Digital Commons Network^™

Understanding The Role Of Discrimination In The Experience Of Traumatic Stress In Latine, Michelle Strong

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Introduction. Research has found that low provider culture knowledge leads to poor mental health outcomes for Latine clients (Duke et al., 2011). Further, the 2017 APA Multicultural Guidelines emphasize the need for clinicians and researchers to conceptualize clinical and empirical data from a culturally competent lens, especially considering clinician and researcher bias while understanding a psychological phenomenon. Despite this, limited research exists categorizing the unique factors that affect mental health symptoms among Latine living in the United States (U.S.) especially as it pertains to trauma stress and discrimination (Marmot, 2005; Nadal, 2018). As such, the current study used meditational statistical …

Probing The Ecological Functions Of Thermophiles Using Cultivation-Dependent And Cultivation-Independent Techniques, Dengxun Lai

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

High-temperature geothermal springs are ecosystems that resemble early Earth, offering insights into the origins and early evolution of life. In these unique ecosystems, thermophilic microorganisms thrive. However, our knowledge of thermophiles remains limited. A major challenge is that many thermophiles remain uncultivated. The primary goal of this dissertation was to explore the diversity, metabolism, and ecological functions of thermophiles using cultivation-dependent and cultivation-independent approaches. Chapter 1 provides a broad overview of geothermal spring ecosystems and thermophiles, along with a roadmap of the dissertation. Chapter 2 documents a study on the response of specific thermophiles from Gongxiaoshe (GXS) Hot Spring in …

Analyzing Fe/Mg-Silicate Chemical Gardens As Analogs To Silicate-Rich Hydrothermal Chimneys On Early Earth And Mars, Nancy Alejandra Carman

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Hydrothermal systems have been proposed as environments for prebiotic chemistry on early Earth. Ancient Mars was an ocean world and could also have had hydrothermal vents supporting biological or prebiotic processes. The Strytan Hydrothermal Field (SHF) in Iceland is a basalt-hosted alkaline vent that forms massive hydrothermal Mg-saponite chimneys and is a potential analog to basalt-hosted alkaline vents that may have existed at the Eridania basin on Mars, where saponite deposits are thought to have formed from ancient hydrothermal activity. Chemical garden experiments have previously been used to simulate aspects of hydrothermal chimney growth for other types of vent systems; …

Characterizing Gsk3Β Interaction And Kinetics Via Isothermal Titration Calorimetry, W A Bhagya De Silva

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Glycogen synthase kinase 3β (GSK3β) is a multifunctional serine/threonine kinase involved in several key signaling pathways, including glycogen metabolism, WNT/β-catenin, and Hedgehog signaling. Hyperactivity of GSK3β has been linked to Alzheimer’s disease, bipolar disorder, type II diabetes, and some cancers. Therefore, GSK3β is of interest as a target for therapeutics. Lithium ion (Li+) is a classical inhibitor of GSK3β. Structurally similar beryllium ion (Be2+) is ~1000-fold more potent. Lithium and beryllium have demonstrated pathway-specific and cell type-specific inhibition of GSK3β, prompting an investigation into the inhibitory mechanisms and thermodynamic characteristics of the metal-enzyme interaction.Isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) is a label-free …

Relationships Between Psychopathology, Impulsivity, And Disordered Eating, Repairer Etuk

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Impulsivity is defined by behaviors that are often performed without foresight or consideration for consequences. For some individuals, impulsive behaviors are excessive or dysfunctional, and can become extremely problematic, ultimately leading to impairments in quality of life and lowered psychological functioning. Impulsivity is a multifaceted factor, comprising several different domains that have been explored in past studies (e.g., trait impulsivity, decision making, response inhibition). However, previous research shows that trait impulsivity in adults is consistently associated with several psychiatric problems including substance abuse, eating disorders, and compulsive sexual behaviors. To date, few studies have investigated impulsivity, compulsive sexual behavior. disordered …

The Phenomenon Of Creative Seeing As Discovered By Descriptive Experience Sampling: A Case Study, Amber Goto

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Descriptive Experience Sampling (DES) studies have found that people without known mental health conditions occasionally describe visual experiences that are distortions of reality. DES calls such visual-perceptual-distortion experiences creative seeing. Typically, participants don't realize that their perceptions are distorted until they note their descriptions, at which time they notice (with surprise) the discrepancy.We describe "Rhea," a female adult (between 25 and 30 years old) DES volunteer participant. Her DES sampling happened to produce a high frequency of creative seeing; the degree of detail provided by DES allows us to describe the creative-seeing phenomenon with otherwise unobtainable detail. The creative seeing …

