Digital Commons Network^™

From Archetypes To Architects: Re-Envisioning The Role Morality Of Trial Level Judges, Richard Devlin Frsc

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

In this article, I build upon the concepts of role-differentiated behaviour and role morality to reflect upon the privileges and responsibilities of being a trial judge. In particular, I will suggest there are at least two (potentially competing) professional archetypes for judicial role morality, which at this point I will tentatively describe as the mechanics and the innovators. Both of these archetypes agree that the governing principles should be integrity, honesty, independence, impartiality, fairness, et cetera, but they differ in their understanding of how best to put these ideals into effect in the real world. In due course, I will …

Leveraging Weigh-In-Motion (Wim) Data To Estimate Link-Based Heavy-Duty Vehicle Emissions, Heba Naguib Alwakiel

Dissertations and Theses

This research examines the use of archived weigh-in-motion (WIM) data to estimate link-based heavy-vehicle emissions for Oregon highways. This research combined data on vehicle speed, highway grade, and gross vehicle weight and relationship between these elements in published research to estimate the carbon dioxide (CO₂) and nitrogen oxide (NO_x) emissions from trucks. Sensitivity analysis was conducted on the impact of uphill grade and gross vehicle weight on truck speed and emissions. The results suggest that with the data available in the weigh-in-motion archive and with a reasonable set of assumptions, link-based emissions for heavy-duty vehicles can …

Storytelling As Loving Praxis In Critical Peace Education: A Grounded Theory Study Of Postsecondary Social Justice Educators, Amanda Smith Byron

Dissertations and Theses

Looking through the philosophical lens of love, this study seeks a deeper understanding and appreciation of how postsecondary social justice educators use storytelling, in the context of critical peace education, to create social change. This research explores the guiding question of how storytelling is used to encourage social change and to inspire action toward the goal of greater social justice. The argument for the importance of this research is located within the crisis of neoliberalism, where the very tenets of democratic education are being challenged by an educational agenda that favors standards-based learning and employment training over the critical and …

Modeling The Impact Of Roof Reflectivity, Integrated Photovoltaic Panels And Green Roof Systems On The Summertime Heat Island, Adam Scherba

Dissertations and Theses

This study presents the results of a modeling effort to explore the role that sustainable roofing technologies play in impacting the rooftop energy balance, and the resultant net sensible heat flux into the urban atmosphere with a focus on the summertime urban heat island. The model has been validated using data from a field experiment. Roofing technologies explored include control dark membrane roof, a highly reflective (cool) roof, a vegetated green roof, and photovoltaic panels elevated above various base roofs. Energy balance models were developed, validated with experimental measurements, and then used to estimate sensible fluxes in cities located in …

Exploration Of Weather Impacts On Freeway Traffic Operations And Safety Using High-Resolution Weather Data, Chengyu Dai

Dissertations and Theses

Adverse weather is considered as one of the important factors contributing to injuries and severe crashes. During rainy conditions, it can reduce travel visibility, increase stopping distance, and create the opportunity hydroplaning. This study quantified the relative crash risk on Oregon 217 southbound direction under rainy conditions by using a match-paired approach, applied one-year traffic data, crash data and NEXRAD Level II radar weather data. There are 26 crashes occurred in match-paired weather conditions for Oregon 217 in year 2007. The results of this study indicate that a higher crash risk and a higher property-damage-only crash risk occurred during rainy …

Sustainable Event Management Of Music Festivals: An Event Organizer Perspective, Stephanie L. Stettler

Dissertations and Theses

Sustainably managed music festivals have significant value and can provide a multitude of benefits to a healthy, sustainable and desirable society if their negative impacts are mitigated and positive impacts cultivated. To reach this great potential, sustainable event management of music festivals must become widely adopted and expanded as common practice. To drive this improvement of sustainable event management, there is a need to first understand the barriers and success factors event organizers face moving their music festivals toward sustainability. This study uses a research design of mixed quantitative-qualitative methods: a survey of thirty diverse music festival organizers across the …

Social And Human Capital: Contributing Effects Of Incarceration On Neighborhoods, Jacqueline Victoria Swofford

