title: Transculturation in Black Jazz Scenes from Ontario and Nova Scotia During the Interwar Period: and Its After-Effects

contributor: Department of Sociology & Social Anthropology

subject:
Transculturation
Diaspora
Jazz culture
Black Canadian selfhood
Cy McLean
Mynie Sutton
Bucky Adams
Fernando Ortiz

abstract: A treatise on the role of Fernando Ortiz's concept of transculturation in the development and dissemination of jazz music and culture throughout the trans-Atlantic diaspora, and on how jazz culture helped to develop a Black Canadian identity and greater freedoms for Black people in eastern Canada during and after the interwar period.

abstract:
Jazz music and culture are almost entirely forgotten on Canadian radio and television today as a popular music form, yet they are still vibrant ingredients in urban Black culture in the East and persist on the fringes of society in rural and industrial areas. This thesis examines how interwar Eastern Canadian Black jazz scenes themselves, and those Black musicians who attained popularity during that period contributed to a national Black identity, and how anthropologist, Fernando Ortiz’s concept of transculturation contributed to their self-hood, today. My thesis asserts that Jazz culture helped form greater social bonds between Blacks and other ethnicities during the interwar period and was also a driving force behind the loosening of racial barriers in White society at large by connecting Black musicians and dancers from America, England, Africa, and the Caribbean to Eastern Canadian Black communities through transculturation and travel.
By incorporating old and new live interviews and archival data in print, on film and in audio recordings, this thesis draws attention to the importance transculturation as the main vehicle for the transmutation and transportation of jazz musics and cultures around the world. It also documents the subtle aspects of racial discrimination in the lives of my participants, but where possible, allows the voices of those alive and those passed to speak for themselves. By using the immersive and qualitative research methods taken from anthropology, musicology, and ethnographic history, my research asserts that jazz culture was the defining factor connecting Black people together worldwide during the interwar period and was certainly instrumental in building Canadian Blacks’ self- concept and a more equitable Canadian entertainment industry.


title: Studying Source Contributions to Ambient Fine Particulate Matter and Estimating Its Historical Concentrations

contributor: Department of Physics & Atmospheric Science

subject:
PM2.5
source contribution
air quality
chemical transport model
GEOS-Chem
dust emission

abstract:
Long-term exposure to ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is a major health concern. This thesis presents three projects that take advantage of chemical transport modeling, ground-based monitoring and satellite remote sensing to advance the understanding of historical concentrations, source contributions, and chemical composition of PM2.5.
Historical PM2.5 concentrations across North America from 1981 to 2016 were estimated by fusing satellite derived PM2.5 data and ground-based measurements with GEOS-Chem chemical transport model simulations. Comparison with ground-based PM2.5 measurements indicates consistency of the estimated PM2.5 concentrations with observations, especially in the later years with extensive PM2.5 monitoring. The estimated population-weighted annual average PM2.5 over North America decreased from 22  6.4 μg m-3 in 1981 to 7.9  2.1 μg m-3 in 2016, with an overall trend of -0.33 μg m-3 yr-1 (95% CI: -0.35 -0.30), reflecting the significant reduction of anthropogenic emissions over the past decades.
Sensitivity simulations were conducted using the GEOS-Chem chemical transport model to investigate the sectoral contribution to PM2.5 for Canada. We found that annually about 70% of population-weighted PM2.5 originates from Canadian sources and about 30% from the contiguous United States, with wildfires, transportation and residential combustion as the leading sectors in 2013. The relative contribution to population-weighted PM2.5 of different sectors varied regionally and seasonally. Sectoral trend analysis showed that the contribution from anthropogenic sources to population-weighted PM2.5 decreased from 7.1 g/m3 in 1990 to 3.4 g/m3 in 2013.
Offline grid independent dust emissions driven by native high resolution meteorological fields were generated to harmonize dust emissions across simulations of different resolutions. The updated offline dust emissions can better resolve weak dust source regions, such as southern South America, southern Africa and the southwestern United States. We find that the performance of simulated aerosol optical depth (AOD) versus measurements from the Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) network and satellite remote sensing improves significantly when using the updated offline dust emissions with the total global annual dust emission strength of 2,000 Tg yr-1. The offline high resolution dust emissions are easily implemented in chemical transport models, with potential to promote model development and evaluation.


title: Water and Wind: The Fluvial and Eolian Forces Behind the Pennsylvanian-Permian Halgaito Formation, Utah

contributor:
Department of Earth Sciences
Master of Science
Vittorio Maselli
Yana Fedortchouk
Anne-Marie Ryan
Martin Gibling
Isabelle Coutand
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject:
Uncompahgre Uplift
Monument Upwarp
fluvial ribbons and sheets
scours
unconfined flows
vegetation
root systems

abstract:
The study of dryland fluvial systems has yielded a broad and well established body of work.  As rivers in semi-arid and arid environments cover nearly 50% of the present land surface, there are many modern examples to turn to as reference; Australia, India, Africa, and mid-west USA all have examples of dryland fluvial environments that are intermittently active.  Many modern examples, as well as those documented in the rock record, are typically associated with sudden high-energy floods that carry fine sand to gravel sized particles.  Few examples of dryland river systems have a majority of the sediment in the medium silt to very fine sand range.
	The Halgaito Formation of Southeastern Utah is a magnificently exposed section of rock which records the transition from Late Pennsylvanian to Early Permian as seen on the western margin of Pangea.  This study documents an interaction between windblown silt, forming loess deposits, and a discontinuous fluvial system that carved into the landscape.   The Halgaito Formation is herein subdivided informally into lower, middle, and upper divisions based on the relationship between these two distinct yet interacting environments.  An overall upward increase of channel width, depth, and complexity is apparent from the lower to middle divisions, whereas the upper division is marked by overland sheet floods that scoured the landscape, forming small localized depressions and reworking the topmost layer of loess that covered the region.  This transition overall records a deepening of the water table, decrease in clusters of vegetation, and an increase of plants with deeply penetrating roots that stem from thin paleosol layers that cap the sheet flood deposits below subsequent loess beds.
	 Previous to this study, various research teams working within Southeast Utah have published papers for their respective specialties; however, no broader study of the general paleo-landscape and paleo-environment framed these specialized papers.  The following research endeavors to do so.


title: Brain Correlates of Vulnerability to Severe Mental Illness

contributor:
Department of Medical Neuroscience
Doctor of Philosophy
Dr. Kathryn L Mills
Dr. Kazue Semba
Dr. Chris Bowen
Dr. Matthias Schmidt
Dr. Rudolf Uher
Received
Yes
Yes

subject:
MRI
Mental Health
Development
Neuroimaging
Adolescence
Magnetic resonance imaging

abstract: Severe mental illness (SMI) refers to major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. The early onset and prolonged course make SMI a leading cause of disability in the population. There is a growing need to identify biological markers of SMI to assist with early diagnosis and to inform treatment. Neuroimaging holds substantial promise in this regard. I sought to examine brain correlates of vulnerability to SMI. First, I examined SMI from a family history perspective and investigated structural changes in youth at familial risk for bipolar disorder (BD). I found that structural alterations in the inferior frontal gyrus were present not only in individuals in the early stages of BD but also in their unaffected relatives. I subsequently explored SMI from an early symptom perspective and demonstrated that attenuated psychotic symptoms during adolescence are associated with reduced cortical folding, even before the onset of psychotic illness. For biomarkers to be of clinical utility, they must be reliable. Thus, for my next project I established the scan-rescan reliability of nine commonly used structural MRI measures in our sample, including youth with anxiety and attention-deficit / hyperactivity disorder. Finally, I have compiled data from multiple developmental cohorts and built a machine learning model to quantify neuroanatomical maturity. This chapter shed light on how deviation in developmental trajectories relates to risk for SMI. The findings presented in my thesis contribute to a better understanding of early structural brain markers associated with risk for mental illness.


title: Assessing Floor Versus Pneumatic Malting: Comparing the Effects on Malt Quality and Fermentability

contributor: Department of Process Engineering and Applied Science

subject:
Premature Yeast Flocculation
Mini-Fermentation
Floor Malting
Pneumatic Malting
Malt Quality

abstract: The increase in popularity of craft beer over the past decade has resulted in a subsequent increase in the craft malting industry. Approximately 25% of craft malthouses use a labour-intensive method called floor malting for barley malt production. This research’s focus was to address some main concerns around floor malting. Over two years, malting data was collected on 22 batches of floor-malted barley. Mini-fermentations of these malt samples showed that significant (p<0.05) correlations exist between fermentation and malting parameters. Only one floor malted sample displayed the potential for premature yeast flocculation (PYF). When compared to pneumatic malt, floor malt yielded significantly higher (p<0.05) extract, colour, FAN, and diastatic power as well as significantly (p<005) lower friability. Additionally, initial laboratory trials showed the ASBC Yeast-14 method could be shortened by one day, require fewer laboratory materials, and employ other lager yeast strains to detect PYF in malt samples.


title: Phosphorus Dynamics in Southwestern Nova Scotia Lakes

contributor:
Department of Civil Engineering
Master of Applied Science
Dr. Barret Kurylyk
Dr. Barret Kurylyk
Dr. Andrew Sinclair
Dr. Rob Jamieson
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject: hydrology watershed phosphorus model

abstract: Eutrophication and algal blooms caused by anthropogenic sources of nutrients is an issue in freshwater systems all over Canada. Several lakes in southwestern Nova Scotia have experienced reoccurring algae blooms and possess elevated concentrations of phosphorus (P). In this thesis a mass balance modeling approach was used to understand the relative contribution of P sources within these watersheds and lakes. Primary sources of P included land runoff, septic systems, agricultural activities such as mink fur farming, aquaculture, and internal loading. These sources were quantified through literature and spatial analysis for three different study years: 1983, 2008, and 2017. These study years were chosen based on availability of water quality data, and to understand the relative impact of the mink industry as it rapidly expanded during this time period. Agricultural census data and spatial analysis were used to estimate the annual mass of P generated from mink farming in each watershed. A suite of loading scenarios was simulated using a steady state mass balance model, examining P concentrations and sources for baseline (no anthropogenic sources), no mink farming, and varying levels of P retention on mink farms (25%, 50%, 75%). An additional scenario was also constructed which involved calibrating mink farm P retention coefficients using available water quality data.  Baseline modeling scenarios predicted that without anthropogenic sources of phosphorus, all lakes in the system would be oligotrophic, indicating that cultural eutrophication of these lakes has occurred. In the no mink farming scenario, it was predicted that all study lakes would be oligotrophic except for Hourglass Lake, which was predicted to be mesotrophic due to inputs from an aquaculture facility. These findings suggest that the P from mink farms are the primary driver of cultural eutrophication in the study lakes.  Results from the calibrated mass balance models demonstrated that for lakes with mink farms in their subwatersheds, the majority of P inputs are from the mink farms, and in lakes downstream of these subwatersheds, the majority of P loading originates from these upstream inputs. It is recommended that lake remediation efforts continue to focus on reducing P inputs from mink farms, and on controlling P loading from any new anthropogenic development in these watersheds. Internal loading of P from lake sediments was also identified as an important P loading mechanism, which can be exacerbated by climate change. Further efforts should also focus on monitoring of internal loading dynamics.


