Digital Commons Network^™

Depositional Conditions, Stratigraphic Evolution, And Allo- And Autogenic Controls Of Lower Permian Non-Marine Carbonate Rocks, Lucaogou Low-Order Cycle, Bogda Mountains, Nw China, Yiran Lu

Doctoral Dissertations

"The overall objective of this study is to interpret the depositional conditions of lacustrine carbonate deposits of the lower Permian Lucaogou low-order cycle in the greater Turpan-Junggar continental rift basin, NW China. The depositional environments of ten carbonate lithofacies in the Tarlong-Taodonggou half graben and the Zhaobishan section were interpreted. Allo- and autogenic factors were identified. They controlled characteristics and distribution pattern of carbonate deposits in regional and local scale, respectively. Allogenic factors include the amount and direction of regional siliciclastic input, basin geometry, cyclic humidity/aridity oscillation, temperature, and regional tectonics. Autogenic factors include local siliciclastic input, local topography, local …

Optimization Of Energy Storage Scheduling In Electricity Markets, Jian Liu

Doctoral Dissertations

"In the existing literature, merchants' trading actions are usually assumed not to affect market prices; however, a large-scale energy storage merchant’s actions can affect market prices. This work examined two electricity merchant scenarios: one with only energy storage and the other with both energy storage and renewable power plants. We approximated market impact via a linear function of the electricity traded by the merchant. This study began by applying dynamic programming to the optimal economic dispatch policy of electricity merchants and it considered the market impact, physical characteristics of storage systems, and the uncertainty of renewable energy sources. Then, this …

The Use Of Simulation With The School Of Nursing And Health Professions (Sonhp) Prelicensure Students To Support Affirming Practice With Transgender Communities, Genevieve Charbonneau

Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation investigates how prelicensure nursing students are prepared to address healthcare disparities with transgender patients, specifically through simulation scenarios at the University of San Francisco School of Nursing and Health Professions Simulation Center.

A critical review of current literature reveals how microaggressions against transgender communities create and sustain barriers to equitable healthcare. The qualitative study was designed to explore the lived experience of prelicensure nursing students who are actively seeking to understand the healthcare needs of transgender patients in the San Francisco Bay Area.

This was a qualitative research study including data that suggests that using simulation scenarios featuring …

Fifty Years Of Underrepresented Student Advocacy At One Jesuit Secondary School, Sonya Cotero Arriola

Doctoral Dissertations

Across the United States Conference, Catholic and Jesuit secondary schools are experiencing tremendous change in their student demographics. Schools of today are being challenged to consider what true inclusion looks like within their community vis-à-vis students whose racial, economic, sexual and gender identities do not fit the traditional Catholic or Jesuit school mold. The racial and social order of the United States is replicated within Catholic and Jesuit schools, even when those same communities claim to promote values of inclusion and opportunity. History offers valuable insights to school communities grappling with these questions.

This qualitative study centers the efforts of …

An Exploration Of Learning-At-Home Experiences Among Families And Children Of Color Labeled With Disabilities During Covid-19: A Narrative Inquiry, Nam Ju Han

Doctoral Dissertations

We are living in this historical moment of a COVID-19 global crisis that is continuing to impact marginalized families in our very own communities. Students of color, especially those who are already on the margins, and experience inequities in the classroom and in the community, have been further impacted by the quarantine as the educational system had not prioritized how to support students who face certain vulnerabilities due to lack of government funding, the historical oppressive tendency for schools to function within a medical model of standardization, along with the commodification of learning. Given the novelty of COVID-19 research, the …

Reclaiming Our Humanity: Redemption, Reimagining, And Restorying Of The Foundations For Success Of Formerly Incarcerated African American Males, Robert Mossi Alexander Iii

Doctoral Dissertations

Reclaiming Our Humanity: Redemption, Reimagining, and Restorying of the Foundations for Success of Formerly Incarcerated African American Males African American men represent the highest population found in the criminal justice system. Systemic racism contributes to the high recidivism rates of formerly incarcerated Black men. Additional barriers to affordable education, job training, and other services exist for the formerly incarcerated. The purpose of this study was to interview formerly incarcerated African American men and provide a counter-narrative of the foundations for success post-incarceration. This research project explored the narratives of the lived experiences of formerly incarcerated Black men through the lenses …

Understanding The African American Male Student Experience Of Being Diagnosed With Emotional Disturbance Through The Use Of Counter-Storytelling, Sara Ordaz

Doctoral Dissertations

In the U.S. educational system, it is too common to see African American males overrepresented in special education classrooms, including segregated special education settings. African American males continuously experience disproportionate representation and placement in special education, especially under the label of ED (Harry & Anderson, 1994). Twice as many African American students in the United States are receiving services for Emotional Disturbance than their White counterparts.

