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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Dr. Liao studied the trans-imperial, colonial, and Cold War origins of the cultural politics of youth in Singapore between the 1940s and 1970s. He showed how imperial ambitions, colonial anxieties, nationalist aspirations, and global Cold War agendas converged to shape state-society relations, age-relations, and state-formation in modern Singapore. | Doctor of Philosophy in History (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Na's study compared the efficacy of loving-kindness meditation, a novel intervention for reducing stigma of bipolar disorder, to an education-contact intervention. Results provide insight into the process of mental illness stigma reduction, by highlighting key intervention components, such as increase in knowledge and positivity toward others. | Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Nastaran developed a new type of cancer immunotherapy and a candidate diagnostic tool for solid tumors by using a protein from the malaria parasite that only targets tumor cells. This research has credentialized a cancer-specific glycosaminoglycan modification for utilization as a target in both cancer therapeutic and diagnostic applications. | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Walker studied the wholistic Cree political ethics that arises from an understanding of the land as okâwimâwaskiy or 'mother earth.' She argues that what okâwimâwaskiy teaches us is how regenerative political systems can be co-created through a wholistic compassionate, conscious care for all life. | Doctor of Philosophy in Political Science (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Wong searched for exotic particles beyond the Standard Model of particle physics with the ATLAS detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. The searches helped constrain new physics scenarios, including leptoquarks and hidden strong dynamics. He also contributed to the upgrade of a tracking system of the detector, allowing efficient recording of collision data. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Jaffe examined the experiences of research participants in a clinical trial for opioid use disorder. Her research illustrated how social and structural factors can shape the production of biomedical knowledge and identified strategies for improving the effective and ethical conduct of research with marginalized populations. | Doctor of Philosophy in Sociology (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Kabeer studied the evolutionary history of triple negative breast cancer which is the deadliest of all sub types. Her research used new single-cell sequencing techniques and has altered our fundamental understanding of how cancer subpopulations evolve to create drug resistance under chemotherapies. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pathology and Laboratory Medicine (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Dunkley's research examined sexual function in relation to eating disorder symptoms. Higher levels of disordered eating were associated with more sexual problems, and this relationship was partially explained by psychological traits, indicating that shared etiological factors that may underlie both sexual concerns and disordered eating. | Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Lai investigated the Green tensor of incompressible flows in the half space and examined existence theorems of fluid-related models such as plasma, polymetric liquid, and swimming bacteria. His research provides insights on boundary behavior of fluid flows and gives a deeper understanding of complex fluids. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mathematics (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Yang explored the extreme limits of chemical bonding in both long and short directions. The molecular systems designed with the new theories can be used as molecular switches, narrow band-gap conducting polymers, and superhigh energy density materials. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Park developed a master protocol for an innovative trial design called for an adaptive platform trial that can answer multiple questions for child linear growth research in sub-Saharan Africa. His research established a way to improve the efficiency and long-term sustainability of clinical trial research for global health. | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Gil discovered novel anatomical structures in baleen whales that protect the nasal cavities from pressure damage and the respiratory tract from water and food incursion. She proposed a mechanism for how these whales can swallow huge volumes of food through a surprisingly small esophagus, contributing to the evolution of their enormous size. | Doctor of Philosophy in Zoology (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Berk analyzed sensitivity of LASSO programs, which are well-known algorithms at the interface of convex optimization and probability. This sensitivity analysis builds on important tools from high-dimensional probability theory, and informs the practitioner's selection of the right computational tool. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mathematics (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Melo developed a super-resolution microscope, combining interferometric scattering and Raman microscopies, which he applied to nanoscopic and biological systems. He also developed a non-invasive methodology to diagnose Brugada Syndrome, a precursor of sudden cardiac death, from the analysis of electrocardiograms using a deep neural network. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Vincent explored poetic inquiry and discovered its distinctive functions as method, methodology and tool in research and scholarship. He found that poetic inquiry is rhizomatic, appearing across the disciplines, and that it merges the sensibilities of a poet (with literary concerns) with those of a researcher (with epistemological concerns). | Doctor of Philosophy in Language and Literacy Education (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Qu explored methods of modifying graphene on a silicon carbide substrate using adsorbed and intercalated atoms. Using a variety of surface characterization techniques, she studied the electronic properties of the resulting materials. This research helps us understand how graphene could eventually be used in everyday electronics. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Rees examined how cell communication is altered in people with inflammatory bowel disease patients. This alteration in communication drives inflammation and exacerbates disease. | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. To-Miles studied how activities are related to health among people with and without inflammatory arthritis, and how activities and health have changed during COVID-19. Her research provokes further study on the resiliency of the arthritis population and contributes to the fields of arthritis, occupational science, and occupational therapy. | Doctor of Philosophy in Rehabilitation Sciences (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Foth developed new synthetic methods to incorporate fluorine atoms into organic molecules that are more efficient and practical than existing methods. These strategies access industrially-relevant compounds and will aid in the development of future pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, and materials. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Wang used optical tweezers to investigate the mechanical properties of proteins at the single molecular level. His study provided invaluable insights into the protein folding-unfolding mechanisms, and assisted us in understanding a variety of biological processes in the nano scale. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2021 | Using wearable technologies, Dr. Schirmann investigated how the behaviour of dairy cows changes in response to illness. Her work has shown that cows change behaviours in response to illness and her findings are a key step to identifying automated ways of identifying unwell animals when housed in large groups. | Doctor of Philosophy in Applied Animal Biology (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Chander's dissertation involves the optimization of lipid nanoparticle systems to exhibit improved therapeutic properties like enhanced drug release ability and improved transfection competency in extra-hepatic tissues for both small molecule and nucleic-acid based drugs. | Doctor of Philosophy in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (PhD) |
| 2021 | Tumours are heterogeneous entities composed of genetically and functionally distinct cell populations. Dr. LeBlanc's work characterized this heterogeneity in brain tumours, shedding light on the biology of these lethal cancers and providing a resource to help guide the appropriate use of brain tumour models crucial to research. | Doctor of Philosophy in Genome Science and Technology (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Becker interviewed Indigenous women living in Canada who have done well with career decision-making during a period of sex-based status discrimination. Resulting themes highlight the roles of relationships, personal values, adverse experiences, situational influences, and community in influencing how these women navigate their careers. | Doctor of Philosophy in Counselling Psychology (PhD) |
| 2021 | Dr. Silva studied rocks formed in a sea that existed 240 million years ago in present-day British Columbia and Alberta. His research reconstructs how these rocks were deposited and describes how the minerals and rock properties vary across space, contributing to the understanding of the geologic history and energy resources of western Canada. | Doctor of Philosophy in Geological Sciences (PhD) |