Digital Commons Network^™

Enduring Words: Resistance Through Sculptural Libraries, Alex C. Jacobs

LSU Master's Theses

Enduring Words: Resistance Through Sculptural Libraries is a thesis exhibition that challenges book censorship by transforming reading into a public and defiant act. Through direct sculptural interventions, the exhibition confronts cultural erasure, questions who controls the literature we consume, and highlights the role of art in safeguarding contested knowledge. This thesis focuses on a current body of exhibited sculptural works that embody the tension between access and erasure. These installations engage with the viewer by using a lighthouse built of books and a speech-bubble-shaped library embedded with censored texts. They do not quietly mourn the suppression of knowledge; they confront …

Beyond Methodology: Hungry Translation As A Yearning For Justice, Richa Nagar

Study of Women, Gender, & Sexuality: Faculty Publications

This essay emerges from an invited lecture that I delivered at the University of Amsterdam in 2024. My reflections include glimpses from three decades of journeying within and across diverse sites of knowledge-making: a farmers’ and workers’ movement, a theatre group and my classrooms. I ask: how do we move from the idea of remaking research to a transformational praxis through which we can co-create shared hungers for justice that refuse the borders among research, creativity, unlearning and relearning? I draw on my co-authored labours in Playing with Fire, Muddying the Waters and Hungry Translations to explore this question …

Atrapado En Limbo: Fronteras, Anthropologists, And Translation In Contexts Of The Missing And Unidentified At The México-Us Border, Aliya M. Godoy

LSU Master's Theses

The Missing Migrants Project reports that in the past 11 years, 11,138 missing migrants have been recorded in the Americas, with 6,512 of those migrants situated at the México-United States (US) border (Migration Within the Americas, n.d.). The crisis of missing and unidentified migrants at the México-US border is a topic of great discussion in the field of anthropology, and specifically in discourses of humanitarian forensic anthropological work. This research addresses the crisis at the border, expanding on the scholarship of family agency and language barriers between Spanish-speaking communities and medicolegal actors by investigating the role of anthropologists …

Manila As Sophie’S World: Mapping Sites Of Wonder In Intramuros And Environs, Jovino De Guzman Miroy

Philosophy Department Faculty Publications

This paper draws a philosophical heritage map of Intramuros and environs. The map includes several religious sites in Intramuros and two monuments of heroes outside the walls. The paper explains the reason for drawing such a map by, firstly, discussing the theory of place-based learning. Secondly, it will discuss the philosophical walk as a dialogue with the environment (nature and the city). A philosophical heritage map is also understood not only as a tour of sites associated with philosophers and the history of ideas but a movement along sites of wonder, rumination, contemplation, and critical thinking. As such, walking as …

Review Of Film Noir And The Arts Of Lighting, Casey Walker

Journal of 20th Century Media History

Review of the book Film Noir and the Arts of Lighting (Patrick Keating)

Soil Geochemistry Characteristics Of Bimodal-Mafic Type Vms Deposits In The Central Pontides: Importance Of Data Investigation In Exploration And Following Discovery, Buğra Çavdar, Kurtuluş Günay

Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences

Çangaldağ Metamorphic Complex is defined with low grade metamorphic equivalents of mafic to felsic intrusive and extrusives, clastics and volcanoclastics. The Au-Cu-Zn Say Yayla (deeply-seated; West Zone) and the Au-dominant Büyük Hill (gossan related; East Zone) deposits are classified as bimodal-mafic type VMS in that complex and they are hosted in the metafelsic ensimatic arc volcanics. These were investigated by soil samples developed over each mineralization to examine the soil characteristics with different textural features. A total of 274 soil samples were collected and they have been geochemically analysed and examined using various statistical methods. The results reveal that both …

Integrated Geochemical, Geoelectrical, And Uav-Based Methods For Analyzing The Güzelyalı Landslide (Çanakkale, Türkiye), Oya Erenoğlu, Emi̇n Ulugergerli̇, R. Cüneyt Erenoğlu, Abdullah Akbaş, Ahmet Evren Ergi̇nal

Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences

The number of reactivations increased in the Güzelyalı-Erenköy landslide area after 2013 in Çanakkale, Türkiye, where historical landslide activity has been recorded since 1875. This area is home to numerous summer residences and experiences ongoing slow-moving landslide activity along a 400-m-long slope, extending from the heavily trafficked Çanakkale-İzmir highway to the coastline. In this study, the nature of the reactivations was evaluated by considering the conditioning and triggering factors that contributed to the landslide. The evaluation was based on geochemical analyses, field observations, geoelectric measurements, and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) data. The results revealed that the sliding occurred along a …

Formation Of Holocene Paleosols In A Relict Sand Dune Sequence At Kıyıköy, Türkiye, Ahmet Evren Ergi̇nal, Mustafa Bozcu, Nuretti̇n Yakupoğlu, Abdullah Akbaş, Hakan Kaya, İsmai̇l Onur Tunç

Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences

The paleoclimatic indicators from a relict dune and paleosol sequence observed south of Kıyıköy Port, NW Türkiye, provide insights into the variable paleoclimatic conditions in the western Black Sea coastal zone over the last 4700 yrs BP. The relict dune- paleosol sequence consists of reddish-brown coarse sands with abundant shells and overlying paleosol. Radiocarbon dating of Donax trunculus shells collected from the lowest part of the relict dune revealed the onset of sand deposition 4689 ± 123 yrs ago. The dark-colored paleosol layer, with an Rb/Sr ratio of 0.008, yielded an age of 287 ± 32 yrs cal BP. These …

U-Pb Calcite Geochronology, Epr, Geochemistry, And C-O-Sr Isotopes Of Africanomarbles In The Seferihisar (İzmir, Türkiye) U-Pb Calcite Geochronology, Epr, Geochemistry, And C-O-Sr Isotopes Of Africano Marbles In The Seferihisar (İzmir, Türkiye), Fatma Şi̇şman Tükel, Namik Aysal, İpek Deni̇z Yildirim, Marcel Guillong, Tonguç Uysal, Si̇nan Öngen, Emre Erdem

Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences

The Africano marbles (Africano Verde and Bigio Africano) extracted from the region of Sığacık (ancient Teos) region and its surroundings were widely used and even traded in construction and decorative items throughout the Roman period due to their brecciated and colourful appearance. There are two different types of Africano marble, the first consisting of marble breccias embedded in a dark matrix. In this type, the marble breccias show micritic, microsparitic, and sometimes sparitic textures formed by coarse-grained calcite, while the dark matrix consists of chlorite and/or serpentine minerals. The second type is Bigio Africano, which consists of grey-blue homogeneous limestones, …

Combating Corruption In Heavily Indebted African Nations: The Role Of A Transparent Public Procurement System, Lauren G. Harkins

Washington Semester Program

This paper explores the implementation of transparency-focused public procurement reforms adopted during the HIPC Initiative and compares longitudinal corruption trends in 18 African countries after the reform initiative. Using IMF documentation and WGI corruption data, the study compares countries that implemented procurement and financial transparency measures with those that did not. The results show no consistent link between these reforms and improved corruption scores, highlighting the influence of political instability, sector-specific conditions, and limited implementation capacity. The study underscores the importance of realistic, incremental reforms and adequate institutional support, especially as countries adopt electronic procurement systems.

Staff Education On Medicaid And Medicare Programs, Angela R. Smith

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Case managers at the practice site are responsible for helping older and disabled clients receive services from Medicare and Medicaid. The gap in practice was that case managers were failing to recognize the benefit and eligibility differences between these federal and state-run programs. Case managers must be well-informed regarding these programs to effectively manage their clients’ care. The goal of this project was to plan, implement, and evaluate a staff education program on Medicare and Medicaid services. The practice-focused question centered on whether participants demonstrated increased knowledge about Medicare and Medicaid services available to Waiver Program clients. The theoretical framework …

Asian American Pacific Islander Representation In Middle School Social Studies, Erin Dorothy Mccarthy

