Digital Commons Network^™

Exploring And Understanding Differences Between Deliberate And Impulsive Male And Female Burglars, Amber N. Sanders, Joseph B. Kuhns, Kristie R. Blevins

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Relying on rational choice theory, we compare burglars’ varying levels of offense planning to understand differences among types of burglars. Surveys were collected from a sample of incarcerated male and female burglars in three states. Participants answered questions detailing aspects of a burglary including motivations, target selection, deterrents, and techniques. Comparisons were made between 119 deliberate (32%) and 257 impulsive (68%) burglars. Deliberate burglars focused on obtaining cash, whereas impulsive burglars were more motivated by drug habits. Impulsive burglars were more easily dissuaded from a target when multiple obstacles are present. Burglars consider how many obstacles they may have to …

Mediation Of Eutrophication Of Surface And Subsurface Water From Non-Point Sources: Nutrient Monitoring At Meadowbrook Farm (Madison County, Kentucky), Walter S. Borowski, Jonathan M. Malzone

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Non-point sources from various human activities such as farming have replaced industrial point sources as contributors of many contaminants in surface and subsurface waters of the United States. Eastern Kentucky University’s Meadowbrook Farm (720 acres, ~2.9 km²; Madison County, Kentucky) is a teaching facility dedicated to improving farming techniques and discovering best practices for farm operations that include minimizing environmental impacts. Agricultural activities on the Farm contribute nutrients to the Muddy Creek (Kentucky River) watershed that promote eutrophication and degrade water quality. Farm management already uses protocols to mediate drainage of dissolved nitrogen off the Farm, but also …

Geochemical Characteristics And Storm Dynamics Of Surface Waters And Groundwater At Eastern Kentucky University’S Meadowbrook Farm, Madison County, Kentucky, Reid E. Buskirk, Walter S. Borowski, Jonathan M. Malzone

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Agricultural activities often contaminate watersheds with excess nutrients leading to poor water quality and eutrophication. Eastern Kentucky University’s Meadowbrook Farm raises crops and livestock, contributing dissolved nutrients to the neighboring Muddy Creek watershed. Consequently, the Farm is developing methods to sequester and limit nutrient contamination.

Before phosphorous sequestration methods can be tested, the geochemistry of surface water and groundwater on the Farm need to be better understood to determine hydrological pathways. We use naturally-occurring, dissolved cations as tracers to identify the contribution of different water sources and interpret storm events.

Water samples taken from springs (groundwater), surface water, and storm …

Lithology And Depositional Environments Of A Portion Of The Clays Ferry Formation (Middle And Upper Ordovician) Exposed At Silver Creek, Madison County, Kentucky, Autumn Murray, Walter S. Borowski

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

We measure, describe, and interpret a carbonate stratigraphic section within the Clays Ferry Formation (Middle and Upper Ordovician) cropping out in Madison County, Kentucky (USGS Kirksville 7.5” quadrangle). Outcrops are exposed within the bed of Silver Creek along Ky 876 (Barnes Mill Road) from ~100 m downstream of where a bridge crosses the stream, then upstream and upsection for a distance of ~300 m over several sets of falls until bedrock exposure becomes sporadic to absent. We sampled the stratigraphic section at approximately half-meter intervals, also taking samples at lithology changes. We collected a total 18 samples, all of which …

Nutrient Contamination From Non-Point Sources: Dissolved Nitrate And Ammonium In Surface And Subsurface Waters At Eku Meadowbrook Farm, Madison County, Kentucky, Reid E. Buskirk, Hunter R. Evans, Walter S. Borowski, Jonathan M. Malzone

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Agricultural activities often contaminate watersheds with excess nutrients leading to poor water quality and eutrophication. We assayed dissolved nutrient levels in surface and subsurface waters of Eastern Kentucky University’s Meadowbrook Farm in order to assess levels of dissolved nutrients leaving its farmland and draining into the Muddy Creek watershed. The Farm raises both crops and livestock so that nutrient sources include fertilizer and manure. We sampled springs, runoff, and subsurface pipe drainage as well as Muddy Creek on six days from May to August 2016 under a variety of weather conditions. Using established, standard colorimetric methods, we measured nitrate (NO …

