Digital Commons Network^™

The Conventional Emptiness Of Human Beings: Reviewing Archer’S Theory Of Agency Through Nagarjuna’S Looking Glass, Federico Podestà

Comparative Philosophy

Margaret Archer is probably the critical realist who has most significantly affected the debate around the relationship between social structure and agency. In the volume, Being Human: The Problem of Agency, she aims to better define what is meant by the properties and causal powers of agency itself, i.e., self-consciousness and reflexivity. In this paper, this theoretical attempt is reviewed through the critical standpoint of Nagarjuna. Nagarjuna’s philosophy appears to be a particularly compelling tool for criticizing Archer’s theory. Claiming the emptiness of everything, the founder of the Buddhist Madhyamaka school provides a critical perspective for revising the distinctiveness of …

A Constructive Engagement Between Oxford Ordinary Language Philosophy And Latin American & Latine Liberatory Philosophy, Alessandro R. Moscaritolo Palacio

Comparative Philosophy

In this paper, I bring into dialogue a movement in Latin American social and political philosophy – which I have named Latin American and Latine Liberatory Philosophy – and a Western, or more precisely global North, philosophical movement sometimes called Ordinary Language Philosophy. By ‘Latin American and Latine Liberatory Philosophy’, I refer to a movement, adumbrated at the dawn of the 19^th century and developed during the 20^th century, whose guiding theme is the political, social, and cultural liberation of Latin America (and global South peoples more generally). By ‘Ordinary Language Philosophy’, on the other hand, I refer …

Reassessing The Deontological Undercurrents In Mo Zi’S Ethical Thought, Nuno Miranda

Comparative Philosophy

This article reexamines Mo Zi’s ethical philosophy, challenging the dominant interpretation of Mohism as a purely consequentialist or proto-utilitarian system. While Mo Zi’s emphasis on social utility—such as material welfare, population growth, and aversion to warfare—aligns with outcome-oriented reasoning, I argue that his invocation of the will of Heaven introduces a deontological dimension. Heaven’s will serves not merely as a heuristic for maximizing benefits but as an absolute moral standard, demanding adherence to duties like universal love and non-aggression, irrespective of immediate practical gains. Through a close reading of the Mo-Zi corpus, this study reveals a hybrid ethical framework that …

How Theravāda Buddhism Enriches The Language Of Thought Hypothesis: Beyond Syntax, Juanjuan Cheng, Sumanasara Sandamadulle

Comparative Philosophy

The Language of Thought Hypothesis (LOTH) posits that mental states operate through a language-like representational system physically implemented in the brain. However, this purely symbolic approach faces a significant limitation: certain mental phenomena—such as intuitions, emotions, and intentions—lack the syntactically compositional structure required by LOTH and therefore cannot be adequately explained within its symbolic framework. To address this theoretical challenge, we turn to Theravāda Buddhism (TB), an early Buddhist tradition that integrates rigorous philosophical inquiry with meditative practice. Remarkably, TB began to prefigure a solution to LOTH’s limitations over 2,300 years ago. Although LOTH and TB differ …

Vol 16 No 2 Information Page

Comparative Philosophy

No abstract provided.

International Collaboration To Explore Elements For An Effective Residential Childcare Workforce, Justyna Siemionow, Patrick M. Tyler, W. Alex Mason, Deogratias Musoke, Maia Ordonez, Jaime A. Gomez-Blaya, Joseph G. Grzywacz

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Residential childcare workers provide critical support to vulnerable children around the world. Building and maintaining a qualified residential childcare workforce is challenged by myriad forces, the foremost of which is recruiting and retaining staff for valuable work often misaligned with available compensation; making individual qualifications at hiring; ongoing training; supervision; and data support systems to monitor performance critical for quality care. This study explored the similarities and differences among these essential elements of staffing across distinct programs: Youth Education Centers (YEC) in Poland, CiudadEscuela Muchachos (CEMU) in Spain, and the Boys Town Family Home Program (BTFHP) in the United States. …

Varona, Federico, San Jose State University

Emeritus and Retired Faculty Biographies

USA:

University of Kansas, Major: Organizational Communication. Minor: Intercultural Communication, 1991 Ph.D.

