Digital Commons Network^™

Combining Isotopic And Genetic Analyses To Quantify Microbial Facilitation Of Recalcitrant Resource Use By Terrestrial And Aquatic Consumers, Alexi Christina Besser

Biology ETDs

Quantifying the flow of energy and nutrients through food webs is foundational to understanding the structure and function of ecosystems. Here, I utilize the stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis of individual amino acids to trace the movement of essential amino acids through terrestrial and freshwater food webs in New Mexico, USA. I first explore isotopic patterns among co-occurring terrestrial plants and aquatic algae. I then combine this molecular isotopic approach with 16S and 18S rRNA sequencing to demonstrate the importance of gut microbiota as sources of essential amino acids to wild mammalian hosts. Next, I explore the roles of …

Boren Awards And Foreign Language And Area Studies (Flas) Fellowships Info-Session, Latin American And Iberian Institute

LAII Events

Boren Awards

-Boren Awards provide funds up to $25,000 to undergraduate students and up to $30,000 to graduate students who study languages considered essential for U.S. national security by the federal government, including Arabic, Hindi, Mandarin, Portuguese, Russian, and Swahili.

-Fellows must commit to working in the U.S. federal government for at least one year. Preferred candidates are those who have an interest in working in the federal government long-term. Graduate applications are due January 25, 2023. Undergraduate applications are due February 1, 2023.

Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowships

-Summer and Academic Year (AY) FLAS Fellowships are awarded …

Status Seeking In Conspicuous Spectator Sports Consumption: A Self-Determination Theory Perspective, Yong Wang

Health, Exercise, and Sports Sciences ETDs

According to self-determination theory, people are intrinsically and/or extrinsically motivated to self-regulate their behavior (Deci & Ryan, 2012). Sport fans watch games for intrinsic rewards such as having fun and supporting a team, which, from the identity fusion perspective (Swann Jr et al., 2009), derive from their visceral sense of oneness with a team. Although they can choose to watch games at home, many fans spend money attending expensive games (e.g., major sports) and publicly display their experience. A plethora of sport management literature has addressed the intrinsic motivation for attending games; however, less attention has been paid to the …

The Effects Of Whole-Body Hot Water Immersion After Exercise Induced Muscle Damage On Exercise Performance And Inflammatory Markers, Rogelio A. Realzola

Health, Exercise, and Sports Sciences ETDs

This study examined the effects of hot water immersion (HWI) on exercise performance and inflammatory markers after a resistance exercise-induced muscle damage protocol. Strength trained males (n = 5) and females (n = 5) completed two experimental trials separated by at least 2 weeks in a randomized crossover design; one trial involved HWI, the other temperate water immersion (TWI). For each trial, subjects performed a muscle damaging protocol followed by HWI or TWI for up to 50 minutes. The protocol consisted of 10 sets of 8 repetitions at 70% of 1-repetition maximum with 4s eccentric, 1s concentric lifting …

Adaptive Federated Learning For The Internet Of Things, Rana Albelaihi

Computer Science ETDs

The rise of the Internet of Things (IoT) services has facilitated data sharing and information diffusion among billions of devices. However, IoT still faces data privacy and energy consumption challenges yet to be resolved. Here, the data privacy challenge implies that clients in terms of IoT devices have to share their sensitive data (such as clients’ locations) with a centralized server or data center (managed by third parties), which analyze these sensitive data to generate high-level knowledge that can provide better services to the clients. The energy consumption challenge implies that clients have to frequently send their data to a …

Investigation Of Laser And Nonlinear Properties Of Anderson Localizing Optical Fibers, Cody Ryan Bassett

Optical Science and Engineering ETDs

In this dissertation, I investigate the possibility of lasing and nonlinear phenomena in completely solid-state transverse Anderson localizing optical fibers (TALOFs). I examine three areas within this range of topics. The research in nonlinear phenomena focuses on four-wave mixing (FWM). FWM is of high interest in TALOFs due to the fact that guided localized modes of the fiber each have different propagation constants, and thus unique possible FWM pairs can be generated from the same input pump beam. I demonstrate the generation of FWM in the TALOF by pumping it with 532 nm light into a localized mode and observing …

