title: Ubiquitin metabolism in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

subject:
Chlamydomonas reinhardtii Metabolism
Ubiquitin

abstract:
This work characterizes parameters of ubiquitin metabolism in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii
Dangeard growing under constant conditions and after an exposure to cold shock. Ratio of free
and conjugated ubiquitin to total protein, and rate constant of ubiquitin synthesis and conjugation
increased about two-fold during first 4 hours after cold treatment, whereas rate constant of
ubiquitin degradation reached its maximum 9 hours after treatment. Half-life of ubiquitin calculated
from the constant of degradation decreased from 6 hours to 3.5 hours during first four hours after
the cold treatment. Rate constant of ubiquitin deconjugation did not change after cold treatment.
Ratio of free to conjugated ubiquitin decreased temporarily to approx. 8 immediately after cold
treatment and raised back to its original value at 2 h after cold treatment. These observations
raise questions regarding the regulatory mechanisms of ubiquitin synthesis and hydrolysis.


title: Impact of the recession

subject:
Recessions (Social aspects)
Recessions (Psychological aspects)
Effect of recessions on mental health

abstract:
Over the last few years, Canada and many other
industrialized nations have been facing serious
economic and fiscal crises. There is some evidence
indicating that this kind of economic contraction is a
significant source of psychosocial stress, and that
during times of economic recession or uncertainty a
relationship exists between economic events and
measures of health and well being at both the
individual and societal level.
An exploration of the nature and strength of any
such relationship is important in identifying
individuals that may be at high risk due to economic
contraction, and to identify what factors may buffer
against the negative effects of recession. The present
study was designed to assess the impacts of the current
economic recession on a university student population.
In addition to the exploratory aspect of this study,
the relationship between economic events and depression
and hopelessness was investigated within the framework
of self-efficacy theory.
The specific objectives were: to evaluate the relative contributions of domain specific (economic)
self-efficacy, general self-efficacy, and outcome
expectations in the determination of depression and
hopelessness; and to investigate students' perceptions
of the impact of economic recession on themselves and
other students.
Path analyses showed that depression was more
strongly associated with beliefs about one's selfefficacy
in general, while feelings of hopelessness
were more strongly related to beliefs about personal
control over economic issues. Outcome expectations
were found to have no additional predictive value in
understanding depression and hopelessness scores.
These findings support the role of cognitive processes
(self-efficacy beliefs) in the mediation of the effects
of stressors such as negative economic events on mental
health.


title: Relationship of sedentary behaviour and physical activity patterns to certain aspects of the family food environment with the risk for overweight in 3- to 5- year old children in a rural environment / by Andrea Dawn Schroeder.

subject: Obesity in children

subject: Overweight children - Nutrition

subject: Overweight children - Family relationships

abstract:
The primary objective of this study was to assess for a relationship between sedentary and physical activity patterns to certain aspects of the family food environment with child body mass index (BMI) in children ages 3 to 5. A secondary aim was to assess for relationships between parental obesity and family socioeconomic status to parental perceptions of childhood weight with child BMI. A nonprobability, exploratory, and descriptive cross-sectional study design was used. A total of 85 children ages 3 to 5 (44
boys, 41 girls) and their primary caregivers participated in the study. At risk for becoming overweight was determined using the BMI-for-age and sex-specific 85th to 94th percentile from CDC Growth Charts. Overweight was determined using the BMI-for-age and sex-specific 95th percentile and greater from CDC Growth Charts. The primary caregivers completed a self-administered survey assessing sociodemographic information, parental height and weight, frequency of organized sports, physical activity
patterns, sedentary activities, and certain aspects of the family food environment. Height and weight measurement data revealed that 18.8% (16/85) of the child participants had a BMI in the “at risk for becoming overweight” range, while 9.4% (8/85) o f the child
participants had a BMI in the overweight range. In summary, television viewing on usual weekdays in early childhood is significantly related to child BMI. The results from this study also suggested that failure to recognize that a child may be overweight is an issue that needs to be investigated further to understand how a parent’s description of childhood overweight differs from perception of excess weight in his/her own child.
More qualitative research in regard to parental perception of childhood weights and sedentary behaviour is recommended.
Study area : Hinton, Alberta.


title: Recent expansion of black-legged ticks, Ixodes scapularis, into the Thunder Bay region: Implications and putative role of climate change

subject:
Black-legged ticks
Climate change
Lyme disease
Ixodes scapularis

abstract:
The distribution of Ixodes scapularis is increasing in Ontario, thereby
increasing the risk of contracting Lyme disease. Climate change is a likely factor
in the northward expansion of I. scapularis populations. Here, I explored
published studies, interviewed professionals, and performed literature reviews to
answer whether climate change is the primary cause of the expansion of I.
scapularis populations in Ontario, and why they are now more frequently seen in
Northwestern Ontario. Climate change was determined to be a cofactor in the
expansion of I. scapularis range; mobile host species are increasing the rate at
which black-legged ticks are expanding. I. scapularis is capable of surviving in
new locations, provided there is suitable habitat and a sufficient number of
hosts. It is predicted that I. scapularis will increase its range in Ontario by 46
km/year over the next decade. Increasing I. scapularis populations across
Canada increases the percentage of black-legged ticks carrying the bacterium
Borrelia burgdorferi, that causes Lyme disease. This will ultimately increase the
risk of Lyme disease to all.


title: How to achieve meaningful consultation/accommodation with First Nation communities: The need/benefits for community-led forest management plans in Ontario’s forest industry

contributor:
Oliveira, Frederico
McLaren, Brian

subject: Community-led forest management plan

subject: Crown Forest Sustainability Act

subject: Order MNR-75

subject: Treaty rights

subject: First Nations communities and land management

abstract:
The inherent Aboriginal and treaty rights of First Nations people continue to be infringed
upon in Ontario’s forest industry. The province of Ontario continues to abuse its colonially
obtained Section 92 powers and has supported its forestry practices under the Crown Forest
Sustainability Act 1994 regardless of those practices violating the constitutionally protected
rights of First Nations people under Section 35 of the Constitution. This thesis's objective was to
investigate how the implementation of community-led forest management plans can assist the
province of Ontario to achieve its constitutional obligations under Section 35 by providing
meaningful consultation and accommodation to First Nation communities affected by forest
operations in Ontario. An analysis of the different perspectives of meaningful consultation and
accommodation, current policies and legislation and examples of pre-existing community-led
forest management plans was conducted to explore how a community-led forest management
plan can satisfy the requirements of meaningful consultation and accommodation and the
additional benefits that implementing community-led forest management plans can have in
Ontario’s forest industry. It was concluded that implementing community-led forest management
plans in Ontario’s forest industry can allow the province to achieve its constitutional obligations
to provide meaningful consultation and accommodation to First Nation communities and that
there is a great need for implementing these plans as they benefit all parties involved. Although
the conclusion of this thesis presents a great opportunity for First Nation communities, there is
still the realization that First Nations must work within the colonial system. This emphasizes the
importance of reconciling Section 92 with Section 35 of the Constitution and ensuring that the
never extinguished Aboriginal title of First Nation communities is respected.


title: Preliminary site-quality evaluation tools for the hardwood forests of central Ontario

subject: Hardwoods Ontario

subject: Forest site quality (Ontario Evaluation)

abstract:
There are currently no locally-derived, quantitative site-quality evaluation tools available for
major tree species in the tolerant hardwood forests of central Ontario. To estimate potential
site productivity, site-index curves from the Lake States and a preliminary set of site-form
curves for sugar maple are currently being used. Whether these tools are applicable to
central Ontario is of concern. The use of site index as a site-quality evaluation tool in
uneven-aged mixed-species stands is also questionable. It is also possible site form may not
be a valid measure of forest site quality in these types of stands either.
A random sample of 62 pure and mixed-species stands with a variety of age-class structures
in central Ontario yielded stem analyses data and stand structure information for sugar maple
(Acer saccharum Marsh.), American beech (Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.), yellow birch {Betula
alleghaniensis Britton) and red oak (Quercus rubra L.). An exploration of height-growth
patterns for each species as a function of age and diameter revealed pronounced differences
in shape (polymorphism) of height-age curves for all species with changes in site quality.
Polymorphism was also evident for suppressed vs. free-growing sugar maple trees, and for
sugar maple growing in even- vs. uneven-aged stands and pure vs. mixed-species stands.
Differences were less pronounced in height-diameter curves for all species.
Preliminary height-growth and site-index equations and curves were developed for sugar
maple, American beech, yellow birch and red oak. The central Ontario data, and curves from
this study, were then used to examine the applicability of site-index curves for these species
from the Lake States to central Ontario. The Lake States curves were shown to differ
substantially from those developed in this study, and were inaccurate in application to data
from central Ontario. A preliminary assessment of age and stand structure and species
mixture impacts on sugar maple height-growth and site index, and forest floor chemistry,
revealed no significant differences in sugar maple site index between stands of different
composition or age-class structure, and minor differences in forest floor chemistry between
stands of different species composition.
Preliminary height-growth and site-form equations and curves were also developed for these
species. The curves for sugar maple were used to validate existing preliminary curves for
sugar maple in Ontario. The curves in this study differed substantially from the preliminary
curves and the existing curves were shown to be inaccurate in application to data from this
study. An examination of site form as a site productivity measure in uneven-aged, mixed-species
stands using data from this study revealed it was unrelated to site index, basal area or
ecological variables known to affect forest site quality for these species.