Students who are labeled with ED have the lowest educational outcomes as well as lower success rates in life than any other disability classification (Merrrell & Walker, 2004). The consequences of the ED label …

Sex Or Sexual Assault? Critical Media Literacy As A Tool For Consent Education, Riana S. Pella

Doctoral Dissertations

Most children’s exposure to media begins in infancy and increases into adulthood. Even programming produced for children is rife with sexist and racist messaging (Harris, 2018). Because of its seductive imagery, media act as a highly influential form of sex education. Problematically, media habitually portray nonconsensual behavior as sexy and consent-seeking as unsexy (Katz, 2019). Black women are routinely devalued, hypersexualized, and exoticized in movies and television (Donovan, 2007). The result of such media exposure is that young people often misunderstand what constitutes sexual assault (Edwards, 2015). Logically, when individuals do not clearly understand the differences between consensual sex and …

Effects Of Static And Dynamic Visuals On The Learning Of Science Concepts In The Secondary-School Classroom, Theodore Johnson

Doctoral Dissertations

The current study is grounded in the cognitive theory of multimedia learning. The investigator considered how embedding science text with visuals could affect secondary-school students' ability to retain the information they learn (rote learning) and transfer the new knowledge to an unfamiliar problem (meaningful learning). Furthermore, this study explored how the type of visuals (static versus vs. dynamic visual) and text (audio vs. print) affect science learning. The data generated was sourced from student participants in a secondary-school biology classroom. The purpose of this study was to investigate how prior knowledge and the integration of information modalities (i.e., text, audio, …

Early Childhood Special Education Teachers’ Attitudes Toward Inclusion: A Qualitative Study On A School’S Transition From Segregated Classrooms To More Inclusion Classrooms, Shally Moua

Doctoral Dissertations

Inclusion has been a topic of interest in education and a great deal of research has identified teachers’ attitudes as a barrier to inclusion. Therefore, using the model of attitude (Eagly & Chaiken, 1993) and inclusive pedagogy framework (Florian & Black-Hawkins, 2012), the qualitative study aims to: (1) examine the attitudes of early childhood special education (ECSE) teachers toward inclusion as a school shift from segregated to more inclusive classrooms, (2) explore types of support they received and how that support shaped their inclusive pedagogical practices to teach in inclusive classrooms, and (3) identify barriers that impact their transition to …

Gradient Preserved And Artificial Neural Network Method For Solving Heat Conduction Equations In Double Layered Structures, Aniruddha Bora

Doctoral Dissertations

Layered structures have appeared in many engineering systems such as biological tissues, micro-electronic devices, thin  lms, thermal coating, metal oxide semiconductors, and DNA origami. In particular, the multi-layered metal thin  lms, gold-coated metal mirrors for example, are often used in high-powered infrared-laser systems to avoid thermal damage at the front surface of a single layer  lm caused by the high-power laser energy. With the development of new materials, functionally graded materials are becoming of more paramount importance than materials having uniform structures. For instance, in semiconductor engineering, structures can be synthesized from di erent polymers, which result in various values …

Methacrylated Collagen And Hnt Composite Hydrogels For Application In Bone Tissue Regeneration, Yue Li

Doctoral Dissertations

Fractures and segmental bone defects are the primary cause of patient morbidity and brings a substantial economic burden to the healthcare system. Bone grafts used for bone injuries, tumors, and other pathologies related to poor fracture healing in the United States cost considerable money each year. The total cost of treating bone defects is about 5 billion US dollars. Autologous bone transplantation is the ideal method for the treatment of bone defects. However, their clinical results are variable and increase postoperative morbidity (especially at the donor site) and surgical costs. To circumvent these limitations, tissue engineering and cell-based therapies have …

Exoprime Technology For Exosomal Mirna Analysis And Identification Of Oxidative Dna Damage-Induced Mirna Regulatory Network In Human Astrocytes, Chukwumaobim Daniel Obiwulu Nwokwu

Doctoral Dissertations

The high lipid content of the brain, coupled with its heavy oxygen dependence and relatively weak antioxidant system, makes it highly susceptible to oxidative DNA damage that contributes to neurodegeneration. This study assesses and compares the neurotoxic effects of proton and photon radiation on mitochondrial function and DNA repair capabilities of human astrocytes. Human astrocytes received either proton (0.5 Gy and 3 Gy), photon (0.5 Gy and 3 Gy), or sham-radiation treatment. The mRNA expression level of the human base-excision repair protein, 8-deoxyguanosine DNA glycosylase 1 (hOGG1) was determined via RT-qPCR. Radiation-induced changes in mitochondrial mass and oxidative activity were …

Prevention Of Organ-Specific Doxorubicin Induced Toxicity Using Physiologically-Based Pharmacokinetic Modeling And Therapeutic Drug Monitoring, Hillary Husband

Doctoral Dissertations

Physiology-based pharmacokinetic models are mathematical models that characterize the behavior of a drug and have compartmental equations that are representative of specific tissues and physiological processes.[1, 2] Doxorubicin is an anthracycline antibiotic that is effective and widely used in anticancer therapy due to its potent cytotoxicity. Unfortunately, with that potency comes cardiotoxic side effects related to cumulative lifetime dose.[3] Specifically, the toxicity is related to the accumulation of the primary metabolite doxorubicinol (DOXol) in the heart.[4] Since the toxicity is organ-specific, the best way to characterize the behavior is through PBPK modeling.[2] Since PBPK models tend to be large systems …

Crossing The Blood-Brain Barrier Using Peptide Vectors For The Treatment Of Traumatic Brain Injury, Jolin P. Rodrigues

Doctoral Dissertations

Here, the BBB-crossing ability of a Trojan horse peptide conjugated to a short therapeutic peptide was evaluated, with the aim to halt the progression of TBI-associated neuronal damage in a mouse experimental model of TBI. An associated study was also conducted to develop a new biosensor to probe hydrogen peroxide – a biomarker of chronic inflammation in the brain. The long-term goal of this study was to assess the regenerative or neuroprotective effect of this potential therapeutic peptide on neural disease pathology, thus expanding the known library of BBB-crossing peptides, and developing new tools for the study of inflammation, such …

Transport, Species-Specific Resource Competition, And Shallow Water Effects In Coupled Bio-Physical Ecosystem Models For C. Polykrikoides Harmful Algal Blooms Off The Coast Of Korea, Jang-Geun Choi

Doctoral Dissertations

This thesis examines the role of transport and environmental variables in determining the occurrence or suppression of harmful algal blooms (HABs). In the first part, a simple 2-D diagnostic model is used to hindcast HABs occurring off the coast of Korea using observations of averaged environmental factors including nutrient concentration. Hindcasting results using the model show that physical transport of HABs is of the same order of importance as the environmental conditions in controlling HABs. The model reproduces the interannual variability of the observe HABs off the coast of Korea. The relative importance of the environmental factors based on limiting …

On The Images Of Braid Group Representations Coming From Braided Fusion Categories, Jason Allen Green

Doctoral Dissertations

Braided fusion categories are algebraic structures with strong ties to the representation theory of finite groups, Hopf algebras, and quantum groups. These structures also have strong connections with braid groups and low-dimensional topology. Recently, braid group representations coming from braided fusion categories have become a topic of interest in areas of condensed matter physics and topological quantum computation. Particularly interesting are the properties of the images of these representations.

Calculations to determine the finiteness of these images have been performed for a few cases. A class of braided fusion categories coming from finite groups (group-theoretical) has been shown to yield …

Cover Crop-Based No-Till For Small Farms: Tradeoffs Of Termination Time, Method, And Ecosystem Services, Natalie Lounsbury

Doctoral Dissertations

Agriculture must adapt to and mitigate multiple environmental crises including climate change, overuse of herbicides, and soil degradation. Cover crops are a promising tool to do so because they protect soil from erosion, increase perenniality (i.e. year-round plant cover) and carbon contributions to farming systems, capture, recycle, and fix nitrogen, and suppress weeds through multiple mechanisms. Terminating high-residue cover crops to produce an in situ mulch for no-till production has added benefits of eliminating the need for tillage, protecting soil against extreme precipitation events and drought, and contributing to weed suppression. However, there are few non-chemical ways to terminate cover …

