Digital Commons Network^™

Data For Caveat Emptor-Scan Quality Of Elsevier’S Digital Backfile Pdf Collection, Gregory M. Nelson, Paul Kj Robbins

ScholarsArchive Data

The data set contains two Supplementary Files that contain (1) metadata for 31 of Elsevier's journal backfile packages and (2) metadata and results of a PDF scan quality study.

Thermal Inactivation Of Salmonella, Escherichia Coli, And Enterococcus Faecium Nrrl B-2354 In Pasta Matrices, Kristi Shannon Gowans

Theses and Dissertations

Limited data are currently available characterizing the thermal resistance of foodborne pathogens in semolina flour and intermediate pasta matrices representative of commercial conditions during mixing, extrusion, and drying. These data are essential to pasta producers seeking to be compliant with federal regulations since Salmonella spp. and Escherichia coli demonstrate survival in wheat flour and dried pasta products. This study investigated the heat resistance of Salmonella, pathogenic E. coli, and E. faecium NRRL B-2354 in raw semolina flour and partially dried pasta intermediates via thermal death time (TDT) studies. This study also assessed the appropriateness of E. faecium NRRL B-2354 as …

Not Acting, Reacting: An Analysis Of Reaction Videos, Reactors, Viewers And Authenticity, Cameron Cox

Theses and Dissertations

The digital age has brought about a new type of YouTuber content creator, the Reactor. Reactors film their supposed first-time reaction to various online videos including trailers, film, television etc. Reactors represent a new performance mode at the intersection of audience member and performer attempting to recreate a lost sense of community in an increasingly digitally mediated world. The act of filming one's reaction calls into question the authenticity of a reaction however, it is this very authenticity that drives Viewers to watch the content made by Reactors. Using reaction videos to the first year of Marvel Studios Disney+ shows …

La Virtud Está En El Medio: Observaciones Sobre La Pronunciación De La /S/ En El Español Dominicano, Orlando Alba

Faculty Publications

En esta presentación se describe, con el apoyo de muestras orales, la situación particular, probablemente única en el mundo hispánico, que experimenta la pronunciación de la /s/ en el español dominicano. Mientras en el habla popular la frecuencia de eliminación del segmento se sitúa alrededor del 100%, las emisiones de noticias por televisión, y algunos hablantes cuando se encuentran en situaciones formales, caen en el extremo opuesto, y exhiben un excesivo nivel de 100% de conservación de la variante plena [s]. Entre ambos polos se encuentra la realidad del habla culta natural del país, cuya modalidad es variable. En su …

Losing Control To The Controller: Mmorpg Video Game Addiction And Mediating Roles Of Player Motivations, Abbie Speed

Theses and Dissertations

Using a quantitative survey distributed to regular players of MMORPGs (Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games) (N = 777), the current study employed a correlation matrix and a parallel mediation model to assess the relationship between play frequency, motivating factors, and video game addiction. The results demonstrated that each of these elements were related to one another to varying degrees (p < .001). The motivating factors identified by Yee (2006) included achievement, immersion, and social interaction, which were tested as mediators and indicated that achievement (a1 = 0.2817, p < 0.001; b1 = 0.4073, p < 0.001) and immersion (a2 = 0.3217, p < 0.001; b2 = 0.2574, p < 0.001) are mediators in the relationship of play frequency and addiction. Social interaction was not significant as a mediator (a3 = 0.3217, p < 0.001; b3 = -0.0235, p = 0.6753). Higher levels of addiction were present for those who were motivated by achievement (rewards) and immersion (storyline/diversion) to play more frequently per week. However, those who were motivated by social interaction to play frequently did not demonstrate a statistically significant relationship with higher levels of addiction. Findings suggest that motivating factors of gameplay may have a mediating effect on the relationship between play frequency and addiction.