University of Kansas, Major: Organizational Communication Minor: Intercultural Communication, 1988, M.A. [M.A. Thesis: A Comparative Study of Communication Satisfaction in Two Guatemalan Companies]

FRANCE:

Center AudioVisuel Recherche et Communication, Lyon, France, Audiovisual Communication.1977 Diplome

SPAIN:

Universidad Pontificia de Salamanca, Spain, Major: Theology, 1976 Licenciado [Thesis: De Carl Rogers a la Pedagogía de la Fe]

Universidad Pontificia de Salamanca, Spain. Major: Psychology. Minor: Clinical and Educational Psychology, 1976 Diplomado

GUATEMALA:

Universidad San Carlos de Guatemala, Guatemala, Psychology, 1972-1974

Universidad Francisco Marroquín, Guatemala, Theology, 1972-1974 …

Vertiport Location Selection And Optimization For Urban Air Mobility In Complex Urban Scenes, Yannan Lu, Weili Zeng, Wenbin Wei, Weiwei Wu, Hao Jiang

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Vertiports, as dedicated facilities for electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, are essential to ensure the efficiency and sustainability of Urban Air Mobility (UAM). However, UAM infrastructure site selection has become increasingly complex due to limited land availability, complex spatial conditions, and the need to balance multiple objectives. Focusing on passenger-carrying UAM operations, this study proposes a systematic framework for vertiport site selection. First, key factors are classified into high, medium, and low levels across the safety, economic, and social dimensions, forming a modular evaluation system. A GIS-based spatial screening process is developed to identify potential vertiport locations. Subsequently, …

The Anti-Work Attitude Scale: Conceptualizing And Measuring The Resistance To The Institution Of Work, Alayna Del Rosario

Master's Theses

Recent shifts in labor discourse have drawn attention to rising burnout, declining organizational commitment, and diminishing job satisfaction, which challenge traditional assumptions about the centrality and desirability of work. These tensions have given rise to the concept of anti-work, a growing discourse that questions the moral, economic, and psychological foundations of work itself. Despite its cultural relevance, anti-work remains largely undertheorized and unmeasured in empirical research. Drawing from interdisciplinary scholarship, this study defined anti-work as a negative critique of work as a social construct, questioning its value, purpose, and impact on individuals and society. Anti-work was operationalized through two higher-order …

The Relationship Between Hindrance Demands And Work Engagement: The Moderating Role Of Resilience, Adoré Davis

Master's Theses

The coronavirus pandemic decreased work engagement globally due to increased hindrance demands. Many organizations were motivated to increase work engagement, which is positively correlated with beneficial organizational outcomes. The intention of this study is to examine if personal resources like resilience moderate the relationship between hindrance demands and work engagement. Hindrance demands are refined from job demands and hindrance stressors, which are stressors that impede progress in employees. Resilience is a personal resource correlated with pro-social behavior, internal locus of control, and higher levels of empathy. Resilience as a personal resource has mainly been studied as a predictor of work …

Latticeanalytics: Strut-Level Visualization And Inspection Of Additively Manufactured Lattice Structures, Haichao Miao, Saurabh Narain, Vuthea Chheang, Garrett Hooten, Raiyan Seede, Pavol Klacansky, Kaila Morgen Bertsch, Gabe Guss, Brian Giera, Peer Timo Bremer

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Additive manufacturing (AM) is revolutionizing the production of custom components with complex internal geometries, essential for high-performance applications in diverse fields such as medicine and defense. These AM parts optimize strength while minimizing weight by utilizing internal lattice structures consisting of large quantities of small interconnected struts. However, the complexity of these structures, combined with the challenges of using X-ray Computed Tomography (XCT) data, makes validation of part reliability difficult. This ultimately inhibits the development of novel parts for our collaborating material scientists. We introduce LatticeAnalytics, a novel framework specifically designed for visual inspection of defects in these lattice structures. …

Acoustic Presence Of Humpback Whales (Megaptera Novaeangliae) In U.S. West Coast National Marine Sanctuaries, John C. Barkowski

Master's Theses

Humpback whales are one of many species of marine mammal that utilize sound in multiple aspects of their lives in the oceans. By collecting acoustic data from multiple areas across the habitat of these animals, we can investigate spatiotemporal patterns in their sound production to better understand their life history strategy. This study uses three years of passive acoustic data collected concurrently from three U.S. West Coast National Marine Sanctuaries to look for spatiotemporal patterns in humpback whale song and non-song vocalizations. Additionally, this study investigated correlations between upwelling conditions and the onset of song to explore links between the …

Coloring Outside The Lines: Factors Facilitating Divergent Thinking, Michelle Baca Reinke

