Digital Commons Network^™

The Emperor's New Clothes: How The New Atheists Are Reminding The Humanities Of Their Place And Purpose In Society., David Ira Buckner

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation will examine the social and intellectual impact of the so-called “New Atheism” as evidenced by the writings and public careers of its four principal protagonists: evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins, philosopher Daniel Dennett, journalist Christopher Hitchens, and neuroscientist Sam Harris. I will argue that the New Atheists together provide an account of reality philosophically superior to that of theism, including those superficially sophisticated variations espoused in the writings of scholars William Lane Craig, John Lennox, Allister McGrath, Alvin Plantinga, etc. Yet, even if this were not so, I would still contend that the accessible, informative, and provocative style of …

Improving Accuracy Of The Edgebox Approach, Kamna Yadav

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Object region detection plays a vital role in many domains ranging from self-driving cars to lane detection, which heavily involves the task of object detection. Improving the performance of object region detection approaches is of great importance and therefore is an active ongoing research in Computer Vision. Traditional sliding window paradigm has been widely used to identify hundreds of thousands of windows (covering different scales, angles, and aspect ratios for objects) before the classification step. However, it is not only computationally expensive but also produces relatively low accuracy in terms of the classifier output by providing many negative samples. Object …

Identification Of Sperm Chromatin Proteins As Candidate Markers Of Stallion Fertility, Chelsea C. Ketchum

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

During spermatogenesis, histones are largely replaced by transition proteins and protamines in normal stallions. Incomplete nucleoprotein exchange results in the abnormal retention of histones and transition proteins, which is an indicator of poor sperm quality. Equine nucleoprotein exchange has not previously been investigated in detail, so that equine sperm chromatin quality problems, which are often responsible for poor breeding performance of stallions, are not well understood. In order to characterize chromatin remodeling events in stallion spermatogenesis and to identify proteins indicative of sperm chromatin defects, such as excessive amounts of histones, we identified antibodies that recognize equine testis-specific proteins of …

Investigating Rapid Concrete Repair Materials And Admixtures, Ivan Quezada

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This dissertation presents a literature review of the state-of-practice for the use of IC in concrete mixtures and how structural engineers and construction engineers can adapt IC to their present and future work. Current high early strength concrete mixtures have natural cracking and shrinkage problems due to the high content of cementitious material or their chemical components. Using IC allows for early strength, enhanced durability, reduced shrinkage and a better curing by providing water that can be absorbed by the cement past after the final set. Rapid hydration and high early strength Portland cement and calcium sulfoaluminate (CSA) concretes are …

A Needs Assessment Of Arizona Agricultural Education Equine Science Curriculum, Emily Tobler

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Like any other agricultural industry, many different career paths in the equine field are becoming more technologically advanced. To adapt to technological progress, current standards need to be integrated into school-based agricultural education courses to properly train and teach students about current industry standards. In addition to equine science curriculum development, emphasis must also be focused on providing assistance to secondary-school-based agriculture teachers so they can effectively teach industry-based equine science objectives in their programs.

The equine curriculum objectives were measured in terms of perceived importance by equine professionals and post-secondary equine educators as well as Arizona school-based agriculture teachers. …

Quantum Mechanical Studies Of N-H···N Hydrogen Bonding In Acetamide Derivatives And Amino Acids, Sandra J. Lundell

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Proteins are made of vast chains of amino acids that twist and fold into intricate designs. These structures are held in place by networks of noncovalent interactions. One of these, the hydrogen bond, forms bridges between adjacent pieces of the protein chain and is one of the most important contributors to the shape and stability of proteins. Hydrogen bonds come in all shapes and sizes and a full understanding of these not only aids in our understanding of proteins in general but can bridge the gap to finding cures to many protein-related diseases, such as sickle-cell anemia. The primary aim …

Transcending The Panels: Varieties Of Experience And Selfhood In Comics., Will D. Simpson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this dissertation, I argue that the typical formal features of American comics over the past century have influenced the types of narrative content that tend to be communicated by said medium. I argue that the types of reader experiences that are afforded by the comics form, in part, shape the types of stories told through comics. The experiences that result from the ways we engage perceptually, cognitively, emotionally, and conceptually with comics imply a certain view of selfhood that is potentially subversive in the context of American cultural religiosity and spirituality. The formal features of comics, and the resulting …

The Predictive Ability Of Self-Control And Differential Association On Sports Fans’ Decision To Engage In Cyber Bullying Perpetration Against Rivals, Seyyed Masoomeh S. Shadmanfaat, Christian Jordan-Michael Howell, Caitlyn N. Muniz, John K. Cochran, Saeed Kabiri, Dustin A. Richardson

Criminology Faculty Publications

A sample of 318 students from two Iranian universities was employed to conduct a test of Gottfredson and Hirschi’s self-control theory and elements of Akers’ social learning theory. Specifically, we sought to determine whether these theories are capable of explaining the decision to cyber bully members and fans of rival sports teams. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze these data. Findings suggest that individuals with low levels of self-control are more likely to engage in cyber bullying perpetration. Similarly, those who associate with delinquent peers are more likely to engage in cyber bullying perpetration. Additionally, we found that ineffective …

Lead And Crime: An Ecological Study Between Lead Contaminated Topsoil And Violent Crime., Brian Guinn

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Lead is a known neurotoxicant. Human exposure to lead comes primarily through environmental exposures, including remnant lead paint, lead contaminated topsoil and lead contaminated water. Prenatal and early life lead exposure has been associated with numerous neurocognitive and neuropsychiatric disorders. This dissertation presents findings from an ecological study which evaluated the geospatial association between topsoil lead content and the incidence of FBI designated violent crime in Jefferson County, Kentucky. A total of 412 topsoil samples were collected along roadways (n=300) and from Louisville Metro Parks (n=112). Jefferson County crime data was obtained from the Louisville Metro Police Department – Crime …

Assessing The Role Of Arsenite In Disrupting The Egfr Signaling Axis., Christine Kim

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is a receptor tyrosine kinase localized on the cell surface. Overexpression of EGFR has been used as biomarkers for many different types of cancers, including lung cancer. There is a strong association between arsenic and lung cancer development, although the mechanism is unclear. We hypothesize that chronic exposure of “a physiologically relevant” level of arsenite disrupts the EGFR endocytic trafficking. The goal of this project is to identify molecular mechanisms and roles of chronic arsenite-induced EGFR overexpression in lung cancer development. A non-malignant human bronchial epithelial cell line, Beas-2B cells were exposed to 100 …

The Study Of Culturally Relevant Visual Imagery And Student Interest In Contemporary Secondary Art Classrooms, Carly Marie Anderson

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Contemporary art pedagogy indicates some educators are using visual cultural exemplars that contain little cultural relevance to many students in their secondary art classrooms. The purpose of this study was to investigate students’ preferences and interests concerning visual imagery as the focus of curricular content in current secondary art classrooms in Southwest Missouri. This investigation began with a review of visual imagery within traditional fine art academies and what role this imagery plays in contemporary art rooms. The research question included: Were current secondary art students more interested in contemporary, culturally relevant imagery or traditional Eurocentric Western fine art imagery? …

Did Hollywood Take Theatre "By Hook Or By Crook?", Catherine S. Wright

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Hollywood and Theatre have been partners in producing entertainment for over 100 years. The relationship was fruitful for both parties, but Hollywood moguls and playwrights battled over ownership of the work and crafting of its creative nucleus, story and character. Theatre was the dominant entertainment right before the rise of motion pictures. Once Hollywood’s talkies closed the curtain on silent films, playwrights had a high creative worth to movie makers. In the cinema, story and dialogue were essential for its survival and growth. Playwrights were courted by the Hollywood studio heads but were not offered equal partnership as they were …

The Role Of Direct-Injury Government-Entity Lawsuits In The Opioid Litigation, Edgar Aliferov

Fordham Law Review

The opioid epidemic has ravaged the United States, killing over 100 Americans every day and costing the nation upward of $90 billion a year. All branches and levels of the government have pursued measures to combat the epidemic and reduce its societal costs. Perhaps the most interesting response is the emergence of direct-injury government-entity lawsuits, which seek to recover damages from opioid companies that facilitated prescription pill addictions. Cities, counties, and states across the country are suing opioid manufacturers and distributors in unprecedented numbers. This Note explores the role of direct-injury government-entity claims as compared to other forms of civil …

Lady Justice Cannot Hear Your Prayers, Deborah Ogali

Fordham Law Review

The Islamic finance industry continues to grow quickly as the appetite for everything, from Sharia-compliant home mortgages and car loans to sophisticated financial products, increases. This growth has triggered an interest in sukuk, bond-like financial instruments. And while the international market for sukuk has long been dominated by foreign issuers and English law, the attraction of a niche market compatible with U.S. federal and international securities laws may propel increased participation by U.S. issuers and investors who wish to transact under U.S. federal and state laws. As with all Islamic financial products, sukuk transactions inherently pose a Sharia compliance risk. …