title: Cold Comforts: Women Making Inuit and Qallunaat Homes in the Eastern Arctic and North American Cultures of Exploration, 1890-1940

contributor:
Department of History
Doctor of Philosophy
Dr. Cecilia Morgan
Dr. Colin Mitchell
Dr. John Reid
Dr. Lisa Binkley
Dr. Jerry Bannister
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject:
Gender History
Arctic Exploration
American Culture
Canadian Arctic
British Culture
Greenland
Labrador
Baffin Island
Ellesmere Island
Inuit Nunangat
Domesticity
Colonialism

abstract: This thesis explores the experiences of white and Inuit women who were involved with American expeditions in North America’s Eastern Arctic between 1890 and 1940.  In studying the intersecting histories of women who were participant in and affected by Arctic exploration, it considers how their movements prompted them to think about the different meanings of “home.” A concept encompassing familial, racial, gender, and age relations, "home" functioned as a primary discursive field through which women experienced Inuit and Qallunaat spaces and cultures. At a public level, within Britain, America, and Canada’s transatlantic cultures of Arctic exploration, prevalent ideologies of domesticity provided an impetus for settler women’s social and geographical mobility, as they revised understandings of home through their popular Arctic narratives.  Efforts to transform Arctic environments imaginatively into plausible homescapes shaped dominant perspectives of the Arctic in Canada, Britain, and the United States.  This thesis also brings needed complexity to historical understandings of home relative to Arctic space by examining the lives of two Inuit women who entered the period’s exploratory culture by making well-publicized trips to the United States. Looking at white and Inuit women’s entangled experiences of home in America as well as in the Arctic demonstrates that Qallunaat spaces were no more “natural homes” than were Inuit birthplaces in the Eastern Arctic.


title: Networked Multi-Manipulator System and Its Teleoperation Using Adaptive Non-Singular Terminal Sliding Mode Control

contributor:
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Doctor of Philosophy
Dr. Wen-Fang Xie
Dr. Farid Taheri
Dr. Mae Seto
Dr. Serguei Iakovlev
Dr. Ya-Jun Pan
Not Applicable
Yes
Not Applicable

rights: In reference to IEEE copyrighted material which is used with permission in this thesis, the IEEE does not endorse any of Dalhousie University's products or services. Internal or personal use of this material is permitted. If interested in reprinting/republishing IEEE copyrighted material for advertising or promotional purposes or for creating new collective works for resale or redistribution, please go to http://www.ieee.org/publications_standards/publications/rights/rights_link.html to learn how to obtain a License from RightsLink.

subject:
Nonlinear Control Systems
Multi-Agent Systems
Telerobotics

abstract:
Teleoperation of multiple robot manipulators has been one of the most popular research areas in the robotics research community for the last couple of decades. Such complex systems can be decoupled into two subsystems, namely, multi-agent systems (MASs) and teleoperation systems.

In addition to the high nonlinearity of the networked multi-manipulator systems, deleterious effects, caused by network-induced constraints and the lack of exact robot modelling information, can make the control systems' desired performance and stability difficult to achieve.
To meet these challenges, concepts from the non-singular terminal sliding mode (NTSM) control method are developed to achieve the exogenous disturbance rejection and the finite-time full-pose synchronization. Additionally, a new adaptive NTSM (ANTSM) scheme is designed for multi-manipulator systems where the models may be initially uncertain or slowly varying over time. To further improve the performance, a set of novel techniques are developed, including the use of novel mixed-type feedback, time-varying logistic-function-based control gain, and energy-index-based neighbour selection policy.
The proposed ANTSM approach has also successfully been applied to the teleoperation control systems. In addition, the master manipulator uses a force predictor to estimate the real-time environmental force on the slave side so that the direct transmission of the force signals is avoided.

The proposed approaches for the MASs and teleoperation subsystems are integrated into a single-master-multiple-slave manipulator system. Simulation and experimental results validate the efficacy of the proposed schemes.


title: Effect of the Land Application of Biosolids on Greenhouse Gas Emissions Under Atlantic Canadian Conditions

contributor:
Faculty of Agriculture
Master of Science
Dr. Gordon Price
Dr. Grant Clark
Dr. Gordon Price
Dr. David Burton
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject:
Biosolids
Greenhouse Gas
Nitrate Exposure
Ammonium Exposure

abstract: The objective of this field study was to examine the effect of biosolids type, application rate, and application method on soil nitrous oxide (N2O), carbon dioxide (CO2), and methane (CH4) emissions from a sandy loam textured soil under Atlantic Canadian conditions. Biosolids amendment to soil significantly increased cumulative N2O and CO2 emissions, and had no effect on CH4 emissions as compared to urea and unamended control treatments. Cumulative N2O and CO2 emissions varied with biosolids type due to their different physical and chemical compositions, whereas the application rate or method did not affect N2O and CO2 emissions. Cumulative CH4 fluxes did not vary with biosolids type or application rate but increased from surface spread (SS) treatments as compared to incorporated (INC) treatments. Nitrate and ammonium exposures were not correlated with N2O emissions. Results suggest that land application of biosolids has the potential to increase soil CO2 and N2O emissions, thus a trade-off between improving soil health and high yield versus greenhouse gas emissions must be considered before promoting these practices.


title: MULTISCALE STRETCHED-GRIDS FOR FINE RESOLUTION SIMULATIONS OF ATMOSPHERIC COMPOSITION IN A MASSIVELY PARALLEL CHEMICAL TRANSPORT MODEL

subject:
Modeling
Atmospheric composition
Cubed-sphere
Stretched-grid
Model grid
Multiscale grid

abstract: Modeling atmospheric composition at fine resolution globally is computationally expensive; the capability to focus on specific geographic regions using a multiscale grid is desirable. This work develops, validates, and demonstrates stretched-grids in the massively parallel version of the GEOS-Chem (GCHP) model of atmospheric composition. These multiscale grids are specified at runtime by four parameters that offer modelers nimble control of the region that is refined and the resolution of the refinement. The stretched-grid simulation is validated against global cubed-sphere simulations. The operation and flexibility of stretched-grid simulations is demonstrated with two case studies that compare simulated tropospheric NO2 column densities from stretched-grid and cubed-sphere simulations to retrieved column densities from the TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI). The first case study uses a stretched-grid with a broad refinement covering the contiguous US to produce simulated columns that perform similarly to a C180 cubed-sphere simulation at less than 1/9th the computational expense. The second case study experiments with a large stretch-factor for a global stretched-grid simulation with a highly localized refinement with approximately 10 km resolution for California. The refinement improves spatial agreement with TROPOMI columns compared to a C90 cubed-sphere simulation of comparable computational demands, despite the simulation being conducted at finer resolution than parent meteorological fields. Overall this work finds that stretched-grids are a practical tool for regional fine-resolution simulations of atmospheric composition, and enables this capability for a broad scientific community. Stretched-grids are publicly available in GEOS-Chem version 13.0.0.


title: X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy Studies of Metal and Metal-Oxide Nanocatalysts

contributor:
Department of Chemistry
Master of Science
Peng Zhang
Mita Dasog
Michael Freund
Peng Zhang
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject:
Nanoparticles
X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy
Zeolites

abstract:
Nanoparticles have received much attention due to their unique structure and physical and chemical properties compared to their bulk material counterparts, which allow them to be used in a variety of applications, such as imaging, medical applications, and catalysis. As such, close examination of the structure and electronic properties of various nanoparticles is of incredibly high interest.

In this work, X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS), supported by other characterization techniques, was used to study the structure and bonding properties of a number of different nanoparticle catalysts. First, a series of W-doped TiO2 nanoparticles was examined, in order to determine the changes in atomic structure that allowed for the W-TiO2 4% doping to exhibit greater photothermalcatalytic activity than the other samples. Extended X-ray Absorption Fine Structure (EXAFS) fittings results showed that the dopant W atoms replaced Ti atoms within the lattice, creating Ti vacancies. As the W doping concentration increased to 4%, the Ti vacancies also increased, as did the number of dangling oxygen and oxygen vacancies, which could act as catalytic sites. Formation of WO3 outside of the lattice at 10% doping was also seen in the fitting results, showing why the 4% sample exhibited greater catalytic activity.

Next, a series of manganese cobalt oxides supported on carbon nanotubes were studied, with XAS results allowing for a clearer picture of the phase transition from a cubic structure to a tetragonal structure as the amount of manganese in the samples increased and the amount of cobalt decreased. Mn1.5Co1.5O4, which contains an equal ratio of Co and Mn, was found to have a dual-phase structure, based on both EXAFS fitting results and linear combination X-ray absorption near-edge structure (LC XANES) fitting. This was unlike the other samples studied, which were either completely cubic phase or tetragonal phase structures, and further understanding of the dual-phase structure would potentially allow for better fine-tuning of the structure of the sample, and as such, its catalytic applications.

