Digital Commons Network^™

Moral Distress As A Predictive Variable Of Perceived Job Retention In Senior Nursing Students, Rebekah L. Barber

Honors College Theses

New Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) graduate nurses are leaving careers within inpatient healthcare facilities presumably because of moral distress related to the anticipated workload of registered nurses (RN). BSN curriculums are responsible for providing practical education through clinical instruction; however, many students experience inconsistencies in best practice recommendations. The inconsistencies predominantly originate between didactic nursing instruction and clinical learning within inpatient healthcare facilities. Using a cross-sectional descriptive research design, this thesis utilized the validated Moral Distress Scale-Revised (MDS-R), a 21-item instrument that assesses the frequency and intensity of moral distress experienced by healthcare workers. Student responses to the …

Examining The Relationship Between Government Corruption And Internet Freedom In The Republic Of Turkey, Savannah C. Warren

Honors College Theses

Government corruption is a problem found in varying degrees in almost every country around the world. Corruption can be defined as the misuse of public office for private gain. Some examples of government corruption are bribery, theft and tax evasion which all can be found in developing countries costing them trillions of dollars every year. The goal of the current study is to explore the relationship between government corruption and the role of internet freedom, using Turkey as a case study. Internet freedom is a broad term that includes having Internet access, digital rights, net neutrality, and freedom of information. …

Diversity Of Choral Festival Literature And The Selection Process, Abigail L. Mcmichen

Honors College Theses

In music education, festival events are a chance to receive feedback from experts in the field. Often, these events have literature lists from which directors are required to choose literature for the event. With choral festivals being so prevalent in music education, the literature lists provided to choral music educators have a major impact on young singers. Literature selection can be intense for choral music educators who decide what factors to consider when selecting literature. The purpose of this study was to explore and analyze the diversity of choral literature through analysis of the Georgia LGPE list while also gaining …

The Automated Wheelchair, Jonathan Doksa Kamba Ngoyi

Honors College Theses

Automation refers to the use of technology to execute tasks through programmed instructions and automated control mechanisms to ensure accurate execution. This minimizes human involvement and encompasses various fields, including business process automation. A notable form of automation is assistive technology, which refers to any device or software that enhances individuals' learning, communication, or overall functionality. This can range from advanced tools like computers to simpler aids like walking sticks. Assistive technology aims to promote inclusivity and participation, particularly among individuals with disabilities, the elderly, and those with non-communicable diseases.

The Automated Airport Wheelchair is a culmination of prior projects …

Restricted At Home, Impeded Abroad: A Study Of Domestic Human Rights Practices And Women’S Global Economic Power, Cameron Elizabeth Cheatham

Honors College Theses

To what extent does the practice of human rights as universal or culturally relative impact women’s status in the global economy? While there is already evidence to show how women have less power in countries that practice culturally relative human rights, this study aims to explore how the domestic practice of human rights influences women’s global power through an analysis of women’s financial inclusion. Using a cross-national, quantitative analysis, I show that human rights practices in the domestic arena directly impact the economic power of women in the global economy. When human rights practices at home are more universal in …

Is There Really Anything Wrong With That? An Aristotelian Analysis Of Duty, Luke J. Mcgrath

Honors College Theses

In the iconic Seinfeld series finale, Jerry, George, Elaine, and Kramer find themselves in a peculiar legal predicament when they mock a crime rather than intervene to help the victim. The show’s commitment to portraying reality, even in its finale, vividly demonstrates the potential consequences of a society lacking the legal obligation to aid others. This comical incident raises a thought-provoking question about the legitimacy of duty-to-act laws in the United States. This thesis examines the application of Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics to the concept of duty-to-act laws and argues for the necessity and benefits of such laws in promoting a …

Analyzing Prominent Genes In Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia (All), Shima Z. Omar

Honors College Theses

Acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) is the most common type of childhood cancer. Leukemia is a type of cancer that involves the bone marrow and blood. This research study examined prominent genes in the disease. Two groups of genes, tumor suppressor and cell differentiation, were compared using statistical analysis to compare their binding potential and epigenetic potential. It is most likely that I failed to detect significant differences either because these genes’ function in the disease etiology is not strongly contexed to changes in expression, or that the magnitude of the differences were too slight to be detected with these methods. …

Diet And The Role It Plays In Cognition, Ryan S. Lavrisa

Honors College Theses

The Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations have calculated the effects of animal agriculture and factory farming to be responsible for generating 14.5-16.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions as well as using 70% of all agricultural land to sustain itself. Plant-based diets such as veganism and vegetarianism have been on the rise as many seek to find diets that mitigate the animal suffering and environmental impact for which animal agriculture is responsible. With the rise of these diets, it is important to understand the cognitive effects adhering to such diets can have on the body and mind, as …

