Convocation November 2014

Doctor of Education (Educational Leadership and Policy)

• Dr. Glenda Maria Hunter: "Dr. Hunter explored sustainability policy and practice at Vancouver Island University. She interviewed administrators, faculty and students and applied the work of sociologist, Pierre Bourdieu, to help explain why some sustainability policies and practices are more successful than others, and how a campus culture of sustainability can be increased."
• Dr. Dana Lynne Goedbloed: "Dr. Goedbloed examined skills policy and its relationship to apprenticeship education in Canada and B.C. between 1980 and 2010. She found that government and industry focussed on skilled labour shortages and overlooked post-secondary skill development. The study contributes to skills policy debates, particularly on unemployment and adult training."

Doctor of Musical Arts

• Dr. Robert William Singley: "Dr. Singley composed a collection of music that meditates on his experiences hiking the Appalachian Trail from Maine to Georgia. Scored for string quartet, the work presents a series of movements that have concrete and abstract ties to his hike. Over the course of more than nine hours, the composition endeavors to transport the listener to the Trail."
• Dr. Timothy David Graham Corlis: "Dr. Corlis contributed to the tradition of liturgical concert works through his thesis, a 33 minute work for choir and orchestra entitled the Missa Pax. The orchestra version was premiered in Winnipeg at Canadian Mennonite University. In its more portable obligato and piano scoring, the Missa Pax has been performed across Canada to critical acclaim."
• Dr. Roberta Bottelli: "Dr. Bottelli studied the Delius Double Concerto for Violin and Cello. Her thesis provides an analysis of the piece from both a historian and a performer's perspective. The study illustrates the role of performance in understanding the historical context and significance of the Double Concerto."

Doctor of Philosophy (Anatomy and Cell Biology)

Dr. Le Su: "Dr. Su studied how chromosomal rearrangements regulate oncogenesis at the molecular level. His work uncovered a novel role for epigenetic deregulation in cancer formation, and led to developing targeted therapies to reverse its oncogenic action. These studies support the use of epigenetic inhibitors as an anti-cancer strategy in clinical trials."

Doctor of Philosophy (Anthropology)

• Dr. Marina Joanne La Salle: "Dr. LaSalle studied the history, community and landscape of Pacific Spirit Regional Park in Vancouver. She demonstrated how "nature" in the park is manufactured to forget colonial violence and to feel better about ongoing environmental devastation. Pacific Spirit is thus a site of ideology, ultimately hindering resistance to industrial capitalism."
• Dr. Natalie Jean-Keiser Baloy: "Dr. Baloy examined the ways in which non-Indigenous people learn about Indigenous peoples in Vancouver, a city built on unceded Coast Salish lands. She argued that settler colonialism continues to shape everyday encounters, emotions, and meaning-making. This study illustrates why meaningful reconciliation must thoughtfully engage non-Indigenous people."
• Dr. Tal Nitsan: "Dr. Nitsan worked with the Guatemalan campaign to end violence against women, to examine tensions between theory and practice within the women's human rights discourse. She argues that, to promote transformative social change, those rights are framed in terms of dignity, grounded in women's diverse life experiences and emphasize agency and self-worth."
• Dr. Diana Elizabeth Marsh: "Dr. Marsh studied fossil exhibits at the Smithsonian. She identified how they have been shaped by new communication techniques, professional cultures, and institutional divides between research and outreach in the last century. Her work has relevance to institutional ethnographers, historians, public science communicators, and museum practitioners."
• Dr. Tamar Victoria Scoggin McKee: "Dr. McKee conducted ethnographic fieldwork among the horse people of Bluegrass Kentucky in order to understand the cultural and historical connections between horse racing, animal slaughter, equine rescue, and prison educational programs."
• Dr. Christopher John Condin: "Dr. Condin studied Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a fatal genetic disease diagnosed in boys. He examined how families cope with the illness, and their experiences testing new genetic treatments in clinical trials. His research will help to incorporate patient views into healthcare delivery, and to develop personalized treatments for rare diseases."

Doctor of Philosophy (Biochemistry and Molecular Biology)

• Dr. Elizabeth Arlene Dunn: "Dr. Dunn studied the structure of human genes. She developed a method for isolating multi-component particles that are involved in the expression of genes. This tool will allow scientists around the world to better understand and treat a wide variety of human diseases, including various cancers, cystic fibrosis and multiple sclerosis."
• Dr. Kelvin Lau: "Dr. Lau investigated the channels in our cells that release calcium, allowing for the contraction of the heart and muscles. He found that a protein binds to them differently depending on where they are found in our bodies, and he created a 3D model of the channels. These findings help to explain how proteins and mutations may cause disease."
• Dr. Alex Kar-Kei Leung: "Dr. Leung studied a new drug delivery system for gene therapy, called lipid nano-particles. His research revealed the structure of these nano-particles and explained the mechanism of their formation. This has strong implications in the rational design of nano-medicines aimed at silencing specific genes for treating various diseases, including cancer."
• Dr. Wendy Lynn Bernhard: "Dr. Bernhard studied the regulation of HIV-1 latency. She characterized an important mechanism involved in repression of HIV-1 and identified and characterized small molecules that purge cells latently infected with HIV-1. These findings increase our understanding of how HIV-1 expression is regulated and move us closer to a cure for HIV-1/AIDS."
• Dr. Leslie Karen Williams: "Dr. Williams examined the interactions between the digestive enzyme, human pancreatic alpha-amylase, and various inhibitors, to determine how they reduce the rate of starch digestion. She discovered a new binding motif that blocks substrate access to the enzyme's catalytic site. These studies may lead to new treatments for type 2 diabetes and obesity."

Doctor of Philosophy (Bioinformatics)

• Dr. Gavin Ha: "Dr. Ha studied the genome alterations in the DNA of cancer cells. He developed novel computational algorithms to detect these mutations in breast and ovarian cancer patients. His work has advanced our understanding of how tumours evolve and will facilitate future studies on genetic causes for treatment resistance and cancer metastasis."
• Dr. Melanie Courtot: "Dr. Courtot demonstrated that biomedical knowledge can be logically encoded and processed by computers. She developed a knowledge representation model to accurately automate the diagnosis of adverse events following immunization. Her research improves public health by allowing for faster and cheaper detection of safety issues related to vaccination."

Doctor of Philosophy (Botany)

• Dr. Saemundur Sveinsson: "Dr. Sveinsson's research focussed on the genetic evolution of plants. He succeeded in demonstrating the usefulness of DNA sequencing methodology, in addressing biological questions about several species of plants. The results of his study are likely to be of benefit to other researchers working in the field of plant evolutionary biology."
• Dr. Basudev Ghoshal: "Dr. Ghoshal studied how plants recover from viral infection. He found that during recovery of the virus infected plants, production of the viral proteins is prevented. He also discovered a plant enzyme involved in this mechanism. The study identifies a novel antiviral defence response and provides new insights into plant-virus interaction."
• Dr. Cameron James Grisdale: "Dr. Grisdale studied the genomes of a red alga and a fungal parasite. His research examined the effects of genome reduction on fundamental cellular and genetic processes. This study shows that some reduced systems can tolerate the loss of genes that are critical for survival in most organisms, showing new limits of genetic flexibility."
• Dr. Fang Xu: "Dr. Xu studied the regulatory and signalling components in plant immunity, in Dr. Xin Li's lab at Michael Smith Laboratories and the Department of Botany. Using genetic approaches, she identified three important genes which are essential to the plant immune response. Her thesis research contributes to the better understanding of plant immune system."
• Dr. Lin Shi: "Dr. Shi conducted research into the interconnection between plant molecules, or lipid metabolites, and cell wall components. First, he studied seeds with high oil production, and then he examined ways in which metabolites are transported in plant cells. His research expands our knowledge of plant metabolites and suggests ways to engineer high-oil seeds."

Doctor of Philosophy (Business Administration)

• Dr. Kejia Zhu: "Dr. Zhu has examined how organizational rule networks affect rule revisions. She explored this relationship in healthcare, where practice is governed by clinical practice guidelines interconnected by citation ties. She found that guidelines are updated faster when they are cited by other guidelines, and when citing guidelines are loosely connected."
• Dr. Steven Edward Minns: "Dr. Minns explored the causes of patent litigation. He showed that the changing nature of technological innovation and the increasing importance of inter-organizational alliances have increased the propensity of firms to engage in litigation. Small firms were found to be disadvantaged and the findings have a number of implications for policy."
• Dr. Alireza Sabouri Bagh Abbas: "Dr. Sabouri developed mathematical models for decision-making problems in healthcare settings. In particular, his models help policy makers in designing screening policies for patients on the kidney transplant waiting list, and in designing policies in hospital blood banks for issuing blood."
• Dr. Ti (Tracy) Gu: "Dr. Gu studied the economics of market and regulatory enforcement in auditing. She used two natural experiments to show that mechanisms facilitating detection of auditor misconduct discipline auditors, and affect the valuation of audit clients. Her study responds to a key element underexplored by literature, based on the classical auditing theory."
• Dr. Roger Anthony Turner: "Dr. Turner considered globalizing computer-mediated-communication technologies and their implications for socio-organizational power. He tested two pathways through which these technologies may mediate more equitable power structures. He also developed and cross-societally validated a measure of free space for resistance, a key construct in his model."
• Dr. Leah Dawn Sheppard: "Dr. Sheppard studied intra-sexual conflict at work. She found that female same-sex workplace conflict is perceived by organizational observers and first parties as more detrimental to relationships and job attitudes than male same-sex and cross-sex conflict. This research has implications for the perpetuation of gender inequality in organizations."
• Dr. Camille Grange: "Dr. Grange investigated the value of online shopping sites that integrate social network features. She found that online relationships can enhance traditional e-Commerce as they lead consumers to make unexpected yet valuable product findings. Dr. Grange's work provides design guidelines that online vendors can use to make their website more effective."

