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Bubble growth dynamics for C3F8 bubble chambers
Get PDFPICO is a direct dark matter search experiment that utilizes bubble chambers and the acoustics of
growing bubbles to discriminate signal from background events [5]. It has been shown that temperature perturbations from equilibrium significantly affect the growth of a bubble in superheated
water [17], particularly in the form of an onset delay to perceptible growth. In this thesis the temperature perturbation method is applied to superheated C3F8 to describe the acoustic background
discrimination achieved by the PICO experiment. We reproduced the delay in water and confirmed
its occurrence in C3F8. We hypothesized that the delay can be used for optical background discrimination. However, it was shown that the model does not apply to the energy deposition of different
types of particles as all of them, e.g. incoming alpha particles and neutron induced nuclear recoils,
create multiple bubbles along their tracks. Those bubbles, in the end, coalesce to form the observed
single visible bubble
Indigenous (her)oes and their healing work: ending violence against Indigenous women and girls
Get PDFThis thesis explores strategies thirteen community leaders are implementing to prevent violence
and educate the public on historical and current violence, and to empower Indigenous women
and girls. These strategies that the researcher explores are from programs and events in London
and Sudbury, Ontario. Through qualitative interviews, the researcher brings together the voices
of 13 participants, 11 Indigenous leaders (Anishinaabe and Haudenosaunee), one settler ally, and
two Elders, who implement nine initiatives. Using the framework of the Jingle Dress, the
researcher ensures that the data is inclusive of culture and Indigenous perspective. The collective
strategies were found to have eight main themes: Culture; Education; Oshkabewis: Taking care
of Spirit Through Commemoration; Partnerships; Looking Towards the Future; Families; Art as
a Medium for Healing; and Funding. The target audience of the initiatives were both Indigenous
and non-Indigenous Peoples. This research will help other organizations, grassroots or
government, incorporate Indigenous Peoples’ voices and culture within programming and events,
and can inform allies on how to decolonize their relations to help improve the well-being of all
Indigenous Peoples, as well as improve Indigenous and non-Indigenous relations
Sustainability in cold climates: a vernacular study of Icelandic turf houses
No full textThis thesis investigates the principles of vernacular architecture
in cold climates to inform sustainable design and building practices
in the 21st Century. More specifically, the thesis aims at studying the
building typology of Icelandic Turf Houses, to develop a series of
informed architectural strategies for cold climates, that will support
the environmental and culturally sustainable development and
transformation of northern built environments. Through literature
review and a material and spatial analysis of existing turf houses, this
thesis sheds light on three key aspects of a cold climate sustainable
architecture: 1) Passive and environmental strategies, ancient and
new, as they relate to cold climate conditions; 2) material selection
and expression; and 3) its relation to social structures and interactions.
Observed principles are then further explored in the project Turf
House Complex, a sustainable building complex addressing issues of
the climate balanced protected indoor and outdoor spaces, farm to
table food sustainability, as well as incorporating strategies of passive
systems resulting in a sustainable occupation of the project
Food insecurity, poverty and lived experience of homelessness: a study of women in Northeastern and Southwestern Ontario
No full textUnderstanding the connections between geographical location (Northern vs Southern Ontario) and gender inequalities and food insecurity, poverty, homelessness and health is vital within the current social and political context characterized by restraints in public funding. First, this study describes the experiences of poor and/or homeless women with or without dependents in two mid-size urban communities in Northeastern Ontario (City of Greater Sudbury) and Southwestern Ontario (City of London Ontario) with regard to food insecurity, homelessness, poverty and the perceived impacts on physical and mental health. Second, it identifies the profile of food-insecure women in Northeastern and Southwestern Ontario, as well as the factors associated with their general and mental health perceptions. The study employed a sequential descriptive multi-methods approach to address the objectives. A descriptive, qualitative exploration of food insecurity experiences among poor and/or homeless women in the two regions was conducted. Data were collected through a semi-structured interview with twenty poor and/or homeless women, 10 from each of the two communities. The participants were near homeless or absolutely homeless and all had prior histories of homelessness. The interview data were thematically analyzed. Subsequently, a quantitative secondary data analysis of extracted variables including sociodemographic, health and food insecurity from the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS, 2014) was conducted to describe the profile and factors associated with general and mental health perceptions for 408 women in the northeast and southwest of Ontario. The main themes were food and financial hardship, motherhood, resourcefulness and health perceptions. The quantitative findings did not capture the association between health perceptions and place of residency among food-insecure women. The general and mental health perceptions of these women were significantly related to household size, employment, worries about running out of food, inability to afford balanced meals and cutting or skipping meals regardless of where they lived. This study’s findings highlight the intersection of geography, health, gender and vulnerability to food insecurity and show that Northeastern and Southwestern women merit greater attention and support in accessing nutritious food. Such findings are important in shaping gendered public and social policies
