Digital Commons Network^™

Numerical Simulation Of Continuous Cone Penetration And Interpretation Of Cptu Dissipation Tests, Andrew Phillip Eugene Huffman

Dissertations and Theses

The piezocone penetration test (CPTu) is a commonly used method of geotechnical site investigation. The CPTu is especially useful because it provides a nearly continuous data profile of in-situ soil behavior, which can be correlated to useful engineering parameters. However, limitations exist for interpretation of geotechnical properties from CPTu data and for numerical analysis of cone penetration problems. The research presented in this thesis examines interpretation of coefficient of consolidation from CPTu dissipation test data and implementation of an algorithm to advance numerical simulation of cone penetration problems. This thesis presents analysis of CPTu dissipation responses from field-measured and numerically …

Decolonizing Healthcare: A Black Feminist Analysis Of Sisters Informing Sisters On Topics Of Aids (Sista), Joy Mutare Fashu Kanu

Dissertations and Theses

This mixed methods project combines the conceptual insights offered by institutional ethnography, the deductive and inductive attributes of content analysis, semi structured interviews, and quantitative data analysis to study Sisters Informing Sisters on Topics of AIDS (SISTA), a social skills training program designed for sexually active, heterosexual African American women. This progressive program serves as a site to examine the complex relationship the U.S. state has had, and continues to have, with marginalized populations, particularly African Americans. The program reveals how the state, through the public health service, partners with scholars, researchers, and community-based organizations to produce, reproduce and perpetuate …

Readiness To Change In Rural Adults At High Risk For Diabetes, Katherine A. Wagner

Dissertations and Theses

Type II diabetes is one of the most devastating chronic diseases in the United States and is associated with decreased lifespan and serious comorbidities. While evidence-based prevention strategies of nutrition and physical activity exist, behavior change is an essential component. Researchers use readiness to change to predict clinical outcomes of chronic disease prevention programs, however, this has not been well studied in rural populations. The purpose of this research was to study the relationship between readiness to change and attrition rates and clinical outcomes among rural dwellers enrolled in a nutrition and physical activity intervention. Article one of this three-article …

Everything We Name Is Precious, Chelsea Campbell

Dissertations and Theses

EVERYTHING WE NAME IS PRECIOUS is a collage of poetry exploring the challenges of reshaping a disembodied being into a new whole after trauma. The collection critiques a phallocentric America entrenched in toxic masculinity and violent gun culture, calling for individual and cultural healing. Drawing inspiration from Hélène Cixous, Maggie Nelson and the Book of Genesis, the manuscript’s speakers seek agency and restoration by exploring what it means to write through the body and reimagine the feminine.

Modern Dance, Embodiment, And Society: The Graham Technique’S Resistance To Conditioned Physicality, Cara Mcmanus

Dissertations and Theses

Martha Graham, foremost pioneer of American Modern dance, is the originator and developer of what is known today as the Graham technique. When this technique is removed from performative contexts, the philosophy of its practice can add insight to a discussion of embodiment and what it means to resist socially prescribed embodiments. This paper will examine the ways in which the Graham technique cultivates awareness of embodiment’s origins and processual nature, and therefore how a conscious resistance to social conditioning can arise. The neuroscientific and physiological processes behind this cultivation of awareness will be discussed, and several examples of resistance …

The Crisis Of Chad: Men’S Rights Movements And Contemporary Anti-Feminism, Kendrick Zapata

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis analyzes the relationship between the modern incel and manosphere movement, and its historical legacies in anti-feminist discourses in late 20th century men's rights movements. The manosphere is a collection of online videos, forums, blogs, and websites dedicated to raising awareness or promoting masculinist philosophies. Incels in particular are individuals that understand their lack of sexual interaction as inherent, and often interact in digital spaces with others. Incel beliefs range from calling for the reversal of women’s rights, to seeking advice on self-improvement forums that offer advice to young men seeking to improve their physique through diet and exercise. …

Ethnic Politics And Constitutional Developments In Nigeria, Nancy Ojochogwu Oji

Dissertations and Theses

This project attempts to study Nigeria's colonial political parties and the consequences of British colonial policies as the foundation of ethnic issues in Nigeria's contemporary politics. It describes how particular colonial policies impact modern Nigerian politics, reinforce division among ethnic groups, and influence voters’ decision when electing political leaders.