Patterns Of Nutrient Export For A Typical Non-Point Source, Meadowbrook Farm, Madison County, Kentucky, James Scott Winter, Walter S. Borowski, Jonathan M. Malzone

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Excess nutrients are found in watersheds originating from active farmland often causing poor water quality and eutrophication in natural waters. Use of fertilizer and animal husbandry can contaminate both surface water and groundwater. Eastern Kentucky University’s Meadowbrook Farm raises crops and livestock and is typical of farms that contribute excess nutrient contaminants to watersheds as non-point sources. An instrumented weir is positioned within a key sub-watershed of the Farm that empties into Muddy Creek, a tributary of the Kentucky River. This drainage is the largest outlet from the Farm that is representative of the Farm’s collective activities.

We measured flow …

Nutrient Contamination From Non-Point Sources: Dissolved Phosphate In Surface And Subsurface Waters At Eku Meadowbrook Farm, Madison County, Kentucky, Hunter R. Evans, Reid E. Buskirk, Walter S. Borowski, Jonathan M. Malzone

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Farms are non-point sources for nutrient contaminants that drain into watersheds and contribute to eutrophication and other environmental problems. Eastern Kentucky University’s Meadowbrook Farm raises both crops and livestock, causing dissolved phosphorus in the form of orthophosphate (PO₄^3-) from fertilizer and animal manure to enter surface and subsurface waters, eventually flowing into Muddy Creek, a tributary of the Kentucky River.

We sampled surface water, springs, and water from French drains that emanate from the farm, and also sampled Muddy Creek waters from May through August 2016. Typically, 1 to 2 days after sampling, we colorimetrically measured dissolved …

Groundwater And Subsurface Water In A Landscape With Shallow Bedrock: Implications For Agricultural Nutrient Export, Laura Kelley, Hunter R. Evans, Reid E. Buskirk, Jonathan M. Malzone, Walter S. Borowski

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Controls on nutrient export from agricultural landscapes include regional hydrological and geological conditions. In many central Kentucky basins shallow fractured bedrock produces focused groundwater discharge and flashy runoff events. Eastern Kentucky University’s Meadowbrook Farm is currently experimenting with nutrient sequestration techniques; however the effectiveness of these techniques given the local hydrogeology needs to be quantified. Our objective was to determine the potential pathways for nutrient export by mapping key hydrologic features and using a watershed approach. The key features mapped were springs, tile drains, runoff channels, land use and the underlying geology. We chose a 0.46 km² watershed to …

Teaching Students To Be Spiritually Sensitive: Learning From A Spirituality Course Evaluation, Ann M. Callahan, Kalea Benner

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Rationale

The way educators address spirituality can create a sense of community or social isolation. This necessitates a spiritually sensitive approach that enables students to build spiritual competence. Spiritual competence reflects an understanding of how spirituality shapes human behavior, how spiritual diversity manifests and can lead to risk for discrimination, and how to communicate spiritual sensitivity in professional relationships (NASW, 2008, 2007). Research shows that educators have helped students explore themselves and others spiritually (Barker & Floersch, 2010; Johnston, Mamier, Bahjri, Anton, & Petersen; 2008), but more research is needed on how self-reflection informs spiritual competence (Hodge & Derezotes, 2008). …

Minimal Clinical Important Difference Of The Quick Disabilities Of The Arm, Shoulder, And Hand (Quickdash) For Post-Surgical Finger Phalanx Fractures, E. Smith-Forbes, Dana Howell, J. Willoughby, G. Pitts, T. Uhl

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Purpose: STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective, multiple-group observational design.

Objective: To determine the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) for the Quick Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand (QuickDASH) outcome measure, for post-surgical phalanx fracture diagnosis, using a triangulation of distribution-and-anchor-based approaches.

Background: The MCID for the QuickDASH has been established using a pool of multiple conditions, and specifically for the shoulder, and other diagnoses in the elbow and wrist, but not for post-surgical finger fracture. Understanding specific threshold change values for post-surgical finger fracture can enhance the clinical decision-making process.

Re-Designing A Practice Test Into A Game, Hung-Tao Chen, Michael Lee

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Practice testing is an effective learning strategy, but it can lead to increased test anxiety and often has low voluntary participation rate. This paper describes a case study on the effects of a re-designed practice test using game-like elements. The results indicate that the gamified practice test had a high student participation rate and showed improved test performance.

