title: Do disparities in suicide-related behaviour across sexual orientations differ by neighbourhood deprivation? A discrete-time survival analysis in Ontario, Canada (2007-2017)

subject:
suicidality
neighbourhood deprivation
sexual minority

abstract:
Background
Prior research on the disparities of suicide-related behaviours (SRB) across sexual orientation has been limited by the use of surveys and self-reported data, leading to possible survival bias. Furthermore, there have been no studies examining how neighbourhood deprivation modifies the effects of sexual minority status on SRB. Sexual minority individuals in deprived areas may face unique challenges and stressors that exacerbate their risk of SRB. This study investigates the association between sexual minority status and clinical SRB, and examines whether the effect of neighbourhood deprivation differs across sexual orientation.

Methods
A population-representative survey sample (weighted n= 8,778,120) was linked to administrative health data in Ontario, Canada to measure SRB-related events (emergency department visits, hospitalizations, and deaths) from 2007 to 2017. Neighbourhood-level deprivation was measured using the Ontario Marginalisation (ON-Marg) index measure of material deprivation at the dissemination area (DA) level. Discrete-time survival analysis models, stratified by sex, tested the effects of neighbourhood deprivation and sexual minority status, while controlling for individual-level covariates.

Results
Sexual minority males had 2.79 times higher odds of SRB compared to their heterosexual counterparts (95% CI 1.66 to 4.71), while sexual minority females had 2.14 time higher odds (95% CI 1.54 to 2.98). Additionally, neighbourhood deprivation was associated with higher odds of SRB: males in the most deprived neighbourhoods (Q5) had 2.01 times higher odds (95% CI 1.38 to 2.92) of SRB compared to those in the least deprived (Q1), while females had 1.75 times higher odds (95% CI 1.28 to 2.40). No significant interactions were observed between sexual minority status and neighbourhood deprivation levels.

Conclusion
In both males and females, sexual minority status and neighbourhood deprivation on SRB are independent risk factors for SRB. Despite the lack of effect modification, sexual minorities living in the most deprived neighbourhoods have higher chances of SRB. Future investigations should evaluate interventions and policies to improve sexual minority mental health and address neighbourhood deprivation.


title: The COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross Sectional Analysis of Canadian University Students' and Student-Athletes' Mental Health

subject:
Mental Health
Pandemic
Student-Athlete
Student

abstract: Student-athletes have shown to display poorer mental health than student non-athletes, typically due to the unique stressors of participating in collegiate sport. During the COVID-19 pandemic and with the implementation of public health response measures Şenışık et al. (2020) discovered that depression and anxiety symptoms were significantly lower in Turkish professional athletes than non- athletes, and similar among genders and sport types. Further research is required, and this study aims to identify differences among Canadian university student-athletes and non-athletes, males and females, and team and individual sport athletes on symptoms of depression, anxiety, stress, and distress during the 2019/2020 academic year. The Depression Anxiety Stress Scale – 21 and Impact of Events Scale – Revised were completed by 349 student-athletes (241 male and 108 female) and 142 non-athletes (77 male and 65 female). There were no main effects for gender or sport type, but student-athletes scored significantly higher than student non-athletes in depression (p < .001), anxiety (p = .014), stress (p < 0.001), and distress (p = .001). Interestingly, female team sport athletes reported greater levels of each measure than female individual sport athletes (p = .011). In conclusion, Canadian university student- athletes reported significantly higher levels of mental distress than student non-athletes during the 2019/2020 academic year, and there were no differences by gender or sport type. Although, female team sport athletes reported higher symptoms of depression, anxiety, stress, and distress than female individual sport athletes. This data was inconsistent with Şenışık et al. (2020), highlighting the need for more research to be done comparing post-secondary students and student-athletes to identify how the COVID-19 pandemic affected them, and how academic institutions can mitigate, and aid mental health disturbances caused by events of this nature.


title: "Absent Students: A Critical disabilities studies approach to accessibility services "

contributor: Social Justice and Equity Studies Program

subject: critical disability studies; accessibility; grounded theory

abstract:
This thesis explored the experiences of students with auditory disabilities that affect learning in
university settings. The objective was to examine services offered to university students with
auditory disabilities from the perspective of the students receiving the services. This included an
examination of how services were delivered, what processes were related to success and what
gaps existed between the services available and the actual needs of student learners who are
living with disabilities. Qualitative interviews were conducted with students with auditory
disabilities who receive services from the accessibility office on a university campus in southern
Ontario. Grounded theory methodology with a critical disability studies framework was used.
Each interview was analyzed using an open coding, axial coding, and selective coding
progression. The analyses revealed the following prominent themes: 1) participants felt respected
as a person but did not get what they needed as a learner; 2) participants experienced emotional
tension – they liked the people they worked with but still felt frustrated and disappointed; 3)
participants felt that their learning needs were not understood-- people in accessibility services
are kind but kindness does not equal disability knowledge; 4) participants felt that SAS staff are
kind, but wait times are still too long; and 5) participants were tired of being grateful but don't
want to be mean to staff. Recommendations included paying more attention to student self
advocacy and institutional ableism.


title: Exploring horticultural and ecological chemistry through mass spectrometry-based metabolite profiling

subject: tomato

abstract: Advances in mass spectrometry have provided researchers with powerful hypothesis-generating and exploratory tools for studying plant chemistry. However, identification of data is a major bottleneck due to the difficulty obtaining standards, overreliance on cheminformatics tools, and lack of interdisciplinary expertise. This work focuses on overcoming these challenges by pairing mass spectrometry-based metabolite profiling (MS-BMP) with heuristic techniques and likelihood assessments for exploring plant chemistry through interdisciplinary, collaborative approaches, and using complementary techniques to test hypotheses generated by exploratory metabolomics; the work focuses on projects that couldn’t progress without identification of compounds, for which standards were not readily available.


title: Characterizing the Development of Reward Evaluation Across Adolescence in Female and Male Long-Evans Rats

subject:
reward evaluation
adolescent development
sex differences

abstract: Adolescence is a developmental stage describing the transition from childhood to adulthood, that is a heightened period of sensitivity to influence from the environment due to extensive physical, physiological, and psychological maturation. Adolescents, both human and rat, have been observed to evaluate reward differently than other ages, however little is known about how reward evaluation may change throughout adolescence, and how these developmental trajectories may vary between reward types and between sexes. My thesis work focused on characterizing changes in sensitivity to and motivation for reward across adolescence in female and male Long-Evans rats. In chapter 2, I used a free-access drinking task to compare how testing conditions (within- group or between-group) influenced intake of diluted sweetened condensed milk and found that previous test experience was necessary to facilitate a peak in adolescent male rats intake normalized for body mass as reported in previous research. However, this peak did not occur in female rats, and when intake was not normalized per body mass the peak was not found in male rats either. In chapter 3, I used an operant conditioning paradigm to investigate social motivation across adolescence and found that male rats overall were more socially directed than female rats when using a fixed ratio, however there was a lack of sex differences when using a progressive ratio, except for male rats at postnatal day (P) 40. At P40 male rats were less socially motivated than P40 female rats, and less socially motivated than male rats at younger and older ages. Overall, my thesis work suggests that the development of reward processing is dynamic across the adolescent period, and that peaks in reward evaluation depend on sex and procedure.


title: Age Differences in Working Memory Filtering of Distracting Information

subject: working memory, filtering, negative cue, aging, cognitive control

abstract: Previous research has demonstrated that as people age, cognitive processes such as visual working memory (VWM) performance decline. One potential explanation for this age-related decline in VWM is that older adults have decreased inhibitory control relative to younger adults. This impairs older adults’ ability to ignore irrelevant information, which contributes to VWM filtering ability deficits. While most research investigating filtering ability deficits in older adults has tended to use positive cues, it is unclear whether older adults can also effectively use negative cues to ignore irrelevant information. The current study tested whether older adults can filter out irrelevant information from their VWM using negative cues. Across two experiments, young and older adults were presented with 2 (Experiment 1) or 4 (Experiment 2) display items. Participants were given three different cue types: neutral, negative, or positive. After a delay, participants reported the target’s orientation in a continuous-response task. Our results demonstrate that both age groups’ VWM performance benefitted from being provided a cue (positive or negative) as opposed to no cue (i.e., the neutral condition). However, for both age groups, negative cues were less effective at improving VWM filtering (i.e., more non-target errors) compared to positive cues. Thus, although negative cues aid in filtering of VWM contents, they are less efficient than positive cues. Additionally, older adults are similarly efficient to young adults at inhibiting negatively cued information, resulting in a reduction of distractor intrusions into VWM when using the negative cue, although this benefit is reduced (for both age groups) at higher set sizes.


title: Synthesis of C-1 Homologues of Narciclasine

subject: biocatalysis, narciclasine, pancratistatin, chemoenzymatic, natural products, total synthesis

abstract: This thesis describes current progress towards the total synthesis of C1-homologues of the Amaryllidaceae alkaloid narciclasine (1), a powerful anticancer agent which suffers from a poor solubility profile. A 15-step chemoenzymatic total synthesis of C-1 carboxymethyl narciclasine (248) was accomplished. A key step in this convergent synthesis is the formation of the C ring syn-diol moiety via the chemoenzymatic dihydroxylation of ortho-dibromobenzene to provide the corresponding cis-dihydrodiene diol as a single enantiomer, which constitutes an efficient method of generating chiral substrates from readily available commercial materials. The dense A ring functionalities are derived from another commercially available unit; ortho-vanillin, via previously established protocols. Further key steps involve a nitroso Diels-Alder reaction and an intramolecular Heck reaction. The C-1 homologue that was prepared, 248, was then tested for its biological activity against natural narciclasine as the positive control. Experimental and spectral data are provided for all novel compounds.


