Digital Commons Network^™

(Re)Insurgent Ecologies: Dwelling Together Between Queasy Worlds, Kirsten Elizabeth Mundt

American Studies ETDs

Discourses that construct the “self” as something to be fixed, or made whole, chart a retreat from relational ecosystems back to the individual, reinforcing colonial politics rooted in bounded individualism. This project animates an ontological, relational framework that, in detaching from liberal humanist discourses of healing and “self,” makes affective links from autopoietic frameworks for healing and survival to de-colonial, sympoieitic concerns for expanded kinship. New meanings and attachments are forged within queasy border zones of incommensurability, toggling between the particular and the universal, between desires for solidarity and recognition that colonial violences continue to be unequally distributed and borne. …

Microsphere-Based Disordered Photonic Structures: Control Of Randomness In Langmuir-Blodgett Assembly And Radiative Cooling Applications, Sarun Atiganyanun

Nanoscience and Microsystems ETDs

Many biological photonic structures in nature exhibit a significant degree of disorder within their periodic framework that enhances their optical properties. However, how such disorder contributes to the unique photonic characteristics is not yet fully understood. To facilitate studies on this topic, we investigated self-assembly of microspheres as a method to controllably introduce randomness to photonic structures. Specifically, we examined Langmuir-Blodgett assembly, a layer-by-layer fabrication technique. We developed and experimentally verified a model for the process and determined a condition of surface pressure and substrate pulling speed that corresponds to a maximum structural order in a layer. Along the trajectory …

Multifunctional Properties Of Gan Nws Applied To Nanometrology, Nanophotonics, And Scanning Probe Microscopy/Lithography, Mahmoud Behzadirad

Optical Science and Engineering ETDs

GaN nanowires are promising for optical and optoelectronic applications because of their waveguiding properties and large optical bandgap. Recent researches have shown superior mechanical properties of GaN nanowires which promises their use in new research areas e.g. nanometrology. In this work, we develop a scalable two-step top-down approach using interferometric lithography as well a bottom-up growth of NWs using MOCVD, to manufacture highly-ordered arrays of nanowires with atomic surface roughness and desired aspect-ratios to be used in nanophotonics and atomic precision metrology and lithography. Using this method, uniform nanowire arrays were achieved over large-areas (~1 mm²) with aspect-ratio …

Symmetry And Dopant Diffusion In Inverted Nanopyramid Arrays For Thin Crystalline Silicon Solar Cells, Seok Jun Han

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

In this dissertation, we enhance the efficiency of thin flexible monocrystalline silicon solar cells by breaking symmetry in light trapping nanostructures and improving homogeneity in dopant concentration profile. These thin cells are potentially less expensive than conventional thick silicon cells by using less silicon material and making the cells more convenient to be handled when supported on polymer films. Moreover, these cells are widely applicable due to their flexibility and lightweight. However, for high efficiencies, these cells require effective light trapping and charge collection. We achieve these in cells based on 14-mm-thick free-standing silicon films with light-trapping arrays of nanopyramidal …

A Cartography Of Roots: An Exploration Of Plant Communication, Place, And Story, Mariko Oyama Thomas

Communication ETDs

This study uses oral history and auto-ethnography to collect thematic data on relationships and communication between plants and people in New Mexico, USA. Western and industrial cultures tend to be plant-blind, which is extremely dangerous in the wake of climate disruption and associated loss of plant biodiversity. This study works to collect and produce a generative landscape of narratives of non-binary relationships between humans and plants. These narratives show a range of hopeful, relational connections between human and more-than-human worlds. Overall results indicated the existence of many positive relationships between plants and people in the Western world, and that these …

A Biocultural Examination Of Health Risk Among New Mexicans Of Spanish-Speaking Descent, Carmen Veronica Mosley

Anthropology ETDs

Individuals of Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish (HLS) origin suffer disproportionately from higher poverty rates, less education, less access to health care, and greater risk factors for and prevalence of chronic diseases compared to their White counterparts. How health disparities emerge over the life course remains unclear. Allostatic load (AL) provides an approach in health research that utilizes a life course perspective and multi-system view of cumulative physiological, or health risk. AL is used to identify sociodemographic and biological factors that contribute to racial differences in health risk. However, AL is not widely used to explore causes of poorer health outcomes …

