Digital Commons Network^™

Cigarettes, Flesh, & Other Cravings, Gabrielle F. Decker

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

Cigarettes, Flesh, & Other Cravings is a collection of short stories that explores themes of motherhood, death, and desire. Each character struggles with the friction between society's expectations and their desires for happiness, all through the lens of the surreal and the absurd. A destructive raccoon’s nightly visits unravel a woman’s sense of control. A teenager begins an internship with a conspiracy-obsessed clown. A minuscule old woman tumbles out of a chicken egg. A fissure in a kitchen floor births an imp. A Choose Your Own Adventure examines the illusion of choice. In Hell, torture is personalized. Cigarettes, Flesh, & …

Ethical Concerns And Consumer Perceptions Of Fairness In Gamified Customer Loyalty Programs, Shelley Maccini

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

Business organizations use customer loyalty programs as marketing tools by providing incentives for consumer behaviors, which generate customer engagement value for the business. Customer loyalty programs typically use game mechanics common to digital gaming in order to motivate behavior, often referred to as gamification. While studies of gamified programs used for education and training purposes appear frequently in the literature, a gap exists in exploring gamified programs used in a marketing context. This dissertation seeks to understand how consumers view the use of gamified customer loyalty programs as fair under the frameworks of justice. This exploratory study employed a mixed …

Molecular Basis For The Disaggregase Activity Of Protein Disulfide Isomerase, Antonio Mele

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

Protein disulfide isomerase (PDI) is an essential, multifunctional, and promiscuous protein with a modular abb’xa’c domain arrangement. Conformational flexibility and the independent, yet coordinated, functionality of PDI domains facilitate protein folding, redox regulation, and the maintenance of cellular homeostasis. Previous investigations have shown that PDI can inhibit amyloid β peptide aggregation, associated with Alzheimer's disease, and is required for cholera toxin disassembly, the rate-limiting step in Vibrio cholerae pathogenesis. However, the precise mechanistic details underlying these interactions remain to be elucidated. Using molecular and biophysical approaches, this study has begun to establish substrate-induced unfolding, or conditional disorder, of PDI as …

Designing Immersive Educational Experiences: An Exploration Of Animal Attractions And Exhibits To Create A National Park Themed Experience, Sarah G. Merrill

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

This thesis analyzes the disconnect between immersive environmental storytelling and conservation education at animal attractions. How can designers create immersive educational experiences that engage audiences? Can environmental narrative practices be applied in a new way to develop effective conservation and wildlife education? A literature review assists in defining immersion, discovering the evolution of Modern Zoo design as an immersive experience, and evaluating conversation education in animal facilities. When combined with educational techniques, immersive habitat design improves guest engagement and informal conservation learning outcomes in zoos and animal-related experiences. Using Scott Lukas’ theming and immersion modes, three attractions are analyzed as …

I'M Sorry You Have To Read This, Mark Blok

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

I’m Sorry You Have to Read This is a collection of essays that explore Russian culture, Jewish traditions, and American identity. Through reflections on illness, the indignities of premature balding, and the ongoing puzzle of cultural belonging, these essays navigate the awkward and absurd passage from childhood to adulthood. The first essay, “Traditions Schmaditions,” explores cultural identity, assimilation, and generational inheritance within a Russian-Jewish immigrant family. At its core, it’s about obligation and fear, and the struggle to break free from traditions kept out of habit rather than intention. Following essays of culture-shaping experiences that explore learning to define adulthood …

Drag In Theme Parks: An Application Of Queer Theory And Intergroup Contact Theory, Corey D. Clancy

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

The intent of this paper is to evaluate whether the artistic expression of Drag can be understood and appreciated by its critics when employed at Theme Parks. This will be accomplished through the lenses and applications of Queer Theory and Intergroup Contact Theory by researching what the art of Drag is, defining its different expressions, interviewing members of the Drag community, and creating clear guidelines and “Criteria for Drag in Theme Parks.”

With such passionate feelings on Drag in culture today, this research will aim to take subjectivity out of the matter and focus objectively on the impacts that Drag …

& Everything Else, Ian R. Abercrombie

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

& EVERYTHING ELSE is a collection of stories that explores various forms of obsession. In “BEG FOR SCRAPS,” Pickle, a former bomb-sniffing dog, fixates on his owner, who’s fallen into a cycle of neglect post-divorce. “LET THEM FIGHT” follows Casey, a 20-something on a date to see, for the umpteenth time, a kaiju movie that conjures their escapist tendencies from a traumatic childhood. “DINNER WITH THE FOOL,” narrated by a state-appointed clown obsessed with jokes, describes a family contending with their matriarch’s planned suicide. “BIRDWATCHING” follows three characters, each with their own odd obsession: Jodie who wants to photograph a …

The Long Walk And Beyond: Navajo Resilience And The Journey From Displacment To Resurgence, William A. Alvarado

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

This thesis, The Long Walk and Beyond: Navajo Resilience and the Journey from Displacement to Resurgence: A Study Exploring the Unique Late Nineteenth-Century Navajo Odyssey During United States Expansion, examines the profound impact of U.S. territorial expansion on the Navajo people during the mid-to-late nineteenth century. Central to this narrative is the tragic experience of the Navajo Long Walk (1864), which led to the forced relocation of thousands of Navajos to Bosque Redondo. The thesis explores the complexities of this relocation, emphasizing the cultural, social, and economic devastation it caused. Despite these challenges, the Navajo people demonstrated remarkable resilience, using …

The Transition Of Tradition: The Modernismo Era Of Puerto Rican Postcolonial Short Fiction, Natalie Donis

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

Modernismo, an artistic and literary cultural movement that swept across Latin America, profoundly shaped Puerto Rican short fiction by introducing innovative narrative techniques before the novel gained prominence on the island. Emerging during the sociopolitical upheaval following the Spanish American War and Puerto Rico's annexation by the United States, modernismo responded to both European artistic trends and the cultural tensions of colonial transition. In my research, in Puerto Rico, Moderismo emerged in the short story before the novel. This research examines how Puerto Rican short stories by José Luis González and Emilio Díaz Valcárcel, from this era, grapple with themes …

Catching Light Finding Encouragement Through Art And The Role Of Women In Impressionism, Vlada Evtushenko

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

Catching Light is a two-dimensional (2D) animated film about the importance of human connection through the tale of an artist rediscovering their passion for painting through the support of a fellow artist. Catching Light is told through the lens of the period in art history when the artists, who eventually came to be known as 'Impressionists', broke free from the traditions of the Academy. The story highlights how the Art Academy restricted and discriminated against people based on social class and gender, and its disrespect towards the craft of paintmaking. By setting this story in the late 19th century, Catching …

Ghosts Moving From The Margins: Comparing Representations Of Migrants In Contemporary Italian Media, Madeline Grohowski

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

This thesis examines how two different cultural mediums produced by a prominent Italian director and a popular Italian musical artist engage with themes of immigration and diaspora and their impacts on Italian national identity. The works that I have selected represent a mix of well-known and emergent figures in Italian cultural life and its related discourses around immigration and identity from the last 20 years of Italian history. Focusing on director Emanuele Crialese’s film Terraferma (2011) and rapper and singer Ghali’s songs “Mamma” (2017) and “Bayna” (2022), I analyze how each work frames migration as a metaphorical haunting that engages …

The Coffee Corner Project: Creating Rehearsal Community Through The Café Space, Jacob Romeo

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

The ensemble is the heart of any rehearsal process, and a sense of community as an ensemble is enriched more in the moments between rehearsing than in the rehearsal room itself. Approaching the ensemble from this perspective, this thesis examines how this connection can be strengthened or deepened by observing the history of the coffee shop social space. I implemented this lens of community into the rehearsal process by constructing a pared-down cafe space adjacent to the rehearsal room that elevated coffee beyond its “grab and go” forms into an enriching sensory experience where the cast and creative team were …

The Girl Who Drowned The Whole World, Sophia Saco

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

THE GIRL WHO DROWNED THE WHOLE WORLD investigates the consequences of loneliness. Upon returning to her hometown, the speaker, Cucú, reckons with the fact she no longer has a place amongst her friends and past. Her frustrations manifest as a Biblical flooding, leaving her the only person alive in the world. She embarks on a journey of coping whilst reframing her sudden penance as a baptism.