title: Old Wines in New Bottles: Repurposing and Leveraging of Existing Resources for Crafting Novel Information System-Based Organizational Innovations

subject:
innovation
information systems innovation
information systems
resource repurposing innovation
RRI

abstract:
In this research, we propose, define and empirically examine the idea of resource repurposing for innovation (RRI). Firms are increasingly introducing innovative products and services by repurposing their existing resources, products and services instead of trying to build something completely new from scratch. While these practices have become prevalent, they have remained overlooked by researchers. We introduce the construct of RRI by drawing on the related and relevant theories of architectural innovation, bricolage, exaptation and recombination. Further, we argue that our conceptualization of RRI is built on the basis of two important dimensions: the extent of resource modification, and the site of innovation manifestation. Therefore, RRI can be practiced in four different ways. We proposed a preliminary framework to study the RRI approach and its relevant dimensions and antecedents.
Through a qualitative exploratory study, we interviewed 22 informants from 20 firms in North America that are active in a wide range of different industries. We performed content analysis by conducting an extensive coding process on the transcribed interviews. Our findings reinforced that RRI is a multidimensional construct with four different facets. Also, the patterns of RRI practices can be influenced by key organizational characteristics such as company size, technology, innovation and knowledge management, and employee training policies and activities. Further analysis of the emergent themes in the empirical data reinforced our preliminary assumptions that knowledge creation capabilities, resource digitalization, resource diversity and IT integration capabilities may influence different types of RRI practices. The constructs, findings and conjectures provided by this study may pave the way for future research on the novel construct RRI.


title: Approaches Towards a Total Synthesis of Daphenylline

subject:
Total Synthesis
Natural Products
Daphenylline
Daphniphyllum Alkaloids
Sigmatropic Rearrangement

abstract: The following work describes the synthesis of advanced intermediates enroute to daphenylline. Construction of the ABCE tetracyclic skeleton of daphenylline was accomplished in thirteen steps with seven percent overall yield from commercially available (S)-carvone through [3,3]-allyl cyanate-to-isocyanate rearrangement, intramolecular Heck Reaction, and Intermolecular Diels-Alder/benzannulation strategies. Efforts towards the synthesis of daphenylline’s D ring are discussed. A terse introduction to the scientific literature of daphniphyllum alkaloids and a comprehensive overview of selected approaches and all previous syntheses of daphenylline is given. Experimental procedures and spectroscopic data are provided for all new compounds.


title: Deep Evolutionary Generative Molecular Modeling for RNA Aptamer Drug Design

subject:
Aptamer
Variational Autoencoder
SARS-CoV-2 Covid-19
Deep Learning
Therapeutic Drug Development

abstract:
Deep Aptamer Evolutionary Model (DAPTEV Model).
Typical drug development processes are costly, time consuming and often manual with regard to research. Aptamers are short, single-stranded oligonucleotides (RNA/DNA) that bind to, and inhibit, target proteins and other types of molecules similar to antibodies. Compared with small-molecule drugs, these aptamers can bind to their targets with high affinity (binding strength) and specificity (designed to uniquely interact with the target only). The typical development process for aptamers utilizes a manual process known as Systematic Evolution of Ligands by Exponential Enrichment (SELEX), which is costly, slow, and often produces mild results.
The focus of this research is to create a deep learning approach for the generating and evolving of aptamer sequences to support aptamer-based drug development. These sequences must be unique, contain at least some level of structural complexity, and have a high level of affinity and specificity for the intended target. Moreover, after training, the deep learning system, known as a Variational Autoencoder, must possess the ability to be queried for new sequences without the need for further training. Currently, this research is applied to the SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) spike protein’s receptor-binding domain (RBD). However, careful consideration has been placed in the intentional design of a general solution for future viral applications.
Each individual run took five and a half days to complete. Over the course of two months, three runs were performed for three different models. After some sequence, score, and statistical comparisons, it was observed that the deep learning model was able to produce structurally complex aptamers with strong binding affinities and specificities to the target Covid-19 RBD. Furthermore, due to the nature of VAEs, this model is indeed able to be queried for new aptamers of similar quality based on previous training. Results suggest that VAE-based deep learning methods are capable of optimizing aptamer-target binding affinities and specificities (multi-objective learning), and are a strong tool to aid in aptamer-based drug development.


title: Synthesis of unnatural analogues of narciclasine: Chemoenzymatic synthesis of 2-epi-1-hydroxymethylnarciclasine

subject:
Synthesis
Natural products
Amaryllidaceae
Biocatalysis
Anti-cancer

abstract: An approach to the synthesis of novel C-1 analogues of narciclasine has been developed. The synthesis relies on chemoenzymatic dihydroxylation of an arene, Stille coupling, and an intramolecular Heck reaction to affect key transformations. The synthesis of the targeted C-1 analogues addresses a gap in literature where few narciclasine analogues have been prepared, with no C-1 homologues existing to date. The synthetic route to 2-epi-1-hydroxymethylnarciclasine, as well as a possible route to several other derivatives, is described in detail. Experimental and spectral data are provided for all newly synthesized compounds.


title: Psychopathy as a Conditional Reproductive Strategy in Boys and Men: An Evolutionary–Developmental Perspective

subject:
Psychopathic traits
Evolution
Development
Boys and men
Conditional reproductive strategy

abstract: Psychopathic traits (PTs) are a constellation of traits and behavior that places individuals at-risk for engaging in lifelong chronic and severe antisociality, particularly among boys and men. Evolutionary perspectives have suggested some adaptive benefits (e.g., mating) to expressing PTs, whereas developmental perspectives suggest both genes and environment affect its expression. Bringing evolutionary and developmental perspectives together, my thesis addresses whether the expression of psychopathy in boys and men is developmentally contingent on cues of social relationships that inform the costs and benefits of “deciding” to develop PTs. In Study 1, I use Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological theory to survey the developmental literature on PTs to examine whether both immediate and broad environmental features contingently affect the development of PTs. Results suggest that the expression of PTs is affected by multiple and interacting levels of the environment. In Study 2, I examine how PTs in boys might have costs and benefits in social relationships and the possible impact behavior with peers may have on peer reactions. Results showed PTs were associated with more coercive and fewer prosocial behavior with peers, the latter having a negative indirect effect on peer reactions in prosocial, social power, and dating domains. PTs also had a direct and positive association with receiving nominations as someone peers would like to date. The findings suggest PTs may have both costs and benefits in adolescence and suggest boys higher in PTs might deceptively manage their reputations with peers despite engaging in fewer prosocial and more coercive behavior. In Study 3, I examine how PTs affect trade-offs across adaptive domains of somatic (e.g., relationships, health), parental, and mating investment in men. Results suggest that men higher in PTs may trade-off somatic and parental efforts for mating effort, which may create a superficial yet effective mating strategy that enhances mating opportunities while foreclosing other opportunities (e.g., building relationships, skills). Overall, my thesis expands our understanding of psychopathy by considering both evolutionary and developmental perspectives together. In particular, the adaptive benefits and costs of expressing psychopathy may be directed by and located within a developmental ecology that contingently affects its expression.


title: Evaluating Preference Stability Across Psychotropic Medication Changes in Persons with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

subject: Intellectual and Developmental Disability

subject: Psychotropic Medication

subject: Behavioural Medicine

subject: Preference Assessment

subject: Motivating Operations

abstract: Research in applied behaviour analysis evaluating psychotropic medication impact on persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) is relatively limited (Cox & Virués-Ortega, 2016). Even though evidence supporting the efficacy of psychotropic medication in treating challenging behaviour has been described as controversial, an Ontario study reported between 39% to 56% of adults with IDD are prescribed at least one psychotropic medication (Lunksy et al., 2018). The overall prevalence of medication use within this population, combined with the lack of research showcasing efficacious outcomes, suggests that further evaluation of psychotropic medication impacts is required. Behaviour analytic researchers have hypothesized that psychotropic medications may function as motivating operations (Conine & Vollmer, 2019). Therefore, it may be important to systematically monitor clinically indicated medication changes for their effect on an individuals preference stability, as well as on stimulus class displacement. Two participants with IDD who engage in challenging behaviour and were undergoing medication changes (e.g., medication increases, decreases, addition, and removal) took part in repeated weekly preference assessments (edible-item, leisure-item, and combined-class). Analysis included a Spearman rank correlation analysis, a non-parametric partial correlation analyses, and visual analysis to these data. Results indicated that psychotropic medication changes appeared to affect non-selection, preference stability, and class displacement differentially across the two participants. Clinical implications, limitations, and future directions are discussed.


title: Deadly Wounds in the US-Mexico Borderlands: A Rhetorical Analysis of the Anti-Illegal-Immigration News Media Coverage of the El Paso Shooting and the Viral Video of the United Constitutional Patriots

subject:
“Illegal Alien”
Patriotism
White nationalism
El Paso Shooting
United Constitutional Patriots

abstract:
This thesis focuses on two key events that took place at the US/Mexican border in
2019 and the anti-illegal-immigration media coverage of those two events: 1) The El Paso
Walmart Shooting and 2) the viral video of the United Constitutional Patriots detaining
migrants at the US-Mexico border. I explore the discursive practices used to discuss the
El Paso shooting and the UCP’s actions and connect these practices to anti-immigrant
rhetoric that has been ingrained in the public discourse of the U.S. I argue the anti-illegal-immigration news media coverage of the El Paso shooting and the UCP reflect, produce, and embody anti-immigrant rhetoric as well as portray white nationalist behavior under the guise of patriotism. I found 5 figures that emerged from my data used by the anti-illegal-immigration media outlets: the “Illegal alien”, the Immigrant Child, the Spectator,  the Patriot or the White Nationalist, and the “Monster”.


