identifier: Jiang, Yunlong  (2004) Study of time structure pattern in news stories.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: News articles are a particular type of story that reflects our daily life on various media. The most distinctive characteristics of news story are its discontinuity in the ordering of events and its limited shelf life. These characteristics present difficulties for automated systems which deal with temporal information. Such applications include information extraction, question answering, summarization, machine translation, etc. In recent years, some concrete work has been done in the area of event identification and temporal expression annotation. Some issues still remain regarding implicit temporal information.  This major report describes a method to find patterns in news stories that journalists use to organize events. The study will help us better understand the nature of news stories. It may also help to get implicit temporal information by the implication from the event in the same paragraph. The major report also presents an annotation scheme for annotating temporal expressions and paragraphs in new texts. In this study, we manually annotated all temporal expressions and paragraphs in selected news texts. We build the time structure for each of the texts according to the story time of the paragraphs. After all the target news texts are analyzed and annotated, we compare time structures against each other to derive time structure patterns that may exist in news stories.


identifier: McKenna, Iain  (2004) Temporality, technology and the aporia of narrative identity.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

type: Thesis NonPeerReviewed

abstract: Identity is an ambiguous concept, yet it is central to virtually every sphere of human interaction. "Who" one is, claims to be, or is designated as delineating a horizon of possibility.  The question "who?" is a riddle. On the one hand, the answer is defined by where one fits into the world. On the other hand, there is an almost inalienable presence of one's self/soul to oneself that seems to resist classification with respect to world structures. The point of intersection between the world and the soul is a ground of ambiguity upon which the story of a life is told, performed, observed, produced and sold. This work riddles with Ricoeur, Merleau-Ponty, and Hannah Arendt in order to articulate and delineate identity in such a way as to be faithful to both worldly conditions and the fears and aspirations of the soul.  Insofar as one's identity is knowable, it is knowable as a narrative. Ricoeur's contribution to narrative identity is his assertion that human existence is fundamentally temporal. Consequently, the circle of action and narrative is central to the question of identity. Novel narrative forms are emerging from technological advances. For example, computer games have developed into a multi-billion dollar endeavor. Just as fiction and history imitate action and in turn inspire action, so too do digital narratives. This thesis explores the ways in which identity is articulated and ascribed by emerging digital narrative forms.


identifier: Zhu, Xueye  (2004) Seismic behavior of cracked concrete gravity dams.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Two models are proposed to analyze the seismic behavior of cracked concrete gravity dams in order to assess the safety against sliding and overturning. A proposed rigid model first designed for cracked concrete dams considers the geometry of the cracked dam and includes all possible modes of motion with 3 degrees-of-freedom. The other model proposed is a flexible finite element model, which represents a penalty approach, based on the incremental displacement constraint equations between the nodes on both sides of the crack.  All governing equations and corresponding conditions for every mode of motion are derived for the rigid model. Verifications show that this simple rigid model is effective in the prediction of the seismic response of cracked dams. Its applications to the cracked Koyna Dam and a typical dam cracked at the base demonstrate its advantages of simplicity, accuracy and ability to reveal the important features of seismic behavior of cracked concrete dams.  The flexible model is verified with available solutions, showing its very good applicability in estimation of the dynamic response of cracked concrete dams, owing to its adequate treatment of contact conditions at the crack. Its applications to Koyna Dam and a typical dam prove its adequacy to the cases of cracks at both the base and at a height.  Computations with both proposed models show that the cracked Koyna Dam and the cracked typical dam are safe under the earthquakes considered provided the effective coefficient of friction is sufficient large. However, both models suggest that the rocking mode must be considered since it affects the sliding displacement even if the rocking itself is very small. The partial dam above the crack might experience drifting if severe impact occurs. Therefore even a large coefficient of friction cannot prevent sliding. The residual sliding displacement along the crack for a specific cracked dam depends on factors such as coefficient of friction, water level, peak acceleration of earthquake and its details.  The consistency of two proposed models is noted when increasing the stiffness in the flexible model. This suggests that the rigid model is applicable to the case when the upper part of the cracked dam is very stiff, while the flexible model is capable of revealing more details of the seismic behavior of cracked dams.


identifier: Li, Ji  (2004) Web-based integrated project control.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

title: Web-based integrated project control

abstract: Time-and-cost control is an essential management function for successful delivery of engineering, procurement, and construction projects. Considerable research efforts have been expended on this topic. However, those methods often suffer from a lack of integrated tracking and control. In general, control systems generate variance reports and provide analysis, diagnosis, and forecasts of project cost and duration at completion. Nevertheless, there is a need not only for an efficient computational environment that allows data sharing among project team members in the control process, but also for providing reasons behind unacceptable performance and for improving forecasting capabilities.  This research presents a web-based system that supports project time-and-cost control in an integrated manner. The developed system utilizes object-oriented modeling to represent project deliverables. A set of control-objects is designed to represent the work tasks in the construction process. A hierarchy structure using a three-level performance evaluation method not only identifies the time-and-cost variances at each control level, but also evaluates the calculated variances against a pre-defined criterion. Eighteen key indicators chosen from the literature serve as sensors to highlight problematic areas associated with unfavorable performance. Four causal models are developed to define the relationships among the indicators. Fuzzy binary relation and union operations are employed to explain the reason(s) behind unfavorable performance and to suggest related corrective action(s). An indicator-based fuzzy forecasting model is developed to assist in predicting time and cost at completion and at interim future horizons.  A prototype system "IT/CC" (Integrated time and cost control) is developed in the structure of Three-Tier Client Server architecture to implement the developed methodology. Sixty web forms serving different input, browsing, and editing purposes are developed. Five databases, namely, Project, Factor, Reason, Case , and Historical are developed to facilitate the implementation of the IT/CC system. The IT/CC system takes advantage of the World Wide Web to provide an efficient data sharing and collaborating environment for tracking and control of construction activities. It also provides timely generation and dissemination of site progress reports. Daily, weekly, monthly and/or yearly, period-by-period, and to-date project performance reports are generated to provide the status at project, control-object, and resource levels. The on-line data sharing ability provides real-time data for team members and allows them to react in a timely manner.


identifier: Sultana, Nargis  (2004) End user identification and accounting for multicast communication.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: IP multicast services, especially commercial IP multicast services, are not widely deployed. One of the important obstacles to its deployment is related to the current IP multicast model. The current IP multicast model provides by nature a non-secure, non-controlled way for end systems attached to a network to access multicast traffic. Lack of information about users and access control in this model makes it more vulnerable to different types of attacks and also creates difficulties for a service provider to generate enough revenue.  The Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP) is used by IPv4 systems and the Multicast Listener Discovery (MLD) is used by IPv6 systems, to report their IP multicast group memberships to any neighboring multicast routers. A new proposal is presented in this thesis to authenticate multicast end users and to control user access to the multicast group communication. The inter-domain security infrastructure AAA framework is incorporated, and the IGMP/MLD messages are extended, to provide user authentication and access control services. The user information in the system can enable a provider to control the distribution of the multicast traffic as well as to collect real time user accounting information.


identifier: Kashmere, Brett  (2004) Freedom of expression : John Coltrane, Stan Brakhage and the American avant-garde, 1957-67.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: During the early 1960s American avant-garde jazz and cinema gained ascendancy in many of the same urban centres but their coterminous development has been under-recognized by jazz and film scholars alike. Despite the fact that numerous filmmakers have represented or incorporated elements of improvised jazz in their work, leaving enduring traces of influence and fruitful collaboration, a gap remains in the comparative literature. Reasons for this lack of interdisciplinary crossover may include a difference of signification between image and sound, and the perceived opposition between the open, performative spontaneity of jazz and the closed, mediated film. Inter-cutting cultural history with formal, stylistic, textual and comparative analysis, I attempt to resolve these issues by opening a "dialogue" between two leading architects of the postwar avantgarde: jazz saxophonist John Coltrane (1927-1967) and filmmaker Stan Brakhage (1933-2003), focusing on work they produced between 1957 and 1967. Some of the questions to be addressed are: How do social and cultural forces shape artistic forms? How does the improvising artist navigate between harmony and chaos? What is the relationship between improvisation and composition? How are Brakhage's films and Coltrane's music similar, and what do these similarities tell us about their social, political and cultural contexts?


