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The Impact Of Daylight Saving Time Transitions On Domestic Violence Call Volume, Quynh-Nhu Pham

Master's Projects

Daylight Saving Time (DST) is a longstanding practice in many countries, involving the seasonal adjustment of clocks by one hour forward in the spring, and one hour backward in the fall. Although DST was initially introduced to promote energy conservation and maximize daylight hours, it has become a subject of debate, given its impact on physical and mental health, cognitive performance, and criminal behavior (Kountouris & Remoundou, 2014).

In 2022, Colorado enacted a law adopting year-round DST, contingent upon a federal law enabling states to maintain DST throughout the year as opposed to ST, like Hawaii and Arizona (Chasan, 2024). …

Addressing Equity Gaps In Stem: A Self-Study, Prabhjeet Kaur Brar

Dissertations

The Hispanic/Latinx population is increasing nationwide and in the state of California; however, the Hispanic/Latinx population remains underrepresented in STEM professions contributing to a lack of diversity in STEM. To increase the academic success of the Hispanic/Latinx student population in STEM majors, high leverage research-based teaching strategies through the lens of historically responsive literacy were applied and examined throughout this research. The purpose of this mixed-methods self-study was to examine the impact of research-based effective strategies/high leverage practices on Latinx students’ success rates in my introductory biology classrooms. The study focused on two biology course sections with a laboratory. Each …

How Are Mcps Doing On Achieving Assessed Calaim Requirements? A Comparative Analysis Of Selected Not-For-Profit, Publicly Governed Health Plans In California, Junell Chen

Master's Projects

At the heart of a larger societal movement, the imperative to foster diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) is a resounding call to action across all sectors. This pressing concern underscores the need for proactive and equity-centric solutions, including within the American healthcare system. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has been instrumental in shaping policies and initiatives, such as Healthy People, aimed at promoting health equity and reducing health disparities. Similarly, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has instituted supplementary compliance requirements to hold healthcare stakeholders accountable for implementing equitable programs designed to eliminate health disparities …

The 1-Back Matching/Mismatching Paradigm With Pigeons (Columba Livia): Evidence For Explicit Learning?, Daniel Peng

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

With humans, a distinction can be made between explicit and implicit learning. language can be used to describe rule-based learning commonly seen in explicit, but not implicit learning. Unfortunately, we cannot do so with animals. Therefore, a non-verbal paradigm is needed to differentiate the types of learning. One method to make such a distinction is by training animals under a conditional discrimination task such as matching-to-sample with reinforcement delayed until a choice is made on the next trial: otherwise known as a 1-back procedure. In this experiment an alternating matching/mismatching to sample task under a 1-back schedule of reinforcement was …

Neural Hyperactivity During Value-Based Decision-Making In People With Daily/Near Daily Cannabis Use, Miranda Ramirez

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Value-based decision-making involves the coordinated effort of multiple brain regions to guide future choices based on past experiences. These processes are disrupted in cannabis use disorder, where individuals continue to use cannabis despite negative consequences. Reinforcement learning (RL) paradigms can be used to capture changes in the value of available options and may inform how the brain is impacted by frequent cannabis use. This study combined fMRI with behavioral modeling of probabilistic choice task data to compare value-based choices between young adults reporting daily/near daily cannabis use (CAN) and controls (CTRL). Participants selected one of two options reinforced ($0.25) at …

Effect Of A Brief Coping Intervention On Activity Of Target Organs Of The Sympathetic And Parasympathetic Nervous Systems During Stress, Kyle P. Rawn

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Stress is a critical aspect of the human experience and how an individual responds to stress can shape future outcomes, such as physical and mental health, as well as shape the patterns of stress responding that persist throughout one’s lifespan. Coping is a central element of stress responding and can strongly influence the outcome of the stress process. Successful coping can alleviate stress, but ineffective coping may lead to less-than-optimal responding. For example, aspects of the biological stress response, such as activity of target organs for the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems, have important implications for future susceptibility to health …

Influence Of Oral Contraceptives On Alcohol Use In Young Adult Women, Ashley Strzelecki

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Rates of heavy drinking and Alcohol Use Disorder are rising dramatically in young adult women, making it important to better understand female-specific risks for problematic drinking. Circulating levels of ovarian hormones are one potential mechanism influencing alcohol use in women. Many young adult women use oral contraceptives (OCs) that alter endogenous hormone levels, and little is known about how OCs and the synthetic hormones they contain may influence alcohol use. This dissertation consists of three studies that investigated alcohol consumption in women using OCs and explored potential mechanisms through which OCs may influence alcohol use. Study 1 compared self-reported alcohol …

