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The Northern View Of The Southern Shore: Experience, Reconciliation, And Commemoration In Postbellum Charleston, South Carolina, Michael Edward Scott Emett

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation explores the experiences and commemorative practices of nearly 200 northern passengers in Charleston, South Carolina, as they attended the flag reraising ceremony at Fort Sumter on April 14, 1865, and then organized the Sumter Club to celebrate that event annually. While some has been written about postwar Charleston during the first half of 1865, and a little more has been published covering this flag ceremony, the Northern view and their experiences with each have not been investigated, nor has anyone written an account of this club. This dissertation utilizes the theory and methodology of the history of experience, …

Investigation Of The Environmental Factors Regulating The Biomass And Toxin Production Of The Benthic Cyanobacterium Microseira Wollei In Lake Wateree, South Carolina, Kara Clyburn

Theses and Dissertations

Impacts from anthropogenic activities and climate change are significantly altering nitrogen (N) cycling processes and biological productivity along the freshwater to marine continuum, and the acceleration rate of excessive N and phosphorus (P) concentrations entering aquatic environments is unprecedented. As a result, nutrient pollution is contributing to the increasing magnitude and duration of cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms (cHABs), oxygen (O2) depletion, loss of biodiversity, and impacts to human and ecosystem health. Lake Wateree, South Carolina (SC) is a freshwater drinking and contact recreational water resource with elevated symptoms of eutrophication, including the increasing prevalence of the N2 fixing benthic cyanobacterium …

Association Between Autoimmune Diseases And Lymphoma Risk Using The Uk Biobank, Hannah Grace Dice

Theses and Dissertations

Background. Lymphoma is a blood cancer that develops when white blood cells multiply in an abnormal way and collect in the lymph nodes. Autoimmune diseases result when the immune system is overactive, causing it to attack and damage the body’s own tissues. Limited studies have been conducted to investigate the association between autoimmune diseases and lymphoma risk.

Literature review. Based on prior research, six autoimmune diseases (rheumatoid arthritis (RA), lupus, Sjögren’s syndrome, sarcoidosis, Crohn’s disease, and ulcerative colitis (UC)) were examined to better understand their association with lymphoma risk. Prior research has concluded that certain aspects of these autoimmune diseases …

Movement Ecology And Nest-Site Selection Of Rock Iguanas Across A Gradient Of Anthropogenic Disturbance, James Walter Wehsener

Theses and Dissertations

Analysis of animal movement has been integrated into a framework of four components: internal state, motion capacity, navigation capacity, and external factors (Nathan et al., 2008). We used this framework to enhance understanding of movement behavior in the 15 West Indian rock iguana (Cyclura) taxa and to inform conservation management. Our review found that adult female Cyclura large-scale movement is primarily driven by nesting and migrations. Nest site selection also influences hatchling dispersal, but few studies identify preferred habitats for nesting females. Anthropogenic impacts on nesting ecology are largely unexplored, especially in Cyclura carinata. We studied C. carinata nesting ecology …

Social Cognitive Factors That Contribute To Student Retention In A High School Engineering Pathway: A Longitudinal Study, Matthew Vargyas

Theses and Dissertations

This action research study investigated the cognitive factors that impacted students’ choice to continue within a high school engineering pathway, and the effect of multiple engineering courses on students’ engineering self-efficacy. Participants (N = 87) were students who completed three quantitative surveys throughout the engineering course(s) in which they were enrolled. Using the theoretical framework of Social Cognitive Career Theory, each survey measured student engineering self-efficacy, coping self-efficacy, outcome expectations, interests, persistence goals, external supports, and external barriers. Near the end of the course, students completed a qualitative, open-response questionnaire where they indicated their decision to continue in the engineering …

The Transnational Beat: Paramilitary Policing And America’S Associational Defense State, Ryan Reynolds

Theses and Dissertations

This study addresses the role of Cold War-era American law enforcement and intelligence institutions in shaping U.S. grand strategy and carrying out paramilitary operations. It examines American civil-military relations through the formal and informal relationships between the U.S. military, private organizations, and American law enforcement personnel within a framework I call “associational defense.” The concept provides a framework for observing and comprehending the existence of an American garrison state. While police institutions are civil institutions and not military organizations, law enforcement possessed a paramilitary mission throughout the Cold War and into the War on Drugs and the Global War on …

Italians Inside American Government: New York Politicians & Black Equality In The United States, From The 1920s-1950s, Nathanael Geraci

Theses and Dissertations

This paper examines the Italian-American fight for Black civil rights from New Yorkers in government. As congressmen, mayors, and governors during the 1920s-1950s, politicians of Italian descent worked consistently for the cause of African-American equality. Despite extensive documentation of their pro-Black action, the work of these Italian-Americans has remained hidden.

