Digital Commons Network^™

Cross-Cultural Applicability Of Eye-Tracking In Assessing Attention To Emotional Faces In Preschool-Aged Children, Sara S Nozadi, Andrea Aguiar, Ruofei Du, Elizabeth A Enright, Susan L Schantz, Curtis Miller, Brandon Rennie, Mallery Quetawki, Debra Mackenzie, Johnnye L Lewis

Pediatrics Research and Scholarship

Humans show an attention bias toward emotional versus neutral information, which is considered an adaptive pattern of information processing. Deviations from this pattern have been observed in children with socially withdrawn behaviors, with most research being conducted in controlled settings among children from urban areas. The goal of the current study was to examine the cross-cultural applicability of two eye-tracking-based measures in assessing attention biases and their relations to children's symptoms of socially withdrawn behaviors in two independent and diverse samples of preschool children. The cross-cultural comparison was conducted between the Navajo Birth Cohort study (NBCS), an indigenous cohort with …

Analysis Of Interprofessional Education Inclusion Within U.S. Dental Hygiene Programs’ Curricula, Jennifer M. Pacheco

Dental Hygiene ETDs

The purpose of this study was to collect information on the implementation of IPE activities within U.S. dental hygiene programs and whether program faculty are implementing these components into their program curricula. Furthermore, the study would identify which types of IPE activities were being conducted and if these activities met the CODA standards. An original survey was sent out to dental hygiene program directors and faculty. Results revealed both programs agreed that IPE is a significant component to include in hygiene curricula to better equip students as members of the healthcare team to deliver comprehensive care. IPE activities implemented were …

Immigrational Trauma: An Assessment Of Dental Phobia And Access To Care In Undocumented Individuals, Nora J. Vences Ortiz

Dental Hygiene ETDs

The purpose of this study is to assess immigrational trauma as it relates to dental phobia in accessing care from undocumented individuals. Immigrating from a country to the United States presents with unique challenges. These challenges include language barriers, traumatic experiences and cultural factors. These individuals also have perceived notions regarding their treatment with a physician or dentist as their immigration status may or may not be revealed during their care. If reported, they face deportation to their country of origin placing them in the danger they originally fled from. Survey data was collected using REDCap and distributed to students …

Paradigms And Logical Morphology In Wittgenstein’S Philosophy, Idris Robinson

Philosophy ETDs

This dissertation investigates the notion of a paradigm and its related morphological method through the lens of the philosophy of Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889–1951). At once exegetical and philosophical, it is a project that aims to trace the progression of Wittgenstein’s thought, from his early to his mature phase, in order to arrive at a twofold conclusion regarding the ontological status of paradigms and a closely related approach to logic grounded in morphology.

The Effect Of Cognitive Reserve On A Rhythm And Timing Intervention In Older American Indians, Eunice Dahyeh Kim

Psychology ETDs

Cognitive reserve refers to the cerebral plasticity perspective in which premorbid buffer factors, explained as enriching life experiences, protect against the negative outcomes of neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric diseases (Stern, 2009; Harrison et al., 2015). Little research has been done to understand cognitive reserve in older AI adults, despite the fact that American Indians (AIs) experience a higher incidence of cerebrovascular disease than other racial and ethnic groups in the US, which increases risk for cognitive deficits and dementia (Zhang, et al., 2007; Ayala, Greenlund, Croft, et al., 2001; Harwell, et al., 2005). Interactive Metronome (IM) therapy is a behavioral therapy …

Identifying Psychosocial And Neural Correlates Associated With Future Homicide In A Sample Of Incarcerated Boys, Samantha N. Rodriguez

Psychology ETDs

Previous research has observed significant group differences regarding neuroanatomical and psychosocial variables between incarcerated boys who have and have not previously committed a homicide, resulting in successful postdictive classification (Cope et al., 2014). However, no study to date has investigated whether similar group differences characterize future homicide offenders. Following the methodology of Cope et al. (2014), the current study aimed to identify baseline neural, clinical, and environmental deficits (collected in a sample of n = 242 incarcerated juvenile offenders) associated with future homicidal behavior as adults. Results indicated that youth who went on to commit homicide as adults were characterized …

