Digital Commons Network^™

Diagnosed By Dr. Hollywood: The Media’S On-Screen Depictions Of Mental Illness & Scripting The Public’S Perceptions, Grace Salloum

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

In this study, the primary goal is to observe how media portrayals of mental illnesses can influence society’s perceptions of mental illness, notably when an individual’s knowledge largely hinges on these portrayals. Stigmas shape the attitudes of others towards individuals with mental illnesses. Stigmas refer to the devaluing of attributes rejected by society, and are characterized by status loss, stereotyping, and discrimination. They are sustained through framing effects and attribution. Framing is often used in the media’s presentation of mental health to sensationalize the experience or to generate alarm toward the afflicted. This study includes an analysis of movies and …

Object Recognition With Deep Neural Networks In Low-End Systems, Lillian Davis

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Object recognition is an important area in computer vision. Object recognition has been advanced significantly by deep learning that unifies feature extraction and classification. In general, deep neural networks, such as Convolution Neural Networks (CNNs), are trained in high-performance systems. Aiming to extend the reach of deep learning to personal computing, I propose a study of deep learning-based object recognition in low-end systems, such as laptops. This research includes how differing layer configurations and hyperparameter values used in CNNs can either create or resolve the issue of overfitting and affect final accuracy levels of object recognition systems. The main contribution …

Chaos, Damon Stone

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Over the duration of the summer and this past semester, I have revised a story which I wrote in middle school, known as ChAos. The story focuses on fictionalized version of friends of mine from middle school, as they survive a zombie apocalypse together, while bringing down the corporate entity that started it, and dealing with the political aftermath of such an event. Throughout this, I have started work on an audiobook as well, consulting with several different voice actors to help with the project.

Throughout this process, several changes had been done to add to the quality of the …

The Art Of A Slugslayer: An Exploration Of The Process Of Extracting Radulae From Lehmannia Valentiana For The Purpose Of Viewing In The Scanning Electron Microscope, Elizabeth Gannon

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

A radula is an anatomical structure found exclusively in mollusks that acts as both tongue and teeth in feeding. Its structure has been studied for more than a century, yet published methods for identifying, dissecting, and cleaning radulae for microscopy are almost unintelligible to anyone not already familiar with molluscan anatomy. The purpose of this project was to identify the best method of garden slug radula isolation and present it in a manner that anyone could understand and successfully use.

After identifying the location of the radula in the slug, the easiest means of removal proved to be simply regurgitating …

Growth And Survival Of Amphibians Exposed To Road Salt And Glyphosate-Based Herbicide, Jerica Eaton

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Amphibian populations are threatened by increasing levels of environmental pollution resulting from human activities. Areas with mixed land use that include agriculture and urban development experience increased contamination from surface herbicide and road deicer application. Upon entering water sources, these chemicals have the capacity to disrupt the natural dynamics of aquatic ecosystems. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of these contaminants on amphibian populations. I used the spotted salamander (Ambystoma maculatum) as a model, rearing larvae from hatching to metamorphosis. I subjected larvae in each of the treatment groups to varying levels of herbicide and salt concentrations. …

Creating Community In A Space Of Strangers: Sea Shanties In Theatre, Cassandra Merena

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Theatre is more than watching actors in the present. It can bring a magic into the room that connects us to a tangible ride of emotions. Sea shanties, a widely known variety of maritime singing, is purposely meant to bring its singers together. I wrote and directed an original one-act play structured around its repetitive beats, to create a communal feeling that will deem a sea of strangers a community for that day. The songs curated were specifically chosen to achieve that sense of community–songs that allow moments of reflection, toe-tapping, humming, and recognition. Phantom Pains is about a captain …

Covid-19 And Eating Disorders: How Covid-19 Increased The Prevalence And Severity Of Eating Disorders, And The Lasting Implications, Lucy Rogers

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

COVID-19 brought on a whirlwind of changes that were impossible to have foreseen. The impacts on individuals have left lasting impressions, the natures of which continue to be unearthed even now- 4 years later. This thesis will outline the impacts of COVID-19 on those suffering from eating disorders and disordered eating habits, as well as ideas for how to support and care for these individuals through their continued hardships which have been set in motion by the pandemic.

