title: Telomere Length as a Biomarker of Aging and Disease

contributor:
Paré, Guillaume
Health Research Methodology

subject:
Telomere
Stroke
Myocardial Infarction
Diabetes
Aging
Cardiometabolic

abstract:
Background: Telomeres are repetitive, gene-poor regions that cap the ends of DNA and help to maintain chromosomal integrity. Their shortening is caused by inflammation and oxidative stress within the cellular environment and ultimately leads to cellular senescence.  Shortened leukocyte telomere length (LTL) is hypothesized to be a novel biomarker for age-related diseases and may therefore be useful in the prediction of cardiometabolic outcomes above conventional risk factors.
Methods: A systematic review and meta-analysis was undertaken to summarize existing literature on the association between LTL and myocardial infarction (MI), stroke, and type 2 diabetes (T2D). MEDLINE (1966–present), and EMBASE (1980-present) were last searched on September 9th 2013.  Studies were combined using the generic inverse variance method and both fixed and random effects models. Additionally, LTL was measured in 3972 MI patients and 4321 controls from an international study on risk factors for MI (INTERHEART), and 8635 participants from an epidemiological study on dysglycemia and T2D (EpiDREAM) prospectively followed (approximately 3.5 years) for incident cardiometabolic events.
Results: Based on current literature, a 1-standard deviation decrease in LTL was significantly associated with stroke (OR=1.21, 95% CI=1.06-1.37; I2=61%), myocardial infarction (OR=1.24, 95% CI=1.04-1.47; I2=68%), and type 2 diabetes (OR=1.37, 95% CI=1.10-1.72; I2=91%). Stratification by measurement technique, study design, study size, and ethnicity explained heterogeneity in certain cardiometabolic outcomes. Within INTERHEART participants, a 1 unit decrease in LTL was associated with an increased risk of MI (OR=2.17, 95% CI=1.74-2.72). Effect estimates were consistent across all ethnic groups (p=0.19). In EpiDREAM a significant association between LTL and T2D or incident cardiometabolic outcomes was not observed.
Conclusion: Telomere length appears to be a marker for MI above conventional risk factors. Further research is needed to explain existing heterogeneity in the literature with respect to LTL and T2D.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Master of Science (MSc)


title: UNDERSTANDING THE ACTIVATION OF BACTERIAL PROTEASE CLPP BY ACYLDEPSIPEPTIDE ANTIBIOTIC

contributor:
Ortega, Joaquin
Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences

subject: ADEP, ClpP, ClpAP, Axial channel, ATP-independent proteolysis

abstract: Acyldepsipeptide (ADEP1) is an antibiotic that binds to Escherichia coli ClpP, mimicking the interaction that the protease typically establishes with ClpA/ClpX ATPases in bacterial cells. Binding of ADEP1 causes the N-terminal end of the ClpP to adopt a structured β-hairpin and triggers opening of the axial gate in the tetradecameric ClpP. Open conformation of the axial gate causes translocation of the substrates into the catalytic chamber of ClpP and the resultant uncontrolled proteolysis renders cellular death making ADEP1 a potent antibiotic. Our current understanding about the ADEP1-induced open conformation of the axial gate is limited. Based on the existing X-ray structures, it is unclear whether the mechanism of ADEP1-mediated activation of ClpP is conserved in Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. To understand the activation mechanism of ClpP by ADEP1, we obtained Bacillus subtilis ClpP variants with amino acid substitutions in the N-terminal region and tested the effect of these mutations on substrate translocation using fluorescence-based proteolytic assays and cryo-electron microscopy. We found that compromising the integrity of the β-hairpin adopted by the N-terminal region prevented translocation of the substrate into the catalytic chamber of B. subtilis ClpP. These results suggest that the structural requirements for a functional axial channel are conserved in Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. This study defines the structural requirements for ADEP1-mediated activation of the ClpP protease and serves as a model for the functioning of ClpP in the context of the ClpAP and ClpXP complexes.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Master of Science (MSc)


title: Identifying Determinants of Firefighter Work Health and Task Performance: Implications for Injury Management

contributor:
MacDermid, Joy C.
Rehabilitation Science

subject: Occupational Health, Firefighters, Ergonomics, Integrated Knowledge Translation

abstract:
Introduction: Applied occupational health research is complex and requires transparent communication between stakeholders to facilitate development and implementation of injury management strategies.  Firefighting as a physically demanding, male-dominant occupation provides a unique context to develop and implement injury management strategies.
Thesis Objectives: To investigate how individuals perform occupational tasks within a physically demanding occupational context considering the interrelationship between personal, task and environmental factors.  A secondary objective was to evaluate the research partnership as integrated knowledge translation using the Knowledge-to-Action (KTA) Framework.
Methods. A qualitative study was used to identify barriers and facilitators experienced by female firefighters.  Dartfish movement analysis software was adapted to analyze kinematics associated with firefighter tasks. Relative and absolute reliability was used to establish measurement properties of Dartfish methods. Regression models identified the relative importance of individual factors on firefighter task performance.  A case study of the research partnership using knowledge translation (KT) theory identified critical phases in developing occupational health research partnerships.
Results. The qualitative study identified sex/gender and task/environment effects on firefighter task performance and injury risk.  Tracking positional co-ordinate data using Dartfish demonstrated excellent relative reliability (ICC2,1 = 0.84-0.99) and lowest absolute reliability (SEM = 0.01m-0.11m).  Strength was the strongest independent predictor of firefighter task performance time where increasing strength was associated with faster time. The case study identified components of the KTA Action Cycle that supported and described collaborative occupational health research.
Conclusions. Although female firefighters share commonalities with their male counterparts, unique personal attributes and social experiences affect how they experience firefighting. Dartfish provides a reliable tool to measure kinematics in an applied context. Although refinements are required, recommendations for data collection and extraction using Dartfish in occupational contexts are provided. Occupational health research imbedded in KTA cycle confirms the importance of partnership with stakeholders to ensure the feasibility and relevance of the research.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Candidate in Philosophy


title: Advanced Control Methods for Torque Ripple Reduction and Performance Improvement in Switched Reluctance Motor Drives

contributor:
Emadi, Ali
Electrical and Computer Engineering

subject:
Switched reluctance motor drives
Advanced control methods

abstract:
In this thesis, advanced control methods are presented for torque ripple reduction and performance improvement in switched reluctance motor (SRM) drives.
Firstly, a comparative evaluation of power electronic converters including asymmetric, N+1, C dump, split AC, and split DC converters is presented for three-phase SRMs in terms of cost, efficiency and control performance.
Secondly, two methods are proposed using torque sharing function (TSF) concepts for torque ripple reduction of SRM over a wide speed range. An offline TSF is proposed to minimize the copper loss and the absolute rate of change of flux linkage (ARCFL) with a Tikhonov factor. Then an online TSF is proposed by adding a proportional and integral compensator with torque error to torque reference of the phase with lower ARCFL. Therefore, the total torque of online TSF is determined by the phase with lower ARCFL rather than the phase with higher ARCFL as in conventional TSFs. The maximum torque-ripple-free speed (TRFS) of the offline TSF and online TSF is validated to be 7 times and 10 times as high as the best case in these conventional TSFs, respectively.
Thirdly, two methods are proposed to eliminate mutual flux effect on rotor position estimation of SRM drives without a prior knowledge of mutual flux, one is the variable-hysteresis-band current control for the incoming-phase self-inductance estimation and the other is variable-sampling outgoing-phase self-inductance estimation. Compared with the conventional method which neglects the mutual flux effect, the proposed position estimation method demonstrates an improvement in position estimation accuracy by 2º.
Fourthly, a fixed-switching-frequency integral sliding mode current controller for SRM drives is presented, which demonstrates high dynamics, strong robustness and none steady-state error.
All the proposed control methods are verified by both simulations and experiments with a 2.3 kW, 6000 rpm, three-phase 12/8 SRM operating in both linear magnetic and saturated magnetic regions.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)


title: Angular Diversity Based Visible Light Positioning

contributor:
Hranilovic, Steve
Electrical and Computer Engineering

subject:
visible light positioning
visible light communications
indoor positioning

abstract:
Visible Light Positioning (VLP) uses modulated LED luminaries to help locate a
receiver inside a building. Indoor positioning is becoming an increasingly important
service, and visible light has many advantages over other technologies used in indoor
positioning systems (IPS). However existing VLP approaches have major drawbacks
in robustness that have hindered their ability to be commercially deployed.
This work proposes and demonstrates a new way of using light signals in an indoor
localization system, titled Angular Diversity Visible Light Positioning (AD-VLP).
AD-VLP uses optics at the transmitter to create a structured overlapping light pattern
that can be used for positioning. This method is shown to have several advantages
over existing VLP approaches, including increased robustness over intensity based
techniques while still using a single element receiver.
This work also includes an experimental implementation of the proposed AD-VLP
system using existing mobile device technology. The experiments prove that
sub-meter accuracy is obtainable, even when the receiver is oriented away from the
transmitter.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Master of Applied Science (MASc)


title: CHARACTERIZING THE STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION OF A NOVEL NUCLEOID-ASSOCIATED PROTEIN sIHF

contributor:
Guarné, Alba
Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences

subject:
nucleoid-associated proteins
DNA binding protein
X-ray crystallography
Streptomyces coelicolor
small-angle X-ray scattering

abstract: All living organisms must organize their genome so that it not only fits within the cell, but remains accessible for cellular processes. In bacteria, an arsenal of nucleoid-associated proteins contributes to chromosome condensation. A novel nucleoid-associated protein was recently discovered in actinobacteria, and is essential in Mycobacterium. It was classified as an integration host factor protein (IHF); however, it does not share sequence or structural homology with the well characterized Escherichia coli IHF. In this study, we characterize the structure and function of Streptomyces coelicolor IHF (sIHF). We have used a combination of biochemistry and structural biology to characterize the role of sIHF in DNA binding and DNA topology. We have solved crystal structures of sIHF bound to various double-stranded DNA substrates, and show that sIHF is able to contact DNA at multiple surfaces. Furthermore, sIHF inhibits the activity of TopA, impacting DNA topology in vitro. Our work demonstrates that sIHF is a novel nucleoid-associated protein with key roles in condensing DNA. We believe that sIHF performs its function by differentially using multiple nucleic-acid binding surfaces. Further characterization is required to confirm this hypothesis in vivo. Given that the Mycobacterium homolog of sIHF (mIHF) is essential, our studies lay the foundation to explore novel drug targets for Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium leprae.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Master of Science (MSc)

abstract: Unconstrained, the bacterial genome exceeds the size of the cell by 1 000- 10 000 times; thus, compacting it into a condensed structure, known as the nucleoid, is essential for life.  An arsenal of nucleoid-associated proteins contributes to this process. In this study, we characterize the structure and function of a novel nucleoid–associated protein from the soil dwelling organism Streptomyces coelicolor. We used a combination of genetics, biochemistry, and structural biology to characterize the role of this protein in DNA binding and nucleoid organization. Since this protein is also found in important human pathogens, this work lays the foundation to explore the use of nucleoid-associated proteins as antimicrobial drug targets.