Investigating Productivity Of Modular Buildings, Sibgat Mehedi Hasan

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The modular construction industry has grown substantially, yet understanding of the relationships between project categories, sizes, and productivity remains limited. This study investigates these relationships in both permanent and relocatable modular construction projects across different sectors, including multifamily housing, dormitories, healthcare, education, retail, office, and workforce housing. Data from 303 permanent and 188 relocatable projects in the Modular Building Institute database were analyzed using Kendall's tau-b correlation and linear regression analyses. Key findings reveal that permanent projects outnumber and are generally larger than relocatable ones, with education being the most common project type. Significant positive correlations between project size and …

Exploring The Everyday Inner Experience Of Grapheme-Color Synesthetes, Cody Michio Kaneshiro

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Synesthesia is a rare, multivariant condition where the stimulation of one sensory or cognitive sense induces extraordinary inner experiences. Grapheme-color synesthesia is a kind of synesthesia where the presentation of letters and/or numbers induce automatic, directly apprehended color phenomena within synesthetes (i.e., individuals with synesthesia). Despite synesthesia’s being defined by remarkable color experiences, first-person investigations that directly study synesthetes’ inner experience are rare. We used descriptive experience sampling (DES) to describe the everyday inner experience of six grapheme-color synesthetes, each sampled for from 6 to 14 sampling days. Our idiographic findings showed that the salient features of each individual participant’s …

Psychological Pitfalls Of The Modern Percussionist: A Survey Of Coping Mechanisms For Downward Spirals In Mental Health, Andrew Naughton

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This document explores three key facets of mental health significantly impacting percussionists in both educational and professional settings: Imposter Syndrome, sleep deprivation, and stress management. The primary focus is to understand the impact of these psychological conditions on percussionists and discover effective approaches to prevent, alleviate, or manage these ailments. This document is divided into four sections. The initial section delineates the concept of “Imposter Syndrome” and discusses its various manifestations as encountered by percussionists in both educational and professional environments. The second section discusses the consequences of sleep deprivation on mental well-being when it is disregarded. The third section …

Development Of A Passive Drag Reduction Modification For The 25° Ahmed Body Using Large Eddy Simulation, Skylar Polek

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In the field of automotive aerodynamics, the Ahmed body is a generic vehicle-shaped bluff body which is meant to generalize the rear end of fastback and hatchback vehicles. Specifically, an Ahmed body with a rear slant angle of 25° has seen common use due to its resemblance of common rear windshield shapes as well as its notoriously complex wake structure. This research focuses on simulating the flow over a 25° in various situations with an ultimate goal of drag reduction. First, a simple benchmark of the k-ω shear stress transport (SST), large eddy simulation (LES) with the Smagorinsky-Lilly subgrid scale …

Automated Measurement Of The Water Drop Penetration Time For The Analysis Of Soil Water Repellency, Danxu Wang

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In this work, we develop an innovative system for the automated measurement of Water Drop Penetration Time (WDPT) - a parameter that is conventionally used for evaluating soil water repellency (SWR). Increased SWR can be a reason for plant stress and poor crop yields, create a risk of potential water runoff and floods and thus can pose risks to life and property loss. Timely evaluation of soil conditions can save resources and win time for responding to environmental disasters. Manual measurements of WDPT are labor-intensive, subjective, tend to produce variability of outcomes, and also not always available in remote or …

Effects Of Climate Change On (Semi)-Arid Ecosystems In The Southwestern United States, Charlotte Van Der Nagel

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Climate change is considered amongst the most severe threats to terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems globally. Ecosystems in the southwestern United States have specifically been impacted by intense drought conditions since 2000. Higher temperatures combined with altered precipitation stresses many ecosystems; however, ecosystem specific responses to such stressors may vary. Here, the effects of climate change on semi-arid ecosystems are analyzed for some of the most vulnerable ecosystems in the southwestern United States: lacustrine, riparian, and dryland ecosystems.

Lakes and reservoirs in arid environments often serve as drinking water sources and recreational areas where high water quality is essential. Climate change …

Developing Recommendations For More Inclusive Academic Librarian On-Site Interviews, Christina M. Miskey, Kathryn M. Houk, Jason Aubin

Library Faculty Research

This chapter will discuss the work of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), library faculty Ad Hoc Committee for Diverse Recruitment and Retention: Campus Visits and Interviews (hereafter referred to as the campus visits committee), which was formed by the library faculty in 2020 to recommend ways for the faculty interview process to be more inclusive and to allow candidates from diverse backgrounds to excel during their interview process. The culmination of the committee’s work was the internal report for library faculty, Recommendations for Hosting UNLV Library Faculty Candidates, which is in the process of being implemented for …

American Rescue Plan Act (Arpa) Local Government Investments In Nevada, Sean Curry, Madison Dwyer, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Economic Development & Workforce

This fact sheet examines data from the Brooking Institution’s Local Government ARPA Investment Tracker, an online database that tracks the spending of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund dollars at the local government level. This fact sheet examines ARPA spending data from six Nevadan cities and counties: Washoe, NV; City of North Las Vegas, NV; City of Las Vegas, NV; City of Reno NV; City of Henderson, NV; and Clark County, NV.

