Digital Commons Network^™

Detecting Flowering Coverage In North Dakota Right-Of-Ways For Supporting Pollinators: A Road Survey Approach, Yeqian Xu

Theses and Dissertations

Establishing and maintaining high-quality grasslands and conservation lands for pollinators can be difficult and costly. As an alternative, roadsides can provide additional forage resources. This study aims to examine the potential of roadside, road ditch, and right-of-way (ROW) land in North Dakota (ND) as alternative habitats for pollinators by quantifying the yellow flowering observed in these sites. The project encompasses a multifaceted approach to assess the viability of roadside ditches in supporting pollinator ecosystems. The research incorporates two essential components: 1) an extensive road survey through the Prairie Pothole Region (PPR) of ND in two consecutive summer seasons and 2) …

An Exploratory Case Study Of Students’ Blended Learning Experiences During Post Emergency Learning, Heidy M. Garcia Moreno

Theses and Dissertations

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the integration of technology in classrooms. This has highlighted the need for a deeper understanding of how students experience these learning environments. In response, this case study explored how students experience blended learning in post emergency learning through a digital equity lens. The analysis of interview data revealed six major themes, which yielded three key findings. These findings emphasize the need to embrace a simplified approach to technology integration, refine instructional practices to effectively use technology as a supplement rather than a replacement for traditional tactile elements, while also advancing digital literacy that builds high …

Molecular Insights Of Paraoxonase 2 In Advanced Glycation End Product Induced Endothelial Dysfunction, Ramya R

Theses and Dissertations

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a metabolic disorder associated with various vascular complications and affects the function of the endothelial cells. Elevated blood glucose levels accelerate the formation of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) by Amadori rearrangement and bind to their Receptor for the advanced glycation end product (RAGE) and evoke release of key pro-inflammatory cytokine proteins leading to endothelial dysfunction. Paraoxonase 2 (PON2) is an endogenous intracellular enzyme, localised in mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum (ER), and nuclear membrane with numerous properties, like anti-inflammatory, anti-apoptotic and anti-oxidant.

Our present study aims to ascertain the effect of AGEs on PON2 activity and expression, …

Lessening Lacunas: A Genetic Critique And Literary Analysis Of Female Indigenous Characters In Maria Firmina Dos Reis's Gupeva, Xana Furtado

Theses and Dissertations

One year after publishing Úrsula (1860), Maria Firmina dos Reis (Brazil’s first female novelist) published Gupeva, a novella that acts as a continuation of José de Santa Rita Durão’s Caramurú: Poema épico do descubrimento da Bahia (1781). Gupeva depicts the ultimately tragic love between Épica, an indigenous woman, and Gastão, a French sailor. The novella was published twice more during Reis’s lifetime—once in 1863, with minimal orthographic changes, and again in 1865, this time with quite drastic modifications. The editors of Echo da Juventude, where the 1865 version was published, acknowledged these changes by asking readers to be "indulgentes para …

Visualizing Intergenerational Kinship: Humor, Grief, And Youth-Led Resurgence In Reservation Dogs, Emily Catherine Huillet

Theses and Dissertations

Audiences have been drawn to Reservation Dogs (2021-2023) because of its life-giving humor and portrayal of contemporary Indigenous realities. Yet the series truly gains its rhetorical power as the creators pair humor with intergenerational kinship to process diverse forms of unresolved grief. In fact, through narrative, the filmmakers map out processing grief and bonding through humor as healthy components of intergenerational kinship, and they position Indigenous youth as leading that balanced approach to kinship. I refer to this artistic rhetorical mapping as visual kinship mapping and I view it as a filmic manifestation of cultural mapping processes described by Leanne …

Conservation And Management Of Greater Sage-Grouse In Strawberry Valley: Quantifying Influences On A Traditional Capture Method And Long-Term Trends In Clutch Size, Janae Radke

