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Natural Hazards, Risk Analysis And Emergency Preparedness: Applying Spatial Methods In Disaster Risk Management Applying Spatial Methods In Disaster Risk Management, Henrike Brecht

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Losses from natural hazards have been increasing steadily over the last decades. Yet, tools exist that can reduce risks to disasters and prevent hazards from turning into disasters. This study is intended to contribute to a reversal of the staggering economic losses by advancing the application of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) in the field of disaster risk management. Organized as a series of papers for publication, the dissertation first sets the stage by presenting a case study on Louisiana and its vulnerability to hurricanes. Thereafter, it examines and contributes to two fields that have proven to save lives and lower …

Trans-Atlantic Circulation Of Black Tropes: Èsù And The West African Griot As Poetic References For Liberation In Cultures Of The African Diaspora, Jean-Baptiste Meunier

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

My dissertation, under the direction of Dr Pius Ngandu Nkashama explores the spread of African rhetorical tropes in the Atlantic world. Building on Henry Louis Gates theory of Signifying, I use the West African God of fate Èsù and the West African cultural figure of the griot as cultural referents for the persistence of African tropes in the New World and their subsequent dissemination throughout the Atlantic world. Analyzing those two West African referents and their connections to New World cultures such as Afro-Brazilian capoeira angola, hip hop and African-American poetry, I attempt to demonstrate the centrality of the trope …

Negotiating Cultural Transitions: Contemporary Student Veterans And Louisiana Institutions Of Higher Education, Kay Harrison Maurin

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Student veterans are flooding colleges and universities in numbers not seen since the end of World War II. Little is known about how these contemporary student veterans navigate the transition from military life to campus life. Few studies have documented the transition experiences of these student veterans by institution type or cultural region of the country. In Louisiana, nearly 7,000 students receive military benefits for higher education with this number steadily increasing (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, 2009, June). This study explores the transition experience of student veterans from military life to university life at four institutions of higher education …

Exploring The Influence Of Civic Community Structures On Family Poverty In A Multilevel Context, Candice A. Myers

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation integrates the civic community perspective and structuralist and individualist perspectives of poverty to assess the relationships between civic community structures and family poverty outcomes. The key contribution of this project to the larger bodies of civic community and poverty research is the use of a multilevel framework that accounts for both community context and family characteristics in shaping family poverty outcomes. This objective is carried out through a series of multilevel analyses wherein religious and economic civic community structures are examined in relation to various conceptualizations of family-level poverty. The first analysis examines the associations between religious-based measures …

Commuting Patterns And Labor Markets: A New Regional Classification For Louisiana, Deepa Acharya

LSU Master's Theses

Regional classification and labor market study form an important part of any regional development efforts. Successful formation and implementation of developmental policies for a region requires a sound knowledge of the labor market situation and socioeconomic background of the region, which in turn leads ultimately to regional welfare. We find literature in the area of regional classification to be very inadequate. This study classifies Louisiana using a clustering approach in two different ways. First of all, Ward’s method has been used to classify Louisiana into labor markets based on two-way commuting flow between the parishes. Eight geographical clusters are formed …

Constructing Wilderness: The Nexus Of Preservation And Ocean-Space In The United States, Ryan Orgera

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The ocean has long played a minor role in human geography; imagining it as natural space rather than an extractive space even less significant. This dissertation explores the most revered kind of American nature preservation: wilderness. Despite the millions of acres set aside as wilderness in the United States, no such designation exists for ocean-space as a discrete entity. Through the analysis of congressional hearings, bills, resolutions, public laws, and maps, this dissertation uncovers the complex constructs of the production of legal wilderness. Furthermore, it uncovers a novel vein of inquiry, that of the ocean as a preserved natural space. …

Urban Population Density And Environmental Quality In Port-Au-Prince, Haiti: A Geo-Statistical Analysis, Myrtho Joseph

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation revolves around three issues on the urban area of Port-au-Prince, Haiti: the population distribution pattern, its estimation from remote sensing images, and its relationship with environmental quality. It follows a three-paper format. Paper 1 examines the population density pattern by the monocentric and polycentric models, based on the 2003 census data. The regression results show a poor fitting power of monocentric functions, and improved but less than satisfactory R2 by polycentric functions. A five-sector conceptual model is proposed to capture the urban structure shaped by the absence or lack of institutional enforcement of land use regulations and urban …

