Digital Commons Network^™

Navigating Risks Across Borders: The Lived Experiences Of Central American Women Migrants, Carla Angulo-Pasel

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The journey for ‘unauthorized’ migrant women from the Northern Triangle of Central America (NTCA) through Mexico dangerous and violent. In hopes of achieving safe passage to the United States (U.S.), women migrants will have to navigate borders. In this dissertation, I use the concept of borders to reveal the gendered experiences of (im)mobility. I argue that navigating borders throughout the migratory journey is not simply about experiencing the risks and vulnerabilities associated with restrictive border enforcement policies and practices implemented by the nation-state. (Im)mobility for women migrants is equally about the boundaries and/or barriers that are created by oppressive systems …

Relationships Between Factors Influencing Biofilm Formation And Pathogen Retention In Complex Rhizosphere Microbial Communities, Aaron Coristine

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Riparian wetlands are unique habitats facilitating all forms of life. The riverbanks of these environments provide ideal conditions for bacteria, plants, and higher organisms. Of particular interest to this research was the variation in microbial community structure at high, intermediate and poor water quality impacted areas. Assessing the capabilities of plants to retain microbial pathogens was identified. Root systems and corresponding soil are ideal locations for bacterial deposition, resulting in attachment at these areas. Biofilm production in these regions is important for long-term establishment, leading to persistence and potential naturalization. Opportunistic pathogens originating from mammalian fecal matter are introduced into …

Confronting Sexism In Science, Technology, Engineering, And Math (Stem): What Are The Consequences?, Eden J.V. Hennessey

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Disparaging remarks that female scientists are ‘Distractingly Sexy’ (Waxman, 2015) and ‘Too Pretty to Do Math’ t-shirts (Amazon.com) highlight the common belief that women in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) violate perceived gender norms. However, by confronting these beliefs, women may incur a ‘double-dose’ of hostility; once for being present in science, and again because of the confrontation itself (Kaiser & Miller, 2001). Across three studies, this research tested how women confronting sexism in STEM contexts would elicit and anticipate social costs. Study 1 showed that male participants rated a hypothetical female confronter in STEM higher in bossiness and …

Differences In Perceptions Of Aperture Crossing During A Virtual Reality Choice Reaction Task Between Non-Athletes And Varsity Athletes, Jaime Mitchell

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Background: Vision will guide the actions and behaviors that allow us to circumvent environmental obstacles. When passing through a gap, individuals will consistently elicit a shoulder rotation (SR) if the gap is 1.4 times their shoulder width (SW) or narrower, with this behaviour being produced under various environmental conditions. Although a few studies have investigated perceptual predictions regarding gap passage, the effect of physical activity and the differences between trained and untrained athlete’s behaviours has not been examined. This study investigated the perceptual judgements of non-athletes and varsity athletes regarding the action they would utilize to pass through a dynamically …

Bioinformatic Interrogation Of Phosphonate Tailoring Pathways, Monica Papinski

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Phosphonates represent an underexploited class of natural products despite their tremendous potential for use in medicine and agriculture. Even less characterized are phosphonate-containing macromolecules such as cell wall lipids and glycans, distinguished by a P-C bond known to provide stability towards hydrolysis. Despite some progress made in revealing cell wall phosphonate tailoring (Pnt) pathways, several barriers impede the discovery and characterization of novel phosphonate biosynthetic pathways. Specifically, a large diversity of gene composition and arrangement is evident surrounding key genes established to participate in phosphonate tailoring pathways, which are identified alongside the presence of the ppm gene encoding the P-C …

Gill Structure & Function In Parasitic And Non-Parasitic Lampreys: The Effects Of Metamorphosis And Freshwater-Seawater Transfer, Julia Sunga

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Lamprey (Petromyzontiformes) are a phylogenetically ancient group of jawless fishes that begin their lives as filter-feeding larvae (ammocoetes) before undergoing a complex metamorphosis into juvenile lamprey that involves major changes to their internal and external body plan. Some parasitic species, such as the sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus), migrate to sea following metamorphosis, where they use their oral discs and rasping tongue to attach to and ingest vast quantities of blood from fishes. Thus, sea lamprey have to counter the simultaneous challenges of hyposmoregulation in sea water and the generation of large quantities of ammonia due to the …

Do Early Community-Based Initiatives Predict Social Anxiety 20 Years Later?, Christina Dimakos

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Social anxiety disorder is characterized by an extreme and persistent fear of embarrassment or scrutiny in social or performance situations. This condition is among the most common mental illnesses and is characterized by an early onset, chronic course, and significant associated health and social service costs. Nevertheless, it remains among the least recognized, researched, and treated mental health conditions. Critically, broader community characteristics have yet to be considered as valuable tools for disrupting the onset and maintenance of social anxiety. The present study examined the long-term impact of a comprehensive, holistic, community-based early childhood development initiative on social anxiety in …

