Digital Commons Network^™

Perishable Food Waste Reduction Through Technological Implementation At The Retail Level Of The Food Supply Chain, Cassandra Harriman

Master's Theses

Food waste has become a disaster of global proportion that the world can no longer turn a blind eye to. This paper aims to reduce food waste at the retail level of the food supply chain by recommending and quantifying the effects of current technology that can be implemented in traditional supermarkets. This research recommends that retailers implement electronic shelf labels in stores and employ dynamic pricing of perishable products, leading to reduction of food waste. No prior research had considered the primary goal of reducing food waste while preserving retailer profit through technological implementation. This paper quantifies the effects …

A Performance Survey Of Text-Based Sentiment Analysis Methods For Automating Usability Evaluations, Kelsi Van Damme

Master's Theses

Usability testing, or user experience (UX) testing, is increasingly recognized as an important part of the user interface design process. However, evaluating usability tests can be expensive in terms of time and resources and can lack consistency between human evaluators. This makes automation an appealing expansion or alternative to conventional usability techniques.

Early usability automation focused on evaluating human behavior through quantitative metrics but the explosion of opinion mining and sentiment analysis applications in recent decades has led to exciting new possibilities for usability evaluation methods.

This paper presents a survey of modern, open-source sentiment analyzers’ usefulness in extracting and …

Envisioning Justice And Solidarity In The Household Workplace: The Organizing Power Of Immigrant Domestic Workers And Employers In The Bay Area, Nicole Laporte

Master's Theses

Domestic workers are skilled professionals who engage in a variety of activities ranging from housecleaning, elderly care and childcare support in private households. In the United States, it is estimated that there are over 2.5 million domestic workers, the majority of whom are immigrant women of color.[1] Due to the historic racialized and gendered exclusion from labor law protections such as the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, [2] the labor of domestic worker professionals has been made invisible in the United States. Today, domestic workers are three times as likely to be living in poverty and are less …

The Inter-American Human Rights System In The Context Of Migration: Us Immigration Policies, Maira E. Delgado Laurens

Master's Theses

International human rights laws are critical to ensuring a minimum protection level for those migrating to other nations across the globe. Despite intense efforts by the United States to sidestep such policies while misrepresenting their repeated violations of human rights now taking place at the U.S.-Mexico border, these policies remain in full force in the global governance community. The actions of the Trump administration and others clearly indicate the need for political intervention to ensure such rights are maintained. Using qualitative content analysis and participatory observation, this article reviews the effectiveness of thematic hearings, under the Inter-American Commission on Human …

What Does It Mean To Be Palestinian? Understanding Palestinian Identity Through Narrative: Memories And Reflections From The Diaspora, Nidalia Nazzal

Master's Theses

This research will examine narratives of Palestinian identity throughout the diaspora and how such narratives are expressed, portrayed, and remembered. Out of 103 narratives included in the book, Being Palestinian: Personal Reflections on Palestinian Identity in the Diaspora (2016), edited by Yasir Suleiman, four narratives were selected for analysis, in order to examine common themes such as: diaspora, displacement, identity, erasure, and stigmatization. The four narratives selected are written by Palestinians of various ages and professions who have been exiled to other countries; these narrative speakers, two men and two women, share their personal experiences as Palestinians and what those …

Hey Google: How Can We Build Critical Media Literacy?, Wilson Wang

Master's Theses

The year 2020 spotlighted problematic media coverage of the global coronavirus pandemic. Conflicting narratives of the origin of the “China virus” (Campbell & Park, 2020), the silenced journalistic freedoms (Davidson, 2020), and the impact on communities of color (Williams, 2021) created mass confusion during the global pandemic. To help address our understanding of media, teaching civic online reasoning (Wineburg & McGrew, 2017) and critical media literacy are two potential points of emphasis. Building critical media literacy helps resist the echo chamber effect of social media and cable news, which results in polarization and difficult mediation between parties (Bexley & Tchailoro, …

Optimizing Mri Experience For Children Living With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Lyn Tran

Master's Theses

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) in pediatric patients living with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is often complicated by challenges. The child perceives the MRI environment as abnormal and uncertain of the implications of the procedure. The child may exhibit distress becoming anxious and frightened, reluctant to enter the scanner, and unable to remain still throughout the duration of the procedure. The issue lies within the child’s mental and behavioral challenges to understand and follow the task demands to ensure safety and accurate acquisition of image artifacts. After reviewing literature, observing MRI protocol for pediatric patients, and conducting multiple nursing staff surveys …

The Health Costs Of Political Identity: Evidence From Public Safety Responses In The Us And A Natural Experiment In California, Sahiba Chopra

