Digital Commons Network^™

Conditioned Medium From Dysfunctional Endothelial Cells Negatively Regulates Satellite Cell Expansion And Differentiation, Christopher Kargl

Open Access Theses

Dysfunction of the endothelial lining of the cardiovascular system is a hallmark symptom of both cardiovascular disease (CVD) and type II diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The dysfunctional endothelial cell phenotype is characterized by an increase in production and release of inflammatory cytokines and reactive oxygen species (ROS) and a decrease in nitric oxide (NO) and growth factor secretion. Evidence has emerged showing a close relationship between endothelial cells and skeletal muscle satellite/progenitor cells. Skeletal muscle cell growth and differentiation are impaired in oxidative environments and many endothelial dysfunction-related diseases. The purpose of the current study is to determine the impact that …

Improving Fret Relay Mechanism For Redox Dynamics In Live Cells, Jake Norley

Open Access Theses

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) have an important role with regards to intracellular signaling throughout the body. Levels of ROS fluctuate dynamically with differing sources of ROS as well as antioxidant mechanisms to regulate oxidative stress, cell to cell signaling, and cellular metabolism. In many cases, localized redox dynamics have not been elucidated due to a lack of tools available to study oxidative fluctuations localized to different compartments of ROS generation within cells. Previously, our lab reported the development of a new family of genetically encoded fluorescent protein redox biosensors. They utilize the ratiometric properties of roGFP2 and extend its fluorescence …

Low-Cost Grain Moisture Meter System Networked To Smartphones, Marisol Pantoja Otero

Open Access Theses

Accurate moisture content measurement is one of the key quality factors listed in grain trade. It is important in determining whether a crop has been dried properly for safe storage and marketing, and it is used by buyers and sellers of grain to estimate the value of the commodity. Unfortunately, many farmers and grain originators in developing countries cannot afford to buy moisture meters and utilize them to routinely determine whether their crops are dried for safe storage, and thus incur huge losses along the value chain. Additionally, farmers are at a disadvantage in trading to high-ended markets, which have …

Disney Minority Heroines: A Rhetorical Analysis Of Race, Gender, And American Politics, Brooklyn Russell

Open Access Theses

The Walt Disney Corporation has provided family-centered entertainment, for decades, in the form of animated films, beginning with the adaptation of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937). Since then, and succeeding the death of its patriarch in 1966, the Disney Corporation has upheld the legacy of producing films that continue to captivate children through historical, cultural, and rhetorical approaches. However, as generations have passed, Disney heroines have changed and so has their strategies for accomplishing their goals. For decades, Disney has produced similar plot stories using the same character profiles as well: a girl, more often than not living …

Exploring The Knowledge, Skills, And Abilities Of Data Science Professionals, Corey S. Seliger

Open Access Theses

The feld of data science is growing at break-neck speeds. More industries are looking towards data science professionals to fnd, compile, explore, and model data from numerous areas of interest. Currently, there are over 130,000 data science positions open. Professional training and institutions of higher education are unable to train enough individuals to place into these positions. Initial research in this space has started reviewing some of the data in this space, including determining the knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) employers seek in data science candidates and what institutions are providing in the means of preparation in this space. With …

Functionalization Of Hyaluronic Acid Hydrogels With Ecm-Derived Peptides To Control Myoblast Behavior, Juan Martin Silva Garcia

Open Access Theses

Volumetric muscle loss (VML) occurs when skeletal muscle injury is too large for the body’s self-regenerative capabilities. As a consequence, fibrotic tissue fills the void, which reduces muscle functionality and limb movement. In the military, VML occurs mainly through explosions which represent more than 70% of total war injuries. Otherwise, the most common causes are traumatic accidents, tumor ablation, and musculoskeletal diseases.