The Contribution Of Adverse Childhood Experiences To The Interplay Between Insecure Attachment Characteristics, Trait Emotional Intelligence, Difficulties In Emotion Regulation, And Personality Organization, Kseniia Gvozdieva

Dissertations and Theses

There are well-established connections between unfavorable attachment experiences and subsequent personality pathology. Individuals with adverse attachment experiences and those with personality pathology have been found to have difficulty with emotional awareness and emotion regulation. Attachment characteristics inform emotional intelligence and emotion regulation, while emotional intelligence and emotion regulation capacities can be protective against personality pathology and serve as a potential mechanism of positive change in one’s attachment. Complex trauma disrupts attachment and the subsequent development of emotional intelligence, emotion regulation, as well as personality structure.

In this dissertation, we examine the ways in which individual attachment patterns can be linked …

Cloning And Characterization Of The Vasopressin-Oxytocin Neuropeptide Signaling System In The Vocal Control System Of The Zebra Finch (Taeniopygia Guttata), Emily R. Tortora

Dissertations and Theses

Vasopressin (VP) and Oxytocin (OT) are neuropeptides produced in the hypothalamus and expressed in the cerebrum and pituitary gland of the brain. Studies of VP and OT have long demonstrated their influence on social behaviors in mammals. Comparative analyses of these neuropeptides and in-depth analyses in non-mammalian species may reveal the specific mechanistic roles these hormones play in social behavioral functioning. The acquisition of complex behavioral patterns involves sensory-motor functions. How social interactions modulate sensory-motor mechanisms that promote complex behavior acquisition and maintenance can be well study in vocal learning birds. Here, in addition to reviewing the pertinent literature, I …

Long Term Nutrient And Chlorophyll A Dynamics Across Long Island Sound And Impacts On Dissolved Oxygen Conditions Within The Western Sound (1991-2019), Sherry Perreira

Dissertations and Theses

Nitrogen overload, eutrophication, and hypoxia have been challenging and persistent water quality problems in Long Island Sound (LIS) over the past decades with major impacts on commercial industries, ecology, and recreational activities in the region. Recognizing these problems, the EPA enforced three phases of the Clean Water Act (CWA) to reduce nitrogen loads in an effort to improve this important estuary. This study examines how nitrogen (NH₃, NO_x & TDN), chlorophyll a (CHLA), and dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations changed in LIS over the past 30 years, in response to water quality regulations as well as changes in …

There’S More Than One Way To Beat The Heat: What Anal Probes Reveal About Thermal Responses In Neotropical Beetles (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae)., Emilie I. Dion

Dissertations and Theses

Increasing global temperatures have been linked to shifts in the distributions and preferred microhabitats of terrestrial species. This trend is predicted to impact tropical forest insects, which may already be exposed to conditions that bring them close to their thermal maxima. Tropical microhabitats are linked to vertical stratification, because the canopy is hotter, winder, and less humid than the ground. In ectothermic organisms, such as beetles, thermoregulation is dependent on morphological and behavioral traits. This study investigates woodboring cerambycid beetles, to determine how behavioral thermoregulation through microhabitat selection (vertical stratification) is correlated to morphological attributes (color lightness, size, and pubescence) …

Osteocyte Activity And Skeletal Muscle Relative Gene Expression Profiling After Short-Term Muscle Paralysis, Michelle Gelbs

Dissertations and Theses

Mechanical loading is essential for maintaining bone tissue. Reduced mechanical loading has been shown to have a negative effect on bone, and can result in the development of disuse osteoporosis. Disuse models of muscle inactivity and immobilization, like the Botox model used in this study, result in changes in the bone microarchitecture, the mechanisms behind which are not fully understood. In a previous four-week Botox disuse study, skeletally mature 20- week-old rats experienced degradation of intracortical bone, increased vascular porosity, and decreased osteocyte lacunar density in the tibiae. The focus of this study was to explicate a potential source of …

