Digital Commons Network^™

Archaeology Of Yellowstone's Cascade Corner: Findings And Diet Breadth Modeling, William Brent Powell

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

In the summer of 2025, archaeologists from the University of Montana conducted a pedestrian survey through the southwest corner of Yellowstone National Park to take inventory of cultural resources. Over nearly 50 miles of trail survey, the team identified and recorded 17 new archaeological sites, mostly consisting of sparse lithic scatters on the surface. The findings indicate recurrent use of the Bechler area since the Paleoindian period. This thesis aims to provide a comprehensive and detailed report on those findings, followed by an interpretation of the data through the lens of optimal foraging theory and diet breadth modeling. The first …

Searching For Nooks And Crannies: Geometric And Mechanistic Perspectives On Transformer Language Model Interpretability, Anna Marbut

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Large language models (LLMs) have demonstrated remarkable linguistic capabilities, but the internal mechanisms driving their performance and behavior remain poorly understood. This dissertation investigates the interpretability of transformer-based language models from two complementary perspectives: the geometric organization of model internals in encoder-only models, and the mechanisms underlying safety behavior in decoder-only generative models.

In Part I, we address the challenge of measuring geometric properties in high-dimensional latent spaces, proposing and evaluating alternative measures of data spread that improve upon commonly used metrics. We then apply these measures alongside quantization-based metrics to examine the relationship between latent space geometry and downstream …

The Birth Of Afghanistan: From Ancient Persia To A Modern-Day Multiethnic And Linguistic Country, Tyler A. Worm

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This thesis offers a comprehensive historical analysis of the formation and evolution of Afghan identity from antiquity through the early medieval period, emphasizing the region’s role as a dynamic crossroads of civilizations. It traces the origins of Afghan populations to Indo-Iranian pastoralist migrations and examines the successive influence of major imperial formations, including the Median and Achaemenid Persian empires, the conquests of Alexander and the Seleucid period, and the rise of the Kushan, Parthian, and Sasanian states. Through this longue durée approach, the study demonstrates how Afghanistan’s geographic position facilitated continuous cultural interaction, economic exchange, and political contestation, producing a …

Heart Of Stone: Geomorphization Through Stone-Oriented Affects, Grace F. Foster

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This thesis draws from the work of geologist Marcia Bjornerud to bring a scientific (specifically geologic) understanding of humanity’s relationship to our home planet to bear in a literary context. I employ Bjornerud’s term “geomorphization” to expand from inter-species kinship to inter-substance kinship and to establish stone as an active, lively subject without relying on anthropomorphization. Geomorphization as I define it refers to recognizing similarity between ourselves and stone/Earth on the basis of our stoniness rather than stone’s human-ness. Geomorphizing ourselves entails what Bjornerud calls “timefulness,” a geologic perspective on temporality that sees the past as continually acting in the …

Seven County Infrastructure Coalition V. Eagle County, Craig A. Rigdon

Public Land & Resources Law Review

The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 is a landmark in United States environmental law. For more than half a century, under its authority, all federal agencies contemplating proposed actions that pose significant environmental impacts have incorporated an analysis of those impacts into their decisions. These analyses provided an avenue for opponents to challenge an agency’s final decision in federal court. Earlier this year, the Supreme Court issued a “course correction” to rein in the disparate approaches that the lower courts had applied to cases challenging federal agency decisions on NEPA grounds. The unambiguous guidance the Court lays out for …

Peace To The Fallen, Resilience To The Living, Michele M. Brockie

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

Healing, Together, Courtney Cleek

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This portfolio reviews the topics of mutual rehabilitation and the human animal bond (HAB) as a holistic approach to addressing topics of mental health, suicide prevention, and innovative services. Displaying work through the Ten Specialization Year Competencies and the Five Elements of Advanced Integrative Practice, we examine ways to expand social justice, amplify voices, and promote healing within our communities.

Caring For The Herd: Lessons From The Buffalo, Drea Rightsell

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This document represents a summary and reflection of my profound journey through the University of Montana Masters in Social Work Program. It begins with the life and professional experiences that led me to the program, and continues to reflect upon the ten competencies of advanced social work practices as I experienced them trough rigourous academic and field work. It weaves together core beliefs from my pre-MSW life and illuminates the ways in which the values and ethics of social work have helped me grow as a person and a practitioner. The title refers to my connection with wild buffalo and …

Montana Kaimin, December 4, 2025, Students Of The University Of Montana, Missoula

Montana Kaimin, 1898-present

Student newspaper of the University of Montana, Missoula.