identifier: Jawarneh, Ali  (2004) The flow development in jet-driven vortex chambers.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This work presents the study of the flow in a jet-driven vortex chamber over a wide range of Reynolds numbers, contraction ratios, inlet angles, area and aspect ratios. Dimensional analysis furnishes the general functional relationships between the fundamental dimensionless quantities. Application of the integral equations of continuity and energy over the control volume, along with the minimum-pressure-drop or maximum flow rate postulate, provide the required analytical means to relate the predominant non-dimensional parameters such as the chamber geometry, the core size, pressure drop, Reynolds number, and viscous losses. Both the n = 2 vortex model, with reverse and non-reverse flow, and the free vortex model have been used at the vortex chamber exit plane. The theoretical results are found to successfully capture most of the salient properties of the flow. The influence of vortex chamber geometry, such as contraction ratio, inlet angle, area ratio, aspect ratio, and Reynolds number, on the flow field has been analyzed and compared with the present experimental data. A parametric study explores how the pressure coefficient and the core size vary with the different dimensionless properties. The observations show the pressure drop to decrease with the length. At first this appears to be counterintuitive since one habitually expects the pressure drop to be larger for longer pipes. A closer examination however, reveals that in addition to the radial-axial plane flow there is also a substantial centrifugal force, which decays with the length, thus shaping the development of the overall flow-field. The pressure drop across the vortex chamber differs from that in pipe flow, due to the mechanism of swirl flow. It depends mainly on intensity of tangential velocity. If the chamber length is increased, the vortex decay factor decreases, which leads to less pressure drop. The current theory confirms that the previous published models are only applicable for high Reynolds numbers where the inertia dominates the viscous forces. Based on the present theory, a new approach to determine the tangential velocity and radial pressure profiles inside the vortex chamber is developed and compared with the available experimental data. The n = 2 vortex model with reverse flow gives better results for strongly swirling flow.


identifier: Alsumait, Asmaa  (2004) User interface requirements engineering : a scenario-based framework.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Effective user interface is an important component to the success of an interactive system as any of the components that manage the underlying functionality of the system. The development of an effective user interfaces highly depends on the quality of the requirements where the end-user should be actively involved. Therefore, there is a need to accurately capture, interpret, and represent the voice of the end-user when specifying the user interface requirements. The objective of the thesis is to advance the state of the art in bridging the gap between specifying the User Interface Requirements for interactive systems on the one hand and the design and development of it on the other hand. Towards this objective, a software framework called SUCRE (acronym for Scenario and Use-Case based Requirements Engineering) was developed as a part of this thesis work. Use Case Maps (UCMs) that were introduced in the literature were examined and have been enriched with new visual notation for modeling and specifying the user interface requirements. This enriched UCM for User Interface (UCM-UI) model formed a basis for SUCRE. Thus, scenarios and use cases are used as a means to represent the user interface requirements and communicate with end-users.  In addition, the thesis explores two other objectives, namely validation of user interface requirements and usability prediction of the intended user interface. SUCRE was used to build operators that validate the consistency, completeness, and precision of the UCM-UI model using heuristics for constructing a formal analysis of the requirements. SUCRE was also used to define a metrics suite to predict usability from scenarios and use cases. This metrics suite includes simple structural measures as well as content-sensitive and task-sensitive metrics. Considering the difficulties in the specification and design of user interfaces, the thesis aimed also to identify the need for a mix of both informal and formal representation in specifying user interface requirements. Therefore, SUCRE was successfully used to bridge the gap between the semi-formal requirement UCM-UI and detailed formal requirements such as UML, LOTOS specifications, and XML.


identifier: De los Santos, Joselette  (2004) Social construction approach to nonprofit organization effectiveness : is it tenable?  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: A nonprofit organization has multiple stakeholders, such as clients, employees, funders, licensing and accrediting bodies, and boards of directors. These stakeholders may have different criteria in evaluating the organization's effectiveness. Because of the lack of a market oriented bottom-line profit or loss criteria, leaders and researchers struggle with the concretization of the concept of nonprofit organization effectiveness.  The principal aim of this research is to conceptually replicate part of a 1997 study using the latest theoretical approach to the analysis of nonprofit organization effectiveness, the social construction approach. Using sampling procedures and statistical data-analytic techniques, this research investigates the differences among stakeholders in their effectiveness judgments of nonprofit organizations. Survey responses from 174 stakeholders (49 board members, 55 employees, 36 funders and 34 beneficiaries) of 55 Montreal nonprofit organizations were analyzed. Consequences and implications for nonprofit organization managers were drawn from the analysis.


identifier: De La Haye Duponsel, Emilie  (2004) An investigation of the congruency of the dimensions underlying consumers' perceptions and preferences in multidimensional scaling.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Consumer perceptions and preferences are two critical constructs in marketing research because they are theorized to affect consumers' judgements, intentions to buy and actual purchase behavior. Recently, several researchers in multidimensional scaling (MDS) argued for the joint analysis of the perception and preference data collected from the same sample implicitly assuming that the stimulus spaces for perceptions and preferences were similar in terms of number of dimensions and coordinate values.  Three studies are conducted to test this assumption. It is hypothesized that in MDS, stimulus spaces for perceived similarity data and preferences data would be congruent in terms of the number of dimensions and coordinate values for: (1) those stimuli that could be naturally described in terms of continuous attributes, and (2) for stimuli that are high in the choice hierarchy but (3) not for stimuli that are low in the choice hierarchy. The findings confirm the hypotheses regarding the first two types of stimuli but not the third one. Indeed, the stimulus spaces based on the perceptual and preference data for all three types of stimuli were similar in terms of the number of dimensions, estimated coordinate values and the meaning of the dimensions. This finding encourages further research regarding the development of MDS models jointly using a variety of different measures involving perceptions of similarity, ratings of attributes, and preferences. Limitations of the study, its implications and future research directions are discussed.


identifier: Amram, Stéphanie  (2004) Organizational work life balance practices : socialization, perceived fit and organizational outcomes.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The concept of work-life balance is an especially important issue because it affects all members of society. In particular, it is a critical matter for organizations, one that they cannot afford to overlook. The work-life balance policies organizations have in place assist employees by helping them to meet their work-life balance needs. The quality of these policies, in addition to the sincerity of the efforts with which they are implemented and supported, plays a crucial role in employees' subsequent awareness and use of them.  Three Montreal area companies participated in this study, which looked at the work-life balance issue by examining employees' perceptions of fit with their organization's work-life balance efforts and the role of socialization. Employees' awareness and use of the policies in place, and how their gender, job type and number of dependants affected this, was also investigated. Finally, how perceived fit, perceived work-life balance and socialization efforts, as well as policy awareness and use, affected employees' commitment to the organization, their perceptions of organizational support, and their turnover intentions was explored. This study found that perceptions of fit and perceived work-life balance were related to one another, that socialization practices were associated with greater awareness of policies, which in turn was linked to lower turnover intentions.


identifier: Yoon, Sook  (2004) Pricing of foreign exchange rate exposure in Canadian companies.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The failure of most previous research to support the widely held view of the pricing of foreign exchange rate exposure can be attributed to inadequate model specification. In this thesis, we adopt both the constant and time-varying model to gauge the extent of the foreign exchange rate pricing among Canadian multinationals.  By using monthly stock returns for the 1996-2002 period, we find that Canadian mining firms benefit when the Canadian dollar appreciates against the U.S. dollar. This is contrary to the widely accepted theory that major exporting firms should benefit from the depreciating domestic currency. In addition, we do not find sufficient evidence that mispricing contributes to failures in previous empirical research to find a significant relationship between firm value and exchange rate movements.  Based on the time-varying model, we find that firms with larger proportions of foreign sales relative to total sales are more vulnerable to changes in the bilateral exchange rate while firms with larger foreign production are more negatively affected when the Canadian dollar depreciates. The use of a cross-listing dummy variable indicates that U.S. investors are willing to pay more for Canadian stocks given the positive benefits expected from a depreciating Canadian dollar.


identifier: Sinha, Minita  (2004) Presence of community of practice : its effet on social capital and competitive advantage of the firm.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The current shift to knowledge economy has focused the attention on the importance and significance of tacit and explicit forms of knowledge. The focus of organization has shifted to harnessing and sustaining the tacit knowledge possessed by individuals. Community of practice is one of the knowledge management initiative in which tacit knowledge can be cultivated and sustained. The purpose of this research is to find out whether existence of community of practice in a certain domain helps the organization to achieve competitive advantage. Also, the other aspect that this research aims to explore is whether existence of community of practice enhances interpersonal relationships and individual networks i.e. social capital in an organization. The social capital has been viewed in three dimensions: structural, relational and cognitive dimension. The influence of power distance and individualism (dimension of national culture) and computer-mediated communication on the relationship building among individuals has also been studied. A web survey was conducted and it has been observed that there tends to be no significant correlation between existence of community of practice and competitive advantage. The analysis also reveals that existence of community of practice could significantly improve the social capital and its dimensions in a particular domain. The results indicate that power distance significantly affects the relationship building between individuals and individualism significantly affects the shared understanding of norms and rules of organization. It was also observed that computer-mediated communication is not vital to build connectivity among professionals in a particular domain.


identifier: Parsy, Maud  (2004) The value of corporate governance : evidence from American mergers.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This thesis extends the growing literature relating shareholder protection and greater valuation. Using a governance index built from 24 firm-level takeover defenses over a sample of 491 mergers from 1990 to 2001, we provide evidence that investors value a change in corporate governance. We find that firms acquired by bidders with relatively greater investor protection experience significantly greater abnormal returns. On average, 2.49 percent in additional abnormal return is recorded when bidders with above median shareholders rights acquire firms with below median investor protection. In contrast, we do not find evidence that bidders benefit from the increased social surplus created in transactions where the target corporate governance is improved. The thesis also examines the relationship between the protection of minority shareholder at the firm-level and the probability of a takeover bid, a stock settlement and the premium paid. Although no statistically significant relation is established between the investor rights and the takeover premium, we are able to confirm a negative correlation with the intensity of M&A activity, providing additional support for the efficiency hypothesis. Evidence is also provided that the method of payment is influenced by the previous degree of shareholders rights in the target and acquiring firm but not by the change in corporate governance following a takeover bid.


