Digital Commons Network^™

To Melt, Huanzhe Hu

Masters Theses

This thesis focuses on the need for a reevaluation of the relationship between humans and nature in the face of the current ecological crisis. The author argues that the dominant anthropocentric orientation, which sees nature as a resource to be exploited for human benefit, has led to over extraction and resource abuse, disrupting the balance of ecosystems. Instead, the author suggests adopting an ethical framework based on mutual understanding and appreciation, breaking the "hunter's gaze" and fostering empathy for non-human life forms. This thesis also explores the potential for new forms of communication and engagement with nature, such as through …

Fungi In Flux | Designing Regenerative Materials And Products With Mycelium, Arvind Bhallamudi

Masters Theses

As the world grapples with the escalating crisis of climate threats and environmental degradation, this research delves into the synergistic potential of design and biology, developing safe and sustainable materials for applications in prototyping, furniture and interior design. Harnessing the power of a unique organism - fungi, the study proposes an accessible, efficient, and resilient material resource system. It utilizes local waste streams and mycelium (the vegetative part of fungi) to grow functional structures. An experimental and small-scale protocol is modeled by testing bio-fabrication and bio-printing methods. The composites' performance qualities and characteristics are evaluated through mechanical testing and a …

County Incidence And Geospatial Trends Of Early-Onset Hypertensive Disorders Of Pregnancy In Kentucky, 2008-2017, Courtney J. Walker, Anna Kucharska-Newton, Steven R. Browning, W. Jay Christian

UK CARES Faculty Publications

Background Early‑onset hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (eHDP) are associated with more severe maternal and infant outcomes than later‑onset disease. However, little has been done to evaluate population‑level trends. Therefore, in this paper, we seek to address this understudied area by describing the geospatial and temporal patterns of county‑level incidence of eHDP and assessing county‑level demographics that may be associated with an increased incidence of eHDP.

Methods Employing Kentucky certificates of live and stillbirth from 2008–2017, this ecological study detected county‑level clusters of early‑onset hypertensive disorders of pregnancy using SaTScan, calculated average annual percent change (AAPC) with a join point analysis, …

Beyond Covid-19: Designing Inclusive Public Health Surveillance By Including Wastewater Monitoring., Rochelle H. Holm, Na'taki Osborne Jelks, Rebecca Schneider, Ted Smith

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Wastewater-based epidemiology is a promising and expanding public health surveillance method. The current wastewater testing trajectory to monitor primarily at community wastewater treatment plants was necessitated by immediate needs of the pandemic. Going forward, specific consideration should be given to monitoring vulnerable and underserved communities to ensure inclusion and rapid response to public health threats. This is particularly important when clinical testing data are insufficient to characterize community virus levels and spread in specific locations. Now is a timely call to action for equitably protecting health in the United States, which can be guided with intentional and inclusive wastewater monitoring.

Long-Term Mammal Herbivory On Arthropod Assemblages At Kruger National Park, South Africa, Ludzula Mukwevho, Tatenda Dalu, Frank Chidawanyika

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Protected savannas are essential reserves for biological diversity, including endangered arthropod species, however, extreme grazing by mammals has cascading impacts on the communities and disrupts the functioning of these ecosystems globally. The current study assessed the abundance, species richness and composition of arthropods at the long-term grazing exclosures of Kruger National Park, South Africa. Pitfall traps and active searches were used to sample arthropods at the ungrazed, moderately, and heavily grazed exclosures. We found that Hymenoptera, Coleoptera, Diptera and Araneae were the most abundant orders of arthropods sampled. The abundance of multi-taxon, Diptera and Hymenoptera was significantly different between exclosures. …

Integrating Ocean Observations Across Body‐Size Classes To Deliver Benthic Invertebrate Abundance And Distribution Information, Henry A. Ruhl, Brian J. Bett, Jeroen Ingels, Adrian Martin, Andrew R. Gates, Andrew Yool, Noëlie M.A. Benoist, Ward Appeltans, Kerry L. Howell, Roberto Danovaro

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

Invertebrate animals living at the seafloor make up a prominent component of life globally, spanning 10 orders of magnitude in body size over 71% of Earth's surface. However, integrating information across sizes and sampling methodologies has limited our understanding of the influence of natural variation, climate change and human activity. Here, we outline maturing practices that can underpin both the feasibility and impact of establishing Benthic Invertebrate Abundance and Distribution as a Global Ocean Observing System—Essential Ocean Variable, including: (1) quantifying individual body size, (2) identifying the well‐quantified portions of sampled body‐size spectra, (3) taking advantage of (semi‐)automated information processing, …