Through motifs of alchemy and Catholicism, hermit crab forms, and reflections on young adulthood, THE GIRL WHO DROWNED THE WHOLE WORLD contemplates how everyone can better themselves in difficult circumstances.

Written as prose poems, …

The Threshold Of Experience: Critiquing The Self And Society Through Domestic Exploration, Janessa Douds

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation post-2024

This thesis body of artwork investigates theories of “home,” the phenomenology of space, and the uncanny, exploring where the familiar becomes unfamiliar and the ordinary transforms into an enigmatic realm. Through depictions of domestic environments, these paintings challenge conventional perceptions of space and confront the eerie in the everyday to reflect on how those spaces shape our emotional and psychological experiences.

Coach For The Approach: The Educator’S New Role In The Age Of Ai, Kevin Yee, Laurie Uttich, Elizabeth Giltner, Anastasia Bojanowski

UCF Created OER Works

No abstract provided.

Occupancy Prediction In Airbnb Listings Using Deep And Classical Machine Learning Models, Liam Kilkenny

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Airbnb hosts and renters lack reliable tools to anticipate future occupancy, which is critical for setting competitive prices, planning availability, and making informed booking decisions. This is especially true as artificial intelligence capabilities continue to advance, so focusing on using the most efficient and effective models is vital. This is especially important when considering an average user, who might want a specialized model but has limited resources. By using the correct models, accuracy and computing time can be optimized for the end user. This thesis addresses that practical gap by evaluating several state-of-the-art machine learning models for predicting Airbnb listing …

Investigation Of Hydrogen Gas Production And Motility In Δselab And Δfdhf Mutants Of Clostridioides Difficile, Ria D. Gupta

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Clostridioides difficile is a Gram-positive, spore-forming, anaerobic bacterium and the leading cause of antibiotic-associated diarrhea worldwide. During infection, antibiotic-induced disruption of the gut microbiota allows C. difficile to colonize and proliferate. Motility, enabled by flagella, is an important factor in colonization and may be influenced by metabolic activity. Recent experiments have observed gas production during C. difficile motility assays, but the biochemical basis of this phenomenon remains unknown. Because gas formation in other bacteria such as E. coli involves the formate hydrogenlyase complex and the enzyme formate dehydrogenase (FDH), we hypothesize that C. difficile gas production under motility conditions is …

Implementing Holograms To Perform Cognitive Health History Screenings, Franchesca I. Gonzalez

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Marginalized populations, defined as a group of individuals who experience systematic disadvantages due to various social identity factors (Oxford Review, n.d.), experience uneven barriers to cognitive and mental health assessments, including socioeconomic, linguistic, and educational inequities, that contribute to misdiagnosis (Petersen et al., 2018, Saeed & Masters, 2021). This study investigates the feasibility of hologram-based patient simulations as an educational intervention for undergraduate nursing and graduate Nurse Practitioner students. Culturally representative, three-dimensional holographic patients were created to replicate complex geriatric encounters and facilitate cognitive health screenings. Established assessment tools, including the Mini-Mental Status Examination, Patient Health Questionnaire 2 and Patient …

Exploring The Link Between Relationship Status And Emotion Regulation Strategy Use, Abigail A. Echols

