Digital Commons Network^™

Trying To Cover The Sun With Your Thumb: A Critical Ethnography Of Maternity Care Provision In Rural Northern New Mexico, Abigail Reese

Nursing ETDs

Access to maternity care is disappearing for women across rural America. In the state of New Mexico, women often travel long distances to access hospitals and providers that offer childbirth services, as these resources are concentrated primarily in metropolitan areas. Although data on provider distribution is available, very few studies have explored the maternity care access crisis from the perspectives of the midwives and physicians who work in rural areas. The purpose of this critical ethnographic study was to explore barriers and facilitators to the provision of childbirth services from providers’ perspectives with the intent of informing policy debates around …

Exposure Assessment Of Citizens To Traffic Related Air Pollutants In A Long-Range Transportation Plan, Amir Poorfakhraei

Civil Engineering ETDs

A large body of evidence links fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) exposure with a wide range of negative health outcomes. Research finds that about 30% of individuals’ exposure to particulate matter in urban areas come from mobiles sources. Evaluating regional transportation plans and estimating how they impact air quality and exposure to PM_2.5 in the future is thus of major concern.

There are two major concerns about the current practice of evaluating regional transportation plans also known as long-range transportation plans (LRTPs). First, how LRTPs affect future air quality are at best evaluated by estimating the change in …

Frameworks To Investigate Robustness And Disease Characterization/Prediction Utility Of Time-Varying Functional Connectivity State Profiles Of The Human Brain At Rest, Anees Abrol

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

Neuroimaging technologies aim at delineating the highly complex structural and functional organization of the human brain. In recent years, several unimodal as well as multimodal analyses of structural MRI (sMRI) and functional MRI (fMRI) neuroimaging modalities, leveraging advanced signal processing and machine learning based feature extraction algorithms, have opened new avenues in diagnosis of complex brain syndromes and neurocognitive disorders. Generically regarding these neuroimaging modalities as filtered, complimentary insights of brain’s anatomical and functional organization, multimodal data fusion efforts could enable more comprehensive mapping of brain structure and function.

Large scale functional organization of the brain is often studied by …

Post-Impact Light Vapor Incorporation During Lunar Formation Based On Triple Oxygen Isotopes, Erick J. Cano

Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs

Initial triple oxygen isotope analyses of lunar samples showed them to be indistinguishable from Earth, which led to numerous papers aimed at explaining the similarities. Recent high-precision analyses suggested either a subtle enrichment in Δ'¹⁷O or virtually no difference between the Earth and Moon. Herein we expand on previous studies by correlating the triple oxygen isotope measurements with different lunar lithologies. We show that these data can be explained by mixing between a light vapor phase, generated during the Giant Impact, and the residual material from the proto-lunar impactor ‘Theia’. There is a general decrease in Δ'^{17 …}

Playing Sports In College: Understanding The Factors That Influence The College Choice Process For High School Student-Athletes, Lauren Holzberg

Teacher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy ETDs

The college athletic recruiting process at times can be overwhelming, confusing, and intimidating. It is my hope that Playing Sports in College: Understanding the Factors that Influence the College Choice Process for High School Student-Athletes will alleviate some of the questions associated with the recruiting process and allow prospective student-athletes to pursue their college student-athlete dreams by offering simple advice, some basic ground rules, and plenty of inspiration.

This book is a go-to guide for the numerous questions that arise during the recruiting process and can be used when a student-athlete begins the recruiting process and it can be referred …

Development Of Copper-Catalyzed Suzuki-Miyaura Coupling Using Alkylboron Reagents And Nickel-Catalyzed Alkene Dicarbofunctionalization Reactions, Prakash Basnet

Chemistry and Chemical Biology ETDs

This thesis is divided into two parts. The first part deals with the development of copper-catalyzed Suzuki-Miyaura coupling of alkylboron reagents for the first time. In the second part, we will discuss the development of novel nickel-catalyzed alkene dicarbofunctionalization reactions.