identifier: Lorito, Jeannette  (2004) What's lost already.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

title: What's lost already

abstract: "What's Lost Already" is a collection of lyric and narrative poems and two stark one-act plays concerned with love, loss and a sense of home. The manuscript explores relationships between lovers and families, suggesting that one's sense of self is tied to a sense of home and that the frequently linked losses of love and home inevitably change the self. This work investigates the interstices; the poems and plays are often set in in-between spaces (cars and half-built houses). From a narrative perspective, the manuscript begins with the end and traces back through to the beginning. Taken together, the poems and plays ultimately affirm the value of individual identity.


identifier: Cockfield, Brenda  (2004) All these old things.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

title: All these old things

abstract: All These Old Things is a work concerned with history, time, and memory, and how a single object can transport one into the labyrinth of the past. Each chapter takes as its focal point a collectible object, a relic of sorts, and constructs a series of histories and stories around that object using a blend of fact and fiction. Inspired by the theoretical writings of Walter Benjamin, the work is a redemptive one, in as much as it endeavours to salvage the traces of the past that are stored in these relics, through the reminiscences and anecdotes of those who collect them. It is, like Proust's mémoire involuntaire , concerned with the way in which objects can function as mnemonic devices, triggering memories deeply submerged and nearly forgotten. Stylistically, as well as conceptually, the work is very much indebted to the historical novels of W. G. Sebald, specifically, The Emigrants (1996), The Rings of Saturn (1998), Austerlitz (2001). Following Sebald's model, the work relies on the first person narration of a single narrator through which other voices and their stories are rendered. Like Sebald's, this work makes a number of obvious intertextual references, and is composed with long sentences, few paragraph breaks, and no quotation marks--all, towards a historical metaphysics in which memory is free to traverse time and space.


identifier: Skoufaras, Kyriaki Sunday  (2004) Examining our histories within Quebec and Canada : a proposal to increase the minority experience in the grade 10 history curriculum.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This thesis examines the current grade 10 history curriculum and proposes that it should be more inclusive of other cultures. After explaining the virtues of a pluralist education, a complete overview of the curriculum is presented. Particular emphasis is placed on the missing information regarding minority cultures. A revised curriculum outline is then presented as an alternative, with the inclusion of as many cultures as possible, in order to enable the "others" to see themselves in the curriculum. From this outline, the histories of the most numerous ethnic groups in our schools are presented. These are the "missing pages" to be included in a revised and accurate version of the history of Quebec and Canada. Several ideas and resources are suggested to increase the multicultural content of the current curriculum.


identifier: Gordon, Maria  (2004) Children with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) : finding strategies to cope with physical symptoms in school.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This qualitative study was comprised of interviews conducted with English speaking elementary school children in Montreal, Quebec. The eight children were 6�$1�


identifier: Wilson, Mark James Douglas  (2004) Candide ou camouflé, partout ou nulle part? : art and anti-Semitism in Candide, Gringoire, and Je suis partout.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: In the years that followed World War I, conditions in Europe were the major reason for the rise of extreme Right and extreme Left parties. A unique period in history, it invested many aspects of life with its characteristic political atmosphere. Not least among these dimensions was art, which--according to the ambiguous aesthetic guidelines of the time--was perceived, politicized, and produced differently by the various parties throughout Europe. For the western-European Right, one unambiguous guideline pervaded and transcended the Franco-Germanic border: anti-Semitism.  In an attempt to contribute to the debate that surrounds the cultural politics of inter-war and Occupation France, this thesis looks at the three leading weekly newspapers produced by the French Right, namely Candide, Gringoire , and Je suis partout . Covering the period from 1936 to 1944, it seeks to understand how the arts were dealt with, especially but not exclusively by the resident art critics at each of the newspapers. Considering occasional editorials, reviews, news snippets, and even cartoons, this thesis argues above all that though anti-Semitism and lament for the current state of the French arts are both ubiquitous, the link between the two--made elsewhere in France and Europe, before, during, and after the period under discussion--is not made before the Occupation, and is only made by one writer at Je suis partout in the occupied capital city.


identifier: Pourtavaf, Leila  (2005) Mediating Montreal : constructing places, contesting spaces.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: In his later work Michel Foucault argued for the importance of the spatiality of social life; the place in which the actually lived and socially produced sites and the relations between them are negotiated (Foucault 1986). This thesis aims to locate the centrality of such spatial negotiations through critically engaging with some of the recent theoretical writings on contemporary cities and applying them to specifically delineated spaces within the landscape of contemporary Montreal.  More specifically, this thesis observes certain Montreal neighborhoods, namely the Main, the Gay Village, and Parc Extension, which have either been marked as iconic or ignored and ghettoized. The work offers a challenge to the traditional conceptions of Montreal's hybridity which rely on discursive constructions of places such as the Main as an idealized space of uncontested difference. Instead, it focuses on other and othered Montreal neighborhoods which are defined through clearly marked boundaries and the marginal status of their residents. The goal of this research is to examine how social formations are constituted through both official discourses and everyday spatial negotiations, and more significantly, the ways in which such constitutions of space at once re-inscribe forms of social domination and inform a practice of social resistance.


identifier: Wertheimer, Sophie  (2004) "Africa's deadly enemy" : an analysis of Canadian newspaper coverage of the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Africa.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: In a little over two decades, the HIV virus has seeped into the bloodstream and consciousness of the world's population, leaving few and little untouched. In addition to constituting an important medical and scientific issue in and of itself, the HIV/AIDS pandemic has also come to represent a "focal point for many of the social ills that plague modern society." In this thesis, I analyse coverage of the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Africa published in English Canadian newspapers between 2000 and 2003. Locating my corpus within the wider discourses surrounding the HIV/AIDS pandemic as well as the study of racism, (neo/post) colonialism and 'Africanism,' and employing Critical Discourse Analysis as my methodological framework, I echo a claim made by leading HIV/AIDS cultural theorist Simon Watney in reference to coverage of the late 1980s, where he posits that "Western commentary on AIDS in the Third World tells us much about the forms of contemporary racism." Tracing the various ways in which the West has constructed and represented Africa in the past, I argue that much of this tradition still persists, as clearly reflected in the analysis and excerpts of the articles under scrutiny. Arguing that the media have a pivotal role to play in (re)producing this understanding of Africa and Africans on the part of the West, I offer suggestions and recommendations that may lead to bettering this highly problematic coverage.


identifier: Paré, Jacinthe  (2004) Beyond boredom : the importance of the dull in information overload.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: New media technologies were supposed to make life richer and give swifter access to the useful information that residents of the Information Society desire and need for work, school and daily life. Instead, it seems these people are increasingly bombarded with useless data, including spam that clog their email and 150 TV channels that offer little worth watching. Even a Google search for "information overload" reveals an unmanageable 300,000 results. There is no denying that Information overload is a fact of daily life.  Through my extensive research of various sociological and cultural texts spanning 25 years, I found that the dull and the repetitive are believed to be increasingly present and that people must somehow find a way to get rid of this informational clutter to focus on the 'good' information that tells something new, useful, intelligent. However, if trivia and the fluff of pop culture are now an unavoidable part of Information Societies, it should be recognized as such before being automatically thrown out as useless. The case of the Japanese Otaku, as explored in my online research and through personal contacts, will reveal a more productive reaction to the supposed alienating and context-less data deluge of the Information Society. By appropriating the fluff of pop culture in their excessively dull collections, Otaku have turned the threat of information overload into the very source of their identity.


identifier: Ojo, Tokunbo Bamidele  (2004) An analysis of the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in the Sub-Saharan African region.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This thesis focuses on information and communication technologies (ICTs) for development, and the market-based approach that is being taken in the design and implementation of ICT initiatives in the Sub-Saharan African region. From a political economy standpoint, I provide a critical analysis of ICTs for development in the Sub-Saharan African region. In particular, I argue that current attempts by international business entities and international organizations, such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, to wire the continent are based on the dominant paradigm, which views ICTs as the index of modernization, and the only means for Africa to 'leapfrog' to the industrial stage. As a result, if care is not taken, these initiatives might create new forms of economic dependency for the region, similar to development initiatives in the 1960s and 1970s which relied on the modernization paradigm of Lerner and Schramm. To avoid creating a new form of techno-dependency in the Sub-Saharan African region, this thesis concludes with suggestions for effective use of ICTs in development.