Finally, a number of ruthenium nanoparticle samples, both monometallic and bimetallic, were synthesized and supported on three different zeolite supports (Y, beta, and mordenite) with varying concentrations of the ruthenium ion precursor to determine the effect of concentration and support on the local structure and bonding properties. It was found that bimetallic samples of Ru and Pd displayed strong indications of metal core formation, whereas Ru and Co bimetallic samples showed little metal core formation, as seen in the EXAFS fitting results for all samples.

This work highlights the importance of the relationship between the structure of nanoparticles and their properties. X-ray absorption spectroscopy gives a deep understanding of the structure and bonding properties of representative sites of nanoparticles, and by using the information obtained from such studies, a clearer picture of the nanoparticle structure can be formed. These results could lead to further development into tailoring the structure of certain nanoparticles in order to optimize their performance in relevant applications.


title: Ocean Model Validation and Downscaling for Subseasonal-to-Seasonal Prediction

contributor:
Department of Oceanography
Doctor of Philosophy
Dr. Hyodae Seo
Dr. Markus Kienast
Dr. David R. Barclay
Dr. Katja Fennel
Dr. Youyu Lu
Dr. Eric C.J. Oliver
Dr. Keith R. Thompson
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject: Physical Oceanography

subject: Ocean Modelling

subject: Ocean Model Validation

subject: Dynamical Downscaling

subject: Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO)

subject: Subseasonal-to-Seasonal (S2S) Prediction

subject: Mean Dynamic Topography (MDT)

abstract:
Subseasonal-to-seasonal (S2S) prediction is a global effort to forecast the state of the atmosphere and ocean with lead times between two weeks and a season. This thesis explores the feasibility of S2S prediction of the ocean using a variety of tools including statistical analysis, a statistical-dynamical mixed layer model, and regional, high-resolution ocean circulation models based on physical principles.

First, ocean predictability on S2S timescales is analyzed by compositing winter sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies in the North Atlantic with respect to the Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO). It is found that statistically significant, large-scale SST changes, particularly along the eastern seaboard of North America, can be related to the MJO. This signal is shown to be driven by anomalous air-sea heat fluxes caused by atmospheric perturbations in response to the MJO.

Next, the suitability of a high-resolution model of the Gulf of Maine and Scotian Shelf (GoMSS) as a tool for S2S prediction is demonstrated through extensive validation with a focus on the mean state and low-frequency changes. The mean dynamic topography (MDT) predicted by GoMSS is shown to be in good agreement with novel observations of geodetically referenced sea levels from coastal tide gauges. It is shown that the alongshore tilt of MDT can be used to make inferences about coastal circulation, and also upwelling averaged over an adjacent offshore region. A new method is developed for evaluating model predictions of MDT in shallow, tidally dominated regions using observations of overtides and mean currents. This is useful in regions where no sufficiently long sea level records exist for application of the geodetic approach to estimating coastal MDT.

Finally, the validated GoMSS model is used to predict the mean ocean response to the MJO. The model is able to capture the observed relationship between the MJO and SST in the northwest Atlantic. It is also shown that the anomalous atmospheric circulation in response to the MJO leads to anomalous upwelling on the Scotian Shelf. Overall, this thesis demonstrates that it is feasible, and of value, to use regional ocean models for S2S prediction.


title: Frailty and Occupational Therapy in the Emergency Department

contributor:
School of Occupational Therapy
Master of Science
Dr. Sorayya Askari
Dr. Debra Eagles
Dr. Grace Warner
Dr. Elaine Moody
Dr. Grace Warner
Received
No
No

subject:
Frailty
Occupational therapy
Emergency department
Unscheduled return visits

abstract: This paper details a health records review of older adults referred to an occupational therapy (OT) program in the emergency department (ED), examining this population’s prevalence of frailty, and the impact of frailty on unscheduled return visits (URVs) to the ED. Most patients seen by an occupational therapist in the ED were frail (60.6%). Of the patients discharged home on their index ED visit, 31.0% had a URV within 30 days. There was no significant difference in URV rate between frail and non-frail populations. Compared to non-frail patients, frail patients who had a URV demonstrated greater complexity in their reasons for URVs, with functional, social/environmental and/or safety concerns, and “failure to thrive”. Patients referred to OT in the ED were typically in the middle of the frailty scale (vulnerable to moderately frail), dependent in some of their activities of daily living, and had complex presentations to the ED.


title: LOCAL ANOMALY DETECTION IN MARITIME TRAFFIC USING VISUAL ANALYTICS

contributor:
Faculty of Computer Science
Master of Computer Science
Michael McAllister
Evangelos E. Milios
Derek Reilly
Stan Matwin
Fernando Paulovich
Received
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject:
anomaly detection
visual analytics
vessel anomaly detection
interpolation visualization
local anomaly detection

abstract:
With the recent increase in sea transportation usage, the importance of maritime
surveillance to detect unusual vessel behavior related to several illegal activities has
also risen. Unfortunately, the data collected by the surveillance systems are often
incomplete, creating a need for the data gaps to be filled using techniques such as
interpolation methods. However, such approaches do not decrease the uncertainty of
ship activities. Depending on the frequency of the data generated, they may even
make the operators more confused, inducing them to errors when evaluating ship
activities to tag them as unusual. Using domain knowledge to classify activities as
anomalous is essential in the maritime navigation environment since there is a wellknown
lack of labeled data in this domain. In an area where finding which trips
are anomalous is a challenging task using solely automatic approaches, we use visual
analytics to bridge this gap by utilizing users’ reasoning and perception abilities. In
the current work, we investigate existing work that focuses on finding anomalies in
vessel trips and how they improve the user understanding of the interpolated data.
We then propose and develop a visual analytics tool that uses spatial segmentation
to divide trips into subtrajectories and give a score for each subtrajectory. We then
display these scores in tabular visualization where users can rank by segment to find
local anomalies. We also display the amount of interpolation in subtrajectories with
the score so users can use their insight and the trip display on the map to make sense
if the score is reliable. We did a user study to assess our tool’s usability and the
preliminary results showed that users were able to identify anomalous trips.


title: INVESTIGATING BIOLOGICAL ROOT CAUSES OF HYDRAULIC PERFORMANCE CHALLENGES IN DRINKING WATER BIOFILTERS

contributor:
Department of Civil Engineering
Doctor of Philosophy
Dr. Onita Basu
Dr. Barret Kurylyk
Dr. Rob Jamieson
Dr. Rob Beiko
Dr. Azadeh Kermanshahi-pour
Dr. Graham Gagnon
Not Applicable
Yes
Yes

subject:
Drinking Water Biofiltration
Microbiome Analysis
Monitoring Indicator
Optimization
Sedimentation Tank
Biological Activity
Filter Depth Analysis

abstract: United Nations SDG6 defines that providing safe drinking water to all (goal 6) and SDG12 mandates employing sustainable approaches for all. Utilizing indigenous microbial communities (IMC) to remove water contaminants provides a promising pathway to provide safe and affordable drinking water sustainably. Although drinking water biofiltration already achieves high productivity rates, researchers are pursuing further optimizing the system to improve the overall performance and lower maintenance. Intentional operation of biofilter mandates understanding the microbiome, which provides the foundation for developing educated monitoring, prediction, and optimization strategies. In this study, microbiome analysis was used to monitor the biofilter microbial community in regular and challenging filter events. Challenging filter events refer to events with lower hydraulic performance. In two years, regular operations and events such as diatom algae bloom and a media replacement were investigated. The diatom bloom event, representative of intense source water quality changes, resulted in a significantly lower filter runtime (24.9 h) than the average of 70 h. Beta diversity analysis showed a distinct difference between the fresh media and all other media. Besides to understanding the microbiome changes, the use of a clarification step to improve hydraulic performance was studied. It is known that a clarification step reduces the floc carryovers, however the impact of a clarification step prior to a biofilter has not been studied. Therefore, this study was designed and conducted on a pilot scale to investigate the impact of a sedimentation process prior to a biofilter. Results showed that sedimentation improved FRT up to 30% and reduced head-loss, and head-loss accumulation rate up to 29% and 35%, respectively. The NOM removal in effluent water did not change while the turbidity decreased significantly. Biological activity changed measured as EPS (reduced by 36%). The results of this study triggered the investigation of the biological root causes of the different EPS level observed. Thus, the two most biofilm-producing bacteria were isolated from full-scale biofilters. The isolated bacteria were then identified as Bacillus mycoides and Paenibacillus tundrae.  The characterization step led to developing a reliable and high-throughput protocol for measuring bacterial growth curves and maximum growth rate. The protocol was developed addressing accuracy and repeatability issues, including (i) lid condensation, (ii) pathlength correction, (iii) inoculation method, and (iv) sampling time interval were investigated. The maximum growth rates were determined for Bacillus mycoides (0.99±0.03 h-1) and Paenibacillus tundrae (0.85 ± 0.025 h-1). It was hypothesized that the flocs buildup inhibits the nutrient diffusion to the bacteria. Subsequently, the impact of nutrient limitation, specifically P as an essential macronutrient, was studied under different P limited conditions for isolated bacteria. Carbohydrate and protein-EPS were increased when decreasing the available P in the medium while the ATP level decreased and reached a plateau. The results of this study showed that inhibiting nutrient diffusion due to the floc buildup could cause higher EPS production in the biofilter without a clarification step. In conclusion, this study provides a novel insight by combining detailed information about the IMC, traditional filter performance, and biological activity indicators allowing for a deeper understanding of the biological root causes of reduced hydraulic biofilter performance. A fundamental toolkit to predict and subsequently avoid challenging events, leading to a more sustainable and affordable drinking water biofiltration in large and small facilities was presented. The toolkit was examined in a full-scale water treatment facility providing the applicability aspect. Sedimentation as a clarification step was implemented for the first time and proved to be a successful optimization strategy improving water quality and hydraulic performances of the biofilters.