Theses and Dissertations

The greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) is a species of conservation concern that has undergone serious declines in the last century. The Strawberry Valley sage grouse population in Utah underwent such a decline from an estimated 3,500 sage grouse in the 1930s to 150 sage grouse in the early 2000s. This decline initiated a long-term conservation and monitoring project in Strawberry Valley with the goal of preserving the sage grouse population. As part of this ongoing conservation project, we investigated factors that impact the success of capturing sage grouse using the night-lighting method (Chapter 1). We found that capture success is …

"A Ghostly Roll Of Drums Remorselessly Beat The Measure Of Life": Mrs. Ramsay's Mediation Of Time And Memory In Virginia Woolf's To The Lighthouse, Kirsten Walker Burningham

Theses and Dissertations

Virginia Woolf declares she was "obsessed" with her mother's presence. Though Julia Stephen died when Woolf was only thirteen, Woolf spent years negotiating her mother's astonishing influence, culminating in her novel To the Lighthouse. How does one square Woolf's obsession with her Victorian mother considering Woolf's progressive and feminist ideologies? I argue that Mrs. Ramsay--and by extension Julia Stephen--mediated time for their children as a byproduct of their role as maternal caregivers. This mediation is presented as an atmospheric quality or ambience as well as an intervention between subjective experiences and objective measures of time. The measurement and psychology of …

Entre Sombras Y "Bellas Artes": La Ciudad De México Como Escenario Noir En Distinto Amanecer (1943), Linda G. Villarreal Flores

Theses and Dissertations

Con Julio Bracho como director y Gabriel Figueroa en la fotografía, Distinto amanecer llega a las pantallas mexicanas en 1943. A pesar de que la acción de Distinto amanecer ocurre en la Ciudad de México y se conecta con una realidad nacional, el filme abre con un preámbulo que parece minimizar la importancia de esa geografía y de su contexto sociohistórico: “Los personajes de este drama no tienen relación alguna con personas de la vida real. El conflicto dramático que se presenta tiene características universales y puede, por ende, ser situado en cualquier ciudad del mundo contemporáneo”. Todo esto superpuesto …

Reverberation Of Ecocritical Concerns In The Novels Of Kazuo Ishiguro, Bavetra S

Theses and Dissertations

Kazuo Ishiguro, one of the most celebrated contemporary writers, has authored eight novels. As a Noble Laureate of 2017, his works are constantly under academic scrutiny. One of the best-explored themes in the works of Ishiguro is memories and emotions. No writer of meritable artistic integrity can ever stay away from the pressing issue of his age. Intriguingly, Ishiguro's works seem to lack engagement with environmental issues. The extensive study of Literature reiterates the point that Ishiguro's works are explored solely for a diminished ratio in terms of environmental challenges.

The researcher has identified the lack of critical attention on …

Lingampally, Mackenzie Anne Jaggi

Theses and Dissertations

Lingampally is a multigenerational family story that follows a single mother, Amulya Goli, as she navigates raising Vasanth, her self-assured, reckless son, in the Christian faith in a small village in Hyderabad, India. Absent a father figure, Vasanth struggles to know himself and embrace his manhood. In a tumultuous series of events, Amulya's past indiscretions return demanding justice, and she must sacrifice all that she loves to ensure her family's future. She secures the funds that allow Vasanth, his wife Boomika, and their sons Nikki and Hari to emigrate to Plymouth, England in the winter of 2001 to start a …

Spatial Distribution Of Soil Nutrients And Properties As A Function Of Vegetation Distribution, Fire, And Rodent Activity, Nathan O. Jones

Theses and Dissertations

Fires are becoming larger and more frequent in the deserts of North America, driven largely by the expansion of invasive annual grasses. Rodent consumers can curb invasive grass expansion through plant herbivory, but the top-down effects of this pressure on soil resources are understudied. In shrub dominated deserts, islands of fertility under shrub canopies are surrounded by nutrient poor interspace soils that dictate patterns of vegetative growth. Little is known of how top-down controls from rodents and fire may interact with fertile island topography. These studies explore the effects of fire, rodent activity, and fertile island topography on plant available …

"A Love That Transcends Hunger": Choice And Edenic Imagery In Contemporary Queer Poetry, Aubrey Dickens

