bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Does a restriction in working memory capacity mediate the relationship between worry and interpretive biases in generalized anxiety disorder?
Authors: Tallon Kathleen
Published: May 2021

Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is characterized by excessive, uncontrollable worry and is associated with specific cognitive and emotional difficulties including a threat interpretation bias (IB). Worry, especially in a verbal mode, has been shown to cause a temporary restriction in working memory (WM) capacity. This study examined whether the effects of worry on WM account for threat interpretation biases in GAD. Participants (N = 36) with GAD completed questionnaires assessing worry and related processes. Lower baseline WM was related to higher state anxiety, emotion dysregulation, intolerance of uncertainty, thought suppression, negative problem orientation, and lower attentional control, and was not associated with trait worry. Participants were trained to worry in verbal or imagery form, per Leigh and Hirsch (2011), and then completed a WM task and an IB task a second time. Induced worry, regardless of its form, did not significantly affect WM or IB. Theoretical implications and methodological considerations are discussed.
Autonomous PEV Charging Scheduling Using Deep-Q Network and Dyna-Q Reinforcement Learning
Authors: Wang Fan
Published: May 2021

This paper proposes a demand response method that aims to reduce the long-term charging cost of a plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) while overcoming obstacles such as the stochastic nature of the user’s driving be- haviour, traffic condition, energy usage, and energy price. The problem is formulated as a Markov Decision Process (MDP) with unknown transition probabilities and solved using deep reinforcement learning (RL) techniques. Existing methods using machine learning either requires initial user behaviour data, or converges far too slowly. This method does not require any initial data on the PEV owner’s driving behaviour and shows improvement on learning speed. A combination of both model-based and model-free learning called Dyna-Q algorithm is utilized. Every time a real experience is obtained, the model is updated and the RL agent will learn from both real data set and “imagined” experience from the model. Due to the vast amount of state space, a table-look up method is impractical and a value approximation method using deep neural networks is employed for estimating the long-term expected reward of all state-action pairs. An average of historical price is used to predict future price. Three different user behaviour without any initial PEV owner behaviour data are simulated. A purely model-free DQN method is shown to run out of battery during trips very often, and is impractical for real life charging scenarios. Simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach and its ability to reach an optimal policy quicker while avoiding state of charge (SOC) depleting during trips when compared to existing PEV charging schemes for all three different users profiles.
The influence of YouTube: selling luxury cosmetics in the digital age
Authors: Chidley Andrea
Published: May 2021

This MRP analyzes the use of social media in selling high-end cosmetics. As social media continues to evolve, luxury cosmetics companies like Nudestix are using social media platforms like YouTube to create brand awareness. This paper uses a textual and visual content analysis of six YouTube videos to analyze how how-to and instructional videos may be used to market and promote lesser known, indie cosmetics brands. Research on marketing, in addition to other research articles, is used to explain the importance of brand stores, seed and word of mouth marketing campaigns. This research study uses qualitative data collected from the YouTube video sample to provide insights for indie cosmetics brands looking to grow their indie cosmetics brand using beauty influencers and how vlogs can create brand recognition.
A Planning Framework For Low Impact Development (LID) In Stormwater Management - An Ontario Perspective
Authors: Lawson Sarah O.
Published: May 2021

Effective management of stormwater is critical to the continued health of the environment. Progression of stormwater management techniques has evolved to include wider, sustainable objectives, particularly the development of Low Impact Development (LID) methods. Despite the recognition that the application of LID practices is a viable approach to older forms of stormwater management, there exist various challenges and barriers to widespread support. In particular, absent is a methodology to plan for LID practices on a large-scale that encompasses not only technical criteria, but economical, and social aspects as well. To address this need, the objective of this study proposes a framework for LID planning on a watershed level. The LID planning Framework is comprised of four main components evaluated in a sequential process to support the development of effective management strategies. Specifically, hydrological performance evaluation of LID technologies throughout a watershed; cost-effectiveness analysis; and stakeholders’ opinions and acceptance levels of these technologies, are used as input to the final decision-making component. The LID Planning Framework is developed in an Ontario context with a particular focus on the Lake Simcoe Watershed. This study will promote an integrated approach to LID planning, which can be used support the uptake of LID principles and encourage more sustainable methods in stormwater management as a whole.
Material Computation for a New Equilibrium in Architecture
Authors: Teimoori Babak
Published: May 2021