Part I. Cross-coupling reactions are versatile tools to form new carbon-carbon bonds and are widely used in the synthesis of various drug molecules, natural products and materials. However, these reactions are typically catalyzed by palladium, an expensive and rare metal which makes the reaction unsustainable in long-terms. Additionally, palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions with alkylorganometallic reagents suffer from side reactions due to …

Vertical Transport Study Of Iii-V Type-Ii Superlattices, Zahra Taghipour

Optical Science and Engineering ETDs

Type-II strained layer superlattice (T2SL) semiconductors hold great promise for mid- and long-wavelength infrared photodetectors. While T2SL-based materials have advanced significantly in the last three decades, an outstanding challenge to improve the T2SLs is to understand the carrier transport and its limitations, in particular along the superlattice growth layers.

In this dissertation, an overview of the current state-of-the-art InAs/GaSb T2SLs is presented. Fundamental semiconductor device equations and transport properties, including miniband conduction and the drift-diffusion parameters, are reviewed, and the fundamental limiting factors in carrier's transport are discussed. Furthermore, the standard method of electron-beam-induced current technique to measuring these parameters …

Tulie Trails Turkey Time Walk, University Of New Mexico Prevention Research Center

Events

Kick the holidays off right and join Tulie Trails for a pre-Thanksgiving stroll around the historic Village of Tularosa.

Scalable, Biofunctional, Ultra-Stable Nano- Bio- Composite Materials Containing Living Cells, Patrick E. Johnson, C. Jeffrey Brinker, Graham Timmins, Jacob Agola, Jason Harper

Nanoscience and Microsystems ETDs

Three-dimensional encapsulation of cells within nanostructured silica gels or matrices enables applications as diverse as biosensors, microbial fuel cells, artificial organs, and vaccines. It also allows study of individual cell behaviors. Recent progress has improved the performance and flexibility of cellular encapsulation, yet there remains a need for robust scalable processes for large format production of cell-encapsulating materials. Here, we detail two novel techniques, that enable the large-scale production of functional Nano-Bio-Composites (NBCs) containing living cells within ordered 3-D lipid/silica nanostructures: 1) thick-casting and 2) spray drying. Furthermore, we detail a third technique for material scaling in which aqueous, silicate-based …

Mantle-To-Surface Neotectonic Connections In The San Juan Mountains Documented By 3he/4he, Co2 Flux Meaurements, And Hydrochemical Analysis Of The Geothermal System Near Rico, Colorado, Benjamin D. Holt

Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs

This project investigates the controls on geothermal fluids and their conduit systems which may account for high mantle helium components of geothermal fluids in intracratonic continental regions. The field laboratory is the western San Juan Mountains of southwestern Colorado where the structural setting and hydrochemistry of carbonic springs suggest potential connections among surface hot springs, fault networks, CO2 degassing, significant geothermal potential, young volcanic and plutonic rocks (< 7 Ma), and low-velocity upper mantle. The Rico Hot Springs have the highest mantle volatile component of any spring in Colorado with air-corrected values of 3He/4He = 5.88 RA indicating 73% mantle helium component. This near-MORB mantle helium value at Rico indicates that volatiles degassing from the mantle must be rapidly transmitted into the groundwater system along deep-seated faults such that accumulation of 4He from radiogenic crust has not swamped mantle-derived primordial 3He. Geologic features that are important for volatile transport and spring chemistry controls include a complex conduit system and fault network involving the Precambrian-cored Rico Dome, ~4 Ma intrusive rocks at Calico Peak and Priest Gulch, and a low-velocity upper mantle. Therefore, Rico and the surrounding region is a natural laboratory for studying geothermal fluid and mantle volatile pathways. Additional noble gas analyses and hydrochemistry data were gathered from regional springs and modeled via chemical geothermometers. New noble gas measurements from this study, paired with literature values, reveal highest air corrected 3He/4He at Rico (4.09-5.88 RA), Dunton (3.11-4.54 RA), Geyser Warm Spring (3.39 RA), and Paradise Warm Spring (2.72 RA). Water volume is dominated by meteoric fluids as shown by stable isotope data but hydrochemistry indicates high TDS, high CO2, and high He come from a geothermal fluid endmember. Variable mixing and water-rock interactions are processes that can explain chemistry variations between spatially proximal springs. CO2 flux measurements (up to 36.2 g/m2/hr) vary across structural features and demonstrate that the faults act as pathways for CO2 flux suggesting ongoing degassing. Overall, we find that local high mantle helium signature is localized directly above regions of lowest upper mantle velocity in the San Juan mantle anomaly and is derived from neotectonic mantle melts in those regions.

