Digital Commons Network^™

Ambigú Trashumante Barra De Café Ambulante Ambigú Trashumante Barra De Café Ambulante, Augusto Martin Rivero

Master's Projects and Capstones

Ambigú Trashumante Barra de Café Ambulante is an applied research project which took shape over the course of a calendar year from May 2022-2023. A six-person team evolved including the personified project itself, united as one communal entity in collaboration. The project entailed creation of a bicicargo, or cargo bike–useful art becoming a mobile coffee bar and literal vehicle embodying justice through coffee offered freely in México, as facilitated through decolonized ethnography and Mesoamerican Community-Based Participatory Action Research (CBPAR). The project’s theoretical framework centers on Bruguera’s (2012) arte útil conceptualization. Five core patterns emerged, including the right to thrive in …

Plato's Republics: A Dramatic Interpretation Of The Early Cities In Plato's "Republic", Simeon Burns

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation will demonstrate a new methodological approach to reading Plato’s Republic. I develop and apply a dramatic, dynamic hermeneutic to Book II and part of Book III in the text. This method holds that each speech is the product of a preceding agreement or disagreement between two speakers. Agreements lead to the argument’s advancement and disagreements result in a regression to a previous agreement from which to restart the exchange. The focus section is largely on the early exchange Socrates has with Adeimantus. I argue that Socrates is an unwilling participant in the famous discussion on the meaning …

Foreign State Images And Popular Foreign Policy Constraints, Cana Kim

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

When making equivalent foreign policy decisions, why do national leaders sometimes face stronger constraints from the mass public? A growing number of studies recognize the effect of public opinion on foreign policy decision-making. While not having the authority to formulate foreign policy, the mass public can hold national leaders accountable in formal and informal ways. However, public opinion does not function as an automatic constraint on national leaders. Instead, public opinion provides more powerful constraints on foreign policy decision-making conditional on the context shaping popular beliefs and social behavior.

In this dissertation, I delve into the public perceptions of domestic …

Security-Enhanced Serial Communications, John White, Alexander Beall, Joseph Maurio, Dane Fichter, Dr. Matthew Davis, Dr. Zachary Birnbaum

Military Cyber Affairs

Industrial Control Systems (ICS) are widely used by critical infrastructure and are ubiquitous in numerous industries including telecommunications, petrochemical, and manufacturing. ICS are at a high risk of cyber attack given their internet accessibility, inherent lack of security, deployment timelines, and criticality. A unique challenge in ICS security is the prevalence of serial communication buses and other non-TCP/IP communications protocols. The communication protocols used within serial buses often lack authentication and integrity protections, leaving them vulnerable to spoofing and replay attacks. The bandwidth constraints and prevalence of legacy hardware in these systems prevent the use of modern message authentication and …

Hopeless To Homeless To Hired To Housing: Helping Transition Our Homeless Veteran Heroes Into American Communities By Identifying The Potential Short-Term And Long-Term Problems And Risks That Lower Enlisted Servicemen And Servicewomen Have When Leaving The Military That Can Lead To Housing Insecurity And Homelessness In The Post 9-11 Era, Jeffrey W. Walsh

Capstone Projects – Politics and Government

The author's focus is what happens to our military men and women after they come home from wars “over there” and what happens after their last day when they put on civilian clothes and decide to hang up the uniform for good. There will always be wars and will always be a need to help care for and help integrate combat veterans back into everyday society in America. Both the soldier and his or her family will need help. A recent motto of Department of Veteran’s Affairs office was borrowed from President Abraham Lincoln- “To help care for him who …

Cognitive Explanations Behind The Lack Of Public Support For Climate Action, Jordan Hale Mcallister

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Studies show that the primary barriers to climate action support are cognitive ones, and yet it is not clear how people’s climate perceptions influence their support. Key perceptions’ effects remain either disputed or unidentified in the literature, so there is no established theory explaining the drivers of climate action support. I argue that people’s climate perceptions—including of others’ climate actions, climate change impacts, and climate change severity and timing—have effects that align with conventional assumptions of rational behavior. By running survey experiments and statistical analyses on data from both the US and Europe, I show that perceptions’ effects on support …

The Railsplitter And The Pathfinder: The Relationship Between Abraham Lincoln And John C. Frémont, Kourtney Yantis

Electronic Theses & Dissertations

This study serves as an analysis of the connections between Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States and John Charles Frémont as a Civil War general. Lincoln’s position within history is solid, unlike that of John C. Frémont. The thesis will elevate Frémont to a higher status as a historical figure by arguing that the emancipation edict that he issued for Missouri in August of 1861 would influence Abraham Lincoln’s preliminary emancipation proclamation of September 1862, even though Lincoln repealed Frémont’s decree. In biographies of each man, their interactions are merely a small part of the stories of their …