Reexamining The Functions Of Urban Bridges With Nature And People In Mind: A Vision For North Main Street Bridge Fort Worth, Texas, Amanda Hinton

Landscape Architecture Masters & Design Theses - Archive

How can nature be incorporated into infrastructure bridges to promote connections in urban landscapes? The Paddock Viaduct, known today as the North Main Street Bridge in Fort Worth, Texas was formally opened on July 3, 1914. Designed by Brenneke and Fay to improve transportation to the North Fort Worth district, the bridge was the first reinforced concrete arch bridge in the nation to use self-supporting reinforcing steel and ball and socket joints (Paddock Viaduct - Main - Historic Fort Worth, 2017). Fort Worth in the mid-1900s, like many growing cities, was experiencing the repercussions of heavy flooding issues that come …

Biodiversity Of Histerid Beetles (Coleoptera: Histeridae) From Brazil. I. Southern Region, Fábio Luiz De Leão Leonel, Fernando Willyan Trevisan Leivas

Insecta Mundi

This contribution adds data to the conservation and distribution of Histeridae species (Coleoptera) in the Neotropical region through a survey of Brazil’s South region. More specifically, it provides: i) a list of local Histeridae species; ii) a list of species that are inside Conservation Units in southern Brazil; iii) biotic (biome, ecoregion and associations/affinities) and abiotic information (altitude and month of occurrence) for each species. In total, 66 genera and 164 histerid beetle species were recorded, distributed in seven subfami­lies and 11 tribes. Among these, one genus and three species are new records for the region. Fifty percent of the …

Sustainability Analysis: Large-Scale Desalination Implications For Coastal California, Elizabeth H. Whitford

Master's Projects and Capstones

In response to prolonged drought, desalination is gaining popularity as an alternative water production method for fresh water. However, water desalting technology poses concerns; the process is energy intensive, creates brine waste, and has the potential to damage sensitive coastal ecosystems. Significant research is available on the technological, economic, and energy efficiency aspects of desalination, while only a small percentage of the current literature focuses on environmental impacts. This research analyzes the desalination literature holistically in terms of both energy consumption and environmental impacts by conducting 1) a historical and current state review of the sector, 2) a technology analysis …

The Role Of Coping Motives In The Relationship Between Ptsd And Alcohol-Related Consequences In Oef/Oif Veterans, Cameron Quan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations Archive

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) are highly comorbid, and this co-occurrence is of particular concern among veterans. Alcohol misuse has shown to be a method of coping with negative PTSD symptoms. In a harm reduction approach, alcohol-related consequences can serve as an outcome measure in the testing of brief alcohol interventions when measured through severity level. The current investigation is a secondary analysis using data from a trial of two brief interventions used in a veteran sample published by McDevitt-Murphy and colleagues (2014). This study investigated: (a) the 3-factor model of the DrInC and (b) the …

Evaluating The Ability Of Constructed Intertidal Eastern Oyster (Crassostrea Virginica) Reefs To Address Shoreline Erosion In South Carolina, Peter R. Kingsley-Smith, Andrew W. Tweel, Sharleen P. Johnson, Gary W. Sundin, Michael S. Hodges, Benjamin W. Stone, Gregory D. Sorg, Denise M. Sanger

Journal of South Carolina Water Resources

The application of nature-based solutions to address shoreline erosion and the loss of salt marsh in coastal South Carolina has centered around the creation of intertidal oyster (Crassostrea virginica) reefs that act as natural breakwaters. The installation of such living shoreline materials often results in a rapid accumulation of fine sediments, followed by wild oyster recruitment to suitable materials, and then more gradually the growth of salt marshes (primarily Spartina alterniflora). Leveraging more than two decades of oyster reef restoration and living shorelines research at the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, this study quantitatively assessed performance rates for both …

A Systematic Literature Review Of Telehealth For Health Equity In Pediatric And Women's Health Care: Promise Vs Reality, Sharanya Chandu

Honors Scholar Theses

Background: Telehealth interventions can transform the healthcare system to improve accessibility, quality of care, and outcomes for women’s obstetric health.

Objective: This literature review seeks to summarize current research to understand the effect of telehealth on women’s obstetrics and gynecology outcomes.

