Digital Commons Network^™

The Rhetoric Of Mom Blogs: A Study Of Mothering Made Public, Madeline Yonker

Writing Program – Dissertations

This dissertation examines the phenomenon of mom blogs to determine their handling of conventional motherhood and the rhetorical nature of their discourse. Unlike other prior studies of blogs and specifically of mom blogs, the dissertation examines both the blog entries themselves and the many comments such entries generate from readers.

In addition, it seeks to determine the values and rhetorical practices of any community that might be established through such blog commenting. To accomplish these aims, the dissertation focuses on the entries and comments from three particular blogs chosen to represent the network of mom bloggers.

The commonplaces or ideals …

Returning The Commons: Resource Access And Environmental Governance In San Luis, Colorado, Keith Lindner

Geography and the Environment - Dissertations

In Lobato v. Taylor (2002) the Colorado Supreme Court awarded Hispano heirs to the 1843 Mexican-era Sangre de Cristo Land Grant returned access to formerly communal land known as La Sierra, the Taylor Ranch, or today Cielo Vista Ranch. The 77,000 acre parcel of mountainous land remains privately owned, yet through Lobato over 4,000 individuals have been awarded legal rights to access the land for the "reasonable use" of pastures and forests for grazing, firewood, and timber. Based on roughly 15 months of ethnographic research in collaboration with the Land Rights Council and based in San Luis, CO, this dissertation …

Producing Edge City: Publics, Perceptions, And The Right To Life On The New Frontier, Ben Alan Gerlofs

Geography and the Environment - Theses

This thesis explores Oak Brook, IL, an edge city (Garreau 1991) in the western suburbs of Chicago. A number of authors have advanced criticisms of edge cities (Beauregard 1995; Marcuse 1997), including that they are particularly exploitative and exclusionary. Some authors have claimed that edge cities are a "new frontier" (Garreau 1991), while others suggest that they are nothing new at all (Walker 1994). I address these concerns by way of an in-depth engagement with Oak Brook, Chicago's truest edge city. I ultimately argue that while edge cities have unique characteristics, they are part of a long heritage of capitalist …

The Sunflower Forest: An Educator’S Resource Guide, Kathy Everts Danielson

Teacher Education Faculty Publications

Loren Eiseley (1907-1977) was an acclaimed writer who grew up in and around Lincoln, Nebraska. An anthropologist by training and vocation, he wrote more than a dozen books of essays and poetry, most focused on the mysteries of nature and humankind's relationship to the natural world.

The "Sunflower Forest" is a theme that appears in Eiseley's book The Invisible Pyramid (1970). As a child, Eiseley enjoyed playing in the large stands of sunflowers that sprang up every year on a floodplain near his home in Lincoln. He would later think of the "sunflower forest" as a place for connecting with …

Situation Analysis Of Somalia’S 2011 Famine, Ahmed Mohamed Askar

Master of Public Health Program Student Publications

This CE examined the contributing factors of famine in Somalia and developed a situation analysis of Somalia’s 2011 famine. The situational analysis was developed using health and famine indicators. Data from geographic information system (GIS) was also used to supplement analysis to look for trends and patterns of the famine. I predicted that conflict was the leading factor in Somalia’s 2011 famine. I concluded that conflict exacerbated the famine situation in the south of Somalia but in the north (Somaliland) famine was due to climate and lack of permanent rivers and water sources.

The Role Of Misoprostol In The Reduction Of Maternal Deaths In Low Resource Settings: A Systematic Review With Recommendations For Action, Melissa Anne Mcmillian

Master of Public Health Program Student Publications

Objective: The purpose of this systematic review is to determine the role misoprostol currently plays in the reduction of maternal deaths and implications for the future reduction of maternal deaths in low resource settings.

Methods: A comprehensive review of the literature was performed using the following databases: The Cochrane Database, Ebsco, MEDLINE, PubMed, and Electronic Journal Center (EJC). Articles were excluded based upon date published, overt data changes since publication, and setting of misoprostol interventions in tertiary or referral centers that have access to oxytocin. A total of 61 articles were included from 2002-2012 and demonstrated several methodologies and study …

Combating Forced Labour And Human Trafficking In Africa: The Role Of Endogenous And Exogenous Forces, Ambe J. Njoh, Elizabeth N.M. Ayuk-Etang

School of Geosciences Faculty and Staff Publications

It is widely believed that indigenous culture and tradition are at the root of the human trafficking and forced labour problem in Africa. Adherents to this viewpoint also claim that endogenous as opposed to exogenous forces impede efforts to eradicate the problem. This study employed a loglinear regression model to test the tenability of this claim. It hypothesized an inverse association between indigenous culture/tradition and efforts to combat human trafficking. The hypothesis was rejected. It is shown that anti-trafficking initiatives are less successful where indigenous tradition is dominated, or has been usurped, by imported cultural practices.

