Doctoral and Master theses prior to ETD mandate (pre-2009)

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This collection houses Doctoral and Masters theses produced prior to the introduction of mandatory submission in November 2009. Despite our best efforts, the coverage is not complete, particularly in earlier years. For newer theses see the Doctoral and Master collections respectively.

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Polyferrocene Diblock Copolymers: Synthesis, Self-Assembly and Morphology Characterizations
(2008) Wang, Yishan
This thesis describes the synthesis and self-assembly of a series of novel polyferrocenylsilane block copolymers. Polyferrocenyldimethylsilane-' b'-poly(propylene sulfide) (PFDMS-'b'-PPS) copolymers were synthesized by anionic polymerization via a "carbanion pump" strategy. Polyferrocenyldimethylsilane-'b'-poly([epsilon]-benzyloxycarbonyl-L-lysine) (PFDMS-'b'-PZLL) copolymers were synthesized by the ring opening polymerization of [epsilon]-benzyloxycarbonyl-L-lysine N-carboxyanhydride, initiated with amino-terminated PFDMS. In bulk, PFDMS-'b'-PZLL behaves as coil-rod block copolymer. An asymmetric PFDMS-'b'-PZLL sample formed a hexagonal-in-lamellar morphology, referring to the hexagonal packing of the [alpha]-helical PZLL and the phase-segregation of the block copolymer into a lamellar structure. This morphology originates from the liquid crystalline behavior of the PZLL. In dimethylformamide (DMF), a selective solvent for the non-PFDMS blocks, PFDMS-'b'-PPS, PFDMS-'b'-PZLL and polyferrocenyldimethylsilane-' b'-poly([gamma]-benzyl-L-glutamate) (PFDMS-'b'-PBLG) copolymers formed rod-like micelles, driven by the crystallization of the PFDMS. The presence of small amounts of a common solvent, tetrahydrofuran (THF), led to the formation of longer micelles or micelles with a better shape regularity. For PFDMS-'b'-PBLG, rod-like micelles formed in NaCl-saturated DMF. Without NaCl, only large irregular clusters were obtained. Plate-like micelles were prepared from polyferrocenyldimethylsilane-' b'-poly(L-sodium glutamate) (PFDMS-b-PLGNa) copolymers in water in the presence of THF. THF is a good solvent for the core-forming PFDMS and a non-solvent for the corona-forming PLGNa, and helps to promote the formation of these plate-like micelles. Block co-micelles were prepared from various combinations of the PFDMS block copolymers. A spatially selective functionalization of the block co-micelles with inorganic nano-particles was demonstrated. The self-assembly morphologies of polyferrocenylsilane-'b'-polydimethylsiloxane (PFS-'b'-PDMS) copolymers were studied with transmission electron microscopy (TEM). An usual contrast inversion was observed during the TEM measurements, which was possibly caused by electron beam radiation-induced cross-linking of the PDMS. It was also observed that the interfaces of PFS-' b'-PDMS copolymers can be preferentially stained with RuO4 vapor. The effect appears to arise from a competition between reactivity and diffusion.
The Method of V. S. Naipaul’s Fiction (1955-1963)
(1977) Greenwald, Roger G.; Howard, W.J.
In this study I examine V. S. Naipaul’s first five books of fiction, which I see as comprising a cycle in his oeuvre, in the order of their composition. Taking “meaning” and “content” to cover the totality of effects a book creates, and “method,” “technique” and “style” to include the entire range of choices made by the author, I attempt to discover how the choices constitute the effects. My concern is to give close attention to the language of the fiction as well as to the broad narrative strategies, and to make such attention yield an appreciation of each book’s achievement. I try to relate some of the smallest choices to some of the largest effects in order to arrive at an understanding of Naipaul’s way of writing, to produce a coherent analysis of both shortcomings and successes, and thus to provide a basis for overall evaluations. A brief introduction describes some of the critical approaches employed by others in dealing with Naipaul and outlines the method of this study. Since my first object is the elucidation of each work as a whole, for the most part I focus on one book at a time, devoting one chapter each to Miguel Street, The Mystic Masseur and The Suffrage of Elvira, two to A House for Mr Biswas, and one to Mr Stone and the Knights Companion. Much tracing of common elements has already been done by others, and important connections often stand out clearly on their own once the texts have been examined; I therefore concentrate, when considering the books together, on pointing out relations between the ways parts relate in each book, rather than relations between parts of one book and parts of another. I turn to Naipaul’s short fiction and non-fiction only when they seem especially relevant to my main purposes. The space required for adequate attention to detail and for development of general evaluations based on the detailed analyses precludes all but passing reference to fiction by other authors. In a concluding retrospective chapter I examine an early story of Naipaul’s that casts light on Mr Stone and the Knights Companion and thus on the shape of the first cycle in the oeuvre, and examine part of what the first five books of fiction taken together contribute to our concept of the author.
