Digital Commons Network^™

"Deep In The Trenches": A Multi-Perspective Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis Of Student Mothers Navigating The Hidden Realities Of Postpartum Anxiety, Rhonda Harris

Theses and Dissertations

Despite availability of effective treatments women with postpartum anxiety (PPA) commonly go untreated because of barriers to care. Student mothers are a particularly vulnerable subgroup of women as they tend to be younger, are less likely to be married, and have lower incomes than non-student mothers. As anxiety rates in college women are higher than the general population and higher than college men, student mothers are at high risk of the adverse effects of untreated PPA. There is a paucity of existing literature about student mothers and mental health. The aim of the current study is to understand the help-seeking …

Transcriptomic Analysis Of Xeroderma Pigmentosum Group C Skin Samples, Austen N. Gleave

Theses and Dissertations

Xeroderma Pigmentosum is a rare genetic disorder caused by defective DNA damage repair enzymes. This condition results in an increased risk of developing skin cancer and other symptoms in those affected. In this thesis, we examined the effects of Xeroderma Pigmentosum on gene expression in patient skin biopsy samples. To accomplish this, we utilized statistical analysis of spatial transcriptomic and single-cell RNA sequencing techniques to discover differences between patient and heterozygous carrier skin samples. We found that the skin samples from Xeroderma Pigmentosum patients showed elevated levels of inflammation, immune activation, and cellular stress, while the carrier skin samples leaned …

The Impact Of Principal Preparation Program Components On Self-Efficacy Development In Aspiring School Leaders, Michelle Price

Theses and Dissertations

Leaders with high self-efficacy demonstrate greater persistence when facing adversity, implement organizational change more readily, and establish higher goals for themselves and their organizations. This qualitative study examines which components of principal preparation programs most strongly contribute to self-efficacy development among aspiring school leaders in Utah, specifically in instructional leadership and management for learning. Through semi-structured interviews with 19 recent graduates from three Utah universities, the research explores how program components influence candidates' confidence to lead schools effectively. Grounded in Bandura's self-efficacy theory, the findings reveal that while cohort-based models and faculty characteristics provide foundational support for overall efficacy development, …

No Principal Left Alone: Exploring Elementary Principals' Relationships With Their Full-Time Assistant Principals, Shauna Worthington

Theses and Dissertations

Elementary school principals are often the only administrator in their building; therefore they are left to face the adverse circumstances of their job without the support of an administrative colleague at their school. However, U.S. nationwide data suggests that school districts are more frequently hiring elementary assistant principals. This paper explores perceptions of elementary principals about the nature and dynamic of their relationships with their full-time assistant principals, including accompanying benefits and challenges. This qualitative inquiry utilizes an exploratory, descriptive, phenomenological approach and features the results of in-depth interviews with 20 elementary school principals in two large suburban public school …

Entwurzelt, Melanie Fischer

Theses and Dissertations

Entwurzelt (Uprooted) is an installation that explores the emotional landscape of displacement-trauma, grief, and the search for belonging in the aftermath of war and unrest. The vessels in this installation evoke the presence of a forest--each one a symbolic tree, rooted in memory and shaped by personal and collective histories. Being torn from the familiar means leaving behind everything except memories and carrying a void that may never be fully filled. Yet, in unfamiliar places, fragments of comfort can be found--echoes of what once was. For me, the forest is more than a memory--it is a bridge between past and …

Fallow Ground, Eli Kerns

Theses and Dissertations

Fallow Ground refers to the agricultural practice of intentionally leaving a field unseeded for a year or more in order to restore fertility and interrupt cycles of depletion. Although fallowing is a beneficial and necessary practice, the term has also come to signify waste or a lack of productivity. This double meaning is central to the work, reflecting a central contradiction: that withdrawal can be as vital as effort, and that rest, like labor, can function as a deliberate and sustaining act. The question I explore in this work is how to organize, understand, and live with these contradictions. Through …

Reconsidering The Take It Down Act, Cate Thorpe

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

In the past decade, there has been an increase in digital forgeries leading to the phenomena many have called “revenge porn.” This form of Nonconsensual Intimate Imagery (NCII) has been facilitated by AI-models that allow users to create false images or videos of someone’s likeness, often referred to as deepfakes. In an attempt to combat the dissemination of such forged NCIIs, Congress enacted the TAKE IT DOWN Act. The Act institutes a notice-and-removal procedure for victims to request the removal of  NCIIs depicting their likeness on covered platforms. While the TAKE IT DOWN Act sufficiently addresses some concerns, certain aspects …

