Digital Commons Network^™

Housing Along The Brooklyn Waterfront: A Story Of Shipping, Industry, And Immigrants, Kurt C. Schlichting

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

Molecular Mechanism Of Neurodegeneration Induced By 4-Nonylphenol, Michelle Alejandra Aranda

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Neurodegeneration, a progressive loss of nerve cells, occurs in many neurological disorders, including Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's diseases (PD), as well as in dementia. The pathogenesis of these diseases is unknown, and recent evidence suggests that environmental factors, which act as endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDCs) could play a significant role in developing the disease process. 4-Nonylphenol (4-NP), an EDC, and a ubiquitous environmental toxin has been shown to affect brain development and may cause neurodegeneration. 4-NP is produced in large quantities in the U.S. and used as raw materials for making detergents, pesticides, plastics, paints, cosmetics, rubber, and other industrial/household …

Stratified Access On The Border: Examining Experiences Of Reproductive Care, Maralyn Doering

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Patient care experiences shape and affect the way that patients perceive and contextualize health care (Koenig 2011). Prior care experiences can change how patients choose to receive care in the future. In Texas, reproductive health care research has primarily focused on troubling trends in reproductive health care outcomes. This can be noted by the high cervical cancer rate (CDC 2019), the high unintended pregnancy rate (Kost 2015), and the limited access to reproductive care, particularly preventative care (Hopkins et al. 2015). The focus of this research has been on structural barriers, such as funding cuts (White et al. 2012), barriers …

Association Between Adverse Childhood Experiences, Resilience And Mental Health Among College Students In The El Paso Texas Border Region, Maribel G. Dominguez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), mental health and resilience among adults living in the United States - Mexico Border region. Background: Numerous studies have investigated the negative impact of ACEs on adult mental health, but the concept of resilience as a protective factor for mental health has limited consideration in ACE treatment interventions. The proposed study addresses this gap in knowledge by investigating relations between ACEs, resilience, and mental health in the understudied U.S - Mexico Border population. Method: An online survey was administered to 221 university students to …

Innovation In Higher Education: Three Sites In Haiti, Lucas Endicott

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Recent decades have brought seismic changes to global higher education. Educational leaders labor to sharpen administration, funding, teaching and learning practices in response to an increasingly globalized and technological world. The possibilities that this changing landscape may provide are perhaps most exciting for those currently economically disadvantaged and historically underserved by higher education. The advent of a knowledge economy and the need to train hundreds and thousands of new students paired with technological developments may help correct inequalities in access and excellence in education. This study asks the question: What, however, is the lived reality on the ground? Are university …

Origin And Characterization Of Intrasalt Non-Halite Lithologies Of The Neoproterozoic Patawarta Diapir, Central Flinders Ranges, South Australia, Rachelle A. Kernen

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Non-halite lithologies in salt diapirs are variously referred to as clasts, chips, rafts, stringers, sutures, and encased minibasins in the literature. Due to the complexities of gathering and processing seismic reflection data within salt bodies, nonhalite intrasalt lithologies, collectively referred to as inclusions here, are often first identified while drilling wells. These wells may penetrate unexpected lithologies of unknown fluid pressure, which can result in economic failure and pose serious drilling hazards and a threat to human life. Therefore, it is imperative to identify and determine the nature of inclusions prior to drilling, and ideally during the well planning process …

I'M Never Fine, Joseph S. Lezza

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

ABSTRACT

Title of Thesis: I'm Never Fine

Joseph S. Lezza, Master of Fine Arts, 2019

Thesis Directed by: Nelson Cardenas, Ph. D.

The University of Texas at El Paso, Department of Creative Writing

During the course of my father's fifteen-month battle with pancreatic cancer, and in its oceanic aftermath, I became both intimately and uncomfortably familiar with the phrase "I'm fine." It developed into a practical and efficient tool for bringing about a quick shift in subject whenever my family situation came under question by a well-meaning friend, trepidatious relative and even during an unexpectedly emotional phone call with my …

Residential Electricity Consumption In Las Cruces, Felipe Francisco Mejia

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This study examines how residential electricity consumption (KWHC) reacts to changes in the price of electricity, the price of natural gas, real income per capita, heating degree days, and cooling degree days. Annual frequency data analyzed are for Las Cruces, the second largest metropolitan economy in New Mexico. The sample period is 1977 to 2016. An Autoregressive-Distributed Lag model (ARDL) is employed to obtain long-run and short-run elasticities. In the long-run, residential consumption responds in a statistically reliable manner only to real per capita income. In the short-run, residential consumption responds reliably to all of the variables except heating degree …