Benchmarking Treatment Response In Tourette’S Disorder: A Psychometric Evaluation And Signal Detection Analysis Of The Parent Tic Questionnaire, Madeline M. Rasch, Douglas W. Woods, Matthew W. Specht, John T. Walkup, Lawrence Scahill, Sabine Wilhelm, Alan L. Peterson, John Piacentini

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

This study assessed the psychometric properties of a parent-reported tic severity measure, the Parent Tic Questionnaire (PTQ), and used the scale to establish guidelines for delineating clinically significant tic treatment response. Participants were 126 children ages 9 to 17 who participated in a randomized controlled trial of Comprehensive Behavioral Intervention for Tics (CBIT). Tic severity was assessed using the Yale Global Tic Severity Scale (YGTSS), Hopkins Motor/Vocal Tic Scale (HMVTS) and PTQ; positive treatment response was defined by a score of 1 (very much improved) or 2 (much improved) on the Clinical Global Impressions – Improvement …

Analysis Of Ambient Particulate Concentration Near A Coal Storage Pile, Jennifer Wittenburg

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Fugitive dust sources such as aggregate storage piles contribute significantly to the total suspended particulate levels in the ambient air. Particulate levels are monitored and regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency to protect public health and welfare. This study monitored particulate concentrations in the ambient air near a coal storage pile. Air samplers and weather stations were placed at two locations, one to the north of the pile and one to the south of the pile, and were used to collect particulate and weather related data.

The data were analyzed to determine the origin of the particulate and to identify …

Exploring Critical Success Factors Of Community Development Projects, Kevin Wanjama Muchiri

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Theses & Dissertations

The utilization of Community Development Projects in developing nations continues to increase in significance. In the wake of the latest Sustainable Development Goals, developing nations are working towards eliminating poverty, promoting sustainable cities and communities, gender equality, and health and well-being. Although Community Development Projects have become prevalent, the challenge has been that some are successful, while others fail. This dissertation investigates what makes Community Development Projects successful.

This dissertation implemented a comprehensive quantitative analysis using data collected from over one hundred community development projects obtained from The World Bank database. These projects took place in developing nations around the …

Memory And Executive Functions In Alexithymia, Nicolas Vermeulen, Irena Domachowska, Kristy A. Nielson

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

No abstract provided.

Selection And Implementation Of Skill Acquisition Programs By Special Education Teachers And Staff For Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Tiffany Kodak, Tom Cariveau, Brittany A. Leblanc

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

The present investigation examined special education teachers’ selection and use of teaching strategies for receptive identification training with children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in their classrooms. Teachers first responded to a survey in which they provided examples of receptive identification tasks taught in their classrooms, rated the efficacy of teaching strategies, described how they determined whether skills were mastered, listed any assessments they conducted to identify relevant prerequisite skills prior to receptive identification training, described how they selected teaching strategies for use in their classrooms, and listed their years of experience as a teacher and working with children with …

Slow And Deliberate Cooperation In The Commons, Chris Brozyna, Todd Guilfoos, Stephen Atlas

Environmental and Natural Resource Economics Faculty Publications

We test how fast and slow thought processes affect cooperation for sustainability by manipulating time pressure in a dynamic common-pool resource experiment. Sustainable management of shared resources critically depends on decisions in the current period to leave enough stock so that future generations are able to draw on the remaining limited natural resources. An intertemporal common-pool resource game represents a typical dynamic for social dilemmas involving natural resources. Using one such game, we analyse decisions throughout time. We find that people in this context deplete the common resource to a greater extent under time pressure, which leads to greater likelihood …

Independent Introductions And Sequential Founder Events Shape Genetic Differentiation And Diversity Of The Invasive Green Anole (Anolis Carolinensis) On Pacific Islands, Sozos N. Michaelides, Rachel M. Goodman, Ronald I. Crombie, Jason J. Kolbe

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Aim: Natural range expansions and human‐mediated colonizations usually involve a small number of individuals that establish new populations in novel habitats. In both cases, founders carry only a fraction of the total genetic variation of the source populations. Here, we used native and non‐native populations of the green anole, Anolis carolinensis, to compare the current distribution of genetic variation in populations shaped by natural range expansion and human‐mediated colonization.

Location: North America, Hawaiian Islands, Western Pacific Islands.