On The Improvements Of Boundary-Layer Representation For High Resolution Weather Forecasting In Costal-Urban Environments, David Melecio-Vazquez

Dissertations and Theses

As large urban centers around the world become more densely populated, the global conversion from natural to man-made land surfaces will only increase. These land-use changes affect the urban surface energy budget which in turn changes the structure of the planetary boundary layer (PBL) above. With current high-performance computing systems, meteorological and built environment information can be better utilized to quantify the anthropogenic effects of these modifications. Although these systems have improved forecasting near-surface weather conditions, a comprehensive approach to represent urban impacts on the PBL is still limited. Improved PBL representation can lead to better weather and climate forecasts, …

Analyzing Freight Congestion And Transportation Performance Measures Using The National Performance Management Research Data Set (Npmrds), Yaxin Zhang

Dissertations and Theses

Traffic congestion is common in urban areas. It results in loss of productivity, increased risk of passenger safety, increased fuel consumption, environment pollution, etc. Improving performance measurement is a tool to improve traffic flow and capacity planning.

The main data source in this research is the National Performance Management Research Data Set (NPMRDS) for 2018. NPMRDS is a form of commercial GPS probe data, obtained from vehicles with on-board probe technologies. This dataset is licensed by the Federal Highway Administration and is made available to State Departments of Transportation (DOTs) and Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) for the purpose of federally …

Effects Of Flow Rate And Droplet Size On Double Emulsion Morphology, Rossana Iturbide

Dissertations and Theses

Experimental work has been conducted to analyze the interactions and morphology of three fluids, an air bubble and oil droplet in water. The experimental results have been compared to a morphology diagram based on the spreading factors that depend on the interfacial tension between two fluids. The possible morphologies are complete engulfment, partial engulfment, and no coalescence. The experimental study utilized an acrylic tube filled with water where an air bubble and oil droplet were injected and forced to interact after injection. Following the surface tension and interfacial tension measurements of mineral oil, silicone oil, olive oil, water, and air, …

Development Of An Injectable Methylcellulose Hydrogel System For Nucleus Pulposus Repair And Regeneration, Nada A. Haq-Siddiqi

Dissertations and Theses

Low back pain is the most common cause of disability in the world and is often caused by degeneration or injury of the intervertebral disc (IVD). The IVD is a complex, fibrocartilaginous tissue that allows for the wide range of spinal mobility. Disc degeneration is a progressive condition believed to begin in the central, gelatinous nucleus pulposus (NP) region of the tissue, for which there are few preventative therapies. Current therapeutic strategies include pain management and exercise, or surgical intervention such as spinal fusion, none of which address the underlying cause of degeneration. With an increasingly aging population, the socioeconomic …

Development Of Light Actuated Chemical Delivery Platform On A 2-D Array Of Micropore Structure, Hojjat Rostami Azmand, Hojjat Rostami Azmand

Dissertations and Theses

Localized chemical delivery plays an essential role in the fundamental information transfers within biological systems. Thus, the ability to mimic the natural chemical signal modulation would provide significant contributions to understand the functional signaling pathway of biological cells and develop new prosthetic devices for neurological disorders. In this paper, we demonstrate a light-controlled hydrogel platform that can be used for localized chemical delivery in a high spatial resolution. By utilizing the photothermal behavior of graphene-hydrogel composites confined within micron-sized fluidic channels, patterned light illumination creates the parallel and independent actuation of chemical release in a group of fluidic ports. The …

Polarization Sensitive Imaging Techniques Using Quantum Entangled Qubits, Vitaly Sukharenko

