Digital Commons Network^™

The Impact Of Social Pressures On Referee's Sanctions In Professional Soccer : A Case Study Of Penalty Kicks In The Mls, Mariano Harari

Honors Theses

This paper examines referee bias in the Major League Soccer (MLS), particularly looking at referees’ decisions regarding penalty kicks. After analyzing the 520 penalty kicks sanctioned since the inception of the MLS, this study ascertains that referees’ display a considerable bias favoring the home team when awarding the initial penalty kick of a game. Additionally, this study demonstrates that in matches with more than one penalty kick, the penalties are disproportionately awarded to each team, suggesting that referees are compensating or atoning for their initial calls. Moreover, when sanctioning a second penalty kick, there is a bias effect of 5.4% …

The Courts As Policy-Makers : A Medical Malpractice Case Study, Jennifer A. Williams

Honors Theses

In this thesis, I argue that the courts are not effective policy-makers because they are a channel for resolving disputes between individuals. I first present the basics of medical malpractice litigation and some of the current literature on the courts as policy-makers. I then address the cultural trends that have made this form of individual dispute resolution common and acceptable, particularly for my case study of medical malpractice. Then I show how some of the individualized aspects of the legal system distort the deterrent effect of lawsuits. I focus on the poor fit between actual negligence and lawsuits that results …

Optical Properties Of Multilayer-Polyelectrolyte Films With Incorporated Gold Nanomaterials (Solid Nanoparticles And Hollow Nanoshells), Robert Watson Day

Honors Theses

The growth of various multilayer‐polymer multilayer‐nanoparticle films was successfully achieved. Multilayer‐polymer multilayer‐nanoparticle films with 1, 3, and 5 polymer layers between nanoparticle layers exhibit significantly different optical properties due to the differences in magnitude of particle plasmon coupling. These film systems were also successfully extended to hollow gold nanoshells, which have significantly enhanced optical properties in comparison to solid gold nanoparticles of similar sizes. A proposal for utilizing this increased sensitivity of the gold nanoshells to explore the ‘microenvironments’ for optimizing potential sensing applications is also presented.

Can Scouts And Nfl General Managers Predict Future Quarterback Performance At The Time Of The Nfl Draft?, Cain Montgomery

Honors Theses

Every year the National Football League has a draft selection process to recruit new talent. Despite the overwhelming amount of analysis performed on players, bad draft picks happen every year. Little research has previously been done to determine whether player performance is predictable at the time of the NFL Draft. Rafferty and Johnson chartered new territory in 2008 with their study entitled Is the NFL Draft a Crap Shoot? The Case of Wide Receivers. The purpose of this paper is to help fill the void of literature on performance prediction by extending the study by Rafferty and Johnson to …

Portfolio Of Compositions, Heather Stebbins

Honors Theses

In this paper, I will describe the development of my compositional skills in relation to the progression of my overall musicality. I will also illustrate how each piece I composed played a role prompting these developments and in my overall growth as a musician. Finally, I will describe how performance opportunities, festival involvement, and masterclass experiences also affected my compositional development.

Measuring The Effect Of Family Income On Undergraduate Behavior, Lindsey Brewer

Honors Theses

Educational equality has been an important and relevant issue in recent years, especially as tuition increases at colleges and universities make it increasingly difficult for low and middle-income families to afford education for their children. There are even more issues of educational equality that come into play once a student matriculates at a chosen school. This paper focuses on this area, expanding on existing literature that details family income’s impact on undergraduate behavior. Academic pursuits have been a topic for prior research in this area, but this paper also models extracurricular behavior as a function of family income. Results show …

Forecasting Utility Of Uk Consumer Sentiment Indexes In Real Time : Do Consumer Sentiment Surveys Improve Consumption Forecasts In Real Time?, Bradford M. Smith

Honors Theses

This paper builds on recent research utilizing real time datasets in order to assess the forecasting utility of consumer sentiment indexes in the United Kingdom. Academic researchers have consistently found that consumer confidence indexes accurately predict consumer spending in the near term. Few of these examinations, however, have utilized out of sample forecasting and only one has incorporated real time data. In an effort to recreate the exact dataset that is available to economic forecasters in real time, this paper utilizes the recently published Gross Domestic Product Real-Time Database from the Bank of England in order to produce forecasts of …

Enslaved Revolutionaries : Constitutional Rhetoric Of Eighteenth-Century Irish And American Patriots, Jacob Keith Johnson

