Waterloo Research
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This is the University of Waterloo Research collection.
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Item Création d’une communauté de gestion des données de recherche interfonctionnelle et interinstitutionnelle : de la stratégie à la mise en oeuvre(2025-04) Abel, Jennifer; Milligan, Ian; Hitchens, Alison; Namachchivaya, Beth Sandore; Hyslop, Caroline; Eber, Anneliese; Chung, Vicky; Moon, Jeff; Doiron, James; Poloney, Kelsey; Steeleworthy, Michael; Cochran, Colleen; Caspary, Kaelan; Bryant, RebeccaEn mars 2021, la publication de la Politique des trois organismes sur la gestion des données de recherche (gouvernement du Canada, 2021) obligeait tous les établissements postsecondaires et les hôpitaux de recherche canadiens qui administrent des subventions des trois organismes à produire et à publier leur stratégie de gestion des données de recherche (GDR) au plus tard le 1er mars 2023. Tandis qu’ils s’exécutaient et que les premières exigences relatives aux stratégies. Les établissements visés ont commencé à réfléchir à l’application de ces stratégies. Pour alimenter les conversations interinstitutionnelles et interfonctionnelles à ce sujet, un atelier de deux jours s’est tenu à l’Université de Waterloo en septembre 2023, avec le soutien du Conseil de recherches en sciences humaines du Canada (CRSH). Une trentaine d’établissements de toutes tailles et d’intensités de recherche variables ont délégué trois de leurs membres représentant les bibliothèques, les technologies de l’information et les bureaux de la recherche pour prendre part à cinq conversations avec des chercheuses et chercheurs et des partenaires clés au sujet des défis et des possibles collaborations pour la mise en oeuvre des stratégies de GDR. L’atelier a débouché sur plusieurs recommandations : 1. Communiquer clairement les attentes concernant la conformité, les exigences et la prestation des services 2. Obtenir l’adhésion de la direction de l’établissement 3. Trouver des fonds pour la GDR à l’interne 4. Accroître les effectifs et le perfectionnement à l’interne et à l’échelle nationale 5. Établir durablement une coordination, une collaboration et une intégration des services en matière de GDR à l’interne 6. Explorer les possibilités de coordination et de collaboration interinstitutionnelles, notamment en ce qui concerne le soutien aux petits établissements pour les aider à répondre aux besoins et aux exigences 7. Établir des politiques et des lignes directrices encadrant la souveraineté des données autochtones 8. Accroître la formation, le soutien et la sensibilisation en matière de GDR au sein de la communauté de recherche 9. Établir des structures nationales de soutien à la GDR pour favoriser la collaboration stratégique, ainsi qu’une définition et un vocabulaire communs Ces recommandations s’appliquent à un large public comprenant les bailleurs de fonds, les organismes gouvernementaux en lien avec la GDR, les organismes professionnels, les consortiums universitaires, les administrations d’établissements et les communautés de recherche et de pratique. L’atelier n’a pas apporté de réponses définitives quant à la manière dont ces recommandations devraient être mises en oeuvre; il se voulait plutôt une occasion de tisser une communauté professionnelle regroupant toutes les unités qui contribuent à la GDR afin de faciliter la mise en oeuvre de la stratégie dans leurs établissements. Toutefois, une communauté ne suffit pas. Les établissements, les organismes subventionnaires et les fournisseurs d’infrastructures doivent tous s’engager à soutenir la GDR, que ce soit par des orientations claires et opportunes, la fourniture de ressources durables, l’embauche et le développement de personnel, ou des offres de formation régulières et solides. Un financement stable (tant au niveau national qu’au niveau d’établissement) sera également nécessaire pour garantir que le soutien et les services puissent être maintenus à long terme. Le GDR est - et a toujours été – une responsabilité partagée, et toutes les parties mentionnées ci-dessus doivent s’impliquer pour que sa mise en oeuvre soit un succès au Canada.Item Building an Inter-Institutional and Cross-Functional Research Data Management Community: From Strategy to Implementation(2025-04) Abel, Jennifer; Milligan, Ian; Hitchens, Alison; Namachchivaya, Beth Sandore; Hyslop, Caroline; Eber, Anneliese; Chung, Vicky; Moon, Jeff; Doiron, James; Poloney, Kelsey; Steeleworthy, Michael; Cochran, Colleen; Caspary, Kaelan; Bryant, RebeccaWith the release of the Tri-Agency Research Data Management Policy (Government of Canada, 2021) in March 2021, all Canadian post-secondary institutions and research hospitals that administer Tri-Agency funding were required to develop and post institutional research data management (RDM) strategies by March 1, 2023. As institutions finalized their strategies, they began to consider what implementation would look like. To support inter-institutional, cross-functional dialogue around implementation, a two-day, SSHRC-supported workshop was hosted at the University of Waterloo in September 2023. Over 30 institutions of varying sizes and research intensities sent