Digital Commons Network^™

Simulating Electric Vehicle Short-Notice Wildfire Evacuation In California Rural Communities, Gudrun Derickson

Master's Theses

The transportation sector in California has begun a shift toward adopting Electric Vehicles (EVs) as a primary source of individual and corporate mobility. The US Government and the State of California are initiating public-sector financed charging station infrastructure to help in this change-over to EVs. Automobile companies and private enterprises are also heavily investing in Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) infrastructure going forward. The state of California is subject to natural disasters such as Fire, Earthquakes, and periodic flooding. Increasing numbers of BEVs may add new challenges to mass evacuations that are often associated with natural disasters. This work focuses on …

A Christian World System: Christian Identity And Indigenous Agency In Spanish America, 1521–1810, Hector G. Duenes

Master's Theses

This thesis presents the Spanish Empire as seeking to spread a Christian world system - Christendom on a universal scale. By focusing on Spanish America, this thesis seeks to give evidence that a new Christendom was being established in America, one which was sustained through the collection of ecclesiastical revenues. This approach is taken in order to analyze the identities which were forged by the individuals who participated and who were transformed by this empire. Specifically, I focus on the Indigenous and their mixed raced descendants, the castas. Rather than portraying them as passive figures, I seek to give them …

Development Of A Body Weight Reduction Algorithm In Micro-Gravity Treadmills™, Alexander Hibbert

Master's Theses

Boost Treadmills™, a company specializing in the use of differential air-pressure (DAP) technology in the realm of exercise and rehabilitation, is developing their second-generation micro-gravity treadmill™ named the Boost 2. This machine will allow individuals in all types of fitness environments to move and exercise at a fraction of their normal body weight, reducing the impact forces on lower body extremities and allowing for accelerated returns to activity.

The purpose of this thesis was to create an algorithm to be implemented on the Boost 2 that related the percentage of body weight reduction of a user to a required pressure …

Understanding Rare Species In California: An Assessment Of Camatta Canyon Amole (Hooveria Purpurea Var. Reducta) And A Meta-Analysis Of California Rare Plants In Literature, Kieran N. Althaus

Master's Theses

California is currently in the midst of a biodiversity crisis. There are approximately 5,000 native species of plants in California, a quarter of which are considered rare. Determining threats to these rare plants is often times difficult. Despite California's botanical resources, we still know very little about much of California’s rare plants. San Luis Obispo County is home to 2,000 of California’s native plant taxa, one- third of which are rare or endemic to the county. These species are of great local and environmental concern.

In Chapter 1, we attempted to assess the impact of non native species on a …

Aac And Multilingualism In Children With Complex Communication Needs: Perspectives Of Filipino Parents And Teaching Professionals, Anne Aubrey V. Dulay

Master's Theses

Parents and teaching professionals of children who use augmentative and/or alternative communication (AAC) systems within multilingual environments often face complicated decisions regarding their language choices and practices. Understanding parents’ and teaching professionals’ perceptions on this topic can assist AAC service providers in supporting them better during intervention. This study aimed to explore the perceptions of Filipino parents and teaching professionals regarding AAC and multilingualism. Specifically, this study sought to describe parents’ and teaching professionals’ language choices and practices when interacting with the AAC communicator and to describe the factors that influence their language choices and practices. This study followed a …

Association Between Stone Fruit Intake And Markers Of Cardiovascular Disease Risk Among United States Adults: Nhanes 2017-2018, Lasya S. Shah

Master's Theses

Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) is the most common cause of mortality in the world affecting people from all backgrounds. There is abundant evidence supporting diet affecting the risk for CVD. The consumption of fruits and vegetables is inversely related to CVD risk factors, likely due to their content of phenolic compounds. Although stone fruits contain high quantities of phenolic compounds, it remains unclear if their intake is associated with CVD risk. In this study, data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2017-2018 were used to estimate the consumption level of stone fruits and whether it was associated with CVD …

The Influence Of Cultural Stigma On Perceptions Of Mental Illness, Rakshitha Mohankumar