Use Of Sodium Dithionite For Groundwater Restoration Following Uranium In-Situ Recovery Mining At The Smith Ranch-Highalnd Site In Wyoming, Rose J. Harris

Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs

Uranium in-situ recovery (ISR) is a subsurface aqueous mining technique used to extract uranium from sandstone roll-front deposits. After ISR mining, groundwater restoration is conducted to decrease concentrations of residual U(VI) and other contaminants leftover in the groundwater. Sodium dithionite, a strong chemical reductant, is being tested for use in groundwater restoration following uranium ISR at the Smith Ranch-Highland site in Wyoming. Sodium dithionite has been used to remediate chromium plumes by creating an in-situ permeable reactive barrier, but there has been no work using sodium dithionite for groundwater restoration following uranium ISR mining.

Laboratory batch and column experiments, and …

Sedimentology And Stratigraphy Of Core Stl14: An Early Pleistocene-To-Present Paleoclimate Archive From Stoneman Lake, Arizona, Spencer Staley

Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs

An 80 m lacustrine sediment core (STL14) from Stoneman Lake, Coconino County, Arizona, contains a sedimentary sequence of at least 1.5 million years, chronicling the complete history of basin infill and recording an extensive and high-resolution archive of climatic and hydrologic fluctuations. Lake levels in this small, internally-drained catchment are sensitive to changes in regional hydrologic balance. Consistent groundwater inflow, even during regionally dry episodes in the lake’s history, has prevented complete desiccation of the lake and sustained continuous lacustrine deposition except for one soil horizon. Multiproxy analysis of sedimentological indicators including lithofacies, color, wet bulk density, magnetic susceptibility, preliminary …

Pakistani English Language Teachers’ Preparedness: An Investigation Of Ideological Meaning-Making In Higher Education Institutions In Pakistan, Yasir Hussain

Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies ETDs

This research study is an attempt to understand the ideological preparedness of English language teachers at the higher education institutions (HEIs) in Pakistan. The construct of preparedness is unique in this study because the phenomenon of preparedness is simplified for pedagogical methodologies and teaching practices. This study is a journey of understanding ideology, its representations through discourse, and its enactment through discursive practices of the participant-teachers. In this hermeneutical phenomenological study, I used interview texts as the data source and critical discourse analysis (CDA) as the analytical framework. The participants included 15 English language teachers at nine different HEIs in …

Scalable Stochastic Reachability: Theory, Computation, And Control, Abraham Puthuvana Vinod

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

Guaranteeing safety and performance are crucial components in any control system, and particularly relevant in light of growing interest in reliable autonomy. In safety-critical applications like biomedical devices, spacecraft applications, and self-driving cars, the cost of failure can be severe. Verification provides these guarantees by characterizing the ``good'' initial states or configurations from which a state can be driven to remain within a collection of pre-specified safe sets, while respecting the system dynamics, bounds on control authority, and additive uncertainties. We also wish to design controllers to achieve this objective. This dissertation proposes novel theory and scalable algorithms for tractable …

University Of New Mexico Board Of Regents Minutes For November 15, 2018, University Of New Mexico Board Of Regents

Board of Regents Meeting Minutes

No abstract provided.

20181115_Cuddle A Canine At The Health Sciences Library - 11-19, Kristin R. Proctor

HSLIC Blog Post

No abstract provided.

Investigation Of The Formation Of Γꞌꞌ Precipitates Under Ion Irradiation And Elevated Temperature Environments, James R. Pike

Nuclear Engineering ETDs

During a preventative maintenance at the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) Isotope Production Facility (IPF), a beam window made of solution annealed Alloy 718 was replaced and the old beam window was analyzed. The old beam window underwent mechanical testing and microstructure analysis. During the microstructure analysis, the formation of γꞌꞌ precipitates was observed in Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) electron diffraction pattern. The formation of γꞌꞌ precipitates was not expected since they are not stable under irradiation. Furthermore, the formation of γꞌꞌ precipitates was observed only at a temperature of 33ºC, and a dose of 0.7 displacement per atom …

