Digital Commons Network^™

Three Essays On The Effect Of Representation On Governance, César Emilio Castellón Chicas

All Dissertations

Recent research tests and finds support for the hypothesis that an increase in the number of elected representatives in local governments can reduce public expenditures by improving the oversight of the mayor by the council. This result suggests that a system of checks-and-balances is in place at the lowest level of governance in established democracies and is consistent with theories of the role of division-of-powers in improving government accountability. Given the relevance of this result for our understanding of political institutions, this dissertation presents three essays that: 1) test this hypothesis using different samples and alternative measures of government performance …

External Economic Costs Of Intelligent Urban Transportation Systems: A Method To Evaluate The Externalities Of Comparative Technology Adoption Pathways In The Urban Mobility Service Sector, Jianan Sun

All Dissertations

By 2050, urban mobility demands will increase to 2.6 times the current level, even faster than the urban population growth. Current urban transportation plans fail to address these rapidly increasing urban mobility demands. Inefficient urban transportation generates great economic losses in traffic congestion, air pollution and climate change. The current urban transportation pressure and emerging technology-driven trends have revolutionized how industry players respond to changing consumer behavior, develop partnerships, and drive transformational changes. A transition (P2S) from current product-based competition to a marketplace focused on mobility services is expected. Electric vehicles, automated driving systems and mobility-sharing platforms are introduced to …

Laypeople Serving Their Neighbors : Is It Ministry?, Brenda H. May

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

An Analysis Of Environmental Quality And Entrepreneurial Activity In Illinois, Dakota Levi Jones

Research Papers

AN ABSTRACT OF THE RESEARCH PAPER OF

DAKOTA JONES, for the Master of Science degree in AGRIBUSINESS ECONOMICS, presented on JULY 5, 2017 at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.

TITLE: AN ANALYSIS OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY AND ENTREPRENEURIAL ACTIVITY IN ILLINOIS

MAJOR PROFESSOR: Dr. C. Matthew Rendleman

Entrepreneurial activity and environmental quality are two of the biggest topics today when it comes to starting a business and meetings government regulations. Environmental quality is important for entrepreneurs to consider as they look for opportunities to make a profit. Entrepreneurship can have a negative impact on environmental quality if it is not taken into …

Teaching, Leading, And Learning In The 21st Century Classroom, Karen A. Tesik

Education Doctoral

One critical challenge facing our public school system is the urgent need to transform traditional classrooms into 21st century learning environments. To understand what is impacting this transformation in schools, this quantitative case study used survey data to identify the impact of a teacher’s level of transformational leadership on student engagement in the 4Cs of the 21st century: communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and creativity. The results build a case for teacher preparatory programs and policymakers to require the teaching of the transformational leadership theory as a core component of teacher preparatory programs. In addition, this research looked at the impact …

Products Of Circumstance: Eighteenth-Century Runaway Indentured Servant Advertisements In A Changing Atlantic World, Amanda Page Mcgee

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Although indentured servitude remained a viable source of labor in colonial America and eighteenth-century England, newspaper advertisements demonstrated the transformations of the perceptions associated with indentured servants in the midst of a changing Atlantic World. Not only were indentured servants perceived as a type of commodity in the rising consumerist culture of the eighteenth century; but, the perceptions of these individuals – reflected in runaway newspaper advertisements – changed depending upon the political, social, and economic circumstances in which they existed. The volatile nature of colonial life combined with the social, economic, and political implications of the changing Atlantic World, …

The Bicycle, The Unsuitable Substitute:A Feasibility Study Based In Fayetteville, Ar Using A Bicycle As A Year-Round Replacement For An Automobile, Jamey Voorhees

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Can a bicycle can be used in place of an automobile for everyday transportation and commuting needs? Fayetteville, Arkansas is a bicycle friendly and they plan continue to expand the current trail system improve other components in the future. Alternative transportation forms like the bicycle are important but only if bikes are integrated into traffic which needs to be done in some way that all involved understand their place in the system. By actively participating in this system I have attempted to show that a bicycle is just not feasible as a form of daily transportation in a city like …

The Body Mends Itself, Hannah Elizabeth Dow

Dissertations

The following poems were completed by the author between September 2014 and April 2017.

Housing Dynamics In Northeast Ohio: Setting The Stage For Resurgence, Thomas E. Bier

MSL Academic Endeavors eBooks

The book presents an overview of regional housing dynamics and consequent impacts in Northeast Ohio since the 1940s. Focus is on the city of Cleveland and its host county. Dynamics are examined in terms of supply and demand, population movement, lifespan of buildings, and the influence of government on the choices people have when considering where to live. Impacts include housing decline and abandonment, change in property value, and urban sprawl. Recommendations, centered on tax-base growth sharing, are presented for altering existing dynamics to support Northeast Ohio’s resurgence.