It Takes A Village: Impact Of Lgbtq+ Community On The Relationship Between Parenting Stress, Parent Mental Health, And Child Adjustment, Kevin Mcaweeney

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

While LGBTQ+ parented families are largely the same as their cis-het parent counterparts, they still experience unique factors exclusive to them. One such factor is access to the LGBTQ+ community. While research has emphasized the importance of community within the family system, the role the LGBTQ+ community can play for LGBTQ+ parented families is largely unexplored. Additionally, LGBTQ+ research examining parents of adolescents is similarly lacking. Utilizing a sample of LGBTQ+ parents with adolescent children, and informed by ecological systems theory, self-determination theory, and the parenting stress model, I examine the influence parent’s sense of LGBTQ+ community has on the …

Development Of The Trait Response To Emotion Dimensional Measure For Use In Minoritized Populations, Anita Adams

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Trait responses to emotion (TREs) are personality traits that develop from how one consistently responds to and copes with emotions. TRE development is influenced by demographic factors, such as age, gender, and early life adversity, and TREs can influence how one copes with a variety of stressors. TRE theory and measurement is relatively new, and although TREs have been validated in majority race samples, TRE theory and measurement have not been validated in minority race samples, particularly in African American populations. This dissertation is taking the first preliminary steps for the development of a cross-cultural trait response to emotion dimensional …

Hormonal Effects On Adhd Symptoms In Adolescents Across The Menstrual Cycle, Ashley G. Eng

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Background: Females with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) become particularly impaired during adolescence, experiencing increased rates of depression and anxiety, as well as important public and personal health outcomes like increased suicide attempts, risky sexual behavior, and substance use. However, female-specific risk factors for ADHD have been vastly understudied despite this increased impairment and comorbidity. One particularly understudied risk factor is the dramatically rising and fluctuating levels of ovarian hormones during late puberty that begin cycling monthly. In adult women, rapid decreases in estrogen levels increase risk for ADHD symptoms across the menstrual cycle, particularly for those with high trait impulsivity. Preliminary …

The Effect Of Cytomegalovirus Infection On Daily Stress Processes In Early Adulthood, Elana Gloger

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Chronic stress increases risk for disease, poor health, and early mortality. Cytomegalovirus (CMV), a common latent herpes virus, may promote neurological changes that increase vulnerability to chronic stress by way of self-regulatory deficits, though this has yet to be directly tested. Investigating CMV at younger ages is crucial to understand the effect of CMV across the lifespan and identify modifiable health-factors for future anti-aging interventions. The present study aimed to investigate how, and for whom, CMV associates with daily stress processes in early adulthood.

Participants (N = 108, M_age = 19.7, 83.3% female, 72% White) completed an in-person lab …

Fluctuations In Alcohol Impairment Of Working Memory Across The Menstrual Cycle, William Mcgarrigle

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Behavioral endocrinology studies in women suggest that higher circulating levels of the ovarian sex hormone estradiol (E2) may be linked to better working memory performance, especially under conditions of cognitive impairment (e.g., age-related cognitive decline). Phases of the menstrual cycle characterized by different levels of E2 may therefore influence the degree to which women are vulnerable to alcohol impairment of working memory. The current thesis used a within-subjects design to test the hypothesis that women are less sensitive to acute alcohol-induced impairment of working memory when E2 is elevated during the menstrual cycle. A sample of 75 premenopausal women completed …

Cognitive-Behavioral Effects And Sex Differences In Alcohol Use, Mia Radevski

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Addiction models (e.g., iRISA model) suggest that excessive substance use can result in behavioral consequences such as decreased response inhibition and increased salience attribution toward alcohol cues. The primary goal of this project was to explore potential sex differences in these characteristics of addiction. This dissertation is comprised of two separate but related studies. Study 1 investigated sex differences in inhibitory control and attentional bias. The central hypotheses are 1) women who reported heavy-drinking would display greater disruptions in behavioral inhibitory control following alcohol-related cues, 2) men who reported heavy-drinking would display greater attentional bias toward alcohol-related cues, and 3) …

Menstrual Cycle Phase And Hormonal Effects On Emotional Eating In Females With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Urveesha Nirjar