'I'M Rooting For Everybody Black': The Intersection Of Black Joy, Politics, And Linked Fate, Rabria Moore

Honors Theses

Linked fate is a concept that says what happens to one individual in a group affects the group as a whole. Research has shown that Black people tend to subscribe to that concept of linked fate, especially in relation to politics. Further studies, although not exclusively labeled as such, have shown that Black people feel a sense of linked fate when it comes to pain too. This thesis explores the intersection of Black joy, politics, and linked fate. Black joy is understood to be a shared experience amongst individuals of African descent. Black joy emphasizes the choice that Black people …

The Impact Of The Deinstitutionalization Policies On Homelessness, Henrique Krigner

Helm's School of Government Conference - 2021-2024

Homelessness is a growing issue in America. In 2019 there were 567,715 homeless individuals in the United States, distributed in emergency shelters (63%) or residing unsheltered on streets (27%). In 2021, even though specialists argue that the Covid-19 restrictions greatly harmed an accurate counting, the total number of unsheltered homeless in America increased in 20%. Such increase became a central discussion not only to regular citizens and neighborhood associations, but it also became a great concern within the federal government which has been appropriating billions of dollars each year to “end homeless”.

Specialists point out that the growth of the …

Prostitution And Pornography: Reforming A Perspective, Mayce Combs

Helm's School of Government Conference - 2021-2024

Happiness is a subjective emotion that can quickly be twisted by the depravity of humanity’s sinful nature. Human trafficking deprives an individual’s natural right to life, liberty, and their pursuit to happiness. Of the two divisions of human trafficking, sex trafficking, especially involving children, is the most despicable and most evolved. The United States and further the state of Virginia is a crucial player in combating human trafficking. While there are currently many successful tactics state governments and nonprofit groups are utilizing in order eliminate human trafficking there are further more intense strategies the Virginia State Government should implement. One …

Eugenics Not Eradication: How People With Disabilities Have Lost The Right To Life, Ava Standish

Helm's School of Government Conference - 2021-2024

Disability-selective abortion stems from a eugenical philosophy not a hope of eradication. Disabilities cannot be eradicated because they are not diseases. Eugenics seeks to purify society from those who are considered “inferior” and to encourage the rate of births considered “superior.” Eugenics continues today through selective abortion of children with disabilities. These children deserve the right to life guaranteed by natural rights, human rights, and the laws of the United States. Children with disabilities, particularly Down Syndrome, have lost this right to life in the United States and abroad. In the United States, 67% of children with Down Syndrome are …

U.S. Involvement Of Water Sanitation In El Salvador, Emilio Lau

Helm's School of Government Conference - 2021-2024

No abstract provided.

A Religious Society Promotes A Flourishing Nation, Logan Marcotte

Helm's School of Government Conference - 2021-2024

Religion has its roots deep in every sector of society. Throughout history, governments have been established through religious societies and found their legitimacy based upon the principles found in those religions. Religious doctrine helps to shape government statutes, guide individuals in their journey of morality, and provide cultural cornerstones. Christianity has proven to endure time and testing while positively impacting culture. Without religion, a nation will crumble. This essay examines the correlation between thriving societies and religious freedom, and how a religious society leads to a prosperous nation.

Drug Ideologies Of The United States, Macy Montgomery

Helm's School of Government Conference - 2021-2024

The United States has been increasingly creating lenient drug policies. Seventeen states and Washington, the District of Columbia, legalized marijuana, and Oregon decriminalized certain drugs, including methamphetamine, heroin, and cocaine. The medical community has proven that drugs, including marijuana, have myriad adverse health side effects. This leads to two questions: Why does the United States government continue to create lenient drug policies, and what reasons do citizens give for legalizing drugs when the medical community has proven them harmful? The paper hypothesizes that the disadvantages of drug legalization outweigh its benefits because of the numerous harms it causes, such as …

"Domestic Terrorism" Or "Political Protest?": Partisan Cable News Framing Of The January 6 Attack On The U.S. Capitol, Alexandra M. Stover

Senior Honors Projects, 2020-current

The attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, was a historical event that received widespread media attention in the days and weeks that followed. This study focuses on the differential framing techniques used by Fox News and CNN, specifically, in their coverage of January 6. Additionally, this study addresses the differential framing techniques used across different shows on the same network: “commentary-based” shows and “information-based” shows. In doing so, this research builds upon the vast body of pre-existing news media framing research. This study finds that the differences in framing are more pronounced between Fox News and CNN …

American Vibe Check: Based, Mid, Or Cringe? Measuring Gen Z’S Attitudes And Perceptions About American Democracy, Bethany Perryman

Masters Theses, 2020-current

Democracy is a concept, process, and practice, and American democracy is a specific flavor of it. Public opinion is influenced and shaped by mass media, and messages about American democracy emerge in a web of powers and among power dynamics. These messages include the actions and relationships of the American civic system with its citizenry and the world. Generation Z is a socially, culturally, economically, and politically unique population in American life, who form their own perceptions and attitudes about American democracy based on their experiences and with the ecosystem of communication and interaction they have with mass media messages. …

Giglio Feds: The Void Of Ethical Leadership Within Federal Law Enforcement, Christopher J. Boosey

Helm's School of Government Conference - 2021-2024

No abstract provided.

Du Undergraduate Showcase: Research, Scholarship, And Creative Works, Caitlyn Aldersea, Justin Bravo, Sam Allen, Anna Block, Connor Block, Emma Buechler, Maria De Los Angeles Bustillos, Arianna Carlson, William Christensen, Olivia Kachulis, Noah Craver, Kate Dillon, Muskan Fatima, Angel Fernandes, Emma Finch, Colleen Cassidy, Amy Fishman, Andrea Francis, Stacia Fritz, Simran Gill, Emma Gries, Rylie Hansen, Shannon Powers, Jacqueline Martinez, Zachary Harker, Ashley Hasty, Mykaela Tanino-Springsteen, Kathleen Hopps, Adelaide Kerenick, Colin Kleckner, Ci Koehring, Elijah Kruger, Braden Krumholz, Maddie Leake, Lyneé Alves, Seraphina Loukas, Yatzari Lozano Vazquez, Haley Maki, Emily Martinez, Sierra Mckinney, Audrey Mitchell, Kipling Newman, Audrey Ng, Megan Lucyshyn, Andrew Nguyen, Stevie Ostman, Casandra Pearson, Alexandra Penney, Julia Gielczynski, Tyler Ball, Anna Rini, Christina Rorres, Simon Ruland, Helayna Schafer, Emma Sellers, Sarah Schuller, Claire Shaver, Kevin Summers, Isabella Shaw, Madison Sinar, Claudia Pena, Apshara Siwakoti, Carter Sorensen, Madi Sousa, Anna Sparling, Alexandra Revier, Brandon Thierry, Dylan Tyree, Maggie Williams, Lauren Wols

DU Undergraduate Research Journal Archive

DU Undergraduate Showcase: Research, Scholarship, and Creative Works

Social Pathologies As Educational Injustices, Esther Neuhann

Emancipations: A Journal of Critical Social Analysis

For Axel Honneth, not all social problems can be understood as injustices. Therefore, he introduces the additional diagnostic concept of social pathology. In his book Freedom’s Right (FR), it is defined as an accumulation of persons’ inability to adequately participate in social institutions due to misunderstanding them. In contrast, injustices consist in the denial of access to social institutions for certain groups. According to the aim of presenting an ‘extended’ theory of justice in FR, Honneth intends to reconstruct all institutions necessary for realizing individual freedom in a liberal-democratic society. Like in the historical model of his project (Hegel’s Elements …

Predicting Our Own Demise: How Media Has Played Nostradamus To The Future Of Artificial Intelligence, Connor Denny-Lybbert

Honors Theses

In this paper, I argue that we should be hesitant and skeptical of the applications of AI technology in government due to the possibility of, and ongoing abuses of this technology by political actors. I do this by first analyzing various pieces of sci-fi media in three parts: how this media approaches crime and punishment, personhood, and human happiness. Then, I explain how these themes intersect with the above framework and how we can use the themes to guide future policy. This is followed by an analysis of what these pieces of media tell us regarding artificial intelligence and how …

Playing With Policy: What Insights Arise From Transgender Adults After Participating In A Legislative Theatre Exercise, Skylar A. Stratemeyer

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

The transgender community is underrepresented in the current body of academic research, underserved in the current clinical model of healthcare services, and legislatively oppressed on a state and federal level in the United States. As of March 2023, more than 400 anti-LGBTQI laws have been introduced on a state level in 2023 alone (ACLU, 2023). In response to the hostile Western sociopolitical climate, this thesis will focus on what insights arise from transgender adults and cisgender allies (N = 12) after participating in a dramatherapeutic group therapy session that explored current anti-trans legislation and highlighted the legal needs of …

The Impacts Of Local Property Taxes On Nebraska's State Legislator Elections And State Legislator Voting, Taylor Gold

Department of Political Science: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Throughout Nebraska’s history, concerns about the state’s property tax policy are one of, if not the most, discussed policy issues. Despite Nebraska’s emphasis on local fiscal control, state-level policy reforms shape the state’s property tax landscape. This seemingly contradictory emphasis on providing a state-level solution to a local policy problem leads this study to ask whether state legislative officials are held electorally accountable for legislative actions on local property tax and whether they are directly held accountable for changes in local property taxes. This study investigates this potential relationship through novel data collection on Nebraska’s state legislator elections, legislative actions, …

Destruction Or Disruption: Political Violence Inconsistencies In Liberation Movements, Julia Lemmon

Honors Thesis

Political violence is seldom viewed as an appropriate means to achieving a goal. Despite extensive studies produced on the reasons for using political violence, the scholarly world fails to consider comparing why some groups choose violence while their counterparts do not. Why is violence such an attractive method to some organized political groups, but not to others? Drawing on case studies of liberation movements, I attempt to understand what impacts the outcome of political violence during these movements. This study cross examines the Algerian Independence War with India’s nonviolent independence movement and the nonviolent independence movement of East Timor with …

Conspiracy Beliefs: A Threat To Political Stability, Robert Arellano

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

The United States may be the most powerful nation on Earth, yet its people still have endured both hardships and tragedies. Events such as the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., the terrorist attacks on September 11^th, the AIDS crisis, and the bombings of Pearl Harbor are all tragic events that have influenced American cultural fears. But the trauma and painful memories of tragic events have led some Americans to question any form of authority, even without evidence. In this paper, I examine the extent to which distrust in authority, fear, and overall pessimism lead to conspiratorial thinking. …

Climate Change Skepticism: Who And Why?, Mia Huyen Truong

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Despite persistent scientific consensus urging immediate action, political polarization, and skepticism have hindered effective climate change mitigation, especially in the United States. This paper explores the factors influencing climate change attitudes among different groups, focusing on right-wing affiliates and Christian believers. Drawing on the Anti-Reflexivity Thesis (McCright and Dunlap, 2001-2010) and Information Processing Theory (Wood & Vedlitz, 2007), we investigate the effects of individual characteristics, including partisan ideology, party identification, educational attainment, and Christian faith. Using Wave 7 (2021) of the Chapman Survey of American Fears Survey, a nationwide sample of different fears among U.S. adults, this study aims to …

Enhancing The Battleverse: The People’S Liberation Army’S Digital Twin Strategy, Joshua Baughman

Military Cyber Affairs

No abstract provided.

Operationalizing Deterrence By Denial In The Cyber Domain, Gentry Lane

Military Cyber Affairs

No abstract provided.

Emotional Response To Uk Political Party Leader Facial Displays Of Affiliation, Reward, And Ambiguity During Brexit, Patrick A. Stewart, Nick Lee, Erik P. Bucy, Carl Senior

Political Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Objective

On December 12, 2019, the United Kingdom's ruling Conservative Party called an election that put the country's 2016 “Brexit” referendum on leaving the European Union to the test. The divisive campaign and a polarized electorate culminated in large losses by opposition Labour and Liberal Democratic parties. Amid a polarized electorate, lingering questions arise as to whether the election results reflect more upon partisan ties or the respective party leaders' ability to emotionally connect with followers through their nonverbal behavior.

Methods

Using a unique pre-registered design, this study considers the emotional response to leaders of the three major U.K. political …

The 1985 Move Bombing: A Study In Perspectives, Kaci Delisle

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

On May 13, 1985, Philadelphia police dropped a military grade bomb on 6221 Osage Avenue, a row house in a Black neighborhood in West Philadelphia. This home was occupied by a revolutionary group called MOVE. The bomb started a fire that the police and firefighters decided to “contain” rather than put out, resulting in the deaths of eleven people and the destruction of sixty-one homes. Only two MOVE members survived the fire. Using court records, documents from the investigation conducted by the Philadelphia Special Investigation Commission (PSIC), and other interviews regarding MOVE and the bombing, this paper reconstructs different perspectives …

Of Humans, Machines, And Extremism: The Role Of Platforms In Facilitating Undemocratic Cognition, Julia R. Decook, Jennifer Forestal

Political Science: Faculty Publications and Other Works

The events surrounding the 2020 U.S. election and the January 6 insurrection have challenged scholarly understanding of concepts like collective action, radicalization, and mobilization. In this article, we argue that online far-right radicalization is better understood as a form of distributed cognition, in which the groups’ online environment incentivizes certain patterns of behavior over others. Namely, these platforms organize their users in ways that facilitate a nefarious form of collective intelligence, which is amplified and strengthened by systems of algorithmic curation. In short, these platforms reflect and facilitate undemocratic cognition, fueled by affective networks, contributing to events like the …