Using Proprietary Databases To Overcome Data Suppression In Industry Cluster Analysis, Gilbert Michaud, G. Jason Jolley

Journal of Extension

Extension agents are frequently tasked with determining industry clusters that exist in a region to support economic development. However, data suppression issues recurrently prohibit a comprehensive understanding of heavily concentrated firms in a region, particularly in rural areas. This article discusses the use of North American Industry Classification System codes within the LexisNexis Academic database as a technique for locating data about specific firms and analyzing regional industry clusters. This approach provides a practical and cost-efficient method for Extension agents and other researchers and practitioners to identify clusters and gather firm information in small geographies throughout the United States.

American Indian Professionals: Educational Decision-Making And Persistence, Colleen M. Burke

Theses and Dissertations

American Indian graduate students are experiencing a higher matriculation rate in higher education today; however, those rates are still lower than other underrepresented minority groups’ rates. The purpose of this study is to conduct exploratory research to investigate the decision-making process of American Indian/Alaskan Native professionals who persisted to graduation from their graduate programs. This study explores the participants’ graduate school experiences relating to education, tribal values, decisions, their social support, and perseverance. The theoretical framework of decisionmaking theory, i.e. Prospect Theory, was used to evaluate the educational decisions of the participants. Decision-making theorists include corporate culture in their discussions; …

Metabolic Differentiation Of Early Lyme Disease From Southern Tick-Associated Rash Illness (Stari), C Molins, L Ashton, Gary Wormser, B Andre, A Hess, J Belisle

NYMC Faculty Publications

Lyme disease, the most commonly reported vector-borne disease in the United States, results from infection with Borrelia burgdorferi. Early clinical diagnosis of this disease is largely based on the presence of an erythematous skin lesion for individuals in high-risk regions. This, however, can be confused with other illnesses including southern tick-associated rash illness (STARI), an illness that lacks a defined etiological agent or laboratory diagnostic test, and is coprevalent with Lyme disease in portions of the eastern United States. By applying an unbiased metabolomics approach with sera retrospectively obtained from well-characterized patients, we defined biochemical and diagnostic differences between early …

Vulnerability Assessment Of Groundwater To No3 Contamination Using Gis, Drastic Model And Geostatistical Analysis, Adela Beauty Adu Agyemang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The study employed Geographical Information System (GIS) technology to investigate the vulnerability of groundwater to NO₃ content in Buncombe County, North Carolina in two different approaches. In the first study, the spatial distribution of NO₃ contamination was analyzed in a GIS environment using Kriging Interpolation. Cokriging interpolation was used to establish how NO₃ relates to land cover types and depth to water table of wells in the county. The second study used DRASTIC model to assess the vulnerability of groundwater in Buncombe County to NO₃ contamination. To get an accurate vulnerability index, the DRASTIC parameters were …

Generating Cultural Personas From Social Data: A Perspective Of Middle Eastern Users, Salminen Joni, Sercan Sengün, Haewoon Kwak, Bernard Jansen, Jisun An, Soon-Gyo Jung, Sarah Vieweg, D. Fox Harrell

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

We conduct a mixed-method study to better understand the content consumption patterns of Middle Eastern social media users and to explore new ways to present online data by using automatic persona generation. First, we analyze millions of content interactions on YouTube to dynamically generate personas describing behavioral patterns of different demographic groups. Second, we analyze interview data on social media users in the Middle Eastern region to generate additional insights into the dynamically generated personas. Our findings provide insights into social media users in the Middle East, as well as present a novel methodology of using computational analysis and qualitative …

The Perceived Community Engagement Survey: Further Exploration Of Its Reliability And Validity, Rafael Rivera

Dissertations

Community-Based Organizations (CBOs) have become the source of delivery for a number of social and health-related services in many communities. CBOs provide needed services in some of the most resource-poor communities. The moniker of community-based implies that these organizations are located within specific communities in order to provide services to community members. As organizations that have bloomed within communities to respond to particular community needs continue to grow and receive government funding, a primary funding source for many CBOs, questions arise about how responsive they remain to their surrounding communities. Funder mandates and foci may become more critical to CBOs …

The Past That Was Differs Little From The Past That Was Not: Pictographs And Petroglyphs In Cormac Mccarthys Blood Meridian Or The Evening Redness In The West, Cami Ann Dilg

