Digital Commons Network^™

Exploring Messages About College Attendance And Graduation, Erin Talley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Successful completion of a college degree is a growing necessity in the United States of America. Concerns about workforce readiness and the cost of postsecondary education make completion of a college degree a burdensome necessity for individuals and society. Important implications from higher education research have been integral in establishing support programs to enhance college and university admissions, persistence, and graduation. Exploration of students’ home environments (Belasco, 2013; Wladis, Hachey, & Conway, 2018), preparation for college endeavors (Banks, 2022; Gilroy, 2014), fit in college institutions (Grillo & Leist, 2014; Lutz, Bennett, & Wang, 2017), and determination, or GRIT (Duckworth & …

Alternative Southern Communities: Cultural Other "Asians" In Contemporary Fiction About The American South, Mariko Hiwatashi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This project explores the representation of minority groups in contemporary U.S. Southern literature, with a particular focus on Asian communities. It not only challenges the conventional perception that Asians in America are primarily associated with the West Coast but also underscores how Asian representation in literature plays a crucial role in illuminating the complexities of regional identity and social structure in the American South.

Historically, Asian immigrants have been part of the Southern landscape since the eighteenth century when Filipino sailors settled in New Orleans. Chinese immigrants also played essential roles as laborers in the post-slavery South. However, their experiences …

How Prepared Are They? Mississippi Teachers’ Perceptions Of Preparedness For English Learners In Content Area Classrooms, Michelle Turonek

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine teachers’ perceptions of preparedness for English learners in Mississippi content area classrooms. Specifically, the study examined the feelings and experiences teachers had on their preparedness for English learners. While researching teacher perceptions, the study also attempted to discover the reasoning behind their preparedness through pre-service coursework, professional development, and strategies of second language acquisition. A qualitative approach was used through interviews and a survey to investigate how teachers perceived their preparedness and expressed their experiences. Data was collected from ten Mississippi teachers throughout the state and analyzed by the researcher to identify …

The Mississippi School Funding Formula: A Study Of Adequacy, Marcus E. Cheeks

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this was to examine the relationship between Mississippi public school district per pupil funding disaggregated by funding source (total, federal, state, and local) and student academic achievement gaps within districts based on poverty and race. Pearson's correlational coefficient was used to assess the relationship across 139 Mississippi school districts during fiscal year 2019. State Special Schools, Charter Schools, and Agriculture Schools were excluded from the analysis. School districts lacking a sufficient number of African American and Economically Disadvantaged children to calculate a school proficiency score in ELA and Math were also removed. Thus, the analysis consisted of …

Theoretical Spectroscopy Of Electronically Excited States, Megan Christina Davis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Modelling of spectroscopic properties is useful for detection of species which are di_- cult to study in the laboratory. Full reproduction of electronic spectra depends upon reliable spectroscopic data of electronically excited states. However, no means of producing accurate fundamental vibrational frequencies of these states exist. This doctoral work consists of applications of theoretical spectra for prediction and identification of novel species as well as attempts to extend this methodology to effectively treat electronically excited states. The former includes the study of conformers of methanediol and a set of [Al,N,C,O] isomers. The latter is done using equation-of-motion theory to form …

Chemistry Doctoral Graduate Named Finalist For Prestigious Award, Gaye Swan

University of Mississippi News

Leigh Anna Hunt honored at national graduate student awards symposium

Professor Awarded Career Grant To Study Pure Mathematics, Clara Turnage

University of Mississippi News

$400,000 National Science Foundation grant to fund research of L-functions, high school outreach

Preparation Of Methanediamine (Ch2(Nh2)2)—A Precursor To Nucleobases In The Interstellar Medium, Joshua H. Marks, Jia Wang, Ryan C. Fortenberry, Ralf I. Kaiser

Faculty and Student Publications

Although methanediamine (CH2(NH2)2) has historically been the subject of theoretical scrutiny, it has never been isolated to date. Here, we report the preparation of methanediamine (CH2(NH2)2)—the simplest diamine. Low-temperature interstellar analog ices composed of ammonia and methylamine were exposed to energetic electrons which act as proxies for secondary electrons produced in the track of galactic cosmic rays. These experimental conditions, which simulate the conditions within cold molecular clouds, . result in radical formation and initiate aminomethyl (ĊH2NH2) and amino (NH2) radical chemistry. Exploiting tunable photoionization reflectron time-of-flight mass spectrometry (PI-ReToF-MS) to make isomer-specific assignments, methanediamine was identified in the gas …

