McGill University Thèses et mémoires publiés en 2001

This research examines the changing relationships of gender, place and identity wrought by women's entrance into Montreal's financial service sector between 1900 and 1930. I seek to answer two related questions. First, what kinds of identities were enabled in the new spaces created by the feminization of clerical work? In particular, how was gender, sexual, and ethno-linguistic difference constructed within the mixed-sex clerical workspace? Second, what effect did women's entrance into corporate workspaces in the financial district have on prevailing notions about gender, class and urban space? How did this change in labour markets affect representations of women in public …  Lire la suite

"Chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) is a disease arising from a reciprocal translocation between chromosome 9 and 22. Chromosome 22 encodes the Bcr gene, while chromosome 9 gives rise to the proto-oncogene, c-abl. In CML, these two genes form a fusion protein known as Bcr/Abl, which contains a constitutively activated protein tyrosine kinase. The focus of my research has been to address genomic instability as it relates to CML. Initially, I addressed genomic instability by utilizing Inter Simple Sequence Repeat Polymerase Chain Reaction (Inter-SSR PCR), in combination with primers which consist of a set of eight CA repeats. Using Inter-SSR PCR, …  Lire la suite

Focusing on the entire literary works of Fernand Ouellette, that is to say all the writings published in collections from 1953 to 2000, the present thesis studies the evolution of his poetical writing in comparison with his writing of the essay, from a perspective both philosophical (development and evolution of concepts) and rhetorical (poetics and the form of thought). A chronological approach allows to draw three stages within the evolution of his works: (1) the period of lightning (1955--1973), which is linked to the poetics of revelation; (2) the period of wandering (1974--1986), when the poetics of relation is developed; …  Lire la suite

The aquatic Gram-negative organism, Caulobacter crescentus, is a member of the alpha (alpha) subclass of the proteobacteria. C. crescentus possesses an unique cell cycle with a complex developmental program in that the bacterium asymmetrically divides to produce a replication competent stalked cell and replication incompetent swarmer cell. Previously, a chromosomal fragment was shown to support autonomous plasmid replication. In addition, sequence analysis of this autonomous replicating sequence (ARS) 500 by fragment, termed Cori, exhibited some shared features characteristic of a typical replication origin. However, as not all identified ARS elements are chromosomal replication origins, it was therefore shown by two-dimensional …  Lire la suite

Gaudreault-DesBiens, Jean-Francois (Supervisor)  Lire la suite

This work surveys currently available methods for measuring human brainwaves in order to generate music and technologies for real-time transmission of audio and music over the Internet. The end goal is to produce a performable music system which sends live human brainwaves over the Internet to produce sounding music at another, physically separated location.  Lire la suite

From the families of dockside London to the cautious cabinets of the Edwardian 'new liberals,' the search was on, after 1889, for a class of men Charles Booth characterized as so low in moral character as to require elimination from society-at-large. Responding as best they could, the poorest third of England's workers attempted desperately, yet usually failed, to avoid the stigma of the 'loafer' as they weathered economic downturn, increased policing, the fallout of deskilling, and the hatred and hysteria of a society, particularly in the wake of the Boer War, that refused them the status even of 'men'. In …  Lire la suite

Low power methods employing dynamically controlled clock rates offer potentially powerful energy saving capabilities. Dynamic clock management is a system level technique that benefits from the relationship between operating frequency and power consumption through the variation of clock speeds based on demand. This thesis provides robust and scalable clock management circuits for dynamic clock control. A complete Programmable Clock Manager (PCM) has been designed, implemented, integrated into a Systems-on-a-Chip and tested. The PCM incorporates two novel circuits who enable dynamic clock management, the Range Shifting Phase-Locked Loop (RSPLL) and the Dynamic Programmable Clock Divider (DPCD). The self-calibrating RSPLL extends operating …  Lire la suite

There are currently no ideal treatments or acceptable vaccines for cutaneous leishmaniasis, a worldwide health problem caused by infection with a number of species of the dimorphic protozoa Leishmania. Therefore, there is an urgent need to search for simple, safe, effective, and affordable treatments. Imiquimod is an immune-response modifying agent. Recently, 5% imiquimod cream (Aldara(TM)) received approval by the Food and Drug Administration in the United States and is currently available for the treatment of external genital and perianal warts caused by human papillomavirus infection. The antiviral activity of this drug is mediated through stimulation of cytokine release from many …  Lire la suite