A Taste For The Distasteful: The Aesthetics Of Gore In The Giallo And Horror Films Of Mario Bava, Thais Casado Bignardi-Engstrom

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis analyzes the Italian experience with horror in cinema in both psychoanalytic feminist and cognitive Marxist critical film theories through a study of visual renderings of excessive violence and sex in gothic and thrillers known as giallo films created by the film director Mario Bava. This is an art historical study that looks at Bava’s work against the Italian cultural landscape in the post war period.

Changing The Narrative: Athinai, An Illustrated Periodical For Modern Greece, 1934–35, Julie Fry

Theses and Dissertations

Athinai provided a Greek counterpart to European popular magazines of the interwar period. The integration of hand-drawn illustration with photographic imagery, collage, and multicolor printing yielded its distinctive visual language. Athinai portrayed changes in the daily life of modern Athens, attitudes to the body, and the role of women.

Globalizing Local History: Giuseppe Garibaldi In New York And The Politics Of Memory, 1884-1932, Daniel Falcone

Theses and Dissertations

Globalizing Local History: Giuseppe Garibaldi in New York and The Politics of Memory, 1884-1932 examines local historical societies and public historical sites and describes how commemorators utilized Giuseppe Garibaldi's (July 4, 1807- June 2, 1882) legacy as a symbol and form of patriotic, political, and revolutionary speech and action. This dissertation explains how his life was appropriated in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. My work explores how New Yorkers and Italian Americans used spaces, collective memory, and identity, to produce a form of world history through local historical events. This dissertation thematically describes how Garibaldi was collectively recalled …

Polyvictimization In Context: Identifying Patterns Of Peer, Dating, And Community Violence Among Black Early Adolescents, Carine Leslie

Theses and Dissertations

Early adolescents exposed to multiple forms of victimization (“polyvictimization”) may experience a number of detrimental psychosocial outcomes. Some person-centered research has identified victimization subgroups among adolescents but have not examined the overlap of peer, dating, and community victimization among Black early adolescents living in economically disadvantaged urban communities. Thus, this study empirically identifies victimization profiles in a sample of Black early adolescents to ascertain the patterns and correlates of polyvictimization. The present study aimed to (a) identify subgroups of Black early adolescents based on their frequency of peer, dating, and community victimization using latent profile analyses, and (b) evaluate the …

Examination Of The Differences And Similarities In The Classification Of Multiple Homicide Perpetrators, Lucy M. Papp

Theses and Dissertations

The applied dissertation compares the lifestyle and behavioral characteristics of mass, serial, and spree murderers. Historically, studies have focused on serial murder according to the perpetrator's typology or indicators at the crime scene. The current topics of research lack a comparison of these classifications. While the classification and described typologies are essential for academic and investigative purposes, understanding the impactful lifestyle factors of these perpetrators may also serve as an essential factor in predictive analysis, victimology, and the motive behind their heinous crimes.

The researcher collected data on the classifications for each type of multiple homicide perpetrator: mass, serial, and …

Contemporary Vocal Pedagogy In The Choral Ensemble Rehearsal: A Guide For Secondary Educators, Luke Lee Browder

Theses and Dissertations

The field of contemporary commercial vocal pedagogy is relatively new, with serious academic study primarily taking place over the last twenty-five years. In that time, however, a growing body of research has shown that the function of the vocal mechanism operates in essentially the same manner across classical and contemporary commercial music (CCM) genres, but the application of vocal function is what differentiates classical and CCM singing. Since secondary music educators often represent the only vocal training their students will ever receive, it is helpful for them to know the differences in vocal techniques and how to effectively train singers …

The Utility Of Bayesian Predictive Models To Forecast Arboviruses In The United States Of America And Territories, Maggie Suzanne Jennave Mccarter

Theses and Dissertations

Statistical models have been utilized to understand and forecast infectious diseases across the globe. However, these models have historically been difficult to access and interpret for non-specialist audiences. This dissertation focuses on one computationally efficient model fitting method, the integrated nested LaPlace approximation approach, to forecast three arboviruses in hopes of encouraging accessibility to statistical modelling. Such accessibility could provide areas who simultaneously are most susceptible to infection, and have the least resources, an invaluable tool for informing policy and prevention decisions. The resulting models included biological, land cover, and environmental factors and produced accurate forecasts of neuroinvasive West Nile …

Using De Novo Transcriptomes To Decipher The Relationships In Cutthroat Trout Subspecies (Oncorhynchus Clarkii), Andrea Leena Kokkonen

Theses and Dissertations

Cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii) is a salmonid native to Western North America. For almost 200 years, the taxonomy of these species has fluctuated as ichthyologists and fisheries managers alike have tried to understand the diversity seen within these fishes. In the 1950s, Robert Behnke reexamined the cutthroat trout and identified 14 subspecies based on morphological observations, Pleistocene events, and modern geographic ranges. These designations were instrumental in preserving the remaining diversity of cutthroat trout. Over time, molecular techniques (i.e. karyotypes, allozymes, and mtDNA) have largely replicated Behnke's phylogenies. However, these studies have revealed that some of these relationships are consistently …

Devil In The Details: Witchcraft In Reformation England, Angela A. Luna

Theses and Dissertations

An analysis of the English Reformation’s impact on perceptions of witches and the transformation of witchcraft as a crime prosecutable in courts of law. It demonstrates English diabolism characterized by the use of animal familiars, body markings, and pacts with the Devil, which helped to shape the English witch trials.