A Study On The Correlation Between The Study Habits Of Nursing Students And Perceived Exam Anxiety, Rebecca A. Bracken

Honors College Theses

Anxiety is a concept very familiar to many university students. This especially applies to students who have decided to major in nursing. With the knowledge and experiences that accompany attending nursing school, come a series of rigorous, high-stakes exams. Nationwide, many students share a common struggle to be successful on these exams, which often leads to a sense of anxiety that becomes associated with one's experience during testing, known as test anxiety. A study across multiple baccalaureate nursing school cohorts was completed to determine a correlation between the various methods used by nursing students to prepare for an exam and …

Global Perceptions Of Space: The Interior Designer's Role, Ansley C. Elliott

Honors College Theses

Interior designers need to show and share awareness of cultural inclusivity in design solutions to create a positive experience for all end users. In order to do this, interior designers need to gain an understanding of how people from various geographical locations perceive space and, as a result, behave and connect in public environments. This study explored existing literature on human factors in design, such as proxemics, territoriality, anthropometrics, cultural dimensions in business practices, and inclusivity in design. The research methodology included a Qualtrics survey on cultural background and demographic data; three-dimensional renderings of a public restaurant and a workplace; …

For The Love Of Stories: Re-Examining Academia’S Responsibility In Presenting Literature In The 21st Century, April Trepagnier

Honors College Theses

Angus Fletcher, a neuroscientist who hung up his lab coat to earn a Ph.D. in literature from Yale, studies stories as, “a narrative-emotional technology that helped our ancestors cope with the psychological challenges posed by human biology...an invention for overcoming the doubt and the pain of just being us.” But students entering college are losing interest in this “technology.” A 2017 report by the American Academy of Arts and Science showed a “statistically significant decline” in the number of English graduates from 2011-2012 to 2016-2017. Peter Barry, Professor Emeritus of English at Aberystwyth University, may offer insight into this trend. …

Excavating The Strata Of (Some) Of Archaeology's Problems And Applying Feminist Solutions, Kristin M. Dew

Honors College Theses

Over the past thirty years, feminist scholars in archaeology have gained a foothold in the discipline. Conkey and Spector's “Archaeology and the Study of Gender” (1984) is often credited with being the turning point for the topic of gender in archaeology. Still, there is more ground to gain. I argue for a fully engendered archaeology by understanding that achieving this will be difficult due to the past and current sociopolitics of American archaeology. Historically, mainstream archaeology has viewed feminist epistemologies, like those on which gender archaeology is based, as simply a standpoint, creating a disconnect identifying their importance. Despite these …

Steam Gasification Of Biochar To Produce Hydrogen-Rich Syngas, Nnamdi Ofuani

Honors College Theses

A key greenhouse gas (GHG) emission contributing to climate change is carbon dioxide (CO₂) emission. This emission is largely due to the use of fossil fuel as a major energy source. Biomass is an alternative energy source. Biochar, a byproduct of the pyrolysis process (of biomass), could be gasified to produce syngas (a mixture of CO and H₂). This syngas can further be used to produce different kinds of fuels like biodiesel, bio-gasoline, bioethanol, etc. In the steam gasification of biochar, the quality and yield of syngas is dependent on parameters such as temperature, particle size, …

Self-Care In Mental Health: A Study On The Effectiveness Of Self Care For Overall Mental Wellbeing, Amy C. Branson

Honors College Theses

Studies have shown that self-care can be very effective in the treatment of different mental health issues. The purpose of this study is to test the effectiveness of three common self-care techniques (sleep, diet, and exercise) on the overall mental health and wellbeing of college students. This research consists of two surveys that collect data on self-care habits and current mental health, interposed by a two-week period of implementing positive changes to one of the self-care methods. This study used voluntary response sampling. The survey was be administered online to students at Georgia Southern University. The survey data was collected …

Photodynamic Therapy Agents: The Power Of Mjöllnir To Eradicate Cancer, Sidney M. Hopper

Honors College Theses

After its discovery back in the 1900s, photosensitizers became a critical study for potential treatments and cures for medical issues, including cancer. It was discovered that porphyrins appeared to target and accumulate in proliferating cells, and to reach the cells, a certain wavelength of light with maximum absorbance associated with the porphyrin was necessary to achieve cell death. Photodynamic therapy involves making use of porphyrins or metalloporphyrins as activators when exposed to such light. When activated, these compounds generate reactive oxygen species (ROS), such as HO- or O2-, which can react with nucleic acids found in DNA and RNA. In …

What Are The Impacts Of Deer Browsing And Japanese Stiltgrass (Microstegium Vinenium) On Native Sapling Growth In A Residential Wetland In Southeastern Georgia?, Josie Richards