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Previous research has shown that cyclical fluctuations in ovarian hormones can predict changes in ADHD symptoms as well as eating behaviors, particularly emotional eating across the menstrual cycle. Previous studies have so far only examined the effects of estrogen (E2), progesterone (P4) and cycle phase in predicting individual symptoms or disorders such as ADHD or eating disorders or related behaviors separately. The aim of this study is to examine how emotional eating is influenced by naturally occurring hormonal and cycle changes in a sample overrecruited for ADHD. Seventy-eight individuals (assigned female at birth) with menstrual cycles overrecruited for ADHD provided …

Terror And Time: Analyzing Homegrown Terrorism In The United States, Kyser Daniels-Baessler

Theses and Dissertations

The events of September 11th, 2001, prompted a global reckoning with the threat of international terrorism, leading to intensified awareness and policy responses worldwide. However, amidst this heightened global focus, the United States has faced a concerning rise in politically motivated violence on its soil. Against this backdrop, this thesis delves into the phenomenon of homegrown terrorism within the United States from 2000 to 2020. By employing advanced geospatial techniques, this study seeks to pinpoint areas nationwide with elevated rates of homegrown terrorist incidents. Moreover, it endeavors to uncover potential temporal correlations between these acts of violence and significant events, …

Intimate Partner Violence And Parent Perceptions Of Their Emotional Bond To Their Children, Lia T. Mclanahan

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

As research on intimate partner violence (IPV) continues to grow and there are more ways of defining IPV and identifying its differing forms, a related topic of interest has become the impact IPV has on families (Fong et al., 2019). Similarly, research on IPV as a form of trauma and its implications is well-researched for both children and adults, as is the research on trauma and attachment (Cook et al., 2017). However, there seems to be a lack of research on how parent–child attachment is predicted by IPV. The present study aimed to assess how parent perceptions of their level …

A Scoping Review On Mobile Health Technology For Assessment And Intervention Of Upper Limb Motor Function In Children With Motor Impairments, Md Raihan Mia, Sheikh Iqbal Ahamed, Alissa V. Fial, Samuel Nemanich

Computer Science Faculty Research and Publications

Upper limb (UL) motor dysfunctions impact residual movement in hands/shoulders and limit participation in play, sports, and leisure activities. Clinical and laboratory assessments of UL movement can be time-intensive, subjective, and/or require specialized equipment and may not optimally capture a child's motor abilities. The restrictions to in-person research experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic have inspired investigators to design inclusive at-home studies with child participants and their families. Relying on the ubiquity of mobile devices, mobile health (mHealth) applications offer solutions for various clinical and research problems. This scoping review article aimed to aggregate and synthesize existing research that used health …

Methylene Blue-Mediated Photodynamic Therapy In Combination With Doxorubicin: A Novel Approach In The Treatment Of Ht-29 Colon Cancer Cells, Nima Rastegar-Pouyani, Jaber Zafari, Alireza Nasirpour, Hossein Vazini, Nabbaa Najjar, Seyedeh Zohreh Azarshin, Fatemeh Javani Jouni

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Introduction: With an alarmingly growing number of patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer, adopting innovative anti-cancer approaches has recently garnered great attention. One interesting concept is the co-administration of cytotoxic agents and safer modalities such as photodynamic therapy (PDT), which can subsequently improve therapeutic efficacy and potentially reduce the risks of severe adverse effects and drug resistance. In the course of PDT, a locally injected photosensitizer (PS) is irradiated with a light source, which subsequently generates reactive oxygen species (ROS) and induces programmed cell death in tumor cells.

Methods: In this study, to evaluate the potential anti-cancer effects of chemotherapy combined …

An Empirical Predictive Model For Determining The Aqueous Solubility Of Bcs Class Iv Drugs In Amorphous Solid Dispersions, Sridivya Raparla

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

Poor aqueous solubility persists as a significant challenge in the pharmaceutical industry.Ongoing research aims to enhance the solubility of drugs to deliver them more effectively. Amorphous solid dispersion (ASD) is a widely used solubility enhancement technique. The absence of a specific model to predict compound solubility from ASDs resulted in a trial-and- error approach to studying solubility enhancement and makes it a laborious and time-consuming process. Predictive models could streamline this process and accelerate the development of oral drugs with improved aqueous solubilities. This study aimed to develop a predictive model to estimate the solubility of a compound from the …

Understanding The Trafficking Of Children For The Purposes Of Labor In The United States, Amy Farrell, Meredith Dank, Katherine Kaufka Walts, Callie Hansson, Andrea Hughes, Chlece Neal

Center for the Human Rights of Children

No abstract provided.

