Digital Commons Network^™

The Influence Of Plastic Bag Bans On Pro-Environmental Behaviors In Rhode Island Coastal Communities, Eva Touhey

Open Access Master's Theses

One of the greatest threats to the natural environment is marine debris pollution. Single-use plastics, one of many contributors to marine debris, are causing the greatest harm, affecting the well-being of humans and animals. In an effort to mitigate plastic pollution, environmental policies are implemented to reduce the availability of single-use plastic products to the consumer. This research looks explicitly at single-use plastic bag policies to see if implemented plastic bag bans promote pro-environmental behaviors and broader support for plastic bag policies. This study sampled two communities in Rhode Island, one with a single-use plastic bag ban, Middletown, and one …

Optimized Fishing Through Periodically Harvested Closures, Paul G. Carvalho, Stacy D. Jupiter, Fraser A. Januchowski-Hartley, Jordan Goetze, Joachim Claudet, Rebecca Weeks, Austin T. Humphries, Crow White

Fisheries, Animal and Veterinary Sciences Faculty Publications

1. Periodically harvested closures are a widespread, centuries‐old form of fisheries management that protects fish between pulse harvests and can generate high harvest efficiency by reducing fish wariness of fishing gear. However, the ability for periodic closures to also support high fisheries yields and healthy marine ecosystems is uncertain, despite increased promotion of periodic closures for managing fisheries and conserving ecosystems in the Indo‐Pacific.
2. We developed a bioeconomic fisheries model that considers changes in fish wariness, based on empirical field research, and quantified the extent to which periodic closures can simultaneously maximize harvest efficiency, fisheries yield and conservation of fish stocks. …

Social Learning And Communication With Threshold Uncertainty, Todd Guilfoos, Haoran Miao, Simona Trandafir, Emi Uchida

Environmental and Natural Resource Economics Faculty Publications

Using a threshold public bad game, we perform an experiment to test the effects of communication on coordination failure with various levels of threshold uncertainty. We apply two communication treatments to the coordination game: cheap talk between group members (unrestricted) and anonymous written communication from one generation of subjects to another (restricted). We find that the probability of groups coordinating and reaching the socially preferred equilibrium increases significantly with cheap talk and increases moderately with written communication. Repeated communication through cheap talk leads to a higher probability of achieving a set of payoff-dominant equilibria even in the face of threshold …

Assessing Consumer Preferences For Sustainability, Equity, And Welfare In The Aquarium Trade, Larynn Cutshaw

Open Access Master's Theses

Each year millions of fish and invertebrates are traded to support the home aquaria industry. Aquarium keeping is a popular hobby worldwide and the trade has the potential to provide socio-economic benefits to reef-adjacent communities while promoting environmental stewardship by consumers. However, current practices are negatively impacting the industry as the supply chain can be environmentally unsustainable and socially unequitable. Poor industry practices compromise the welfare of the organisms, leading to immense supply chain losses which exacerbate the sustainability and equity issues. Since the trade is demand-driven, consumers can play a role in addressing poor industry practices by using their …

The Burden Of Invisibility: A Case Study Of The Fisheries Crisis In Ghana, And Usaid/Ghana Sustainable Fisheries Management Project’S Gender Mainstreaming Strategy, Danielle Bilecki

Open Access Master's Theses

The Sustainable Fisheries Management Project’s primary goal is to create a more sustainable artisanal fishery in Ghana, in order to increase food security within the nation. One of SFMP’s strategies within this fisheries-based project was to implement a gender mainstreaming strategy in order to empower previously overlooked women stakeholders. This chapter will present the results of a study on the impacts of SFMP’s gender mainstreaming strategy on members of Ghana’s artisanal fisheries sector.

This study focuses on impacts primarily associated with fishers, fish processors, members of client and partner organizations, as well as the organizations themselves, and on the Ministry …

A Comparative Assessment Of Geostatistical, Machine Learning, And Hybrid Approaches For Mapping Topsoil Organic Carbon Content, Lin Chen, Chunying Ren, Lin Li, Yeqiao Wang, Bai Zhang, Zongming Wang, Linfeng Li

Natural Resources Science Faculty Publications

Accurate digital soil mapping (DSM) of soil organic carbon (SOC) is still a challenging subject because of its spatial variability and dependency. This study is aimed at comparing six typical methods in three types of DSM techniques for SOC mapping in an area surrounding Changchun in Northeast China. The methods include ordinary kriging (OK) and geographically weighted regression (GWR) from geostatistics, support vector machines for regression (SVR) and artificial neural networks (ANN) from machine learning, and geographically weighted regression kriging (GWRK) and artificial neural networks kriging (ANNK) from hybrid approaches. The hybrid approaches, in particular, integrated the GWR from geostatistics …

Improving Spatial Predictions Of Animal Resource Selection To Guide Conservation Decision Making, Brian Gerber, Joseph M. Northrup