Master's Theses

The stigma of mental illness can often lead to the afflicted individual not receiving the professional help they need and thereby worsening their condition, which has serious consequences both for themselves and their loved ones. Moreover, stigma surrounding mental illness varies from culture to culture. This research study highlighted the significance of studying stigma and long-term coping with a loved one’s mental health issues across cultures. Differences in perceptions of mental health based on the type of culture and (in)experience of growing up with someone who had mental health issues were tested. I predicted that there were main effects of …

Steric Effect On Benzyl Ether Olefines Under Sadmet Polymerization, Su Hu

Master's Theses

Acyclic diene metathesis (ADMET) polymerization, a type of olefin cross metathesis, is a step-growth and condensation polymerization that can be used to synthesize hydrocarbon polymers with diverse functional groups. Traditional ADMET with symmetric α,ω-dienes is not selective and can only form homopolymers or statistical copolymers. Changing to monomers with acrylate functional groups allows selective reactivity to form block and alternating polymers. In this project, we want to explore other functional groups that result in selective reactivity to form advanced polymer architectures via what we have termed selective acyclic diene metathesis (SADMET) polymerization. Developing new functionalized monomers for SADMET polymerization allows …

The Role Of Ions In Irradiated Astrophysical O2 Ice, Kristen J. Darnell

Master's Theses

Cosmic ices contain ions produced by irradiation from cosmic rays and UVphotons, yet solid-phase ion-ice reactions are currently ignored in all astrochemical models, even though gas-phase ion-molecule reactions are arguably the single-most important class of reactions in astrochemistry. Thus, developing a model that includes solid-phase ion-ice reactions is essential to accurately model interstellar ice chemistry, especially given the recent launch of the James Webb Space Telescope. To fill this gap, we have compiled a solid-phase chemical network for use in a rate-based irradiated ice astrochemical model which, for the first time, includes ionic species produced via the photoionization of the …

The Shallow Benthic Invertebrate Recovery From The End-Cretaceous Mass Extinction Across The Gulf Coastal Plain, Ronan B. Beltracchi

Master's Theses

The Gulf Coastal Plain, in the southeastern United States, contains several sites with well-preserved fossil assemblages from the Cretaceous- Paleogene boundary (K/Pg). Changes in benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages after mass extinction events commonly include reduction in body size of surviving organisms and preferential survival based on ecospace occupation. This study examines patterns of functional ecology and body size change in mollusk fossils from bulk samples collected throughout the post-extinction recovery interval at a well-studied boundary site from Darting Minnow Creek in Brazos, Texas USA and a recently described K/Pg boundary section on the Ouachita River in Malvern, Arkansas USA. The proportional …

Unmasking Medical Fake News Using Machine Learning Techniques, Garima Chaphekar

Master's Theses

Fake news has always been a critical and challenging problem in the informationenvironment. The propagation of false news is a serious concern, especially in medical information, which can have dangerous and potentially deadly consequences. With the tsunami of online misinformation, it is crucial to fight fake medical news. In this study, we use machine learning techniques to help detect fake news related to diseases, including COVID-19, Ebola, Zika, SARS, Cancer, and Polio. To facilitate research in this space, we create a new medical dataset named MedHub. MedHub has records from two publicly available datasets on COVID and manually curated facts …

Optimization Of Cmos At Deep Cryogenic Temperatures, Prabjot K. Dhillon

Master's Theses

Cryogenic CMOS is a sought-out technology because of its applications to fields like quantum computing and deep space exploration. Though slight advancements have been made within the field of cryogenic CMOS technology, there persists critical challenges that need to resolve to further advance the field. Hence, there is a need to solve challenges like understanding the undesirable effects due to the device physics at cryogenic temperatures such as high threshold voltage, kink-effects, abnormal subthreshold swing etc. and developing reliable circuit models because many rely on analytical modeling. The research models a NMOS ON-current and subthreshold slope at temperatures of 300K …

Fragmentation Drives Dominant Plant Encroachment On A Horizontal Wastewater Treatment Levee, Joia S. Fishman