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

According to recent studies, Asian American history has been misrepresented or omitted from the overall narrative of American history in standards, textbooks, and curricula. The problem was that Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) perspectives were missing and underrepresented in the middle school social studies curriculum in Wisconsin. Framed by Ladson-Billings’ culturally responsive pedagogy (CRP), the purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore how middle school social studies teachers integrated the voices of AAPI identities into the curriculum. The research questions probed how middle school teachers met state statutes on including multicultural voices and how they included AAPI perspectives …

Building Bridges: Queer Rights In And Out Of The Courts, Kaz Lane

Minnesota Law Review Vols. 106:2 onward (2021-present)

It is unclear whether the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment prohibits states from differentiating between people based solely on their sexual orientation and/or gender identity. This note_comment analyzes the Supreme Court’s tiers of scrutiny—rational basis review, intermediate scrutiny, and strict scrutiny—to argue that a new suspect class is warranted for sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI), triggering strict scrutiny for SOGI classifications. This analysis shows that a united SOGI class meets all of the characteristics associated with suspect classes, including a history of anti-LGBTQIA+ discrimination and the irrelevance between SOGI and one’s ability to contribute to society. This …

Suspecting With Data, Mary D. Fan

Minnesota Law Review Vols. 106:2 onward (2021-present)

Our pooled consumer big data, such as the pictures we post or the location history and keyword search trails we leave, are generating new ways to solve crimes. Much of the commentary on big data search strategies such as keyword, geofence, and facial recognition searches fixate on Fourth Amendment search and seizure issues rather than evidentiary safeguards. This Article breaks new ground by framing evidentiary guardrails for big data searches to reduce the harms of erroneous arrests, redress secrecy, and counteract the mystique of machine infallibility. Advancing beyond over-reliance on Fourth Amendment doctrine, this Article illuminates how evidence law and …

No Escape From Microplastics: Contamination Of Reef Manta Ray Feeding Areas In A Remote, Protected Archipelago, Jessica Savage, Joanna Harris, Heather J. Koldewey, Tom B. Letessier, M Rowcliffe, D Morritt

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

Remote islands receive plastic debris from elsewhere, ranging from microplastics (>5 mm) to macroplastics, which can further breakdown into microplastics. The ingestion of microplastics by marine species has been linked to decreased fitness. Reef manta rays, Mobula alfredi, are liable to ingest microplastics due to their filter-feeding strategy and habitat overlap with plastic hotspots. Their population is in decline due to unsustainable fishing pressures and a slow life history, with potential additional demographic pressure from plastic pollution. This study investigates the concentration and characteristics of microplastics in the top 0.5 m of the water column in reef manta rays …

The Next Four Years: Geographical Reflections On The Second Trump Administration, Caroline R. Nagel, Peter Hopkins

Faculty Publications

In this introductory essay, we reflect on the significance of the re-election of Donald Trump to the presidency in the United States, and we provide some context for interpreting Trump's second term. Two of Trump's early policy moves—the release of billions of gallons of water from reservoirs in California and the granting of refugee status to Afrikaners—portend four years of politics based on alternative facts, conspiracy theories, and racial grievances. Trump's political agenda has received a significant boost from Silicon Valley billionaires, who are keen to eliminate regulatory bureaucracy. Paradoxically, while allied with high-tech futurists, Trump's policies hearken to an …

Redefining The Photic Zone: Beyond The Autotroph-Centric View Of Light In The Ocean, Thomas Davies, Tim Smyth

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

Traditional measures of the photic zone have remained focused on autotrophs, limiting understanding of how changing marine lightscapes impact heterotrophs that use light as a resource or an environmental cue. We propose a new photic zone definition that encompasses all biological processes influenced by celestial light, and a new measure of photic zone depth, the minimum light intensity that elicits biological responses. This approach allows photic zone measures to be inclusive of all marine photobiology driven by sunlight, moonlight, or starlight, and enables urgently needed exploration of the nature, extent and ecological implications of changing marine lightscapes.

