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Mapping the Eurydice Formation in the Mohican and Naskapi Grabens, offshore Nova Scotia, Canada
No full textThe Scotian Basin is a rifted continental margin that began forming in the late Triassic during the breakup of Pangea when the North American plate and the African plate began to separate. Rifting created a series of depocenters and platforms, and those depocenters (i.e., basins, grabens) were filled with sediment. The first formation deposited was dominantly shale, siltstone, and sandstone of the Eurydice Formation. Overlying and interfingering the Eurydice Formation is the halite and minor anhydrite bearing Argo Formation. These two formations represent an underexplored and classically ignored section of the Scotian Basin. The goal of this project is to produce a 3-D model of basin geometry and connectivity between two depocenters within the Scotian Basin, the Mohican Graben and the Naskapi Graben. Data used for this project include 2-D seismic and well log data. The horizons interpreted were the pre-rift Paleozoic top of basement, the top of Eurydice and Argo Formations, and the top Scatarie Member of the Abenaki Formation. In total, 26 seismic lines and wells were used to construct the 3-D model. The Mohican Graben represents a shallowly dipping graben that terminates to the northwest into the Naskapi Ridge, which is then steeply faulted forming the Naskapi Graben to the northwest. Irregular stratigraphic contacts in the Mohican Graben suggest that the Eurydice and Argo Formations were initially deposited as alluvial fan deposits sourced from two large fluvial systems, or the synrift deposits were deposited across a uniform margin later separated by large sinistral transfer faults, suggesting little to no fault reactivation in the area post-deposition. By gaining an understanding of the initial inception of the Scotian Basin and building a 3-D model, we are providing a valuable resource to the petroleum industry and future academic users
Unpacking the lunchbox: the social meanings of food and eating at school
No full textThis thesis explores the social meaning of school foods and eating at a rural elementary school in Nova Scotia in January 2023 from the perspective of children, mothers, and select school staff. It explores this topic as an element of the sociology of everyday life and draws from theory and literature that explores the socio-cultural relations of food and eating in the family and at school. The study used an ethnography approach that included participant observation of children over two days during times food was being consumed, and during a directed art activities about school foods and eating in a grade 2/3 classroom. Interviews with four mothers and three school staff were also conducted. The data reveals that foods and care work are markers of social status and communal mealtimes as sites of status exchange. It also shows how the current arrangement of how children eat at this school creates the conditions for the varied meanings of good food and bad food. The dichotomous items serve as status markers when school food is produced through the food provisioning of unequally resourced families, and through the social process of children eating together within an institution. I conclude that ethnographic research with children reveals new insights about children and adults' perceptions of school food, in that their experiences differ greatly. While there are clearly class based distinctions in the lunches mothers produce based on social class that are transmitted through the objects and care labour, children can find meanings of care regardless of their social class – for them the meaning of the lunch is negotiated among peer groups and influenced by the commercial food environment, and the organization of mealtime in school institutions - suggesting that children embody their own food habitus at school, and use food as cultural capital in ways that are different from adults
Development of a questionnaire to measure integrated sense of self
No full textThe present study validated a questionnaire designed to measure integrated sense of self or the experience of oneself as a stable, coherent whole. Various mental health disorders are associated with a non-integrated sense of self; however, the integrated self may develop to varying degrees even in non-clinical populations. Two-hundred forty adult participants from Canada and the U.S. completed the Integrated Sense of Self Questionnaire (ISSQ) in addition to measures of theoretically related and unrelated constructs. Theoretically related constructs included anxiety, depression, loneliness, adult attachment style, recollected caregiver sensitivity, resilience, and coping style. A measure of job satisfaction was used as a theoretically unrelated construct. The ISSQ had good internal consistency and a PCA revealed two-components. Six of the items formed the "Connected-Self" subscale and reflected an underlying theme of connection to self and others. The remaining six items formed the "Non-Self" subscale and reflected an underlying theme of feeling non-existent. Measures of theoretically related constructs correlated with the ISSQ in expected ways, supporting the convergent validity of the ISSQ. Discriminant validity was not supported. Future studies should examine the discriminant and predictive validity of the ISSQ and continue to develop and clarify the underlying theme of the Connected-Self subscale