Fluid Transport In Porous Media For Engineering Applications, Eric M. Benner

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

This doctoral dissertation presents three topics in modeling fluid transport through porous media used in engineering applications. The results provide insights into the design of fuel cell components, catalyst and drug delivery particles, and aluminum- based materials. Analytical and computational methods are utilized for the modeling of the systems of interest. Theoretical analysis of capillary-driven transport in porous media show that both geometric and evaporation effects significantly change the time dependent behavior of liquid imbibition and give a steady state flux into the medium. The evaporation–capillary number is significant in determining the time-dependent behavior of capillary flows in porous media. …

Cellular Modification And Artificial Cell Construction, Jimin Guo

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

With all its complexities and different biofunctionalities, a cell is the basic structural and functional unit of all living organisms with the exception of viruses. In this dissertation, I demonstrated gain of function strategies of modifying mammalian cells using silicification and modular nanoparticle (NP) exoskeletons. In addition, I used a modular design concept to build a multifunctional artificial RBC system which can mimic the unique characteristics (e.g. shape, flexibility, the ability to carry oxygen, and long circulation times) of the native RBCs. Together, these cell modification or artificial cell construction strategies are expected to generate new mammalian cell-like structures with …

An Erp Investigation Of Reward Signals For Differing Classes Of Reinforcing Stimuli, Darin R. Brown

Psychology ETDs

In order to successfully traverse an actively complex environment, an agent is required to learn from the consequences of their actions. For over a century, models of behavior have been developed demonstrating these consequence-based learning systems. More recently, underlying biological systems have been found to adhere to these constructs of learning. The electroencephalographic signal known as the Reward Positivity (RewP) is thought to reflect a dopamine-dependent cortical signal specific to reward receipt. Importantly, this signal has been shown to adhere to an axiomatic (rule-like) positive reward prediction error, whereby it is evoked following outcomes that are better than expected. These …

Explaining Variation And Change Among Late Pleistocene And Early Holocene Microblade-Based Societies In Northeastern Asia, Meng Zhang

Anthropology ETDs

This project aims to provide a culture-ecological explanation of variation and change among microblade-based societies in Northeastern Asia during the late Pleistocene and early Holocene between c. 30,000 - 6,000 years ago. Assuming that paleoenvironmental changes stimulated cultural changes due to available food resources and that local environment conditioned cultural variation, the development of microblade-based societies can be divided into four phases (c.30-22 kya, 22-15 kya, 15-10 kya, 10-c.1 kya uncal. BP) in four regions (north continental, south continental, north insular, and south insular).

The study’s macroecological approach based on Constructing Frames of Reference (Binford 2001) is applied to elucidate …

Affecting Social Change For Transgender And Gender-Expansive Children: Exploring Advocates' Perspectives, Cortny Stark

Individual, Family, and Community Education ETDs

This interpretive case study explored the experience of advocates as they pursue social change for transgender and gender-expansive children (ages 4-12). The aim of the study is to improve current understanding of the process of advocacy for this population, as well as the context in which advocacy efforts occur. Data consisted of hour long interviews, advocacy artifacts as recommended by participants, and the researcher’s field journal. Participants included 12 advocates from a variety of backgrounds and geographic locations within the United States, to include educators, community advocates, and helping professionals. Implications of this study may include increased understanding of the …

Supporting Pre-Service Teachers With Skills From Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Almut K. Zieher

Individual, Family, and Community Education ETDs

Mindfulness trainings, which tend to include daily home meditation practice, have been found to improve in- and pre-service teachers well-being, but findings indicate that participants struggle to complete the recommended home meditation practice. A mindfulness training based on Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) skills may be a more feasible training format for teachers because the home practice is informal and easily integrated into daily life. DBT skills are also discrete and easy-to-understand and directly relate to the intrapersonal and interpersonal challenges teachers face. Although DBT skills-based trainings have been used with non-clinical populations, to date no study has been identified exploring …

Biphasic Effects Of Vanadium Sulfate On Cerebrovascular Endothelial Cell Barrier Integrity, Yoselin Ordonez Suarez