Doctor of Philosophy (Cell and Developmental Biology)

• Dr. Parisa Asghari: "Dr. Asghari examined the distribution and function of Ryanodine Receptors, which are calcium channels in heart muscles. Her work provided a new mechanism by which the contraction of heart may be regulated. These findings might open up new avenues to heart disease therapies."
• Dr. Monica Cecilia Castellanos Kotkoff: "Dr. Castellanos studied how differences in the brains of females and males are generated. By studying Drosophila, she found that making a female versus a male brain require distinct sex-specific genetic mechanisms. Her studies unveil unexpected complexity in the genetic mechanisms that generate sex differences in the brain."
• Dr. Heather Courtney Denroche: "Dr. Denroche studied the hormone Leptin as a treatment to lower blood sugar in a mouse model of Type 1 diabetes. Her work revealed some of the potential benefits and limitations of Leptin as an alternate or adjunct therapy to insulin for Type 1 diabetes. This research helped to uncover the molecular mechanism behind the anti-diabetic actions of Leptin."
• Dr. Blair Kenneth Gage: "Dr. Gage examined how human stem cells can be coaxed to form pancreatic cells that make hormones such as insulin. His studies describe how simple and complex cues influence which hormone a pancreatic cell chooses to make. This work helps build a roadmap of human stem cell development which may lead to new stem cell-based therapies for Diabetes."

Doctor of Philosophy (Chemical and Biological Engineering)

• Dr. Turki Abdulrhman Al-Smari: "Dr. Al-Samari conducted research into particle losses in installations such as catalytic reactors. He developed a theory that electro-static forces are responsible for the difficulties in predicting particle loss. This research will contribute to the efforts to prevent pollution and the loss of valuable material in chemical reactions."
• Dr. Hesam Anvari Ardakani: "Dr. Anvari completed his study in the field of Chemical and Biological Engineering. He developed new industrial models for paste extrusion, in particular PTFE paste extrusion. His research provides a better understanding of the extrusion process, with the goal of enhancing the quality of final manufactured products."
• Dr. Ehsan Behzadfar: "Dr. Behzadfar investigated a promising method to tackle climate change: underground storage of carbon dioxide. By examining the effects on the flow properties of bitumen, he showed that carbon dioxide can be stored in depleted oil reservoirs. This method is also economical because the carbon dioxide can recover stranded oils from those reservoirs."
• Dr. Devendra Dhondu Borikar: "Dr. Borikar evaluated advanced drinking water treatments for removal of emerging pollutants and their effects on chlorine by-product formation. This study helps drinking water treatment plants to improve their performance significantly, to meet regulatory requirements, and to take a proactive initiative to improve drinking water quality."
• Dr. Maryam Khoshnoodi: "Dr. Khoshnoodi studied microbiological mechanisms that improve water treatment. She focused on arsenic removal mechanisms in a passive bioreactor treating smelter waste leachate. This research furthers our understanding of geochemical and biological processes controlling the transportation and transformation of arsenic in the environment."
• Dr. Sona Moradi: "Dr. Moradi has created metallic surfaces which are extremely water repellent, or Super-hydrophobic, using a method called Femto-second Laser Ablation. These surfaces are also self-cleaning and have low friction properties. In addition she developed a new Thermodynamic model to predict the surface wettability."
• Dr. Oscar Rosales Calderon: "Dr. Rosales modeled a reaction to convert wheat straw into sugars, which can be fermented to become ethanol. He subsequently simulated and economically analysed an industrial process for the production of ethanol. This research assists us in the commercialization of bio-ethanol which can reduce our fossil fuel consumption and environmental impact."
• Dr. Mohammad Sadegh Masnadi Shirazi: "Dr. Masnadi studied different aspects of energy production from various mixtures of biomass and fossil fuel. He showed that biomass minerals can act as inexpensive natural catalysts to enhance the thermo-chemical conversion of fossil fuels. His research helps to show how greener energy systems can result in sustainable civilizations worldwide."
• Dr. Jordan Alexander MacKenzie: "Dr. MacKenzie studied the effects of adding turbulent drag reducing additives to a pulp processing hydrocyclone, which is used to separate solids and liquids. He found that polymer agents have the capacity to fundamentally change the internal flow field. This was found to limit the effectiveness of hydrocyclone units in isolating contaminants. ."
• Dr. Ross Stanley Kukard: "Dr. Kukard developed a micro-reactor to study catalysts for upgrading of Canadian oilsand bitumen. This reactor allowed him to determine both how the catalyst functions and how it loses performance. His contributions will allow for a better understanding and more efficient development of catalysts for oil upgrading processes in the future."
• Dr. Jiyang Gao: "Dr. Gao investigated ways in which to remove the latency, or fibre curl, from processed wood fibres, in order to strengthen the resulting pulp. He developed a model which characterizes the process of latency removal and also predicts the change in pulp properties. This model offers an energy reduction solution for latency removal in pulp mills."

Doctor of Philosophy (Chemistry)

• Dr. Benjamin Wei Qiang Hui: "Dr. Hui studied the behaviour of pyrimidines, building blocks of DNA and RNA, when grafted onto large and rigid cyclic molecules. He discovered that these attached building blocks spontaneously assembled into well-defined superstructures. This research demonstrates that such motifs might play a larger role in directing overall nucleic acid topology than previously thought."
• Dr. Ashlee Joanna Howarth: "Dr. Howarth designed and studied new, highly luminescent materials for use in organic light emitting diodes. Her work, performed in collaboration with chemists in both England and Italy, has contributed to the overall understanding of these materials, which are commonly used in digital displays and solid-state lighting technologies around the world."
• Dr. Zhibo Liu: "Dr. Liu developed a broadly applicable strategy for preparing radioactive diagnosis drugs. Based on this strategy, a series of promising radiolabeled peptides have been made, two of which are scheduled to enter early phase clinical trials. Dr. Liu's work has been recognized as an essential step in developing personalized medicine for cancer patients."
• Dr. Sida Zhou: "Dr. Zhou has conducted research on Zeeman deceleration, which utilizes magnetic fields to decelerate molecular beams. Dr. Zhou has successfully applied Zeeman deceleration to complex polyatomic species. This research outcome puts many interesting experiments within reach. The applications could range from cold chemistry to quantum information."
• Dr. Jennifer Kristine Griffith: "Dr. Griffith conducted her doctoral research in the area of bio-organic chemistry. Her research investigated the inhibition of an enzyme that is prevalent in cancer cells. Understanding and manipulating this enzyme is important for the development of novel anti-cancer therapeutics."
• Dr. Ryan Matthew Centko: "Dr. Centko used natural products chemistry techniques to discover novel compounds from fungi and marine sponges. A synthetic route was devised for one new molecule that acts as a potent inhibitor of IDO, a cancer immune evasion mechanism. These compounds may one day lead to a cancer treatment which aids the innate immune response to the disease."
• Dr. Angela Karen Crane: "Dr. Crane designed and developed new porous solids for the purpose of storing hydrogen gas. Her innovative approach led to numerous crystalline materials with unique structures and properties. The design principles she unraveled may be applied to improve hydrogen storage in fuel cell automobiles."
• Dr. Jingyi Yan: "Dr. Yan investigated ice formation induced by electric fields using computational simulations. This project provides a deep understanding of ice nucleation mechanism, and the associated thermodynamic properties of the nucleation process, which is related to precipitation phenomena and many other physical changes."
• Dr. Ping Xiang: "Dr. Xiang studied the physics of interacting particles at ultra-cold temperatures. He explored new mechanisms to control quantum dynamics and developed a numerical tool for calculating the properties of systems of interacting particles. His work will help people to design experiments to discover new physics at ultra-cold temperatures."
• Dr. Luping Yan: "1 in 7 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetimes. Dr. Yan tried to develop a new cure for prostate cancer based on the natural molecules found in an Indonesian marine sponge. With his colleagues, Dr. Yan has identified the structure of a promising anti-cancer drug which may save the lives of thousands of Canadian men every year."
• Dr. Jannu Ricardo Casanova Moreno: "Dr. Casanova-Moreno studied the characteristics of chemically modified electrodes, typically employed in bio-sensors used for healthcare applications. Different processes that create imperfections on the deposited organic layers were described. These results are expected to translate into better performance and reliability of the modified biosensors."
• Dr. Tulin Nesime Okbinoglu: "Dr. Okbinoglu studied the electronic structure of molecules known as sulfona-mides. She examined the ways in which changes to their structure affect the way the molecules react and function. This research helps to further our understanding of molecular structure, and aids in designing more effective sulfona-mide based drugs."

