Digital Commons Network^™

Just, Smart: Civil Rights Protections And Market-Sensitive Vacant Property Strategies, James J. Kelly Jr.

Journal Articles

This essay, prepared for and published by the Center for Community Progress, a national, non-profit intermediary dedicated to developing effective, sustainable solutions to turn vacant, abandoned and problem properties into vibrant places, examines the legal and normative implications of local governments' use of neighborhood real estate market data to strategically focus vacant property remediation tools. I and other writers, such as Frank Alexander, Alan Mallach and Joseph Schilling, have argued for the importance of understanding the economic feasibility of market-based rehabilitation of derelict, vacant houses in making decisions as to how and when to use a variety of code enforcement, …

21st Century Arms Control Challenges: Drones, Cyber Weapons, Killer Robots, And Wmds, Mary Ellen O'Connell

Journal Articles

The world faces tough arms control challenges from preventing the development and use of weapons of mass destruction to regulating the new weapons of the computer revolution. This article considers what works in arms control. Using military force in violation of international law to destroy nuclear facilities, to stop weapons shipments, or to punish the use of prohibited weapons typically fails. Diplomacy paired with lawful counter-measures has the superior track record. Reviving the art of diplomacy and re-committing to authentic international law will pay dividends in peace and security.

Assessment Of Variation Of Nest Survival For Grassland Birds Due To Method Of Nest Discovery, Tara J. Conkling, Jerrold L. Belant, Travis L. Devault, Guiming Wang, James A. Martin

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Capsule Interpretation of nest survival estimates may be improved by incorporating the search method used to locate nests as a covariate.

Aims To compare annual survival estimates for Dickcissel Spiza americana nests and determine if incorporating search method (structured, opportunistic, or behavioural searches) improved model fit.

Methods Dickcissel nests were located using structured, opportunistic, or behavioural searches over three years (2011–2013) in Mississippi, USA. Models were used to estimate daily survival rates (DSRs) and to analyse factors influencing nest survival.

Results DSRs for Dickcissels were best explained by quadratic date, nest age, age found, and year, but incorporating search method …

Impacts Of Colonial Waterbirds On Vegetation And Potential Restoration Of Island Habitats, Christopher R. Ayers, Katie C. Hanson-Dorr, Sadie O'Dell, Charles D. Lovell, Michael L. Jones, Jason R. Suckow, Brian S. Dorr

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Colonial waterbirds have impacted forested island ecosystems throughout their breeding range, changing vegetation, and soil characteristics and bird communities. Our objectives were to (1) determine effects of three levels of colonial waterbird exclusion on overall vegetation diversity and growth, and survival of a candidate restoration species (black elderberry; Sambucus nigra canadensis); (2) investigate effects of different planting techniques on survival and growth of black elderberry; and (3) determine effects of waterbird colonization on soil chemistry. In 2012, we investigated effects of three levels of waterbird exclusion (none control plots [CON]; partial, which excluded waterbirds larger than gulls [PEX]; and …

Non-Target Species Mortality And The Measurement Of Brodifacoum Rodenticide Residues After A Rat (Rattus Rattus) Eradication On Palmyra Atoll, Tropical Pacific, William C. Pitt, Are R. Berentsen, Aaron B. Shiels, Steven F. Volker, John D. Eisemann, Alexander S. Wegmann, Gregg R. Howald

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

The use of rodenticides to control or eradicate invasive rats (Rattus spp.) for conservation purposes has rapidly grown in the past decades, especially on islands. The non-target consequences and the fate of toxicant residue from such rodent eradication operations have not been well explored. In a cooperative effort, we monitored the application of a rodenticide, ‘Brodifacoum 25W: Conservation’, during an attempt to eradicate Rattus rattus from Palmyra Atoll. In 2011, Brodifacoum 25W: Conservation was aerially broadcasted twice over the entire atoll (2.5 km²) at rates of 80 kg/ha and 75 kg/ha and a supplemental hand broadcast application …

Collisions Between Eagles And Aircraft: An Increasing Problem In The Airport Environment, Brian E. Washburn, Michael J. Begier, Sandra E. Wright

