End Of Life Costs In Medicare Beneficiaries With Parkinson’S Disease, Sasikiran Nunna

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a chronic and progressive neurodegenerative disorder which is characterized by motor and non-motor disorders. The prevalence of PD is high among elderly patients. Due to the chronic nature of PD, increasing prevalence and ageing population, it is important to understand the burden of PD at various stages of patient’s life so that value of PD therapies can be assessed. While direct healthcare costs during the life time of PD were assessed in previous studies, there is lack of information about end of life costs in PD patients. This dissertation aimed at filling the gap in literature …

Community Resilience: A Meta-Study Of International Development Rhetoric In Emerging Economies, Rachel Ann Haggard

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Understood generally, community resilience is the ability of communities to adapt, absorb, mitigate, and recover from shocks and stressors in such a way that facilitates positive future outcomes and reduces overall vulnerability to future shocks and stressors (Adger, 2000; Norris, Stevens, Pfefferbaum, Wyche & Pfefferbaum, 2008; USAID, 2013; Walker et al., 2004). The core of this definition relates to sustainability and the capability of socio-ecological systems and communities to adapt and transform to both day to day fluctuations and stressors as well as major disasters (Milman & Short, 2008; Walker et al., 2004). This meta-study seeks to shed light on …

The Politics Of Place, The Urban-Rural Divide, And Geographic Identities In American Politics, Daniel Fudge

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

To test these theories, I conduct a series of empirical tests using survey data from the American National Election Survey (ANES) and an original survey experiment. Chapter two examines how people’s ideological perceptions are moderated by living in a particular area. Using the ANES data, I conduct a regression analysis with an interaction of the respondent’s ideology and the geographic location. Chapter three analyzes how individuals perceive a political candidate based on partisan and geographic information presented to the respondent. Using an original survey experiment, this study seeks to illustrate how individuals across urban and rural America perceive Republican and …

Influence Of Occupation And Geographic Location On Underground Coal Miner Exposure To Respirable Crystalline Silica, Quantez Ramaud Crowe

Theses and Dissertations--Public Health (M.P.H. & Dr.P.H.)

I. Specific Aims:

i. Review potential factors contributing to the resurgence of coal workers’ pneumoconiosis (CWP) in Appalachia and analyze the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) Complete Quartz dataset for potential contributors of underground (UG) coal miner exposure to silica and coal dust.

Objectives:

1. i. To provide evidence of an association between silica and coal dust exposure and various UG coal miner occupations and mine locations.
2. ii. Explore changes over time in UG coal miner silica exposure, dust exposure, and silica concentration in samples collected.
3. iii. Determine if UG coal miners have experienced an increase in exposure to silica …

Central Florida School Districts' Responses To Hispanic Growth, 1980-2010, Kendra Hazen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Since the 1980s, Hispanics have been the fastest growing minority in the United States and have been moving into rural, Southern areas where there have previously not been populations of Hispanics. Studies of these demographic changes have concentrated on how communities impacted by the influx of Hispanics have created or adjusted socioeconomic and political infrastructures to accommodate the linguistic and cultural needs of the Hispanic population. The public-school system is a sociopolitical structure that has affected and has been affected by the increase in Hispanics. Whereas the modern Civil Rights movement had created legal precedence for students' language rights and …

Selecting Methods To Teach Controversial Topics: A Grounded Theory Study, Sean Loomis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This grounded theory study examined the perceptions of 14 high school social studies teachers from three school districts in the Central Florida area. They were interviewed to uncover the decision-making process that high school social studies teachers use to choose methodologies when teaching controversial public issues (CPIs). The result was a three-phase model, the CPI Decision-Making Model, in which teachers move through three conceptual phases to decide on a particular methodology. By working through this process, teachers analyze the benefits and drawbacks of different methods for teaching controversial public issues. Significant results from this study included: (a) teachers were choosing …

The Relationship Between Health Adherence Behaviors, Level Of Acculturation, Frequency Of Cognitive Distortions, And Psychological Distress In Filipino Americans, Marisa R. Nuñez

