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Ruth Johnston collection, 1925-1969, n.d.
Get PDFThe collection contains mostly correspondence and news clippings. Most of the correspondence is written by Ruth, but there are also some letters by Ed Phelps and others. The letters are dated from May 1968 to November 1969. Some of the letters contain poems by Ruth. There is also a copy of Ruth’s poem “Merry Christmas”; an invitation to the Golden Wedding anniversary of Mr. and Mrs. John H. Thompson; an obituary for John H. Thompson with a photo of him and his wife Bertha Osborn; an “Album of Verse” with labelled photos of John H. Thompson and his family; and a set of news clippings about private television sets not being allowed in St. Catharines Hospital rooms with related documents including a blank petition and letter from the Citizens’ Rights Committee
The Shifting Constitution of Space, Gender, and Mobility in a Context of Social and Infrastructural Change: A Case Study of Swat, Pakistan
Get PDFFeminist geographers argue that gender and mobility are co-constituted. However, few studies focus on this relationship empirically, and even fewer in the global South. Against this backdrop, this study aims to analyze the ways in which space, gender, and mobility are mutually constituted in Swat Valley, Pakistan, in a shifting historical context of (a) traditional Pukhtun culture involving a syncretic religion, (b) Islamic fundamentalism and the takeover by the Taliban, and (c) post-Taliban modernization in its various forms, including a new market economy and tourist-based infrastructure development. This study temporally maps these particular spatial, gendered, and mobility changes over a period of time (16th century to present), showing that (a) gendered spatiality in traditional Swat evolved in such a way to constitute culturally designated women’s spaces that allowed them to perform their womanhood and practice their mobilities; (b) more recently, Islamic fundamentalist ideologies fundamentally controlled women’s mobilities to erase them from both public space and certain types of private space that had formerly been accessible to women (e.g., shrines); and (c) modernization and infrastructure development created material sites of mobility that provide spaces for middle-class families to perform their modern gender subjectivities
Subduing the “moral panic”: Sustaining a nuanced conversation about predatory publishing
No full textPowerpoint presentation slidesPredatory publishing has long raised alarm bells among faculty, librarians and research administrators. Often falsely conflated with open access publishing as a whole, predatory publishing is painted as a grievous threat to the sanctity of scholarly research and a waste of research funding. However, there is evidence to indicate the “moral panic” over the phenomenon of deceptive open access publishers may be unjustified. Gathering data about predatory publishing patterns at your institution and supporting researchers with information and tools to make informed decisions about publishing is a more effective and holistic approach. Freely available academic search tools such as The Lens can provide useful snapshots to guide education and support for researchers. This session will explore the characteristics and challenges posed by problematic publishers – in both open access and paywalled models – and highlight the steps in obtaining institutional publishing data using The Lens. The presenter will also discuss the inherent biases involved in using lists of "good" and "bad" journals to evaluate publications and will provide recommendations for more objective and equitable approaches
Accelerated Ovarian Failure Causes Neuronal Detriments in the Menopausal Transition that are not Recovered by High Intensity Interval Training
Get PDFThe impact of menopause on Alzheimer’s disease risk has been widely investigated using
the ovariectomy (OVX) mouse model, however, this model does not fully capture the gradual
hormone depletion that occurs in humans. The novel vinylcyclohexene diepoxide (VCD) model
allows for the study of how different stages in the menopausal transition can impact physiology
and the brain. Exercise can be introduced during the transitionary perimenopausal phase to limit
the negative effects of the menopausal transition on the brain. This thesis aimed to characterize
the cognitive and neuronal effects of the VCD model at different stages of ovarian depletion. We
later aimed to determine if a high intensity interval training (HIIT) protocol introduced at the menopausal stage would be able to attenuate the detriments caused by the VCD transition. Mice
weighing 20-25 grams were injected with VCD for 15 days (160 mg/kg/d) after the transition
began. This transition has four landmarks: 60 days post injection = early perimenopause, 120
days post injection = perimenopause, 137 days post injection = early menopause, and 176 days