The focus of this thesis was to analyze the least cost of producing rations for ducks in three age categories from a mixture of conventional feed ingredients and three different processed food waste products and to examine the financial and economic feasibility of establishing an industrial plant to produce these food waste products in the Montreal region. The first part of the thesis was investigated through the use of a linear programming model. The effect of recognizing the variability of protein levels in the various feed ingredients was examined through the use of chance-constrained programming. The second part of the …  Lire la suite

The kinetic and mechanistic details involved in the morphological transitions occurring in aggregates prepared from the copolymer polystyrene-b-poly(acrylic acid) (PS-b-PAA) in dioxane-water mixtures and the ability of sodium dodecyl sulfate to induce architectural changes in these aggregates are described in this dissertation. The kinetics of the sphere-to-rod, rod-to-sphere, and vesicle-to-rod transitions were determined by following the change in the solution turbidity as a function of time after the transitions were induced by a sudden jump in one of the solvent components of the system. The kinetics of each transition was explored as a function of the initial solvent composition, the …  Lire la suite

Bohemian art of the second half of the fourteenth century is closely associated with the personality of Charles IV, Emperor of the Romans and King of Bohemia (1316--1378). In an effort to legitimize his reign as ruler of the Holy Roman Empire and to raise the profile of his ancestral Bohemian lands, he leaned on the power of history to reveal his heritage as stemming, on one side, from an illustrious line of emperors including Charlemagne, and on the other, from the dynasty of Bohemian sovereigns. He recognized that art could display this legitimization and so implemented a programme of …  Lire la suite

This thesis attempts to determine whether the Russian chemist, Dmitrii Ivanovich Mendeleev, was open to Western ideas and capital in the Russian petroleum industry. It does so by examining five of his trips to study this business, as either an advisor to the Russian government or a private consultant. These voyages took place between 1863 and 1886 and saw Mendeleev in France, the United States and the Caucasus. Each trip produced a combination of personal letters, diaries, and published articles. This work employs a mixture of published and unpublished archival documents. In the process, much is revealed about the history …  Lire la suite

Laberge, Jean-Martin (Supervisor)  Lire la suite

This thesis is dedicated to a in depth study of the notion of pleasure such as it appears in Charles Baudelaire's Les Fleurs du Mal. Focusing upon a very restraint core of poems, the analysis unfurls according to the methodic tools provided by Michael Riffaterre, literary theorician and critic, in his Semiotics of poetry. Basing myself on a shrewd selection of texts, number of which were almost completely left out by baudelairean studies, my goal was to highlight the semiotical span owned by the different illustrations of pleasure in our poet's work. Weaving significant threads, first between signs and then …  Lire la suite

Botulism is a foodborne intoxication caused by ingestion of Clostridium botulinum neurotoxin (BoNT). Preliminary studies focussed on the production of polyclonal antisera against BoNT/E by immunizing a rabbit with botulinal toxoid type E. The antiserum was subsequently used to detect BoNT/E using the slot blot immunoassay where samples were applied to a slot blot filtration manifold and drawn by vacuum through a membrane. The membrane was then immunologically processed before chemiluminescent detection. However, the antisera lacked specificity and cross-reacted with closely related clostridia strains. The specificity of the antisera was increased by adsorbing cross-reactive antibodies from whole antisera with affinity …  Lire la suite

Many bacteria accumulate carbon stores as poly-3-hydroxybutyrate (PHB) when growth is limited but carbon availability is not. This stored carbon can then be utilized during conditions of limited carbon availability. The net PHB accumulation in the cell is dependent on the balance between PHB synthesis and degradation. Sinorhizobium meliloti accumulates PHB in the free-living stage but not in the symbiotic stage. The physiological role of the PHB cycle in S. meliloti is unknown. As a first step to understand the genetics of PHB degradation, transposon-generated mutants that were not able to use PHB degradation intermediates, such as 3-hydroxybutyrate and acetoacetate, …  Lire la suite