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Nonadherence to medical recommendations is a prevalent concern within the U.S health care system, including among many ethnic minority groups, such as Filipino Americans. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between health adherence behaviors, acculturation level, frequency of cognitive distortions, and psychological distress in Filipino Americans. Filipino American participants (N = 121) completed the following measures: the Health Adherence Behavior Inventory, A Short Acculturation Scale for Filipino Americans, the Patient Health Questionnaire-9th edition, the Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item scale, and the Inventory of Cognitive Distortions. Results indicated a significant negative relationship between anxiety symptoms and health …

Updating The Constitution: Amending, Tinkering, Interpreting, Richard Kay

Faculty Articles and Papers

The U.S. Constitution is now 230 years old, and it is showing its age. Its text, taken in the sense that its enactors understood it, is, unsurprisingly, inadequate to the needs of a large, populous twenty-first century nation. The Constitution creates a government that is carefully insulated from the democratic preferences of the population. It fails to vest the central government with the tools needed to manage and regulate a vast, complicated, and interrelated society and economy. On the other hand, it guarantees its citizens protection of only a limited set of human rights. Notwithstanding these blatant defects, the means …

Using Cognitive Mapping As A Method To Systematically Assess Perspectives In Fisheries Management, Eric Wade, Kelly Biedenweg

Gulf and Caribbean Research

No abstract provided.

Support For And Behavioral Responses To Tolls: Insights From Hampton Roads, Virginia, Juita-Elena Wie Yusuf, Khairul Azfi Anuar, Lenahan L. O'Connell, David Chapman, Donta Council, Tancy Vandecar-Burdin, Meagan M. Jordan

School of Public Service Faculty Publications

This chapter analyzes the experiences with tolling in the Hampton Roads region of Southeastern Virginia to better understand residents' and drivers' support for tolls and behavioral responses to tolls. The Hampton Roads region, with its population of 1.7 million and extensive network of highways, roads, bridges, and tunnels, has a long history of toll facilities that date back to the 1920s. The most recent tunnel tolls, associated with the Elizabeth River Crossing Project and introduced in February 2014, are the focus of this chapter. This chapter analyzes two sets of survey data to provide insights that have implications for policies …

Realities Of The First-Year Of Teaching Research On The Inspiration Behind, Reality Of, And Effects Of A First-Year Teacher., Rebecca Peterson

CGU Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to identify the factors which lend to and negatively impact student success, taking a specific look at the Pomona area and tracking the experiences of one first-year teacher and three of their students throughout an entire academic year in the charter school setting. Beginning with research on the experiences and beliefs which motivated an individual teacher to join the field of education, it then assesses how the academic and cultural backgrounds of three different students lend to their overall identity and school success. The latter research identifies factors within the city itself which affect …

Three Essays On Africa, Lisa Jené

CGU Theses & Dissertations

Part 1: Climate Change, Urbanization, and Government Responses in Sub-Saharan Africa This paper examines the relationship between climate change, rising urbanization rates, and regime types in the countries of sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). This project uses the national-level ND-GAIN (Notre Dame Global Adaptation Initiative) score and a selection of its sub-variables. The ND-GAIN score is a composite index that grades a country’s vulnerability to climatic disruptions (exogenous) as well as its readiness in terms of adaptation investment (endogenous); sub-variables used here include Governance Readiness, Vulnerability, and Adaptive Capacity. Data are used for all 49 SSA countries, over the years 1995-2016, in …

Affirming Indigeneity In Public Spaces: Indigenous Mexican Testimonios About Higher Education, Gabriela Kovats Sánchez

CGU Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to provide a deeper understanding of the lived experiences and identity formation of Indigenous Mexican students in U.S. higher education. Latinx critical race theory and critical Latinx Indigeneity served as conceptual frameworks for this study, and a decolonial lens was employed to distinguish the unique educational experiences of Indigenous Mexican students from the broader Latinx student population in the United States. A testimonio research design was used to explore two research questions: (a) What is the role of higher education in the identity formation of Indigenous Mexican students? and (b) How do Indigenous Mexican …

