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The Impact of Combined Bacteriophage and Toxin Exposure on Gut Viability in Parkinson’s Disease Models
Get PDFPD is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by motor impairments as well as several non-motor symptoms, including mood disturbances and gastrointestinal dysfunction. Emerging evidence suggests that PD involves pathological brain changes, and the gut might be involved in certain aspects of the disease. The present thesis assessed the impact of environmental and inflammatory stressors (paraquat and LPS) and the presence of bacteriophage 936 on the morphology of the GI tract. Although the treatments did not impact the number of enteric glia and macrophages present in the gut, there were marked changes in the gut morphology induced by the LPS, paraquat and phage treatments
After the Forest Burns: Storying Wildfire in Western Canada Through Visual Material Narratives
No full textWith anthropogenic climate change exacerbating the frequency and intensity of wildfires in Western Canada, lived experiences of climate change are becoming increasingly visible and felt. This thesis considers the forest after it burns and before ecological regeneration becomes visible. Using semi-structured interviews, place-based conversations, and “slow-writing” and “slow-looking” as methods, I examine how six artists engage with post-wildfire sites in Western Canada, incorporating materials like ash and charcoal into their work. These projects demonstrate that material relations and artistic practices can foster new imaginaries necessary for responding to the climate crisis. Drawing on Ursula K. Le Guin’s theory of the carrier bag and Haraway’s concept of “staying with the trouble” I propose that the act of gathering, both with hands and in community, offers a critical, decolonized approach to storying wildfire in which loss is both catastrophic and regenerative
Self-identification on Job Applications: Interactions of Theory of Planned Behaviour and Identity
Get PDFThis study explores how identity influences job applicants' decisions to self-identify with equity-seeking groups during the job application process. A review of over 40 peer-reviewed articles (1970-2022) identified key identity-behavior models, two of which were adapted for this study. The findings suggest that both social identity (group identity) and self-identity impact behavioral intentions, extending beyond the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) variables. The study found that group norms and perceived behavioral control were significantly associated with applicants' intent to self-identify, while self-identity was not. Regression analysis revealed that subjective norms and group identity were key predictors of behavioral intention. The results suggest that organizations could enhance diversity and inclusion by fostering group norms and transparency around self-identification data. This study contributes to the literature on identity and behavior, offering insights into how identity shapes hiring behaviors within equity-seeking groups
Assessing how Water Quality and Quantity Impact the Rideau Canal Skateway in the Face of Climate Change
Get PDFThe Rideau Canal Skateway (RCS) is the world’s longest natural ice rink and a significant tourist attraction in Canada. It is important to investigate factors impacting the RCS to improve the resilience in the face of climate change. The goal of this research was to assess the water system to determine if water quality could reduce the freezing and resilience of the RCS. From 2021 to 2023, water quality (temperature and specific conductivity) and quantity data (stormwater discharge) were collected along the RCS. Results show that the water quality was notably worse in the skating season and reduces along the length of the RCS (i.e., Downtown section). In particular, it was found that stormwater affected local water quality for approximately 1-7 days which could impact the RCS ice formation and quality. Overall, this research demonstrated that stormwater discharge into the RCS needs to be controlled to mitigate future impacts
Beyond Vision: Multi-Sensory Design through the Experience of Space
No full text“Accessible” is often understood as design that allows all users to move freely, however, accessibility refers to more than just mobility; it consists of all sensorial abilities, and how they vary amongst everyone. This limited understanding of accessibility causes most public spaces to provide all users accessible travel means, but only certain individuals the ability to fully experience them. This is because architecture is predominantly designed for visual experience, making it difficult for visually impaired individuals to appreciate design. Even when colour contrast, tactile surfaces, and audio indicators are present in public spaces to help the visually impaired navigate, elements to make the remaining experience accessible are rarely included. To address this problem, we must consider how sensorial design, beyond vision, can be implemented in public architecture. This is achievable through methods that prioritize touch, sound, and smell, such as using materiality, noise, and scent, to supplement experience through sight
Quantifying the Health Co-benefits of Mitigating Combustion-based CO2 Emissions in Canada and the U.S.