Impact Of Applying Visual Design Principles To Boardwork In A Mathematics Classroom, Jennifer Rose Canizales

Theses and Dissertations

Though black boards and white boards have been a fundamental tool in the classroom for over a century, little research has been done on how to best design and present information using these boards. My study takes visual design principles and applies them to boardwork in a mathematics classroom to better organize and clarify the content. This research shows that students notice boardwork, have strong opinions on what makes boardwork good, and that the application of design principles on boards has a significant impact on students and the teacher. Students felt their cognitive load was lightened and that they were …

Developing Tools For Introducing Modifications Into The Chicken Genome, Zachary Eldon Olsen

Theses and Dissertations

The chicken is a classic model organism that has provided key insights into embryonic development. Chicken embryos can be directly manipulated and observed during development while retaining the potential to reach adulthood. Despite this benefit, the utility of the chicken in studying development has been limited by the difficulty of introducing genetic changes to the genome. The recent development of cell culture conditions for chicken primordial germ cells (cPGC) has made it feasible to produce transgenic chickens, but there is still a lack of tools for introducing genetic modifications into cPGCs. Recombinase Mediated Cassette Exchange (RMCE) is a technique that …

Coming And Going To Zion: Conceptualizing Emigrant Motives Of British Latter-Day Saints, 1840-60, Samuel Benson

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis examines the push- and pull-factors that caused Latter-day Saint converts to emigrate from the U.K. between 1840 and 1860. A close reading of firsthand accounts written by 50 emigrants suggests that temporal and spiritual motives are deeply intertwined in the minds of early Mormon emigrants, and distinguishing between the nature of these factors is difficult. Several patterns emerge in the study of these accounts: first, economic factors were intertwined with millenarian belief; second, the allure of charismatic authority (prophets) or communication with God was influential; third, the doctrine of “gathering” was central to their decision-making, though the focus …

Analyzing Online Media Platforms For Hacktivist Group Organization And Proliferation, Quincy Taylor

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The anonymity and lack of censorship online provides the perfect environment for hacker activists to pursue social change. The expansive reach and democratic access to social media has empowered groups to organize and develop messaging to specifically fit an online audience. As social media become ubiquitous, the reputation and use of messaging application have become mainstream. Due to a self-professed focus on privacy, platforms like Telegram have become the norm for hosting the hacktivist communities. The purpose of this research was to understand the features in Telegram messages that correlate with the most engagement from their audience. As expected, the …

Utah's Inland Port: The Future Of Logistics In The Intermountain Region Or Gambling With Taxpayer Money, Austin Simonson

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Over the last 20 years, US imports and consumer demand have been steadily growing with no clear end in sight. Despite this, approximately 40% of all our containerized imports are processed through only two ports – the Port of Long Beach and the Port of Los Angeles. In 2021, these two locations alone moved over 10 million import containers. In order to help ease the strain on our nationwide supply chain – an issue that came clearly into view during the COVID-19 pandemic – in 2016, the University of Utah submitted an assessment regarding a possible inland port in the …

Simulations Of Morphology Control Of Self-Assembled Amphiphilic Surfactants, Qinyu Zhu, Douglas R. Tree

Faculty Publications

One of the grand challenges of amphiphilic self-assembly is the design of ordered structures whose morphology or shape can be explicitly and dynamically controlled by adjusting the properties of the amphiphiles or their surroundings. Such a capacity would enable researchers to create synthetic systems with functionality that meets or exceeds biological cells, and provide a robust platform for a broad range of engineering applications such as artificial tissues, drug delivery, and separation membranes. Despite significant progress, important fundamental questions remain unanswered, due in part to the limited resolution and the restricted parameter spaces that are readily accessible in experiments. Computational …

Control Education For Societal-Scale Challenges: A Community Roadmap, John Anthony Rossiter, Christos G. Cassandras, João Hespanha, Sebastian Dormido, Luis De La Torre, Gireeja Ranade, Antonio Visioli, John Hedengren, Richard M. Murray, Panos Antsaklis, Francoise Lamnabhi-Lagarrigue, Thomas Parisini

Faculty Publications

This article focuses on extending, disseminating and interpreting the findings of an IEEE Control Systems Society working group looking at the role of control theory and engineering in solving some of the many current and future societal challenges. The findings are interpreted in a manner designed to give focus and direction to both future education and research work in the general control theory and engineering arena, interpreted in the broadest sense. The paper is intended to promote discussion in the community and also provide a useful starting point for colleagues wishing to re-imagine the design and delivery of control-related topics …