Although a wide variety of natural and synthetic scaffolds have been studied with the purpose of providing the appropriate structural support, to date no scaffold has been able to significantly restore muscle functionality after VML. Satellite cells, adult …

Waste Materials And Management: Lessons From The Flint Water Crisis In Michigan And Blast Furnace Slag Usage In Indiana, Tianqi Wang

Open Access Theses

Two aspects of solid waste management were investigated for this thesis. The first effort focused on better understanding solid waste management before, during, and after the large-scale 2015 drinking water lead crisis in Flint, Michigan. When large drinking water systems are unable to deliver safe water, the provision of emergency water supplies becomes a necessity. The author investigated waste management challenges associated with the large-scale drinking water disaster. In October 2015, more than 90,000 people were directed not to use their lead contaminated water, but instead use emergency drinking water and in-home filters. Discussions with organizations that responded to the …

Optimal Design And Control Of Residential Air-Conditioning Equipment With Integrated Thermal Storage, Aaron Tam

Open Access Theses

Although thermal energy storage (TES) has been integrated with commercial building cooling systems, it is rarely considered in residential buildings. In recent years, though, variable utility rates have become more available to residential customers to incentivize demand reductions during midday peak hours. TES allows consumers to store cooling during hours with low demand and reduce the peak demand from air conditioning. From an economic perspective, the integration of storage can result in reduction in the installed cost of the primary cooling equipment because of the reduction in the peak cooling requirement. However, this is counteracted by the additional costs associated …

Understanding Undergraduate Chinese International Student Perceptions And Usage Of Facebook, Yushan Wei

Open Access Theses

The study tried to understand undergraduate Chinese international student perceptions and usage of Facebook. Ten undergraduate Chinese international students from a Midwestern university were recruited in this study. Half of them were senior and half of them were freshmen. Semi-structured interviews and survey were used in collecting data. Based on the analysis of data from all data source, several themes emerged and were categorized under purpose, adoption and usage. Moreover, data also provided explanation of the decline of Facebook usage among undergraduate Chinese international students as they stayed in the U.S. Findings of this study included the usability issues of …

Investigating The Effects Of Cobalt And Nickel Mixtures On Tungsten Toxicity In Zebrafish (Danio Rerio), Ola Wasel

Open Access Theses

Tungsten (W) is a refractory metal that is used in a wide range of applications. Initially perceived as immobile in the environment, tungsten replaced lead and uranium in munition and military applications. Recent studies report movement and detection of tungsten in soil and potable water sources increasing the risk of human exposure. In addition, experimental research studies observed adverse health effects associated with exposure to tungsten alloy, raising concerns on tungsten toxicity with questions surrounding the safety of exposure to tungsten alone or in mixtures with other metals. Tungsten is commonly used as an alloy with nickel (Ni) and cobalt …

The Impacts And Distribution Of State Incentives On Farm To School Programs: A Probability Model, Jonathan Zerrell Weir

Open Access Theses

Despite the passage of the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act in 2010, Farm to School participation rates remains low or unequally distributed in states across the US. This study takes on the task of identifying strong state-sponsored programs that incentivize participation rates across various demographics. Using a series of logits (N=9,004), the study analyzes Farm to School policy effects on program participation across key demographic variables, such as the percent of students who receive free or reduced lunch, locale, and racial demographics. In the model, higher income and more urban school districts likelihood of participating in Farm to School drastically improve, …

An Eye-Tracking Study Of User Behavior On Reading Scrolling Text, Wenjie Wu

Open Access Theses

This study investigated the effect of parallax scrolling on users’ reading and scrolling behavior in text-heavy websites. We designed several text-heavy webpages and applied parallax scrolling effect. Twenty-five students participated in this study and were assigned to two groups to read websites with or without parallax scrolling effect in different sequences. We used eye-tracking, retrospective think aloud, and interview to collect data.

