identifier: Bishop, Allison  (2012) Triskele.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

title: Triskele

abstract:
This book of poetry sets out to explore very old myths and ritual sites of ancient Cymry, their tradition and reverence for poets, and the belief in alternate realities, not as metaphysical improbabilities, but daily life realities. And it intends
to assume the relevance of these ancient concepts for today’s audience. The result is a book of mixed genres: autobiography, biography, fiction, non-fiction, meta-fiction, creative non-fiction, travel journal, environmental treaties, experimental and conceptual poetry and prose. It is a philosophical essay which cannot be written in academic or scientific language while questioning the ubiquitous confidence we attribute to them as authorities of what can be known.  By merging forms, playing with de-contextualization and juxtapositions, these poems undermine the notion that any one system, any one form, can ever gain access to the mysterious realities of living. Yet, by undermining the intellectual paradigm, these poems displace the reader’s attention in order to create opportunities for engaging in the primitive mind, the mind of intuitive perception and boundlessness.
	This project draws on the works especially of Bergson, Deleuze, and Abrahms to create shortcuts to complex underlying concepts, and it quotes the words of Taliesin, Welsh poet, to invoke ancient vision. The basic initiation ritual, which involves fasting and mock death, questions of re-identification and the development of intuitive mind, are the project’s structural and thematic model. The manuscript progresses from narrative structure to a block of many superimposed poems, all jostling for attention, subverting the expectation of a conventional reading, and as such it plays with the possibilities of incorporating the past in order to consider the problems of creating meaning for the present.


identifier: MacInnis, Gail M.  (2012) Measuring and Modelling the Dispersal of Pollen and Spores by Wind.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

type: Thesis NonPeerReviewed

abstract: Our present understanding of pollen dispersal by wind (anemophily) is quite limited.  Due to the stochastic and complex nature of anemophily, modelling the dispersal patterns of the pollen and seeds of wind pollinated plants is not an easy task.  The majority of the existing dispersal models are varied and have many conflicting predictions of pollen dispersal distances and concentrations from a source. These discrepancies between models reflect the lack of both short and long distance dispersal data, limiting the ability to seriously test the validity of these models.  The main objective of this study was to measure ambient pollen concentrations of various tree and shrub species at both short and long distances from the source.  A secondary objective was to measure the parameters involved in the dispersal process of anemophilous pollen and subsequently use these parameters and the empirical data collected to test the accuracy of three analytical mechanistic models of pollen and seed dispersal. The applications of such models are extensive; besides being of use to the allergy-suffering population, present-day issues such as climate change, pollen contamination in GMO crops,  and landscape fragmentation  raise concerns about whether plants will be able to adapt, disperse, and reproduce effectively in such rapidly changing environments.


identifier: Guillaume, Philippe  (2012) A Study of Photography and Walking through the City in Modern, Postmodern, and Contemporary Canadian Art.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.


identifier: Moazami, Afshin  (2012) A Network Perspective of Nanotechnology Innovation: A Comparison of Quebec, Canada and the United States.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.


identifier: Tayeebwa, William  (2012) (Re)framing Mass Media Values:The Prospects and Challenges of Peace Media in Uganda.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
For two decades from 1987 to 2006, the three million inhabitants of Northern Uganda lived under a civil war between the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) and the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF). Several initiatives were undertaken to end the insurgence ranging from cultural, to national, to international. This dissertation is an analysis of the efforts undertaken through three ‘peace radio’ broadcasts on two radio stations in Northern Uganda to end the LRA rebellion. Dwog Cen Paco (Luo language for ‘come back home’) as well as Ter Yat (Luo language for ‘conversation under a tree’) broadcast weekly on 102 Mega FM in Gulu, while the third program ‘Vision for Peace’ broadcasts on Radio Wa 89.8 FM in Lira. I use framing theory to analyse how journalists and some media actors on the broadcasts constructed the concept of ‘peace’ and relayed it as mass media discourse. The analysis of the radio broadcasts reveals the broad discussion of the drivers of conflict and/or violence in the country. Further, several actors of peace as well as of conflict and/or violence were identified in the radio broadcasts.
From a broader perspective, I use the Peace Journalism theoretical framework to assess from Ugandan journalists the functionality of conventional journalism norms and practices that often valorize conflict and/or violence. The data shows that while appreciative of the values of peace, Ugandan journalists still apprize the conventional media frames that promote violence such as ‘drama’; ‘crisis’; ‘extremism’; ‘threats’; and ‘destruction’ among others. This, therefore, points to a need for a pedagogical and praxis-oriented engagement with journalists to enhance skills in Conflict Sensitive Reporting, which includes proficiency in conflict mapping and analysis. As a solution, I make an original contribution in this dissertation by proposing media frames of peace as an alternative to the entrenched frames of conflict and/or violence. Such frames of peace include ‘cooperation and consensus’; ‘reconciliation and forgiveness’; ‘patience and moderation’; ‘peacemakers and peace processes’; ‘humanness’; ‘truth and justice’ as well as ‘order and harmony’. I argue that these frames ought to constitute a monitoring and evaluation structure for Peace Journalism practices and products.

Key words: peace journalism; peace radio; Northern Uganda; media framing


identifier: Robertson, Keltie  (2012) 'Pretty Girls Everywhere': The Gendering of Space and Technology in the Demise of Scopitones.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This thesis offers a history of Scopitones, a largely overlooked element in the history of popular music promotion. Though these music video jukeboxes were expected to change the face of the popular music industry in the 1960s, they remain mostly forgotten today. By examining some of the reasons for the defeat of this location-based technology, insights on the links between space, gender and technology can be gained. These observations lead to a better understanding of how the combination of these very factors led directly to the bankruptcy of the Scopitone company. The analysis reveals how the gendered dimensions of space were indeed a factor in the operation of this short-lived technology.


identifier: Wenger, Menachem  (2012) Pricing and Hedging GMWB Riders in a Binomial Framework.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
The guaranteed minimum withdrawal benefit (GMWB) rider guarantees the return of premiums in the form of periodic withdrawals while allowing policyholders to participate fully in any market gains. The product has evolved into a lifetime version (GLWB) and is a vital component of the variable annuity marketplace, representing asset values of $294B as of September 2011.

GMWB riders represent an embedded option on the account value with a fee structure that is different from typical financial derivatives. We present an in-depth study into pricing and hedging the GMWB rider from a financial economic perspective. Our main contributions are twofold. We construct a binomial asset pricing model for GMWBs under optimal policyholder behaviour which results in explicitly formulated perfect hedging strategies in a binomial world. The numerical toolbox for pricing GMWBs in a Black-Scholes world is expanded to include binomial methods.

To motivate our work, we begin with a review of the continuous model and a comprehensive synthesis of results from the literature. Throughout, particular focus is placed on the unique perspectives of the insurer and policyholder and the unifying relationship. We also present an approximation algorithm that significantly improves efficiency of the binomial model while retaining accuracy. Several numerical examples are provided which illustrate both the accuracy and the tractability of the model.

Finally, we explore the effect of deterministic mortality on pricing GMWBs, and run mortality simulations to obtain hedging results which support the diversification principle.


identifier: Alfaro, Kristen  (2012) Moving Cinema: Experimental Distribution and the Development of Anthology Film Archives.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
This thesis examines the emergence of Anthology Film Archives (hereinafter Anthology), an independent and experimental film institution in New York City. Within experimental film history, Anthology is predominantly recognized for the creation of Essential Cinema, a canon of film art. The canon has become the institution’s most famous endeavor and it has contributed to Anthology’s predominant scholarly identity as alternatively a heroic or authoritarian institution. In this thesis, I explore the institution’s conceptualization in the 1960s, its emergence in 1970, and the first five years of its development, in order to demonstrate how Anthology’s history is more complicated than the dominant narrative implies. I argue that Anthology grew out of a particular set of social and artistic dynamics that shaped experimental film distribution and therefore, its exhibition.
In the first half of this thesis, I examine the shared spaces and distribution networks of art and film during the 1960s and 1970s in New York City. I argue that the shifts in experimental film circulation – in part prompted by changes in experimental art distribution - play an important role in the development of Anthology Film Archives. Secondly, I examine the broader corpus of Anthology’s early endeavors, including Anthology’s first theater, Invisible Cinema, the Film Study Center, and its collaborations with other institutions such as the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the American Film Institute, and New York University, among others. This thesis offers a glimpse into aspects of Anthology’s history that extend beyond the lasting legacy of Essential Cinema.


identifier: Chen, Rui  (2012) Toward Privacy in High-Dimensional Data Publishing.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
Nowadays data sharing among multiple parties has become inevitable in various application domains for diverse reasons, such as decision support, policy development and data mining. Yet, data in its raw format often contains person-specific sensitive information, and publishing such data without proper protection may jeopardize individual privacy. This fact has spawned extensive research on privacy-preserving data publishing (PPDP), which balances the fundamental trade-off between individual privacy and the utility of published data. Early research of PPDP focuses on protecting private and sensitive information in relational and statistical data. However, the recent prevalence of several emerging types of high-dimensional
data has rendered unique challenges that prevent traditional PPDP techniques from being directly used. In this thesis, we address the privacy concerns in publishing four types of high-dimensional data, namely set-valued data, trajectory data, sequential data and network data. We develop effective and efficient non-interactive data publishing solutions for various utility requirements. Most of our solutions satisfy a rigorous privacy guarantee known as differential privacy, which has been the de facto standard for privacy protection. This thesis demonstrates that our solutions have exhibited great promise for releasing useful high-dimensional data without endangering individual privacy.


