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Between Harsha And Harira: Moroccan Women’S Relationships To Food And Kitchenspace, Lillie Greiman

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The research presented in this thesis grapples with questions concerning the gendered and spatial aspects of food culture and “kitchenspace” in Fez, Morocco. The everyday geographies of urban women in Fez, Morocco are closely connected to local food systems and food spaces. Food spaces like the kitchen are where women’s complex relationships to food and gender identity are revealed. Kitchens are spaces where women negotiate gender identity and where specialized knowledge (concerning food and gender) is applied, shared, and transferred from one generation to the next. Critical knowledge concerning gender and identity is communicated through food and food systems. This …

Trading Off The Benefits And Burdens: Coal Development In The Transboundary Flathead River Valley, Nadia E. Soucek

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The potential for coal development in the transboundary Flathead River Valley threatened the ecological integrity of the Crown of the Continent for more than thirty years. Economic benefits from coal mining in British Columbia were pitted against the environmental concerns of poor water quality, endangered species protection, and connectivity issues were of particular interest in Montana. This paper examines the course of coal development proposals in the transboundary valley through government statements, reports, and news sources to track changes in policies or actions that led to a resolution. Tensions between the benefits and burdens of coal development were resolved in …

Upper South Fork Of The Flathead Users: What Social Setting Attributes Are The Most Important?, Forest Waters Moulton

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Previous research has shown that wilderness visitors place much value on an uncrowded social recreation setting. However, the current indicators that the Flathead National Forest has implemented to monitor this setting on the upper South Fork of the Flathead River may not satisfy several of the qualities of a good indicators, particularly “significance.” In an attempt to recommend new indicators to monitor opportunities for quality experience within this social setting, this study assessed the significance or importance of several alternative social setting attributes. It also attempted to provide meaningful qualifications to these evaluations by analyzing variation in three concepts associated …

The Importance Of Water-Based Ecosystem Services Derived From The Shoshone National Forest, Christopher Aden Armatas

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

There is a wide range of goods and services being provided to humans by water resources (e.g. hydropower and recreation), but there is also a diversity of stakeholders that require or desire these benefits, also known as water-based ecosystem services, for everyday life. Land managers working for the United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service in the semi-arid Rocky Mountain Region are tasked with the difficult job of managing scarce water resources in the face of competing human pressures and natural forces (e.g. climate change). Water management decisions on public lands can potentially impact the availability of a wide range …

What Predicts Terrestrial Invertebrate Subsidy Use By Brook Trout (Salvelinus Fontinalis) In Headwater Streams?, Matthew Kestrel Wilson

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Spatial subsidies provide critical resources for organisms in receiving habitats, particularly when production in those habitats is low. While it is clear that terrestrial invertebrates provide a critical subsidy for trout, including eastern brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis), we have limited understanding of what causes input and use of these subsidies to vary among streams. Among the watershed characteristics that may influence input and use of terrestrial invertebrates, I predicted that forest succession stage would be especially important due to differences in terrestrial invertebrate biomass in early and late successional habitats. To test this prediction, I measured terrestrial invertebrate biomass, input …

What They Consider, How They Decide: Best Practices Of Technical Experts In Environmental Decision-Making, Cassandra J. Hemphill

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Drawing from qualitative data gathered from environmental management professionals, this paper describes best practices for decision-making in environmental clean-up. Technical experts are knowledgeable about both cultural and technical rationality and employ both, as appropriate, to achieve more robust decisions. Experts use active, passive, and interactive communicative strategies to reduce uncertainties and manage tensions. Deliberation is used to achieve robust decisions. The analysis suggests that organizations can improve acceptability of decisions by authorizing experts to incorporate cultural rationality early in the decision process.

Wilderness, A Spiritual Antidote To The Everyday: A Phenomenology Of Spiritual Experiences In The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, Ian Foster

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The purpose of this study was to explore, describe, and explain the phenomena of spiritual experiences in wilderness. The motivations for the research included: growing interest in empirical studies on the relationship between spirituality and human health, increasing concern over human’s loss of spiritual relationships with nature, and personal curiosity about the wild and spiritual nature of wilderness experiences. Research was focused on overnight visitors traveling by canoe in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness of northeastern Minnesota. Data from thirty-two semi-structured interviews was used to question, update, and improve understanding of the phenomena. Phenomenological interviews (interviews that situate comments …

Praesentia Ex Machina: The Millennial Technoculture, Liveness And Theatre, Reid J. Reimers

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This work examines the modern technoculture, its component parts and the changing role of theatre in Anglo-American culture. Our contemporary society is marked by the ubiquity of digital technologies and has become reliant on their commodities. The emerging Millennial Generation has matured with many of these devices and has embraced the modern technoculture. Many changes in daily life brought on by new technologies are obvious, but fundamental shifts remain obscured by the nature of technology itself. These subtle transformations are cumulative and have caused a technological disorientation with broad reaching implications. Liveness, initially defined as that which is unrecorded, has …

