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Monetary value of unpaid care in Canada: A comparison of valuation methods
No full textProviding care to family members and friends is a significant household activity in Canada, amounting to a total of 5.7 billion hours of care in 2018. And family caregivers will continue to play an important role in the provision of care in Canada in the foreseeable future. Yet, this unpaid caregiving is often overlooked by policymakers and governments and the monetary value of unpaid care is rarely included in economic evaluation studies in health care. As people spend significant amounts of time on unpaid care work across their lifetimes, we need to acknowledge the economic importance of such tasks. Quantifying the value of unpaid care work will help to build a more complete picture of national economic output by revealing the economic contributions of family caregivers.
Often absent from public policy agendas and discussions, this study has revealed the contribution family caregivers make to the Canadian economy. This study also highlights the fact that the estimated value of unpaid caregiving depends on the choice of valuation method even when using the same group of caregivers and the same caring time in the valuations. Different valuation methods conceptualize the value of unpaid care work from different perspectives and employ diverse methodologies. Furthermore, different perspectives from caregivers, care receivers, and their family members regarding the monetary values of caring task time may explain the variation in results across methods. Regardless of the valuation method used, however, the value of unpaid caregiving is substantial. The total estimated value of the care activities ranges between 44 billion and 154 billion Canadian dollars, depending on the valuation method applied. These estimates are equivalent to between 2.2% and 7.4% of the 2018 Canadian Gross Domestic Product (GDP), indicating its importance relative to the Canadian economy and the contribution that unpaid caregiving provides to the economy.
The estimates from this study also contribute to our understanding of economic inequality between men and women in Canada. Consistent with historically and persistently observed gender differences in Canada, the majority of the caring hours in this study were provided by women, with 56% of hours provided by women and 44% of hours provided by men. Similarly, the share of the total value of unpaid care estimated by two valuation approaches, replacement and opportunity cost methods, was disproportionately higher for women compared to men. Gendered norms about responsibility for caregiving labour and unequal opportunity costs may lead women to undertake care more than men and thus hinder their career development and economic well-being in later life.
Overall, the current study provides a foundation for policymakers to consider the substantial hidden economic costs of providing care and may change the dialogue around investing in the public provision of care. To allocate public revenues more efficiently, economic evaluation studies need to recognize hidden costs. Despite this, the value of unpaid care has rarely been included in economic evaluation studies that inform health care or government policies. In the policy realm, the high caregiving labour costs measured in this study provide a rationale for flexible work arrangements
Exploration of Innovative Concrete Masonry Blocks to Meet Emerging Manufacturing and Construction Techniques for Improved Structural Performance and Accelerated Construction Speed
No full textMasonry structures construction involves placing blocks together with mortar to create structures. Concrete masonry blocks are commonly used in North America for load-bearing walls, typically measuring 390 × 190 × 190 mm with two voids. Recently, technological advancements in robotics have revolutionized masonry construction, enhancing accuracy, speed, and safety. In response, the University of Alberta is pioneering fully robotic masonry construction, leveraging robots' precision and efficiency for economic and safety benefits. This shift prompts a comprehensive reassessment of resources, including exploring innovative block designs to optimize structural performance and construction efficiency. This study provides an initial concept for an innovative concrete masonry block, proposing a design aimed at enhancing construction speed and improving the structural performance of unreinforced and reinforced masonry walls under in-plane (IP) and out-of-plane (OOP) loading. The proposed improvement follows an evaluation of the standard concrete masonry block through finite element (FE) modeling, focusing on three separate aspects: topology, size, and interlocking mechanism.
Specifically, this thesis includes four phases; in the first phase, topology optimization is conducted through ABAQUS TOSCA to identify the potential of alternative designs that increase compressive strength while maintaining the same volume as the typical concrete masonry unit (CMU) currently used. The results indicate the current CMU is quite optimized regarding the highest compressive strength.
The second phase explores what might be the effect of increasing block size on the structural performance of unreinforced and reinforced masonry walls under IP and OOP loading by comparing the behavior of walls built with standard blocks and larger "mega" blocks in various configurations. FE simulation results indicate that walls constructed with mega blocks exhibit performance nearly identical to that of standard walls under OOP loading for both unreinforced and reinforced cases, as well as for the reinforced case under IP loading. However, slight discrepancies are observed in the unreinforced case under IP loading, demonstrating the potential of mega blocks with the help of heavy-lifting robotics to accelerate construction without compromising structural integrity.
The third phase examines the potential impact of introducing an interlocking mechanism designed to enhance the structural performance of unreinforced masonry walls under IP and OOP loadings. FE results indicate that the implementation of interlocking blocks may improve the structural performance of masonry walls under IP loading, both with and without mortar, in comparison to standard block masonry walls. Moreover, for OOP loading, interlocking blocks appear to slightly enhance performance when mortar is applied, but their effectiveness diminishes in the absence of mortar.