Methods: A literature review was conducted following the PRISMA methodology to identify a set of papers containing information related to obstetrics and maternal health. The search terms used identified telehealth or telemedicine interventions used for obstetric, maternal, or prenatal care from the period 2013-2023. 19 articles were identified and reviewed.

Results: The literature review considered three primary aspects from …

The Neuroprotective Role Of Vitamin D In Humans With A Traumatic Brain Injury: A Systematic Review, Hailey Jarr

Theses and Dissertations

Traumatic brain injuries (TBI) are a leading cause of death worldwide. Previous research supports a relationship between vitamin D and TBI outcomes; however, they rely on animal studies. This review aimed to examine the neuroprotective role of vitamin D in humans with TBIs. A search was completed (PubMed and Scopus) following PRISMA guidelines to review publications investigating the relationship between vitamin D deficiency (VDD) and TBI or the effect of vitamin D supplementation on TBI outcomes; 8 studies were identified. Patients had the
/="/">following ranges: 26-88% deficiency and 62-88% insufficiency compared to 24% and 49% of the general population. …

Ecomorphology Of A Predatory Deep-Sea Fish Family: Does Trophic Specialization Drive Hyperspeciation?, Ryan P. Mcgonagle, David Kerstetter, Danté Fenolio, Tracey Sutton

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

Two of the main drivers of speciation among aquatic vertebrates are physical isolation (e.g., lakes and streams) and micro-niche availability (e.g., tropical reefs). In both regards, the mesopelagic domain of the open ocean, Earth’s second largest cumulative ecosystem (behind only the bathypelagic domain), would seem retardant. Ocean circulation makes isolation rare on both contemporary and geological time/space scales, and the lack of substrate precludes stable micro-niches. Paradoxically, some pelagic taxa demonstrate much higher-than-expected species richness on regional scales. A prime example is the dragonfish family Stomiidae, the most speciose family of mesopelagic fishes, owing largely to the subfamily Melanostomiinae (scaleless …

Weight Change In College Freshmen: Personal, Interpersonal And Situational Influences, Kristin L. Kuhlmann

Dissertations

Obesity has become the most significant noninfectious health risk in the United States, and the major causes of death and disability are shifting to chronic, non-communicable health conditions that are largely attributable to physical inactivity, overweight and obesity, and other diet-related factors. Among children and adolescents, the overweight/obesity rate is approaching 32%, with 17.9% of adolescents becoming obese. While the obesity rate has doubled in all age groups in the United States, it has tripled among young adults aged 18 to 28 years, and 70% of adolescents who are at a healthy weight will become overweight or obese as adults. …

The Green Core Of The Big Apple: The Significance Of Urban Green Spaces In New York City & Beyond, Grace Dailey

Student Theses 2015-Present

This paper addresses the politics of urban green spaces which includes the issue of their inequitable distribution as well as related issues that can arise when communities do not have access to such spaces. There are a variety of types of urban green spaces, however, this paper will be focused on public parks. Together, such outdoor spaces can create cultural, recreational, and community building opportunities that are able to improve environmental and human health. Chapter 1 presents data about the existence and usage of urban green spaces around the world and in New York City in particular. Chapter 2 uses …

Chattahoochee River Front Design: Sustaining A Lost Culture Through Environmental And Social Stewardship Of Native American, Dalvin Ross

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

How vital is Native American culture in understanding the history and synergy between the social, natural, and built environments? The identity of indigenous people in North America has been stripped and forgotten over years. It is critical to promote rediscovering their ideologies through the establishment of a cultural center which features the architectural contributions of the Native Americans. This undergrade thesis focuses on the city of Atlanta, which has cultural remnants of the first inhabitants of this land. Still, it’s relevance in the community or architecture in Georgia is often overlooked. The Chattahoochee River is a natural tourist attraction, located …

Community And Population Dynamics Of Diatoms In Recovering Agricultural Stream And Ubiquitous Taxon In Low-Impact Sites Across Southeastern United States, Sydney Brown

Biology Theses

Streams play vital roles to surrounding communities and provide essential ecosystem services. The protection of streams is important, legally protected under the Clean Water Act (CWA) and can be monitored through the continuous analyses of biological data, like algal or other aquatic communities. Diatoms are a group of algae characterized by rigid glass cell walls and ubiquitous distribution. They are typically identified using the morphological species concept and an ever-varying range of sizes may pose challenges in the identification process. However, when identified and applied correctly, diatoms are robust bioindicators. This research identifies and analyzes low-impact sites across the Southeastern …