title: An investigation into the utility of wearable sensor derived biofeedback on the motor control of the lumbar spine

subject:
Sensory biofeedback
Wearable sensor
Spine proprioception
Low back pain

abstract:
Lower back pain (LBP) is a disability that affects a large proportion of the population and
treatment for this has been shifting towards a more individualized, patient-centered approach.
There has been a recent uptake in the utilization and implementation of wearable sensors that can
administer biofeedback in various industrial, clinical, and performance-based settings. The
overall aim of this Master’s thesis was to investigate how wearable sensors can be used in a
sensorimotor (re)training approach, including how sensory biofeedback from wearable sensors
can be used to improve measures of spinal motor control and proprioception. Two
complementary research studies were completed to address this overall aim.
As a systematic review, Study #1 focused on addressing the lack of consensus
surrounding wearable sensor derived biofeedback and spine motor control. The results of this
review suggest that haptic/vibrotactile feedback is the most common and that it is administered
in an instantaneous real-time manner within most experimental paradigms. Further, study #1
identified clear gaps within the research literature. Specifically, future research would benefit
from more clarity regarding study design, and movement instructions, and explicit definitions of
biofeedback parameters to enhance reproducibility.
The aim of Study #2 was to assess the acute effects of wearable sensor-derived auditory
biofeedback on gross lumbar proprioception. To assess this, participants completed a target
repositioning protocol, followed by a training period where they were provided with auditory
feedback for two of four targets based on a percentage of their lumbar ROM. Results suggest that
mid-range targets benefitted most from the acute auditory feedback training. Further, individuals
with poorer repositioning abilities in the pre-training assessment showed the greatest
improvements from the auditory feedback training. This suggests that auditory biofeedback
training may be an effective tool to improve proprioception in those with proprioceptive deficits.
Collectively these complimentary research studies will improve the understanding
surrounding the ecological utility of wearable sensor derived biofeedback in industrial, clinical,
and performance settings to enhance to sensorimotor control of the lumbar region.


title: Low-dimensional purple and blue bronzes: Crystal growth, characterization and optical properties

subject:
low dimensional
molybdenum bronzes
charge density wave

abstract:
The molybdenum oxide bronzes are a family of charge-density-wave (CDW) conductors with distinctive properties originating from their low-dimensional crystal structure and associated Fermi surface instabilities. Single crystals of potassium blue and purple bronzes and sodium purple bronze have been synthesized using a temperature flux technique and XRD measurement was deployed to investigate the formation of the correct phase. Optical spectroscopy and electrical resistivity measurements were carried out on sodium purple bronze and potassium blue bronze. Sodium purple bronze crystals were found to exhibit a clear anisotropy in their natural cleavage (a-b) plane. Electrical resistivity measurements were performed along the different crystallographic directions which displayed two distinct metallic axes perpendicular to each other in the a-b plane. The optical conductivity obtained from Kramers-Kronig analysis of reflectance spectroscopy data was in good agreement with the resistivity measurements. The two in-plane metallic axes undergo CDW transitions at two different temperatures Tp, suggesting a distinction in electronic and phononic subsystems along each axis.

Potassium blue bronze samples exhibit various temperature dependent anomalies in the electrical resistivity measurements, which are associated with CDW instability in this compound. The absolute values of resistivity at room temperature along both in-plane crystallographic axes, were compared to the literature to verify the accuracy of our measurement techniques. The ac-current effects on linear and non-linear regimes of resistivity were closely investigated, and the results support the sliding of the CDW, and the existence of a small-threshold field ET of CDW depinning in this sample. Hysteresis in resistivity, which has been detected in many CDW compounds, has been observed in our measurements and is associated with the instability of the CDW possibly due to the presence of defects.


title: Exotic gap structures in multiband superconductors

subject:
Superconductivity
Unconventional Superconductivity
Symmetry
Gap Nodes
Gap Function

abstract:
The symmetry-based approach is a capable method in the theory of superconductivity. To understand how the gap function transforms under the point group operation,
one needs to know the transformation properties of the single-electron states. Accord-
ing to the Ueda-Rice prescription, the transformation of the Bloch states, under the
operation of a point group element, is described by the pure spin-1/2 rotation matrices, even in the presence of spin-orbit coupling. In the presence of spin-orbit coupling,
we show that the Bloch states in a centrosymmetric and non-magnetic crystal are not
the eigenstates of the pure spin-1/2 operators. In this case, the transformation of
the Bloch states depends on the symmetry of the bands participating in the pairing.
This transformation is not necessarily equivalent to the transformation of the pure
spin-1/2 Bloch states. In this work, we study a hexagonal multiband superconductor
with a D6h point group in the presence of spin-orbit coupling. We discovered that the
Bloch states in some specific bands do not transform like pure spin-1/2 states. This
behavior of the electron bands leads to an exotic gap nodal structure that we study in
two pairing channels. In an interband s-wave pairing, some nodes appear in the gap
structure of the superconductor. In an interband i-wave pairing, the gap nodes move
by changing the strength of the interband pairing. The pseudospin symmetry-based
approach, presented in the textbooks, does not predict these results.


title: Semi-synthesis of Unnatural Narciclasine Derivatives

subject:
Organic Chemistry
Narciclasine
Amaryllidaceae

abstract: The generation of new structural derivatives of narciclasine, an Amaryllidaceae alkaloid, has been explored. The strategy applied to the semi-synthesis of these derivatives involves a key enolization step that produces an enol at the C1 position. This material was converted into a triflate to functionalize the C1 position through cross-coupling. Initial triflation attempts resulted in functionalization at C6 instead, and the C6 triflate was successfully coupled with different functionalities. All the novel C6 derivatives were fully deprotected and subjected to evaluation of their biological activity. Experimental and spectral data are provided for all new compounds


title: Gay men, well-being, and sport participation: A phenomenological analysis

subject:
gay men
sport participation
well-being
minority stress theory
existential phenomenology

abstract: There is a growing interest among scholars and practitioners in LGBTQ+ experiences in sport and leisure. While much of this work has examined homophobia and negative experiences, few studies have examined positive sport experiences of LGBTQ+ athletes. To add to that growing body of literature, the purpose of this study was to explore how gay men navigate potentially stressful environments and derive experiences of well-being, and to gather phenomenological accounts of how gay men derive and experience well-being through sports participation despite the stressful environment they may represent for LGBTQ+ athletes. Specifically, I explored how minority stress theory can provide a deeper understanding of the role stressors play in how gay men derive experiences of well-being through sport participation. Using a phenomenological approach, data were collected through semi-structured interviews with nine gay men between the ages of 32 and 43. Themes that capture the overall phenomenon were constructed. These were Craving Community: Reconciling Past Experiences, Sports and Living Authentically, and Sports as an Escape. The data demonstrated the complexity of the gay men's experiences of well-being and allowed me to explore participants' similar and unique experiences in sport more deeply. The findings highlight the ways in which gay men derive well-being from sports participation and the roles stressors play in how they derive that well-being. This study provides a deeper theoretical understanding of the experiences of gay men participating in sports, as well as highlighting how gay men derive positive outcomes from these experiences.


title: Effect of Augmented Reality (AR) experiential value and flow experience on psychological ownership of product and technology

subject: Augmented Reality (AR); functional values; emotional values; flow experience; psychological ownership

abstract: The emergence of Augmented Reality (AR) technologies has made it possible for marketers to engage and interact with consumers in new ways and thus influence positive behavioral outcome. The interactive nature of the AR technologies provides consumers scope to form attachment with the product and technology in forms of psychological ownership. Although the formation of psychological ownership of both product and technology has been studied, they have been studied separately. As AR being highly interactive provides scope for forming attachment with the product and technology, this study addresses the literature gap by providing a mechanism to understand the formation of both psychological ownership of product and technology and their relationship with AR’s functional and emotional value. By analyzing responses from 480 online survey respondents, we provide empirical evidence that the functional and emotional value has opposite effect on the psychological ownership of consumers. Specifically, our results show that the functional value negatively affects while as emotional value positively affects psychological ownership of product and technology, and flow experience mediates these relationships. Consumers’ perceived control also plays a role in the formation of psychological ownership of product and technology as well as their flow experience. We find empirical evidence that for high (low) perceived control, the positive effect of emotional value of consumers on the psychological ownership of product and technology is strengthened (weakened); while as for high (low) perceived control, the negative effect of functional value on the consumers psychological of product and technology is weakened (strengthened). Although our results show that perceived control does not moderate the relationship of functional values with that of flow experience, it moderates the relationship of emotional values with flow experience such that for high (low) perceived control, the positive effect of emotional value on flow experience is strengthened (weakened). These findings can help marketers in AR app design by helping them understand how different functional and emotional aspects of the AR experience affect consumers’ psychological ownership of product and technology.


title: The Impact of Math Anxiety on Health-Related Quality of Life and Functional Impairment

contributor: Department of Graduate and Undergraduate Studies in Education

subject:
Mathematics
Math Anxiety
Education
Beck's General Theory of Anxiety
Health Related Quality of Life

abstract: First discussed in 1954 by Sister Mary Fides Gough, math anxiety is a topic that has been gaining more attention in recent years. Current literature focuses heavily on the intersection of math anxiety and education, yet scant research assesses the impacts on daily life. This study addressed this gap by using an embedded quantitative correlational survey with descriptive open- ended questions to identify the correlation (if any) between math anxiety and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and/or functional impairment. The study adopted Beck’s general theory of anxiety (BGTA) as a framework. The survey consisted of three established measures—the AMAS, SF-36, and SDS—administered to 113 participants. Results indicate that math anxiety and HRQOL have a negative correlation, while math anxiety and functional impairment have a positive correlation. Based on findings, this study recommend that future research should establish a consistent framework (e.g., BGTA) as well as intervention strategies that addresses HRQOL and functional impairments (e.g., cognitive behavioural therapy). Finally, this study recommends that future practice should view math anxiety as a mental health issue and treat it as such.


