Digital Commons Network^™

Conservation In Ecuador's Sangay-Podocarpus Connectivity Corridor: A Study Of Coproductive Capacities, Gabriel Isaac Oppler

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Connectivity conservation, a growing topic across science, policy, and management, is considered an important supplement to protected areas. A diversity of ecological corridors is emerging to restore fragmented landscapes, preserve intact habitats, protect biodiversity, and improve resilience to climate change. Despite increasing expertise and resources for planning corridors, many initiatives face challenges mobilizing science and governance to implement corridors on the ground. In many cases, biophysical science is supplemented with social science to better understand the human elements of connectivity. Similarly, collaboration and partnership are heralded as essential for effective governance of corridors. However, less is known about how these …

“Making A Science Of Cooperation”: Labor, Business, Government, And The Defense Council System In The Wartime American West, 1916-1921, Robert Michael Joseph Lambeth

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

“Making a Science of Cooperation”: Labor, Business, Government, and the Defense Council System in the Wartime American West, 1916-1921” examines the socioeconomic and political transformations that occurred in the American West as a result of homefront mobilization for World War I. While those transformations happened at the national level as well, they were the most impactful in and inherently informed by the political and socioeconomic developments occurring in the western states at the time.

The vehicle in which those transformations were delivered was the Defense Council System (DCS), a unique federal mobilization program that enlisted the help of the nation’s …

Toward A Dialectical Account Of Nature, Georgia Rae Grimm

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The protection of nature has been a central aim of environmentalism for well over a century. However, the concept of nature has been subjected to abundant critiques in recent literature, threatening the conceptual tenability of this goal. In this paper, I discuss why I find the concept of nature too valuable to dismiss and offer an account of nature that I believe remedies existent critiques. In Chapter 1, I recount arguments for the protection of nature and illustrate their dualistic underpinnings. In Chapter 2, I discuss issues with dualistic accounts of nature and demonstrate why Steven Vogel’s monistic alternative is …

Adaptation In Rangeland Social-Ecological Systems: A Mixed-Methods, Cross-Scale Examination Of Factors Influencing Ranchers’ Adaptation To Drought And Climate Change, Ada Parkhurst Smith

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Rangeland social-ecological systems (SESs), which make up vast tracts of land on Earth, are critical for safeguarding ecosystem services, producing food and fiber, protecting open space, contributing to local and regional economies, and maintaining cultures and knowledges. Sustaining rangelands, the ranching livelihoods that depend on them, and the suite of ecosystem goods and services they provide hinges on a greater understanding of the social processes that influence ranchers' ability to adapt within these changing systems. In this study, I used a mixed-methods approach to examine factors influencing ranchers’ adaptation to drought and climate change across scales.

In Chapter 3, I …

Development Of Nanodisc Affinity Capillary Electrophoresis To Study The Interaction Of Giα Protein With Cell Membranes, Bethany R. Emeigh

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Guanine nucleotide-binding proteins, or G-proteins, are crucial to cell signaling by acting as molecular switches through interactions with membrane-bound receptors. G-proteins have become of greater interest due to the possibility of novel drug targets. The G-protein alpha subunit, Gα, binds GTP before localizing to the membrane to interact with other G-protein subunits and G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). Gi lacks a hydrophobic region to promote localization to the membrane, but a co-translational lipidation of the N-terminal residue stabilizes this interaction.

Protein interactions with biological membranes are challenging to study due to the complex structure of membranes and the often-limited quantities of the …

The Evolution Of Morphological Diversity And Sexual Dimorphism In Stick And Leaf Insects, Romain Pascal Gilbert Eric Boisseau

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

How has the diversity of life forms come to be? This question is at the core of evolutionary biology and can be addressed at different scales: by studying the processes that drive modifications within populations of organisms generation after generation (microevolution), or by investigating patterns of changes on the tree of life over long periods of time (macroevolution). Understanding the ultimate drivers of morphological diversity eventually entails connecting microevolutionary processes with macroevolutionary patterns. My dissertation investigates the diversification of body and egg form and its drivers in a relatively small but particularly diverse insect order: the stick and leaf insects …

The Birds, The Bees, The Trees, And The Breeze: Expanding The Moral Universe Throught Rsk Anlysis, Jared Gibbs

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

No abstract provided.

