Digital Commons Network^™

Error Propagation And Algorithmic Design Of Contour Integral Eigensolvers With Applications To Fiber Optics, Benjamin Quanah Parker

Dissertations and Theses

In this work, the finite element method and the FEAST eigensolver are used to explore applications in fiber optics. The present interest is in computing eigenfunctions u and propagation constants β satisfing [sic] the Helmholtz equation Δu + k²n²u = β²u. Here, k is the freespace wavenumber and n is a spatially varying coefficient function representing the refractive index of the underlying medium. Such a problem arises when attempting to compute confinement losses in optical fibers that guide laser light. In practice, this requires the computation of functions u referred to as …

The Distributed Trust Model Applied To The Energy Grid Of Things, Narmada Sonali Fernando

Dissertations and Theses

Electric power system operators can manage distribution system utilization and usage by coordinating end customer usage of distributed energy resources. The end customers in this regard are Service Provisioning Customers, who provide their energy resources to a Grid Service Provider, which in turn dispatches large aggregations of distributed energy resources to provide reliable service to the power system. The security of this system relies upon information protection mechanisms, as described in IEEE 2030.5. However, in addition to preventive security measures, a monitoring function is required to ensure trustworthiness.

Trust models are a method to detect and respond to both expected …

Parenting And Children's Academic Coping As A Dynamic System: Feedforward, Feedback, And Mediators Of Changes Across The School Year, Kristen Elizabeth Raine

Dissertations and Theses

Using a motivational framework based in self-determination theory, the present study investigated the dynamic system between parenting and children's coping, defined as the ways they handle the everyday difficulties they encounter in school, using a sample of 1,020 students in grades three through six drawn from a larger cohort-sequential study. Three overarching research questions were examined using multiple regression that concerned 1) feedforward effects from parents' initial provision of motivational support (i.e., involvement, structure, and autonomy support) to changes in children's academic coping across the school year, 2) feedback effects from children's initial coping to changes in the same parenting …

Sustaining Boys' Motivation Over The Transition To Middle School: Can Interpersonal Resources Protect Boys From Engagement Declines Across Sixth Grade?, Brandy Anne Brennan

Dissertations and Theses

Recent research has highlighted the challenges boys face in school. Boys are overrepresented on indicators of negative academic outcomes, such as detention, suspension, and dropout, as well as underperformance on state and national tests. Moreover, these effects may be long lasting: Compared to females, male students are less likely to graduate high school, enroll in college, and complete a college degree, and they may be particularly vulnerable in middle school. As students enter middle school, their motivation and engagement normatively decline, and these losses may be especially problematic for boys. Nevertheless, research documents the importance of close relationships with parents, …

Faculty Senate Monthly Packet December 2021, Portland State University Faculty Senate

Faculty Senate Monthly Packets

The December 6, 2021 Monthly packet includes the December agenda and appendices and the Faculty Senate minutes and attachments from the meeting held November 1, 2021.

The Evaluation Of Performance Of Spindle Connector And Its Finite Element Analysis, Suhyun Lee

Dissertations and Theses

The rapid development of machining technology and reliable high-speed machining systems has led to a fast operation of machines. However, machining machines cannot still meet modern requirements in terms of the quality of parts, the machine components, and the life of the tools. The major components of the machining system are machine tools, the spindle interfaces (the contact between the spindle and the tool holder), and tools. The choice of the spindle connector is the main decision, as this defines the limitation of the metal cutting efficiency and considerably influences the deformation of the machine tool. Therefore, it is very …

Remembering Two Titans Of Manga: Shirato Sanpei And Saitō Takao, Natsume Fusanosuke, Jon Holt, Teppei Fukuda

World Languages and Literatures Faculty Publications and Presentations

What follows is a pair of recent tributes Natsume Fusanosuke wrote for Japanese newspapers, concerning the pioneering cartoonists Saitō Takao and Shirato Sanpei, who died, respectively, on September 24, 2021, and October 8, 2021. The two articles are here presented in English for the first time.