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Most known fatalities for both Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) and Golden Eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) are associated with humans (e.g., collisions with vehicles and artificial structures). Notably, the risk of collisions between eagles and aircraft is an increasing problem at civil airports and military airfields. Of the 234 eagle collisions with civil and military aircraft reported to the Federal Aviation Administration, the U.S. Air Force, and the U.S. Navy during 1990–2013, 52% caused damage to the aircraft. During this 23-yr time period, Bald Eagle–aircraft collisions increased by 2200% and Golden Eagle–aircraft collisions increased by 400%. Eagle–aircraft collisions …

Dynamics Of Virus Shedding And Antibody Responses In Influenza A Virus-Infected Feral Swine, Hailiang Sun, Fred L. Cunningham, Jillian Harris, Yifei Xu, Li-Ping Long, Katie Hanson-Dorr, John A. Baroch, Paul Fioranelli, Mark W. Lutman, Tao Li, Kerri Pedersen, Brandon S. Schmit, Jim Cooley, Xiaoxu Lin, Richard G. Jarman, Thomas J. Deliberto, Xiu-Feng Wan

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Given their free-ranging habits, feral swine could serve as reservoirs or spatially dynamic ‘mixing vessels’ for influenza A virus (IAV). To better understand virus shedding patterns and antibody response dynamics in the context of IAV surveillance amongst feral swine, we used IAV of feral swine origin to perform infection experiments. The virus was highly infectious and transmissible in feral swine, and virus shedding patterns and antibody response dynamics were similar to those in domestic swine. In the virus-inoculated and sentinel groups, virus shedding lasteddays, respectively. Antibody titres in inoculated swine peaked at 1 : 840 on day 11 post-inoculation (p.i.), …

Boa Constrictor (Boa Constrictor), Are R. Berentsen, Juan G. Garcia-Cancel, Edna M. Diaz-Negron, Oscar A. Diaz-Marrero, Alberto R. Puente-Rolón, Robert N. Reed, Kurt C. Vercauteren

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

USA: PUERTO RICO: MUNICIPALITY OF CABO ROJO: Cabo Rojo National Wildlife Refuge (17.978958°N, 67.170910oW; NAD 83). 10 November 2014. O. A. Diaz-Marrero. Verified by S. M. Boback. National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution (USNM Herp Image 2838a, b; photo vouchers). First municipality record for this exotic species; all previous reports were restricted to the Municipality of Mayaguez, located ca. 25 km north of Cabo Rojo National Wildlife Refuge. Reynolds et al. (2013. BioI. Invasions 15:953-959) concluded that Boa Constrictor introductions into Puerto Rico were likely related to the pet trade and that they genetically matched snakes belonging to the …

Patriation And Patrimony: The Path To The Charter, John M. Finnis

Journal Articles

This annotated Coxford Lecture is the first account dedicated to tracing the part played in the 1980-82 patriation of the Canadian Constitution by the British House of Commons, particularly by its Select Committee on Foreign Affairs. This committee, for which author was the adviser, investigated the propriety of the UK Parliament’s acceding to a request for amendment of the British North America Act 1867 (as amended) if the amendment were opposed by a substantial number of Provinces and it would affect their powers. Against the firm opposition of the Canadian government (secretly being assisted by the British government), the Committee …

The Fair Market Value Of Public Resources, Bruce R. Huber

Journal Articles

This Article explores the problem of public resource sales with particular reference to natural resources managed by the federal government. Lands owned by the United States hold trillions of dollars' worth of natural resources. Federal agencies earn billions in annual revenue from resource sales, yet critics assert that billions more could be reaped if resources were sold for a fair price. Although federal law has increasingly required that agencies price resources at fair market value, this requirement is surprisingly difficult to interpret and even more dfficult to implement and enforce. This Article analyzes the various forces that bear on public …