Early educational history of Norfolk County
(University of Toronto Press, 1926) Bannister, John Arthur
The road to Eagle Bay: structure, process and power in a highly acculturated Ojibwa band
(1974-10-04) Mortimore, Richard George Ernest; Dunning, R.W.
Modernization And The Institutionalization Of Differentiation: The Quebec Case
(1975-08-12) Lessard, Claude; Effrat, Andrew; Ontario Institute for Studies in Education
The aim of this thesis is to study the institutionalization of differentiation in the Quebec of the sixties. In order to do so a theoretical model of structural change is put forward, specific propositions are derived from it and verified through an analysis of relevant historical material. Quebec society and the modernization of its fiduciary and political subsystems constitute the empirical referent. Quebec's school reform of the sixties is viewed essentially as a process involving differentiation of religious and educational roles, collectivities and institutional norms. Building on Parsons' and Bellah's evolutionary writing as well as Rueschemeyer's exploratory essay on partial modernization, its causes and consequences we seek to situate the post-war Quebec within the framework of partial modernization and the so-called Quiet Revolution within that of a movement toward a more complete form of modernity. Partial modernization is conceptualized as the co-existence of modern and pre-modern or traditional patterns side by side within the society. A pattern is considered modern to the extent that it increases the level of rationalization of the system in question.
Analysis of the TGF- β Family Ligand UNC-129 as a Novel Regulator of Netrin Signaling in Caenorhabditis elegans
(2008) MacNeil, Lesley Theresa
UNC-129 is a TGF-β family ligand that regulates ventral to dorsal migration of commissural motor axons in C. elegans. Mutations in unc-129 result in motor axons that do not accomplish normal ventral to dorsal migration, but instead deviate from their proper course. Genetic evidence demonstrates that UNC-129 does not function as other TGF-β family ligands, through the classical type I and type II serine/threonine kinase receptors, but instead regulates axon guidance through a novel signaling pathway. Genetic interactions between null alleles of unc-129 and unc-5, unc-40 and unc-6 revealed that unc-129 acts within the UNC-5 signaling pathway to regulate axon guidance, cell migration and patterning of the male tail. Analysis of unc-40 and unc-129 compound null mutants demonstrates that UNC-129 acts specifically to promote UNC-5+UNC-40 signaling. In contrast, overexpression studies using ectopically expressed UNC-129 suggest that UNC-129 acts to inhibit UNC-40 independent UNC-5 signaling. BMP7, a human BMP protein similar to UNC-129, was able to directly interact with UNC-5 and its mammalian homologue RCM. Together, these data suggest a model where UNC-129 regulates the decision between UNC-40 dependent and independent UNC-5 signaling. The result of this, for cells and axons migrating along the ventral-dorsal axis, is to increase the sensitivity of cells and axons to decreasing levels of UNC-6/Netrin by switching from UNC-5 signaling to UNC-5+UNC-40 signaling. To further examine the mechanism of UNC-129 function on UNC-5 signaling, I examined candidate receptors that might function with UNC-129 to regulate UNC-5. In addition, I performed a genetic screen to isolate suppressors of distal tip cell defects resulting from the ectopic expression of UNC-129 that implicates EGF receptor signaling in the ventral to dorsal migration of Distal Tip Cells. Further analysis of these components of UNC-129 signaling will contribute to our understanding of UNC-129 function and regulation and broaden our understanding of how axonal migration is controlled over long distances.
Scanning Tunneling Spectroscopy On Superconducting YBa2Cu3O7- δ Thin-Films: Effects Of Ca-Doping, Quasip Article Spin-Injection, Applied Current, And Magnetic Field.
