Digital Commons Network^™

Extremist Migration: A Foreign Jihadist Fighter Threat Assessment, Shima D. Keene Dr.

Books, Monographs & Collaborative Studies

This monograph provides an assessment of the emerging threat posed by foreign jihadist fighters following the reduction in territory controlled by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and recommends ways that the U.S. Army should address the issues highlighted.

An Unnatural Partnership? The Future Of U.S.-India Strategic Cooperation, Samit Ganguly, M. Chris Mason

Books, Monographs & Collaborative Studies

As global competition with an increasingly assertive Chinese Government expands, the strategic relationship between India and the United States is assuming ever-greater importance. From a superficial perspective, a strategic partnership seems to make a great deal of sense for both countries. Yet, enormous political, cultural, and structural obstacles remain between them, which continue to slow the progress in security cooperation to a crawl, relative to China’s economic and military advances. The authors explore these impediments frankly and suggest practical ways to build trust and establish confidence.

Rediscovering The Holy Spirit: God’S Perfecting Presence In Creation, Redemption, And Everyday Life [Review] / Horton, Michael S., Matthew L. Tinkham Jr.

Andrews University Seminary Studies (AUSS)

No abstract provided.

Doubling And Duplicating In The Book Of Genesis: Literary And Stylistic Approaches To The Text [Review] / Hayes, Elizabeth R., And Karolien Vermeulen, Eds., Kenneth Bergland

Andrews University Seminary Studies (AUSS)

No abstract provided.

Vying To Be King Of The Jungle: Where Top-Two Primaries Fall Short, Taylor Larson, Joshua A. Duden

Concordia Law Review

Top-two primaries pose significant constitutional issues for political parties, but primary system selection is also a significant policy question for each state. Primary elections have served as a filter for candidates to enter the general election; however, primaries are predominantly party functions. Although the process varies from state-to-state and is regulated by individual state legislatures, primary elections allow voters of a particular party to nominate the candidate they think best represents them against other parties in the general election. To combat partisan politics, Washington and California have grappled with election reform by adopting a "top-two" primary system. This version of …

A Common Enterprise: Law And The Connection Between Civil And Heavenly Realms In The Writings Of John Calvin, Kenneth L. Townsend

Concordia Law Review

The common ends that once united spiritual and civil realms have been privatized as those ends have come to be seen as controversial and plural, rather than unifying and common. Acknowledging the diversity of ends resulted in increased attention to uniform rules. Since there was no longer agreement about what teloi mattered for society, law gradually lost its aspirational features and became simply a way to limit and punish uncivil and criminal behavior.

The formal separation, but ultimate unity, of civil and heavenly spheres, of norm with vision, articulated by Calvin, allowed him to be both idealistic and realistic about …

Watching Fight Club In Tel Aviv: Or The 2011 Social Protests In Israel, A Political Postmortem, Eran Kaplan

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

In his article “Watching Fight Club in Tel Aviv: Or The 2011 Social Protests in Israel, a Political Postmortem,” Eran Kaplan provides an analysis of the ideological underpinnings of the social protests that swept Israel in 2011 and the failure of these protests to bring about actual political change. The article draws on the manner by which David Fincher’s film Fight Club exposes the ideological dimensions of modern, neoliberal consumerist society as a way to understand the driving forces behind the Israeli protests and to suggest a possible way out of the ideological quagmire that the protesters and their leaders …

Machine Learning Versus Deep Learning For Malware Detection, Parth Jain

Master's Projects

It is often claimed that the primary advantage of deep learning is that such models can continue to learn as more data is available, provided that sufficient computing power is available for training. In contrast, for other forms of machine learning it is claimed that models ‘‘saturate,’’ in the sense that no additional learning can occur beyond some point, regardless of the amount of data or computing power available. In this research, we compare the accuracy of deep learning to other forms of machine learning for malware detection, as a function of the training dataset size. We experiment with a …

Employee Engagement And Burnout: A Quantitative Study Of Their Correlations With Job/Organizational Satisfaction, Sarah Burnett

