McGill University Thèses et mémoires par auteur commençant par R

Motion sickness (MS) has been experienced for thousands of years, yet much is still unknown about this disorder. For example, the purpose of MS is not yet understood, nor is the underlying neuroanatomy and neurophysiology of the disorder known.A recent theory states that MS is a mechanism that limits inappropriate, self-generated motor strategies that can cause inadvertent changes in the function of the vestibular system and therefore lead to disordered postural, locomotor, and gaze control (Watt et al., 1992). In light of this theory, MS may best be studied under actively- rather than passively-generated conditions. For that reason, self-generated coriolis …  Read more

The picritic volcanic suite of Baffin Island is comprised of two different types of magmas which are analogous to N and E-MORB. Although these two picritic lavas-types are spatially intermixed in the stratigraphic succession, they are distinct in terms of light rare earth elements (LREE), K/Ti and $ sp{87}$Sr/$ sp{86}$Sr ratios. N-type lavas are depleted in LREE and have K/Ti ratio 0.5 and $ sp{87}$Sr/$ sp{86}$Sr ratios ranging between 0.7032 and 0.7039. Olivine fractionation and partial melting models involving a single homogeneous source can not reproduce the trace element differences between these two magma types. The generation of N and …  Read more

In patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), lung hyperinflation has been suggested to reduce cardiac output (Qc) and impede peripheral blood flow, thereby contributing to reduced peak oxygen utilization (VO2) and exercise intolerance observed in this population. However, investigations on peripheral blood flow responses to exercise in COPD are few and have provided divergent results. Moreover, evidence of hyperinflation-induced circulatory limitation is lacking in COPD. Therefore, this study aimed to clarify the impact of lung hyperinflation on central and peripheral perfusion, and the subsequent effects on oxygen delivery to exercising muscle during submaximal knee extension exercise. Results showed that …  Read more

This study examined whether a relationship exists between family structure (the presence of organization and rules in the household) and academic achievement among intellectually gifted students, and whether this relationship differs with respect to gender. Subjects for the study were 175 grade 8 students attending a school for the gifted and their parents (38 mothers and 33 fathers). The relationship between the responses of the subjects to the Organization and Control subscales of the Family Environment Scale and the students' grades from the previous school year was assessed using multiple regression analyses. To test for gender differences, an interaction term …  Read more

Henderson, Ian H. (Internal/Cosupervisor2)  Read more

Gas6 is a vitamin K-dependent, secreted protein that amplifies platelet aggregation and secretion in response to platelet agonists. Gas6-/- mice are protected from experimentally induced lethal venous and arterial thromboembolism. This protection has been attributed to defective aggregation in platelets from Gas6-/- mice. However, this platelet phenotype was only observed when platelets were challenged by one agonist, ADP, and only at a concentration of 5.0 µM. This subtle platelet abnormality resulting in a rather dramatic clinical phenotype raises the possibility that Gas6 from a source other than platelets contributes to thrombus formation. We hypothesize that Gas6 derived from the vasculature …  Read more

The mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathways play key roles in mediating inflammatory responses. Asthma is a disease characterized by excessive inflammation and the mainstay of treatment is the use of glucocorticoids which, among other effects, control the activity of p38 MAPK. Human airway smooth muscle (HASM) cells contribute to the pathology of asthma as they regulate bronchomotor tone, proliferate, migrate and secrete inflammatory cytokines. I investigated these processes in HASM using MAPK inhibitors and the glucocorticoid dexamethasone. Following TNFα stimulation, HASM cell production of GM-CSF, IL-1β, IL-33 and CXCL8 were ERK1/ERK2 dependent; all but CXCL8 were diminished by …  Read more

Since the advent of DDT and other new organic insecticides, phytophagous mites, particularly those of the family Tetranychidae, have occupied increasing attention from economic entomologists. When these insecticides were applied, as controls for certain insect pests, it was found that in almost every case populations of mites increased to such an extent that further chemicals were required to control the mites. Theories were early advanced, and later substantiated, that the newer insecticides, particularly DDT, were harmful to predators of mites. Mites increased to tramendous populations when released from the control previouely exercised by their predators. It, therefore, became imperative for …  Read more

