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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Dr. Holmes developed a framework for physics labs that engages students in authentic experimentation. She found that a quantitative decision tree to structure experiments improves the scientific reasoning of students and their understanding of the nature of science, even when the structure is removed, developing them as independent critical thinkers. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Swedish conducted searches for new fundamental particles in the proton-proton collision data collected with the ATLAS detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider, using new techniques to identify massive particle decays. The results of these studies have implications for the possible existence of extra dimensions and new fundamental forces. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Welsh explored student perceptions of teaching and learning in an introductory chemistry course at UBC. Most students viewed high stakes examinations as overshadowing their engagement with resources designed to improve how they learn. This research highlights the important role that assessment and study strategies play in student learning. | Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum Studies (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Namvar's research had roots in economics, decision theory and machine learning. He developed learning algorithms that use the emerging patterns of information flow over social networks to facilitate strategic decision-making. These algorithms will benefit the design of wireless sensor networks for applications such as environmental monitoring. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Mobini's research was on the use of forestry by-products as a renewable source of energy. He focused on the development and application of object-oriented simulation models for the design and analysis of biofuel and bioenergy supply chains. His findings will help to increase the efficiency of the forestry industry and secure the energy supply. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Namjoshi studied traumatic brain injury. He showed that enhancing the function of the brain's lipid transport system helps in recovery from head injury. He also developed a novel model of brain injury, which may help us better understand the effects of head injury and lead to the development of effective treatments for this silent epidemic.?. | Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Ahmadi Motlagh developed a new computer model which uses fewer resources to predict the flow in reactors producing gasoline from heavier hydrocarbons. Lab-scale experiments were conducted, as well as numerical simulations. The study sheds light on the complexities of gas/liquid/particle flow in the liquid injection zone of these reactors. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemical and Biological Engineering (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Louie's fieldwork documents how hypothetical reasoning is expressed in the Blackfoot language. The framework she developed highlights how our predictions about the future depend on the actions that individuals may take. Her research contributes to endangered language documentation and our understanding about inferences, time and actions. | Doctor of Philosophy in Linguistics (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Porteus studied red fox culling in Britain, which aims to keep fox density low on specific sites during the bird nesting period. He developed a local-scale population dynamics model to determine the effectiveness of culling. The model was then used to evaluate alternative culling strategies to reduce potential impacts of fox predation on birds. | Doctor of Philosophy in Zoology (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Fan developed a simple method to rapidly decrease the amount of a given protein in the brain or body. This method can be used by scientists to study the function of proteins. It may be further developed as a new therapeutic that eliminates disease-causing proteins, such as those involved in Huntington's or Parkinson's disease. | Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Gold studied the processes involved in regulating inflammatory diseases, particularly allergic asthma. He focused on how a protein involved in immune cell activation can act to influence the development of an immune response. This research provides important insight for the development of therapeutics for the treatment of allergic diseases. | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Jett studied a mouse model of the human genetic disorder, neurofibromatosis 1. Her research demonstrated that the product of the gene, neurofibromin, has an important role in normal function of the blood vessels and heart. These studies provide novel insights into the cardiovascular disease that occurs in people with neurofibromatosis 1. | Doctor of Philosophy in Medical Genetics (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Komarnisky studied Mexican migrants in Alaska. She found that both locations, and a shared experience of mobility between them, are what makes these people feel at home in the world. This study adds to our understanding of migration patterns and experiences of place, and can contribute to policies that improve the lives of migrants everywhere. | Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Robinson wrote a memoir about caring for her daughter who had an eating disorder, the impact on her family, and her encounters with health-care professionals. The findings of an online focus group with pediatric nurses, who read her memoir, pointed to the lack of knowledge of the disorder and the need for education and changes in care protocols. | Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership and Policy (EdD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Krusi examined the social and structural factors that shape the working conditions of street-based sex workers in Vancouver. Her research shows how evolving sex work legislation, policing practices, and stigma intersect, to shape the working conditions of street-based sex workers, including their citizenship rights, violence, and ill health. | Doctor of Philosophy in Interdisciplinary Studies (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Prest examined the ways in which music education partnerships between school and community have contributed to the vitality of three rural BC communities. Her multiple-case study assists us in understanding the process by which the social capital operating in these partnerships plays a role in rural community sustainability. | Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum Studies (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Costa proposed a mechanism for predicting the performance of storage systems, given a specific configuration and computing platform. With this predictor, the users of high-performance computing can assess trade-offs in terms of time or energy consumption that a given configuration has over another, without needing to re-execute an application. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Zhu studied the manufacture process of advanced high-strength steels used in the automotive industry. He developed a computer model to simulate the processing of automotive steels. His research provides the steel industry with guidance in designing optimal processing routes to manufacture advanced high-strength steels. | Doctor of Philosophy in Materials Engineering (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Hossain advanced our understanding of how the connectivity in the brain of a vertebrate develops. By using tadpoles as a model system for brain growth, she observed growing brain cells. Dr. Hossain detected features that have been grossly overlooked previously, and which may hold the key to understanding brain formation. | Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Ebrahimnejad studied how the presence of impurities and other particles affects the motion of electrons in solids. He proposed an accurate solution that challenged the current understanding of high-temperature superconductors. His findings has paved the way for a complete solution to the problem of superconductivity in these complex materials. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Salnykova demonstrated that ethnic conflict is associated with the level of deliberative capacity. She studied this relationship on the cases of post-Soviet Ukraine and Georgia. She explored the factors of deliberative capacity and the types of deliberative systems that may exist. | Doctor of Philosophy in Political Science (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Gong studied the controlled release of drugs that treat osteoporosis. These anti-osteoporotic drugs come from calcium phosphate silicate bone cement. His research proved that this drug delivery system could effectively restore osteoporotic bone fractures, and is therefore beneficial for bone restoration of patients suffering from osteoporosis. . | Doctor of Philosophy in Materials Engineering (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Paylor's doctoral studies focused on stem cells in the heart. He demonstrated the important role they play in the scarring that occurs after a heart attack. He showed how to improve the heart's performance after serious injury, and these discoveries may potentially lead to benefit for patients suffering from a wide-variety of cardiac diseases. | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Fabbi developed an innovative initiative to support Arctic Studies and Indigenous language programs at the Canadian Studies Center at the University of Washington. Considering the Arctic as a distinct world region, informed by Inuit concepts of territory and sovereignty, reconfigures the approaches used for research and practice in the area. | Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership and Policy (EdD) |
| 2015 | Dr. McConechy studied uterine and ovarian cancers. Her research led to the discovery of cancer-specific mutation profiles, and focused on examining the effects of these mutations on protein structure and function. This work has contributed to the pathology field by helping to improve the classification and diagnosis of uterine and ovarian cancers. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pathology and Laboratory Medicine (PhD) |