Bertolt Brecht And His Play - The Good Woman Of Setzuan, Min Sun

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

No abstract provided.

Accumulation By Dispossession In Protected Areas, A Literatrue Review And Case Study To Create A More Unified Understanding, Leon Russell Miller

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

No abstract provided.

"A Blacker List Of Crime Was Never Looked Upon": Mormon Violence, Utah Statehood, And The Memory Of The Mountain Meadows Massacre, Lerene K. Mcfarland

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

No abstract provided.

Mark My Words: The Linguistic Complexity Of The Journal Of Personality And Social Psychology Abstracts And Subsequent Citations, Alivia Lauren Zubrod

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Through language, scientific communication can positively impact the progression and advancement of science. Given the value of scientific communication, it is important to explore what factors might be associated with influential scientific communication. Surprisingly, relatively little research has examined the linguistic properties of influential scientific communication. In effort to overcome this gap in the literature, I used integrative complexity, a well-validated linguistic variable, to assess the relation between article abstracts and subsequent number of citations from one of the most highly-cited social psychology journals (Journal of Personality and Social Psychology). In an analysis of over 1.4 million words from 9,884 …

Challenges And Promises Of The Agricultural Sector In The West Today, Jordan J. Unger

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The transition from hunter-gatherers to a sedentary, agrarian based society was a pivotal point in history, fundamentally altering humanity’s trajectory. Early human’s domestication of plants and animals paved the way for modern civilization and drastically changed the way we lived and interacted. With agriculture, humans could invest more time into other activities besides procuring food while simultaneously being able to support increasingly large communities of people. Villages, city-states and, ultimately, states were formed – helping give rise to more complex social structures.

Until recently, agriculture has been the main economic backbone of every civilization. In 1970 in the United States, …

Ghosts, Hauntings, Kinship, And Contamination: Key Tropes For Narrating Extinction In Jeff Vandermeer's Hummingbird Salamander And James Bradley's Ghost Species, Christopher Hardesty Nicholson

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This thesis examines the narrative portrayals of issues pertaining to anthropogenic extinction in two contemporary speculative fiction novels: Jeff VanderMeer’s Hummingbird Salamander (2021) and James Bradley’s Ghost Species (2020). This focus leads to consideration of narrative genre, tropes, and affective resonance. The first half of this thesis centers the genres of tragedy and elegy, their tropes of ghosts and hauntings, and the affective processes of grief and horror. Within these narrative frameworks extinction is experienced as a claustrophobic site of horror in Hummingbird Salamander, and as a time-warping inspiration of grief in Ghost Species. However, in each novel …

Mansfield, Marines, And Mothers: The Politics Of Resistance To The American Intervention In North China From 1945-1946, James Robert Compton

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

At the conclusion of World War II, American citizens, including millions of deployed servicemen, reasserted the democratic freedoms they sacrificed to win the war. The American intervention in North China during the Chinese Civil War presented a ripe opportunity for civic restoration in late 1945. Controversial and seemingly at odds with the stated goals of the Second World War—namely the “Four Freedoms” and the Atlantic Charter—the US military presence in North China faced formidable domestic political obstacles. This thesis explores the nexus of domestic politics and foreign policy in the post-World War II era. Focusing on 1945-1946, this project steps …

A Qualitative Examination Of Teacher's Perspectives Of Social-Emotional Learning And Spirituality In The Public School Setting, Amy E. Violante

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Spirituality is not often discussed in the field of school psychology or the public school setting. However, it is understood to be a factor supporting resilience and well-being among children. Aspects of spirituality align with the core components of social-emotional learning (SEL), which relate to awareness of self and others, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making. The aims of the current study were to explore public school teachers’ perspectives of spirituality and SEL in the classroom, of the relationship between these topics, and of supporting spiritual and SEL development in order to promote student well-being. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with twelve …

Damming Paradise: Public Power, Free Enterprise, And Tribal Sovereignty In The Mountain West In The Twentieth Century, Jacob T. Schmidt