Arizona, Immigration, And Latinos: The Epistemology Of Whiteness, The Geography Of Race, Interest Convergence, And The View From The Perspective Of Critical Theory, George A. Martinez

Faculty Journal Articles and Book Chapters

In this article, the author analyzes a scheme of laws in Arizona regarding immigration and Latinos by using the powerful tools of contemporary critical theory, which have been especially developed to analyze issues of race such as those presented in the laws at issue. As discussed below, critical theory, as applied to Arizona, reveals (1) that the newly enacted scheme of laws reflects an epistemology of whiteness and operates to transform Arizona into a white geographical landscape; (2) that the outlawing of ethnic studies in Arizona is a corollary to the establishment of a white geographical space in Arizona; (3) …

A Hospital For Maine: Part 1- The Rise Of Maine General Hospital, Maine Medical Center

Histories

Part One: The story of Maine Medical Center is rooted in Victorian America and owes much to the social conscience of the times. Great changes were taking place in the years preceding the construction of Maine’s first general hospital. Industrialization, European immigration, breakthroughs in medical science, new public health policies, and the Civil War formed the crucible out of which it emerged. Only 100 years before, such an institution would have been virtually unimaginable.

A Commentary: Presidents Adams And Jefferson, With A Few Others, Discuss Health Reform With A Disabled Lawyer, Gary C. Norman

Journal of Law and Health

Washington lawyers constitute strategic actors within executive, legislative, and judicial forums. This Article discusses the interaction of Washington lawyers in these branches of government regarding healthcare law and policy. The Article discusses how access to technology inhibits a disabled lawyer from equal involvement in the governmental process. The Article also thematically presents the position Presidents Adam and Jefferson would likely harbor on healthcare reform. Public discourse must be more intellectual like that of the founding generation, and it should be improved in its civility.

"And The Light Flood Over The Land": Reading Region In Marilynne Robinson's Gilead, Joshua Davidson

Honors Papers

An interdisciplinary analysis of Marilynne Robinson's second novel Gilead. Investigates the novel's interactions with various figurations of the Middle West, specifically the production of an affective reality in this supposedly affectless region. Uses the contributions of New Regionalist social historians to frame Robinson's work.

Agricultural Terracing And Landscape History At Monte Pallano, Abruzzo, Italy, James R. Countryman

Honors Papers

This study examines the role of agricultural terracing in the archaeological landscape of Monte Pallano, in the Sangro river valley of Abruzzo, Italy. This area is the research focus of the Sangro Valley Project, an ongoing archaeological project whose mission is to investigate and characterize long-term dynamics of human settlement and land use in this region. The project's 2010 and 2011 field seasons incorporated a program of mapping and reconnaissance survey and experimental excavation of abandoned agricultural terraces on the upper slopes of Monte Pallano. The survey was designed to assess the spatial distribution of agricultural terraces in the study …

Archaeometric Characterization Of Roman Tile Fabrics From The Sangro Valley, Italy, Aaron Eli Goldberg

Honors Papers

In this paper, I use archaeometric methods to investigate the raw materials and manufacture of terracotta roof tiles from three Roman sites in the Sangro Valley, Abruzzo, Italy. Although fragmentary remains of the tegula and imbrex roof system are commonly uncovered at sites throughout the ancient world, these tiles are woefully understudied. Equally obscure are the workings of the economy of Samnium during and after its conquest by the Romans. As mass-produced industrial materials generally manufactured and used within a small radius, tiles may prove to be the ideal medium through which to explore the regional ceramic economy. This study …

Scribbling Women: Female Historians In The Early American Republic, 1790-1814, Jennifer H. Graham

Honors Papers

Among the first generation of published authors in the early American republic, Mercy Otis Warren and Hannah Adams have unfortunately been pushed to the margins of historical discourse. As individuals and female historians, their lives are fascinating and dynamic, and their role in the development of a space for the female voice in the era’s intellectual discourse is critical. Thus, Adams and Warren can be treated as case studies to comment on the process by which American women's writing entered the public sphere during this era, the gendered backlash that occurred in response to this trend, as well as women's …