title: A.S. Byatt : tradition and the female talent

subject:
Women authors
Women in literature

abstract:
A. S. Byatt commented in an interview with Juliet Dusinberre in 1983
that literature was her means of escape from "the limits of being female" (186).
For other artists who are also women, art is seen as a way of escaping the
restrictions imposed by the realities of their social and economic powerlessness
(Spacks 206). Today, literary critical feminists would undoubtedly reverse
Byatt’s statement to show the role of literature in forming those very limits
from which she and many other women feel the need to escape. While Byatt
would, I think, agree with Gillian Beer’s qualification in "Representing
Women: Re-presenting the Past" that gender formation cannot be isolated from
social and cultural forces, that there is no single source of oppression of
women (68), her recognition of the role of narratives in at least partly
determining the limits of being female is readily apparent in her 1990 Booker
Prize-winning novel Possession.


title: Building information modeling-enhanced visualization tool for structural health monitoring

contributor:
Sadhu, Ayan
Azar, Ehsan Rezazadeh
Zerpa, Carlos

subject:
Structural health monitoring
Building information modeling

abstract:
With growing number of modern complex infrastructure, robust and autonomous
condition assessment of large-scale structures under operational loads and extreme
climatic events has garnered significant attention. Data-driven structural health mon-
itoring (SHM) techniques offer valuable information of existing health of the struc-
tures, maintain the safety and their uninterrupted use under varied operational condi-
tions by undertaking risk and hazard mitigation promptly. However, just data-driven
approaches are not enough to monitor a large amount of SHM data and conduct
systematic decision making for future maintenance. Recently, Building Information
Modeling (BIM) has become a valuable tool for design, production, construction,
facility management and life-cycle analysis of buildings and bridges. Such a hybrid
information modeling platform integrates the architectural, engineering and construc-
tion systems of a structure into one place allowing all users to incorporate various
features effectively and accurately. In this thesis, a BIM-enabled system is utilized
as a promising computing environment and integrated digital representation plat-
form of SHM that can visualize a considerable amount of sensor data and subsequent
structural health conditions over a prolonged period.
In this research, three-dimensional Autodesk Revit® models of a large-span bridge
and a pedestrian bridge in Thunder Bay, Ontario are developed to enable automated
sensor data inventory into the BIM environment. Such automated tool facilitates
achieving systematic maintenance and risk management, while avoiding manual errors
resulting from visual inspections of the structures. The proposed integrated tool
allows the practicing engineers in organizing, processing, and visualizing the sensor
data from the monitoring system, updating relevant finite element (FE) models, and
providing valuable feedback for structural retrofitting in a single platform. The data
acquisition was performed on various seasons of the year to check the performance of
the structure under various temperatures and traffic loading conditions. The results
reveal that the proposed method can be considered as a user-friendly and economic
framework for condition assessment of large-scale structures in ease.


title: Understanding strength training behaviour in older adults using the theory of planned behaviour

subject: Strength training (Psychological aspects)

subject: Physical activity in older adults

subject: Strength training (Physiological benefits)

subject: Psychological & social barriers to strength training

abstract:
The purpose of this study was to use the constructs of the Theory of Planned Behaviour
to gain a better understanding of older adults participation in strength training. Two
hundred participants aged 55 years and older completed a questionnaire which
assessed the constructs of the theory. Participants were classified into four groups
based on self reported levels of participation in physical activity. The groups included
strength plus aerobic trainers (SAT), strength trainers (ST), aerobic trainers (AT), and
non-trainers (NT). Results revealed no significant differences between the groups on
attitudes. Both the ATs and the NTs differed significantly from the two strength training
groups on perceived behavioural control. The NT group also differed from the two
strength training groups on subjective norms. The ATs were significantly different from
the SATs on behavioural beliefs and both the ATs and NTs were statistically different
from the SATs on control beliefs. Subjective norms and perceived behavioural control
were the strongest predictors of intention. These findings provide information about the
constructs that should be targeted in intervention programs designed to increase
strength training participation in the older population.


title: Behavioral confirmation of loneliness in dyadic conversations

subject: Loneliness

abstract:
This study was designed to examine the self-fulfilling
nature of the social stigma of loneliness.
It was hypothesized that individuals (perceivers) would
be less warm and friendly in dyadic conversations with
persons believed to be lonely (lonely target) than not-lonely
(not-lonely target), and that partners would
reciprocate this behavior. These patterns were expected
to be stronger in female perceiver/male target than
male perceiver/female target dyads. In this study,
university students engaged in cross-sex dyadic
conversations prior to which they were provided with
items from the revised UCLA loneliness scale indicating
that their partner (target) was lonely or not-lonely.
The analyses revealed that, consistent with the
hypotheses, in female perceiver/male target dyads, the
perceiver was observed to be less warm during later
stages of the conversations when the male target was
lonely compared to when not-lonely. It was found that
about the same point in the conversations male targets
were observed to be less proud when lonely than not-lonely.
Additionally, subsequent to the conversations.


title: Investigation on anti-proliferative effect of gyrophoric acid from the lichen Umbilicaria muhlenbergii on cancer cells

contributor:
Fatehi, Pedram
Suntres, Zacharias
Pakzad, Leila

subject:
Lichens
Umbilicaria muhlenbergii
Chemical characterization
Anti-proliferative effect
Cell staining
p53 signaling pathways

abstract:
Natural products, including primary and secondary metabolites, are small molecules produced by
any organism. As important sources of drug components, natural products may be isolated to small
fractions with different biological activities and chemical structures. Although lots of natural
metabolites have been screened and yielded pharmaceutical properties, many potential sources of
these products still need to be investigated, including lichens. As symbiotic fungi and algae
organisms, lichen produces variety of unique secondary compounds and has been used as
ingredients in ancient medicine for decades. The demonstrated biological activities of the lichens
include antibiotics, anti-proliferative, antioxidants, and anticancer. The bioactivities of the crude
extracts, fractions obtained, and the types of compounds depend on biosynthetic pathways in
different areas and environments. Although North America is one of the areas to find variety of
the lichen species, there is limited research to study the lichens' potential biological activities. In
our present work, the study of the lichen Umbilicaria muhlenbergii crude extract and active
fraction would provide important information about their potential uses. [...]


title: Post-fire natural regeneration of young stands on clearcut, partial-cut and uncut sites of boreal mixedwoods : Fire NIP 10 burned stands regeneration analysis

contributor:
Dang, Qing-Lai
Chen, Han
Reid, Doug

subject: Effect of logging on forest regeneration

subject: Effect of fires on forest regeneration

subject: Boreal mixedwoods, disturbance and natural regeneration

abstract:
Boreal mixedwoods are an important element and the most productive forest type
in the Canadian boreal forests. This research focused on the regeneration of stands burned
by an intense wild fire in Black Sturgeon Boreal Mixedwoods on former clearcut, partial-cut
and uncut compartment. Species diversity, density, regeneration index and height of
regenerations were examined. A total of 12 species regenerated across the three different
harvesting operations. In general, the regeneration species richness in clearcut
compartment was the lowest among the three harvesting operations, but the differences
between partial-cut and uncut compartment varied. Regeneration was dominated by
trembling aspen and jack pine. The total density of all regeneration species was higher in
harvested compartment than uncut control compartment. The density and regeneration
index of trembling aspen had a regeneration trend of decreasing from clearcut to partial-cut
to uncut, while the opposite was true to jack pine. Trembling aspen, jack pine and
white birch formed the main canopy of the new stands while pin cherry, beaked hazel and
mountain maple dominated the understory layer. White spruce, black spruce and balsam
fir failed to regenerate in the burned clearcut, partial-cut and uncut compartment of this
boreal mixedwoods.


title: Speciation of aqueous hypercoordinated organosilicate complexes / by Jiali Wen.

subject:
Organosilicon compounds
Silicates
Silicon

abstract:
Aqueous silicon chemistry plays a major and as yet unappreciated role in many fields of science. Emerging technologies such as the fabrication of biomimetic ceramics require a thorough understanding of all factors affecting aqueous silicon chemistry. In biology, silicon is known to be essential for the normal growth and development of most plants and animals, and yet almost nothing is known of the chemical mechanisms by which it is absorbed, transported and ultimately used. A careful characterization of silicon's interaction with sugars and sugar derivatives would be a significant step forward to unraveling this element's enigmatic biological role. In this study, 29Si and 13C NMR spectroscopy were employed to determine the structures and stability constants of aqueous silicon complexes formed with organic ligands containing either proximal hydroxy or vicinal ' cis'-diol functionality.
Five-coordinated Si complexes formed with acyclic polyhydroxy molecules
(polyols) are structurally analogous to the monomeric [(L=)2SiOH]~ species obtained
with furanoidic cw-diol molecules, each with a single silicon centre bound via ester
linkages to two bidentate ligands. Polyol complexes tend to be shorter lived, however, owing to ligand-ligand steric interactions. Glucoheptonic acid has a unique polyol configuration which enables it to wrap around a silicon centre with all of its hydroxyl groups directed inwards, yielding long-lived mono-ligand complexes that contain two  ([L=Si(OH )3]), three ([L=Si(OH)2]) or four ([L=SiOH]') ester linkages (in addition to the usual array of labile bis-ligand complexes).


title: Using SIFT-MS for detection of beer spoilage bacteria and compounds causing off-flavour in beer

contributor:
Malek, Ladislav
Ross, Brian
Leung, Kam

subject: Beer production

subject: Role of hops in beer

subject: Hop plant

subject: Beer spoilage bacteria

subject: Hop resistance of lactic acid bacteria

subject: Bacterial contamination of beer

subject: Selected ion flow mass spectrometry (SIFT-MS)

abstract: Selected ion flow tube mass spectrometry (SIFT-MS) was used for detection of spoilage bacteria in wort and beer. Samples were analysed in triplicate using SIFT-MS Full Scan mode to identify volatile compounds in the headspace of the samples. Volatile compounds in wort headspace included acetaldehyde, propanol, 2-methylpropanal, hexanal, methanethiol, 2-methylbutanal. Volatile compounds in the headspace of the wort inoculated with Lactobacillus brevis included ethanol, acetic acid and propanol. The following compounds were identified in the headspace of the sample of degassed beer: ethanol, propanol, 2-methyl-1-propanol, acetaldehydes, and ethyl formate. The detected volatile compounds coming from the headspace of wort inoculated with Lactobacillus brevis revealed changes in the compounds due to unwanted bacterial fermentation. In addition, an unidentified product ion having m/z 39 was detected. Calculations of relative abundance for this product ion and further investigations demonstrated that it can be considered as a result of compounds formed due to contamination with L. brevis. These data suggest that SIFT-MS has great potential for detection of volatile compounds coming from beer spoilage bacteria.