A two year study was initiated in 1999 at the Macdonald Campus Farm, on a 2.4 ha site consisting mainly of St-Amable sand to shallow loamy sand (Typic Endoaquent; Humic Gleysol). The site was planted to alfalfa ( Medicago sativa) prior to the establishment of the experimental design and has been planted to corn (Zea mays L.) since 1991. The experiment was set up as a randomized complete block design and consisted of three tillage levels (NT, no-till; RT, reduced tillage; and CT, conventional tillage) and two residue levels (-R, no residues; +R, with residues). This study was performed in …  Lire la suite

The availability of accurately aligned, whole body, functional PET images has a significant impact on the diagnosis of malignant disease and on identifying and localizing metastasis. Gamma ray attenuation correction is essential in all quantitative PET studies. The object of this study was to explore the possibility of using beta-gamma coincidence as an attenuation correction technique in order to improve transmission scan image quality. This study consisted of testing and implementing a beta-gamma attenuation correction technique on an animal PET scanner. In its final form the system uses 68Ge sources enclosed in plastic scintillator cylinders coupled to PMTs. The detection …  Lire la suite

The research project was initiated to refine the knowledge available on the treatment of rural municipal wastewater by constructed wetlands. Field and laboratory studies were conducted to determine the treatment capacity of a constructed wetland system and to determine a substrate that would be most efficient as a phosphorus adsorption filter. The wetland system consisted of three free-water surface cells, three blast furnace slag filters and a vegetated filter strip, treating municipal wastewater. Bimonthly water samples at the inlet and outlet of each component of the wetland system were analysed for biochemical oxygen demand, nitrate and nitrite, ammonia and ammonium, …  Lire la suite

In a normal inflammatory response, the polymorphonuclear neutrophil (PMN) is recruited to a site of injury or infection through a sequence of events that include margination, rolling, adhesion, diapedesis and chemotaxis. These processes become dysregulated in SIRS, sepsis and MODS. Septic patients demonstrate decreased PMN exudation to peripheral sites and an absence of a C5a chemotactic gradient across the intravascular and extravascular environments. Using both in vitro and in vivo PMN transmigration assays, we evaluated the role of an intact C5a gradient on human PMN recruitment to peripheral inflammatory sites in sepsis. We demonstrated in vitro that a C5a gradient …  Lire la suite

Distraction osteogenesis is a form of in vivo tissue engineering used to lengthen bone. Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) are known mediators of bone formation during the distraction of enchondral bones. Their role in the distraction of membranous bones remains unknown. A rabbit model was used to characterize the expression of BMP-2, 4 and 7 during mandibular distraction osteogenesis. Fourteen animals were subjected to a defined distraction protocol. At weekly intervals, two rabbits were sacrificed and the generate bone harvested for radiographic, bone densitometric, histologic and immunohistochemical analyses. The results demonstrate that during distraction, bane forms primarily by intramembranous ossification. BMP-2 …  Lire la suite

Background. beta-blockers have been the cornerstone of therapy for hypertension for at least 20 years. The use of newer agents including calcium antagonists and ACE inhibitors is increasing. Objective. To examine whether calcium antagonists and ACE inhibitors independently are associated with increased all-cause and cause-specific mortality relative to beta-blockers. Methods. This was a population-based cohort study. Within the cohort, a nested case-control approach was used for analysis. We used Saskatchewan Health databases. A cohort of 19,501 subjects initiating therapy for uncomplicated hypertension between January 1st, 1990 and December 31st, 1993 was identified. Cases were all deaths between January 1st, 1990 …  Lire la suite

We used decision analysis to determine the factors that influence the decision of whether or not to extubate and to evaluate the usefulness of testing with the RR/Vt ratio. A questionnaire was also distributed to experienced critical care specialists. We showed that the rate of improvement in the patient condition had the greatest influence on the decision to extubate. When the rate of improvement was high, the best decision was to continue with mechanical ventilation unless the probability of tolerating extubation was greater than 0.95. However, when there was little or no chance of further improvement with ongoing mechanical ventilation, …  Lire la suite

This thesis examines the exercise of genealogy in North America in the 19th and 20th centuries through an analysis of the historical and genealogical writings by and about the (real and presumed) descendants of two Walloon brothers, Jesse (c 1580--1624) and Gerard de Forest (1583--1654). It also follows genealogy's slow democratization, from its late 19th century bourgeois users to the explosion of its popularity since 1977. A thorough theoretical base was needed to compensate for the absence of historical studies on the subject. The thesis then follows the construction over the course of 140 years of the de Forest and …  Lire la suite

