Digital Commons Network^™

Regulation Of System XC- By Pharmacological Manipulation Of Cellular Thiols, Rebecca Albano, Nicholas J. Raddatz, Julie Hjelmhaug, David A. Baker, Doug Lobner

Biomedical Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

The cystine/glutamate exchanger (system x_c^-) mediates the transport of cystine into the cell in exchange for glutamate. By releasing glutamate, system x_c^- can potentially cause excitotoxicity. However, through providing cystine to the cell, it regulates the levels of cellular glutathione (GSH), the main endogenous intracellular antioxidant, and may protect cells against oxidative stress. We tested two different compounds that deplete primary cortical cultures containing both neurons and astrocytes of intracellular GSH, L-buthionine-sulfoximine (L-BSO), and diethyl maleate (DEM). Both compounds caused significant concentration and time dependent decreases in intracellular GSH levels. However; DEM caused an increase …

Visual Attention To Emotional Stimuli In Individuals High On Psychopathic Traits: Evidence From Eye Tracking, Donna M. Crossman

Graduate Dissertations and Theses

Researchers have described psychopaths as callous, cold-hearted individuals who show reduced empathic response to their victims. It is suggested that the inability to identify negative emotions, specifically fear, in individuals is what allows psychopaths to offend/take advantage of other people as they do not recognize the fear in victims that may otherwise deter victimization. This is the first study to examine how non-incarcerated individuals high on psychopathic personality traits process emotions. Additionally, eye-tracking technology was used to provide a more fine-grained assessment of attention. In contrast to hypotheses, the high psychopathic group did not differ from the low psychopathic or …

The Breakup Project: Using Evolutionary Theory To Predict And Interpret Responses To Romantic Relationship Dissolution, Craig E. Morris

Graduate Dissertations and Theses

The formation and maintenance of romantic pair bonds is a well-represented topic in human evolutionary sciences. This extensive body of work, drawn mostly from the field of evolutionary psychology, has proposed mechanisms for attracting a mate (e.g., resource display, physical cues), attaining a mate (e.g., intrasexual competition), and keeping a mate (e.g., competitor derogation, emotional manipulation). However, this evolutionary model of human pair bonding has not fully addressed relationship termination. If we accept that we have an evolved suite of behaviors that encourage and facilitate pair bonding, then we must also look to breakups and ask whether evolution has played …

Ceramics Of Aztec North And The Terrace Community, Aztec Ruins National Monument, Michelle I. Turner

Graduate Dissertations and Theses

This study reports on a ceramic analysis of nearly 1500 surface-collected potsherds from five unexcavated sites on the river terrace at Aztec Ruins National Monument, including the Aztec North great house. I conducted a detailed attribute analysis and mean ceramic dating.

The mean ceramic date for Aztec North is AD 1104±39, while other terrace sites have later mean dates. Based on these dates, it appears that Aztec North was constructed before or contemporaneously with Aztec West, and it might have been the first structure in the Terrace Community. These data support the theory that, even at this earliest moment, Aztec …

Agencification As A Strategy For Implementing Public Policy In Trinidad And Tobago, Sandra Juanita Wall Agarrat

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Trinidad and Tobago is one of 15 small developing states that comprise the regional integration grouping known as the Caribbean Community. Several agencies were recently created outside of the government using a strategy known as agencification to support the implementation of public policy in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. However, there is little available information explaining the rationale for the choice of the strategy, no evidence-based scholarly evaluation found on the effectiveness of these types of agencies, and therefore limited information on whether this strategy results in effective public policy. The purpose of this case study was to gain …

Genome-Wide Association Study On The Sleep Symptom Of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Tammy Pooler

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a psychiatric condition that presents with 3 main symptoms're-experiencing, avoidance/numbing, and hyper arousal'after an individual experiences a traumatic event. Recent evidence suggests a potential genetic basis for PTSD and a sub symptom of hyper arousal, sleep, as a potential pathway for PTSD development, but no study has identified candidate genes associated with specific symptoms such as sleep difficulty. Based on a conceptual framework in which specific genes are associated with the onset of PTSD, this study used a genome-wide association

study (GWAS) method with a case control study design to compare the genomes of individuals …

The United Nations Training Of The Liberia National Police: Effectiveness, Results, And Future Implications, Yarsuo Laezee Weh-Dorliae

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

After the United Nations' mission in Liberia (UNMIL) ends on September 30, 2015, effective policing will be a security concern for Liberians. Liberians have expressed fear that conflict could return if ongoing police training programs do not sustain public safety. The purpose of this mixed methods study was to understand how UNMIL's training affected public confidence in the Liberia National Police (LNP). The theoretical bases for this study included public choice theory and liberal democratic theory. Quantitative data were used to address impact of UNMIL's police training on the maintenance of law and order. These data were collected through a …

The Effect Of Community Service Learning On Undergraduate Persistence In Three Institutional Contexts, Susan C. Reed, Helen Rosenberg, Anne Statham, Howard Rosing

College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences Faculty and Staff Works