Using Gis And Remote Sensing Applications To Determine Recovery From Disaster: Seven Years Post-Katrina In Residential Communities Of Hancock County, Carlton P. Anderson

Honors Theses

Hurricane Katrina devastated the gulf coast states of Louisiana and Mississippi on August 29th, 2005. The communities of Shoreline Park and Waveland in Hancock County, Mississippi were used in this study to analyze land use change post-Hurricane Katrina using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Remote Sensing. These two communities are experiencing slower recovery than their counterparts along the coast. By examining high-resolution aerial imagery from 2007 and 2012, there can be comparisons that show the timeline of recovery for these two communities post-Katrina. Shoreline Park has seen 30% of its total parcels change their structural footprints from 2007 – 2012 …

English Identity In The Writings Of John Milton, Hannah E. Ryan

Honors Theses

John Milton is an essential writer to the English canon. Understanding his life and thought is necessary to understanding his corpus. This thesis will examine Milton’s nationalism in several major and minor poems as well as in some of Milton’s prose. It will argue that Milton’s nationalism is difficult to trace chronologically, but that education is always essential to Milton’s national vision of England.

Insights From Characterizing Extinct Human Gut Microbiomes, Raul Y. Tito, Dan Knights, Jessica Metcalf, Alexandra J. Obregon-Tito, Lauren Cleeland, Fares Najar, Bruce Roe, Karl Reinhard, Kristin Sobolik, Samuel Belknap, Morris Foster, Paul Spicer, Rob Knight, Cecil M. Lewis, Jr.

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

In an effort to better understand the ancestral state of the human distal gut microbiome, we examine feces retrieved from archaeological contexts (coprolites). To accomplish this, we pyrosequenced the 16S rDNA V3 region from duplicate coprolite samples recovered from three archaeological sites, each representing a different depositional environment: Hinds Cave (~8000 years B.P.) in the southern United States, Caserones (1600 years B.P.) in northern Chile, and Rio Zape in northern Mexico (1400 years B.P.). Clustering algorithms grouped samples from the same site. Phyletic representation was more similar within sites than between them. A Bayesian approach to source-tracking was used to …

Phenotypic Plasticity Of Rattlesnake Trophic Morphology, Matthew Thomas Smith

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The trophic morphology of gape-limited predators constrains the shape and size of prey items they can ingest. Trophic morphology consists of any morphological feature that is involved in the handling and ingestion of food. Diet has a profound effect on the morphology of many gape-limited predators. Identifying how prey type and resource level affect the morphology of different populations is an essential step in understanding the mechanisms contributing to patterns of morphological diversity. Species interactions (Chapter 1) induce plasticity in morphology that can lead to increased fitness, morphological divergence, and eventually speciation.

In Chapter 2, a laboratory study tested the …

Habitat Modeling Of Three Endemic Crayfish Species In The Black River Drainage Of Missouri And Arkansas: Factors Affecting Distribution And Abundance, Matthew Stephen Nolen

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The Ozark faunal region of Missouri and Arkansas harbors a high level of aquatic biological diversity, especially in regards to endemic crayfish. Orconectes eupunctus, Orconectes marchandi, and Cambarus hubbsi are three such endemics that are threatened by a limited natural distribution and the invasions of Orconectes neglectus. I sought to determine how natural and anthropogenic factors influence these three species across multiple spatial scales. Local and landscape data were used in decision tree analyses (CART) to determine their influence effect on presence/absence and density of the three species. Predictive models were validated using k-fold cross validation. O. eupunctus presence was …

Mapping Xenophobic Violence In South Africa: Modeling Spatial Relationships Between Group Grievances And Opportunities To Measure The Propensity For Xenophobic Violence, Eric Holder

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Xenophobia can be defined as the hatred or fear of foreigners or strangers or of their politics or culture (Ngwane et al., 2008). This sentiment reached its tipping point in urban areas across the Republic of South Africa in May 2008 when mass, widespread and systematic attacks against African non-nationals took place across the country. Although previous research agrees on who played the various roles during this crisis event (Everatt, 2010), little research has been carried out to create a predictive model to assess where future violence could occur based on a set of conflict indicators. The purpose of this …

Which Study Method Works Best? A Comparison Of Soar And Sq3r For Text Learning, Sarah C. Kasson

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

One hundred thirty-eight college students participated in a study comparing the SOAR (Select, Organize, Association, Regulate) and SQ3R (Survey, Question, Read, Recite, Review) study systems to each other and to students’ preferred study methods. Though both systems have been researched independently, just one other study has compared these study systems to each other. College students were assigned randomly to one cell of a 2x2 factorial design (method: SOAR or SQ3R; material: supplement or no supplement) or to a preferred-study-method control group. Groups were trained in their respective system (SOAR, SQ3R, or control) and then given materials about educational measurement to …

My Peace I Give Unto You Christianity's Critique Of Roman And American Exceptionalism, Ryan Tindall

HIM 1990-2015

Throughout the history of the United States, its inhabitants have looked upon their nation as a special place. In some cases, this has exceeded the natural and simple love of home and country and taken a more extreme form. Important to this bent is the tendency to see the nation, its beliefs, and its actions around the world as divinely sanctioned and inspired in some regard. This is a generally necessary component to the idea of American Exceptionalism, which views the United States as a nation with a divinely imposed mission to spread civilization, freedom, and democracy to the ends …

Spatial Dimensions Of Conflict-Induced Internally Displaced Population In The Puttalam District Of Sri Lanka From 1980 To 2012, Deepthi Lekani Waidyasekera

Theses and Dissertations

During and after the Sri Lankan civil conflict of 1983-2009, the island’s Internally Displaced Population (IDP) became a key constituency requiring the central government4s attention. Thus, it is important to ask: What are the spatial dimensions and socio-economic implications of Sri Lanka’s Puttalam District IDPs? Archival and contemporary sources from various disciplines were utilized when reviewing the literature and revealed widely divergent opinions about the historical geography and the current initiatives regarding IDPs. The research study’s mixed method approach combined qualitative and quantitative techniques. Data collection extensively relied upon secondary sources from the Sri Lankan government and the United Nations. …

Selected Characteristics For Nebraska Legislative Districts From The 2007-2011 American Community Survey, Center For Public Affairs Research (Cpar)

Past Publications

On December 6, 2012, the U.S. Census Bureau released five‐year American Community Survey (ACS) estimates for the combined years of 2007 through 2011, making available social, economic, housing and demographic statistics for every community in Nebraska and the nation. Also available are estimates for Nebraska’s Legislative Districts.

The charts and tables in this report are based on the District Boundaries for the 102^nd Legislature and do not reflect the boundary changes following the 2010 Census. The new Legislative District boundaries will be used when the 2008‐2012 ACS data are released in December 2013.

The data are based on a …

50 And 10: Years To Remember, William Graf

Verbum

In lieu of an abstract, below is the essay's first paragraph.

"My last years in the seminary (1959-1960) were to be academically uneventful until the faculty and students read the startling announcement: Pope John XXIII Summons an Ecumenical Council. Ninety years had passed since the last Council and Vatican Council I was the first in over 300 years. Although we had to go to our textbooks to find out about the workings of a Council, the students, at least, were excited about the possibilities. In this brief reflection I want to share some of my memories of Vatican Council II …

Annual Report Of Research And Creative Productions By Faculty And Staff, January To December, 2012, Research And Creative Productions Committee. Morehead State University.

Office of Research and Sponsored Programs Reports and Publications

Annual Report Of Research and Creative Productions by Faculty and Staff from January to December, 2012.

December 2012 News Releases, University Of Montana--Missoula. Office Of University Relations

University of Montana News Releases, 1928, 1956-present

No abstract provided.

Morphological Features Of The Proximal Femur: Investigations Of Habitual Activities, Sex And Health In A Bronze Age Population From The Arabian Peninsula, Animikha Dutt

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Bronze Age sites on the Arabian Peninsula are relatively rare. The undisturbed nature of Tell Abraq, located in the United Arab Emirates, is significant since it represents one of the longest known occupied settlement sites dating from the 3rd millennium BC to the 1st century AD. This site has revealed an undisturbed communal tomb that was used for approximately 200 years (2200-2000 BC), housing commingled and disarticulated human remains of at least 286 adults and 127 subadults. The strategic coastal position of Tell Abraq, at the intersection of several major cultural centers, allowed its people to actively participate in world …

An Estimate Of Groundwater Recharge In The Nabogo River Basin, Ghana Using Water Table Fluctuation Method And Chloride Mass Balance, Melanie Lynn Krautstrunk

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The Cambrian-Precambrian fractured sandstone aquifer in the Nabogo River Basin in the Sahelian Northern Region in Ghana is one of the most important sources for fresh water supply for the local rural communities there. Recent population growth and commercial agricultural interests in this region could have an impact on this critical water resource. Groundwater recharge estimates are determined in this study using the Water Table Fluctuation Method and Chloride Mass Balance and can be applied to future sustainability studies of the region's water resources. Recharge estimates of the Water Table Fluctuation Method are in a range of 10-143 mm/yr or …

Archiving Joyce & Joyce's Archive: Ulysses, Finnegans Wake, And Copyright, Jessica Michelle Lucero

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

"Archiving Joyce and Joyce's Archive: Ulysses, Finnegans Wake, and Copyright" investigates the ways in which James Joyce's Ulysses and Finnegans Wake incorporate archival institutions and archival modes such as gossip into its composition. For example, this work explores how both works, at times, present institutions such as the National Library of Ireland, and, at other times, enact archiving in its collection and preservation of historical personages relevant to Irish literature and history. Additionally, Joyce was involved in the construction of his own archive, and thereby becomes the curator of his own history as well as that of Ireland.

