none

Beaches and barrier islands are vulnerable to extreme storm events, such as hurricanes, that can cause severe erosion and overwash to the system. Having dunes and a wide beach in front of coastal infrastructure can provide protection during a storm, but the influence that nearshore bathymetric features have in protecting the beach and barrier island system is not completely understood. The spatial variation in nearshore features, such as sand bars and beach cusps, can alter nearshore hydrodynamics, including wave setup and runup. The influence of bathymetric features on long-wave runup can be used in evaluating the vulnerability of coastal regions to erosion and dune overtopping, evaluating the changing morphology, and implementing plans to protect infrastructure. In this thesis, long-wave runup variation due to changing bathymetric features as determined with the numerical model XBeach is quantified (eXtreme Beach behavior model). Wave heights are analyzed to determine the energy through the surfzone. XBeach assumes that coastal erosion at the land-sea interface is dominated by bound long-wave processes. Several hydrodynamic conditions are used to force the numerical model. The XBeach simulation results suggest that bathymetric irregularity induces significant changes in the extreme long-wave runup at the beach and the energy indicator through the surfzone.

Thèse de doctorat : Psychologie cognitive : Lyon 2 : 2001. / Titre provenant de l'écran-titre. Bibliogr.

This study evaluated the influence of annual land applications of Class B biosolids on the soil microbial and chemical properties monitored over 20 year period. The study was initiated in 1986 at the University of Arizona Marana Agricultural Center, Tucson, Arizona. The final application of biosolids was in March 2005, followed by growth of cotton from April through November 2005. Surface soil samples (0-30 cm) were collected monthly from March 2005 through December 2005, and analyzed for soil microbial properties. Soil cores (0-150 cm) were also collected in December and analyzed for various soil chemical properties. The study showed that land application of Class B biosolids had no significant effect on the number of indigenous soil microbial numbers including bacteria, actinomycetes, and fungi (no bacterial or viral pathogens were present in soil samples collected in December) but enhanced microbial activity in the biosolid amended plots. Bacterial diversity was not impacted after 20 years of land application when evaluated through cloning and sequence analysis of bacterial 16S rRNA. Both soils had a broad phylogenetic diversity comprising more than five major phyla including: Proteobacteria, Acidobacteria, Actinobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Firmicutes. Chemical analyses showed that land application of biosolids significantly increased soil pH but did not affect soil salinity and CaCO3 values as compared with the control plots. However, this lack of increase in salinity was likely due to the leaching of soluble salts through the soil profile since irrigation rates. Land application significantly increased soil macro-nutrients including C, N and P and caution should be taken with respect to phosphate loadings to prevent nutrient contamination of surface waters. The biosolid amended soil concentrations of available and total metals were low (compared to the typical background soil metal concentrations). Metal concentrations attenuated rapidly with increasing soil depth, and were generally similar to values found in control soils at a depth of 150cm. Increases in available metal concentrations were modest. It is important to note that there are differences between these studies with respect to different cropping systems, biosolids type, climate and soil type, as well as irrigation rates in the arid southwest.

This study sought to explore the access and alteration “rules experience” within an Ontario wetlands case study framework. The study interviewed two key stakeholder groups, key-involved stewardship agencies and key-identified wetland property owners, and aggregated them as a single response group. There were significant overlaps between these groups and the final identified potential respondent group was thirteen. All potential respondents were invited to participate in a detailed exploration of the rules experience via a thorough semi-structured interview process within the existing context of a Long Point, Ontario study area. For their own specified reasons, eight of thirteen identified and invited potential respondents chose to provide a response for analysis. It was imagined that very specific questions about each discovered rule in the study area might provide insight into to effect and understanding of specific rule characteristics within the study area; however, nothing exceptional was revealed with respect to rule characteristics using a small detailed study group. Study area respondents appeared to have focused and specific knowledge of a collection of study area rules (often within their direct interest), but few respondents had a relatively comprehensive knowledge of the entire alteration and access rules framework. The most interesting results within in the interview process, including the most interest in response provision by respondents, centred more generally on wetland management- with emphasis on private and public management initiatives. In this theme, while generally supportive of the apparent goals of the existing rules, respondents were divided as to how management should actually function within the study area. Despite interest by both key informant groups in wetland conservation and maintenance, the application of public rules on private and/or organized wetland spaces occasionally appear to conflict. During the study, there appeared to be much more interest in wetland alteration rules, and, expectedly, a strongly expressed desire to have these rules more carefully scrutinized and adapted to the study area. The study area is fortunate to have a history of public and private interest in wetland conservation; this study highlights the need for these similarly interested groups to work together to reconcile the differences in expected applications of public rules.