title: Haskap (Lonicera caerulea L.) Response to Plastic Mulch Colours and Fertility Amendments

contributor:
Faculty of Agriculture
Master of Science
Dr. Gordan Price
Dr. Lord Abbey
Dr. Qamar Zaman
Dr. Andrew Hammermeister
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject: Haskap Plastic Mulch Fertility Growth Yield

abstract:
Haskap (Lonicera caerulea L.) is a new berry crop in Canada. Crop growth and productivity
largely depend on soil and plant microclimate conditions. Therefore, this study was conducted to
determine the effect of plastic mulch colours (Black and White) and fertility amendments levels
(Control, Low, High) on flowering, growth, yield, and total soluble solids (TSS) of three-year old
haskap under irrigated conditions. Treatments had no significant effect on flower timing, flower
number, fruit set, or yield after one year. However, delaying harvest for one week significantly
increased 100-berry-weight and TSS, and reduced berry number per bush. The absence of
significant response to fertility treatment likely due to adequate background soil fertility.
Compared with White plastic, Black plastic had statistically higher mean soil temperature (during
the growing season) and lower reflected photosynthetically active radiation but differences did not
produce biologically significant changes in growth, flowering or yield. To have a better
understanding of the effects of plastic mulch colours and fertility amendments on haskap under
irrigation, further studies need to be performed beginning at haskap establishment on lower fertility
sites and without wood mulch.


title: ROBUST OPTIMIZATION ALGORITHMS FOR THE FLOW SHOP AND JOB SHOP SCHEDULING PROBLEMS WITH RANDOM FAILURES AND PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE

contributor:
Department of Industrial Engineering
Master of Applied Science
Dr. Hassan Sarhadi
Dr. Ahmed Saif
Dr. Peter Vanberkel
Dr. Ahmed Saif
Dr. Alireza Ghasemi
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject:
job shop
flow shop
scheduling
bi-objective
genetic algorithm
simulated annealing

abstract:
Inspired by a real-life problem in the kitchen cabinet manufacturing industry, this thesis proposes a suite of algorithms for solving the flow shop and the job shop scheduling problems (FSP & JSP) with both scheduled (preventive) maintenance and random breakdowns. These algorithms aim at obtaining schedules that strike a good balance between performance quality (i.e., shortest expected makespan) and solution robustness (i.e., least affected by breakdowns).

The proposed scheduling framework approximates the fitness function of the original problem using three surrogate functions. The first considers only the actual jobs, the second adds scheduled maintenances and the third adds both scheduled maintenances and deterministic breakdowns based on the mean time to failure of machines. For the FSP, a local optimum solution of each surrogate problem is found either through a local search heuristic or a simulated annealing algorithm. For the JSP, given the extremely large search space, a genetic algorithm is used to find local optimal solutions. These solutions are then simulated with random breakdowns and the best among them is compared to the incumbent solution of the original problem. In different variants of the algorithm, it either terminates once the new solution is found to be worse than the incumbent, or non-improving solutions are accepted, yet with a decreasing probability, in a simulated annealing style.

The first algorithm of the FSP showed no improvement over the initial solution for the 25-machine, 75-job problem. The second algorithm did not perform well due to premature termination. The third algorithm showed marginal improvement with an average of 1.25% over the initial solution with a much higher average run time. The first algorithm for the JSP showed an average marginal improvement of 5.33% and a quick run time of 10.01 minutes for the 50-job, 15-machine problem. The second algorithm showed good performance with an average improvement of 6.71% in an average time of 5.11 hours. These results show that the proposed framework can generate high-quality schedules while taking scheduled maintenance and random breakdowns into consideration.


title: Understanding Of Silicate-based Corrosion Inhibitor For Controlling Lead Release And Water Quality In Drinking Water Distribution Systems

contributor:
Department of Civil Engineering
Doctor of Philosophy
Dr. Lynn Katz
Dr. Barret Kurylyk
Dr. Jennie Rand
Dr. Margaret Walsh
Dr. Graham Gagnon
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Yes

subject:
Drinking water
Lead
Sodium silicate
Phosphate
Iron

abstract: Sodium silicates have been used in drinking water treatment for decades, both as sequestrants and as corrosion inhibitors. For the latter purpose they are poorly understood; a lack of information contributes uncertainty and risks drinking water quality. This work explored three approaches to investigate the effectiveness and mechanisms of sodium silicate on lead release control: lead release of corroded coupons, dissolution rate of lead carbonate, and lead release in a pilot-scale distribution system. Here, silicate treatment did not effectively mitigate the lead release, except for the impact of elevated pH with its use. Sodium silicate also provided minimal protection for galvanic corrosion while orthophosphate effectively mitigated lead release. Impact of silicate adsorption on lead carbonate dissolution was negligible and direct interaction between sodium silicate and lead appears unlikely. Lead carbonates are the major corrosion scales of lead pipes and lead coupons in silicate-treated systems. Although silicate formed a nanometer-thick coating on the top surface of corrosion scales, this mechanism appeared to be negligible in term of lead release. As a sequestrant, sodium silicates dispersed the colloidal metals (e.g., iron, manganese and aluminum) which in turn elevated the lead concentration. Elevated pH is the major mechanism by sodium silicate for lead corrosion mitigation.


title: Multi-Objective Optimisation of RTAB-Map Parameters Using Genetic Algorithm for Indoor 2D SLAM

contributor: Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering

subject:
SLAM
Robotics
Genetic Algorithm
Multi-Objective
Mapping

abstract: Currently, there are multiple packages available to implement different Simultaneous Localisation And Mapping (SLAM) approaches in Robot Operating System (ROS). To effectively obtain sensor data, these packages use parameters whose values are set from prior knowledge and experience working with robots and SLAM. In this research, using a Multi-Objective Genetic Algorithm (MOGA) to optimise the values for these parameters is proposed. Using MOGA allows trade-offs between the objectives using Pareto dominance technique. Three parameters from the RTAB-Map package are considered for optimisation using three different MOGA mechanisms, Dominance Count, Dominance Rank and Switching Fitness. The quality of the map generated for every set of parameters is taken as the indicator of its performance. The number of corners, number of contours and the proportion of occupied cells in the map are used as quantitative measures of map quality. Finally, results obtained from the algorithm are tested on a Quanser QBot2 robot.


title: Deep Learning-Based Stacking Neural Network and Generative Adversarial Networks for Human Activity Recognition Based on Ambient Sensors

contributor:
Department of Industrial Engineering
Master of Applied Science
Guy Kember
Ahmed Saif
Alireza Ghasemi
Peter VanBerkel
Alireza Ghasemi
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject:
human activity recognition
deep learning

abstract: Smart home for healthcare services has acquired more attention since the increasing development of the Internet of Things and the population ageing over the world. Human activity recognition (HAR) is one of the concerns of the smart home. Ambient sensors based HAR is one promising direction. This research proposes a deep learning-based stacking method for HAR using ambient sensors. We first generate base models of convolutional neural networks (CNNs) and long short-term memory (LSTM) with different architectures, training data samples, and sliding window sizes. These base models are further integrated by a LSTM model to make final predictions. Furthermore, we propose a generative adversarial network to generate synthetic data as supplementary training data to tackle the problem of insufficient data. These two methods are used together on six real-world datasets. Results show that our proposed methodology statistically outperforms other approaches in the literature.


title: Description and Factors of Revaccination among Patients with Previous Adverse Events following Vaccination

contributor: Department of Community Health & Epidemiology

subject:
Vaccination
Vaccine safety
Immunization
Adverse events
Revaccination

abstract:
Background: The Special Immunization Clinic (SIC) Network manages revaccination in patients with prior adverse events following immunization (AEFI). We identified factors associated with physician recommendation for revaccination and patient intention for
revaccination among patients with AEFIs.
Methods: This was a retrospective observational study of patients assessed at a SIC for prior AEFIs who required revaccination. Physicians performed standardized assessments and provided recommendations. Participant revaccination intentions were captured during the visit. Logistic regression analysis identified factors associated with physician recommendation for revaccination and patient intention for revaccination.
Results: From 2013-2019, 588 patients were assessed at a SIC for 627 prior AEFIs. Revaccination was recommended to 513/588 participants and 426/513 intended to be revaccinated. Physician recommendation for revaccination was associated with AEFI type and AEFI severity and participant intent for revaccination was associated with AEFI impact.
Conclusions: The results may improve patient counselling around revaccination and revaccination acceptance following an AEFI.


title: THE TRANSITION FROM ‘PAID PC/CONSOLE GAMES’ TO ‘FREEMIUM MOBILE GAMES’: FOCUSING ON USERS’ REACTIONS TO AND PRICE TOLERANCE OF IN-APP PURCHASE ITEMS

contributor:
Business
Master of Science
Dr. Helene Deval
Dr. Kyung Lee
Dr. Hamed Aghakhani
Dr. Bo Yu
Dr. Helene Deval
Received
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject:
freemium games
mobile games
brand loyalty
price tolerance
user acceptance

abstract: This study examines how customers react to online games that transition from being ‘Paid PC/console Games to ‘Freemium Mobile Games in the context of the game series “Diablo”. In particular, this study focuses on three factors as customer reactions: behavioral intention to play a freemium mobile game, behavioral intention to make in-app purchases, and price tolerance of in-app purchases. The study adapts three relevant variables (expertise, experience, and social influence) from the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT2) and brand loyalty as independent variables to examine their impact on game users’ reactions. An online survey was conducted among two groups of Diablo users: (1) current experienced users and (2) prospective online game users without Diablo experience. The theoretical contributions, practical implications, and limitations of the research are discussed based on the findings of this research.