Particle Image Velocimetry Methodology For Calculating The Advective Losses At The Solar Tower For The Gen 3 Concentrated Solar Power System, Guillermo Anaya

Mechanical Engineering ETDs

The Falling Particle Receiver (FPR) built by Sandia National Laboratory (SNL) at the National Solar Thermal Testing Facilities (NSTTF) is one of the latest concentrated energy harvesting systems for Concentrated Solar Power (CSP). The FPR system at the NSTTF uses solid particles as both the heat transfer fluid and storage media. This FPR operates by having a gravity-driven particles curtain being irradiated through an open cavity by CSP, provided by a heliostat field. However, during operation plumes of particles being expelled out of the receiver cavity can be observed, resulting in heat losses as well as particle inventory losses. The …

That's A Wrap: Using Cultural Discourse Analysis To Explicate The Film Portrayal Of Communication Between Elderly Parents And Their Adult Child(Ren) In A Caregiving Relationship, Gerri A. Duran

Communication ETDs

There are burgeoning numbers of elderly and a significant number of their adult children provide them with some level of care. To date, there has been little research on elderly parents’ perspective as they communicate with their adult children about the care provided by their children. This dissertation addresses this gap by identifying the nature of the communication, as portrayed in film, which occurs between an elderly parent (EP) and their caregiving adult child (AC).

In addition to identifying the nature of communication between an EP and their AC, I examine the similarities/differences of their communication among the films. I …

The Dance Of Domesticity: How Gender Constructs Obscure Lived Experience At Museums, Marcy J. Botwick

Museum Studies Theses

My thesis focuses on Mary Shepard Greene Blumenschein and Ernest L. Blumenschein, married artists born in the late 1860s. Ernest Blumenschein was an important regional artist and member of the Taos Society of Artists (TSA). Paintings by Blumenschein and other TSA members promoted tourism in the Southwestern United States through annual exhibitions and their use in advertising the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (AT&SF). Mary Greene Blumenschein was an award-winning painter and illustrator whose work focused on images of women at the beginning of the twentieth century, however, she is now a secondary and obscure figure in art history. …

Maneuvering Mestizaje In Shakespeare's Tragicomedies, Andrea Phiana Borunda

English Language and Literature ETDs

This project explores and wades through the implications of mestizaje in the murky depths of Shakespeare’s oceans. Disguises and mistakes in identities and in gender and “race” draw on the hybridity and indeterminacy of the early modern stage and its fluidity and lack of order to reflect an unhomed and unmediated formation of nationhood, diaspora, and (trans)global identities. Drawing on ecocritical and critical race theories, I contend the tragicomic works of Shakespeare expose and dismantle ecoracial fantasies of white male supremacy to curate a space of mestizaje for a new generation of BIPOC scholars.

Science, Technology, Engineering, And Mathematics (Stem) Project-Based Learning (Pbl) Education: A New Mexico Case Study For Equity And Inclusion, Kimberly A. Scheerer

Teacher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy ETDs

This research addresses how student participation in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) project-based learning (PBL) education activities encourages underrepresented minority student achievement in STEM career field trajectories. Seven New Mexico high school counselors and 12 STEM organization personnel were interviewed during this study. Their responses represent the nuanced professional voices where New Mexico public education intersects with STEM student interest and cultural influence.

