Digital Commons Network^™

Undergraduate Research Contest: Fictional Reactions To Disaster, Darian Bianco

EKU Libraries Research Award for Undergraduates

No abstract provided.

Advertising In A World Full Of Human Trafficking: How Advertising And Human Trafficking Coincide, April M. Cherry

EKU Libraries Research Award for Undergraduates

No abstract provided.

Recessions Or Partisanship: What Explains Climate Skepticism In The U.S.?, Abhishek S. Sambatur

Undergraduate Economic Review

This paper investigates the variations in public mood pertaining to climate skepticism and attempts to empirically assess whether economic recessions or partisanship help explain aggregate-level trends and movements across a 16-year time horizon. Public survey data from the iPoll and Gallup Organization were used to construct the Climate Change Skeptic Index (CCSI) that served as a proxy to capture public opinion trends in skepticism across the U.S. A two-part vector autoregressive model suggests that while economic recessions might be causally linked to climate skepticism, partisanship plays a more influential role in explaining it over time. The key result is that …

Induction Of Beta-Cell Regeneration By Activin-Like Kinase 3 Stimulation, Mirza Muhammad Fahd Qadir

Open Access Dissertations

Glucose homeostasis is maintained and tightly regulated via production of key hormones that control the uptake and metabolism of glucose. β-cells, which secrete insulin, are the subject of autoimmune destruction in type 1 diabetes. From a developmental standpoint, Bone Morphogenetic Protein receptors (BMPRs) have a key role in multiple cell processes, including proliferation and differentiation. Targeting these receptors to identify and induce the proliferation of progenitor cells could have therapeutic applications. Previous studies have shown the conversion of the exocrine compartment of the pancreas to form insulin-producing cells. In this context, we have identified a cell residing in the pancreatic …

Genomic Analyses Reveal The Evolutionary Dynamics Of Speciation In Two Tropical Avian Systems, Sarah Alison Cowles

Open Access Dissertations

The process of speciation is long and complex, and takes place in multiple stages, with a variety of potential outcomes. Studying lineages at different stages in the speciation process can lend insight into the evolutionary factors that generate and maintain biodiversity. For my dissertation, I used two genomic datasets generated from field-collected DNA samples in two tropical avian systems to examine the early and late stages of the speciation process. I studied the initial stages of speciation in the Amazilia Hummingbird (Amazilia amazilia) subspecies complex. Found across Ecuador and Peru, this species is split into six phenotypically differentiated …

The Effects Of Environmental Variables And Anthropogenic Pollutants On The Physiology And Behavior Of Marine Fishes, Lela S. Schlenker

Open Access Dissertations

In the face of rapidly changing environmental conditions due to human mediated climate change and large-scale pollution events such as the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, it is critical to understand the relationship between environmental stimuli and the behavior of marine fishes. Sustainable management of commercially important and highly migratory fish species, such as mahi-mahi (Coryphaena hippurus), as well as unfished reef species, like the bicolor damselfish (Stegastes partitus), depend upon our understanding of their physiology and behavior in response to changing habitat conditions. Olfaction is critical for fish to detect environmental cues and triggers behaviors that …

The Plastic Crisis Goes Public: Representations Of Plastic Pollution In Environmental Media, Savannah Geary

Open Access Theses

Plastic pollution emerged as a landmark environmental issue in the last few years, and as such, has appeared in environmental media. This thesis examines the representations of plastic pollution in environmental communication campaigns, social media of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), environmental campaigns created by the advertising industry, corporate environmentalism efforts, and media from concerned individuals. While plastic materials began as a way to mimic materials found in nature, their ubiquity, heavy promotion from petrochemical companies, and widespread adoption as single-use disposables outpaced waste disposal measures. NGOs and nonprofits unite under networked environmental campaigns, invoke agenda-setting theory, and favor framing that features …

Reflections On Teaching Through Research Writing, Literature Analysis, Expressive Writing And The Graphic Novel, Natalie S. Johnson

Master of Arts in English Plan II Graduate Projects

This is Natalie S. Johnson’s final portfolio for her M.A. in English (with a specialization in teaching). It includes a reflective narrative and four revised pieces: “Information Literacy Study and Teaching Student Writing of Research Papers,” “Notes on Baudelaire, Modernity and The Painter of Modern Life,” “Expressive Writing: A Literature Review,” and “Teaching of Social Constructs Through Graphic Novel Study: Challenge Factors.” The portfolio focuses on research and study that developed Johnson’s classroom pedagogy and philosophy toward improved teaching and learning.