identifier: Kyryakov, Pavlo  (2012) Mechanisms Underlying Longevity Regulation and Extension by Genetic, Dietary and Pharmacological Interventions in the Yeast Saccharomyces Cerevisiae.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
This thesis describes studies in which the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae was used as a model organism for unveiling the mechanisms underlying longevity regulation and
extension by genetic, dietary and pharmacological interventions. We found that a diet known as caloric restriction (CR) modulates oxidation-reduction processes and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production in yeast mitochondria, reduces the frequency of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutations, and alters the abundance and mtDNA-binding activity of mitochondrial nucleoid-associated proteins. Our findings provide evidence that these mitochondrial processes play essential roles in regulating longevity of chronologically active yeast by defining their viability following cell entry into a quiescent state. Based on these findings, we propose a hypothesis that ROS, which are mostly generated as by-products of mitochondrial respiration, play a dual role in regulating longevity of chronologically aging yeast. On the one hand, if yeast
mitochondria are unable (due to a dietary regimen) to maintain ROS concentration below a toxic threshold, ROS promote aging by oxidatively damaging certain mitochondrial
proteins and mtDNA. On the other hand, if yeast mitochondria can (due to a dietary regimen) maintain ROS concentration at a certain “optimal” level, ROS delay chronological aging. We propose that this “optimal” level of ROS is insufficient to damage cellular macromolecules but can activate certain signaling networks that extend
lifespan by increasing the abundance or activity of stress-protecting and other anti-aging proteins. In addition, studies presented in this thesis imply that mtDNA mutations do not contribute to longevity regulation in yeast grown under non-CR conditions but make important contribution to longevity regulation in yeast placed on a CR diet. The
nonreducing disaccharide trehalose has been long considered only as a reserve carbohydrate. However, recent studies in yeast suggested that this osmolyte can protect cells and cellular proteins from oxidative damage elicited by exogenously added ROS. Trehalose has been also shown to affect stability, folding and aggregation of bacterial and
firefly proteins heterologously expressed in heat-shocked yeast cells. Our investigation of how a lifespan-extending CR diet alters the metabolic history of chronologically aging yeast suggested that their longevity is programmed by the level of metabolic capacity - including trehalose biosynthesis and degradation - that yeast cells developed prior to entry into quiescence. To investigate whether trehalose homeostasis in chronologically aging yeast may play a role in longevity extension by CR, we examined how single-genedeletion mutations affecting trehalose biosynthesis and degradation impact 1) the agerelated
dynamics of changes in trehalose concentration; 2) yeast chronological lifespan under CR conditions; 3) the chronology of oxidative protein damage, intracellular ROS
level and protein aggregation; and 4) the timeline of thermal inactivation of a protein in heat-shocked yeast cells and its subsequent reactivation in yeast returned to low temperature. Our data imply that CR extends yeast chronological lifespan by altering a pattern of age-related changes in trehalose concentration.


identifier: Watson, Tim  (2012) Going Green in the Face of Political Threats: A Study of the Chicago Climate Exchange.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The impact of corporate social responsibility initiatives on shareholder value is uncertain.  Research points to both positive and negative market reaction to the announcement of a firm either being recognized for its social responsibility or voluntarily engaging in an activity that would presumably be perceived as such.  In this study, I examine market reaction to a firm’s decision to make a voluntary, yet legally binding and potentially costly commitment to reduce green house gas emissions by joining the now-defunct Chicago Climate Exchange.  The Chicago Climate Exchange, as a field experiment, provides a unique opportunity to study the connection between corporate social responsibility and market valuation because the expected and actual costs of non-compliance are more observable, when compared against non legally binding initiatives.  I find that the market reacts negatively to a firm’s decision to join as evidenced by negative, although insignificant, cumulative abnormal returns and significant declines in trading volumes around the announcement date.  Price reaction is negatively associated with a firm’s price-to-book ratio in the year prior to joining the exchange and positively associated with the Kinder, Lydenberg, Domini Research & Analytics (KLD) rating of a firm’s environmental strengths.  Trading volume is positively associated with firm size, measured with market capitalization in the year prior to the announcement. Larger firms were less likely to make the commitment, whereas, firms in more highly concentrated industries and those with higher KLD rankings for community strengths were more likely to have joined the exchange.


identifier: McCann, William  (2012) Translating Plain Language An inquiry into the nature and strategies for successful plain language translation.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: As plain language is increasing in popularity, the author looks at the intersection of plain language and translation in the context of transforming non-plain language text into plain language. Examples from A Plain English Handbook published by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission are examined with the assistance of key components of skopos and relevance theories.


identifier: Oliveira Pisani Martini, Juliane  (2012) High Frequency Vocabulary in a Secondary Quebec ESL Textbook Corpus.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: It is widely accepted that high-frequency vocabulary must be taught in ESL/EFL classrooms, and that learners benefit from learning it (Schmitt, 2011; Nation, 2001). Research also confirms that recycling vocabulary is beneficial in facilitating the acquisition of vocabulary knowledge Milton (2009). In order to understand the lexical characteristics of classroom input secondary ESL learners in Québec are exposed to, I gathered and analyzed a corpus of Ministry-approved textbooks (Collection Quest for cycle 2 published by Chenelière Éducation). Subsequently, I used the corpus findings to develop a pedagogical word list that targets high frequency words that may need more emphasis or be missing entirely. Results showed that there are considerable deficits in the vocabulary presented in the three books. The 1k level was considered well represented because most words at this level occur in the books frequently and are widely recycled across the volumes. At the 2k and 3k levels, most words also occur in the books; however their frequency and range of occurrence are not satisfactory in terms of promoting successful acquisition. As for the mid-frequency vocabulary, results show that students have very few opportunities to encounter these words in their books. Most of the words between the 3k and the 9k levels are not recycled frequently in the corpus.


identifier: Fenwick, Andrew R. D.  (2012) Relating Modulus and Poincaré Inequalities on Modified Sierpiński Carpets.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This thesis investigates the question of whether a doubling metric measure space supports a Poincar\'e inequality and explains the relationship between the existence of such an inequality and the non-triviality of the respective modulus.  It discusses in detail a general class of modified Sierpi\'nski carpets presented by Mackay, Tyson, and Wildrick~\cite{M & T & K}, which are the first examples of spaces that support Poincar\'e inequalities for a renormalized Lebesgue measure that are also compact subsets of Euclidean space with empty interior. It describes the intricate relationship between the sequence used in the construction of a modified Sierpi\'nski carpet and the validity of Poincar\'e inequalities on that space.


identifier: Vadaga, Kiran K.  (2012) Are age-related differences uniform across different inhibitory functions?  Masters thesis, Concordia University.


identifier: Melnycky, Natalka A.  (2012) Age and sex specific allometric growth of antlers in Rangifer tarandus: variability in the pattern of resource allocation.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Sex-specific tradeoffs between body mass (linked to survival) and costly antlers (linked to reproductive success) are expected in sexually dimorphic ungulates. Unique among cervidae, female reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) possess antlers, providing an opportunity to investigate sex- and age-specific patterns of these tradeoffs. Using long-term (1996-2011) individual-based data (e.g. age, body mass, antler length) from a semi-domestic reindeer population in northern Finland, we established antler and body mass growth patterns and assessed the trends of resource allocations towards antlers relative to body mass, using allometric analysis. Sexual dimorphism was apparent in antler and body mass growth curves. Antler growth of males exhibited a steep incline without a plateau by five years, while body mass growth had a less steep incline with a slight decline of growth by five years of age. After an initial incline, female antler and body mass growth patterns showed a plateau near the age of three. All age and sex categories, apart from yearling males and mature females, exhibited positive allometry of antlers, meaning the rate of increase in antler length was higher than that of body mass. Relative allocation of resources towards antlers was highest in female calves, with both sexes exhibiting high allometric exponents as calves and decreasing allocations in yearlings. Male adults increased allocations, while females tended to decrease allocations further with age. Our results exhibit a varying allocation strategy towards antlers, relative to body mass, in reindeer, with clear age-specific sexual dimorphism in relative allocations.


identifier: Hebert, Issac  (2012) The habitat preferences of Newfoundland woodland caribou across range components and scales: implications for management.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: An increase in predation following forestry is thought to be the main cause for the decline of woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou). Identifying and protecting important habitats within caribou ranges can be used for conservation of this species. In this thesis, we constructed core areas of Newfoundland woodland caribou using both an objective and an arbitrary method, identified important habitats in different spatial and temporal components of caribou ranges, and determined if habitat preference and the proportion of cutovers changed across the range components. In addition, we determined the stand characteristics preferred by the caribou within coniferous forests (CF) and whether the cutovers regenerate into forests of similar value as those preferred by caribou. We found that the core areas defined using an arbitrary method was half the size of the core areas defined using the objective method and bogs and CF had the highest selectivity index across all of the range components. The preference for each habitat and the proportion of cutovers changed across the temporal yet not the spatial components of the range. Within the core areas, CF were used in similar proportion as cutovers however, the CF used by the caribou did not share the same characteristics with any of the cutover age categories. These results suggest that the use of arbitrary cores may underestimate the core areas and that caribou have seasonal habitat requirements. In addition, caribou utilize both cutovers and CF despite each habitat having different stand characteristics.