Simulations Of Morphology Control Of Self-Assembled Amphiphilic Surfactants, Qinyu Zhu, Douglas R. Tree

Faculty Publications

One of the grand challenges of amphiphilic self-assembly is the design of ordered structures whose morphology or shape can be explicitly and dynamically controlled by adjusting the properties of the amphiphiles or their surroundings. Such a capacity would enable researchers to create synthetic systems with functionality that meets or exceeds biological cells, and provide a robust platform for a broad range of engineering applications such as artificial tissues, drug delivery, and separation membranes. Despite significant progress, important fundamental questions remain unanswered, due in part to the limited resolution and the restricted parameter spaces that are readily accessible in experiments. Computational …

Korean Pop Idols: The Dark Side Of The Limelight, Ashley Chase

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Korean pop music has risen to an international consciousness during the surge of the cultural Korean wave. However, many are still unaware of the struggles that idols face when pursuing a career in this industry. Many artists in the industry struggle with their physical and emotional health due to rigorous schedules in training and as a performing group, high expectations of performance and appearance, and restrictive contracts known as “slave contracts” that limit their personal freedoms and financial resources. These factors lead to the industry being highly damaging to the stars that participate in it.

In this documentary, I take …

An Evaluation Of Epa Communication On Climate Change From 1997 To 2022, Adam Johnson

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Because the United States is responsible for such a large percent of the world’s emissions, its actions to combat climate change is especially significant. As the main speaker for the U.S. on climate change, it is important the EPA uses effective communication strategies. In this paper we evaluated the effectiveness of the EPA’s communication. To do so, we evaluated publicly available press releases from the EPA from 1997 to 2022. To measure effectiveness, we incorporated a range of factors that climate communication experts have identified as particularly important. Our analysis found that the EPA effectively communicates in light of some …

Creating A Homophone-Based Chinese Language Censorship Evasion Tool, Emily Quan

Undergraduate Honors Theses

As the scope of Chinese language censorship expands, individuals will seek to bypass such censorship efforts. One of the most prevalent techniques in such censorship is automated keyword filtering. This research focuses on building a command-line tool that can bypass automated keyword filters for both traditional and simplified Chinese characters using a two-part approach. The first part involves detecting sensitive words in user-inputted text by using phrase matching techniques to identify character strings that have been censored in the past. The second part centers around generating possible obfuscated homonym alternatives. The tool relies on a compiled list of banned and …

Mujeres Latinas En Acción: Pragmatic Feminism And The Longevity Of Grassroots Organizations, Lindsey Meza

Undergraduate Honors Theses

In 1973, Mujeres Latinas en Acción was formed in the midst of the Chicano Movement. Simultaneously, Chicana feminists were working in and breaking from Chicano organizations to fight for egalitarian gains. Pilsen, a neighborhood in Chicago and the home of Mujeres Latinas en Acción, was a hotbed for Chicano and Latino activism during this period. The women who founded MLEA saw similar disparities in social services offered to women in Pilsen that Chicanas around the country were noting. The ways in which Chicanas were approaching these feminist ventures varied. Based upon my studies of Mujeres Latinas en Acción, I argue …

A Catholic Reads The Book Of Mormon: Folk Carvings Of Roman Śledź, Candace Brown

Undergraduate Honors Theses

A Catholic Reads the Book of Mormon: Folk Carvings of Roman Śledź presents thirteen never-before-shown wooden sculptures from the private collection of Dr. Walter Whipple to expand Book of Mormon visual culture and foster an interfaith appreciation for its universal story of faith. Śledź, a renowned Polish folk artist, and Whipple, a former associate professor of Polish at Brigham Young University, were first introduced in the 1990s when Whipple served as the first mission president for the Poland Warsaw Mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. For years, Whipple commissioned carvings from this faithful sculptor. Eventually, Śledź …

Political Propaganda In Young Adult Fiction, Jordan Spriggs

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The Critical Introduction and Creative Work explore the effect of the use of Political Philosophies and Systems as plot and worldbuilding in Young Adult Fiction. This is explored through the lens of partisan antipathy and political polarization along with reception theory. By analyzing the current trends of politics as a plot and worldbuilding device in Dystopian Young Adult Fiction, I conclude that most popular fiction has a bias toward western political philosophy. This then leads to concerns over potential echo chambers and polarization. As a recommendation, I demonstrate how diverse political theories can be used in Young Adult fiction.