Measuring The Bioeconomic Impacts Of Prolonged Drought On A Lake Ecosystem: The Case For The Great Salt Lake, Utah, Arthur J. Caplan, Dong-Hun Go

Applied Economics Faculty Publications

We present a general-equilibrium (GE) bioeconomic model of Utah's Great Salt Lake (GSL) ecosystem that tightly links the lake's ecosystem with its regional economy and attendant international trading partners, thereby enabling full identification of dynamic feedback effects in the presence of prolonged drought. The drought modeled here mimics a drying climate's impact on the lake's nutrient pool. We demonstrate how prolonged drought affects key bioeconomic variables over time, and how the GSL bioeconomy recovers toward a new steady state. We also consider how two separate fishery-specific regulatory tools—a temporary harvest moratorium and ad valorum tax on the fishery's factors of …

Evaluation Of Dna From Blood And Saliva Overtime, Janine Smalling

Honors Theses

In this research, we will examine the quantity of DNA over time. In John M. Butlers, "Fundamentals of Forensic DNA Typing", he charts out the average amount of DNA extracted from different bodily fluid samples. Examples include blood, semen, saliva, urine, etc. Though valuable, the values presented are in the cases of a fresh extraction of the sample. It is important to note that in most cases when DNA is being extracted from crime scene evidence, the samples are not fresh and have been degraded to some extent. On a crime scene, time is only one of the factors affecting …

Unh Sails Into The Next Generation Of Ocean Mapping With Noaa Grant, Robbin Ray

Media Relations

No abstract provided.

Student’S Storyboard Project Leads To Meeting With Hollywood Artist, Ashley Junkunc

College of Arts and Sciences Newsroom

University of Dayton junior Lydia Kladitis didn’t expect her screenplay and storyboard project to end with coffee across the table from Hollywood storyboard artist J. Todd Anderson, a Dayton-based artist who has worked on every film by Joel and Ethan Coen since Raising Arizona. His credits also include Men in Black, and he is a two-time Art Directors Guild award nominee for excellence in production design, for The Ballad of Buster Scruggs and Hail, Caesar!

A Glimpse Of God, Eric F. Spina

President's Blog: From the Heart

We take walking for granted, but graduating mechanical engineering students Ellen Lucchesi and Michael Fornadel will walk down the aisle at winter commencement with a much better appreciation for this simple act than most of us will ever have.

Interaction Of The Oncoprotein Transcription Factor Myc With Its Chromatin Cofactor Wdr5 Is Essential For Tumor Maintenance., Lance R. Thomas, Clare M. Adams, Jing Wang, April M. Weissmiller, Joy Creighton, Shelly L. Lorey, Qi Liu, Stephen W. Fesik, Christine M. Eischen, William P. Tansey

Department of Cancer Biology Faculty Papers

The oncoprotein transcription factor MYC is overexpressed in the majority of cancers. Key to its oncogenic activity is the ability of MYC to regulate gene expression patterns that drive and maintain the malignant state. MYC is also considered a validated anticancer target, but efforts to pharmacologically inhibit MYC have failed. The dependence of MYC on cofactors creates opportunities for therapeutic intervention, but for any cofactor this requires structural understanding of how the cofactor interacts with MYC, knowledge of the role it plays in MYC function, and demonstration that disrupting the cofactor interaction will cause existing cancers to regress. One cofactor …

Who Ya Gonna Call? An Analysis Of Paradigm Shifts And Social Harms As A Result Of Hyper-Viral Police Violence, Ariana H. Aboulafia

University of Miami Race & Social Justice Law Review

No abstract provided.

Protect Me: An Interactive Mobile Educational Tool For Children To Help And Prevent Sexual Abuse., Yushinan Shan

Theses

Recently, cases of child sexual abuse have drawn considerable attention in China. According to the data released by the China Children's Culture and Arts Foundation, the number of childhood sexual abuse cases reported by the media in 2018 was 318. However, the lagging sex education provides criminals with chances to escape prosecution. Many children who have been sexually abused do not understand what sexual behavior is, do not even know where they have been hurt, and can't tell which part of their body has been violated. In China, 90% of parents do not talk with their children about "sex". Less …

The Association Between Ptsd And Delay Discounting, Future Orientation, And Reward Availability: A Behavioral Economic Model Of Ptsd, Cecilia Claire Olin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations Archive

