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Listening To An/Other Voice: Gender, Creativity, And The Divine In The Works Of Female Christian Mystics And Women Surrealists, Stephanie Garboski

Honors Theses

This thesis will compare two groups, Christian women mystics and women surrealists, by analyzing select works by Hildegard of Bingen, Mechthild of Magdeburg, Leonora Carrington, and Dorothea Tanning. This analysis will involve a comparative, theoretical approach that draws connections between the way in which both groups utilize varying literary and artistic forms, symbols, and polyglottery. I will utilize Bourdieu’s terms of cultural production as a framework in which to better understand how women of both fields are used for their creativity and supposed connection to an/other, which is the source of inspiration native to each field, God and the unconscious. …

Role Of Nest Site Microclimate And Food Availability In Chick Development And Reproductive Success In Black-Legged Kittiwakes (Rissa Tridactyla), Lindsay Mae Lacey

Honors Theses

Seabirds are marine top predators, and as such are often studied as bioindicators of climate shifts (Oswald and Arnold 2012). Though many studies have analyzed the effect of macroclimatic variation on marine prey species availability and thus seabirds, few have analyzed effects of microclimate - fine spatial patterns of climate (Mantua and Hare 2002; Hatch 2013; Kim and Monaghan 2005a). I tested the hypothesis that localized temperature and humidity at nest sites interact with food availability to alter black-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla) nest site quality, chick body condition during growth and development, and reproductive parameters including Julian lay …

Moving Beyond The "Old Boys' Club" In Environmental Organizations: Investigating The Behaviors, Attitudes And Perspectives Of Men And Women, Kat Pardoe

Honors Theses

This study interrogates the exclusionary culture of environmentalism with respect to gender, and in doing so, illuminates elements of function and dysfunction with respect to gender dynamics in environmental organizations. I utilize social science-based quantitative and qualitative methods as a foundation for my analysis. My research investigates the role of gender both at the micro level, with individuals, and the macro level, by evaluating the persistence of the “Old Boys’ Club” culture in environmental organizations. Thirteen people participated in interviews, and forty people responded to an online survey. Personal reflections gathered from the survey reveal gendered trends in environmental problem …

Virunga: Guns, Gorillas, And The Construction Of Transnational Natures, Adriana Disilvestro

Honors Theses

The recent western media attention surrounding Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo, has brought up significant scholarly questions about the discursive portrayal of “ideal” Natures. In this thesis, I undertake a discursive analysis of western media materials about Virunga National Park in order to understand how ideas of Nature are transnationally constructed. In order to do this, undertake an analysis of the western oriented discursive material associated with three socio-political processes within the park: green militarization, gorilla trekking, and the ecotourist industry. Ultimately, I conclude that the discursive material portrays a highly spectacularized and commodified “ideal” nature, …

Creating Effective Mental Health Programs In Rural Middle Schools: A Case Study Of Challenges, Policy And Programming, Katelyn Kempf

Honors Theses

Using a case study approach, this study investigated the current status of mental health programs and resources within a specific middle school in Eastern Rural Pennsylvania. Interviews were conducted with a school counselor, principal, teacher, social worker and mental health liaison in order to uncover the perceived strengths and weaknesses of mental health resources at this school, and the perceived barriers to providing mental healthcare. Data analysis revealed that the main barriers included parental involvement, parental follow-through, transportation and funding. Further questions were identified for future research within this school in order to create specific recommendations for improvement. Additionally, a …

Investigating The Relationship Between Sulcogyral Patterns And Structural And Functional Connectivity Metrics In The Orbitofrontal Cortex, Bethany M. Blass

Honors Theses

Located within the frontal lobe, the human orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) is widely known for its roles in sensory integration, emotion processing, decision-making, and goal-directed behaviors. Atypical structural organization of the OFC may explain atypical social or motivational behaviors displayed by individuals with brain disorders, such as bipolar disorder patients (BP).

The human brain can be imaged using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to reveal interesting aspects of the underlying brain architecture. This brain is composed of different tissue types, including gray and white matter, as well as various morphological features, including sulci & gyri. Within the OFC, the sulci can be …

A Different Kind Of Learning For A Different Kind Of Learner : Justification Of And Best Practices For The Use Of Performing Arts Education For Autistic Students, Jacob Anthony Litt

Honors Theses

In our culture, our history, and our society, the arts play a vital role. However, despite maintaining such a fundamental place in our shared experiences, the arts’ role in education is in constant need of clarification and defense. In addition, the presence of individuals with cognitive and developmental disabilities has become increasingly common in society, and yet special educational programs for these individuals, especially in their early years, have proven unable to find total success. These two fields of education – arts education and special education – thus share a common struggle: a need to find an established place in …

Interactions Between Two Key Amphibian Defenses To Batrachochytrium Dendrobatidis In Panamanian Glass Frogs (Espadarana Prosoblepon), Andi Levorse

Honors Theses

Research on the amphibian pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), the causative agent of the lethal disease chytridiomycosis, has advanced from assessments of pathogenicity and species susceptibility to more specialized questions concerning the complex interactions between the pathogen, species-specific immune responses, and the environment. Our work examines the potential for interactions between the two most important innate immune defenses of frogs against Bd: secretions of antimicrobial peptides and communities of commensal cutaneous bacteria. While both defenses have been studied individually, little data are available to examine interactions between these defenses. We conducted our study with field captured Panamanian glass frogs …

Community Structure Of The Microbiome Of Ixodes Scapularis In Relation To Sex, Stage, Lineage, And Geography, Christopher Lee Clark

Honors Theses

This study sought to fill these gaps of knowledge ticks as a model species. Based on the known information on the microbiome of vectors, and ticks more specifically, I sought to answer two prominent questions: are there relationships between the microbiome of individual ticks and do ticks from different sexes or life stages have variance in their microbiomes? In reference to my first question, I hypothesized that ticks coming from the same lineage, being the males, 7 Community Structure of the Microbiome of Ixodes scapularis females, and resulting eggs, would have a more similar microbiome to each other than to …

Understanding The Structural Basis Of Sike Interactions, Alice Catalano

Honors Theses

Tank Binding Kinase 1 (TBK1) acts as a catalytic hub in the regulation of numerous immune signaling pathways. Suppressor of IκB Kinase ε (SIKE) was recently characterized as a substrate of TBK1 whose binding properties are modulated by phosphorylation state, but very little is currently known about its function. However, because SIKE is known to form a dimer with itself, previous work generated a list of potential SIKE partners based on other proteins that contain sequences homologous to SIKE. Here, computational models of four potential SIKE partners, Heavy Chain myosin, tubulin, Beta Catenin and Ezrin, were generated and docked with …

The Effectiveness Of Promotions In Minor League Baseball : A Study Of The Eastern League, Collin R. Zucker

Honors Theses

Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is comprised of 247 teams playing in 17 leagues at six different levels. Every team in these leagues is an affiliate of a Major League Baseball (MLB) team, but many are privately owned and are therefore financially independent. While MiLB primarily serves as a development environment for future MLB players, profit maximization is still a goal of various front offices. Minor League Baseball has existed for over a century but only recently have teams been regarded as profitable investments. In Forbes’ “Most Valuable Minor League Teams” list published in 2016, the average value of the top …

Bartonella And Y. Pestis Screening In Ctenophyllus Armatus Terribilis For Conservation Application For The America Pika (Ochotona Princeps) In The Rocky Mountain Front Range, Hilary Rinsland

Honors Theses

As temperatures continue to disproportionally increase in alpine regions due to climate change, parasite spillover from increased pika-rodent contact could bring new diseases to a susceptible alpine specialist, the American pika (Ochotona princeps). Fleas collected from pika at four alpine and subalpine study sites in Boulder County, Colorado from 2011-2017 were screened for Y. pestis and Bartonella using conventional PCR methods. This is the first study to detect Bartonella in the American Pika flea Ctenophyllus armatus terribilis and to propose the presence of B. grahmii in the alpine region of the Rocky Mountains.

