Digital Commons Network^™

Coupled Pedagogy: A Study Of Sustainability Education And Community-Based Learning In The Senior Capstone Program At Portland State University, Emily Erin Bowling

Dissertations and Theses

Sustainability has emerged in mainstream higher education over the last few years, and the fields of community-based learning and sustainability education are closely linked through their emphases on active, experiential learning in place-based contexts. In order to create ecologically literate citizens to more adequately address environmental problems, there is a logical connection between teaching about sustainability and engaging students in the community, which can serve as a relevant forum to address sustainability issues. However, there is a problem in that educational programs and courses dealing directly with sustainability topics across the higher education landscape often do not emphasize or include …

Conflict-Conditioned Communication: A Case Study Of Communicative Relations Between The United States And Iran From 2005-2008, Erin Leigh Mckee

Dissertations and Theses

In protracted international conflicts, truth is often sacrificed in the name of victory. Political realists see international politics as a competition to win power, retain power, and demonstrate power; misleading the enemy in the name of strategy and misleading the public in the name of security are necessary elements of the game. A less obvious condition is that those caught in the cycle of intergroup conflict also withhold truths from themselves. This denial of truth and reality--to the Other, to the public, and to the self--is especially prevalent in the communicative relationship between the United States and the Islamic Republic …

Investigating The Predictors Of Postsecondary Education Success And Post-College Life Circumstances Of Foster Care Alumni, Amy Michele Salazar

Dissertations and Theses

As a group, youth who have spent time in foster care are far behind the general population in postsecondary educational attainment. Nevertheless, most do hold aspirations for higher education. For those who make it to college, foster care alumni face a variety of obstacles related to successful postsecondary completion. However, it is unclear whether the factors that affect postsecondary success in this population are similar to those identified for other college students or more unique to the distinctive experience of being in foster care. Furthermore, while there is general consensus that higher education is beneficial to foster care alumni in …

Teaching Intonation Patterns Through Reading Aloud, Micah William Park

Dissertations and Theses

This study investigated whether East Asian learners of English (n=8) studying in the US acquired more accurate intonation patterns (compared to native-speaker norms) after receiving five weeks of tutoring focusing on four basic intonation patterns (definite statements, wh-questions, yes/no questions, and tag questions) and using oral reading as the primary practice technique. The study also assessed the students' affective reaction to the teaching method through interviews. The study found that the learners significantly improved their intonational accuracy (based on the judgments of three native speakers who listened to single-sentence recordings [n=868] from questionnaires, exit interviews, and pre- and post-tests) and …

Proactive Personality And Big Five Traits In Supervisors And Workgroup Members: Effects On Safety Climate And Safety Motivation, Michael Anthony Buck

Dissertations and Theses

In 2009 there were 3.28 million non-fatal occupational injuries and illnesses. Of these injuries and illnesses, 965,000 resulted in lost days from work. In addition there were 4,340 workplace fatalities. Given the number of occupational injuries, illnesses, and fatalities, and the associated direct and indirect costs, organizations have sought to improve safety at work. Safety climate and safety motivation are two variables hypothesized to affect safety behaviors and safety outcomes. Safety climate refers to the shared perceptions of workgroup members, of the organizations' commitment to safety as evidenced by heir immediate supervisors' pattern of implementing safety policies and procedures. Therefore, …

Scalable And Efficient Tasking For Dynamic Sensor Networks, Thanh Xuan Dang

Dissertations and Theses

Sensor networks including opportunistic networks of sensor-equipped smartphones as well as networks of embedded sensors can enable a wide range of applications including environmental monitoring, smart grids, intelligent transportation, and healthcare. In most real-world applications, to meet end-user requirements, the network operator needs to define and update the sensors' tasks dynamically, such as updating the parameters for sensor data collection or updating the sensors' code. Tasking sensor networks is necessary to reduce the effort in programming sensor networks. However, it is challenging due to dynamics and scale in terms of number of nodes, number of tasks, and sensing regions of …

