Digital Commons Network^™

A Novel Positive Allosteric Modulator Of Glun1/3 Nmda Receptors, Samuel A. Galindo

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The GluN3-containing (GluN1/3) N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors are glycine activated ligand-gated ion channels that are members of the family of excitatory ionotropic glutamate receptors. Compared to the glycine/glutamate-activated GluN2- containing NMDA receptors (GluN1/2), which have been extensively studied, the GluN1/3 receptors are poorly understood, but are implicated in neuronal processes related to synaptic maturation and plasticity. GluN1/3 receptors are also implicated in a variety of neurological diseases. In addition to their poor understanding, we lack proper pharmacological tools for the study and modulation of these GluN1/3 receptors. In this study, we evaluate the activity and mechanism of action for AIMS-129 as …

Linking Empirical Data And Numerical Simulation To Characterize Dynamic Fire Behavior Associated With Interacting Firelines, Marta Sergeevna Jerebets

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Understanding fuel pattern-fire process relationships is key for predicting fire behavior and effects with follow-on benefits to proactive fire management and model validation. To characterize dynamic fire behavior, this thesis leverages empirical data and numerical simulation through two complementary studies.

In the first study, longwave thermal sensors aboard unmanned aerial systems (UAS) were used to capture fine-scale fire behavior in two experimental grass burns. A novel paired design was used to quantify the effects of fuel arrangement on fire behavior with 3.66 m diameter treatments cut to a height of 0.15 m. The treatments ephemerally reduced fire rate of spread …

Cullet, Celia Alice Easton Koehler

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

“Cullet” is an industry term for the refuse and smashed-up glass added to new material in the process of making new glass. It is related to the word “cull” from the old french “to collect” or gather. This collection of poems picks up the term as a framework for investigating the piece-meal of daily life, tracing relations between the individual and collective, and also tracing vantage and scale; shifts of where and how the speaker directs their gaze. The poems are invested in assembling an ethos of the domestic that recasts “the domestic” to include more public sites of daily …

Indigenous Access And Use On Private Land: A Toolkit For Heart Of The Rockies Land Trust Members, Ian James Craighead

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

No abstract provided.

Umfc #132: A Comprehensive Forensic Case Report, Allison Paige Mitchell

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This case report of an individual designated as University of Montana Forensic Case 132 (UMFC 132) serves to partially fulfill the requirements for the Master of Arts (MA) degree in Forensic and Biological Anthropology. UMFC 132 is a complete human skeleton, used as part of the teaching collection in the University of Montana Forensic Anthropology Laboratory. The minimum number of individuals (MNI) of UMFC 132 is 1. The analysis of UMFC 132 was conducted according to bioarchaeological and forensic anthropological standards of skeletal assessment. UMFC 132 was estimated to be a mid-adult, between the ages of [30-40 years] of age …

Organization Of Lithic Technology At 48ye240 Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming: Bifaces As Indicators Of Environmental Predictability, Hunter Alan Watry

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

48YE240 within the Hayden Valley of Yellowstone National Park is a pre-contact hunter-gatherer site recorded on two separate terraces along the Yellowstone River. This site and the two terraces are divided by the Grand Loop Road. The higher terrace is west of the road, while the lower terrace is east of the road, adjacent to the Yellowstone River. The lower terrace was excavated in 1999 and included a hearth feature dating to the Middle Archaic. The higher terrace was excavated in 2020 and contained intact cultural deposits. This thesis presents a lithic analysis of the assemblage recovered from the higher …

The Impact Of Ambient Air Quality On Asthma Outcomes In California, Abigail Obour

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This study investigates the relationship between ambient air quality and asthma-related health outcomes in California, focusing on emergency department visits and hospitalizations from 2005 to 2022. Despite California’s strict air quality standards, individuals still face significant pollution challenges contributing to poor respiratory health, particularly among vulnerable populations. Therefore, this study looks at how fine particulate matter (PM2.5) affects asthma outcomes using panel data from 37 counties. A fixed effects regression model is employed to control for unobserved heterogeneities that are constant over time but vary across individual counties, ensuring robust estimates of the impact of pollution on health outcomes. This …

Mitochondrial Dna Diversity In West Mexico, Emma Zoiss

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The long-standing movement of people, exchange of goods, and transmission of cultural traits are imprinted not only in the archaeological record but also within the genomes of individuals, making ancient DNA a powerful tool for uncovering past interactions and population dynamics. Despite attempts at systematic research, we are still missing critical information about pre-Columbian Mesoamerican populations in the Aztatlán region. This research will focus on those individuals recovered from archaeological sites located both in the highlands of the Lake Chapala Basin, as well as the coast of the Aztatlán core region. The integration of genetics into our understanding of the …

An Acceptable Time, Crystal Mccallie

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This scholarly work is my interpretation of the art in the exhibition, An Acceptable Time, which ecompasses a diversity of media that varies as much in material and process as the span of my life as mother, a steward of the domestic home, and a spiritual child-at-heart myself. At the center of the work is a contemplative beauty inviting the viewer to linger with the art and reflect upon the echoes of the past as they might affect the present. The formal delivery of illustrative realism, a mirage of pattern, and abstract layering draws out major themes of memory, nostalgia, …

Grizzly Bears Moving Onto The Great Plains, John A. Stember

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

High up a coulee on the Montana prairie, Seth and Jennie Becker look over the windswept landscape with binoculars and point out three grizzly bear dens along the rim of a canyon. The couple, who own Stick Leg Ranch, estimate there are eight grizzly bear dens on their property. After their nine-year-old son nearly came face to face with a grizzly, they decided they needed to find a solution.

Over the last five years, grizzly bears have been expanding further and further east onto the Montana prairie. For example, in October 2023, a grizzly bear was caught on game camera …

The Impact Of State-Mandated Certification Of Surgical Technologists On Surgical Site Infection Rates: Evaluating Policy, Practice, And Patient Outcomes, Katherine E. Geiger

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Abstract

Chairperson: Matthew Schertz, Ph.D.

Committee Member: Morgen J Alwell, Ph.D.

Committee Member: Jill Davis, M.Ed.

As a surgical technology instructor, I have witnessed firsthand the impact that certified surgical technologists (CSTs) have on patient safety, particularly in the prevention of surgical site infections (SSIs). This professional paper investigates the relationship between state-mandated certification of surgical technologists and SSI rates, with a focus on how standardized education and credentialing influence clinical outcomes. SSIs remain a significant concern in surgical environments, contributing to increased morbidity, longer hospital stays, and greater healthcare costs. The research presented here examines certification requirements across various …

Pathways And Places: Mobility And Lithic Use At 48ye238 In The Late Archaic And Late Prehistoric Yellowstone, Jacob Q. Wilmoth

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Through the lens of Central Place Foraging Theory, an analysis of lithic remains from 48YE238, a medium to high-density archaeological site in the Hayden Valley of Yellowstone National Park, has provided insight into both material value and decision-making among Late Archaic and Late Prehistoric hunter-gatherers of the Hayden Valley. First, an examination of lithic materials and the stages of bifacial reduction, in relation to sourced lithic materials, offers insight into changing ideas of material value between these two periods. This is especially evident when considering the cultural and societal changes that influenced regional residence during the Late Prehistoric period, compared …

Understanding The Factors That Influence University Environment: Gender Differences In Perceptions Of Female And Male Stem Graduate Students., Rachel Robinson

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Despite increasing female representation in higher education, women remain underrepresented in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) fields. This thesis investigates gendered perceptions of university environment among STEM graduate students, focusing on the role of faculty-student interaction as a form of social capital. The survey was developed and administered with Qualtrics Online Survey Software by members of the Social Science Research Group of the Pacific Northwest Circles of Success: Mentoring Opportunities in STEM. All graduate students in the participating universities pursuing master’s and doctoral degrees in a National Science Foundation STEM recognized program were eligible to complete the survey. Using …

Understanding How Teachers Integrate Social-Emotional Learning In P-12 Classrooms: A Mixed-Methods Inquiry, Sisilia Novena Kusumaningsih

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Learning in P-12 classrooms is filled with joy and social-emotional challenges. As a result, teachers are on the front line of addressing students’ social-emotional needs in the classrooms. Less is known, however, about how teachers integrate social-emotional learning (SEL) into teaching academic subjects and daily classroom activities to support their students. Using an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design, this study explored factors influencing teachers’ integration of SEL in their classrooms and their experiences in facilitating students’ SEL skills. 102 teachers in Montana participated in the initial quantitative phase of the study by completing surveys that examined whether and how teacher factors …

The Power Of The Visual Arts To Explore Who We Are And Where We Come From: A Qualitative Phenomenological Study, Jemina Watstein

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Globalization has changed education, how external influences in our world make us who we are, and how we identify ourselves. Changes caused by globalization have had psychological consequences that have made formulating one’s identity more challenging than ever before, especially for a third culture kid (TCK) who lives a multicultural lifestyle and may attend a different school every year.

