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Suffolk University Undergraduate Academic Catalog, College Of Arts And Sciences, 2017-2018, Suffolk University

College of Arts and Sciences and Sawyer Business School Academic Catalogs

This catalog contains information for the undergraduate programs in the College of Arts and Sciences. The catalog is a PDF version of the Suffolk website, so many pages have repeated information and links in the document will not work.

The catalog is keyword searchable by clicking ctrl+f. A-Z course descriptions are also included here as a separate PDF file listing all CAS course offerings. Please contact the Archives if you need assistance navigating this catalog or finding information on degree requirements or course descriptions.

Investigating Social Perceptions Associated With Water Quality In Morgantown, West Virginia, Jonas G. Leveque

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation investigates public perceptions of water quality in Morgantown, West Virginia. In recent years, water has become an increasingly critical issue in terms of quantity worldwide, and also in terms of quality. In developed countries such as the United States, water quality is often taken for granted by the general public. Nonetheless, recent water crises in Flint, Michigan and Charleston, West Virginia, are examples showing there are environmental risks associated with human activities. This dissertation explores the context of West Virginia, with coal mining that is decreasing and non-conventional oil and gas drilling that is increasing in the Appalachia …

Radial Growth Patterns In Trees Surviving Canopy Gap Disturbances, Ruth A. Stetler

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Forest disturbance regimes in eastern North America have long been conceptualized as localized gap disturbances, but recent studies suggest that more widespread, infrequent disturbance events may also be important. However, uncertainties in tree-ring methods used to detect disturbance, and in the factors that drive growth release of trees, limit the conclusions that can be drawn from regional disturbance analyses. I designed a study to further elucidate forest disturbance dynamics in eastern North America by using two approaches: 1) a case study examining the sensitivity of the radial growth averaging method of detecting disturbance and the factors influencing detection of a …

Provenance Of Syn-Rift Clastics In The Eastern Gulf Of Mexico: Insight From U-Pb Detrital Zircon Geochronology And Thin Sections, Kory Stuart Wiley

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

U-Pb detrital zircon geochronology, supplemented by thin section petrography, point counting, and well logs, were used to constrain the provenance of basal Triassic/Jurassic (?) clastic sedimentary rocks in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico (EGOM). Basal clastics were deposited as syn-rift strata into half grabens present along the EGOM and eastern margin of Laurentia that formed during the initial break up of Pangea. Samples used in this study were collected from the South Florida Basin (SFB) and the South Georgia Rift (SGR). Previous studies of post-rift Jurassic sediment in the Gulf of Mexico has identified a change in source from Laurentian …

Exploring The Power Of County-Level Regional Classifications On Predicting Sex-Specific All-Cause Mortality In The United States, Julia Kay Wolf

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Sex-specific mortality rates have been found to differ across regions of the United States; however, these areas are typically the broad Census Bureau regions (i.e., Midwest, Northeast, South, and West) that do not consider sociological factors known to affect health. By testing the predictive capabilities of theoretically driven regional classifications distinguished at county-level, I explore whether there are more accurate ways of assessing mortality differences across the United States. Specifically, I use the US Census Bureau divisions and regional groupings produced by Joel Garreau (1981) and Colin Woodard (2011) to predict sex-specific, age-adjusted, all-cause mortality for 2008-2012 (centered on 2010). …

Storage Capacity Estimation Of Commercial Scale Injection And Storage Of Co2 In The Jacksonburg-Stringtown Oil Field, West Virginia, Zhi Zhong

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Geological capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) of carbon dioxide (CO2) in depleted oil and gas reservoirs is one method to reduce greenhouse gas emissions with enhanced oil recovery (EOR) and extending the life of the field. Therefore CCUS coupled with EOR is considered to be an economic approach to demonstration of commercial-scale injection and storage of anthropogenic CO2. Several critical issues should be taken into account prior to injecting large volumes of CO2, such as storage capacity, project duration and long-term containment. Reservoir characterization and 3D geological modeling are the best way to estimate the theoretical CO 2 storage capacity …

Front Matter

The Gettysburg Historical Journal

No abstract provided.

Geographic Biases In Human Lyme Disease Surveillance And Utility Of Companion Animal Sentinel Programs: Exploratory Spatial Analysis, Brian Hendricks

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Background and Objectives: Mapping and exploratory spatial data analyses are ideal tools for characterizing spread and occurrence of human Lyme disease infection. Unfortunately, many mapped displays utilizing Lyme disease surveillance data are prone to bias due to a lack of consideration for geographical confounders. The objectives of our study were to 1) characterize the geographic effects that boundary and travel related biases have on visualization of human Lyme disease occurrence and 2) apply these findings to develop a more precise methodology for evaluating efficacy of animal sentinel surveillance programs in predicting incidence of human Lyme disease infection.;Methods: County-level human Lyme …

Using Carbon And Oxygen Isotopes To Monitor Water-Rock Interaction Under Simulated Geothermal Conditions, Stephen J. Henry

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Engineered or Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) have to potential to unlock vast high-temperature energy resources that lack the natural permeability and fluid flow required for power generation. In order to ensure sustained fracture connectivity in EGS, water-rock interactions must be understood in high temperature and pressure systems. Using cores from Brady's Field Well BCH-03, investigations were conducted to test the feasibility of using carbon and oxygen isotopes to monitor water-rock interactions under simulated geothermal conditions. Reactions were examined in a series of high-temperature pressure vessels and a high-temperature flow-through system in which a calcium bicarbonate solution was exposed to meta-volcanic …

Teaching Without A Net: Experiencing Mandatory Curriculum Change, Stephen Ross Higgins

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation reports a qualitative study that explored the reconstructed narratives of 4 West Virginia 7th grade social studies teachers. A methodology informed by narrative inquiry guided the research design, including the methods for data collection and data analysis. Two questions served as guideposts throughout the research process: What do the stories of the participants tell us about the ways in which teachers engage as developers of curriculum when curriculum change is mandated? In what ways did their stories of implementing a mandated change impact their professional identities? To explore these questions, I conducted 3 semi-structured interviews with each participant. …

Effects Of Volcanic Ash Deposition And The Manson Impact On Marine Paleoredox And Paleoproductivity: Geochemical Evidence From The Cretaceous Pierre Shale, Isabella Cross-Najafi

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Cretaceous Period. There is limited research on organic carbon content of the Pierre Shale in South Dakota. Frequent volcanic eruptions combined with climate change resulted in an increase in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, leading to decreases in marine oxygen content. Decreasing marine oxygen has been attributed to higher amounts of preserved organic matter in marine sediment. Impact of volcanic ash deposition in the Cretaceous Interior Seaway has not been thoroughly studied. The Pierre Shale also contains the Crow Creek Member, a 5 foot thick layer of unconsolidated sand and rip-up clasts which may indicate a high-energy depositional event. Some …

"Beyond The Veil": Queering Epistemologies, Imperial Anxieties, And The Quest For Forbidden Knowledge In Late-Victorian Gothic Literature, Kristen J. Davis

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation analyzes four late-Victorian imperial Gothic novels which focus on the British search for forbidden knowledge held by foreign and ancient Others. I demonstrate how the devastating outcomes of these tales illustrate the crisis of epistemology and undecidability felt by Victorians (often subconsciously) in relation to medico-legal policies like the colonial Contagious Diseases Acts and imperial campaigns such as the military intervention in 1880s Egypt to secure control of the Suez Canal. A chapter on Rider Haggard's She (1886-7) highlights the use of an (ultimately effective) Egyptian curse against the seemingly superior power of the imperialist; the ostensibly immortal …

Beyond Oraldigital: Ghanaian Electronic Literature As A Paradigm For African Digital Textuality, Kwabena Opoku-Agyemang

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation speaks to a massive dearth of research in African electronic literature (African e-lit), a discipline that boasts a growing number of works but little scholarship. With African literature incorporating digital technology into its creative process, and with electronic literary criticism focusing on areas outside its predominantly western cannon, African e-lit positions itself as an important area of scholarly endeavor. After considering the implications of placing African e-lit as the direction in which both African literature and electronic literature take, this dissertation looks at three different genres of African e-lit in the context of oral literature. There are analyses …

Geotechnical Laboratory Testing For 2-D Fem Analysis Of Geomorphic And Planar Sloped Caps And Covers For Sustainable Mine Refuse Deposition, Sun Hee Park

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This thesis reports the findings of the application of Geomorphic Landform Design principles to the Royal Scot abandoned coarse coal refuse (CCR) pile located in Greenbrier County, West Virginia. The Royal Scot facility has many environmental concerns including severe erosion, acid-mine/rock drainage, and sediment transport. A cap and cover system is proposed to be implemented which incorporates the GLD principles. A two-layer cap and cover system will be used to reclaim the site and return it back to a stable state and reduce the production of acid-mine drainage. The system is composed of a hydraulic barrier composed of compacted CCR, …

A Deliverance Story, Thaddeus Cwiklinski

The Mercury

No abstract provided.

