Digital Commons Network^™

Data Science Applications In Health An Social Care, Maryuri Ariela Quintero

Industrial, Manufacturing, and Systems Theses - Archive

Health and social care are areas of concern worldwide nowadays. Chronic diseases such as cancer and social problems such as tobacco consumption are leading risks of deaths in many countries, and preventive efforts are urgently needed to decrease the negative impact that those problems cause. Technology has made available an unprecedent amount of data in the health and social care fields, which scientists are using to achieve a better understanding of many problems that are a burden for the health and social systems globally. Although previous studies have provided approaches to analyze data, more efficient and accurate methods are needed …

Super Unleaded Malbec? A Case Study In Flawed International Standard Setting At The Codex Alimentarius, Justin Schwegel

Journal of Food Law & Policy

The World Trade Organization’s (WTO) Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS Agreement) provides rules on the adoption and enforcement of SPS measures. It also presumes that food safety regulations adopted by WTO Members that conform to relevant international standards are consistent with the SPS Agreement. The relevant international standard setting body for food safety is the Codex Alimentarius Commission, which conducts most of its food safety risk management work through subsidiary bodies such as the Codex Committee on Contaminants in Food (CCCF). CCCF establishes maximum limits for food contaminants and codes of practice for reducing food …

Fake News: Political Satire In The Age Of President Trump, D. Landon Graham

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

This thesis examines Donald Trump's disruption of political satire. The history and format of the White House Correspondents' Dinner provides a framework for understanding the shifting relationship between the president's administration, the journalists who cover that administration, and political comedians. These three groups cross paths at the White House Correspondents' Association's annual dinner, which the president traditionally attends and where a headlining comedian entertains guests with a monologue. Trump's decision to skip the Correspondents' Dinner set the stage for a renegotiation of the traditional relationship between president, press, and performer. As President Trump continues to attack both journalists and late-night …

Frederic Lindley Morgan : Gentleman Architect And Reluctant Modernist., Lisa Grace Carpenter

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Frederic Lindley Morgan, a major architect in Louisville,Kentucky, was born in Loda,Illinois in 1889. Morgan, in partnerships with other architects throughout his career, designed a variety of projects including homes, schools, churches, commercial buildings and even an airport. Morgan worked up until he died, in 1970, in Louisville. What makes Mr.Morgan's work distinctive is not the timelessness of his designs, nor the fact he was dubbed "Louisville's society architect," nor his lengthy 50 plus year career. Morgan had the ability to take his training, in combination with his talent and savvy business sense, and work successfully in a variety of …

Fostering Compassionate Care For Persons With Alzheimer's Disease In Nursing Facilities., Sam Gilbert Cotton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The aim of this dissertation study was to examine the impact of the implementation of a new Compassionate Care (CC) curriculum on the quality of care provided by Certified Nursing Assistants (CNAs) to residents with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). More specifically, this dissertation used Kirkpatrick’s model of evaluation to assess the reactions, learning, and behavior change of the CNAs exposed to the curriculum, and ultimately the impact of the curriculum on the stress levels of residents with AD. To accomplish this, we had two studies that aligned with the Kirkpatrick model of evaluation. For Study #1, the evaluation of the compassionate …

The History And Signification Of The Navicella Mosaic At St. Peter's Basilica, Rome., Eston Dillon Adams

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Navicella mosaic is most famously an artwork created by Giotto di Bondone. Evidence for the appearance and dating of this giant mural is discussed in this dissertation with the conclusion that it was made in 1298 and its composition is best recorded in a Parri Spinelli drawing preserved in the Musée Condé in Chantilly, France. It was admired by untold numbers of worshipers who visited the grand Constantinian basilica of Old St. Peter’s in the Vatican in Rome. The Navicella was located on the façade of Santa Maria in the Towers, an important chapel as well as the gatehouse …

Stalkers : What Are They Thinking?, Bethany Lynne Keller

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Stalking became a prominent term in U.S culture in 1990 after a celebrity was murdered by a stalker in 1989. While media portrays stalking as a violent crime, often directed towards celebrities and prominent political figures, this is a much more common occurrence than people are aware, most often directed at women and perpetrated by men. Stalking often consists of the milder end of the continuum of behaviors, such as spying and leaving gifts for the target, and is often perpetrated by an individual the target knows, such as an acquaintance of an ex-intimate. Forty-eight percent of stalkers fall in …