Master's Theses

Urban coastal wetlands protect humans from sea-level rise while providing valuable habitat for wildlife. Degradation and loss of these wetlands threaten urban infrastructure such as wastewater treatment facilities. Nature-based adaptive solutions with the combined purposes of bioremediation, coastal defense, and habitat creation are being tested to make communities safer and more resilient. The current research examines a 6-year-old experimental horizontal levee at the Oro Loma Sanitary District in San Lorenzo, California. Using horizontal transects and quadrat sampling, I compare the success of two planting strategies – a wet meadow and a riparian scrub community – on an ecotone slope. I …

Exploring Shared Book Reading Among Mexican And Dominican Parent-Child Dyads, Maria Flores Lopez

Master's Theses

Using an ethnically diverse sample of Mexican and Dominican families from the NewYork metro area, the present study investigated the behaviors of parents and their three-yearold children, during shared book reading (SBR). The aspect of child behavior that was investigated was engagement, which was assessed by observations of children’s attentiveness and verbal participation during the reading activity. Children within this sample were highly engaged, with most demonstrating active engagement, the highest level of engagement in this study. When looking at the behaviors of parents, the use of two sets of strategies were investigated: interactive book reading strategies and language use. …

The Influence Of Happiness On The Perception Of Ingroup And Outgroup Stereotypes, Diego R. Gómez

Master's Theses

An important social issue that influences judgments between ingroups and outgroups is how moods influence stereotype judgments. For instance, research on moods has provided evidence that happiness increases stereotype judgments. However, research has not considered the impact of individuals’ ingroup membership and how it may moderate these effects. The purpose of this study was to explore the potential moderating role that ingroup membership may have on the effects of happiness on stereotype judgments. University student participants in a happy or neutral induced mood completed a disciplinary task to assess guilt of either a Hispanic or non-Hispanic suspect of an assault …

Origins And Relationships Of The Units In And Adjacent To The Ross Lake Fault Zone, North Cascades, Washington, Leonard Hogan

Master's Theses

The North Cascades of Washington preserves a wide range of crustal levels in andadjacent to a Cretaceous magmatic arc. Field, petrographic, and detrital zircon geochronological research focused on a discontinuous, 55-km-long belt of metasedimentary rocks in the NW-striking Ross Lake fault zone (RLFZ) within the North Cascades. In the NW, metapelitic rocks of the Little Jack unit have an Early Jurassic maximum depositional age (MDA) and strong ductile fabrics in contrast to clastic rocks on the E with an Early Cretaceous MDA and primary structures, confirming the presence of the dextral Hozameen fault. To the SE, the oldest unit (~110 …

Mechanical Stabilization By Cyclic Compression Of Composite Polymer Electrolytes For Lithium-Ion Batteries, Nishad Mulay

Master's Theses

Composite polymer electrolytes (CPEs) for lithium-ion batteries provide an effectivebalance of ionic conductivity, mechanical robustness, and safety. Loss of charge capacity, however, is caused by multiple contributing factors, such as dendrite formation, changes in polymer crystallization, and reconfiguration of porous electrodes. In this thesis we specifically examine mechanical changes in the composite electrolyte layer. The hypothesis of this investigation is that the addition of rigid particles to a polymer electrolyte counteracts the fatigue softening effect caused by cyclic dimensional changes, as would be experienced during charge and discharge cycles. We apply cyclic compression to mimic stress cycling that is caused …

The Spatial Distribution Of Mercury Contamination In The Yolo Bypass, California, Thomas S. Mykytyn

Master's Theses

Gold and mercury mining in the latter half of California’s 19th century resulted in massive and lingering alterations to downstream ecosystems through sedimentation and mercury contamination. Located at the confluence of Sierra Nevada and Coast Range watersheds, the Yolo Bypass is a critical conveyor of flood waters from the Lower Sacramento Valley to the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta. Sedimentation in the bypass diminishes its flood conveyance capacity, and Hg contamination is hazardous to humans and ecosystems. The purpose of this study is to locate and quantify mercury contamination in the Yolo Bypass. Concentrations of total mercury ([THg]) were measured in 22 …