Familiar Favorites, Fresh Faces Featured At Um Books And Bears, Edwin B. Smith

University of Mississippi News

Continuation of annual toy distribution for employees' families draws volunteers and recipients

Growing High School Stem Outreach Program Led By Graduate Student, Abigail Martin

University of Mississippi News

Inspiring passion for science-related fields in the next generation of scholars

The Effects Of Survival, Pleasantness, And Storytelling Conditions On True And False Memory Recollection, Rachel Daniels

Honors Theses

The purpose of the present study was to analyze the extent to which various processing scenarios influenced participants' rates of true and false memory recollection. Participants were placed in one of three conditions, storytelling, survival, or pleasantness, and then studied a list of common nouns. They were then instructed to comment on the words in a specific manner depending on the condition to which they were randomly assigned. Following this, participants completed a math distractor task, and were then asked to complete a free recall test for the previously studied words. The results indicated that participants in the storytelling condition …

Resolution To Establish An Ad Hoc Committee For The Drafting Of A University Faculty Grievance Policy, University Of Mississippi. Faculty Senate

Resolutions

No abstract provided.

December 6, 2022, University Of Mississippi. Faculty Senate

Meeting Minutes

Minutes for the December 6, 2022 meeting of the University of Mississippi Faculty Senate.

December 6, 2022, University Of Mississippi. Faculty Senate

Meeting Agendas

Agenda for the December 6, 2022 meeting of the University of Mississippi Faculty Senate.

The Spectral Features And Detectability Of Small, Cyclic Silicon Carbide Clusters, Christopher M. Sehring, C. Zachary Palmer, Brent R. Westbrook, Ryan C. Fortenberry

Faculty and Student Publications

Rovibrational spectral data for several tetra-atomic silicon carbide clusters (TASCCs) are computed in this work using a CCSD(T)-F12b/cc-pCVTZ-F12 quartic force field. Accurate theoretical spectroscopic data may facilitate the observation of TASCCs in the interstellar medium which may lead to a more complete understanding of how the smallest silicon carbide (SiC) solids are formed. Such processes are essential for understanding SiC dust grain formation. Due to SiC dust prevalence in the interstellar medium, this may also shed light on subsequent planetary formation. Rhomboidal Si2C2 is shown here to have a notably intense (247 km mol−1) anharmonic vibrational frequency at 988.1 cm−1 …

Critically Observing The Challenges And Changes: An Analysis On Covid-19’S Impact With An Emphasis On Students In Higher Education, Landon Perkins

Honors Theses

This project involves comparing different visualizations related to COVID-19 and higher education in order to determine key impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on students in higher education, as well as higher education as a whole. The main metrics used to determine the impact were mental health indicators for anxiety or depressive disorders, enrollment numbers by control type (public, private non-profit, or private for-profit) and state for 2020 and 2021, and state mandate lift dates for a variety of mandates implemented across the United States. These metrics were analyzed both individually and against each other to determine if they had any …

Home, Greta Koshenina

Fall 2022 Showcase

Home is a documentary series of photographs that depicts the liminal space of one’s early twenties as they attempt to find where they belong. I explore these themes using three places I call home: my apartment, my parents’ house in Water Valley, Mississippi, and my boyfriend’s house across the street. The physical closeness of my boyfriend’s and parents’ homes allows these metaphors to come through in image. Is home where you grew up, where you spend the most time, where you keep your things, or where you feel most comfortable? Perhaps it is an amalgamation of all these, constantly evolving. …

Improving Adjacency List Storage Methods For Polypeptide Similarity Analysis, Arianna Swensen

Honors Theses

Protein design is a complex biomolecular and computational problem. Working on increasingly large protein folding problems requires an improvement in current analysis methods available. This work first discusses various methods of protein design, including de novo protein design, which is the primary focus of this thesis. Then, a new approach utilizing a B+ tree to effectively store and query a graph of keys and vertices is proposed in order to store the number of times two polypeptides are considered to be similar. This approach is found to have a reduction in time complexity from current mapping methods and thus provides …

Experimental Identification Of Aminomethanol (Nh2ch2oh)—The Key Intermediate In The Strecker Synthesis, Santosh K. Singh, Cheng Zhu, Jesse La Jeunesse, Ryan C. Fortenberry, Ralf I. Kaiser