(2007) Ngai, Joseph Ho Yeen
Low temperature scanning tunneling spectroscopy was performed on YBa2Cu3O 7-delta thin films as a function of Ca-doping, quasiparticle spin-injection, applied currents and magnetic fields. The purpose of these separate investigations was to gain insight on the microscopic pairing mechanism by examining how the superconducting order parameter (OP) evolves under these perturbations. Quasiparticle spin-injection experiments were performed on thin film heterostructures comprised of optimally doped YBa2Cu3O7-delta and ferromagnetic La0.66Ca0.33MnO3, using a technique which combines scanning tunneling spectroscopy and pulsed spin-injection. A spectral redistribution of the low-energy Andreev states was observed, consistent with an elevated effective quasiparticle temperature induced by spin-injection. Our results also indicate that spin-injection at moderate densities does not induce pair breaking or variation in the predominant d-wave pairing symmetry. Applied current experiments were performed on optimally doped (110)- and (001)-oriented YBa2Cu3O7-delta films using a pulsed technique. The current suppresses the phase-sensitive Andreev states, while leaving the pairing-dependent features largely unaffected. These results indicate that applied currents can weaken the phase of the superconducting order parameter, suggesting that phase-fluctuations can be easily induced in the cuprates. A doping dependent study was performed on (001)-oriented Y1- xCaxBa2Cu3O 7-delta thin films at x = 0, 0.05, 0.15 and 0.20 Ca levels, which enabled access to the overdoped regime. The measured spectra exhibited main-gap, subgap and satellite features which scale similarly in energy as a function of Ca-doping, suggesting that they are associated with a common pairing energy. The spectral data was analyzed using a multiband model which attributes the subgap features to the chain band and the main-gap and satellite features to the plane band for dx2--y 2 + s pairing symmetry. These results suggest that the superconductivity in YBa2Cu3O 7-delta involves multiple bands. Lastly, the evolution of the Andreev states in applied magnetic field was examined in Ca-doped (110)-oriented Y1-xCa xBa2Cu3O7-delta thin films. A splitting of the zero-bias conductance peak is observed in both zero and non-zero applied fields, indicating a lifting of the degeneracy of the Andreev states, consistent with the presence of a subdominant complex is/id' OP component near the (110) surface. However, local signatures of time-reversal symmetry breaking associated with the presence of a subdominant, complex OP component have yet to be observed. These results will be discussed within the theoretical framework of complex subdominant order parameter components in the high-Tc cuprates.
Structural And Functional Analysis Of N-Acetylglucosamine-1- Phosphotransferase And β- Hexosaminidase A
(2008) Zarghooni, Maryam
To gain a better insight into the complex process of sorting and delivery of lysosomal enzymes into lysosomes, in this thesis, the focus was on understanding the structure-function relationships of GlcNAc-1-phosphotransferase, the enzyme responsible for tagging the soluble lysosomal enzymes with mannose-6-phosphate (M6P), and also on β-hexosaminidase A, an enzyme that utilizes M6P receptor dependent pathway of delivery to lysosomes, and responsible for degradation of GM2 ganglioside. Mucolipidosis II and III, lysosomal storage disorders result from mutations in GNPTAB and GNPTG genes encoding the αβ- and γ-subunits of the G1cNAc-1-phosphotransferase, respectively. In Chapter 2, four MLII and three MLIII cell lines were screened for the presence of mutations and 22 novel genetic variants in GNPTAB gene and 2 previously reported mutations (one in GNPTAB and another in GNPTG) including several potential polymorphic sites in GNPTAB gene were identified. In addition, it was also shown that mutations in one subunit affect the assembly and intracellular distribution of the other subunits. Further, phenotypic correction of defect of MLII and MLIIIC fibroblasts was demonstrated by in vitro transfection with wild type cDNAs encoding the α/β- and γ-subunits of G1cNAc-1-phosphotransferase, respectively. Primary sequences of soluble lysosomal enzymes have not revealed any common targeting motif for their recognition by G1cNAc-1-phosphotransferase. Since the recognition site resides in the γ-subunit of G1cNAc-1-phosphotransferase (Protein id: NP_115909), structural studies were undertaken to better understand how the enzyme recognizes its substrates. Accordingly in Chapter 3, a number of physical characteristics of the expressed, in vitro folded γ-subunit, a 305 amino acid soluble glycoprotein responsible for substrate recognition were studied. The main focus of Chapter 4 was on β-hexosaminidase A that requires GM2 activator protein to hydrolyze the GM2 ganglioside substrate. The studies of refinement of the molecular model created for the interaction of β-hexosaminidase A and its substrate-specific cofactor, GM2 activator protein, indicated the necessity of the α-loop (α280GSEP 283) for functional interaction between β-hexosaminidase A and GM2 activator proteins in hydrolyzing GM2 ganglioside. In conclusion, this thesis enriches the current view of structure-function analysis of the proteins responsible for lysosomal trafficking and degradation.