Merging Ecology And Earth System Modeling: Biotic And Abiotic Controls Drive Soil Carbon And Nitrogen Cycling In Microbial-Explicit Soil Biogeochemistry Models, Emily Kyker-Snowman

Doctoral Dissertations

Ecological processes drive terrestrial biogeochemistry, yet the incorporation of ecology into the Earth system models that we use to understand and project global change remains. My dissertation focuses on expediting the incorporation of ecology into Earth system models, first by laying out a roadmap from initial assessment of ecological insights to eventual ESM incorporation, and then by demonstrating this roadmap using the example of microbially- controlled carbon and nitrogen cycling in soil. The paradigm around SOM formation and loss has shifted in recent decades away from a focus on the chemically recalcitrant leftovers of litter decomposition and towards a paradigm …

Seneca, The Humors, And Revenge Tragedy, Andrew Stesienko

Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation argues that moral and religious authorities of the Elizabethan and Jacobean periods adapted rules for emotional governance from Senecan philosophy. These Senecan rules helped institute a performance-based approach to managing emotion, which relied on programmatic meditation, rhetoric, and behavior to change one’s emotional state. This approach ostensibly offered more personal control over affective inclination, which according to the period’s Galenic paradigms, was heavily influenced by environmental and physiological factors. My project examines revenge tragedy to highlight Senecan-inspired affect management as practiced by aspiring avengers. Because revenging hopefuls must amplify and then mobilize their feelings in order to achieve …

Alkalinity And Buffering In Estuarine, Coastal And Shelf Waters, Christopher Hunt

Doctoral Dissertations

As anthropogenic climate change continues to elevate the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the Earth’s atmosphere, the absorption of a large portion of this CO2 by Earth’s oceans has resulted in a steady decrease in pH. The consequent phenomenon of ocean acidification (OA) is a result of shifts in the carbonate chemistry system of the ocean- a system which can be analytically described by several factors, including total alkalinity (TA). TA in the oceans has been measured for over a century, but analytical and operational constraints have limited these measurements in time and space. Additionally, recent work has highlighted …

Balancing Fracture And Fatigue Performance In Asphalt Pavements: A Hybrid Mechanistic And Statistical Modelling Approach, Danial Mirzaiyanrajeh

Doctoral Dissertations

The asphalt mix design and evaluation approaches are divided into two main categories as empirical and mechanistic-empirical (M-E) methods. The empirical methods are based on empirical observations of in-service pavement performance, and they do not take into account engineering properties or failure criteria. The M-E methods were introduced as a new generation for design and evaluation approaches that consider fundamental mixture properties such as material stiffness to determine the pavement's structural response. However, the need for expensive and time-consuming performance-based laboratory tests and local calibration makes the M-E methods unsuitable for routing design. In addition, during the last few years, …

Mechanistic Modelling Framework And Life Cycle Assessment Approach For Pavement Rehabilitation Using Asphalt Concrete Overlays, Katie Eileen Haslett

Doctoral Dissertations

Efficient and effective rehabilitation of existing roadways continues to be a top priority for local, state, and federal agencies to provide safe travel of people and goods. Asphalt concrete (AC) overlays on deteriorated Portland Cement Concrete (PCC) are a popular rehabilitation option to extend the service life of a roadway. However, the combination of load and environmentally induced movements at underlying joint locations can cause high amounts of stresses and strains, leading to the formation of cracks in the AC overlay. Ensuring that a suitable asphalt mixture (cracking resistance) and sufficient overlay structure (thickness) are selected is critical to avoid …

A Comprehensive Study Of The Hardware Trojan And Side-Channel Attacks In Three-Dimensional (3d) Integrated Circuits (Ics), Zhiming Zhang

Doctoral Dissertations

Three-dimensional (3D) integration is emerging as promising techniques for high-performance and low-power integrated circuit (IC, a.k.a. chip) design. As 3D chips require more manufacturing phases than conventional planar ICs, more fabrication foundries are involved in the supply chain of 3D ICs. Due to the globalized semiconductor business model, the extended IC supply chain could incur more security challenges on maintaining the integrity, confidentiality, and reliability of integrated circuits and systems. In this work, we analyze the potential security threats induced by the integration techniques for 3D ICs and propose effective attack detection and mitigation methods. More specifically, we first propose …

