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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Dr. Della-Rossa's research investigated the experiences of middle-aged immigrant women who changed their careers later in life. She found that help and support from various sources and personal characteristics were instrumental in successful transitions. Her findings contribute to the body of knowledge about immigration, adaptation, women in career issues, and career transitions. | Doctor of Philosophy in Counselling Psychology (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Kunstner studied optimization for machine learning. His work develops new algorithms that automatically adapt to the problem and identifies bottlenecks in the training of deep learning models. These advances support the development of more efficient machine learning systems that take less human efforts to tune. | Doctor of Philosophy in Computer Science (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Hofmann used high-throughput microscopy, machine learning and creative visualizations to map protein changes in yeast cells to look at how membrane contact site proteins change localization. Additionally, she conducted teaching research and explored the attitudes of undergraduate biology students towards biology and math. | Doctor of Philosophy in Genome Science and Technology (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Imani investigated the behavior of WE43 magnesium alloy in simulated body conditions to predict its longevity as a dissolvable medical implant. His research revealed the critical role of glucose and albumin in corrosion and stress cracking, highlighting the need for additional protection in various body conditions, and enhancing the safety and effectiveness of Mg implants. | Doctor of Philosophy in Materials Engineering (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Robles studied changing perceptions of nature and culture in Southern Cone narratives, focusing on Pampas and Patagonia from the 19th to 21st centuries. He argues that views shifted from transforming nature to defending it due to increasing human intervention, once seen as minimal but now viewed as significant, sparking a push for protection. | Doctor of Philosophy in Hispanic Studies (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Hak Hepburn argued that paying attention to the social relations people maintain with trees and forests provided insight into environmental governance. By following Peruvian Amazonian relations with land, timber, trees, seeds and forests, her work brings a new and nuanced understanding of tropical deforestation and restoration practices. | Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Rowley studied protein arginine N-methyltransferase 2 (PRMT2), an enzyme found to be dysregulated in disease. He developed new techniques to study PRMT2 and how it interacts with other proteins. Findings from his research suggest that PRMT2 orchestrates the activities of other methyltransferases. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pharmaceutical Sciences (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Ghaffari investigated the properties of a ruthenium photosensitizer embedded in various implantable polymeric biomaterials which showed significant reduction in bacterial adhesion and biofilm formation. This is crucial for reducing catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) and dental plaque formation that leads to dental caries. | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Sharma’s research focused on bio-electrochemical fuel cells and their application in remediating hazardous acid rock waste. He explored scaling up this technology to recover critical metals from the waste, contributing to the idea of a circular economy. His work is significant in accelerating deployment of this technology in mining operations. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemical and Biological Engineering (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Harvey developed machine learning models which generate and edit images and video. His work had a particular focus on enabling the same model to be used for many different editing tasks. Potential applications include editing films and developing controllers for robots. | Doctor of Philosophy in Computer Science (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Wang identified three immune regulators functioning downstream of immune receptor SNC2 and emphasizes the importance of homeostasis control of key immune regulator BDA1 in Arabidopsis. These findings provide advanced understanding on how plants regulate defense responses and may inform the sustainable solutions to crop protection. | Doctor of Philosophy in Botany (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Fukuda developed advanced supported liquid membranes for the efficient recovery of medium-chain fatty acids from organic waste. His work enhances sustainable waste management by converting waste into valuable biochemicals, providing a practical solution to environmental pollution and supporting the circular economy. | Doctor of Philosophy in Civil Engineering (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Kritharis developed a novel cell-free protein synthesis system (CFPS) for the production of vaccines. He demonstrated that life-saving components can be produced with CFPS. In addition, he significantly reduced the cost of CFPS paving the way for cheaper vaccines with greater access for the developing world. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemical and Biological Engineering (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Chernobai studed global existence of local energy solutions for Navier-Stokes equations, which describe a motion of incompressible fluid, and constructed solutions for the new class of initial data. She also researched the regularity of solutions to elliptic equations with critical drift, and proved the existence, uniqueness and higher regularity of such solutions. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mathematics (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Lauener optimally expanded and comprehensively characterized a rare cellular population of human regulatory natural killer cells. She deciphered multiple methods to obtain clinically relevant numbers, while harnessing their immunosuppressive properties as a novel therapy for chronic graft-versus-host disease, and other autoimmune conditions. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pathology and Laboratory Medicine (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Besworth conducted a mixed methods study evaluating nurse practitioners' perceptions of the quality of virtual care. Contributions included development of a novel instrument measuring quality of virtual care, and key findings that characterized virtual care as being of high quality and supporting a tailored approach to patient care. | Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Missen examined how the brain integrates sensory information to control balance. He identified properties of a mechanism that aligns the body with gravity and demonstrated that the brain prioritizes velocity information in the sensory integration process. This research will help improve methods to identify and rehabilitate balance deficits. | Doctor of Philosophy in Kinesiology (PhD) |
| 2024 | Endoscopic optical imaging uses optical fibers to reach and detect early cancer in the deep organs of the body. Dr. Tanskanen focused on manipulating the physics of optical fibers to improve these devices. His research resulted in a clearer, and more holistic visualization of early lung cancer, and set the foundation for novel devices in the future. | Doctor of Philosophy in Biomedical Engineering (PhD) |
| 2024 | Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, aka COPD, is the 3rd leading cause of death worldwide. Dr. Nwozor studied the interplay between ageing and cigarette smoke in the development and progression of COPD, showed that epithelial barrier function and lung fibroblast repair decrease with age and identified potential therapeutic interventions for COPD. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pharmacology (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Zhou's research delves into extreme value modelling with application to reverse stress testing, identifying scenarios of risk factor changes that lead to a specified adverse portfolio outcome. She developed multiple statistical methodologies to overcome the challenges due to limited historical data records of risk factors and associated portfolio losses. | Doctor of Philosophy in Statistics (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Ottoni studied the loneliness and social connectedness of older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. Her work highlighted the importance of home and neighbourhood places for well-being. She also critically reflected on the novel use of photovoice, administered virtually via zoom, to capture depth and nuances of peoples' lived experiences. | Doctor of Philosophy in Interdisciplinary Studies (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Pineda used a multi-scale approach to develop a computational model to simulate the consolidation of engineered bamboo composites during manufacturing. The model can be used to reduce the time and energy consumption of the manufacturing process of engineered bamboo composites and can be adapted to other engineered wood products. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Sora modeled the Canadian Arctic under environmental changes. She found that key species and habitats are particularly vulnerable. Her findings revealed valuable insights for the integration of climate change considerations into marine spatial planning, the conservation objectives of protected areas, and the interests of Indigenous communities. | Doctor of Philosophy in Oceans and Fisheries (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Lee explored heparanase’s role in providing heart energy and its changes in diabetes. He also found that heparanase overexpression led to development of physiological cardiac hypertrophy, however, its actions are negated during diabetes, resulting in heart failure. Further investigation may enhance the management of diabetic heart disease. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pharmaceutical Sciences (PhD) |
| 2024 | Dr. Pearson studied epistemic agency - the agency we have over what we believe. She proposed an alternative to the dominant control-based accounts of this concept, arguing instead that epistemic agency centrally involves the ability to set one’s epistemic contexts by determining which possibilities to take seriously. | Doctor of Philosophy in Philosophy (PhD) |