Digital Commons Network^™

The Eunuch: Understanding The Term In Light Of Gender Diversity, Christy-Lynne Lapine

USF St. Petersburg campus Honors Program Theses (Undergraduate)

This thesis examines the historical and cultural meanings of the term eunuch and challenges its common definition as simply a castrated cisgender male. Through a comparative analysis of examples from ancient Mesopotamia, Greece, Rome, Byzantium, Europe, and colonial India, the study demonstrates that the label has been applied to a diverse range of individuals, including castrated men, third-gender identities, gender-variant religious figures, intersex individuals, and people assigned female at birth who adopted alternative gender roles. By exploring the intersections of gender, biological sex, religion, politics, and colonialism, the thesis argues that the term eunuch functions as an overly broad and …

Developing A Silvopastoral System For Use In Pará, Brazil, Laurel Kerkman

USF St. Petersburg campus Honors Program Theses (Undergraduate)

Land use changes brought on by agriculture are responsible for both a significant portion of climate change and emissions from livestock. Carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases are released from land degradation and deforestation as diverse ecosystems are turned into pastures. Brazil, which ranks among the top four in the world for food production, is a hotspot for agriculture-related deforestation. Currently, Brazil is the largest exporter of beef in the world, which has put a strain on the environment as natural resources are destroyed in order to make room for industry. This thesis looks at and suggests silvopastoral farming systems …

Effects Of Time On Fingerprint Deposition After Alcohol-Based Hand Sanitizer Application, Allison Richards

USF St. Petersburg campus Honors Program Theses (Undergraduate)

Since the height of the COVID pandemic in 2020, alcohol-based hand sanitizers have been utilized by the general public because it eliminates germs on the skin surface along with virus cells. The use of hand sanitizer can have an adverse effect on the collection of fingerprints at a crime scene. A fingerprint is made up of amino acids which deteriorate under the presence of alcohol-based hand sanitizer. With prolonged use the product can even erode a subject’s skin altering the fingerprint to the point that it does not match documented latent prints. The purpose of this experiment is to determine …

Culturally Responsive Curriculum And Achievement Gaps, Barbara Figueredo

USF St. Petersburg campus Honors Program Theses (Undergraduate)

The achievement gap is a phenomenon that has been observed throughout schools in the United States. It often describes and reveals disproportions in test scores and general academic achievement in students intersected with their race and socioeconomic status. In Florida, for example, The Florida Department of Education (2015) measured, as part of their “New School Grades Mode1” where one of their goals was to address the achievement gap, the percentage of student scoring a three or higher on core subject standardized testing in 4th grade students throughout the state. It shows the differences in the achievement of students taking these …

“You Don’T Seek Help, You Are Just Thankful For The Things The Country Provides For You.” The Emotional Burden Of Growing Up Undocumented In The United States, Melanie Anne Escue

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

For over a decade, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program has provided more than 800,000 undocumented young adults with the ability to lawfully reside in the United States. Despite the program’s benefits, DACA falls short of offering long-term security and full societal integration. Over the past few years, political and legal attacks on the DACA program (e.g., actions of the former Trump administration, 2017 DACA recission, ongoing court proceedings) have made visible the precarious nature of the program and threatened the futures of young adults protected under the program. While prior studies have found that the growing anti-immigrant …

The Weekly Challenger, April 20, 2023, The Weekly Challenger, Et Al

Weekly Challenger Newspaper Collection

The April 20, 2023, issue of The Weekly Challenger.

Ay 2022/2023 Fs Meeting Minutes, 2023-04-19, Faculty Senate

Faculty Senate Archives

No abstract provided.

Crow's Nest, April 17, 2023, Crow's Nest Staff

Crow's Nest

The April 17, 2023, issue of the Crow's Nest.

Impact Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On Immigration-Related Stressors, Pregnancy, Birth, And Post-Partum Experiences Of Women Living Along The Us-Mexico Border, Isabela Solis

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The COVID-19 pandemic coupled with immigration-related stressors had a profound effect on women who lived on the U.S.-Mexico border and their pregnancy, birth, and post-partum experiences. This project focused the experiences of 17 women living in El Paso, Texas and how border closure, economic insecurities, and family separation during the COVID-19 pandemic shaped women’s experiences. This research included interviewing maternal and child health experts to propose recommendations geared towards policy change. Finally, this project highlights the vast complexities that go into the pregnancy, birth, and post-partum period for women living on the U.S.-Mexico border, and how these experiences shape maternal …

Essays On Cybersecurity And Information Privacy, Moez Hamedani Farokhnia

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation research focuses on two key aspects of cybersecurity research. Security safeguard allocation, and AI-powered tools for anomaly detection. The first dissertation essay (Chapter 1) proposes a novel framework for the allocation of security countermeasures in the presence of uncertainty using robust optimization technique. The second dissertation essay (Chapter 2) studies the impact of algorithmic bias on the practice of insider threat detection in Electronic Health Record Systems and proposes a mitigations strategy. The final dissertation essay (Chapter 3) investigates how the biases of anomaly detection algorithms, and the characteristics of ensemble methods relate to the ensembles’ accuracy and …

