McGill University Thèses et mémoires publiés en 1995

This thesis is devoted to the kinematic synthesis of parallel manipulators at large, special attention being given to three versions of a novel class of mainpulators, named double-triangular. These are conceived in planar, spherical and spatial double-triangular varieties. The treatment of planar and spherical manipulators needs only planar and spherical trigonometry, a fact that inductively leads to the successful treatment of spatial varieties with methods of spatial trigonometry, wherein the relationships are cast in the form of dual-number algebraic expressions. Using the foregoing tools, the direct kinematics of the three types of double-triangular manipulators is formulated and resolved. Moreover, a …  Read more

Two natural soils from Bahrain were used in this study to investigate the feasibility of using Arabian oil residue as a means to stabilize collapsible saline soils. Since the presence of oil residue in soils can pose an environmental threat, the high oil retention capability of the stabilized soils is critical to its application. The behavior of the stabilized soils has been experimentally investigated in the laboratory. This study has concentrated on the evaluation of the mechanical properties of the stabilized soils, the oil retention characteristics and its bonding mechanisms, and the leaching and migration behaviors of oil residue from …  Read more

Several biologically important arsenic compounds including methylarsonate, trimethylarsine oxide, tetramethylarsonium ion, arsenobetaine and arsenocholine were prepared, in good yields, from sodium arsenite, or dimethylarsinic acid. These organoarsenic compounds together with arsenite, arsenate and dimethylarsinic acid were used as standards for the development of analytical methods for determining the levels of individual arsenic compounds (arsenic speciation) present in natural matrices. Arsenobetaine, arsenocholine and tetramethylarsonium ion were separated by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with on-line detection by thermochemical hydride generation (THG)-AAS. The analytes were eluted from the cyanopropyl bonded phase HPLC column with a 1% acetic acid methanolic mobile phase which …  Read more

The purpose of this study is to demonstrate that the main theme of Heptameron, by Marguerite de Navarre, is not love, as numerous critics maintain, but the notion of honour. This notion is the real unifying principle that indisputably confers its penetrating unity to the book. If the kind of dialogue favoured by the Queen creates a polyphony which, at first, may seem destabilizing and hinder the coherence of the book, after reading it carefully, however, one notices that a certain number of guidelines relating to the notion of honour permeate the book. By identifying systems and ensembles, one discovers …  Read more

The purpose of this study is to explore the adjustment experiences of McGill University graduate students from the People's Republic of China (PRC). Following a qualitative approach to research, interviews were conducted with 10 graduate students from the PRC using semi-structured and open-ended methods. More structured interviews with McGill University administrative staff provided background to the study as did government and university registration statistics. This study explores student involvement and interaction with Canadian society, avenues and barriers to interaction, and communication between professors/supervisors and students. It focuses on the overlapping relationship between communication skills and culture learning as part of …  Read more

This dissertation attempts to trace hereditary motifs in the novels of Charles Dickens and to relate these motifs to broader concerns--specifically Dickens's depiction of the formation of the self, his understanding of history and of the role of time Towards this end, I offer an historical overview of scientific and popular thinking on heredity, and suggest how some of these notions were translated into Dickens's fiction. The discussion of hereditary themes in the novels falls into two broad categories--the private and the public. In the first of these, I argue that Dickens tended to define positive moral qualities, such as …  Read more

Listeria monocytogenes is a pathogenic, psychrotrophic microorganism that is ubiquitous in nature. L. monocytogenes has been isolated from numerous meat products, both fresh and processed, the incidence of contamination varying greatly. The ability of Listeria to grow in meats depends on temperature, pH, water activity (a$ sb{ rm w}$), nutrients, species and numbers of competing microorganisms, gaseous conditions, and levels of additional barriers. Therefore, methods to control the growth of L.monocytogenes are of great importance to food processors since this organism can grow under a wide range of environmental and storage conditions. Two methods of control, in conjunction with temperature, …  Read more

The thesis examines John Thompson's Ideology and Modern Culture as an important contribution to the ongoing dialogue over models of the relationship between mediated communications and social order. The thesis argues that Thompson's contribution to communication theory lies in his development of one of the first successful attempts to integrate the strong orientation to meaning provided by interpretative theories into a comprehensive framework linking the situated interpretations of mediated communications to the idiosyncrasies of social ordering. Building on an evaluation of Ideology and Modern Culture's conceptual design, including its re-working of antecedents within communication, social and political theories, the thesis …  Read more

