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My thesis proposes to uncover what I term an Emilian Philosophy in the reading of Emily Brontë's only novel, and suggests that Wuthering Heights reflects Brontë's vision of a society progressing toward social and spiritual reform. Through this journey, Brontë seeks to conciliate the two contrasting sides of humanity – natural and social – by offering a middle state that willingly incorporates social law without perverting human nature by forcing it to mold itself into an unnatural social system, which in turn leads to a "wholesome" (Gesunde) humanity. While Heathcliff embodies Bronte's view of a primitive stage of humanity, Hareton reincarnates the wholesome state of humanity that balances human natural creativity and cravings with Victorian unrelenting reason. Brontë treats Heathcliff's death as a point in life, in which mankind is emancipated from social constraints and is able to achieve ultimate happiness. This view of death is reassuring as it displaces the anxiety associated with death and separation. My study will highlight the influence of Friedrich Schiller's, Jean-Jacques Rousseau's Philosophical writings and literary works, as well as the influence of the Franciscan Order in Catholicism and its founder St Francis of Assisi, patron saint of animals and environment, in framing Bronte's philosophy to propose a social and religious reform anchored in nature.

Author Keywords: Friedrich Schiller, Jean-Jacque Rousseau, Natural Education, Reincarnation and Reformation, St Francis of Assisi, wholesome (Gesunde) humanity, Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë

Independent music venues are important hubs of social activity and cultural

production around which local punk scenes are both physically and conceptually

organized. Through interactions with participants over extended periods of time, these

spaces become meaningful places that are imbued with the energy, history and memories

of local music scenes. When a venue is shut down, local punk scenes experience a

temporary disruption as participants struggle to begin the process of re-establishing a new

autonomous social space free from outsider interference. Therefore, moving from the

local, to the national, to the international, from the small and personal to the vast and

global, as well as from the physical to the virtual, this dissertation illustrates the actual,

everyday practices of local scenes across Canada, addressing the larger issue of the loss

of alternative music venues occurring on a global scale and the resulting impact on punk

scene participants. Through the use of ethnographic research methods such as participant

observation, photographic documentation, interviews and surveys, this dissertation

engages with contemporary punk scene participants in order to give voice to those often

ignored in grand narratives of punk history. As such, traditional concepts of punk as a

utopic countercultural space are challenged to reveal the complexity and diversity that

exists within contemporary local punk scenes, where participants often experience equal

amounts of cooperation, competition, tension and struggle. By choosing to engage with

contemporary experiences and interpretations of punk culture, this research addresses the

changing landscape of local scenes, as punk participants attempt to carve out spaces of

representation for themselves in an exceedingly mediated world.

Author Keywords: Canada, music venues, punk, scene, social space, subculture

Soil and tree chemistry were measured across 15 limed sites that were established 14 to 37 years ago within the Sudbury barrens in Ontario, along with two unlimed pre-treatment condition reference sites and an unlimed remnant pine forest. Soil pH and base cation (calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), and potassium (K)) concentrations were elevated in surface organic [FH] horizons up to 37-years post limestone treatment. Limestone in the organic horizon was evident by higher Ca/Sr ratios (a good marker of dolomite) in younger sites. Base cation mass budgets were generally unable to account for the mass of added Ca and Mg. Sudbury is characterized by widespread metal contamination. Metal (copper (Cu), nickel (Ni), and lead (Pb)) concentrations were generally greatest within the FH horizon and unrelated to stand age. Copper and Ni concentrations in soil generally decreased with distance from the nearest smelter. Metal partitioning (Kd) in soil was most influenced by soil pH rather than organic matter suggesting that as liming effects fade over time metal availability may increase.

Author Keywords: Afforestation, Degraded, Limestone, nutrient, Space-for-time, Sudbury

The time-dependent Gross-Pitaevskii Equation, describing the movement of parti-

cles in quantum mechanics, may not be solved analytically due to its inherent non-

linearity. Hence numerical methods are of importance to approximate the solution.

This study develops a discrete scheme in time and space to simulate the solution

defined in a finite domain by using the Crank-Nicolson difference method and Sinc

Collocation Methods (SCM), respectively. In theory and practice, the time discretiz-

ing system decays errors in the second-order of accuracy, and SCMs are decaying

errors exponentially. A new SCM with a unique boundary treatment is proposed

and compared with the original SCM and other similar numerical techniques in time

costs and numerical errors. As a result, the new SCM decays errors faster than the

original one. Also, to attain the same accuracy, the new SCM interpolates fewer

nodes than the original SCM, which saves computational costs. The new SCM is

capable of approximating partial differential equations under different boundary con-

ditions, which can be extensively applied in fitting theory.