Island Invasion: The Silent Crisis In Hawaii, Sophia Janssen

Pomona Senior Theses

Keeping out invasive species may, upon first review, seem like a trivial environmental cry from ecologists and deep environmentalists; a belated wish to return to an undeveloped world where nature was pristine. However invasive species create problems that impact all of us and can have far more severe consequences than changing a stunning landscape. These problems are heightened in islands like Hawaii, where the fragile ecosystems have developed over centuries of evolution and adaptation. The introduction of a disease-carrying mosquito can put the people of Hawaii at risk to many vector-born illnesses and create an epidemic, taking human life. The …

Facilitating Experience Through Fabrication And Blue Biophilic Design, Teague Scanlon

Pomona Senior Theses

The way humans currently interact with the atmosphere and oceans around us is unsustainable, with pollution entering our waters faster than we are collecting it, and the sea level rising faster than we are building coastal barriers to protect our current infrastructure. This thesis explores the common methodology for communicating climate change and its future effects, and highlights an opportunity for using infrastructure to facilitate interaction with the urban-aquatic interface. By promoting experiential contact with the natural spaces that are most at risk to climate change’s impacts, a sense of stewardship for those spaces will spur behavioral change and activism. …

Religions As Loci Of Conflict Prevention: Local Capacities Of Bosnia And Herzegovina’S Religious Communities, Julianne Funk

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

Conflict and coexistence remain in a tense balance in the Western Balkans. Latent conflict, in which one’s ethno-religious community denotes which side you are on, persist after the violent breakup of Yugoslavia. These frozen and potential lines of conflict were laid decades and centuries ago, when religious affiliation diversified. At the same time, these religious, ethnic and national communities have a history of suživot: everyday relations with one another, or coexistence. The close geographic proximity of communities makes functional relational systems, which determine when, where and how people tend to interact, a practical necessity.212 As a result of this necessity …

The Emergence Of Modern Higher Education: The German University And Its Influence, Charles E. Mcclelland

History Faculty Publications

Explores the main significance of the German university in its pioneering emphasis on the search for new knowledge rather than the transmission, from older to younger generations, of relatively static professional canons. Teaching staff came increasingly to be recruited from scholars and scientists who had researched, discovered and made public new interpretations and were expected to continue to do so as a part of their official duties.

Entropy Of Polysemantic Words For The Same Part Of Speech, Mihaela Colhon, Florentin Smarandache, Dan Valeriu Voinea

Branch Mathematics and Statistics Faculty and Staff Publications

In this paper, a special type of polysemantic words, that is, words with multiple meanings for the same part of speech, are analyzed under the name of neutrosophic words. These words represent the most difficult cases for the disambiguation algorithms as they represent the most ambiguous natural language utterances. For approximate their meanings, we developed a semantic representation framework made by means of concepts from neutrosophic theory and entropy measure in which we incorporate sense related data. We show the advantages of the proposed framework in a sentiment classification task.

Assessing Impacts Of Climate Change On Campanula Yaltirikii H.Duman (Campanulaceae), A Critically Endangered Endemic Species In Turkey, Canan Dülgeroğlu, Ahmet Aksoy

Turkish Journal of Botany

Ecological niche models (ENMs) provide information to assess the effects of environmental and climatic conditions on species distribution. The purpose of this study was to predict the impact of climate change on a critically endangered species, Campanula yaltirikii H.Duman. It is a local endemic chasmophyte from Mt Çığlıkara (Antalya, Turkey), restricted to cracks in calcareous rocks and threatened by goat overgrazing. Current and future ENMs of C. yaltirikii were predicted with a maximum entropy (Maxent) algorithm. The MIROC5 (Model for Interdisciplinary Research on Climate) climate change scenario for the year 2070 was used for projecting the future ENM of the …

Making A Diplomat: Study Abroad Pathways To International Relations Occupations, Anthony E. Ciero

Capstone Collection

This case study surveys and interviews alumni of International Student Exchange Programs (ISEP) direct enroll study abroad programs to learn about their post-program career path. ISEP alumni study from and in over 50 countries worldwide. Survey and data analysis methodology for this study used Cognitive Information Processing, Social Cognitive Career Theory, Chaos Theory, and Systems Theory of career development to determine what guides alumni toward or away from international relations (IR) related occupations.