Buried Treasure In San Francisco’S Golden Gate Park: Changing Tastes In The Twentieth Century As Seen Through The Music Of The Golden Gate Park Concert Band, Nathaniel L. Pergamit

Master's Theses

Buried deep under the Spreckels Temple of music, the bandstand In San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, lay a treasure trove of sheet music and concert programs belonging to the Golden Gate Park Concert Band. This band, which has delighted audiences and park-goers in San Francisco for 140 years, had over a thousand scores and programs each waiting to be archived and preserved. From documents marked “Property of the WPA,” to handwritten letters from composers, to photographs of since forgotten events, these newly archived materials detail historic trends that shed light on San Francisco’s unique civic culture. Along with conventional critical …

Diet Quality, Diet Motives, And Nutrition Literacy Of Vegans, Vegetarians, And Semi-Vegetarians, Sapna J. Peruvemba

Master's Theses

Individuals consuming plant-based diets have shown favorable dietary behaviors and diet quality. However, differences in diet quality considering motivations to adopt plant-based (vegan, vegetarian, and semi-vegetarian) diets and nutrition literacy, are not well known. The primary objective of this study was to assess diet quality, diet motives and nutrition literacy in vegans, vegetarians, and semi-vegetarians. The secondary objective was to investigate the association between diet motives and dietary quality. In this cross-sectional study, 223 participants completed an online survey and food frequency questionnaire. The study used the Healthy Eating Index-2015 to measure dietary quality, the Food Choice Questionnaire to measure …

Achieving Location Privacy In Ios Platform Using Location Privacy Framework, Anna Systaliuk

Master's Theses

Rising popularity of location-services mobile applications and geotagging digitalactivities resulted in astonishing amount of mobility data collected from user devices, raising privacy concerns regarding the way this data is extracted and handled. Despite numerous studies concluded that human location trace is highly unique and poses great re-identification risks, modern mobile operating systems fell short of implementing granular location access mechanism. Existing binary location access resulted into location-based-services being able to retrieve precise user’s coordinates regardless of how much details their functionality actually require and sell it to data brokers. This paper aims to provide practical solution how a mobile operating …

Smartrec - A Smart Conversational Recommendation System Using Semantic Knowledge Graphs, Sudha Vijayakumar

Master's Theses

CRS strives to return the most relevant recommendations to users through a multi-turn interactive conversation. The Covid-19 pandemic has undoubtedly accelerated the pace of adoption of conversational AI systems by many online platforms needing to provide highly available customer support. This ongoing demand calls for the need to implement more generic and efficient conversational agents and recommendation engines that can provide customers with the required information at every stage of the user’s interaction with the e-commerce platform. This study presents a Smart Conversational AI-based recommendation system - SMARTREC, which enables a multi-turn conversation with the user to understand the context …

Comparative Study Between The Creep And Shrinkage Prediction Models, Abdulla Tahsin

Master's Theses

Seven creep and shrinkage prediction models (ACI 209R-92, B3, B4, CEB MC 90-99, fib MC2010, AASHTO 2020, GL 2000) have been evaluated using five statistical methods. The statistical methods utilized in this study are the residual method, including the average and the standard deviation of the residual, the CEB mean deviation MCEB, the CEB mean square error FCEB, the CEB coefficient of variation VCEB, and the modified coefficient of variation method ωm. The study utilized the RILEM and NU-ITI databases. Results show that the ACI 209R-92 and the B3 Models produced the most accurate creep and shrinkage predictions compared to …

The Modern-Day Effect Of Holc Redlining On Neighborhood Development, Liubov Ivashov

Master's Theses

Racial segregation, which happened more than one hundred years ago in the U.S., is a fundamental cause of economic inequality for people living in historically segregated neighborhoods today. Redlining was one form of federal policy that forced to separate communities by race even more after the Great Depression. The Home Owners Loan Corporation (HOLC) maps are widely used in economic research papers as one of the most comprehensive sources of data available to measure the effect of residential segregation. In this paper, using the Historical Redline Score (HRS) method, the author measured the association between modern-day population distribution, rent prices, …

