McGill University Thèses et mémoires publiés en 1998

This qualitative case study describes the language learning experiences of four South Asian women from their perspectives and uses tools of ethnographic inquiry such as interviews, participant observations and document analysis. The socio-cultural factors affecting their language learning process and acculturation are analyzed. Key elements of the lived experiences of these South Asian females surfacing in the case study data are isolation and gender inequity. Socio-cultural identity emerges as a very influential factor in the language learning process. I understand this identity as socially constructed, contradictory, and fluid. Peirce's poststructuralist conception of social identity as multiple, a site of struggle, …  Read more

My study is an investigation of the discourse of madness in Timothy Findley's fiction, where madness is defined as a discursive element that is both structural and thematic. The work encompasses Findley's short stories, novels, a work of non-fiction, and personal archival material. I argue that what has been called a diverse body of work (Hunter) is, in fact, solidly cohesive in its use of the discourse of madness that systematically subverts patterns of authority. My purpose is to reveal a discursive structure that both supports and subverts narrative coherence, locating its degree of disruption within a psychodynamic exchange. My …  Read more

Toxaphene is the most abundant persistent organic pollutant in the Arctic and in the Great Lakes. Toxaphene technical mixture (Tox) applied as a pesticide consists of over 800 congeners. Through processes of environmental degradation, selected metabolism, and bioaccumulation, 2 congeners are prominent in humans; 2-exo,3-endo,5-exo,6-endo,8,8,10,10-octachlorobornane (T2) and 2-exo,3-endo,5-exo,6-endo,8,8,9,10,10-nonachlorocamphene (T12). The MCF7-E3 human breast cancer cell model was used to screen for the estrogenic activities of Tox, T2, and T12. A concentration of 10muM was required by all 3 compounds to elicit an estrogenic response (a proliferative effect (PE) upon the cells). The congeners however, showed slightly different PEs from Tox. …  Read more

This examination looks at the contextual and cultural implications of learning, using sources from story-telling traditions. The thesis proposes that perceptions of reality are manipulable fictions. It uses the teachings of the American visionary writer, Lynn Andrews, to illustrate how a person's perceptions can be altered to his or her advantage, and how, when not properly attended to, perceptions can manipulate the person. Andrews' work is compared to that of Carlos Castaneda and other contemporary visionary writers, as well as to very old teachings from an oral tradition. I have set the study of Andrews' insights in the social, environmental …  Read more

This thesis investigates Serial Verb Constructions (SVCs) where two or more finite verbs along with their complements occur in a single clause without any form of coordination or subordination. Two basic questions are addressed: (a) what types of SVCs are there, and how are they to be distinguished from other similar constructions? (b) what is the parameter that allows a language like Edo to have SVCs, and not English or French? It is argued that true SVCs are those in which the verbs share internal as well as external arguments. Based on a battery of syntactic tests, it is proposed …  Read more

Studies in cystic fibrosis patients have suggested that the balance between pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines may be important in controlling infection and tissue destruction during bronchopulmonary Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA) infection. Here, the inflammatory response was characterized in a murine model of bronchopulmonary PA infection in resistant BALB/c and susceptible C57BL/6 mice following intratracheal inoculation with 10 5 CFU of mucoid PA entrapped in agar beads. On day 7 post infection, BALB/c mice had significantly less bacteria and significantly more IL-10 in the lungs as compared to C57BL/6 mice while the levels of TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma levels were comparable. Bronchoalveolar lavage …  Read more

The hands-free technique is the indirect transfer of surgical instruments between surgeon(s) and other scrubbed personnel as well as circulating personnel, during which only one person touches the same sharp item at the same time. Items are usually placed in a designated neutral zone, which can be a section of the surgical field or a container, from where they can be retrieved. Use of the hands-free technique for passing sharp instruments during surgery has been recommended as a work practice by many professional organizations in order to reduce accidents, but its effectiveness has not been adequately studied. This study was …  Read more

