Digital Commons Network^™

Foreground Removal In A Multi-Camera System, Daniel T. Mortensen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Traditionally, whiteboards have been used to brainstorm, teach, and convey ideas with others. However distributing whiteboard content remotely can be challenging. To solve this problem, A multi-camera system was developed which can be scaled to broadcast an arbitrarily large writing surface while removing objects not related to the whiteboard content. Related research has been performed previously to combine multiple images together, identify and remove unrelated objects, also referred to as foreground, in a single image and correct for warping differences in camera frames. However, this is the first time anyone has attempted to solve this problem using a multi-camera system. …

Wildfire In The West: An Initial Analysis Of Wildfire Impacts On Hydrology And Riverbed Grain Size In Relation To Salmonid Habitat, Natalie J. Gillard

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Historically wildfires have been beneficial to forests, however, human developments have encroached on forests when wildfire was artificially suppressed by federal and state agencies. The area burned by wildfire each year has increased twenty-fold in the past three decades. Large, high severity fires pose increased threats to human and aquatic communities within and downstream of the burned area due to post-wildfire effects on flooding and sedimentation. We need to understand the impacts of wildfires to be able to mitigate their damages and to recognize their potential benefits. This research addresses the questions: 1) Do wildfires impact rural and urban economies …

Implementation And Effects Of University College Algebra Growth Mindset Structured Assessments In Large Lectures, Hannah Mae Lewis

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Recent scientific evidence shows the incredible potential of the brain to grow and change. Students with a growth mindset view errors and obstacles as opportunities for growth. These students welcome challenges and the opportunity to learn from their mistakes. Although some university instructors are incorporating growth mindset into their lectures, attitudes, and exams in small classes, the traditional exam method used in large lecture undergraduate mathematics classrooms follows a fixed mindset model. The growth mindset structured assessments developed for this study incorporate a testing center portion (matching, short answer, fill in the blank and free response) with structured rework opportunities, …

The Farm As Place In A Changing Climate: Capturing Women Farmers' Experiences In Idaho, United States And Victoria, Australia, Tagen Towsley Baker

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In Australia and the US, women play a vital role in the agricultural sector. However, historically farmwomen’s contributions to agriculture as well as their individual knowledge and social resilience to stressors like climate and climate change have been unrecognized and rendered invisible. Drawing on interdisciplinary scholarship from geography and the humanities, this dissertation explores the farm as place in a changing climate, drawing on women farmers’ experiences, under three distinct themes: identity, place, and photography. The dissertation research includes three distinct parts. First, incorporating non-fiction writing and photography, I explore my agricultural and religious heritage, as well as familial connections …

The Influence Of Adjacent Weed Populations On Thrips And Iysv In Onion, S. Andrew Swain

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Onion thrips (Thrips tabaci) and Iris Yellow Spot Virus (IYSV) constitute a pest complex of global concern for allium growers. Yield losses due to onion thrips alone can be heavy, and in tandem with IYSV, these losses can be complete.

This study was one phase of a multi-phase research project intent on exploring the potential drivers of thrips and virus infestation in onion. Preliminary observations in participating growers’ fields in northern Utah pointed towards a potential link between weedy field borders and thrips/IYSV infestation in onion. Field work was carried out at the Kaysville experiment station examining the …

Revolution In Autonomous Orbital Navigation (Raon), Rachit Bhatia

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Spacecraft navigation is a critical component of any space mission. Space navigation uses on-board sensors and other techniques to determine the spacecraft’s current position and velocity, with permissible accuracy. It also provides requisite information to navigate to a desired position, while following the desired trajectory. Developments in technology have resulted in new techniques of space navigation. However, inertial navigation systems have consistently been the bedrock for space navigation.

