Digital Commons Network^™

Gis And Database Management: Summer 2014 Internship With The Town Of Andover, Massachusetts, Heather Marie Cormier

Sustainability and Social Justice

My internship with the Town of Andover, Massachusetts took place during May, June, and July 2014. I worked directly with one supervisor, Laura DeGroot, for all projects, which included editing GIS administrative layers (e.g. boundaries, roads, zoning and school districts, etc.), creating new maps for recycling routes and septic systems within the town, analysis of census data, GPS data collection, and template design for online hiking trail maps. This report also details the mission of the town and how my internship played a role in achieving many of the overarching goals for data availability and communication, along with a reflection …

Monitoring Invasive Plant Species: Summer Internship At Habitat Wildlife Sanctuary, Belmont, Massachusetts, Holly M. Zanoni

Sustainability and Social Justice

Habitat Wildlife Sanctuary, located in Belmont, Massachusetts is a dynamic suburban sanctuary that effectively upholds Mass Audubon’s three-part mission of advocacy, conservation, and education. Invasive plants threaten ecological integrity; however, proactive measures are taken to mitigate further encroachment. This is accomplished by surveying and taking inventory for presence of invasive species, then prioritizing them, and finally by incorporating high priority species into the immediate management strategy. Four invasive plants were formally analyzed using geographic information science during the 2014 growing season: Garlic mustard, Black swallowwort, Japanese knotweed, and Dame’s Rocket. The resulting density maps detected pattern changes from 2011, 2012, …

Assessing Nontraditional Student Dropouts On A Commuter Campus, Mary Theresa Funk

Dissertations

An educated population renders economic returns for the country and the workforce. The relatively large number of college and university dropouts jeopardizes the nation’s presidential education mandate to increase the percentage of adults earning a postsecondary degree by 2020. Employee demand for higher skills motivates institutions to reduce the flow of dropouts in order to increase persistence to graduation. The number of students residing off-campus is increasing causing a larger nontraditional student population. Commuter campus administrators are challenged to retain students who may have families and full-time employment. This research compared student dropouts at a traditional residential campus with nontraditional …

The Image 2015, Rosemary Braude Esposito

Yearbooks

Rowan University Yearbook for the Class of 2015; 168 pages.

Contents: p. 4 Student Life, p. 30 Seniors, p. 86 Faculty & Staff, p. 104 Athletics, p. 132 Sports Clubs, p. 146 Clubs & Organizations, p. 158 Greek Life, p. 166 Commencement.

Editor-in-Chief: not identified. Advisor: Rosie Braude.

Ua66 Ogden College Of Science & Engineering Newsletter, Cheryl Stevens, Dean

Ogden College of Science & Engineering Publications

No abstract provided.

Global Research On Ultramafic (Serpentine) Ecosystems (8th International Conference On Serpentine Ecology In Sabah, Malaysia): A Summary And Synthesis, Antony Van Der Ent, Nishanta Rajakaruna, Robert Boyd, Guillaume Echevarria, Rimi Repin, Dick Williams

Biological Sciences

Since 1991, researchers from approximately 45 nations have participated in eight International Conferences on Serpentine Ecology (ICSE). The Conferences are coordinated by the International Serpentine Ecology Society (ISES), a formal research society whose members study geological, pedological, biological and applied aspects of ultramafic (serpentine) ecosystems worldwide. These conferences have provided an international forum to discuss and synthesise multidisciplinary research, and have provided opportunities for scientists in distinct fields and from different regions of the world to conduct collaborative and interdisciplinary research. The 8th ICSE was hosted by Sabah Parks in Malaysia, on the island of Borneo, and attracted the largest …

Emissions From Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations During Wet And Dry Periods In The Southeastern United States, Jesse N. F. Winchester

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Air quality modeling is a recent development in atmospheric science dedicated to simulating the characteristics of surface emissions within the context of a variety of meteorological conditions. In western Kentucky, there are several concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) that emit a variety of gases, including sulfur dioxide (SO₂). The hypothesis was that the concentration and spread of SO₂ emissions from these sources would differ between wet and dry periods over the CAFO locations. In this thesis, point emissions from locations representing CAFOs in western Kentucky and the transit of SO₂throughout the southeastern U.S. were simulated …

Assessing Mesoscale-Equivalent Temperature In Kentucky, Keri Younger

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The purpose of this research is to investigate mesoscale-equivalent temperatures (TE) in Kentucky and potential land cover influences. Kentucky presents a unique opportunity to perform a study of this kind because of the observational infrastructure provided by the Kentucky Mesonet (www.kymesonet.org). This network maintains 65 research-grade, in-situ weather and climate observing stations across the Commonwealth. Equivalent temperatures were calculated utilizing high-quality observations from 33 of these stations. In addition, the Kentucky Mesonet offers higher spatial and temporal resolution than previous research on this topic. As expected, the differences (TE-T) were greatest in summer (smallest in winter), with an average of …