In the fourth phase, an innovative concrete masonry block is proposed based on the insights drawn from the three previously examined aspects. This new block is compared to the standard CMU, and initial findings suggest that it may enhance structural performance under both IP and OOP loadings in unreinforced and reinforced masonry walls, while also contributing to increased construction speed
Whose Cure is Security? Comparing COVID-19 Security Discourses Pertaining to Indigenous Communities in Alberta and Manitoba Legislative Politics
No full textThe COVID-19 pandemic featured government and legislative leaders around the
world engaged in conveying to their citizens a sense of the public health and economic
threats they faced and how their governments were managing them. The number of studies
that have analyzed COVID-19 governance through the lens of securitization discourse
theory, which illustrates how political actors vocalize a language of existential threat to
legitimize an extraordinary security response to their audience(s), has ballooned since the
end of the pandemic. However, little has been written about securitization at the provincial
level during the pandemic in Canada. The COVID-19 pandemic saw Premiers Jason Kenney
and Brian Pallister engage in public health and economic securitization while also
constructing an image of Indigenous communities as either vaccine hesitant or receiving
vaccines that they believed the rest of the province was entitled to. However, Manitoba
opposition members countered their respective government’s vaccine securitization while
the Alberta opposition did not. To illustrate the difference in the oppositions’ discourses,
this study joins an underwritten yet growing body of literature that interweaves
securitization and Indigenous resistance to settler colonialism. This literature has been
skeptical of the commensurability of Indigenous resistance and successful securitization
because of the lack of receptiveness and ongoing hostility from settler governments in
Canada towards Indigenous Peoples’ security concerns. However, Manitoba’s Official
Opposition during this time, comprised of First Nations activists and former government
leaders in important legislative positions, offers a counterpoint to the present literature. I
engage in a comparative discourse analysis that draws from government press
conferences and legislative debates in provincial Hansards that occurred over the first 19
months of the pandemic. During each wave, I highlight the notions of economic and/or
public health security that either government privileged, whether and how these
discourses intersected with rhetoric about Indigenous communities, and whether and how
opposition members refuted the government discourse. Two fundamental differences
emerge from this comparison. The first difference is that Kenney’s primary framing of
Indigenous communities during the pandemic aligned with his pre-pandemic attempts to
depict the government’s oil-and gas interests as shared by Indigenous communities. In
comparison, Pallister’s discourse and relationship with Indigenous communities preceding
and persisting through the pandemic relied on constructions of racial dichotomies
between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Manitobans that were received with widespread
condemnation. The second difference is that Indigenous opposition members in Manitoba
brought depth, legitimacy, and knowledge to their resistance of Pallister’s discourse that
was absent in Alberta. I conclude that Pallister’s particularly poor relationship with
Indigenous governments and communities, paired with the significant representation of
Indigenous activists and former government leaders in the Official Opposition, established
the conditions for counter-securitization discourse to emerge in the Manitoba Legislature
that were not present in the Alberta Legislature. Furthermore, the recent election of the
then-Official Opposition to government in Manitoba suggests that broadening how to
evaluate the success of Indigenous-led securitization as a form of ontological resistance is
appropriate
Insight into government, May 23, 2025
No full textAlberta's independent newsletter on government & politics
A Dialogue Across Centuries: Fei Mu, Neo-Traditionalism, and the Legacy of Spring in a Small Town (1948)
Full text linkFei Mu’s Spring in a Small Town remains a defining masterpiece in Chinese cinema, whose influence extends far beyond the film industry, leaving an indelible mark on academic discourse as well. While Fei is often portrayed as an isolated genius, standing apart from his contemporaries, this thesis challenges that interpretation by contextualizing his work, films and writings, within the Neo-Traditionalist movement, a framework that has been underexplored in current scholarship.
The first chapter of the thesis argues that Fei’s association with Neo-Traditionalism is evident in his critical examination of Confucianism and the reinterpretation of classic Chinese art forms. These themes are explored within the context of the shifting political and cultural landscape of the Republican era, as well as the circulation of intellectual thoughts between Republican China and the West. Fei’s work emphasizes the value of emotion, rural life, traditional morality, and arts that were often criticized and rejected in an era dominated by Westernization, serving as a universal remedy to the challenges of modernity.
The second and third chapters analyze Spring in a Small Town through the lens of Neo-Traditionalism, specifically focusing on how Fei’s film critically engages with Confucian concepts of benevolence (ren 仁) and traditional Chinese aesthetics. Both chapters extend the analysis to Tian Zhuangzhuang’s 2002 remake, Springtime in a Small Town, positioning the two versions as a dialogue across time. This comparative study investigates how changes in cinematic techniques—visual style, sound design, and narrative structure—reflect the contrasting attitudes of the two filmmakers toward tradition, development, and the socio-political context of their respective eras.