Not All Evidence Is Created Equal: Changes In Practice Require The Highest Possible Level Of Statistical Testing, Sandy Hunter

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

The practice of medicine has come a long way over the past 150 years. For example, routine use of leeches to remove “bad blood” no longer occurs, and everyone involved in healthcare knows to wear personal protective equipment.

Changes to practice have (at times) been slow in coming. However, we simply can no longer routinely rely on providing care without evidence that it works. Investigators conduct rigorous studies to determine the efficacy of treatments. This philosophy of testing clinical practices using research methods to validate their efficacy and safety is known as evidence-based medicine.1

Perceived Stress Levels May Impact Upper Extremity Function Among Women Treated For Breast Cancer, Mary Insana Fisher, Anne Fleischer, Kimbery Parent, Renee Roberts, Megan Mcclure, Lynn Hendricks

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Women treated for breast cancer report ongoing disability in their involved upper extremity, however, often objective measures do not appear to explain the level of perceived dysfunction. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between perceived stress level, fear of physical activity and self-reported upper extremity function among women treated for breast cancer.

Trends In The Environmental Health Job Market For New Graduates, Jason W. Marion, Timothy J. Murphy Phd, Anne Marie Zimeri Phd

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

The question of whether the job market can support future graduates of environmental health programs remains an important and difficult question for environmental health programs, current and prospective students, parents, and other stakeholders. Our previous report using 2014 data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics demonstrated anticipated growth and higher than average pay in the profession through at least 2022 for baccalaureate degree holders (Marion & Sinde, 2015). Growth in the profession does not necessarily translate into job availability if the market is saturated with job candidates. While university programs produce graduates, local health departments (LHDs) have suffered tremendous …

Mind Mapping: A Technique For Metacognition, Charlie Sweet, Hal Blythe, Rusty Carpenter

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

The Provost at Eastern Kentucky University invited Saundra McGuire to speak on metacognition as part of our University’s Provost’s Professional Development Speaker Series. Our unit was tasked with designing related programming both before and after McGuire’s visit. Our aim was to provide a series of effective workshops that prepared the ground for our university’s Quality Enhancement Plan 2.0 on metacognition as a cross-disciplinary tool for cultivating reading skills. The following mind mapping exercise from one of four workshops was taught to over 50 faculty from across campus and the academic ranks. Feedback rated its popularity high and suggested its appropriateness …

Ceo Political Ideology And Mergers And Acquisitions Decisions, Ahmed M. Elnahas, Kim Dongnyoung

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

We examine the relation between CEOs political ideology and their firms' investment decisions, particularly their M&A decisions. Employing individual financial contributions data for the period from 1993 to 2006, we find that firm's investment decisions vary with CEO's political ideology. Our evidence indicates that Republican CEOs are less likely to engage in M&A activities. When they do undertake acquisitions, they are more likely to use cash as the method of payment, and their targets are more likely to be public firms and to be from the same industry. Further, Republican CEOs tend to avoid high information asymmetry acquisitions that involve …

Amphibian Use Of Wetlands Created By Military Activity In Kisatchie National Forest, Louisiana, Usa., Stephen M. Ecrement, Stephen C. Richter

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Constructed wetlands can provide breeding habitat for amphibians and might offset the loss of natural wetlands. Although protecting natural systems is a priority, investigating and protecting constructed wetlands should also be included in amphibian conservation efforts. We surveyed 48 small wetland pools created from military tank training (i.e., tank defilades) on Kisatchie National Forest, Louisiana, USA. We conducted surveys monthly from April to October 2012 and March to September 2013. Across both years amphibian community composition consisted of eight frog species, and the most commonly found taxa were Cajun Chorus Frogs (Pseudacris fouquettei), Southern Leopard Frogs (Lithobates sphenocephalus), and Bronze …

Optimizing Critical Illness Outcomes Through The Family Experience-A Theoretical Review, Kirby P. Mayer, Samantha A. Mancuso, Dana M. Howell