Lanza, Alcides (Supervisor)  Read more

In a survey conducted in Zimbabwe in 1993, waterhyacinth was present in seven out of the eight provinces. No control measures were imposed on 35% of the infested dams and 61% of the infested rivers, while in 47% of the infested dams and 11% of the infested rivers control of waterhyacinth was being attempted with a combination of 2,4-D and mechanical control methods. The population of Neochetina eichhorniae and N. bruchi declined during the period 1993 to 1995 in the Hunyani River system. Several fungi were isolated from diseased waterhyacinth, and Fusarium moniliforme (isolate 2ex 12), F. solani (isolates 5a …  Read more

To further our understanding of the biological significance of the murine protein tyrosine phosphatase, MPTP, several experimental strategies have been undertaken. Molecular cloning of the genomic locus corresponding to the highly conserved phosphatase domain of MPTP has permitted the comparison of intron/exon boundaries between MPTP and different members of the PTPase gene family, and made possible the targeted disruption of its gene in mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells. To elucidate the biological consequence(s) of complete disruption of the MPTP gene, an ES cell line harboring such a disruption was used to generate a mouse heterozygously targeted for MPTP. Isolation and …  Read more

Fast chemical neurotransmission is mediated by specialized receptors known as neurotransmitter-gated ion channels. The transmembrane topology of ion channel subunits provides insight about the structure and mechanism of activation of the receptors. The transmembrane topology of a membrane protein is predicted by hydropathy information giving an indication of the orientation of domains of the protein with respect to the plasma membrane. Functional C-terminal epitope-tagged receptors of neurotransmitter-gated ion channels were constructed in order to investigate the orientation of the C-terminal domain. This thesis will provide original experimental evidence demonstrating the transmembrane topology of the 5-HT$ sb3$ subunit of the serotonin-gated …  Read more

Geological and mineralogical investigations of four moderately peraluminous monzogranitic plutons (Preissac, Moly Hill, Lamotte, Lacorne) in the Archean Preissac-Lacorne batholith (northwestern Quebec) indicate that each consists of biotite, two-mica and muscovite monzogranite facies, and that these facies are zonally distributed in this order from margin to core or the larger Lamotte and Lacorne plutons. Rare-element-enriched granitic pegmatites are associated with the Lamotte and Lacorne plutons and are also regionally zoned, in this case, with respect to their respective plutons, from beryl-bearing in the plutons to spodumene-bearing in the country rocks. Molybdenite mineralized albitites and stockworks occur beyond the spodumene pegmatites …  Read more

This thesis is a study of the mystical thought of Muhammad Nafis al-Banjari an Indonesian sufi of the eighteenth century, based on his treatise "al-Durr al-Nafis". After introducing the background of the topic, the thesis investigates the life and the religious education of Muhammad Nafis. The thesis then analyzes the concepts of Martabat Tujuh, Tawhid, and the light of Muhammad. This thesis also attempts to compare Nafis' mystical concepts with those of other sufis, especially from the Sammaniyya order. This will lead us to the conclusion that Nafis' ideas are very close to Burhanfuris doctrine of Martabat Tujuh.  Read more

In aging vertebrates, subpopulations of limbic and periventricular astrocytes accumulate peroxidase-positive cytoplasmic inclusions distinct from lipofuscin. In rodent brain, chronic estrogenization accelerates the appearance of this senescent glial phenotype. Identical inclusions are rapidly induced in primary neuroglial cultures by cysteamine exposure. Abnormal mitochondria replete with redox-active iron and other transition metals are the subcellular precursors of the inclusions in situ and in cysteamine-treated cultures. The objective of this thesis was to elucidate mechanisms responsible for the biogenesis of these glial inclusions in the aging nervous system. We determined that the accumulation of astrocytic inclusions in cysteamine-treated rat glial cultures occurs …  Read more

Study of the Entomophthorales infection in selected black fly populations from two outlets of a lake was conducted at the Reserve Faunique du Saint-Maurice (Quebec). Entomophaga near limoniae infected Simulium verecundum/rostratum, whereas Erynia curvispora predominantly parasitized Simulium decorum, and Erynia conica infected Simulium venustum and the Simulium verecundum/rostratum and Simulium vittatum complexes. This is the first report of the presence of Erynia conica and Entomophaga near limoniae in North America and Erynia curvispora in Canada. Entomophaga near limoniae in black flies represents a new association. A successful method for rearing Simulium rostratum, and the in vitro production of fungal conidiospores, …  Read more

