Life Sciences Commons^™

The Sixty-Six Percent, Natalie Abruzzo

Capstones

The Sixty-Six Percent represent the percentage of women in the U.S. who are overweight. They are regarded as full-figured or “plus” size in the world of women’s apparel. Even though more than half of American women wear a “plus” size - size 14 and up - designs for these women account for a fraction of women’s apparel - Only 37% of women's wear is plus-size.

The Sixty-Six Percent is coming at an important time in a broader conversation about de-stigmatizing what it means to be a plus-size woman in America. Fat shaming has become taboo and mainstream media as well …

The Integration Of African Americans In The Civilian Conservation Corps In Massachusetts, Caitlin E. Pinkham

Graduate Masters Theses

The Civilian Conservation Corps employed young white and black men between the ages of eighteen and twenty-five. In 1935 Robert Fechner, the Director of the Civilian Conservation Corps, ordered the segregation of Corps camps across the country. Massachusetts’ camps remained integrated due in large part to low funding and a small African American population. The experiences of Massachusetts’ African American population present a new general narrative of the Civilian Conservation Corps. The Federal government imposed a three percent African American quota, ensuring that African Americans participated in Massachusetts as the Civilian Conservation Corps expanded. This quota represents a Federal acknowledgement …

Where Is The Warfare? The Impact Of Sola Scriptura On Science And Religion Dialogue, William James Richardson

Senior Theses

I have two aims with the publication of this thesis. The first is to contribute to the recent scholarly work that seeks to discredit the popular, yet fallacious, warfare model of science and religion. A nuanced investigation shows that the warfare evident in popular discourse cannot easily be attributed to a conflict between the essence of science and religion. Rather “science” and “religion” are interpreted as something else entirely. The New Atheists equate science with scientism, and religion is often associated with the Biblical inerrantism of many Protestant Christians. Both ideologies are grounded in an empiricist epistemological framework founded by …

Towards A Framework For Reproductive Violence”, Caitlyn Kelty-Huber

All Student Scholarship

Since the inception of ecofeminist discourse in the 1970’s, ecofeminists and feminists alike have been divided on their stances toward the ethics of consuming the bodies and by-products of other animals. A powerful cohort of ecofeminists, in part comprised by such scholars as Marti Kheel, Lori Gruen, Greta Gaard, and Carol J. Adams, have done a tremendous amount of work to situate a concern for more-than-human animals within ecofeminism and beyond. Unfortunately, as Cusack highlights, feminism’s failure to both recognize the parallel oppression of “dairy” cows and female farmed animals, and to thoughtfully incorporate that knowledge into feminist praxis has …

Disentangling Embodied Cognition: An Examination Of The State, Problems, And Possibilities Of Embodied Cognition, Cody Cash

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Embodied cognition has received a fair amount of attention in philosophical, neuroscientific, and robotic research during the past several decades, yet the precise nature of its goals, methods, and claims are unclear. This dissertation will ascertain and examine the primary themes in the field of embodied cognition as well as why, and if, they offer significant challenges to traditional cognitive science models. Though many theories believe they are providing accounts that should replace traditional models, to do so they will have to overcome the very difficult challenge of arguing that mental content and capabilities derived from sensorimotor activity can continue …

Identifying Humanized Ecosystems: Anthropogenic Impacts, Intentionality, And Resource Acquisition At Crystal River (8ci1) And Roberts Island (8ci41), Charles Trevor Duke

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The impact of human activity on ecosystems is an issue at the forefront of global concern. Marine ecosystems are a particular concern, given their importance for human sustenance. Through the removal of species that are highly susceptible to the effects of overfishing, global fisheries have been driven to near collapse in recent decades. The long-term effects of such practices has resulted in declines in mean trophic level of aggregate fish catches over time, as well as decreasing diversity of species available for regular harvest (Jackson et al. 2001; Pauly et al. 1998). These supposedly “modern” problems have been recently identified …

Musical Regularity And Rhythmic Patterns: A Quantitative Analysis Of Birdsong Structure, Eathan Ezra Janney

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Birdsong is a complex, learned behavior that, like music, has meaningful units at multiple timescales. Birds perform by constructing extended presentations of their phrase repertoire. Each bird's repertoire is built from small units, such as syllables, or groups of syllables with characteristic pitch, rhythm, and timbre. Like a musician each bird has its unique structure of performance that communicates its individual identity. Also contained within a bird's performance, is information about its group identity and species identity. Like a musician's performance, a bird's singing affects the behavioral state of listeners'birds perform to attract mates and defend territory.

