identifier: Al Imam, Shahriar  (2006) Simulation of a 2D pn junction in silicon thin film incorporating quantum transport for carriers.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Silicon nanostructures have recently been a subject of interest demonstrating optimistic optical properties like luminescence. The scientific community predicts quantum effects to be the predominant cause for such optical properties of silicon nanostructures, hence it becomes prudent to pursue the roots of such reduced dimensional devices. With this view as a motive, a simulation model for a 2D thin film quantum confined 2D pn junction in silicon is developed in this work.  A thin film silicon layer is considered in the regime of strong confinement. A pn junction in such a film is considered so that the carriers are confined in thickness dimension while they are quantum mechanically transported along the device length. The transverse dimension in considered infinitely wide for plane wave approximation. For device simulation, after a careful study of various schemes to incorporate quantum effects (Van Dort model, Density Gradient Method, etc.) it was decided to use the more rigorous self-consistent Schrödinger-Poisson method. Keeping in mind the computational resource constraints, for problem formulation, decoupled 1D set of equations for carrier transport is deployed. For electrons, the well known single-band effective mass Hamiltonian is used while for holes, multi-band effective mass Hamiltonian with light and heavy holes is applied (though a full 6 band k.p Hamiltonian and spin orbit interaction is required to account for a full featured valence band, no effective work has been done to use such a formulation for a reduced dimensional device). Overall discretization is done using the finite element method with matrix representation of equations. The ohmic contacts in longitudinal direction are simulated with semi infinite open boundary contacts through self energy matrix, and broadening of energy states is incorporated. The simulation is done in Matlab as it gives the highest flexibility (in comparison to Silvaco, Femlab and C++ with the latter being unrealistically involved in numerical solution algorithm). For solution, instead of Wigner function or Green's function, a more direct wave-function perspective is taken. First the equilibrium condition was simulated, and then extension under externally applied voltage was carried out.  As the results show, confinement of carrier in lateral dimension results in energy quantization, and consequently subbands. As the material is degenerately doped, the number of carrier is comparable to existing states and carriers exist in excited states also. The occupancy of only three subbands upholds the earlier assumption that only a few subband are occupied. And along with the retention of subband shapes along device length, validates decoupling of the dimensions. The depletion region width is found to be more than that predicted by 3D junction equations. This may be due to the fact that the thin film cannot fully screen the electric field. Current voltage characteristics also do not show any significant tunneling current


identifier: Mozaffari, Elaheh  (2006) Creating and testing urban virtual reality models for engineering applications.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

type: Thesis NonPeerReviewed

abstract: Virtual Reality interaction methods can provide better understanding of 3D virtual models of urban environments. These methods can be used to accommodate different civil engineering applications, such as facilities management and construction progress monitoring. However, the users of these applications may have severe problems in exploring and navigating the large virtual environments to accomplish specific tasks. Properly designed navigation methods are critical for using these applications efficiently. In this reserch, first a literature survey is conducted about existing navigation and visualization methods in order to identify the methods that are most suitable and practical for engineering applications. Based on this survey, a taxonomy of navigation methods and support tools for engineering applications in urban virtual environments is developed. In addition, a framework for virtual reality applications in civil engineering is proposed. The framework includes a practical method for creating virtual urban models and several interaction and navigation methods. Furthermore, a new method is proposed for usability testing of the navigation supports in these models. The proposed approach is demonstrated through three case studies for desktop, indoor and outdoor applications. The results of our usability study showed that using navigation supports allow users to navigate more efficiently in the virtual environment.


identifier: Abdel-hak, Mayada  (2006) Testing real-time systems using TTCN-3.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

title: Testing real-time systems using TTCN-3

abstract: In system engineering, testing plays an important role to validate systems and system components. As the market time becomes ever shorter and the requirements on system features, reliability, availability, integrity and performance further increase, assured quality of system and its components is very important. Moreover, in real-time systems extreme reliability and safety are the most fundamental requirements. Thus, in order to fulfill the requirements of such systems as well as those of the market, a systematic proficient approach to testing is an essential need. The Testing and Test Control Notation TTCN-3 has been developed by ETSI to address testing needs and to enable systematic specification-based testing for software systems.  This thesis will discuss in particular the use of TTCN-3 for testing real-time software systems. It takes textual test cases that have previously been generated for a particular real-time application. Each of them has input actions, time delays, and output actions. Then, the thesis explains the procedure of transforming the generated test cases into a test suite coded in TTCN-3. After that, it shows the process of creating and implementing the required TTCN-3 interfaces to complete the test system and follows it by running the test system and analysing the results.  To define the black-box testing procedure of these timed test cases, stimuli are applied on the system under test. Then, the reactions are observed and compared with the expected ones with respect to the time delays. According to this comparison, a test verdict assignment is set to determine the test behaviour of each test case. If the expected and the observed responses are matched while respecting the value of the related timers, a test verdict is set to "pass" indicating a successful test case. Otherwise, the verdict is set to "fail" signifying an unsuccessful test case


identifier: Peters, Sharon  (2006) Online collaborative learning for high school students using a blended approach for the promotion of self-monitoring skills.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: While online learning environments have become common at the post-secondary level of academia, teachers of high schools have not yet adopted the online environment as an alternative and supplementary environment to augment the learning which takes place the classroom. Given the greater stability of computer network labs and ubiquity of home computers, many schools may begin to consider this option. In this Action Research study, this teacher explored a blended approach to instruction to introduce an instructional unit on learning styles and self-monitoring skills. Results of the data indicate that while most students enjoyed the online component of schoolwork, high academically successful students enjoyed it least and reported the least changes in academic performance, while the average ability students reported the most enjoyment, gains in academic performance, and desire to use online environments in the future. Average students also reported a greater tendency to ask for friends for help with their studies after the learning unit which points to a recognition of the benefits of collaboration. The use of appropriate language for online learning environments was an issue at the beginning of the unit but improved over time with proper modeling and awareness of expectations.


identifier: Sorto, Aida Geraldina Polanco  (2006) A critical analysis of world bank gender mainstreaming in El Salvador.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Since the late 1990s and into the new millennium, the World Bank has launched a series of initiatives that it claims demonstrates its commitment to gender equality through 'gender mainstreaming'. Gender mainstreaming is part of the 'human development' framework, and is supposed to be undertaken for the purpose of promoting greater poverty reduction and gender equality. There are, however, often discrepancies between stated objectives and concrete policy prescriptions.  As pertaining to the tension between stated objectives and realities, in this thesis I investigate the friction between, on the one hand, the World Bank's commitment to poverty reduction and gender equality through mainstreaming and, on the other, its' overarching neoliberal framework for development initiatives. I trace the colonization process and draw parallels from this historical advancement and the current 'development framework' in the form of neoliberalism. The main goal is to facilitate an understanding to the extent to which gender mainstreaming within the workings of the Bank is capable of making improvements to the lives of girls and women in El Salvador, and in what shape and form these advancements are made. I employ the use of a feminist-Gramscian framework to analytically deconstruct the World Bank's proposals, its policy prescriptions and the theory of neoclassical economic theory that informs neoliberalism. I supplement these deconstructions with observations drawn from field research on mainstreaming initiatives in El Salvador. I conclude that gender mainstreaming is being embraced so as to silence opposition to the neoliberal model of development


identifier: Allen, Jodie Toni  (2006) 'Pro-Ana' as negotiating (Dis)order in cyberspace : how women reproduce, restructure, and challenge 'Psy' discourse.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Current literature on the topic of anorexia is dominated by the disciplines of psy, which has meant that the practice of self-starvation is viewed as originating from the pathological nature of the individual ; divorcing the experience of anorexia from the very social and cultural backdrop from within which it emerges. Contrastingly, socio-cultural approaches to anorexia have focused on the contextual features of the disorder that relate to the historical specificity of our contemporary condition. This has often meant that self-starving is conceptualized as the result of women either over-conforming to, or resisting, the cultural ideal of the slim body. The complexity of anorexic practice is neglected when it is discursively positioned in this way because there is a multiplicity of discourses which constitute the anorexic's subjectivity. Due to the fact that psy discourse has particular influence on the anorexic experience this thesis employs a critical discourse analytic approach to explore how women, in the pro-anorexia internet community, negotiate their subjectivity through reproducing, restructuring, and challenging the discursive constructions of psy which are produced by the DSM-IV. The transgressive nature of the pro-ana community has meant that its members have been framed as either oppressed or liberated, as cultural dupes or as active agents; demonstrating a pattern which mirrors the same binary logic that has surrounded discussions of the 'anorexic' for decades. Through transcending these limitations, the findings of this study are used to articulate an alternative viewpoint of the community which challenges the dominant discourses which surround it at present.