Alumni in IR-related careers usually had an internationalized personal history prior to university and reported that their ISEP program improved their ability to secure and perform their …

Improving Access To Clean Water In Rural Ecuador: The Connection Between Willingness To Pay And Population Health, Micalea Leaska

Capstone Collection

Climate change is affecting social and environmental determinants of health through access to safe drinking water, safely managed sanitation systems, and access to health care services and the ability for individuals to break free from unsuitable circumstances. Ecological disturbances such as those caused by climate change can cause a shift in host vectors or a change in habitat that results in a greater likelihood of the pathogen coming in contact with humans. Water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services and their accessibility to populations can directly impact a community’s vulnerability to diseases and limiting factors to increase economic growth. If rural …

Mapa De Cambios Climáticos Proyectados 2016 - 2039 En Las Fronteras Amazónicas Entre Ucayali Y Madre De Dios (Perú) Y Acre (Brasil), Gtaso, David S. Salisbury Et Al.

Geography and the Environment Maps

Mapa de Cambios Climáticos Proyectados 2016 - 2039 en las Fronteras Amazónicas entre Ucayali y Madre de Dios (Perú) y Acre (Brasil)

Map of Projected Climate Changes 2016 - 2039 in the Amazonian Borders between Ucayali and Madre de Dios (Peru) and Acre (Brazil)

Therapeutic Delivery Technology And Its Economic Impact, Paul E. Savas Jr.

Senior Honors Theses

Therapeutic delivery technology is a current area of high interest in both university and industrial settings. These technologies are being developed in order to deliver therapeutic agents, such as genes, proteins, and drugs, to patients more efficiently. Nanoscale delivery vehicles have proven to be useful for these applications; these vehicles may either be naturally produced or chemically synthesized. The physical properties of these nanomaterials must be characterized correctly using instrumentation that evaluates their size, morphology, and potential for agglomeration. These technologies represent a high-growth economic area that fosters entrepreneurship and innovation. Because of this innovative spirit, research and economic interest …

Mapping Land Use Around The San Francisco Bay: A Look At Environmental Justice Through S. F. Bay Conservation And Development Commission’S Permitting History, Aviva R. Wolf-Jacobs

Pitzer Senior Theses

Planning and regulatory environmental agency San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC) plays an important role in the permitting of development around the San Francisco Bay. As the agency works to add an environmental justice amendment to its primary policy document, this research explores the S.F. Bay Area’s history of approved development project proposal permits, and the associated patterns of land use and environmental justice implications in order to support the proposed change in permitting policy. By classifying all major permits found within BCDC’s internal permit database into groups based on the type of land use associated with the …

Campaigning On An Environmental Justice Platform: Irmalinda Osuna For Upland City Council, District 3, Jenny Bekenstein

Pitzer Senior Theses

After successfully organizing around preserving Cabrillo Park in Upland and feeling a lack of local political representation, Irmalinda Osuna ran for Upland City Council in the 2018 midterm elections. As one of the many female candidates in the 2018 elections, Irmalinda led a grassroots, community-led political campaign in which she advocated for environmental justice and the preservation of parks, a more inclusive community, increased civic participation, a more efficient use of technology in politics, and support for small businesses.