Pharmaceutical Sciences ETDs

The objective of this study was to investigate the biphasic effects of vanadyl sulfate in cerebral vascular endothelial cells with a focus on understanding the mechanisms underlying vanadyl sulfate benefits. To first address the effects of vanadyl sulfate on endothelial permeability, mouse cerebrovascular endothelial cells were grown to confluence in 96-well electrode ECIS plates and treated with three different vanadium containing compounds: vanadyl sulfate, vanadium pentoxide, and ammonium metavanadate. Resistance of the endothelial cell monolayer was measured at 4kHz for 24 hours for different concentrations of vanadium containing compounds. The mouse cerebrovascular endothelial cells were also treated with different concentrations …

Serotonin Syndrome And/Or Opioid Withdrawal After The First Dose Of Naltrexone Hcl/Bupropion Hcl: An Observational Study, Stefanie J. Logothetis

Pharmaceutical Sciences ETDs

In 2014, the Food and Drug Administration approved naltrexone HCl/bupropion HCl, a combination of an antidepressant and an opioid antagonist for chronic weight management therapy. Concurrent use of antidepressants and opioids has the potential to cause drug interactions involving serotonin syndrome. Our primary objective is to identify cases of serotonin syndrome and/or opioid withdrawal after initiation of naltrexone HCl/bupropion HCl. Our secondary objective is to assess which specific opioids are more likely to cause a drug interaction with naltrexone HCl/bupropion HCl. We performed an observational study by reviewing cases in the RADARS^® database from January 2014 through December 2018. …

Exploring Individual Experiences Obtaining Medication-Assisted Treatment For Opioid Use Disorder In Rural New Mexico, Krista L. Scorsone

Nursing ETDs

In the United States, more than 2.5 million people struggle with opioid use disorder. Compared to people living in urban areas, rural residents are twice as likely to overdose from opioid misuse. Reasons for this increase include excessive opioid prescribing and illegal diversion of opioids. This holds true in the rural counties of northern New Mexico, where drug overdose deaths are among the highest in the nation. Although medication-assisted treatment (MAT) with buprenorphine, methadone, or naltrexone is globally accepted as the most effective treatment, it is still accessed half as often rurally. The reasons for this imbalance are unknown, and …

Fungi In A Hot, Dry, Changing World, Miriam I. Hutchinson

Biology ETDs

My doctoral work focused on understanding the reciprocal relationship between fungi and their environment, namely how fungi respond to environmental flux, as well as how fungi can modify and structure their habitats, especially in the context of climate change. As such, I aimed my research on fungi with distinct adaptations to their environmental niches: endophytic fungi that inhabit plant tissue and thermophilic fungi that are capable of growing at the upper temperature limit for eukaryotic life. My research consisted of three studies. First, I investigated the thermophilic species Myceliophthora heterothallica to demonstrate its use as a model organism for efficient …

Warming Up: Climate Change Related Shifts Of Mycorrhizal Fungal Communities In High Latitude Ecosystems, Megan Rae Devan

Biology ETDs

This dissertation examines how climate change affects mycorrhizal fungal communities in boreal and arctic ecosystems. In chapter one, I revealed that increases in fire severity and related increases in deciduous tree dominance result in greater Ascomycota relative abundance (RA) and subsequent declines in Basidiomycota RA. In chapter two I analyzed the effects of post-fire mycorrhizal fungal communites on host growth. There were trends at the fungal genus level that were largely reflected at the guild level across all hosts; however, there were some fungal genera that had the opposite effect on different host species. In chapter three, I found host …

Role Of Pkcbeta And Oxidant Signaling In Neonatal Pulmonary Hypertension, Joshua R. Sheak

Biomedical Sciences ETDs

Chronic hypoxia (CH)-induced vasoconstriction has been implicated in the pathogenesis of pulmonary hypertension (pHTN) in infants with chronic cardiorespiratory disorders. Although endothelial dysfunction, reduced nitric oxide (NO) bioavailability and oxidative stress contribute to a variety of cardiovascular disorders, their contribution to enhanced vasoconstrictor reactivity in neonatal pHTN is poorly understood. We therefore hypothesized that neonatal CH augments pulmonary vasoconstrictor reactivity by limiting NO-dependent pulmonary vasodilation and by promoting the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS).