Recently, the successful space mission GOCE used on-board gravity gradiometer for mapping Earth’s gravitational field. This has motivated the development of new techniques like cold atom accelerometers, to create ultra-sensitive gravity gradiometers, …

Classification Of Urban Forms And Their Relationship With Vegetation Cover In Cache County, Utah, Stephen J. Peaden

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

As residential urban development increases in the western United States, few studies have shown how different urban forms influence vegetation cover. The two studies in this thesis examine how to define and measure urban form in order to understand the relationship between urban form characteristics and vegetation cover.

In the first study, urban form was defined by using past methods of identifying and measuring urban sprawl. Past studies showed the most essential metrics that define residential urban form are building density, centrality, connectivity, land use mix, and parcel size. This study reviews these metrics and proposes revised unified definitions and …

Dry Heat Among The Red Rocks: Risk Perceptions And Behavioral Responses To Extreme Heat Among Outdoor Recreationists In Southeastern Utah, Kirsten M. Goldstein

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Communicating the risks related to extreme heat is important and essential for saving lives. This study looks at how tourists think about extreme heat in a hot and dry environment. It looks at relationships between an individual’s local climate, their thoughts about the current weather conditions, and demographics. The results from this study are intended to help tourist agencies, emergency managers and emergency planners, and policymakers in creating and carrying out communication strategies for extreme heat.

Thoughts about and physical responses to weather are different for everyone and shaped by personal experiences. How one thinks and feels about the weather …

Konaway Nika Tillicum Native American Youth Academy: Cultural Identity, Self-Esteem, And Academic Optimism, Tamara Barrett

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Through using a Positive Youth Development framework and culturally based education program, Konaway Nikka Tillicum Native American Youth Academy aspires to mentor and prepare Native youth through high school and on to higher education. This collaborative research partnership investigated cultural identity, self-esteem, and academic optimism of Native American youth attending the academy. The results of this program evaluation found that cultural identity, self-esteem, and academic optimism were all closely related to each other as well as that they increased significantly when measured before and after the academy. GPA was found to not be predictive of cultural identity, self-esteem, or academic …

Evaluation Of Stream Bank Restoration To Improve Water Quality In A Semi-Arid Stream, Johnathan Neenan

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Human watershed activities such as converting land cover to agriculture and livestock grazing have negatively impacted stream water quality worldwide. One such case is Utah’s Upper Sevier River where a loss of woody bank vegetation (reduced shading) and accelerated bank erosion (increased fine sediment inputs) has led to increased stream temperature and water turbidity. As a result, the state of Utah sought to improve water quality conditions using streambank restoration. While commonly recommended and performed, the effectiveness of this sort of restoration has rarely been quantified. Here, I evaluated a restored reach of the Upper Sevier River near Hatch, UT …

Boundaries And Bridges In Rangeland Social-Ecological Systems: Studies Of Collaboration, Innovation, And Information Flow, Gwendŵr R. Meredith

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Public rangelands are managed by a mixture of federal, state, and local governments. Often, these groups are charged with managing adjacent lands that are part of the same greater landscape. To do this effectively, communication and collaboration is required. This dissertation examines federal, state, and local agencies’ level of communication through three projects.

The first project examined barriers to agencies adopting management tools from each other. I found that individuals within agencies were mainly staying within their own agency when seeking advice, so individuals were not communicating about tools or their findings across agencies. Furthermore, agency policies and fear of …

Agriculture Teacher Attitudes Regarding Gifted Education And Teaching Gifted Students In The Agriculture Classroom, Olivia M. Hile

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Agriculture teachers are responsible for a wide variety of students in their classrooms. It was unclear before this research how much preservice teacher instruction agriculture teachers were receiving to prepare them to teach students identified as gifted. This research aimed to measure teacher attitudes, characterization of gifted students, professional development needs, and related demographic information. Of the agriculture teachers who completed a traditional teacher preparation program, 54.50% felt that they were adequately prepared to meet the needs of gifted students in their classroom.

