Digital Commons Network^™

How We Pay For Publishing, Kevin S. Hawkins

Against the Grain

No abstract provided.

From Your Editor, Katina Strauch

Against the Grain

No abstract provided.

Ecocriticism And Gender/Sexuality Studies: A Book Review Article On New Work By Azzarello And Gaard, Estok, And Oppermann, Keitaro Morita

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

No abstract provided.

Introduction To New Work In Ecocriticism, Simon C. Estok, Murali Sivaramakrishnan

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

No abstract provided.

Questions And Answers: Copyright Column, Laura Gassaway

Against the Grain

No abstract provided.

From The Reference Desk: Reviews Of Reference Titles, Tom Gilson

Against the Grain

No abstract provided.

Rediscovering Local Environmentalism In Taiwan, Peter I-Min Huang

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

In his article "Rediscovering Local Environmentalism in Taiwan" Peter I-min Huang challenges the domination of "the global" and the marginalization of "the local." Huang argues that by the end of the first decade of the twenty-first century globalism seemed to have toppled localism in ecocriticism debates. Ecocritics embraced enthusiastically such concepts as Ursula K. Heise's "eco-cosmopolitanism" and the arguments associated with it that spoke for global forms of environmental thinking and practice. Yet, arguments for "the local" persist in part because of Heise's constructive criticisms of it. Focusing on local environmental movements in Taiwan, Huang identifies and discusses scholarly work …

Chasing Polys: Interdisciplinary Affinity And Its Connection To Physics Identity, Tyler Scott

All Dissertations

This research is based on two motivations that merge by means of the frameworks of interdisciplinary affinity and physics identity. First, a goal of education is to develop interdisciplinary abilities in students' thinking and work. But an often ignored factor is students interests and beliefs about being interdisciplinary. Thus, this work develops and uses a framework called interdisciplinary affinity. It encompasses students interests in making connections across disciplines and their beliefs about their abilities to make those connections. The second motivation of this research is to better understand how to engage more students with physics. Physics identity describes how a …

Pre-Service Mathematics Teachers' Knowledge Development And Belief Change Within A Technology-Enhanced Mathematics Course, Vecihi Zambak

All Dissertations

With the adoption of Common Core State Standards, mathematics teachers have been expected to emphasize conceptual understanding as much as procedural and computational fluency in their teaching. Development of a sound mathematical content knowledge during their teacher education could enable mathematics teachers to meet this expectation. The infusion of technology into the domain of mathematics education has also modified the nature of mathematical content knowledge. Regarding the expectations and changes in the nature of mathematical content knowledge, in this dissertation, I examined the influence of Geometer's Sketchpad (GSP) on pre-service middle grade mathematics teachers' Specialized Content Knowledge (SCK); how their …

Estimating Field At-Rest Lateral Stress Coefficient And Liquefaction Resistance Of Aged Sands, Md Hossian

All Dissertations

Published results of laboratory tests to evaluate the influence of the at-rest lateral stress coefficient (K0) and the overconsoildation ratio (OCR) on liquefaction resistance of sands are reviewed in this dissertation. It is found that significant increase in liquefaction resistance can occur with high K0 and/or high OCR. A unique relationship between liquefaction resistance of isotropic and anisotropic normally consolidated sands exists based on the published laboratory data. Relationships between liquefaction resistance of overconsolidated sands and normally consolidated sands also have been shown in previous laboratory studies. Based on the previous studies, expressions for K0 and OCR correction factors (KK0 …

A Survey Of The Phases Of Indian Ecocriticism, Rayson K. Alex

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

In his article "A Survey of the Phases of Indian Ecocriticism" Rayson K. Alex places Indian ecocriticism in its historical context distinguishing it from the Western ecocritical canon by identifying and contextualizing three phases of ecocriticism in India. Looking at the present Indian ecocritical scenario, Alex compares and contrasts it with Western ecocritical studies. He offers a brief analysis of the themes of papers presented in conferences on ecocriticism in India and of the syllabi and teaching strategies adopted in various institutions of higher learning which have introduced ecocriticism as optional/mandatory courses to show the growth of ecocriticism in India. …

