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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Dr. Sacheli used fMRI and PET brain imaging techniques to show that exercise can increase dopamine release in people with Parkinson's disease. This shows why exercise is specifically beneficial for people with Parkinson's disease, and supports the use of exercise as an adjunction therapy. | Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Wakefield studied home, school, and community beliefs about strengths and resources of culturally and linguistically diverse children and families. Stakeholders viewed cultural and linguistic diversity as both a challenge and an opportunity. This research informs both practice and policy to support young children's transition to school. | Doctor of Philosophy in Human Development, Learning, and Culture (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Munz examined how plants and algae respond to a lack of nitrogen, a macronutrient that is essential for growth and development. Using the genetics model of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, a single-cell green algae, Dr. Munz makes a critical first step toward uncovering the elusive signaling mechanism that responds to cellular nitrogen status. | Doctor of Philosophy in Botany (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Galiano Zurbriggen developed tools to improve the performance of power converters used in applications such as renewable energies, electric vehicles, and battery chargers. His contributions can be directly implemented in commercial products, creating significant benefits towards the de-carbonization of the energy and transportation sectors. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Forde examined the role that soccer clubs fulfilled in a particular township in South Africa during apartheid. The clubs offered spaces for resistance and political organizing; they also offered spaces for community support, solidarity, and joy. This research provides an understanding of how sport contributes to political and social change. | Doctor of Philosophy in Kinesiology (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Zwartsenberg discovered a novel quantum mechanical approach to switching materials from electrically conductive, to electrically non-conductive. His results are not only of importance to the understanding of fundamental physics, but also open up new avenues to explore in the design of future electronics and sensing materials. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Asadian investigated the impact of involving patients and community members in the education of health professional students. Through years of practice in teaching, research, and evaluation, she has contributed to the understanding of ways to enhance education and learning. | Doctor of Philosophy in Human Development, Learning, and Culture (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Magalhães studied the importance of tree species interactions in projecting the effects of climate change on forests. She designed software to predict tree growth similar to the way that Google predicts e-mail sentences. Her research highlights the relevance of competition to accurately simulate tree growth responses to climate change. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Miranda Barrios documented Latin American exiles' use of radio to recreate cultural and political identities and forge solidarity in a west coast Canadian context. Her work sheds light on the efforts of diasporic groups to use bilingual community media to engage diasporic and non-diasporic audiences in social, cultural, and political issues. | Doctor of Philosophy in Hispanic Studies (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Saket solved a long-standing trade-off in the design of high-frequency transformers for power supplies and battery chargers. His approach makes it possible to design transformers that are highly efficient and have a minimal noise emission. This proposed method will lead to a new era of compact and efficient power converters. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Barrero carried out a multi-scale study on the cyclic liquefaction of granular soils. He analyzed the mechanisms involved in the loss of grain contacts and developed a model for reliable simulation of liquefaction-induced deformations. His findings improve our ability to predict the behaviour of granular materials during liquefaction. | Doctor of Philosophy in Civil Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Nkansah-Boadu studied the treatment of selenium-contaminated coal mine-affected water using microbial consortia from mine-affected sediments. He discovered novel selenium-reducing bacteria and selenium removal pathways. His findings contribute knowledge for designing systems for remediating selenium-contaminated mine waters. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemical and Biological Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Wong studied the properties of flexible proteins that are not folded prior to binding. These proteins play critical roles in signaling and regulation by interacting with other proteins. He created a computational predictor for protein sites that bind to these flexible proteins and explored their relationship with disease-causing mutations. | Doctor of Philosophy in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Beetch studied how natural compounds derived from diet, namely a class of polyphenols found in grapes and blueberries, can reverse aberrant DNA methylation patterns that underlie cancer. Her findings show that these compounds exert anti-cancer effects through epigenetic gene regulation, which can be used in cancer prevention and therapy. | Doctor of Philosophy in Human Nutrition (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Oyinlola studied the effects of climate change on global seafood production. His findings show that increasing greenhouse gases will negatively affect mariculture production in many regions of the world, particularly the tropics and sub-tropical regions. This research supports continuous mariculture related research and industry applications. | Doctor of Philosophy in Zoology (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Atkins developed a new type of practical display to simulate the visual sensation provided by a window overlooking a distant space. This research will help inform the design of indoor environments such as shopping malls, working spaces, and living spaces, especially in underground and confined locations. | Doctor of Philosophy in Interdisciplinary Studies (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Bolen studied the role of the five primary senses (sight, hearing, touch, smell and taste) in contemporary québécois literature. Her research examines the fascinating, albeit complex, relationship between sensory memory and storytelling in novels written by "migrant" writers. | Doctor of Philosophy in French (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Malladi developed mathematical models to optimize short-term biomass logistics and analyzed the impacts of carbon pricing policies on optimal cost and emissions of the models. The developed models were validated and applied to two case studies. The results will help logistics companies make more informed decisions for their short-term planning. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Leung studied the role of proline isomerase Pin1 in prostate cancer. His research describes the interaction of Pin1 with the androgen receptor N-terminal domain and how targeting both of these proteins could reduce tumour growth. These findings enhance our understanding of the androgen receptor and aid in the development of novel therapies. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pathology and Laboratory Medicine (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Lix studied and improved a new type of ultrabright fluorescent probe called polymer dots that are used in bioanalysis and imaging. She investigated how these materials interact with other fluorescent materials. Her research will be used to develop new technologies that will enable medical diagnosis at the point-of-care. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Siksik developed a machine learning-based framework for modeling cellular ion channels. This opens the door for new types of experiments that were previously computationally prohibitive. The framework has the potential to reduce the cost of drug development and enable advanced medical research focused on understanding ion-channel diseases. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Pesteie explored machine learning algorithms to improve image-guided procedures in healthcare. He devised models that can learn from partial or limited expert supervision in environments, where data annotation is costly and time consuming. His methods can provide automatic feedback for more accurate decision making in clinics. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Kwan investigated new approaches to reduce cost and increase performance for water electrolysis. The development of new methods will more accurately quantify degradation, performance, and efficiency, using modified electrochemical setups. His research will lead to improved water electrolyzers for a greener and more sustainable future. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemical and Biological Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Kielstra examined the effects of environmental variability and land cover on stream ecosystems. He found that improved prediction of ecological threats depends on the indicator, and that incorporating multiple scales can increase predictive ability. This work will help ecologists to better predict and understand important threats to ecosystems. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Wu studied the signaling transduction pathways in plant immunity. His work revealed novel regulatory mechanisms governing the activation of plant immune receptors, which may contribute to the engineering of broad-spectrum resistance in crops. | Doctor of Philosophy in Botany (PhD) |