title: INCREASING INDEPENDENT PRACTICE EARLY POST-STROKE TO ENHANCE UPPER EXTREMITY FUNCTION: A GLOBAL APPROACH

title: A GLOBAL APPROACH TO UPPER EXTREMITY IMPAIRMENT POST-STROKE

contributor:
Wishart, Laurie
Rehabilitation Science

subject:
stroke rehabilitation
upper extremity

abstract:
Introduction
Post-stroke activity limitation secondary to upper-extremity motor impairment is common, and increasing. We do not currently have effective, globally applicable interventions to improve activity limitation. The burden of post-stroke disability is rising in low and middle-income countries, resulting in an immediate need for effective interventions that can be implemented throughout the world.
Purpose
This program of research was structured to address three important questions, 1) In all parts of the world, do people with stroke experience similar degrees of activity limitation secondary to upper extremity motor impairment? 2) Are there simple interventions that can be initiated by health care workers, but autonomously sustained by people with stroke, that can improve activity limitation secondary to upper extremity motor impairment? and 3) Are these interventions effective?
Methods
To address the first question, data from an international stroke study were used to quantify the amount of post-stroke upper extremity weakness and characterize the people. For the second question, a systematic review was conducted to identify current evidence on the effectiveness of simple, task-based practice. To address the third question a protocol was developed for an outcome study.
Results
Post-stroke upper extremity weakness is common throughout the world, ranging from 67.3% of those with stroke in high-income countries to 97.3% in low-income countries. There is inconclusive, but promising evidence on the effectiveness of simple, task-based practice to improve upper-extremity motor impairment. It is likely that multiple interventions are needed to address the problem and a two-by-two factorial design trial, evaluating simple, task-based practice or a motor enhancing pharmacological agent, implemented in all regions of the world, would be a novel and efficient means of addressing the question.
Conclusions
The answers to these questions have provided novel information that is a required next step to providing effective, globally applicable interventions for people with stroke.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

abstract: After having a stroke, more than half the people have difficulty moving their arm. This difficulty often results in difficulties doing every day tasks. Most of the information on what happens after stroke comes from developed countries and we do not know if these problems exist to the same extent in developed countries. We also do not know the most effective interventions to help improve arm function after stroke. Possible interventions could include rehabilitation strategies, drugs or a combination of both. This thesis describes the amount of arm weakness after stroke throughout the world, looks at the evidence for a simple intervention that could be used throughout the world, and describes the design of study that could look at the effectiveness of both rehabilitation and drug interventions throughout the world. This work provides information on the globally applicable interventions to improve arm function after stroke, which has not been considered in the literature to date.


title: With Cap and Gown, Booted and Spurred: The University Experience at Oxford and Cambridge and the Transmission of Masculine Culture in Early Stuart England, 1603-1660

contributor:
Alsop, J.D.
History

subject:
Oxford, Cambridge Universities
16th-17th centuries
English culture
masculinity

abstract:
This thesis deals with the institutional histories of Oxford and Cambridge Universities in
the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries in an attempt to establish their role within the
English state and within English culture in the Early Modem period. It seeks to explain
the complex relationship between social definitions of masculinity and the translation of
those conceptions via the universities to a student population whose influence and power upon their leaving of those precincts would be felt throughout the nation. It further argues that education at Oxford or Cambridge was not relegated to the college halls alone, but was the result of both official and unofficial instruction conducted both within and without the university setting.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Master of Arts (MA)


title: The Theme of Transcendence in Georg Simmel's Social Theory

contributor:
Hornosty, Roy W.
Sociology

subject: Roy Hornosty doctoral dissertation critique

subject: sociology

subject: second generation sociologists

subject: Durkheim, Weber, Simmel, Pareto

abstract:
This thesis is both an extension and a critique of Roy Hornosty's doctoral dissertation. In " Conceptions of Human Nature in the Sociological Tradition", Hornosty traces the development and career of two distinct concepts of human nature as they are reflected in sociological theory. Hornosty argues that sociology originally emerged with two competing ideas of man, one stressing the logical priority of the individual, and the other, the predominance of the collective.

In the course of his study, Hornosty discusses what he refers to as the second generation of European sociologists, comprised suggests of Durkheim, Weber, Simmel that each theorist of this and Pareto. Hornosty generation describes a conception of human nature based on an 'inner dialectic' between the individual, who seeks independent self-actualization, over and against the demands of the collective, which develops according to laws which are often in stark contrast to the dictates of individuality.

One chapter of Hornosty's study is devoted to Georg Simmel's sociological thought. In it, Hornosty argues that Simmel views man in terms of an antinomy between social and individual forces, locked in an irreconcilable struggle. For Simmel, Hornosty believes, man is both social and, at the same time, independent of society, although never completely. According to Hornosty's interpretation of Simmel, this dialectic is an ineradicable condition of mankind.

The present study focuses entirely on the writings of Georg Simmel. The author argues that while an undeniable dialectic exists between the individual and society, it is by no means irreconcilable as Hornosty and others have suggested. In fact, it will be argued that Simmel saw ways in which the dichotomous relationship between the individual and the collective could be overcome.

The author contends that Simmel, influenced by Nietzsche's philosophy, details avenues of consequence removed from the sociological nexus. By focusing on Simmel 's four categories of human experience, two of which are completely removed from the social paradigm, this thesis outlines Simmel's attempt to find a manner in which certain talented individuals could transcend the dichotomy between the individual and society through devotion to objective goals which lie beyond the dialectic.

The author suggests that Simmel in fact reserves his highest praise for the creative genius, the individual able to tolerate, and in turn, transcend the tensions of his or her existence in the name of a higher good, whether artistic or intellectual. By outlining Simmel's preoccupation with the creative process, and his search for viable expressions of individuality removed from society, the author attempts to illustrate the limitations of the sociological paradigm.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Master of Arts (MA)


title: Characterization of the Functional Roles of Histidine-Rich Glycoprotein in Coagulation

contributor: Medical Sciences (Thrombosis & Haemostasis & Atherosclerosis)

subject:
Coagulation
Thrombosis
Histidine-rich glycoprotein
Nucleic acids
Fibrinogen
Factor XII
Batroxobin
Thrombin