Utilizing A Clinical Resource Hub To Improve Access And Workflow For Retinopathy Screenings In The Veteran Population, Erin Kelly Pope

Doctor of Nursing Practice Final Manuscripts

Abstract

Utilizing a Clinical Resource Hub to Improve Access and Workflow for Retinal Screenings in the Veteran Population

Erin K. Pope, MSN, RN, AGCNS-BC, AMB-BC

Scot Nolan, DNP, RN, CNS, PHN, CCRN, CNRN, SCRN, FCNS

Background: Diabetic retinopathy (DR), a progressive complication of diabetes mellitus (DM), is the leading cause of blindness among working-age adults. As DR can remain asymptomatic until advanced stages, annual screenings are critical for early detection and management. Teleretinal imaging is an evidence-based method for DR screening, offering cost efficiency and reduced demand on ophthalmology clinics. At the Veterans Administration’s (VA) Loma Linda Healthcare System …

Higher Turnout, Greater Inequality? A Precinct-Level Analysis Of Income Inequality In U.S. Presidential Voting, 2016 To 2020, A. Rastogi, Daniel Laurison

Sociology & Anthropology Faculty Works

The relationship between income and voter turnout is crucial to understanding U.S. democracy. Previous research has revealed that richer people tend to vote at higher rates than lower income people. But this research relied on survey data and was subject to response and social desirability bias, producing widely varying estimates of the size of the income-based turnout gap. Using data with official, geocoded precinct election results for the entire nation, the authors examine how precinct-level income is associated with changes in voter turnout between the 2016 and 2020 elections. The authors find a dramatic income gradient in precinct voter turnout …

Personas Issue 3, 2025, Jonathan Maiullo

Personas: Multilingual Creative Writing Journal

No abstract provided.

Tax Trends, Nicholas J. Fiore

Tax Adviser

No abstract provided.

Into The Shadows In Context: A Personal Writing Philosophy, The Fantasy Tradition, And A Novella, Genevieve Mumford

Masters Theses

It is important for the aspiring fantasy novelist to consider why he or she writes. Some personal motivations for writing include the desire to glorify God by mirroring His creativity, utilizing one’s talents, reflecting the Gospel of Christ, creating quality art, and providing clean entertainment. Christian authors should be free to pursue whatever type of writing they wish, knowing that when they focus on the story first, the message will flow into it naturally. In addition, fantasy novelists should study key works in this genre. Fantasy stories generally include otherworldly settings, magic, and the victory of good over evil. J. …

T E C H R E V O L U T I O N - Navigating The Digital Classroom: Challenges And Opportunities Of Online Learning, Wes Poole

Masters Theses

Research indicators confirm that that online learning is complex, with both challenges and opportunities to be found. There are several benefits to online learning, including flexibility, accessibility, personalized learning, and collaboration, but there are also many challenges associated with it. While equity and assessment are still major challenges, technology barriers are still present, engagement is limited, and communication is limited.

There is no doubt that self-directed learning, also referred to as online learning, provides innovative pedagogical approaches and also connects learners all over the world through self-directed learning. As a result, it is imperative that existing challenges be addressed, effective …

Cultural Heritage Informatics: Past, Present, And Future, Tyler Youngman, Sebastian Modrow, Isaac Meth

School of Information Studies - Faculty Scholarship

This paper briefly traces the informational history and contemporary formal establishment of Cultural Heritage Informatics as a distinct domain within IS/LIS, motivated by recent calls for more critical, ethical, and community-oriented interrogations of IS/LIS practices and professional identity. We unpack the conceptual history and disciplinary intellectual geography of cultural heritage and informatics to recount prior interpretations of the field. Next, we articulate a holistic domain-specific informatics model to guide the study of cultural heritage within IS/LIS. We conclude by articulating ethical imperatives and new directions for Cultural Heritage Informatics in research, teaching, and practice.

