Grad Chat - Queen's School Of Graduate Studies

Topic: Foreign Relations: Contemporary Travel Writing and the Unsettling Poetics of Foreign Space Overview: Robyn studies contemporary travel writing and how it shapes our ideas about what it means for a person, place, or thing to be ‘foreign’ in the world today. 

Topic: Celestial Bodies and Spiritual Possessions Overview: Jhordan's thesis explores the representation of religion and superstition in the work of two Jamaican novelists Kei Miller and Marlon James. Through that exploration he also uncovers new perspectives on the colonial and postcolonial histories of Jamaica that continue to shape ideas of race, gender, and violence throughout the  Caribbean Diaspora. In his research he reveals pathways to self-possession that complicate ideas of religious freedom, poetic faith, and the praxis of being human Volume 90%00:00

Topic: The cultural production of Muslim youth of the 1.5 and second generation Overview: My research is interested in the identity construction of Muslim youth who grew up in the shadow of 9/11 and more importantly the global war on terror. I examine art by and about Muslim youth to analyze how the ongoing social and political discussion around Islam and Muslims shaped the identity of young Muslims who have not known a world prior to the events of 9/11. 

Topic: Scholars of Colour in Watson Hall Overview: Join CJ the DJ for a conversation with Scholars of Colour at Watson Hall. Safa Moussoud, Jhordan Layne, Suyin Olguin (PhD English), & recent graduate Dr. Aprajita Sarcar (PhD History will be discussing their academic research and their experiences of being graduate students of colour at Queen's. Web page - https://scholarsofcolourwatsonhall.wordpress.com/ Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/2137437043038266/posts/3032486900199938/?vh=e&d=n

Topic: Land reconciliation, a new critical geography of peace in the Ecuadorian Amazon: Empowering Shuar resilience and resurgence through two-eyed learning. Overview: This research will work in collaboration with the Shuar community in Ecuador, specifically with the community of Chiriap, Shuar family lineage who are seeking to conserve and preserve both their ancestral knowledge and land against rising mining interests in their territory. For more information and to help this community go to the crowdfunding campaign 

Topic: The Emptiness of Ecological Loss and Extinction. Overview: The goal of my research is to rethink the notions of ecology and extinction so that we can better understand the connections they have to emptiness, as well as explore the ramifications of emptiness for both the human, and more-than-human, world. 

Topic: Examining bird habitat structure across space and over time using remote sensing data. Overview: My research will contribute to an enhanced understanding of habitat occupancy by using airborne laser scanning to describe and quantify relevant habitat structure. It will also make a methodological contribution to the emerging field of ecoacoustics by developing and testing a method for using bird recording data captured at survey points in the field.

Topic: Everything you wanted to know about MEERL! Overview: MEERL or Master of Earth and Energy Resources Leadership program. What is the significance of this program and how has it impacted industry?

 Topic: Experiences that inspires one to be an Environmentalist Overview: The purpose of this research is to explore environmentalists’ perceptions and sense of oneness with the natural world. By listening to the stories of environmentalists, this study will explore participants’ significant life experiences, and the everlasting sensory impression of those experiences on current understanding of their sense of oneness with the natural world. Lastly, this study will explore the significance of environmentalists’ in sharing their personal stories.

Topic: Cast Out Urbanites: A comparative history and geography of how cows disappeared from Kingston and Cape Town Overview: Today, while certainly not absent in all cities, cows are invisible as lively beings in many urban areas in which they once lived, illustrating the changing multi-species nature of urbanisation. Historically, cows were present in urban settlements and were used by humans as sources of milk, meat, leather, and labour. While humans continue to use cows for much the same, the spatiality and scale of these relations has undergone dramatic changes. In order to understand how urbanisation is shaped through processes of multi-species inclusion and exclusion, this research aims to unpack how cows became absent in two cities, Cape Town (South Africa) and Kingston (Canada).

Topic: What's it like being a student parent during Covid-19 Overview: Tips on how to keep your kids occupied, home schooled, feel special and still get your research done too.

Topic: Working remotely Overview: Tips on how to continue to move forward with your research, keep positive and look after yourself, family and friends.

Topic: Youth Alcohol in Kingston Overview: Recent evidence shows an increase in alcohol-related emergency department (ED) visits among youth. We sought to quantify the impact of ED visits (type and frequency, patient characteristics and resource use) related to alcohol in our centre

Topic: Youth Alcohol in Kingston Overview: Recent evidence shows an increase in alcohol-related emergency department (ED) visits among youth. We sought to quantify the impact of ED visits (type and frequency, patient characteristics and resource use) related to alcohol in our centre

Topic: Postoperative liver decompensation events following partial hepatectomy for hepatocellular carcinoma among patients with cirrhosis Overview: My research is focused on studying adverse outcomes after surgical resection of liver tumours. Specifically, the majority of patients with liver cancer also have underlying liver disease, called cirrhosis. So, the decision to remove the cancerous portion of their liver must also take into account the function of the remaining liver left behind

Topic: Night shift work, melatonin, and circadian gene methylation in the development of breast cancer Overview: Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in Canada and globally. Breast cancer etiology is complex, and work environment as a risk factor is still poorly understood, particularly with respect to night shift work. It is estimated that 10-30% of the global working population are night shift workers. While research indicates that night shift work raises the risk of breast cancer, not all research is consistent, due to differences across studies. Further, it is still unclear how night work may make an individual more susceptible to breast cancer.

Topic: The history of Indian Day Schools in Ontario between 1920-2000 Overview: My research will conduct oral history Interviews with Indian Day School survivors by using Indigenous methods of data collection. I will then contextualize these histories with additional archival research conducted at the Library and Archives of Canada. This research will inform our understandings of Canada’s colonial educational system and provide a voice for survivors to share their stories that have yet to be documented in Ontario.

Topic: The use of arts-based methods in health research Overview: I will be talking about my Master's work and what I intend to do with my PhD exploring the use of arts-based methods in health research and incorporating a collage activity into that research as well.

Topic: H2Only: Smart Filters for Efficient Oil/Water Separation. Overview: In a world that relies heavily on the use of crude oil as an energy source, clean oil recovery and spill remediation is of dire importance. Removing oil from surfactant stabilized oil-in-water emulsions has become an issue in numerous industries as current separation processes are tedious and wasteful of resources. Our research group has developed functionalized 'smart' filters that can selectively and efficiently separate the oil from oil-in-water emulsions.  I will discuss the environmental and operational advantages of this novel filter and its potential to improve the cleanliness of a normally dirty industry.

Topic: How to gain access to energy stored in plants by designing biological nanomachines which can efficiently release trapped energy. Overview: With the continued depletion of fossil fuels the search for new sources of renewable energy are growing ever more urgent. One possible source of energy is the vast repository of carbon found within plant biomass. We aim to gain access to this functionally limitless pool of energy by designing biological nanomachines which can efficiently release their trapped energy