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

“Damming Paradise” examines the transformation of the political economy of the Mountain West through the development of hydropower over the course of the twentieth century. Beginning with early attempts to regulate electricity marketing and dam construction, this thesis traces the development of a conservation paradigm which insisted upon full development of water resources and public ownership of hydropower facilities. The author then follows that development through the New Deal and Post War eras, focusing particular attention on the Kerr Dam (now Seli’š Ksanka Qlispe’ Dam) and Hungry Horse Dam on Montana’s Flathead River. “Damming Paradise” then examines the attempt to …

Catch My Drift? Perceptions And Experiences Of Pesticide Contamination Of Organic Crops In Montana, Sarah Rodgers

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Pesticide drift and inadvertent contamination pose particular risks to organic production. Some organic producers have lost their crops, certification, and/or organic markets because of contamination events. Through this thesis research, I explain the perceptions and experiences that certified organic farmers in Montana have about drift and inadvertent pesticide contamination. I conducted semi-structured interviews with eleven certified organic farmers from various regions of Montana. Along with one-on-one interviews with organic farmers, interviews with industry and regulatory officials were conducted to better understand the policies and procedures that control what happens when drift occurs at the state level. Industry and regulatory official …

Canceling Vs. #Cancel Culture: An Analysis On The Surveillance And Discipline Of Social Media Behavior Through Competing Discourses Of Power, Julia G. Bezio

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Canceling and #cancelculture have become the topic of many debates over free speech and accountability for oppressive behaviors in social media discourse. This thesis examines Twitter discourse from two recent racism-based cancel cases. Using Foss and Gill’s (1987) adapted epistemic rhetoric framework and emphasizing elements of Foucauldian surveillance and discipline in the discourse, I conduct a comparative qualitative examination of Gina Rodriguez’s and Chris Harrison’s cancel discourse. I contend that in the cancel process, Twitter users engage in surveillance to discipline one another on multiple levels: first, as cancelers use the practice to discipline oppressive behaviors on social media, and …

The Request Is Not Compatible: Competing Frames Of Public Lands Discourse In The Lolo Peak Ski Resort Controversy, Philip A. Sharp

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Sharp, Philip, A., M.A., Spring 2022

Communication Studies

ABSTRACT

The Request Is Not Compatible: Competing Frames of Public Lands Discourse in the Lolo Peak Ski Resort Controversy

Co-Chair (in absentia): Steve Schwarze Co-Chair: Joel Iverson

In mid-2003, the United States Forest Service (USFS) received a pre-application for a Special Use Permit to build and operate an all-season ski resort on public lands near Missoula, Montana. The ensuing public deliberation over the possible use of protected lands for outdoor commercial recreational purposes provides a site of rhetorical inquiry. In this rhetorical criticism I analyze and evaluate arguments presented by the USFS, …

Keeping What You Sow: Intellectual Property Rights For Plant Breeders And Seed Growers, Paulina B. Jenney

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Over the last 150 years, the food system in the present-day United States has undergone a transformational restructuring, from a diversified, decentralized, network of farmers and seed growers, to one in which the majority of crop production is controlled by a few industrial corporations. The consolidation of power has been under-girded by the application of intellectual property rights (IPR)—especially utility patents—to plant varieties and genetic traits, which are leveraged to exclude small-scale seed growers from accessing quality germplasm. Patents and restrictive licensing agreements recapitulate colonial structures by appropriating common and traditionally community-held resources for profit, and by creating reliance on …

The Existential Challenges Of Cyberspace, Sean Cleary

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Cyberspace is an emergent environment that has come to facilitate a growing range of human activity. Here, information is tightly woven, freed of unnecessary context and always within reach. This thesis explores the existential challenges that arise from increased engagement in this space and offers solutions informed by Henry Thoreau and Søren Kierkegaard. Section One offers an ontological account of cyberspace and describes its relationship to what I call the lifeworld. Section Two further examines the relationship drawn out in Section One, introduces the challenge of foreground saturation and appeals to Thoreau for solutions. Section Three introduces the concept of …