identifier: Goodman, Donna  (2004) Montreal synagogue sisterhoods (1900-1949) : a female community, culture, and religious world.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Synagogue sisterhoods were formed and evolved in the twentieth century along with other women's volunteer organizations. These sisterhood organizations had their own characteristic structure and purpose. While research into the role of Jewish women in voluntary organizations has only recently commenced in Canada there is a lack of investigation of the sisterhoods. Their history merits documentation as a notable organization unto itself.  This study traces the formation and early development of the sisterhoods in Canada, focusing on the three oldest and prominent synagogues in Montreal. Each represents a different denomination; Orthodox, Conservative and Reform. It considers women's expected roles within the separate "female sphere" and the extension of those boundaries that the sisterhood organization afforded. Questions, such as why and how they were initiated and formed, are explored. This thesis describes the kinds and purposes of activities that were performed, the reasons women joined sisterhoods, and the ways the sisterhoods differed from other Jewish women volunteer organizations. It especially examines the scholarly debate whether the early sisterhood organizations changed women's power and position in the social structure of the synagogue and that of the larger Jewish community. A vital component of this investigation is the uncovering of the experience and voice of the sisterhood women to permit a view of their world from their perspective and vantage point.  The story of the Montreal synagogue sisterhoods narrates the creation of a distinct female culture, community, and religious world and provides a better understanding of Jewish Canadian women's sphere. It also extends the story of the Canadian Jewish experience.


identifier: Motzoi, Clairneige  (2004) Attachment to mother and father and autonomy in early adolescence.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The present study examined the relation between attachment security and autonomy in early adolescence. In particular, the associations of both anxious and avoidant attachment, to mother and father separately, and autonomy were investigated. Results indicated that anxious and avoidant attachment with mother were associated with self-reported autonomy, and avoidance with mother tended to be associated with autonomy as rated by a friend. It could be that adolescents who are anxious about being abandoned by their mother think and act out of avoiding rejection from her, rather than out of self-determination. Likewise, adolescents who avoid closeness with their mother may not have the opportunity to use her as a secure base from which to practice their autonomy. With respect to the relationship with the father, insecure attachment with father was only associated with autonomy when adolescents were more securely attached to mother. Furthermore, avoidance of closeness moderated the relation between anxiety about abandonment and autonomy differently depending on the gender of the parent. The less adolescents who were comfortable with closeness with father were anxious about abandonment by father, the more autonomous they were. Thus, perhaps if adolescents avoid closeness with father, there is no opportunity for the anxiety about abandonment to interfere in autonomy strivings. This same finding emerged for girls in the relationship with the mother. However, the negative impacts of anxiety and avoidance with mother on autonomy were cumulative for boys.


identifier: Moszkowski, Robin  (2004) Infant touching behaviour during mother-infant face-to-face interactions.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The study of communication between mothers and infants has largely focused on infants' distal behaviours, such as their gaze and affect, while neglecting their more proximal behaviours, such as touch. Yet touch is an important modality through which infants and mothers communicate, and through which infants explore themselves and their surroundings. The current study investigated the touching behaviour of 44, 5�$1�


identifier: Saunders, Saneeta  (2004) Cardiovascular reactivity, stress, and dietary sodium, in the Canadian black population.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The present study examined patterns of cardiovascular reactivity in Black individuals (generally considered to be vascular responders) to various types of laboratory stressor tasks, under different levels of dietary sodium. The results suggest that among Blacks, there is variation in patterns of cardiovascular reactivity, depending on stressor task characteristics. Blacks were most vascularly reactive to the Cold Pressor task, and least vascularly reactive to the Discrimination Recall task. The results offer no support for the hypothesis that Black individuals would be more vascularly reactive under the condition of a high sodium diet compared to their regular diet. Evidence that participants were most angry on the Discrimination Recall task, and further evidence of a negative correlation with anger and TPR, and a positive correlation with anger and CO and HR, in responses to the Discrimination recall task, suggest a differential relation between the mood state, anger, and various components of cardiovascular reactivity in Black individuals. No strong conclusions can be made from the results obtained in the present study, given the possibility of confounding influences of uncontrolled factors such as family history, salt-sensitivity, and gender, as well as the limited sample size and the associated limited power of analyses. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)


identifier: Helayel, Joel  (2004) Producing a culture of lemmings : the corporatization of post-secondary education in Quebec and the dissolution of Quebec culture and identity.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This study is an exploratory report into the educational structure of Quebec. The emphasis is placed on the impact neo-liberalism and its counterpart corporatization, have on post-secondary institutions as well as the political, economic and social constructs of Canadian identity and nationalism. Some of the issues to be addressed are: the origins of post-secondary institutions in Quebec and their subsequent evolution, the impact fiscal federalism has on funding mechanisms, the neo-liberalist culture and its vices, the corporatization of Concordia University, and the overall impact of corporatization on Quebec distinctiveness and Canadian nationality. Conclusions will be made as to the status of Quebec universities in an age of corporate control and some prescriptions will be presented to mend the existing system.


identifier: Gardner, Sean  (2004) Aristotle contra Nietzsche : a study of megalopsuchia.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This study was written to help show the similarities that exist between Aristotle's (great-souled man) and Nietzsche's (übermensch) conceptions of the ideal man, more specifically megalopsuchia (greatness of soul). This is to show that Aristotle's model is still the skeleton of modern conceptions of moral greatness. It is formatted as a compare and contrast study with a presentation of both their philosophies and then a comparison in the concluding chapter on specific themes. The main texts that are used for Aristotle are the Nicomachean Ethics and the Politics , while Nietzsche's main text of reference is Thus Spoke Zarathustra .  For each philosopher there is an introductory section to help illustrate how their conceptions of greatness of soul fit and what role they play. Their conceptions of the ideal man are extensively studied with relation to their philosophy of morality and eudaimonia. It is believed that at first the similarities between the two are quite substantial, but with further reflection, we notice that the differences that lie in their views of worldviews, nobility, becoming, gift-giving, and values are too great to be reconciled. This is then an exercise to show how the view of what is morally good has changed throughout the history of philosophy, the modern view is then no longer akin to the roots of its discipline, at least when it comes to the notion of the ideal man and moral greatness.


identifier: Choi, Richard Ho Kok  (2004) China's rebirth, communist myth, capitalist reality : a historical analysis of China's economic reform.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: China's post-Mao economic reform is an intensely studied subject among scholars of Chinese politics. With China turning increasingly capitalist, the issue that consumes scholarly interests the most is how to grasp the strange fusion of two ideologically opposed systems, communism and capitalism, into which the reform has evolved the Chinese state since its inception in 1979. The present thesis approaches the issue from a historical angle, attempting to shed the light on the rise of capitalism in China by looking at the broad context of China's long march to self-generation.


identifier: Odartey-Wellington, Felix  (2004) The al-Qaeda sleeper cell that never was : the Canadian news media, state security apparatus and 'Operation Thread'.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: In late August of 2003, the Canadian and international media broke news of Operation Thread, executed by the Canadian state security apparatus to apprehend 24 Muslim members of a "possible al-Qaeda sleeper cell" in Toronto. After creating a moral panic and exposing the suspects to domestic and international opprobrium, the state security apparatus conceded that they had not been engaged in terrorism.  Treating Operation Thread as a discursive crisis in Canada, based on its links with the topical issues of immigration, terrorism, Islam, Arabs, and Muslims in the post-9/11 era, this thesis is an epistemological and analytical study of the operation by the Canadian state security apparatus and the news media. Using the contents of the two Canadian national dailies-- the National Post and The Globe and Mail --as resources, it employs Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) to deconstruct the signification of Operation Thread by the state apparatuses.  This research found that the news media privileged the dominant discourses of 'Islamic Terrorism' that the state security apparatus articulated regarding the 'operation.' The thesis however confirms that while news is an "ally of legitimated groups" (Tuchman 1978) and is both a resource and product of power; its contents are hegemonically determined and hence open to contestation. The latter point suggests that there is some room for intervention by civil society organizations advocating on behalf of marginalized and discriminated groups in Canadian society.


identifier: Liu, Xuejun  (2004) An improved perturbation and observation maximum power point tracking algorithm for PV panels.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Photovoltaic (PV) energy presents great potential for applications in distributed power systems. However, it still presents a low energy conversion rate even at the Maximum Power Point (MPP). For instance, the maximum efficiency for crystalline silicon cell technology is around 18%. The rest of the incident solar energy either becomes heat or is reflected back to the atmosphere. The actual average efficiency can be even lower if the operating point is allowed to drift according to uncontrolled load and atmospheric conditions variations, In order to maximize the energy conversion, power electronics converters controlled with Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) algorithms that consider the nonlinear output characteristics of PV panels should be used.  Various MPPT algorithms have been proposed in the literature. Despite some drawbacks, Perturbation and Observation (P&O) MPPT algorithms are widely used in PV generating systems because of the ease of implementation and capability to compensate for variations in the solar irradiation level and temperature.  This thesis proposes a different implementation of a P&O MPPT algorithm that can mitigate/reduce the main drawbacks commonly related to the P&O method. This is achieved with Peak Current Control and Instantaneous Sampling methods. The operating principles of the proposed control scheme are discussed. Experimental results for a dc-dc converter controlled with a DSP system are presented to validate the analysis and verify the performance of the proposed control scheme. They are carried out with both a Solar Array Simulator (SAS) and a real PV panel.