Methods: We analysed 401 mtDNA haplotypes to infer the colonization history of A. carolinensis on nine islands in the …

Treating Outer Space Like A Place: A Case For Rejecting Other Domain Analogies, Elizabeth Mendenhall

Marine Affairs Faculty Publications

The creation and augmentation of the outer space governance regime during the twentieth century was guided by the use of analogies with other planetary domains. These analogies compare the “target” domain of outer space with various “source” domains, especially airspace, the seabed, the high seas, and Antarctica. These analogies, highlighted at different times to provide guidance on the regulation of existing and emerging space activities, shaped the fundamental principles and rules of the Outer Space Treaty. A survey of contemporary literature demonstrates that analogies continue to be used to structure thinking about outer space activities. This paper argues that such …

Analysis Of Band Pair Formation In Elasmobranch Vertebrae With Implications For Fisheries Management, Kelsey James

Open Access Dissertations

Sharks, skates, and rays are particularly sensitive to over-exploitation due to their life history traits (slow growth, late age at maturity, small litter size, and extended longevity). It is important to know the age of sharks, skates, and rays because it has implications for our ability to assess the status of populations and to manage fisheries. They are aged most often using the concentric bands that alternate in appearance: opaque and translucent in their vertebral centra. An opaque and translucent band together (a band pair) is assumed to represent one year of growth and is counted to estimate an individual’s …

Utilization Of Probiotics To Manage Epizootic Shell Disease In American Lobsters, Homarus Americanus, Melissa Hoffman

Open Access Master's Theses

Epizootic shell disease (ESD) in the American lobster, Homarus americanus, has a major impact on the southern New England lobster industry, yet there are no practical tools for managing the disease. The goal of this study was to identify bacterial probiotics that could be used to manage ESD in wild lobster populations. Candidate bacterial isolates (n = 24) were previously isolated from lobsters in Narragansett Bay and identified as having probiotic characteristics against ESD-associated bacteria Thalassobius sp. and Aquimarina macrocephali, or the fish pathogen Vibrio anguillarum. Healthy lobster post-larvae were exposed to five of the candidate strains …

Life History Parameters Of Blue Sharks, Katherine Viducic

Open Access Master's Theses

The blue shark, Prionace glauca, is a pelagic elasmobranch that is found globally in tropic, sub-tropic, and warm temperate seas including the Mediterranean. Blue shark populations are not considered to be threatened, but a rapidly changing climate and uncertainties in fishing mortality are causing concern for changes in life history characteristics. Yet, no studies have examined such parameters for this species in over 35 years. We used 858 blue shark specimens, ranging from 1971 to 2016, to determine fork length, age, and weight at maturity, as well as measurements of reproductive organs (e.g., teste length, egg diameter) for both …

Effort Control In The Artisanal Canoe Fishery Of Ghana: Implications And Likelihood Of Success, Rosina Cobbina

Open Access Master's Theses

One of the major ways to reduce pressure on a declining fishery is through effort controls and this most often is seen to have both positive and negative effects on the people whose livelihoods depend on the fishery, specifically in instances where the control of effort leads to the exclusion of fishers out of the fishery. This study looks at some of the factors that will affect artisanal Ghanaian fishers’ willingness to exit a declining fishery. It looks at what these fishers perceived to be their alternative livelihood options. The study found that fishers in an urbanized and developed area …

Bodies Of Water: Designing Resilient Dive Tourism Through Underwater Sculpture, Rennie Meyers

Open Access Master's Theses

As marine ecologies at global and local scales respond to the manifold impacts of global climate change, so too must the dive tourism industry adapt to new ocean dynamics. To be resilient in the face of ongoing change these adaptations are necessarily local, environmentally aware, and systematic. On Lanzarote, a volcanic island at the northern end of the Canary Island archipelago, tourism developers have long claimed a particular skill in implementing environmentally aware, adaptive tourism infrastructure projects on land. At the peak of package tourism development in the 1960s, Lanzarote’s tourism board invested in César Manrique’s particular brand of Modernist …

Eastern Oyster Larval Transcriptomes In Response To Probiotic And Pathogenic Bacteria, Tejashree Modak

Open Access Dissertations

Oysters are described as keystone species serving an important ecological role. As filter-feeders they help in maintaining water quality. Oyster reefs provide refuge and support to different organisms. The eastern oyster, Crassostrea virginica, native to the East Coast of United States and Gulf of Mexico is a part of the rapidly growing aquaculture industry. Aquaculture production depends on a healthy and constant supply of oyster larvae that are provided by hatcheries. Several hatcheries on the east coast that provide C. virginica seed to oyster farms face significant losses owing to Vibrio infections causing massive larval mortalities. Use of antibiotics …

Mary Hester Mendenhall Papers - Accession 1370, Mary Hester Mendenhall

Manuscript Collection

The Mary Hester Mendenhall Papers consist of records from Winthrop Alumna, Mary Hester Mendenhall. Mary Hester Mendenhall was a graduate of Winthrop Normal and Industrial College in 1914. The collection contains numerous notebooks for courses taken at Winthrop from 1910 to 1914 and offers a glimpse into the curriculum of a student at Winthrop in the early 1910s. The course notebooks in this collection are indicative of the courses in agriculture, biology, history, English, psychology, and education classes taught at the college from 1910 to 1914.