Results showed that people have distinctly different scrolling habits and reading habits which have a huge influence on how they perceive parallax effect. People who prefer to scroll down a little and read a few lines of text …

‘Makingthings Happen’ In Cross-Sector Partnerships: A Multiple Case Study, Priyanka Shah Brunese

Open Access Dissertations

Cross-sector collaborative partnerships aim to bring resources and knowledge from their particular sectors to provide innovative solutions in response to current social, economic and environmental problems, and for developing policies and processes for emergent issues. However, cross-sector partnerships involving public (i.e., institutions of higher education), private, and nonprofit organizations are complex and dynamic systems that are extremely difficult to manage once they have been established. Organizations spanning different sectors not only have dissimilar operating models, working cultures, values, and leadership styles, but are driven by different motives in joining the partnership thereby making the act of collaborating very challenging. When …

A Solidarity Economy On The Border: Examining Historical And Contemporary Case Studies In El Paso, Texas As De Facto Contributors To A U.S.-Based Movement, Michelle E. Carreon

Open Access Dissertations

This dissertation examines a contemporary U.S.-based solidarity economy movement, which emphasizes economic practice and ideology that prioritize people and planet over profit. In a neoliberal era that is characterized by economic injustice and continued cutting of social services and programming, a solidarity economy framework offers an alternative. Situated within a growing scholarship, this study examines historical and contemporary examples of solidarity economy-related efforts and praxis in the border city of El Paso, Texas.

The historical case of the Houchen settlement house and the contemporary case of the women-led grassroots community organization, La Mujer Obrera (LMO), illustrate significant ways in which …

The Human Dimensions Of Invasive Plant Management On Family Forestlands: A Case Study In Indiana, Mysha K. Clarke

Open Access Dissertations

Invasive plant management is an increasing concern in socio-ecological systems. Ecologically, invasive plants can displace native species, reduce forest health and productivity, and degrade recreational areas. From a socio-economic perspective, the United States spend approximately USD 137 annually in damage and control costs from invasive plants and animals. Despite these impacts, invasive plants continue to spread in forest ecosystems because of various anthropogenic factors like trade, transportation, climate change, and limited regulation in many states. It is pivotal to consider the role of family forest owners (FFOs) in invasive plant management in forest ecosystems because collectively they own 36% of …

Secular Discourse In Postcolonial West African Narratives: Problems And Perspectives: A Comparative Study, Malick Coly

Open Access Dissertations

The making of modern African nations and their attendant secularistic establishment have not only altered traditional socio-political structures, this shift has equally affected the relations between individuals as well as communities. In the process leading to modern sociocultural transformations, tensions and discourse have arisen. Toyin Falola’s Violence in Nigeria: Crisis of Religious Politics and Secular Ideologies, and Ousman Murzik Kobo’s Unveiling Modernity in Twentieth-Century West African Islamic Reforms highlight respectively the political and religious divide in post-Independence Nigeria and the impact of Islamic reform in Ghana and Burkina Faso. These two historical studies show the complexity of modern West African …

Conventions Of The Commons: Technical Communication And Crowdsourced Digital Publishing, Amelia Chesley

Open Access Dissertations

This project traces the digital publishing history of the audiobook archive LibriVox.org, examining how its volunteers manage, control, and negotiate procedures and policies for their ongoing collaborative work. Examples of public knowledge work like LibriVox illustrate the value of professional and technical communication in accessibly digitizing knowledge and culture for use now and in the future. I investigate and theorize how groups of diverse and transient volunteers create and engage with the tools and documentation they use to manage their crowdsourced audio digitization work. The example of LibriVox can help us better recognize and value the invitational care work embedded …

Polysulfide Mitigation At The Electrode-Electrolyte Interface: Experiments In Rechargeable Lithium Sulfur Batteries, Arthur D. Dysart