The study included in this thesis was aimed at elucidating the mechanisms involved in the actions of Parathyroid Hormone Related Protein (PTHRP) on osteoblast cell differentiation. PTHRP is known to mediate the complication of malignancy known as hypercalcemia. In recent years focus on PTHRP has moved away from its roles in hypercalcemia of malignancy and has since been seen to modulate the proliferation and differentiation of a number of cell types. We have investigated the mechanisms of PTHRP action in the induction of osteoblast cell differentiation, using the osteoblast-derived osteosarcoma cell line, MG-63. Upon treatment of MG-63 cells for 8 …  Lire la suite

This study evaluated the effect of attention on pain- and auditory-evoked cortical activity in humans using positron emission tomography (PET). Regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) was measured while subjects detected changes in thermal intensity or auditory frequency. Subjects rated pain on a visual analogue scale. Using statistical brain maps of the pain-related activity, directed searches were conducted in contralateral insular (IC), anterior cingulate (ACC), primary (S1) and secondary (S2) somatosensory cortices---regions consistently found to be activated by painful stimuli. Pain intensity was rated higher in the thermal than in the auditory task. Likewise, whereas in the thermal task there were …  Lire la suite

Huk, O. L. (Supervisor)  Lire la suite

A four dimensional variational (4D-Var) formulation is developed for the assimilation of radar reflectivity, Doppler velocities, and near-surface refractivity index data into a non-hydrostatic fully compressible limited-area atmospheric model coupled with a simplified warm microphysics scheme. The cloud-model is used as a weak constraint so the model error is explicit in the 4D-Var formulation. The ultimate goal is to provide initial conditions to a high-resolution numerical weather prediction model. The environmental flow around storms is modelled by a linear wind in a moving frame using Doppler velocity measurements over a given assimilation window. A three-stage procedure is established to solve …  Lire la suite

Unlike in somatic cells, cancer cells adopt an aberrant pattern of methylation as well as histone acetylation, and therefore distort the chromatin structure. Chapters 2--4 of this thesis look at mechanisms carried out by the recently cloned DNA demethylase, how its demethylation activity is closely linked with the semblance of acetylation of chromatin, and how this relationship can be skewed in cancer. The three intriguing mechanisms described provide attractive models by which to explain general genome wide demethylation, site specific demethylation of genes upon their activation, and the relationship between aberrant methylation and histone acetylation in cancer. The thesis begins …  Lire la suite

A dual stable isotope approach (delta13C and delta15N) was used to assess the importance of pelagic organic carbon in littoral secondary production and explore its predictability. Forty-seven sites were sampled in Lake Memphremagog (Quebec--Vermont) to characterize the isotopic position of the primary producers and filter-feeding freshwater mussels, as well as macrophyte biomass, chlorophyll-a concentration, and site exposure. The different sites spanned a wide range in the three environmental variables. For each site, littoral, terrestrial, and pelagic contributions to the diet of the mussels were calculated from mussel isotopic position, corrected for trophic enrichment. The mean contributions were: littoral---8%, terrestrial---27%, and …  Lire la suite

The trend of system-on-a-chip carries on the end of the VLSI era to fulfill the ever-rising demands of electronics industry. As system complexity increases, interconnect becomes the dominant factor over transistor sizes in determining the overall performance. Theoretically, systems-on-a-chip implementations eliminate most packaging interfaces to improve the system-level performance. Manufacturing cost is also reduced by integrating both analog and digital circuits using monolithic CMOS technologies. Unfortunately, substrate coupling is found to be a major obstacle for the advancement of system-on-a-chip. Accurate predictions of substrate coupling in large-scale systems demand a modeling algorithm with high speed and high resolution, which are …  Lire la suite

This work presents the use of a new design methodology for the creation of analog integrated circuit components featuring optimization with Matlab and Simulink. This procedure allows circuit design to take place at the highest level of abstraction, and has the added advantage that designs can be implemented with currently used, and widely available tools. It results in building block requirements being specified prior to the undertaking of transistor level simulations, thereby saving much valued design time. Also presented are the issues behind the design of an audio-band, single bit switched capacitor delta-sigma modulator with 16 bits of performance. This …  Lire la suite