title: Role of Viral Infections in Rapid Prunus Decline in the Niagara Region

subject:
Plant disease
Ilarvirus
Nepovirus
RNA sequencing
Tomato ringspot virus

abstract:
Plant diseases associated with viral infections are a serious issue for growers, causing significant reductions in yield and plant death. Rapid Prunus Decline (RPD) is an emerging disorder resulting in rapid and unexplained death of Prunus species in southern Ontario. In order to better understand RPD, disease symptoms in all major Prunus species in the Niagara region were surveyed, along with identification of major viruses in diseased Prunus trees.
Our survey showed that diseased trees often showed symptoms of dehydration, leaf chlorosis, reduced new growth, and death. The average mortality rate in the Niagara region was 20% among all Prunus species with the highest site-specific mortality rate of 67%. In order to understand the contribution of viruses to RPD, RNA sequencing was employed to identify viruses in diseased trees and characterize viral sequence diversity. In total, 20 unique virus species and one viroid were identified in 42 diseased trees, demonstrating a wide diversity of viruses in diseased Prunus trees.
Tomato ringspot virus (ToRSV) infection can result in similar symptoms to those observed in RPD trees. Based on these similar symptoms, a total of 507 Prunus trees were surveyed and the frequency of ToRSV infection was determined to be 13%. No direct correlation was identified between the presence of ToRSV and incidence of RPD, suggesting that other factors are involved.
Multiple ilarviruses were identified in diseased trees including Grapevine associated ilarvirus (GaIV), Tobacco streak virus (TSV), Tomato necrotic spot virus (ToNSV), Prunus necrotic ringspot virus (PNRSV), and Prune dwarf virus (PDV). GaIV and ToNSV have never been previously reported in Prunus trees, or in Canada. GaIV was the most commonly detected virus and is an emerging concern for stone fruit production. Mixed infection of ilarviruses could have synergistic pathological effects, and the interactions between ilarviruses and other viruses are poorly understood.
In summary, over the course of this study, many different viruses were identified in Prunus species exhibiting decline, yet no single virus was identified in all Prunus spp. or in all instances of the disease, suggesting RPD is a complex disease that could have multiple contributing factors.


title: Enhancing Augmented Reality with Audio: When and why it boosts online  purchase intention

subject:
Augmented Reality
Auditory Sensory
Behavioural Intentions
AR audio-enhancement
Multisensory AR environment

abstract: Augmented reality (AR) can be considered an appealing tool for product evaluation in an online shopping context where the product is unavailable. Although this technology provides a tangible environment for product evaluation, it is mainly based on the visual aspect of product presentation. Vision is a dominant sense, and humans mostly rely on sight to comprehend an event. Nevertheless, it is only from a combination of senses that one can gain an extensive understanding of it. Auditory sensory is the second crucial human sense. The literature documenting AR's impact on customers' decision-making and behavioural intentions has overlooked the role of audio in this environment. This study investigates the role of audio through product sounds in an AR experience, and by using active inference theory, it demonstrates how enhancing AR environments with sound can influence behavioural intentions in customers. Moreover, it presents two important auditory factors (i.e., sound pleasantness and sound controllability), each of which can have impactful roles in different online shopping steps. Using data obtained from the Zappar AR platform, this research examines two products with their related sounds to demonstrate the performance of multisensory AR experience on behavioural intentions of customers who use AR apps for shopping online. The results indicate that enhancing AR with sound has both direct and indirect influence on behavioural intentions of the customers, through customer engagement and decision comfort. Additionally, we show the moderating role of sound controllability on the relationship between audio-enhanced AR and customer engagement.


title: Synthesis of a Photocleavable Bolalipid for the study of the roles of Phospholipid Transfer Proteins and Phosphatidylinositol Lipid Kinases

subject: mono-photocleavable bola-PC

subject: bolalipid

subject: Sec14

subject: Pik1

subject: photolabile protecting group

abstract: This thesis was dedicated to the synthesis of mono- and di-photocleavable phosphatidylcholine bolalipids that were designed to investigate the mechanism of action of the phospholipid transfer protein, Sec14, as well as the phosphatidylinositol 4-kinase, Pik1. While it was the goal of this thesis to synthesize both bola-PCs, only the mono-photocleavable bola-PC was successfully synthesized. The mono-photocleavable bola-PC lipid was designed to contain two glycerol molecules that each had a choline head group connected through a phosphodiester bond at the sn3 position. Each glycerol was acylated with palmitic acid at the sn1 position. These two glycerol moieties were then connected to one another through their respective sn2 hydroxyls via a mono-photocleavable dicarboxylic acid. The initial steps of this work were to synthesize mono- and di-photocleavable diacids to serve as a linker for the polar head groups of the bolalipids. The mono- and di-photocleavable diacids were designed to contain one and two nitrophenyl ethyl photolabile protecting groups, respectively. The synthesis of the di-photocleavable diacid was attempted first, however, these efforts were unsuccessful. Two separate synthetic routes were followed to synthesize this diacid, but neither were viable. Despite this, the synthesis of the mono-photocleavable diacid was successful and was incorporated into a bola-PC. The mono-photocleavable diacid and bola-PC were found to undergo photocleavage when irradiated with 365 nm light, in 60 seconds and 105 seconds, respectively. Photocleavage of the bola-PC was also carried out within a lipid vesicle comprised of 10% bola-PC and 90% DOPC. Spectral and experimental data have been provided for all compounds synthesized. Future efforts will involve the bola-PC synthesized in this thesis undergoing enzymatic conversion into a bola-PI, via the enzyme phospholipase D.


title: On the Efficacy of Treating Escape-Maintained Inappropriate Mealtime Behaviour with and Without Escape Extinction: A Meta‐Analysis of Escape‐Based Interventions

subject:
inappropriate mealtime behaviour
food refusal
feeding disorders
meta-analysis

abstract: It is estimated that approximately 70% to 89% of children with developmental disabilities and 20% to 50% of neurotypical children exhibit some type of feeding challenge. Inappropriate mealtime behaviour (IMB) is a type of feeding challenge within the broader class of food refusal behaviour. Although there have been some single-case studies examining the extent to which behavioural interventions can aide in reducing IMB, the relative efficacy and generality of these studies is unclear. The purpose of this systematic review was to evaluate the available literature to critically analyze the efficacy of interventions for the treatment of IMB through a meta-analysis of single-subject experimental designs. Through a systematic search of the extant literature, we identified 38 studies involving 307 cases in which IMB was treated with a behavioural intervention. We coded descriptive data and calculated log response ratio as an effect size measure of the efficacy of these interventions. Results indicated that combined escape extinction and non-escape extinction interventions had greater effect sizes than escape extinction alone or non-escape extinction alone. Escape extinction alone had greater effects sizes compared to non-escape extinction; however, escape extinction resulted in a higher percentage of negative side effects than interventions in which escape extinction was combined with non-escape extinction interventions or to non-escape extinction interventions alone. We suggest that escape extinction should not be used as the sole intervention for IMB, rather, in cases where IMB warrants a behavioural intervention, a combination of escape extinction and non-escape extinction interventions should be used.


title: Are We There Yet? An Examination of the Effectiveness of Individual Support Plans in Promoting the Human Rights and Quality of Life for Persons with Intellectual and/or Developmental Disabilities

subject: Quality of Life

subject: Individual Support Plans

subject: Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

subject: Community-Based Research

subject: Policy and Practice

abstract:
Individual Support Plans (ISP) play a significant role in ensuring that the value-based disability-related goals of international and provincial legislation are brought to fruition—mainly with a focus on promoting Human Rights and improving quality of life (QOL) outcomes. The ISP is a living document that, through person-centered planning practices, guides the day-to-day supports provided to persons labelled with an intellectual and/or development disability (PLWIDD). Literature has demonstrated that ISPs are most effective when there is an alignment between an individual’s identified needs and wants, clearly defined goals with matched support strategies, and measurement tools to monitor and evaluate individual and team progress towards goal attainment. Further, ISPs are more likely to demonstrate improved QOL outcomes when the goals capture and promote the following QOL domains: self-determination, personal development, interpersonal relationships, social inclusion, rights, and physical, emotional, and material well-being. This project aimed to promote improved QOL outcomes for PLWIDD supported by Community Living Haldimand, through a collaborative examination of their current ISP framework and processes. The goal of this project was to provide recommendations for a new ISP framework that was shaped by current research on effective and efficient ISPs, and authentically founded in the expressed concerns and recommendations of those who are responsible for developing, implementing, monitoring, and evaluating the effectiveness of the ISP.
A document analysis of 9 completed ISPs identified the alignment across the components of an effective ISP and the number and types of QOL domains that were or were not present. A Nominal Group Technique (NGT) and focus group participation from Coordinators and Supervisors assisted in capturing the culturally sensitive language surrounding QOL and the ISP process. Recommendations for the new ISP framework included the use of culturally sensitive language and recommendations from Coordinators and Supervisors, including staff support and training in identified areas of concern such as, how to identify needs and wants of persons they support and how to define ISP goals. The methods used in this study may assist other organizations in the evaluation and improvement of their ISP process.