Rethinking Antitrust In The Age Of Fintech, Quaid Knell, Olivia Mossman

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

In cases involving large technology firms, current antitrust laws are proving difficult to enforce when applied through the traditional framework of price-centered metrics. Financial technology (fintech) companies are firms that integrate digital technology into financial services and operate through multi-sided platforms, and they are growing in number. This increased number of firms introduces the next challenge for antitrust enforcement, as traditional definitions of market dominance and monopolistic behavior are ill-suited to the realities of the digital landscape. Although there are no current antitrust lawsuits against major fintech firms, their existing structures and business models, if left unexamined, allow these firms …

Regulating Ai, Jacob Leavitt

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

Artificial intelligence, a new phenomena embedding itself in every aspect of public life, is advancing at unprecedented rates with potentially catastrophic consequences. While fragmented and reaction regulation frameworks are currently in place, based primarily on tort cases, this paper calls for a hybrid regulatory solution that combines federal administrative law and streamlined international policy. This paper assesses proposed regulatory solutions - tort law, an industry-drafted “AI Constitution,” a Communications Decency Act-style immunity framework, a domestic federal agency, and an international regulatory body. Based on these frameworks, the authors have developed five criteria for an effective solution - expertise, enforceability, obligation, …

Observational Diagnostics And Spectroscopic Detection Of Tropospheric Trace Gases And Oxidation Processes, Callum E. Flowerday

Theses and Dissertations

The troposphere is governed by photochemical and radical-mediated processes that control atmospheric oxidation capacity, secondary pollutant formation, and the chemical lifetime of gases. Quantitative understanding of these processes requires both robust observational frameworks capable of resolving complex precursor–product relationships and instrumentation with sufficient sensitivity and selectivity to detect reactive and low-concentration species. This dissertation advances atmospheric chemistry through the parallel development of quantitative observational methodologies and refined spectroscopic measurement techniques. The first component of this work evaluates atmospheric oxidation systems using long-term monitoring data and empirical diagnostics. Multi-year analyses of ozone and particulate matter trends were conducted to characterize variability …

Does Concurrent Completion Of A Computer Task Interfere With Talking? Comparing Younger And Older Adults, Emma Simpson Hymas

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates the impact of a computer-based divided attention task on spoken language and compares the impact between younger (18–30 years) and older (55–82 years) adults. Sixty adults participated in a speaking task and two computer tasks which varied in difficulty. The Level 1 computer task involved highlighting each instance of the word “the” and the Level 2 computer task involved highlighting each instance of the word “the” while also underlining each instance of the word “a”. Each task was completed alone and then two computer tasks with different levels of difficulty were completed concurrently with a procedural discourse …

The Impact Of Social Media On Attention And Memory, Jared Mcfarlane, Nathan Mangum, Ryan Ensign, Andrew Lloyd, Samuel Storm, Jared Nielsen

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2026

Social media has become nearly ubiquitous in recent years. However, relatively little is known about how its use is related to cognition. This study investigates the potential connection between our social media use habits and our cognitive abilities, specifically sustained attention and episodic memory.

Rapid Kitchen Compost As A Growing Media, Rebecca Kerr, Shannon V. Nelson, Bryan G. Hopkins

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2026

ReencleTM composters decompose most food waste within 24 hours (~90% reduction).

Compost can be an excellent source of nutrients for plants and improve soil structure and water retention.

Objective: Determine the effectiveness of kitchen compost as a soil amendment for growing lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.), and Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.).

Investigating The Role Of Tnf In Hiv-1 Infected Cell Death, Brennan B. Wells, Sidney Sithole, Bradford Berges

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2026

HIV-1 is the causative agent of the terminal disease AIDS. Clinical studies have determined that patients infected with a mutant of HIV-1, Vpr-R77Q, do not progress towards AIDS. Subsequently, our lab has discovered two notable differences between the Vpr- R77Q variant and WT HIV-1: increased levels of apoptosis in infected cells (which is thought to contribute to the lack of AIDS progression), and decreased levels of inflammatory cytokines, namely Tumor Necrosis Factor (TNF). The purpose of this ongoing experiment is to investigate the potential inverse correlation between TNF levels and apoptosis levels through the introduction of additional TNF cytokines to …

Objective Conditioning Via Latent-Factor Modeling, Kalman-Smoothing, And Hidden Markov Clustering: An Application To Empirical Asset Pricing, Melanie R. Neller

Theses and Dissertations

Empirical asset pricing relies heavily on conditioning sets--industry groupings, size buckets, valuation screens, and other researcher-defined partitions--to structure cross-sectional tests and portfolio construction. While intuitive, such partitions risk blending heterogeneous firms, masking latent exposures, and introducing omitted-variable bias. This thesis develops an objective, mathematically grounded conditioning pipeline that replaces subjective groupings with latent-factor extraction, Kalman-based data techniques, and probabilistic clustering via Gaussian hidden Markov models (HMMs). Using CRSP monthly returns, the framework stabilizes noisy return data, extracts systematic structure through principal component analysis (PCA), identifies homogeneous stock cohorts through HMM clustering, and models regime persistence using Markov transition matrices. These …