Master's Theses

The Covid-19 pandemic has brought political polarization in the US to the forefront of the battle against coronavirus. We find that for every one percentage point increase in votes for Trump there are 881 more Covid-19 cases and 17 more Covid-19 deaths. We find that these results are motivated by political identity as it is mediated through public safety behaviors like maskwearing and social distancing. In addition, a natural experiment in California during the first half of the pandemic in the US finds that 36% of the Covid-19 cases at the census tract level in California can be associated with …

The Role Of Learning Styles In The Uptake Of Index Insurance: Evidence From Kenya, Yibekal Abebe Tessema, Andrew Hobbs, Nathaniel Jensen

Master's Theses

Index insurance has a huge potential to increase the income of households in developing countries by shielding them against various shocks and by facilitating technology adoption. Despite this theoretical promise, however, the uptake of insurance has turned out to be disappointingly low. One of the key barriers in the adoption of this financial technology has been learning difficulty. Index insurance can be considered a relatively complex product especially in the context of low financial literacy in developing countries. Despite the relevance of learning in the diffusion of the product, however, previous studies on the subject have been quite limited. This …

Collective Love And Care: An Examination Of Pinay Leadership In Community-Based Organizations, Emily Enriquez

Master's Theses

Pinays’ experiences are often excluded in history. Despite this exclusion and erasure, Filipinas are utilized around the world to provide labor and care. This study looks at the experiences of Pinays living in the San Francisco Bay Area working in community-based organizations. This study utilized a grounded theory approach to further understand Pinay identities and experiences and the ways they inform their leadership. Attempting to address the lack of research on Pinay leaders in community- based organizations, this study will build on current Pinay epistemologies to further understand Pinay leadership. This study asks three research questions: 1) How do Pinays …

Transitioning Into Retirement: Effect Of Pension Expansion On Elderly Labor Force Participation In India, Devaprasad Sahadevan

Master's Theses

The welfare effects of public social security programs have been extensively studied in the context of developing economies where the reliance on state is much larger for the provision of basic goods and services. Pension schemes and reforms, however, are met with much less fiscal investment considering the demographic composition and the requisite demands of the larger proportion of youth- and working age- population. Given the rapid pace of demographic transition, there will inevitably be an ever-growing pressure and economic problems associated with aging are bound to become more apparent. As transitioning into retirement is an under-studied area in countries …

Police Union Membership And Lethal Use Of Force, Scott Barger

Master's Theses

I examine the Fraternal Order of Police union presence in cities as an explanation for the lethal use of violence. Using a novel dataset of FOP union presence, I utilize a simple log OLS linear model to explore the relationships between FOP unions and lethal use of force. I find robust evidence that FOP unions have higher incidences of death at the hands of police, compared to cities without a FOP union. Exposure to FOP leads to an increase in baseline risk of death by police by 17%. This effect increases for larger cities.

Temperature Effects On Prevalence Of Sexually Transmitted Infections Among At-Risk Female Sex Workers In India, Rajshri Suresh

Master's Theses

Vulnerability to climate change varies depending on the baseline climate, sensitivity to given exposure, and the presence of social, political, cultural, and institutional inequalities that influence access to essential resources of livelihood, particularly among informal labor market participants. Within the risky informal labor market, the transient nature of sex work implies that sex workers suffer disproportional losses in health, income, protection, and other aspects of general well-being as a result of the effects of climate anomalies. In this paper, I investigate the effect of temperature on the prevalence of sexually transmitted infections in a high-risk population of female sex workers …

Does Prize Sharing Close The Gender-Based Gap Of Competition In Nepal?, Supriya Adhikari

Master's Theses

Past research has shown that even when women perform
equally as men, they are less competitive when cash is provided as
incentive. Using the experimental design of Cassar and Rigdon
(2021), where in a real effort tournament a social incentive
motivates women to compete more and closes the gender gap in
competitiveness, we examine if this will be found in a Nepal
sample. Following the evolutionary literature that suggests women
need each other’s support for child care, participants are given an
option to share the prize they win to help them earn friendships and
bonds in a competitive game. Our …

The Construction Of A European Identity Refugees And Europe’S Identity Crisis, Martina Caretta

Master's Theses

The fundamental purpose of my thesis is to consider the ongoing formation of European identity within the context of the contemporary refugee/migrant crisis in Europe. In doing so, I will briefly survey how a European identity has been conceived and constructed through legal documents, treaties, and political speeches. Moreover, I will use different theories such as Anderson’s imagined communities to consider whether European identity is post-modern and post-national as it is sometimes celebrated to be. The EU is frequently regarded as a unique experiment in history and the first real post-modern political entity. However, looking deeper into the identity construction …

Do Letters And Gifts From International Sponsors Affect Child Outcomes? Evidence From Colombia, Ghana, And Haiti, Mai Moua