Dissertations and Theses

The aim of this research is to study imaging techniques using quantum entangled qubits. These techniques extract information about the quantum state of two entangled qubits and corelate the degree of entanglement to each pixel. Imaging information of the underlying structure or material is decoded using the reconstruction of the quantum density matrix along with the calculated entanglement and concurrence levels between the two qubits. Reconstruction of a quantum state and quantum state tomography are of increasing importance in quantum information science. Quantum state tomography is used to describe entanglement of trapped ions [1] and photons [2]. Number of experiments …

“Women Of Allah” And “The Book Of Kings:” Shirin Neshat’S Narratives Of Returning Home, Zahra Banyamerian

Dissertations and Theses

Using the framework of nostalgia defined by Svetlana Boym in The Future of Nostalgia, this thesis revisited the series “Women of Allah” and “The Book of Kings,” that Shirin Neshat created twenty years apart. It argues that the photographs of both series became the terrain through which Neshat narrates the relationship between her past, present, and future. She constructs her longing for home in “Women of Allah'' and she visualizes her homecoming in “The Book of Kings.” The central point to this research is Neshat’s personal relationship to an event that caused her a traumatic experience, the experience that interrupted …

Alternate Load Paths And Retrofits For Long-Span Truss Bridges Under Sudden Member Loss And Blast Loads, Huihui Li

Dissertations and Theses

In current bridge design practices, due to the existence of alternate load paths (ALPs), continued stability and progressive collapse-resistance of long-span bridges following the initialed loss of a critical member can be attributed to “redundancy”. However, “redundancy”, also indicated as the post member failure behavior of long-span bridges is not well understood and is not explicitly considered, especially for long-span truss bridges. As one of the most famous collapse events that took place recently, collapse of the I-35W truss bridge has demonstrated the vulnerabilities of long-span truss bridges, and their societal and economic consequences under the abnormal events, such as …

Spatial And Non-Spatial Patterns Of Genetic Diversity In Neotropical Bats, Andrea J. Calderon Brito

Dissertations and Theses

Macroecological studies that predict genetic diversity and its correlation with other biodiversity dimensions are essential to conservation in a rapidly changing environment. However, in bats (order Chiroptera), studies associating abiotic or ecological traits that could help to predict genetic diversity are scarce, even for singular species. In the Neotropics, the highest concentration of mammal and amphibian genetic diversity has been found in the Andes mountains and the Amazon Rainforest, yet it is an open question whether bat genetic diversity is also higher in these regions, or even if any abiotic factors are correlated with bat genetic diversity. Additionally, it is …

Analysis Of Uncertainty In Hydrometeorological Ensemble Forecasts, Carolien N. Mossel

Dissertations and Theses

Ensemble hydrometeorological forecasting has great potential for improving flood predictions and use in water management systems, however, the amount of data used and created with an ensemble forecast requires a careful and intentional approach to understand how useful and skillful the forecast is. The NOAA National Water Model (NWM) was run using downscaled NOAA Global Ensemble Forecast System (GEFS) meteorological forcings for the 2016-2017 wet season (October-March) in California to create an 11-member hydrologic forecast ensemble. To evaluate the performance of these ensemble forecasts, we chose to study streamflow sites within Sonoma County, California, a rain-dominated region which includes the …

Comparison Of Calculated Normal Mode Molecular Vibrations With Experimental Gas-Phase Infrared Spectroscopy, Anila Renis Sutar

Dissertations and Theses

Computational vibrational spectroscopy serves as an important tool in the interpretation of experimental infrared (IR) spectra. Analysis of computational results provides a perspective over broader wavelength ranges and at higher precision. Although there are issues regarding accuracy, this can be approximated by using a scaling factor. High-resolution gas-phase FTIR spectroscopy at a resolution of 0.125 cm^-1 can partially resolve rovibrational transitions in the P, Q, and R bands and therefore identify fundamental frequencies with approximately 1 cm^-1 precision.