In the following thesis it has been my purpose to deal with the religious philosophy of Augustine as comprehensively as the name of thesis would allow, at the same time striving to keep clear of the dangerous shoals of theological controversies which have revolved about Augustinian doctrines even in recent years. Fortunately for Christianity, Augustine was more than a systematiser of previous Christian doctrines and philosophical ideas. He penetrated deep down into the problem of the religious consciousness and brought to the study a mind which deserves the praise given it in the past on account of its originality, fully …  Read more

The orientation and survival of neonate snapping turtles (Chelydra serpentina) were studied in 1986 and 1987. Orientation mechanisms were tested in an outdoor parabolic arena. These experiments suggested that positive geotaxis was a dominant cue directing neonate snapping turtles to water. Hatchling survival and movement from nest to water were studied in Calumet, Quebec using isotope tagging. A highly significant number of hatchlings (95%) released on sloped nest sites were positively geotactic. Hatchlings released on level ground moved in random directions. Eighty-two percent of hatchlings from nests within 18 m of the shoreline were successful in reaching water. Incidence of …  Read more

Recurrent pregnancy loss is associated with anti-phospholipid antibodies (aPL), in particular in women with anti-phospholipid syndrome. aPL are a large family of autoantibodies, directed against phospholipids and phospholipid-binding proteins (e.g., prothrombin and beta2-glycoprotein I). Although the association between aPL and recurrent pregnancy loss is well documented, little is known about which aPL subset is responsible. To address this, we characterized a panel of six murine monoclonal aPL, which were subsequently administered to pregnant mice via passive transfer. While both anti-beta2GPI antibodies evaluated caused significant increase in fetal resorption, the effects of anti-PT antibodies varied from no effect to increased pregnancy …  Read more

Although Gabrielle Roy worked sporadically on La Saga d'Eveline between 1945 and 1965, she never finished the novel and it remains unpublished to this day. All that remain of the novel are a few manuscripts totalling some thousand pages conserved in her personal archives at the National Library of Canada. The manuscripts contain several versions of a story based on an episode taken from the history of the maternal side of Roy's family: the family's migration from Quebec to Manitoba at the end of the XIXth century. It revolves around Eveline, a character who already appears in the published works …  Read more

Enclosed spaces dominate Anne Hebert's imaginary world. The house is usually depicted as a prison and a tomb, and only sometimes as a shelter. Products of a stagnant society whose laws they wish to perpetuate, parents give their children a loveless upbringing, in a house from which nature and the external world are rigorously excluded. A few of these captives think that happiness is to be found in marriage, but the conjugal home and that in which adultery occurs prove scarcely more welcoming. Some houses can even be dangerous. The house almost always appears as a forerunner of the tomb, …  Read more

The Helminthosporium diseases of cereals have been receiving an increasing amount of attention during the past twenty-five years* This has been due to a more general realization that these diseases cause important losses every year in the grain growing areas of the world. In a pamphlet Issued by the Dominion Laboratories of Plant Pathology in 1933, it is stated that In Manitoba and Saskatchewan alone the loss from root rot caused by Helmintho sp orium sativum P.K. and B. amounts to millions of dollars annually. Machacek in 1943 concluded from the results of a three-year survey in Manitoba that this …  Read more

This thesis presents a case study conducted in 1994 concerning the effects of fishery management regulations on the Native village of Old Harbor, Alaska. Access to the traditional livelihood of harvesting marine resources has profound implications for the sustainability of the economy of Alaska's rural Native villages. The institution of the limited entry system in 1975 caused the transfer of commercial salmon fishing rights away from some Native fishermen and a reduction in local fishing jobs. Although the alternatives may have had similar or worse effects on the village, limited entry is perceived as a major cause of economic and …  Read more