Natural Resources Science Faculty Publications

Resource selection is often studied by ecologists interested in the environmental drivers of animal space use and movement. These studies commonly produce spatial predictions, which are of considerable utility to resource managers making habitat and population management decisions. It is thus paramount that predictions from resource selection studies are accurate. We evaluated model building and fitting strategies for optimizing resource selection function predictions in a use‐availability framework. We did so by simulating low‐ and high‐intensity spatial sampling data that respectively predicted study area and movement‐based resource selection. We compared one of the most commonly used forms of statistical regularization, Akaike's …

Mechanisms Of Division Site Selection And Role Of The Atp-Dependent Protease Clpxp In Mind Regulation And Proteostasis In E. Coli, Christopher James Labreck

Open Access Dissertations

Cell division in Escherichia coli depends on mechanisms to spatially and temporally regulate selection of the division site. In dividing cells, the Z-ring, composed of linear polymers of FtsZ, assembles at the site of septation. For division to yield two identical progeny, the septum must form at the longitudinal cell center, also known as midcell. Septation at locations other than midcell results in uneven division and gives rise to daughter cells with chromosome abnormalities and functional defects, which may arise from chromosome severing or impaired chromosome segregation. Therefore, an organism's overall viability necessitates cellular strategies that ensure correct placement of …

The Last Refuge Of Scoundrels: The Problem Of Truth In A Time Of Lying, Bernard E. Harcourt

Faculty Scholarship

This essay addresses the problem of truth today in light of the common belief, especially among progressives, that we have entered a post-truth age, as well as of the frequent claim that our post-truth society is the fault of postmodernists and their challenge to the objectivity of truth. The essay does not resolve the strategic question whether the post-truth argument is, as a purely tactical political matter, an effective approach to respond to the onslaught of misrepresentations and lies by President Donald Trump and the New Right. Instead, it explores the post-truth argument from a more synoptic perspective regarding the …

Choice Theory: A Restatement, Michael A. Heller, Hanoch Dagan

Faculty Scholarship

This chapter restates choice theory, which advances a liberal approach to contract law. First, we refine the concept of autonomy for contract. Then we address range, limit, and floor, three principles that together justify contract law in a liberal society. The first concerns the state’s obligation to be proactive in facilitating the availability of a multiplicity of contract types. The second refers to the respect contract law owes to the autonomy of a party’s future self, that is, to the ability to re-write the story of one’s life. The final principle concerns relational justice, the baseline for any legitimate use …

Administrative States: Beyond Presidential Administration, Jessica Bulman-Pozen

Faculty Scholarship

Presidential administration is more entrenched and expansive than ever. Most significant policymaking comes from agency action rather than legislation. Courts endorse “the presence of Presidential power” in agency decisionmaking. Scholars give up on external checks and balances and take presidential direction as a starting point. Yet presidential administration is also quite fragile. Even as the Court embraces presidential control, it has been limiting the administrative domain over which the President presides. And when Presidents drive agency action in a polarized age, their policies are not only immediately contested but also readily reversed by their successors.

States complicate each piece of …

What Is ‘Dark Money’? 5 Questions Answered, Richard Briffault

Faculty Scholarship

With the 2020 campaign season upon us, “dark money” is again in the news.

Maine’s Republican Sen. Susan Collins has decried what she contends is a “dark money” campaign against her. Montana’s Gov. Steve Bullock has made opposition to dark money a centerpiece of his Democratic presidential campaign.

But what exactly is “dark money,” and why is it considered a problem?

As a law professor who studies campaign finance, I’d like to answer those questions and explain how improved disclosure laws could shed some light on dark money.

Protecting Consumers In The Age Of The Internet Of Things, Nicole Smith Futrell

Faculty Scholarship

“Wake up, baby!”

Imagine waking up in the middle of the night to the sound of a stranger speaking to your baby through the baby monitor. For one Texas couple, this horror story became reality when a man hacked their internet-connected monitors to watch and stalk their child. In a similarly horrifying scenario, a hacker stalked Miss Teen USA, Cassidy Wolf, for a year via her webcam. The stalker had 24/7 access to her webcam and also traced the keystrokes on her keyboard to learn her passwords for various web accounts. Subsequently, the hacker used private information he learned about …

Engineering Rules, Peter L. Strauss

Faculty Scholarship

“Engineering Rules” is a clever triple entendre, evoking rules (the industrial standards that are its concern), the emergence of engineering (the profession largely responsible for their creation) and the consensus processes developed over time (the engineering) by which they have been created. The book is an extraordinarily detailed history of the movement from national to international standards creation and use, a necessary product of the industrial age and the emergence of a global economy. It introduces as its heroes, in remarkably intimate accounts of their careers, a series of men of rectitude and accomplishment who selflessly built the practice. The …

Kisor, Gundy, Mead, Chevron, Skidmore, Hearst, Peter L. Strauss

Faculty Scholarship

Kisor v. Wilkie, in which the Court narrowly declined to overrule Auer deference while distinctly constraining its reach, shares with United States v. Mead Corp. and Skidmore v. Swift & Co. — so prominently mentioned in its opinions—the characteristic of being about an administrative action that, at root, is soft law, guidance. Quite appropriately, it did not address Chevron deference, although readers of the opinions, with Justices’ prior opinions in mind, will have no problem foreseeing a similar confrontation in the coming Term of Court, or perhaps the one to follow.