A Thinking Person's Guide To Immigration And Environmental Racism At The Us - Mexico Border, Emma H. Kiefer

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

In recent years, more attention has been paid to the immigration crisis at the US-Mexico border thanks in part to the strict immigration restrictions from the Trump administration, such as the family separation policy. Immigration remains a widely misunderstood issue and arguments against increased immigration are often laced with racist stereotypes and perceptions that find their roots in centuries of US policy, court cases, and administrative rules. Similarly, the concept of environmental racism can be difficult for the American public to understand when modern-day racism alone has become more insidious. Intersectionality, a concept coined by sociologist Kimberlé Crenshaw, asks us …

Battles Of The Mind: The Reaction Against Progressive Education, 1945-1959, Ben Yturri

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This thesis discerns the relationships between three interrelated movements of the post-war period (circa 1945-1959): the overwhelming concern among leading intellectuals regarding the relationship between the individual and society, the post-war debates over education, and rising religious observance. Following WWII, the nation’s leading scholars and social critics addressed the most important problem facing the country and, for that matter, the world: how to avoid totalitarianism. Almost naturally, such anxieties influenced new debates over education. Broadly speaking, these controversies involved two related disputes over the efficacy of progressive education and the proper relationship between church and state. After World War II, …

Into The Tidy Shape Imagined, Hope Isabella Ruskaup

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

No abstract provided.

Psychological Safety At Amazon: A Cco Approach, Kathryn K. Zyskowski

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

No abstract provided.

Reasoning And Precedents In Appellate Courts, Saul Levmore

Public Law and Legal Theory Working Papers

No abstract provided.

Toward A "Tender Offer" Market For Labor Representation, Aneil Kovvali, Jonathan R. Macey

Public Law and Legal Theory Working Papers

American workers are not sharing in the robust growth of the economy. Traditionally, large numbers of workers sought to improve their lot by bargaining collectively through unions. But the strategy does not seem to be working for enough workers. Despite some renewed recent activity, private sector unionization rates remain below 10%, and the unions that are in place have struggled to perform well, either in avoiding scandals or in delivering significant returns to workers in the form of job security or wage growth. This Article proposes a radical fix to the problem of declining unions. Drawing inspiration from corporate governance …

The Corruption Of The Pardon Power, Albert Alschuler

Public Law and Legal Theory Working Papers

This Article shows how the pardon power has been corrupted over the past forty years. It begins with a brief history of federal clemency. Throughout this history, presidents gave weight to the views of prosecutors and judges and afforded politicians considerable influence. Nevertheless, until well into the twentieth century, presidents liberally granted clemency to both prisoners and ex-offenders who, after completing their sentences, sought to erase their convictions.

In the early 1930s, as parole became a common means of releasing prisoners, the use of clemency to release prisoners declined. The abolition of parole in the 1980s, however, brought no revival …

Submerged Independent Agencies, Brian D. Feinstein, Jennifer Nou

Public Law and Legal Theory Working Papers

Independent agencies are in the judicial crosshairs. Scholars criticize their efficacy—while still puzzling over how to define the form. By and large, this attention focuses on the top of the agency hierarchy, the extent to which agency heads are insulated from presidential control. What this perspective misses, however, is that power is also exercised by tenure-protected civil servants below. This phenomenon exists not because Congress has delegated them authority, but because executive branch actors have. Consequently, there exists another species of independent agency that requires a reckoning: call them “submerged independent agencies.” These entities are “agencies” because they wield discretionary …

The Folk Theory Of Well-Being, John Bronsteen, Brian Leiter, Jonathan Masur, Kevin Tobia

Public Law and Legal Theory Working Papers

What constitutes a “good” life—not necessarily a morally good life, but a life that is good for the person who lived it (sometimes called “prudential goodness” or “well-being” or “welfare”)? On some views, of course, a life cannot be good for the person who lived it if it was not also morally good, but we want to prescind from that question. Even scholars holding those views—such as some of the ancient Greeks or Kant, who arguably thought moral goodness was central to welfare—also recognized that a good life must have other features or attributes.

What might those attributes be, and …