Ultimately, this thesis presents a more nuanced and coherent understanding of Fei’s intellectual legacy by linking his works with Neo-Traditionalist thought, offering a fresh perspective on the intersections of film, culture, and ideology in Republican China. Through its interdisciplinary approach, this study deepens our understanding of the intellectual climate of the period, shedding light on the production mechanisms behind Fei’s cinematic creations and the continued relevance of his work in contemporary Chinese cinema
Analysis of the Microbial Extracellular Secretions (MESs) in GAC-Amended Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (UASB) Reactors using Metagenomic and Metaproteomic Insights
No full textDirect interspecies electron transfer (DIET) is a key mechanism in anaerobic digestion (AD) systems that enhances electron exchange between microbial species through the introduction of conductive materials such as granular activated carbon (GAC). However, the influence of GAC extends beyond simple microbial contact; it also stimulates microbial extracellular secretions (MESs), playing a role in enhanced AD operation. This study investigated and quantified the functional taxonomic profile and the global protein expression in microbial communities using metagenomics and metaproteomics. Two lab-scale up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactors were operated for 150 days, treating propionate-rich synthetic wastewater, with one reactor amended with GAC. Operational results showed that addition of GAC enhanced the COD removal efficiency and methane production to 92 ± 5 % and 70 8 %, respectively, compared to 81 2% and 55.4 5% in non-GAC reactor. Metagenomic analysis revealed a notable shift in GAC-amended UASB reactor towards hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis, with an increased relative abundance of key methanogens, particularly uncultured Methanobacterium sp. (31.4%). Increased abundance of cobaltochelatase CobS (63%) and CobT enzymes (65%) suggests their role in the biosynthesis of cobalamin (Vitamin B12), essential for microbial metabolic activity such as methanogenesis and production of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS). Additionally, the presence of pathways related to metabolism of cofactors and vitamins underscores the role of GAC in fostering microbial community adept at synthesizing essential compounds for extracellular biochemical activities. Global protein expression revealed an enhanced diversity and abundance of proteins associated with metabolic and enzymatic activities. The GAC-amended reactor showed an increase in peptides linked to ATP synthesis and beta-ketoacyl-[acyl-carrier-protein] reductase, suggesting enhanced energy metabolism and fatty acid biosynthesis. Key proteins involved in methanogenesis, including Coenzyme F420-dependent enzymes, formate dehydrogenase, and methyl-coenzyme M reductase (MCR) were abundant in GAC samples. Hence, this study revealed that the microbial species abundance directly influences the production of specific proteins crucial for methanogenesis and GAC-stimulated microbial extracellular sections
Common blue damselfly
No full textThe male of the common blue damselfly is black and bright blue, while the females are black and beige
Real-Time Digital-Twin of Thorium-Based Molten Salt Breeder Reactor for Closed-Loop Controller Testing Applications
No full textMolten Salt Breeder Reactors (MSBRs), which utilize molten fluoride salts as both fuel and coolant, are currently being researched and designed worldwide, offering inherent safety features, efficient fuel utilization, and the potential for thorium-based fuel cycles. Given the advanced development status of MSBRs, real-time emulation is essential for dynamic analysis studies, accommodating more detailed models and advanced
control strategies. This paper proposes a real-time digital-twin (RTDT) based on a hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) emulation on a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) for a multi-domain two-fluid Molten Salt Breeder Reactor (MSBR) model with a designed controller for validation and testing. A nonlinear explicit numerical solution with an appropriate step-size and ordinary differential equation (ODE) solver is carried out in a non-iterative fashion to achieve the required accuracy and real-time execution. The MSBR hardware emulation and closed-loop controller tests have been implemented on the parallel hardware architecture of the FPGA in real-time for dynamic analysis and performance evaluation. The FPGA-based hardware emulation has achieved an ultra-low latency of 2.34 μs, providing a remarkable 427-fold acceleration in faster-than-real-time (FTRT) performance. The designed controller performs well under transient and steady-state operating conditions, effectively stabilizing the MSBR system under perturbations, as validated on the RTDT
Issues related to Defining and Conceptualizing Metacognition
Full text linkThis is an approximate transcript of Episode 5, Issues related to Defining and Conceptualizing Metacognition’ from my Podcast 'The Metacognition Channel' which can be found at https://metacognition.podbean.com/ For reasons of clarity for an audio file, some differences will be noted in this file compared with the podcast episode. In it, I seek to identify issues related to the definition and conceptualization of metacognition and, briefly, how we seem to be currently ‘handling these issues. This episode provides some foundation for episode 6 in which I outline my thoughts on and defend the definition and conceptual framework for metacognition that I use