identifier: Bakker, Michelle  (2006) Ontological love in the global market.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

title: Ontological love in the global market

abstract: The ethical thought of Christian theologians Paul Tillich and Reinhold Niebuhr is rooted in the ontological perspective on the human being in society. Niebuhr's pragmatic political approach complements Tillich's broad existential analytic.  Both thinkers view human history and conflict---within the self and in society---as historical manifestations of the ahistorical structure of reality. Part of this ahistorical reality is human estrangement from the source of its being, leaving it both utterly free and radically destined. The ethic is based on recognition of this human condition and the response of faith to the realization that one is finite. This response is to always strive to self-transcend, both as individual and as collective, to create a society governed by rules connected with human existence in all of its irrationalities and contingencies, rather than rules based on disconnected ideals.  I raise the point that the global market, especially as dominated by the wealthy West, is based on an economic ideal that is divorced from the reality that it creates and governs. I focus specifically on the problems of so-called trade liberalization, export processing zones and sweatshop labor, to discuss how a free market represents individualist morals with no transcendent basis. For Tillich and Niebuhr, such a moral denies one the capacity to recognize the humanity of others---both near and distant---and the interdependence of human beings regardless of time or place. As a result both foreign sweatshop workers and those who consume the products they make are objectified and thus dehumanized


identifier: Liu, Peiyuan  (2006) A performance model of the IEEE 802.11 distributed coordination function under finite load condition.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Modeling of the IEEE 802.11 wireless LAN MAC protocol has received considerable research attention recently. Most of the previous works have concerned with the derivation of system throughput for the Distributed Coordination Function (DCF) of the MAC protocol. There have been very few works investigating the delay performance of the DCF scheme. This thesis presents an analytical model of the DCF under un-saturated homogeneous and heterogeneous conditions. Our model allows stations to have either the same or different packet arrival and transmission rates. The arrival of packets is assumed to be according to a Poisson process. We model each station's MAC buffer as an M/G/1 queue and the service time of each station as a three dimensional Markov chain. The dependency between stations is taken into account through the backoff counter freezing and packet collision during transmission. We derive the probability generating function (PGF) of the packet service time distribution and obtain the closed form expression of the mean packet delay by applying the M/G/1 queuing result. We also investigate the impact of different contention window sizes on the delay performance. The accuracy of the model has been verified by extensive simulations.


identifier: Dhaini, Ahmad R  (2006) Design and analysis of next generation ethernet-based passive optical access networks.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Ethernet Passive Optical Network (EPON) has emerged as an optimized optical next-generation access network that is capable of providing high speed Internet to the ever increasing end-users carrying applications such as, voice communications (VoIP), standard and high-definition video, video conferencing (interactive video) and data traffic, at the minimum cost. However, although standardized, EPON presents network designers with several challenges.  In this thesis, we address many of these issues and we propose appropriate solutions that we believe can be adopted by EPON designers. First, we introduce the technologies currently deployed and we motivate our work. Next, we overview the EPON technology along with its related work, and highlights the challenges it carries. Our main contributions start when we investigate the fairness issue in EPON. Here, a new intra-ONU scheduler is presented in order to provide every class of service (CoS) of every ONU with a fair access to the bandwidth allocated by the OLT. We then present the first admission control (AC) framework with all its rules and functionalities along with a new dynamic bandwidth allocation (DBA) designed especially for the application of AC. This framework will resolve the bandwidth guaranteed matter that stems from the lack of QoS flows protection.  In our next main contribution, we discuss a possible upgrade of the current time division multiple access (TDMA) PON to a wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) PON. This upgrade is evident with the continuous growth of Internet users, that makes traditional EPONs not capable of coping with this increase. Here, we present novel dynamic wavelength and bandwidth allocation schemes (DWBAs) to arbitrate the transmission of ONUs over multiple wavelengths. We then present three new DWBAs to support quality of service (QoS) in the new WDM-PON. We validate all the proposed models and schemes by conducting comprehensive experiments and extensive simulations, where performance is evaluated.  Finally, we conclude our work and presents suggested future work


identifier: Hughes, Sean  (2006) A theoretical investigation of the microsolvation of multivalent ions in clusters.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Trivalent lanthanide metals (Ln 3+ ) are among the most spectroscopically active ions in the periodic table and are characterized by their exceptional ability to absorb and emit light in the ultraviolet, visible and near infra-red regions of the electromagnetic spectrum. These ions are sensitive to the nature of their ligands, as has been evidenced from their spectral properties in different environments. In an effort to predict the behaviour of lanthanide ions in different environments, solvated Ln 3+ ions in clusters, Ln 3+ (solvent) n , were investigated as a model system. Cluster studies provide an ideal means of monitoring progressive changes in the properties of the lanthanide ions with cluster size increases. The electronic, energetic and thermodynamic properties of Ln 3+ (H 2 O) n and Ln 3+ (CH 3 CN) n clusters were simulated using a combination of quantum chemistry calculations, model potential development and Monte Carlo simulations, paying close attention to possible cluster-to-bulk transitions.  The properties of small Ln 3+ (H 2 O) n clusters obtained from quantum chemistry calculations indicate, much akin to other multi-valent M q+ (H 2 O) n clusters, that the metal ion-water interactions are predominantly electrostatic. Mutual polarization of both the ion and the water molecules accounts for the large Ln 3+ (H 2 O) n cluster binding energies and the resulting structural properties of the clusters. The quantum chemistry results were the basis for designing and parameterising polarizable model potentials for use in Monte Carlo simulations. The simulations revealed that bulk-like properties of Ln 3+ (H 2 O) n clusters, namely first-shell coordination numbers and bulk thermodynamic properties, are obtained at very large cluster sizes (n > or = 64), thus showing that cluster studies are a good model for studying bulk solvation.  The Ln 3+ (H 2 O) n cluster binding enthalpies were found to be quite large, even at small cluster size, implying that these species should be stable under experimental conditions. However, small clusters have rarely been observed experimentally when they contain protic solvents and charge-reduced clusters, where the metal loses its 3+ charge, are observed instead. Thus, Eu 3+ (H 2 O) n cluster deprotonation was investigated as a possible explanation for the lack of experimental observation of small Ln 3+ (H 2 O) n clusters. The small clusters were found to favour loss of (solvated) hydronium ions from the cluster, explaining the experimentally-observed, charge-reduced clusters. Only recently (June 2006) was the experimental observation of large Ln 3+ (H 2 O) n clusters (n > 15) reported. This is consistent with our prediction that deprotonation becomes less favourable with cluster size.  Finally, investigation of Ln 3+ (CH 3 CN) n clusters, using a similar methodology, reveals that formation of these clusters is also energetically favourable and that convergence to bulk, structural and thermodynamic properties are obtained at smaller cluster sizes than those observed in water clusters. Given that the thermodynamic properties of Ln 3+ (CH 3 CN) n and large Ln 3+ (H 2 O) n clusters have yet to be determined, the results herein may serve as benchmarks for future experimentation.


identifier: Ghazal, Mohammed Asaad  (2006) Structure-oriented directional approaches to video noise estimation and reduction.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Video has become increasingly used in television broadcast, Internet, and surveillance applications. The presence of noise in video signals is not only visually unacceptable, but also hinders the performance of video processing applications. Thus, the interest in researching methods for fast, automated, and robust techniques to estimate and reduce image and video noise has grown over the years.  This thesis proposes approaches to estimate and reduce additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) in video signals that are adaptive to frame structure and noise level. First, a spatio-temporal method for estimating the variance of AWGN is proposed. The method divides the video signal into cubes. Cube homogeneity is measured using Laplacian of Gaussian operators. The variances of homogeneous cubes calculated along homogeneous plains are used to estimate the noise variance. The Least Median of Squares (LMS) robust estimator is utilized to reject outliers and produce the domain-wise noise variance estimate. The domain-wise estimates are averaged to obtain the frame-wise estimate. The proposed algorithm works well for video sequences with high structure and motion activity with a maximum estimation error of 1.7 dB.  The thesis then proposes a framework for spatial adaptive multi-directional filtering of AWGN in video frames and adaptive multi-directional Sigma and Wiener filters. The proposed multi-directional Sigma filter achieves gains in the Peak Signal to Noise Ratio (PSNR) of up to 4.8 dB in real-time. The proposed multi-directional Wiener filter achieves gains in PSNR of up to 5.6 dB and is well suited for offline applications. The structure preservation capabilities of the proposed filters are studied using the Modulation Transfer Function


identifier: Issa, Hassan  (2006) Enterprise application integration with qualitative QOS considerations.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The discussion in thesis involves two significant information science topics. These being Enterprise Application Integration along with Quality of Service. The quantity of information is enormous and humans have lost the ability to manage, interpret, and analyze the data. From this perspective, we target the concept of the "Digital Cockpit" which is a data/service enterprise integration built on the very concepts of loosely coupled asynchronous communication, Message Oriented Middleware, and real time integration and monitoring with interactive display. This is then followed by a new Quality of Service model viewing this issue from the perspective of information quality and accuracy as opposed to other existing similar systems. Our contributions are the following: First we present a literature review covering enterprise application integration and web services quality of service. Second we continue the discussion and propose a novel integration middle called "Digital Cockpit" where we highlight significant issues related to the specifications, design and implementation of that system. Moreover, We extend the discussion to include a novel approach concerning quality of service for web services composition. This is achieved by utilizing the new WS-Notification standard along with the use state charts. Fourth, we propose a mathematical framework which specifies and manages the quality from the information accuracy perspective. Therefore, each chapter of this thesis adds its own contribution and goes deeper into the discussion providing more technical and theoretical insights concerning the topic of discussion.