This study explores the role of community service learning (CSL) in promoting undergraduate persistence relative to other experiences students have in college, their entering characteristics, and institutional features. By following the 2009 freshmen cohort at three Midwestern universities over three years, this study finds that students’ experiences while in college (CSL, full-time enrollment, and GPA) have a stronger effect on the likelihood of reenrollment than students’ entering characteristics (age, gender, and race). Our separate analyses for each institution allow us to consider how the differences between the three universities (student body composition, retention rate, CSL program) might lead CSL courses …

Coupled-Oscillator Associative Memory Array Operation For Pattern Recognition, Dmitri E. Nikonov, Gyorgy Csaba, Wolfgang Porod, Tadashi Shibata, Danny Voils, Dan Hammerstrom, Ian A. Young, George I. Bourianoff

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Operation of the array of coupled oscillators underlying the associative memory function is demonstrated for various interconnection schemes (cross-connect, star phase keying and star frequency keying) and various physical implementation of oscillators (van der Pol, phase-locked loop, spin torque). The speed of synchronization of oscillators and the evolution of the degree of matching is studied as a function of device parameters. The dependence of errors in association on the number of the memorized patterns and the distance between the test and the memorized pattern is determined for Palm, Furber and Hopfield association algorithms.

Government Senior Executives' Perceptions Of Brain Drain On Leadership In The United States Virgin Islands, Shurla Jeffers-Knight

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Highly qualified individuals are leaving the Caribbean and relocating to the United States and other developed countries. Researchers describe this resulting flight of human capital, or brain drain, from the Caribbean as a problem which has no clear definition or immediate solution. This phenomenological study explored perceptions of government senior executives in the United States Virgin Islands (USVI) of the cause and impact of brain drain. Burns' and Bass's transformational and transactional leadership theories were used as the framework for this study. Data were collected through a demographic questionnaire and semistructured interviews with a snowball sample of 10 participants. Data …

Potential Partnerships: Progressive Criminology, Grassroots Organizations, And Social Justice, Tim Goddard, Randolph R. Myers, Kaitlyn J. Robinson

Sociology & Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Criminologists around the globe are writing about the disproportionate criminalization of minority groups and - in the US in particular - about racial disproportionality in all aspects of the criminal justice system. This wealth of knowledge in progressive criminology rarely animates reform efforts: it has had little impact on formal policymaking, and has failed to animate the work of grassroots activists engaged in the fight for justice system reform. Yet given the increased criminalization of young people in poor communities - and the possibilities for change at this very moment - progressive criminological ideas have never been more important. We …

Resilience Among Immigrant Adult Learners: Experiences In Postsecondary Education--A Mixed-Methods Study, Sandra Lee Samuels

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A human being's resilience refers to his or her abilities to combine internal and/or external resources effectively in response to significant contextual challenges in order to best succeed in a given environment. As such, this concept is vital across the lifespan and has been widely researched. However, few researchers to date have studied resilience as it relates to adult learners, and, significantly, those with immigrant status. Immigrant adult learners are facing compounded risks, which create challenges in various societies to identify this group's unique needs and/or to fully understand their experiences in diverse contexts, such as the Cayman Islands. Informed …

Idealizing Maya Culture: The Politics Of Race, Indigeneity, And Immigration Among Maya Restaurant Owners In Southern California, M. Bianet Castellanos

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Based on an ethnography of Maya restaurant owners in Los Angeles, the article examines how Maya migrants use Yucatecan cuisine to negotiate the politics of indigeneity. In Mexico, Maya peoples are denigrated as “Indian.” In the U.S., Maya migrants are racialized as “Mexican.” These racialization processes are intended to discipline indigenous subjects both within and outside of national boundaries. By drawing on popular indigenous cultural symbols and tastes that reinforce an idealized Maya culture, Maya restaurateurs construct an alternative politics of recognition that opens the door for new conversations about what it means to be indigenous and Latino.

Techniques Of Humiliation: Neoliberalism And The Noncitizen's Body, Munia Bhaumik

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This article argues that the disciplining of noncitizens becomes a constitutive characteristic of neoliberalism. Examining two narratives about bodily deprivation in detention centers, the study pursues the psychic life of statelessness through tragic testimonies that not only point to subjection, induced through techniques of humiliation, but also to the neoliberal contradiction between “inclusion” and practices of regulation. Readings interrogate the problem of normativity in neoliberalism. In particular, the article argues against normative presuppositions about both race and gender, demonstrating how this leads to the denial of medication and death in detention facilities.

Queering Citizenship: Undocuqueer And Immigration Reform, Betsy Dahms

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Analysis of the founding of the UndocuQueer movement and organizer, Julio Salgado, through Anzaldúan theory on nepantla, and in terms of cultural, sexual, and political citizenship, in the experience of those who came to the U.S. as children. This study assesses reasons for “coming out” as undocumented and queer through activism; argues that coalitional and relational activism challenges current anti-immigration policies and social factors; and advocates for a global and embodied citizenship.

