Digital Commons Network^™

A Visualization Tool For Survey Responses And A Unifying Interface Redesign, Iva Cramer

Honors Theses

As an intern for financial software company FNC, Inc. during the summer of 2014, my fellow interns and I began an innovation project for creating and analyzing surveys for better client feedback methods. I have continued this project even after the internship, and this thesis covers that continuation: the visualization of survey responses and the redesign of the page on which they are contained. The project detailed here was to revamp the survey statistics page with a coherent layout that matches the rest of the site in addition to overhauling the actual graphs and charts for aesthetic and accuracy.

Ramped Soapbox, Alyssa Marie Radtke

Honors Theses

This is a collection of mostly autobiographical disability poetry.

The Effect Of A Neurotoxic Dose Of Methamphetamine On Attention And Response Learning In The Rat, Anja Kremer

Honors Theses

High doses of methamphetamine (neurotoxic doses) have been shown to have an effect on both attention and response learning. In previous literature, meth rats were found to have higher reaction times, and therefore, it has been concluded that meth may cause a deficit in response learning. Our study, using modal initiation time as a measure of response learning, found no effects of methamphetamine or training condition on mode. Studies have also shown positively skewed reaction time distributions, which have been defined as attentional lapses. Our experiment used DevMode to measure these lapses. Although meth did not, training condition did have …

Secondary Metabolites Isolated From Perovskia Atriplicifolia And Their In Vitro Binding Affinity For Human Opioid And Cannabinoid Receptors, Ashli Fitzpatrick

Honors Theses

Plants and their natural products have been utilized for thousands of years in the treatment of many human diseases. Because of their structural diversity, natural products are ideal lead compounds for drug development. In this thesis, the natural products of the plant Perovskia atriplicifolia were investigated, specifically their in vitro binding affinity to receptors in opioid and cannabinoid classes. Extracts that demonstrated good selective opioid and cannabinoid receptor binding were subjected to bioassay-guided fractionation. Four active compounds were identified from the crude extract in Perovskia atriplicifolia: 1) 5-hydroxy-3',4',6,7-tetramethoxy flavone, 2) 5,7-dihydroxy-3',4',6,-trimethoxy flavone, 3) 5-hydroxy-4',6,7-trimethoxy flavone, and 4) 5,7-dihydroxy-4',6,-dimethoxy flavone. Each …

Marketing For Entrepreneurs: How To Promote One's Own Craft, Teresa Hendrix

Honors Theses

This thesis seeks to serve as an alternative, cost efficient resource to those creative entrepreneurial ventures with a product (or service) that needs both people to consume it and a profit eventually sufficient to support its creators. By excluding excess details unrelated to promotion, and supplementing with specific, anecdotal advice directly from interviews with successful small business owners, this thesis aims to provide a plethora of marketing techniques that an entrepreneur can test before facing the daunting cost of an agency. Based on an extensive bibliography of primary and secondary sources*, this thesis explores three common components that manifest themselves …

Exploration Of Cannabinoid And Opioid Agents From Plants Used In Traditional Medicine, John Fitzpatrick

Honors Theses

Ten plants, with known medicinal uses, were gathered to study for their possible production of secondary metabolites that act as opioid and cannabinoid agents. All plants were subjected to in vitro bioassays testing for their affinity for the opioid and cannabinoid receptors. Banisteriopsis caapi extracts displayed the greatest affinity for both opioid and cannabinoid receptors. B. caapi extracts underwent column fractionation yielding fractions that were subjected to further in vitro studies. We discovered that the ethanolic extract of this plant (foliage) binds to all three opioid receptors (µ, κ and δ) and cannabinoid receptors (CB1 and CB2) with values ranging …

Societal Dysfunction: The Floundering Policies Of Rehabilitation And Incarceration For Non-Violent Alcohol And Drug Offenders In The United States Of America, Josh Horton

Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

Learning Shakespeare Shouldn't Hurt: An Engaging 4-Week Othello Curriculum For 9th Graders, Amelia Kucic , '16

Senior Theses, Projects, and Awards

Shakespearean literature is an essential component of American literature and cultural consciousness, discusses material that is highly relevant to modern adolescents, and presents an ideal platform for creative learning across multiple intelligences. However, intimidated students are often reluctant to engage with this material. This Othello curriculum draws on progressive educational theory, strategies for teaching literacy to English Language Learners and Special Education students, and existing creative methods of teaching Shakespeare to circumvent this intimidation and engage 9th graders with Othello through the exploration of relevant themes, utilization of students' natural propensity for creative expression, and development of traditional English literacy …

Autonomy Of The Student: Maintaining Ballet's Relevance As An Art Form Through Pedagogy, Daniel Cho , '15

Senior Theses, Projects, and Awards

No abstract provided.

