Digital Commons Network^™

Socioeconomic Disparities In The Provision Of Outdoor Time In Portland, Oregon Public Elementary Schools, Sabine L. Lefkowitz

University Honors Theses

This thesis examines the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and the amount of outdoor time in public elementary schools in Portland, Oregon. "Outdoor time" is defined as the percentage of the school day spent at recess. SES is determined based on the percentage of children at each school who receive free or reduced price lunch. Schools with a higher percentage of students who receive free or reduced lunch are considered lower SES than schools with a lower percentage of students who receive free or reduced lunch. A review of the current literature provides evidence that time spent outdoors has a …

Thirty Years Later: A Community Memoir Of The 1984 Sikh Massacres, Ravleen Kaur

University Honors Theses

"Thirty Years Later" is a work of creative nonfiction based on interviews with members of the Portland-area Sikh community regarding their experiences during the 1984 Sikh massacres in India. The narrative, which is set in scene thirty years ago, weaves together 17 testimonies to paint an intimate picture of a people while endeavoring to tell an alternative, subjective history to counter official accounts.

Α-Tea's Tumor Toxicity May Be Attributed To Its Capability Of Inducing Oxidative Damage In The Endoplasmic Reticulum, Diego Mathias Barragan Echenique

University Honors Theses

α-tocopherol ether linked acetic acid (α-TEA) is a Vitamin E derivative with antineoplastic and anti-metastatic properties, tumor specificity, and immunogenic characteristics. The compound is structurally similar to vitamin E, however a key difference is that it doesn’t retain any antioxidant properties. Interestingly, orally administered α-TEA appears to stimulate anti-tumor immunity, which, along with its anti-metastatic and antineoplastic properties, makes the molecule’s mechanism of action worth investigating. Due to the loss of its anti-oxidative properties, the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and the cell viability of murine and human cancer cells treated with α-TEA, was analyzed over time. To determine …

Empowering The Voice Of The Female Student: A Gender Inclusive Approach To The High School Language Arts Curriculum, Brittany Bonnet

University Honors Theses

In American schools, young women are routinely provided with examples of strong male characters and authors in the high school English classroom. Written curriculum (such as the syllabus, reading list, and grading practices) continues to contribute to the erasure of the female student. Furthermore, hidden curriculum (lessons that are taught “unintentionally” such as norms or values), such as a teacher’s use of gendered language, or time spent with students of different genders, reflects this same problem as teachers unintentionally disempower the female voice in the classroom. The result is female students who are less confident in the classroom and the …

Romantic Identity And Lgbtq Identification: Variations Of Experience In The Asexual Community, Alexa Bell

University Honors Theses

As a relatively new identity category, asexuality has received only a small amount of academic attention. With what little research has been done, it has been established that there is a great amount of variability of meaning within the label "asexual", particularly within the domain of romantic orientation. In light of this, and of asexuality’s invisibility even in comparison to other marginalized sexual orientations, this research sought to investigate the possibility that romantic identity impacts asexual individual’s relationship with the larger LGBTQ+ community by distributing an online quantitative survey to self-identified asexuals. The hypothesis was that hetero-romantic and aromantic individuals …

The Great Good Bicycle Shop: Exploring The Community Roles Of A Neighborhood Business, Timothy J. Wesolowski

University Honors Theses

The local bicycle shop (LBS) has long served its neighborhood as a retail establishment and service center, but little has been done to analyze its influence on the greater community. After examining the categories of people who cycle and frequent bike shops, a rough typology of the different kinds of bike shops often found in a city was synthesized. This paper examines the different roles or assets that a given shop can be in a neighborhood. From a third place or anchoring institution to advocate for and even component of cycling infrastructure, the LBS fulfills one or several of these …

The Adverse Effects Of Maternal Depression And Poverty On Child Development, Courtney A. Nyseth

University Honors Theses

This thesis examines the issues of maternal depression and poverty, their connection, and the overall adverse effects on child health, behavior, development, and school achievement. Poverty and maternal depression are ongoing social issues in the United States. They are both influenced by several factors such as socioeconomic status, maternal health, and family instability. These factors all directly relate to childhood health and social inequalities.

