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The Global ETD Search service is a free service for researchers
to find electronic theses and dissertations. This service is
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Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations.
Our metadata is collected from universities around the world. If you manage a university/consortium/country archive and want to be added, details can be found on the NDLTD website.
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Showing 820031 to 820040 of 1990775 (1.11 seconds)| 820031 |
The Perceptions of University and Immigrant Women Aged 18 to 25 About the Human papillomavirus Vaccines: A Cross-sectional StudyFernandes, Rachel 31 January 2014 (has links)
Persistent infection with certain subtypes of Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a necessary cause of cervical cancer, the second most common cancer among women worldwide. Uptake of HPV vaccines in the targeted Canadian female population has been lower than anticipated. This study’s primary objective was to determine undergraduate women’s perceptions about HPV vaccination. A total of 401 female University of Ottawa undergraduate students completed a newly developed cross-sectional web survey. The prevalence of HPV vaccination was 49%. While the overall attitude towards receiving the vaccine was positive, vaccinated respondents had more favorable attitudes toward the vaccine. Lack of vaccine knowledge and cost were the primary barriers that have prevented HPV vaccination among non-vaccinated respondents. Offering HPV vaccination for women aged 18 to 25 presents a strategy for addressing suboptimal vaccination coverage in the targeted female population and may reduce health inequities demonstrated by variations in cervical cancer incidence within jurisdictions.
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| 820032 |
Gatekeepers No More: Redefining the Roles of Journalism and PR in the Age of Digital Media and Content MarketingScopelliti, Maria 31 January 2014 (has links)
The digital media landscape has fundamentally changed the way audiences consume and share content, creating many opportunities and challenges for news companies and organizations of all types (private, public and non-profit). This research investigates how the latter have gained the ability to produce and distribute journalistic-like content through their owned channels, thus circumventing journalists and engaging with their audiences directly. It shows how digital media have altered the manner in which news about organizations is disseminated, and, subsequently, the roles of PR practitioners and journalists. Through a series of interviews with seasoned experts in these two competing and collaborating fields, this project provides insights regarding the erosion of journalists’ gatekeeping role and the advent of PR practitioners as content creators. It supports prior research regarding the value of reciprocity between journalists and PR practitioners and offers orientations as to the future of these two professions in the context of the digital media landscape.
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| 820033 |
Tuning In to a Hit Parade PedagogyKom, Brian S. R. 04 February 2014 (has links)
Contemporary popular music is a ubiquitous social, cultural, and pedagogical force.
Enabled by ever-evolving and -expanding technology, its songs and lyrics are transmitted
into our most public and private spaces. For this study, I present the Billboard music charts
as a functioning pedagogy and curriculum. Riffing on Richter’s denkbilder, Aoki’s curricular worlds of plan and lived experience, Giroux’s public pedagogy, and Giroux & Simon’s
theorizing on youth culture, I sound out messages and motives embedded within the hit
parade pedagogy. DJing a methodology of qualitative inquiry, autoethnography, and free
association, I listen closely to chart-topping songs by Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, and P!nk that
feature themes of marginalization, and consider the paradox presented by the juxtaposition of
their popularity and subject matter. I suggest that this playlist legitimizes and perpetuates its listeners’ marginalization, running counter to its supposed intent to galvanize and inspire.
Before signing off, I consider the implications for school-based educators and pedagogy in
regard to engaging marginalization, particularly the notion of implementing a curriculum
with which students may participate and sing along.
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| 820034 |
"Through Marriage Marvelously Blended": Visual Representations of Matrimonial Rituals in the Burgundian and Habsburg Netherlands, 1384 to 1555Mitchell, Laura 04 February 2014 (has links)
The Burgundian and Habsburg Netherlands constitute an interesting case for studying the function and symbolism of matrimony. This period marked an active time of change in the Low Countries: there was ongoing antagonism between the dukes of Burgundy and their Dutch subjects; shifts in the mercantile industry caused economic flux; the Reformation sparked religious tension; and the rapid expansion of the art market created a Europe-wide demand for Netherlandish fine and decorative art. In the face of upheaval, the act of marriage and the ideology surrounding it remained relatively consistent. Betrothal and marriage ceremonies in the Low Countries were quite formal compared to those in southern Europe; the quintessential northern ceremony customarily involved a priest, witnesses, and symbolic hand gestures. The images discussed in this thesis overwhelmingly reflect the importance of ritualistic behaviour in the late medieval Netherlands; the majority of them depict proper in facie ecclesiae unions, meaning “in the face of the Church.” These images of ideal marriage rituals were most commonly commissioned by members of the court or Church, and were used primarily to display wealth and power, to enhance the pageantry of court life, to draw connections with the mythic or biblical past, to promote canon law, and to reinforce cultural values.