"Twitter Diplomacy": Engagement Through Social Media In 21st Century Statecraft, Owen Henry

Honors Papers

In the Quadrennial Diplomacy & Development Review (QDDR) issued by the U.S. State Department in 2010, there is a stated commitment to expanding interaction with foreign populations. Through statements made by other officials in various venues, it is clear that social media is seen as having a part in this aim. But how effectively are officials now using social media to connect? Are they managing to achieve "two-way dialogue" or are they underutilizing the medium? This paper attempts to start to answer and analyze this question through a review of the existing literature and theories as well as original research …

Rustbelt Theater: Children's Environmental Justice Narratives From South Elyria, Oh, Lissette Lorenz

Honors Papers

Children's knowledge of their eco-social environment is rarely privileged in environmental literature. Their voices help to broaden conceptions of environmental justice, to the benefit of both the environmental justice movement and the emerging discipline of environmental studies. In this community-based research project conducted in partnership with Save Our Children, an afterschool/summer enrichment center, in South Elyria, Ohio, third and fourth grade children utilized Theater of the Oppressed techniques to create an environmental justice narrative in the form of an original play. The goal of Theater of the Oppressed is for participants to dramatically analyze real-life oppressions/obstacles/challenges they face and act …

Re-Writing The Frontier Myth: Gender, Race, And Changing Conceptions Of American Identity In Little House On The Prairie, Kristin M. Sargeant

Honors Papers

"Little House on the Prairie" has remained popular since the release of the first book in 1932, and has enjoyed particular moments of resonance in the 1930s, 1970s, and late 1990s. This study explores why "Little House" has endured through multiple generations, looking at this phenomenon through the lens of historical memory. Through its placement within one of America's foundational myths, the frontier myth, and its subsequent democratization of that myth in moments of social and political change, "Little House" has celebrated America's ability to become more inclusive yet retain its most essential qualities. This thesis uses changing portrayals of …

Lmao; That Guy Is Such A &*%#!: Redefining Defamation Law's Stagnant Community Standard In A Rapidly Changing World, Daniel Lewis

Florida A & M University Law Review

Nearly forty years ago in the heat of the civil rights movement, the Supreme Court famously considered whether a Montgomery, Alabama Commissioner who supervised the Police Department was damaged by defamatory comments. In determining whether the false statements published in the New York Times article lowered the Commissioner's reputation and impeded his reelection chances, the court wrestled with defining the community in which these comments were published. Should the Supreme Court consider the allegedly defamatory comments within the scope of a national community, as the New York Times is a national publication, or was the correct community restrained to the …

China's Internet Policies Within The Global Community, Omar Saleem

Journal Publications

No abstract provided.

Assessment Of Inundation Risk From Sea Level Rise And Storm Surge In Coastal National Parks, Angelica Murdukhayeva

Open Access Master's Theses

In coastal ecosystems, sea level rise and an increase in storm frequency and intensity are two major impacts expected to result from climate change. Coastal National Parks have many low-lying areas that are at risk from inundation resulting from these impacts. In order to help park managers meet their goal of preserving valuable resources, I developed a methodology to evaluate risk of inundation from sea level rise and storm surge at sentinel sites, areas of importance for natural, cultural and infrastructural resources.

I performed a literature review on the factors driving sea level rise in the Northeast, and conducted an …

Gvsu Press Releases, 2012, Grand Valley State University

University Press Releases, 1961-Present

A compilation of press releases for the year 2012 submitted by University Communications (formerly News & Information Services) to news agencies concerning the people, places, and events related to Grand Valley State University.

Modeling Micro-Economic Resilience And Restoration After A Large-Scale Catastrophe: An Analysis Of The Gulf Coast After Katrina, David L. Butler, Edward Sayre

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

2012-2013 Course Catalog, University Of Montana--Missoula. Office Of The Registrar

University of Montana Course Catalogs, 1895-2024

An annual catalog of courses and course descriptions offered at the University of Montana.

The American Recovery And Reinvestment Act Of 2009: An Investigation Into The Determinants Of Funds Awarded To The States, Kaitlin Bromann

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 is one of the largest government responses to an economic crisis in the history of the United States. The purpose of this paper is to examine the determinants of the total funds awarded to states by federal agencies in the Recovery Act. A review of budgetary theory, distributive politics, and electoral vote maximization theory provides context of historical determinants of resource allocation by the federal government.