Morphogenesis defines the schema of natural material formations as a set of merging self-organized behaviours, rules, relative forces, and limits of materialization that analytically characterize a spatial arrangement within a specific environment for achieving an equilibrium state. However, in architecture, material organization, which acts as a threshold to space, has always been treated as a secondary component in design processes. This attitude has reduced the capability to generate an architecture that is intelligently aware of its functionality and of its environment. Transforming computational models of biological systems into the computational logic of material organization found in architecture would produce an architecture that is a product of full interactions between those material logics and space. This inquiry elaborates a set of biological computational frameworks to cultivate stratified developments of knowledge-based architectural prototypes of complex hybrid-structure material morphologies as contextual schemata
The potential of thermal energy storage as an energy retrofit measure for high-rise residential buildings in Canada
Authors: Soudian Shahrzad
Published: May 2021

High-rise apartments are a prominent type of residential buildings in Canadian cities. However, poor aging performance of existing apartments has led to high discomfort and energy consumption that must be addressed. Thermal energy storage is a potential energy retrofit measure that affects energy consumption by regulating radiant temperatures. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of latent thermal energy storage using phase change materials (PCMs) integrated into walls and ceilings of apartment units. A composite PCM system comprised of two different PCM products with melting points of 21.7 oC and 25 oC is proposed and evaluated to provide a year-around thermal energy storage. A simulation analysis using Energy Plus is performed to investigate the impacts of the composite PCM system on indoor temperatures and energy use. An experimental study is conducted using two small scale test cells to monitor the performance of the PCM system in detail.
Exporting Canadian immigration policy: a comparative analysis of private sponsorship methods in Canada, the U.K. and Germany
Authors: Somers Shaina Bianca
Published: May 2021

The private sponsorship of refugees (PSR) model, created in Canada 40 years ago, has a structure which allows citizens and permanent residents concerned about refugee resettlement to take action in their local communities by sponsoring refugees and providing them with financial, social and integration support. This paper critically analyzes and compares the private sponsorship of refugees (PSR) model in Canada, the United Kingdom (U.K.) and Germany and how it is being promoted, portrayed and received in each country. I argue that the PSR model should be a refugee resettlement option provided that the number of refugees admitted through this stream should not surpass the number of refugees admitted through government sponsorship; effective oversight and evaluation should be administered by governments and NGOs over groups and communities involved in sponsorship; and, diverse images and perspectives of refugees themselves should be used in the promotional material from governments and NGOs about private sponsorship.

Key words: Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, private sponsorship, refugee, immigration policy, refugee resettlement
Towards a stronger Canadian fashion industry: an investigation of Canada’s media landscape and its coverage of Canadian fashion
Authors: Braun Jennifer Braun
Published: May 2021

Media has proven to be an effective medium to reach consumers and influence public opinion. With a focus on Canada’s media landscape, this study explores the way Canadian media covers Canada’s fashion industry. Using a quantitative research method for a case study, this study examines the frequency at which Canadian brands are present in fashion photo editorials published in Canada’s top readership fashion magazines in 2016, namely, Elle Canada, Flare and Fashion. Findings show that in all three magazines, Canadian fashion makes up a minority stake
in fashion editorials, while fashion brands from other countries constitute a majority of product placements. This essay discusses the potential impact of this lack of media exposure for Canada’s fashion industry and puts forward recommendations to benefit the Canadian fashion industry for future fashion photo editorial direction.
Hacking Architecture: Re-envisioning Architecture Typology
Authors: Oh Ki Woon
Published: May 2021

The city is in flux. The future of living and working in city are changing. A large amount of urban fabric is changing to conciliate our needs for the future. The question is, is a new building necessary? Currently, there are large amounts of underutilized urban building stocks that can be transformed into something new to accommodate our future needs for the city. The future of building is not about creating an individual object, but rather deals with socio-cultural activities that redefine city living. This thesis will be looking at how to deal with existing building and envisioning a new building typology by using the idea of hacking. Following the logic of hackers, everything is hackable; when hackers hack into computer systems, they produce new things by altering original sources. The idea of hacking is introduced as a means of research method to modifying the features of a system and organizational tools to find a new relationship.
Maternal Genotypes and Mother-Infant Attachment as Moderators of the Association Between the Early Rearing Environment and Cortisol Secretion
Authors: Ludmer Jaclyn
Published: May 2021