Transforming The Soul Of Education: Sustainability At The Center Of Teaching And Learning In Secondary Schools, Thomas Eugene Kane

Dissertations and Theses

Humanity is facing problems on a scale never before encountered. This dissertation traces the roots of modern culture's destructive relationship to the planet with its habits of over-consumption and exceeding the limits of the planet's ecological systems. Educational institutions are embedded in and replicate an unsustainable culture. As educational leaders, we need to challenge a system that is morally and ecologically bankrupt while providing a path toward sustainability at the center of teaching and learning. Using a narrative scholarship approach and theoretical frameworks drawn from ecological thinking and place-based learning, this dissertation provides models for transforming secondary education. While critiquing …

Differences In Sexual Dimorphism And Influences Of Sexual Dichromatism On Crypsis Among Populations Of The Jumping Spider Habronattus Oregonensis, Jason Bazzano

Dissertations and Theses

Crypsis can be an important mechanism of predator avoidance for organisms. However, many species exhibit sexual dichromatism, in which the males possess a suite of colorations in order to attract female attention. The resulting differences in crypsis between the males and females can provide insight into the relative strengths of the sexually and naturally selective forces shaping the coloration of the organism, as well as clues regarding potential sensory biases of the selecting sex. In this study, I examine variation in the coloration of four Pacific Northwest populations of the sexually dimorphic and dichromatic polygynous species of jumping spider Habronattus …

3d Interdigitated Electrode Array (Idea) Biosensor For Detection Of Serum Biomarker, Dheeraj Kumar Bhura

Dissertations and Theses

Miniaturization, integration and intelligence are the developing trends for sensor, especially for biosensors. The development of microelectronics technology is a powerful engine to full this objective. It is well known that the microelectronic fabrication process in proven technology for fabrication of integrated circuits. Advances in the field of micro-electronics and micro-mechanical devices combined with medical science have led to the development of numerous analytical devices in monitoring of a wide range of analytes. The unique properties of nanoscale materials offer excellent prospects for interfacing biological recognition events with electronic signal transduction and for designing a new generation of bio-electronic devices …

Information Processing In Two-Dimensional Cellular Automata, Martin Cenek

Dissertations and Theses

Cellular automata (CA) have been widely used as idealized models of spatially-extended dynamical systems and as models of massively parallel distributed computation devices. Despite their wide range of applications and the fact that CA are capable of universal computation (under particular constraints), the full potential of these models is unrealized to-date. This is for two reasons: (1) the absence of a programming paradigm to control these models to solve a given problem and (2) the lack of understanding of how these models compute a given task. This work addresses the notion of computation in two-dimensional cellular automata. Solutions using a …

Designing And Using Virtual Field Environments To Enhance And Extend Field Experience In Professional Development Programs In Geology For K-12 Teachers, Frank Douglas Granshaw

Dissertations and Theses

Virtual reality (VR) is increasingly used to acquaint geoscience novices with some of the observation, data gathering, and problem solving done in actual field situations by geoscientists. VR environments in a variety of forms are used to prepare students for doing geologic fieldwork, as well as to provide proxies for such experience when venturing into the field is not possible. However, despite increased use of VR for these purposes, there is little research on how students learn using these environments, how using them impacts student field experience, or what constitutes effective design in light of emerging theories of geocognition.

To …

Modeling Market And Regulatory Mechanisms For Pollution Abatement With Sharp And Random Variables, Thomas Robert Fielden

Dissertations and Theses

This dissertation is motivated by the problem of uncertainty and sensitivity in business- class models such as the carbon emission abatement policy model featured in this work. Uncertain model inputs are represented by numerical random variables and a computational methodology is developed to numerically compute business-class models as if sharp inputs were given. A new description for correlation of random variables is presented that arises spontaneously within a numerical model. Methods of numerically computing correlated random variables are implemented in software and represented. The major contribution of this work is a methodology for the numerical computation of models under uncertainty …

Riparian Wetland Response To Livestock Exclusion In The Lower Columbia River Basin, Sarah Ann Holmen