Subjectively, many can …

The Inconstancy Of Bodies: Yvonne Meier's Works, 1985 ' 2012, Lindsey Ann Drury

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

What is ability? And conversely, what is disability? This research on the dancer and choreographer Yvonne Meier theorizes that her more than 30-year career has challenged the oft perceived polarities between function and dysfunction, utility and futility through the physical actions of dance performances. As she developed as a dancer and choreographer, Meier engaged in forms of movement training that pledged to expand her ability by unearthing the hidden causes and effects of actions. And yet, she created works which foregrounded the very gaps in knowledge between acts, their intentions, and effects. The fundamental disability expressed through Meier's works is …

Protecting Ecosystems, Culture, And Human Rights In Chile Through Indigenous And Community-Conserved Territories And Areas, William G. Crowley

Capstone Collection

In environmental conservation circles around the world, the contributions of indigenous peoples and local communities to the sustainable maintenance of ecosystems and natural resources are being given increased attention. Whether for cultural, spiritual, economic, or other purposes, the use of traditional and local knowledge of habitat and resource management is slowly making its way into the modern environmental movement, and is being incorporated into the dominant conservation paradigms. These managed areas, known as Indigenous and Community-Conserved Territories and Areas, or ICCAs, are defined by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as “natural and/or modified ecosystems containing significant biodiversity …

Mourning Wave: Grieving The Loss Of The Natural Environment, Kayla Stewart

MAIS Projects and Theses

Informed and inspired by the sudden passing of my uncle, Mourning Wave is a physical manifestation of my own experience with grief as it relates to the natural environment. My own personal grief opened the door to experiencing collective grief. Constructed as a wave-shaped altar composed of discarded plastic, Mourning Wave aims to highlight the role of oceanic plastic debris in relation to the damage being done to the environment by humans. The wave is painted black, a traditional color of mourning. Colorful discarded plastic lies within the crest of the wave. This debris was collected several times as a …

If You Don’T Want To Talk About Food, Don’T Sit Next To Me, Judith L. Polk

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

If You Don’t Want to Talk About Food, Don’t Sit Next to Me has as its main characters the same qualities taken from the new philosophy of Le Cordon Bleu: “Aspire, Discover, Flourish, Delight, and Thrive,” and the memories made while a full-time student.

Insomniac Of The Soil: A Collection Of Poetry And Essays, Sarah E. Golibart

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

“Insomniac of the Soil” is a homage to a landscape that has deeply informed Sarah Golibart's life and her artistic voice – the tidewater flatlands of Virginia’s Chesapeake Bay peninsula where her family lives and where Golibart has worked on farms since high school. Both her poems and essays are earthy, imagistic, and grounded – quite literally – in the soil as well as in a sensibility of ecological ethics and sustainability. “Insomniac of the Soil” is also a love song to the fervent and fallow cycles of the soil.

Shepherding Electric Sheep: A Roman Catholic Response To The Emerging Challenge Of Transhumanism, Joshua St.Onge

Master of Arts in Religious Studies (M.A.R.S. Theses)

Transhumanism is a philosophical, political, and social movement that asserts that human well-being will be dramatically improved through the radical integration of new technologies into the human body and/or through the replacement of the organic human body with a synthetic 'body.' Ray Kurzweil, a dynamic, articulate, and leading transhumanist, offers an anthropological understanding that represents the main strand of transhumanist though about the human person: humans are patterns of information that can adjust themselves, and overcoming limitations is the defining human characteristic. This anthropology is implicit in many aspects of Western civilization already: law, medicine, and the military are a …

Move, Interact, And Connect Personally Barter Theatre’S Project Real Gets Implicit In Order To Learn, Megan E. Atkinson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Body movement, hands-on activity, embodiment, social interaction, emotions, and self-reflection allow teaching artists of Barter’s Theatre’s Project REAL to conduct a lesson with an implicit learning experience as the focus. Barter Theatre’s Project REAL exists as a theatre for education program that collaborates with regular classroom teachers on delivering the curriculum through specific theatre exercises in order to connect the material personally to the students’ lives. Theatre tools provide a human experience that enhances learning for the student by use of kinesthetic movement, social learning, emotions and interpersonal skills. To understand the effects of Barter Theatre’s Project REAL, the director …

Presence-At-Hand, Eric Lyle Schultz

Graduate School of Art Theses

Abstract

The writing that follows is intended to provide a theoretical framework for the motives behind my practice. The primary concerns addressed are the reception, transmission, and physical shape of knowledge. I will discuss a human condition that exists as a byproduct of both the legacy of representation as well as the innate biology of the brain. I will argue that as a society we are governed by the residue of an extreme logic, and that this condition places severe margins on our potential for creative solutions. I will propose that our ability to create meaning is stifled by the …

An Exploration Of The Societal Impact Of Neuroethics In Scientific And General Communities, Katelyn Marie Edel

