts. Cunningham includes excerpts from Woolf’s novel,  diaries, and letters in his narrative. Furthermore, he acknowledges numerous secondary  sources that he consulted to acquire background information on the various people –  including Virginia and Leonard Woolf, amongst others – who are historical figures and  who appear in his book as fictional characters. His text is a literary montage: his narrative  is the product of intertextual relations between Woolf’s novel and his own narrative that  spans four twentieth-century generations.  Chapter Three analyzes the theme of gender relations within each novel and  between the two novels from a radical feminist viewpoint. Gender is a socio-political and  cultural construct. Although Mrs. Dalloway upholds the conventional patriarchal  correlation between women’s domesticity and their secondary social status, Woolf’s  character Clarissa Dalloway redefines her domesticity as art because she is confined to the  domestic sphere and redefining her work in a positive way gives her a heightened feeling  of personal significance. The Hours is a male writer’s version of the genealogical  evolution of twentieth-century Western gender relations.

abstract: Sociology


title: Searching for clarity: Rousseau, sovereignty, and the Clarity Act on Quebec secession

contributor:
Gould, Joshua M. (author)
(Pyrcz, Greg) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2004

abstract: Sovereignty is a puzzling concept characterized by apparent contradictions and  varying meanings. It refers to absolute, top-down authority over a given territory as well  as to the legitimate, bottom-up authority of popular will. In this thesis, I focus on this  latter function, employing the work of Jean-Jacques Rousseau to analyse Canadian  legislation passed in 2000 that is meant to set the terms by which the Canadian federal  government would negotiate secession with the predominantly French-speaking province  of Quebec. Although this piece of legislation, entitled the Clarity Act, is somewhat  lacking insofar as it does not adequately clarify the procedure of secession, I argue that a  certain reading of Rousseau and a review of sovereignty reveal theoretical nuances within  the Act. The Act introduces a theoretically and practically justified condition for a  successful referendum on Quebec sovereignty; namely, that for the federal government to  recognize the legitimacy of a sovereigntist vote, a “clear majority” of Quebecers must  answer in favour of a “clear question” on the topic of secession. I begin with a discussion  of the Clarity Act and a discussion of the context in which it was adopted. Following this,  I begin a literature review of the concept of sovereignty, first considering it from an  historical perspective, especially as a source of political authority. Second, I consider the  work of Rousseau, his Discourse on Inequality and the Social Contract, and their  treatment of the ideas of collective self-determination, nationalism, totalitarianism, and  representative and direct democracy. I conclude by returning to the Clarity Act in order to  elaborate upon and reinterpret it in light of the review of Rousseau’s theory.

abstract: Politics


title: Synthesis and bioevaluation of 1-arylidene-3, 4-dihydro-3-(phenylallylidene)-naphthalen-2(1H)-ones as novel anti-neoplastic agents

contributor:
Zhao, Jin (author)
(Jha, Amitabh) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2004

abstract: Electrophilic compounds, like N-mustards (e.g. Alkeran®) have long been used as  powerful anti-cancer agents because of their ability to alkylate nucleic acids. Owing to  this non-selective genotoxic behaviour, DNA damage to other normal cells sometimes  triggers mutagenesis and carcinogenesis. This investigation deals with discovery of nongenotoxic  alkylating agents which are selectively cytotoxic to cancerous cells by  inhibiting vital enzyme systems. Use of compounds containing α-β unsaturated ketone  systems is gaining importance as electrophilic centers for alkylation of cellular proteins.  α,β-Unsaturated ketones have a remarkable affinity for thiol groups (abundant on  proteins) and little or no affinity for hydroxyl and amino groups (present on nucleic acids)  under physiological conditions. Consequently, a series of 1-arylidene-3,4-dihydro-3-  (phenylallylidene)-naphthalen-2(1H)-ones were designed and successfully synthesized as  anti-neoplastic agents. These compounds were characterized by spectroscopic techniques.  Biological evaluation in relevant assay systems indicated that these compounds possess  moderate selective cytotoxicity towards human cancer lines and displayed excellent  preliminary safety profiles. Structure-activity relationship studies indicated that the  anticancer activity of these compounds can be enhanced by appropriate modification in  the structure which will form bases of future investigations.

abstract: Chemistry


title: The sensitivity of shallow marine environments to physical and meteorological changes associated with climate change

contributor:
Belliveau, Karissa Danielle (author)
(Spooner, Ian) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2004

abstract: The effects of climate variability, in particular the impacts of increasing numbers  of extreme weather events (proposed future climate scenarios) are not well known for  shallow marine environments. This study evaluates the sensitivity of the Morton Centre  to scenarios of climate change. Sensitivity profiles of these environments can then be  used in the future for integrated management and development of the Morton Centre site.  Physical characteristics of the shallow marine environment were surveyed to  determine relative temperature, current activity, bathymetry, and bottom substrate flora  and sedimentology. The intertidal zone was characterised using longitudinal surveys to  determine slope, percolation rates, and sediment type.  Results of these characterizations indicate that, in the shallow marine  environment, current activity is very strong, and influences substrate composition and  water mixing. Substrate sedimentology varies greatly, with harder substrate occurring in  regions of high current activity, and fine grained soft substrate occurring in regions with  little current activity. Water mixing varied greatly and in general coincided with areas of  high current velocity. In the intertidal environment, slope is very shallow and percolation  is highly variable with areas of erosion and deposition located in close proximity.  These results indicate that both the shallow marine and intertidal environments  are dynamic and sensitive environments which will be affected given scenarios of future  climate change. This sensitivity must be considered in management of these  environments.