Author Keywords: Crank-Nicolson difference method, Gross-Pitaevskii Equation, Sinc-Collocation methods

This study investigates the potential for a responsive model of professional development in mathematics education which acknowledges how teachers perceive the value of professional learning, and examines how those perceptions are connected to teacher efficacy. Three fields of educational research ground this study: (i) professional development strategies in mathematics education, (ii) teacher efficacy, and (iii) self-determination theory and andragogy. Data collection and analysis involved four detailed case studies and a cross-case analysis of similarities and distinctions among the cases, in an instrumental-multiple-case study design. Results suggest: (1) some characteristics of professional development were consistently designated as high or low value, independent of efficacy ratings, (2) other professional learning experiences were valued relative to the participants' sense of efficacy at different times in their careers, and (3) characteristics of professional development designated as high value during periods of low efficacy were fundamentally teacher-centric, but during periods of high efficacy, they were fundamentally student-centric.

Author Keywords: efficacy, mathematics education, mathematics teachers, professional development, professional learning, teacher efficacy

Ohwén:tsia Entsionkwarihón:nien is a project that explores the intersection of Kanien'kéha immersion, Kanien'kehá:ka culture and the potential impacts of experiencing Rotinonhsón:ni knowledge on the land. Students at the Akwesasne Freedom School are fully immersed in the Kanien'kéha language and the "curriculum" is centered around four Rotinonhsón:ni systems of knowledge. What is missing, as identified by the teachers, is consistent opportunities for students to physically be on the land.

This project asks how can we ensure that future generations of Onkwehónwe children can embody their language and their culture in connection to the land. The resulting "curriculum" then shifts from determining what students will learn, to listening to what the land has to teach. A land-based program by the AFS can translate to educational control, cultural sustainability, food sovereignty, environmental stewardship, community empowerment and linguistic revitalization; each of these is a critical component of building and rebuilding communities and nations.

Author Keywords: Indigenous methodology, Land-Based Education, Rotinonhsón:ni, Storytelling

Higher education is important. It enhances both individual and social welfare by improving productivity, life satisfaction, and health outcomes, and by reducing rates of crime. Universities play a critical role in providing that education. Because academic institutions face resource constraints, it is thus important that they deploy resources in support of student success in the most efficient ways possible. To inform that efficient deployment, this research analyzes institutional data reflecting undergraduate student performance to identify predictors of student success measured by GPA, rates of credit accumulation, and graduation rates. Using methods of cluster analysis and machine learning, the analysis yields predictions for the probabilities of individual success.

Author Keywords: Educational data mining, Students' academic performance modelling

This thesis addresses the excavation and analysis of the Hingston Group, a small courtyard group just south of the ceremonial core of the Ancient Maya city of Ka'kabish in North-Central Belize. I use settlement and household archaeological theory to understand the functions, occupation history, and status of this residential group. I also rely on entanglement theory, along with the hypothesizes presented by Palka (2003) and McAnany (1995), to create a possible interpretation for the reasons why we see what we do in the Hingston Group during its main period of occupation.

The Hingston Group is composed of three structures and two chultuns (underground storage areas). Research teams excavated both chultuns during prior field seasons and found burials from the Postclassic and Late Formative Periods. This information led to the assumption that the occupation of these structures would correspond to one, or both, of these periods. However, we found that this courtyard group was occupied during a period when the rest of the core of Ka'kabish was abandoned. Along with this, excavators found an ephemeral occupation into the Colonial Period; these two new periods of occupation have expanded our understanding of the chronological history of Ka'kabish.

Author Keywords: formative to postclassic, household archaeology, Maya, settlement archaeology

Ecological restoration helps managers of protected areas respond to challenges presented by factors that threaten ecological integrity and respond to residual effects of previous land use. Many protected areas require restoration on sections of the property, due to previous land use. The objective of this thesis is to present criteria that assist ecological restoration professionals in assessing the potential of restoration projects within a protected area, based on the restoration wheels from the International Principles and Standards for the Practice of Ecological Restoration. The criteria were discovered from a review of the literature and reinforced from interviews with experienced restoration practitioners and a focus group session with key members of the Haliburton Highlands Land Trust (HHLT). Based on the combination of biophysical and socioeconomic values in the restoration wheels, they are presented in the form of a five-star assessment system to create long-term restoration goals for properties of the HHLT and protected areas in general. These long-term restoration goals can be utilized in conjunction with the wheels and five-star assessment tools to prioritize restoration projects

Author Keywords: Determining Project Potential, Ecological Restoration, Evaluating Success, Haliburton, Land trusts, Restoration Wheels

In Canada, eastern flowering dogwood (Cornus florida L.) is an endangered tree that occurs only in the Carolinian forest of southern Ontario. Threats to this species include habitat fragmentation and the fungal pathogen dogwood anthracnose (Discula destructiva). I conducted a population genetic analysis using seven nuclear microsatellite markers to determine if fragmented populations are genetically isolated from one another and have low levels of genetic diversity. Genetic comparisons suggest on-going dispersal among sites and relatively high genetic diversity within most sites; however, smaller populations and younger trees were less genetically diverse. I also used linear mixed effects models to assess potential relationships between several ecological variables and the prevalence of dogwood anthracnose. Disease severity was higher in trees on shallow slopes and in larger trees; the latter also had higher likelihood of infection. Insights from this study will be important to incorporate into future management strategies.

Author Keywords: Cornus florida, Discula destructiva, dogwood anthracnose, Eastern flowering dogwood, endangered, population genetics