Social Evils + Stigma: A Cumulative Study Of Hiv And The Moral Model Of Disease In Vietnam, Argentina And Mississippi, Sarah Thornby Stroup

Honors Theses

How can studying such diverse contexts as Vietnam, Argentina, and Mississippi—three cases from opposite corners of the world — provide remediation for the global HIV epidemic? By targeting specific populations of high-risk groups (e.g. injection drug users, females sex workers, and men who have sex with men), analysis of my ethnographic fieldwork in Vietnam, Argentina, and Mississippi, revealed a common denominator of stigma, though manifesting in varying ways, which laid the foundation for this thesis. Building from Erving Goffman's (1993) foundational text on stigma in collaboration with Link and Phelan's (2001) expansion thereof, I define stigma as the differentiation and …

Energetics And Vibrational Signatures Of Nucleobase Argyrophilic Interactions, Suhwan Paul Lee

Honors Theses

This study investigates the interactions of both purine (adenine and guanine) and pyrimidine (cytosine, thymine, and uracil) nucleobases with a pair of silver atoms (Ag2). Full geometry optimizations were performed on several structures of each nucleobase/Ag2 complex and the corresponding isolated monomers using the M06-2X density functional theory (DFT) method with a correlation consistent triple-ζ basis set augmented with diffuse functions on all atoms and a relativistic pseudopotential on Ag (aug-cc-pVTZ for H, C, N, and O and aug-cc-pVTZ-PP for Ag; denoted aVTZ). Harmonic vibrational frequency computations indicate that each optimized structure corresponds to a minimum on the M06-2X/aVTZ potential …

Method Development And Pharmacokinetic Study Of Jy08, A Dual Opioid-Npff Receptor Ligand, Sydney Harrison

Honors Theses

Within the United States and worldwide, a rapidly developing public health crisis is at hand due to the abuse of opioids. With high percentages of Americans experiencing both acute and chronic pain and limited treatment routes, opioid analgesics are highly prescribed in clinical practice. These drugs act on central nervous system to activate opioid receptors in regions of the brain regulating pain and reward. However, these compounds are associated with many unwanted adverse effects including tolerance, dependence, hyperalgesia, and addiction. Thus, there is a need to for the development of new drug candidates that can serve as analgesics for long-term …

Measuring The Effects Of Prosthetic Tactile Pacing On Overt Stuttering Frequency In Adults Who Stutter, Sydney Elizabeth Gully

Honors Theses

While the cause has been historically enigmatic, persistent stuttering exhibits distinct behavioral, neural and genetic characteristics. Throughout many years, a variety of motoric treatments have attempted to ameliorate overt stuttering behaviors; however, most therapeutic options provide unstable, effortful, and/or unnatural sounding results with high relapse rates. Conversely, research documents natural sounding speech coupled with stable and effortless reductions in overt stuttering frequency when a person who stutters is exposed to speech feedback of a second speech signal (i.e. choral speech). The most prolific clinical use of this technology is a prosthetically introduced auditory second speech signal; yet its current application …

Contemporary Terrorism Paradigm: Terrorist Attacks On Transportation Systems, Gabbi Berlanti

Honors Theses

The Contemporary Terrorism Paradigm has been examined in concept, but little research has applied the theory to specific targeting of terrorist organizations. To build on this limited research, the current study analyzed the number of terrorist incidents targeting the transportation infrastructure in North America, Western Europe, and East Asia between 2001 and 2016 to ascertain if the Contemporary Terrorism Paradigm explains the variance between number of incidents and number of casualties. The use of North America, Western Europe, and East Asia created an opportunity to examine vulnerabilities in the transportation infrastructure and identify areas in the United States transportation infrastructure …

O-Glcnac Post Translational Modification Of Hypoxia-Inducible Factor (Hif) Proteins, Hailey Elisabeth Grisham

Honors Theses

O-linked β-N-acetylglucosamine (O-GlcNAc) post-translational modification (O- GlcNAcylation), plays a vital role in many metabolic pathways, including those of numerous diseases. New research methods and basic functional roles of O-GlcNAc post- translational modification on metabolism, human health, and cancer are quickly developing, but a vast amount of research remains on the specificity of this pathway towards specific proteins. In this study, T47D breast cancer cells were used as an in vitro model to investigate the effects of O-GlcNAc modification on hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) proteins.