Week 3: Resting, Calvin University

Campus Ministries Resources

No abstract provided.

The Cost Of Workplace Bullying In Irish Universities, Patrick Pearse Rockett

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Employees who demean and degrade coworkers cost organizations billions of dollars every year. Workplace bullying is a business problem that affects up to 15% of employees, and little empirical research is available to establish the extent of bullying in academia. Bullies flourish in decentralized structures, and universities can be particularly susceptible to bullying behavior because of their decentralized structures of teaching and research that promote the growth of microclimates in segregated silos, from laboratories to small departments. The purpose of this multiple-case, census sample study was to explore the cost-reduction strategies that university human resource (HR) leaders use to manage …

X-Dimer Mutations And Their Effects On The Folding Stability And Assembly Of Ecad12 At The K14-D138 Interface, Martha Kaitlyn Coghlan

Honors Theses

Classical cadherins were first identified by their function in mediating calcium-dependent cellular adhesion and constitute a large family of cellular adhesion receptor proteins whose differential binding is central to the development and maintenance of tissue architecture. The interface underlying the binding interaction reveals that all classical cadherins share a common adhesive interface in which the portion of the β-A strand closest to the N-terminus is swapped between EC1 domains of the adhesive partner protomers. A second dimeric configuration, known as the 'X-dimer', is the face-to-face association of two protomers in which their orientation is dictated by three symmetrical noncovalent interactions …

In Vino Veritas: A Comparison Of Organic Winemaking And Attitudes Towards Organic Wine In Four Global Regions, Mary Sloan Merkel

Honors Theses

Organic winemaking is a very high value adding activity for the economy, but the industry has seen different levels of growth throughout the world. It is unclear whether organic winemaking is a viable long-term activity in prominent winemaking regions. This thesis looks at the regulations dealing with organic winemaking and attitudes towards organic wine in four major wine producing areas in the world: the United States, Italy, Argentina, and New Zealand. This thesis uses an extensive literature review of existing studies and papers dealing with organic wine, as well as government regulations and private standards to determine the current practices …

Honestly, Woman, You Call Yourself Our Mother?: Mothers And Witches In Harry Potter, Mary-Eileen Rankin Rankin

Honors Theses

This thesis aims to analyze the importance of maternal nurture and the witches as mothers trope in the Harry Potter series. This nurture is traditional as well as perverse and appears in characters besides the adult women. Rowling creates characters who appeal to paradigms of the Early Modern bad mother witch who harmed children among other accusations associated with female sexuality and motherhood. Additionally, Rowling challenges the negative stereotype of associating witches and bad mothering by presenting witches as good mothers. The power of maternal nurture in the series is best seen through the good mothers. This theme plays such …

Understanding The Implications Of Climate Change For Birds Of The Family Phasianidae: Incorporating Fleshy Structures Into Models Of Heat Dissipation Capacity, Megan L. Smith

Honors Theses

Though widespread acceptance of global warming has generated a plethora of studies evaluating the potential responses of species to increased temperatures, until recently, species and genus-specific studies were not common and for many taxa such studies have yet to be completed. One particularly understudied group in this regard is the avian order Galliformes. In this study, I focus on the tribe Phasianidae. Furthermore, most studies evaluating the potential range changes of species in response to a changing climate fail to account for the ability of organisms to adapt to the changing climatic conditions, either via plastic adaptations or genetic adaptations. …

The Effects Of Acoustic Signals On The Endocrine Physiology Of Female Green Treefrogs, Hyla Cinerea, Melissa Paige Dent

Honors Theses

The vocalizations of male H. cinerea stimulate cortisol production in male receivers during close-range interactions. In many vertebrate species, males and females possess similar sensory neuroendocrine pathways, suggesting that acoustic signals may also stimulate CORT production in females. Males of this species would potentially benefit from stimulating CORT production in females because elevated CORT levels significantly decrease the strength of female preferences for energetically costly calls (i.e., calls produced at rapid rates). The primary objective of my honors research was to assess how the acoustic signals produced by male green treefrogs, Hyla cinerea, influence the endocrine physiology of female signal …

A War On Women? The Malleus Maleficarum And The Witch-Hunts In Early Modern Europe, Morgan L. Stringer