identifier: Langlois, Andrea M  (2004) Mediating transgressions : the global justice movement and Canadian news media.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The focus of this thesis is the problematic, paradoxical relationship between the mass media and social movements. It is about how news media practices naturalize the hegemonic status quo, containing dissent and incorporating it into this ideological space. In Chapter 1, I lay out the theoretical framework upon which my analysis is based, examining the notion of the news media as a discursive battleground through the lenses of media studies, political economy, newsmaking theory, and Foucauldian theories of discourse and power. Chapter 2 begins with an exploration of the global justice movement--its origins, its analysis--as this context is imperative in conducting a critical discourse analysis. Drawing on print news media coverage of the movement, I then go on to explore how this movement is represented within mainstream Canadian newspapers, asking specifically how the 'war on terror' has impacted this movement's access to this discursive battleground. Chapter 3 addresses one of the most contentious questions within the movement--how does "symbolic violence" (acts against property not people) get covered within news media, and, what are the effects of this?--analyzing whether the price of entry to this sphere is the re-presentation of events in such a way that smashed windows and graffiti are the only images portrayed, or, whether activists benefit from the space created by symbolic violence. To conclude, I discuss possible interventions for both activists and researchers that, in light of this project, maybe useful in waging discursive resistance.


identifier: Asadollahi, Amin  (2004) The collapse of myths : Nietzsche and timely reflections on capitalism.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This dissertation examines Nietzsche's treatment of truth, both in his earlier writings and continuing in his latter works, and explores its socio-political implications. While rejecting the correspondence theory of truth, it is argued that what Nietzsche conceived of as the Apollinian and Dionysian psychological states are significantly useful concepts to an understanding of what manner of persons populate the political landscape of contemporary capitalist societies. The study rejects the Apollinian reality purely as a constraint on the creative possibilities of interpreting and constructing new worldviews, while remaining attentive to the need for an alternative view placed in the service of truth and hence of valued life. The socioeconomic elations specific to capitalism are examined for their Apollinian characteristics, and the prevailing mode of production is thus taken up as a significant constraint against the potentials for human creativity and development. The implications of Nietzsche's notion of the Dionysian are introduced, and indeed conceived of as vital to the offering of a deconstructive moment in the domains of art, politics and economic governance. Emphasizing the metaphorical character of truths in the actually-existing world, the dissertation concludes with proposed strategies for the capture of the deconstructive moment, possible at the level of the complexly-layered dimensions of linguistic and cognitive play on offer at the conjuncture of Apollinian and Dionysian realities, and promising truly liberatory new conceptions of truth.


identifier: Angel, Naomi  (2004) Mixed messages : 'mixed race' representations in film.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The growing interest in issues pertaining to mixed race identities and communities, as well as a surge in films with mixed race characters has prompted this examination of representations of mixed race characters in film from the 1950s to the present. The study consists of an analysis of selected films, including Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, Jungle Fever, Dr. No, Showboat and Rabbit Proof Fence , and situates this analysis within a historical framework based on the particular context in which each film was set and/or made.  The value in studying 'mixed race' representations in film lies in the reflection it provides of significant moments in 'mixed race' histories, and in the portrayal of cultural imaginings of people of 'mixed race.' By examining these representations, this thesis traces the development of 'mixed race' terminology, interrogates the history of anti-miscegenation law in the United States, and explores the sociological and commonsense views of 'mixed race' maladjustment in the early 1900s.


identifier: Lavu, Keerthi Chandra  (2004) Study of elliptically symmetrical two-dimensional digital filters possessing separable denominator transfer functions.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Two-dimensional digital filters are being widely used in modern image processing software for various types of analysis. The main objective of this thesis has been to implement two-dimensional filter functions using simple design procedures such that the presence of elliptical symmetry in such designed filters are obtained by parameter modifications. In keeping with the simple design criteria, the two-dimensional filters studied in this thesis have been designed starting from a product of two one dimensional filters. Only IIR Filters have been considered for this purpose due to their flexibility in terms of altering filter parameters to obtain new filters. The filters have been checked for stability before analysis. The design has made use of the fact that varying the feedback factor ' k ' in an IIR filter produces a near-elliptical symmetric response for certain values of ' k 1 ' and ' k 2 ' having specific magnitude ranges.  Considerable success has been achieved in obtained near-elliptical symmetry especially among the two-dimensional lowpass filters and also in other types of filters. It has also been found that there exists numerous possibilities to achieve near elliptical symmetry based on parameter modifications (values of k 1 and k 2 ) and magnitude range of the filter under study. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)


identifier: Luger, Moberley  (2004) Ragtime for beginners.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

title: Ragtime for beginners

abstract: Ragtime for Beginners is a collection of poems concerned with questions of space--the space that not only separates people (through distance or time), but also divides the self. It examines what separates a husband and wife married twenty-five years, and conversely, what brings together a woman and the Jehovah's Witness at her door; and it explores the seismic shifts of the self, how we assemble and disassemble our own lives.  The collection pivots around questions of perspective; it considers the difference between something and the image of that thing. It seeks to understand the value of fiction and metaphor in the face of loss; it attempts to distinguish a pomegranate, for example, from a picture of a pomegranate. The five "diptychs," approach their subject matter from two directions--from two voices, two places, or two moments in time.  Many of the poems are concerned with memory. They ask, what does one do with a memory? Can the past be made concrete, saved, held in one's hand? In "The Velvet Jewelry Box," the speaker attempts to "unpack those memories like stones, build a road...." In "What Days Remind You Of," the speaker wants to "gather them...like sheets billowing on a clothesline."  The collection oscillates between prose (with its enjambment and speed) and lineation (even, at times, metred couplets or quatrains). In every instance, these are self-conscious poems. Like Anna H., in the collection's long poem, they examine the language available to them, searching out similes, questioning images.


identifier: McDell, Deena  (2004) Exploring middle school student perceptions of the effects of different styles of discipline.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This study explored the dimensions and parameters of three methods of discipline used at a public middle school located in western Canada: out-of-school suspensions, in-school suspensions, and the restorative justice program. Eighteen students, six in each method of discipline, were interviewed about their perceptions and opinions in order to acquire a well-developed understanding of each method of discipline and its effects on middle school students. A variety of participants were included both in the study and within each smaller group. This provided depth when describing the effects of each method of discipline, as students interacted with the method of discipline and the context which resulted in unique short-term effects. After looking at the range of effects of different methods of discipline on middle school students, one style of discipline emerged as being more effective with more types of students and in more kinds of situations.


identifier: Di Francesco, Nathalie  (2004) An exploratory study of toy type, focused attention and temperament in young children.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This exploratory investigation was conducted to uncover the influence of toy type, level of toy difficulty, and temperament on the duration of focused attention in young children. A total of 28 children, all attending childcare centers, participated in this study and were aged between 33 and 39 months. Each child participated in two play sessions and played with two types of toys of two different levels of difficulty for a 4-minute period. The children's parents and educators were asked to complete a temperament questionnaire for each child. The duration of focused attention for each child was calculated through analysis of the recoded play sessions. Results indicated that children showed a longer duration of focused attention during play with construction toys than during play with puzzles. Also, the children were found to display a longer duration of focused attention when the puzzle was easier and when the construction toy was more difficult. There were two temperament characteristics found to be related to the children's duration of focused attention: perceptual sensitivity and inhibitor control.


identifier: Ashbaugh, Andrea R  (2004) Attentional focus during repeated checking influences memory but not metamemory.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Numerous studies demonstrate that compulsive checking is associated with reduced memory confidence (Muller & Roberts, in press; Woods, Vivea, Chambless, & Bayen, 2003). Some researchers have suggested that the act of repeated checking may result in decreased encoding and therefore decreased memory vividness and detail at recall. This in turn is proposed to lead to decreased confidence in one's memory (Radomsky, Rachman, & Hammond, 2001; Van den Hout & Kindt, 2003). It was therefore hypothesized that instructions to focus attention on one's surroundings as well as one's actions during a repeated checking task may attenuate decreases in memory confidence. Prior to a repeated checking task, 14 high checkers and 56 low checkers were instructed to focus not only on their actions but also on their surroundings (Peripheral condition), and 14 high checkers and 55 low checkers to focus only on their actions (Central condition). Contrary to expectations, peripheral focus instructions did not result in increased memory confidence compared with those who received central focus instructions. Peripheral instructions did, however, result in greater memory accuracy. Furthermore, the effect of peripheral focus on memory accuracy was largest for high checkers. Following a single check, high checkers exhibited lower memory confidence and a trend towards greater memory accuracy than low checkers, but surprisingly differences between the two groups disappeared following 30 checking trials. The implications of this are discussed in relation to cognitive models of OCD and compulsive checking.


identifier: Bauer, Isabelle  (2004) Unattainable goals across adulthood and old age : benefits of goal adjustment capacities on well-being.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The objective of the present study was to collect descriptive information about the types and the number of goals that become unattainable across age. It was hypothesized that having many unattainable goals represents a risk factor for reduced well-being. It was also expected that disengagement and reengagement moderate the relationship between the number of unattainable goals and well-being. Finally, this study intended to replicate a three-way interaction between disengagement, reengagement, and age. Specifically, among older adults, disengagement was expected to be adaptive only if individuals are able to reengage in new goals.  150 participants between the ages of 18 to 85 completed a questionnaire about unattainable goals, goal management tendencies, and subjective well-being. The results demonstrated that unattainable goals were most frequently classified into the work/education domain. Older adults reported fewer unattainable goals in comparison to younger adults, and they confronted more unattainable health goals, and fewer unattainable work/education goals. Having many unattainable goals was related to reduced well-being, and this relationship was moderated by disengagement. A significant three-way interaction replicated different interaction effects of disengagement and reengagement on well-being in different age groups.