Berk, D. (Supervisor)  Read more

A study of muskrat population variables in southern Quebec did not allow differentiation between the quality of ditches bordered by corn fields and those bordered by hay fields. Annual turnover of adults and juveniles was very high in both ditch types. The average maximum density of muskrats was the second highest recorded in the literature. Muskrat activity was not predictive of activity of other co-occurring vertebrates. The direct relationship between the logarithm of the number of burrows and the number of muskrats showed the usefulness of this sign of presence as an indicator of population size. Within given ditches, we …  Read more

Autoregulation of renal blood flow is mediated by two mechanisms. The myogenic response operates at $ approx$0.1-0.2 Hz and tubuloglomerular feedback (TGF) operates at $ approx$0.03-0.05 Hz. Atrial natriuretic factor (ANF) dilates pre-glomerular resistance vessels, in which autoregulation occurs, and has been reported to inhibit TGF. We tested the potential actions of ANF on TGF-mediated autoregulation using Sprague-Dawley rats anesthetized with isoflurane. Renal perfusion pressure (RPP) was manipulated by a servo-controlled clamp placed on the aorta between the renal arteries. Time constants for constriction and dilatation were consistent with operation of TGF. ANF did not affect either the magnitude or …  Read more

Women's status in Indian agrarian communities has been discussed in terms of cultural and agricultural practices, which affect women adversely in the northwestern wheat region and favourably in the southern rice region. The correlation is tested by the female farm labour participation (FLP) rate and the juvenile sex ratio (JSR). I examine the correlation between women's contribution to agriculture and their status in wet paddy and dry millet regions in Tamil Nadu. Compared to northwestern India, the JSRs are more balanced and FLPs are high in both regions, yet the implications of high FLPs differ. Thanjavur shows a high female …  Read more

The dimensional stability of superheated steam dried paper made from groundwood, thermomechanical, chemithermomechanical and bleached kraft pulps were investigated in terms of hygroexpansivity, drying shrinkage and wet expansion. For all the pulps tested these characteristics of dimensional stability were found to be improved by high temperature superheated steam drying. The hygroexpansion coefficient, the dimensional change relative to paper moisture content, was reduced about 15% by superheated steam drying at 320°C, compared to paper dried in low temperature air. Irreversible shrinkage was reduced by up to 30% for sheets dried in superheated steam. However, these effects on hygroexpansivity were caused mainly …  Read more

In this thesis, we investigate several processes affecting coronals and velars in Tamil and Malayalam, two Dravidian languages spoken in southern India. We begin by discussing two assimilation processes which apply adjacent to front vowels, Palatalization, where anterior coronals become palatoalveolar, and Coronalization, where velars are fronted to palatoalveolar. We compare and contrast the feature geometries proposed by Sagey (1986) and Hume (1992) in their ability to adequately express these processes. In Sagey's model, front vowels are argued to be Dorsal. It is thus impossible to express either Palatalization or Coronalization as spreading. In Hume's model, where front vowels are …  Read more

This thesis is an attempt to study 'Abduh's methodological approach in Islamic legal theory, with particular reference to the concept of ijma'. Ijma' according to him, is not a matter of truth or falseness, as it has been viewed by the classical and medieval jurists, but rather it is a mechanism which must demonstrate a dynamic ability in dealing with new problems on the basis of the public interest (maslaha). In order to obtain a proper public interest in any matter, religious considerations alone are not sufficient, rather each matter must be considered from many different angles and disciplines such …  Read more

This thesis is dedicated to the study of load models and control of residential appliances. A load model base on computing an average dwelling augmented by a diversification process is introduced. This model is well-suited for studying the load group's natural and controlled dynamics. To validate this model, extensive simulations are employed. Two different strategies are proposed for the control of residential appliances: (1) aperiodic ON/OFF switching of the appliances; (2) continuous control of the thermostat temperature settings. A mathematical framework based on Pulse Width Modulation theory is developed for the remote ON/OFF switching of residential appliances. Load Management System …  Read more

This study analyzed the economic welfare implications of the 1990 intraregional trade liberalization scheme within the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on member country producers and consumers. Four countries were chosen as a point of focus: Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana and Mali, and two commodities: millet and sorghum. The supply and demand functions were estimated using time series data from 1970 to 1990 obtained at the level of administrative regions within each of the four countries. Optimal production, consumption, trade quantities and trade flows were determined using the REACTT model, a spatial price equilibrium solution algorithm. Two …  Read more