cohorts of three staff members—representing libraries, information technology, and research offices—to participate in five dialogues with researchers and key partners around challenges and collaborative solutions in RDM strategy implementation. Through the dialogues, the participants made the following key high-level recommendations: 1. Provide clear expectations and communication around compliance, requirements and service provision 2. Secure buy-in from campus leadership 3. Identify financial support for RDM at institutions 4. Build staff capacity and support skills development, both within institutions and nationally 5. Create and sustain intra-institution coordination, collaboration and service integration around RDM 6. Explore inter-institution coordination and collaboration, including support for smaller institutions in meeting their RDM needs and requirements 7. Support the development of Indigenous Data Sovereignty policies and guidelines 8. Increase researcher training, support, and awareness around RDM 9. Develop national RDM support structures for collaboration and strategy, including a common understanding and language of RDM These recommendations are relevant to a broad audience, including research funders, government agencies mandating and/or supporting RDM, professional organizations, academic consortia, university administration, researchers and practitioners. The Waterloo workshop did not provide definitive answers as to how these recommendations should be implemented; rather, it was an opportunity to build a community of professionals from across RDM-supporting units who can work towards successful strategy implementation in their institutions. However, community is not enough. Institutions, research funders, and infrastructure providers must all commit to supporting RDM, whether through clear and timely guidance, sustainable resource provision, hiring and development of staff, or regular and robust training offerings. Ongoing, stable funding—both at the national and the institutional level—will also be necessary to ensure that support and services can be sustained for the long term. RDM is—and has always been—a shared responsibility, and all the parties mentioned above must step up to ensure that its implementation is a success in Canada.Item The Crowd vs. the Lab: A Comparison of Crowd-Sourced and University Laboratory Participant Behavior(2011-07) Mark D. Smucker; Chandra Prakash JethaniThere are considerable differences in remuneration and environment between crowd-sourced workers and the traditional laboratory study participant. If crowd-sourced participants are to be used for information retrieval user studies, we need to know if and to what extent their behavior on information retrieval tasks differs from the accepted standard of laboratory participants. With both crowd-sourced and laboratory participants, we conducted an experiment to measure their relevance judging behavior. We found that while only 30% of the crowd-sourced workers qualified for inclusion in the final group of participants, 100% of the laboratory participants qualified. Both groups have similar true positive rates, but the crowd-sourced participants had a significantly higher false positive rate and judged documents nearly twice as fast as the laboratory participants.Item #Girlhood: Why Memetic Aesthetics of Hyperfemininity Matter for Feminist Media Studies(Brill, 2025-01-31) Wiens, Brianna I.; McWebb, AnnaThere is a pressing need to focus attention on hyperfemininity as a valid and valued form of gender expression and feminist protest within contemporary social media. As resistance against the heteropatriarchal gender expectations that influence femininity and that produce femmephobia, we focus our analysis around the social media #girlhood meme trend that, we suggest, embraces a wide range of femme practices through the re-mixing of femme identity, while critiquing heteropatriarchal norms. We trace the circulation of #girlhood, including coquette aesthetics, #barbiecore, and #bimbofeminism, outlining how these playful expressions of femininity contribute to subverting expectations of “successful” femme bodies. We argue that if gender norms are scripts that prescribe and describe how we must act, then widening the range of acceptable feminine behaviour through hyperfemininity, as manifest in #girlhood memes, is crucial for changing how we discipline femme bodies and how we analyze femininity within media studies.Item HIV and the Volatile New World Order: From Declining Pandemic to One Crisis among Many(Balsillie Papers, 2025-04-08) Parker, Warren; Whiteside, AlanIn the initial months of the second Trump administration, US foreign aid infrastructure was rapidly dismantled, including the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), a principal implementing agency of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). This abrupt policy shift placed the lives of millions of people living with HIV at risk and significantly weakened global HIV prevention efforts. Numerous health services and local organizations were forced to close, staff were dismissed, and essential HIV services became inaccessible. Concurrently, financial support was withdrawn from