identifier: Hantash, Jamil  (2006) In situ determination of carbaryl in complex biological matrices using a potentiometric chemical sensor, and study of superionic BaSnF₄ as a potential transducer material.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Carbamate insecticides such as carbaryl (1-naphthyl N-methylcarbamate) are broad-spectrum insecticides that comprise the major portion of agricultural pesticides used in today's agricultural industry. Therefore, the synthesis of molecularly imprinted polymeric beads that can be used for isolating carbaryl from complex matrices would be a great asset. Conventional molecular imprinting technology allows the synthesis in organic solvents of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) that have considerable molecular recognition ability, and can be used as a separation media. The results obtained showed that the use of an imprinted polymer cartridge as a pre-column in high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), using ultra-violet detection and a "dilute and shoot" approach for the rapid, inexpensive and accurate determination of carbaryl in complex biological matrices (rat plasma and apple homogenate) with a detection limit of 1.00 ng/mL and a response that is linear (r² > 0.98) over the concentration range of 1.00 to 10.0 ng/mL, was successful. In the past decade, numerous biosensing methods for the detection of pesticides have been developed using enzyme-based and affinity-based sensors as well as several types of transducers and this has been the subject of several recent reviews. We report that the use of an imprinted carbaryl polymer column in a non-enzymatic flow injection potentiometric chemical sensor system for the determination of carbaryl in complex biological matrices (rat plasma) was successful. The potentiometric chemical sensor system efficiency in the determination of carbaryl in rat plasma was validated in terms of selectivity, carry-over, calibration range and precision and accuracy in accordance with the Guidance for Industry Bioanalytical Method Validation, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Food and Drug Administration. However, the results showed that the use of BaSnF 4 as a solid state conductivity electrode as a part of a conductivity chemical sensor system for the determination of carbaryl in solution was not successful due to limitations in preparing a BaSnF 4 sheet resistant to the capillary pressure applied by the micro-fluid passing through the conductivity cell.


identifier: Beattie, Amanda Helen  (2006) The crossroads of industry and ecology : the new landscapes of Robert Smithson, Edward Burtynsky and Susan Leibovitz Steinman.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This thesis is concerned with the changing status of the North American landscape art tradition, focusing on the 1970s to the present day. The relationship between industry and ecology is at the forefront of these changes, as the interaction between these areas has become essential during this time of ecological crisis. With the use of different media and from diverse theoretical approaches, artists Robert Smithson, Edward Burtynsky and Susan Leibovitz Steinman all contribute to the development of a 'new landscape' and utilize industrial and urban sites as the subject matter and location of their artworks. They enable the possibility of a nature/culture dialogue through their art production that has the capacity to introduce a deeper understanding of environmental concerns from an original perspective. This thesis focuses on select works from Smithson's land reclamation projects of the early 1970s, Burtynsky's industrial photography of the 1990s, and Steinman's interactive environmental art of the 1990s, and demonstrates that art can play a significant role in raising awareness on the state of our environment. These artists' works are powerful tools of communication that encourage contemplation and, in certain cases, direct action toward a deeper appreciation of the environment in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, and play significant roles in the contemporary landscape art tradition.


identifier: Sultana, Sayeeda  (2006) A design for testability scheme for modular and non-modular quantum dot cellular automata (QCA) employing stuck-at fault model.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Today leading VLSI experts predict a hard wall for CMOS and other conventional fabrication technology due to fundamental physical limits (ultra-thin gate oxide, short channel effects, doping fluctuations, etc.), and increasingly difficult and expensive lithography in nanoscale. Extensive research conducted in recent years at nanoscale aiming to surpass CMOS has proposed Quantum Dot Cellular Automata as a viable alternative for nanoscale computing.  Quantum Dot Cellular Automata (QCA) paradigm is an innovatory approach to computing, which encodes binary information by means of charge configuration of nanostructures instead of current switching devices. The fundamental building block of QCA devices is the QCA cell, and electrostatic interaction between neighboring cells governs the design of all QCA wires and logic gates. The two primary logic elements in QCA technology are: majority voter and inverter. Binary wires and inverter chains are used for interconnection purposes. Logic operation AND, and OR can be achieved by maneuvering inputs to the majority voter. Clocking enables precise control over timing and data flow direction, as well as power gain in QCA circuits. Also proper clocking can achieve computational pipelining and can drastically reduce circuit power dissipation.  Manufacturing of a QCA cell is expected to result in defects like cell displacement, misalignment, and absence of cell or additional cell in circuitry, causing the circuit to exhibit faulty behavior. So a well-defined testing scheme becomes necessary for this technology. Though the technology is different from conventional CMOS design, it is shown to be effective and realistic to use existing testing schemes at this stage. Stuck-at (s-a-v) fault model is quite acceptable in this regard in spite of the fact, that this model does not incorporate all the defective behaviors occurring in the fabrication process. With this in view, single stuck-at value faults have been considered for testing QCA circuits.  In this thesis a new strategy for designing QCA logic, exhaustively testable for single s-a-v faults, is presented. In particular, the method facilitates QCA functionality testing. Any combinational logic can be implemented using only AND-OR gates (with negated signals available), and in QCA this generally results in reduced test set for exhaustive fault detection within the data path. Previously this strategy was used for QCA logic testing considering only primary inputs (either true or complemented, but not both) feeding different majority voters, which fails for general circuits where fanouts are allowed for primary inputs and their complement. Here, a design scheme has been proposed which makes testing possible for any combinational QCA circuit. The extension to modular design testing is also presented.  Two design approaches are proposed for testing modular and non-modular logic. The first design uses 2 n ( n = primary inputs) ' Test Enable ' majority voters, and is tested with two 4-bit vectors regardless of complexity of design and the input size. Second design employs n majority voters for the same purpose, thus requiring lesser number of majority voters, but at the price of increased vector length. Application specific conditions would decide which design becomes optimal. Without going into the features of a particular QCA fabrication, errors on logic level is addressed, such that the approach achieves generality, and could be applied to any particular implementation of QCA. Also to overcome the fault masking in modular circuit design, a solution has been presented. To verify the scheme, a simulation and layout tool, QCADesigner version 2.0.3 was used. First the fault free circuit was designed and simulated. Then random s-a-v faults were injected in different locations of data path. In all cases, 100% fault coverage was achieved confirming the validity of proposed approach


identifier: Zuo, Ming  (2006) High performance absorption algorithms for terminological reasoning in description logics.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: When reasoning with description logic (DL) knowledge bases (KBs) which contain a large number of axioms, performance is the key concern in real applications. To improve the performance, axiom absorption has been a central research issue in DL KBs. Well-known algorithms for axiom absorption, however, still heavily depend on the order and the format of the axioms occurring in the target KB. In addition, in many cases, there exist some restrictions in these algorithms which prevent axioms from being absorbed. Both the characteristics and the design of absorption algorithms for optimal reasoning are still open problems.  In this thesis, we first seek to improve our theoretical understanding about the axiom absorption techniques including some related techniques such as simplification and normalization. Then we propose a criterion for the "best" absorption against experimental experience. Based on this criterion, we develop some new algorithms to absorb axioms in a KB to ameliorate the reasoning performance.  The experimental tests we conducted are mostly based on synthetic benchmarks derived from common cases will occur in real KBs. The experimental evaluation demonstrates a significant runtime improvement.


identifier: Chintapalli, Sridhar  (2006) Preliminary structural design optimization of an aircraft wing-box.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Structural weight has always been important in aircraft manufacturing industry. Considering that a large number of candidate material and geometric shapes are available early in the design cycle, preliminary design optimization of skin-stringer panels used to build an aircraft wing is required to obtain the best preliminary structure before the final design phase. The design of skin-stringer panels forms an important and major portion of the wing-box design. The lift generated by the wings opposes the weight of the aircraft, and thus generates bending. Depending on their location, stiffened panels that make up the wings are therefore mainly loaded in compression and tension. Upper skin-stringer panels are typically subjected to compressive load while the lower panels are subjected to tensile load. The ability to resist the compressive load is assessed through a stability study to compute the critical buckling load of the stiffened panel while the ability to withstand the tensile load is evaluated by the Damage Tolerance Analysis. Optimization routines have been developed for the design of upper and lower wing panels. The main objective here is to design a stable wing-box structure more rapidly and automatically in the most economical manner having adequate strength and stability. These optimization routines are tested on a wing section defined at a specific span wise location of a DLR-F6 aircraft. Repeating the design process at different stations along the wing span completes the preliminary design of aircraft wing-box.