Building Shared Values In The Community: Culture Of Health, Donnelle D. Storrs

Doctor of Nursing Practice

The zip codes where patients live are stronger determinants of health outcomes than the frequency of visits with a primary care provider. Providers have a unique opportunity to extend health care beyond the clinic walls and engage in efforts to improve the communities where their patients grow, live, work, and age. In order to impact the health of patients, a culture of health needs to be developed. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation culture of health action framework directed the build of a foundation of health as a shared value in a neighborhood with high morbidity and mortality rates in southwest …

Implementing Pneumococcal Vaccination Recommendations For Adults Age 19 And Over In A Family Care Clinic, Truc Le

Doctor of Nursing Practice

Pneumococcal vaccines are essential to children and adults. Having pneumococcal vaccines not only prevents pneumococcal infections but can also potentially lessen the severity of the disease. There are many scholarly articles attesting the herd effect in adults who received pneumococcal vaccines. Therefore, the purpose of this quality improvement project was to raise awareness of the pneumococcal vaccine and increase the vaccination rate in a primary care clinic in Texas. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s pneumococcal vaccination schedule was utilized as guide for vaccine administration. The staff and provider were educated on screening, documenting, and administering the pneumococcal vaccine …

Anemia Management For Patients Receiving Peritoneal Dialysis, Kenisha Marajah

Doctor of Nursing Practice

The purpose of this quality improvement project was to develop an anemia management evidence-based intervention for patients receiving peritoneal dialysis (PD) and to educate staff on implementation of the anemia management protocol in a PD clinic in a southwestern county in Texas. Anemia is a common complication of chronic kidney disease (CKD) resulting from the inability of the kidneys to produce erythropoietin needed for red blood cell production. Erythropoiesis-stimulating agents such as Aranesp or Epogen may be administered to dialysis patients to stimulate erythropoiesis in the presence of kidney disease. Iron storage and iron availability remains imperative in effectively stimulating …

Populist Placemaking: Grounds For Open Government-Citizen Spatial Regulating Discourse, Michael N. Widener

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

Privacy Spaces, Bert-Jaap Koops

West Virginia Law Review

Privacy literature contains conceptualizations of privacy in relation to role-playing and identity construction, and in relation to access control and boundary-management. In this paper, I combine both strands to introduce the concept of privacy spaces: spaces in which you can play, in your own way, the relevant role(s) you have in social life. Drawing from privacy conceptions in legal scholarship, philosophy, sociology, anthropology, human geography, and psychology, a systematic overview of traditional privacy spaces is offered, including mental bubbles, the body, personal space, personal writings, the home, private conversation space, cars, stalls, intimacy bubbles, professional black boxes, coffee house spaces, …

Ucc Minutes, December 2018, University Curriculum Council

UCC Agendas/Minutes

No abstract provided.

Mid-Level Student Affairs Professionals Worklife Negotiation And The Use Of Mobile Technology: A Case Study, Christopher M. Mullen

Dissertations

The mainstream media and academic research have covered worklife balance increasingly over the last couple of decades. Worklife balance, the notion that one’s work and life domains are equal, is a challenge for most working professionals. It has become even more significant with the prevalence of mobile technology such as smartphones and the continuously connected society in which we live. Student affairs professionals are not immune to worklife balance issues, particularly because they are in a field in which there are long hours and night and weekend work. This dissertation study uses work/family border theory to consider the following research …

Applying The Principles Of Universal Design For Learning (Udl) In The College Classroom, Kathleen A. Boothe, Marla J. Lohmann, Kimberly A. Donnell, D. Dean Hall

The Journal of Special Education Apprenticeship

Universities are charged with educating students from diverse backgrounds, including ELL students, nontraditional students, military students, first generation college students, and students with disabilities. In order to meet the wide variety of learning needs and abilities in the college classroom, teachers must find innovative methods for reaching this diverse population of students. One potential solution is Universal Design for Learning (UDL). Through instructional and assessment strategies that address the “why”, how”, and “what” of learning, the UDL approach ensures that all students can learn. The research regarding the concept of using UDL in the college classroom is minimal, but shows …

Universal Design For Transition: A Conceptual Framework For Blending Academics And Transition Instruction, Laron A. Scott, Lauren Bruno

The Journal of Special Education Apprenticeship

This theoretical paper comprised the development of a conceptual framework for blending academic and transition content to help members of the special education field meet both the academic and transition needs of students with disabilities, including students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). The current conceptual framework was used to explain how the components from Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and transition are blended to create the Universal Design for Transition (UDT) framework, which is a guide for implementing and promoting barrier-free transitions. In the current study, the final conceptual framework included multiple components that use the following UDL academic …