Reactions of tetrahydrolinalool with hydrogen chloride and hydrogen bromide at 25°C. and -78°C. were studied. The effect on the reaction of added substances, e.g. benzoyl peroxide, aluminum bromide, was observed under various conditions. The results obtained indicated a catalytic effect not unlike that exerted by peroxides and metal halides on addition to unsaturated compounds. No claim is made for a true “peroxide effect,” but it is concluded that rate studies, as a means of clarifying the reaction mechanism for substitution reactions of this type are unreliable, on account of the apparent complexity of the reaction. Various phases of the preparation …  Read more

The Frontier College provides educational, social and cultural opportunities for isolated workers in the camp operations of Canada's mining, construction, and logging industries and on railway maintenance extra gangs. [...]  Read more

Cruciforms are an alternative secondary structure which may be adopted by DNA containing inverted repeats, under conditions of adequate torsional strain. Inverted repeats are distributed, in a non-random fashion, throughout the genomes of prokaryotes and eucaryotes. Mounting evidence suggests that they are involved in the initiation of DNA replication. A structure-specific cruciform DNA binding protein (CBP) has previously been enriched from HeLa cells, and demonstrated to be a member of the 14-3-3 family of proteins. This thesis reports the dimethylsulfate (DMS) protection footprinting of this protein on a stable cruciform, with the goal of testing a model proposed for this …  Read more

This interdisciplinary study records the scientific, legal and administrative history of the first steps taken by the United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to protect Earth from harmful extraterrestrial contaminants. The study undertakes critical analyses, within the context of both the United States and inter­national legal regimes, of the first "back contamination" standards and attendant quarantine regulations known to be implemented.  Read more

The Bearpaw formation consists of marine shales with some non-marine beds which outcrop over a large part of southern Saskatchewan, parts of southern Alberta, and extend south into Montana. The search for geological structures favorable for the accumulation of natural gas and petroleum has made the determination of the stratigraphic horizons of individual exposures of this formation important. A paucity of outcrops in many areas, combined with a lack of variation in lithology throughout the formation, makes this difficult. so far the study of the mega-fossils of the Bearpaw formation has given little information which could be used to establish …  Read more

This study is a comparison of the development of the theories of reification and hegemony in the writings and political activities of Georg Lukacs and Antonio Gramsci during the years from 1918 to 1938. In demonstrating that reification and hegemony were formulated in response to the unsuccessful revolutionary movements in Hungary and Italy of 1919-1920, it becomes evident that the respective theories of Lukacs and Gramsci were meant to constitute critiques of bourgeois cultural domination. Thus, their problematic extends to analyses of more specific issues, such as the role of positivist science as the prevailing "paradigm of rationality" and the …  Read more

In Ghana, rates of undernutrition peak between 9 and 21 months of age; one major cause is inadequate complementary feeding (CF). This study examined the relationship between hospital-based CF education and caregivers' reported practices through interviews with health workers (n=24), caregivers (n=23), and Queen Mothers (n=6). Additionally, the associations among maternal HIV status, socioeconomic factors and introduction of solids were examined using data from 288 mother-infant pairs. Health workers and caregivers had good knowledge about CF initiation. However, health workers' recommendations for older infants did not consistently follow national guidelines. Barriers to CF education included limited teaching-aids and in-service training. …  Read more

The hippocampus is a structure that lies within the medial temporal lobe and is known for its essential role in learning and memory. A prominent feature of the hippocampus is the rhythmic patterns of neural activity which occurs during specific brain states. The primary rhythm recorded from the hippocampus are theta oscillations (4-12 Hz). In the rodent, this rhythm can be recorded during arousal, locomotion, and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. One of the major input pathway to the hippocampus is the medial septum and diagonal band of Broca (MS-DBB). Inputs from the MS-DBB have been shown to be critical …  Read more

The initial stimulus to the search for microorganisms which produce therapeutically effective antibacterial compounds was given when Fleming discovered penicillin in 1929. Clinical and laboratory studies have shown that penicillin is usually as active in vivo as it is in vitro against a large number of Grampositive bacteria. The therapeutic value of this antibacterial compound has its limitations, however, in that it is quite ineffective in combatting diseases which are produced by Gramnegative bacteria. A search for a new microbiologically produced antibacterial compound, complementary to penicillin, was initiated as soon as the limitations of penicillin therapy were realized. As a …  Read more