The Drosophila melanogaster gene vasa is known to be necessary for the establishment of a functional pole plasm, as well as for the completion of oogenesis. To further elucidate its role, we have created a null mutation of the vasa gene and examined vasa-null ovaries for defects. Analysis of these ovaries has revealed that vasa is involved in various aspects of oogenesis, including the growth of germ-line cysts, oocyte differentiation, anterior-posterior egg chamber patterning, and dorsal-ventral follicle patterning. In addition, vasa-null oocytes fail to show efficient accumulation of various localized RNAs, such as Bicaudal-C, Bicaudal-D, egl, enc, orb, oskar , …  Read more

This thesis explores contemporary (post-1980) British constructions of Canada or "Canadianness" as these have been conceived through the reading and reception of English-Canadian literary texts in Britain. I am arguing that in recent years Canada has been construed in Britain as an ideal, and furthermore, that this idealization has taken place in response to a perceived cultural and socio-economic malaise within contemporary British society. I use a combined postcolonial and object-relations approach to discuss the psychic investment involved in this construction of Canada as a post-imperial role model. These readers engage with the Canadian object as a sort of phantasy …  Read more

The processing of self-relevant personality trait information was examined using the five factor model of personality. The major question addressed was whether these five personality dimensions impact on the manner in which individuals process information about themselves, relevant to these personalty dimensions, across a range of cognitive processes. Accessibility of self-knowledge, attention and memory were assessed in relation to each of the five factors. Given the strong relation between personality and affect, the role of affect in processing personality information was also examined. Overall, the results indicate that personality and mood states both influence the processing of self-relevent personality trait …  Read more

Variant selection rules are described that predict the austenite-to-mariensite transformation textures of an Fe-30% Ni alloy. The occurrence of variant selection is explained in detail using the crystal plasticity model of Bishop and Hill and the Kurdjumov-Sachs transformation relationship. A correlation is established between the slip systems of the former and the rotation axes of the latter. The selection criteria are based on a combination of slip activity, that is, active slip systems defined in terms of positive shears, and permissible dislocation reactions. Thus some of the variants selected are associated with slip systems that are active, while the remainder …  Read more

Small-scale flow features were examined near a straight coastline off Ste. Flavie and an adjacent wharf in the Lower St. Lawrence estuary, using moored current meter and acoustic doppler current profiler (ADCP) data. The leading order velocity was found to be dominated by the mean and lunar semi-diurnal (M2) tidal currents. In the straight shoreline area, no eddy was found. The presence of stratification led to baroclinic low frequency (LP, including the mean) velocities with depth. Freshwater forcing and wind stress dominated the "non-tidal" surface layer dynamics. Near the bottom, friction and other factors induced an Ekman-like spiral in the …  Read more

The common justification, in financial theory, for the existence of debt covenants is their use as contractual devices that reduce agency problems between borrowers and lenders. The thesis first examines the extent to which debt covenants alleviate these agency problems, and how they affect a borrower's debt financing decisions. Then, building on recent theories on the costs of bank financing, the dissertation suggests a new economic rationale for debt covenants as instruments that can reduce these costs. The thesis consists of three essays: The first essay shows that, debt covenants create underinvestment incentives while reducing the overinvestment cost of debt …  Read more

This study seeks to analyze the views of al-Shahrastani (479/1086--548/1153) on the issue of Shi`i imama as presented in his works al-Milil wa al-Nih&dotbelow;al and Nihayat al-Iqdam fi `Ilm al-Kalam. In each of these he devotes several chapters to a discussion of the leadership of the Shi`i community since the days of `Ali b. Abi T&dotbelow;alib. The study shows that both books under discussion were designed by al-Shahrastani to serve different purposes and were composed according to different methodologies. He takes completely different approaches to his treatment of Shi`i doctrine in al-Milal and the Nihaya. Acting as a "historian of …  Read more

This thesis is devoted to the study of Bint al-Shat&dotbelow;i''s method of interpreting the Qur'an. The problems of consistency in terms of her hermeneutical theory and of the application of this method represent the focus of the study. It furthermore discusses her attitude towards tendentious and i'jaz-misoriented interpretations of the Qur'an, of which both classical and modern exegetes are guilty in her eyes. Secondly, it studies how she applies her method in specific situations. The cross-referential method, and the concept of irtibat&dotbelow; (interrelation between verses) are two major points to be analyzed. Finally, it also discusses her theory concerning the …  Read more