Background: This dissertation examines maternal genotypes and mother-infant attachment as moderators of the association between the early rearing environment and cortisol secretion.
Study 1 examines whether DRD2, SLC6A3, and OXTR genes moderate the association between maternal history of care and maternal cortisol secretion. Study 2 examines mother-infant attachment as a moderator of the associations between maternal depressive symptoms and both infant and maternal cortisol secretion.
Method: Mothers self-reported their history of care and depressive symptoms at infant age 16 months. At 17 months, mother-infant attachment was assessed in the Strange Situation Procedure (SSP). Salivary cortisol was assessed at baseline and at 20- and 40-minutes post-SSP. Buccal cells were collected for genotyping.
Results: Study 1 revealed that maternal history of low care predicts elevated cortisol secretion, but only for mothers with 10-repeat alleles of SLC6A3 or G alleles of OXTR. Study 2 revealed that maternal depressive symptoms predict elevated cortisol secretion, but only for infants and mothers in non-secure attachment relationships.
Conclusions: This dissertation enhances our understanding of the complex relations between the early rearing environment and maternal and infant cortisol secretion.
SHARP: Immersive retail experiences through augmented reality
Authors: Kiblitsky Reuben Benjamin
Published: May 2021

Online shopping is becoming easier than ever with ecommerce sales steadily increasing year after year. Through recent technological advances, augmented reality has become widely available throughout consumer products such as the iPhone X and Samsung Galaxy S9. Using techniques such as object and image tracking, while using Apple’s native software, ARKit, Sharp enhances online shopping by elevating the experience between consumers and the products they are assessing. Allowing users to have a heightened retail experience in the comfort of their own space, Sharp achieves a traditional retail environment through an innovative ecommerce process. With current solutions unable to mimic similar immersive online shopping experiences, Sharp plans to achieve new standards for ecommerce experiences.
Diasporic mobilization and post-war uplift: an inquiry into the global Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora's influence in post-war Sri Lanka
Authors: Vimaladasan Sinthu
Published: May 2021

This study illustrates the changing nature of the global Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora; it’s social, political and economic influence on Sri Lanka, and its participation in post-war resettlement and sustainable development initiatives. Moreover, it seeks to investigate if the perceptions of the diaspora are reflective of the ground realities in their homeland. This is
evidenced by the accumulated data informed by key Tamil actors and organizations in Sri Lanka, Canada and England. Furthermore, this study reviews contemporary courses and conflicting opinions of diasporic engagement, and investigates the structural barriers that impede on positive peacebuilding. The results of this study suggest that such barriers frustrate diasporic mobilization, ultimately reducing the anticipated influence on the Sri Lankan state. Additionally, due to the digitized transnational space, ground realities are difficult to conceal; however, the level of involvement determines the depth of knowledge concerning the ground realities for the Tamil populace in Sri Lanka.

Key words: post-war, development, diaspora, Sri Lankan Tamils (SLT), militarization, identity
Re-engaging the spirit: engaging traditional Anishinabek healing beliefs into an architecture for addiction wellbeing centres
Authors: Dozzi-Perry Madison
Published: May 2021

Current design practices for addiction treatment facilities reflect that of the western perspective on health, providing sterile, monolithic and cold environments. The quest for cleanliness, static and conditioned spaces robs the user of the richness of an engaging experience, isolating them into a sealed box. We further numb and anesthetize patients, disembodying them from the world and hindering their abilities to achieve physical, mental, emotional and spiritual awareness. This disengagement of the natural, human and spiritual realms proliferates the problems facing people with addiction. This thesis proposes an engagement of Anishinabek healing and wellbeing principles to inform the design of addiction healing spaces that stimulate the users, re-engages and enhances one’s awareness and understanding of one’s self, other beings and place in the world. By incorporating these principles into design, architecture can begin to re-engage the mind, the body, the heart and the soul of people suffering from addiction wellbeing issues.
Development of an Electromagnetic Actuator based Translation Micromirror as a Movable Mirror in a Miniaturized FTIR Spectrometer
Authors: Xue Yuan
Published: May 2021

Miniaturized FTIR spectrometer has been developed rapidly in recent years due to the increasing demands. MEMS micromirrors have been used to replace the movable mirror system, which is the largest part in conventional FTIRs. Electromagnetic actuators are suitable to drive the micromirrors because of their relatively large quasi-static translation range and high response speed. In addition, high surface quality is required for the micromirror. However, current MEMS based micromachining technologies cannot provide satisfactory surface quality. Therefore, a translation mircomirror with a large displacement, i.e., > 120 µm, and a novel magnetic field pulling-force assisted bonding technology are developed to bond a high surface quality (i.e., roughness of 2 nm and radius curvature over 15 m) mirror plate with a released microactuator using an adhesive. However, the touching points between the moving film and the substrate lead to a large starting position variation and low repeatability in operation. To solve these limitations, a repulsive force based translation micromirror utilizes a novel driving mechanism, i.e., permanent magnet ring above and electromagnet underneath the moving film, to lift and push the moving film away from the substrate for translation. As a result, the starting position of the repulsive force translating mirror is consistent and the repeatability is <1%. A maximum displacement of 144 µm can be achieved when a 140 mA current is applied. To eliminate the tilt of the translation micromirror during motion, a
compensation system is developed which includes the translation mirror, a correcting mirror and a reflecting mirror. The correcting micromirror corrects the tilt by rotating the same angle as the translation micromirror with its rotating axis parallel to the tilting axis. The tilt of the attractive force translation micromirror can be reduced to 0.026° after compensation, so it can be used as a movable mirror in FTIRs to measure half of the midinfrared region between 13.6 µm an 25 µm. Therefore, the electromagnetic actuator based translation micromirror with large displacement, high surface quality can be successfully used as the movable mirror in the miniaturized FTIRs with the tilt compensation system.
Liminality In Architecture
Authors: Ibrahim Niven
Published: May 2021