Large Deflection Analysis Of General Beams In Contact-Aided Compliant Mechanisms Using Chained Pseudo-Rigid-Body Model, Mohui Jin, Collin Ynchausti, Xianmin Zhang, Zhou Yang, Benliang Zhu, Larry L. Howell

Faculty Publications

The nonlinear analysis and design of contact-aided compliant mechanisms (CCMs) are challenging. This paper presents a nonlinear method for analyzing the deformation of general beams that contact rigid surfaces in CCMs. The large deflection of the general beam is modeled by using the chained pseudo-rigid-body model. A geometry constraint from the contact surface is developed to constrain the beam’s deformed configuration. The contact analysis problem is formulated based on the principle of minimum potential energy and solved using an optimization algorithm. Besides, a novel technique based on the principle of work and energy is proposed calculate the reaction force/moment of …

A Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion Audit Of The American Families Of Faith Project: Exploring Lifespan Spiritual Development In Religiously And Racially Diverse Families, David C. Dollahite, Justin J. Hendricks, Loren D. Marks

Faculty Publications

Social science and religious studies scholars should endeavor to broaden theories, methods, and samples to be more inclusive. Therefore, we have conducted an “equity audit” of the American Families of Faith (AFF) project. We evaluated the diversity, equity, and inclusion of the AFF project’s (a) research team, (b) products, and (c) samples. We then discuss the reasoning behind the decisions that resulted in the existing strengths and limitations of the project, the fruits of this and previous evaluations (including a presentation of some narrative accounts from parents and youths across several religious-ethnic communities across the US), opportunities for growth, and …

Gyno-Gerontological Discourse And The Dearth Of Old Women Narrators In British Fiction 1790-1860, Lavender Elisabeth Earnest

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the remarkable dearth of old woman narrators in British fiction between 1790 and 1860, both documenting their under-representation and explaining it as, in part, a product of a wave of medical discourse disparaging the physical and mental vitality of post-menopausal women. Regarding methodology, I perform a random sample upon a corpus of first-person novels published in the period and categorize each according to the gender and age of the narrator. This analysis exhibits, unsurprisingly, that most narrators in the dataset are either in the first half of their life, male, or both. Old women represent only a …

Extra, Extra, Read All About It: An Analysis Of News Platform Preferences, Gabrielle Shiozawa

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis analyzes the correlation between age, political leaning, and the way people interact with news media by examining data from a sample survey of 254 news consumers. Results indicate that older and/or more conservative people are more likely to get their news from print newspapers, cable news, broadcast, and radio, while younger and/or more progressive individuals are more likely to get their news from social media. Younger and/or more progressive people are also more likely to trust the news than their older and/or more conservative counterparts. Subjects across the board preferred reading articles to watching the news, with no …

Sources Of Atmospheric Dust Deposition On Utah Lake, Justin Telfer

Theses and Dissertations

Atmospheric deposition (AD) is a significant source of nutrient loading to waterbodies around the world. However, the sources and loading rates are poorly understood for major waterbodies and even less understood for local waterbodies. Utah Lake is a eutrophic lake located in central Utah, USA, and has high nutrient levels. Recent research has identified AD as significant sources for nutrient loading to the lake to better understand the dust AD sources, we sampled suspected source locations and collected deposition samples around the lake. We analyzed these samples using Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP) for 25 metals to characterize their elemental fingerprints. …

Role Of The Cytosolic Chaperonin Cct In The Folding Of Novel Substrates, Theresa M. Smith