abstract:
Histidine-rich glycoprotein (HRG) is a protein present in plasma at ~ 2 μM, but whose physiologic function is unclear. HRG is a multi-domain protein that contains a unique histidine-rich core that interacts with zinc and hydrogen ions to modulate ligand binding. Due to its modular structure and capacity to sense local changes in zinc and pH, HRG binds several ligands including complement proteins, phospholipids, DNA, fibrin(ogen), heparin, factor (F) XIIa and plasmin. Thus, it is hypothesized that HRG functions as an accessory or adapter protein that bridges different ligands together. Despite the array of ligands and potential involvement in immunity, angiogenesis, coagulation and fibrinolysis, no clear role for HRG has emerged. Congenital HRG deficiency in humans has been associated with a variable phenotype; some investigators report increased susceptibility to thrombosis while others do not. However, studies in HRG-deficient mice reveal that HRG attenuates coagulation.
	Coagulation is initiated via the intrinsic (or contact) and extrinsic (or tissue factor) pathways and culminates in the generation of thrombin. Thrombin catalyzes the conversion of fibrinogen into a fibrin meshwork that reinforces the platelet plug at sites of vascular injury. There are two circulating isoforms of fibrinogen that differ with respect to their γ-chains. Bulk fibrinogen is composed of a pair of γA-chains, and is designated γA/γA-fibrinogen, whereas a minor variant contains a γA-chain and a γʹ-chain, and is designated γA/γʹ-fibrinogen. The γʹ-chain contains an anionic 20-amino acid residue extension at its COOH-terminus, which provides an accessory binding site for thrombin. Thrombin possesses an anion binding pocket termed exosite II that flanks the active site and mediates its interaction with the γʹ-chain of fibrinogen. Exosite II is an evolutionary feature that is unique to thrombin, as this region is not observed on the prototypic serine protease trypsin or on other defibrinogenating enzymes from snake venom such as batroxobin. Although the physiologic function of the thrombin-γʹ-chain interaction is unclear, it is proposed that this interaction modulates thrombin’s activity when it is bound to fibrin clots. Consistent with this, we show that γA/γʹ-fibrin attenuates thrombin’s capacity to promote clot expansion compared with thrombin bound to γA/γA-fibrin clots, thereby demonstrating that γA/γʹ-fibrin attenuates thrombin’s activity. In the presence of physiologic concentrations of zinc, HRG binds the γʹ-chain of fibrino(gen) and competes with thrombin for binding, thereby suggesting that HRG is a unique modulator of thrombin activity on fibrin clots. Platelets store zinc and HRG in their α-granules and release both components when they undergo activation at sites of injury, which localizes HRG in the vicinity of fibrin-bound thrombin.
Consistent with the role of HRG in modulating coagulation, we also show that HRG attenuates contact activation of coagulation, but has no impact on clotting initiated by the extrinsic pathway. The intrinsic pathway is initiated when FXII is activated by polyanions such as RNA and DNA, which are released into the blood after cellular activation, injury or death. FXIIa activates FXI, thereby propagating coagulation and leading to thrombin generation and fibrin formation. Recently, studies using rodent, rabbit and non-human primate models of thrombosis have shown that knock down of FXII or FXI with antisense oligonucleotides or blocking FXIIa or FXIa activity with inhibitors attenuates thrombosis, while having a minimal impact on hemostasis. With increasing evidence that the intrinsic pathway plays an important role in thrombosis, FXII and FXI have emerged as prominent targets for new anticoagulants. However, little is known about how the intrinsic pathway is regulated, so as to prevent uncontrolled clotting.
     HRG attenuates the intrinsic pathway by binding both FXIIa and the contact activators, RNA and DNA. By binding nucleic acids, HRG is localized to the site of contact activation, where it is poised to inhibit FXIIa. HRG binds to an allosteric region on FXIIa and attenuates its capacity to feedback activate FXII and to activate FXI, thereby inhibiting the initiating steps of contact activation. In addition, HRG attenuates the cofactor role of RNA and DNA in thrombin activation of FXI, which is an important feedback step. With the capacity to modulate multiple steps in the intrinsic pathway, HRG likely serves as a dynamic regulator of contact activation.
     We tested our hypothesis that HRG is a novel inhibitor of the intrinsic pathway in a murine model of FeCl3-induced arterial injury. HRG-deficient mice exhibit accelerated thrombosis compared with wild type controls, an effect that was abolished by repletion with human HRG. Therefore, these studies indicate that HRG deficiency induces a prothrombotic phenotype. Consistent with the role of HRG as a modulator of the intrinsic pathway, we show that thrombosis after the FeCl3-induced arterial injury is attenuated by administration of RNase, but not DNase, or by knock down of FXII, but not FVII. Therefore, these studies show that thrombosis in this model is induced by RNA and occurs in a FXII-dependent manner. Furthermore, blood loss after tail tip amputation is similar in HRG-deficient and wild type mice, demonstrating that HRG does not modulate hemostasis. Therefore, these studies suggest that HRG is a dynamic regulator of the intrinsic pathway, and acts as a molecular brake to limit procoagulant stimuli.
	The observations that HRG binds fibrin(ogen), FXIIa and nucleic acids and modulates the thrombin-γʹ-interaction and intrinsic pathway of coagulation, suggest that HRG is a key regulator of coagulation. HRG, the contact system and fibrin are also important in the innate immune response, demonstrating that the interaction of HRG with these factors may provide a unique link between coagulation and immunity. Since immune cells and the coagulation system contribute to both deep vein thrombosis and sepsis, further characterization of the role of HRG in these conditions will contribute to a better understanding of the pathophysiological role of HRG, and may identify novel therapeutic directions.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)


title: The Lotus and the Chariot: A Study of the Root Meaning of Dharma in the Indian Religious Tradition

subject: concept dharma meaning

abstract:
The subject of this dissertation is the concept of dharma in the Indian Religious Tradition. It seeks to validate for the understanding of an outsider to the Tradition, the claim that dharma is most authoritatively known in Veda. To examine the claim, we look at the family of dharma uses in the Rg Veda to establish a core or root meaning of the concept which underlies and gives coherence to the diverse particular usages of the term. Subsequently, we examine the uses of dharma in the Bhagavad Gita in order to know whether the root or core meaning demonstrates continuity within a smrti text.

The thesis argues that there is a root meaning to dharma established in the Rs Veda which has a demonstrable continuity in the Bhagavad Gita. That root meaning is expressed as: the upholding of the orderly relatedness of all that is. Subsequent to the textual exegesis, very brief consideration is given to the implications of the continuity of dharma's root or core meaning for the scholarly question of continuity and change in the Indian Religious Tradition.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)


title: From Nietzsche to Baudrillard: Semiological Absorption and Seductive Attunement

contributor:
Sassen, B.
Philosophy

subject:
Baudrillard
sociological approaches

abstract:
In contrast to the plethora of sociological interpretations that read Baudrillard's
corpus of works through the themes that he analyzed in the late '60s and '70s, this work attempts to re-read Baudrillard through his recent publications. Sociological approaches center on a Marxist critique of capitalism and on the themes of simulation and simulacra. They therefore tend to see Baudrillard's recent work as "unreadable," for the latter does not offer an alternative social position. A philosophical reading of Baudrillard through his latest work does not presuppose that Baudrillard is to offer an alternative social position, hence this reading is capable of questioning the basis of sociological approaches to Baudrillard.

This reading attempts to disclose the themes of simulation and seduction as a
critique of perspectivism that brings forth semiological and seductive forms of postperspectivism. The uncovering of the grounds of perspectivism goes hand-in-hand with interpreting semiological and fatal strategies not as historical but as genealogical
undertakings. This approach presupposes a re-placement ofBaudrillard's body of works
from a Marxist to a Nietzschean context. Within this context fatal strategy is no longer
seen as a reversal of the semiological strategy or a form of ressentiment directed at
"subjective" strategies, but rather as a further genealogical "archaeology" of simulacra.
When Baudrillard's recent works are seen as "raw phenomenology," they are capable of offering new conceptions of subjectivity, reduction, reference, and meaning. However, a phenomenological reading of fatal strategy calls for the abandonment of the Baudrillardian "wager" that only opposes the appearance of an event to its meaning. Instead of a mere opposition, fatal strategy is to uncover non-meaning as the fundamenlal presupposition of meaning. If this step is taken, fatal strategy is no longer an alternative social position or a reversal of "metaphysics of presence," but rather a form of thinking that comes to terms with the infinity and anonymity of language.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Master of Arts (MA)


title: Berger's Dual-Citizenship Approach to Religion

contributor:
Valiée, Gérard
Greenspan, Louis
Religious Sciences

subject:
reglious values
dual-citizenship approach
Peter Berger

abstract:
Peter Berger's commitment to religious values is remarkable if you consider that he is also committed to the "impossible struggle" for "valuefree research concerning mankind's ultimate values." Against "heartless observers" or technocrats, Berger argues (using sociology of knowledge,) that it is impossible to divorce oneself from the Lebenswelt, the world of values. Against ideologues on the other hand, he contends that one"s engagement to personal values need not prevent one from attempting to understand the world objectively. Against technocrats and ideologues Berger holds out an approach to religion which calls for the practice of "dual-citizenship." This approach enables one to be academically credible and responsive to the political, religious and scientific concerns of our epoch.

My thesis centers on Berger's dual-citizenship approach to religion. Guided by the task of determining whether Berger's dual-citizenship constitutes an ''impossible struggle" or a workable model for the study of religion, the first part is devoted to explaining what dual-citizenship entails. The second part tests the coherence of Berger's approach. Rather than proposing a new method for the study of religion, my thesis has the more modest aim of unpacking and testing an already established approach in the field, namaly that of Peter Berger.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)


title: A Discourse on Education: The Renaissance Connection

contributor:
Ferns, John H.
Silcox, Mary V.
English

subject:
modern pedagogy
Ontario
education
Frankenstein

abstract: The Subject of this thesis is English/Teaching.

abstract:
This project examines modem pedagogy in Ontario in the critical light of traditions
established by Renaissance Humanist thinkers on education. From the Renaissance to the present day, the project highlights aspects and theories of education in the nineteenth century, with special emphasis on Mary Shelley's cautionary tale, Frankenstein.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Master of Arts (MA)


title: The Synoptic Titles for Jesus

contributor:
Porter, Stanley E.
Christian Studies

subject:
synoptic titles
Jesus
Gospel
specific purposes

abstract:
This thesis consists of four chapters that concentrate on seven synoptic titles
attributed to Jesus. Chapter one is an historical survey of how the synoptic Gospels have been studied from the second-century until today that specifically focuses on Augustine, Griesbach and the Two-Source hypotheses, Markan priority and redaction criticism. Chapter two is a redaction-critical survey that outlines additions, omissions and alterations made to the synoptic Titles Teacher, Son of Man, Lord, Messiah, Son of God, Son of David and Master. This chapter demonstrates that each Gospel author, for the needs of a new audience or different situation/audience, redacted the traditional material behind the Gospelsincluding these titles. Chapter three specifically focuses on the narrative and exegetical value of three titles out of the seven titles (Teacher, Lord and Master). This chapter proposes that each title is used for specific purposes and in specific contexts to reveal unique theological contributions made by each synoptic evangelist. In chapter four, the results and conclusions from chapters two and three are applied to modem English translations questioning if translators do justice to Matthew, Mark and Luke's creativity. This chapter questions if Matthew's, Mark's and Luke's tendencies in the handling of traditional material are reflected in these translations or do English translations interpret, translate and/or redact in their own unique way(s)? To conclude, this thesis proposes, that, just as Matthew, Mark and Luke redacted certain titles for their new audience and situation, hermeneutically, Christians today must consider the relevance of the Gospel for their "new" audience and situation.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Master of Arts (MA)


title: A COMPARISON OF DIFFERENT WORKFLOW MODELING TOOLS: CHOOSING THE MOST ACCURATE TOOL FOR DESIGNING A RELIABLE HEALTHCARE SYSTEM

contributor:
Sekerinski, Emil
eHealth

abstract:
The growth of software use in healthcare increases the need for designing and developing accurate systems, which raises our need to find precise tools for designing the digital flow of lab order process.
This study consists of two main parts: first, determining the best BPM (Business Process Management) tool for designing digital lab order process flows. The chosen tool was used to design an improved digital lab order process flow for Humber River Hospital’s lab order process in a highly advanced way; the new workflow tool enables the workflow process developer to better represent and analyze the process tasks based on the needs of the process flow.
In the first part of the study, we selected 15 open source workflow tools, and filtered them based on certain criteria, which include the availability of: analysis done by the tool, tool features, support, a graphical editor, an execution engine, and simulation. We chose four tools (YAWL, Together, Bonitasoft, and NOVA) that satisfied these criteria.