Reducing Eating Disorder Risk Factors: A Controlled Investigation Of A Blended Task-Shifting/Train-The-Trainer Approach To Dissemination And Implementation, Lisa S. Kilpela, Kaitlin Hill, Mackenzie Kelly, Joanna Elmquist, Paige Ottoson, Thomas Hildebrandt, Carolyn Becker

Psychology Faculty Research

Recent advances in psychological intervention research have led to an increase in evidence-based interventions (EBIs), yet there remains a lag in dissemination and implementation of EBIs. Task-shifting and the train-the-trainer (TTT) model offer two potential strategies for enhancing reach of EBIs. The Body Project, an EBI found to prevent onset of eating disorders, served as the vehicle for this dissemination/implementation study. The primary aim of this study was to determine if training of peer-leaders for the Body Project could be task-shifted to undergraduate students using a hybrid task-shifting/TTT model. Our secondary aim was to determine if subgroups of participants evidenced …

The Forgotten Movement: Church Planting Trends And Lessons (Part 2 Of 2), S. Joseph Kidder, Dustin Serns

Faculty Publications

Church planting is a challenging enterprise. Realistic expectations are essential, and adequate support systems and coaching are helpful. Our research revealed that those who commit to church planting encounter significant obstacles. Based on data and interviews from the top four conferences in church planting over the last decade in North America, part two of this article will address three common obstacles to church planting and show how God transforms them into amazing opportunities.

Ucc Minutes, December 9, 2014, University Curriculum Council

UCC Agendas/Minutes

No abstract provided.

Investigation Of Fatigue Life And Fracture Mechanics Of Unconstrained Ni-Mn-Ga Single Crystals, Theodore Bryson Lawrence

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Ni-Mn-Ga is a magnetic shape memory alloy (MSMA) that exhibits large recoverable strains. The magnetic field induced strain (MFIS) occurs through twin boundary motion resulting in reorientation of the crystal structure, which is coupled to the magnetic moment of the material. The shape memory capabilities of the material make it promising for applications including microactuators, sensors, microfluid pumps, refrigeration, energy harvesting, and data storage.

In order for Ni-Mn-Ga to become a viable option for use in commercial applications the performance and reliability must be on par with industry standards. Ni‑Mn-Ga has been shown to achieve high cycles at low strains, …

Caepidr: A Computational Approach To Efficient Peptide Influenced Drug Repurposing, Thomas Francis Long

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Since the discovery of the molecular basis of disease, numerous studies have reported a correlation between the activity of specific protein receptors the progression of disease. As a result, drug development has become dependent on the study of protein receptor activities. The relative inexpense of computing hardware has made computational methods an important supplementary tool for receptor modeling. This work details an open source software tool that is capable of both efficiently screening large peptide mutant libraries and enabling 3D conformer-based searches over local molecular databases.

A Computational Approach to Efficient Peptide Influenced Drug Repurposing (CAEPIDR) has been developed to …

Traffic Noise Decreases Body Condition And Stopover Efficiency Of Migrating Songbirds, Heidi Elise Ware

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Numerous studies document impacts of roads on wildlife, and suggest traffic noise as a primary cause of population declines near roads. For migratory birds faced with increasingly human-altered habitats, noise may pose a serious threat. Using an array of speakers, we applied traffic noise to a roadless landscape, directly testing the effect of noise alone on an entire songbird community. Focusing on individuals that stayed despite the noise, we demonstrate that songbirds show a near halving of ability to gain body condition when exposed to traffic noise during migratory stopover. This marked degradation in stopover efficiency may help explain dramatic …

Ciliates Of Sagebrush-Steppe Soils Of Southwestern Idaho: Species Richness And Its Relationship To Changed Soil Variables After Wildfire Events, Laura G. Wendell

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

I conducted a pilot study to examine species richness of terrestrial ciliates associated with big sagebrush habitat (Artemisia tridentata) in southwestern Idaho, USA. As wildland fires are a naturally occurring disturbance in this area, soil variables associated with these fires (% C, % N, pH, soil texture, and % clay) were measured at three sites, both in burned and unburned areas. These soil characteristics were compared to corresponding ciliate diversity and ratios of r-selected colpodeans to K-selected polyhymenophorans (C/P) in non-flooded Petri dish preparations. A total of 85 ciliate taxa were observed across the three sites, including …