For students, STEM PBL can foster deep integration across educational disciplines and enhance STEM career trajectory interest and readiness. STEM education converged with PBL methodologies has the ability to leverage community support while broadening student networks. …

The Impact Of Murals On Traffic Safety: A Behavior And Crash Analysis, Maria Cecelia Cruz

Civil Engineering ETDs

ABSTRACT

This research analyzed changes in motor vehicle volumes and motor vehicle speeds after the installation of an intersection mural in Albuquerque, NM and changes in crash frequency after mural installations in Philadelphia, PA. Data was collected manually on site for the Albuquerque study and secondary data – including installation dates and physical characteristics – were used for the Philadelphia crash analyses. Statistics were computed to determine trends in motor vehicle speeds and volumes relative to the Albuquerque mural installation. A geographic information system (GIS) spatial analysis and t-test statistical analyses were used to determine which Philadelphia murals saw significant …

Techno-Economic Analysis Of Atmospheric Water Harvesting Across Climates, Natalie Gayoso

Civil Engineering ETDs

Drinking water scarcity is a global challenge as ground water and surface water availability diminishes. The atmosphere is an alternative freshwater reservoir that has universal availability and an abundance of water within the air. This makes the atmosphere a great source to capture drinking water. In order to effectively perform Atmospheric Water Harvesting (AWH) we need to 1) understand how different climate regions (e.g., arid, temperate, and tropical) drive the amount of water being produced, and 2) determine the cost to purchase, operate, and power AWH. This research pairs thermodynamics with Techno-Economic Analysis, a method of analyzing the economic performance …

Escribir El Desarrollo, Desplegar La Cultura: Historias De Imaginación Económica En Colombia Y Brasil, Diego Bustos

Spanish and Portuguese ETDs

In this dissertation, we analyze how a group of artists negotiate through their novels and cultural performances a repertoire of meanings on inequality and plurality, formulating a program of socio-cultural transformation via literature. In the first two chapters, we examine the work by Colombian author Augusto Morales Pino (comprised of four volumes), as proponent of a transnational genealogy of economic development, offering a repertoire of meanings and practices for contemporary public policy in which the concept of middle class predominates. I argue that these representations actively shape the possibility and limits of the contemporary models of inclusion and cultural citizenship. …

Statistical Methods For Differential Gene Expression Analysis Under The Case-Cohort Design, Lidong Wang

Mathematics & Statistics ETDs

Differential gene expression analysis has the potential to discover candidate biomarkers, therapeutic targets, and gene signatures. How to save money when using an unaffordable sample is a practical question. The case-cohort (CCH) study design can blend the economy of case-control studies with the advantages of cohort studies. But it has not been seen in the medical research literature where high-throughput genomic data were involved.

A score test does not need to fit the Cox PH model iteratively; hence, it can save computing time and avoid potential convergence issues. We developed a score test under the CCH design to identify DEGs …

Evaluating Microneedle Impedance For Monitoring Water Potential In Vitis Vinifera And Helianthus Annuus, Erica Grace Pauer

Biology ETDs

Measurements of plant water potential provide fundamental insights into how plants are interacting with the environment to manage water needs. However, monitoring water potential is difficult, time consuming, and frequently destructive. Several methods have been in development that attempt to monitor the water status of plant tissues in a simple, continuous, and non-destructive manner. One of these methods, electrical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), is emerging as a particularly promising tool that has several applications in plant biology. I used a new microneedle system that applies small electrodes to a range of tissues. By utilizing this tool in conjunction with a standard …

Induced Seismicity In The Raton Basin And Global Variability Of The 410-Km Discontinuity, Margaret E. Glasgow

Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs

Natural processes like mantle convection and plate tectonics dominate Earth’s seismic structure. Recently human activities have increasingly influenced the deformation of the shallow crust. In this dissertation, passive source seismology was used to constrain seismic discontinuities in the mantle transition zone and seismogenic structures in induced earthquake settings. Using a novel sampling method and uniform processing approach, I found the 410-km discontinuity is thermally and compositionally variable. Using a machine- learning approach, I found the three main zones of seismicity in the Raton Basin consist of short faults or fault segments with variable orientations. The zone that hosted a Mw …

Dense Array Seismic Imaging Of Earth's Crust Using Active And Passive Sources, Evans Awere Onyango

Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs

Imaging Earth’s crust is critical to understanding processes in the near-surface that affect civilization such as the interaction of seismic waves with the near-surface to generate natural or man-made hazards or investigating how the shallow crust affects the distribution of resources. In chapter 1, I processed and analyzed active source seismic data recorded by ~1000 geophones that were acquired over the legacy HADDOCK nuclear test at the Nevada National Security Site. Using seismic reflection and refraction methods, we image the partially collapsed post-detonation structure to better understand the velocity structure in and around the HADDOCK chimney. Results from this work …

Historical Medical Books And Their Waiting Place, Robyn Gleasner

Posters and Presentations

No abstract provided.

Evolution Of Shock-Driven Multi-Phase Instability, Joshua Chavez

Mechanical Engineering ETDs

ABSTRACT

In many models and experiments using shock tubes and shock tube instabilities, measurements of velocity and position of the flow features are frequently taken in a single horizontal direction (or in one plane), however, the three-dimensional flow structure is important and cannot be fully resolved by such measurements. By placing a mirror at 45 degrees atop a test section of a shock tube, it becomes possible to visualize the flow from two directions simultaneously. The mirror is used to see if viable data can be gathered from the second view in conjunction with the main view. With high-speed video …

Teachers Of General Education: Perceptions And Experiences Teaching Inclusion In U.S. Schools, Ann C. Sander

Teacher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy ETDs

This phenomenological qualitative study explored the perceptions and experiences of a group of U.S. public schools, kindergarten through fifth grade teachers, certified in general education with experience teaching inclusion--a federally mandated practice requiring schools to educate students both with and without disabilities in the same classroom. Much of the literature surrounding inclusion focuses on the perceived benefits of the program and children with disabilities' legal rights. The literature has a limited number of references describing the perceptions and experiences of teachers who are required to provide the educational services necessary for inclusion in the classroom.

In this study, 35 participants …

Material Characterization And Comparison Of Sol-Gel Deposited And Rf Magnetron Deposited Lead Zirconate Titanate Thin Films, Katherine Lynne Miles

Mechanical Engineering ETDs

Lead zirconate titanate (PZT) has been a material of interest for sensor, actuator, and transducer applications in microelectromechanical systems (MEMS). This is due to their favorable piezoelectric, pyroelectric and ferroelectric properties. While various methods are available to deposit PZT thin films, radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering was selected to provide high quality PZT films with the added capability of batch processing. These sputter deposited PZT films were characterized to determine their internal film stress, Young’s modulus, composition, and structure. After characterization, the sputtered PZT samples were poled using corona poling and direct poling methods. As a means of comparison, commercially …

A Metabolic Profile Of Escalating Density Training, Desmond Millender

Health, Exercise, and Sports Sciences ETDs

Objective: The purpose of this study was to compare the acute physiological, perceptual, and enjoyment responses between a single bout of escalating density training (EDT) and traditional resistance training (TRAD).

Methods: Twelve physically active males (n = 6) and females (n = 6) (age: 21.4 ± 3.0 years; weight: 69.8 ± 7.9 kg; height: 172.9 ± 12.4 cm; maximal oxygen consumption (VO₂max): 44.7 ± 9.2 ml · kg^-1 · min^-1) performed both EDT and TRAD. During the EDT trial, participants performed chest and leg press exercises in a cyclical fashion for 15 minutes with limited …

Unraveling The Complex Interactions Between Members Of The Schistosoma Haematobium Group And Bulinus Snails In And Around Lake Victoria In West Kenya, Caitlin Raiselle Babbitt

Biology ETDs

Schistosoma haematobium, the agent of urogenital schistosomiasis, and related schistosomes are transmitted by members of the genus Bulinus. Each of the 38 Bulinus species vary in their ability to vector schistosome species and non-schistosome trematodes resulting in a patchwork of snail-parasite compatibilities. Accurately identifying snail intermediate hosts and the disease-causing parasites they transmit is critical for snail control strategies and the management of human schistosomiasis. Towards these ends, this thesis identifies bulinid species and the parasites they transmit and implicates certain species in the transmission of S. haematobium. The thesis also includes a systematic review of methods …

