Digital Commons Network^™

Hegemonic Microtonality: Decolonizing The Soundscape Of Music Theory Pedagogy, Ash K. Wetty

Honors Theses

This thesis examines how Western music theory pedagogy—long organized around tonal and twelve-tone equal-temperament frameworks—structures both what is taught and how students are trained to listen. Through a literature review tracing the historical construction of tonal universality in undergraduate curricula, the project argues that dominant models of music theory reproduce broader epistemic hierarchies inherited from Western conservatory traditions. Situating these histories within my own experience as a student navigating institutional listening norms, the thesis combines critical self-reflection with ethnographic research conducted across five liberal arts institutions, including the CBB consortium and JanPlan research at Wesleyan University and Amherst College. Rather …

"It's A Dance": Examining Midwives As Choreographers Of Reproduction In Maine, Annie Goldstein

Honors Theses

This thesis examines the contemporary work of community-based Maine midwives through the theoretical framework of choreography. In the context of this work, choreography can be understood as the well-thought-out, purposeful undertaking of a process during which negotiation, coordination, and improvisation are required to adapt to constantly changing circumstances. Using choreography, this thesis attempts to understand how Maine midwives navigate global market processes and practice under authoritative forms of biomedicine, ultimately linking them to other midwives across various global sites. Situated within Maine’s maternal health landscape that is characterized by the ongoing closure of labor and delivery units and rural hospitals, …

Afro-Indigenous Burial Ground Gpr Survey Data From Umass Boston Archaeological Work, Shelter Island, Ny, John M. Steinberg, John Schoenfelder, Nedra Lee, Stephen Mrozowski, Chiara M. Torrini, Tess Ostoyich, Claire Ross, Kristen Delatour, Joseph E. Kinney

Data and Datasets

Survey data from the ground penetrating radar (GPR) survey at the Afro-Indigenous Burial Ground (AIBG) at Sylvester Manor, Shelter Island, NY. Zip folder contains raw recorded data (radargrams). Additional files include zipped shapefiles for GPR transects, trees and rocks; and  dat file. Fieldstone marker files include zipped folders with an excel sheet listing numbered fieldstone markers, and a sheet listing the photographs of the fieldstone markers. Fieldstone marker number allows tor joining the photographs, and the "rock" shapefile to the list of markers.

The .rd7 files are the type generated by MALA GPR systems to record raw data (they are …

Review Of Vampire Forensics: Uncovering The Origins Of An Enduring Legend, Elizabeth Brandt

Nebraska Anthropologist

Review of Vampire Forensics: Uncovering the Origins of an Enduring Legend (2010) by Mark Collins Jenkins.

“Why Can’T I Do My Homework Without Crying?” Neurodivergence And The Gendered Expectations Of Functioning, Alia Wang

Pitzer Senior Theses

The purpose of this qualitative interview study was to examine the experiences of neurodivergent women and gender-diverse individuals regarding productivity. Neurodivergence is often understood in biological and medical terms; far less attention has been given to how neurodivergent individuals experience and navigate everyday life. Meanwhile, productivity is often framed as a neutral measure of efficiency, but in practice, it is shaped by social norms that shape particular ways of thinking, working, and behaving.

Particularly for women and gender diverse people, these expectations are compounded not only by cognitive differences but also by gendered norms around behavior. This creates a mismatch …

Differentiating Blunt Force Trauma Fractures From Thermal Fractures In Fleshed And Skeletal Deer Heads, Alyssa Ranney

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Blunt-force trauma deaths are one of the most common cases encountered by forensic anthropologists because they involve accidental, suicidal, and homicidal deaths (Batalis 2025). In forensic cases, blunt force trauma is sometimes concealed by thermal alteration to cover evidence. Because of the mechanical and chemical properties that influence thermal and blunt-force trauma, distinguishing between them becomes difficult (Raniero et al. 2024). Previous literature discussing thermal alteration after blunt force trauma has typically focused on either fleshed or skeletal remains. This study uses both fleshed and skeletal deer heads under the same conditions to determine if: 1) Thermal trauma can be …

Datums And Benchmarks From Sylvester Manor Umass Boston Archaeological Work, Shelter Island, Ny, John M. Steinberg, John Schoenfelder, Chiara M. Torrini, Joseph E. Kinney, Stephen A. Mrozowski, David B. Landon

Data and Datasets

Datums from Sylvester Manor Archaeological work (2019-2026).  Includes zipped shapefile of points and complementary csv, that includes the site areas for each datum.

