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Art as Gender Pedagogy: A Transdisciplinary Investigation of Art in the Service of Gender Liberation
Full text linkPart qualitative research study, part autoethnography, part research-creation and A/R/Tography, this transdisciplinary dissertation questions traditional methods for learning about gender and concludes that combining creative practice and radical pedagogy can foster modes of critical thinking, self-reflection, and self-authorship that move beyond the dominant gender binary. Each chapter is unique in approach and subject, and together they seek to generate insight into the way art facilitates knowledge of gender identity, to better understand how creative practice and experiencing art can foster gender literacy and liberation. Through the work and the practice of interdisciplinary artist, poet, and activist Kama La Mackerel, Chapter 1 argues that exploring gender through creative practice, whether as producer or viewer, can challenge dominant colonial scripts and facilitate affirmative and nuanced awareness of non-normative gender identification. Chapter 2 presents the transcripts of four interviews with Joshua Vettivelu, Kama La Mackerel, Theo Cuthand, and Emma Lind, who reflect on their intimate knowledges of creative practice, pedagogy, and gender non-normativity. Chapter 3 argues that dominant practices of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion largely fail to achieve their goals and offers a better, more effective approach that combines art with critical pedagogy. Chapter 4 is a case study that reveals how a months-long, arts-based, critical pedagogical process that I co-created with other Ottawa artist-activists, The Decommissioned Project, resulted in lasting social transformation and communal space-crafting
The Birds of Motown: exploring avian diversity using acoustic monitoring in Detroit.
Full text linkBirds face several barriers to survival in urbanized areas. The structure and availability of habitat varies across different cities, often reflecting their unique histories. Deindustrialized cities often have large quantities of vacant land. We explored the relationship between vacant land and bird diversity in Detroit, Michigan, using acoustic recordings. Vacant land was associated with more diverse bird communities and the occurrence of species with unique habitat requirements. Passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) and automated methods of acoustic analysis could be used to monitor urban birds and evaluate the results of conservation actions in cities. We evaluated the performance of BirdNET and acoustic indices using recordings from Detroit. BirdNET performance was limited by high error rates for certain species. Acoustic indices targeting birdsong poorly predicted bird diversity and may be biased by urban noise. Automated methods should be used with caution when extracting biological information from urban sound recordings
Acoustic communication in bark beetles (Scolytinae): Diversity and Function with a focus on Scolytus multistriatus (smaller European elm bark beetle) and Ips pini (pine engraver beetle)
No full textMany bark beetle species (Scolytinae) are known or proposed to produce acoustic signals in various behavioural contexts, yet major gaps remain in understanding which species produce signals, how they are generated, transmitted, detected, and their roles in survival. This thesis addresses some underlying questions about sound production and communication in bark beetles. Chapter 2 provides a comprehensive review of sound production mechanisms in adult bark beetles, highlighting current knowledge, identifying knowledge gaps, and suggesting directions for future research. In Chapter 3, I use Scolytus multistriatus (Marsham, 1802) as a model to investigate the morphology of the lesser-studied Gular-prosternal (G-Pr) stridulatory organ in both males and females. I recorded both sexes in four different contexts to assess their sound production capability. Despite the presence of the G-Pr organ in both sexes, no sound was produced in any of the examined behavioural contexts. I discuss possible reasons for the absence of sound production in this species and suggest directions for future research. In chapter 4 I test the antipredator function of disturbance sounds using Ips pini (Say, 1826) and one of its natural predators, Thanasimus dubius (Fabricius, 1777) through several hypotheses and predictions. For the first time, I developed a laser vibrometer method to accurately monitor signalling during predation events. I found strong support for chirps in female I. pini functioning to thwart predator attacks mainly through deimatic display, and potentially as recruitment signalling among female conspecifics. Overall, this research makes significant contributions to the study of bark beetle acoustic communication. It includes a comprehensive review of the topic, an in-depth study of the G-Pr organ using S. multistriatus, and an investigation into the function of disturbance sounds using I. pini and its natural predator, T. dubius
ᐱᖁᑏᑦ ᐃᓅᓯᖓᑦ ᖃᑎᒃᑕᓕᖕᒥᑦ Piqutiit Inuusingat Qatiktalingmit: Cultural and Social Lives of Inuit Piqutingit