title: Seismic performance evaluation of reinforced concrete bridge piers considering postearthquake capacity degradation

subject:
Earthquake engineering
Reinforced concrete bridge pier
Seismic capacity (bridge piers)
Bridge engineering

abstract:
Bridges play a key role in the transportation sector while serving as lifelines for the economy and
safety of communities. The need for resilient bridges is especially important following natural
disasters, where they serve as evacuation, aid, and supply routes to an affected area. Much of the
earthquake engineering community is interested in improving the resiliency of bridges, and many
contributions to the field have been made in the past decades, where a shift towards performancebased design (PBD) practices is underway. While the Canadian Highway Bridge Design Code
(CHBDC) has implemented PBD as a requirement for the seismic design of lifeline and major
route bridges, the nature of PBD techniques translate to a design process that is not universally
compatible for all scenarios and hazards. Therefore, there is great benefit to be realised in the
development of PBD guidelines for mainshock-aftershock seismic sequences for scenarios in
which the chance to assess and repair a bridge is not possible following a recent mainshock. This
research analytically explored a parameterized set of 20 reinforced concrete bridge piers which
share several geometrical and material properties with typical bridge bents that support many
Canadian bridges. Of those piers, half are designed using current PBD guidelines provided in the
2019 edition of the CHBDC, whereas the remaining half are designed with insufficient transverse
reinforcement commonly found in the bridges designed pre-2000. To support this study, a
nonlinear fiber-based modelling approach with a proposed material strength degradation scheme
is developed using the OpenSEES finite element analysis software. A multiple conditional mean
spectra (CMS) approach is used to select a suite of 50 mainshock-aftershock ground motion
records for the selected site in Vancouver, British Columbia, which consist of crustal, inslab, and
interface earthquakes that commonly occur in areas near the Cascadia Subduction zone. Nonlinear
time history analysis is performed for mainshock-only and mainshock-aftershock excitations, and
static pushover analysis is also performed in lateral and axial directions for the intact columns, as
well as in their respective post-MS and post-AS damaged states. Using the resulting data, a
framework for post-earthquake seismic capacity estimation of the bridge piers is developed using
machine learning regression methods, where several candidate models are tuned using an
exhaustive grid search algorithm approach and k-fold crossvalidation. The tuned models are fitted
and evaluated against a test set of data to determine a single best performing model using a multiple
scorer performance index as the metric. The resulting performance index suggests that the decision
tree model is the most suitable regressor for capacity estimation due to this model exhibiting the
highest accuracy as well as lowest residual error. Moreover, this study also assessed the fragility
of the bridge piers subjected to mainshock-only and mainshock-aftershock earthquakes.
Probabilistic seismic demand models (PSDMs) are derived for the columns designed using current
PBD guidelines (PBD-compliant) to evaluate whether the current PBD criteria is sufficient for
resisting aftershock effects. Additional PSDMs are generated for the columns with inadequate
transverse reinforcement (PBD-deficient) to assess aftershock vulnerability of older bridges. The
developed fragility curves indicate an increased fragility of all bridge piers for all damage levels.
The findings indicate that adequate aftershock performance is achieved for bridge piers designed
to current (2019) CHBDC extensive damage level criteria. Furthermore, it is suggested that
minimal damage performance criteria need to be developed for aftershock effects, and the
repairable damage level be reintroduced for major route bridges.


title: Determining the "spread of effects" of physical activity interventions from children to Parents/Guardians

contributor:
Newhouse, Ian
Jamieson, John
Witcher, Chad

subject:
School-based physical activity
Education interventions
Sedentary behaviours
Parental involvement

abstract:
The purpose of this research was to determine whether parental involvement in a physical activity intervention delivered to children in-school could result in positive behaviour change in parents (“spread of effects”), as measured by increased levels of physical activity and reduced sedentary behaviour.
A sequential explanatory mixed methods design was used, consisting of a randomized control trial followed by phone interviews using nested sampling from the original population. Fifth grade students (n = 27) from eight classrooms and one respective parent/guardian for each student participated in the study as pairs. Classrooms were randomly assigned to the control or experimental treatments. All students received a Turnoff Week Challenge Tracker Form to encourage students to increase their physical activity and reduce their screen time behaviour.
Both experimental and control student-parent/guardian pairs each completed an online pre- and post measure of physical activity and sedentary behaviour (Rapid Assessment of Physical Activity [RAPA] and Physical Activity Questionnaire for Older Children [PAQ-C] respectively). Student-parent/guardian pairs in the experimental group were assigned two homework assignments in order to facilitate parental involvement in the intervention and possible indirect treatment effects (“spread of effects”). Phone interviews (n=17) were completed with interested parents/guardians. Using thematic network analysis, the interviews furthered explored how children may influence their parent/guardian’s physical activity levels and to increase understanding of how spread of effects can occur in health education interventions.


title: Plant abundance, diversity, and composition following reclamation in Alberta's oil sands

contributor:
Chen, Han
Wang, Jian
Brassard, Brian

subject:
Boreal forest
Community assembly
Oil sands
Overstory type
Productivity
Restoration
Stand age
Substrate
Time since disturbance

abstract:
The Alberta oil sands have caused an economic boom in the Canadian economy in recent years. Identifying the best strategy for vegetation recovery after oil sands extraction is critical to restoring the biodiversity and functions of the pre-disturbed ecosystems. In this study, we examine how the dynamics of herbaceous and shrub vegetation abundance, diversity, and composition are affected by substrate, tree planting, and time since restoration. A total of 94 stands of 6 substrate materials (overburden, lean overburden, secondary overburden, clay overburden, and tailings), planted with conifer, mixed-wood, and broadleaf over-story ranging from 5 to 30 years old were studied. Substrate was a significant driver in vegetation cover, with overburden having the lowest average cover of 55.17 % (SE 6.83%) and clay overburden having the highest average of 78.85 % (SE4.41%). Over-story composition, however, was a more significant indicator of abundance within these anthropogenic ecosystems with broadleaf over- story dominated sites having a higher abundance. Total richness was primarily driven by substrate with secondary overburden, lean overburden, and clay overburden having the highest richness. Multivariate analysis indicated that plant communities were compositionally distinct across substrates, age, and over-story. Compositionally, herbaceous species were significantly affected by all independent variables with the exception of the three way interaction, while shrubs were significantly affected by substrate and age, as well as their interaction and age‟s interaction with over-story.
When examining the multivariate links between diversity and productivity in the reclaimed oil sand ecosystems, we used 70 reclaimed plots of varying stand ages, conifer cover, diversity, and substrate conditions (i.e., clay content and nitrogen content) through structural equation models. We show that over-story and total biomass was strongly positively influenced by stand age and Shannon‟s index. Conifer cover and total cover had large negative effects on understory aboveground biomass.
Our results demonstrate that plant communities‟ substrate has the strongest influence on abundance, richness, and composition within the oil sand restoration. Our results suggest that substrate is the most dominant factor in the ongoing restoration of the oil sands, particularly within the clay overburden and secondary overburden substrates. lastly, our results have shown understory biomass is limited by over-story composition. Overall, total biomass was shown to increase through time and tree diversity.


title: The impact of climate change on the phenology of short- and long-distance migratory birds

subject: Bird migration

subject: Phenotypic plasticity

subject: Climate change & migratory bird population

subject: Microevolution

abstract:
Quickly changing temperatures due to climate change are expected to have
devastating consequences on the migratory bird populations around the globe. However,
surprisingly, several studies have demonstrated that some species may be able to keep
up with the unusually rapid changing temperatures that we are experiencing, as a variety
of species in these studies have shown changes in their migratory behavior in response
to these changing temperatures. This thesis aims to determine how climate change will
affect the migratory behavior in birds and which bird species will be more resilient to
these changes. It was hypothesized that short-distance migrants would be more resilient
and better able to adapt to climate change than long-distance migrants, and that short-
distance migrants would shorten their migratory journey or become residents on their
breeding grounds. Two case studies were investigated to determine whether this
hypothesis was valid: case study #1 examined the shifts in bird migration timing of
long- and short-distance migrants, and case study #2 explored the selection for lower
migratory activity and residency in previously migratory bird populations. It was found
that short- and long-distance migrants are both responding significantly to the changing
temperatures and are adjusting their migration times accordingly. In short-distance
migrant populations, it was found that the increased global temperatures are currently
favouring birds that are expressing reduced migratory activity. These results suggest that
phenotypic plasticity and/or microevolution are at play. It has been concluded that it is
still more likely that short-distance migrants are more resilient to climate change than
long-distance migrants in the long-run because they show more genetic variability in
their phenotypic responses, which means that they have a greater evolutionary potential
than long-distance migrants.