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This literary analysis expands the scholarly canon concerning Cormac McCarthy’s regional writing by identifying the purpose of pictographs and petroglyphs in Blood Meridian or the Evening Redness in the West (1985). Not only do pictographs and petroglyphs tie the narrative to place, but they create a commentary regarding the erasure of Native American histories in the United States. These images record Native American memory and presence in the landscape, and by referencing them, McCarthy confronts concepts of exposure and shame, which facilitates conversations concerning Native American genocide. A close analysis of character interaction with and scene placement of these images …

Stratigraphy Of The Middle Cambrian Lincoln Peak Formation And Evolution Of The House Range Embayment, Eastern Nevada, Ibrahim Zallum

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This study examined the Middle Cambrian (c. 500 MA) Lincoln Peak Formation and Patterson Pass Shale. The initial goal was to create a stratigraphic model for these units. This model was then compared to those from already studied units in western Utah, which combined with the Nevada units form the rock record of an ancient feature known as the House Range Embayment, which was an area of greater water depth superimposed on the continental shelf. This study found that the Nevada units exhibit a series of depositional sequences similar to those in western Utah, but at a lower resolution. This …

Quantitative Easing: Money Supply And The Commodity Prices Of Oil, Gold, And Wheat, Aaron Kasteler

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

The recent financial crisis has raised awareness among the public regarding the role the Federal Reserve has in the broader economy, primarily as it pertains to overall price levels, and especially to commodities. Has the implementation of quantitative easing had an effect on underlying commodity prices and, if so, to what degree? Specifically, has the rise in the money supply created a subsequent rise in prices that are transferred onto the end consumer? This paper surveys the recent empirical evidence of the policy of quantitative easing as it relates to the money supply and commodity prices. It then uses this …

Nature & Nation: The Civilian Conservation Corps In Zion And Bryce Canyon National Parks, Valerie Jacobson

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

CCC experiences have been written about other camps and areas across the United States, however, an in depth look at the CCC involvement in Zion and Bryce has not been attempted. The CCC camps in Zion and Bryce created a mark on the landscape through the projects and improvements, but also left a mark on the “boys” who were in the program. The experiences and projects the young men did with the CCC altered the land in the parks in southern Utah. The changes included new or improved trail systems in the park, better roads and maintenance, soil and erosion …

Experiences And Perceptions Of Human Vulnerability To Climate Change In Calakmul, Mexico, Lisa Green

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This report explores how residents of Calakmul, Mexico perceive and experience their own vulnerability to climate change, and how these perceptions and experiences are differentiated among communities, households, and individuals. Fifty-five semi-structured interviews in 2013 and 45 follow-up interviews in 2016 provide data on familiarity with climate change and perceived effects of climate-related stressors on livelihood activities, health, and experiences of hunger. We found that coping responses to the effects of climate change often require cash inputs, and communities are differentiated in their experiences of vulnerability, based in part on their access to wage labor and importantly governmental support.

Dynamics Of War: Culture, Society, Environment, And Pedagogy, Breanne Jacobsen

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

War is an ever-present feature of human civilization. Nearly all cultures and societies show accounts of human conflict. This portfolio seeks to provide both a multidimensional analysis of war and a means of instructing students to appreciate its significance as a driving force of history using three different components.

The syllabus project provides a long-term view of how the various wars and conflicts came to be and progressed in Western Civilization in the modern era.

The chapter-length paper shows the ravaging effects that war and conflict can have on a physical landscape and the environment in which the conflict takes …

The Geography Of Glaciers And Perennial Snowfields In The American West, Andrew G. Fountain, Bryce Glenn, Hassan J. Basagic

Geology Faculty Publications and Presentations

A comprehensive mid-20th century inventory of glaciers and perennial snowfields (G&PS) was compiled for the American West, west of the 100° meridian. The inventory was derived from U.S. Geological Survey 1:24,000 topographic maps based on aerial photographs acquired during 35 years, 1955–1990, of which the first 20 years or more was a cool period with little glacier change. The mapped features were filtered for those greater than 0.01 km². Results show that 5036 G&PS (672 km², 14 km³) populate eight states, of which about 1276 (554 km^2, 12 km³) are glaciers. …

How Canada Can Help Global Adolescent Health Mature, Ashley Vandermorris, Zulfiqar Ahmed Bhutta

Department of Paediatrics and Child Health

Background: There is an emerging focus on adolescent health within the global health community as we come to recognize that the adolescent years are formative in determining health and health-related behaviours across the life-course. Such attention is not only relevant on the global scale but is imperative in Canada as well.

Main body: This commentary provides a brief review of recent investments targeting global adolescent health and presents five potential avenues for action which emerged out of the recent Canadian Partnership for Women and Children’s Health (CanWaCH) Global Adolescent Health conference. These avenues are: (1) Demand data; (2) Embrace complexity; …

Parallel State, Gregory Dolin, Irina D. Manta

Cardozo Law Review

Alternatively glamorized and reviled, Rio de Janeiro's shantytowns, known as 'favelas," have become a fixture of the city's architecture and life. It is estimated that about 1.5 million people reside in these informal settlements that are scattered in the center and outskirts of Brazil's second-largest metropolitan area. Operating in the shadow of the law and lacking formal ownership title, favela residents have constructed an intricate set of informal rules to buy, sell, rent, and bequeath property that is often administered by the residents' associations of individual neighborhoods, which also assist in mediating related conflicts. While largely untested legal mechanisms may …

How Does Exploring Self And Peer-Identity Through Artmaking Strengthen Student-Peer Relationships?, Veronica Spencer Nelson

Action Research Projects

This arts-based action research study was created to examine the effects of artmaking on the development of student-peer relationships. Conducted through a four month analysis, 25 fifth grade students, from the same class, were examined through survey questionnaire, critique and interpretation process. Through the course of this study, this research investigation will study 10 randomly selected students, from the same class of inquiry, to examine their artistic process in relation to the development or strengthening of student-peer relationships. From the 10 focal participants, I analyzed sketchbook documentation, artwork with written description, and recorded semi structured interviews. This study will explore …

Remote Sensing Of The Environmental Impacts Of Utility-Scale Solar Energy Plants, Mohammad Masih Edalat

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Solar energy has many environmental benefits compared with fossil fuels but solar farming can have environmental impacts especially during construction and development. Thus, in order to enhance environmental sustainability, it is imperative to understand the environmental impacts of utility-scale solar energy (USSE) plants. During recent decades, remote sensing techniques and geographic information systems have become standard techniques in environmental applications. In this study, the environmental impacts of USSE plants are investigated by analyzing changes to land surface characteristics using remote sensing. The surface characteristics studied include land cover, land surface temperature, and hydrological response whereas changes are mapped by comparing …

A Comparison Of Outdoor Bioaerosol And Particulate Measurements In Las Vegas, Tanviben Yogeshkumar Patel

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The urbanization of the Las Vegas Valley has turned the desert into a green oasis by introducing many non-native plant species, some of which are allergenic. Outdoor bioaerosols consist of microorganisms, pollen, spores, and other agents that could cause infections or affect the health of humans. Studies have suggested that exposure to bioaerosols through inhalation can lead to various human health risks. Typically, one monitoring station is established per city to obtain pollen and mold counts for an entire metropolitan area, and the site may not be representative of community exposures. The objective of this study was to measure and …

Effects Of Inclusion Of Contemporary Artists/Artworks Within The Core Knowledge Curriculum To Increase Student Engagement, Paula Vann

Action Research Projects

The classroom action research project was initiated when I observed in my classroom that inclusion of contemporary artists and their work influenced student engagement in the creation and completion of art assignments. Twelve fifth grade students participated in the study: six boys and six girls. The students completed an expressive self-portrait using materials of their choice after having been exposed to an art historical artist and four contemporary portrait artists. The students completed a pre-unit survey and a post unit survey. In process artwork was photographed to document engagement. Personal observation and a rubric were also used to evaluate engagement. …

Locating Stable Sites: Climate Refugia In The Southern Appalachians, Alexander Harper Nelson

All Theses

Climate change continues to be one of the most challenging threats to global biodiversity and species persistence. In response, conservation design researchers and applied practitioners have recently begun to call for the identification of critical areas of stable climatic and environmental conditions that may preserve the platform of current climate dynamics, and promote the adaptation and dispersal of diverse taxa across the landscape. Due to their historically buffered and resilient features, climate refugia are considered valuable conservation targets that may function as robust bastions for climatically-sensitive endemic species. In this thesis research, I have worked to define the potential stability …

Multifuntional Nanotherapeutics For The Combinatorial Drug And Gene Therapy In The Treatment Of Glioblastoma Multiforme, Breanne Hourigan

All Theses

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), a grade IV glioma, is the most common primary brain tumor, affecting about 3 out of 100,000 persons per year in the United States. GBM accounts for about 80% of primary malignant brain tumors, and is also the most aggressive of malignant brain tumors. With exhaustive treatment, survival only averages between 12 and 15 months, with a 2-year survival rate less than 25%. New therapeutic strategies are necessary to improve the outcomes of this disease. Chemotherapy with temozolomide (TMZ), a DNA alkylating agent, is used as a first-line of treatment for GBM. However, GBM tumors develop resistance …