Excavation Units From Sylvester Manor Umass Boston Archaeological Work, Shelter Island, Ny, John M. Steinberg, John Schoenfelder, Chiara M. Torrini, Joseph E. Kinney, Stephen Mrozowski, David B. Landon, Nedra Lee

Data and Datasets

Excavation units from Sylvester Manor archaeological work (1998-2025). Includes zipped polygon shapefile with outlines of excavation units.

Shovel Test Pits From Sylvester Manor Umass Boston Archaeological Work, Shelter Island, Ny, John M. Steinberg, John Schoenfelder, Chiara M. Torrini, Joseph E. Kinney, Stephen Mrozowski, David B. Landon, Nedra Lee

Data and Datasets

Shovel test pits (STPs) from Sylvester Manor archaeological work (1998-2025). STPs were excavated as 50cm-x-50cm squares and sometimes expanded into larger excavations. These points typically represent the southwest corner of test pits but not always. See shapefile metadata for more information. Includes zipped point shapefile with points each representing one corner of a STP.

Family Cemetery Gpr Survey Data From Sylvester Manor Umass Boston Archaeological Work, Shelter Island, Ny, John M. Steinberg, John Schoenfelder, Stephen Mrozowski, Nedra Lee, Chiara M. Torrini, Tess Ostoyich, Claire Ross, Joseph E. Kinney

Data and Datasets

The .rd7 files are the type generated by MALA GPR systems to record raw data (they are unprocessed binary data files containing the recorded electrical signals), along with .cor (coordinate data), .mrk (markers on radargrams), .mrkj (modern version of .mrk), and .rad (header file; contains survey parameters, antenna frequency, samples per trace, time window, and velocity) files. The info.dat file was derived from GPR-Slice. It is a critical ASCII text file that maps the GPR radargram filenames to their specific spatial positions. It defines the survey grid layout, including line lengths, survey direction (X or Y), and profile spacing. These …

Artifact Catalog From Sylvester Manor Umass Boston Archaeological Work, Shelter Island, Ny, Christa M. Beranek, Stephen Mrozowski, David B. Landon, Nedra Lee, John M. Steinberg, John Schoenfelder, Chiara M. Torrini, Joseph E. Kinney

Data and Datasets

Artifact catalog from Sylvester Manor archaeological work (1998-2025) as of May 2026. The Artifact_List.rtf is a text file listed by unit and context.  Artifact_Table.xlsx is the same data, but in tabular form.  Unit_Contexts.xlsx is a table listing all the contexts by unit.

Artifact_Table and Artifact_List are very large files.

Datum Reference Photos From Sylvester Manor Umass Boston Archaeological Work, Shelter Island, Ny, John M. Steinberg, John Schoenfelder, Chiara M. Torrini, Joseph E. Kinney, Stephen Mrozowski, David B. Landon, Nedra Lee

Data and Datasets

Photographs of site datums used during UMass Boston archaeological work at Sylvester Manor. File names contain the datum name followed by a sequential number. Each datum contains a set of multiple photographs showing its location at a near and far scale, illustrating its exact spot and place in the broader landscape, respectively. Some datums have photographs showing how the survey rod needs to be placed, and some have images that include a pin flag with the datum name written on it. Includes zipped folder.