Can Trained Field Community Workers Identify Stroke Using A Stroke Symptom Questionnaire As Well As Neurologists? Adaptation And Validation Of A Community Worker Administered Stroke Symptom Questionnaire In A Peri-Urban Pakistani Community., Maria Khan,, Ayeesha Kamran Kamal, Muhammad S. Ilyas, Muhammad Islam, Iqbal Azam Syed, Azam Virk,, Alia Nasir, Hasan Rehman,, Anita Arif,, Muhammad Jan,, Anjum Akhtar,, Minaz Mawani, Junaid Abdul Razzak,, Omrana Pasha

Department of Medicine

Background: Stroke is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. There is a paucity of data from South Asia where stroke is highly prevalent. Validated tools administrable by Community Health Workers (CHWs) are required to identify stroke in the community in a resource strapped region such as this.

Methods: The study was conducted in a transitional slum in Karachi, Pakistan. Questionnaire for Verifying Stroke-Free Status (QVSFS) was adapted and translated into Urdu. Two CHWs, trained by a neurologist, selected 322 community dwelling subjects using purposive sampling. Each CHW collected data independently which was validated by a vascular neurologist who …

Innovative Web Applications For Analyzing Traffic Operations, Natasha Petrovska

Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019

The road traffic along with other key infrastructure sectors such as telecommunication, power, etc. has an important role in economic and technological growth of one country. Traffic engineers and analysts are responsible for solving a diversity of traffic problems, such as traffic data acquisition and evaluation. In response to the need to improve traffic operation, researchers implement advanced technologies and integration of systems and data, and develop state-of-the-art applications. This thesis introduces three novel web applications with an aim to offer traffic operators, managers, and analysts’ possibility to monitor the congestion, and analyze incidents and signal performance measures. They offer …

Keeping An Eye On Cheaters: Cognitive And Social Determinates Of Successful Deontic Reasoning In Preschool Children, Patrick D Ii Sellers

Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019

Deontic reasoning is a domain of reasoning concerning permissions, obligations, and prohibitions founded on conditional logic (Wason,1968). The inclusion of a social valence to deontic rules leads to increased rule violation identification in both adults (Cosmides & Tooby, 1992) and children (Harris & Nunez, 1996), suggesting an evolutionary advantage for a specific class of reasoning known as “cheater-detection” (Fiddick, 2004). The current investigation is the first attempt to understand the cognitive and social variables that account for children’s logical reasoning advantage in social violation situations.

Methionine Sulfoxide Reductase (Msr) Modulates Lifespan Andlocomotion In Drosophila Melanogaster, Lindsay Bruce

Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019

Oxidative stress is considered a major factor in the etiology of age related diseases and the aging process itself. Organisms have developed mechanisms to protect against oxidative damage resulting from increased production of reactive oxygen species during aging. One of the major antioxidant systems is the methionine sulfoxide reductase (Msr) enzyme family. The two major Msr enzymes, MsrA and MsrB, can stereospecifically reduce the S and R epimers, respectively, of methionine sulfoxide in proteins back to methionine. This study, using Drosophila melanogaster, decribes the first animal system lacking both MsrA and MsrB. The loss of either MsrA or MsrB had …

Mechanisms Of Placental Dysfunction In Pregnancy Malaria, Jared Lybbert

Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019

The molecular mechanisms by which pregnancy malaria affects the outcome of fetal development are unknown. Megalin, which has been well studied in kidney, has high expression in the placenta from early stages to term, and is proposed to be an important factor in extensive maternofetal exchange during development of the fetus. Pregnancy malaria (PM) is characterized by inflammation in placenta and is associated with low birthweight (LBW), stillborn birth, and other pathologies. It is hypothesized that PM disturbs megalin function/expression/distribution in the brush boarder of syncytiotrophoblast which, in turn, may contribute significantly to pathology of LBW. Our studies show that …

Mmo Gaming Culture: An Online Gaming Family, Michael Perez

Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019

This study examines the social organization of Gaiscíoch, a large online gaming community that exists within the simulated world of a massively multiplayer online role playing game (MMORPG). It provides an ethnographic account of an online gaming community that is open to any player without skill or time commitment requirements, but still maintains high status within the game world. This project identifies eight elements that make this inclusive, friendly, and casual community successful in virtual worlds that tend to be dominated by communities that have a competitive, strict, and exclusive approach to online gaming (social interaction, code of values, leadership, …