This thesis investigates the concept of liminality and how it may be represented in architectural design. Architectural design of liminal space can augment spatial experiences and lead to self-awareness in relation to self, space and the environment.

Liminality is a journey of different moments which can influence a person to discover something new about themselves and the world around them. A design proposal of a bridge at Bayfront Park, Hamilton, is presented as an architectural representation of a liminal experience.

One of the challenges of this thesis and in the understanding of the concept of liminality is that different states are experienced differently by individuals. A liminal journey within the context of Bayfront Park may lead to a better sense of one's awareness in relation to themselves, the space they are in and the environment that surrounds them.
Being Canadian and Ahmadi Muslim: exploring identity formation of young Ahmadi Muslim women
Authors: Mohammad Aisha
Published: May 2021

This study explored the identity formation of young women from a minority Muslim group known as Ahmadis in Canada. Nine unstructured interviews were conducted with women between the ages of 20-26. The questions that this study explored were: How do Ahmadi Muslim women understand and negotiate their identities? What are the factors that shaped and influenced their identity? The participants noted various components of Canadian and Ahmadi identity. Being Canadian meant having multiculturalism/ diversity, being accepting, polite, watching hockey and eating foods such as poutine. Being Ahmadi Muslim meant to have a strong sense of community (Jama ‘at), a sense of sisterhood and unity. The study also found various factors
which shaped the identities of these young women which included family, friends, location, the Jama ‘at (community) and parent’s immigration history. Recommendations for theory and practice are provided as well as implications for future research.

Key Words: Identity, Ahmadi Muslim women, Identity formation, Canadian
Performance and energy optimization of heterogeneous CPU-GPU systems for embedded applications
Authors: Siddiqui Abdullah
Published: May 2021

One of the most critical steps of embedded systems design is Hardware-Software partitioning. It is characterized by distributing the components of an application between hardware and software such that the user defined system constraints are satisfied. Heterogeneous computing platforms consisting of CPUs and GPUs have tremendous potential for enhancing the performance of embedded applications. The challenge of application partitioning for CPU-GPU mapping is much greater on such platforms due to their unique and diverse characteristics. In this thesis, an optimization algorithm is devised and presented for partitioning and mapping computational tasks on CPU-GPU platforms while keeping a check on the power consumption. Our methodology also uses parallelism in applications and their tasks by utilizing the architectural capabilities of the GPU. The optimization algorithm was tested with a MJPEG decoder, several benchmarks and synthetic graphs.
The monstrous feminine and the structure of transformation: art, language, technology, magic
Authors: Inkol Cecilia Rose
Published: May 2021

The structure of art is an architecture of transformation. This thesis is a meditation on the notion of art or aesthetics as technological, arguing that art or aesthetics in its highest aspect can foment revolution or transformation within oneself, or in the material world. The power of art to invoke change, I define as magic, a means of effectuation that exists outside of the confines of a materialist or scientistic imaginary. Such a mode of effectuation is also linguistic, and connected with meaning. These ideas find their inspiration primarily in the works of Heidegger, Deleuze, Lacan, Kristeva, Schelling, and Slattery. This thesis also acts as a practical, exegetical exercise in aesthetics to render an interpretation of my own artwork, a praxis of art-based research.
The dynamic competition hypothesis
Authors: Malik Rehan Taj
Published: May 2021

We study competitive and negative interactions in real world social network in which nodes represent agents and edges appear over discrete time step. We consider directed social network of competing agents that evolve dynamically over time, where directed edges represent some kind of negative relationships between the agents in the social network. We present a novel hypothesis to identify the alliances and leaders within the the dynamic competition networks.
We verify our hypothesis by using historical voting data of the social game shows Survivor and Big Brother.
Natural gas engine driven heat pump system – a case study of an office building
Authors: Kimiaghalam Farshad
Published: May 2021

