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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Dr. Arnett studied the cultural occurrence of rock art and how it was used by Nlaka'pamux of the British Columbia Plateau. His research showed that while rock art was a form of intervention against colonization, it later shifted to the preservation of local traditions. This work will be of benefit to Indigenous people throughout the world. | Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Shack used administrative data and school-choice programs from British Columbia in order to examine issues relating to the economics of education. Topics studied include how parents learn and make decisions about their children's progress in school, the impact of language immersion programs, and externalities from peers. | Doctor of Philosophy in Economics (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Danielson investigated how infants use vision to help them learn language. His research demonstrated that before their first birthday, infants have expectations about how sounds from an unfamiliar language should look on the human face. What infants see on a speaking face changes the way that they process language. | Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Vogl's thesis examined legal processes of refugee status determination and the assessment of refugee testimony in Australia and Canada. Through an analysis of refugee oral hearings, her findings revealed that refugees must present evidence in a compelling narrative form in order to be heard as both credible and plausible. | Doctor of Philosophy in Law (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Adleman studied the depiction of violence in late twentieth century American novels. He discovered that it was bound up with the rise of electronic media and a perceived crisis in the established order. His research will contribute to our understanding of literary representations of class, race, gender and media. | Doctor of Philosophy in English (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Yang's research addressed a key engineering problem in the field of microfluidics. He developed a novel carboxyl-amine strategy for bonding the polymer PDMS to both glass and gold using chemical surface modifications at room temperature. His research facilitates the fabrication of robust microfluidic devices for advanced biosensing applications. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemical and Biological Engineering (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Capsoni assembled single atoms and molecules to construct an organic nanosystem and further investigated it to gain a better understanding of its specific functions. Her work demonstrates the possibility of constructing nanosystems with specific functions and advances the design and development of new materials. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Korobenko investigated quantum properties of molecules, brought to extremely fast rotation by means of a specially designed laser instrument, known as an optical centrifuge. His work opens new possibilities for controlling a broad range of physical and chemical processes by means of manipulating molecular rotation with laser light. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Elser examined Aboriginal parental engagement in the Calgary Catholic School District from a multiple of perspectives. Her findings revealed parental engagement as a process of reciprocal relationship building that considers Aboriginal social context as well as culture, language and values. These results will be useful for K-12 education. | Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership and Policy (EdD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Mashayekhi contributed to developing effective techniques to address obstacles affecting the wireless communication sector. He also developed a novel architecture for dynamic channel measurements. His work supports efficient implementation, deployment and operation of the wireless telecommunication systems used in Smart Grids. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Samuk showed that migration between populations of organisms can limit the location that adaptive evolution can occur in the genome. This helps us understand why evolution often re-uses the same genes, and will aid us in building predictive models of evolution. | Doctor of Philosophy in Zoology (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Guo examines how the extensive use of an extraordinary punishment gave rise to the culture of rough justice and significantly transformed the criminal justice system before the advent of Westernization. His research advances our understanding about law and violence in late imperial China. | Doctor of Philosophy in Asian Studies (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Liu is keen on plant life histories. He built models to simulate evolved traits under current changes, and also used molecular tools and bioinformatics to demonstrate the genetic and epigenetic basis of adaptation in conifers. His study increases our understanding of plant evolution and persistence in the context of climate change. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Cocker utilised a novel rodent slot machine task to probe the underlying neurobiological basis of problem gambling. He found a novel role for the dopamine D4 receptor in mediating attributions of salience to reward related stimuli, indicating that targeting this receptor may represent a potential treatment avenue for problem gambling in humans | Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Hwang proved that algebras for noncommutative 4 dimensional space, which both Mathematicians and Physicist are interested in, form a good family, and figured out what the family looks like. These results shed light on the mathematically concrete study of noncommutative algebras as a family. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mathematics (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Mockett developed the Mindfulness-Integrated, Resilience, Trauma-Informed and Social Pedagogy (MIRTS) Curriculum - A holistic curriculum for professionals working with young people with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder and substance use issues. | Doctor of Philosophy in Interdisciplinary Studies (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Noguchi studied the mechanisms of human language learning. Through a series of laboratory experiments, he demonstrated how humans learn to categorize speech sounds, and how that affects their perception of the speech sounds. | Doctor of Philosophy in Linguistics (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Halawa performed numerical simulations of the rotating stall phenomenon in a high speed centrifugal compressor with vaned and vaneless diffusers. He discussed the improvement of two important methods to control stall; the air injection method and the casing grooves treatment method. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mechanical Engineering (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Scott used mathematical models to show how life cycles are shaped by natural selection. Life cycles are highly evolutionarily significant but remarkably variable among organisms. Life cycles aspects investigated in this thesis include the evolution of seed dormancy, haploid and diploid stages, and sex chromosomes (e.g., X and Y chromosomes). | Doctor of Philosophy in Botany (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Guo studied how consumers interacted with metal mirrors during Han dynasty China. He argues that these mirrors served as a dominant form of affordable luxury, signaling personal intimacies, monetary wealth, and aesthetic enjoyments. His work increases our historical understanding of early imperial art and economics. | Doctor of Philosophy in Art History (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Weekes investigated the potential for new lanthanum-based drugs to be applied as therapies for treating osteoporosis. His work contributed a fundamental understanding of the biological-chemical interplay of these drugs, and will influence future studies that could lead to a new type of pharmaceutical agent. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Liao studied the integration of business law, corporate social responsibility and social enterprises. She also investigated the development of corporate models that blend for-profit and non-profit legal characteristics. She designed a framework for the implementation of these hybrid corporations, which has impacted Canadian regulatory reform. | Doctor of Philosophy in Law (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Tang identified an independent diagnostic marker (gene CD82) for cutaneous human melanoma. He also discovered a novel automatic regulator of this marker on melanoma cell migration, invasion, and the formation of blood vessels. This work will lead to the development of new therapeutic strategies against malignant melanoma. | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Masse looked at the soil nitrogen cycle and microbial communities in reconstructed and in natural soils within the boreal forests of northern Alberta. Her findings enhanced our understanding of biogeochemical cycles in reconstructed soils and can be used to improve restoration strategies in the oil sands. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
| 2016 | Dr. Wathier examined the mechanism and application of rhodium-catalyzed alkyne hydrothiolation. He has studied how the rhodium catalysts work and has helped demonstrate the use of the method for the synthesis of K777, a possible treatment for a Neglected Global Disease that afflicts millions of people in Latin America. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |