Although social psychologists have made important strides towards understanding the effects of stigma on both individuals’ behaviours and their relationships with non-stigmatized groups, language patterns within this domain have largely been ignored. This thesis aims to address this gap by investigating the role that language patterns play in shaping the relationship between native and non-native speakers against the backdrop of an increasingly relevant context in which communicators with diverse language backgrounds interact: Immigration. Drawing on both communication accommodation theory (CAT) and intergroup contact theory, I investigate the processes by which language styles influence perceptions of both individuals and the groups they represent, as well as attempt to determine how language-based categorizations affect those whose language style deviates from majority group norms. Across six studies, I take the perspective of native speakers and demonstrate that perceptions of communicators based on their language are not uniform but are determined by factors including the style of language used and the speaker’s background. I then take the perspective of non-native speakers and, across two studies, show that negative perceptions of non-native accents can result in poorer interactions with the native speaking out-group as well as a reduced ability to comprehend and communicate in the host country’s language. In sum, the eight studies presented in this thesis demonstrate that perceptions related to one’s style of language can be detrimental to the relationship between native and non-native speakers and by extension host country natives and immigrants. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Mémoire numérisé par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

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The interest in superhydrophobic coatings have increased exponentially in the recentdecades due to their potential and versatility in their applications. The use forsuperhydrophobic surfaces range from water repellent fabric, to self cleaning surfacesand numerous applications in industry. In this project the durability of 6 differentsuperhydrophobic coatings have been examined. The durability was tested bydropping sand on the surfaces from a set hight of 10 cm and a flow of 40 g/min. Thesurfaces were mounted on a 45° angle. The surfaces were abraded for 30 seconds ata time and the static, receding, and advancing contact angles along with the roll-ofangle was measured. Five of the surfaces were built up with nano particles and onewas sand blasted and anodized to create a superhydrophobic structure. The surfacesthat withstood the most abrasion was the surface that had been calcined to improveadhesion and the surface that had been sand blasted and anodized. Measurementsshowed that the roll-off angle and the receding contact angle were the two bestindicators of the deterioration of a surface, while the static contact angle and theadvancing contact angle varied little with abrasion. The project was done at thecompany Technical Research Institute of Sweden (SP) at their chemistry, surfaces andmaterials department in Stockholm. All coatings and equipment was supplied by SP.

We present a periodic technique for measuring the thermal conductivity and diffusivity of thin samples simultaneously. In samples of this type, temperature measurements must be made across the sample faces and are therefore subject to large error due to the interface resistance between the temperature sensor and the sample. The technique uses measurements of the amplitude and phase of the periodic temperature across both a reference sample and the unknown material at several different frequencies. Modeling of the heat flow in the sample allows the simultaneous determination of the thermal parameters of the sample as well as the interface resistance. Data will be presented for standard materials to show the viability of the technique.

ABSTRACT The aim of this work was to determine the bacteriological status of selected RTE foods, associated preparation surfaces and cleaning tools sampled from four retail delicatessens in Johannesburg. An initial pilot study of four RTE foods such as filled baguettes, assorted salads, sliced processed meats and hot meals was conducted in order to set the parameters for the remainder of the study. Results showed that filled baguettes and assorted salads contained the highest bacterial counts and incidences of potential foodborne pathogens. Bacterial counts were obtained from the associated preparation surfaces, whilst cleaning tools were associated with coliform and Escherichia coli, suggesting they may harbour potential foodborne pathogens. For the main study, 60% filled baguettes and assorted salads complied with the microbiological guidelines recommended by the retailer, however fruit salads had the lowest bacterial counts overall. Furthermore, of the food contact surfaces plastic chopping boards were identified as the greatest reservoir for RTE food contamination. Bacteriological analysis in conjunction with scanning electron microscopy showed potential foodborne pathogens associated with cleaning tools. Low numbers of aerobic bacteria and Staphylococcus aureus were associated with disposable plastic gloves, suggesting that good glove practices are used by the food handlers.

Thesis advisor: John A. Baldwin / Contact geometry has played a central role in many recent advances in low-dimensional topology; e.g. in showing that knot Floer homology detects the genus of a knot and whether a knot is fibered. It has also been used to show that the unknot, trefoil, and figure eight knot are determined by their Dehn surgeries. An important problem in 3-dimensional contact geometry is the classification of Legendrian and transverse knots. Such knots come equipped with some classical invariants. New invariants from knot Floer homology have been effective in distinguishing Legendrian and transverse knots with identical classical invariants, a notoriously difficult task. The Giroux correspondence allows contact structures to be studied via purely topological constructs called open book decompositions. Transverse links are then braids about these open books, which in turn may be thought of as mapping tori of diffeomorphisms of compact surfaces with boundary having marked points, which we refer to as pointed monodromies. In the first part of this thesis, we investigate properties of the transverse invariant in knot Floer homology, in particular its behavior for transverse closures of pointed monodromies possessing certain dynamical properties. The binding of an open book sits naturally as a transverse link in the supported contact manifold. We prove that the transverse link invariant in knot Floer homology of the binding union any braid about the open book is non-zero. As an application, we show that any pointed monodromy with fractional Dehn twist coefficient greater than one has non-zero transverse invariant, generalizing a result of Plamenevskaya for braids about the unknot. In the second part of this thesis, we define invariants of Legendrian and transverse links in universally tight lens spaces using grid diagrams, generalizing those defined by Ozsvath, Szabo and Thurston. We show that our invariants are equivalent to those defined by Lisca, Ozsvath, Szabo and Stipsicz for Legendrian and transverse links in arbitrary contact 3-manifolds. Our argument involves considering braids about rational open book decompositions and filtrations on knot Floer complexes. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2019. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Mathematics.

Neste trabalho, a relação entre a adesão e o grau de desordem de superfícies em contato é estudada por meio de simulações por dinâmica molecular. O sistema em estudo é composto por um indentador cilíndrico rígido e um bloco deformável. Um reservatório térmico é colocado logo abaixo do bloco, de forma a manter o sistema a temperatura ambiente. Os sólidos são feitos do mesmo material e são modelados por intermédio do potencial genérico de Lennard-Jones. A adesão entre as superfícies é variada gradualmente por meio da variação do raio de corte do potencial que descreve a interação entre as superfícies indentador-bloco. Cada simulação se inicia com um recozimento, após o qual são realizadas as simulações de contato propriamente ditas, até que ocorra penetração de 1,7 raios atômicos. A força normal, a energia potencial, a temperatura e a energia cinética são acompanhadas ao longo do processo. Os resultados reforçam a importância da adesão no jump-to-contact, estando este fenômeno relacionado à geração de defeitos cristalinos. Há indícios de que a distribuição da carga, bem como a dissipação de energia, seja influenciada pela adesão na interface. Mostra-se que a desordem apresentada pelos átomos do bloco é proporcional à contribuição da adesão. / In this work, the relationship between adhesion and the degree of disorder of surfaces in contact is studied by means of molecular dynamics simulations. The system consists of a rigid cylindrical indenter and a deformable block. A heat reservoir is placed just below the block, in order to maintain the system at room temperature. Both solids are made of the same material and are modeled through the generic Lennard-Jones potential. Adhesion between the surfaces is gradually varied by varying the cut-off radius of the potential describing the interaction between the indenter surface and the block. Each contact simulation is preceeded by an annealing step, and is conducted until the penetration reaches 1.7 atomic radii. The normal force, the potential energy, kinetic energy and temperature are monitored throughout the process. The results reinforce the importance of adhesion in the phenomenon of jump-to-contact, which is also related to the generation of crystalline defects. The results indicate that the load distribution and power dissipation is influenced by the adhesion at the interface. It is shown that the disorder presented by the atoms of the block is proportional to the contribution of adhesion.

Thesis advisor: Anderson J. Franklin / Previous research on intergroup relations between racial groups primarily focused on relations between Whites and various ethnic minority groups, studies on relations between ethnic minorities have been neglected and underexamined (Bikmen, 2011). Allport’s (1954) intergroup contact theory suggested that when the groups in contact are perceived to have similar status, contact could lead to reduced prejudice and improved intergroup relations. Asian Americans and African Americans occupy different status positions on the U.S. racial hierarchy. Although their relative status positions are important factors to consider in understanding their evaluations and interactions with each other, the influence of racial psychological factors are also important to consider because they may influence how status is perceived. Thus, the current study investigated how racial socialization, racial identity, and racial stereotypes influence contact between Asian Americans and African Americans. U.S.-born Asian American (N = 190) and African American (N = 304) adults completed an online survey containing a demographic information sheet, the Racial Socialization Influences Scale (Harrell, 1997), the People of Color Racial Identity Attitudes Scale (Helms, 1995), the Negative Attitude Toward Asians Scale (Ho & Jackson, 2001), the Anti-Black Scale (Katz & Hass, 1988), the Intergroup Contact Measure (Stathi & Crisp, 2010), and the Behavioral Intentions Scale (Esses & Dovidio, 2002). Results from multivariate multiple regression analyses suggested that racial socialization, particularly exposure to racially diverse environments, was positively related to the frequency and quality of contact, as well as willingness to engage in future contact for both Asian Americans and African Americans; whereas race-related discussions was associated with African Americans’ endorsement of Asian stereotypes. In addition, the study showed that racial identity schemas partially mediated the relationship between racial socialization and intergroup contact, and the relationship between racial socialization and racial stereotypes. Finally, findings revealed that African Americans reported more willingness to engage in future contact with Asian Americans than Asian Americans reported with African Americans. Discussions included methodological limitations, and implications for research and practice. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2016. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Counseling, Developmental and Educational Psychology.

O meio corporativo, principalmente quando se trata de montadoras automotivas, é carente de conhecimento dos fatores que podem influenciar o processo de união entre pares tribológicos. Quando há um fim específico, como o tema deste trabalho: assegurar níveis de controle capazes de eliminar os riscos de uma vedação deficiente na câmara de combustão com custo mínimo, tal carência é ainda maior. O estudo da tribologia inerente à união entre cabeçote e bloco do motor diesel é fundamental para se compreender a que ponto é possível garantir a melhor estanqueidade possível, especialmente no que esteja relacionado ao processo rotineiro de aperto na linha de produção. Nesse sentido, a investigação proposta neste trabalho tem o claro objetivo de propor melhores condições técnicas de vedação ao caso particular da união entre cabeçote e bloco do motor de forma a eliminar / minimizar qualquer influência externa durante o aparafusamento do par supracitado. Adicionalmente, o conhecimento aqui exposto poderá ser difundido a muitas outras aplicações similares nas quais a fixação aparafusada está atrelada a funções que não apenas de fixação, podendo estas estarem inclusive em outros universos do produto, tais como motores, cabinas, eixos e transmissão. / The automobile corporate field has a lack of knowledge when the subject is related to tightening specific issues, especially regarding tribological studies. When there is a specific goal as this thesis theme: ensure all the control levels to eliminate sealing deficiency risks inside combustion chamber in a low investment cost, the needs are even higher. The tribological study between diesel engine block and its cylinder heads assembly is essential to comprehend what is necessary to have the best possible sealing, mostly when it\'s related to the routine on the assembly tightening process. Thinking on that, this work has the goal to propose the best condition on fastening technique that guarantees the sealing to any superficial topography roughness. Additionally, the acquired knowledge will be spread to other similar applications that are not unequally associated to bolted joints, but also in other vehicle universes, such as engines, cabs, axles and transmissions.