Queering Political Economy In Neoliberal Ironbound Newark: Subjectivity And Spacemaking Among Brazilian Queer Immigrant Men, Yamil Avivi

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This paper complicates the dominant narrative of Newark’s Ironbound community as an exceptional and heteronormative neighborhood by analyzing the non-heteronormative subjectivities and spaces in them. During the period between 2004-2009, subjects were interviewed, in queer minoritarian spaces, to understand how Brazilian gays/ queers reified and contested neoliberal ideologies of nationalism, “good” ethnicity, individualism, and “appropriate” sexual mores. This ethnographic account employs textual and spatial-temporal analysis to generate an alternative narrative of gay/queer life and groupings in the Ironbound.

Sharing Community: Histories And Traditions In Food Preparation, Elizabeth Coonrod Martínez

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No abstract provided.

Dr. Francisco Hernández Ate Tacos: The Foods And Drinks Of The Mexican Treasury, Rafael Chabrán

Diálogo

A study on Mexican foodstuffs and preparations, especially corn, tortillas, chile, and tomatoes, as well as Native-based drinks such as chocolate, atole and pulque, as documented by colonial medical doctor, Francisco Hernández (ca. 1517-1587). While much research has focused on Hernandez’s writing on botanical, medical, and natural history themes, his work on food and the preparation of food in New Spain has been ignored.

Social Determinants In Latino Diet And Health, Julie Collins-Dogrul, Kenia Saldaña

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This study problematizes generalized patterns in Latino diet and health after reviewing obesity and food consumption patterns by race and ethnicity gleaned from the social science and health science literature comparing Mexican-origin American, European-origin American, and African-American food consumption patterns, and summarizes data from the 2009/2010 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). The data from these surveys describes the quantity of fruit, vegetables, grains, meat, and other foods consumed. We review the literature on social determinants of diet to study whether food environments, socioeconomic status, culture, nativity, and globalization shape dietary practices.

Type 2 Diabetes Prevention Program In The Medical Office Clinic, Jovita Chibuzo Ezirim

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The challenge of diabetes prevention is to reduce the financial and human costs of diabetes by preventing new cases and enacting social change. African Americans and Hispanics Americans have a high incidence of Type 2 diabetes because of factors that place them at risk for prediabetes. The purpose of this project was to plan the implementation and evaluation of a Type 2 diabetes prevention program in a medical office clinical setting. The clinic of interest was located in the downtown area of the city and provided care mostly to African American population. The Iowa model of evidence-based practice formed the …

Road Management System And Road Safety In Uganda, Paul Gudoi Zanule

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Traffic collisions cost Uganda millions of dollars each year. The purpose of this descriptive case study was to describe the strategies and processes needed to implement a road management system. Such a system would significantly reduce the fatalities and accidents in Uganda, improve the transportation within Kampala's business district, and increase business profitability. Three conceptual theories framed the research study: management theory, strategic management theory, and criminology theory. Using a snowball sampling strategy, data were collected from open-ended interviews, questionnaires, observations, and archived documents from 20 administrative participants in the government and organizational leaders involved in the transport operations and …

Predictors Of Full Childhood Immunization Status In Owerri, Nigeria, Osuala Uzor Kelvin

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Full (complete) childhood immunization against tuberculosis, poliomyelitis, diphtheria, tetanus, hepatitis B, yellow fever, measles, and the maternal retention of immunization documentation are the most cost-effective interventions against vaccine-preventable childhood diseases. The full childhood immunization rate in Nigeria has not reached the expected target level of compliance at 90%. Using the social ecological model, this study investigated the influence of maternal satisfaction with postnatal services and paternal support on full childhood immunization status; it also examined the association between maternal factors and the maternal retention of immunization documentation in Owerri, Nigeria. The hypotheses were that maternal satisfaction with postnatal services and …

Quantifying Benefits Of Signal Timing Maintenance And Optimization Using Both Travel Time And Travel Time Reliability Measures, Howell Li, Steven M. Lavrenz, Christopher M. Day, Amanda Stevens, Darcy M. Bullock

Lyles School of Civil Engineering Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Consumer Cloud Robotics And The Fair Information Practice Principles: Recognizing The Challenges And Opportunities Ahead, Andrew Proia, Andrew Proia, Drew Simshaw

Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology

No abstract provided.

Foreseeability Decoded, Meiring De Villiers

Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology

No abstract provided.

Faculty Masthead, Mjlst Editorial Board

Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology

No abstract provided.

Climbing Mount Next: The Effects Of Autonomous Vehicles On Society, David Levinson

Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology

No abstract provided.

The Sdvs Are Coming! An Examination Of Minnesota Laws In Preparation For Self-Driving Vehicles, Spencer Peck, Leili Fatehi, Frank Douma, Adeel Lari

Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology

No abstract provided.

The Hydropower Regulatory Efficiency Act: Not Giving A Dam For Negative Externalities Or Stakeholder Oversight, Catherine Cumming

Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology

No abstract provided.

Should You Know About The Pesticides In Your Clothes? Nanosilver And The Treated Articles Exemption To Fifra, James Meinert

Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology

No abstract provided.