Space Use And Habitat Associations Of Long-Distance Migratory First-Year Golden Eagles (Aquila Chrysaetos) From Interior Alaska In A Changing Landscape, Mark D. Paulson

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Understanding a species space use and habitat associations is integral to comprehensive wildlife management. Habitat associations change spatially and temporally and those changes may be especially dramatic for animals that cover long distances throughout their annual cycle. While many studies of habitat associations and space use concentrate on breeding season behavior, studies of migratory connectivity demonstrate how condition of habitats on non-breeding ranges potentially affect key demographic parameters, such as survival, reproduction, and movement in other seasons. This is also important because wildlife habitats, especially land cover, are changing rapidly from both anthropogenic and natural forces in direct and indirect …

Provenance Of The Hamilton Group: A Study Of Source-To-Sink Relationships Within The Middle Devonian Central Appalachian Basin, Brittany N. Hupp

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Little is known of the provenance of detrital clays in the Hamilton Group, which contains one of the most lucrative unconventional shale gas plays in the world. The Hamilton Group consists of both the organic-rich Marcellus Shale and the overlying, clay-rich Mahantango Formation. This research, in collaboration with the Marcellus Shale Energy and Environmental Laboratory (MSEEL) project, aims to constrain the provenance of the two units within the Hamilton Group and evaluate paleoclimate indicators in order to better understand the role of clastic influx on organic-matter production and preservation within the Middle Devonian Acadian foreland basin.;Geochemical and petrographic analysis of …

Fluid Inclusion Analyses Of Bedded Halite From The Neoproterozoic Browne Formation Of Central Australia To Determine Parent Water Origin And Ph, Jeremiah A. Bernau

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The depositional origin of the Neoproterozoic Browne Formation of Australia is unclear. The Browne Formation consists of red-siliciclastic mudstone and siltstone (red beds), bedded and displacive halite and gypsum, and dolomitized stromatolites. Environmental interpretations of the Browne Formation range from a marginal marine lagoon to a playa lake deposit (Grey and Blake, 1999; Hill et al., 2000; Haines et al., 2004; Spear, 2013).;Primary fluid inclusions in Browne Formation bedded halite are the oldest known surface water remnants (Spear et al., 2014). Prior major-ion ratio analysis of these inclusions indicates that the Browne Formation formed from waters with unusually low sulfate …

North-East Indian Monsoon Rainfall Variability Over Southeastern Peninsular India, Jothiganesh Shanmugasundaram

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

North-East Indian Monsoon rainfall (NEIMR) during October-December is of immense socio-economic importance to the agriculture dependent population in the southeastern peninsular India. NEIMR is subject to extreme year-to-year and intra-seasonal variability that needs to be understood to enhance climate resilience. An understanding of NEIMR variability and the physical processes behind this variability would help to improve the predictability of NEIMR variation over the southeastern peninsular of India. An insight into past societal responses to monsoon variability would be a great lesson for adapting to future climate challenges. This dissertation seeks to examine the intra-seasonal variability of NEIMR and its driving …

Civil Religion And Ontological Threat, Matthew R. Arp

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Dyadic conflict research within international relations is largely reliant on the analysis of differences in regime or leadership characteristics as a catalyst for conflict. This dissertation challenges traditional scholarship through the introduction of a unique approach that examines more fundamental differences between states. These fundamental historical and cultural differences, which are enshrined in a states' civil religion, offer insights into the behavior of states during crisis. The three primary questions of this dissertation are the following: What role does societal norms and cultural values have in threat perception? Why do states practice restraint in some crises and escalation of belligerence …

Radio Home: Giving A Voice To The Homeless In Spokane, Washington, Aaron R. Bocook

EWU Masters Thesis Collection

No abstract provided.

A Study Of The Factors Influencing Last Mile Residential Fixed Broadband Pricing In Kentucky, Michael Ramage

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Ever since the first telegraph, a technology management challenge has existed to expand the availability of communication services farther into rural and unserved areas, while maintaining the affordability of those services to residential users. Over the years, that challenge has transformed from telegraph to broadband communications or high-speed Internet access. The challenge of affordable expansion of broadband services is seen all across the United States including the Commonwealth of Kentucky. This study examined the extent to which community and provider-related supply and demand factors among last mile residential fixed broadband service areas impact the non-promotional advertised price of last mile …

The Responsibility To Reflect Your Soul: Expectation, Experience, And Perception Of Quality Of Higher Education From The Perspective Of Saudi Arabian Students At A Midwestern University, Saadi A. Alzahrani

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the expectations, experiences, and perceptions of quality of higher Education from the perspective of Saudi Arabian students at a Midwestern university. The perception of a selected sample of Saudi Arabian students attending for their higher Education in an American institution of higher Education was investigated. The study explored how the Saudi Arabian students at a Midwestern university perceive the notion of higher Education quality. The study included eight Saudi Arabian graduate students at a Midwestern university. In general, the study found the participants to have highly positive perceptions about American higher Education. The participants expected to have …

