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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Dr. Wei studied how viruses multiply in their plant host. Using tomato ringspot virus as a model, She found that host proteases and degradation pathways regulate the accumulation of virus replication proteins and likely control the rate of virus multiplication. Her research advances our understanding of the co-evolution between viruses and their hosts. | Doctor of Philosophy in Botany (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Dong developed a new approach to teach and evaluate critical thinking in second language writing. Her research provides pragmatic supports for those who wish to cultivate their students to become, not only proficient language users for effective communication, but also independent critical thinkers for their life-long learning. | Doctor of Philosophy in Teaching English as a Second Language (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Li used computer-aided design methods to develop small, novel drug molecules for the treatment of prostate cancer. The new strategy used in this work found molecules that might be able to treat advanced prostate cancer. It is hoped that these molecules will help overcome drug resistance and prevent the disease from progressing. | Doctor of Philosophy in Bioinformatics (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. McAlister measured trace metals in both the Pacific and Arctic oceans. His research identified new applications to determine how the sources of trace metals and nutrients in those oceans vary with depth, location and, importantly, time. These findings contribute to research investigating the influence of the oceans on global climate change. | Doctor of Philosophy in Oceanography (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Pentifallo studied the effect of the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games on urban policies in Vancouver. She explored attempts to create social housing units in False Creek and policing measures in the Downtown Eastside. This study could help citizens and city planners to anticipate the effects of major events on urban policy making. | Doctor of Philosophy in Kinesiology (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Yang studied two problems: SU(3) Toda system and Lin-Ni Problem. For the first problem, he obtained a partial result on the degree counting formula of the system and existence results for the parameters in some specific range. For the second one, he constructed a non-trivial solution to the Lin-Ni problem, which disproves the Lin-Ni conjecture. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mathematics (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Zhang studied navigation systems in small robots. He developed the technology so that those mobile robots can learn to detect obstacles and people in a home environment, and avoid bumping into them. This research shows promising developments in the use of robots to assist the elderly and the differently abled in daily activities. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mechanical Engineering (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Nicanfar developed novel solutions for secure communications in smart grids. His authentication, key management and key construction mechanisms improve the efficiency of secure data transfers in home and neighbourhood networks. His network privacy mechanism and privacy-preserving security solutions further protect the privacy of mobile customers. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Read analyzed the windstorms that affected southwest BC from 1994 to 2012, and modeled related damage to the electrical grid. Power outages were found to be nearly certain for winds above 60 km/h, and outage frequency increased exponentially with peak wind speed. Outage forecasts help utilities improve grid resiliency, keeping our cell phones on. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Dominelli studied young women with disordered eating and alcohol use. She applied psychobiological measures to examine their emotional responses, and their ability to regulate these responses. This study refines our understanding of the relationship between emotions and bingeing behaviour and has implications for prevention and treatment. | Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Won examined the performance of breast cancer biomarkers in hospital laboratories across Canada. Through her research, she helped to develop an improved diagnostic test for basal-like breast cancer. Her work highlights the importance of effective quality assurance and quality control, in order to ensure optimal cancer patient care and safety. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pathology and Laboratory Medicine (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Haitham identified strategies that can be used to accelerate the construction process in cave mining systems. He developed a method suitable for investigating how certain strategies affected the construction rates. He developed an approach that can be used to evaluate the cost of implementing decisions to accelerate construction. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mining Engineering (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Dissing-Olesen discovered two novel modes of communication between the brain's neurons and the brain's immune cells. These fascinating findings provide new insight into the functional role of the brain's immune cells in the healthy and diseased brain. | Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Daly compared the ideas that young people and clinicians have about sexual health care. She found that young people wanted acceptance and support in navigating both the dangers and pleasures of sexual activity. This research can help clinicians provide more effective and sex-positive care, relevant to the diverse needs of young people. | Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Gerlach identified how an early intervention program fostered health equity for Indigenous children, by being responsive to the lived realities and priorities of Indigenous families. This socially responsive form of intervention challenges our assumptions about early childhood programming for families and children who experience marginalization. | Doctor of Philosophy in Rehabilitation Sciences (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Haghdan investigated the behavior of laminates made of wood and polyester when they are compressed. Those new bio-composites reacted to being crushed with the same absorption ability as their synthetic fibre counterparts. The advantages of these laminates are their mechanical properties, light weight, low cost and environmental benefits. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Taves studied stress hormones which are normally produced by the adrenal glands. These hormones are generally thought to suppress the immune function, but it turns out that the immune systems of birds and mammals also produce those hormones. The hormones may be critical in development of a competent and appropriately responsive immune system. | Doctor of Philosophy in Zoology (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Baute used genomic tools to explore the genetic history of the sunflower, a globally important oil seed. These analyses revealed a long history of the use of wild relatives in sunflower improvement. By introducing new wild diversity into the cultivated sunflower he found promising material for drought tolerance and disease resistance. | Doctor of Philosophy in Botany (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Tompkins studied commonalities between bipolar and alcohol use disorders. She found that certain aspects of impulsivity play an important role in mediating the relationship between hypomanic personality features and alcohol use. This research supports the idea there may be a common vulnerability to bipolar and alcohol use disorders. | Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Roberts studied intestinal inflammation and the role of a protein called Lyn, which is important in the immune system. She identified Lyn as a regulator of host-microbial interactions in the gut, which ultimately dictate intestinal health and disease. This work contributes to a growing field in immunology which targets inflammatory bowel disease. | Doctor of Philosophy in Microbiology and Immunology (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Ruby completed her doctoral studies in the field of Electrical and Computer Engineering. She focussed on scheduling and resource allocation, which are important tasks in the radio resource management layer in wireless communication systems known as LTE. She proposed three uplink scheduling and resource allocation schemes for LTE-Advanced systems. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Mirshokraie's doctoral studies focused on automated testing of web applications. The evaluation results point to the effectiveness of the proposed techniques in terms of accuracy and error detection capability. Her automated testing methods reduce the tester's time and manual effort, while increasing the reliability of web applications | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Berndt showed how the specialized functions of brain neurons are controlled by signals from targets that the neurons contact. He defined how these signals are interpreted at regulatory regions of DNA. His work contributes to our understanding of brain development, and describes processes that are disrupted in degenerative neurological diseases. | Doctor of Philosophy in Cell and Developmental Biology (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Moody examined nurses' practice of judging the cognitive functions of older people in hospital. She found nurses make complex judgments based on interactions with patients, shared nursing knowledge, and social norms related to documentation systems. The research highlights the invisibility of nurses' knowledge, and points to ways to improve care. | Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing (PhD) |
| 2015 | Dr. Aguilar constructed computer simulations to model the behaviour of a gas which is at the brink of gravitational collapse. One of his goals was to analyze previously unexplored rotational effects on this critically collapsing gas. This work helps elucidate the formation and properties of exotic astrophysical objects commonly known as black holes. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |