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Comparisons Between Traditional And Gluten-Free Cookies In Sensory Attributes, Acceptance, And Evoked Emotions, Eniola Ola

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The rise in food allergies and intolerances, notably conditions like Celiac disease, as well as a general shift of consumers to a more health-conscious lifestyle has significantly increased the demand for gluten-free products. Consumers increasingly seek gluten-free products, yet these alternatives often face challenges in replicating the sensory qualities of traditional gluten-containing foods. This study explores the sensory attributes, emotional responses, and labeling impacts on consumer perception of gluten-free and gluten-containing cookies. The main objective of this thesis was to address the gap in research on sensory evaluation of gluten free foods, specifically in terms of commercially available products. The …

Gene Expression And Transfection Of C15orf57 In Chicken Show Clear Correlation To The Function Of The Ap2 Complex, E. Ashton Magdich

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Discovering the functions of functionally unknown genes has made a huge impact on biological understanding including poultry species. In this thesis, C15orf57 (or C5H15orf57, chicken chromosome 5 human ortholog H15 open reading frame 57), was studied to understand its genetic characteristics and function. Chapter one is literature reviews on annotation of genes, the gene information on C15orf57, the importance of characterizing unknown genes in the genome, and what is known now about C15orf57. The Chapter 2 is for the structural characterization of C15orf57, gene expression of C15orf57 in various organ tissues using the qPCR method and effect of overexpression of …

Maria Sabina And The Wise Ones, Robin Bruce

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Maria Sabina was born Maria Sabina Magdalena Garcia in 1894, in the principality of Huautla, located in Oaxaca, Mexico. She’s known as a healer and poet, though she would most likely refer to herself as a woman doctor, whose language becomes beautiful with the help of the psylocibin mushroom, which she affectionately refers to as little saints or holy children. In 1953, American banker, R. Gordon Wasson and his wife, pediatrician Valentina Pavlovna, were the first non-Indigenous people to witness one of Sabina’s ceremonies. Novice ethnomycologists and anthropologists, the couple traveled to Southern Mexico to witness a ceremony in which …

Impacts Of Toxic Fescue Seed Consumed By Pregnant Heifers On Maternal Blood Flow And Offspring Growth Parameters: Potential For Melatonin As A Therapeutic To Improve Offspring Growth, Rachel Scott

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The southeastern United States is home to endophyte-infected (E+), toxic, tall fescue grass. Consumption of E+ fescue by livestock has been linked to fescue toxicosis, a disease reported to cost the United States beef industry around $1 billion in annual losses. The primary objective of this dissertation was to evaluate the influence of pregnant cattle consuming E+ seed during gestation on uterine artery blood flow and growth performance of female offspring. The secondary objective was to investigate melatonin supplementation as a mitigation strategy for expected fescue-associated decreases in uterine artery blood flow and offspring growth performance. The study reported in …

Controls On Nutrient And Sediment Export In A Non-Perennial Agricultural Stream, Kathleen Cutting

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Climate change is expected to increase flow variability and intermittency in streams, changing the magnitude and timing nutrient and sediment delivery. This may exacerbate water quality issues in agricultural landscapes, where nutrient and sediment inputs are often elevated. Elevated nutrients can drive eutrophication in downstream waterways, and excess sediment loss can decrease primary productivity. Non-perennial headwater streams are particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and agriculture as they serve as key sites for nutrient cycling at the terrestrial-aquatic interface. Despite their importance, the interactive effects of agriculture and stream intermittency, as well as unpaved roads in rural watersheds …

A Robust Rf Fingerprinting Approach Using Physics-Informed Neural Networks, Jozef Dusenka

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Radio frequency (RF) fingerprints, caused by unique imperfections in communication hardware, offer a promising solution for zero-trust security. However, existing RF fingerprinting techniques, which aim to extract these signatures from transmitters to uniquely identify devices, often struggle with robustness in the face of temporal and spatial variations in real-world, time-varying wireless environments. For example, a neural network trained on RF signals collected on Day 1 can experience a significant performance drop when tested with data from Day 2.