identifier: Chamberland-Lajoie, Jules  (2012) Analyzing the portrayal of child sexual abuse in La Presse: The shifting dialectics of silence and denunciation.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This thesis explores the discursive entanglements and juxtapositions around child sexual abuse victims, perpetrators and disclosure observable in the past ten years in La Presse’s coverage in Québec. Using a mixed methodology, I first examine the number of news stories published on this topic between 2001 and 2010, and subsequently use a critical discourse analysis to scrutinize over a hundred news stories that were printed over this span of time. In assessing this material, my questions concern whether the media portrayal of child sexual abuse might have helped, at a first level, to de-stigmatize the taboo surrounding this social phenomenon in the popular culture; and second, whether and how the press might be propagating false representations about the prevalence of child sexual abuse by dwelling on particular details and misrepresenting this issue. Further, I explore how social representations of child sexual violence are structured, both around victims and their aggressors, and the role of local mass media discourse in influencing a culture of denunciation regarding such abuse.


identifier: Grogan, Allan  (2012) CEO Compensation and Corporate Governance Surrounding Mergers and Acquisitions.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.


identifier: Tobin, Stephanie  (2012) Neuronal Mechanisms Mediating Acute Food Deprivation-Induced Reinstatement of Heroin Seeking.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
One of the most troubling aspects of addiction is the chronic and cyclical nature of this disorder. In particular, the desire to use drugs and subsequent relapse can occur after months or even years of absence. Amongst human drug abusers, exposure to stressful life events and style of stress-coping have been shown to predict relapse. Similarly, in rodents stress can induce the reinstatement of drug seeking, a model of stress-induced relapse. In the following series of experiments the neuronal mechanisms mediating acute 21-48h food deprivation (FD)-induced reinstatement of heroin seeking are investigated. Previously, our laboratory has demonstrated that this form of reinstatement can be attenuated by systemic injection of the dopamine (DA) D1 receptor antagonist SCH 23390. Thus, in chapter 1, the neuronal circuitry mediating the role of DA, acting at the D1 receptor, in acute FD-induced reinstatement was examined. The five experiments described in the chapter reveal a significant attenuation of heroin seeking in rats infused with SCH 23390 into the nucleus accumbens (NAc) shell, dorsal medial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC) or basolateral amygdala (BLA). However, acute FD-induced reinstatement was not affected by infusions of SCH 23390 into the NAc core, or ventral medial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC).
Compulsive drug seeking and the propensity to relapse have been attributed to pathological synaptic plasticity, resulting from drug-induced changes in glutamate synapses. Thus, in chapters 2 and 3 the role of glutamate in acute FD-induced reinstatement was inspected. In chapter 2, neuroadaptations in the glutamatergic projection from the ventral subiculum (vSub) of the hippocampus to the NAc shell were investigated. The vSub to NAc shell pathway is an important excitatory input, providing spatial and affective information that is modulated by DA release within the NAc. Here, acute 48h FD was shown to block the induction of long-term potentiation (LTP) in both heroin-trained and heroin-naïve rats. In chapter 3, changes in the expression of α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazole-4-propionic acid (AMPA) and N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) glutamate receptor subunits were investigated in rats trained to self-administer heroin and subsequently tested for acute FD-induced reinstatement of drug seeking. The results of this study reveled a tendency toward a reduction in GluA2 and NR1 expression in the dmPFC and NAc, respectively, of heroin-trained food deprived rats, compared to heroin-trained sated rats, as well as a significant increase in GluA2 expression in the VTA of heroin-trained-sated rats compared to drug-naïve sated rats. Finally, FD increased GluA2 expression, in the BLA, in drug-naïve but not heroin-trained rats. Together, these findings demonstrate an important role for both DA and glutamate in acute FD-induced reinstatement. The current results support existing models that suggest a critical role for DA and glutamate transmission, and the interaction between the two systems, in the reinstatement of drug seeking.


identifier: Saveliovsky, Dario A  (2012) Detecting Semantic Matching In Service Oriented System Integration.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
Service Oriented Architecture is being adopted by an increasing number of businesses in order to make their software available through the network, resulting in a
considerable growth in the number of available Web services. The need for an automated way for service integration becomes then a pressing issue. This thesis looks at the major obstacles faced when trying to achieve this goal, including the problem of �nding element mappings across service interfaces. For this, a method is proposed which employs schema matching techniques extended for the speci�cs of Web service de�nitions. A proof of concept service integration assistant is presented, and tested on several case studies. These include the collaboration between mainstream Enterprise
Resource Planning and Product Lifecycle Management software systems -a real-world scenario that illustrates the relevance of this work.


identifier: Huang, Feiyu  (2012) An Investigation of the risk-adjusted performance of Canadian REIT mutual funds and the market timing skills of fund managers.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: I investigate the performance of Canadian REIT mutual funds over the period March 24, 2006 through March 5, 2012, focusing on their timing skills. Firstly, using standard, conditional and modified Value at Risk measures, I investigate the risk-adjusted-performance of the universe of 18 Canadian REIT mutual funds, as well as that of an equal weighted portfolio of these funds. In my analysis, I investigate the performance of the funds over different stages of a business cycle, as identified by recession indicators developed and made available by the Organization of Economic Development. Secondly, I extend Treynor and Mazuy’s model using Markov regime switching, to examine the market timing ability of Canadian REIT mutual fund managers and further determine if their timing ability can explain the variation in performance of REIT mutual funds over the business cycle. The results indicate that Canadian REIT mutual funds have positive risk-adjusted performance in recession periods and negative performance in bull markets.  In addition, using the regime switching Treynor and Mazuy’s model, I find that fund managers exhibit negative market timing skills, particularly in a falling market.


identifier: Tabbara, Hiba  (2012) Native Language OLAP Query Execution.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

title: Native Language OLAP Query Execution

abstract:
Online Analytical Processing (OLAP) applications are widely used in the components of contemporary Decision Support systems. However, existing OLAP query languages are neither efficient nor intuitive for developers. In particular, Microsoft’s Multidimensional Expressions language (MDX), the de-facto standard for OLAP, is essentially a string-based extension to SQL that hinders code refactoring, limits compile-time checking, and provides no object-oriented functionality whatsoever.

In this thesis, we present Native language OLAP query eXecution, or NOX, a framework that provides responsive and intuitive query facilities. To this end, we exploit the underlying OLAP conceptual data model and provide a clean integration between the server and the client language. NOX queries are object-oriented and support inheritance, refactoring and compile-time checking. Underlying this functionality is a domain specific algebra and language grammar that are used to transparently convert client side queries written in the native development language into algebraic operations understood by the server. In our prototype of NOX, JAVA is used as the native language. We provide client side libraries that define an API for programmers to use for writing OLAP queries. We investigate the design of NOX through a series of real world query examples. Specifically, we explore the following: fundamental SELECTION and PROJECTION, set operations, hierarchies, parametrization and query inheritance. We compare NOX queries to MDX and show the intuitiveness and robustness of NOX. We also investigate NOX expressiveness with respect to MDX from an algebraic point of view by demonstrating the correspondence of the two approaches
in terms of SELECTION and PROJECTION operations. We believe the practical benefit of NOX-style query processing is significant. In short, it largely reduces OLAP database access to the manipulation of client side, in-memory data objects


identifier: Caprarelli, Cristina  (2012) Modelling and Design of Earthquake Resistant Low-Rise Concentrically Braced Frames with Dissipative Single-Pin Connections.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.


identifier: Alatawneh, Natheer  (2012) Design of a Test Fixture for Rotational Core Losses in Electrical Machine Laminations.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
In recent years, several methods and devices have been proposed to measure rotational core losses. Technically, it is still a challenge to realize both high and uniform magnetic flux density within a wide area of the sample under test. Because of that, importance has been placed on the development of magnetizing circuits which are capable of performing 2-D rotating field tests.
In this work, a novel design of a magnetizing circuit is presented, simulated, and implemented practically to obtain a uniform rotating flux density inside the test sample. This magnetizing circuit is based on an electromagnetic Halbach array. The new test fixture is suitable for the measurement of rotational core loss, and capable of measuring pulsating loss in different directions within the specimen. Measurements were carried out on five silicon steel circular samples of 20 cm diameter. Theses samples are: M15 gauge 29, M19 gauge 29, M19 gauge 24, M36 gauge 29, and M36 gauge 26.
This work describes the influence of different flux patterns on core loss estimation, where three different machines, induction, BLDCM, and SRM are simulated to calculate the zones of rotating flux density in the stator cores of these machines. Experimental tests are executed, and the percentage error made by assuming all flux is pulsating is calculated.
Core loss differences in electrical machine laminations have been noticed under rotating field in the case of clockwise (CW) and counterclockwise (CCW) direction excitation. Experimental results manifest that the anisotropy of the magnetic material is attributed mainly to the asymmetry in the CW and CCW rotational core losses, where the permeability varies significantly when the direction of rotating field is reversed. A study on three different types of machines at different frequencies show the importance of considering the direction of rotating field during the machine efficiency estimation.
The negative power in rotational core loss which was reported in some laboratories has been addressed and interpreted according to the dynamic hysteresis loop behavior. The negative power which appears in one loss component is caused by the reversal of the field direction which can be realized from the interfered dynamic hysteresis loop, while the negative value in the total rotational loss originates in the sensors misalignment.
The reason behind the unusual shape of the hysteresis loop under rotating field observed in the literature is revealed, where the harmonics under rotating field is responsible for the change in the hysteresis loop shape from the well known shape under pulsating field. The results show also that the behavior of the minor loop under rotating fields differs from its behavior under pulsating fields.  The minor loop under rotating fields moves outside the major loop at saturation, while it is confined inside the major loop under pulsating fields. The effect of harmonics on core losses under a rotating field is estimated and compared with losses under pulsating fields.


