Digital Commons Network^™

Visions And Seeds Of Change : Pathways To Defining And Seeking Liberation, Ramon Kentrell Lee

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

From July 2015 to May 2018, the sociopolitical terrain and atmosphere of Albany, New York underwent significant shifts as the levels and types of activism and liberation discourse increased. The shifts were related to national occurrences, such as the development of the Black Lives Matter movement, the state of police brutality and state-sanctioned violence, the campaign and election of Donald J. Trump as the 45th President of the United State, and the emergence of the Me Too movement. During this period of change, activists engaged in a series of political struggles for situated identification and empowerment, the emergence of a …

A Gis Approach To Landscape Scale Archaeoacoustics, Kristy Elizabeth Primeau

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This research presents the development and critical assessment of an Archaeoacoustics Toolbox for Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technology written in the Python programming language, and applies this methodology to cross cultural case studies exploring the importance of soundsheds in an anthropological-archaeological context. As counterpoint to a common critique of experiential theoretical approaches the Soundshed Analysis and Soundshed Analysis-Variable Cover tools provide a replicable means of modeling baseline estimates of the experience of sound. Testing against modern acoustical studies establishing scientific accuracy, and explanations of the sound physics calculations performed by the tools are provided. The tools are then applied to …

Commencement 2022 (Program And Video), Illinois Wesleyan University

Commencement Ceremonies

No abstract provided.

Line As Site And Material, Analise Minjarez

Art Theses and Dissertations

This paper recounts my artistic practice over the last three years. I will describe the places, artists, artworks, and processes that have been meaningful to me in this time as I pursued my MFA and worked to understand my relationship to the living world. In the thesis Line as Site and Material, I respond to materiality and site through installation, sculpture, drawing, and video. I work with clay harvested from my hometown of El Paso, TX to connect to the personal histories of the borderlands and geological time. In the Second River Series, I walk in the empty riverbed of …

Andy Stewart, Andy M. Stewart, And Exonostalgia: The Draw Of Tartanry And Kailyard School, Sarah Tackitt

Honors Theses

Andy Stewart and Andy M. Stewart are popular Scottish folk and traditional musicians operating at different periods during the development of mass media. Andy Stewart’s career was marked by the introduction of the television into Scotland, and he made his career being compére of the Scottish television show The White Heather Club. After gaining international recognition, viewers and listeners associated his tartanry and stereotypically Scottish humor as representative of his culture and country.

Andy M. Stewart gained international recognition during the folk revival, in which he wrote songs both for his solo career and for the band Silly Wizard …

Middle School Staffs' Perceptions Of Bullying And Traumatization Of Special Education Students In An Alternative School Setting, Marlene Williams

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative hermeneutic phenomenological study is to know and understand teachers’ perceptions of bullying, teachers’ perceptions of special education students, and what influences their decision to intervene and assist when observing special education students being victimized through bullying. The theory guiding this study is Aaron Beck’s Cognitive Behavioral Theory’s Cognitive Triangle that suggests that thought influences emotions and emotions influences behaviors, as well in reverse. The data collection process includes individual interviews with eight classroom teachers who work in alternative middle schools. Due to COVID-19, in-person observations were omitted, and the individual interviews were conducted using Zoom …

Telework In Times Of Crisis, Samantha Jones

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The COVID-19 pandemic led to a digital transformation globally as office-based work shifted to telework. Low level positions within the office that were previously not permitted to telework had to during the pandemic. Clerical positions proved to be productive while teleworking. Managers may have had to adjust their management styles to fit their remote staff’s needs. Since clerical staff was so productive while teleworking, they may continue to telework after the pandemic as a new normal. Organizations can take the lessons learned from this digital transformation to apply to uncertainty management planning to prevent future business disruptions.

Posthumanism In The Early Modern Period: Jonson, Marlowe, And Shakespeare, Kayli Compton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the existence of posthumanism in the dramas of Ben Jonson, Christopher Marlowe, and William Shakespeare – the three most prominent playwrights of the early modern period. Posthumanist theory, which gives scholars the opportunity to look at past works in a new and unique way, attempts to re-locate the human in the diverse creatures and objects in the world we inhabit. By applying posthumanist theory to older works, we can better understand the early modern period and its writers as well as their relevance to the present. Their plays’ messages serve as warnings that work to guide humanity …

Searching For Hades In Archaic Greek Literature, Daniel Stoll

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No single volume of mythological or philological research exists for Hades. In the one moment Hades appears in archaic Greek literature, speaking for only ten lines, Hermes stands nearby. Thus, to understand and journey to Hades is to reckon with Hermes’ close presence. As I synthesize research by writers from several different disciplines, may some light be brought into the depths. May we analyze Hades’ brief appearance in archaic Greek literature, examining how what I define as the “Hermetic” emits from his breath in the one moment he physically appears and speaks.

Water Quality Assessment Of Karst Spring Water As A Private Water Supply Source In Northeast Tennessee, Lukman Fashina

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Karst springs are an essential source of private water supply for about 10% of households in Tennessee. However, these springs, which can be easily polluted, are unregulated. This study, therefore, assesses water quality spatial patterns and water quality rating of roadside springs in northeast Tennessee.

Karst spring water samples collected from 50 springs were assessed using EPA Standard methods for pathogens, nutrients, radon, and physicochemical parameters. Springs generally met federal and state standards for physicochemical parameters, 90% of samples contained E. coli, and all samples contained fecal coliform. High E. coli was spatially clustered causing a fecal contamination hot …

Contextualizing Mother-Tongue Based Multilingual Education Preschools Within The Turkmen Community Of Afghanistan, Carrie Ann Shaver

Theses and Dissertations

The Turkmen Mother-Tongue Based Multilingual Education (MTB-MLE) Preschool program in Afghanistan provided the ideal environment to research how evidence-based MTB-MLE preschool programs can be implemented in a way that aligns with the cultural and linguistic views of the Turkmen people in Afghanistan such that supervisors, teachers, and the community strive to implement and participate in the program to the fullest extent. Data was triangulated by the use of interviews, participant observation, and MTB-MLE preschool monitoring reports. A qualitative research method was used to gain insights into the perceptions and experiences of supervisors, teachers, and the community on the MTB-MLE program. …

Hallucinogenic Neoshamanism As Antimodernism: Development And Ethical Considerations, Ethan Thompson

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Humans have been using hallucinogenic plants and fungi for thousands of years. Historically, people around the world have made use of these substances to aid in their spiritual development. Studies of the usage of hallucinogens in indigenous societies often use the term “shamanism” to characterize the associated system of belief and ritual practices. In popular understanding, shamanism is a religious system that features highly ritualized performances in which a practitioner (shaman) utilizes an altered state of consciousness to gain access to realms inhabited by spirits with the intent of recruiting their help to resolve a problem, cure a patient, correct …

Dikos Nitsaa’Igii-19 (“The Big Cough”): Coal, Covid-19, And The Navajo Nation, Warigia M. Bowman

UC Law Journal

Both in an absolute sense, and in a comparative sense, COVID-19 is infecting and killing people inside of Navajo Nation at a higher rate than in nearby states. This Article investigates how U.S. energy or mineral extraction policy—particularly regarding coal and uranium— weakened Navajo health and may have contributed to the COVID-19 infection crisis on Navajo. The relationship between U.S. mineral extraction and the health vulnerabilities currently being exposed on the Nation raise issues of administrative law, Indian law, and finally, Tribal and federal governance. This Article also contributes to the literature in environmental justice, natural resources law, and energy …

Delineation Of Cancer Service Areas Anchored By Major Cancer Centers In The United States, Changzhen Wang, Fahui Wang, Tracy Onega

Faculty Publications

Defining a reliable geographic unit pertaining to cancer care is essential in its assessment, planning, and management. This study aims to delineate and characterize the cancer service areas (CSA) accounting for the presence of major cancer centers in the United States. We used the Medicare enrollment and claims from January 1, 2014 to September 30, 2015 to build a spatial network from patients with cancer to cancer care facilities that provided inpatient and outpatient care of cancer-directed surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation. After excluding those without clinical care or outside of the United States, we identified 94 NCI-designated and other academic …

How Can Stakeholders In Food Sovereignty Achieve More Political Power?, Micah Dierks

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Food sovereignty (FSv) is a peasant-driven, transnational movement that emerged in response to land-grabbing and the consolidation of power in food production. It advocates for the rights of people to define their own food practices and systems. To provide targeted feedback for movement reflexivity, 21 ecological conflicts referencing food sovereignty were sampled from the Global Atlas of Environmental Justice (the EJAtlas). Involved groups of actors and their forms of mobilization were correlated with interpretations of success from the EJAtlas. I recommend that stakeholders in food sovereignty pursue the acquisition of greater political power through improving messaging, leveraging or disrupting existing …

Narrative Capacity, James Toomey

North Carolina Law Review

No abstract provided.

Anthropology In 3d: The Use Of Photogrammetry In The Preservation And Dissemination Of Ethnographic Art, Alexander Spindler

Honors Projects

Photogrammetry is an effective tool used by archaeologists in museums and organizations by creating a 3D model from overlapping photos. This project involved a collection of ethnographic artifacts from Papua New Guinea that are currently housed in the Grand Valley State University Anthropology Department. This essay reviews the process and results of this project. Artifacts were photographed and 3D models were created using the Agisoft Metashape program. Models are disseminated via the Sketchfab website with proper cultural information. Artifacts originate from Sepik River tribes and were designed originally for the tourist industry. This project shows the utility of photogrammetry in …

Floating Treatment Wetlands For Brackish Waters: Plant Selection And Nutrient Uptake Potential., Andrea Landaverde

All Theses

Brackish water bodies in coastal regions provide critical ecosystem services that support human and environmental health. Anthropogenic activities such as agricultural and industrial activities, construction, urban settlements, and tourism contribute to increased inputs of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) in brackish coastal ecosystems. Excess nutrients can lead to impaired water quality and affect marine organisms. Floating treatment wetlands (FTWs) are a vegetated-base technology used to remove contaminants from water column, that has been mainly studied and applied in freshwater systems. Application of FTWs in brackish systems requires further investigation, as high salinity in brackish waters could result in toxicity to …

A Cross-Cultural Trek Of Nomadism Through Metaphoric Criticism, Gabrielle Wilkosz

All Theses

How has the worldwide phenomenon of nomadism—present day, recent past, and ancient past—been characterized through metaphor by writers, orators, and auteurs? Using metaphoric criticism, I show how the rhetoric of twenty-first-century "van-lifers" builds on a long global history of displacement that ranges from Central Asia to Malaysia to the Grand Canyon. This project’s three case studies span two decades each, comprising the Kitan people of Central Asia (1207-1227); Bukat people of Borneo in Malaysia (1930-1950), and contemporary "van-lifers" of the US (2001-21). This MA thesis parses a newfound connection between the language of nomadism and Burkean “truth”; the language of …

Opportunity Calls: The Moral Economy During Existential Economic Transition In The Ural Mountains And Appalachia, 1991 - 2008, Nora Springer

Of Life and History

It is often assumed that economists and businessmen act outside of moral constraints, even in times of existential economic crisis. The econometrics of Chubais and Gaidar, as well as the accounting of Deloitte, have all been used to characterize engineers of transition as cold, academic, and removed from reality. However, in both Appalachia and the Urals, mathematics about what will make a profit is inextricable from moral questions of what should make a profit. The goals of economic transition, and ideology about what economic transition should mean, were baked into the calculations of both transitions. Further, the data used to …

A Quest For Dignity: Colored Women’S Anti-Slavery Resistance In The Eighteenth Century British Jamaica And The Reconceptualization Of Human Rights, Yuwei (Ada) Liu

Of Life and History

The public conception of the Human Rights struggle was a European originated post-WWII campaign, advocated by the white organization through the top-down executing system on the non-European country. Nonetheless, by historicized Human Rights struggle, I found that the concept of rights and the ways to reclaiming them evolved under the effects of time, culture, gender, class, and race. In the eighteenth and the nineteenth century, enslaved and fugitive black women of Jamaica continually asserted their humanities in the face of institutional exploitation through the day to day resistance, black communal and family solidarity, and organized revolts. This argument builds upon …

Moral Distress, Burnout, And Moral Injury In Healthcare Professionals, Sophia Gibson