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

An estimated six to eight million patients are admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) in the United States every year [1, 2]. It is possible that new and innovative medical therapies have provided patients with treatment options that enhance survival of a critical illness and allow them go home with more medical support than previously available in earlier years. This may explain why there are now millions of ICU survivors are a result of declining mortality rates (8-19%) even though there are increased ICU admissions [3, 4]. This also indicates a change in direction of the attitudes and beliefs …

The Diet Of The Cumberland Plateau Salamander (Plethodon Kentucki) In An Old Growth Forest Of Southeastern Kentucky, Jacob M. Hutton, Steven J. Price, Stephen C. Richter

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Examining the diet of salamanders is important for understanding their effects on invertebrate communities and the interactions among sympatric salamander species. We

examined the diet of the Cumberland Plateau Salamander, Plethodon kentucki (Mittleman), in an old growth forest in southeastern Kentucky. A total of 763 prey items were recovered from 73 salamanders with an average of 10.75 prey items per stomach. The four most important prey groups were Formicidae (ants), Araneae (spiders), Coleoptera (beetles), and Collembola (springtails). Overall, we found a total of 58 different prey types in the stomach contents from 20 invertebrate orders. This study represents one of …

Atomistic Quantum Transport Simulation Of Multilayer Phosphorene Nanoribbon Field Effect Transistors, Hojjatollah Sarvari, Chaoyuan Liu, Amir Hossein Ghayour, Parham Shenavar, Zhi Chen, Rahim Ghayour

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Few-layer black phosphorus is a semiconductor material, where its allotrope is called phosphorene; a new two-dimensional material which is discovered in 2014. In this paper, first we use the tight-binding method to implement a matrix representation for single-layer and multilayer structures of phosphorene nanoribbon (PNR) to define the Hamiltonian of the system. Second, we investigate the band structure and the band gap of multilayer PNRs. The band gap of armchair PNRs with 16 atoms across the width of PNR for single-layer, bilayer, and three-layer structures are obtained as 1.899, 1.224, and 0.937 eV, respectively. Third, we use the atomistic description …

The Recognition Problem For Table Algebras And Reality-Based Algebras, Allen Herman, Mikhail Muzychuk, Bangteng Xu

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Given a finite-dimensional noncommutative semisimple algebra A over C with involution, we show that A always has a basis B for which ( A , B ) is a reality-based algebra. For algebras that have a one-dimensional representation δ , we show that there always exists an RBA-basis for which δ is a positive degree map. We characterize all RBA-bases of the 5-dimensional noncommutative semisimple algebra for which the algebra has a positive degree map, and give examples of RBA-bases of C ⊕ M n ( C ) for which the RBA has a positive degree map, for all n …

Sensation Seeking Impact On Skin Conductance Measures Of Deception And Memory, Andrew David Manson, Suzanna Lagerroos, Phillip Janz, Adam Lawson, Jonathan Gore

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

We sought to determine whether sensation seeking would differentially predict measures of memory and deception (concealing information) as indexed by behavioral (response time, accuracy) and autonomic (skin conductance level) markers in a sample of college students. Participants were randomly assigned to a mock-crime group or an innocent-errand group. Both groups were trained to complete a task requiring the copying of documents from a secure location; the difference was the mock-crime group broke into the office whereas the errand group was given permission to enter the room and access the documents. After being trained to perform the crime or errand task, …

Regional Economic Integration In Mercosur: The Role Of Real And Financial Sectors, Hem C. Basnet, Gyan Pradhan

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

This study explores economic interdependence in Mercosur by examining common trends and common cycles among key macro-variables representing both the real and financial sectors of the economy. The serial correlation common features test reveals that the key macroeconomic variables (real output, investment, and intra-regional trade) share common trends in the long run suggesting that macroeconomic interdependence in the Mercosur economies is strong. The exchange rates demonstrate co-movement in the long run as they share a single common trend. These finding suggests that these economies cannot swing away from long-run equilibrium for an extended duration; they will be brought together by …

Lithology And Depositional Environments Of A Portion Of The Clays Ferry Formation (Middle And Upper Ordovician) Exposed At Silver Creek, Madison County, Kentucky, Autumn Murray

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

We measure, describe, and interpret a carbonate stratigraphic section within the Clays Ferry Formation (Middle and Upper Ordovician) cropping out in Madison County, Kentucky (USGS Kirksville 7.5” quadrangle). The total thickness of the measured section is 4.76 m. We sampled the stratigraphic section at approximately half-meter intervals, also taking samples at lithology changes. We collected a total 20 samples, all of which were slabbed, and then selected 12 samples for thin section analysis.