To address this challenge, we propose a novel, robust RF fingerprinting method based on Physics-Informed Neural Networks (PINNs). Rather than training the …

The Rhetorical Use Of The Lower Classes In Three Primary Accounts Of The First Crusade, John Hannon

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study analyzes the rhetorical use of the lower classes in three primary accounts of the First Crusade: Albert of Aachen, the Gesta Francorum, and Raymond of Aguilers — specifically with an eye towards the proper maintenance of the order of society through everyone performing their assigned role. Through a close reading of these three texts this study demonstrates how the three authors engage with and uphold versions of the idealized three orders model of medieval society. Though there is nuance between each source, broadly, each of the authors presents the lower classes as a force that needs to …

Crispy Not Risky: Effects Of Environmental Conditions On Low-Moisture Food Persistent Bacterial Pathogens, Manita Adhikari

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Low-moisture foods (LMFs) were not historically seen as safety risks due to their ability to inhibit pathogen growth, but evidence shows pathogens can survive in LMFs long-term, causing outbreaks and recalls. Previous studies have lacked the ability to replicate real-world contamination scenarios in LMF processing environments. This research aimed to develop inoculation methods to form LMF persistent bacterial populations (LMF PBPs) and assess pathogen responses to environmental factors, culturing methods (broth vs. lawn), and matrix type and ratio. Inoculation methods tested were “direct” (combining bacterial culture and powder on a stainless-steel coupon) and “slurry” (premixing culture and powder). Matrices included …

Sonic Subversion: An Intersectional Analysis Of South African Punk, 1976-Present, Amber Lenser

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The 1970s in South Africa were plagued by systematic racial segregation, widespread political violence, and fervent censorship under the apartheid regime. Political tensions were rising precipitously in the final years of the decade, stoked by the brutal police response to the Soweto Uprising (1976) and the murder of Black Consciousness leader Steve Biko (1977). It was amidst this atmosphere of profound oppression and increasing political unrest that punk made its South African debut. Apartheid South Africa served as a fertile breeding ground for punk’s inherent culture of defiance and anti-authoritarianism. Remarkably, punk has demonstrated the power to transcend sociodemographic boundaries …

In Vitro And In Vivo Evaluation Of The Effect Of A Commercial-Dried Enterococcus Faecium Fermentation Product As Quorum Sensing Inhibitors Of Salmonella Enterica Typhimurium, Ileana Loeza

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the present research was to evaluate Enterococcus faecium fermentation peptides (EFP) for antibacterial activity, inhibition of biofilm formation, and anti-quorum sensing properties against Salmonella Typhimurium (ST) in in vitro trials and individual body weight and ST organ colonization in therapeutic and prophylactic models in broiler chickens. Ninety-six day-of-hatch Cobb 500 broiler chickens were randomized and assigned to one of four treatments: NC) Negative Control, no EFP treatment and no ST challenge; NC+EFP) Negative Control, EFP treatment and no ST; PC) Positive Control, no EFP treatment and ST challenge, and PC+EFP) EFP treated and ST challenged. Independent trials …

The Effects Of Wwii Service On Black South African Soldiers, 1939-1950, Zachary Wilmoth

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the experiences and motives of black South African soldiers who were a part of the Native Military Corps during the Second World War. It argues that these Black South African soldiers gained a growing sense of racial consciousness as a result of their service and corresponding experiences. In doing so, this thesis challenges previous historical interpretations of the Native Military Corps that have perpetuated the notion that Black veterans gained little political or racial understanding as a result of their service. Previous historians have predominantly relied on archival governmental records to substantiate their claims. However, such source …

End Of Life Care In Pets And What It Tells Us About The Moral Permissibility Of Physician-Assisted Suicide, Paavan Atluri

Philosophy Undergraduate Honors Theses

Our relationships define us. We have different relationships and obligations towards animals based on the societies we live in and the attitudes that individuals choose to have with these animals. People often see themselves as having more moral value than other animals based on the fact that they perceive themselves as having greater intelligence and conscious ability. I think this notion is misguided and the way that people actually perceive moral value is in terms of their relationships with the subject in question. If life was truly perceived in a “more intellect than more moral value” lens then the permissibility …