A novel sensor using a polymer coated long-period grating (LPG) has been proposed for monitoring levels of organic contaminants in air or water systems. The sensor operates by detecting refractive index changes in the polymer coating as analytes partition in. Polymer coatings used must be able to reversibly and reproducibly absorb contaminants of interest from the sample and have a refractive index just below that of the fiber cladding. The synthesis and characterization of several chemically selective polysiloxanes is described. Pre-polymer materials are made through the catalyzed condensation of silane monomers. Different functional groups are incorporated either through polymerizing functionalized monomers, or by post-functionalizing the polymer through a platinum-catalyzed hydrosilylation reaction. The pre-polymer materials are crosslinked into elastomeric films using titanium(IV) tetraisopropoxide. The polymer refractive index is controlled through altering the ratios of functional groups within the polymer or changing the loading levels of titanium. Four polymers were made, having different functional groups and optimized refractive indices for use on the proposed sensor. The partition coefficients for the polymers with a variety of solvents are calculated and compared. Each polymer was found to have a slightly different chemical selectivity pattern, demonstrating that a set of polymers could be used to generate a sensor array. Partition coefficient data was calculated from the gas phase by considering the change in polymer refractive index as the solvents partitioned into the polymer. The Lorentz-Lorenz equation was used to model the relationship between the change in refractive index and the solvent concentration within the polymer. Finally, polymers were applied to LPGs and used to successfully detect various solvents from the gas phase. This was accomplished by monitoring the entire LPG spectrum, and also by considering loss at a single wavelength using fiber-loop ring-down spectroscopy. / Thesis (Ph.D, Chemistry) -- Queen's University, 2008-09-26 15:28:35.603

Synaptic plasticity reflects the capacity of synapses to undergo changes in synaptic strength and connectivity, and is highly regulated by age and sensory experience. This thesis focuses on the characterization of synaptic plasticity in the primary auditory cortex (A1) of rats throughout development and following sensory deprivation. Initial experiments revealed an age-dependent decline in plasticity, as indicated by reductions in long-term potentiation (LTP). The enhanced plasticity of juvenile rats appeared to be mediated by NR2B subunits of the N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor (NMDAR), as NR2B antagonist application reduced LTP to adult-like levels in juveniles, yet had no effect in adults. The importance of sensory experience in mediating plasticity was revealed in experiments using white noise exposure, which is a sensory deprivation technique known to arrest cortical development in A1. Notably, adult rats reared in continuous white noise maintained more juvenile-like levels of LTP, which normalized upon subsequent exposure to an unaltered acoustic environment. The white noise-induced LTP enhancements also appeared to be mediated by NR2B subunits, as NR2B antagonists reversed these LTP enhancements in white noise-reared rats. Given the strong influence that sensory experience exerts on plasticity, additional experiments examined the effect of shorter episodes of white noise exposure on LTP in adult rats. Exposure to white noise during early postnatal life appeared to “prime” A1 for subsequent exposure in adulthood, resulting in enhanced LTP. The necessity of early-life exposure was evident, as repeated episodes of white noise in adulthood did not enhance plasticity. In older rats that typically no longer express LTP in A1, pharmacological methods to enhance plasticity were explored. Moderate LTP was observed in older rats with cortical zinc application, which may act through its antagonism of NR2A subunits of the NMDAR. Additionally, current source density and cortical silencing analyses were conducted to characterize the distinct peaks of field postsynaptic potentials recorded in A1, with the earlier and later peaks likely representing thalamocortical and intracortical synapses, respectively. Together, this thesis emphasizes the critical role of sensory experience in determining levels of cortical plasticity, and demonstrates strategies to enhance plasticity in the mature auditory cortex. / Thesis (Ph.D, Neuroscience Studies) -- Queen's University, 2011-01-11 14:53:57.677

No description available.

The objective of this study was to determine whether provincial health policies influence the supply of long-term care in a province, and the care received by residents that require it. This was achieved by first conducting a comprehensive review and comparative analysis of the long-term care policies of Alberta and Ontario, and then comparing health conditions of long-term care and assisted living/retirement home residents in both provinces. The latter comparisons used information collected from comparable versions of the Resident Assessment Instrument – Minimum Data Set (RAI-MDS) and the RAI-MDS Home Care. The study hypothesis was that provinces with health policies favouring institutional over community care would have a higher proportion of residents with lower care requirements in institutional settings. The results show that this is not the case, and that institutional settings house those with high care needs in both provinces.

The objective of this study was to determine whether provincial health policies influence the supply of long-term care in a province, and the care received by residents that require it. This was achieved by first conducting a comprehensive review and comparative analysis of the long-term care policies of Alberta and Ontario, and then comparing health conditions of long-term care and assisted living/retirement home residents in both provinces. The latter comparisons used information collected from comparable versions of the Resident Assessment Instrument – Minimum Data Set (RAI-MDS) and the RAI-MDS Home Care. The study hypothesis was that provinces with health policies favouring institutional over community care would have a higher proportion of residents with lower care requirements in institutional settings. The results show that this is not the case, and that institutional settings house those with high care needs in both provinces.