identifier: Kocar, Vildan  (2006) Modeling engineering change management process in virtual collaborative design environments.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The globalization of the business world results in geographical dispersion of parties involved in design. One of the techniques proposed for providing early involvement of dispersed parties is utilizing Virtual Collaborative Design Environments for supporting conceptual and embodiment design. However, design is not restricted to development stage. A product's configuration goes through engineering changes for improving and refining design throughout the product's life-cycle.  In this thesis, we focus on Engineering Change Management process and modeling this process within a Virtual Collaborative Design Environment. We propose an Active Distributed Virtual Change Environment named ADVICE for performing Engineering Change Management functions. This non-immersive environment offers a superior approach to the existing Engineering Change Management solutions by merging graphical and parametric data involved in the process into a virtual object, which improves comprehension of users and hence decreases the time required for review. ADVICE employs data mining techniques to process captured change history and provides user support with prioritization and change propagation mechanisms.  The proposed environment is demonstrated through a sample application. For verifying the prioritization and change propagation mechanisms, experiments involving synthetic data are conducted. The experiments presented the capability of ADVICE to facilitate Engineering Change Management


identifier: Rosadiuk, Adam  (2006) Film and philosophic experience : Terrence Malick's The thin red line.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Central to Terrence Malick's 1998 film The Thin Red Line is the lightning strike of insight. Insight: a potentially life-altering phenomenon, a rare melding of language, image, and feeling. Insight: a temporality joining the seductiveness of memory, the perceived purity of the moment, and the threat of insight's decay. This thesis is about the problem of insight, and explores cinema's intervention into the motivation, structure, and representation of this phenomenon as philosophy. Malick's drama of American soldiers struggling to survive the Battle of Guadalcanal depicts a crucible of private insight and compulsive public philosophy through a unique cinematic aesthetic pitched between the sublime and the banal. My discussion centers on Malick's use of 'linguistic' figurative tropes and their interaction with Malick's 'visual' cinematic events: a meeting of two forms of expression which reinvigorates the longstanding 'quarrel' between philosophy and poetry, tests the tension between visual and verbal discourses, and gives expression to the wonder, desire, inequality, and disappointment at the center of the experience of insight. By looking at some of the strategies of philosophic communication experimented with by Plato, Thomas Hobbes, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Friedrich Nietzsche, Martin Heidegger, and Walter Benjamin this thesis understands Malick's work as one that renews fundamental questions about the nature of both private philosophic experience and the public mediums through which it is communicated. The Thin Red Line is a unique expression of what is at stake in the meeting of film and philosophy---as well as a stunning artistic achievement---and deserves a thorough analysis.


identifier: Trinh, Ngan Thoai  (2006) Charting the trajectories of music piracy in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This study focuses on how the expanding market for pirated music in Vietnam has led to transnational flows of texts and genres, and to changes in how the state, music companies, pirates, and consumers deal with one another. Using theories put forth by Roger Wallis and Krister Malm (1984) and Shujen Wang and Jonathan Zhu (2003), the goal of my research is to identify major technological, economic, and organizational shifts taking place within the distribution and consumption of compact discs (CDs) in Ho Chi Minh City. This work suggests that Vietnam operates outside of our traditional understanding of the music industry or cultural flows. Unauthorized music products are helping to create a demand for all types of music in Vietnam and this begs us to question whether piracy is as negative for this country as previously thought. This thesis argues that the piracy in HCMC is a rare case of defiance and triumph over major global corporations. This study explores the magnitude of international copyright conventions, intellectual property rights enforcement, the structure of the domestic industry and the high profitability and affordability of piracy. Using a qualitative case studies approach, this examination looks at the different political, legal and regulatory frameworks that control the trajectories of music piracy in Ho Chi Minh City.


identifier: Fox, Kamal W  (2006) Truth, justice and the African-American way.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This study is a close analysis of the historicity and affectivity of selected African-American comic book superheroes. These superheroes, with names like 'Black Lightning' and 'Black Panther', indicate the status of these black characters in mainstream comics; they are forever labeled as 'black' supermen. Making their debut in the 70s, most of these characters shared the traits of Blaxploitation film heroes (angry rebels, hypersexual vigilantes, etc.). Although these early representations were highly stereotypical, this thesis is not interested in finding the 'authentic' black superhero. Rather, it seeks to understand representations of 'blackness' in the superhero genre beyond notions of reflection theory. What this thesis seeks is a more sophisticated way of looking at black superheroes by using reading formation to examine how fictional stories articulated with a "sense of the past". Combining theories of representation and textuality, this thesis examines the black superman as a configuration of many different historical influences that dynamically produce a reading formation that allows the black superman to operate as what some theorists call counter-memory


identifier: Grants, Anita  (2006) Selectivity, interpretation and application : the influence of John Ruskin in Canada.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: In Victorian-era English Canada John Ruskin's ideas were perhaps as well-known as they were in Britain. However, without the controlling presence of Ruskin, admirers were free to select and re-interpret his positions without fear of reproach, and in such a way that their projects would be given added credibility by association. The individuals who did this believed that their interpretation and understanding of Ruskin's writings was valid, and often those views, rather than Ruskin's were re-interpreted and expressed. He was not the agent of his influence, but was instead a source to be referred to as needed. Certainly this was not a universal circumstance in Canada, but occurred frequently enough to be significant.  Beginning with an examination of the problems of defining the term "influence", the nature of Ruskin's influence in Canada from the mid-nineteenth century through the first decades of the twentieth century is presented. The influence of Ruskin's writings is analysed through a discussion of examples from the following fields: commercial, institutional, and public architecture; art education and training in Ontario, Quebec and Nova Scotia; and trends in painting. In terms of architecture, Ruskin's ideology was not always taken into account, especially as the north Italian style he championed became more popular. Thus, while the Canadian Houses of Parliament, University College, Toronto, Canadian Institute, and Montreal YMCA may have been relatively true to his principles, the commercial projects of Charles Wilson (Montreal), John Macdonald and Robert Carswell (Toronto) were anything but. The discussion of art education considers how Ruskin's theories were adapted to suit the needs of educators, and then readapted as their interpretations of these theories evolved. Oscar Wilde's 1884 Canadian lectures contained much unacknowledged Ruskin; Fred Brigden, who had studied at the Working Men's College, continued to call himself an art workman after his emigration to Canada; and Arthur Lismer, having been educated in a Sheffield which revered Ruskin, who from early in his career repeated many of the critic's comments and opinions, quoting at length from his writings. The study concludes by examining Ruskin's influence on artists in Canada


identifier: Hardy, Dominic Llywelyn  (2006) A metropolitan line : Robert LaPalme (1908-1997) : caricature and power in the age of Duplessis (1936-1959).  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This dissertation proposes that the caricatures of Robert LaPalme, from his virtuoso celebrity portraits of the 1930s to the graphic political satires that focused on Quebec Premier Maurice Duplessis in the 1950s, provided a body of work that fulfilled the conditions of a "golden age of caricature," as it is characteristically defined in the historiography of caricature studies in European and North American traditions, for the history of visual arts in Quebec. These "national" models are seen as fundamentally metropolitan productions that represent themselves as national in scope by addressing and trading in the identity markings which provide the material for ideological conflicts within national traditions.  Robert LaPalme's imagery was developed in concert with a generation of leaders who laid the groundwork for the Quiet Revolution, the secularisation and modernisation of Quebec society, through a dynamic and contesting relationship with the Duplessis administrations of 1936-40 and 1944-59. LaPalme's caricature harnessed urban anxieties and licence, both depending on and mocking them: it represented the breaches between competing images of Quebec that were rehearsed throughout the culture, from the rural/urban ideological split to the swiftly reconfigured ground of sexual behaviour and freedoms. Caricature in LaPalme's hands was the expression of the troubled, corrupt, powerful and exciting city of Montreal as a centre where the future for Quebec was imagined around the wily and traitorous figure of Maurice Duplessis. The thesis examines through a broadly chronological framework LaPalme's treatment of subjects, his visual style, through his approach to the body and space, and his close collaboration with many of the leading artists editors, journalists, publishers and writers of his era


identifier: Breton, Yannick  (2006) Further validation of a model for inferring the value of rewarding brain stimulation.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Animals will work vigorously for electrical stimulation delivered to the medial forebrain bundle. The activity thus elicited is believed to mimic the effects of naturally rewarding stimuli, such as food and sex. This thesis tests a model of performance for this rewarding electrical stimulation. The proportion of time allocated to self-stimulation activities is evaluated with respect to the subjective intensity and opportunity cost of rewards. The 3D surface that comes from assessing self-stimulation performance based on the pulse frequency and stimulation price of a rewarding train of brain stimulation can then be used to determine the stage at which a given manipulation contributes its effects to reward processing. The pulse frequency determines the intensity of the rewarding effect of the stimulation; the amount of time an animal must invest in harvesting each reward controls the price. Previous attempts to validate a model of performance for rewarding brain stimulation relied on the assumption that an animal's preference for self-stimulation activities is revealed by the testing situation. The present thesis provides evidence that rat preferences are constructed by the testing situation much like human beings' preferences. Presenting animals with randomized test trials of varying price-frequency pairs provides a solution that minimizes the systematic biases to which the testing situation contributes. This improved methodology was used to validate that the model can correctly detect the effect of manipulations that act prior to the output of the spatio-temporal integrator that summates the activity elicited in primary reward neurons by the electrical stimulation.


identifier: Linnen, Anne-Marie  (2006) Interpersonal functioning among adolescent offspring of parents with bipolar disorder : an event-contingent recording study.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Abnormal patterns of interpersonal behavior may represent a putative prodromal feature of major affective disorder (Hammen 2002). However, no studies have examined the naturalistic patterns of interpersonal behaviour among the adolescent offspring of parents with BD. The present study examined patterns of interpersonal functioning among 25 adolescents having a parent with BD (high risk) and 23 controls (low risk), between 15 to 25 years of age. Using event-contingent recording procedures in the natural environment, we assessed five dimensions of interpersonal behaviour: quarrelsomeness, agreeableness, dominance, submissiveness, and impulsivity. Behaviours were measured during social interactions occurring over 14 days. Multilevel modeling analyses indicated that the high risk group displayed more impulsive behaviours during social interactions than the low risk group, although this fell short of statistical significance ( t = -1.88, p < .056). Group by gender interactions revealed that high risk males displayed significantly more quarrelsome behaviours during social interactions than high risk females and control participants ( F = 7.49, p < .05). These results are consistent with previous findings suggesting that externalizing behaviour problems precede the development of major affective disorder, and indicate that impulsiveness and quarrelsomeness during social interactions might be an important developmental antecedent of mood disorders among the adolescent offspring of parents with BD.


identifier: Martin-Storey, Alexa  (2006) A longitudinal comparison of cognitive and behavioural problems in children who are normally developing and at-risk for developmental delay.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: By school age, a relationship exists between children's cognitive and behavioural problems that can further minimize their probability of academic success. Children from the Concordia Longitudinal Risk Project were examined in the years prior to and following grade l. A subsection of these children were at risk for developmental delay based on low birth-weight, low early IQ and diagnosed developmental delay. These children were compared to a group of children from the same sample who were normally developing. The current study focused on the relationship between cognitive and behavioural problems before grade 1 entry, after grade 1 entry, and how the relationship between cognitive and behavioural problems changed between these two times. The results indicate that prior to grade 1, there was a relationship between cognitive performance and observed behavioural style in children at risk for developmental delay, but not for normally developing children. After grade 1, school related success and behaviour problems were related in all of the children, but only as reported by the teacher. IQ prior to grade 1 predicted internalizing and total scores on the Child Behaviour Checklist following grade 1. Children with the most extreme behaviour problems at time 1 were found to have later problems in limited areas of school functioning. The findings indicate the value of using several measures of child behaviour, especially in the examination of children at risk for developmental delay.


identifier: Wypkema, Laurel  (2006) "Sex, loyalty, betrayal and unexpected love:" the landscape of Neil Jordan's fiction writing and films.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Neil Jordan is widely considered to be one of Ireland's preeminent filmmakers. Interestingly, Jordan's less-recognized career as a writer has been overshadowed by his clout as a filmmaker, despite its high quality. As a result, much of his work has not received the critical assessment and analysis to which it is undoubtedly entitled.  This study seeks to understand the many connections and intersections between Jordan's literature and film. It hopes to bridge a gap in the critical reception of Jordan's work which has, so far, looked only fleetingly into the intersections between his published writing and his contributions to cinema.  The imagery, themes and plot points from Jordan's fiction writing and film overlap; the woven character of his work is never capricious---he is clearly working within a very specific and personal worldview, one that is informed as much by his personal experiences and visions of the world as by his awareness and interaction with Irish history and nationalism. This paper carefully considers the development of Jordan's fiction writing from the late 1970s, alongside his burgeoning career as a filmmaker, particularly considering how his first two publications--- Night in Tunisia and Other Stories (1976) and The Past (1980)---have influenced his later work.  What follows is a loosely chronological exploration of Jordan's fiction writing, as it corresponds to---and is distinguished from---his cinematic work in cinema. I will argue that through a close exploration of Jordan's earlier writing, a better understanding of his later work can be gleaned


identifier: Milosevic, Irena  (2006) Safety behaviour does not interfere with exposure therapy : the case of specific phobia.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Safety behaviour consists of actions, thoughts, and/or protective objects that fearful individuals use to reduce their anxiety. It can potentially interfere with the progress of exposure therapy, which entails exposing patients to a feared stimulus or situation, but other hypotheses suggest that it may not be entirely detrimental to treatment effectiveness. This study aims to elucidate the role of safety behaviour in exposure-based treatments for anxiety disorders and uses a paradigm of exposure treatment for snake fear. Participants are randomized to one of two conditions, whereby they use either safety gear, such as gloves and goggles, or do not use any safety gear during 45 minutes of systematic exposure to a live snake. Measures are administered pre-treatment, immediately following treatment, and 10 minutes post-treatment to assess participants' fear-related cognitions, subjective ratings of fear, and their distance of closest approach to the snake. The results demonstrate that exposure treatment for snake fear is effective irrespective of safety behaviour use, as indicated by pre- to post-treatment differences for both groups of participants on all outcome measures. It was found that participants who used safety gear reported cognitive change equivalent to those who did not use safety gear post-treatment, supporting the notion that use of safety behaviour during exposure treatment may promote adaptive cognitive change. Results are discussed in terms of cognitive-behavioural theories of and treatments for anxiety disorders.


identifier: Solomon, Rebecca Brana  (2006) Subjective estimates of opportunity cost in rats working for rewarding brain stimulation.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The principal goal of psychophysics is to describe the functions that transform the objective variables into their subjective equivalents. The matching law has been used to describe the function translating the objective strength of a rewarding stimulus (e.g., the concentration of a sucrose solution) into its subjective impact. In contrast, the psychophysics of the cost of a reward has been little studied. This is a salient lacuna.  The present experiments examine opportunity cost, the price paid for a reward in terms of the time taken away from competing activities, such as procurement of alternate rewards, resting, grooming, and exploration. The reward is electrical stimulation delivered to the medial forebrain bundle. It is the subjective interpretation of these values (reward strength and cost) that an animal uses for goal selection. A widely held assumption is that the animal computes the payoff of a goal (an index of how worthwhile it is for it to choose a goal) as the ratio of the subjective reward strength to the subjective cost required to obtain the goal. This assumption is the basis for the present experiments: changes in subjective reward strength (manipulated by the frequency of stimulation) are used to compensate for changes in opportunity costs by the animal, and changes in opportunity costs are used to compensate for changes in reward strength.  The present experiments estimate the function that transforms objective opportunity costs into subjective opportunity costs under the assumed definition of payoff. In Experiment I, the change in frequency required to offset a constant proportional change in price is determined, providing an estimate of the first derivative of the subjective-price function. This experiment demonstrates that as the time intervals are shortened, subjective opportunity cost levels off and deviates substantially from the objective cost. In Experiment II, the change in price required to offset a fixed difference in frequency is determined which provides an estimate of the subjective-price function itself. This experiment demonstrates that subjective costs approximate objective ones when the time intervals involved are relatively long. The two experiments complemented each other: the first revealed the scalar range of the objective-subjective cost relationship while the second demonstrated where this relationship breaks down.  It has been implicitly assumed that the relation between objective and subjective costs approximate each other; these experiments showed that this is true but that the relationship breaks down at low costs. The function mapping objective costs into subjective ones (the "subjective-cost function") would prove useful because if the cost of a reward were to be used as a parameter that is manipulated in other experiments, it is important to choose a value of cost that the animal will accurately interpret


identifier: Sorge, Robert E  (2006) The effects of chronic administration of Buprenorphine on intake of heroin and cocaine in rats : behavioral and neurochemical interactions.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Buprenorphine is a mu opioid receptor agonist used in the treatment of opioid abuse. Buprenorphine effectively reduces opioid intake in opioid abuse patients, but there is evidence that it is effective in reducing cocaine intake in a subset of individuals as well. Chronic administration of buprenorphine was achieved via the use of subcutaneously-implanted, buprenorphine-filled, osmotic minipumps in male rats. Chronic buprenorphine reduced heroin and cocaine seeking under extinction conditions and in tests of drug-induced reinstatement in rats trained to self-administer both drugs. The reduction in responding for drug in extinction and in tests for reinstatement was not due to locomotor sedation, as chronic buprenorphine slightly elevated locomotor activity. Furthermore, this common reduction cannot be explained via unique interactions with the abused drugs. Chronic buprenorphine had no effect on locomotor activity following acute injections of heroin, in spite of a blockade in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) dopamine (DA) response to this drug. On the other hand, chronic buprenorphine potentiated the locomotor and NAc DA responses to acute injections of cocaine. The interactions between buprenorphine and heroin and cocaine on NAc DA were further replicated during self-administration of heroin and cocaine. Buprenorphine had no effect on heroin self-administration at any dose or under any schedule of reinforcement although the NAc DA response to infusions was completely blocked. In contrast, cocaine self-administration was reduced under all schedules and doses in spite of a potentiated NAc DA response to infusions of cocaine. In all cases, buprenorphine levels in plasma and basal NAc DA levels were increased throughout chronic treatment, suggesting continuous receptor occupation. Although the mechanisms for the variable effects of buprenorphine on self-administration are unclear, a mechanism for the common reduction in responsiveness to drug-associated cues is proposed. The elevated basal levels of DA may have reduced the impact of the firing of DA neurons in response to cues; alternatively buprenorphine may have had its effect by reducing glutamatergic activity. There is reason to believe that buprenorphine could reduce glutamatergic activity and it is known that a reduction in glutamate transmission can disrupt responding for cues associated with drugs of abuse.


