University of Northern British Columbia

The nature was the source of inspiration in many designs and products. Learning the algorithms from nature and incorporating them in the product design can be another level of inspiration. Algorithms for generating the pattern of tree-growth and venation in a leaf are nature-based algorithms for various uses in design and modeling. Development of the plant-pattern generators was initially intolerant of target shape until introduction of the space colonization algorithm (SCA). The SCA had a target area filled with points. The nodes, which create the final shape, start growing the pattern from an initial point to cover the target area. The points have an attraction field, which determines the direction of pattern. This project consists of two phases. The first phase improved some the features in the SCA including: i) the capability of starting the branching pattern from outside the target area, ii) tolerating symmetric distribution of points in target area, and iii) not canceling the effect of points from each other. The second phase used a branching equation assigned thickness to the members. The parameter in the equation was optimized to achieve the minimum variance of stress/capacity ratio among members.

Non-profit and charity organizations often rely heavily on fundraising as their primary means of covering expenses. Non-profits, being eligible for far fewer grants than registered charities, may be especially dependent on the outcomes of their fundraising efforts in order to continue providing services to their community. Since many organizations struggle to find enough time, resources, and volunteers, it is essential that the time and effort applied to fundraising are successful in attaining the necessary funds. This project supplies organizations with a guide for planning and producing major fundraising events. While the majority of the guide is applicable to any group planning to host a major fundraising event, some points may need adjustment in order to best fit the given organization. The timeline of the guide begins six to nine months before the date of the event. The guide includes a series of checklists and numerous appendices that outline in detail the various steps necessary for planning and hosting a major fundraising dinner.

This report provides an overview of my practicum placement with a non-profit organization, Carrier Sekani Family Services (CSFS), in particular its Health and Wellness Program. Most of my placement was at Ormand Lake Cultural Healing Camp, known in Carrier language and within the Carrier nations as Choostl’o Bunk’ut. CSFS serves 11 Carrier First Nations bands in north central British Columbia. The objective of my practicum was to gain competency working with Indigenous peoples and their communities and to understand Indigenous wellness from the perspective of the Carrier people. Overall, this practicum helped me to explore my interest in Indigenous mental health and traditional healing. This report will discuss my experiences as a practicum student and will explore how culture can be used for healing in mental health. Several topics that emerged in relation to my practicum goals will be outlined, including ethics and boundaries, spirituality, clinical and alternative practice skills, and integrating Indigenous and Western approaches.

This thesis examines Suzanne Collins‘ use of “arena fiction” conventions and historical social reform movements in The Hunger Games trilogy (THG) to encourage reflection on the means of subverting the intended effects of spectacle, but also to consider the cost of consuming or using children in social reform. My thesis argues that THG is an arena story which explores the mechanics of social reform through powerful visuals while also exploring the personal cost, especially on children, of becoming a visual symbol of resistance. I show how THG is rooted in historical social reforms and why these are so useful for Collins to generate visual resistance literacy in her readers and push her use of arena fiction deeper into exploring child bodies. Finally, through a close reading of the subversions in THG, I argue that Collins uses both arena fiction and history to further reflection on children‘s participation in reform movements.

The provision of care for people living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) has advanced since the 1980’s. New treatments have changed HIV to a chronic condition instead of a death sentence. How this change has affected support networks providing care to those living with HIV requires further investigation. Through interviews with Key Informants (n=4), and Family and Peer Support Networks for those living with HIV (n=7) three major themes emerged: 1) People providing support for people living with HIV are often HIV positive themselves. 2) Methods of learning about HIV/AIDS utilized before and after HIV diagnosis; such as, doctors, pamphlets, and others living with HIV. 3) Methods of support provided and received while living with HIV. These themes demonstrate the collaboration between support networks for people living with HIV. This research provides a greater understanding of support networks affected by and living with HIV.