identifier: Tsakanikas, Loukia  (2012) Normal form analysis of a mean-field inhibitory neuron model.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
In neuroscience one of the open problems is the creation of the alpha rhythm detected
by the electroencephalogram (EEG). One hypothesis is that the alpha rhythm
is created by the inhibitory neurons only. The mesoscopic approach to understand
the brain is the most appropriate to mathematically modelize the EEG records of the
human scalp. In this thesis we use a local, mean-field potential model restricted to
the inhibitory neuron population only to reproduce the alpha rhythm. We perform
extensive bifurcation analysis of the system using AUTO.We use Kuznetsov’s method
that combines the center manifold reduction and normal form theory to analytically
compute the normal form coefficients of the model. The bifurcation diagram is largely
organised around a codimension 3 degenerate Bogdanov-Takens point. Alpha rhythm
oscillations are detected as periodic solutions.


identifier: Ormerod, Thomas  (2012) An Analysis of a Botnet Toolkit and a Framework for a Defamation Attack.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.


identifier: D'Cunha, Tracey  (2012) Augmentation of heroin seeking following chronic food restriction in the rat: A role for nucleus accumbens dopamine.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Previous research using an animal model of relapse has shown that acute food deprivation will increase drug seeking. Recent evidence from humans, however, suggests that chronic food restriction rather than acute deprivation is related to increases in drug taking and relapse, emphasizing the need to develop an animal model to elucidate the mechanisms mediating the effects of chronic food restriction on drug seeking. We studied the effects of chronic food restriction during a period of abstinence on heroin seeking in rats. Results demonstrated an augmentation of heroin seeking in chronically food restricted rats with a history of heroin self-administration. Re-feeding prior to the drug seeking test or decreasing the length of the food restriction period prevented the augmentation of drug seeking. A combination of chronic food restriction and a concurrent state of hunger appear to be necessary for the augmentation of heroin seeking induced by food restriction. Previously, it was demonstrated that chronically food restricted rats display alterations in the mesolimbic dopamine system, a critical component of the reward system. Consequently, we assessed extracellular levels of dopamine in the nucleus accumbens, one of the major targets for mesolimbic dopamine neurons, during the drug seeking test, following chronic food restriction in abstinent rats with a history of heroin self-administration. Preliminary data indicate significantly higher levels of dopamine throughout the drug seeking test in the food restricted rats. Our findings suggest that food restriction-induced changes in dopamine release in the nucleus accumbens are associated with the augmentation of drug seeking in food restricted abstinent rats.


identifier: Giacomini, David  (2012) Vertical Handover Decision Making Using QoS Reputation and GM(1,1) Prediction.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Telecommunication consumers are fueling a demand for mobile devices that are rapidly increasing in their capability to provide a wider range of services.  These services in turn are consuming more bandwidth and require richer quality of service (QoS) in order to ensure a good end user experience when performing activities such as streaming video content or facilitating voice over IP (VoIP).  As a result, network providers are expanding and improving their coverage area while technology to establish Wi-Fi hotspots is becoming more accessible to every day users.  This combination of increase in demand and accessibility, coupled with users’ ever increasing expectations for high quality service presents a growing need to seamlessly optimize the use of the overlaid heterogeneous networks in urban areas to maximize the end user experience via the use of a vertical handover mechanism (VHO).  Grey systems theory has been used in a wide range of systems including economic, financial, transportation, and military to accurately forecast time series based on limited information. In this thesis we build on a novel reputation based VHO decision rating system by proposing the use of the grey model first order one variable, GM(1,1), in the handover decision making progress.  The low complexity of the GM(1,1) model allows for a quick and efficient prediction of the future reputation score for a given network, providing deeper insight into the current state of the target network.  Furthermore, we analyze how this model helps balance the load across the heterogeneous networks employing its strategy.


identifier: Kaynama, Sina  (2012) Convex Formulation of Controller Synthesis for Piecewise-Affine Systems.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
This thesis is divided into three main parts. The contribution of the first part is to present a controller synthesis method to stabilize piecewise-affine (PWA) slab systems based on invariant sets. Inspired by the theory of sliding modes, sufficient stabilization
conditions are cast as a set of Linear Matrix Inequalities (LMIs) by proper choice of an invariant set which is a target sliding surface. The method has two steps: the design of the attractive sliding surface and the design of the controller parameters. While previous approaches
to PWA controller synthesis are cast as Bilinear Matrix Inequalities (BMIs) that can, in some cases, be relaxed to LMIs at the cost of adding conservatism, the proposed
method leads naturally to a convex formulation. Furthermore, the LMIs obtained in this work have lower dimension when compared to other methods because the dimension of
the closed-loop state space is reduced.

In the second part of the thesis, it is further shown that the proposed approach is less conservative than other approaches. In other words, it will be shown that for every solution of the LMIs resulting from previous approaches, there exists a solution for the LMIs obtained from the proposed method. Furthermore, it will be shown that while previous convex controller synthesis methods have no solutions to their LMIs for some examples of PWA systems, the approach proposed in this thesis yields a solution for these examples.

The contribution of the last part of this thesis is to formulate the PWA time-delay synthesis problem as a set of LMIs. In order to do so, we first define a sliding surface, then control laws are designed to approach the specified sliding surface and ensure that the trajectories will remain on that surface. Then, using Lyapunov-Krasovskii functionals, sufficient conditions for exponential stability of the resulting reduced order system will be obtained.

Several applications such as pitch damping of a helicopter (2nd order system), rover path following example (3rd order system) and active flutter suppression (4th order system)
along with some other numerical examples are included to demonstrate the effectiveness of the approaches.


identifier: Jaworski, Ian  (2012) Investigation of Proteins Involved in the Biosynthesis and Utilization of 2,3-Dihydroxybenzoic Acid, an Intermediate of E. coli Enterobactin Biosynthesis.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.


identifier: Peck, Stephanie  (2012) The Not-so-simple Impact of Norms on Green Behaviours: The Moderating Roles of Social Identity Complexity and Cognitive Resources.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.


identifier: Han, Dezhao  (2012) Pricing Ratchet EIA under Heston’s Stochastic Volatility with Deterministic Interest.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
Since its introduction in 1995, equity-indexed annuities (EIAs) received increasing attention from investors. Most of the pricing and hedging for different types of EIAs
have been obtained in the Black-Scholes (BS) framework. In this framework the underlying asset is assumed to follow a geometric Brownian motion. However, the BS model is plagued by its assumption of constant volatility, while stochastic volatility models have become increasingly popular. In this paper we assume that the asset price follows Heston’s stochastic volatility model with deterministic interest, and
introduce two methods to price the ratchet EIA.

The first method is called the joint transition probability density function (JTPDF) method. Given the JTPDF of the asset price and variance, pricing ratchet EIAs boils down to a question of solving multiple integrals. Here, the multiple integral is solved using Quasi Monte Carlo methods and the importance sampling technique. The other method used to evaluate EIAs prices is called the conditional
expectation (CE) approach. Conditioning on the volatility path, we first price the rachet EIA analytically in a BS framework. Then the price in Heston framework can be obtained by simulating the volatility path. Greeks for the ratchet EIA can also be calculated by the JTPDF and CE methods. At the end, we carry out some sensitivity analyses for ratchet EIAs’ prices and Greeks.


identifier: Fauteux, Brian  (2012) Canadian Campus Radio and the Shaping of Sounds and Scenes.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This dissertation studies Canadian campus radio broadcasting and its relationship to the circulation of local music. I examine three campus stations in two cities and one town of varying size, population, and location. These stations include CHMA in Sackville, New Brunswick, CKUW in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and CiTR in Vancouver, British Columbia. Following extensive analysis of policy documents and station-produced texts, as well as interviews with staff members, volunteers, and local musicians, I argue that a campus radio station does not simply respond to federal broadcasting regulation by ensuring programming differs from what is available on commercial and public radio. Rather, there is self-awareness throughout the sector that is decidedly attuned to local music. In each locality, numerous cultural institutions, including campus stations, work together to support local and independent music. The histories of these three stations illustrate the various paths taken in order to acquire FM radio licenses, extending from university campuses to also serve surrounding communities. The ways in which a station represents its community falls somewhere between how community representation is defined by a station mandate, and the process by which communities are imagined by campus radio practitioners. Individuals are connected to a segment of an overall music scene through a shared taste culture for which content is produced. A tension emerges between the taste and expertise of a practitioner or programmer and the ideal goal of fully representing his or her community. Despite instances of exclusion and hierarchies of taste, however, the promotion of music that is propelled by cultural status circumvents the purely economic model ingrained in commercial radio, producing alternative values and methods for circulating music.


identifier: Chatterjee, Abhishek  (2012) Biophysical Characterization of NleD: An effector protein from Escherichia coli O157:H7.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Pathogenic Escherichia coli strains (O157:H7) are one of the main causes behind the lethal E. coli outbreaks in North America, UK and Japan. NleD, a zinc-dependent endopeptidase, is one of the several effector proteins secreted by these E. coli strains. After being injected directly into the host cell cytoplasm, NleD regulates the activity of specific MAP kinases (p38α kinase and JNK) leading to the inhibition of the host inflammatory response-signaling network. The current thesis is focused on the biophysical properties of NleD. NleD was identified as a monomer based on the results obtained from size exclusion chromatography, dynamic light scattering and analytical ultracentrifugation. The protein was prone to proteolytic cleavage at its C-terminal region as determined by mass spectrometry. Different approaches to improve the stability of purified NleD were also identified. NleD was found to have enhanced stability at lower temperatures and in the presence of trehalose. Using bioinformatic analysis as a tool, we were able to predict putative similarity between the active sites of botulinum neurotoxin and E. coli O157:H7 NleD. Preliminary characterization of the proteolytic activity of wild-type and variant forms of NleD was performed using p38α kinase as a substrate. Residues important for catalysis were identified. Our approach for improving the stability of the enzyme might facilitate its crystallization for structural work, while further mutagenesis studies may help identify the role of active site residues involved in catalysis.