Female athletes' voices: how safe an environment university sport is for student-athletes within usports
No full textThis study aimed to investigate how safe an environment university sport is for student athletes and to determine if institutions are providing a complaints procedure that adequately addresses the issues that athletes are facing. This was a qualitative study that used one-time, semi-structured interviews with current and retired female athletes in the Atlantic University Sport (AUS) conference. These athletes were asked about their experiences in university sport with a specific focus on emotional and mental abuse from coaches. A major issue is that many athletes are not aware of what constitutes abuse and is deemed inappropriate behaviour. Due to the power dynamics of the coach-athlete relationship, athletes do not feel they can make a complaint because of the fear of repercussions. Institutions do not do their part in ensuring athletes feel safe when filing a formal complaint, directly affecting the number of athletes that are willing to make a complaint. The results showed that athletes are not educated enough on what safe sport is and feel that there is a lack of resources for them to access. Athletes do not currently feel safe enough to make complaints about their coaches because there is either an ineffective process in place, or no process at all. The study found the presence of emotional and mental abuse is prevalent in university sport and very little is being done to mitigate it to keep athletes safe. This study makes recommendations for policy change around preventative measures, effective interventions, and necessary changes in the current complaints procedures
Broken promises: a content analysis of Nova Scotia institutions of higher education's campus sexual assault policies
No full textSexual violence is a widespread issue on university campuses in Canada, where one in five female undergraduate students are victims of sexual assault. Despite decades of research, the statistics
have not improved, highlighting the need for effective anti-violence legislation and policies that are properly informed, implemented and enforced. This thesis employs a content analysis of the sexual violence prevention policies of ten English-speaking Nova Scotia universities in relation to recommendations made by the Provincial Sexual Violence Prevention Committee. The study draws from two theoretical perspectives, Beverly McPhail's Feminist Framework Plus and the Information-Motivation-Behavioural Skills model as applied to consent by Shumlich and Fisher. The findings show that none of the universities are meeting the targets they have committed to in their policies, highlighting the need for increased resource allocation and authoritative policy evaluation strategies to effectively address sexual violence on university campuses
Thinking big and starting small: identifying considerations for small-scale tidal energy in southwest Nova Scotia
No full textNova Scotia's marine renewable energy (MRE) sector can contribute to provincial goals for carbon neutrality. With this, tidal energy has been an interest to industry stakeholders for over two decades, yet general momentum for the industry has shifted. Recent studies suggest a focus on scalable tidal energy (i.e., small-scale) development in the province. This thesis explores the considerations of developing tidal energy in Southwest Nova Scotia with an emphasis on small-scale tidal devices. Using a comprehensive literature review and in-depth semi-structured interviews with stakeholders from different parts of Nova Scotia's energy industry, key issues and challenges were explored. Results underline five main themes that affect industry potential, which include; cost and financing, technology, policy, energy distribution, and community engagement. These results support a discussion around the value of small-scale technology, regulatory pathways, industry collaboration, and using global best practices to accelerate tidal energy industry goals in Nova Scotia
Burnout, needs satisfaction and coaching: why female varsity athletes drop out
No full textThe purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of burnout, needs satisfaction and coaching on the dropout rate of female varsity athletes. A questionnaire was completed by 19 female varsity athletes from an Atlantic Canada university who left their sport before their years of eligibility expired. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with five of the participants, and data was coded using the constant comparison method. Findings revealed that participants who dropped out of varsity sport experienced high levels of burnout, poor needs satisfaction, poor coaching, and perceived their sport career to be hopeless. Coaching had a large impact on athletes' needs satisfaction and burnout levels
Total mercury and methylmercury in coyote (Canis latrans), beaver (Castor canadensis), otter (Lontra canadensis) and fisher (Pekania pennanti) liver tissue in Nova Scotia, Canada