The ancients considered natural brines to be azoic (Baas Becking, 1931-A), but it has been recognized gradually that certain microscopically visible animals could survive in near-saturated brine solutions. Farlow (1880, 1886) was the first to study the microscopic entity associated with the reddening of salt codfish. Subsequently, bacteria were shown to be responsible for much of the biological activity observed in salt flats and lakes. Bacteria found in these environments were referred to as being “halophilic”. The term halophilic stems from two Greek words: halos and philus meaning respectively “salt” and “loving”. The extent to which bacteria may be considered …  Read more

A trans-Canadian grid could lead to increased ability to integrate wind energy by increasing capacity, improving reliability, and reducing effects of non-dispatchable generation by integrating renewable energy sources over a wide geographical area. Use of HVDC technology in the trans-Canadian grid would result in lower losses for the long transmission lines required and also would provide other benefits, such as lower right-of-way requirements, high reliability, and fault isolation. However, there are no current installations connecting a tapped connection to an HVDC line; all HVDC lines are operated using two terminals. This thesis proposes two methods of connecting a wind farm …  Read more

Alfred North Whitehead, “the latest and the greatest of the Cambridge Platonists”, once said that if our ancestors had been wise positivists there would be no civilization today. It is not difficult to discover the meaning of this remark, and what follows is little more than an elaboration upon it. The main occupation, one might almost say obsession, of most modern philosophy is with knowledge. That hybrid epistomology, the child of logic and psychology, occupies most of the thoughts of our modern philosophers.‘What does it mean?”, “how can I know?”. These are the questions which are considered to be of …  Read more

A great many geologists have visited the area and other regions where the Cobalt rocks are exposed. Although nearly all have expressed opinions on the geological problems concerned with the series, very few comprehensive reports have been published and these do not show complete agreement. [...]  Read more

Only a minority of women with a human papillomavirus (HPV) infection eventually develop cervical cancer. This suggests a role for immune mechanisms in viral acquisition and clearance, most notably presentation of HPV antigens as mediated by gene products of the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) complex. A longitudinal cohort investigation of cervical HPV infections was utilized to examine the role of selected HLA class I and II alleles in determining risk of HPV positivity and persistence for students attending McGill and Concordia universities in Montreal. HPV positivity was measured at baseline and then once every six months for a period of …  Read more

Zinaida Gippius's literary works are striking for the development of the theme of androgyny. Chapter One examines the major Russian Symbolist intellectuals in their treatment of androgyny, which was animated by a desire to transfigure the world. Gippius's treatment of androgyny was at odds with the prevailing theory because it was not based on the defeminization of humanity. Chapter Two addresses Gippius's reconstruction of Symbolist androgyny theory and explains the rejection of gender-based motivation in her metaphysical system by its orientation toward personality and an awareness of God. Chapter Three shows how she used her poetry and prose to advance …  Read more

Rahme, Elham (Internal/Supervisor)  Read more

A method for PLA test pattern generation based on a branch and bound algorithm that exploits function monotonicity is presented. The algorithm makes irrevocable input assignments first, resulting in the efficient generation of compact test sets. In most cases there is no backtracking. An intelligent branching heuristic is presented. The algorithm handles extended fault models including crosspoint and delay faults. Heuristics which speed up test set generation and improve test set compaction are discussed. Results of tests on a wide range of benchmark PLAs are included.  Read more

Une fois acquises, nos mémoires sont préservées dans un état stable et à l'écart de tout changement. Cependant, suivant leur réactivation, ces mémoires sont déstabilisées et exigent un processus de reconsolidation afin d'être stabilisé de nouveau. Or lorsque ce processus de reconsolidation est perturbé, l'amnésie survient. De là a découlé l'idée d'exploiter le processus de reconsolidation en tant qu'outil thérapeutique afin d'atténuer, voire d'éliminer, les mémoires nuisibles comme celles qui régissent le syndrome de stress post-traumatique et la toxicomanie. Les associations contextuelles liées à l'usage de certaines drogues d'abus induisent des désirs de consommation, lesquels constituent une cause majeure de …  Read more