Perihelion Club Of Rock Hill Records - Accession 72, Book Club Of Rock Hill, Perihelion

Manuscript Collection

The Perihelion Club of Rock Hill Records consist of minutes, financial statements, membership lists, yearbooks, correspondence and news clippings, concerning the literary activities of the club. The Perihelion Club of Rock Hill was organized in 1898 as a book club. It was federated with the South Carolina Federation of Women's Clubs in 1898 and with the General Federation of Women's Clubs in 1929.

Confederate Veterans Association Catawba Camp No. 278 Records - Accession 579, American Civil War, Confederate Veterans, Catawba Camp (Cva) No. 278

Manuscript Collection

This collection consists of photocopies of records related to the Confederate Veterans Association Catawba Camp No. 278. The majority of the records consist of minutes, but also includes membership lists, newspaper clippings, and resolutions. Also included in the collection are Catawba Camp flag and two ribbons. The Catawba Camp was organized in 1893 and was based in Rock Hill, SC with Colonel Cadwallader Jones as the Commander.

Polyxpress+: Using Social Networking To Enhance The User Experience Of An Interactive Location-Based Storytelling Application, Desiree Creel

Master's Theses

There’s no denying the ever increasing presence of social networking in our daily lives. Every day, people share what they are thinking, doing, and experiencing. But even more so, they check their favorite networks to see what the people in their lives are sharing. Social networking has become so prevalent that most applications incorporate it since it keeps users engaged and beckons them back to the application again and again.

PolyXpress is an interactive, location-based storytelling mobile application that functions as a platform for creating and experiencing stories. Written as a research project at California Polytechnic State University, it allows …

Assessing Endothelial Dysfunction Estimating The Differences Between 3 Minute And 5 Minute Reactive Hyperemia, Tamiko K. Saldin

Master's Theses

The purpose of this study was to define a lower standard cuff occlusion time to induce reactive hyperemia in assessing endothelial dysfunction. In this study, strong evidence was found by a novel technique that used oscillometric methods, which supported that 3 minute reactive hyperemia was sufficient to elicit a significant difference in arterial compliance from baseline. Twenty healthy Cal Poly students were assessed, (n=12 female, n=8 male) aged 22 years old with a standard deviation of 2.04 years. Arterial compliance was estimated by measuring the peak-to-peak oscillations for baseline, 3 minute reactive hyperemia, and 5 minute reactive hyperemia tests, with …

The Effects Of Casinos On Unemployment: A County Level Analysis, Sally Anne St. Clair Kron

Honors Program Theses

The gambling industry in the United States has experienced significant growth over the past thirty years. As the industry continues to expand, legislators must consider the pros and cons that accompany the industry expansion. This paper examines if the social and economic benefits from the casino industry outweigh the social and economic costs of gambling with a specific focus on the effects on unemployment. The gaming industry creates tax revenue, employment, and entertainment for the community. But it also has a regressive tax structure and creates problems like pathological gambling. This paper analyzes this tradeoff and uses Ordinary Least Squares …

Foreign-Born Workers' Effect On Agricultural Industry In Iowa, Hannah Mcdevitt

Honors Program Theses

It is no secret that Iowa’s reputation relies heavily on farms. Several years ago, a woman from California actually asked me if I ride my tractor to school. I wish I could tell you that was just a fun hook to get you interested in my paper, but it happened. Farming is a part of Iowa’s culture and an essential piece of the state’s economy. Iowa is one of the main pork, corn, and soybean producers in the United States, and its farming roots extend deep into the state’s rich soil.

Miller Family Bibles - Accession 1686, Miller Family, Walkup Family, Cathcart Family, William Joseph Miller

Manuscript Collection

The Miller Family Bibles consists of three family bibles which contain genealogical entries, photographs, newspaper clippings and obituaries, and other memorabilia. The genealogical entries consists of birth dates, death dates, marriage dates, and a couple narrative entries related to family history. The family history records relate mostly related to the Miller Family but also includes entries for other allied families: Walkup; Roddey; Williams; Black; Lindsay; Wylie; Cathcart; Spencer; Davis;

Black Family Bibles - Accession 1687, Black Family, Mcfadden Family, Alexander Murray Black

Manuscript Collection

The Black Family Bibles consists of two bibles belonging to the Black Family and extended family of Rock Hill, SC. The Black Family Bibles contain genealogical entries that range from 1798-1909 and mainly relate to the Black Family and McFadden Family. Many items were found in the bibles that were removed including several Confederate Veteran ribbons, newspaper articles and clippings (including obituaries), church programs, correspondence, cards, locks of hair, drawings, and cross-stitch.