Open Access Dissertations

In the field of energy storage technology, the lithium sulfur battery is intensely studied in interest of its great theoretical gravimetric capacity (1672 Ah kg–1) and gravimetric density (2600 Wh kg–1). The theoretical performance values satisfy viability thresholds for petroleum–free electric vehicles and other emerging technologies. However, this elusive technology remains in the research sector due to a wealth of challenges resulting from its complex chalcogenide electrochemistry. The most infamous challenge remains the polysulfide redox shuttle, a phenomenon in which lithium polysulfide intermediates are produced as elemental sulfur S8 is reduced to lithium sulfide Li2S during the discharge cycle. Because …

The Theory And Practice Of Rhetorical Gaming For Composition Instruction, Jeffrey M. Gerding

Open Access Dissertations

In recent years videogames scholarship has grown from a small interest group within rhetoric and composition to a burgeoning interdisciplinary subfield. This growth has not been without problems or controversies, however, and on the whole there seems to be little consistency in either theory or practice when it comes to integrating games into composition curriculum. The purpose of this thesis is to examine a number of theories, concepts, procedures, and issues in the history of games and composition in order to suggest a possible direction for the future. To be clear, this is not an attempt to standardize a rule-governed …

Baroque Modes Of Seeing: Reinventing Neo-Baroque In Contemporary Latin American Cinema, Liana Hakobyan

Open Access Dissertations

While the Latin American literary neo-baroque garnered significant attention, scholarship on its cinematic counterpart has been relatively scarce. What is more, existing studies situate this aesthetics within the anti-dictatorship contexts of the 1970s-80s, which contradicts major neo-baroque theories that view it as an ahistorical aesthetics relevant to Latin American modernities. “Baroque Modes of Seeing: Reinventing Neo-baroque in Contemporary Latin American Cinema” is a dissertation that addresses this gap in research and argues for the relevance of the neo-baroque in contemporary Latin American cinema. I engage texts by Severo Sarduy, José Lezama Lima, Alejo Carpentier, Serge Gruzinski, Irlemar Chiampi and others …

Digital Badges And Student Motivation In The Undergraduate Chemistry Laboratory, Sarah Hensiek

Open Access Dissertations

Laboratory courses have been the focus of much research and debate in the field of chemistry. One goal for the laboratory that is consistently cited by faculty is student learning of hands-on skills. Despite this, hands-on skills are rarely assessed in practice because to do so is resource intensive. Digital badges allow each individual student to demonstrate their proficiency in a hands-on lab skill while relieving the constraints associated with assessing individual students during a laboratory period. Previously at Purdue, digital badges were developed for the pipet, buret, and volumetric flask. These badges were shown to support student learning of …

Pathways To Persistence: A Study Of The Effects Of Neighborhood Stress And Family Communication Patterns On Community College Student Outcomes, Jill Marie Inderstrodt

Open Access Dissertations

This dissertation draws upon literature from family communication, sociology, public health, and education to determine what neighborhood and family factors contribute to a community college student’s commitment to the goal of completing college. Community college students are more likely to come from low socioeconomic conditions, are more likely to have parents who did not earn a college degree, and are more likely to be ethnic or racial minorities than traditional four-year college students. Because of these demographics, community college students are also more likely to live in neighborhoods with high levels of neighborhood stress: noise and other pollution, crime, high …

Resource Allocation In Nanocommunication Networks And Online Service Platforms., Wei-Kang Hsu

Open Access Dissertations

Resource allocation appears in various forms in communication and networking systems. In this thesis, we start with relay-based nanonetwork communications and analyze the message delay with bacteria-inspired message transfer carriers. Modeling the message transfer as a renewal process, we draw the connection to the mobility model of ad-hoc networks and show that the expected message delay between two nodes is a convex function of the number of available carriers. We then design a decentralized carrier-allocation strategy such that the systematic message delay is minimized. We show that the proposed policy can effectively reduce weighted delays when different message priorities are …

The Alien Eye: Chinese Self-Images And The External Observer, 1874–1911, Yingying Huang