Geological And Environmental Sciences - 2018

Geological and Environmental Sciences News

• Greetings from the Chair
• Faculty Updates
• Welcome to Dinosaur Park - New modules and upcoming additions to the park
• Hydrogeology Field Course
• CoreKids
• Field Course in Marquette
• Advisory Council
• Alumni Achievement Award
• MGRRE (Michigan Geological Repository for Research and Education)
• Michigan Geological Survey
• Student updates - SEG, AAPG, Geology club, Welcome new graduate students
• Department Achievements - Grants, Donors, Awards, and Publications

Art Brut & Bricolage: Manifesting Alternate Imaginaries Of The Waste Cataclysm, Dominic Alan Chequer

Communication Studies

Living within a consumer society that boasts increased sustainable consumption as the panacea to large-scale environmental degradation, the social avoidance of waste becomes an interesting psychological battleground in developing an environmentally sustainable future. In light of this situation, I used my participation in the design of a music festival to create a social critique by design. Using artistic techniques of bricolage and aesthetic upcycling, under the visage of art brut. The paper blends theory and practice, ideas with tangible outputs.

Online Child’S Health Assessment Tool For Obesity Prevention Programming, Laura Palmer, Kimberly Mccarthy, Daniel Perkins, Lynne Borden

Journal of Youth Development

To optimize public health in the next decade, prevention of childhood obesity will remain a central focus. To impact behavioral change, data must be linked to continuous quality improvements within existing nutrition and physical activity programming. The Children, Youth, and Families At-Risk Professional Development and Technical Assistance Center has developed a picture-based, online survey tool, the CYFAR Health Assessment Tool (CHAT), to assess health behaviors in youth ages 6 to18 years of age. Used for continuous program improvement, aggregate data results are coupled with tailored health recommendations in 4 domains (behavior and environmental modifications, education, and direct strategies) and evidence-informed …

2018-December-01-2018 Recap, University Marketing And Communications, East Tennessee State University

ETSU News

As we enjoy the excitement of a new year, let’s take a moment to look back at 2018. In case you missed it, or want to remember the milestones and achievements celebrated by the ETSU community this year, take a look at the headlines below.

Be sure to share your favorite stories with friends and family, and on social media.  New audiology clinic opens in Elizabethton 

Seven athletes with ties to ETSU selected to compete in Winter Olympics

Open textbook network established

Dr. Brian Cross named a Fulbright Scholar

Gatton’s GenRx committee named best in nation for the third time …

2018-December-01-Archives Anniversary, University Marketing And Communications, East Tennessee State University

ETSU News

JOHNSON CITY – East Tennessee State University’s Center of Excellence for Appalachian Studies and Services (CASS) is marking the 40^th anniversary of the founding of its Archives of Appalachia.

During the past four decades, the Archives of Appalachia has acquired a world-class repository of more than 800 collections, 84,000 sound recordings and nearly 8,000 moving images, making it one of the world’s leading regional archives.

The Archives began in 1978 to promote an awareness of and appreciation for Appalachian culture and history.  Among its earliest collections was the Burton-Manning collection, an oral history archive of Appalachian folklore, manners and …

2018-December-01-Renaissance Child Winter Enrichment, University Marketing And Communications, East Tennessee State University

ETSU News

JOHNSON CITY – Children in grades K-6 are invited to attend the Renaissance Child Winter Enrichment for a festival of winter fun from Wednesday-Friday, Jan. 2-4, 2019.

This three-day camp is sponsored by the Office of Professional Development in East Tennessee State University’s School of Continuing Studies and Academic Outreach.

Campers will participate in a variety of holiday arts and crafts, games and winter fun enrichment activities.  The camp includes a trip to Ober Gatlinburg on Thursday to see the holiday lights and to ice skate.

Campers may be dropped off at ETSU’s Sam Wilson Hall at 8 a.m. and …

Fall Field Report, August - November 2018, W. Ross Silcock

Nebraska Bird Review

As far as birds go, this was a relatively quiet season, but, as usual, there was much of interest to chew on. Most important in any report are range changes, major changes in expected numbers or early and late dates, all of which relate directly to the status, positive or negative, of a given species.

Waterfowl in general were only average in numbers; new high counts are rare these days compared with numbers 20 or so years ago. Two winter finches, Common Redpoll and Red Crossbill, that normally arrive in late fall, were virtually unreported. Notable range expansions are under …