The Embodied Crises Of Neoliberal Globalization: The Lives And Narratives Of Filipina Migrant Domestic Workers, Wen Liu

Graduate Student Publications and Research

This paper theorizes the lives and working conditions of Filipina migrant domestic workers in Taiwan. To do so, I focus on the life stories of two migrant women—their struggles with exploitation and care, and their contradictory relationships with home and nation in transnational labor migration. These narratives detail crises of bodily sickness, racialized surveillance, and gendered violence across individual, social, and transnational scales, demonstrating the architecture of neoliberal globalization as a whole. These “embodied crises”—at once personal troubles and structural disasters—show how an overburdened care enforced through the labor of women of color violently affects their very own bodies, with …

Watershed-Based Plan Georges Creek In The Saluda River Basin, South Carolina, Charly Mcconnell

Non-Thesis Terminal Projects

Water quality of streams, rivers, and lakes is a critical environmental health issue and must be protected in order to prevent pollution. Watershed-­‐based plans are one way to define and address current and potential water quality issues within a given watershed. This watershed-­‐based plan will take a detailed look at the Georges Creek watershed. This subwatershed located within the Upper Saluda River Basin has sites listed on the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SC DHEC) 303(d) and Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) lists, making it a prime location to evaluate. The watershed-­‐based plan will prioritize areas and …

Aquaculture And Coastal Habitats Mapping Of Vietnam, Thailand And Cambodia: Summer Internship With Clark Labs, Xiao Xiao

Sustainability and Social Justice

The report provides a detailed description of my internship experience with Clark Labs during the summer of 2014. As a research assistant, I was involved in the Aquaculture and Coastal Habitats Mapping project. This project was funded by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. My responsibility was to create a baseline map of coastal habitats and the distribution of aquaculture (mostly shrimp) in Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia. The internship was valuable, and gave an opportunity to learn and grasp more skills. It will influence my career goal in the future. I will definitely recommend this internship to people who have …

Trilogy Of Violence: Religion, Culture And Identity The Abused Muslim Woman In The Age Of Secular Modernity, Hasnaa T. Mokhtar

Sustainability and Social Justice

Like many religious traditions, men use Islam to justify and sustain patriarchal control of women. Islam is stigmatized as inherently violent and oppressive to women. The dominant rhetoric among Muslim feminists attributes the aggression to the misinterpretation and misreading of sacred Islamic texts. However, an on-site observation and exploration of the 2014 gathering of Rihla in Konya, Turkey revealed that misinterpretation is but one of many causes and justifications of cultural Violence Against Muslim Women. The purpose of this research is to explore a new dimension of cultural violence against women in the name of Islam by examining the intersection …

Approaching Ideals Through Innovation: Twentieth And Twenty-First Century Mass Media Technology And American Democracy, Elizabeth Brand Cermak

Senior Theses

From the moment our First Amendment was adopted, America’s ideal of democracy has been firmly intertwined with media communications between the President and the citizenry. Over time, technological advancements have altered the way this communication is facilitated, increasing the public’s access to the Office of the Presidency, and visa versa, via new forms of media. Through an examination of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s use of the radio, the first televised debate between John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon in 1960, and Barack Obama’s use of Social Media and the Internet, this thesis will seek to answer the question of whether the …

An Exploration Of The Implementation Of Music Integration In The Middle School Social Studies Classrooms, Nicole Skeen

HIM 1990-2015

“Music is the biggest tool of revolution – the best way to reach out [to] the youth and involve them…” (Kher, n.d.). Music has the ability to impact so many areas of life. Music is universal, and regardless of language, meaning and emotions can be conveyed. Imagine if this was harnessed and utilized as an effective teaching tool for students? Music has played a significant role in history, but is often overlooked when history is taught. Utilization of music in the social studies classroom can take the form of time period pieces, cultural music, mnemonics for memorization, films, and much …

Phylogeography Of Darlingtonea Kentuckensis And Molecular Systematics Of Kentucky Cave Trechines, Olivia Frances Boyd

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The monotypic cave carabid genus Darlingtonea is widely distributed along the eastern band of the Mississippian/Pennyroyal plateau in Kentucky and northern Tennessee. DNA sequence data from the mitochondrial gene cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) was collected from one to four individuals from 27 populations, and patterns of phylogeography and population structure were inferred from COI haplotypes. A hierarchical analysis of molecular variance found low nucleotide diversity within populations and statistically significant variation among geographically-defined groups tested based on two a priori hypotheses of structure. Population structure among five distinct genetic clusters identifies approximate locations of barriers to gene flow among …

Accessing Chilling Conditions For Perennial Fruit Crop Production In Kentucky, Yao Xue

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Temperate Region fruit and nut trees, and many other perennial plants, require cool winter temperatures (chilling hours) to ensure leaf and flower bud production in the following season. Temperate Regions are characterized by variable winter and spring temperatures. Failure of meeting sufficient chilling requirement results in deformed fruits, unequal maturation, and other plant deformities, thereby reducing quality and yields. Chilling requirements are expressed as number of accumulated hours within a range of approximately 32º to 45ºF or 0º to 7.2ºC. These requirements are specific for level of temperature, length of temperature period, and species and cultivar of plants. Information on …

The Zoological Paradox, Thorfun Chutchawanjumrut

Architecture Senior Theses

Through on-site field investigation, studies of animal behaviors,

and Jon Coe’s zoo enrichment principles, this thesis proposes

that zoo architec-ture should prioritize the needs of the animals

by incorporating behavioral and environmental enrichments

into its design. Enrichments refer to the pro- cess of providing the

appropriate behav-ioral and environmental stimuli that foster the

animals to exhibit their own natural behaviors.

Adapting Jon Coe’s strategies and Heini Hediger’s concept of

territory as precedents, “A Zoological Paradox” proposes the reimagining

of the zoo typology by integrating existing enrich-ment

methodologies, as well as allowing human visitors to interact and

engage in the process …

Establishing A Kitchen With Jkuat, Kenya [2015], Germaine Tuyisenge

Business and Social Enterprise

Internship Report 2015

From May to August,2015a group of four interns, from Western Universitywere in a placement at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology(JKUAT), doing an internship with Western Heads East.The interns were working onFiti Projectfor the production of Probiotic Yoghurt. The team of interns was multidisciplinarywith the four students taking different programs at Western: Medical Sciences, finance, political sciences and health-geography. Thiswas an asset for the project,helpingto have a strong approach on how to make ita success, everyone bringing in her own expertise. Our overall goal for the projectwas toestablish a probiotic kitchen at JKUAT, and that kitchen …

Ua45/6 Commencement Program, Wku Registrar

WKU Administration Documents

Commencement program listing graduates.

A Chi-Square Analysis Of The Fall 2013 Transportation Survey: Students At The University At Albany, Cassidy Drasser

Publications

There are over 6,500 students at the University at Albany who live off-campus and commute to school. In order to reduce their carbon footprint, the University at Albany must investigate what influences the students’ transportation choices and their alternative transportation literacy. Therefore, the Office of Environmental Sustainability, Geography and Urban Planning Department and the Office of Institutional Research, Planning and Effectiveness conducted a survey in the fall of 2013 for the students at the University at Albany. After examining the results, the gender and minority distributions were not representative of the student population. The significant associations that were prominent were …

The Determinants Of Broadband Access And Usage In Turkey: Do Regions Matter?, Emin Köksal, Bülent Anil

Topics in Middle Eastern and North African Economies

The aim of the paper is to examine the determinants of broadband internet access in Turkey, and in particular, whether the probability of adopting broadband access varies by region. This study also attempts to find out whether there are regional disparities in engaging in various online activities. The 2012 ICT Household Survey that was conducted and administered by TURKSTAT is used. Probit model of probability of adopting broadband access is estimated and results are consistent with the earlier studies: Education, gender, age and household size matter. Besides this, the probability of adoption in West and Central Turkey is higher than …

Stable Isotopes As A Tool To Characterize Carbon Cycling And Develop Hydrologic Budgets In Mantled Karst Settings, Katherine Knierim

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Isotopes of water (δ2H/δ18O), carbon dioxide (δ13C-CO2), and dissolved inorganic carbon (δ13C-DIC) were used to explore water quality, trace carbon cycling, and quantify recharge sources through mantled karst and into Blowing Spring Cave (BSC). Of the possible sources of contamination in the BSC recharge area, septic-tank effluent was hypothesized to degrade water quality at the spring outlet of BSC because of the dominance of septic tanks for waste treatment, unsuitable topography and soil for septic-tank absorption fields, increased nitrate and chloride concentrations concomitant with increased urbanization, and increased Escherichia coli with discharge. Carbon cycling between the soil and BSC was …

Commencement Convocation Program, Usf, Baccalaureates, May 1, 2015, University Of South Florida