identifier: Sharaf, Mesbah F  (2012) Essays on Immigration and Economic Policy.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
In the first essay, I study job-education mismatch and estimate its impact on the earnings of recent immigrants to Canada. Previous related studies have largely ignored cross-country differences in schooling quality. This essay presents a novel idea to account for cross-country differences in the quality of education, using Card and Krueger’s (1992) two-step approach. The earning impact of job-education mismatch is estimated using an Over-Required-Under Education technique. Data from the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Canada is used, and both cross sectional and panel data estimation methods are used to estimate the earning equations. Results show that recent immigrants to Canada have a persistent high incidence and intensity of over-education with substantial negative impact on their earnings. Most importantly is that not accounting for differences in educational quality across source countries leads to: 1) Overstating (understating) the incidence of over-education (under-education). 2) Understating (overstating) the return to over-education (under-education) for immigrants from countries with low quality of schooling. 3) Overstating (understating) the return to over-education (under-education) for immigrants from countries with high quality of schooling.
In the second essay, I quality-adjust human capital acquired from different source countries. This is achieved by explicitly deriving quality-adjustment indices, using data on adult males from the 2001 Canadian census. The derived indices are then used to examine the role of schooling quality in explaining the differential returns to schooling and over-education rates by nativity. I also use these indices to identify important inputs in the production technology of schooling quality. The key finding of this study is that accounting for schooling quality virtually eliminates the native-immigrant gaps in the returns to schooling and in the incidence of over-education. Results show wide variations in the return to schooling across countries. These variations are significantly explained by cross-country differences in educational resources, particularly government educational expenditure and the length of the school term.
The third essay studies the effect of graphic cigarette warning labels on smoking prevalence and quit attempts. The Generalized Estimating Equation model is used to estimate the population-averaged (marginal) effects of tobacco graphic warnings on smoking prevalence and quit attempts. It is found that graphic warnings had a statistically significant effect on smoking prevalence and quit attempts. In particular, the warnings decreased the odds of being a smoker and increased the odds of making a quit attempt.


identifier: Akiror, Jemimah C  (2012) Model for Core Loss Prediction at High Frequency and High Flux Density.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.


identifier: Shadmehri, Farjad  (2012) Buckling of Laminated Composite Conical Shells; Theory and Experiment.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
Composite conical and cylindrical shells are gaining more application in aerospace industry (e.g., helicopter tailboom, airplane fuselage) due to their high specific strength and stiffness properties coming from material (composite) and geometry advantages. Stability is always a concern for these types of structures under different loading conditions. One of the major loading scenarios is the bending load in which composite conical shells can buckle under bending. Although there have been extensive studies on the buckling of conical and cylindrical shells under axial load, buckling under bending receives less attention in the literature from theoretical and experimental points of view. In this study, the bucking behavior of composite conical shells has been studied experimentally and theoretically.
In the theoretical approach, a first order shear deformation shell theory has been proposed to study buckling and bending behavior of composite conical shells. A semi-analytical approach (Ritz method) has been applied to study buckling under axial load and buckling under bending of composite conical shells. An analytical solution (Levy type solution) has been applied to study the bending response of cross-ply conical shells under sinusoidal bending load. Also, a new formulation has been proposed to study bending, buckling and vibration of cross-ply cylindrical shells using an analytical solution (Levy type solution). A different displacement field from what was assumed in the literature has been proposed and consequently a new formulation has been obtained for the problem.
In the experimental approach, a composite tube-bending setup has been designed and developed to study bending, and buckling under bending load, behavior of composite shells. The setup has been designed to apply equal bending moments at the both ends of the structure, simulating pure bending test conditions.  Experimental result has been obtained for buckling under pure bending of composite conical shells.
Regarding the manufacturing technique, Automated Fiber Placement (AFP) has attracted the aerospace industry due to its fast production rate, repeatability, and minimum material waste.  Advanced thermoplastic composites obtain special attention in the aerospace industry as well, considering their superior properties (e.g., fracture toughness) and their capability to make aero-structures without requiring autoclave treatment with respect to thermoset ones. Considerable challenges remained unresolved regarding optimum process parameters for manufacturing of thermoplastic composites made by AFP and their quality. This thesis also addresses the effect of autoclave treatment on the stiffness quality of the thermoplastic composite cones made by AFP. The determination of optimum process parameters for AFP in the manufacturing of thermoplastic composite (AS4/PEEK) has been performed from both stiffness and strength point of view.


identifier: Nazarian, Vana Sirarpi  (2012) Familiar Faces and Nostalgic Places: Family Photographs as Instruments of Memory and Identity in the Montreal Armenian Community.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
Canada is home to many ethnic communities, some displaced from their homelands by political conflicts, genocide, and war. Within these diasporic communities, there is a need to collect and preserve whatever evidence remains as a way of holding onto the past, its memories and traditions, and to express the greater loss. My thesis investigates a small corpus of family photographs, taken prior to and after the Armenian Genocide (1915-1923), which have been passed on through generations. My interest lies in determining the meaning of these images in relation to a history of trauma in the family.
Considering the history of displacement and the subsequent creation of multiple homes, this thesis explores family photographs that have travelled with families to different places that these Armenian families have temporarily called "home." In that sense, I regard the physical function of the photographs as instruments to transmit memory, as well as their contributions to the assertion of cultural identity. Through their portrayed subjects, these images serve as visual support for three distinct functions: remembering people from the past; recalling places once called ‘home’; and transmitting cultural heritage and traditions.  �


identifier: Cooperman, Allyson  (2012) The impact of direct instruction on quantitative representations of manipulatives in the context of first graders' learning of place value concepts.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.


identifier: Edey, Susan  (2012) Interpreting Erica: A Study of Fan Engagement.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This thesis mobilizes theories of audiences and everyday life, feminist media critique and narrative identity to consider the medium of television and the fan experience. Using a targeted group of research participants, accessed through snowball sampling, the author undertook small-group conversations and one-on-one interviews to better understand how these particular fans engaged with the CBC television series Being Erica. Taking the view that audiences are both active and culturally situated and recognizing that our taste in media both informs and is informed by our sense of self, this research asserts that fan engagement with middlebrow televisual texts merits serious academic attention. Based on a consideration of Being Erica’s position within a post-feminist genre, the author contends that the series’ generic storylines allowed these viewers to relate to what they perceived to be an authentic representation of a young woman in today’s world and to remember and reflect on their own life experiences. Furthermore, the use of therapy as a primary narrative trope and the mobilization of self-help discourse gave these fans the opportunity to (re)learn some key lessons on how to be a ‘good’ person and live a ‘good’ life. The result was a personal, emotional and enjoyable journey for these fans, but one that served to promote a normative view of happiness and emphasized the importance of individual accountability and self-management above all else.


identifier: Sadoughianzadeh, Reza  (2012) Rankin L-functions and the Birch and Swinnerton-Dyer Conjecture.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
In this thesis we use Rankin's method to evaluate the central critical value of the L-series attached to an elliptic curve E over Q and certain odd irreducible 2-dimensional Artin representation tau: G_Q --> GL_2(C). The motivation for this study is the twisted BSD conjecture which states that:

For any continuous irreducible finite-dimensional complex representation tau of Gal(Qbar}/Q), we have:
ord_{s=1}L(\rho_E tensor \tau,s)= multiplicity of tau in C tensor E(K)
where E is an elliptic curve over Q, K is the fixed field of Ker(tau) and rho_E is the 2-dimensional l-adic Galois representation attached to the elliptic curve E, namely, the p-adic Tate module of E.

Deligne and Serre proved that there is a correspondence between the modular forms of weight 1 and certain two-dimensional Galois representations. In the twisted BSD conjecture, we put tau=rho_g where \rho_g:Gal(K/Q)-->GL_2(C) is an odd, continuous and irreducible Galois representation arising from a cusp form g belonging to S_1(Gamma_0(N),\chi). Using the Rankin method, we compute the constant term of L(\rho_{g}\otimes \rho_{E},s) at s=1. Thus, if we assume the BSD, we deduce:

L(rho_E tensor rho_g,1)= 0 ---> Hom_{G_{Q}} (rho_g, C tensor E(K))<> 0.

In this case, one can say that r_{K}(E) >= 2 .

