Digital Commons Network^™

Investment Behavior: The Difference Between Individual And Professional Investors, Saketh Dantuluri

Honors Projects in Finance

In the modern world, there is greater accessibility to information and investment opportunities. This has led to more people from many different backgrounds to start investing in various markets. Because of this, the modem-day investor can look like many different things and have significantly varied levels of financial knowledge. This study will look into the differences in investment behaviors for individual investors, who typically have lower financial literacy rates, and professional investors, who typically have higher financial literacy rates. The data will be obtained by surveying individuals with various financial literacy rates in order to gauge the differences between individual …

Critical Edition: A Commentary Upon The Prophecie Of Isaiah, Grace Weaver

University Honors Papers

A Commentary Upon the Prophecie of Isaiah, written by John Calvin, was first published in French in 1551. John Calvin (b. 7.10.1509 in France; d. 5.27.1564 in Geneva) was a prominent protestant reformer in Europe. Throughout his life, he published apologies and commentaries on many biblical books and religious texts, and became a notorious figurehead of the time. As a significantly controversial figure, Calvin and his work faced censorship and ridicule by Catholics outraged at the growing Christian Reformation of the 16th Century. A little over seven years after its initial publication, a second edition of A Commentary Upon the …

Mastery Learning: Second Chances, Instructor Workload, And Student Confidence, Judith Puncochar

Conference Presentations

No abstract provided.

Critical Edition Of The Summe Of Christian Religion Delivered By Zacharias Ursinua, Taylor Trenta

University Honors Papers

Originally delivered by Zacharius Ursinus along with his work on the Heidelberg Catechism, The Summe of Christian Religion is an expansion on his contributions to the literature of Christian faith. The version, translated to English by Henry Parry, contributes to the depth of this reformed way of thinking across sixteenth to seventeenth century Western Europe; presented in the form of questions and explanations, this type of religious text is important for expanding on theological thoughts.

Tikaram And Chandrakala Dhananjaya: A Collaborative Couple In Mathematics From Nepal, Deepak Basyal, Brigitte Stenhouse

Mathematics and Statistics

Within the history of mathematics and mathematics education in Nepal, Tikaram and Chandrakala Dhananjaya are relatively well-known figures for their two books Śiśubodha Taraṅgiṇī and Līlāvatī. This is despite there being almost no archival or manuscript materials offering a window into their lives: we have no letters, notebooks, diaries, or school records. Rather than focusing on either individual in isolation, in this article we present an argument for considering the Dhananjayas as an analytically indivisible collaborative couple in mathematics. Of the two aforementioned books, one is attributed to Chandrakala and the other to Tikaram; but in fact, both are translations …

Layer Multiplication Co-Extrusion Of Cross-Linked Polymer Microsphere-Filled Systems, Erik Steinmetz, João Maia

Faculty Scholarship

Layer multiplication co-extrusion allows for creation of advance structures with highly tunable properties, with relative ease. Multi-layer co-extrusion using the layer multiplication technique was used to create 33-layered structures of polymer microsphere-filled layers alternating with unfilled layers. Cross-linked polyurethane (PU) microspheres (of two different rigidities) and ultra-highly cross-linked polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) microspheres were used to examine the effect of particle rigidity in confinement on overall mechanical properties. Layer structures were successfully created with particle-filled layers; once layer size approaches the particle size, the particles deform the unfilled counter-layer. In certain conditions, impingement of the counter-layer occurs, decreasing the mechanical properties. High-density …

Ai Empire: Unraveling The Interlocking Systems Of Oppression In Generative Ai's Global Order, Jasmina Tacheva, Srividya Ramasubramanian

Media Studies - All Scholarship

As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to captivate the collective imagination through the latest generation of generative AI models such as DALL-E and ChatGPT, the dehumanizing and harmful features of the technology industry that have plagued it since its inception only seem to deepen and intensify. Far from a “glitch” or unintentional error, these endemic issues are a function of the interlocking systems of oppression upon which AI is built. Using the analytical framework of “Empire,” this paper demonstrates that we live not simply in the “age of AI” but in the age of AI Empire. Specifically, we show that …

Gardner-Webb Campus Community Remembers Life Of Dr. Dianne Sykes, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

The Gardner-Webb University campus community is remembering a friend, colleague and professor. Dr. Dianne Sykes, associate professor of sociology, passed away on Dec. 11, 2023.