Une exploration du développement de la pensée critique des futurs enseignants d’éducation physique et sportive : une étude pilote à l’Institut Supérieur d’Éducation Physique et Sportive (ISEPS) de Brazzaville, en République du Congo
No full textCette étude exploratoire a pour objectif d’examiner des dispositifs didactico-pédagogiques mis en
place, en formation initiale, par des formateurs universitaires afin de déterminer si ces dispositifs de formation
sont susceptibles de développer les habiletés de pensée critique des futurs enseignants d’éducation physique et sportive (EPS). Pour ce faire, les dispositifs de formation de six enseignements de deux formateurs universitaire ont été observés et analysés. Trois de ces enseignements étaient ceux d’un cours pratique (une activité sportive socio-motrice) tandis que les trois autres enseignements étaient relatifs à un cours théorique (appartenant à la sphère behaviorale des sciences du sport). Des entrevues semi-dirigées anté et post-classe ont été réalisées auprès des deux formateurs pour chacun des six enseignements observés. L’analyse des données recueillies s’est faite selon le cadre conceptuel du spectre des styles d’enseignement de Mosston et Ashworth (2006) pour les données du cours pratique et celui relative aux modalités de développement de la pensée selon Romano (1992) pour les données du cours théorique. Chaque cours étant considéré comme une étude de cas, une méthodologie d’études de cas multiples fut utilisée pour analyser et interpréter les données recueillies. Les résultats obtenus révèlent que les dispositifs de formation déployés par ces formateurs universitaires, lors du processus enseignement-apprentissage, sont en partie susceptibles de développer les habiletés de pensée critique des étudiants, notamment ceux du cours théorique. Toutefois, aucune sollicitation cognitive explicite n’a été faite aux futurs enseignants lors des situations éducatives mis en place. Ce qui ne permet pas un développement optimal réel de leurs habiletés de pensée critique
Geochemistry and isotopic composition of sediment cores to understand the lithological and anthropogenic controls on eutrophication in the New River Estuary, Southland, New Zealand
No full textThe New River Estuary (NRE) in Southland, New Zealand is highly eutrophic and has
rapidly declining ecosystem health. Historic estuarine reclamation, extensive catchment
drainage, and waterway modification have increased the susceptibility of the estuary to
degradation. In addition, more recent (post-1984) agricultural intensification and a shift in
primary land use from sheep to dairy farming have increased the fine-sediment and associated
pollutant loss to the catchment. Extensive macroalgae cover in the NRE reflects the ecosystem's
response to eutrophication, where opportunistic species outcompete native plants in the nutrientenriched environment. Three sediment cores from the primary depositional areas in the NRE, the
Waihopai Arm and Daffodil Bay, were geochemically characterized, including stable and
radiogenic isotopes, to assess changes in the rate of sediment, nutrient, and heavy metal
accumulation. The sedimentation rate in the upper Waihopai Arm has increased from 7.3-13 mm
yr-1 before 1935 to a very high rate of 20-22 mm yr-1
from 2009-2017. The lower Waihopai Arm
and Daffodil Bay have increased to a high rate of sedimentation in the last decade from 5.9 to
17.5 mm yr-1
and 5.5-7 to 10.3 mm yr-1
, respectively. Phosphorus and trace metal concentrations
in the bioavailable sediment fraction, which includes Fe- and Mn-oxides, sulfide, organic, or
surface-adsorbed phases, have increased up to three and eight times higher than geogenic levels,
respectively, which heightens their vulnerability to mobilization in response to changes in
salinity and redox state. Increasing heavy metals and decreasing calcium loads, coupled with
carbon- and nitrogen-isotopic values trending toward a terrestrial signature (
13C = -28‰,
15N
= 8‰), delineates a transition in sediment source from marine-dominated (pre-1935) to
terrestrial-dominated (post-1985). The composition of fallout radionuclides also indicates a
change in the delivery of terrestrial sediment from channel bank collapse and subsoil erosion
(pre-1965) to sheet erosion of surface, likely pasture, soils (post-1997). This study highlights the
importance of differentiating the natural sediment signatures from the anthropogenic sources of
pollutants to assess the proportion of low-quality sediment (i.e., high nutrient and/or metal
concentration) for which a targeted mitigation approach should be applied
Portraits of Otherness: Arabs and Muslims in Homeland and Little Mosque on the Prairie
No full textThe U.S. media has often projected Muslims and Arabs in the West negatively, especially
after the 9/11 attacks. The negativity identifies Arabs as the “other.” Through numerous symbols
of difference, the U.S media helps to create a clear “us versus them” binary imposing
homogeneous images of Muslims as “terrorists,” “patriarchal abusers of women,” and “tyrants.”