We evaluated each tool based on the outcome of the new workflow design by using the four selected workflow tools separately to design the new workflow process.  We evaluated the tools by following a mixed qualitative and quantitative methodology by collecting qualitative data supported by the quantitative data generated by the tools.
Based on results from following the mixed methodology, as well as the results that were derived from studying the designated workflow process future lab ordering designing outcomes – we recommend YAWL (Yet Another Workflow Language) as the best workflow tool to use in the design of the new digital  lab order process flow design.
In the second part of the study we examined the current  paper-based lab order process at Humber River Hospital; this included analyzing the process information to define the crucial points of errors in the process, bottlenecks of the process, most time consuming process tasks, and the main process points where improvements could be applied. The last part of part two was the design of a new fast and reliable digital lab order process system that used the Business Process Modeling (BPM) software tool selected in the second part of the thesis.
During the research we collected lab order process data and used a qualitative methodology to analyze the data and find the critical phases in the current process in order to improve the new digital lab order process flow design.
The results of this research will help in the development of future eHealth system processes by providing valuable data and recommending the right tool for designing a new process system. The new digital lab order process flow design will save healthcare time and money in addition to contributing to patient satisfaction. It will also provide more security to patient information than the old paper-based system. Notably, the chosen workflow tool has unique design features and components, which allow tool users to manage, control, and finish a successful workflow design efficiently, resulting in reliable digital lab order process flow design.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Master of Science (MSc)


title: Moral Judgment: Surveillance Cues Debunked

contributor:
Andrews, Paul
Psychology

subject:
surveillance cues
moral judgment
cues of being watched
meta-analysis
eyespots
eye images
watching eyes
observation cues
generosity
moral condemnation

abstract:
Several studies have seemingly demonstrated that artificial surveillance cues, such as images of watching eyes, increase prosocial behaviour. One of these studies investigated the effect of observation cues on moral judgment (Bourrat et al., 2011). Participants rated the moral acceptability of two misdeeds: falsifying information on a resume and keeping the cash found in a lost wallet. The moral acceptability ratings were lower for participants who were presented with an image of watching eyes than they were for participants exposed to a control image of flowers. The authors suggested that false cues of being watched triggered evolved cognitive mechanisms for recognizing when one is being observed. These mechanisms may have driven the cued participants to behave in a way that would have protected their reputations if they really had been watched; that is, by expressing disapproval of immoral behaviour. Inspired by Bourrat et al., I conducted an experiment investigating the effect of surveillance cues on self-rated positive traits, religiosity, and moral judgment. I found no evidence for an effect on any of these variables, including moral judgment. I conducted 3 more experiments, each increasingly similar in design to Bourrat et al., to determine the reason for the discrepancy in our results. None of my experiments replicated the surveillance cue effect. I suggest the most likely explanation is that Bourrat et al. obtained a false positive. My experimental results call into question the effect of surveillance cues on moral judgment; thus, it is appropriate to be skeptical of surveillance
cues generally. I conducted a meta-analysis of studies investigating the effect of surveillance cues on generosity. The resulting funnel plot is consistent with publication bias in favour of significant results; it may also indicate that the surveillance cue effect on generosity, though perhaps a real phenomenon, is smaller than the literature implies.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Master of Science (MSc)


title: The Politics of (Not) Being Tourable: Landscapes, workers, and the production of touristic mobility

contributor: Political Science - International Relations

subject: transnational mobility, tourism, borders, neoliberalism, development, Indigenous peoples, workers, landscapes,

abstract:
This dissertation explores the importance of tourism and tourability to contemporary global politics. I argue that the global movement of tourists (declared by the UN World Tourism Organization as a ‘right to tour’) is made possible in part through what I call the production of tourability – the capacity of particular places, bodies, or experiences to be toured and to be seen as worthy of touring. Rather than a natural result of difference, tourability is a political process that involves contestations over what and who counts, how space should be organized, and how and what histories are told. I show that touristic movement is based on a specifically neoliberal mobility – a form of free movement that lays claim to ‘borderlessness’ and infinite access along lines eerily familiar to those claimed by contemporary capital – and use this to argue that the work of making places tourable is also designed in specific ways to facilitate this kind of movement. Thus, being tourable is part of the transnational politics of contemporary governance and is useful to constructing the boundaries of (in)appropriate movement.
At the same time, the continual expansion of tourism across the Global South has given ‘being tourable’ important economic and political stakes for life, subjectivity, and land. To understand the interweaving of these stakes and the transnational mobility being produced, I examine two sites where tourability has been thrown into question by those whose work produces it. The first is situated at the tri-border region of the Colombian Amazon on the shores between Brazil and Peru that has, in recent years, seen a boom of tourism development and visitors. This boom has largely operated on the neoliberal designs of movement and contemporary development that promote access to tourable places as an enactment of freedom. Against this backdrop, a story circulating in early 2011 highlighted the decision by members of Nazaret, an indigenous community along the river, to refuse tourists and tour companies entry. Taking up this small and messy act, I interrogate around this refusal to examine how touristic mobility is being made (im)possible in this small corner of the Amazon. The second site is a tour designed by the indigenous Hñähñu community of El Alberto, Mexico, that takes participants on a simulated border-crossing to experience, as so many of these community members have, what it is like to cross the U.S.-Mexico border as an undocumented migrant. Impressive, provocative, complex, and controversial, this tour throws into question both how mobilities are addressed within touristic sites and the creative potential of those who are toured to make use of its practices in ways that further other aims. Using concepts of work, landscapes, circulation, and friction, I explore both production and refusal to elaborate on the transnational politics of tourism as neither a panacea nor as an afterthought, but as a sticky, messy, and significant part of global political life.

abstract: Dissertation

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)


title: GIS-based Episode Reconstruction Using GPS Data for Activity Analysis and Route Choice Modeling

contributor:
Scott, Darren
School of Geography and Geology

subject:
GPS
time use diary
episode extraction
multinomial logit
travel behavior
mode detection
episode reconstruction
GIS
map-matching
route choice
path size logit
potential path area
scale estimation
Python
ArcGIS
activity analysis
trip reconstruction
smartphone
global positioning system
geographic information system
toolkit
work trip
shop trip
potential activity location
land use
activity episode
travel episode
stop episode
transferability
scalability
modularity
scripting
big data
travel survey
respondent burden
preprocessing
multipath error
tracking
purpose detection
segmentation
data filter
data smoothing
fuzzy logic
neural network
decision tree
rule-based algorithm
trajectory
point
road network
network dataset
gateway
shortest path
horizontal dilution of precision
HDOP
commonality factor
mode transfer point
Halifax
Nova Scotia
Space-Time Activity Research
variance inflation factor
shapefile
comma-separated values
traveling salesman problem
data mining
branch-and-bound algorithm
pedestrian network
alternative route
observed route
route efficiency
route attributes
distance
time
heading
bearing
duration
acceleration
latitude
longitude
coordinate
overlay analysis
intersect
shopping
module
data logger
walk
likelihood ratio test
classification table
path generation
kappa statistic
degrees
data collection
transportation research
automate
framework
ArcToolbox
spatio-temporal
navigation
positioning
trace path
spatial data
topology
horizontal accuracy
SPSS
Stata
spatial resolution
temporal resolution
household survey
trip reporting
proximity analysis
DMTI
Desktop Mapping Technologies Inc.
road intersection
route overlap
left turn
right turn
location analysis
time geography
spatial statistics
buffer analysis
cycling
bus transit
public transportation
GEOIDE
AGILE
data need
raw data
urban canyon
endpoint
data cleaning
elevation
satellite
outliers
automatic processing
nearest node
classifier
classification method
short trip
multi-point

abstract:
Most transportation problems arise from individual travel decisions. In response, transportation researchers had been studying individual travel behavior – a growing trend that requires activity data at individual level. Global positioning systems (GPS) and geographical information systems (GIS) have been used to capture and process individual activity data, from determining activity locations to mapping routes to these locations. Potential applications of GPS data seem limitless but our tools and methods to make these data usable lags behind. In response to this need, this dissertation presents a GIS-based toolkit to automatically extract activity episodes from GPS data and derive information related to these episodes from additional data (e.g., road network, land use).
	The major emphasis of this dissertation is the development of a toolkit for extracting information associated with movements of individuals from GPS data. To be effective, the toolkit has been developed around three design principles: transferability, modularity, and scalability. Two substantive chapters focus on selected components of the toolkit (map-matching, mode detection); another for the entire toolkit. Final substantive chapter demonstrates the toolkit’s potential by comparing route choice models of work and shop trips using inputs generated by the toolkit.
	There are several tools and methods that capitalize on GPS data, developed within different problem domains. This dissertation contributes to that repository of tools and methods by presenting a suite of tools that can extract all possible information that can be derived from GPS data. Unlike existing tools cited in the transportation literature, the toolkit has been designed to be complete (covers preprocessing up to extracting route attributes), and can work with GPS data alone or in combination with additional data. Moreover, this dissertation contributes to our understanding of route choice decisions for work and shop trips by looking into the combined effects of route attributes and individual characteristics.

abstract: Dissertation

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)


title: Picasso and the Theatre in France

contributor:
Pocknell, B.S.
Romance Languages

subject: Picasso involvement theatre France avant-gard dramatist

abstract: The aim of this study is twofold. We begin by tracing Picasso's involvement in the theatre in France, his collaboration as a designer with important artistic avant-gardistes of his day. Secondly we study Picasso's work as a dramatist, analysing his two plays in detail and relating them to his work as an artist. We offer two appendices to supplement the research with pertinent information about his life and work in the theatre. The study undertaken here shows how the artist adapted his cubist precepts to theatrical subjects and thereby came to influence not only the art world, but the world of theatre as well.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Master of Arts (MA)


title: The Artes Praedicandi and the Use of Illustrative Material by Chaucer's Canterbury Preachers

contributor:
Wood, Chauncey
English

subject:
Chaucer
Canterbury Tales

abstract:
This dissertation provides a close analysis of the use of sententiae and narrative exempla in five of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, those of the Nun's Priest, the Wife of Bath, the Pardoner, the SillllrTOner, and the Parson. The handling of these illustrative materials is examined within the frarneYJork of traditional and late medieval sermon theory and practice. Major comrrentators such as St. Paul, St. Augustine, Gregory the
Great, Alain de Lille, and Wycliffe had much to say over the centuries concerning the character of the Christian preacher or "rethor" and the nature of pulpit oratory generally. Chaucer, it is argued, was keenly aware of preachers and their sermons. He knew of both not only in the abstract from the theorists but in a very real sense from irrrrediate experience. Without doubt, preaching was the nost important and pervasive
form of institutionalized oral expression of the fourteenth century.