A medication error committed by a student nurse during a clinical placement often results in the student fearing its potential impact on the patient, unit staff, and the student’s educational journey. Student nurses must navigate two parallel systems during a clinical placement – the educational system and the healthcare system – and there can be confusion about what each requires of the student. Neither of these systems contain clear direction for managing student-committed medication errors and for allocating associated responsibility and accountability. This exploratory mixed methods study examines the process by which responsibility and accountability for a student-committed medication error is allocated and the factors that influence that allocation decision. It describes key features of an ideal allocation process and suggests reasons why the current allocation process often does not meet those requirements. Qualitative data were analyzed through interpretive description and quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The results were situated, interpreted, and triangulated within a critical realism philosophical framework. An ideal post-error environment must incorporate a just culture. Since students must navigate both the educational institution and the healthcare facility environments during a clinical placement, a just culture must permeate both. However, students are instead colliding with a post-error environment that they perceive as not meeting key ideals of a just culture: fairness, transparency, minimization of fear, and dedication to learning. Findings of this study can be used to drive change that will better support those who are involved in a post-error process, and decrease the significant inconsistencies that are currently of particular concern.

This thesis will posit that the Iroquois migrations into the Northwest and Oregon Territories are misunderstood in their interactions amongst both the Indigenous and frontiersmen. By Iroquois we specifically mean the French-speaking and Catholic Iroquois who settled in New France in Sault St. Louis (1680), Lac des Deux-Montagnes (1717) and in 1755 when the St. Régis Mission was established. After 150 years of acculturation (1650s to 1800s), these Iroquois had become a hybrid culture with a syncretic Catholicism. The Iroquois immigrated to the Saskatchewan River in 1799 to escape ‘improvements of civilization’ in the east and to follow the mode of life of their forefathers. Peter Fidler’s three versions of the Chesterfield House incident, where 14 Iroquois and 2 Canadiens were killed, will be analyzed to provide a new understanding of the role of the Iroquois as central actors in the fur trade rivalries.

The intention of this practicum report is to provide a further understanding of the social worker’s role at Ngāti Awa Social and Health Services in Whakatāne, New Zealand. Ngāti Awa Social and Health Services provided me with a unique learning opportunity to explore the importance of a Māori framework within their programs on a rotational basis such as: Iwi Social Services, Rangiatea (i.e. Teen Parent Unit), and Te Waipuna Ariki o Matangireia ECE (i.e. Early Child Education). This report will provide an emphasis and understanding of the importance of incorporating Māori culture, and teachings within their agency framework at Ngāti Awa Social and Health Services. This practicum was a unique venture to be included as part of the Cross-Cultural Indigenous Knowledge Exchange (CCIKE) program. The practicum was only possible with multiple organizations coming together to consult, collaborate, and communicate. The following organizations were involved: University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC), UNBC First Nations Department, Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi, UNBC Master of Social Work program, and Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Scholarship. This practicum opportunity represented the first collaboration with the Master of Social Work program and the Māori organizations. This experience allowed me to set specific learning goals in the following areas: professional practice, education development, cultural competency, cross-cultural experience, the ability to challenge oneself (i.e. out of my own comfort zone), and be an active participant in cultural events. This report will include a detailed description of the agency, theoretical frameworks/model, observations, research, critical reflection, hands-on experience, and an understanding of how Māori integrated programming improves health outcomes for Māori Whānau.

An application for a new open-pit gold/copper mine in Tsilhqot’in territory raised concerns among the local Xeni Gwet’in people about potential impacts. This study examines statements about these concerns and potential impacts made by Xeni Gwet’in people during environmental assessment hearings. The research adopts a single case study approach, and the analysis uses a western social science method as well as a more holistic Indigenous approach to decolonizing research by placing Indigenous voices in the center of the research process. The results suggest that land and water are inseparable, as are their connections to the Xeni Gwet’in people, culture, and territory. Key findings include that land and water are central to Xeni Gwet’in identity and future, that they are used to demonstrate ‘control’ and ‘ownership’ of their traditional territory, and that they are crucial to Xeni Gwet’in intergenerational transfer of knowledge, culture, and sacred spiritual connections to their traditional territory.