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can be characterized in terms of respondent and operant conditioning, resulting in avoidance that is ultimately detrimental. Avoidance as negative reinforcement becomes paramount to all other reinforcement, precluding engagement with positive reinforcers. This overvaluation of avoidance may be conceptualized as a reinforcer pathology (i.e., excessive preference for and valuation of an immediate reinforcer). The current study offers an initial evaluation of this theoretical framework. The relationships between PTSD severity and select behavioral economic variables (i.e. future orientation, reward availability, and delay discounting) were evaluated. Total PTSD severity was inversely related to reward availability and future orientation, …

Evaluation Of Chemical, Physical, And Sensory Properties Of Tortillas Prepared From Nixtamalized Oats, Andrea Boza Arauz

Theses and Dissertations

Background and objectives: While alkaline nixtamalization has historically been used for corn, this process may have application in other cereals. Drawbacks to wider use include the lengthy steep time, as well as the volume of alkaline wastewater produced. This study evaluated a novel, waste-effluent-free nixtamalization process for oat (Avena sativa) masa, and compared properties of oat masa and tortillas prepared with 1, 1.5 and 2% lime, with and without steeping. Findings: A minimal water-addition, 45-min, simmering process, without steeping, was effluent-free, and produced oat tortillas comparable to those produced using a traditional overnight steep. The pH increased significantly with increasing …

Exploration Of Emotional Intelligence, Dpt Curriculum, And Student Success, Lyndsey Vandenberg Pt, Dpt, Edd

Doctorate in Education

Positive professional performance as a physical therapist requires a combination of both cognitive and non-cognitive traits. To date, there has been little-to-no literature on how Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) programs engage, refine and enhance students’ non-cognitive traits and abilities throughout a DPT curriculum. This dissertation had five foundational research questions that examined whether there was a statistically significant correlation between Emotional Intelligence (EI) and student success throughout a DPT program. Additionally, it explored how, when and where a DPT program embedded EI constructs in the 8-semester curriculum. The study took place in a private University in the Midwest and …

Investigating The Relationship Between Gaze Behavior And Audiovisual Benefit Across Various Speech-To-Noise Ratios, Lauren Gaunt

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Speech perception improves when listeners are able to see as well as hear a talker, compared to listening alone. This phenomenon is commonly referred to as audiovisual (AV) benefit (Sommers et al., 2005). According to the Principle of Inverse Effectiveness (PoIE), the benefit of multimodal (e.g. audiovisual) input should increase as unimodal (e.g. auditory-only) stimulus clarity decreases. However, recent findings contradict the PoIE, indicating that it should be reassessed. One method for investigating the factors that contribute to AV speech benefit is to examine listeners’ gaze behavior with eye tracking. The present study compared young adults’ (N=50) gaze …

The Unreasonableness Of Catholic Integralism, Micah Schwartzman, Jocelyn Wilson

San Diego Law Review

In this symposium contribution, we argue that Catholic integralism is unreasonable. Our conception of reasonableness is defined in terms of substantive moral and epistemic commitments to respecting the freedom and equality of citizens who hold a wide—but not unlimited—range of religious, ethical, and philosophical conceptions of the good. In arguing that Catholic integralism conflicts with this understanding of reasonableness, it might seem that we are begging the question against integralists. But our purpose here is not to engage integralists on their own terms. So far, the debate about integralism has been conducted mostly among Catholics and Christian conservatives. Our critique …

Carnivore Carrying Behavior As Documented With Wildlife Camera Traps, Rebecca M. Windell, Jesse S. Lewis, Ashley R. Gramza, Kevin R. Crooks

Western North American Naturalist

Carrying behavior is exhibited for myriad purposes by a variety of animals, including mammalian carnivores, but it has been poorly studied. We used wildlife camera data to document and describe carrying behavior in a suite of native and domestic mammalian carnivores in Colorado, USA. Our objectives were to estimate the carrying rate for each carnivore species, assess the relationship between carrying rate and carnivore body mass, compare items carried to known diets and with proximity to urbanization, and explore seasonal variation in carrying rate. We documented carrying behavior in red foxes (Vulpes vulpes), coyotes (Canis latrans), …

Variation In Reproductive Timing For The Northern Long-Eared Myotis (Myotis Septentrionalis) Across Nebraska, Keith Geluso, Cliff A. Lemen, Patricia W. Freeman, Brett R. Andersen, Jeremy A. White, Heather M. Johnson

Western North American Naturalist

The northern long-eared myotis (Myotis septentrionalis), a federally threatened species, occurs in extreme northern, eastern, and southern Nebraska. These regions vary in climate due to geographic location, topography, and elevation. During a 1-week period in early July 2015, we surveyed bats across the state and observed striking variation in the reproductive status for M. septentrionalis. We examined whether or not growing degree days, an abiotic climatic factor used mainly for agricultural practices, was associated with this reproductive variation in a mammalian species. In early July, we captured only pregnant females in the Pine Ridge region of northwestern …

Adopt Me: An Interactive Video Game To Encourage People To Adopt Animals From Shelters, Ying Xing

Theses

People buy pets and use their imagination in envisioning how their pet will ideally be, not the reality of raising a pet. More and more pets are abandoned by their owners for various reasons and the stray animals often cause accidents. But people keep purchasing animals from puppy mill stores. That is the main reason why the number of animals taken into shelters is increasing, along with the rate of euthanization. These factors are of interest for people who care about animals.