Enzymatic sources of ROS in the vasculature include NADPH oxidase isoforms, xanthine oxidase, and uncoupled endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS). The mitochondria are also a …

Maintenance Of Genetic And Epigenetic Stability During Dna Double-Strand Break Repair And Dna Replication, Nathaniel Edward Wiest

Biomedical Sciences ETDs

Eukaryotic genomes are assembled into a complex of DNA and proteins known as chromatin. The packaging of DNA into chromatin is the foundational strategy that cells use to both compress genomic DNA into nuclei and regulate access to its contents. The basic repeating subunit of chromatin is the nucleosome, composed of an octamer of two copies of each of the core histone proteins H2A, H2B, H3, and H4 around which 146 bp of DNA are tightly wrapped. While the compaction of genomes into chromatin offers cells significant advantages, it also presents serious challenges to fundamental processes that maintain genome integrity, …

Utilizing Quantitative Fluorescence Microscopy To Study Oncogenesis, Ellen Walford Hatch

Biomedical Sciences ETDs

Quantitative fluorescence microscopy is a highly technical, swiftly evolving field of methodologies that are uniquely able to probe the nano-scale biological environment. With these optimized, advanced technologies available, scientists and medical providers are equipped to illuminate a plethora of puzzles in science and medicine through the multiplexing and high spatiotemporal resolution offered. Here I first exploit these capabilities to study a rare cancer with multiplex immunohistofluorescence (IHF) to confirm cell type and undocumented protein expression that may have implications for our understanding of the biology of mast cells and the potential efficacy of treatment and symptom management in mast cell …

The Sweet Tale: A Pilot Study Of An Interactive Narrative Health Communication Intervention Using Positive Deviance To Highlight Communicative Acts That Lead To Effective Management Of Diabetes Among Hispanics, Claudia M. Boyd

Communication ETDs

In this dissertation, I conducted a pilot study that applied positive deviance (Singhal, 2011; Pascale, Sternin, & Sternin, 2012) findings from my master’s thesis (Boyd, 2015) to an entertainment-education (Singhal & Rogers, 1999) driven intervention in a Hispanic community (Baezconde-Garbanti et al., 2014; Murphy et al., 2013; Wang & Singhal, 2016), using an interactive narrative (Green & Jenkins, 2014) to develop achildren’s book. In the current pilot study, I created a children’s book The Sweet Taleusing extensive formative research and created a framework to aid in the development offuture Hispanic children’s books on diabetes. To evaluate The Sweet Tale, I …

Topics In Three-Dimensional Imaging, Source Localization And Super-Resolution, Zhixian Yu

Physics & Astronomy ETDs

The realization that twisted light beams with helical phasefronts could carry orbital angular momentum (OAM) that is in excess of the photon's spin angular momentum (SAM) has spawned various important applications. One example is the design of novel imaging systems that achieve three-dimensional (3D) imaging in a single snapshot via the rotation of point spread function (PSF).

Based on a scalar-field analysis, a particular simple version of rotating PSF imagery, which was proposed by my advisor Dr. Prasad, furnishes a practical approach to perform 3D source localization using a spiral phase mask that generates a combination of Bessel vortex beams. …

Biogeographical Implications Of Climate Change For An Alpine Mammal, The American Pika, Marie Louise Westover

Biology ETDs

Anthropogenic climate change has already impacted a majority of species globally. The aim of this dissertation is to understand how climate and climate change influences animal ecology and evolution across space and time, using the American pika (Ochotona. princeps) as a model system. I investigate how pika body size, diet, and occupancy are influenced by different aspects of climate over space and time. Body size in O. princeps populations best correlates to precipitation and vegetation, rather than temperature. Our findings suggest that pika body size may be more related to vegetation and food availability than the direct effects …

Toward A Nuevomexicana Consciousness: An Exploration Of Identity Through Education As Manifest Through The Colonial Legacy, Mercedes V. Avila

Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies ETDs

The purpose of this study is to explore the implications of the colonial legacy in informing the New Mexican Educational System in the present day. I engage a group of three self-identified young Nuevomexicana students in seeking to understand the spaces in which one must maneuver in order to thrive in an otherwise marginalizing system of Western Academia. Through a qualitative study, I hope to identify the intricacies of the New Mexican identity and the relationship these students hold with their determined homeland. By implementing the methods of interview, and participant observation in an undergraduate freshmen classroom, I will investigate …

