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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Dr. Tran studied the genetic factors that contribute to the complex process of wood formation in trees. Understanding the influence of different genes on wood formation will enable the improvement of wood quality for various applications, including the potential for bioethanol production. | Doctor of Philosophy in Botany (PhD) |
| 2018 | Dr. Ahn explored the powerful role images can play in how we perceive the environment and environmental issues. Specifically, she investigated how visual rhetorical modes in environmental documentaries influenced viewers. Her work will further our understanding of how visual rhetoric can engender awareness and a willingness to act in more eco-conscious ways. | Doctor of Philosophy in Language and Literacy Education (PhD) |
| 2018 | Dr. Ko studied brain cells known as astrocytes, and identified a novel protein that mediates calcium signals in them. Findings revealed that the protein is activated by mechanical force, raising interesting possibilities for the role of astrocytes in conditions such as stroke and traumatic brain injury. | Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience (PhD) |
| 2018 | Dr. Andrusiek studied the role of 'chain of survival' interventions used for resuscitation in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. He used non-experimental designs and different analytic techniques to identify benefits and harms, and showed that there is a critical need for definitively evaluating these interventions using a randomized trial design. | Doctor of Philosophy in Population and Public Health (PhD) |
| 2018 | Dr. Whitfield studied the machinery that drives the formation of clathrin-coated vesicles, the 'transport vans' of the cell. He identified several new components of this machinery, helping us to understand a fundamental cellular trafficking process implicated in a range of neurological and inflammatory diseases. | Doctor of Philosophy in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (PhD) |
| 2018 | Dr. Heinkel investigated a novel biophysical mechanism of membrane protein clustering in the pathogen causing tuberculosis. His work helps to understand the physiology of these clinically important bacteria and might lead to a route for therapeutics against the disease. | Doctor of Philosophy in Genome Science and Technology (PhD) |
| 2018 | Dr. Cornwall developed a method of estimating the causal effect of social interactions on online social networks. He applied this method to show how social media users' emotions are affected by the emotions of their friends. This research helps to quantify the importance of emotions in written communication. | Doctor of Philosophy in Economics (PhD) |
| 2018 | Dr. Drummond compared agricultural-weed populations of sunflower to their wild counterparts, to understand what traits and genes contribute to the success of this widespread weed species. Weeds grew faster, flowered earlier and possessed herbicide resistance, all traits that enhanced their competitiveness. | Doctor of Philosophy in Botany (PhD) |
| 2018 | Dr. Hsu's research demonstrates the hindering, helpful, and wish-list categories associated with the parenting experience of Chinese mothers in so-called "astronaut" families in Vancouver, BC. Her research addresses a gap in the body of literature on non-working class, transnational families and is likely to inform counselling psychology and education fields. | Doctor of Philosophy in Counselling Psychology (PhD) |
| 2018 | Dr. Auger studied how deficits in the neurotransmitter, GABA, within the prefrontal cortex impact upon behavior and patterns of activity throughout the brain. Her research provides insight into how imbalances in this neurotransmitter may be involved in cognitive deficits observed in schizophrenia and other psychiatric disorders. | Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience (PhD) |
| 2018 | Dr. Preus developed a poetics of early modern theatrical form and argued that Shakespeare's characters consistently evoke the anxieties of being recognized and of belonging to given worlds. Her work demonstrates how these anxieties are articulated vis-a-vis a process of admission, both theatrical and metaphysical, and equally illusory. | Doctor of Philosophy in English (PhD) |
| 2018 | Dr. Vellos examined the wording of school safety policies and how high school principals in BC Interpreted them. Her findings showed the language of the policies conveyed a lack of safety and a zero-tolerance approach, and that principals used their discretion to ensure safety in schools. This work will inform public safety policy documents. | Doctor of Philosophy in Human Development, Learning, and Culture (PhD) |
| 2018 | Some rubbers have a structure on the scale of nanometres and can be reformed and recycled (typical rubbers cannot). Dr. Parker used computational modelling and developed a network model to connect the properties of these rubbers (for example strength or elasticity) to details of how they act on this much smaller, nanometre, length scale. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