Dissertations and Theses

Interest in human and social capital's contribution to the desistence of crime is increasingly popular amongst criminologists, economists and policy makers. However, little attention has been drawn to the influence human and social capital indicators contribute towards the relationship between the re-entry process and juvenile crime at the neighborhood level. The current study hypothesizes the existence of a mediating relationship between human and social capital indicators (2000) and the rates of receiving formerly incarcerated persons (1997-2002) and juvenile arrest (2006-08) in 92 Portland, Oregon neighborhoods. Portland, Oregon receives more formerly incarcerated persons from Oregon's state correctional facilities than any other …

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 …

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 …

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 …

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 …

Foreign Language Students' Beliefs About Homestays, Sara Racheal Juveland

Dissertations and Theses

Language students studying abroad are presented with multiple housing options. Living with a host family in a homestay is widely believed to be the most beneficial option. However, little research has been done as to how students' beliefs about homestays may affect their choice of housing. In this study, 116 language students completed the Student Beliefs About Homestays Questionnaire. Quantitative and qualitative data analyses indicated that students value homestays not only for the opportunity for language acquisition, but also for the inside look at the family life and culture of the host country and for the support a family setting …

New First Principles? Assessing The Internet's Challenges To Jurisdiction, Teresa Scassa, Robert J. Currie

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

The globalized and decentralized Internet has become the new locus for a wide range of human activity, including commerce, crime, communications and cultural production. Activities which were once at the core of domestic jurisdiction have moved onto the Internet, and in doing so, have presented numerous challenges to the ability of states to exercise jurisdiction. In writing about these challenges, some scholars have characterized the Internet as a separate “space” and many refer to state jurisdiction over Internet activities as “extraterritorial.” This article examines these challenges in the context of the overall international law of jurisdiction, rather than focusing on …

Subsurface Igneous Mineral Microbiology: Iron-Oxidizing Organotrophs On Olivine Surfaces And The Significance Of Mineral Heterogeneity In Basalts, Amy Renee Smith

Dissertations and Theses

The subsurface igneous biome contains a vast portion of Earth's total biomass, yet we still know so little about it. Igneous environments such as iron-rich ocean crust and lava tubes may also host analogs to chemolithotrophically-driven life on other planets, so studying life in this biome is essential to understanding how life may survive on other planets. In this study, three igneous surface and subsurface environments were investigated for microbial preference for olivine, microbial physiologies and phylotypes present on olivine, and microbial growth on olivine in the laboratory via iron oxidation. These environments include a subseafloor borehole drilled into the …

"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 …

Tree Growth And Spatial Pattern In Two Forest Park Permanent Plots: A Look At Stand Composition And Condition, Hannah Beth Mcdonald

Dissertations and Theses

In June of 2010, two permanent research plots were established in Forest Park, based on their differing proximities to downtown Portland, Oregon. As part of a long-term ecological research project that seeks to explore the ecological status and human thumbprint on this 5,100 acre forested reserve, the 2010 tree data was investigated for emergent compositional and spatial patterns. Stand composition, tree size, growth rates, and spatial patterns were analyzed, along with ecological and land use histories. Results indicate that the Balch plot, more closely located to the urban center, has different stand composition, condition, and vegetation growth rates, compared to …

Population Structure Of Island-Associated Pantropical Spotted Dolphins (Stenella Attenuata) In Hawaiian Waters, Sarah Shelby Courbis

Dissertations and Theses

Understanding gene flow, diversity, and dispersal patterns is important for predicting effects of natural events and anthropogenic activities on dolphin populations. With the very recent exceptions of false killer whales (Pseudorca crassidens), spinner dolphins (Stenella longirostris), and common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus), Hawaiian odontocete species are managed as single stocks within the U.S. Hawaiian Exclusive Economic Zone. These exceptions are a result of recent studies that have indicated that some species have populations that show fidelity to individual islands or groups of islands, resulting in genetic differentiation, often with management implications. The first part …

Using Brownfields To Think Green: Investigating Factors That Influence Community Decision-Making And Participation, Charissa Ruth Stair

Dissertations and Theses

Brownfield restoration and remediation is a growing concern across the United States. Brownfields are vacant or abandoned properties with real or perceived contamination. Successfully restoring these properties requires strong stakeholder collaboration, including the local community. The purpose of this study was to explore the complexities of creating a community garden on a residential brownfield site located in a low-income, high-minority neighborhood and to gain a better understanding of how a community based project develops and impacts individuals from the community. Specifically, the study investigated who chose to participate in the project, what motivated individuals to become involved and remain committed, …

Sex Work By Law: Bedford's Impact On The Municipal Regulation Of Sex Work, Elaine Craig

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

The recent Ontario trial decision in Bedford suggests three interrelated principles that municipal law makers should consider when formulating bylaws aimed at regulating sex work. These principles, if upheld on appeal, will inform the constitutionality of both current and prospective bylaws regulating sex work in Canadian cities.