title: Knowledge, experience, perceptions and beliefs of women with cardiovascular disease in Northwestern Ontario

subject: Cardiovascular system diseases (Patients, Ontario, Northwestern)

subject: Cardiovascular health interventions

subject: Heart diseases in women (Ontario, Northwestern)

abstract:
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the primary killer of men and women. Mortality rates in
Northwestern Ontario (NWO) continue to be higher than the provincial average. Current
trends suggest that cardiac-related deaths for women in Canada will increase by 28%
between 1995 and 2016, whereas deaths for men will slightly decline. The effects of
CVD in women within a gender context have been understudied. There is a need to
understand women’s lived experience with CVD to help determine more effective health promoting
strategies for women. A qualitative and quantitative descriptive and
exploratory study was designed to examine women’s lived experiences with CVD. A
structured gender health questionnaire was developed as part of the study. Taped-interviews
were conducted with 30 women (15 rural, 15 urban) with established heart
disease living in NWO. Quantitative and qualitative data were analyzed from transcripts.
Through the process of sharing their experiences, the women articulated how the disease
impacted their life, what lifestyle adaptations they have made, and what psychological
and psychosocial interventions have been or would be beneficial to them. Heart disease
appears to have a lasting negative influence on how a woman rates her health in relation
to others in her age group.


title: Using Silvicultural Treatments to Control Browsing Levels of Western Red Cedar on Vancouver Island (Thuja plicata)

subject: Western red cedar

subject: Silviculture system in British Columbia

subject: Biogeoclimatic ecosystem classification program

subject: Browse resistant treatments

abstract:
The Forest Practices Code of British Columbia Act requires forest tree farm
licence (TFL) holders and timber supply area (TSA) to have a sensible silviculture
prescription that ensures licensees to replace harvested trees with the suited tree species,
stocking and specified free growing requirements to create a desired stand (Government
of British Columbia 2000). High amounts of ungulate browsing cause TFL and TSA
holders to deploy individual tree guards which can result in large costs and stunted
growth. To get seedlings to free to grow status, the Ministry of Forests, Lands & Natural
Resource Operations Cowichan Lake Research Station have established a study on
browse resistant western red cedar. This thesis studies the height growth and browse
levels on newly planted, browse resistant western red cedar in the north region of
Vancouver Island. Data collected was analyzed using a two-sample T-test assuming
equal variances to compare the height and browse levels between non-resistant and
resistant treatments. All browse resistant treatments except for one concluded to be
significant. Findings from this study highlight how new browse resistant species can
eliminate the high costs and need for individual tree guards


title: Ontology development for drug-disease knowledge management

subject:
Semantic web techniques
Disease-drug ontology
Ontology
Ontology in medicine
Drug recommendation decisions

abstract: Traditionally, physicians rely on medical knowledge learned or acquired through practice to make a correct decision in diagnosis of diseases and affected medications. Progress in knowledge base systems and related Information Technology changed this situation by providing huge amount of medical information that can support physicians in the decision making. Integrating this great amount of information to retrieve the superlative results is however a demanding job. By introducing the concepts of Semantic Web, the sources of medical knowledge have amended to acquire the advantages of this concept and its technologies in gathering and representing the information and recommending superior decision from comprehensive information. Particularly, ontologies are recognized to enhance the efficiency of information management significantly and improve the dependability of communication especially when heterogeneous actors and diverse environments are involved.


title: Improving genetic profiling techniques for low copy number DNA / by Shana Hayter.

contributor:
Matheson, Carney
Malek, Ladislav
Leung, Kam

subject:
DNA, Fossil
Mitochondrial DNA
DNA fingerprinting - Technique

abstract:
The extraction of DNA from ancient samples presents many obstacles to the analyst. These samples are often subjected to many years of harsh environmental conditions and many forms of damage resulting in low copy number and highly fragmented DNA. Furthermore, due to their degraded nature, these samples may only be present in small quantities and thus limit the analysis to only one or two extractions. Therefore strategic methodological approaches must be designed to accommodate these limiting factors, while maximizing the results that may be achieved.  The initial stages of analysis are the most crucial, since they are responsible for isolating the DNA.  Therefore, the assessment of different decontamination, sample preparation and extraction techniques to determine their ability to yield high quality DNA was conducted.  Three types of tissue, 50 bone extractions, 49 teeth extractions and 10 soft tissue extractions were evaluated using two sample preparation methods and four extraction
methods. Homogenization or pulverization of the sample increased the overall surface area of the sample, and resulted in a higher success of retrieving DNA for all three tissue types. Both bone and teeth were found to be reliable sources for DNA, however the success of the extraction method was dependent upon the preservation of the sample.  Proteinase K and Guanidinium Thiocyanate were determined to be the most reliable
methods for aneient samples from all three types of tissue with 45% and 36% success respectively. A novel technique. Pressure Cycling Technology was found to have promising implications for modem samples, with 100% detection. mtDNA sequence analysis concluded these aDNA samples were of low copy number and highly fragmented.


title: Variation of syllepsis in eleven tamarack [Larix laricina (Du Roi) K. Koch] provenances in Northwestern Ontario and its relation with height growth

subject:
Tamarack Variation
Tamarack Growth
Shoots (Botany)
Broad-sense heritability
Genetic correlation & variation
Sylleptic long shoot

abstract:
Variation in syllepsis of tamarack and its relationship to juvenile height
growth in eleven tamarack provenances from northwestern Ontario was
evaluated in a four-year-old clonal test planted at Thunder Bay, Ontario.
Significant provenance and clone-within-provenance effects were found for
height growth, and occurrence and degree of syllepsis. There existed a south-north
trend of decreasing provenance means for both height growth and
degree of syllepsis. Degree of syllepsis was found to be moderately
correlated with current-year height growth. Provenance broad-sense
heritability estimates ranged from 0.22 to 0.23 for 1989 final height and 1989
height growth respectively, and they ranged from 0.11 to 0.13 for number and
length of sylleptic branches on 1989 height growth. Clonal broad-sense
heritability estimates ranged from 0.16 to 0.18 for 1989 final height and 1989
height growth respectively, and they ranged from 0.33 to 0.37 for number and
length of sylleptic branches on 1989 height growth. Although syllepsis of
tamarack has high phenotypic plasticity, the potential for its development on
tamarack is heritable. Syllepsis of tamarack may be an evolutionary
mechanism that permits tamarack trees to deal with environmental uncertainty.


title: Ecophysiological responses of black spruce (Picea mariana) seedlings to nutrient supply, N-P-K ratio and photoperiod at current and elevated CO2 concentration

contributor:
Dang, Qing-Lai
Man, Rongzhou
Wang, Jian

subject:
Plant growth
Nitrogen supply
Plant responses to nitrogen supply
N-P-K ratio
Photoperiod

abstract: The relationship between plant growth and nitrogen supply is frequently used in growth models to predict growth performance under global climate change scenarios. However, the relationship may be changed under elevated [CO2]. Furthermore, plant responses to nitrogen supply may be modified by N-P-K ratio. Researchers using climate envelope models predict that boreal tree species will migrate northward during progress of the global warming associated with increasing atmospheric CO2 and changes in precipitation. However, changes in photoperiod and nutrient supply associated with the northward migration to higher latitudes may influence survival and growth of the migrated plants.


title: Blood pressure in relationship to dietary and whole blood ionic magnesium in normotensive subjects

subject:
Blood pressure Analysis
Hypertension Nutritional aspects
Heart Diseases Nutritional aspects

abstract:
The primary purpose o f this investigation was to examine the relationship between
dietary and whole blood ionic magnesium (iMg) and measures of blood pressure (BP)
(SBP-systolic BP; DBP-diastolic BP; MAP-mean arterial pressure) in a normotensive
sample. A secondary purpose was to examine the relationship between dietary and whole
blood ionic calcium (iCa), sodium (iNa), and potassium (ifC) and measures o f BP.
Comparisons between BP and PAS (physical activity score) and BMI (body mass index)
were also made. Subjects (119 females; 82 males) were physically active students with an
average age of 21.1 years. Participants underwent three BP measurements and whole
blood samples were collected and analyzed for iMg, iCa, iNa, and LK. Physical activity
levels were assessed by a physical activity questionnaire (PAQ) and mineral intakes were
determined by analysis of a three-day dietary record. Examination of each factor with BP
was performed in a 2X2 fashion using the McNemar chi-square and kappa test statistics.
Relative Risks (RR) and Odds Ratios (OR) were also determined. No protective influence
was observed between BP and dietary or ionic measures o f magnesium. Negative
associations between BP and iNa, dietary Na, and BMI were demonstrated. It was
concluded that in normotensive subjects, dietary and ionic magnesium does not
demonstrate a relationship with BP.


title: Stage of change : relation to risk factors for binge eating and other health-risk behaviours among university women

subject:
Health risk assessment
Bulimia
Eating disorders
Body dissatisfaction
Health-risk behaviours

abstract:
The transtheoretical model delineates the different stages that individuals go through as
they change maladaptive behaviours: precontemplation, contemplation, action, and maintenance
(Prochaska, DiClemente, & Norcross, 1992). These stages of change have been researched for
many types of health-risk behaviours including smoking, drinking, unprotected sex and, more
recently, binge eating. Research to date has not begun to combine the findings fi*om the research
on the stages o f change with the well-researched area concerning risk factors for binge eating.
Thus, the purposes o f the present study were to (a) investigate whether body dissatisfaction,
dieting, negative and positive affect, self-esteem, social support and stress, and body mass are
associated with stage o f change for binge eating, (b) explore if these factors are associated with
the stage of change for smoking, heavy drinking, and unprotected sex, (c) investigate if the
stages differ in regards to the severity of the behaviour, and (d) explore the comorbidity with
these health-risk behaviours and vomiting, pill use, and excessive exercise across the stages of
change for binge eating. Participants were 266 female university students who completed a
questionnaire package including all measures. It was found that body dissatisfaction, dieting,
negative affect, self-esteem were related to the stages of change for binge eating. More
specifically, those in the action stage appeared to suffer the most. Some o f these risk factors
discriminated participants as a function o f their stage of change for smoking, but not for heavy
drinking or unprotected sex. Comorbidity with the health-risk behaviours appeared to be similar
across the stages of change for binge eating, although there were group differences in
comorbidity for vomiting, pill use, and excessive exercise. Again, at least in regards to vomiting, those in the action stage appeared to suffer the most. This research has indicated that there are
differences in proven risk factors for binge eating across the stages of change. Although in need of further investigation, it appears that those in the action stage for binge eating suffer the most
distress, and have the most disordered attitudes and behaviours. These preliminary findings, if
replicated by longitudinal research, would add to our understanding o f the process o f change for
binge eating. Furthermore, differences in risk and protective factors across the stages of change
have implications for research methodologies and treatment of binge eating. To further extend
these findings, future research could investigate these risk factors in relation to binge eating
among certain populations or other risk and protective factors, other disordered eating
behaviours and attitudes, and other health-risk behaviours.