Moringa oleifera is a tropical tree with nutritious, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial properties. Moringa seeds have been studied for their ability to purify water, however roots have not. This study identified the nutrient composition of Moringa roots grown in a greenhouse, and tested whether the roots improved water quality. Moringa roots were dried, powdered and added to contaminated water to test their impact on E. coli, pH, turbidity, and electrical conductivity. The chemical composition of Moringa roots were measured using ICP-MS. The five main elements observed were potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, sodium and calcium. None of the elements extracted were of health concern for drinking water quality. Electrical conductivity and pH remained within drinking water quality guidelines. Moringa root powder resulted in a significant increase in turbidity. Moringa concentration of 600 mg/L removed up to 87% of E. coli in water. Moringa root powder shows some potential as a point-of-use water treatment.

This thesis will posit that the Iroquois migrations into the Northwest and Oregon Territories are misunderstood in their interactions amongst both the Indigenous and frontiersmen. By Iroquois we specifically mean the French-speaking and Catholic Iroquois who settled in New France in Sault St. Louis (1680), Lac des Deux-Montagnes (1717) and in 1755 when the St. Régis Mission was established. After 150 years of acculturation (1650s to 1800s), these Iroquois had become a hybrid culture with a syncretic Catholicism. The Iroquois immigrated to the Saskatchewan River in 1799 to escape ‘improvements of civilization’ in the east and to follow the mode of life of their forefathers. Peter Fidler’s three versions of the Chesterfield House incident, where 14 Iroquois and 2 Canadiens were killed, will be analyzed to provide a new understanding of the role of the Iroquois as central actors in the fur trade rivalries.

Deadlands Girl is a short young adult, fantasy fiction novel set in a post-apocalyptic Canada. The protagonist, Tabitha, is kidnapped and brought to Faerie and the novel follows her quest to come back home. Written as a response to the notion that there are few non-historical Young Adult (YA) novels that are set in Canada, my creative thesis demonstrates that a novel can explore themes of identity, belonging and power while using the Canadian landscape as a backdrop and an inspiration. Mythological creatures assist Tabitha on her hero-quest but, ultimately, it is a coming-of-age story about a young woman growing up and discovering her own power. The novel is introduced with a critical analysis of young adult fiction in Canada, a discussion of identity and what it means to be a Canadian writer creating dark, but hopeful, stories for youth.

Recent advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) techniques have impacted the field of algorithmic music composition, and that has been evidenced by live concert performances wherein the audience reportedly often could not tell whether music was composed by machine or by human. Among the various AI techniques, genetic algorithms dominate the field due to their suitability for both creativity and optimization. Many attempts have been made to incorporate rules from traditional music theory to design and automate genetic algorithms. Another popular approach is to incorporate statistical or mathematical measures of fitness. However, these rules and measures are rarely tested for their validity. This thesis is aimed at addressing the above limitation and hence paving the way to advance the field towards composing human-quality music. The basic idea is to look beyond this constrained set of traditional music rules and statistical/mathematical methods towards a more concrete foundation. We look to a field at the intersection of musicology and psychology, referred to as music-psychology. To demonstrate our proposed approach, we implemented a genetic algorithm exclusively using rules found in music-psychology. An online survey was conducted testing the quality of our algorithm’s output compositions. Moreover, algorithm performance was analyzed by experimental study. The initial results are encouraging and warrant further research. The societal implications of our work and other research in the field are also discussed.

It is prudent to understand how changes in climate will affect tree-ring growth, wood fibre quality, and percent carbon content in natural and planted stands in central interior British Columbia (BC), as BC produces high volumes of wood fibres that are competitive in a global market. Wood properties within natural and planted stands of hybrid white spruce (Picea glauca (Moench) x engelmannii (Parry)) (percent carbon, ring-width, earlywood and latewood width and wood cell properties of cell wall thickness, density, microfibril angle, radial diameter and coarseness) were assessed to determine if climate variation is a limiting growth factor. Results show precipitation is an important limiting factor in planted stand growth with some indication that increasing temperatures limit growth in natural stands. Relationships between climate and percent carbon indicate that rising winter, spring, and summer temperatures coupled with reduced precipitation strongly limit percent carbon accumulation in most natural and planted stands.

