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 | NID |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Dr. Dengate studied the maternity leave experiences of Canadian mothers. She found that mothers' jobs were central to both the structure of leave and the transition back to paid employment. This knowledge will aid the development of more responsive federal and workplace family policies to support women's engagement in motherhood and career. | Doctor of Philosophy in Sociology (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Bennett explored how women cope with age-related changes to body function, health, and appearance. Women were accepting yet critical of their bodies, felt fear, shame, and guilt in relation to body decline, and used activity and healthy diet to maintain body function and health. The findings advance our understanding of later life body image. | Doctor of Philosophy in Kinesiology (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Stokes investigated how First Nations could benefit from LNG projects in northern B.C., while mitigating any negative impacts. Study results showed that initiatives for education, training, employment, good governance, social historical barriers, environmental protection and other supports are needed to ensure long-term sustainability. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mining Engineering (PhD) |
| 2017 | Knee osteoarthritis, or OA, is prevalent and disabling, and for many, OA begins behind the knee cap. Dr. Macri studied knee alignment using MRI. Results showed knee caps are malaligned in knee cap OA, and are more malaligned when standing compared to laying supine. Results will inform the development of effective strategies for treating knee OA. | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Moghadam-zadeh studied mineral process engineering. She developed a test procedure to evaluate the advantages of high pressure grinding rolls (HPGR), an application for extracting precious compounds. This test procedure will replace conventional techniques with energy-efficient methods in the early stages of industrial project studies. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mining Engineering (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Hochbaum explored the extent to which child characteristics determine parental disciplinary behaviours. She showed that mothers respond to increasingly socially competent children by rewarding them more and punishing them less. The findings of her study strongly suggest that child characteristics contribute significantly to parenting behaviour. | Doctor of Philosophy in Sociology (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Bhinder studied the dynamic changes occurring in the intestine during newborn development and in response to food poisoning. She found that signalling within the intestinal lining and resident bacteria were critical to achieve optimal health in her models. These findings provide new insights into promoting the health of vulnerable populations. | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Robbins examined attitudes towards contentious animal welfare issues. He also experimentally explored how ordinary people understand the concept of animal welfare. His research highlights the vital role social science and philosophy play in the debate about farm animal welfare. | Doctor of Philosophy in Applied Animal Biology (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Addison examined the avoidance of health information in people with health concerns. She showed that limiting methods, such as filtering and delegating, were particularly common in cases where people felt fear, disinterest, or distrust. Her work will contribute to our understanding of how we manage and experience health issues. | Doctor of Philosophy in Library, Archival and Information Studies (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Pollard investigated the role of a shared approach to decision making within the context of asthma treatment. The results of her work support the use of individualized care plans for asthma patients as well as the involvement of a multidisciplinary team throughout the treatment decision-making process. | Doctor of Philosophy in Population and Public Health (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Fernando investigated the role of extracellular vesicles in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis or ALS. Her findings revealed that specific vesicle populations are capable of transmitting protein misfolding to recipient cells. This research provides novel evidence for the role of extracellular vesicles in human ALS disease. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pathology and Laboratory Medicine (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Beikahmadi studied solid-state radiation detectors, devices that measure the level of an ion charge. He developed a methodology for designing low-power and low-noise readout circuits of these detectors. His work has broad application in several areas including the field of gamma ray and x-ray spectrometry. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Wires investigated software techniques for efficiently processing very large data sets. As part of his research, he built a high-performance storage system that dynamically optimizes how hardware resources are allocated as workload requirements evolve. His work reduces the time and money required to perform data-intensive analysis tasks. | Doctor of Philosophy in Computer Science (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Byun examined the philosophical origin of agnosticism by analyzing underappreciated works of the inventor of the word "agnostic." Thomas Huxley, also known as "Darwin's bulldog," proposed agnosticism as a guide to knowledge. This research shows that it is not a passive, wishy-washy stance, but a constructive, confident position on evidence. | Doctor of Philosophy in Philosophy (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Dickman examined the serum of individuals with oral cancer to detect molecules that could be used in an early diagnosis test. He also found that similar molecules are secreted from cancer cells to alter the tissue around them to promote tumor growth. His work will have significant impact on oral cancer diagnosis and treatment. | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Pakula's research provided the first national estimates for mental health disorders among gay, lesbian, bisexual and heterosexual Canadians. Her analysis revealed sexual minorities face a disproportionate mental health burden, linked to stress and isolation. Her research is informing the elimination of mental health disparities. | Doctor of Philosophy in Population and Public Health (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Aaron developed new techniques to understand the mechanisms governing flow-like landslides, as well as methodologies to predict their motion. This research has resulted in practical tools that can be used to protect society from certain landslide hazards. | Doctor of Philosophy in Geological Engineering (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Mohamadi designed and developed a collection of novel algorithms and software tools for the analysis of massive bioinformatics data. Theses algorithms and software tools are publicly available for free to facilitate research at health and life sciences laboratories and other organizations worldwide. | Doctor of Philosophy in Bioinformatics (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Chiu studied the changes in cardiac metabolism during diabetes. Her findings revealed that during the onset of diabetes the heart switches from using fats and sugars for energy to use only fats, a switch that eventually leads to heart disease. Her research assists in identifying ways to treat or prevent diabetes-related heart disease. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pharmaceutical Sciences (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Mills investigated the tensions former high-performance figure skaters experienced in their training and competition. She used narrative inquiry to help collect and report participant's stories. Her findings support the need for critical conversations about the normalizing conditions in figure skating and their cost on participant well-being. | Doctor of Philosophy in Kinesiology (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Gorzelak studied belowground communication through mycorrhizal (or fungal) networks between Douglas-fir trees. She demonstrated that communication signals were preferentially transferred between genetically related, or kin Douglas-fir seedlings. This work suggests that trees may be able to recognize and respond to kin. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
| 2017 | The extent to which tropical forests change after the harvesting of trees is not clear. Dr. Addo-Danso's research showed that the forest structure, biomass and productivity in a tropical forest in Ghana recovered to pre-harvesting levels 54 years after the trees were cut. His findings have important implications for the management of tropical forests. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Globa's work has demonstrated that drugs of abuse, such as cocaine, impact how brain cells communicate with one another at specialized points of contact called 'synapses'. Her work specifically shows that synaptic connections must be malleable or 'plastic' to promote behaviours associated with addiction in mice. | Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience (PhD) |
| 2017 | The world is full of mixtures of unobserved source signals. Dr. Zou's doctoral studies focused on recovering the underlying source signals from a limited number of observations. His proposed methods can be utilized in a wide class of physiological signals for artifact removal and for better interpretations of these signals. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Zhang's dissertation concerns computer graphics. He has developed novel numerical schemes that allow for restoring vorticity in fluid flow. Xinxin's work uses modern particle methods to solve large-scale problems with high speed. The resulting models provide realistic simulations that are rich in detail and are faithful to the physical properties of the fluid. | Doctor of Philosophy in Computer Science (PhD) |