Below The Rows, Beyond The Roots: An Art Exhibition Depicting Agriculture Across The Globe, Maggie Enoch

Honors Theses and Capstones

In Below the Rows, Beyond the Roots, artist Maggie Enoch creates multimedia works inspired by her exposure to diverse agricultural systems and perspectives while studying geography and sustainable agriculture/food systems around the world. By integrating complex histories with the contemporary realities of farming, Maggie paints vivid pictures of the power of food in this five-piece exhibition.

The Open Secret: Drugs And Fishing In Georgia, Makala L. Collins

Honors College Theses

Substance use and overdose deaths have been disproportionally disrupting families and communities in rural America. Increasing rates of drug use in these areas can be traced to the outsourcing of blue-collar work to outside of the United States, which economically restructured these areas by decreasing the profitability of generational industries. This is the story playing out in Georgia’s commercial shrimping industry and the communities it used to support. This research uses qualitative data collected over the past ten years to understand the perceptions and impacts of drug use on Georgia’s shrimping community. Using a lens of critical medical anthropology, environmental …

Le Parcours Des Travailleurs Immigrants Blessés Et Son Incidence Sur L’Alliance Thérapeutique : Une Étude De Cas Longitudinale En Contexte De Réadaptation Au Travail Au Québec, Maude Arsenault, Jessica Dubé, Daniel Côté

Études primaires

Cette étude explore l’incidence du parcours prélésionnel des travailleuses et travailleurs immigrants (TI) blessés sur l’alliance thérapeutique (AT) en réadaptation au travail. À partir d’une ethnographie longitudinale menée dans une clinique québécoise, sept trajectoires ont été analysées selon leurs dimensions migratoires, socioprofessionnelles et linguistiques. Les résultats montrent que le déclassement professionnel, la précarité de l’emploi, les barrières linguistiques et les expériences de racisme fragilisent la construction du lien de confiance et la définition partagée des objectifs de retour au travail. Lorsque l’emploi prélésionnel est perçu comme transitoire ou inadéquat, l’obligation institutionnelle d’y retourner crée une rupture symbolique qui entre en …

The Lithic Assemblage From The 700,000 Year-Old Butchery Site Of Kalinga (Luzon Island, Philippines): New Insights Into Technological Variability In The Early Palaeolithic In Island Southeast Asia, Alfred F. Pawlik, Justin Guilbert, Jean-Baptiste Lambard, Gerald Palaya, Jackie Despriee, Xavier Gallet, John De Vos, Andrea Dominique Cosalan, Maria G. Chacon

Archaeology

Despite a long history of archaeological and paleoanthropological research, our understanding of the Early Palaeolithic in Island Southeast Asia remains limited, as only a few sites with clear stratigraphic contexts - Mata Menge (Flores Island), Ngebung 2 (Java Island), Calio and Talepu (Sulawesi Island) - have been documented. This scarcity of well-stratified assemblages has led to a poor characterisation of technological variability and cultural sequences, which mainly rely on surface collections and early typological classifications/facies (e.g., Pacitanian, Cabengian, Cabalwanian, Liwanian, Arubian, etc). These classifications mostly based on a handful of cobble artefacts, have long obscured the technological diversity of early …

Endocranial Morphological Affinities Of The Early Holocene Individuals From Lagoa Santa And Implications For The Peopling Of The Americas, María Clara López-Sosa, Hugo Reyes-Centeno, Lumila Paula Menéndez, Rodrigo Elias Oliveira, Claudio Campi De Castro, André Strauss

Anthropology Faculty Publications

The ectocranial morphology of early Holocene humans from Lagoa Santa, Brazil has been described as exhibiting a ‘Paleoamerican’ form with affinities to African and Australasian individuals, in contrast to past and present Native Americans, who predominantly exhibit ‘Amerindian’ form. While this interpretation remains disputed, its led to the ‘Two Main Biological Components Model’, which proposes separate dispersals from Asia into the Americas. This study aims to assess whether the endocranial morphology of Lagoa Santa individuals similarly reflects these affinities. For this study, the overall endocranial morphology, as well as the temporal bones of the crania of twenty individuals from Lagoa …