Plant communities and soils of grasslands on an elevation gradient and the forest-grassland mosaic in the Cariboo-Chilcotin of British Columbia were examined. Vegetation change along an elevation-climate gradient was analysed, including plant cover, litter cover, species composition, and species richness. Grassland plant communities were compared with associated climate variables and biogeoclimatic classifications. Based on results, an updated classification of grassland ecosystems is proposed with suggestions for management and research. Plant community and soil moisture characteristics of adjacent forests and grasslands were compared. Ten-year-old slash and burn treatments of young forests, and areas of forest encroachment on grasslands were studied to detect potential change between forest and grassland states. Results did not suggest change in ecosystem state between grasslands and forests, with persistent ecosystem legacies a potential source of long-term resilience. Land-use legacies manifested as encroachment of forests on areas of historical grasslands and high cover values of exotic species.

In complex industrialized societies, it is virtually impossible for individuals to know the environmental impact of their consumption. A personal cap and trade system, which assigns citizens limited, tradable allocations of pollution (e.g., carbon pollution), can link individuals directly to their environmental impact and enable them to chart a path to sustainable living. To explore public reactions to this system, an Amazon Mechanical Turk sample of individuals residing in Canada viewed a video describing either a carbon tax system or a personal cap and trade system. A personal cap and trade system based on allocations of kilograms of carbon dioxide equivalents (kgCO2e) was viewed as significantly more likely than carbon taxes to enable Canadians to reduce their carbon consumption and to live more sustainably. A range of public concerns that might limit support for carbon pricing systems were identified with qualitative analysis of participant comments about the systems.

This thesis explores how Wilkie Collins’s portrayal of disabled female bodies disrupts the Victorian opposition between ‘normal’ and ‘abnormal’ bodies, and, in doing so, offers an alternative to the prevailing contemporary ideal of femininity, as passive, pure, and spiritualized. In Hide and Seek (1861), The Moonstone (1868), and Poor Miss Finch (1872), I argue Collins reconfigures traditional readings of both disabled and able-bodied women. Drawing on theories in disability and gender studies, my thesis examines how prevalent understandings of the disabled body offer insight into how we think about the human body in general, and how in Collins’s novels the disabled body is used to question gendered norms placed upon all members of society.

As the world is flooded with data, the demand for mining data for useful purposes is increasing. An effective techniques is to model the data as networks (graphs) and then apply graph mining techniques for analysis. As on date, the algorithms available to count graphlets and orbits for various types of graphs and their generalizations are limited. The thesis aims to fill the gap by presenting a simple and efficient algorithm for 3-node graphlet and orbit counting that is generic enough to work for both undirected and directed graphs. Our algorithm is compared with the state-of-art algorithms and we show that in most cases our algorithm performs better. We demonstrate our algorithm in three case studies related to (i) enzyme and metabolite correlation network in corn, (ii) watershed governance networks, and (iii) patterns exhibited by co-expression networks of healthy and cancerous stomach cells.

This research couples a global scale targeted systematic review with the perspectives and experiences of mental health service providers in Terrace, British Columbia. A targeted systematic review was conducted exploring mental health and well-being impacts of resource extraction globally. Findings informed qualitative interviews with mental health service providers in Terrace, BC. Main themes from service providers are systemic issues in health care, poor access to mental health services for children and youth, mental health risk factors, social determinants of health, and industry’s lasting influence and legacy. Synthesis of the findings from the systematic review and interviews with service providers indicates providers concerns aligned with the global literature. A synthesis combines the two phases of research. Insights from this work suggest a greater consideration of the social and mental health impacts of industrial projects is necessary, and there is need for equitable access to mental health resources for all ages.

Obesity results when energy intake chronically exceeds energy expenditure, driving accumulation and malfunctioning of white adipose tissue and increasing risk for comorbidity. Brown adipose tissue (BAT) burns energy via adaptive thermogenesis, a process gaining therapeutic interest to restore energy balance in obesity. PACAP regulates energy expenditure including thermogenesis in BAT, but the neuronal circuits involved are not well known. Thus, we aim to develop a tool to safely restore PACAP in the hypothalamic ventromedial nucleus (VMN) of PACAP-null mice to assess the VMN’s contribution. We also investigated whether PACAP directly regulates BAT function by binding at adipocytes. We discovered PACAP receptor expression in BAT and genetic regulation of receptor expression with cold acclimation. Acute in vitro studies did not show PACAP-stimulated thermogenesis in BAT. Studying adaptive thermogenesis and its hypothalamic regulation will contribute to the field of energy metabolism, and the pathophysiology of obesity and type 2 diabetes.