title: Effects of hormones on symmetry detection and perceptions of facial attractiveness /Oinonen, Kirsten. --

subject:
Hormones - Psychological aspects
Symmetry - Psychological aspects
Face perception

abstract:
Research on the perception of facial attractiveness suggests hormonal involvement in mate selection mechanisms. Facial symmetry is one of four factors that is reliably associated with facial attractiveness, and there is evidence that people with symmetrical bodies and faces have adaptive characteristics (e.g., higher fertility, physical fitness, psychological health, and the potential to provide sexual pleasure). During the preovulatory phase of their menstrual cycle when conception is most likely, women's bodies are more symmetrical, and women show a visual preference for males with darker skin and more masculine facial features, as well as an
olfactory preference for males with more symmetrical bodies. Previous research has not examined whether women also show a preovulatory phase advantage in the visual detection of facial symmetry. In the present study, 45 women performed symmetry detection tests and rated the attractiveness of male faces that varied in symmetry level (low, normal, high, and perfect) at two of three phases in their menstrual cycle (menstrual, preovulatory, luteal). Although there was no evidence to support the hypotheses that women are better at detecting, and show a preference for, symmetrical male faces during the preovulatory phase, there was evidence of an activational effect of hormones on facial symmetry detection and mate selection. The ability to detect facial
symmetry was highest in the menstrual phase of the cycle and women rated all faces as sexier during the preovulatory phase, compared to the rest of the cycle. The findings were interpreted in the context of asymmetric hemispheric activation and evolutionary mate selection theory. Also noteworthy was a dose-effect association between alcohol consumption and decreased visuoperceptual learning. The present Endings provide strong support for a role of gonadal steroids in modulating both perceptual abilities and mate selection criteria.


title: First Nation observations and perspectives on the changing climate in Ontario's Northern Boreal: forming bridges across the disappearing "Blue-Ice" (Kah-Oh-Shah-Whah-Skoh Siig Mii-Koom)

contributor:
Smith, Peggy
Colombo, Steve
Lemelin, Harvey
Bull, Gary

subject:
Boreal forests
Climate change
Cultural continuity
Forest carbon
Forest conservation
Indigenous knowledge
Participatory action research

abstract: Forests can have significant potential to mitigate climate change. Conversely, climatic changes have significant potential to alter forest environments. Forest management options may well mitigate climate change. However, management decisions have direct and long-term consequences that will affect forest-based communities. The northern boreal forest in Ontario, Canada, in the sub-Arctic above the 51st parallel, is the territorial homeland of the Cree, Ojibwe, and Ojicree Nations. Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN) is the political representative of these Nations that are signatories to treaties 5 (Ontario’s portion) and 9. The researcher and NAN collaborated to record observations of changes in the forest environment attributed to climate change and to share and exchange information and perspectives about climate change in 2011. Data were collected from members of ten NAN First Nations whose territorial land stretches across an area of ~110 800 km2. Forty-three individuals contributed to the data. These individuals represent political leaders, Elders, land users (hunters, trappers, fishers, and gatherers), community land use planning and winter road-making staff, and other community members. The research philosophy “CREE”—C=capacity building, R=respect, E=equity, and E=empowerment—underpinned the methodology, Participatory Action Research (PAR). The benefits and lessons learned in applying PAR from the research partnership are woven into the discussions. Climate change effects are occurring on NAN First Nation territorial land and these effects are explored through the Indigenous lens of “blue-ice”. Blue-ice is a term embedded in the Indigenous languages across the fieldwork area. Its presence on the land is linked to transportation in carrying out traditional activities on the land and the delivery of modern goods and services into these First Nation communities. The disappearance of blue-ice is affecting food and energy security. A term often used in the climate change discourse is adaptation. Yet the First Nation perception of “adaptation” is different than the Western concept and we reframed the term to reflect their Indigenous worldview. In the scientific literature much has been written on boreal forests and forest carbon sequestration with respect to climate change. First Nation perspectives and knowledge about climate change in their territories is limited in the literature. Northern NAN First Nations living in the boreal forest have a unique understanding of climate change effects and need to play a significant role in the development of climate change policy for Ontario’s northern boreal forest. Bridging Western and Indigenous knowledge and perspectives about climate change is necessary to formulate the best possible solutions to address climate change.


title: Gallium nitride on low temperature cofired ceramic templates for Schottky junctions

subject:
Nitride semiconductors
Schottky diode
Cofired ceramics
Sol-gel chemistry
Chemical vapour deposition

abstract:
In this work aluminum, silicon and zinc oxide were used as intermediate layers for thin
film growth on cofired glass ceramic substrates. The motivation behind this work is a direct
deposition of nitride thin films on the surface of the ceramic substrate, eliminating the die and
attach techniques. Ceramics have unique applications due too the nature of their mechanical
processing, and their physical resilience and chemical inertness. The low melting of the glass
ceramics from a device processing perspective and their rough, inhomogeneous surface presents a
challenge for device fabrication. Oxide materials can be applied by a variety of techniques
compatible with large device areas and arbitrary shapes to apply a surface texture to improve thin
film properties for device fabrication. Ideally these techniques could be applied to any substrate
that meets the thermal budget of the thin film process.
Solution coating was found to be a good candidate for applying coatings since it can deposit
many different oxide materials over large areas, for relatively low cost, and surface tension of the
liquid phase helps to planarize the surface. Several (>7) microns of coating materials were found
to be needed to reduce the appearance of the ceramic surface features.
Deposition of GaN on the surface of the oxide coatings was performed using a Flow
Modulation Epitaxy (FME) style deposition in conjunction with a unique hollow cathode plasma
source. These features are designed to lower the overall temperature requirements for GaN growth
by providing additional Ga migration time during growth and by using nitrogen plasma as an
alternative to thermal decomposition of ammonia. Ni/Au Schottky junctions fabricated on sapphire
using ceramic compatible temperatures and FME show leaky characteristics with high ideality
factors, indicating tunneling is a significant contributor to carrier transport through the junction.
The same Ni/Au GaN devices fabricated on ZnO coated ceramics was found to produce ohmic
junctions. The density of surface states is a likely candidate for this behaviour.


title: Childhood adversity and alcohol use problems in emerging adults: investigating the role of stress and coping strategies

contributor:
Mushquash, Aislin
Drawson, Alexandra

subject:
Alcohol use (emerging adulthood)
Childhood adversity
Substance abuse
Mental health
Well-being (university students)

abstract:
Within Canada, alcohol use and alcohol related problems are experienced disproportionately by
emerging adults (aged 18 to 29). Furthermore, emerging adulthood is characterized by events
(e.g., beginning post-secondary studies) associated with high-stress levels. Individuals sensitized
to stress via experiences of childhood adversity may be at a heightened risk of using alcohol as a
coping strategy to alleviate experiences of acute stress during this transitional period. This
strategy is, however, maladaptive because alcohol use can increase the risk for adverse outcomes
such as poor interpersonal relationships and academic outcomes and does not address the cause
of the distress. As such, the proposed study examined explanatory models that predicted alcohol
use and related problems in emerging adults. It was hypothesized that perceived stress and
disengagement coping (i.e., strategies aimed at diverting from the stressor and/or its associated
emotions) would explain the relationship between childhood adversity and alcohol use and
related problems. Students at Lakehead University (N = 150) were recruited to complete a series
of self-report measures assessing childhood adversity, perceived stress, disengagement coping
strategies, and alcohol variables (frequency, quantity, and problems). As expected, childhood
adversity was positively and significantly associated with all study variables, except alcohol
frequency and quantity. Perceived stress and disengagement coping strategies mediated the
relationship between childhood adversity and alcohol related problems. Unexpectedly, perceived
stress and disengagement coping strategies did not mediate the relationship between childhood
adversity and alcohol frequency. Results suggest that university institutions might consider
providing education around stress management through trauma-informed practices and coping
strategies to mitigate the impact of early adversity on later alcohol related problems among
emerging adults.