Covid-19: Change In Adjusted Gross Income From Net Migration In Nevada, 2020-2021, Ayda Atici, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Economic Development & Workforce

This fact sheet examines data on changes in taxable income and net average income as a result of net migration for each county in Nevada during the COVID-19 pandemic (from 2020 to 2021). The data illustrate which Nevada counties experienced increases in taxable income and average income, and which counties experienced losses. The data are retrieved from “Tax Data Reveals Large Flight of High Earners from Major Cities During the Pandemic,” an interactive data report by the Economic Innovation Group.

Early Childhood Teacher Knowledge: Distinguishing Between Developmentally Appropriate Behavior And Maladaptive Behavior, Michela Carattini

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This dissertation investigates the effectiveness of a professional development program aimed at enhancing early childhood education (ECE) teachers' abilities to identify and address developmentally appropriate versus maladaptive behaviors in young children. Utilizing an explanatory sequential mixed methods design, the study involves pre- and post-intervention surveys, a post-intervention focus group, and the implementation of four asynchronous learning modules. The participants, pre-service teachers from a large urban university, were evaluated on their knowledge and application of distinguishing between behaviors in early childhood settings.The literature review highlights the struggles ECE teachers face in identifying maladaptive behaviors and the need for targeted professional development. …

New Insights Into The Diverse Intraplate Volcanism Present Within The Howland And Baker Island United States Exclusive Economic Zone, Nicholas Foresta

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The origin of oceanic volcanism has been attributed to various mechanisms, such as upwelling mantle plumes, lithospheric extension driven decompression melting, and small-scale convective cells in the asthenosphere. Discovering the range of magmatic drivers present in the ocean basins aids in understanding mantle geodynamics and tectonic processes. A recent seafloor exploration campaign within the Howland and Baker Island (HBI) U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ; approximately near the equator and the International Date Line) resulted in the collection of multiple lava flow samples, which offer valuable insights into the complex origins and dynamics of intraplate seamounts. According to current absolute plate …

The Effects Of Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation On Excitability Of The Primary Motor Cortices And Complex Motor Task Learning, Erik Woodruff Wilkins

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) and transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) are promising non-invasive brain stimulation techniques, particularly for clinical applications involving altered or impaired motor function, such as in stroke and Parkinson’s disease. Although tDCS and tACS are different modalities, both forms of stimulation operate on the same principle - weak electrical currents are delivered through electrodes placed on the scalp in specific configurations known as “montages”. The most commonly used montage for targeting the primary motor cortex (M1) is the M1-SO configuration. This montage leverages the established observation that cortical regions directly beneath the anode generally increase in …

Trauma-Related Cognitions And Discrimination As Predictors Of Maladaptive Coping Among Marginalized Maltreated Youth, Shadie Burke

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Maltreated youth are at an increased risk for engaging in direct or indirect self-injurious behavior to cope with the aftereffects of a traumatic event. These behaviors are often associated with negative health outcomes, substance use and premature death. Existing research proposes a link between child maltreatment and indirect self-harm but the mechanism into why this occurs is unclear. The present study examined two key research questions: (1) which specific trauma-related cognitions, sexual identity and cultural factors predict direct self-injurious behavior (previous suicide attempt(s) and NSSI) among marginalized maltreated youth?; and (2) which specific trauma-related cognitions, sexual identity and cultural factors …

2023 Transportation Electrification Scorecard: Mountain West States, Ayda Atici, Kristian Thymianos, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Transportation & Infrastructure

This fact sheet examines data on policies and actions to support electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure in five Mountain West states: Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. The data are retrieved from the “2023 Transportation Electrification Scorecard,” created by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE). The Scorecard measures which Mountain West states are the most efficient in progress made towards the electrification of vehicles.

First Year Earnings And Debt In The Mountain West, Mohit Pande, Ivan Sun, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet examines data from the Georgetown University report, “Buyer Beware: First-Year Earnings and Debt for 37,000 College Majors at 4,400 Institutions,” comparing and ranking the earnings, debt, and earnings net of debt based on post-secondary educational level. This fact sheet focuses on state-level data on first year earning and debt for five Mountain West states: Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah.