Translated by Jon Holt & Teppei Fukuda

Enhancement Of The Command-Line Environment For Use In The Introductory Statistics Course And Beyond, David W. Gerbing

Business Faculty Publications and Presentations

R and Python are commonly used software languages for data analytics. Using these languages as the course software for the introductory course gives students practical skills for applying statistical concepts to data analysis. However, the reliance upon the command line is perceived by the typical nontechnical introductory student as sufficiently esoteric that its use detracts from the teaching of statistical concepts and data analysis. An R package was developed based on the successive feedback of hundreds of introductory statistics students over multiple years to provide a set of functions that apply basic statistical principles with command-line R. The package offers …

The Game Of Life: How Playing Gamified Interactive Narratives Affects Career Planning In Cambodia, Lauren B. Frank, Paul Sparks, Sheila T. Murphy, Lizzie Goodfriend, Paul Falzone

Communication Faculty Publications and Presentations

To improve economic opportunity in Cambodia, we used social cognitive theory to develop gamified, interactive narratives using mobile phones. Participants guided their chosen character toward their “dream job” goal while encountering a series of barriers along the way. Participants (N = 1,625) were randomly assigned to one of four message frequency experimental conditions: a no-play control condition or playing the interactive narrative one, two, or five times. Compared with not playing the interactive narrative (control), those who played showed higher perceived self-efficacy, response efficacy, and behavioral intentions. Playing more times was associated with less attentional focus and enjoyment, but greater …

Animal Crossing As A @Digitalaltar, Lillyanne Pham

Animal Crossing as a @DigitalAltar

Lillyanne Pham, Maria Mejia, Gavrielle Thompson, Bea Yeh, Maria Mayorya, Chanel Matsunami Govreau, virtual care lab , Roz Crews, Candace Avalos

For Fall 2021 Art & Social Practice History at Portland State University, I explored the social simulation game Animal Crossing: New Horizons (ACNH) as a digital altar. I asked How do social simulation games provide a dream space, a neighborhood btwn IRL and URL relationships? How is online gardening similar to sanctuary making, altar making? My co-conspirators offered me Fuck Tom Nook. In other words, should we build an altar in a capitalist, escapist, and colonialist dystopia? This project …

Information Literacy For Global Inclusion: Designing An Annotated Bibliography For Global Search And Selection, Pamela A. Espinosa De Los Monteros, Elizabeth L. Black

Communications in Information Literacy

The COVID-19 pandemic has reinforced the notion that our world is global and interdependent. Despite the ever-increasing connection of global with local, there continues to be formidable barriers in accessing information produced in different international contexts and languages. This Innovative Practices article details the redesign of an annotated bibliography assignment in an international studies course to support the inclusion of global perspectives into the information practices of undergraduate students. The redesign embedded explicit information literacy dispositions and global citizenship education competencies through the search and selection of global information sources. The authors discuss the instructional elements used, student outcomes, and …

Beam Me Up: Teaching Rhetorical Methods For Source Use And Synthesis, Ashley Roach-Freiman

Communications in Information Literacy

BEAM is a schema for categorizing the rhetorical positions of authors according to the author’s intention or purpose of the information. The author critiques common methods of teaching source evaluation and proposes that instruction librarians teach BEAM to students who may struggle using a source once they have located it. A lesson plan is included as supplemental materials.

Raps Sheet, December 2021, Retirement Association Of Portland State

RAPS Sheet: Monthly Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Tactile Materials In Practice: Understanding The Experiences Of Teachers Of The Visually Impaired, Mahika Phutane, Julie Wright, Brenda Veronica Castro, Lei Shi, Simone R. Stern, Holly Lawson, Shiri Azenkot

Special Education Faculty Publications and Presentations

Teachers of the visually impaired (TVIs) regularly present tactile materials (tactile graphics, 3D models, and real objects) to students with vision impairments. Researchers have been increasingly interested in designing tools to support the use of tactile materials, but we still lack an in-depth understanding of how tactile materials are created and used in practice today. To address this gap, we conducted interviews with 21 TVIs and a 3-week diary study with eight of them. We found that tactile materials were regularly used for academic as well as non-academic concepts like tactile literacy, motor ability, and spatial awareness. Real objects and …

‘I Still Desire To Have A Child’: A Qualitative Analysis Of Intersectional Hiv - And Childlessness-Related Stigma In Rural Southwestern Uganda, Madeline Pratt, Moran Owembabazi, Winnie Muyindike, Angela Kaida, Jeanne M. Marrazzo, David Bangsberg, Mwebesa B. Bwana, Christina Psaros, Janet Turan, Multiple Additional Authors

OHSU-PSU School of Public Health Faculty Publications and Presentations

This study explored the intersecting forms of stigma experienced by HIV-sero different couples with unmet reproductive goals in rural Uganda. The parent mixed-methods study, which included 131 HIV-exposed women with plans for pregnancy, offered comprehensive HIV prevention counselling and care over a nine month period. In-depth interviews were conducted with 37 women and seven male partners to explore care experiences and the use of safer conception strategies. This secondary analysis explored how challenges conceiving informed pregnancy plans and HIV prevention behaviours. The following themes were developed (1) partnership conflicts arise from HIV- and infertility-related forms of stigma, contributing to gender-based …