Creating Counter-Hegemonic Spaces In A Spanish Language Arts Classroom, Mercedes Valenzuela

Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies ETDs

This qualitative case study used practitioner research methods to address the question: How does a Mexican American teacher create counter-hegemonic spaces in a Spanish Language Arts classroom utilizing critical race and borderlands theories? The research focused on how I as a teacher-built trust and respect through place—here, the classroom, classroom activities, and discussions—thereby creating a place for students to express their thoughts and feelings and to build relationships with the teacher and their classmates for learning to occur. This study also analyzed how using critical race and borderlands theories influences and shapes Mexican American students’ educational experiences beyond a …

The Hidden Story Of Online Social Network Graphs, Aisha B Rahman

Shared Knowledge Conference

Nowadays it is very difficult to find a person that is not connected to any sort of online social network, especially after experiencing the terrifying impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and being stuck at home, people became more dependent on social media to consolidate themselves. One of the COVID-19 pandemic's most lasting effects is an upsurge in social media usage. Online social networks make it easier to connect with others and find those who share common interests. But the dark sides of social networks are also out there. Catfishing is what my study focuses on. Catfishing is the practice of …

"Waaay Beyond Words": Using Voice And Gestures To Catapult Communication, David Páez

Shared Knowledge Conference

"Mmmuuuchísimos años atrás" (mmmaaany years ago). That is what a Colombian speaker would say when describing an event that occurred a long time ago. In doing so, they simulate throwing an imaginary object (like a paper plane), pushing their hands far away from the body. At the same time, they will extend the duration of the words and rise and drop intonation and speaking rate, simulating the sound of throwing that object. This combination of multiple "modalities" of expression (speech sounds and gestures) that resemble the concepts they are conveying is called Multimodal Iconic Expressions (MMIEs). These MMIEs tend to …

Creando La Confianza: Narratives On Mentorship Of Latina Professors At The University Of New Mexico, Maria Vielma

Shared Knowledge Conference

Numerous scholars have investigated the significant role that representation and mentorship play in the success of Latinas and women of color during their journey through higher education, from degree completion to faculty hiring and advancement. However, little research exists surrounding the lived experiences that have shaped mentorship carried out by university faculty, specifically, mentorship carried out by bilingual Latina faculty in higher education. Using a Latina Feminist Epistemology and Oral History Methodologies, this thesis aims to understand the cycle of mentorship via the narratives of bilingual Latina professors at the University of New Mexico. This study demonstrates lived experiences of …

Living Roots: Indigenous Agave And Mezcal Cultures, Marsella Macias

Shared Knowledge Conference

"Mezcal is a liquid representation of indigenous culture throughout México." I will never forget my mentor's words when I attended a mezcal tasting he curated in 2015. I had been working with destilados de agave since 2009, before mezcal boomed into the global market, yet I hadn't been able to pin-point what set mezcal uniquely apart from other distillates I worked with throughout my career. It wasn't until I heard his definition that it hit me - mezcal is cultural essence in a bottle. Before journeying profitably across international borders, mezcal traditionally remained in México being sold amongst pueblos and …

Missing Women Within The National Project: A Transnational View Between Mexico And The United States, Megan Tung-Weston

Shared Knowledge Conference

This investigation analyzes the ways in which the disappearances of women in Mexico have been used as a political tool of manipulation and oppression of the Mexican people (in particular, women of Indigenous descent). After the Mexican Revolution of the twentieth century, the country entered the modern era with the arrival of global conflicts and technological developments. This transition also brought about various social changes relating to gender, which were both beneficial and harmful for women and Indigenous populations. The construction of feminine identity-what it means to be a woman, in Mexico, in the twentieth century-and the social creation of …