We present some tables of computations we did with Sage for different modular forms g and elliptic curves E.


identifier: Lovi, Eric  (2012) Geomorphological Assessment of the Sedimentary Dynamics of the Sunday River, Quebec.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Many streams and rivers in agricultural areas have been straightened in order to enhance the drainage of cultivated land and facilitate crop management.  This practice is now viewed as unsustainable as periodic re-straightening is often necessary to address the problems associated with bank erosion, compromising the ecological integrity of lotic and riparian ecosystems. This research aims to assess the current sediment dynamics, as well as directions of current and future channel morphology change, of a straightened upland gravel-bed river in order to provide guidelines for sustainable management schemes.  The case study is the Sunday River (Quebec), located in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains and regarded to contain prime trout habitat. The lowest reach has proved the most problematic as a mid-channel bar repeatedly establishes itself, resulting in considerable erosion of adjacent agricultural land. In response, stakeholders have sought to regularly intervene by extracting gravel and re-straightening the channel. The study methodology combines a GIS analysis of historical aerial photos, field data collection and hydraulic and sediment transport modeling. Topographic channel geometry, sediment grain size and discharge data were acquired over the span of 2 field seasons. Additionally, repeated terrestrial lidar scans of eroding banks were acquired to aid in sediment budget evaluation. The 1D model HEC-RAS was employed to simulate current hydraulics and sediment transport, and to recreate pre-disturbance hydraulics by increasing cross-section spacing to mimic a longer, more sinuous channel.


identifier: Royea, Diana A  (2012) Effects of Lesson Sequencing on Preservice Teachers’ Mathematical Knowledge of Place-Value.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
ABSTRACT

The Effects of Lesson Sequencing on Preservice Teachers' Place-Value Knowledge
Diana Royea
	Elementary students' mathematical achievement is a focal point of mathematics education research. Place-value is a foundational topic in the elementary mathematics curriculum. In order to teach place-value in a manner that is in line with mathematics reform practices, teachers must possess strong conceptual, procedural, and specialized content knowledge (SCK) of place-value. At the same time, preservice teachers tend possess mathematical knowledge that is conceptually and procedurally weak. This study used a pretest-posttest design to investigate the effects of lesson sequencing on preservice teachers' conceptual, procedural, SCK, and transfer knowledge of place-value. Preservice teachers were assigned to one of three conditions: Concepts-first, Procedures-First, or Iterative. All of the participants were exposed to the same eight lessons, four conceptual and four procedural. The differences between the conditions was the order the lessons were received in. The results were analyzed quantitatively and where there were significant effects, those results were further analyzed from a qualitative perspective. Quantitative results indicated that there was a significant time × group interaction for conceptual knowledge. The Iterative condition significantly outperformed the Concepts-first and the Procedures-first conditions. While there was no main effect of condition on procedural knowledge, SCK, and transfer, there was a main effect of time for all three of these knowledge types. Furthermore, qualitative analyses revealed that the pathway of conceptual knowledge acquisition was affected by lesson sequencing. Finally, limitations, future research, and practical implications of this study are discussed.


identifier: Ravary-Pilon, Julie  (2012) Pallier aux Oublis: Une Étude du Cinéma des Femmes Argentines à Travers sa Pionnière, Maria Luisa Bemberg et son Enfant Chérie, Lucrecia Martel.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: L’idée à la base de ce présent mémoire est de dresser un portrait de l’importante place des femmes cinéastes dans la production cinématographique argentine. Nous présenterons une lecture du cinéma argentin à travers deux de ses réalisatrices à la lumière d’une analyse sociopolitique et historique de l’Argentine de la dictature militaire (1976-1983) passant par la crise économique du nouveau millénium (1998-2002) jusqu’à aujourd’hui. Les deux réalisatrices à l’étude sont María Luisa Bemberg et Lucrecia Martel. Elles furent sélectionnées pour leur importante influence dans la tradition du cinéma argentin : Bemberg est la première femme à réaliser un long métrage de fiction en Argentine, tandis que Martel est l’une des cinéastes les plus populaires et acclamées de sa génération en Argentine tout comme à l’échelle l’internationale. Ces deux cinéastes proposent des œuvres cinématographiques se distinguant des modèles canoniques cinématographiques. Bien qu’elles soient issues de deux décennies bien différentes (les années 1980 pour Bemberg et les années 2000 pour Martel), ces deux cinéastes ont su proposer une confrontation intelligente et nécessaire à la culture dominante argentine. Grâce à des concepts théoriques féministes ainsi qu’à une contextualisation de leur époque respective de création, nous serons en mesure de cerner l’apport indispensable de ces deux femmes dans ce cinéma national, mais aussi dans l’imaginaire collectif.


identifier: Linden-Andersen, Stine  (2012) Similarity of Autonomy, Responsive Caregiving and Depressive Symptoms among Same-Sex Adolescent Friends.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
Similarity of Autonomy, Responsive Caregiving and Depressive Symptoms among Same-Sex Adolescent Friends

Stine Linden-Andersen, Ph.D.
Concordia University, 2012

The tendency for individuals to be attracted to similar others, the similarity effect, has been widely studied among children, adolescents, and adults and across demographics, behaviours, emotions and personality, and is the focus of this research.
The first study examined similarity in two developmentally relevant personality constructs, autonomy and responsive caregiving, as well as similarity of well-being (i.e., depressive symptoms) among adolescent same sex-friends, nominated disliked peers, and randomly assigned peers. Results indicated that friends were marginally more similar than non-friends in depressive symptoms, but not more similar in autonomy or responsive caregiving. Moreover, adolescents were not more dissimilar to their disliked peers on autonomy, responsive caregiving or depressive symptoms, and there were no interactions between similarity/dissimilarity and gender.
Study two examined potential changes in similarity among friends over time. Specifically, the aim of Study two was to investigate if similarity of autonomy, responsive caregiving and depressive symptoms increased over time, in support of the socialization hypothesis. Furthermore, to illuminate the process of friendship development, stability of friendships was examined.
For depressive symptoms, findings somewhat supported the hypotheses, in that adolescent friends became more similar over time at a marginally significant level. However, in contrast to the hypotheses, adolescent friends became more dissimilar over time in autonomy.
Dissimilarity of autonomy, responsive caregiving and depressive symptoms did not reliably separate those who were in a stable friendship from those in an unstable friendship.
Similarity among same-sex adolescent friends has been suggested to be a function of three processes: selection of similar friends, de-selection of dissimilar friends, and socialization (i.e., increased similarity over time.)  For depressive symptoms, modest support was found for the selection hypothesis (study one) in that friends were marginally more similar than non friends, and the socialization hypothesis (study two) since friends became marginally more similar over time. However, findings from study two also challenge the socialization hypothesis by showing that friends became more dissimilar in autonomy over time. No support was found for the de-selection of dissimilar friends, when examining friendship stability.


identifier: Namuli, Rachel  (2012) Optimisation of Rural Biomass Waste to Energy Systems.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Biomass waste to energy conversion systems were traditionally installed on rural farms to manage manure disposal and mitigate odour. These systems provide heating and electricity and are increasingly viewed as sources of revenue.  Poorly operated or sized systems will not realise revenue. For farms that would like to install such systems, there is no tool available that optimises the systems prior to determination of their commercial viability. As such, there is a need to optimise these systems to determine the threshold herd size for commercially viability, and their maximum revenue. The associated optimisation problem is non-linear,  non-convex  and very difficult. Consequently, its solution is explored with a metaheuristic. The Tabu Search metaheuristic was adapted to solve this problem by: multi-period and diversification strategies that effectively search the solution space, handling of constraints using different strategies for searching feasible regions, with incursions into infeasible regions, and evaluation of a multi-objective function exploiting an approximation of the Pareto front. This dissertation is on research done to determine the threshold herd size for commercial viability of the biomass waste to energy conversion systems, and the maximum revenue from these systems. The threshold herd size was found by optimisation of the systems for different herd sizes. The threshold herd sizes were 80 dairy cows and 1200 swines for Quebec, and 100 dairy cows for Ontario. These considered co-digestion of manure and food waste, use of by-products, food waste tipping fees and an increase in the electricity tariff. The threshold herd size for Quebec also considered a favourable net metering contract. When digesting manure only, the threshold herd sizes were, 350 dairy cows for Quebec and 200 dairy cows for Ontario. The maximum revenue from the biomass waste to energy system was determined by optimising the system for a given herd size. Revenue was maximised by: minimising cost through proper sizing of the components, minimising consumption of propane and electricity from the grid, selling electricity to the utility, and capitalising on renewable energy incentives. The maximum revenue was determined for a herd size of 500 cows, and recommendations were made on its mode of operation.


identifier: Korutlu, Beste  (2012) Higgs and Radion Phenomenology Beyond the Standard Model.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
In this thesis we study models Beyond the Standard Model including Left-Right Supersymmetric Model and Warped Extra Dimensional Models with a Fourth Generation.

First, we revisit the Higgs sector of Left-Right Supersymmetric Model by studying the scalar potential in a version of the model in which the minimum is the charge and R-parity conserving vacuum state, and there are no additional non-renormalizable terms in the Lagrangian. We try to find a parameter space predicting at least one light doubly-charged Higgs boson, light neutral avor-conserving Higgs bosons. The Flavor-violating ones are heavy, and within the limits from Delta F = 1,2 mixings. The parameter space for such Higgs masses and mixings is very restrictive, thus making the model more predictive.

Subsequently, we study warped extra-dimensional scenarios in the presence of a fourth family of fermions and with the fermion fields lying in the bulk. We concentrate on the flavor structure of the Higgs couplings with fermions in the flavor anarchy ansatz. The occupancy of the fourth family in the model typically enhances the misalignment effects and we show that one should expect them to be highly nonsymmetrical in the (34) inter-generational mixing. The radiative corrections from the new fermions and their flavor violating couplings to the Higgs affect negligibly known experimental precision measurements such as the oblique parameters and Z -> b \bar{b}or Z -> mu^ +mu^-. On the other hand, Delta F = 1, 2 processes, mediated by tree-level Higgs exchange, as well as radiative corrections to b -> s gamma and mu to e gamma put some pressure on the allowed size of the flavor violating couplings. These couplings produce distinguishable signals in high energy colliders as they alter the Higgs decay patterns as well as those of the new fermions. These signals might become very important indirect signals for these type of models as they would be present even when the Kaluza-Klein mass scale is high and no heavy Kaluza-Klein particle is discovered.