Partizan: Separating The Human From Propaganda With Film, Raymond Hill

University Honors Theses

The relative protection Americans have for freedom of expression can allow stories to be told that would not be able to be told elsewhere. However, telling a story that does not belong to the storyteller and represents people of a different culture or nation can problematize the retelling of events and its perspective. The long-standing rivalry between United States and Russia complicates the matter further, making it difficult to find American film relating to Russia without the inclusion of propaganda and uneducated assumptions in film. Despite these issues, authentic storytelling can provide an informative view of events that the average …

Testing For Cognitive Deficits After Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Using The Automated Neuropsychological Assessment Metric And Dual-Task Assessments, Jasmin Mabry

University Honors Theses

Cognitive deficits are common following mTBI. DT gait assessments and seated computerized exams are often used for evaluating those deficits. Little is known about DT gait and neurocognitive performance in a chronic population. We compared people with chronic mTBI and subacute mTBI to healthy controls (HC) on DT gait and neurocognitive performance and explored the relationship of DT gait performance with a traditional neurocognitive (TNC) exam.

Subjects completed a computerized TNC - the ANAM - and a motor-cognitive DT test which assessed both DT motor performance as well as the cognitive task accuracy. The DT test consisted of subjects walking …

How Has Cultural Marxism Been Used As A Political Tactic In Order To Decrease Trust In Higher Education?, Drew Havnaer

University Honors Theses

This thesis will address the rise in popularity of the political notion of the 'Culture War.' It will trace this theory from its origins in the mid-20th century, through the landmark 1993 Buchanan Culture War speech, and to a modern version, often referred to as the theory of Cultural Marxism. The first part of the argument identifies employment of this theory by modern conservatives, and analyzes how many of us encounter it in our daily life, most prominently in reference to higher education. The second part of the argument targets the effect in colleges and universities specifically. It identifies how …

The Semiconductor Shortage: An Analysis Of Potential And Ongoing Remediation Efforts And Their Implications On The Industry & Macroeconomy, Carter Young

University Honors Theses

In recent months, the health of the macroeconomy has suffered due to logistical issues, inflation, and the labor market. Specifically, supply-side shocks within the semiconductor industry have dramatically affected firms’ ability to produce chipsets. The resulting destabilization is felt across innumerable downstream sectors which rely on these products for implementation into their own finished goods. This paper examines the exact impacts of these recent developments within the semiconductor industry, utilizing what-if and historical analysis to gauge how logistical issues, inflation, and increased capital expenditures will financially impact both firms within the industry and those which depend on their production. Additionally, …

Rapid Method For Consistency And Concentration Reporting Of Cannabidiol Using 1H-Nmr And Computer-Assisted Chemical Software, Michael A. Fernando

University Honors Theses

An integrated computational method was demonstrated with hemp-derived Cannabidiol for an assessment of its purity and concentration. The sample was structurally verified, high purity, and 2.98 mmol/L in dissolved DMSO. The method presented is a general approach to assessing purity and concentration for any small organic molecule in CMC-Assist.

Is More Always Better? A Look At Visitation And Recidivism, Teriin Lee

Dissertations and Theses

The body of literature on prison visitation provides empirical support that visitation may influence the likelihood of recidivism. However, the literature is limited in both size and geographic representation, as more than half of studies originate from samples in Florida or Minnesota. Moreover, inconsistency in the use of measures further complicates generalizability of the findings. The following study utilizes data collected from the Oregon Criminal Justice Commission to examine the relationship between visitation and recidivism in Oregon. Using a sample of 29,312 adults in custody (AICs) who were released between 2011 and 2017, we test the associations of seven distinct …

Post-Fire Tree Mortality And Regeneration Patterns As Proxies Of Conifer Forest Resilience, Sebastian Upton Busby

Dissertations and Theses

Shifting wildfire patterns and climate conditions, magnified by anthropogenic climate change, are threatening the resilience of conifer forests in North America and more specifically, the western US. If native conifer species are functionally maladapted to novel fire patterns and post-fire climate conditions, large-scale shifts in conifer forest structure, composition, and extent may occur as warming intensifies. Forest resilience in the context of fire and climate can be understood and quantified by the survival of trees through fire events and success of trees to regenerate post-fire and maintain population levels. In this dissertation, I use field observations and remote sensing to …

Reducing Transphobic Attitudes: A Cross-National Investigation Of College Students In Japan And The United States, Kazusa Seko

Dissertations and Theses

Transgender people routinely experience discrimination and mistreatment. Although transphobic attitudes vary from country to country, a more in-depth understanding of these attitudes is needed. Using a semi-structured online survey, this study investigates college students' attitudes toward transgender people in Japan and the United States, a cross-national comparison that aims to deepen our understanding of how transphobic attitudes are shaped and what opportunities exist to reduce transphobia amongst college students. Results show that Japanese students express more transphobic attitudes than U.S. students do; and that U.S. students had more experience with gender-based educational content and were more likely to know someone …