αβ-TCR+CD4¯CD8¯NK1 .1¯ Double-Negative (DN) regulatory t cells: gene expression profiling and functional analysis
(1975) Lee, Boris P-L
The role of alphabetaTCR+CD4-CD8 -NK1.1- double negative (DN) regulatory T (Treg) cells from both mice and humans has been demonstrated to be involved in settings of autoimmunity, transplantation and cancer. The focus of this thesis was to develop a gene expression profile to characterize the molecular mechanisms underlying the observed function of DN Tregs. Analysis of the gene expression profile identified several possible mechanisms which may explain DN Treg antigen detection, migration, IFN response, survival, cytotoxicity, apoptosis and immune modulation. CXCR5 was one of several chemokine receptors found to be up-regulated in DN Tregs. Characterization of CXCR 5 expression and function on DN Treg cells identified an important function in allograft homing. Using a murine cardiac allograft transplant model, we found that early production of CXCL 13 following transplantation preferentially directed DN Treg cell homing allografts. We further demonstrate the role of HSP70 in DN Treg cytoprotection following antibody mediated TCR cross-linking as a mimic for activation induced cell death (AICD). Cytosolic HSP70 protein expression was up-regulated immediately following cross-linking in both DN Tregs and CD8 T cells. However, in DN Tregs this up-regulation was maintained while CD8 T cells rapidly mobilized HSP70 to the cell membrane. We found membrane HSP70 expression was correlated with apoptosis and describe a previously unknown involvement of HSP70 in Treg resistance to AICD. The data presented within this thesis describe important mechanisms responsible for DN Treg tissue homing and survival. Better understanding of molecular mechanisms utilized by DN Tregs for regulatory function may allow us to manipulate them for cell based immunotherapies.
Re-situating Learning
(1967) Dharamsi, Karim
In this dissertation I examine the Theory-Theory (T-T). I argue that T-T represents the orthodox conception of learning in today's psychological literature. T-T theorists hold that human beings come "equipped" with innate representations that are "a theory." Theorists believe that this innate theory guides our relations to the world. If T-T theorists are correct, learning amounts to theory-revision. Hence, T-T brings together (roughly) two commitments: (1) innate knowledge and (2) theory-revision. In this dissertation, I show that T-T depends on a reading of Plato's Meno to buttress its commitment to innate knowledge. For (2), T-T depends on aspects of W. V. Quine's philosophy. Theorists think that Quine's naturalised epistemology is central to their position. I show that T-T's dependence on Meno depends on a rough interpretation of the dialogue. Furthermore, I suggest while in some sense Quine's philosophy can accommodate innate knowledge, T-T theorists do not make a sufficient case for such an accommodation. By reconsidering Meno I wish to question T-T's dependence on what may not be in fact a case for innate knowledge. Later I show that no clear case has been made that Quine's philosophy is compatible with the sort of innate knowledge theorists require. I suggest that re-thinking Plato's dialogue cannot save T-T. For T-T theorists must provide a clear case of how innate knowledge is clearly compatible with Quine's philosophy. I argue that too much requires reworking in T-T, and that such a reworking is not necessary because an alternative conception of learning is possible. As an alternative, I argue that learning depends on factors that are not primarily innate but social. In terms of the social aspects of learning, I argue that an important condition of human learning involves being initiated into a set of social practices. Those practices are constitutive of meaningful behaviour that is inherently tied to the histories of those who live and work within these boundaries. Here we can read "history" as "having a tradition." This latter position stands, I suggest, in stark contrast to the view of T-T theorists and is far more plausible in providing an account of learning.