The fifty-three images studied in this thesis not only relate to discourses on medieval marriage and art history; they also fit into the larger narratives surrounding civic authority, religious tension, economic change, and social mores. In this thesis, I use an interdisciplinary approach to reveal the main functions of matrimonial ceremonies in Early Netherlandish art, and to examine the gap between image and reality. This thesis contributes to a better understanding of ritual and visual expression in the Burgundian and Habsburg Netherlands.
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| 820035 |
Electron Transfer and Other Reactions Using Atomic Metal AnionsButson, Jeffery M. 04 February 2014 (has links)
The atomic metal anions Rb-, Cs-, Cu-, Ag- and Fe- have been generated in the gas phase and reacted with various neutral reactants in a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer. The metal anions were formed via electrospray ionization of the metal-oxalate solutions and form in gas phase between the capillary and the first quadrupole. Neutral gas phase reactants investigated include NO, NO2, SO2, C6F5OH, C6F5NH2, C6F6, E-octafluoro-butene and 1,2,3/1,2,4/1,3,5 trifluoro-benzene. When possible, CBS-4M methods were used to suggest the lowest energy products based on relative energy. Observed reactions of atomic metal anions with the aforementioned neutral species include electron transfer and dissociative electron transfer to the neutral gas phase reactants. In addition, hydrogen abstraction and fluorine abstraction forming a neutral metal hydride or fluoride as well as the formation of multiply substituted metal-oxide/fluoride anions was also observed. Metal-complex anions observed from the gas phase reactions include CuF-,CuF2-,CuO-,CuO2-, FeO-, FeO2-, FeO3-, FeF-, FeF2-, FeF3-, CsF- and CsF2-.
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| 820036 |
The Mediator, the Negotiator, the Arbitrator or the Judge? Translation as Dispute ResolutionHsieh, Hungpin Pierre 04 February 2014 (has links)
Metaphors have long shaped the way pure translation studies describe and justify the translation phenomenon by discovering and consolidating underlying principles. Ultimately, by means of metaphor, something that dwells on the interaction of two seemingly distinct things, translation theorists have obtained a better understanding of the category of translation.
Human beings are gregarious, and disputes are inevitable in every society, ancient or modern, primitive or civilized. In fact, conflict is one iron law of life that mankind has had to improvise ways of resolving, from such formal ones as litigation to private ones such as self-help. We may not be able to eliminate dispute altogether, but we can, however, resolve it through creative and civilized means. Translation can be approached in a similar context, except it concerns a metaphorical dispute between cultures and/or languages—and probably on a more intangible and subtle platform. Disparate cultures, religions and languages in a clash can be brought closer to each other with skillful translation, and hence, translation is a variation of dispute resolution.
That never went totally unnoticed. Over the years, countless translation metaphors have been constructed and exploited with very different results, which indicates how interdisciplinary a subject translation studies really is. Yet, apparently, translation is most often metaphorized as mediation and negotiation but rarely as arbitration or litigation, and one cannot but wonder whether this happened out of sheer coincidence or because of some misunderstanding.
Thus, much as I appreciate what theorists have accomplished with translation metaphors, in regard to didactics and heuristics, my primitive observation is that translation theorists and practitioners have never made full use of metaphorization in that they might have had an incomplete idea of dispute resolution theory in general. After all, a metaphor is, ideally, meant to facilitate active learning and full integration of new knowledge, but there still remains a missing piece that is part and parcel of our metaphorization of translation. Specifically, translators have always embraced the amicable terms of negotiation and mediation, distancing themselves from non-mainstream ones such as arbitration and litigation. To that end, in my thesis, I will explore and examine translation through slightly renewed lenses, demonstrating how and why our metaphor schema and mapping should originate in dispute resolution, and why litigation, and perhaps even arbitration as dispute resolution mechanisms, would serve as good a metaphor—if not a better one—for translation. It is my resolute belief that the translator is more qualified as a judge, a respectable professional vested with immense judicial power, than as a mediator, who is but a third-party neutral facilitating dialogue between two disputants. Only in this way can metaphors do translation theory a great service by furnishing it with a renewed and objective description of translation.