The Gender Load: Case Assignment Differences In A University Counseling Center, Samantha Kristine Brumble Heder

Theses and Dissertations

Recent research has explored the unique case load of mental health professionals working in university counseling centers (UCCs) and is working to better understand therapist burnout. However, there is a gap in the literature surrounding therapist caseload composition and how this composition can impact the experience of therapists in UCCs. Specifically, more research is needed to understand how therapist caseloads might differ by gender identity of therapist. The current study explored this topic by looking at how therapist caseload varies by gender. Retrospective data gathered at a large western United States UCC from 2014 to 2021 was analyzed using Hierarchical …

Redress For Historical Injustices: Haiti’S Claim For The Restitution Of Post-Independence Payments To France, Günther Handl

University of Miami Inter-American Law Review

No abstract provided.

Restitution For Haiti, Reparations For All: Haiti’S Place In The Global Reparations Movement, Brian Concannon Jr., Kristina Fried, Alexandra V. Filippova

University of Miami Inter-American Law Review

Haiti’s claim for restitution of the debt coerced by France in exchange for Haiti’s 1804 independence has unique legal advantages that can open the door to broader reparations for the descendants of all people harmed by slavery. But in order to assert the claim, Haiti first needs help reclaiming its democracy from a corrupt, repressive regime propped up by the powerful countries that prospered through slavery and overthrew the Haitian President who dared to assert his country’s legal claim. This article explores Haiti’s Independence Debt, and the fight for restitution of it, in the context of two centuries of continued …

Haitian Climate Migrants: Heralds Of The United States’ Unprepared Immigration System, Noah Rust

University of Miami Inter-American Law Review

This note explores the complex relationship between climate change and Human migration, and the ensuing complications for the United States immigration scheme. Climate change can both directly and indirectly contribute to human migration, yet the United States’ regulatory scheme is unprepared for this reality and its consequences. Through analyzing several separate migratory events in Haiti, the specific failures of the United States status quo immigration systems become clearer. Further, the note will identify frameworks that could offer relief to climate-related migrants.

2023 December 13 - Undergraduate Curriculum Council Minutes, Undergraduate Curriculum Council, East Tennessee State University

Undergraduate Curriculum Council Minutes

No abstract provided.

Our Weird Living World, Saugat Bolakhe

Capstones

The series of articles featured in this portfolio dives into the weirdest and most unique natural phenomena that power and sustain our living world. It features the eccentric worlds of microbes that have a chemical trick for making oxygen that could sustain entire underground ecosystems, birds that go on to choosing vocal coaches based on sounds they hear as embryos, moths that keep on blinding children in Nepal, algae and their cost of adapting in warming oceans and female insects that hide cryptic sex for their survival.

Link: https://saugatbol.wixsite.com/saugat-bolakhe

The New New Yorkers, Frances E. Perozo

Capstones

As Texas turns its back on asylum seekers, one New York City community seeks to make them feel welcomed with dignity and care. The New New Yorkers follows the journey of Adama Bah, an asylum-seeking refugee turned citizen as she dedicates her life to welcoming asylum seekers despite Mayor Adams slashing funds, shutting down her triage operations, and attempting to gut the right to shelter, a legal precedent that ensures all migrants and New Yorkers have the right to shelter. Bah is determined to show up for migrants, joyfully.

