Digital Commons Network^™

Frequency Stability Constrained Grid Operation With High Penetration Of Renewables, Ningchao Gao

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Achieving carbon neutrality necessitates a significant integration of renewable energy into power systems. However, the swift implementation of fluctuating renewable energy (VRE) sources such as solar photovoltaics (PV) exacerbates real time power imbalances due to the randomness and uncertainty associated with VRE power generation. Further, the declining reliance on conventional synchronous generators (SGs) for system inertia presents considerable challenges in maintaining frequency stability, especially following disturbances.

Two possible solutions are proposed to address the first issue. Firstly, a speedy real time generation dispatch can be scheduled to allocate generation resources within short time intervals to effectively respond to changes in …

The Use Of Regularization To Detect Racial Inequities In Pay Equity Studies: An Empirical Study And Reflections On Regulation Methods, Christopher M. Peña

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Since the late 1970s, multiple linear regression has been the preferred method for identifying discrimination in pay. An empirical study on this topic was conducted using quantitative critical methods. A literature review first examined conflicting views on using multiple linear regression in pay equity studies. The review found that multiple linear regression is used so prevalently in pay equity studies because the courts and practitioners have widely accepted it and because of its simplicity and ability to parse multiple sources of variance simultaneously. Commentaries in the literature cautioned about errors in model specification, the use of tainted variables, and the …

Safest Kid (A Sexual Assault Framework In Education To Support Trauma In Kids With Intellectual Disability): Delphi Study Development Of A Model And Utilization, Ashley M. Hudson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

There is a grave need for additions to the school psychologist’s toolbox to support students with intellectual disability (ID) and sexual trauma. These children are especially vulnerable to adverse life experiences overall and are at a particularly high risk of experiencing sexual abuse and resulting trauma. Children with ID are less likely to have their trauma symptoms identified by those around them, as symptoms do not always present in the same way as their neurotypical peers and trauma symptoms are more likely to be grouped into the rest of their disability through diagnostic overshadowing. Additionally, individuals with ID are at …

Putting It Gently: The Other Side Of A Peace Corps Volunteer Experience, Nicole Jacobson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Peace Corps is a transformative experience for many young Americans. The majority of volunteers have worthwhile services they remember fondly; however, these experiences are not always positive. The Peace Corps is a Cold War initiative that uses soft power techniques to further American exceptionalism, capitalism, and the modernization theory of development. The goal of this project was to understand what factors led to the negative experiences of Peace Corps Volunteers. I conducted an ethnography that focused on online communities, semi-structured interviews, Peace Corps memoirs, and news articles to understand Peace Corps Volunteers’ experiences and the organizational culture where they …

Defining Health Affordability, Govind C. Persad

Sturm College of Law: Faculty Scholarship

Affordable health care, insurance, and prescription drugs are priorities for the public and for policymakers. Yet the lack of a consensus definition of health affordability is increasingly recognized as a roadblock to health reform efforts. This Article explains how and why American health law invokes health affordability and attempts, or fails, to define the concept. It then evaluates potential affordability definitions and proposes strategies for defining affordability more clearly and consistently in health law.

Part I examines the role health affordability plays in American health policy, in part by contrasting the United States’s health system with systems elsewhere. Part II …

Encounter-Oriented Subjectivity In Levinas And Barth: Conditioned Freedom In Resistance To Ethnonationalism, Michael Laminack

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines philosophical and political subjectivity, or how an individual knows the world and relates to society, through a comparative analysis of the phenomenologist Emmanuel Levinas and the Christian theologian Karl Barth. Levinas and Barth share a deep structure of “encounter-oriented subjectivity,” meaning subjectivity oriented by encounter with the Other that calls into question the subject’s freedom and, in this same moment, calls the subject to concrete response. Encounter-oriented subjectivity is critical of the “unconditioned freedom” that orients liberal subjectivity and offers an alternative sense of a “passively conditioned” freedom, or a freedom always already called into question by …

Reevaluating The God-Human Relationship Through The Psychological Origin Of Sin: A Comparative Theology Of Schleiermacher And Kierkegaard On The Doctrine Of Sin, Brandon Tsark

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In his The Concept of Anxiety, Kierkegaard’s decision to have Haufniensis acknowledge Schleiermacher’s contribution to the doctrine of sin continues to raise questions regarding Schleiermacher’s influence on Kierkegaard’s intellectual development. These questions also serve to underscore the general need to locate Kierkegaard properly within the larger context of religious and theological studies in the nineteenth century. Our project here seeks to address these questions with a comparative theology of Schleiermacher and Kierkegaard on the Christian doctrine of sin. I argue that Kierkegaard is right to credit Schleiermacher as a source of inspiration in The Concept of Anxiety because of …

Divergence: Toward A Neurodivergent Latinx Liberative Social Ethic, Rudolph P. Reyes Ii

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A significant problem facing neurodivergent Latinxs is the invisibility of their marginalization and oppression. Neurodivergent Latinxs are invisible in dominant society and theological discourse. While neurodivergence and disability are not synonymous, the failure to recognize the marginalization of disability contributes to neurodivergent invisibility. Disability is depoliticized when disability is conceived as an issue of individual embodiment rather than a social issue of acceptance, accessibility, and equality. Neurodivergent Latinxs are erased, and the physical, epistemic, and institutional violence against them go unnamed.

This research project uses the hermeneutical circle for ethics in formulating praxis in combating the oppression of neurodivergent Latinxs. …

Exploring College Experiences Of Muslim Students At Four-Year Institutions In Colorado: A Narrative Inquiry, Kamal Gamada Ararso

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In the last two decades, Colorado's number of Muslim Americans (citizens and permanent residents) has substantially increased (Bowen, 2009a; Bowen, 2009b; Mohamed, 2021; Roberts, 2022). This increase is reflected in the growing number of Islamic community centers, emerging Islamic schools, mosques, grocery stores, Muslim cuisines, and the diversity of students in the post-secondary education system (Roberts, 2022). Although centralized data about Muslim college students are hard to find, their presence within the higher education system is well-known. Still, in Colorado, Muslims' religious, racial, cultural, and gendered experiences within the higher education system remained unexplored in the research. Therefore, this exploratory …

Mothers In Law: A Critical Discourse Analysis Of Mothers In Law School, Sarah M. Jordon

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Mothers are an increasing student population in higher education but an extensively under-researched population. While research examining motherhood is limited, the dearth of studies examining motherhood in higher education is especially limited, with even less available in the legal field and the institutions that provide legal education. This study examined how mothers in law school made meaning of their experiences utilizing a postmodernist epistemological framework, postmodernism and performance as a theoretical framework, and critical discourse analysis as a methodology. Data collection took place over the 2022-2023 academic year. Eight mothers participated in this qualitative study representing a range of ability …

Computational Methodology For Generating Patient-Specific Soft Tissue Representations, Ahilan Anantha Krishnan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation focused on modeling specimen-specific soft tissue structures in the context of joint replacement surgery. The research addressed four key aspects. The first study involved developing a workflow for creating finite element models of the hip capsule to replicate its torque-rotational response. Experimental data from ten cadaveric hips were used to calibrate the models, resulting in improved accuracy and relevance for surgical planning and implant design. The second study tackled the challenge of expediting the calibration of mechanical properties of the hip capsule to match patient-specific laxities. A statistical shape function model was proposed to generate patient-specific finite element …

Racial Bias, Accomplice Liability, And The Felony Murder Rule: A National Empirical Study, G. Ben Cohen, Justin D. Levinson, Koichi Hioki

Denver Law Review

Two long criticized prosecutorial tools—the felony murder rule and the accomplice liability doctrine—play an outsized role in the operation of American homicide law. Though each of these tools have separately faced intense criticism for their resistance to the supposedly foundational principles of moral culpability and individual responsibility, their legacy is also defined by the way they function symbiotically and specifically to heighten racialized punishment. This Article addresses the weighty combined reach of the accomplice liability doctrine and felony murder rule, and proposes that racial bias has fueled the operation and survival of these tools. Specifically, it suggests that implicit racial …

The Shape Of Consumer Contracts, Andrea J. Boyack

Denver Law Review

Modern consumer contracts are the bane of contract law and theory. Freedom of contract justifications are premised on party autonomy and transactional efficiency, but theories justifying contract enforcement fail to explain why the law should treat company-crafted terms as presumptively binding on consumers. Consumer protection advocates point out that lower thresholds for manifesting assent endorsed by the recent Restatement of the Law of Consumer Contracts may result in consumers being bound to terms of which they were reasonably unaware. Other scholars point out that mere knowledge of company terms and conditions does almost nothing to protect consumers in any case …