Finding paraphrases using PNrule
(2006) Bartlett, Benjamin
In this thesis, we attempt to use a machine-learning algorithm, PNrule, along with simple lexical and syntactic measures to detect paraphrases in cases where their existence is rare. We choose PNrule because it was specifically developed for classification in instances where the target class is rare compared to other classes within the data. We test our system both on a dataset we develop based on movie reviews, and on the PASCAL RTE dataset; we obtain poor results on the former, and moderately good results on the latter. We examine why this is the case, and suggest improvements for future research.
Role of accessory protein complexes in clathrin-mediated vesicle trafficking in plants
(2002) Lam, Chi-Hang Bernard
0000
Essay on semiparametric efficient adaptive estimation and empirical applications in finance
(2002) Sun, Yiguo
This thesis is composed of three chapters. The first two chapters construct semiparametric efficient adaptive estimators: one is for asymmetric GARCH-in-mean models; the other is for single-index models. However, estimation methodologies are different. The first chapter is related to maximum likelihood; and the second chapter minimizes mean square errors. In Chapter 1, without imposing additional restrictions on the distribution of disturbances other than some regular assumptions, I show that parameters appearing in the conditional standard deviation function can be adaptively estimated. The kernel smoothing parameter is calculated by minimizing mean squared errors between estimated score functions and target score functions. Significant asymmetric effects are identified with daily value-weighted stock index returns on NYSE/AMEX. Monte Carlo simulation results support my theory. In Chapter 2, conditional expectation function is estimated by k − nearest neighbor method. I show that semiparametric efficient estimate of parameters of single-index models and k can be calculated simultaneously. Monte Carlo experiments results show that the semiparametric estimator performs equally well across different data generating mechanisms even for small samples. In Chapter 3, catastrophe-linked securities whose payoffs are tied to the occurrence of natural disasters allow insurers to better diversify their risks through capital markets while at the same time offering an attractive new asset class to investors. Up to now, this class of assets is still under development, and few empirical applications have been carefully analyzed. This chapter examines one of the catastrophe-linked instruments—PCS options traded at the CBOT. Two main issues are explored: (a) Theoretical prices are derived by assuming complete and arbitrage free market. Comparing market prices to theoretical prices, three puzzles are observed. (b) Comparing PCS call spread option contracts to traditional excess-of-loss catastrophe reinsurance contracts; I find that pricing patterns of these two types of assets are similar. Other factors, not limited capacity, are capable of explaining these special pricing patterns.
Walking barefoot: a storyteller's arts-based inquiry
(2002) Damelin, Ariella Rachel
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The clinical epidemiology of poisoning in Ontario
(2003) Juurlink, David N
This thesis describes the application of health services research techniques to the study of toxicoepidemiology in Ontario using multiple administrative databases. From January 1st 1992 to December 31st 2001, we identified 80,888 hospital admissions in Ontario for which a poisoning (ICD-9 960.0 to 990.0) was the most responsible diagnosis. Of these, 43,965 (54.4%) were coded as self-inflicted, 46,970 (58.1%) involved women, and 5,793 (7.2%) involved children under age 6. About 5,708 patients died from poisoning, although only 884 of these were identified from hospital records. Acetaminophen poisoning (n = 12,738) was the most common diagnosis, followed by poisoning due to benzodiazepines (n = 9,368), antidepressants (n = 8,488) and salicylates (n = 3,344). Collectively, admissions for poisoning led to about 307,250 days in hospital. Examining specific poisonings, we found that hospitalization for iron poisoning in children less than age 3 was temporally associated with the birth of a sibling. Among elderly Ontarians treated with lithium, hospital admission for lithium toxicity was a relatively common occurrence and often followed a recognized drug interaction. Finally, hospitalization for toxic effects of digoxin, glyburide, and angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors was strongly associated with recent prescriptions for drugs known to provoke the toxicities of these agents. In addition to the specific findings outlined above, the results of this thesis demonstrate that the application of observational research methods to population-based healthcare databases is a feasible, efficient, and novel means of studying the epidemiology of poisoning.