Organized Gaming And Its Effect On Collegiate Academics, Mark Cochran

Honors Program Theses

With the emergence of gaming as an ever more popular pass time, and professional level eSports gaining steam, collegiate student organizations are beginning to reflect this change as well. This study of 166 college students from across the United States addresses the rise of gaming organizations and their subsequent effects of collegiate academics, namely grade point averages (GPA). The results suggest that participation in an organization dedicated to gaming results in a slightly lower GPA than those involved in other organizations, but still higher than average pointing towards factors of involvement still benefiting students. An important factor to note is …

Biotech Fever: Market Overreaction To Fda Clinical Trials, Ethan J. Hugstad

Honors Program Theses

Picture this: someone buys the stock of a firm that is about to announce the results of a drug’s FDA clinical trial the next day. They go to bed that night, imagining the potential of their newly owned business to finally cure a disease that has impacted so many families. They wake up the next morning to find that the firm has lost half of its market value because the drug failed. This is the stark reality that many small investors face: the unpredictability of price movements in response to nonfinancial information being released to the public.

English Proficiency And Earnings Of U.S. Immigrants, Toni F. Moeller

Honors Program Theses

Every year thousands of immigrants come to the United States and look to join the labor force. Most of these immigrants have a first language that is not English. This study analyzes how wage income, business and farm income, and investment income are affected by English proficiency in 2004, 2009, and 2014. I use data from the American Community Survey and a log-linear econometric model to explore this relationship. I conclude that wage income and business and farm income had a positive relationship with English proficiency in 2004, 2009, and 2014 whereas investment income only had a significant positive relationship …

Trauma, Depression, And Burnout In The Human Rights Field: Identifying Barriers And Pathways To Resilient Advocacy, Sarah Knuckey, Margaret Satterthwaite, Adam Brown

Faculty Scholarship

Human rights advocates often confront trauma and stress in their work. They are exposed to testimony about heinous abuses; work in insecure locations; visit physical sites of abuse; review forensic, photographic, and video evidence; directly witness abuses; experience threats; and can also suffer detention, be attacked, or be tortured themselves. Such exposure risks adversely impacting the wellbeing and mental health of advocates. While the human rights field is diverse and work varies widely, most – if not all – advocates are likely directly or indirectly exposed to potentially traumatic events or material in the course of their work. The degree …

The Lopsided Harms Of Reproductive Negligence, Carol Sanger

Faculty Scholarship

The concept of reproductive negligence is probably not unfamiliar to men and women of child-bearing or child-begetting age. Many a restless hour has been spent worrying about the consequences of a skipped pill, an abandoned condom, or some other form of contraceptive carelessness. The general rule in such circumstances is that the injured party has no recourse in tort against a sexual partner whose negligence resulted, say, in a pregnancy. (Interestingly, liability may arise as the result of the negligent transmission of herpes.) To be sure, not all reproductive misconduct is negligent; some is intentional, as when a sexual partner …

Bearing Faith: The Limits Of Catholic Health Care For Women Of Color, Kira Shepherd, Elizabeth Reiner Platt, Katherine M. Franke, Elizabeth Boylan

Faculty Scholarship

This study finds that in nineteen out of the thirty-four states/territories that we studied, women of color are more likely than white women to give birth at hospitals bound by the ERDs. Women of color’s disproportionate reliance on Catholic hospitals in these states increases their exposure to restrictions that place religious ideology over best medical practices.

To determine whether women of color disproportionately give birth at hospitals operating under the ERDs, we compared the percentage of births to women of color at Catholic and non-Catholic hospitals. In over half of the states we studied (19 out of 33 states plus …

The Empirical Turn In Family Law, Clare Huntington

Faculty Scholarship

Historically, the legal system justified family law’s rules and policies through morality, common sense, and prevailing cultural norms. In a sharp departure, and consistent with a broader trend across the legal system, empirical evidence increasingly dominates the regulation of families.

There is much to celebrate in this empirical turn. Properly used, empirical evidence in family law can help the state act more effectively and efficiently, unmask prejudice, and depoliticize contentious battles. But the empirical turn also presents substantial concerns. Beyond perennial issues of the quality of empirical evidence and the ability of legal actors to use it, there are more …

Unf Journal Winter 2018, University Of North Florida

UNF Journal

A university periodical for alumni and friends of the University of North Florida.