Theses and Dissertations

Contemporary poets such as Richard Siken are known for their sexual and explicitly queer nature. Others have debated the spiritual dimension of queer poetry such as Siken's, with individuals such as Marta Figlerowicz arguing that though one of Siken's poems calls itself a litany, it does not match all the rules of a litany due to not being clearly devotional. Using an outside-in analytical approach to Richard Siken's "Snow and Dirty Rain," Kayleb Rae Candrilli's "There is a Point at Which I Tire of My Own Fear," and Jericho Brown's "Eden", I argue that spirituality can be found in explicit …

E Afua Mai Mauga Manuia O Nu'u: Conservation From Mountains To Reefs In Tropical Pacific Islands, Tavailau T. Segi

Theses and Dissertations

Soil erosion is the main exacerbating threat to climate change impacts in tropical Pacific islands, particularly to steep and mountainous volcanic islands. The morphological features (steep and mountainous), short distance from ridge to reef, frequent storm events, extended raining season, and accelerating developments from growing populations pose serious threats to terrestrial and marine resources. Perhaps the most threatening part is the high dependency of their human populations on the land and ocean for food supplies, supporting national economies, and sustaining culture and human well-being. Locals, governments, and non-governmental organization projects are underway to improve protection and management of natural resources …

Phosphorus Soprtion Experiments: Impacts On Water Column Phosphate Concentrations In Utah Lake, Rebecca Layne Butters

Theses and Dissertations

Utah Lake, located in north-central Utah, USA, is a freshwater lake with a large surface area, shallow depth, and phosphorus-rich sediment with significant water-sediment interaction. These factors cause unique phosphorus behavior relative to other lake ecosystems, governed by sediment-water interactions. We hypothesize that benthic sediments and suspended solids act, by sorption processes, to maintain water column P concentrations that are largely insensitive to P inflows. We conducted a Phosphorus Addition Experiment to characterize sorbed P fluxes in the lake. Our experimental procedure included bench-scale laboratory experiments testing Utah Lake water and sediment with dilute and augmented P levels, as well …

The Materiality Of The Soul In Plutarch's Moralia, Caleb Cole Deppermann

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines Plutarch's vague comments about the materiality of the soul in Moralia. My contention is that, despite suggestions to the contrary, Plutarch aligned with Plato in thinking about the soul as immaterial. I argue that a deeper understanding of Plutarch's relationship to Plato as well as the Stoics and Epicureans of his time shed light on his otherwise ambiguous passages. The end result will be (1) a more secure understanding of Plutarch's position on the materiality of the soul and (2) an improved ability to appreciate Plutarch's playful and vivid language as he describes immaterial souls with material …

A Study Of Art Education Strategies For Remote Learning During The Pandemic, Stephanie Cook

Theses and Dissertations

In the wake of COVID-19, educators had to adjust their curriculum and pedagogies to create an environment of learning while their students couldn't come into the classroom. As teachers and students alike adapted to this new distance learning, they encountered many obstacles which made it difficult to teach and to learn compared to what they were used to in a traditional in-person classroom setting. This thesis document compiles my research about the advantages and disadvantages of remote learning before, during, and post-pandemic. The research component of this project consists of the commentary of four art educators who share what they …

Mechanical Characterization Of Hemp, Jute, And Flax Based Natural Fibre Composites For Non-Structural Applications In Aircraft And Automobiles, Ravi Kumar B

Theses and Dissertations

Demand for reducing energy consumption and detrimental environmental impacts after the effective lifetime of an engineering material are the major driving factors for the development of natural fibre reinforced composites (NFRCs) in various sectors. Compared to synthetic fibre like carbon-fibres or Kevlar, natural fibres provide several benefits including light weight, inexpensive, recyclability, superior specific strength, biodegradable, non-toxic during handling, and less energy intensive during manufacturing. This doctoral work presents observations from mechanical tests and interpretations on the suitability of natural fibre reinforced composites for less heavily loaded engineering applications areas.