Get PDFMitigation of CO2 emissions, primarily aimed at addressing climate change, frequently generates ancillary public health benefits through concurrent reductions in co-emitted air pollutants such as PM2.5. These pollutants are key contributors to ambient air pollution and are associated with adverse health outcomes including premature mortality. Climate mitigation strategies, such as the decarbonization of the power and transportation sectors, can thus yield immediate, localized improvements in air quality. Quantifying the health co-benefits of CO2 reductions requires integrating emissions data, atmospheric modeling, epidemiological evidence, and economic valuation frameworks. These co-benefits improve climate policy cost-effectiveness and support integrated strategies that address both emissions and public health. Understanding how emissions from various sources affect societal outcomes across different regions requires robust analytical tools. Sensitivity analysis plays a critical role in linking emissions to health and economic outcomes and can inform targeted policy interventions. This thesis focuses on quantifying the societal co-benefits of reducing CO2 emissions using a twofold methodology. It utilizes adjoint sensitivity analysis, integrating detailed demographic, epidemiological, and economic data within a full-complexity atmospheric modeling framework. Specifically, the adjoint-enabled version of the U.S. Community Multiscale Air Quality model (CMAQ-ADJ) is used to determine the location-specific contributions of emissions to health-related societal burdens. By integrating these spatially resolved health impact sensitivities with sector- and region-specific co-pollutant intensities, the analysis links CO2 emission reductions to health outcomes and calculates the co-benefits. The analysis is conducted for both the U.S. and Canada, incorporating relevant case studies to examine the location-specific co-benefits of emission reduction strategies. These case studies provide practical insights into how targeted interventions can yield both climate and public health benefits. The findings help policymakers prioritize actions that maximize societal benefits, optimize resources, and align environmental, health, and equity goals across regions. While the analysis is subject to uncertainties inherent in emissions data, modeling assumptions, and demographic inputs, it represents an important step toward location-specific co-benefits calculation using an adjoint sensitivity analysis. The results show significant spatial and temporal variation in the sensitivity of emissions impacts. The adjoint approach proves especially effective at capturing this variation, offering valuable insights for policymakers
Narrative Imagination in Photobooks and The Limits Photographic Information: Sally Mann’s Immediate Family and Larry Towell’s The World from My Front Porch Compared.
Get PDFThis thesis addresses photographic narrativity through a comparative analysis of two photobooks: Larry Towell’s The World from My Front Porch (2008) and Sally Mann’s Immediate Family (1992). They share subject matter (the rural family lives of their authors) as well as a relationship to narrative that exemplifies the photobook. Towell gives readers a strong narrative framework through materiality, written histories, and quasi-vernacular photographies disrupting traditional narratives of family photography. His poetically written histories are a frank history of his family and farmland, supported by archival materials to contrast the beauty of his family photographs. Art photographer Sally Mann’s (in)famous Immediate Family uses thematic development in images of her (sometimes nude) children on their farm to explore ideas about childhood, family, and land with a minimum of textual framework to guide the reader. My analysis of these works shows photographs to be “insufficient” narratives that are imaginatively fulfilled
The Colonial Logics of Exceptionalism: Imperial Feminism in an American and Canadian Case Study
Get PDFThis thesis explores the political rhetoric of Western exceptionalism in both the United States and Canada through two contemporary case studies. The first case study explores the American occupation of Afghanistan and rhetoric that painted this occupation as a mission of liberation for Afghan women. The second case study explores the Zero Tolerance for Barbaric Cultural Practices Act, a Conservative piece of legislation that criminalized polygamy at the borders of Canada. In each case study, it reveals the ways in which Muslim women were used as referent objects of protection in projects of imperial feminism that ultimately aimed to cement the colonial logic of Western exceptionalism. It concludes with a reflection on the current state of narratives of Western exceptionalism in both countries studied, revealing the ways in which these narratives ultimately operate to mask the violence of the imperial state against both non-citizens and citizens alike