The research conducted on this topic utilized peer reviewed articles found through databases such as CINAHL, PubMed, and Cochrane Library. The findings …

Effectiveness Of Nintendo Ring Fit In Improving Balance Deficits After Recovery From Acl Reconstruction, Emma Lord

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

PURPOSE: This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of a gaming system in improving balance and strength after recovery from an anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR). Existing bilateral deficits in strength and balance were also assessed among patients. METHODS: Four participants between the ages of 18-24 were recruited for this case-control study. Participants must have had ACL reconstruction surgery in the last 2 years, been discharged from formal physical therapy, and have a continued history of participating in physical activity at least three times a week. Participants were assigned to either the experimental or control groups using counterbalancing. The two …

America, The Beautiful: How American Cosmetics Companies Advertised Femininity In The 1950s, Bridget Beavin

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

The 1950s were an influential decade for cosmetics in terms of sales and social impact yet have received little consideration from historians. This paper explores how cosmetics companies reflected and directed ideas about American women, femininity, beauty, consumerism, and race in the 1950s. Using cosmetics advertisements in magazines, business newspapers, cosmetics packaging, employee manuals, and secondary literature, this paper analyzes tone and content of messaging published by cosmetics companies and reactions to the sale and use of cosmetics by public commentators. Analysis shows cosmetics were marketed as a necessity for achieving ideal femininity, yet women were largely criticized or belittled …

Bluegrass Backstory: Connecting People To Local History Through Podcasting, David Hunter Hartlage

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Kentucky has a rich cultural identity, built upon a storied local history. Unfortunately, certain aspects of local cultural history, such as the origins of Kentucky vernacular music or how the bourbon industry has promoted growth in Kentucky’s communities, are not readily apparent. The increasing popularity and accessibility of podcasting offers local historians an opportunity to address this problem.

The goal of this project was to create a podcast program which makes information regarding the history, culture, and identity of Kentucky accessible to all in a scholarly—but engaging—way. I researched podcasting equipment and how to use it, then purchased that equipment …

Completing And Improving The Collection Of Data For Carbon Reporting, Madeline Petty

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Global carbon emissions from individual, organizational, and institutional activities influence the environment. Organizations and institutions use sustainability reporting methods to regularly track and report metrics relating to emissions from collective activity, yet data needed for such reporting can be difficult and time-consuming to collect. Multiple institutions, particularly universities, often use digital, standardized carbon footprint reporting tools to help overcome these challenges. Still, using digital reporting tools does not alleviate all challenges faced in regular carbon reporting due to the lack of data collection structure among university departments. This scholarly activity attempted to calculate the carbon footprint of Western Kentucky University …

A Study Of Public Opinion: The Importance Of Mental Illness Diagnosis And Perceptions Of Recidivism On Parole Eligibility, Emily Pedigo

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

The present study examined the impact a mental illness diagnosis has on parole eligibility mediated by the participants’ perceptions of whether the prospective parolee would commit future crimes if released. Participants watched a video vignette of an individual charged with second degree manslaughter and diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, antisocial personality disorder, or bipolar disorder while incarcerated. Results indicated that a diagnosis of antisocial personality disorder indirectly reduced parole success compared to bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder when mediated by participants’ perceptions of whether the convict would recommit a crime following release.

Teloportwrapper: A New Tool For Understanding The Dynamic World Of Fungal Telomere Ends, Trey Stansfield

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Telomeres are repetitive DNA sequence motifs found at eukaryote chromosome ends. Telomeres help protect chromosome ends from DNA damage and promote chromosome stability. Chromosomes play important roles in aging, mutation, and cancer. Eukaryotic pathogens also use telomeres to mutate and manage virulence genes. In response to chromosome end breakage newly formed telomeres, called de novo telomeres, are formed to recreate the lost telomere and sub-telomeric regions.

Magnaporthe oryzae is a fungal pathogen which causes wheat blast, a deadly plant disease in wheat. Magnaporthe oryzae is also known for its highly variable sub-regions which show high amounts of induced variability due …

Simulating The Machine Translation Of Low-Resource Languages By Designing A Translator Between English And An Artificially Constructed Language, Michaela Snyder

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Natural language processing (NLP), or the use of computers to analyze natural language, is a field that relies heavily on syntax. It would seem intuitive that computers would thrive in this area due to their strict syntax requirements, but the syntax of natural languages leaves them unable to properly parse and generate sentences that seem normal to the average speaker. A subfield of NLP, machine translation, works mainly to computerize translation between different languages. Unfortunately, such translation is not without its weaknesses; language documentation is not created equal, and many low-resource languages—languages with relatively few kinds of documentation, most often …

Improving Diagnostic Outcomes For Individuals With Autism Spectrum Disorders Within The Hispanic Community In Bowling Green, Kentucky, Bethany Waddey

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Despite the importance of early identification and intervention of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), Hispanic children are significantly under-diagnosed with ASD in comparison to non-Hispanic, white children due to barriers to ASD identification in this population. The purpose of this research is to determine the levels of ASD knowledge in the Hispanic community in Bowling Green, the barriers that may contribute to why ASD is underdiagnosed in Hispanic children, and how to mitigate these barriers. This research analyzes the results of a survey, called the “Autism Spectrum Knowledge Scale- General Population Version”, administered to 51 participants from the Hispanic population of …

Comparison Of Groundwater Chemistry And Associated Biodiversity Of Sulfidic Karst Habitats In Southcentral Kentucky, Kendall Wheeler

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

In most ecosystems, primary production is conducted by plants or photosynthetic microbes; however, extremophilic sulfur-oxidizing bacteria can use hydrogen sulfide gas (H2S) as an electron donor to produce metabolic energy in a type of metabolism called chemoautotrophy. These ecosystems are a prominent feature of some karst landscapes, and two have been observed in the Mammoth Cave system, Sulphur River in Parker Cave and Marianne’s Pass in Mammoth Cave National Park respectively.