Electrophysiological Signatures Of Error Commission And Adjustment, Mark Lavelle

Psychology ETDs

Errors inhibit attainment of our goals. Behavioral and neural adjustments following errors are often framed as independent aspects of decision-making termed threshold (or response caution) and drift rate (or evidence accumulation). We replicated and extended the association of single-trial threshold with frontal midline theta power from the previous trial, as measured from EEG in 21 participants completing a flankers task. Surprisingly, theta power also predicted next trial drift rate. Variation in brightness of the stimuli was associated with drift rate and various EEG and time-frequency features, including posterior alpha/beta power. Posterior alpha/beta power also correlated with drift rate and significantly …

An Examination Of The Associations Between Covid-19 Vaccine Hesitancy, Trust In Media, And Trust In Science And Scientists, Jegason Phosphorus Diviant

Psychology ETDs

Recent evidence suggests corroded trust in scientific institutions, but particularly among political conservatives. The current investigation examined the potential role of trust in conservative media sources by capturing associations between trust in politically-biased media sources, trust in science and scientists, and COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. A total of 1,117 participants completed an online cross-sectional self-report study. Results revealed that: (1) the less trust respondents had in science and scientists, the greater their overall COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy (and perceived risks and fears of COVID-19 vaccines); and (2) the more respondents trusted conservative-leaning news media sources, the greater their overall COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy …

Beyond Stressors: Identifying Protective Cultural Factors And Coping Strategies For Mental Health Symptoms Among Aging Latino/Hispanic Immigrants, Juan M. Pena

Psychology ETDs

Within the next decade, Latino immigrants will constitute the largest middle-aged and older immigrant group living in the U.S. This cross-sectional study investigated traumatic stressors, acculturative stress and perceived structural injustices and their associations with mental health symptoms. This study also examined the linkages between cultural factors, social support, and coping strategies and mental health outcomes. Eighty Latino/Hispanic immigrants who were 45 years of age or older completed a series of questionnaires and optional open-ended questions. A greater exposure to traumatic events, higher acculturative stress, and perceived injustices were associated with greater psychological distress and symptoms of anxiety, depression, and …

Effects Of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation On Category Learning In Older Adults, Benjamin C. Gibson

Psychology ETDs

Those over the age of 65 occupy a growing proportion of the population. With this growth, cognitive issues that accompany aging are increasingly coming to the forefront, yet despite this focus, ways to ameliorate cognitive issues in older adults are lacking. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) offers one possibility for improving cognitive function in older adults, but tDCS application is hindered by individual factors that manifest as heterogeneity in outcomes across the literature. This is especially the case in older adults, where changes in anatomy and functionality provide a potential complication for tDCS application. Presented here are three studies seeking …

Feasibility And Acceptability Of An Online Empathy Skills Training For Substance Use Providers, Emily L. Starratt

Psychology ETDs

The ability to train counselors to convey empathy is critical, given the importance of therapist empathic skill level in substance use disorder treatment outcomes (Moyers & Miller, 2013). To date, no studies have examined the efficacy of an online empathy skills training for clinicians, where competency is evaluated using objectively rated standardized client sessions. This study evaluated the acceptability, feasibility, and fit of an online empathy skills training for substance use disorder providers. METHOD: Therapist empathy was measured pre-post training using standardized client actor interviews and evaluated with a global rating yielded by the Motivational Interviewing Treatment Integrity Code 4.2 …

Electromagnetic Simulations Of The Lansce Chopper Structure, Yusuf Sahin

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

Particle accelerators are important for basic research as well as in applications such as ion implantation and cancer therapy. One important accelerator is the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) located at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) that primarily produces neutrons for research. The beam chopper simulation described here is a study to provide better modeling of this subsystem of LANSCE. A chopper is a device in which particles are intermittently sliced and directed to a target and/or experiment. The simulations in this thesis are used to analyze the correct operating parameters of the chopper. A good chopper model can …

Comparison Of Random Coupling Model To Stochastic Dyadic Green’S Function When Coupling To A Distributed Port, Evelyn Anne Dohme

