Media representations of diverse groups in Canadian society have been shown by researchers to influence their individual and collective sense of well-being and by inference their welfare (Fleras, 2012; Henry & Tator, 2002; Gist, 1990). Nevertheless, mainstream media continue to be racially and/or sexually biased in their representation of minority groups, especially racialized minority and Aboriginal women. Although efforts have been made by the government and various interest groups to promote the tenets of equality, impartiality and objectivity as advocated in the Multiculturalism Act of 1988, Canadian broadcasting Act and the Employment Equity Act, media bias persists. Existing research exploring media representation of diverse groups in the political sphere has not been very thorough. The myopic focus on either the gender or race of candidates and their campaign activities en-route to political offices, offers limited analysis of the intersected identities of office holders in terms of their race/ethnicity and gender. Given the centrality of Parliament in formulating and upholding the tenets of social democracy in Canadian society, this study aims to address this gap by interrogating media representations of women with multiple targeted identities in the Canadian 41st Parliament – specifically the House of Commons. Through Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), this study examines mainstream and ethnic media representations of racialized minority and Aboriginal women MPs relative to their white counterparts in order to evaluate bias in these portrayals. In addition, the portrayal of racialized minority and Aboriginal women MPs in mainstream and ethnic newspapers are compared to highlight their convergences and divergences. The study’s findings reveal that while gender biased representations cut across both mainstream and ethnic media, ethnic media offer more positive portrayals of racialized MPs and their communities relative to mainstream media. The study also reveals that gender and race are not independent axes of oppression but operate simultaneously to compound oppressive misrepresentation of racialized minority women.

Principals and vice-principals occupy a vital role in our public schools. They hold politically and organizationally powerful positions to influence change and support educational reform. Riehl (2000) points out that one’s practice of leadership is influenced by one’s identity, thus knowing who administrators are is significant. Although understanding who our formal administrators are is still an emerging area of scholarly inquiry, most of the educational literature focuses on administrators from the mainstream, dominant culture. Little attention has been given to who our visible minority principals and vice-principals are, especially within in a Canadian and British Columbia context. This study explores how the life histories and life experiences of visible minority principals and vice-principals of BC who are immigrants and children of immigrants have created their identities. In particular, how have their experiences as “other” influenced their praxis as formal school leaders? Using a life history methodological approach, data were gathered through semi-structured in-depth interviews. Six themes and three sub-themes emerged from the interviews that highlight participant life experiences, meaning and learning about their identity and praxis as leaders. Participants linked their present views, beliefs, and approaches to leadership with events and personal experiences from their past. Participants’ enactment of school leadership was informed by their experiences trying to fit in with mainstream culture; identity issues and cultural identity development; connecting with minority students and families; needing to promote diversity; being mentored and now being mentors; and influencing change. Therefore, a connection was made by the research participants between who they are as leaders and how their experiences have influenced them. / Graduate / 0514 / shailoo@uvic.ca

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a cancer treatment method in which a photosensitizer, light of a particular wavelength, and also oxygen are used to destroy cancerous cells. Cancer cells absorb the photosensitizing agent which is injected into the body, and it is triggered to cause cell destruction upon absorption of light. This occurs because of the excitation of the photosensitizer produces reactive oxygen species that induce a cascade of cellular and molecular events in the body. Photosensitizing agents that can photo-cleave DNA at long wavelengths are highly demanded in PDT, because the long wavelengths of light can penetrate through tissue deeply compared to visible light. While most of the photosensitizers are activated at wavelengths less than 690 nm, penetration of light continues to increase at increasing wavelengths. In this thesis, photosensitizers that can be activated to oxidize DNA with long wavelengths of light will be discussed. Using quinoline cyanine dyes, here we report the first example of DNA photocleavage at a wavelength of light above 800 nm.

Seen – Unseen (nebo Visible-Invisible) In my project I attempted to capture the spiritual space of a selected group of people. The work was dividend into several phases. Selecting a model, establishing contact, getting acquainted with the environment of the photographed individual, a survey and a interview followed by the work with the model and the text.

The growing demand for wireless communication capacity and the overutilisation of the conventional radio frequency (RF) spectrum have inspired research into using alternative spectrum regions for communication. Using optical wireless communications (OWC), for example, offers significant advantages over RF communication in terms of higher bandwidth, lower implementation costs and energy savings. In OWC systems, the information signal has to be real and non-negative. Therefore, modifications to the conventional communication algorithms are required. Multicarrier modulation schemes like orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) promise to deliver a more efficient use of the communication capacity through adaptive bit and energy loading techniques. Three OFDM-based schemes – direct-current-biased OFDM (DCO-OFDM), asymmetrically clipped optical OFDM(ACO-OFDM), and pulse-amplitude modulated discrete multitone (PAM-DMT) – have been introduced in the literature. The current work investigates the recently introduced scheme subcarrier-index modulation OFDM as a potential energy-efficient modulation technique with reduced peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) suitable for applications in OWC. A theoretical model for the analysis of SIM-OFDMin a linear additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) channel is provided. A closed-form solution for the PAPR in SIM-OFDM is also proposed. Following the work on SIM-OFDM, a novel inherently unipolar modulation scheme, unipolar orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (U-OFDM), is proposed as an alternative to the existing similar schemes: ACO-OFDMand PAM-DMT. Furthermore, an enhanced U-OFDMsignal generation algorithm is introduced which allows the spectral efficiency gap between the inherently unipolar modulation schemes – U-OFDM, ACO-OFDM, PAM-DMT – and the conventionally used DCO-OFDM to be closed. This results in an OFDM-based modulation approach which is electrically and optically more efficient than any other OFDM-based technique proposed so far for intensity modulation and direct detection (IM/DD) communication systems. Non-linear distortion in the optical front-end elements is one of the major limitations for high-speed communication in OWC. This work presents a generalised approach for analysing nonlinear distortion in OFDM-based modulation schemes. The presented technique leads to a closed-form analytical solution for an arbitrary memoryless distortion of the information signal and has been proven to work for the majority of the known unipolar OFDM-based modulation techniques - DCO-OFDM, ACO-OFDM, PAM-DMT and U-OFDM. The high-speed communication capabilities of novel Gallium Nitride based μm-sized light emitting diodes (μLEDs) are investigated, and a record-setting result of 3.5Gb/s using a single 50-μm device is demonstrated. The capabilities of using such devices at practical transmission distances are also investigated, and a 1 Gb/s link using a single device is demonstrated at a distance of up to 10m. Furthermore, a proof-of-concept experiment is realised where a 50-μm LED is successfully modulated using U-OFDM and enhanced U-OFDM to achieve notable energy savings in comparison to DCO-OFDM.

Ce travail s’intéresse à évaluer l’efficacité de procédés d’oxydation avancée pour l’élimination de pesticides dans l’eau, plus particulièrement l’acide 2,4-dichlorophénoxyacétique (2,4-D), un herbicide largement répandu, qui a été récemment classé comme cancérogène possible pour l’homme. Ces procédés utilisent différents types de rayonnement – UV/visible, ultrasons, rayons gamma –, seuls ou en combinaison avec des oxydants et/ou catalyseurs (ozone, peroxyde d’hydrogène, réactif de Fenton). L'influence du pH, de la dose d'oxydant, du type et de la concentration du catalyseur, du spectre d'irradiation lumineuse, de la dose de rayons gamma et de la fréquence ultrasonore est également analysée, de façon à déterminer par plans d’expériences les plages de fonctionnement optimales pour la conversion et la minéralisation du polluant. Parmi les procédés individuels, seules l’ozonation et l’oxydation Fenton homogène d’une part, la photolyse et l’irradiation gamma d’autre part permettent d’éliminer plus de 25% du carbone organique total en 1 heure. La sonolyse (à haute fréquence) apparaît comme le traitement moins performant, avec une dégradation du 2,4-D inférieure à 15% sur la même durée. Par ailleurs, des effets synergiques marqués sont mis en évidence en associant les différents types de rayonnement avec H2O2 ou le réactif de Fenton. Dans le dernier cas, le polluant est décomposé en moins de 10 minutes, tandis que le rendement de minéralisation est plus que doublé par rapport aux procédés séparés. Il en est de même pour le procédé couplé UV/O3 par rapport à l’ozonation et la photolyse seules. Ramenés à leur consommation énergétique, les traitements les plus efficaces sont, respectivement en termes de conversion et de minéralisation, l’oxydation radio-Fenton et l’oxydation photo-Fenton utilisant une lampe UV à basse pression de mercure. Par ailleurs, contrairement à la photolyse, ce dernier procédé est également activé par une lampe à arc Xenon, dont le spectre d’émission est proche de celui de la lumière du soleil. Sur la base de ces résultats, un photo-réacteur solaire à recirculation est mis en œuvre pour traiter par oxydation photo-Fenton homogène des solutions de 2,4-D, préparées dans l’eau du robinet ou une eau résiduaire en entrée de station d’épuration. Dans les deux cas, la conversion du pesticide dépasse 95% en 1 heure et sa minéralisation 75% en 5 heures. Par ailleurs, l’eau ainsi traitée respecte tous les paramètres de qualité établis par la norme cubaine de rejet des eaux usées, en incluant une étape successive de neutralisation avec Ca(OH)2 et de filtration. Enfin, plusieurs parmi les meilleurs procédés sont évalués pour éliminer deux autres pesticides organochlorés, particulièrement toxiques et persistants dans l’environnement : le chlordécone et le bêta-hexachlorocyclohexane. Des résultats encourageants sont obtenus, avec une dégradation pratiquement totale des polluants en cinq heures, ce qui démontre l’intérêt des méthodes étudiées pour cette problématique.