Exploring The Knowledge Of Algebra For Teaching., Jonathan David Watkins

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

For the past few decades, researchers in mathematics education have been exploring the concept of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK)—or knowledge related to teaching content—and applying it to various areas of mathematics, such as algebra. Research related to teacher knowledge of algebra is critical because researchers (e.g., Hill, Rowan, & Ball, 2005) have found correlations between some types of teacher knowledge and student achievement in mathematics; students from around the world are outperforming U.S. students on international assessments of mathematics, including algebra (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, 2014, 2016); and algebra plays an integral role in the K-12 mathematics curriculum …

Present But Not Accounted For: A Phenomenological Study Of Gifted African American Males., Ronda Elizabeth George

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research study was to explore the lived experiences of gifted African American males in grades 6-8. Specifically, the study examined how gifted African American males perceived and understood their participation in a gifted program and how their sense of self-efficacy shaped their disposition and approach toward academic persistence. Much of the literature published on the social, emotional, and academic success of gifted African American males has focused on college-aged students, therefore the current study is crucial in contributing to the body of knowledge on African American males, in particular, those identified as gifted during early adolescence …

Physical Education Activity Courses: An Exploration Of How Enrollment Influences Student Retention Rates., Dylan J. Naeger

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Nationally, student retention rates continue to be a problem, as the National Center for Education Statistics (2018) found the six-year undergraduate graduation rate for students who started college in fall 2010 was around 60%. An area not yet investigated is if any association exists between enrollment in a university physical education activity course (BIP) and academic success. The purpose of this study was to determine how enrollment in a BIP course affected undergraduate student retention rates. This study examined whether enrollment in BIP courses influenced student retention of all first-time, full-time, baccalaureate degree-seeking students enrolled at a public research university …

A Transfer Learning Approach For Sentiment Classification., Omar Abdelwahab

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The idea of developing machine learning systems or Artificial Intelligence agents that would learn from different tasks and be able to accumulate that knowledge with time so that it functions successfully on a new task that it has not seen before is an idea and a research area that is still being explored. In this work, we will lay out an algorithm that allows a machine learning system or an AI agent to learn from k different domains then uses some or no data from the new task for the system to perform strongly on that new task. In order …

A Case Study On How Meeting The Academic Needs Of Students Substantially Below Grade Level In Mathematics Affects Their Self-Efficacy Beliefs And Engagement, Lauren K. M. Burton

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This researcher examined an alternative classroom structure for ninth-grade students substantially below grade level (SBGL) in mathematics. This researcher considered whether targeting the academic and social needs of students SBGL in mathematics in a ninth-grade class would increase their self-efficacy and engagement with the mathematics by studying four teaching effects: teacher, teacher-curriculum, peer-curriculum, and peer.

The researcher used interviews, observations, and surveys to collect qualitative and quantitative data. The case study (n = 19) employed a QUAL + quan convergent parallel mixed methods case study. Meta-inferences from the analyses of qualitative and quantitative data indicate that the structure of …

Route-Finding: Developing Curricular Knowledge And Impacting Practice Through A Collaborative Curriculum Mapping Process, Laura J. Reina

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Research indicates curriculum mapping is beneficial for teachers and students. However, it is not effectively implemented because there are barriers in time, support, and knowledge. This research sought to remove those barriers and study the impact on teachers’ practice when they were able to work together to develop a curriculum map. The focus of the teachers’ map was the Kindergarten through third grade English Language Arts curriculum.

This work included a series of professional development sessions where teachers worked collaboratively to gain a greater understanding of the curriculum and develop a sequence from kindergarten through third grade. Teachers’ worked collaboratively …

Supporting Adolescent Metacognition In Engineering Design Through Scripted Prompts From Peer Tutors: A Comparative Case Study, Kristin Marie Strong

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In 2013, developers of the Next Generation Science Standards implemented national K-12 directives and elevated engineering design to the level of scientific inquiry. Teaching design, however, is challenging to educators due to the complex nature of design problems, which cannot be solved via simple algorithms. Solving design problems requires a more reflective and iterative approach that emphasizes metacognitive skills like planning, monitoring, and taking another person’s perspective. Educators are further challenged by children’s immature metacognitive skills, which may be insufficient to engage in the entire design process.

A qualitative study of paired seventh graders demonstrated a pragmatic learning activity for …

Effect Of Acceptance Versus Psychoeducation On Hoarding, Clarissa W. Ong

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Hoarding disorder (HD) is a mental health condition characterized by difficulty letting go of possessions, resulting in clutter that prevents use of active living spaces. Consequences associated with hoarding include strained family relationships, distress for children in the home, and increased burden on social services. Currently, the most empirically supported treatment for HD is cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), which includes such components as education about the nature of hoarding, challenging unhelpful thoughts, and exposure to distressing stimuli. Despite its demonstrated effectiveness, CBT does not result in clinically significant improvement for at least 50% of individuals, indicating the need for alternative interventions …