Visions, reading and identity in the monastic culture of the eleventh and twelfth centuries: Otloh of St Emmeram and Guibert of Nogent
(2001) Joyce, Ellen Elizabeth
The period from 1050 and 1150 was a dynamic one in the history of visionary literature; this thesis examines ideas about reading, writing, and self-definition in monastic communities of the day, with particular reference to the visionary collections of Otloh of St. Emmeram (d. 1067) and Guibert of Nogent (d. 1124). Each wrote about his own religious visions and those of religious and lay contemporaries. Each thereby contributed chapters to the histories of autobiography, of reading and writing, and of the human soul in this world and the next. The first chapter examines the autobiographical portion of the Liber Visionum of Otloh of St. Emmeram. I trace the narrative of Otloh's conversion to the monastic life as described through his visions and demonstrate how Otloh's identity as an author, a scribe, and an intellectual is reflected in the content of his visionary experiences. Chapter Two is also about Otloh and the remainder of this text, including stories about dreams and visions drawn from his own monastic milieu in Southern Germany. This second chapter describes how currents of eleventh-century monastic reform and of papal and imperial politics affected Otloh's community. Guibert of Nogent's conversion to monastic life was strongly influenced by his mother's dreams and visions. In my third chapter, I examine the connection between Guibert's treatment of her visions and his interest in biblical scholarship, which is evident in his autobiographical work, the Monodiae. I conclude by examining the philosophical connections between this work and the fourth book of his treatise on relics. The concluding chapter offers a survey of the ways the visionary tradition develops after Otloh and Guibert. The methodologies I have proposed for studying visionary accounts invite a re-evaluation of the works of such figures as Peter the Venerable of Cluny, Alberic of Settefrati, Hildegard of Bingen and several other monastic writers of the twelfth century. I argue that visions continue to be a tool in constructing identity, and that monastic identity was fundamentally linked to reading, writing, and moral reform.
Bodies that sing: the formation of singing subjects
(2003) Joyce, Victoria Moon
This study explores how singing subject positions are discursively produced in various social spaces, including how people come to understand themselves as 'non-singers' and 'not musical'. The notion of 'non-singers' is addressed as a socially mediated construction primarily achieved through the formation of White' bourgeois subjectivity and various boundary-keeping practices necessary for the preservation of 'respectable space'. 'White' bourgeois subjectivity requires the preservation of social hierarchies. Therefore, discussions about singing practices as cultural phenomena and socially mediating practices are taken up in terms of how they reinforce social hierarchies by race, class, gender, and sexuality through the dominating discourses and practices of 'Whiteness' in social relations. This study is positioned within the field of Community Music focusing on informal singing practices and a wide range of teaching/learning practices. The primary data comes from observations and interviews with a select group of people who teach singing to adults outside of formal music education and who use a variety of alternative approaches to singing. I include my own practice in this data. Other primary data comes from interviews from a small sampling of so-called non-singers. Secondary data comes from a wide range of sources that address the phenomenon of individual and group singing. Analysis of the data is informed by feminist, poststructuralist and postmodern theories of subject formation, critical race theory, class formation, spatial theory, and linguistics. Because this exploration of the 'singing subject' is based in a discourse that sees singing as a developmental phenomenon, the singer/non-singer binary can be challenged. Understanding how this socially and culturally mediated construction results in practices of exclusion and subordination provides insights into the creation of anti-subordinating practices and approaches to singing based in counter-discourses of resistance and alternative practices. This opens up possibilities for educators to treat singing as socially transformative and liberatory--positively affecting social relations among individual and collective subjects, and shaping discourses that affect communities and institutions. This study builds on research which attempts to find pedagogical principles and strategies that can move music educators, song leaders and teachers of singing to creatively incorporate critical reflection practices into our teaching.