Electrochemical Sensors And Processes In Molten Salts: Chlorine Production, Electroanalytical Chemistry, And Thin-Layer Electrodes, Tyler Williams

Theses and Dissertations

Molten salt electrochemistry has historically played a substantial role in the metallurgical industry, and this trend is only accelerating in areas of green steel, direct ore processing, and rare-earth processing. In addition, the recent surge of interest in molten salt nuclear reactors has provided an additional application for molten salt electrochemical processes, including the reprocessing of used nuclear fuels and the development of electrochemical sensors for nuclear applications. In this work, the development of a chloride volatility separation process for used nuclear fuel is advanced; electroanalytical methods are improved for identifying and quantifying unknown analytes with and without the presence …

De Aquí Y De Allá: Exchanging Language And Visual Culture In The Lower Rio Grande Valley, Chloë M. Robinson

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This study examines graphic design in the Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV) as a site of cultural hybridity, shaped by transnational histories and bilingual practice. It explores how Mexican and Anglo design markers intersect and are negotiated in daily life through analysis of 2,180 visual artifacts, interviews with ten local creatives, and a survey of fifty residents. Historical research traces influences like nineteenth-century wood type and rótulo signage to contemporary advertising. Interviews reveal that local creatives navigate hybrid identities through code-switching, bilingual fluency, and borderlands experiences. Survey results show that participants’ language preferences predict how they categorize and rank typographic …

Generalizing Networks To Address Data Imbalance For Facial Action Unit Recognition, Andrew W. Sumsion

Theses and Dissertations

Facial action unit (AU) recognition is used in a variety of downstream applications, including sign language translation, dementia detection, pain detection, and other high-impact tasks that require understanding facial motion. Although AU recognition is a well-established field, a number of unresolved issues remain. An initial problem is the need to improve overall performance on the benchmark datasets, as measured by the average F1 score. Also, the performance across all individual AUs, not just the average F1 score, needs to be increased. Recently, the field has shifted its attention towards ensuring that AU recognition models generalize beyond the distributions represented in …

Tusqh: Topological Control Of Volume-Fraction Meshes Near Small Features And Dirty Geometry, Brian Reese Shawcroft

Theses and Dissertations

This work develops a framework to create meshes with user-specified homology from potentially dirty geometry by coupling background grids, persistent homology, and a generalization of volume fractions. For a mesh with fixed grid size, the topology of the output mesh changes predictably and monotonically as its volume-fraction threshold decreases. Topological anti-aliasing methods are introduced to resolve pinch points and disconnected regions that are artifacts of user choice of grid size and orientation, making the output meshes suitable for downstream processes including analysis. The methodology is demonstrated on geographical, mechanical, and graphics models in two-dimensions (2D) and three-dimensions (3D) using a …

The Capitol’S Punishment: A Disability Theory Reading And Analysis Of The Hunger Games Series, Brynne Farnsworth

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper analyzes how disability is treated in The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins. Through a close analysis of the variety of perspectives on disability, Collins presents the Capitol as having an othering, dehumanizing approach to disability, while District Thirteen makes some accommodations but ultimately reveals itself to have a similar point of view as the Capitol. While not perfect, the perspective of the Districts prevails through its approach of empathy and connection and implies a hope for a society that draws on those connections over divisions. Collins also overarchingly promotes hope for those with disabilities throughout the series …

Fostering Audiation In Band Through Modeling Videos, Zachary T. Larsen

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Within band classrooms, teachers have a dual responsibility to nurture students’ growth on their primary instrument and cultivate their ability to audiate. While established pedagogical traditions effectively support the teaching of primary instruments, comparable frameworks for cultivating audiation in band settings remain underdeveloped. This project provides band teachers with scaffolded modeling videos designed to bridge this pedagogical gap and support students' development of audiation.