Potential For Timing High-Energy Marine Inundation Events In The Recent Geological Past Through Age-Dating Of Reef Boulders In Fiji, James P. Terry, Samuel Etienne

All Works

© 2014, Terry and Etienne; licensee Springer. Transported coastal boulders have increasingly come to represent a valuable element of investigations within the broader framework of multi-proxy approaches applied to coastal hazard studies. Through a case study on Taveuni Island in Fiji, this paper outlines some approaches and hindrances to effective timing of prehistorical high-energy marine inundation events (storms and tsunamis) on tropical coastlines from the evidence of reef-platform carbonate boulders. Various sources of errors are outlined that investigators must consider when attempting to use carbonate boulder ages as a surrogate for timing past events. On Taveuni, uranium : thorium dates …

Gender Differences In Response To Contingent Rewards: Evidence From A Natural Experiment Of Junior Tennis, Nejat Anbarci, K. Peren Arin, Jungmin Lee

All Works

© 2014 Elsevier Inc. We investigate gender differences in responding to contingent rewards by exploiting a natural experiment in junior tennis tournaments in Florida where the ranking point system was revised to induce more players to play doubles. The new point system increased the points earned from wins in singles matches significantly if the two thirds or more of players in their sex/age group chose to play doubles. We examine three types of potential responses to the new system: (1) a 'positive' response of playing doubles more by singles winners, (2) a 'subversive' response of playing doubles less by singles …

Internationalisation And Curriculum Development: Why And How?, Pj Magne

Plymouth Institute of Education

Today’s globally interconnected world offers a vast array of new opportunities, but has simultaneously created a need for greater intercultural understanding (Koehne, 2006). This article provides a rationale for the role that Higher Education must play in preparing students for the global market place. It outlines the scope of the ‘internationalisation’ agenda within Higher Education and goes on to explore the notion of what it means to ‘internationalise the curriculum’. The article offers an approach to curriculum development which uses a gap analysis tool (developed by the author) and discussion across disciplinary teams. A series of short case studies demonstrate …

Blogs, Books, & Breadcrumbs: A Case Study Of Transmedial Fairy Tales, Kristy Gilbert Stewart

Theses and Dissertations

Understanding transmedial storytelling is particularly important to fairy-tale studies. Monomedial views have long been unable to account for all of fairy tale tradition. Although the form originated in oral culture, it has long been a liminal, hybrid form that retains aspects of orality even while its principal mode of transference for some time has been something other than face-to-face communication. Transformations and adaptations across different media and contexts has resulted in a system of fairy-tale tradition that is massively intertextual and transmedial. No one medium can claim primary control over the fairy-tale tradition. Throughout time, oral tellings have inspired literary …

A Lesson In Rhetoric: Finding God Through Language In “Batter My Heart”, Marc Daniel Giullian

Theses and Dissertations

A reexamination of John Donne's Holy Sonnet “Batter my heart,” especially one looking at the sonnet's relationship to Early Modern rhetoric, is long overdue. In this paper, I hope to show that a focus on Donne's relationship to Early Modern rhetoric yields several useful new insights. I argue specifically that Donne was probably exposed to Non-Ramist rhetorical methods and theory at many points in his education, from his childhood to his college years to his years at the Inns of Court. Furthermore, Non-Ramist rhetoric has moral implications, suggesting that aspects of an author's feelings, character, and desires can be analyzed …

Microvascular Function In Metabolically Healthy Groups Differing In Bmi And Waist Circumference, Nathan R. Earl

Theses and Dissertations

BACKGROUND: Microvascular dysfunction (MD: impaired performance of blood flow, tissue perfusion, blood pressure, etc.) is one of the earliest stages in the progression of various chronic diseases. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine if a difference in microvascular function existed between two metabolically healthy groups that differed in BMI and waist circumference. DESIGN: This study employed a causal comparative design, with two groups: I) normal weight (n =14, BMI 28 kg/m2). METHODS: Microvascular function was assessed by measuring skin blood flow (SkBF) using laser Doppler flowmetry during postocclusive reactive hyperemia (PORH). The area under the SkBF time …