post injection = menopause. Novel object recognition tests (NORT) were conducted on the mice
at each timepoint prior to tissue collection. In the second aim of this thesis, another subset of
VCD injected mice were either sedentary or put through a HIIT protocol three times a week
starting at the 120-day timepoint. HIIT is frequently used as it is a time efficient modality of
exercise and its implementation at the 120-day timepoint allows us to determine if its use can
improve the neuronal detriments caused by VCD. NORTs were analyzed through DeepLabCut
and the collected tissue was western blotted for neuronal and synaptic markers such as NeuN,
SNAP25, PSD95 and BDNF. Mice that received VCD had lower discrimination index (%) on the
NORT alongside lower SNAP25 and NeuN. Mice that received VCD in combination with
exercise had no improvements in cognition, however, they had lower activity of AD hallmarks
Integrability of Evolutionary Type Equations
Get PDFClassical Integrable Systems represent a captivating and profound branch of mathematical physics, offering a framework to understand the motion of particles in a way that goes beyond mere mathematical description. These systems possess a remarkable property known as complete integrability, meaning that they admit a sufficient number of independent constants of motion, allowing for their trajectories to be precisely determined. The development of this field gained momentum in the 18th and 19th centuries, marked by the discovery of various integrable systems associated with fundamental equations of motion. In mathematical physics, CIS refer to a special class of differential equations that possess unique characteristics. In this research project, we will begin with the introduction of several important and fundamental integrable systems, such as the Hopf equation, Burgers equation, and Liouville equation
Generating Models of Human Gait in Patients with Parkinson’s Disease
Get PDFParkinson’s disease is an extremely debilitating condition where the brain is not producing enough dopamine to accurately coordinate movement. One symptom of Parkinson’s disease, freezing of gait, prevents the affected person from either starting to walk or continuing walking. It usually begins in the advanced stages of the disease. The primary medication for Parkinson’s disease, Levodopa, is only partially effective for the treatment of freezing of gait. The dataset studied in this thesis provides time-series gait data of individuals’ gait while performing four different tasks, each having increased complexity over the previous ones. This thesis looks at a time-series gait dataset and performs symbolic regression through genetic programming on that dataset to predict fall likelihood and to create models of the gait of people with and without Parkinson’s disease including people who may be experiencing freezing of gait while factoring in their medication status (ON or OFF). The fall prediction experiment suggests that the GP models can predict the likelihood of falling based on the individual’s gait. The models provide insights into how Parkinson’s disease and freezing of gait impact gait patterns in people who have the disease vs. those who do not and enables us to compare the gait of individuals in different groups. It was found that, as expected, gait was similar within groups and different between groups. We also found that for some individuals it was not possible to distinguish between ON and OFF medication states. Future work might include determining the best models for each individual or group, attempting to find a model that accurately represents the individual or group rather than the individual trials
Exploring secondary transfer generalization effects from Black and gay contact
Get PDFIntergroup contact has come to be known as one of the most influential ways to reduce prejudice (Hodson & Hewstone, 2013). Contact effects can be categorized as primary (i.e., the effect of contact on attitudes toward the group individuals are in contact with) or secondary effects (i.e., the effect of intergroup on attitudes toward an uninvolved secondary outgroup). Here, we explore primary contact effects on outcomes toward the secondary outgroup through outgroup humanization, assessing White, heterosexual Americans’ contact with both Black and gay people. In Study 1 (N=471; 52.7% men; Mage=44.90, SD=14.75), path analyses were conducted on four fully-saturated models that included intergroup contact (quantity, quality), humanization, and intergroup outcomes (attitudes, collective action intentions) using cross-sectional data. Direct generalization was consistently observed from gay contact to Black intergroup outcomes. Only one indirect generalization pathway was statistically significant: greater quantity of gay contact humanized Black people, which itself predicted more positive attitudes and stronger collective action intentions toward Black people. However, Black contact did not predict direct or indirect intergroup outcomes toward gay people.