 This study shows how Chaucer deliberately evokes the abrosphere of a medieval preaching situation in the five tales named above, doing so especially through the manner in which sententiae and narrative exempla are presented. It is concluded that he thus sheds light on the characters of those who are preaching and that he thereby gives a particularly sharp focus to the satire that is operating in these tales. It is further concluded that the role of The Parson's Prologue and Tale in the moral sphere of The Canterbury Tales becorres pararrount when viewed in the light of the good priest's attitude tcmcrrd and handling of illustrative sententiae and narratives.

Chaucer' s indebtedness to the artes praedicandi and to homiletic materials of various kinds has not hitherto escaped the attention of scholars. Neither has his use of sententiae and narrative exempla. No previous study, however, had made an in-depth analysis of such illustrative materials within the context of traditional and contemporary conceptions of the Christian preacher and the sermon. The purpose of this dissertation is to fill this gap in the scholarship. The value in such an undertaking is two-fold. First of all, it should help to give the reader a renewed appreciation of Chaucer's achievement as a literary artist: by closely scrutinizing the poet's treatment of two major commonplaces of pulpit rhetoric one is able to understand more fully hew he went about the business of his craft. Secondly, the moral thrust of The Canterbury Tales is more forcefully felt when special attention is paid to the use of sermons illustrations by such outspoken pilgrims as the Wife of Bath, the Pardoner, and the Parson. The latter serves as a moral touchstone on the road to Canterbury, a fact that has received increasing scholarly attention in the last few years. None of these studies, ho.vever, has recognized sufficiently the dynamic homiletic qualities of the Parson's presentation, especially his lucid and logical treatment of Biblical sententiae. This study shows how, in both the content and rrethod of his discourse, the Parson provides the orthodox answer to the false preaching of those who have preceded him.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)


title: Jean-Jacques Rousseau and the Tension between Nature and Society

contributor:
Novak, Derry
Political Science

subject:
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
nature and society
passion
tension

abstract:
This thesis isconcerned with Jean-Jacques Rousseau's treatment of the effect of political actions on the human problem. Four emphases in that treatment are considered.

 In the first place, Rousseau is concerned about what can be called a tension between nature and society, a tension which is basic to the human situation as he sees it. He wants to distinguish between good nature and bad society and between a good, natural self and a bad, social self.

In the second place, closer scrutiny reveals that the tension between nature and society hinges on the problem of passion. Rousseau wants further to distinguish between good, natural passions and bad, social passions, and the political problem is always and everywhere the same: how to control the bad, social passions.

In the third place, there is a dialectical unity in Rousseau's treatment of the tension between nature and society. Contrary to many interpretations, he does not treat nature and society as concrete abstractions but only as hypothetical abstractions.  His writings are consistent; he is both idealistic and realistic, theoretical and practical, optimistic and pessimistic.

In the fourth place, whether Rousseau is talking about individuals or societies there is a continuing emphasis on an
organic cycle of life and death. An ironical situation develops in respect of political actions. that affect the tension between nature and society. Political actions have to be as natural as possible, but they confront nature as limit, in the form of
a natural tendency on the part of individuals to place their own interests ahead of those of their fellows. Rousseau envisions no way out of that vicious circle, and we are, therefore, faced with the prospect of a never-ending cycle of life and death of all organic bodies, including bodies politic.

Those four emphases inform the structure of this thesis. The thesis is divided into a series of chapters dealing with
different aspects of the tension between nature and society. The thesis begins with a discussion of how Rousseau himself dealt with the problems that he faced in his life, given that he considered himself an exemplar of what it meant to be both
natural and human. The thesis then looks at the tension between nature and society viewed as hypothetical abstractions, after  which the tension is considered from an historical perspective.

The centrepiece of the thesis consists of a discussion of how political actions can affect the tension between nature and society, through communitarian and egalitarian politics. The cycle is completed by showing why, in the long run, all bodies politic are bound to decay and die, bearing in mind, however, that regeneration is always possible.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)


title: L'attitude de Voltaire a L'egard des Juifs

subject: Voltaire Bible

abstract: Une analyse des écrits de Voltaire se rapportant aux Juifs de son époque et aux Juifs de la Bible afin de tenter de determiner son attitude envers ces deux groupes.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Master of Arts (MA)


title: The Portrayal of Women in Selected Contes of Voltaire

contributor:
Hanley, W.
French

subject:
women
eighteenth century
human rights
status
social
environment

abstract:
Women in the eighteenth-century were faced with a systematic denial of their most basic human rights. This was accomplished through the institutions of the time. These same institutions were the objects of the criticism of the philosophes. Voltaire is commonly recognized as the father of the Enlightenment and it is, therefore, important to determine his attitude towards women as reflected in the genre for which he is best known, the conte.

This thesis deals with Voltaire's depiction of women on three levels. The first chapter situates women in their social environment as portrayed by Voltaire and his depiction's philosophical implications. The second chapter deals with the female characters' mental and emotional reactions to their status. The third chapter deals with Voltaire's portrayal of women's bodies and its significance to his philosophy. A complete vision of women as portrayed by Voltaire is provided, along with the implications of his depiction of women.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Master of Arts (MA)


title: Chemical-genetics identifies two mechanistically unique spiro-analogs: an inhibitor of bacterial iron homeostasis and a zinc chelator that re-sensitizes a metallo-beta-lactamase-producing pathogen to carbapenem antibiotics

title: Antibacterial activity through metal chelation

contributor:
Brown, Eric
Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences

subject: Antibiotics, chemical genetics, high-throughput screening

abstract: Concomitant with antibiotic use is the development of bacterial strains that are resistant to such compounds. Presently, the rate at which antibiotic-resistant pathogenic bacteria are emerging is outpacing our resupply of new antibacterials; therefore, renewed efforts to identify novel therapies are urgently needed. Transition metals are required by all life forms and, for bacteria, an adequate supply of nutrient metal is necessary to establish infection in a host. Indeed, as an antibacterial defense mechanism, eukaryotes have developed various means by which to restrict the availability of metal to the invading pathogen, thereby limiting its chances for successful colonization. As such, bacterial metal acquisition and homeostasis have been suggested as potential antibiotic targets to explore for the identification of new antibacterial small molecules. In this thesis I discuss my development of a high-throughput screening assay that specifically selects for compounds that perturb bacterial iron homeostasis. The results of this work led to the identification of a series of spiro-indoline-thiadiazole compounds that are toxic to bacteria via iron chelation. In addition to molecules that perturb the availability of bacterial intracellular iron, we present a series of spiro-indoline-thiadiazole analogs that inhibit bacterial growth by limiting zinc availability. Furthermore, we show that the respective zinc-perturbing analogs re-sensitize an otherwise drug-resistant strain of NDM-1-harbouring Klebsiella pneumoniae to carbapenem antibiotics. We discuss the potential for this class of compounds to serve as carbapenem adjuvants for treating infections caused by metallo-β-lactamase-containing pathogens.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)


title: Choosing a Man's Job: Effective Socialization on Female Occupational Entry

contributor:
Jones, Frank E.
Sociology

subject:
women
men's work
employment practices
socialization

abstract:
The central question in this research asks why some women do "men's work." The literature suggests two basic approaches: according to the demand approach, women are placed in certain jobs because of employment practices; according to the supply approach women are inclined to look for certain kinds of work. The supply explanation suggests that the socialization of a woman influences her work motivation and the kinds of work she will consider for employment. Our research focus is on such supply factors. Our general hypothesis is that women who enter non-traditional occupations will have had non-traditional socialization experiences; women who enter traditional occupations will have had traditional socialization experiences. Specific hypotheses are developed to capture the influence of the family and, in particular, the role of a working mother on the work behavior of the daughter.

To test our hypotheses a sample of 111 women was drawn. Our aim was to select both a traditional and nontraditional occupation in professional and non-professional categories. Two occupations were chosen--elementary school teachers and registered nursing assistants--and defined as traditional areas of female employment. Two occupations--pharmacists and policewomen--had a small number of women employed and they were titled non-traditional female occupational areas of employment. The quantitative and qualitative data gathered through interviews are used to test specific hypotheses and explore patterns within each hypothesis. The data are presented in three chapters: the influence of the family of origin, the effect of education and school experiences and the importance of the work environment and conjugal family on the work behavior of women in traditional and non-traditional occupations.