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Romantic relationships affect many areas of life and are important sources of interpersonal emotion regulation, yet little research has investigated whether relationship status influences emotion regulation strategy use and emotion dysregulation. Considering that the types of emotion regulation strategies individuals use significantly affect their well-being, understanding the link between relationship status and emotion regulation strategy use is important. This study compared single, partnered, and recently separated individuals’ emotion dysregulation and use of eleven intrapersonal and eleven interpersonal emotion regulation strategies in general (i.e., trait) and in a specific situation (i.e., state) through retrospective self-report scales and an autobiographical writing task. …

A Constitutional View Of Administrative Agencies, Anthony J. Diego

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This research focuses on a nuanced area of American law and history: the constitutionality of administrative agencies. Determining their constitutionality requires a sound and fundamental understanding of administrative agencies’ history and purpose, as well as applicable constitutional principles. Reliance on core legal and historical documents founding the United States, as well as existing literature analyzing them, is essential to this determination. Administrative agencies have existed within the United States government since the Founding, though not without scrutiny and exception to government operations. Recently, Supreme Court precedent dramatically changed agency operative functions, making it now an opportune time to analyze the …

Developing New Methods For Quantifying Karenia Brevis In Florida Waters, Antonia N. Ferguson

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs), known as red tides, have long impacted Florida’s coastal ecosystems. Caused by the toxic dinoflagellate Karenia brevis, these blooms are named based on the characteristic red discoloration of coastal waters. Negative impacts of K. brevis range from fish kills, neurotoxic shellfish poisoning, and respiratory irritation in humans. Traditionally, K. brevis monitoring has been conducted weekly by Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Fish and Wildlife Research Institute (FWC-FWRI) using light microscopy for cell identification and enumeration of collected water samples. However, this method is time-consuming, costly, and relies on deep taxonomic expertise for proper cell …

Salinity Effects On Cu(Ii) Bioremediation By Chlamydomonas Reinhardtii Microalgae, Jennifer Hughes

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Microalgae offer a sustainable approach to wastewater treatment by removing pollutants such as excess nutrients, CO₂, and heavy metals. Among various species, Chlamydomonas reinhardtii shows strong potential in removing Cu(II) ions from wastewater. In addition, salinity stress in C. reinhardtii has been linked to morphological and metabolic changes that enhance lipid and phytochemical production. While salinity stress has been studied for enhancing biofuel production, its impact on microalgal removal of heavy metals, particularly Cu(II), remains largely unexplored. Understanding how varying salinity conditions affect both algal growth and the efficiency of Cu(II) remediation could provide critical insights for improving integrated wastewater …

Cultural Barriers To Mental Health Support: Exploring Stigma In Childhood Trauma Survivors In Aruba, Ralitsa I.C. Hart

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This study explored whether negative attitudes towards seeking professional psychological help among people in Aruba who reported experiencing childhood trauma were predicted by perceived social stigma and the intensity of the trauma. An online survey measuring childhood trauma, attitudes towards seeking professional psychological help, and perceived stigma was administered to 162 participants using a cross-sectional correlational design. To determine the predictive relationship among these variables, a multiple regression analysis was performed. Results showed that perceived stigma significantly predicted more negative attitudes towards seeking professional psychological help, while the severity of childhood trauma did not. Among the trauma subscales, emotional abuse …

Venezuela's And Mexico's Oil Industries: Policy Making Sets The Course, Camila Gimenez Valero

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The puzzle of Venezuela's crisis is one that researchers often try to understand. How did one of the richest nations in the world become one of the poorest? Venezuela is nowadays seen as a country with political unrest, where people struggle to get by and with a corrupt government. However, this was not always the case. Throughout the 20th century Venezuela had remarkable economic stability. Having discovered the world's largest known oil reserves, the nation's economy quickly developed, and the country also became known for its long-standing democracy. After the election of Hugo Chavez in 1998, Venezuela began to decline …

Investigating The Consequences Of Workplace Violence Among Certified Nurse Assistants, Daniela Florez