Cuts In A Prism: A Multi-Genre Exploration Of Growth As Writer, Teacher And Human, Wendy Zagray Warren

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

ABSTRACT Warren, Wendy Zagray, M.A., Summer 2012 Integrated Arts and Education Cuts in a Prism: A Multi-Genre Exploration of Growth as Writer, Teacher and Human Chairperson: Dr. Jillian Campana A meditation about how writing can be used as markers of personal and professional growth, this project brings together poems, articles, essays and reflections written over the past four years, woven together with threads of commentary. Taken together, they form a narrative of maturation, as the author’s world opens to more consciously include the perspectives of others. Based on a metaphor of a prism, where each cut represents a given perspective …

A Comparison Of Metadiscourse Markers And Writing Quality In Adolescent Written Narratives, Susan Gold Sanford

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Discourse, a series of sentences that communicates a topic, consists of two distinct yet connected components. The first element is the propositional content or the meaning of the sentences, and the second consists of the words and expressions that enhance the communicative efficiency and effectiveness of the factual message. Metadiscourse markers, members of the second linguistic category, guide the reader through the text and establish a means for the writer to interact or influence the reader. The use of metadiscourse in writing and speaking embodies the concept that communication is more than just the exchange of information, facts, and figures. …

Analysis Of Special Education Mediations In Texas, 2006-08, Diana Lane Davison

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The purpose of this study was to explore variables which might influence the frequency of Texas special education mediations used for dispute resolution. Variables such as district size, location, economic level, and the State Accountability Rating were investigated and evaluated. In order to determine if there were any relationships between the frequency of mediation and the variables, data were collected from the Texas Education Agency and district websites. It was then analyzed for insight into trends. The research drew conclusions about mediations and the variables in order to ensure that school administrators were better prepared to assess and implement appropriate …

Prevalence And Correlates Of Smoking Status Among Depressed Individuals In Veterans Affairs Primary Care, Anayansi Lombardero

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Smoking is the primary and most preventable cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States, with smoking rates being particularly high among Veterans who experience high rates of mental health and substance use disorders. This study investigates the prevalence of smoking among depressed patients in Veterans Affairs primary care. Correlates of smoking status were examined in order to improve understanding of the relations among smoking status, psychosocial characteristics, physical and mental health problems, suicide risk, mental health stigma and substance misuse, and to find predictive factors of smoking abstinence and cessation over time. Study findings have potential to inform …

Functional Encryption As Mediated Obfuscation, Robert Perry Hooker

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

We introduce a new model for program obfuscation, called mediated obfuscation. A mediated obfuscation is a 3-party protocol for evaluating an obfuscated program that requires minimal interaction and limited trust. The party who originally supplies the obfuscated program need not be online when the client wants to evaluate the program. A semi-trusted third-party mediator allows the client to evaluate the program, while learning nothing about the obfuscated program or the client’s inputs and outputs. Mediated obfuscation would provide the ability for a software vendor to safely outsource the less savory aspects (like accounting of usage statistics, and remaining online to …

Genetic Structure And Disease Prevalence Of Boreal Toads (Bufo Boreas) In Glacier National Park, Brett Rebekah Addis

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Amphibians are more threatened than any other vertebrate group, with 41% of species experiencing declines. The causes of most declines are not well understood, though many declines have been linked to the emerging infectious disease chytridiomycosis. Additionally, amphibians are physiologically constrained to moist habitats and considered poor dispersers; thus, they may suffer genetic consequences of population isolation. To address threats to the persistence of boreal toads (Bufo boreas) in Glacier National Park, USA, I genotyped 551 individuals at 11 microsatellite loci and used spatially independent (STRUCTURE) and spatially explicit (GENELAND) Bayesian methods to describe population genetic structure and identify barriers …

Assessing The Short- And Long-Term Effectiveness Of Forest Planning Workshops For Family Forests, Cynthia Ann Bertek

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Family Forest landowners, also known as Non-Industrial Private Forests (NIPF) are subject to much scrutiny by public agencies because they own the majority of forested lands across the United States and because it is difficult to quantify what they are doing with their lands. Significant federal money is allocated for family forest assistance in the form of educational grants and cost-share for specific conservation objectives. Montana State University Extension Forestry’s Montana Forest Stewardship program is a federally funded educational program that has helped forest landowners learn about and develop both short-term action plans and long-term management plans for their properties …

Mountain Pine Beetle Outbreaks In High Elevation Whitebark Pine Forests: The Effects Of Tree Host Species And Blister Rust Infection Severity On Beetle Productivity, Edith Mary Dooley