Community College Geoscience Faculty Perspectives On Critical Thinking Instructional Tools, Mariela Salas Bao

Dissertations and Theses

Research has shown that modern courses and programs designed to foster critical thinking vary in both content and delivery, in turn leading to differences in their effectiveness. Few studies have investigated critical thinking among nontraditional students at community colleges taking STEM courses, especially within the geosciences. Furthermore, such research has focused primarily on the students with few if any studies involving faculty. This study examined the perceptions held by community college geoscience faculty regarding critical thinking and how such perceptions influenced their choice of instructional strategies. This study used a basic qualitative methodology and a maximum variation sampling to select …

Exploring The Potential Use Of Porous Silica Nanoparticles In Cest-Mri, Lydia Makotamo

Dissertations and Theses

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a widely used modality in diagnostics, treatment, and monitoring various conditions due to its ability to generate high-resolution images using non-ionizing radiation. The advent of contrast agents, which generally work by increasing the spin relaxation rate constants of water protons, has led to image enhancement. Despite the usefulness of this class of agents in diagnostic medicine, their inability to provide in-depth functional and anatomical information, coupled with their high detection limits, has led to new agents being explored.

Chemical exchange saturation transfer (CEST) presents an alternative route to generate signals via repetitive saturations transfers between …

"It's Not By Accident": Examining Leadership Efforts To Disrupt Oregon's Segregated K-12 Education System, Michael Eric Salitore

Dissertations and Theses

The American education system systematically and persistently excludes students from the general education setting based on (dis)ability. Disproportionate segregation of students with Intellectual Disability (ID) is a form of prejudice that is acceptable today and allowable by current laws. Fully segregated education settings for students with ID are harmful to students with disabilities, to their neurotypical peers, and to civilized society as a whole. For many students with ID, ableist systems, deficit thinking, and special education rules allow for segregated placements to persist, impacting their pathway to accessing the general education curriculum.

Improving inclusive practices as a research-based practice for …

Designing Environmentally Responsible And Highly Effective Bioorthogonally Functionalized Chiral Mri Contrast Agents, Karley Breann Maier

Dissertations and Theses

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revolutionized diagnostic imaging and modernized the characterization of numerous diseases. The clinical success of MRI is in large part due to the employment of gadolinium-based contrast agents (GBCAs). Due to sensitivity limitations, GBCAs are indicated at markedly high dosages (~1 g Gd³⁺ per exam). The routine use of such large quantities of gadolinium poses significant health and environmental risks. There are growing concerns over the effects of dechelation of the metal in vivo and the possible effect of resulting gadolinium deposition. Concurrently, there is a rising awareness of gadolinium anomalies borne by GBCAs which undergo …

Mothers' Drinking Motives, Sheila Kathleen Umemoto

Dissertations and Theses

Increases in women's excessive alcohol use are leading to concerns about a developing public health problem since, for women, it takes fewer years and lower doses to develop a range of alcohol-induced health problems. Maternal status is generally considered protective against alcohol use; however, this effect is weakened by multiple social role strain, leading to higher stress and negative affect, and subsequent coping-related alcohol use. Given that the majority of mothers with young children are working or looking for work (72.3%; BLS, 2021), it is likely that the combination of competing demands and expectations associated with multiple roles of parent, …

Situate: An Agent-Based System For Situation Recognition, Max Henry Quinn

Dissertations and Theses

Computer vision and machine learning systems have improved significantly in recent years, largely based on the development of deep learning systems, leading to impressive performance on object detection tasks. Understanding the content of images is considerably more difficult. Even simple situations, such as "a handshake", "walking the dog", "a game of ping-pong", or "people waiting for a bus", present significant challenges. Each consists of common objects, but are not reliably detectable as a single entity nor through the simple co-occurrence of their parts.

In this dissertation, toward the goal of developing machine learning systems that demonstrate properties associated with understanding, …

Creativity In Science, Engineering, And The Arts: A Study Of Undergraduate Students' Perceptions, Dildora F. Beaulieu

Dissertations and Theses

Creativity is widely recognized as being invaluable for human development and a crucial 21^st century talent. Preparing students for an uncertain and complex world requires that higher education promote students' imagination, originality, curiosity, and flexibility and build their capacity to take risks to try new approaches to problem-posing and problem-solving. However, little is known about how undergraduates enrolled in different disciplines view creativity. This quantitative study at a university in the northwestern United States assessed how undergraduate students in different academic disciplines responded to an instrument on creativity measurement developed by Dlouhy (2012). The study asked: How do undergraduates …