Indigenous Masculinities And The Tarascan Borderlands In Sixteenth-Century Michoacán, Daniel Santana

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This Dissertation studies the hypermasculine narratives related to the expansion of the Tarascan state and its borderlands in early colonial Michoacán. Colonial texts such as the Relación de Michoacán and the relaciones geográficas depict the ascendance of the powerful Uacúsecha dynasty whose solar deity and male rulers oversaw the conquest of the Lake Pátzcuaro Basin and succeeded in holding back the Mexica (Aztecs) from penetrating their territories. The Dissertation pays particular attention to how contemporary political events, namely the Spanish conquest of Michoacán, endemic warfare in center-west Mexico, and political rivalries amongst Indigenous elites, influenced these accounts. Consequently, these narratives …

Numerical Investigation Of Molten Metal Infiltration And Pillared Cooling Systems At Microscale, Shaikh Tanveer Tanveer Hossain

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Flow-through porous media at pore-scales is one of the less explored sides of fluid mechanics due to the complexity associated with highly irregular pore geometry. Most of the established methods that try to quantify such flow are based on statistical observations of flow through numerous porous specimens. Such understandings may satisfy the need for applications where micro-level details are not a concern. Some numerical approaches did try to analyze the micro-level flow, but the analysis was confined to small sample sizes due to the intensive computation challenge. There are several applications of porous media flow where analyzing the large-scale flow …

Performance Evaluation Of Communication Technologies And Network Structure For Smart Grid Applications, Desong Bian, Murat Kuzlu, Manisa Pipattanasomporn, Saifur Rahman, Di Shi

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

The design of an effective and reliable communication network supporting smart grid applications requires the selection of appropriate communication technologies and protocols. The objective of this study is to study and quantify the capabilities of an advanced metring infrastructure (AMI) to support the simultaneous operation of major smart grid functions. These include smart metring, price-induced controls, distribution automation, demand response, and electric vehicle charging/discharging applications in terms of throughput and latency. OPNET is used to simulate the performance of selected communication technologies and protocols. Research findings indicate that smart grid applications can operate simultaneously by piggybacking on an existing AMI …

Exposing Students To Stem Careers Through Hands-On Activities With Drones And Robots, Vukica M. Jovanović, George Mcleod, Thomas E. Alberts, Cynthia Tomovic, Otilia Popescu, Tysha Batts, Ms. Mary Louise Sandy

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

Autonomous robots have been used in a variety of ways from collecting specimen in hazardous environments to space exploration. These robots can be found in various manufacturing systems as Autonomous Guided Vehicles (AGVs) to transport parts and assemblies throughout the manufacturing system. They have also been used as a vehicle to convey design thinking and other STEM-related concepts in mechanical engineering/mechanical engineering technology, electrical engineering/electrical engineering technology, computer science, and computer engineering. Various outreach events have included robotics based activities that engage students in building and programming autonomous robots for the purpose of achieving a specific task. These events are …

Service To Older Adults: Defining The A, B, C Of Reference Interchange, Kay Coates

University Libraries: Faculty Presentations

Presentation given at 2019 Atlanta Area Bibliographic Instruction Group (AABIG) Conference

Older adult library patrons often surface with unique research needs. This presents opportunities to serve this population of users through relationship building, knowledge-based content, and access privileges. Employing empathy, design, and ideation from a design thinker’s toolkit can equip libraries to support this diverse group of learners whose information needs range from leisurely bylines, life-long learning, ancestral pursuits or other avocation. Design thinking solutions enable librarians to engage in effective reference transactions that satisfy these and other users. Successful user experience comes down to the A, B, and C …

Reliability Estimation Of Reciprocating Seals Based On Multivariate Dependence Analysis And It's Experimental Validation, Chao Zhang, Rentong Chen, Shaoping Wang, Yujie Qian, Mileta M. Tomovic

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

Accurate reliability estimation for reciprocating seals is of great significance due to their wide use in numerous engineering applications. This work proposes a reliability estimation method for reciprocating seals based on multivariate dependence analysis of different performance indicators. Degradation behavior corresponding to each performance indicator is first described by the Wiener process. Dependence among different performance indicators is then captured using D-vine copula, and a weight-based copula selection method is utilized to determine the optimal bivariate copula for each dependence relationship. A two-stage Bayesian method is used to estimate the parameters in the proposed model. Finally, a reciprocating seal degradation …