Examining Revolution Through Breakfast Politics, Zachary Axel Clausen

Master's Theses

Analyzing the Black Panther Party and its activities, this study develops a framework for evaluating revolution through a process-oriented examination of discourse and practices surrounding the Free Breakfast Program’s emergence and operation from around 1968 to 1975. The program began in Oakland and quickly spread to over 36 cities in less than two years. Using a swath of interviews, radio shows, movies, newspapers, magazines, documents, pictures and other forms of media from the time period, I analyze the Breakfast Program to explicate the political terrain of food provision, the unique community-based approach to non-hierarchical resource distribution, and the production of …

Sexual And Reproductive Health Care For Undocumented Californians: Universal Health Care & Reproductive Justice, Josephine Emily Roberts

Master's Theses

Universal Health Care can hardly be achieved if the Sexual Reproductive Health needs of a population are not met. In other words, Sexual and Reproductive Health and Universal Health Care are mutually reinforcing, and the state of California should consider this when implementing Medi-Cal health care for all Undocumented Californians. In 2016, California implemented an extension of Medi-Cal treatment to undocumented children up to 26 years of age. Comparable to the United States Federal Medicaid program aimed to help cut health care costs for low-income and vulnerable populations, Medi-Cal offers some coverage for emergency medical services to undocumented individuals of …

Women's Rights As Human Rights: A Spotlight On Women's Reproductive Rights And Structural Violence In Nigeria, Dominique C. Blakely

Master's Theses

My research aims to shed light on the injustices that women and girls are facing in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Furthermore, my research intends to reveal how international human rights law and human rights law are confronting these violations and show the shortcomings of these laws. Women in SSA have continued to be at the forefront of devastation due to their exposure to gender-based violence (GBV) such as rape (including marital rape), domestic violence, femicide, “feminization” of HIV/AIDS, early/child marriage, and maternal mortality, in addition to lack of access to proper and sufficient reproductive health care. I will use women’s rights …

Formal And Informal Styles Of Clothing In The Assessment Of Female Political Candidates, Erma Kurtovic

Master's Theses

Abstract: This study will research the importance of dress code of female candidates on the confidence in leadership.The research question is: How Important is the Formality of Dress Code in the Assessment of Leadership of Female Political Candidates? It is addressed by using an experimental design carried out in India and the United States, using Qualtrics and Amazon Mechanical Turk. This research gathered 400 responses, 200 from each country. Primary data collection was used, with the implementation of two experiments. The experimental design of the two experiments consisted of two conditions, one in which the main political candidate is dressed …

Does My Skin Tone Really Matter? A Socioeconomic Analysis In Nigeria., Mutiu O. Fakorede

Master's Theses

Abstract: Does my skin tone really matter? If it does, to what extent and direction does skin tone predict socioeconomic outcomes, especially amongst people of color who have experienced colonial rule with its white supremacy agenda? In this research, we examined if skin tone measured in individual typology angle (ITA) does not affect employability, income, partner selection, and political representativeness. With a focus on Nigeria, the most populous black nation, a former British colony, we addressed this broad question through a survey. Using the iterative capability of Qualtrics which randomly picks a set of three pictures with known ITA and …

Impact Of Climate Variability On Child Nutrition In Ethiopia, Juan S. Gomez

Master's Theses

Changes in precipitation and temperature due to climate change have caused a shortage in food productivity leading to an increase in malnutrition outcomes, especially among children in developing countries that are more susceptible to undernutrition outcomes. This study contributes to existing literature studying the impact of climate variability measured by temperature, precipitation, and vegetation index on wasting. Wasting is measured by the weight for height score during the main growing season (Meher) using Demographic and Health Surveys data for five different periods in Ethiopia. Results suggest that lower NDVI outcomes are associated with an increase in the risk of acute …