Exploring The Role Of Soft Skills Amongst African American Women Navigating Barriers To Achieving Corporate Leadership, Latoya Newell Burke

Theses and Dissertations

This study sought to explore the role of soft skills in African American women's ascension to corporate leadership as they navigate and overcome barriers. The disparity of African American women in corporate leadership is longstanding. African American women's corporate American experience is distinct and often fraught with difficulties. In order to overcome the obstacles they encountered while pursuing executive leadership, this study investigated if soft skills were thought to be a crucial skill required. The study fills a gap in research that addresses African American women specifically. Previous studies have addressed the barriers that African American women face in corporate …

“We Are Created Inferior To Men”: Leveraging Horsemanship To Reinforce Gender Expectations, 1830-1861, Gabrielle Marie Mccoy

Theses and Dissertations

Horses have played a central role in human society since 3500 BCE when humans began domesticating and riding horses in large numbers. Horses continued to be important to human society during the nineteenth century as people used horses to drive industrialization, manage plantations, and transport goods, among other uses. Although historians and anthropologists have long extolled the horse’s laboring value, this paper views the horse and horsemanship (i.e., horseback riding, horse training) in a social context. Through the examination of newspapers, fictional literature, and manuals, this paper argues that Americans used horses and horsemanship to reinforce antebellum gender expectations. Reinforcing …

Germania Our Mother, Columbia Our Bride: Das Arkansas Echo In The First World War, Harrison Mitchell

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the tone and content that appeared in the German-language Arkansas newspaper, Das Arkansas Echo, during the First World War. The newspaper’s content between the American neutrality period (1914-1917) was compared to the American war period (1917-1918) to see how it changed as political situations changed and anti-German sentiment grew. Additionally, the actions of the Echo’s editorial staff outside of the newspaper were explored within the context of their published content. This thesis found that both periods contrasted sharply with each other. The newspaper expressed support for the Central Powers and the actions of Germany in the American …

Students’ Experiences: An Examination Of The Academic Success Of Developmental Education Students In Corequisite Courses, Sheryce Woolery

Theses and Dissertations

A significant number of students enter community colleges with developmental education (DE) needs in reading, writing, and mathematics. Many of these students are typically referred to more than one level of DE courses before they can enroll in a college-level course. This has led to lower than desired success rate of DE students over the years. As administrators look for ways to improve DE student outcomes, many institutions have now adopted the corequisite model on account of results of several quantitative studies, which reveal high success rates of DE students enrolled in corequisite courses. With the corequisite model being widely …

Gender, Sex, And The Body In Medieval Armenia, Ashley Bozian

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation investigates textual representation of the body, gender, and sexuality in Armenian chronicles produced between the fifth and eleventh centuries CE. In so doing, it reconstructs the development of Armenian somatology between Zoroastrian and Islamic suzerainties. Specifically, the dissertation examines the modalities by which the body functioned to medieval Armenian cognition as the locus of identity and alterity through the deployment of such devices as the following, to each of which is devoted a chapter: masculinity, femininity, archetypes of sexual morality, legislation of sexual conduct, sexual experientiality (in both temporal and eschatological dimensions), anatomy, and violence. As such, the …

The Idea Of Unconscionability In Equitable Adjudication And Its Variegated Manifestations In The Louisiana Territory, Pre-1900, Edad Mercier

Theses and Dissertations

The history of American law in the nineteenth century reveals how antislavery activism, Westward expansionism, labor, and women’s rights activism tested the boundaries, strength, and authority of the federal government over states and individuals. At the turn of the nineteenth century, as people resisted against their social position during one of the most turbulent periods in American history prior to the Civil War, American law simultaneously evolved to recognize and delineate the private and public rights of individuals and communities. My dissertation explains how informal and formal socio-legal customs were used to resolve major ethical, social, and contractual disputes arising …

Early Termination In Phase Ii Clinical Trials: Admissible Designs Using Decreasingly Informative Priors, Chen Wang