Participants characterized gifted agriculture students as outstanding problem solvers, quick to memorize information, and excellent in science. …

An Evaluation Of An Interactive Computerized Training To Teach Instructors How To Respond During An Active Shooter Situation, Lorraine A. Becerra

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Active shooter events in the U.S. are occurring more often in commercial environment and schools. In these emergency situations educators must quickly decide to complete actions that will protect themselves and their students. Typically, during these situations, the educator should complete in a run, hide, or fight sequence of behaviors. The educator must also consider challenges for their student’s particular disabilities during these situations. Interactive computerized training (ICT) may be one easy method to teach educators these procedures. The purpose of this study was to explore the effectiveness of interactive computerized training to help educators learn how to respond during …

Evaluation Of A Computer-Based Observer-Effect Training On Mothers' Vocal Imitation Of Their Infant, Kerry A. Shea

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Infants begin to learn important skills, such as contingency learning, social referencing, and joint attention through everyday interactions with their environment. When infants learn that their behavior produces a change in the environment (e.g., attention from others), infants engage in behavior that produces that effect (e.g., increases in smiling sustained engagement. When mothers and other caregivers respond immediately to infant behavior, they help their infant learn that the infant’s own behavior is effective, producing a change in the environment. The current investigation evaluated the effect of a computer-based training that aimed at teaching mothers to play a vocal-imitation contingency-learning game. …

Current And Historic Visitor Experiences In Coastal Alaskan Wilderness: Visitor Motivations And Experience Quality In Glacier Bay National Park & Preserve, Gabriella R. Furr

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Visitors to parks and protected areas (PPAs) engage in a variety of activities and choose different modes of travel, especially when the location itself has few limitations, such as open-water settings with relatively few backcountry visitors. Managers must understand why visitors are recreating in a particular place and the quality of their experiences in order to offer appropriate and meaningful opportunities. This study seeks to better understand visitor motivations (the “why”), to develop and measure effective indicators for evaluating the quality of visitor experiences, and to contextualize these findings with a unique investigation of historical Glacier Bay National Park data. …

Hydro-Climatic Changes And Corresponding Impacts On Agricultural Water Demand In The Ganges Delta Of Bangladesh, Sonia Binte Murshed

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The Ganges Delta in Bangladesh, a transboundary rural river basin, is an example of water-related calamities due to natural and human-induced stresses. It is an agriculture-dominated area with the presence of Sundarbans mangrove forest. Recently this area is facing unfavorable conditions due to limitations in quantity, quality, and timing of available freshwater. As a result, floods, droughts, water scarcity, stream depletion, salinity intrusion, excessive sedimentation are becoming common phenomena. These calamities are making this area unsuitable for agriculture and vulnerable to the Sundarbans’ ecosystem. This study aims to provide technical insight into issues related to water scarcity and projected agricultural …

Treatment Of Clinical Perfectionism Using Acceptance And Commitment Therapy, Clarissa W. Ong

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Clinical perfectionism is characterized by rigidly pursuing unrealistically high standards on which self-worth is contingent and experiencing distress when these standards are not met. Because clinical perfectionism is associated with many psychological diagnoses, understanding how to treat it may help streamline available treatments. The aim of this dissertation was to test the effect of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), a cognitive-behavioral therapy, on 53 individuals with clinical perfectionism. Participants in the ACT group received 10 therapy sessions and those in the control group were on a waitlist for 14 weeks. The first study supported the effectiveness of ACT relative to …

Reservoir Applications Of Arced Labyrinth Weirs, Seth D. Thompson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In recent years, magnitudes of flood estimates used in hydraulic design have increased for many reservoirs. Consequently, many existing spillways are now deficient as they do not meet current discharge capacity requirements. To rehabilitate existing, fixed-width spillways, labyrinth weirs are often viable solutions. For reservoir applications, arcing labyrinth weirs into the reservoir increases hydraulic efficiency. This results from better cycle orientation to the approaching flow field.