title: Risk and Resilience in Recovery Following Surgery for Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis

contributor: Department of Psychology and Neuroscience

subject:
Postsurgical recovery
Pain
Adolescents
Resilience
Protective Factors
Optimism

abstract: The majority of children who undergo major surgery for scoliosis tend to recover well, but there is variability in recovery outcomes with retrospective studies demonstrating that some patients report impairments in certain aspects of their quality of life as well as pain that can impact functioning.  A few prospective studies of pediatric postsurgical recovery have been conducted   more recently, but most of what is known about postsurgical pain and functioning comes from the adult literature.  Additionally, most studies to date are focused on identifying risk factors for the development of chronic postsurgical pain with little attention paid to protective factors related to postsurgical pain and functioning.  This dissertation sought to further our understanding of pediatric postsurgical pain and recovery following major surgery and to examine recovery from a resilience perspective.  Paper one used a prospective longitudinal cohort design to identify postsurgical pain trajectories over the first postsurgical year in adolescents (n = 202) who underwent surgery for scoliosis.  Differences in functional outcomes at one year were examined across identified trajectories and baseline parent and child predictors of trajectory membership were examined.   Three distinct trajectories were identified. The majority of adolescents followed a trajectory with low pain and good functional outcomes. The other two trajectories were characterized by high immediate postsurgical pain but only one was characterized by pain that persisted over the first year.  Patients in the latter trajectory reported worse functional outcomes at one year and membership in the trajectory was predicted by greater baseline pain and child anxiety. Paper two was a topical review that provided a rationale for identifying and examining protective factors in pediatric postsurgical recovery, reviewed the pediatric chronic pain and adult postsurgical literature to identify potentially relevant protective factors at the individual, parent and peer levels and provided specific recommendations for future research.  Paper three examined the role of optimism, a protective factor, in pediatric postsurgical recovery outcomes at two time points in the postsurgical recovery period using a sample of adolescents (n = 151) who had undergone surgery for scoliosis.  Optimism was predictive of quality of life at one year after surgery and was found to moderate the relation between pain and functional disability one year after surgery.  Optimism was not related to either quality of life or functional disability during a more acute phase of recovery.  Taken together,  the findings of this dissertation demonstrate that a small subset of adolescents are at risk of developing chronic postsurgical pain and poor functioning but that the majority recover well from major spinal surgery and that optimism may be one of several protective factors that could be used to promote good postsurgical outcomes.


title: Three Hinge Buckling Laboratory Experiment and Modelling Simulation

contributor:
Department of Civil Engineering
Doctor of Philosophy
Dr Davide Elmo
Dr Barret Kurylyk
Dr Yi Liu
Dr Dmitry Garagash
Dr Andrew Corkum
Not Applicable
Yes
Yes

subject:
Buckling
THB experimental test
Digital image correlation
Acoustic emission
UDEC
Pop ups

abstract: Near-surface buckling failure typically occurs in horizontally bedded sedimentary rocks in the presence of high horizontal in situ stresses and it is a concern for quarries and open-pit mining operations. Usually, sudden energy release, similar to rock bursting, is the consequence of this failure. Buckling failure causes many economic and environmental problems. Even though some research has been carried out on the topic, many limitations still exist to develop a suitable buckling stability analysis procedure. The most important limitation is the lack of a specific, accurate and cost-effective method to analyze this mechanism; therefore, presenting a quantitative way to assess buckling stability is necessary. This research's primary objective was to identify the limitations and develop a proper buckling stability analysis procedure. Therefore, an extensive literature review was carried out, and a comprehensive buckling database, including all available geological, geometrical, and mechanical parameters, was collected. This phase also was included a statistical analysis of the collected buckling data to complete the first phase in understanding the problem more quantifiably. In the second phase, experimental studies were conducted that included a methodology and the invention of a novel apparatus that can reproduce a simple three hinge buckling (THB) at the laboratory scale. In the third phase, several THB experiments were conducted using the newly introduced THB test. Digital image correlation (DIC) methods and acoustic emission (AE) technology were utilized along with conventional recording methods to monitor the new THB experiment. These tests' experimental results provided quantifiable data and demonstrated that THB failure depends on the thickness/length ratio and axial confinement. Finally, in the fourth phase, a numerical model, based on the two-dimensional discrete element method (DEM), was used to simulate the THB experiment. The recently developed UDEC Voronoi tessellation micromechanical modelling technique was used to reproduce and validate the experimental data. The results represented a good agreement between the experimental and numerical results. Overall, this study improved the understanding of buckling failure behaviour by developing appropriate applicable experimental tests and numerical modelling. This technique can lead to reproducing more complex field-scale models to conduct comprehensive buckling stability analysis in future.


title: Integrating functional and taxonomic data types for microbiome data analysis

contributor:
Department of Microbiology & Immunology
Doctor of Philosophy
Dr. Laura Parfrey
Dr. Brent Johnston
Dr. Robert Beiko
Dr. Zhenyu Cheng
Dr. Morgan Langille
Dr. Andrew Stadnyk
Not Applicable
Yes
Yes

subject: microbiome bioinformatics microbiology metagenomics

abstract:
Communities of microbes in natural environments, referred to as microbiomes, are commonly profiled with DNA sequencing approaches. Sequencing results are typically partitioned so that the relative abundances of microbes (taxonomic data) and genes (functional data) are analyzed separately. It is challenging to biologically interpret these data, partially due to the lack of computational frameworks for joint analysis of taxonomic and functional data. Herein, I addressed this issue from three perspectives.
     First, I did so in the context of an investigation into the microbiome of pediatric Crohn's disease patients. Our main goal with this work was to compare the performance of microbiome data types for classifying samples in both independent and combined models. We found that genera identified through marker-gene sequencing performed best in these models, but that in combined models functions performed best for classifying treatment response. Although these and other insights were valuable, it became clear that improved methods for generating and analyzing taxa-function links were needed.
     One method for generating these links is through metagenome prediction methods. Although these approaches are widely used, they suffer from several major caveats and have been inconsistently validated. Accordingly, I developed a new bioinformatic method, PICRUSt2, for generating predicted taxa-function links based on several hypothesized improvements. Although I confirmed that this new approach performed moderately better than alternative methods, I also identified issues with analyzing metagenome predictions in general.
     My final project focused on partially addressing these and related problems in functional data analysis. I did this by developing a novel method to better integrate taxonomic and functional data types to identify functional biomarkers. This tool, POMS, accurately identified genes under selection in simulated data and performed well when applied to actual case-control metagenomics datasets.
     Taken together, this thesis represents several valuable developments in joint taxa-function analysis that enabled improved interpretation of microbiome data. In several instances, particularly with the application POMS, this joint analysis approach yielded novel insights that would be overlooked by analyzing each data type individually.


title: “Our boys have upheld the honor of their town in the Hockey rink…” The Culture of Amateur Hockey in the Maritime Provinces, c. 1900-1925.

contributor:
Department of History
Master of Arts
Colin Mitchell
John Reid
Lisa Binkley
Ruth Bleasdale
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject:
Gender Identity
Identity
Canadian History
Maritime History
History of Hockey

abstract: From 1900 to 1925, amateur hockey in Maritime communities filled local newspapers and drew thousands of fans to the stadiums. The Acadian, The Union Advocate, The Advertiser, The Weekly Report and Western Annapolis Sentinel, and The Weekly Report, among other papers, provided reports of games and team rosters which enabled the tracing and identification of a small number of players and their families in the Canadian Censuses for the period 1871 to 1921.  Identification revealed that young men from a wide variety of occupations and socio-economic backgrounds interacted through hockey.  Analysis also identified the ethno-racial heterogeneity on teams and in leagues, as well as the stark exclusion of groups based on ethnicity and race.  Women are identified as participating in hockey to a much lesser extent than men, and primarily as students in secondary and post-secondary schools. As hockey bolstered civic pride and prompted citizens to spend large sums on state-of-the-art hockey facilities, it also fostered inter-community rivalries.  Geographic focus is on the small towns and rural communities of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, like small towns and rural communities across Canada underrepresented in sport history. The Newcastle-Chatham area in New Brunswick and the Wolfville and Windsor areas in Nova Scotia receive the most attention; however, study is not restricted to these centres.  As players and teams move throughout the Atlantic region, and beyond, they built hockey networks which pulled them together into larger hockey narratives.  Those networks and narratives are not intended to be representative of the hockey experience in the Maritime provinces. Rather they speak to those values, beliefs, and practices attached to hockey which appear to have grown from a trans-Atlantic world view and from experiences and events, such as the First World War, which were shared across the North Atlantic World. This period saw significant pushback against violence in hockey, part of an effort to sanitize the game for greater middle-class public consumption and part of a larger struggle between reformers and hockey enthusiasts.  It also coincides with a period of intensifying anxiety over the physical, mental, and moral soundness of youth, in particular worries about the emasculation of young men.  Hockey became important to addressing these concerns both in institutions of formal education and in youth groups such as the Boy Scouts and CSET. The time frame also overlaps with the rise of militarism and the devastation of the First World War that left an indelible mark on thousands of Maritime young men. Moving out from individual, community, and regional identities, the thesis begins to suggest how hockey influenced a Maritime embrace of aspects of a shared Canadian national identity.


title: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY ON THE ADOPTION OF MOBILE NEWS ARTICLES: FOCUSING ON HEURISTIC AND SYSTEMATIC CUES OF CURATED MOBILE NEWS APPS

contributor:
Business
Master of Science
Dr. HÉLÈNE DEVAL
Dr. KYUNG YOUNG LEE
Dr. QI DENG
Dr. PAOLA A GONZALEZ
Dr. HÉLÈNE DEVAL
Received
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject:
Mobile News
Curated News
Heuristic Systematic Model
Language proficiency
Information Quality
Source Credibility
inshorts app

abstract: Online curated news apps, such as Inshorts, have been becoming increasingly popular, largely because they provide users with the highlights of news articles that have been specifically selected for them. Each curated news article is accompanied by a link to the full-length article. In this study, the Heuristic-Systematic Model (HSM) of information processing is employed to examine various factors that may lead users to visit the actual news websites in order to read the full-length article. In particular, this research assesses whether the dimensions of information quality, source credibility, and title attractiveness have a significant relationship with a reader’s intention to read the full article. Furthermore, it is proposed that these relationships are negatively moderated by readers’ habits of reading online news on their mobile devices, and their proficiency in the English language. This research contributes to the body of knowledge on the HSM, mobile news consumption, and information quality.


title: A Pilot-Aided, Time-Domain Doppler Estimator, Tracker and Compensator for Doubly Dispersive Underwater Acoustic Channels Dominated by Wave Motion

subject:
signal processing
underwater acoustic communications
digital communications
estimation theory

abstract:
In this thesis, a time-domain Doppler estimator, tracker, and compensator using shift-orthogonal OFDM pilot sequences are designed based on the theory presented and tested using simulations and real-life experiments. OFDM signals are assumed and used throughout the dissertation, and a shift-orthogonal OFDM pilot sequence is designed. The UWA channel is analyzed and a simplified theoretical model is presented that holds under achievable conditions.