I studied how microclimate variables influence the growth of white spruce trees (Picea glauca (Moench) Voss) in pure and mixedwood stands in north-eastern British Columbia. My key finding is that stand composition and structure are essential determinants of how spruce radial growth and sap flow respond to fluctuations in climate variables. A combination of warmer temperatures and drought during summer will negatively affect white spruce trees growth in pure and mixedwood stands in the studied region. Spruce sap flow in both stand types is likely to increase as the climate warms, increasing the demand for soil water. White spruce growing in mixedwood stands might be more sensitive to drought stress than in pure stands due to the higher competition for limiting resources (primarily water). I provide information that will be useful in modeling and managing these stands across western Canada under current and future climate conditions.

The topic of Indigenous women’s experiences with the Ministry of Children and Family Development (MCFD) at the birth of their child is one that falls through the gaps of current literature. This thesis is focused on identifying the experiences of Indigenous women when MCFD intervenes at the birth of their child; the purpose is to gain insight into the strengths and weaknesses of child welfare interventions. I interviewed five Indigenous women using an interpretive description approach and analyzed the data using constant comparative analysis as well as conventional content analysis techniques. The findings highlighted the impact of child welfare involvement that included: powerful emotions, trust, communication and dismantled families; a structural power imbalance characterized as feeling powerless, being watched and judged, and jumping through hoops; addiction; socioeconomic struggles that included young mothers and homelessness, poverty, and neglect; missed preventative opportunities; the role of advocacy; identity and culture; and bonding. In conclusion, child welfare practice needs to include opportunities for preventative measures and planning to optimize support and communication with Indigenous pregnant women and mothers.

Pacific marten (Martes caurina) may benefit from invasive or non-native species that occur across some coastal areas of the Pacific Northwest. I used remote-camera trapping and stable-isotopes of carbon and nitrogen to infer resource-use strategies of marten on Haida Gwaii, British Columbia, Canada. Marten are more likely to be detected in 3 ha patches with less logging and optimal amounts of road and forest edge habitat, and areas close to marine shorelines and streams. Findings from bulk carbon and nitrogen stable-isotope analysis suggest that terrestrial fauna, including birds, deer, small mammals, and invertebrates, contribute the most to diet; marine invertebrates are the second-most important prey group. Marten consume salmon and berries seasonally, but these are a relatively minor component of the diet. Knowledge of habitat and diet ecology of this generalist, apex predator should be integrated into ecosystem-based management and conservation of the globally rare old-growth forests that remain relatively intact on Haida Gwaii.

This research explores how the body is implicated in transmuting meaning for women who are substance dependent on opioids and have engaged in survival sex work. Using a hybridized application of narrative, theorizing, and interviews, this interdisciplinary thesis identifies some of the ways these women navigate the constraints of their marginalization. Eight women were interviewed on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations in Vancouver, British Columbia. The research works to acknowledge and explore how these women exist in an ‘alternate’ economy in order to obtain opioids to meet their life-needs. The employment of materialist feminist examinations of alienation and access to capital located shared experiences in the women’s narratives. Though the research did not reveal an explicit connection between the body, meaning, and sex work, there was a strong indication of meaning making through advocacy and engagement with those in similar social positions.

The Northern Health Authority’s Geriatric Outreach Program provides consultations with geriatric specialists in-person and through videoconference. With Canada’s population aged 65+ expected to increase over the next several years, there is precedent to explore service delivery methods and how they influence care of older adults. Using a multi-method research design, formal-care providers’ perspectives of the Geriatric Outreach Program were explored, and the outcomes and costs of in-person and videoconferencing components were compared. Results revealed that the program supports care of older adults by providing access to geriatric care closer to patients’ homes and by providing comprehensive care plans back to the referring general practitioners. Costs of videoconferencing consultations were lower than in-person costs due to the added expense of specialist’s travel, and videoconferencing also resulted in more new diagnoses, medication changes, further testing, and requests for follow-up. However, further research is needed to fully understand these differences in outcomes.