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| 820037 |
Sexual Attitudes and Motivations in Same-Sex and Mixed-Sex RelationshipsArmstrong, Heather L. 04 February 2014 (has links)
People engage in sex for a wide variety of reasons and these reasons can differ depending on the individual, his or her partner, and on the context of the sexual encounter. The purpose of this dissertation was to examine how sexual attraction and sexual orientation, of both self and partner, affect an individual’s reasons to engage in sex, or sexual motivation. Three studies were conducted to explore these effects from both the individual’s and the partner’s perspective. In Study 1, individual attitudes toward having casual sex, dating, and being in a committed relationship with a bisexual partner of the other gender were examined in a sample of 720 men and women. Participants reported negative attitudes toward having these relationships and more negative attitudes were reported as the commitment level of the considered relationship increased. Women also reported more negative attitudes and greater insecurity toward relationships than men. In Study 2, the psychometric properties of a comprehensive research tool, the Why Have Sex? (YSEX?) questionnaire to use in Study 3 for the study of sexual motivation were evaluated in a sample of 146 women with same-sex attraction. Overall, the reliability of this scale was excellent for casual sex motivations and motivations for sex in committed relationships with female partners. In Study 3, motivations for sex and the effects of relationship context, sexual attraction, and the gender of one’s partner were explored in a sample of 510 women including women with same-sex attraction and women with exclusively heterosexual attraction. Results of this study showed that relationship context had the largest effect on sexual motivation; physical motivations were more strongly endorsed for casual sex while emotional motivations were more strongly endorsed for sex in committed relationships. No effect of sexual attraction was reported. Further, no effect of gender of partner was reported by sexual minority women. The results of this dissertation have important implications for the study of sexual motivation, specifically as it relates to sexual attraction and orientation. Motivations for sex are likely to be affected by an individual’s attitudes and perceptions of his or her partner’s sexual orientation and associated stereotypes. In addition, the type of sexual relationship and associated level of commitment had strong, differential effects on sexual motivation. This is a novel finding as the context of the sexual relationship has not previously been considered with respect to individual motivations for sex. Henceforth, studies on sexual motivation need to be more contextualized and include more comprehensive assessments of individuals to increase the validity of findings and demonstrate the complex variation of human sexual motivation.
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| 820038 |
A Reconnaissance Study of Water and Carbon Fluxes in Tropical Watersheds of Peninsular Malaysia: Stable Isotope ConstraintsIshak, Muhammad Izzuddin Syakir 04 February 2014 (has links)
Evapotranspiration is a nexus for planetary energy and carbon cycles, as yet poorly constrained. Here I use stable isotopes of oxygen and hydrogen to partition flux of water due to plant transpiration from the direct evaporative flux from soils, water bodies and plant. The study areas, Langat and Kelantan watersheds represent examples of domains dominated by the respective Southwest and Northeast monsoons on the two sides of the main orographic barrier (Titiwangsa mountain range). Mean annual rainfall for the Langat watershed, obtained from 30 years of hydrological data, is 2145 ± 237 mm. Tentatively, 48% of this precipitation returns to the atmosphere via transpiration (T), with 33% partitioned into discharge (Q), 8% into interception (In), and 11% into evaporation (Ed). In the Kelantan watershed, the mean annual rainfall, also based on the 30 year hydrological data, is 2383 ± 120 mm. Similar to Langat, the T accounts for 43% of precipitation (P), 45% is discharged into South China Sea (Q), 12% partitioned into interception (In) and tentatively 0% for evaporation (Ed). Ed for the Langat watershed represents only a small proportion in terms of volumetric significance, up to almost ~11% with strong effect on the isotopic fingerprints of waters associated with the summer Southwest Monsoon (SWM). Note, however, that insignificant Ed for the Kelantan watershed may be an artefact of rain and river water sampling at only coastal downstream portion of the watershed. High humidity (80%) also was recorded for the Malaysian Peninsula watershed.