The Doppler estimator is then developed, which uses an approach reminiscent of existing differential demodulation techniques. The estimator is developed with the flexibility of handling any Mach number provided the designer has the liberty of adjusting the signal's bandwidth, carrier frequency, or preamble size. The CRLB for the estimator is derived. The Doppler estimator performance is compared against existing estimators in literature and is shown to outperform most existing estimators in terms of MSE, with the added features of Doppler tracking and low computational complexity. The Mach number estimates also have a closed-form expression.

A Doppler tracker is developed that reduces the size of the Mach number estimates' array while simultaneously tracking significant changes in the Mach number. A novel and practical Doppler compensator based on the proposed estimator is developed, which compensates the Doppler effect in two stages. The first stage involves resampling, which takes in the estimates at the tracker output and applies a form of time-varying resampling which we call block-by-block resampling. The second stage involves estimating the residual Doppler shift with the proposed Doppler estimator, followed by eliminating the residual shift via a simple phase rotation. The proposed tracker and compensator subsystem is shown to outperform most existing compensators in terms of MSE, while also being more computationally efficient.

Each element of the proposed receiver subsystem is tested in simulations and the results are shown to agree with theory. Finally the full receiver subsystem is tested in real undersea experiments at various ranges, bandwidths and power levels, and the subsystem is shown to yield minimal residual errors when tracking and compensating the Mach number.


title: Equity in Healthcare Utilization in Canada: 2000-2014

contributor:
School of Health Administration
Master of Health Administration
Daniel Dutton
David Persaud
Catherine Mah
Jeanna Parsons Leigh
Mohammad Hajizadeh
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject:
Health
health economics
health equity

abstract: Equity in healthcare utilization is a globally accepted measurement of the effectiveness of a healthcare system. Equity is included as a policy goal in the federal health legislation that governs healthcare systems in Canada. This study used ten cycles of the Statistics Canada Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS) to examine the income-related equity of healthcare utilization in Canada from 2000 to 2014. The horizontal inequity (HI) index was used to quantify and assess trends in the equity in healthcare utilization for general practitioner (GP) visits, specialist physician (SP) visits and hospital admissions (HA) nationally, in urban and rural areas, and for all provinces. Nationally, GP and SP visits show pro-rich inequity, while HA demonstrates pro-poor inequity. This pattern is consistent in the provincial and urban and rural area results. Trend analysis demonstrates inequality of HA use became less pro-poor from 2000 to 2014, while inequity of GP use became more pro-poor in New Brunswick, but more pro-rich in Prince Edward Island and Quebec. All other trends indicate that inequity of healthcare utilization was consistently present from 2000 to 2014. These results demonstrate that despite the inclusion of equity as a policy goal, inequity of utilization remains a persistent issue in the Canadian healthcare system.


title: LEARNING LESSONS THROUGH EXPERIENCES WITH DISASTERS: Exploring Institutional Memory-Building and the Informing of Disaster Relief in Nova Scotia and Beyond

contributor: Department of International Development Studies

subject:
Disaster relief
Institutional memory
Disaster management
Nova Scotia
Sustainable development
Capacity building
Lessons learned

abstract: This thesis explores the central research question: how are lessons learned from experiences with disasters? Based on three case studies detailing Nova Scotia Emergency Management Office’s experiences responding to the Swissair flight 111 crash, Hurricane Juan, and the H1N1 virus, follow-up activities to relief efforts are analyzed and some shared ‘lessons learned’ are identified. Specific approaches to evaluating and adapting policies/projects from within the Red Cross, as well as systems for building and preserving institutional memory from within the World Bank, are also discussed. Within the general framework of a ‘capacities and vulnerabilities analysis’, an analysis of relevant literature suggests that the value placed on institutional memory-building and linking ‘lessons learned’ with context-specific ‘changes to behaviour’, will influence relief organizations’ ability to respond effectively to disasters.


title: When Worlds Elide: Mughal Texts on Iranian Kingship, Religion, and Culture in the Sixteenth Century

contributor:
Department of History
Master of Arts
Colin Mitchell
Krista Kesselring
Christopher Austin
Colin Mitchell
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject:
Safavid Iran
Mughal India
Persian Cosmopolis
Religion
Kingship
Culture

abstract: Mughal texts demonstrate a fundamental shift in official attitudes towards contemporaneous Iran from 1526 to 1605. While these texts initially presented a submissive imperial position, they later depicted the Mughals as superior to their Safavid neighbours. In the spheres of kingship and religion, Mughal texts promoted the padshahs as more just and tolerant. This aura of dynastic superiority also became a dominant feature of Mughal cultural production, where the Mughals boasted their status as generous patrons. The mass emigration of Safavid-Iranian figures (shaykhs, Sufis, and artists) to the Mughal court and the heterogeneous nature of Mughal imperial identity in the South Asian environment also contributed to this superior self-idealization. In this process, the Mughals gradually understood themselves as the ideological centre of the notion of the Persian cosmopolis, a concept bound by the use of a shared language and the mobility of texts and learned bodies across space.


title: An Examination of the Utility of Large Genomic Datasets for Genetic Monitorng: An Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) Case Study

contributor:
Department of Biology
Master of Science
Dr. Sophia Stone
Dr. Laura Weir
Dr. Daneil Ruzzante
Dr. Ian Bradbury
Dr. Paul Bentzen
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject:
Trans-Atlantic secondary contact
Chromosomal structural variation
Effective population size
Atlantic Salmon
Genetic monitoring
Large genomic dataset

abstract: Effective fisheries management requires an awareness of population demography and the spatial scale of population structuring, yet traditional approaches to quantifying both can be labour intensive and expensive. Here I explore the utility of large genomic datasets to characterize population structure, estimate effective population size, and monitor population status in Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) in Placentia Bay Newfoundland, Canada using a 220K SNP array. Population structure was linked to a temperature associated chromosomal polymorphism. Populations were small (N̂b < 350) and currently declining. Simulations suggested that large genomic datasets (≥ 100 microsatellites or ≥ 1000 SNPs) enabled accurate detection of population declines >30%. As such, I demonstrate that large genomic datasets allow the identification of fine-scale spatial structuring, the structuring forces involved, and provide a cost effective and accurate approach to monitor population status in the wild


title: Investigations on Enzymes of the Enolase Superfamily

contributor: Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

subject:
Enolase
Mandelate racemase
Inhibition
Thermal stability
Reverse thymidylate synthase

abstract: Enzymes of the enolase superfamily (ENS) of share a high level of structural similarity and catalyze a conserved partial reaction yet display an overall mechanistic divergence. Mandelate racemase (MR) serves as a paradigm for the enzyme-catalyzed abstraction of an a-proton from a carbon acid substrate. This work described the characterization of a series of potent chloro- and fluoro-substituted phenylboronic acid (PBA) inhibitors of MR, including 3,4-dichloroPBA, for which MR exhibited the highest binding affinity observed to-date (Kd = 13.8 nM). Investigations on the conserved KxK motif of the MR subgroup, revealed that the KxK residue was essential for catalysis and for the stability of MR and L-tartrate dehydratase. The K164M and K164R MR variants displayed a change in thermal melting temperature (∆Tm) of –4.03 and –8.36 °C, respectively. Finally, approaches towards production of human reverse thymidylate synthase, an ENS enzyme, using precursor proteins bearing two protease specific sites were described.


title: Digital Calibration and High-Speed Envelope Detector for Super-Regenerative Receiver

subject: super-regenerative receiver

abstract: In this thesis, a high-speed RF envelop detector (ED) and a blind background calibration of super-regeneration receiver (SRR) are presented. The proposed ED uses a dynamic load (DL) technique with class-AB architecture to achieve high speed by adjusting the output impedance adaptively. To improve linearity and the key specifications of ED, a derivative superposition (DS) technique is employed. A bulk-compensated technique is proposed to reduce process-voltage-temperature (PVT) variations in the proposed ED. The bulk-compensated technique constructs a ‘detecting-feedback’ loop and achieves effective compensation for PVT variations of MOS transistors through bulk potential modulation. The bulk-compensated class-AB inverter is implemented in 0.18 um CMOS process. Compared to uncompensated class-AB ED, the sensitivity of the proposed ED to process variation is greatly reduced under PVT variations. Also, a blind background calibration architecture is proposed and designed to help the SRR to maintain its high sensitivity and immunity to negative transconductance variations under process-voltage-temperature (PVT) variations. The simulation results successfully verify the reliability of the proposed calibration technique and result in significant improvements for SRR sensitivity under different process corners.


title: A MOBILE SENSING APP FOR MENTAL HEALTH TO SUPPORT FEDERATED LEARNING

contributor:
Faculty of Computer Science
Master of Computer Science
Dr. Michael McAllister
Dr. Sandra Meier
Dr. Derek Reilly
Dr. Rita Orji
Received
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject:
mobile sensing
smartphone
mental health
mobile application
federated learning
machine learning
psychiatry

abstract: Design, development, and field evaluation of two mobile sensing applications called PROSIT and PROSITLite. PROSIT app passively collects mobile sensor data and periodically transfers the data to secure servers, PROSITLite can detect Depression using an anomaly detection algorithm. PROSITLite serves as a baseline for Federated Learning implementation

abstract:
Smartphones are used by half of the world population. More than 10,000 applications are targeted at Mental health. Available apps are limited in four major ways: One, most apps are designed for the Android platform, 80% of the apps did not consider studying both iOS and Android users. Two, there is a lack of a comprehensive tool to study multiple mental health issues. Three, although these apps collect privacy-sensitive data, 67% of studies did not take the privacy concerns of the users into account. Finally, there is an overhead in terms of battery, internet, storage, and time in centralized data analysis.
To overcome the limitations, in this thesis we present the design, development, and field evaluation of two mobile sensing applications called PROSIT and PROSITLite. PROSIT app passively and unobtrusively collects mobile sensor data and periodically transfers the data to secure servers. The app tracks 23 different sensor data and hence serves as a comprehensive tool to study different mental health issues. The app runs on both iOS and Android platforms, thus, accessible to over 98% of smartphone users. We conducted an online survey to evaluate the users’ comfortability with PROSIT and privacy concerns, the results from 491 participants show that users are comfortable to track all the app features. Perceptions about surveillance, intrusion, and data leakage influence users’ comfortability negatively whereas trust, control, and consent have a positive influence in user comfortability. We conducted a pilot study on 18 participants who used the app for 2 weeks. The results of the Principal Component Analysis and K-Nearest Neighbours classifier show 73% accuracy in distinguishing the patients and non-patients. Further, we propose a Federated Learning (FL) framework for mental health monitoring to overcome the overheads and preserve privacy. To lay a foundation for FL, we developed PROSITLite with an anomaly detection algorithm to detect Depression. Results from the feasibility study show PROSITLite is efficient in overcoming the identified overheads. In the future, we aim to train a robust model, with data from the ongoing study and implement on-device training with full implementation of federated learning.