This thesis investigates the activities of the Majlisul Islamil A`la Indonesia (MIAI), an Islamic federative organization of pre-independent Indonesia, elaborating in particular on the federation's socio-religious and political stance. Operating for only six years (1937--1943), the MIAI represented Muslim groups, as a counterpart to the "secularists," within the nationalist movement during both the final years of Dutch rule and the early stages of the Japanese occupation. The MIAI was established for the specific purpose of unifying the Islamic organizations---political and non-political, traditionalist and modernist alike---while at the same time reviving Muslim political and socio-religious strength after the decline of the …  Read more

Cadherins are a family of membrane glycoproteins involved in calcium-dependent cell-cell adhesion. The expression of cadherins in two human cell types, lymphocytes and skeletal myoblasts, was examined. Human peripheral lymphoid tissue lymphocytes were analysed for N-cadherin expression. A specific population of B lymphocytes was shown to express N-cadherin. Further, N-cadherin was shown to be expressed in a distinct pattern within the germinal centers of lymph nodes by immunohistochemical techniques. N-cadherin was also detected in a B cell population from human bone marrow and peripheral blood lymphocytes from B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia patients. These results suggest that N-cadherin may play a …  Read more

The interferon (IFN)-inducible protein kinase PKR is thought to mediate the biological effects of IFNs through its ability to phosphorylate eukaryotic initiation factor 2 and to inhibit protein synthesis. Additional reports have implicated PKR in transcriptional regulation. In this study, a role for PKR in the regulation of signal transduction pathways that are required for IFN action was examined. It is demonstrated that PKR negatively regulates signaling pathways induced by IFNs and dsRNA. This regulatory effect is attributed to a protein-protein interaction between PKR and STAT1, the signaling component common to these pathways, that impairs STAT1 transcriptional function. The interaction …  Read more

The work in this thesis demonstrates whether resins are better than conventional soil extractants at predicting plant metal concentrations, and whether low-cost soil treatments can effectively reduce metal content and concentrations in lettuce leaves. Researchers have shown that ion exchange resins can simulate root metal uptake behaviour by acting as ion sinks. Chemical extractants on the other hand, generally do not behave in this manner. Thus, we would expect resins (in either bead or membrane form) to predict plant metal concentrations better than conventional extractants. For the first study, a procedure using anion exchange resin membranes (AEM) treated with either …  Read more

The Upper Devonian Leduc, Nisku and Wabamun/Stettler formations (Frasnian and Famennian) were deposited on extensive carbonate platforms, and form three unconformity bounded megasequences, characterized by stacked shallowing upward meter to tens of meter-scale paracycles. Carbonates interbedded with evaporites have been extensively dolomitized. Four types of dolomites are recognized. Microcrystalline dolomites are interpreted to be of sabkha origin, characterized by fine crystals (2--70 mum) and are in part mudcracked, brecciated and contain quartz silts. Sucrosic dolomites (20--130 mum) commonly have dusty cores with clear rims. Mosaic dolomite crystals (10--140 mum) are interlocked. Dolomite rhombs (30--70 mum) occur in partially dolomitized limestones. …  Read more

The pathophysiological origins of airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) in asthma are unknown. The objectives of this thesis were to establish an association between AHR in an animal model of asthma and altered contractility of airway smooth muscle (ASM) and to elucidate changes in contractile signalling that could account for any observed differences in ASM contractility. The Fisher strain of rat is spontaneously hyperresponsive to methacholine inhalation challenge relative to Lewis rats. These inbred rat strains provide a model with which to study genetically-determined variations in airway smooth muscle that may underlie AHR. Fisher rats were found to be also hyperresponsive to …  Read more

Cloutier, G. (Advisor)  Read more

A new prototype of multiwire proportional chamber (MWPC) with pixel configurated pad cathode was built as a joint effort by McGill University, Lund University and Oak Ridge National Laboratory as part of the development of the tracking system of the PHENIX detector at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC). This thesis first describes the implementation of a new readout electronics for the pad chambers. In this electronics, the charge of the pads is digitized using a preamplifier/shaper/discriminator integrated CMOS chip with adjustable threshold. All chips and components are mounted on specially designed 48-channel readout cards using chip-on-board (COB) technology. Using …  Read more