Doctor of Philosophy (Civil Engineering)

• Dr. Antone Elias Dabeet: "Dr. Dabeet used numerical and experimental techniques to investigate aspects of the behaviour of soil specimens. He tested the specimens under different loading conditions, including earthquake loading. His study provides a better understanding of soil response to earthquakes loading as observed from a commonly used soil laboratory test."
• Dr. Heather Marie Slater: "Dr. Slater developed a chemical analysis protocol to detect hormones in water with high solid content. She applied this protocol along with bioassays to evaluate environmental water treatment technologies. This protocol will help advance our understanding of what happens to contaminants and the best approach to remove them from engineered systems."
• Dr. Sardar Malekmohammadi: "Dr. Malek studied composite materials and structures which are made by combining conventional materials such as metals, polymers and ceramics. He developed a framework for simulating the response of composite structures under different loads. The framework can be used to design composite materials for a new generation of buildings and aircraft."
• Dr. Poureya Bazargani: "Dr. Bazargani studied the seismic demands on reinforced concrete columns in high-rise shear wall buildings. His research will help engineers design safer new buildings as well as conduct seismic evaluation of older buildings. The results of his computer simulations have had a direct impact on the 2015 edition of the National Building Code of Canada."
• Dr. Kaley Anne Crawford-Flett: "Dr. Crawford-Flett examined seepage-induced instability in soils. Her research improves our understanding of soil particle detachment and transportation processes, and provides dam and canal owners with improved decision-support tools for assessing embankment safety."
• Dr. Syed Zaki Abdullah: "Dr. Abdullah studied the effects of cleaning chemicals on the membranes of water treatment plants. He developed a model to demonstrate the ageing process of membranes caused by exposure to chemical cleaning agents. The model will assist design engineers to select efficient membrane cleaning protocols, in order to save on membrane replacement costs."

Doctor of Philosophy (Classics)

• Dr. Kevin Bradley Solez: "Dr. Solez contributed to the cultural history of ancient Greece. He demonstrated that banqueting or feasting was the ideal mode of cultural contact in the worldview of Greeks in the eighth and seventh centuries BCE. Multicultural banquets explain the continuities in Mediterranean banqueting-styles and other evidence of cultural exchange."

Doctor of Philosophy (Computer Science)

• Dr. Nima Kaviani: "Dr. Kaviani conducted his research into Cloud Computing. He focussed on making applications run faster and cheaper in the Internet of clouds, while ensuring the security and privacy of stored information. If his recommendations are implemented, it will allow software services to be provided to customers at lower cost with improved security."

Doctor of Philosophy (Counselling Psychology)

• Dr. Laura Klubben: "Dr. Klubben explored women's experience of exiting street sex work. Her study examines steps taken throughout the transition, including obstacles faced and resources needed. Overall, with this information, Dr. Klubben aims to work to remove barriers, increase resources and make the transition out of prostitution easier for sex workers in the future."
• Dr. Lucy Veryan Gofton: "Dr. Gofton studied how people navigate the transition to assisted living. She found that connecting with fellow residents and staff, continuity with identity and interests, and appreciating the benefits of assisted living helped individuals feel more settled. This research contributes to our understanding of how to support those making the move."
• Dr. Yoshiyuki Takano: "Dr. Takano completed his doctoral studies in the field of Counselling Psychology. He investigated the process of change in men who had committed violence against their partners, and captured the concept of change in the form of stories. This study discovered the series of meanings which construct the experience of change in these men."
• Dr. Emily Louise Polak: "Dr. Polak examined body image development as a social process. She studied the conversations about appearance between six pairs of mothers and daughters, and illustrated how their joint appearance projects were connected to their relationships. These findings will benefit theory and further research on the social nature of body image."
• Dr. Carolyn Marie Burns: "Dr. Burns explored factors that influence a police officer's decision to access psychological services. Her research deepens our understanding of help seeking within the context of police culture. Based on her findings, she proposes strategies and changes to current practices that will more effectively meet the needs of the policing population."
• Dr. Patricia Nitkin: "Dr. Nitkin studied relationships between people with cancer and their pets. She explored the impact of an interspecies bond on the individual's sense of well-being, and potential added challenge, when facing life-threatening illness. The findings suggest that significant benefit is derived from the presence and support provided by a companion animal."
• Dr. Masahiro Minami: "Dr. Minami studied the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. He developed and implemented an action-based psycho-social reconciliation approach, to foster peace between survivors and perpetrators of that genocide living in the same villages. This research will help in developing the world's first evidence-based war prevention and peace building strategy."

Doctor of Philosophy (Cross-Faculty Inquiry in Education)

• Dr. Robin Marie Hopkins: "In the context of medical education Dr. Hopkins studied the experience of basic scientists transitioning to an integrated curriculum. As health professional schools move towards curricula that bring together foundational sciences and clinical practice, her work informs the decision making of educators and administrators undergoing curricular change."
• Dr. CJ Rowe: "Dr. Rowe investigated the context and performative nature of feminism during a time of postfeminism. Through an examination of the Michigan Womyn`s Music Festival, she explored the persistence of feminism. Dr. Rowe argues that it is imperative to remember that in the present, feminism and other social justice projects will always be unfinished."
• Dr. Kerri Annette Mesner: "Reverend Doctor Mesner uses theatre, autobiography, and queer Christian theology to explore scholarship as contemplative activism. The dissertation includes an original one-act play exploring issues of identity, Christianity, and anti-queer violence. Dr. Mesner's play has been filmed and performed in Canada and the US."

Doctor of Philosophy (Curriculum Studies)

• Dr. Jong-Mun Kim: "Dr. Kim examined ocean literacy during a summer camp. He offered directions for Marine Education which included facilitating student's connectedness to the ocean, and providing opportunities for emotional connections through direct experiences. Dr. Kim also re-imagined the Ocean Literacy definition of sustainability to embrace an Earth-centered view."
• Dr. Gilmour Ian Jope: "Dr. Jope examined how people become ethical teachers by learning to discern the ethically-salient features of classrooms while on practicum in teacher education. His study underscores the ethical character of good teaching and the central place of discernment in being and becoming an ethical teacher."
• Dr. Andrea Anath Dancer: "Dr. Dancer's international research examines how intensive listening brings awareness to everyday sound environments, as an expression of culture, states of Being, identity and ones sense of place. It introduces listening and sound as a unique learning modality utilised by artists, researchers and educators, to influence practices and curriculum."
• Dr. Guopeng Fu: "Dr. Fu investigated how high school physics teachers in China exercise both their individual and collective influence in the on-going nationwide curriculum reform. The study offers a clear understanding of the impact of physics teachers and sheds light on the efforts to attain the desired curriculum decentralization in China."
• Dr. Marion L Pearson: "Dr. Pearson studied views held by administrators, faculty members and undergraduate students on curriculum integration in a program of study. She found that students had a better understanding of ways in which curriculum elements are integrated across disciplines, and of teaching approaches. Her findings suggest future direction for curriculum reform."
• Dr. Sylvia Susan McLellan: "Dr. McLellan studied how 5- to 7-year-old children do math. Her study highlighted the communication processes of arithmetic and algebra. It helps teachers understand how to build on the skills and abilities young children bring with them when they enter formal classrooms, and reminds teachers not to pre-define what mathematics is supposed to be."
• Dr. Lindsay Smith Gibson: "Dr. Gibson examined the ways in which history teachers approached ethical judgments about controversial events in Canadian history, and the impact this had on the responses of students. His research shows that there were vast differences between what teachers believed and how they actually taught about ethically controversial events in the classroom."

Doctor of Philosophy (Economics)

• Dr. Chad William Kendall: "Dr. Kendall studied the effects of financial market panics on stock prices. His work showed that, during times of market panic, economic agents have reduced incentives to research the stocks that they trade. As a result, he concluded, market panics can result in inaccurate stock prices, even when all agents behave rationally."
• Dr. Amlan Das Gupta: "Dr. Das Gupta's study of the determinants of nutrient consumption in India helps unravel hitherto unexplored factors that affect food demand in less developed countries. His work reveals the role played by conspicuous consumption in reducing calorie intake among the rural poor in India. This research should inform future anti-malnutrition policy."
• Dr. Haimin Zhang: "Dr. Zhang studied the impact of immigration on Canada. She found that not only do immigrants decrease property crime rates the longer they stay, but also they are a highly educated and more diversified workforce that has positive productivity and adds value to the country."
• Dr. Weina Zhou: "Dr. Zhou suggests that the number of siblings in a Chinese family could affect the household's savings rate. She concludes that the One-child Policy raised aggregate savings rates. She also found that the policy of sending youth to do hard labour during the Chinese Cultural Revolution significantly affected their education, income, and happiness."
• Dr. Jinwen Xu: "Dr. Xu studied the correlation between the financial benefits of post-secondary education and choice of occupation. She identified greater financial rewards from certain occupations, which students should consider before starting a program. This challenges the assumption of policy makers that all post-secondary education brings financial benefits."

Doctor of Philosophy (Educational Studies)

• Dr. Shayna Gilana Plaut: "Dr. Plaut's study brought together the worlds of journalism, human rights and socio- political change, across state and national borders. Over a period of two years, she interviewed 45 journalists and journalism educators from the Saami and Romani communities in six countries. Her findings inform best practices for teaching human rights journalism."
• Dr. Erin Joan Graham: "Dr. Graham challenged the promotion of harm reduction as an appropriate response to prostitution. She drew on interviews with women active in anti-violence and advocacy work with women in prostitution. The study reveals the limitations of harm reduction, and supports feminist arguments for women's freedom, including the abolition of prostitution."