Honors Capstone Projects - All

Neuroethics serves as a roadmap for maneuvering the difficult and often personal concerns that arise concurrently with advancements in neuroscience. It is important to consider these issues at present and to take a proactive, rather than reactive, approach towards assuaging fears and hesitations related to the quickening applications of neuroscience into the non-scientific community. This Capstone explores recent suggestions made by prominent scholars in the neuroethics field related to the integration of neuroscience into society. Three cogent issues in neuroscience are discussed, with a focus on the possible effects that neuroscientific advancements have on society. Using a framework of human …

Extended Scaffolding: A More General Theory Of Scaffolded Cognition, Zachary R. Murphy

Open Access Theses

New and emerging technologies called neuroprostheses are challenging our ideas about where one's mind ends and the environment begins. Cochlear implants, which completely replace the functioning of the inner ear, are now a common treatment for deafness. Berger et al. developed a device that replaces long-term memory in rats (2012), while Hampson et al. created a brain-machine interface that converts a desire to move one's arm into the motor neuron impulses required to achieve that movement (2013)--both offering promising treatments for dementia, Alzheimer's disease, and paralysis. Deep brain stimulation is now a common way of regulating neural activity to manage …

Assessing The Spatial Variability Of Soils In Uganda, Joshua Okach Minai

Open Access Theses

Uganda's soils were once considered the most fertile in Africa, but soil erosion and soil nutrient mining have led to soil degradation and declining agricultural productivity. Lack of environmental awareness among farmers, traditional agricultural practices, minimal inorganic fertilizer use, and little to no use of improved crop varieties all contribute to continued soil degradation. The objectives of this study were: (1) to characterize the spatial distribution of selected physical and chemical soil properties in Uganda on a national scale utilizing the data collected by Nkonya et al. (2008), and (2) to identify the major factors and processes that are dominant …

Socio-Economic Factors Associated With The Adoption Of Conservation Agriculture Among Women Farmers In Balaka District, Malawi, Chimwemwe M. Chisenga

Open Access Theses

The study was conducted in Balaka District, Malawi among women farmers. The study focused on three research questions: What socio-economic factors are associated with the rate of adoption of conservation agriculture among women farmers in Balaka District, Malawi? What are the levels of adoption of conservation agriculture among women farmers in Balaka District, Malawi? What are the main sources of information for conservation agriculture among women farmers in Balaka District, Malawi that lead to adoption of CA? Quantitative data were collected using a door-to-door survey. The survey was verbally administered to 60 women farmers. ^ Qualitative data were collected through …

Similarities And Differences Between Heterosexual And Homosexual Couples Based On Marq Data, Kraig S. Shattuck

Wayne State University Theses

There has been a lack of comparative research on homosexual couples, comparing them to heterosexual couples, which is also grounded in solid theory. In order to remedy this, evolutionary theory is used to make predictions on similarities and differences between heterosexual and homosexual couples within three domains, relationship satisfaction, jealousy, and mate guarding. It was predicted that 1) homosexual couples would not differ from heterosexual couples in relationship satisfaction; 2) some gender differences relating to jealousy would be the same and some would be reversed in homosexual individuals; 3) mate guarding would be present, but lower, in homosexual individuals as …

Is Colorado Buddhism Green? A Study Of The Interaction Of Buddhist Practice With Environmental Concerns, Mengye Liu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The human community is paying more attention to our growing environmental crisis. Religious beliefs are often proposed as effective ways to address environmental ethics. It is often supposed that Buddhism is a "green" religion because of its intimate associations with nature. My research focuses on whether or not Buddhism in Colorado influences Buddhist practitioners' environmental awareness by identifying and evaluating Buddhist ecological attitudes and values. My research questions include: (1) what aspects of Buddhist practice refer to the elements of natural environment, (2) do Buddhist practitioners profess different attitudes and behaviors than non-Buddhist practitioners, and (3) If so, how does …

The Use Of Oral History And Narrative Research In Broadening The Historical Foundation Of The Agricultural Communication Field, Natalie L Federer

Open Access Dissertations

The historical foundation of the agricultural communication community (consisting of both academics and the profession) is shallow and void of humanistic perspective, and there is a minimal amount of historical content that focuses on academic and professional history. The need to explore and interpret historical dimensions of this field is vital to further development of the discipline as an academic and professional field. Oral history was utilized to capture and preserve the interview content from a small sample of agricultural communication and Extension professionals and faculty while narrative research, interpretative theory, and constructivism were utilized to further understand and interpret …

Processing Of Language Switches In Bilingual Individuals With Aphasia: An Event-Related Potential Comparison, Lizette Rodarte