Detecting Native Freshwater Mussels In Pennsylvania Waterways: Comparison & Validation Of Environmental Dna Methods, Meredith Bennett

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

North America is home to approximately one third of the world's freshwater mussel species. They are highly imperiled organisms due to habitat destruction and invasive species. Traditional surveys rely on visual identification of mussels, but individuals tend to be rare and difficult to identify. An alternative method is to extract environmental DNA (eDNA) from water samples, which has advantages over traditional sampling, including less sampling effort and fewer hazards to researchers and organisms. We conducted a review of the two main eDNA approaches: single-species detection and metabarcoding. We also developed and validated metabarcoding primers for the detection of native mussels. …

Uncover The Underground : Distribution And Population Status Of Blind Snakes And Bogadek’S Burrowing Lizards, Man Ho Chan

Lingnan Theses (MPhil & PhD)

Globally, 28% of the reptiles are fossorial. Fossorial reptiles, which perform important ecological functions, such as being ecosystem engineers, top predators and bioindicators, are indispensable members of the soil ecosystem. However, the ecology of fossorial reptiles is relatively little known because of their cryptic behavior and rarity. In Hong Kong, there are four species of fossorial reptile, three of which are rare and of potential conservation concern. Among the four fossorial reptile species that occur in Hong Kong, Indotyphlops lazelli and Dibamus bogadeki, are endemic to Hong Kong and are globally threatened species. On the other hand, the distribution …

Evidence For Community Face Masking To Limit The Spread Of Sars-Cov-2: A Critical Review, Ian T. Liu, Vinay Prasad, Jonathan D. Darrow

Health Matrix: The Journal of Law-Medicine

The use of facemasks in community settings has become an accepted public policy response to decrease disease transmission during the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet evidence of facemask efficacy is based primarily on observational studies that are subject to confounding and on mechanistic studies that rely on surrogate endpoints (such as droplet dispersion) as proxies for disease transmission. The available clinical evidence of facemask efficacy is of low quality and the best available clinical evidence has mostly failed to show efficacy, with fourteen of sixteen identified randomized controlled trials comparing face masks to no mask controls failing to find statistically significant benefit …

State Spending On Public Benefit Programs And The Differential Impact On Child Maltreatment By Race And Ethnicity, Henry T. Puls, Matthew Hall, Reiko Boyd, Paul J. Chung

Research at Children's Mercy Month 2023

Background:

State spending on programs with the capacity to mitigate poverty have been shown to reduce child maltreatment overall. However, given pervasive racial/ethnic disparities across child maltreatment outcomes, it remains unclear if current spending and policies have different effects on child maltreatment by race/ethnicity.

Objective:

To determine if associations between state-level spending on public benefit programs and rates of child maltreatment reporting differ by race and ethnicity. We hypothesized that inverse associations between spending and maltreatment would be greater for non-Hispanic White children than for non-Hispanic Black or Hispanic children.

Design/Methods:

This was an ecological study of all U.S. states …

Hibernating Tricolored Bats At A Southeastern Recreation Site: Microsite Use And Public Perceptions, Rebecca Brown

All Theses

High bat mortality from white-nose syndrome (WNS) has increased the need to manage hibernation sites. Management decisions should be based on science, and when sites are accessible to the public, also need to consider human dimensions. We used Stumphouse Tunnel, a recreation site and tricolored bat (Perimyotis subflavus) hibernaculum in northwestern South Carolina, as a case study to understand potential conflicts between conservation and recreation. The population declined by 90% after the arrival of white-nose syndrome (WNS), followed by stabilization and slight increases. Because the increase was associated with more bats roosting in the publicly accessible section, a potential …

Genotypic Result Of The Insulin-Like Receptor Gene Knockout In Daphnia Pulex Eb1, Anisa Sarah Kammaz

2023 Spring Honors Capstone Projects - Archive

CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats)-Cas9 has been used in multiple gene modification studies in various organisms. Daphnia, water fleas, are used in ecological studies due to their ability to sense and respond to environmental factors. Their quick life cycles make them prime candidates for gene modification and evolutionary studies. In our experiment, Daphnia pulex EB1 was used in the knockout of the Insulin-like Receptor gene via CRISPR-Cas9 due to its effect on dwarfism in humans and developmental disorders in mice. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) sequencing was done to compare the EB1 gene of interest to the PA42 reference …

