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Higher Power Of Lucky (2008) By Susan Patron, Maughn Gregory

Chapter Books

Ten-year-old Lucky lost her mother in a freak accident; her father is missing, and she is being cared for by her father’s former girlfriend in a tiny town at the edge of the Mojave desert. That could be the set-up for a story of loss and poverty. But this girl lives up to her name: she takes scraps of information, chance experiences, and overheard theories as resources for imagining the world and plotting her way forward. She learns how things work from the desert animals and insects, with the help of her hero, Charles Darwin. She learns survival and a …

Richmond Law Magazine: Winter 2008

Richmond Law Magazine

Features:

New Faculty Excel

State of the Family

A Summer at Cambridge

Women Power

Cast Out: Vagrancy And Homelessness In Global And Historical Perspective, A. L. Beier, Paul Ocobock

Ohio University Press Open Access Books

Throughout history, those arrested for vagrancy have generally been poor men and women, often young, able-bodied, unemployed, and homeless. Most histories of vagrancy have focused on the European and American experiences. Cast Out: Vagrancy and Homelessness in Global and Historical Perspective is the first book to consider the shared global heritage of vagrancy laws, homelessness, and the historical processes they accompanied.

In this ambitious collection, vagrancy and homelessness are used to examine a vast array of phenomena, from the migration of labor to social and governmental responses to poverty through charity, welfare, and prosecution. The essays in Cast Out represent …

A Semiotics Framework For Analyzing Data Provenance Research, Jun Liu, Sudha Ram

Research & Publications

Data provenance is the background knowledge that enables a piece of data to be interpreted and used correctly within context. The importance of tracking provenance is widely recognized, as witnessed by significant research in various areas including e-science, homeland security, and data warehousing and business intelligence. In order to further advance the research on date and identity specific topics that merit further investigation. In this work, we develop a framework based on semiotics theory to assist in analyzing and comparing existing provenance research at the conceptual level. We provide a detailed review of data provenance research and compare and contrast …

An Ontology-Based Approach For Model Representation, Sharing And Reuse, Amit Deokar, Omar F. El-Gayar, Nazim Taskin, Ruba Aljafari

Research & Publications

Although Decision Support Systems (DSS) play a dominant role in organizing data and models, its capability in supporting decision makers in collaborating distributed environments is still limited when it comes to the selection, sharing, and re-use of models. For mathematical models to be shared and reused, mechanisms are needed for understanding, implementing, modifying, discovering, selecting, engaging, and composing models. At a fundamental level, model representation will need to extend beyond model structure to include model semantics as well. This research leverages advances in Semantic Web technologies and ontologies to enable sharing and re-using of decision models by providing enriched semantics …

Agricultural Bioaerosols: Protect Yourself, Louis Bousquet, Jacques Lavoie, Johanne Asselin

Fiches

No abstract provided.

Minimizing A Potential Threat: The Effects Of Closeness On Perceptions Of Teasing, Glen Gorman

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Recent research has shown that when teasing occurs between two people, the intentions of the teaser are not always known, or appreciated by the recipient of the tease, thus creating a rift between the teaser and the target (Kruger et al, 2006). Targets of teasing tended to rate the tease and the intentions of the teaser more negatively than did the teaser. The purpose of the present research was to examine perceptions of teasing within the context of close relationships. Although teasing may be perceived as a threatening situation, members of a close interpersonal relationship may be motivated to lessen …

Computer Mediated Communication: Providing Pastoral Care To Youth In “A High Tech” World, Tanya L. Ramer

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This study used a hermeneutical methodology to explore how Computer Mediated Communication (CMC) can be used to provide pastoral care to youth in a high tech world. The research was motivated by the writers desire to find ways to be in communication with youth and provide pastoral care to them during their adolescent years. The thesis will explore computer mediated communication and its usefulness in providing pastoral care to youth by exploring the benefits and limitations, how it can be abused, namely cyber bullying, how it can provide an opportunity for mentoring and a theological reflection on how it can …

Consumers’ Mental Health Recovery In A Psychiatric Outreach Program: A Process And Outcome Evaluation, Phillip Chan