Paleodemography Of Highland Beach The Demographic Parameters Of A Native American Population From Southeastern Florida, Christopher Hennessey

Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019

Those who practice within the field and those who wish to discredit the field have long debated the field of paleodemography. In 1999 and again in 2000, researchers who used paleodemographic analysis assembled in Rostock, Germany to amend the present issues and change the way research is conducted in the future (Hoppa and Vaupel 2002). As a result of these meetings, researchers created the Rostock Manifesto. While many scholars accepted the change in the suite of methodologies carried out under the new guidance, little has been said on the effectiveness of the manifesto. In this thesis, I argue that the …

Noise Radiation From A Cylindrical Embossment Immersed In Turbulent Boundary Layer Flow, Benjamin Skyler Bryan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019

This dissertation will consider the sound radiation from forward-facing steps and a three dimensional cylindrical embossment of very low aspect ratio mounted on a plate. Glegg et al (2014) outlined a theory for predicting the sound radiation from separated flows and applied the method to predicting the sound from forward-facing steps. In order to validate this theory it has been applied to the results of Catlett et al (2014) and Ji and Wang (2010). This validation study revealed that the original theory could be adjusted to include a mixed scaling which gives a better prediction. RANS simulations have been performed …

Perceptions Of The Environment: An Ethnographic Study Of Sensory Awareness And Environmental Activism Among South Florida Yoga Practitioners, Meagan L. Weisner

Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019

The practice of yoga is an increasingly popularized movement within the West that incorporates the desire for physical fitness, spiritual consciousness, and environmentalism. Emanating from the New Age movement, the popularity of yoga has proliferated as a subculture that seeks to encourage mind–body wellbeing while representing an ethos that assumes environmental responsibility. This thesis examines the techniques of modern yoga and the influence that asana (posture) and meditational relaxation have on the senses and subsequently on environmental awareness and activism.

Perceived Job Satisfaction Of Resident Assistants In Student Housing At Three Florida Public Universities, Teeranai Ovathanasin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019

The purpose of this study was to determine differences in satisfaction of public university Resident Assistants (RAs) with regard to several job satisfaction factors identified on the Resident Assistant Satisfaction Survey (RASS), specifically as compared to Casey’s (2009) normative sample of RAs in privatized university housing. The RASS outlined eight Employment Aspect Factors and three Criterion Factors to determine RA job satisfaction. This study also determined if there were differences in job satisfaction for public university RAs based on gender, racial ethnic identification, or academic class standing. Resident Assistants from three Research I Florida institutions in the United States completed …

Perceptions Of Ambiguous Events, Cleopatre Paulvin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019

This study looked at the effects of stereotypes in the media on memory for ambiguous events. The latter were stimuli created to portray individuals of two different racial groups (white and black) in situations that did not necessarily negatively implicate these actors. Two hundred and thirty six participants took part and viewed these events as well as six media clips. Three groups of media clips were shown: clips with black actors, white actors, and both races. A subset of participants, the explicit condition, were asked to rate the media clips for stereotypes, whereas another group, the implicit condition, were instructed …

Perceptions Of Academic Resilience Among Teachers And Twelfth Grade Adolescent Girls, Alise Obrien

Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019

This qualitative research study explored perceptions of academic resilience among teachers and twelfth grade adolescent girls. Specifically, how students and teachers believe teachers promote academic resilience in students, the characteristics of academically resilient students according to students and teachers, and the characteristics of academically non-resilient students according to teachers. The relationship between the general comments made during student focus group sessions and the students' responses on the Locus of Control (LOC) survey were analyzed. Qualitative data were collected including teacher interviews, student focus groups, Implicit Theories of Intelligence Scales for teachers and students as well as the Nowicki-Strickland Locus of …