Evaluation Of Fecal Egg Counts (Fec) As A Viable Means To Estimate Ascaridia Galli, Heterakis Gallinarum And Capillaria Obsignata Burdens In Laying Hens, Alexander H. Moss

Animal Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

The control of gastrointestinal helminths, specifically Ascaridia galli, Heterakis gallinarum, and Capillaria obsignata, is a critical component of poultry health management, particularly in free-range and organic farming systems. Methods of estimating parasite burdens, such as post-mortem examinations, are not feasible for large-scale commercial operations due to their invasiveness and time requirements. This study aimed to evaluate the use of fecal egg counts (FEC) as a non-invasive and efficient method for estimating the worm burdens of these parasites in laying hens. A flock of 12 brown egg laying, spent, hens were individually penned on concrete. Fecal samples (both cecal and intestinal) …

Looking Back While Moving Forward: Four Musical Works That Signify Complex Emotions Regarding The Passage Of Time Through Ambiguous Endings, Bailey Griggs

Music Undergraduate Honors Theses

Defying expectations is a useful and overlooked tool in music composition. Despite all their differences, the final movement of Tchaikovsky’s 6th Symphony, Joe Hisaishi’s score to the 2001 film Spirited Away, Joni Mitchell’s popular song “Both Sides Now,” and electronic artist The Caretaker’s album set Everywhere at the End of Time all share similar programmatic content. Each presents a protagonist who is coming to terms with the passage of time and is conflicted about how they should cope with change. Upon examination of these four works, they all use unexpected and ambiguous endings to signify complex ideas about time through …

Characterization Of 3d Printed Microdialysis Probes For Solute Recovery And Non-Specific Adsorption, Bailey N. Scoggins

Chemistry & Biochemistry Undergraduate Honors Theses

Microdialysis is an important sampling technique that has uses in a wide range of disciplines, such as neuroscience and pharmacokinetics. 3D printing aims to address adaptability and customization issues that are present in standard “off-the-shelf” microdialysis probes. This work aims to lay the groundwork for characterizing a 3D printed microdialysis probe designed at the University of Arkansas. One experiment involved measuring solute recovery of caffeine as a function of flow rate of a standard CMA 11 probe to assess its membrane performance. The other goal was to learn about non-specific adsorption tendencies of enzymes (i.e., to what degree proteins stick …

Morphology Of Smallmouth Bass (Micropterus Dolomieu) In Arkansas, Robert Laroche

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

The Smallmouth Bass, Micropterus dolomieu, is one of the most important game fishes in Arkansas. Three distinct lineages are recognized from different river basins: the Northern, Neosho, and Ouachita Smallmouth Bass. Understanding the biodiversity within this species complex inhabiting different water bodies in Arkansas is important for effective management of the fisheries resource and to guide conservation efforts. But current data on distribution of distinct forms are insufficient to guide management. The primary goals of the study presented here was to quantify morphological characteristics to identify distinct lineages of Smallmouth Bass, and to determine their specific locations within Arkansas streams …

The Prevalence Of Cytauxzoon Felis In Southern United States, Anna Haynes

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Cytauxzoonosis, caused by transmission from a tick infected with the pathogen Cytauxzoon felis, is considered an emerging tick-borne disease in domestic felines. While not as fatal in other vertebrates such as the reservoir host Lynx rufus (bobcat), in domestic cats, infection is fatal nearly 100% of the time. This study sought to screen ticks pulled from felines for the pathogen across three states in an area identified as a hotspot. Out of 80 ticks screened, 12 tested positive for the pathogen. The positive population of ticks came from 3 neighboring counties in Southern Missouri: Jasper, McDonald, and Newton. McDonald …

The Effect Of Antemortem Tooth Loss On Craniofacial Shape In Apes And Humans, Ashley R. Laster

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Antemortem tooth loss (AMTL) (i.e., defined as tooth loss occurring before death) is common among humans and many primates, and several studies have examined AMTL across various primate groups. Some research indicates that AMTL can influence masticatory function and diet; however, the effects of AMTL on craniofacial shape and biomechanics have not been extensively analyzed. We assessed craniofacial and mandibular shape in relation to AMTL, anticipating that individuals with at least one tooth lost antemortem would display significant differences in cranial and/or mandibular shape compared to those without AMTL. AMTL rates were evaluated in three primate species: wild-caught samples of …