Drawing from literature in religious and gender studies in the framework of Marxistpsychoanalysis, this thesis analyzes the American political thriller Homeland (2011) in contrast
to the Canadian sitcom Little Mosque on the Prairie (2007). Written by a Muslim woman, Little
Mosque creates humors out of the conflicting and complicated diversities and realities of being
Muslim, while Homeland demonizes Arabs and Muslims. By employing Žižek’s concepts in The
Sublime Object of Ideology, I explore how fantasies shapes human society. Žižek’s analyses help
to clarify the idea that people’s fantasies are the basis of popular cultures. These fantasies in turn
shape the society’s biases and these biases shape individuals’ conceptions. However, while
Homeland reinforces the racist ideology and fantasy, Little Mosque challenges it. Little Mosque
converts the standard monochromatic stereotypes into a diverse mosaic, thereby moving
Muslims from the realm of static otherness to one of dynamic conflicts
Exploring the harm reduction approach
Get PDFThis Advanced Practicum Thesis paper examined the experience of my Advanced
Practicum at the Outpatient Addictions and Gambling Services (OAGS) program at Health
Sciences North. It focused on my learning goals which were to gain more knowledge and
experience with the harm reduction approach for problematic substance use; to develop an
understanding and skills for cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT); and to gain clinical skills for
social work practice through receiving clinical supervision. I described how each learning goal
was met through different strategies such as shadowing intake assessments and group
programming, co-facilitating group programming, individually conducting intake assessments
and case management, conducting research on each learning goal, taking relevant training,
journal writing, and receiving clinical supervision. It concluded with implications for social work
practice.Master of Social Work (MSW
Fluency or congruence? The role of metacognitive monitoring on attribute ratings
No full textProcessing fluency is a metacognitive cue which can influence both cognitive processes and
various judgments, and which can be heightened through directed forgetting (Alter &
Oppenheimer, 2009; Lanska, Olds, & Westerman, 2014). Similarly, the incongruence of novel
information with an activated schema can cause a cognitive processing slowdown (Dickinson,
2011; Duffy & Keir, 2004). Information is easier to process (therefore, has higher fluency) when
it is consistent with previously encountered schemas. In this study, processing fluency was
manipulated by presenting participants with information which was consistent or inconsistent
with a prior schema. Eye-movements were then measured to evaluate participants’ reading
speeds in passages which were schema congruent or incongruent. Results demonstrated an
interaction between priming condition and schema congruence as well as an interaction between
schema congruence and character gender for first-pass dwell times. Results also showed total
dwell time differences between conditions of congruence and character genders, respectively.
Furthermore, likeability ratings demonstrated that when counter-stereotypical gender information
had been primed, schema incongruent female characters were rated as being less likeable than
their male counterparts. These results are discussed in terms of their social implications
Background reduction techniques and simulations for the PICASSO and PICO dark matter search experiments.
No full textDark matter is one of the most challenging mysteries of cosmology. The detection
of Dark Matter is a main objective in modern experimental physics. The PICASSO and
then the PICO experiments work towards the direct detection of WIMPs (Weakly Interacting Massive Particles) with superheated liquid detectors. Phase transitions in the
superheated liquids are triggered by the nuclear recoil caused by the elastic collision of
a dark matter particle. The phase transition in the detectors leads to the formation of a
gaseous bubble. The acoustic signal of the nucleation of a bubble is recorded with piezoelectric sensors and pictures of the bubbles are taken with cameras. Many techniques are
used to isolate potential dark matter signal from background signals.
This thesis presents the work done for the fabrication process and purification techniques of the PICASSO detectors in the clean room at Université de Montréal. The
detectors built with these new purification techniques allowed a background reduction
of a factor of 10. The techniques and methods will be presented as well as the latest
results from the data taken with these detectors. Simulations for the PICO experiment
will also be presented. MCNP neutron background simulations from radioactive materials in the PICO detector will be presented. MCNP simulations for neutrons in the
SNOLAB drift will also be presented as well as other MCNP simulations for the design
and optimisation of the experiment. Finally, Geant4 muon-induced neutron simulations
in the SNOLAB drift will be presented as well as Geant4 simulations for the design of a
muon veto. These simulations were built entirely from scratch by using the SHIELDING
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