In this work, we define the communication complexity of a monoid M as the maximum complexity of any language recognized by M, and show that monoid classes defined by, communication complexity classes form varieties. Then we prove that a group G has constant communication complexity for k players if and only if G is a nilpotent group of class at most ( k - 1), and has linear complexity otherwise. When M is aperiodic, we show that its 2-party communication complexity is constant if M is commutative, logarithmic if M is not commutative but is in the variety DA, and …  Read more

This thesis is an examination of the various ways in which marijuana, its use, and its users have historically been signified, within both hegemonic and subcultural discourses, from marijuana's origins in antiquity through its North American prohibition in the earlier part of the twentieth century. Attention is given to how this history, and prohibition in particular, has informed contemporary North American significations of the drug, its use and its users.  Read more

The purpose of this research is to further our understanding of the hydrostatic adjustment process due to diabatic heating. This is achieved by the use of an atmospheric model based on Euler's non-hydrostatic, fully elastic set of equations resolved by the semi-Lagrangian, semi-implicit marching scheme. Such a model thus allows a tri-dimensional, numerical approach of a problem which could, until now, only be addressed within a simplified context (one-dimensional and analytical; bi-dimensional and numerical). The hydrostatic adjustment is the mechanism by which the atmosphere tends to reach a new hydrostatic balance when this one has been upset. This can be …  Read more

Managing a common property resource, especially one jointly owned by two nations, is a formidable problem as it involves both incentives to cooperate and incentives to cheat. Often conflicts flare up, followed by efforts of reconciliation, which are interrupted again by new conflicts. A classic example of this is the Pacific salmon fishery, which is jointly harvested by the U.S.A and Canada. To understand the nature of this conflict, and to make policy recommendations, a game-theoretic approach is developed in this thesis.  Read more

The proteins and sequence elements necessary to initiate mammalian DNA replication have been, to date, poorly characterized. Here, we have further defined the minimal sequence elements required to support autonomous DNA replication of a mammalian early replicating DNA sequence, ors8. In addition, we have identified a protein, CBP, which binds specifically to DNA cruciforms, a DNA secondary structure that can form at inverted repents which are commonly found within origins of DNA replication. Cloned fragments from a known mammalian origin from the DHFR locus, oribeta, have been shown to replicate autonomously following transient transfection into mammalian cells and when used …  Read more

At the close of the sixteenth century, the Roman architect Domenico Fontana choreographed the transformation of the Vatican Obelisk from its antique position on the circus of Nero, to its present location facing St. Peter's. Fontana's treatise Della trasportatione dell'obelisco Vaticano (1590), records this event in a detailed narrative, and a series of remarkable etchings. Architect to Pope Sixtus V, Fontana is often cited as a founder of city planning due to his seminal reorganization of Rome's topography, and as an early proponent of civil engineering owing to his calculated mechanics. Yet neither of these appellations do justice to Fontana's …  Read more

Mazer, B. (Supervisor)  Read more

Brunet, Gilbert (Supervisor)  Read more

The sequential gathering and fusion of surface measurements in order to obtain a globally-consistent parts-based object representation is of prime importance to object modeling, but presents some challenges. Traditionally, pixel-based techniques such as view correspondence are employed to obtain refined motion-parameter estimates between observations and a nearest-neighbour approach is used to map segmented sets of measurements to part models. Since a hard decision is made after each observation, these methods tend to fail when events such as self-occlusions, large variations in viewpoint or spurious measurements introduce ambiguity in the mapping between measurements and part models. In order to cope, the …  Read more

This study examined the relationship between the physical fitness of National Hockey League (NHL) entry draft players and performance in the NHL. Physiological profiles were compared by level (NHL vs non-NHL) and position (forwards vs defense). The fitness level was determined by an assessment of body composition, anaerobic fitness, strength, power, muscular endurance, flexibility, and aerobic fitness. Subjects were 422 male hockey players, consisting of NHL entry draft (n = 310), minor league professional (n = 59) and NHL professional (n = 53) players. Results revealed that when drafted, physiological profiles of players who reach the NHL were significantly different …  Read more