the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS). These changes were enacted without prior notice, consultation or international coordination, and unfolded in the context of a global HIV response unprepared for such a disruption. While the consequences are severe, this unprecedented circumstance offers a critical moment for reflection and reimagining the future of the HIV response.Item On the three charge regimes of bipolar charge conditioners(Taylor & Francis, 2025-03-12) Nishida, Robert, T.; Johnson, Tyler, J.; Olfert, Jason, S.Many aerosol instruments utilize bipolar charge conditioners (neutralizers), including scanning mobility particle sizers (SMPS). The charge distribution from a bipolar charge conditioner must be known to calculate size distributions from SMPS scans. Therefore, a reproducible and known “steady-state” charge distribution is desired to improve measurement accuracy. In this work, we show that although a steady-state charge develops within a common Kr-85 bipolar charge conditioner (TSI 3077A), gaseous ions are readily convected into tubing downstream of the charge conditioner, causing significant deviation from steady-state in less than a second. The “downstream ions” are predominantly positive since negative ions are more readily lost to tubing walls due to their higher diffusivity. Others have previously studied this potential effect, but there is disagreement among them. This study resolves the disagreements, and to the authors’ knowledge, we are the first to: quantify the surprising significance of this effect (mean charge at 239 nm changes by up to a factor of 4); show it occurs rapidly (milliseconds); and demonstrate that a true steady-state distribution is more asymmetric than classical theory (mean charge at 239 nm is >3x higher in magnitude). Interaction time of the particles with the remaining free ions downstream of the charge conditioner is shown to be the main consideration for this effect, as demonstrated by varying flow rate, tube length and tube diameter and achieving similar charging results as a function of this time. We perform advanced numerical modeling of charging, convection and diffusion of particles and ions, and show good quantitative agreement with experimental data. These results are further supported by similar charging results measured from a bipolar charge conditioner that has a different internal geometry and ion source than the 3077A charger. To increase consideration of this critical charging effect and enhance understanding of bipolar charging in general, we thereby quantify three distinct regimes of bipolar charging, namely: the (1) charging regime (i.e., as charge develops from its initial to steady-state), (2) steady-state regime, and (3) discharging regime (i.e., effect of “downstream ions”). These three regimes of bipolar charging have wide implications for designing instrumentation, interpreting measurements and validating charging models with the aim of improving accuracy in aerosol instruments such as the SMPSItem Can Social Robots Improve People’s Attitudes towards Individuals who Stutter?(ACM, 2025) Körner, Jule; Chandra, Shruti; Dautenhahn, KerstinPublic attitudes towards stuttering are rooted in stereotypes and misconceptions, leading to negative reactions and discrimination against individuals who stutter. Previous research highlights the positive impact of educational interventions on people’s attitudes towards stuttering. The potential of social robots as an educational tool in the context of stuttering awareness remains unexplored. In the present study, we investigate whether a social robot can improve public attitudes when giving an interactive presentation on the topic. We compare its impact with a tablet-only condition. Additionally, we differentiate between two robot conditions - one in which the robot imitates stuttering and another where the robot has fluent speech. In the robot conditions, visuals are shown on a tablet.We used a co-design approach and incorporated the perspectives and experiences of two individuals with lived experiences of stuttering into our study design. A user study with 69 participants reveals significant improvements in attitudes across all three conditions, with no significant difference between conditions. However, participants perceived the robot as significantly ‘warmer’, more ‘attractive’ and ‘novel’ when compared to the tablet. These findings provide valuable insights into the potential of social robots as intervention techniques for improving attitudes in the field of stuttering.Item Mitigating Privacy Harms from Deceptive Design in Virtual Reality(University of Waterloo, 2025-03-15) Hadan, Hilda; Zhang-Kennedy, Leah; Nacke, Lennart E.This report was prepared as a final project report in response to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada Contributions Program 2024-25. This research investigates deceptive design in Virtual Reality (VR) environments and its impact on user privacy. The research team at the University of Waterloo conducted an autoethnographic evaluation of 12 top-rated VR applications to analyze deceptive design patterns in their privacy communication and interaction mechanisms. The findings reveal 14 distinct