title: Intimate Deathscapes:  Examining Alternative Discourses of the Dead Body and Death Care Spaces

subject:
Deathscapes
Geographies of Death
Feminist Geographies
Death Care
Material Feminisms

abstract:
Over the last two centuries Western death care has undergone a gradual process of defeminization,
professionalization, and medicalization. It has also grown into a multi-billion-dollar industry and is now
facing criticism for practices that are financially exploitive, environmentally harmful, and contribute to
the invisibilization of death. Over the last decade, alternative understandings of death and death care
practices have begun to emerge in response to these criticisms. Some of these alternative
understandings come from death care workers who espouse the benefits of engaging with death. In this
thesis I examine the spaces of the dead body and death care spaces, which I refer to as intimate
deathscapes. To consider the formation of subjectivities and knowledge production within intimate
deathscapes, this thesis examines three autobiographies from death care workers (Doughty, 2014;
Nadle, 2006; Wilde, 2017). The authors make compelling claims about the positive influence that can
come from more engagement with death, which differ significantly from dominant discourses that
pathologize death and cloak it in negativity and fear. Alternatively, they propose embracing mortality as
a way of improving one’s life. I conclude that their material engagement with dead bodies, as
represented in these texts, effects an epistemic shift in relation to death. Employing a material feminist
framework, I argue that the spatiality and materiality of deathscapes influences the formation of
subjectivities, and it is the relational and emergent subjectivities of the living and agencies of the dead
that together produce an alternative knowledge about death, and consequently life. This knowledge
contests the pathologization of the dead body and instead considers the potentially beneficial effects of
more engagement with death. Therefore, in arguing that deathscapes are spaces from which these
alternative death epistemologies can emerge, I echo challenges to dominant death care practices and
support emerging discourses that propose more robust communication about death and call for changes
to death care as a means toward more meaningful engagement in intimate deathscapes.


title: Lifestyle factors and neuroimaging metrics as predictors of cognitive performance in healthy aging

subject:
aging
cognitive maintenance
neuroimaging
memory
lifestyle

abstract:
Despite all the advances made in health-related and psychological sciences, advancing age continues to be accompanied by cognitive decline. Aging is usually associated with major changes in the structure and functioning of the brain that lead to impairments in multiple cognitive functions. The trajectories of age-related effects on the brain and cognition exhibit considerable differences across cognitive domains and across individuals, and investigating approaches and factors that might prevent brain and cognitive decline during aging is considered a topic of great scientific and public health relevance. The overall goal of this thesis was to evaluate age-related differences in brain structure and functional connectivity to further our understanding of the neural mechanisms involved in age-related declines in cognition. This thesis also aimed to investigate the influence of lifestyle factors on age differences in cognition, and in that regard, I focused on the effects of sleep quality and physical activity on memory.
In Study 1, I assessed the impact of aging on grey matter volume of the medial temporal lobe MTL and prefrontal cortex PFC and compared the relative contributions of MTL and PFC structures to age differences in associative memory. My findings emphasize the critical role of the frontal lobes, and the control processes they subserve, in determining the detrimental effects of age on memory. Additionally, I observed that the relationship between frontal grey matter volume and memory was not moderated by age or sex, suggesting that greater volume in PFC structures relates to better memory performance across the lifespan and in both sexes. In Study 2, I assessed the effects of age on functional brain networks. Given the essential role of the arousal system (ARAS) in cortical activation and previous findings of disrupted ARAS functioning with age, I investigated the hypothesis that age-related changes in ARAS-cortical functional connectivity may contribute to commonly observed age-related differences in cortical connectivity. The findings of this study showed that the arousal system is functionally connected to widespread cortical regions and suggest that age differences in functional connectivity within the cortex may be driven by age-related changes in the brainstem and these altered connectivity patterns have important implications for cognitive health. In Study 3, I investigated the relationship between sleep quality, physical activity, and memory in middle-age and older adults, in addition to assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on participants’ mood and sleep quality. Our results showed that people who were more active reported better sleep quality and showed better memory, and better sleep quality was associated with better memory. Moreover, our findings also showed that some of the beneficial effects of physical activity on cognition are partially mediated by improved sleep. Additionally, this study indicated that the COVID-19 pandemic had a deleterious effect on people’s sleep quality and overall well-being.
Taken together, these studies suggest that aging is associated with disruptive effects on brain structure and function, and that these changes are associated with age-related cognitive decline. Additionally, our study supported the association between lifestyle factors, more specifically, sleep quality and physical activity, and cognitive performance during aging.


title: The Feasibility of Wearable Sensors for the Automation of Distal Upper Extremity Ergonomic  Assessment Tools

subject: Ergonomics, Electromyography, Wrist

abstract:
Work-related distal upper limb musculoskeletal disorders are costly conditions that many
companies and researchers spend significant resources on preventing. Ergonomic assessments
evaluate the risk of developing a work-related musculoskeletal disorder (WMSD) by quantifying
variables such as the force, repetition, and posture (among others) that the task requires. Accurate
and objective measurements of force and posture are challenging due to equipment and location
constraints. Wearable sensors like the Delsys Trigno Quattro combine inertial measurement units
(IMUs) and surface electromyography to solve collection difficulties. The purpose of this work
was to evaluate the joint angle estimation of IMUs and the relationship between sEMG and overall
task intensity throughout a controlled wrist motion. Using a 3 degrees-of-freedom wrist
manipulandum, the feasibility of a small, lightweight wearable was evaluated to collect accurate
wrist flexion and extension angles and to use sEMG to quantify task intensity. The task was a
repeated 95º arc in flexion/ extension with six combinations of wrist torques and grip requirements.
The mean wrist angle difference (throughout the range of motion) between the WristBot and the
IMU of 1.70° was not significant (p= 0.057); but significant differences existed throughout the
range of motion. The largest difference between the IMU and the WristBot was 10.7° at 40°
extension; this discrepancy is smaller than typical visual inspection joint angle estimate errors by
ergonomists of 15.6°. All sEMG metrics (flexor muscle root mean square (RMS), extensor muscle
RMS, mean RMS, integrated sEMG (iEMG), physiological cross-sectional area weighted RMS)
and ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) had significant regression results with the task intensity.
Variance in RPE was better explained by task intensity than the best sEMG metric (iEMG) with
R2 values of 0.35 and 0.21, respectively. Wearable sensors can be used in occupational settings to
increase the accuracy of postural assessments; additional research is required on relationships
between sEMG and task intensity to be used effectively in ergonomics. There is potential for
sEMG to be a powerful tool; however, the dynamic nature and combined exertion (grip and
flexion/ extension) make it difficult to quantify task intensity


title: A surface plasmon resonance investigation of the role of bilayer phospholipids in the binding and ligand interactions of the ⍺-tocopherol transfer protein.

subject:
Surface Plasmon Resonance
Phospholipids
⍺-tocopherol transfer protein.

abstract: Vitamins are, by definition, required for maintaining the health of the mammalian body. Vitamin E, which occurs in eight different forms, has a crucial function as an antioxidant protecting polyunsaturated fatty acids. Attributable to the occurrence of alpha-tocopherol transfer protein (a-TTP), RRR-a-tocopherol is the only form that is selectively retained in mammals. a-TTP aids in secreting the RRR-a-tocopherol from liver to the rest of the body. The mechanism of the a-TTP-mediated movement of a-tocopherol is not yet fully elucidated. The opening of a-TTP's binding pocket and subsequent release of a-tocopherol are made possible by a-TTP's interaction with PM residing phosphatidylinositols. K217, a crucial amino acid, is present in the positive surface patch of a-TTP, which is essential for orchestrating this interaction. Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) was employed in this study to examine the absorption and desorption of wild-type a-TTP and the mutated form K217A to tethered phospholipid vesicles. SPR spectroscopy illustrated the affinity of either protein when it was presented with one or both of its preferred ligands (a-tocopherol or phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate [PI(4,5)P2]) on tethered vesicles. Bovine serum albumin (BSA) was used to coat the side of the microcentrifuge tubes to mitigate protein loss that was discovered when protein was preincubated with its ligands. K217 was found to be instrumental in the binding of TTP to PIPs and the subsequent release of tocopherol. As K217A mutant had a lower adsorption to membranes containing PI(4,5)P2 vs wtTTP. It was determined that α-TTP binding to endosomal vesicles increased with increased concentration of the late endosome specific lipid bis(monoacylglycero)phosphate (BMP). Collections runs performed provided some evidence for the exchange of ligands when wtTTP was used but not for K217A. The results found in this work parallel literature findings and supplement the proposed mechanism of a α-TTP-mediated movement of α-tocopherol and PI(4,5)P2 in plasma membranes.


title: Does Cannabis Co-use Impact Tobacco Cessation of Treatment-Seeking Young Adults? A Secondary Analysis

subject:
tobacco
cannabis
young adult
cessation
nicotine replacement therapy

abstract:
Background. The impact of cannabis co-use on tobacco cessation is uncertain. This
study examined whether nonuse, less-than-daily, or daily co-use of cannabis is associated with tobacco cessation outcomes among treatment-seeking 18-to-29-year-old smokers.
Methods. Between 2013 and 2015, young adult Ontarians with no contraindications could use an online platform to order free, mailout, 8-week course of nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) with supplementary self-help materials. Of 23,312 visitors, 10,823 met residency and age eligibility criteria, 8,491 ordered their preferred product (patch or gum), and 1,573 completed baseline and 6-month follow-up self-report surveys. Past 30-day cannabis use was measured at baseline. Tobacco abstinence at follow-up was defined as continuous since estimated end of treatment; reduction was defined as smoking less than 50% of the baseline consumption. Attrition was associated with being unemployed, less educated, more nicotine dependent, and more likely to have a past year quit attempt.
Results. Continuous tobacco abstinence was achieved by 10.3% of less-than-daily cannabis users, but 16.2% of daily and 15.7% of non-cannabis users (ns). A binary logistic regression controlling for demographic characteristics, treatment use, nicotine dependence, cigarettes per day, past year quit attempt and alcohol use revealed less-than-daily cannabis use (AOR = .64, p < .05), but not daily cannabis use (AOR = 1.08, p > .05) reduced the odds of quitting compared to nonuse. No other variables influenced odds of abstinence. Of the 1,342 participants who did not achieve abstinence from tobacco, 20.2% of daily cannabis users, 23% of less-than-daily cannabis users, and 22.7% of nonusers reduced their tobacco consumption (ns). A binary logistic regression revealed greater odds of reduction for smokers who smoked less and had a past year quit attempt.
Conclusion. The pattern of results suggests less-than-daily, but not daily cannabis use may inhibit successful abstinence among treatment-seeking young adults accessing free NRT mailout programs. Programs operating with limited budgets and supplies of NRT may consider directing less-than-daily co-users to other interventions. Research could explore whether changes in frequency of cannabis use occur during treatment and impact outcomes, and whether reasons for or methods of cannabis use influence tobacco cessation outcomes.


