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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Dr. Westby synthesized research evidence and brought together patients, professionals and researchers from Canada and the US to reach consensus on best-practice recommendations for rehabilitation after hip and knee replacement surgery. Her findings have potential to improve care and outcomes for thousands of people receiving joint replacements secondary to osteoarthritis of the hip and knee. | Doctor of Philosophy in Rehabilitation Sciences (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Ahrens studied the depletion of tuna and billfish stocks globally using more suitable methods than had previously been used. He concluded that the losses were less severe than commonly believed, although many stocks are overexploited. A combination of fishing effort reduction and large spatial closures would maintain stocks at optimal levels and improve fishery value. | Doctor of Philosophy in Zoology (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. He investigated the genetic basis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma. He showed that variations in the interleukin 6 gene are associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. He has also strongly implicated a Th2-polarizing cytokine gene, thymic stromal lymphopoietin, as an asthma gene. His results have implications in new personalized treatment for these conditions. | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Ersahin developed new techniques for segmentation and classification of polarimetric synthetic aperture radar data. These techniques are based on perceptual organization and spectral graph partitioning, and automate the Polarimetric synthetic aperture radar data interpretation utilizing both polarimetric and visual information cues. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Pamer has written a conceptual study of educational leadership using the work of Hannah Arendt as a basis for analysis. Key concepts used include the distinction between public and private and Arendt's ideas of labour, work and action. | Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership and Policy (EdD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Sheriff examined the signature of fear in prey with respect to being attacked and/or killed by their predators. His research showed the fear of being killed varies with predation risk, and how it causes a decline in female reproduction and is passed onto offspring. Ultimately this may result in the inability of a population to recover even after a stressor has been removed. | Doctor of Philosophy in Zoology (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Gedig developed methods for the conceptual engineering design of industrial and architectural structures. The methods use image processing, pattern recognition and mathematical optimization techniques to help create, explore, and reason with structural forms. The research facilitates the rapid and cost-effective development of structural design concepts. | Doctor of Philosophy in Civil Engineering (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Jong investigated rare divalent carbon compounds and combined them with transition metals to form catalyst precursors. This work contributes to the development of future catalysts that will be applied for the conversion of organic substrates into industrially useful products. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Delgado-Jaime developed a methodology and a computer program to process spectroscopic data to fundamentally understand the reactivity of ruthenium-based catalysts in olefin metathesis reactions. This work serves as the foundation to study and understand similar catalytic systems in chemistry. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Merchant developed and applied new mathematical methods for determining spatiotemporal patterns associated with predator invasions. This work furthered the conceptual foundations of selection and stability of patterns following invasion, and the influence of non-local prey competition on pattern formation behind predator invasions. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mathematics (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Farnden investigated the long term growth of forests as influenced by the abundance and spatial pattern of young trees. He subsequently developed planning tools to help forest managers ensure that reforestation activities effectively contribute to a desired future forest condition. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Deslippe showed that climate warming changes soil fungal and bacterial communities in ways that facilitate shrub expansion onto Arctic tundra. Her studies help us to understand how species interactions determine the response of an ecosystem to climate change factors. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Rechisky used a large-scale fish tracking array to track very small salmon during their migration to the Fraser River in British Columbia. Using new technology, she found that the Pacific Ocean can be a dangerous place for young salmon, as survival for some species is very low during the first month at sea. | Doctor of Philosophy in Zoology (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Sweeney has developed an innovative model to analyze industrial events in the mine workplace by profiling cognitive error. He subsequently applied this methodology to case studies of historical mine disasters, as well as to a contemporary operating mine, revealing that cognitive profiling is both descriptive and predictive of human error. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mining Engineering (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Zhou studied interfacial deformation in viscoelastic liquids. He studied how viscoelastic stress can have unusual and sometimes counter-intuitive effects on interfacial deformation. These findings lead to an important new method for measuring elongational viscosity of low-viscosity liquids. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemical and Biological Engineering (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Wong studied the NR2E1 gene, which has been linked to bipolar disorder. She discovered that different levels of this gene lead to brain, eye, and behavioural alterations in mice. These results further our understanding of the role of this gene in human psychiatric and ocular diseases. | Doctor of Philosophy in Medical Genetics (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Hsu examined sociocultural factors to understand why East Asians in North America report greater social anxiety compared to their Western counterparts. She found that social anxiety was related to experiencing conflict between East Asian culture and Western norms. This research highlights the need for culturally-sensitive treatment of social anxiety. | Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Code's new analysis and careful proofs will help experts working with time-varying processes involving abrupt changes--some spontaneous and some by design--to analyze, regulate, and optimize their behaviour. Potential applications of his work include robotics, pest control, finance and space navigation. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mathematics (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Tang studied the role of a protein named SPARC in cancer. More specifically, she studied cell death mechanisms that allowed chemotherapy-resistant cancer cells to respond to chemotherapy and decrease tumor size. Results from her studies contribute to a novel approach in the treatment of advanced cancer cases. | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Hsing developed novel bioinformatics tools and approaches to identify highly-interacting proteins in bacteria. This research provides an effective drug discovery platform for future therapeutic applications. As a result of Dr. Hsing's work, new antibiotic candidates have been developed which are capable of eliminating major drug-resistant infections. | Doctor of Philosophy in Bioinformatics (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Le studied the biophysical mechanisms responsible for the immunocamouflage of transplanted cells by the covalent attachment of non-immunogenic and non-toxic polymer chains. This research is imperative in designing safe and efficient technology for the prevention of donor tissue rejection in transfusion and transplantation medicine. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pathology and Laboratory Medicine (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Peterson examined how speakers of Gitksan, an indigenous language in northern BC, linguistically encode the knowledge they have for the statements they make, and their attitude towards that knowledge. This research contributes to the documentation of an endangered language, and contributes to our theoretical understanding of evidentiality and modality. | Doctor of Philosophy in Linguistics (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Gong sought to understand investment decisions of farmers in rural China, related to afforestation. She found that much of the land remained unforested as a result of constrained contractual rules, property rights allocation disputes, and low levels of social capital in some villages. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Dang examined how dinoflagellate chloroplast minicircle genes are transcribed and further processed. He found evidence for a novel type of "rolling-circle" transcription and developed a folding model for the ultra-divergent 16S ribosomal RNA. These studies contribute to our knowledge of the fundamental characteristics of dinoflagellate minicircle transcription. | Doctor of Philosophy in Botany (PhD) |
| 2010 | Dr. Kietzig studied ways to reduce friction of metals sliding against ice. Imitating the super-hydrophobic lotus leaf, she used micro-structured metallic surfaces with a femtosecond laser and thereby reduced ice friction. Her findings were directly implemented by the Canadian Speed Skating Teams for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemical and Biological Engineering (PhD) |