Master's Theses

Divergent thinking involves producing a multitude of unique and diverse ideas. The ability to “color outside the lines” is crucial to business, education, and social domains. The flexibility, originality, and fluency dimensions of divergent thinking are commonly assessed using the Alternative Uses Task, which involves generating uses for common objects. Prior research suggests that high identification (first-person perspective) with schema-inconsistent experiences increases flexibility, while semantic density (degree of conceptual associations) impacts originality and fluency inversely. However, their combined effects across multiple divergent thinking dimensions remain unexplored. The present research investigated the interactive effects of identification (high, low), schema consistency (consistent, …

Evaluating Demand-Responsive Scheduling In Public Transportation Service Offerings To Retirement Communities, Steven D. Silver

Mineta Transportation Institute

This project addresses alternatives to fixed schedule local transportation service offerings to members of retirement communities. The project design measures the effects of the contrast between fixed schedule (Fixed) service and demand-responsive services (DRT) in retirement communities in Santa Clara County that are closely matched in demographic profiles and geographic location. The research team investigates the effects of scheduling alternatives in a diary format with a within-person variable of four recent trips. The measure of public transportation usage under the Fixed schedule and DRT service offerings is supplemented by a measure of subjective well-being (STS) for each trip—in other words, …

Understanding Residential Development In A High-Quality Transit Area (Hqta): An Application Of Deep Learning, Dohyung Kim

Mineta Transportation Institute

Considerable research addresses the dynamics between land use and public transportation, including the impacts of transit systems on urban development and vice versa. However, this research has underestimated the heterogeneity of contributing factors to urban developments near transit by property type: vacant lot and occupied property. That is, what drives development in vacant lots differs from what drives development in already-occupied property. A lack of comprehensive data that differentiates development records based on the type of property is one explanation for this research gap. This project fills this research gap by employing a deep learning algorithm and separately examining the …

Developing An Integrated Risk Assessment Framework To Quantify The Resilience Of Critical Railway Infrastructure: Characterization Of Risks And Hazards To The U.S. Rail Network Through Empirical Data And Past Events, Haizhong Wang, Brian M. Staes, Benyamin Ghoreishi

Mineta Transportation Institute

To improve understanding of the impact of natural hazards on the U.S. railway system, this project developed a comprehensive, geospatially precise dataset that maps historical hazard events to specific rail segments. The project provides insight into when, where, and how much damage natural hazards have inflicted on rail infrastructure across the country. While a rail-specific hazard database did not previously exist, this research combines data from the Geological Survey (USGS) Flood Events Database, Hydrologic Unit Codes (HUC), the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the National Weather Service (NWS) forecast zones. …

Roadside Asset Extraction From Mobile Lidar Point Cloud, Yushin Ahn, Riadh Munjy, Stephen Choi

Mineta Transportation Institute

Mobile LiDAR systems are powerful tools that help us map roads and their surroundings in 3D with great speed and precision. The data provided by these systems support urban planning efforts, digital mapping, transportation infrastructure maintenance, and more. This report presents a comprehensive workflow for roadside asset extraction using Mobile Terrestrial Laser Scanning (MTLS) data, focusing on road lane detection, cross-section slope analysis, and point cloud classification. Roadside asset extraction is the identification and classification of roadside features like signs and poles. The dataset, acquired using a high-resolution mobile LiDAR system, contains over 5.7 billion points (pieces of data) across …

Beyond Peak Water Security: Household-Scale Experiential Metrics Can Offer New Perspectives On Contemporary Water Challenges In The United States, Wendy Jepson, Amber Wutich, Amber L. Pearson, Melissa Beresford, Alexandra Brewis, Alicia Cooperman, Jeremiah Osborne-Gowey, Jenny Rempel, Asher Y. Rosinger, Justin Stoler

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

The U.S. has moved beyond peak water security. Infrastructural degradation, institutional inertia, and climate change are reducing the ability of households and communities to benefit from near-universal safe, adequate, affordable, sustainable water services. Yet, current supply-side research tools, that focus largely on system performance, are not equipped to measure the prevalence and lived experiences of household water insecurity, thus limiting the evidence available to policymakers, utilities, and communities to make decisions about water services. We discuss how demand-side metrics, such as household-level water insecurity scales validated for high-income contexts, such as the U.S., can help stakeholders to better identify local …