T appropriates about half of all solar energy absorbed by the continents, here ~1000*103 g H2O m-2 yr-1 similar to other tropical regions at 900-1200*103 g H2O m-2 yr-1. The associated carbon fluxes are ~ 1300 g C m-2yr-1, independent of P. Vegetation responses to solar irradiance, via T and photosynthesis reflects the importance of stomatal regulation of the water and carbon fluxes. In order to maintain high transpiration in the tropical region, “constant” water supply is required for continuous pumping of water that delivers nutrients to the plant, suggesting that water and carbon cycle are co-driven by the energy of the sun. The existence of the water conveyor belt may be precondition for nutrient delivery, hence operation of the carbon cycle. Potentially, this may change our perspective on the role that biology plays in the water cycle. In such perspective, the global water cycle is the medium that redistributes the incoming solar energy across the planet, and the anatomical structures of plants then help to optimize the loop of energy transfer via evaporation and precipitation in the hydrologic cycle.
The main features of aquatic geochemistry of the Langat and Kelantan rivers inferred from the Principal Component Analysis are controlled by three components that explain 80% and 82% of total variances. These components are reflecting of the geogenic factor with superimposed pollution, the latter particularly pronounced in urbanized sections of the Langat river and dominant in downstream of the Kelantan river. There is no correlation between seasonal variations in major ion chemistry and environmental variables such as precipitation, discharge, temperature or solar activity.
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| 820039 |
Assessment and Optimization of Ex-Situ Bioremediation of Petroleum Contaminated Soil under Cold Temperature ConditionsGomez, Francisco 04 February 2014 (has links)
Current prices and demand for petroleum hydrocabons have generated an increase of oil spills around the country and the world. Health and environmental impacts associated to these organic pollutants represent a huge concern for the general public, leading the public and private sector to develop new technologies and methods to minimize or eliminate those risks.
Ex-Situ bioremediation through biopiles, as a main remediation technique to treat a wide range of hydrocarbons, has been a topic of considerable research interest over the last years. It provides an economical and environmental solution to restore the environment to background levels. Nevertheless, successful bioremediation under cold climate conditions is of considerable concern in countries like Canada, as low temperatures can delay the rate of bioremediation of oil hydrocarbons, thus limiting the operation of soil treatment facilities to certain times of the year. Recent research has found out that bioremediation could be conducted even at low or cold temperatures with larger periods of times. And even more, the addition of petroleum degrading microorganisms (bioaugmentation) and nutrients or biosurfactants (biostimulation) could enhance the process in some cases.
In the present study, a comprehensive assessment of bioaugmentation and biostimulation strategies for ex-situ bioremediation of petroleum contaminated soil under cold climate conditions is proposed. Field scale biopiles were constructed and subjected to different concentrations of commercial microbial consortia and mature compost, as bioaugmentation and biostimulation strategies, in a soil treatment facility at Moose Creek, Ontario over a period of 94 days (November 2012 to February 2013). Assessment and comparison of the biodegradation rates of total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) and their fractions were investigated. Furthermore, a response surface methodology (RSM) based on a factorial design to investigate and optimize the effects of the microbial consortia application rate and amount of compost on the TPH removal was also assessed.
Results showed that biopiles inoculated with microbial consortia and amended with 10:1 soil to compost ratio under aerobic conditions performed the best, degrading 82% of total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPHs) with a first-order kinetic degradation rate of 0.016 d_1, under cold temperature conditions. The average removal efficiencies for TPHs after 94 days for control biopiles, with no amendments or with microbial consortia or compost only treatments were 48%, 55%, and 52%, respectively. Statistical analyses indicated a significant difference (p < 0.05) within and between the final measurements for TPHs and a significant difference between the treatment with combined effect, and the control biopiles.
On the other hand, the modeling and optimization statistical analysis of the results showed
that the microbial consortia application rate, compost amendment and their interactions have a
significant effect on TPHs removal with a coefficient of determination (R2) of 0.88, indicating a high correlation between the observed and the predicted values for the model obtained. The optimum concentrations predicted via RSM were 4.1 ml m-3 for microbial consortia
application rate, and 7% for compost amendment to obtain a maximum TPH removal of
90.7%. This research contributes to provide valuable knowledge to practitioners about cost-effective and existing strategies for ex-situ bioremediation under cold weather conditions.