Poverty, maternal depression, substance abuse, and domestic violence are known to be the most common factors that place young children at high risk for poor health (Azzi-Lessing, 2013). Some of the health outcomes from poverty and …

Animals In Advertising: Eliciting Powerful Consumer Response, Resulting In Enhanced Brand Engagement, Natasha Braunwart

University Honors Theses

The use of live animals as a communications tool has been seen in thousands of commercials, many of which have received international attention through online channels. As the Internet becomes a prevalent sharing platform, the reactions from viewers can be better understood with quantifiable metrics. A new perspective on why live animals are used in advertising is given, with consideration of three branches of study. These include (1) the role of animals in advertising, (2) the role of animals in human’s everyday life, and (3) the development of brand engagement. The 2015 Super Bowl commercial line-up is looked at, and …

Conceptual Writing On A Digital Narrative Project, Shelley Zansler

University Honors Theses

Drawing inspiration from avant-garde writers such as Kenneth Goldsmith and Craig Dworkin, this piece was produced by the systematic principles of conceptual writing; its significance is in its process and formative idea rather than in the idea's resultant product. The piece, a transcribed conversation between the author and a few of her friends, doubles the notion of process as a final product in and of itself. The first emphasis is its simple existence and production as conceptual, which is inherently process-based. The second is that the conversation taking place in the piece is a constructive discussion regarding a project the …

The Body: Conceptualizing Abortion In Contemporary Ireland, Sofia Ellis-Curry

University Honors Theses

Currently abortion is illegal in Ireland. This thesis uses personal and political discussions about abortion I had during a study abroad in Ireland to engage larger concepts of the institutional (Church and State) and the symbolic (justice and morality). This work seeks to highlight how the Catholic Church and the nation-state benefit from the regulation of women's bodies. Through the continued regulation of women's bodies, specifically around access to abortion, the nation-state can better control projects of race, class, gender, sexuality and ability in order maintain strict notions of citizenship and preserve Irish identity reclamation projects.

Trans•Form|Mogrify|Mutate, Sierra Randolph

University Honors Theses

When confronted with a word, meaning is revealed through contextualization. This transformation of inherently meaningless shapes to communicated ideas is only possible because of our deep relationship to language. Taking a step back, words become concepts that exist independent of their written form. Indeed, even "transformation" is a concept that can be contextualized and understood as more than a single word.

This project explores the concept of transformation in as many forms as possible: from the absurd to the realistic, from the literal to the metaphorical, from the zeitgeist of culture to the realm of the obscure. Using a variety …

Effective Methods Of Constituency Service In Oregon State, Thanh T. Ngo

University Honors Theses

One would think that casework is the most effective method to reach constituents, however, that was not the case with this research about the Oregon State Legislature. Out of the 90 State Senators and House Representatives, there was a total of 50 surveys conducted and four interviews. The purpose of this research was to determine between casework, outreach and providing information, which method is deemed most effective within the Oregon Legislature when it comes to constituency service. Calculations show that third method, providing information, was the most effective with a solid 63%. These results shows that our legislator still lack …

Diversity Within Asian Americans: Barriers To The Public Discussion Of Discrimination, Samantha I. Ing

University Honors Theses

This purpose of this thesis is to discuss barriers to the public discussion of discrimination against Asian-Americans. The literature addresses three major barriers: model minority status, portrayal in media, and cultural desire to assimilate. This thesis discusses how Asian-Americans contain generational, ethnic, and immigration-based diversity that complicates these barriers, while also positing that diversity itself presents a barrier. This project concludes with a brief discussion of "intra-ethnic othering," the discrimination that occurs between Asian subgroups, as another barrier to public discussion of Asian-American discrimination.

Unequal Medicine: The Impact Of Patient Mistrust On The Racial Differences In Reproductive Health Outcomes, Ashley Lenherr

University Honors Theses

Despite impressive medical advancements the gap in health and the quality of health care between blacks and whites has remained consistent or even increased in the past several decades in America, and reproductive health outcomes reveal similar trends. Black infants have a mortality rate that is 2.4 times higher than whites in the first year, and black mothers are 3 times more likely to die when giving birth when compared to white women (MacDorman et al. 2011 & Paxton and Wardlaw, 2011). In regards to the current and historically poor birth outcomes for black women and infants compared to whites …

Polyethylene Glycol And Silica Coatings Of Bismuth Nanoparticles: Synthesis, Characterization And Whole Serum Compatibilities, Victor Benavides-Montes

University Honors Theses

Cancer is responsible for about one fourth of mortalities in the United States daily, however, early diagnosis and treatment raised the five year survival rate since the 1970’s. The usage of X-ray contrast agents (XCAs) has been instrumental in the diagnosis of tumors, but the field still calls for an improved modality in XCAs, such as safe, affordable, lower dosage and targeted XCAs. Useful XCAs must be capable of avoiding the reticuloendothelial system (RES) through an increased circulation half-life time (t_1/2), therefore, “evasive” nanoparticle shells have been previously constructed and studied. Researchers have demonstrated an increased t_{1/2 …}