An eQUEST model was developed to conduct a study of a natural gas engine driven heat pump (GEHP) for an office building in Woodstock, Ontario. The results were also compared with a roof-top unit to investigate annual potential energy saving using GEHP. The models were also calibrated with regression analysis which was obtained from measured data and validated with respect to ASHRAE Guideline 14-2002. The developed ad validated models were used to predict the performance of these system in different regions of Ontario; Toronto, Ottawa, Windsor and Thunder Bay. The results for five cities were compared in terms of annual energy, GHG and energy cost savings. It was concluded that Thunder Bay has the highest annual energy and GHG saving, while Toronto has the highest annual energy cost saving.
Kernel k-MACE: hypercube unsupervised clustering method
Authors: Rahman Faizan Ur
Published: May 2021

Transforming data to feature space using a kernel function can result in better expression
of its features, resulting in better separability for some datasets. The parameters of the
kernel function govern the structure of data in feature space and need to be optimized
simultaneously while also estimating the number of clusters in a dataset. The proposed
method denoted by kernel k-Minimum Average Central Error (kernel k-MACE), esti-
mates the number of clusters in a dataset while simultaneously clustering the dataset
in feature space by finding the optimum value of the Gaussian kernel parameter σk.
A cluster initialization technique has also been proposed based on an existing method
for k-means clustering. Simulations show that for self-generated datasets with Gaus-
sian clusters having 10% - 50% overlap and for real benchmark datasets, the proposed
method outperforms multiple state-of-the-art unsupervised clustering methods including
k-MACE, the clustering scheme that inspired kernel k-MACE.
Autonomous stereo vision system for depth computation of moving object
Authors: Oviedo Alejandro Emerio Alfonso
Published: May 2021

This work targets one real world application of stereo vision technology: the computation of the depth information of a moving object in a scene. It uses a stereo camera set that captures the stereoscopic view of the scene. Background subtraction algorithm is used to detect the moving object, supported by the recursive filter of first order as updating method. Mean filter is the pre-processing stage, combined with frame downscaling to reduce the background storage. After thresholding the background subtraction result, the binary image is sent to the software processing unit to compute the centroid of the moving area, and the measured disparity, estimate the disparity by Kalman algorithm, and finally calculate the depth from the estimated disparity. The implementation successfully achieves the objectives of resolution 720p, at 28.68 fps and maximum permissible depth error of ±4 cm (1.066 %) for a depth measuring range from 25 cm to 375 cm.
Analysis of electrooculogram (EOG) signals in studying myasthenia gravis
Authors: Liang Timothy
Published: May 2021

Myasthenia Gravis (MG) is a neuromuscular disorder that induces muscle weakness and fatigue
which can be fatal. A common precursor for severe form of MG is ocular MG. In this thesis, we
explored signal processing methodologies for early stage detection of MG using electrooculogram
(EOG) signals.

An EOG signal database consisting of 62 control and 16 MG (mild to moderate) subjects were
analyzed for eye movement characteristics and EOG signal morphologies using time domain and
wavelet domain techniques. A linear discriminant analysis (LDA) based classifier was used to
quantify the ability of features in separating MG from control samples. Average overall classification
accuracy achieved by the proposed method for the best time domain feature (average rise
rate) and best wavelet feature (scale band energy) was 82.5% (P<0.01, AUC=0.887) and 83.8%
(P<0.01, AUC=0.893), respectively. The obtained results suggest EOG based analysis is a viable,
non-invasive alternative MG screening method.
The Securitization of Refugees: A Critical Media Discourse Analysis of the Reporting on Syrian Refugees in Canada
Authors: Johnston Travis
Published: May 2021

While immigration had become securitized pre-9/11, the terror attacks on that day accelerated the moral panic in society to new levels creating greater fear of mobility and its perceived relation to threats against national security. Following the outbreak of civil war in Syria in 2011 we have seen one of history’s largest movements of externally displaced individuals seeking asylum globally. Canada has become a destination for a great number of individuals claiming refugee protection from the threats or perceived threats they face at home. This work seeks to examine, through employing a critical media discourse analysis, the effect to which reporting on the issue of Syrian refugees in Canada within two national newspapers has contributed to either the further securitization or desecuritization of this issue.
Routing of emergency data in a wireless sensor network for mining applications
Authors: Jafarian Mandana
Published: May 2021

Emergency situations in mines result in loss of precious human lives. In this thesis we discussed architecture of a Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) that can be deployed in mines, which takes care of severe geographical and environmental constraints found inside mines. The proposed architecture is a two-level hierarchy of small sized WSNs that employs a wireless Mesh network as the backbone connecting small sized WSNs scattered inside mines. We proposed a routing protocol for that WSN that is optimized for both emergency and non-emergency data routing.