Ecological Interactions Of Large Mammals In Luangwa, Zambia, Jahzara Osborne

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

The connection between mammalian behavior in national parks and human-driven environmental change outside national parks is tenuous. National parks are often considered the last vestiges of natural space, yet they are created and maintained by humans. South Luangwa National Park (SLNP) at the southern end of the East African Rift System (EARS) is a microcosm of this global problem. EARS is a biodiverse region made up of numerous smaller branches. In the Luangwa Valley, this biodiversity has been protected through conservation historically, but dynamic geopolitical forces have affected the relationship between large mammals and humans by extracting humans to create …

The Expression Of Intestinal Tight Junction Proteins Induced By 1,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D3-Glycosides Supplementation To Reduce Bacterial Chondronecrosis With Osteomyelitis Lameness In Broilers, Kennedy M. Hicks

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Bacterial Chondronecrosis with Osteomyelitis (BCO) is a leading cause of lameness in broiler chickens, impacting animal welfare and commercial poultry production. Supplementation using organic trace minerals, vitamin D, probiotics, and prebiotics has been studied to mitigate BCO lameness incidences in broiler chickens. Our previous study demonstrated that feeding Panbonis®-G-1,25(OH)₂D₃ from Solanum glaucophyllum, containing 1 µg/kg G-1,25(OH)₂D₃, to broilers for the first 28 days of their production cycle reduced BCO lameness by approximately 50%. In this study, we investigated the impact of 1,25-dihydroxy vitamin D₃ supplementation on the expression of tight junction …

Immune Function Modulation By Temperature On Isolated Rainbow Trout Macrophages, Abby Hunter

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Fever is an evolutionary mechanism that enhances immune function, yet the molecular and metabolic responses to fever temperatures in ectothermic species remain poorly understood. In this study, we investigated how fever temperatures (19° C) influence macrophage function and metabolic activity in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), rather than normal temperatures (16° C). Using a rainbow trout monocytic cell line, RTS11, and primary head kidney-derived macrophages (HKCs), we examined the effects of fever temperatures on nitric oxide (NO) production, gene expression, protein synthesis, and energy metabolism. We found that fever temperatures increased NO production in both cell types, with further …

Assessment Of Attitudes, Preferences, And Knowledge Regarding Dietary Protein And Health, Annabella E. Grau

The Eleanor Mann School of Nursing Undergraduate Honors Theses

In the area of nutrition and dietary protein, experts often state that there are several barriers to consumption of dietary protein, however there is a lack of published data supporting these claims. Therefore, the objective of this study was to identify the attitudes, preferences and knowledge regarding dietary protein to identify potential barriers that would prevent purchasing protein or including protein in the diet. A 38-question Qualtrics survey was distributed via University of Arkansas listservs and on social media for three weeks. Participants (n=866) were asked to answer questions related to general nutrition knowledge and current dietary practices related to …

Food Inspections: Searching For Contamination (And Solutions) In A Haystack, Abigail Schneider, Benjamin Kelly, Michael S. Sinha

Journal of Food Law & Policy

Food recalls in the United States often reveal serious mismanagement and structural issues in both government and private industry, yet they have become unremarkable and even expected in our modern world. The procedure employed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) to monitor food manufacturing is a valuable process which protects every person who lives in the United States. However, the effects of monitoring as a tool for oversight is limited if there is no efficient response when problems arise. FDA inspects pharmaceutical, cosmetic, and food manufacturing facilities both domestically and abroad. When those inspections reveal the presence of …

Negotiating Food Security, Maria Cudowska

Journal of Food Law & Policy

In the United States and worldwide, nutrition and food emerge as both high-profile public policy targets and as fundamental aspects of the right to self-determination. This Article examines how national security impacts food security in the United States. It explores conflicts and synergies between municipal, state, and federal law developments related to the right to food and investigates recent developments in how those commitments have been negotiated. The challenge and nebulous justiciability of the right to food can be in part attributed to existing global and national systems, which include supply chains, welfare programs, and foreign investment in the U.S. …