Mapping Of Wetland And Riparian Habitat For The National Wetland Inventory: Wetland 38 Utah East And Co, Ryhan T. Sempler, Emma R. Chantegros, Carver E. Butterfield, Ella S. Hartshorn, Melissa L. Moser, Kay L. Hajek, Faith O. Hardin, Celine A. Knudsen, Adam R. Scheirer, Rob M. Clark

EMMA Publications

This report details the wetland and riparian mapping methodologies implemented for the Wetland 38 Utah East and CO project. The project area consists of 167 1:24,000 US Geological Survey (USGS) quads across Western Colorado, with quads across Larimer, Gunnison, Eagle, La Plata, Pitkin, Garfield, Montezuma, Rio Blanco, Mesa, Saguache, Dolores, Rio Grande, Pueblo, Grand, Moffat, Teller, Hinsdale, Jackson, Montrose, Routt, and Huerfano counties. There are also quads across three Wyoming counties (Sweetwater, Albany, and Uinta) and 8 Utah counties (Duchesne, Daggett, Grand, Carbon, Uintah, Emery, San Juan, and Utah).

December 2025 News Releases, University Of Montana--Missoula. Office Of University Relations

University of Montana News Releases, 1928, 1956-present

No abstract provided.

Montana Kaimin, October 16, 2025, Students Of The University Of Montana, Missoula

Montana Kaimin, 1898-present

Student newspaper of the University of Montana, Missoula.

Montana Kaimin, October 9, 2025, Students Of The University Of Montana, Missoula

Montana Kaimin, 1898-present

Student newspaper of the University of Montana, Missoula.

Montana Kaimin, October 2, 2025, Students Of The University Of Montana, Missoula

Montana Kaimin, 1898-present

Student newspaper of the University of Montana, Missoula.

What Veracity Looks Like, Stewart Justman

Global Humanities and Religions Faculty Publications

The first victim of the first school shooter.

October 2025 News Releases, University Of Montana--Missoula. Office Of University Relations

University of Montana News Releases, 1928, 1956-present

No abstract provided.

Part 1: Mathematical Alchemy, Corey Brady, Luis Moreno-Armella

The Mathematics Enthusiast

In this set of four articles, we invite Calculus teachers to encounter some of the ideas that shaped and motivated the innovation of the subject, presented in story form. We find that in traditional treatments of these topics, the dramatic tension between ways of thinking, representations, and phenomena in the world can be lost in a sea of calculations, procedures, and partially-understood formal proofs. However, the fundamental ideas and insights can be identified in nascent form in students’ ways-of-thinking about Calculus, and in their struggles to connect Calculus with their prior mathematical experiences.

We are honored to contribute these Stories …

Chapter 3: The Freezing Spell, Garon C. Smith

G. Wiz’s Book of Spells

The Freezing Spell is a fun one to pass off as a wizarding feat. A supersaturated solution of sodium acetate trihydrate is nucleated with seed crystals that the demonstrator has cleverly hidden on the tip of his/her middle finger. When the fingers are snapped over the open throat of the flask that holds the solution, a snowy hemisphere of crystallization grows over the next 10 seconds. The flask can then be inverted to show that it is now solid. The flask has also gone from room temperature to a nice handwarmer temperature of about 120^oF due to the …

Part 4: Epilogue, Corey Brady, Luis Moreno-Armella

The Mathematics Enthusiast

In closing our set of of articles, we reflect back on the nature of mathematical thinking and learning with representations, especially the computational, executable representations that are enabled by modern dynamic mathematics environments. These aspects of the development of mathematical ideas have profound implications for our approaches to the teaching and learning of Calculus. Our narrative approach has dramatized the radically fruitful and generative nature of the period during which the ideas of Calculus were stabilized (especially in the stories of Guillermo/Leibniz and Leonardo/Euler). An analogy between the development of the field and the development of individual learners, should caution …

Montana Folk Festival 2025, Butte, Montana, Rachel Baer, Ava Worbets, Kika Bradford

Institute for Tourism and Recreation Research Publications

This study was conducted for the Montana Folk Festival to provide insight into the characteristics of attendees of the 2025 Montana Folk Festival. 968 attendees from the event completed the survey. Results show that 80% of respondents were residents of Montana, of which 37% were from Butte-Silver Bow County. Out-of-county respondents spent an average of 4.5 nights in Montana, reporting a total spending of $263,194.25, mostly in hotel/motel/bed and breakfasts and restaurants/bars. Results provide event organizers with useful data for future event planning, making improvements to the event, event marketing/promotion, and understanding the visitor spending associated with the event.