Study Of Primary Cilia In Early Development, Pharmacology, And Brainwave Activity., Matthew Roderick Strobel

Doctoral Dissertations

The primary cilium is a unique cellular organelle that emanates from the mother centriole and extends out of the plasma membrane of nearly every mammalian cell. While originally believed to be a vestigial appendage, the cilium is now known to be a signaling hub where various intercellular communication pathways intersect to regulate morphogenesis, proliferation, polarity, differentiation, and homeostasis. Due to their importance in regulating cellular functions the cilium has become a growing focus of biomedical research as it has been linked to at least 35 human developmental disorders which have been termed ciliopathies. In the nervous system, primary cilia regulate …

The Propagation And Evolution Of Coronal Mass Ejection Driven Sheath Regions: Insight From Multi-Spacecraft Measurements And Statistical Approaches, Tarik Mohammad Salman

Doctoral Dissertations

The complexities of our nearest star, the Sun, are characterized by its magnetic field. In the absence of a magnetic field, diverse phenomena as the solar cycle, solar eruptions, solar wind, to name but a few, would be unknown to us. Coronal mass ejections, a large form of solar eruption, are an essential mechanism for the evolution of the Sun. CMEs provide a means by which the built-up magnetic flux and solar material over solar cycles are removed from the solar atmosphere into the solar wind. This spectacular phenomenon has repercussions throughout the heliosphere, driving a range of heliospheric, magnetospheric, …

A Minority Within A Minority: Exploring Identity Development In Relation To Mental Health Outcomes Within The Black Deaf Community, Nekolas Milton

Doctoral Dissertations

Black Deaf people are a double minority group that faces discrimination on multiple fronts. There is little literature on the relationship of cultural identity development and mental health concerns of this marginalized group. This study employs a mixed method approach to examine this relationship and explore the extant culturally tailored interventions targeted towards Black Deaf adults in a clinical setting. There were two phases of this project. Phase 1 included qualitative interviews with service providers of black deaf people to ascertain the type of culturally tailored interventions that are in place for this population. 5 themes emerged: systemic issues, mental …

Mental Health Outcomes Of Mothers Employed In The Information Technology Field, Anita M. Hegedus

Doctoral Dissertations

The present study aimed to provide a better understanding of factors contributing to depressive symptomatology of mothers working in the Information Technology field (IT field) and to understand variation in postpartum depressive symptomatology within this group based on immigration status and personal and professional social supports. The sample consisted of 56 participants including immigrant (n = 30) and non-immigrant (n = 26) mothers currently employed in the IT field, who had a baby in the last 12 months. Participants were recruited over the course of five months to participate in this non-experimental, cross-sectional quantitative study. A survey link using the …

Community Based Participatory Research Informed Manualization And Piloting Of E-Training Of A Modified Dialectical Behavior Therapy Intervention, Annika M. Miyamoto

Doctoral Dissertations

This study explores the efficacy of delivering modified dialectical behavior therapy (m-DBT) to direct support staff who work with seriously mentally ill patients with neurocognitive deficits using remote web-based technology. The partnering facility for this study is a residential skilled-nursing facility that provides 24-hour care to individuals under conservatorship. Using a previously piloted m-DBT protocol, qualitative feedback was gathered from four participants with background training in psychology and varying experiences with DBT. All participants had direct knowledge of the treatment environment and experience working with the patient population. Gathered feedback was used to revise the m-DBT protocol to be used …

Majority To Minority Shift: Experiences For American Born Chinese College Students From Predominant Chinese American Communities To Predominantly White Institutions, Joseph C. Chung

Doctoral Dissertations

This research aimed to fill the gap in literature by focusing on the experiences of American born Chinese college students that moved from ethnically dense Majority Minority Chinese American Communities (MMCAC) to attend Predominantly White Institution (PWI) college/universities. The study utilized a Grounded Theory qualitative approach, which led to the development of 6 categories or themes from 17 concepts and 48 codes. These were based on data from 10 participants across two phases with two interviews each (initial and follow-up). The 6 themes “Previous MMCAC Environment,” “Identity,” “New PWI Environment,” “Values,” “Transition Experience,” and “Mental Health'' provided the descriptive experience …