Nonparametric Methods For Bayesian Community Detection In Complex Networks, Kedran Young

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Network analysis is becoming an increasingly popular interdisciplinary area of study, with emerging interest in fields like sociology, biology, economics, and ecology. Within the niche of network analysis, capturing the community structure of a network is one important achievement that many statisticians have been working toward over recent decades. The most popular modeling technique for latent community detection is the Stochastic Block Model (SBM), which falls into the category of latent variable models and will serve as the baseline model throughout this thesis. SBM is widely regarded as the most effective community detection method as it detects latent community membership …

Literary Postcritique And American Transcendentalism: Helping Students Practice Community-Building By Rewilding Literature In The Classroom, Tate Aldrich

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Literary postcritique is an emergent theoretical approach to literature that has elicited skepticism among many in academia because of its central claim that their unchecked overreliance on suspicious and symptomatic reading styles is diminishing the pedagogical potential of our reading together. To restore this potential, Rita Felski, a champion of literary postcritique, suggests adopting an aesthetic reading style, a mid-level interpretation that neither indulges in the formalists’ habits of close scrutiny nor in the cultural critics’ wider lens of political and social contexts. In The Limits of Critique and Hooked, Felski argues that an aesthetic reading style can develop …

Investigating Evolution Through The Lens Of Ai-Driven Protein Exploration And Phylogenetic Modeling, Mataya Duncan

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Recent advances in computational biology, artificial intelligence, and sequencing technologies have enabled new perspectives for addressing longstanding questions in evolutionary biology. Increased computational power has made large-scale simulations feasible for investigating diverse aspects of evolutionary and phylogenetic modeling. Similarly, deep learning algorithms now allow for the prediction of reasonably accurate tertiary protein structures, unlocking the potential for investigating diversity and evolution of protein structure across a broad range of organisms. This thesis presents two studies that target different aspects of evolutionary inference from unique perspectives. Yet, the share an overarching goal of presenting new perspectives on the evolutionary basis of …

Application Of Ordinal Regression Models To Acquired Stress Resistance In Wild Strains Of Saccharomyces Cerevisiae, Carson Stacy

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the application of ordinal regression to the analysis of semi-quantitative growth assays often used when comparing fitness for different strains of the model yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. For stress survival assays, yeast stress resistance is measured using an ordered survival score that ranges from 0 (no growth) to 4 (confluent growth). Traditional approaches to analyze this type of data either treats data as a nominal categorical variable or as a continuous numerical variable. These approaches risk loss of information or violation of testing assumptions. In contrast, cumulative logit ordinal regression uses the information contained in the order …

Comparison Of Rt-Qpcr And Rt-Ddpcr On Assessing Model Virus In Wastewater, Wafa Youssfi

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

There is an increasing demand for quantifying viral loads in diverse wastewater systems using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). This study evaluates the performance of two commonly used workflows: reverse transcription quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) and reverse transcription droplet digital PCR (RT-ddPCR) in wastewater. We compared the two methods by measuring the viral ribonucleic acid (RNA) of a model virus Phi6 in samples collected from various treatment stages at the Westside Wastewater Treatment Facility in Fayetteville, AR. RNA was extracted from real and synthetic wastewater samples and analyzed in parallel using both RT-qPCR and RT-ddPCR. Findings reveal that both methods demonstrated similar …

Construction And Characterization Of An Rf Anechoic Range, Logan Gentry

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

Anechoic RF ranges are electromagnetically quiet spaces intended to provide conditions suitable for testing and classifying electronic equipment. Typically, ranges are constructed indoors, which presents a number of design challenges related to room geometry, cost, and material selection. This report describes the creation of an indoor anechoic range intended for characterization of antennas. Furthermore, the range is characterized for performance across a wide range of discrete frequencies in the UHF band according to CISPR standards, resulting in the determination of a lower frequency limit at which the room performance begins to degrade. The characterization of this range agrees with far-field …