Laboratory studies on speciation have revealed that selection must be disruptively applied on traits related to the mating system in order to produce deviations from random mating in experimental populations. One problem with these experiments, however, has been the complexity of the model organism used, most frequently Drosophila species. Due to the multi genic nature of the mating systems of such organisms, it has been difficult to obtain the necessary gene combinations that result in complete sexual isolation. In the present study, I have used a simple sexual organism, the unicellular green algae Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, as a model for ecological …  Lire la suite

Exposure to methyl mercury (MeHg) is a global concern. Increased chronic exposure to MeHg among fish and marine mammal consuming populations will increase the risk of prenatal exposure and as a result, the risk of infant brain damage and neurotoxcity. It is therefore important to understand the role of environmental factors, such as nutrition, in determining susceptibility to MeHg toxicity. Three nutrients (selenium (Se), vitamin C and vitamin E) were selected for examination of their interactions with the mechanisms of McHg cytotoxicity in vitro. Two hybrid neural cell lines (M03.13 and NSC-34) were evaluated for their usefulness in the study …  Lire la suite

Von Eschen, Donald (Supervisor)  Lire la suite

The theory of the autonomy of the will plays a central structuring role in Quebec's positive law. It has given rise to a conception of contractual justice that has contributed to the transformation of the role played by equality in contract and influenced the treatment of unfair contract by positive law in Quebec. It cannot however serve as an analytical framework for explaining the entire juridical regime applicable to contract. Based on the theory of the autonomy of the will, positive law states the principle according to which lesion does not vitiate consent, but it also provides for numerous exceptions …  Lire la suite

Members of the GATA family of transcription factors are evolutionary conserved DNA-binding proteins that play critical roles in cell differentiation. They share a highly conserved zinc finger domain responsible for specific binding to a consensus (A/T)GATA(A/G) sequence. Three GATA factors, GATA-4, GATA-5, and GATA-6, are expressed in the heart and two of them, GATA-4 and GATA-6, are coexpressed in cardiomyocytes. Given the early embryonic lethality of GATA-4 and GATA-6 null mice, their exact role in cardiomyocytes was unclear. The objective of my doctoral work was to elucidate the role of GATA-4 and GATA-6 in postnatal cardiomyocytes and the molecular basis …  Lire la suite

Network formation using chlorotris(diethylamino)silane [ClSi(NEt 2)3], tetrakis(dimethylamino)silane [Si(NMe2) 4], and tetrakis(diethylamino)tin [Sn(NEt2)4], and NLO-active chromophore was investigated to yield inorganic-organic hybrid materials for 2nd-order nonlinear optics. In contrast to hybrids obtained from Si(NEt2)4, those prepared from ClSi(NEt 2)3 and Sn(NEt2)4 were insoluble even in high boiling solvents. Facile hydrolysis of the NLO-active dye was found to occur in these hybrids due to the catalysis of HCl and the high reactivity for ClSi(NEt2)3 and Sn(NEt2)4 respectively. Due to the insolubility of the networks, it was not possible to determine if the dye present in these networks was physically trapped or covalently …  Lire la suite

Cellular cardiomyoplasty (cell therapy for myocardial regeneration) targets the basic pathophysiology of heart failure and represents a novel means of augmenting cardiomyocyte number and contractile function of the failing heart. Chapter I reviews briefly current approaches to the treatment of heart failure. Cellular cardiomyoplasty is introduced and previous work conducted in our laboratory is reviewed. Chapter II focuses on the possibility of using marrow stromal cells as a cell source for cellular cardiomyoplasty. This proof-of-principle study was conducted in association with Dr. Jih-Shiuan Wang. The results are convincing that marrow stromal cells can differentiate into myocardial-like cells. For implanted cells …  Lire la suite

An analysis and comprehensive solution to the direct kinematics problem (DK) of all planar 3-legged platforms with lower pairs, called general planar Stewart-Gough platform (PSGP), is presented. There are 10 types of PSGP DK problem formulation including those with mixed leg architecture. Planar kinematic mapping expresses pole position and rotation angle of a planar displacement as a point in 3-dimensional projective space represented by 4 homogeneous coordinates. This provides a universal tool for kinematic analysis. Its application will be demonstrated in the derivation of a general algorithm for planar DK. For each type of PSGP, the problem is reduced to …  Lire la suite

