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. Wang investigated the genomic mechanisms of speciation, the process in which one lineage becomes more than one. She found that genetic underpinning of plumage coloration and mitonuclear coevolution were targets of selection in a Pacific Northwest warbler species complex. This research sheds light on the mechanisms that lead to biodiversity. | Doctor of Philosophy in Zoology (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Azimi developed an efficient representation for digital colors based on the human visual system in order to improve the color quality of HDR videos without increasing the required bandwidth. Her results showed that her method can be effectively used for efficient compression in video transmission, outperforming current practices. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Monje proposes a new approach to Colombian literature that focuses on the sociable nature of Literary Cafés, which unites a diversity of texts and analyzes them in a way that unveils writers' associations over time. This research shows an innovative way of reading literature, which can be applied in different spatio-temporal contexts. | Doctor of Philosophy in Hispanic Studies (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Glass studied the relationship between human and livestock wellbeing in a traditional Maasai community. She found that herd size is associated with wealth and happiness, and her findings support the community belief that livestock are not a major source of human illness, as human and livestock diseases are most strongly correlated with climate. | Doctor of Philosophy in Population and Public Health (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Ren discovered a novel mechanism that increases the coding capacity of a virus through an intergenic region internal ribosome entry site (IRES). This study will further our understanding of IRES' mediated translation initiation and reading frame decoding, which will inform our ability to recognize and treat viruses. | Doctor of Philosophy in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Weber examined the structure of words in Blackfoot, a First Nations language. They proposed a model of the correspondence relations between representations of the meaningful parts of language and representations of speech sounds. This research contributes to our understanding of linguistic structure in words of all languages more generally. | Doctor of Philosophy in Linguistics (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Bryce examined how an increase in one stress factor alters dopamine neuron physiology and impairs motivation and decision-making, areas known to be affected in depression. These studies aid in our understanding of how stress can lead to pathological outcomes and help identify new targets to treat non-affective symptoms of depression. | Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Gautreaux examined how activist teachers in Chicago are fighting for both education justice and racial justice. She showed how teachers experience tension and disagreement on the topics of race, police violence, and the definition of social justice unionism. Her findings will inform future research in racial justice and social justice unionism. | Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum Studies (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Wong studied membrane contact sites, locations in cells where membranes come together to share material and information. He discovered that a protein holding two membranes together also brings in other proteins that shuttle lipids between the two membranes. These studies provide fundamental insight into how cells use contact sites to survive. | Doctor of Philosophy in Genome Science and Technology (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Richard Albert studied how each of our two copies of DNA, one from mom and one from dad, are treated differently deep within our cells. His research furthers our understanding of human reproduction and inheritance and will inform biomedical applications such as artificial insemination, stem cell therapies and cloning. | Doctor of Philosophy in Medical Genetics (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Sanford examined brain activity and working memory deficits in schizophrenia. Using a novel multi-dataset approach, she found that a brain network that activated during initial memory encoding predicted both verbal and visual memory capacity. This will inform the development of treatments to improve working memory in schizophrenia patients. | Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Waber designed and built open-source technologies to study the past use of stone tools. This research helps archaeologists better understand tool design and use in past societies, and sheds light on how humans engage with their technological environment. | Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Sajadi investigated the electronic properties of 2D topological insulators (TIs), a new class of materials with distinct electronic properties, and studied the interplay of 2D TIs with another exotic phase of matter: superconductivity. This work enhances our understanding of 2D TIs, and will pave the way towards topological quantum computing. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Ghaffari Touran investigated one of the main fundamental mechanisms affecting the separation of multi-component ores. She showed how prolonged conditioning and gradual dissolution of salt-type minerals destroy the selectivity of the separation process. Her findings will help to improve product quality in the mineral industry. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mining Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Maharaj explored the meaning of pets for people with cancer. Inspired by her bulldog, Dally, she highlights the importance of meaning-making for the human-pet relationship. Her findings can support patients in reflecting on their experiences, as well as bring new understandings for health care providers to better address the needs of patients. | Doctor of Philosophy in Interdisciplinary Studies (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Dao's research identified relevant brain imaging markers for studying vascular cognitive impairment, a common form of dementia. She found that greater beta-amyloid plaque deposition and reduced myelin integrity contributed to worse clinical outcomes. This research is important for improving care in people with vascular cognitive impairment. | Doctor of Philosophy in Rehabilitation Sciences (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Waldman studied the politics of the development of a sport-focused gated community in India. She found that colonial legacies of sport influenced the design of the community, that violent dispossession made land available for development, and that flexible interpretations of law privileged some individuals and land uses over others. | Doctor of Philosophy in Kinesiology (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Ishikawa demonstrated that people make health decisions based on stereotypes of health conditions and diseases, and developed a new approach to risk communication in health. His findings advance current strategies to reduce unintentional child injuries and fatalities, and help to address vaccine hesitancy and other health misconceptions. | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Mitchell worked to develop new data quality control and survey design methodologies specifically tailored for electrical and electromagnetic surveys collected in tunnel-based environments. These methodologies improve our ability to image the regions surrounding tunnels to mitigate hazards and map mineralized zones. | Doctor of Philosophy in Geophysics (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Bowes investigated reductive elimination, a chemical reaction critical to the production of high-performance materials, pharmaceuticals, and fine chemicals. He developed a framework for predicting and controlling the outcome of this reaction that will inform more cost-effective and sustainable approaches to the preparation of these products. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Ukrainetz used DNA markers to predict growth and wood traits in lodgepole pine. This technique can be used to predict mature traits in young seedlings, offering tree breeders a tool to make selections after one year as opposed to more than ten. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Plourde studied how the distribution of earthquakes near tectonic plate boundaries is affected by the distribution of groundwater. To help unravel these tectonic systems, he presents new computational methods to illuminate detailed earthquake source processes. | Doctor of Philosophy in Geophysics (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Hernandez used state-of-the-art nuclear models and statistics to study the imprints of the nucleus on light from exotic atoms in which the nucleus is orbited by a muon instead of an electron. This work sheds light on recent experimental discrepancies and helps illuminate our understanding of the interplay between the nucleus and light. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Bashir investigated the behavioural and neuropathological consequences of traumatic brain injury (TBI). She showed that CHIMERA, a rodent model of head injury, can replicate many features of human TBI. Dr. Bashir hopes that, in the future, CHIMERA can be used to validate promising drug targets to help in the treatment of TBI. | Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Hao's doctoral studies focused on how genetics can influence prostate cancer. He identified a gene that may drive the development of treatment-resistant prostate cancer. His work improves our understanding of the mechanism underlying the development of treatment resistance and provides a potential therapeutic target for this lethal disease. | Doctor of Philosophy in Interdisciplinary Oncology (PhD) |