Epistemological Disjunctivism: An Analysis And A Critique, Krupa Patel

Philosophy ETDs

In this dissertation, I focus on the epistemological concerns regarding a disjunctivist theory of perception. More specifically, I focus on a critique of epistemological disjunctivism, a thesis about how our beliefs about the world are supported by perception. In order to explain the possibility of perceptual knowledge, an epistemological disjunctivist argues that one’s epistemic support in a good case, seeing that p (e.g., seeing that there is a lemon on the table), is different in kind from one’s epistemic support in a bad case, seeming to see that p (e.g., seeming to see that there is a lemon on the …

Radionuclides In Rainwater And Their Impact On Background Radiation, Damien M. Milazzo

Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs

Radioactive waste has accrued throughout the continental United States and in the Oceans surrounding the country. Significant quantities of the waste are poorly documented regarding their location and the radioisotopes contained in the waste. Locating the waste is not an easy matter, as its locations are not well documented, and its method of disposal may be covered with plants, soils, and sediments. A common tool used to locate the waste is a gamma spectrometer, which measure the gamma emissions spectrum of radionuclides. The effectiveness of this tool when utilized to locate gamma emitting waste may be reduced due to the …

Maternal Sexuality During Lactation: The Influence Of Breastfeeding Recency And Relationship Quality, Melissa A. Eaton

Psychology ETDs

Introduction. During lactation, breastfeeders report reduced sexual desire and sexual activity (Von Sydow, 1999). Yet research has not examined the direct impact of suckling on sexuality during lactation. This study looked at breastfeeders, immediately following breastfeeding and several hours later, to determine if the recency of infant suckling influences maternal sexuality. Sexual motivations were also compared between breastfeeders and other mothers. Methods. Mothers of infants between 2 and 7 months of age participated in the repeated measures study online. Participants were randomly assigned to the order of their sessions and participated 20 minutes after breastfeeding or 120 minutes after …

Carrier Lifetime Vs. Proton Radiation In Prototype Iii-V And Ii-Vi Space-Based Infrared Detectors, Geoffrey D. Jenkins

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

Researchers have spent over 50 years improving the performance of HgCdTe infrared (IR) detectors and it is currently the dominant technology in the field; however, further improvement may be limited due to devices reaching the intrinsic limits of their constituent materials. To further improve the state-of-the-art in space-based IR detection, alternative material systems are being considered. The focus of this work is testing the space-environment viability of innovative device structures, namely unipolar barriers with Type-II superlattice (T2SL) absorbers, made from the 6.1 Å family of III-V elements which are theoretically superior performers while being less costly.

Sensitive IR photo-detection using …

Acoustofluidics And Soft Materials Interfaces For Biomedical Applications, Frank A. Fencl

Biomedical Engineering ETDs

This dissertation describes fabrication of devices and other tools for biomedical applications through the integration of acoustofluidic systems with bio separation assays, instrumentation components, and soft materials interfaces. For example, we engineer a new class of transparent acoustic flow chambers ideal for optical interrogation. We demonstrate efficacy of these devices by enhancing the signal for high throughput acoustic flow cytometry, capable of robust particle focusing across multiple parallel flowing streams. We also investigate an automated sampling system to determine the parameters of transient particle stream focusing in between sample boluses and air bubbles to model a high throughput, multi-sampling acoustic …

Rate-Determining Step And Active Sites Probing For Platinum-Group-Metal Free Cathode Catalyst In Fuel Cell, Yechuan Chen

Chemical and Biological Engineering ETDs

With the increasing demand on renewable energy, the fuel cell has attracted more and more interests because of its large power density and controllable size. However, the insufficiency of element abundance and unstable expensive price of conventional platinum-based electrocatalysts used in anode and cathode makes it essential to find their substitutes. As one of the most promising candidates to be used in cathode for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), iron-nitrogen-carbon (Fe-N-C) catalysts have been widely investigated and get commercialized recently, but still lacks comprehensive understanding on the kinetic mechanism.