Observed lithologies represent discrete depositional environments. The rocks are dominantly limestones with some carbonate shales deposited in shallow-water depositional environments that are generally open-marine, subtidal with perhaps …

Towards A History Of Iran’S Baha’I Community During The Reign Of Mohammad Reza Shah, 1941-1979, Mina Yazdani

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

With the spread of the Baha’i religion in Iran since its tumultuous birth in that country in the middle part of the nineteenth century, the persecution of its followers has been a part of Iranian history.² As Abbas Amanat has shown, during the Qajar period (1785-1925), anti-Babi pogroms and campaigns usually occurred during provincial or national crises such as those caused by harvest failures, famines, and epidemics. The Babis (and later Baha’is) served as scapegoats to cover the state’s failure in relation to European economic and political intrusion. Drawing the attention of the public to the evils of this …

The Incidence Of Mrsa Infections In The United States: Is A More Comprehensive Tracking System Needed?, Kevin T. Kavanagh, Said Abusalem, Lindsay E. Calderon

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

A review of epidemiological studies on the incidence of MRSA infections overtime was performed along with an analysis of data available for download from Hospital Compare (https://data.medicare.gov/data/hospital-compare). We found the estimations of the incidence of MRSA infections varied widely depending upon the type of population studied, the types of infections captured and in the definitions and terminology used to describe the results. We could not find definitive evidence that the incidence of MRSA infections in U.S. community or facilities is decreasing significantly. Of concern are recent data reported to the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) on MRSA bloodstream infections which …

Parental Views On Sexual Education In Public Schools In A Rural Kentucky County, Tiffany R. Howard, Lauri J. Larkin, Michael D. Ballard, Molly A. Mckinney, Jonathan S. Gore

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Despite Kentucky having almost twice the national birth rate with 50 births per 1,000 female population ages 15-19 (County Health Rankings, 2015), the implementation of comprehensive sexual education in Kentucky public schools remains a controversial topic. This study examined parental attitudes regarding comprehensive sex education curriculum in a rural Kentucky middle school. A survey was distributed to a convenience sample population of parents (N=100) whose children were enrolled in a rural Appalachian middle school in grades 6th thru 8th. Data were analyzed using Chi square and multi-variate techniques. Of the 63 participants, 58.7% believed that sex education should begin in …

A Holistic Education Approach For Assessing Business Programs, Lana W. Carnes, Faridah Awang, Qian Xiao

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Providing business students with a holistic education is essential for developing professionals who are equally proficient in their use of hard and soft skills and capable of applying various concepts from different disciplines to create innovative solutions. To understand if students are learning the content that a holistic business education is intended to deliver, a case study of business program assessment was conducted. Specifically, this research is focused on an assessment of business students from a comprehensive regional institution of higher education to determine if the business program has incorporated appropriate assessment strategies in order to meet the expectations of …

Organizational Conflict Navigation: Building A Comprehensive Conflict Management Course, Beth Polin

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Conflict situations are unfortunately a naturally occurring phenomenon in the workplace. Whether it is an employee not voicing concerns because of fear of retaliation, team members not trusting one another, or companies negotiating terms of an agreement, conflict situations are ubiquitous. Because no organization is immune to conflict, employees must enter the workplace equipped with the knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) to appropriately navigate such situations. Companies recognize this need and call for graduates to possess this unique set of soft skills (e.g. Buhl, nd), as much efficiency can be lost when employees are focused on conflict and not its …

The Debate About Using Social Media To Screen Job Applicants, Marcel Robles

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

A simple web search of a person’s name on Social Media could point to multiple social media sites within minutes, and a variety of details can be found about someone, including photos and information about marital status, children, race, age, gender, religion, political affiliation, hobbies, and more (Davison, Hamilton, & Bing, 2012).

Many people may be posting personal information on social media sites with the intended audience of friends in mind, but often there is another audience that is not being considered, such as potential employers (Stoughton, Thompson, & Meade, 2013). As an inexpensive alternative to traditional background checks, many …