Montana Kaimin, September 25, 2025, Students Of The University Of Montana, Missoula

Montana Kaimin, 1898-present

Student newspaper of the University of Montana, Missoula.

Managing Mdls: A Report From The March 2025 Mdl Case Management Convening At Stanford Law School, Nora Freeman Engstrom, Owen Foulkes, Brianne Holland-Sergar

Faculty Journal Articles & Other Writings

Multidistrict litigation (MDL) has quietly become the defining feature of the federal civil docket, now accounting for the majority of all pending cases. Yet the judges tasked with steering these sprawling matters confront an almost impossible assignment: They must manage hundreds of thousands of claims, often with skeletal staffs, little binding guidance, and enormous pressure to deliver both efficiency and justice. This report—produced out of a March 2025 convening sponsored by the Rhode Center at Stanford Law School—confronts that reality head-on. Drawing on candid discussions among leading judges, practitioners, and scholars, it dives into four central tensions that shape MDL …

Montana Kaimin, September 18, 2025, Students Of The University Of Montana, Missoula

Montana Kaimin, 1898-present

Student newspaper of the University of Montana, Missoula.

Tribal Sovereign Immunity: Absolute Authority Or Accountability, Kekek Jason Stark

Public Land & Resources Law Review

In the wake of the recent United States Supreme Court decision of Trump v. United States, the Court determined that the President as Chief Executive is immune from conduct associated with official acts.3 The question that emanates from this opinion is how will this decision affect Indian Country and tribal court determinations of tribal sovereign immunity? This article will attempt to address this question. I begin with the Anishinaabe story of Bebaamosed miinawaa Gawigoshko’iweshiinh (The Trickster and the Little Scary Bird)5 in an attempt to understand the complicated nature of tribal sovereign immunity.

Discovering The Doctrine Of Discovery, Douglas Lind

Public Land & Resources Law Review

The doctrine of discovery is a concept in crisis. A principle of public international law associated with the so-called Age of Discovery, the doctrine of discovery is commonly said to have authorized European nations to claim the lands of indigenous peoples and establish settlements on the basis of “discovery” alone. Today, with good reason, the doctrine is widely condemned. The United Nations has denounced it as “the very foundation of genocide.” Describing its manifest injustices against indigenous cultures, dominion, and sovereignty as “devastating, far-reaching and intergenerational,” the UN Economic and Social Council has called for the doctrine to be categorically …

Uses And Abuses Of Johnson V. M’Intosh In Native American Land Rights Cases: Investigative Insights From The Indian Law Justice Files, John P. Lavelle

Public Land & Resources Law Review

The 200th anniversary of the foundational Indian law decision Johnson v. M’Intosh has come and gone, with many scholars contributing criticism and commentary. The dominant focus has been the case’s notorious embrace of the so-called “doctrine of discovery,” an odious theory for rationalizing European nations’ claims of superior rights to lands occupied by Indigenous Native American peoples. Commanding less attention, however, is the Johnson decision’s core protective legal feature, i.e., its reinforcing the United States government’s duty to guard against the alienation of Indian lands through private, unauthorized acquisitions.

Indian Casinos Under The Big Sky: Why Tribes In Other States Have Been More Successful With Gaming And The Path Forward For Montana’S Tribes, Trevor Funseth

Public Land & Resources Law Review

The most successful method of economic development for many Indian tribes in the United States has been gaming. Tribes across the country have risen out of poverty through their casino operations and have been able to use the profits to diversify their investments and improve tribal infrastructure, education, and social programs.

Damned If You Do, Dammed If You Don’T: Solutions For The Snake River And The Nez Perce Tribe, Meridian S. Wappett

Public Land & Resources Law Review

No abstract provided.

Indian Water Rights Settlements And The Animas-La Plata Project: A Self-Fulfilling Prophecy Of Dependency, Sidney Paulina Williams

Public Land & Resources Law Review

No abstract provided.

A Reciprocity: Off-Reservation Treaty Hunting Rights, Sarah K. Yarlott

Montana Law Review

No abstract provided.