Dissertations

Since Kahn introduced the concept of employee engagement in 1990, the focus on motivating employees has been en vogue in practitioner literature. The federal government as well now measures its agencies annually on how well they implement conditions conducive to engagement. Federal agencies are also ranked annually as “Best Places to Work” based on their aggregated score on three survey items deemed to represent job/organizational satisfaction. The concept of burnout, or the so-called “erosion of engagement”, however, has received significantly less attention. To begin to fill this void in the literature, secondary survey data from the 2017 Organizational Assessment Survey …

Ignoring The Learning Curve: The Failure Of U.S. Foreign Intervention In Chile And Afghanistan, Leanna Shea Nichols

Senior Theses

There are several identifiable and ubiquitous reasons why U.S. democracy building interventions fail abroad. The literature has shown that the principal reason that U.S. democracy building efforts fail is that they prioritize seeking immediate stability over creating long-lasting support for liberal democratic institutions. Additionally, contributing factors are also: lack of knowledge of the political history of a nation, lack of knowledge of the complexities within the domestic politics of each nation, lack of local and grassroots inclusion in planning processes, and the use of destabilizing covert and overt operations in an attempt at immediate results, with little force put behind …

Dance/Movement Therapy As Influence On Sense Of Self: A Community Engagement Project, Jasmine Yahid

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

This community engagement project seeks to explore the influence of dance/movement therapy and authentic movement techniques on one’s sense of self. This project focused on these techniques as an approach toward self-actualization and finding one’s essence. This study considered the potential implications of these practices on populations whose bodily experience can be perceived as a barrier toward self-actualization, such as in eating disorders and trauma. Six expressive therapy students from Lesley University participated in two sessions of dance/movement therapy. This included: a movement-exploration warm up, authentic movement, and a visual artistic representation of their perceived essence based on the experiential. …

Mcgeorge School Of Law Commencement, Mcgeorge School Of Law

Commencement Programs

No abstract provided.

"Silent Salesmen," Skeptical Consumers: American Images In A Divided Berlin, 1949-67, Lauren Richman

Art History Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation analyzes the visual language of American cultural images disseminated in Cold War Berlin and investigates how such institutional, lens-based media played a role in the country’s grappling with its postwar identity. Divided Berlin, with porous borders from 1949 to 1961, embodied a “final frontier,” “Western showcase;” a synecdoche of larger American geopolitical interests during a time when information and images defined the Cold War. Existing art historical studies of Cold War-era visual propaganda emphasize the prototypical East/West, communist/capitalist dichotomies, but often do not focus on the impact of the United States as Germany’s most prolific western occupier.

Across …

Terrorism Comes To Africa: The Spread Of Radical Islamic Terrorism Into Algeria And Nigeria, Norah Miriam Aamoum

Senior Theses

The purpose of this research is to show how radical Islamic terrorist organisations like Al-Qaeda and ISIS have been able to infiltrate African societies and exploit their conflict in order to spread their own ideology. This paper looks at Algeria and Nigeria, two major countries on the African continent that have been plagued by terrorism since the late 20th century, and how the terrorist groups known as Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), Boko Haram, and the Islamic State West Africa (IS-WA) came to be in their respective nations. It was a combination of internal and external factors that allowed …

The Ineffectiveness Of Peacekeeping And The Absence Of Crucial Peacebuilding Initiatives In The Kashmiri And Northern Irish Conflicts, Alexandra Stephanie Brennan

Senior Theses

The presence of peacekeepers, whether they are mandated by the international community or used internally by a sovereign nation, has a limited effect on the ability to achieve a lasting peace and may even function as an obstacle, as seen through a comparative study of the conflicts in Kashmir and Northern Ireland. Because of this, they are of limited utility as the final step towards a society that has reconciled with its past conflict due to the fact that the peacekeepers (efforts work towards short-term peace) do not act as peacebuilders (efforts work towards long-term peace). The regions of Kashmir …

Findings From Surveys On Adventism, Politics And Social Issues, John T. Gavin, Wiliam W. Ellis, Curtis J. Vanderwaal

Adventist Human-Subject Researchers Association

AHSRA Presentation Proposal

Abstract: The relationships between Adventism and the social political world has implications for the mission of the church and its involvement in the social issues of our time. Researches present an analysis of research conducted over several decades which explore the relationship of Adventism, politics and social issues.