Predictive Modeling For Chronic Conditions, Ritesh Jain

Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019

Chronic Diseases are the major cause of mortality around the world, accounting for 7 out of 10 deaths each year in the United States. Because of its adverse effect on the quality of life, it has become a major problem globally. Health care costs involved in managing these diseases are also very high. In this thesis, we will focus on two major chronic diseases Asthma and Diabetes, which are among the leading causes of mortality around the globe. It involves design and development of a predictive analytics based decision support system which uses five supervised machine learning algorithm to predict …

Policy Entrepreneurship: A Descriptive Portrait Of Higher Education Leaders, Rivka A. Felsher

Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019

As the gap between the haves and have-nots widens, the call for reform in higher education in the United States intensifies. Policy actors, philanthropists, and academics from across the political spectrum work on various policy solutions, creating a policy environment that is complex and often contentious. Incrementalists claim that major policy reform is unlikely since unknown variables and inexplicable events can stall or dismantle policy initiatives. In such environments, policy entrepreneurs—those individuals who advocate for policy innovation, work for change, and help shape policy solutions from within and without government—try to break through the barriers of incremental politics. As important …

An Examination Of Relationships Between Mindfulness, Personality, Anxiety, And Depression In Americans And Japanese College Students, Melissa Stiksma

Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019

Mindfulness – nonjudgmental awareness of the present moment - has recently garnered significant attention in psychological literature for decreasing clinical symptoms. Certain personality traits such as emotionality, however, can predict higher levels of anxiety and depression. The present study examines whether mindfulness mediates the relationship between personality traits and perceived stress and depression in nonclinical populations. A total of 321 participants from two samples—American and Japanese undergraduates —self-reported scores on measures of mindfulness, personality, perceived stress and depression. Cross-cultural comparisons following measurement invariance tests also allow for insight into the definition of mindfulness, especially given the Eastern religion origin of …

An Examination Of African-American Male Awareness Of And Application To Honors Programs, Lulrick Balzora

Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019

The purpose of this study was to examine African-American male awareness of and application to honors programs at two selected state colleges in the southeastern region of the United States. The researcher also attempted to fill a current void in the literature and to present an emergent theory for attracting African-American males to honors programs in State College settings. A disproportionate amount of research focuses on remediation and underachievement among African-American males. The lack of information on the experiences of high ability African-American males leaves many unanswered questions about how to best recruit and serve the needs of this population …

An Investigation Of The Program Curriculum Leading To Successful Sobriety In A Substance Abuse Residential Treatment Center In Florida, Anthony G. Foster

Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019

Recovery from alcoholism and substance abuse has had an ignominious history. There does not appear to be any statistics that stand up to any rigorous fact-checking which show how well treatment centers do at helping their clients to stay sober. Statistics that are used to show success rates are not considered credible and they are shockingly low. Despite these issues, substance abuse research has failed to link the historical knowledge of why people stay sober for long periods of time with what is being taught in treatment centers in hopes of creating a better, more accurate outcome. The qualitative, phenomenological …

Stability Analysis For Singularly Perturbed Systems With Time-Delays, Yang Yang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019

Singularly perturbed systems with or without delays commonly appear in mathematical modeling of physical and chemical processes, engineering applications, and increasingly, in mathematical biology. There has been intensive work for singularly perturbed systems, yet most of the work so far focused on systems without delays. In this thesis, we provide a new set of tools for the stability analysis for singularly perturbed control systems with time delays.

Sources Of Infant Care Informational Social Support For Mothers Of Infants In The Appalachian Region, Mary Ellen Wright

Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019

The purpose of this study was to describe the sources of infant care informational support systems that mothers residing in the Western North Carolina Appalachian region use and prefer in the postpartum period. In addition, the study explored the associations of the sources for informational social support on infant care with personal factors (age, socioeconomic status, parity, race, ethnicity, residence, marital status, education, access to Internet, access to cellular phone, prior attendance in childbirth classes, and other adult infant care assistance in the home) of the mothers.

Stereo Vision-Based Target Tracking System For Usv Operations, Armando Jose Sinisterra

Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019

A methodology to estimate the state of a moving marine vehicle, defined by its position, velocity and heading, from an unmanned surface vehicle (USV), also in motion, using a stereo vision-based system, is presented in this work, in support of following a target vehicle using an USV.