The bibles belonged to Lieutenant Alexander Murray Black (1837-1915) who served in Company H, 12^th regiment, South Carolina Volunteers for the Confederate Army during the American Civil …

Work-Related Outcomes And Organizational Commitment, Mushaun Miller

Honors Program Theses

The modern workplace encompasses a multi-generational and diverse workforce. Now more than ever, workplaces include those of various ages, backgrounds, races, and more. It is important for an organization to manage the differences among its employees in order to influence personal and organizational outcomes. After all, work-related personal outcomes allow the employee to evaluate the organization and find his/her place within it- which influences commitment to an organization. Organizational commitment is a crucial goal due to its ability to reduce various dysfunctional behaviors such as absenteeism or turnover. High organizational commitment also leads to various positive outcomes including stronger customer …

Constitutional Reform In Japan: Prospects, Process, And Implications, Nobuhisa Ishizuka

Faculty Scholarship

Japan's constitution has remained unchanged for over 70 years since its adoption. With Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's re-election as the leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party of Japan (LDP) in 2018, the issue of constitutional revision has gained renewed attention. On March 13, 2019 the Center for Japanese Legal Studies at Columbia Law School co-hosted, with the Council on Foreign Relations, a full-day conference on "Constitutional Reform in Japan: Prospect, Process, and Implications." Three panels of distinguished experts examined the domestic political landscape in Japan, provided comparative legal perspectives, and considered the political, strategic, and social implications of proposed …

Constitutional Reform In Japan, Nobuhisa Ishizuka

Faculty Scholarship

Over seventy years ago it would have seemed inconceivable in the aftermath of a calamitous war that a complete reorientation of Japan into a pacifist society, modeled on Western principles of individual rights and democracy, would succeed in upending a deeply entrenched political order with roots dating back centuries.

The post-war Japanese constitution lies at the heart of this transformation. Drafted, negotiated and promulgated a mere fourteen months after Japan's formal surrender, it has remained a model of stability amidst transformational changes in the domestic and international political landscape. In the seventy-plus years since its adoption, it has not been …

Private Law Statutory Interpretation, Shyamkrishna Balganesh

Faculty Scholarship

While scholars routinely question the normative significance of the distinction between public law and private law, few – if any – question its conceptual basis. Put in simple terms, private law refers to bodies of legal doctrine that govern the horizontal interaction between actors, be they individuals, corporate entities, or on occasion the state acting in its private capacity. Public law on the other hand refers to doctrinal areas that deal with vertical interaction between the state and non-state actors, wherein the state exerts a direct and overbearing influence on the shape and course of the law. The latter is …

A Reconsideration Of Copyright's Term, Kristelia A. Garcia, Justin Mccrary

Faculty Scholarship

For well over a century, legislators, courts, lawyers, and scholars have spent significant time and energy debating the optimal duration of copyright protection. While there is general consensus that copyright’s term is of legal and economic significance, arguments both for and against a lengthy term are often impressionistic. Utilizing music industry sales data not previously available for academic analysis, this Article fills an important evidentiary gap in the literature. Using recorded music as a case study, we determine that most copyrighted music earns the majority of its lifetime revenue in the first five to ten years following its initial release …

The Separation Of Platforms And Commerce, Lina M. Khan

Faculty Scholarship

A handful of digital platforms mediate a growing share of online commerce and communications. By structuring access to markets, these firms function as gatekeepers for billions of dollars in economic activity. One feature dominant digital platforms share is that they have inte­grated across business lines such that they both operate a platform and market their own goods and services on it. This structure places domi­nant platforms in direct competition with some of the businesses that de­pend on them, creating a conflict of interest that platforms can exploit to further entrench their dominance, thwart competition, and stifle innovation.

This Article argues …

Divergence And Convergence At The Intersection Of Property And Contract, Giuseppe Dari-Mattiacci, Carmine Guerriero

Faculty Scholarship

In this Article, we study rules that solve the conflict between the original owner and an innocent buyer of a stolen or embezzled good. These rules balance the protection of the original owner’s property and the buyer’s reliance on contractual exchange, thereby addressing a fundamental legal and economic trade-off. Our analysis is based on a unique, hand-collected dataset on the rules in force in 126 countries. Using this data, we document and explain two conflicting trends. There is a large amount of first-order divergence: both rules that apply to stolen goods and those that apply to embezzled goods vary widely …