Doctor of Philosophy (Electrical and Computer Engineering)

• Dr. Assem Amjad Mohammad Bsoul: "Dr. Bsoul designed computer chips that consume less power. His research opens the door to using these chips in applications such as mobile phones and wearable devices, and helps reduce the carbon emissions of large systems. Ultimately, this innovation will lead to better systems, and greener computing."
• Dr. Toufiqul Islam: "Dr. Islam's thesis focused on developing novel system design for the advancement of broadband wireless communications. He proposed intelligent uses of relay nodes between transmitters and receivers, in order to achieve reliable communication. His research outcomes can be applied to cellular networks, to improve the quality of signal transmission."
• Dr. Imtiaz Ahmed: "Dr. Ahmed's research focussed on the advancement of wireless communications. He developed energy efficient algorithms for systems that harvest renewable energy from the environment, and work in harsh and noisy atmospheres. His research findings will help in manufacturing wireless devices that can communicate without having a dedicated power supply."
• Dr. Kamyar Keikhosravy: "Dr. Keikhosravy contacted research in Biomedical telecommunication. He designed and implemented two battery-less systems for monitoring blood pressure in the stented area of the patients who had angioplasty operation. His work has been recognized as an important step to implement relatively long range telemonitoring systems based on inductive coupling."
• Dr. Narges Afsham: "Dr. Afsham developed different algorithms for tracking 2D ultrasound images to construct a 3D volume. The study was performed on different subjects for prostate biopsy and spinal epidural needle insertion. The reconstructed 3D volume will help radiologists and clinicians with faster and more accurate diagnoses."
• Dr. Peyman Talebi Fard: "Dr. Talebi Fard completed his PhD in the Electrical and Computer Engineering department. He examined energy efficiency and proposed reliable communication mechanisms for intelligent networking of information. This research will lead to more meaningful networking among users, and devices which will contribute to the Internet of Things."
• Dr. Elizeu Lourenco Santos-Neto: "Dr. Santos-Neto designed a new method to assess the value of information exchanged in online social systems. The novel method uses information theory to model the users' search tasks and to quantify the ability of one user's shared information to help others. The results can benefit the design of future online social systems and search tools."
• Dr. Parisa Behnamfar: "Dr. Behnamfar's work was focused on developing design techniques and integrated circuits for a new class of ultrasonic transducers. She developed transducer models that can be used in circuit design environments. She also implemented integrated circuits for super resolution imaging and for improving electro-mechanical efficiency of the transducers."
• Dr. Hamidreza Boostanimehr: "With the escalation of smartphone users choosing Android and iPhone devices, and the success of social networking giants such as Facebook, the demand for wireless services has grown tremendously. Dr. Boostanimehr has developed algorithms for managing large networks that will help to address several issues in the wireless smartphone industry."
• Dr. Saloome Motavas: "Dr. Motavas completed her doctoral studies in the field of Electrical and Computer Engineering. She studied the optical absorption properties of nano-scale tubes made of carbon, using theoretical quantum mechanical methods. Her findings will be a step towards evaluating the characteristics of small-scale optical devices made of these nanostructures."
• Dr. Steffen Beyme: "Dr. Beyme studied mobile robots and wireless communications. His research lead to novel methods which enable mobile robots to perform search and mapping tasks aided by wireless sensors. These methods can be applied in various ways, including environmental exploration and monitoring, detection of hazards, and search and rescue operations."
• Dr. Deepak Subhash Gautam: "Dr. Gautam investigated and designed new electronic circuits for charging the batteries of electric vehicles. He has successfully shown that the performance of his circuits, in terms of efficiency, size and cost, is superior to the traditional charger. This work is also expected to benefit applications such as renewable energy system and telecom."
• Dr. Daniel Stephen Brox: "Dr. Brox developed coronary stents which monitor blood pressure to detect dangerous, internal scar tissue. Practical difficulties with prototypes were identified, and a new approach using micro-electro-mechanical pressure sensors was advanced. The results suggest how resources might be best spent in the future to improve the performance of stents."
• Dr. Nima Ziraknejad: "Dr. Ziraknejad designed a novel sensor structure and processor to estimate the head position and orientation of a vehicle occupant. The device he created can properly position the head restraint for each occupant. If installed in a vehicle, it's expected that this device would be able to mitigate whiplash injuries in rear end collisions."
• Dr. Faizal Hussein Aminmohamed Karim: "Dr. Karim completed his doctoral studies in the field of Electrical and Computer Engineering. He developed a methodology for simulating the dynamic behaviour of Quantum-dot Cellular Automata circuits, known as QCA circuits. QCA is an emerging nanoscale computing paradigm, capable of performing classical and quantum computation."

Doctor of Philosophy (English)

• Dr. Michael Edward Volek: "Dr. Volek examined the uptake of Mikhail Bakhtin's work in contemporary sociolinguistic research, and found that Bakhtin has been cited as the authority for a variety of contradictory positions. Dr. Volek argues that this is a product of the sociality of language and offers insight into the relationship between theory and applied language research."

Doctor of Philosophy (Experimental Medicine)

• Dr. Chengcheng Zhang: "Dr. Zhang investigated the role of blood platelets in causing heart disease. He developed and applied novel bioinformatic and mass spectrometry tools to identify drugs that might potentially prevent inflammation resulting from platelet activation. This research contributes to the development of intervention strategies for cardiovascular diseases."
• Dr. Heather-Jean Abigail Foulds: "Dr. Foulds studied the cardiac and vascular health of Aboriginal adults, and their responses to exercise. She found that the benefits of exercise were different for Aboriginal adults than for Europeans. She showed that the relation of blood pressure to vascular health differs among ethnic groups, with greater dangers of hypertension for Aboriginals."
• Dr. Yabin Cheng: "Dr. Cheng created a microarray of tissue samples taken from over 700 patients being treated for melanoma in Vancouver, from 2009 to 2012. Using this platform, he identified biomarkers that can predict patient survival and help clinicians to design personalized treatment. Dr. Cheng's research opened new horizons in the management of human melanomas."
• Dr. Luke Christopher Swenson: "Dr. Swenson used a new sequencing method to detect HIV drug resistance in blood with better accuracy and sensitivity. He used this technique in over 2800 patients receiving HIV therapy, and found that it was the best predictor of their future clinical outcomes. This approach is now being used across Canada for routine monitoring of HIV drug resistance."
• Dr. Veronica Schiariti: "Dr. Schiariti developed the first international instrument to describe the abilities of children with Cerebral Palsy and the limitations they face every day. She conducted international studies, including children with Cerebral Palsy and world leaders in this field. This important information can guide better treatments for this population worldwide."
• Dr. Stephanie Mary Beth Warner: "Dr. Warner found that, in patients with asthma, the cells that line the airways do not undergo normal repair, leading to the formation of an abnormal barrier. Her work defined several biological mechanisms that might cause this defect. It is hoped that modification of these pathways will help prevent the progression of asthma."
• Dr. Dorota Stefanowicz: "Dr. Stefanowicz studied the effect of the cellular environment on DNA packaging , and how this predisposes people to asthma. Specifically, she looked at how DNA methylation and histone modification affect biological functions such as differentiation. Her research highlights the interaction between epigenetic architecture and disease pathogenesis."

Doctor of Philosophy (Food Science)

• Dr. Jovana Kovacevic: "Dr. Kovacevic studied Listeria mono-cyto-gen-es, a foodborne bacterium that causes disease in humans. She found some bacteria are more likely to cause disease, and they possess genetic elements that improve their survival in the food chain. This research highlights the need for better control and detection of high-risk Listeria strains."

Doctor of Philosophy (Forestry)

• Dr. Keith Ian Gourlay: "Dr. Gourlay focused on developing new applications for forestry residues such as wood chips and sawdust. He used enzymes from fungi to break down these woody materials into sugars, which are then fermented into products such as bio-fuels or bio-plastics. These products have the potential to provide new revenue streams for Canada's forest industry."
• Dr. Jean-Michel Beaudoin: "Dr. Beaudoin examined the conditions that allowed the Essipit Innu First Nation in Quebec to grow a model of forestry that has deep community roots. Unlike other Aboriginal communities who struggled with the forest industry, Essipit achieved true successes that shed light on new and more sustainable ways to steward, manage and develop forests."
• Dr. Richard Schuster: "Dr. Schuster investigated systematic conservation planning in human-dominated landscapes. He developed novel techniques to maximize efficiency in biodiversity conservation via carbon sequestration and land management. His work provides guidelines to successfully fund conservation investments and highlights their potential benefits and shortfalls."
• Dr. Julia Rae Chandler: "Dr. Chandler studied ecosystem response 20 years after clearcutting and slashburning in conifer forest of central British Columbia. Significant contributions of her work include determining the relative importance of climate and disturbance to resilience, and developing a trait data set with functional type classes for more than 180 plant species."
• Dr. Catalin Ristea: "Dr. Ristea developed a novel framework to investigate the greenhouse gas footprint of wood ethanol as compared with gasoline. He found that the dynamics of biogenic carbon could greatly affect the results of life cycle analyses. Dr. Ristea showed that displacing gasoline with wood ethanol is not always a viable strategy for climate mitigation."
• Dr. Colin Jay Ferster: "Dr. Ferster evaluated the role of smartphones in monitoring forests, and developed an application to measure wildfire threat. He tested the application in communities and checked the accuracy of measurements made with it. The frameworks developed to use smartphone data with satellite remote sensing may lead to more widespread wildfire monitoring."
• Dr. Petr Cizek: "Dr. Cizek displayed the existing and future Alberta tar sands and associated pipelines using Google Earth software, to study responses from members of the general public. Focus group participants experienced significant learning and expressed emotional reactions. This research will help practitioners communicate the scale of very large projects."