“I Really Don’T Look For Certifications, It All Has To Do With Personal Relationships”: The Construction Of A Meat Philosophy And Innovation Adoption By Culinary Professionals In The Rocky Mountain Region, Kailie B. Leggett

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Demand for new methods of beef production is rising due to concern over potential impacts on human health, animal welfare, and the environment. Researchers at Utah State University have developed a method of beef production from cattle finished on tannin-containing legume forages in the Rocky Mountain Region in order to address those concerns. To ensure success of this product, the demand and marketability needed to be assessed. Food values addressed through new production standards and certifications are communicated through labeling by culinary professionals in the kitchen and behind service counters. This research study utilized qualitative methods to understand how culinary …

Geospatial Modeling Of Land Cover Change In The Chocó-Darien Global Ecoregion Of South America: Assessing Proximate Causes And Underlying Drivers Of Deforestation And Reforestation, José Camilo Fagua

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The Chocó-Darien Global Ecoregion (CGE) in South America is one of 25 global biodiversity hotspots prioritized for conservation. I performed the first land-use and land-cover (LULC) change analysis for the entire CGE in this dissertation. There were three main objectives: 1) Select the best available imagery to build annual land-use and land-cover maps from 2001 to 2015 across the CGE. 2) Model LULC across the CGE to assess forest change trends from 2002 to 2015 and identify the effect of proximate causes of deforestation and reforestation. 3) Estimate the effects of underlying drivers on deforestation and reforestation across the CGE …

Evaluating The Role Of Nonmonetary Factors In Teachers' Employment Decisions, Jeffrey M. Gunther

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Teacher recruitment and retention is a problem of perpetual concern among education policymakers. High rates of teacher attrition, particularly within the first few years of a teacher’s service have been of particular concern. It is believed that persistent teacher shortages contribute both to underperformance of students generally, as well as to achievement gaps between students of different races and socioeconomic backgrounds. The importance of this issue has led to a great deal of research in the field, which has found that there are a large number of factors that influence the desirability of schools to teachers. What is still unclear …

Measuring Rural Revolutionary Mobilization: The Militiamen, Soldiers, And Minutemen Of Fauquier County, Virginia 1775 - 1782, Jason Fackrell

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The story of the rural soldiers and militiamen of Virginia that served in the American Revolution remains open to historical research and exploration. Recent scholarship of Virginia’s military contribution to the Revolution focuses heavily on relationships of power among social groups that operated within the colony’s hierarchy, concluding that a lack of white, lower-class political and economic representation disabled mobilization among the Old Dominion’s more settled regions. My study emphasizes the revolutionary backcountry’s story by using Fauquier County, Virginia as a case study.

A study of Rural Virginia during the Revolution presents scholars with significant challenges. Literacy rates among the …

The Intergenerational Transmission Of Parental Practices That Influence The Educational Outcome Of Latinxs In The United States, Ana E. Kemple Reeves

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Parental involvement practices in education have traditionally referred to overt forms of involvement such as attending school meetings, parent teacher conferences, and volunteering at the school. Research suggests that Latinx parents do not utilize these approaches as much as they do subtler practices. These practices are manifested in parents’ communication with their children, their parenting styles, and the academic expectations they place on their children. The current study intended to recognize the parental practices used by Latinx parents that contribute to educational attainment and combat fixed beliefs regarding their lack of involvement in their children’s education. The data collection was …

Justice And The River: Community Connections To An Impaired Urban River In Salt Lake City, Taya L. Carothers

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Local communities have the right to participate in decision-making about environmental resources near where they live. Local governments have tried to gather feedback from communities to help improve the decisions they make, but have not always done a good job getting feedback from minority or urban communities. This dissertation provides one step toward obtaining this kind of public input in a majority minority community surrounding the Jordan River in Salt Lake City. Children and adults participated in this research. I present findings from two surveys, from work with children, and from adult interviews to understand how this community relates to …

Examining Market Channels For Local Produce: Consumer Affordability And Producer Profitability, Karli A. Salisbury

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study examines the price differences of commonly consumed produce between farmers’ markets and grocery stores in Utah. Our first objective is to compare price differences of a basket of produce between farmers’ markets and grocery stores. We compare these price differences in terms of low-income consumer affordability and if an individual can afford a market basket of produce using a combination of Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program (FMNP) dollars and Double Up Food Bucks (DUFB) incentive dollars. Our second objective for this study is to establish the price premiums of individual produce items based on where the produce was sold, …

An Examination Of Entrainment In Typically Developing Children, Kiersten A. Pope

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

Purpose: Conversational entrainment describes the tendency for individuals to align their behavior with their communication partners and is essential for successful interaction. Evidence of entrainment in adults is robust, yet research regarding its development is sparse. Here, we investigate the effectiveness of a quasi-conversational paradigm for the purpose of identifying the speech rate entrainment abilities of children.