Culture Is A Language, Can't You Read?: Reading Gay Rights As Human Rights, Jen Corbridge

University Honors Theses

Scholars writing about postcolonialism, race, and gender have warned against universal conceptions of identity, but Western states have managed to expand their agendas through the production of a sexual citizenship. In this paper, I attempt to unpack the component structures of Clinton’s “Remarks in Recognition of International Human Rights Day” speech in order to tease out the ways in which she reproduces racist, Orientalist and Islamophobic rhetoric in order to advocate for a universal conception of sexual identity. Using contemporary scholarship that explores the intersection of sexuality, race, and nationalism, I argue that Clinton’s speech, using tried and true colonialist …

References To Gendered Grief In Children's Media: A Content Analysis Of Grief Picture Books, Machaila Budgeon

University Honors Theses

Gender stereotypes, gender roles and the underrepresentation of women permeate modern American culture. These forms of sexism limit the socially acceptable ways that children are able to express difficult emotion as they move through the grief process. This study focuses on these forms of sexism as they influence the creation and continuation of gendered grief by coding seventeen children’s grief picture books. Findings support the hypotheses that, not only are gender stereotypes, roles and the underrepresentation of both men and women present in grief picture books, but that they contribute to gendered grief. Suggestions for future research include a larger …

Promotion Of Thriving In Youth: The Intersections Of The Positive Youth Development Perspective And Challenge Course Programming, Zachary H. Snyder

University Honors Theses

This paper’s intent is to explore the Positive Youth Development (PYD) perspective, its applications, and the growing research topics pertaining to it. I will demonstrate the importance of developmental assets and PYD centered programs in the human journey towards "Thriving," which is understood as the ultimate state of being achieved by the systematic promotion of positive development across time in a youth’s life (Lerner et al, 2005). My paper also explains challenge course programming and its relationship to the Positive Youth Development perspective. Upon demonstrating this relationship, I offer a few ideas for future challenge course programming that would foster …

The French Economy: An Examination Of Competition And Regulation, Katherine Quick

University Honors Theses

Several factors can affect a country’s economic competitiveness, one of which being an imbalanced ratio between imports and exports. Add the contributions of high debt and high unemployment rates, and you have the French economy of 2014. While France was not as dramatically affected by the Euro Crisis in 2009, their economic recovery rate was one of the slowest in the European Union, and has continued on this sluggish rate since. The profitability of the French firms has decreased enough to be a threat to the competitiveness of the French economy: the profit margin is the lowest in the euro …

The Role Of Translesion Dna Polymerase(S) In The Survival Of Escherichia Coli Exposed To Uva Light In The Presence Of Psoralen And Angelicin, Dena Livingstone

University Honors Theses

The chemical compounds 8-methoxy-psoralen and angelicin are two types of furocoumarins that intercalate into DNA and form mono-adducts when exposed to UVA light. However, 8-methoxy-psoralen, is also capable of forming a DNA interstrand cross-link in addition to mono-adducts. These lesions change the structure of DNA and block the DNA polymerase during replication, leading to lethality, mutagenesis, or rearrangements if not repaired. The repair of monoadducts is known to be carried out by nucleotide excision repair. However, how interstrand DNA crosslinks are repaired is less clear. The repair of crosslinks has been proposed to involve a number of pathways, which include: …

Diagnosis Of Mental Illness Today And Tomorrow: A Literary Review Of The Current Methods, Drawbacks, And Sociological Components Of Mental Health With Regard To The Diagnosis Of Mental Illness, Sova Novak

University Honors Theses

The diagnosis of mental illness has sometimes been a controversial issue due to concerns about reliability and validity of diagnosis. Current methods focus on the categorical assessment of presented symptoms, however, the assessment of the factors leading up to and correlated with mental illness could be a more helpful tool for identifying mental illness itself. The position of this paper is that an analysis of these factors and in particular the integration of the sociological perspective could lead to a better method of diagnosis and understanding of mental illness. A brief overview of the three primary models of mental illness …

Compassion Fatigue, The Wellness Of Care Providers, And The Quality Of Patient Care, Merna Labib

University Honors Theses

Working with traumatized patients in the Emergency Department can compromise the well-being of the provider and the quality of patient care. Compassion Fatigue and burnout are two terms used to describe provider inability to cope with stress at work. However, compassion fatigue is a term specific to care providers and describes the emotional and psychological effects consequent to caring for traumatized patients, which leads to a reduced capacity to show compassionate care. Burnout, on the other hand, is consequent to cumulative stress and lack of accomplishment at work. This thesis seeks to focus on compassion fatigue and considers burnout to …