Terrorism In The 2020s: Examining The Global Threat Landscape, Landon W. Swearngin

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

This thesis uses quantitative and qualitative research methods to (1) explore the global trends and trajectories of terrorism, (2) identify emerging strategic challenges, and (3) outline an opportunity analysis for U.S. counterterrorism strategy. Collectively, this project provides a strategic forecast for terrorism in the 2020s, demonstrating that terrorism is becoming increasingly dangerous, dynamic, and difficult to defeat.

Disaggregating The United States Military: An Analysis Of The Current Organizational And Management Structure Of U.S. National Security Policy As It Relates To Military Operations In Space, Joseph M. Zeman

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

This thesis was written to provide the reader with a comprehensive assessment about the realities of the current organizational and management structure of United States national security policy as it relates to the conduct of military operations in space. To create an encompassing argument, this thesis considers the current organizational structure of United States space policy while acknowledging that space has, in fact, become a warfighting domain. A reorganization of this magnitude has the potential to generate a succinct chain of command for military space operations while condensing the space acquisitions process and ultimately providing military space operations with the …

“We Carry These Conflicts, These Ruptures Of History:” The Hybridity Of The Self In The Conflict Between Tradition And Modernity In Laleh Khadivi’S The Age Of Orphans, Karwan Karim Abdalrahman

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

This study presents a postcolonial reading of Laleh Khadivi’s The Age of Orphans based on the theories of Edward Said and Homi Bhabha. The project offers specific answers to several questions: can this novel be read through the lens of Bhabha’s theory of hybridity, and, if so, what does such a reading reveal about culture and identity in The Age of Orphans? The hybrid self is an experience wherein the postcolonial self holds the shades of two identities and cultures, namely the colonizer and the colonized. In other words, the protagonist Reza lives in a space that represents the …

Watering Black Roots: Exploring Black Ecological Identity Development Within Nature-Based Expressive Arts Therapy, Stormy Saint-Val

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

Nature-based expressive arts therapy promotes the holistic healing and recovery of individuals by interweaving the practices of ecopsychology, ecotherapy, and expressive arts therapy. These interventions have been proven to mediate ranges of symptomologies, such as anxiety disorders and PTSD. Research conducted by the U.S. National Park Services indicates that African- Americans are less likely to have a positive relationship to nature than all other racial groups. The amplification of this report without introspection of its context perpetuates racialized generalizations. This can limit a black individual’s ability to embrace their ecological identity and be receptive of nature-based expressive arts therapy interventions. …

Self-Determination, Sustainability, And Wellbeing In The Alaska Native Community Of Ninilchik, Heather Sauyaq Gordon

Indigenous Studies

Alaska Natives are a diverse group of people with different language groups and over 200 tribes. We have a history of colonization and are still a colonized people, but through all this, we strive for wellness for our people. This paper begins with an explanation of historical trauma, development, and the lack of fate control Alaska Native people experience. The literature review explains how colonization can negatively impact the colonized and details international, federal, and Alaska state law and court cases having to do with Indigenous sovereignty and self-determination. In this project the researcher works with the Ninilchik Village Tribe …

Cybersecurity For Critical Infrastructure: Addressing Threats And Vulnerabilities In Canada, Samuel A. Cohen

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The aim of this thesis is to assess the unique technical and policy-based cybersecurity challenges facing Canada’s critical infrastructure environment and to analyze how current government and industry practices are not equipped to remediate or offset associated strategic risks to the country. Further, the thesis also provides cases and evidence demonstrating that Canada’s critical infrastructure has been specifically targeted by foreign and domestic cyber threat actors to pressure the country’s economic, safety and national security interests. Essential services that Canadians and Canadian businesses rely on daily are intricately linked to the availability and integrity of vital infrastructure sectors, such as …

An Examination Of The Potential Threat Of A State-Sponsored Biological Attack Against The United States: A Study Of Policy Implications, Courtney Anne Pfluke

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

In 2002, US Navy Seals found a list of pathogens in an Afghanistan cave that Al Qaeda had planned to use in a series of biological attacks. Unique about the discovery was that the pathogens were not limited to human ones. Six pathogens targeted livestock and four targeted crops. Despite this discovery, limited attention has been given to the possibility of a state-sponsored terrorist attack utilizing biological agents against the US population, food source, or water supply. Throughout history, biological agents have been developed for use as an offensive weapon for both states and terrorist groups. The United States may …