Adhesion molecules are present throughout embryonic development and during several physiological and pathological processes. Biliary glycoproteins (Bgp) are cell adhesion molecules that belong to the carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) family, a member of the Ig supergene family. In an attempt to develop a relevant mouse model, we characterized the gene organization, regulation and expression patterns of the mouse Bgp1 gene. The mouse Bgp1 gene is down-regulated upon tumor transformation. This phenomenon has been correlated with a change in the methylation state of the promoter region of the mouse Bgp1 gene. Two other Cea-related genes, called the Bgp2 and Bgp3 genes, that …  Read more

This study concerns the isoform-specific effects of activation of protein kinase C (PKC) and protein kinase A (PKA) on sodium pump activity of HeLa cells transfected with the individual isoform subunits $ alpha$1, $ alpha$2$ sp*$ and $ alpha$3$ sp*$ of the rat Na/K-ATPase, and a truncated mutant of the rat $ alpha$1 isoform, $ alpha$1M32. The asterisks denote forms mutated to be ouabain resistant as described by Jewell, E. A. and Lingrel, J. (1991) J. Biol. Chem. 266, 16925-16930. After activation of PKC it was observed that (i) the activity of the endogenous (human) $ alpha$1, the rat $ …  Read more

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of a high intensity strengthening program on both muscle function and mobility in an elderly, institutionalized population. Thirty male subjects were randomly assigned to a training group three times per week or to a control "attention" group. Dynamic and isometric strength of the quadriceps, shoulder extensors and elbow flexors were measured by the one repetition maximum (1RM) and a hand-held dynamometer (Nicholas Manual Muscle Tester), respectively. Mobility skills were evaluated with the timed "Up & Go" (TUG) test and by an average walking speed over 30 m. Following the 12 …  Read more

There are a number of engineering situations where fluid-saturated geological media can be subjected to thermal effects. These include the disposal of heat-emitting nuclear fuel wastes in saturated geological formations, extraction of energy resources such as oil and natural gas by steam injection and the recovery of geothermal energy by ground source heat exchangers. The objective of this thesis is to study the coupled thermal-hydrological-mechanical (T-H-M) response of fractured geological media by the computational implementation of mathematical models. From the generalization of Biot's classical theory of consolidation of a saturated porous elastic medium to include thermal effects, we first derived …  Read more

Since type B adverse drug reactions tend to be rare and serious, they tend to be treated by tertiary-care specialists; and since they are commonly iatrogenic, the specialists should be concerned to document carefully not only the case per se but also the drug use history, leading to practice data of good research quality. The specialist should also be concerned to submit the data record to a central facility that would supply the probabilities, evidence-based, that a recent drug use by a patient caused the adverse event. Continual and systematic accumulation of these data records at the central facility--using the …  Read more

Building practices in rural areas have developed in response to a variety of interrelated factors like climate, local physiography and socio-cultural traditions. The rural house is as much an agrarian product as the crops and livestock depending on a balanced eco-system. It is characterised by a dependence on the immediate natural environment for materials, high labour and low energy inputs in construction. Unfortunately, depletion of natural resources, changes in resource management structures and rapid monetisation of the rural economy have had abrupt and often detrimental effects on the condition of rural shelter. This research attempts to understand the characteristics of …  Read more

This thesis studies the intellectual development of the painter and writer Wyndham Lewis (1882-1957). His career is seen as an unique expression of the creative and critical intelligence within modern society. The liberal, secular, and individualistic aspects of Lewis's thought are stressed. The thesis concentrates on four aspects of Lewis's life and work. First, Lewis's relationship with T. E. Hulme, usually described as one of direct influence, is shown to be adversarial and complicated by basic differences of their worldview. Second, the nature of Lewis's fascism is discussed using a new reading of Hitler (1931). Third, Lewis's view of the …  Read more

Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy was employed to monitor the oxidation of edible oils in the absence and presence of antioxidants. Three synthetic antioxidants (butylated hydroxyanisole, propyl gallate and tert-butylhydroxyquinone) were added to menhaden oil at three different concentrations (1%, 0.1%, and 0.01%), and the FTIR spectra of the oils under conditions of oxidative stress were recorded as a function of time. The efficacy of each antioxidant was assessed by monitoring bands at 3444 cm$ sp{-1}$, characteristic of hydroperoxide formation, 971 cm$ sp{-1}$ for trans double bond formation, and 3008 cm$ sp{-1}$ for cis depletion. An FTIR spectroscopic method was …  Read more