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| 820040 |
The Rational Design of Potent Ice Recrystallization Inhibitors for Use as Novel CryoprotectantsCapicciotti, Chantelle 07 February 2014 (has links)
The development of effective methods to cryopreserve precious cell types has had tremendous impact on regenerative and transfusion medicine. Hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) transplants from cryopreserved umbilical cord blood (UCB) have been used for regenerative medicine therapies to treat conditions including hematological cancers and immodeficiencies. Red blood cell (RBC) cryopreservation in blood banks extends RBC storage time from 42 days (for
hypothermic storage) to 10 years and can overcome shortages in blood supplies from the high demand of RBC transfusions. Currently, the most commonly utilized cryoprotectants are 10%
dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) for UCB and 40% glycerol for RBCs. DMSO is significantly toxic
both to cells and patients upon its infusion. Glycerol must be removed to <1% post-thaw using
complicated, time consuming and expensive deglycerolization procedures prior to transfusion to prevent intravascular hemolysis. Thus, there is an urgent need for improvements in
cryopreservation processes to reduce/eliminate the use of DMSO and glycerol.
Ice recrystallization during cryopreservation is a significant contributor to cellular injury and
reduced cell viability. Compounds capable of inhibiting this process are thus highly desirable as novel cryoprotectants to mitigate this damage. The first compounds discovered that were ice recrystallization inhibitors were the biological antifreezes (BAs), consisting of antifreeze proteins and glycoproteins (AFPs and AFGPs). As such, BAs have been explored as potential cryoprotectants, however this has been met with limited success. The thermal hysteresis (TH)activity and ice binding capabilities associated with these compounds can facilitate cellular damage, especially at the temperatures associated with cryopreservation. Consequently,
compounds that possess “custom-tailored” antifreeze activity, meaning they exhibit the potent ice recrystallization inhibition (IRI) activity without the ability to bind to ice or exhibit TH activity,are highly desirable for potential use in cryopreservation.
This thesis focuses on the rational design of potent ice recrystallization inhibitors and on
elucidating important key structural motifs that are essential for potent IRI activity. While
particular emphasis in on the development of small molecule IRIs, exploration into structural
features that influence the IRI of natural and synthetic BAs and BA analogues is also described as these are some of the most potent inhibitors known to date. Furthermore, this thesis also
investigates the use of small molecule IRIs for the cryopreservation of various different cell types to ascertain their potential as novel cryoprotectants to improve upon current cryopreservation protocols, in particular those used for the long-term storage of blood and blood products.
Through structure-function studies the influence of (glyco)peptide length, glycosylation and
solution structure for the IRI activity of synthetic AFGPs and their analogues is described. This thesis also explores the relationship between IRI, TH and cryopreservation ability of natural
AFGPs, AFPs and mutants of AFPs. While these results further demonstrated that BAs are
ineffective as cryoprotectants, it revealed the potential influence of ice crystal shape and growth progression on cell survival during cryopreservation.
One of the most significant results of this thesis is the discovery of alkyl- and phenolicglycosides as the first small molecule ice recrystallization inhibitors. Prior to this discovery, all reported small molecules exhibited only a weak to moderate ability to inhibit ice recrystallization.
To understand how these novel small molecules inhibit this process, structure-function studies
were conducted on highly IRI active molecules. These results indicated that key structural
features, including the configuration of carbons bearing hydroxyl groups and the configuration of
the anomeric center bearing the aglycone, are crucial for potent activity. Furthermore, studies on the phenolic-glycosides determined that the presence of specific substituents and their position on the aryl ring could result in potent activity. Moreover, these studies underscored the sensitivity of IRI activity to structural modifications as simply altering a single atom or functional group on this substituent could be detrimental for activity.
Finally, various IRI active small molecules were explored for their cryopreservation potential
with different cell types including a human liver cell line (HepG2), HSCs obtained from human
UCB, and RBCs obtained from human peripheral blood. A number of phenolic-glycosides were
found to be effective cryo-additives for RBC freezing with significantly reduced glycerol
concentrations (less than 15%). This is highly significant as it could drastically decrease the
deglycerolization processing times that are required when RBCs are cryopreserved with 40%
glycerol. Furthermore, it demonstrates the potential for IRI active small molecules as novel
cryoprotectants that can improve upon current cryopreservation protocols that are limited in terms of the commonly used cryoprotectants, DMSO and glycerol.
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