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This study was a process and outcome evaluation of a relatively innovative Canadian psychiatric outreach program that was multi-disciplinary, shared-care, community-based, consumer-directed, and self-determination oriented. Using structured interviews with participants (n=32), both quantitative and qualitative approaches were employed. The quantiative process measures included a demographic survey, a frequency of service utilization and satisfaction survey, and a shortened version of the Recovery Oriented System Indicator (ROSI) instrument. These measures revealed that the program was serving the target population; the conumsers utilized the services frequently and they were satisfied with the program; and, in the eyes of consumers, the program …

Web Search Algorithms And Pagerank, Laleh Samarbakhsh

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The mathematical theory underlying the Google search engine is the PageRank algorithm, first introduced by Sergey Brin and Lawrence Page, the founders of Google. A ranking of web pages is made considering many criteria. PageRank exploits the graph structure of the web. The web’s hyperlink structure forms a massive directed graph, where the web pages are presented as nodes and hyperlinks as edges. The PageRank equation finds a score by solving a recursive equation which calculates the PageRank vector. The PageRank vector is the stationary distribution of an ergodic Markov chain. The Perron-Frobenius theorem ensures that the primitive matrix produced …

How The Formal Education System In Kenya Is Changing The Culture Of The Maasai Community, Jennifer Coles

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Colonialism brough Africa into the sphere of European dominance and laid the ground work for the adoption of neoliberal globalization. This has affected change for the Maasai of southern Kenya who had attempted to remain isolated for much of the 19th and 20th centuries. However, such cultural isolation has been disrupted by global tourism and the desire of western citizens to view and participate in ‘authentic’ experiences in unique Maasai environments; thus creating a global desire to visit the Maasai Mara National Reserve (MMNR). The MMNR is part of Maasailand and has exposed many in the surrounding communities to new …

Evaluating Community Participation In Health Care Decision-Making: The Case Of The Airdie/North Rocky View Health Needs Project, Aleisha Dawn Harrington

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Rising health care costs combined with limited health resources have made it essential for health agencies around the world to identify successful and affordable ways to prevent disease and promote health. Several national and international documents have proposed that increased community participation in health matters is one potential approach. While many of these reports detail the benefits of and need for community participation in health care decision-making, they provide little information as to how this should be achieved. The result has been a myriad of interpretations, interventions and practices of community participation. According to several scholars, evaluations are needed that …

Effects And Mechanisms Of Female Sex Hormone Influence On Skeletal Muscle Inflammation, Sobia Iqbal

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Previous work from our laboratory has demonstrated that estrogen will attenuate leukocyte infiltration into skeletal muscle following eccentric exercise. However the mechanisms by which estrogen exerts its effects are still uncertain. In experiment one, we investigated the role of estrogen receptor (ER) influence on muscle leukocyte infiltration following eccentric exercise through administration of the ER antagonist ICI 182,780 following downhill running in ovariectomized female rats with (E+) or without (E-) estrogen supplementation. At 24 hours post-exercise, soleus and white vastus muscles were removed and immunostained for HIS48 (neutrophil) and EDI (macrophage) positive cells. The increase in number of fibres positive …

Living Out: A Study Exploring The Experience Of Live Out Assistants In L’Arche, Jennifer Christine Elkins

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The purpose of this research project was to qualitatively explore the experiences of live-out assistants in two L’Arche communities in order to better understand what these staff members perceived to be the benefits and challenges of community life in L’Arche. Live-out assistants support individuals with developmental disabilities in L’Arche communities, but do not live in a L’Arche home. This study incorporates theories related to the role of core values in uniting intentional communities and organizational change. Intentional communities face an ongoing challenge of adapting to internal and external changes, while retaining core values and a common purpose. An empowerment approach …

Contributions Of Vision To Gait Improvement And Perceptual Impairment In Parkinson’S Disease, Chad A. Lebold

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

No abstract provided.