Characterizing The Effects Of Mutations In Stm And Ath1 On Floral Organ Development In Arabidopsis Thaliana, Hayden Malone

Honors Theses

Understanding the molecular controls involved in plant development is important in understanding plant physiology as a whole, and this knowledge in turn can lead to useful applications in agriculture and industry. This project investigates the roles of two transcription factors, SHOOT MERISTEMLESS (STM) and ARABIDOPSIS THALIANA HOMEOBOX GENE1 (ATH1) in the molecular pathway that creates boundaries between organs in flowers of Arabidopsis thaliana. Mutations in the STM and ATH1 genes prevent formation of basal boundaries between the floral organs and the stem, causing abscission defects in flowers. If the STM and ATH1 genes are also critical for establishing the boundaries …

The Effects Of Mutations In The Ath1 And Stm Genes On Sepal, Petal, And Stamen Abscission In Arabidopsis Thaliana Plants, Hunter L. Roth

Honors Theses

Floral organ boundaries are areas that allow distinct organs within a flower to differentiate from each other and the underlying stem. Boundary regions are also where abscission zones (AZs) can form, which allow floral organs to abscise, or detach, from the plant. This study takes a look into a pair of genes, ARABIDOPSIS THALIANA HOMEOBOX GENE1 (ATH1) and SHOOT MERISTEMLESS (STM), which code for transcription factors found in Arabidopsis thaliana that are responsible for proper boundary formation and AZ specification. Mutations in one or both of these genes affect AZ formation of specific floral organs. The ATH1 and STM transcription …

Cell-Free Telomere Dna As A Biomarker For Treatment Response And Tumor Burden In Glioblastoma, John P. North

Honors Theses

Telomeres are repeated nucleotide sequences that cap the ends of each chromosome in eukaryotes. Telomeres are among the earliest genomic sequences to be degraded during apoptosis, potentially providing a biomarker of cell death. To study this, we quantified telomeres in serum from Glioblastoma and non-cancer patients. Cell-free DNA was isolated by centrifugation to remove intact cells, and purified using a QIAamp DNA Blood Midi Kit (Qiagen). Cell-free telomeric (cf-tel) and cell-free actin (cf-actin) DNA were analyzed with quantitative PCR. Total cell-free DNA was measured with PicoGreen assays. We hypothesize that patients with Glioblastoma tumors have higher cf-tel DNA levels than …

The Cinematic South: A Look Into The South According To Quentin Tarantino, Justin Tyler Necaise

Honors Theses

This thesis examines the eight films directed by Quentin Tarantino. More specifically, it examines how Tarantino portrays the American South, southernness, and southerners throughout his filmography. I watched each film countless times, read each screenplay, and read many articles written about the films. I also read many biographies, and I watched many interviews with Quentin Tarantino. In this work, I find that Tarantino exploits the South in order to create much more despicable characters, which furthers the stereotype that the South is in some way lesser to the rest of the United States. The South according to Quentin Tarantino is …

Effects Of Housing Management On Vaccination Success Against Eimeria Infection In Chickens, Louis Wilson Benton

Honors Theses

Coccidiosis is a disease of the gastrointestinal system of commercially raised chickens (Gallus gallus). The infection is caused by multiple parasitic species of the coccidian genus Eimeria. Eimeria proliferate within large poultry houses leading to decreased nutrient absorption, anorexia, and death of the host. Scheduled vaccination with live coccidian oocysts should minimize production losses, but various management factors may contribute to variation in the outcome. I investigated whether by tracking infection cycles in detail it might be possible to improve poultry production. Feces were collected daily from four farms across a two-month period to understand how peaks in oocyst shedding …

Attitudinal Changes In Experiential Learning Via Poverty Simulation, Madison E. Bandler

Honors Theses

More than 10% of people living in the United States are impoverished. These human beings are subjected to poor living conditions, experience increased mental and emotional stress, lack basic necessities, and are more susceptible to many health conditions. Lack of poverty awareness and understanding has contributed to the spread of misconceptions, the majority of which are damaging to the impoverished community. These misconceptions affect how impoverished individuals are viewed by health care professionals and influence the quality of medical treatment they receive. The Missouri Community Action Poverty Simulation (CAPS) is an experiential learning tool that requires participants role-play a low-income …