USF Graduation and Convocation Programs

Distinguished Citizen Award - Jane Castor; Honorary Doctor of the Arts - Sherrill Milnes; Distinguished Citizen Award - MaryEllen Elia; Outstanding Graduate - Hiram Rios; King O'Neal Scholars - Ivamae Arnold, Adam Bent, Kelly Clark, Katrina Corcoran, Jordan Cosentino, Kaitlin Deutsch, Holly Donovan, Keri Erb, Jelena Evans, Giampiero Fuentes, James Jacobelli, Fiona Kearns, Daniel Kwitko, Garrett Lentz, Shazia Majid, Alan Mohammed, Nghi Nguyen, Colleen O'Kennedy, Holly Osborne, Jennifer Rives, Jason Rodencal, Jordan See, Nadia Tenouri, and Andreas Zacharopoulos

Commencement Convocation Program, Usf, Health, May 1, 2015, University Of South Florida

USF Graduation and Convocation Programs

President's Fellow Medallion - Peter Levin

The Influence Of Economic Performance In The 2014 Midterms: A Gubernatorial Tutorial, Justin M. Markon

Honors Theses, 1963-2015

Who is responsible for the state economy, and does it matter in electing the state chief executive? Until now, numerous researchers have examined the influence of the economy and other factors in gubernatorial elections. However, the most recent studies at the state level did not include economic conditions or found them to be insignificant. This project will examine the thirty-six gubernatorial elections in 2014 and analyze both national- and state-level economic indicators. After investigating the economic performance factors in relation to the election results, it appears that economic conditions did not influence vote choice in the November 2014 gubernatorial elections, …

Driving With The Dead: Stories Of Loss, Journey, And Wonder, Valerie Silver

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

We humans —across time, cultures, and geography— struggle with the awareness of our own mortality. Rather than accept finitude, we embrace ideas of boundlessness and perpetuity, and perceive ourselves as beings in constant motion, as travelers, in life as well as in death. We rely on metaphors of inner and outer journey to express life challenges and opportunities, and envision our deceased to be similarly en route: crossing over, passing on, ascending or descending, and, ultimately —hopefully— transcending to some higher realm. My culminating project explores the relationships between bereavement and journey, mourning and wonder. It is a collection …

A Tropical Flour: Manioc In The Afro-Brazilian World, 1500-1800, Joseph Leestma

Latin American Studies ETDs

This research follows the movement of the American tropical root crop manioc [Manihot esulenta] throughout the Afro-Portuguese world between ca. 1500 to ca.1800. In addition to tracing the spatial movement of the plant, this thesis will also show how manioc was culturally redefined as an African crop and how this effected its reception and meaning upon returning to the New World from Africa. In tracking the geographical diffusion of the plant from the Americas to Africa, this research relies upon primary sources on the exploration of Brazil and Africa by European travelers and accounts of the early era of the …

The Meat You Haven't Met, Pt. 3, Rebecca Soja

Architecture Senior Theses

This thesis contends that architecture can be a tool for exposing the social, environmental, economic, and political problems caused by industrial beef production and excessive cultural consumption of beef in order to promote meaningful change. A narrative is established in which a fictitious beef corporation seeks the expertise of an architect to design a Transparency Tour as part of a green washing campaign. However, while the intent of the corporation is to mislead consumers to gain loyalty, the architect seizes the opportunity to infiltrate the system and expose realities that would have remained hidden. Subversive design interventions within three stops …

The Meat You Haven't Met, Pt. 6, Rebecca Soja

Architecture Senior Theses

This thesis contends that architecture can be a tool for exposing the social, environmental, economic, and political problems caused by industrial beef production and excessive cultural consumption of beef in order to promote meaningful change. A narrative is established in which a fictitious beef corporation seeks the expertise of an architect to design a Transparency Tour as part of a green washing campaign. However, while the intent of the corporation is to mislead consumers to gain loyalty, the architect seizes the opportunity to infiltrate the system and expose realities that would have remained hidden. Subversive design interventions within three stops …

Antioxidant Capacity Of Wyoming Big Sagebrush (Artemisia Tridentata Ssp. Wyomingensis) Varies Spatially And Is Not Related To The Presence Of A Sagebrush Dietary Specialist, Xinzhu Pu, Lisa Lam, Kristina Gehlken, Amy C. Ulappa, Janet Rachlow, Jennifer Sorensen Forbey

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) in North America is an abundant native plant species that is ecologically and evolutionarily adapted to have a diverse array of biologically active chemicals. Several of these chemicals, specifically polyphenols, have antioxidant activity that may act as biomarkers of biotic or abiotic stress. This study investigated the spatial variation of antioxidant capacity, as well as the relationship between a mammalian herbivore and antioxidant capacity in Wyoming big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata wyomingensis). We quantified and compared total polyphenols and antioxidant capacity of leaf extracts from sagebrush plants from different spatial scales and at different levels …