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Switching between languages, or code-switching, is a common phenomenon in bilingual individuals. In proficient bilinguals, these switches are done with ease and are used for many purposes. Contrary to popular belief, these switches are rule-governed and follow grammatical structure. Bilingual individuals diagnosed with aphasia present with difficulty processing languages and these language switches. With the increase in bilingual individuals, it is likely that the speech-language pathology community will see an increase of bilingual individuals with aphasia on their caseload. For this reason, the purpose of this study is to increase our understanding of the neural processes involved in processing of …

Primary Factors Affecting Breastfeeding In African American Communities, Lowest Jefferson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Prior research has shown that African Americans are less likely than are Hispanics and Whites to breastfeed their children. Compounding this problem is the scarcity of research that examines African American's culture, perceptions, and beliefs about breastfeeding. This study was conducted to gain a greater understanding of the phenomenon of breastfeeding through the perspectives of African American mothers. Guided by the theories of reasoned action and planned behavior, this ethnographic study elicited African American mothers' perspectives on breastfeeding by examining what influenced their decision to breastfeed or not. This study took place in Washington State. Ten women recruited through purposeful …

Effect Of Neighborhood Features On Bmi Of African American Adolescents In South Los Angeles, Francisca Omelogo Obiora

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Childhood obesity is a major national and worldwide public health crisis. The occurrence of childhood obesity, caused to large extent by an imbalance between caloric intake and caloric expenditure, has increased in the last 30 years. Although the prevalence of obesity has stabilized in recent years, it remains a top public health concern in the United States, especially in urban centers. The purpose of this study was to examine the associations between diet, physical activity, and the built environment in relation to the mean body mass index (BMI) of adolescents aged 12 to 17 years living in South Los Angeles, …

Speed And Resolution In The Age Of Technological Reproducibility, Shawn Taylor

Theses and Dissertations

The rate of acceleration of the biologic and synthetic world has for a while now, been in the process of exponentially speeding up, maxing out servers and landfills, merging with each other, destroying each other. The last prehistoric relics on Earth are absorbing the same oxygen, carbon dioxide and electronic waves in our biosphere as us. A degraded .jpeg enlarged to full screen on a Samsung 4K UHD HU8550 Series Smart TV - 85” Class (84.5” diag.). Within this composite ecology, the ancient limestone of the grand canyon competes with the iMax movie of itself, the production of Mac pros, …

Reducing Subjectivity: Meditation And Implicit Bias, Diana M. Ciuca

CMC Senior Theses

Implicit association of racial stereotypes is brought about by social conditioning (Greenwald & Krieger, 2006). This conditioning can be explained by attractor networks (Sharp, 2011). Reducing implicit bias through meditation can show the effectiveness of reducing the rigidity of attractor networks, thereby reducing subjectivity. Mindfulness meditation has shown to reduce bias from the use of one single guided session conducted before performing an Implicit Association Test (Lueke & Gibson, 2015). Attachment to socially conditioned racial bias should become less prevalent through practicing meditation over time. An experimental model is proposed to test this claim along with a reconceptualization of consciousness …

Dispersal: A Multidisciplinary Investigation Of Plant Life, Alexandra E. Arzt

Theses and Dissertations

Using plants as a basis for exploring the interstices between the human and nonhuman, this thesis investigates ideas of awareness, intelligence, deep time, animism, and the fluctuating human perception of the agency of Nature. It outlines environmental art practices since the 1950s involving vegetal life. In addition, the paper provides a critical analysis of plant perception of Jakob von Uexküll’s work and theories of vital materialism and “critical plant studies” while noting recent studies in plant neurobiology. In my work, plants become active participants via their movement, seeding, and smell. This study takes the form of imitation, purposeful symbiosis, anthropomorphism, …

School Gardens: Cultivating A Child’S Nutritional Habits, Environmental Knowledge, And Sustainability Practices, Jeffrey Meltzer

Honors Theses

School gardens have existed since the late nineteenth century and today are becoming increasingly popular in many parts of the world, including where I studied in Maine and Australia (AUS). Multiple organizations support school gardens in Maine, including the Maine School Garden Network, which has over 125 registered school gardens. In AUS, the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation primarily supports the school garden movement and has over 800 registered school gardens. While many researchers have studied school gardens, few have compared two countries, focused on environmental sustainability, or investigated Maine in particular. This thesis combines information from literature reviews, and …

Supporting A Growing Agricultural Economy By Understanding Child Care In Farm Families, Emily Stengel

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

This thesis argues for the consideration of child care accessibility and costs as one factor in the success and wellbeing of farmers in the United States. There is a long tradition in rural studies of recognizing that farms are not just economic enterprises but are family-based social enterprises as well, with household level issues and family roles that are both acknowledged and contested. However, child care is missing from virtually all scholarly and public discussions of agricultural workforce development - even more so than other social services and family supports. Additionally, the agricultural sector, considered as a portion of U.S. …