Master's Theses

Past research has found child sponsorship results in higher aspirations, mental health, and educational outcomes. In this research, I explore the extent to which these outcomes can be influenced by letters and gifts sent from the sponsor to the child. However, there is limited research on the effects of direct relationship between sponsor and child. Using 1142 sponsor letters and a 2017 survey from Compassion International, an international child sponsorship organization, we find that letters and gifts from sponsors have a statistically insignificant impact on outcomes including education, mental health, aspirations, social connectedness, nutrition, religiosity, hygiene, and views on drugs, …

Important Factors For Changing Plastic Consumption Among Highly Educated People In China, Shen Shen

Master's Theses

As the global plastic pollution situation is getting much more serious, how to change the trend of plastic pollution to save humankind itself has become an urgent issue. In China, the country with the world's fastest-growing economy and the largest population, solving the problem of plastic pollution presents a serious challenge. This thesis draws on a survey of highly educated people in China to investigate how these people's understanding and awareness of plastic pollution, willingness to change their behavior and perceptions of who is responsible for addressing the problem might inform strategies for reducing plastic pollution in China. The analysis …

Assessing Convolutional Neural Network Animal Classification Models For Practical Applications In Wildlife Conservation, Julia Larson

Master's Theses

Convolution neural network models (CNNs) can successfully identify animal species in camera-trap images in simplified testing environments. CNN performance in more complex, realistic environments is understudied. Here the Wellington Camera Traps dataset was used to simulate a wildlife conservation project to detect invasive species at low population levels using camera-trap images and CNN models. Ten CNNs were developed and analyzed with seven testing datasets, simulating 13 possible project scenarios. Model performance was measured using standard computer science metrics, top-1, and top-5 accuracy, and two novel performance metrics developed for this research to directly reflect wildlife conservation goals, false alarm rate, …

Differences In Brand-Logo Size Preferences Between Racial/Ethnic Groups, Elliot David Ansari

Master's Theses

The current study compared and explained differences in consumption behaviors among people of different racial/ethnic groups: White, Black, Hispanic, and Southeast Asian. Specifically, we analyzed racial/ethnic group preferences for brand-logo sizes on visually conspicuous products (t-shirts and hats). The fear of being negatively evaluated as a minority group member was examined to see if it predicted unique conspicuous consumption patterns across individual consumer groups. This research extended prior consumer tendency literature by trying to demonstrate a link between race/ethnicity and conspicuous consumption through the fear of being negatively evaluated because of one’s racial/ethnic background. A final sample of 222 participants …

Lived Experiences Of College Football Fans In The Southeast United States: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, Rosemarie Rachel Pacitto

Master's Theses

While a number of sport-related studies have explored sport fandom and its effects quantitatively, there is a lack of research that exists surrounding the lived experiences of fans, and thus any potential health-related benefits derived through fandom. The present study qualitatively explored the lived experiences of college football fans in the Southeast United States with aims to identify any potential health related benefits derived through fandom experiences. Eight participants were interviewed utilizing semi-structured interviews. Interviews were analyzed via interpretative phenomenological analysis. Results are discussed within the context of positive psychology and identity theory and suggest that participants experienced phycological and …

Jan Van Kessel I. Catalogs And Painting: Redefining The Role Of Animals In Seventeenth-Century Fish Landscapes., Ana Borlas-Ivern

Master's Theses

Images of animals were produced in abundance in the Low Countries during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Animals appeared in prints, the pages of natural history catalogs, and the backgrounds of paintings, eventually emerging in their own right as a primary subject in painting. This thesis begins by examining the economic circumstances that converged in sixteenth-century Antwerp to give way to this development. It then traces the legacy of the animal genre in the seventeenth century through five fish landscape paintings that Antwerp painter Jan van Kessel I (1626-1679) completed in the 1660s. This study argues that van Kessel redefined …

Ghirardelli Square: The Best Piece Of Urban Space In The Country, Samantha Iverson Johnson

Master's Theses

Ghirardelli Square, which opened in 1964, is well known among many architecture historians and urban planners owing to its origins as the one of the first successful rescue and adaptive reuse of a factory site and its place among the shifting urban renewal policies within San Francisco. Previous analysis has focused primarily on the work of Lawrence Halprin and his impact within Northern California; however very little has been discussed in regards to Roth and his team’s original plan for the space along with the outrage taking place concerning urban renewal policies in San Francisco during this time. By examining …

The Colonial Marginalization Of Filipino And Filipino American Soldiers In The Us Army During World War Ii, Corey Joseph Tinay

Master's Theses

This thesis analyzes the structural paradigms in place within American society as multifaceted tools of colonialism and how they impacted the experiences of minority and colonized soldiers in the United States Army during the Second World War. The history is analyzed through the postcolonial lens, observing factors in place such as; denial of place in history, identity, and recognition of service. The research questions that this thesis addresses are as follows: What are the colonial implications in the experience of Filipino and Filipino American soldiers experience during the Second World War? Are colonial soldiers treated as more expendable than white …