abstract: Earth & Environmental Sciences


title: Rules, status, and the boundary of pain: A social psychology of injury in men's rugby

contributor:
Fenton, Lindsay (author)
(Pitter, Robert) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2004

abstract: This paper discusses participant observation pilot studies of both a rural high school rugby  season and a university club rugby season during which I filled the role of first aid  provider and student athletic trainer, respectively. Through a content analysis of  information gathered from interviews, questionnaires, and field notes, I explore how the  rules of the sport, the status of the athlete on the team, and the athlete’s boundary of pain  can influence an athlete’s decisions when in pain or injured. The results varied between  the two groups studied, suggesting a need for more research to fill the gaps in behavioural  patterns of high school and university athletes in a sports setting. This study effectively  illustrates how individual responses to pain and injury may be guided by both social  pressure and an athlete’s socialization with respect to injury. My goal is to identify when  dangerous risk taking norms become apparent so that professionals can intervene,  ensuring the safety of athletes.

abstract: Kinesiology


title: The possibility of Dirofilaria immitis, canine heartworm disease, becoming endemic in Nova Scotia.

contributor:
Ness, Susan P. (author)
(Bell, Colin) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 1999

abstract: Dirofilaria immitis is an increasing problem in the veterinary setting in all of  Canada. The purpose of this study was to examine past research on heartworm and to  subjectively determine if there is a possibility of this parasite gaining a hold in Nova  Scotia. Research conducted over the past years from around the world was examined  and connections to the situation in Nova Scotia were examined. By examining the  spread of heartworm in other regions of the world and comparing the similarities,  conclusions may be drawn as to whether the Nova Scotia environment is suitable for  endemic levels of heartworm development. At this time it is evident that heartworm is  spreading through many parts of the world, including places that at one time were  believed to be immune from infection. The rate of infection is also increasing in Canada.  At this time a definitive conclusion has not been reached on the possibility of heartworm  becoming endemic in Nova Scotia. With the increase in research, plus treatment and  prevention options available at the present time, the parasite will have to face many other  factors in colonising this province in addition to the environment and finding suitable  hosts and vectors. It is believed that this study can assist veterinarians and dog owners to  gain a better understanding of the risk of heartworm in Nova Scotia and of the measures  necessary to prevent Dirofilaria immitis from becoming a major health concern in Nova  Scotia.

abstract: Biology


title: Renewable energy framework and feasibility study for the Morton Centre

contributor:
Beck-Oliver, Adrian J. (author)
(Segato, Roberto) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2004

abstract: The object of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of constructing a renewable  energy system for the Morton Centre property. This project was undertaken for two  reasons: (1) because of the environmental, economic, political, and social costs of using  energy generated from non-renewable sources, and (2) because of the Morton Centreâ€™s  long-term goal to function as a sustainable community. The Centre has seen increased  use for both research and non-research activities over the past two summers. As a result,  infrastructure on the property will need to be renovated and constructed to meet the  increasing demand upon it. Under these guidelines, this study was designed to collect  baseline data to identify which sources of renewable energy are appropriate for the  property and to estimate an approximate capacity for each source identified. This study is  not intended to design renewable energy infrastructure, but to provide a scientifically  sound framework for future development.  This study qualitatively and quantitatively assessed the capacity of solar radiation,  microclimate variation, wind, and tides to meet propertyâ€™s energy needs. It concluded that  wind and solar would be the most feasible sources to generate electricity, while solar  would be the best way to meet the propertyâ€™s heating requirements. Microclimate  variation was not deemed suitable to meet the needs of the entire property for two  reasons: (1) because of the small temperature gradients present, and (2) because no  technology currently exists to convert small temperature gradients into usable energy.  Likewise, tidal energy was not deemed feasible for two reasons: (1) because of the  associated environmental impacts, and (2) because such a system would not have a large  enough generating capacity to make its construction economically viable.

abstract: Earth & Environmental Sciences


title: Characterization of rabbiteye blueberry (Vaccinium ashei Reade) floral damage inflicted by blueberry gall midge (Dasineura oxycoccana Johnson) and flower thrips (Frankliniella spp.)

contributor:
Dernisky, Andrea Katherine (author)
(Evans, Rodger) (Thesis advisor)
Acadia University (Degree grantor)

subject: LE3 .A278 2004

abstract: Insect-induced damage to plant structures, particularly flowers, can significantly impact the  economics of fruit production through compromised fruit development, or adversely affect fruit  aesthetics. My study seeks to collect data pertaining to the timing, extent, and biology of damage  produced by blueberry gall midge (Dasineura oxycoccana) and flower thrips (Frankliniella spp.) on  rabbiteye blueberry flowers (Vaccinium ashei) in Florida. Flowers representing a range of  developmental stages (i.e., bud break through anthesis), were examined to determine which  tissues are targeted, as well as the impact of oviposition, larval feeding, and eclosion. All  specimens were partially dissected, dehydrated with ethanol and then either embedded in paraffin  wax for sectioning and viewing with a light microscope, or placed on aluminum stubs and coated  with gold for viewing with a scanning electron microscope. Oviposition by blueberry gall midges  occurred early in the growing season and was evident exclusively between overlying bracts of  immature inflorescences. Typically larvae were positioned perpendicular to the floral bud with  which it was associated. Subsequent tissue necrosis resulting from larval feeding was found  encompassing the flower tube region. Such damage potentially leads to premature floral bud drop,  and aesthetically compromised blueberries in flowers comprising infested inflorescences.  Oviposition by flower thrips takes place later in the season, with females targeting various floral  structures within mature rabbiteye flowers. Petals were the primary target site for oviposition by  thrips, with an obvious preference for vascular tissues. Oviposition, larval feeding, and subsequent  eclosion events invoked by thrips were externally visible, resulting in minimal damage to  surrounding tissues, whereas presence of gall midges was undetectable until overlying bracts had  abscised, and damage had already progressed to an extreme state.

abstract: Biology