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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Dr. Xu studied the regulatory and signalling components in plant immunity, in Dr. Xin Li's lab at Michael Smith Laboratories and the Department of Botany. Using genetic approaches, she identified three important genes which are essential to the plant immune response. Her thesis research contributes to the better understanding of plant immune system. | Doctor of Philosophy in Botany (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Wan developed a nanoparticulate drug delivery system. It was demonstrated to be effective in encapsulating high concentration of the aniticancer drugs, paclitaxel and docetaxel, and an inhibitor of the drug efflux protein, P-glycoprotein. His studies suggest a novel way of treating multidrug resistance that is common in many cancer patients. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pharmaceutical Sciences (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Kaviani conducted his research into Cloud Computing. He focussed on making applications run faster and cheaper in the Internet of clouds, while ensuring the security and privacy of stored information. If his recommendations are implemented, it will allow software services to be provided to customers at lower cost with improved security. | Doctor of Philosophy in Computer Science (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Schuster investigated systematic conservation planning in human-dominated landscapes. He developed novel techniques to maximize efficiency in biodiversity conservation via carbon sequestration and land management. His work provides guidelines to successfully fund conservation investments and highlights their potential benefits and shortfalls. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Marwaha established a previously unknown role for a new subset of immune cells in children with type 1 diabetes. This work has led to trials of a new therapy that will target these cells in the diesease. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pathology and Laboratory Medicine (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Kim examined ocean literacy during a summer camp. He offered directions for Marine Education which included facilitating student's connectedness to the ocean, and providing opportunities for emotional connections through direct experiences. Dr. Kim also re-imagined the Ocean Literacy definition of sustainability to embrace an Earth-centered view. | Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum Studies (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Pfaffen studied algae from the open oceans. She examined the way in which proteins in the algae store iron from the water to help the algae's later growth. This work contributes to our understanding of how algae survive in iron-limited oceans and bloom upon exposure to iron inputs, thereby having an impact on the global carbon cycle. | Doctor of Philosophy in Microbiology and Immunology (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Nik Rozlin produced nanocrystalline cobalt-iron alloy coatings through the electrodeposition process. Her work showed that these nanostructured coatings had significant improvements in their corrosion behaviour in both acidic and alkaline environments. | Doctor of Philosophy in Materials Engineering (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Van Dongen's research was in the area of atomic, molecular and optical physics, working with ultra-cold trapped atoms. She studied trap loss from a magneto-optical trap due to collisions with non-trapped background gas. Progress was made on a novel pressure standard based on the loss rate of trapped atoms due to background gas collisions. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Howarth designed and studied new, highly luminescent materials for use in organic light emitting diodes. Her work, performed in collaboration with chemists in both England and Italy, has contributed to the overall understanding of these materials, which are commonly used in digital displays and solid-state lighting technologies around the world. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Ghoshal studied how plants recover from viral infection. He found that during recovery of the virus infected plants, production of the viral proteins is prevented. He also discovered a plant enzyme involved in this mechanism. The study identifies a novel antiviral defence response and provides new insights into plant-virus interaction. | Doctor of Philosophy in Botany (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Benton studied biomarkers in two serious pregnancy complication: pre-eclampsia and fetal growth restriction. Her studies identified a protein in the mother's blood that identifies placenta dysfunction, a critical cause of these complications. New blood tests for diagnosing placental dysfunction will improve clinical care of mothers and babies. | Doctor of Philosophy in Reproductive and Developmental Sciences (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Chapagain compared two food production systems: growing one crop alone versus growing multiple crops together. He demonstrated that together, multiple crops improve land and ecosystem productivity and water use efficiency. These studies will assist farmers in transitioning from chemical intensive production to eco-friendly production systems. | Doctor of Philosophy in Plant Science (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Farhang completed her doctoral studies in the field of Materials Engineering. She studied alternative processes for manufacturing composite structural parts in the aerospace industry. She developed a simple aid which can be used to enhance the manufacturing process. | Doctor of Philosophy in Materials Engineering (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Trim explored the history of renewable energy and sustainable development in Canada. He showed that sustainability emerged from a combination of factors: environmentalists' embrace of science to fight the Cold War, Canadian concerns over American neo-colonialism, and the Trudeau government's efforts to rationalize policy making during the 1970s. | Doctor of Philosophy in History (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Gibson examined the ways in which history teachers approached ethical judgments about controversial events in Canadian history, and the impact this had on the responses of students. His research shows that there were vast differences between what teachers believed and how they actually taught about ethically controversial events in the classroom. | Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum Studies (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Lim examined two interlocking dimensions of change in the Chinese political economy. The study revealed institutional continuities between the Mao and post-Mao era and critically evaluated post-2007 socioeconomic policy experimentation in the Pearl River Delta and Chongqing. | Doctor of Philosophy in Geography (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Leung studied a new drug delivery system for gene therapy, called lipid nano-particles. His research revealed the structure of these nano-particles and explained the mechanism of their formation. This has strong implications in the rational design of nano-medicines aimed at silencing specific genes for treating various diseases, including cancer. | Doctor of Philosophy in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Michan developed a Lyman-alpha light source suitable for performing spectroscopy and laser cooling of magnetically trapped antihydrogen. He subsequently developed a hydrogen beam to test this light source and performed spectroscopy of hydrogen. This research contributed towards experimental testing of matter/antimatter symmetry in the universe. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Nitsan worked with the Guatemalan campaign to end violence against women, to examine tensions between theory and practice within the women's human rights discourse. She argues that, to promote transformative social change, those rights are framed in terms of dignity, grounded in women's diverse life experiences and emphasize agency and self-worth. | Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Andema explored the role that digital technology and digital literacy can play in improving teacher education in a rural Ugandan college for primary teachers. The study assists us in understanding the possibility of using digital technology innovatively, to achieve educational change in other poorly resourced contexts like that of Uganda. | Doctor of Philosophy in Language and Literacy Education (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Semeniuk investigated how naturally occurring chemical forms of copper in seawater affect the growth of microscopic plants in the northeast Pacific Ocean. His work demonstrates that copper plays a significant role in determining the success of different microscopic plants in marine ecosystems. | Doctor of Philosophy in Oceanography (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Sandilands studied two statistical methods used to establish whether it is feasible to compare groups in large scale educational assessments. She showed that the methods may not perform accurately when there are missing data, due to assessment design. Her findings will benefit educational policy makers, researchers and assessment designers. | Doctor of Philosophy in Measurement, Evaluation and Research Methodology (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Yang proposes a new framework for numerical modeling of electromagnetic data in geophysics. This approach is able to dramatically speed up the processing of data, making the interpretation much more efficient than before. His research provides geoscientists with a more powerful tool for imaging the earth's structure in a variety of problems. | Doctor of Philosophy in Geophysics (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Randles studied the psychological processes underlying the experience of uncertainty. He discovered that feeling uncertain may best be described as a form of painful distress, where pain medication such as acetaminophen can reduce people's defensive reactions to anxiety-inducing events and inhibit their ability to monitor their own mistakes. | Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology (PhD) |