identifier: Scott, Iain  (2006) Are Canadian small cap stocks a separate asset class? : a mean-variance spanning approach.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This paper introduces size based indices of Canadian markets using all firms listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange from December 31, 1969 to December 31, 2004 to assess the extent to which small-cap portfolios can enlarge the efficient frontier for investors. Both traditional and step-down spanning tests are performed. Furthermore, we evaluate the economic impact of adding Canadian small cap stocks by measuring the changes in the global minimum variance frontier and improvement in the Sharpe Ratio of the optimal portfolio. Canadian small-cap (as well as micro-cap) portfolios are shown to behave as separate classes, with performance enhancing effects for the entire period as well as various subperiods examined. The results are robust to the inclusion of alternative international indices to the benchmark portfolios, and policy constraints do not necessarily reduce the benefits from diversification.


identifier: Zhang, Rong Rong  (2006) Development of a fuzzy-set enhanced environmental multimedia modelling system.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Environmental pollution problems are crucial concerns that have attracted a great deal of public attention. More actions are urgently required on formulating remediation strategy for contaminated sites and setting effective standard and regulations for reducing the toxic pollutants in the environment. To achieve these needs, comprehensive understanding of and characterizing the natural behaviour of chemical in the environment are essential tasks for environmental risk assessment and management.  In this study, a new user-friendly fuzzy-set enhanced environmental multimedia modelling system (EMMS) is developed, which includes four key modules: an air dispersion module, a polluting source module, an unsaturated zone module, and a groundwater module. Many improvements over previous environmental multimedia models have been achieved, through dynamically quantifying the intermedia mass flux; incorporating fuzzy-set approach into EMMS; and designing a user-friendly graphic user interface (GUI). The developed EMMS can be a useful tool in (1) estimating the time-varying and spatial-varying chemical concentrations in air, soil, and groundwater; (2) characterizing the potential risk to human health presented by contaminants released from a contaminated site; and (3) quantifying the uncertainties associated with modelling systems and subsequently providing robustness and flexibility for the remediation-related decision making.  The developed EMMS has been tested and validated through a set of case studies including both pilot-scale and field-scale validations. Reasonable results have been obtained. It indicates that, with the aid of fuzzy-set approach, EMMS can be a reliable and powerful tool to address the complex environmental multimedia pollution problems and provide an extensive support for decision makers in managing the contaminated environmental systems


identifier: Amid, Amir  (2006) Soil vulnerability to heavy metal contaminant using hierarchical fuzzy inference system and its application in GIS.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Municipalities all over the world are facing serious crises from all types of pollutions (air, groundwater, soil, and water). Soil contamination is a common problem worldwide. In the past decades industrial activities have caused many types of ground contamination in urban areas. The existence of these lands and their impact on human health and the environment has led the provincial administration to apply restrains in reusing of contaminated sites (Brownfield) and to revitalize the whole sectors of the urban area.  The efficiency of all investments in remediation of the contaminated sites and the living environment relies on a powerful and transparent environmental management and environmental impact assessment (EIA). A fast and applicable tool is essential for EIA or exposure analysis to identify and prioritize the contaminated sites for any management decision.  In this thesis hierarchical fuzzy inference system (HFIS) was applied, and a tool was developed to introduce the critical environmental and geo-environmental factors for decision making purpose. In this technique the most pertinent factors and parameters involved in heavy metal contamination in topsoil were used to develop a powerful tool. The developed tool permitted the making of environmental decisions regarding identification of the heavy metal vulnerability in the top soil. The validation of the result of this method was satisfactory. The developed tool was applied to GIS in a case study for the Montreal Island to identify the high sorption areas and their impact on public health.


identifier: Fussell, Heather  (2006) Student employee unionization : a comparative study of four Canadian universities.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Graduate students employed as teaching assistants, lab demonstrators and research assistants have been attempting to form unions at Canadian universities since the 1970s with varying degrees of success. To date, there has been little scholarly research on this phenomenon, though it naturally begs a number of valid research questions. This thesis asks why some graduate student attempts at unionization fail while others succeed. It uses social movement theory to compare the experiences of four organizing campaigns at four universities.


identifier: Brady, Jesse  (2006) Literally reality : defining the nonfiction novel through Truman Capote's In cold blood and Norman Mailer's The armies of the night.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This study examines the literary and journalistic shifts occurring in the 1960s to which both the nonfiction novel and New Journalism arose in response. This thesis examines the two defining texts of this genre: Truman Capote's In Cold Blood and Norman Mailer's The Armies of the Night . I argue that the nonfiction novel was a natural extension of both Capote and Mailer's investments in and experiences with journalism and also provide literary analysis of their texts in light of these investments. The thesis establishes the context and scope of the nonfiction novel, not so much as a sub-category of New Journalism, but as a literary form unto itself with its own parameters, goals, and ambitions.


identifier: Shaffer, Carolyn  (2006) Arab/Muslim-Jewish dialogue in Montreal.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

title: Arab/Muslim-Jewish dialogue in Montreal

abstract: Interreligious and intercultural dialogue between Arabs, Muslims and Jews, in the context of formal dialogue groups, is a fairly recent phenomenon. In Montreal, for instance, interreligious dialogue between Christians and Jews is over fifty years old, while Muslim-Jewish interreligious dialogue has been taking place for less than a decade, and Arab-Jewish dialogue has been occurring only for the past five years or so. At present, Montreal is home to several such dialogue groups, three of which are examined in this thesis, in an effort to determine: why these groups were initiated; the motives, priorities and goals of leaders and participants; the experiences of participants, and the impact, if any, that the dialogue groups have had on participants and the involved communities. This thesis also investigates the connection between religion and dialogue, in terms of group programming and participants' experience and perspectives, and the relationship between dialogue and political/social activism. Data collected through interviews with dialogue leaders, participants and critics is analyzed with respect to dialogue theory. Finally, an analysis on the role of dialogue in promoting coexistence and conflict resolution is presented.


identifier: Parr, Jocelyn  (2006) Music as monument : Rock Nacional and memory in post-dictatorship Argentina.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Military dictatorship was a too common feature of Argentine politics for much of the twentieth century. The most recent dictatorship (1976-1983) led by General Videla saw the disappearance of an estimated 30,000 Argentines. In the preceding decade, Argentina had been crippled by a civil war that raged between violent, Cuba-inspired guerrillas and the military.  It was in this violent context that Argentine rock music, the best of which was called rock nacional , appeared. Inspired by international rockers like The Beatles and by international student politics such as was seen in Paris in 1968, Argentina's first rockers were at once eager participants in an international rock scene and strident resistors to local violence. From 1965 to 1983, rock nacional went from being a subculture to mass culture. Imprinted in its history and in its most popular hits of that period are references to the violence that pervaded Argentine culture.  When dictatorship ended in 1983, Argentines turned to its atrophied judicial system to address the war crimes perpetrated in the previous seven years. However, with the military still a powerful force, 1980s governments bowed to military pressure and legislated impunity laws that destroyed any hopes of judicial retribution. Over a decade after the end of military rule, Argentines in the 1990s sought new means of atonement in commemoration.  With anniversaries of the coup coinciding with anniversaries of the first recordings of rock music, and with original rockeros like Charly García and León Gieco still garnering mass audiences, human rights organizations like Las Madres de la Plaza de Mayo and Argentine governments turned to rockeros to animate memory of the dictatorship era. The symbiosis developed between rockeros, Las Madres and Argentine politicians has enabled a commemoration of the Dirty War which recalls only those who suffered at the hands of the military. Ignored in this commemoration are the systemic causes which led to the coup in the first place, guerrilla terrorism, and the uncomfortable fact that many Argentines benefited from the Dirty War era. This study of rock nacional and memory of dictatorship highlights the partisan selections that are being made and illustrates the problems with current commemorative projects in Argentina


identifier: Raihan, Hussen Md  (2006) Application of electrokinetics to control metal transports in biosolids in a cold climate.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Biosolids, the end product of municipal wastewater treatment contains many of the constituents removed from the influent wastewater. Constituents of wastewater sludge include organic contents, nutrients, pathogens, metals, and toxic organics. Concentration of heavy metals in sewage sludge is one of the major issues of public concern, when sludge is applied on land. Municipalities in cold climate regions face specific problems during winter months due to snow and severe weather conditions when land application of biosolids becomes difficult or impossible. The major goal of this research was to investigate the impact of extremely low winter temperatures as faced on the Canadian prairies on the functionality of electrokinetic processes and to assess technical feasibility of the electrokinetic method for the removal of metals from municipal biosolids in extreme cold winter condition.  Biosolids in rectangular polyethylene cells were subjected to electrokinetic processes at -8 and -15{493}C ambient temperatures. Tests were carried out both biosolids alone and biosolids mixed with conditioning liquid. Metal contents analyses of biosolids samples after the application of electrokinetics indicated excellent movement of metal ions towards the cathode. Concentrations of cadmium, copper, lead, nickel and zinc in the cathode areas were found respectively 195%, 97%, 118%, 26% and 1686% higher than the concentrations in the anode areas in cells that showed the best movement of the respective metals. Use of conditioning liquid slowed down the biosolids freezing process. A 10% concentration increase of the conditioning liquid helped to extend the working period of the electrokinetic processes in freezing biosolids by 15%, thus the conditioning liquid enhanced the performance of the system and helped to obtain better movement of metals.


