A doctoral citation summarizes the nature of the independent research, provides a high-level overview of the study, states the significance of the work and says who will benefit from the findings in clear, non-specialized language, so that members of a lay audience will understand it.
| Year | Citation | NID |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Dr. Burnett studied the role of automated activity monitors in the reproductive management of dairy cows. Her findings show the correlation between increased estrous expression and improved fertility. This research demonstrates the importance of estrous expression in breeding decisions and provides alternatives for reducing hormonal interventions. | Doctor of Philosophy in Applied Animal Biology (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Chen studied numerical algorithms for stiff elastodynamic simulation, a key procedure in computer graphics applications. He developed models for natural physical movements that would maintain stability and produce lively simulations at a lower cost. This work will improve the efficiency and accuracy for physically-based computer simulation. | Doctor of Philosophy in Computer Science (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Beetch studied how natural compounds derived from diet, namely a class of polyphenols found in grapes and blueberries, can reverse aberrant DNA methylation patterns that underlie cancer. Her findings show that these compounds exert anti-cancer effects through epigenetic gene regulation, which can be used in cancer prevention and therapy. | Doctor of Philosophy in Human Nutrition (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Sanford examined brain activity and working memory deficits in schizophrenia. Using a novel multi-dataset approach, she found that a brain network that activated during initial memory encoding predicted both verbal and visual memory capacity. This will inform the development of treatments to improve working memory in schizophrenia patients. | Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Workman used X-ray crystallography to study the structure-function relationship of enzymes involved in the biosynthesis of the bacterial cell wall. His structural data revealed an unexpected topology and suggested an additional function for a key membrane protein. This knowledge provides a foundation for the development of novel antibiotics. | Doctor of Philosophy in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. McFadden studied the dynamics of lithium ions at ultra-dilute concentrations inside single crystalline materials. The results from these novel experiments will help to refine models of ion transport in solids, which can be applied in the operation of many practical devices, such as lithium-ion batteries. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Dai developed nanostructured catalysts for methane combustion. The main component of natural gas, methane, is a potent greenhouse gas, and the removal of unburned methane from natural gas exhaust requires catalysts that operate at low temperatures. The developed catalysts may help to decrease methane emissions from natural gas vehicles. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Robazza's research focused on the seismic performance of slender ductile reinforced masonry shear walls. His research included both extensive experimental testing and numerical analyses, which demonstrated that properly detailed reinforced masonry shear walls can possess very good energy dissipation and offer reliable seismic force resistance. | Doctor of Philosophy in Civil Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Reza developed a highly-scalable, distributed solution to support practical pattern matching based analytics in large graph datasets. He demonstrated the effectiveness of this technique through scaling experiments on massive real-world graph datasets and at platform scales, orders of magnitude larger than used in the past for similar problems. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Nkansah-Boadu studied the treatment of selenium-contaminated coal mine-affected water using microbial consortia from mine-affected sediments. He discovered novel selenium-reducing bacteria and selenium removal pathways. His findings contribute knowledge for designing systems for remediating selenium-contaminated mine waters. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemical and Biological Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Booth investigated the development of small airways disease in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). He showed that patients in the early stages of COPD already have chronically inflamed airways and tissue destruction. His work increases our knowledge of small airways disease in COPD and provides new avenues for treatment. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pharmacology (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Price attends to a Welsh cultural approach to contemplative connection with the living world. As a response to climate change, her writing explores ways of knowing with trees, culture, words, and ancestors. It offers a creative, devotional, and regenerative approach to environmental and contemplative education. | Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum Studies (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Roberson investigated the impact of immigration background on social belonging. Situating the measurement of social belonging in schools within an international comparative context, he shows that immigration background and national multicultural integration policy are valuable explanatory variables in the ecological validity argument. | Doctor of Philosophy in Measurement, Evaluation and Research Methodology (PhD) |
| 2020 | Turbulence in the ocean controls its ability to support life and modulate Earth's climate. It works to distribute heat, oxygen, and nutrients across the world's oceans. Dr. Scheifele used a robotic submarine to study marine turbulence in the Arctic Ocean, and studied the effects of ocean turbulence on the natural environment in the Beaufort Sea. | Doctor of Philosophy in Oceanography (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Ai developed a photo-acoustic imaging system through optical excitation and acoustic detection to illuminate the prostate from within the urethra using a transurethral probe. This technique will improve the detection and imaging of malignant tissue and prostate cancer. | Doctor of Philosophy in Biomedical Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Over 50% of all wood globally is used for daily cooking, which negatively impacts climate change and forest sustainability. Dr. Singh assessed factors which dictate changes in household fuelwood consumption patterns in India. Her results have direct and important implications for international climate policy and forest management. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Monje proposes a new approach to Colombian literature that focuses on the sociable nature of Literary Cafés, which unites a diversity of texts and analyzes them in a way that unveils writers' associations over time. This research shows an innovative way of reading literature, which can be applied in different spatio-temporal contexts. | Doctor of Philosophy in Hispanic Studies (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Ransom examined the nature of perceptual learning for expertise, arguing that it is best understood as involving a change in the contents of perceptual experience itself, rather than simply the sorts of inferences experts are able to make. This has an impact on real-world training programs in fields from medicine to military to art criticism. | Doctor of Philosophy in Philosophy (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Mohseni studied matrix defects in aerospace composites manufacturing. He developed analytical models and approaches for process optimization to minimize waste and reduce the manufacturing cost, especially for small enterprises. This research will inform improvements to cure cycle design, which will enable defect-free part manufacturing. | Doctor of Philosophy in Materials Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. McDowell examined how people living in the Nepal Himalayas and Peruvian Andes are adapting to changes in glacial hydrology. His work makes substantive contributions to how adaptation is studied in mountain areas, as well as what we know about and can do to address adaptation needs in mountain communities at the frontlines of climate change. | Doctor of Philosophy in Resources, Environment and Sustainability (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Ghazani's doctoral studies focused on the development of an easy method to sort particles into different classes. He designed and made a device to continuously separate microfibre particles. His findings contribute to the bio-product industry and will allow for either reduced energy usage or enhanced service performance. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemical and Biological Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Shu addressed power management issues in a mobile sensor network, with specific application to automated water quality monitoring. He developed energy-efficient methods to prolong the lifetime of the sensor network, which could be applied to various other environmental monitoring systems. | Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Glass studied the relationship between human and livestock wellbeing in a traditional Maasai community. She found that herd size is associated with wealth and happiness, and her findings support the community belief that livestock are not a major source of human illness, as human and livestock diseases are most strongly correlated with climate. | Doctor of Philosophy in Population and Public Health (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. Paudel studied two key aspects of plant-virus interaction: how viruses coerce plants to produce viral products and how the plant defends itself. He identified regions in the viral genome that help in hijacking the host resources. Also, his results showed a variety of host antiviral defenses and highlighted the complexity of the interaction. | Doctor of Philosophy in Botany (PhD) |
| 2020 | Dr. de Zwaan demonstrated that parental care among alpine songbirds can buffer nestlings against extreme weather and predation risk, improving early-life growth conditions and benefitting survival and life-time fitness. A capacity to respond to variable constraints has critical implications for the future of birds under rapid environmental change. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |