Digital Commons Network^™

Termination Of Parental Rights: Should There Be A “Three-Strike Rule” For A Parent To Lose Parental Rights After Three Felony Convictions?, 53 Uic J. Marshall L. Rev. 283 (2020), Christopher Menich

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Science Of Administrative Change, Barry Sullivan, Christine Kexel Chabot

Connecticut Law Review

Donald Trump repeatedly vowed to reduce regulation during the 2016 presidential campaign. Indeed, one of his key advisors promised to “deconstruct” the administrative state. Since taking office, President Trump has attempted to make good on his promises, spurring federal agencies to brush aside countless regulations that previous administrations had promulgated based on scientific, technological, or economic evidence. Those efforts, which some have dubbed a “war on science,” implicate a long-contested question in administrative law: to what extent should a change in presidential administrations excuse agencies from any obligation to justify changes in policy with expert, reasoned analysis of relevant data? …

Paternalism Or Gender-Neutrality?, Stephen J. Ware

Connecticut Law Review

The strong and widely accepted reasons for using gender-neutral language presumptively apply to the gendered word paternalism and its gender-neutral counterpart, parentalism. With these reasons in mind, this Article’s thesis is that legal scholars should begin with a presumption for using the gender-neutral word parentalism, while using paternalism only when emphasizing the important relevance of gender or otherwise trying to convey a gendered meaning. Accordingly, many legal scholars define paternalism in an expressly gendered way—such as “the institutionalization of male dominance,” or an “ideology [that] teaches men to minimize women’s agency”—or fittingly use paternalism to describe an attitude especially characteristic …

Paternalism Or Gender-Neutrality?, Stephen J. Ware

Connecticut Law Review

The strong and widely accepted reasons for using gender-neutral language presumptively apply to the gendered word paternalism and its gender-neutral counterpart, parentalism. With these reasons in mind, this Article’s thesis is that legal scholars should begin with a presumption for using the gender-neutral word parentalism, while using paternalism only when emphasizing the important relevance of gender or otherwise trying to convey a gendered meaning. Accordingly, many legal scholars define paternalism in an expressly gendered way—such as “the institutionalization of male dominance,” or an “ideology [that] teaches men to minimize women’s agency”—or fittingly use paternalism to describe an attitude especially characteristic …

Falling Short: On Implicit Biases And The Discrimination Of Short Individuals, Omer Kimhi

Connecticut Law Review

Socio-psychological research solidly shows that people hold implicit biases against short individuals. We associate a host of positive qualities to those with above average height, and we belittle those born a few inches short. These implicit biases, in turn, lead to outright discrimination. Experiments prove that employers prefer not to hire or promote short employees and that they do not adequately compensate them. According to various studies, controlling for other variables, every inch of height is worth hundreds of dollars in annual income, which is no less severe than the wage gap associated with gender or racial discrimination.

Given the …

For The Children: Intentional And Functional Approaches To Same-Sex Parentage In Connecticut, Hannah Kalichman

Connecticut Law Review

Despite major progress that Connecticut has made in recent years towards achieving marriage equality, there is still a large disparity in the legal treatment of Connecticut parents based on their sexual orientation. Many family law doctrines regarding parentage are entrenched in “traditional” heteronormative definitions of marriage and family, despite changes in the legal recognition of marriage. Furthermore, certain doctrines, such as the presumption of legitimacy, maintain the narrative of a child only belonging to one mother and one father in the context of a marriage. Understandings of what it means to be a family are shifting. In 2019, the adoption …

Computer Science For Equity: Teacher Education, Agency, And Statewide Reform, Joanna Goode, Max Skorodinsky, Jill Hubbard, James Hook

Computer Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

This paper reports on a statewide “Computer Science for All” initiative in Oregon that aims to democratize high school computer science and broaden participation in an academic subject that is one of the most segregated disciplines nationwide, in terms of both race and gender. With no statewide policies to support computing instruction, Oregon's legacy of computer science education has been marked by both low participation and by rates of underrepresented students falling well-below the already dismal national rates. The study outlined in this paper focuses on how teacher education can support educators in developing knowledge and agency, and impacting policies …

Annual Report, Research & Instruction Department, 2019 - 2020, Gary Austin, Theresa G. Burress, Camielle Crampsie

Library Department and Committee Reports

Annual report for the Reference and Instruction Department for the period July 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020, for the University of South Florida St. Petersburg's Nelson Poynter Memorial Library.

The First Global Deep-Sea Stable Isotope Assessment Reveals The Unique Trophic Ecology Of Vampire Squid Vampyroteuthis Infernalis (Cephalopoda), A. V. Golikov, F. R. Ceia, R. M. Sabirov, J. D. Ablett, Ian G. Gleadall, Gudmundur Gudmundsson, Henk-Jan T. Hoving, Heather L. Judkins

USF St. Petersburg Campus Faculty Publications

Vampyroteuthis infernalis Chun, 1903, is a widely distributed deepwater cephalopod with unique morphology and phylogenetic position. We assessed its habitat and trophic ecology on a global scale via stable isotope analyses of a unique collection of beaks from 104 specimens from the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Cephalopods typically are active predators occupying a high trophic level (TL) and exhibit an ontogenetic increase in δ15N and TL. Our results, presenting the first global comparison for a deep-sea invertebrate, demonstrate that V. infernalis has an ontogenetic decrease in δ15N and TL, coupled with niche broadening. Juveniles are mobile zooplanktivores, while larger …

First-Time Characterization Of Viable But Non-Culturable Proteus Mirabilis: Induction And Resuscitation, Reham Wasfi, G. R. Abdellatif, H. M. Elshishtawy, Hossam M. Ashour

USF St. Petersburg Campus Faculty Publications

Pathogenic bacteria can enter into a viable but non-culturable (VBNC) state under unfavourable conditions. Proteus mirabilis is responsible for dire clinical consequences including septicaemia, urinary tract infections and pneumonia, but is not a species previously known to enter VBNC state. We suggested that stress-induced P. mirabilis can enter a VBNC state in which it retains virulence. P. mirabilis isolates were incubated in extreme osmotic pressure, starvation, low temperature and low pH to induce a VBNC state. Resuscitation was induced by temperature upshift and inoculation in tryptone soy broth with Tween 20 and brain heart infusion broth. Cellular ultrastructure and gene …

Crystal Structure Of Thermus Thermophilus Methylenetetrahydrofolate Dehydrogenase And Determinants Of Thermostability, Fernando Maiello, Gloria Gallo, Camila Coelho, Fernanda Sucharski, Leon Hardy, Martin Würtele

USF St. Petersburg Campus Faculty Publications

The elucidation of mechanisms behind the thermostability of proteins is extremely important both from the theoretical and applied perspective. Here we report the crystal structure of methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase (MTHFD) from Thermus thermophilus HB8, a thermophilic model organism. Molecular dynamics trajectory analysis of this protein at different temperatures (303 K, 333 K and 363 K) was compared with homologous proteins from the less temperature resistant organism Thermoplasma acidophilum and the mesophilic organism Acinetobacter baumannii using several data reduction techniques like principal component analysis (PCA), residue interaction network (RIN) analysis and rotamer analysis. These methods enabled the determination of important residues for …

Temporal Variability Of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons In Deep-Sea Cephalopods Of The Northern Gulf Of Mexico, Isabel C. Romero, Heather L. Judkins, Michael Vecchione

USF St. Petersburg Campus Faculty Publications

As part of the effort to understand the effects of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill (DWHOS), we analyzed tissue from five species of midwater oceanic cephalopods in the northern Gulf of Mexico (GoM) during three time periods, including one period sampled fortuitously just before the spill (2010), and two periods sampled after the spill (2011 and 2015–2016). The species, Japetella diaphana, Abralia redfieldi, Histioteuthis corona, Leachia atlantica, and Onychoteuthis banksii were collected in three geographic areas in the GoM (east, south and southeast of the Macondo wellhead). Results indicate a shift in the composition of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in …

Bioaccumulation And Biomagnification Of Potential Toxic Elements (Ptes): An Avicennia Germinans–Uca Rapax Trophic Transfer Story From Jobos Bay, Puerto Rico, Michael Martinez-Colon, Henry Alegria, Hatice Kubra-Gul, Ashley Huber, Perihan Kurt-Karakus

USF St. Petersburg Campus Faculty Publications

In southern Puerto Rico along the coastline bordering the Jobos Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, environmental encroachment has exposed mangrove forest to different sources of pollution. Potentially toxic element concentrations from the F1Tess (exchangeable), F4Tess (oxidizable), mangrove leaf litter (MLL), and fiddler crab whole body soft tissue were analyzed to assess the fate and transport of pollutants from the environment and its transition into flora-fauna via trophic transfer. Geo-accumulation factor values suggest the bay has experienced limited to no pollution when combining the concentrations of potentially toxic elements extracted from the F1Tess and F4Tess sediment fractions. These geochemical sedimentary compartments …

Influence Of Size, Sex, And Reproductive Status On The Thermal Biology Of Endemic Florida Scrub Lizards, Alison M. Gainsbury

USF St. Petersburg Campus Faculty Publications

Climate change is impacting species globally, with many populations declining at an accelerated rate toward extinction. Ectothermic species are particularly vulnerable given their reproductive success is linked to environmental temperatures. Studies of the effect of temperature on reproductive success in oviparous squamates have focused mostly on nest temperatures, after eggs are deposited. However, in some species gravid females are known to thermoregulate differently than other adults to increase reproductive success. It is essential to understand what influences the thermal biology of breeding adults in a population to implement targeted conservation strategies. The Florida scrub lizard Sceloporus woodi is an endemic …

Nssi Stigma Toward Adolescent Girls And Boys, Mackenzie L. Dallenbach

Undergraduate Student Work

Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) is a relatively new subject of attention for psychopathology researchers, and is listed as a Condition for Further Study in the DSM-5 (APA, 2013). Current research on NSSI has utilized primarily female participants, limiting generalizability. Additionally, little research has been conducted with NSSI stigma. Thus, the current study examined whether two things influenced NSSI stigma: the sex of an individual engaging in it, and participant familiarity with NSSI. The results revealed that sex did not influence stigma. Further, there was no correlation between familiarity and NSSI stigma.

Encouraging Entrepreneurship And Innovation Through Regulatory Democratization, Seth C. Oranburg

Scholarly Articles

Law and economics scholars agree that business regulations have a disproportionately negative impact on entrepreneurship and innovation. It would be a significant problem indeed if the very nature of regulation inhibits this kind of growth and creativity. This view of the problem suggests that the only way to increase innovation would be to decrease regulation.

Yet this view is too general. When examined more closely, all regulations are not created equal. Regulations can be formulated as rules or standards, and they can be simple or complex. Moreover, some rules are easily understood by computers and are thus suitable for automated …

Government Regulatory Panel, Katrina Kessler, Karen Stainbrook, Dr. Madeline Magee, Michael Alexander, Chitra Gowda, Tricia Mitchell, Dr. Lucinda Johnson

Canada-United States Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Harmful Algal Blooms In The Great Lakes St. Lawrence River Basin: Is It Time Fro A Binational Sub-Federal Approach?, Dr. Kathryn Bryk Friedman, Dr. Irena F. Creed

Canada-United States Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Can We Learn To Incentivize Morality?: A Discussion Of Biotechnology On An International Level, Shannon M. Patrick

Emory International Law Review

This Comment argues that if a group of people, or the international community as a whole, should at any point wish to prevent the ownership of morally controversial biotechnology, then the international community should take steps towards international uniformity. Uniformity in these decisions would arguably need to include uniformity on subject matter eligibility decisions across countries.

A Vision For Future Mobility: Hyperloop One And The Submerged Floating Tunnel From Estonia And Finland, Seongbae Park

Emory International Law Review

This Comment proceeds in three parts. Part I discusses the three types of forms available for the construction of underwater sea tunnel in Estonia and Finland in detail and explains that Hyperloop One is seeking to utilize the submerged floating tunnel form. Part II explores the existing international conventions, treaties, and regulations related with the Sea that are both compatible and incompatible with Hyperloop One Technology. Part III then argues that the construction of submerged floating tunnel as is, without engineering solutions, is not permitted as it potentially violates existing international legislation and that because of the violation, the interpretation …

Reds, Whites, And Sulfites: Examining Different Organic Wine Regulation Practices In The United States And The European Union, Ryan Puszka

Northwestern Journal of International Law & Business

Abstract:

This note examines the history of regulation within the organic wine industry in the U.S. and the E.U. and explores the motivations behind the production of organic wine in these two regions. The variance in the historical significance of wine between these two regions is reflected in the contemporary differences between the two regions’ rules for organic wine certification. In 2012, the U.S. and the E.U. entered into a comprehensive organic equivalency agreement that covered nearly all organic agricultural products but due to significant differences in the two regions’ regulatory schemes concerning the inclusion of added sulfites in wine, …

Ultra-Low Power Circuits And Architectures For Neuromorphic Computing Accelerators With Emerging Tfets And Rerams, Jie Lin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Neuromorphic computing using post-CMOS technologies is gaining increasing popularity due to its promising potential to resolve the power constraints in Von-Neumann machine and its similarity to the operation of the real human brain. To design the ultra-low voltage and ultra-low power analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) for the neuromorphic computing systems, we explore advantages of tunnel field effect transistor (TFET) analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) on energy efficiency and temperature stability. A fully-differential SAR ADC is designed using 20 nm TFET technology with doubled input swing and controlled comparator input common-mode voltage. To further increase the resolution of the ADC, we design an energy …

Classical Engineering Systems Provide Behavioral Analog For Ephemeral Insect And Plant Biomechanics, Nicholas Smith

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

In this dissertation we consider ephemeral behaviors of two small-scale living systems, mosquitoes and citrus fruit reservoirs. While these two systems share few obvious commonalities, they both express life events that are complex and conclude within approximately 50 milliseconds. We utilize high-speed videography, between 1,000-16,000 fps, to detail how complex behavior can be modeled as classical engineering systems. Beginning with the larger organism we assessed the landing and takeoff behavior of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes to ascertain the secrets of their covert interaction with humans. At takeoff, mosquitoes decrease pushing contact time with substrates of low friction through a modified takeoff …

Evaluating The Performance And Impacts Of Seawater Regeneration In An Anion Exchange Process, Daniel Whalen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

This research investigated the use of seawater regeneration for anion exchange (AIX) processes. Seawater and salt-supplemented seawater regeneration of chloride-form anion resin were evaluated in regard to (1) operational performance efficiency of sulfate and natural organic matter removal, (2) competing exchange of bromide during regeneration, and (3) brominated disinfection by-product (DBP) formation due to bromide leakage. The first component involved bench-scale research that revealed that seawater-based regeneration led to bromide leakage that could be mitigated to an average of 1.82 mg/L using 1% salt-supplemented seawater, and 1.25 mg/L using 3% salt-supplemented seawater. Conceptual cost comparisons revealed that the use of …

Atomic Scale Processes And Electronic Band Structure Engineering In Thin Layered Materials, Brandon Blue

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

In this work, a variety of layered materials are considered for their potential technologic applications and the role of structure on the physical properties of the material system as a whole. Transition metal dichalcogenides form the core of the work discussed here, with additional results from an iron pnictide-based superconductor and for a biologically-sourced proton conductor. Here, a commercial scanning tunneling microscope (STM) with liquid cryogenic cooling provides information about both the atomic-scale structure of the surface and the local electronic density of states (LDOS) as a function of position. The interplay of superconducting and charge-density wave states is discussed …

Balancing Biodiversity And Natural Resource Protection Objective With Ethnic Minority Autonomy: A Chinese Model, Lin Feng, Guy Charlton

Fordham International Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Climatic And Topologic Controls On The Complexity Of River Networks, Sevil Ranjbar Moshfeghi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

The emergence and evolution of channel networks are controlled by the competition between the hillslopes and fluvial processes on the landscape. Investigating the geomorphic and topologic properties of these networks is important for developing predictive models describing the network dynamics under changing environment as well as for quantifying the roles of processes in creating distinct patterns of channel networks. In this dissertation, the response of landscapes to changing climatic forcing via numerical-modeling and field observations was investigated. A new framework was proposed to evaluate the complexity of catchments using two different representations of channel networks. The structural complexity was studied …

A Computational Biomechanical Model-Based Optimization Of Fulcrum Support In Orthosis Enabled Closed Reduction Of Developmental Dysplasia Of The Hip, Christopher Rose

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Hip abduction orthosis devices (HAOD) are used to reduce the hip joint of infants affected by developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH). HAOD have been successful for mild cases of DDH and ineffective for severe cases. Efforts in understanding the biomechanics of lower limbs have been made to improve the success rate of current treatment methods, especially for Grade IV dislocations (G4). The aim of this dissertation is twofold: first, it proposes the use of a varying fulcrum point (FP) located below the leg to improve DDH treatment; and secondly, it defines the optimal FP (OP) location for a broad …

Gelsolin-Mediated Actin Filament Severing In Crowded Environments, James Heidings

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Actin is an essential cytoskeletal protein that plays key roles in several cellular functions such as phagocytosis and cell motility with the help of actin binding proteins (ABPs). Gelsolin is a calcium regulated ABP that severs and caps actin filaments. Gelsolin helps control actin filament assembly dynamics that are required for cell survival. Cleavage products of gelsolin lead to Familial Amyloidosis, Finnish type, and conformational changes to gelsolin are implicated in disease progression. The majority of in vitro studies of gelsolin and actin have been performed in dilute buffer conditions which do not simulate the molecular interactions occurring in the …

Sex, Gender, Sexual Assault, And Rape On The Red Pill: A Thematic And Linguistic Analysis, Walker Talton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

The digital space has offered fertile new territory to connect with like-minded individuals and discuss anything and everything. This has resulted in the creation of the Manosphere, a collection of men concerned about the state of men and masculinity and how society views and treats men. One of the places online this community has found a home is the popular website Reddit, which offers the ability to create individual pages in which communities can form around and discuss and share information on almost any topic they desire. This study aimed to investigate the ways in which one community on Reddit, …