Afterwards, we focus on the radion phenomenology in the same scenario with and without an additional fourth family of fermions. The radion couplings with the fermions are also generically misaligned with respect to the Standard Model fermion mass matrices as in the Higgs case, therefore producing some amount of flavor violating couplings and potentially influencing production and decay rates of the radion. We present simple analytic expressions for the radion-fermion couplings with three or four families. We also update and analyze the current experimental limits on radion couplings and on the model parameters. The modified decay branching ratios of the radion with an emphasis on the new channels involving flavor diagonal and flavor violating decays into fourth generation quarks and leptons are provided.

Finally, we study the Higgs-radion mixing in a warped extra dimensional model in the same scenario. The fourth generation Higgs is now severely constrained by Large Hadron Collider data due to the large enhancement in the Higgs production cross-section in the absence of Higgs-radion mixing. We analyze the production and decay rates of the two physical states emerging from the mixing and confront them with present Large Hadron Collider data. We show that the current signals observed can be compatible with the presence of one, or both, of these Higgs-radion mixed states, although with a severely restricted parameter space. We also present the modified decay branching ratios of the mixed Higgs-radion states, including flavor violating decays into fourth generation quarks and leptons. The windows of allowed parameter space obtained are very sensitive to the increased precision of upcoming Large Hadron Collider data. During the present year, a clear picture of this scenario will emerge, either confirming or further severely constraining this scenario.


identifier: Ahmed, Ali  (2012) Series Resonant Switched Capacitor Converter for Electric Vehicle Lithium-Ion Battery Cell Voltage Equalization.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
Extending the lifetime of the battery system of the Electric Vehicles will affect the economic feasibility of the vehicle. Connecting the battery cells in series raise the problem of imbalance voltages of the cells caused by Difference of internal resistance, imbalanced SoC, gradients of ambient temperature of the battery pack during charging and discharging.
The commercial solution for this problem is shunting the cell with extra charge to a dissipative resistor and gets rid of the extra charge as heat.
This thesis proposes the use of Serial Resonant Switched Capacitor Converter for battery Cell Voltage equalization, which allows the extra charge to be transferred to other cell instead of dissipated it as heat. The thesis can be divided into five parts: the first part is introduction to the lithium-ion battery system, estimation of the State of Charge and battery modeling; the second part is a review for the switching topologies that used for battery cell equalization; the third part is the modes of operation of the proposed converter, modeling and simulation. And also introducing the new concept of controlled switching which allow the use of current sharing technique to reduce the equalization time. The fourth part is building the prototype circuit and allows the microcontroller to tune the circuit to achieve the zero current switching   and the last part is the conclusion and the future work


identifier: Rahnamaei, Mohammad  (2012) Ownership Structure in U.S. Corporations.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.


identifier: Segal, Loren J.  (2012) Automatic Program Verification and Test Case Generation of Ruby Programs.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
The Ruby programming language is typically not seen as a language that can be
formally verified. Our research attempts to bridge this gap by introducing novel
techniques to annotate Ruby programs with type specifications, contracts, and translate
them to statically verifiable components. We introduce a novel tool, RubyCorrect,
which uses these techniques to perform extended static checking (ESC) on Ruby
programs, as well as to generate executable test cases through symbolic execution.
These analyses serve to improve code quality and development productivity. We aim
to show that Ruby programs can benefit from existing static verification tools and
techniques if they are simply made available to Ruby developers.


identifier: Sevigny, Stephane  (2012) Formation of Aryl-Substituted Heteroaromatics via a Palladium-Catalyzed Desulfinylative Cross-Coupling.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
Palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions have found extensive use in
the synthesis of biaryls and aryl-substituted heteroaromatics. Although powerful, the classical palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions (Hiyama, Negishi, Kumada, Stille, Suzuki) can suffer from common limitations such as extensive reaction times, environmentally unfriendly by-products or reagents, and are atom inefficient. This has generated much attention in the past decades to further improve upon, or expand this type of reactivity, leading to new alternatives. Unfortunately, many newly developed alternatives require the extensive use of co-catalysts and/or additives, or lack selectivity.

  Extending upon the decarboxylative cross-coupling protocol previously
developed by Forgione and Bilodeau, this work utilizes heteroaromatic sulfinates
as nucleophilic coupling partners. Heteroaromatic sulfinates have shown to be
readily synthesized by lithiation of the corresponding heteroaromatic followed by
quenching with sulfur dioxide gas, requiring little to no purification. Following
extensive optimization, an environmentally benign desulfinylative cross-coupling
protocol was developed requiring no co-catalyst or additives. The cross-coupling
of heteroaromatic sulfinates and aryl bromides occurs in predominantly aqueous
media utilizing an inexpensive catalyst system employing a palladium (II) source,
and requires short reaction times. The scope of this newly developed reactivity encompasses thiophene and furan sulfinates, which can be coupled with electron-deficient, electron-neutral and electron-rich aryl bromides in moderate to near quantitative yields.


identifier: Tremblay-Sher, Myriam  (2012) The Promise of Return: Understanding Historical Trauma through Personal Journey Documentaries.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
This research explores the capabilities of documentary cinema to innovatively articulate traumatic history and memory and compel the viewer in the construction of meaningful remembrance.  Since the mid-1980s, an increasingly prominent sub-genre of historical documentary films has emerged in which survivors of the Holocaust or their descendants travel to regions of Eastern Europe to uncover and make sense of their family’s traumatic past.  These types of films are what Annette Insdorf has identified as “documentaries of return.”  They actively engage with three major questions: first, the evolving discourses of memory and their effect on the visual interpretation of traumatic history; second, the documentary articulation of embodied and spatial memory; and third, the conceptualization of the historical image that seeks more than authentic reflexivity.
	The challenge, then, is to investigate how documentaries of return, in the context of personal memory quests, enhance the mediation of traumatic history beyond the question of mimetic transparency.  Five notable films explore this: Dark Lullabies (Irene Angelico, 1985), A Journey Back (Brian Mckenna, 1987), Birthplace (Pawel Lozinski, 1992), Shtetl (Marian Marzynski, 1996), and Hiding and Seeking: Faith and Tolerance after the Holocaust (Menachem Daum & Oren Rudavsky, 2004).  Through their experiential exploration of memorial affect and memorial space, and through their formulation of the image beyond mere historical representation, these films further our understanding of the complexities and nuances of traumatic memory and history amidst the growing abundance of representations of trauma in contemporary media.


identifier: Adrien, Emmanuelle  (2012) Individual Differences in the Relational Understanding of Mathematical Equivalence.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Many children have a limited view of the equal sign and do not understand that the left and right sides of an equation need to represent the same amount, even after instruction.  In the present study, I investigated domain-general and domain-specific factors that account for differences in children’s performance on noncanonical equivalence problems.  Fifty-six third- and fourth-grade students were asked to solve a series of noncanonical equivalence problems before and after receiving explicit instruction on the equal sign.  As a group, students showed significantly higher scores after instruction, but close to a third of them were unsuccessful on more than half of the items on the posttest.  Individual interviews were conducted to determine the source of the variability; and interview tasks assessed conceptual understanding of the equal sign in a nonsymbolic context and in a symbolic context (as measured by students’ ability to rate and generate equal sign definitions and to justify their answers to noncanonical equations).  Regression analyses indicated that of all the variables, only general ability and mathematical fluency were significant predictors of performance on the posttest.  Qualitative analyses of the interview data revealed that students generated three different types of definitions of the equal sign (i.e., operational, relational, combined), and that there was a significant effect of definition type on posttest performance.  No significant difference was found in the performance of students who offered combined and relational definitions, but as a group, they outperformed students who held entirely operational definitions.  The study’s limitations, implications of the research findings, and avenues for future research are discussed.


identifier: Rifai-Hasan, Pipip-Achmad  (2012) Islam, Social Justice and Economic Development: A Study of the Works of Sjafruddin Prawiranegara.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
This dissertation is intended to answer the question of whether it is possible
for a developing nation to achieve economic prosperity without compromising
equality and liberty. Theories of socio-economic development must often deal with
conflicting demands of economic efficiency, political freedom, and socio-economic
equality, as well as the frequently-contradictory aims of material prosperity and
spiritual happiness. I argue that an analysis of the political, economic, and religious
thought of Sjafruddin Prawiranegara, a leader of the Masyumi Islamic political party
in Indonesia and a neglected liberal-modernist Muslim thinker, allows us to explore
how these seemingly conflicting demands may be harmonized into an integrated
concept of development. An examination of Sjafruddin’s works—reports, books,
articles, speeches, and interviews from 1946 to 1983, as well as other scholars’
observations, judgments and reports—reveals a prescription for Indonesian economic
problems based on two key guiding principles of development: social justice and
human development. The basis of Sjafruddin’s economic rationality is the
prioritization of human development before capital. This ensures sustainable
economic development and nurtures a spiritually and morally-oriented population to
withstand the consumption practices and lifestyles of modern capitalism. This study
also suggests that economic development will be most successful if it occurs within
the framework of a modern conception of social justice predicated on a democratic
political system with a system of checks and balances between executive, legislative
iv
and judicative branches of government, equal opportunities, human rights, and
universal political participation. In the context of the Muslim world, this concept of
development requires the re-interpretation of Islamic teachings. The present study
seeks to contribute to the field of religious studies by highlighting the systematic
thought of an independently-minded Muslim modernist thinker whose contributions
are underappreciated in academic circles even in Indonesia. Sjafruddin’s unique
historical involvement during the 1950s as a politician who was directly involved in
the conception and implementation of economic policies, as well as his career as a
well-respected public intellectual, provide insight into both the promises and the
realities of development and social justice in a context where religion plays a major
role in the lives of the people.