A Protocol For The Development Of A Validated Scale Of Household Water Insecurity In The United States: Hwise-Usa, Amber L. Pearson, Wendy Jepson, Alexandra Brewis, Jeremiah Osborne-Gowey, Amber Wutich, Melissa Beresford, Asher Y. Rosinger, Adam M. Enders, Justin Stoler, Ellis Adjei Adams, Linda Mendez Barrientos, Laura A. Bray, Alida Cantor, Jennifer S. Carrera, Alicia Cooperman, Laura Castro Diaz, Valerisa Magnon Joe Gaddy, Leila M. Harris

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Background New metrics of household water insecurity have been validated for low- to middle-income countries, but it is unclear how these measurements apply to the experiences of people living in high-income countries. This project aims to develop and validate a novel metric for household water insecurity experiences in the United States (HWISE-USA) using a cross-sectional design and data from the Southwest, Midwest, and Western regions. Methods We outline the protocol for the development and validation of a novel household water insecurity scale for the United States to address this scientific need, including the following key steps: (1) item development through …

Dynamic Mode Decomposition Of Geostrophically Balanced Motions From Swot Cal/Val In The Separated Gulf Stream, Takaya Uchida, Badarvada Yadidya, Karl E. Lapo, Xiaobiao Xu, Jeffrey J. Early, Brian K. Arbic, Dimitris Menemenlis, Luna Hiron, Eric P. Chassignet, Jay F. Shriver, Maarten C. Buijsman

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

The decomposition of oceanic flow into its geostrophically balanced and unbalanced motions carries theoretical and practical significance for the oceanographic community. These two motions have distinct dynamical characteristics and affect the transport of tracers differently from one another. The launch of the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite provides a prime opportunity to diagnose the surface balanced and unbalanced motions on a global scale at an unprecedented spatial resolution. Here, we apply dynamic-mode decomposition (DMD), a linear-algebraic data-driven method, to tidally-forced idealized and realistic numerical simulations at submesoscale-permitting resolution and one-day-repeat SWOT observations of sea-surface height (SSH) in the …

Climate Drives Genetic Diversity Loss In American Pika (Ochotona Princeps) Populations In The Great Basin, Emily N. Kulig, Jane Van Gunst, Michael J. Hernandez, Yvonne Luong, Monica Villaseñor, Rachel S. Crowhurst, Clinton W. Epps, Jessica A.Castillo Vardaro

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

American pikas (Ochotona princeps) are small, thermally sensitive mammals that primarily live in montane and alpine environments. The Sierra Nevada lineage (O. p. schisticeps) has experienced numerous local extinctions, most of which occurred in hotter, drier regions such as the Great Basin. Few genetic studies have assessed these at-risk populations. This study aims to fill that gap by conducting fine-scale genetic analyses on populations in low-elevation Great Basin habitat in northwestern Nevada. Specifically, we: (i) quantified genetic diversity and structure among populations within O. p schisticeps, with particular focus on northwestern Nevada; and (ii) assessed the influence of primary productivity …

Experienced Latinx Urban Gardeners In San Jose, Ca, Offer Strategies For Climate Justice And Resilience, Claudia S. Damiani Fontana

Master's Theses

Low-income and underinvested communities will be disproportionately affected by climate change due to limited resources, inadequate infrastructure, and insufficient support systems. Urban gardeners are responding to the need to adapt to new climate conditions while sustaining their food sources and cultural practices. Many have adapted thanks to local interventions led by the government and non-profit agencies. For this study, I partnered with La Mesa Verde (LMV), a gardening and food justice program that works with low-income Latinx families in San José, and I documented the contributions of experienced Latinx gardeners, especially those with agricultural backgrounds, to climate-resilient gardening in San …

Seeing Bias Through Eye Movements: Investigating Empathy And Engagement With Authentic And Altered Refugee Imagery, Reem Albaghli, Akshay Sunil Gurnaney, Nada Attar

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

This study investigates perceptual biases in responses to Syrian and Ukrainian refugee images using human-computer interaction (HCI) techniques. We hypothesized that media portrayals might shape empathy and influence both biases and donation behavior. Participants viewed both authentic and face-swapped images, with eye-tracking data capturing pupil size and decision-making patterns. In Experiment 1, participants' eye-tracking data and donation behavior indicated higher engagement and donations for authentic images, suggesting a preference for unaltered images without ethnicity-based bias. Experiment 2 explored this further by presenting cropped refugee faces alongside neutral or intellectual art, asking participants to choose the art that best matched each …

Understanding User Behaviors: Impact Of A 28-Day Intervention On Screen Time And Problematic Internet Use, Cade T. Campigli