identifier: Belqasmi, Fatna  (2004) Web services for application development in next generation telecommunications networks : an architecture for the common functions.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Next generation telecommunications networks aim to provide new value added services to customers. To facilitate the creation of such services, network operators have to open up their networks to applications developers. The service architectures that can be used to develop new services are either signaling protocol neutral or signaling protocol specific. The associated frameworks to each of these architectures share the drawback of requiring knowledge which non-experts may not have. A good way to open up telecommunications networks is to use web services, seen that web services paradigm ease new services development and a wide range of developers are getting acquainted with the technology;  This thesis proposes a novel web services based-architecture that provides functions required for developing, deploying and using web services in telecommunications networks (e.g. security and charging). These functions are called common functions. The proposed architecture is based on requirements that we have identified using as basis the Open Mobile Alliance (OMA) ones, which we have extended. It presents each common function as a web service. The architecture components inter-communicate using functions calls. The execution of the common functions is optimized using the execution scope concept that we have defined. It gives the possibility to execute a given common function just when needed.  A proof of concept prototype has also been built and tested using a call control scenario. The taken performance measurements have shown that the overhead induced by using the new proposed architecture is reasonable.


identifier: Lanthier, Cybèle and Nepveu, Pierre  (2004) Within new worlds : some of the difficulties and challenges of translating two of Pierre Nepveu's literary essays.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

creator:
Lanthier, Cybèle
Nepveu, Pierre

abstract: This project provides a translation of two of Pierre Nepveu's essays taken from his book Intérieurs du nouveau monde published in 1998. The translation is followed by a commentary that outlines some of the difficulties and challenges that his work presented in the translation process. The work involved in translating these essays not only required effort at the level of the text itself, but also meant delving into the literary corpus on which the author based his ideas. The readings and research involved prior and during translation affects the syntax, word choice, and overall voice of the text in the receiving language. Translation involves much more than a simple transfer process and requires relying on a wealth of background work that engages the translator as a reader and as a writer. Pierre Nepveu's essays are filled with literary references and information that proves to be interesting and multifaceted reading.


identifier: Al Rousan, Qais M. D. M  (2004) Routing and wavelength assignment in optical networks.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The main contributions of this thesis are, firstly, proposing the Bottleneck Congestion Avoidance algorithm and technique that enhances the use of suggestion label in RSVP-TE to reduce the delay and blocking cost during wavelength assignments; secondly, proposing the Traffic Engineering technique that uses explicit routing and the proposed Proper Suggested Label Selection (PSLS) table to distribute the network resources and to provide fast wavelength allocation. This technique also uses the proposed Lambda Blocking Check Algorithm (LBCA) that inexpensively and efficiently checks resources availability through the optical network. The proposed technique enhances the network utilization by reducing the blocking probabilities. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)


identifier: Akond, Md. Shahidul Hoq  (2004) Mixed contention and contention free MAC layer scheduling techniques in multi-cluster WLAN.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The ever developing wireless LAN standardization and research activities worldwide along with the recent successful deployment of WLAN in numerous hotspots makes it clear that WLAN technology will play a key rule in providing broadband data coverage and as a complement for the existing cellular networks. Keeping this in mind, a lot of work has been done to address WLAN/WAN integration, development of mobile IP, hand off mechanism between WLAN and other wireless networks. However, another important issue, large scale deployment of WLAN has got less attention.  In this thesis, we have developed two networks models of multi-cluster wireless LANs. One is infrastructure based standard multi-cluster WLAN and another is multi-cluster WLAN with gratuitous capability. We have also devised a MAC layer implementation which can be efficiently employed on both standard and gratuitous multi-cluster WLAN. We have developed a generic simulation software using C++ to simulate the performances of these networks. Our simulation results show that our network models along with the MAC layer implementation can be an effective solution to solve large-scale WLAN deployment issues.


identifier: Brun de Pontet, Stéphanie  (2004) Business and well being : the experience of entrepreneurs.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This study examined the role of self-regulation moderating the effects of business stressors on quality of life for Canadian entrepreneurs. Research finds the inability to make progress towards goals can negatively influence a person's quality of life (Carver & Scheier, 1998). It was predicted that business difficulties would deplete the emotional and physical resources of entrepreneurs. Challenges to the business were expected to affect the owner's experience of business regrets, and in turn, these would affect their well-being. Building on work demonstrating that self-regulation capacities involved in the adjustment of personal goals serve adaptive functions (Wrosch, Scheier, Miller, Schulz, & Carver, 2003), a theoretical model was elaborated, implying that the relations between business struggles, regrets and entrepreneurial well-being would be moderated by the entrepreneur's goal adjustment abilities. Findings are based on a cross-sectional sample of 140 entrepreneurs from across Canada. Analyses suggest the entrepreneur's health and well-being are adversely affected by negative business outcomes only for those who are not able to adjust their business goals. Further, it was found that among entrepreneurs facing business struggles, those who could reengage in new goals suffered fewer intrusions about their business regrets. Finally, the intensity of the negative emotions about a regret was a predictor of aversive outcomes for quality of life measures, and this was also moderated by the goal adjustment ability of the entrepreneur. The implications of the findings for adaptive self-regulation of business goals are discussed.


identifier: Francis, Kylie  (2004) Investigating change in worry and anxiety during cognitive-behavioural therapy and applied relaxation for generalized anxiety disorder.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The present study examined data from a controlled clinical trial comparing two types of psychotherapy for Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD): Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT), and Applied Relaxation (AR). The goal of this study was to examine precedence of change in worry and anxiety in CBT and AR. According to the interacting subsystems model of anxiety, change in the cognitive aspect of anxiety (worry) may lead to change in the somatic aspect (physiological anxiety), and vice-versa. It was hypothesized that in CBT, change in worry would precede change in anxiety, and conversely, that in AR change in anxiety would precede change in worry. Twenty participants (CBT n = 10; AR n = 10) completed daily ratings of worry and anxiety during therapy. Using Time-Series Analysis (Tiao & Box, 1981), the causal impact of each variable on the other was assessed. Results showed no differences between the treatment groups; however, the majority of participants (70%) had a bi-directional relationship between worry and anxiety. A contingency analysis showed a near-significant trend suggesting that treatment responders were more likely to have a bi-directional causal relationship between worry and anxiety. These results appear to be consistent with the interactive subsystems model of anxiety.


identifier: Fraser, Sarah  (2004) Walking while judging : cognitive facilitation in younger and older adults during the concurrent performance of cognitive and sensorimotor tasks.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The current study evaluated the importance of attention in motor control. In a dual task paradigm, 24 younger ( M = 21, SD = 2.00, range: 18-30 yrs) and 24 older ( M = 70.5, SD = 5.00, range: 62-80 yrs) adults' attention was divided between walking on a treadmill and performing a semantic judgment. For the semantic task, words were presented auditorally and participants judged if the word was living or non-living. When walking, muscle preparatory activity was measured with electromyography (EMG). Performance was measured at two different levels of walking difficulty: level (0{493}), and downhill (-15{493}). Measures of single task performance were compared to measures of dual task performance, in order to derive a proportional dual task cost for each condition. When performing two tasks at once, it was expected that older adults (OA) would allocate more attentional resources to walking at the cost of slower responses to the semantic task. Further it was predicted that the preparatory muscle activity of OA would diminish under dual task conditions. Contrary to predictions, under dual task conditions, all participants significantly improved their response times, [ F (1, 46) = 29.13, p < .001, j = 0.39] and experienced no changes in muscle activity. Across conditions, OA were slower at responding and had less muscle activity than the younger adults. In this study, the combination of tasks somehow facilitated a speedier response for the cognitive task. Cognitive capacity, task difficulty, and the demand characteristics of the testing are discussed.


identifier: Mancini, Sandra  (2004) Detection of symmetry and anti-symmetry : what they might reveal about visual nonlinearities.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The detection of symmetry and anti-symmetry was investigated by manipulating check size, spatial frequency, grey scale range and eccentricity. Sensitivity to symmetrical stimuli was only modestly affected by these manipulations. The most interesting findings were from anti-symmetrical stimuli. For the anti-symmetrical binary scale stimuli low thresholds were found but these increased to undetectable levels as check size decreased. The high-pass filtering of binary displays only modestly affected performance for anti-symmetrical stimuli; however, the low-pass filtering of these stimuli greatly impaired performance. Increasing the grey scale range of the stimuli led to the undetectability of anti-symmetry. When stimuli with black and white checks were moved from fixation to 8{493} in the periphery, performance was greatly impaired for anti-symmetrical stimuli. A single model employing a full or half wave rectification would not be able to account for such divergent results.