Honors College Theses

Wetlands promote biodiversity, act as climate stabilizers, and regulate water flow, yet are vulnerable to invaders. An invasive species can affect the biodiversity, abiotic conditions, and increase vulnerability of an ecosystem over time and deer browsing can actively affect new growth by removing the apical buds of young woody vegetation. Japanese stiltgrass (Microstegium vimineum), a wetland specific invader, has been shown to compete against native species for limited resources and actively crowd them out. Growth of native saplings can be further complicated by the presence of white tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), which browse woody vegetation and limit recruitment of trees. …

Innovative Research For Phosphorus Recovery In Freshwater Sediments, An Experimental Framework, John D. Collins

Honors College Theses

Phosphorus, a finite element, is necessary for all living organisms and directly impacts biota growth as well as productivity in freshwaters. The demand for phosphorus is continually increasing, but the supply of phosphorus is continually decreasing. In response to depleting resources, phosphorus in surface water sediments is being explored as a sustainable solution to the forecasted phosphorus shortage. Phosphorus in sediments is generally bound to oxidized iron (Fe3+) forming iron phosphate complexes. This form of phosphorus is released when iron reduces to Fe2+ in anaerobic environments. Under such conditions, soluble phosphorus (i.e., orthophosphate) may then be recovered using compounds that …

A Proof-Of-Concept Study For An Elastohydrodynamic Seal Design, Cameron M. Stuart

Honors College Theses

Supercritical CO₂ (sCO₂) power cycles are superior to traditional water based, air-breathing, direct-fired, open Brayton cycles or indirect-fired, closed Rankine cycles in terms of efficiency and equipment size. They hold great potential in fossil fuel power plants, nuclear power production, solar power, geothermal power, and ship propulsion. To unlock the potential of sCO₂ power cycles, utilized technology must withstand 10–600 MWe and at sCO₂ temperatures and pressures of 350–700℃ and 20–35 MPa for nuclear industries. Amongst many challenges at the component level, the lack of suitable shaft seals for sCO₂ operating conditions needs to …

Drone Control Using Bci Technology, Jeremie Otniel Kamba Kalunga

Honors College Theses

A drone, also known as an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), is a type of aircraft that is operated remotely or autonomously. The utilization of drones increased because it is now possible to use them to perform tasks that would be too complicated for human beings to do. Electroencephalograms (EEG) are generated by the electrical activity of the brain and can be measured by placing electrodes on the scalp. The idea of controlling drones using EEG signals refers to the use of EEG technology to control the movement of a drone. EEG signals are used to determine the user's intention and …

Utilization Of Machine Learning To Investigate Material State, Ana B. Abadie

Honors College Theses

The ability to predict material behavior that undergoes various loading conditions is critical to the development of reliable and safe components. Thermal and mechanical fatigue loading can cause significant damage to materials, leading to failure and potential safety hazards. Machine learning algorithms have emerged as a promising tool for improving accuracy and efficiency of predicting material behavior under such loading conditions. This research provides a comprehensive overview of a machine learning algorithm that is able to analyze and predict material state independently of the loading sequence. Unidirectional carbon fiber reinforced polymer (UD CFRP) composite which has undergone two different loading …

Cycle Time Reduction In Additive Manufacturing Using Peltier Thermoelectric Cooling Devices, Trevor Carlton

Honors College Theses

Thermoelectric cooling and the Peltier effect were discovered in 1834, over 188 years ago. Additionally, the first iterations of additive manufacturing (i.e., 3D printing) began in the early 1980s, more than 40 years ago. Despite these technologies’ age and years of advancements, the application of Peltier cooling-based devices in additive manufacturing has not yet been realized. These devices can be used for the active thermal management of print beds in 3D printers. Developing a mechanism to heat and cool a print bed can reduce the cycle time to manufacture a part. In 3D printing, waiting for the heated bed to …

Synthesis Of 2-Bromo-6-Alkylaminopyridines, 2,6-Dialkylaminopyridines, And Tren Based Ligands, Stephanie E. Carter

Honors College Theses

Extended metal atom chains (EMAC) are multimetallic complexes that feature a linear metal chain with metal-metal bonds surrounded by stabilizing ligand molecules. When EMACs are formed with paramagnetic metal ions, unique magnetic properties can be derived from direct metal to metal communication. The challenge is that EMAC complexes are challenging to synthesize due to the inherent weakness of most M-M bonds and the specificity of the ligands required to stabilize EMACs. In prior work by the Guillet group, the silyl aminopyridine (SAP) ligands were observed to stabilize very unique triiron complexes, but they were inherently unstable. In other work, scaffolded …

The Economic Impact Of The Cruise Ship Industry On Destination Port Countries During Covid-19, Katherine Snowberger

Honors College Theses

The travel and tourism industry was the fastest-growing industry in 2019. With more discretionary income available, many people spent their time traveling and exploring new cultures. One major sector of the travel and tourism industry is the cruise industry. In this sector of the industry, the clientele pays a flat fee to cover room, food, travel, and entertainment, which allows them to explore new and exciting ports of call. These port destinations rely heavily on tourism income to support their communities and infrastructure. This economic study aims to show how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted destination port cities and how …