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

The Random Coupling Model (RCM) provides statistical representation of coupling between ports in a highly overmoded resonant cavity based on knowledge of radiation impedances of system ports and cavity properties. A recent variant of RCM, the Stochastic Dyadic Green’s Functions (S-DGF), provides the statistical distribution of fields in the cavity. By using Source Reconstruction Methods (SRM) to approximate equivalent surface currents, I hypothesized that the S-DGF can calculate the fields at their location, enabling a statistical estimate of the coupled power. Using nearfield radiation from simple patch antenna simulations and the SRM to estimate the equivalent fields and account for …

Speaker Diarization Of Noisy Classrooms From A Single Microphone Based On An Array Of Virtual Microphones And Machine Learning, Richard Briggs

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

Speaker diarization from a single microphone is extremely challenging in noisy classroom environments. A new method based on simulating a microphone array has shown promising results, while requiring very little training. It used a minimum distance classifier to identify the speaker among a list of possible speakers. This thesis investigates machine learning methods for determining the speaker. The AOLME dataset that was used contains 758 samples totaling 894.4 seconds. Each is taken from a noisy classroom environment, focusing on five speakers - any one of whom could be active in a given sample - lasting an average of 1.2 seconds. …

Tracing The Roots Of A Poisonous Tree: On The Origins And Impact Of Criminal Terminology In A Civil Apprehension Scheme, Shani Mahiri King, Nicole Silvestri Hall

New Mexico Law Review

Language is powerful. It can affect how we think about and treat groups of people. Poor language choices have a massive impact on immigration law, an area of the law that determines how groups of perceived “outsiders” are classified and regulated. Language and bias in judicial opinions have been studied, but less research has been done on poor language choices in immigration statutes. This Comment focuses on the harmful effects of poor language choices in immigration statutes, including the criminal terminology “arrest” and “warrant” in civil immigration apprehension statutes 8 U.S.C. Sections 1226 and 1357. Two fundamental problems arise when …

Action Is Not Activism: Moving Martinez/Yazzie V. State Forward, Griffin Arellano

New Mexico Law Review

Education has long been regarded as the foundation of a strong society and fundamental to an individual’s ability to determine the course of their own life. Article XII of the New Mexico Constitution asserts that all students in New Mexico have a right to not just an education but one that is “sufficient.” However, in 2018, a state district court found that at-risk students across New Mexico were being denied that right. In Martinez/Yazzie v. State of New Mexico, the court ordered the State to quickly provide more funding for education and accountability mechanisms to ensure that money was spent …

Wirelessly Powering A Sea Of Sensors For Perimeter Security Applications, Ian River Chavez

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

his thesis presents an innovative application of Inductive Power Transfer (IPT) technology for perimeter security systems. The approach leverages the physical properties of IPT to detect intrusions by monitoring voltage changes in wirelessly powered sensor nodes, which can double as components of an intrusion detection system. Disturbances in node orientation, indicative of potential intrusions, alter the sensor node’s resonant frequency and create measurable voltage shifts. This study explores the concept in-depth, from the analysis of resonant inductive coupling in various resonant inductive modes, to the design of transmit loops, sensor nodes, and the techniques required to ensure optimum power transfer. …

Noise-Resilient And Adaptive Distributed Control Techniques For Microgrids, Seyed Iman Habibi

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

This dissertation focuses on addressing the critical tasks of secondary control in microgrids, particularly in the islanding operating mode. The presence of noise in sensors and communication links necessitates the design of a noise-resilient secondary control approach. In response, this dissertation introduces the Nonlinear Generalized Minimum Variance (NGMV) control approach into the islanded AC and DC microgrid's secondary control system. The effectiveness of the proposed approach is demonstrated through MATLAB simulations. Additionally, the dissertation presents an adaptive, model-free, and data-driven control approach for secondary voltage control in AC microgrids, addressing uncertainties. By employing Unfalsified Adaptive Control (UAC), the approach selects …

Seismic Analysis Of The Upper & Lower Falls Of The Yellowstone River, Loring Schaible

Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs

Twelve years of concurrent hydrologic and continuous seismic data along with temporary seismic data demonstrate that the Upper and Lower Falls of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River comprise a highly localized source of 0.5-5 Hz seismic energy that overwhelms anthropogenic contributions. In aggregate, seismic amplitude from 2008-2019 is linearly related to discharge with a correlation coefficient of 0.96. Repeated deviations from this linear relationship persist for 1-2 weeks prior to the date that Yellowstone Lake becomes clear of winter ice coverage. Seismic efficiency increases by ~50-250% during this period of ice-breakup, during which lake ice flows into the …

The Economic Impact Of Oil And Gas Production In The Permian Basin, Aditi Sarkar

Economics ETDs

The dissertation aims to analyze the economic and social consequences of unconventional oil and gas (UO&G) production in the Permian Basin, located in southeastern New Mexico and West Texas. The first paper focuses on the effect of methane reduction regulations imposed by the United States (US) government on the production of natural gas and the drilling of new wells. Specifically, the question asked is “what is the impact of methane reduction regulations on the drilling of new wells and the production of natural gas over a 40-year time horizon?” I develop dynamic optimization in a system dynamic setting to assess …

Essays On Human Capital, Labor, And Gender, Kritika Sen Chakraborty

Economics ETDs

This dissertation is a collection of chapters that demonstrate the factors affecting human capital and labor market outcomes of adolescents and the gender differences in the quality of employment of adults in South Africa.

The second chapter evaluates the impact of South Africa’s Child Support Grant, an unconditional means-tested grant provided to age-eligible children, on adolescent nutrition outcomes. The findings suggest that welfare programs can alleviate extreme undernutrition and overnutrition among females during the critical growth period of adolescence.

In the third chapter, I use longitudinal data from rural South Africa linked with geospatial climate indicators to examine the effect …

Three Essays On The Economics Of Children’S Health And Education In Nepal, Khusiman Pun

Economics ETDs

First essay: This paper studies the impact of Nepal’s 1996-2006 Maoist insurgency on the nutritional status of children. We employ the difference-in-difference (DID) model. The proxy for conflict intensity is killings per thousand population (KPT). The finding of our study is that a marginal increase in KPT decreases the height-for-age (HAZ) of the children by 0.0844. The loss in child health was statistically not significant in both non-poor and poor households. Therefore, the impact of the insurgency on child health is largely driven by the negative effect of the insurgency on Janajaties, irrespective of their economic status.

Second essay: This …

Between Casas Grandes And Salado: Community Formation And Interaction In The Borderlands Of The American Southwest/Mexican Northwest Region, Ad 1200-1450, Thatcher Andrew Seltzer-Rogers

Anthropology ETDs

The historical record of Indigenous North America at the time of European colonization attests to the presence of borderlands between competing culture cores. Yet, the oftentimes inability of the archaeological record to speak to the presence of such dynamics in the past remains a hinderance to understanding how past peoples engaged with one another in noncolonial settings as well as how these interactions resulted in ethnogenesis or the establishment of new culture cores. This dissertation uses a comparative analysis of settlement layout, architecture traits, ceramic artifacts, and mortuary practices to examine how individuals who resided in the space between two …

Near- And Far- Field Optical Response Of Ensembles Of Nanostructures, Lauren Zundel

Physics & Astronomy ETDs

The ability of metallic nanostructures to support collective oscillations of their conduction electrons, known as surface plasmons, makes them attractive candidates for a wide range of applications in areas as diverse as cancer therapy, biosensing, and solar energy harvesting. These applications are especially promising for periodic arrays of nanostructures, which can support collective modes known as lattice resonances, and for nanostructures with extreme aspect ratios that give rise to enhanced light-matter interaction. In this Thesis, we employ a coupled dipole model to theoretically explore the lattice resonances supported by complex arrays of nanoparticles containing multiple nanoparticles per unit cell. We …

The Haunting Aesthetics Of Empire: Filipinx America, Us Empire, And Cultural Production, Alana J. Bock