identifier: Yermolayeva, Oksana  (2004) Some new applications of classical r-matrix theory to integrable systems and 2-D fluid dynamics.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This thesis combines three different problems related to integrable systems and 2D fluid dynamics; united through the R-matrix approach to integrable systems.  The first part is devoted to the Krall-Sheffer theory of two-dimensional classical orthogonal polynomials. This problem is deeply connected with the classification of second order linear differential operators in 2D having polynomial eigenvectors with certain degeneracies of eigenvalues. The original classification problem is related to the theory of symplectic reductions of Hamiltonian systems. Using the R-matrix theory on loop algebras, the reduction scheme sheds new light on the superintegrability of Krall-Sheffer operators. It is also used to deduce explicit results on separation of coordinates and commuting invariants in both the classical and quantum settings.  In the second part of the thesis we study Poisson structures on spaces of rational maps. Such spaces have natural Poisson structures discovered by Atiyah and Hitchin. The approach developed here relates those to the classical R -matrix scheme and further generalizes the Atiyah-Hitchin construction to spaces of meromorphic functions in different geometries using the quadratic r-matrix construction of Sklyanin. More precisely, any classical R -matrix may be viewed as a special linear automorphism of a Lie algebra. In the Sklyanin theory, the r-matrix defines simultaneously a quadratic Poisson structure on a Poisson-Lie group and a linear one on the corresponding dual space to the Lie algebra. The quadratic structures appeared first as Poisson brackets between elements of the scattering matrix in the case of rapidly decreasing boundary conditions. The Atiyah-Hitchin structure is also defined as brackets on a space of scattering matrices for solutions of Bogomolny equations governing interactions of monopoles in nonabehan gauge theories. Using this analogy, we obtain the desired generalizations.  The third project relates to the problem of Laplacian Growth (LG) in two-dimensional viscous fluid dynamics. It describes the dynamics of the boundaries in various processes (e.g. propagation of oil-water interfaces, crystal growth etc), and is of great practical importance. Recently established connections with integrable systems has brought the problem into the domain of modern mathematical physics. In this thesis, the Hamiltonian nature of rational conformal maps describing so-called "multi-finger" solutions of the LG problem is investigated. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)


identifier: Robillard, Lissa  (2004) The ongoing dilemma : the risky business of youth legislation.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The issues of youth crime and the social construction and characterization of the young offender are discussed with the use of a qualitative media analysis, a qualitative legislation analysis and a qualitative interview analysis. These three analyses are based and conducted in reference to governmentality and risk theories. Both theories are the foundation for the angle and perspective taken within this triangulated approach to youth crime and the young offender. All three analyses reveal that although viewed in different matters, a dualistic approach between 'get tough' and 'supportive' stands exists in all aspects of the research. The media, legislation and interview analyses expose that this dualistic approach formulates the basis and undertone of how youth crime and young offenders are socially perceived and understood. All other issues relating to youth crime and young offenders such as restorative measures, legislation changes and means of dealing with these youths rest on which side of this dualistic approach a person stands. The analyses are also conducted and formulated around and in connection to the new Youth Criminal Justice Act legislation implemented on April 1 st of 2003. The legislation was initially the focal point of the research but through scrutinizing, the bigger issues mentioned above clearly became important and had to be explored further.


identifier: Pittman, Kristin  (2004) "Beyond conflict and cooperation : hydropolitics in the Nile Basin".  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The field of hydropolitics has recently garnered the interest of a variety of scholars and practitioners to become the main axis of reflection and discussion for those involved in the sharing of scarce water sources. Yet, in spite of the rather all-encompassing nature of the term hydropolitics, the field has from the very beginning been circumscribed to the international level of analysis and has rarely dared to enter into the realm of national water management. Much of the hydropolitical literature centers on whether states will indeed truly be inclined to go to war over water resources. Faced with the extraordinary challenge of fostering a peaceful solution between suspicious states, scholars and politicians alike have been too eager to equate the ratification of a durable water sharing agreement with what ought to be the ultimate goal of hydropolitics: ensuring that scarce water resources are managed in such a way as to maximize the general welfare of the populations sharing these resources and particularly for those individuals for which the lack of water represents either a threat to their lives or to their basic human development. This thesis proposes a redefinition of the scope of hydropolitics. The case study of the Nile Basin constitutes the practical basis in which to anchor our reflection and demonstrates the need for a new definition.


identifier: Tao, Limei  (2004) Mechanisms of S-Nitrosation and S-Glutathiolation and expression and purification of human Calbindin D28k.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: How nitric oxide (NO) reacts with free thiols to form S-nitrosothiols (RSNOs) in vivo is a question of much debate. The effects of different chelators and added metals ions on NO and O 2 consumption, and S-nitrosocysteine (CysNO) formation in cysteine solutions were studied using amperometric (NO and O 2 electrodes) measurements and UV-vis absorption. The results support a free radical mechanism for CysNO formation that involves Cys · generation by reaction with · NO 2 at higher NO concentrations and with copper ions at lower NO concentrations.  The mechanism of recombinant human brain calbindin D 28k (rHCaBP) S-nitrosation by CysNO or S-nitrosoglutathione (GSNO) was investigated in detail. First, an efficient rHCaBP expression and purification system was set up by subcloning the HCaBP gene into the pET15b vector and expressing the protein in BL21(DE3)pLysS host cells. A protein yield of >30 mg/L culture with >95% purity was obtained. UV-vis and circular dichroism absorption, intrinsic fluorescence and mass spectrometry measurements indicate that rHCaBP is S-nitrosated by CysNO. Of a total of five free cysteine residues 2.6 ± 0.05 and 4.4 ± 0.09 are S-nitrosated in Ca 2+ -loaded and Ca 2+ -free rHCaBP, respectively, as determined by the Saville assay. Intrinsic protein fluorescence was demonstrated to be a sensitive probe of protein S-nitrosation due to efficient Förster energy transfer (R 0 {598} 17 Å) between tryptophan donors and RSNO acceptors.  Mass spectrometry and UV-vis absorption results support a mechanism for NO transfer from GSNO to rHCaBP that requires trace copper added as either Cu,Zn-superoxide dismutase (CuZnSOD) or CuSO 4 . CuZnSOD is an efficient catalyst of rHCaBP S-nitrosation via a mechanism involving reduction of its active-site Cu II by a number of the thiols in rHCaBP, giving rise to Cys · radicals. The Cu I ZnSOD formed catalyzes the reductive cleavage of GSNO to release NO, which reacts with the Cys · radical to yield the S-nitrosoprotein.  Since exposure of rHCaBP to either CysNO or GSNO also leads to rapid S-thiolation, the mechanism of protein S-glutathiolation was investigated in detail. rHCaBP, human CuZnSOD (HCuZnSOD), rabbit muscle glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), and bovine serum albumin (BSA) were found to be S-glutathiolated in decomposed GSNO solutions. Fresh GSNO, reduced glutathione (GSH) or oxidized glutathione (GSSG) are not efficient S-glutathiolatiog agents for the proteins examined here. Based on analysis by mass spectrometry and UV-vis absorption, GSNO decomposition in the dark at room temperature yields glutathione disulfide S-oxide [GS(O)SG], glutathione disulfide S-dioxide (GSO2SG), and GSSG as products. A hydrolysis pathway yielding GSOH and nitroxyl HNO/NO - as intermediates is proposed based on inhibition of GSNO breakdown by dimedone, and nitroxyl scavenging by metmyoglobin. Cys111, Cys187, Cys149 and Cys34 were tentatively identified as the S-glutathiolation sites in HCuZnSOD, rHCaBP, GAPDH and BSA, respectively


identifier: Dixon, Shanly  (2004) Heterotopic spaces of childhood.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

title: Heterotopic spaces of childhood

abstract: The rapid pace of technological change sweeps across the world of children changing current concepts of how childhood should be defined. Contentions that childhood is disappearing proliferate as some childhood theorists suggest that children's increasing exposure to previously withheld information and knowledge erases the boundaries which formerly separated childhood from adulthood. While acknowledging that unprecedented access to information may have changed the experience of childhood, it might be argued that the social artifact of childhood continues to exist. Moreover messages and ideas within the spaces of technology and new media are experienced and interpreted uniquely by children and therefore examining these experiences offers insight into the growing media niche which children occupy.  My project examines the ways in which technology and new media can influence and even create the spaces of boyhood interaction. As media generated notions of public space as dangerous space lead to increasing privatization of space, virtual space becomes an alternative space for childhood play and social interaction. The methodology upon which my research is based is an ongoing two-year ethnographic study of a group of boys who play video games. Using participant observation and interviews, the ways in which the virtual space of the game might serve to shape the social interaction between the boys are explored


identifier: Golub, Justin L  (2004) It's how you use it : environmental constraints on the threat-sensitive response to alarm cues during the juvenile to sub-adult life history shift in centrarchids.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Recent studies have shown that juvenile centrarchids undergo significant ontogenetic shifts in habitat use, foraging strategies and perceived predation risk, as well as in the use of conspecific and heterospecific damage-released chemical alarm cues. Microhabitat characteristics, such as habitat complexity and light availability, limit the use of visual cues, which increase perceived risk and can delay the shift to chemical alarm cues. The first experiment explores the behavioural responses of largemouth bass ( Micropterus salmoides ) between 40 and 65 mm SL to heterospecific or conspecific alarm cues in both high and low light conditions, or complex and open habitats. Individuals were exposed to the same chemical cue under both visually limited and unlimited conditions to study the plasticity of behavioural decisions by an individual. The second study was conducted in the field and used three focal size classes of pumpkinseed sunfish ( Lepomis gibbosus ) exposed to conspecific and heterospecific alarm cues in varying levels of habitat complexity. The results demonstrate significantly threat-sensitive behavioural decisions. With low habitat complexity or high light availability perceived risk was low and more significantly individuals demonstrated a foraging response. In high habitat complexity and low light availability perceived risk was high and individuals showed a greater anti-predator response. These results confirm that the shift from anti-predator to foraging responses is a threat-sensitive response and individuals are constantly making behavioural decisions based on the perceived risk and reliability of information available to them.