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to examine the characteristics of riparian plant communities along a succession gradient of livestock exclusion in the Lower Columbia River Basin (LCRB). Livestock exclusion is an example of a passive restoration practice throughout the region. However, few studies have focused on the effects of livestock or livestock exclusion on riparian wetland ecosystems in this area. Two passive restoration sites, 3 and 13 years since livestock exclusion, and a control site with a continued livestock grazing presence were examined. It was hypothesized that native plant species richness would be lower in the excluded wetlands than …

Foreign Language Teaching In U.S. Higher Education Classrooms: An Investigation Of The Relationship Between Teacher Pedagogical Beliefs And Classroom Teaching, Shaojuan Lin

Dissertations and Theses

Previous research indicates that former schooling is an important factor to shape teachers' beliefs about teaching; teachers change the way they teach when their beliefs about foreign language teaching change. However, little research has discovered direct evidence concerning the processes that effect change in teacher beliefs. This study investigated the relationship between teachers' pedagogical paradigms and practices in Chinese language classrooms. Specifically, a qualitative analysis of educated teachers born in China examined how early pedagogical frames were formed, and then transformed in the context of American classrooms. Results of this study indicate that early schooling, language learning, and initial teaching …

From Blooming Judicial Philosophies To Castrated Legislation: Sexuality, Desire, And Nominations To The Supreme Court Of The United States, Adam Michael Mcmahon

Dissertations and Theses

Society and institutions of government reinforce norms that constrain the behavior of individuals. Heteropatriarchal norms traditionally favor the perspective of white, male, heterosexual, reason, judicial restraint, and democratic authority over their binary, and minority, counterparts: black, female, homosexual, desire, judicial activism, and individual rights. According to the theory of Queer New Institutionalism, these dichotomous pairs are mutually dependent upon each other for definition and maintenance. The perpetuation of these binarisms is made through language, often assumed and unquestioned. However, the use of sexualized language and metaphors are identified in efforts to draw suspicion and consternation for these minoritized Others. When …

Scaffolding The Development Of Early Self-Regulation: The Role Of Structure And Routine In Children's Daily Activities, Cynthia Lynn Taylor

Dissertations and Theses

Learning to self-regulate one's behavior is a core developmental task in early childhood. Regulation of behavior is a challenge for young children largely due to cognitive constraints, specifically in the areas of attention and memory. As such, it has been theorized that both caregivers and a child's environment can support the development of behavioral self-regulation by providing cues as to what constitutes acceptable behavior in any given context. Although much research has been conducted on the role caregivers play in this regard, little is known about how a child's environment may also serve to support emerging self-regulation of behavior. The …

Wherefore By Their Fruits Ye Shall Know Them: An Actor-Network Theory Analysis Of Mercy Corps' Peaceful Communities Initiative In Central Asia, John Thomas Westerman

Dissertations and Theses

The motivation for this research comes from the belief that an over reliance on a social constructivist perspective has caused development studies in general, and post-development in particular, to under-theorize the role of discourse in development. A key issue in post-development studies concerns whether or not development organizations depoliticize their interventions. The notion of depoliticization provides a perfect occasion for examining more deeply the role of discourse in development. This research uses the actor-network theory constructivist framework to analyze a USAID funded development program in Central Asia (Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan): Mercy Corps' Peaceful Communities Initiative (PCI). The research approach …

Landslide Inventory Mapping And Dating Using Lidar-Based Imagery And Statistical Comparison Techniques In Milo Mciver State Park, Clackamas County, Oregon, Serin Duplantis

Dissertations and Theses

A landslide inventory was conducted for the Redland and Estacada Quadrangles of western Oregon using LiDAR DEMs. Many of these landslides were field verified. In total, 957 landslides were mapped using LiDAR whereas previously, only 228 landslides were believed to exist in the study area based on SLIDO information. In Milo McIver State Park, 41 landslides were mapped using LiDAR. SLIDO indicated only three landslides present within the park. A sequence of seven terraces of the Clackamas River is mapped in Milo McIver State Park. Landslides in the park predominantly occur between these terraces. Soils studied from representative areas within …