identifier: Vijayakumar, Sujikumar  (2006) Fuzzy logic based assignable cause diagnosis using control chart patterns.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Control charts are widely used in manufacturing and non-manufacturing processes to monitor process average and to reduce variations in quality characteristic. The variations could be either due to common causes, which are inherent nature of the process and unavoidable, or assignable causes which can be diagnosed for rectification. The state of the process, i.e., whether or not the process is statistically in control, is traditionally judged using control limits and unnatural patterns exhibited on control charts. These unnatural patterns, in addition to help in determining the process state, also provide hints on possible assignable cause(s) whenever the process goes out of control. However, there are certain ambiguities associated with this traditional method, such as judging the process state when a point falls exactly on or very near to control limits and vagueness in interpreting unnatural patterns when multiple patterns co-exist on the control chart and relating them to assignable cause.  Fuzzy logic has been proved to be an excellent tool for handling such ambiguities and vagueness by quantifying the uncertainty mathematically. A fuzzy inference engine is developed for X歔 chart, based on a chart pattern-cause relationship network. The domain of assignable causes is categorized based on the nature of the shift they can produce, and accordingly related to chart patterns. Each link in the network is represented by a fuzzy inference system which determines the intensity of each cause in the interval [0-1] based on degree of presence of each pattern. All the evidence supporting each cause from the unnatural patterns are aggregated using fuzzy connective operators (max, algebraic sum) and causes are prioritized accordingly so that when process goes out of control, the investigation can be done for the cause having highest priority. The developed fuzzy inference engine is tested with different combinations of unnatural patterns and the results are compared with manual interpretation of control charts and with results from a control chart software tool (MINITAB)


identifier: Fratiloiu, Raluca Maria  (2006) Leonardo da Montreal : the rhetoric of Italianità and the Canadian post-nation.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This thesis offers an analysis of the rhetoric of Italianità or "Italianicity" "spoken" via an architectural object: the Leonardo da Vinci cultural center located in Montreal. Situated in the predominantly Italian neighborhood of St. Leonard, the cultural center reveals the multiple attachments that Italian-Canadians feel for the Italian community, for the city of Montreal, for the province of Quebec and for Canada. The rhetoric of the Leonardo da Vinci center is different from the narratives of Italianità from the past. While in the past the narratives of Italian immigration figured a reflective type of nostalgia, the Leonardo da Vinci cultural center projects this community in the future, revealing a restorative type of nostalgia. In addition, the center represents a venue for the performance of Italian-Canadian citizenship which is multi-faceted and challenges the classical definitions of this concept. The multiplicity of Italian-Canadians' attachments reveals the rise of a new motive in the rhetoric of identification of communities of people who belong away from homeland, namely the post-national motive. Italian immigration to Montreal spanned throughout a century. Today, we speak about 1 st to 5 th generation Italian-Canadians from Montreal. While before, they were a diasporic community, identifying with the place of origins, today they have become a post-national community which identifies with their present location, now their "home". This calls us to argue that while Canada is still defining its national identity, various former immigrant communities constitute a post-nation in the process.


identifier: Rennie, Sarah  (2006) Coping with social change in an economic crisis : a case study of Huntingdon, Quebec.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Research into community resilience reflects an ongoing interest in defining how some single industry communities survive an economic crisis while others do not. Studies have linked high levels of social capital in communities to the creation of positive socio-economic outcomes, but few have sought to understand the development of localized social systems and structures following an economic crisis. In this context, there is a need to investigate the relationship between coping strategies, community identity and social capital in the foundation of social structures and systems in response to change.  The closure of two major textile mills in the rural town of Huntingdon, Quebec presented an opportunity to study a community's initial reactions, coping facilities and strategies as they developed over the course of a year. The 'developing crisis' in Huntingdon served as a useful entry point for exploring the strengths and weaknesses of the underlying social infrastructure of the community.  Three analytical themes; (1) individual and community level coping strategies, (2) local identity formation, and (3) the proliferation of social networks, were extracted from the social capital literature and were explored within the context of socio-economic change and community development in Huntingdon. From these observations, a series of suggestions are put forward which provide insight into accessing stores of social capital and increasing community cohesiveness to improve possible outcomes for single industry towns faced with a similar loss of a major employer in the future.


identifier: Verma, Prashant  (2006) Integrated system for earthmoving operations.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Earthwork allocations are needed in excavation work to determine the quantities of material to be moved from each cut section to each fill section. Two basic methods of earthwork allocations are available: mass diagram and linear programming. The mass diagram can be used to determine the most economic distribution of cut and fill. However, the usefulness of mass diagram diminishes for situations in which haul costs are not directly proportional to the haul distance; swell and shrinkage vary along the roadway; and additional quantities of soil are available at borrow pit or may be disposed of at disposal sites.  This study presents an integrated system for estimating earthmoving production, selecting fleet and optimizing earthmoving operations. Geographic information system (GIS) is employed to acquire and analyze spatial data. Fleet Production and Cost Analysis (FPC) is used as software tool to select the best Fleet. The methodology used in the development of optimization model is based on the Mixed-Integer Linear Programming which determines optimum quantity of materials to be moved between different cut and fill sections, borrow pits and disposal sites. The standard Microsoft Excel Solver has been used to run the presented MILP model. This study also proposes an algorithm for determining longitudinal interval for a part of road segment.  The study concludes that the presented integrated system can assist engineers, contractors and clients of earthmoving projects in quantity take-off determination work, for selecting best equipment fleet and in determining the optimum quantity of earthwork materials to be moved between different sections so as to finish the project in minimum time and within budget with optimum use of available resources


identifier: El-Ammari, Khaled Hussein  (2006) Visualization, data sharing and interoperability issues in model-based facilities management systems.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Facilities management requires gathering and combining a large amount of data from different sources. These data consist of product models and non-product models for describing the process information about each facility. Virtual Reality interaction methods, compared with the product models, can provide better understanding of these models. These interaction methods can be used to accommodate different building engineering applications, such as Facilities Management (FM) and construction progress monitoring. However, the users of these applications may have severe problems in exploring and interacting with the large virtual environments to accomplish specific tasks. Properly designed interfaces are critical for using these applications efficiently. Interoperability in FM industry requires supporting standards for representing the facilities lifecycle information. In this research, first a literature review is conducted about existing FM software solutions and the data representation in these applications. The research review also covers available interoperability standards that can support FM applications. Then, a new framework for the development of a model-based FM system is proposed. The framework includes a practical method for creating facilities models and several interaction and navigation methods. Furthermore, a new method is proposed for creating a generic graphical user interface based on metadata represented in a standard format. The proposed approach is demonstrated through two case studies for indoor and outdoor facilities management applications.


identifier: York, Christine  (2006) Documentary subtitling : a participant-centred approach.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This project addresses one aspect of audiovisual translation: documentary subtitling. It proposes an approach to documentary subtitling that takes into account the specific characteristics of documentary. It identifies three key issues arising from those characteristics: the shared authorship role played by filmmaker and participant; the image-text interaction in the visual channel; and the presence of impromptu speech, as distinct from film dialogue. The impact of these issues on subtitling is discussed through an analysis of three documentaries produced or co-produced by the National Film Board of Canada: Bacon, le film (Bacon, the Film) , directed by Hugo Latulippe (2002); Édith et Michel (Édith and Michel) , directed by Jocelyne Clarke (2004); and Le méchant trip (Exiles in Lotusland) , directed by Ilan Saragosti (2005)


identifier: Zhao, Songping  (2006) An insight into BB-enolase deficiency : functional significance of amino acid 376.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Enolase, a dimeric enzyme, interconverts 2-phosphoglyceric acid to phosphoenolpyruvate in glycolysis. Due to its catalytic significance, deficiency in this pathway is rare. In year 2000, a male patient was identified with the first case of [beta][beta]-enolase deficiency. It was later determined that his [beta]-enolase gene (EN03) carried two missense mutations changing two conserved amino acids: G156D and G374E. The authors who identified this disease suggested that the stability of the enzyme might have been altered.  Our research focuses on one of the mutations (G374E), which was introduced into yeast enolase. The yeast enzyme was utilized due to its high sequence identity with the human enzyme, multiple known crystal structures bearing conserved structural characteristics and easy laboratory manipulation. The purified G376E protein is folded but nearly inactive. The subunit dissociation constant was increased by 1000-fold. Although the chemical and thermal stability of the enzyme was not greatly altered, the susceptibility towards proteolytic digestion was significantly high due to weaker dimer stability. Furthermore, our kinetic study shows greatly altered catalytic ability and affinity towards metal ion and substrate.  Aside from the original mutation, smaller polar and/or charged amino acids were substituted to examine the cause of the changes observed above. The results indicate that although not directly participating in catalysis or subunit interaction, amino acid 376 plays an important role in subunit interaction and catalytic activity