Examining The Complexity Of Cross & Collaborative Selling And Service-Sales Ambidexterity In Multi-Practice Professional Service Firms, Eduardo A. Suarez-Solar

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

What does it truly cost to acquire a new client? Managing Partners (MP) of Multi-Practice Professional Service Firms (MPPSF) have been asking themselves this question for years, mostly to no avail. The questions that should be deliberated are whether there exists an alternate method of acquiring new business in a more efficient, effective, and productive manner” and “whether such a procedure exists within the MPPSF that has not yet been fully developed? Neither of these questions can be determined until the following fundamental question is answered, namely whether and how does cross collaborative and service-sale ambidexterity sales occur within an …

On The Performance Enhancement Of Beamspace Mimo And Non-Orthogonal Multiple Access For Future Cellular Networks, Sinasi Cetinkaya

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The ever-growing demand for higher data rates and greater data capacity at lower cost has led the mobile cellular industry to investigate new physical layer techniques and possible utilization of unused spectrums at higher frequencies for next-generation cellular networks. Thus, exploitation of the millimeter-wave (mmWave) spectrum and non-orthogonal multiple-access (NOMA) have been envisioned as the most promising enablers in meeting capacity demand. Due to the smaller wavelengths offered in mmWave frequencies, it is possible to deploy many antennas into a relatively smaller physical space in mmWave frequencies. This property leads to a promising integration between mmWave and massive multiple-input multiple-output …

Article, Draining Paradise: A Tour Of Salt Creek In St. Petersburg, Florida, April 12, 2023, Thomas Hallock

Creekshed: City Wilds

An article by Thomas Hallock about Salt Creek in St. Petersburg, Florida.

“They’Re Still Trying To Wrap Their Head Around Forever”: An Anatomy Of Hope For Spinal Cord Injury Patients, William A. Lucas

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation draws on ethnographic data to investigate the nature of spinal cord injury (SCI) rehabilitation in Central Florida, using participant observation and interview data to understand how people with SCI (pwSCI) conceptualize their own disabilities after experiencing such radical alterations in their subjectivities. Using case studies and ethnographic vignettes, it argues that the extreme double binds in which pwSCI find themselves (where they are personally ordinarily disabled and socially extraordinarily novel; and where they are enabled resources to pursue “hopeful” therapy modalities while being designated as hopelessly disabled) is further polarized by the various legislative regimes of truth in …

Exploring Epilepsy Care: A Literature Review, Heba Daas

Honors Thesis and Capstone Projects

Epilepsy is a rare and a chronic, non-transmissible condition that can affect all ages. Particularly, myoclonic seizures is an uncommon medical condition where a few of the population are affected (Michelucci, 2016). Hence, understanding clinicians' decisions in assessing the chronic problem is critical. The context of this thesis is intended for an audience who are interested in exploring medical research and for exploring written medical literature based on a topic on a rare medical condition. This thesis also provides an exploration on how specific instrumentation may be used as a diagnostic criterion. Specifically, used for providing context for how myoclonic …

Transition To Higher Education In A College Assistance Migrant Program: Students’ Perception Of Purpose, Mark R. Lane-Holbert

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The 21st century world is increasingly globalized and interconnected, and migration is a reality that substantially impacts the US educational system, and often requires specialized services for migrant students to successfully transition to higher education. While higher education has many benefits, it also presents inherent risks and challenges for students from migrant families, whose academic and life experiences may be vastly different from traditional college students. Federal collegiate transition programs like the College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP) recognize this and aim to support students holistically throughout their transition to higher education. Such programs are in continual search of effective ways …

The Weekly Challenger, April 6, 2023, The Weekly Challenger, Et Al

Weekly Challenger Newspaper Collection

The April 6, 2023, issue of The Weekly Challenger.

Ay 2022/2023 Sec Agenda, 2023-04-05, Faculty Senate

Faculty Senate Archives

No abstract provided.

Ay 2022/2023 Sec Meeting Minutes, 2023-04-05, Faculty Senate

Faculty Senate Archives

No abstract provided.

Crow's Nest, April 3, 2023, Crow's Nest Staff

Crow's Nest

The April 3, 2023, issue of the Crow's Nest.

Metropolitan Planning Organization (Mpo) List Of Project Priorities (Lopp) Development Practices In Florida: Literature Review, Jeffrey Kramer, Tia Boyd, Taylor Dinehart

Transportation Planning, Policy, and Processes (TP3) Final Reports

This literature review is the first phase in a Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT)-sponsored research study that seeks to identify the various practices and methodologies used by Florida’s 27 metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) to develop their Lists of Project Priorities (LOPPs) and what characteristics of those LOPPs are most effective for clearly communicating MPO priorities to FDOT District Offices. The final report is scheduled for completion in November 2024. The research objectives of this project include:

• Documenting current federal and state requirements for MPO LOPP development through a review of relevant regulatory and guidance documents.
• Documenting the current national state …

Modern Cognitive Operations And Hybrid Warfare, Yuriy Danyk, Chad M. Briggs

Journal of Strategic Security

Concepts of cognitive warfare and operations are explored in the context of hybrid warfare, including how cyber technologies promote greater asymmetric opportunities for influence, control, and undermining of one’s adversary. Research areas are analyzed in the interconnection with hybrid cognitive operations. The purpose of the article is to study the features and theoretical and applied substantiation of cognitive actions in cyberspace and through cyberspace and their possible consequences within the framework of hybrid conflicts.