Doctor of Philosophy (Geography)

• Dr. Kean Fan Lim: "Dr. Lim examined two interlocking dimensions of change in the Chinese political economy. The study revealed institutional continuities between the Mao and post-Mao era and critically evaluated post-2007 socioeconomic policy experimentation in the Pearl River Delta and Chongqing."
• Dr. Lachlan Bruce Barber: "Dr. Barber's study of cultural heritage in Hong Kong used a perspective informed by relational urbanism and policy mobility. Case studies of locational conflicts and policy change raised new theoretical and political questions by showing that the uses of heritage are simultaneously local and global, progressive and conservative."
• Dr. Matthew G. Dyce: "Dr. Dyce examined the historical role of archives in Canada, between 1867 and the present. Studying the circulation of geographical knowledge in maps, photographs, atlases, and school textbooks, he advanced the argument that Canadian interpretations of environmental change are deeply vested in the archival and spatial histories of the country."
• Dr. Howard Macdonald Stewart: "Dr. Stewart wrote five interwoven histories of relations between humans and the rest of nature on BC's Strait of Georgia, between the 1850s and the 1980s. They present a complex but coherent portrait of Canada's most heavily populated coastal zone. He concluded with consideration of interactions among the five narratives in the early 21st century."
• Dr. Benjamin Robert Crawford: "Dr. Crawford developed new techniques to measure and map emissions and absorption of carbon dioxide in urban neighborhoods. These measurements also revealed dynamic spatial patterns of carbon dioxide in the urban atmosphere. Findings from this work have implications for urban planning, air quality, and sustainable growth."
• Dr. David Steven Luzi: "Dr. Luzi studied the movement of sediment in gravel bed mountain streams. He demonstrated the importance of larger-than-average streambed particles in controlling channel stability and patterns of sediment transport. This research can in turn be used to assess the potential effects of development on aquatic habitats."
• Dr. Doris Nian-Shiah Leong: "Dr. Leong examined the impacts of future climate change on freshwater supply for the oil sands industry. She found that changes in annual river flow patterns will impact the frequency of water shortages that mining companies will face. This research can inform water management and policy decisions in adapting to a changing climate."
• Dr. Noah A Quastel: "Dr. Quastel studied efforts to make a wide variety of commodities, such as tuna, bauxite and housing, more sustainable. Through case study research he found that new forms of sustainability policy are being created. This research helps expand scholarship in the geography of the global economy, environmental governance and sustainability."

Doctor of Philosophy (Geological Sciences)

• Dr. Natasha Julie Jane Sihota: "Dr. Sihota investigated hydro-carbon contamination. She developed a new approach to assess the extent and rate of natural degradation processes at hydro-carbon-impacted field sites. This helps us understand the role of naturally occurring degradation processes in contaminant mass removal, and can aid in assessment and management of contaminated sites."

Doctor of Philosophy (Geophysics)

• Dr. Alexandra Royer: "Dr. Royer devised deterministic and statistical models of seismic deconvolution. She exploited the latter model to generate low frequency earthquake templates from tectonic tremor. Its application to the Cascadia subduction zone provides insight into the plate boundary properties."
• Dr. Walter Scott Leaney: "Dr. Leaney completed his PhD in Geophysics. His thesis dealt with the influence of elastic anisotropy on micro-earthquakes generated during hydraulic fracturing. A data set from central Alberta was analyzed using newly developed techniques, which should benefit the oil and gas industry in Canada, the US and the rest of the world."
• Dr. Dikun Yang: "Dr. Yang proposes a new framework for numerical modeling of electromagnetic data in geophysics. This approach is able to dramatically speed up the processing of data, making the interpretation much more efficient than before. His research provides geoscientists with a more powerful tool for imaging the earth's structure in a variety of problems."
• Dr. Reka Winslow: "Dr. Winslow studied Mercury's magnetic field and its interaction with the solar wind. She developed a new method to measure the magnetic field strength at the surface of planets using high altitude spacecraft magnetic field and plasma observations. She applied this technique to Mercury, making the first measurements of its surface magnetic field."
• Dr. Jean-Francois Blanchette-Guertin: "Dr. Blanchette-Guertin developed new tools and analytical methods to study seismic energy propagation in highly scattering environments, such as on the Moon. His work resulted in a better understanding of shallow lunar structures and offers new avenues to study the interiors of other scattering bodies, such as asteroids and Mars."

Doctor of Philosophy (History)

• Dr. Gabriela Aceves Sepulveda: "Dr. Aceves analyzed the role of a group of feminist artists in developing and transforming regimes of media and visuality in post-1968 Mexico. She considered this process as indicative of local and transnational political and social transformations, and demonstrated the importance of these feminist practices in affecting politics."
• Dr. Joshua Ben Horowitz: "Dr. Horowitz examined the ways in which Assiniboine people have preserved their cultural knowledge since the late nineteenth century. His study showed that archives, oral history, ceremony, sacred sites, written texts and artwork, work together to help sustain Indigenous bodies of knowledge. This may benefit Indigenous communities and archival studies."
• Dr. Craig Anthony Smith: "Dr. Smith investigated the discussions by Chinese intellectuals of East Asian regionalism in the early twentieth century. He found that the discourse of Chinese "Asianism" had a strong influence upon the construction of Chinese nationalism. Writings on nation, race and civilization created overlaps which are still evident today."
• Dr. Henry David Trim: "Dr. Trim explored the history of renewable energy and sustainable development in Canada. He showed that sustainability emerged from a combination of factors: environmentalists' embrace of science to fight the Cold War, Canadian concerns over American neo-colonialism, and the Trudeau government's efforts to rationalize policy making during the 1970s."

Doctor of Philosophy (Human Development, Learning, and Culture)

• Dr. Shereen Khan: "Dr. Khan examined the experiences of both clients and counsellors who engage in online therapy, that is counselling over the Internet. This study highlights new developments in counselling using the world wide web. It also addresses the gap in services in certain geographic areas, and ethical implications related to privacy and standards of practice."

Doctor of Philosophy (Interdisciplinary Oncology)

• Dr. Larissa Ann Pikor: "Dr. Pikor completed her doctoral studies in the field of Interdisciplinary Oncology. She analyzed the genetic alterations that characterize the main subtypes of lung cancer, and influence the treatment response. She identified several genes and pathways involved in subtype tumor biology, and a new potential treatment for squamous cell carcinoma."

Doctor of Philosophy (Interdisciplinary Studies)

• Dr. Haorui Wu: "Dr. Wu interviewed survivors of the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake in China. The research showed that the survivors' memories of home-making can contribute to the creation of a sense of home in their new communities. This suggests that urban designers should use the memories of survivors to enhance the quality of post-disaster reconstruction and recovery."
• Dr. Rodney Eric Knight: "Dr. Knight explored the ethical implications of routine HIV testing practices among young men in Vancouver. In his research, he described how HIV-related stigma can be influenced by routine testing practices, as well as how young men choose to test for HIV based on relational values such as solidarity and health equity."
• Dr. Richard Matthew Hutchings: "Dr. Hutchings used a critical heritage studies approach to evaluate archaeology/cultural resource management's response to coastal change. His B.C. case study demonstrated how archaeology facilitates the destruction of Indigenous landscapes. Archaeology is a technology of government that promotes the ideology of growth, development and progress."
• Dr. Jordan Levine: "Dr. Levine investigated the role of cognition and culture in sustainable development. He synthesized theory on human cognition from a diversity of disciplines into a single foundational model, and then combined this with innovative empirical methods to produce directly management-relevant insights into two UNESCO Biosphere Reserves."

Doctor of Philosophy (Language and Literacy Education)

• Dr. Chelsey Robin Hauge: "Dr. Hauge studied youth media and social justice, focussing on a Nicaraguan media program. Her work illustrates how the relationships between youth, non-profit organizations, and transnational media networks shape youth media participation. This study contributes to research into feminist media, digital literacy, and youth media programming."
• Dr. Samuel Andema: "Dr. Andema explored the role that digital technology and digital literacy can play in improving teacher education in a rural Ugandan college for primary teachers. The study assists us in understanding the possibility of using digital technology innovatively, to achieve educational change in other poorly resourced contexts like that of Uganda."
• Dr. Kimberly Janine Meredith: "Dr. Meredith explored alternatives to segregating English as a Second Language programs from the mainstream educational system. She studied the benefits of uniting English language learners and fluent speakers to create a community dedicated to linguistic diversity and equitable access. Her research has implications for multilingual education."
• Dr. Ji Eun Kim: "Dr. Kim studied the outcomes when parents read to their 4- and 5- year old children, using four different book formats. She found that types of interactions that promote children's learning and thinking occurred significantly more often in the print and the hand-held electronic book contexts than in two computer-based digital book contexts."

Doctor of Philosophy (Law)

• Dr. Jeewon Min: "Dr. Min explored the relationship between law and border on the Korean peninsula and beyond. She conducted a series of focused case studies on particular border sites. Her study revealed the ways in which law, as material reality, ideology, metaphor, and technology, enables and disables the movement of persons, things, and symbols across borders."

Doctor of Philosophy (Materials Engineering)

• Dr. Nik Rozlin Nik Mohd Masdek: "Dr. Nik Rozlin produced nanocrystalline cobalt-iron alloy coatings through the electrodeposition process. Her work showed that these nanostructured coatings had significant improvements in their corrosion behaviour in both acidic and alkaline environments."
• Dr. Yuanwei Dong: "Dr. Dong investigated the movement of atoms in multi-layered structures for semiconductor devices. He built a set of models which can predict those movements precisely under certain conditions. Those models play a key role in the design of new device structures and thermal processes for next-generation semiconductor devices."
• Dr. Mohammadreza Tavakolikhaledi: "Dr. Tavakoli's research focussed on hydro-metallurgy of the metal, vanadium. He investigated possible solutions to overcome challenges in extracting vanadium from various resources. His findings help to produce more efficient industrial production methods, and his work has received awards from the mining industry."
• Dr. Leyla Farhang: "Dr. Farhang completed her doctoral studies in the field of Materials Engineering. She studied alternative processes for manufacturing composite structural parts in the aerospace industry. She developed a simple aid which can be used to enhance the manufacturing process."
• Dr. Amir Hossein Nobari: "Dr. Nobari studied the heat transfer of steel plates during cooling on a hot mill. During his research, he proposed a mechanistic model to simulate the temperature of moving steel plates. His model provides a predictive tool in order to control the temperature more accurately, thus improving the metallurgical properties of the steel product."
• Dr. Ashkan Shadkam: "Dr. Shadkam studied the mechanical properties of pure and binary alloys of copper. Based on carefully designed experiments, a physically-based model to describe the work-hardening behaviour of the alloys was developed. The model can be applied to advanced high strength aluminum alloys for aerospace applications or niche steels for defense applications."