This study supplements available arced labyrinth weir hydraulic data by observing flow characteristics of three laboratory-scale physical models and two numerical (CFD) models. Physical model results provide head (energy)-discharge data and empirical coefficients for …

Mao’S War On Women: The Perpetuation Of Gender Hierarchies Through Yin-Yang Cosmology In The Chinese Communist Propaganda Of The Mao Era, 1949-1976, Al D. Roberts

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The Chinese Communist Party established the People’s Republic of China in 1949 with the intention of creating a social utopia with equality between the sexes and China’s diverse ethnic groups. However, by portraying gender, ethnicity, and politics in propaganda along the lines of yin and yang, the Party perpetuated a situation of oppression for women and minorities.

A Geochemical Analysis Of Tosawihi Quarries Chert Using X-Ray Fluorescence Spectrometry, Bethany M. Wurster

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Lithic source analysis, or “sourcing,” is a geochemical compositional analysis of lithic materials for both major and trace elements. Sourcing analysis assigns lithic sources to geochemical groups according to distinct geochemical compositions, where unique elemental signatures represent separate lithic sources. In archaeological research, sourcing informs upon mobility strategies, trade and exchange networks, and lithic conveyance studies. While obsidian sourcing is a relatively reliable and popular technique, chert sourcing is more difficult and historically less successful largely due to variability in chert formation processes. X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRF) offers a possible sourcing technique, and is non-destructive, as well as time and …

Resurgence Of Cocaine-Seeking In Rats Following Long Access And Punishment, Rusty W. Nall

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Strategies that provide access to alternative non-drug rewards are among the most effective at reducing substance use in individuals with substance use disorders, but relapse often occurs when alternative rewards are removed. Relapse induced by the loss of alternative rewards is called resurgence, and represents a challenge to otherwise effective strategies for reducing drug use. An animal model has been useful for studying resurgence, but the extant model has two limitations. First, humans usually refer to the negative consequences of drug use as the reason they stop taking drugs, but the extant model uses drug unavailability to reduce drug seeking. …

Nest-Site Selection Of Golden Eagles And Ferruginous Hawks And Diet Composition Of Sensitive Raptor Species Using Metabarcoding Analysis In The Uinta Basin And Ashley National Forest, Ut, Usa, Dylan J. Hopkins

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Development and climate change in the sagebrush habitats are causing population declines of North American hawks and eagles. For these species, understanding the landscape features that are preferred for nesting and the prey they consume in sagebrush habitats are important in developing conservation plans. Specifically, we know little of the preferred nest-sites and diet of Ferruginous Hawks (Buteo regalis) and Golden Eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) many locales. In our study, we determined the landscape characteristics associated with nest sites for these two raptor species in the Uintah Basin, UT to predict where nests may occur in our …

Tuning Hyperparameters In Supervised Learning Models And Applications Of Statistical Learning In Genome-Wide Association Studies With Emphasis On Heritability, Jill F. Lundell

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Machine learning is a buzz word that has inundated popular culture in the last few years. This is a term for a computer method that can automatically learn and improve from data instead of being explicitly programmed at every step. Investigations regarding the best way to create and use these methods are prevalent in research. Machine learning models can be difficult to create because models need to be tuned. This dissertation explores the characteristics of tuning three popular machine learning models and finds a way to automatically select a set of tuning parameters. This information was used to create an …

The Impact Of Collaborative Behavioral Health On Treatment Outcomes Of Diabetes, Adam M. Johnson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A current body of research is finding significant connection between biological, psychological, social, and spiritual factors in health and wellbeing. Some studies have found significant improvements in treatment outcomes for patients who received medical treatment in collaboration with psychosocial therapeutic treatment. In this study, I sought to observe the impact collaborative treatment had on patients with diabetes who were treated at a community health center. I compared the treatment outcomes of a group of patients who received a collaborative treatment, looking to see if their overall health (measured by A1c, a diabetes severity marker) and medical utilization (or their number …