Improving Stem Recruitment Through A Theme-Based Summer Residential Camp Focused On Sea Level Rise, Vukica M. Jovanović, Balša Terzić, Mujde Erten-Unal, Victoria Hill, George Mcleod, Michelle Covi, David Burdige, Jenifer Alonzo, Justin Mason, Tysha Batts, Cynthia Tomovic

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

In this paper, the authors present an enrichment program that focuses on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) concepts. The program is named Building Leaders to Advance Science and Technology (BLAST) and is held each summer at three universities across the Commonwealth of Virginia: Old Dominion University, the University of Virginia, and the Virginia Polytechnic Institute. BLAST is sponsored in partnership among these three universities and the Virginia Space Grant Consortium (VSGC), and is funded by the General Assembly of Commonwealth of Virginia. Its main purpose is to expose high school students to topics related to different STEM fields through …

Work Environment Factors Impacting The Report Of Secondary Trauma In U.S. Resident Assistants, Robert Jason Lynch

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Faculty Publications

WORKING WITH TRAUMATIZED INDIVIDUALS can have potentially negative impacts on professional support personnel, including cognitive decline, increased anxiety, and declines in physical health. Despite the responsibilities of resident assistants as crisis-responders, few studies explore how they are impacted by secondary trauma. This study sought to understand how specific aspects of the RA work environment relate to their self-reported levels of secondary trauma. Using a sample of RAs (N = 208), the researcher conducted a quantitative secondary analysis of an existing dataset assessing symptoms of secondary traumatic stress in RAs. Findings indicated relationships between a variety of environmental factors and self-reported …

Community College Faculty's Attitudes And Self-Efficacy With Literacy Instruction In The Disciplines, Kristen H. Gregory, Linda Bol, Thomas Bean, Tony Perez

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Faculty Publications

Many community college students are entering college-level courses underprepared for the literacy skills required to be successful. Faculty are considered experts in their disciplines, yet are often not trained in pedagogy and literacy instruction (Furco & Moely, 2012; Moje, 2008; Tsui, 2002). We developed a questionnaire to measure faculty's (n = 231) perceptions of their role, level of self-efficacy, and classroom practice in regard to discipline- specific literacy instruction. We analyzed data using exploratory factor analysis, t-tests, and analysis of variance. The findings show that faculty have marginally positive perceptions and self-efficacy regarding incorporating discipline-specific literacy instruction in their courses. …

From Nativism To White Power: Mid-Twentieth-Century White Supremacist Movements In Oregon, Shane Burley, Alexander Ross

Geography Faculty Publications and Presentations

Two document cases in the Oregon Historical Society (OHS) Research Library's George Rennar papers contain significant documentation of White supremacist organizations that developed in Oregon during the period between World War I and World War II. In this Research Files article, Shane Burley and Alexander Reid Ross highlight connections found within the collection between the variety of interlinked, racist, and nationalist organizations during that time period. Burley and Ross argue that while “membership numbers remained relatively small, these organizations provided a crucial link to the development of radical right-wing groups during the postwar era.”

Talking About Black Lives Matter And #Metoo, Linda S. Greene, Lolita Buckner Inniss, Bridget J. Crawford, Mehrsa Baradaran, Noa Ben-Asher, I. Bennett Capers, Osamudia R. James, Keisha Lindsay

Publications

This essay explores the apparent differences and similarities between the Black Lives Matter and the #MeToo movements. In April 2019, the Wisconsin Journal of Gender, Law and Society hosted a symposium entitled “Race-Ing Justice, En-Gendering Power: Black Lives Matter and the Role of Intersectional Legal Analysis in the Twenty-First Century.” That program facilitated examination of the historical antecedents, cultural contexts, methods, and goals of these linked equality movements. Conversations continued among the symposium participants long after the end of the official program. In this essay, the symposium’s speakers memorialize their robust conversations and also dive more deeply into the phenomena, …

Global Capital Flows, Time Varying Fundamentals And Transitional Exchange Rate Dynamics: An Ms-Var Approach, Süleyman Hilmi Kal, Ilhami Gunduz