The "end of the century" nourishes a questioning movement on national identity and on the concept of modernity that is encouraged by the Quebec essayists. We propose an organization of the elements of the sovereign narrative which would be able to conduct and constitute a generative grammar of its argumentation. Our project consists in creating a matrix of the nationalistic discourse during the 1995 Quebec referendum period on sovereignty. This schematic figure will bring to its most simple expression the narrative of the Quebec nationalistic discourse selecting examples from ten texts of our primary bibliography. Our matrix will incorporate ideas, …  Read more

This thesis examines the development of an anorexic discourse in Goethe's Die Wahlverwandtschaften. Chapter 1 investigates anorexia as a cultural signifier and its relationship to non-clinical and non-medical disciplines. I then submit that female self-starvation serves a structural and a thematic function in WV. In Chapter 2, I argue that Ottilie's arrested female development illustrates the central, concept (elective affinities) of the novel. Chapter 3 examines food as a non-verbal system of communication in the narrative. Here, I demonstrate that Ottilie's eating disorder denies her subjectivity while it signifies and affirms the dominant social institutions depicted in the novel. Chapter …  Read more

This paper examines the tensions resulting from multiculturalism's quest to achieve equality through the recognition of cultural difference. The author argues that multiculturalism is inherently limited in its potential to recognize deep difference because it operates through the framework of the conceptual heritage of the Enlightenment's political project. Multiculturalism's dependence on Enlightenment evaluative norms means that difference and diversity can be recognized to the extent that they further the objective of achieving liberty and equality for all. The author examines the theoretical legacy of the Enlightenment as it informs the multicultural project and also analyses the impact of poststructuralist theory …  Read more

A special case of the Strong Littlewood Conjectures asserts that &dvbm0;cosnx+cosmx&dvbm0;1 ≥&dvbm0;cosx+cos3x&dvbm0; 1, or equivalently, &dvbm0;cosnxcosmx&dvbm0;1 ≥&dvbm0;cosxcos2x&dvbm0; 1. This thesis investigates a method of proof (as proposed by I. Klemes) for each of these and their extension to concave functions in general.  Read more

Through the 137Cs mass balance method, annual consumption rates were estimated for juvenile Atlantic salmon parr and precocious males, as well as brook trout from 4 sites within the Ste Marguerite river system, Quebec. With explicit age analysis, feeding rates and growth rates were derived on an individual fish and age class basis. These represent the first consumption estimates for Atlantic salmon in the wild. The individual fish approach provided a range of data for a single site, as opposed to a single estimate per age class, allowing for an evaluation of the relationship between consumption and growth for each …  Read more

Molecular self-assembly (MSA) was used to fabricate multilayered composites on silicon, silicon monoxide and silica substrates. 3-mercaptopropyltrimethoxysilane (MPTMS) was grafted onto the substrates, followed by chemisorbed silver colloidal nanoparticles. 1,4-benzenedimethanethiol (BDMT) was used to chemisorb gold to silver colloidal nanoparticles forming an MPTMS-silver-methyl-BDMT-gold heterostructure. A self-poling stilbazole dye---(E)-[4- N,N-(octadecylmethylamino)styryl]pyridine (ODMASP)---was integrated with a mercaptoacetic acid (MAA) spacer into an MPTMS-silver-MAA-ODMASP heterostructure by MSA of ODMASP C18 alkyl tails. ODMASP on fractal silver aggregates enhanced the 2nd-order nonlinear susceptibility implying that silver colloid intensified the electrical field to produce a c2 of 1.48 x 10-22 C3/J 2 (4.00 x 10-8 esu). …  Read more

The overall objective of this study was to develop a fluorescent chemosensor for cAMP by creating recognition sites for cAMP, that contain a fluorescent molecule, in a polymer matrix by molecular imprinting. Such a fluorescent molecularly imprinted polymer may, therefore, serve as both the recognition element and the measuring element for the fluorescent detection of cAMP in aqueous media. Two new fluorescent molecules, known as 4-(p-dimethylaminostyryl)pyridinium salts or dyes, were synthesized as possible fluorescent components of a chemosensor. Upon excitation at 469 run, dye 1, trans-4-( p-N,N-dimethylaminostyryl)-N-vinylbenzyl-pyridinium chloride, displays a dramatic quantum yield enhancement in an emission band centered at …  Read more