Sulfidic water is ubiquitous in southcentral Kentucky and is strongly associated with hydrocarbon deposits. This oil boom of the 1880s in this region predates most environmental regulation and records …

Building Coleus Academy, Janessa Unseld

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Coleus Academy, a nonprofit e-learning platform, has been created to address the deficits left by the de-emphasis and, at times, outright omission of practical skill-centric education in American curriculums. There exists a gap between the degree of knowledge necessary to engage with adult life and the extent of that knowledge that is actually possessed by emerging adults. Prominent legislations are among the numerous efforts to address this issue. However, there is a deeply fractured market where resources are proving too expensive, too sparse, or hyper-specific to the point of limited usability. Compounded with disparities in when, where, and to whom …

The Reality Of Bipolar Disorder: A Dance Film To Bring Awareness To The Misconceptions Of Mental Health, Julia Woolums

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

For my project, I researched bipolar disorder to create a dance film highlighting the associated symptoms and emotions of hypomanic and depressive episodes. The purpose of this research is to bring awareness to and educate on the reality of these mental health symptoms to reduce mental health stereotypes and stigma. I researched academic texts and peer-reviewed articles about bipolar disorder written from the perspective of those diagnosed with it and used the symptom criteria in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders to compose, choreograph, film, and edit my dance film. The completed film showcases what daily life could …

Rosalie Edge And The Modern Environmental Movement, Elizabeth Claire Coleman

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

This thesis examines and follows the actions of an understudied activist in the environmentalist movement: Rosalie Edge. This thesis relies and encourages a combination of conservation, environmentalism, and historical women’s history in America. Rosalie Edge’s work as an environmentalist created a new and effective way for environmentalists to advocate for the environment around them. She created a pamphlet medium that invited scientists and other conservationists to publish writings and opinions that went against what the Audubon Society, the Biological Survey, and legislators were doing and publishing. The research for this project combines analysis from other professionals in the field with …

Defamiliarizied Gender In The Works Of Hayao Miyazaki, Jolie Finley

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Defamiliarized Gender in the Works of Miyazaki Hayao argues that the films of Hayao Miyazaki portray unconventionally strong female protagonists through a process called defamiliarization. Defamiliarization is a literary technique that transforms familiar qualities to ones that seem strange and new to the audience. Miyazaki borrows from and rejects elements of Japanese culture to create characters and settings that evoke the defamiliarization of gender in the films Spirited Away and Kiki’s Delivery Service. Examples of this in Miyazaki’s works include allusions to historical figures of the opposite gender in his own characters and presenting fantastical creatures of Japanese folklore …

Examining The Impact Of Holistic Practices On Lgbtqia+ Wellness, Airelle Railley

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

The project involved surveying the before and aftereffects of holistic healing for ten undergraduate Kentuckians who identify as LGBTQIA+. The purpose of the project was to heighten and expand the LGBTQIA+ participants experience with holistic and wellness care, by utilizing on or off campus wellness activities. Those ten participants were split into two groups of five. The control group was lightly “encouraged” to attend any health and wellness activities. The intervention group was required to attend at least one yoga session per week. Each participant was instructed to complete and submit documentation each month. Those documents included surveys and monthly …

Terror Management Theory And Legislation: An Analysis Of How Patterns Evolve And Change, Elizabeth Roth

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Recent legislation passed in states including Georgia, Florida, and Kentucky have included clauses that govern “divisive” material and the manner in which this material is discussed, particularly in schools. The term “divisive” is never truly defined beyond content that is “patently offensive to prevailing standards.” The emphasis has been placed on the fact that students should not be biased by the information that they are taught or allowed to access, but definitions are lax as to what constitutes inappropriate information. The loose criteria as to what counts as “unsuitable” opens up divisive material to easy censorship based on partisan and …

Taiwanese Women In And Out Of The Workforce: Perceptions Of Working Mothers And Their Roles, Josie Coyle