Publications and Research

This paper studies whether dynamic relationship between exchange rate and economic and financial fundamentals vary depending on exchange rate is overvalued and undervalued with respect to its fundamental value. To achieve this, we implement two-state Markov Switching Vector Auto Regression (MSVAR) model with time varying transition probabilities to investigate whether the relationship among exchange rate, interest rate and inflation dynamics depend on overvaluation and undervaluation of exchange rates for the pre-crises period between years 1972-2009. We govern the transition between the undervalued and overvalued states by using Sharpe Ratios of debt and equity investments of the currency to assess whether …

Listener Perception As A Measure Of Treatment Effectiveness In Voice Modification For A Transwoman, April M. Gutierrez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess treatment effectiveness using listener perception as a measure of vocal femininity in a 22-year old transwoman.

Participant: The participant for this study was a monolingual, English-speaking, 22-year old transwoman. Inclusion criteria included self-identification as a transwoman. Exclusion criteria included surgical procedures to the vocal folds.

Methods: This cross-sectional survey study focused on using listener perception as a measure of treatment effectiveness in voice feminization. This study used surveys to investigate how naïve listeners would perceive the participants voice after she received voice modification treatment at the University of Texas at El …

Novel Maximum Entrophy Method For The Average Survival Time Differences Between Two Groups, Joscelyne Guzman - Gonzalez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

We suggest a Maximum Likelihood estimator for the Average Survival Time Difference between two groups, based on the extra time in which should be added to one group to produce the maximum entropy of the result. The estimator is calculated only from time to event data, does not assume hazard proportionality and provides directly the magnitude of the clinical differences between the groups. Our Monte Carlo simulations show that, even at low sample numbers the estimator is a reliable predictor for the clinical differences between the groups, and therefore can be used to estimate from preliminary data whether or not …

Interactions Of Bacterial Communities With Hydrous Sulfate Minerals In Water-Restricted Gypsic Environments: A Case Study Based In The White Sands National Monument, Brandon Nicholas Lajoie

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Microbial communities have been commonly found to survive and thrive in arid to hyper-arid gypsic environments that are considered hostile to most other forms of life. The mechanisms through which microbes have conquered these harsh environments remain poorly understood. Here I hypothesize that the microbial communities in water-restricted gypsic settings could benefit in terms of energy and water sources via their interactions with the abundant hydrous sulfate minerals [i.e., gypsum (CaSO4·2H2O)] that build up these niches. Gypsum is of high bio-relevance because its sulfate component may be used as electron acceptor by sulfate-reducing bacteria and the crystallization water may be …

Predicting Recessions In Major Texas Metropolitan Economies Using Yield Spreads And Other Economic Indicators, Aaron Dodson Nazarian

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The yield spread has been found to serve as a valuable economic forecasting tool. This research employs dynamic autoregressive probit downturn models using the United States yield spread and other regional and macroeconomic variables. This study then inspects the predictive power of the United States yield spread on the five largest urban economies in Texas, the four largest metropolitan areas along the Texas-Mexico border, as well as the Texas state economy. The other regional and macroeconomic variables are included in model specifications based on characteristics of the economies being analyzed. Results indicate that a narrowing of the United States Yield …

On The Performance Of Variable Selection And Classification Via Rank-Based Classifier, Md Showaib Rahman None Sarker

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

In high-dimensional gene expression data analysis, the accuracy and reliability of cancer classification and selection of important genes play a very crucial role. To identify these important genes and predict future outcomes (tumor vs. non-tumor), various methods have been proposed in the literature. But only few of them take into account correlation patterns and grouping effects among the genes. In this article, we propose a rank-based modification of the popular penalized logistic regression procedure based on a combination of l1 and l2 penalties capable of handling possible correlation among genes in different groups. While the l1 penalty maintains sparsity, the …

Recent Changes In The Zooplankton Communities Of Arctic Tundra Ponds In Response To Warmer Temperatures And Nutrient Enrichment, Mariana Vargas Medrano

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Warming is altering Arctic freshwater ecosystems, enriching the water column, increasing primary productivity and shifting the composition, dominance and the timing of emergence and reproduction of zooplankton communities. Historic data from arctic tundra ponds near UtqiaÄ¡vik, AK have given us valuable insight into changes that have occurred in recent times. A change of dominance from cyclopoid copepods to Daphnia middendorffiana has occurred over a 40 year period. Daphnia are more common, abundant and larger, which may be explained by increased primary productivity stimulated by nutrient release from permafrost thaw. Copepods and fairy shrimp emerged earlier from the overwintering states, which …