title: PERCEPTIONS OF PREGNANT INUIT WOMEN, ELDERS, COMMUNITY HEALTHCARE EXPERTS, PROVIDERS AND COMMUNITY HEALTH REPRESENTATIVES IN NUNAVUT ABOUT MATERNAL PERTUSSIS IMMUNIZATION

abstract:
There are established maternal pertussis and influenza immunization programs in Nunavut. This thesis project provides information about the perceptions of community healthcare experts, providers, and community healthcare representatives about maternal pertussis immunizations and the determinants of maternal pertussis immunization. I used a mixed methods, sequential research design including narrative collection and sharing circles, both of which informed the generation of a panel of survey questions to be validated and tested outside the scope of this thesis.

Participants described working in complex system with various configurations of prenatal and public health. Human resources and retention were identified as either contributing to or detracting from collective knowledge about maternal immunization and trust between patient and provider, both of which are identified as determinants of maternal immunization. These findings suggest that a complexity-informed approach to existing and nascent maternal immunization programs may be both culturally and logistically appropriate in Nunavut.


title: An Exploratory Study of Quality-related Events Reported by Community Pharmacies in the United Kingdom: Applying Association Rule Mining

contributor:
Faculty of Computer Science
Master of Electronic Commerce
Vlado Keselj
Colin Conrad
Paola Gonzalez
Bo Yu
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject:
medication errors
UK
association rule mining
data mining
accuracy
data completeness

abstract: Errors in healthcare systems can cost resources and sometimes lives. Studying errors in healthcare can help to improve service quality. This study aims to explore the prevalent patterns in medication errors in UK’s community pharmacies by using error data voluntarily reported from 859 community pharmacies to incident management system managed by Pharmapod Inc. from 2015 to 2018. The primary output of the study is three sets of association rules that can characterize the relationship of error-factors, error-categories, and event-types. The sample data of 72733 events of medication errors were analyzed using association rule mining. Three sets of strong rules are identified, including six strong rules from error-factors to event-type, nine strong rules from error-categories to event-type, and twenty-two strong rules from the combination of error-factor and error-category to event-type. The implications of the findings are discussed with the literature.


title: Performing Public Policy - An Institutional Ethnography of the Relationship Between Nova Scotia’s Provincial Government and the Professional Theatre Sector

contributor:
Interdisciplinary PhD Programme
Doctor of Philosophy
Dr. Sylvia Hale
Dr. Lynne Robinson
Dr. Roberta Barker
Dr. Lori Turnbull
Dr. Marguerite Cassin
Received
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject:
institutional ethnography
organizational design
arts policy
public support
public policy
professional theatre
arts and culture

abstract:
The Government of Nova Scotia invests in the province’s professional theatre sector through the provision of public support. The administrative processes which implement this public support organise how theatre professionals understand and engage in their work. This thesis explores how the provision and administration of Government of Nova Scotia public support coordinates and structures the work of theatre professionals within the province.
This institutional ethnography opens the field of public administration to investigate the relationship between Nova Scotia’s professional theatre sector and the provincial government. It introduces a critical analysis of public policy administration and the consequences of this organization for how theatre professionals know and do their work. The data was collected through narrative interviews with Nova Scotian theatre professionals and public servants, observations of theatre sector activities, and review of public policy and administration, theatre companies, and public documents.
	This study found the institutional relationship suffers from an insufficiency (limitation) of language which hinders theatre professionals from communicating their lived experiences including how they engage and understand their work. This finding is important, because the study also uncovered the administrative processes which organize Nova Scotia’s provincial public support attribute as recognizing value in certain professional theatre work areas while making other work invisible. This organization of value contributes tensions between theatre professionals and the governing bodies. Theatre professionals experience an institutionalized distrust of and reliance on government support. Policy processes reward recognizable-company structures while taking for granted administrative work. Nonetheless, such work is essential to the sector’s activities. The result is that Nova Scotia’s professional theatre sector increasingly relies on invisible but necessary and unpaid work to sustain itself. This work is the consequence of participating in, seeking, receiving, and accounting for public funding. This work and the associated tensions between Nova Scotia’s professional theatre sector and the provincial government remain unaddressed due, in part, to the administrative practices which keep them outside of and therefore blind to the governing discourse.


title: Convolutional Neural Networks for Real-Time Weed Identification in Wild Blueberry Production

contributor:
Faculty of Agriculture
Master of Science
Dr. Gordon Price
Dr. Qamar Zaman
Dr. Kenny Corscadden
Dr. Arnold Schumann
Dr. Travis Esau
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject:
Wild Blueberries
Advanced Mechanized Systems
Precision Agriculture
Deep Learning
Machine Vision
Weed Detection
Hair Fescue
Sheep Sorrel

abstract: Yield-limiting weeds in wild blueberry fields, including hair fescue and sheep sorrel, are traditionally managed with uniform applications of herbicides. Spot applications of herbicides reduce the volume required for management. Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) were trained to identify hair fescue and sheep sorrel in images of wild blueberry fields. Six CNNs identified targets with a minimum F1-score of 0.95 for hair fescue and 0.89 for sheep sorrel. Two CNNs were selected as viable for controlling applications from an eight-camera smart sprayer based on processing speeds above 9 frames per second and memory use below 6.4 GB. A graphical user interface was developed for monitoring CNNs and controlling hardware in real-time based on identification of target weeds. The results of this study indicate that CNNs are suitable for identifying hair fescue and sheep sorrel. Future research will involve using the output of the CNNs to automate spray applications, limiting herbicide use.


title: MEASUREMENT OF MULTI-JOINT LOWER EXTREMITY EXTENSION POWER USING A CLINICALLY APPLICABLE LEG PRESS TOOL: THE CONCURRENT VALIDITY

contributor: School of Physiotherapy (Rehabilitation Research)

subject:
concurrent validity
Lower extremity power

abstract: Multi-joint leg extension power, a critical determinant of physical functioning, declines with age. Exercise can slow this decline and is usually prescribed based on maximum power. Currently available tests to assess maximum power can be unsafe for the elderly. This study assessed the concurrent validity of leg extension power measured with a new leg press + IMU system compared to that obtained using a squat jump on force plates. The load in each test equaled body weight. Bland-Altman analysis demonstrated a significant systematic difference, with the squat jump generating higher power in 21 young adults. The magnitude of difference was greater for 10 participants who used a countermovement in the squat test, which is known to increase power output. The difference in power between the 2 systems was negligible after accounting for the higher load created by additional weight of the legs in the leg press + IMU system.


title: CHANGES IN VASOACTIVE INTESTINAL PEPTIDE (VIP) AMOUNT IN CYSTIC FIBROSIS

contributor:
Department of Physiology & Biophysics
Doctor of Philosophy
Dr. Juan P. Ianowski
Dr. Alex Quinn
Dr. Younes Anini
Dr. Yassine El Hiani
Dr. Christian Lehmann
Dr. Valerie Chappe
Received
No
Yes

subject:
Cystic Fibrosis
VIP
CFRD
Mouse model

abstract:
Cystic Fibrosis (CF) is the most common lethal genetic disease in Caucasians, which results
from mutations in the CFTR gene. Cystic Fibrosis - Related Diabetes (CFRD) affects more
than 50% of adults with CF. The complex etiology of CFRD is poorly understood and differs
from type 1 or type 2 diabetes. The major physiological agonist of the CFTR chloride
channel is the Vasoactive Intestinal Peptide (VIP), a 28-amino acid neuropeptide that
functions as a neuromodulator and neurotransmitter secreted by intrinsic neurons
innervating exocrine glands. VIP has also insulinotropic effects on pancreatic beta cells,
augmenting glucose-dependent insulin secretion. Previous studies from our lab have
demonstrated the molecular role of VIP in CFTR regulation, both in vivo and in vitro.
Interestingly, exocrine glands from CF patients have sparse VIPergic innervation
compared to healthy individuals, but the mechanism behind this phenomenon remains
unknown.
The main goal of my PhD research was to investigate changes in VIP content in exocrine
tissues in F508del/F508del mice, and determine if VIP depletion was related to CF disease
progression. Furthermore, we examined the mechanism of this reduction in neuronal
level. Lastly, we asked if the decreased VIP amount in the pancreas could contribute to
CFRD pathophysiology.
Our data showed a significant decrease in the VIP content throughout all exocrine tissues
that was not linked to inflammation and/or to disease progression but was rather an early
onset of CF disease. This VIP reduction was due to a disruption of the intrinsic innervation
network. Importantly, nerves co-expressing VIP and Acetylcholine were reduced in
density. In the pancreas, we found low levels of VIP due to reduced pancreatic
innervation, starting at an early disease stage, which may initiate the development of
CFRD through down-regulation of insulin and glucagon secretion.
While most of the research is centered on how to cure the basic CFTR defects, the link of
the dysfunctional nervous system to the disease progression is yet a thirst for knowledge.
Our pioneer data provide fundamental knowledge to boost our understanding on
neuronal alterations in CF and how this can affect the pathophysiology of CF and CFRD.