Titania-based photocatalysts have been extensively studied for the oxidative photodestruction of organic pollutants in wastewaters, releasing non-toxic substances such as CO2, HCl, and water. However, commercial exploitation of this process is limited by the fact that titania is only active under UV irradiation (wavelength below about 388 nm), which is only less than 5% of solar light energy. Sol-gel synthesised catalyst specimens were characterised to determine the correlation between preparation conditions on morphology (XRD, SEM), optical (bandgap energy level) and physicochemical properties (BET surface area, pore volume, acid site density, acid site strength and type) of the photocatalysts. These spesific properties would then be linked to their photoactivity using aqueous aliphatic and aromatic model pollutants. This study has demonstrated that sol-gel synthesised doped titania photocatalysts, especially Pt/TiO2, may be used to effectively degrade non-volatile acids (DL-malic acid, dichloroacetic acid, and p-hydroxybenzoic acid) under visible light and UV irradiation with significant photoactivity suitable for the solar light application of photocatalytic wastewater treatment. A significant drop in band-gap energy was found for all titania sol-gel catalysts doped with Pt, Co, and Ce with values between 1.41 to 1.78 eV. The BET areas of the photocatalysts were also higher (65-117 m2/g) than that of Degussa P25 (50 m2/g). The visible-light photomineralisation of the three pollutants with Pt-TiO2 specimen were further extended to evaluate the effects of major variables in a bubble-column photoreactor on the photodegradation activities. Those major variables were lamp intensity, oxygen concentration, initial pH, catalyst dosage, and inital pollutant concentration. All the three pollutants seemed to follow the Langmuir-Hinselwood model with dual adsorption sites which implicated a bimolecular surface rate-limiting step probably between the adsorbed organic substrate and a surface hydroxyl (or peroxy) radical. A study of the CeyCoxTi(1-x)O3+d perovskite was conducted to investigate the influence of metal composition and pH on the intrinsic optophysical attributes as well as p-hydroxybenzoic acid degradation under UV irradiation. The perovskite UV photoactivities were lower than that of pure TiO2 likely due to excessive loading (metal content) creating new oxide phases act as electron-hole recombination center, regardless better physicochemical attributes of some of the perovskite samples. The role of aging time and calcination temperature on the sol-gel synthesised TiO2 was also explored. Higher calcination temperature (from 250 to 700 0C) resulted in TiO2 photocatalysts with better crystallinity, which is important for OH group formation as active sites for photodegradation. Despite of some advantages from higher temperature preparation, some detrimental effects such as decreased acidity attributes, surface area, and pore volume were also observed. The significant red-shift of sol-gel synthesized TiO2 into visible light, especially for 250 0C specimen since 600 or 700 0C had extremely low activities, has promising implications that this specimen might be used for solar application to substitute Pt-doped TiO2 in order to produce a more cost effective photocatalyst. Aging period (1 to 14 days) did not have any discernible effect on the band-gap value and acid-site density. Even so, the highest acid site strength was obtained with an aging time of 10 days. From the overall perspective, aging time longer than 3 days did not bring noticeable benefits to both catalyst attributes and photoactivities.