Theses and Dissertations

All cells depend on properly folded proteins for survival and function. Misfolding of proteins results in loss of critical functions and may trigger the misfolding of other nearby proteins leading to toxic aggregation. While many proteins can fold on their own, others with complicated domain structures require assistance from protein folding machines called chaperones. The most complex and highly specialized of all chaperones is the eukaryotic chaperonin complex CCT which is necessary for the folding of a wide variety of essential proteins. These include the cytoskeletal proteins actin and tubulin as well as the Gβ subunit of the G protein …

Nutrient Loadings To Utah Lake From Bulk Atmospheric Deposition, Mitchell Matthew Brown

Theses and Dissertations

Atmospheric deposition is a marginally understood source of nutrient loadings to waterbodies. Atmospheric deposition occurs via wet (rain, snow) and dry (gaseous and particulate transport) pathways. Bulk atmospheric deposition is defined as the total deposition from both wet and dry pathways. Utah Lake is a shallow eutrophic freshwater lake located in central Utah, USA. Recent studies have shown atmospheric deposition to be a significant contributor to the nutrient budget of Utah Lake. This study presents the analysis using three different methods of six years' worth of wet atmospheric deposition samples from nine locations around the lake, though these samples do …

Hierarchical Joint Entity Recognition And Relation Extraction Of Contextual Entities In Family History Records, Daniel Segrera

Theses and Dissertations

Entity extraction is an important step in document understanding. Higher accuracy entity extraction on fine-grained entities can be achieved by combining the utility of Named Entity Recognition (NER) and Relation Extraction (RE) models. In this paper, a cascading model is proposed that implements NER and Relation extraction. This model utilizes relations between entities to infer context-dependent fine-grain named entities in text corpora. The RE module runs independent of the NER module, which reduces error accumulation from sequential steps. This process improves on the fine-grained NER F1-score of existing state-of-the-art from .4753 to .8563 on our data, albeit on a strictly …

On The Modeling Of A Contact-Aided Cross-Axis Flexural Pivot, Pietro Bilancia, Giovanni Berselli, Spencer P. Magleby, Larry L. Howell

Faculty Publications

This paper reports the study of a planar Cross-Axis Flexural Pivot (CAFP) comprising an additional contact pair. The proposed device turns useful for applications requiring a revolute joint that behaves differently when deflecting clockwise/anti-clockwise. The presence of the contact pair reduces the free length of one flexures, resulting in a considerable increment of the overall joint stiffness. The pivot behaviour is investigated, for different load cases, via the ChainedBeam-Constraint Model (CBCM), namely an accurate method to be applied in large deflection problems. A framework comprising Matlab and ANSYS is developed for testing the CAFP performances in terms of rotational stiffness, …

A Cprbm-Based Method For Large-Deflection Analysis Of Contact-Aided Compliant Mechanisms Considering Beam-To-Beam Contacts, Mohui Jin, Benliang Zhu, Jiasi Mo, Zhou Yang, Xianmin Zhang, Larry L. Howell

Faculty Publications

Contact-aided compliant mechanisms (CCMs) utilize contact to achieve enhanced functionality. The contact phenomenon of CCMs increases the difficulties of their analysis and design, especially when they exhibit beam-to-beam contact. Considering the particularity of CCMs analysis, which is more about the mechanisms’ deformation, this paper presents a numerical method to analyze the large deflection and stress of the CCMs considering beam-to-beam contacts. Based on our previous work on beam-to-rigid contact, the large deformation of general beams in CCMs is modeled by using the chained pseudo-rigid-body model (CPRBM). An approximation based on the geometric information of CPRBM is proposed in this paper …

“Are These People Real?”: Designing And Playtesting An Alternative Reality, Educational Simulation, Jason K. Mcdonald, Jonathan Balzotti, Melissa Franklin, Jessica Haws, Jamin Rowan

Faculty Publications

In this design case, we report our design and playtest of a form of alternative reality, educational simulation that we call a playable case study (PCS). One of the features that make our simulations unique is how they are designed to implement a principle called This Is Not a Game, or TINAG, meaning that the affordances we design into the simulation suggest to students that the experience they are having is real, in contrast to the way the artificial nature of the experience is highlighted in many computer games. In this case, we describe some challenges we encountered in designing …