Honors Theses

Following years of escalating tension, the thirteen American colonies crossed the threshold over to armed revolt, declaring a war for independence from the British in 1776. Restrictions placed upon the colonies and failed attempts at a compromise drove American patriots to initiate and execute a republican revolution that redefined their status from subsidiary colonies to independent nation. During this time, Ireland found itself in a unique situation, in an ambiguous status stuck between colony and nation. Desires for greater participation in Britain’s mercantilist economy and demand for Ireland’s legislative independence led to a revolutionary period orchestrated by an opposition group …

Catholic Nationalism And Feminism In Twentieth-Century Ireland, Jennifer M. Donohue

Honors Theses

In the early 1900s, Ireland experienced a surge in nationalism as its political leanings shifted away from allegiance to the British Parliament and towards a pro-Ireland and pro-independence stance. The landscape of Ireland during this period was changed dramatically by the subversive popularity of the Irish political party, Sinn Fein, which campaigned for an Ireland for the Irish. Much of the political rhetoric surrounding this campaign alludes to the fact that Ireland was not inherently “British” because it defined itself by two unique, un-British characteristics – the Gaelic language and the Catholic faith.

As Sinn Fein’s hold on Ireland increased, …

Visual Discrimination Training For Rats : Developing A New Methodology To Explore Laterality Differences, Tiffany R. Brunelli

Honors Theses

The goal of this study was to examine right hemisphere specialization for faces at the neuronal level. Research has shown that facial recognition relies on the right anterior temporal lobe and involves integrating multiple features (Bukach, Gauthier, & Tarr, 2006). Evidence from rat studies confirms that the anterior temporal lobe is involved in integrating multiple object features (Eacott, Machin, & Gaffan, 2001). However, these studies did not examine differences between the brain’s right and left hemispheres. It was hypothesized that the right anterior temporal lobe is more important for feature integration. The current study aimed to develop a methodology for …

Appropriation In Opera : Modern Performance Practice Of Racially Evocative Works, Katelin French

Honors Theses

The repertoire of a classically trained singer has developed over centuries of cultural influence. As singers prepare for recitals, they decide which pieces they will include and how to perform each one. Many factors are essential for these decisions. In the 21st century, our environments challenge us to explore these conditions of creating a recital program. In a post-civil rights era, factors of race and ethnicity should become more important to programming than they were before. The consideration is not whether minority populations are portrayed, but how they are evoked on stage. In the following exposition, I will consider how …

From Birth To Death Of Cool, Brandon Theriault

Honors Theses

I first heard the music of Miles when I would visit my uncle in his surburban neighborhood outside Detroit. He celebrates Miles's entire discography, a value I do not share, but we do agree on when Miles was truly "kickin' it": 1965-1974. The "adolescence and early manhood of cool" always grabbed me with its transitioning attitude and sea of creative performers assembled by Davis. His whole career is teeming with innovative ideas and outstanding sidemen, but my obsequious writ will favor the years he "kicked it".

A Morphological Analysis Of A "Confounding" Population Of Castanea In Northwest Georgia, Jamie Dinkins

Honors Theses

Two species of Castanea Mill. (Fagacae) are native to North America: the tall, forest-type Castanea dentata (Marsh.) Borkh. and the smaller, shrubbier Castanea pumila (L.) Miller. There are two varieties of C. pumila: Castanea pumila var. pumila, and Castanea pumila var. ozarkensis (Johnson, 1988). In the early 1900s, chestnut blight caused by Cryphonectria parasitica (Murr.) Barr. reduced C. dentata to stumps and sprouts and severely diminished the abundance of both subspecies of C. pumila. Because Castanea species can apparently interbreed, restoration efforts have been complicated by possible hybridization between the two now shrubby species. One of these putative hybrid and …

News Apathy Syndrome?: The News Reviewing Behaviors Of Utc Students, Paige Gabriel

Honors Theses

As technology advances, creating new news mediums and changing old news mediums, consumers are bombarded with an increasingly diverse selection of news sources. News consumers choose news mediums based on their past experiences with these sources, so news reviewing behaviors formed during the college years typically endure to some degree for the rest of an individual's life. Studying the news consumption patterns of university students can help researchers predict future trends in news consumption behaviors. The goals of this project are to identify the weekly frequency of news reviewing among a selected sample population of students; to identify the main …

Good Death: A Community Conversation, Jasmine Lake

Honors Theses

No abstract available. Playbill.