No full textThis doctoral research is about the piqutiit inuusingat – social life and cultural history of things for Inuit – and the threads of sewing legacies that are still present today among Inuit communities. Memoryscape, piqutiit inuusingat (social and cultural lives of Inuit piqutiit), and ancestral spaces are used to lay the groundwork for the dissertation, and Inuit methodologies and theory are discussed through the introduction of the Iglu Model. By problematizing the lack of Inuit voice in archival information, reparations are made for Inuit agency and sovereignty by re-contextualizing Inuit stories and histories through engagement with archival photographs in interviews, as well as in sewing and beading gatherings. Qatiktalik is also contextualized and historicized through discussion about arviqsaqtiit, Inuit and non-Inuit whalers. This research further introduces the concept of tautuqquuqtitiniq, Inuit visual storytelling, with a focus on the sewing legacies from Qatiktalik. A discussion around sewing patterns, and politics around pattern sharing and Inuit beading and beadwork, piqutiit inuusingat, is examined, as is the role they play in how Inuit engage with cultural material and sewing today. Lastly, the exhibition, Nuvisi: Threading our Beads at Qatiktalik, Carleton University Art Gallery (September 28 – December 12, 2021) is discussed, with a focus on Inuit curatorial voice and honouring Ilagiitiarniq – being a good relative – through exhibitions
Human-turtle interactions during freshwater recreational activities: Understanding risks and mitigation strategies
Full text linkHuman activities are increasingly shaping the natural world. Understanding the multi-faceted and complex human-wildlife interactions that occur during these activities provides valuable insights into the human-led biodiversity crisis, and directions for effective environmental and conservation. In this thesis, we use an interdisciplinary approach to understand human-turtle interactions during water-based recreational activities in the Rideau Canal Waterway, Ontario, Canada, a site popular for recreation and home to five at-risk turtle species. We reviewed literature on human-turtle interactions during water-based recreation, and found most articles reported negative impacts to turtles, predominantly from boating activities. We also found knowledge gaps in measuring the efficacy of suggested conservation measures, and a lack of human dimensions research. We then assessed population size of northern map turtles (Graptemys geographica) in Opinicon Lake, Rideau Canal Waterway using two methods - capture-mark-recapture and local ecological knowledge. We found differing results from both methods. We suspect ongoing research from the lake’s biological station influenced local knowledge, awareness, and perceptions of turtles, revealing insights about science transfer. Next, we used two sociopsychological theories to explore underlying drivers for adopting turtle pro-conservation behaviours related to water-based recreation. We found the strongest driver that predicted behaviours were subjective norms, the perceived social expectation to behave. We recommend Rideau Canal Waterway environmental organizations frame turtle conservation awareness campaigns using subjective norms, such as highlighting that turtle pro-conservation behaviours are respected and endorsed by peers, neighbours, and community leaders. Lastly, we explored when northern map turtles in Opinicon Lake are at risk of powerboat collisions, as this can lead to turtle injury or mortality. While boat traffic was highest in July and August, we found turtles were more often found in open and shallow waters in May and June, potentially making them at greater risk of collisions during nesting season. Overall, this thesis highlights the interdisciplinarity of human-turtle interactions, and continued collaboration of diverse expertise needed to support freshwater turtle conservation during water-based recreation
Primality of Dilated Closed Path PolyominoIdeals
Full text linkThe polyomino ideal is a binomial ideal attached to connected collections of cells in the plane which was introduced by Qureshi in 2012. We seek to further characterize the primality of the polyomino ideal. We will define a novel product on polyominoes called the tensor product of polyominoes and investigate a special case of this product that we name a dilation. Using the idea of a dilation, we will construct a novel class of polyominoes which we name the dilated closed paths. This class is a “thick” generalization of Cisto and Navarra’s class of closed paths. We prove the Zig-Zag Walk Conjecture that was first posed by Mascia, Rinaldo, and Romeo in 2020 for this new class thereby fully characterizing primality within it. Finally, we open a discussion on the effect of dilation on other classes of polyominoes and on how polyomino invariants behave under general tensor products
The Extraction of Care
No full textThe ever-present critical need for care work continues to grow with the country’s aging population and, what scholars Abigail Bakan and Daiva Stasiulis call the “crisis in the domestic sphere.” Since the inception of Canada and the colonization of Turtle Island, Canada has been extracting care workers from foreign countries to serve settler-colonial families. The commodification of care labour and immigration policies, which target women from the Global South, subject migrant caregivers to precarious living conditions and exploitation. The malice of the global care chain is painfully evident when examining the extractive neocolonial relationship between Canada and the Philippines, as well as the diaspora of Filipina women. This thesis makes visible the invisiblized complex issues surrounding the extraction of care