Master's Theses

This thesis examines a 28-day self-monitoring intervention to reduce problematic internet use among undergraduate Instagram users. A quasi-experimental factorial mixed design with a repeated measures component was used, with participants split into an experimental group (daily Instagram screen time logging) and a control group (reporting Instagram interactions). Problematic Internet use was measured using the Generalized Problematic Internet Use Scale 2 (GPIUS2). Results showed no reduction in problematic internet use in the experimental group compared to the control, nor a correlation between screen time changes and problematic internet use. However, the experimental group showed a modest decrease in mean screen time …

Perceptions Of Department Chairs And Program Directors Of Ethnic Studies In The California State University System: A Convergent Parallel Mixed Methods Study, Christopher Jarrett Cox

Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation study is to explore the conditions of Ethnic Studies departments and programs in the California State University (CSU) system nine years after the release of the CSU Ethnic Studies Task Force report released in 2016. Using a convergent parallel mixed methods analysis, this dissertation revisits several questions from the original CSU survey to assess the effectiveness of Ethnic Studies units in the CSU. Respondents to the survey included 13 of the 58 recognized department chairs and program directors for Ethnic Studies units among the 23 campuses of the CSU system, and interview participants included 5 …

Degrees Of Freedom: How Project Rebound Facilitates Access To Higher Education For Adjudicated Adults, Elizabeth Regina Wirtz

Dissertations

Marginalized students are recommended for suspension and expulsion at higher rates than non dis/abled White peers. Exclusionary discipline contributes to the school-to-prison pipeline and recidivism rates in adults. Educational programs have been effective ways to support adjudicated adults as they transition back to their life after serving their sentences. The CSU program Project Rebound is a highly successful rehabilitation tool for adults seeking higher educational opportunities with an effective 0 percent recidivism rate. To learn about this organization a mixed methods study was conducted. The goal of this study was to capture quantitative and qualitative data about the experiences of …

Cost-Effective Automated Uhi Mapping With Ai: A Case Study Of A Scalable Framework For Climate Equity In San José, California, Martin Alvarez Lopez

Master's Theses

Urban areas experience the Urban Heat Island (UHI) effect, with higher temperatures than rural areas, disproportionately impacting low-income communities. Mapping UHIs is a process that usually requires significant amount of human resources, and is not scalable. The lack of accurate and detailed UHI maps makes it difficult for decision makers to design effective mitigation strategies. In this work we introduce a cost-effective, scalable, and universally applicable UHI mapping framework that leverages open-source data and AI-driven feature extraction from remote sensing imagery. Using various causative factors such as city characteristics, anthropogenic heat, city canyons, and meteorological variables, we create UHI maps …

Stead: Spatio-Temporal Efficient Anomaly Detection For Time And Compute Sensitive Applications, Andrew Gao

Master's Theses

This paper presents a new method for anomaly detection in automated systems with time and compute sensitive requirements, with unparalleled efficiency. As these systems become increasingly popular, ensuring their safety has become more important than ever. Therefore, this paper focuses on how to quickly and effectively detect various anomalies in the aforementioned systems, with the goal of making them safer and more effective. Many detection systems have been developed with great success under spatial contexts; however, there is still significant room for improvement when it comes to temporal context. While there is substantial work regarding this task, there is minimal …

All Eyes On Me: Security And Preventative Measures In The Era Of Shoplifting, Clarissa Guevarra

Master's Theses

The passing of CA bills ranging from AB 1779 to SB 1416, and Proposition 36 aims to combat a supposed rise in retail theft, particularly denoting the increase in organized retail theft. This research investigates the accuracy of mainstream narratives surrounding retail theft, focusing on the various security strategies adopted by major retailers—namely, Walmart and Target stores—in the San Francisco Bay Area. The study aims to analyze the different types of security (human and physical), and their efficacy, and to envision alternative strategies to address theft beyond the adoption of punitive security strategies. Using a visual ethnographic approach, supplemented with …

One Nation Under Guard, Everett T. Glynn

Master's Theses

The rise of segments of the labor force devoted to functions other than production has received increased scholarly attention, particularly pertaining to the robust deployment of the police and criminal justice apparat in the neoliberal era. Critical perspectives align the rise of the securitization of society with political and economic transitions that occur within the contexts of changes to social inequality and crackdowns on social movements beginning in the 1970s. In a theoretical construction of the emerging concept of guard labor, this thesis finds that robust societal deployments of a form of functional labor used to entrench social inequality has …