American Studies ETDs

Throughout this dissertation, I argue that US imperial knowledge production affirms US exceptionalism by disavowing the imperial violence wrought on the Philippines and its people. This disavowal not only renders the Philippines and Filipinx bodies illegible, but also haunts the Filipinx American diaspora. I argue that the haunted logics of empire are a set of relations, rather than specters of specific times and places, in which knowledge and power work together to continually produce and reproduce a specific and limiting reality and sensorium through which to view the world. In my interrogation of empire’s haunted logics, I not only look …

Examining The Effects Of Iron-Oxide Nanoparticles On Primary Gingival Keratinocytes For The Prevention Of Oral Disease, Jennifer C. Carranza

Dental Hygiene ETDs

Oral plaque biofilm has been identified as the primary contributor to dental conditions such as dental caries and periodontal disease that promotes a diverse and pervasive collection of microbial species to inhabit the oral cavity. Disrupting the plaque matrix early could help combat this global disease burden. This study evaluated the effect of IONPs on primary gingival keratinocytes.

Purpose: This study aimed to examine existing research regarding nanoparticles and determine if IONPs affect the PGK cell membranes with preliminary research to find the maximum lysis possible with PGK cells.

Methods: IONP core/shell syntheses were performed. Considering keratinocyte characteristics, examining data …

Postwar Cooperative Housing: On The Historical And Community Significance Of South Dahlia Lane, John Boydstun

Architecture and Planning ETDs

American cities after WWII including Denver experienced a boom in population resulting in a shortage of affordable housing. One innovative response to the demand for affordable housing was the formation of the Mile High Housing Association (MHHA), a Colorado non-profit organization founded in 1948 by four University of Denver professors. The MHHA was Colorado’s first housing cooperative and founded on the ideals of a supportive and collaborative community. MHHA’s goals included providing affordable single-family homes with a new modernist design and a neighborhood site plan that supported a cooperative lifestyle. Backed by new legislation in 1948 for FHA financing, the …

Probabilistic Modeling Of Social Media Networks, Distinguishing Phylogenetic Networks From Trees, And Fairness In Service Queues, Md Rashidul Hasan

Mathematics & Statistics ETDs

In this dissertation, three primary issues are explored. The first subject exposes who-saw-from-whom pathways in post-specific dissemination networks in social media platforms. We describe a network-based approach for temporal, textual, and post-diffusion network inference. The conditional point process method discovers the most probable diffusion network. The tool is capable of meaningful analysis of hundreds of post shares. Inferred diffusion networks demonstrate disparities in information distribution between user groups (confirmed versus unverified, conservative versus liberal) and local communities (political, entrepreneurial, etc.). A promising approach for quantifying post-impact, we observe discrepancies in inferred networks that indicate the disproportionate amount of automated bots. …

An Investigation Of Freshwater Turtle Ecology Using Stable Isotopes, Jonathan Duran

Biology ETDs

In 2022 I investigated niche partitioning among native and invasive freshwater turtles across three sites in the Middle Rio Grande using bulk stable isotope analysis. I found high degrees of niche partitioning at sites in which Red-eared sliders (Trachemys scripta) have yet to establish. However, at sites in which red-eared sliders are now the most abundant species they overlapped greatly in isotopic niche with all native turtles, in particular the painted turtle (Chrysemys picta). Using these same techniques, I then examined the trophic interactions between red-eared sliders and their acanthocephalan parasites. My results suggest that acanthocephalans …

Diversification By Dispersal Out Of The Andes Revealed By A Newly Discovered Hummingbird Clade, The ‘True Brilliants’, Marialejandra Castro-Farías

Biology ETDs

We identified a novel clade with striking biogeographic implications. Unsampled genera, Hylonympha and Sternoclyta, were found to be close to the genus Heliodoxa within the Brilliants. Heliodoxa tend to occur in lower montane habitats, such as the tropical, upper tropical, and subtropical elevational zones of the Andes and the Neotropics. Analysis of geographic and elevational zones showed that genus Heliodoxa and related genera diversified by out-of-Andes dispersal to mountain ranges of Central America, coastal Venezuela, the Pantepui, and southeastern Brazil, since the mid-Miocene. Within the Brilliants, reductions in elevation preceded these geographic expansions. Secondary colonization of the lowlands from …