Reducing The Negative Attidudes Of Religious Fundamentalists Toward Homosexuals, John A. Frank

Honors Theses

In this study, participants who vary in their level of religious fundamentalism were exposed to different interventions designed to change their attitudes toward homosexuals. The interventions involved writing a few paragraphs about positive gay figures in society or thinking about a passage from the Bible about acceptance. Their attitudes toward homosexuals were measured using the Implicit Association Test and Herek's Attitudes toward Gay and Lesbian scale. They also completed some behavioral intention measures that examined how their attitudes relate to their behaviors. It was hypothesized that short- term contact with an admired outgroup member would change the negative attitudes or …

Polyelectrolyte-Linked, Multi-Layer Film Assemblies Of Aqueous Nanoparticles And Nanoshells, Anne Galyean

Honors Theses

Multi-layer films of nanoparticles and nanoshells featuring various polymeric linkage molecules have been assembled and their optical properties characterized. The growth dynamics, including molecular weight effects, and stability of the various nanoparticle film constructions, using both single polymer as well as combinations of alternating charge polyelectrolytes as linking mechanisms, are presented. The polymeric linkers studied include poly-L-lysine, poly-L-arginine, poly(allylamine hydrochloride), and polyamidoamine dendrimers. Significantly air stable films were achieved with the use of multi-layered polymeric bridges between the nanoparticles and nanoshells. Optical sensitivity normally observed with these nanomaterials in solution was observed for their corresponding film geometries, with the nanoshell …

The Effects Of Market Sentiment On Crude Oil Futures Markets, Nathan Somayaji

Honors Theses

This paper uses a behavioral finance approach to examine the effect of psychological factors on pricing in futures markets. Specifically, I assess the impact of the contemporaneous market sentiment on price discovery in crude oil futures markets. A considerable amount of previous research has shown that futures prices in crude oil markets lead spot prices, as futures act as a mechanism for determining spot prices. My analysis addresses whether the lead-lag relationship between futures and spot varies with differing market sentiment. I hypothesize that futures pricing will lead in times of increased uncertainty due to lower transactions costs and greater …

Treating Animals Right : Introducing A New Fairness Approach, Xenia Corali Schneider

Honors Theses

The purpose of this thesis, thus, is to provide a convincing account of the proper ethical treatment of animals. I will discuss some of the most popular theoretical frameworks, utilitarianism, Kantianism, and contractarianism, and see how they apply to animals. After explaining and critiquing these theories I will provide an alternative theory for the ethical treatment of animals, which should serve as the basis for our actions and guide our behavior towards animals, especially the eating of meat.

The argument I will be defending is neither abolitionist-granting animals the same rights as human beings and therefore rejecting all institutions involving …

Total Communication Or The Picture Exchange Communication System? Increasing The Vocabulary Growth Of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder (Asd), Ruth Ann Cooper

Honors Theses

This study had two main purposes. The first purpose was to determine which communicative treatment approach: Total Communication (TC) or the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) was more effective in increasing the vocabulary growth of children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The second purpose of this study was to determine which approach was preferred by speech-language pathologists (SLPs) to increase vocabulary growth. In order to address the first research question for this study, two preschool age (3-5 year old) children enrolled in speech-language therapy at the University of Mississippi Speech and Hearing Center were selected as participants. In order …

Drug Use And Abuse By People With Autism, Todd A. Merritt

Honors Theses

A developmental disability that is as prevalent as Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) is in society should have an extensive background of research, and this appears to be lacking, specifically concerning the issue of substance use and abuse. This article is a review of the current literature on drug use and abuse by people with Autism. Although some relevant studies have been conducted, no review of this literature has been done. Topics of interest include the prevalence of use and abuse of licit and illicit substances (e.g., ethanol, cigarettes, marijuana, and cocaine), common drug-related problems, and targeted prevention and treatment strategies.

The Metaphysical Underpinnings Contemporary Attitudes In Consumerism: An Pontification?, Jason Stigliano

Honors Theses

Contemporary philosopher and activist, John Zerzan, critiques modern civilization, and then in hindsight the history of civilization, on two central grounds, which form the basis for the rest of his criticism and theory. Firstly, we are alienated from existence in as much as our experience is, in various ways, mediated rather than immediate. Through language (or symbolic thought), a sense of measured time, symbolic ritual, technology and all the other constituents of civilized culture, we become alienated. His ideal existence might be something like the state of animals as described by John Gardner in his novel Grendel, “he stares at …

The Long Game: Hamas, The Ira, And The Politics Of Radicalization In Palestine And Northern Ireland, Dan O'Sullivan

Honors Theses

The value of a comparative study of the two conflicts stems from a remarkable similarity in the structural organization of political violence by its most influential practitioners: the IRA and Hamas. At the core, I have merely tried my best to approach a beguiling question in a fresh, dynamic way. The stultifying discourse of conflict that serves as lingua franca for the Israeli‐Palestinian issue has largely reduced strategic debate to how best the conflict can be managed – not ended. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s focus on “economic peace” and unwillingness to commit to a two‐state solution – the consensus that …