The Effect Of Golf Bag Load Carriage On Lower Body Force Expenditure, Ryan Collins-Smith

Honors College Theses

Golf is one of the fastest growing sports worldwide and as one of the most difficult sports to excel at, every area of improvement is important. Load carriage, lower body force production, and perceived exertion are keys to improving. The purpose of this project was to investigate the influence of a variety of golf bag load carriage styles on vertical jump performance and perceived exertion. The different modes of golf bag load carriage were no golf bag (1), single-strap golf bag (2), double-strap golf bag above sacrum height (3), double-strap golf bag below sacrum height (4), and push cart for …

Bioinformatic Analysis Of Mirna Mechanisms In Circadian Rhythm Using A Zebrafish (Danio Rerio) Model, Layton F. Coursey

Honors College Theses

MicroRNAs are noncoding RNAs found in cells and the bloodstream, which help to maintain proper protein production and overall gene expression1. Typically, microRNAs bind to messenger RNA (mRNA) in the cell cytoplasm, acting as post-transcriptional regulators, and either degrade or repress mRNA2. Due to microRNAs playing a vital role in gene expression by repressing protein production of target genes, if they are underexpressed then the protein it regulates could be overexpressed as a result.

miRNAs have the potential to be biomarkers for numerous neurodegenerative diseases. Neurodegeneration can be seen in many forms such as Dementia, Alzheimer’s (AD), Huntington’s Disease (HD), …

Perspectives On Movement In The Classroom And Strategies That Keep Students Engaged, Darley Desormo

Honors College Theses

Within this study, the question of “what are teachers’ rationale for incorporating kinesthetic learning in the elementary classroom '' will be addressed. The purpose of this study is to gain insight from elementary teachers’ perceptions and their rationale on the use of movement-based learning in the classroom. To examine further into this research, interviews were conducted. Participants of the study were elementary classroom teachers. During seven online meetings, the researcher interviewed using consistent guiding questions asking elementary teachers about their implementation and rationale of movement-based learning in their classroom experiences. The researcher also asked questions to gain an understanding of …

Teaching Creativity In Standards-Based Classrooms: The Impact Of Personal Creative Writing To Teachers’ Perceptions Of Creativity In The Classroom, Katie Jones

Honors College Theses

Creative writing is rarely highlighted in public classrooms, yet it may be the key to development for both students and teachers. Due to restrictions such as time limitations, personal experience, pressures of testing, and more, teachers find creativity intimidating to teach. The Deep Center in Savannah, GA, a site of the National Writing Project, offers an intensive 10-day program for teachers that encompasses writing, creativity, and community. This qualitative case study utilizes the context of the Deep Center’s Writing Project as a background to analyze participants' perceptions of creativity in their classrooms and their own personal engagement in creative writing. …

The Gladius And The Katana: Viewing The Seven Samurai Through The Lens Of Roman Stoicism, Joseph White

Honors College Theses

This paper examines the concepts of traditional Bushido and Roman Stoicism as they relate to the unique interpretation of Bushido by Akira Kurosawa in the movie the Seven Samurai. I explain the main concepts of Bushido and Roman Stoicism, focusing upon the virtues of each, and their connection to Kurosawa’s view on how Bushido should be practiced. I then draw similarities between these two ways of life. I examine how the genre of film dealing with samurai deals with this question.

Structural Design And Fabrication Of A Test Chamber To Test Ppes For Effective Particle Filtration, Matthew G. Adharsingh

Honors College Theses

This research project aims to design and fabricate a test chamber for testing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to ensure effective particle filtration. The chamber has a special purpose, which is to measure ultrafine and submicron particles concentration in the air and test the ergonomic design of PPE based on its effective filtration. The project also considers the environmental aspects of the chamber such as the level of noise and vibration. The chamber will be designed to measure upstream and downstream particle count. Initially, the chamber was going to be made from wood, but the research team encountered difficulties in the …

Optimization Of A Simultaneous Localization And Mapping (Slam) System For An Autonomous Vehicle Using A 2-Dimensional Light Detection And Ranging Sensor (Lidar) By Sensor Fusion, Shaen Mehrzed

Honors College Theses

Fully autonomous vehicles must accurately estimate the extent of their environment as well as their relative location in their environment. A popular approach to organizing such information is creating a map of a given physical environment and defining a point in this map representing the vehicle’s location. Simultaneous Mapping and Localization (SLAM) is a computing algorithm that takes inputs from a Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) sensor to construct a map of the vehicle’s physical environment and determine its respective location in this map based on feature recognition simultaneously. Two fundamental requirements allow an accurate SLAM method: one being accurate …