Human Rights Gone Wrong, Frances E. Perozo

Capstones

My community is made up of people who are victims/survivors of human rights violations. The two communities I worked with Mott Haven arrestees who were beaten and abused by the NYPD in July 2020 during a protest against police brutality, and newly arrived migrants coming into New York City from the southern border in the last eighteen months, The New New Yorkers. On June 4, 2020, 300 people were peacefully protesting in Mott Haven, a low-income neighborhood in Harlem, when they were kettled and arrested by the NYPD ten minutes before 8 pm, which was the time of a temporary …

The Pima County Jail In A “State Of Full-Blown Crisis”: Inmate Deaths Four Times The National Average, Natalie Robbins

Capstones

Last year, 12 inmates died in custody at the Pima County Jail in Tucson, Arizona. With a 10-year average jail population of 1,827, that is a per capita rate of 656.8 deaths per 100,000 inmates.

According to the most recent data from the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the 2019 national local jail mortality rate was 167 deaths for every 100,000 inmates, making the Pima County Jail’s 2022 per capita death rate nearly four times as high as the national average in 2019.

In a December 2022 memo to the Pima County Board of Supervisors, Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos wrote …

“Unsanitary, Rundown, Everything Is Broken”: The Reality Of Queer Homeless Shelters, Sunjum Nagpaul

Capstones

Despite the larger need for queer-designated shelters, there are only a handful of them out of hundreds of city shelters. Most of them are for youth except Marsha’s House, located in Belmont in the Bronx, which has an age limit of 30. It also comes with a slew of concerns, like staff who are unfamiliar with LGBTQ+ issues and a layout that can exclude those with physical disabilities. What’s more, queer residents face many of the same challenges others homeless do: dirty and unsanitary facilities that never seem to improve.

https://medium.com/@sunny.nagpaul/unsanitary-rundown-everything-is-broken-the-reality-of-homeless-shelters-fd2940f6b862

Local Composters Carve New Path Amid Budget Cuts, Nicolas J. Magrino

Capstones

This piece focuses on how New York City’s composting programs have adjusted after losing funding from the city government at the beginning of 2024. While there has been coverage about the issue at a larger policy level, there has not been a lot of attention paid to the small local gardens who are just as affected by this change as the larger organizations. The piece interrogates the issue from the bottom up, starting with small community gardens and ending with the larger organizations that support their work. It also looks at the issue from the perspective of the Department of …

Exodus: The Cost Of Leaving High-Control Religion And Life After Breaking Free, Hannah-Kathryn Valles

Capstones

There are many names for those who leave their faith community—apostate, heretic, dissenter. While there is no singular path to parting with one’s religious beliefs, the experience can be fraught and intensely painful. For those in high-control religious environments, the price of leaving is even steeper.

When identity, social connections, finances, and family structures are dependent on conforming to strict religious and ideological norms, the decision to leave can have far-reaching consequences. For those who do make the bold decision to leave, it’s hardly the end of the road. In many ways, leaving is just the first step toward finding …

Amid Senegal’S Most Tumultuous Year In Recent History, The Senegalese Diaspora In New York Grapples With The Uncertainty Of Their Home Country’S Political Future., Mark Banchereau

Capstones

On February 25th 2024, Senegalese voters will be heading to the polls to elect a new president. Often hailed as one of the most stable and transparent democracies in Africa, Senegal has seen a rise in political violence surrounding the sentencing of the main opposition leader Ousmane Sonko this year.

Link :

https://medium.com/@banchereau.mark27/e716d027c0f3

Neurodivergent Artists In Nyc, Brianna R. Poulos

Capstones

Workplaces, classrooms, and creative studios are just a few examples of everyday spaces that are largely designed with neurotypical norms in mind. Creating, sharing, and funding a creative vision is difficult for any artist, but these struggles are amplified for artists with intellectual disabilities who may have been overlooked or not given the same opportunities.

Over the last 18 months, journalist Brianna Rebecca Poulos has worked with neurodivergent artists in New York City and non-profits already working to serve this community of creatives. Brianna created a landing page to help neurodivergent artists in New York City access important information about …

The Backdoor Lobby: Israel Interest Groups And Middle East Policy, Andrew Ancheta

Capstones

The 2023 Gaza war brought new focus to the special relationship between the United States and Israel. While the scale of direct support for the Israeli military is well-known, there has been less attention on less direct ties, such as those between U.S. nonprofits and settlement organizations, or the use of generous gift travel as a form of lobbying. This project consists of three Op-Ed articles on these aspects of the Israel lobby and its effects on U.S. politics, supported by photography and data research.