One developmentally appropriate way of reducing the adverse outcomes for TCKs is through visual art education. Engagement in genuine inquiry and creation through the process of making, perceiving, and reflecting provides students an opportunity to investigate their multicultural, mobile, and fluid …

The Glass Ceiling In Chinese Higher Education: The Experience Of Female Deans, Mingyu Zhao

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This study was designed to explore the phenomenon of the glass ceiling encountered by Chinese female deans in higher education, using a systematic qualitative research approach to uncover the phenomenon's nature and influencing factors. Adhering strictly to Giorgi's (2009) phenomenological methodology, the study conducted in-depth semi-structured interviews with 15 female deans from various regions and institutional types across China, collecting rich data on their career trajectories, multi-level challenges, and coping strategies.

Through data analysis, eight themes and three key structures were identified, revealing that the glass ceiling is a product of the complex interplay between institutional constraints, personal challenges, and …

Fungal Symbionts As Hidden Architects Of Forest Health: From Tree Immunity To Beetle Nutrition, Lorinda Sabin Bullington

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Symbioses of fungi with trees and insects play outsized roles in forest ecosystems, influencing tree growth, defense, physiology, and nutrient cycling. While their functional contributions are widely recognized, they remain poorly understood. I integrate findings from three studies examining fungal interactions with conifers and with bark beetles to highlight their significance in tree resistance to disease, nutrient redistribution within the tree, and forest ecology.

First, I demonstrate that foliar fungal endophytes and ectomycorrhizal fungi, together and independently, can enhance resistance in Pinus monticola seedlings against Cronartium ribicola, the pathogen responsible for white pine blister rust. Symbiont inoculation induced host terpene …

Jurisprudence Of Problem-Solving Courts: A Study Of Structure, Success, And Sociological Theory, Lauren M. Boos

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

In response to the failures of mass incarceration and its disproportionate impact on marginalized communities, Problem-Solving Courts (PSCs) have emerged as alternatives to traditional prosecution. These courts employ therapeutic-informed and rehabilitative practices aimed at addressing the root causes of criminal behavior. While widely regarded as more effective than traditional courts, PSCs have developed largely without a formal theoretical foundation. This is notable given their alignment with Sociological Jurisprudence (SJ) and Therapeutic Jurisprudence (TJ), which view the legal system as a vehicle for promoting individual and community well-being.

Despite being celebrated as therapeutic innovations, PSCs often embody these principles unevenly. Using …

Bridging The Gap Between Plot-Level And Landscape-Scale Analysis For Wildfire Risk Assessment, Vanessa Leigh Niemczyk

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Remote sensing technology has advanced greatly over the past couple of decades proving its ability to aid in wildfire risk assessment and improve our understanding of forest structure and fuel inventory across the landscape. While some aerial and satellite sensors perform better than others, they all have a common weakness, their reduced ability to capture understory fuels with high detail. Terrestrial laser scanning is an emerging solution due to its understory perspective. This research leverages the beneficial aspects of both terrestrial laser scanning and various aerial- or satellite-based remote sensing platforms (aerial laser scanning, digital aerial photogrammetry, and Sentinel-2) to …

Situation Assessment Of Wildland Fire Preparedness Efforts In Missoula County: A Communities Of Practice Approach, Sylvia K. Coston

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Due to the multi-jurisdictional nature and increased risk of wildland fire, collaboratives play an important role in creating long-term solutions for building prepared and resilient wildfire landscapes and communities. Drawing from Communities of Practice (CoP) theory, mutual engagement, shared repertoire, and negotiation of a joint enterprise are critical elements of establishing natural resource multi-stakeholder collaboratives or partnerships. This professional paper uses CoP theory to conduct and analyze a situation assessment of Missoula County Fire Protection Association (MCFPA). With the support of MCFPA, three focus groups (working meetings) and two interviews were conducted to identify the association’s successes, challenges, and needs. …

Acl Prevention Programming For Female Athletes, Julia Korklewski

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

No abstract provided.

Reinventing The Concepts Of Group And Isomorphism In Abstract Algebra, Chrisitan José Lopez-Mercado

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This study explores the reinvention of the concepts of group and isomorphism in abstract algebra through design-based research. It investigates how students can reinvent these concepts and how mathematical artifacts transform their mathematical reasoning during the reinvention process. The study identifies a reinvention ecology comprising three interrelated components: students' mathematical activity, social interaction, and the continual emergence of mathematical artifacts. Using the guided reinvention principle of realistic mathematics education, students engaged with contextual situations, such as a 12-hour analog clock and the symmetries of an equilateral triangle, to progressively develop structural observations, formalize group axioms, and assemble them into the …

"A Changed Understanding Of Our Present": Moby-Dick As Prophetic Ecological Activism, Katie Ann Schini

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Moby-Dick: Or, The Whale is a classic of American literature, spanning multiple genres and remaining culturally relevant nearly 175 years after its original publication. Though on the surface Moby-Dick reads as an adventure story of a man who experiences the whaling industry firsthand, Herman Melville’s text continues to invite new generations of readership through the framework of the twenty-first century climate crisis.