Doctor of Philosophy (Mathematics)

• Dr. Gourab Ray: "Dr. Ray's study lays the pathway into understanding infinite hyperbolic random surfaces. Hyperbolic surface can be thought of as a surface which is shaped like a saddle. These results complement the random surfaces built before which serve as important models of 2D quantum gravity."

Doctor of Philosophy (Measurement, Evaluation and Research Methodology)

• Dr. Stephanie Jane Barclay McKeown: "Dr. McKeown examined the ways student survey results are used to measure program quality and student learning at UBC. She found that averaging student survey results across program majors could result in misleading information about program quality. Her study has implications for the design of program effectiveness surveys and evaluation research."
• Dr. Debra Anne Sandilands: "Dr. Sandilands studied two statistical methods used to establish whether it is feasible to compare groups in large scale educational assessments. She showed that the methods may not perform accurately when there are missing data, due to assessment design. Her findings will benefit educational policy makers, researchers and assessment designers."
• Dr. Raman Kumar Grover: "Dr. Grover examined gender bias in a large-scale, school reading and math test. He found that assumptions about which questions might challenge girls and which might be difficult for boys were not always valid. This research revisits the so-called gender gap and provides insights into which boys do poorly in reading and which girls do poorly in math."

Doctor of Philosophy (Mechanical Engineering)

• Dr. Ali Elahimehr: "Dr. Elahimehr's research at UBC's Pulp and Paper Centre was funded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada through the support of 11 industrial partners in Canada. Dr. Elahimehr established a new method to optimize the process of mechanical pulping. This new method can save up to 2% of BC's electrical energy consumption."

Doctor of Philosophy (Medical Genetics)

• Dr. Anna Fong-Yee Poon: "Dr. Poon studied the generation of new brain cells in the adult brain. She discovered genes that modify how frequently adult stem cells in the brain divide to give rise to new brain cells. These genes may be targeted to promote stem cell division and combat cell loss in brains that are injured, or suffering from neuro-degenerative diseases."
• Dr. Sharmin Esmailzadeh: "Dr. Esmailzadeh conducted her research in medical genetics with a focus on cancer genetics and molecular biology. Her research highlights the role of a gene in the development of an aggressive type of lymphoma. The results of this work pave the way to a greater understanding of disease mechanisms and potential new therapeutic options."
• Dr. Joshua Douglas Lee: "Dr. Lee studied the effects of genetic and environmental factors on the risk of developing multiple sclerosis, as well as its clinical variation, in populations of Asian ancestry. This research advances current understanding of the factors underlying population differences in the risk and severity of multiple sclerosis."

Doctor of Philosophy (Microbiology and Immunology)

• Dr. Emma-Kate Loveday: "Dr. Loveday examined the regulation of genes during infection with Influenza A virus. She discovered that changes in gene expression are dependent on the duration of the infection and the influenza strain. This research may lead to the development of new bio-markers and treatments for Influenza A viral infections."
• Dr. Allison Marie McDonald: "Dr. McDonald investigated interactions between opportunistic pathogens and human immune cells in diseases with underlying defects in immunity. In particular, she found that the bacteria Burkholderia cenocepacia has multifaceted ways of evading the innate immune response and that potent neutrophil activity is required to prevent infections."
• Dr. Cesar de la Fuente-Nunez: "Dr. de la Fuente-Nunez identified a novel class of antibiotics that target bacterial biofilms, which are estimated to cause two thirds of all bacterial infections in humans. This new class of drugs lowers the amount of conventional antibiotics required to treat infections, helping to combat antibiotic resistance."
• Dr. Elena Zaikova: "Dr. Zaikova studied marine sponges in order to understand how animals interact with microbes. She showed that the sponge immune system can recognize a variety of microbes and the microbes can affect the host's immune response. This work sheds light on the oldest mechanisms used by animals to recognize microbes, with implications for medical research."
• Dr. Rafael Gonzalo Saer: "Dr. Saer studied photosynthesis in the department of Microbiology and Immunology. He highlighted the role of protein movement, or dynamics, as a key player in the utilization of light energy during photosynthesis. This work has potential applications in converting sunlight to electrical power and developing next-generation solar cells and batteries."
• Dr. Catherine Frances Bowden: "Dr. Bowden investigated the ways in which bacteria lead to infection in humans. She studied a protein made by the superbug Staphylo-coccus aureus, and discovered how it interacts with the red blood cell protein hemoglobin, in order to get iron. These studies provide insight into how bacteria acquire the iron they need to establish infection in humans."
• Dr. Stephanie Pfaffen: "Dr. Pfaffen studied algae from the open oceans. She examined the way in which proteins in the algae store iron from the water to help the algae's later growth. This work contributes to our understanding of how algae survive in iron-limited oceans and bloom upon exposure to iron inputs, thereby having an impact on the global carbon cycle."
• Dr. Mark Christopher Pryjma: "Dr. Pryjma studied the pathogen Campylobacter jejuni, which acts as a disease causing agent . His research demonstrates how Campylobacter regulates its own metabolism and how it infects human cells. These finding are important as they help to explain how Campylobacter induces disease and what nutrient sources it uses while doing so."
• Dr. Nita Reva Shah: "Dr. Shah has completed her PhD in the field of Microbiology and Immunology. She found that the bacterium Bordetella pertussis, which causes the disease whooping cough, can change its surface to affect interactions with the human immune system. These studies broaden our understanding of whooping cough and have implications for vaccine development."
• Dr. Manreet Kaur Chehal: "Dr. Chehal's doctoral studies revealed the degree to which breast cancer can impair the development and function of the immune system. Her discoveries improve our understanding of how breast cancer manipulates anti-tumor immunity. They also suggest new treatment strategies to energize the immune system in the fight against cancer."

Doctor of Philosophy (Mining Engineering)

• Dr. Murray Lytle: "Dr. Lytle investigated the worldviews of three groups of stakeholders in resource development: the developers, local residents and opponents of development. He found strong links between the differing worldviews and levels of acceptance of resource development. This may help developers to recognize potential conflict before it arises in the field."
• Dr. Givemore Sakuhuni: "Dr. Sakuhuni developed an approach for improving the separation performance of continuous centrifugal concentrators in the mining industry. He designed a lab procedure to predict potential uses for this innovation. The research outcomes have industrial application and support the development of environmentally clean mineral extraction technologies."
• Dr. Paul B. Hughes: "Dr. Hughes investigated design guidelines for mining techniques in high stress and poor ground conditions. His research took him to mines located in Canada, the U.S. and Indonesia. Recommendations from the study have led to safety and cost improvements in operating mines. "

Doctor of Philosophy (Music)

• Dr. Juan Diego Diaz Meneses: "Dr. Diaz Meneses studied music and the politics of black identity in Bahia, Brazil. He used a model of discourse analysis to examine how stereotyped notions of Africa affect music. He analyzed the work of Rumpilezz, a jazz Big Band in Bahia that incorporates carnival and sacred black music, and showed how the band challenges and reinforces stereotyping."

Doctor of Philosophy (Neuroscience)

• Dr. Xiaojie Zhang: "Dr. Zhang investigated the bio-molecular mechanisms that cause Alzheimer's disease. Her study identified a novel risk factor in the Tmp21 gene, and further examined how this risk factor contributed to disease development. Her research will potentially lead to the identification of novel targets in treatment of Alzheimer's disease."
• Dr. Jay (Jeremy) George Hosking: "Dr. Hosking's doctoral studies focussed on decision making: why some individuals choose differently from others, and the neuro-biology underlying those differences. His research revealed brain regions and neuro-chemistry responsible for our "worker" or "slacker" preferences, and suggests that therapeutic interventions will not be one-size-fits-all."
• Dr. Mingming Zhang: "Dr. Zhang studied Alzheimer's disease at UBC`s Townsend Family Laboratories. She found that, in mouse models, a protein called UCHL1 delays Alzheimer's development, by reducing the formation of plaque in the brain. Dr. Zhang's work highlights the potential of UCHL1 to treat Alzheimer's disease."
• Dr. Liya Ma: "Dr. Ma studied how cellular activities in the anterior cingulate cortex in rat brain represent behavioral events during action sequences. She identified the distinct ways in which quantitative and qualitative information is encoded simultaneously. The findings contribute to our knowledge of how the brain monitors and evaluates our ongoing experience."
• Dr. Raika Pancaroglu: "Dr. Pancaroglu conducted research into how we recognize faces. Her study showed that patients with particular types of brain lesions, who are unable to recognize familiar faces, have specific problems in identifying the eye region. These findings will help therapists to design rehabilitation strategies for face-blind people."
• Dr. Ravi Logan Rungta: "Dr. Rungta studied how brain cells swell, a neurological problem underlying certain forms of brain edema. By developing a new technique to silence gene expression in brain cells, Dr. Rungta identified a novel chloride channel in neurons that, when activated, causes swelling. These findings may lead to the development of treatments for brain edema."