Faculty and Student Publications

The Strecker Synthesis of (a)chiral α-amino acids from simple organic compounds, such as ammonia (NH3), aldehydes (RCHO), and hydrogen cyanide (HCN) has been recognized as a viable route to amino acids on primordial earth. However, preparation and isolation of the simplest hemiaminal intermediate – the aminomethanol (NH2CH2OH)– formed in the Strecker Synthesis to even the simplest amino acid glycine (H2NCH2COOH) has been elusive. Here, we report the identification of aminomethanol prepared in low-temperature methylamine (CH3NH2) – oxygen (O2) ices upon exposure to energetic electrons. Isomer-selective photoionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (PI-ReTOF-MS) facilitated the gas phase detection of aminomethanol during the temperature …

Politicizing The Pandemic: Covid-19 And Its Impact On The Nigerian Economy, John Shola Olanrewaju, Agaptus Nwozor, Ajibola Abdulwasiu Abdulrahaman

Faculty and Student Open Access Publications

This study aims to examine the connection between international politics that characterized the outbreak of COVID-19, mainly between the United States of America and China and the devastating impact of the second wave outbreak on the Nigerian economy. At the initial stage of the pandemic on the Chinese mainland, the economy of China experienced a significant decline. The efficacy of China’s response to COVID-19 led to a fractional economic recovery during the pandemic. However, the internationalization of COVID-19 was greeted with a second wave in most advanced countries, such as the United States of America, Italy, and the United Kingdom, …

University Expands Research Integrity And Compliance Efforts, Gaye Swan

University of Mississippi News

Marta Panickar joins administration as inaugural director of research security

Satellite Data And Imagery As Evidence, Ronald J. Rychlak, Sean Patrick Taylor

Journal of Space Law

No abstract provided.

Theoretical Spectra And Energetics For C-C3hc2h, L-C5h2, And Bipyramidal D3h C5h2, Alexandria G. Watrous, Brent R. Westbrook, Ryan C. Fortenberry

Faculty and Student Publications

The recent astronomical detection of c-C3HC2H and l-C5H2 has led to increased interest in C5H2 isomers and their relative stability. The present work provides the first complete list of anharmonic vibrational spectral data with infrared intensities for three such isomers as well as including the first set of rotational data for the bipyramidal C5H2 isomer allowing for these molecules to serve as potential tracers of interstellar carbon. All three isomers have fundamental vibrational frequencies with at least one notably intense fundamental frequency. The l-C5H2 isomer has, by far, the highest intensities out of the three isomers at 2076.3 cm−1 (738 …

Ford Foundation Makes Gift To Accountancy Building, Tina H. Hahn

University of Mississippi News

New career center will be named in honor of support

Petal School Teacher Honored For Passion In The Classroom, Edwin B. Smith

University of Mississippi News

UM alumnus Tyler Shows was surprised by gift from Milken Family Foundation

November 8, 2022, University Of Mississippi. Faculty Senate

Meeting Minutes

Minutes for theNovember 8, 2022 meeting of the University of Mississippi Faculty Senate.

November 8, 2022, University Of Mississippi. Faculty Senate

Meeting Agendas

Agenda for theNovember 8, 2022 meeting of the University of Mississippi Faculty Senate.

Alumnus Lands Prestigious Teaching Fellowship, Edwin B. Smith

University of Mississippi News

Austyn Jones recognized by Knowles Teacher Initiative for passion and leadership in classroom

Finding Aid For The Henry Dalton Collection (Mum00099)

Archives & Special Collections: Finding Aids (alphabetical)

Collection consists of correspondence, various manuscripts, documents, and ephemera related to the life of Henry Dalton created from 1930-1977.

Labeling Microplastics With Fluorescent Dyes For Detection, Recovery, And Degradation Experiments, Zhiqiang Gao, Kendall Wontor, James V. Cizdziel

Faculty and Student Publications

Staining microplastics (MPs) for fluorescence detection has been widely applied in MP analyses. However, there is a lack of standardized staining procedures and conditions, with different researchers using different dye concentrations, solvents, incubation times, and staining temperatures. Moreover, with the limited types and morphologies of commercially available MPs, a simple and optimized approach to making fluorescent MPs is needed. In this study, 4 different textile dyes, along with Nile red dye for comparison, are used to stain 17 different polymers under various conditions to optimize the staining procedure. The MPs included both virgin and naturally weathered polymers with different sizes …