Cairns, Robert (Supervisor)  Read more

The incidence of melanoma worldwide has been increasing steadily in recent years with an associated rise in mortality rates. If detected early, melanoma lesions can be surgically removed with wide excisional margins resulting in high cure rates. However, as the melanoma invades the deep layers of the skin at the primary site and subsequently metastasizes to the regional and distant nodes, the prognosis for the patient becomes progressively worse. As the melanocytic lesion progresses from a benign nevus to a highly malignant metastatic melanoma, it undergoes changes in protein expression which may be relevant to melanoma development. Among the proteins …  Read more

This study draws on a psychophysical scaling technique to assess prisoners' perceptions of the severity of various penal measures. The data used in this study was gathered from face-to-face interviews with 159 male prisoners randomly selected from three separate Canadian federal correctional facilities between August 1993 and May 1994. A punishment severity scale was developed based on respondents' perceptions of various legal sanctions. Subgroups of the overall sample were examined and differences in severity ratings were observed based on a number of socio-demographic variables and variations in one's relationship and experience with the criminal justice system. This research also provides …  Read more

A stock "parent" (S) strain of the mouse parasite Heligmosomoides polygyrus was exposed to increasing levels of ivermectin at the L4 stage for 15 generations. A Passage line was also developed from the parent strain parallel with the ivermectin selected line to control for the effects of rapid passage of the parasite from host to host during drug selection. A dose titration trial indicated 1.5 fold resistance had developed in the ivermectin selected strain at the 8th generation (IVM-8) both at the L4 and adult stage. A higher dose of drug was required to kill the L4 stage compared to …  Read more

Business modelling, the modelling of architectures and processes of organizations, should have a broad scope. It should not exclusively capture the basic information of the processes, but also address the various kinds of documentation related to the processes under consideration. In this combination, organizational models will be more expressive and useful. The research reported here describes and demonstrates a new approach for reconciling formal and informal documentation in business modelling. It is based on the integration of an underlying formal modelling approach with hypertext concepts that provide mechanisms for capturing, manipulating and viewing informal model documentation. We have developed the …  Read more

An examination of historical and textual evidence supporting the thesis that the tenth-century Old English Exeter Book (Exeter Dean and Chapter MS. 3501) may have been compiled for, or even in, an Anglo-Saxon female monastic foundation or mixed-sex double house. The Exeter Book poems, many with female subjects, have been studied extensively, but rarely treated as components that unite to form a deliberately compiled, cohesive anthology. This study examines four main subjects: women's participation in both Latin and vernacular textual culture in the early Middle Ages in past and present scholarship; the history and structure of the codex; a summary …  Read more

Neural, humoral and mechanical factors affecting cardiac function and the peripheral vasculature were examined to assess the relative importance of peripheral vs cardiac factors in the control of cardiac output during exercise. First, I examined neural vs local regulation of humoral vasoconstrictors endothelin-1 (ET) and NPY, in anesthetized dogs, and showed that plasma ET levels, in contrast to NPY, increase in response to systemic hypotension but not carotid sinus baroreceptor activation. This did not occur with intact vagi suggesting an interaction of neural and humoral factors. In the next two studies I separated peripheral vascular and cardiac neural influences on …  Read more

There are some examples where conformational restriction has been introduced into nucleotides with the sole purpose of increasing the thermodynamic stability of the duplex or triplex between the modified oligonucleotide and its complement. This thesis explored the hypothesis of incorporating a cyclopropane moiety into the internucleotide linkage. This research demonstrates the successful synthesis of a novel cyclopropanated sulfonamide dinucleotide 19.(DIAGRAM, TABLE OR GRAPHIC OMITTED...PLEASE SEE MAI) This novel molecule has been synthesized by reacting an $ alpha, beta$ unsaturated phenylselenoyl nucleotide derivative 7 with an active methylene sulfonamide nucleotide 17 under Michael addition conditions. Binding studies concerning the cyclopropanated sulfonamide …  Read more