 The research shows that the socialization experiences within the family of origin reveal no significant difference between women who selected traditional occupations and those who selected non--traditional employment. In fact, almost all of the women in our sample, in all occupations, expressed traditional values regarding work and home. However, the research did find that socialization experiences are important in providing more general occupational orientations which directed the women toward either "professional" goals or "work" goals. Moreover, social class variables were more important in determining these occupational orientations than were the hypothesized sex-role variables.

As well, the women's attitudes regarding school were largely a function of their socialization experiences in the home. Professional women placed a high evaluation on schooling and were more likely to report that they had done well in school. This was rarely the case for the non-professional woman. For women who had acquired professional aspirations, academic performance seems to have been an important factor in their occupational choice. The women who did not aspire to careers and who therefore did not view formal education as an important occupational route seem to have been most vulnerable to the vagaries of chance. The most important factor in their occupational choice appears to have been the influence of close informal work contacts.

With respect to their experiences at work, women in non-traditional occupations were more likely to report that they had experienced sexual discrimination than were women in traditional occupations. However, the data suggest that such perceptions may reflect a greater consciousness of a "minority status" than actual discrimination. Almost all of the married women in our sample were concerned about the potentially conflicting demands of family and work. However, professional women seem to have the greatest number of alternatives in dealing with these demands. The problems are greatest for those women who work because they need  the money and who work in occupations which are inflexible.

The central theme of the data suggests clearly that women's early socialization experiences are important in the development of professional or job orientations but less important in the selection of a traditional or nontraditional occupation. In the most general terms, the research suggests that supply factors are important in constraining women's occupational behavior. However, the data also lead us to believe that as more male dominated occupations are ''opened up" to women, there will be women-even traditional women--to take the positions.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)


title: A Source-Channel Separation Theorem with Application to the Source Broadcast Problem

contributor:
Chen, Jun
Electrical and Computer Engineering

subject:
Network Information Theory
Broadcast Channels
Joint Source Channel Coding
Gaussian Broadcast Channel
Separation Theorem
Side Information

abstract:
A converse method is developed for the source broadcast problem. Specifically, it is
shown that the separation architecture is optimal for a variant of the source broadcast
problem and the associated source-channel separation theorem can be leveraged, via
a reduction argument, to establish a necessary condition for the original problem,
which uni es several existing results in the literature. Somewhat surprisingly, this
method, albeit based on the source-channel separation theorem, can be used to prove
the optimality of non-separation based schemes and determine the performance limits
in certain scenarios where the separation architecture is suboptimal.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Master of Applied Science (MASc)


title: On Closure Operator for Interval Order Structures

contributor:
Janicki, Ryszard
Computing and Software

subject:
concurrency
interval order structures
relational structures
closure operator

abstract:
Formal studies of models of concurrency are usually focused on two major models: Interleaving abstraction (Bergstra, 2001; Milner, 1990) and partially ordered causality (Diekert and Rozenberg, 1995; Jensen, 1997; Reisig, 1998). Although very mature, these models retain a known limitation: Neither of them can model the “not later than” relationship effectively, which causes problems with specifying priorities, error recovery, time testing, inhibitor nets, etc. See for reference: Best and Koutny (1992); Janicki (2008); Janicki and Koutny (1995); Juhas et al. (2006); Kleijn and Koutny (2004).
A solution, proposed independently (in this order) in (Lamport, 1986; Gaifman and Pratt, 1987) and (Janicki and Koutny, 1991), suggests to model concurrent behaviours by an ordered structure, i.e. a triple (X, R1, R2), where X is the set of event occurrences, and R1 and R2 are two binary relations on X. The relation R1 is interpreted as “causality”, i.e. an abstraction of the “earlier than” relationship, and R2 is interpreted as “weak causality”, an abstraction of the “not later than” relationship.
For ordered structures’ model, the following two kinds of relational structures are of special importance: stratified order structures (SO-structures) and interval order structures (IO-structures). The SO-structures can fully model concurrent behaviours when system executions (operational semantics) are described in terms of stratified orders, while the IO-structures can fully model concurrent behaviours when system executions are described in terms of interval orders (Janicki, 2008; Janicki and Koutny, 1997). It was argued in (Janicki and Koutny, 1993), and also implicitly in a 1914 Wiener’s paper Wiener (1914), that any execution that can be observed by a single observer must be an interval order. Thus, IO-structures provide a very definitive model of concurrency. However, the theory of IO-structures remains far less developed than its simpler counterpart - the theory of SO-structures.
One of the most important concepts lying at the core of partial orders and algebraic structures theory is the concept of transitive closure of relations. The equivalent of transitive closure for SO-structures, called <>-closure, has been proposed in (Janicki and Koutny, 1995) and consequently used in (Janicki and Koutny, 1995; Juhas et al., 2006; Kleijn and Koutny, 2004) and others. However, a similar concept for IO-structures has not been proposed. In this thesis we define that concept.
We introduce the transitive closure for IO-structures, called the []-closure. We prove that it has same properties as the standard transitive closure for partial orders and []-closure for SO-structures (published in Janicki and Zubkova (2009); Janicki et al. (2009)), and provide some comparison of different versions of transitive closure used in various relational structures. Some properties of another recently introduced *-closure (Janicki et al., 2013) are also discussed.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Master of Science (MSc)


title: MODELING NITROGEN CONTROLS ON TERRESTRIAL ECOSYSTEMS

contributor:
Arain, M. Altaf
Geography and Earth Sciences

abstract:
The carbon and nitrogen coupled dynamic vegetation model, CLASS-CTEMN+ combines process-based, large-scale representations of terrestrial vegetation dynamics and land-atmosphere carbon and water exchanges in a modular framework. It prognostically simulates the principal processes of the terrestrial biosphere carbon and kinetic energy exchanges at the soil surface and plants, as well as the dynamic soil-plant nitrogen cycles.
In this study, improvements made in parameterization of different plant functional types (PFTs) were evaluated, and then, model was used to assess the effects of nitrogen controls on simulated terrestrial carbon, water and energy exchanges and carbon pools from the site-level to regional and global scales. Prior to global simulations, standardized hourly meteorological forcing data, eddy covariance (EC) fluxes, and other site-specific observations from 39 FLUXNET sites from the North American Carbon Program (NACP) and the Large Scale Biosphere-Atmosphere Experiment in Amazonia (LBA) projects, spanning 194 site-years and covering 8 major PFTs across the North America and the Amazonian basin, were used to evaluate model performance. Two versions of the model, carbon and nitrogen coupled (C-N) version and carbon-only (C) version were used to simulate diurnal, daily, seasonal and annual values of carbon, water and energy fluxes at each site. Carbon pools and key nitrogen cycling variables were compared to investigate nitrogen controls on carbon, water and energy exchanges at each site.
On the global scale, gridded forcing and initializing data sets developed by the North American Carbon Program (NACP)-Multi-Scale Synthesis and Terrestrial Model Intercomparison Project (MsTMIP) were used in CLASS-CTEMN+ simulations at 0.5 × 0.5 degree spatial resolution from 1901 to 2010. Exploratory and diagnostic assessment of the model was conducted at the global multi-decade scale, by comparing results from both versions of the model with observational and modeled estimates from literature to determine the impact of nitrogen availability on spatiotemporal dynamics and distributions of terrestrial carbon, water and energy fluxes and C pools.
Model results revealed satisfactory performance of the model in simulating carbon, water and energy fluxes and carbon stocks, when compared to observations, especially in summer, and at evergreen needleleaf forest ecosystems. In contrast, simulation-observations agreement declined in winter and early spring, and at non-forested sites (crops and grassland), especially in dry periods during the growing season. The C-N coupled model simulated global total mean annual estimates from 1980-2010 for Gross Ecosystem Productivity (GEP, 122.7 Pg C yr−1), Ecosystem Respiration (Re, 119.1 Pg C yr−1), Net Ecosystem Productivity (NPE, 3.46 Pg C yr−1), Net Primary Productivity (NPP, 57.1 Pg C yr−1), Latent Heat (LE, 146.2 ZJ yr-1), Sensible Heat Flux (H, 194.0 ZJ yr-1), Soil Organic Carbon (SOC, 1230.0 Pg C) and Total Vegetation Biomass (Tvg, 608.0 Pg C) were similar to reported values in the literature. Evaluation of nitrogen limitation impacts on global carbon sink and sources dynamics showed considerable variability between and within forest types due to non-linearity of N effects and spatiotemporal heterogeneity of C-N interactions. For the recent 1970-2010 period, the C-N model estimated annual increase rate in the global mean terrestrial carbon uptake, was 0.05 Pg C yr-1, which was less than the 0.12 Pg C yr-1 simulated by C-only version of the model, suggesting a strong N attenuation effect compared to the C-only over this period. The consideration of N dynamics in the CLASS-CTEMN+ simulations reduces the terrestrial C uptake compared with that of the C-only counterpart in some regions, where N might not be always be sufficiently available for plants to grow, particularly in mid to high latitude regions of boreal forests, tundra and some temperate forest regions, where N is a primary limiting nutrient. While a smaller N limitation effect was observed in the southern temperate and tropical regions where ecosystem production is most likely to be limited by phosphorus (P) rather than N.
Overall, the inclusion of the nitrogen cycle in the CLASS-CTEMN+ model improved its prediction accuracy, in particular for forests. This study gives us confidence that CLASS-CTEMN+ can predict carbon, water and energy fluxes and carbon stocks quite well in multiple vegetation ecosystems. The inclusion of nitrogen cycle in the model helped in its application at regional and global scales to evaluate nitrogen availability impacts on carbon cycle in terrestrial ecosystems and to determine nitrogen cycle feedbacks on Earth’s climate system. This study also suggested the need for a network of long-term monitoring sites to measure changes in the vegetation and soil carbon biomass at the local and regional levels.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Candidate in Philosophy


title: "In the City I Long For": Discovering and Enfolding Urban Nature in Ontario Literature