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Workplace violence is one of the most prevalent issues in healthcare, negatively affecting the physical and emotional well-being of nursing professionals. The present study investigated the role of workplace violence in adverse outcomes for Certified Nursing Assistants. Specifically, the research aimed to examine its association with six key outcomes: (1) turnover intention, (2) burnout, (3) compassion fatigue, (4) secondary traumatic stress, (5) job satisfaction, and (6) work engagement. A cross-sectional approach was used. Data were collected using a demographic questionnaire, the Professional Quality of Life Scale 5, the Compassion Fatigue-Short Scale, the Work Well-being Inventory, the Workplace Violence Scale, the …

Crisis, Controversy, And Credibility: Rhetorical Appeals In Governor Desantis’ State Of The State Addresses, Victoria E. Laird

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This paper examines how Governor DeSantis has used rhetoric to advance his political identity and policy during the Florida legislative sessions from 2019 to 2025. Using rhetorical analysis, the study identifies linguistic techniques and persuasive devices that help shape DeSantis’s policy agenda and drive legislation. This study is important as it explores the ability of political figures to ground themselves in language and push political ideologies. The findings reveal a consistent emphasis on ethos while simultaneously appealing to unity, strengthen, and moral clarity. Over time, DeSantis’s rhetoric evolves from defensive to assertive leadership framed by appeals to national policy and …

Criminal Defenses In The Age Of Ai: An Examination Of How Technological Advancements Are Challenging Traditional Duress And Mistake Of Fact Defenses, Lauren Lepage

Honors Undergraduate Theses

AI has rapidly evolved into a defining force of modern life, transforming industries by automating tasks, streamlining workflows, and enhancing everyday experiences. However, the same advancements, especially in deepfakes, now enable highly convincing manipulation of audio, images, and video, blurring the line between truth and fabrication. As these technologies grow more accessible, they not only reshape digital interactions but also challenge core principles of criminal law and culpability. This research examines the rapid advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and deepfake technology and analyzes the challenges they pose to traditional criminal defenses. Employing a doctrinal legal research approach, it evaluates statutory …

Measuring Personality And Animal Treatment Attitudes With The Pet Scale, Zackery J. Hilton

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Previous research has looked at the association between personality traits and the proclivity, or history, of committing acts that are characterized as animal abuse or animal cruelty. Much research has also found that individuals who exhibit this type of behavior towards animals also tend to exhibit similar behavior towards other individuals, mainly in the form of domestic or child abuse. Previous studies have measured animal abuse using very explicit and extreme criteria, using acts that are without question blatant abuse or torture; however, there is some grey area where many may argue whether certain acts should be considered abuse, which …

A Systematic Literature Review On The Benefits Of Biofeedback Therapy As A Treatment For Diabetes Mellitus Induced Chronic Peripheral Neuropathy, Amy Krueger

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The objective of this systematic literature review is to examine the research on biofeedback therapy and evaluate its effectiveness in treating chronic diabetic peripheral neuropathy. This comprehensive review was conducted using the PRISMA 2020 method of analysis. All studies included at least 10 patients with T1D or T2D and current or past foot ulcers and/or DPN. Each study was also available in their entirety. Studies with fewer than 10 participants, those which examined neuropathy unrelated to diabetes, or those with healthy test populations were excluded. Studies that were only partially available were also not used. The databases used were PubMed, …

Pregaming Behaviors And Negative Alcohol-Related Consequences In College Students, Natalie M. Lima

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This study was conducted to examine the association between pregaming behavior (i.e., frequency and quantity) and negative alcohol-related consequences among college students. Specifically, it sought to replicate previous research demonstrating significant associations between pregaming behaviors and negative alcohol-related consequences in GenZ college students. While there are some recent studies on pregaming, many studies on pregaming were conducted approximately a decade ago, and pregaming behaviors may have changed within this timeframe. This project involved secondary analysis of data collected from a multi-site study in which college students completed an online survey that included questions regarding their demographics, pregaming frequency and quantity, …