This study deals with the French action civile, whereby the victim of a criminal offence may participate, as civil party, in the criminal proceedings brought against the offender, and there claim reparation from such offender if he can prove that he has suffered loss or damage directly resulting from the offence. This procedure differs from what obtains in the common-law jurisdictions, where a crime victim's participation in the criminal trial is limited to being a witness for the prosecution, and can only bring an action for damages before the civil courts. In addition to examining the requirements for the admissibility …  Read more

In recent years, with the development of DNA tests and genetic knowledge, there has been a growth of genetic counseling services and research in Canada and Japan. Although the uniqueness of genetic services in medicine lies in the preliminary assessment of the entire family rather than a single patient, few attempts have been made by social scientists to examine the technical and social construction of family trees and medical pedigrees. The purpose of this thesis is to analyze how the family data taken by genetic counselors are transcribed as medical pedigrees and used by associated health care workers in different …  Read more

This thesis is a study of Ibn Qayyim's approach to the fatwa as defined in his $I sp{c}l bar am al$-$Muwaqqi sp{c}in.$ This treatise deals primarily with the role of the mufti/ the procedure of issuing a fatwa and the necessary sources for a fatwa. Lawful application of these criteria ensures a proper and viable fatwa. Ibn Qayyim, however, highlights the misuse of fatwas, specifically those on hiyal. By questioning this misapplication, Ibn Qayyim hoped to redefine the entire use of the fatwa in Islamic jurisprudence. This argumentation is supplemented by a section addressing the dynamic essence of the fatwa. …  Read more

Elevated glucoconicoid levels have becn shown to inhibit synaptogenesis, enhance susceptibility to excitotoxic insults and impede normal central nervous system (CNS) development. Though virtually every cell in the hippocampus expresses relatively high levels of both MR and GR, the various cell fields differ considerably in their sensitivity to glucoconicoids. This thesis examined the cellular expression of MR and GR using in situ hybridization in animal and human models known to encompass changes in hippocampal neuron plasticity and/or survival. Entorhinal cortex lesioning (ECL), a well characterized model of reactive synaptogenesis in the rat, was found to cause a transient yet robust …  Read more

This thesis shows how literary primitivism is the pivot around which Davenport's literary designs spin. Thematically as well as technically the material in his first four collections of short stories is all derived from a desire to explore the beginnings, or the primitive wellsprings, of writing and art. The collage-like construction of picture and sentence will be shown to evolve from a knowledge of palaeolithic cave painting, humanity's first writing system, while Davenport's use of cataloguing and paratactic systems will be shown to evolve from ancient Greek. His primitivism also reveals itself in a Rousseau-like concern to highlight the advantages …  Read more

This thesis will critically examine the project on globalization as articulated by the Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada (ATS) in an effort to uncover the presuppositions and motivations that underlie the project, and to situate them historically and with reference to current North American trends in education and politics. It will argue that the project, as it has been described and defined, comes out of the ethos of Protestant liberalism, particularly as this is embodied in missiology and the 19th century Social Gospel Movement, and that this liberal foundation has been influenced since the 1960's …  Read more

The purpose of this study was to compare health-related physical fitness of high school students in two schools that have different physical education programs. Argyle Academy has physical education 6 classes out of 7 days, and Riverside Park Academy has 3 classes out of 7 days. These two high schools are similar (e.g., size, geographical location, common feeder schools, and social economic status) and affiliated with the same school board. Students in the seventh, eighth, and tenth grade physical education classes were selected for testing in each school. Data from 102 students from Argyle Academy and 96 students from Riverside …  Read more

In this thesis, we investigate the suitability of several routing schemes and network topologies for a high speed free-space photonic network that is currently being developed at McGill. We find that deflection routing is a very suitable routing strategy since it does not require expensive buffers at network nodes, and it does not experience deadlock. After reviewing current research in deflection routing for a variety of network topologies, we conclude that the 11 $ times$ 11-torus, the 5-symbol star graph, and the 7-dimensional hypercube are attractive candidates for a photonic network of approximately 120 nodes. Then, we determine efficient embeddings …  Read more

This thesis examines women's access to property ownership in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, tracing women's property rights from the pre-communist period to the present transition to a market economy. Focusing on housing and investment property, it finds that women have a high degree of equality in household property ownership. This equality is due in part to gender equality under socialism as well as to traditions of equal inheritance. The thesis then considers women's property ownership in the context of the current 'anti-feminist' movement that encourages Czech and Slovak women to focus their energy on the domestic sphere. It suggests …  Read more