Elderly And Disabled New Yorkers Negatively Impacted By City-Implemented Street Changes, Asar John

Capstones

This final practicum focuses on the community of elderly and/or disabled seniors who are negatively impacted by city-implemented street changes. This includes, but is not limited to Open Streets, traffic calming and bike boulevards on different New York City streets. The final product produced for this community was a four part video testimonial from people in different geographical communities, talking about how they and other folks in that community are hindered by street changes.

2024 Marian Fellowships, Kayla Harris

Marian Library Blog Archive

Applications for three fellowship opportunities are due Jan. 15.

Analyzing Aberrant Dna Methylation In Colorectal Cancer Uncovered Intangible Heterogeneity Of Gene Effects In The Survival Time Of Patients, Saeedeh Hajebi Khaniki, Farhad Shokoohi, Habibollah Esmaily, Mohammad Amin Kerachian

Mathematical Sciences Faculty Research

Colorectal cancer (CRC) involves epigenetic alterations. Irregular gene-methylation alteration causes and advances CRC tumor growth. Detecting differentially methylated genes (DMGs) in CRC and patient survival time paves the way to early cancer detection and prognosis. However, CRC data including survival times are heterogeneous. Almost all studies tend to ignore the heterogeneity of DMG effects on survival. To this end, we utilized a sparse estimation method in the finite mixture of accelerated failure time (AFT) regression models to capture such heterogeneity. We analyzed a dataset of CRC and normal colon tissues and identified 3406 DMGs. Analysis of overlapped DMGs with several …

Aiming To Connect: Do College Students Of Color Feel As Though They Belong In The Psychology Major?, Sarah Smith

Honors Program Theses and Projects

At Bridgewater State University (BSU), the psychology department consists of many students of differing backgrounds and demographics. Certain student demographics that can lead to marginalization could potentially influence a student’s connection to their academic program. This project aims to determine if students of color experience a lack of connection within the psychology program. Students in each PSYC 150 (Orientation to the Psychology Major) course at BSU are invited to complete pretest/posttest surveys. We assessed results of surveys completed from Fall 2020-Spring 2023. We hypothesized that students of color would report lower connectedness through measures of sense of belonging, challenges faced, …

Dwindling Trust In Experts: A Starting Point For Information Literacy, Mark N. Lenker Iii

Library Faculty Presentations

Librarians and teachers encourage students to include expert perspectives in their research, but recent public discourse includes high-profile examples of experts being inconsistent or wrong, and recent studies suggest that public trust in experts is declining. Waning trust makes it difficult to teach information literacy: I can push students to find high-quality research sources, but what if these sources turn out to be yet another example of experts getting it wrong? After a period of living with this worry, I found a way to move forward by centering class discussion on the public’s dwindling trust in experts. Part of this …

Policy Review And Recommendation For Secondary Education Np-Led Clinics In The Southeastern United States, Shiney Alex Jacob

Student Scholarly Projects

Secondary-level education involves adolescent children aged 11-12 years to 18-19 with unique healthcare needs. Their healthcare is of significant importance as they are transitioning to adulthood, and a majority of them lack access to primary healthcare needs. Advanced Practice Registered Nurses/Nurse Practitioners (APRNs/NPs) provide high-quality, cost-effective, and evidence-based care to people across the lifespan, and there is minimal utilization of their services in meeting the primary care needs of adolescents at the secondary school level. The purpose of the policy project was to determine if current policies and practices related to school health services in three southeastern states of the …

Nyc Local Law 144: A Failed Attempt At Regulating Ai In Hiring, Christopher Janaro

Capstones

New York City recently passed a law that aims to regulate the use of automated AI tools in hiring. The Problem? Big business helped write it.