Understanding The Impacts Of Global Change: From Students To Microbes., Kylea Garces

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Global change is a crucial process, affecting every organism, from the billions of humans on earth, to the billions of microbes in the soil belowground. Evaluating the impacts of the many drastic changes associated with global change is essential in advancing our understanding in how to mitigate these consequences. Alongside the production of basic ecological knowledge associated with these environmental changes, improving education practices to promote science literacy surrounding global change is another step towards a more optimistic future. This dissertation investigates global change from two standpoints: ecologically, where increased atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition alters plant-fungal endophyte symbiosis, and pedagogically, …

Leveraging Population Genomics Across Two Taxonomically Diverse Non-Model Systems To Understand Patterns Of Disease Transmission And Consequences Of Hybridization, Zachary Lamar Nikolakis

Biology Dissertations - Archive

The field of population genomics has been mainly applied to questions centered around understanding molecular variation, impacts of evolutionary processes, and the history of populations. Here I leverage population genomic techniques across two different systems to understand patterns of disease transmission across heavily monitored and controlled parasite populations and consequences of hybridization between divergent rattlesnake lineages. I employed multiple genome sequencing techniques with new methods to infer close-order relatedness from highly inbred human blood fluke populations in order to understand transmission pathways across a region experiencing a resurgence in disease. I then use a comparative population genomic approach by sampling …

Assessing Recreational User Impacts, Motivations, And Knowledge On The Spread Of Invasive Plant Species In A Managed, Multiple-Use Forest Ecosystem, Crystal Strickland

All Theses

The spread of invasive plants is ecologically and economically detrimental to native ecosystems, animals, and humans. Recreation is one factor that may influence plant dispersal. The impacts of recreation on invasive plant spread are multifaceted and include the physical act of spreading and transporting seeds and vegetation to new areas on clothes, pets, and equipment, as well as the social aspect of outreach and education. Therefore, I used a multifaceted approach to assess the impact of human trafficked areas where recreational activities frequently occur on four known invasive plant species in the Clemson Experimental Forest (CEF) in South Carolina: Microstegium …

Extranodal Tumors And Chromosomal Abnormalities Associated With Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma In T(14;18)-Positive Patients, Alexis Finch

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Nebraska is mostly an agricultural state with a non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) incidence rate of 20.1 per 100,000 individuals, which is greater than the US incidence rate of 19 per 100,000 individuals. It is possible that the higher incidence rate in Nebraska is due to an increase in pesticide usage. Pesticide exposure is linked to t(14;18), a genetic translocation involving the BCL2 gene that regulates apoptosis. The dysregulation of apoptosis could contribute to the proliferation of NHL. This exploratory study utilized the Nebraska Lymphoma Study Group, which consists of patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, Hodgkin disease, or some other neoplastic hematologic disorder …

Community Planning, Environmental Stewardship, And Water: A Comparative Assessment Of Green Infrastructure In Texas Cities, Amruta A. Sakalker

Public Affairs Dissertations - Archive

Riparian lands, the interface between terrestrial and water ecologies, play a critical role in keeping urban ecosystems healthy. However, rapidly sprawling metropolitan regions in Texas continue to urbanize environmentally vulnerable riparian areas. As urban areas are growing, access to green spaces is shrinking, bringing contestation for programming, ownership, and use of lands around water bodies. Over the past two decades, there has been a growing trend of using greenbelt plans for trails, parks, preserves, and wetlands around water bodies. Although these plans mitigate some environmental impacts, their ability to address equity and justice needs to be examined to ensure that …

Alexandrium Spp. And Pseudo-Nitzschia Spp. Cohabitation In The Gulf Of Maine, Tiffany Winter

Master's Theses and Capstones

Globally, harmful algal blooms are a severe issue for marine ecosystems, animals, and humans both ecologically and economically. The Gulf of Maine is no stranger to harmful algal blooms, specifically the dinoflagellate, Alexandrium catenella, that has routinely been forming toxic blooms since the early 1970s. In 2016, a new species, the diatom Pseudo-nitzschia spp. formed a massive bloom and has had annual blooms since. Anecdotally, these two species do not bloom concurrently, suggesting there may be specific environmental conditions that promote bloom formation for each species. The intent of this research is to uncover potential parameters that are affecting bloom …