An Analysis Of Burnout And Music Therapy Methodologies, Samara Berry

Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this survey study was to explore professional burnout in music therapists and factors that may increase the likelihood of experiencing it. The Maslach Burnout Inventory – Human Services Survey (1981) and researcher-developed questions were used to test for burnout and variables among board-certified music therapists, such as demographics, longevity, and the music therapists’ ideologies. The list of board-certified music therapists from 2017 was randomized and the survey was distributed to 1635 potential participants. Out of the 200 responses that were received, 199 agreed to participate in this study. On average, participants scored an average degree of burnout …

History Teachers' Perspectives Of Time Constraints, Engagement, And Relevance In The Curriculum, Christy Mimie Davis

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Over the last 20 years, many state school administrators have reduced social studies instructional time in favor of time dedicated to reading or math skills due to the pressure of standardized testing. The purpose of this qualitative case study, which was based on constructivist theories about learning and schema theory, was to analyze teachers' perspectives on teaching history lessons, in terms of engagement and relevance, while working within new time constraints. Purposeful sampling was used to select 6 teachers for interviews; all had experience teaching social studies courses at the upper elementary and middle levels in a public school district …

An Inquiry Into Factors Of Leadership And Cohesion In Complex Teams, Jeffrey White

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The external competitive environments and internal group dynamics of organizations are increasing in complexity resulting in new challenges for organizational leaders to improve performance in underperforming teams. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to address what factors led to high-innovation outcomes in complex adaptive systems using a framework constructed from elements of complexity leadership theory and group dynamics research. An in-depth interviewing approach was used to collect data on the lived experience and meaning the participants attributed to their experiences regarding improved team performance. A total of 21 participants were selected from multiple business settings where their team experienced …

Hpv Vaccination, Sociodemographic Variables, And Physician Recommendation In Select U.S. Areas, Rebecca Marie Jungbauer

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Human papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common sexually transmitted virus, and is causally related to several cancers. HPV vaccination rates are far below HealthyPeople 2020 targets and vary across geographic, socioeconomic, and demographic populations. The purpose of this research was to test the relationships among socioeconomic and demographic variables, HPV vaccination, social vulnerability, and physician recommendation within select local areas in the United States. Fundamental cause theory and behavioral economics informed this quantitative secondary analysis of National Immunization Survey-Teen and Social Vulnerability Index data (n = 43,271). Statistical analyses included chi-square and binomial logistic regression. Teens whose mothers had less …

Elementary Teachers' Perceptions Of Mathematics Instruction In Montessori And Traditional Classrooms, Linda Kofa

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Abstract

Students in grades 3 and 4 attending a traditional public elementary school in a northeastern state did not meet proficiency levels in mathematics as measured by the state's assessment system. Published reports indicated that students attending the Montessori programs were more proficient in solving math problems compared to students in traditional schools. However, researchers had not compared Montessori and traditional teachers' perceptions of teaching elementary mathematics. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the perceptions of traditional and Montessori teachers regarding teaching basic problem solving skills in mathematics. Koehler and Grouws' model provided the theoretical framework. …

Medical Floor Confusion Assessment Method: Implementation And Assessment Of Risk Factors, Michaelynn R. Paul

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

An estimated 50% of older hospitalized patients experience delirium. This has created significant complications costing an estimated $164 billion or more per year worldwide. The ability to identify patients developing delirium would allow the implementation of specific interventions to decrease or eliminate the adverse effects of delirium. The purpose of this quality improvement project was to provide high quality delirium education to determine if medical unit nursing staff could successful implement the Confusion Assessment Method (CAM) screening tool to identify patients experiencing delirium as the first phase of an overall plan. Implementation of the project followed Roger's diffusion of innovations …

Predictors Of Uti Antibiotic Resistance For Female Medicaid Recipients In U.S. Ambulatory Care Settings, Wendy Denise Wiesehuegel

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Urinary tract infections are diagnosed in female populations primarily in ambulatory care settings in the United States. Yet, published evidence documents that many of the antibiotics prescribed in these settings are unnecessary, erroneous, or, inappropriately prescribed. Improper management of uncomplicated urinary tract infections in nonpregnant women has resulted in higher morbidity rates due to antibiotic resistance. The purpose of this retrospective observational cohort study was to explore a current national database for associations between nonpregnant American female patients who were exposed to poverty and at risk for urinary tract infection antibiotic resistance in an ambulatory care setting. Krieger's ecosocial theory …