The major objective of this project was to evaluate the feasibility of artificial neural networks (ANNs) and genetic algorithms (GAs) for modeling and optimization of food thermal processing. The specific objectives were: (1) to develop a comprehensive computer simulation program for thermal processing, (2) to apply ANNs and GAs for modeling and optimization of constant retort temperature (CRT) thermal processing and variable retort temperature (VRT) thermal processing, (3) to develop dynamic models for thermal processing using ANNs, and (4) to explore ANN-model-based analysis of critical control points for deviant thermal processes. As a preliminary research, neural network models were successfully …  Lire la suite

Xu, Z. (Supervisor)  Lire la suite

The role of primary somatosensory cortex (S1) in pain perception remains uncertain. Human imaging studies have had variable success in showing pain-related activation in S1, and single-unit recordings in primate S1 have revealed few nociceptors. This study assessed the fMRI time course of S1 activity in humans during noxious heat and innocuous tactile stimulation to determine if temporal differences in the perception of these stimuli would be reflected by temporal differences in S1 activation. Four normal subjects participated in three fMRI sessions each. Thermal (painful heat 45--46°C; neutral heat 35--36°C) and tactile stimuli (brushing at 2Hz) were applied to the …  Lire la suite

Geographical Information Systems (GIS) have become a more and more important application of database systems. Most general-purpose database systems do not contain a graphical display interface which is indispensable in GIS applications. This thesis presents the design and implementation of a GIS editor (Geditor) for a relational database programming language. It builds a graphical map display interface into the database language and integrates a set of GIS functions. Two interfaces are built in Geditor. One is with the database programmer and the other is with the GIS End-User. The former interface implements a new syntax (gedit) into the database language …  Lire la suite

Hyperhomocysteinemia is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease and stroke. Nutritional and/or genetic disruptions in homocysteine metabolism can cause hyperhomocysteinemia. Mild methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) deficiency due to the 677C → T mutation in the MTHFR gene is the most common genetic cause of hyperhomocysteinemia. The 677C → T variant is associated with an increased risk for neural tube defects, pregnancy complications, schizophrenia and Down syndrome, and with a decreased risk for colon cancer and leukemia. This variant is also a potential risk factor for vascular disease. Severe MTHFR deficiency results in homocystinuria, an inborn error of metabolism with neurological and …  Lire la suite

We estimated the effect of caffeine intake from tea, coffee, and colas on the risk of mild and severe intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR) through a case-control study in 500 live singleton infants born at Sainte-Justine Hospital, in Montreal, between May 1998 and July 2000. Cases of IUGR as well as one sex, race and gestational age-matched control per case were identified at birth. Data were abstracted from medical charts and post-delivery questionnaires, and were analysed using conditional logistic regression. Average caffeine intake in pregnancy was not a significant predictor of mild or severe IUGR (for mild IUGR, OR for >300 …  Lire la suite

Berk, Dimitrios (Supervisor)  Lire la suite

Teaching science using an inquiry approach is encouraged by several organisations responsible for defining teaching and learning guidelines in North America. However, using this approach can be difficult because of the complexity of inquiry. One source of difficulty is an inability to make sense of the data. Error variation, in particular, poses a significant barrier to the correct interpretation of data and therefore successful inquiry learning. A study was conducted to examine middle school students' ability to make sense of the data they collected in three related experiments. These data involved taking measurements of two continuous variables that were affected …  Lire la suite

The sulcal patterns of the human orbitofrontal cortex have not been adequately characterized. Classical authors, as well as more recent investigators, have attempted to identify and label the sulci of this part of the brain. Nevertheless, there is considerable confusion regarding the orbital sulcal patterns with inconsistencies in the naming of orbitofrontal sulci in many modern texts. Moreover, a correlation between specific landmarks and architectonic areas has not been demonstrated. A clarification of the patterns of the orbitofrontal sulci and their relationship to architectonic subregions is necessary if the results of functional neuroimaging and other physiological and anatomical findings are …  Lire la suite