Lateral Resistance Of Piles Near Vertical Mse Abutment Walls, Cody Hatch

Theses and Dissertations

A full scale MSE wall was constructed and piles were driven at various distances behind the wall. Lateral load testing was conducted and the performance of the pile, wall, and reinforcement were measured. The piles were 12.75 inch pipe piles, and the wall was reinforced with welded wire grid reinforcement. The objective of the testing was to characterize the relationship between the lateral pile resistance and the distance of the pile behind the back face of the MSE wall. Load-displacement curves are presented for the piles located behind the wall at 66 inches (5.3 diameters), 55 inches (4.3 diameters), 41 …

A Variable-Stiffness Compliant Mechanism For Stiffness-Controlled Haptic Interfaces, Jeffrey C. Hawks

Theses and Dissertations

In this research a variable-stiffness compliant mechanism was developed to generate variable force-displacement profiles at the mechanisms coupler point. The mechanism is based on a compliant Roberts straight-line mechanism, and the stiffness is varied by changing the effective length of the compliant links with an actuated slider. The variable-stiffness mechanism was used in a one-degree-of-freedom haptic interface to demonstrate the effectiveness of varying the stiffness of a compliant mechanism. Unlike traditional haptic interfaces, in which the force is controlled using motors and rigid links, the haptic interface developed in this work displays haptic stiffness via the variable-stiffness compliant mechanism. The …

Holding Hands And Drying Tears: Effectiveness Of Student Employees In Promoting A Successful Lms Implementation, Cary Ann Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

Two-thirds of higher education institutions are either currently involved in the process of or will soon begin to review their learning management system strategy (Green, 2012). Transitioning from one LMS to another is an endeavor that utilizes the entire institution and requires a great deal of strategic planning and cooperation. The literature described the involvement of instructional designers and technology support as key players in this transition process over a period of parallel time. When BYU transitioned from Blackboard to Learning Suite, a team of student employees managed the majority of the change. While there was very little time when …

Analysis, Validation, And Improvement Of High-Resolution Wind Estimates From The Advanced Scatterometer (Ascat), Jeffrey Richard Blodgett

Theses and Dissertations

The standard L2B ocean wind product from the Advanced Scatterometer (ASCAT) is retrieved as a 25 km product on a 12.5 km grid. Ultra-high resolution (UHR) processing allows ASCAT wind retrieval on a high-resolution 1.25 km grid. Ideally, such a high-resolution sample grid provides wind information down to a 2.5 km scale, allowing better analysis of winds with high spatial variability such as those in near-coastal regions and storms. Though the wind field is sampled on a finer grid, the actual data resolution needs to be validated. This thesis provides an analysis and validation of ASCAT UHR wind estimates in …

Magnetic Holding Of Synthetic Quartz For Precision Grinding, Saudin Basic

Theses and Dissertations

The objective of this research work is to investigate the practicality of magnetic workholding of non-magnetic synthetic quartz during high-speed grinding. This research work is sponsored by Quartzdyne and will be used as the starting point to applying single-piece rounding of its quartz. Hypotheses were created that would permit the authors to conclude that magnets are in fact worthwhile workholders for non-magnetic materials. Designs of Experiments were used to reject or fail to reject the null hypotheses. Experiments were carried out using a custom HAAS lathe, modified into a grinding center with an NSK live spindle, and neodymium-iron-boron magnets used …

Studies Of Phou In Escherichia Coli: Metal Binding, Dimerization,Protein/Protein Interactions, And A Signaling Complex Model, Stewart G. Gardner

Theses and Dissertations

Phosphate is an essential nutrient for all forms of life. Escherichia coli has a PhoR/PhoB two component regulatory system that controls the expression of various genes whose products allow the cell to thrive in low phosphate environments. The signaling mechanism of the PhoR/PhoB system has been studied and the phosphorylation cascade that controls gene expression is well understood. What is still unknown is how PhoR senses the phosphate level of the environment. The PstS, PstC, PstA, PstB, and PhoU proteins play a role in this signal sensing. This work confirms the hypothesis that the PstSCAB complex senses the environmental phosphate …