A ground-based, zenith-sky, UV-visible triple grating spectrometer was installed at the Polar Environment Atmospheric Research Laboratory (PEARL) in the Canadian High Arctic during polar springtime from 2004 to 2007 as part of the Canadian Arctic ACE (Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment) Validation Campaigns. From the solar spectra, ozone, NO2, and BrO vertical column densities (VCDs) have been retrieved using the DOAS (Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy) technique. This spectrometer, the UT-GBS (University of Toronto Ground-Based Spectrometer), was also deployed as part of the fourth Middle Atmosphere Nitrogen TRend Assessment (MANTRA) campaign in Vanscoy, Saskatchewan in August and September 2004. A near-identical spectrometer, the PEARL-GBS, was permanently installed at PEARL in August 2006 as part of the refurbishment of the laboratory by CANDAC (Canadian Network for the Detection of Atmospheric Change). Since then, the instrument has been making continuous measurements, with the exception of during polar night. Vertical columns of ozone and NO2 can be retrieved year-round. During the 2007 sunrise campaign, differential slant column densities (DSCDs) of OClO and VCDs of BrO were also retrieved. Ozone and NO2 DSCDs and VCDs from the UT-GBS were compared to the DSCDs and VCDs from three other UV-visible, ground-based, grating spectrometers that also participated in the MANTRA and Eureka campaigns. Two methods developed by the UV-visible Working Group of the NDACC (Network for the Detection of Atmospheric Composition Change) were followed. During MANTRA, the instruments were found to partially meet the NDACC standards. The comparisons from Eureka were an improvement on the MANTRA comparisons, and also partially met the NDACC standards. In 2007, the columns from the UT-GBS and PEARL-GBS were compared, and were found to agree within the NDACC standards for both species. Ozone and NO2 VCDs from the ground-based instruments were also compared to integrated partial columns from the ACE-FTS (ACE-Fourier Transform Spectrometer) and ACE-MAESTRO (ACE-Measurements of Aerosol Extinction in the Stratosphere and Troposphere Retrieved by Occultation) on board the ACE satellite. ACE-FTS partial columns were found to agree with the ground-based total columns, while the ACE-MAESTRO partial columns were found to be smaller than expected for ozone and larger than expected for NO2.

A ground-based, zenith-sky, UV-visible triple grating spectrometer was installed at the Polar Environment Atmospheric Research Laboratory (PEARL) in the Canadian High Arctic during polar springtime from 2004 to 2007 as part of the Canadian Arctic ACE (Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment) Validation Campaigns. From the solar spectra, ozone, NO2, and BrO vertical column densities (VCDs) have been retrieved using the DOAS (Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy) technique. This spectrometer, the UT-GBS (University of Toronto Ground-Based Spectrometer), was also deployed as part of the fourth Middle Atmosphere Nitrogen TRend Assessment (MANTRA) campaign in Vanscoy, Saskatchewan in August and September 2004. A near-identical spectrometer, the PEARL-GBS, was permanently installed at PEARL in August 2006 as part of the refurbishment of the laboratory by CANDAC (Canadian Network for the Detection of Atmospheric Change). Since then, the instrument has been making continuous measurements, with the exception of during polar night. Vertical columns of ozone and NO2 can be retrieved year-round. During the 2007 sunrise campaign, differential slant column densities (DSCDs) of OClO and VCDs of BrO were also retrieved. Ozone and NO2 DSCDs and VCDs from the UT-GBS were compared to the DSCDs and VCDs from three other UV-visible, ground-based, grating spectrometers that also participated in the MANTRA and Eureka campaigns. Two methods developed by the UV-visible Working Group of the NDACC (Network for the Detection of Atmospheric Composition Change) were followed. During MANTRA, the instruments were found to partially meet the NDACC standards. The comparisons from Eureka were an improvement on the MANTRA comparisons, and also partially met the NDACC standards. In 2007, the columns from the UT-GBS and PEARL-GBS were compared, and were found to agree within the NDACC standards for both species. Ozone and NO2 VCDs from the ground-based instruments were also compared to integrated partial columns from the ACE-FTS (ACE-Fourier Transform Spectrometer) and ACE-MAESTRO (ACE-Measurements of Aerosol Extinction in the Stratosphere and Troposphere Retrieved by Occultation) on board the ACE satellite. ACE-FTS partial columns were found to agree with the ground-based total columns, while the ACE-MAESTRO partial columns were found to be smaller than expected for ozone and larger than expected for NO2.

This work is a description of the Visible to near Infrared Spectrograph system for the CHARA array. The CHARA Array is a 6-telescope interferometer at the Mount Wilson Observatory in the mountains north of Pasadena, California. It combines the light from the 1-meter telescopes, and measures the visibility of the resulting interference fringes, which gives information about the source intensity distribution on the sky. The resolution of the instrument is proportional to the telescope separation, or baseline, divided by the wavelength. The VIS system operates in the 600-1000~nm wavelength range, a factor of 3 to 4 shorter than the standard operating wavelength at CHARA, 2.13 um. An introduction to interferometry is given, with a description of the CHARA Array. The effects of diffraction through the system combined with atmospheric turbulence are described, and the results of a computer model given. The VIS system design is described, and results of the first fringe data are presented, including system visibility and throughput estimates.