Doctor of Philosophy (Oceanography)

• Dr. Caroline Chenard: "The Arctic is one of the most threatened environments because of rapid climate change. Dr. Chenard's work examined viruses infecting polar bacteria in Arctic freshwater regions, and she discovered previously unknown groups of viruses. Her work provides new tools to study the diversity of these viruses and their effects on polar bacteria."
• Dr. David Mathew Semeniuk: "Dr. Semeniuk investigated how naturally occurring chemical forms of copper in seawater affect the growth of microscopic plants in the northeast Pacific Ocean. His work demonstrates that copper plays a significant role in determining the success of different microscopic plants in marine ecosystems."
• Dr. Emma Joyce Shelford: "Dr. Shelford examined the role of viruses that infect bacteria in the ocean. She provides evidence that viruses are adding back vital nitrogen to the ocean for the benefit of other organisms such as phytoplankton, and this helps to sustain marine food webs. Her work contributes to the field of marine microbial nutrient cycling."

Doctor of Philosophy (Pathology and Laboratory Medicine)

• Dr. Katrina Sophie Claire Stukas: "Dr. Stukas studied novel therapeutic treatments for Alzheimer's Disease. Her research leveraged knowledge of the beneficial effects of high density lipo-proteins, also known as the good cholesterol, to impede or reverse progress of the disease in the brain. Her findings demonstrate that what is good for the heart is also good for the brain."
• Dr. Seti Boroomand: "Dr. Boroomand studied diseased heart valves, specifically aortic valves that had calcified from aging. Her work elucidated the roles of several signaling molecules and the nutrient, vitamin D, in this disease, suggesting possible treatments. Additionally, her work developed a cell culture model of the disease to facilitate further study."
• Dr. Ashish Kumar Marwaha: "Dr. Marwaha established a previously unknown role for a new subset of immune cells in children with type 1 diabetes. This work has led to trials of a new therapy that will target these cells in the diesease."
• Dr. Anna Julia Meredith: "Dr. Meredith discovered the links between proteins in the blood and structural changes within the heart in acute heart failure patients. The proteins she identified were related to patient outcomes and response to treatment. This work adds to our understanding of heart failure development, and the processes involved in recovery from cardiac injury."
• Dr. Emily Ann Vucic: "Dr. Vucic examined the molecular biology of lung cancer. Her work revealed that distinct genetic patterns occurred in lung tumours from patients with chronic inflammatory disease and different smoking histories. These findings may be applied to development of prevention or treatment strategies for people at high risk for lung cancer."

Doctor of Philosophy (Pharmaceutical Sciences)

• Dr. Chung Ping Leon Wan: "Dr. Wan developed a nanoparticulate drug delivery system. It was demonstrated to be effective in encapsulating high concentration of the aniticancer drugs, paclitaxel and docetaxel, and an inhibitor of the drug efflux protein, P-glycoprotein. His studies suggest a novel way of treating multidrug resistance that is common in many cancer patients."

Doctor of Philosophy (Philosophy)

• Dr. Alirio de Jesus Rosales: "Dr. Rosales worked in the history and philosophy of science, at both the Department of Philosophy and the Biodiversity Research Centre at UBC . He showed that scientists need narratives to explore, represent, and explain the world. Our understanding of science is incomplete without taking into account its narrative component."
• Dr. Taylor Thiel Davis: "Dr. Davis examined the role of evolutionary theory in explaining religious belief and behaviour. His research shows that both genetic selection and cultural selection play essential roles in religious evolution, and this research contributes to our understanding not only of religious psychology, but also of human evolution in general."
• Dr. Stephen Andrew Inkpen: "Dr. Inkpen examined the ways in which concepts of the artificial and the natural have structured the thought and practice of biologists since the 19th century. He articulated why many biologists have felt uneasy about artificial, experimental intervention. Despite contrary claims, he argues that more experimentation is not equivalent to better science."

Doctor of Philosophy (Physics)

• Dr. Jared Brendan Stang: "Dr. Stang studied systems in theoretical physics relevant to the physics of the proton and to superconductivity. In his research, he used computer techniques to solve the complex equations that arose, allowing him to study novel, more realistic model systems. This work contributes to our understanding of these theoretically difficult topics."
• Dr. Fernando Michell Falieri Nogueira: "Dr. Nogueira studied aspects of a surprising connection between Quantum Mechanics and Gravity called Holographic Principle, a novel framework that allows for a better understanding of the nature of gravity. The research builds upon what was previously known and furthers our understanding of the behaviour of objects such as Black Holes and Boson Starts."
• Dr. Xinchi Hou: "Dr. Hou studied the characteristics of cyclotron-produced radio-isotopes for medical imaging. In the wake of the world shortage of the most commonly used radio-isotope, technetium-99m, she validated the use of an alternative production strategy. Her research provides a significant contribution to the field of medical imaging."
• Dr. Shun Chi: "Dr. Chi used nano-scale imaging to investigate the behaviour of electrons in the family of superconductors known as high-Tc iron-based superconductors. His results demonstrate that the underlying physics among these superconductors is universal. These findings help to settle the long-standing controversy about universality."
• Dr. Mohammad MahmoudzadehVazifeh: "Dr. Vazifeh developed simple theoretical models to explain interesting electronic phenomena in solids. He was also part of an effort among theoretical physicists to find a simple platform for experimentalists to discover Majorana fermions, an electronic state which can be used in future quantum computing devices."
• Dr. Simon Viel: "Dr. Viel searched for a new force of Nature using data collected by the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider. The mass spectrum of events with muon pairs was found to agree with predictions from the Standard Model of particle physics. Dr. Viel also contributed to the search for one of the production and decay modes of the Higgs boson."
• Dr. Michael Brendan McDermott: "Dr. McDermott completed his doctoral studies in the field of Physics. He made advances in understanding the structure of quantum entanglement and also in explaining the relation between information and gravity. Dr. McDermott's findings will assist future researchers working in this field."
• Dr. Jordan Carl Baglo: "Dr. Baglo studied the electronic behaviour of copper-based superconductors, which conduct electricity perfectly at unusually high temperatures. He measured their conductivity in detail using microwaves, with surprising results. This has advanced our understanding of how such superconductors work, one of the biggest outstanding problems in physics."
• Dr. Nahid Nizar Jetha: "Dr. Jetha characterized the physics of DNA transport through nanometre-scale pores for application in optimizing the design of nanopore-based DNA sequencing technologies. He also developed methods to extend nanopore technology for protein and small molecule analysis. His work will benefit groups developing nanopore-based biomedical technologies."
• Dr. Janelle Kathleen Van Dongen: "Dr. Van Dongen's research was in the area of atomic, molecular and optical physics, working with ultra-cold trapped atoms. She studied trap loss from a magneto-optical trap due to collisions with non-trapped background gas. Progress was made on a novel pressure standard based on the loss rate of trapped atoms due to background gas collisions."
• Dr. Mario Juan Michan: "Dr. Michan developed a Lyman-alpha light source suitable for performing spectroscopy and laser cooling of magnetically trapped antihydrogen. He subsequently developed a hydrogen beam to test this light source and performed spectroscopy of hydrogen. This research contributed towards experimental testing of matter/antimatter symmetry in the universe."

Doctor of Philosophy (Plant Science)

• Dr. Tejendra Chapagain: "Dr. Chapagain compared two food production systems: growing one crop alone versus growing multiple crops together. He demonstrated that together, multiple crops improve land and ecosystem productivity and water use efficiency. These studies will assist farmers in transitioning from chemical intensive production to eco-friendly production systems."

Doctor of Philosophy (Political Science)

• Dr. Elena Feditchkina: "Dr. Tracy studied the politics of nature protection in Canada, New Zealand and Norway. She found that decentralized nature protection governance has significant limitations, especially when dealing with protecting eco-regions defined by high opportunity costs."
• Dr. Elise Leclerc-Gagné: "Dr. Leclerc-Gagne examined how concern for the security of humanitarian workers has emerged and evolved over time. Understanding how this concern developed is essential, because the notion of humanitarian workers as inviolate actors is widely taken for granted. It is also revealing of the dynamics and power relations in world politics."
• Dr. Jason Tockman: "Dr. Tockman examined indigenous rights and self-governance in Bolivia. He observed divergent trajectories in 11 new institutions of indigenous self-governance, which is due to power relations among indigenous peoples and contemporary territorial boundaries. He explained why the government has grown increasingly ambivalent toward indigenous rights."
• Dr. Ana Stephanie Lukatela: "Dr. Lukatela examined how international development agencies adopt and implement mainstreaming policies. She found that the behaviour of senior managers is influenced by their networks, while middle managers are directed by personal values. This research explains the persistence of challenges in achieving development goals, such as gender equality."
• Dr. Go Murakami: "Dr. Murakami studied whether voter behaviour in elections is influenced if candidates come from ethnic minority backgrounds, and if so why, and to what extent. Using experimental and election data from Japan and Canada, he showed that ethnicity does affect voting, but suggested that the effect is conditional on the political orientation of voters."