In the first stage, jute, flax, and hemp fibres were …

Spatiotemporal Variation In Regeneration And Herbivory In Stable And Seral Aspen Stands, Sterling Burgess Kerr

Theses and Dissertations

Aspen forests are strongly influenced by disturbances like fire and ungulate herbivory, which can impact plant community composition and succession. Human activities alter these disturbances, affecting their timing, extent, and severity. Chapter 1 explores the effects of large-scale prescribed fire and mechanical thinning treatments on aspen regeneration and vulnerability to ungulate herbivory. Results show that while aspen regeneration was hindered by chronic ungulate herbivory in untreated areas, mechanical thinning and prescribed fire stimulated aspen regeneration. However, mechanically thinned plots were vulnerable to ungulate herbivory, with only prescribed fire having reduced browsing. Chapter 2 investigates herbivory patterns and recruitment across stable …

Imperial Anarchy, Cultural Exchange And Cultural Sabotage In Amitav Ghosh’S Ibis Trilogy, Siva Vidhya M

Theses and Dissertations

The present study aims at analysing three sequential novels written by Amitav Ghosh. The novels are set in the backdrop of colonized India, so the research begins by examining the imperial anarchy that leads to cultural exchange and cultural sabotage. Amitav Ghosh is an Indian born writer, famous for both his fictions and non-fictions.

Most of his works are based on colonization and its aftermath. The major focus of the novels selected for the research is also colonization especially the opium production in India. The author portrays the opium production and its evil effects on people and environment. The three …

Exploring Mesolimbic Circuitry Modulation By Opiates, Interleukin-10, And Psychostimulants, Joakim W. Ronström

Theses and Dissertations

The mesolimbic dopamine (DA) system originates in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and projects to the nucleus accumbens (NAc) and other areas including the basolateral amygdala (BLA), prefrontal cortex, and the hippocampus. Drug use induces reward and leads to dysregulation in these brain areas and eventually to substance use disorders (SUDs). Chapter 1 introduces the mesolimbic DA system and its relationship to drug use and their relevance to each chapter. Chapter 2 explores opioid effects on BLA circuitry which is known to play a role in the emotional response including anxiety and stress in SUDs. We showed that morphine induced …

Development Of Deep Neural Architecture For Continuous Sign Language Video Generation, Natarajan B

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation presents a deep neural network based sign language video generation framework for translating the multilingual sentences into sign videos. This thesis addresses the challenges persist with the sign language video generation such as (i) Handling longer sequences of input sentences and new words (ii) Pose estimation with higher accuracy (iii) High quality photo realistic sign gesture video generation (iv) Improving realism in sign video generation. Hence, the thesis focuses four contributions to address the above issues.

The first contribution of this thesis automates the translation of multilingual sentences into sign glosses without manual intervention by incorporating Hybrid Neural …

Hózhó + Art Heals, Eugene Tapahe

Theses and Dissertations

The land where I grew up gives me a sense of purpose and belonging. It embodies the Navajo concept of hózhó, which represents harmony, beauty, and balance. Being in tune with this spiritual connection inspires me to bring people together through art and healing. I use natural materials like sand, sage, cedar, tree twigs, and yellow and blue cornmeal to create my art. To maintain the spirituality of my work, I employ traditional and ritualistic harvesting methods passed down from generation to generation. These techniques are deeply connected to the land and are essential to my identity as an artist …

Developing An Artistic Self In Preservice Elementary Teachers: A Studio Art Curriculum To Promote Art Integration, Karilee D. Park

Theses and Dissertations

With the continual use of standardized testing, teaching art in schools, particularly elementary schools, often falls to generalist teachers with little to no experience in art. While art can be integrated into daily curriculum for deeper and lasting learning, without the proper training or support, generalist teachers are left to implement art as they encountered it in the past, if at all. Artistic anxiety and culturally misappropriated artistic experiences result in the arts being used inefficiently or avoided completely. Creating a curriculum for preservice elementary generalist teachers, I explored art integration through developing artistic confidence, skill, and identity for 16 …

Investigating The Antibacterial Properties Of Nanostructured Aluminum Surface, Quinshell Smith