Synthesis Of Cationic Liposome Nanoparticles Using A Thin Film Dispersed Hydration And Extrusion Method, Alessandro Cazzolla, Julie Rose Mae Mondala, Janith Wanigasekara, Joanna Carroll, Noah Daly, Brijesh Tiwari, Alan Casey, James F. Curtin

Articles

Liposome nanoparticles can carry a wide range of therapeutic molecules including small molecules and nucleic acid-based therapeutics. Potential benefits include translocation across physiological barriers, reduced systemic toxicity, and enhanced pharmacokinetic parameters such as absorption, distribution, selective release and optimal elimination kinetics. Liposome nanoparticles can be generated with a wide range of natural and synthetic lipid-based molecules that confer desirable properties depending on the desired therapeutic application Nel et al (2023), Large (2021), Elkhoury (2020). This protocol article seeks to detail the procedures involved in the production of cationic liposomes using thin-film dispersed hydration method with an estimated uniform size of …

Acalypha Indica Aqueous Leaf Extract As Potential Nematicide Against The Root-Knot Nematode, Meloidogyne Incognita: In Vitro And Molecular Docking Studies, Altaf Khan, Manar Fawzi Bani Mfarrej, Fohad Mabood Husain, Qamar Zia, Mohd Adil, Mohammed Arshad, Khalid Umar, Niraj Kumar Jha, Pieter Malan, Soumya Pandit, Faheem Ahmad

All Works

Root-knot nematode (RKN) (Meloidogyne incognita) is a major plant parasitic nematode that severely damages crops, leading to significant yield losses and substantial economic impact globally. This study aims to investigate an environmentally sustainable biological strategy for mitigating parasitic populations of the root-knot nematode, M. incognita. Specifically, the research focuses on assessing the nematicidal efficacy of Acalypha indica against M. incognita mortality and second-stage juveniles’ (J2) hatching under controlled in vitro conditions. A. indica leaf aqueous extract was applied at varying concentrations (250, 500, 750, and 1000 ppm) to J2s and egg masses of M. incognita. Notably, at 1000 ppm, a …

Mangrove Sediments-Associated Bacterium (Bacillus Sp. Sw7) With Multiple Plant Growth-Promoting Traits Promotes The Growth Of Tomato (Solanum Lycopersicum), Mahideen Afridi, Balamurugan Sadaiappan, Amna Saood Nassar, Henda Mahmoudi, Munawwar Ali Khan, Sunil Mundra

All Works

Global food production intensification presents a major hurdle to ensuring food security amidst a growing world population. Widespread use of chemical fertilizers in recent decades has risked soil fertility, compounded by the challenges posed by climate change, particularly in arid regions. To address these issues, adopting plant growth-promoting (PGP) bacteria stands out as a promising solution, offering multifaceted benefits to arid agroecosystems. We isolated a bacterial strain, SW7, from mangrove sediment, characterised the entire genome followed by phylogenetic analyses, and evaluated its in-vitro PGP activity. Subsequently, we examined its impact on tomato seed germination and plant growth. The strain SW7 …

The Efficiency Of Chlorophyll Fluorescence As A Selection Criterion For Salinity And Climate Aridity Tolerance In Barley Genotypes, Zied Hammami, Soumaya Tounsi-Hammami, Nhamo Nhamo, Saleh Rezgui, Yousef Trifa

All Works

Introduction: In the Near East and North Africa (NENA) region, crop production is being affected by various abiotic factors, including freshwater scarcity, climate, and soil salinity. As a result, farmers in this region are in search of salt-tolerant crops that can thrive in these harsh environments, using poor-quality groundwater. The main staple food crop for most of the countries in this region, Tunisia included, is barley. Methods: The present study was designed to investigate the sensitivity and tolerance of six distinct barley genotypes to aridity and salinity stresses in five different natural field environments by measuring their photosynthetic activity. Results …

Epidemiology And Antimicrobial Resistance Of Mycobacterium Spp. In The United Arab Emirates: A Retrospective Analysis Of 12 Years Of National Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance Data, Jens Thomsen, Najiba M. Abdulrazzaq, Najiba M. Abdulrazzaq, Peter S. Nyasulu, Farida Al Hosani, Maya Habous, Stefan Weber, Fouzia Jabeen, Godfred Antony Menezes, Carole Ayoub Moubareck, Abiola Senok, Dean B. Everett, Adnan Alatoom, Agnes-Sonnevend-Pal, Ahmed Abdulkareem Al Hammadi, Ahmed Elhag Ahmed, Ahmed F. Yousef, Alaa M.M. Enshasy, Amal Mubarak Madhi, Amna Alblooshi, Andreas Podbielski, Anju Nabi, Anup Shashikant Poddar, Arun Kumar Jha, Ayesha Abdulla Al Marzooqi, Bashir Aden, Dean Everett, Deeba Jafri