Beyond Skins: The Far-Flung Impacts Of Sea Otter Fur Capitalism, Callie Pappas

Dissertations and Theses

Sea otter fur was one of the first commodities to shape the broader Pacific Ocean trade. As the trade expanded, it became entwined in a global network of commerce that stretched from St. Petersburg to Alaska, from Boston to Astoria, from London to Nootka Sound, and from Hawaii to Canton (China, modern-day Guangzhou). This paper aims not just to view the trade qua trade, but to go Beyond Skins to tell four stories of impacts of sea otter fur capitalism, in the areas of geopolitics, Indigenous cultures, trade in China, and local ecology. Originating in the Pacific Northwest, the sea …

Territorial Scars: The Legacy Of The Eugenics Movement In Puerto Rico, Audra Desiree Edwards

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The United States-Puerto Rico relationship was strongly impacted by the eugenics movement of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The groundwork for the paternalistic relationship that the United States imposed on the island was set by the Spanish colonization. Once the United States gained the territory in 1898, many assumed that it would progress to statehood through the same process as former U.S. territories. However, the impact of the eugenics concerns over race, population density, and undesirable genetics had affected U.S. imperialism. The lack of white migration to the island, in combination with the perceived undesirable and overly dense …

How Certain Is The Continuity Of The Panama Canal And How Will It Affect The Global Supply Chain Industry?, Enmanuel Rodriguez Correa

Honors Theses

The Panama Canal, a critical artery of global trade, is under mounting threat from prolonged droughts, water scarcity, and evolving geopolitical dynamics, casting doubt on its long-term viability. This thesis investigates the continuity of the Panama Canal’s operations amid intensifying climate change, and assesses the broader implications for the global supply chain. As the canal facilitates approximately 5% of global maritime trade and provides billions in annual cost savings to shipping companies, any disruption poses severe consequences for global commerce, economic stability, and trade logistics.

The analysis begins by situating the canal within its historical and geopolitical context, emphasizing its …

Walking In A Dental Environment With The “Unicdent” Tool Kit—Part 1: A Participatory Tool With Legs!, Prashanti Eachempati, John Martin, Sally Hanks, Mona Nasser

Peninsula Dental School

This case study explores the adaptation of the walking method coupled with auto-photography and photo elicitation, a participatory research tool traditionally used in landscape studies, for application in dental research settings. By presenting the UniCDent toolkit, we demonstrate how this immersive method can enhance understanding of patient experiences in dentistry through sensory engagement and spatial exploration. The toolkit comprises four components: Imagery, Gallery Walk, Quadrant Mapping, and Trade-offs, each designed to facilitate active participation and foster in-depth reflections on the dental environment. Participants navigate a simulated dental clinic, documenting their sensory experiences and social interactions, thereby enriching the data collected. …

Emerging Investigator Series: Are We Undervaluing Septage? Rethinking Septage Management For Nutrient Recovery And Environmental Protection, Kevin Orner, Stetson Rowles, Sara F. Heger, Ben Howard

Civil Engineering & Construction: Faculty Publications

An estimated 20–25% percent of households in the US rely on on-site sanitation via septic tanks to manage their wastewater. Septage management strategies such as land application, treatment at wastewater treatment plants, and treatment at independent septage treatment plants are common regulated and protective processes for managing septage. There can, however, be potentially negative environmental impacts such as groundwater contamination if septic systems are failing or improperly designed. In this perspective, we reimagine septage management at each step of the septage value chain, identify barriers to change, and propose solutions to overcome these existing barriers. Reimagined septage management can take …

Exploring The Gender Pay Gap And Impacts On Retention Of C-Suite Women Executives, Organizational Performance And Profitability, Shelbie Webster

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Gender pay inequity and the lack of representation of women in senior C-suite level roles remain pervasive issues. This behavior results in workers receiving unequal wages and being underrepresented in senior-level C-suite positions, ultimately affecting the organization's bottom line. The purpose of this qualitative, flexible design, single case study was to explore the failure of some organizations to pay senior-level C-suite women comparable to males holding the same title and experience. The location is from the southeast region of the U.S., where employees work for organizations with 1,000 plus employees, resulting in a potential decrease in organizational performance and profitability. …