title: Limitations of forest overstory composition and age as proxies for habitat in a harvested boreal forest

contributor:
McLaren, Brian
Malcolm, Jay
Pulkie, Reino

subject:
Boreal forest
Forest resource inventory
Habitat models
Overstory composition
Timber harvesting
Woodland caribou

abstract:
Despite the importance of wildlife habitat protection in meeting land use management objectives, criteria for habitat identification are surprisingly amorphous. For example, while much current habitat modeling has tended to
avoid the term "niche modeling," niche assumptions are implicit - the presence of predators and competitors is essential to whether or not a species uses, or will use, an area. Nonetheless, there are species for which important elements of niche are not generally associated with legal interpretations of their "habitat". Woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) are one such example. The range of the
forest-dwelling ecotypes of woodland caribou has been declining in Canada since at least the late 1940s, and woodland caribou were assessed as Threatened by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada and were listed under the Federal Species at Risk Act in 2003. They are also protected under Ontario's Endangered Species Act (2007) and other provincial and territorial legislation. The consequences of management decisions, and the lens through which these decisions are assessed, have been intensified due to these legal implications.
Most current research supports the hypothesis that higher predation is the key factor in decline and that larger wolf (Canis lupus) populations are due to
increased abundance of early seral stage, forage-rich hardwood and mixedwood
forests, created largely by logging, which support additional prey for wolves, including moose (Alces alces L.). While predators and apparent competitors appear to play a primary role in habitat selection by caribou, habitat modeling generally relies on forest overstory and age as a surrogate for predator avoidance. Yet, how well these models correspond to caribou, wolf, and moose use is largely unknown. Legal interpretations of protection rest primarily on interpretations of forest overstory and age, making explicit only the importance of forest disturbance.
Here, I tested the ability of forest resource inventories (FRI), a key tool in identifying and quantifying wildlife habitat in forest management, to assess 3 key elements associated with caribou winter habitat: lichen, regenerating understory and predator use. I assessed the presence of Cladonia lichen, an important winter forage species for woodland caribou, using stand characteristics provided in FRIs. Further, I used ground data collected from regenerating areas (2009-2010) of previously conifer-dominated forests in northwestern Ontario, Canada, 10 and 30 years after logging, and 10 and 30 years after fire, to test if understory development and moose forage abundance differed between the two disturbance types and artificial or natural regeneration approaches. In addition, I used winter aerial surveys (2010-2013) and logistic regression to compare the characteristics of a conventional habitat model (forest overstory composition and age) to other habitat characteristics (and/or their surrogates). I also applied a novel approach for Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) to explore causal and indirect caribou habitat relationships at broad and fine scales.
I found FRI was not capable of accurately predicting understory vegetation, specifically Cladonia lichen, in spite of the ability of field-based data using the same characteristics providing strong prediction. Further, I found understory composition varied significantly depending on post-harvest regeneration approach. Abundance of shrubs, as well as herbaceous plants (forage for apparent competitors for woodland caribou), was greater in naturally- regenerated post-harvest stands than similarly aged fire origin or post-harvest stands that used more intensive regeneration approaches. And lastly, I found that older, conifer forests alone, as depicted in FRI, did not provide good predictive capabilities of caribou use at broad scales.
While conventional models based on forest overstory composition and age may be useful as a coarse filter in interpreting caribou habitat, more attention should be given to their limitations in landscapes changed by industrial development, particularly where road networks are likely to facilitate predator access and the identification of such habitat has legal implications.


title: Peak power analysis of MC-CDMA employing Golay complementary sequences

subject: Orthogonal frequency division multiplexing

subject: Code division multiple access

abstract:
l\!Iulticarrier code division multiple access (MC-CDMA) combines
both orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) and code
division multiple access (CD lVIA) techniques. It inherits the advantages
of these two techniques. However, like the OFDM system,
transmitted signal of rv1C-CDl'v1A system suffers from the high peakto-
average power ratio (PAPR) as well.
As a good solution to reduce the high peak-to-average pmver
ratio (PAPR), Golay complementary sequences have been employed
in multicarrier communication systems. In this thesis, we present a
simple but novel technique to analyse the theoretical PAPR bounds
of downlink l'v1C-CDMA system using Golay complementary sequences
for spreading and/ or coding. \Ve first develop the PAPR bounds
of uncoded IVIC-CDMA system using binary Golay complementary
spreading sequences. Then, we develop the PAPR b ounds when each
user's transmitted data is encoded as QPSK Golay sequences or 16-
QAI'vl Golay sequences. Simulation results demonstrate that the
theoretical PAP R bounds and 99.9% PAPRs are independent of the
spreading factor for uncoded case. For coded case , the theoretical
PAPR bounds and 99.9% PAPRs are independent of the number
of spreading processes as well as the spreading factor. Practically,
the independency shows that G olay complementary sequences are
useful for peak povver control in downlink MC-CDMA system.


title: Biogenic lead levels in human skeletal remains from the cemetery of the British Royal Navy hospital (1793-1822CE) at English Harbour, Antigua West Indies

contributor:
Varney, Tamara
Qin, Wengsheng
Matheson, Carney

subject:
Lead poisoning
English Harbour (Antigua)
Lead levels in bone

abstract:
Though lead has been known to be a cause of human poisoning since ancient times, it
was a widely used metal. The relationship between ancestry or age and lead exposure in the Colonial period of Antigua, West Indies was explored by comparing the lead levels in bone samples from individuals of two different ancestries, African and European, from a cemetery associated with a British Royal Navy hospital (1793-1822CE) at English Harbour in Antigua, West Indies. The non-segregated nature of this cemetery is believed to have been unique for the period, and allowed for more direct comparisons between ancestral groups in this study. Cortical samples from the fibular diaphysis of 24 male individuals were analyzed for lead by ICP-MS.
The mean lead levels were found to be 74.3±51.8ppm for the African population, and
87.7±78.6ppm for the European population. No significant difference was found between the mean lead levels of the two ancestries. Furthermore, no discernible pattern in lead levels was found in relation to the individuals’ ages. The biogenic origin of the lead was confirmed by scanning the bone samples using synchrotron radiation X-ray fluorescence imaging (SR-XFI). Visible evidence of incorporation of lead into the microstructures of bone indicated that lead uptake likely occurred during the individuals’ lifetimes. These results are in contrast to previously published studies comparing lead levels of individuals from similar and contemporaneous populations. The outcomes of this research suggest naval personnel of both African and European ancestry at English Harbour in Antigua, West Indies had very similar experiences with regards to lead exposure. Their exposure to the toxic metal was not consistent over time, however, as steady exposure would likely have resulted in a positive correlation of lead level with individual age. This study assists in addressing historical questions regarding both the prevalence of lead poisoning in the British Royal Navy during the Colonial period and lead’s potential involvement in the deaths of naval personnel.


title: Potential dual purpose molecular probe for HPV16 E6: a computational and experimental approach

subject: HPV16 E6

subject: Virtual ligand screening (VLS)

subject: Experimental ligand binding assays

subject: Molecular genotyping for high risk HPV types

subject: HPV16 E6 detection

subject: Molecular docking

abstract:
The goal of this project is to find a molecular probe for HPV variant 16 protein E6. This
goal is accomplished using a combination of Virtual Ligand Screening (VLS) and experimental
ligand binding assays.
Protein E6 is a protein that is expressed in all individuals with the human papillomavirus
(HPV) virus. A number of HPV 16 protein E6 genetic variants have been associated with
increased risk for cervical cancer. Currently, there is no fast and reliable method for testing for
the presence of these high-risk protein variants. We want to develop a method that is both fast
and reliable for detecting the presence of this protein using molecular probes. These molecular
probes could potentially be used for optical or PET diagnostic imaging, for risk-assessment and
to guide early intervention.
Using virtual ligand screening, we have identified a number of molecular probe
candidates with affinity for the binding site of prototype E6. This affinity is assessed using
binding energy scores. Compounds possessing favorable calculated binding energy scores and
other desirable molecular properties are identified as potential molecular probes. Selected
candidates include: O-succinyl-L-homoserine (-46 kcal/mol), paclitaxel (-70 kcal/mol), and 3-
Amino-5-fluorobenzo [E] [1,2,4] Triazine 1, 4 dioxide (-47kcal/mol), for 3-Chloro-2-(2-[(3-oxo-
2-Benzfuran-1 (3H)-Yliden] methyl) Hydrazino)-5-(Trifluoromethyl) Pyridinum Acetate (-
68.33kcal/mol), 3-Chloro-2-(3-[1-(Phenyl sulfonyl)-(H-pyrazol-3-YL] Phenoxy)-5-
(Trifluoromethyl) Pyridine (-66.12kcal/mol), and N-(2,4-dinitrophenyl)-L-arginine ) (-
78.58kcal/mol).
We have performed experimental ligand-binding assays of the potential molecular probes
against purified prototype protein E6. Both intrinsic tryptophan fluorescence and fluorescence polarization assays have been performed. One of our compounds 3-Amino-5-fluorobenzo [E]
[1,2,4] Triazine 1, 4 dioxide (AFTD) was shown to have affinity for our target protein (EC50
6M). Due to its intrinsic fluorescence and the presence of a fluorine atom, this molecule could
potentially be used for either PET or optical imaging modalities. Cell based assays have also
been conducted to further characterize AFTD's potential as an in vivo imaging probe. Results
indicate that AFTD is cytotoxic at 25M, although it appears to be cell permeable. Further
experiments need to be conducted to assess its potential use as in-vivo imaging probe. An
alternative use for this molecule as a probe in biochemical assay tracking E6 protein-protein
interactions is suggested. This is demonstrated using a monoclonal antibody (6F4) that is specific
to HPV16 E6. These results set the stage for future work to further characterize this potential
dual-purpose probe which may aid our understanding of the link between HPV infection and
cancer.


title: West Nile virus (WNv) human vaccine : from research to vaccination

subject:
Viral vaccines (Research)
West Nile virus (Research)
West Nile virus vaccine (Research)

abstract:
This project will educate readers about the West Nile virus (WNv), and the vaccine research
approaches currently underway. A narrative review used an instrument to synthesize  WNv  vaccine
research studies, into an easy to understand format.  Results indicated the instrument had    a
high magnitude of reliability (r = 0.90, p<0.0001).  The size and frequency of future epidemics
of the rare occurrence  WNv is uncertain.  Research for a WNv vaccine for humans is a   responsible
public health initiative. The rationale for preplanning a vaccination program is discussed as a
future application  of this research.   The public expects preventative  and  therapeutic
solutions to infectious diseases,  and the project's conclusion indicates that for  WNv
this can be achieved.