All Works

Introduction: The Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office (EMRO) region accounts for almost 8% of all global Mycobacterium tuberculosis (TB) cases, with TB incidence rates ranging from 1 per 100,000 per year in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to 204 per 100,000 in Djibouti. The national surveillance data from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region on the epidemiology and antimicrobial resistance trends of TB, including MDR-TB remains scarce. Methods: A retrospective 12-year analysis of N = 8,086 non-duplicate diagnostic Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTB complex) isolates from the UAE was conducted. Data were generated through routine patient care during the 2010–2021 …

Phytochemistry Of Isolated Essential Oils From Cautleya Spicata (Sm.) Baker For Their Pesticidal Evaluation And In-Silico Approaches To Reveal The Mode Of Nematicidal Action, Sonu Kumar Mahawer, Manar Fawzi Bani Mfarrej, Ravendra Kumar, Himani Karakoti, Om Prakash, Satya Kumar, Dharmendra Singh Rawat, Aditi Kundu, Pieter Malan, Faheem Ahmad

All Works

This study aimed to assess the chemical composition and pesticidal activities of essential oils (EOs) from Cautleya spicata rhizomes and aerial parts. The EOs were assessed against root-knot nematodes (Meloidogyne incognita) by mortality and hatchability bioassays and the phytotoxicity of the EOs was determined against Raphanus raphanistrum subspp. Sativus (radish) and Cichorium intybus (chicory) seeds. In-silico screening of the primary constituents of EOs and five chosen target proteins of the nematode was conducted to predict the expected mechanism of action of these oils. p-Cymene and β-pinene were the key compounds in the EOs from the rhizomes and aerial parts. The …

Diagnostic Performance Of Ai-Based Models Versus Physicians Among Patients With Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis, Feras Al-Obeidat, Wael Hafez, Muneir Gador, Nesma Ahmed, Marwa Muhammed Abdeljawad, Antesh Yadav, Asrar Rashed

All Works

Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a common primary liver cancer that requires early diagnosis due to its poor prognosis. Recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) have facilitated hepatocellular carcinoma detection using multiple AI models; however, their performance is still uncertain. Aim: This meta-analysis aimed to compare the diagnostic performance of different AI models with that of clinicians in the detection of hepatocellular carcinoma. Methods: We searched the PubMed, Scopus, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science databases for eligible studies. The R package was used to synthesize the results. The outcomes of various studies were aggregated using fixed-effect and random-effects models. …

Analysis Of Sir Model With Optimal Control Strategy For A Simple Traffic Congestion Process, Ratna Herdiana, Zani Anjani Rafsanjani, R. Heru Tjahjana, Yogi Ahmad Erlangga, Moch Fandi Ansori

All Works

Traffic analysis on highways at the macroscopic level is very similar to the analysis of the spread of infectious diseases, namely the susceptible-infected-recover (SIR) model. We propose the SIR model with a control variable. The dynamics with fixed control and stability of the model are analyzed. Sensitivity analysis was also carried out. Variable control is applied as an effort to regulate or change the duration of the green light at an intersection. We obtain an optimal control strategy when the control is time-dependent. Numerical results show the positive impacts of implementing the control to susceptible vehicles and treatment for congested …

Assessing The Corrosive Effects Of Unmelted Particles In Additively Manufactured Ti6al4v: A Study In Simulated Body Fluid, Surinder Pal, Xavier Velay, Waqas Saleem

Articles

This study investigates the corrosion behavior of Grade 23 Ti6Al4V alloys produced through laser powder bed fusion (L-PBF) when exposed to simulated body fluid at room temperature, focusing on the role of unmelted particles. This research aims to understand how these microstructural features, resulting from the additive manufacturing process, influence the corrosion resistance of the alloys. It was observed that unmelted particles serve as critical sites for initiating localized corrosion, including pitting, which significantly compromises the material's overall durability. Electrochemical testing and detailed surface analysis revealed that these particles, alongside other defects such as voids, exacerbate the susceptibility to corrosion …

Loot Boxes May Exploit Gamers, But Their Sale Does Not Constitute Unlawful Gambling, John J. Chung

Law Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.