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

In recent years, the mountain pine beetle (MPB, Dendroctonus ponderosae) has caused dramatic levels of mortality of whitebark pine (Pinus albicaulis). This keystone and foundation tree species is also being killed by the exotic fungus, Cronartium ribicola, which causes the disease white pine blister rust (WPBR). This study examines MPB productivity in whitebark pine compared to that in lodgepole pine, and also in whitebark pine of varying WPBR infection severities to determine if either of these host factors contributes to the current, dramatic MPB outbreaks in whitebark pine. To evaluate host tree effects on MPB, I tracked attack densities, emergence …

Phonological Awareness Skill Of Segmenting In Bilingual English/Spanish Speaking 4- And 5-Year-Old Children, Kate Lorraine Mckay

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Abstract Segmenting, the ability to pull apart words into their smaller linguistic units, is a known predictor of early literacy. This study investigated the segmenting skills (a component of phonological awareness PA), in bilingual English/Spanish-speaking 4-and 5-year-old children at the levels of syllable, onset-rime and phoneme. The results of this study were then compared to a previous study that explored PA skill development in monolingual English speaking children of the same ages. The comparative analysis explores how bilingualism impacts PA skill development. This study examined the segmenting skills of 31 bilingual students who attended a Spanish immersion school, the majority …

Emotional Availability And Touch Among Deaf And Hearing Mother-Infant Dyads, Grace Silvia

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Much attention has been paid in past literature to deaf children's development, especially in regard to how they compare to their hearing peers over time. Most deaf children (approximately 90%) are born to hearing parents. In these cases, the child's hearing impairment can be difficult to accommodate due to the parents' lack of familiarity with ways of interacting without heavy reliance on the auditory modality. Using Deaf parents as a model for comparison, previous research has found that frequent use of touch for purposes of gaining attention is an important strategy when interacting with a deaf child.

The purpose of …

Implementing Montana's Indian Education For All: A Phenomenological Study On The Experiences, Beliefs, And Practices Of Outstanding Providers Of Professional Development, Anna E. Baldwin

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

In 1999 the state of Montana included in its educational legal code a requirement that all Montanans learn about Montana's indigenous populations and that such knowledge be transmitted in a culturally sensitive manner. This law, called Indian Education for All (IEFA), has created challenges and rewards for educators. To learn to implement the law, teachers have participated in many types of professional development, especially since the mandate was funded in 2005. In some cases, these opportunities have been exemplary and effective, and more professional development must be offered to teachers. The purpose of this qualitative, phenomenological study was to describe …

Gender, Justice, And Jim Crow: North Carolina Judge Elreta Alexander And The Long Civil Rights Era, Virginia Lyndsay Summey

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Elreta Melton Alexander (1919 – 1998) was a pioneering African-American attorney from Greensboro, North Carolina. Coming of age during the Jim Crow period of the South, she was the daughter of a Baptist minister and a teacher and grew up comfortably as a part of the black middle class. The descendant of two white grandparents, her bi-racialism formed her early awareness of colorism within the African-American community. Alexander received her Bachelor of Arts from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical University before going on to become the first African-American woman to graduate from Columbia Law School in 1945. In 1947, she …

Identifying Dimensions Of Montana Tribal Community Capacity In Relation To The Funding Application Process, Maja R. Pedersen

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Foundations and government agencies have historically played a critical role in supporting community-based health promotion programs (Easterling, Gallagher & Lodwich, 2003). Despite availability of federal and state funding for health promotion efforts within American Indian reservation communities in Montana, tribal communities in the state are less likely than non-tribal communities to successfully apply for funding for health and social services (Lonsdale, T., personal communication, April 1, 2011). Increased access to health promotion funding may help address significant health issues existing within American Indian communities such as childhood obesity, diabetes type 2, and cardiovascular disease (Ogden, Flegal, Carroll & Johnson, 2002; …

The Effects Of A Career Development Course On Career And College Major Decision-Making In College Students, Sidra Tabassum Ashraf Baig

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This study explored the effects of a semester-long, 2 credit career development course on the undecided college students. Participants included undergraduate students enrolled in the Career Development (COUN 105) class and comparison group students enrolled in Introductory Psychology (PSYX 100), and Intimate and Family Relationship (COUN 295) classes at The University of Montana. Students were assessed at the beginning and the end of the Spring and Fall semesters, 2010 by using the Career Decision Self-Efficacy Scale-Short Form (CDSE-SF; Betz & Taylor, 1983), Career Orientation scale, Career Decision Scale (Osipow et al., 1976), and Decisional Process Inventory (Hartung, 1994). The main …

Classifying Emotion Using Streaming Of Physiological Correlates Of Emotion, Nathan J. Elmore