Cyber Cases: The Picca Framework For Documenting Geopolitically Relevant Cyber Action, Chris Bronk, Nathan Jones

Journal of Strategic Security

This article presents a novel framework called the Policy Informative Cyber Case Analysis for cyberattack incidents. The aim of this framework is to provide a structured documentation and translational assessment tool for cyber incidents of geopolitical significance to a broader policy audience. The article discusses case study method as applied to cyber incidents, situates the framework amongst other useful methods, discusses the application of structured analytic techniques (SAT) such as “chronologies and timelines” and “devil’s advocacy,” presents the framework, and provides conclusions. Cyber incident cases, primarily the 2015 attack on the Ukrainian electric-grid is used throughout to elucidate the utility …

Forum, Volume 47, No. 1, Spring 2023, Florida Humanities, Pam Daniel

FORUM: The Magazine of Florida Humanities

Contents: Letter from the Executive Director -- From the Secretary of State -- From the Editor -- Humanities Live -- Oral History -- Sense of Place -- Treasure -- Opa! -- The Bounty Hunter -- Hard Times -- Liquid Gold -- Eat. Drink. Remember. -- Classics of Cuisine -- By Design -- Taste of Florida -- The Quiz

Digitized Statecraft In Multilateral Treaty Participation: Global Quasi-Legislative Behavior Of 193 Sovereign States. By Takashi Inoguchi And Lien Thi Quynh Le. Singapore: Springer Nature, 2021., Melisa Perut, Etel Solingen, Ph.D.

Journal of Strategic Security

No abstract provided.

Pillage As The Political Economy Of The Kurdish Anfal Genocide, Kaziwa Salih

Genocide Studies and Prevention: An International Journal

Scholars are critical of how economists overlook “the questions of genocide,” and of how legislatures have not paid adequate attention to the subject of looting, except in the case of the Armenian genocide. This article, informed by interdisciplinary perspectives, uses government documents, data, and semi-structured interviews to discuss the overlooked triangle of looting, economics, and the Anfal genocide of the Kurds in Iraq. The study refuses to limit itself only to the eight stages of the Anfal genocide that started in 1988, and instead offers data on its preliminary phases which occurred earlier in the 1980s. It then discusses the …

China's Strategic Devaluing Of American Social Capital, Garrett Martin

Journal of Strategic Security

The information technology era has opened a myriad of new battlespaces through which nations engage each other. China has advanced their “three warfares” doctrine – political warfare, public opinion warfare, and legal warfare – behind a robust and aggressive economic agenda. Direct financial investment and tightly controlled access to both their large consumer market and cheap labor force has given them considerable leverage in key sectors of American industry, particularly those in the communication sphere. The narrative crafting capabilities increasingly acquired by China are beginning to appear as genuine cultural hegemony. This indicates an ability to shape the American collective …

Teaching Behavioral Contingencies To Young Children With Asd Using Contingency Mapping, Marqueline Cenatus

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often exhibit problem behavior in schools, which negatively impacts their educational outcomes. Unfortunately, teachers continue to have difficulty addressing problem behavior in the classroom. Contingency mapping is a visual representation of the contingencies for engaging in a desired and undesired behaviors, which has been found to improve student behavior in the classroom setting. The current study examined the use of the contingency mapping intervention for young children with ASD. Specifically, the study examined the extent to which the contingency mapping intervention result in a decrease of off-task behavior during natural classroom activities. Three young …

Development And Evaluation Of Interactive Computerized Training To Teach Practitioners To Implement Safety Skills Training, Rasha R. Baruni

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Children can experience unintentional injuries due to safety threats found in their environments (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2008). Researchers have shown that children can be taught safety responses using behavioral skills training (BST) and in situ training (IST). Within the safety skills literature, there is evidence that manualized interventions are effective for teaching parents and teachers to deliver BST (Gross et al., 2007; Novotny et al., 2020). An approach that has not been evaluated for teaching safety skills is interactive computerized training (ICT). The ICT approach employs technology to deliver trainings in the absence of a trainer (Gerencser …

Pamam- Cyclodextrin Conjugate Upregulates Brain-Derived Neurotropic Factor In Arpe-19 Cells, Gopika Ashokan

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Background: Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is a major contributor to death and disability due to motorvehicle accidents, sports, physical abuse, and battlefield injuries. The primary insult to the brain leads to inflammation, vascular dysfunction, and oxidative stress in the brain as well as in the eye. This leads to loss of Retinal Ganglion Cells (RGCs) and downregulation of Brain derived Neurotopic Factor (BDNF). BDNF is a neurotrophic factor that binds to Tropomyosin Receptor Kinase B (TrkB) receptor to promote cell growth, survival, and differentiation. Current treatment strategies do not promote neuronal regeneration. Therefore, novel treatments are needed to restore vision …