Vol. 101, No. 1: Full Issue, Denver Law Review

Denver Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Eighth Amendment And Medical Consensus On Gender Affirming Care: Reexamining The Dissentals In Edmo V. Corizon, John Parsi

Denver Law Review

Medical and scientific organizations widely adopt the World Professional Association of Transgender Health Standards of Care as the authority on gender affirming care. Despite this consensus, the legal, political, and policy environments often see only controversy. For example, the Ninth Circuit Court opinion in Edmo v. Corizon held that denying an incarcerated transgender person suffering from severe gender dysphoria—resulting in two attempts at self-castration, cutting to reduce genital distress, and suicidal ideations—violated the Eighth Amendment. The majority denied the State of Idaho’s petition for a rehearing en banc, but ten judges joined in three separate dissents to the denial of …

Anti-Transgender Legislation In Arizona, Alabama, And Arkansas: Arbitrary Moral Discrimination Masquerading As Child Protection, Austin Hoenig

Denver Law Review

The twenty-first century saw rapid positive changes in the perception of the LGBTQIA+ community. However, an onslaught of anti-transgender legislation seeking to criminalize various aspects of transgender existence continues to sweep across the United States. This Comment analyzes laws in Arizona, Alabama, and Arkansas that target transgender children. The Comment posits that these laws are not effective as to their stated purposes of child protection. It also argues that the laws are facially discriminatory because they inexplicably consider transgender regret but ignore cisgender regret and disallow transgender affirmation but allow cisgender affirmation. The Comment goes on to argue that the …

Ny State Rifle & Pistol Ass'n V. Bruen: The Supreme Court's Insensitivity To Sensitive Places, Catherine O'Toole

Denver Law Review

The Supreme Court’s decision in N.Y. State Rifle and Pistol Ass’n v. Bruen jeopardized state licensing authorities’ abilities to use discretion when deciding whether a person is legally permitted to carry a concealed gun in public places. If states’ abilities to legislate on this issue are limited or states are unable to impose effective gun regulations, gun violence will certainly continue and perhaps increase. To solve this problem, and to undo the damage of Bruen, the Court must give power back to state legislatures so they can impose gun control regulations voted for by their citizens. There is extensive scholarly …

Identification Of The Functional Domain Of The Dense Core Vesicle Biogenesis Factor Hid-1, Blake H. Hummer, Theodore Carter, Breanna L. Sellers, Jenna D. Triplett, Cedric S. Asensio

Biological Sciences: Faculty Scholarship

Large dense core vesicles (LDCVs) mediate the regulated release of neuropeptides and peptide hormones. HID-1 is a trans-Golgi network (TGN) localized peripheral membrane protein contributing to LDCV formation. There is no information about HID-1 structure or domain architecture, and thus it remains unknown how HID-1 binds to the TGN and performs its function. We report that the N-terminus of HID-1 mediates membrane binding through a myristoyl group with a polybasic amino acid patch but lacks specificity for the TGN. In addition, we show that the C-terminus serves as the functional domain. Indeed, this isolated domain, when tethered to the TGN, …

Rhett B. Larson, Just Add Water, Peyton Lindley

Water Law Review

No abstract provided.

Halting Global Supply Chain Abuses: Analyzing The Potential Of The European Court Of Human Rights To Address Extraterritorial Harms In The Chocolate Industry, Joe Udell

Denver Journal of International Law & Policy

Global supply chains in the agribusiness sector have long been associated with abhorrent slave-like conditions. Although transnational corporations have acknowledged that these extraterritorial abuses exist, they have largely evaded legal responsibility for the human rights harms suffered by victims overseas. Against this backdrop, the European Court of Human Rights represents an intriguing venue for future claimants, as its Article 4 jurisprudence has expanded the scope of prohibitions on slavery and forced labor under the European Convention of Human Rights. This Article accordingly considers whether the Court might interpret Article 4 such that it places a positive obligation on Council of …

And The World Watches On: The Inadequate Response To The Unfolding Crisis In Myanmar And Where To Go From Here, Marlene Pierce

Denver Journal of International Law & Policy

In February of 2021, Myanmar’s burgeoning democracy was stifled when a military junta staged a coup and ousted the then recently elected government. Since the coup, the military junta has engaged in a campaign of terror that has resulted in displacement, famine, the loss of political freedoms, and near total disenfranchisement of the Rohingya people. These crises have been compounded by natural disasters that regularly plague the country, resulting in a dire situation for the citizens of Myanmar. With little hope for domestic remedies, the international community must intervene to stop the worsening humanitarian crises. This Article explores possible approaches …