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The ability for a computer to recognize emotions would have many uses. In the field of human-computer interaction, it would be useful if computers could sense if a user is frustrated and offer help (Lisetti & Nasoz, 2002), or it could be used in cars to predict stress or road rage (Nasoz, Lisetti, & Vasilakos, 2010). Also, it has uses in the medical field with emotional therapy or monitoring patients (Rebenitsch, Owen, Brohil, Biocca, & Ferydiansyah, 2010). Emotion recognition is a complex subject that combines psychology and computer science, but it is not a new problem. When the question was …

Communication Apprehension And Perceived Responsiveness, Elise Alexandra Fanney

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The purpose of this study was to construct a training program designed specifically for college students struggling with Communication Apprehension in the public speaking context. Research has consistently found that perceived responsiveness acts as one form of social support, and social support has been found to decrease stress (Maisel, Gable, & Strachman, 2008). Given the fact that anxiety is stressful, the purpose of the study was to explore the relationship between perceived responsiveness of an audience and CA. Using data from an earlier pilot study measuring for correlation between CA and perceived responsiveness in one‟s close relational partner, and using …

Integrating Regional Arts In The Interior Design Curriculum At Great Falls College Montana State University, Julie B. Myers

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Myers, Julie, M.A., Summer 2012 Master of Arts in Fine Arts Integrating Regional Arts into the Interior Design Curriculum at Great Falls College Montana State University Chairperson: Randy Bolton, Ph.D. Ideas explored in the Creative Pulse included the 8 Studio Habits of Mind from Studio Thinking and various approaches to teaching based on theories that humans have multiple types of intelligences and learning styles. The topic of play as a way to learn was also explored. This project was designed to increase creativity and personal motivation for the two-year college interior design student. A series of Regional Arts Enrichment Segments …

Rooted Elements A Kinesthetic Approach Connecting Our Children To Their Inner And Outer World, Alisha Meyer

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Rooted Elements is a thematic naturalistic guide for classroom teachers to design engaging lessons focused in the earth elements. It serves as a tool to pick out emotional or physical struggles for individuals or whole groups as they relate to the element characteristics. The practice is then designed around earth, water, fire or air qualities while teaching about a specific theme and what can be learned from that topic. The lessons are all geared towards an open space without desks and can be used with all students including students struggling with behavioral and/or academic challenges who need interventions. Rooted Elements …

The Influence Of Dad: An Investigation Of Adolescent Females' Perceived Closeness With Fathers And Risky Behaviors, Whitney Rostad

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Substance use and sexual behaviors are prominent college campus activities, often co-occurring. An evolutionary perspective illuminates the unique impact of father-daughter relationships on substance use and sexual risk-taking. Female adolescents who experience early physical separation from their fathers or lack relational closeness with him exhibit higher rates of substance use and accelerated reproductive development. This study examines whether female adolescents’ models of father psychological presence (a component of the attachment working model) also predict risky college behavior. Eighteen to 22 year old college females were administered several scales assessing father psychological presence, sexual risk taking, substance use, impulsivity, and depression. …

Spare Some Change?: The Policing Of Shelter-Resistant Homeless In Missoula, Montana, Jacob Daniel Coolidge

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Homelessness rates in the United States have continually increased over the past thirty years. The financial crisis of 2008 has created a ripple effect of unemployment, foreclosures, and an increased presence of homelessness in cities across the country. This increased presence of homelessness has created challenges for service providers and local governments across the country. Many cities, including New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco have implanted “Quality of Life” ordinances that criminalize certain facets of homeless life. Missoula, Montana has not been impervious to this trend and has a unique labor market that exaggerates the presence of poverty. In …

Spatial Drivers Of Ecosystem Structure And Function In A Floodplain Riverscape: Springbrook Nutrient Dynamics, Samantha Kate Caldwell

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

On riverine floodplains, reorganization by fluvial processes creates and maintains a mosaic of aquatic and riparian landscape elements across a biophysical gradient of disturbance and succession. I hypothesized that ecosystem processes in spring brooks would differ spatially across biophysical zones because landscape position dictates severity of flood disturbance and allochthonous inputs from contiguous terrestrial and groundwater systems. Between July and October 2011, I quantified aspects of ecosystem structure and function among six streams (i.e., spring brooks) originating on the Nyack floodplain, Flathead River, Montana. Among sites large wood standing stocks differed over 300-fold (0.04 – 13.5 kg m-2), dominant particle …

The Effects Of Modeled Writing On Early Literacy Development In Preschool Children, Bethany M. Froehlich Collins

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The purpose of this thesis was to investigate the impacts on early literacy development in preschool children by engaging them in writing activities that were intentionally modeled within their typical classroom setting. Twenty-five typically developing children 3 to 5 years of age participated in the study. The "Picture Story/Word Story,” a preschool writing strategy described by Paulson, et al. (2001), was used to model the developmental levels of writing for the subjects two times a week for 10 weeks. The experimental group engaged in writing activities, which included intentional modeling of the stages of writing development that were just above …