Conductivity Modulation In Strained 2d Transition- Metal- Dichalcogenides Via Micro- Electro- Mechanical Actuation, Aldo Ivan Vidaña

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

In this thesis, strain-induced conductivity modulation in bi-layer molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) flakes is experimentally investigated and modeled. Uniaxial tensile strain in the MoS2 flakes is achieved using a micro-electro-mechanical (MEM) actuator. Conductivity ratios up to 400 are demonstrated. Theoretical predictions of conductivity versus applied voltage in the MEMS-MoS2 device match experimental data reasonably well using only the effective width of the TMDC flakes as the sole fitting parameter. The amount of strain induced in the MoS2 flakes was determined to be as high as 2.7% for one flake using the model fitted to the experiment data. The switching energy required …

Virtual Source Method Simulation Of Progressive Water Waves, O Al-Tameemi, Di Graham, K Langfeld

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

The virtual source method (VSM) has been developed to simulate water waves based upon the solution of Laplace’s equation for the velocity potential integral equations with full nonlinear surface conditions. The basis of the method is the use of specific Green’s functions for a rectangular ‘virtual domain’ which is an extension of the physical domain. The solution variables are frequency components of the velocity potential at the upper virtual boundary and these are found by specifying appropriate conditions on the physical boundaries (i.e. wavemaker, walls and wave surfaces). The authors have shown that the model successfully simulates both linear and …

Home Childbirth Among Young Mothers Aged 15-24 Years In Nigeria: A National Population-Based Cross-Sectional Study, Emmanuel O. Adewuyi, Vishnu Khanal, Yun Zhao, Lungcit David, Olasunkanmi D. Bamidele, Asa Auta

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Objective To estimate the prevalence and identify factors associated with home childbirth (delivery) among young mothers aged 15–24 years in Nigeria. Design A secondary analysis of cross-sectional data from the 2013 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS). Setting Nigeria. Participants A total of 7543 young mothers aged 15–24 years. Outcome measure Place of delivery. Results The prevalence of home delivery among young mothers aged 15–24 years was 69.5% (95% CI 67.1% to 71.8%) in Nigeria—78.9% (95%CI 76.3% to 81.2%) in rural and 43.9% (95%CI 38.5% to 49.5%, p < 0.001) in urban Nigeria. Using the Andersen’s behavioural model, increased odds of home delivery were associated with the two environmental factors: rural residence (adjusted OR, AOR: 1.39, 95% CI 1.06 to 1.85) and regions of residence (North-East: AOR: 1.97, 95% CI 1.14 to 3.34; North-West: AOR: 2.94, 95% CI 1.80 to 4.83; and South-South: AOR: 3.81, 95% CI 2.38 to 6.06). Three of the enabling factors (lack of health insurance: AOR: 2.34, 95% CI 1.16 to 4.71; difficulty with distance to healthcare facilities: AOR: 1.48, 95% CI 1.15 to 1.88; and < 4 times antenatal attendance: AOR: 3.80, 95% CI 3.00 to 4.85) similarly increased the odds of home delivery. Lastly, six predisposing factors—lack of maternal and husband’s education, poor wealth index, Islamic religion, high parity and low frequency of listening to radio—were associated with increased odds of home delivery. Conclusions Young mothers aged 15–24 years had a higher prevalence of home delivery than the national average for all women of reproductive age in Nigeria. Priority attention is required for young mothers in poor households, rural areas, North-East, North-West and South-South regions. Faith-based interventions, a youth-oriented antenatal care package, education of girls and access to health insurance coverage are recommended to speed up the reduction of home delivery among young mothers in Nigeria.

Population Data Centre Profile - The Western Australian Data Linkage Branch, Steve Hodges, Tom Eitelhuber, Alexandra Merchant, Janine Alan

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Established in 1995, the Western Australian Data Linkage Branch (DLB) is Australia’s longest running data linkage agency. The Western Australian Data Linkage System (WADLS) employs an enduring linkage model spanning over 60 data collections supported by internally developed and supported software and IT infrastructure. DLB has delivered, and continues to deliver, a range of significant data linkage innovations, many of which have been adopted elsewhere. A current restructure within the Western Australian Department of Health (which we will refer to as the Department of Health) will provide an improved funding model geared toward addressing issues with staff retention, capacity and …