Social Determinants Of Health And Variability In Weight Trends Of Children Of Low Income Families Living In New Mexico, Molly Aileen Morrison

Individual, Family, and Community Education ETDs

When evaluating the prevalence of obesity rates throughout New Mexico (NM), it appears these rates have reached a plateau. A recent study conducted by the NM Department of Health (DOH) found that NM was among 19 other states that have had a first time decrease in child obesity rates among low income families. However, when examined deeper, when looking at geographical areas throughout NM, hidden geography of weight disparities become apparent. Although obesity rates may have decreased in some areas, they have increased in others. The purpose of this study is to effectively evaluate variability in weight trends between geographical …

Material Matters: Paratextual Bodies In Nineteenth-Century Indigenous Book History, Amy Gore

English Language and Literature ETDs

Material Matters: Paratextual Bodies in Nineteenth-Century Indigenous Book History, focuses on Indigenous authors during the long nineteenth century, from 1772 to 1936, to examine the known “firsts” of Indigenous literature. Starting with the first book published by a Native author and moving to other first entries into Indigenous literary production, I argue that the reprints, editions, and paratextual elements of Indigenous books embody a frontline of colonization as Indigenous authors battle the public perception of Indigenous books and negotiate the representations of Indigenous bodies.

Effects Of Chemogenetic Inhibition Of Ventral Hippocampal Glutamatergic Neurons On Anxiety-Like Defensivity In Male Long-Evans Hooded Rats, Carlos R. Maestas-Olguin

Psychology ETDs

Previous research in rodents and humans has implicated the ventral hippocampus in regulating anxiety. However, many rodent studies examining ventral hippocampal neuronal pathways have utilized lesions that create nonspecific and/or nonreversible damage to the region. The present study sought to characterize the role of ventral hippocampal glutamatergic pyramidal neurons in modulating anxiety-like behavior during exposure to a variety of threatening stimuli. Five weeks prior to testing, male Long-Evans hooded rats received ventral hippocampal viral-vector infusions expressing either pAAV-CaMKIIα-hM4D-mCherry (DREADD) or pAAV-CaMKIIa-EGFP (GFP). DREADD transfection allowed for the specific, noninvasive and temporary inhibition of ventral hippocampal glutamatergic neurons immediately before threat …

Determining Mediators Of Naive T Cell Motility And Dc Association In The Lymph Node, Janie Rae Byrum

Biomedical Sciences ETDs

To become activated and perform effector functions, naive T cells move within lymph nodes to scan dendritic cells presenting antigen. Previous work has shown naive T cell activation is promoted by interleukin 7 in vivo, and it does so by regulating the T cell:dendritic cell interaction. Our work identifies a novel role for IL-7 in mediating naive T cell motility in the lymph node and promoting T cell association with DCs. Additionally, we have developed a method for analyzing microscopy images, regionalized normalized mutual information, to assess intercellular associations between T cells and other cells within the lymph node. Dendritic …

Metabolon-Inspired Design Of Multi-Modal Catalytic Cascade, Madelaine Seow Chavez

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

Developing hybrid catalytic systems has been researched for the past decade in an effort to efficiently incorporate catalysts of different modalities in catalytic cascades. It has become imperative to design a cascade system where the catalysts are spatially organized to control the delivery of precursors, intermediates, and products. In this work, we have shown that a molecular catalyst, biocatalyst, and metallic catalyst can be co-localized using a carbonaceous support to create a hybrid catalytic system and complete the oxidation of oxalic acid to create a microchemical reactor. The molecular, pyrene-TEMPO catalyst oxidizes glyoxalic acid to oxalic acid. The enzyme oxalate …

La Gota Que Colma La Caguama: Cummulative Tensions Transformed Into The Defense Of Water, Anthony J. Meluso

Geography ETDs

Making water management decisions is often where dreams and visions about potential futures are constructed and contested (Swengedouw 2015). However, in a globalized world, it is not well understood how people can challenge dominant paradigms to shape desirable futures when they are also complicit in, and dependent on existing structures (Arts & Buizer 2009; Emery, Perks, & Bracken 2013: Kleinschmit, Böcher, & Giessen 2009). This project examines a brewery conflict in the Mexicali Valley that provides an example of how protesters were able to challenge dominant assumptions about water management in a complex, globalized environment. I draw on Laclau’s (2005) …