identifier: Huu, Alice Le  (2004) The effect of trails and group size on the performance and behaviour of the forest tent caterpillar (Malacosoma disstria Hübner).  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The presence of trails and group size play a role in the biology of forest tent caterpillars ( Malacosoma disstria ). Therefore, the effect of the presence of trails and group size on caterpillar performance and behaviour were studied in a laboratory setting. Since forest tent caterpillars may undergo an ontogenetic shift from gregarious to solitary individuals as they mature, these effects were tested on second and fourth instar larvae. For this study, caterpillars were placed in environments with pre-laid trails and of different group sizes. Caterpillars were reared through a larval instar and their performance was measured at the end of the larval stage. Second instar larvae developed faster, and were smaller, when reared in the presence of trails and at larger group sizes. In contrast, fourth instar larvae did not show any differences in development rate.  For behavioural observations, larvae were placed in similar environments to those in the performance experiments. The behaviour and foraging efficiency of caterpillars was monitored at regular intervals for four hours. For second instars, results suggest that differences in growth and development time in the presence of trails may be linked to foraging success. Young caterpillars are highly dependent on trails to locate their food while older ones are not. Behavioural observations show differences in frequency and duration of certain behaviours between second and fourth instar larvae. Changes in the performance and behaviour between larval stages suggest an ontogenetic shift may occur between second and fourth instars.


identifier: Siciliano, Amy Marie  (2004) Manufactured landscapes : a case study of public space in the contemporary city.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This thesis aims to draw attention to the tensions that emerge out of conceiving a 'world class' public space, and projecting this abstraction onto an extremely hybrid social space in downtown Montreal. From some influential design, architectural, and art critics, the public space commonly known as Berri Square has received both local and international acclaim. But what actually happens in the space has defied expectations and largely been met with critical disdain. A resident base for punkers, skateboarders, and drug dealers as well as an everyday provisional soup kitchen for the homeless was clearly not what the city envisioned for this multi-million dollar public square. Thus, for several years the city has employed various tactics in an attempt to 'reclaim' the site. Through an empirical investigation into the design, development and use of Berri Square this thesis attempts to ground some of the dominant theories concerning the production of contemporary urban space, and contextualise some of the governing forces working to reshape urban space in the contemporary city. Based on the findings of the empirical research, it suggests that the conflicts between its various uses and values will continue to escalate until creative ways to manage them are articulated. An examination into some of the institutional and political constraints barring this articulation is the first step toward this process.


identifier: Noseworthy, Meghan  (2004) The role of primary nutrients in the foraging ecology of the forest tent caterpillar (Malacosoma disstria Hübner).  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Levels of primary nutrients (protein and carbohydrate) and secondary metabolites vary both within and between trembling aspen trees ( Populus tremuloides ), and affect the feeding behaviour and performance of forest tent caterpillars ( Malacosoma disstria ). The relationships between primary nutrient content, insect performance and dietary preference were studied using both artificial and natural diets. In experiments with artificial diets of controlled nutritional content, compensatory feeding abilities were tested. Caterpillars were deprived of either protein or digestible carbohydrate to determine whether they exhibit compensatory dietary self-selection when given a choice between foods containing previously absent nutrients. In experiments using natural foods, caterpillar performance and choice behaviour were tested using leaves treated with different nutrient-boosting supplements: protein, carbohydrate, and a neutral control. Caterpillars appeared to regulate for carbohydrate deficiencies only. When given a choice between artificial carbohydrate- or protein-only diets, caterpillars took less time to contact the carbohydrate diet, and consumed more upon first contact, suggesting an olfactory and phagostimulatory response to carbohydrate. In the absence of choice, caterpillars ate most and gained the most weight on a diet containing both protein and carbohydrate. When given a choice between leaves, caterpillars showed no initial preference, but with prolonged exposure ate more of the control leaf, followed by the carbohydrate leaf. Under no-choice conditions, caterpillars on the control leaf experienced the shortest instar duration and greatest growth rate, while on the carbohydrate leaf they exhibited increased survival. These findings suggest that carbohydrate concentration is the principal factor in forest tent caterpillar food choice.


identifier: Wygodny, Adam  (2004) Architecture & the state : Brasília as a political instrument.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Previous research indicates that states seek to construct identities of a "nation" to legitimize the existence of that state as representative of that nation. Similarly, the state may attempt to alter an already existing identity. Building on previous studies, this thesis first provides an overview of the general ways in which states construct these identities. Following that there occurs an examination of the use of architecture by the state. This thesis then examines the use of architecture by the state in Brazil through the construction of the capital of Brasilia. A "tour" of the city is provided through narrative text and accompanying photographs to illustrate the manner in which architecture was used in an attempt to reconstruct the national identity of Brazil.  Essentially, this thesis argues that the necessary conditions for the construction of a national identity must also exist for the reconstruction or alternation of a national identity and that the absence of these conditions resulted in the mixed success of Brasilia as a political instrument.


identifier: Cheng, Song  (2004) Effects of a changing environment on the aboveground and belowground systems of yellow birch (Betula alleghaniensis Britton) and sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh).  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The environment is constantly changing. A change in one environmental factor will cause changes in many other environmental factors either simultaneously or sequentially. For example, an increase in available light, due to canopy opening by natural disturbances, may increase soil temperature and moisture on the forest floor. Therefore, a changing environment has interactive effects on the trees. In forest ecological studies, the effects of some single environmental factors on tree growth are known, but there is a lack of knowledge of the interactions between multiple factors. An understanding of the interactive effects of abiotic and biotic factors on trees is critical for an understanding of the growth and survival of understory saplings in a complex changing environment. The aboveground and belowground systems of a tree respond differently to the same abiotic factors, such as light, since these systems grow in differing environments. This thesis will focus on the interactive effects among available light (including canopy gap size), tree size, artificial shading, liming and plant competition on the aboveground and belowground systems of yellow birch and sugar maple growing in the understory in two field experiments and the interactive effects of light, elevated CO 2 and mycorrhizae on seedlings of both species in a phytotron experiment. The three investigations will address several key questions concerning the growth of these two species and the development of their mycorrhizae in a complex changing environment in the present and future.


identifier: Karunamurthy, Rajesh  (2004) Web services for presence based application development.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This thesis proposes a novel Web service based API for presence based application development that is protocol, network, language, platform and architecture independent. The proposed API is highly abstracted with the intention that even non-telephony experts like IT developers should be able to incorporate the presence functionalities for creating services. Two case studies are also provided to show the usefulness, completeness and flexibility of the proposed API. A subset of the API is implemented as a Web service gateway and mapped to a SIMPLE based presence server besides that Web service based clients are also prototyped. One of the main aims of this research work is to see the feasibility of using the Web services middleware for telecommunication application development; therefore performance measurements are also done. The analysis of the results show that although Web services introduces additional overhead because of XML based SOAP messages it is insignificant compared to the interoperability and easier application development features offered by this middleware. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)


identifier: Luo, Ai  (2004) Good additive cyclic quantum error-correcting codes.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This thesis is about the quantum error-correcting codes. Although there are many methods to construct them, finding a good quantum code is still a complicated and difficult task, for we do not know which methods to use. To solve this problem, we did a thorough research on a special class of quantum codes--additive cyclic quantum codes. A new search algorithm has been designed and a lot of good additive cyclic quantum codes found by this algorithm are presented in this thesis. By showing the success of this algorithm and great value of additive cyclic quantum codes, we have greatly reduced the complexity of finding good quantum codes.  Quantum error-correction theory is key part of quantum information theory. As quantum information theory is a quite new field which has been developing fast during the last decade, we spent much time explaining the primary concepts of it. We introduced linear algebra, quantum mechanics, quantum operations, quantum error-correction theory and quantum error-correcting codes.  In a word, this thesis serves two functions: (1) an exploration of quantum error-correcting codes and (2) an introduction to quantum information theory.


identifier: Sun, Wei Bo  (2004) The analysis, design, and implementation of uplink/downlink antennas for AMSAT AO-40.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The antenna is an important component in a radio communication system. Two kinds of antennas, transmitting and receiving antennas, are designed for use in a radio amateur satellite communication system. This thesis introduces the basic theory about antennas, the numerical technique Method of Moments, and wire grid models. It gives the design process for the downlink and uplink antennas, which are used for the satellite communication system. It implements a 2.4 GHz reflector antenna with a helix feed to realize the downlink, and a 435 MHZ 13 turns helix antenna for uplink. It also gives the measured total performance, and provides the computer simulation model.