Avoiding The Fog Of Crisis: A Protocol For The Proper Domestic Use Of The Military, Brian Lynch

Honors Theses

Failure to contemplate and define an appropriate role for the armed forces of the national government in domestic crises of this sort is a serious problem. It is all the more serious now as these potential crises seem to multiply in character and scope. This thesis will explore the history of this problem and its recent implications. It will argue the need for a comprehensive, operational framework, codified in law, which defines the various alternative uses of all emergency services, both civilian and military, and is applicable to “all hazards.” I will attempt to provide a blue-print for what such …

Breaking The Cycle: The Rise Of Contentiousness In Judicial Nominations, Patrick Morrow Boland

Honors Theses

This examination begins with a presentation of data collected concerning judicial nominations from 1988 through 2008 in an attempt to document the fact that the federal judicial appointments process has become increasingly contentious. The tables and figures provide information on measures of contentiousness such as length of time from nomination to confirmation and vote totals for nominees. After documenting the increasingly contentious nature of the process, I explore the qualities that make a “good” judge, and federal judicial selection prior to 1989 to determine whether partisan and ideological considerations have any relevance in selecting and appointing federal judges. With this …

Re-Imagined Communities: Global Climbing On Local Mountains, Eitan Green

Honors Theses

In the work that follows, I begin by establishing transnational networks and global communities as an important site for ethnographic inquiry. I address the ways in which the climbing community both represents and challenges current understandings and analyses of transnational communities. I draw attention to the way that the global climbing community and my position in relation to it allows me to illuminate the climbing community on individual, institutional, national, and international levels. I argue that this multi-scalar perspective is essential in order to grasp how people experience and act within global networks.

One Generation Consuming The Next: The Racial Critique Of Consumerism In George Romero’S Zombie Films, Henry Powell

Honors Theses

The racial and economic hierarchies in Romero’s films are complex. Each film shows a strong connection between wealthy and white, which rules over the poor and black or Hispanic. In each of his films, the Americans he shows us are so ingrained in their consumer or racist identities that they cannot look past them even in a time when the characters should only be doing what is important to survive. In Night, Harry dies because of his blind selfishness and bigotry against the African American man who attempts to look out for the group. Stephen and Roger both die because …

The Effects Of Exogenous Insulin And Exercise On Glucose And Lactate Metabolism In The Brown Anole, Anolis Sagrei, Kristen Marie Hitchcox

Honors Theses

Blood glucose homeostasis is tightly regulated in mammals. Insulin and exercise both stimulate glucose uptake into muscle cells via the GLUT4 transporter protein by independent pathways. Insulin triggers a tyrosine kinase pathway, but the mechanism stimulated by exercise is unknown. Discovering the mechanism may provide new therapeutic techniques for people with diabetes mellitus. While mammals have been studied extensively, research on a different model may elucidate aspects of this lesser known pathway. Reptiles rapidly deplete glycogen stores during bursts of activity and produce lactate as a byproduct of anaerobic metabolism. Lactate undergoes gluconeogenesis within muscle tissue, rather than liver tissue, …

Mechanisms Of Cytotoxicity Of Diepoxybutane, Epichlorohydrin And 1-(Chloroethenyl)Oxirane, Rebecca D. Kamins

Honors Theses

Diepoxybutane (DEB), epichlorohydrin (ECH), and 1-(chloroethenyl)oxirane (COX) are small molecules that can form DNA interstrand cross-links. All three of these compounds are, or are metabolites of, industrial chemicals linked to cancer. Additionally, DEB is a metabolite of treosulfan, an anti-cancer drug. We are trying to determine why some of these compounds cause cancer and some can also cure cancer. To do so, we are attempting to link cytotoxicity, cross-linking efficiency, and apoptotic potential of the three compounds to see if any correlations exist. The purpose of this project was to quantify apoptotic potential of DEB, ECH and COX. This was …

The Effect Of Glutamate On Neurite Outgrowth In Fiddler Crab (Uca Pugilator) X-Organ Cells, Ruth B. Langton

Honors Theses

Glutamate is the primary excitatory neurotransmitter in the mammalian central nervous system. It is of particular interest because of its supposed role in the processes of learning and memory, and also because of its potential toxic effects that have been linked to neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. Although glutamate is necessary for normal cell functioning, high levels of glutamate receptor activation can result in cell death, a phenomenon known as excitotoxicity. It has been suggested that glutamate also plays an important role in the insect and crustacean nervous systems, allowing for the examination of excitotoxicity in these organisms. …