In this thesis, I position Moby-Dick as a text that can be used to understand our modern society’s current dispositions of ecological grief. My thesis operates at the intersection of three main literary critical theories: ecocriticism, affect, and …

Tenaciously Curious, Joe Mark Taylor

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

In this thesis paper, I will outline the journey I’ve taken throughout my graduate studies at the University of Montana and how it has culminated in my thesis exhibition, Tenaciously Curious. I’ll begin with an Introduction that speaks to the importance of finding ways to connect to nature, and the benefits we gain by recognizing our bodies as extensions of the organic world.

In the following section, Influences, Theory and Lineage, I’ll explore the themes that drive my research, highlight artists who have influenced my work, and discuss why this inquiry feels vital within our contemporary moment.

In the section …

Examining Rural Second-Graders' Literate Identities In Relationship To Reading Proficiency: A Mixed Methods Case Study, Ashley R. S. Olsen

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Although the act of reading is inherently multi-faceted, encompassing an array of interrelated cognitive, social, and cultural processes, the bodies of reading research typically align to either qualitative or quantitative methodologies. This routinely bifurcated approach to reading research reflects the ongoing disagreement surrounding best practices for literacy instruction. Numerous quantitative findings have supported the use of systematic and explicit foundational skill instruction to improve students’ reading proficiency. On the other hand, previous qualitative studies have emphasized the existing identities that children bring to any learning community and the benefit of nurturing literate identity formation in the classroom. Intersecting a modified …

The Resource Curse And U.S. Timber Harvest In Western Rural Economies, Lucas Paul Koch

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

There is limited understanding of the relationship between timber harvest and economic outcomes in the western United States. I use resource curse theory to examine the connection. The theory assumes a negative relationship between timber harvest and economic performance at the county level, and similar methods have been used to look at other natural resources and geographic areas. I use timber harvest intensity—the ratio of timber harvest volume to timberland acres—alongside several common economic controls including education, poverty, and competing industry activity to estimate wage and employment performance in a fixed-effects econometric model. Also estimated are least squares dummy variable …

“Emergency Relief As Routine”: The Evolution Of Fsa’S Livestock Forage Disaster Program In An Era Of Persistent Drought, Shae L. Olsen

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This thesis examines the historical origins, current limitations, and future of the Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) Livestock Forage Disaster Program (LFP), the primary federal drought disaster relief program for ranchers in the United States. Drawing connections between the Dust Bowl-era Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA) and LFP, I argue that the AAA, while innovative at the time, prioritized the maintenance of commodity markets over ecological resilience, disproportionately benefiting white, landowning producers. This trend is reflected in LFP today. Through a policy analysis and original qualitative research, including interviews with 23 FSA staff members in nine states, I examine how LFP operates …

Examining Coinfections With Human Cytomegalovirus, Christopher Samuel Peterson

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is the largest of any human virus, both physically at up to 300 nm in diameter, and as a genome, with its 235 kbp DNA genome with at least 165 open reading frames. It is also the number 1 non-genetic cause of birth defects and has a global prevalence rate of just over 80%. Despite these characteristics, it is not as well known to the general public as some of the other human herpesviruses, such as herpes simplex or varicella-zoster virus. Like other herpesviruses, HCMV can establish latency, leading to a lifelong infection for its host with …

Investigating The Impact Of Aerial Firefighting On Rate Of Wildfire Spread, Lindsay Ann Wiard

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Aerial retardant drops are widely used in wildfire suppression, yet their effectiveness in slowing fire spread remains difficult to quantify at scale. This study evaluates the impact of aerial suppression on wildfire rate of spread (ROS) using a modeling framework that incorporates both observed (real) and counterfactual (synthetic) drop locations from a sample of 62 wildfires in Oregon. Synthetic drops were generated to simulate a no-suppression baseline, allowing us to compare changes in ROS in the presence and absence of suppression. We trained two random forest classifiers: one using both real and synthetic drops (the full model), and another using …

Ineligible Partners: Tribal Nations And Cooperative Federalism In The Historical Development Of National Forest Law And Policy, James H. Baker

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Lands within the National Forest System (NFS), like all federal public lands, are rooted in Aboriginal Title and were once exclusively inhabited by Indigenous peoples and communities. Through the process of treaty-making, the federal government amassed millions of acres of ceded Tribal lands, many of which are now managed by federal public land agencies, including 194 million acres managed by the U.S. Forest Service (USFS). Several Tribes reserved various use and property rights on these lands that are protected by the U.S. Constitution’s Treaty and Supremacy Clauses. The federal government also has an overarching trust obligation to Tribes – a …