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

This thesis explores how Taiwanese citizens perceive women in the workforce and at home, with a specific focus on how working mothers in Taiwan are perceived. The first section provides a literature review of perceptions of women in and out of the workforce in Taiwan and how policies surrounding maternity leave and breastfeeding can impact these perceptions. The second section will detail the findings of an original survey that asks the Taiwanese respondents their opinions regarding women in the workforce, division of labor in the home, breastfeeding, and gender roles. The data shows that there may be a greater level …

Examining Gender Differences In Academia Within A Pandemic: Exploring The Relationship Among Social Comparisons, Emotional Demands, And Not Saying No, Mia Kendrick

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

The COVID-19 pandemic has had an evident impact on the workforce. Pandemicrelated job demands have been linked with an increase of emotional exhaustion (Barello et al., 2020) and burnout in healthcare workers (Cotel et al., 2021). Research suggests emotional demands and social comparison are associated with emotional exhaustion (Geisler et al., 2019; Tuxford & Bradley, 2015; Fischer, 2009; Buunk, et al., 2001). Furthermore, emotional exhaustion may be facilitated by not saying no to extra work demands. The relationship between social comparison behaviors, emotional demands, and not saying no may be different for male and female employees. Integrating the job demands-resources …

Will The Real News Reporters Please Stand Up?: A Study Of Bias In The Media, Hannah Claussen

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

The goal of my project is to define what news media bias is and examine its history and the effects it currently has on our country and democracy. I will examine its electoral effects as well as how media bias has contributed to lower trust in the news media as a whole.

My project will consist of a general news story on the subject of media bias; a smaller news story focusing on the history of media bias and public perception of the press; an abbreviated research paper on newspaper endorsements and their efficacy in a modern news landscape; and …

Comparison Of Effects Of Sleep Fragmentation On Pro-Inflammatory Cytokine Il-1Β Of Male And Female Adult Mice, Manzar Rzayeva

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Sleep plays an essential role throughout the body by affecting the physiological function and regulation of many systems. One of these systems that receives effects as a result of the adequacy of sleep is the immune system. Previous studies have demonstrated effects of sleep fragmentation upon the immune system; however, sexual differences of these effects have not been studied in depth. To analyze these variances amongst the genders, male and female adult mice were subjected to acute sleep fragmentation (SF) for 24 hours in an automated SF cage that includes a bar sweeping across the cage every two minutes. Meanwhile, …

Inflammatory Response To Sleep Fragmentation In Skeletal, Cardiac, And Smooth Muscle Tissues In Female Mice, Patton Allen

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Sleep is a critical process that the body undergoes. When sleep is interrupted, so that an individual is awakened for some period before going back into sleep, the sleep can be described as fragmented. Studies in the past have shown that sleep fragmentation (SF) promotes an inflammatory environment, especially in the brain and peripheral tissue. However, studies have not been conducted to observe inflammatory responses in muscle. To examine this, C57BL/6J female mice were subjected to either a control group (no SF) or a SF group which involved using an automated SF chamber to disrupt sleep every 2 min over …

Changes In The Zooplankton Community In Barren River Lake (South Central Ky) Between 2008 And 2020, Laurel Philpott

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Zooplankton are small aquatic animals that serve an important role in transferring energy from phytoplankton to higher trophic levels. The zooplankton community composition in Barren River Lake from 2008 and 2020 was compared. A field study was conducted to not only describe the seasonal population dynamics of zooplankton in Barren River Lake, but also to determine if an invasive zooplankton, Daphnia lumholtzi, was present. While D. lumholtzi was found throughout Barren River Lake in 2008, it was absent from both resampled sites in 2019 and 2020. This, along with erratic patterns of emergence in several other zooplankton species, indicates …

Effects Of Melatonin Implantation On The Activity Levels Of Captive Snow Buntings (Plectrophenax Nivalis), Zoë Ward

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

In vertebrates, melatonin regulates many components of the circadian rhythm; depending on the organism’s location and time of year, the pineal gland will produce melatonin accordingly, controlling the sleep-wake cycle and breeding physiologies. However, locations at the poles in which the sun is above the horizon for multiple days at a time pose unique challenges for the organisms living there. The goal of this study was to examine how the implantation of melatonin in an arctic-breeding songbird affects its activity levels and circadian rhythm. The subject of this study, the snow bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis), is a small songbird …

Kentuckians' Perception Of The Environment And Use Of Outdoor Public Spaces, Grace Herrmann

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Understanding how people perceive the environment and built public outdoor spaces is valuable in determining the direction of future development in the state. Further, understanding the emotions relating to the environment, both the natural and built public environments is instrumental in guiding future planning. This project aimed to understand Kentuckians’ perception of the environment and their use of public outdoor spaces such as parks, farmer markets, bike lanes, and walking paths through the use of a digital survey. Respondents to this survey are Kentuckians over the age of 18. The digital survey was split into four sections. The first section …