title: Gen Z and Sustainable Diets: A Holistic Perspective.  Understanding Perceptions of and Engagement with the Social, Economic and Environmental Dimensions of a Sustainable Diet

contributor: Environmental Sustainability Research Centre

subject:
Gen Z
Sustainable Diets
Theory of Planned Behaviour

abstract: Current food production methods are causing wide scale degradation of the natural environment thus a shift towards more sustainable agricultural systems is essential in fighting the climate crisis. Understanding how Gen Z, a generation that will inherit the changing climate, relates to the social, economic and environmental aspects of a sustainable diet is important in ensuring they are aware how to make an impact with their dietary choices. This thesis aimed to gain a holistic understanding of Gen Z's perceptions of and engagement with sustainable diets. Two studies were conducted online, examining Canadian youth between the ages of 18-25. The first study took an exploratory approach, aiming to understand what a sustainable diet means to Gen Z in their own words. The second study took a predictive approach, aiming to quantify and understand Gen Z's action stages around a range of sustainable dietary behaviours, including the psychological and educational factors that influence their stage of change. Results from Study One highlighted that youth perceive behaviours centered around supporting their local community and reducing food waste to be effective for promoting a sustainable diet. In addition, over 60% of participants indicated that there were barriers preventing them from engaging in sustainable diets, such as cost. Results from Study Two revealed that a high food literacy score and a strong belief in the efficacy of a behaviour are the two most important predictors of being in an action stage for a range of sustainable dietary behaviours. Together these two studies provide a holistic overview of what sustainable diets mean to Gen Z, how they currently engage with sustainable diets, and ways to encourage action. The thesis also contributes to the scholarly literature on the use of  TTM and TPB in assessing the factors that influence engagement with sustainable dietary behaviours. It also offers practical recommendations on how our results can be used to shape policy, educational interventions and marketing towards Gen Z.


title: A Parent's Autoethnography: Examining My Experiences and Identity as Parent, Educator, and Researcher While Teaching Literacy to My Adolescent Sons Who Have Autism and Use Augmentative and Alternative Communication

subject: Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC)

subject: Autism

subject: Literacy

subject: Autoethnography

abstract:
This autoethnography was completed from my unique perspective as a mother to two adolescent
sons with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who have complex communication needs and use
augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) to communicate. Although literacy is a
human right (Ontario Human Rights Commission, 2022a), it often has been overlooked in my
sons’ self-contained classrooms in high school. As my sons’ parent and educator, I gathered my
reflections, observations, descriptions, journals, lesson plans, and artifacts to examine the
experiences I encountered in developing their literacy. Initially, I conducted a pilot project based
on Erickson and Koppenhaver’s (2007) Children With Disabilities: Reading and Writing the
Four Blocks® Way, the results of which guided my planning in teaching literacy with an
adaptation of the more recent Comprehensive Literacy for All: Teaching Students With
Significant Disabilities to Read and Write (Erickson & Koppenhaver, 2020). I coded by hand
each line of the collected data to extract categories and then streamline these into the meaningful
themes to respond to my two research questions: (a) What are the experiences of a parent
educator who has been teaching literacy awareness and skills to her adolescent sons who both
have autism and use AAC devices? (b) Does the experience shape her identity as a parent,
educator, and researcher? Thematic findings pertaining to the first question revealed experiences
related to planning and questioning and my own transformational learning and mindshift.
Thematic findings related to the second question include: Parental concerns; Educator:
advocating and imposter syndrome; Researcher: Lesson planning and questioning; and
Transformational learning and mindshift. Findings are discussed in light of the literature on
experiences of parents as educators of children with exceptionalities. The study also presents
implications for theory, practice, and research, as well as limitations and future directions.


title: Zinc – catalyzed reduction of N – heterocycles

subject: Zinc Hydroboration Hydrosilylation N-heterocycles

abstract:
Novel bidentate amine – imine, and amido – imine ligands were synthesized. The former species was reacted with ZnMe2 to generate zinc methyl complex. The compound was fully characterized by 1H NMR and X – ray spectroscopy. The zinc methyl complex demonstrated rather limited catalytic activity in hydroboration and hydrosilylation of N – heterocycles. Consequently, a new zinc hydride complex was synthesized using an amido – imine ligand as a precursor. A series of nitrogen heteroaromatics were successfully hydroborated using catalytic amounts of zinc hydride species. Deuterium – labeling experiments, and kinetic studies allowed to get insights into the reaction mechanism. It was proposed that the hydride transfer proceeds via a six – membered transition state orchestrated by the Lewis acidic zinc – hydride complex.
Another project was focused on the synthesis of a potentially redox “non – innocent” diimine ligand, using Arduengo’s diketone as the starting point. Attempts to install an imine moiety resulted in a surprising reaction outcome.


title: A Study of Retirement Transition and Fandom of Retired Hockey Players

subject:
Transition
Athlete Retirement Theory
Retirement
Engagement
Grounded Theory

abstract: The purpose of this study was to understand and explore the retirement transition of professional men’s hockey players. Specifically, the research examined the role athlete identity theory has this important period of their lives (Brewer et al., 1993). Previous research has heavily ignored studying former professional players and the sport of hockey, but while some similarities exist in the athletic transitions for all sports, the experiences of retired professional hockey players are not necessarily representative of all other sports (Andrijiw, 2010). The study showed the importance of preparing for retirement and how not doing such can lead to many difficulties (Knights et al., 2019). To fulfill this study’s purpose, a qualitative research design was constructed to study retired men’s professional hockey players. Participants (n=11) who had been retired for a for a minimum of three years were sampled. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, taking place either over the telephone or via virtual videoconferencing (Zoom), and then analyzed using a constructivist grounded theory approach (Charmaz, 2000). Four main categories arose, and within them, multiple sub-categories. These findings highlight the difficulties that can occur during the transitional years for a recently retired athlete, and how the athletic identity plays an important role in the process. This study provides a deeper theoretical understanding of the role the athletic identity has in the experiences retired hockey players have in their transition out of professional sport. The findings of this study could lead to continued awareness of these challenges so other athletes are aware of what might be in store for them in their retirements. Further research is necessary to continue to examine the uniqueness hockey retirement, as the challenges are far greater than many athletes realize.


title: Investigating A Moderated Mediation Model of The Impact of Personalized Message Appeal and Privacy Threat Extent on Consumer Behaviour

subject: personalization, privacy, privacy threat severity, privacy threat scope, privacy threat distance

abstract:
As electronic commerce is prevailing progressively, more personal data of customers is getting
shared with businesses since this information is an indispensable resource for effective
personalized advertising in ecommerce context. However, in the event of an information leakage,
this win-win strategy would be subject to change and demands precise employment of advertising
elements that does not escalate privacy distress among consumers. More specifically, building on
Conservation of Resources theory, this study proposes three dimensions for privacy threats and by
conducting three empirical experiments demonstrates that although rational and emotional
message appeals have similar impacts in high-personalized advertising messages, they play
different roles when various types of a privacy threat are announced to customers. Results prove
that customers’ psychological comfort mediates the relationship between high-personalized
advertising and consumer’s response to the advertising when privacy threat is high. Additionally,
when the perceived severity and distance of the announced privacy threat are high and low
respectively, high-personalized rational advertising message would lead to more psychological
comfort, while this holds true for emotional appeal when the perceived scope of the threat is high.
This study contributes to the literature on customers privacy by providing a better understanding
of the privacy threat construct and introduces and empirically examines a new boundary condition
in which the influence of message appeals in high-personalized advertising may differ across each
dimension of privacy threat.


title: Lithium and creatine supplementation, alone and in combination, for the promotion of adipose thermogenesis

subject: adipose thermogenesis lithium creatine obesity

abstract: Neutraceutical approaches to enhancing energy expenditure (EE) and adipose browning may provide a method of preventing obesity development. GSK3 has been identified as a negative regulator of UCP1. We have previously observed lithium, an inhibitor of GSK3, to increase UCP1 content and cellular respiration in 3T3-L1 adipocytes (0.5mM) and mice treated with 10mg/kg/day have increased EE, UCP1 and white adipose (WAT) multilocular phenotype. Creatine metabolism is also emerging as a critical regulator of adipose metabolism, and we have previously observed increased mitochondrial markers with creatine monohydrate supplementation. This study aimed to investigate the impact of supplemental lithium, creatine and their combination on EE and adipose tissue form and function. Male and female Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into four experimental groups for 6 weeks: (1) control, (2) lithium-supplemented (200 mg/L), (3) creatine-supplemented (5 g/L), (4) dual-supplemented (n=8 per group). All interventions increased EE and reduced body mass in males. In males, brown adipose (BAT) UCP1 was unaltered with lithium, however several mitochondrial and lipolytic markers were increased as well as inhibitory GSK3 serine9 phosphorylation. Creatine increased BAT UCP1 but had no effect on WAT thermogenic markers and lowered WAT mitochondrial and lipolytic markers. In females, none of the observed effects on EE, body weight and thermogenic proteins observed in males carried through to females. In female WAT, the treatments resulted in lower protein content of select mitochondrial and lipolytic proteins. Lithium supplementation was found to increase markers of BAT thermogenesis which likely contributes to the increased EE and reduced body mass in males. Creatine supplementation had a similar effect on EE and increased UCP1 protein content in the BAT of males. There was however no additive effect of the treatments, and all the results were independent of any evidence for a WAT browning/beinging effect suggesting that BAT is the main target of the treatments. None of the above observed effects of the treatments were translated to the females and could be, at least in part, due to sex differences in the adipose response to the treatments as GSK3 was differentially affected by lithium across sexes and depots.