Theses and Dissertations

In Phase II clinical trials, Thall and Simon’s Bayesian posterior probability design is commonly implemented to allow for an early termination to determine whether a new treatment warrants further investigation in a larger-scale Phase III trial; this in turn requires a pre-selected prior distribution based on known clinical opinion or historical information. Moreover, this Bayesian approach can result in an issue of inflating type I error rate by monitoring interim data to inform early termination decisions. Alternatively, a Bayesian approach with the decreasingly informative prior (DIP), which is an informative yet skeptical prior, can be implemented to overcome the contentious …

Model-Based Imputation Of Below Detection Limit Missing Data And Group Selection In Bayesian Group Index Regression, Matthew Carli

Theses and Dissertations

Investigations into the association between chemical exposure and health outcomes are increasingly focused on the role of chemical mixtures, as opposed to individual chemicals. The analysis of chemical mixture data required the development of novel statistical methods, one of these being Bayesian group index regression. A statistical challenge common to all chemical mixture analyses is the ubiquitous presence of below detection limit (BDL) data. We propose an extension of Bayesian group index regression that treats both regression effects and missing BDL observations as parameters in a model estimated through a Markov Chain Monte Carlo algorithm that we refer to as …

Retaining Instructional Staff In Public Schools During And After The Pandemic: A Phenomenological Perspective, Debbie Irene Brockett

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation investigated the critical issue of staff retention during and after the pandemic in public schools. Focusing on instructional staff, the study explored the impact of self-efficacy, relationships within the school setting, and administrators' support on their decision to remain in or leave their positions during these unprecedented times.

To comprehensively explore these factors, the research adopted a mixed methods approach. The quantitative component involved analyzing retention rates of instructional staff in public schools, taking into account variations in self-efficacy perceptions and the influence of supportive measures provided by administrators during and after the pandemic.

The qualitative component was …

Curriculum In The Crosshairs: Power And Critical Race Theory In An American History Textbook, Christopher Anton Bergschneider

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the tenets of Critical Race Theory (CRT) framework as they apply to the textbook American History (HMH, 2018). The study utilized five tenets of CRT as codes to categorize and analyze the textbook depictions of race and systems of power in America. Data were divided into the following five categories: racism as systemic and normal; interest convergence as the catalyst for civil rights progress; race as a social construct; storytelling and counter-storytelling; and whiteness as power, property, and recipients of civil rights advancements. The research questions were designed to explore how the …

Improving Country Conflict And Peace Modeling: Datasets, Imputations, And Hierarchical Clustering, Benjamin D. Leiby

Theses and Dissertations

Many disparate datasets exist that provide country attributes covering political, economic, and social aspects. Unfortunately, this data often does not include all countries nor is the data complete for those countries included, as measured by the dataset’s missingness. This research addresses these dataset shortfalls in predicting country instability by considering country attributes in all aspects as well as in greater thresholds of missingness. First, a structured summary of past research is presented framed by a developed casual taxonomy and functional ontology. Additionally, a novel imputation technique for very large datasets is presented to account for moderate missingness in the expanded …

Waqf In Transition: Tracing Local Institutional Change During The British Mandate In Palestine, Zachary Murray

Theses and Dissertations

The British Mandate’s actions of state-building in Palestine were informed by a Zionist-Western modernist envisioned past of Palestine. This state-building ideology was embedded within much of the bureaucracy of the Mandate’s system and infringed on numerous Palestinian institutions such as Waqf. Waqf was disenfranchised in particular through the implementation of urban development programs, like town planning and archaeological regimes, which sought to support the British-Zionist recasting of Palestine.

This thesis aims to show how the British’s ideology of Palestine informed the Mandate’s internal polices and actions which infringed on the rights of waqf. This was done through two axes of …

Studying Female Engineers' Experiences In The Egyptian Labor Market, Nada Abdelhay

Theses and Dissertations

With an aim to investigate and analyze the active participation of female engineers in the Egyptian labor market, this qualitative research study argues that gender-biased cultures embedded within formal educational and employment engineering institutions marginalize and undermine the representation of highly educated female engineers. Based on women’s shared experiences, it becomes apparent that their personal interests are not sufficient to ensure an engineering career. Other determinants–primarily in the form of impending challenges–during the pre-university, university and employment stages of life impact women’s lived experiences. On the one hand, challenges faced before graduation include: a) gender-based stigmas and stereotypes surrounding specific …

Factors In Word-Final /T/ Reduction And Deletion In German, Kellie C. Busath

Theses and Dissertations

Sound reduction and deletion have been studied across many languages for some time. Usage-based approaches suggest that the more often a word is used, the more likely it is that some of the sounds are reduced. Phonetic environment, stress, and speech rate have all been studied as reasons for sound reduction or deletion. Most recently, frequency in reducing context (FRC) has been included when studying sound reduction and deletion. FRC in this thesis measures the portion of word tokens of a given word type that are followed by a reducing context. This thesis focuses on word-final /t/ reduction and deletion …