contributor:
Coleman, Daniel
English and Cultural Studies

subject:
ecocriticism
Canadian literature
urban literature
urban nature
Windsor, Ontario
Hamilton, Ontario
Toronto, Ontario
environment and literature

abstract: This dissertation examines the literary archives of three Ontario cities – Windsor, Hamilton, and Toronto – to discover and enfold urban nature in our everyday lives. Beginning with a refusal to accept the popular notion that there is no nature in the city or that the city is separate from the natural world, I seek to engage with writers in these three cities to find representations of and engagements with the natural world in an urban setting. In the light of a growing environmental crisis marked by fossil fuel shortages, climate change, biodiversity decline, and habitat loss, this project is an attempt to craft a meaningful response from an ecocritical perspective. Central to this response are two key contentions: one, that the natural world is in the city, but we need to find ways to recognize it there; and, two, that the most efficacious and ethical way to respond to environmental crisis is to make this urban nature a part of our everyday lives by fostering attachments to it and protecting it, or, to put it differently, enfolding it into our human lives. Using literature, my project shows how the natural world is present in three Ontario cities and how writers like Di Brandt, John Terpstra, Phyllis Brett Young, and others are already including urban nature in their work. This work also addresses significant gaps in Canadian literary discourse which has tended to focus on wilderness or rural spaces and in ecocritical discourse which has also tended to eschew urban locations. This project adopts an interdisciplinary perspective to read a wide range of texts including fiction, poetry, creative non-fiction, educational material, scientific publications, and others in order to encourage readers and citizens of Windsor, Hamilton, and Toronto to discover and enfold the urban nature present in those cities.

abstract: Dissertation

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)


title: Mechanism of Catheter Thrombosis and Approaches for its Prevention

contributor:
Weitz, Jeffrey
Biomedical Engineering

subject:
catheter
catheter thrombosis
factor XII
factor XI
blood coagulation
medical device
contact pathway of coagulation
contact
intrinsic pathway of coagulation
thrombosis
surface modification
corn trypsin inhibitor
antisense oligonucleotide
rabbit
dabigatran
heparin
fondaparinux
thrombin generation
thrombin
factor X
tissue factor
extrinsic pathway of coagulation
factor VII
plasma clotting
antithrombotic
nonthrombogenic

abstract:
Medical devices, such as catheters and heart valves, are an important part of patient care.  However, blood-contacting devices can activate the blood coagulation cascade to produce factor (f) Xa, the clotting enzyme that induces thrombin generation.  By activating platelets and converting soluble fibrinogen to fibrin, thrombin leads to blood clot formation.  Blood clots that form on medical devices create problems because they may foul the device and/or serve as a nidus for infection.  In addition, clots can break off from the device, travel through the circulation and lodge in distant organs; a process known as embolization.  This is particularly problematic with central venous catheters because clots that form on them can break off and lodge in pulmonary arteries, thereby producing a pulmonary embolism.  Similarly, clots that form on heart valves can break off and lodge in cerebral arteries, thereby producing a stroke.  Therefore, anticoagulants, blood thinning drugs, are frequently used to prevent clotting on medical devices.
Conventional anticoagulants, such as heparin and warfarin, target multiple clotting factors.  Heparin binds to antithrombin in plasma and accelerates the rate at which it inhibits fXa, thrombin and many other clotting enzymes.  Warfarin, which is a vitamin K antagonist, attenuates thrombin generation by interfering with the synthesis of the vitamin K-dependent clotting factors, which include fX and prothrombin, the precursor of thrombin.  In contrast to heparin and warfarin, more recent anticoagulants inhibit only a single clotting enzyme.  For example, fondaparinux, a synthetic heparin fragment, only inhibits fXa and dabigatran, an oral thrombin inhibitor, only targets thrombin.  Although effective for many indications, fondaparinux was less effective than heparin for preventing clotting on catheters in patients undergoing heart interventions and dabigatran was less effective than warfarin for preventing strokes in patients with mechanical heart valves.  The failure of these new anticoagulants highlights the need for a better understanding into the drivers of clotting on medical devices. Therefore, the overall purpose of this thesis is to gain this understanding so that more rational approaches to its prevention can be identified.
In the classical model of blood coagulation, clotting is triggered via two distinct pathways; the tissue factor (TF) pathway or extrinsic pathway and the contact pathway or intrinsic pathway; pathways which are initiated by fVIIa and fXIIa, respectively.  The mechanism by which medical devices initiate clotting is uncertain.  Platelet and complement activation and microparticle formation have been implicated, which would drive clotting via the TF pathway.  Alternatively, medical devices can bind and activate fXII, thereby initiating the contact pathway.  We hypothesized that medical devices trigger clotting via the contact pathway and induce the local generation of fXa and thrombin in concentrations that exceed the capacity of fondaparinux and dabigatran to inhibit them. To test this hypothesis, we used catheters as a prototypical medical device and we used a combination of in vitro and rabbit models.
Several lines of evidence indicate that catheters initiate clotting via the contact pathway. First, catheter segments shortened the clotting time of human plasma, and this activity was attenuated in fXII- or fXI-deficient plasma, which are key components of the contact pathway, but not in fVII-deficient plasma, which is the critical component of the extrinsic pathway. Second,  corn trypsin inhibitor (CTI), a potent and specific inhibitor of fXIIa, attenuates catheter thrombosis.  Third, selective knockdown of fXII or fXI with antisense oligonucleotides  attenuated catheter-induced thrombosis in rabbits, whereas knockdown of fVII had no effect.  Therefore, these results revealed the importance of the contact pathway in device-associated thrombosis, and identified CTI or fXII or fXI knockdown as novel strategies for preventing this problem.
Focusing on fXIIa as the root cause of medical device associated clotting, we coated catheters with CTI using a polyethylene glycol (PEG) spacer.  In addition to unmodified catheters, other controls included catheters coated with albumin via a PEG spacer or catheters coated with PEG alone. Compared with unmodified catheters or with the other controls, CTI-coated catheters attenuated clotting in buffer or plasma systems and were resistant to occlusion in rabbits.  These findings support the concept that catheter-induced clotting is driven via the contact pathway and identify CTI coating as a viable strategy for its prevention.
We next set out to test the hypothesis that fondaparinux and dabigatran, which inhibit fXa and thrombin, respectively, are less effective than heparin, which inhibits multiple clotting enzymes.  Fondaparinux and dabigatran were less effective than heparin at preventing catheter induced clotting and thrombin generation, respectively.  Likewise, in a rabbit model of catheter thrombosis, fondaparinux was less effective than heparin and dabigatran was only effective when administered at doses that yielded plasma dabigatran levels similar to those found at peak in human given the drug; at trough levels, dabigatran was no better than placebo.  Finally, we also showed synergy between heparin and either fondaparinux or dabigatran.  Thus, when co-administered to rabbits in doses that on their own had no effect, the combination of fondaparinux or dabigatran plus heparin extended the time to catheter thrombosis.  These findings support the hypothesis that when catheters trigger clotting via the contact pathway, fXa and thrombin are generated in concentrations that overwhelm the capacity of fondaparinux or dabigatran to inhibit them.  Furthermore, the synergy between heparin and fondaparinux or dabigatran has clinical implications because it explains why supplemental heparin attenuated the risk of catheter thrombosis in patients treated with fondaparinux who underwent cardiac procedures and it identifies the potential role of supplemental heparin in dabigatran-treated patients who require such interventions.
In summary, we have shown that catheters trigger clotting via the contact pathway and have identified CTI coating or fXII or fXI knockdown as viable strategies for prevention of this problem.  In addition, for prevention of catheter thrombosis, we also have shown that heparin, which inhibits multiple coagulation enzymes, is more effective than fondaparinux or dabigatran, which only inhibit fXa or thrombin, respectively; findings consistent with the clinical observations.  Moreover, the synergy that we observed between fondaparinux or dabigatran and heparin identifies supplemental heparin as strategy for preventing catheter thrombosis in patients receiving these drugs.  Taken together, these studies provide insight into the mechanisms of catheter thrombosis and potential strategies for its prevention.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)


title: Understanding Amyloid Inhibition: Toward a Residue-Resolution Map of the Interactions between the Alzheimer's Aβ-Peptide and Human Serum Albumin

contributor:
Melacini, Giuseppe
Chemistry and Chemical Biology

subject:
Nuclear Magnetic Resonance
Alzheimer's disease
Human Serum Albumin
Amyloid Beta

abstract: Amyloidogenesis refers to a process of protein misfolding and aggregation that leads to the formation of highly stable amyloid fibers. Amyloidogenesis may lead to loss of physiological protein function and/or formation of toxic intermediates, which are linked to mutliple human diseases. Amyloidogenesis is inhibited by plasma proteins, which function as extracellular chaperones by binding to stressed and misfolded proteins, including amyloidogenic peptides, and preventing their aggregation. This thesis focuses on the ability of human serum albumin (HSA), the main protein in human plasma, to inhibit amyloidogenesis, with emphasis on the molecular nature of the interactions between HSA and the amyloid β peptide (Aβ) associated with Alzhemier’s disease.  HSA is as a key amyloidogenic regulator, a novel function for this protein that goes beyond the traditional HSA roles as plasma osmotic pressure regulator and as binder and carrier of endogenous and exogenous low molecular weight ligands. As a first step towards understanding the detailed molecular nature of these interactions, this thesis will focus on defining the key binding determinants in the interaction between HSA and Aβ peptides. Primarily, we will try to answer two main questions. First, which HSA residues are critical for the recognition of Aβ peptides and the prevention of Aβ aggregation? Second, which Aβ residues are mostly affected by HSA binding?  Starting form our knowledge about the stoichiometry and affinity of the Aβ interactions at the level of HSA domains, Chapter 2 addresses the first question through successful applications of a reductionist approach, based on a combination of mutational comparative analyses and fatty acid (FA) competition. This strategy allowed us to identify a short HSA derived peptide that specifically recognizes Aβ and prevents its aggregation. In Chapter 3, we examine the effect of HSA on the pseudo-equilibrium state between Aβ monomers and protofibrils. Using Dark state Exchange Saturation Transfer (DEST), Saturation Transfer Difference (STD) and 15N T2 relaxation experiments, we show that Aβ peptides interact with HSA via a dual mechanism. First, selected residues in Aβ (1-40) monomers bind specifically but weakly to HSA (Kd = 0.1 - 1  mM).  Second, HSA competes with Aβ monomers for the binding to the protofibrils, as indicated by an HSA-dependent decrease in the direct vs. tethered probabilities for contacts between Aβ monomer residues and the protofibril surface. The effect of HSA mimics that of dilution for the majority of the Aβ (1-40) residues involved in the cross-beta strands of amyloid fibrils. Finally, Chapter 4 will outline future investigations to address currently open questions about HSA dynamics, HSA-Aβ and HSA-FA interactions, for which we acquired preliminary data.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Master of Science (MSc)