Since our main goal is to provide safety in the mining environment, the main consideration of the routing protocol is to provide reliability and reduce the end-to-end delay for vital emergency traffic while optimizing for network longevity for non-emergency traffic. We present a new cost-based routing protocol called MDML, which provides Minimum Delay and Maximum Lifetime routing for such networks. The proposed MDML routing defines separate cost metrics for emergency and non-emergency traffic. It finds the least-cost path for the reliable delay-constrained emergency traffic with regards to link error rate but also gives secondary consideration to nodes' residual energy. It is an energy efficient routing scheme for non-emergency or regular data traffic routing that maximizes the network lifetime.

However, for emergency traffic energy efficiency is compromised to achieving minimal delay. Regular traffic is generated through periodic monitoring and is delay-insensitive. For regular traffic delivery, a shortest path routinig algorithm is employed which uses link costs that reflect both the communication energy consumption rates and the residual energy levels at the two end nodes. Simulation results show that using the proposed emergency routes reduces the end-to-end delay for emergency traffic. The effect of protocol update cycle on increasing the network lifetime is verified true simulation. MDML is also compared with a simulated non-MDML approach to compare the lifetime and delay performance. Simulation results have demonstrated the effectiveness of our approach.
The surgical journey: exploring the OR-PACU handover
Authors: Gross Marketa
Published: May 2021

Patient safety in health care remains a serious concern in Canada. Adverse events can lead to physiological and psychological complications and pose a significant economic burden on the health care system. The purpose of this descriptive qualitative study was to explore the team processes, roles and factors that underpin effective communication between team members during an OR-PACU handover. Content analysis revealed four major categories: Ownership, Distractions and Interruptions, Transfer of Information and Workflow. The results of this study, informed by the Theory of Collective Competence enhance our understanding of the OR-PACU handover and support the need for the development of a structured OR-PACU team handover process.
Assessment of the pathogen abatement effects of nutrient management policy: the Ontario Nutrient Management Act, 2002
Authors: Stiefelmeyer Kate Erin
Published: May 2021

Nutrient management strategies and regulations provide for the optimal management of waste materials containing nutrients that may be applied to the land. They are enacted to protect water sources while maximizing the economic and biological value of the nutrients. The Province of Ontario has enacted a new Nutrient Management Act (2002), the purpose of which is to enable the province to enact regulations that establish standards for the management of nutrients. Livestock waste contains not only nutrients, but also many pathogenic microorganisms such as viruses, bacteria and protozoa. Although these contaminants are abundant in livestock waste, no legislation has been specifically designed for their control; instead, nutrient management policies are assumed to be proxies for pathogen management. Therefore, the question is, will nutrient management policies that have been designed specifically to control nutrients also ensure a safe drinking water supply through the control of pathogens?...[This research suggests that]... the ability of pathogens to survive and be transported in numerous environments leaves an uncertainty in the effectiveness of the land application regulations at reducing the risk of pathogen contamination.
Working with sexual violence in the Latinx community: testimonios and stories of racialized women workers
Authors: Glaser Daniela
Published: May 2021

This narrative qualitative research study explores the experiences of Latinx women working with sexual violence in the Latinx community. It explores the stories and showcases the testimonios of two women who have worked in the field of sexual violence within the Latinx community in Toronto, Ontario for many years. Both participants shared similar stories, as well as different experiences with their own individual lenses. The theoretical framework draws from a critical race feminism theory as well as Latinx feminism, creating a mestizaje of theory. A narrative approach was used to collect data, along with an arts-based portion to honour traditional methods of knowledge sharing and expression. Data analysis included a thematic analysis to further look into the themes that emerged from the findings. Implications for future social work research and practice under an anti-oppressive lens are discussed in the conclusion.
The potential environmental benefits of reusable and recyclable materials stocks in Toronto's single-detached housing
Authors: Ergun Deniz  N
Published: May 2021