Growth And Optical Characterization Of Zinc Oxide Nanowires For Anti-Reflection Coatings For Solar Cells, Martha Coakley

Dissertations and Theses

The optical properties of solar cells greatly affect their efficiencies. Decreasing the broadband and directional reflectance of solar cells increases the solar irradiance transmitted and absorbed by the cell, thereby increasing the production of electron-hole pairs. Traditional optical enhancements such as light trapping and anti-reflection coatings reduce the reflectance of silicon at an optimized wavelength and angle of incidence. They do not perform as well at high angles of incidence or over the broadband solar spectrum. Theoretical studies suggest that layers with a suitable gradient-index of refraction can create both a broadband and directional anti-reflective coating. Through their variations in …

A Computational Model Of Adaptive Sensory Processing In The Electroreception Of Mormyrid Electric Fish, Eran Agmon

Dissertations and Theses

Electroreception is a sensory modality found in some fish, which enables them to sense the environment through the detection of electric fields. Biological experimentation on this ability has built an intricate framework that has identified many of the components involved in electroreception's production, but lack the framework for bringing the details back together into a system-level model of how they operate together. This thesis builds and tests a computational model of the Electrosensory Lateral Line Lobe (ELL) in mormyrid electric fish in an attempt to bring some of electroreception's structural details together to help explain its function. The ELL is …

"An I Don't Give A Damn 'Bout My Bad Reputation": The Effects Of Family Type And Patriarchy In The Home On Female Adolescent Delinquency And Mental Health, Stephanie-Kaye Guenther

Dissertations and Theses

This study examined the connection between household type and delinquency and depressive symptoms for female adolescents. The present study draws its claims from Power-control theory which, at its most abstract level, predicts gender differences in delinquency based on the level of patriarchy in the family and the theoretical works of Sarah Rosenfield, who argues that it is the over control of females that causes them to have higher rates depression than males. This study hoped to build on research that links differences in family type and parental control to sex differences in delinquency by using the Power-control theory to look …

Erosion And Adjustment: A Bourdieuian-Inspired Analysis Of Imprisonment And Release, Joshua David Seim

Dissertations and Theses

Sociologists of punishment generally agree that the American prison exacerbates social inequality, but the mechanisms by which it does so remain somewhat fuzzy. This thesis pulls from the tradition of Pierre Bourdieu (1930-2002), a canonical theorist of power and inequality, and specifically his three "thinking tools" of field, capital, and habitus, to unveil these mechanisms. Empirically, I turn to ethnographic data I collected in a minimum-security men's prison that is generally reserved for convicts who will be released to one of the three most populated counties in Oregon. I explore how soon-to-be-released prisoners (i.e., prisoners who will be released within …

Youth Voices Of Bounty And Opportunity: High School Students' Experiences With Food And Community, Kara Marie Gilbert

Dissertations and Theses

Currently, garden-based research does not include input from young adults about their experiences and perspectives as individuals in garden-based programs, specifically those that address issues of food and community. To address this void, this qualitative research examines youth perspectives and engagement in garden-based community projects in Olympia, Washington, and Medford, Oregon. The sample of 11 students was chosen from these projects that use food as a means to engage the community and educate underprivileged young adults about local food systems. The main question that the research addresses is: Why, and in what ways, are young adults appropriate agents for community …

The Effects Of Multiple Thematic Layers On Web Map Use By Middle School Students, Andrew Percy Freed

Dissertations and Theses

Access to the to the Internet and to a variety of interactive mapping tools has increased interest among middle school teachers to use interactive maps in conjunction with learning activities. There is very little research in the area of interactive mapping in educational situations, specifically with regards to layer maps that combine multiple thematic layers on a single map. This study evaluates the relationship between the number of layers present on a web-based map and middle-school students' accuracy and timeliness using the map to answer geographic questions. Additionally, this study examines the specific effect of a hill shade on student …

