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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Dr. Yumagulova examined how cities and regions can build their resilience to disasters and climate change using the Metro Vancouver region as her case study. Her research shows the importance of collaboration and learning to ensure coordinated, multi-level governance of risk. | Doctor of Philosophy in Planning (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Nanji studied autophagy, a method in which our bodies deal with the destruction of cells. By comparing the autophagy systems of fission yeast and mammals she was able to develop a model of autophagy initiation in fission yeast and humans. This work further unravelled the complicated interactions associated with autophagy. | Doctor of Philosophy in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Ivo Odon completed his research in the field of Atmospheric Sciences. He investigated the behaviour of extreme weather events across BC, and the impacts of climate change on such events. The results of his dissertation are being used by BC Hydro so they can better prepare for peaks in electricity demand and power outages. | Doctor of Philosophy in Atmospheric Science (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Stiegler utilized mobile methodological lenses to explore innovative ways of moving, thinking, and writing alongside trans, queer, and genderqueer youth in New York City. This work ensures their lives are animated in ways that make central the knowledge young people produce about themselves and how they are able to move through social worlds. | Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum Studies (PhD) |
| 2019 | Using experimental and modeling methods, Dr. Medrano studied aluminum alloys for automotive applications. His work linked the strength of the alloy to the formation of nanoclusters during processing, and their relationship with the material's defects. This study supports the use of these alloys to produce vehicles with less environmental impact. | Doctor of Philosophy in Materials Engineering (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Bomkamp examined presynaptic differentiation mediated by PTP sigma, providing evidence that its binding site for liprin-alpha, but not its phosphatase activity, is required for it to induce synapses. She also modeled relationships between gene expression and neuronal properties in order to generate hypotheses about how these properties are regulated. | Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Sharma pioneered a method to examine the landscape of protein targets that can be recognized by a specialized class of immune cells called T cells. This method enables us to explore how the immune system successfully protects the body from possible threats and use this knowledge to develop new immune-based therapies for a wide array of diseases. | Doctor of Philosophy in Genome Science and Technology (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Darvin examined how migrant Filipino youth in Vancouver, of contrasting social classes, are socialized into unequal digital practices. He identified critical issues that emerge from the integration of technology in education and designed a framework for digital literacy instruction. His work will help students navigate online spaces in empowering ways. | Doctor of Philosophy in Language and Literacy Education (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Yoon examined the communication, politics and social inequalities surrounding an Olympic-related environmental issue, and its underlying power struggles. She sought out various responses to this controversy as a way to challenge dominant representations and show how crises could be a site for imagining alternative politics and futures. | Doctor of Philosophy in Kinesiology (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Rumak studied auditory brain processes in recreational cannabis users. He found that cannabis users had slower attentional processing under difficult task conditions. He also found that cannabis users had superior working memory performance. This research suggests that the lasting effects of cannabis use are more nuanced than previously assumed. | Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Ashtari evaluated the performance-based seismic design provisions of the 2014 Canadian Highway Bridge Design Code for reinforced concrete bridges. She identified, for the first time, the challenges of implementing the provisions in practice and addressed them with regards to design framework, performance criteria, analysis, and performance verification. | Doctor of Philosophy in Civil Engineering (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Rugel created a model of natural spaces such as parks, street trees, and beaches across Vancouver. She applied it to prescription and survey data to identify how specific forms of nature influence our mental health and social connections. Her work advances our understanding of how best to integrate nature into healthy urban policies and designs. | Doctor of Philosophy in Population and Public Health (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Wang found out that heparanase, using its properties to promote cell survival, protect the heart cells against multiple stresses frequently seen in patients with ischemia and diabetes-induced heart diseases, in both cell experiments and animal studies. This research could help devise new strategies to combat heart diseases. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pharmaceutical Sciences (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Kim asks what socio-historical contexts led to a linguistic understanding of the epithet 'Nation of Propriety in the East' for Korea. She traces the genealogy of representations of linguistic politeness, and examines how Koreans and non-Koreans constructed saturated cultural images of Korean honorifics. | Doctor of Philosophy in Asian Studies (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Badran showed that intermittent hypoxia, a hallmark of obstructive sleep apnea, can cause uterine artery dysfunction during pregnancy and lead to cardiometabolic disease in the offspring using an animal model of sleep disordered breathing. His work provides insight in the pathophysiology of obstructive sleep apnea in pregnancy. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pharmacology (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Matejova examined environmental disasters and their effects on nonviolent protest. She argues that uncertainty about disaster impacts plays a crucial role in the protest mobilization process. Her findings can be used to improve disaster communication practices, and open opportunities for resolution of social conflict. | Doctor of Philosophy in Political Science (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Si investigated the particles that catalyze ice formation in the atmosphere. These particles influence clouds, precipitation, and climate. She quantified the concentrations, properties, and identified sources of these ice-nucleating particles at remote Canadian environments. Her findings can help improve the accuracy of climate models. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Lee identified splicing mechanisms orchestrating the progression of an aggressive therapy-resistant prostate cancer subtype. Her research pertains to the clinical implications of splicing mechanisms in informing future therapeutic strategies that may be effective in detecting and preventing or mitigating the disease course. | Doctor of Philosophy in Reproductive and Developmental Sciences (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Akhtari studied bioenergy and biofuel production using forestry by-products in British Columbia. In her work, she developed decision making models that inform decisions related to designing a supply chain. This is aimed at generating additional revenue for the forest industry, and replacing fossil fuels with bioenergy in forest-dependent communities. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Merkley examined critical limits of expert influence on public opinion. He showed that news media content rarely features relevant expert consensus and that some people are more likely to reject such consensus when exposed to populist rhetoric or cues from politicians. His work will aid efforts at science communication by journalists and experts. | Doctor of Philosophy in Political Science (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Lambert investigated causes of pain in fibromyalgia and determined that specialized immune cells in the brain may play a critical role. She also created two novel molecules which act on the endocannabinoid system to reduce the pain-causing actions of these immune cells. Her work may form the basis of a new therapeutic strategy for chronic pain. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pharmaceutical Sciences (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Nanavati examined how modern high-performance servers can safely be shared across multiple applications. He then developed systems that enabled high resource efficiency on these shared servers, while isolating applications and providing them with virtual hardware abstractions, all with performance comparable to dedicated hardware. | Doctor of Philosophy in Computer Science (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Maki studied the motion of expanding strongly interacting atomic gases. His research showed that the symmetry associated with fractals, a type of geometric figure, enables predictions about the rate of expansion for these gases. This research improves our understanding of atomic gases, which are a prime candidate for novel quantum technologies. | Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Pan developed a novel numerical model to simulate the creping process, a key operation in the manufacturing of tissue paper. The study has helped the industry to better understand the creping process and potentially improve the tissue paper quality. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mechanical Engineering (PhD) |
| 2019 | Dr. Kuatsjah's work describes the characterization of three different enzymes that microorganisms use to degrade lignin. This work provides insights into how microorganisms contribute to the global carbon cycle and how Nature uses metals in enzymes. It also facilitates the development of tools to transform plant biomass into commodity chemicals. | Doctor of Philosophy in Genome Science and Technology (PhD) |