The protein synthesis inhibitors cycloheximide and anisomycin were administered during training in an attempt to block the consolidation of the memory for a morphine conditioned place preference. The systemic injection of 2.5mg/kg of cycloheximide post-training failed to block consolidation, though there was a trend towards an attenuated preference, however cycloheximide produced a conditioned place aversion if paired with one compartment. To examine the effect of more complete protein synthesis inhibition and reduce the aversive effects, the less toxic protein synthesis inhibitor anisomycin was infused into the lateral ventricles of the brain either pre-, post- or 3 hours following training. Post-training …  Read more

Conventional beamformers can be sensitive to mismatches between presumed and actual steering vectors of the signal-of-interest. A recently proposed class of robust beamformers aim to counteract this problem by using a non-attenuation constraint inside a single hypersphere centered at the presumed steering vector of the signal-of-interest. In an effort to strike a balance between robustness to steering vector error and interference-plus-noise suppression, we propose in this manuscript to use multiple concentric hyperspheres instead of one with different degrees of protection in each. We derive several useful properties of this multiply constrained beamformer and use numerical simulations to show that using …  Read more

La régulation épigénétique est un élément fondamental de l’expression génétique chez les eucaryotes. Les eucaryotes possèdent une grande variété de protéines qui aident à maintenir les motifs épigénétiques, qui à leur tour régulent l’expression des gènes. L’acétylation de la lysine est une des modifications épigénétiques possibles; elle se produit dans diverses protéines, notamment les histones. Étant donné la proximité de l’ADN avec les histones, les changements de l’acétylation des histones ont une incidence directe sur l’expression génétique. L’ajout de résidus d’acétyle à l’ADN par la lysine acétyltransférase (KAT) permet la décompaction de l’ADN chromosomique et, par la suite, la transcription …  Read more

In recent years the attention of sociology has been increasingly focused on the world of work and with one aspect of this in particular - that of the professions. The study of the problems of one such institutional system would, therefore, throw sociological light on the strains and stresses to which the human being is subject in the whole work world. As Professor Parsons observes:- "The analysis of modern medical practice has not only given us a 'case study' of a type of social structure which is interesting and significant in itself … more than that, it has opened a …  Read more

The biochemical characterization of the pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) products, isolated and purified from a human anterior lobe pituitary adenoma associated with Cushing's Syndrome, illustrates the processing of this prohormone. In the tumor, 87% of the acidic joining peptide (AJP) is found as a dimer rather than as a monomer, the prevalent form found in normal pituitary tissue. The corticotropin (ACTH) purified and characterized from the tumor was found not to be phosphorylated. In contrast, human ACTH of normal pituitary origin is found to be 30% phosphorylated at the serine residue at position 31. No evidence of cleavage at residues 49-50 to …  Read more

The purpose of this thesis is to describe the Geology of the Orland Gold Mines property as far as it can be worked out from the information collected by the author in the field during the summer of 1937 and from additional information from diamond drilling carried on during the winter. [Location and Accessibility]The Orland Gold Mines property is located two miles southeast of Aldennac Siding and south of the main line of Nipissing Central railroad. La Mine D'Or Champlain Ltée property lies to the west and the Adeline Lake and Kekeko properties to the east. The Orland group consists …  Read more

This thesis examines the emphasis Eastern Han (24 – 220 CE) men placed on mourning their mothers and peers within the context of ritual theory and practice. The ritual texts, used as the basis for an imperial ritual reform in 31 BCE, provided instructions on how to properly perform the mourning rites, as well as whom to mourn. Full mourning was to be worn for fathers and superiors, yet in the Eastern Han, many did not heed these prescriptions, choosing in addition to mourn their mothers, equals, or inferiors, thereby subverting the traditional patriarchal model. By examining theories of ritual …  Read more

Yates, Robin (Supervisor1)  Read more