Then from this literature I develop a model including economic and political variables. The dependent variable in my model is the total funds awarded to the …

Fuel Price, State Taxation, And Fleet Mileage Reduction, Kris Harmon

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

This paper utilizes several models to gauge the annual impact of state gasoline taxes and pump prices on the vehicle miles traveled in the United States. Regression models in first differences were used to analyze annual changes in the variables. The models indicate that annual increases in pump prices correspond to significant decreases in mileage, while state fuel taxes do not significantly impact mileage. With local, state, and federal taxation only composing 12 percent of the pump price of fuel, the impact of changes to these taxes are diminished. This suggests that if policymakers choose to adopt a policy of …

Educational Migration: Brain Drain In Kentucky, Dustin Pugel

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Kentucky has been steadily growing in its bachelor degree holder production over the past ten years, with almost 4500 more college degree holders produced per year in 2010 than in 2000. The literature has shown that this is good news for the economic growth prospects of the state, because a more highly skilled work force means a higher potential for production. This newly educated workforce, however, will not help Kentucky to grow if they take those skills elsewhere.

Using five-year American Community Survey data for Kentuckians over the age of 17, I was able to determine that Kentucky is not …

Detection Of Mycobacterium Ulcerans In The Environment Predicts Prevalence Of Buruli Ulcer In Benin, Heather R. Williamson, Mark Eric Benbow, Lindsay P. Cambell, Christian R. Johnson, Ghislain Sopoh, Yves Barogui, Richard W. Merritt, Pamela L. C. Small

Biology Faculty Publications

Background: Mycobacterium ulcerans is the causative agent of Buruli ulcer (BU), a destructive skin disease found predominantly in sub-Saharan Africa and south-eastern Australia. The precise mode(s) of transmission and environmental reservoir(s) remain unknown, but several studies have explored the role of aquatic invertebrate species. The purpose of this study was to investigate the environmental distribution of M. ulcerans in south-eastern Australia.

Potential Wolverine Habitat Vs. Winter Recreation. Conflict In Colorado!, Paul Quigley

Geography and the Environment: Graduate Student Capstones

The Global list of endangered species of flora and fauna is growing, with the most highly specialized species often at ‘critically endangered’ status. Managing these populations effectively involves numerous and varied organizations, conflicting motivations, arbitrary anthropogenic boundaries and often most importantly, data compilation and management. We are seeing many more reintroductions of locally extirpated species back into habitats of historical prevalence – and as extreme a method of conservation as this is, there is still a need for more extreme methods. High profile and highly specialized endangered species are often managed in a ‘crisis’ mode, where complex behaviors and interactions …

Palestinian Diaspora Entrepreneurship - A Driving Force In The Knowledge Economy / Mervat Hatem N. Shahin, Mervat Hatem N. Shahin

Student Works (2010-2019)

National economies are becoming more knowledge based-economies where productivity and growth have become more dependent on knowledge. In view of this rising globalised knowledge economy, trans-national migrants are playing an increasing role contributing to demographic changes and answering to the competition amongst nations for skilled knowledge nomads. Emigrated intellectual, skilled, and technological people are an invaluable resource for the development of their respective home countries. Their contributions to economic development are substantial through platforms of the knowledge economy, and via knowledge networks. Entrepreneurs, be they local or Diaspora, have become a key element of economic development, success, and sustainability. Entrepreneurship …

Analysis Of Plastic Debris On Malaysia Beaches / Liyana 'Izzati Aris, Aris Liyana 'Izzati

Student Works (2010-2019)

Plastic debris is the main cluster of solid waste component present in the marine environment. Anthropogenic activities namely recreational and fishing activities are believed to contribute to the abundance of plastic debris (1 – 30 mm in size) especially along the beach. This study was undertaken to quantify and assess the degree of plastic debris buried in sand according to size with a view to classify such debris deposition at some Malaysian beaches. Another objective, the abundance distribution of the buried plastics was also studied in relation to the tidal zones of the beaches. Six selected beaches (in three different …