The Yasuní Itt Initiative And The Creation Of Global Green Sovereignty, Marlarose Gridley

Honors Theses

The Yasuní-ITT Initiative was an international financing scheme in which the Ecuadorian government agreed to forgo drilling in the Yasuní National Park in exchange for foreign compensation in the amount of $3.6 billion USD over 12 years. Embedded in a global framework of revenue redistribution for development, the Yasuní-ITT Initiative established a model of global environmental care based on global North-South difference and historical ecological debt. In doing so, it impacted, through prospective flows of aid, the conceptualization of Ecuadorian sovereignty.

Analyzing Students' Perception Of Their Writing Skills And The Effects Of 100-Level Writing Course Exemptions In The School Of Business Administration At The University Of Mississippi, Mary Kate Workman

Honors Theses

For my thesis I have conducted research in the area of writing skills developed in an undergraduate setting through first-year writing courses. After researching current scholarship on the writing skills of recent business graduates, student athletes, and students who have participated in high school Advanced Placement (AP) programs, I have isolated my research for students in the School of Business Administration at the University of Mississippi (UM). Additionally I researched individualized tutoring strategies for each of these groups. I conducted a brief survey using Qualtrics, an online anonymous survey platform. This survey was emailed to 2,000 randomly selected students in …

The Policy Evolution And Privatization Of Commercial Space Systems, Nestor Delgado

Honors Theses

From the Wright Brothers to SpaceX launching the Falcon Heavy, space systems, and the policies that govern these systems, continue to evolve at a rapid rate. However, as space travel becomes commercialized, the federal government is beginning to realize that it would be cost-ineffective to continue to manufacture, maintain, and operate space systems completely through their own agencies. In result of this, it would be proactive for policymakers to decide what policy tools would be most effective in regulating space systems and the space ports in which they travel. The purpose of this study is to present research on the …

Purification Protocol Development And Analysis Of Binding Properties Of Calmodulin Collagen-Like Protein, Patrick P. Boddie

Honors Theses

Calmodulin is an intensely studied, intracellular, calcium-binding protein that is involved in diverse physiological processes. When bound to calcium, calmodulin undergoes a conformational change that allows it to bind specific target peptides with high affinity, one being the calmodulin binding region of myosin light chain kinase, herein called M13. This high affinity, calcium dependent association has made it a desirable choice for use in a biomaterial for drug delivery for non-steroidal anti- inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). Two artificial genes have been designed by our lab for use in the proposed biomaterial: calmodulin collagen-like protein (CCLP), a construct composed of two calmodulin …

Development Of A Scn1a Null Zebrafish Model For Screening Potential Anti-Epileptic Natural Products, Patricia Ann Lipson

Honors Theses

Epilepsy affects around 50 million people in the world. Thus, it is imperative that new more effective and safe treatments be found. This study was designed to use zebrafish to screen potential anti-epileptic natural products. We utilized two scn1Lab null zebrafish models (morpholino-injected fish where scn1Lab was transiently knocked down and a transgenic scn1Lab -/- fish line). Alternatively, we used AB wildtype fish to test compounds in a chemically-induced seizure model. Natural compounds including cannabidiol, CBD, and Tapinanthus globiferous, TG, extracts were screened for their anti-seizure activity. When scn1Lab -/- fish were treated with CBD (0.075 and 0.3 mg/L) from …

The Effect Of Social Media Addiction On Consumer Behavior: A Cultural Comparison Of Spain And The United States, Margaret Chambers

Honors Theses

This paper will look at the new issue of social media addiction, how it has affected consumers' behaviors and their interactions with companies, and whether cultural components play a role in this. It will specifically look at the differences between the Spanish and American cultures. I conducted literature searches from the databases in the University of Mississippi library. I researched social interaction theories, social media, The Addiction Theory, and compared the two cultures. The second source of research I used was primary observational research conducted while I lived in Barcelona for five weeks. The observations were made at different points …