'Disembodied Bones': Recovering The Poetry And Prose Of Elinor Wylie 2021, Sarah R. Bullock

Master's Theses

Picking a book to read is like diving for a pearl, writes Elinor Wylie, a 20th Century American poet, novelist, essayist and prominent magazine literary editor. In her essay "The Pearl Diver", she writes that it is the diver that risks the unknown- unaided by diving equipment in the form of library indexes-who gains the greatest joy, Wylie states (Fugitive Prose, 869). Wylie explains:

I venture to perceive an analogy between the rebellious pearl diver and myself, in my slight experience with public libraries...how much more delightful, how much more stimulating, to abandon the paraphernalia of card indexes and mahogany …

Women In The Outdoors: Navigating Fear And Creating Space For Spiritual Inspiration 2021, Morgan Costello

Master's Theses

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between fear and spiritual inspiration for women in the outdoors. Specifically, this study looked at participants from SUNY Cortland’s Outdoor Education Practicum, a core course in the Recreation, Parks, and Leisure Studies Department that culminates with a two-week outdoor experience, with the goals of teaching outdoor skills and building community. This was a mixed-method study, with quantitative data collected according to pre(mid)post design and qualitative data coming from journal entries over a 5-day period. Testing was conducted using the Outdoor Situational Fear Inventory to measure fear, and the Nature Relatedness …

Developing An Adaptive Rock Climbing Curriculum For Suny Cortland Outdoor Pursuits 2021, Rebekah Mills

Master's Theses

SUNY Cortland Outdoor Pursuits opened in August of 2015 with the completion of the newly constructed Student Life Center. Outdoor Pursuits is a smaller department within the Recreational Sports Department. Outdoor Pursuits offers rock climbing services at its facility located in the Student Life Center. Currently, Outdoor Pursuits offers Bouldering and Top Roping services only when the Student Life Center is open, these hours are typically 3-10 pm. Monday-Friday and Saturday-Sunday 2-8 pm. These services are only provided to eligible SUNY Cortland faculty, staff, students, alumni, and other affiliated members. As the facility has grown in popularity during its operation, …

Notch And Mediator Work Together To Direct Hasc Self-Renewal, Jaylen Mumphrey

Master's Theses

Stem cells are unique in that they possess totipotent, pluripotent, or multipotent differentiation capabilities and can also self-renew. Stem cells are in either a state of selfrenewal or differentiation, but never both. If we are able to gain a full understanding of the underlying mechanisms that allow stem cells to remain self-renewing and multipotent, we will better be able to control the fate of cells, ultimately allowing stem cells to be used to their full capabilities in regenerative medicine. My research focuses on MED12 and its effects on Notch signaling. Here we describe the expression profile and activity of MED12, …

The Effects Of Mindfulness Interventions On Undergraduate Students' Math Anxiety, Elysia Garza

Master's Theses

This study attempted to examine the relationship between math anxiety and mindfulness using an experimental design. The aim of this study was to learn if a brief daily mindfulness practice (yoga or meditation) could increase participants’ levels of perceived mindfulness and decrease their reported math anxiety. Participants (n=24) were assigned to an intervention group (i.e., meditation, yoga, control) and their mindfulness and math anxiety were measured pre, during-, and post-interventions. While small sample size and large attrition leave inferential statistics impossible to analyze, this research did show an increase in mindfulness and decrease in math anxiety throughout the study for …

Synthesis Of Functionalized Ionic Liquids For Coal Dissolution And Pretreatment, Michael Franklin

Master's Theses

Brown coal (lignite) is a bulk organic mixture of conjugated hydrocarbons that are complexed together via hydrogen bonds. Coal [partial] dissolution is essential to the better utilization of low-rank coal for power sources because the direct combustion of brown coal is not energy efficient. To break hydrogen bonds of low-rank coal and make it partially soluble, this project evaluates a series of ionic liquids (ILs) with specific properties as non-volatile alternatives to conventional organic solvents. A series of nitrogen- and phosphorus-based cations have been synthesized via a nucleophilic substitution reaction, the resultant bromide-based IL being converted to an acetate-based IL …

Queerness In French Baroque Opera: The Relationship Between Achilles And Patroclus In Jean Baptiste Lully’S Achille Et Polyxène, Jason Thompson

Master's Theses

The myth of Achilles has long been considered a narrative model for homosexual relationships. Jean-Baptiste Lully set the story of Achilles and Patroclus to music in the first act of his last opera, Achille et Polyxène. In 17th-century France, various queer men held positions of significant influence, including members of the royal family, such as Louis XIII and Philippe of Orléans. Another powerful queer man was Louis Joseph de Bourbon, the duc de Vendôme who was part of an influential group of libertines. Lully entered the service of the duc in 1685, when he was banished from court after he …