Open Access Dissertations

This dissertation is a literary study of how and why late Qing Chinese self-image formation involved the “alien eye,” by which I mean the view of the foreigner observing and writing about China. I investigate writings and occasionally images produced within the period from 1874 to 1911, framed by the founding of the first Chinese-owned modern newspaper and the overthrow of the Qing empire. The literary genres I address include essays, short stories, novels, and plays. While effects of foreign views of China on the Chinese varied from positive stimulation to psychological damage, I argue that Chinese’ appropriation of the …

Makerspaces For Education, Avneet Hira

Open Access Dissertations

In my dissertation, I present research examining Makerspaces for education. The concept of a Makerspace has evolved, currently being understood as a space for people to practice the idiomatic term Making, which is to tinker or fabricate. Broadly put, Makerspaces are environments where individuals use technologies to Make physical artifacts within a community of fellow Makers.

When I started this work, stakeholders from a variety of backgrounds had begun to discern the educational potential of Makerspaces. Since then, several resources in schools, libraries, educational research, and community spaces have been directed towards realizing this educational potential. However, despite the belief …

A Multi-Agent Control Approach For Optimization Of Central Cooling Plants, Rita Jaramillo

Open Access Dissertations

This research focuses on the application of a multi-agent control approach to optimal supervisory control of central cooling systems. Most of the research related to supervisory control of central cooling systems has focused on centralized control approaches. Although these approaches can be effective at reducing operational costs, the high initial costs associated with site-specific controller design and implementation, and the need to update the plant model and control sequences every time a modification is made, have prevented a greater penetration of these technologies in the market. In light of these limitations, the goal of this research is the development and …

To Give Or To Act? The Transition Of Ngos From Aid Donors To Human Rights Advocates, Junhyup Kim

Open Access Dissertations

Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have become increasingly important as a political group of actors in international politics since the 1990s. Above all, the NGOs engaging in economic aid have greatly contributed to foreign aid to developing countries. The significance of this study is placed on the transition of NGOs from aid providers to human rights advocates. The transition to human rights advocates signifies that charity organizations have now become a major form of political actor. The research question is why some aid NGOs engage in human rights issues, while others do not. I argue that contact with human rights norms is …

Formulation Strategies And Optimization Of Poorly Water-Soluble Drugs For Preclinical And Clinical Applications, Monika Lavan

Open Access Dissertations

Successful mitigation of a disease or clinical condition requires efficacious and safe drug compounds that are designed to provide the right balance of properties including potency, specificity, safety, solubility, absorption and metabolic stability. In general, performance is governed by the physicochemical properties of the drug, the composition and properties of the dosage form, and their ability to provide release in a manner that overcomes the physiological barriers limiting exposure at the site of action. That being said, it is often very challenging to obtain a new therapeutic compound that possesses an optimal balance of these properties because of the broad …

An Examination Of Marketing Factors That Influence Nontraditional Student Enrollment Decisions, Jianping Landrum

Open Access Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine marketing factors that influence the decisions of working professionals to enroll as nontraditional students in the University of their Choice. Research has shown that factors such as affordability, access, and availability matter to nontraditional students. Marketing campaigns have often focused on these three factors, perhaps to the exclusion of other factors that may be equally important and compelling in helping working professionals decide to return to college for an advanced degree. This research explored seven marketing mix factors (Price, Promotion, Physical Evidence, People, Product, Process, and Place) and the extent to which …

Web Site Analytics: The Potential For The Transformation Of A Restaurant’S Marketing Strategy - A Case Study Of A Casual Dining Restaurant In The Midwest, Stephen Rolan Leitch

Open Access Dissertations

The purpose of this research is to show independent restaurateurs the value that Web site analytics can have on providing data about the visitors to their Web site and the marketing opportunities these data provide. The study surveyed customers about their restaurant Web site browsing behaviors and analyzed Web site analytical data of a casual dining restaurant in the Midwest. Analysis was conducted using t-tests and analysis of variance. Findings indicated that certain browsing behaviors were associated with an increased number of reservations and visitation to the restaurant Web site prior to dining impacted average check. The study is the …