An Ideological Target Through The Archaeological Archive: The Islamic State’S Destruction Of Palmyra And Its Impact On Local Syrian Identity, Tristen A. Leone

Pomona Senior Theses

This paper investigates how Palmyra's multicultural archaeological archive incited ISIS's destruction of the site during the Syrian Civil War through an analysis of sepulchral and religious architectural structures and onomastic practices. In contributing the cultural heritage scholarship, this paper places the motives of Islamic extremist groups in conversation with intellectual discourse around the multicultural identities of the Ancient Near East during the Roman Imperial Period. Further, through anthropological methodological frameworks and the photographic archive of excavation efforts at Palmyra, I aim to center modern local communities' experiences of living on and near an archaeological site like Palmyra. In consulting modern …

Understanding Knowledge And Perceptions Of The Beef Industry On A Land-Grant University Campus, Allison E. Reaves

Theses and Dissertations--Community & Leadership Development

A well-researched phenomenon in the agricultural industry is the effects of constant innovation coupled with an increasing divide between producer and consumer. This issue has been presented as especially prevalent within animal agriculture and the beef industry, a predominant concern considering Kentucky’s agricultural commodities. This study (n = 31) utilized a mixed-methods approach to understand the knowledge, perceptions, and behavior of beef consumers on a land-grant university campus. Methodologies included Python’s DeepFace emotion recognition, semi-structured interviews, and the JMALI agricultural literacy assessment. Findings revealed participants to be below expected agricultural literacy levels of high school graduates (M=11), with no …

Digital Cultures, Dei, And Ai: Critical Analysis Assignment, Oluremi Alapo

Open Educational Resources

This assignment presents a scaffolded, equity-centered approach to teaching digital culture and artificial intelligence (AI) within an undergraduate Diversity and Multicultural Education course at the City University of New York. Designed as a Writing Intensive, COIL-informed learning experience, the assignment invites students to critically examine digital technologies and AI as social and cultural systems shaped by power, access, and inequality.

Cultural Dissonance: Western Hierarchical Structures In Unesco’S Representative List Of The Intangible Cultural Heritage Of Humanity, Chumnan J. Sangsvang Iii

CMC Senior Theses

This paper explores how the heritage ideologies of the academic and legal traditions of the “West” have exerted influence over the modern conception of heritage in order to fulfill their own ideas of value. It uses a combination of anthropological theory, ethnographic research, and international law to analyze this phenomenon, first identifying the theory and history behind culture, heritage, and civilization in international law. The paper then goes on to analyze UNESCO’s ICH designation and the consequences of Western heritage construction from 4 case studies, each variably removed from the West: Cases from Greece, Uruguay, Malawi, and Tonga will identify …

Forging Industry: Craft Practice At The Delaware Mine Blacksmith Shop, Lucy A. Gibbs

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

This thesis examines the archaeological remains of a nineteenth-century blacksmith shop associated with the Delaware Mine Site in Michigan’s Keweenaw Peninsula. Blacksmiths played an important role in early mining operations, providing the metalworking services and tool maintenance necessary to support mineral extraction. Drawing on evidence from the 2025 Michigan Technological University field school, the study investigates the shop’s operational lifespan, organization, and potential activities as it supported daily mining operations. Artifact analysis, spatial reconstruction, soil testing, and archival sources assist in reconstructing shop functions and history.

Results indicate that the shop was likely constructed during the earliest development of the …

A Collection Of Mussels: Ancestors, More-Than-Human Relations, And The Transformation Of Shell-Bearing Places In The Green River Valley, Kentucky, Karen A. Stevens

Theses and Dissertations--Anthropology

For over a century, archaeological investigations in the Lower Ohio River Valley have provided extensive evidence of Indigenous Ancestors’ lifeways and practices. However, interpretations of shell-bearing sites have largely been shaped by Eurocentric and Western perspectives, often framing Indigenous actions as responses to environmental shifts rather than as expressions of dynamic social, spiritual, and ecological relationships. Within this historical context, explanations for the relatively abrupt decline of freshwater mollusk collection at the end of the Archaic Period (ca. 3000 cal yr BP) have primarily emphasized environmental change, particularly fluctuations in riverine conditions and resource availability. Yet, these explanations often overlook …

Ritual Transformation, Deity Embodiment, And Nagualism In Formative Period Oaxaca, Mexico, Jeffrey S. Brzezinski, Guy David Hepp

Anthropology Faculty Publications

A hallmark of ancient Mesoamerican art and religion is the ability of ritual practitioners, sometimes called “shamans,” to transform. The Olmec were-jaguar is a well-known example of the phenomenon. Artifacts from different regions demonstrate that these beliefs involved many animal and spiritual entities and a porous boundary between humans and other beings. In this article, we examine the archaeology of ritual transformation in Preclassic or Formative period (2000 BC–AD 250) Oaxaca, Mexico. As links between the physical world and other dimensions, altered bodies reflect negotiated relationships among people, animals, ancestors, deities, and landforms. Traditional interpretations of transformational art have oversimplified …

Pvn-Ceramics-Op 202-Ceramic Analyses, Edward Schortman, Patricia Urban

Four Valleys Archive

No abstract provided.

Pvn-Ceramics-Op 202-Ceramic Analyses, Patricia Urban, Edward Schortman

Four Valleys Archive

No abstract provided.

The Vagabond Way: A Qualitative Study Of Intentional Non-Participation In Structured Society, Lorena E. Black

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This study analyzes intentional vagabondage as both a philosophical position and a lived critique of structured society. Using qualitative fieldwork conducted at Fairlawn Family Church in Fort Pierce, Florida—including ten semi-structured interviews, participant observation, and grounded theory analysis—the study examines how individuals who voluntarily disengage from formal systems of housing, labor, and legality construct meaning, identity, and stability beyond institutional boundaries. The analysis identifies three central themes: rhythm, referring to the patterned routines that sustain mobility; reciprocity, which characterizes social exchange and support networks; and refusal, expressed as a deliberate rejection of societal expectations. While many participants describe their paths …

Chapter 1: A Brief Introduction: Rhombus Motifs In Textiles, Billie J. A. Follensbee, Lois Martin

Precious Pattern: The Dotted-Diamond Motif in Indigenous American Textiles, Explorations in Mesoamerica, the American Southwest, and the Andes

Presents a brief introduction to rhombus motifs in textiles.

Chapter 4: The Grid Patterns In The Vestments And Headdresses Of Female Statuary From The Classic Period Cultures Of Central Veracruz, Chantal D. Huckert

Precious Pattern: The Dotted-Diamond Motif in Indigenous American Textiles, Explorations in Mesoamerica, the American Southwest, and the Andes

This chapter focuses on grid designs appearing on female clothing in Late Postclassic Nahua sources, in Maya sources, and on the Late Classic figurines of Central Veracruz. This study examines cross-hatched lattice patterns based on repetitions of rhombus and quincunx motifs associated with the sentient Mesoamerican Earth complex. The attached catalog presents a clear reference to these motifs and their variants, while the rest of the chapter is divided into two sections and addresses the general cross-hatched lattice pattern and the associated motifs. The first section discusses the all-over grid design, dotted or not, on the clothing of Mexican highland …

Chapter 5: The “Dotted-Grid” And “Dotted-Diamond” Motifs On Skirts: Fertility And Power During The Epiclassic And Early Postclassic Periods In Central And Western Mesoamerica (600 To 1200 Ce), Juliette Testard

Precious Pattern: The Dotted-Diamond Motif in Indigenous American Textiles, Explorations in Mesoamerica, the American Southwest, and the Andes

Discusses gender, apparel, and attributes with respect to the Epiclassic shift in politics and ideology, the grid, hatched, and rhomboidal patterns in central Mexican imagery during the Epiclassic, and the dotted-grid and dotted-diamond motifs on female figurines during the Epiclassic and Early Postclassic Periods.