A doctoral citation summarizes the nature of the independent research, provides a high-level overview of the study, states the significance of the work and says who will benefit from the findings in clear, non-specialized language, so that members of a lay audience will understand it.
| Year | Citation | Program |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Dr. Ma studied wavelength and polarization control for on-chip communication systems such as mobile network servers. He presented novel silicon photonic integrated circuit designs, from components to sub-systems, as well as intelligent control techniques. His studies facilitate developing fully integrated, high-speed, data-processing systems. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Soto Gomez used genomics to reconstruct the evolutionary history of the three major plant groups Pandanales, Dioscoreales and the Dioscorea yams, shedding light on their relationships, genomes, biogeography and morphology. She also developed methods to uncover wild yam species of utility for improving crop yams, which feed millions globally. | Doctor of Philosophy in Botany (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Irwin studied the molecular biology and evolution of the cell nucleus by examining how nuclear processes function in diverse organisms. His work revealed the capacity for viruses to shape cellular evolution, identified novel nuclear mechanisms, and highlighted the utility of new model organisms for future research. | Doctor of Philosophy in Botany (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Sun investigated energy storage applications. She developed a privacy protection solution for end consumers, a frequency regulation scheme for system operators, and a market participation strategy for storage owners. Her algorithms provide meaningful insights for the application of energy storage to support the paradigm shift to smart grids. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Jing developed high-throughput methods for the analysis of trace compounds in complex matrices. He coupled novel sample preparation methods to direct analysis in real time mass spectrometry, placing particular attention to the extraction and ionization processes. This work provides strategies for environment monitoring and quality control. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Alexander examined the molecular basis of two mechanisms of antibiotic resistance found in the bacterial pathogen Staphylococcus aureus. His characterisation of protein-antibiotic interactions using x-ray crystallography and kinetics contributes insight into how resistance occurs and could guide the development of new and improved antibiotics. | Doctor of Philosophy in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Oluic dissertation focuses on the creation of an imagined European community in the nineteenth century as posited by four thinkers and essayists from Spain and Italy. His research elaborates a link between nineteenth century Europeanism and the present, exploring the relations that define national and supranational sovereignty. | Doctor of Philosophy in Hispanic Studies (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Mitelman developed an analogous method for solving ground-support problems, having an impact on the obligation for civil and mining engineers to ensure the stability of underground excavations. His proposed method requires less simplifying assumptions than analytical solutions and less computational resources than numerical methods. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mining Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Namae explored why some secondary school teachers in Uganda choose to adopt technology and others do not. Her findings revealed that skills training and sheer attitude influenced technology use in schools. Her study also reveals that the presence of technology in school does not guarantee teacher change of attitude and use. | Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum Studies (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Al-Sahan identified that the integration of five biopsychosocial theories can help explain how people cope and adapt to loss of visible body parts. She subsequently applied the theories in the context of coping with complete tooth loss thereby proposing a model that explains the process of coping with tooth loss. | Doctor of Philosophy in Craniofacial Science and Diploma in Prosthodontics (PhD/Dip. Prosthodontics) |
| 2020 | Dr. Evoy studied the physical properties of organic aerosols, which are known to be important for environmental and human health. She evaluated the accuracy of different equations used to describe the diffusion of molecules within aerosols. The results improve our ability to understand and quantify the effects of organic aerosols in the atmosphere. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Petel studied the transport of molecules and ions in innovative materials to improve our understanding of the mechanisms behind their unique physical and electrical properties. Her research assists in the development of applications such as artificial muscles, electro-optical devices, and recyclable polymers. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Murch investigated the psychology of slot machine gambling. He found behavioural and physiological markers of a highly-focused attentional state called immersion in play. These findings clarify the role of slot machine design in the development of gambling problems, providing new guidance for treatment professionals and gambling regulators. | Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Hersh studied why asexual plants are often more widespread than their sexual relatives using Easter daisies, and found that asexuals are aided by particularly successful clones and seed traits that help promote colonization. This work challenges the assumption that asexuals' only advantage is the ability to reproduce without mates. | Doctor of Philosophy in Botany (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Paterson explored and modelled the dynamic response of papermaking fibre suspensions undergoing compressive dewatering operations. His research advanced traditional deformable porous media models by including effects of the fibres' complex structure. The findings are valuable for optimizing designs of pulp and paper industrial equipment. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemical and Biological Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Astic coupled multi-physics simulations with data science to develop a new methodology to image the subsurface and map underground resources from geophysical data with an improved resolution. This new approach will help locate and estimate the resources available for a sustainable future, such as minerals, water, and CO2 storage capacity. | Doctor of Philosophy in Geophysics (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Mirazimi studied the dissolution of arsenic from mine waste materials and investigated the key factors that control arsenic release from arsenic bearing minerals to the environment. His study provides key information for the prevention and management of waste rock drainage containing arsenic. | Doctor of Philosophy in Materials Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Glowacki co-developed the Exercise and Depression Toolkit collaboratively with individuals with depression, health care providers, researchers, exercise professionals and community partners. The toolkit aims to integrate treatment guidelines into practice, consider how exercise could be used as a treatment, and has had an international reach. | Doctor of Philosophy in Kinesiology (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Yuen studied how the antipsychotic medication clozapine can cause unwanted changes in blood glucose and heart function. She found that the side effects can be reversed with drugs that block specific targets called adrenoceptors. Her findings provide valuable insight for clozapine to be used safely and effectively in patients with schizophrenia. | Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Wells offers a corrective to the common historiography of the Korean language, which treats vernacularity as natural and literary vernacularization as foreordained. He shows that turn-of-the-20th c. shifts in Korean language practice were not inevitable, but driven by Korean nationalists, Western missionaries and Japanese imperial officials. | Doctor of Philosophy in Asian Studies (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Yang investigated the interdependency analysis and modelling among critical infrastructures. He optimized the preparation and restoration processes at both the pre- and the post-disaster phase. This research increases the resilience of critical infrastructure systems for disaster response. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Nasir did research on intelligent wood machining. He developed AI-based models for wood sawing monitoring and automation in the sawmilling industry. His work enables sawmills to do online monitoring and prediction of surface quality of produced lumber, leading to efficiency gains in the Canadian lumber manufacturing and sawmilling industry. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Danescu established novel microscopic methods to visualize the embryonic face as it develops. He was able to see coordinated and symmetrical patterns of cell behaviour and observe how specific drugs block cell movements. The insights from his work will impact our understanding of normal and abnormal facial development. | Doctor of Philosophy in Craniofacial Science (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Brook studied the positive side effects of a vaccine called BCG to determine how it protects from infections, and how it can reduce newborn mortality by 50%. He discovered a new mechanism of protection, describing the essential steps needed for protection, and how protection could be enhanced. | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Alotaibi examined the roles of molecular targets in endometriosis cell invasion and nerve growth. He found that protein IL-1 beta enhances invasive capacity of endometriosis and is associated with nerve growth and worse sexual pain reported by patients. His findings suggest a novel therapeutic target for treatment of endometriosis related pain. | Doctor of Philosophy in Reproductive and Developmental Sciences (PhD) |