In this thesis, methods based on the wavelet transform are used to extend spectral methods for studying turbulent mixing. These methods are then applied to momentum and heat flux for fast response measurements taken above and within a deciduous forest at Camp Borden, Ontario. Multiscale distributions of flux event intensities are derived, presented and interpreted. Results show intensification of mixing efficiency near the canopy top, dominated by turbulent structures near a dominant scale, as reported in previous studies. There is no indication of a distinct, clearly separable population of intense 'coherent structures', as is often assumed, but rather an overall …  Read more

The Canadian Institute for Telecommunications Research (CITR) has undertaken a five year "Major Project" in Photonic Systems and Devices to develop a backplane based on free-space optical technology. One of the main goals of the "Major Project" is to develop an optical backplane architecture capable of interconnecting several electronic printed circuit boards (PCBs) with an aggregate bandwidth on the order of 1 Terabit per second (Tb/s). In this thesis, we will consider the design of an electrical-optical interface for a free-space optical backplane that can support 307.2 Gigabits per second (Gb/s) of aggregate data traffic. The electrical-optical interface is also …  Read more

An abnormal chronotropic response to exercise is a common finding following surgical repair of tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) which has generally been attributed to a putative sympathetic dysfunction. There exists little information on sympathetic function in patients operated for a congenital heart defect to support such a claim. This study used spectral analysis of heart rate (HRV) and blood pressure (BPV) variability to examine sympathovagal influences on the sinus node in 9 adolescents operated for TOF 13.0 +/- 1.12 years previously and in 8 healthy age and sex-matched control (CTRL) subjects. Continuous ECG and BP recordings were obtained under supine …  Read more

Pietroski, Paul (Supervisor)  Read more

In order to study sperm competition and mating dynamics in the snow crab Chionoecetes opilio, a genomic library was established with the goal of identifying highly polymorphic microsatellite markers. Six pairs of DNA primers were designed to amplify markers Cop3-4, Cop4-1, Cop5, Cop10, Cop24-3 and Cop111 by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). All markers produced patterns as expected from single loci inherited in a mendelian fashion, except for Cop5 which revealed a multi-locus banding pattern. The cross-amplification of the six loci in seven additional crabs species revealed DNA polymorphisms at one or more loci for each species. Markers Cop3-4 and …  Read more

Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease characterized by destruction of the insulin-producing pancreatic beta-cells. Genetic predisposition, encoded by a number of loci, plays a large role in the probability of disease development. The IDDM2 susceptibility locus maps to the insulin gene (INS) variable number of tandem repeats (VNTR) minisatellite, which has two main clusters of alleles. As a whole, alleles of the class III cluster reduce the probability of developing type 1 diabetes and those of the class I cluster predispose to type 1 diabetes. To determine the functional basis of this susceptibility and protection, we tested the hypothesis …  Read more

Traditionally, the diffusional growth of a cloud droplet population is calculated using values of the environmental conditions that represent averages over large volumes, the so called macroscopic conditions (Srivastava 1989). However, it is apparent that the growth rate of an individual droplet is a function of the temperature and the vapor pressure in its immediate environment. These quantities vary from droplet to droplet and with time in a turbulent medium such as a cumulus cloud. In most theoretical and numerical studies of clouds, the hypothesis is made that these variations are unimportant when calculating the growth of an ensemble of …  Read more

This thesis presents a set of basic spatial operations implemented in a relational programming language. Our aim in undertaking this work was to demonstrate that a general purpose database system offers the needed flexibility for developing independent applications to manipulate spatial data. Thus, we exploited an existing Relix system by using both relational algebra functions and a relational database model. Effectiveness, rather than high performance, is the central issue in this work. Of the two aspects (spatial and descriptive) of geographical data, we address only the spatial component. A spatial operation manipulates geometric data objects such as points, lines, and …  Read more

After a series of reversals in its wars with European powers during the eighteenth century, the Ottoman Empire was forced to reevaluate its military technology and training. The realization that the West had outstripped the Muslim East in scientific and technological advancement led Ottoman reformers to introduce changes to the traditional educational system, especially to the curriculum. However, what the reformers soon realized was that the military superiority of Europe was only a symptom, and not the cause of, the West's advancement; this led to the introduction of more Western-style institutions in an effort to achieve its military goals. It …  Read more

Bobyn, J. Dennis (Advisor)  Read more