title: The Effect Of Vibratory Noise Input On Postural Responses To An Unexpected Loss Of Balance

subject:
feet
vibratory noise input
postural responses
surface translation
vibration

abstract:
Vibratory noise input applied to the foot sole has been shown to improve static balance
control across various populations (i.e., younger adults, older adults, individuals with diabetic
neuropathy etc.). However, there is little research on whether vibratory noise improves reactive
balance control. This is concerning because falls typically occur when an individual is unable to
quickly recover from a loss to their balance. Therefore, the purpose of this thesis was to examine
whether vibratory noise input affects postural responses following an unexpected surface
translation. A secondary aim was to examine the effects of vibration on static balance
performance to replicate previous findings. Eighteen adults (10 females and 8 males) completed
six quiet standing trials and 28 surface translation trials. For all trials, participants stood barefoot,
while blindfolded and wearing headphones. Three vibrating elements were placed directly
underneath each foot (i.e., one each at the first metatarsal, fifth metatarsal and at the heel). For
each standing trial, participants were instructed to stand quietly. For each surface translation trial,
participants were instructed to recover their balance without stepping in response to a unexpected
surface translation. Participants were unaware of which trials did or did not have vibration
applied to the foot soles. Static and reactive balance control were quantified using various
kinematic, kinetic and electromyography (EMG) measures, while the ability to recover balance
was quantified through the measurement of EMG and body kinematics. Results indicated that
vibratory noise input did not influence most measures of static and reactive balance control. This
suggests that the application of vibratory noise input to the foot soles is not beneficial in younger
adults. Future studies should replicate this study with clinical populations to determine whether
the benefits of vibratory noise input are limited to individuals with worsened balance ability.


title: Diversifying Emergent Behaviours with Age-Layered MAP-Elites

subject: emergent behaviour, quality-diversity (qd), multi-dimensional archive of phenotypic elites (map-elites), age-layered population structure (alps), game-playing agents

abstract: Emergent behaviour can arise unexpectedly as a by-product of the complex interactions of an autonomous system, and with the increasing desire for such systems, emergent behaviour has become an important area of interest for AI research. One aspect of this research is in searching for a diverse set of emergent behaviours which not only provides a useful tool for finding unwanted emergent behaviour, but also in finding interesting emergent behaviour. The multi-dimensional archive of phenotypic elites (MAP-Elites) algorithm is a popular evolutionary algorithm which returns a highly diverse set of elite solutions at the end of a run. The population is separated into a grid-like feature space defined by a set of behaviour dimensions specified by the user where each cell of the grid corresponds to a unique behaviour combination. The algorithm is conceptually simple and effective at producing high-quality, diverse solutions, but it comes with a major limitation on its exploratory capabilities. With each additional behaviour, the set of solutions grows exponentially, making high-dimensional feature spaces infeasible. This thesis proposes an option for increasing behaviours with a novel Age-Layered MAP-Elites (ALME) algorithm where the population is separated into age layers and each layer has its own feature space. By using different behaviours in the different layers, the population migrates up through the layers experiencing selective pressure towards different behaviours. This algorithm is applied to a simulated intelligent agent environment to observe interesting emergent behaviours. It is observed that ALME is capable of producing a set of solutions with diversity in all behaviour dimensions while keeping the final population size low. It is also observed that ALME is capable of filling its top layer feature space more consistently than MAP-Elites with the same behaviour dimensions.


title: Examining Types and Performance of Urban Green Space: Case Studies of Toronto, Milan, and Isfahan

subject: Modern urbanization, sustainable cities, UGS typology, UGS performance variable, context.

abstract: Cities have significant impacts on sustainability and sustainable development. In the context of global development, especially in developing large metropolitan areas, the urban population is growing resulting in social and environmental challenges that threaten the sustainability of cities. One of the challenges of this modern urbanization addresses urban green spaces (UGS) regarding their quantity and performance. UGS are essential parts of urban areas lack of which can compromise urban ecology and human well-being. Enhancing UGS is an approach to overcome some of these challenges. Little research has been done on the UGS typologies and different variables affecting their performance, and also the literature on comparing this feature in hugely different contexts is missing. This paper intents to compare UGS categories in the three selected cases, which are the cities of Toronto (Canada), Milan (Italy), and Isfahan (Iran), and analyze their performance variables.


title: Urban forest management planning: A case study of municipalities in Southern Ontario

subject:
urban tree canopy (UTC)
urban forest management plan (UFMP)
criteria and indicators
strategies
implementation

abstract: This current study reviews urban forest management planning in Ontario through a sustainability lens. After clarifying key terms and concepts in the field of urban forestry, the paper moves towards an analysis of two urban forest management plans from municipalities in Ontario. This analysis was accomplished using a qualitative content analysis approach, where the content from two urban forest management plans was assessed against a framework that defines core principles of sustainable urban forest management. Key insights from this analysis are then identified and used to present a framework the Town of Lincoln can follow to develop an UFMP for their urban forest. The findings from this study found that municipalities have a strong desire to achieve sustainable urban forest management, but external challenges and internal limitations present barriers to achieve this.


title: Using Persistent Homology for Topological Analysis of Protein Interaction Network of Candida Antarctica Lipase B Molecular Dynamic Simulation Model

subject: Persistent Homology, Topological Data Analysis, Protein NEtwork

abstract:
In this work, we aim to examine the activity of one of the most efficient and commonly
used lipases, Candida Antarctica Lipase B (CalB), from the perspective of multiple
computational techniques. To this end, we first conduct a series of Molecular Dynam-
ics Simulations on CalB in different conditions to analyze the conformational changes
of the protein and probe its unusual high-temperature activity. Next, we build the
protein interaction network of amino acids for CalB to study pairwise interactions
between amino acids (nodes) and probe the protein in terms of statistical features of
links’ distribution. Finally, we employ an algebraic topology-based method to study
the protein interaction network from a broader perspective. The ”Persistent Homol-
ogy (PH) method” is then presented as a way to exceed pairwise interactions and
examine protein networks in terms of patterns of interaction between the nodes. Per-
sistent Homology studies the evolution of the protein interaction network’s topologi-
cal features (homology groups) in different states. Employing topological analysis, we
compare the active form of CalB at high temperatures to its inactive states to account
for possible topological contributions to the protein functionality. By discovering a
prominent 1-dimensional hole in the active form of the protein, we highlight the role
of higher-order interaction patterns in the network. Moreover, using the evolution of
topological features, we study topological changes in protein networks and show the
decline in the total number of 1-dimensional features as the protein loses activity and
compactness over time. Accordingly, we propose that the protein’s general conforma-
tional changes and three-dimensional structure are not the only facets contributing
to its active state. Instead, we suggest examining the topology of the protein inter-
action network, referred to as different dimensional holes of the networks, as a higher
dimensional analysis should be used to account for protein functionality. Hence, in
this work, we desire to present that one needs to consider topological features acting
as patterns of interaction between the components to study, examine or predict the
folding of polypeptide chains into active structures.


title: Rethinking Consumerism, Innovation and Tourism Sustainability in a Post-Viral World:  An Exploratory Study of PIRT Usage in Niagara's Geoparks

subject: Sustainability

subject: Consumption

subject: Covid-19

subject: Virtual tourism Innovation

abstract:
Tourism resilience in the face of a prevailing pandemic and accompanying global
uncertainties remains a concern to many stakeholders. A key area of interest for the
industry regards the pandemic's potential to influence change in people's consumption
patterns, possibly toward more sustainable, ethical, safe and technologically mediated
forms of tourism. Such pandemic-induced attitudinal changes can, in turn, affect how
tourism will be consumed in future. These changes may further translate into the need for
new exchange relationships, tourism experiences, resources, and innovations to aid
interactions between service providers (tour guides), tourists and destinations.
With the advent of technology-driven solutions for normalization during the
pandemic, some studies have predicted shifts from traditional long-haul travels to virtual
tourism as they are considered to be a safer, accessible, and ecologically friendly form of
tourism. This exploratory research, therefore, sought to unearth the influence of Covid-19
on Millennial students' preferences for virtual tours in the aftermath of the pandemic. The
objectives were to identify factors that can influence intentions for change in people's
tourism preferences based on their experience of the pandemic, to explore tourist
perceptions about the potential of virtual tour innovations like PIRTs to meet their future
preferences, and to investigate how this connection can translate into prospective models
in Niagara's geopark tourism sector.
Quantitative data was collected from 117 sampled students in the Brock University
community through an online questionnaire. The findings revealed that financial,
experiential, and ecological concerns are significant factors which will possibly influence
Millennials' travel patterns and their inclination to use PIRTS in the post-Covid era. Based
on these findings, suggestions are made on how smart tourism innovations such as PIRTs
can be harnessed as resilient alternatives to conventional tourism in Niagara Peninsula
Aspiring Global Geopark (NPAGG) destinations to promote socio-ecological wellbeing in
the region.