Paleohydrologic Reconstruction Of Three Shallow Basins, Slave River Delta, Nwt, Using Stable Isotope Methods, Cherie Mongeon

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

p>The long-term natural hydrological variability of the Slave River Delta (SRD), NWT, is not well documented and needs to be further developed to provide temporal context to understand and evaluate impacts of Slave River (SR) floodwater influence and climate variability and change on contemporary hydro-ecological doncidiotns of the SRD. The SRD has broad ecological and cultural significance, as it provides extensive habitate for wildlife and is important for local First Nations community who have an historical connection with the delta and its resources. Concners have been raised over recently reported drying trends in the SRD over the past few …

Modelling Asset Prices Under Regime Switching Diffusions Via First Passage Time, Xiaojing Xi

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

In this thesis we focus on the development of a new class of stochastic models for asset price processes and their application to option pricing and hedging. The asset price process involves analytical treatments for calculating first-hitting (or first-passage) times for a regular diffusion with killing in combination with Markov state-switching. The dynamics is naturally dictated by the underlying diffusion process itself rather than arising from some addition exogenous process. To date, this class of asset pricing models appears to be novel in the literature and, moreover, offers a significant to the standard geometric Brownian motion commonly used in the …

The Influence Of Exercise Intensity On Exercise Induced Diaphragm Fatigue In Female Subjects, Anthony Errol Aqui

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Exercise induced arterial hypoxemia (EIAH), expiratory flow limitation (EFL) and exercise induced diaphragm fatigue (EIDF) are examples of how the pulmonary system limits endurance exercise. The differences in the female anatomy and hormone fluctuations have been reported to cause differences in the occurrence of EIAH and EFL in males and females. EIDF has been reported to occur in males, but to date no investigations have reported the occurrence of EIDF in females. Therefore the purpose of this study was to determine the occurrence of exercise induced diaphragm fatigue (EIDF) in females identified by significant reductions in transdiaphramatic pressure (P_{di …}

Assessment Of Unit Scale: An Innovative Counselling Tool For Assessing The Relationships Of Couples Facing Infertility, Reina Zatylny

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

No abstract provided.

What Can We Learn About White Privilege And Racism From The Experiences Of White Mothers Parenting Biracial Children?, Shannon Cushing

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Despite progress in the movement toward anti-racism, racism remains a problem in Canada. While the presence of racism and the problem of racism are recognized by Canadian society, there is still a long way to go before racism and white privilege are eliminated. In the present study, I apply Community Psychology values to the examination of an as-yet relatively unexamined minority population: white mothers of biracial children. Guided by epistemological views that place my research within the critical and social constructivist research paradigms, I explore my research question, “How can the experiences of white mothers parenting biracial children inform us …

Challenges Of Volunteerism Within A Cultural Community: Case Study Of Young Hmong Adults In Kitchener-Waterloo, Melanie Heu

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Volunteering is an act of civic participation where members of a community engage in a social process of performing activities to assist in achieving a certain goal. This study looks at volunteerism in the context of a cultural voluntary organization within the Hmong community in Southern Ontario. The study presents findings of a case study conducted with young Hmong adult members about their perspectives of volunteering within a non-profit organization, which incorporates three generations of members. The study reveals intergenerational and cross-cultural challenges and discusses how these challenges impact the volunteer experiences of the participants. The study advances our knowledge …

Assessing The ‘Hazards Of Place’ Model Of Vulnerability: A Case Study Of Waterloo Region, Erin Joakim

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This research project examines the Hazards of Place model of vulnerability (as developed by Cutter, 1996) to determine whether it is applicable in a Canadian context.

An in-depth case study of the Regional Municipality of Waterloo was used to determine whether the model accurately describes:

1. emergency and community practitioners understandings of vulnerability and vulnerable populations in Waterloo Region
2. emergency and community practitioners perceptions of the variables that influence vulnerabilities
3. mitigation and preparedness efforts that could be enhanced and/or implemented to reduce the vulnerability of individuals and groups in Waterloo Region

To complete this study, in-depth interviews and surveys were conducted …

Non-Preferred Limb Performance Following Prolonged Training Periods: Performance And Retention Of Skills, Matthew Thomas Mayer

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The purpose of the current study was to examine if a long-term training program could improve non-preferred limb performance on a battery of standard tasks (Annett Pegboard, Grooved Pegboard Place and Remove Phase) and non-standard tasks (Scroll Task and Line-crossing Task). Upon completion of the training sessions, two new tasks were introduced, Finger Tapping and Fitt’s Law Task, to examine if any performance improvements could be transferred. A second purpose of the study was to learn if a training program could increase the perceived comfort in using the non-preferred hand on the same testing tasks. Participants were assigned to a …