Using Item Response Theory To Identify Key Symptoms Of Insomnia In A Sample Of University Students With Probable Eating Disorders, Kara A. Christensen Pacella, Brianne N. Richson, Nicole A. Short, Angeline R. Bottera, Leah A. Irish, Victoria L. Perko, Kelsie T. Forbush

Psychology Faculty Research

Purpose

Researchers have theorized that interactions between appetitive and circadian disruptions result in increased eating disorder (ED) symptoms and insomnia. However, it is unclear how specific insomnia symptoms present among people with EDs and if the latent structure of insomnia in this population is similar to that of people with insomnia disorder.

Methods

We conducted a secondary analysis of data collected on ED and insomnia symptoms using a subset of students with probable EDs at a large Midwestern American university. Item response theory (IRT) for polytomous items was performed to identify item difficulty, discrimination, and information parameters for the Insomnia …

Same-Sex Coupled Households In The Mountain West, 2020 Census, Zachary Billot, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Demography

This fact sheet examines same-sex partnership household data from the 2020 United States Decennial Census. This fact sheet analyzes married and unmarried same-sex households in relation to all partnered households in the five Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah.

Graduates Of Southern Nevada Public High Schools And Unlv, 2010-2022, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet reports data for individuals who earned both a diploma from a high school in Southern Nevada and a bachelor’s degree at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) between 2010 and 2022, as well as the race/ethnicity and gender of these graduates.

Nevada Medical Residencies, 2024, Annie Vong, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Health

This fact sheet highlights medical residency data for the 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024 graduating classes of the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) School of Medicine. This fact sheet presents data on residency program matches at the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV and the UNR School of Medicine and reveals where Nevada medical school graduates pursue their residencies, and updates findings from a 2023 fact sheet exploring 2021, 2022, and 2023 graduating class data.

Average Child Care Costs In Nevada And The Mountain West, 2024, Monserrat Cristando-Romo, Maryam Raja, Annie Vong, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Economic Development & Workforce

This fact sheet reports data on the average costs of child care in the five most populous cities in each Mountain West state and the ten most populous cities in Nevada based on the “2020: ACS 5-Year Estimates Data Profiles” United States Census Bureau (Salt Lake City, UT; Albuquerque, NM; Denver, CO; Phoenix, AZ; and Las Vegas, NV). The original report from care.com provides child care data for all U.S. cities to assess the costs of child care nationally.

Black-Owned Businesses In The Mountain West, 2017-2020, Riley Ruff, Miguel Soriano Ralston, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Economic Development & Workforce

This fact sheet examines data on Black-owned businesses in the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. The report “Who is driving Black business growth? Insights from the latest data on Black- owned businesses" from the Brookings Institution includes data on Black-owned businesses in metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) across the United States.

U.S. News & World Report 2024 Graduate Program Rankings, Unlv & Unr, Madison Dwyer, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet presents 2024 graduate program rankings for the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and for the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) based on the data published in spring 2024 by U.S. News and World Report. The graduate program categories reported include business, education, engineering, fine arts, law, medicine and health care, sciences and mathematics, and social sciences and humanities.

Nevada Workforce Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion Study 2024, Becky Harris, Andrea Dassopoulos

International Gaming Institute Faculty Research

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) metrics enable organizations to set concrete goals and monitor their performance. In 2021, Nevada’s legislature passed Senate Bill 267 (SB267), authorizing the University Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) to study DEI benchmarks in the State. A survey was provided to businesses, state and local governments, and the Nevada System of Higher Education in an effort to study and evaluate how effectively employers are implementing diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in Nevada. The Nevada Workforce Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Study (Workforce Study) is designed to produce actionable results capable of informing public policy priorities and employer best …

Fe-Rich X-Ray Amorphous Material Records Past Climate And Persistence Of Water On Mars, Anthony D. Feldman, Elisabeth M. Hausrath, Elizabeth B. Rampe, Valerie Tu, Tanya S. Peretyazhko, Christopher Defelice, Thomas Sharp

Geoscience Faculty Research

X-ray amorphous material comprises 15-73 wt.% of sedimentary rocks and eolian sediments in Gale crater. This material is variably siliceous and iron rich but aluminum poor. The presence of volatiles is consistent with the existence of incipient weathering products. To better understand the implications of this material for past aqueous conditions on Mars, here we investigate X-ray amorphous material formation and longevity within terrestrial iron rich soils with varying ages and environmental conditions using bulk and selective dissolution methods, X-ray diffraction, and transmission electron microscopy. Results indicate that in situ aqueous alteration is required to concentrate iron into clay-size fraction …