title: The Transition from Elementary to Secondary School: Lived Experiences of Grade 9 Students

subject: Adolescence Transition School Well-being Self-understanding

abstract: Emerging adolescence (12 to 15 years old) is a critical life period, as individuals experience many different changes in their social lives, which consequently impact their emotional self. Simply put, adolescent students experience many life transitions that can influence their emotional well-being. The purpose of this study was to explore adolescents’ perceptions of and lived experiences with their transition from elementary to secondary school. The research question that guided this study was: what are adolescents' perceptions about their experience of the transition from elementary (Grade 8) to secondary school (Grade 9)? This qualitative study collected data from three Grade 9 male students who were recruited from a private secondary school in Southern Ontario. As part of a survey, nine open-ended questions were answered by study participants in a virtual format. A thematic analysis revealed two main topics across participants’ experiences: social support and coping with stress. Findings revealed that adolescent males experienced academic, emotional, and social challenges in their transition from elementary and secondary school, and that emotional well-being plays an important role for this demographic during this transition. Overall, this study provides a novel and unique insight into adolescent males’ lived experiences during and their emotional well- being through the transition to secondary school. Future research and mental health programs should consider the importance of male adolescent perspectives during this educational transition and other schooling experiences.


title: Effects of Red Rooibos on Mandibular Bone Structure in Sprague-Dawley Rats at 4 Months Post-Lactation

subject:
Tea
Polyphenols
Bone
Mandible
Pregnancy and Lactation

abstract:
Physiological changes during pregnancy and lactation result in challenges to the maternal rodent skeleton. Red rooibos (RR) supplementation to rats was previously shown to support the recovery of tibia bone structure through to 4 months post-lactation.  Given the associations between oral and systemic health, this research used multiple ROIs within the mandible to determine: if there are differences in trabecular bone structure at 4 months post-lactation compared to the non-pregnant control;  the effects of a RR intervention administered from pre-pregnancy through 4 months post-lactation on trabecular bone structure compared to no RR intervention; and if measured outcomes are similar among groups regardless of the ROI studied. 6-week-old female Sprague-Dawley rats (n=42) were randomized to PREG TEA (pregnancy and lactation; supplemental level of RR in water ~2600 mg/kg body weight/day), PREG WAT (pregnancy and lactation; water), or GROWTH CON (non-pregnant control; water), bred at 8-weeks of age and maintained until 4 months post-lactation when mandibles were excised. Micro-computed tomography was used to measure bone structure at four ROIs: fixed shape or manually drawn ROI in molar 1 (M1) or molar 2 (M2) site. At M1, analyses using a fixed ROI demonstrated that PREG TEA had a higher bone volume fraction (p<0.05) and lower trabecular separation (p<0.05) compared to PREG WAT. This may be explained by the structural outcomes characterizing trabecular struts, in which degree of anisotropy was lower (p<0.05) in PREG WAT compared to GROWTH CON. Irrespective of whether the ROI was drawn manually or fixed, the PREG TEA group demonstrated a partial recovery as trabecular number, separation, and thickness were not significantly different from GROWTH CON (p>0.05), whereas PREG WAT had significantly lower (p<0.05) bone volume fraction and trabecular number than GROWTH CON. At M2, few significant
outcomes were observed regardless of ROI. This may be due to the lower amount of bone present at this site. Pregnancy and lactation resulted in deficits to mandible bone, but RR supplementation supported partial recovery, which aligns with previous findings for tibia.  Findings can inform future research about which mandible site to select to measure a response to a dietary intervention.


title: The time(s) of our lives: Exploring and opening up alternative temporalities through the experience of disability

subject: temporality disability memoirs parenting

abstract: The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand how some relate to time atypically and how, precisely through that relation, they help to disclose possibilities for alternative ways of being more generally. Both the COVID-19 pandemic as well as increasing threats of climate change have engendered an appreciation of the precariousness of our existence; in short, these crises have illuminated the inevitability of an uncertain future both immediately and in the long term. Despite the loom, the ways in which we live our lives in the dominant culture of Western society reflects a linear, future oriented temporality where able-bodied citizens often strive for progress and advancement, transformation, and ultimately mastery of the environment. Other temporalities exist, however, such as those shared by people whose bodily experiences construct their social realities in unconventional ways. Often it is their diagnosis that puts them out of line both with developmental time and fundamentally the neoliberal ethos of a productive life. This study strove to disrupt the domination of linear time and opposingly argued that these alternative relationships with time may be more well suited to the precarious nature of our lives. Guided by Rosemarie Garland-Thomson’s (2012) bioethical assertion that we might want to conserve rather than eliminate disability, I sought to uncover alternative temporalities in the hopes of disclosing their generative potential. Four memoirs written by parents of children with diverse disabilities were used as qualitative data to convey the experience of disability, temporalities and alternative ways of being in the world. The findings highlight opportunities for rethinking the ways in which we perceive and interact with time.


title: Relational Approach to the L-Fuzzy Concept Analysis

subject:
L-Fuzzy Concept Analysis
Attribute Implications
Many-valued Contexts
Algebraic-relational Approach
Objects Classification

abstract:
Modern industrial production systems benefit from the classification and processing of objects and their attributes. In general, the object classification procedure can coincide with vagueness. Vagueness is a common problem in object analysis that exists at various stages of classification, including ambiguity in input data, overlapping boundaries between classes or regions, and uncertainty in defining or extracting the properties and relationships of objects.
To manage the ambiguity mentioned in the classification of objects, using a framework for L-fuzzy relations, and displaying such uncertainties by it can be a solution. Obtaining the least unreliable and uncertain output associated with the original data is the main concern of this thesis.
Therefore, my general approach to this research can be categorized as follows:

We developed an L-Fuzzy Concept Analysis as a generalization of a regular Concept Analysis. We start our work by providing the input data. Data is stored in a table (database). The next step is the creation of the contexts and concepts from the given original data using some structures. In the next stage, rules, or patterns (Attribute Implications) from the data will be generated. This includes all rules and a minimal base of rules. All of them are using L-fuzziness due to uncertainty. This requires L-fuzzy relations that will be implemented as L -valued matrices. In the end, everything is nicely packed in a convenient application and implemented in Java programming language. Generally, our approach is done in an algebraic framework that covers both regular and L -Fuzzy FCA, simultaneously.
The tables we started with are already L-valued (not crisp) in our implementation. In other words, we work with the L-Fuzzy data directly. This is the idea here. We start with vague data.
In simple terms, the data is shown using L -valued tables (vague data) trying to relate objects with their attributes at the start of the implementation. Generating attribute implications from many-valued contexts by a relational theory is the purpose of this thesis, i.e, a range of degrees is used to indicate the relationship between objects and their properties. The smallest degree corresponds to the classical no and the greatest degree corresponds to the classical yes in the table.


title: Protein-Ligand Binding Affinity Directed Multi-Objective Drug Design Based on Fragment Representation Methods

subject:
drug design
multi-objective optimization
deep evolutionary learning
graph fragmentation
protein-ligand binding affinity

abstract: Drug discovery is a challenging process with a vast molecular space to be explored and numerous pharmacological properties to be appropriately considered. Among various drug design protocols, fragment-based drug design is an effective way of constraining the search space and better utilizing biologically active compounds. Motivated by fragment-based drug search for a given protein target and the emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) approaches in this field, this work advances the field of in silico drug design by (1) integrating a graph fragmentation-based deep generative model with a deep evolutionary learning process for large-scale multi-objective molecular optimization, and (2) applying protein-ligand binding affinity scores together with other desired physicochemical properties as objectives. Our experiments show that the proposed method can generate novel molecules with improved property values and binding affinities.


title: Improving Deep Exploration with Cost-Effective Geophysical Methods

subject: Geophysics Electromagnetics Open-source 3D-modelling Inversion

abstract: Subsurface exploration is rapidly changing and ‘easy to target’ deposits are depleting across the world. This reality has pushed exploration in two directions: re-evaluating known deposits and exploring greater depths. The goal of this thesis was to address these trends in a cost-effective manner. First, by combining geophysical, borehole, and open-source spatial data, a 3D model was synthesized for a volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS) deposit located in Nash Creek, NB. Evaluating this model showed a need for structural controls to better understand the genesis of the deposit. A lesser-known geophysical system, Extremely Low Frequency EM (ELF-EM), measures ~2km deep and can produce conductivity models. While perfect for Nash Creek, ELF lacked modern software support which limited the modelling that could be done. Using an open-source inversion package, a python script is presented with this thesis that runs inversions of tipper (ELF) data to produce 3D conductivity models. This new workflow was tested at the Key Anacon VMS deposit near Bathurst, NB. A 3D wireframe model derived from geophysical surveying and borehole logs was available to compare with the ELF-EM derived model at Key Anacon. While individual mineralized horizons could not be discerned, a ‘conductive envelope’ follows a very similar strike and dip to the wireframe model. Promising results from Key Anacon led to the re-interpretation of past ELF-EM surveys. The final section of this thesis revisits a survey in Burwash Landing, Yukon to compare conductivity modelling results. The Burwash Landing survey aimed to identify potential geothermal wells drilling sites along the Denali fault. The new 3D model showed a coherent fault trace along strike, as well as eliminated several anomalies the researchers in the original paper could not explain. This improved ELF-EM inversion workflow has greatly improved 3D modelling of deep conductivity contrasts. In future, the techniques outlined here can be applied to various exploration scenarios while following the current trends in exploration.