Method: Data were collected from a total of 50 typically developing children from 5-14 years old. Participants completed an entrainment task to identify the presence of speech rate modification depending on the presence of “fast” or “slow” stimuli. The entrainment task utilized a …

A Qualitative Study On Perceptions Of Parents And Their Young Adults With Disabilities Regarding Postsecondary Education, Kelli Summers

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

Postsecondary education (PSE) participation is a predictor for positive employment outcomes for students with or without disabilities (Newman et al., 2011; Test et al., 2009). In recent years, there has been an increase of students with disabilities participating in PSE. Students with intellectual disabilities (ID) have had the lowest enrollment rate of all the disability categories in PSE programs (Newman et al. (2010). This project examined the perceptions of parents and their young adults with ID regarding PSE. Participants included parents of young adults with ID and their young adults who were attending a PSE program on a college campus …

Hellhounds And Helpful Ghost Dogs: Conflicting Perceptions Of “Man’S Best Friend” Encoded In Supernatural Narrative, Kiersten Carr

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

Black dogs are a type of spectral entity that, according to legend, have been haunting the British Isles for centuries. While the legends have many regional variations, the common feature remains a large black dog, often with eyes “large as saucers” or sometimes, flaming, who appears and then disappears, often without a trace. In many of the legends, the black dog is malevolent: assaulting travelers, frightening livestock to death, attacking other dogs, haunting graveyards and gibbets, and heralding death or disaster. In other versions, however, the black dog acts as a protector to those in need, warding off disaster with …

Synthetic, Julia L. Prince

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

Throughout her life, the poet May Swenson concerned herself with communicating pathways to personal improvement and self-discovery by navigating the distinct social and psychological challenges specific to her historical context, personality, and gender. Though deceased, Swenson is still able to communicate these notions successfully, as many of her poems’ speakers do not conceal their intentions, but rather “force the truth.”

Synthetic, a poetry chapbook, similarly “forces the truth,” as the speaker – like Swenson’s – craves to bare all and discover more about who she is, as she contends with her own social and psychological challenges regarding beauty-gestures, practices, …

Low Temperature Desiccants In Atmospheric Water Generation., Sunil Gupta

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Surging global water demand as well as changes to weather patterns and over exploitation of natural water sources, such as ground water, has made potable water a critical resource in many parts of the World already – one rapidly heading towards a crisis situation. Desalination has been adopted as a solution – this is however energy intensive and impractical for most of the developing countries - those most in need of water. A renewable source of energy is solar thermal and solar photovoltaic. A plentiful source of water is the humidity in the atmosphere. This research is to push the …

Deindustrializing School : The Implementation Of Career Academies And Implications For School Leaders., Terra Greenwell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Rooted in an antiquated curriculum, the traditional model of schooling remains a persisting factor in student disengagement at all levels, but especially in high school (Labaree, 2008). At a time when college and career readiness is vital to a school’s accountability, principals must rethink ways to educate a diverse student population. Given the need to provide both academic and vocational aspects, career academies create career-themed small learning communities in an effort to increase student engagement, belonging, and post-secondary success. This study uses a multiple case study design to explore the much-needed perspective of high school principals as they collectively implemented …

Arab-Islamic And Folk Health Models: New Perspectives On Syrian Refugee Resettlement In The Us., Ghina Kheir

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research builds upon the framework of the Health Traditions Model (HTM) as described in 1994 by Rachel Spector, a scholar and practitioner of a cultural care model of health among multicultural populations. I integrate this model into a study of Syrian refugees’ resettlement experience in Louisville, Kentucky. Syrian refugees’ voices and narratives of their corresponding Arab-Islamic and folk approaches to health, illness, and healing are the launch site for this project. I argue that approaching the resettlement experience from the refugees’ own cultural and Arab-Islamic perspectives toward health, illness, and healing aids in achieving a pluralistic health care system …

Adolescent Sexual And Reproductive Health In The Gambia., Sandhya Lohani

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Adolescence is a crucial period in human development. Knowledge and awareness about when to have children, when to have sex, and use of contraceptives impacts the chances of teenage pregnancy and risk of sexually transmitted diseases. The objective of this study is to determine the prevalence and associated risk factors related to age of sexual debut, teenage pregnancy, and use of contraceptives in the Gambia. This study also compares the data with 2014 survey research conducted in the Gambia. The total study population were 50 adolescents aged 13-21 years from Bafuluto and surrounding communities in the Gambia. Among 50 respondents, …