Are You Listening?, Hanna H. Eyre

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis examines the interconnection between music, religion, and a feminist lens in the form of a sixteen-song Christian album. The content of the music broaches topics specific to women’s issues including family dynamics, maternal mortality, and invisible labor while also covering more broad topics of repentance, developing a more nuanced relationship with the Savior, recognizing divinity in ourselves and others, and our Heavenly Mother. This paper includes the groundwork research and experiences that led me to write this album, the methods I took to write, record, and produce the album, and an analysis of how the music changed, and …

Beyond The Flames: A Comparative Analysis Of Wildfire Preparedness And Relief In California, Ej Smith

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Wildfires in California have devastated homes and communities, with the 2024–2025 Los Angeles fires ranking among the deadliest in state history, killing 31 people and burning more than 37,000 acres across densely populated neighborhoods. In response to these fires, fire services, municipal governments, and nongovernmental organizations coordinated immediate relief efforts across multiple jurisdictions. This research uses a multiple-case study approach to examine the Eaton, Palisades, Line, and Bridge fires to identify practices that supported life safety and response effectiveness, as well as challenges that constrained response operations. Findings indicate that when environmental conditions exceeded suppression capacity, response outcomes within responder …

Strategic Parallels: How Historic Military Tactics Inform Modern Business Strategy, Eli S. Nelson

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The field of business strategy emerged out of military strategy during the mid- twentieth century. Despite this shared DNA, the connection between the two fields has been limited to broad conceptual comparisons and abstract motivational framing. No prior research has paired a specific military history case with a specific modern business case to analyze the parallels between these disciplines in detail.

This research addresses that gap by comparing the German Blitzkrieg campaign during the 1940 invasion of France and the transformation of Ryanair in the early 1990s. Despite being separated by fifty years and operating in completely different domains, the …

Stacking Moves: How Digital Platforms Sequence Value Creation, Jonathan M. Dickson

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis examines how large digital platform firms evolve by adding new platform types over time. Using the four-type framework developed by Bryce, Dyer, and Van Alstyne—transaction, connection, innovation, and collaboration—I trace the platform histories of seven firms: Apple, Alphabet, Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, Tencent, and Alibaba. For each firm, I classify every qualifying platform event as a base platform, a stacking move (a new interaction that draws on an existing platform's users or architecture), or a standalone platform (a new platform that operates independently). Across seventy-plus events, four findings emerge:

1. Firms stack new platform types in predictable sequences shaped by …

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Newsletter of the Jussi Björling Societies of the USA & UK

No abstract provided.

The Jussi Björling Museum Emptied

Newsletter of the Jussi Björling Societies of the USA & UK

As was previously announced, the Jussi Björling Museum in Borlänge was closed at the turn of the year 2021/22.

Borlänge municipality had debated the fate of the Museum for years, and a decision was made to move it to, or adjacent to, the municipal library. However, it was not until 10 January 2022 that the Museum Curator was informed that the building was to be emptied by the end of February to serve as an office for the upcoming redevelopment of the nearby Liljan building (for the needs of Dalarna University College). Since no new museum space is available now, …

Who Is God: Examining Explicit Beliefs About God, Scrupulosity, Suicidal Ideation, And Pscyhopathology, Katelynn L. Payne

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Religion has often been cited as a protective factor against psychopathology and suicidal ideation. However, this pattern does not always hold true. In this study, I sought to understand these exceptions by examining the relationship between explicit beliefs about God, scrupulosity, suicidal ideation, and psychological well-being among members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS). 105 adults were recruited and completed self-report measures related to the study variables. Negative explicit beliefs were positively correlated with scrupulosity, depression, anxiety, stress, and suicidal ideation. Scrupulosity was also positively correlated with depression, anxiety, stress, and suicidal ideation. Positive beliefs were …

Movement As Worship: Deepening Religious Practices Through Bodily Awareness And Expression, Jordan M. Halterman

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This creative project explores how bodily awareness and expression deepen personal religious practice, with particular attention to the theology from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and embodied dance experience. Drawing from theological scholarship (Aquino and Gavrilyuk 2022, Brown 2014, Jordan 2016, Summers 2014, Taylor 2023, Zaluchu 2021), dance and liturgical studies (Debenham and Debenham 2008, Hackney 2020, Kent and Tucker 1996, Kline-Chesson 1989, Roseman 2015), and teachings from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Bednar 2001, Lloyd 1998, Nelson 2008, Tanner 2005, Wisco and Seferovich 2014), this study reveals that the body is not peripheral …

Using Facial Landmarks For Lip Motion Interpretation Applications, Kimi S. Wright

Theses and Dissertations

Facial motion, particularly lip movement, carries rich information about human speech that can be leveraged for a variety of computer vision and speech-processing tasks. Unlike other pixel-based methods, this work investigates the use of facial landmarks as a compact, privacy- preserving, and computationally efficient representation for lip-motion analysis. We evaluate landmark-based models across multiple tasks, including visual voice activity detection (VVAD), lip–audio synchroniza- tion, and visual speech recognition (VSR) for liveness detection. Using LRS3-VVAD1 and LRS22 datasets, we demonstrate that landmark-only models can achieve performance comparable to pixel-based systems for VVAD and synchronization, while significantly reducing parameter counts and inference …