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. Bremner studied the electrical charging and discharging properties of poly-thiophene, a polymer that can store a charge like a battery. His work demonstrated that the introduction of small pores in the polymer increased the rate of discharging of poly-thiophene, an important characteristic for organic batteries. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Cordy investigated atmospheric mercury contamination from gold mining in South America. His work provided a means of estimating and visualizing health hazards in cities, and produced a new understanding of the consequences of this phenomenon. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mining Engineering (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Goldie studied the relationships between cardiovascular risk and disease among Canadians with mental health disorders. Using novel measurement approaches, she documented a disparity in cardiovascular health between people with and without mental illness. Her research highlights a need for renewed focus on effective preventative interventions. | Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Aucoin investigated learners' views about the use of Web 2.0 applications in online and face-to-face post-secondary learning environments. The results of this study will inform instructional design and policy decisions with respect to the use of Web 2.0 applications in post-secondary education. | Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership and Policy (EdD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Albon studied the role and status of the basic sciences in UBC's current B.Sc. in Pharmacy program. His in-depth case study revealed tensions amongst faculty about the importance of these sciences. He showed how the different perspectives are confounding agreement on the scientific foundations of contemporary pharmacy education and its practice. | Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum Studies (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. McKechnie's dissertation examines multiple scales of Indigenous history on the Northwest Coast, with a focus on two key domains of human existence: food and settlement. His research demonstrates an enduring coherence in Indigenous oral history and resource use. This offers insight into broader patterns of everyday human history over millennia. | Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Hagen studied student engagement in elementary math. She found using cognitive tools from Imaginative Education theory to build children's connections to math concepts increased their math awareness and self-confidence. Her study points to the importance of engaging children's emotional responses and imagination in learning mathematics. | Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum Studies (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. McVea studied brain activity in the newborn and adult brain. He found new, previously unrecognized patterns of activity in the newborn brain that may help prepare the brain for more mature patterns in later life. Knowledge of this activity may help develop treatments for those with brain injuries, as well as disorders of brain development | Doctor of Medicine and Doctor of Philosophy (MDPhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Darwich examined early adolescents and their ethnic and Canadian identity, sense of belonging at school, and experiences with discrimination. She found that higher levels of discrimination were linked to lower levels of school belonging. Her conclusion that youth new to Canada have a lower sense of belonging has implications for their education. | Doctor of Philosophy in Human Development, Learning, and Culture (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Ang studied abdominal aneurysms at the James Hogg Research Centre. She found that elevated levels of the enzyme Granzyme B contribute to the weakening of the abdominal aorta, and increased susceptibility to rupture and death. Her findings may lead to development of a novel drug strategy for treating aneurysms and other inflammatory diseases | Doctor of Philosophy in Pathology and Laboratory Medicine (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Whitehead has shown that modern Balkan instability resulted from the Great Eastern Crisis in the late 19th century. Using an international perspective, Dr. Whitehead found that the principle of national self-determination was imposed on the region without regard for local populations, which tragically underlay the origins of the First World War. | Doctor of Philosophy in History (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Chudy explained the formation of magmatic deposits of tantalum in the Canadian Cordillera. He showed that a particular composition of the melt together with high intrusion temperatures favoured the accumulation of this rare and strategically important element. His work will significantly facilitate the exploration for tantalum deposits in Canada. | Doctor of Philosophy in Geological Sciences (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Tsukada examined how international students and universities in Japan engaged with internationalization. She found that they constructed imagined international communities that reflected not their local diversity but a neoliberal and Western-centered interpretation of globalization. Dr. Tsukada calls for a critical approach to internationalization. | Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Studies (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Wiseman studied the use of food product claims by consumers and food manufacturers. The results from her study help to explain how a strategic use of product claims on processed food product by food manufacturers cause markets to fail. Her research contributes to our understanding of food claims as a communication and public health tool. | Doctor of Philosophy in Integrated Studies in Land and Food Systems (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. James investigated the connections between Emotional Intelligence and the experiences of first year students at a Canadian university. Her findings revealed a complicated relationship, but observed changes in EI suggest that, in general, the first year of university enhances the EI of students, especially intrapersonal and adaptability skills. | Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Studies (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Gilchrist studied the design and evaluation of laboratory experiments on hip fractures. He compared the outcomes of different test methods and informed researchers of the most appropriate techniques. The results will be applied by researchers developing new screening procedures to identify, and ultimately treat, those at risk of hip fracture. | Doctor of Philosophy in Biomedical Engineering (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Fukuyama explored how nursing faculty members experienced the gap between the good practice taught in nursing curricula and poor practice witnessed by nursing students, often due to health care restructuring. Faculty navigated the politics of clinical placements and used them to teach good nursing care and the need for systems change. | Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership and Policy (EdD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Russell studied how intestinal microbes influence allergic diseases. She showed that antibiotic exposure early in life can affect populations of intestinal bacteria and make animals more susceptible to asthma and food allergies. This research highlights a role for healthy intestinal bacteria in the treatment and prevention of allergic diseases. | Doctor of Philosophy in Microbiology and Immunology (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Gutica studied how emotion influences learning in the context of tutoring systems. She designed an educational game, Heroes of Math Island, for students in Grades 5 to 7, and analyzed the learners' emotional states as they interacted with it. Her findings will benefit researchers and designers in the field of advanced learning technologies. | Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum Studies (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Gurney constructed the first marine ecosystem model of the Subantarctic Prince Edward Achipelago. The model captured the food web of marine life and was able to reproduce past population dynamics and forecast potential effects of climate change. The model provides a tool for fisheries and conservation research at the islands. | Doctor of Philosophy in Oceanography (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Meyer analysed how Italian, Austrian and Hungarian history museums exhibit the Holocaust. She shows that, after the 1990s, worldwide and national trends to address the Holocaust merged texts, objects, visual materials and sounds. This offers new insights for scholars and museum practitioners working on Holocaust and other historical exhibits. | Doctor of Philosophy in History (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Topping developed and tested methods for measuring accumulation of manganese in rats using magnetic resonance imaging and positron emission tomography. These results will be useful in future studies of how patterns of brain activation change in response to drugs or other stimuli. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Jankhah studied membrane filtration systems, which are used to purify water, but at a relatively high cost. She demonstrated the efficiency of injecting air bubbles of various sizes at various rates for preventing fouling in the filtration systems. Her findings could reduce the operating costs associated with fouling in these systems by 50%. | Doctor of Philosophy in Civil Engineering (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Dahmardeh developed a machining technique to shape laboratory-grown groups of carbon nanotubes, known as forests. Each nanotube is 10 thousand times thinner than a human hair, and machining is done by tiny, fast electrical sparks. The shaped forests can be used in miniature devices such as micro-actuator, sensors and high-power micro-switches. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2014 | Dr. Bao studied the uptake of maltose, a malt sugar, into the E. coli bacterium. His research revealed how maltose import is regulated by cellular proteins. His findings provide significant insights into the way maltose is transported into cells and the implications for multi-drug resistance. | Doctor of Philosophy in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (PhD) |