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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia, but the exact causes of disease development and progression are poorly understood. A series of small molecule drugs was designed and synthesised to bind metals and quench free radicals in the brain, contributing a number of new compounds to the pool of potential Alzheimer's therapeutics. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Pan studied structures of two systems - the fusion peptide from the tick-borne encephalitis virus and nanocrystalline cellulose films. His studies on the fusion peptide assist us in understanding the fusion mechanism of enveloped viruses. He also found parameters which enable one to manipulate the nematic structure and crystallinity of nanocrystalline cellulose films. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Cyr found that embracing historicity is asserting the existence of a long-lasting link between past and present, and the fact that things could have been otherwise. It entails that we should look in the past in order to understand the present, and that current choices can take us along irreversible paths, impossible to erase, only to modify. | Doctor of Philosophy in Philosophy (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Mansour studied video transmission over wireless networks. He developed methods that efficiently utilize shared resources to deliver high-quality video streams to multiple users. He successfully demonstrated that his algorithms improve the received video quality in applications such as mobile TV and internet video streaming. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Chen examined the design of pollution monitoring systems for the detection of contaminants in surface water and groundwater. He identified key factors affecting the probabilities of detecting contaminants, and was the first to use comprehensive modeling approaches to evaluate monitoring networks in a highly complex watershed system. His research provides important guidelines for practice in the design of contaminant monitoring networks. | Doctor of Philosophy in Geological Sciences (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Wolff examined the effects of diversity within the nursing workforce. She found that when people think that their work values are different from those of their colleagues, they are inclined to report more conflict and job stress within their workgroups. Managers need to recognize that work values dissimilarity can affect team functioning. | Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Pel developed a new method and instrument for extracting and purifying DNA, based on its physical properties, in contrast to existing methods which rely on its chemical properties. This method enables very selective DNA purification, and was applied to a wide range of samples that were previously very difficult to analyze due to high contamination. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr Gemme studied the training of graduate students in UBC's Faculty of Forestry. She showed how academic forest researchers are connected to both the scientific field and the forest sector. Those ties shape the educational experience of graduate students, and contribute to maintain the relevance of university research in society. | Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Studies (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Fallon examined the politics of diasporas and their effect on the 'homeland' during and after armed conflict. She found that a diaspora's ability to influence is not primarily dependent on material resources but rather on ideational factors and relationships with transnational advocacy networks. | Doctor of Philosophy in Political Science (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Carbonetto discovered that we can obtain good approximate solutions to inference has dramatically increased the scope of probabilistic models in science, from physics to genetics. Dr. Carbonetto developed algorithms that improve upon existing mathematical techniques for solving a broad range of intractable inference problems. | Doctor of Philosophy in Computer Science (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Forer expanded upon and applied the multilevel view of validation to a widely used measure of school readiness called the Early Development Instrument. Along the way, he developed a new method for assessing the fit of categorical models. His work helps establish the boundaries of interpretation for this measure. | Doctor of Philosophy in Measurement, Evaluation and Research Methodology (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Bartosh explored the impact of environmental education programs on high school students' learning and performance. She found that students in environmental programs demonstrated better achievement on state standardized tests, higher GPA, and better attitudes towards school and the environment than students in traditional programs. | Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum Studies (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Buchtel examined cultural and individual differences in the experience of being motivated by duty. She found that people who endorsed Confucian values were more likely to enjoy doing their duty, suggesting that one?s culture can encourage external and internal motivation to work together?helping us ?want? to do what we ?ought? to do. | Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Mortenson explored the impact of wheelchairs on those in residential care. His research revealed the pivotal role that wheelchairs play in their lives and uncovered facility practices that may curtail their mobility and social activity. These findings have the potential to inform practice and policy changes to improve their quality of life. | Doctor of Philosophy in Rehabilitation Sciences (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Roumina studied mechanical properties of an Aluminum-Magnisium-Scandium alloy. He developed models predicting yield strength and work hardening of the Aluminum-Magnisium-Scandium alloy during thermo-mechanical treatments. Dr. Roumina demonstrated that processing recovered microstructures containing precipitates is a novel approach to improve mechanical properties of aluminum alloys. | Doctor of Philosophy in Materials Engineering (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Tai studied the cholinergic modulation of three Ca2+-permable ion channels (R-type VGCCs, TRPC5 channels and NMDA receptors) in hippocampal CA1 pyramidal neurons and the potential functional roles of these modulations in both physiological and pathophysiological conditions. His finding helps to develop treatments for epilepsy and ischemia. | Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Scott examined the cellular and molecular consequences of trauma to the spinal cord. Her thesis work aimed to improve recovery following spinal cord injury and to shed light on new therapeutic strategies that promote the repair of nerves and enhance the plasticity of the central nervous system. | Doctor of Philosophy in Zoology (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Williamson piloted an international study into the molecular epidemiology of emerging infectious diseases of great socio-economic circumstance. Her efforts had a groundbreaking impact on the field of communicable parasitic diseases. Results have set a precedent for bridging the gap between diagnostic medicine and the pathogenomics of diseases of significant concern to public health. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pathology and Laboratory Medicine (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Kocsis developed a new method that can be used to evaluate the efficiency of large and complex underground ventilation systems. He also developed a new ventilation design concept for underground metal mines by integrating discrete-event mining process simulation with ventilation simulation. This new design concept would assist mines to reduce their energy consumption and consequently their carbon footprints. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mining Engineering (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Cunliffe developed a methodology to study how law, medicine, and social values work together in contested murder trials. In light of recent legal and medical developments, she suggests that one mother may have been wrongly convicted of murdering her children, and demonstrates how this error occurred. | Doctor of Philosophy in Law (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Smith explored the meaning of spirituality and religion for individuals living with a diagnosis of schiozphrenia. She identified the spiritual language that her participants used and found it to be both hope-inspiring and empowering. Her work is useful for both health care professionals and spiritual communities. | Doctor of Philosophy in Rehabilitation Sciences (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Halverson's work, based on a unique 5-year dataset obtained from specialized instrumentation installed on ferries in the Strait of Georgia, has made an important contribution to our understanding of the processes governing mixing in estuaries and buoyant river plumes, and of the way in which river plumes affect phytoplankton biomass. | Doctor of Philosophy in Oceanography (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Cantarero-Lopez developed a new tool to study generalized symmetries that come from abstract objects called groupoids. This is a generalization of a classical theory called K-theory, and can also be used to study classical symmetries. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mathematics (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr. Lin studied the role of the Rap GTPases in the function of B cells, the cells that produce antibodies. He showed that these proteins control multiple processes involved in B cell trafficking and activation, and also in the spread of B cell lymphomas, which are common cancers. | Doctor of Philosophy in Microbiology and Immunology (PhD) |
| 2009 | Dr.Guan examined the Landau-Lifshitz and Dirac equations arising in quantum physics - both of which which relate to the motion of charged particles. She refined the current understanding of these two equations, proved global existence and blow up results for Landau-Lifshitz flow, and showed the Dirac standing wave solutions are unstable. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mathematics (PhD) |