Person First Planet: A Comprehensive Review Of Person First Language, James Kirszenbaum

University Honors Theses

Person First Language has been around for thirty years yet remains confined to the borders of government agencies, special education classrooms, and professional psychology. Beginning here in Salem, Oregon as an offshoot of the People First Movement (Wehmeyer, Bersani, & Gagne, 2000), a self-advocacy group for persons with disabilities at Fairview Rehabilitation Center. It has since grown from an isolated appeal into an international movement and is the current accepted terminology in the APA and reflects in the language of all pertinent government acts (ADA, IDEA, etc.). Despite all these well intended improvements everyday use of PFL by non-laypersons has …

English Education In Thailand And Singapore : Differences In English Education, Use And Identity, Chelsey Hice

University Honors Theses

The Secretary General of ASEAN asserted the importance of education and the use English in promoting and bringing prosperity to the ASEAN nations. "Through education, through the use of English language and, more importantly, with a heightened sense of ASEAN Identity and ASEAN Community, we hope that ASEAN integration and cooperation will bring both benefits and opportunities to the region" (Le Luong Minh, 2013). Taking Thailand and Singapore into consideration, it is clear that national realities vary greatly within the region in regards to English proficiency rates. Education First’s 2013 English Proficiency Index Report revealed that Singapore was the second …

Pathos, Winter 2015, Portland State University. Student Publications Board

Pathos

Editor: Brook Horn

Volume 9 No.2

A Soft Spot In A Hard Place, Thomas Gokey, Zachary Gough, Max Haiven, Cassie Thornton

Reference Points

A Soft Spot in a Hard Place, edited by Zachary Gough with Thomas Gokey, Max Haiven, and Cassie Thornton, is a small collection of texts and conversations that contributes to the project of understanding how creativity, art, and the imagination might help us refigure our relationship to money, debt, capitalism, and our economic lives as a whole.

This book is part of the Reference Points series published through Portland State University Art and Social Practice MFA Program. The series is an evolving pedagogical framework in which graduate students formulate and research a significant topic or practitioner(s) related to socially …

Livd: Issue 15.1: "Oh, Sherrie", Portland State University. School Of Art + Design

LIVD

Layout, imagery, and editing: Meredith James

Issue 15.1 includes contributions responding to the following prompt: Sherrie Levine. Contributors respond to the various ways Levine’s work has influenced our concept of art, design, self, and issues still central to the lives of women. Topically, the authors vary in their responses, some more direct – as in Nicole Dyar’s social criticism on the appropriation and replication of women’s identities (can an authentic woman exist in contemporary digital culture?) – while others remain more loosely / conceptually related. Sarah McCoy rectifies a noticeable gap in graphic design history, that of early colonial women …

Radical Uncertainty: Scenario Planning For Futures, Marisa A. Zapata, Nikhil Kaza

Urban Studies and Planning Faculty Publications and Presentations

The use of scenario planning in urban and regional planning practice has grown in the last decade as one way to face uncertainty. However, in adapting scenario planning from its origins in the business sector, planners have eliminated two key components: (1) the use of multiple scenarios, and (2) the inclusion of diverse organizations, people, and interests through deep deliberations. We argue that this shift limits the ability of planners to plan for multiple plausible futures that are shaped by an increasing number of diverse actors. In this paper, we use case-study research to examine how uncertainty was considered in …

Comparing Two Common Approaches To Public Transit Service Equity Evaluation, Alex Karner, Aaron Golub

Urban Studies and Planning Faculty Publications and Presentations

Understanding the equity effects of transit service changes requires good information about the demographics of transit ridership. Both on-board survey data and census data can be used to estimate equity effects, though there is no clear reason these two sources will result in the same finding of impact. Guidance from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) recommends using either of these data sources to estimate equity impacts. This article makes a direct comparison of the two methods for the public transit system in the Phoenix, Arizona metropolitan area. The results indicate that, although both sources are acceptable for FTA compliance, the …

Online Community-Based Learning As The Practice Of Freedom: The Online Capstone Experience At Portland State University, Deborah Smith Arthur, Zapoura Newton-Calvert

University Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

Given the design of Portland State University’s (PSU) undergraduate curriculum culminating in a capstone experience, the dramatic growth in online courses and online enrollments required a re-thinking of the capstone model to ensure all students could participate in this effective learning model and have a powerful learning experience. In recent years, a number of capstone courses have been developed that are offered fully online. This article examines PSU’s development of and institutional support for community-based learning (CBL) capstone courses in a fully online format. Emerging best practices and lessons learned may be useful for other institutions seeking to integrate experiential …