Honors Theses

This thesis explores the topic of gender and witchcraft, specifically why women were so heavily represented in witchcraft trials. The demonology text, The Malleus Maleficarum was analyzed. Several other demonological texts were also analyzed and then compared to one another regarding their statements about women, men, and witchcraft. Then historiography pertaining to gender and witchcraft were analyzed and critiqued. The Malleus Maleficarum contains a high degree of misogyny, but it presents an extreme misogynistic view that is not present in other demonology texts. The argument that the Early Modern European Witch-Hunts were a war on women fails to account for …

A Global Perspective On Ethical Consumerism: A Study Of Advertisements From Social Enterprises To Identify The Ethical Consumer, Murray Miller

Honors Theses

This paper explores ethical consumerism in the United States and Latin America. I examined ethical consumerism in these two settings by identifying social enterprises from different countries in each setting to identify the ideal ethical consumer. After comparing and contrasting the ethical consumer in each context, I determined that ethical consumerism does exist in Latin America. According to scholarship, a country must be postmaterialist in order for ethical consumerism to exist. Through my research, I concluded that Latin America is postmaterialist, therefore ethical consumerism does exist.

Effect Of Atomoxetine On Attentional Lapses: An Animal Model, Pooja Chawla

Honors Theses

Atomoxetine (ATX) is a non-stimulant drug that has been used to treat symptoms of ADHD, including lapses of attention. These attentional lapses are depicted as a longer, positive skew in a reaction time distribution comprised of a normal and an exponential curve. The central tendency is thought to represent sensory-motor processing; while the positive skew is thought to be caused by attentional lapses in animal models. This positive skew is larger in individuals with ADHD and is thought to be a result of an increased number of attentional lapses. In the animal model used in this experiment reaction time is …

Liminal Infrastructure: The Optics Division Of The Metabolic Studio, Gregory J. Harris, Lawrence Weschler

DePaul Art Museum Publications

No abstract provided.

A Seminar For Building Strong Marriages And Healthy Relationships In South Bend Hispanic Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Ronald Rojas

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

Despite the high biblical ideals for marriage and the divine power that is available to enable marital commitments to endure, the Seventh-day Adventist church recognizes the possibility that some individuals will not survive in marriage. Over the past 35 years (1974-2009) there has been a decline in the percentage of couples still in their first marriage (from 81% in 1974 to 58% in 2009) among Adventists in North America, which is very similar to the decline in percentage of married couples (from 82% in 1970 to 48% in 2010) in the United States (U.S. Census Bureau, 2010). As a …

Connecting Daily Christian Living With Adventist Doctrines Through Christocentric Preaching At The Kingsboro Temple Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Donnett Mia Blake

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

Kingsboro Temple Seventh-day Adventist Church was an active congregation; however, there was a disconnect between spirituality and the knowledge of and commitment to the distinct Adventist fundamental doctrines. Many viewed the distinct doctrines of Adventism as irrelevant to the Christian experience and daily lifestyle choices, resulting in a nonchalant attitude to the distinctiveness of the Adventist message and the purpose and mission of the church.

Method

The purpose of this dissertation project was to develop and preach a series of Christocentric doctrinal sermons that would impact spiritual growth, doctrinal knowledge, and foster personal evangelism at Kingsboro Temple. Based on …

A Soul Care Teaching And Discipling Model To Aid Millennial Youth In Developing Healthy Relationships With God, Self, And Others In The Nottingham Central Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Georgina Miller

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

A large proportion of youth and young adults classified as Millennials (also known as Generation Y) within the Adventist Church worldwide are hurting because of lack of acceptance, love, and healthy self-worth. This youth group has issues with trusting others, especially society at large and authority figures, due to negative experiences in their past, which has painfully scarred them. They have an unhealthy view of who God really is based on the dysfunctional role models they have grown up with and see around them. The church’s limited ability to connect and relate with the postmodern culture, due to a …

Enhancing The Quality Of Friendship In Married Couples' Relationships In The Madison, Tennessee Hispanic Sda District, Nathan Delima

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Purpose

The purpose of the study was to explore the possibility of enhancing the friendship of certain married couples in the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the Madison, Tennessee Hispanic District. This project resource should add to the academic field of study by possibly helping pastors, family educators, and church family life leaders to consider using this project to help enrich the relationships of married couples. It will likely provide resource information for those doing projects or working with married couples.