This study examines the stocks of building materials in Toronto’s in-use and annual obsolete single detached housing, to provide potential environmental benefit parameters for city scale material reuse and recycling. The material volumes of five archetypes, developed to represent typical Toronto housing, were measured and extrapolated to the city scale. Applying established criteria for reusability and recyclability, city scale reusable and recyclable stocks were determined for three environmental indicators: material volume headed to landfill, carbon dioxide emissions, and primary energy consumption. It was determined that 61-66% of the material volume in Toronto’s in-use and annual obsolete housing could be reclaimed for reuse/recycling, and was mostly composed of masonry, concrete, and framing lumber from houses built from 1930-1960. Additionally, annual obsolete reusable materials represented an embodied carbon of 2,287-4,116 tonnes and energy of 52,883-95,189 GJ. By addressing common barriers to widespread uptake of reuse/recycling, Toronto could reap these determined potential environmental benefits.
Dual frontiers data envelopment analysis: multiple ranking approaches from optimistic and pessimistic perspectives
Authors: Aldamak Abdullah Maraee
Published: May 2021

The field of data envelopment analysis (DEA) has evolved rapidly since its introduction to decision-making science 40 years ago. DEA has since attracted the attention of many researchers because of its unique characteristic to measure the efficiency of multiple-input and multiple-output decision-making units (DMUs) without assigning prior weight to the input and output, unlike most available decision analysis tools. The body of research has resulted in a huge amount of literature and diverse DEA models with very many different approaches. DEA classifies all units under assessment into two groups: efficient with a 100% efficiency score and inefficient with a less than 100% efficiency score. This ability is considered both a strength and a weakness of the standard DEA model because, although it allows DEA to evaluate the efficiency of any dataset, it lacks the power to rank all DMUs, by giving full efficiency scores to many efficient units. This issue has attracted many researchers to investigate the weak discrimination power of classical DEA models, resulting in a subfield of research that focuses on DEA ranking.

This thesis focuses on the development of the conventional DEA model, and an attempt has been made to study models that are considered as improved models, or approaches that bring a better ranking field, that may bring more accurate evaluation than the original DEA. After studying DEA ranking models, the thesis presents various models under the optimistic and pessimistic DEA ranking approaches. The first and fundamental contribution are the optimistic and pessimistic free disposal hull (FDH) models. In this study, authentic optimistic and pessimistic
DEA models without convexity are developed from both input and output orientation.

Further into the research investigation, extended models have been proposed, by combining the conventional and FDH ranking models with other different approaches in the literature. Chapter 4 of this thesis presents three extended FDH models: an FDH slack-based model, an FDH superefficiency model, and a dual frontier without infeasibility super-efficiency FDH model. Chapter 5 shows the development of extended models when virtual DMUs are considered. Improved virtual DMU models and improved FDH virtual DMU models are proposed in order to develop the DEA ranking ability from both optimistic and pessimistic approaches. The final model is an optimistic
and pessimistic forecasting approach using regression analysis. The forecasting model can be used by decision makers to determine the resources needed for future planning to build an efficient new unit with reference to the current DMU set.
Ultra-High Frequency Photoacoustic Microscopy: From Organelles to Organisms
Authors: Moore Michael J.
Published: May 2021

This dissertation describes novel signal analysis and imaging techniques for ultrahigh frequency (UHF, over 100 MHz) Photoacoustic Microscopy (PAM). New approaches for extracting information pertaining to object structure and scale are described, and novel sensing techniques and contrast mechanisms for imaging biological samples ranging from single cells to small organisms are presented.

In the first section, I describe a methodology for assessing the structure of biological cells using UHF-PAM. The power spectra of ultrasound (US) pulses backscattered from MCF-7 cells, and photoacoustic (PA) waves emitted from their dyed nuclei were fit to analytical solutions to determine cell and nucleus diameter, respectively. The measured cell diameters (15.5±1.8 μm) and nucleus diameters (12±1.3 μm) were used to calculate the mean cell nucleus-to-cytoplasm ratio (1.9±1.0). Good agreement was observed between UHF-PAM measured values and literature.

In the second section, I present a novel technique for PA image reconstruction that utilizes unique features in the PA power spectra as a source of contrast. The technique, termed F-Mode, provides a means for differentiating between objects of different scale that surpasses the capabilities of conventional reconstruction approaches. The ability of F-Mode to selectively accentuate absorbers of different size was demonstrated using experimental phantoms containing microspheres and cylindrical vessels, as well as in individual biological cells and live zebrafish larvae.

Finally, I developed a new sensing technique, termed Photoacoustic Radiometry (PAR). Unlike PAM, which depicts optical absorption, PAR images depict the optical attenuation properties of the imaged object. It was demonstrated that PAR can be used to image transparent samples which generate no PA signals, and that simultaneous triplex PAR/PA/US imaging could be realized using our approach. Simultaneous PAR/PA imaging of biological cells, as well as zebrafish larvae in vivo, was also demonstrated. UHF-PAM provided excellent visualization of vascular organization in the larval trunk and head. The
simultaneously acquired PAR images depicted anatomical structure (e.g. the notochord, muscle segments) not visible in PAM due to insufficient optical absorption. Potential areas of application for the new UHF-PAM techniques described in this dissertation include detection of cancer cells in blood samples, and investigation of tumour growth and metastasis.