Florida's Rising Tide: Income Inequality Effects By County, Alyson E. Johnson

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Income inequality in Florida is higher than in many states and has been getting worse over time. Inequality has been argued as responsible for a wide-ranging array of economic and social problems, including suppression of lower- and middle-income growth, social fragmentation and separatism, urban sprawl, poor health and mental illnesses, violence, and shortened life expectancy. What explains variance in Florida county income inequality as measured by the GINI coefficient? Bivariate and multivariate weighted least square regressions are conducted for the years 2000 and 2016, and for the change between 2000 and 2016. Three variables achieve statistical significance in all three …

Understanding Sediment Biogeochemistry And The Role Of Juvenile Oysters On Recently Restored Eastern Oyster Reefs, Bryan Locher

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In recent decades, goals for the restoration of eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica) populations along the eastern coast of the United States have shifted from increasing harvestable oyster fisheries to enhancing the range of ecosystem services provided by oyster reefs. By filtering large volumes of water and releasing nutrient-rich feces and pseudofeces, oysters can locally enhance sediment biogeochemical cycling compared to that of unstructured benthic environments. An ongoing restoration program in Mosquito Lagoon, FL was leveraged to assess the immediate impacts ( < 1 year) of restoration on sediment biogeochemical properties of oyster reefs. The first study measured both short-term and long-term pools of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus on dead, natural and restored reefs periodically over one year. The second study investigated one of the contributions to sediment nutrient pools by comparing feeding and feces/pseudofeces nutrient content of juvenile and older oysters. Results show that inorganic nitrogen and phosphorus pools can change within weeks after restoration and total nutrient pools by 6 months post-restoration. Restored reefs experienced a 136 % increase in ammonium, 78 % increase in total nitrogen, 46 % increase in total phosphorus, and 75 % increase in organic matter concentrations after 12 months of restoration. These nutrient increases were all positively correlated with oyster density, shell length and reef height measured on each reef. When standardized to grams of dry tissue weight, juvenile oysters showed significantly higher rates of chlorophyll-a removal, release of ammonium, and biodeposits with higher concentrations of dissolved organic carbon, nitrite + nitrate, and ammonium. The short-term changes to biogeochemical cycling on eastern oyster reefs within the first year of restoration are important to managers seeking to monitor ecosystem service recovery and overall coastal ecosystem health.

A Grounded Theory Survey Study Of Teachers Perception Perpetuating The Deficit Narrative About Marginalized Students Of Color, Cavel Austin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The deficit narrative about marginalized students of color attributes their failure in school to some nature of innate cognitive deficiency, cultural, social, and familial dysfunctions among other schools of thoughts. The purpose of this grounded theory study is to provide a rich description about this phenomenon and to propose theoretical pedagogical adjustments in the classroom as it relates to educating students of color. The study applies Charmaz (2014) Constructivist approach to grounded theory methods to examine the following research questions: (RQ1) How do teachers' narratives about students of color depict their teaching experiences and (RQ2) How do teachers' narratives about …

Strategies To Increase Human Immunodeficiency Virus Testing In Rural Areas Of The United States: A Systematic Review, Avery Petrucci, Kristen Custer, Eric C. Nemec

Physician Assistant Studies Student Publications

Purpose: HIV incidence continues to increase, with a large portion of new diagnoses found in rural areas of the United States. The worsening statistics in rural areas may be attributed to stigma alone and contribute to the lack of testing available for patients. The objective of this systematic review is to identify accessible and feasible strategies to increase HIV testing within the rural communities in the United States. Methods: A systematic literature search of CINAHL Complete, MEDLINE with Full Text, and PsycINFO with restrictions of the English language and rural communities outside of the United States through August 2, 2018. …

Effects Of International Service Learning On Development Of Intercultural Competence, Sharon M. Mccloskey

Occupational Therapy Faculty Publications

As the United States becomes an increasingly multicultural society (Colby & Ortman, 2014; Perez & Hirschman, 2009), there are greater opportunities for cross-culture interactions, especially in settings for healthcare practitioners. The profession of occupational therapy demands future practitioners understand culture and become skilled in the delivery of culturally competent care (AOTA, 2014). The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of international service learning (ISL) on the development of intercultural competence in graduate occupational therapy students. Inquiry for this research followed a mixed-methods explanatory sequential design. Study participants were graduate occupational therapy students who engaged in an international …