Theses and Dissertations

Bacterial infections are a major public health concern. Bacterial infection can occur in any part of the body and can also cause the body to respond to its presence. Bacteria can be transferred to humans through water, food, air, and living vectors. The modes of transmission for bacterial infections are vectors, airborne, physical contact, and droplets. Current preventative measures have been put in place to combat this issue. These preventative measures include immunization of both animals and humans, personal hygiene measures, biocidal agents, and essential oils. Bacterial resistance has occurred due to these preventative measures being misused and overused. Bacteria …

Detection Of Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals In Personal Care Products Using A Polyhedral Oligomeric Silsesquioxane-Based Hybrid Material, Aarthi K

Theses and Dissertations

Personal care products (cosmetics) are a diverse group of goods, that includes all the essential routines including the personal hygiene products used in our day-to-day life. It contains a variety of ingredients in its formulation, including preservatives, flavor, UV filters, and other additives. Few of the chemicals utilized are found to impair human health and have serious environmental impacts. The major chemicals include parabens, triclosan, oxybenzone, phthalates, heavy metals, fragrances, etc, Though the Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety (SCCS) has set the usage limits for the chemicals used, exposure to these chemicals from multiple products may exceed the exposure limit. …

Death Stranding: A New Digital Ecology, Jordan Long

Theses and Dissertations

This essay analyzes Death Stranding, the 2019 release from contemporary game auteur Hideo Kojima. Here, I discuss the unique potentialities of this game world, detailing the ways in which Death Stranding expresses ecological perspectives. Asynchronous multiplayer serves as a unique metagame, helping to prove that play is a process of action which facilitates ecological thinking. The world of Death Stranding is filled with strange objects. The nonhuman entities that the player encounters throughout the game, for example, seem entirely alien. And yet, when these entities are properly understood, we realize that their inclusion is necessary--and natural. Your "job" in the …

Hormetic Modulation Of On Mtor Mitochondria Cross Talk For Mitigation Of Cellular Aging, Mahalakshmi R

Theses and Dissertations

Cellular aging is a gradual process involving structural and functional deterioration of cells. Mitochondria, the biological clock in cells, are known to play a crucial role in the progression of cell aging. According to the mitochondrial free radical theory of aging, oxidative phosphorylation in the mitochondria produces free radicals, such as, reactive oxygen species (ROS), which lead to oxidative stress in cells. This, in turn, results in mitochondrial dysregulation, and eventually causes degeneration of cellular components, thereby propagating cell aging. However, it is to be underscored that aging, at its core, is a multifaceted phenomenon that involves a number of …

Occentatia: Community And Escapism Through Queer World-Building, Ian Cooper

Theses and Dissertations

55 PagesOccentatia is an investigation into queer world-building, inspired by fantasy games, electronic media, and the culture of the ‘90s and early 2000’s. Built by a diverse creative team of 22 artists, audiences and readers are invited to explore the medieval-Gothic world of Occentatia through drawing and illustration, video and audio, sculpture, and installation This supportive statement guides readers through inspirations, socially engaged art, insight into characters, and the development of fantastical narratives. I hope to provide clarity to my practice, displaying the need for more research on the role fantasy and gaming play in understanding queer identities, aesthetics, and …

Still Life Happens, Mary Ann Crabtree

Theses and Dissertations

After dedicating over two years to pursuing an MFA degree focused on ceramics and sculpture, I find myself transported back to a familiar setting from my past: a tableau reminiscent of what remained in the dining space after four young children finished a meal and exited the room. Revisiting the scene recalls happy times despite the disorder. What helped maintain my sanity during the relentless repetition of the every-day-long task was the realization that every day, innocents are learning to become aware of the world around them. For my thesis exhibition, I created a tableau as a loud reminder of …

Comics About Organs: Social Support And Graphic Medicine In The Awkward Yeti, Jacob Gibb

Theses and Dissertations

Comic strips have always been a medium for more than humor. Many comic strips published on social media sites address mental health issues. Despite their popularity, the field of graphic medicine, which examines the intersection of health care and comics, has seen little to no examination of how these comics function on social media. Utilizing the popular comic The Awkward Yeti, this research examines how the rhetorical devices of comics make them an ideal medium for communicating about mental health issues and providing social support to social media users. This study conducts a content analysis of 15 Instagram posts from …