To address this problem, research was focused on the reasons why people abandon their pet and the factors …

A Comparison Of Neural Decoding Methods And Population Coding Across Thalamo-Cortical Head Direction Cells, Zishen Xu, Wei Wu, Shawn S. Winter, Max L. Mehlman, William N. Butler, Christine M. Simmons, Ryan E. Harvey, Laura E. Berkowitz, Yang Chen, Jeffrey S. Taube, Aaron A. Wilber, Benjamin J. Clark

Dartmouth Scholarship

Head direction (HD) cells, which fire action potentials whenever an animal points its head in a particular direction, are thought to subserve the animal’s sense of spatial orientation. HD cells are found prominently in several thalamo-cortical regions including anterior thalamic nuclei, postsubiculum, medial entorhinal cortex, parasubiculum, and the parietal cortex. While a number of methods in neural decoding have been developed to assess the dynamics of spatial signals within thalamo-cortical regions, studies conducting a quantitative comparison of machine learning and statistical model-based decoding methods on HD cell activity are currently lacking. Here, we compare statistical model-based and machine learning approaches …

A Comparison Of Neural Decoding Methods And Population Coding Across Thalamo-Cortical Head Direction Cells, Zishen Xu, Wei Wu, Shawn S. Winter, Max L. Mehlman, William N. Butler, Christine M. Simmons, Ryan E. Harvey, Laura E. Berkowitz, Yang Chen, Jeffrey S. Taube, Aaron A. Wilber, Benjamin J. Clark

Dartmouth Scholarship

Head direction (HD) cells, which fire action potentials whenever an animal points its head in a particular direction, are thought to subserve the animal’s sense of spatial orientation. HD cells are found prominently in several thalamo-cortical regions including anterior thalamic nuclei, postsubiculum, medial entorhinal cortex, parasubiculum, and the parietal cortex. While a number of methods in neural decoding have been developed to assess the dynamics of spatial signals within thalamo-cortical regions, studies conducting a quantitative comparison of machine learning and statistical model-based decoding methods on HD cell activity are currently lacking. Here, we compare statistical model-based and machine learning approaches …

An Intricate Ensemble : The Art-Science Of An Ecological Imaginary For The Anthropocene Epoch, Alyce Santoro

Masters Theses

The contradictions inherent in European Enlightenment-based “logics” that externalize humans from “nature” were a concern for the Romantic Naturalists, Dadaists, and Surrealists. More recently, some in the environmental humanities and socio-ecologically-concerned arts and sciences have also posed challenges to anthropocentric, hierarchical, positivist modes of thought. I suggest that by engaging the ludic, imaginative, and collaborative while bearing the empirical in mind, dualisms (such as objective and subjective, individual and collective) dissipate, and existence as a dialectical state of intricate ensemble can be revealed. In light of catastrophic disruption to Earth’s life-sustaining processes by exploitative forms of human activity, I argue …

Michael Field : Decadent Moderns, Sarah Parker, Ana Parejo Vadillo

Ohio University Press Open Access Books

In the last twenty years, Michael Field has emerged as one of the most fascinating poets of the Victorian era. Through their collaborative partnership as “Michael Field,” Katharine Bradley and Edith Cooper engaged in the aesthetic and decadent movements of the fin de siècle, while their poetry and verse drama articulate ideas associated with the New Woman and boldly express queer and lesbian desire. Michael Field: Decadent Moderns extends the focus on these key literary and cultural contexts by emphasizing their continuing significance within twentieth-century literary modernism. Through a series of interdisciplinary essays, this book addresses Michael Field’s energetic engagements …

Analysis Of Schwann Cell Migration And Axon Regeneration Following Nerve Injury In The Sciatic Nerve Bridge, B Chen, Q Chen, David B. Parkinson, Xin Peng Dun

Peninsula Medical School

No abstract provided.

Report Of The Necrology Committee, Wyoming State Bar

Wyoming Law Journal

No abstract provided.