Anthropology Undergraduate Honors Theses

For doctors and other health care professionals, experiences of care too often involve burnout and moral distress. Making both visible to begin addressing them takes up the main concern of my thesis. Burnout and moral distress swallow a life. Suddenly you aren’t going on that shopping trip with friends, you can forget about going to that movie or play. You are too tired to drag yourself out of bed, instead getting caught in a cycle of sleep and work with no time for a break or even to process what happened last shift. Who’s going to have a nice relaxing …

Leveraging A Digital Platform To Address Health Literacy And Equity Needs Of A Vulnerable Population: The Justice-Involved, Gail M. Kouame

University Faculty and Staff Publications

This is a presentation given by Gail Kouame addressing the health disparities of incarcerated populations at the Wisconsin Health Literacy Summit in Madison Wisconsin.

Economic Disadvantage, Nativity, And Academic Performance And School Punishment Among Latino/A Children, Yolanda Chavez

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Cultural explanations of how familial resource inequality negatively impacts the academic well-being of a Latino/a child saturate the literature. This study examines the relationship between economic disadvantage and academic performance and school punishment through Family Stress Process Theory, providing a contextual analysis of resource instability. The additional myriad of legal and social constraints that parental nativity provides for family members can moderate this relationship. Data was drawn from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, a longitudinal measure of U.S. couples and their children in 20 large U.S. cities. Regression models indicate the relationship between economic disadvantage and academic performance …

“We Won’T Be Silent Anymore”: Enslaved People’S Stories And Symbolic Reparations For New Orleans City Park, Kalie Ann Dutra

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

The official history of New Orleans City Park, published in 1982 offers a narrow history of its grounds and land ownership before it opened as a park in 1854. The published text Historic City Park New Orleans contains a two-part narrative. The first narrative tells the identity of Louis Allard, his plantation land, and the mystique surrounding his death. The second narrative focuses on John McDonogh, an enslaver and local legend, his purchase of the Allard Plantation, and his donation of the plantation to the city of New Orleans for the creation of what is now lower New Orleans City …

Gender, Socioeconomic Status, Race, And Change Over Time On Science Achievement For A Northwest Arkansas District, Billy Kim Maxey

College of Education Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation was to determine the effects of gender, SES, race, and change over time on academic performance as measured by ACT Aspire Summative Science Assessment scores. Scores chosen for this study were from the 2018-2019 10thgrade students in a Northwest Arkansas school district and these same students’ scores from their 7th-grade year in 2015-2016 to determine if change over time existed. The samples for this study were chosen from one Northwest Arkansas school district. ACT Aspire Summative Science Assessment scores were used to provide the academic performance data for the dependent variable used in each hypothesis. …

Drs Annual Report 2021, Design Research Society

Annual Reports

No abstract provided.

Transplantability In Burdened Populations: A Regional Analysis Of The Robotic-Assisted Kidney Transplant Impact On Access Given Socioeconomic And Demographic Factors, Earnest James Davis Jr.

Dissertations

Introduction/Background

The social contract of health (SCOH) in America that governs healthcare interactions has listed toward provider organizations and away from the patient. End stage renal disease treatment provides an explicatory case to examine an unbalanced SCOH. The study evaluates whether the robot-assisted kidney transplantation (RAKT) technique allows for patients with higher body mass indices and of burdened socioeconomic and sociodemographic status improved access to transplant compared to traditional open kidney transplant (OKT).

Methods

The study set combined extant data for patients transplanted at Chicago from two data sets. Investigators used independent t-tests, chi-squared tests, survival analysis, analysis of frequencies, …

Marius Vold Honors Portfolio, Marius Vold

Honors Capstone Portfolios

Marius Vold's honors portfolio captured in May 2022.

A True American Citizen: The Intellectual History Of U.S. Indigenous Policy From 1890-1968, Ariel Kate Norris

Masters Theses

Throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Indigenous Americans witnessed a significant national change in both their political and social status. Despite the persisting belief that Native Americans belonged to a “race destined to fade into the inevitability of progress” and the ongoing categorization of Indigenous individuals as wards of the federal government, by the end of the 1900s, tribes across the nation were deemed to be sovereign entities and were allowed to determine the paths of their own people. This autonomy did not happen overnight, but instead was a direct result of pivotal legislative decisions; struggles such as the assimilation …