The Influence Of Measurement Scale And Uncertainty On Interpretations Of River Migration, Mitchell R. Donovan

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Environmental scientists increasingly use remotely-sensed images to measure how rivers develop over time and respond to upstream changes in environmental drivers such as land use, urbanization, deforestation and agricultural practices. These measurements are subject to uncertainty that can bias conclusions. The first step towards accurate interpretation of river channel change is properly quantifying and accounting for uncertainty involved in measuring changes in river morphology. In Chapter 2 we develop a comprehensive framework for quantifying uncertainty in measurements of river change derived from aerial images. The framework builds upon previous uncertainty research by describing best practices and context-specific strategies, comparing each …

Numerical Analysis And Spanwise Shape Optimization For Finite Wings Of Arbitrary Aspect Ratio, Joshua D. Hodson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This work focuses on the development of efficient methods for wing shape optimization for morphing wing technologies. Existing wing shape optimization processes typically rely on computational fluid dynamics tools for aerodynamic analysis, but the computational cost of these tools makes optimization of all but the most basic problems intractable. In this work, we present a set of tools that can be used to efficiently explore the design spaces of morphing wings without reducing the fidelity of the results significantly. Specifically, this work discusses automatic differentiation of an aerodynamic analysis tool based on lifting line theory, a light-weight gradient-based optimization framework …

Design Of Capacitive Wireless Power Transfer Systems With Enhanced Power Density And Stray Field Shielding, Ujjwal Pratik

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Wireless power transfer is becoming relevant today because of its effectiveness and convenience. It has been employed into consumer electronics such as cellular charging and electric vehicle charging. In general, inductive wireless power transfer (IPT) is mostly used for WPT. IPT requires coils and power transfer enhancing material such as ferrite to transfer power. However, Capacitive wireless Power Transfer (CPT) appears as an alternative because it requires cost effective and light metal plate couplers. Among CPT couplers, Vertical (stacked) Four-Plate Coupler (V4PC) structure offers the advantage of higher input and output self-capacitances, rotational misalignment.

Safety is one of the most …

Electronic Transmutation: An Aid For The Rational Design Of New Chemical Materials Using The Knowledge Of Bonding And Structure Of Neighboring Elements, Katie A. Lundell

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Everything in the universe is made up of elements from the periodic table. Each element has its own role that it plays in the formation of things it makes up. For instance, pencil lead is graphite. A series of honeycomb-like structures made up of carbon stacked on top of one another. Carbon’s neighbor to the left, boron doesn’t like to form such stacked honeycomb-like structures. But, what if there was a way to make boron act like carbon so it did like to form such structures? That question is the basis of the electronic transmutation concept presented in this dissertation. …

Changing Access: Building A Culture Of Accessibility Within Normalized Technical Communication Practices, Sherena Huntsman

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

As a field intricately connected to human experience and interaction, technical and professional communication (TPC) is historically, ethically, and practically tooled to address issues of equality, diversity, and access. While these important issues have not always been the focal point of TPC, the recent turn toward social justice has scholars asking critical questions about how users access information, how specific design practices may privilege some and disenfranchise others, and how we can be more inclusive across our communication practices. In this dissertation, I argue that it is within reach of TPC to address the specific problem of access—the gap between …

An Assessment Of Self-Determination Skills In Transition-Age Students With Disabilities Following Instruction Using The My Transition Portfolio Program, Eliza Jex

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The successful transition for students with disabilities into adult roles and activities post high-school, including employment, participation in postsecondary educational opportunities, and inclusion in social activities, continues to be a challenge for these individuals. Research has established that the development of certain skills earlier on can support students with disabilities in making a successful transition into these adult roles. The development of self-determination skills is one such practice. There is a need in the field of education to further research in programs that are available for teachers in providing instruction in self-determination skills. This study sought to establish research on …