This dissertation has been divided into three parts with a discussion on …

Race, Disability And The Possibilities Of Radical Agency: Toward A Political Philosophy Of Decolonial Critical Hermeneutics In Latinx Discrit, Alexis C. Padilla

Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies ETDs

The present dissertation is a non-empirical methodology project grounded in political philosophy. As a practical exercise, it bridges knowledge workers (e.g., educators, action researchers and other engaged scholars) with activists to explore the situated emancipation possibilities of radical agency at the intersection of blindness and Latinidad. It does so in line with DisCrit and other bodies of literature within critical disability studies, works centered on trans-Latinidades and border-crossing, intersectional decoloniality theorizing, critical hermeneutics, critical race theory and blackness/ whiteness studies. It interrogates performative and movement building spaces for teaching and learning that foster radical exteriority trajectories of decolonial solidarity and …

Development Of Functional Chemical Probes For The Study Of Viscosity, Fe(Ii), And Ferroptosis And Photo-Triggered Drug Delivery, Yongyi Wei

Chemistry and Chemical Biology ETDs

Small molecule probes are useful tools for the study of biology. In particular, the dye derived fluorescence probes enable to spatiotemporally monitor the events of analytes of interest. The noninvasive feature is particularly attractive for the biological studies in live cells. The challenge is to develop chemical probes capable of detection of the analyte of interest with high specificity.

Toward this end, my Ph. D. study centers on the development of novel chemical probes for the study and understanding of the alternation of important cellar contents and substances and their functions and relationship between normal and disease states. In the …

Body And Time: The Temporality Of Human Embodiment, Daniel Harland Briggs Jr.

Philosophy ETDs

In this dissertation I hope to shed further light on Heidegger’s thought-provoking claim that “We do not “have” a body; rather, we “are” bodily.” After discussing the problem of the body in the context of Being and Time in chapters one and two, I move to Heidegger’s later lectures and seminars in chapter three to articulate a specifically Heideggerian account of the bodying of the body. I hope to show that Heidegger’s understanding of the ontological difference can effectively help us to understand bodily difference in its corporeal, lived, and existential dimensions. From a Heideggerian standpoint, the existential dimensions of …

Comparison Of Calculated Energy Expenditure To Measured Energy Expenditure In Overweight And Obese Burn Patients In An Icu Setting: A Retrospective Study, Elle Maree Skinner, Deborah A. Cohen, Orrin B. Myers, Diana Gonzales-Pacheco

Individual, Family, and Community Education ETDs

Burns cause massive dermal wounds. Wound healing elicits a significant catabolic response and increase in energy expenditure, and thus, calorie needs. Overfeeding and/or underfeeding the overweight and obese critically ill patient can increase complications. Indirect Calorimetry (IC) is considered the ‘gold standard” for the measurement of Energy Expenditure (EE). Predictive equations are calculated to estimate EE instead. This study is a retrospective chart review. The difference between predictive energy expenditure (via Curreri formula) and measured IC were analyzed via non-parametric Wilcoxon signed rank match paired tests. Curreri equation prediction was analyzed on the ability to match IC (0% over or …

20181113_Biomedical Informatics Seminar Series Presents Lizzy Young, Md, 11-15, Sally Bowler-Hill

HSLIC Blog Post

No abstract provided.

The Role Of Mothers And Fathers In Predicting Adolescents' Peer Affiliation And Behavioral Adjustment, Becky Grelle, Alexandra N. Davis, Ryan J. Kelly, Cara Streit

Individual, Family, and Community Education ETDs

The current study aimed to examine the associations between parental warmth and control and adolescents’ social behaviors (altruistic and public prosocial behaviors, aggression, and delinquency) in a low-income, Midwestern sample. The study also aimed to examine how peer relationships may play an indirect role in these associations. The results demonstrated complex links between parenting dimensions and adolescents' peer affiliation and social behaviors. Specifically, maternal and paternal warmth were predictive of peer affiliation, which in turn predicted adolescents' prosocial behaviors as well as negative social behaviors. There were also direct links between maternal and paternal parenting dimensions and social behaviors, highlighting …

Quantum Algorithms, Architecture, And Error Correction, Ciarán Ryan-Anderson

Physics & Astronomy ETDs

Quantum algorithms have the potential to provide exponential speedups over some of the best known classical algorithms. These speedups may enable quantum devices to solve currently intractable problems such as those in the fields of optimization, material science, chemistry, and biology. Thus, the realization of large-scale, reliable quantum-computers will likely have a significant impact on the world. For this reason, the focus of this dissertation is on the development of quantum-computing applications and robust, scalable quantum-architectures. I begin by presenting an overview of the language of quantum computation. I then, in joint work with Ojas Parekh, analyze the performance of …