In Bedford, Justice Himel concluded that the constitutionality of laws regulating the sex trade must be determined in a legal context which recognizes the violence faced by sex workers. She confirmed that laws that indirectly make sex work more dangerous and harmful must be consistent with those principles that our legal system, through …

Aberdeen And The Reformation: Implementation And Interpretation Of Reform, Catherine Elizabeth Mcmillan

Dissertations and Theses

In the burgh of Aberdeen in northeast Scotland, the realm's Reformation of 1559-1560 and the subsequent alteration of the religious landscape were unwelcome developments. Although national authorities required reform, the burgh's powerful governing local oligarchy, mainly comprised of wealthy Catholic burgesses, dictated the speed and shape of conformity to the new religion. Existing scholarship on Aberdeen in the 1560s has concentrated on the ways in which Aberdeen's leaders responded to the Reformation rather than the reasons behind those responses. Thus, the purpose of this thesis is to further the understanding of the implementation and interpretation of the Reformation and Reformed …

Investigating Technological Organization At The Buck Lake Site (45pi438) In Mount Rainier National Park Using A Lithic Debitage Analysis, Michael Charles Schurke

Dissertations and Theses

Few lithic analyses have been conducted or published on collections from Mount Rainier National Park (MORA). This study's lithic debitage analysis, and investigation of hunter-gatherer technological organization through time, contributes to the knowledge base and understanding of how hunter-gatherers used subalpine environments in MORA. The debitage sample is from archaeological excavations between 2005 and 2007 at a Buck Lake Site (45PI438) activity area in the subalpine environmental zone. Two cultural components were examined: the pre-Mount St. Helens Yn tephra component (before 3500 RCYBP) is thought to represent a forager-like mobility strategy and the post-Mount St. Helens Yn tephra component (after …

Sex Work By Law: Bedford's Impact On The Municipal Regulation Of Sex Work, Elaine Craig

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

The recent Ontario trial decision in Bedford suggests three interrelated principles that municipal law makers should consider when formulating bylaws aimed at regulating sex work. These principles, if upheld on appeal, will inform the constitutionality of both current and prospective bylaws regulating sex work in Canadian cities. In Bedford, Justice Himel concluded that the constitutionality of laws regulating the sex trade must be determined in a legal context which recognizes the violence faced by sex workers. She confirmed that laws that indirectly make sex work more dangerous and harmful must be consistent with those principles that our legal system, through …

The Interpersonal Theory Of Suicide, Scott R. Braithwaite, Kimberly Van Orden, Tracy K. Witte, Kelly C. Cukrowicz, Edward A. Selby, Thomas E. Joiner Jr.

Faculty Publications

Suicidal behavior is a major problem worldwide and at the same time has received relatively little empirical attention. This relative lack of empirical attention may be due in part to a relative absence of theory development regarding suicidal behavior. The current paper presents the Interpersonal Theory of Suicidal Behavior. We propose that the most dangerous form of suicidal desire is caused by the simultaneous presence of two interpersonal constructs—thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness (and hopelessness about these states)—and further, that the capability to engage in suicidal behavior is separate from the desire to engage in suicidal behavior. According to the …

Numerical Modeling And Analyses Of Steel Bridge Gusset Plate Connections, Thomas Sidney Kay

Dissertations and Theses

Gusset plate connections are commonly used in steel truss bridges to connect individual members together at a node. Many of these bridges are classified as non-load-path-redundant bridges, meaning a failure of a single truss member or connection could lead to collapse. Current gusset plated design philosophy is based upon experimental work from simplified, small-scale connections which are seldom representative of bridge connections. This makes development of a refined methodology for conducting high-fidelity strength capacity evaluations for existing bridge connections a highly desirable goal. The primary goal of this research effort is to develop an analytical model capable of evaluating gusset …