Study 2 assessed the effects of contact over time through four waves of data (T1 N=456; 48.4% male, 51.6% female, Mage=46.71, SD=15.30; T2 N=405, T3 N=371, T4 N=350). We used multilevel modelling to parse apart the within-person and between-person effects of contact on intergroup outcomes. We found consistent evidence of primary contact effects, for both Black and gay contact, regarding both within-subjects and between-subjects relations. However, the gay-to-Black generalization pattern found in Study 1 only occurred at the between-subjects level in Study 2, suggesting that the results from Study 1 reflect between-subjects differences (i.e., associative generalization). Within-subjects Black-to-gay generalization was observed: quantity of contact with Black people predicted increased collective action intentions toward gay people, and quantity of contact with Black people humanizes gay people (i.e., process generalization). Contrary to recent concerns in the field, Study 2 promisingly showed that contact with the primary outgroup can change individuals in ways that lead to positive outcomes towards primary, and even secondary, outgroups. Implications for these findings in terms of the contact hypothesis and future research directions are considered
Dynamics of Simultaneous Arboviral Infection in Host and Vector Cells
Get PDFIn this study, simultaneous infection dynamics were investigated in mammalian and insect cells. Mayaro virus (MAYV; genus Alphavirus), West Nile virus (WNV; genus Flavivirus), and Zika virus (ZIKV; genus Flavivirus) were the arboviruses used in the pairings. Arboviruses are transmitted by arthropods, and Aedes sp. mosquitoes are vectors of multiple viruses, including all three used in this study. In addition to sharing some of the same vectors, MAYV, WNV, and ZIKV can all infect humans. To understand whether the presence of another virus affected viral infection dynamics, mammalian-derived Vero and insect-derived C6/36 cells were infected with either MAYV and ZIKV or WNV and ZIKV. In nature, a simultaneous infection can occur through either coinfection or superinfection, and both conditions were studied here. Infection dynamics were assessed by quantifying viral RNA production for 6 days following infection, using RT-qPCR. Simultaneous MAYV + ZIKV and ZIKV + WNV infections impacted infection dynamics. Interestingly, the outcomes seen in simultaneous infections of Vero cells were similar for both pairings. Viral accommodation was seen in coinfection conditions, as no change was seen in RNA levels for either virus in the pairing. The order in which the viruses infected the cells changed the outcome in superinfection conditions in Vero cells – viral accommodation was observed when ZIKV was the first to infect the cells, while superinfection exclusion was seen when ZIKV tried to infect Vero cells already infected with either MAYV or WNV. In C6/36, replication differed between the virus pairings studied but did not differ between coinfection and superinfections. Viral interference was observed for conditions where MAYV and ZIKV simultaneously infected C6/36 cells, while virus accommodation was at play when the virus pairing consisted of WNV and ZIKV
Proclamation by John Graves Simcoe to such as are desirous to settle on the lands of the Crown in the Province of Upper Canada, 1795
Get PDFJohn Graves Simcoe (1752-1806) was the first Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada.A proclamation “by such as are desirous to settle on the lands of the crown in the Province of Upper Canada; by his Excellency John Graves Simcoe, Esquire; Lieutenant Governor and Commander in Chief of the said province, and Colonel Commanding His Majesty’s Forces, &c. &c &c…” The proclamation was originally issued on February 7, 1792, and was reprinted at Newark by G. Tiffany in 1795. The document is intended to “make known the terms of grant and settlement” in 10 numbered paragraphs. The proclamation was issued by Thomas Talbot, Acting Secretary
An Exploratory Analysis of an Objective Severity Tool to Classify Severe Problem Behaviour
Get PDFThis study investigates next steps in the process of tool validation for a Severity Tool
designed to objectively classify severe problem behavior. Morgan and Cox (under review)
developed a 26-item tool comprised of four sub-domains (frequency, chronicity, intensity, and
legal and environmental restrictions) which uses objective data collection strategies to inform
item responses. In partnership with the Severe Behavior Lab at the University of Texas San
Antonio (UTSA), 47 Texas-based caregivers were recruited to complete the Severity Tool with
Brock University researchers while accessing evidence-based services through UTSA. Service
provision is delivered through UTSA’s tiered service model. For this study, service components
(including hours of service received and intervention approach) were summarized along with
study sample descriptive characteristics, and Severity Tool subdomain patterns. I examined the
association between raw Severity Tool scores and intervention approach applied (function-based
vs non-function based) to achieve 80% reduction of behaviour from baseline. Fifty-six percent of
the sample were prescribed non-function based interventions, while 44% saw effective behaviour
reduction with a function-based approach. Severity Tool raw scores were lower for participants
who experienced function-based interventions (M = 8.50). Following this, I enacted a likelihood
analysis to support a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Although underpowered,
preliminary findings suggest that the Severity Tool may have utility, but further validation is
required to confirm its reliability and clinical applicability