title: Migration and development of Cystidicola spp. (Habronematoidea) in their definitive hosts and the population biology of C. cristivomeri White, 1941 in Salvelinus spp.

subject:
Nematoda
Fishes Parasites
Salmonidae

abstract:
The development of Cystidicola cristivomeri in lake
trout, Salvelinus namaycush, and C, farionis in rainbow trout,
Salmo gairdneri, is described. The population biology of
C. cristivomeri was investigated in lake trout in three lakes
in northwestern Ontario and in arctic char, S. alpinus,
Gaviafaeces Lake, Northwest Territories.
Young lake trout fed selectively on large Mysis
relicta which were more frequently infected with C. cristivomeri
(up to 5.1%) than small mysids. Pontoiporeia affinis was not
a suitable intermediate host in nature and there was no
evidence that fish paratenic hosts were important in transmitting
this nematode to lake trout.
Third-stage larvae given to lake trout migrated
directly via the pneumatic duct to the swimbladder. In
experimentally infected fishes, at 4-10°C, C. cristivomeri were
mature after 67 (males) and 210 days (females); C. farionis were
mature after 112 (males) and 235 days (females). There was no
measurable mortality of C. cristivomeri after 600 days in
experimentally infected lake trout.
Field studies indicated that most C, cristivomeri
live at least 10 years and some probably live longer. The
development of female worms to sexual maturity was retarded
and they grew more slowly when large numbers of C, cristivomeri
were present in the swimbladder. Short female worms produced eggs at a slower rate than longer females. This density
dependent regulation of C, cristivomeri at the infrapopulation
level may result in long-term stability of
the nematode suprapopulation in a lake.
The number of ulcerative lesions on the inner
surface of the swimbladder of lake trout was directly
dependent upon the number of mature C. cristivomeri
present in a fish.


title: Mathematics anxiety in pre-service junior/intermediate (J/I) students

subject: Math anxiety

subject: Mathematics teachers (Psychology)

subject: Mathematics (Study and teaching, Psychological aspects)

abstract:
The present study examines the feelings of pre-service teachers at the J/I level's
towards mathematics and the teaching thereof. Two instruments were used to examine
the samples' feelings towards mathematics. The Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale
(Suinn, 1972), a 98 item likert format questionnaire accompanied by 8 open-ended
questions were used to firstly evaluate participants' mathematics anxiety, and, secondly,
to expand on their comfort levels with regards to mathematics and to the teaching of
mathematics. A total of 149 J/I pre-service teachers in their professional year were
sampled 6om an Ontario university. The Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale (MARS)
revealed a low mean MARS score for all participants. Participants acknowledged the J/I
mathematics instruction course a source for reducing their anxiety towards mathematics.


title: Biaxial driving technique for ultrasound generation with ferroelectric materials

contributor:
Pichardo, Samuel
Curiel, Laura

subject:
Ferroelectric materials (health care)
Ultrasound transducers
Biaxial driving
Piezoelectricity
Ultrasound in medical applications

abstract:
Over the years, ferroelectric materials have been used in a wide variety of applications in the health care
field in applications such as thermal therapy, medical imaging and lithotripsy, just to mention some of
them. One technical barrier in the transducer industry is that the refocusing or redirection properties of
an ultrasound beam depends primarily on the “classical” solution of using a large number of independent
transducer elements. High-density ultrasound transducer arrays often imply complexity from the
electrical driving circuitry, mechanical constraints caused by the ultrasound probe size, and the need to
handle heating of the device; all of which translates into high fabrication costs.
Commonly used ultrasound transducers are driven by applying an electric field along the poling axis to
maximize their mechanical response. More efficient operation of ultrasound transducers translates into
less power consumption to obtain the desired effect and less heating into the system. This work is based
on an emerging technique called biaxial driving that offers and enhancement of the mechanical response
of an ultrasound transducer by using two phase-offset orthogonal electrical fields on the propagation and
lateral directions. In addition to the efficiency enhancement, we hypothesize that the biaxial driving
technique produces an added vibration mode due tothe application of the second electric field, which will
allow a controlled acoustic pressure redistribution that can be exploited to produce a refocusing or
steering of the ultrasound beam with a single element, or an array where fewer elements than
conventional transducer arrays are needed.
The objective of this research work is to demonstrate with numerical and experimental work that
controlled steering of the ultrasound beam can be achieved by the application of a biaxial driving in singleelement ferroelectric transducers. A finite element analysis has been carried out to simulate and calculate
the efficiency and the acoustic field response on different ferroelectric materials biaxially driven. [...]


title: The influence of depression symptoms and antidepressant medications on cognition and driving performance

contributor:
Bedard, Michel
Mazmanian, Dwight

subject:
Driving research
Depression
Antidepressants

abstract:
Research that has examined the influence of depression symptoms and antidepressant
medications on driving performance has revealed inconclusive findings (Brunnauer, Laux,
Geiger, Soyka, & Moller, 2006; Bulmash et al., 2006; Ramaekers, 2003). The purpose of the present study was to elucidate the influence of depression symptoms and antidepressant medications on cognition and driving performances using self-report measures as well as an ecologically valid method measure, a driving simulator, and a clinical population. Two hundred and thirty-three drivers ranging in age from 18 to 35 years {M= 21.88; SD = 3.90 years) completed a screening measure that examined depressive and anxious symptoms, medication use, and self-reported driving behaviour on the Driving Behaviour Questionnaire (DBQ). Forty-three participants ranging in age from 18 to 35 {M= 24.24; SD = 5.05 years) also attended a laboratory session and completed a series of questionnaires designed to measure depression
driving habits, cognitive psychomotor functioning, and a diagnostic measure of MDD, two computerized tasks (one to measure attention and one to assess processing speed), and a 45 min simulated drive. In the overall sample, twenty-four (10.2%) participants were taking at least one antidepressant. Mean scores for depressive symptoms {M= 11.09; SD = 9.87) fell in the minimal range on the Beck Depression lnventory-11 (BDI-Il). A shortened version of the DBQ was created using this younger Canadian sample and correlation coefficients between the short and long version were excellent, ranging from .91 to .94. Overall, depressive symptoms and antidepressant use displayed little relationship to self-reported driving behaviour or driving performance on the driving simulator. However, our results do suggest that age (B= .12) and the cognitive/affective (B = .12) impairments on the BDI-II are statistically significantly related to increased self-reported absent-minded driving behaviour {p = .03). Overall depressive symptoms {B = -2.48) and cognitive/affective {B = 3.45) impairments were also related to inattention on a
computerized task measuring attention {p < .05). The cognitive and affective impairments in depression were also positively related to visual perceptual ability {B = 2.02). The overall patterns of self-report data, neuropsychological data, and behavioural data suggest that although there is some consistency between self-report measures and neuropsychological data, this does not necessarily mean these impairments in attention translate into actual driving impairments on the simulator. Future studies could conduct a similar study using on-road performance as the behavioural measure of driving performance.


title: Families First food security study

subject:
Families First Program (Man.)
Food supply Manitoba
Nutrition Manitoba

abstract:
This study was developed to gain insight into what mechanisms and approaches Family First
clients use to maintain food security. The Families First program services families in Manitoba
that have children who are at risk for a poor childhood. An interview survey was created in
order to conduct a quantitative survey to Families First clients regarding food security. Food
security is a determinant of health. It is a component of nutritional status and affects human
development and is related to quality of life. There is an association between food insecurity and
inadequate nutrition, poor mental health, childhood behaviour problems and childhood quality of
life. This project is important to help Families First program better serve their clients. This
project could also be used for program planning and practice for health regions and public health
departments. The information collected from the project could be used to inform public policy.


title: HRV reactivity and new romance: cause or consequence?

subject:
Heart rate variability (HRV)
Love and romantic relationship research
HRV and romantic relationships

abstract: This study explored two competing hypotheses explaining the association of heart rate variability (HRV) and romantic relationships. HRV refers to the variation between successive heartbeats and is considered to be a noninvasive index of the social engagement system. Recent cross-sectional research has shown differences in HRV reactivity (the difference between HRV during the presentation of positive and negative stimuli) between single and newly coupled individuals. Two opposing explanations for this association were hypothesized. First, beginning a romantic relationship may decrease HRV reactivity through increased activation of the social engagement system during courting. Alternatively, this association could be explained by individuals with initially lower HRV reactivity being more likely to form romantic relationships. In the present study, single female undergraduate students were presented with film clips of various valences while having their cardiac activity monitored. These participants then returned for follow-up either when they had begun a romantic relationship, or at the end of the 6-month observation period if they remained uncoupled. Moderating influences of body mass index (BMI), self-esteem, attachment, and emotional distress were assessed. Results revealed single and coupled participants were comparable in terms of their HRV reactivity at follow-up; neither group showed a significant decline in HRV during the negative film clip. Further, HRV was not systematically affected by a change in relationship status from single to newly coupled. However, lower HRV reactivity was predictive of coupling for low BMI women while the reverse was true for high BMI women. This interaction may be the result of differing success rates of various mating strategies for low and high BMI women. Results support the hypothesis that HRV reactivity, along with BMI, can predict the formation of romantic relationships.