Perceptions Of Peacebuilding And Multi-Track Collaboration In Divided Societies For A Sustainable Peace Agreement At The Political Level: A Case Study Of Cyprus, Brooke Patricia Galloway

Dissertations and Theses

It is the purpose of this study to propose that perceptions of peacebuilding activities in all tracks of divided societies (political, civil society leaders, and grassroots), and the perceptions of the collaboration between the tracks are essential processes to a sustainable peace agreement at the political level. This study will examine multi-track peacebuilding and the collaboration (or lack of it) between tracks in Cyprus. Additionally, it will analyze the perceptions of the necessity of collaboration across tracks. The analysis of this study is conducted in two phases: (1) analyzing interviews with Track One diplomats and examining previous and existing peacebuilding …

Total Mercury In Stranded Marine Mammals From The Oregon And Southern Washington Coasts, Nathan J. Wintle

Dissertations and Theses

Muscle samples from 105 marine mammals stranded along the Oregon-Washington coasts (2002-2009) were tested for levels of total mercury by Cold Vapor Atomic Fluorescence Spectrometry. The total mercury present is predominantly in the form of highly toxic methylmercury. After normalizing muscle tissue to 75% water weight, due to variance in water content, Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus) and northern elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris) exhibited the highest mean concentrations of total mercury followed by harbor seals (Phoca vitulina), harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena), and California sea lions (Zalophus californianus); 0.34 ± 0.278, …

"Each Generation Of A Free Society": The Relationship Between Montana's Constitutional Convention, Individual Rights Protections, And State Constitutionalism, Inga Katrin Nelson

Dissertations and Theses

In the mid-1970s, state courts began to interpret state constitutions independently of the federal constitution in a way that provided greater protection for individual rights at the state versus federal level. Scholars have generally attributed the rise of this movement, known as state constitutionalism, to the actions and scholarship of judges and point to the cause as a fear that the Burger court would rollback Warren court era protections for individual rights. In reality, the concept of state constitutionalism had been present throughout the 1950s-1970s period of state constitutional revision and was deeply influenced by concerns over the status of …

A Comparative Case Study Of Newspaper Coverage Of The Umatilla Chemical Weapons Depot/Incinerator From 1994 To 1998., Rogue Elliott Robertson

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this case study was to compare the news coverage of The Umatilla chemical weapons by examining newspapers from different communities: The Oregonian and The Hermiston Herald. The author examines solution frames, pluralistic frames, episodic frames, and thematic frames and compares them across two newspapers. The study found the difference was not significant when comparing the use of solution frames between The Hermiston Herald and The Oregonian. In addition, there was not a significant difference in use of pluralistic framing by The Hermiston Herald and The Oregonian. However, there was a significant difference in the sources presented in …

Citizenship, Duty And Virtue: A Vision Of Jefferson's America, Anthony Philip Stine

Dissertations and Theses

In contemporary American political life, concepts such as duty to country and society often play a role in political discourse, but are often forgotten in the lives of average Americans. The life of the average citizen is focused on issues of economic survival, familial matters, and the diversions that occupy persons. Devotion to country is made an at best secondary concern for Americans. The purpose of this work is to examine the concepts of civic virtue that historically have dominated American political thought, using the writings of Thomas Jefferson and his influences as the primary source material for this effort, …

Measurement And Characterization Of Terahertz Radiation Propagating Through A Parallel Plate Waveguide, Matthew George Wachsmuth

Dissertations and Theses

As the amount of study into the terahertz (THz) region of the electromagnetic spectrum steadily increases, the parallel plate waveguide has emerged as a simple and effective fixture to perform many experiments. The ability to concentrate THz radiation into a small area or volume enables us to analyze smaller samples and perform more repeatable measurements, which is essential for future research. While the fundamental physics of PPW transmission are understood mathematically, the practical knowledge of building such a fixture for the THz domain and taking measurements on it with a real system needs to be built up through experience. In …