deceptive design patterns and demonstrate how deceptive tactics in traditional web and mobile environments are being adapted to immersive environments. While many of these patterns still heavily rely on 2D interfaces elements, VR’s spatial, immersive, and multi-sensory features amplify their impact and increased the privacy risks for users. The VR applications’ convoluted privacy policies and consent mechanisms further hinder user comprehension on the data practices. Through the evaluation, the team also identified 7 exemplary privacy-enhancing design strategies, which can serve as a foundation for improved implementation of privacy mechanisms in VR environments. To assess user perceptions of these deceptive design patterns, the team surveyed 424 users of the selected VR applications. The findings indicate that while users felt the manipulative influences and expressed discomfort, they often resign themselves to accepting privacyinvasive options and viewing such design as “typical” or “inevitable” across both VR and nonVR platforms. Their repetitive exposure to such design in mobile and web environments fostered a false sense of normalcy, and eroded user resistance to manipulation. This research provides valuable insights for VR developers, designers, policymakers, and researchers on creating privacy-preserving VR experiences and developing clearer, more ethical privacy policies in this rapidly evolving field.Item Coronavirus, Climate and a Clean Energy Transition: Is Resiliency Achievable?(Balsillie School of International Affairs, 2020-04-02) Nathwani, JatinIn the seeds of this current tragedy lies a historic opportunity for Canada to transition to a low-carbon energy economy — away from dependence on the oil and gas sector.Item COVID-19 and Global Human Health Resources(Balsillie School of International Affairs, 2020-04-02) Walton-Roberts, MargaretThe unprecedented global shut-down due to the pandemic of COVID-19 is exposing public health system weakness globally.Item In the Aftermath of COVID-19: Policy Implications for Canada(Balsillie School of International Affairs, 2020-04-02) Fitz-Gerald, AnnThe COVID-19 global pandemic has reinforced the need for today’s policy to address humanity’s future critical challenges.Item The Significant Insignificance of International Sport in a Global Crisis(Balsillie School of International Affairs, 2020-04-22) Elcombe, TimThe inherent socio-political tension of sport — that it simultaneously matters and doesn’t matter — is never more apparent than times like the current COVID-19 crisis.Item The Post-COVID-19 Economy: Financing Canada's Leadership in Sustainable Energy(Balsillie School of International Affairs, 2020-05-04) Nathwani, Jatin; Ramsara, RaynierThe politicians and policy makers who will be tasked with addressing Canada’s future fiscal situation likely have not yet begun their careers.Item COVID-19 Arising: Lessons in Proactive Response in East Asia(Balsillie School of International Affairs, 2020-06-02) Parker, Warren; Barclay, JillIn China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and South Korea, a combination of disciplined and proactive responses led to early containment of initial COVID-19 outbreaks.Item COVID-19, Age and Mortality: Implications for Public Policy(Balsillie School of International Affairs, 2020-06-02) Whiteside, Alan; Clement, FeliciaThe COVID-19 pandemic has paralyzed the global community, but its impacts around the world have not been homogeneous.Item Migrant Care Labour and the COVID-19 Long-term Care Crisis: How Did We Get Here?(Balsillie School of International Affairs, 2020-06-23) Gahwi, Lena; Walton-Roberts, MargaretA historic lack of investment in care, especially in areas of elder care, has resulted in long-term care (LTC) facilities being the epicentre of the pandemic in various nations.Item An Arctic Focus on Canada's Post-COVID Multilaterialist Posture(Balsillie School of International Affairs, 2020-06-23) St-Pierre-Collins, Ariela; MacArthur, Carly; Shamim, KhurramA renewed commitment to the Arctic Council should serve as a defining feature of Canada’s multilateral positioning moving forward.Item The Long-Term Care Pandemic: International Perspectives on COVID-19 and the Future of Nursing Homes(Balsillie School of International Affairs, 2020-07-15) Hirdes, John P.; Declercq, Anja; Finne-Soveri, Harriet; Fries, Brant E.; Geffen, Leon; Heckman, George; Lum, Terry; Meehan, Brigette; Millar, Nigel; Morris, John N.Five major changes to long-term care can protect the elderly from the ravages of infectious disease and provide a greater quality of care and quality of life.Item Canada's Responses to COVID-19: Impacts on Vulnerable Populations Experiencing Housing Insecurity(Balsillie School of International Affairs, 2020-07-21) Giorgis-Audrain, Alexandra; Arya, NeilCanada needs a long-term solution to homelessness.Item SPECIAL COMMENTARY: Fostering a sustainable recovery in spite of 'preconditions': Five questions that need answering(Balsillie School of International Affairs, 2020-09-16) White, WilliamHow will the global economy recover from the Covid-19 shock? Most observers wish for a rapid and sustained recovery and expansion. However, this wish is unlikely to be granted.