This research has compared high-resolution gas-phase FTIR absorption peaks to calculated vibrational frequencies. In the calculation of normal mode frequencies, …

How Do Art Teachers Describe The Ways In Which Choice-Based Art Lessons May Contribute To An Inclusive Learning Environment?, Skylar M. Gerken

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this research was to highlight the many different ways art educators in New York City create lessons, prompts, and projects with the use of choice-based lessons. By using a choice-based curriculum students will become empowered to make artworks that best represent them. When working within choice-based parameters an inclusive classroom can emerge. The research is backed by literature, theorists and educators that work or have worked in the field of art education. The topic explores how choice should be at the forefront of lesson making, if educators are interested in creating a classroom that could be seen …

‘A Contradiction In Essence’: Eroticism And The Creation Of The Self In Henry Miller, Cian Doyle

Dissertations and Theses

The intention of this paper is, in the first, to demonstrate that Miller’s work has been labeled ‘erotic’, and that this obscures the true contribution of his work – but that as much as it obscures his work, this label also provides us an avenue to access it. In the second, it is to explore what actually constitutes the ‘erotic’, how this is featured in Miller’s work, and how it functions as an analytic tool to reveal what is significant in that work. Lastly, with specific regard to the works Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn, the intention …

Examining Cultural Orientation As A Moderator: Attachment Style, Forgiveness, And Depression, Linghsi Liu

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to examine the moderating role of cultural orientation on the relation between attachment style and forgiveness and between forgiveness and depression. It was hypothesized that a secure attachment style would be associated with greater dispositional forgiveness of both self and others. Specifically, for those high in collectivism, insecure attachment will be associated with greater other-forgiveness and for those high in individualism, insecure attachment will be associated with greater self-forgiveness. It was also predicted that self and other forgiveness would be associated with fewer depressive symptoms. Specifically, for those high in collectivism, other forgiveness will …

Does Social Media Promote Disordered Eating?, Carly Feldstein

Dissertations and Theses

Hispanic people are the largest and fastest-growing minority group in the U.S. with a total of 18.5% of the U.S population being of Hispanic descent (United States Census Bureau, 2020). Although eating disorders (ED), particularly those involving binge eating, comprise a significant health concern, EDs are often overlooked in the Hispanic culture (Higgins et al., 2016; Opara & Santos, 2019). Hispanic individuals have comparable rates of anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and an even higher rate of binge eating disorders compared to non- Hispanic (NH) White individuals (Higgins et al., 2016). Within Hispanic adults, the lifetime prevalence of EDs is higher …

Military Industry And The Israel-Palestine Conflict: Military Aid, Technology, And Barriers To Peace, Brandon A. Sandoval

Dissertations and Theses

This study reviews the current US and Israel militarized response to Palestine, the negative impacts on the Palestinian and Israeli people that result from this policy, and the military-industrial complex that benefits from the US-Israel relationship. I also note that the military industry profits from the Israel-Palestine conflict and, thus, has an incentive for the conflict to continue. I argue that despite billions of US dollars that have been appropriated by the U.S. Congress for Israel’s security, the US and Israel have failed to build peace in the region, ultimately wasting funds and exacerbating current conflicts. I also argue that …

A Review Of Data Protection Regulations And The Right To Privacy: The Case Of The Us And India, Chrisann Campbell

Dissertations and Theses

Since 1948 and the signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the concept of privacy has grown more complex with the rise of technology and a shift to the internet. In particular, the unregulated use of technologies that can capture individuals' personal data without their knowledge or consent poses a threat to their right to privacy and other additional human rights. The protection of the collection, storing, and transfer of users' personal data against data breaches also ensures that the right to privacy is guaranteed. Through examining two countries, the U.S. and India, on the idea of privacy, personal …

The Internal Determinants Of International Organization Actorness: The European Union And Climate Change?, Vanessa West

Dissertations and Theses

Climate change mitigation and adaptation requires global, coordinated responses. Each region/country must do its part, led by multinational, multilateral actors and organizations on the local, national and regional level. The European Union (EU) is the region’s representative. The effectiveness of the Union, as an actor has been the subject of constant debate and scrutiny. A review of existing International Relations (IR) theories and literature outlines the many factors and conditions that influence and facilitate the EU’s ability to exert power and authority on this issue. Drawing on that existing body of knowledge, this paper will argue the EU’s capacity as …