title: Levinas' Prophetic Ethics: His Use of the Sources of Judaism

contributor:
Kroeker, Travis P.
Religious Studies

subject:
Judaism
Levinas' Ethics

abstract: This thesis contributes to the discussion of two questions central to the scholarly study of the work of Emmanuel Levinas: the question of the nature of his hermeneutics, and the question of the nature of the relationship between his philosophy and his religion. The thesis consists of an extended examination of how and why Levinas reads certain of the sources of Judaism. I watch him utilizing images, ideas and quotations from the Bible, Kabbalah and Talmud in support of his larger philosophical project, a project which consists mainly of a polemic against modem ontology --philosophical and political --and against the hermeneutic of reification which supports that ontology. The Bible, Kabbalah and Talmud become, in Levinas' reading, weapons in a battle against Hegelianism, Nazi totalitarianism, and modem progressivist liberalism; or, more precisely, they come to represent ways of turning away from the battles these structures inscribe towards a prophetic peace.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)


title: Webs and Hierarchies: Individuation in Munro and Hemingway

contributor:
Coldwell, Dr. Joan
English

subject: Munro Hemingway

abstract:
This study examines the reproduction of universal gender differences through the construction of masculine and feminine identities, the development of unconscious personality traits in an environment where women mother, and the role of external influences such as sex-role ideology and socialization outside the home using feminist developmental theory and two texts, Hemingway's The Nick Adams Stories and Munro's Lives of Girls and Women.
Chapter 1 establishes masculine and feminine characteristics of gender identity through a close examination of Dr. Henry Adams and Ida Jordan, the parents of the two protagonists.
Chapter 2 looks at the development of unconscious gender traits through the development of Nick Adams and Del Jordan. The role of the mother-child relationship and the father-child relationship in the creation of personality will also be examined.
Chapter 3 examines the result of this process, the mature Nick Adams and Del Jordan, in their respective environments outside the home, paying particular attention to the protagonists' responses to social expectations of role behaviour. In conclusion, this study contends that gender and personality traits are reproduced through social organization and socialization and may be reinforced through literature.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)


title: Experiencing Patriarchy: Women, Work and Trade Unionism at Eaton's

contributor:
Tancred, Peta
Sociology

subject: Women Work

abstract:
This research tested the applicability of Sylvia
Walby's theoretical model of patriarchy to a case study of
women working and unionizing at the T. Eaton Co. The focus
was on the two time periods 1947-1952 and 1984-86 when a
unionization drive was underway at Eaton's. In depth
interviewing was conducted with over ninety participants in
the events. Support was found for the aspects of Walby' s
model that pertain to patriarchal relations within paid
work. In addition, forms of women's resistance and
empowerment were examined specifically in relation to the
1984 unionization events. It was found that women's
political action contains components that traditional
politics do not explain. Overall, the findings of this case
study strongly support Walby' s position that gender
inequality in society as a whole cannot be understood
without the concept of patriarchy (1990).

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)


title: Interdisciplinary Studies Towards Boron Neutron Capture Synovectomy at McMaster University

contributor:
McNeill, Fiona
Medical Physics

abstract: Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic autoimmune disease of the joints that affects 1% of the world’s population. One proposed treatment, Boron Neutron Capture Synovectomy (BNCS), seeks to exploit the 10B(n,α)7Li nuclear reaction by injecting boronated chemical compounds into the joint and subsequently irradiating with neutrons. Numerous boron compounds have been generated at McMaster University and require evaluation in order to determine potential candidates for BNCS applications. A non-chemical process exploiting technology available at McMaster University is proposed for evaluating boron compounds for BNCS. Studies to determine the feasibility of the process have been undertaken. A standard protocol for lymphocyte isolation has been successfully modified to incorporate incubation periods with candidate boron compounds. Results have demonstrated no significant deleterious impact to the cell population versus the standard protocol.  The McMaster Nuclear Reactor (MNR) Prompt Gamma Neutron Activation Analysis (PGNAA) site was modified to accommodate liquid biological samples to determine boron content. The minimum detectable limit (MDL) of boron for the liquid sample set up was determined to be on the order of 1-3 ppm. Preliminary boron compound testing on isolated lymphocytes was undertaken and flowcytometry studies were successfully utilized to indicate minimal toxicity. However, uptake was shown to be less than the MDL for the liquid samples. Suggested methods of improving the testing process, including lowering the MDL of boron by preparing lyophilized samples and increasing the sample counting time, were investigated. The automation of the PGNAA Rabbit System at MNR to support the improved boron content measurements was implemented. Several improvements in the PGNAA testing process were unsuccessful in improving the MDL of boron. A number of improvements are proposed for future investigation and consideration for testing and evaluating boron compounds at McMaster University.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)


title: A Study of Ausonius' Professores

contributor:
Paul, Dr. G. M.
Dunbabin, Dr. K. M. D.
Meyer, Dr. B.
Roman Studies

subject: Ausonius' Professores

abstract: A commentary on the text of Ausonius' Professores is supplemented by an examination of their date of publication, Ausonius' motives for writing and the school system at Bordeaux in the fourth century. Special attention is given to a comparison of the professorial image in Ausonius with that in other sources.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)


title: Aristotle and Plotinus on Being and Unity

contributor:
Panagiotou, Dr. S
Philosophy

subject: Aristotle Plotinus

abstract:
This dissertation discusses how being and unity are related in the metaphysical systems of Aristotle and Plotinus. I suggest that Aristotle's metaphysical position contrasts with what I call the Platonic metaphysical hierarchy, a general trend in Platonism to place being in a dependent relationship to unity, and particular things in a dependent relationship to being. Aristotle, by contrast, sees being and unity as dependent on particulars. Understanding Aristotle against the backdrop of the Platonic metaphysical hierarchy is of some assistance in understanding his critique of Plato, and his own position in the Metaphysics regarding substance, cosmology and first principles. Aristotle's Unmoved Mover is substance par excellence, and stands as an exemplary cause for the First Moved Mover, guaranteeing the motion necessary for the generation of other particulars, but it does not provide them with being and unity. This is because being and unity are dependent on, and logically posterior to, particulars. I also examine some of the difficulties in Aristotle's system which Plotinus takes up in the Enneads. Plotinus, in trying to remain true to his understanding Platonism, rejects Aristotelianism, and posits instead, a revised version of the Platonic metaphysical hierarchy. In addition to examining Plotinus' critique of Aristotle, I examine some of Plotinus' other influences. These include Parmenides, Plato, Albinus and Numenius, in order to provide some grounding in understanding Plotinus' own philosophy. I conclude with an examination of Plotinus' metaphysics that shows its consistency with the general direction of Platonism, if in a different, hypostatic system. Plotinus' first principle, the One, is a synergy of negative and positive theology, grounded in the belief that being and thinking are extensionally the same in his second principle, Nous. That being and thinking are multiple necessitates the positing of a principle of unity which is
"unable to display image" (beyond being) a phrase which Plotinus takes over from Plato's Republic in the service of his own philosophy.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)


title: William James's Will to Believe Revisited

contributor:
Najm, S.
Philosophy

subject:
William James
Will to Believe

abstract: The purpose of this dissertation is to defend William James's will to believe doctrine from the main lines of criticism which have been leveled against it throughout the last century. Principal among such criticisms are accusations that James fideistically advocated an intrusion of the subject into doxastic practice which opens the door to wishful thinking, and that he confused belief and hypothesis-adoption. My defense of James against such charges will be based upon analyses of two important but neglected components of his position--the "liveness" of certain options and propositions, and the "strenuous mood''-and upon a contextualization of the role assigned by James to "passional nature" within the terms of reference of his work on immediate experience.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)


title: British Printed Tragedy 1695-1740

contributor:
Morton, Richard
English

subject: British

subject: 1695-1740

abstract:
In its analysis of the whole corpus of tragedy in
Britain from 1695 to 1740 this thesis divides into sections dealing with a survey of research already undertaken in the field; an analysis of the recurring patterns in the plays throughout the period; a study of the settings for tragedy and a discussion of the plays with Ancient (Greek and Roman), European, Middle Tu.stern and British (ancient, historical and modern) settings; a study of the adaptations made during the period; and analyses of the tragedies of Nicholas Rowe and George Lillo, the two best and most significant writers of tragedy. The attempt by George Lillo and one or two writers before and after him to invigorate the dying form of tragedy is seen to fail, and by 1740 it is clear that the best writers of tragedy are interested in verse rather than in stage entertainment. Tragedy overcomes the influence of vivid visual attractions of the opera of 1700 only to become bogged down in the undramatic verse of 1740. Writers of tragedy in 1740 try to be much simpler than writers in 1695, and tragedy of action at the turn of the century turns into tragedy of discussion and contemplation, the herald of the closet drama of the nineteenth century.

abstract: Thesis

abstract: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)