Justification for the Project

There is a need to nurture the friendship of the married couples within the churches of …

The Effects Of Testosterone On Calling Behavior In Green Treefrogs, Hyla Cinerea, Brandon Bunol

Honors Theses

Circulating androgen levels can have a profound effect on the expression of elaborate male traits and courtship behaviors that are important in attracting females. For example, elevated androgens are necessary for the expression of vocal displays used by male anurans (frogs and toads) to attract mates. However, the nature of the relationship between androgen levels and the extent, or magnitude, of vocalization in male anurans is unclear. For example, androgens may have a threshold effect on vocalization wherein elevation in androgens is required for vocal expression, but elevations above threshold do not mediate an increase in the magnitude or extent …

Nonthermal Atmospheric Pressure Plasma Enhances Mouse Limb Bud Survival, Growth, And Elongation., Natalie Chernets, Jun Zhang, Marla J Steinbeck, Deepa S Kurpad, Eiki Koyama, Gary Friedman, Theresa A. Freeman

Department of Orthopaedic Surgery Faculty Papers

The enhanced differentiation of mesenchymal cells into chondrocytes or osteoblasts is of paramount importance in tissue engineering and regenerative therapies. A newly emerging body of evidence demonstrates that appendage regeneration is dependent on reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and signaling. Thus, we hypothesized that mesenchymal cell stimulation by nonthermal (NT)-plasma, which produces and induces ROS, would (1) promote skeletal cell differentiation and (2) limb autopod development. Stimulation with a single treatment of NT-plasma enhanced survival, growth, and elongation of mouse limb autopods in an in vitro organ culture system. Noticeable changes included enhanced development of digit length and definition of …

A Worship Model To Blend Cultural Differences At The Los Angeles Spanish-American Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Rogelio Paquini-Ledesma

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

The membership of the Spanish-American Seventh-day Adventist Church (SASDAC), in Los Angeles is culturally diverse; it includes immigrants from several Latin American countries, as well as Hispanics born in the U.S. Currently, the mixture of cultures, worship traditions, and language brought to the church setting by immigrants do not blend well with the worship style and language of church members raised in this country. Hispanics born in this country do not feel confortable in a worship service led in Spanish and tend to leave the Hispanic church. As a result, the church has lost many members and tithes and …

Performance Of Dental Hygiene Students In Mass Fatality Training And Radiographic Imaging Of Dental Remains, Tara L. Newcomb, Ann M. Bruhn, Loreta H. Ulmer, Norou Diawara

Dental Hygiene Faculty Publications

Purpose: Mass fatality incidents can overwhelm local, state and national resources quickly. Dental hygienists are widely distributed and have the potential to increase response teams' capacity. However, appropriate training is required. The literature is void of addressing this type of training for dental hygienists and scant in dentistry. Hence, the purpose of this study was to assess one facet of such training: Whether the use of multimedia is likely to enhance educational outcomes related to mass fatality training.

Methods: A randomized, double-blind, pre- and post-test design was used to evaluate the effectiveness of comparable educational modules for 2 groups: a …

Harvest Demographics Of Temperate-Breeding Canada Geese In South Dakota, 1967–1995, Jeffrey S. Gleason, Jonathan A. Jenks, David E. Naugle, Paul W. Mammenga, Spencer J. Vaa, Jennifer M. Pritchett

Human–Wildlife Interactions

In South Dakota, breeding giant Canada geese (Branta canadensis maxima) have increased substantially, and harvest management strategies have been implemented to maximize hunting opportunity (e.g., special early-September seasons) on local, as well as molt-migrant giant Canada geese (B. c. interior) while still protecting lesser abundant Arctic breeding Canada geese and cackling geese (e.g., B. hutchinsii, B. minima). Information on important parameters, such as survival and recovery rates, are generally lacking for giant Canada geese in the northern Great Plains. Patterns in Canada goose band recoveries can provide insight into the distribution, chronology, and harvest pressures …

Modeling Waterfowl Damage To Crops Surrounding The Quill Lakes In Saskatchewan, Carolyn J. Callaghan, Bahram Daneshfar, Donald J. Thompson

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Waterfowl using the Central Flyway congregate on staging lakes before fall migration. The Quill lakes area of Saskatchewan Province, Canada, contains many staging lakes, which are surrounded by annual cropland. Crop losses to waterfowl occur every year, but the severity fluctuates greatly from year to year. We obtained historical crop compensation data, waterfowl-staging surveys, harvest chronology, and weather records from various agencies. Using GIS, we referenced all data types to potential claim-land parcels (0.65 km² for the damage model and 5 km² for the density model). We constructed empirical landscape level logistic regression models, weighting factors influencing the …