Importantly, this …

Integrated Approach For Hydrogeologic Investigations In Africa: Inferences From Space-Borne And Land-Based Gravity, Aeromagnetic, Gis, And Remote Sensing Data, Mohamed El Sayed Ahmed Ahmed

Dissertations

An integrated (space-borne and land-based gravity, aeromagnetic, GIS, and remote sensing) approach was developed, tested, and applied to investigate the following on regional scales (Africa) or local scales (El Qaa Plain, Sinai): (1) assess the capability of GRACE data (04/2002 to 08/2011) for monitoring elements of hydrologic systems on the sub-basin level (Task 1); (2) address the nature and the controlling factors (e.g., climatic and/or human pressure-related) affecting the inter-annual GRACE-derived Terrestrial Water Storage (TWS) trends over a large suite of hydrologic systems and domains in (Africa) (Task 2); and (3) identify the structural, geologic and hydrologic settings as well …

The Study Of Nitrogen Sources In The Municipal Wells Of Cedar Falls, Iowa, Alison Renee Schell

Honors Program Theses

Groundwater nitrate contamination has been a persistent concern in the drinking water of Cedar Falls, Iowa. Identifying the source of the relatively high nitrates in Cedar Falls Municipal Well 3 is the primary focus of this investigation. Although none of the municipal wells have exceeded the maximum contaminant level for nitrogen ( 45 ppm N 03), the purpose of this project is to investigate the general drinking water quality in the area. To identify the source of the nitrate contamination, groundwater samples from four municipal wells, surface water samples from three sites on the Cedar River, and soil from twelve …

Evaluation Of The Environmental Impacts Of Bridge Deck Runoff, Shannon L. Bartelt-Hunt, Lauren Swadener, Ekizabeth G. Jones

Nebraska Department of Transportation: Research Reports

Bridges are located in very close proximity to receiving waters, and regulatory agencies often require specific stormwater control measures for bridge deck runoff. While there is some information available on roadway runoff, few studies have focused on bridge deck runoff. Currently, there is no information available regarding the impacts of bridge deck runoff on receiving waters in Nebraska. Due to the cost, maintenance, and design issues associated with implementing structural controls for bridge deck runoff, it is important to develop a better understanding of the relationship between bridge deck runoff and potential impacts to receiving streams. The objectives of this …

Effects Of Silvicultural Management On Coast Redwood Forest Composition, Density And Structure In Santa Cruz And San Mateo Counties, Michael J. Papa

Master's Theses

The multiple-objective exploratory study investigates effects of various silvicultural management regimes commonly applied to coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens [D. Don] Endl.) forests in Santa Cruz and San Mateo Counties, California, USA. A temporary forest inventory was installed in 24 harvest origin stands and 4 natural origin stands throughout the study area (sample area = 1189 acres). Data from the systematic sample of 233 one-quarter acre nested cluster plots (sample intensity = 4.9%) rendered overall forest descriptions in terms of species composition, density, and structure. The common forestry measures of trees per acre (TPA), basal area per acre (BA), and …

Pacific Studies Vol 35, No. 3 - December 2012

Pacific Studies

No abstract provided.

Food Sovereignty In The United States: Supporting Local And Regional Food Systems, Allison Condra

Journal of Food Law & Policy

Today, perhaps more than ever, an increasing portion of U.S. society is paying attention to and asking questions about our food and agricultural system. We are recognizing the immense consequences of the agricultural "efficiencies" we valued and wrote into our policies in the seventies-for example, growing corn "fence row to fence row" and the ease of microwaved meals and prepackaged foods. 3 The increasingly global nature of our food system and its consequences are becoming more apparent. Food safety concerns-prompted by a growing number of foodborne illness outbreaks and the government's response in the 2009 Food Safety Modernization Act-loom large …

Significant Life Transitions And Changing Lives: An Investigation Into The Internationally Mobile Professional, Victoria Woo

Student Scholarship

Today, there are more and more professionals who are or will be transitioning into new geographies, industries, companies, roles and, most importantly, new lives. Some current studies indicate that increasing the number of transitions has a negative correlation with a person's sense of well-being. But some professionals experience an increase in well-being. Although there is an abundance of literature about coping strategies and adaptation for those in the first, negatively affected group, there is little written about individuals who thrive while transitioning. This paper reports on a qualitative study of the second, positively affected group, driven by motivations beyond seeking …