No full textMercury accumulation in tissues is a significant health risk for many organisms in ecosystems. Most studies have been focused on mercury accumulation in aquatic species leaving a gap in knowledge concerning mercury exposure in terrestrial mammals. Coyotes (Canis latrans) could be a useful biomonitor for terrestrial mammals in Nova Scotia, Canada since they are found across the province and have fairly small home ranges. I analyzed 116 coyote livers for total mercury (THg) concentration, nitrogen and carbon stable isotopes. Additionally, I analyzed a subset of 12 liver samples for methylmercury (MeHg) concentration. A large range of THg concentrations were quantified in coyote liver (8 - 12,043 ng/g), otter liver (434 – 13,144 ng/g), and fisher liver (51 – 23,489 ng/g), all in dry weight. The wide range in coyote liver may be due too opportunistic feeding variations among individuals. In coyote liver, significant correlations between THg, age, and sex were found (p = 0.03), as well as between THg and δ15N (p < 0.001). The mean percentage of total mercury present as methyl mercury (%MeHg) in coyote livers was 43.8% which higher then reported in the literature. Although some age/sex correlations were found when comparing them as dependent variables (e.g., juvenile female coyotes vs. juvenile male coyotes), there were no significant correlations found when treating age and sex as independent variables. The lack of significance in some of the statistical tests may be due to the high variability in THg among individuals. Due to these variations, the data for mean THg in coyote livers are less useful to monitor regional mercury exposure patterns. Maximum THg in coyotes, however, may be useful as an indicator of specific hotspots, however further studies are required with increased sample numbers. Future work should determine the specific mechanisms responsible for the high variation in THg in coyote liver tissue
"What men want is so boring...":: introspective sex and queer quests in HBO's Euphoria
No full textThis thesis examines the characters of Cal and Nate Jacobs and Jules Vaughn in HBO's Euphoria to expound on the ways in which the show presents queerness as natural and heterosexuality as enforced. Judith Butler's term "heterosexual matrix" (2376), José Esteban Muñoz's argument that "queerness is always in the horizon" (11), and my subversion of W.H Auden's idea of quest narratives into a conception of queer quests are central to my analysis of the characters' journeys.
Chapter One investigates the ways in which Cal brings heteronormative ideas of queerness into his queer sexual relationships. I employ Sigmund Freud's theory on fetishism to analyse Cal's fetishistic relationship with queerness. This chapter outlines the ways in which Cal taints his queer interactions with heteronormativity. Consequently, his queer quest becomes convoluted. Chapter Two is interested in Nate's repression of his queer desires and how his repression catalyses internalised homophobia in him. I employ Freud's theory of the uncanny to analyse the uncanny presence of Nate's internalised homophobia in his life. I contend that Nate's internalised homophobia and compulsive need to be heterosexual obstructs his queer quest. Chapter Three examines Jules' movement from heterosexual femininity to queer femininity – femme-inity. I delve into her radical rejection of heteronormative ways to be a feminine girl as she embarks on a queer quest. Jules' queer quest is defined by her exit from the heterosexual matrix as she finds herself in pursuit of a queerness that is in the horizon. My thesis emphasises Euphoria's complex, intersectional and nuanced representation of queerness. Euphoria successfully demonstrates that heterosexuality is enforced, performative, and frail whereas queerness can be natural and liberating
From curriculum to teacher practice: is Nova Scotia's junior high social studies diverse in its offerings?
No full textSociological research on the integration of Nova Scotia's Indigenous and African-descended content with school curriculum is limited. The adequacy issues of classrooms' covering these populations are more pronounced when looking into junior high social studies classes. This thesis focuses on answering the question of how well these junior high social studies classes address content related to these communities in their classrooms. These questions were analyzed through semi-structured interviews with four social studies teachers regarding their curricular understanding and individual practices. A critical reading of the 2005/2006 and 2020 grade 7 and 8 curricula was also undertaken. From these analyses, it is found that there are in fact barriers (Professional Development, Student/Teacher demographics, and teacher resources provided) that inhibit teachers from being able to incorporate content about these communities into the classrooms successfully. This thesis uses an Anti-racism educational framework (Dei, 1996) to assess curricular content and teacher practice. This thesis argues that some of the current curricula used by parts of the province are defined as "Eurocentric" and dishonest about the narrative surrounding Indigenous and African Nova Scotian populations