Doctor of Philosophy (Psychology)

• Dr. Allison Anne Brennan: "Dr. Brennan explored whether working in teams on a cognitive problem is a benefit or a cost. By applying a well-known tool in the study of individual cognition to the new problem of collaborative cognition, she was able to show that friendship and certain modes of communication are the key ingredients that permit two heads to be better than one."
• Dr. Jane Siu Tim Woo: "Dr. Woo studied the mechanisms that underlie differences in sexual desire between women of Asian and European ancestry. She found that higher sex guilt among Asian women may explain their lower sexual desire compared to women of European descent. The findings have implications for the treatment of women with high sex guilt and low sexual desire."
• Dr. Melissa Leili Plasencia: "Dr. Plasencia studied safety-seeking behaviour in social anxiety and its connection to sense of self, including self-esteem, self-authenticity, and social relatedness. Examining these interrelationships helps us understand how change occurs during psychotherapy and highlights areas for improving treatments for social anxiety disorder."
• Dr. Julia Wing Yan Kam: "Dr. Kam examined how mind-wandering affects the way we process information in the outside world. She found that our cognitive processing of information is generally disrupted when our minds wander away from the task. This research suggests the ability to disengage our thoughts from the outside world is integral to human cognitive functioning."
• Dr. Daniel Randles: "Dr. Randles studied the psychological processes underlying the experience of uncertainty. He discovered that feeling uncertain may best be described as a form of painful distress, where pain medication such as acetaminophen can reduce people's defensive reactions to anxiety-inducing events and inhibit their ability to monitor their own mistakes."
• Dr. Alison Jeanne Greuel: "Dr. Greuel studied speech perception in preverbal infants, and discovered that changing the shape of their mouths with various teething toys affected the way infants process speech. This helps us understand the early links between speech perception and production, and may lead to new treatment methods for children with speech and language disorders."
• Dr. Joseph Donald Chisholm: "Dr. Chisholm examined the effects of action video game experience on visual attention. Using eye movements as a measure of attention, he showed that video game players are less susceptible to distraction than non-players. This provides insight into the mechanisms underlying a host of cognitive benefits associated with action video game experience."
• Dr. Joanna Karoline Herba: "Dr. Herba studied people's judgments of contamination spread. She found that contaminants are generally judged to spread further than non-contaminants, regardless of threat, but found differences across populations studied. Her research adds to our understanding of obsessive-compulsive disorder and infection control procedures in medical settings."

Doctor of Philosophy (Religious Studies)

• Dr. Justin Matthew Glessner: "Dr. Glessner examined competing views of conventional masculinity in early Christian literature focused on the character of Joseph of Nazareth. His findings expose the political mechanics behind Joseph's colourful characterizations and open interpretive possibilities for rethinking normative views of manliness in early Christianity and beyond."

Doctor of Philosophy (Reproductive and Developmental Sciences)

• Dr. Bo Peng: "Dr. Peng studied reproductive sciences in UBC's Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. He examined the importance of the gonadotropin-releasing hormone in maintaining early human pregnancy and placenta growth. His findings help us understand the mechanism of embryo implantation and may benefit women with infertility or other pregnancy-related issues."
• Dr. Xin Zhang: "Dr. Zhang conducted research into the causes of ovarian cancer. She discovered that homeobox B4, a developmental gene, suppressed invasion of human epithelial ovarian cancer cells via CD44, a cell surface adhesive molecule. This research is the first to demonstrate the role of homeobox B4 in epithelial ovarian cancer."
• Dr. Samantha Jayne Benton: "Dr. Benton studied biomarkers in two serious pregnancy complication: pre-eclampsia and fetal growth restriction. Her studies identified a protein in the mother's blood that identifies placenta dysfunction, a critical cause of these complications. New blood tests for diagnosing placental dysfunction will improve clinical care of mothers and babies."
• Dr. Hsun Ming Chang: "Dr. Chang showed that growth factors derived from the ovary may regulate theovarian function by cell to cell interaction. He found that these factors play significant roles in the regulation of human ovulation. These findings provide important insights into ovarian biology, and may lead to the development of new approaches for increasing fertility."

Doctor of Philosophy (Resource Management and Environmental Studies)

• Dr. Angela Joy Eykelbosh: "Dr. Eykelbosh studied the benefits of a soil additive, biochar, in cultivating sugarcane for bioethanol. Biochar improves soil fertility and water retention, and decreases carbon losses to leaching and respiration. This amendment may assist in developing more efficient agricultural practices for biofuel production, with less environmental impact."
• Dr. Paul Leonard Teehan: "Dr. Teehan examined energy consumption and greehouse gas emissions caused by personal electronics and digital media. His research showed that conventional television is the biggest contributor in this category, far exceeding the impact of smartphones and tablets. Consumers and policy-makers can use this research to help reduce emissions."
• Dr. Danika Lynn Kleiber: "Dr. Kleiber challenged the assumption that women do not fish. In the Central Philippines she found that 42% of fishers were women, and that there were ecological, economic, and social distinctions between women and men's fishing. Her research provides new justification for gender approaches to fisheries assessment and management."
• Dr. Nathan Noel Vadeboncoeur: "Dr. Vadeboncoeur examined the potential impact of ocean-based hazards on coastal communities in British Columbia, and the social forces that shape the way people think about and respond to these risks. This research contributes to our understanding of how to efficiently identify and manage environmental risks in cities, towns and villages."

Doctor of Philosophy (Sociology)

• Dr. Jordan Dennis Tesluk: "Dr. Tesluk studied the influence of environmentalism and Aboriginal rights on natural resource governance in northwest British Columbia. This work provides insight into the different ways that settler and First Nations communities are responding to environmental problems, as they confront the decline of forestry and rise of new energy industries."
• Dr. Andrew Cormac Patterson: "Dr. Patterson's research shows that population health is stronger in democratic countries. Compared to other countries, democracies have about 11 years of longer life expectancy, 57% less infant mortality, and 21% less overall mortality. He concludes that democracies improve life expectancy, in large part by promoting economic prosperity."
• Dr. Sanjeev Kumar Routray: "Dr. Routray studied the effects of urban planning on poor migrants in Delhi. With a focus on different modes of political mobilization, he examined their participation, negotiation and resistance to urban planning policies. Along with contributing to academia, the research findings will benefit urban planners, policy makers and grassroots activists."

Doctor of Philosophy (Special Education)

• Dr. Miriam Elfert: "Dr. Elfert designed, delivered, and evaluated the impact of a support group for 12 fathers of children with autism. Fathers found the group helpful, enjoyed sharing stories, and recommended it to other fathers. Her study provides information about the psychological experiences of fathers of children with autism, an under-researched population."

Doctor of Philosophy (Statistics)

• Dr. Song Cai: "Dr. Cai developed a theory of dual empirical likelihood ratio test under a semiparametric density ratio model, based on complete or censored samples. He then applied his theory to the long term monitoring of lumber quality and found it to give incisive assessment of lumber quality. He also created a software package to implement his method."
• Dr. Pavel Krupskii: "Dr. Krupskiy studied the properties of some flexible models for multivariate data with up to 100 variables and proposed different measures of dependence. The measures can provide useful summaries of dependence for multivariate data. The proposed models can be more interpretable and provide a better fit to data comparing to existing models."
• Dr. Li Xing: "Dr. Xing completed her studies in the field of statistics. She made contributions on some statistical issues related to the exposure-disease relationships. The findings can be applied in epidemiological studies."

Doctor of Philosophy (Zoology)

• Dr. Adam Thomas Ford: "Dr. Ford studied large, African mammals in Laikipia, Kenya - a landscape occupied by people and their traditional ranching practices. Dr. Ford's work demonstrates how both antelope and the trees they eat were changed by large predators. Through his findings, he is helping to find new ways for people, livestock, and wildlife to coexist in African savannas."
• Dr. Frances Charlotte Robertson: "Dr. Robertson studied the diving behavior of bowhead whales, and how it is affected by oil exploration in the Alaskan Arctic. She demonstrated that the whales' behavioral reactions influence the assessments of bowhead distribution and abundance. Her study will contribute to better management of oil exploration in bowhead habitat."
• Dr. Gina Louise Conte: "Dr. Conte studied how species adapt to their environments and how this can occasionally lead to the formation of new species. In particular, she focused on the genetic changes that occur during adaptation and speciation, finding that they are somewhat predictable. Her work helps us understand mechanisms that generate and promote biodiversity."
• Dr. Rebecca Lee Kordas: "Dr. Kordas experimentally simulated climate warming on rocky shores. She showed that the ecological effects of elevated temperature hinge on both the tolerance of individual organisms and the interactions among species. This research reveals pathways by which global change can impact the dynamics of natural systems."
• Dr. Christopher Mark Wilson: "Dr. Wilson examined how the heart rate is controlled in the ancestral chordate, the Pacific hagfish. The hagfish heart has no nerves, and can contract in absence of oxygen (anoxia) for over 2 days. In doing so, he discovered a new bicarbonate-mediated pathway to control heart rate, which could lead to advances in the medical field."
• Dr. Nikta Fay: "Dr. Fay studied the interactions that occur between viruses and the biological pipes, ropes and rods that give our cells shape and strength, in other words a cell`s cytoskeleton. She found that the cytoskeleton is used to promote infection by the smallest virus known called parvovirus. Her study will ultimately help treat human viral infections."
• Dr. David Peter Toews: "Dr. Toews studied the effects and consequences of the interbreeding among birds, specifically species of warblers. Using a range of techniques, data and field research, he demonstrated varied outcomes when distinct bird groups interbreed. Dr. Toews' findings have important implications for our understanding of adaptation and the formation of species."
• Dr. Brajgeet Bhathal: "Dr. Bhathal studied the history and status of marine fisheries in India. She reconstructed fishing catch and effort and revealed, using bio-economic models, that the operation of Indian fisheries is not sustainable. Her work sheds light on an overlooked problem and suggests policy options to safeguard the resources and increase efficiency of fisheries."