Emperors In America: Haile Selassie And Hirohito On Tour, Robert Alexander Findlay

Dissertations and Theses

The imperial visits to the United States by Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia in 1954 and Emperor Hirohito of Japan in 1975, while billed as unofficial by all parties involved, demonstrated the problematic nature of America's unstable Cold War political agendas, connected African and Asian Americans with alternative sources of race, nationality, and ethnic pride, and created spaces for the emperors to reinforce domestic policies while advancing their nations on the world stage. Just as America's civil and governmental forces came together during the imperial tours, in 1954 and 1975 respectively, to strongly promote Cold War ideological narratives to a …

Development Of An Objective Motor Score For Monitoring The Progression And Severity Of Parkinson's Disease, Timothy W. Albers

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis describes the development of an objective motor score (OMS) of Parkinson's disease that utilizes the Quantitative Motor Assessment Tool (QMAT) developed through efforts by the Intel Corporation and the Kinetics Foundation. Parkinson's disease (PD) is a movement disorder which is a member of a group of neurodegenerative diseases marked by the depletion or impairment of dopamine-producing cells in the brain. Since PD is chronic and degenerative, treatments are intended to either improve the quality of life for sufferers by superficially treating symptoms or slow and ultimately reverse the progression of the disease. No blood test or biomarker exists, …

Holcf '11: A Definitional Domain Theory For Verifying Functional Programs, Brian Charles Huffman

Dissertations and Theses

HOLCF is an interactive theorem proving system that uses the mathematics of domain theory to reason about programs written in functional programming languages. This thesis introduces HOLCF '11, a thoroughly revised and extended version of HOLCF that advances the state of the art in program verification: HOLCF '11 can reason about many program definitions that are beyond the scope of other formal proof tools, while providing a high degree of proof automation. The soundness of the system is ensured by adhering to a definitional approach: New constants and types are defined in terms of previous concepts, without introducing new axioms. …

The Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 – Reflections On Challenges For Flag State Implementation, Moira Mcconnell

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

This paper begins by providing a brief overview of the International Labour Organization’s Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 (MLC, 2006), noting that this Convention, often called the “Seafarers’ bill of rights”, seeks to achieve both social and labour rights (“decent work”) for seafarers and fair competition (achieving a level-playing field) for shipowners. It has been described as the “fourth pillar” of the international maritime regulatory regime complementing the major International Maritime Organization conventions. The paper provides a brief update on international efforts to achieve the 30/33 formula needed to bring the Convention into force [at present, the tonnage element, 33% …

Traffic Congestion Mitigation As An Emissions Reduction Strategy, Alexander York Bigazzi

Dissertations and Theses

Policy-makers, transportation researchers, and activists often assume that traffic congestion mitigation results in reduced vehicle emissions without proper justification or quantification of the benefits. If congestion mitigation is going to be tied to air quality goals, a better understanding of the impacts of traffic congestion on motor vehicle emissions is needed. This research addresses that need by investigating under which circumstances the commonly held assumption linking congestion mitigation to emissions reductions is valid. We develop and apply a mathematical framework to study the trade-offs between vehicle efficiency and travel demand that accompany travel speed changes. While the exact relationships among …

Discovery Of Novel Amidotransferase Activity Involved In Archaeosine Biosynthesis And Structural And Kinetic Investigation Of Quef, An Enzyme Involved In Queuosine Biosynthesis, Vimbai Masiyanise Chikwana

Dissertations and Theses

The 7-deazaguanosine nucleosides queuosine (Q) and archaeosine (G⁺) are two of the most structurally complex modified nucleosides found in tRNA. Q is found exclusively in the wobble position of tRNA_GUN coding for the amino acids asparagine, aspartate, histidine and tyrosine in eukarya and bacteria, while (G⁺) occurs in nearly all archaeal tRNA at position 15. In archaea preQ₀ is inserted into tRNA by the enzyme tRNA-guanine transglycosylase (TGT), which catalyzes the exchange of guanine with preQ₀ to produce preQ₀-tRNA. The first objective of this study was to identify and characterize the enzyme(s) catalyzing the conversion of preQ₀-tRNA to G …