| 2018 | Dr. Song studied how to apply ultraviolet light-emitting diode or UV-LED, for water disinfection. He utilized the multiple wavelengths and pulsed irradiation of this ultraviolet source to reveal the inactivation effect on microorganisms. Findings promote better practical applications of UV-LED for water disinfection. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemical and Biological Engineering (PhD) |
| 2018 | To reduce fuel consumption, the automotive industry is aiming to increase the use of small, powerful engines. Dr. Farhang-Mehr addressed this need by designing and testing a novel water-cooled chill to be used in the production of engine blocks. Both the experimental and mathematical model results show that the adoption of this technology has the potential to improve the in-service life of the engine block. | Doctor of Philosophy in Materials Engineering (PhD) |
| 2018 | Dr. Hingston identified genetic elements associated with strains of the human pathogen Listeria monocytogenes that possess enhanced tolerances to food-related stresses. This research has improved our understanding of stress tolerance in Listeria monocytogenes and may be used to assess the risks associated with strains found in foods. | Doctor of Philosophy in Food Science (PhD) |
| 2018 | Dr. Koch examined the effects of an asthma medication during exercise in those with and without asthma. She determined that although these medications could improve lung function they did not act as performance enhancers. She also investigated the diagnostic methodology of exercised-induced asthma, and uncovered some key inconsistencies. | Doctor of Philosophy in Kinesiology (PhD) |
| 2018 | Dr. Huang advanced state-of-the-art computer modelling and simulation of integrated ac-dc power systems. He proposed several new dynamic phasor models of electric machines and line-commutated rectifiers with improved numerical properties. This research facilitates the development of next-generation power system simulation tools. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2018 | How does forest management affect the carbon and water balances of mountain pine beetle-attacked lodgepole pine stands in BC? Using measurements and modifying a model, Dr. Meyer found that not harvesting stands resulted in a positive carbon balance with relatively quick recovery and plateauing productivity during the second decade following attack. | Doctor of Philosophy in Soil Science (PhD) |
| 2018 | Improved geophysical imaging requires coordinated advances from the disciplines of geology, hydrology and computer science. Dr. Cockett proposed and implemented a computational framework for this interdisciplinary research and focused on improving the scalability of numerical techniques used in near-surface hydrogeophysics. | Doctor of Philosophy in Geophysics (PhD) |
| 2018 | Dr. Park studied the return experience of Indonesian migrant women workers who worked as domestic workers in Asian urban centres. By gathering and working with stories told by the Indonesian returnee women, Dr. Park uncovered and highlighted their contribution to the understanding of transnational migrant lives and women's life in cities. | Doctor of Philosophy in Interdisciplinary Studies (PhD) |
| 2018 | Developing a new drug can be a complicated, time consuming and expensive process. Dr. Yu developed a new optimal design method, which will accurately estimate the safe and effective dose level of the new drug for patients. Her study greatly improves the accuracy and safety of clinical trials, and speeds up the drug development process. | Doctor of Philosophy in Statistics (PhD) |
| 2018 | Dr. Zheng proposed a series of deep learning methods to tackle real world bioinformatics problems. He found that by introducing prior expert knowledge and realistic synthetic data, the data limitation in many bioinformatics problems can be overcome. His work benefits applications including disease diagnosis, patient monitoring and computer aided interventions. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2018 | Glial cells perform diverse roles in the development and function of the nervous system. Using the fruit fly, Dr. Das identified and characterized the role of certain proteins in glia-glia communication. This study proposes models for glial cell communication that will help direct future work in other animals. | Doctor of Philosophy in Zoology (PhD) |
| 2018 | Urban vegetation is becoming a key part of residents' well-being. Dr. Nesbitt explored the concept of urban green equity in North America, identifying its key dimensions and showing that urban vegetation is unfairly distributed across the US. This research provides guidance for urban greening programs that wish to improve green equity in their cities. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |