Digital Commons Network^™

Smoking And Oral Health In The Tipu Maya: A Study Of Nicotine In Dental Calculus, Emily Byrd

Honors Theses

Tobacco smoking was a deeply rooted tradition in Maya society, often associated with ritual and daily life, and may have contributed to patterns of dental health. However, despite its cultural significance, direct biological evidence of tobacco use in ancient populations is rare. This study addresses that gap by analyzing nicotine residues preserved in dental calculus from the Tipu Maya, offering new insight into both cultural practices and potential health impacts.

Mass spectrometry identified molecular peaks corresponding to nicotine and its degradation products within the calculus samples.  Analysis revealed that over two-thirds of the individuals tested positive for nicotine, supporting the …

Countering Deficit Narratives Through A Blackcrit Lens By Examining Case Studies Of Black College Mathematics Students’ Classroom Experiences, Akhenaton Wilbourn

All Dissertations

This dissertation examines the lived experiences of 11 Black college mathematics students at their predominantly white institution (PWI) through the lens of Black Critical Theory (BlackCrit) to counter deficit narratives about the racial achievement gap (RAG) in mathematics education courses. Deficit narratives often attribute disparities between Black and white students’ mathematical performance to assumed deficiencies in Black students’ abilities rather than systemic inequities, historical marginalization, and ongoing anti-Blackness in educational settings (Cobb & Russell, 2015; Kress, 2021). Using multiple case studies, this study explores how anti-Blackness manifests in mathematics classrooms, how students navigate tensions between multiculturalism, neoliberal educational policies, and …

Strengthening The Bonds Between Us: An Empirical Investigation Of Morale In Human-Ai Teams And The Socially Supportive Ai Teammates Who Empower It, Rohit Mallick

All Dissertations

This dissertation investigates how artificial intelligence (AI) can be designed to improve the collective emotion within a team. A team's collective emotion, or morale, describes how motivated, optimistic, and enthusiastic the group is in accomplishing its goals. We conducted four studies that compared different social support strategies that AI teammates can provide to the team. Study 1A found that AI teammates who communicate with emotions can better motivate human team members and promote awareness of team dynamics and environmental changes. Study 1B found that human teammates become more motivated and happier when their AI teammates express joy and are close …

Greening Intelligence: Why Ai Infrastructure And Governance Must Evolve Together, Heng Wang, Poh Seng Lee

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

AI infrastructure is evolving faster than the regulation and governance needed to ensure it serves public and planetary interests.

Mortgage Default Classification Modeling For Variable Analysis, Brendan R. Goggins

Honors College Theses

The financial crisis of the early 2000’s is a prime example of the severe consequences that mortgage default and borrower insolvency can have on economies at large. Mortgage default specifically is a prime case with the popularization of mortgage backed securities and the commonality of this loan structure. Multiple hypotheses and models have been formed to understand the reasons, causes, and consequences of mortgage default. This paper uses both machine learning and statistical classification models to inform an understanding of the variables most significant and impactful to the default outcome of mortgages. Consideration is given to both loan-level microeconomic variables …

Mapping Fire Susceptibility Of The South Carolina Coastal Plain, Breonna Roden

Theses and Dissertations

Wildfires are a natural hazard that have occurred across the world, throughout time. Regions prone to wildfires have been experiencing changes in their fire regimes. Not only has the fire season length increased, but the fires themselves are increasing in frequency and intensity. Wildfire research has been limited for the state of South Carolina, raising concerns along with global warming and population growth. Global warming is likely to become more extreme, which can lead to droughts becoming more frequent and lasting for longer periods of time. According to the 2020 census, South Carolina was the 10th fastest-growing state, which is …

Exploring The Correlation Between Self-Esteem And Academic Success Among Special Needs Students In Kwara State, Nigeria, Florence Famolu

Jurnal Kajian Bimbingan dan Konseling

Special education has shifted from a position of delivering professional services to students with disabilities to a system that seeks to encompass the broad concept of promoting quality education for students. This study examined the correlation between self-esteem and academic success among special needs students in Kwara State, Nigeria. the study adopted a descriptive survey research type. special needs students in the three local government areas in Ilorin, Ilorin South, East, and West Local Governments Area constituted the total population for this research. The researcher designed questionnaire was entitled: self-esteem as correlate of academic success among special needs students’ questionnaire” …

Detecting Ideological Bias In Trump's Tweets: Trump's Peace Plan As A Case Study, Amer Qasem

This study aims to explore the extent of ideological bias in the discourse of elected U.S. President Donald Trump on social media platforms, specifically Twitter (now known as X), regarding his peace plan, commonly referred to as the "Deal of the Century." The study employs Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) to examine all of Trump’s tweets related to the Deal of the Century, seeking to answer the following research questions: How did Trump portray the parties affected by the deal in his tweets? What rhetorical strategies did he employ to present the deal? The analysis spans the period from the announcement …

The Use Of Artificial Intelligence Applications By Media Students In Palestinian Universities And Their Achieved Gratifications “A Field Study”, Said Shaheen Allani, Ahmad Al Sallaq

The study aimed to identify the extent to which media students in Palestinian universities use artificial intelligence applications and the achieved gratifications from it. The study belongs to the descriptive studies approach utilizing questionnaire as a tool for collecting data, for an available sample of (165) individuals that were distributed in five Palestinian universities. The study reached to; (54.5%) of media students in Palestinian universities use artificial intelligence applications, they use it for several reasons, the most important phrase is “it helps me to produce good digital content,” with a relative weight of (47.4%), it also achieves a number of …

Media Frameworks In Addressing Environmental Issues On Al Jazeera Net Website: An Analytical Study, Sabah Al Harahsheh

This study aimed to recognize the media frameworks used to address environmental issues on (Al Jazeera Net) between 2009 and 2024. The study relied on the descriptive survey method, the theory of media frames, and the content analysis as a method and tool. The study population consisted of all articles, reports and interviews published on the (Al Jazeera Net) throughout the period specified by the study. A purposive sample was selected from the articles, reports and interviews interested in environmental issues only, which numbered eighteen journalistic works. The study identified the most important frameworks that presented the environmental issues during …

The Mediating Role Of Remote Communication On The Relationship Between Electronic Human Resource Management Practices And Organizational Performance In Iraqi Commercial Banks, Shuhub Basel Ahmad Taqa

This study aimed to measure the impact of remote communication as a mediating variable on the relationship between electronic human resources (e-HRM) and organizational performance in Iraqi commercial banks. The study adopted a descriptive-analytical approach, with the study population consisting of managers, their deputies, and department heads in Iraqi commercial banks, totaling 242 individuals distributed across 24 commercial banks by the end of 2023. A total of 234 questionnaires were analyzed, achieving a response rate of 96.7%. The study employed Smart PLS software for data analysis and result extraction. The study revealed several key findings, the most significant of which …

The Role Of The U.S. In South Korean Democratization: A Contemporary Analysis, Michael Garifales

Honors Program Theses and Projects

The United States has faced significant criticism on its role in South Korea’s democratization due to its involvement with both democratic movements and authoritarian regimes. What was the official role that the U.S. played in South Korean democratization, and what are the perceptions of this policy today? This paper explores the role of the U.S. in different periods of South Korea's democratization, including modernization and student/social movements as case studies. It analyzes a range of academic journals and books to assess the merit of different perspectives on U.S. involvement. Furthermore, the paper applies primary sources, such as newspapers and news …

From The Ground Up: Community-Based Participatory Research Reclaiming The Science Of Lead, Juan Manuel Rubio, Bavisha Kaylan, Anthony Diaz, Patricia Flores, Maya Cheav, David C. Bañuelas, Ashley Green, Annika Hjelmstad, Ariane Jong-Levinger, Tim Schütz, Maya Carrasquillo, Alana M. W. Lebron, Jun Wu

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

For decades, the dominant approach to lead poisoning has been to focus on homes affected by lead paint and to treat children who are already suffering from lead poisoning. This individualizing approach developed in the context of the defunding and deregulation of government agencies in the 1980s. In recent years, however, community–academic partnerships have reframed lead as an environmental issue produced by the development of the lead industry in the twentieth century and connected to overlapping histories of exploitation, discrimination, and inaction. These community-based projects have contributed to shifting research agendas (by emphasizing historical analysis and the study of the …

Bearcat Advantage: Year One Evaluation Report, Michelle Miller-Adams, Kevin Hollenbeck, Bridget Timmeney, Kyle Huisman

Reports

No abstract provided.

Waiting: A Case Study Of The Norristown Transportation Center, Colin Brier

Sociology Honors Papers

In his 1963 book Behavior in Public Places, Erving Goffman described the concept of civil inattention as the most proper form of public interaction with strangers. It takes the form of a simple nod or glance as we pass by a stranger on the street. Civil inattention strikes a balance between asking too much of strangers or ignoring them entirely. It allows us to acknowledge one another just long enough to establish politeness and trust that both parties are using the established place as intended and do not pose a threat to one another. Through an observational case study of …

Rewriting War: Improving The Mlb’S Go-To Advanced Metric, Kolin Atwood

Honors Projects

Traditional Wins Above Replacement (WAR) metrics have long served as a cornerstone of player evaluation in Major League Baseball, offering a context-neutral summary of offensive, defensive, and baserunning contributions. However, this neutrality often overlooks critical factors such as game situation, lineup strength, and advanced baserunning impact. This project proposes an enhanced model, WAR-PC (Wins Above Replacement – Plus Context), that integrates three key improvements: context-dependent batting value (RE24), clutch performance (Win Probability Added, WPA), and Statcast-based baserunning metrics. Using R, player logs, and modern baseball data sources, WAR-PC was calculated for eight players from the 2023 MLB season. The revised …

Task Demands Influence Search Strategy Selection In Otoconia-Deficient Mice, Ryan M. Yoder, Lucas C. Carstensen, Keshav Jagannathan

Psychology

Introduction: The vestibular system plays a crucial role in visual and non-visual navigation. Our recent study found that signals from the otolith organs are necessary for mice’s use of distal visual cues to guide navigation to an invisible goal. Somewhat surprisingly, however, performance was not significantly impaired on some spatial tasks (e.g., Barnes maze reference memory task), questioning the role of otolith signals in visual navigation.

Methods: We report the results of several additional tests of reference memory performance and search strategy use on two versions of the Barnes maze, in an attempt to establish further understanding of the otolithic …

Integrating Human-Centered Design Into Undergraduate Stem Capstone Courses: A Food Product Development Case Study, Saadeddine Shehab, Dawn Bohn, Lucas O'Bryan, Luettamae Lawrence, Mike Tissenbaum

Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences Faculty Publications

This study examines the integration of human-centered design (HCD) in a Food Science capstone course and explores its impact on students’ learning outcomes and skill development. This case study investigated how 42 undergraduate students engaged with HCD processes—including understanding, synthesizing, ideating, prototyping, and implementing—to develop innovative food products. Through pre- and post-surveys, interaction analysis, and performance assessments, the findings revealed that HCD activities significantly enhanced students’ knowledge, collaboration, creativity, and metacognitive skills. Additionally, students demonstrated improved food science competencies, such as product formulation and sensory evaluation. This study highlights the benefits of embedding HCD within STEM curricula to foster authentic, …

The Implementation Of Higher Education In The Prison System In Mississippi: The Challenges And Benefits, Elizabeth F. Ratliff

Honors Theses

Growing support for higher education in prison has sparked much conversation regarding the challenges and benefits of the programs and their implementation. In Mississippi, this has become an increasingly prevalent issue as the incarcerated population continues to grow and programs continue to be limited in accessibility. Mississippi’s incarcerated population deserves the opportunity to gain knowledge and skills through higher education to better themselves individually and better their communities upon release. However, Mississippi faces unique challenges in its prison system, preventing the benefits of these programs from showing. The purpose of this study is to gain insight into the challenges and …

Effects Of Acute Exercise On Cognition: Consideration Of Potential Moderators, Elizabeth G. Gaines, Mckenzie M. Cotten, Elizabeth Reese Carwile, Mary Griffin Jackson, Marascalco Liston, Lucy Wilson

Honors Theses

The present thesis aims to determine the effects, if any, of six potential moderators on the effects of acute moderate-intensity exercise on cognitive functioning. The modes of exercise undertaken by the participants included treadmill (Experiment 1) and stationary bike (Experiment 2) exercise. Participants in each experiment either exercised or rested for twenty minutes and then participated in either a memory recall task or cognitive functioning (“Stroop”) task. The bouts of either exercise or rest on the stationary bike were followed by a rest period during which the participant would be exposed to either standard air oxygen levels (normoxia) or hypoxic …

Dissolving Sand Into Fog - Portraying Long Term Temporal Illusions Through Music, Kyle Bergler

Honors Projects

Long-term temporal illusions permeate our day-to-day lives, but due to their highly subjective nature, few are familiar with them. To help introduce these topics in a way that lets a wider audience connect individually with them, I composed three works for percussion ensembles, each in a different style, and each portraying one or multiple long-term temporal illusions. All of these pieces were composed and rehearsed throughout the spring 2025 semester and premiered at my senior recital on April 19, 2025.

Does Better Firm Performance Imply Better Management And Esg Scores?, Shawn Lisann

Research Symposium

No abstract provided.

Wais-Iv Index And Full Scale Intelligence Quotient Score Differences Between Standard And Prorated Scoring Methods, Traci Wimberly Olivier, Charles Golden, Amarilis Acevedo, Victoria I. Sterk, Kristina M. Espinosa, Kayla M. Spengler

Archives of Assessment Psychology

Standard scoring methods for the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale, Fourth Edition (WAIS-IV) require that all core subtests be used to compute index scores, yet it is possible to prorate certain indices using a reduced number of subtests. The purpose of this study is to explore differences in WAIS-IV Verbal Comprehension, Perceptual Reasoning, and Full Scale IQ Index scores as a result of using standard versus prorated scoring methods. Participants were 149 adults, ages 18 to 84 who were previously administered the WAIS-IV. Protocols were scored using standard scoring methods and then re-scored using each alternate proration combination for Verbal Comprehension, …

Information Processing Theory (R.J. Lachman), Kimberly Diah, Lisa K. Lashley, Charles J. Golden

Essays in Developmental Psychology

Information Processing Theory is a cognitive approach designed to understand human learning. Several perspectives of this theory emerged from the cognitive revolution in psychology beginning in the 1950s. The invention of the technological age of computers brought with it an innovative way of understanding how information is processed in humans. This lead researcher to draw analogies between the processing ability of humans and computers. The human-computer analogy developed from the foundation that as computers are able to process information so too can humans in a very similar method. Both encompasses ‘cognitive’ processes such as learning or obtaining information, solving problems, …

Mathematical Skills, Rhonda Douglas Brown

Essays in Developmental Psychology

Mathematical Skills are essential for understanding how the world works and for solving problems that are important to human survival and prosperity.  They are used in everyday living in societies across the world.  The most basic mathematical skills involve estimating the amount of small sets of items without using symbols, called number sense, and tracking a small number of individual objects through space and time, called parallel individuation.  These skills are thought to be present at birth or early in life and to increase in precision into adulthood.

Brain Study Techniques, Rhonda Douglas Brown

Essays in Developmental Psychology

Brain study techniques are used to understand how the brain processes information and manages behavior.  They can establish which parts of the brain are responsible for different types of cognition and behavior.  One technique, called lesion studies, involves conducting case studies of patients with brain injury and associating damage in specific regions or structures with loss or impairment of specific cognitive processes and behaviors.  For example, in the mid1800s, using post-mortem autopsy, Paul Broca observed that patients who had lost the ability to speak, but could understand language, had damage in the posterior sections of the inferior frontal gyrus; whereas, …

Gardner’S View Of Intelligence, Seth C. Courrege, Nathan C. Weed

Essays in Developmental Psychology

Howard E. Gardner’s framework for understanding intelligence is one of the most well-known alternatives to the more widely-accepted Cattell-Horn-Carrol model of intelligence (CHC). In 1983, Gardner published Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences, in which he rejected the idea of a single intelligence (g) in favor of multiple, relatively independent intelligences. In his introduction for the third edition of Frames of Mind, Gardner describes a myriad of inspirations for his theory, including a notable lack of research on artistic talents within cognitive psychology. Gardner argues that the traditional definition of “intelligence” is too narrow, and that some of …

Using Social Emotional Learning To Connect Social Awareness And Classic Literature, Erin Anderson

Honors Projects

The following case study explores how social-emotional learning (SEL) teaching strategies enhance seventh-grade students’ engagement with classic literature during English Language Arts (ELA) class. Using S.E. Hinton’s classic novella The Outsiders as a foundation for this research, this study examines whether SEL-based lesson plans help adolescents make deeper connections between literature and their own lives. Two groups of students were compared in the study: one group received traditional, comprehension-based instruction, while the other participated in SEL-based assessments, encouraging perspective-taking and personal reflection. This study utilizes qualitative assessments like character analysis, reflection, and surveys to affirm that students who are exposed …

Social Construction Of Technology In Vr Adoption For Science Education, Adipurwa Muslich

JURNAL KOMUNIKASI INDONESIA

VR has emerged as a promising tool for revolutionizing science education, offering immersive and interactive experiences that can enhance student understanding. It holds significant potential as a communication medium for explaining the complexities of science in classroom settings. Despite its potential, VR’s penetration in science education remains limited. This research explored the facets influencing VR adoption in education, focusing on science teachers' perspectives in Jakarta. Using a qualitative approach, the study investigates how the SCOT concept, grounded in communication theory, affects the adoption of VR in the educational sector. Key themes identified included the role of networking, school culture, socioeconomic …

How Much Can Families Afford To Pay For College?, Peter Hinrichs

Upjohn Institute Working Papers

This paper studies families’ capacity to pay for college in the United States, focusing on changes over time and differences by race and socioeconomic status. I use data from the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS) to document changes over time in the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) from the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The results suggest that the EFC has been rising over time, and that this has been driven primarily by families in the upper quartile of the income distribution. I then use data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) to calculate alternative measures …