title: Ecophysiological responses of four boreal tree species to soil nitrogen supply

subject:
Taiga ecology Effect of nitrogen on
Forest soils Nitrogen content
Populus tremuloides Ecophysiology
Ecophysiology
Foliar nitrogen concentration
Photosynthesis
Nitrogen-use-efficiency

abstract:
The ecophysiological responses of four boreal tree species, trembling aspen
(Populus tremuloides Michx.), black spruce (Picea mariana (Mill.) B.S.P.), white spruce
(Picea glauca (Moench) Voss), and jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.) were examined at
six different levels (from 25 to 775 ppm) of soil nitrogen (N). At the 50th and 100th day of
treatment, two-year-old conifer seedlings and six-month-old trembling aspen seedlings were
measured for gas exchange, foliar N concentration, growth and biomass allocation traits.
The gas exchange and resource use efficiency responses varied with species. The
additional N input had no significant effect on photosynthesis (see document) and positive
effect on transpiration (E, mmol/m2/s), and beyond 175 ppm N treatment it produced
negative effect on whole seedling photosynthetic capacity (see document) in trembling
aspen. A, E and At in conifers responded negatively to N treatment, except for a brief
positive response from 25 to 125 ppm N in jack pine. <l>PSII
 revealed relevant relationship
with A but only for jack pine and white spruce. We found explicit positive response of
foliar N concentration and negative response of PNUE to increasing soil N availability.
However, the trends of PWUE between species varied across six N treatments and possibly
due to luxury consumption. The PWUE was positively correlated with soil N supply in only
white spruce and was negatively correlated in other species. The sufficient soil N
availability for optimum gas exchange and nutritional status were at 75 ppm N for black
spruce and at 125 for the other three species.
Overall, the growth response of aspen to N was more pronounced than that of
conifers due to its fast growing nature. Significant growth response of aspen occurred
between the 75 to 175 ppm N treatments. Substantial growth reduction occurred when
aspen seedlings were induced to excessively high soil N concentrations (375 and 775 ppm),
specifically due to the vulnerability of these seedlings to pest damages. This is also related
to the significant increase in foliar N concentration at these N treatments. Greatest growth
was achieved at 25 ppm N addition rate in black spruce and jack pine, and most notables at
125 ppm N in white spruce. However, these N levels are not conclusive when optimum soil
N concentration(s) for gas exchange parameters, particularly for At, in these seedlings are
taken into consideration. Nonetheless, at highest soil N supply (375 and 775 ppm), the
growth of conifer seedlings was not as adversely affected as that of aspen seedlings. Our
results also proved strong significance of N availability on biomass allocation between root
and shoot components and height growth in all species. Root production was significantly suppressed as soil N availability increased in the conifers. The opposite was found in aspen.
In conifers, the proportions of total seedling biomass allocated to roots (or the root-toshoot
ratio, R/S), at all N treatments, were highest in white spruce, followed by black
spruce then jack pine. The R/S ratio in aspen was comparable with, but followed an
opposite pattern to, white spruce. The stem and foliage productions in all studied species
showed negligible positive response to increasing soil N treatments. However, with the
exception of aspen, the order of the species allocating highest to lowest portions of its total
biomass to the foliage followed the exact opposite pattern as that of root allocation
percentage. Aspen showed lesser biomass allocation to the foliage than conifers. However,
it allocated highest percentages of total seedling biomass to the stem, at all N treatments,
followed in sequential order by black spruce, white spruce and jack pine.
When all ecophysiological parameters are considered, our results indicated that low
soil N availability, such as that at 25 ppm, does not adversely affect the boreal seedling
growth and survival as much as it does at excessively high soil N availability (e.g., 375 and
775 ppm). Within the sufficient N regimes (i.e., 75 - 175 ppm), the most suitable soil N
concentration for black spruce is at 75 ppm and at 125 ppm for other species.


title: Adoption of a cooperative learning teaching strategy in a bachelor of science in nursing course

contributor:
Fennell, Hope-Arlene
Brown, Ken

subject:
Group work in education
Nursing Study and teaching

abstract:
The purpose of this case study was to examine the ways in
which cooperative learning was used in a senior Bachelor of
Science in Nursing course. The subject of the case study was
the professor who taught the senior Bachelor of Science in
Nursing course. The questions guiding the study were :
1. How did the professor develop cooperative learning
strategies?
2. How did the professor implement cooperative learning
strategies?
3 . How did the professor evaluate cooperative learning in the
classroom?
The Implementation Perspective described by Fullan (1983)
refers to effecting change; this approach guided the development
of research questions. The significance of the study lies in
its ability to communicate to other nursing educators that new
teaching methods are being utilised. In this regard, in the
education of nurses, effective changes are practical and
possible.
In the review of literature the potential positive
outcomes of introducing cooperative learning as a teaching
strategy are examined. This is followed by an examination of
the process of change, and the factors implicated in its
success.
The professor chosen as the subject of the case study was
someone interested in implementing cooperative learning in
nursing education. The students were randomly selected after signing a consent form, handing in questionnaires, and agreeing
to an interview. The data were obtained through discussion
observation, interview and questionnaires. Data collection
strategies included the Group Evaluation Form (Reid, Forrestal
and Cook, 1982) and the Individual Evaluation Form (Johnson and
Johnson, 1984).
The findings of this case study are supported in the
literature and are as follows :
1. Personal beliefs of the professor regarding teaching,
learning, and cooperative learning play a dominant role in the
development, implementation, and evaluation of cooperative
learning strategies.
2. In an attempt to match personal beliefs and student needs
with curriculum, the professor utilised the process of Mutual
Adaptation (Fullan and Pomfret, 1977) in the development,
implementation, and evaluation phases of the cooperative
learning teaching strategy.
3. A network of support including the school, faculty, a
facilitator, collaborators, and trainers is required throughout
the development, implementation, and evaluation of cooperative
learning strategies.
4. Effective evaluation is not an end-point, but an ongoing
process throughout the development, irnplementation, and
evaluation phases of the change process.
5. Effective development, implementation, and evaluation of a
new teaching strategy cannot occur over a six week period, but
must be allowed to evolve over an extended period of time.
6. The classroom climate and teaching style of the professor
reflect his/her individual beliefs and personality.


title: Methods for finding wolf (Canis lupus) kill sites using location clusters: a study in Grand Portage Indian Reservation, Minnesota

subject:
Wolf kill sites
Wolf prey selection
Prey selection (grey wolves)
Wolf predation
Ecology (wolves)

abstract: Wolves have profound effects on the ecosystems around them. As large carnivores, they can significantly manipulate ecosystems by controlling potentially overabundant ungulate populations. This study attempts to find predation sites to help understand wolf prey selection, seasonal preference, and frequency of kill within the Grand Portage Reservation. We developed and tested three methods to identify wolf kill sites using GPS location clusters from collared wolves in Grand Portage Indian Reservation. During October 2019 to January 2020, we identified location clusters using the program R to analyze GPS locations gathered from Vectronic Vertex Plus Iridium collars attached to seven local wolves. Search teams then visited the location clusters to determine why the cluster occurred and if there was a predation event. We tested three methods, including Method One: Stratified Random Sampling, in which a subsets of location clusters were chosen randomly in a stratified approach; Method Two: Census of Clusters Produced by One Wolf or Pack, in which clusters were chosen from a singular wolf pack and all sites from that pack were visited when possible; and Method Three: Hand Picking Clusters, in which clusters were handpicked by search teams based on criteria and trends from past experience. After visiting 30 sites from 240 (11 %) clusters produced by the algorithm, the search team concluded that each of the three methods had pros and cons. Method Three was the most effective method tested, as it produced the highest likelihood of finding a predation event, given the resources allocated to the study.


title: Modal identification of time-varying structures using the blind source separation techniques

contributor:
Liu, Kefu
Sadhu, Ayan

subject:
Structural health monitoring
Vibration engineering
Modern sensing technology
Damage detection methods
Blind source separation

abstract:
In last few decades, Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) has been an indispensable subject
in the field of vibration engineering. With the aid of modern sensing technology, SHM has
garnered significant attention towards diagnosis and risk management of large-scale civil and
mechanical structures. In SHM, system identification is one of major building blocks through
which unknown system parameters are extracted from vibration data of the structures. Such
system information is then utilized to detect the damage instant, severity and extent to
rehabilitate and prolong the existing health of the structures. In recent years, Blind Source
Separation (BSS) has become one of the newly emerging advanced signal processing
techniques for output-only system identification of structures. This is attractive for large
structures since the input information is not readily available.
In this work, two new damage detection techniques are proposed integrating a
special class of BSS known as Second-Order Blind Identification (SOBI); first with the
Hilbert transform (HT) and second with the time-varying auto-regressive (TVAR) modeling
to track the change of modal parameters of the structure. The proposed method is validated
considering discrete damage cases in a suite of numerical studies and experimental models
followed by a full-scale structure. The results are then compared with Finite Element (FE)
modeling in case of lab-scale study and with the stochastic subspace identification (SSI)
method in the case of full-scale structure. The proposed method (SOBI with TVAR) is then
employed to identify the instantaneous frequencies (IF) of an axially-moving cantilever beam
simulating the case of progressive damage. Identification of the IFs is also carried out using
three different algorithms namely the wavelet transform (WT), the Hilbert vibration
decomposition (HVD), and the HVD plus the TVAR modeling.


title: Assessing the feasibility of low-cost unmanned aerial vehicle data collection and automatic tree detection to determine silviculture stand stocking status in BC

subject:
Canopy height model
Individual tree detection
Orthomosaic
Silviculture
Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV)

abstract: The objective of this research was to evaluate the capabilities and limitations of low-cost UAV-collected silviculture data derived from Digital Aerial Photogrammetric point clouds. Four regenerating forest stands with a mix of planted spruce and lodgepole pine were surveyed using traditional ground plot surveys, aerial plot surveys, and aerial wall-to-wall surveys. A total of 22 systematic grid sampled ground plots were used as the baseline data to compare survey accuracy and efficiency of survey methods. Aerial survey imagery was processed using Pix4D software to produce orthomosaics and elevation data of each stand, which was used by a custom QGIS algorithm to identify stand stocking metrics. [...]