Local Law Enforcement And The Human Right To Housing, Sophia Vander Kooy

Denver Journal of International Law & Policy

The homelessness crisis stands at a point of overflowing, affecting the world’s capacity to continue ignoring the problem. As the world globalized, vagrancy laws and pervasive stigmatization of the homeless community persisted, leaving modern-day social services with a failing ability to enact change. The United Nations first recognized the human right to adequate housing in the mid-twentieth century but has tried to strengthen this right over the past two decades. Law enforcement officers around the world interact regularly with individuals experiencing homelessness and are arguably tasked with being the front-line enforcers of the right to adequate housing. However, often, these …

Vol. 52, No. 1: Full Issue, Denver Journal Of International Law & Policy

Denver Journal of International Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

Vol. 52, No. 1: Faculty And Admin, Denver Journal Of International Law & Policy

Denver Journal of International Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

Urbs Ex Machina? On The Hohfeldian Incidence Of City Subsidarity As A Jus Cogens, Benjamen Franklen Gussen

Denver Journal of International Law & Policy

The Article provides commentary on the meaning of peoples, the holders of the right to self-determination, by analyzing this right as a Hohfeldian claim-right that has a jural correlative, namely, a duty on the state to subsidiarize its peoples’ decision on their political status. Under international law, this duty is a norm from which no state can derogate, parallel to the status of self-determination as a jus cogens. By claiming the right, peoples become a constituent power that imposes a normative position on the state vis-à-vis their chosen political status. The relatum stems from the effect of claiming self-determination, being …

General-Purpose Regional Governance As A Sustainability Tool In Metropolitan Areas: Empower Denver's Drcog To Facilitate Meaningful Transit-Oriented Development, Juliana Todeschi

Denver Law Review Forum

​Today most Americans live in metropolitan regions which are comprised of numerous local governments. Home rule jurisdiction precludes these local governments from acting in isolation to curb the negative impact of sprawl. However, issues of regional significance that are not addressed by the state result in a regulatory vacuum. Juliana Todeschi explores how a general-purpose regional government structure can fill that regulatory vacuum, promoting a sustainable metropolitan region. Ms. Todeschi argues a regional governance approach better fits transit-oriented development and analyzes the Denver region in a case study.​​​

Solving The Causation Problem In Colorado Medical Malpractice Law, Charles R. Mendez, Karman J. Reed

Denver Law Review Forum

​Charles R. Mendez and Karman J. Reed confront two central problems to the element of causation in medical malpractice law. They address how it has created a discrepancy between the legal standard of causation and its practical application.​​​​

Discontent And Discord: The Effect Of Anti-Government Animus On Compliance With The Norms Of Governance, Andrew F. Popper

Denver Law Review Forum

As distrust and discontent grows, public willingness to conform voluntarily with legal norms declines. The fact that the government is perceived negatively is not debatable. However, it takes years to transform the national belief structure. Professor Popper challenges why the federal regulatory state is perceived negatively. He tracks the devolution of public confidence in the government through the lens of tort reform and several regulatory agencies and programs.

Procompetitive Justifications In Antitrust Cases Related To Companies' Coordination On Technology Development That Can Benefit Consumers And The Environment, Annie Soo Yeon Ahn

Denver Law Review Forum

As concerns about the environment increase, consumers have reportedly become more willing to purchase environmentally friendly products and services. To accommodate this, companies are developing environmentally friendly goods, which involves coordination among companies with similar goals. Annie Soo Yeon Ahn suggests that antitrust enforcement agencies and courts should carefully consider procompetitive justifications in antitrust cases concerning coordination on technology development. Further, procompetitive justifications should be considered when determining whether to apply the per se analysis or the rule of reason analysis.

Regulate Commerce, Not Cruelty: Will The Dormant Commerce Clause Shield States That Want To Protect Pigs, Dakota Hamko

Denver Law Review Forum

​Dakota Hamko addresses the increasing ability of states to regulate in unprecedented areas and several modern limitations on this authority and also explores critical lessons from Dormant Commerce Clause precedent and its effect on the future of regulating animal cruelty through sales bans.​