(6 zipped .mp4 files) https://digital.library.ryerson.ca/islandora/object/RULA:8618/datastream/Movies_Moore_mp4/view
Development of a static in vitro digestion model for determination of glycemic index
Authors: Gudivada Yesudas
Published: May 2021

While in vivo methods have been used to determine the glycemic response of food, they are time consuming, costly, and not suitable for large-scale applications. As an alternative, in vitro digestion models offer fast, reproducible results to study food digestion kinetics that are less expensive than conducting human trials. While there are several in vitro glycemic index (GI) methods used to determine the GI of food, most do not employ methods of in vivo testing. Therefore, we used a static in vitro digestive system, the Dedicated Ryerson University In-vitro Digester (DRUID), that simulates both gastric and intestinal conditions to determine the glycemic response of commonly consumed carbohydrate-containing foods. Samples were collected at regular intervals over a 2h residence time after digestion in the intestinal phase of the DRUID. The DRUID-determined GI values were compared to published in vivo GI values. A Bland-Altman plot showed that there was agreement between the GI values determined from the DRUID compared with published in vivo GI values. In conclusion, the in vitro DRUID can reliably and reproducibly determine the GI across a spectrum of carbohydrate-containing foods, and has the potential to predict the digestion kinetics of novel food products in vivo that may promote human health.
The impact of anti-black racism on black males
Authors: Acheampong Rick
Published: May 2021

This paper examines the lived experiences of racialization, oppression, criminalization, and discrimination upon Black males living in Canada. The theoretical framework for my research was comprised of anti-Black racism and Critical Race Theory. These frameworks guided my research into the lived experiences of anti-Black racism against Black males. The
research study used a narrative approach where Black male participants shared stories of anti-Black racism. The research entailed asking participants open-ended questions about their lived experiences of anti-Black racism and the impact it has had on their lives. The findings from the research highlighted how marginalized and racialized groups in Canada practice anti-Black racism towards Black people within public spaces. It also showed the anti-Black racism that police officers engage in against Black males within institutions that have a history of being anti-Black. The findings showed the lack of self-awareness and white supremacist beliefs that racialized groups embody when perpetuating anti-Black racism. Also, it highlighted the continuous practice by police officers who racially profile and incarcerate Black males due to their skin color. The conclusion from the study highlighted that Black males continue to experience anti-Black racism within agencies that make up the criminal justice system and the anti-Black racism that marginalized groups engage in when interacting with Black bodies.
The ATID project : Teaching the Holocaust Through Digital Storytelling
Authors: Kowaz Eli
Published: May 2021

This paper aims to develop a Holocaust education protocol template with the goals of maximizing student engagement, enhancing the student experience, boosting retention of information, and facilitating the individual's identification with the historical events of the Holocaust. The protocol proposed is of general application and is suitable for other current and historic events. At the same time, the Holocaust is a powerful and appropriate event for illustrating the impact of digital media on education, and in particular, it highlights head on the issue of historical distance from actual events and the ways in which digital technology and media can reduce the risk of losing key sources of testimonial experience that are so often central to the student’s appreciation and understanding of such events. This proposed conceptual protocol is founded on three basic dimensions: Content, Learning Sequencing, and Digital Media. These dimensions are interactive and overlapping in the proposed model.!
Inter-Bubble Interactions in Ultrasonically Excited Microbubble Clusters
Authors: Haghi Hossein
Published: May 2021

Microbubbles (MBs) have been utilized in a variety of applications ranging from medicine to chemistry. There have been extensive studies on many aspects of microbubble dynamics. The majority of previous theoretical studies examine the oscillations of single microbubbles. In most applications multiple microbubbles form clusters. Oscillating microbubbles generate secondary pressure waves in the medium which have been shown to modify the dynamics of neighboring
MBs. Large microbubble clusters have not been studied due to the complexity of solving many coupled differential equations governing the dynamics of a large number of microbubbles. This work expands on previous works conducted on the study of multiple bubble interactions. Two approaches are introduced to simulate large clusters. Inter-bubble interactions are classified and used to explain and predict collective behavior within large polydisperse clusters. This work shows that even identical MBs within a monodisperse cluster do not necessarily exhibit identical behavior.