identifier: Pendev, Ivo  (2012) On the stability of the absolutely continuous invariant measures of a certain class of maps with deterministic perturbation.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.


identifier: Freedman, Shelagh  (2012) The Measurement of Posthypnotic Amnesia with the Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility, Form A.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility (HGSHS:A) has proven to be a reliable and efficient measure of hypnotizability (Siuta, 2010).  However, the psychometric properties of the posthypnotic amnesia suggestion on this scale lack integrity (Sadler & Woody, 2004; Piesbergen & Peter, 2006).  It is hypothesized that the ambiguously written instructions explaining the recall test to participants are obscuring measurement, resulting in non-amnesic participants being scored amnesic. To show participants can be scored amnesic for reasons not attributable to the suggestion, 81 participants were administered the HGSHS:A without the amnesia suggestion. No difference in amnesia pass rate was observed between this group compared to 78 participants administered the standard HGSHS:A. Modifying the instructions to more directly explain the task to participants significantly lowered the frequency of passing this suggestion.  In addition, no lows were scored amnesic and the concordance between behavioural and subjective scores was improved with the new instructions.  Retesting the modified instructions on participants not administered the amnesia suggestion (N = 65) resulted in participants nevertheless being scored amnesic.  The results from this study indicate that 1) the HGSHS:A scoring is improperly classifying participants as amnesic 2) the modified instructions better capture the classic suggestion effect 3) a significant proportion of participants experience difficulty remembering the hypnotic suggestions post-session, regardless of whether a suggestion for amnesia is administered.  It is recommended that the written amnesia test instructions on the HGSHS:A be modified.


identifier: Sparks, Lindsay M.  (2012) Pavlovian Cue-Driven Alcohol-Seeking: The Role of Dopamine and Impact of Vendor Differences in Long Evans Rats.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
Rationale Drug-associated environmental stimuli can acquire incentive and motivational properties through Pavlovian conditioning, and come to function as conditioned cues that elicit drug-seeking behavior. Objectives The current experiments tested the hypothesis that dopamine mediates alcohol-seeking driven by Pavlovian alcohol-predictive cues. Studies were conducted in Long-Evans rats obtained from two different sources, based on published reports that oral alcohol consumption can differ within-strain. Method Male, Long-Evans rats (220-240 g on arrival) from Charles River (St-Constant, Canada) and Harlan Laboratories (Indianapolis, USA) received intermittent, 24-h access to ethanol (15%; v/v) and water via 2 bottles on the home cage (21 sessions). Next, rats were trained to discriminate between 2 auditory stimuli (10-sec each; white noise or clicker); one stimulus (CS+) was paired with ethanol (0.2 ml per CS+; 3.2 ml per session; oral consumption) and the second stimulus (CS-) was not paired with ethanol. During 17 daily, 60-min Pavlovian discrimination training (PDT) sessions rats received 16 random presentations each of the CS+ and CS- delivered according to a variable-time 67-sec schedule. Entries made into a fluid port to consume ethanol were recorded before, during and after each CS. Following PDT, rats were habituated (5 sessions; 60-min) to a different, non-alcohol context where the cues and ethanol were withheld. At test, responding to the non-extinguished CS+ and CS- was measured in the second, non-alcohol context in the absence of ethanol. Rats received injections of a dopamine D1-like receptor antagonist (SCH 23390; 0, 3.33 and 10 µg/kg; 1 ml/kg; s.c.) or a dopamine D2-like receptor antagonist (eticlopride; 0, 5, 10 µg/kg; 1 ml/kg; s.c.) 15-min before the test. In addition, we examined the impact of SCH 23390 (10 µg/kg; 1 ml/kg; s.c.); and eticlopride (10 µg/kg; 1 ml/kg; s.c.) on responding to the CS+ and CS- during PDT sessions when the CS+ was paired with ethanol. Results Rats from Charles River gained weight more rapidly and attained significantly higher overall weights than rats from Harlan. Across pre-exposure, ethanol consumption and preference were higher in Harlan rats. Across PDT sessions, rats from both vendors responded more to the alcohol-paired CS+ than the CS-. Total port-entry responses decreased across habituation in the second context. At test in a non-alcohol context, saline infused rats responded more to the CS+ than the CS-, indicating that discrimination between the two cues remained intact despite the absence of ethanol at test. Pre-treatment with SCH 23390 dose-dependently attenuated CS+ responding in rats from both vendors. However, eticlopride dose-dependently reduced CS+ responding in Harlan rats, but not in rats from Charles River. An infusion of SCH 23390, but not eticlopride reduced CS+ responding when cue presentations were paired with ethanol. Conclusion These results indicate novel differences in Long Evans rats obtained from different breeders. They also suggest that dopamine neurotransmission is required for responding to Pavlovian alcohol-predictive cues that are experienced in a non-alcohol context.

Keywords: Alcohol, Pavlovian conditioning, cues, context, dopamine, SCH 23390, eticlopride, vendor differences, Long-Evans


identifier: Lazar, Zoltan  (2012) Teaching the Singular Value Decomposition of Matrices: A Computational Approach.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
In this thesis, I present a small experiment of teaching the singular value decomposition (SVD) of matrices using a computational approach. The goal of the experiment was to check if students who completed the first two undergraduate linear algebra courses are prepared for this topic and if they would be satisfied with the computational approach.
The experiment took place in the summer of 2011 and consisted in two sessions of lectures of four hours each, in a computer lab, on the premises of Concordia University. The same four students attended both sessions.
The approach consisted in first introducing students to the general ideas and then gradually zooming into the details of the theory and the computational techniques and algorithms. In the instructional sessions, lecturing by the teacher alternated with participants’ exploring the theoretical results and algorithms using prepared Maple worksheets.
Before the sessions started, participants were asked to respond to a questionnaire (Pre-test) that verified their knowledge of basic linear algebra concepts necessary for understanding the SVD theory. After the session, participants were asked to respond to another questionnaire (Post-test) addressing their understanding of SVD and their opinions about the teaching approach and the teaching of SVD in an undergraduate program. Participants’ responses to test questions were collected and analyzed.
One of the immediate conclusions is that without a good understanding of the fundamental concepts of linear algebra the topic of singular value decomposition of matrices could prove challenging for even the top achieving undergraduate students.
The participants showed interest in the teaching method, but mentioned that more time would be required to really benefit from learning about the numerical advantages and the vast applications of the singular value decomposition.


identifier: Kazerani, Parna  (2012) Analysis of Antennas on Carbon-Fibre Composite Aircraft.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract:
Carbon-fiber composite (CFC) materials, due to their desirable mechanical and thermal properties, have been progressively replacing metallic structures in commercial aircraft. The electrical and electromagnetic properties of these materials, including their impact on antenna performance, have been the subject of research since their introduction in aeronautical applications. It has been shown that carbon-fibre composites form effective ground planes for antennas and the antenna performance at VHF and UHF frequencies is not essentially different from metal ground planes.

However, CFC materials are prone to cracking when used in aeronautical applications. Additionally, when CFC materials are used in aircraft, joints are inevitable. These joints can be between CFC panels or CFC and metal panels in partially composite aircraft. These cracks and joints alter the current density on the airframe surface. This alteration of current density impacts the antenna radiation performance.

In this thesis, the radiation of antennas on carbon-fibre composite aircraft is studied. The airframe scattering mechanism is analyzed and guidelines for developing simplified models of aircraft geometry for antenna analyses are provided. The utility of the leading numerical techniques suitable for analysis of aircraft antennas at VHF and UHF frequencies is studied and benchmark data on the computational resources required is provided. The impact of cracks, seams and panel joints on the antenna radiation is also studied.


identifier: Cole, Emily  (2012) A new test of object-recognition memory for rats.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Object-recognition memory has been assessed in rats using the delayed non-matching-to-sample (DNMS) task and the novel-object preference (NOP) test. The DNMS task provides an accurate measure of rats’ object-recognition abilities, however, the conventional procedures are not practical because rats require extensive training to reach peak performance and object-recognition memory can only be assessed using retention intervals of up to a few minutes. The NOP test does not require rats to be trained in advance, and for this reason it has become widely popular as a test of object-recognition memory. Recent findings, however, question the internal validity of the NOP test, namely its assumption that the strength of novelty preference corresponds directly to the strength of the memory for an object. The goal of the present study was to develop a new test of object-recognition memory. The new method incorporates the appetitive-reward and explicit choice aspects of the DNMS task and it employs a circular-track apparatus that has been previously used in a modified NOP test. Rats’ performance on the new task was similar to the levels of accuracy reported on conventional DNMS tasks but were achieved in far fewer trials than conventional DNMS tasks. When the delay was increased, performance decreased slightly but remained significantly above chance. Additionally, we compared rats’ performance on the new task to their scores on the NOP test and did not find a consistent linear relationship. The results from this new task confirm its utility as a test of object-recognition memory in rats, while challenging the assumption that the strength of novelty preference on the NOP test corresponds to the strength of memory for an object.