title: HASKAP (LONICERA CAERULEA L.) PLANT RESPONSE TO VARYING FREQUENCY AND RATE OF PYROLIGNEOUS ACID WITH ADDED LIQUID SEAWEED EXTRACT

contributor:
Faculty of Agriculture
Master of Science
Dr. Gordon Price
Dr. Samuel Asiedu
Dr. Sophia Stone
Dr. Lord Abbey
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject:
Biostimulant
Berry yield
Leaf tissue nutrients
Berry tissue nutrients
Organic acids

abstract: Haskap (Lonicera caerulea L.) is a new plant in Canada with many investment potentials. A field experiment was conducted to determine the effects of frequency (weekly, bi-weekly, and tri-weekly) and rates (2, 4, 6, 8, and 10%) of pyroligneous acid application (PA) with added 0.35% liquid seaweed extract (LSE) on haskap plant growth, yield, berry quality, and powdery mildew disease management. Control treatments were water alone, 4% PA alone, and 0.35% LSE alone. The tri-weekly application of 2% and 4% PA + 0.35% LSE enhanced haskap growth and yield. The 2%, 4%, and 6% PA + 0.35% LSE treatments improved haskap berry quality. The weekly application of 10% PA + 0.35% LSE reduced disease incidence and severity by 8.3%. The tri-weekly application of PA increased revenue by 42% compared to other frequencies.


title: Inlaid Microfluidics: A Novel Approach to Optical Measurements on Lab-on-Chip Devices

contributor: Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering

subject:
Microfluidics
Lab-on-Chip
Optics
Light Absorbance
Fluorescence
Microfabrication
Nitrate
Nitrite
Phosphate

abstract: A novel type of microfluidic optical cell is presented here that inlays black poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) into a clear PMMA substrate to realize an isolated optical channel with microlitre volumes. Optical measurements are frequently performed on microfluidic devices, offering effective, quick, and robust chemical analysis capabilities on small sample volumes. However, sophisticated coordination of light through a small cross-section is needed, often requiring collimating and beam-steering optics. Detailed here is the fabrication process to realize optical cells based on a simple hybrid-material approach. A z-shape microchannel structure crosses a clear-black interface at both ends of the cell, thereby creating integral optical windows that permit light coupling into a microchannel completely embedded in black PMMA. The novel cell design is characterized using typical colourimetric measurements for nitrite, nitrate, phosphate, and rhodamine B with agreement to the literature. Finally, the inlaid cell design is integrated into an automated lab-on-chip nitrite sensor.


title: HUMPBACK WHALE SINGING BEHAVIOUR IN THE WESTERN NORTH ATLANTIC: FROM METHODS FOR ANALYSING PASSIVE ACOUSTIC MONITORING DATA TO UNDERSTANDING HUMPBACK WHALE SONG ONTOGENY

contributor:
Department of Biology
Doctor of Philosophy
Michael Noad
Sophia Stone
Andy Horn
David Barclay
Salvatore Cerchio
Hilary Moors-Murphy
Hal Whitehead
Not Applicable
Yes
Not Applicable

subject:
Passive Acoustic Monitoring
Humpback Whale
Song
Methods
Song ontogeny

abstract:
Marine passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) is a valuable tool to assess the distribution, habitat use, and behaviour of marine mammals including the acoustically prolific humpback whale. With increasing amounts of data collected, the challenge of effectively mining PAM data for signals of interest and interpreting those signals is faced by researchers globally. I completed a literature review on the data analysis methods employed in PAM baleen whale studies (2000-2019) before exploring the dynamic and complex humpback repertoire, which is particularly challenging for PAM. The review revealed a spectrum of methodologies ranging from full manual data analysis by a human to fully automated techniques. I propose recommendations for future work to encourage the application of best practices that will result in more robust and comparable research.
Humpback whale vocalizations have been studied for years, but little is known of when, where, and how seasonal male singing begins in the fall and ends in the spring. Acoustic recordings of humpback whale vocalizations from Canada, the U.S.A, and the Caribbean in 2015-2017 were manually analysed. Humpback whales were present from Labrador to Massachusetts Bay during the fall and early winter. Song development occurred gradually over weeks with vocalizations transitioning from non-song calls to song fragments to full songs. Initially sporadic in occurrence, singing began in September, but was not regularly heard until late October, when full songs were common. I found evidence that the onset of regular singing occurs earlier at lower latitudes, longer photoperiods, and higher temperatures. The theme order in early season full songs was variable, until December when theme order became more consistent with what was observed the previous spring. Dominican Republic breeding ground songs recorded in January and March were crystalized in terms of theme order. Song duration increased gradually through the breeding season. Spring song cessation was only captured at a single site/season in Canada and compared to song development, it was abrupt with few song fragments. These late season songs had consistent theme orders. I propose that the patterns observed here may in part be driven by physiological processes like those of songbirds.


title: RESPONSIBLE BUSINESS CONDUCT IN THE EXTRACTIVE INDUSTRIES: PROSPECT OF RESPECTING WOMEN'S HUMAN RIGHTS IN GHANA

contributor:
Faculty of Law
Master of Laws
Olabisi Akinkugbe
Lucie Guibault
Nayha Acharya
Sara L. Seck
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject: Responsible Business Conduct

subject: Business and Human Rights

subject: Extractive Industries

subject: Intergovernmental Forum on mining, minerals, metals and sustainable development

subject: Women's Human Rights

subject: Land Grabbing

abstract: Business operations in the extractive industries (EI) continue to violate women’s human rights and the environment in the communities in which they operate. In Ghana, existing laws and regulations do not preclude businesses from such violations. This makes it important to reflect on innovative means including soft laws which could encourage companies operating in the EI in Ghana to respect women’s human rights and the environment over and above compliance with national laws and regulations. This thesis examines the problem of land grabbing by EI companies operating in Ghana, the unique negative impacts women in mining communities face as a result of land grabbing, and how this affects Ghana’s economic backbone. The study suggests that respect for women’s human rights in the EI in Ghana would help Ghana to achieve sustainable development, and that this could be accomplished through efforts by the government and EI companies to adopt and apply legally relevant international Responsible Business Conduct standards and principles. The analysis adopts a gendered perspective to help highlight the diverse intersectional factors that are discriminatory towards women in an attempt to address issues of women in the communities where extractive business operations are undertaken in Ghana.


title: Women’s Contextual Online Social Identity Formation Model: A Case Study from the Saudi Twittersphere

contributor:
Interdisciplinary PhD Programme
Doctor of Philosophy
Dr. Kelly Lyons
Dr. Lynne Robinson
Dr. Carolyn Watters
Dr. Hossam Ali-Hassan
Dr. Stan Matwin
Received
Yes
No

subject:
Saudi Arabia
Women Studies
Online Identity
Social Media
Self-Presentation
Self-Development

abstract: Online Social Networks (OSNs) are widely accessible, and they produce a wealth of information on their user's behaviour. Previous research has shown that the user identity experiences a dynamic shift through self-presentation (SP) and self-development (SD). Yet, there is a lack of understanding with respect to how that shift affects the female’s identity development and what are the internal and external factors that shape women’s online social identity in specific contexts (i.e., Saudi women). By appropriating the Saudi Twittersphere’s texts and its users’ behaviours as primary data sources, a multi-phased, mixed-method, and cross-disciplinary methodology was charted. Phases 1 & 4 focused on measuring SP by examining posts from Twitter using content & network analysis, as well as machine learning techniques. Meanwhile, Phases 2 & 3 encompassed SD by examining users’ perceptions, expectations, and experiences of OSNs by conducting a survey and subsequent interviews. The results were synthesized using the qualitative meta-analysis (QMA) technique to generate the women’s contextual online social identity formation model (WCOSIF), taking into consideration key contextual and cultural factors related to Saudi Arabia. The ultimate result showed that there are four stages of (WCOSIF) that Saudi women had gone through: exposure, transformation, emergence, and social actualization. The stages had developed through three main identity types: reflective (SP), narrative, and active identity (SD). The reflective identity helped to evolve the social identity and form the exposure to the transformation stage with the help of three main factors: self-discovery, reflection-retention, and identity cultivation. In the meanwhile, the narrative identity helped to evolve the Saudi women’s identity from the transformation to the emergence phase through time-interval growth and using the retreat, regroup, and re-engage strategy. Finally, the active identity (SD) helped to evolve the social identity from the emergence to the self-actualization stage via social openness, systemic effects, and collective effervescence. This research aims to add value to the model-building of OSNs research and enhance the contextual knowledge of technologies and users’ behaviour in certain settings. Specifically, the model has many implications that can be used in the Saudi context, with particular regard to Saudi women.


title: GLACIAL EROSION IN ATLANTIC AND ARCTIC CANADA DETERMINED BY TERRESTRIAL IN SITU COSMOGENIC NUCLIDES AND ICE SHEET MODELING

contributor:
Department of Earth Sciences
Doctor of Philosophy
Shawn J. Marshall
Djordje Grujic
John C. Gosse
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable


title: Si Alloy Negative Electrode Materials for Li-ion Batteries

contributor:
Department of Chemistry
Doctor of Philosophy
Egbert Figgemeier
Peng Zhang
Peng Zhang
Mita Dasog
Theodore Monchesky
Mark Obrovac
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable

subject:
Silicon
Negative Electrode
Li-ion Batteries

abstract: Si-based negative electrode materials are promising for lithium batteries. However, Si-based negative electrode materials suffer from huge volume change, crystallization effect (Li15Si4 formation), unstable solid electrolyte interface during cycling. Preparing Si/inactive materials and Si/C compounds (especially carbon coated Si materials) are two efficient methods to alleviate these problems mentioned above. This work focuses on designing and developing new Si-transition metal negative electrode materials. Si-Mo, Si-TiN, and Si-Ti-N-O alloys were prepared by Ar milling, N2 (g) milling, and air milling, respectively. Composition, morphology, and electrochemical performance of Si-Mo, Si-TiN, and Si-Ti-N-O alloys were investigated. Thermal stability of these alloys was also studied, since high thermal stability is an important requirement for preparing carbon coated Si negative electrode materials at high temperature. A preliminary study of high temperature carbon coating preparation for these Si alloys studied in this thesis and related issues were also discussed.