The Human Activity-Travel Rescheduling Decision Process, Andrew F. Clark

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Over the past few decades the activity scheduling decision process has become an important topic for transportation researchers, including how people reschedule their daily activities and travel in reaction to change. Rescheduling decisions include modifications/updates to timing, location/route, involved persons, event/mode type, and other attributes of activities/trips, as well as addition and deletion of completely new events. Such decisions occur as part of an ongoing process over time, space and across individuals. This thesis developed and applied a new data collection methodology for exploring the rescheduling decision process. The methodology had four main stages: capturing preplanned schedules; Global Positioning System …

Effects Of Orthotic Intervention During Running Among Individuals With Functional Flatfoot, E. Anne Cunningham

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Foot orthotics are commonly prescribed to runners with functional flatfoot (FFF) with the goal of restoring the medial arch of the foot. In addition, treadmills are typically used by both clinicians and researchers in order to measure the lower extremity kinematics associated with running. However the mechanism of orthotic intervention as well as the accuracy of treadmills in representing overground running remains controversial within the literature.

This thesis first compared the lower extremity kinematics between treadmill and overground running among individuals with a subtalar neutral foot type. The results indicated no significant differences with respect to rate of rearfoot angle, …

Multi-Method Assessment Of Newcomer Settlement Experiences In Kitchener-Waterloo, Qaseem Ludin

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Every day hundreds of newcomers begin a new life in Canada. Some are refugees fleeing persecution, others come to join family, and yet others (mostly the economic and independent categories) are seeking to make a better life for themselves. In all, since 2000 around 250,000 people have settled in Canada each year. Their backgrounds and personal histories may be widely different and each one’s experience on arrival is unique. The communities across Canada into which they integrate differ too in their character and in the manner in which they receive newcomers. For many new Canadians, there are, nevertheless, certain shared …

The “Both-And” Choice: The Impact Of Informational, Motivational And Behavioural Skill Messages On Adolescent Dual Protection, Tyla Fullerton

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The promotion of simultaneous condom and hormonal contraceptive use is an imperative given increasing rates of sexually transmitted infections and patterns of sexual behaviour in Canada. Previous research has shown that few adolescents engage in dual protection due to a number of barriers including attitudes and beliefs about sexual health risk. These attitudes and beliefs are shaped by key sexual health referents including parents, friends, educators, health care providers, and sexual partners. This study investigated how these sources influence information, motivation and behavioural skills (IMB) that lead to dual protection. Attitudes and beliefs are shaped by information and motivation from …

Critical Approaches To Clinical Social Work Practice: Considerations From Contemporary Relational Psychoanalytic Theory, Christopher Trevelyan

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Critical social workers now contend that an individual’s everyday living both shapes and is shaped by overarching social structures and discourses. As such, the subjectivity of the individual is considered an axis on which the existing social order can be either perpetuated or transformed. Transformations on the level of the individual are therefore argued to contribute to transformations on the levels of larger societal arrangements. For this reason, many critical social work theorists today argue that clinical social work practice with individuals is an essential component of effecting egalitarian forms of social change. Yet, critical social workers also widely acknowledge …

Opportunity, Tools And Support: Ngo Engagement In The Security And Disarmament Field, Sarah Estabrooks

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

NGOs have been consistently excluded from multilateral proceedings in the security and disarmament sector where states are concerned about their national security interests. And yet, they have found avenues to participate in the multilateral process through the negotiation of treaties, provision of expert research and testimony, systematic monitoring of state compliance, documentation of UN proceedings, and even as members of government delegations. This paper explores the conditions that enable NGOs to engage directly in the state-centric system of the United Nations, addressing political opportunity, enabling resources, and institutional support. I explore how NGOs contribute to international politics, using a constructivist …

Social Behavior Inventory: To Ipsatize Or Not To Ipsatize, That Is The Question, Carolyn Hoessler

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This research extends prior knowledge of the statistical procedure of ipsatization, commonly utilized in interpersonal research to align data with theoretical expectations. The working hypotheses in prior studies have posited that a general factor, representing a response bias with no relevant substantive meaning, alters the data and interferes with analysis and interpretation unless removed by ipsatization. In the first of two studies, we initially investigated whether ipsatization removes important conceptual information from data when it removes a general factor. Three potential meanings of the general factor expected to occur in the Likert-scale version of the Social Behavior Inventory (SBI; Moskowitz, …