Aristotle on the ends and limits of teleology
(2002) Johnson, Monte Ransome
Aristotle is commonly considered the inventor of teleology, although the exact term “teleology” originated in the eighteenth century. If teleology means the use of ends and goals in natural science, then Aristotle should be regarded rather as a critical innovator of teleological explanation. Teleological notions were widespread among his predecessors, but Aristotle rejected their conception of extrinsic causes like mind or god as the primary causes for natural things. Aristotle's radical alternative was to assert nature itself as an internal principle of change and an end, and his teleological explanations focus on the intrinsic ends of natural substances—those ends that benefit the natural thing itself. To these he contrasted incidental ends of natural things, such as possible uses of the thing which do not serve its own functions and interests. Aristotle holds that natural science is knowledge that comes about through demonstration of the causes of natural kinds. Most important is “the cause for the sake of which”—the end. The identification of a natural end initiates the process of explanation and constitutes the basis for all objective knowledge about natural kinds—stars, elements, plants, and animals. The determination of the ends of natural kinds also indicates how other causal factors, such as matter and necessity, are to be integrated into an explanatory account of their parts and behavior. Aristotle's teleology was subsequently conflated with incompatible “teleological” notions, including proofs for the existence of a providential or designer god, vitalism and animism, opposition to mechanism and non-teleological causation, and anthropocentrism. I aim to correct these misrepresentations through an investigation of Aristotle's methodological statements, as well as the explanations actually offered in the scientific works. I argue that Aristotle's aporetic approach avoids the dilemma between backwards causation and anthropomorphism that is frequently leveled against teleology. Although Aristotle's philosophy sometimes suffers from failed extrapolation of teleological principles, still it succeeds in challenging the anthropocentric conception of nature, and rising above the banausic perspective which views all natural things as instruments for human ends, to a loftier viewpoint from which natures can be observed and appreciated as their own goods.
Mechanisms underlying naming impairments in post-stroke and progressive aphasia
(2007) Jokel, Regina
This thesis investigated mechanisms underlying impairments in naming, word repetition and nonword repetition in four different populations: patients recovering from post-stroke aphasia who received treatment (PSA), a control group of patients who did not receive treatment (CPSA), and patients with two variants of progressive aphasia (i.e., fluent FPA and nonfluent NPA). Predictions based on the interactive activation (IA) model of lexical retrieval (Foygel Dell, 2000; Hanley, Dell, Kay Baron, 2004) were tested at two time points in order to evaluate the viability of the model and its two mechanisms, the strength of semantic and phonological connections. The status of the putative non-lexical route in nonword repetition and its relationship to the model's other two mechanisms was also examined. Results of the naming study showed that, on average, patients in the PSA and CPSA groups presented with a combination of semantic and phonological impairments, while patients in the NPA and FPA groups presented with more uniform impairments to the semantic connections. Data from the word repetition study pointed to impairments mostly to the phonological connections in all groups. This combination of mechanisms appeared in the presence of what was usually impairment to the non-lexical route in the PSA and CPSA groups and a relatively spared non-lexical route in the NPA and FPA groups. The mechanisms underlying impairments were relatively stable over time but stability of lexical diagnosis was not seen across the tasks of naming and word repetition. Results also revealed that the non-lexical route, claimed by the model's proponents to be independent from the model's two other mechanisms, appeared in fact, to have a relationship with the phonological connections of the network. Participants with impaired phonological connections tended to have the non-lexical route impaired while those with impaired semantic connections (i.e., spared phonological connections) presented with a relatively spared non-lexical route. Findings from the three studies are discussed in the framework of the model's viability and its shortcomings. Limitations of this study are also discussed. Potential clinical and theoretical implications are presented along with directions for future research on lexical retrieval models.
Litigating identity: the challenge of aboriginality
(2003) Johnston, Darlene
In Aboriginal rights litigation in Canada, claimants must demonstrate continuity with ‘pre-contact’ peoples and practices. This is a daunting task for communities, such as mine, whose encounter with Europeans commenced nearly four centuries ago. As a child, my grandmother told me that hers was the Otter clan. When my Great-great-grandfather signed treaties in the nineteenth century, he signed by drawing an Otter, his totem. It is my thesis that totemic identity is the crucial link in the Anishinabek chain of continuity. In Anishinabek culture, people reckon their kinship from a other-than-human progenitor traced patrilineally. In seeking to understand totemic identity, I have traced a path from clans, to marks, to souls; from geography to a sacred landscape; from genealogy to Anishinabek cosmology. It remains to be seen whether this totemic system, with its implications for territorial claims, can be made intelligible to the Canadian legal imagination.

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