Supernatural Pilgrims: A Journey To A New Apostolic Reformation Congregation In The Ozarks, Samuel Wayne Gingerich

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Birthed out of the revival events of the 1990s, the New Apostolic Reformation is known for its charismatic leaders and provocative theology. As an emerging third wave Pentecostal movement, the New Apostolic Reformation is redefining the edifices of American Pentecostalism. While academics and journalists are currently focused on exposing the influence of some of its leaders such as C. Peter Wagner, Bill Johnson, Randy Clark, and Heidi Baker, there is little scholarship regarding the congregations and communities of believers who find themselves a part of this dynamic movement. This thesis takes a step towards understanding the larger story of the …

Utilizing Strategic Culture As A Tool To Tailor U.S. Deterrence Policy Towards Iran, Ryan P. Taylor

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The geostrategic environment since the end of the Cold War has drastically changed the way United States (U.S.) policymakers develop strategies to combat a wide range of hostile threats facing the country, especially in the field of the deterrence of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs). Iran is such an actor, who poses one of the greater proliferation threats in the world and continues to commit hostile actions in the Middle East. In this post-Cold War environment, it is imperative that the United States develop a tailored deterrence strategy to meet this challenge. Past deterrence strategies popular during the bipolar era …

Touchstones Of Popular Culture Among Contemporary College Students In The United States, Margaret Thoemke

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

This report is based on survey research. The survey was sent out to collect popular culture items from Minnesota State University Moorhead (MSUM) students to see if there were popular culture items relevant enough to teach to English Learners (ELs) in order for them to be successful. The research showed that there are several genres of popular culture that should be taught to ELs for them to be successful academically and other to have successful interactions with their peers. This report leaves room for further research to be done in the subject as well.

"The Most Multi-Ethnic Country In The World": Indigenous Peoples In Russia's Eurasianist Political Narrative, Lex Trienen

Arctic and Northern Studies

Since 2012, scholars have taken a renewed look at the philosophical and political ideas of Eurasianism within Russia to explain President Vladimir Putin's conduct and the Russian public's response to it. Eurasianism in its current form posits that the Russian state plays a unique role in the history of the world in opposing the avaricious, agnostic, and culturally oppressive "West," while uniting and elevating the peoples of the Eurasian continent in a peaceful, organic and spiritual "Eurasia." Indigenous peoples play a distinctive role in this narrative. Both the United States and Russia have Indigenous populations that have been subjected to …

Religious Beliefs Of Sda Church Members In Africa, Elizabeth M. Role

Adventist Human-Subject Researchers Association

This paper highlights the religious beliefs of church members in the three African divisions. It focuses on the role of the African traditional religious system, engagement in personal religious activities, and pastor’s preaching on the views of adults and youths regarding various Seventh-day Adventist and other religious beliefs.

Perplexed Poetics: Romanticism And The Vortex Of Ideologies, Jaime Luque Lau

Student Theses and Dissertations

In three parts, this thesis explores the tension between the critical and emotional poetics in Romantic poetry, as well as the entanglement of individual will and politics. As a point of entrance, the first part focuses on the major and current trends of scholarly discourses about Romanticism. I will examine Jerome McGann’s influential book of criticism on Romanticism, Romantic Ideology, in juxtaposition with Marc Redfield’s The Politics of Aesthetics: Nationalism, Gender, Romanticism. In particular, the discussion of the two books suggest the problems of aesthetic-political and historical discourses; specifically, I argue that McGann’s critical examination of “Romantic ideology” …

Ike's Last War: Making War Safe For Society, Jesse A. Faugstad

War, Diplomacy, and Society (MA) Theses

This thesis analyzes how Eisenhower defined war and its utility in his New Look defense policy and the ramifications for America’s interactions with the world through its foreign policy. It argues that Eisenhower redefined the relationship between war and society as he executed his grand strategy, further removing society from the decision for war. To avoid what he believed to be the inevitable global destruction of a general war turned nuclear, Eisenhower broadened the scope of ‘war” to balance domestic opinion for containing communism while also avoiding the devastating consequences of war in American society. By authorizing coups in Iran …