identifier: Khajadourian, Verkin  (2006) The determination of therapeutic oligonucleotides in blood plasma by capillary gel electrophoresis with laser-induced fluorescence detection.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Capillary gel electrophoresis (CGE) is the premier method of separating DNA and oligonucleotides. This technique is the workhorse method of all separations based genomics studies e.g. Human Genome Project. In previously published studies, methods utilizing CGE with ultraviolet (UV) detection have been developed for the quantitative determination of oligonucleotides in various matrices (e.g. plasma, serum, tissue); although very selective CGE-UV is not as sensitive as other analytical techniques (e.g. hybridization assays). Recently, laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) detection has emerged as a significantly more sensitive alternative to UV detection. However, oligonucleotides do not possess significant native fluorescence, therefore covalent or non-covalent dying is necessary. OliGreen(TM), an ultra sensitive fluorescent nucleic acid stain, non-covalently binds to single stranded-oligonucleotides (ss-oligo's) and displays a significant fluorescence enhancement and is potentially the most sensitive dye for ss-oligos. The purpose of this study was to develop and validate a method for the quantitative determination of therapeutic ss-oligos in plasma. Plasma was spiked with ss-oligos (18, 22, 23 and 24-mer) and separation was achieved by CGE. The oligonucleotides were non-covalently complexed by mixing OliGreen(TM) (1/500 dilution) into the gel separation matrix at a temperature of 60{493}C, the maximum of the instrument. Detection limits of 250 pg/mL and linear calibrations over 100 orders of magnitude were achieved using the 488 nm argon ion laser for excitation and 520 nm for detection. The method was validated with respect to selectivity, carry-over, linearity, intra- and inter-assay precision and accuracy.


identifier: Qiu, Kai  (2006) Air infiltration and heat exchange performance of the building envelope.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Air infiltration has an important impact on the energy consumption of buildings. Influenced by the heat exchange in it, the temperature profile in the building envelope deviates from that of conduction. Therefore, energy analysis of a building needs to consider the coupled process of conduction and infiltration.  A numerical model is presented to study the heat exchange performance of the building envelope, based on air flow and heat transfer through porous media. The governing equations are derived using the volume average method, and one-medium treatment is adopted for the description of heat transfer in the porous insulation. Computational fluid dynamics approach is used to solve the equations. As Darcy's term is the dominant factor in the momentum equation, an easily-implemented pressure correction method is presented. The model has been applied to an exterior wall, under four infiltration path conditions. Factors influencing the heat exchange performance have been discussed. The presented model has been verified by comparing its results with the experimental data.  Investigation is also conducted for the dynamic insulation, which is a potential implementation of the heat exchange process in the building envelope. Numerical simulation is first performed to study the heat transfer in dynamic insulation, under both transient and steady-state boundary conditions. The results show that the steady-state analysis is a good approximation for the estimation of heat loss through the dynamic insulation. A steady-state analytical model is hence derived for the thermal performance of a dynamic insulated wall. An analytical model is also presented for the heat exchange performance of air infiltration in a conventional wall, by dividing the wall into ventilated and non-ventilated area, and treating the ventilated area as the dynamic insulated wall.  The results in the study show that the heat exchange performance in the building envelope is first determined by the air flow rate, with the secondary impact from the air flow path. The influence of permeability of the material is also important as it is related to the air flow rate. However, influence of porosity of the material, and indoor-outdoor temperature gradient, is not significant


identifier: Karos, Leigh Karavasilis  (2006) An attachment framework for the study of shame : associations between security, parenting, temperament and shame-proneness in early childhood.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The current study investigated associations between parenting and children's shame-proneness, as well as the additive and moderating influences of temperament and attachment. A sample of 66 children 6- to 8-years-of age (36 females, 30 males) and their mothers participated. While mothers completed questionnaire measures related to parenting, children's self-conscious emotions and temperamental characteristics, the principal investigator worked with child participants to complete several measures, including self-report of self-conscious emotions using hypothetical scenarios and a semi-projective narrative task tapping internal working models of attachment.  Findings revealed that all three domains of parenting, temperament, and attachment played important and unique roles in the explanation of shame-proneness. An additive model across domains explained maternal report of children's shame-proneness, whereas findings for children's self-reported shame-proneness were more complex and included counter-intuitive moderating effects of attachment and, to a lesser degree, negative affectivity. Convergent results across the two informants indicated that, as predicted, coercive parenting practices (i.e., love withdrawal, power assertiveness, conditional approval) and unsupportive emotion coaching were related to greater shameproneness. Divergent findings across mother and child informants included additional main effects for mother-reported shame-proneness and parenting (i.e., authoritarian parenting, focusing on negative child characteristics, disgust) versus several interactive effects for child-reported shame-proneness. Specifically, higher levels of attachment intensified the shame-inducing impact of love withdrawal, maternal focus on negative child attributes, and power assertiveness; conversely higher levels of attachment appeared to intensify the negative association between permissive parenting and shame-proneness. Further, lower levels of negative affectivity were found to strengthen the relation between conditional approval and shame-proneness but for girls only. Some additional gender effects were also revealed in the prediction of child-reported shame-proneness and are discussed in light of growing recognition of differential socialization practices and their impact on boys and girls. Results are discussed in light of empirical research on parenting, temperament, attachment, and children's self-conscious emotions. Finally, potential limitations in the measurement of child reported self-conscious emotions are also discussed


identifier: Levy, Leanne M  (2006) Pink politics : a research project about girls.  PhD thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: Messages embedded within media are powerful ideological forces influencing ways girls perceive and negotiate the world and their selves, setting standards, expectations, ideals and norms. From a neo-Gramscian perspective, popular culture is a site of negotiation for a girl's meaning making and construction of self. Over the course of this dissertation, seven teenage girls between the ages of 12 and 14 years offer a glimpse into their private lives as they reflect upon their relationships with popular culture. Through photo-ethnography, and video documented focus group and photo elicitation interviews, the girls discuss issues, personal attributes, and meaningful experiences, and demonstrate how they construct a sense of self amongst the hegemonic forces of peers, family, and societal values mediated by the media and popular culture. As I continue to witness the cultural, social and political girl "come together" through the site of popular culture, the more I realize this site's value as a gateway for meaningful, critical, and transformative media-based art education with an emphasis on self-actualization and social action. Using popular culture to engage girls in critical, reflective and reflexive dialogue provided me with a working framework to understand how each constructed her sense of self amongst others. I have discovered that much like a collage, constructed and juxtaposed piece by piece, everything a girl values becomes, in essence, layers in her self-portrait, and a mirror to her self. There are educational and research implications pointing towards reframing my research methodology for the classroom, adding a fourth step, art-based video documentary production, and inviting girls to consider and transform what limits their potential through meaningful media production.


identifier: Babins, Linda T  (2006) Measuring the impacts of increased security on ports and shipping in the Caribbean Basin.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: The events of September 11 th , 2001 brought into sharp focus the vulnerability of maritime trade and transport to threats of terrorism. The adoption and implementation of the IMO's (International Maritime Organization) ISPS (International Ship and Port Facility Security) Code by the world's ports and shipping industry was anticipated as a source of unavoidable high costs and a potential source of disruption to global supply chains. Developing countries, in particular, seemed to be at risk of being shut out of the world and American markets. This thesis first asks whether security can be considered as a variable in a measurement of port productivity. Second, it investigates the effects of ISPS and augmented security on ports within the Caribbean Basin. Findings show that new security initiatives have had some positive impacts on these ports. Controlling access and improving surveillance has had a direct impact on theft. Providing training and heightening awareness of security has promoted good relationships between the shipping lines and the ports. However, if one equates efficiency with reduced costs then the increased number of security employees at all ports would appear to be a reduction in efficiency. In conclusion the imperative to remain competitive and in a network that includes the U.S. has promoted the adoption and enforcement of security with a limited number of the 'anticipated' disruptions.


identifier: Zhang, Jian Ming  (2006) Sustainable transportation in a developing country : the impact of the metro in Tianjin.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This thesis delves into the choice of sustainable transportation means and various factors that come into play. For such a developing country as China, it is of vital significance to boost its social and economical advance in a healthy and harmonious manner when it comes to providing guidance for the public to adopt transport modes of sustainability. With a high popularity of bikes and newly developed metro system, the city of Tianjin presents itself as an ideal example for the study of sustainable transport means. I chose this city for questionnaire surveys in hopes of not only identifying the principal factors that have an effect on people's choice of transportation modes, but more importantly offering significant references for the government in making transportation policies


identifier: Roy, Lisa  (2006) In search of the global graduate : transforming international experience into intercultural competence.  Masters thesis, Concordia University.

abstract: This study considers the under researched area of the relationship between post secondary study abroad programs and the development of globally minded students, or global graduates. Employing qualitative research methodology, nine students from a Canadian university are followed through their experiences as participants in a pilot Study Abroad program. A brief summary of findings suggests that while the overseas experience is transformative, leading to varying levels and forms of intercultural competence in participants, the relationship between studying abroad and producing globally minded students may not be direct. This research concludes with a model for assessing learning outcomes in study abroad participants, as well as practical suggestions for program design that may increase the educational benefits of Study Abroad programs which may better support the development of global graduates.